Once she had thought of them as insignificant scum on the gravity-bound wasteland of planets, but they had proved her wrong about that. Now, they had defeated an entire Invardii cell, and she had to accept that this was possible.
She also had no idea how this rock dweller had appeared on her flagship. No proximity alarms had sounded, no ships had been detected nearby – but here was this creature anyway.
Fedic held his arms straight out from his sides, and raised his hands slowly, palms out, in the Invardii gesture to honor a fallen enemy. One of Kalken’s commanders moved to fire a plasma pulse at the small figure in front of them, and she commanded him to let it say its piece.
For the first time she realized how different she was to the Invardii all about her. They would fight to the death, because that was all they knew. She would fight when it was needed, and she would also learn, and change, when that was the better choice. It struck her forcibly how unlike the others of her race she had become.
For a moment she was aware of the significance of each move she made now. Every detail of this encounter was being sent to the cells in the core. The death of a flagship was always a story to be recorded for future generations, and she was glad of that.
It was going to be the death of her flagship this time, she realized. Whatever force could send this rock dweller into their midst could easily destroy her ship, whatever she tried to do about it. She was surprised at how calm she felt
She also felt tired, as if the unrelenting hostility of the Invardii way of life was, for the first time, a burden to her. She brought her hands together to honor a great victory, knowing it was the victory of her enemy.
Fedic accepted the salute, and nodded to himself. It was finished.
He moved his arms, pointing to one of the great control banks around the command sphere, then another, then a third. The fail-safe protectors around the massive nuclear firestorms at the heart of the flagship withdrew, and the stuff of suns wound up toward critical in one tumultuous surge. Kalken looked at the energy spike, and knew there was nothing she could do to stop the overload.
She turned and saluted Fedic again, making sure the Invardii in the core knew she bowed before his superior way, and then the flagship disappeared in an enormous ball of white-hot fire.
The pursuit fleet picked up the detonation on their long-range scanners, and wondered what had happened. Then Fedic appeared on Cagill’s bridge, in his full physical form this time. Something seemed to let go of him, as if it had supported him through the last few days, and he slumped to the floor.
Cagill leaped from his chair and called the ship’s medics. He soon established that Fedic’s heartbeat and breathing were normal enough, and the medics were able to confirm he was more exhausted than anything else.
Back on Earth, a few days later, Cordez ushered Asura into the waiting vertical lift craft, and closed the door against the tumultuous crowds and the endless chanting of well-wishers.
They had done their duty as the two most powerful Regents of the trade blocks, as the media-dubbed ‘king and queen’ of Earth. They had been the architects of the Alliance of planets that had saved them all.
They had done it for more than the maximum legally allowed Regents’ term, and now they were the focus that allowed the people of Earth an outpouring of jubilation at the Alliance victory. It was a catharsis that would help the planet put the past behind them.
The Regents would help their people let go of a war footing, and return to a time of peace. It was enough. No one could ask any more of them.
“What do you think it will take?” said Asura.
“To disappear?” said Manoba. “Some surgery, a sex change, and major pigment augmentation!”
Asura laughed. “No, seriously,” she continued, “where can we go to start a normal life?”
There was a long silence as they thought about the possibilities. The vertical lift craft hummed quietly as it spirited them away to Cordez’ retreat in the hills.
Manoba, though, started to think about other things. He had done his best to make the known part of the Spiral Arm a safer and fairer place, but he had left ends unraveled. There were some 180 Buccra warships on the warpath in the core, and that could create new problems for the Alliance.
The Druanii needed to be formally included in the Alliance, which would greatly expand its area outside the Spiral Arm, and proper cultural and trading exchanges needed to begin. The Alliance should really help the economies of the Centaur and Magenta peoples recover, after their losses during the final battle at the Antares sun. Opportunities to make new ties with other cultures could easily be lost.
It was going to be hard to let go of the reins of power, but let go he must. For Asura, for himself, and to allow new leaders to emerge in the Alliance.
He wondered if Fedic would want to step down from active duty as well. The medics would release him in a day or two, and Cordez had offered him his mountain hideaway as a place where he could recover, as he had done so many times before.
Maybe he should start a veterans club, collecting together all the people who had been key to the Alliance success in the Second Phase of the Caerbrindii Wars, as Sallyanne had named the Invardii expansion into Alliance territory.
Would ParapSanni be interested in a veterans club, he wondered. The Sumerians were longer lived than Humans, and he wondered how old ParapSanni was, in Human terms. He was fairly sure Fallostrina and Mordiselli would be starters for such a club.
There were so many others.
