Alutia Rising, Anniversary Edition (Alutia Rising Series, Book 1)

by Craig Gerttula

  The rest of the enemy starships, having witnessed the destruction of their surrendering comrades, broke away like a pack of startled gazelles, accelerating at full speed in all directions, away from the formation of death that pursued them. All thoughts of rendezvousing were lost, leaving the larger starships, who were unable to reach a similar acceleration as fast as their smaller brethren, to retreat on their own, unprotected.

  Two battleships and a dreadnaught turned, bringing their plasma cannons to bear, deciding against continued retreat. Plasma beams from the friendly ABF capital ships tore through the dreadnaught as the friendly ABF battleships, cruisers, corvettes, and frigates concentrated fire on the two battleships. Before they succumb, their fire took two friendly ABF cruisers and four frigates unaware, breaking through energy shields, cutting the hulls to pieces like they were constructed of cardboard. One lucky cruiser veered off at the last minute, falling out of formation, spewing atmosphere, heavily damaged.

  The battle continued nonstop for almost an hour. The larger starships that couldn't escape were hunted, one by one, until all that remained within range was the last super-capital that had left the standard system plane, hoping to put itself out of weapons range as its fellows were mercilessly hunted to extinction. It almost succeeded, but the TSB and ABF fleet were able to match the change of course and stay within max weapons range.

  A fierce battle ensued, streams of LPA beams shooting across space to paint the universe itself a solid green. But the outcome was already decided. The super-capitals ESS failed as the torrent of LPA fire continued unabated, slicing her to pieces. A lucky shot caught the NSD core and the ship imploded...all hands lost.

  Daniel sighed relief as the last of the targets faded from his display. It was over and he was alive. The thought of shouting for joy vanished on his lips as the officers around him broke down in an ocean of tears.

  “Helm, set course for the TSB Fleet Base. The rest of you are dismissed, spend your time how you like, but never forget those who died this day,” Captain Aysi’s orders were void of all emotion, the fire of the past five hour battle having burned through even her stoic facade. A vice gripped his shoulder and he winced, turning to find the stone cold gaze of Lt.-Commander Xi.

  “You will come with me,” Xi ordered, eyes as unemotional as her tone. Daniel cringed, knowing that all Xi’s anger, all her hatred, would soon be felt by him.

  He stood like a zombie, shuffling slowly behind her, resigned to his current fate, but knowing well now that the Earth was gone, the TSB would soon follow.

  “The time draws near,” he smirked at the voice, who spoke only truth, he started thinking of a going away present, one that would destroy the man responsible for everything, “even, Daniel, for the destruction of Earth.”

  The man named Trent.

  *********

  “Sasha,” Tiana whimpered, glancing at the doorway leading to the outer corridor.

  “She will come, Tiana, worry not,” Vickie assured from her side, sipping her Etique like the starship hadn’t felt like it would break apart at the seams, less than a half-hour before.

  “But,” Tiana, on the other hand, couldn’t help but worry, “I think we should check the medical bay, just in case, she may have-”

  “Tiana,” Vickie grabbed her chin, glaring at her like an errant child, “concern for ones lady is a wonderful trait, but you will drive yourself mad if you do not trust her. Word would have reached us by now if something was amiss, I assure you, and I believe Sasha, though neither you nor her seem to realize this fact, is strong enough to stand on her own,” Vickie grinned, allowing her fingers to fall, brushing Tiana’s neck, “though I would be more than happy to place your mind at ease, dear Tiana, once I have Til’Ma place Regalia to bed, of course,” she glanced down to the young girl, sleeping fitfully upon Vickie’s lap.

  “That is quite enough, Lady Vickie,” Tiana slapped her hand away just before it could creep within her cleavage.

  “Oh my, that will not do, Tiana,” Vickie acted the utmost offended lady. “After I helped calm you so, do I not deserve a gift?” Tiana could only sigh in response, realizing she did feel better, but unwilling to provide the type of “gift” Vickie would require.

