by Chris Fox
"What of you, Mighty Fizgig?" Khar's voice echoed back.
"I'm holding Pride Fizgig in reserve," she said, frowning. It wouldn't be considered a glorious tactic, but she didn't care what the historians said. She wanted to win, to ensure that there would be historians at all.
"Is this some sort of treachery?" Carnifex roared, his metallic face suddenly appearing on Fizgig's holo. "You bleed our prides, preserving your own to seize control of our people when this war is over."
Fizgig closed her eyes, and forced a deep breath. She half-worried that Khar would intervene, but he stayed blessedly silent. She thumbed a button on her comm, extending the transmission to every Tigris vessel in the system.
"Carnifex, I sought to award you the honor of glorious battle. If you do not find the taste to your liking, I can hold the Jaguara in reserve," Fizgig offered. "But make no mistake. If I call for you, and you fail to answer, I will destroy you with my own paws. Do not think that metallic body will save you. You will not be the first Alpha I have destroyed."
Carnifex was silent, his expressionless face staring. Finally, he spoke. "I accept your orders, Mighty Fizgig. But when the battle is done, there will be an accounting between us."
Chapter 57- Retract the Iris
The Eye quietly circled the third planet, calculating hundreds of thoughtlines about the battle. They seemed unaware of its approach, fooled by its superior cloaking. On the planet below, there were clues, of course. The Eye's mass tugged at the ocean, changing tidal currents all over the globe. That data probably wasn't even being monitored, and even if it was it would take the humans time to get word to their government.
No trace of it had been detected. The Eye's thoughtlines reached an accord, measuring the reaction times of every vessel in the system. None would be able to reach it in time, and even if one of them could somehow achieve the necessary velocity, they all lacked the offensive capability to inflict significant damage.
The Eye would need precisely seventeen minutes to harvest this side of the planet, and in that time it could ingest nearly nine billion humans. If it recovered nothing further from this harvest--nothing regarding the Birthplace or the Helios Gates--that would still be enough to make this Eradication worthwhile. Its fleet was winning the battle, in any event, and hardly needed its help.
The Eye released the energy it had given its cloaking organ, shimmering into sight like a second moon. It was close, a mere few thousand miles above the surface. This intensified the tidal shift, causing an immediate backlash from the ocean. Coastal cities would be annihilated, but the few people killed would be little more than a statistical anomaly. A few million at most, and probably less than that.
It was time to begin. Activating an organ it had not used in over twenty millennia, the Eye began to retract the enormous iris covering its entire right hemisphere. The iris slid into the skin, even as the pupil widened to a continent-sized gulf of blackness, exposing the inner eye.
Then the Eye activated the most energy-intensive organ it possessed, willing the delicate lining of its inner eye to exert an energy field. That energy field had some properties of a magnetic field, but added exotic particles that shifted the spectrum of atom attracted. It coded the field to the genetic signature of human DNA, a hum echoing through its body as the energy built.
The wave built, blue tendrils of energy extending from the Eye's open iris. They extended toward the planet, fanning out to engulf the densest cities. Most were found along the coasts, though the landmass known as Asia contained many concentrations.
Across the world, blue pillars of energy reached the ground. Wherever they passed they pulled in humans, yanking them from buildings, from streets, from vehicles. They were pulled up the light beams, a steady flow of biomass. It took nearly a full minute for the flow to reach the inner eye, but when it did the Eye rejoiced. It digested thousands of consciousnesses, reveling in the fresh memories and perspectives. The feast had begun.
It must not be interrupted. The Eye took one final step to ensure its safe feeding, sending word to every harvester and Judicator in the system. "Minions, I command you. Destroy the human defenders. Kill the Tigris. Kill any surviving Primo. None survive."
Chapter 58- Khar
"Hear me, Pride Leonis," Khar roared, thrusting a fist into the air. The holocamera carried his image to the entire fleet, a hodgepodge of ancient Tigris vessels and battle-damaged harvesters. "Today we battle for the survival of the future. Lose here, and our people have none. We will sell our lives, pay any cost, to ensure victory. Are you with me?"
