Five Empires: An Epic Space Opera

by Steven J Shelley

  Empress Majesta was ready when General Teronde summoned her to landing platform EZ3. She helped Mandie with Jake’s med capsule, guiding him across a plaza that had been cleared of civilians. Again, she was thankful for General Teronde’s brutal competence.

  “Lovely day to go to war,” Jake drawled.

  Fusar wondered if he was still chock-full of drugs, but concluded she wouldn’t notice the difference anyway.

  A battered old orbital shuttle rested on the platform ahead of them. Its hull was scarred and scored with all manner of scratches and divots. She wondered when the Jaj had last upgraded their inter-orbital fleet.

  The compression jets on Jake’s capsule allowed him to be moved up the shuttle gangway with minimal effort. Paladins armed with personnel manifests directed them to their wall harnesses.

  “Ma’am,” a sergeant said sheepishly when he realized who he was looking at. “If you please. Liftoff in two minutes.”

  “Teronde runs a tight fleet,” Fusar said understandingly.

  Jake was secured in a special casualty room adjoining the main troop hold.

  “Would you like to be sedated, Your Excellency?” a paladin asked Fusar. “Military lifts can be a little extreme.”

  At first Fusar refused, but she considered Jack’s limp form and nodded. It was good enough for him …

  She felt a prick at the back of her neck as the harness administered the requested chemicals. Mandie was saying something to her as she drifted away …

  Fusar woke to the sound of raised voices. It was nothing untoward - navigators were merely verifying positions from the cockpit. Through a starboard porthole Fusar could see a litany of stars and felt a small thrill. It was liberating to be on the move again.

  crackled a voice over the bridge com.

  “Copy that, Resolute.”

  Fusar had heard that name before. It was the Jaj flagship, a snub-nosed beast of a vessel. What it lacked in beauty it made up for in firepower and brute strength. Like many Jaj warships, it had a reinforced fore deck that could ram enemy warships with impunity. If they were allowed to get that close. Fusar couldn’t help but feel that such vessels were better suited to the glory days of the past.

  The shuttle docked with little fanfare, sliding into a priority airlock at the neck of the huge warship. The soldiers in the troop hold stood to attention, eyes darting in Fusar’s direction.

  “I think they’re waiting for you,” Mandie murmured.

  “Oh.”

  Fusar unstrapped herself and helped Mandie maneuver Jake’s capsule through a short tunnel. They emerged into a chrome corridor filled with harried-looking Jaj military.

  “I’ve secured three officer’s berths on Gold Deck,” General Teronde said, catching up from behind. “There are more luxurious quarters, but I -”

  “We’d rather just blend in,” Fusar agreed.

  “The medic wants Jake delivered to surgery room 14,” Teronde said, frowning. “I have people who can shift him, you don’t -”

  “I prefer it this way, General,” Fusar said with calm authority. “He’s our friend.”

  “Of course. Hopefully he’s up and running soon. He could be a prime asset for this offensive.”

  “He wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Mandie said cheekily.

  The General smiled.

  “Glad to hear it. Once the fleet is in position we’ll begin launching emulation buoys. The Cava05 are already shading our drift space.”

  Fusar nodded. “Keep me informed, General.”

  Teronde saluted and moved on. ‘Shading drift space’ was a common military tactic that involved flying into the space required for the enemy to safely drift travel. It was an effective tactic considering the extreme risk associated with entering drift space with other ships in the vicinity. History had shown that any ships dragged into drift space together were liable to smash each other to pieces. Which was why the emulation buoys needed to draw the Cavan05 blockade away from the real Jaj fleet.

  Fusar and Mandie saw Jake to the prescribed surgery room.

  The Resolute had the electric vibe of an army going to war. Paladins and regular soldiers hustled through the corridors with energetic purpose. Fusar could understand how they felt. The Jaj army had been stuck running training exercises and manning horrible places like Bullhead for too long.

  This is what they were trained to do and to a man they relished the urgency. Of course, having no women around left a huge hole. The army had lost a good 30% of its core personnel to the insidious XX toxin.

