“What do you mean by everything?” I asked.
Visconti answered for her. “She means your time spent as the Curator’s Effectuator, your encounter—while traveling to Earth—with three Purple Tamika heavy cruisers, the replica, the Jelk mind machine, the phase suit, the Ambassador, the Shi Feng and the space battle where you demolished eleven Lokhar cruisers and the horrible confrontation with Orcus, clone of Abaddon.”
“Oh, that,” I said.
Visconti put both massive paws on the table, his demeanor becoming grave. “I have fully rewarded their candor with bizarre tales of my own. You will want to hear them, I know, as they will fill in certain gaps in your knowledge.”
“Tales about Orcus and Plutonians?” I asked.
“Until now, I haven’t known their species name,” Visconti said. “But yes, my tales include them and the planet Acheron, as well.”
“Oh?”
“Much has happened during your decade-long absence,” Visconti replied, “but none of it was galaxy shattering. That abruptly changed two years ago.”
“Two years ago, Jennifer left the Fortress of Light and found Holgotha,” I said.
Visconti nodded. “I surmise that, soon after reaching the Forerunner artifact, she transferred to Earl Daniel Parthian of Purple Tamika.”
“Did the earl become Emperor Daniel Lex Rex?” I asked.
“Yes.”
“How did that happen?”
“I’ve pieced together some of the history while other ‘facts’ are educated conjectures. The point is that a little less than two years ago, Earl Daniel Parthian led an expedition to the planet Acheron. He took what remained of the Purple Tamika Home Fleet, using every bombard. I’ve heard Purple Tamika fought a mythical battle against an incredible guardian machine that was stationed in orbital defense of Acheron. The Home Fleet would have lost except that a Forerunner artifact teleported into the fray, aiding the bombards during the lopsided contest.”
“Holgotha,” I said.
“Agreed,” said Visconti. “In the end, the earl destroyed the guardian ship and plundered the planet. I know this is true, for I have been to Acheron and seen the empty time-vaults.”
“What! When did this happen?”
“I have just returned from my expedition to Acheron,” Visconti said. “The guardian machine is no more, having become nothing but orbital debris and junk. The planet was a vast desert world with howling winds and oily lakes shimmering with polluted colors. There were broken, metallic structures half-buried in the shifting sands. In the ancient, worn-down mountains, we found vast mineshafts. We descended into several. At the deepest level, we found a time vault exactly as described by the legends. The massive door stood ajar each time, the vault barren. Ultra-sensitive scanners indicated Lokhar footprints on the vault floor. Clearly, Earl Parthian’s people had cracked the ancient vaults and plundered whatever treasures had lain within.
“That would explain some of the ‘new’ technologies and unbelievable powers they had unleashed earlier to regain Purple Tamika the leadership of the empire.”
Visconti paused, becoming pensive. “My keenest scientist found evidence of a strange city buried deep in the planetary mantle. Obviously, we lacked the equipment to drill down to the structure or any teleporting device that could reach such a place. According to the scientist, the others hadn’t reached the location either. Who would build such a place?”
I shook my head, as I had no idea.
Visconti inhaled sharply. “While our shuttles lifted from the planet, a portal opened beside Acheron’s farthest moon. Out of it ejected three strange ships. My men hailed them, but the ships ignored the signals. Instead, they accelerated at us as our shuttles landed in the hangar bays. We destroyed the three ships, but it was a costly fight. I lost half my fleet before it was over.”
“Did you capture any of the attackers?”
Visconti laughed sourly. “We had to concentrate on one enemy ship at a time, hammering at incredible hull armor with massed mauler fire. We could break through the exotic armor, but it took time, always too much time. I wanted the secret to such material and to their exceedingly deadly particle beam cannons. To that end, I readied assault shuttles to board and capture at least one enemy vessel.
The giant tiger shook his head. “Each time the maulers breached the hull and their fire slackened, and the assault shuttle captains moved into position, the raider blew up in a frightful explosion, taking everything in range of it. Not only that, but in the titanic blast, the raider destroyed the hull material and any vestige of his weaponry.”
