“We do not believe the Vorn use their habitats as we do,” continued Tasid. “These are not miniature Dyson Spheres where they live on the inner surface with an internal power source replicating the energy put forth by a star. Instead we believe there are numbers of shells inside the Vorn live upon; possibly hundreds. The habitation sphere you see on the screen may have the equivalent living space of over one hundred worlds or more depending on the diameter and number of shell layers within.”
“One hundred worlds,” said Andrew, his eyes wide. “There could be over 100 billion Vorn living inside.”
“Imagine the industrial might such a structure possesses,” added Fleet Captain Lilith.
Mara looked at the habitat on the screen and then back to Councilor Marshton. “They have more of them, don’t they?”
Marshton nodded. “That’s the problem.” He touched an icon on the conference table, and the view on the screen widened, showing a larger region of space. More habitats became visible. “From the encrypted files on the Scythe we know they have 116 of these habitats. The largest one is called the Conclave Habitat where the Royal Court resides along with their ruling Queen.”
On the screen a Vorn appeared, only this one was larger and its body seemed bloated. “This is one of their Queens. Each habitat is ruled over by a Queen and a Royal Court. All the Vorn are ruled by what is called a Hive Queen who sets policy for the entire Vorn race.”
Kurt looked at the ghastly creature on the screen. It didn’t look as if it should even exist.
“The Vorn are from a different bubble universe,” one of the other Glaymons reminded Kurt. “They were driven into ours when another race forced several Vorn ships to flee through the wormhole in the center of a massive black hole. In the other universe a great battle was being fought in which the Vorn were being destroyed. A Hive Queen and several junior Queens along with a few of their warships managed to survive the transit.”
“The Vorn aren’t even from our universe,” muttered Andrew, shaking his head. “Why didn’t this other race pursue the Vorn to make sure they were all destroyed?”
“Not all black holes have stable wormholes. We believe the race in the process of destroying the Vorn believed the ships which fled into the wormhole were destroyed.”
“And we’ve had them rampaging through our universe for over twenty million years,” said Andrew.
Mara studied the viewscreen for a moment and then asked her next question. “How many ships do the Vorn have? I assume that’s the problem and why you haven’t told us about these Vorn habitats before.”
Fleet Captain Lilith nodded. “Yes, our strategists believe there are between 500,000 to possibly 800,000 warships in those habitats. Not only that but the habitats themselves are armed with massive defensive systems.”
Kurt could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he realized the ramifications of what he was hearing. “With the industrial power of those habitats they can build new fleets nearly as rapidly as we can destroy them.”
Councilor Marshton nodded. “Unfortunately, that is correct. It’s one of the reasons we’ve been silent about this.”
“Could a Zero Point Energy round penetrate one of those habitats?” asked Lieutenant Mays.
“It could,” replied Fleet Captain Lilith. “However, as impossible as this seems those habitats are protected by energy screens powered by massive Zero Point Energy modules. We would have to knock those screens down before we could attack the habitats with the rounds.”
Lieutenant Mays shook her head, realizing how difficult that would be.
“We can’t tell anyone,” Mara said, her eyes showing deep concern. “It would crush the Lakiam Alliance if they knew they were fighting a battle they can’t possibly win.”
“Is there any chance if we can cause sufficient losses the Vorn may turn toward another galaxy?” asked Kurt.
Fleet Captain Lilith shook her head. “We believe the Vorn are on the verge of starvation. In order to survive they must harvest our galaxy. Our galaxy is the only one with sufficient food sources.”
“Is there any hope?” asked Lieutenant Mays.
“A slim one,” Councilor Marshton replied. “If Councilor Valen can convince the Glaymon Council to go to war with the Vorn, we believe the combined Glaymon fleet could destroy the Vorn habitats.”
Kurt leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing. “So we need to fight a delaying action, giving Councilor Valen the time he needs to convince the council to go to war?”
Marshton nodded. “It’s our only hope. At the last council meeting 42 percent of the council voted to go to war against the Vorn. If we can have a few more significant victories, Valen may be able to get the 51 percent he needs.”
