by B R Flores
Azha understood Choan’s misery. He faced five-hundred years of guilt and revenge unless somehow, he came to terms with the mutinous venom growing within himself. Choan had to prevail. Palatu, the Quizans, and their lives, depended on the outcome of this invasion.
Choan spoke first, “I promise no more distractions.”
“Duro will understand when you’re ready to tell him. You’re not responsible for your uncle’s crimes. I’m glad you confided in me.”
Azha called out for Belton to join them. “My advice to both of you… show no mercy.”
The three Trekachaws shook hands on it, and then Azha flashed into energy en route to the battleship.
THE SHIP WAS EERILY SILENT. Azha could tell that everyone was being careful not to make even the slightest noise. Victis was staring at an Umdul battleship bridge displayed on a large monitor screen. A shrewd, battle-scarred Umdul Captain was sitting at the helm, reigning with confidence. No doubt, that seasoned old guardian had seen many wars before this one. Azha descended and morphed into body form next to the helm. Victis briefly glanced over, then pointed to a chair, gesturing for him to sit down. Captain Pify was giving a detailed description of what he was viewing. Azha caught on that Victis was hiding behind Palatu until the Crozin battleships were close enough for an ambush.
This was the first time Azha had seen an Umdul. They were sort of cute and ugly at the same time and everything they said seemed to end in a question. He guessed them to be around four feet tall with squatty bodies and colorful, bushy, baby-fine hair that stood straight up on top of their heads. From the back, their hair either hung in a straight line to their waist or was attached to their spine. Either way, it was by far the most attractive feature of an Umdul. A second monitor switched over, displaying four Crozins battleships in view on the Umdul’s screen. Captain Pify scooted forward in his chair.
“Closer are they, nasty Crozins with four junk ships? Number five we see, or not? Yah, serves you right scavengers. Twenty minutes cold space if birds don’t fail or fall. We meet once more for war.”
Victis understood Captain Pify’s cryptic message. He gave their time of arrival and that the fifth ship was not within monitor range. It was possible the fifth Crozin ship had been redirected from a frontal-attack to a rear or side-assault. For now, the best strategy was to stick with the original plan, so they waited.
Dead silence heightened the agonizing uncertainty aboard ship. Only Azha welcomed it. For him it was a moment to reflect on how far he’d come and how it could all end. If he were to die here, it would be okay. He felt at home with Ryquats; they reminded him of Humans on Earth. Cole, however, was never content. Every so often he’d surface with a vengeance, making Azha sad with dark thoughts and regrets. Tormenting memories brought back a disturbing longing for his mother and Ginger. How cruel and selfish of the Quizan for not telling them the truth before leaving. Someday, he’d return home to repent his sins.
Atue streaked onto the bridge, morphing into body form. Victis jumped to his feet waving his arms in the air for Atue to be quiet. Atue mouthed, “Ok,” then did a finger motion indicating that he needed something to write on. A crewman grabbed a tabpad and handed it to him. Atue frantically scribbled on the tabpad, then shoved it in front of Victis’s face. The spell-bound crew waited for the news. Victis got a huge smile on his face as he read and mouthed, “Oh, hell yeah.”
Azha snatched the tabpad out of Victis’s hand and silently read, ‘We killed the crew on the fifth Crozin battleship. I increased solar power and weapons. We are just out of monitor range. Where do you want us?
Azha handed the tabpad back to Victis mouthing, “Hell, yeah.”
Victis wrote back, Wait until we break transmission silence. Then immediately destroy the flank ships.”
Atue snapped his fingers demanding the tabpad be returned. He read it, then wrote, I know Captain Pify. Do you want me to streak over to his battleship and update him?
Victis nodded, “Yes.”
Atue turned into energy and flashed out of the ship. Azha and Victis smiled at each other, they knew the odds were now in their favor.
ATUE CIRCLED AROUND A COUPLE of times inside the Umdul’s bridge before morphing into body form. Their ship was impressive, high-tech, and spotless. Captain Pify straightened up in his helm chair and whispered, “Appear here, how?”
“Captain Pify I’m a Trekachaw, half-Ryquat, half-Quizan. My Ryquat-half is your old friend Einstein, the Ryquat Engineer. There are several of us who have control of the fifth Crozin battleship. Captain Victis gave us orders that when he breaks communication silence, we are to destroy the Crozin flank ships.”
