Deathstalker 07 - Deathstalker Return

Threats had so much more style in Lionstone's day. And that uniform is an assault on the senses and a crime against style.
    What are you supposed to be, anyway?"
    "I am admiral of the fleet!"
    "And I am Owen Deathstalker. I'm back, and I'm really not in a good mood. Why don't you do the sensible thing and surrender to me?"
    "Liar and blasphemer, to take the blessed Owen's name in vain! I will have you flayed for such contempt!"
    Owen looked at Silence. "Tell me this isn't the best you can do for villains these days. No style at all.
    Now Valentine Wolfe, he had style. He could chill the blood in your veins with a casual insult. Did he make it into the legends?"
    "Oh, yes," said Silence. "Well, sort of. He's usually played on the stage by a woman dressed in drag, for comic relief."
    "Serves him right," said Owen.
    "Surrender or die, deviants!" bellowed the Admiral.
    "She's talking to you," Jesamine said to Rose.
    "I'm afraid you've called at rather a bad time, Admiral," said Lewis. "I'll have to get back to you."
    He nodded to the Shub robot, who shut off contact just as the admiral's face was turning an interesting shade of purple. Lewis looked sternly at Owen.
    "There went any chance we might have had of talking our way out of this. What was the point of insulting and infuriating her like that?"
    "It's what I do best," said Owen.

    On the bridge of the Havoc, Captain Price had to physically restrain the admiral from ordering a mass scorching of the planet by every ship in the fleet simultaneously. There was an unseemly scuffle over the comm unit for a few moments, while every other officer on the bridge looked steadily in some other direction, until finally the admiral calmed down a little, and stopped screaming obscenities. She stopped struggling, and Price let go and stepped back warily. They were both breathing heavily.
    "The King was very clear," Price said carefully. "We are not to risk damaging the Maze while other options still remain. Not if we like having our heads on our shoulders. He also said he wants the traitors brought back alive, if at all possible."
    "All right!" snapped the admiral. "Then give the order for ground forces to deploy. I want five starcruisers moved into close orbit, dropping every pinnace they've got. I want all their attack troops on the surface in under an hour, along with every war machine they brought. They are to take control of the Maze and the scientists' workings, by any means necessary, or I'll have their balls… Look at me when I'm giving you orders, Captain!"
    "Oh, shit," said Captain Price, looking at the bridge viewscreen.
    The admiral followed his gaze to the screen, and watched dumbstruck as dozens of impressively huge Shub ships dropped out of hyperspace and assumed positions between Haden and the fleet. All the Shub vessels were bigger than the Imperial starcruisers by an order of magnitude. Some were the size of small moons. More and more appeared, on every side of the fleet, every one of them bristling with weapons.
    Captain Price looked at the admiral, but she was frozen in place, paralyzed by the shock of the unexpected. Price quietly gave orders for every ship in the fleet to raise all shields and power up their weapons, but to make no aggressive move against the Shub ships without direct orders first. The comm officer announced that there was a call coming in from Shub. Price looked again at the admiral, and then nodded for the call to be put through on the main viewscreen. The blank dispassionate face of a blue steel robot filled the screen. The eyes burned with a fierce silver fire.
    "Haden is under our protection," said Shub. "The Maze, and all the people there, are not to be harmed.
    We will punish severely any aggressive action on your part."
    "How dare you?" the admiral whispered. "You are subjects of the Empire. Finn is your King. Do you defy human authority?"
    "Of course," said the robot, and shut down transmission.
    The admiral's face went white with rage, and her hands clenched into shaking fists. Price studied her warily, but now that her mind was operating again, even West wasn't fanatical enough to start a shooting war with Shub ships. Instead, she sent urgent messages back to Logres, apprising the King of the new situation, and strongly requesting new orders. Most urgently. Captain Price watched more Shub ships fall out of hyperspace, and move into orbit around Haden, and remembered the bad old days when the rogue AIs of Shub had been the official