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

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

Seventy-five

Admiral Sheila Willis

Willis's weapons officer stared at his targeting screens, his brown eyes wide and anxious. 'Admiral, should I open fire? That ship's getting away.'

'Of course not. It's just a trader. Doesn't even look like a Roamer ship.'

'But… but Admiral, it's seen us.'

'So what?'

'But - but then everyone will know we've come to Rhejak. They might sound an alarm, spread the word.'

'Everyone's got to know sooner or later. I thought that was the whole idea - to get the rest of the colonies quaking in their boots. We came here to impose order and reassert Hansa control. That's what I intend to do. I'm not going off on a wild goose-chase after one ship. Whoever's aboard probably already wet their pants when they saw us.'

'Yes, Admiral,' the weapons officer said sheepishly.

Conrad Brindle stepped over to the comm station, brisk and all business. 'Did that ship send any transmissions before they left?'

'Yes, sir - a message down to the surface. A warning about us.'

Willis stood from her command chair and stretched. 'Then prepare our dropships. We'd better move quickly or this'll be a mess.' As before, when she'd guided her ten Mantas to Theroc, she felt uneasy about the mission. 'Those folks down there are already used to the EDF. We'll just remind them they're still well-loved members of our one, big, happy family.'

Brindle lowered his voice. 'Don't you think that's somewhat naive, Admiral?'

'Yes, I do. But I prefer to call it optimism until it's proven otherwise.' General Lanyan would have gone in with guns blazing to intimidate the poor inhabitants, but in these situations she followed a policy of non-aggression unless it was warranted.

Leaving her exec in command, she went to her quarters to change into a formal uniform, white with dark blue. She quickly ate another ham-and-cheese sandwich that was waiting for her (just in case the Rhejak islanders did not throw a welcome feast). After touching up her hair and checking the cuffs and pleats on her uniform, she was ready to join the initial wave of dropships.

Soldiers scrambled to their stations. Belowdecks, teams rushed to the landing bay, gathering the weapons and supplies needed for a full occupation force. Willis climbed aboard one of the twenty-seven dropships and gave orders to launch.

Though the ride down was bumpy, she kept her cool and stared directly into the transmission screen as she introduced herself. The fleeing trader had already blown their element of surprise. 'Since Rhejak has always been a Hansa colony, we have come to offer our assistance. By placing you under the supervision of the Earth Defence Forces, we will help you distribute your products to the Hansa, where they are most desperately needed.' She ended with what she thought was a charming smile. She knew it was pure bullshit.

The explosion of insults and angry retorts across numerous channels told her that her optimism was misplaced. She sighed and decided to confront the issue head-on. 'All right, I can see you're not happy about this. Tell my ships where we can go, and I'll talk it out with you face-to-face.

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