by Chris Fox
“Precisely, Captain,” Ship confirmed. “It would lay dormant until a signal was detected.”
“Then I think we have a workable plan, people,” Nolan said, rising to his feet. “Hannan, I want a detailed assault plan for a team to reach the bridge undetected. See what you and Annie can come up with. Lena, Atrea, keep working on this Forge.”
“Captain, we’re receiving an incoming transmission,” Ship said.
“Put it on screen,” Nolan said. A moment later, a hologram sprang into existence on the far side of the room. It showed a weary-looking Captain Dryker, still aboard the cavernous Primo vessel.
“Nolan, we’ve just arrived in-system at Tigrana. You need to get here. Now,” Dryker said, expression pained. “The Tigris are beginning their assault on the human fleets. The 11th is bombarding the planet.”
53
Orders
Mendez was tired. The joining had provided him with many abilities, but using them came with a cost. Every day, he added another layer of exhaustion, and he knew he couldn’t keep this up forever. Sooner or later, he’d buckle under the strain. He suspected the larva knew that—counted on it, even. That was troubling, but there was nothing he could do about it. God knew he’d tried. Over and over, at first. Now he accepted his role.
“Connect me with Chu,” Mendez ordered, withdrawing a cigar from the breast pocket of his uniform. He took his time cutting the end, and then lighting it. By the time he’d taken his first puff, the view screen had flickered to life.
Chu’s bridge was older than Mendez’s ship, and the stations on Chu’s vessel were still manned by active personnel. Mendez could see at a glance that they were terrified of Chu, and for good reason. He looked positively ghastly atop the captain’s chair, his belly and limbs slightly distended. His skin was nearly translucent. If Mendez needed any proof that the larva meant ill for him, the proof was in Chu’s health. How long had Chu been implanted before he’d done the same to Mendez? That would determine the timetable, the amount of time Mendez had before he looked just like Chu.
“What do you want, Mendez? The Tigris are about to launch their assault. I need to attend to the battle,” Chu said, his eyes narrowing in distaste.
Mendez had grown used to the contempt, and could hardly blame Chu. Chu had been the one to recruit Mendez, and before that had been the top agent among the admiralty. Now that was Mendez, and Chu had no one but himself to blame.
“That’s why I’m contacting you, actually,” Mendez said, giving Chu a friendly smile. “I wanted to clarify how this battle is to be conducted. I’m broadcasting a series of deployment orders now.”
Chu glanced down at his data pad, his scowl deepening as he read. After nearly a minute his eyes shot up, spearing Mendez. “I can’t give these orders. Some of these are suicidal. This is career ending. I’ll be stripped of rank, if we even survive.”
“Regrettably,” Mendez said, without an ounce of regret, “the masters have decided that such a sacrifice is necessary. You’ll send the best unimplanted captains to their deaths. The Tigris are receiving similar orders. Those likely to oppose us, on both sides, need to die in this battle. Casualties need to be immense. Is that understood, Admiral Chu?”
Chu’s face twisted in emotional agony. He wrestled with it, seemingly unable to speak. Mendez waited patiently, letting the man twist. He truly did regret losing an agent with Chu’s influence, but the damage they’d inflict here made the sacrifice worth it. Today would mark the beginning of the end for all resistance to the masters.
In one fell swoop, they’d wipe out the strongest parts of both humanity and the Tigris. After this, the implanted parts of their fleets would outnumber unimplanted parts. They could co-opt both species’ militaries, using them to speed the masters’ conquest. More, this attack ensured that the two races would never be able to unite.
“I understand,” Chu finally said.
“Good. Best of luck, Admiral,” Mendez said, then he severed the connection. He glanced at one of the drones jacked into the bridge. “Take us to the star’s nadir point, then dive for the Helios Gate. I want to be gone by the time this battle gets underway.”
