Redeemer: A Military Space Opera Series (War Undying Book 2)

by N. D. Redding

  “No, sir,” the woman said with a terrified look on her face.

  “Then get to your ships! We’ll talk later.”

  As the two captains departed for their ships, I finally relaxed my demeanor. Your first impression with your subordinates was key. Show a hint of reluctance and they’ll never forget it. I was an admiral of the Dusk Ascendancy now. Honorary admiral, that is. They didn’t want to go overboard with the power they’d given me. As an honorary admiral, I had little leverage in politics but would still be under the scrutiny of their ruling body, which meant they killed two birds with one stone.

  The only thing they couldn’t know was that the title also meant I could have some leeway when it came to orders. Not that I could pick and choose which order to follow, only that I wouldn’t face the same consequences a proper admiral would if he decided to stray from the given path.

  I walked to one of the giant windows on the observation deck from which I could see the Tanaree in Shipyard II. One of my requests was that I would have my prototype ship fed with enough materials for it to grow to a greater size. This was going on for two days now. Hundreds of drones carried batches of SI materials toward the Tanaree’s cargo deck from which the ship absorbed them. The frigate was slowly but surely turning into a full-fledged destroyer. It was now more elongated than it was in the beginning, losing the look of a drop of blood. It still had the same, smooth crimson surface, but it now had three visible segments: the bow was the vanguard of the ship, resembling a sort of snowplow that looked like it could split another ship in two. The main body of the ship was also the largest segment and it hid the bridge within its belly. And the stern, which was wider than the rest of the Tanaree to accommodate the giant engines... They were what gave the ship faster-than light capabilities.

  The entire surface was plastered with turrets, mass-driver cannons, missile launchers, torpedo tubes, now two instead of the one Pavlov gun, the Gavran cutting gun, and of course the giant matter-rearranging particle gun. We named it the Crimson’s Edifice in a stroke of alcohol induced creativity only several nights prior.

  We also stuck with the name Crimson Death instead of the Tanaree. I thought that the name Tanaree failed to strike fear in anyone’s heart, and since the Crimson Death was relatively infamous already, I thought it better if our enemies identified us as such.

  “That’s bad luck, Stavos,” Tailor had told me when I made the decision.

  “I don’t care because someone has already taken all my luck!”

  “And that’s how you tempt fate?”

  “Hey, it’s up to the captain to name the damn thing!” I retorted. “You name your own damn ship!”

  “How much does it cost to grow one like it?” Fars asked as he stared out the window.

  “It costs more than a fleet of Crusaders, more than the economic output of Primitea in a week, more than my sorry ass will ever be worth,” I said, quoting the many times the Convictionis and others referred to the massive expenditure of resources they had to go through to please me. Though I was just an honorary admiral I was still the Light-bearer, and with such an almost mythical title came certain privileges. Especially since I was going on a one-way trip. Most likely.

  “So those two clowns get to command the destroyers, McGill and Leo get the Star-Eaters and, you’re on the Crimson Death. That leaves me with—”

  “Being my second-in-command. If that’s what you’re getting at.”

  “Second-in-command? But I’m not a commander, I’m a fighter.”

  “You are now, and you should live up to it. I can’t have everyone run a crew on my ships, Fars. I need someone who I can trust to keep them all from getting any stupid ideas.”

  Fars nodded and graced me with a trademark grin.

  “Commander Fars Iritra Fairla Ban,” he said to himself. “A long way from Xan, aren’t we?”

  “And a longer way from it in the future, I hope.”

  “Almost eight years ago you were ready to take your own life in Xan. I saw it in your face the very first morning you woke up.”

  “Yeah, happens when you’re betrayed, beaten, and then beaten again,” I said under my breath. “Luckily I had you and those words that kept me alive all this time. There’s no meaning without struggle, play the cards you’re dealt.”

  “We’re going to fight Eres in the future, aren’t we?” Fars suddenly changed the subject.

  “And humans.”

  “Makes you wonder.”

  “Wonder about what?”

  “Wonder whether we’re on the right side of this thing.”

  “We’re on the same side as them.”

  “I don’t see the logic there, Richard Stavos.”

  “Survival in this galaxy depends on the destruction of the Ka, so all of life is on our side.”

  My grandiose words got to Fars. He had a soft spot for epic undertakings, one I didn’t share all that much. I didn’t question whether I was on the right side or not, I only questioned whether we were on the winning side of this… clusterfuck.

  It took us two weeks to come to an agreement. Several more Convictionis joined our sessions in those days and it took all my diplomatic skill not to just leave the council chamber and tell them to hit me with their decisions when ready. The Dusk Ascendancy was a slow beast. There was never much urgency in their history and every detail had to be hammered out before we could proceed to the next point.

  The Aloi promised us full support in our battle against the Federation and my quest to find Bardeena. They repaired and equipped our ships, gave the Crimson Death the materials I wanted, equipped the crews with their finest weaponry, and modified both our Star-Eaters and destroyers to a point where they could hardly be recognized as Federation ships.

  Arthur, however, was a difficult point. Many of the Aloi minds were resolutely against the idea of a stray Aloi and wouldn’t budge even when I threatened to abandon their cause entirely. I couldn’t believe how deeply the division of thought ran through Aloi society. For a collective mind they surely bickered a lot.

  It took three days of heated discussion until we finally reached an agreement: Arthur would remain part of my crew for now, but I was solely responsible for his actions and would face consequences in case he disappeared or caused harm to the Aloi cause. There would be Dusk Ascendancy agents on board the Crimson Death which would report directly to the Aloi inner circles if Arthur happened to do something he shouldn’t.

