The Indoctrination

by K. L. Bone

  Lord Kasar answered the call himself. “Report,” he demanded.

  “Ninety ships in planet. What are your orders?”

  “Protect the natives. I give you permission to do whatever is necessary.”

  “My Lord.”

  “Make sure to…” The hologram vanished.

  “What happened?”

  “We have lost communication, my Lady.”

  “You mean they have blocked communication within the planet?”

  “No,” he replied, frantically fiddling with various controls. “Our signal with the fleet is a direct contact. There should be no way to jam communications between us and the fleet.”

  “What happened then?”

  He shook his head, “You don’t understand. The only way for us to lose communication with the fleet is if the communication failure is with the entire fleet.”

  “You mean?”

  “No ship in our entire fleet can communicate with one another.”

  “But how is that possible?” I asked.

  “The only way something like this could have happened is if the device being used to jam communications is literally on the planet. It is a large device. It takes weeks to put it together and even longer to set the right frequencies. Not to mention they would have to have those frequencies in the first place.”

  But the only people who know the frequency numbers for upcoming battles are the top commanders,” I half asked, half stated.

  “Well someone must have given it to them, because our communications are effectively blocked. If our troops can’t communicate with each other…” he let the sentence trail off.

  My mind raced with questions, but I knew that questions wouldn’t help me. I had to think. “Okay. Do our planetary communications still work?”

  “Yes, they are on a different frequency.”

  “What about our satellite uplink?”

  “It works as well.”

  I turned to the blank white wall on my left staring at nothing as I tried to gather my thoughts. “Are the enemy ships in the air, or have they landed?”

  I stood there silently, listening to the sound of my commander pushing buttons and issuing orders to the computer. Finally an electronic voice stated, “Seventy-one ships on ground at centralized location. Twenty-two ships in air.”

  “Only twenty?” my commander stated. “There’s no way they know we are here.”

  “No, not yet,” I replied. “We were very discrete in how we set up these camps. If only a small party was sent to set up this device in a remote location, then they probably wouldn’t have noticed us. What I need to know is if whatever is jamming the signal is at this centralized location all the ships seem to be flocking too. Obviously, that is where it should be, but I wouldn’t put it past them to have set up this location as a decoy.”

  “Shall I send out some scouts?”

  I nodded. “Meanwhile, send up fifteen ships from the farthest three lots as a distraction. Make sure they fly very high before they engage. Hopefully the Sentiles will believe they came from the main fleet. It may buy us a little more time before they discover we are down here. Keep all communication to a minimum. Give whichever scouts you send direct communication access with this command center along with the ships going up. If our secret gets out and they need help, I want to know about it.”

  “Yes, my Lady.” Harars eight left the room to choose scouts and my commander contacted the camp farthest from the enemy ships and ordered twenty of our own ships to engage, hopefully keeping our enemies attention focused on them, allowing our scouts on foot to enter unseen.

  Within ten minutes, our ships were in the air. Every second counted.

  “My Lady,” one of my commanders said, drawing my attention back to the people in the room around me, “the ships are approaching range of the enemy targets. Shall they engage?”

  “Yes. Do it now, try and destroy as many as possible before they realize we’re there. Also open full communications between the ships and this room. I want to hear everything.”

  Communications were open and I listened intently as the commanders yelled, “Targets in sight. Firing!” A high-pitched sound filled the room. “Missed!” yelled a pilot.

  “Direct hit!” yelled several others. Nine of the twenty-two ships were taken out of commission before the Sentiles even knew we were there. More screeches filled the room as the enemy ships turned and engaged. From the satellite uplink in the control room, I watched as several grounded ships rose, rushing to help their fellow comrades. “Be advised, ten more ships headed your way.”

  Shouting followed as a full aerial battle began. Meanwhile, our scouts had been deployed and quickly made their way towards the remaining land-based ships, searching for the source of the jamming signal. Over the next half-hour, ten of our ships went down along with fifteen of the enemies.

