by Michael Kan
Venting a puff of steam from his lips, the admiral fell back in his chair, fearing the potential onslaught.
The enemy as much as we feared them in the past, they always fought us with one fist behind their back, he said. Now they don’t care for sentient life, it seems. They want us all dead.
The admiral spoke to Arendi as he sat in a location in a military facility underground. She could see the commotion around him. Officers were shouting orders and bustling through. Onatagias sighed as he looked at a separate holofield. If this continues, the death toll will reach over a billion or more, he lamented. Our precious peace is gone.
Although the admiral couldn’t see it, Arendi was just as tense. She heard the commander’s words and felt her breath sapped. It was a dire situation, and it risked growing worse.
I’m sorry. I wish I had something more hopeful to say, he added. But I’m glad you’re here, fighting for us. We need all the ships we can get.
Admiral. This may all just be a diversion, she warned. My source Cieras Novaire he’s still convinced that the true target is Vellanar.
I see. So far the enemy is attacking our fringes. But as a precaution, our defense drones at Vellanar will remain in the system.
It was at least one reassuring sign. Even without the Alliance fleet, the Arcenian home world was still well defended by a machine army, built to protect the empire. Thousands of the small, unmanned ships were already patrolling the edge of the system, armed to fight off any threat, including the Endervars.
If anything happens, we’ll be ready to join them, Arendi said.
The admiral nodded and slouched back in his seat again. Next to him, another Arcenian officer had approached. He was leaning in and whispering into the admiral’s ear.
I’m sorry, Arendi, the old commander grumbled. But I have to leave.
Already, panic was spreading across the Alliance. Reports of the enemy attacks were reaching the news spheres, and the admiral was scheduled to address the public.
A chore, he complained, rubbing his creased brow. I wish I actually had answers if only were here then this would
The words and his image were starting to freeze and jumble. Arendi’s feed to the Arcenian military command was cutting in and out. They both knew why.
Not exactly the best timing, he grumbled. But I hope we’ll find whatever this Farcia is looking for.
With the help of the admiral, Arendi had managed to access the computing systems across the government. It had all been done in secret, however, and without official authorization. The hack being used was extreme and invasive, to say the least.
She could hear his frustration on the other end. He pounded the console in annoyance.
What’s done is done, he said. It’s quite the gamble.
Arendi watched, flexing her right hand. I know. But if necessary, I’ll take full responsibility.
He couldn’t quite hear her, however. The static was gargling her voice.
It didn’t matter. The admiral took comfort in the fact that she was still there, not far from the planet. As his image began to fade, the old commander straightened his uniform.
Well, if there’s anyone who can stop the Endervars, it’s you, Arendi.
He came close to the comm feed and smiled one last time. The creases rivered through his hard face, contorting his gray and white cheeks. He then saluted with his clawed hand, as an Alliance sentinel would, and placed it across his chest.
Admiral, she said, wishing he could hear her. But before Arendi could speak further, the old commander had signed off.
***
She returned to the bridge, hearing the voices. There were several of them, speaking in different dialects through the static. As she listened, translating the contents in her mind, Arendi realized that they were all desperately pleading for help. Each one was frantic.
This is Baradac Colony, requesting immediate assistance! To anyone out there.
Enemy craft are everywhere. We’ve sustained heavy damage to orbital shields. Bombardment continues
We won’t last much longer defense perimeter collapsing Endervar forces are
Even as they spoke in different alien languages, Arendi could hear the terror. It was distinct, and it pierced through the interference.
Red and the ensign were there as well, sitting near the command console. They quietly listened, stomaching their horror. The distress signals across the long-range comm feeds were only building.
Osilig City is it’s gone. I repeat, it’s been completely destroyed
Although there was no visual data, all of them could imagine the destruction. The ensign nervously fumbled with her hands.
Obviously, the natural response was to intervene. To plot a course and travel via hyperspace at the fastest speed. It was the thought on all of their minds. The entire empire was facing attack, but still they were here, waiting for what?
Arendi, the ensign said, rising from her seat. She stood at attention, but her eyes were awash in worry. What are your orders?
It should be simple, Arendi thought. Millions are dying, and we need to act.
Alliance Command had already ordered them to do so. The ensign had seen the recent dispatch. All Sentinels had been instructed to join the Alliance fleet in the sector and begin a counterattack. So why did they still linger?
For a moment, Arendi stood there, hesitant. Although her orders were decisive, she was still at odds with herself. As all could see, this was no typical Endervar attack. Something had utterly changed.
Farcia it has to be her.
Arendi stared at Red, remembering everything he had told them. At the time, she had been skeptical. His claims came without any real evidence. Even now, there was nothing to prove it. Regardless, Arendi had begun to believe.
She is an Endervar. Farcia is their agent, just as you said, Arendi went on. That’s why this attack is different.
She pointed to the main screen and the galactic map still on display. The Arcenian Empire remained imperiled, but now other galactic races were under threat as well.
