"This," Captain Feng solemnly began, "is a, frankly, unwinnable fight."
My other subordinates winced but couldn't refute his point. It was hard to do so given what was stacked against us. The Seventh Expeditionary had been assigned a singular capital ship, the bare minimum naval asset for any task force. The Fourteenth?
They were a fleet, meaning multiple battlegroups. Forget just a single frigate, they probably had at least a dozen battleships, each a flagship for any noteworthy officer within their structure. That wasn't even counting the surely far more numerous carriers within their structure.
So yeah. If we were an ant, then this was the boot coming to stomp on us. That much was obvious.
Still, I didn't call for this meeting to just spout doom and gloom. I wanted to at least know what the status of our armed forces were. "So too was aiding Erica and First to Draw at a first glance, but we triumphed then," I lightly chided, making sure not to step over into scolding or disciplinary. Not when the man had a very poignant point. "I think it's yet too early to be calling it quits. Let's at least take stock of what we do have."
He accepted the rebuke with a slight nod, then looked around. It was Lieutenant Nasir who finally spoke first, hesitantly. "Well...we now have two ships. Half-Measureof course, but I'd like to say that La Azul is also fully functional!" they exclaimed with a little bit of hope. "Repairs are finished, so it's ready to sortie at any time. The crew's also since acclimatized, I think."
"That is true. I finally picked a few promising officer candidates to helm her," Feng remarked with a nod. "The trials are very promising, to the point where I could call it combat ready."
"So we have two capital ships," I put out there, earning nods from the assembly at the phrasing. I very much avoided mentioning that these were frigates, the lowest rank of the very broad weight range. "In addition, unlike the Fourteenth Fleet, we have ground forces that I doubt the Vice Admiral have."
It was admittedly a bit of a stretch, but it was something that Veronica and I had pieced together as possibility in preparation for this meeting. Ibutsu's recording had hinted at how army commands don't fully subscribe to him, only choosing to align with and cooperate on whatever planets they were upon. It was that classic separation of army and navy command in the larger scale, something that my forces did also have. However, it definitely was of far lesser severity and enforcement owing to our relative smaller size.
In contrast, when dealing at the scale of entire full armies and fleets, then said segregation was far more clear with a divide between commands. The soldiers on the ground didn't want to be told orders by somebody sitting in orbit; the sailors above didn't want to be told how to do their job by somebody who only saw a portion of the sky. With the collapse in a high command structure following the dissolution of the Half Committee, the two side divorced and were now having a custody battle over the orphaned logistics branch too.
Well, what was more relevant was the fact that Ibutsu could probably only 'request' his army allies to join him, if at all. To which I strongly doubted any would, probably more preoccupied with ruling their worlds however they see fit. If they even had a fraction of my own workload, then they'd probably be still drowning in trying to establish their own nations, perhaps.
For the moment, I didn't want to think about if they instead decided to rule otherwise.
"Sure, I've got some confidence that my lot can beat whatever marine complement that Ibutsu throws at us," Major Rowles commented before sniffing. "But that's assuming equal numbers and ideal conditions, like how we faced down those wings that came to pick a fight onboard the space station. Even then, we manipulated the fight to favor us with spin gravity to disorient and confuse the navy pilots.
"If it comes to a real engagement in space against the Fourteenth, I'll be quite blunt: we'll lose. And if they decide to come planet side with anything but a token force, then we'd be in a fight for our lives through numbers alone if nothing else." The leader of my ground forces exhaled, then slowly shook her head. "Sorry. Just...have to lay out that there's no ace card among us."
"Perfectly understandable, major." Yet still, I pressed on. "All the same, I wish to at least be aware of our capabilities in detail before making a decision. I'm led to believe especially that there's been some expansion in some regards."
"A little, from local volunteers and recruits," she finally mentioned. "Folks around here really want to get either in or working around mechs. It's nothing really special for the moment, we haven't exactly like doubled our numbers, but it's growth all the same."
"I also want to report on that from the logistics side!" chimed Nasir. "We've been printing some new Everests for these new recruits to use, which has been made possibly only thanks for your agreement with the Prynth Mining Union. We're really making use of that."
"Ah, but you actually needn't have to, really." Rowles shrugged. "There's plenty of Everest models that we captured in our last fight too, just tailored to fighting in space than on the green."
"What's your level of training with them?" I inquired, interested at perhaps converting the army's pilots into a marine wing if it came to it. "How would you fare in one of them?"
