18
It was one of those rare days that I held court within the throne room itself, but more than that, it was one of those even rarer days where I allowed the common citizens to walk right up to me (or up to the bottom of the raised dais and steps up to my throne) to speak with me.
This was an idea that Candace suggested.
And it paid dividends to listen to people.
Even though it had only been a mere two months since I started, I have heard more about the state of my people this way than through the official reports, which were made by people too scared to displease me or had their court language and misdirections so ingrained into them during my father's era that they didn't know how to be honest.
Because people were like that. Habits ingrained into the mind and body of a person did not simply disappear because of policy changes no more than an oppressed people stopped being careful after a policy change said they weren't oppressed anymore. Or how the spoiled rich didn't stop being spoiled just because there were a few stricter laws on unfair treatment.
But today, the people were here not for themselves but to implore to me.
Men, women, children, old, young, weak, strong, high, and low. They came from all across Capellan walks of life on Sian and abroad.
And they begged me to run and hide.
They begged me to let themselves be my shield.
They begged me to not die on the battlefield as my ancestor Ilsa Liao had died.
They begged me to not leave them rudderless when the entire galaxy seemed to want them dead and gone.
And each time, I gave them my response.
"A Chancellor who abandons Sian abandons the heart of the Capellan Confederation. I cannot abandon my state anymore than a man can abandon his body. Do not seek something from me which I cannot give. Instead, look out for your family, friends, and neighbors so that when this war ends, we may yet hold hands again as Capellans."
The latest of such people to beg me to seek safety bit his lips. After a while, he knelt down and gave me a kowtow.
"You are excused, Corporal Sheng."
The soldier left, his head hung low.
In a way, this had been his one chance to talk to me in his entire lifetime, and he used it to beg me to be safe. Failing here, he must be feeling like the worst of the worst, because in the eyes of the many, I was a savior and leader so many others before me had not been.
I felt … flattered.
And disheartened.
Flattered because my people saw me as their leader and trusted in me to guide them to safe harbor.
Disheartened because I didn't feel that special and that the Capellans as a whole had been so disillusioned and beaten down that I, a totalitarian dictator who took on a few benevolent policies, was the closest thing to a religious savior.
Oh, some of them didn't feel that way. Some were cold and calculating, debating with me logically that my death might just doom the Capellan Confederation, especially if I died here on Sian. They argued that my literal death could be the metaphorical final nail of the coffin for our dying state.
But I held firm and told them no.
I felt cruel everytime I told them but I kept on saying it because I had to.
And if I did die here…
… Well, Candace was still alive and well, and unlike myself, she had to obey my orders. I had already sent her Kai to Betelgeuse. There was even an enveloped order I sent with her that, should I truly be found deceased, then Kai would be legitimized. I would be dead by then, and even if it was foolish, I wanted to give Kai one last gift if I died. If the confederation fell apart because of that one gift, then it was merely time for us to go.
It was selfish. Foolish. Sentimental.
'But goddamnit, I will have the last say on the last pages of my life!' I thought angrily.
And I was angry.
A decade in house arrest. Another four years locked up in my palace most of the time working my ass off. I wanted to be selfish. I wanted to be lazy. I wanted …
What I wanted ….
Didn't matter.
I felt angry. I felt tired. I felt so many other things but those two feelings dominated me. Was it because I was looking at my death in the face that I started to have regrets? Maybe.
I sighed as the court came to an end for the day, and the palace guards escorted everyone out.
But just before the last of them left, one of the courier soldiers ran up to me.
He looked frantic.
"Speak," I told him.
"The FedCom alliance forces have been spotted on Preston, chancellor…!"
Preston. It was a system that was just one jump away from Sian.
That meant that, within the week, the Eridani Light Horse and whoever the Lyrans sent, would be jumping into Sian System. Assuming they did not use pirate points, that was another week and a half before they were in orbit over Sian. If they don't use nadir or zenith to jump in and instead use a pirate point… then I would only have a week at most.
"Then we must finalize our preparations," I said more to myself than to the soldier. "Alert the Prefectorate. I must see if their preparations have been up to my satisfaction."
-VB-
Brevet General Nathan Armstrong was not a men prone to fancy, and this Fourth Succession War might still swallow him and his command if he gave himself to fanciful thoughts and ideas.
The latest intel he received before departing from the Federated Suns had been that Sian was underprotected, yes, but underprotected did not mean not protected.
He stared at the intel paper.
One mech regiment, green, reliable. Five mixed militia regiments, regular, fanatical. Two battalions of ASF, veteran, fanatical.
When put like this, it made Sian look less like the capital of a Successor State and more like a major agricultural world. Important, yes, but not vital.
But Nathan… Nathan didn't trust this intel. He knew that the First Prince believed it (to a degree) as did the Archon (to a degree). However, both of them also mentioned how half of the Death Commandos were missing as were many mercenary commands that were purported to have been hired by the Capellans. None of them were major mercenary commands; all of those were accounted for and fighting along the frontlines and border worlds. A good example of these "missing" commands was the Oracle Orienters, a single battalion sized mercenary command focused on scouting. According to the MRB, the Oracle Orienters had been hired by the Capellans but no one knew where they were!
