Save for Roanoke itself, the colony of Everest was the youngest human colony, settled just before the Conclave gave its warning to other races not to colonize any longer. Like Roanoke, Everest defenses were modest: a pair of defense satellites and six beam turrets, three each for the two settlements, and one CDF cruiser on rotation. When Everest was hit, it was the Des Moines stationed over the settlements. A good ship and a good crew, but the Des Moines was not enough to counter the six Arrisian ships that skipped with daring precision into Everest space, firing missiles at the Des Moines and the defense satellites as they arrived. The Des Moines sheared down its length and began the long fall toward the Everest surface; the defense satellites were rendered into so much floating junk.
The planet’s defenses collapsed, the Arrisian ships took their time searing the Everest settlements from orbit, finally dispatching a company to clean up the straggling colonists who remained. In the end 5,800 Everest colonists were dead. The Arrisians left behind no colonists or garrison and made no claim to the planet. They simply eradicated the human presence there.
Erie was no Everest—it was one of the oldest and most heavily populated of the human worlds, with a planetary defense grid and permanent CDF presence that would make it impossible for all but the most insanely ambitious races to make a play for. But even planetary defense grids can’t track every single chunk of ice or rock that falls into the gravity well. Several dozen such apparent chunks fell into Erie’s atmosphere, over the Erie city of New Cork. As they fell, the heat generated by the friction of the atmosphere was channeled and focused, powering the compact chemical lasers hidden within the rock.
Several of the beams struck strategic manufacturing concerns in New Cork, related to CDF weapons systems. Several more appeared to strike randomly, slashing through homes, schools and markets, killing hundreds. Their beams spent, the lasers burned up in the atmosphere, leaving no clue who had sent them or why.
This happened as Trujillo, Beata, Kranjic and I made our way back to Roanoke. We were unaware of it at the time, of course. We were unaware of the specific attacks that were going on around the Colonial Union, because the news was kept from us, and because we were focused on our own survival.
“You’ve offered us the protection of the Obin,” I said to Hickory within hours of my return to Roanoke. “We’d like to take advantage of that offer.”
“There are complications,” Hickory said.
I glanced over at Jane, and then back to Hickory. “Well, of course there are,” I said. “It wouldn’t be fun without complications.”
“I sense sarcasm,” Hickory said, with utterly no sense of humor whatsoever.
“I apologize, Hickory,” I said. “I’m having a bad week and it’s not getting any better. Please tell what these complications might be.”
“After you left, a skip drone arrived from Obinur, and we were finally able to communicate with our government. We have been told that once the Magellan disappeared, the Colonial Union formally requested that the Obin not interfere with the Roanoke colony, openly or covertly.”
“Roanoke was specified,” Jane said.
“Yes,” said Hickory.
“Why?” I asked.
“The Colonial Union did not explain,” Hickory said. “We now assume it was because an Obin attempt to locate the planet could have disrupted the Colonial Union’s attack on the Conclave fleet. Our government agreed not to interfere but noted that should any harm come to Zo?, we would be greatly displeased. The Colonial Union assured our government that Zo? was reasonably safe. As she was.”
“The Colonial Union’s attack on the Conclave fleet is over,” I said.
“The agreement did not specify when it would be acceptable to interfere,” Hickory said, again with no trace of humor. “We are still bound to it.”
“So you can do nothing for us,” Jane said.
“We are charged with protecting Zo?,” Hickory said. “But we have been made to understand that the definition of protection extends only so far.”
“And if Zo? orders you to protect the colony?” I asked.
“Zo? may order Dickory and me as she wishes,” Hickory said. “But it is doubtful that even her intercession would be enough.”
I got up from my desk and stalked over to the window to look up at the night sky. “Do the Obin know the Colonial Union is under attack?” I asked.
“We do,” Hickory said. “There have been numerous attacks since the destruction of the Conclave fleet.”
“Then you know that the Colonial Union will have to make choices as to which colonies it needs to defend and which it will sacrifice. And that Roanoke is more likely to be in that second category.”
“We know this,” Hickory said.
“But you’ll still do nothing to help us,” I said.
“Not so long as Roanoke remains part of the Colonial Union,” Hickory said.
Jane was on this before I could open my mouth. “Explain that,” she said.
“An independent Roanoke would require a new response from us,” Hickory said. “If Roanoke declares itself independent of the Colonial Union, the Obin would feel obliged to offer support and aid on an interim basis until the Colonial Union reacquired the planet or agreed to its succession.”
“But you would risk alienating the Colonial Union,” Jane said.
“The Colonial Union has a number of other priorities at the moment,” Hickory said. “We do not feel the repercussions of aiding an independent Roanoke will be significant in the long run.”