Of Fire and Night - Kevin J. Anderson [102]
Lanyan looked at Basil, oddly relieved. "Admiral, at least you managed to limp home. You don't know how much those Mantas mean to us right now. We damn well need every piece of equipment, even if it needs some fixing."
"We've done all that duct tape can do over here, General," Willis said.
Basil looked at the repair crews still busy on the Goliath's stripped-down bridge. The task would get larger and larger as more pieces of equipment crawled home. "Put all skilled space construction crewmembers on the job. I don't care what else they're doing or whom they belong to. No excuses. We need everybody. Most of our spacedock facilities are out in the asteroid belt, but I'd feel more comfortable keeping any functional ships closer to home."
"Give us the parts, and my own people can make all basic repairs here, Mr. Chairman."
"Good." Basil leaned close to his datapad again. "If only a third of the EDF remains, then I'm issuing a complete reactivation order. Every soldier from any branch of the service, whether on active or inactive duty, any retired personnel, anyone making a fine living as a consultant in the commercial sector--I want them all back. And we need to recall any EDF battleships still under human control, no matter where they are. Every single vessel that survived the robot insurrection needs to come back home. Now. We're talking about the full-fledged defense of planet Earth."
Cain frowned, clearly considering the consequences. "Mr. Chairman, we may have cut off supply runs, but we still maintain a presence at colonies that signed the Charter. Your order would force us to abandon every Hansa colony to its fate."
"They'll be just swinging in the wind," Lanyan said. "They'll have no protection against either the hydrogues or the robots."
"Focus on the big picture, gentlemen. Earth is our highest priority."
Lanyan did not look pleased with the instructions either, but he nodded slowly, scratching the itchy bristles of his beard stubble. "You are defining those other worlds as expendable, correct?"
Basil knew that the bridge crewmembers were eavesdropping, but unlike so many other parts of his administration, this was not something that could be kept secret for long. "Without the Earth there is no Terran Hanseatic League. We have to set priorities."
59
PATRICK FITZPATRICK III
Maureen Fitzpatrick kept state-of-the-art vehicles for her own purposes: short-range flyers, ground cars, even one elegant spaceworthy yacht equipped with an Ildiran stardrive and a full tank of ekti. But Patrick preferred antique automobiles, mainly because the grease, oil, and sheer clutter frustrated his grandmother no end.
Years ago the Battleaxe had denied him that hobby because greasy hands and dirty fingernails offended her sensibilities. Now, though, she had actually acquired several cars for him to tinker with, encouraging his "eccentric pursuits," just to keep him out of trouble.
Patrick wanted to be doing something much more significant. He wanted to be talking to interviewers, expressing a positive view of what the Roamers had done to the EDF survivors. But Maureen now kept him safely hidden away in the mansion where no one could see him, while she scheduled him with "the best therapists in the world."
It had been only a few days since the welcome-home party. He had tried to make postings and schedule interviews in his crusade to defend the Roamers, but in the sudden shock and confusion of the Soldier compy revolt, the returning captives from Osquivel were no longer the story of the hour. The whole EDF had fallen apart, compies had turned against their creators, millions were dead, and killer robots were surely coming to Earth. His grandmother didn't