Verron_Birth of a Nation

by Douglas Varnell

  Looking at Prince Hon and General Jim, he continued, “I want everyone involved in those battles to be acknowledged, decorated if they deserve it and promoted if possible, and that means Klelta, Tecalna, Verron, and Xhondarian. Everyone who participated should be acknowledged publically.” He shook his head and grinned, saying, “Geez, I sound like a PR man for Pentagon recruiting.” Those from Earth shook their head in agreement. Paul looked at Dalhia and suddenly had a bright idea, and asked, “How many ships do you think we could produce in my empty transport plant on Xhondar I? It couldn’t hold anything bigger than a Light Destroyer, but we could hire 100% Xhondar labor, and ever ship we can build will help.” Dalhia smiled a sly smile, and responded, “I think that after the Elders and Governors see this video footage, they may change their position about weapons on Xhondar. Only you would have the nerve to propose such a thing. All they can do is say, no.” She shook her head, saying, “Good God, I’m beginning to sound like you.”

  The next few months turned out to be the biggest public relations and recruiting campaign in the short history of Verron. Paul and Marcus met with General Klrxno the very next morning, along with the three Governors of Beriya-Haven. He couldn’t believe the fashion statement each was now trying to make. Sakai looked like he just came from a GQ photo shoot wearing a light gray Armani Collezioni suit, Gucci Shoes and, Armani shirt and tie, and perfectly styled hair. Uduak was radiant in an Alexander Wang flowered mini, and a black long sleeve top with a plunging neckline. Paul really got a kick out of Paki; if he had been wearing the pointy hat he would have passed for Catholic Cardinal in his red robe with gold trim. After viewing the video footage of the battle of Klelta, the three Governors and the General realized that if the same thing had happened to them, they would have been destroyed. When Paul and Marcus left they had agreements for additional cyborgs, drones and assembly robots, and permission to install missile defense stations and early warning listening stations on the surface of Beriya. During the days immediately following the meeting there were over 1000 Abioye volunteers for Verron’s military and 400 multicolored androids. There would be more to come, the video footage of the battle would be aired on Beriya-Haven information broadcasting for the next several days.

  King Hon was thrilled with the idea of a Spaceship plant being built on Klelta. He was also making plans to recognize those who had come to his Nation’s aide. King Hon III and King Verron were about to do something that had not been done in over 10,000 years in the Whirlpool Galaxy. It took over a month of careful preparation and planning on the part of King Hon, but the three planet diplomatic state visit of King Hon and King Verron was about to change the tide of human and non-human relations forever. King Hon’s first stop was Verron. Although his son had been there for over two years, he had never made the trip. Paul had several rooms in the Executive Starship remodeled to accommodate the Klelta diplomatic staff, consisting of King Hon, his Queen, Prince Hon IV and Executive Commander of the Klelta Military. This was Verron’s first official state visit from anyone and Paul wanted it to be something to remember.

  When the Starship landed in the Capital City Square, escorted by a dozen of the big Klelta Fighters, there were 50,000 Verron Marines and 10,000 Verron Air Force dressed and ready for inspection, along with a 100 person Military Band. Paul never did figure out where they came from, he didn’t even know he had a band. There had to be at least 500,000 citizens in attendance to see the spectacle. What really pleased Paul as he stepped off the ship with King Hon was the Verron National flag displayed prominently in numerous locations, without him knowing it, his mother and her two brothers, Mike and Les, along with General Zarman and Paul’s two brothers, Joe and Kary, had held a contest for the best flag design. The winner was a 90 year-old-Russian from St. Petersburg. The flag consisted of a perfect image of Zeus, the red dragon, on a white background with wings spread, yellow fire blazing from his mouth and underneath were the words “Protect and Serve.” It was absolutely perfect. Then the band played To Dream the Impossible Dream, Verron’s new National Anthem. When the King, Queen and Prince stepped from the ship, they were immediately followed the Klelta men who had flown the Fighters. Paul couldn’t have been prouder when the Dragon Guard presented the Queen with a Bouquet of native Verron flowers and the King with a 6 foot-long jewel incrusted sword made of Verron Steel. While the band played, 200 ships flew over the square, ranging in size from Fighters to R4s, followed by a fully functional Verron Man of War. The entire crowd gasped at the sight of the magnificent ships.

