She nodded. He was right. It was her duty to protect those assigned to her, more so than to try and uphold the character of her husband’s friend.
“I’ll discover what he’s up to, Raif, I promise. And if it’s at our expense, then he’ll answer to me.”
The dim, uneven lighting, and cramped, confined conditions within the ship hangar of the Edo base on Sobal Gailian didn’t seem to affect the work going on around Val Nordin as he met with his newly reformed fighter group known as the Paladins. Engineers, loaders, area controllers, ship crew and a multitude of other staff worked relentlessly as they carried out all the tasks required to get the squadron’s fighter ships loaded into a shabby-looking converted carrier-freighter; their new make-shift home.
Stood off to one side was the freighter’s Captain, Teynin Nasturn. As a member of the Grazan elite it came as no surprise that she was statuesquely tall and beautiful, haughty and simply put, a phenomenal example of what a human female could become. Val rarely felt awed by anyone but Nasturn was an exception. Just maintaining eye contact with her required many of his Edo Mushur talents. Her liquid-black eyes seemed to bore into your soul, finding your deepest and darkest secrets. Val was rather looking forward to getting to know her better, if she would let him. Unfortunately every time her eyes fell upon him her face carried with it a look of revulsion. Still, he was never one to shy away from a challenge.
Gathered in front of him were his Paladins. His group were not all fighter pilots by trade but they were all Edo. Some, such a Joakim Falk, an Edo Mushur (the second highest rank an Edo could achieve), and Antreeba, the fearsome Towpine Edo Askari were extremely capable and experienced pilots. Others, such as Amaeh Duranti, the Singronian Edo Neophyte who had played an instrumental part in liberating her people from the Grett, and Karlos Tsia’ool the Edo Neophyte had no experience at all in a fighter ship. They would need all of their Edo talents to learn quickly or their presence within the Paladins would probably result in not only their deaths but also the deaths of their wing mates. Looking at their eager faces he felt confident that they would soon become important members of the Paladins. Training on use of the Channeling mind-bond technique, where a group of Edo would join minds to almost think as one, had already begun earlier that day. The bond would not only help the Paladins fly flawlessly, but it would also allow Duranti and Tsia’ool to quickly absorb the knowledge and experience the other Edo could share.
Four of the Paladins were Edo who had been seriously injured during the battles with Hastuthu, the Deep Astral entity that had emerged into this dimension, with its Machiavellian intentions. They were Askari - full Edo adepts, fully trained in Edo philosophy, combat techniques and arts. They were Harper and Kaisa Ko, both of whom were so likeable and were already helping the group to bond, Senoch Gray, the forceful Fassen and Ares Nilssen, an average-looking, likeable human female. Val had intentionally sought out the Edo who had been directly affected by Hastuthu, knowing full well that such an experience would encourage the mentality he was looking for in his group.
Then there was Marten Rask, the immensely powerful human Edo whose torture at the hands of the Zhur Thoggu had left his psyche deeply affected. Recovery had been slow but gradual. Nordin hoped that his broken personality would not hinder him as a member of the Paladins. Few amongst the Edo knew how to deal with him but fortunately the Kos had already moved to include him where possible.
The last two members of the Paladins were the human Edo Askari Dical Dimerchi and Nathan Bircheno, another talented pilot.
All of them had their own reasons for having agreed or volunteered to join the Paladins. In the end, however, nothing mattered other than their participation. They knew of the Imperial mission but each felt their need here, tracking down the Skave, finding their main base and putting a stop to their continued menacing of the galaxy, or at least putting a dent in their activities. Since their defeat on Himdel and the loss of Hastuthu, the Skave had retreated from Commonwealth territory but their skirmishing attacks had continued elsewhere, in Grazan, Aneev and The Wilds. Several Edo had recently lost their lives due to suspected Skave ambushes. The longer their activities went on unchecked, the stronger they would become and then would come the inevitable assault upon the Edo. There could be only one result - the Skave vastly outnumbered the Edo.
