Zane moved next to Aven. “Yes, it truly is necessary. Unfortunate that it came to this, but we must put the greater good of the universe before our own desires.” Zane hesitated. “I know this is unnecessary to ask, but my family. They’re safe in the fallout shelter, right?”
“I had a small crew drug them and transport them,” Aven said. I’ll have live eyes on them in a few days. Right now, all focus must be on the operation. But yes, they’re as safe as can be.” Aven took another long drag off his cigarette. “Keep your eye on the prize, my friend. It’s all that could ever matter.”
“Right. I’m going to go check on the numbers again. By the way, in case you haven’t checked your messages, Vidron’s a done deal. Koss, Jassum, Rotcher, and Ednes have all fallen,” Zane said. He turned and headed for the exit.
Aven nodded. “Good, good. Have them stop there. After all, we don’t want to kill everyone, do we? Initiate the detainment phase in approximately four hours. Vidron only.”
Zane stopped and turned back to Aven. He kept one hand on the touchpad controlling the door. “You wait that long, you’ll be lucky if we have the amount of survivors we need in the whole of Vidron. We don’t want to annihilate any species, do we?”
“By then, enough will have survived,” Aven said. “Just enough. The strong will survive. Don’t forget the goal of all of this.”
“Aven, you really need to reconsider-”
“Very well, Zane. We’ll pull out in two hours. Now please, I need to be alone with my thoughts, just for the moment.” Aven dismissed Zane with a wave of his hand.
Zane narrowed his eyes and scoffed. “I’m not your servant. Remember that.” He moved to the other side of the ship.
Aven stared at the wall in front of him for several minutes. He sighed and stood up.
“Show me Vidron. Koss.”
The computer buzzed and, after a moment, a large screen popped up on the wall in front of Aven. Images of Koss flashed across the screen. Bodies, burning buildings, and piles of rubble consumed the city. Aven’s eyes lit up. He felt full of a kind of savage satisfaction. Things were coming along nicely.
**
Before the group was a small room, illuminated by bright white lights. It appeared to have no doors, no windows, or any exit.
Ret took a step forward. “Are we going in, or what?”
“Be my guest, kid.” Drever shoved Ret inside.
Ret stumbled into the room. It was barren, with only a mosaic-like design decorating the walls. The bright white light made it feel sterile and eerie.
Suddenly, the door slammed shut and sealed Ret in the room.
Seraph lurched forward and began pounding on the door.
“Easy, easy.” Sadhis moved forward and pulled Seraph back.
The door slid open again, leading to the same white room. Ret wasn’t inside. It was like he had vanished entirely.
“What the fuck?” Seraph scurried into the light of the room.
He glanced around for a moment. He turned back to the group, motioning for them to follow. Drever and Sadhis came forth without hesitation, Maxen held back. Seraph shot a glance back at him.
Maxen held up a hand. “I’m good. I’ll stay.”
The door slammed shut before Sadhis could reply.
The group gasped as the lights in the room died and the wall opposite the door opened. Seraph raised his pistol, aiming it into the darkness ahead. For all he knew, the seythra had been here and had set a trap for them, and he wasn’t about to die in an underground bunker.
“Ret? Ret, you out there?” Seraph called, taking a few steps into the unknown.
“Activate lights,” a raspy voice called out.
White and blue lights began popping on overhead and on the sides of the room. The room revealed itself to be a large, rectangular space with curved edges. Computer terminals and video screens lined both sides of the room. There was a circular desk in the middle, containing three seats and its own computer terminal. On the far side of the room was a large, open locker that held a generous assortment of weapons and armor.
There were easily a hundred members of various species scattered around the room. Most were familiar big-name political figures; others were common folk and their children.
Seraph was taken aback by the layout of the room. Deployable shield generators were strategically placed throughout the room to provide more than sufficient protection. The room also widened as it went on so that any enemies entering the room would be funneled in through the narrow doorway and restricted to a smaller portion of the room. This truly was an underground shelter fit for the Confederate Chamber.
“Easy, you can put your weapons down,” the raspy voice said.
