Chapter 148 - Imminent Battle for Rockhold

Cardenia chopped off the hand of an imprisoned traitor, causing the guy to scream in pain as blood began to seep out slowly in a strong flow onto the cold metal table. Still wearing her Violet Dusk exosuit, she frowned as the loyal guards took the traitor away back to his cell. “Do they not really know who was financing the entire assault?”

Over the past few days, she’s been trying to find out who was funding Doctor Theria specifically.

She knew it was the enforcers, but she wanted to find definite proof that it was them who funded it. If she could obtain such information, then she could leverage it against the enforcers to reach a new equilibrium between the two of them.

“Since Rei knew my identity, it might come to be that the enforcers would know exactly who I am as well…” Cardenia did not like being on the losing end. The lack of information was killing her. The entire event had effectively torpedoed her entire operation, with almost a third of her ‘underlings’ turning traitor against her.

Even now, Cardenia had Julia and Saater outside still cleaning up leftover traitors scattered all over Rockhold. She was in full damage control now.

Cardenia was already aware of a traitor in the middle of her group, but she did not know how far the roots had stretched. Previously, She could not really bring herself to suspect Rei, who was one of the original members and someone whom Cardenia personally trusted. This betrayal struck deep in her heart even if her posture and behaviour did not show it.

“The second time I’ve been betrayed… and Ceres was there for both of them, what a joke.” Cardenia laughed to herself miserably. She had never taken Ceres into account for her own fall, but with this event, she began to find some truth in the idea that Ceres was a bad luck charm.

In the end, she knew very well that it was her fault in the first place for not preventing this. Cardenia was not one for superstition.

She knew the enforcers would come in some way or another, it was just a matter of when. If she had enough time she could formulate a response, but none of the captured traitors even had an inkling of what they were doing. Many of them sincerely thought they were simply taking over the Queen’s Guards, and that was that.

No one knew that Rei was actually in cahoots with the enforcers, and Cardenia really wanted to know for how long. It was quite unnerving to not know which of her secret missions and informants had already been exposed thanks to Rei, so she had currently assumed her entire network had been compromised.

She returned to her office, continuously trawling over all the files and information she had managed to dig up so far. If possible, Cardenia would have liked to remain independent, but at this rate, it seemed as though the enforcers were cornering her. “If worst comes to worst, I’ll have to pull out my special trump card…”

The door to her office opened, revealing Julia in a bloodied brawler exosuit, the emblem of the Queen’s Guards barely visible any longer. Cardenia winced at the sight of the blood dripping onto her luxurious carpet. “This better be important.”

“The old major gangs of Rockhold are kicking up a storm again. Something about making Rockhold great again…”

Cardenia gripped her fist in anger. “Those old idiots! Was killing their leaders not good enough for them?”

“Ma’am, we’re not in a position to fight back against them. All our hangar bays have been damaged, with many equipment and armouries turned to slag. The attackers managed to pinpoint all our critical supplies. Overall, we’re effectively at 30% combat strength now and dropping. 30% is our best estimate, assuming some of the locked armouries are still in good shape.”

The traitors had effectively totalled the security system of the Queen’s Tower, causing mayhem. Cardenia had been working day and night to reverse it in order to bring back a semblance of order, but there are still a few patches of compromised securities, locking themselves out of their own armouries.

The morale of the Queen’s Guards was lower than ever, especially when members saw their own friends turn traitors. Loyalty in Rockhold was fairly fleeting, especially for lower grunts who were easily enticed by upfront bonuses.

“Even with 30%, we can take down all the major gangs in Rockhold again with a pre-emptive strike.”

“No, the major gangs are much better equipped now. Someone has been supplying them and training them over the past year as well.”

The damn enforcers. Cardenia was furious. It seemed like the enforcers were playing under the table as per usual, she did not why she expected it to be any different. “Can you trace their supplies?”

“We can, but it all leads to thirty shell companies that are basically money pits for the enforcers. Even if we reveal the evidence to the general public, the lawsuit wouldn’t make it into court as they have plausible deniability. Also, it’s hard to say when the money of the Five Families and the money of the enforcers began. Even if we managed to prove that the enforcers were funding the companies, they could easily argue that they did not know what the company was illegally doing and make a scapegoat to take the fall.”

