....“It was terrible, awful,” Moreded said to the camera. “The Red Star Coalition said they were here to help our colony, and instead forced me to help them try to invade it!”

“And why did you end up shooting the Red Star advisor, Viscount Moreded?”

“First, ‘advisor,’ ” Moreded said, making air-quotes with his fingers, “was only Volkova’s title. His actual role was that of a dictator for the Red Star Coalition, who sought to install me as a puppet for his empire's nefarious purposes!”

“How do you respond to the statement by the Red Star Coalition that you, in fact, invited them into New Avalon as a means of usurping our colony’s government and replacing Lord Morgan with your own administration?”

“Preposterous! Lies, all put out by that pair of miscreant, do-nothing brothers who dare to claim so great a man as Lord Morgan as their father! Worse, their supporters are now trying to claim them as folk-heroes for allegedly overthrowing the Red Star invaders, when in fact I was the one who funneled the necessary information to both the resistance and eliminated Volkova personally.”

“Why do you think that Huston and Austin Morgan are currently in hiding, Viscount?”

“I think the reasons are self-evident. The boys tried to seize power for themselves after learning of the death of their noble father. In fact, we have uncovered evidence since the reinstatement of our government that the boys themselves may have had a hand in these terrible crimes, of both the death of their pater and the disappearance of Liberty Morgan, their…their beautiful mother. Excuse me- my grief at the loss of two such wonderful, virtuous people is too great at the moment…”

“Turn it off, will you please?” Austin said as Moreded turned from the camera, covering his eyes as the newscaster began babbling to the journalist about nothing. “I've just eaten, and I’d hate to regurgitate it so soon.”

“I can’t believe anyone’s falling for this,” Huston said, looking at the screen. “Why are they buying into his flup?”

“They aren’t, General,” Joe said, taking off his orange baseball cap and mopping his brow. “They just ‘been through a little war, and want things back to normal. An’ if Moreded’s gonna do that, they’ll put up with him. For a bit, ennaways.”

“And in the meantime, we need to stay in this farmhouse? On the outskirts? Where if we go out after dark, the temperature’ll kill us?”

“Austin, once again, your flare for drama makes things seem worse than they actually are. We’re quite well protected in this homestead, and any attempt by Moreded to find us would effectively be futile. Scanners won’t work out here, not if they’re beamed from the fortress town. We’re safe as safe could be, given the circumstances.”

“Huston, once again,” Austin said, tucking a long, now scraggly lock of black hair behind his ear as he looked out the window of the farmhouse, “you’re over-intellectualizing the fact that our lives have gone to the absolute Hells in the last few days. Bad enough the Red Star now has their eyes on our home, that viper, Moreded, is in control, and the people don’t even see what he’s really done.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t call him a viper per se, little brother. That’d be an unconscionable insult to vipers everywhere.”

“Ah’d be inclined to agree, general,” said Zeke, who hadn’t moved since the conversation began, but now rose from where he’d been leaning back in his chair with his cowboy hat over his eyes. “But Ah’d rec’mend we make a move a’fore the Count up there gets a little too comfortable.”

“Utterly agreed,” Huston said, his fingers sweeping over the holographic keyboard projected on the dining room table. “I’m already finding out exactly what kind of communications Moreded had with the Red Star. And, I suspect, once we beam that out, we’ll create enough doubt that his believability factor among the populace will be severely compromised.”

“That sounds lovely,” Austin said in a flat tone, looking out at the mountains through the inch-thick glass of the windowpane.

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

“Austin,” Said Huston, taking off his glasses and looking at his younger brother, “I suggest you get yourself a screen somewhere and begin studying.”

“Why on earth for?”

“Because Pater is not here. That makes me the de facto Earl and head of House Morgan, and you chief of our armed forces.”

Austin swallowed.

“He’s right, General,” said Zeke, now sitting up straight and looking at Austin with a serious expression on his face. “Unless you two want to abdicate, Moreded’s gonna take over everything, and even the Leader of the Artorian Confederacy won’t be able to stop him.”