  In his speech, in near perfect English, King Hon III extended his gratitude to the Nation of Verron but especially to the men and women who had flown across a galaxy to fight an enemy they knew nothing about, simply because their ally was at risk. The pilots and crews of the 36 ships from Verron came forward and received the first ever Klelta Distinguished Flying Cross. They stood beside the 10 Klelta pilots who had received theirs in a presentation on Klelta. When the formalities with King Hon were completed, Paul stepped forward and presented the Award for Flying Ace to those who had downed 5 or more enemy ships. He was not surprised to find that most of the pilots involved received one. General Zarman announced the official promotions of Major Amber Hall to Lt. Colonel and Major Pavel “99” Verron to Lt. Colonel. Hunter applauded his little sister and 99 vigorously and didn’t care that they now outranked him. It was the closing remarks of King Hon that really stole the show. He told those present, “My Nation has been saved twice now by my new friend and ally and your king, King Verron. After many discussions with the people of Klelta and prayer to the one God, I announce today that I have two titles. I will remain King of Klelta and the Klelta people, but I will also be known as Governor General for the Verron Nation of Klelta; my Nation is your Nation, my people are your people and my God is your God. We actually held our first ever vote on the decision. It was unanimous. The Nation of Klelta is now officially part of the Verron Nation. We offer the service and loyalty of over 1 billion Klelta to King Verron. As of today, the Dragon of Verron will fly above the Hammer and Anvil of Klelta”

  Paul had no idea what to say. He had been completely blindsided on this piece of news. He stepped forward to the microphone after vigorously shaking the big man’s hand and with a slight tremor in his voice as he felt his eyes water, he told the crowd, “That flag tells it all. This Nation and her people are dedicated to protecting and serving anyone who needs our help. Most people here, including me, have been taken advantage of by those who abused their power. We will use everything at our disposal to defend the citizens of the Universe who desire freedom. As our new National anthem says, ‘To fight for the right, without question or pause, to be willing to march into hell for a heavenly cause,’ that is what Verron is all about and we’re proud to have you be a part of the Verron family.” Paul then walked over to one of the flag bearers and with proper ceremony, folded the flag with the help of General Zarman, then presented it to King Hon. Instead of the dignitaries being whisked away as soon as the speeches were finished, both kings stepped from the short podium that had been erected for the occasion and began to meet and greet soldiers and civilians alike.

  The King and Queen spent the next two days being escorted around Verron by their son and the Dragon Guard. He was shown virtually everything that would soon be available to his kingdom and couldn’t even comprehend the many ships on the ground and more being made. Arrangements were made for his engineers to come to Verron to study and Marcus established a time table for human designers and engineers to go to Klelta. The Queen was impressed with the mall and food stores with so much variety to choose from, but her number one love was for Church Street. She had become the first convert to Christianity on Klelta when Hon IV came home excited about what had happened to him. She wanted her builders to build a Klelta sized church in their capital city.

  The next stop was to be Tecalna. Princess Cali and her 3000 Catmandoes had not hesitated to go against a much larger army in defense of Klelta as they f
ought side-by-side with the giants. When the Executive Starship landed along the edge of a huge parade field on Tecalna, they were greeted with 20,000 marching Tecalna Soldiers and a precision fly-over of 20 Fighters that would rival any Blue Angel’s precision. Governor General Yonada was there to greet the two arriving kings along with Lieutenant Governors from every province. King Hon once again expressed his gratitude for those who had willingly risked their lives to protect his Nation and so willingly fought alongside his army. He went on to tell the citizens of Tecalna that the 3000 Catmandoes were the best soldiers he had ever seen in action. He then prepared, with the assistance of his son Prince Hon, to present Metals of Valor to the 3000 Tecalna soldiers. To their surprise he had one of the big Klelta escorts roll a heavy cart from the ship to his side. When opened it revealed not just three thousand Metals of Valor, but a Metal of Valor and a handcrafted 24 inch Double-edged Sword, made from Klelta Steel.

  After personally presenting the 3000 metals and swords, he called Princess Cali forward and presented her with her Metal of Valor and a bit more ornate jeweled-hilt sword. Paul then announced her rank of Major, skipping the rank in-between of Captain. When those presentations were completed, Governor General Yonada stepped forward and called Cali to approach the podium once more, saying, “Princess Calanyo Verron, by the power vested in me by the people of Tecalna, I do hereby bestow on you the rank of Field Commander in the Tecalna army, equal to a full bird Colonel, and name our newly formed Military Academy ‘Calanyo Verron Military Academy.’” Cali looked to Paul for support. He could tell she was petrified about making a speech in front of a few hundred thousand people. He nodded and mouthed, “You can do it.” She stepped forward and with a steady voice told the people of Tecalna, “Almost five years ago, I was a homeless orphan living on a planet that was dying. Thanks to King Verron and the people there, I am now a Princess with a family and the rank of Field Commander, the rank held by my late father. Three thousand soldiers of Tecalna fought without question to defend those who needed help. That is what Verron is all about. These 3000 men and women who just received the honors from King Hon have one thing in common with me, they were orphans as well. I can think of nowhere that people are free to become all they can be, other than Verron. I will do everything I can to help that way of thinking to prosper on my home planet. I thank you for the honor and I will not, turning to her Catmandoes, and my Catmandoes will not, let you down.”