She pursed her lips. "Well, it's an Everest, same as what we use. Just using different equipment and layouts. I've done some trials personally and could say that it doesn't take much to get familiar with." The major crossed her arms and gave it some more thought. "I'll say that we can at least put up a decent fight if push comes to shove, maybe even a little better if you give us some more time to come to terms with it. We won't be green, but we're not exactly going to be like veterans either."
I considered her answer, then nodded gratefully. One last throat clear from me led into my final question to them all. "Are there any other sort of considerations that ought to be factored or added to this consideration?"
The floor was silent for a moment, then my adjutant spoke up. "Harrison Armory, sir," Veronica said in a very straightforward manner. "You've overlooked our security agreement with them."
That...was a stretch for what we had going on. It was nothing so formal or contractual, more like a casual arrangement over anything. Actually, thinking on it more, it was a favor wasn't it?
We bailed out Erica when the going got tough, so perhaps now it's her own turn to help us out in such dire circumstances. Though there was a part of me that paused, then calmly pointed out that even if she were to join in our struggle of her own volition, she was just one woman. A lancer admittedly, meaning that she was more like a multiplier over a simple additive, but the scale of what we faced still felt insurmountable. No, what we needed more wasn't just her.
It'd have to be her entire battlegroup, a very corporate asset whose owners would probably despise risking on private sentiment or appeal. They were only in it for manna, so for them to get involved, I'd have to construct an argument around it. Pointing out that somehow, us being subsumed into another Half Committee polity would harm their bottom line.
...Actually, come to think of it, that probably would work quite well. To the best of my recollection, Vice Admiral Ibutsu was more affiliated with IPS-N than he was with Harrison Armory. I didn't know if that partnership was even still active, it's entirely possible that those ships of his were gifted a while back, but knowing how megacorporations operated? They would rather be safe than sorry when it comes to their potential rivals.
But of course, requesting their help probably had the additional consequence of tying ourselves closer to them. Something that I had to consider if it would be worth it. Given that the alternative was being forced to surrender autonomy to Ibutsu and whatever designs he had for the sector, I think I could do with maybe being a company lapdog for a bit.
I wasn't happy though. Yet at least I could ensure that the Cavia Committee would have at least some independence, even if it came at the cost of flying the flag of Harrison Armory for a bit. I could try to figure out a path after that, so long as everything worked out in defending our world. I mean, it wasn't like we could lose.
We had a Harrison Armory relief force coming to help Erica out, surely they would be enough of a deterrence to give a single rogue naval force pause.
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I cursed my naive past self for thinking it would be so easy. Because of course this universe has it out for me. It absolutely wants me to be the bad guy.
Because as it turned out, either I surrendered to becoming a subordinate of a SecComm officer, or I became a minion of a SecComm noble.
"It's bullshit, that's what it is," Erica snarled aloud, not even opting for a pretense of niceties today. Not that I could even blame her, given what we'd just learned in this urgent call. "How the fuck did that asshole Pat end up getting slotted in as the expedition leader? Who the hell made that call?!"
"It came from the regional headquarters, and was stamped into place before I could notice," Paolo told with a crestfallen expression. "I tried to call for a suspension and review, but Pat's already been tugging the strings. He's framed it as a peacekeeping force to return Harrison Armory control to this sector, through a prominent existing asset no less.
"Compared to Commander Moores, unfortunately, Ayden von Hessin is a known figure especially. He's also got deep pockets that have reached even more." The Lord Director sighed and placed fingers against his forehead in thought. "From there then, Pat acquired the necessary paperwork to flash in the faces of the various captains, and you know how it is. 'I'm only here for a paycheck, I don't care about specifics.'"
A flash of guilt fluttered over Erica's face, as that struck quite close to what she had said when we first met. It was soon washed away by indignation and anger at the newest incoming threat. "So what, we comply and surrender this planet back to noble pricks who ran labor camps? That can't be official company policy!"
"It certainly isn't. But I wager we have long since crossed the boundaries of whatever happens officially on paper." He sighed, then laid out what he could do. "So if there happens to be any sort of...'issues' that arises that might inconvenience the Thirty-Seventh, I'll try my best to hush it up here. I don't know what shape it might take, if any at all.
"Should you decide that, for whatever reason, it would be better instead for House Hessin to return with Harrison Armory forces securing the world, then I'll go along with it. You know the situation in the sector better than I; you alone can provide the best judgment. I'm sorry that I can't do anything more."
