Sanctuary's Gambit: The Darkspace Saga Book 2
Page 25
Karsath looked at the scrolling text. “We always assumed that the Lords were myths,” he said. “But this text—from an annexed world—indicates that they were not. And are not.”
Tarillion stared at the admiral, forgetting his manners.
Karsath went on. “There are references to these creatures through the ancient texts of almost every system and people annexed by the Empire,” he said. “The names are different, of course. We call them the Lords of the Dark. But many people call them them the Locc—Loake, Lohk, L’occ. The same name, repeated throughout planets that have had nothing to do with each other for thousands of years.” He paused, lost in thought as he looked at the ancient text hovering before him.
Tarillion tugged at his collar. “Sir?”
Karsath looked at the two captains before them. “Your mission, gentleman, is to find one of these Lords.”
Tarillion dared to glance at Heik. The man looked equally shocked, but he disguised it quickly and his face returned to a neutral expression.
“With respect,” he said. “How are we to find one of these...creatures? Especially if they have no shape or form?”
“I will be sending you all the information gathered by the Imperial archives about the Lords to your ships,” Karsath said. “Our agents on worlds throughout the Empire have been seeking out rumors and stories about them, and there are suggestions that there is one somewhere out here, on the frontier. Your duty is to find and retrieve this creature.”
Heik shifted his stance. Tarillion could sense the man plotting and scheming.
“Understood, sir,” Heik said. He was already chomping at the bit, eager to begin.
“Dismissed,” Karsath said, and Heik bowed, turned and left without so much as a word to Tarillion. As Tarillion began to bow and back away, he heard words that sent an icy stab through his gut.
“Captain Tarillion,” Karsath said. “Stay.”
Warily, Tarillion stood up straight again. “Sir?” he dared.
“I imagine that you might be wondering, captain, why you were chosen for this mission.” Karsath said, gazing directly at him. Tarillion tried to keep his face straight.
“If I may say so, sir, Adon Heik is an exceedingly...competent captain and I’m sure that if anyone can complete this mission, he can.” The words were distasteful but Tarillion got them out. I’m not lying, he figured. Heik was competent. Frighteningly so.
A small, tight smile appeared on Karsath’s face. “Captain. I do not make a habit of waste, as you well know. As I was preparing the orders for this mission, I read over the dossier of every captain on this frontier. Hundreds of dossiers, hundreds of ships. When I came to your dossier, I confess that my curiosity was piqued. A valedictorian of the Academy, with multiple commendations from the annexation of Bespiuhiri...and then nothing.”
Tarillion shifted his stance. “Sir, you’ll find that I have no reprimands on my record, and that my patrols in the Seo system—”
Karsath cut him short with a simple raise of his eyebrow. “Captain,” he said. “It is clear that you have not...overexerted yourself in an attempt to impress your superiors. That you have completed your assignments in protecting the Seo, Neo, and Ultaxe systems with distinction. But careers are not built on patrols.”
Tarillion decided to stay silent.
“When I look at your record, Captain, what I see is a man who performed with impressive skill at his first annexation. A man who, if he had continued in that vein, would have led future conquests and annexations, and could have become one of my own lieutenants, and eventually an admiral himself.” He studied Tarillion.
“Sir,” Tarillion said, aghast. “You give me far too much credit—”
“I do not think I exaggerate,” Karsath said, suddenly cold. “No, Captain. I think you have made a career out of being underestimated and ignored. There was something about the annexation of Bespiuhiri that changed you. Am I wrong? After you took command of the Lusus you were an entirely different officer. An officer that deprived the Empire—and the admiralty—of a tactical mind that could have conquered dozens of planets in the last ten years. Instead you spend your time plodding around, making circuits around the same three frontier systems.”
Tarillion was speechless. How could the admiral have gleaned so much from his dossier alone?
Karsath leaned back. “You will accomplish this task for me, Captain Tarillion. You have spent too many years avoiding attention. You find the Empire’s conquests detestable, and have been doing just enough to escape notice. But as you will soon discover, there are no in-betweens or halfways or shades of gray in the service of the Empire. There is no such thing as safety. And you must take action.”
Tarillion kept his head bowed. Somehow, he’d made the fatal mistake of underestimating Admiral Attilio Karsath.
“I abhor waste. Your mind and skills belong to the Empire, and you will escape my attention no longer, captain. In order to properly motivate you, I will make the consequences of failure very clear. If you fail, every member of your crew will be sent to a penal colony. From your first officer to the youngest ensign. I will have the Lusus itself decommissioned and scrapped. Am I understood?”
“Yessir.” Tarillion held perfectly still.
“Dismissed,” said Karsath, his face neutral, showing no anger or amusement. “Don’t fail me, captain.”
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About the Author
B.C. grew up on a steady, highly nutritious diet of Star Trek, Star Wars, Babylon 5, and science fiction books that involved aliens, laser guns, and explosions. She likes spicy food, spreadsheets, and talking about books and movies until no one ever wants to go see a movie with her again.
B.C. spends her days working in Silicon Valley and her nights typing feverishly at her laptop.
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