Vertigo: Aurora Rising Book Two by G. S. Jennsen Read Free Book Online Page A

‘independence’ principles will quickly succumb to more practical necessities.”
    Barrera exhaled; it was a heavy, ponderous act. Prime Minister for only days, the weight of a galactic war was already showing in the deepening lines around his eyes and the drooping set of his shoulders. “I’ll discuss a blockade with General O’Connell and Admiral Rychen later this evening. You’re on the way to Sagan now?”
    “Yes, sir. It’s a long trip, but I have several holo conferences scheduled on the way.”
    “I expect the Sagan government will be far more amenable to our proposal.”
    “They have far less to lose and a reasonable amount to gain. Their support will unfortunately be worth less than Romane’s but will solidify all major colonies in the southeastern region under Alliance control.”
    “Indeed, and that can’t be a bad thing. Best of luck, Marcus. Keep me posted.”
    “And to you, sir.” Marcus ended the link with a touch of sadness, cognizant it would probably be the last time he saw Luis Barrera. He was a decent man as politicians went, and had been a friend and true ally. But he would be far from the first decent person to be sacrificed for the greater good, and likely not the last.
    Marcus was currently flying halfway around the settled galaxy for two reasons. As Foreign Minister for the Earth Alliance, strengthening diplomatic relations with non-Alliance worlds was above all else his job, and one never more important than during a war. This dovetailed with the second reason: the aliens were moving fast—far too fast—and his options were dwindling rapidly.
    From where he sat today, the best of those dwindling options was to hypercharge the war, win the war and pull the galaxy inward under Alliance domination. Yet thus far the war was a stalemate at best…which would have been fine if he had more time. A protracted stalemate had even been a key part of the original plan.
    But he didn’t have more time. So he needed to find the Alliance more allies and soon. There were twenty-one independent colonies; most were fringe movements or the fantasy fulfillment of wealthy narcissists, but nine or ten held resources, power or a location advantage which would benefit the Alliance. Also not to be discounted was the psychological boon from independent colonies publicly declaring support for the Alliance in the war.
    Together it might be enough to shift the tide.
    When the alien had first contacted him some thirty-seven years ago, he had not imagined this chaos—this high-stakes game of empyrean brinkmanship—was where it would lead.
     
Fresh off winning the Miami District Attorney race, he was kicked back at his desk enjoying a Glenlivet 21.
Greetings.
Marcus jerked, startled, then checked his eVi for the source of the communication. There was no name or address attached to it. He hadn’t received nor accepted a livecomm request. Was he being hacked? He instructed his eVi to raise defensive barriers.
Those are not necessary.
He straightened up in the chair. Hearing voices in one’s head was no longer a marker of insanity; in modern communications people heard voices in their heads all the time. But this voice wasn’t attached to any person with an identity registered in the exanet infrastructure. He took a deep breath.
“To whom am I speaking?”
We can discuss the matter in a moment. Congratulations on your election victory. It is a notable achievement for one so young. Not your first, though.
“If you’re trying to imply you somehow know a lot about me, you’re doing a poor job of it. A brief exanet query will reveal I’ve achieved much and am expected to achieve much more.”
Yes. Does an exanet query reveal your success as leader of the Catumbi Turma in Rio de Janeiro, or your domination of the Zelones cartel there?
He carefully stood, his voice dropping dangerously in tenor. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I grew up on the Louisiana gulf, where I lived until I went to