Her smile faded, and she looked ill at ease. “Erik, I’ve come to offer you a surrender.”
“What?”
“The local commanders have sent me to offer you terms of surrender.”
He laughed. “That’s absurd.”
She reached over and put her hand on his. “It’s not in the least bit absurd, Erik. You’re vastly outnumbered. You can’t win. Your people will die, which isn’t exactly breaking my friends up. But I told you before, there will be losses on their side as well. Not as many, but it will cost them, in casualties, time, resources. That’s still worth it to them to avoid.”
She studied his face. “Erik, they’ve upped the ante. They’re offering you an officer’s commission and a command in their military. Sang-shao, that’s like a colonel.”
“I know what it is.”
“Or—” She looked into his eyes. “Or, you could just go somewhere deep inside the Confederation. They’d give you a nice country house, a generous stipend.” She paused. “We could be together.”
“So now you’re part of the package, too? I thought you weren’t a prostitute.”
She glared at him. “It’s not like that. I’m not part of any package, Erik. I go where I want to go. I’m tired of this cloak-and-dagger thing. It was fun at first. In a way, it still is. But it’s getting old, getting too personal. And… I finally found something worth quitting for.”
“I suppose I should be flattered.”
She suddenly looked angry. “You should be! You’re an idiot, Erik, if you don’t see that.”
“I suppose I do.”
“Then come with me. Let’s leave this war behind.”
“I’d like to. There’s just one problem.”
She frowned.
“I found something worth going on for.”
“I don’t understand.”
He smiled grimly. “No, you don’t. But it’s still not too late to change sides. Come with me. Less safe, less certain, but you’d die of boredom after six months in that country house, anyway. For that matter, so would I.”
“Or we can die in a few days when the Liao forces flatten your base? Do what you want, but I don’t think so. I’m sorry, Erik, but,” she glanced at her watch, “the invasion force has left Georama by now. They’re on their way.”
“That’s good information; thanks.” He stood up and grabbed her wrist. “Come with me.”
She was so surprised that she followed him the first dozen steps toward the door. Then, next to the pool table, she dug in her heels. “Stop! Let me go!”
Erik kept pulling, but out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the merc, Paul, moving rapidly for them. He hadn’t gone for the gun. Yet.
Erik’s hand fell casually onto the pool table.
Paul stormed up. “Let go of her, or I’ll—”
Erik’s hand found the end of the pool cue that he was looking for. He snapped the cue up and swung it as hard as he could. The heavy end landed across the bridge of Paul’s nose. There was a crunch, and he fell backward clutching his face, gushing blood.
Erik leaned down, reached under the merc’s coat, and fished out the Blazer pistol. He hefted the gun, and looked up to see Elsa running for the door. She ran straight into the arms of four SwordSworn security officers. “Take her back to the base,” he said. “Don’t talk to her, don’t listen to her. Put her in isolated custody. She is a suspected spy. Assume that anything she tells you is a lie. I’ll personally question her later.”
He looked back at the merc, still writhing on the floor, mixing a puddle of his own blood in with the discarded peanut shells. Erik hauled back and kicked him in the groin. “As for you,” he said to the cringing heap, “you go back the way you came. And if House Liao doesn’t kill you when you try to cross their lines, you tell them Erik Sandoval says he’ll see them in hell. You got that?”
The merc nodded desperately.
Erik reached into his pocket and pulled out a radio. “Clayhatchee, we’ve got an invasion force incoming.”
Clayhatchee sounded breathless. “Damn, sir, you’re good! The intelligence reports are just coming in. How did you know?”
He frowned. “Bad news travels fast, Clayhatchee. Tell everyone to get ready. The siege of Ravensglade is about to begin.”
19
St. Michael Station, St. Michael
St. Andre system
Prefecture V, The Republic
24 December 3134
Word of the impending invasion traveled fast in Port Archangel. Small boats could be seen leaving the harbor, heading along the coast, or out to sea. A few stragglers appeared at each of the lower tunnel entrances, looking for sanctuary at the base. That was one of the first decisions awaiting Erik when he arrived back at the command bunker.
“Send them up. Put them in one of the unused barracks, under guard just in case Liao tries to send spies or saboteurs that way.” He had a thought. “Also, canvass them and see if you can find one or two who know the local waters and the shipping trade. If Liao is coming by water, some local knowledge might prove valuable.”
The number of personnel in the command bunker had tripled since the last time he was there. The place buzzed with activity, with people literally bouncing off each other as they rushed from place to place. Computers chirped, phones rang, printers whirred. Large holodisplays swirled with colorful patterns that might have passed for somebody’s art project. The room smelled of ozone, hot metal, sweat, and a slight but noticeable stink of fear.
They had, at most, hours. Hovervehicles could arrive at almost any time, and surface shipping would take six to ten hours. Erik’s guess was that, other than probes and scouting by hovervehicles, the big assault would arrive more in that six-to-ten-hour window. Probably shortly before or after dawn.
Intelligence reported several large surface vessels. Unless they had illusions they could take the heavily defended tunnels from below, the ’Mechs would have to come over the cliffs first and try to open the way for either a sea assault, an air assault, or both.
“They’ve got multiple DropShips in low polar orbit,” reported Clayhatchee. “There’s a formation of four in line for a coordinated drop, and five others spread out evenly around the planet. If they keep making orbit-correction burns, reentry opportunities for the formation come about every sixty-eight minutes, and there’s an opportunity for at least one ship to drop in on us about every eleven and a half minutes.”
“Meaning,” said Erik grimly, “that if they take out our air defenses, we won’t have to wait long for company. Are the natural gas ’Mechs deployed according to plan?”
“Yes, sir,” said Clayhatchee. “Standing by.”
The bunker’s thick outer door swung open just enough for one man to enter. Justin Sortek, turning sideways to fit his wide shoulders through, entered the room. There was an air of urgency about him. “Commander Sandoval, you sent for me? I really should be in my ’Mech.”
Erik shook his head. “Sorry, Justin. You’re going to spend this one in command.”
He frowned. “Commander?”
“I need somebody here I can trust to tell me what I need to know, not what I want to hear.”
“Sir, with respect, I’d be more use out there with my MechWarriors.”
Erik nodded. “Possibly you would, Justin, but this time, it’s going to be me in the ’Mech. You’ve got to stay here as my eyes and ears—focus on the big picture, so I can lead these people into battle.”
Sortek said nothing.
“You know it’s true. Without the Duke here, they need a tangible demonstration that the noble line is with them. Without that, your men can’t do what needs to be done.”