Read Online A Savage War Of Peace (Ark Royal Book 5) by Christopher Nuttall - Free Book Online Page A

since he’d been a mere private himself.  He still remembered gambling with his fellows on deployment ... and how easy it had been to wind up in debt, once they moved from gambling with matchsticks to playing for real money.  He’d learnt a sharp lesson after his first real game, when he’d been taken for a ride by an older and more experienced player.  It could easily have ended badly, with him owing most of his salary to the cardsharp.  There was one in every unit.
     
    But eventually gambling for matchsticks loses its thrill , he thought, ruefully.  Because really, what’s the point of playing for matchsticks?
     
    He pushed the thought aside and glowered at the pair of them.  Peerce had been right, as always; there wasn't much he could do to them.  They weren't on Earth, where they could be reassigned, or a starship where there was no shortage of miserable tasks to do for punishment duty.  He needed them both on the walls, just in case the shit did hit the fan.
     
    “You will not talk to the aliens, at least until I am relieved by superior authority,” he ordered, coolly.  “You will remain in Fort Knight.  In addition, you will forfeit one week’s pay as a reminder not to gamble with big green men.  Do you accept my judgement?”
     
    Hardesty opened his mouth.  “Sir, I ...”
     
    Oakley elbowed him sharply, cutting off his friend’s response.  Percy silently blessed him; if the case had been heard by someone higher up the food chain, it was unlikely they would have gotten off so lightly.  They could request an appeal to a superior officer, if they wished, but it would probably have gone against them.  A superior might not be so inclined to understand the unique pressures of living on Vesy, surrounded by hordes of aliens who could turn nasty at any moment.
     
    “We accept,” Oakley said, quickly.  “We won’t have any further contact with the aliens.”
     
    “Glad to hear it,” Percy said.  He relaxed, slightly.  “You do realise that we almost lost the Russian base when the aliens attacked?  And that Fort Knight is flimsy in comparison?”
     
    He waited for his words to sink in.  None of them had any illusions about just how long they could hold out, even with modern weapons.  They’d kill hundreds of aliens for every Marine, Percy knew, but they couldn’t hope to replace the bullets they fired, while the aliens had almost unlimited weapons and manpower.  The Vesy would just keep soaking up the bullets and pressing forward until they stormed the walls and overwhelmed the fort.
     
    Or dig a tunnel underneath the base , he thought, sourly.  Or come up with a devious way of using our weapons against us .
     
    “We cannot take the risk of provoking them into attacking us,” he added.  “A fight over gambling debts could easily have gotten out of hand, leading to an outright battle we could only lose.  Do you understand me?”
     
    “Yes, sir,” Oakley said.
     
    “Yes, sir,” Hardesty echoed, a little sullenly.  “I understand.”
     
    “Then go,” Percy ordered, nodding to the hatch.  “I ...”
     
    There was a sharp tap at the hatch.  Peerce opened it.  “Mr. Fanwood?”
     
    “I was hoping to speak to the CO,” Fanwood said.  He was a tall bald man, wearing a pair of trousers and little else.   He’d been hastily assigned to Vesy from Pegasus, which had caused no end of problems as the engineers had been kitted out for sub-zero temperatures, not sweltering tropical heat.  “I have a final report for him.”
     
    “Come in,” Percy said.  He glanced at Hardesty and Oakley.  “Dismissed, gentlemen.”
     
    “Come with me,” Peerce ordered.  “Now.”
     
    Percy watched him lead the two miscreants out of the office, then turned to Fanwood.  “What can I do for you?”
     
    “We’ve got the generator and the last of the prefabricated buildings installed,” Fanwood informed him, cheerfully.  “Most of the crap we brought wasn't suited