I should read old stories about war and ships more often. They tend to inspire...
I have sort of an idea where this one is going, but I haven't got the details worked out yet. Hence, don't think too bad of me if the post rate is slow.
Wait...
...the post rate is always slow.
Well, anyway....
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Fragile Ideals
“So the fighting will continue?”
Commander La’ra met the Queen’s eyes.
“Yes.” He replied.
The ruler nodded. They stood on the highest balcony of her palace. There were flashes of light on the horizon, distant cracks of artifical thunder.
“It would be foolish to demand you intervene militarily, wouldn’t it?” asked the Queen.
“I can’t help you the way you want.”
“The overall situation is too sensitive?”
“Yes.” La’ra rumbled. The Klingon Empire and United Federation of Planets were weathering a chill in relations. Starfleet had grown tired of certain Klingon houses raiding across the border and had responded militarily. They’d shown discretion; only the forces of the offending clans had been attacked. Their restraint had prevented war, but nerves on both sides were raw.
“I do wish you’d gotten here first, Commander. Starfleet makes a great noise about non-interference, but the Rebels were beaten before the Constantinople arrived. Interesting coincidence.” She leaned on the balcony rail, her face illuminated by distant guns. “At least your arrival has restrained their efforts. Perhaps we’ll stop the advance.”
“That parts up to you.” He warned. "We've already found other ways to assist you. We can find more."
“How much time would that take? I cannot stall them with negotiation.” She shrugged. Her skin was fine bronze, her frame lean muscle. Her people and Klingons had strong genetic similarities despite the Kelor's smooth skulls. The races were cousins. “The rebels will not accept any settlement short of…short of my abdication and the surrender of our culture. I will not allow my people to be domesticated.”
“It would be unfortunate.” La’ra agreed. The Kelor were fierce warriors. "You take it for granted that your removal would lead to such a castration."
"There is a Starfleet cruiser in orbit." She shrugged lightly. "The Federation controls the Rebels despite their denials. Thus, if Rebel victory seems inevitable, I will give the order.”
He frowned.
“Which order?”
“The order that will direct our entire fusion arsenal to strike our own planet.”
He noted, with the passive understanding one grants a tempermental child, that she seemed entirely serious.
“You’ll want us to evacuate you, then?”
“No, Commander. My people’s fate will be my own.” She turned to him and smiled. “Better than Federation oppression, I think. A good death.”
"I think we can find an alternative." He declared. He could already think of thousands, from using those same missiles on just the Rebels and enduring the literal fallout to letting the insurgents take over and fighting their new society from hills and caves.
He regarded the Queen coldly. She probably wasn’t popular enough for the second option.
“I hope so, Commander.” Another smile. “Escort me to my chamber? I have no doubt things will seem clearer in the morning.”
“Of course.” He said, offering up a grin. It wasn’t genuine.
Monarch and Klingon retreated into the palace.
* * *
"So there's reason to call her Heartreaver?" Ran'jar's voice asked.
"Yes." La'ra responded into the communicator. He was on the balcony again, watching the shelling. "It pains my heart that we're to keep her in power."
There was a rude, amused noise from the speaker. La'ra grinned far more enthusastically than he had for the Queen.
He wasn't being entirely fair. The Queen was quite beautiful. She'd given La'ra deep wide-eyed looks and subtle smiles before she'd retired to her room. He'd felt the tug. Fortunately, his taste in women ran toward honesty.
"Has the irritant done anything new?" He asked.
"No. She's cruising happily. No transporter activity, usual comm traffic."
La'ra nodded. The Constantinople's efforts on the Rebel's behalf hadn't been halted. She was undoubtedly relaying whatever she saw from orbit to the insurgents over tight-beam directional communications. That was all it had taken for the Rebels to turn defeat into a rapid advance toward the capital.
"The Rebel offensive is still stalled. Unless something changes, they won't break through." Ran'jar advised. The Hiv'laposh had matched Starfleet's ante in the favor of the Loyalists. The battle was now in stalemate.
"And neither will the Queen's forces." La'ra agreed. He was never happy with a stalemate.
The first indications of a plan began to bubble in his head. His mouth twitched. It took discipline not to tell Ran'jar immediately. The Federation ship was surely listening in.
"Transport me up." He ordered. "We should probably discuss how to exploit Starfleet's innocence and virtue in private."
Topic: Fragile Ideals (Read 20781 times)