I nodded. It sounded just like N7’s downloaded experience. What I found more interesting was Visconti’s initial action. It seemed uncharacteristic of the Lokhar.
“Tell me,” I said, “why did you journey to Acheron?”
The huge tiger stared at his paws, slowly shaking his head before looking up and regarding me. “For countless centuries, all Lokhars have avoided Acheron. When Earl Parthian began his rebellion, easily defeating every Orange Tamika fleet sent against him, I knew there had to be a technical reason for the sudden proficiency of Purple Tamika ships. I thought, ‘I will use the same trick against him, avenging the bloody death of Emperor Sant.’ You have heard how Sant died, have you not?”
“No.”
“While Sant listened to petitions from his highest nobles, raiders teleported into his courtroom. One such invader was said to look like Abaddon. That one used a terrible weapon that he fired from his shoulder like an annihilating tube.”
“Orcus,” I said.
“Although the killer resembled the ancient enemy, he lacked most of Abaddon’s potent abilities. He could not dominate everyone with his will, nor did he possess a personal force field stopping all shots fired at him. Still, Orcus—as you’ve named him—slaughtered Emperor Sant and the nobility in the Great Hall. That day, alien ships appeared out of unknown portals, smashing the main fleet, destroying the bulk of the empire’s mobile combat power.”
“How long ago did that happen?” I asked.
“Nineteen months ago,” Visconti said crisply, as if he’d memorized the date.
“Did the defending fleet nineteen months ago destroy any of the raid ships?”
“Oh yes,” Visconti said. “Those alien ships also exploded spectacularly once they’d taken too much damage. Clearly, the enemy has installed deadly explosives in all his vessels. I would hazard that the rulers consider their battle tech far superior to ours and want to ensure that we never get our hands on that tech.”
“They’re right to think we’ll use their tech against them if we can,” I said.
“In that vein of thought, I’d hoped to find something on Acheron to help equalize the situation against the Pretender Daniel Lex Rex.”
“Hmm,” I said. “Our enemy has already outthought us regarding the idea. They raided Acheron, perhaps to destroy anything we might find and use, and to raid the time-vaults for ancient technology.”
“I agree,” Visconti said.
I drummed my fingers on the table, the caffeine from the two cups having made me slightly jittery. The coffee must have been stronger than normal. Two cups shouldn’t have done that to me.
“The Plutonians clearly have superior beam weaponry and hard-to-penetrate hull armor,” I said. “They don’t have electromagnetic shields, however.”
“They don’t need such shields given their fantastic hull armor,” Visconti complained.
He had a point. “Tell me more about Orcus,” I said.
“I’ve already told you what I know, which is precious little.”
“No. You’ve said more than you realize. Orcus lacked many of Abaddon’s powers. Perhaps the sire’s powers grew with his great age.”
“And grew with constant practice,” Ella said.
“Yes,” Visconti said. “Abaddon was supposed to be incredibly ancient, is that not so?”
“That’s what I don’t understand about all this,” I said. “The C
urator told me Jennifer had taken Abaddon’s DNA. The Curator did not say anything about her already growing successful clones. I wonder why the Curator didn’t warn me about Orcus.”
“What is your point?” Visconti asked.
“The obvious,” I said. “How did Orcus get to be as old as he is already? If Jennifer took Abaddon’s DNA two years ago, at most, Orcus should only be two years old now, barely more than an infant. Instead, almost two years ago, he killed Emperor Sant.”
“Perhaps the Plutonians have an accelerator,” Visconti said. “Or perhaps your Jennifer found an accelerator on Acheron in a time vault.”
“I’ve never heard of an accelerator,” I said. “Does it accelerate growth?”
“It is a legendary device said to be on Acheron,” Visconti told me. “The old tales suggest that it is a time accelerator. The tales also speak about the vast power needed to run the mythical machine. With it, a boy can become a man in a matter of minutes.”
“Or a clone fetus can become an adult,” I said.
Visconti spread his huge paws. “That would explain this Orcus’s apparent age. He might only be eighteen months old but possess the body of a fully grown First One.”
