Fourth Vector Ch. 42

He just hoped that Bancroft saw it the same way.

Jack was also confident that the command of Swabia was in good hands. Greg was his most trusted general, and he knew that with Ferberg's help, the two of them would keep Swabia under control, especially given the generous peace settlement he left behind.

"Is this truly all of it?" asked Ferberg with some astonishment as he read the peace document the day before. Ferberg was acting as the supreme representative of Swabia and would sign on the country's behalf.

"This is all," confirmed Jack. "It started off worse but I've had generous counsel who's managed to talk me down on some of the more firmer points."

Jack gave a sly look to Bill who couldn't have looked more pleased with himself.

"But this is hardly anything at all," said Ferberg. "There's only three points here. The first point is that the island of Lindau goes back to Galician rule. That's probably the toughest pill to swallow considering their economic power but Lindau was Galician long before it was Swabian so I can understand that."

"I had to have some spoils for the war," said Jack. "And like you said, Lindau was an easy target. It will be Galician again, and one of my first acts when I get back to Kalmar will be to arrange governance of the island."

Ferberg turned his attention back to the document. "But the rest of this is extraordinary, Your Majesty. The second point is that no Swabian troops are to leave the Swabian islands without the express permission of the Galician King. As a second addendum, the Swabian islands are to have the same friends as the Galician King and share the same enemies." Ferberg looked at Jack. "So this tells me we're truly in an alliance now?"

Jack nodded. "It seemed the most natural state of affairs. I needed a way to make sure that Swabia stayed within the bounds of appropriate behavior, especially now when the timing is most crucial. There's a power vacuum and I'm determined that none of the more enterprising Swabian lords try to fill it. Does it encroach on your autonomy? Yes, but the way I see it, it's only temporary until Swabia is firmly on its own two feet again."

"Which leads us to provision three," said Ferberg as he read aloud. "Henceforth there will be no more emperors in Swabia. The position of the Swabian emperor has now been abolished and the former Swabian Empire will now be simply the Kingdom of Swabia, with a monarch to be chosen at the appointed time by the Galician King." Ferberg looked at Jack again. "That will be the toughest provision for the lords to swallow."

"I suspected so but we needed to find a way to break the cycle of Swabian-Galician wars that we always find ourselves in," explained Jack. "By abolishing the position of a power-hungry emperor, I'm hoping to do that."

"As long as you don't end up with a power-hungry king filling the same shoes?" asked Ferberg.

Jack shrugged. "No form of government comes without limitations. A king can make war just as much as an emperor but my thoughts on this line are that I wanted to try something different. If we keep repeating the same processes, we'll get the same results. Let's try something new. I do look forward to the day when I get to choose the Swabian monarch."

Ferberg gulped heavily. "Any ideas on who that might be? I assume you've been looking at some of the Swabian lords already?"

Jack shook his head. "Not yet but it'll come with time. I have an idea of what I want to do but I'm not done thinking about it."

Ferberg seemed to take that answer for face value and quickly resumed looking at the settlement while a small smile grew on Jack's face. Truth be told, he knew exactly who he wanted to install as the Swabian King but he suspected there would be significant resistance from his own people if he put Ferberg in charge.

That idea would have to stay shelved for the time being. Jack thought it could at least wait until he was back in Galicia.

"All in all, this settlement looks remarkably generous," said Ferberg once he was done reading. "There's no indemnity, no further loss of territory or prestige and no restrictions put on the Swabian armed forces. I'm just a bit... shocked, to say the least. What did we do to warrant such generous treatment?"

Jack shrugged. "I can assure you it's not because I was feeling generous when I wrote it. Like I told you already, I had several harsh provisions in there that were ultimately removed. I'm not looking to put Swabia down any further. We have to learn to live together after this is over, and my thoughts are that your people would be more willing to be partners with us if we can truly create peace today."

Ferberg started to nod. "Well, where do I sign?"

Thus, the formal conclusion to the Fifth Swabian War was finalized. Jack took the rest of the day to get ready to leave, making last minute plans with Greg before catching a restful night of sleep. He boarded theDestiny with the first light, and the fleet set sail as the sun was still rising.

"You certainly look pensive this morning."

