It couldn’t be a prolonged firefight. The rest of Diakan Security would arrive any minute.
With superior speed the Chaanisar charged the Diakan sentries, bridging the gap between them with unparalleled agility, and lethal accuracy.
In moments the confrontation had ended, and the two Diakans lay dead on the floor. They were stripped of their weapons. Jon, Breeah, and Seiben armed themselves, before the group hastily moved on.
“Who the hell are these people,” said Jon in exasperation.
“I believe I can answer that question,” said AI.
“I’m listening.”
“While I am unable to send any communications, I do have access to a wealth of information, including a database of Diakan current events. There are reports of a secretive group on the planet known simply as The Faction. They are opposed to the alliance Diakus has made with you, Admiral. They believe it weakens Diakus and the Galactic Accord. These beliefs are seen as blasphemous, since the Great See’er has prophesied your rise. To stand against you, is therefore the same as standing against the Great See’er.”
“What are you saying? That killing me is a prelude to revolution?”
“I do not know, Admiral, but it seems logical that this Faction is behind the poisoning, and the attacks. The reports in the database state that there is suspicion that the Faction has members throughout the Diakan government.”
“That means we’re not just dealing with some fringe group. This is a real threat, not just to myself, but to the whole alliance.”
“Yes, Admiral. Your assessment is accurate.”
Chapter 22
First Colonel Brock entered the Operations Room, in the mountain complex. There, General Dathos waited. After centuries of war with the Diakans, it was difficult for the Chaanisar commander to work so closely with them. But his military mind saw the value in the alliance, and knew that much of their success was reliant on the Diakan contribution. That contribution would be indispensable now that the Juttari and Kemmar were allied.
“Greetings, General,” said Brock, maintaining a stern demeanor.
“Greetings, First Colonel,” said Dathos. Like all Diakans, Brock found Dathos difficult to read. They weren’t known for displays of emotion, and Dathos fully lived up to the profile.
“Your message said there was an urgent matter to discuss. Have the Juttari attacked us again?”
“No. It is not the Juttari. I am afraid I have bad news from Diakus.”
“Has something happened to Admiral Pike?”
“Yes. I have been informed that Admiral Pike has succumbed to the poison. The Admiral is dead.”
The news hit Brock like a nuclear bomb. Admiral Pike, the man responsible for freeing so many Chaanisar, dead. It didn’t seem possible. Brock had seen much death in his long life, and had become suitably hardened to it. This, however, was different. Jon Pike was more than just a man. To the free Chaanisar, he was their savior. He had given them back their lives, and in return they had pledged their allegiance.
“Are you sure?” said Brock.
“I just received the communication today. It came straight from Diakus.”
“I see.” Feelings of grief swept through First Colonel Brock. While the endorphins released by his chip helped alleviate some of Brock’s anguish, it couldn’t eliminate it entirely. This was the first time he had felt the emotion since his abduction by the Juttari as a child. Brock briefly wondered what other emotions hid under the surface, waiting for an opportunity to emerge.
“In light of this development,” continued Dathos. “I am taking Admiral Pike’s place and assuming command of all allied forces.”
Dathos’s statement snapped Brock back into the moment. “What makes you assume you have the authority to take command?”
“It is the logical answer. I am the commander of the Diakan forces, and the humans are members of the Galactic Accord.”
“Earth was a member of the Galactic Accord, and most of its population was killed in the Juttari nuclear attack.”
“Yes. An attack your Chaanisar troops were instrumental in executing.”
“We were still under Juttari control. Admiral Pike had not freed us yet. Regardless, the bulk of the human forces are now from the colonies, which were never part of the Galactic Accord.”
“Even so, I am still the logical choice to replace Admiral Pike. You could not take command. How much human blood is on your hands? Do you think the humans will follow you?”
“I am human.”
“You are Chaanisar. You butchered the humans for centuries. They would never follow you. Neither would Diakan forces. Who else is there? The humans do not have anyone qualified to lead the alliance.”
“Then there will be no leader.”
“Nonsense. We need a leader.”
“You are right. There is no one capable of replacing Admiral Pike, including yourself. Therefore we fight together, but lead our people separately. I will continue leading the Chaanisar, and you will continue leading the Diakans.”
“You forget the humans. Who will lead them?”
“Governor Sallas.” Brock surprised himself with the answer, and how quickly it came.
“He does not have the necessary military experience.”
“He has generals who do. They will advise him, as will I.”
Dathos was silent for several long moments, his unblinking eyes locked on Brock’s. “You realize that this arrangement can only be a temporary one.”
“We shall see.”
“Very well. With Admiral Pike dead, it is imperative that we deal with this new threat from the Juttari and the Kemmar. We will need to adopt a stronger defensive posture. We can not lose anymore territory.”
“I disagree. The loss of Telepylos is unacceptable. Admiral Pike said so himself. Admiral Pike wanted to move quickly to retake the system before the Juttari and Kemmar could entrench themselves. I agree with this decision.”
