by D. J. Holmes
Behind him, James heard movement. He guessed the Flex-aor warriors were on the verge of charging in to defend their High Queen. Mentally he dismissed them. Rivers would delay them long enough for him to detonate the explosives if it came to it. Instead, he focused on Ala’ron. For several seconds she didn’t move, then, ever so slowly, she sunk back into the goo.
“Fine,” she finally said. “We will do this your way. Though you must know, communicating telepathically is how I interact with other entities.” As she was speaking, Ala’ron leaned forward.
James felt an immense pressure on his mind. It was like tidal waves were crashing against his thoughts. For several seconds he was stunned. He couldn’t move and could hardly think. Then he perceived what was happening. Ala’ron was trying to access his thoughts. She couldn’t control his mind without physical contact, but she could create a mental link from several meters away. Now she was trying to use that link to break in and ravage his thoughts. Realizing what she was attempting filled him with anger. Though he didn’t know what he was doing, he fought to keep her out. She couldn’t be allowed to have access to everything that he knew! If she did, Earth would be in grave peril. Despite his best efforts, wave after wave of her strength pushed against his thoughts. Here and there he felt small cracks appear and slithers of Ala’ron’s mind seeped in. James attacked them. He slammed them with mental energy, trying to drive her back. As he fought harder and harder, he sensed something else. Each time he smashed a part of Ala’ron’s mind he could sense her thoughts.
Small packets of emotions that he knew weren’t his own filtered through him. Ala’ron was mourning the loss of one of her daughters. She had feared Qura-rnt was dead, but knowing for sure hurt. She feared for her own life, the small explosive devices in James and Ya’sia’s hands terrified her. She had never faced real danger before. Beyond thoughts of herself, Ala’ron actually had concerns for her own people. She was worried about what the Human and Crian ships would do to her ships and her colonies. Amongst all these emotions, dominating them all, one other feeling almost drowned out everything else. A pulsing whirling disgust struck James again and again. Ala’ron hated everything his and Ya’sia’s species stood for. Ala’ron hated the idea that there were other sentient species not under her control. The revulsion she felt for Humans and Crians was at a level James had never encountered before. Though he was only getting millisecond encounters with Ala’ron’s thoughts, her anger and rage almost overwhelmed him.
He was taken aback at the strength of her emotions. It was almost a fatal mistake. Terror shot through him as the distraction allowed one particularly strong attack to get through his defenses. Ala’ron accessed his memories. He sensed her seeking out ways to threaten him. Pictures of Suzanna and Emilie were conjured in his mind, though not of his own doing. They had the opposite effect to what Ala’ron was hoping for.
As soon as he saw them, his terror vanished. In a split-second James knew that if Ala’ron learnt of his wife, she would turn all her hatred towards killing her and everyone else James loved. That was all the motivation he needed. Summoning a wave of mental strength he didn’t know he had, he slammed it at Ala’ron’s attack. It vanished like mist struck by a sudden gust of wind. James then turned his strength against Ala’ron’s mind. He could sense her somewhere nearby. Projecting his new-found strength outside himself towards where he thought she was, he slammed against a strong barrier blocking him from her mind. Without pausing, he flung himself against her defenses. For a moment, nothing happened. Then her entire mental barrier shattered. For a fraction of a second James was fully aware of her thoughts. As she realized what had happened her rage evaporated and was replaced by a raging shock that shook Ala’ron to her core. Ala’ron ceased her attack on James and pulled her mental strength back to herself. As she did, James lost all contact with her mind.
Suddenly aware that he had closed his eyes, James opened them to see Ala’ron was in the exact same position she had been before. He had no idea how much time had passed, though it felt like hours. Turning to his right, he saw Ya’sia was still standing beside him. As James looked, she slowly opened her own eyes. “What did you try and do to us?” she demanded, anger filling her features. “You have violated us.”
Ala’ron didn’t reply. She was still staring intently at James. “What did you say your species was called?” she asked. “Human?” She continued before James could answer. “Yes, that was it. Your species is more intriguing than I realized. Now I know why Qura-rnt failed. Perhaps a negotiated peace settlement would be in the best interest of both our species.”
To say James was confused was an understatement. Ala’ron’s tone had changed completely. She almost sounded friendly. Yet he couldn’t shake the emotions he had sensed from her.
“That is why we are here,” Ya’sia responded. “Your species has launched aggressive attacks against both my species and the Humans. Now you have violated our minds. We wished that you would end your hostilities with us. Yet you have personally attacked us. If you will not make peace, then we will be forced to make sure you cannot be a threat to us or any other sentient species again.”
Ala’ron finally took some of her eyes off James and focused a few on Ya’sia. “You’re clearly as ignorant as this one,” she said as she gestured towards James with a tentacle. “To be in my presence is a great honor. But you would come here and threaten me, you are either a fool or you wish to perish at my hands.”
“We do not come here to throw our lives away,” Ya’sia replied. “We came here to speak plainly. I am not threatening you. I am simply speaking the truth. I represent thirteen other sentient species. All of us have developed diplomatic and trade relations with one another. We also protect one another. We could form a similar bond with your species. However, if you will not lay down your arms, then the full military force of all of my species’ allies will be directed against you. The war fleet that we have brought with us will only be a small portion of what you will face.”
