The Ascent

Chapter 41

I requested a fleet-wide meeting in v-space in one hour, and half an hour later, everyone in the fleet had logged in and was waiting to hear what I had to say. I had chosen an amphitheater for the setting. As I walked out onto the stage in deathly silence, I scanned the first few rows where the commanders sat, looking for Newman before I began speaking.

"I hear someone has accused me of trying to kidnap you all and drag you off to The Speaking Ones."

The amphitheater erupted into a rolling thunder of voices. I held up my hand and raised my voice. "I beg you, in the name of God, to listen to what I have to say before you judge me! If I have done anything wrong, then punish me as you see fit, but if I have not, then see to it that my accusers meet the justice they deserve."

I stood quietly in that circle of angry spacers waiting for the silence that would show I had their undivided attention. "I assume you know the difference between a human and an alien," I said in an ironic tone. I paused, hoping for at least a few chuckles, but got only hard stares. "—and between a human world and an alien world. Your ships, they all have navigators and star charts and the same transit station maps I have, right? Well then, is it not absurd to say that I intend to trick you into going anywhere you do not wish to go? Nor am I likely to force you. It will take nearly a hundred jump ships to transport the fleet and I can only be in one.

"But if I were, by some mystical mental powers, able to get you to a world belonging to The Speaking Ones, how long would I, one man against the whole fleet, survive once you saw you were not home?" I paused and smiled. "I assure you I could find far more dignified ways of committing suicide."

This time I got a few, if somewhat derisive chuckles. "No. The idea is absurd." Here I caught Newman's eye. "They are the paranoid fantasies of small-minded men, jealous of the honor you've shown me in electing me your leader."

I turned my back on him and surveyed the crowd around me. "This jealousy, however, is completely unnecessary. When have I ever denied any commander the chance to hold a conference with you or volunteer for a task or even suggest something helpful?"

I made a show of searching for a face in the crowd. "Did someone get passed over for promotion? Is this about a bad OPR?" I got a few more chuckles but, more importantly, the crowd's body language grew more relaxed. I swept the crowd with a smile. "Seriously, if you can find a more capable commander who is willing to work the long thankless hours on your behalf I will gladly step down as your commander.

"But I didn't call this meeting so I could talk about myself, but so that we can clear the air. If anyone feels I have cheated or tricked them in some way, let them speak now. Tell everyone here what I have done."

I waited until the silence became uncomfortable daring any one of them to say anything. I was ready for it. All I heard were some nervous coughs. "I'm willing to wait as long as you like, but after we've hashed this out, please don't log off until we've had the chance to discuss what I see is a greater threat than the Cacks. A threat that even now could turn both the aliens and even our own kind against us."

I walked over to an empty seat next to Chris and sat down as if I were turning the meeting over to the rest. Chris gave me a confused frown and I watched similar expressions spread across the faces of the crowd.

The silence grew painful, then someone called out. "What is it?"

"Yes," another said. "What is the threat?"

"Tell us."

"Yes."

As the murmuring rose, I stood and walked back out to the center of the amphitheater. "I'm sure you remember our stay at Black Mesa and how, when supplies and funds grew scarce, we would often trade with their alien neighbors. These aliens gave us free passage throughout their systems and treated us as allies—and why shouldn't they?