Chapter 40: Chapter 40: The Colonel’s Promise

In the three weeks that followed the battle that supposedly resulted in the destruction of all terran forces on Diego Nine, the terran bases continued to expand in the remote mountain range, far outside of the view of the Imperial forces.

It took four more days of nonstop working before the SCVs were finally able to clear up enough parts of the mountain to move the command centers inside. Once that was done, the entrance was sealed off by a layer of stones moved from other parts of the mountain. Behind the layer of stones were meters and meters of neosteel support beams. 

Just like this, the terran base was completely hidden from view. They might still be discovered if someone dropped missiles on the mountains from orbit for some reason or brought demolition charges, but most people would have no way of knowing the terran base existed in the first place. No one would also bother with dropping expensive bombs on random mountains for the fun of it. 

Under Athena’s directives, the terran base started expanding inside the cave. More and more SCVs were produced from the command centers and sent to convert local stones into units of minerals. At the same time, Athena pocketed most of the minerals harvested. She also kept a token garrison with the terran base. She would have no way of bringing these units along with her, and if the terran base was indeed discovered, it would be almost impossible to defend the base against the main forces of the Imperial Navy. 

Three new orbital command centers were built inside the cave to replace the single orbital command that was destroyed by the Imperials. Once again, they hacked into the three Imperial S-78 satellites. This time, with sufficient time to work with, they were able to acquire complete access to these satellites. 

This allowed Athena to do plenty of things with the three valuable Imperial orbital assets. For example, she could eavesdrop on a number of moderately classified communication channels that used satellites to boost the signal. She could also see everything the satellites saw. If she wished, she could have the satellites feed the Imperials false information, but that could lead to the Imperials realizing their satellites have been compromised. 

As of now, Athena was content with remaining on the planet. She had considered using the terran liberators to escape this world, but in the terran arsenal, only capital ships like the battlecruisers had warp drives capable of long-distance jumping. The warp drives of liberators, vikings, and medivacs could only perform short-distance hops. 

There was another problem. In order for terran ships to jump, they needed coordinates. For short-range jumps, the ship’s own scanners could handle that, but for long-range jumps, the terran vessels needed star maps. Athena was fairly confident she could use Imperial or Republic star maps, but she didn't have access to those either as of now.

Athena had also pondered the idea of discreetly sending SCVs to the Calypso-class light cruiser her vikings shot down to study it and try to unlock more terran vessels. Unfortunately, the Imperial Navy seemed to be quite protective of their ships. From what the satellites saw, a contingent of marines remained with the ship at all times while their engineers salvaged anything of importance from the destroyed vessel. By the time the marines and engineers left, the wreckage was no more than a pile of scrap metal. 

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As the days went by, following the orders of Commodore Thea, additional Imperial reinforcements were dispatched to Diego Nine from the rest of the system to bolster the forces of the local garrison. In orbit, Task Force Foxtrot, one of the smaller units, reinforced Task Force Epsilon. On the ground, four regiments from the 317th Armored Division joined the 329th. They were commanded by Brigadier General Ethan of the 317th, who worked under Major General Pierre of the 329th. 

Terran commander Athena didn't really mind the increased security. It wasn’t like she was planning on storming Prosperity. On the other hand, Captain Athena of the 329th Infantry Division absolutely hated this change. 

As the battle tanks of the 317th Armored Division drove into the city of Prosperity, it soon became clear that the troops from the 317th had little respect for the infantry grunts of the 329th. It didn't really matter to the men of the 317th that both divisions were part of the Imperial Army or the fact that to their superiors in the Sector High Command they were equally expendable. 

When it came to achievements in the recent campaign, the 317th was the spearhead of the invasion of Diego Secondary, where they endured massive casualties and decimated the main stronghold of the Republic garrison there. Given that track record, it should be no surprise that the 317th snickered upon the 329th’s accomplishment of taking a relatively poorly defended world like Diego Nine. 

The fact that the 329th endured heavy losses at the hands of a small covert ops unit, one that had been destroyed by the Imperial Navy, only drew even more words of mockery from the fresh troops who have never faced the terran units in combat before. 

The armored units of the 317th were ordered to join the companies of the 329th in garrisoning the city. It was a command that led to increased tension between the two units. Many from the 317th complained about the redeployment, since the living conditions on the remote mining world was much worse compared to that on a civilized, heavily populated world like Diego Secondary. They often blamed the incompetency of the 329th for this redeployment, an opinion many were quite loud about. 

