Lane Carr
If an empire fails its people, perhaps it deserves to perish.
—Lane Carr, CEO of Antonios Consortium
Year 4838, Star Crown System, Bakley Planet, Third Lagrange Node, Antonios Consortium HQ.
Even the most clueless person could smell the tension hanging around.
These days, tons of battleships were passing through the Stargate into the Star Crown System—more than usual. Word on the street was that the rebel fleet had taken over a dozen Empire Lagrange Nodes and was now gunning for the Star Crown System.
Early that morning, Lane Carr arrived at his office to find the Empire envoy already waiting impatiently in the reception area. Despite being just under 3 AUs away from St. Triumph City, the sharply dressed envoy chose to arrive at Antonios Headquarters in a fancy shuttle.
"President Carr," the envoy cut to the chase, "As per the newest Empire mandate, we need to mobilize Antonios' fleet."
"Ah, my dear envoy, I received the decree copy yesterday," Lane smiled. "Any reason you had to drop by in person?"
"Given that you have the decree," the envoy showed a stern face, "What's your answer to the cabinet, President Carr?"
In fact, I'm drafting my response. Since you've come, please tell His Majesty that Antonios Consortium is all in for any military action," Lane's words made the envoy sigh in relief. "The reason for the delay is I did two things right after I got the decree."
"What things?"
Lane held up a finger. "First, I told them to tally all our combat-capable ships and gather them quickly to come under the Empire's command. Second, I halted all trades; our merchant ships are docking nearby to get armed and will also be handed over once ready."
The envoy looked relieved. "Sir, the Empire will remember Antonios Consortium's contribution."
"It's always been our duty to support the Empire," Lane said seriously. "Ever since the Crux era, we've honored our commitments from the Battle of Bessel Star System. For over 200 years, our defense forces have stood with the Empire army—this occasion is no exception."
The envoy looked pleased. "Great," he said.
"However, there's a small problem," Lane added.
"What problem?" The envoy asked cautiously.
"Time. We need time to assemble the fleet," he shrugged. "As you know, lots of our ships are civilian and need weapon upgrades. Also, our frigates are spread out in different star systems, so we need time to assemble."
"How long does it take?" The envoy's smile faded.
"That's what I wanted to discuss. The fleet's gathering speed depends on the warp distances," Lane said. "We don't have access to many nodes, so our ships have to take longer paths, which delays us."
"I'm not following..." The envoy looked confused.
Lane pressed a button, and suddenly, a holographic galaxy popped up between them. There were red dots all over, covering roughly a third of it in a haphazard fashion. Each red dot was a node in the Lagrange Network. He clicked another virtual button, making everything but the red dots vanish. Then, green lines started weaving between the nodes, connecting in a random, messy way—not just to the nearest red dot, but in a wild, tangled pattern, like a ball of yarn after a kitten's done with it. On the fringe of the third spiral arm, one red dot glowed brighter. It only had a tiny green line connecting to a nearby red dot with loads of green lines shooting out. They all recognized it—it was the Solar System, the network's birthplace. Lane shrugged again, "Let's change the mode, shall we?"
Lane pressed another virtual button; the untagged stars faded away. The red dots began to move slowly in a highly complex, topological manner. The tangled green lines between them gradually loosened and straightened—a process with a peculiar beauty. Eventually, all the red dots came to a halt, still connected by green lines, forming a new spatial network entirely different from the Milky Way earlier. This was the Lagrange Network from a four-dimensional perspective—the actual Lagrange Network map stored in every merchant ship.
"The Guarding Fleets of Antonios Consortium are spread out over many peripheral nodes. Originally, we could've assembled them using nodes we have clearance for," Lane went on. As he talked, some green lines slowly turned gray, disappearing into the gloomy backdrop. "However, because the rebels have seized some nodes, they're only allowing a handful of ships through unless they're willing to side with the rebels. But we firmly declined the rebels' offer, and they cut off our ships' node access. So, my dear envoy, the problem we're dealing with right now is that we can't gather our fleets."
"So?" The envoy frowned, waiting for Lane's response.
"So, we need a new way to gather out fleets. Fortunately, we discovered an alternative route," Lane said with a snap. "However, we need access for certain nodes."
A few red dots faded, but some remained bright. Connected by green lines, they formed a network pointing straight to the core of the Empire—the Star Crown System.