  Two days later, Field Commander Calanyo Verron, escorted by her 3000 Catmandoes, rode down the streets of the City of Refuge designated for the orphans of Tecalna. Her soldiers sported an insignia of a Mountain Tiger on their caps as they marched proudly behind their Commander astride an 1800 pound Verron Mountain Tiger. Tigger had grown to be a beautiful animal and he was totally dedicated to his adopted Momma; after all, they had both been orphans. The children of the city went wild with their returning hero parading down the street. They went even wilder when she announced that the Calanyo Verron Military Academy would be built in their city. After she left Tecalna a few days later, enlistment in the Tecalna Army and Air Force went up 300%. The orphans had found a home.

  Xhondar I had not had a military parade or an army for almost 10,000 years, but they did have nearly 8 billion veterans who had been involved in the Xhondarian Civil War. When King Hon and King Verron arrived at the Spaceport they were greeted with cheers as their troopships disembarked 100,000 Xhondarians who had joined the Verron Air Force and Marine Corp. They marched through the city streets to the Central Park pavilion just below the tower where Paul had stayed while training on Xhondar I. There were even more people waiting along the parade route and at the Pavilion; among them Master Mahala and the 24 Elders, Zimuel, Tlase, Bhlani, Gljarne, Xhing Li, Dalhia and Yadvega were among them. The video footage of the Battle of Klelta was broadcast across Xhondar I for the past week or longer, and the state visits of King Hon to Verron and both King Hon and King Verron to Tecalna had been in the evening news casts. Most of the people of Xhondar were not concerned in the least. Their attitude was, why should I worry about what’s happening 50,000 light years away. We’re perfectly safe here on Xhondar I. But the Elders and those who had seen war knew that there was no such thing as perfectly safe. King Hon once again awarded distinguished flying crosses to Dalhia and Amber and the crew of Xhondarians that had flown in the battle. He thanked the people of Xhondar for coming to his defense and really got their attention when he declared, “We were a peaceful Nation and prospering in our business with Xhondar and other countries, never in our wildest imagination would we have thought we needed to worry about being invaded, after-all, everyone was welcome on Klelta, but one day someone bigger and more powerful than us took that away and enslaved everyone on our planet for over 500 years. If it had not been for King Verron, we would have never gained our freedom. If it had not for King Verron and the people of Xhondar I and Tecalna, everyone on my planet would have been killed in retaliation for that new found freedom. Never assume it can’t happen to you. There will always be those who desire to use their power to conquer and enslave others. We free Nations must unit under one banner in order to resist those people. I have chosen to unite with King Verron and his Nation. Tecalna has also united with King Verron and his Nation. I would not be a man of honor if I did not suggest to you that Xhondar I should do the same. No one Nation can stand alone; we must unite and prepare for a common enemy.” Pointing to the 100,000 Xhondarians who had enlisted in the Verron military, he continued, “These brave men and women are prepared to protect and defend your Nation and all others who need their support. Your great Nation has the most to lose if we don’t stand together.” King Hon presented Elder Mahala a matched set of ornate daggers, identical to the ones he had given Tala, saying, “Your son would have been among the first to join in the battle.” Mahala knew the big King was absolutely right. He would do everything he could to prepare the people of Xhondar for the future and not leave it in the hands of others to protect them.

