Three Square Meals Ch. 069

*That sounds ominous. What are you thinking?* he asked, her concern proving infectious.

*When you turn down their request to share this technology, which I'm fairly sure you will, you need to be prepared for the chance that they might strike at you out of fear. They saw you destroy a fully shielded battleship with one shot, John. That must have been fairly terrifying,* she paused to let that sink in for a moment, listening to his thoughts as he pondered her words.

*You think we might be in danger right now?* he asked, suddenly wary.

Edraele's sad sigh echoed through his mind as she replied, *If the old Edraele was in their situation, she would have stopped at nothing to acquire the upgrades in your possession. She would have used the Interdiction beacons to keep you in-system, then thrown every ship in the fleet at you to take you down. All would be considered sacrificial pawns to achieve that goal. Before she initiated an assault, she would have prepared infiltration teams to attempt an assassination, whilst simultaneously hitting you with a massive cyber assault. Every asset at her disposal, John, all of it would be used to acquire that technology. It's that much of a game changer.*

He was focused and alert now as he said, *I didn't think the repercussions would be that severe. Are you sure they'll attack?*

*Nothing is guaranteed. I doubt they'll be as obsessively driven as my old personality would have been, but you can't take that for granted. Imagine a fleet of ships like the Invictus under their command, which is exactly what they'll be fantasising about. They'd be able to annihilate the Kintark, the Trankarans, the Ashanath, the Kirrix, the Drakkar, even the Maliri, and then annex whole sectors at will. The Terran Federation would be able to dominate and expand in whatever direction they chose. That kind of unrivalled power is a potent incentive,* she explained, her deceptively pleasant voice painting a bleak picture of the future.

*I see. Do you have any other advice?* he asked her, growing more alarmed by the second.

*Three more things in fact,* Edraele stated, her manner both calm and collected. *Firstly, I'd try and get out of the Regulus system as quickly as you can. The Terran Federation has amassed a huge fleet here, and as the old adage goes, there's strength in numbers. The more powerful they perceive they are in comparison to you, the greater the likelihood they'll be emboldened to attack.*

He nodded to himself as he replied, *Alright, that makes sense. There's something I want to take care of before I leave, though.*

*I know, I understand,* she said, her voice softening affectionately. *Just make sure you hold off with the handover of the Thor, and by extension the Interdiction beacons, until you're ready to leave. In fact, it might be sensible to have my daughter simply take care of the threat posed by the Interdiction beacons, before you hand over their control to the Terrans.*

*Irillith's on it,* Alyssa thought to him a split-second after he'd considered Edraele's words.

He felt some of the tension in his shoulders ease a little, and he replied to both of them, *It's a wise precaution. We should have the speed to escape if they try anything.* He directed his thoughts at Edraele next, and continued, *You said 'firstly', what else did you have on your mind?*

She responded immediately in her clear, well spoken voice, *It's possible the Terran Admiralty witnessed the Progenitor's vessel intervening in this system. After killing Gabrielle Lynton, they might have seen him use what you believe is a wormhole generator to jump out of the system. If they did notice his ship, they might be even more determined to keep you in Terran Space, as a potential deterrent or counter to the Progenitor threat. You own one of the most potent ships in our corner of the galaxy, they'd have to assume the Progenitor's ship is at least as powerful.*

*Alright, I'll be especially cautious if they bring him up as well,* John agreed. *What was the last thing?*

When Edraele replied this time, her voice throbbed with concern, as she said, *I would strongly advise concealing the part Calara had to play in this battle. Admiral Devereux knows about her analytical skills, and that she also mans the Invictus' guns. However, I doubt she knows just how accurate her gunnery skills are, which Calara just showcased to a spectacular degree against the Kintark fighters. More importantly, her tactical acumen would be hugely valuable to the Terran Federation, or at the very least they might want to neutralise her as an effective asset.*

*Neutralise her how?* John asked darkly, his temper starting to flare. *We're taking steps to reduce the threat of assassination, but we haven't had a chance to implement anything new yet.*

*She has a family, John,* Edraele explained patiently. *A family you've vowed to help her protect. That's a weakness that could be exploited to apply leverage on her, and on you by extension.*

*Fuck!* he swore, realising just how complicated and dangerous this situation had become. He laughed grimly, and then added, *Can't I just threaten to kill anyone that crosses me or my crew?*

*You could, but I'm not sure that would be the wisest course,* she replied with a wry smile, understanding that he was joking. Mostly.