If he put all of these commands together, then there were at least two regiments that the Capellans had hired, bled money for, and yet remained unaccounted for, and this happened two months ago when his fleet entered Sarna Commonality. Obviously, his fleet of dropships and jumpships had been spotted.
Sian would be more prepared than before against his and Colonel Steiner's five regiments.
"General."
He looked up. One of his colonels stood waiting for him.
"Is it time for another planning session?" he asked.
"No, general. The fleet is ready to jump to the pirate point."
"I see. And Colonel Steiner?"
"Waiting for you, general."
"Sound the general alarm. Ready all aerospace fighters in their bays. Then jump in one minute."
"Yes, sir. I will relay the order." The colonel left the command center of Star's End, the Monolith-class flagship of the Eridani Light Horse's jumpship fleet.
One minute until he and his people were in Sian.
He closed his eyes and thought back to what he must prepare to win against.
Since he didn't fully trust the intel… he needed at least double the enemy strength.
Two mech regiments, regular, fanatical. Ten mixed militia regiments, regular, fanatical. One aerospace regiment… No, two aerospace regiments, regular, fanatical.
What he just thought made more sense for an under-defended capital world.
Compared to that, his three combined arms regiments and Colonel Steiner's two mech regiments felt … just adequate.
The general jump alarm rang out.
Hmm? Had he been that deep in thought?
Nathan situated himself.
And then there was a flash. The moment the flash went away, he reached forward on the command console and pressed down on the intercom directly to the bridge of the ship. "Report."
"Jump successful, general," the captain of the Star's End reported. "All friendly and ally jumpships accounted for. No misjump or accidents. Zenith and Nadir recharge stations are both … far outside of combat range."
"Good. Instruct all dropships to detach and make their way toward Sian II," he said as he looked all around the room. "Soldiers. To your stations."
Outside of the very few officers dedicated to communications and command, the rest quickly made their way towards the dropships. Soon, he would follow them to the Overlord-class dropship attached to Star's End and, on it, to his Atlas as the regimental commander of the 151st Light Horse Regiment and the overall commander of the joint LCAF-ELH Raid on Sian II.
-VB-
"Here they come," I muttered to myself as I sat in the center of the command chamber within the Chancellor's Palace. Then out loud, I questioned my people. "Are the defenses ready?"
In the giant near-chasm-like command chamber, military officers began a countdown.
"The 1st Sian Rangers are reporting in green."
"The 2nd Death Commandos Battalion is reporting green."
"All nine Sian People's Militia regiments are reporting ready."
"All five Jiantsing Aerospace Wings are reporting green."
"The 1st and 2nd Mobile Artillery Regiments are reporting green."
"The mercenary liaison reports that the Mercenary Regiment stands ready for your orders, chancellor."
"Your personal experimental battalion stands ready, chancellor."
I took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.
This was it.
Depending on how this battle went, the entire course of the Fourth Succession War would change…
So I should stack the deck so that even if I lose here and have to live to see the end of it, no?
"And my orders to the infiltrators?"
"Sent, milord," Director Chandra Ling reported from my left. "We should hear from them within the month, if not a week."
"Good. Good."
"The enemy forces are in orbit… and confirming. The OpFor is the entire Eridani Light Horse and the two regiments of the Lyran Guards, 6th and 10th," senior-most sensors officer reported. "They are entering atmosphere. Their target … is on J29, just north of Zi-Jin Cheng."
They were coming right for my head.
"Let them come," I hummed more calmly than I felt.
"Aerospace fighters released by OpFor."
"Scrambling nearest ASF assets."
Less than five minutes after the first scrambling…
"Contact!"
It's begun.
-VB-
Invading Force:
6th Lyran Guard (CO: Colonel Frederick Steiner), regiment, veteran, reliable
10th Lyran Guard ("), regiment, regular, reliable
71st Light Horse Regiment (CO: Colonel William erik Peterson), regiment, veteran, reliable
151st Light Horse Regiment (CO: Brevet General Nathan Armstrong), regiment, elite, reliable
21st Striker Regiment (CO: Colonel Charles Winston), regiment, veteran, reliable
Total 'Mech Count: 650
Total ASF Count: 56
Total Vehicle Count: 120
Total Infantry Count: ~3,000
Defending Force:
1st Sian Rangers, regiment, veteran, fanatical
2nd Death Commandos, battalion, elite, fanatical
1st ~ 9th Sian People's Militia, regiments, green, fanatical
Jiantsing Aerospace Wings, regiment, regular, fanatical
1st Sian Artillery, regiment, regular, fanatical
2nd Sian Artillery, regiment, regular, fanatical
Combined Sian Mercenary Regiment, regiment, veteran, questionable
Chancellor's Own, two battalion, veteran, fanatical
Total 'Mech Count: 320
Total ASF Count: 167
Total Standard Fighter Count: 390
Total Vehicle Count: 2,680
Total Infantry Count: ~2,000,000