by James Aspen
Edolit limped through the hanger, past starfighters marred by carbon scouring and emitting showers of sparks onto the techs rushed to repair damage. She led him towards the corridor at the end of the hanger, her skin pulsing a plethora of clashing colors. She caught him staring, trying to figure out the conflicting emotions pulsing across her skin.
“We’ve seen this war coming for years, but this is the first proper battle we’ve seen. Most of them always hoped we could stop it.” Her voice was weak, strained as much by her injuries as the weight of the moment. “I always knew it would come to this, though. The signs have been there for years.”
“Is this happening everywhere?”
“That’s what we’re going to find out.”
***
Edolit let Paul through the winding corridors to the bridge. Paul tried his best to keep from staring, but couldn’t quite help himself. The ship was filled with at least a dozen species of aliens of all shapes and sizes, bustling about in the aftermath of battle. He recognized members of the same species as the Specter’s crew. Scyllarians with their chitin plate armor and crustacean-like appearance, and the small, thin Grr’alis with a wide array of colorful skin colors and bony ridges. He even saw the occasional member of Edolit’s species, their lilac skin rippling with color as they stormed past him.
Among them were fearsome creatures with wide, flat heads bristling with gnarled fangs, covered in matted fur. Reptilian humanoids covered in iridescent scales watched him pass with curiosity, segmented red eyes unblinking. Insectoid creatures gathered in groups, their vestigial wings flapping uselessly as they chittered excitedly.
He’d overcome most of his shock by the time they made it to the bridge and he was eternally grateful to have been partially desensitized before he saw General Thriss. The General towered over the bridge, a hulking creature with blood red skin and folded wings draped along its back. Bulging muscles rippled beneath its crisp, black uniform and its bright blue eyes glowered at an array of screens. A dozen curved horns spiraled around its skull, protecting it like a gruesome warrior’s helmet.
Edolit stopped in front of the creature and saluted.
“At ease, Commander Vyn, I’m glad to see you made it.” General Thriss said in a deep, booming voice. He looked her up and down. The creature’s face was serene, out of place against the alien’s devilish appearance. “It appears you should have been to the med bay before reporting in.”
“I’m okay, General. I’m eager to hear what’s been happening.” She hesitated and shifted uncomfortably. “I’m also prepared to face the consequences of my actions.”
“Consequences?” The general cocked his head. “Do you deserve a reprimand I’m not aware of?”
“I disobeyed a direct order by involving this human in my mission,” Edolit said. Paul shook as the creature turned to look at him with narrowed eyes. “I also leaked sensitive information to the quantum network.”
“Yes, yes. And were I in your boots, I would have done the same. I’m prepared to defend you to the Council, but it won’t come to that. I believe they will be too busy at the moment.”
“What has happened?”
“War. Your leak caught the Gryx and their criminal Syndicate unprepared. We protected as many worlds as we could with our limited resources while they scrambled to react. We trapped many of their expeditionary forces as we did here, but we lost more systems than we saved.” The General paused and brought up a map on the screen. It looked wildly different from the map Edolit had shown Paul before. At a glance, he could see segmented territories and fronts already forming.
“The more competent of their commanders consolidated forces and abandoned the least important targets to overtake more strategic positions. Unfortunately, their plans went far deeper than a power grab on the border worlds, it had roots deep in the core worlds. The Federation’s entire Sixth Fleet defected under direct command of Admiral Hya. All other fleets experienced some level of sabotage, including assassination of many higher-level officers and loss of multiple capital ships. The Federation itself is fractured, with dozens of core worlds joining the Gryx and remaining fleets scrambling to react. The conflict is already spreading into a chaotic civil war.”
Edolit shrank down at this news, and Paul cringed. He knew little about Edolit, but he knew enough to be sure that she’d never forgive herself for starting such a conflict.
General Thriss stood tall and placed a gigantic hand on her shoulder. “Commander Vyn, this war has been brewing for a long time. Do not blame yourself. By forcing their hand before they were ready, you’ve given us a chance for our civilization to survive.” He leveled his eyes at Paul. “And you… you’ve reminded us there are fighters hidden among the beings we save.”
Paul gulped and found the courage to speak. “May I join the flight group sent to intercept the Wildfire? I don’t know if I can sleep until I know Earth is safe.”
The general smiled down at him. “There is no need. Earth has already scared off the Gryx cruiser on its own. Wildfire engaged its FTL drive after Earth launched ballistic missiles towards it. Our ships tracked it exiting the system, soon after we engaged the Gryx reinforcements. It will take months for the cruiser to reach another star system without use of the Gate.”
Relief swept through Paul. It was over. He’d finally come through.
“Thank you, General.” Paul could feel tears welling up in his eyes, and he silently asked Zyp to keep them from flowing. The Ambra complied without comment, though Paul expected he’d get some grief for it later. “I would still like to join the Resistance, if you’ll have me.”
The general pat his shoulder. Paul was surprised at how gentle the creature’s touch was, though its hand dwarfed his chest. “We’ll worry about that later. Now, report to med bay and get some rest, both of you. That’s an order. Tomorrow, we have a war to win.”
Thank you for reading THE SPECTER RISING. I’ve had a lot of fun working on this novel over the past few months and I hope you enjoyed it. If you’ve got two minutes, I would sincerely appreciate it if you would take the time to post a review. Not only does this help small time authors like me get some help with getting their work in front of new reader’s eyes, but it would be a great way to help me improve my stories. This book was my first novel, and though I learned a lot, I still know that I have a ton to learn.
Love something I’m doing in particular? Let me know, so I know what I’m doing right! Hate something, or find some wild mistakes? Let me know, so I do better next time around (or can fix it). Feedback will help me create better books.
Thank you again.
Until next time,
James Aspen
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