Asura laid her head on his shoulder. He started guiltily. She always did that when she knew he had wandered off into his thoughts.
He brought his mind firmly back to the here and now. The two of them had some serious planning to do for their life together – and he knew in his heart that with her as his other half it would, indeed, be a wonderful life.
She squeezed his arm.
THE END
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APPENDIX A.
TIMELINE OF THE Invardii WARS.
~ December 109 (2586AD) ~
Mining team on Proteus, one of Neptune’s smaller moons, encounters an automated Druanii scout ship.
II
~ March 110 ~
An Invardii ship destroys Ragnaroth, an ancient Rothii space station.
II
~ July 110 ~
First contact with the Mersa, and their home planet Alamos.
II
~ August 110 ~
Regent Cordez unveils plans for a giant production facility named Prometheus, to meet the Invardii threat
II
~ October 110 ~
The planet Hud heats up, and many plants and animals die. Hudnee and his family make a desperate cross-country journey to Shellport on the coast.
II
~ March 111 ~
Regent Asura agrees to be Regent Cordez’ queen in an effort to unite Earth behind them for the war effort.
II
~ April 111 ~
K’Sarth planet destroyed, but the K’Sarth live on underground and produce materials for the Alliance forces.
II
~ June 111 ~
Hudnee forms the first militia to overthrow the Descendants of the Prophet.
Celia’s research team learn about the Caerbrindii, and their ideas of ‘cultural dissonance’.
II
~ July 111 ~
An Invardii armada of over a thousand ships defeats a combined Earth and Sumerian force above Uruk, the Sumerian home world. Survivors settled on remaining Sumerian planets.
II
~ November 111 ~
Battle for Roum between Hudnee’s militia and the Descendants of the prophet.
II
~ January 112 ~
Earth a
blaze from end to end. Alliance forces fight the Invardii to a standstill. Prometheus completely destroyed.
II
~ April 112 ~
Celia and her research team arrive among the pre-technological peoples of Orouth, with many questions about human ancestry.
II
~ May 112 ~
The early days of rebuilding Earth.
II
~ January 113 ~
The discovery of the Valkrethi at the Lizard’s head.
Prometheus is rebuilt.
II
~ July 113 ~
Valkrethi training over and a series of missions against Invardii ships and shipyards.
II
~ October 113 ~
The Invardii commander Kalken-ar-wuyr has concerns about the stability of the great Invardii city mind.
II
~ February 114 ~
Fedic Vits mission to Mentuk, the original Rothii planet, inside Invardii space.
His time with the Collector.
II
~ May 114 ~
Discover great Invardii city inside the red supergiant sun Antares.
II
~ June 114 ~
The last stages of rebuilding Earth.
II
~ November 114 ~
Cordez and Geelong travel outside the galaxy with Druanii help, and meet their elusive protectors.
Alliance forces protect the Orion home planet from the Invardii following a Druanii request.
II
~ March 115 ~
The Invardii unleash the Buccra, a vicious slave race they have only subjugated by having vastly superior numbers.
II
~ June 115 ~
Battle at Antares between the Invardii and Buccra forces, and the Alliance. Earth, Sumerian, Druanii, Centaur and Magenta forces take the field, with the support of the pacifist Mersa and resources of the trading planet K’Sarth.
APPENDIX B.
MAIN CHARACTERS.
ANDRE
One of Celia’s research team.
ASURA MING
Regent of the powerful Asian trading block.
BATTRICK
One of Hudnee’s close friends at Shellport.
BOSUN
A member of Finch’s engineering crew mining on
the moons of Neptune.
CARAKAS
An absent-minded philosopher in Roum, on Hud.
CELIA DARPAGIO
Head of a top European research team specialising
in alien artefacts.
DREESA
Hudnee’s wife on Hud, the medieval planet.
ERETH LAWSON
Head of a nuclear accelerator creating Orscantium on
an outer planet of the Alamos system.
FALLOSTRINA
A village head in the Mersa town of Little Worthystead.
FEDIC VITS
Highly trained operative working for Regent Cordez.
FLORENCHANTAINE ENGLE
Known as Finch. Mining engineer promoted to leadership
by Cordez.
GEELONG
Aboriginal starship pilot, part of Cordez’s personal staff.
HABNA
Wise woman at Shellport on Hud.
HUDNEE
Pilar builder (places of worship) on Hud.
JIM SEATOUN
Leader of an engineering team for Joe Lightfoot.
JOE LIGHTFOOT
Owner of a large engineering workshop on the
Canadian plains.
KALKEN-AR-WUYR
Commander of an Invardii flagship.
