Read Online Birthright: Battle for the Confederation- Turmoil by Ryan Krauter - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Ryan Krauter
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have. It didn't make it any easier that his
friend was gone, but Loren tried to see all the sides of the story, as when he
wondered what the Enkarran- Captain Josias Krent- was trying to cope with, his
anger usually dissipated. Besides, the Enkarrans had lost their entire home;
the Primans had claimed the whole of the Empire as their own, and to this day
were continuing to displace Enkarrans by the millions as they sent them away
from their homes and off into space to search for a new place to live. At
least Loren could return home when this was all over. Provided the
Confederation won.
"Awkward,"
was the only thing Renner could reply with, and Loren barked out a quick laugh.
"That it
is," he admitted, "but we carry on, I guess." Shifting in his
seat, Loren looked at Renner seriously before continuing. "Actually, I
guess that's why I'm here. You know how the game is played; our bosses go have
photo ops and tell the press how much they like each other while we get the
real work done." He set his mug down after another generous pull.
"So," he
asked, "with the Primans on the way, is there anything we can do for each
other?"
Renner's smile
faded, replaced by what Loren would only describe as weariness. After taking a
minute to apparently collect his thoughts, he turned to Loren and leaned in
closer.
"You know the
official position of Lemuria is that we are not concerned about being
invaded," he began. "There have been a number of nonaligned worlds
that have been bypassed by the Primans as they've advanced through this part of
space, and our government currently sees no reason why that would change."
"Even with what
happened to Carline a few days ago?" Loren urged. "We got word just
before we left Avenger for the surface that there'd been another system
captured as well. Some of the ship emissions signatures match in both forces,
so we're assuming that it's some sort of roving cleanup crew that they're
sending out to call on systems they want to secure."
Renner only nodded.
"We've seen those reports, too. Loren, you can see by now that while we
have some means to defend ourselves, that won't get us anywhere now. Back
before the Primans came, solid alliances, some good exports to sell, open trade
and a reasonable military presence were enough to ensure sovereignty for any
system who chose to go their own path. Pirates and petty criminals were the
worst we had to worry about. But the Primans are too much for us. Hell,
they're too much for you and the Talarans, not to put things too bluntly. The
only way we can hope to be left alone is if we keep our heads down and don't
get involved. I wish I could say I believed that would be enough, but I
don't. However, there's not much else we can do. You're not offering to send
in a fleet, are you?"
Loren only shook his
head grimly. "I asked what we could offer Lemuria, treaty or otherwise,
but as you've pointed out we're strapped the way it is. We couldn't offer
enough combat ships to make a real difference, I'm afraid." He slowly
spun his mug of brew on the bar's surface, watching the condensation drip onto
the heavily lacquered wood.
"Then all we
can hope for is some consideration for our non-involvement," Renner
concluded in a tone that said he wasn't very convinced by his own argument.
Loren shook his head
again. "You've seen what the Primans are all about. There was a
leadership change a few months back; I don't know how closely you've been able
to monitor them, but they've become more aggressive, much less tolerant under
their new Commander. Their old party line was always that we needed to accept
our place as their subjects and fall into place, otherwise they'd make us do it
anyway. There are a couple planets that did go that route, actually."
Renner's raised eyebrows showed that he hadn't been privy to that information,
so Loren elaborated. "They openly surrendered and the Primans began
administering their
friend was gone, but Loren tried to see all the sides of the story, as when he
wondered what the Enkarran- Captain Josias Krent- was trying to cope with, his
anger usually dissipated. Besides, the Enkarrans had lost their entire home;
the Primans had claimed the whole of the Empire as their own, and to this day
were continuing to displace Enkarrans by the millions as they sent them away
from their homes and off into space to search for a new place to live. At
least Loren could return home when this was all over. Provided the
Confederation won.
"Awkward,"
was the only thing Renner could reply with, and Loren barked out a quick laugh.
"That it
is," he admitted, "but we carry on, I guess." Shifting in his
seat, Loren looked at Renner seriously before continuing. "Actually, I
guess that's why I'm here. You know how the game is played; our bosses go have
photo ops and tell the press how much they like each other while we get the
real work done." He set his mug down after another generous pull.
"So," he
asked, "with the Primans on the way, is there anything we can do for each
other?"
Renner's smile
faded, replaced by what Loren would only describe as weariness. After taking a
minute to apparently collect his thoughts, he turned to Loren and leaned in
closer.
"You know the
official position of Lemuria is that we are not concerned about being
invaded," he began. "There have been a number of nonaligned worlds
that have been bypassed by the Primans as they've advanced through this part of
space, and our government currently sees no reason why that would change."
"Even with what
happened to Carline a few days ago?" Loren urged. "We got word just
before we left Avenger for the surface that there'd been another system
captured as well. Some of the ship emissions signatures match in both forces,
so we're assuming that it's some sort of roving cleanup crew that they're
sending out to call on systems they want to secure."
Renner only nodded.
"We've seen those reports, too. Loren, you can see by now that while we
have some means to defend ourselves, that won't get us anywhere now. Back
before the Primans came, solid alliances, some good exports to sell, open trade
and a reasonable military presence were enough to ensure sovereignty for any
system who chose to go their own path. Pirates and petty criminals were the
worst we had to worry about. But the Primans are too much for us. Hell,
they're too much for you and the Talarans, not to put things too bluntly. The
only way we can hope to be left alone is if we keep our heads down and don't
get involved. I wish I could say I believed that would be enough, but I
don't. However, there's not much else we can do. You're not offering to send
in a fleet, are you?"
Loren only shook his
head grimly. "I asked what we could offer Lemuria, treaty or otherwise,
but as you've pointed out we're strapped the way it is. We couldn't offer
enough combat ships to make a real difference, I'm afraid." He slowly
spun his mug of brew on the bar's surface, watching the condensation drip onto
the heavily lacquered wood.
"Then all we
can hope for is some consideration for our non-involvement," Renner
concluded in a tone that said he wasn't very convinced by his own argument.
Loren shook his head
again. "You've seen what the Primans are all about. There was a
leadership change a few months back; I don't know how closely you've been able
to monitor them, but they've become more aggressive, much less tolerant under
their new Commander. Their old party line was always that we needed to accept
our place as their subjects and fall into place, otherwise they'd make us do it
anyway. There are a couple planets that did go that route, actually."
Renner's raised eyebrows showed that he hadn't been privy to that information,
so Loren elaborated. "They openly surrendered and the Primans began
administering their
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