54
Career Suicide
Chu wiped at his forehead, shocked when he saw the streak of red across the back of his hand. That wasn’t sweat. It was blood. He began to tremble, struggling to hide from the truth he simply couldn’t admit: the larva was still growing. As it grew, it fed on him. He was dying, sacrificed to the masters in a very literal way. He could feel it slithering through his nervous system, infecting every part of him like a cancer.
What terrified him the most was how much he welcomed it.
“Sir,” one of his bridge techs called. He hadn’t bothered to learn their names. “The Tigris fleet will intercept in sixty seconds. Do you have orders you wish to convey to the captains? Several have already hailed us.”
“Yes,” Chu said, straightening despite the pain that had crept from his back into his chest. “Have the Defiant, the Equilibrium, the Sojourn, the Midway, and the Rebel move to intercept. The 11th will continue their orbital bombardment. The rest of the fleet will stand by for additional orders.”
The tech protested. “Sir, are you sure—”
“Relay those orders, Lieutenant,” Chu said, silencing the lieutenant with a chopping gesture.
“Aye, sir,” the lieutenant said, moving back to his console.
Chu understood the man’s protest. By continuing the bombardment, they would weaken their defense and drive the Tigris into a suicidal frenzy. The Tigris would stop at nothing to destroy the 11th fleet, the one that had belonged to Admiral Kelley until recently. It was the single largest concentration of loyal officers in the fleet, and if the Tigris wiped them out it would break the back of UFC resistance.
Chu watched as the vessels he’d named drifted from the rest of the fleet. They moved out alone, five ships against seventy. Would this be the order that convinced the chipped captains to mutiny? It might be. Were Chu the man he’d been before the larva, he’d certainly have defied these orders.
Chu’s hand drifted to the little black box in his pocket, which reassured him. If the chipped captains rebelled, at least he possessed the means of bringing them back into line. They’d do their duty, killing loyal Tigris and humans alike. When the dust settled, Chu would be dead, but the masters’ plan would be that much closer to completion.
Chu was racked by a fit of coughing, and raised his hand to see specks of blood all over his palm. It wouldn’t be long now. His only regret was that he wouldn’t be around to savor that victory, or to see what hatched from his corpse.
55
Breaking the Accords
A ragged mixture of human and Primo vessels emerged from the star’s corona, moving far enough away to escape the worst of the magnetic fields. That would allow them to scan the rest of the system, and allow Dryker to get a feel for the disposition of the assembled fleets before he engaged. He watched as the dome flickered briefly, then icons began to appear.
Dryker stood resolute, watching the single most horrifying event he’d ever witnessed play out before him. The 11th fleet continued to bombard the surface, little streaks dropping from each vessel. Moments later mushroom clouds dotted the surface. Then more streaks, and more clouds. Most of the planet’s southern continent was coated in dust and ash.
“Our records indicate that the southern continent was the most densely populated,” Celendra said, shifting her weight as she stared at the planet. “Rarely have we seen an atrocity on this level. Were there no Void Wraith threat, if the Tigris petitioned us to wipe out humanity, I believe my people would do it.”
“I’m not sure they’d be wrong to,” Dryker said, deeply disturbed by what he was witnessing.
A mass of Tigris ships had been automatically tagged with blue triangles. The moment they registered, the human vessels became orange squares. Five squares broke from the main human fleet, moving to intercept. Nearly seventy triang
les overwhelmed those squares. The move puzzled Dryker for a split second, until he remembered that the whole goal of this attack was to wipe out loyal human captains.
This needed to be stopped, as quickly as possible. The longer the battle went on, the more vessels on both sides would be destroyed. But how did you stop a war between races who had every reason to hate each other, races with a history of violent conflict?
He had to try.
“Celendra, can you broadcast me across the Quantum Network to all human vessels in system?” Dryker asked.
“Yes, give me a moment to establish the connection,” Celendra said, touching a button on the bracelet on her wrist. Her skin was lighter than it had been the day before, more sky blue than sea foam. Was that typical for Primo? “There. You are live, Admiral.”