KANUK
Son of Hudnee and Dreesa, later Javelin pilot.
JUBILATE
Member of Celia’s research team.
MANOBA CORDEZ
Regent of the SouthAm trading block. The most
powerful man on Earth.
MATSU FUJIMI
One of Finch’s engineering team, later brilliant
inventor.
MEEANIRO
Mersa physicist on the planet Alamos.
MENON
Hunter from Shellport on Hud.
MENONA
Menon’s wife.
MORDISELLI
A village head in the Mersa town of Little Worthystead.
NEUMAN CAGILL
Defector from Earth forces who rises to command the
Prometheus Javelins.
PARAPSANNI
Sumerian leader of the Par’Sanni Revolutionary Reform
Party on Uruk.
PARTHENI
Regional leader of Descendants of the Prophet on Hud.
ROBERTO
One of Celia’s research team on alien artefacts.
SALLYANNE MONTOYA
Cordez’ personal assistant and specialist in off-world
cultures.
SARSANNI
Par’Sanni ‘second’ in Sumerian caste system. One of
the few to escape the destruction of Ragnarok.
SUBTHREE
Later Subdirector. Orion translater used by Druanii
because speech patterns were so different.
THE COLLECTOR
Solitary, long-lived life form on Mentuk, the Caerbrindii
home world.
APPENDIX C
LOCATIONS.
ALAMOS
Mersa home planet.
AQUA REGIS
Also known as Hud. Medieval planet, home of the Hudnee
people.
ANTARES
Red supergiant sun, containing the Invardii central city.
BA’H’ROTH
Home world of the Rothii.
BA’REGAN
Capital city of Uruk, the Sumerian home world.
DEIMOS
The smaller of Mars’ two moons, 15km long.
K’SART’OS
Capital city of K’Sarth, the home world of the K’Sarth.
K’SARTH
Home world of the K’Sarth.
LITTLE WORTHYSTEAD
Small town on the planet Alamos, home of the Mersa.
Place of first contact between Human and Mersa.
MENTUK
Home world of the Caerbrindii, the first sentient race in
the galaxy, who gave rise to Druanii, Rothii and Invardii.
NEEROK
Sumerian water world, with little dry land and much
undersea mining.
OROUTH
Ancestral home planet of the human race.
PROMETHEUS
Human manufacturing facility on Proteus, one of the
smaller of Neptune’s moons.
QUARANTINE PLANETS
Planets Sumerians may not contact, as per Rothii
instructions.
RAGNAROTH
Ancient Rothii space station, now researched for Rothii
technology. Destroyed by Invardii during first attack
inside Sumerian/Human space.
ROCKHAVEN
Sumerian seaside settlement on Uruk. Gathering place
during the evacuation of the planet.
ROKAR
Sumerian industrial planet. Completely mined out and
heavily polluted.
ROK’H’ROK
Sumerian mining moon, and seat of government after Uruk
abandoned.
ROUM
Capital city of the medieval planet Hud. Descendant
stronghold.
SANCTUS
Hidden planet of the Orion race, provided by their
Druanii protectors.
SAUROK
Sumerian forest world, devastated by Invardii.
SEENIROK
Dry Sumerian world where survivors are settled after
Invardii attacks on other Sumerian worlds.
SHELLPORT
Fishing village on Hud where outcasts have gathered
to build a new life. Destination of Hudnee and his
family on their journey.
THE LIZARD’S HEAD
Kantari (longhouse) description of the place on Orouth
where the research team finds the Valkrethi.
URUK
Sumerian home world.
APPENDIX D.
RACE AND CASTE GROUPINGS.
BUCCRA
Prison race closely controlled by the Invardii,
sometimes used as shock troops.
CAERBRINDII
Original sentient race in the galaxy. Due to ‘cultural
dissonance’ split into Druanii, Rothii and Invardii.
CENTAUR
Druanii protectorate race.
DESCENDANTS OF THE PROPHET
Self-appointed group on Hud who claim religious
control of the planet.
DRUANII
Hybrid race descended from Caerbrindii. Inhabit
outer reaches of the galaxy.
HUDNEE
Inhabitants of Hud. Medieval water planet with
one large continent. Also one individual.
HUMAN RACE
Home planet Earth. Instrumental in forming and
leading an alliance against the Invardii.
Invardii
Hybrid race descended from the Caerbrindii who
attempt to annex Sumerian and Human space.
K’SARTH
Trading race under Sumerian protection.
MAGENTA
Druanii protectorate race.
MERSA
Home planet Alamos. One of the races that form
an alliance with Earth against the Invardii.
Invardii Box Set 2 Page 60
