He paused and allowed his words to echo around the hall. “You made your petition accompanying news that Meligorn faces a fresh enemy and that the need for the King’s Warrior has been born anew.” He sighed. “And I cannot deny that the need is here.”
When he looked around the hall, his gaze met those of some and flowed over all. It was a challenge in and of itself.
“Are there any who would say anything before I accept this King’s Warrior back into my service?”
One voice answered and it came from the side. “I would.”
Half-turning, Grilfir saw Brilgus lay Elza’s hand gently on her shoulder, where his had so recently rested. He stepped to V’ritan’s side.
“Would my king allow a half-blood to serve the King’s Warrior?”
His words caught V’ritan’s attention, and the Warrior gave him a resigned and almost weary look.
“You know we will both probably die?” he whispered, but a trick of acoustics carried his words to all. Nervous laughter rippled through the crowd and even Elza managed a wavering smile.
The king looked at her and let his gaze travel around the hall once more. When no one objected, he nodded, and Brilgus knelt beside V’ritan.
“Most likely,” he replied, his own whisper carrying and causing another ripple of laughter.
“Horribly.” V’ritan smirked openly now.
“Most certainly.” The large man didn’t sound worried in the least and his friend smiled.
“It’s exactly like old times,” he murmured and memories stirred among the oldest audience members.
They shuddered.
The king laid a hand on each of their shoulders and raised his head. His voice carried through the hall. “Then rise, King’s Warrior and King’s Standard Bearer. You speak with my voice in all ways of our military when off-planet.”
He paused, surveyed the crowd, and continued. “Be respectful of the lives you must spend in our coming war, but remember...”
Again, he gave the crowd a moment to absorb his words before going on. “Above everything else, Meligorn will spend all blood to remain free.”
It was an old cry—one the oldest among them had hoped to never hear again—but not a single one of them shied from it.
“Meligorn will bleed for her freedom!” they cried in response.
The queen stepped forward. “My people, are you sure? Will Meligorn bleed?”
And their response was a howl of affirmation. “Meligorn will bleed for her freedom!”
A galaxy away, on the harsh world of Dreth, Ambassador Jaleck strode swiftly to the Great Hall of Clans. Flanked by her personal guard, her robes of office dominated her family colors. In this, she represented the interests of a world and not only the interests of a single family.
She’d dressed her guards to reflect that, having half wear the rust-red armor trimmed with lines of orange and green that signified her clan but asked them to wear the short black capes of Dreth Coalition Guards. The other half wore the black armor trimmed with red and grey of the Dreth coalition, and capes in the family colors.
It was as much a statement as any senator had ever dared, let alone an ambassador, and Jaleck counted herself lucky that she was both. Leaving four of her guards at the door with those of others already in attendance, she entered the meeting room.
The four senators already there looked up. “Welcome, Ambassador Jaleck.” The speaker’s gaze roved over the guards and then over her but she did not shy from his gaze.
“What I have to say affects us all.”
“And you risk your clan’s honor to say it.”
The ambassador gave him a sharp look. “Don’t we all?” she challenged, and he was the one who looked away first.
She looked around the room. Having gained the upper hand, she had to make her dominance clear—at least over these four. “We are two short.”
The only other woman on the senate rocked back on her seat. “I think they wish to make a point.”
Jaleck regarded her with an unblinking look of assessment and glanced at the ancient timepiece on the wall. Consisting of a series of brass tubes and a carefully balanced flow of sand and water, it pre-dated the formation of the Dreth Coalition of Families.
“Timing is everything in an attack,” she commented. “If they cannot be relied on to make an urgent meeting, can they be relied on when it comes to the battlefield?”
One of the male Dreth snorted. “You speak as if battle were imminent. Are you sure that is not merely wishful thinking, Jaleck?”
She bared her teeth. “I will let you decide for yourself, Xanath. I consider you perhaps the best judge in this matter.”
He frowned and his expression suggested he was looking for the mockery in her words. She lounged against the wall. “I note Clan Vashjak is not late.”
They all looked at the timer.
“This is bordering on discourteous,” stated the senator who had challenged her regarding clan honor and she was glad she didn’t have to point that out.
Instead, she nodded brusquely and pushed off the wall. “Starting without them would also be a discourtesy, H’regen,” she responded reasonably.
They all lowered their chins at that but none of them suggested she begin and she did not press them. She moved to lean against the wall again and remained there until the door opened and the last two members of the meeting arrived.
In addition to the arrogance of being late, they had each brought three guards. That prompted a reaction from H’regen. “The room is not large enough for extras.”
The new arrivals turned to him, their faces blank. He leaned back in his seat and raised an eyebrow at the more powerful of the two and signaled for one of his guards to leave.
The tension in the guard’s body told Jaleck how much he disagreed with the order, but he complied without protest. He didn’t hesitate or argue but did his clan honor with immediate obedience. She tapped one of her guards on the shoulder and indicated H’regen. “Keep him safe.”