"We need access to these nodes," Lane gazed at the envoy seriously. "This allows us to bring together our fleets spread out over different clusters and then set off with the Empire fleets. In other words, without access to these nodes, our fleet can't come together."
The envoy fixed his eyes on the nodes, examining them one by one. Then he looked across the void at Lane. "President, you know what this means, don't you?"
"Yes. Getting access to these nodes means our fleet can cruise right into the core of the Empire." Lane replied calmly, "Even though we absolutely won't. And you realize what it means for the Empire if we can't get our fleet together."
The envoy nodded after a brief silence. "I'll bring this to His Majesty's attention for his decision."
"I'm afraid he needs to be quick about it, my dear envoy," Lane remarked solemnly. "May the stars forever shine upon the Empire."
"May the stars forever shine upon the Empire," the envoy said hurriedly, then turned and left.
Once the envoy was gone, Lane left the holographic display on. Alone in his office, he gazed at the map of the Lagrange Node for a long time.
Had anyone been with Lane, they'd see he wasn't looking at any star system on the major nodes but at a faint one on the outskirts, connected to the Star Crown System by a thin line.
The Emperor's orders arrived quickly. He happily approved all of Antonios Consortium's node access applications, but they had to coordinate their fleet under the watchful eye of an imperial supervisor, who held the complete authority to be informed and to veto.
This was exactly what Lane had expected.
Since the Battle of the Bessel Star System, Antonios Consortium has declared that they'd always keep their headquarters under the Empire's supervision to ease the Empire's concerns. Meanwhile, the Antonios Consortium cooperated fully with the Empire's series of military actions, making significant contributions to its strength and expansion. Especially during the Horologium War, Antonios Consortium's fleet took part in the toughest battles, suffering heavy losses. After the war, they couldn't even muster basic escort forces for their trade routes.
With the approval in hand, Lane Carr called his team together and got to work. They laid out the fleet rally operation in detail, all under the envoy's watchful eyes. Ships scattered over countless star systems started moving through planned routes, small drops becoming streams, streams turning into rivers, rivers swelling into mighty waves.
The staff gave the envoy a full rundown of the plan. As its planner, Lane Carr, the CEO of Antonios Consortium, personally directed this biggest rally operation ever from the staff office. As the envoy kept pushing, Lane assured him once more that Antonios Consortium's ships would gather promptly.
Ten standard days later, the anxious envoy returned to Antonios' staff office again. For the past few days, the staff office has been nothing but a hot mess as everyone has worked on the rally operation day and night. Pushing through the bustling crowd, the envoy found Lane Carr at a round table. The round table projected the Lagrange Network in hologram. Lane, with weary eyes, stood fixated on it.
Amidst the apparent mess of the network, Lane perceived a different pattern.
Lynx C154 Stargate—Crux M979 Stargate—Lyra C238 Stargate... His eyes finally rested on an unremarkable star system.
"Mr. President, " the envoy said, stepping up next to Lane, "Why hasn't your fleet moved on? Based on the current plan, you seem behind schedule for the rally."
"Sir, the rally has been completed," Lane said softly.
"What?" The envoy was momentarily confused.
"You heard me correctly, my dear envoy. The rally's done," Lane's eyes left the display and met the envoy's, a hint of relief in his smile. "Sir, Antonios' rally is over."
Now, everyone heard Lane's voice. The chatter in the staff office ceased, and except for a few, all stared at him in bewilderment.
"Mr. President, pardon me?" asked a staff member.
Lane looked around the room, seeing fatigue and confusion on everyone's faces. He then nodded and spoke up, "Rally's finished, everyone. Thanks for everything—you can all go home now."
"Go home?"
"Yes, go home, get some rest, hit up a bar, take a shower, watch a movie, hang out with your family, or whatever you want to do," Lane spread his hands. "We're done here. Someone else will take over the next steps."
"Hold on, Mr. President, what do you mean? Where's your fleet?" the confused envoy asked.
"There won't be any fleet coming." Lane Carr said softly.
"What?" "What?" The envoy couldn't believe it. Suddenly, a violent tremor shook the room; many people stumbled and fell. Clutching the table, the envoy barely stayed upright. Objects flew around, but Lane Carr stood steady. It suddenly dawned on the envoy. Pointing at Lane, he shouted, "You! What have you done?!"