“That would also explain why he lacks some of the powers Abaddon possessed,” I said. “Orcus has a fully mature body, but maybe it takes longer to gain a mature First One mind.”
“So we know how Orcus grew up so fast,” Ella said. “Maybe the greater point is that now we know Jennifer is allied with Emperor Daniel Lex Red.”
“It’s worse than that,” Visconti said. “Emperor Lex Rex is allied to the Plutonians. I wonder what binds them, what goal or project unites their interests.”
“Wait a minute,” I said, slapping the table, making my coffee cup shake in its saucer. “That’s not like Plutonians. From the history books I read, they’re utterly xenophobic. They hate all alien races equally. That means they should hate Purple Tamika Lokhars.”
“If that’s so,” Ella said, “the alliance indicates something crucial. The Plutonians aren’t in charge of the operation?”
“If they’re not in charge,” I said, “who is?”
“Probably Jennifer or maybe Orcus usurped her place,” Ella said. “No…” she said a moment later. “We have to consider a horrible possibility. Let me think this through. Using Holgotha as a bargaining chip—remember how much Lokhars revere Forerunner artifacts—Jennifer convinces Earl Parthian to throw in with her. He does, bringing the bombards to Acheron. They destroy the guardian machine and plunder the time vaults. With the new/old tech, Jennifer grows Orcus into a mature state. But you said before that she took the DNA of Abaddon. That means there could be more than just one clone, more than one Orcus.”
“An army of Abaddon clones?” I asked, dismayed.
“Armed with the tech of the First Ones and the Plutonians,” Ella said.
Visconti groaned. “We’re doomed. How can we face such a force?”
His words stiffened my spine. “The same way we’ve faced everyone else,” I said, “head-on, trying to kill them before they kill us.”
“You know,” Ella told me. “We had a few helmet cams installed before our expedition to Tau Ceti. I saw footage of the blob creatures on the Lokhar heavy cruiser you boarded. What were those creatures exactly?”
“The obvious answer is Plutonians,” I said.
“Your books didn’t say what Plutonians looked like?” she asked.
I shook my head.
“Or where they came from?” Ella asked.
“What’s your point?” I said.
“The blob creatures, the Plutonians, didn’t seem like any intelligent alien life I’ve seen so far. Are there any aliens like them in the galactic center?”
“None that I know of,” I said.
“I think I know why Plutonians are so xenophobic,” Ella said. “Maybe they’re from a different space-time continuum. The Kargs were unlike anything we’ve seen before, as much machine as a biological being, and they came from a different dimension.”
“Interesting,” I said. “If that’s true—that the Plutonians are from a different dimension—maybe that’s why the First Ones decided to put them in a pocket universe.”
“Maybe,” Ella said. “Unfortunately, none of that tells us how Jennifer gained mastery over the Plutonians.”
“I’m not sure she has gained mastery,” I said.
“I am,” Ella said. “Several items point to it. One, the Plutonians united with Purple Tamika instead of exterminating them. Two, Plutonians worked on Orcus’s bridge.”
“If those were even Plutonians,” I said.
“Let me finish,” Ella said. “The creatures worked on the chief cruiser, Orcus’s flagship. Why were there so few Plutonians on the ship?”
“It’s your theory,” I said. “You tell me.”
Ella clapped her hands together. “I have it. Jennifer has only woken a few Plutonians, maybe just as many control units as she found.”
“What control units?” I asked. “Did you find something aboard the heavy cruiser to suggest control units?”
“Not a thing,” Rollo said. “After the missile hit, the heavy cruiser blew up. Ella retrieved us as we drifted in space.”
“Wait a second,” I said. “Why didn’t Orcus just turn around and kill us? All we had was the GEV for protection and one conscious person.”
“You’re wrong,” Ella said. “Your AI used the two empty light cruisers, controlling them. The light cruisers chased Orcus’s heavy cruiser to the dwarf planet. While they did, I picked up the unconscious twelve.”
“Including you, the Lucky Thirteen,” I said quietly.
