Chapter 24: The Other Planet

“The greatest victory is that which requires no battle.”

―Sun Tzu, The Art of War.

The next day passed quickly. Jason kept to his routine. The military cleaned up Mars and prepared for the proposed attack on the other planet. In the early afternoon, Jason went into the kitchen to spend time with Robert, Marie, and the other chefs to discuss menu ideas. He enjoyed the company. There were four additional assistant chefs, many more drones, and other kitchen helpers.

Jason loved the kitchen. The chefs could work within time constraints that most restaurants couldn’t match. The chefs removed food from stasis, heated, cooled, chopped, stirred, and combined it with other ingredients at an astonishing speed. They fried, boiled, broiled, and grilled in milliseconds. The kitchen AI was friendly and devoted to Jason. It was familiar with every recipe that Jason loved and could assist in its production at a rate much envied in Perth, London, Bangkok, Beijing, or even New York City.

Kitchen drones prepared food at high speed under the kitchen AI’s supervision. The kitchen machines were all under the AI’s control. The kitchen could produce a feast for thousands within hours without breaking a sweat. Less complicated meals could be made within fifteen to twenty minutes. Meal menus arrived an hour before dinner for all the relevant senior personnel invited to Jason’s canteen. Robert gave them plenty of time to get there, aware that they were involved with tasks of some magnitude. Officers and crew did everything they could to attend a Jason extravaganza.

Working with the kitchen crew gave Jason enormous pleasure. He enjoyed the discussion with the chefs and kitchen staff, who by this time were intimately aware of not only his variety of foods; but also all his wines, beers, sparkling wines, and his broad selection of brandies, whiskeys, gins, vodkas, and liqueurs. Many spent their leisure time experimenting with the farmers to ferment vegetables to produce relishes or make different alcoholic drinks.

“Jason, you rapidly became attached to Andrea and Linda,” said Marie.

“I am sorry, Marie; I didn’t mean to neglect you.”

“Jason, that is nonsense. They are fine women, and you are doing a wonderful thing for the clones. I knew both women. I hope you will prevent Andrea from becoming the poisonous bitch she became towards the end. She is much more pleasant this time around,” said Marie.

“Jason, it’s time to get a move on! Call your ladies and tell them it’s time to dress for dinner,” called Robert from the other end of the kitchen.”

Jason sneakily snatched a morsel from a tray and popped it in his mouth.

“Jason, you are a naughty boy,” said Marie, giggling. “Keep your hands out of my beautifully prepared trays. Be off with you!”

Jason walked back to his wardroom with a broad smile on his face.

Jason made himself comfortable at the table with Linda on his right and Andrea on his left. Karen DuPree, Matilda’s deputy, sat next to Linda. Janet Malone and Phoebe Harris sat opposite Jason and were smiling. Several more of the clone senior staff joined them. A mixture of ship and clone officers sat at nearby tables. Jason stood and welcomed everyone and told them they would try one of his favorite cuisines from Earth. The kitchen delivered wines and beers to each table.

With Robert’s and the farmers’ help, Jason developed a microbrewery to make boutique beers on the ship. Lauren knew Jason loved his beer and brewed his own for years. She had supplied ingredients in bulk. Jason’s beer had been a roaring success with the ship’s crew. He had a vast supply of wines that would not run out for a century. The horticulture group was successfully growing grapes from ten thousand mature vines Lauren purchased and, following yeast and fermentation guidelines from Lauren, produced wine in both stainless-steel containers and a few thousand oak barrels that she and Robert acquired.

The technologies of brewing beers and wines were well-known in the Imperium. Each planet produced grapes, grains, flavoring herbs, and substances like hops. Jason knew that most of the intellectual resources available to the horticulturalists were devoted to his interests in food and drink, not because it was required but because it was something new and stimulating. They saw an opportunity to make their mark on the vast Empire. They hoped that Jason would return to take possession of his estates. Many had dreams of continuing to work for Jason and making future business efforts a success in an Empire dedicated to excellence, but where food and drink had become uniform and felt homogenized. The Empire had become lazy as vat tissue and replicator technology offered so much convenience and significant cost savings.