James was surprised, but in a good way, by Ya’sia’s directness. She wasn’t pulling her punches. Given what he had just sensed in Ala’ron, he was glad Ya’sia wasn’t backing down.
“Does this one speak for you Human?” Ala’ron asked James.
“She does not,” James answered. “I speak for my own species. Yet I’m in agreement with her words. Qura-rnt killed millions of my species. If you will not negotiate a peaceful settlement with us, we will have revenge for what she did.”
“Then it seems pursuing negotiations may be in all of our best interests,” Ala’ron replied. “You may both leave now. I will give this some thought and send an emissary to speak with you. Now that we have met in person, there is no need to do so again.” As quickly as she had appeared, Ala’ron slipped beneath the goo and apart from the ripple she left behind, there was no other sign of her.
James felt his eyes widen and his eyebrows rise. He turned to Ya’sia. She too had a shocked look on her face. When she looked at James, she didn’t say anything. James understood, he didn’t know what to say himself. He had just been on an emotional roller coaster the likes of which he had never experienced before. Ala’ron was almost impossible to understand. First she was angry, then conciliatory, and now she had dismissed them without so much as a goodbye. Despite his confusion, there was one truth that he could not ignore. It dominated all his other thoughts. The disgust and anger he had felt emanating from Ala’ron had been very real. It had consumed her. Despite the conciliatory tone she had taken, James was sure her anger remained. Whatever else she had said, James knew he would never trust her. For a second, he was tempted to detonate the explosive device in his hand. Killing Ala’ron would be a far greater blow to the Flex-aor than his death would be to his own people. It was one way he could ensure Ala’ron wouldn’t try to kill Suzanna and Emilie. The temptation quickly past though and he replaced the explosive device in his uniform. As much as he wanted to kill her, he had much to live for. There would be other opportunit
ies to defeat her, of that he was sure. “Let’s get out of here,” he said to Ya’sia. “We can talk once we get back to the shuttle.”
“Agreed,” Ya’sia responded and turned with James to walk out of the High Queen’s chamber. Both went out a lot quicker than they had gone in. With a nod James collected the marines and instructed them to fall behind. Miraculously their guide suddenly reappeared from a hatch in front of them. At least, James thought it was their guide. They hadn’t seen any other workers and he didn’t actually know if they all looked alike or had differences that he could identify. Either way, it didn’t matter. Without a word, the guide led them through the massive warship.
Only once they got back Ya’sia’s shuttle did their guide speak to them. “The High Queen has instructed me to inform you that she will send negotiators to your flagships in three hours. By then she will have initial terms for a settlement ready to lay before you. It has been more than five hundred years since a Flex-aor High Queen negotiated with another as an equal. Then it took several weeks to come to an agreement. Ala’ron believes these negotiations could be concluded in such a short time as well. I bid you farewell for now.”
Once again a whole host of thoughts went through James’ mind. He kept them to himself though and kept his reply diplomatic. “It is our hope that things can be concluded quickly as well.” Without wasting any more words on the guide, he led his party up the access ramp into the Crian shuttle.
When everyone was seated he motioned for them to remain quiet. No one knew what kind of listening technologies the Flex-aor had. It was safer to wait until the shuttle had left the High Queen’s flagship and moved a reasonable distance away from it.
“Well… What were your impressions?” James asked as soon as he felt it was safe to.
Ya’sia faced James with a worried look. “I believe I have seriously misjudged the situation Admiral. I owe you another apology. This High Queen desires nothing but death for our species.”
James glanced at the marines sat around him, Ya’sia’s admission of error wasn’t the kind of thing a senior Admiral would do in front of such low-ranking soldiers. Every one of them had the helmets of their combat armor retracted, though they may as well have had them in place. Each marine had a steely emotionless gaze and all kept their eyes averted from James and Ya’sia. Even so, they couldn’t do anything but hear Ya’sia’s words.
Accepting that Crians didn’t have the same taboo against showing weakness in front of junior officers, James spoke openly to Ya’sia. “For as much as it is deserved, your apology is accepted. However, we both made mistakes. I’ve seen first-hand the atrocities the Flex-aor are willing to carry out. Yet, I thought that we could negotiate with them. What I sensed back there, the emotions Ala’ron was trying to hide, there can be no peace with her. What did you experience when she tried to touch our minds? Did she get into yours?”
Ya’sia visibly shivered. “She tried. She didn’t get in, but she tried. If she hadn’t stopped, I think she would have started to form cracks in my mind. I don’t really have any words to describe what was happening. I’ve never experienced anything like it. Her attacks on my mind were like being beaten with a mental hammer over and over again. At the same time, I found an ability to resist her that I never knew I had before.”
James nodded as he listened. “So did I. That’s exactly what it was like. She managed to get through some cracks in my mind. She tried to access my memories, I think she wanted more information about us and our species. I managed to drive her out though, that’s when her attempts to touch my mind ceased.”