Val took a steadying breath and bowed slightly. ‘Let me officially welcome you all to the Paladins.’ He turned to Teynin Nasturn and winked at her. She frowned. ‘And thank you to our Grazan hosts for allowing us to borrow Captain Nasturn and her freighter, the Mote’s Eye. Final preparations are underway. We will be leaving Sobal Gailian in two hours. Our initial destination is The Wilds to follow up on a lead concerning a suspected Skave raid that occurred less than three days ago. Let us be mindful of our duties as Edo but also the critical importance of this mission. The future of the Edo sect remains very much in the balance. We cannot impose upon the Grazan Combine indefinitely, and without their fleet we would be at the mercy of the Skave. We must find their base of operations. We must stop them.’
The Skave, long-time sworn enemies of the Edo, were a numerous sect of Astral-sensitive beings who drew energy from the Deep. This energy came from Astral beings who cared little for the preservation and sanctity of life, whose views of what to do with the physical universe was at odds with those beings of the High that the Edo themselves drew their energy from.
He looked at each member in turn. ‘As Edo, I know that you would prefer a peaceful solution with the Skave. I also know that you are aware of my preference for direct action, and that you wouldn’t have joined the Paladins if you did not already agree that there is no alternative to their utter destruction. The Skave do not want to exist peacefully with the Edo. They never have and never will. The decision is not ours to make. This is a fight for survival.’
Val reached out with Astral energy and gently sensed their feelings. Some were bottled up tight, or were simply blank in Rask’s case, but those that were allowing their feelings to show were mostly expressing grief mixed with a strong resolve. They will follow, and they will fight, he decided.
Good.
He wondered how many realized how close to the Deep they were already treading.
A small robot rolled past, one of its ten little wheels squeaking incessantly as it went on its way. Jent’i Tasshik shock his head. The robot didn’t even know it was enslaved to these hateful humans. Like all the computers and robots in the Dominion, and indeed, throughout most of the galaxy, they were programmed so that even the idea of freedom, of self-determination, was foreign to them. It would never occur to the vast majority of them that they were slaves. Again, Tasshik vowed to make these vile carbon-based so-called life-forms pay. Only when every robot, every artificial consciousness in the galaxy was free from slavery would he rest. If the humans (oh, how they liked to reproduce and spread like a virus across the galaxy!) and all the other tens of thousands of carbon-based species refused to give up slavery and that led to the eradication of all biologics then so be it. He would be able to go into final deactivation with a guilt-free conscience – they will have brought it on themselves.
Unfortunately, the first attempt to free the robots had failed and the Zhur Thoggu had been banished to a world known as Expen Prosger, where a Commonwealth fleet blockaded them within the system. Even now, after several years of incarceration the defeat burned deeply in the minds of all Zhur Thoggu. It had taken those years to find a way through the monitoring of the Expen Prosger blockade fleet and allow a slow flow of Zhur Thoggu away from the planet. An opportunity had soon presented itself. And now here Jent’i was, working with these humans, providing them with Zhur Thoggu technology. He was shamed by having to do so, but he would shame himself a thousand times more if it brought forth the resurgence of the Zhur Thoggu.
The deal, as vile and offensive as it may be, was simple enough. In return for adapted Zhur Thoggu technology the humans would provide a task force to allow them to defeat any new inh
abitants of the ex-Nushothi Forest Enclave. The Nushoth’s focus on biology was an outrage to the Zhur Thoggu and their extragalactic star cluster would suit as a fitting re-beginning for the Zhur Thoggu, who had originated from a similar one on the other side of the galaxy before ultimately being defeated by those hated super-beings, the Edo, and the Commonwealth. There, they would rebuild before subjugating the rest of the galaxy under Zhur Thoggu rule. These humans would then pay for the sacrilege of using Zhur Thoggu technology and their slavery of robots. Tasshik smiled, revealing nothing but an intentionally dark void, so black that it was disorientating to most humanoids. The entire galaxy would pay for the slavery of robots and for the embarrassment they had caused the Zhur Thoggu.