Cardenia remained silent, her mind racing through. The sequence of events that were soon to come was extremely obvious now. Everything was on the table.

The enforcers were funding the major gangs in order to take down the Queen’s Guards. This would then allow them to install a puppet gang that is favourable to the enforcers and allow them to monopolize the criminal business.

Rockhold was of value to the enforcers, especially since it was technically an unrecognized city of Athen. Theoretically, the Dynasty of Hawthorn had the right to forcibly relocate the citizens of Rockhold due to ‘illegal planet squatting’, but the amount of black market trade was favourable to them. As such, the Dynasty of Hawthorn effectively turned a blind eye to Rockhold but secretly profited off Rockhold.

With Oliver Athen being in charge now, Cardenia was sure that Oliver wanted to rule Rockhold with a proper puppet, rather than continue to contest with her. Cardenia had been earning L-credits by the buckets thanks to her double dealings with New Saint and the rebellion. Oliver simply wanted to reduce the middleman price.

“Oliver, what an ambitious man. Rockhold helped you to gain an advantage over your competitors at the start, but now you want to put it under your feet as well…” Cardenia was very clear on the history of Oliver Athen – it was normal to read up on every single detail of her biggest enemy.

With all the pieces now in place, Cardenia had been checkmated. Even if she managed to fend off the major gangs, the enforcers could still step in officially eventually, claiming that they wanted to bring peace to Rockhold.

The reason why this had not happened yet was due to the cost of removing Cardenia from power. The enforcers would have to contend with her amassed firepower and soldiers, which would amount to a small civil war. Now that the Queen’s Guards had been gutted from within, the cost has been lowered dramatically, so the enforcers were more willing to engage in a quick skirmish.

Cardenia grimaced. The only thing between her and an all-out war would be the unification of the planet under the Consortium’s leader, who was also Oliver Athen. “He’s bidding his time, finding the right time to launch a planetwide unification…” Cardenia tapped the table in contemplation.

“Strength is the only currency…” Cardenia recalled the essence of the Loeric Empire, smiling to herself. “Julia, from now on, focus on restoring the functionality of the Queen’s Tower. All reports on the military build-up of the major gangs go to me directly, do not tell anybody else. This information should not be leaked anywhere else. If any member tries to, stop them immediately.”

“Yes ma’am, but shouldn’t we be entering a state of war?” Julia asked confusingly.

Cardenia smiled to herself under the exosuit’s helmet, leaning back in the chair. “One must not reveal all their cards until they are ready to play. Let the enforcers come – they’ll get more than what they asked for.”

***

Oliver Athen took a second look at his multi-terminal, reading up the speech he had prepared for the upcoming press conference. He held in his hand a small little medallion, engraved with a red axe wrapped with a thorny rose.

“Sir, anytime you’re ready.” Leonard came into the waiting room to inform him.

Nodding his head, Oliver strode out of the waiting room with confidence, entering the main stage where hundreds of floating cameras videoed him from all angles.

People could access the public press conference from anywhere on the planet thanks to the virtual network. Oliver could see the holographic projections of reporters and attendees from all over, some even off-world.

“Thank you all for coming to the annual update on the state of the planet. It has been a regular tradition ever since the people of Athen had taken the reigns of the administration and the Consortium into their own hands. This press conference serves as a way to deliver more transparency into what we do and why we do it.”

Oliver had implemented something similar to a planetary speech day, which many other planets in the Loeric Empire did not have. This was seen by some as an affront to Loeric Day, which was when the emperor gave his speech, but the past five years had shown no such intention on the part of Oliver, alleviating concerns.

“It’s been the 6thyear since I took the office of the planet’s owner, and I have strived every day to make this planet a better place for all our residents. Let us go through what we have all achieved so far in this past year, as well as some statistics.”

A series of graphs and graphics appeared behind him as he presented. “Citizen satisfaction with the city administration is currently at an all-time high, mainly due to our continuous efforts and focus on stamping out those who intend to destabilize us. The introduction of our new enforcer unit, the Keepers, has managed to reduce crime rates in the inner zones of New Saint to almost 0.02%.”