“Then you have my thanks,” Ya’sia replied. “I don’t think I could have held out much longer. Do you think she got any useful information from you?”
“Perhaps,” James answered as he relived the moments he had felt Ala’ron actually in his mind. “I think she learnt about my wife and niece, beyond that, I don’t know if she got anything else. That’s not my primary concern though. When her mind began to seep into mine, I was able to read her thoughts as well. It wasn’t very clear, but one thing did come across very strongly. Ala’ron hates us. She hates all other sentient species. Any that she can’t control. Whatever outward appearance she is trying to portray to us, it’s a facade. I am convinced she will do everything in her power to exterminate both of our species. There can be no peace with her.”
“In this we are agreed,” Ya’sia responded. “I didn’t gain any direct reading on her thoughts, however the waves of hatred that were slamming into my defenses were clear enough. There are many different perspectives on the nature of evil within my species. Some would argue that all contain the possibility of evil. Others that it is simply an illusion. What I felt in there,” Ya’sia shivered again as she spoke. “That was a level of evil I have never imagined before. She must be stopped.”
“I’m glad we are finally seeing eye to eye,” James said with a small smile. “However, I fear we may soon find ourselves in a situation we may not be able to escape from.”
“What do you mean?” Ya’sia asked.
“If Ala’ron’s feelings towards us have been driving the Flex-aor response to our species so far, then Hir’ram’s negotiations with us were a ruse from the get-go. They’ve been trying to buy time to get reinforcements to this system. If that’s true, then why has the High Queen revealed herself now? We were willing to wait another two days. She must have reinforcements nearby if she was willing to come early. We may have already walked into her trap.”
“That is a worrying thought,” Ya’sia said in a somber tone. “We are going to have to act fast.”
Chapter 13
From reading the writings of many of the leading economists of the First Expansion Era, it is clear they thought Human civilization would have reached a point where resource scarcity was a thing of the past. They failed to predict the ever growing demands of a population that doubles every century. Since its inception the Empire has been fighting a constant battle to provide the worlds, resources and war fleets needed to ensure Humanity is able to continue to thrive.
-Excerpt from Empire Rising, 3002 AD.
Handmaiden X-62 system.
When the Crian shuttle touched down in one of Handmaiden’s shuttle bays, an urgent request for Ya’sia to report to the bridge was waiting for them. Wanting to know what was going on, James accompanied her rather than immediately boarding the shuttle that was waiting to take him back to Golden Hind. When he got to the bridge he was glad he hadn’t left too soon. A report was waiting for them from one of the scout ships he had requested Ya’sia send out. The scout didn’t have good news. In an adjacent system to the one where they had fought the first small Flex-aor scout fleet, another Flex-aor colony had been discovered. The scout had detected at least six hundred warships breaking orbit and accelerating hard for the shift passage that would lead to the system they were in. There was no doubt what that meant, Ala’ron had sent out orders days ago for reinforcements to be sent. It was highly likely that there were other forces making their way to engage the Human and Crian fleets as well.
“We need to strike Ala’ron’s fleet immediately,” James concluded. “We can’t let them pull back and conserve their numbers. Right now we occupy the middle position. They have to try and concentrate their forces before they can take us on. We have a chance to defeat them in detail, but we have to act now.”
“Agreed,” Ya’sia replied. “Captain Maleck, take Handmaiden back to our fleet, let’s not hang about under their guns.” She gestured for James to step to one side of the bridge where they could speak in private. “You have by far the most experience fighting large fleet battles. What do you propose we do?”
Before answering, James looked at the holographic display of the system. Their priorities were easy to figure out. Ala’ron’s fleet needed to be engaged before Hir’ram could bring her ships to Ala’ron’s aide. Then Hir’ram’s ships could be taken out with relative ease. The problem was what to do when the new fleet arrived. It could
be more than six or seven hours behind the scout ship. If it arrived and he and Ya’sia were still engaged elsewhere, it could do a lot of damage by catching their fleets in a devastating crossfire. But if we could win quick victories then they will be the ones exposed… James thought as an idea came to him. They would have to split their forces, but it could work. It would allow them to use the advantages each war fleet had. Nodding to himself he turned back to Ya’sia. “We need to charge Ala’ron’s fleet,” he said. “We have an advantage in missile tech and energy weapons, we need to use them to hit her hard and fast. If we can take out her fleet quickly, then I think we can take this new fleet by surprise. There’s no time to spare though.” Quickly he sketched out a general idea of the plan that was formulating in his head.
“I like it,” Ya’sia said after listening quietly to his proposed strategy. “If we have no time to spare, then we should order our fleets to rendezvous with us now. I will inform my fleet that I’m placing you in overall command. We need a clear command structure in order to keep our cohesion.”
“I agree,” James replied. “If you don’t mind, I will return to my shuttle. It will take at least twenty minutes for our ships to catch up with us. I want to contact my Chief of Staff and begin to work out some battle plans. It will go much quicker if I can use equipment I am familiar with. I’ll update you as soon as I have some more detailed battle plans to discuss with you.”