John blew out his breath, calming himself as he thought over all her advice. He sounded profoundly grateful when he spoke to her a minute later, and said, *Thank you, Edraele. That was invaluable advice and I really appreciate it.*

*It's what I'm here for, to support you however I can,* she replied, overjoyed to hear the sincere gratitude in his voice.

*No, you're worth far more to me than that,* he said, earnestly. He chuckled then and added, *I'm not sure how I'm going to be able to repay you for all your help, though. I am running up quite a tab!*

She laughed then, and shared the lovely sound via their telepathic bond, before she said in a teasing voice, *I'm sure we'll be able to work something out...*

He smiled at that, then looked around the Bridge at the bewildered girls, who'd been watching his rapid changes of facial expression and wondering what was going on. "Edraele's just been offering me lots of invaluable advice about our current situation," he explained to them, with Jade and Faye nodding their understanding a moment later.

Irillith had already been asked to find a way of disabling the Interdiction beacons, so she had a pretty good idea of what had him so worried. She gave him a reassuring smile as she said, "I sent a power spike into the Interdiction beacons, frying their circuitry. It wasn't enough to make them explode, so the Terran forces will be none the wiser, but they'll require some extensive repairs before they can be brought online again."

"Great stuff! Thanks honey," he told her, feeling a surge of relief. Looking down at his Nymph pilot, he added, "Now we can run from the Regulus System if it comes to it. Let's just hope it doesn't, but I want you to be ready for that if we have to."

Jade nodded and gave him a warm smile, pleased to see him looking more relaxed. "Do you want me to contact the Zeus for you? I assume you still want to speak to the Admiralty?" she asked, not sure if there was a change of plan she wasn't aware of.

"Thank you, yes. I'm long overdue a chat with the Fleet Admiral," he replied, settling comfortably in his chair.

He'd been carrying his white peaked cap with him, and toyed with it in his hands for a moment as he mused over whether he should wear it for this conversation. The hat seemed to represent so much more now, hinting at a conformity to the Terran Federation command structure, and therefore a sense of deference to their higher rank. Should he wear it to put them at ease? Or would that only encourage them to make bolder demands for his technology, which he knew he'd have to refuse. Such a refusal could further escalate tensions in what might already be a fraught situation. By not wearing it, was he making a bold statement setting himself apart from the Terran forces? Would that encourage them to attack, seeing him as some kind of alien threat?

Then again, perhaps he was overthinking things, and sometimes a hat is just a hat. He smiled and placed it atop his console. He'd never really been a hat-wearing man, unless the occasion demanded it.

"I have Fleet Admiral Vincent Buckingham for you," Jade said, breaking him out of his whirring thoughts.

"Put him through," John replied, looking up at the viewscreen.

The image on the screen coalesced into the familiar face of Vincent Buckingham, standing smartly in full dress uniform, his grey moustache twitching into a smile. John was suddenly struck by a disturbing realisation. Their future within Terran Space entirely depended on the way this conversation went, and how he handled the man standing before him.

"Ah, John!" Buckingham greeted him with a friendly smile. "I'm so glad you contacted me, we were just talking about your timely, and rather dramatic intervention! You certainly helped us out of quite the nasty pickle."

Although the Fleet Admiral's tone was warm, the smile didn't quite reach his eyes, and ended up setting John's nerves on edge. Buckingham glanced to his right, and the camera panned to the gathering of Terran Admirals seated in the wingback chairs placed in the centre of his office. After the loss of Santini, there were only three Admirals sitting in the chairs, with Edwin Caldwell, Carl Weber, and Jayanti Mishra each nodding to John respectfully. There was an odd cast to their expressions though, though, which he couldn't quite place, having never seen anything quite like it before.

*They respect and fear you in equal measure,* Edraele explained, her quiet tone speaking of decades of familiarity with similarly conflicted associates. She couldn't see the faces of the Admirals of course, but she was quite sure of her assertion.