Jack turned to see Abigail watching him from a few paces behind. She moved closer, wrapping her arm around his midsection as they stood at the bow of the ship.

"Just thinking about getting back to Kalmar," said Jack. "And thinking about what we left behind."

"You don't need to worry, you know?" said Abigail. "Swabia is in good hands under Greg. He'll keep them under control."

"It's not Greg that I worry about so much as the actual Swabians themselves," replied Jack. "I want them to understand that they aren't our enemies any longer. I want them to come around on how they view Galicia in the future."

Abigail gave him an odd look. "I'm surprised that you've done such a quick turnaround on the Swabians. I thought the enmity might last a little longer than that with them."

"Well, the war is over," replied Jack. "It's only natural that we start looking at it from a political standpoint and not a military one."

Abigail made a face. "Don't you think there's more to it than that?"

"What do you mean?"

Abigail started to play with his hand. "Jack, don't you think it's possible that you want to rehabilitate the Swabians because you know that eventually something is going to happen between you and Bancroft? Don't you think that's why you're trying to move quickly on this, even if it's on a subconscious level?"

Jack didn't know how to respond to that. He had to give Abigail credit though--her words made sense. Perhaps it was the reason he wanted a fresh start on the Swabian topic. After all, if something was going to happen with Bancroft in the coming years, it would be a whole lot easier to muster the help of the entire West, and that would mean Swabia.

Was it a subconscious action?

"I'm not sure what the future holds with Bancroft," said Jack softly. "It could be bad or he could forget about me. My hope is that if it does get bad, we're still looking out years in the future. That's my hope anyway. Maybe you have a point though."

Abigail softly poked him in the side. "I do know you after all. You're my husband, Jack. I know just about everything about you."

"Maybe not everything," said Jack with a small grin.

"Oh, I'm willing to bet I do," she retorted. "Just about everything."

Jack took her in his arms and kissed her soundly. She melted against him, kissing him back before resting her head against his chest. "What's the first thing you want to do back in Kalmar, Jack?"

Jack let out a small sigh. "Honestly? I want to hold my son. I want to see how big John has grown. I want all of us to sit together as a family without having to constantly be rushing from one conflict to another. I just want time off. I want peace."

"That sounds lovely," purred Abigail. "Some family time would surely be nice."

"It just makes me wish I had mywhole family with us," said Jack.

Abigail didn't respond to that, as she picked up on where he was going with it. It had been a long time since anyone had heard from theStingray. At this point, Jack had no idea if they were successful or not. Thomas Wentz was supposed to get in radio contact with them once he was on his way back, but so far, not a peep had been heard from anyone on theStingray.

Jack had plenty of reason to feel anxious about it but it wasn't like he could do anything. He just had to wait for their call and pray they were successful.

"Have faith in it, Jack," urged Abigail. "I know it might feel hopeless now without having heard anything but hope is never far away. Look at all the things we've managed to come back from."

Jack nodded. "I just hope our luck holds out one more time. I'm looking forward to seeing my sister again."

Abigail forced him to look at her. "It'll all work out, I'm sure of it."

When Abigail didn't immediately look away, it became obvious to Jack that there was something else she wanted to talk about. He studied her beautiful face for a moment before asking what it was.

She smiled at him. "Jack, what was the first thing you said you wanted to do when we got back to Kalmar? What was the first thing you just told me?"

Jack didn't have to think long to remember his answer. "It was John. I want to hold John when we get back."

She started to nod. "I do too, Jack. I want to hold John because he belongs to us. We're his parents, right? You, me, and Kat. But there's something special there that you and Kat have with him because he's physically part of you. He came from you."

"This again?" asked Jack. "I thought you were over the fact that he wasn't biologically yours."

She shook her head. "No, no, that's not what I mean. I love John like he came from me, truly I do. But I also know that you and Kat will always have the special bond with John that goes on a deeper level. And I want that with you too, Jack. I want to have a child of my own. I want to have your child, Jack."

Jack studied her face for a moment before he replied. "Are you sure about this? This is something you want now?"

Abigail gave him a wry smile. "Why not? The timing works. The war is over and we're headed back to Galicia. Why not now?"