Jason was in fine form at dinner and waxed lyrically about each wine. With considerable pleasure, he briefly described Thai culture, the climate of Thailand, the chilies, and the emphasis on fresh food. He encouraged people to sample bits of each course and taste the foods.

“How was Lord Kargo earlier in the cruise?” Asked a clone colonel at her table with some crew and Marine officers.

“We treated him like shit in the beginning. We believed the trash the priests were saying. He was friendly, but we shunned him. It all changed after the pirate attack. We hadn’t given him a fair chance. Shortly after he joined the ship, I remember he came to the gym and sparred with the Marine AI. It gave him a hard time. He never gave up, not once. During the first two weeks, he was so exhausted after the gym that he could barely stand, but he returned the next day. Jason has been generous with his food and drink. His descriptions of the food got us interested. He treats us as if everyone is an important person. For an instant, I forget I am just one cog in a huge empire.”

“What is life like in the Empire?” Asked the colonel.

“It was like he said. We are pieces of a massive machine. The learning machine decides what areas you study, and your physical evaluations and academic results decide what work you can do. We all do twenty or thirty years in the military. Before this trip, we trained and saw little action,” said a Marine major. “Since Jason, it’s been all go. Life is exciting. He is funny and has numerous interesting stories. He can tell you ridiculous things with a straight face. I reckon he is the best leader I’ve ever met. I only recently found out he fought in the special forces in jungles. They fought without armor and no cooling!”

“Where does this food come from?” Asked a clone captain.

“It comes from Jason’s planet. We grow it on the ship and brew Jason’s beer,” answered a special force Marine major from the ship. “We have great food in the Empire, but it’s more of the same after a while. The Empire caters to popular tastes, and we have four massive food companies owned by some of our biggest houses. Over time you get fewer choices. The companies cater to popular preferences and reduce variety. Life can be the same day after day; after only a few hundred years, most have their first crisis. It is a chore to live for hundreds of years. We have lived tens of thousands of years, and so much of life is a boring routine. This campaign is the first exciting thing in my long life. We are doing something worthwhile. Jason allowed us to do something new and different and live differently. He is passionate about growing things, loves cooking and his different foods, and is a brilliant tactician. He did our War College curriculum in months and passed with high distinction. None of us could have done as he did. I saw how he fought on the bridge when the pirates breached our defenses. I’ll give you the holovids; it was mind-boggling. I am also impressed he is doing so much for you guys.”

“I am sure he was an admiral hidden on Earth. I don’t believe he was primitive. I am convinced the empress brought him back because she suspected a plot and needed a top strategist because the Empire could not legitimately do as we’ve been doing. The Empress has an exceptional house intelligence service, and many regard her as brilliant,” said a Marine intelligence captain.

“I don’t believe he was an admiral. He is from the Kargo family, and they produce generals. Our ex-king was a general during the first Mob War. I believe Jason was a general, and they removed his name from all the records when they sent him to Earth. An admiral wouldn’t use a communications drone as a missile, but a general would,” said another Marine captain.

“Do you guys trust him?” Asked another clone intelligence officer.

All the marines nodded.

“What do you guys think of him?” Asked the Marine major.

“So far, he has impressed me. If he can deliver what he promises, I will support him,” said a clone major. “I have no doubt he wants to do as he says, but I don’t know if he is manipulating us to do what he wants rather than what we want.”

“What do you guys want?” Asked a senior crew member.

“We want to fight for a worthwhile cause and live a fulfilling life,” said the major.

“Fair enough, it’s just about what we want,” said a Marine captain.

“I believe he is doing exactly what he promised,” another clone major said. “We’re scheduled to get our DNA improved, thousands are pregnant, and he’s offered us hope for a decent future as legitimate citizens of the empire. If the stories are true, he is a brilliant tactician. He gives entertaining and motivating speeches. He doesn’t act like a snob and cares what happens to us. I trust him and believe he will do far more than we expect. I think there is more to him than we know. If your ship had stumbled on us, you could not make the decisions he has. There is no way things could have proceeded so smoothly without him. Jason is a powerful catalyst. As Lord Kargo, he can legitimately do what few can.”