They’re spreading, she said. The enemy clearly knows where we’re weak. They’re attacking civilian centers, shipyards, even communication nodes. Even Terran colonies are under attack.
The Endervars. Does she control them? Does Farcia lead them?
Red looked at her. His gills inhaled another rush of air. Slowly, he turned to the galactic map and felt the chill in his hands.
As I said before I don’t know. But now maybe it’s apparent.
Red thought back to that moment. To the moment when he touched Farcia’s mind. It was only a fleeting glimpse, surrounded more by shadow than actual detail. For days now, he had tried to piece the memories together, only to fail and fall back on his own speculation. But for him, at least one thing was resoundingly clear.
I didn’t think she could do this. Or at least, I didn’t foresee this elaborate attack. But the pain, the hatred, the anger she feels, he continued, it was there always there.
Red shook, overwhelmed by the grief. It was like before, when his people had become the victims. Now, all he could do was regret and warn the rest of the galaxy.
This isn’t my Farcia, he said. It’s the other. The imposter the Endervar inside.
Red winced, clenching his fingers together. As he did, the guilt weighed on his mind.
Why is this happening? Why couldn’t I stop this?
He was desperate for answers, but he could offer no more, even as Arendi was gambling that his suspicions were right.
It was then that the alarm went off. Above, the klaxon began to shriek. The surrounding lights turned violet, and soon their vessel would scramble to leave orbit.
Priority code, Arendi said. Endervar craft detected.
At that moment, the Sentinel’s ship began to move. Arendi’s artificial mind had fully synced with her vessel, the Kinnison, and she ordered it to take flight.
Where? Red asked, fe
eling the vessel rise. The ship’s accelerators vibrated. The high-pitched whine howled throughout the bridge.
On the edge of the system, she explained. Only a few light-years away.
The screen shifted, and the scans revealed the incoming fleet’s position. Arcenian defense drones were already there to engage.
I’m counting at least a hundred contacts, the ensign added. Maybe more. All moving aggressively.
Arendi expected nothing less. This is it, she said. Battle stations.
Chapter 13
They came in the night, burning the darkness. For now, the ships cared for nothing else. They were here to destroy. The enemy exploded across the system’s outer rim their bombardment erupting through the vacuum and soon the inferno began to invade. Searing through the cold and empty space was their signature weapon, the particle beam, or what the galaxy knew to be energy unleashed. To any observer, it was a wave of deadly oncoming light. Then it scorched, bursting into a nova of flame.
Wave after wave arrived, consuming everything in its path. It was relentless, the enemy holding nothing back.
My God, Red said, watching the scans. They won’t stop.
There were only a hundred Endervar ships, against the Arcenian Empire’s drone army. But each vessel appeared like a giant in the night. The outer hull glowed crystal-white. One craft alone had enough power to annihilate more primitive fleets, Red knew. The military of his own people had suffered the fate over and over again. Powering the enemy was an alien energy, capable of bending physical laws. So, as always, they passed through space with blazing speed, generating force fields and weaponized energy that few could counter, let alone match. Even now, the Arcenian military struggled to contain them. Their drones, while armed to teeth, were like gnats against the encroaching flame.
Ships are exchanging fire, the ensign said, as she sat at the command console. But the Endervars, they keep coming.
The scans were starting to detect it. The force was smashing against the fabric of space. New enemy contacts were appearing, dropping out of warp, there to join their brethren in battle.
Total number still unknown, the ensign said. But they’re accelerating.
Arendi stood by, listening. Their vessel, the Kinnison, rushed to meet the enemy. Hearing the engines pulsate, she made a fist and pressed it against her lips.
For now, the ensuing battle had been relegated to the edge of the system. But that wouldn’t last. The enemy ships were spreading far and wide as their bombardment only grew.
Red watched as the Endervar fleet pressed on, undaunted. The moving force had been quick to separate into smaller groups, making them harder to stop. The ships were rapidly circling and soaring past any obstacle. For them, the goal was to burn. To push through into the inner system and raze the world orbiting inside.
They’re heading to Vellanar, the ensign exclaimed. Arcenian drones are out in pursuit.
Already, the local machine army was starting to amass around several Endervar ships. It would only be a matter of a time before the capsule like drones ate away at the enemy’s shields or died trying.
Red joined the ensign and nervously examined the scans. The remaining enemy ships sped on, with at least a dozen accelerating forward, nearly unopposed. At this speed, it would be only a half hour or less before the enemy came upon its ultimate target.
Arendi wouldn’t let that happen.
Advise the Arcenian military to deploy orbital shields around the planet, she said.
Understood, the ensign replied, interfacing with the comm. Arcenian Command concurs. Deployment is imminent.
Good, Arendi said. Accessing the real-time data, she approached the main screen. Before her was the enemy light. It glared back, the ships in the distance but approaching.
This was same light that was now rampaging across the region. Unless something was done, the chaos would only grow. Arendi placed her fist in her other hand. Somehow she needed to stop this.
Moving to intercept, she said. Weapons charging.
***
To fight them she would have to come in close. So close that her ship was taking fire.