Jack thought about the idea for several minutes, mulling it from different angles. He knew how important it was to Abigail, especially since this wasn't the first time this conversation had come up. She also had a point--they weren't likely to get any better timing than this.

When he finally said something, his words surprised her. "Where are your pills?"

Abigail blinked in confusion for several minutes before she understood what he was talking about. "Funny you should ask that," she said as she dug into her pocket. "I have them right here."

She opened her hand to show the small bottle of birth control pills that were issued to every female service member in the Javan Navy. Jack looked at the bottle, seeing it more than halfway full. With a small toss, he dropped them into the ocean, hearing it make a small splash into the waves.

"There's my answer," said Jack with a grin. "If you want to start trying, we can."

Abigail squealed with excitement as she hugged him tightly. She then kissed him with every ounce of passion she could muster.

"I'm so happy, Jack," she gushed when the kiss ended. "I can't tell you how long I've thought about this. Ever since we first found out about John, but then again, it went much longer than that too."

"Well, we finally have a chance to make it a reality," replied Jack.

"It might not happen right away," she warned. "Those pills will take some time to flush completely out of my body."

"We're in no rush, right? We're on our time now."

Abigail beamed. "Right you are. I will say though that it doesn't mean that we can't start practicing right away."

Jack started to chuckle. "I can think of no better way to spend our voyage back to Galicia than being naked in bed with you."

That was the perfect answer for Abigail as she began to tug his hand back to their shared chambers at that moment. Jack knew that at very least, the journey back to Galicia was going to be exhausting and just a little sticky.

He wouldn't have had it any other way.

*****

The arrival in Kalmar several days later was filled with much celebration. As theDestiny sailed into the harbor, Jack could see almost the entire city lined up along the docks awaiting their return. Many of those that had lost their worldly possessions when the city nearly burned down the previous year were now cheering the loudest, grateful that the war was finally over and that peace could return at last.

Jack couldn't agree with them more. In the last two years of sacrifice, he was now ready for a return to normalcy.

The best part of the day was their arrival at the Castle. Evelyn was waiting for them and so too was John, who surprised all three of his parents by sprinting over to them just as fast as his little legs would carry him.

"My baby!" cried Kat as she scooped up the little boy in her arms and hugged him tightly.

"Not much of a baby anymore," said Evelyn with a beaming smile as she hugged Jack. "He's more like a toddler now!"

"Look at these curls," said Jack, admiring the blond, curly hair that covered his son's head. "My, how you've grown up, John. I don't feel like we've been gone for that long but in many ways, I feel like we've been gone for years."

"I've felt every day that you were gone," said Evelyn. "So did John."

The little toddler then reached his arms out to grab his father. Jack took the little boy into his arms and kissed his cheek soundly.

"Dah!" said an excited John as his face filled with a cheeky smile.

Not to be left out, John soon quickly wiggled out of Jack's arms and launched himself at Abigail, who seemed surprised by the sudden affection. That scene alone warmed Jack's heart. He knew how sensitive Abigail was that she wasn't actually a biological parent to John. Seeing John's love for her was the cherry on top of a perfect day.

Jack spent the rest of the day visiting with Evelyn and playing with John in the Galician Castle while some semblance of normality descended upon the city. That evening, a grand feast was arranged for the entire family plus Vera, who was already starting to miss Greg who'd been left behind in Swabia. Jack promised her that he wouldn't be behind for long although that did little good for her feelings of want.

That evening as Jack crawled into bed with both his wives, he could only be thankful that he was here in Galicia once more. Not far from his thoughts was the prophecy and the premonition of the final battle. Now that Swabia had been defeated and the ultimate evil being destroyed, had he not triumphed?

Was the prophecy complete? And he managed to survive as well, which was saying something in itself. In fact, there was no time in that last battle when he truly felt like he was in danger. Even Avila's lunging for the pistol was more directed at Ferberg than Jack.

Had he truly won?

Events would soon prove to him that things weren't quite over yet.

*****

It was about a week later that Jack saw to it to honor an outstanding request to an old friend. To that end, Jack, Kat, Abigail, and Bill were the ones to see to it that Art's body was reunited with his family in the small cemetery outside of Kalmar. The old headstone, which only contained his wife and son's names, was updated to include his, and his coffin was laid to rest beside those of his family.