“We cannot hold Telepylos. The jump gate in the system is linked directly to the Kemmar Empire. It gives them an enormous logistical advantage.”
“All the more reason we need to control that gate. We not only need to retake the system, but we need to take the territory on the other side of the gate. These were Admiral Pike’s wishes.”
“Do you have any idea how much resources that would require?”
“Do you have any idea how much of a threat it is to allow the Kemmar to establish a stronghold two-hundred-and-fifty light years from the Sol System? It puts them within striking distance of Sol, now that they have the jump system.”
“Nonetheless, what you are suggesting is too costly. I will not squander Diakan forces on such a foolish action.”
“Then other arrangements will have to be made. If you’ll excuse me General, I have other matters to see to.”
“As you wish.”
Brock calmly exited the Operations Room, but his mind worked feverishly, analyzing everything he had heard. Once outside he sought to verify the grim news. AI, can you confirm that Admiral Pike has died?
I cannot. I can only confirm that Admiral Pike landed on the surface, and was taken to the Symbiont Medical Center. I have had no information, or contact with the landing party since.
Could that be the result of a lag in communications?
While Diakus is a considerable distance from Sol, communications are facilitated through the use of communication drones, signal repeaters, and the jump gates themselves. It is possible that there could be a breakdown in the communication network, however I do not have any knowledge of such a breakdown. Lags are common, but this one appears abnormal.
Nothing about this situation is normal.
Chapter 23
Governor Sallas sat behind his desk, in his new office on Amboss Prime, trying to come to terms with what First Colonel Brock was telling him. Even through the comm display, the Chaanisar commander remained intimidating. But that paled in comparison to his news.
“Then it’s possib
le that General Dathos is telling the truth?” said Sallas, still reeling from the news of Admiral Pike’s death. Pike had saved him from the military coup, and from the corporate attack. The colonies owed so much to this man, and now he might be dead. Sallas did his best to swallow his grief and remain professional.
“Everything is possible, Governor. Nothing can be confirmed,” First Colonel Brock said ominously.
“Why would General Dathos lie? It makes no sense.”
“I do not know, but the circumstances behind this development are suspicious, and General Dathos attempted to take control of the alliance.”
“He tried to take the Admiral’s place? Did you let him?”
“No. I did not.”
Sallas felt relieved. The colonies had advanced substantially in the past year. Now united, their military strength had expanded exponentially. The idea of that military falling under Diakan control was not appealing. “So what was the outcome?”
“General Dathos will continue to command the Diakan forces. I will command the Chaanisar. And I proposed that you lead the colonial forces.”
“Me? I don’t have military training.”
“No, you do not. But you are a leader, and you have generals to advise you. If the Admiral is truly dead, it will create a power vacuum that the Diakans are only too eager to fill. The colonies need an experienced leader, and you are the natural choice. Together, we can present a united front to counterbalance the Diakans.”
“Interesting, though it may not be enough. The Diakans are much more powerful than we are, even when working together. They voluntarily chose to follow Admiral Pike because of their prophecy. If he’s truly gone, however, there is nothing stopping them from taking control. It must be tempting to claim all those military gains as their own.”
“You think they will seize power by force?”
“No, they need us. But there will be more pressure for us to fall in line under their leadership.”
“I fear you are correct. General Dathos was far more interested in securing territory, than retaking the jump gate at Telepylos.”
“Makes sense. They’re no longer playing to win. They’re playing not to lose.”
“Then we will play to win. The colonial forces have made great advances, with many new warships. Our combined forces can take the jump gate at Telepylos. We do not need the Diakans.”
“Is that wise?”
“Is it wise to have the Kemmar just two-hundred-and-fifty light years from Sol? With the colonial jump gate open that also puts Amboss Prime at risk. If Sol falls, the Kemmar would use the Sol gate to open a second front against the colonies. We need to take Telepylos and its jump gate, or we will never be secure.”
“I will need to discuss this with my generals. In the meantime, let’s hope that Dathos is wrong, and Admiral Pike is still alive.”
Chapter 24
Governor Sallas sat alone at the board table in his conference room. A myriad of austere faces looked back at him from the wall screen. Those faces belonged to the numerous colonial generals commanding the now united colonial forces.
When the new force was created a little over a year ago, a concerted effort had been made to include military personnel from every system in the colonies. All members of the various corporate military forces were considered, so long as they hadn’t taken up arms against New Byzantium. After the Kemmar invasion, and the powerful alliance Jon had created, the post was seen as a tremendous career opportunity, if not a chance for redemption. Sallas wondered whether the new found unity would hold if Jon was truly dead.
“This is madness. How can we hope to defeat the Kemmar without the Diakans?” said General Tarkosian, a dangerous looking man whose thick, graying mustache, and fierce eyes reminded Sallas of the ancient Soviet leader, Joseph Stalin. “We need to maintain a defensive posture, or the Kemmar could nuke another of our planets, as they did New Byzantium.”