“And…If I don’t want to be a leader?” Austin said. “What then?”

“That’s the good news, Austin,” said Huston. “You don’t have to want to.”

“Really?” Austin said, the smallest amount of hope in his voice.

“Yes, really. No one cares if you don’t want to. You just have to do it.”

“Oh. Rodeo.”

“Well, General,” said Joe, walking up beside him, “y’all ‘ve been a figurehead so far. But now? Time to cowboy up or get off the horse. KnowwhatImean?”

“Sure, General,” said Zeke. “After all, you just let Viscount Moreded know you’re not gonna fight back, after what he did to your daddy and momma, and that you’d rather just paint yer pictures and chase yer fillies. Ah’m sure he’s gonna understand that, an’ let you be. Hardly any shame in that at all, is there?”

Austin’s placid, unhappy gaze outside began to harden when Joe had called him a figurehead. His lip curled up into the tiniest snarl when his parents were mentioned. Zeke was halfway through the word ‘there’ when Austin held out his hand behind him. “Tablet,” he said, still looking outside at the lights of the fortress city of New Avalon.

“Yessir!” said Zeke, smiling at Joe and Huston.

“Take a letter,” he said, taking the screen and holding it in front of his face.

“Yes, General Morgan,” said a crisp male voice from the center of the device.

“To Viscount Moreded, sometime protector of New Avalon and executioner of our city’s greatest enemy, the dictator of the Red Star Coalition who would have subverted our people’s interests in his empire’s juvenile attempts to acquire our world from the Artorian Confederacy. Greetings and salutations.

“It has come to our attention that you have assumed the role held by our dear Pater prior to his and our Mater’s disappearance. For this, we thank you. However, we wish it known that your services in this capacity are no longer required. Huston Morgan assumes, from this moment forward the position of Earl of the House of Morgan, and the office of Leadership of our colony world. I, Austin Morgan, am now head of the armies of defense of our beloved home. Please begin preparations for the peaceful transfer of power, to commence at high noon two days from now. We look forward to your prompt and obedient response to this communication.

Sincerely,

Austin Morgan,

Commander of all armed defensive forces,

New Avalon, World of the Artorian Confederacy.”

“Very nice letter, little brother,” said Huston with a thoughtful air. “And one which Moreded will utterly ignore.”

“I’m expecting that,” Austin said, “which is why I’m going to have it beamed to every address on this world.”

“Knowin’ the Count the way we do,” said Joe, “he’s th’type to say that your letter was faked.”

“I know that, too," Austin said. "Men like him neither share power, nor give it up willingly. Which is why you two are going to assemble a team of ten men who know how to hide, shoot, and set explosive devices.”

“Fightin’ boss?”

“When Hannibal the Roman general couldn’t defeat the forces of Carthage because of their greater numbers, Hannibal came up with a new style of fighting. One involving small teams who would hit, cause damage, run away, and then do it again the next night.”

“Sounds dangerous,” Zeke said. “An’ sneaky. Issat the way a coward fights?”

“No,” said Austin. “It’s called guerilla warfare, and it’s how you win a war when you can’t field a big enough army. Wouldn’t you agree, dear brother?”

“Absolutely,” said Huston, smiling. “Zeke, Joe, as Earl of House Morgan, I’m appointing you the official attache’s to my brother. If he says ‘make it so,’ you’re the boys who’ll get ‘er done. Savvy?”

“Yes, sir, Leader Morgan sir!” said Joe happily. “C’mon, Zeke! Let’s get that team t’gether!”

Both men ran out the door and into the next room, pulling out phones, tablets and other paraphernalia as they called several surprised people.

Austin looked at Huston. “We’re in it now, aren’t we, brother?”

“Yep,” said Huston, turning back to the scrolling news on his device. “But we’re the ones here, so we’re the ones to set it right.”

“Sounds about right,” Austin said, looking outside as the ice began its nightly crawl across the windowpane.

#

TO BE CONTINUED….