Free Rebellion by William H Keith Page A

Operation Yunagi and of all new developments.”
    Prem’s boot heels clicked as he bowed. “Hai, Omigatosama.”
    “Now there’s an iridium-plated, unalloyed bastard,” Duarte said to the silent room seconds after the Japanese daihyo had left. “Cheerful sort, eh?”
    Ignoring Duarte’s assessment, Prem turned to Dev. “Chuisan, you will be assigned to the 4th Terran Rangers during your stay here. Taisa Duarte will show you your quarters and get you settled in.”
    “Very good, Your Excellency.”
    “You will have the official position of koman with the unit, which gives you a certain measure of authority. Please remember, however, that Colonel Duarte must maintain the respect of his people if he is to maintain discipline. I will brook no interference with his command.”
    A koman was a military advisor, usually answering to an authority outside the normal chain of command. Dev opened his hands. “I’m just a chu-i, Your Excellency. I’ll stay out of the way.”
    “I will inform you when your comel arrives.” He sighed. “Until then, we will do what we can. Perhaps you can familiarize yourself with this world, and with Colonel Duarte’s people and equipment.”
    “What is the Fourth, Colonel?”
    Duarte smiled. “It was a mechanized scout regiment. Light stuff, mostly, RLN-90s and Ares-12s. LaG-42 command vehicles. After your experiment with leggers last year, though, we’ve been experimenting with combined arms tactics, too. Companies of armored troops working in close support with light warstriders. That’ll be something you can help us with, maybe.”
    Dev smiled. Cameron’s Commandos had been the name of his legger close-support company. “I’ll do my best. You think you can find a strider to fit me?”
    “Oh, we’ll dig something up, I expect.”
    “I leave it to you gentlemen, then.” Prem said, in obvious dismissal. “I will expect weekly reports.”
    Dev and Colonel Duarte were ushered from the room by a pair of staff servants, and two hours later they were aboard a delta-winged ascraft descending from Shippurport toward Eridu’s atmosphere. The sky-el trip, Duarte explained, took two days, and another two were required for the magrail trip from Babel to the polar zones. With the air-space craft, they would be on the ground in Winchester in a few hours.
    Operation Yunagi was off to a bad start. Confusion within the Imperial Staff, his one piece of vital equipment missing… and the Emperor’s personal representative at Eridu seeming implacably opposed to the entire project… almost as though he had some hidden agenda of his own.
    At least, Dev thought, he was finally going to get to jack a warstrider again.
    Somehow, that seemed a small consolation.

Chapter 6

Simply being part of a crowd affects a person. Each person in a crowd is, to some degree, open to actions different from his usual behavior. Crowds provide a sense of anonymity because they are large and often temporary congregations. Crowd members often feel that their moral responsibility has shifted from themselves to the crowd as a whole.…

    —Field Manual 19-15
    “Civil Disturbances”
    Department of the Army, 1985

    “According to Intelligence,” the briefing officer said, “we can expect another mass demonstration today, beginning at the Assyrian Concourse. We have been directed by HEMILCOM to initiate a period of martial law within Winchester and its environs, and we should anticipate the possibility of a hostile response from an aroused populace. All patrols will operate under Class Five ROEs.”
    A chorus of low-voiced murmurs echoed through the squad bay. Class Five rules of engagement called for the unit to arm and engage their weapons only if they were fired upon. Still, it was a step up from Class Six, which prohibited any use of weapons or lethal force under any circumstances. And martial law! That had been threatened for months now, but the reality had never materialized.
    Things must be getting