Seraph and the others turned to their right to see two of the three members of the Confederate Chamber standing before them. Seraph and Sadhis had communicated with them on several occasions, providing updates on missions and sharing critical information. It relieved both of them to see that at least two of them alive and well.
The third’s absence made sense: he was a seythra.
“Glad as hell to see you two still standing.” Seraph smiled at them. For the first time in days, he felt hopeful.
“You, as well,” said the raspy voice. The voice belonged to an elderly othal named Diam Tistu.
Diam's aging blue skin and sleepless eyes made him a sore sight. He had been on the Confederate Chamber since its inception, and it had been a long, hard fifteen years for him. Billions of citizens held him and his fellow members responsible for the economic downturn that had forced the universe into poverty. Seraph Aydrian was one of Diam’s few supporters, as well as one of his few friends.
The other Confederate Chamber member couldn’t have been more opposite from Diam. Lylo Jussian was a sleek, attractive female fesar. Her face was a bright yellow; her cheeks had a constant blush. Her beauty was enhanced by the black spots scattered across her body. She wore a simple yet elegant black dress with a casual brown jacket. She seemed to be a bit more collected than Diam was, which was unusual.
“It’s good to see some familiar faces,” she said. “B’yon knows we’ve lost more than enough important military members.” Lylo looked to the group, tilting her head a bit at Drever. “Though I can see you’ve enlisted in some non-military aid.”
“That’s Drever,” Seraph said. “He may look rough, but he’s done his share of saving my ass today. We can trust him.”
“I trust your judgment, Commander Aydrian.” Lylo bowed her head and cleared her throat. “I suppose you all are curious to know the plan regarding the seythra revolt. As far as we can tell right now, Vidron was hit the hardest, and seythra fleets were deployed to surrounding planets as well. As of now, we have no idea what the seythra aim to do or why they want to do it.”
“We’ve deployed several fleets to Vidron, but about ten of the twelve were shot down by the seythra’s flagship, the Baryon,” Diam said. “Nobody had ever seen it before; we’d only heard that the seythra were saving it for something monumental. We were told the ship possessed some of the most amazing technology in the universe, and it seems that wasn’t an understatement. Its size is unmatched, and each of its sides is lined with seventy-two guns. Plus thirty-eight missile launchers and twelve quad-chamber plasma guns. It’s truly remarkable.”
“We didn’t see anything like that leaving Vidron,” Ret said, slightly confused.
“Even in hyperspace, it moves extremely slowly due to its size,” Lylo added. “It takes four Goliath Drives to power it into hyperspace. It likely arrived a while after you left. As long as they have that, we don’t stand a chance. Our ships are fodder; our soldiers are merely brief decoys.”
Seraph shook his head. “We have to destroy it. Or hijack it. But it sounds fuckin’ impossible.
Drever scoffed. “It is impossible.” “This is what I’ve been telling you fuckin’ ‘heroes’ all along. This isn’t a war. It’s an extermination. There’s no winners, no losers. Only survivors. We n
eed to hole up here for the long haul.”
“There is another option, but it’s quite a long shot,” Diam said. “Trini 5010. Not the company, but the planet behind the company. It’s the home world of the seythra. There must be something there that could tell us why this is happening, or ideally, how to stop it. Trini 5010 is a space station-planet hybrid, so it’s likely heavily guarded. Even getting there would be difficult.”
“Where do you recommend aiming our focus?” Sadhis asked. “Do we try to take out the ship, or do we go to Trini?”
Diam turned to Sadhis. “It’s hard to say. Trini 5010 is our best chance of gaining intel into these attacks, but we also must consider that the Baryon is our greatest threat. Both need our attention. It’s a coin-flip.”
“Is it?” Drever said. “Taking that ship isn’t going to stop the seythra. Fuck, we didn’t even deal with that thing on Vidron and we still got torn the fuck apart. Fuck that ship, it’s just the icing on the cake. The seythra have the upper hand even without it. If you insist on running a suicide mission, you need to hit these fuckers where they live.”