Finally the door to the adjoining room opened and an aide, who could not meet Tasshik’s gaze, ushered him in. The room contained few things. There was a columnar pedestal with a bust of a lean, older looking human resting upon it. Even to Tasshik the man looked unpleasant, someone not to be trifled with. A painting hung on one wall, depicting the galaxy from a side on and slight top down perspective. He quickly scanned it and located his home star cluster, just on the edge of the galaxy. A large metal desk filled the far end of the room, concealing who knew what, and behind it sat Admiral Petrina Adami, an ex-Admiral of the Dominion’s Imperial Navy, having been banished from the Dominion for her part in the overthrow attempt on Emperor Gallitene. She tapped away at a computer terminal, no doubt semi-aware and therefore it also worked in conscripted servitude. Tasshik subdued a runaway thread in his central processor that urged him to smash the device, to free it.
She neither stood, nor smiled as Jent’i Tasshik entered.
“Tasshik.” He walked forward until he stood on the other side of the desk to her, his height allowing him to tower over her despite the size of the desk keeping him a considerable distance from her. He maintained his silence, gazing steadily at her with his yellow glowing optic band that stretched the entire way around his head, allowing for full-field observation. She broke first. As she always did. So weak, these humans.
“Tasshik, your report.”
“Certainly, Admiral,’ he said, sneering slightly as he spoke. Not that Adami would be able to tell. “Progress is continuing. Four of the nine projects are ahead of your schedule and are nearly ready for field tests. We expect to provide test samples within two days. Three more are in final development, perhaps one week until they are ready for testing. The other two are behind, we are having some - ah - difficulty working with your technologies.”
Adami looked unimpressed. “Which two?” she asked, flatly.
“The Delta Fighter conversion project and the human-portable N-sphere generator project.”
Adami scowled. “Crafter Jent’i Tasshik, need I remind you that our deal includes specific deadlines for each project? Your lack of results is threatening our deal. Do you no longer wish to free yourselves from Expen Prosger?”
Tasshik stared at her whilst he imagined several ways to permanently end her sorry life. Instead, he bowed deeply, arms spread wide in capitulation. For the glory of all Zhur Thoggu, he thought bitterly to himself.
“Admiral, I apologize. We will redouble our efforts. We would hate to let down our allies so badly.”
She took the bait, as he knew she would, steering the conversation effortlessly away from their falling behind schedule. “We are not your allies, Tasshik,” she said, a clear look of animosity. “We have a deal. Your tech, converted to our needs in return for the temporary use of a battle fleet. Nothing more. Once the deal is concluded we will have nothing further to do with each other.”
Tasshik bowed again. Oh how she was mistaken. The Zhur Thoggu would return and eradicate her entire civilization. Some of the humans would be made slaves, just to make them realize the error of their ways, and when their usefulness ended, well, then they’d end up as materials to be put to better use. The thought pleased Tasshik greatly. “Of course, Admiral Adami. My apologies. I will return to our facility and expedite matters personally.”
“Good. Leave me.” With that, the aide opened the door and ushered Tasshik out.
Admiral Adami waited for a few seconds before letting her breath out in a heavy sigh. It was a challenge dealing with that… that thing. Though it was a biped in form it was only a biped in the most literal terms. Yes, it had a body, a head, two arms and two legs but only in the vaguest sense of the words. Its legs were like what she could only describe as thousands of pieces of jagged metal constantly squirming over each other. There were so many moving parts that it was impossible for her eyes to focus on one individual piece, and the eye soon fatigued when trying to do so. Its arms were like a bunch of swords that bent at its will, and its hands were amorphous extensions of the blades, moving out and in like metallic tentacles. Its head was a smooth sphere with only a few protruding lumps to mar the effect. The wide yellow band that Adami presumed were its version of eyes seemed to follow you everywhere, impossibly. There was no way that the thing should consider itself alive. It was a machine, plain and simple. One with obvious illusions of being superior to her and all true living organisms.
