“I just wish I did more. I sometimes wish I had the foresight to call the priest first. No matter, my new wife is very submissive and never speaks unless spoken to. She even lets me take out my anger on her when I have those feeling, as she should. If you can believe it, once I knocked two teeth out of her mouth at the same time, and she never complained, not once! She immediately started to clean up the mess! I just felt bad because I had to go to one of the old clans for my new wife. I wanted to give the foreigners a chance.”
“I am glad you have a better woman now, but I do know how you feel. It may take a few generations of strife, but our new worlds will learn salvation, and their women will be set free indeed.”
His fleet was flying through the remains of the fourth fleet of the Westerly Federation. Twenty thousand Zikar ships just rolled over the few hundred Westerly ships in this system. Sure, they took some losses from the Gate Keepers, but those losses were acceptable. The citizens of Zikar that perished on those vessels were true martyrs, heroes of the empire.
Ever stubborn and ever corrupt, the Federation would not surrender. Could they not see how outnumbered they were? Why would they sacrifice so many? And to think, so many women were on those military ships the Zikars destroyed, so many had died as Westerly slaves.
Not when we rule, never on our watch! They will be safe and protected as women should be! Our society will NEVER place a burden on them to try to be like men, Eigor thought to himself.
A shipyard broke apart on one of his monitors as Zikar ships pummeled it. On another monitor, an orbital was in its death throws. It sickened Eigor that so few got rich off building these and kept those riches for themselves. It was just as well that the orbitals were wiped out as they were but monuments to slavery created by a monstrous people.
“Send forth the teachers,” Eigor commanded.
Just then, drop ships from hundreds of vessels dropped from orbit to the planet below. The “teachers” would breed compliance among the people. They would be obeyed, or they will sift the wheat from the chaff. The wheat, the blessed teachables, would be spared and join the Zikar Empire with all the blessing of the true believers. The chaff, well, that was to be cast into the fire.
A division of the fleet separated as some would remain to provide security and supplies to the teachers below during their brave missionary trip.
“Time to move on to the next system.”
##
“You have got to do something! They are walking over us like it’s nothing!” President Usif Amroit of the Westerly Federation said.
“You were the one in possession of the gift,” answered Tom Wallace, prime minister of the Commonwealth. “You shoved her out the door! We tied the treaty to her. I thought that would have gotten your attention!”
“We are all at risk!” Usif said.
“I know that, and we are gathering our forces.”
“It isn’t good enough! I need the ability to lock my Gates! Now!”
“It isn’t an on and off switch. It requires engineers to interface with the Gate directly. Plus, all your assets need to be updated to use it. It took us months.”
“I don’t have months! Help us just to lock the Gates!”
“You should know, the High Queen, the woman you shafted, owns them now. She has full access to all the Gate technology.”
“We blew it. I know. The enemy has deeply infiltrated us, we think they had something to do with her discharge,” Usif said.
The admission was stunning but hardly mattered when their empire was under the knife.
“She will be able to read all your communications, even your secure ones,” the prime minister said.
“My house is burning down! I don’t care!”
“I will request the authorizations. They are keyed to each Gate directly from her and will still take time. Because this actually locks you out of your own Gates, your ships will all need to install the equipment to use them. These should be available from multiple resellers in your systems as your commercial ships have been purchasing them for months to be able to travel to our space. I will tell you, using the provided codes, you will only be cleared to access other Federation systems without prior approval.”
“Send the codes and accompanying information as quickly as you can! And I will order all systems to send engineers to their respective Gates to make the changes!” exclaimed the president of the Westerly Federation. “But concerning the authorization process for moving between systems, I…I don’t trust our people,” he continued.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean I want to hire the Commonwealth to be the only ones who can open the Gates! At least until this war is over! Our enemies may simply highjack the new system and open the Gates to the enemy fleet!”
At least the man has a sense of self-preservation, the prime minister thought.
##
Eigor just watched another the pacification of another planet begin, hundreds more of Westerly ships destroyed. This was glorious work being the defender of the weak and the downtrodden. Right now, the hoarders of wealth in twenty-one systems were learning to share or burn in their sins.
It was disappointing on a small scale seeing how the Westerly ships could best two similar ships of his own, but it did not matter. These systems would be converted and produce more ships for the Zikar. Their citizens would learn the glories of serving the common good, and their women would learn true liberty.
We really are doing it for them, he thought in all seriousness. They are the weaker sex, and we must protect them from even themselves, the Madonna commands it.
The fleet approached the Gate. With twenty thousand ships, it took a while to congregate. A squadron of missile cruisers was moved to the front as preparations were made to take the next system.
“Tell all units to open fire.”
The missile cruisers open fired at the Gate, more specifically at the center of the Gate. These missiles were meant to go through the instant the doorway to the next system was open, thereby minimizing the response time of the defenders while locking onto the Gate Keeper stations and pulverizing them.
