Saga of the Seven Suns 06 - Metal Swarm by Anderson Kevin J

Author:Anderson, Kevin J. [Anderson, Kevin J.]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Science-fiction
ISBN: 9780316021753
Publisher: Orbit
Published: 2008-06-01T08:02:55+00:00

Fifty-seven

King Peter

When the expected EDF ships arrived at Theroc, the Confederation was ready for them. The ten Mantas were stopped cold in space, and now Peter waited to see what the grid admiral would do next.

Inside the white-walled throne room, newly installed screens displayed images from the orbital surveillance satellites Roamer captains had placed around Theroc. In the frantic days after Nahton's warning, King Peter had asked the Roamers to install new technological hardware, preparing the worldforest and Theron settlements against a militarily superior force. Clan engineers had descended in a rush to make as many improvements as they could manage in the limited time available. The fungus-reef city would have to forego aesthetics for now. Even the green priests understood that.

The Confederation had scraped together many vessels to make a convincing stand at Theroc. The Osquivel shipyards had responded with remarkable productivity, but Peter did not expect a handful of vigilantes to fulfil the role of an official space navy.

Nevertheless, the show of force was quite impressive, possibly enough to make Basil think twice.

Carrying green priests, Roamer scouts had set up a picket line around the Theron system, scattered ships circling farther and farther out. The moment the ten threatening Mantas appeared, the outlying picket vessels sounded an instantaneous alarm through telink, alerting the King hours before a traditional electromagnetic signal could have arrived.

Newly armed Roamer ships positioned themselves all around the planet, ready for a fight. The worldtree battleships moved to intercept the Mantas well before the rapidly decelerating EDF cruisers caught their first glimpse of what was waiting for them. Even Jess Tamblyn and Cesca Peroni took their small wental vessel into orbit, like a supercharged teardrop.

The admiral was quite surprised.

Peter and Estarra sat together before a transmitter. Because of her swollen belly, it was hard for Estarra to sit very close to it. OX stood nearby, as if reprising his role as a formal ambassador to the Hansa. One of the Roamer engineers opened a channel for the King using the standard EDF command frequency. This is King Peter, the rightful leader of the Confederation. Identify yourself. Why have you brought this unauthorized military fleet into our space? We demand that you withdraw immediately.'

When the screen cleared to show a deceptively maternal image, Peter frowned. 'Admiral Willis, I did not expect you, of all of my commanders, to take part in this nonsense. I'm not surprised the Chairman would pull such a stunt, but why have you turned against your King?'

'Not my idea, King Peter, but I have my orders.' She was struggling to maintain her composure.

'Those orders do not come from a legitimate authority.'

'That's debatable. You've caused quite a stir back on Earth.

Chairman Wenceslas has ordered me to impose order and put an end to your illegal rebellion.'

Queen Estarra leaned toward the transmitter. 'And how exactly do you expect to do that?'

'I'm still working on that part.' Willis was obviously flustered. 'To tell the truth, I wasn't anticipating such an impressive show of force. You've been busy since our last surveillance images were taken.

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