It was a disturbing thought. To think that these senior officers within the upper echelons of the Terran Federation were actually afraid of him, was more than a little surreal. Just as Jack's reaction to his growing fame had saddened him, he felt a similar surge of regret that they would react in such a way.

Deciding to try and keep things light to put them at ease, John replied to Buckingham, "I'm just glad we made it back to the Dragon March in time to assist." He smiled then, and continued, "Sorry we couldn't get here sooner, we took quite the jaunt into Kintark Space, but we managed to rescue a few people from the Xen-Nuchek Mines."

The camera panned back to Vincent, whose smiled twisted wryly as he asked, "Why do I suspect there's more than just a few?"

John nodded, and admitted, "We evacuated all the Terran Federation personnel we could find. We've brought back just over six-hundred people with us."

Buckingham walked back to join the others, the camera following him. He glanced at his fellow Admirals and said, "It seems we owe John our thanks once again."

Jayanti gave John a hesitant smile and said, "Morale amongst the troops should see another big boost with that news."

Although Admiral Caldwell smiled as well, making an effort to look pleased, bizarrely he appeared even more unsettled. "The Lion saves the day once again," he murmured, while deep in thought.

Not enjoying this conversation in the slightest, John decided to try and get it over with as quickly as possible. He looked at Buckingham and said, "I thought we better discuss the offer of clemency I made to the traitor forces. I hope I wasn't out of line there, but we badly needed their support against the Kintark."

"You can leave the clemency discussions with us, John," Buckingham said with a note of finality. "Rest assured, their assistance against the Kintark will be taken into account."

John nodded, and asked, "Would you like to hear my advice regarding sentencing?"

"Of course," Buckingham replied, looking at him curiously.

"I'd advise leniency. Terran Federation forces need the personnel at the moment, so perhaps demotion for the senior officers, but still allow them to serve. Joining us when they did saved a lot of loyal Terran lives," John explained, watching the Federation Admirals to see how they'd react.

"We could use the manpower, Vincent," Jayanti said, nodding as she thought it over. "We can make an example of Lynton's crew aboard the Thor."

"It was Admiral Lynton's ship that destroyed Santini's dreadnought," John agreed. "I took her crew into custody to await judgement for treason."

John's affable tone had put them at their ease, and he could see the four officers relax as they spoke with him. While Caldwell still appeared lost in thought, and Mishra watched John quietly, both Weber and Buckingham grew bolder, no longer feeling quite so intimidated by his presence.

Weber's eyes narrowed shrewdly, and he leaned forward as he asked, "How did you manage to take over the Thor like that? I've consulted with my Intelligence Operations officer, and he said that such a thing should be impossible. The Thor is equipped with state-of-the-art hacking defences, but you managed to hijack the ship in moments."

Buckingham nodded, and said, "We all saw you shut Lynton down in the blink of an eye. I've also received disturbing reports from the forces taking the Thor's crew into custody. Apparently there's some kind of AI presence aboard the Invictus. Do you have some kind of unshackled AI working for you, John?"

John tried to stop himself from grimacing, and he replied, "I've got a talented crew. They stepped up, and helped neutralise the threat from Lynton."

"Very talented indeed..." Weber noted, sharing pointed looks with his colleagues. "I remember you mentioning you had your 'sources'. Was it the same source who hacked the Artemis' comms records?"

Buckingham smiled wolfishly at John, and said, "Perhaps we could arrange for a debriefing with your crew? It seems like we could learn a lot from them, your hacker and strategist in particular."

John bristled at their predatory tone, and replied somewhat stiffly, "I'm afraid not, Vincent. Most of them are civilians, and don't fall within the Terran Federation chain of command."

"Not all of them, though," Weber said, giving John a sly look. "We'd be intrigued to know who was in command of your battle group against the Kintark. Was it Commander Fernandez by any chance? Whoever it was had quite the tactical flair."

John met his challenging stare, and replied, "I must have missed my vocation as a naval officer. Thanks for the compliment, though."

Weber looked sceptical, but declined to push him further.

Buckingham broke the somewhat stony silence by saying airily, "You're in command of quite a ship there, John. You mentioned you'd bought some upgrades from a number of alien sources, but we had no idea just how potent the Invictus had become."

