BeyHop Chpt 29

==Beyond Hope- Chapter 29 - The shape of the Elephant==
<<Previous Chapter - Return to Story Index - Next Chapter>>
----
=== Strategic Strike ===
Strategic Ballistic Submarine - Golden Lakes Region - Underway beneath the wavesKowloon System, Federated Commonwealth (Lyran State)January, 3059
----
Elizabeth twisted the key in unison with the boat's commanding officer, and the gunner's mates manning the consoles, did their duty.
Eight doors blew open on a cavitation wave, and eight ballistic missiles rose 200 meters through the now-much-warmer-and-less-dense North current, to breach into the sky as the enemy warship's commander made his own decision.
These were not nuclear tipped, because one of Elizabeth's ancestors made a promise. But eight conventional white shark warheads on a warship at that range, is still a major threat.
----
=== Down Pilot ===
The magnitude of his mistake was all too clear, as Perigard Zalman watched the river sweep away his Command Star, their dropship, and the 'mech he barely managed to eject from before it was hit by a skyscraper sized section of what had been a hydroelectric dam.
"Hello, Stranger." A boy's voice said, as he untangled from his seat. The boy was shoeless, in overalls, and had a nasty looking rifle casually pointed just far enough from Zalman's ejection seat, to be too difficult to grab. "You want to put the sidearm on the ground now, a'fore my sister shoots you." the boy continued, "Martha's got a mean streak, you won't die easy if she does."
He looked, as he reached for his sidearm, and saw her. The girl could be eight, or ten, her weapon was huge in her hands, but those were reminiscent of his days in sibko, and the emptiness in the little girl's eyes chilled him, as he lowered the pistol onto his ejection seat. 
"Now, you wait right there while my father comes to collect you, stranger." the boy explained, "You don't do nothin' but wait right here, it won't be long. You are on Meier land here, and we don't like visitors, but Her Grace says we have to accept any surrenders until they're violated. You gonna violate a surrender, mister?"
“That would be…unwise in my current position.” Zalman felt something inside himself die a little at the admission.
A horse-drawn buggy with four men in the back pulled up, and these were…well, at least comprehensible to him…and at least they were wearing boots.
"Martha! Zachariah, good! Good…men, secure this man, we'll take him down the Old Highway to the Constables."
----
===Pondering fate of a Prisoner===
----
"You're in the presence of your Sovereign, Foreigner, Kneeling is appropriate."
A rifle butt behind his knee from one guard, and a grip on his shoulders from the other forced Perigard Zalman to his knees-without doing damage.
"Stop that!" Helena barked, "Back off, gentlemen, and take those cuffs off of him, I'm in no danger here."
Helena Cameron stared at Perigrad Zalman, a stare that would make the abyss blink and shirk.
“Your inflexible thinking cost a lot of needless deaths today Zalman. "As you can see, I’m not a prisoner. I’m told there are concerns I’ve been poisoned against the Clans. This is what the interviewees that have already spoken to you and the other survivors and prisoners we’ve taken have told me.”
Zalman tried averting his eyes.
“Look at me, Zalman. I’m not a slaver or a Clanner. Not a god. I won’t steal your soul. Which puts me in an interesting position. If I simply imprison you for what you’ve done here, well that just seems insufficient doesn’t it?”
A throat clearing sound interrupted. Elizabeth Ngo, in the flesh, tapped her way into the hall, "Lady Helena, sorry to interrupt…"
“This is your theater, no apologies are needed.” Helena nodded.
"Search and Rescue teams have found survivors out along the Nadir routes, and Zenith routes, they've got some dehydration issues and more than a few were short oxygen, but we can add a few hundred more to the tally of people-I've-got-to-find-somewhere-to-hold, The Archon Regent sent a request for status update on yourself and a belated warning-seems LIC was a bit slow this time around in getting a warning to anyone who can call us, Oh, and still nothing from the other Clanners about whether they're going to seek repatriation or ransom for the Steel Viper survivors. No calls at all, really."