  The women left Jake in a medic’s capable hands and set off to locate their berths on Gold Deck. As expected, they were spotlessly functional. Each took a few minutes to freshen up before venturing to the cavernous bridge at the nose of the warship.

  Here, a sea of data officers processed and disseminated swathes data by the second. Teronde was standing with his senior officers up on the fore observation deck. Beyond the thick, shielded glass Fusar could see the lovely emerald swirl of Ebessa far beneath them. The officers clicked their heels and saluted on her approach.

  “At ease, soldiers,” Fusar said, hoping she was getting the terminology right. “What’s our status, General?”

  “We’ve fired three emulation buoys already,” Teronde replied, hands clasped with effortless authority behind his back. “As far as we can tell, the Cavan blockade is on high alert but they aren’t taking the bait just yet.”

  “We seem to be advancing toward the enemy fleet,” Mandie commented.

  It was true. A nav screen was nestled in the cockpit window, showing the estimated location of all warships within Jaj space. The Resolute, along with the rest of the Jaj fleet closing in from Anscha, was represented by a cluster of red spheres. A tightly-packed ring of purple spheres was interwoven with the outer rim systems. The Cavan05 fleet must’ve been enormous to be able to form that kind of blockade.

  Then again, with the fall of the Aegisi home world and the smashing of the Nostroma, there was no one left to split their forces.

  “The key to using emulation buoys is to act like they really exist,” Teronde explained. “If we were truly attacking the simians from behind, this fleet would close in as part of a pincer movement.”

  “And if the simians don’t take the bait?” Mandie asked.

  “Then we’d be a lot closer than we’d like.”

  The exterior of the warship glowed red and a deep pulse echoed through the vessel.

  “Buoy number four,” Teronde murmured.

  Tense silence reigned as everyone watched the projectile on the nav screen. The emulation buoys had been implanted with cryptic circuitry that was only detectable by the Jaj. The first three were blinking happily behind the Cavan blockade in the Sujik system. Within a minute the fourth was passing in between two Cavan node ships. Steadily it went, oblivious to the fearsome weaponry to either side. The buoy went slightly further than the others and parked itself on far edge of the system.

  “We’ve given that emulation the dimensions of a flagship,” Teronde said with a trace of pride. “Nav one - increase propulsion to 3-80.”

  “Aye, sir,” came a reply from down below.

  Fusar felt her stomach lurch slightly as the Resolute surged through Ebessa space.

  “Movement at Sujik IV, sir,” reported another soldier from the bridge floor.

  “Good,” Teronde said, more to allay the tension than anything else. “Bearing please.”

  “42. 35. 76. Two node ships and seven destroyers. Sir.”

  “Straight to the fourth buoy,” Teronde said with satisfaction. “Nav one - accelerate to 4.00. Fleet to match.”

  “Copy that, sir.”

  The Resolute increased speed, leaving Ebessa well behind. The other Jaj warships bunched closed behind the flagship with impeccable control.

  “Could be a test,” the General muttered, seemingly to himself. “If we sag back now it could all go to shit.”

  Fusar watched
with tense fascination as the red cluster of spheres moved aggressively toward the Cavan blockade at Sujik. Although the veil of stars didn’t look any different through the obs deck, Fusar suspected they were traveling at extraordinary speeds - as fast as craft could go without reaching drift space. At this pace entire systems could be traversed in less than a day.

  The hours dripped by interminably, but Fusar’s attention was glued to that nav screen. The various back-and-forth between Fleet Command and the various Captains on the other vessels was fascinating. The fleet was almost within range of a “long phase” skirmish with the Cava05 - an exchange of missiles and torpedoes. To engage the Cava05 now would only end one way - in humiliating defeat. They simply had overwhelming numbers in their blockade.

  “Sir, if we don’t start firing the Cava05 will -”

  General Teronde raised his hand for silence. According to the nav screen, that perfect purple halo constricting Jaj space began to rupture. A cluster of Cavan warships were breaking free to deal with the phantom threat cast by the emulation buoys. The rest of the enemy blockade sagged back a little to allow more firing space between each unit.