Lylo let out a slow breath. “But we can’t even get counterattack units in to combat the seythra. That ship will absolutely be the death of the Confederate Military if we allow it to continue to function. I see where you’re coming from, but right now, we’re losing millions.”
Drever scoffed at Lylo. “It’s a temporary solution to a permanent problem.”
Ret moved to the front of the group. “I don’t think so. Our people are being annihilated. We need to cut seythra forces anywhere we can. What if we get to Trini 5010 and there’s just a hoard of seythra waiting for us? Or what if they abandoned the planet? We don’t know what we’ll find in Trini, but we do know about the Baryon. I say we focus on that. “
“Sadhis, Seraph, you’re the highest-ranking here,” Lylo said. “I leave the decision to you two. We have deployment and a fleet of soldiers ready to offer aid, though we’re very limited in number.” Lylo tapped away on one of the computer terminals.
Sadhis cleared his throat. “In my opinion, commandeering the Baryon is our best chance to hit the seythra hard.”
Diam turned to Seraph. “What do you say, son?”
“You two are the Confederate Chamber,” Seraph said. “You should decide.”
Lylo shook her head. “We saw only the initial attack before we were escorted out. You two know what we’re truly dealing with. We have estimated numbers. You have seen the damage. You have the best idea of where to allocate our resources. Do we attack their forces, or their home world?”
“Sadhis and I are supposed to lead the rest of these guys to the salvation of the galaxy? Save the universe? We’re going to get mowed down like everyone else,” Seraph said.
Diam stared hard at Seraph. “Even if you do, it’s better than sitting here and waiting to die. I know you, and I know Sadhis. You are two of the best soldiers I’ve ever seen. You can do this. I know you can.”
Seraph felt helpless. He had little faith in his ability to lead the universe to any sort of victory. Why him? He was just a Commander. Most of the politicians in this very room despised his methods, and yet everyone was looking to him for guidance?
As overwhelmed as he was, he couldn’t sit back and wait. This was the first safe area he’d seen, and it lit a small fire in him. There was hope. Right now, he had a job to do.
Seraph nodded and stared at the men in front of him.
“Alright, we’re going in to attack the Baryon immediately. Following the success or failure of this mission, we will proceed immediately to Trini 5010.”
“Hold up,” Drever said. “I’m not throwing my life away because you people think it’s a good idea to throw our extremely limited forces head first against the seythra. No fuckin’ way.”
“You’ve helped us this far. Will you just turn your back on the dying because it benefits your own survival?” Sadhis asked.
Drever chuckled. “You’re damn right I will.” He turned to walk off.
Seraph turned his attention to the weapons locker. Its supply wasn’t enough for such a mission. He glanced around the room, looking for arms of any kind, but there was little else that could aid them.
Seraph groaned. He turned to Lylo. “I’m guessing you don’t have any war ships stored down here. We’ve got a ship, but aside from the damage it’s already sustained, it’s small, and it’s hardly something I’d use to take on the Baryon.”
“Unfortunately, no,” Lylo said. “The ship that brought us here was a transportation vessel. It left immediately after dropping us off. As unfortunate as the situation is, what you have is what you must work with.”
“You aren’t getting within one hundred feet of that fuckin’ ship in what you’ve got.” Drever said. “It’s a goddamn suicide run, and you all know it.”
“We might be able to do it,” Ret said. “We’re just going to have to send the reinforcements in a transportation vessel ahead of us and hope that they draw the gunfire long enough for us to land and go to work.”
Sadhis nodded. “That may work, though I suggest we split up the reinforcements into three separate vessels. We’ll have one go to each side of the ship, and we’ll head for the bottom loading bay. There usually aren’t any weapons near the bottom, so it’s likely our best opportunity.”
“And then what?” Drever asked. “That door’s gonna be sealed tight as fuck.”
“We can activate the Knex Drive,” Ret suggested. “As long as we kill it before we enter hyperspace, it should give us enough speed to smash through. Our ship will be fucked, but we can worry about an escape afterward. Maybe one of the fleets can pick us up.”
