Chapter 56

War.

To Taro, a man who had spent his life in the cozy, peaceful bubble of 21st-century Japan, "war" was just a word a news anchor spit out on the TV. Even the conflicts he’d learned about in school were relics of a distant past, ancient history from his great-grandparents' era.

"War... uh, what are we supposed to do? Do we pull a U-turn?"

Taro’s hands flapped about uselessly, his movements awkward and restless. He was completely bewildered by a concept that lacked any weight of reality, but the mountain of wreckage drifting across his monitors served as a cold, hard slap of truth.

"No, actually, I would be most grateful if you could hurry forward. The Alliance will continue to function without me, but without the cooperation of Mr. Teiro and his crew, this Route is a dead end."

Rin appeared on the display, his expression solemn, yet his voice carried the sharp, steely edge of a man who meant business.

"The Alliance Territory is vast, and this will undoubtedly turn into a long-term war. In our current state—trapped in a closed star system—proper resupply is impossible. We need to open a Route as soon as humanly possible. Mr. Teiro, I am begging you."

On the other side of the screen, Rin doubled over in a deep, formal bow. His aides, caught off guard, scrambled into a line and followed suit, bowing like a row of falling dominoes.

"N-now, hang on. Wait a second. Look, I get how you feel, but this is way above my pay grade. I can't just give you a 'yes' or 'no' on the spot... Can I have a minute to think?"

Taro cut the transmission before Rin could answer and patched himself into the hangar's waiting room.

"Alan, did you catch that? Things have gone completely sideways. What the hell do I do?"

"Yeah, I heard," Alan’s voice crackled back. "You’re asking me what to do, but what do you want to do?"

"Ugh, don't put it on me... I mean, Dingo is a bunch of jerks, and the last two observation points are deep in EAP Alliance Territory. I doubt Dingo is just going to step aside and let us play scientist."

Taro had made several deals with Rin in exchange for setting up a trade line, and handing over the observation data was high on the list. If EAP Territory fell to Dingo, Taro would have to spend the rest of his life asking those thugs for permission just to sneeze.

"That comes down to negotiations," Alan countered. "Men like that can actually be surprisingly honest when it comes to a contract. But more importantly, if you’re going to stick your nose into an Inter-corporate War, you need to decide exactly where the Union stands."

"Guh, you're right... We can’t exactly provide a supply line to the EAP and then claim we’re 'just innocent bystanders.'"

"Exactly. In a scrap like this, a supply line can change the whole scoreboard."

Taro let out a low groan, crossing his arms and sinking into thought.

Honestly, he hated Dingo. They had put him through the wringer. But did he want to kill them? Not really. It wasn't like they had murdered his friends or were actively holding a gun to his head. Besides, even if he had the Military Knowledge, he wasn't a soldier. He didn't have a national flag to hide behind or a "Greater Good" to justify the bloodshed.

"Mmm, no. Forget it. Let's not. If this turns into a war, a ton of innocent people are going to die, and I don’t want that on my conscience. Most importantly, I’m not dragging my employees into a meat grinder."

Taro pushed down his guilt and reached for the call button to break the news to Rin. But then, Alan’s voice stopped him.

"Why?"

"What do you mean 'why'? It’s a war, Alan! People shooting at each other! I don’t want to kill the staff, and I’m pretty sure they don’t want to be killed!"

"Hmph. The 'getting killed' part is fair, but self-defense is self-defense. But tell me, do you really not care what happens to the people in the Alpha Star System? If Dingo keeps growing, they’re coming for Alpha next. What happens to your employees then?"

Taro’s hand froze mid-air. He looked toward Marl, silently pleading for an out, but she just shrugged.

"Look, I'm with you on the 'no war' thing," Marl said. "But if they come at us first, I’m ready to blast them. I don’t really get the whole 'innocent people' thing, but the employees knew what they were signing up for when they joined. You saw the contracts, didn’t you?"

She was talking about the revised recruitment forms they’d used after deciding to venture into Outer Space. The fine print explicitly mentioned the battle against WIND and the high probability of getting caught in corporate crossfire. Everyone except the original crew had signed off on it.

"I guess... but what are we talking about here? If I told you to go blow up a Dingo station, could you actually do it, Marl?"

"Of course not! Why would I do something that stupid?"

"That was a fast 'no'! And what do you mean, why—"

"Mr. Teiro," Koume interrupted, her voice cutting through the panic.

"I have been monitoring your discussion, and it appears there is a significant fundamental misunderstanding. Mr. Teiro, if I may, how exactly do you define 'war'?"

Taro blinked at her, one eyebrow arched. "What am I talking about? War! Two countries—or 'powers,' I guess—beating the crap out of each other to get what they want. Sure, the armies are supposed to be the ones fighting, but it never stays that way. Cities get leveled, and factories are the first things that go boom."