Athena had the misfortune of having to deal with a few particularly rude captains, but most were at least somewhat respectful toward an officer like her. It was the common soldiers of the 329th that the disgruntled men of the 317th took out their frustrations on. That soon became apparent in one particularly serious incident. 

In a bar, a group of drunk soldiers from the 317th, led by an even more drunk captain, assaulted two soldiers from the 329th with no justification. One of the soldiers from the 329th lost an eye while the other no longer had all his fingers.

Since both soldiers were from the 3rd Regiment, Colonel Gavin found himself in an interesting situation. A situation that he wisely sought the consul of his officers before deciding what to do. 

“We have surveillance footage from the bar that clearly shows what happened. Those bastards from the 317th assaulted our people! They ganged up on two of our men when there were a dozen of them! They need to be held accountable for this!” 

The man talking was Captain Rayne, a newly promoted officer who was the captain of the two soldiers who were brutalized in the barfight. Like many officers who rose up from the bottom, he was rather protective of the men under his leadership. It was a quality that often made these officers well-beloved by their men yet looked down upon by officers who had more noble beginnings. 

“I agree, sir. This crime cannot go unpunished.” Athena added. She was responsible for the death of thousands of Imperial soldiers from the 329th, but that didn't stop her from standing up for the two injured soldiers here and now. 

When she ordered her terran troops against the Imperial forces a few weeks ago, the Terrans and the Imperials were enemies on the battlefield. The terran troops wanted to kill the Imperials, and the Imperials wanted to kill the Terrans. Yes, she used surprise and deception to achieve her goals, but ultimately it was war. Some things just had to be done.

What happened in the bar wasn’t war, and the 329th and the 317th weren’t enemies. She had seen the surveillance footage and talked to the eyewitnesses. The group of off-duty soldiers from the 317th was solely responsible for the fight. They provoked the pair of soldiers from the 329th, and when the pair tried to leave, they were jumped on. The group of soldiers, under the influence of lots of free alcohol, proceeded to humiliate and injure the pair for no reasons other than their own sadistic pleasure. 

None of this was necessary or justified in the slightest. This was nothing more than a random act of needless cruelty done by a group of psychopathic killers. Regardless of what she really felt about the Venya Imperium, Athena simply felt like these sadists should be held accountable for what they did. 

“I agree that the men from the 317th are in the wrong, and I would like to see them punished as much as anyone else in this room, but I’m afraid it’s quite a complicated matter.” Another captain hesitantly raised his voice. “These people are from the 317th, which means you don’t have jurisdiction over them, colonel. Neither does General Pierre. If we want to hold them accountable, we will need to get permission from Brigadier General Ethan. Is it truly necessary to…”

He didn't finish his thoughts, but everyone knew what he meant. It was unlikely the Brigadier General would be too happy to be disturbed because two infantry soldiers were injured in a random fight. Plus, in order to get his attention in the first place, they would likely have to involve General Pierre. All that for two privates who only lost an eye and a few fingers? 

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There was a moment of silence as Colonel Gavin, who had been observing the meeting, turned to some of the other captains who had yet to give their opinions. 

“What are your opinions?” 

“I have been talking to a few officers from the 317th.” Captain Rogers offered his input as well. “One of them told me Brigadier General Ethan and Major General Quinton of the 317th were famous for being laid back when it comes to maintaining discipline over their men. It seems like the belief within their division is that as long as the troops and officers are winning battles, nothing else matters. It would be almost impossible to get him to punish his men. Not for two injured privates.”

“With all due respect, sir, I am not even quite sure if this meeting is necessary.” Another veteran captain was a lot blunter. “Is a small matter like this one really worth our time? Two of our people were beaten up. So what? We lost thousands just to take this city. I would let this go if I were you, sir.” 

“This is not a small matter!” Captain Rayne protested as he snapped at Captain Rogers in disbelief. “I don’t care if they injured two privates or two generals. What they did is a clear violation of our military law! Violations like this cannot just be ignored!” 

“Military law?” Captain Rogers scoffed a little but didn't continue. Once again, his meaning was clear. Laws only mattered when there were people willing to enforce them. 

