Geary wondered if he was avoiding showing how appalled he was. Discounting firepower in favor of “moral” factors? Such things counted, surely, but nothing Geary had seen since assuming command had led him to conclude that the Syndics were so poorly trained, motivated, and led that such nonmaterial factors could carry the day even if the odds were close to equal. “Captain Falco, this fleet fought a substantial Syndic force at Kaliban. They didn’t fight well, but they fought.”
“I’ve seen the records of that battle,” Falco noted. “You’re to be congratulated for your efforts. But look at how few of our ships were lost! The Syndics didn’t fight well, because they were overwhelmed by our moral force!”
“They were overwhelmed by our superiority in numbers and our effective use of ancient tactics, which they weren’t prepared to deal with,” Geary corrected. “What I’ve seen so far is that the Syndics will fight even when faced with overwhelming odds, even when common sense would dictate avoiding provoking a fleet able to wipe out entire planets.”
“Nobody ever said the Syndics were smart,” Falco advised with another smile. “Our goal is to engage and destroy the Syndic fleet, so if they rush to their doom, so much the better.”
“My goal is to get as much of this fleet as possible home to Alliance space,” Geary stated. He wondered very briefly if he should tell Falco about the Syndic hypernet key on-board Dauntless and immediately dismissed the idea. Based on what he’d heard and seen so far, he simply didn’t trust Falco enough to share that critical information. “Hopefully, we’ll do considerable damage to the Syndic war effort on the way, but the overriding objective is getting the fleet home.”
Falco stared at Geary, seeming genuinely shocked this time. “You can’t refuse the opportunity for battle!”
Geary stood up and walked slowly around the stateroom, not looking at the other captain. “Why not?”
“It’s…this is the Alliance fleet!”
“Exactly.” Geary gave Falco a flat look. “And I have no intention of letting it be destroyed to no purpose. That would serve the goals of the Syndics. As I stated before, to the maximum extent possible, I’ll fight when and where I want to fight.”
“You’re supposed to be Black Jack Geary!”
“I am John Geary, and I will not waste the ships of this fleet or the lives of its crews.”
Falco’s face lost its shock and settled into stubborn lines. “Unbelievable. When the fleet ship commanders vote on-”
“There are no votes for courses of action in my fleet, Captain Falco.”
That seemed to startle Falco more than anything else Geary had yet said. Geary was increasingly convinced that, like the late Admiral Bloch, Falco’s skills had been centered on political gamesmanship to control the outcomes of such votes rather than on military tactics or strategy. Falco’s greatest victories had probably been won in such conferences and not on the battlefield. Now Falco spoke slowly, as if trying to ensure Geary understood something. “Tradition calls for the assembled wisdom and experience of the fleet ship commanders to have a role in deciding the fleet’s course of action.“
“Tradition!” Geary paced again, shaking his head. “I think I know a bit more about how this fleet used to operate than you do. Try regulations. Try good order and discipline, or unity of command. I’m the commanding officer of this fleet, Captain Falco. I will listen to advice, and I will consider all suggestions offered, but I will decide what this fleet does and does not do.”
“You have to show proper respect for the commanding officers of the ships in this fleet!”
Geary nodded. “We’re in agreement on that, but showing respect isn’t the same as avoiding my responsibility, my duty, to make critical decisions.”
“I must insist on following the command procedures that this fleet has developed in the face of constant warfare.” Falco looked stubborn and proud, not willing to yield the point. It was the same way he had fought battles, Geary realized, refusing to admit or recognize when head-on assaults simply wouldn’t succeed. Oddly enough, he was clearly being sincere about this. Falco really believed this was the right way to do things.
For that reason, Geary controlled his voice, speaking with care. “I have deep respect for the officers I serve with, and deep respect for the traditions of the fleet. I am also obligated to carry out my duties as I best understand them given the rules and regulations of the fleet. I’ve checked, and those rules and regulations say nothing about votes to confirm command decisions.”
“This is not about blind adherence to rules that may be outdated in the face of the threat we face,” Falco declared.
Geary recognized the words. Falco had said similar things a number of times before being captured, usually when talking about the government of the Alliance. “For better or worse, Captain Falco, I carry respect for those outdated rules within me, and I insist upon the fleet following them as well.”
“I repeat, I insist-”
“You don’t have the authority to insist upon anything. I’m the senior officer present. I’m in command. I believe that command procedures based on votes and committees are not a good idea, and I will not follow that kind of procedure. That will not change.” Falco made to speak again, but Geary pinned him with a demanding stare. “You’ve offered one suggestion. Do you have anything else?”
Falco finally stood as well, his face reddening. “I’ve reviewed the planetary strike plans. The first volley of kinetic bombardment of the two inhabited planets in this system will leave many targets unstruck. We need to eliminate all sources of Syndic power in this system.”
“I’m destroying industrial, military, and governmental targets, Captain Falco.”
“You are leaving many Syndic workers alive to continue their labors on behalf of the Syndicate Worlds. Their ability to work on Syndic war efforts must be permanently forestalled.”
“Permanently forestalled?” Geary asked. “Is that another way of saying they have to be killed?”
Falco gave Geary an uncomprehending look. “We are in a war for everything we believe in, Captain Geary. We cannot let legal niceties prevent us from doing what must be done to protect our homes and families.”
“Legal niceties? That’s what you call them? You think that’s all that stands between us and slaughtering the civilian inhabitants of those two planets, Captain Falco?” Geary asked with deceptive quietness.
For his part, Falco seemed baffled by the question and answered as if speaking to a child. “They are part of the Syndic war machine. Only by eliminating all aspects of Syndic power can we win.”
“And you believe such an action represents everything we believe in? That our ancestors will look with favor upon mass murder?” Geary replied.
“The Syndics have done far worse!”
“That’s why we’re fighting them, isn’t it?” Geary waved one flattened hand in a chopping motion. “I will not commit atrocities or permit atrocities to be committed by anyone under my command. There will be one volley of kinetic projectiles fired at those worlds to retaliate for Syndic actions against this fleet. The targets will be military, industrial, and governmental. Period.”
Falco seemed torn between amazement and outrage. “I’d heard you’d spared Syndic prisoners, but I didn’t believe you were this soft.”
“Soft?” Instead of angering him, Geary discovered the word amused him. “I have no trouble fighting enemy combatants. If you’ve really heard what happened to the Syndic flotilla at Kaliban, you should realize that. As for treatment of prisoners, I would’ve thought your last two decades of imprisonment would’ve caused you to recognize the virtues of handling prisoners of war in accordance with the laws of war.” He paused, realizing that further antagonizing Falco wouldn’t do any good. But he also guessed that Falco would leap on any sign of perceived weakness. “I was trained to do things that have since been lost through no one’s fault, Captain Falco. I’ve brought that training with me from the past so I can help this fleet fight better. I’ve also brought with me attitudes that may be regarded as archaic but that I believe in. I believe they’ll make this fleet stronger.”