by J. K. Mabrey
With Ambassador Hains on board, they were greeted with much greater respect than ever before. Mike was in an office just off the bridge reviewing diagnostic tests of a recently installed laser battery. They barged in without asking and the group of five packed into what little space was available to discuss the situation.
Mike was surprised to see the ambassador. “Ambassador Hains, welcome back to Earth. I'm grateful that you were not seriously harmed in the assassination attempt.”
“Thank you, Lieutenant Colonel. I do wish I were here on different terms, but I’m afraid the situation has become even direr than it was the last time we spoke.”
“Yes,” he said hesitantly, “I gather from the fact that y’all are here, that this is not a social visit.”
“Mike,” Zavik interrupted, “Varin just killed Paquiko.”
“What?” he said looking at the faces of everyone in the room. “You’ve gotta be joking.”
“No," he said, "we were there, we saw it. We showed Paquiko the evidence against Varin and he summoned him in to confront him about his betrayals. He just stabbed him when he realized he was caught. Said he would frame it to look like we assassinated him. He’s going to use this as his next step in his plan to eliminate us from the galaxy and take control of the Council.”
“Do we have any way of proving that he killed Paquiko?” Mike asked.
“I don’t think so,” Zavik said. "He controls the security cameras. He'll doctor them to look like we killed Paquiko before he ever arrived."
Mike signed and buried his head in his hands, “Then we’re gonna have a whole lot of races angry at us. They’re gonna attack again, this time with more ships. It’ll be near impossible to hold them off again. Do you still have the evidence to prove Varin's true identity?”
"No-"
"Yes," Dani interrupted. "I made a copy of the data."
"Of course you did," Zavik said gazing at her for a moment.
Dani took the disk and placed it in his terminal. She opened the file and skimmed through the data, trying to absorb as much as she could. Mike leaned over to see the long list of contacts and the dirt gathered on each of them.
“Perhaps we can give this to the other races,” Mike said. “That might convince them that Varin is treacherous and the true killer.”
“We must hurry,” Brax said. “Varin ultimately wants to eliminate the Council. If he can somehow do that, it’ll be tougher to get the races to agree on anything. If our system collapses, there will be anarchy throughout the galaxy.”
“How so?” Mike asked.
“It’s all built on trust and fear that the Council is controlling the order of the Galaxy. Without that figurehead, the individual systems have nothing to look to but themselves. Without the Council fleet to defend them, they will close portals to systems that are inherently dangerous. There are many critical systems overrun with pirates and gangsters that the Council keeps in check. This will throw trade and travel into a mess that will spread to the more stable systems, destabilizing them. The governments of each system will lose power, we’ll see revolts and regime changes. It is a very fragile system we’ve created, but it works. If it collapses the fleets will retreat to their home worlds. Survival will be the driving force, and a consolidated Chokmnd and Red Moon force will have an easier time of eliminating those systems they want to and conquering the others. Divided the other races are all much more vulnerable to the Chokmnd fleet, especially if it is supplemented with Red Moon’s.”
The intercom rang for Mike. “Lieutenant Colonel, there is an incoming transmission for Alberan Gant.”
“Who is it?” Alberan asked.
“Greda.”
“Please, may I take it?” he asked. Mike nodded his approval.
“Alberan, is that you?” Greda said over the speaker.
“Yes, you are on speaker with Zavik and his crew and Ambassador Hains.”
“Good, this is very important and we might not have time to explain to everyone. Varin has disbanded the Council. It is no longer a legal entity, and has no authority.”
“What!" Ambassador Hains shouted. "How is this possible?”
“He accused the Council of failing to protect the Galaxy adequately, and directly leading to the death of Paquiko at the hands of humans.”
“But he’s the one who killed Paquiko,” the ambassador cried.
“Truly?” she exclaimed. “But I saw the security recordings of a Chokmnd with you stabbing the councilor."
"He framed me?" Brax said with outrage. "I'll kill'em."