The guard’s response was “Above yourself?”
“Above myself,” she instructed and basically removed a large measure of her own protection.
The female senator’s response was immediate. She stretched her hand to tap one of her guards on the shoulder. “Keep her safe.”
“Above yourself?”
“Above myself.”
Xanath immediately replaced one of her guards with his own. Jaleck was about to repeat her order and do the same for him when one of the newcomers spoke. “Keep him safe.”
When he, too, had completed the litany and the guard was reassigned, he turned to another of his guards. “Wait outside.”
With his guards rearranged, Kemel of House Gravach turned to Jaleck. “My house apologizes for the delay.”
He glanced at his companion in tardiness. “There was a last-minute errand that could not be avoided.”
I’ll bet there was, she thought but didn’t voice it. Instead, she inclined her head to acknowledge his concession. “I will begin when you are ready, House Gravach.”
Her gaze flicked to the other. “Echgrech.” She took her place at the front of the room and her two guards—one on loan and one her own—followed. They flanked her in silence and she began her presentation.
“We do not know what they are called,” she began and the Clan Echgrech representative gave a derisive snort.
Jaleck ignored him and continued. “What we do know is that they are powerful magic users, believe themselves invincible, and that their representative was on board a Dreth pirate ship.”
That caught Echgrech’s interest. “Which one?”
She fought to keep her face straight. While she doubted it was one of the ships connected to Clan Echgrech, she really didn’t know. Her people had yet to discover its sponsor. It had one, but none of those they’d questioned knew which of the clans or how many had supported their captain in his endeavors.
The only other clues lay within the ship itself, and the E
arth Navy had whisked that away before the Dreth had a chance to inspect it. The Witch’s sponsors had subsequently bought it and the opportunity had passed.
“Earth news channels report it as the Ebon Knight,” she replied, “and they have yet to respond to my formal request for access.”
The representative screwed his face up. “I could ask my contacts,” he suggested, and she grasped that offer with both hands—albeit very carefully.
“If you are able,” she said and her tone suggested he might have promised something beyond his reach.
He narrowed his eyes. “What else can you tell us? Thus far, I do not perceive a threat.”
Jaleck arched her eyebrows at that. The alien had been aboard a Dreth ship without any apparent clan or house approval. That was an act of arrogance in and of itself—and indicated a potential coup.
“It is said he offered the Witch favorable treatment if she would agree to side with him. When she—”
“What kind of favorable treatment?”
The ambassador smiled. “Navy recordings taken by the Marines accompanying her show him telling her his kind were coming and that they would do as they always did and consume. He went on to say that she could spare her loved ones in the coming war and that her wisdom and honor would be rewarded.”
“Family,” Kemel observed. “It is a powerful enticement. What was our Witch’s reply?”
“She fought him and cast him into the void.”
“From inside the ship?” the Echgrech representative asked in a blatant attempt to throw doubt on the story.
“The Witch rearranged the hull, protected her own people with magic, and vented him into the void. It was spectacular.” Jaleck smiled sweetly. “I can allow you access to the recordings if you would like to see the action for yourself.”
It was a favor, of course, and at first, she thought he wouldn’t take it but curiosity won over political points.
“If you are able,” he agreed, his tone more hopeful than doubting.
She did not grace that with a reply but triggered the video to show what the Marines’ equipment had recorded for Naval archives. Without commentary, she simply allowed it to run until Stephanie had closed the gap, then froze the footage.
“You could have simply shown us that in the first place,” Clan Echgrech’s representative grumbled but Kemel was much more focused.
“He said there were more coming.”
Jaleck waited.
“Do we know how many?”
She shook her head.
“Do we know when?”
Again, the ambassador shook her head.
Echgrech broke in. “Well, what do we know?”
In reply, she jumped the footage back to when the Nihilism first approached Stephanie. “This,” she said. “This is what we know. This is the only warning we have that an invasion force is coming—and quite a large one.”
“Agreed.” H’regen spoke for the first time. “The Witch calls them Nihilism, but that’s not their name. That is only the energy they wield. I will search the archives for a reference.”
“Could they be an enemy from Earth’s past?” the female senator suggested. “The Witch seemed to recognize it for what it was.”
Jaleck shrugged. “It is possible. I can ask her. Perhaps they have records of them.”
“Or they encountered them so far in their past the event no longer exists in their records,” the senator added. “The damage they have done to their world is...extensive. It’s a wonder the Meligornians even speak to them.”
“We have our own people to worry about.” Echgrech’s interruption was abrupt. “These pirates have betrayed the Dreth, brought danger to our world, and dragged our clans into disrepute.”
“The danger that is coming threatens every world,” the ambassador argued, “and the pirates did not bring it. They were merely available for it to use.”