  Just as the dust settled regarding Arthur, the Convictionis wanted the Imminy Absolute on board my ship. I had given them the opportunity to question the squid several times, and they did but could get little out of the annoying creature. What was worse, the Imminy managed to cause several arguments among the Aloi and the Dusk Ascendancy, which for a moment had even threatened our entire alliance. That creature was incredibly capable when it came to sowing discontent, and I was warned several times of the peril I was putting my crew in by having the Imminy on board.

  Eventually they thought it better to have the creature as far away from Primitea as possible, especially since they realized that there were no torture techniques they could think of to make the Imminy speak.

  “Admiral,” a voice from behind me said. I turned around and saw Leo, Tailor, and McGill. My heart skipped a beat, and I felt a hint of pink creep up my cheeks.

  “It’s good to see you all,” I replied, trying to keep it neutral.

  “Are we ready to set sail for Federation space?” Leo asked, resting a hand on my shoulder. There was so much more that he wanted to ask me, but I had no idea when he would be ready.

  “The Aloi inner-circle approved our plans, so everything is set in motion. I just briefed my two new destroyer captains, and they seem… eager to help.”

  “I bet they do. Under direct command of the Bloodmancer on a suicidal mission through Federation space as most of the Aloi armadas push in on the borders, why wouldn’t they be excited?” Tailor chuckled. “I for one can’t wait to see the entire galaxy
aflame.”

  “Well then. Ladies, gentlemen, let’s light some fire under their asses.”

  After another joke or two about how we were all going to die in vain, the council of Hazard Fleet departed for their ships. Just as everyone left, I put my hand up and stopped the one person I didn’t have enough of.

  “Captain McGill? Why don’t you stay for a moment?”

  “Admiral? What can I do for you?” she asked in the most formal tone possible.

  “I…uhm…I deleted the message.”

  She instantly blushed and frowned. “Good, sir. Thank you,” she replied, trying to stay dignified and disinterested.

  “Is there a… reason why I received a message from you this morning? Did you want to send in something else, or was it a…What was it?”

  “It was nothing. A mistake. I wanted to give you a status update on the Convictionis’ decisions regarding some of the armaments they would install on the Idolian Wallbreaker. I started writing it last night and in the morning when I was… getting ready for work I accidentally sent you a blank message”

  “So, it had been a status update?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Before bedtime?”

  She put her hands on her hips and turned around.

  “What are you looking at? Get back to work!” she yelled at one of the workers who was listening in. The man immediately disappeared, not wanting to feel the wrath of Captain McGill.

  “Freya,” I said, taking her hand in mine. “I know you have your issues with me, and the universe knows I have issues with you too,” I said, biting my own tongue. Where was I going with this? “The two of us, we—”

  “Are soldiers in a war, sir. Let’s not—” We leaned into each other and I could smell the sweet breath of her words.

  “Freya, the one thing I learned from Arthur is to enjoy life when it presents itself to you.”

  We stared at each other as my heart threatened to explode from excitement and I knew she felt it too.

  “I want this,” she said in a whisper: “But I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

  “Me neither,” I said and pressed myself against her, our lips barely touching.

  “Admiral, we have incoming signatures. All unknown,” Mitto warned over the INAS. I pushed the message aside, not wanting to take anything away from this moment.

  “Not now, Mitto!”

  “Admiral, it’s an entire fleet of pirate ships; they’re hailing us.”

  I squeezed her hand affectionately and replied, “What do they want?”

  “Boss, they want the DA to deliver them the criminal Richard Stavos, also known as the Bloodmancer, otherwise they’ll start attacking the Primitean defenses. I’m preparing the Crimson Death for departure.”

  Freya seemed to have gotten the same message and we both snapped out of the only truly serene moment I had experienced in years.

  “Mitto, details,” I said, still holding Freya’s hand.

  “Twenty-nine larger ships, some frigates and destroyers, but also a lot of smaller fighters. They’re all unknown signatures, pirates most likely. Their leader is a Jareet named Chronden and he’s blaming you for General Vogron’s death. They’re coming in fast.”

  “On my way,” I said with a loud sigh. Why did people feel the need to pursue useless deaths? It only begot us more death and in turn even more idiots chasing us across the stars.

  “It’s never boring around Richard Stavos,” Freya said, and I sincerely wished people would stop saying that. She then smiled and added, seeing my slight annoyance. “We must continue this briefing after we have paid our dues.”

  Though I knew I looked like my heart almost jumped out of my throat of joy, I tried to look as dignified as possible.

  “You ready to test out your new command, Captain McGill?”

  Freya nodded as she pulled her hand free. It was a smooth motion that felt natural. She saluted and smiled. “Sir, yes, sir!”

  I contacted my captains fleet-wide, having wanted to do this for a very long time now.

  “Admiral Stavos to the Hazard Fleet. We have a red alert. All personnel to battlestations as we have an incoming pirate fleet. ETA, one hour.”

  “This is the Redeemer. Message received loud and clear,” Leo said.

  “Destroyer Clarity, ready, sir,” Harring added.

  “Destroyer Perilous, ready for war,” Steiner said.

  Freya looked at me, blinked once to access her own variation of the INAS and spoke. “This is the captain of the Idolian Wallbreaker. Orders received.”

  “This is Commander Fars, the Crimson Death is ready, sir.”

  I gazed through the window one last time before departing, I smiled watching the two of us in the reflection of the glass.

  “On my way to the bridge, Commander.”

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  ALSO IN WAR UNDYING

  STARBLOOD

  REDEEMER

  BLOODMANCER

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