  They spent a few more days on Xhondar in discussions with the Elders and measuring Paul’s empty Transport factory to see just what kind of production it was capable of. It was decided that Fighters and Light Destroyers only would be made there. Absolutely no nuclear weapons were to be on Xhondar. The Elders unanimously voted to re-establish an Army on Xhondar I. The ships made on Xhondar I would be flown by Xhondarians. Paul agreed to share his Xhondarian weapons stash and body armor with his allies. Pilot training would continue on Verron. What really surprised Paul was that it was declared that Dalhia would be the Commanding General of the Xhondarian Air and Ground Forces, she would report directly to General Zarman. Paul was now responsible for the military forces of four star systems. Zimuel smiled after the final negotiations were finished and they were about to return home and whispered to Paul, “You were scary enough before, now you are the military leader of over 70 billion people; you’re extra scary!” Paul smiled as the two boarded the Executive Ship on the 500th floor of the tower, saying, “You really have your work cut out for you Ambassador. Hey, did you notice how everyone around here is still listening to the Music Player. How many have we sold so far?” Zimuel shook his head at the change of subject and reported after consulting his hand held computer, “32,875,456,312; it has been spreading to the Xhondar II and III.” Paul asked, “Are we selling the other planets any of the food we grow?” Zimuel shook his head and replied, “Afraid not.” “Then we need to do more than build up our Military. We still need more farmers.” Paul stated, as if he could have anything he wanted. Zimuel thought, “So far he actually has. I really do have my work cut out for me?”

  The next morning after their return from Xhondar I, Paul and the Dragon Guard went for an invigorating run in Snake Canyon. The object was to run from one end to the other without getting bitten and killing as many snake as possible using their laser sabre and dagger. With eleven people racing through the canyon there were plenty of people to bite. Paul hadn’t told them yet that after they
got to their destination, they had to go back and collect as many of the dead snakes as they could find; Tlase and Desiree were going to use them for some kind of research. The collection bags and Tlase were already waiting at the end of the canyon. Tala was thrilled that she had beaten the others to their destination without being bit and, at her count, claimed to have killed 746 snakes; and never got bit. Cali was second and Hunter third. The others were pretty much even. After the brief thrill of victory, Tala’s mood changed quickly when handed a bag and told to go collect her dead snakes. She hated snakes, and killing them was pure joy, trying to avoid them as she collected bodies was a different story. Paul didn’t usually see his Guard complain, but for some reason they were not their usual happy go lucky self today. Hunter seemed the most irritable, but Chase, Daniel and Camil weren’t much better. After the others had left grumbling to collect their snakes, Paul had Hunter stay back a moment to find out what was going on.

  Hunter spoke to Paul as a Grandson to his Papaw, instead of leader of the Dragon Guard to his King, when he informed him, “We’re not the only ones who are feeling like failures. Vlad, Justice, Daniel, Camil, Chase and me, we all feel like we let you down and let the Guard down, and disappointed the people who look up to us.” Before Paul could respond, Hunter held up his hand, and continued, “Now, hear me out. While everyone else was off fighting a war, all of us but Chase and Daniel, were off planet doing diplomatic stuff. I mean, Tala, Katelyn, Cali, 99, Amber are all war heroes and got awards and promotions and parades. The rest of us should have been there.”

  Paul realized now that it wasn’t simply jealousy or envy about the others being paraded around and bragged about, they really did feel like they had somehow failed those who depended on them. He looked Hunter in the eye and said, “Then I suppose I’m a failure as well, since I was away in Xhondar taking care of business and the war was over by the time I got home.” Hunter was quick to apologize for calling Paul a failure. Paul smiled and patted Hunter on the shoulder, when he told him, “Son, one thing you are now learning about being a leader is you cannot do it all yourself. You train people and prepare people and carefully select people to do certain jobs, these are the jobs you either cannot do or do not have the time to do. The success of a leader’s people is a direct reflection upon the quality of a leader. So as leader of the Dragon Guard, the fact that five of your people performed far above what anyone expected of them, and the people they trained did the same, is a direct reflection on the quality of their leader, you, and on the quality of your leader, which is me. You and I may not have gotten a medal of valor or promoted for a job well done, but our people were successful because we gave them everything they needed to show their excellence. I’m proud of you. If you notice, I didn’t ask anyone else to go on that Nigeria mission with me, and I had an entire army to choose from. Don’t sell yourself short. Regardless of the higher rank of 99 and Amber; you are still the leader of the Dragon Guard. By the way, you probably don’t know this and I doubt when I tell you, you’ll abuse it, but Crown Prince outranks everyone on this planet but me. General Zarman may be number one with anything to do with the military, but you are second only to me in everything to do with Verron. If I died tomorrow, you would assume by position as king.” Hunter smiled and replied, “Thanks a lot. As if I weren’t feeling enough pressure. Long live the King! You wanna help me collect my snakes?” Just before he made his jump back to the Mansion, Paul grinned and said, “Second in command is still a long way from King. Better hurry, the others are almost done.”