  The door slid open and Tiana rushed to her feet. Sasha, arm around Trent, who looked worse than Tiana remembered, stumbled through the door. She rushed to Sasha’s side, beyond happy to see her friend safe, and with Gil’Da and Til’Ma’s assistance, escorted Trent into the bedchamber. Once he was seated the two servants took over and the ladies removed themselves to the door.

  Sasha stumbled, collapsing to her knees with a cry. Tiana froze, having only once before heard Sasha sing such a sorrowful tone. She quickly knelt alongside, placing an arm around her friend, Vickie rushing to the other.

  “Sasha, what’s wrong?” she asked.

  “They did it,” she sobbed, but no tears emerged, eyes already puffy and red, “we...we tried to stop them...but they still did it...”

  “Earth it...it is gone.”

  The air exploded from her lungs, like an immense weight had struck her head on. She remembered hearing Knight High-Admiral Baric threaten to destroy the Earth, but she hadn't really believed him, thought it was some sort of bluff. Who could sacrifice so many people so calmly? Tiana knew who...a monster that was now dead thanks to Trent.

  She embraced Sasha, who collapsed to the floor, Vickie embracing them both with a loving coo. Slowly, she and Vickie helped Sasha recover her feet, escorting her to the washroom. Sasha obliged them, like a giant doll, as they removed her dress and jewelry, washing her cold, clammy flesh. They carefully slid her into a nightgown and escorted her to the bed, like an overtired child, and helped her in, beside Trent. She wiggled to Trent's side, wrapping her arms and legs around him before burying her head in his chest. Within moments, sleep had overtaken her. Tiana rushed back to the sitting room’s outer door, turning to the ABF Battleguards on duty.

  “No one is to disturb Her Grace unless it's the medical officer, understand?” The battleguards nodded, moving to attention before the door. She returned to her seat beside Vickie, who nodded, eyes distant. Silently, she watched Til'Ma and Gil'Da lead a cranky Regalia to the ladies bedchamber, Tiana still having trouble believing what had transpired. But in any case, they needed help, and fast.

  Thinking of no other option, she gathered her courage and accessed her BC node, preparing a message to the only person she could trust in the universe

  “Mother, we need you....”

  Chapter 25

  Nineteen days, almost two full NHA periods, had passed since the Battle of Earth where the TSB and Alutia Fleets had been devastated, and the Earth...destroyed. Sasha glanced over her shoulder at the stone faced Sir Seb'Losh, who stood diligently a step behind her, scanning the crowd of TSB, ABF, and TBF personnel mingling with the Tidelia nobles within the enormous banquet hall. He’d become even more vigilant then before she'd banished him on a fool's errand, and though it bothered her, she understood Sir Seb’Losh’s reasoning.

  To her surprise, he had arrived at the TSB Fleet Base alongside her guardian, Tiana's mother, Countess Liana, and a fleet of 20 Tidelia Battle Fleet battle groups a day after the Battle of Earth had concluded.

  Sasha smiled at the memory of the emotional reunion. Tiana had cried, for what seemed like hours, in her mother's arms as Sasha told the story of what had befallen. Countess Liana, after hearing the full truth for the first time, had ordered her fleet commanders to invade the Hulk'Zif Duchy, without hesitation, to bring Duke Zehman to justice. But cooler heads prevailed and the countess agreed to wait upon the king’s approval before launching her crusade.

  But she didn’t have to wait long. Duke Zehman, unfazed by the loss of seven HZBF battle groups, assembled another fleet of 10 battle groups and returned for revenge. But his second invasion of ABF space was short lived, being forced to retreat at the sight of the larger Tidelia Battle Fleet that had caught the duke’s force by surprise.
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  Countess Liana, again restrained from pursuing Duke Zehman into the Hulk'Zif Duchy, dispersed her fleet, sending them to the four jumpgate hubs that allowed access to and from the Alutia Duchy, blockading all traffic until the situation had been sorted and calmed. Sasha glanced to the fiery woman sitting on the nearside of the dining table, a spitting image of Tiana, but much taller, with a single braid of white hanging amongst her wavy blond locks. Sasha watched her with hidden amusement as she tried to convert Knight Admiral Quinn, newly appointed commander of the yet to be commissioned 7th ABF battle group, for her crusade against Duke Zehman.