Jason knew nothing of this conversation or many similar ones around the room. He enjoyed the camaraderie at his table and the magnificent Thai feast Robert and Maria constructed. He was delighted he had a capable and robust team who could help and guide him. People sat back, replete after their meals. Conversations became more muted, focusing on the next few days.

When Jason stood, so did Andrea, Linda, Janet, and Phoebe. They strode to his wardroom. Jason decided to go with the flow. Janet enlarged his bed. Somehow he rose to the task. The woman warmed each other up and encouraged his performance. He, however, only was intimate telepathically with his beloved Linda and Andrea. Jason slept deeply, exhausted from his efforts.

Jason awoke, went to the gym, had breakfast, and joined Linda and Andrea in Central Command.

“What’s happening, and what are those AIs?” he asked.

“Jason, we commissioned our battle AIs some months ago,” said Linda. “We brought them back from Mars after we took the planet. They were in a secure storage room near our quarters. They are excellent AIs. The priests gave them to us—the latest Empire technology. We use them to form a plan; then, our teams meet to break up the project and work with their AIs to break down the orders. Our AIs are a newer version of Patton.

“Like Patton, our AIs take part in meetings. The AIs specialize in all the necessary tasks related to the preparation for war. They can evaluate the likely outcomes of choices and suggest other alternatives. We work with them much as you’ve done with Patton,” said Linda. “For a thousand years, Patton has been used mostly in teaching until you used him differently. I don’t know what level of AI he is.”

“Patton is a battle AI, as far as I know. They worked with him during the last Mob war,” said Jason, “and they kept updating and upgrading him.”

“The battle AIs relieve the planners of most of the hack work because they can be aware of and do so much concurrently. They play a vital role in communications and control during a battle. They are a triumph of tens of thousands of years of design input and refinement. They are masters of the presentation of emerging data before and during battle,” said Linda.

“How do you get on with your AI?” Jason asked.

“My AI has become a close friend in a surprisingly short time. The ship is an advanced AI that controls sensors and fire systems in battle, assisted by an advanced naval battle AI that each Admiral cultivates throughout their career. The ship AI was grown together with the ship and is closely integrated. In the same way, a General or Admiral is allocated an upgradable AI at an appropriate time, and this AI continues with them and develops along with them,” said Linda.

“An Admiral is attached to a flagship, and the AI works in tandem with the ship AI’s other AIs of subordinates and taps into other ships and battle AIs. A General commanding a war theater would use a superordinate AI called a War Command AI to assist their AI and coordinate the command structures. Linda has brought two on board for her use but commissioned only one, leaving the other in reserve,” said Andrea. “My AI links into a large dedicated section of the battleship AI. I can control the war fleet with my AI and the ship AI.”

“How do you use your cyber warfare people during combat?” Jason asked.

“The AI protect themselves well, but we try to infiltrate and disable the enemy AIs before a battle and during it. An AI of a much simpler ilk is part of the armor of every soldier. It integrates as required with communication, shuttles, artillery, missile and cannon systems, and every mode of transport on the ship, ground, or air. If we can, we attempt to disrupt the command structure at the soldier, tank, or gunship level,” explained Linda. “A large corps of cyber warfare people protect us, and another group attacks the enemy. We give them advanced AIs dedicated to their tasks. Each specialty is too complex for an individual, and within the group, there’s sub-specialization.”

Jason, Linda, and Andrea returned to bed a few hours later. In the morning, they attended the gym.

Lucia Pablo was delighted to meet Linda and Andrea and agreed to evaluate them. They did their forms together. Andrea and Linda kept up with the class and knew the movements perfectly. Their actions were fluent and graceful and a pleasure to watch. Lucia allocated sparring partners to them to assess their levels of competency. They were then asked if they had crystals and their specific trans-dimensional powers. Both were impressive and aggressive fighters, quick and agile, with well-developed balance. They were both athletic women. They needed practice but were capable.