The Phoenix Crisis (45 page)

When the fourth dispatch
arrived, Calvin was hesitant to open it. He tried to tell himself
that it wasn’t bad news, specifically that it wasn’t the bad news
he most dreaded.
This won’t be the
Republic’s response to the Renoran request for annexation, he
thought. The Republican government was slower to act than the
strongly executive Imperial government, they would need time to
debate the issue. It would have to go before the Senate and
resolutions would have to be made and passed. It would take weeks,
maybe months. Not mere minutes or hours…

And yet, as he opened it, he found exactly
what he feared. The Rotham Republic had issued a statement,
responding favorably to the Renoran request. They recognized the de
facto government on Renora as the legitimate local authority and
declared the populace under Republic protection as a legitimate
territory of the Republic. And that aid would be dispatched
immediately. Which, Calvin knew, meant a war fleet. He almost
couldn’t believe what he was reading. Everything was happening so
swiftly, it almost seemed arranged. The more he thought about it,
the more certain he was that it had to have been arranged. This
news must not have come as a surprise to the dominant power in the
Rotham Senate. How else could they have acted so quickly upon
it?

Upon the release of the Republic’s
pronouncement, the Network lit up like a dried-out tree put to
flame. Alarm, concern, intrigue, rumors, and all sorts of
speculation shot through the Empire over kataspace and all other
forms of communication. The cat was out of the bag now, there was
no keeping this news quiet. Calvin felt his heart in his throat and
turned on the news, knowing that the King would be forced to
respond to this soon. Not ten minutes later the anchor, who’d been
trying to paint of picture of what was still speculation and what
had been confirmed, announced that the King was about to address
the Empire. The camera then jump-cut to a view from the ground at
the Imperial Palace. There was a large gathering of people there,
including a massive press-corps. The camera changed angle to a
close up of the center podium where the King stood. He did his best
to look regal and in command, but there was tiredness in his red
eyes. And he hadn’t taken the time to have much makeup applied to
him, so he looked somewhat sickly under the harsh lights.

“
Citizens of the Empire,”
the King said; his voice was deep and his words carried a
full-measure of authority. “There are rumors that the colony of
Renora has declared its independence from our great union and has
petitioned the Rotham Republic for recognition as a Rotham
territory.” He paused for a moment. “Those rumors are
true.”

The crowd reacted noisily to this. And, as
Calvin flipped through various channels he found that every media
agency was taking this confirmation like it was the biggest news
scoop in their broadcasting lifetimes. Even the state-run media
seemed unsure what to make of it.

“
But those people on Renora
who have seized the capital and made this declaration are rebels,
and not the official voice of the citizens of Renora. They do not
speak for the people, nor do they have the authority to do as
they’ve done. They are an illegitimate body and their claims and
authority shall not be recognized by this government, or any other
government in the galaxy. It is an unlawful regime. And one that
shall not be given validation in any form. The Republican Senate
has hastily responded to the regime’s petition, and has claimed to
offer the regime and the rest of Renora citizenship in the
Republic. But their words are empty and their offer is no more
legitimate than the broken, seditious regime that has taken
temporary control of the colony of Renora. The people of Renora
have been—and always shall be—citizens of the Empire. We are only
strong so long as we find strength from each other. Every citizen
on every colony of this Empire is united to every other, and shall
be protected. As a royal proclamation to the Empire, I—King Hisato
Akira, First of My Name and Fifth Monarch of the Empire—hereby
declare to all peoples on all worlds everywhere that the colony of
Renora is, and always shall be, a colony of the Empire. And
every
measure
necessary
shall
be
taken to preserve our glorious Union.”

The King finished his speech and refused to
take any questions. As he left the podium, flanked by his guards
and several members of his administration, the camera changed back
to the lead news anchor who was interviewing a mid-level government
official. Calvin had no time to listen to their speculation so he
shut off the terminal and rested his head in his hands. Trying to
make sense of this latest turn of events on his own.