Shield’s down to eighty-one percent, the ensign shouted as the clamor of the attack hit the vessel.
They could feel the entire bridge stagger. The particle beams were hammering into the fore. As the bulkhead rattled with the impacts, Arendi navigated the ship with her mind. She concentrated with every ounce of her focus. One wrong move, and they would be dead.
The enemy was coming. Five vessels were in sight. And in another few seconds, a clash would ensue. Arendi sought to fly right across them and take them down in one swoop. It wouldn’t be easy. The enemy was moving fast, daggering into the space with each energy blast. Now her own vessel had become their next target; the particle beams were intensifying.
Shields at seventy-four percent, the ensign said as the weapons fire continued to hit.
Truth be told, Arendi wasn’t the best pilot. Her career as a Sentinel had begun after the Endervar War. And even then, her missions had rarely involved space combat like this. Regardless, her experience would have to do. She still remembered the lessons from the past.
Targeting, Arendi said, as the unique weapon in her control charged. Locking on.
Standing steady, she was ready to release the attack. At her beck and call was the Kinnison, an interceptor designed to counter any conceivable threat. This included the Endervars, whose vessels were infamous for their high speed and maneuverability.
The Kinnison was in overdrive, primed to strike back. Seeing the targets, Arendi sent her vessel careening and activated the weapon. The ammunition arrived as an extension of her own technology the ability to manipulate the fabric of space took hold. The spatial shielding emerged from the rear of the Kinnison, dragging across the battlefield. The result was a trail of dead void, an area of space that had been warped and temporarily weaponized. It was a region very little physical matter could survive; the forces binding the molecules had been suppressed. The atomic bonds shook, rupturing loose.
The Endervar ships targeting the Kinnison flew into the void, only to crash into the weapon. Three vessels shattered like glass, the mass of an entire city breaking apart.
Targets down, the ensign said, shocked at their quick demise. She rose in her seat and breathed a sigh of relief. The surrounding particle beams abruptly abated, while the other two enemy contacts moved out of range.
Shall we pursue?
Arendi curled her lips. Her compulsion was to say yes. But even if they did, this battle was far from over. Arendi was already analyzing the situation Although dozens of enemy ships had started to fall, so had the Arcenian drone army. Over 40 percent of the defending machines had been annihilated, either through particle-beam fire or in collisions with Endervar ships. They wouldn’t hold out much longer. Not when the enemy’s forces continued to grow and to overwhelm them.
Three hundred Endervar ships, Red said, watching the scans. How will we stop them?
Arendi said nothing at first. She had no answer. With each passing moment, the enemy was plunging deeper into the system. And inevitably the fighting would move to the doorsteps of Vellanar, putting eleven billion lives at risk. Even with her own technologies, Arendi was struggling to fight back effectively. There were simply too many enemy ships, moving in a wide-ranging free-for-all. At this point, containing them would be impossible. She’d have to destroy them ship by ship, hoping her shields could hold.
Reinforcements? she asked. Status?
Alliance ships won’t be here for another two hours, the ensign said. As for the Arcenian forces, it’ll be even longer.
It was a bleak scenario; at this rate, they might not survive that long. Pulling up the combat computer, Arendi was ready to acquire more targets. Perhaps it was a losing battle, but she would fight until the end.
Endervar ships, the ensign interrupted. They’ve begun attacking the planet.
A
rendi went to her internal alerts and saw it as well. Although the scans registered only a few enemy vessels, very soon it would be many more.
So be it, Arendi said. We’ll give them everything we have.
She plotted the course as the Kinnison charged its engines.
***
Outside of Vellanar it was pure bedlam. The surrounding area rocked with torrents of energy, as the enemy’s weapon came strafing down. The explosions were building. The planet’s orbital shielding was shaking under the scorching fire. Lunging forward and then pulling back were the invading Endervar ships. They arrived in one pass after another, the particle beams swiping at the planet’s protective fields in rapid succession.
Over forty enemy vessels were bombarding the home world, seeking to break through its defenses. But as the Endervars attacked, so would the Arcenian people. The strike came from the space ring, a dense strip of metal that wrapped around the planet. The belt of machinery had originally been created for commerce and travel. But the massive structure that orbited Vellanar was also a weapon, or a base of operations from which they could strike. The exact specifications of the ring remained classified. But even as it was still under construction, the circular fortress was fully armed and ready to engage.
It did this now, emitting an orbital force field that surrounded the entire planet. Layered with energized barriers, the near-invisible shield was thick and beyond what any typical military craft could muster. Now, with the targets in range, the fortress initiated the counterattack. Across the belt, dozens of bay doors opened. Emerging was a wall of cannons; the barrels protruded from the structure. Each one was over twenty meters long, and together they contained the power of several Alliance battleships.
The automated gears cranked the weapons into position. The cannons fired, the mixture of energy venting violently. What erupted was a surge of hot plasma, splashing out of the ring. The individual blasts streaked through the cold, fixated on their targets. The barrage was near constant, the impacts colliding with enemy ships.