Taking a deep breath, Kurt asked his next question. “We know where these habitats are located. Would it be feasible to take a task force and attack the Conclave Habitat, killing the leaders of the Vorn?” Kurt knew such an attack would almost certainly end in the total loss of the attacking fleet.
Fleet Captain Lilith looked uneasy. “Travel time from here to their location in intergalactic space would take six to seven weeks with our current hyperdrives. Even so it is doubtful we could approach their habitats without being detected. The Vorn deploy very powerful sensors in the area of space where their habitats are located. Even our stealth fields would most likely be penetrated. They would be waiting for us with an overwhelming force.”
“Then I guess we have no choice but to fight a delaying action and hope Councilor Valen comes through.”
“That is our best option,” Councilor Marshton replied. “In the meantime we will aid in building new defenses for your worlds as well as deciding what is best for our common defense.”
“I’m keeping a portion of our fleet here at all times,” Fleet Captain Lilith added. “It will be dedicated to defending our new habitat as well as your Alliance.”
“Thank you,” Kurt responded. “Let us hope Councilor Valen succeeds in getting the votes he needs in the council.” Kurt knew the Vorn must be activating a large portion of their fleet. When they finally did return to the galaxy, they might number in the hundreds of thousands. It was a sobering thought realizing the numbers they would be facing.
-
Later Kurt was on the Limeira eating a meal with Mara in her quarters. He had been hesitant about doing this but Keera had been insistent he not stay away from the beautiful Lakiam woman.
They were seated at a comfortable table, and Mara was once more dressed in slightly revealing clothing. Every time she bent over her breasts were in plain view. Kurt could feel his heart beating faster and it was difficult to concentrate on the meal. After all, Mara was very beautiful. Kurt knew all he had to do was ask and they would be in her bedroom.
“What do you think of the situation with the Vorn habitats?” asked Kurt as Mara poured some type of Lakiam beverage into his glass.
Mara finished filling his glass and sat back down. “The habitats are going to be the problem. I firmly believe Fleet Commodore Dreen will be able to handle the Vorn fleets when they return, at least for a while.”
Kurt took a cautious sip from his glass, finding the contents to be very sweet. “Only problem is as fast as we destroy the Vorn ships they can build new ones.”
-
“We’re trying to buy time.” Mara’s blouse was extremely low cut and she smiled upon seeing Kurt’s eyes move downward. She doubted if she would be able to seduce Kurt tonight but it was still fun trying and Keera had even encouraged her. If not for that she wouldn’t have even considered flirting with Kurt as she was.
“It may cost us a lot of ships while we wait for the Glaymons in the Dyson Sphere to make up their mind.”
“How much time can we buy?”
This concerned Mara. There was a possibility much of the galaxy would have to be abandoned. “It may come down to defending Lakiam Alliance space and the central region of the galaxy where the Hanorians reside.” Mara hoped she wasn’t puttin
g Kurt off by dressing as she had. She had spent several hours agonizing over what to wear. She finally decided to dress seductively but not to the extent she had in the past.
“I thought you would say that. We could lose over 60 percent of the civilized races in the galaxy. However, I also realize if this war goes on too long we may have no other choice but to be more selective in what regions we defend.”
Mara nodded. She felt all tingly inside and knew she really needed to join with Kurt. It would do away with a lot of the tension and anxiety she had been feeling lately. Taking several deep breaths, she tried to calm herself. “We are talking about survival. We can only hope Valen comes through soon.”
-
They finished their meal and went into the main part of Mara’s living quarters, sitting down on a comfortable couch. Kurt was highly aware of how close Mara was to him. They continued to talk about the Vorn and what the Glaymons were offering.
“I’m going to ask Councilor Marshton tomorrow if there’s any possibility of the Glaymons helping build additional defenses around Lakiam.”
“I suspect they will agree to that,” Kurt replied with a nod. “I also want to talk to them about fleet deployments in our region of space as well as placing a small fleet in the Gothan Empire.”