“Open it.”
The emplacements began glowing their dull red glow, but the portal never opened. The missiles then flew directly through the center of the Gate, never finding a target to lock on to.
Abdul asked, “what went wrong?”
“Let’s try opening it again.”
Again, the dull red glows returned, but the Gate never opened.
“The Gate has been locked. I was wondering how long it would take them to beg the Commonwealth to lock them. Deploy the communications satellite.”
A port opened on one of the ships, and a small missile launched from it. The missile approached the Gate, then reversed thrust slowing down until it was about a thousand kilometers from it. It then broke apart, revealing a satellite within. The communications satellite was a specialized piece of equipment meant to interface with the Gate’s built-in communications system, allowing information and data to be routed system to system. What was known was that the Gate’s communication systems could not be directly interfaced with from a distance, hence the satellite.
“Open a channel to the command center,” Eigor ordered.
After a moment, the communications officer turned to the admiral and said, “sir! I am unable to establish a connection!”
“As I thought. Their Askirti demon has cut us off from the Gate network, even the communications. This was only a matter of time. Set a course for the next system via FTL transit. It will take us longer, but we shall bring salvation to all.”
Chapter 13
San Agustin
“I find it hard to believe it’s all junk!” Jackie said in exasperation.
“High Queen, it is not ‘all junk’! We just lack the means to understand what we are looking at.” said Autor Tolt, the head of the Reslorian science team.
Autor was a short, pudgy man with light skin, light brown hair, and very fu
zzy eyebrows.
The meeting had gone on for hours regarding their findings on the Homem artifact.
“Well, what can you tell me, in general, about their weapons?”
“Nothing.”
“What about their armor?”
“Nothing.”
“What about their propulsion?”
“Nothing.”
At this point, she was becoming very upset.
“So, we have the crown jewel of the most advanced empire our galaxy has ever seen, and you can tell me nothing about it!”
“We need help! Perhaps if we could awaken some of those in stasis they would be able to assist us!” the old scientist said.
“How long until we can get at least minimal practical technology from the wreck?” she asked.
“We have the brightest minds working on this! It will take years unless we can decode the underlying technology!”
Years. Pari, can you not help?
<>
I agree.
<
The problem with that is there is one person who has to be awoken first.
<
“Ana,” Jackie started, “I know we’ve discussed risk, and while these survivors have waited fifty thousand years, they cannot wait any longer.”
The looks around the room were looks of shock, some of them disgust. She understood how they felt.
“High Queen, there are considerable risks involved,” Ana replied.
Ana Novak was a doctor of the highest ethics. Her first oath was to do no harm. Taking people out of stasis that had been there for eons might have consequences they were unprepared to deal with.
“Yes, none of which exceeds the risk of the Zikar’s ruling over us. Look, I know it’s risky, but if we want access to this tech in our lifetime, we are going to have to take risks. They may be willing to help or they may not be willing to help. They must wake up at some point. I would like to think if it were me I did not have to stay asleep any longer than necessary.”
Ana knew she was right and this was the other side of that dangerous argument. The Homem people were safe inside their pods, or as safe as they could tell without cracking them open. Seeing the former High Queens face though was a reminder that there may be a lot of people that were put into stasis injured, and her people may or may not be able to help with the injuries.
“Go ahead and make preparations,” Jackie said to Ana, “in the meantime, I am needed elsewhere. It seems that we are expecting a delivery.” At this point, she was beaming.
##
“Hard not to be excited at that,” Rick said.
“Yeah, it’s a beautiful sight,” Jackie answered.
They were in her pinnace on approach to a new delivery of ships. The Commonwealth, true to its word had finished refitting her entire first fleet.
Arrayed before her where ships of every sort, from corvettes on up. As the shuttle got closer, they started approaching the big ships. They flew by the new heavy cruiser ARNS Galilahi and her sister ships, then near the battleship ARNS Hurit, which was magnificent next to the other three Concourse-class battleships, formally retired from the Commonwealth after the second dynasty wars. As she passed the battleships, her heart almost jumped out of her body as she saw three Judgement-class dreadnoughts, all just like the Hania. They were the ARNS Marousek, Verka and the Rando, each a staggering six kilometers in length.
While she was getting choked up at this sight, the pinnace kept going past them to its expected destination, the ARNS Mars, a Bojovník-class dreadnought, the best humanity had to offer, and her new flagship. While the Judgement-class ships were frightfully powerful, they were smaller, refitted ships that were over one hundred years old. The Mars was a new ship, built in state of the art shipyards from the ground up to be Jackie’s. There was no refit. This was technically a Bojovník-b, meaning second revision, and the Mars was first of the new class.
Landing in the new hangar was pleasing. It was a vast, expansive space, much larger than the original Bojovník-class dreadnoughts. While she knew there was more room due to the smaller crew complement, she never imagined the hangar would look this much bigger.