"Greda," the ambassador continued, "Varin owns the company that controls the security systems in the Chokmnd Embassy. He tampered with the video to make it look like we killed Paquiko before he even arrived. It's all a lie."
"Oh my! I did not believe it was you or your comrades, but for Varin himself to kill his councilor…that is beyond belief.”
“How could he just disband the Council?” Mike asked.
“The Chokmnd fleet is the power source of the Council. Only with them can the other fleets hope to enforce Council rule. The Supreme Emperor of Chokmna, Varin’s father, gave him the authority to disband the Council if they did not unanimously agree to support them in retaliation against Earth. Since the formation of the Council, they have held the power of ending its rule. It was never advantageous for them to do so, and not something any of us ever thought possible. Together the other fleets are stronger, but now with Red Moon’s joining the Chokmnd’s they are too strong.”
“I take it someone didn’t support them?” Ambassador Hains said.
“Correct, the Iriquios, and Farlins, dissented from their views, although the Rovuns and Pakals weren't very eager for the witch hunt either. That was enough reason for him. He knew we would not agree to attack Earth, even if he portrayed you as being complicit in the assassination of Paquiko. He wanted to eliminate the Council.”
“It was part of his plan," Zavik said. "We have to stop him. With those two fleets, he can take over the galaxy.”
Greda agreed. “I am quite certain that he is making plans to come after Earth first. He wants to eliminate you as quickly as possible. He believes that will make it easier to control the other systems through fear. We have already ordered our fleet to retreat to our home system.”
“As I’m sure the other races have as well,” Ambassador Hains said. “That is a mistake. We need to consolidate our forces if we’re to have any chance against them.”
“We’ll need the other races to buy into that plan,” Greda said. “It will be difficult to convince them to help Earth when they believe your agents were responsible for Paquiko’s death.”
“We’ll need to prove that Varin is controlling Red Moon,” Mari said. “If we send you a file that can help prove it, will you try and rally some to our cause.”
“Of course, Ambassador.”
“Thanks, Greda. I think you can just call me Mari. Doesn’t sound like I’m ambassador to anything now.”
“Only for the moment,” Greda said and cut off after receiving the file transfer.
“I hope she can help us,” Mike said.
“We’ll be sitting ducks without backup,” Zavik said. “We can’t just wait here for Varin to attack. We have to do something-.”
Alarms began to flash, red light filled the room, and a wailed scream echoed throughout the station.
“Doesn’t look like we’ll have time to do anything else,” Mike said. “Let’s get to the bridge.”
By the time they got to the bridge, it was a chaotic mess. Cadets were moving about relaying reports from other stations. The leading officer yielded operational command to Mike after shouting orders to the defense operators. The alarm continued to flood the area with an oscillating red light. Mike ordered the alarm turned down, then focused on mobilizing his men.
Reports were that four portals had been overrun with unauthorized entry. Dozens of ships were flooding the space around Earth. Readings suggested they were the Chokmn
d fleet again, although there were some other ships intermingled with their fleet. There was no warning this time. The incoming fleet immediately began attacking everything it encountered.
Mike scrambled to hail Admiral Hansen for orders. They were simple ones: defend Earth at all costs. There was already a plan in the works to shut down the portals, but at the rate they were invading they could have a fleet the size of Earth’s through them before they could be shut down. Mike, the reigning superior, ordered the station to launch the fighters from the hangar and to focus all firepower on one ship at a time.
“What's with these other ships?” Mike asked. "They're older than the Chokmnd fleet and more varied."
“Red Moon’s fleet,” Zavik said.
“He’s nullified the Council,” Ambassador Hains said. “The other races won’t blindly follow him, but they will see what he does to Earth and cower at his feet.”
“We’re not goin down that easy,” Mike said.
Just then a bright flash filled the bridge. Out of the viewer, they could see a station had caught fire and erupted in a magnificent explosion. Every piece of the station was reduced to a glowing orb, spinning out of control.
