Debt of War (The Embers of War) by Christopher G. Nuttall

Author:Christopher G. Nuttall [Nuttall, Christopher G.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781542019552
Publisher: 47North
Published: 2020-11-02T16:00:00+00:00

“We made it, Admiral,” Kitty said. “There’s no sign of pursuit.”

“Good.” Kat allowed herself a tight smile. The engagement had been so simple, even though she’d kept her ships on a hair-trigger, ready to cut and run the moment the enemy ships realized they’d been lured into a trap. It was almost a shame she hadn’t been able to keep the other two superdreadnought squadrons with her. She might have been able to pull off a major victory, perhaps even a decisive one. “Set course for Caledonia.”

She closed her eyes for a long moment. She’d left scouts behind with orders to monitor the engagement and report on the final outcome. They’d tell her, she hoped, if she’d done real damage. And then . . . She shook her head. There was no hope of reversing course, of returning to the battlefield and completing the destruction of the enemy fleet. They didn’t know it, she hoped, but she’d emptied her magazines. She barely had enough missiles left to deter a destroyer let alone a superdreadnought. She couldn’t risk another engagement until she had a chance to rearm.

Turning victory into defeat would be embarrassing, she mused as the first reports appeared in her display. The freighter crews had made it through the vortexes and rejoined the fleet, where they were being feted as the heroes of the hour. She’d won a victory without losing a single life. That would have been impressive, if she hadn’t known she was dangerously close to losing the war without firing another shot. We have to rearm before anything else happens.

She brought up the starchart and studied it thoughtfully. Grand Admiral Rudbek was known for being unimaginative, but William wasn’t. He’d be looking for ways to take the offensive as soon as possible. And being unimaginative wasn’t necessarily a bad thing in this situation. The admiral might throw everything he had at Caledonia. That would be bad for the king, even if he won. He’d take such heavy losses that the next engagement would be his last.

Savor the victory, she told herself firmly. You never know when you’ll get another one.

She stood. “Order the fleet to continue on course, evading all sensor contacts,” she said. “I’ll be in my cabin.”

“Aye, Admiral,” Kitty said.

The king will be pleased, Kat thought as she left the CIC. She was sure of it. Hadrian had ordered the strike on Rosebud. But not everyone will agree with him.

She kept her face impassive until she reached her cabin and heard the hatch hiss closed behind her. It was growing harder to convince herself that she’d done the right thing, even though she was fighting for the right side. The king was going to have problems spinning the damage she’d done into something positive. The real victims had been the little industries, not the big corporations. And she’d followed orders. She’d refused to commit actual war crimes before, but now . . .

They weren’t war crimes. It was true. She just didn’t believe it. I hit legitimate targets.

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