“Part of the satisfaction is also due to the city administration’s efforts to continuously attract investments. With the implementation of the University of Athen, we are slowly growing to be a hallmark in R&D even amongst our peers in the Loeric Empire. More than 60% of all off-world investments into our University have more than tripled our economy in the last six years, resulting in a significant boost to our standard of living.”

Many of the attendees nodded their heads in agreement. With the amount of new money flowing into the inner zones, many inners could directly feel the increased luxuries! The public transportation infrastructure was only getting better, the housing market was stable and all inners did not have to worry about any basic needs or their safety.

This was a far cry from the New Saint of old – the continuous trial by combats and conflict between inners and outers had caused the inner zones to suffer greatly. Now with the outers and inners properly segregated into their different zones, the inners were much happier.

Naturally, no one cared about the fact that the survey was only performed for the inner zones. The outers were not surveyed at all.

This was Oliver’s solution to the divide – to simply not treat the other side as citizens or even human.

“With the enhanced investment, the city administration has used our increased budget to improve the livelihood of our citizens. More parks, open spaces and continuous expansion of our education system will help both our current and future generations. A new underground Zone is also being dug out now to help with the property inflation.”

“The growth of the economy is expected to continuously increase as the University expands its operations. New research results continue to improve our quality of life as well as boost our economy through subsequent commercialization and marketing.”

“One example is the X-12 stimulant produced in partnership with the Ebsian Church. These stimulant has recently passed human clinical trials and is currently in mass production. We have a few promising projects that can further enhance the use of these stimulants, but it is still under trial.”

Oliver continued explaining many of the other projects that have reached completion this year, but the X-12 was the main highlight. The University right now could have been completely funded simply based on the X-12 stimulant.

[It’s been rumoured that the X-12 stimulant was only able to come to market this fast because human clinical trials were rapidly executed. Many human subjects were harmed in the process, what do you have to say to this?] A reporter suddenly blurted out the question while Oliver was still talking.

Oliver smiled, pulling up a graphic as though he had already prepared for this. “There have been many accusations of the University forcibly using the ‘second-class’ citizens as human subjects, but I must remind you that all projects and tests conducted were done with human volunteers who have been renumerated for their work. You will find that all clinical subjects have signed a contract with us, and those who had relatives who perished during the trials were compensated greatly.”

The reporter tried to ask another question but was forcibly muted. “There will be time for Q&A later, but let me continue.”

“In the last six years, the primary focus of the city administration was on stabilizing and improving the inner zones, which could have to be said to be achieved. We are now focused on maintaining this said the standard of living, though we are also open to any possible improvements. Do note that floating buildings are still not under consideration due to the layout of the inner zones. Floating buildings in the outer zones are under review.”

“In the next two years, the city administration will be focusing more on stabilizing the rest of the planet. Having achieved success in the inner zones, we now want to bring the same safety and assurance to all citizens of the planet.”

“However, the previous limitation of my position did not enable me to do much beyond New Saint, as every other town or city in Athen is considered a standalone. Today, I have something important to announce.”

“As I have promised since I’ve taken on this role, I am a man of action. The people of New Saint have always been first and foremost in my heart. I believe the people of Athen have passion, dreams and aspirations to be something, to be part of something greater. The Consortium has now never been more unified.”

A loud wave of gasps echoed through the journalists. It seems that the unification clause had succeeded.

Oliver pulled out a small little medallion, showing the emblem of the Dynasty of Hawthorn. “Following negotiations with the Dynasty of Hawthorn, New Saint has now been officially recognized as the capital of Athen! Subsequently, the city administration would expand over the next nine months to accommodate the additional bureaucracy needed to organize and maintain every city or town that exists outside of New Saint.”

“The enforcers would no longer be limited to just operating within city boundaries, but now have the legal right to enforce Loeric Empire law across the entire planet and including the entire sphere of influence. This previously used to be the job scope of the Dynasty of Hawthorn’s security forces, but has now been handed over to us.”

A wave of murmurs washed over all the attendees, stirring up a ruckus. [Question! What does this mean? Does this mean Athen is finally recognized as a unified state rather than disparate towns and cities?]

