“One warship?” Suva asked, eyeing Geary suspiciously.
“Yes, Senator. One. Of course, the fleet was much smaller then, but it was usually a capital ship to show due respect for Home. A battleship or battle cruiser.”
“A battle cruiser?” Navarro nodded, smiling. “Dauntless is a battle cruiser, the flagship of your fleet, and a distinguished ship whose crew has acted heroically and with honor.”
Everyone seemed to be waiting for him to say something, so Geary nodded back. “I would not dispute that characterization of Dauntless or her crew.”
“Or, doubtless, her captain,” Costa sneered.
“A ship large enough,” Sakai added without acknowledging Costa’s jibe at Geary’s private relationship with Desjani, “to carry selected members of our government along on this journey, to ensure all feel adequately represented, and to conduct whatever negotiations the Dancers wish following their arrival at this place called Kansas.”
“A battle cruiser?” Costa asked, her eyes calculating. “And all… interests… would be represented? I might be willing to buy into that.”
“If Senator Costa goes,” Senator Suva said, “I will go as well. That is nonnegotiable.”
“I’m sure we’d all love to have you along,” Costa said with a nasty grin.
“We can agree on this?” Navarro said, as if not believing any agreement could be possible.
“Not just those two,” Senator Unruh insisted.
“Someone acceptable to all,” Navarro agreed. “I know that doesn’t include me. What about Senator Sakai? Would anyone object?”
No one did.
“So, we agree that Senators Sakai, Suva, and Costa will travel on the battle cruiser Dauntless as that Alliance warship escorts the six Dancer ships to Old Earth. The orders to Dauntless will be to escort and protect the Dancer ships, unless the Dancers unexpectedly act in a hostile manner, in which case Dauntless will protect Old Earth and the rest of Sol Star System. In addition, Admiral Geary will go along, as will Emissary Rione—”
“Her?” Suva demanded. “Why?”
“To talk to the Dancers,” Unruh said, sounding tired again. “What about the other? Charban?”
“The Dancers prefer to communicate with both of us,” Rione said.
Geary knew the Dancers actually preferred communicating with Charban, but since he wanted Rione along, he simply nodded as if in agreement.
“It is better to have two intermediaries,” Sakai noted. “One could become fatigued by constant demands. Both Rione and Charban should come.”
“But not as emissaries!” Suva insisted.
“No. There is no need of that when representatives of the grand council will be present. They will need a title. Ambassador? Speaker?”
“Envoy,” Navarro suggested.
“That is acceptable to me.”
Suva and Costa gave reluctant agreement as well, followed by the rest of the senators present.
Navarro smiled encouragingly at Geary. “That’s decided, then. Make your preparations for this journey. I envy you, I admit. There has been no luxury for journeys to Old Earth in recent decades despite the hypernet gate the Alliance constructed there decades ago. You, Dauntless, and her crew, deserve the chance to see the Home of our ancestors, and the chance to rest after your arduous mission outside human space and back through Syndic space. This trip to Old Earth should give you all a well-earned break from the blood and fire you have faced for far too long.”
After Geary and Rione had left the room and were facing Timbale and Desjani once more, Rione turned to Geary. “Do you believe in jinxes, Admiral?”
He made an uncertain gesture in reply. “I believe that sometimes they seem real. Why do you ask?”
“Because I wish that Senator Navarro had not made that last statement. It is never good to tempt fate.”
Fourteen
“I’ve been officially notified that I and my Marines are to remain attached to your fleet until further notice,” General Carabali said.
Geary’s smile told her how he felt about that. “I’m glad to hear it. General, I’ve already authorized every ship in the fleet to grant stand-down liberty and leave, letting as much of their crew as possible take as much leave as possible. You are authorized to apply that same policy to the Marine units attached to the fleet.”
“Thank you, Admiral, though I understand that policy will not include the Marine detachment aboard Dauntless?”
“Unfortunately, no, it will not,” Geary said.
“They’ll have a special task to carry out, anyway. Old Earth is also Home for the Marines. The detachment will be responsible for a small ceremony marking that.”
After ending the call with Carabali, Geary looked ruefully at his own message queue. The Marines weren’t the only ones who wanted some special ceremony or commemoration when Dauntless went to Old Earth. The requests for special events were coming in right and left.
His stateroom had felt oddly quiet of late even though Dauntless was trembling with anticipation of this journey. The crew’s disappointment at not going on leave to Kosatka, where most of them had come from, had been more than offset by the excitement of seeing Home. The crew’s stock on Kosatka, already high due to Dauntless’s being Black Jack’s flagship, would be astronomical after they had personally visited Sol Star System.
That train of thought led Geary to wondering why he hadn’t heard from Tanya today. He called her stateroom.
“Good afternoon, Admiral.” Desjani greeted him with a brief smile.
“I’m sorry we haven’t gotten that day off yet.”
“Maybe we’ll get it on Old Earth. We can visit someplace famous, like Tranquility Base Site.”
“That sounds romantic,” Geary said.
She didn’t rise to the humor, frowning at her desk. “There’s a lot to do. Dauntless has a lot of battle scars. That’s all right. She earned them honorably. But everything else has to be perfect.”
“I seem to recall someone lecturing me on not seeking perfection,” Geary said. “Dauntless got priority on replacement of aging systems, so she’s practically as good as new, and even before that she was the best battle cruiser in the fleet.”
“She’s the best battle cruiser, anywhere, anytime,” Desjani corrected him, then frowned again. “Can you afford to leave Smythe in charge of overseeing the fleet’s repair work while we’re gone?”
“Admiral Timbale will be watching Captain Smythe. Tanya, are you sure there’s nothing else besides getting ready for this trip? I know it’s not pleasant thinking of having those three senators on board, but you won’t have to interact with them much.”
“I won’t if my prayers are answered.” Desjani buried her face in both hands for a moment, then looked up at Geary. “I need to ask a favor.”
“What is it?”
She was uncharacteristically hesitant. “There’s someone coming aboard to see me, someone who came to Varandal because she hoped the fleet would still be here. She wants to see me… and I can’t deny her that. I know she would like to see you as well. Can you make time?”
“Tanya, time is one of the things I have in shortest supply, but if there is anyone who has a priority claim on my time, it’s you. Even though there are a million things I have to be doing, and half of them should have been done yesterday.” If this was what running a fleet required, what would trying to run the Alliance as a dictator entail? Anyone who really thought about it would never want such a job.
But then, Admiral Bloch hadn’t struck Geary as a deep thinker.