He waited for a reaction. Marl just stared at him, her brow furrowed in utter confusion.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, tilting her head. "If you did that, a lot of civilians would die. Is war in your world really that... barbaric?"

Taro’s jaw dropped. Something is definitely wrong here. He made a 'keep talking' gesture with his hand.

"Every space station and Stargate with First-class Registration on the Neural Net is an asset of the Galactic Empire," Marl explained slowly, as if talking to a child. "So are the Imperial Subjects. If you're a corporate employee in a war, you’re fair game, but if you harm anyone else, the Imperial Military will end you. There was an Outlaw Corp that blew up a rival’s small station once; three days later, the Imperial main fleet showed up and erased that Corp from existence. And I mean erased."

Taro just gaped. Marl continued, her expression growing more skeptical by the second.

"War—or 'Inter-corporate War' as you’d call it—is strictly for the organizations involved. Sure, you can attack a factory or a logistics hub, but you don't destroy them. Why would you blow up the very things you're trying to steal?"

"Oh..." Taro managed a weak reply.

He chewed on that for a second. It was hard to wrap his brain around, but clearly, the common sense of the Galactic Empire was lightyears away from what he knew. He finally had to accept the reality: he was an Iceman, a prehistoric relic with a caveman’s understanding of modern geopolitics.

He took a deep breath, filled his lungs, and let it out. He cleared the heat from his head and made his choice.

"So the Empire keeps the wars 'civilized,' huh? Hey, Rin. This busted Stargate... it's not First-class, is it?"

"Correct," Rin replied, his eyes filled with hope. "It is the property of the EAP Alliance, making it Third-class."

Taro nodded. "Miss Bella?"

"Yeah, boy? You finally growing a pair?"

"In a war, how likely is it that Dingo hits Alpha immediately?"

"Hah! Compared to the Alliance, our Union is a speck of dust. Dingo isn't dumb enough to split their forces. They’ll eat the Alliance first, then come for us."

"Got it. Alan, give it to me straight. EAP versus Dingo. Who’s winning?"

"Hey, I'm an ex-soldier, not a crystal-ball gazer... but looking at the economic data on the Neural Net, EAP wins 7 to 3. However, since money can't buy ships right now, they’re basically sitting ducks. They’ll lose."

"Well then," Taro said, a sharp grin spreading across his face. "This sounds like... a grave responsibility."

Rin’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. But Taro immediately followed up with: "However, we are not participating in the war."

Rin’s shoulders slumped so hard he almost fell over.

"As far as the world is concerned," Taro continued, eyeing the commander, "we’re just heading back to our home in the Alpha Star System. Nothing more, nothing less. If an EAP Alliance fleet just happens to be stealthily following us, that's not our problem. And if the head of the EAP just happens to be on one of those ships, and our path just happens to create a perfect trading Route... well, that’s just a series of crazy coincidences, isn't it?"

Marl and Koume both smirked. Hope was officially back on Rin's face.

"If those dogs try to call us out, we'll just play dumb. But," Taro scratched his cheek, his eyes turning cold, "if they actually attack us..."

He stared into the void of space.

"Well, then we have to finish it. Declaration of war or not, I’ll take them all on."

About twelve hours after leaving the ruins of the Stargate, a single shadow stood in the center of a room sealed by heavy, reinforced doors. Another shadow approached, stopping silently beside him.

"Mr. Teiro. You understand what I am implying, don't you?" Koume asked.

Her voice was flat, devoid of emotion. The dim lighting cast deep shadows across her face, making her look unnervingly somber.

"Yeah, I get it. And next, you’re going to say: 'Why go so far, Mr. Teiro?'"

Taro tried to keep it light, pointing a dramatic finger at her. Koume didn't react. She just stared at his finger before shifting her gaze to the Override device behind him.

"The Overdrive you utilize is a different mechanism entirely, Mr. Teiro. However, your prediction of my inquiry was correct. Is finding Earth truly worth this much risk?"

Taro wagged his finger back and forth. "It’s not just about Earth. I’m the President of this outfit, you know? I’m doing this for everyone... No, that’s a lie. I want to say it’s for them, but it’s mostly for me. I’m scared, Koume."

He stepped toward the strange cold-sleep pod, the one rigged with the Override function, and ran a hand over its surface.

"I want to throw in the towel, honestly. The idea of someone dying because I screwed up, or having to kill someone myself... I can’t handle that. So if there’s something I can do now to prevent that, I have to do it, right?"

"...Miss Marl will be furious if you do not consult her."

"She’d never say yes in a million years... So, if you could just—"

Koume held up a hand, silencing him. "I have no intention of informing anyone, Mr. Teiro. A full download of General Military Knowledge via Override... is that the request?"

"Yeah. Sorry for the trouble," Taro said. He climbed into the cold-sleep pod and closed his eyes.

This time, there was no pain.

[EVERYTHING IS FAR TOO FAST.]