“We can put that issue aside for the moment,” I said, finally. It would probably never be solved. “Are there any other issues?”
“War crimes,” the Heinlein delegate said, firmly. “We want those UN personnel guilty of war crimes extradited to face courts on Heinlein.”
“Now hang on a moment,” the Earth delegate said. He’d just sat and watched with a smile while the Colonists argued over reparations. I could appreciate his feelings. Nothing, but anti-UN feeling bound the colonies together. If they fell out over this, the UN might have a chance to recover in peace. “I have a long list of complaints about war crimes by your people against ours.”
He accessed his terminal and began to recite a formidable list. “Attacking under cover of a white flag,” he said. “Shooting surrendered prisoners out of hand. Use of illegal chemical and biological weapons against UN Infantrymen. Failure to wear a uniform while on combat operations. Attacks on unarmed supporting personnel…”
“If you hadn’t invaded our planet,” the Heinlein delegate snapped, “we would not have to use such methods.”
“They remain war crimes,” the Earth delegate said, amused. “Do you claim that you are immune from the charges you wish to bring against us?”
He smiled at me. “Do you intend to enforce the laws against us both, or just Earth?”
I thought fast. This was an issue that I needed to settle, somehow, but who was guilty? Almost anything could be counted as a war crime under UN Regulations, yet they were right; Heinlein had committed acts just as bad. It was a nightmare. The definition of a war crime itself was vague.
“That, too, is an issue that will be handled later,” I said. “We will set up a tribunal to try war criminals after we define a war crime, but yes, we will insist that it be applied equally to all sides.”
“And yet you punished some by sending them to Botany,” the Earth delegate pressed. “Why did you do that?”
“They were mainly clearly guilty,” I said, remembering the Political Officers and other oxygen thieves. I’d had them all shipped to Botany, where Andrew was now running the planet, although that wouldn’t last. There was little economic sense in a prison world and I rather suspected that we would discontinue it soon enough. “The remainder of suspect war criminals will be addressed later.”
I looked around the chamber. “You have to make a decision,” I said, finally. “Will you accept our terms, or not?”
I hadn’t given them much of a choice and they knew it. There was some haggling, mainly about what kind of defences each planet would be allowed to have, and what rights Fleet commanders would have over local defence units, but they’d known that they needed to accept my terms or I might make them harsher. They’d play along, try and see how many recruits they could give me, and hope that they could moderate my behaviour in time. I had never wanted to be Emperor of the Human Sphere, but I was, in all, but name.
“They agreed, then?” Kitty asked, when I finally joined her and the Senior Chief in her cabin. It felt odd to be wearing an Admiral’s uniform — and I’d had to accept that I’d never command again — but there was little choice. Young as I was, I had to look impressive to the delegates, or they wouldn’t take me seriously. “We have our agreements?”
I nodded, looking up at the holographic image of the Human Sphere orbiting above my head. We’d have the bases and facilities we needed to transform the remainder of the UNPF into a completely different organisation — we might even cause peace to break out, which would be ironic! I’d written most of the Fleet Protocols myself in hopes of preventing any further involvement in planetary affairs, but we’d certainly permit most of the other conflicts to burn themselves out. It wasn’t pleasant, but if we intervened we’d need an army, and then we’d grow into the habit, and then…
We’d be the UN, again.
“We have what we wanted,” I said, remembering the dead and dying on Heinlein. Once I’d set Fleet up, I privately resolved to submit myself to a Heinlein court to stand trial for my deeds. I’d started repairing the damage the UN had caused, but I couldn’t repair my soul. “The rest…”
I shrugged and looked over at the Senior Chief. “Tell me something,” I said. It was something that had been bothering me over the last few months. “Who really founded the Brotherhood?”
The Senior Chief smiled thinly, but his voice was serious. “Does it matter now?”
“I think so,” I said, slowly. I had learned to dislike mysteries in my time. They tended to lead to unpleasant surprises. “That’s the one puzzle that I was never able to solve. I met others from the Brotherhood, but no one seemed to be in control.”
“No one ever was,” the Senior Chief said. “It wasn’t designed to be anything other than a way to share information that hadn’t been…tainted by the UN. It even kept people from identifying most of the other members, just to keep the rest of them safe. And, with that in mind, who do you think founded it?”
“The Captain,” I said, slowly. It had to be Captain Harriman. Who else would have wanted to create something that could be used to share information, but not overthrow the United Nations? The thought reminded me of one of my new Captains. Captain Hatchet was old, but I had no doubt that she’d make a superb commanding officer. I just hoped she’d agree to take on the Academy in a few years, wherever that ended up. We couldn’t keep training Cadets on the Moon. “Did he know…?”
“I don’t know,” the Senior Chief admitted, “but I think he would be proud of you.”
Appendix One: The Treaty of Unity
Article I: This treaty marks the solemn agreement between the United Nations of Earth (hereafter referred to as the UN), the Colonies and the former United Nations Peace Force (hereafter referred to as Fleet). All three parties agree that the treaty will be binding on them in perpetuity, barring only contact with hostile non-humans.
Article II: The War between the UN and the Colonies is hereby terminated. All UN garrisons on the planets will be withdrawn under Fleet’s supervision as soon as practical. All parties agree to forfeit rights to reparations. The issue of war crimes and trials are to be settled by arbitration at a later date, but all sides acknowledge that failing to come to an agreement does not mean the resumption of the war.
Article III: The UN hereby acknowledges that its authority extends only over Earth, Luna, and those settlements in the Solar System that continue to accept UN jurisdiction. The Colonies likewise acknowledge that they possess no jurisdiction outside their own systems. The precise governing structure of the Colonies is an internal matter only.
Article IV: The UN and the Colonies agree to develop no force capable of projecting interstellar power, defined here as jump-capable military starships. They also agree to ban the development of biological weapons, or the further development of nuclear weapons designed for use against ground targets. Fleet will enforce this ban through all necessary means, up to and including punitive strikes against the offending planet.