  The subtle change in position, performed with elegant synchronicity by the most disciplined army in the galaxy, just might have allowed the Jaj fleet enough room in which to enter drift space.

  “Engage prop bulb,” Teronde barked. “Prime drift engines. On my mark. Everyone to their pre-assigned safe zones.”

  Fusar and Mandie were escorted from the bridge and ushered into a room full of stasis capsules.

  Fusar established a com link with the surgery room Jake was held in.

  the medic reported.

  “Copy that,” Fusar said, suddenly hating the sudden rush to find drift space. It was a wrenching experience for healthy people, so she could only imagine what it might be like for Jake.

  “See you on the other side, Fusar,” Mandie said reassuringly. “This is finally happening. We’ve actually got a shot at the simians.”

  Fusar had to admit the thought was comforting. As she climbed into her capsule, a band closed around her ankle and she felt a sharp sting. She could almost feel the heavy drift compounds moving through her veins as her mind settled itself in a dark void …

  72

  The smell of vomit pulled Fusar from a troubled sleep. She discovered it was her. She was accustomed to drift travel by now, but knew for certain she’d never grow to like it in any way.

  Moving slowly and uncertainly, she mumbled something incoherent to Mandie. The mercenary, evidently in slightly better condition, took her by the hand and led her straight to their berths on Gold Deck.

  The corridors were filled with military personnel forcing themselves back into battle readiness in much the same fashion. Jaj were large, powerful bipeds and were commonly acknowledged to take longer than most to recover from drift travel. Which was probably one of the reasons the species was not particularly active on the galactic stage.

  A hot shower and Fusar felt a little more functional. By the time she stepped out a steward had left her a simple, protein-filled breakfast - poached gask eggs on a bed of roasted asparagus spears. Ravenous, she attacked it with relish.

  Mandie was waiting for her in the corridor. Together they marched straight to Surgery Room 14, where Jake was still unconscious. A medic advised that Jake was in a stable condition. The doctor had not yet recovered from drift travel but would arrive shortly.

  Slightly frustrated at not being able to talk to Jake, the women repaired to the Bridge, where General Teronde was already holding the floor. He moved among his staff like a shark in a school of fish, probing, challenging, cajoling.

  Spotting the women, he joined them on the observation deck. The view outside was relatively featureless, as much as one can call a perfectly still and beautiful patina of stars featureless.

  “The Saffra system,” Teronde said. “Relatively central, no planets, off the major trade routes but not too far off. Everything you asked for.”

  Fusar nodded, looking at the nav screen for a broad-scale view of the fleet’s current position. The Saffra system wasn’t incredibly far from the purple blob that represented core Cavan space. Perfect for long-range surveys of enemy territory.

  “Can the Cava05 track us?” Fusar asked.

  “Aye, it’s not a matter of if they find us, but when,” Teronde agreed. “Their drift trackers are not yet accurate enough to land them within missile range, but a conservative estimate would have them in this system in less than twenty hours.”

  Fusar swallowed. “Then we don’t have much time, General. What do you propose?”

  “Sixty percent of the fleet have long range geological scanners,” came the reply. “I’ll point every ship at Cavan space, combing each system systematically. I’ve dispatched an experienced geologist to each vessel to provide expert analysis and guidance. We’ll find them, Empress Majesta.”

  “I hope so, otherwise we need to line up another drift run,” Fusar suggested.

  “My navigators are already charting an alternative destination,” Teronde said.

  “Keep me posted,” Fusar said. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to observe for a while.”

  The waiting was difficult. The Resolute’s long range scanner began probing the Orbosse system deep in Cavan space. The instruments occasionally picked up flashes of onbantium, but they turned out to be comets and meteorites. The hours slid by with little news to report.

