Fourth Vector Ch. 26

"Don't remind me," said Jack sarcastically.

"Are you coming to bed soon?" she asked. "Kat is already out like a light."

"We probably should," said Jack. "I don't want her to go to sleep alone if I can help it."

Abigail turned to look at him again. "Are you two ever going to talk this through, Jack? It's been a month since she told you about the baby."

Jack stiffened and gripped the railing tighter. So far, he'd avoided having the heart-to-heart discussion with Kat about the pregnancy, always citing another pressing concern that needed his attention. At first, Kat was open to waiting for him to be ready, but as the days passed into weeks, the conversation never materialized. In any effect, it was almost like she'd given up having the discussion with him and their relationship had gone back to a degree of normality. They were able to have some fun like they used to and even sex was able to resume, but there remained an artificial barrier between them—an emotional void that grew every day.

"I think I've figured out what kills me the most about this," said Jack quietly, being honest about his feelings for the first time. "And why it hasn't happened yet."

"Why, Jack? You can tell me."

He turned to face her. "I'm scared. I'm scared of that baby, Abigail."

Her head tilted to the side in confusion. "What's to be scared of, Jack?"

He shook his head. "It's just terrible timing. I know that can be blamed on me for that matter but it still doesn't make it any easier. Who knows what will happen tomorrow with the Sorellans or even a week from now with the Swabians? The stakes keep getting higher out here. It's no place for a baby, Abigail."

"If you feel that strongly about it, talk to her," she urged. "Maybe Kat can stay in Carinthia for the time being. She'd be safe there."

"Carinthia is where someone tried to kill her," said Jack, reminded of that terrible night inside Reina's palace. "There really isn't a country here where I would trust someone with her life. Beyond us, of course. Besides she wouldn't agree to it. She won't leave theDestiny as long as we're here."

"Still Jack, this is something that you need to talk with her about," Abigail repeated. "I think she's lost hope but you know as well as I do that this pregnancy is progressing along."

That was entirely accurate too. When Kat had first told them back at Quiller's, she was still her normal slender and svelte self. In the last few days though, Jack had noticed a tiny swell just at the base of her stomach, something that never used to be there before. The baby was growing, and it was already having an effect on her body. The more time went by, the harder it would become to ignore.

"I know that," he whispered. "It's taken me almost as long to admit to myself what the problem was. To admit it to her would kill me. It was hard enough to tell you."

"No one expects new parents to have all the answers, you know?" said Abigail. "You don't have to always have the best timing or be completely fearless about it, Jack. You just have to try. You have to try to be the best parent you can be. That's all that Kat's looking for."

"I sure hope you're right," he said quietly.

"I am right," she said with a small smile as she nudged his stomach. "But you need to get this silliness out of the way now. I'll kick your butt if you act like this when I'm pregnant with your baby."

Jack chuckled. "I hope that's not your way of telling me you're deciding to go off the pills."

Abigail shook her head. "I thought I'd wait for better timing. Maybe like the month before we invade Swabia. How's that sound to you?"

"How considerate of you," said Jack dryly, making her giggle.

"Cheer up, love. Things aren't as bad as they seem," said Abigail. "And hopefully that will hold true tomorrow."

"I'd still feel better if I knew what we were sailing into," he said. "And if my orders didn't ask me to kill them if our worst fears are true."

The smile dropped from Abigail's face only to be replaced by grim determination. "Sometimes being in charge means following orders that we don't like. These orders might be for the good of all of us, Jack."

He nodded and looked back out to the coastline. An idea manifested itself in his head, one that made him more excited the more he thought about it. Finally, Abigail seemed to notice the change in his body language.

"What is it, Jack?"

He looked at her and smiled. "What if there's a third way?"

*****

The next morning, the sky above the capital city of Sorella reflected the tension that was on the surface. It was a dark red and angry, and a powerful breeze whipped across the deck of Task Force 21. Jack was sheltered from the wind in the bridge of the ship but that didn't mean he wasn't feeling the anxiety of the moment. Especially with what he could see onshore.