Oliver smiled: “Exactly! We understand that while New Saint was the biggest colony on Athen, many other smaller colonies have also risen up, and under the original Loeric Empire law of colonization, colonies remain independent of each other, only required to answer to the Dynasty of Hawthorn.”

Oliver lifted the emblem for everyone to see. “With this and the ratification of the Consortium, New Saint has now become the de-facto regulatory body for anyone living on the planet, no matter how high or how low. This is the norm for every planet that has been colonized so far. However, it also marks an important event.”

“This is the first time in the history of the Loeric Empire that a colony has been granted semi-autonomy from the Dynasties!”

This declaration sent shockwaves through the audience.

[A semi-autonomous colony that’s not governed directly by the Dynasties?!]

The notion was ridiculous to many of the audience, who had long lived under the impression that the Dynasties controlled everything. No other colony were allowed to operate independently to the extreme of what Oliver Athen had managed to achieve.

“This announcement comes with the blessing of the Dynasty of Hawthorn and Imperial Prince Zachary, who has supported us in this push for representation all the way. Imperial Prince Zachary is a true supporter of the common people!” Oliver announced, with Imperial Prince Zachary entering the stage.

The audience cheered, including the common people who had steadily joined the press conference virtually ever since the viral message of Oliver had spread. The city administration publicised the speech even more, allowing it to reach even more ears far beyond the Strathon system.

“It is a joyous occasion not for me, but for all of you on the planet Athen. Having the ability to make changes for your own benefit is a right that we should all cherish.” Imperial Prince Zachary smiled genially at the cameras.

“The Loeric Empire has always stressed the ability for any individual in our empire to rise to the position they truly deserve. The people of Athen have proved their ability to determine their path for generations to come. It was not I who helped them, but they who have helped me see what the future of the Loeric Empire should truly be. Athen shall be the spark of a new generation. And I am more than willing to see spread across the Empire!” Imperial Prince Zachary gave a rousing speech to tremendous applause.

A barrage of questions immediately came in, and the public conference lasted for a few hours before finally coming to a close.

On a private VR server, leaders of the three Dynasties met in a virtual lounge, staring solemnly at the smiling face of Imperial Prince Zachary. It was an emergency meeting.

“Is this man insane? He wants to topple the entire system! The whole goddamn empire!” One of the leaders from the Dynasty of Ak’cla slammed his chair’s holster. A large burly-tanned man named Tudor crushed the virtual glass in his cybernetic hand, the glass instantly repairing.

“It’s a ploy, but it’s a shame we were all caught off-guard by Zachary. What a ruckus.” Melissa frowned. She was a leader of the Dynasty of Xi, a prim and proper lady who was dressed in an overbearing flood of aqua blue, her hair tied in a straight ponytail.

“I didn’t come here to share regrets, I came to figure out a course of action. What are we going to do about it?” Han interrupted them. A lone wolf type with a lazy gaze, Han was a leader of the Dynasty of Coyol.

Each of these leaders was young geniuses brought up by the Dynasties. They were not the top overall authority in the Dynasties, but they handled the day-to-day affairs as well as minor to major events. Kyle Hawthorn would have been invited to such a meeting, but since the meeting was about Athen, naturally they did not invite him, assuming he had a hand in the matter.

While they were considered ‘young’, they were in fact about 50-70 years old, with Melissa being the oldest. They continuously resented Kyle, who was only 35 years old and hence made them feel old.

“The most important thing is to figure out his intentions first,” Melissa said, the more mature of the bunch. “We must identify what is the ultimate goal of this plan.”

“Isn’t it obvious? Zachary wants to incite rebellion in our colonies as well. That’s unacceptable! How will I maintain the profits? Think of the shareholders!” Tudor argued back.

The Dynasty of Ak’cla notoriously had the most aggressive administration policies for their colonies and star systems under them. All administrative policies were done with their explicit approval, so to see Athen become semi-autonomous was an affront to their management system.

Han’s usual lazy gaze was removed with a serious gaze. He didn’t care about Dynasty business unless it affected his bottom line, and such a rebellion would definitely hurt him. “How can we stop this? Should we kill Zachary?”