it was for their own safety, and their fury over being trapped in a potential war zone made them fearful and aggressive. More than one had attempted to bully or buy their way off the island.
Information had leaked about the impending invasion from Fortress. Garner suspected one of the Council members to be a Fortress sympathiser. Either that, or an agitator had been imported, along with the multitude of workers they constantly needed for their expanding workforce. There would be many more such instances before the battle was won.
He’d spoken with Zeke Callaghan on the phone, and the US was preparing to send a few gunships of their own into the area, although they would probably not be in time. They had the sense to know that, despite peace and personal shields, there was still something to be said for maintaining a military presence. Their fire-power might just tip the balance in a fight if they ever got here. Garner wasn’t going to hold his breath. He knew about the USA’s rules on gunboat politics - he had written them.
These days, it was more of a peace-keeping role than containment and attrition of militant forces. Still, they kept their powder dry and gave confidence to those in the US that didn’t have faith in the unilateral disarming of nations. They might be right, all Garner knew was that it would take a few generations of peace to bring about a permanent change in attitude and thinking.
Despite the intention of keeping themselves totally independent, the USA had a massive investment in Space Island. They had been training crews for the SC for months. They were keen for the ships to get into space so they could publicise, to their citizens, how their NASA space programme had evolved into a fully fledged space defence force with an ex US president in charge. They still wanted to shape the future and in keeping on top of the space programme they felt they were having an impact.
In some ways, the discovery of the cloaked infiltrator had done them a favour in allowing them to bring the military involvement up a few notches with the genuine approval of the Council. A few were wavering, and Garner had their measure so felt they could be discounted. He knew their agendas, and that made them easy to anticipate.
The rest wanted peace and prosperity at any cost and Fortress was the only risk to that. They wanted the matter resolved, but didn’t want to be seen as the instigators of a military exchange that might lead to loss of life, or worse, a war of any kind. However, Garner wanted revenge on Ferris for his involvement in the assassination attempt on him during the military coup, he would move if it felt right at the time AND if he could carry the council with him.
His intercom buzzed pulling him from his thoughts, he pressed the button. “Yes, Annie?”
Annie’s distorted voice came through the small speaker. “Mr. Osbourne is here. He has the budget figures and a few items to discuss with you.” The electronic pause that occurs when a key is let go and then pressed again, followed. “If you have time, he says."
“Send him in Annie, and if you have any of that tea in the pot, I could do with a fresh one,” he answered.
The door to his office opened, Osbourne walked in with a pile of papers in his hand and his data-pad The papers were a throwback; they weren't really needed any more, but people like Osbourne preferred it for some types of work. This looked like blueprints again, Garner sighed. The boy was an absolute genius with an almost unstoppable energy drive, but he really should get himself a girlfriend.
He was a one-man R&D Department and he always left Garner with a headache after budget meetings. He was single-handedly pulling the research people together into a formidable team and there was excellent progress being made on all fronts. As such Garner had to give him lee-way on some things, one of them was causing him serious issues and he was going to have to deal with that in just a
Information had leaked about the impending invasion from Fortress. Garner suspected one of the Council members to be a Fortress sympathiser. Either that, or an agitator had been imported, along with the multitude of workers they constantly needed for their expanding workforce. There would be many more such instances before the battle was won.
He’d spoken with Zeke Callaghan on the phone, and the US was preparing to send a few gunships of their own into the area, although they would probably not be in time. They had the sense to know that, despite peace and personal shields, there was still something to be said for maintaining a military presence. Their fire-power might just tip the balance in a fight if they ever got here. Garner wasn’t going to hold his breath. He knew about the USA’s rules on gunboat politics - he had written them.
These days, it was more of a peace-keeping role than containment and attrition of militant forces. Still, they kept their powder dry and gave confidence to those in the US that didn’t have faith in the unilateral disarming of nations. They might be right, all Garner knew was that it would take a few generations of peace to bring about a permanent change in attitude and thinking.
Despite the intention of keeping themselves totally independent, the USA had a massive investment in Space Island. They had been training crews for the SC for months. They were keen for the ships to get into space so they could publicise, to their citizens, how their NASA space programme had evolved into a fully fledged space defence force with an ex US president in charge. They still wanted to shape the future and in keeping on top of the space programme they felt they were having an impact.
In some ways, the discovery of the cloaked infiltrator had done them a favour in allowing them to bring the military involvement up a few notches with the genuine approval of the Council. A few were wavering, and Garner had their measure so felt they could be discounted. He knew their agendas, and that made them easy to anticipate.
The rest wanted peace and prosperity at any cost and Fortress was the only risk to that. They wanted the matter resolved, but didn’t want to be seen as the instigators of a military exchange that might lead to loss of life, or worse, a war of any kind. However, Garner wanted revenge on Ferris for his involvement in the assassination attempt on him during the military coup, he would move if it felt right at the time AND if he could carry the council with him.
His intercom buzzed pulling him from his thoughts, he pressed the button. “Yes, Annie?”
Annie’s distorted voice came through the small speaker. “Mr. Osbourne is here. He has the budget figures and a few items to discuss with you.” The electronic pause that occurs when a key is let go and then pressed again, followed. “If you have time, he says."
“Send him in Annie, and if you have any of that tea in the pot, I could do with a fresh one,” he answered.
The door to his office opened, Osbourne walked in with a pile of papers in his hand and his data-pad The papers were a throwback; they weren't really needed any more, but people like Osbourne preferred it for some types of work. This looked like blueprints again, Garner sighed. The boy was an absolute genius with an almost unstoppable energy drive, but he really should get himself a girlfriend.
He was a one-man R&D Department and he always left Garner with a headache after budget meetings. He was single-handedly pulling the research people together into a formidable team and there was excellent progress being made on all fronts. As such Garner had to give him lee-way on some things, one of them was causing him serious issues and he was going to have to deal with that in just a
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