Chapter 59

The Ganvil naval shipyard, Naval base and the orbiting stations were coming apart under sustained fire from the 13^th and 25^th Fleets. Throughout the system the Hegemony desperately tried to stem the tide of the onslaught of the Allied fleets and their carefully planned, if relentless, encroachment on all the various works that studded the system. The Hegemony’s attempted defence was not made any easier by the Imperial and Melanoqui fleets with their enhanced hyperbeam weaponry which could engage and take out the defenders capital ships before they got within range. Add to this, the swarms of heavy fighters taking out the planet’s fixed defences and their smaller vessels were turning the battle into an utter nightmare for the woefully inexperienced Hegemony Supreme Oramiral in charge of the Ganvil system’s defences. Never before had he fought in a real battle, simply exercises based upon battles the Hegemony had fought in the distant past. The efficient and brutal tactics used by the Empire had been suppressed by the Hegemon’s Naval Command as, under orders from the Hegemon himself, they went out of their way to pretend the battle of Vircon and the Hegemony’s first defeat by the Empire had never happened. Whilst the reduction of the almost defenceless planets of Pillin and Trarr were being crowed about to the highest heavens. Worse though was the technical superiority of some of the Imperial weapons, including the huge Superdreadnoughts, which appeared able to take down a Hegemony vessel with a single shot and who were utterly determined not to allow the Hegemony to close with them on the Hegemony’s terms.

Not that the Hegemony fleets were giving up. All knew the price of failure ... or rather what would happen to their families. Yet it was to no avail. The fleets taking down the outer works had now turned and joined the fleets taking the inner defence guard apart as they’d done with the Orichalcum, Topaz and Indigo Principates.

“Send a message to Naval command,” the Supreme Oramiral ordered the increasingly subdued command staff in the defence centre. “Imperial fleets are reducing system defences and defenders to annihilation. Will fight to the last ship but it is clear we have lost.”

“Message sent; though, due to Imperial jamming, it is unsure if Naval Command will receive it,” the senior Comms Officer replied.

“I know,” the Oramiral nodded. “I know.”

“Lost?” the Hegemon almost screeched. “How could we lose to these barbarians? We fought behind the most powerful fixed defences in creation guarded by invincible fleets! How could we lose?”

“Those defences and fleets may have been state of the art even as recently as a hundred years ago, but it is clear that the Empire now has better,” High View Yit of the Way of Yellow Sunlight corrected him.

“Silence! Guards, take him away for his ... his heresy!”

“Most Radiant of the Heavens,” Kli interjected. “Arresting Yit does not change the truth. This Empire and their allies have superior weapons and tactics. We cannot defeat them!”

“Liar!”

“I do not lie!” Kli raged back, realising he was likely a dead man walking now. “You were warned of your folly by Voice of Truth Nild and now it has come to pass. Our fleets defending Ganvil have been destroyed; Ganvil is about to be invested; our vassal states elsewhere are rebuffing our commands for aid and assistance and, in the case of the Diadem Republic, likely surrendering to the Empire and ceding two worlds to them in compensation for our destroying two Imperial worlds! How many do you think the Empire will take off us for actually destroying their worlds? You, because of your vain pride, have utterly destroyed the tranquillity of the Starlit Hegemony!”

“How dare you! Guards!” the Hegemon spluttered.

“He is correct, O Most Radiant of the Heavens,” Senior Commander Hirk of the Lightning Blue Depths interjected. “It is you who have failed the Hegemony. I have received word that the Carnelian, Malachite and Amber Principates have declined our orders to go to the aid of Ganvil, citing the need to defend their own territories against the Empire. Others are likely to follow.”

“I am the Hegemon! I will be obeyed!”

“You are no longer the Hegemon,” came a soft, but firm, voice from the doorway.

“You? You are banished!” the Hegemon screeched as Nild stood there, holding a diamond rod of supreme authority.

“I’m afraid, brother, that the Court itself has decided that you are no longer Hegemon by voting for the removal of your godhood. Apparently they value their own hides above your lunacy,” Nild replied coolly. “Guards, escort my brother to his summer palace where his personal physician awaits to ... soothe his stress.”

The two silent guards stepped forward to lay hands on the fulminating former Hegemon. “I am a God!” he screeched as they began to drag him from the room.

“A true God would not have risked the Hegemony for his personal vainglory,” Nild commented dispassionately.

“They trespassed on the Starlit Hegemony!”

“For which they should have been admonished, you utter fool.”

“The Hegemony does not admonish! I punish.”

“And for that we started a war in which we slaughtered billions of innocents and now face the wrath of a foe that we cannot defeat.”

“We are undefeatable!”

“You imbecile! We have just lost our fleets in Ganvil and the other Principates are refusing to support you!”

“They are cowards!”

“They fought well, brother, with what they had.”

“Do not be a fool, they lost.”

“You never could grasp the obvious, could you? They fought bravely and lost, because this enemy were better. And now this enemy are going to destroy the Hegemony unless we can find a way to negotiate them out of this.”

