Free The Rise of Earth by Jason Fry Page A

you get different answers. Rightnow when President Goddard asks what to do about the Cybeles, the Jovian Defense Force tells her one thing but the Securitat tells her something else.”
    â€œWhat is it that you and the Securitat disagree about?”
    â€œHow we keep the Ice Wolves from getting control of Titan and the outer planets, but without going to war with Earth. All of which might be at stake in the Cybeles.”
    Tycho looked up from pouring hot water into his mug and gave a low whistle.
    â€œThe entire future of the Jovian Union, in other words,” Vass said with a smile. “Before the Battle of Saturn we advocated a cautious approach, while the Securitat thought a show of strength would put down the Ice Wolves’ rebellion and discourage Earth from meddling. President Goddard sided with them—and she’s regretted it ever since. But I don’t need to tell you that—you were there.”
    Tycho nodded grimly, remembering the screams of the dying crewers belowdecks at Saturn.
    â€œBut wait a minute,” Tycho said around a spoonful of soup. “It wasn’t the Securitat commanding the task force at Saturn. It was you—the Defense Force. You treated us like hired guns— irregulars was the word Admiral Badawi used—and abandoned us when things went bad.”
    Vass nodded and shut his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose.
    â€œYes,” he said simply. “To Badawi’s shame and ours.We have our own disagreements, Tycho. Some people in the JDF think we need to build a Jovian navy that could hold off an Earth invasion. One that’s organized the way Earth would organize it—and to them, that means JDF-commissioned warships with navy crews. Not privateers that they can’t control.”
    â€œBut Earth just started commissioning its own privateers,” Tycho objected. “And the Jovian Union issued a bunch of new letters of marque.”
    â€œWe live in interesting times, don’t we?” Vass said with a chuckle. “That’s because some of us in the JDF think an arms race with Earth would be madness. I happen to be one of them. A few big warships and support craft is about all we can afford, so we have to be creative. We have to rely on . . . well, ‘irregulars’ might not be the worst word.”
    â€œSo you can’t make up your minds even within the Jovian Defense Force?”
    Vass smiled. “Does your family always agree about what to do?”
    â€œFair point.”
    â€œThe Securitat knows it made a mistake at Saturn and is now determined to crush the Ice Wolves. We in the JDF think it’s far more important to prevent Earth from getting control of Cybele.”
    â€œHow would Earth get control? With an invasion fleet?”
    â€œNo, with livres. Earth’s ministers are pouring moneyinto the Cybeles in an effort to buy off the people who run things there.”
    Tycho knew what Yana would say: As usual, it all comes down to money .
    â€œSo why haven’t they taken control already?” he asked. “We can’t possibly match what’s in their treasuries.”
    â€œBecause it isn’t that simple. Independence has worked out well for Cybele—its financiers and merchants make a pretty good living playing Earth and the Jovian Union against each other. The same goes for their shipwrights—who may, in fact, be the key to everything.”
    Vass took a sip from his mug, then continued.
    â€œCybele’s shipwrights might be the best in the solar system. They’ll build anything you’re willing to pay for—and have done so for centuries. Cybeleans built some of the first long-haul ships for prospectors in the outer solar system, and since then they’ve moved on to ore haulers and tankers . . . but they’ll also make cogs and caravels. And small craft with oversized engines and heavy weapons.”
    â€œPirate ships, you mean.”
    â€œIn the