It appeared that their worst fears about Sorella had manifested itself. Jack looked out on the Sorellan capital city that looked prepared to give an all-out defensive effort against invasion. He could spy cannons emplacements along the water, sandbags and fortifications that ringed the city, and even Heron's soldiers stationed at strategic positions to contest any landing.

"This doesn't look good, Jack," said Abigail from his side. "It looks like they're expecting a war."

"I think it's safe to say that Viceroy Lucius Grant is either dead or imprisoned," said Jack. "This can't be all attributed back to a broken radio."

"What are you going to do, Jack?" asked Kat from his other side. She was dressed in her blue regent's dress and her blonde hair was loose and flowing. She was the picture of beauty that she always was, and Jack's eyes lingered for a moment on that spot on her tummy where life was growing.

"I'm curious on how serious this is," he said. "Is this just for show? Are they going to actually use those weapons and soldiers?"

"They can but all the good it will do them," said Abigail. "Those old weapons will be quite useless against us. And even if they did put up a decent fight, we could always land a ways from the shore and work the marines in by foot." She turned to look at him. "Thank god we got a fresh regiment before we left Belfort."

The extra regiment of marines had been a wonderful development that Jack didn't expect, having wangled it out of Bancroft before he left. The 59th Marine Regiment was at full strength as well with nearly a thousand effectives of battle-hardened men, the likes of which would be surely needed in the escalating conflict against Swabia. They had also received replacements for those men in the 57th still on Picardy, as well as the original battalion from the 19th that started with Jack over a year ago.

All-in-all, they had a more than adequate force to take over the entire island in the case of armed resistance. It was the situation that Jack most feared but it was an option if they had to use it.

"It looks like those plans we left for the ironclads bore some fruit, Jack," said Abigail, gesturing with her binoculars to two ships that stood at the entrance of the main harbor. "They've managed to replicate the designs."

"They've been busy, that's for sure," said Jack as he looked over the ships. The two ironclads rode low in the water, their freeboard no more than a couple feet. Each of them used the same design of having a middle armored enclosing that had sloped sides and a flat top. Within that enclosing were emplacements for three cannons on either side. Like the cannons on shore, it wasn't anything that the fleet had to fear but it could wreak havoc on any smaller craft that made its way to shore.

"Jack, do you want me to fire off a warning shot?" asked Kyle. "Something to show them we're serious about why we're here?"

Jack thought about that answer for a moment or two before he ultimately shook his head. "Not yet. I don't want to give off the wrong impression to them. I think if we start firing right away, they'll think we're determined to be hostile from the start. I don't want to give them the wrong idea."

"What do you want to do then, Jack?" asked Abigail. "We can't stay floating out here all day long."

Jack rubbed his chin as he went over his options. A warning shot might escalate the conflict he was just trying to reduce but then again, any other show of force—like landing the marines—might do the same thing as firing off the guns. Then again, why did the first move have to be threatening?

Before a proper plan could formulate, the first move was seized by the Sorellans. The entire bridge snapped their heads toward the shoreline as a booming racket sliced through the still morning air. Jack watched as the rows of cannons and fortifications near the shore all flashed together, letting off a stunning and coordinated ordnance toward the Javan fleet. The officers on the bridge braced for impact out of instinct but it never came.

"We're too far out for that cannon to reach us," said Jack finally as a secondary round fired off from the shore.

Indeed, most of the shots fell harmlessly into the water a good distance from the ships. The old cannons of Sorella just didn't have the range to hit that far from their position, and Jack highly doubted that much would have happened even if they had been in range.

"It looks like Heron is giving his own warning shots," said Abigail at his side. "It would appear he's quite serious about contesting any landing."

Jack shook his head. "This doesn't make any sense. They know they can't hurt us with that. Why resist? Why fight at all? It would be futile to do so."

"Perhaps he's resigned to fight it out," she said. "Maybe what happened with the viceroy was a tipping point for them. If he treated them as badly as Heron claims, perhaps this is their way of telling us they won't accept being a colony again."

Jack shook his head in rage. "I told them this would happen. We'll lose all the allies we've gained by this overbearing treatment."

"Well, they didn't listen to you, and here we are," said Abigail. "What do you want to do?"