John was on his guard now, and he replied, "Yes, it's a formidable ship."

Three of the four Terran officers were watching him like hawks, with the exception of Caldwell who was clearly uncomfortable with this line of questioning. Buckingham leaned forward as he said, "You must understand how much you could aid humanity by sharing that technology, John. The firepower you unleashed on the Kratos was quite astonishing to behold."

Shaking his head, John replied, "I've made deals with the species I acquired those upgrades from. Sharing the schematics would violate those agreements."

"Come on now, be reasonable," Weber protested. "It's your duty as a Terran Federation officer to hand over that technology."

John fixed him with a steely glare, and replied, "No, I'm afraid not. You forget, I'm retired."

Weber ground his teeth in frustration and was about to reply, when Buckingham held him back with a cautionary hand. Buckingham then said to John in an authoritative tone, "Perhaps it would be better if you were to come aboard the Zeus, where we could discuss this in person, Rear Admiral? There's no need for this to get unpleasant. We all want what's best for the Terran Federation."

Mishra shared a nervous glance with Caldwell, joining the other Admiral in his growing disquiet with the way this meeting was unfolding. Their looks of apprehension gave John the distinct impression that accepting Buckingham's offer would be a extremely bad idea.

He wasn't sure if these Admirals would be bold enough to spring some kind of attack, but now that Irillith had disabled the Interdiction beacons, at least he was certain they could escape. However the last thing he wanted was to risk getting into a violent confrontation with Terran Federation forces. The repercussions for Calara and her family made such a course of action something that he wanted to avoid at all costs. He felt like his choices were closing off rapidly though, and was starting to feel trapped.

*Use me as an excuse!* Edraele blurted out, interrupting his thoughts.

John had no idea what she was talking about, so he replied, *What do you mean?*

*They know nothing about the Maliri. Exploit that!* she explained in a rush.

Suddenly grasping her meaning, John relaxed in his chair, then smiled confidently at the four Terran officers as he said, "I'd love to continue this meeting, but unfortunately we'll need to wrap it up soon. I need to return to Maliri Space, as I've got pressing business with Edraele Valaden, leader of the highest ranked Maliri Noble House. It's a long trip to her homeworld."

Karl Weber looked extremely dubious as he asked, "You've been into Maliri Space?"

"A couple of times now," John replied with an air of indifference.

"Preposterous," Weber scoffed. "The Maliri don't let anyone past their trading posts!"

"I made quite the impression on Edraele," John said with a calculating smile. "Where else do you think I got all the guns from?"

All the Admirals stared at him in shock, recognising the blunt and obvious truth to his words. They hadn't even considered that the Invictus was equipped with Maliri weapons, but from that realisation came an even more frightening one. This revelation meant that there was a whole empire on their doorstep, already wielding the kind of monstrous firepower that John possessed on his ship.

He could see their stunned reactions written plainly across their faces, and he decided to follow it up with the knock-out punch. Fixing his disapproving eyes on Fleet Admiral Buckingham, he said, "I'm not particularly happy with the direction or tone of this conversation, Vincent. Can I be bluntly honest with you?"

Buckingham nodded hesitantly, suddenly having trouble meeting John's unblinking stare.

John glanced at each of them in turn, and said, "If I hadn't intervened today, this whole battle would have had a very different, and far more unpleasant outcome. Don't bother to deny it, you're all skilled enough tacticians to know I'm right."

The four Terran Federation officers didn't object, each of them knowing that in all likelihood, the Kintark should have been the ones sweeping the field with their bombers. The Terran Federation forces would have been crushed, their capital ships now little more than burning wreckage, and the Kintark Empire would have won a spectacular victory. The admirals squirmed under his penetrating gaze, reluctant to make eye contact, but powerless to turn away either.

Leaning forward in his chair, John frowned as he said, "I didn't expect you to be falling over yourselves with gratitude, but I definitely don't appreciate these attempts to intimidate me. I'm an ally of the Terran Federation, but you shouldn't make the mistake of thinking I don't have other options. My primary concern is stopping the Progenitor behind all this chaos, and there's a bigger game at play here than you realise."