  When Jake was ready to see visitors, Fusar and Mandie made sure they were by his side. The doctor proclaimed the recent surgery to be among his finest work. In reality, the sight of Jake’s new hand filled Fusar with disquiet. It was a beautiful, other-worldly thing that seemed at odds with the owner’s laconic personality. Jake flexed for them, demonstrating a superb flexile depth he didn’t have before.

  The smooth platinum surface was strangely disturbing, like some kind of invasion. For his part, Jake seemed fond of his new appendage, but then he was the type to make the best of everything. In fact, Fusar had never heard him complain about anything.

  “Isn’t it heavy?” she asked with a frown.

  Jake stifled a smile. “Your Excellency, this hand weighs approximately five times more than the previous hand. Do you realize what this baby can do on the battlefield?”

  Point taken, but Fusar stubbornly refused to acknowledge it.

  “Hopefully you only have one battle left to fight,” she said.

  Jake laughed and took her hand.

  “Then I’ll make sure I enjoy the shit out of it while I can.”

  “You sure you’re battle ready?”

  “I’m always ready, you know that.”

  Fusar couldn’t exactly argue that point. As if to challenge the Duellist, Mandie proposed a sparring session. Unsurprisingly, Jake loved the idea. The man never rested! Fusar reluctantly joined in.

  The session lasted two hours and left Fusar sore all over. Thankfully Jake and Mandie transitioned into target practice before they could kill her outright. Fusar peeled off a few shots on the range, but the truth was she was fast developing a hatred of guns. They were far too easy to use correctly, considering their often permanent effects. She was just replacing the exhaust chamber on her blast rifle when her wrist pad pinged - General Teronde had something to report.

  “Come and look at this,” he said urgently when Fusar and the others reached the obs deck.

  The nav screen was centered on a small planetoid in the Rivia system. A diagnostic pane suggested there were high concentrations of the mineral onbantium in a band linking the north and south poles.

  “That’s it,” Jake said with certainty. “Only a rich vein like that could supply something as powerful as the Embank.”

  “I agree,” General Teronde said. “And if I may say, Mr Le Sondre, it is a pleasure to have you with us.”

  Jake shook the Ge
neral’s hand with a bashful grin. Fusar figured Teronde had seen footage of Jake’s victory over Gyra Fashiel.

  “Just let me at the simians, General,” Jake said in typically understated fashion.

  Teronde grinned appreciatively. “I think we’ve found them. Rivia, sole planet of the Rivia system, looks like the perfect location for a secret facility.”

  “How soon until we can get eyes on the surface?” Jake asked.

  “We’ve dispatched three probes but they’ve all been shot down. It’s a fair bet the Cava05 know what we’re looking for. They’ve assembled a formidable defensive line off Rivia.”

  “Notify the fleet,” Fusar said urgently. “All hands make haste for the Rivia system.”

  The General’s eyes glittered with delight - he was truly in his element.

  “All hands,” he roared, spinning around to address the bridge floor. “Immediate drift run to the Rivia system. Insertion on the western arm with a clear path to the planetoid. Ready the PINs as soon as we fall from drift space.”

  The bridge floor erupted into urgent activity. The General had one of his coms officers put in a long range call. An Aegisi male filled the nav screen. According to the caption his name was Lumi Forran, a high-ranking Councillor.

  “What is your position, Councillor?” Teronde asked without wasting time with pleasantries.

  “We’re sitting off the Exxius Quasar,” came the clear, confident reply. There was something dashing and cavalier about the Councillor, something that projected a ‘can do’ attitude. For some reason Fusar always believed the Aegisi Council was full of crusty old amphibians more intent on securing a permanent aquatic habitat than engaging seriously with the galaxy at large. Her prejudice merely proved that she had a lot to learn about galactic politics.

  Apparently the Aegisi Council had been in contact with the Jaj military for several months. Despite Emperor Silvius’s strict policy of non-engagement, Jaj military leaders had wisely explored military alliances as a matter of due diligence. When the Aegisi homeworld of Solitude was invaded by the Cava05, the amphibians had every right to batten down the hatches and pour all their efforts into establishing their prize conquest of Cerulean, the world they took from the simians.