Karen Traviss - Jacintos Remnant

BY KAREN TRAVISS

S TAR W ARS : R EPUBLIC C OMMANDO
Hard Contact
Triple Zero
True Colors
Order 66

S TAR W ARS : ST : A N I MPERIAL C OMMANDO N OVEL

S TAR W ARS : L EGACY OF THE F ORCE
Bloodlines
Sacrifice
Revelation

S TAR W ARS : T HE C LONE W ARS
The Clone Wars
No Prisoners

G EARS OF W AR
Aspho Fields
Jacintos Remnant

W ESSHAR W ARS
City of Pearl
Crossing the Line
The World Before
Matriarch
Ally
Judge

For Alasdair Hogg ,
emergency planning chief without equal ,
who would have had Jacinto sorted
and squared away in no time .

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Grateful thanks go to: Mike Capps, Rod Fergusson, Cliff Bleszinski, and everyone at Epic for creating a thing of perfect beauty; editor Tricia Narwani (Del Rey) for providing top cover; super-fixer Sue Moe (Del Rey) for manning the guns; Penny ArcadeMike Gabe Krahulik and Jerry Tycho Holkinsfor talking me into all this; and Jim Gilmer, for logistics support, above and beyond.

CONFIDENTIAL

FROM: HOFFMAN, COLONEL VICTOR S., 26 RTI
TO: SURVIVING REPRESENTATIVES OF THE COALITION OF
ORDERED GOVERNMENTS

RE: DECISION TO DESTROY JACINTO, 2ND DAY OF FROST, 14 A.E .

I write this in full knowledge that this record may not survive, but if it does, then I wish our command decisions to be understood by any future generations.

At 1410 today, after the Locust began to mine tunnels beneath Jacinto to sink it, Chairman Richard Prescott authorized a preemptive plan to sink the city ourselves. This was designed not only to flood the Locust tunnels, but also to trap and destroy the Locust army that had infiltrated the center of Jacinto itself. A mass evacuation of citizens via land, air, and sea routes began an hour ago.

We believe there was no alternative. The Landown assault, in which we engaged the enemy within their own tunnels, resulted in major losses and failed to stop the Locust advance. Members of Delta Squad, under the command of Sergeant M. Fenix, E.S., located the Locust queen, and were made aware that the enemy also planned to create a sinkhole to destroy Jacinto. With insufficient forces to prevent this, we took the view that sinking and flooding the city ourselves, to trap the enemy and drown them within their tunnels, was our only option, and justified the destruction of our last stronghold.

We were unaware until Delta Squad penetrated the enemy command center that the Locust Horde is engaged on a second front underground with another faction of their species, which they call the Lambent and regard as a plague. The Locust plan to flood Jacinto themselves would have inundated their own positions, and seems to be as much aimed at destroying the Lambent as wiping out humankind. We do not yet fully understand the nature of that conflict, and may never do so.

We have been left with no option but to try to inflict maximum casualties on Locust forces so that a remnant of humanity can be saved to reconstruct our world. We have some certainty that they will never recover from this blow. Not only do they appear to think flooding will be effective in defeating the Lambent, but records have been found to indicate that the late Professor Adam Fenix believed that flooding would destroy the Locust threat itself.

At this stage, we do not know the extent of our own losses; evacuation under these circumstances will inevitably result in high civilian casualties. But the alternative is the extinction of the human race.

Chairman Richard Prescott and I are no strangers to this magnitude of decision. Fourteen years ago, we took the decision to deploy the Hammer of Dawn. I cannot speak for his private views, but as a soldier, I am fully aware of the deaths I have on my conscience, and I grieve for every man, woman, and child who has paid the price for my actions. If there had been any alternative, I would have fought to the end to take it. Sometimes you can save what you love most only by destroying it.

Again, we ask: please forgive us. It was the only way.

Victor Hoffman, E.S. ,
Colonel, Chief of Defense Staff
of the Coalition of Ordered Governments

PROLOGUE

Were fucked now. Thats for sure.

Just take a look down there. Boats, bodies, sea rushing in. Jacintos history, baby.

I mean, this is sick . Im standing here looking out the Ravens door while its circling around like Im on some weird sightseeing trip. Thats the Octus Tower going underwhats left of it. All that water, but the place is still burning, stinking of smoke and fuel. Shit, its sinking. Its just sinking . The whole goddamn city is gone .

And we sunk it. Fifteen years fighting to save it, and we have to trash it ourselves in the end. But at least the grubs are drowning with it. Theyre history, too. Thats justice .

Shit I hate flying. Im going to puke. But I cant look away from the water.

I can just about hear Lieutenant Stroud over the noise of the chopper. Hey, Cole?

Look at all the bodies in the waterhumans, not grubs. Rescue boats didnt get to everybody, then. How many folks in Jacinto? A few million. Even if we had a proper navy, we cant ship out everyone. Glad I wasnt the one deciding who got to live and who didnt. Must be shitty for those navy guys. And look at thata goddamn yacht heading out. Who the hells kept a big-ass yacht going since E-Day? Well, you better pick up some citizens on the way out, rich boy.

Cole Anya Strouds been sitting behind me with a comms set on her lap. She has to yell to make herself heard. We got pretty well all thats left of Command on boardChairman Prescott, Colonel Hoffman, and Anya. She cant raise anyone on the radio, and shes sweating over it. So am I. Cole, you think they made it?

Say again?

Marcus. Dom. Baird.

Maam, they aint the dying kind. Sometimes I believe that. I want to believe it now, and so does Anya. And I want to believe Bernie made itdamn, Boomer Lady hates water. Shell be real pissed off now. Theyre on another bird. Count on it.

Anya nods like she heard me okay. Yeah, its all bullshit. Ive lost so many buddies that I cant sleep some nights for seeing their faces. But Ive got to believe . If I stop believing, itll start catching. Soon everyone else stops believing, too. Team morale. Thats what counts, same in war as in thrashball.

Theyll make it, Lieutenant, Colonel Hoffman yells. He looks like hes searching for someone, leaning from the safety rail, watching the city go down the crapper. Theyll make it.

Prescotts sitting in one of the transverse bulkhead seats, head bent like hes prayingtoo late for that, man. He looks like he hasnt got a clue how to get us out of this shit, and Hoffmans looking at him like he knows he dont know.

Anyas still going on about Marcus. I dont catch everything she says. Ravens are real noisy bastards. I didnt even chance talk about with Sergeant Fenix, she says, all formal, like I havent guessed about him and her. Not properly.

I can fill in the gaps. Hell, what does it matter now if you say it? Most of the worlds dead. Whoevers left is hurting and mourning. And you and Marcus been edging around each other for sixteen, seventeen years. Is that what sane folks do?

Okay, make a list of all the things you gonna tell him, maam, I shout. Cause you gonna forget again.