“We’ll have to work on that commo problem then. I also rather suspect we won’t be getting any calls for this group anytime soon.”
The Kowloonese Duchess looked pained. "This means I have to build the damn prison, doesn't it?"
“I know this is a little out there but here me out, what if we make them build an enclave as they call it.”
"Prisoners are not to be put to labor." Elizabeth recited it, like a child reciting ABC's. Zalman stiffened at the implication, "Lady Helena, you know what we promised, I can't break with that, no matter how convenient."
“Hmmm, okay but we can teach them trades can’t we? Because I think that is what they are missing. They’ve been nothing but Warriors.”
"It has to be voluntary, and it still can't be construed as putting them to forced labor, or really using prison labor in any way that might compete with civilian contractors or businesses."
“Call it post imprisonment education, to help sooth their transition to civilian life.”
"You're thinking of offering his parole?" Liz asked questioningly, "Even if I can get the Assembly to agree, Archon-Regent Peter will have you on the carpet on Tharkad over that."
“I am. I am thinking they need to see what it’s like to actually build something, to actually help people that have been harmed by their actions. Not just pawn it off on their so called lower castes. Something other than their ritualized warfare. I know no matter how we frame it we’ll be pushing up against some rules but I think it needs to be done.”
It finally filtered in. "YOU're in charge…" Zalman said.
"Well, duh, she's The Cameron." Elizabeth acknowledged him, "What, did you guys really think I'd be able to control her? That's crazy talk."
“See? Told you. Not a prisoner. Now I’ll play by Elizabeth’s rules for your people since this is her world and I made a promise to not usurp that. But I’ll also hold out that olive branch.”
Liz seemed to make a decision. "Kiribati Island, it's in the Giap Gulf, a thousand kilometers from anywhere, we can keep it supplied with medicines and food, let them guard themselves there-the best lockup has the locks on the INSIDE of the doors, and that island's got ant columns and broward beasts outside the weather station. We'll let 'em have guns to protect the settlement, and they can stay there until the higher ups arrange a prisoner swap with whoever's responsible on the other side."
“Since you’ll be a bit short on medics I’ll even teach you how to set IVs. It’s not hard once you get the hang of it.” Helena nodded.
"There will be no 'prisoner swap'." Perigard Zalman said, "It is not…how we do things."
"It used to be." Liz commented, "When your ancestors were the Star League Defense Force, there were even whole arrays of regulations on how to arrange and conduct them."
“You’ve just simply forgotten. In forgetting you turned war into the ultimate team sport and pretended it could be all nice and neat.”
"GIven the teamwork we saw, not so much 'team' sport." Liz noted.
“True. But I was trying to be nice. Still, you have a lot of fundamental problems Zalman. They all stem from the fact that you even have the term lower caste. I’ve read the literature available. You know it actually doesn’t describe the other castes as lower. But what really gets me going is all this handing people over like they are nothing but poker chips. It offends me.” Helena let the venom drip from her tongue.
"Speaking of literature…" Liz said, "My other reason for interrupting. Zalman, I need your permission to print for distribution some of the documents captured from your warship, as the senior officer, you're technically in charge of those, and I'm not a thief. The docs in question are the shipboard copy of your Clan's Remembrance, which is different enough from the Wolf version Kell's people brought over to be worth its own edition, and the copy of Sanra Mercer's book from the ship's archive."
“I will give them to you. Maybe it will help show our ways do have merit.” Zalman looked at Elizabeth for a moment then to Helena. “I will learn what you will teach.”
"Y'know, if you people had shown up with books and knowledge in the first place, half the people fighting you would be fighting beside you. Something of a thought for you to ponder while you're waiting out the duration in tropical conditions with plenty of fruit trees." Liz quipped, "I think there's even a whale-watching position near the dock on Kiribati."
