"Citizen Prime, it is so good of you to meet with me." Lowell very carefully kept any hint of sarcasm out of his voice. Potokos had kept him cooling his heels for over two weeks before finally relenting to a meeting.
Lowell stood at the end of the long conference table. Potokos and two others were seated at the other end, a subtle positioning. Lowell was the supplicant here, or so they wanted him to subconsciously believe. However good they may be at manipulating their own people, they weren't even close to Lowell's league.
"Admiral," Potokos said, bowing his head slightly. He sat waiting for Lowell to speak.
They gave every impression that all was well on Tivor, Potokos and his silent councilors. Lowell pulled out a chair and sat. He spent a few moments arranging his sheets of mem paper.
"We are very busy people," Potokos said, a tight edge to his voice. You are wasting our time, his unspoken message said very clearly.
Lowell smiled, the unfocused bland smile that had disarmed better opponents than Potokos.
"I'm sure you'll be interested in what I have to say," Lowell answered. He wasted a few more minutes squaring the edges of his mem paper and lining them up across the table.
Potokos sat frozen, a frown creasing his cheeks.
Lowell wondered what would happen if he actually pushed Potokos into cracking. It was idle speculation. He really didn't have time for that sort of game.
"The Emperor is concerned," Lowell said without preamble. He saw the minute flick of Potokos's eyes that betrayed nervousness. "He sent me to assure him of your continued loyalty to the Empire."
"But of course," Potokos said. He smiled but Lowell noted the slight twitch of his hands. Potokos had something to hide.
Lowell tapped one of the mem sheets. A map of the sector blossomed over the table. Lowell watched Potokos. The other man glanced at the projection then back to Lowell's face. No surprise. Lowell briefly wondered how Tivor could stay so updated when they were so isolated. No, he didn't have to wonder. He knew where their information was coming from.
He leaned forward, close to the map. "As you can see, Tivor is now in a position of great importance to the Emperor. This ill-conceived rebellion is spreading."
"Ill-conceived?" Potokos sounded smug, superior.
"The Empire is strong. They have no chance of succeeding. All they do is cut off their own supply lines." Lowell knew he sounded like an overconfident Admiral, he'd practiced. He didn't miss the shift to a sneer on Potokos's face.
"They can survive without the Inner Worlds," Potokos said. "In fact, they will prosper without the burden of supporting worlds that have outgrown their ability to support themselves."
Lowell leaned back, away from the table. "Your words could be construed as treason," he said, challenging Potokos.
"Merely a statement of truth." Potokos backed away from outright treason, but not very far.
Lowell studied Potokos, drawing out the silence in the room. Outside, snow fell in wet flurries. It never stuck long in Milaga. It melted almost as fast as it fell.
Potokos finally shifted in his chair. "Why have you really come, Admiral? I do not believe it was merely to inspect an outdated and almost abandoned base on our world."
Emphasis on our, Lowell thought to himself. Tivor was not part of the Federation, not yet. He tapped the page in front of him, letting the map of the sector die.
"I was sent to assure myself of your continued loyalty, but that seems to be in question," Lowell said. "What would it take to buy your loyalties, Citizen Prime? Food? Troops? Equipment? Currency?"
"Bribery, Admiral? How very unoriginal." Potokos sat ramrod straight, as he had the whole meeting. He pressed his thin lips together.
"Perhaps a solution to your uprising?" He had the satisfaction of watching Potokos twitch. "Half your population is in rebellion, Citizen Prime. How long do you think your government can stand in the face of outright revolution?"
"Our internal affairs are none of the Patrol's business," Potokos snapped.
"They are when they infringe on the security of the Empire." Lowell brought the map back up. "If we allow Tivor to dissolve into chaos, we lose the rest of the sector. A dozen systems. And more. My orders are to prevent just such an occurrence. Using whatever means are necessary."
"You threaten me?" Potokos sneered openly. "With what, Admiral? The pitiful few troops still stationed here? A handful of engineers and paper pushers. You have one ship, a small cruiser. You cannot hope to win."