It wasn’t a declaration of war, not an
official one, but it seemed just as good as one. If the Republic
had any interest in a war with the Empire, the Rotham now had their
excuse to send hordes of battleships through the DMZ and into
Imperial space. Calvin hoped the King’s bold words, and the general
reputation of the Empire’s fiercely powerful military, would be
enough to intimidate and dissuade the hawkish members of the
Republican Senate who wanted the war. But he feared it would not be
enough. All of this felt too arranged… too designed. Someone wanted
this war to happen. And that someone seemed to hold the governments
of the galaxy like puppets on strings.

Could this really be just the influence of
the Phoenix Ring? Or was there a darker, more invisible
puppet-master lurking somewhere in the blackest nether-regions of
space? A terrifying thought to be sure. Calvin thought back on what
Alex had told him, about the Rahajiim who were an elusive,
influential, and deadly faction inside the Republic. So secretive
and so powerful that even the mighty Advent—the Republic’s premiere
intelligence network—was powerless against them. Calvin wondered
what part in all of this they’d played—if any.

There was so much to think about now, so
much to process, that Calvin’s fatigue left him and he felt wide
awake. His body flooded with adrenaline. He set to work checking on
his teams, giving them new orders and instructions, and doing all
he could to accelerate his investigation. He was out of time. He
knew it. Kalila knew it. Probably everyone knew it. If he couldn’t
deliver the Phoenix Ring to the Assembly on a silver platter soon,
it would be too late.

Another dispatch arrived. He felt his
stomach flip over as he opened it. Praying to any gods that would
listen that it wouldn’t bear news that Imperial and Rotham ships
had already engaged each other. It didn’t. In fact, this dispatch
carried the first truly good news he’d heard in a long, long time.
He felt a smile spread across his face and couldn’t keep back a
small cheer.

Rafael had been found. As Calvin’s people
had raided the secret Intel Wing dungeons and safe houses, using
Rosemarie’s information, they’d found a lot of interesting things,
including prisoners who were now being nursed back to health
and—very gingerly—squeezed for information. But there had been no
sign of Rafael as each of the many prisons were stormed by Imperial
troops, under orders of the Executor. Calvin had lost hope with
each new report. Believing, deep inside his heart, that his friend
was dead.

“
He is alive and stable,”
the report said. It went on to state that, while he had sustained
several injuries and was being treated and given medical attention,
Rafael Te Santos was not only alive but his mental faculties were
in good condition. The extreme interrogation methods that had been
applied to many of the prisoners, including him, hadn’t succeeded
in breaking him. At least not yet. And now he was safely in custody
at a secure hospital not far away. They’d found him in the very
last Intel Wing safe-house they’d raided.

Calvin felt a rush of relief and excitement
pour through him. He jumped up from the computer station and
charged out into the hall. He put on his jacket as he walked, not
stopping for any reason. His guards came to his sides immediately.
And he ordered them to prep the vehicles.

When his motorcade arrived at the hospital,
his guards advised him to remain in the car while they set up a
secure position outside and did a perimeter sweep. Calvin, anxious
to see Rafael, ignored their advice and got out of the car
immediately. As he strode, half-jogging, across the walkway to the
hospital’s entrance, his guards rushed to take up positions all
around him. Trying to screen him from any possible attack. Calvin
didn’t care if the Khans, CERKO, and every terrorist organization
in the galaxy had sent every sniper in the universe to stop him. It
wouldn’t work. He was going to see Rafael. No matter what.

When he arrived at Rafael’s room, he ordered
his guards to remain outside and he entered alone. As he stepped
inside and the door slid shut behind him, he saw a familiar man
sitting up in a hospital bed. He was attached to an IV and some
other equipment, and a computer monitor displayed his regular
heartbeats. There were no windows. For security purposes, he’d been
put in one hospital’s private “safe rooms”.

“
Can you believe it?”
croaked Rafael, his voice hoarse. “Stuck in a hospital and they
don’t even give me a view.” He cracked a smile.