“First a few days of instruction on how to set IVs without hurting or killing people. We want to make sure you can administer the medicines we give you after all. And there’s plenty of people who’ll appreciate it when I’m satisfied I can turn you loose on those who need it instead of the practice dummy.”
"Better tell him about bug-dope too, Army Ants eat everything, even broward beasts, and Kiribati's got an infestation on the shore side. Those and the rest of the wildlife is why we're letting them have machine guns and flamers."
“Oh yeah. Which means we’ll also be sending plenty of books too. Like I said, you guys need to learn. Can’t do that in a vacuum.”
----
===Tending the Wounded===
Field HospitalKowloon System, Federated Commonwealth (Lyran State)January of 3059
----
After a few days Zalman had proven a quicker study than Helena had anticipated so she let him work with another team while she pulled the remainder of a shift on her own.
Helena set an IV in the hand of an 8 year old girl who had minor injuries but a developing case of serious dehydration thanks to the disruption of utilities in the wake of the destruction of the dam.
“There you go.” Helena smiled.
“Thanks.”
“How is she doing this?” Bianh asked, watching the scene.
“Helena has become quite adept at suppressing her triggers in many situations. Later, after this is over. That is when she’ll cry for several hours at least. She may not even sleep for the next several days. Not really.” Jane Cameron answered. “But watch her carefully. Her masks are starting to crack. She’s starting to feel certain emotions again. For real. Not just fear, anxiety, or despair. But small glimmers of empathy, happiness, and even love.”
Helena was now working on a four year old boy in the improvised medical tent.
“She loves Elizabeth and you.” Bianh put together.
“Yes. It is progress. Slow but steady progress. But when it is just her and Elizabeth, she won’t put up a mask or persona anymore. There was always that little bit of last barrier between them until the wedding.”
“I’ve heard the rumors. She’s offered to marry Elizabeth more than once. I’d think the wedding would have upset her, not bring them closer together.”
“That is because Elizabeth dropped her own mask and showed who she really is too in doing that. So Helena can reciprocate.”
“I guess. Which means time to change the subject. I hear you’re going to adopt.”
“Yes. I’ll never be able to have one of my own now with what I am but I have wanted to be a mother since I was old enough to know what that meant.”
“Surrogacy could also be an option or if you meet the right woman, artificial insemination.”
“Eventually yes. But I have to be careful talking about such things in front of Helena just yet.”
“I could see how that would upset her.”
“It would be worse than that. She’d be my surrogate in a heartbeat in her current mental state. As much as she is making progress, that would be rather complicated and something best avoided just yet. Maybe when she’s able to date again.”
“You seem certain she will.”
“Like I said, watch her. See how she’s focusing on the children. She may not want to admit it but she’s starting to have her own thoughts about becoming a mother.”
“Which means getting over her damages.” Bianh nodded.
“The only trouble is she might go the one night stand single mother route if we’re not careful.” Jane Cameron cautioned. “She’ll do that before adopting if we press too hard.”
“I hate to say it but that might not be such a bad thing. The Cameron line should be secured with heirs. Whatever sort of household they grow up in.”
“She’ll let us know when she’s ready for that.”
“Well we have to drag her away from this, to deal with what is coming next.”
“I know. As much as she’ll cry later, this will also help her in a way. I’d like to let her keep doing this a bit longer but there is a lot to do.”
----
Boxes arrived, and Elizabeth was at the port to meet them. These boxes got Kowloon's flag instead of the Federated Commonwealth's flag.
Men and women who had to be sacrificed, brought home now to rest in consecrated ground. Families to grieve with and pay death benefits to, and names for the archive on Spider Moon.
She watched the offload respectfully, and said the words when it was expected, and watched them loaded with honors for cemeteries.
After that, came greeting the wounded, and the survivors, a full day and the real war was still not quite begun yet.
----
<<Previous Chapter - Return to Story Index - Next Chapter>>
29