Lowell didn't flinch, as Potokos expected. He smiled instead. "Perhaps I should offer my assistance to the rebels. They might appreciate my help." He shifted as if ready to stand.
Potokos leaned forward. "Go ahead, Admiral. My police will arrest you and your people the moment they step foot on Tivoran soil. This discussion is over." Potokos stood, flanked by the other two men.
"Is that an open declaration of war against the Empire?" Lowell stayed in his seat. His manner changed ever so slightly. It was enough to shift the balance of power in the room.
"It is whatever you wish to read into it," Potokos said.
"Then perhaps I should have you arrested and sent to Linas-Drias for your execution." Lowell waited until he had Potokos' full attention. "Or perhaps I should exercise my authority and just have you shot immediately."
Potokos must have pushed a hidden button. The door burst open and six heavily armed guards in police uniform thundered in.
"Don't be stupid," Lowell said mildly. He pulled a tiny transmitter from his pocket and laid it on the table. "You shoot me and my ship has orders to incinerate this entire building. Captain," he spoke at the transmitter, "confirm my orders."
"Sir," a tinny voice spoke from the transmitter, "my orders are to destroy the entire building as soon as your signal is compromised."
"Thank you, captain." Lowell pocketed the transmitter. "And just in case you were planning on keeping the transmitter and killing me, that isn't the signal he meant."
Potokos and his armed contingent stayed frozen, weapons aimed at Lowell. Potokos' left eyelid twitched twice.
"Citizen Prime. You didn't think I was naive enough to visit you all by myself with no backup, did you?" He waited, watching Potokos.
Potokos finally jerked his head at the armed guards. "Leave us."
Lowell waited, apparently at ease, while the guards backed out of the room. "Close the door," Lowell said as the last weapon moved beyond the doorway.
Potokos nodded at one of the other men. He moved to shut the door while the Citizen Prime sat back down at the table.
"Now that we're done posturing for each other," Lowell said, "perhaps we can accomplish something useful." He tapped the mem sheets in front of him. One blossomed with scrolling lists of statistics. Two others projected pictures that changed every few minutes to new shots, pictures of the unrest and police raids, pictures of the starving people of Tivor and the prison camps that passed for farms.
"What is this?" Potokos spat.
"Tivor is in trouble," Lowell said. "Food production is less than half of what is needed to sustain your population. More than a third of your people are either in the police force or leading uprisings. You have lost a good portion of your farmers to areas of the planet you have no way of reaching or controlling. In short, Citizen Prime, your government is driving Tivor to rebel. The tighter you clamp down on your people, the harder they are going to fight."
"That is our affair, Admiral," Potokos spat at him.
"It is now also the affair of the Patrol and the Empire," Lowell said flatly. "Either you control your people or the Patrol will do it for you."
"Tivor is under control," Potokos said.
"With your people starving and your outlying military posts rebelling?"
Potokos pinched his mouth shut. One of his two sidekicks scrambled out of the room. Verifying Lowell's information, no doubt. So the rebellion of the military was a surprise to Potokos. Lowell wondered what else the man didn't know about his own planet.
"Tivor must remain in the Empire," Lowell said, leaning forward through the projected pictures of the planet. "If you won't take action, the Patrol will. This is your last warning."
Lowell stood and began gathering his papers, turning each sheet off as he picked it up.
"What do you want us to do?" Potokos asked. He looked as if he were being forced to suck lemons.
"Government reforms," Lowell said. "Enough freedom to repair your economy. The Empire will help with food shipments and equipment."
"As they promised before?" Potokos shot at him. "Where was the food and help twenty years ago?"
Lowell paused, a sheet of mem paper dangling from one hand. He raised one eyebrow. "The government of Tivor refused to accept the shipments. They denied the ships access to the port. Are you going to make the same stupid mistake, Citizen Prime?"
"You lie!" Potokos shouted.
"I authorized those shipments myself," Lowell said. "I was here with the ships when the government turned us away. Blame your own people for the food riots."