  As the Sentiles deployed another twenty ships, I made a judgment call and ordered fifteen more of our own into the air. Our ships were all called by various numbers, identified on the virtual map in front of me as I watched the battle. Suddenly, I saw two Sentile ships teaming up on one of our pilots. “Number 16, pull up!” I ordered. He complied and managed to scarcely avoid the shot in his direction.

  “Lady Kasar, one of the Paltas who volunteered to scout for us has returned.”

  “Bring him here immediately.” Two minutes later, Tanya stood before me. She was covered in dark green fur which tended to blend into the native environment of the forest. “Kasar’s daughter,” she called me, “the device is there.”

  I turned to my second in command, “We have got to take out that device.”

  “Shall I send the ships there?” Harars asked.

  I shook my head. “They won’t break through the force field. Send up more ships, and put a team together. Those force-fields have to be knocked out by hand. Ask for volunteers. I’ll lead the team myself.”

  “You?” he asked.

  “Yes, me.”

  “Lady Kasar, you are in charge. We need you here.”

  I hesitated.

  “I’ll do it,” he said. “That way, you will know that someone competent is in charge of the mission, but you can stay here where you are needed. I’m still a better soldier than leader.”

  “Harars,” I sighed. “Do you understand what is at stake here? If those force fields don’t go down quickly, we won’t have anything left to defend.”

  “I understand,” he answered. “I swear to you that those fields will go down.”

  I thought about it for another moment, then sighed because I knew he was right. So instead of arguing, I looked him in the eye and said, “Failure is not an option; do you understand?”

  “Yes, My Lady, I understand; implicitly.”

  He left to find his team. I turned my attention back to the ongoing battle. “Number twenty, turn left!” I yelled, saving his life. More shots were fired; ships went down, and more ships rose to meet those already in the air.

  A while later, a call came over the communications system. “The ground force you sent are behind enemy force-fields.”

  “How many did he take?”

  ‘Two groups of ten,” the man by my side answered.

  “My Lady,” a pilot called, “I think our secret is out. They know we have soldiers on the ground.”

  “Send ten ships up from camps fifteen, eighteen, and five,” I ordered. “If they know we are here, we might as well let them know we’re here in force.”

  “Should we send up ships as well, my Lady?”

  “No. Try and conceal this command base for as long as possible…Number eight, turn left!” I turned back to my fellow commanders in the room. “Someone go outside, let the Paltas know what is going on. Tell them we are doing everything we can.” Someone nodded and ran outside. “Do we have communication with the force field team?”

  “Yes.”

  I reached over the control panel in front of me. “Harars?” I asked.

  “I’m here.”r />
  “Status?”

  “We’ve found the generators,” he answered. “There are eight guards surrounding them. Our other team is approaching from the opposite side. They should be here in a few seconds.”

  Night had fallen over the sky. I took a step out the door and looked up. The sky was streaked with unnatural lights. The fighting was clearly fierce in the confusion I was sure was occurring up above. I went back inside, “Harars?” I said, “Please hurry.”

  I glanced back at the ongoing atmospheric battle, “Ten and Twelve, watch your back!”

  “I’m going in,” Harars replied. The mike was left open, screams drifted into the room. I closed my eyes and could almost picture the lasers firing, the bodies disappearing, the air singed from the heat of the blast. I listened, leaning towards the speakers, straining to hear every last sound.

  “They’re everywhere!” I had no idea who said it.

  Then Harars was back on the line. “My Lady, we’ve reached the generator. But, we are surrounded. I have no idea where the extra troops came from, but there is no way to plant these bombs and get away. Your orders?”

  I said, “Destory them!”

  Then I heard him say, “Everyone out! Use whatever means you can to defend yourself. Get back to camp!”

  “But sir?” someone else asked.

  “Go now!” More screaming followed.

