The Impossible Future: Complete set by Frank Kennedy (mini ebook reader .txt) 📕

of what happened to the team he flew out of the mountains. Rikard and Matthias amped in while he was going through holotreatment, but they didn’t have long to talk. As best they could tell, no one on his Scram died in Harrisboro, but at least one – Carlos Rivera –disappeared. Carlos wasn’t himself after the crash, and their allies in Harrisboro thought he might have walked away confused and dazed. They said he was struggling to remember his name. Maya Fontaine stayed with Michael at the hospital until Sam arrived, but she left without goodbye, and he didn’t see her among this crowd.

Beyond that, the leaders of the equity movement had more than a full plate. After Supreme Admiral Poussard’s order for the Guard to stand down, Rikard and Matthias spent hours talking down Solomon cells from their own active combat roles. Solomon attacks broke out across the globe the same night as the battle in Harrisboro. Rikard and Matthias negotiated with Poussard and representatives from the Presidiums who put her in power to bring all fighting to an end. All parties agreed: A cease-fire held the best chance to reach a peaceful, long-term solution.

Yet even those negotiations almost collapsed when Poussard proposed an additional tactic. She wanted to land the UGT fleet as originally planned under Admiral Grandover, except in a non-combat role. Station battalions in all the major cities, not to enact martial law but rather to deter any further disturbances.

“The Chancellory,” she said, “needs to be protected against itself. The hard-liner descendancies will not sit still for this peace unless they know the Guard is no longer working for them.”

Boston had been occupied for a day. The remainder of the redeployed Guard would arrive on Earth over the next two days.

“All that firepower,” Michael told Rikard from his hospital bed. “They could still turn it against us. If somebody makes her a better offer, we’re screwed.”

“I know, but we’ve never been closer to victory. If this deal will end our struggle, then all the friends we lost will have meaning.”

Close to a thousand Solomons died worldwide, and hundreds more were missing. For all the messes Rikard and Matthias were trying to clean up, the guilt of what they’d wrought would remain much longer, Michael thought. Inquests were inevitable, like after the fall of SkyTower. Somehow, he thought it unlikely that the commanders of the movement were going to be allowed to walk away unscathed.

For the moment, however, victory hung in the air, and the celebration at the Pynn compound moved inside, where platters of food and a bounty of wine and liquor greeted the attendees.

“A couple of people?” Michael chided Sam. “With this spread, we could open the gates and invite half the damn city.”

“And they’d love to come,” she said. “The other half, though? They’d probably show up with blast rifles.”

Which wasn’t, Michael suspected, far from the truth. The schism between Chancellors was only bound to deepen following these developments and as progress began on eliminating the Solomon Treaty and replacing it with a unified citizenship treaty. But those were problems for another day, he told himself.

Enjoy the moment while you can, dumbass.

Indeed, Michael relished his first glass of jubriska in a couple of weeks. It took the edge off, for sure, and he was instantly reminded why he often drank it like water.

Michael and Sam circulated through the party hand in hand, making sure to spend time with everyone who came to their aid and stayed with them in their darkest hours. Michael was especially pleased when he found Capt. Joseph Doltrice, the head of Sam’s strike team. He had not seen the man since being delivered to a hospital after Harrisboro.

“There he is,” Michael said, “Mr. Great Timing himself. I never had a chance to give you proper thanks, Captain.”

“Please,” he said as they shook hands. “Joseph will do. That title was a temporary commission. I’m thankful we were able to reach you in time. I don’t like disappointing my clients, and Ms. Pynn is one of my favorites.”

“She has that special way about her, don’t she?”

“Yes, Mr. Cooper, she does.” He focused on Sam. “She also fulfills her promises. Thank you for delivering payment to my team so promptly. People like us are facing a difficult road. Those credits will help make it more manageable.”

“Have you made a decision about my offer?” Sam asked.

Michael knew nothing of this, but Joseph nodded.

“I have. It’s obvious you will need additional security until the big picture is sorted. I’ll be pleased to work for you.”

“That’s excellent.”

Michael patted Joseph on the arm. “Cool, dude. Give us a chance to get to know each other.”

“And perhaps,” Joseph said, curling his lips, “I might be able to teach you a thing or two. Like, for instance, how not to fall out of an uplift.”

Michael laughed and winced at once, his ribs flaring up.

“Not my finest moment, I reckon. Still, I’m glad you came back for me. You almost lost your entire team by doing that.”

Joseph waved off the compliment. “I don’t like leaving people behind. From what I’ve been hearing, you have developed into quite a fighter. I think with a little seasoning, you could become an outstanding warrior, if that sort of thing appealed to you.”

“It’s strange you put it that way. As much as this war scared the shit out of me, there was also part of me that felt really alive. Having an Ingmar or a blast rifle in my hands … it feels right. Hell, I didn’t even like guns growing up.”

“Think about it, Michael. I can teach you whatever you need.”

“I will. And what about your team? Are any of them going to join you here?”

“No. They have their own interests to attend. The mercenaries are in a precarious situation until