Rebellion Read Online Free
Author: William H Keith
stopped. It was over. Clearly and definitely, his relationship with Katya was over.
And, like his insisting on seeing her in person, maybe that relationship had been a mistake as well.
Chapter 2
There are those, particularly among the ultra-Green radicals, who hold that Man, as defined by his culture and technology, is no longer entirely human. The focus of their argument, of course, is implant technology.
Consider: nanotechnically grown cephlinks and RAM intracranial implants, palm interfaces and link sockets, have utterly transformed work, entertainment, economics, communication, education, indeed, have revolutionized every aspect of civilization over the past four centuries. The Greens miss a crucial point. Man’s tools may well be the foundational basis for his evolution. The crude, chipped-stone implements of Australopithecus, by improving his diet and encouraging an upright stance, may well have put him solidly on the path to Homo erectus; who can today imagine the final destination of the path we have already chosen?
— Man and His Works
Karl Gunther Fielding
C.E. 2448
Two weeks later, Dev was up-tower at Singapore Orbital, continuing his almost single-handed crusade before the Imperial Staff and the Council of the United Terran Hegemony to implement the plan that had become known as Operation Yunagi. He’d returned to his quarters and downloaded the day’s accumulation of messages from his console. Some small, irrational part of him continued to hope that there’d be a message from Katya, even though she must still be en route to New America.
Travel times between the stars being what they were it would be two months at least before he could expect something from her. New America—26 Draconis IV—was 48.6 light-years from Sol, clear out on the fringe of the Shichiju’s Frontier. Typical travel times for the big liners averaged about a light-year per day, a fast courier carrying mail perhaps twice that, and… well, the numbers spoke for themselves.
Besides, that last time he’d seen her she’d been pretty flat-out definite about not wanting to see him again, ever. He had the room prepare him a drink, which was delivered in a squeeze bottle. One wall was set to show Earth, a cloud-wreathed, three-quarters’ sphere hanging in space. Dev floated in the microgravity of synchorbit, trying to turn his mind from Katya to something productive.
To Yunagi.
The Nihongo word was a poetic reference to the calm that falls at evening. Operation Yunagi had been Dev’s single-minded pursuit for almost the entire two and a half months since he and Katya had returned from the Alyan expedition. It had been his idea, one he’d first discussed at length with Katya, then later with the Emperor’s military staff. He was the acknowledged expert on the Xenophobes for the simple reason that he’d actually brushed minds with one; a small part of that alien presence was still with him, giving him a unique perspective on the Xenos… and on humans as well.
What had that ViRsim actress said at Kodama’s party? He concentrated for a moment, retrieving the girl’s image and words from his RAM: I understand that, because of what you did down in that awful cave, the Empire’s won the Xeno war!
No, they hadn’t won yet, but Dev was convinced that Yunagi would make that final victory, that final peace of the evening calm, possible. His thoughts flashed to Katya for a moment, as he wished she could have enjoyed his success… then drew back sharply. Damn!
Katya’s comment about his father had bitten deep. He didn’t like to admit, even to himself, that the elder Cameron’s unprecedented transfer to the Imperial Navy had had anything to do with his own success. It felt to Dev as though he’d been battling his father’s shadow for a long time now. With the award of the Teikokuno Hoshi from the Emperor’s own hand, he’d finally stepped into the sunshine on his own and even managed to make peace with his father’s
And, like his insisting on seeing her in person, maybe that relationship had been a mistake as well.
Chapter 2
There are those, particularly among the ultra-Green radicals, who hold that Man, as defined by his culture and technology, is no longer entirely human. The focus of their argument, of course, is implant technology.
Consider: nanotechnically grown cephlinks and RAM intracranial implants, palm interfaces and link sockets, have utterly transformed work, entertainment, economics, communication, education, indeed, have revolutionized every aspect of civilization over the past four centuries. The Greens miss a crucial point. Man’s tools may well be the foundational basis for his evolution. The crude, chipped-stone implements of Australopithecus, by improving his diet and encouraging an upright stance, may well have put him solidly on the path to Homo erectus; who can today imagine the final destination of the path we have already chosen?
— Man and His Works
Karl Gunther Fielding
C.E. 2448
Two weeks later, Dev was up-tower at Singapore Orbital, continuing his almost single-handed crusade before the Imperial Staff and the Council of the United Terran Hegemony to implement the plan that had become known as Operation Yunagi. He’d returned to his quarters and downloaded the day’s accumulation of messages from his console. Some small, irrational part of him continued to hope that there’d be a message from Katya, even though she must still be en route to New America.
Travel times between the stars being what they were it would be two months at least before he could expect something from her. New America—26 Draconis IV—was 48.6 light-years from Sol, clear out on the fringe of the Shichiju’s Frontier. Typical travel times for the big liners averaged about a light-year per day, a fast courier carrying mail perhaps twice that, and… well, the numbers spoke for themselves.
Besides, that last time he’d seen her she’d been pretty flat-out definite about not wanting to see him again, ever. He had the room prepare him a drink, which was delivered in a squeeze bottle. One wall was set to show Earth, a cloud-wreathed, three-quarters’ sphere hanging in space. Dev floated in the microgravity of synchorbit, trying to turn his mind from Katya to something productive.
To Yunagi.
The Nihongo word was a poetic reference to the calm that falls at evening. Operation Yunagi had been Dev’s single-minded pursuit for almost the entire two and a half months since he and Katya had returned from the Alyan expedition. It had been his idea, one he’d first discussed at length with Katya, then later with the Emperor’s military staff. He was the acknowledged expert on the Xenophobes for the simple reason that he’d actually brushed minds with one; a small part of that alien presence was still with him, giving him a unique perspective on the Xenos… and on humans as well.
What had that ViRsim actress said at Kodama’s party? He concentrated for a moment, retrieving the girl’s image and words from his RAM: I understand that, because of what you did down in that awful cave, the Empire’s won the Xeno war!
No, they hadn’t won yet, but Dev was convinced that Yunagi would make that final victory, that final peace of the evening calm, possible. His thoughts flashed to Katya for a moment, as he wished she could have enjoyed his success… then drew back sharply. Damn!
Katya’s comment about his father had bitten deep. He didn’t like to admit, even to himself, that the elder Cameron’s unprecedented transfer to the Imperial Navy had had anything to do with his own success. It felt to Dev as though he’d been battling his father’s shadow for a long time now. With the award of the Teikokuno Hoshi from the Emperor’s own hand, he’d finally stepped into the sunshine on his own and even managed to make peace with his father’s
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