Basil considered, then said, “Two hours ago we received a series of log drones launched from Admiral Diente’s Manta. I dispatched him to Pym in hopes of opening a dialog with the Klikiss there, but they destroyed the ship and killed everyone. Another failed mission.” He seemed more disappointed than shocked or outraged.

Lanyan struggled for words. “You sent Admiral Diente toPym? Totalk with the bugs?”

“I had hoped our two races could find common ground, but the Klikiss have no interest in negotiation. Therefore, the Hansa will no longer attempt to negotiate.” He continued to pace. “On your first mission to Pym, you fled in terror and shame. Now you can make up for that.”

Lanyan went pale. His prior experience with the Klikiss had been the most frightening event in his life, and he maintained a knee-jerk hatred of the bugs. He already knew what the Chairman was going to suggest.

“We must not let the Klikiss believe they can treat official Hansa ambassadors in such a barbaric way. You, General, will lead our appropriate response. Firm, clear, and incontrovertible.”

With the rattle and hum all around them, Lanyan managed to cover his gasp. He didn’t dare show outright fear in front of the Chairman. “And what exactly is our appropriate response, sir?”

“Why, a military one, of course. Teach them a lesson. Take a battle group to Pym and eradicate the Klikiss. Sirix promises that the new Juggernaut will be ready within days.” The Chairman smiled. “After you have achieved that victory, we can discuss your possible return to a position of trust. Then we’ll see about squashing the Confederation resistance. You’d like a chance to get revenge on Admiral Willis, wouldn’t you?”

Lanyan nodded automatically, though he was still dealing with the idea of facing a planetful of Klikiss warriors. The Chairman strolled out of the factory toward the waiting transport that would take him to the Hansa HQ. “My plan, General, is to have the black robots fight the Klikiss for us. Ideally the two will wipe each other out, though we may have to make some sacrifices of our own.”

Lanyan was uncomfortably aware that the Chairman might considerhim one of those potential “sacrifices.”

63

Sullivan Gold

Chairman Wenceslas was not in a forgiving mood when he summoned Sullivan to the Hansa HQ. “I was astonished to learn you were back on Earth, Mr. Gold. Didn’t you think I might be interested to hear from you firsthand? And as soon as possible?”

It wasn’t difficult for Sullivan to act confused about the uproar. “I had quite an ordeal, sir, and I haven’t even begun to get my life back together.”

“You have had more than long enough.” The Chairman sat down behind his desk. “I know exactly when you returned.”

Sullivan glanced out the penthouse windows at the gorgeous skyline of the Palace District, impressed by the view from the top of the towering Hansa pyramid. Noticing his distraction, Chairman Wenceslas swept his fingers across a control to opaque the windows. Now they appeared to be in a shielded bunker, and for some reason the Chairman seemed more content.

Sullivan sighed, then told his story. “Sir, a few of us escaped when the hydrogues destroyed our cloud harvester at Qronha 3. We rescued many Ildiran workers and returned them to Ildira, where we were pressed into service, helping outfit the Solar Navy to defend Earth — successfully, I might add.”

He saw no softening of the other man’s expression, but he pressed on. “Sir, lately my family’s suffered a great deal of financial hardship, and the Hansa reneged on the contractual terms of my employment. I believe I deserve some compensation.”

The Chairman remained sitting stiffly at his desk. “That’s what you believe, is it? I disagree, Mr. Gold. You were in charge of that extraordinarily expensive facility, which is now completely destroyed, along with its entire stockpile of ekti. I would say the Hansa’s financial losses far outweigh your own.”

Sullivan had been an administrator and a negotiator long enough to know not to let his irritation escalate an already tense situation. “At the very least please return the reward the Mage-Imperator gave me. I earned that.”

“Currency from an enemy empire will do you no good, Mr. Gold. In fact, even possessing it casts suspicion on you. It’s a good thing that we took it into safekeeping. We wouldn’t want there to be any misunderstandings. Colonel Andez and her cleanup crew sometimes get overly zealous.”

Sullivan had been watching the newsnets, and more than once he heard glowing reports of how the cleanup crew was cracking down on anyone whose words “shattered the morale of our brave fighters.” They were most incensed about Freedom’s Sword. According to the reports, the “enemy” took great comfort from the Hansa’s internal strife, though Sullivan doubted the Klikiss were listening to human newsnets.

After the cleanup crew’s outrageous illegal search and seizure of their townhome, Lydia had gotten herself into a high dudgeon, and made sure to tell her family, friends, and neighbors. “How can we let them get away with that?” Lydia would say. “And if I don’t complain about it, then the next person won’t complain about it, or the next. And those stormtroopers will just walk all over our rights. I don’t intend to just sit back and let that happen. Not on my watch.” Sullivan often had to drag her back inside the house just to keep her quiet. Her heart was in the right place, even if she was dead set on getting into trouble.

Now the Chairman lectured Sullivan. “With the hydrogue war over, the Hansa must become more self-sufficient. We need secure and independent supplies of stardrive fuel.”

Sullivan dreaded what the man was about to suggest. “And you want me to manage another Hansa cloud harvester? Surely you have a better candidate.”

Chairman Wenceslas frowned at the interruption. “No, not another Hansa cloud harvester. You may have heard of General Lanyan’s recent successful resource-gathering mission in Roamer-held territory? He took possession of a group of skymines at Golgen and relieved them of an extensive supply of ekti. Now that their defenses are broken, I intend for you to administer those facilities under the auspices of the Hansa.”

Sullivan had to sit down without being invited to do so. “I’m not trained to manage a hostile workforce. That’s a military job, and I’m just a simple administrator.” He was so upset that he no longer felt cowed. “The Roamers would sabotage the process line every chance they got. I’m not inclined to do it, Mr. Chairman.”

Basil Wenceslas looked at him in disbelief, as if no one had ever turned him down before. “I urge you to reconsider.” His voice held a clear threat.

But Sullivan had had enough of coercive tactics, the cleanup crew’s intimidation, the freezing of his financial assets. He had faced a hydrogue armada that had destroyed his cloud-harvesting facility right out from under him. He could survive the disapproval of Chairman Wenceslas. He stood and went to the door of the office. “Sorry, Mr. Chairman. You’ll have to find someone else. I’ve retired, and my decision is final.”