"Jack, I can still give off warning shots if you like," offered Kyle. "We can match lead for lead."

"That's still not the effect I'm going for," said Jack before he looked around to the rest of the bridge. An idea was forming in his mind but it wasn't going to be the most obvious choice to any of the assembled officers. In fact, it would be seen almost as madness if he suggested it right now. But in his mind, it was the only viable option to prevent a war from starting today. And if that meant taking a risk, he would gladly take it to avoid the seemingly inevitable.

The only problem was getting the rest of the officers to sign on for it.

Once the Sorellan cannonade was over and the stalemate returned, Jack gestured for Stephanie. "Open up the commander communication channel on the radio. I want to talk options right now with all the ship commanders as well as everyone in this bridge currently."

"Aye, Jack," said Stephanie as she dialed in the correct channel. In the space of a few minutes, Jack heard all the commanders of his task force chime in with acknowledgment, all of them waiting on his word for what to do.

"Listen up now," said Jack to all his senior officers. "The Sorellan cannonade has complicated matters somewhat. It would appear that they fully intend to contest any landing that we make. As many of you know, Sorella was one of the countries that we liberated last year on our first voyage here. The king that now opposes us was one that I considered to be a good friend and firm ally. Now, I have no idea what the situation is on the ground over there but my best guess is that the high-handed treatment by the Javan viceroy is what caused them to take up arms. Let's talk some options for how we can end this today without any bloodshed."

The first person to speak up was Mike Cutter of theStardust. "What about a few warning shots, Jack?" he asked, an echo of Kyle's suggestion. "I think when they see our firepower that it might sap the fight right out of them."

"I'd prefer not to do that if we don't have to," said Jack. "I think that will just show them we intend to fight this one out. I'd prefer negotiation to war with someone we still consider allies."

"Why do we have to land here at all?" chimed in Luke from theValiant. "The defenses here are about as solid as Sorella can provide. Let's move a few miles up the coast, land the marines and push toward the city. They'll be forced to reposition all those cannons, and if we keep a small force on the ships, we can launch a seaborne raid at the same time. They'll surely crumple if we do that."

"That's not a bad idea, Luke," said Jack. "But a lot can happen once the marines are on the ground. If someone starts shooting, this conflict is going to escalate quickly. Many of you were here with me last year and saw the state of their weaponry. Just a handful of marines were all that was needed to completely devastate Daimanos' army. I'm not keen on using that much force just yet."

"Why are we wasting so much energy on these savages?" asked fussy Barnabas from theCenturion. "A few well-placed shots from the task force will render all that cannon useless. They can contest our landing all they want, but they won't be able to repel our forces."

Jack rolled his eyes as he made a sideways glance at Abigail. She smiled and mouthed the word "Buttface" on her lips.

"I'm asking for how we can de-escalate this conflict, Barnabas," replied Jack. "So far none of these options manage to do that."

There wasn't any response on the radio to that statement, nor did anyone offer anything further on theDestiny. Jack felt it was the right time to bring up his suggestion, one that would surely meet with some resistance no matter how he did it.

"All right, listen closely to this one," he started. "I know that king on the shore. I know how he thinks. I think if we offer him a showing of good faith, we just might buy some time for us to talk this one through."

"What kind of showing are you thinking, Jack?" asked Alex McGrath from theWickes.

"Bear with me on this one," he warned. "But I want to take a couple of launch boats from theDestiny toward the harbor. I think if we show Heron we're not resorting to war, he'll send someone down to negotiate. Maybe even himself."

"That sounds like madness," said Barnabas to no one's surprise. "Why risk yourself for these savages?"

"Jack, I'm not liking this idea," said Laura Pollard from theMaddox. "You'll be too exposed, and we won't be able to do anything if they decide to start firing."

"I'm betting they won't fire on me," said Jack. "I think if they see it's me in those boats, they'll at least give me the benefit of the doubt."

"That's a lot to gamble on for this, Jack," warned Abigail. "Those cannons would rip those launch boats to shreds if they want it."