“Attention, officers of the UFC,” Dryker began, licking his lips, then plunging forward. “Three months ago, a battle took place in the Ghantan system. Humans and Tigris worked to stop a common threat. The people behind that threat twisted what happened there to convince our races to go to war. The Tigris are not our real enemy. Right now, each of you is receiving proof to back up my claims. Footage from battles with the Void Wraith, and evidence that the admiralty has been infiltrated.
“I know this is a big ask, but if we expect our race to survive I need you to listen,” Dryker said, wishing he could see the faces of the captains listening. Were they? “You can see that I’m surrounded by a Primo fleet. Most of the Primo have been wiped out, but the few remaining are willing to help us against a common enemy. Every vessel we lose today weakens us for the war to come.
“So I call on you to join me. Stop fighting the senseless war with the Tigris. For the love of God, stop bombarding their planet. You’re breaking the accords,” Dryker said, his voice cracking. “We’re giving them every reason to hate us. Is that what we’ve become? Do you really believe it’s okay to bomb women and children? Stop being used. Save your race. Or die senselessly, helping your enemies.”
Dryker stopped talking, and a moment later Celendra tapped her bracelet. She turned slowly, hesitantly, to face him. “Do you think they will listen?”
“I don’t know,” Dryker said. “We’re trained to follow orders, even orders we don’t understand. But the evidence I broadcast will make a lot of the captains think. I wished we’d gotten here several hours ago. Now that combat has begun, it will be more difficult to convince them to pull away from it.”
Dryker watched as the Tigris finished savaging the five vessels that had moved to engage them. They were now moving to circle the rest of the human fleet, to engage the 11th. The smart tactical decision would have been to have the 11th break off to engage, while the rest of the fleet flanked the Tigris.
Instead, the 11th continued their bombardment. The rest of the fleet sat there, clustered away from where they could protect the 11th. It presented the 11th’s belly to an enemy already whipped into a frenzy. So Dryker tried again.
“Captains of the 11th, this time I’m speaking directly to you. You can see the Tigris closing with you. Cease your bombardment, and retreat to take shelter with my fleet. I’ve got the bulk of the 14th, and half a dozen Primo warships,” Dryker explained. “If you aren’t willing to stop because of your conscience, do it for your survival. You are about to be wiped out to a man. For what?”
Dryker trailed off. Now all he could do was wait.
56
Assessment
Nolan toweled off, pulling on his uniform as quickly as he could. If the only thing Annie ever did was install showers, she’d have more than earned her keep. Dear God, he loved that woman.
He was jittery and exhausted, the result of prolonged stim use. He needed real sleep, but that wasn’t happening today. Nolan buckled on his stealth belt, tucking his plasma pistol into the holster Annie had modified for him. He was continually impressed by her ability to improvise. She claimed the “underfunded 14th” was spoiled, and infantry would kill to have the castoffs the 14th disparaged. After seeing her handiwork Nolan had more respect for his ground-bound servicemen cousins.
He clipped the bracelet around his wrist, knowing he’d need his plasma blade on the way to the bridge of Chu’s vessel. The blade was a much quieter method of killing, and stealth would be key as they infiltrated his ship. He was far from a master in its use, but given his success against Kathryn and her cyber Marines, he felt confident he could hold his own.
“Captain, the admiral has begun his speech,” Hannan’s voice crackled from the comm.
“Ship, broadcast Dryker’s speech shipwide,” Nolan ordered.
He listened as Dryker tried to convince the fleet captains to defect, and by the time the admiral was done Nolan was moving at a fast walk toward the bridge. Hannan and Annie were already there, but Atrea and Lena had closeted themselves down in the brig. They were studying the organism they’d found in Kathryn, trying to find a way to kill it without killing her. Since neither was good in a combat situation, he preferred they stick to a problem they might be able to solve.