  He glanced to Sasha, a dubious look on his whiskered face, as Countess Liana explained her plan to rain fire upon Hulkra and Zifanillia, the twin capital planets of the Hulk’Zif Duchy. Sasha let slip a grin, noticing Tiana next to her mother, blushing furiously from embarrassment. Regalia, who sat just beyond, was oblivious to the heated discussion to her left, playing absently with the salty black eggs that she'd been told were a delicacy of Earth, but obviously didn’t agree. The seat next to her, where Vickie should have been seated, laid empty for all but the most important parts of the evening. Sasha scanned the crowd, easily locating the woman, her skimpy violet dress, similar to those that were popular on Tidelia, standing out amongst the fleet officers dress uniforms. She flirted aggressively, as romantics were known to do, with a handsome young TSB Lieutenant that looked vaguely familiar. Sasha sighed, unable to understand the appeal of dallying with men she didn’t love, but finding little reason to keep Vickie from a hunt she obviously enjoyed so very much.

  The decommissioning banquet for the TSB had begun to die down, the formal ceremonies in honor of those who lost their lives during the Battle of Earth, which encompassed both the clash with Duke Zehman and the latter with Knight High Admiral Baric, having been completed. She frowned, the memories of these most horrible of men returning, a shiver creeping slowly up her spine.

  One thing had become certain during the nineteen days following the Battle of Earth, Duke Zehman and Sir Baric had powerful allies. She received personal messages from at least 10 dukes stating she was now an enemy of the entire NHA, though she knew it just talk, and that if she or any starship of Alutia entered their duchies, they would be detained for the offense of capital murder, a much more serious threat. Of course, most of these duchies were loyal to Duke Zehman and Hulk'Zif, more so then the crown or emperor. But the rest were friends of Sir Baric's father, King Maric of galaxy 2 and his sister, Princes Xeros, wife of Crown Prince Kohan, her brother, and the future queen of Galaxy 189, her noble better. The letter Sasha wrote to her brother about the part he played, according to Sir Baric, while still flush with anger, had not been returned, nor her pleas for her father to deploy the King’s Fleet to punish Duke Zehman.

  It almost appeared like she was alone in a sea of enemies, only a tiny isle on the far side of this sea, ruled by Countess Liana, her sole bastion of support. But there were signs of hope. A few messages arrived from realist dukes and duchesses that seemed to know of Duke Zehman and Sir Baric's hard-line traditionalist reputations. The letters contained exploratory offers of trade agreements to help her build her fleets and colonize the vast stretches of space, over 900 light years at its widest point, and containing tens of thousands of colonizable planets, in return for, a grin broke her lips, gorian ore, an exceedingly rare metal that when converted to a programmable matter alloy was able to withstand plasma beams without melting. Of course, to waste such a valuable alloy on a starship’s hull was unheard of, being normally reserved for specialized engineering projects and private decoration.

  From what she had learned from the reports she had been neglecting since her rise to grand duchess, Duke Zehman had discovered the largest gorian deposit in the known universe, along with a previously undisclosed paradise planet, in the heart of the newly formed Alutia Duchy. This deposit would make Alutia, after payments to the crown and emperor, one of the richest duchies in the entire universe. Sasha felt a wave a glee push past the heavy air, making her wonder if her father had known of this beforehand or if it was just blind luck.

  A finger brushed against her hand under the table. She glanced to its owner, Trent, shifting stiffly within his seat, adorning the same unemotional expression he had worn since Earth was destroyed.

  Her attempts to force him out of his sour mood were repeatedly rebuked, and he seemed to be falling farther and farther from her grasp during his days being bedridden. She hadn't dared leave him behind when she came to the TSB Fleet Base, but she knew little else she could do. Vickie, of course, explained the entire matter was easily resolved. That all Sasha had to do was take his mind off his constant dwelling, force him to look to the future, and what better way to do that, then through her body’s touch.