“Agreed,” H’regen added and sounded more confident. “The pirates existed prior to the threat and it has made them its smokescreen. It is time we did something about that—and I do not mean that we should go to war on our own. We will need every warrior we can muster.”
“We need to promote this to the Council and call a full Gathering,” Kemel announced and Echgrech’s jaw dropped.
“We agreed—” he began and the other Dreth froze him with a look before he completed the sentence.
“We agreed to do what was best for our clans and houses. We agreed to do what was right for the world of Dreth and all her people.” He fixed Echgrech with an iron stare. “We are only the Preliminary Hearing. The Council is next.”
He gestured at the screen. “But this requires a full convocation of the clans, a Gathering.”
“But we have not called one of those in—”
“Since we met the humans,” H’regen interjected. “Prior to that, it was the Meligorn incident. These creatures—Nihilists for want of another name—will make the Meligornians look like a candle flame and the humans as friendly as derkats.”
“The pirates need to be brought to heel,” Echgrech insisted, and Kemel stared at him.
“Those who fund the pirates need to be brought to justice. Those who believe these Nihilists will bring them freedom and a better way of life, or who have negotiated with them, need to be rooted out and either made to see the truth or eliminated.”
“You’re suggesting there are Dreth who support their invasion?”
Jaleck listened to all the opinions before she dropped her next explosive surprise for the meeting. “Some believe it is better for the many to survive at the expense of the few. They believe surrender will allow more to live than war.”
“But he said they would consume—” Echgrech began. “How can they—”
“He has given us our best piece of publicity, yet,” the ambassador told him. “His followers are either unaware of the nature of the invasion or they believe they are exempt. Revealing the threat will help divide one set from the other.”
“Even the pirates will not stand for this,” Michtel declared and she regarded him with a raised eyebrow. He’d been silent until then and raised his own eyebrow in response. “I have contacts.”
She bit back the reply that she was not surprised and instead, gave him a serious nod. “That is good. If the Council agrees, we will need every warrior we can muster.”
She looked at H’regen. “I look forward to working with Clan Vashjak in discovering if this is a past foe for us.”
The ambassador caught the moment when he glanced at the remaining member of the Preliminary Hearing and saw Ashgrek give the slightest frown and briefest nod in response.
“And we look forward to working with House Karnach.”
Echgrech rose from his seat. “I will call the family representatives.” He inclined his head toward Jaleck. “Ambassador.”
“Echgrech.”
When Kemel remained seated, she waited in place and observed the other representatives, who sat as still as stone. The reason became clear when their comm links buzzed.
“You are summoned to the High Peaks Coalition of Families where you will present your understanding of the threat. The recommendation for a Full Council has been received and actioned. The Council will convene immediately the Coalition has given its acknowledgment of the threat.”
It was all Jaleck could do to keep the astonishment from her face. Who knew the little tark lizard had that much pull?
Things moved quickly after that. Once they left the meeting chamber, their guards resumed their positions to guard their respective principals. Gaining the Family Coalition’s acknowledgment of the threat was a formality quickly presented and sealed, and the entire chamber rose and boarded shuttles for a swift flight to the capital.
All the families had been summoned, and every coalition of families was fully represented. Seated amongst her own family block, Jaleck felt the first flutter of nerves. She was home, her place in the hierarchy slightly above the median but not quite near the top.
Those most powerful preferred to stay close to their world in order to maintain their hold on both their positions and their business. She preferred to be out of the political melee but she did not shy from it, either.
“Ambassador Jaleck,” the current high councilor called. “Please state your case.”
His voice rolled through the meeting hall like thunder, and she rose and bowed toward him before she strode to the center of the meeting room.
“And your recommendations?” the high councilor asked when all had seen the footage taken from the Navy.
“That the Federation stands together against this foe—and that we ask the Witch for assistance.”
Murmurs rippled through the gathered councilors and she waited quietly. This, she believed, was the crux of it. It would be where her people stood or fell—and Dreth with them. Forcing herself to breathe, she made sure her face remained an emotionless mask.
It would not do to let either her allies or her enemies see exactly how important their agreement was.
“Do you have any further recommendations?”
“Not as yet, High Councilor, but I have asked H’regen of Clan Vashjak for his advice and assistance and hope to be able to present further recommendations in a few days.”
“Very well, Ambassador. Since you have already requested their assistance and they have agreed...” He glanced over to where H’regen sat in the middle tiers.
To her relief, he nodded, and the high councilor continued. “I am placing the military at your disposal.”
There were several indrawn breaths around the room but he pressed on. “They will render you any and all assistance required in defeating this threat.”
Around the room, councilors tapped quickly on the keyboards in front of them and Jaleck knew they debated the other recommendations she had made. Their decision was swift—as were their doubts.
The high councilor glanced at the screen before him. “The Council agrees to act in concert with the Federation but not at the expense of Dreth.”
She bowed her head. “Understood.”
Witch Of The Federation III (Federal Histories Book 3) Page 15