“I agree with Captain Rayne, sir. We cannot just let this matter go.” Once again, Athena spoke up under the guise of a good Imperial officer. “Our men are watching how we handle this incident. How can we expect them to fight for us if we are not willing to stand up for them during times like this? Perhaps they only injured two privates, but their action is an attack on the entire 329th Infantry. If this crime goes unpunished just because the culprits have been good soldiers, then the military law of the Imperial Army means nothing!”

“There can be no army without discipline, sir! It doesn’t matter who these people were, where they came from, or what achievements they have accomplished. They have violated our laws and injured two of their own comrades. They must pay for their crimes.” 

As Athena finished, Colonel Gavin nodded quietly. Once again, he gave the captains no indication of his own opinion in this matter. 

“Is there anyone else who agrees with Captain Rayne and Captain Dane? Anyone else who thinks I should bring this matter up to General Pierre and try to hold these people accountable?”

Once again, there was silence. Colonel Gavin nodded understandingly. “In that case, everyone out. Everyone except for Captain Rayne and Captain Dane.”

The captains exchanged confused looks before exiting the colonel’s office. As the door was closed, Colonel Gavin let out a small scoff and finally let his opinions on the subject be known. 

“Ironic, isn’t it? Such an open and shut case, yet so many officers think I should just let it go. That I should just turn a blind eye because the victims weren’t important enough to care.” The young colonel sighed and turned to Athena. 

“You’re right, Athena. It is in the best interest of our unit to do the right thing and enforce discipline, no matter how difficult it may be or how it may impact my career. I am an officer of the Imperial Army, and it is my duty to put the good of the Imperium above my own personal gains. This should be the belief of every Imperial officer. Still, unfortunately, it seems like most of us would rather put our own benefits and career over the betterment of the empire that we have sworn to serve.”

Athena raised her eyebrows. This was the first time she has heard opinions like this expressed by Colonel Gavin. She had always known the inexperienced colonel would be shaken by the nature of the Imperial Army, not only the brutality but also the corruption, the incompetency, and the political games that almost all officers play. She expected him to either quit or adapt, but it seemed like the young man chose the third option for himself. 

He wanted to stay true to his beliefs. Stay true to his loyalty and his sense of justice. In a sense, it was an honorable decision, but in a galaxy like this, honorable people tended to have tragic endings. 

Colonel Gavin’s intentions might be good, but systematic change? Who was he to talk about systematic change? Was he the son of the Leviathan and the crown prince of the Imperium? Was he the heir to a Major House with entire battlefleets at his disposal? No. He was just a random officer in a random division raised from a random world. For someone like him to dream of ridding the Imperium of corruption and incompetency was like a beggar hoping to become the wealthiest person on the planet. Some might even call it delusional. 

“I will personally talk to General Pierre about this matter. Regardless of if he will act, it is my duty to do the right thing.” The colonel concluded.

“Thank you, sir.” Captain Rayne lowered his head in respect. “We are honored to have you as our colonel.”

“I simply do what any colonel of the Imperium should do in a situation like this.” The colonel shook his head before unveiling another piece of information. “In addition, I will be moving my command post to the 3rd Regiment barracks in Prosperity.”

The last statement made Athena raise her eyebrows a little. In most cases, high-level commanders in Imperial Army divisions like the 329th would command their forces from the safety of Raven-class command ships. In addition to their impressive communication arrays, the Ravens were known for their expensive shields and almost unparalleled speed. The presence of these command ships meant that if things went horribly wrong, the important commanders, the generals and the colonels, could get out of there as soon as possible. 

When Athena ambushed and wiped out the entirety of the 4th Infantry Regiment in Valley Charlie, the only thing that hurt Colonel Kai was the humiliation of the defeat and the loss of his forces. The man himself was perfectly safe within a control room of the single Raven ship assigned to the 329th. 

In a sense, protecting the chain of command and preventing the enemies from crippling the unit by destroying the leadership was a wise thing to do. At the same time, how could the colonels and generals see their men as anything more than numbers on a screen when they themselves were often countless miles away from the battlefield? 

Even outside of combat, General Pierre and his colonels remained in the Raven as their troops garrisoned Prosperity. Security was just one aspect. Most colonels simply preferred to stay with their fellow officers and their general rather than waste time with the grunts who could all be dead at the end of the next battle and replaced not long after. They still made important decisions, but they relied on the captains to be close to and control their troops.

What Colonel Gavin said he would do…it was permitted, of course. At the same time, for better or for worse, it contradicted a lot of traditions within the Imperial Army.  

For Athena, that made the colonel rather…interesting. 

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