"He was an amazing man," said Jack as the first bits of dirt were placed on the top of the coffin. "And a great leader of men. I can't even say how much I'll miss Art."

"He lived a full life," added Bill. "And he died doing what he loved to do the most. There was no other place that Art would rather be than on the battlefield leading his men. He died doing what he was meant to do. There's something poetic about that if you ask me."

"And now he's reunited with his wife and his baby," said Kat. "I know how much it gnawed at him to be alive when they weren't. They're together now for all time."

Both Kat and Abigail put an arm around Jack as the words aroused feelings of longing in them both. Jack couldn't begin to imagine what life would look like without either of them and he never wanted to find out.

Hopefully, he would never have to.

It was only when they returned to Kalmar after the burial that Jack found out there was some excitement in the harbor. As they arrived at the Castle, there was a car waiting for them with an envoy from Russ.

"Your Majesty, Admiral Taylor requests your presence in the harbor as soon as possible," said the envoy, his face ashen and gray.

"What's the problem?" asked Jack. "Is there something wrong?"

The envoy swallowed heavily. "A ship has just arrived in the harbor, Sire. It's a ship carrying the dragon banner of the Javan Empire."

That certainly got Jack's attention. All four of them filled the car and raced down to the harbor, where Jack could immediately see the flying banner of Java. The ship it was attached to looked like a typical supply ship--the kind that used to carry the viceroys to the West.

Jack had to wonder what it was there for. Certainly Bancroft wouldn't have sent a viceroy to Galicia, right? To what end could that be?

He wondered briefly if it was some kind of assassin as well but when he arrived at the harbor, he met Russ not far from the entrance, who gave him a quick briefing.

"The man won't talk to anyone but you," explained Russ. "He's not armed and he appears to be the only member on the ship that isn't part of the crew. From the looks of him, he looks to be some kind of diplomat but again, he won't say anything to us."

"So he's here alone?" asked Jack. "Did he bring anything with him?"

Russ nodded. "Just an oversized box that's sitting on the ground next to him. It stinks to high heavens though. He says he will only reveal the contents of the box to you."

None of this was looking good, but Jack pressed on quickly to meet this Javan diplomat. When he arrived at the scene, the diplomat was already watching him, appraising him from afar. He had a typical Javan look about him with his dark hair and dark eyes. The man appeared to eat well by the looks of his midsection, and he had a full beard that was kept closely chopped.

Jack instantly understood what Russ was saying about the package at the diplomat's feet. He could smell it as soon as he neared and the scent was utterly putrid.

Frankly, it smelled like death.

"Who are you and why are you here?" asked Jack as soon as he was near. "What are you doing in my country?"

The diplomat must have recognized who he was because he didn't ask for any credentials.

"Jack Easterbrook, my name is Ramon Avery. I'm a diplomat in the imperial palace of Emperor Percival Bancroft."

"My name is Jack Kincardine now," explained Jack. "And I don't care who you are. What is your purpose here? For what reason does Bancroft send you to my land?"

"My purpose is simple," explained Ramon, not letting Jack's curtness affect his demeanor. "I'm here to pass along two items to you from the Emperor. This box at my feet is one of them." Ramon dug into his robes and pulled out a letter. "This dispatch is the other."

"You made this entire trip to deliver a box and a letter?" asked Bill before turning to look at Jack. "What does this Emperor want to give to you so bad?"

"It looks like we're about to find out," said Jack before he gestured to the diplomat. "Bring the box here and open it."

"Certainly," replied Ramon. First, he handed the letter to Bill, who was the closest to Jack. Bill began to read immediately as the box, which had some weight to it, was carried over to Jack.

"To my enemy, Jack Easterbrook," read Bill aloud. "How do we find ourselves on these opposing sides? At one time, we were the greatest of friends. You were the protege I always wanted, and in times of struggle like these, it should be you standing at my side. Alas, your choices have left me flabbergasted and disappointed. You've chosen a different path than one I could ever understand, and you'll soon see there will be real consequences to the decisions that you've made."