“How will they destroy us?”

“Because you picked a fight with them and killed their people. You caused barbarians to raid their Allies and then kept them raiding when the time to hide the evidence came. You opened the Hegemony to their righteous wrath and caused the destruction of our fleets; and all because a single scout caught your crimes,” Nild replied scornfully. “Take him away.”

The former Hegemon was dragged out still screeching, but ignored, by the guards as the Command Group gazed at Nild in suspicion.

“What now?” Kli asked.

“Now we speak to the Empire and see what we can do to assuage their justified ire,” Nild replied coolly.

The Peace Treaty was humiliating for the Diadem Republic. It cost them two of their worlds, Asha and Sanctify, closest to the Imperial border and gave the Empire direct access to the Gullen Realm without having to pay custom dues. This was along with a massive indemnity in interstellar credits, the medium of exchange between various Realms and backed by the Arconian banking system along with other trading Realms such as the Gullen.

The Republic itself was currently in a state of unrest as several of its worlds were essentially in revolt over the terms of the repayments and the massive tax burden now heading their way for the next five Imperial years.

The ‘revenge’ fleet was now moving through the Republic to the Chancery of Klith to make its displeasure felt. Although they were not expecting to do any fighting as they’d already received an apology from the Chancery and an offer of compensation, explaining they acted under duress from the Hegemony and feared for their continued existence if they’d reported the passage of the Hegemony fleets.

As a result, the extra medics were no longer required and we had transferred to a passenger liner to return to Vreekoos for a short stayover for some and for the Security Group a transfer to the Imperial flagship, Empire’s Wrath, and a meeting with Amantil and Herrick before heading off to Ganvil and a meeting requested by the new regime running the Hegemony.

I had been informed also that Kirim and the children were on board and so I’d get to see my family. Hiqua’s eldest daughter, Minno, was also on board and had brought Hiqua’s son, Plenna, with her, though Hiqua’s husband, Vroot, had refused to travel.

“Welcome back, all of you,” Amantil greeted us as we debarked the transfer shuttle. She was only just able to be heard above two loud cries of ‘Daddy!’ as I was hit by two human cannonballs.

“A pleasure to be back,” Cass replied for us all as I was mobbed by my kids, followed straight away by Kirim. Hiqua was getting similar treatment from her children.

“Glad to see some people’s priorities are right,” Amantil commented, grinning as she observed the reunion scenes.

“Sorry, Serenissima,” a slightly contrite Kirim replied.

“No worries, Kirim. I’m looking forward one day to my own kids doing it,” Amantil nodded. “Well done, Orliantomina Cassire, in making the Empire’s position known to the Diadem Republic,” she finished more formally.

“Thank you, Serenissima. It was not easy as, at times, it warred with my nature.”

“I know, Cass, I know,” Amantil replied and gave her a hug. “It was the right thing to do and the Empire’s position is now known on the borders of our realm closest to the Gullen.”

“We may very well have wrecked their Realm.”

“They permitted the murder of over five billion of my subjects by not giving us a warning, Cass.”

“I know. That’s why I was so harsh. But, suspect if they fall into civil war, they may well suffer more.”

“I agree, which is why, if they ask, we’ll absorb them into the Empire. The problem for them being that we suspect they’re a vassal state of the Hegemony and fear leaving that rule more than our rule attracts them.”

“Our dealings with the Hegemony may well reduce their fear,” Herrick suggested.

“True, the Hegemony have asked to meet. Apparently they deposed the Hegemon who caused the ... issues. However, I suspect they’ll find my terms unpalatable,” Amantil answered. “And that’s before the Regnat Alliance get involved as they have deaths in the billions as well, due to the Ravagers.”

“So where are we meeting them?” I asked.

“Duvall, it’s a white dwarf system and uninhabited, hence unlikely to be a trap. Though there will be one fleet present,” Amantil answered.

“This Hegemon will be there?” Cass asked.

“Apparently so.”

“So where will you talk? It seems unlikely he’ll expose himself directly to talks here as technically they haven’t surrendered.”

“I hired the Emirate starliner Sultan’s Paradise as it had been visiting Vreekoos for a refit.”

“Neutral crew, neutral territory,” I nodded.

“Yes, the owner was pleased to pick up a nice profit to pay off the refit.”

“Is that one fleet each, or one fleet in total?” Honack asked.

“They never specified, though I’m taking half the 12^th and making up the rest from our Allies and friends,” Amantil replied. “Oh, and swapping out a few of our older Dreadnoughts and replacing them with the Superdreadnoughts.”

“I suspect they be impressed ... even if they won’t admit it,” I chuckled.

“I do hope so, Dave,” she replied with a smile. “Though what I’m really hoping for is intimidation.”

The voyage took two days, a lot of which I just spent with Kirim and the kids in the specially built ‘Imperial’ suite that had been designed to act as part of Amantil’s personal quarters It was as luxurious as a starliner, and a hell of a lot better than the destroyer Kirim and I had once travelled on.