"Get out," Potokos spat, his face twisted into a mask of rage. "Tivor does not want the Patrol here. We do not need your pity or your help."
"Is that an official refusal?" Lowell asked.
The other man came back in a hurry. He whispered something to Potokos. The Citizen Prime went white, his lips pinched so tight they disappeared.
"Your presence is an affront," Potokos said to Lowell. "You have fifteen minutes to remove yourself from Tivoran soil. After that we will not hesitate to shoot on sight."
"Last chance to change your mind, Citizen Prime," Lowell said as he picked up his last sheet.
The two men behind Potokos exchanged worried looks. Dissension in the ranks, Lowell thought with sour satisfaction. Those closest to Potokos were not as committed as he was to succession from the Empire. A wedge, a possible opening, but it was too little, too late.
"The Patrol is no longer welcome on Tivoran soil," Potokos said. "You have one week to evacuate your compound."
"It's to be treason and war then?" Lowell asked, his voice ominously quiet.
"Tivor will stand alone, as it always has," Potokos answered.
"As you wish," Lowell said. He flicked a glance at the man behind Potokos. The man's eyes were wide, frightened by the implications of what Potokos had just done. Lowell wondered when and if the man would make contact. He took his papers and walked out of the room.
He was trailed out of the building. He had an escort through the city, right to the gates of the Patrol compound. The armed guards following him took up positions at the gate. The message was clear.
Commander Harouk waited just inside the doors. He eyed the guards with a worried frown. He glanced at Lowell. "What happened? Going alone was a mistake."
"No," Lowell contradicted the other man. He was weary of it, all the plotting and counterplotting and secrets. At one time it had excited him, made him feel alive. Now it just made him tired. "Potokos would have found a different excuse. The only thing that will convince him otherwise is a full battle Fleet."
Lowell ignored the guards out in the snow and wet and cold. He walked through the reception area, ignoring the worried looks Harouk's staff tried to hide from him. Harouk trailed him to the communications room.
"What are you going to do now, Admiral?" Harouk asked.
"Potokos gave me one week to evacuate the base," Lowell said as he sat at the console. He stared at the buttons in front of him. "How do I call the ship?" he finally asked.
Harouk reached past him and pushed a series of buttons. The com beeped a standby message.
"Evacuate?" Harouk asked. "Do you want to explain that?"
Lowell glanced up at the Commander. He looked disheveled and very worried. "Tivor is in trouble."
"I've known that for years," Harouk said. "Why did you ignore my messages and wait until now to act? You could have made a difference even just one year ago, but now—" He shrugged.
"Because the Empire has bigger problems than Tivor."
The captain of Lowell's ship, the Seeker, answered the com.
"Send the message," Lowell ordered him.
"Are you certain, sir?" the man asked.
"You have your orders." Lowell flipped the com back off.
"And what are my orders?" Harouk asked.
"Start evacuating all nonessential personnel. We can send them to the Seeker and bring in ground troops. Although I'd rather do it very quietly."
"You're going to abandon Tivor?"
"Not yet," Lowell said. "They still have something I want." He stood up from the com unit. "Commander, Tivor is a lost cause. And has been for quite some time."
"You're going to abandon them to anarchy?" Harouk sounded in pain.
"I'm glad you care about them, but it isn't going to save them. I suspect they've already sold out to the Federation. Things won't be too bad here. At least after the initial blood purge happens."
Harouk flinched.
"There was nothing you could have done, Commander."
"The Federation is nothing more than a group of pirates."
"Not anymore. It's eating up the Empire. Half the Fringe is Federation territory now. And a good portion of the Frontier and even some of the Outer Worlds. Potokos was right."
"Sir?" Harouk asked in confusion and surprise.
"The Inner Worlds have alienated the rest of the Empire. And they're too blind to even notice."
Harouk looked even more confused. Lowell patted his arm.
"Never mind me, I've been doing this for too long. Just get your people organized and packed. I suspect things are going to get very ugly here very soon. I don't want your people caught in the crossfire."