  “What’s happening?” I demanded.

  “I’ll take care of the force-field, my Lady. Tell Lord Kasar that of all the commanders I ever worked under, the two of you were the best.” Silence followed like the calm before the storm, then the line went dead.

  A few moments passed then a voice came across the line. “Lady Kasar, Lukare seventy-two speaking. The generators have been destroyed.”

  “Destroy that camp!” I ordered.

  “All ships be advised,” one of my co-commanders yelled. “Launch full aerial attack. I want that communications device knocked out!” Our ships raced toward the enemy camp.

  More screaming followed, then, “Communications are back up!”

  “Give me high command!”

  “Chrissa!” a voice called as a hologram of Lord Kasar appeared before me.

  “I’m here.”

  “Are you?”

  “I’m fine,” I assured him.

  “Communications are up again. Is that your doing?”

  “Yes.”

  “My Lady,” one of my sub-commanders, standing on my left informed me, “all enemy ships have been destroyed.”

  “We have things under control here, my Lord. Go fight your war.”

  “Our war,” Lord Kasar said, cutting communications.

  Reports began to pour in. Our forces had sustained some losses, though not as many as I had imagined. Many of our captains had managed to pull back their ships until communications were re-established. Thanks to the efforts of my troops, the system had been down no more than two hours.

  Lord Kasar’s forces surged forward and began to re-take the field. Setian ships patrolled the skies around the camps, knocking down the ships that managed to reach the planet’s atmosphere. I continued to oversee the battle from the control room, giving the Paltas frequent updates as the battle continued.

  “Lady Kasar, a message is coming in from a secure channel. The signature reads from Lord Kavra’s ship.”

  “Lord Kavra?” He was supposed to be in the Seltas galaxy. “Put it through.”

  A new hologram appeared. It was not Lord Kavra. Instead I faced a woman with short red hair. Her green eyes studied me from her side of the hologram as I waited expectantly for an explanation.

  “Lady Kasar?” she asked.

  “Yes, and you are?”

  “I am sub-Harars Three. My Lord Kavra came to join Lord Kasar when we lost communication with his fleet. In the fighting, Lord Kavra’s ship crashed. We have been trying to get down to the planet, but have been unable to do so. I,” she looked lost, “I don’t know what to do.”

  “I do,” I immediately replied. “I’ll find him.”

  “The chances that he is still alive are…”

  “I said I’ll find him.”

  Chapter XVII

  I had not seen Lord Kavra since the eve of my sixteenth birthday when Lord Kasar had escorted me to Setianta for what would become the event of the season. Lords, Councilors, and Harras alike had travelled from the farthest reaches of the Empire to line the walls of Kasar’s elegant ballroom. Together they exchanged stories, drank, and danced old, formal dances which incorporated various cultures and traditions from the different corners of the Empire. I forewent the usual full flair gown for a more simplistic floor length dress of red satin that clung to my body like a second skin. It was an open back gown held by thin straps which buckled on both shoulders with a single diamond.

  Several hours had already passed before Kavra arrived, gliding across the room in a crisp white shirt under a traditional black tuxedo. His blonde hair was pulled back by a thin silver band and his eyes were the palest of blues. I watched him walk closer from the corner of my eye as Councilor Vektor spoke of the latest problems in the Seltas galaxy. When he finally reached us, Councilor Vektor turned with a smile. “Hello, Lord Kavra.”

  “Hello, Councilor,” Kavra replied. I felt his eyes slide over my slim form and felt my cheeks begin to flush.

  “I was beginning to think you wouldn’t make it,” I addressed him with a relieved smile.

  “And miss you in that dress?” Kavra replied. “Not for the Empire.” Then he turned back to the Councilor. “Do you mind if I borrow this young enchantress? I believe I owe her a dance.”

  “By all means,” Vektor smiled at Kavra. “As long as I get one before the night is over.”