Mara looked surprised. “Why there? Most of those worlds have preyed on the rest of the civilized galaxy for generations.”
“Keera insists many of the people in the empire are just like everyone else. Besides, Kubitz has the most powerful defensive grid in the empire and if we place a fleet there we could probably hold it against the Vorn. We’ve already seen during a Vorn attack where all the civilian vessels are going to go as well as any surviving warships.”
“I see,” Mara said. “It’s a world we can save and perhaps not be forced to use a major fleet.”
“Precisely,” replied Kurt. “We have to carefully choose our battles if we want to survive.”
-
A few minutes later Kurt stood up. “I need to get back to the Star Cross. We’re going to have a busy day tomorrow talking with the Glaymons.” Kurt knew it was best to leave before temptation overcame him.
Mara stood also and then, almost hesitantly, she leaned forward, kissing Kurt on the lips. Kurt was momentarily surprised and then found himself responding. He pulled Mara to him feeling the softness of her body against his chest. Unconsciously he began running his hands up and down her back.
With a deep sigh, Mara stepped back. She smiled, looking at Kurt. “That was nice.”
“I’d better go before things go too far,” Kurt stammered. He felt uncomfortably warm and he knew if Mara pushed it he would have a hard time saying no.
Mara placed her hand gently on his chest. “Your heart is really beating fast,” she said with a smile. “I’m pleased I still affect you that way.”
“You’re beautiful,” Kurt replied. “How could I not react this way?”
“You’d better go,” Mara said with regret in her voice. “I know you’re not ready for us to join again. Just remember, when you are I will be here.” Mara leaned forward, kissed Kurt gently on the lips and then stepped back. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
A few moments later Kurt was in the corridor heading toward his waiting shuttle. He was surprised and immensely pleased Mara had shown the restraint she had by not taking him to her bedroom. Even though Keera had given Kurt permission to sleep with Mara, it was something he still needed to think about. He was also becoming acutely aware of the traditions and different moral values of different cultures. With a deep sigh, he walked a little faster. It was time to get back to the Star Cross.
Chapter Seventeen
Grantz was at a local bar meeting with several of the Profiteers he had hired to help take care of High Profiteer Creed. The bar was out of the way and not near any of the well known pleasure houses. The music was loud and the room was full of smoke from various types of drug inhalants. The crowd was typical for such an establishment: Profiteers who were down on their luck and people looking to make a quick credit.
“It’s been confirmed, Profiteer Larick has managed to become part of the crew of High Profiteer Creed’s fleet,” reported Profiteer Waskom. “They were short on crewmembers and had to offer steep bonuses to get additional Profiteers to sign on.
“Are they still at Lylan Six?” Grantz had managed with a few small bribes to learn the current location of High Profiteer Creed and his ships.
Waskom nodded. “He’s been forced to sell off most of his fleet due to his crews abandoning him, particularly after the rumors which are spreading across the empire. Most planets suspect he was directly involved in bringing the Destroyers of Worlds to the empire. They don’t want any part of him.”
“They’re not rumors,” replied Grantz, pleased his strategy of spreading that information was working. “That’s what he did. It wasn’t intentional. He was actually after Earth but the route the Vorn took to get to Earth was just too close to the empire. We lost four planets because of his hatred of Fleet Admiral Vickers. How many ships does he have left?”
Waskom took a drink from the mug sitting in front of him then wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his Profiteer uniform. “His battleship and two battlecruisers. There is also a large cargo ship he’s keeping close.”
“Gold,” said Grantz, his eyes lighting up with greed. “Dacroni Clan Leader Jarls has deposited a tremendous amount of gold at the Controller Exchange at the main spaceport. Supposedly he acquired it on a joint raiding mission with Creed.”
Waskom’s eyes narrowed. “I understand Clan Leader Jarls is now after Creed as well and has even added to the rumors about Creed being responsible for the Vorn attack.
“It’s possible,” replied Grantz. He knew this was true and was a little concerned Clan Leader Jarls just might beat him to High Profiteer Creed.
“You think his cargo ship contains the same amount of gold as what Jarls deposited?” asked Profiteer Simpkon, leaning forward.