“My, my stay there, out of monitor view will do.”
Pify belly-rolled out of his chair and waddled closer to get a better look. At best, the squatty Captain stood at Atue’s waist. Stumbling backwards, he motioned for Atue to bend over.
“A Trekachaw, you say? Captain Victis trumpet praise for kind.”
Taking another step back, he motioned for Atue to bend over a little more. That was going to be difficult, if not impossible. Atue folded his legs and sat on the floor to lower himself to the Umduls height. The old Captain patted Atue’s face with his stumpy fingers and whispered in his ear, “Later talk, you and me. Perhaps on a Crozin ship?”
In unison, the Umdul crewmen snorted with approval. Atue rose from the floor, turning into energy and streaked out of the bridge.
The Umdul’s battleship sensors alerted them to a barrage of incoming, pulsating, blue, laser blasts. The ship pitched hard starboard, dodging the impact and then accelerated at hikari speed towards Palatu. Four avenging Crozin battleships pursued the fleeing Umdul’s while firing a relentless storm of blasts.
From Palatu, Choan and Belton watched the red sky turn white with laser strikes and beams of blue, light bolts. They knew they were as good as dead if their comrades failed.
The ship’s stern-side was most vulnerable to laser damage. So far, Cpt. Pify had outmaneuvered the Crozins and dodged their lasers with barely a scratch. The old salt sensed he was running out of luck. Breaking radio silence Cpt. Pify transmitted, “Whammy mad birds, pluck out of space.”
Victis transmitted, “Engage, weapons intercept.”
The Crozin Captains heard the transmission and began scrambling their battleships in all directions. Victis fired on the lead ship with deadly accuracy. The sterilization beam vaporized every Crozin on board and the shock wave propelled the crewless ship into a spinning projectile, causing it to crash into another fleeing Crozin battleship. Both ships violently exploded, sending a firestorm of debris raining down on Palatu.
Victis transmitted, “Take out the flanks.”
One of the last two Crozin ships was in Duro’s line of sight. He fired a series of sterilization beams at the battleship, choosing not to destroy her. If he could intercept the vessel, the Trekachaws would increase their fleet with another battleship. His aim was perfect. The crewless ship’s speed decreased with the portside wing tilted down. It slowly began to roll, faster and faster, spiraling out of control towards Palatu. Atue shouted, “Duro, cease fire!”
In a flash of light, Atue streaked towards the plummeting battleship. Duro banked hard starboard and was gaining speed on the last fleeing Crozin battleship. For him, failure was not an option. He pushed the rickety war-torn ship to its limits and in a last-ditch effort, fired a long-distance hyperbaric shock wave.
Sensors alerted Victis that a Crozin battleship was spiraling towards Palatu, forcing him to re-direct his attention from Duro’s pursuit to the imminent annihilation of life on Palatu.
Duro transmitted, “Do not fire on the descending battleship, Atue’s on board.”
Victis cancelled the destruct sequence, holding his breath as he watched the spiraling battleship disappear into Palatu’s atmosphere. No sooner had he cancelled the order, Victis was furious that he’d listened to Duro. He should have disintegrated the Crozins’ ship while it was still in orbit.
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br /> Duro and Atue’s defiance was reprehensible. He’d ordered them to destroy the flank ships. Their insubordination allowed one Crozin ship to escape, and the fools crashed the other one into Palatu. Most likely, half the planet would be decimated, and the other half desolate. Sickened and outraged, he would be lucky to save a handful of Quizans. This was a catastrophe changing everything: the war, his plans, and the Trekachaws’ future. Victis transmitted, “Duro, update the status of the Crozin ship?”
“In pursuit, gaining on it.”
“Negative, stand down. Return immediately!”
The new Trekachaws were brazen; he could not trust them to obey orders. Until he got control of the situation, it was best to rein them in. Most of the Viceroys on the Fidus Achates Counsel were ambiguous regarding the merge of a Ryquat and Quizan. However, a few individuals on the counsel were appalled and protested profusely, insisting the merge was an immoral act with devastating consequences. Victis had one chance to prove their worthiness, loyalty, and superiority. Foolishly blinded by their charisma and physical superiority, he’d failed miserably. There was no reasonable justification for the loss of raw materials or the negligent destruction of the planet. To advocate saving the other Trekachaws, Victis had no other choice than to sterilize Duro and Atue. If the rest rebelled, he would be forced to sterilize them all.