  “Of course, my Lord,” I managed to say before being whisked off to the dance floor and into Kavra’s arms.

  “Four months,” I told him once we were securely onto the marble floor. I shook my head before placing it against his shoulder.

  “I know,” he replied. “I’m sorry.”

  “I missed you, Kavra.”

  “And I you, my Lady.”

  A comfortable silence fell between us as we danced through the first, second, and then a third song. Then, on the last note, he spun me in an elegant twirl across the floor. When I turned back to face him, Kavra leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine. The kiss deepened as I responded in kind. When the song came to an end he pulled back. I stared into his pale blue eyes. “Happy Birthday.”

  “You’ve never kissed me like that,” I said breathlessly.

  “I’ve never felt like this before.” He drew me further into his arms.

  “Kavra, I want to tell you that I…”

  “May I cut in?” a voice interrupted.

  We turned to see Lord Kasar standing beside us. “I have not yet danced with our guest of honor.”

  “Of course, my Lord.” Kavra moved and placed my hand into the older man’s. “I will see you later tonight,” he promised before walking off of the dance floor.

  That was the last moment I had stood in the same room with Kavra. When I tried to find him later that night, Kasar informed me that an emergency had arisen in the Seltas galaxy. Kavra had departed immediately. My heart sank. Without thinking I asked, “Can I go with him, my Lord? Just for a little while? I haven’t seen him in months and he just got back.”

  “Chrissa,” Kasar cut through my plea. “You know that you cannot go with him. You still have training to complete, and Kavra has a job to do as well.”

  I looked at him in confusion. “He didn’t even say goodbye. That’s not like him.”

  Kasar looked at my hurt expression and softened his tone. “He wanted to,” Kasar informed me, “but also knew that it would ruin the party for you. He left a note in your chambers.” He reached his hand to my cheek and raised my gaze to meet his own. “He will be fine, Chrissa. You’ll see.”

  I nodded slowly and turned towards the door before racing back to my room.
As promised, a letter lay across the deep, red blankets beside a single red rose. I picked up the thin golden paper. My name was written clearly across the front in Kavra’s elegant handwriting.

  “Dear Chrissa,” it read. “I am sorry to have left so suddenly, but I could not bear to ruin your birthday with this news. If I did not tell you before, you looked exquisite tonight and I wouldn’t have missed our dance for all the world. Please forgive my unexpected departure and know, as always, my heart remains with you. Happy Birthday, my Lady. Forever yours, William Kavra.”

  I traced my fingers over the signature, which was indented into the paper when a knock at the door drew my attention. “Chrissa,” Kasar called. “You must return to the party. It will not do to have you disappearing.”

  I took a deep breath and walked to the door, allowing Kasar to escort me back with a heavy heart. Few saw through my carefully placed smile, but when Vektor finally asked for his dance, it took him little more than a glance. “What troubles you, my Lady?”

  “It is nothing, my Lord.”

  He took a step back to better see my face. “Now, I know that is not true. You look close to tears.” His pale grey eyes showed such concern. “What is it, Chrissa?”

  In a rare moment of defiance, I asked. “Call him back. Please, my Lord.”

  The Councilor drew a slow breath and said: “Kavra was sent to Seltas.” It was more statement than question.

  He eyed me for several moments as I struggled to control my brimming tears. “Chrissa,” he said softly. “I know our Setian ways have not been easy for you and standing here, looking into your eyes, there is almost nothing that I would not give you. However,” he leaned forward placing his lips near my ears as to not be overheard on the crowded dance floor. “You need to consider what it is you ask. There are consequences to every choice we make, my Lady. Lord Kasar ordered Kavra to that system and as such, to bring him back would be a direct challenge to his authority.” He drew a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “If, in the light of the Setian suns, you ask it of me, I will return him to you. But be prepared for the consequences that will follow.” He leaned back and brushed a stray piece of hair from my cheek. “Consider carefully, my Lady.”