Episode 116

"Yo! I’m Teiro! And I am currently smack-dab in the middle of a war!"

The energetic shout echoed across the bridge of the aviation cruiser Plum II. Taro stood front and center before the primary viewscreen, staring intently at the celestial chaos projected across the glass.

"What was that for, you weirdo?" Marl asked from her seat, where she was currently hugging her knees in a tight ball. "If we’re being technical, I’m in the middle of a war, too."

Beside her, a profoundly exhausted Alan was gnawing on a cigar. At his feet, Etta was fast asleep, using the base of the seat as a makeshift pillow and snoring softly.

"Look, this is our seventh sortie this month, okay?" Taro countered. "The whole place is starting to reek of war... and honestly, if I don't force myself to act like an idiot, I’m gonna lose my mind."

Ever since Taro had unleashed his Indiscriminate Food Support Terror, the Enzio corporation had gone into a full-blown frenzy, intensifying their offensive against the EAP. Everyone assumed the corporation was panicking after taking such an absurd, unexpected hit, but nobody knew for sure.

Four massive fleet engagements had already gone down, and if you counted the smaller skirmishes, the fighting was happening in too many places to keep track of. As the EAP Second Fleet’s Staff Officer, Taro was busy whispering advice into Sakura’s ear, while Bella was out on the front lines with the First Fleet, personally turning things into scrap metal. Taro took a certain pride in the fact that he and Bella were recognized as the EAP’s most valuable assets, but even with their help, the war was going south fast. Enzio outclassed the EAP in both quality and quantity. They had better ships, and they had better people. No matter how hard Taro carried the team, he was still just one guy in a galaxy-sized mess.

[DOCKING SYSTEM COMPLETE: TARGET—SUPPLY SHIP E747]

The BISHOP notification pinged, confirming they had linked up with the supply vessel. On a sub-monitor in the corner of the viewscreen, Taro saw Raiza’s supply ship come into view. Countless cables snaked out toward the Plum II, and once they had the cruiser firmly in their grasp, a swarm of small work ships poured out of the supply vessel like mechanical parasites to begin repairs.

"Looks like a tentacle play," Taro muttered.

"Ugh, it’s been a while since I heard that one," Marl groaned, shooting him a look through half-lidded eyes. "You really have the absolute worst way of describing things."

Taro felt a strange sense of satisfaction knowing that the concept of 'tentacle play' was alive and well in the Galactic Empire. He crossed his arms and let out a heavy sigh.

"The EAP-to-Enzio casualty ratio is about six to four, right?"

At his feet, the spherical droid Koume rolled around in a figure-eight pattern as she answered. "At the moment, yes, Mr. Teiro. When the full-scale offensive began, it was roughly five to five, but the situation has been steadily deteriorating. While the enemy has certainly stepped up their game, the primary issue is the EAP’s sluggish response time."

"Their defense plan review didn't make the cut in time," Taro grumbled. "It’s hard to stay motivated when you know we’re in this mess because of a bunch of stiff-necked bureaucrats."

"New concepts take time to ferment, Mr. Teiro," Koume consoled him. "Besides, you’ve done more than enough. By infiltrating Enzio with Miss Sakura and gathering intelligence, you at least gave the EAP Leadership a fighting chance with an early warning."

I wonder... Taro thought. Every time I think there might have been a better way, I feel like I'm going to throw up.

"It’s good to feel responsible, Mr. Teiro, but this isn't your fault," Koume continued. "Enzio pulled the trigger, not you. Self-reflection is a whetstone for the soul, but you shouldn't grind yourself down until you snap."

Taro shrugged at the droid’s philosophical lecture. He let out a long breath, hands on his hips, and watched as a frozen corpse drifted past the viewscreen, bouncing off the Plum II’s hull and spinning away into the void.

"This is just unbearable..."

Taro closed his eyes and hung his head. On the main screen, the wreckage of a destroyed space station drifted through the dark, punctuated by the flickering orange glow of burning gas. Exposed struts and mangled modules jutted out at impossible angles. To Taro, it looked like a graveyard of WIND ships.

Forty-four hours ago, Enzio had launched a Surprise Attack on the Arizona Star System.

A massive enemy force comprised of Stealth Ships had ghosted past the EAP’s patrols, slipping through the defensive lines without making a sound. The EAP hadn't stationed much of a fleet there because the system was considered geopolitically insignificant, and their attention had been baited away by a massive diversionary offensive elsewhere. But as far as Taro was concerned, 'geopolitically insignificant' was an obsolete term. The idiots in charge hadn't accounted for the fact that Enzio had stopped playing by the rules and started targeting civilian infrastructure directly.