A chorus of roars came back over the comm. Khar smiled, inwardly at least. It was hard to express joy now that he was an Alpha, though it was easy enough to express rage. He could just smash something.
"Khar." Carnifex's voice boomed, his image appearing on the holo. He, too, was an Alpha now. "I have agreed to accept your command, for now. Where would you have the Jaguara?"
"Take your fleet to--" Khar's words were cut off. His spine heated, and something shot through his entire body. It wasn't painful, exactly, but it prevented him from speaking.
Carnifex slumped forward. All around Khar, his brethren did the same, as if affected by some external force all in the same instant. Fizgig had warned them about this, warned him that the Eye could control Judicators and harvesters both.
They'd dealt with the latter problem by rewiring each ship to bypass the main computer. They'd simply removed them, allowing the AIs to run the ships directly. They lost some functionality, but what they gained in security more than made up for it.
The Judicators, on the other hand, were something they couldn't really test. In theory, the previously human Alpha, Edwards, had proven that it was possible to resist. So Khar resisted. He screamed inside the confines of his own head, willing his arms to rise.
They rose, slowly. Khar raged, determined to beat the evil that was even now devouring his allies. "I. Am. KHAR."
His voice echoed over the comm, and other Judicators began calling their names-- a few at first, then a chorus. Khar was elated, and stared around him as other Judicators began to rise.
Elation turned to ashes when one Judicator turned to another and fired a plasma shot directly into the face. That seemed to trigger something, and suddenly everyone was firing. The Judicators who resisted were quickly surrounded, a definite minority.
"No," Khar roared, charging forward. He smashed into the smaller Judicators, kicking one into three of its fellows. He fired a trio of shots from his cannon, ending three more.
Then all the remaining enemies charged him. Khar took a defensive step backward, gunning down as many as he could. Half a dozen reached him, hurling themselves at his feet. Then they began to explode. The first knocked him flat, and the others began diving atop him. His HUD showed red all over the figure representing his armored body.
When the flurry of explosions ended, the bridge was silent. Khar lived. He pulled himself to his knees, his robotic limbs groaning in protest. Orange fluid leaked from many parts of his body, and his right hand had been melted to useless slag.
"Ship, seal off the bridge," he ordered, pulling himself back to his feet. Four of his men survived, the barrels of their rifles trained on the two stairwells leading onto the bridge.
The doors slid down, locking them in. Good, that would buy them time to deal with the rest of the Judicators. In the meantime, their ship could continue to fight.
"Ship, show me the battle in the system around us," Khar ordered, focusing on the quadrant they were approaching. The human lines were battered, threatening to break at any moment.
A Primo carrier turned slowly toward its companion, training all its cannons on the only other surviving carrier. Khar recognized the vessel that had joined the Void Wraith. He watched in horror as the First Light destroyed the last Primo carrier. Then it turned on the human fleet, whose ranks were buckling.
Chapter 59- Retreat
Dryker was momentarily relieved when the Tigris ente
red the system. He counted nearly three hundred drive signatures, a far more significant force that expected. It wasn't enough to win, but it guaranteed that the Void Wraith victory would be a costly one.
The Tigris approached the human lines, slamming into the rear of the Void Wraith position. They did horrific damage, the flanking maneuver forcing the Void Wraith to deal with two fronts.
Then the Tigris vessels began firing on each other. Harvesters turned on other harvesters, or on the Tigris ships of the line. The battle was short and bloody, with both sides taking significant casualties. Plasma fires burst from the corpses of vessels, and no quarter was given or asked. The Void Wraith saw their opportunity, pouncing on the divided Tigris.
Fizgig had wisely kept a large group of ships in reserve, and those moved to reinforce. Most were traditional Tigris vessels, stiffened by a few harvesters. Their sudden assault evened the odds, and there was a stalemate for a time. Then the Tigris slowly pushed their enemies back. They wiped out the traitorous ships, and pushed the Void Wraith back.