Victis leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes visualizing the horrific impact and shock wave of the spiraling battleship as it crashed into Palatu. Ground zero… A crater six miles deep with a radius of three hundred miles, destroying everything in its path. The kinetic energy and solar radiation could easily spread over half of the planet, causing the climate to radically change. Nauseated by his thoughts, Victis sat quietly at the helm waiting for the impact. Poor judgment on his part resulted in an indiscriminate genocide. Soon the dark mushroom could be seen for all to view on the bridge monitor. And so, it began…
The atmosphere bulged from an immense billowing doom rising from the annihilation of Palatu.
Thick, swirling, red clouds cascaded from the black hull, revealing an unscathed Crozin battleship. Against all odds, Atue had navigated the battleship out of an impossible spiral descent. Victis felt a wave of relief and then jumped out of his chair shouting, “Unbelievable, he did it!”
The bridge came alive with cheers and hoorahs. Victis felt dizzy and his body was shaking, then the bridge seemed to darken, and voices sounded far away. He sat down trying to calm himself and concentrated on slowing his breathing. Before he spoke, Victis took a deep breath, “Duro, Atue, rendezvous and dock.”
“Transmission received, confirm.”
In flawless tandem they flew a victory lap with their trophies over Palatu. Assuming they were heroes, the ace pilots locked their Crozin battleships side-by-side with the Ryquat ship. The Umdul crew watched the show, then ascended, paralleling the Ryquat battleship. Cpt. Pify transmitted, “Permission, lock-in Captain.”
Victis switched monitor screens and spoke face-to-face with his faithful comrade, “Welcome aboard.”
He should’ve felt like celebrating. But, he did not. They were lucky this time; he could not allow a next time. Victis pointed at a crewman, “You, locate Trekachaws Phera, Deneb, Roon and Pax. Have them report to the bridge.”
Atue, Vious, Vopar and Duro swaggered across the gangplank onto the Ryquat ship. On the way to the bridge, they almost collided with several Umduls and crewmen in their path. Cpt. Pify waddled behind them as fast as his short legs could go, yelling, “Einstein, savior too blind?”
Atue blatantly ignored him and continued to walk.
Cpt. Pify shouted, “Einstein no halt, forthright refusal ricochet hereafter.”
Atue spun around, “Do not address me as Einstein. My name is Atue.”
Cpt. Pify pretended to quiver in his boots and then saluted with an equally rude response, “Insolent Einstein disappoint. Divine Atue Trekachaw, lick my toes Prig.”
Atue’s stripes dulled to yellow and he bowed, “I apologize for my insolence.”
After a brief tense silence, Cpt. Pify shrugged it off, “Acceptable regret. Curious, metamorphosis?”
Knowing his question would take much longer to answer than the short walk to the bridge would allow, Atue suggested they meet up later.
TO HELP CLEAR HIS HEAD, Victis paced the bridge until everyone arrived. Since nothing had gone according to their plans, it was necessary to close ranks and make new ones. Upon their arrival, he promptly escorted the group into his office and sharply told everyone to take a seat at the oval table. Azha was both excited and nervous to see if he recognized Phera after her merge with Ryquat Tara. She was sitting alone across the room. In his rush to sit next to her, Azha stubbed his big toe on a side table and had to hop the rest of the way. As he pulled out a chair, Roon jerked the chair out on the other side of Phera, sat down and whispered something in her ear. If that wasn’t strange enough, Phera sneered at him and looked away.
“Phera, what’s wrong? What did Roon say?” Azha asked.
Before she could answer him, Cpt. Victis ordered silence.
“The Fidus Achates Counsel contacted me regarding Palatu and the merging of Quizans with Ryquats and Humans. I’ll update you on Palatu first. An incumbent order has been entrusted upon us to establish a Fidus Achates outpost on the planet. I recommended Trekachaws for the task. I have not heard back on their decision. The outpost’s jurisdiction will be a one-light year radius. In addition to Palatu, we’ll be responsible for Earth. With that said, there’s a strict no-contact with Humans. Of course, we know the no-contact order is impossible, considering our circumstances. Anyone who disagrees with me, excuse yourself from this meeting with no consequences.”