“Captain,” Delta said, striding onto the bridge. He seemed less hesitant than before. Maybe the few hours’ nap had given him time to bury the intense emotion he was going through.
“We can’t keep calling you ‘Delta,’” Nolan said. He hadn’t brought up the man’s real name, because it seemed to pain the big Marine. “How do you want the crew to address you?”
Delta was silent for a moment, considering. When he finally spoke, it was on the heels of a grim smile. “‘Delta’ is just fine. They gave me the name as a curse, a way of breaking me, but they failed. So I’ll take their name, and use it against them. I’m the weapon they made, and I’m going to do as much damage to them as possible. Besides, I can’t just go back to being Edison. They’ve scrubbed that part of my life away. Whoever I am going forward, it isn’t that same officer.”
“Well said,” Hannan offered, clapping Delta on the shoulder. “Everyone in the 14th is a little tarnished, and we’ve all got checkered pasts. You’ll fit in great with this crew.”
“And don’t worry about your cybernetics,” Edwards said from the corner. Most of his battle damage had been repaired, though his left arm was still missing. “I mean, I’m a frigging Judicator, right? You’re, like, the fifth weirdest person on board. You totally belong here.”
“Ship, are you standing by with that algorithm?” Nolan asked, watching the fleet dispositions change on the holographic display. Dryker had finished his speech, but in the two minutes since, not a single vessel had broken away to join him.
“Affirmative, Captain,” Ship said. “I haven’t detected any transmission using that quantum wavelength.”
“Bring us closer to the massed human fleet,” Nolan said, folding his arms. He was damned thankful for the Void Wraith cloaking tech. They could move freely throughout the battle, certain that their enemy was unaware of their presence. “Chu is there somewhere, on one of the capital ships. Probably one hanging back from the actual fighting. Let’s get into position. He’ll slip up, and the second he does, we engage.”
57
Chu
“Sir, the Tigris have engaged the 11th,” a tech said.
Chu ignored him, studying the view screen. The 11th had stopped their bombardment, and was shifting to engage the Tigris. They were outnumbered about three to one, and in a poor tactical position.
Tigris ships slammed into human vessels, devastating the entire outer line. The 11th began to buckle, ships trying to fall back without going into a full rout. Now was the time a good commander—the kind of commander he used to be—would step in.
“Have any of our ships responded to Dryker or broken away?” Chu asked, fingering the black box in his pocket. He’d use it if necessary, but would prefer to avoid that.
“No, sir,” the lieutenant said. “Sir, the 11th is taking devastating losses. Are you sure you don’t want to issue new orders?”
Chu drew his sidearm and shot the man in the
face. The shocked officer collapsed bonelessly to the deck. A tiny plume of smoke rose from the barrel of Chu’s pistol. He stared from bridge officer to bridge officer, but none was willing to meet his gaze. The survivors were all chipped, and they knew the kind of pain he could inflict.
“Who’s trained to assume this fool’s station?” Chu demanded.
Another lieutenant rushed forward, this one a short, redheaded woman in her early forties. She snapped a hasty salute, carefully averting her gaze. “I am, sir.”
“Good, take over. And have someone clean up that mess,” Chu demanded, returning to the captain’s chair.
The 11th had shifted their formation, and the rear vessels had moved to reinforce their line. They were engaging the Tigris, who were starting to take casualties as well. The final outcome wasn’t in question, but the move bought the surviving officers of the 11th some time. That wasn’t a good thing, but there was little Chu could do, except withhold the the help they needed.
Pain stabbed through Chu’s chest, black fingers settling around his heart. He could feel something slithering inside of him. Growing. Readying itself to emerge. It was a horrifying feeling, and part of his mind recognized that he should be doing everything possible to remove the parasite before it killed him.
The greater portion of his mind understood that this new being was superior to him in every way, and that giving his life to birth it was the only right, the only proper, course of action. He reached up to touch his cheek, and it came away bloody.
He needed to conclude this battle quickly.