Drever shook his head. “You think that fucking ship’s not going to have armor plating for the cargo hold?”
“I spent some time working on ships,” Sadhis said. “The weakest point of the door is the center. The larger the vessel, the bigger the area they have to cover with the hinges on the doors. Trust me, with a ship as big as the Baryon, we hit the center at a hundred and fifty percent speed, we’ll make it inside. Ret is right, there’s an eighty percent chance we won’t make it back out, but it would work.”
Seraph nodded. “Alright, if that’s the best shot we’ve got, we have to do it.”
“There’s one more issue,” Sadhis said. He turned to Diam and Lylo. “Where is Lahen? Has he left the Chamber to join the rest of the seythra?”
Lylo sighed. “We don’t know. He disappeared this morning on Vidron. Diam caught a glimpse of him, even called after him, but he left.”
Diam nodded. “He got off Vidron as quickly as he could. He wasn’t gunning anyone down. But he was in a hurry to go somewhere.”
“He could be leading seythra here right now to kill you both,” Seraph said. “I think you need to get out of here. You can’t come with us, though. It’s far too dangerous trying to board the Baryon with soldiers, let alone with the Confederate Chamber.”
Ret leaned forward. “Do you have any idea why this is happening? What the seythra are trying to do? The Chamber must know something.”
“Unfortunately, we know nothing more than you do,” Lylo said. “The seythra were a very private race. They were here long before most of us; we always respected their privacy. That may have been our ultimate mistake, looking back.”
Diam turned to Seraph. “To answer you, Seraph, there’s not much hope for us one way or another. We go with you, we’re in imminent danger, but the same holds true if we stay here. It’s best if we split up. These last few days have been hell. There’s very little left we have control over, except for a few scattered military forces. Most of the major government officials are lying on Vidron, massacred. I will come with you and your crew to assist the best I can, though I place all command between you and Lieutenant Loxai.”
“You’re going to get killed, old man,” Drever said. He turned to the group. “You’re making a mistake.”
“I’ll probably die if I choose to r
emain,” Diam said. “I trust Lylo to run things from here. I know she can handle it. And I may be old, but I can still operate a gun. If I kill even one seythra, then I’ve done my part in helping you and all of our people.”
Drever chuckled. “This is why I’m the only sane one left. All of you sticking your goddamn necks out, knowing they’re going to get cut off. Someone remind me again why, for fuck’s sake, we’re not utilizing this place? We have shields. There’s rations here. Guns. The doorway will make it easy to kill anyone who tries to get in. We could survive here until either the food or ammo runs out. That fuckin’ stairwell, and the switching door? They would limit our opposition to no foreseeable end. This is the place equipped to protect the most important people in the galaxy and we’re leaving?”
Diam came face to face with Drever.
“You truly do not know what it means to be othal. We are a people of peace, diplomacy, tranquility. But when our hand is forced, we act. We care for others. We lend a hand to our fallen brother; we do not leave him in the darkness. If even an ounce of you is othal, you must understand this. Everything we know, everyone we love, it’s all at stake. Are you going to hide, or take back what they’ve stolen from you?”
“Don’t fucking preach to me,” Drever said. “You high-rate politicians sit up in your tower and watch the wars play out, the soldiers fall, the civilians die. It’s nothing to you, until now. Until your own asses are on the line. Don’t tell me you care. Compassion doesn’t work in this world.”
Sadhis moved between the two and pushed them apart. “Easy, easy. We have to work together if we’re to survive this. We have a common enemy. We don’t need to target each other.”
“Gettin’ real sick of this real fuckin’ fast,” Drever muttered as he walked away.
“I think we should all remain here tonight,” Diam said. “You all need your rest. We need to be as close to one-hundred percent as possible when we hit the Baryon.”
Seraph sighed. “I still don’t think this is the safest place to be, but you’re right; We’re all more or less running on empty. The ship's low on power, too. We'll leave it on low power overnight, let the drive recharge.” Seraph turned to Lylo. “You sure you’ll be alright here after we leave? Do you want someone to stay back with you?”
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