Stars & Empire: 10 Galactic Tales (Stars & Empire Box Set Collection) by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: Steel Magnolia Press
Published: 2014-09-15T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 53

In war, it is always the civilian population that suffers worst. The core goal of the Marines, therefore, is to keep war as far from the civilians as possible. Unfortunately, that is not always possible.

- Sergeant Howard Ropes, Wisdom of the Terran Marine Corps.

“This is an emergency broadcast,” the radio said. “There is a combined military and civil emergency in progress. Remain in your homes. Do not attempt to go onto the streets. There is a combined military and civil…”

Leo hit the switch angrily. The radio had been broadcasting the same message for what felt like hours, but he hadn’t needed it to know that something was badly wrong. They had heard the explosions from the direction of Government House and seen pillars of smoke rising up into the air. The sound of shooting, heavy shooting, could be heard in the distance; closer, he was sure he could hear the roar of an angry or terrified crowd.

“Dad,” Mindy said, from where she was lying on the sofa. “What’s going on?”

Leo winced at the terror in her voice. “I don’t know, baby,” he admitted. Admitting that cost pride and he thought of the Marine communicator Captain Stalker had given him, but the last thing the Captain would want was a distraction. Whatever was going on, the Marines had to be in the midst of it. “I just don’t know.”

“They’re attacking the Marines,” Fiona said. Her voice was harsh and broken. She’d been arrested when Carola Wilhelm’s mansion had been raided and even though she’d been released within a day, the experience had still told on her. She’d spent weeks trying to get close to the local power structure, only to see the rising star she’d hitched herself to crash and burn. “The whole city is coming alive and attacking the Marines.”

“I doubt it, mom,” Mandy said. Leo’s oldest daughter was staring out the window with a fascinated expression. Leo wanted to tell her to get under cover, but somehow he couldn’t find the words. He’d connected with his daughter again over the last week and he didn’t want to lose that now. “It sounds more like a Cracker attack.”

Fiona glared at her daughter. “And you would know what a Cracker attack sounds like?”

The noise of two fast-moving helicopters echoed overhead and Leo made up his mind. “We’re going down to the basement,” he said, picking up the radio. It would inform them when it was safe to come out. “We can’t do anything to help, so we’re going to stay out of the way.”

He left his other thought unspoken. If the city was descending into chaos, how long would it be before the lower classes—the ones the Council had held down for their entire lives—started to realise that there was nothing stopping them from attacking the remainder of the upper class? Leo knew that his family weren’t really upper class, not by any reasonable definition of the term, but would that really matter to angry men out for a little revenge while the Civil Guard was distracted? Mandy had almost been raped and murdered once.

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