The call connected and the lights in the conference room slowly returned. The dark mood lingered still and the attending technician decided discretion was probably the better part of valor, slipping away while Erica launched into a colorful tirade that could strip the glow from stars. Indeed, the sight outside the carrier's windows felt so dim when she finished and looked at me. "Well. This is...bad."
"That it is," I succinctly agreed, summarizing the terrible circumstance the Cavia Committee is. "On one side, we have Vice Admiral Ibutsu coming in with the Fourteenth Mixed Fleet and demanding compliance from us. A basic demand to serve, or else."
"On the other side, Lord Commandant Pat is looking to probably usurp my presence here by arriving with the relief force and assuming command," Erica presented with hiss. "And he brings with him House Hessin, who'll probably demand the world be returned back to their control. Meaning that you'll probably have to surrender to Harrison Armory in full then."
Yep. That was the basic gist of this shitshow.
We were trapped between two terrible options for both the people and I. Which cup of poison did we prefer? Which bitter draught must we choke down to live? We could seek refuge in one for protections against the other, as I imagined that neither of these two large sides wanted to pick a fight if they could help it. So pick one or the other to survive.
There was admittedly the third option which the lancer hesitantly brought up as her fire began to wane and flicker. "You...might want to chat with Luna, and see if HORUS can whip something up," she glumly suggested to me. "I don't trust them at all, not when they made fools of me. But well, they're your escape route presently."
"But to what extent?" I murmured, running the possibilities in my head. "I don't think they're exactly what you could call a naval power in this part of space. They could perhaps do some sort of trickery to perhaps confuse the two, but I don't see how they could try to defeat them on sudden notice." Maybe if it'd been a covert op years in the making. Honestly speaking though, if they actually have something like so already in place within both these incoming pincers to suddenly relieve us?
I'd be screaming to the rooftops that they'd orchestrated all this to force this 'choice' upon me. Which would be a rather dark fate.
The flame in Erica seemed to finally sputter out at my hypothetical and she staggered over to one of glass windows in the room, clearly done with this mess. She numbly lit up a cigarette and began to furiously smoke at it like a soldier on the firing line, giving me room to stand alone in my thoughts. Well, not quite fully that.
The collar lapel pulsed as my aide spoke through it. "My calculations indicate that the odds of our command surviving intact through either choice is… low, sir. We would likely be either reassigned or shuffled around, isolated to prevent dissidence." She paused. "In more extreme cases, I have projected possible decimation."
Execution, I translated. Probably trumped up tribunal or legal cases, from either the Half Committee or Harrison Armory, because SecComm had absolutely no chill. Stars above, my choices and insistence on trying to be 'different' were really coming back to bite me. So maybe the better decision would have been to just leave, if the culmination of my actions led to this mess.
At the same time, running away felt wrong. The technical fourth option didn't just feel like defeat- it felt like a betrayal for all I'd worked for. No, not just that- for everybody who worked on this dream here. From my military officers to the civilian directors, all of them had given their all to this matter. They hadn't chosen the easy path of offering my head up on a platter when the times got tough; they still awaited my orders now, willing to wait and see whatever I decided first before acting.
I racked my head, trying to think. Two forces opposed to one another, coming for us. Siding with either was unacceptable, and so too was trying to seek outside help in this case. Maybe if I'd known Luna better, but this was hardly such a time for that. Running away wasn't an option, and we couldn't face either force...alone…
Wait, hang on. There's that old saying, how did it go again?
'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.'
Now, it obviously isn't so simple. There's so many factors that would complicate such a scenario, such as here where I obviously had little bargaining power between either the Half Committee's 14th or Harrison Armory's 37th. They would probably be only interested in my unconditional capitulation before protecting me from their opposition, intimidating them to stand down and back off.
But...what if I was able to pretendto be associated with them both at the same time? If they happened to talk with one another, they would likely find out such deception- unless both became locked into an active state of conflict with one another. Shooting at each other instead of worrying about me.
My hand slowly raised up to cup my chin, eyes narrowing. We knew this system better than any other, but there was no guarantee the two would arrive at the exact same time. No, we had to lure them both into a chase that culminated in the exact same local on 'coincidence,' which meant scouting and mapping our neighbors. Something that we did have time to do, should we start immediately.
I was about to issue the orders to Veronica, only to pause and glance at the smoking lancer. "Erica. Would you consent to coming under my command temporarily with First to Draw? I know it isn't technically your fight-"
"Shut up and tell me who I need to set on fire to make this problem go away," she flatly pledged and I nodded. It wasn't going to be easy and a lot would probably depend on luck.
But well, the right path forwards never was so gentle.