Calvin walked to his side and beamed. “You
don’t know how glad I am to see you,” he said. He’d lost a lot of
sleep over the past several weeks worrying that he’d sent Rafael to
his death. And that his name would be added to the growing list of
those who’d been tragically ripped away as they’d struggled to
defend the Empire from threats within.

“
The feeling is mutual,
Captain,” said Rafael. He turned his head to look at Calvin
directly and only then did Calvin notice that a large bandage
covered Rafael’s left eye. He was also missing his pinky and ring
finger from his left hand.

“
Are you all right?” asked
Calvin, concerned.

“
I’ve been worse,” said
Rafael, clearly lying.

“
How’s your eye?” Calvin was
almost afraid to ask.

“
Oh it’s gone. So are the
fingers. But a small price to pay for keeping my honor, and my
word,” he said, giving Calvin a resolute, almost proud look. “I
never cracked. Not for a minute. Nothing they tried got anything
out of me.”

Calvin was impressed. And grateful. “I
admire your courage,” he said. “And your steel.”

“
It wasn’t all duty and
honor,” admitted Rafael. “There was a selfish motive too. I knew
that the information I had was the only thing keeping me alive, so
I was loath to part with it.” He shot Calvin a crooked grin, which
looked strange with just his one eye showing, along with several
fresh scars on the side of his face. He wouldn’t be winning any
beauty pageants, but Rafael held himself as if every new injury and
blemish was a medal of honor. And, as far as Calvin was concerned,
they were.

“
How long do they need to
keep you here?” asked Calvin. He was eager to continue his
investigation and he didn’t just want the information Rafael could
give him, he wanted Rafael’s help and analytical skills too. But he
didn’t want to compromise Rafael’s recovery. Certainly the man had
earned a reprieve and more.

“
As far as I’m concerned
they don’t need to keep me here at all,” said Rafael. “I’m as
healthy as a horse. Healthier, actually. Horses don’t live very
long.”

Calvin wondered if that was true, or if this
was just a show of strength, a tribute to Rafael’s high tolerance
for pain and strong force of will. For that matter, Rafael might
simply be responding to the powerful pain medications that were
undoubtedly flowing through him. It made Calvin remember how anyone
within reach of the Phoenix Ring might be a replicant, and how Rain
had devised a method to test whether or not someone was. Calvin
wanted to trust Rafael, and wanted to unequivocally believe this
was his friend, and that he’d been saved. But a tiny suspicion
inside him wondered if this Rafael before him was a very elaborate
replicant. A ploy to get someone inside Calvin’s organization and
discover what he knew, perhaps also sabotaging his efforts. He had
to be sure.

“
What pain medication do
they have you on?” asked Calvin. He moved closer to look at the
instruments, to see if it was displayed somewhere.

Rafael smirked. “I probably shouldn’t tell
you,” he said.

Calvin recognized the code on the machine.
It was the same code that had stared at him when he’d been in the
hospital after the Trinity incident. Rafael was being doped with
equarius, and he wasn’t dead or reverting back to some kind of
strange original dark Polarian state. That meant he wasn’t a
replicant. He was the real thing. Calvin smiled. “Get better soon,”
he said.

“
I’m better now,” said
Rafael, chuckling slightly.

Calvin turned to leave, intending to go find
a medical official and ask when Rafael could be released. As he was
about to go, he heard Rafael call after him.

“
Wait
,” he said, with a slight cough.

Calvin turned back

“
I have something for you,”
he said. “Information you should know.”

Calvin looked at him. “What is it?” he
returned to his friend’s side.

“
Martel,” said Rafael
coughing again. “Zane Martel.”

***

The ops officer’s condition took a turn for
the worse. Rain did all she could for him. Desperate to keep him
stable. As his heart rate slowed even more, to levels that should
have proven fatal, and his body-temperature continued to decline…
she found herself quickly running out of ideas to try.