"Admiral," Juliard said, her head snapping up. There was death in her gaze. "The Eye has appeared over the eastern hemisphere. Word is spreading among the fleet."
"Put it on," Dryker ordered, his heartbeat quickening. He could feel the adrenaline flooding his system, his body sensing that his survival was in jeopardy.
"--biggest thing I've ever seen. The iris is retracting, and there's a blue glow coming from within. Wait a second. Oh my god." The footage showed the Eye, floating in darkness. It was silhouetted by the light from Earth, the cities below giving its shadowy shape form.
Blue light erupted from the Eye, dividing into a thousand tendrils. Dryker watched, paralyzed, as the tendrils began scouring the Earth. Then the Eye spoke in his mind, and he knew what he had to do. It must not be interrupted.
"Juliard," Dryker said, speaking the word slowly, a last attempt to stave off what was about to happen. "Put me on to the entire fleet."
Dryker hated himself, even knowing he wasn't really at fault. The Eye knew what he knew, and it knew that he was revered among the fleet. Suddenly, he understood why the Eye had allowed him free rein. It had done so because it didn't want to risk his credibility. It had waited until the most critical moment, the time when it made the most sense to use him. This was it.
"All fleet vessels, disengage and retreat to Mars Base 2. Repeat, disengage and make for Mars Base 2," Dryker said, licking his lips. He closed his eyes. "We've lost this battle. Save what you can. Good luck, all."
Dryker went cold, staggering back to his chair. He sat heavily, drunkenly. The order he'd just given was suicidal. There was no disengaging from an enemy fleet that had you surrounded. Attempting to flee meant running the entire enemy gauntlet. The Void Wraith would wipe out nearly every ship that tried, and the handful that survived would have nowhere to go. They could live in-system, but they'd never reach the Helios Gate. The Void Wraith would keep them trapped here until they felt like dealing with them.
A single tear slid down Dryker's cheek. Juliard wept softly behind him.
Chapter 60- Losing
Fizgig stalked back and forth across her bridge, attention focused on the holo of the battle. It showed the Tigris fleet, most of the internal fighting done now.
"Mighty Fizgig," Khar said, his face shimmering into view in the corner of the holo. "We've completed the retaking of my vessel. All enemy forces are down. I'm pleased to say that only one in five succumbed to the Void Wraith. The rest of us stand fast. We are moving to reinforce the humans line, unless you have new orders."
"Well done, Mighty Khar," Fizgig replied, her tone conveying irritation. "This was my tactical error. I believed that re-wiring the harvesters would be enough to stop them from turning. I did not anticipate some of the crews going over to the enemy, and ordering their vessels to turn against us. But we must move forward. Reinforce the humans. Those stations must not fall."
"They will not, Mighty Fizgig. We will sell our lives in the the defense of this place," Khar roared.
She gave him the deep nod of a true equal. He'd come so far since he'd first arrived on her bridge the year before, even if he was impetuous.
After a moment of apparent surprise, he returned her nod.
Fizgig spoke into her comm, projecting the message to the entire fleet. "Warriors of Pride Leonis, hear me. Today we accomplish deeds our kits' kits will sing of. Today we ride to the defense of the humans. Reinforce their line!"
The Tigris flowed toward their enemies, like a pride of great cats moving silently through the high grasses. They slammed into the Void Wraith, devastating a swath of the flank. It relieved pressure on the human's line, forcing the Void Wraith to pivot to deal with the Tigris.
"What am I seeing? No. No, no, no!" Fizgig roared, smashing a paw into the wall next to the holo. This was it, the proof that Dryker had been implanted.
She watched as the human defenders burst into motion, moving away from the relatively safety of the defense platforms. The 11th Fleet rushed into the Void Wraith jaws, the first wave dying almost instantly.
Then a segment of the Void Wraith reserves flowed in from above. Their target was clear. They rushed at the defense platform, nimbly dodging its cannon fire as they streaked closer. A flurry of plasma balls formed between their wingtips, dozens of them streaking toward the station, then hundreds.