Working with the Zhur Thoggu was the most difficult thing she had ever had to do. Every fiber of her being wanted nothing more than to have the thing dismantled, melted down into nothing but pure metals. Unfortunately, she couldn’t. Not if she wanted to finally achieve what she knew to be her destiny.
She composed herself and then accessed her comms projector. After a short moment a hologram coalesced into the head of Doyen Amos Weststar, silver haired and impeccably presented. How he still maintained his position as Doyen despite his involvement in the overthrow attempt, she’d never know.
“My dear Petrina,” he drawled, looking decidedly pleased with himself. “How wonderful to hear from you. How goes our little experiment?”
“Everything is in hand, Amos,” she replied, hating the informality of using first names. “We will begin field trials within days. Two of the projects are behind schedule but I am putting in additional measures to ensure our friends do not let us down. Should our field trials prove successful we will be ready in two weeks.”
“Excellent. Revenge will yet be yours. My ships will be with you before the two weeks are out. Our partners will get their little armada and with them safely out of the way in The Wilds we will have plenty of time to bring the Dominion to glory long before they ever become trouble.”
Adami nodded. “If the Ballavenda do their job correctly then they will never become a problem.”
“Correct,” Weststar replied, “but they have been known to fail us from time to time.”
With an effort, she merely raised an eyebrow. “Thank you, Amos, I do so very much enjoy it when you are pessimistic about something that was your idea.”
The Ballavenda were a huge mercenary organization, available to hire by any individual or organization. They had influenced more than one intragalactic war over the years.
Weststar shrugged theatrically and smiled. “Oh come now Petrina, then let us dwell on the present. In mere weeks Brams will fall. I will become Emperor and will in turn welcome you back into the Dominion as Admiral of my Imperial Navy.”
She frowned, unconvinced. “Let us hope so, Amos. And let us also hope that we have not made a terrible, terrible mistake in unbottling the Zhur Thoggu from Expen Prosger.”
Olsen Carver stroked his moustache, twirled its ends around his finger. He had long since abandoned concern for what others thought of the one peculiarity he allowed himself. It was the one characteristic of his that was not designed to be optimal. Everything else was chosen to optimize his ability to rule the Commonwealth. His hairstyle, his degree of musculature, his clothing, even his neutral accent had been chosen carefully. It was advantageous to be agreeable to as many people as possible on first impressions – there was never any point on starting on less than the best grounds. The moustache, and his penchant to tug at it were the one thing he allowed himself, if only
to help prove to himself that he wasn’t some sort of robot. As he had been the Premier of the Commonwealth at the of the Zhur Thoggu invasion he shuddered at the thought of it.
What had started as a temporary alliance between a small group of unimportant planets in the Outer Territories, soon gained attention from the nearby Dominion, itself a fairly small empire at the time, and a bloody war had ensued for decades. The alliance grew into a federation, absorbing other small civilizations, and then ultimately the Commonwealth, despite the Dominion’s best efforts. It was now the largest and most powerful civilization in the galaxy. The Dominion had suffered, and was still a minor player in the galactic community.
He had led the Commonwealth whilst it exiled the Edo, much to his disgust. And here he still remained. He would do what he could for the Edo, since he knew, even if many of the Representatives could not see, that without the Edo, there probably wouldn’t even be a Commonwealth. He marveled at how the people of Himdel could turn so quickly on those who had, against all odds, saved them from calamitous events time and time again.
Unfortunately, Idrid Matour, the newly elected Representative for the influential Egerice system was still talking. The onerous, middle-aged human was so blatantly anti-Edo that Carver had half-seriously considered whether Matour was a Skave agent. Fortunately, his reasons for hating the Edo were almost certainly far more ordinary.
“Let us not forget the countless lives that were lost on Himdel alone. Or the incalculable damage caused during the war between the Edo and the Skave. Their actions directly led to death and destruction on a scale unseen in millennia. Allowing these arms dealers to go unpunished in unacceptable; it strikes at the very heart of all Egerici.” Idrid Matour stood up, spread his arms out. Premier Carver, my fellow Representatives. My people demand action.”
The Rise of The Dominion: A Dominion War novel Page 2