“As Captain—Professor—Kratman told me,” Marius said. Something clicked in his mind. Professor Kratman had access to far more information than he should have been able to access. “He’s one of you, isn’t he?”
“He could be,” Arunika said. “I don’t get to know everyone in the Brotherhood.”
“And how do you know, then, that I am not already part of the Brotherhood?” Marius smiled.
“There are signs and countersigns,” Arunika said. She touched the space between her breasts with one long, dark finger. “I’ll lay our cards on the table. Our purpose is to keep humanity—which means the Federation—strong and supreme. A strong humanity is one that isn’t threatened by alien invaders. This prolonged period of civil war risks shattering that unity and inviting aliens to try their luck. The Outsiders are already probing our borders, admiral. It will not be long before they start a full-scale invasion.”
Marius sat back in his chair. “How do you know that’s what they’re planning to do?”
“We have our sources,” Arunika said. “I’m afraid that we cannot give details, even to a prospective recruit, but we believe the Outsiders have been planning to invade for a long time. An alliance of Albans and aliens, an abomination against nature, will sweep down on the Rim and push in toward the Core Worlds. And if we keep fighting this civil war, we won’t have the power to stop them.”
Marius shivered, for her words conjured up a repulsive historical nightmare. Maurice Alban had been a Federation official back during the First Interstellar War who had either believed the lies the Snakes had told him or had sold out completely. Alban had made propaganda broadcasts to human worlds, attempted to organize human laborers working for the aliens and even acted as an advisor for the Snakes. He’d been assassinated four years after the war began, but his name lived on in infamy as a human stupid enough to believe that humans and aliens could coexist, or worse, that humans could submit to aliens. An alliance between Outsiders and unknown alien foes was the Federation’s worst nightmare.
“As you are currently the Federation’s foremost military officer, we have an interest in recruiting you,” Arunika added. “We have information and support—and influence—that you would find useful. In exchange, we’d want you to advise us and perhaps act on our requests from time to time.”
Marius considered it for a long moment. “I swore an oath to the Federation,” he said finally. “I cannot act against orders, even for the Brotherhood…”
“We wouldn’t expect you to betray your oath,” Arunika assured him. “We swore similar oaths. You want to protect and defend the human race, as you swore when you were commissioned into the Federation Navy; we share the same goals and oaths. We would not ask you to commit treason on our behalf.”
“I see,” Marius said. “What happens now?”
“If you accept, I make contact with my superiors and you get welcomed into the Brotherhood,” Arunika said. She held up her hand and displayed the silver ring. “If you refuse, you won’t hear anything more from us. We’re not going to assassinate you for daring to refuse.”
“I’m glad to hear it,” Marius said dryly. “Do I get time to think about it?”
It occurred to him that the Brotherhood simply didn’t need to assassinate anyone. A person who accepted their offer would have his career path smoothed by unseen allies, to the point where he owed his position to the Brotherhood and would be willing to do anything for them. A person who refused simply wouldn’t be able to harvest any of the benefits of membership. And the Brotherhood was old. They could have their people in all levels of the Federation Navy, perhaps even in the Senate.
But he had already risen as high as he could go in the Federation Navy…
“Take as much time to think about it as you need,” Arunika said. She hesitated again. “Purely because your interests and ours coincide, I should tell you that we orchestrated the press campaign on Earth that ensured that the Senate couldn’t simply dismiss you when your military victories turned you into a possible threat to them. You may wish to consider what else we could do—both for you and final victory—before you make your decision.”
Marius found Vaughn in Marine Country, watching as the latest regiment of Marines ran through their training exercises before being deployed to Maskirovka on a pacification mission. It wasn’t the role that anyone wanted for the Marines, most particularly the Marine Corps itself, but it officially provided a training opportunity for the young soldiers. Unofficially, pacification battalions were in great demand throughout the Federation at the moment, so none could be spared for Maskirovka. It was butcher’s work, and Vaughn had complained bitterly about it—fortunately in private. Marius was sure that any public complaints of this nature would not have been good for Vaughn’s career.
The Marine General nodded after Vaughn realized Marius was there, but frowned when Marius gave him their private hand signal to ask for an immediate—and private—chat. Vaughn nodded again, and led Marius to Vaughn’s own office, which should be clear of surveillance devices. Marine counter-surveillance teams made sure of that.
“So.” Vaughn waved Marius to a seat in front of his desk. “What’s eating you now?”
“The Brotherhood,” Marius said.
He outlined everything that had happened since he’d heard the message from Professor Kratman. It wasn’t something he would share with anyone else—the Brotherhood wouldn’t react kindly if its secrets were spilled to outsiders—but he trusted Vaughn completely. That said, there was no way to know if the Marine wasn’t a member of the Brotherhood. It would be easy to give into paranoia and assume that everyone was part of the Brotherhood.
He finished with, “I confess that I have no idea what to do.”
“You always were too focused on space battles to see the more subtle political battlefield,” Vaughn commented, when Marius had finished. “You should try running a counter-insurgency campaign once in your life. It will give you a whole new appreciation for politics—and teach you how to eat soup with a knife.”
“I’m serious,” Marius protested.
“So am I.” Vaughn gave him a long, level look. “The Brotherhood relies upon secrecy, misdirection, and rumor to build its power. Reality doesn’t matter, not compared to what people think the Brotherhood is, or about what it can do.”
Marius contemplated this for a long moment, then set it aside. “Still, look what they’re offering. How can I turn it down?”
“Do you have any real evidence that their claims are true?” Vaughn asked in return.
“They put an agent—probably more than one—into ONI,” Marius pointed out. “And they can steer her career so it intersects with mine. I think they have a great deal of power and influence, even if it is behind the scenes.”
Vaughn considered it for a long moment. “Now you know why I never followed my father into politics…well, that and I knew my father’s name,” he said.
Marius snorted humorlessly.
“Let’s see.” Vaughn steepled his fingers. “You have the choice between accepting the Brotherhood’s help, which would give you access to far more influence than you have at the moment, or refusing their offer and carrying on without their help, right?”
Marius nodded.
“And what are they asking for in return?” Vaughn asked. “They’re just asking for you to do your duty. It isn’t as if they’ve ordered you to bombard Earth with antimatter bombs, is it?”
“So you think I should accept their offer?” Marius asked him.