“Probably more,” replied Grantz. “Creed probably hired Clan Leader Jarls to go on the raiding mission with an agreement to split the profits. Knowing Creed he would demand the majority share. There are unconfirmed rumors Clan Leader Jarls deposited close to one billion credits worth of the yellow metal.” It was hard for Grantz to even visualize such a fortune in gold. In his mind he could see piles and piles of gold bars extending for as far as his eyes could see.
Grantz leaned back in his chair. There was loud music playing in the bar and the local patrons were all heavily armed. Glancing over at a nearby table he saw his two bodyguards were also heavily armed. Grantz didn’t go anywhere without Dolman’s watchdogs.
“Is there any way we can get the cargo ship?” asked Simpkon. “We’re talking about over a billion credits. We could go anywhere in the galaxy.”
“I’m staying here,” said Waskom, shaking his head. “The Vorn are out there, and I don’t want anything to do with them. If we were to take that cargo ship I would stay right here on Kubitz behind its defense grid.”
Grantz shook his head. “Creed will have heavily armed guards on that ship and it will never leave the vicinity of his battleship. As much as I would love to get my hands on that gold we need to keep to the original plan. At some point in time, Creed will come to Kubitz to sell his gold. We kill Creed, take his head, and collect the bounties. All of us will then retire rich.”
“There are smaller Controller Exchanges scattered throughout the empire,’ pointed out Waskom. “He could go to one of those.”
This was a possibility Grantz had already considered. “No, only at Kubitz will he feel safe. No ships are allowed to fire on one another in orbit. He can come to Kubitz, sell his gold, and go on from there. If he tries to go to one of the smaller exchanges he risks another Profiteer clan attacking what is left of his fleet and hijacking the gold.”
“The Human ships will never allow him to make it to the planet,” said Waskom, his eyes narrowing. “As soon as Creed�
��s ships jump into the system near the Controller Station, they’ll jump out and destroy them. The Humans could care less about the gold.”
They were all aware the Humans did not respect the boundaries set forth by the Kubitz government and the Controllers as to not making hyperspace jumps within the orbit of the sixth planet or using weapons in orbit. The Humans were the wild card in all of this and they wanted Creed almost as bad as Grantz did.
“I’ll speak to Ambassador Brent and explain if they attack Creed’s ships he will just do an emergency jump and may vanish forever. There’s a chance if Creed is unsuccessful in his attempt to sell his gold at the Controller Exchange, he will take his fleet and leave the empire. There are several worlds he could go to which would be happy to deal with him considering the amount of gold he probably has on that cargo ship.”
“What position is Profiteer Larick in?” Creed had paid a lot of credits to get Larick to Lylan Six and be in a position to take a spot on one of Creed’s ships. Avery Dolman had informed Grantz Creed was searching for crewmembers to staff his vessels.
“Communications officer on one of the battlecruisers,” replied Waskom. “He will keep us informed of Creed’s movements. When he sets course for Kubitz, we’ll know.”
This pleased Grantz immensely. He now had a spy on one of Creed’s ships. From the latest reports, there were 22 million credits in bounty on High Profiteer Creed’s head. Grantz also wondered if there was any way he could get his hands on some of Creed’s gold. That cargo ship was soon going to be in orbit around Kubitz. It was a tempting target and would require a lot of thought and careful planning. Glancing back over at the two bodyguards Dolman had provided, Grantz wondered if Avery would be interested in a joint venture to take the cargo ship. There were hundreds of shuttles constantly going back and forth from orbit to the surface of Kubitz. If several shuttles loaded with a group of specially handpicked Profiteers were able to make their way onto the cargo ship, they just might be able to take it before Creed realized what was going on. With Larick in charge of communications on board one of the battlecruisers, it might offer an opportunity to make such an attempt. Grantz leaned back, taking a deep drink from the mug in front of him. While not as good as the liquor he was used to in the pleasure houses, it still burned on the way down and created a pleasant buzzing feeling in his head.
The Star Cross: The Vorn! Page 24