“This is starting to come together,” Ella said. “I’ve been wondering why Jennifer hasn’t struck Earth with enough force to finish us.”
“Maybe there’s a part of her that doesn’t want to exterminate humanity and that’s what is holding her back,” I said
Ella examined me. “No,” she said, softly. “You’re hoping that’s true. But it’s only a hope.”
“Earth is still here,” I pointed out.
“Because Jennifer and Orcus are stretched thin,” Ella said. “They have to keep Emperor Lex Rex and the Plutonians in line and—”
“Now you’re just free-balling it,” I said. “There’s no basis for thinking—”
“Creed,” Ella said, interrupting me. “There have been more Plutonian attacks, three-ship alien cruiser-sized attacks.”
“Against Earth?” I asked.
“No,” Visconti said, “against Orange Tamika strongholds and against Earth Liberated Planets, former Jelk Corporation worlds.”
“More attacks in the last three weeks?” I asked.
“More altogether,” Ella said, “although we’ve just received reports of attacks that happened elsewhere earlier.”
“I want to see a map of the attacked star systems,” I said.
“You will,” Ella said. “Diana has called a strategy meeting. The bulk of Earth Force has returned to the Solar System. Combined with the baron’s maulers, Diana wants to decide where we should strike next.”
“Next?” I asked.
“Well,” Ella said, “where to strike. You don’t win a war waiting for the enemy to finish you. You have to attack and finish him.”
“All right,” I said. “I want to see a map of all the Plutonian strikes. Then, I want to think about this. Before we meet Diana, I need a plan. Because the wrong plan will ensure our extinction.”
-40-
I saw the maps, taking them to my study. There, I pored over them and tried to figure out the strategic reasons for the seemingly random attacks. They had all come unexpectedly from an appearing dimensional portal. That meant each attack had originated from the Plutonian pocket universe. All of the attacks but one had been the same size, three Plutonian cruiser-sized vessels. Many of the attacks had destroyed every defender, with the enemy warships bombarding the occupied planet, wiping out everyone below.
It was a merciless form of combat in keeping with known Plutonian xenophobia.
The one unique attack had been with twice the force, six of the cruiser-class ships. That one had also succeeded, murdering a billion humans on a former Saurian world and moon.
Maybe the enemy coordinator—the brain, Jennifer being the most likely—didn’t consider the Earth as the prime target. There were far more humans than the ones in the Solar System. As I’ve said previously, the Jelk Corporation had kidnapped hundreds of thousands of humans throughout time. Those people had children, slave children to the Corporation, but alive just the same. After the Jelk Corporation disintegrated and the Saurians abandoned the frontier worlds, the human survivors had petitioned Earth to join the Terran Confederation of Liberated Planets.
Both the Lokhar Emperor and the Plutonians—and Jennifer, I supposed—wanted humanity exterminated. There was the binding goal. The Curator had told me quite some time ago that humans were the best soldiers in the galaxy. Others had good reason to fear us. We were the little killers.
Maybe these random attacks weren’t random. What if their goal was simply murdering as many humans in as short a time as possible?
I studied the attacks and the timing of them.
No. It wasn’t only about murdering humans, the little killers. Killing masses of humans was part of it, but also destroying Confederation’s cohesion. The randomness of the attacks meant we would never know where the next one would hit. And more than slowly—actually, quite quickly—the three-cruiser strikes were killing us by the death of a thousand cuts.
A few Orange Tamika strongholds had also been hit, but they only accounted for seventeen percent of the Plutonian strikes.
I thought about that. I wondered if I should have asked Visconti his take on the eleven-cruiser, Purple Tamika strike force waiting in the Tau Ceti System. What had the cruisers been doing there? Why had Orcus joined them? Why had he taken Plutonian crewmembers on his flagship? Had there been another purpose for having the Plutonians along? Did the enemy task force have anything to do with Baron Visconti’s arrival in the Solar System?
I sat back, putting my hands behind my head and my feet on my desk as I considered that. Visconti had gone to Acheron. That had been a bold move, a un-Lokhar-like move.
Target: Earth (Extinction Wars Book 5) Page 15