“What the hell did they hit that with?” Mike asked, his voice cracking at the sight of the sister station.
A control man on the bridge scanned the readings given off and turned to Mike, “Looks like it was a low yield tactical nuclear device. Creates a sort of miniature star that eats away the shields and sets the oxygen aboard the station on fire. It was detonated mere yards from the hull. Data suggests the shields held until just before the star collapsed.”
“What are your estimations that the station would have survived if the explosion happened further away?” Mike asked.
He turned back to his screen and said, “Calculations suggest that if the blast were detonated more than fifty yards away, the shields would have faltered, but the hull should have withstood the blast well enough to keep the station operational. It would be vulnerable to follow-up attacks, and the shields would need to fully recharge, that would take almost two minutes.”
“Intensify our readings for those small missiles, we must destroy them before they get close enough to do damage, and relay that information to the admiral.” He shook his head. “They’re serious about wiping our fleet out. They’re not looking for us to surrender, or take prisoners. They’re gonna destroy every ship and station we have.”
The station began to scan the field for small missiles targeting the station and concentrated the turbo lasers on destroying the deadly devices. It became more difficult for the station to defend itself when a Chokmnd dreadnought moved within firing range. The station began taking a beating from the laser fire, the shields steadily dropping from the strain. A deck hand yelled out that the shields were at fifty percent heat capacity, another few minutes of this constant barrage and they would be useless. Mike ordered every fighter in the area to attack the dreadnought directly. This eased their attention from the station to the fighters and gave the shields their much-needed time to cool.
With a moment of reprieve from the battle, Dani turned to Zavik. “Should we get out there and help?”
“It wouldn’t do much good,” Zavik said. “This fleet is much larger than anything Earth has faced before. I’m not sure how long we can hold them off.”
“We must do something!” she cried.
“I agree with Dani,” Brax said. “We can’t just sit here and wait to be blown away. They are not here to negotiate a surrender.”
“No,” Alberan agreed, “Varin wants to send a message to all of the other systems. Earth will be his example of disobedience. I’m afraid your people are doomed.”
Mike, overhearing the conversation, chimed in, “We won’t go down without a fight, that’s for sure. We may not make it, but we’ll show the rest of the galaxy that Varin isn’t as all powerful as he thinks he is.”
The battle was not turning in Earth’s favor, more stations were being disabled, and a few destroyed. The attack was crippling the fleet. Even if they survived this wave, any subsequent invasion would be met with little in the way of real resistance. There would be no moral victories, thousands would die in the attack and millions more would be left to ruin on a dying planet. The realization of such an outcome was beginning to set in. Even the admiral was beginning to show signs of despair. He had ordered the fighters to withdraw from their attacks and to defend the stations at all costs. The portals that were being overrun were shut down, but the fleet was already too large to overcome through attrition.
Then matters went from bad to worse.
“Sir!” a deck hand shouted. “We have more ships entering our space. This time from two portals, Iriquim, and Yalerium.”
“My god,” Mike said under his breath. “Will this ever end?”
“Wait, Lieutenant Colonel,” Alberan said looking at the screen. “These ships, they are not Chokmnd designations.”
“He’s right sir," the deck hand said. "They fit the profile of Iriquios ships and Farlin ships.”
“Well, I’ll be damned,” Mike said. “Greda came through with her fleet after all.”
“It would appear she even convinced the Farlins to help,” Ambassador Hains said.
“They are a good, conscious people,” Alberan said. “They can see through the lies of Varin and understand Earth is no threat.”
The new ships to the battle immediately opened fire on the invading Chokmnd fleet. The Chokmnd ships halted their assault on the wounded Earth stations and turned their attention to the new threat to their invasion. These ships weren't cut off from reinforcements, and Earth wasn’t about to shut down their portals. Alberan revealed that the Iriquios ships were slightly underpowered, compared to the Chokmnd fleet, but that they were better tacticians of war. Brax took umbrage to this belief but conveyed that in this instance he hoped Alberan was correct.