"All the more reason to do it," said Jack. "If we show them good faith at wanting to negotiate, especially by putting up a small risk, they'll know we're serious in our attempts to avoid escalation."

"And if they don't buy it and start shooting?" asked Kat.

Jack shrugged. "It's only a launch boat or two. At that point, I'm willing to let the task force do what they must."

Abigail shook her head. "Can we not send someone else besides you? Why don't you let me go? Heron would recognize me and it might afford us the same chance."

"She doesn't have a bad idea, Jack," chimed in Luke.

Jack put his hands on her arms. "Heron knows me the best. For many of them over there, I'm the face they see when they think of Java. It would lend more weight to the issue for them to see me in the boat."

"Is there nothing we can do to persuade you not to do this, Jack?" asked Kat nervously. "What if they capture you? What if they kill you?"

He let out a small smile. "Trust me on this one. If I didn't believe it was the right thing to do, I wouldn't have even brought it up."

When nobody said anything else on the bridge, Jack turned back to the radio. "Any other objections? I know the risk but I'm willing to take the gamble."

"If that's the way it is, we'll be watching you closely, Jack," said Mike Cutter. "And theStardust will have her guns trained on the city in case they decide to do anything funny."

"Aye, Jack, so will theValiant," confirmed Luke.

"I think that's about as close to a ringing endorsement that I'm going to get," said Jack with a chuckle. "Let's get moving on this." He then turned back to Stephanie. "Can you have Captain Morse meet me at the launch boats in ten minutes? Have him bring two squads of his most trusted men."

"Right away, Jack," she said before issuing the orders over the marine command frequency.

Captain Doug Morse was one of the newer members of the 19th Marine Regiment, 1st Battalion. He had been assigned to the formation after they had arrived in Java, when several of the more veteran members of Greg's force were either discharged after their enlistment expired or were reassigned to newer formations. Morse was brought in as the replacement for Captain John Reynolds (no relation to the admiral) who had fought in the initial wars in Sorella and Andalucia before going home after the Battle of Daban. Reynolds was reassigned to the newly formed 62nd Regiment so as to form a cadre of veterans for the new recruits to learn from.

Jack had the opportunity to meet with Doug Morse several times on the way back to the Vector, liking him as a friendly face but a competent officer as well. Of all the replacements that were stationed on theDestiny, he was one man that Jack knew he could count on.

Jack met Doug and his men at the launch boats on the ship, all of them dressed in their fatigues and ready for action.

"Ready for your first bit of action in the Vector, Doug?" Jack asked, coming to a stop near the marine.

"Ready as can be, Jack. But why only a few of us?" he asked.

"We're not going to start a war right now," said Jack. "This little force is only so we can offer token protection for us. The main goal will be to draw the Sorellans in for negotiation."

Doug smiled grimly. "Negotiation is not nearly as fun as fighting is."

Jack chuckled. "Even so, sometimes we have to start there. Did you bring a rifle for me?"

Doug handed over a NT-12. "Ready for use, although I don't think it'll be much help in a negotiation."

"We can only hope," said Jack. "Some of us fought with these people over a year ago. For that reason, I think there's definitely some Javans who would have a hard time shooting at them now."

"If they try anything, I know my boys won't have any such qualms," said Doug before gesturing to the two squads behind him.

"If they try anything, then I won't blame you," said Jack before he gestured toward the boat. "Come on, let's get moving."

It only took a few minutes for nine marines plus Jack to load into one launch boat and get lowered to the water. One of them took up the control of the engine and started to navigate them toward shore. Jack took the forward position on the boat, making sure that he would be the first thing the Sorellans saw when they looked.

"Keep your speed down," said Jack. "Let's not give them the wrong idea. Bring the boat in slow and steady."

"Jack, won't you consider sitting down with the rest of us?" asked Doug. "You're looking like a sniper's lucky day right now."

"I want them to see me," said Jack. "This whole thing hinges on them being able to recognize me."

The boat moved closer toward the coast and soon enough, Jack was able to recognize individual faces of the Sorellan defenders. He was able to come close enough to the two ironclad ships to be able to study them, noting the same design that he'd left with them over a year ago.