  This brought back the argument that had ensued, on a day that felt so long ago, when Sasha broke down after removing her clothes in Trent’s unconscious presence. Vickie then went on the offense, saying that in light of Sasha's shortcomings as a woman, she would take her place as Trent's mistress, to perform what Sasha could not, and free him from the prison of his own mind. After this ultimatum, Sasha kept a watchful eye, Vickie constantly lurking in shadows, watching, waiting, to see if Sasha would face her demons. But when Trent started getting worse, and Sasha unwilling to do what was necessary, unable is more like it, her mind screamed, Vickie went on the offensive.

  The first incident occurred when Vickie snuck into bed with them in the middle of the night and only Terra, squawking an alarm, warned her of the unwanted presence. Then, the following morning, she again warned by Terra's squawk, running from the shower to find Vickie trying to remove the pants from an obviously confused Trent. Heated words were exchanged and Vickie was banished, temporarily, to the TSB Fleet Base. It was then that Sasha made a decision.

  That night she'd gathered all her courage and proceeded to seduce Trent with her feminine wiles. He reacted without question, taking her with such fire that his very touch threatened to burn her skin. Her mind blurred and the scar of her heart vanished as pleasure unlike anything she before experienced, born of her one true love, flowed through her veins. Then, he had removed her nightgown, and a cold, hard fear pushed everything else out of her mind.

  The room had morphed, returning her to that time so long ago, surrounded by the noble boys, touching and prodding, begging to be allowed to take her forcefully. She slapped them away, screeching in horror. They released her, trying to pull away, but she attacked with all her fury, punching, biting, and scratching. It wasn't until Tiana barged in, flipping on the light, did she realized what she'd done. She escaped to the washroom, balling her eyes out to Tiana, like she had done before, after that time so long ago. Tiana's kind words, though welcome, were hollow. She knew them all already.

  It is too early, Sasha.

  You shouldn't rush things like this.

  Time is the only way to heal these wounds.

  But now she’d come to realize that this was no longer true. It wasn’t that the wound wouldn’t heal, but that her mind refused to let the wound heal, to make herself vulnerable...to once again give herself, to completely trust in another.

  Trent said nothing of the incident. But fell deeper into despair. The joy she once felt in his presence had changed to ever present worry, worry for the one she loved falling farther and farther from her reach, to a place she could not follow.

  She looked away, a lonesome tear begging to break free, only to see Vickie sauntering through the crowd that split before her in a sea of blushes, the young TSB Lieutenant she'd been flirting staring ravenously in Sasha’s direction, making her skin crawl. The man, noticing her gaze had fallen upon him, bowed deeply, before turning, and with a skip in his step, headed towards the exit, continuing to gaze in her direction like a predator...a predator that reminded her eerily of Vickie.

  *********

  Daniel grinned merrily as he left the central banquet hall on TSB Fleet Base.

  “It is tim
e, Daniel, and you have done well,” he beamed, but not at the voice, instead at the fact his plan had finally been set in motion...his plan for revenge...revenge most foul that would destroy Trent, repay him for all he had done, for the 25 billion people he had killed.

  Not directly, of course, that is too risky, but he wouldn't be surprised if Trent ended up taking his own life in the end.

  When the rumor began to spread that Trent had begun courting the Grand Duchess Sasha Alutia, Daniel had not believed it. How would anyone allow an Earthling, especially someone of Trent's history and background, to court such a noble and beautiful woman? It wasn't until he learned that the awarding of the Star of Terra had been accepted and the full report leaked of Trent's antics on Earth base, that he started to suspect that the rumors were in fact, true. But within these rumors, he found a perfect opportunity, one that would allow the destruction of Trent through the use of Daniel’s greatest weapon, and his target would be the one and only, Grand Duchess Sasha Alutia.

  The only problem was patience, and that paid off when the perfect occasion finally presented itself when he was invited to the TSB decommissioning ceremony, to be awarded the Moon Beam for his actions on Earth during the erecting of the contaminate barrier. The award wasn't nearly as prestigious as the Star of Terra, not even close, but he would receive it at the banquet being attended by both the Grand Duchess Sasha Alutia and Trent himself. He wasn't exactly sure how he was going to accomplish his plan, but he knew, and the voice reassured, that an opportunity would present itself, which to his delight, did of its own accord.