Right there was rack after rack of Bolzen fighters, all AI-driven. They were all loaded on their launch racks set diagonally with twenty-five of a rack. There were facilities visible for rearming them, and even for refitting them should their loadout need to be changed from fighter to bomber.
Jackie shivered to think there were more fighters in here than in ten dreadnoughts from just a few years ago.
As she exited the pinnace, the color guard was there to greet her, a formality she was only starting to appreciate. At the end of the color guard was who she came to see.
Clearly please, she offered a salute in return for the one being offered her.
“Welcome onboard the Mars, High Queen, Colonel Amori,” said the captain of the Mars, Jeri De Vitis.
“It is nice to be aboard,” she answered. “Admiral, nice of you to be here as well!”
“Glad to have you aboard, High Queen,” said Askirti Admiral Tabitha Summers, with a smirk.
Jackie had been so thrilled when Jeri accepted his new command. There was no one she trusted more than her former mentor, except maybe Rick. Jeri was a competent leader, and it eased her mind knowing he was going to command her new Askirti flagship.
And Tabitha, not wanting to just sit around Avalon enjoying the views, was anxious not to be sitting on the sidelines while empires went to war. Jackie knew Tabitha had the seasoning to command the entire fleet and could hear the excitement in her voice when she offered her the commission in person.
Gaining these two for herself was no easy feat as the Reslorians and the Commonwealth were both growing tremendously in their military buildups, and in need of all the officers they could get especially seasoned ones.
“Commodore Reynolds!” Jackie nodded politely.
“High Queen,” Alice smiled back.
Alice Reynolds still held her rank as commodore, which would serve as a vice-admiral.
“If you will follow me this way,” Jeri started.
##
“So, we have pirates being funded by the Zikar’s?” Jackie asked, going over the intel reports with Tabitha.
“We believe it’s one of their sources of funding,” the admiral answered.
“Oh, and what are the other sources?”
“The Commonwealth and Westerly Federation systems were the only ones we have enough penetration to look at comprehensively. Of course, the Commonwealth was open with us on this matter, though the Federation was infected by the worm I created to penetrate their systems,” Pari said. “We have not yet had access to the United Planets Alliance nor the Zikar Empire systems, so this is just a theory. But I believe the theory is supported by suspicious communications across the lines by individuals we suspected or already identified as members of ‘The Chosen.’”
“So, the working theory is that the cells pitched in to fund piracy, but why a full-blown war?” Jackie asked.
“The Zikars are the most primitive of the large empires,” Tabitha started, “but you may also say they are the most effective. They build ships for a fraction of the cost of ours and throw the numbers at us. You could say their strategy is working. If we hadn’t shut down the Gates in the Commonwealth, they would have overrun dozens of their systems already.”
“Whatever happened to that massive fleet in Westerly space?” Jackie asked.
“Disappeared. They conquered a bunch of systems and then vanished. It’s thought that once we turned off the Gates, they decided to just travel via FTL to a system of their choice,” Alice said.
“I’m not entirely comfortable just leaving the
systems in their hands,” Jeri chimed in. “They are a vicious bunch, and even though I’m on the list of those the Westerly’s back-stabbed, I have no desire to see those planets remain in their hands.”
“None of us are,” Tabitha added. “Thankfully we aren’t fighting them on all fronts. The Commonwealth has had great success at holding them back using their upgraded fleet.
“They lost a few minor systems early on, but denying the enemy use of the Gate system slowed them down early on, allowing the Commonwealth time to marshal sufficient ships. While the Zikar fleet operating in Commonwealth space has not been eliminated, they are on the run.”
“Well, if the Zikars are not put down, they will consolidate their gains, and in another ten or twenty years we will face a much stronger foe,” Jackie said. “Having spoken with His Eminence, here’s our plans, in broad strokes…”
##
Rick was visiting the training facility, namely to observe his daughter and check on her progress. He had a good laugh when he first laid eyes on her, seeing her and her team standing perfectly…as they had for the last four hours. They had all their gear on, no talking was allowed, no bathroom breaks were allowed, no scratching their noses was allowed, no movement of any kind.
The marines were encouraged to taunt them and taunt them they did. They would stand in front of them cracking jokes, eating delicious tasting foods, even taking markers and drawing on their faces.
For the trainees, such antics were fun perhaps for the first ten minutes, but after four hours of no movement and no talking, the taunting was torturous.
The day before, they were crawling naked across jagged rocks, then through thorns, both times with their hands tied behind their backs, basically shoving themselves using their legs. Afterward, they had to perform field surgery on themselves to repair their cuts.
The next day they were to get utterly drunk and be made to walk a tightrope across fire and smoke, repetitively.
Thankfully medical was on hand for any serious injuries, and would later remove any and all scars as each cadet would collect many of them.
Rumors of Wars: The Askirti Chronicles - Book 2 Page 13