The tide began to shift suddenly. The Iriquios and Farlins were gaining an upper hand in the direct ship-to-ship battles. Three Iriquios capital ships surrounded a Chokmnd Dreadnought that was turning away from platform AS-003. The dreadnought was attempting to retreat to the edge of Earth space but could not maneuver around the station or new ships. Platform AS-003 continued to ravage the ship with laser fire as the new allies opened fire. The shields failed fast and with a flash they were overheated. Two torpedoes left the station and sped towards the massive ship. The Iriquios ships continued their assault of laser fire, supplemented with a few concussion missiles as well. The Chokmnd Dreadnought erupted in an outward spew of fire upon every impact. Five explosions riddled the hull throughout the entire length. A large fireball flared out of the side of the ship like a solar flare. In the next instance the bottom of the ship dropped out in a burning blaze and the whole structure broke apart into large chunks of burning metal.
The Chokmnd fleet began to show hints of an imminent retreat after realizing the daunting task now before them. The fighters began to pull back as did the Dreadnoughts. They raced for the working portals while the Earth ships and stations continued to harass them. Finally, they began to pour out of the system as quickly as they had arrived.
Brax became quiet watching the retreat unfold in front of them. Hundreds of his people had died in what to him was a pointless battle.
Noticing his withdrawal, Dani asked, “Are you ok, Brax?”
“It’s not something typically done you know?” he said.
“What do you mean?”
“Rooting, for lack of a better word, that your people fail, and that some die.”
“You’re not rooting for them to die,” she said trying to comfort him. “You just know their cause is wrong.”
“Yes," he nodded. "I know that Varin has manipulated my people into believing what he wants them to believe. He’s costing thousands of lives in his pointless struggle for power. We’re not an evil people, Dani.”
“We know you’re not, that is why we had you travel with us. You’ve helpe
d me realize how wonderful your people truly are. We must end this quickly, so more Chokmnds, and others aren’t needlessly killed.”
“Thank you, Dani, but, if somehow we can stop Varin, I’m afraid my people will be relegated to obscurity in the galaxy. What reason would any other race have in trusting us again? We’ll be persecuted and hated.”
“No, Brax,” Zavik said. “We’ll make sure that doesn’t happen. We can prove that Varin was leading Red Moon this whole time, and he used them to gain control of the Chokmnd fleet and start this false war. It was all him, always was.”
“I promise you,” Ambassador Hains said as she walked over, “if we can end this needless conflict, the Chokmnd’s will still be welcome in galactic affairs. As the former ambassador to the Galactic Council, and still representative of Earth, my opinion on the matter will have much weight to it.”
“Thank you, Ambassador,” he nodded to the three. “We need a way to end this now, if not, it will drag out into a great war with many more casualties, for both sides.”
“That we can agree on,” Ambassador Hains said. “An intergalactic war is not an acceptable means to our end.”
“If we could invade the Chokmnd home world,” Zavik said, “surround them, and force them to listen to reason, especially concerning Varin, they might give up this fight.”
“The Supreme Emperor, Varin’s father, will listen to reason,” Brax said. “He’s not as ideologically driven as his son. Of course, that is if he has any real power left. There is no telling what Varin has done to the structure of the Chokmnd Empire.”
“The problem is,” Ambassador Hains said, “invading and surrounding the home world. They’ll have defenses as good, if not better than ours.”
“Yes,” Dani agreed, “but they also have more portals, correct?
“Yeah,” Brax said, “we have probably twice, if not three times as many portals as you do here on Earth.”
“So if we can invade through every portal at once, we can effectively have the planet surrounded,” Dani said.
"Impossible," Zavik said. “If we tried that, they’d know we were building up fleets at the other side of the portals. There’s no way to hide that from getting to them. They could shut the portals down, or bolster their defenses. We’d be walking into a trap.”