“I disagree,” said General Calledonius, in a raspy voice. The aging General was one of Sallas’s staunchest allies, and now Commander in Chief of all Colonial forces. “The attack on New Byzantium was unexpected. We did not know they had attained the jump system through their alliance with the Juttari. We have taken measures to better protect against such an attack in the future. Nonetheless, this is the reality of the current situation.
“The jump system allows our enemies to launch devastating surprise attacks, especially when they do so with no regard for their own safety. The ships that nuked New Byzantium were all destroyed. They made no effort to escape, and were intent on inflicting as much destruction as possible. It is difficult to defend against such an enemy.”
“All the more reason why we need to focus on defense,” insisted Tarkosian.
“On the contrary, we cannot allow such an enemy to secure its gains. They would only become more ambitious. We need to put the Kemmar on the defensive. We must take territory to do so.”
“But we are not just facing the Kemmar,” said General Simmons, a serious looking woman who projected an aura of uncompromising competence. “There is also the Juttari to consider.”
“The Juttari do not control any systems near Telepylos,” said Calledonius. “The Kemmar may be allied with the Juttari, but do they have any intention of letting the Juttari establish a permanent military force in Telepylos? Their alliance is one of necessity, and I don’t believe the Kemmar want the Juttari on their border when that alliance proves no longer useful.”
“Do we have intelligence to support that view?” said Simmons.
“Several jump drones have been sent into Telepylos since our defeat. There are some Juttari ships still in the system, but it is primarily a Kemmar force. It appears that the rest of the Juttari ships taking part in the initial assault have already left. The big question is what’s waiting on the other side of the Telepylos jump gate. As we all know, that is Kemmar space. I doubt there are Jutarri ships waiting, but I’m sure there are Kemmar.”
“And yet, we cannot discount the Juttari,” said Simmons. “If we do launch this offensive, and are successful, we would then need to defend those gains against both the Kemmar and the Juttari Empires.”
“Not necessarily. While it is true that the two powers worked together to attack Telepylos, it doesn’t change the fact that their two territories are thousands of light years apart. They are not connected by jump gates, and even with the jump system, it would take weeks for Juttari ships to reach Kemmar territory. Strategically, the Juttari allied with the Kemmar to open a second front against our alliance. They needed to take the pressure off, not get roped into defending Kemmar space. I assure you, the last thing the Juttari want is to have to send a fleet to protect them. They want the Kemmar to harass our territory, and if we don’t take the offensive, that is precisely what we will let them do.”
“Your analysis has its merits,” said Simmons. “But why stop at Telepylos?”
“What do you mean, General?” said Governor Sallas, intrigued by the direction the discussion was moving.
“Over the course of the last year we have made great strides, not just in our combat capabilities, but also in terms of military production. The corporations left the colonies with great industrial capacity. Due to the existential threat we faced, we have converted that capacity into military production. That has taken time to accomplish. At the same time, we have benefited from various Diakan advancements, which have greatly improved our output. Today, all that industrial infrastructure is building warships at a speed never before imagined. The only thing is, we have been so focused on defense that we haven’t considered the alternatives.”
“What alternatives do you have in mind?” said Sallas.
“When the Kemmar conquered the Otan,” Simmons continued. “Their forces obtained access to our borders. If we can push the Kemmar out of Otan space, it would create a buffer between them and our territory.”
Sallas was starting to see why General Simmons was considered a hawk by many who knew her. “Forgive
my ignorance, General, but wouldn’t the jump system diminish any benefits such a buffer would present?”
“To a certain extent, but as General Calledonius has already pointed out, the loss of territory would add to their insecurity. Especially since it is the last thing they expect from us.”
“Yes, but even with our increased industrial output, we do not have the ships to pull something like that off,” said Calledonius.
“We have the Chaanisar,” countered Simmons. “They have at least a thousand ships at their disposal.”
“True, but many of those ships have defensive responsibilities.”
“Then give those responsibilities to the Diakans. They want to take on a defensive posture. Isn’t that what General Dathos said?”
“It is,” said Sallas, wondering if he had bitten off more than he could chew.
“There you have it. The Diakans can play defense, while we play offense.”
“A bold plan,” said Calledonius. “I like it. What are your thoughts Governor Sallas?”
Sallas sat in silence as the eyes of his generals scrutinized his. What had seemed like an audacious proposal to attack Telepylos, had now somehow morphed into a major offensive. He knew he couldn’t look weak in this moment. He had to show strength. He wished for a moment that Admiral Pike were here.
“Draw up plans for the two offensives,” he said finally. “But I want you working closely with First Colonel Brock on this.”
“Understood,” said Calledonius, and one by one the faces disappeared from the screen, leaving Governor Sallas alone, feeling way out of his depth.
Chapter 25
“We have to keep moving,” said Jon eying the Diakan Security personnel standing on the street. They had made it past the sentries guarding the building’s exit, and now had to deal with what waited for them outside. “We have to assume they’re hostile. We go in fast and surprise them, but don’t shoot unless provoked.”
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