"Look!" someone exclaimed, pressing against the porthole. Bakley Planet was gradually diminishing, moving downward. Unbelievably, the gigantic Antonios pillar was drifting out of orbit.
"We are departing the Star Crown System." Lane Carr told the envoy and everyone else. "We're going somewhere peaceful, far from war."
"Curse you! You've betrayed the Empire!" The envoy's face drained of color. "I knew it was a scheme from the beginning! You fooled His Majesty and the Empire, gained node access, and now your fleet can invade the core of the Empire. Why did you do it? Why betray the Empire?!"
"You're wrong, my dear envoy. Antonios Consortium has never turned against the Empire," Lane said, shaking his head. "In fact, we've bled for the Empire for hundreds of years. But is the Empire still the same one we once were loyal to?"
Lane moved to the porthole, seemingly unfazed by the vibrations and slanting floor. Staring at Bakley Planet fading away, he said, "There won't be any fleet arriving. All Antonios' fleets are heading to a single destination."
"So, this was a deception from the get-go. You didn't need any node access—this was a long-laid scheme!"
Exactly. We never needed that node access because our aim wasn't the Empire's core—it was all a diversion," Lane went on. "Ladies and gentlemen, I hereby officially announce the commencement of the Antonios Consortium's Great Relocation."
"Great Relocation?" The envoy looked even paler. "What relocation?"
"God bless Lagrange!" someone gasped. "The rumors were real!"
"What rumors?" the envoy snapped.
"They said Marshal Crux had a secret relocation plan to move Antonios Consortium headquarters out of the Star Crown System, but he publicly denied it and pledged to the Emperor that they'd always keep their headquarters there, loyal to the Empire."
"Indeed, that's true," Lane continued. "That's how Antonios won back the Empire's trust. But that trust, built upon our endless bloodshed for the Empire, was never going to last."
"After the Battle of the Bessel Star System, Marshal Crux saved Antonios Consortium, but he knew that although some Imperial Principalities were openly rebelling, the Empire was shaky but not yet collapsing. We had dodged a bullet, but the Empire wouldn't let us keep expanding. When they had the chance, they'd come after us. We needed to find a way to survive. That is, Antonios Consortium had to find a way out—we couldn't completely enslave ourselves to the Empire's chariot. Particularly because the Empire's racing down a perilous path; everything that's happened today proves Marshal Crux was right."
"You... how dare you make such statements!" The envoy's face turned red with anger. "This is treason!"
Lane paid no attention to the envoy's outburst and went on, "If Antonios Consortium wants a shot at survival, we need to fully cut ties with the Empire. So, we started branching out to diversify and mitigate risks, and it paid off—trade with the Empire now makes up just 10% of our revenue. Also, we had to secure our own native star system to escape the Empire's chokehold permanently.
He raised his hand, pointing to an unremarkable dot on the lower left corner of the holographic map of the Lagrange Network. "Here—the Garden Star System."
Lane didn't need to elaborate, as everyone present knew about the renowned Garden Star System. Discovered by Explorers during the first Gold Rush Era, the Garden Star System boasts a planet in the habitable zone, teeming with liquid water, vast lands, and primitive life—a super rare habitable planet. Upon rising to power, the Sacrum Chu Imperium included the Garden Star System in its territory but never developed it extensively.
"Marshal Crux found out through hidden means that the Garden Star System's Stargate could serve as a hub, but the Empire avoided developing it for some unknown reasons. Marshal Crux then secretly initiated plans to relocate to the Garden Star System. Everyone, your hard work wasn't in vain; all ships of Antonios Consortium are en route to the Garden Star System through the routes you cleared. I was just informed that thirty minutes ago, we've officially taken control of the Garden Stargate. It's time to leave."
Just then, the door slammed open. A squad of fully armed troops dashed in with electromagnetic rifles, quickly taking control. Every board member looked at Lane Carr in disbelief. They just realized that their always suave CEO had a hidden side. With a "soft" tone, Lane Carr encouraged the board to remain calm. Communications were cut, and the board had taken over all key departments. Soon after, feeling a shake, the board members watched in terror as the massive Antonios structure left its orbit, heading toward the Stargate.
From Bali to Lane, Antonios Consortium had spent decades covertly getting ready for this great relocation plan.
That's how Antonios Consortium's long-planned, ambitious relocation started to unfold.
