Frozen Soul, and other works: Chapter 209

(Conference Room, Confederate Senate Building, Thelorious, Dimiya)

There were often conferences between different parts of the megalith that was the government of the Confederation of Allied Planets. Many of them happened in this room, since it was convenient to the centers of power. All of them included expert witnesses. A significant number of them were closed to the public.

There were several things that made this session different. First, and foremost, was the fact that it was being held jointly by the Senate Subcommittees for Military and Intelligence Oversight. Secondly, the overarching topic was the Second Battle of Coldana. Thirdly, the topics everyone were actually interested in all linked back to the Black Star Company in some way.

Admiral Kasyx Rizazzi was speaking about the ‘Starburst Maneuver’ that his Twelfth Fleet had used in the opening moments of the battle to open the path for the rest of the allied fleets. Standing tall in his naval dress uniform, the Felisan’s eyes never left those of the Senator from the Military subcommittee who had asked a question of profound stupidity. He may have held himself tall and straight, but anyone who was an expert on Felisans would know by the way his ears twitched, or how his tail moved that he was… less than pleased.

“And so, in conclusion, while Starburst was effective in these conditions, it is my opinion, and that of the Navy’s general staff, that it should never be used aside from times when we are attacking a Harvester. There are simply too many drawbacks to the maneuver, both from a fleet readiness perspective, and from a consideration of collateral damage. To be perfectly frank, what we did at Coldana, if it had been done to anyone but the X’thari, while the Treaty of Helbizore was in effect, would have been considered a war crime, and the entirety of Known Space would be treaty-bound to declare war upon the Confederation immediately. The only reason it did not spark a war based on the treaties was because the other treaties make specific exceptions to actions taken while upholding the Treaty of Helbizore. Attempts to weaponize the Starburst Maneuver for military use in the event of renewed hostilities with one of the major powers would be a war crime of the highest order, and any naval officer worth his uniform would refuse to carry it out. Such tactics are not the acts of civilized nations, save in the face of threats beyond all conventional rationale, like a Harvester and its attendant Swarm. To even suggest their use otherwise could be considered genocidal at best, and would be grounds for summary execution.”

The Senator who had been a little too eager to talk about ways to disable large fleets of enemy ships shrank back into his seat under the Admiral’s gaze, pinned there like an insect on a display board. Finally, Senator Oriven from Calasta coughed once to break the spell. “Yes, yes, I am sure that Senator Inatoris wasn’t suggesting something so foolish, especially in an official session which will be entered into the official records of the Senate. No doubt he just wished to know in terms of hypotheticals, is that not correct, Senator?”

Ashen-faced, the Senator nodded. “Ah, yes, Senator Oriven. I, um, I yield the rest of my time.”

Admiral Rizazzi barely kept from smirking openly at the way the idiot had been slapped down. Honestly, what was the man thinking? At any rate, he stepped away from the podium, moving back to the seat provided to him so that the next speaker could take his place.

Admiral Kymil Adkian was the next to take the floor. It was very rare for the head of Naval Intelligence to appear in public like this, but some would argue that the situation more than warranted it. At his side was Major Zumrora, who was acting as his aide for this ‘interview’.

Senator Virstina of Dimiya started the ball rolling, as she smiled at Adkian. “Welcome, Admiral Adkian, Major Zumrora. As you know, this is joint session of the Senate Subcommittees of Military Oversight and Intelligence Oversight is closed to the public, but is an official session, and will be recorded into Senate records under appropriate security clearances, divided by section. For convenience, all information in this session shall be classified as ‘Secret’ unless declared otherwise. If information is going to rise above Secret status, please state the new classification rating before continuing.”

She paused, giving them a moment to process the speech she’d just delivered by rote, and then continued on. “The matter before us is the issue of the Black Star Company, and their rapid rise to power. There are concerns in some corners about how we should be reacting to a corporation that has an attached mercenary force that has proved to be equal in skill and capabilities, if not in numbers, to those of the established powers. Especially as the Black Stars still maintain a great many assets in Confederate space, and around Dimiya in particular. Before any more reactionary voices have a chance to speak, I would like to hear from Naval Intelligence on your assessment of the Black Star Company, Black Star Navy, and the CEO of Black Star, the Nomad, Mirikon Mollen.”

Admiral Adkian forced himself not to smile at the way Virstina worded that. No one who had not been living under a rock could have missed the news of her and Mollen having an affair so conveniently timed so that both had alibis when the ‘internal dispute’ with the Shining Path left more than a few bodies, including one that had been assassinated as per the ‘insurance policy’ of one of the conspirators. He could easily see which of the members of the two committees were most piqued by the wording, as well. If they didn’t like that, then they sure weren’t going to like what he was about to tell them.

“Senators, while the Black Star Company only came to the attention of the Senate in the aftermath of the Imperial Civil War, when they began a large-scale expansion of their fleet and ground forces, I would be remiss if I did not point out that those of us in the intelligence community have known of their actions since before the tragedy of Jagloth. Naval Intelligence and the Confederate Intelligence Service have been working together on this matter for some time. Thanks to a field agent in Confederate Intelligence, we now have a good idea of what this Nomad’s actions have been since he first came to this world. Additionally, while the Nomad has certainly had an enviable run of luck, our analysts have concluded that this is due more to him being able to seize opportunities as they develop, rather than any kind of advanced planning or wide-spread manipulation.”