Heads turned looking at one another curious to see if anyone was going to leave.
“No one? Then let’s continue. The Quizans will be protected at all costs and there shall be no further mining on Palatu. The existing mined materials will be transported by the Gystfin cargo ship Azha confiscated. Presently, that ship is orbiting Europa. Without Palatu’s raw materials, there’s talk Zaurak will be forced to succumb or destroyed by the Crozins. The two seized Crozin battleships will remain in Palatu’s orbit. Captain Pify is in command until my return. Agreed?”
Captain Pify nodded his head in approval.
“Depending on what the Crozins know, we could be in a race with them to Europa. Most likely, Crozin battleships will return sometime soon to secure the raw materials and seek revenge. With that said, I have some good news. The Crozins need the raw materials as much as we do, and our alliances assured me they’ll do everything in their power to keep the Crozins occupied on the front.
Next, the merging situation. To my surprise, they’ve approved Ryquat/Quizan merges to increase the Trekachaw species. Right now, that does not help us. Azha and I will return to Palatu in search of Quizan volunteers willing to merge with Humans. Once we’ve secured the cargo ship, we’ll visit Earth to recruit Human volunteers. That’s all for now. I’ll take questions in order, starting with Cpt. Pify.”
“Entertain Umdul Trekachaws? My, my, wouldn’t that be something?”
Azha raised his hand alleging he knew the answer to Cpt. Pify’s question. Victis gave him the go ahead.
“Before I say anything to offend you, I mean no disrespect. Long ago, Quizans made an oath never to merge with any species other than Humans. The Ryquat merges were out of desperation, and the Gystfin merges were from hate and vengeance. If given a choice, they’ll merge with Humans. I believed in that oath with such resolve that I almost died trying to find Earth. Since then, I believe Ryquats have proven to be worthy. Quizans have no history or understanding of the Umdul species. Based on that, I doubt if you’ll find anyone willing to merge.”
Captain Pify puckered his lips and puffed-out air, “This, I accept. Can earn respect we find in time?”
Next around the table, Pax requested confirmation regarding his assignment as Chief Medical Officer.
> “Good question. On ship, unless you’re replaced with an equally qualified M.O. If you’re thinking about a Human M.O., it’s up to the Quizan to choose whomever they please. Plus, you would be responsible for making sure the Human Trekachaw is proficient.”
Duro let out a bogus cough in protest. Victis was livid, but he kept his anger in check.
“Do you have something to say?” Victis asked.
“I’m staying on ship,” demanded Duro.
Victis could feel his temper boil, so he took a moment to think about his next words. Atue and Duro were confrontational and defiant. They disobeyed his orders to destroy the Crozin flank ship, and now this. Victis touched his arm under the table to activate the laser to kill Duro, then rose from his chair.
“Have you forgotten who’s Captain of this ship? I will say this only once, follow my orders and keep your mouth shut.”
Victis glanced across the table at Atue, daring him to say anything in support of Duro. Atue spoke up in his own defense, “Captain I do not listen to Duro. I am loyal to you, I respect you and will follow your orders.”
Duro sunk in his chair. “Captain, please accept my apology. I will not cause any more problems.”
Victis scowled at Deneb, daring her to defy him, “Question?”
Deneb fired back, “No Sir.”
In unison Vopar and Vious spoke, “No Sir.”
Victis sat down and pointed to Azha, “Let’s continue.”
“Will I be going to Europa?” Azha asked.
“Yes,” replied Victis.
“What is my assignment?”
“Advisor in the selection of suitable Humans and finding the best recruitment locations.”
Deneb, Phera and Roon snickered, making light of his assignment. Azha’s stripes flared purple and he clenched his teeth trying to restrain his wrath at their petty disrespect. Before he could stop himself, the chair he’d been sitting in was flung against the wall, shattering into kindling. Victis slammed his fists on the table and stood up, then stomped over to his desk mumbling, “Embarrassing childish imbeciles, this behavior cannot be tolerated.”