If the station worked like the Tigris's, it harnessed Earth's magnetic field to power its shields. However they worked, the first several volleys of Void Wraith fire washed over a green forcefield, like pebbles into a pond.
On the third volley, several shots made it through, scoring the station's immense armor. The fourth volley set the entire station aflame, and it began plummeting from orbit toward the continent below.
Fizgig panned her holo back, watching the entire battle. The humans of the 11th Fleet were flinging themselves into death. The Primo had wiped themselves out, with only Celendra's First Light remaining, and that adding to their enemy's strength. The Tigris were the only significant force remaining, but they were outnumbered five to one.
Fizgig recognized something she'd never seen before, a situation she had often inflicted on others: she saw defeat. There was simply no path to victory, no matter what they attempted. And they hadn't yet engaged the Eye itself. Should she order the Tigris to fall back, retreating to some corner of the galaxy where they might be able to wait out the Eradication?
"Mighty Fizgig," her weapons officer called. Fizgig's head snapped up, and she refocused on the battle.
All along the right flank of the enemy, fleet harvesters were exploding. Blue light streaked down on them from high orbit, an immense shadow floating into the battle. The Primo had been as good as their word about the undetectable cloaking system. She'd been running continuous scans--as had their enemies, no doubt. Yet no one had detected that ship until it began firing into the battle.
"Finally," Fizgig said, giving a very undignified purr. The Forge had joined the battle.
Chapter 61- The Forge
Nolan stared in awe as they fell away from the Forge, their harvester made tiny by comparison. Hundreds of plasma bolts streaked from its cannons, most finding targets in the first volley. The weapons were slower, but had longer range and more punch. The fact that the Forge was able to get the drop on its opponents was devastating.
The entire Void Wraith outer line collapsed, dozens of vessels detonating in rapid succession. The next line began to cloak, scattering like a flock of pigeons avoiding a hawk. They had no idea that the Forge could track their movements, and it continued a steady stream of fire. Harvesters took evasive action, many outrunning the cannons.
Then bays began to open all along the bottom of the Forge. Dozens of them. Nolan had once seen bats fly out from under a bridge in Texas when he'd been a kid. They'd seemed endless, and so did the drones that the Forge belched into combat now. They were smaller, sleeker versions of the ones used by modern carriers. What was more, they cou
ld cloak.
They shimmered from sight, emerging to strike the Void Wraith in vast swarms. They were faster than harvesters, and maybe one-tenth the size. Their single plasma cannons scored engines and wingtips, destroying a target's ability to fight. By themselves, the drones were little more than annoyances; as a swarm, they demonstrated a lethality Nolan had never witnessed.
They flowed around their targets like piranha, blowing up vessel after vessel. Nolan grinned, then shifted his attention to the larger battle. Their arrival had thrown the Void Wraith into chaos, but two of the three remaining orbital defense platforms were under heavy assault. Both were severely damaged, and one was already drifting down Earth's gravity well. If it fell, it was going to make one hell of a splash in the Pacific.
Khar's laughing voice came over his ship's comm. "Mighty Nolan!" A tiny face appeared in his holo, and it looked different than the last time Nolan had seen it. Khar had painted his armor, even adding a ropey lion's mane. "You are a welcome sight, my friend."
"Good to see you, Khar. Who's in command? We need to get this fight under control," Nolan said, still watching the battle unfold. The Tigris were taking a pounding, and the 11th was crumbling. They were fleeing into the Void Wraith ranks, trying to escape. A few made it to safety, mostly due to the arrival of the Forge.
A new voice spoke on the comm. "Mighty Fizgig speaks for all prides. She is our commander, human. Not you." A second figure appeared in the bottom center of the holodisplay. It was also an Alpha, and like Khar had been painted to mimic a Tigris. This one was a spotted Jaguar.
"Peace, Carnifex." Fizgig's face appeared on the bottom right of Nolan's holo. "Nolan is my protégé, and trust me when I say you've no wish to meet him on the field of battle. He's been on a mission to recover the behemoth that is currently terrorizing our enemy. If we are able to defeat the Eye, it will be because of him."