"Hopefully this serves as the bucket of ice water needed to wake those fossils up, Mr. Teiro," Koume said.

"Yeah. If it doesn't, those people died for nothing."

The enemy fleet had split in two, hitting Arizona Stations No. 1 and No. 3 simultaneously. No. 1 had been saved by a last-minute EAP defensive push, but No. 3 had been systematically dismantled. By the time Taro and the main fleet arrived as reinforcements, four hours had passed—more than enough time to turn an undefended station into scrap. One massive Industrial Station was gone, and twelve thousand people along with it.

"We managed to kick them out, but it gives me the creeps thinking about what would’ve happened if they’d pushed deeper," Alan said, rubbing his bloodshot eyes. "The brass has no choice but to change tactics now. The deeper systems lead straight to the EAP’s heart... honestly, that might have been the plan all along."

Taro and the rescue fleet had been fighting for thirty hours straight since they arrived, followed by another ten hours of high-alert patrolling. Chasing down an enemy that only wanted to run was a nightmare, especially when that enemy had top-tier concealment tech. Taro had been awake for nearly two full days.

Finally, Raiza’s transport and supply fleet had arrived, meaning they could finally rotate out with the reserve forces. It was the one thing Taro wanted more than a hot meal or a winning lottery ticket.

"All right, Mr. Teiro. You can go ahead and take your break now. We’ll take it from here."

Raiza’s face appeared on the comms. To the sleep-deprived Taro, she looked less like a merchant and more like a shimmering Goddess. He suspected the rest of the crew felt the same way.

"Twelve stations attacked. Six of them are total losses," Bella reported. She was chewing on a cigar, her sharp eyes fixed on her terminal. "The death toll is hovering around a hundred thousand, but the material loss is the real kicker. They were all Industrial Stations. The EAP’s production capacity is in the gutter."

The meeting room inside the EAP’s mobile Fortress was packed. The Rising Sun Leadership was out in force—nearly twenty people, including every executive who wasn't currently stuck managing a star system.

"Current estimates place our industrial losses at twelve percent," Koume added, spinning on the table and blinking her lights. Her spherical chassis was covered in tiny scratches, a silent testament to the recent chaos. "If the attacks continue at this rate, our capabilities will only continue to wither."

"So, it happened exactly the way Teiro said it would," Marl said, scanning the room. "The enemy is chipping away at the EAP’s foundation. Does anyone still want to argue with that logic?"

The room remained silent. Everyone nodded in grim agreement.

"At least we and the star systems that listened to the General escaped the worst of it," Alan, the head of Intelligence, noted. "Enzio only hit the systems that didn't bother with countermeasures. But that brings us to a depressing reality: the EAP is losing the spy war. Badly. Well, except for us."

If only the undefended systems were getting hit, it meant someone on the inside was handing Enzio a map and a schedule.

"What if we disclose some of our company’s Secret Routes to the EAP?" Clark, the Chief of Joint Staff, suggested from across the table. "It would be the perfect way for them to slip their own spies into Enzio territory."

Bella scowled. "You’ve got to be joking. If there’s already a mole in the EAP, we’d just be handing those routes to the enemy. Imagine trying to use a 'secret' path only to find a blockade waiting for you. No thanks."

"I’m with Bella," Alan added. "We already burned a lot of our routes into Enzio during the food support operation. Besides, Intelligence isn't something you just 'send in.' It takes time to go deep undercover. We're a bit late for that."

He tapped a button, projecting a custom map Taro had drawn onto the wall. It showed the primary routes to Enzio’s major systems, but many were marked with a red 'X'. Those were the paths they’d used to smuggle in the simple Agricultural Stations—routes Enzio likely already knew about.

"Look, Alan’s right, but we can’t just sit on our hands," Taro said, raising a hand. "I agree with the Chief. Let's give them some of the routes. It’ll be a huge lifeline for the EAP."

A chorus of arguments erupted, but Phantom silenced the room with a sharp, calculated cough.

"The President is correct," Phantom said smoothly. "And we don't necessarily have to give them fresh routes. Even the used ones are incredibly valuable to the EAP, even if they have to use them with the risk of an ambush in mind. Let’s provide the used routes as a baseline and supplement them with a few unused ones. Not everyone in the EAP is a moron; someone will know how to use them effectively."

The room softened. "If it’s the old routes..." and "That sounds reasonable," people murmured. Taro nodded and checked the 'Approved' box on his terminal.

"Alright, that’s settled," Taro said, letting out a long breath as he pulled up the next file. "Now, let’s move on to the big ones. We have two major problems left: the network and the resources. I want to hear everyone’s ideas on how we're going to handle this."