“For the purposes of the Company’s effects on the Confederacy, things really started at Jagloth. While engaged as an ‘unlicensed transporter’ from kisArra to Jagloth, he managed to slip through the quarantine surrounding that world, as he had already taken some pains to make the Starlight Raven as stealthy as possible. During his time in the Jagloth system, two events took place that are key in understanding the psychology of the Nomad in charge of the company. Major?”

Major Zumrora stepped forward, and said, “Thank you, Admiral. As stated, two incidents occurred during the Jagloth Quarantine that are key to an understanding of the Nomad, Mirikon Mollen. These are the Shadara Station heist and the purchase of the Shadowdancer on Charybdis Station.”

“At the time of the Quarantine, then-Captain Mollen was under observation by the CIS for possible use as a field asset. The smuggling run from kisArra was an initial introduction, to get an initial read on prospective captains. There is a need for discrete freighter captains to get assets from place to place, after all. The CIS agent-in-place took advantage of the disruption caused by the Legion Virus to stage a skills trial of the Nomad, involving him entering a secured warehouse on Shadara Station and stealing a secured package that had been moved from the CIS facilities on Jagloth before the Legion overran their position.”

“The heist was accomplished with appreciable skill, and zero fatalities or collateral damage to station systems, which was a mark in his favor. During the heist, however, two things happened that precluded his use as an official asset. First, he conducted a side operation simultaneously to the heist, ‘liberating’ some materials and funds from the planetary governor’s private vault as a bonus. This is generally not tolerated in assets, for obvious reasons, but is not actively punished unless it affects the primary mission. The second item, however, was more important.”

“Captain Mollen’s contract for the heist included an exclusivity provision, ensuring that he would be in breach if he shared, sold, or otherwise distributed the information included in the package the CIS wanted. While he did not share the information, however he did copy it before sending it along. Unlike others who have tried tactics like this, he did not attempt blackmail or extortion. Instead, he used the information to safeguard his people from certain avenues of attack, and did not mention it again until much later, when we were having a discussion about his intentions after the Civil War, and only then because it had become relevant to the conversation.”

Senator Vasys of Geltahd cleared his throat. “Excuse me, Major, what is this ‘avenue of attack’ you are speaking of, and how did Mollen defend his people from it?”

Zumrora shook his head firmly. “I’m sorry, Senator, but that is classified under Vantablack-level security clearance, expressly restricted to Need to Know personnel. If you submit a request to Naval Intelligence or the CIS, they can evaluate the situation and, if necessary, brief you in private.”

He took a breath, and continued. “This incident speaks quite a bit to the psychology of Admiral Mollen. He is not shy at getting his hands dirty. In fact, we have several known incidents where he has led combat operations in the field, despite his responsibilities. The lack of fatalities, despite the guards being armed with lethal weapons, shows a level of restraint, when his people are not being threatened. More importantly, he is always looking for opportunities he can gain from a situation, and is paranoid enough to both expect betrayals and prepare countermeasures against them.”

“At the time of the heist, he had no idea what was in the Governor’s vault. However, he figured it would be important, and with the Governor not around to object, he took advantage of that. This led to him gaining the coordinates to the Nuevo Edo Gateway, the effects of which I hardly need to explain.”

“Simultaneously, the idea to copy the data he was stealing and research it, rather than sell it or attempt blackmail describes what can best be described as ethics tempered by paranoia. It started as an insurance policy, should the CIS attempt to stab him in the back, and evolved into a way to help protect his people from potential coercion. It is this facet that is most important when dealing with Mollen. If you make a contract, he will abide by it, but if you attempt to harm him or his people, he will already have plans in place to ensure that you are sharing the pain.”

“The second turning point in Black Star’s fortunes at Jagloth, as stated, was the purchase of the custom corvette Shadowdancer. Originally commissioned and designed by a Nomad who had been caught up in the Legion Plague (status: unconfirmed), the Plague caused the ship to be put on hold while it was mostly completed. This allowed Mollen to buy it, along with its innovative technology, at a reduced cost. After a trip to the slave markets, taking on several individuals who had sold themselves to ensure family members got off Jagloth, this freighter captain now had a functioning stealth warship to bolster his forces. This, as you may guess, was the start of the Black Star Fleet.”

Senator Virstina nodded. “Tell me, Zumrora, you have more extensive knowledge of Admiral Mollen than most people. How would you recommend the Confederacy handle the Black Star Company, and its impressive array of ships and capabilities? Especially now that it has expanded beyond the Confederacy’s borders, and has even taken up ownership of an entire solar system.”

“With respect, madam, I would say to treat him and his company as a valued trading partner. Friendly, but trusted as only so far as you can throw him. So long as the Confederacy does not overtly move against him, like the Shining Path faction attempted to do, then the relationship is one that is mutually beneficial. If threatened, however, Mollen’s first instinct is to destroy the source of the threat, no matter what it is. While the Confederacy would almost certainly win a war against the Black Star Company if it came to that, the result would be such that the planets we would have left would be decades, perhaps centuries recovering.”

Senator Vasys spoke up again. “Are you suggesting that this Nomad would use planet-killers against the Confederacy?”

“Senator, the Black Star Navy has the capability to independently produce Greenwave, and distribute it to all of our worlds. If that was not enough, their Starbolt torpedoes could easily be used to sterilize entire worlds. While it is not something I expect he would use in the course of normal actions, one should never take an immortal with access to planet-killing weapons and make him feel as though he has nothing to lose. The results will never be in your favor.”

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