“Who is this?”
“My name is Jake Talant and I represent Valerie Gardner, the Queen of the Stars Realm. I have just arrived from the home universe of those creatures and I managed to kill one that was planning an ambush. We want to try and do the same thing to that fleet. I am truly sorry that we did not arrive in time to prevent their attack, but we need that fleet to stop and turn off their drives in order for us to hit them. Their normal pattern is to assemble in orbit and send landing craft to the surface. If you had remained, they would probably change that pattern.”
Mord thought a moment, “Do you think you can kill those ships?”
“If they stop and turn their drives off, we will kill them.”
“Will they launch landing craft before you can attack?”
“Probably. Why do you ask?”
“I want to handle the landers.”
Jake thought a moment and then said, “I will send a feed from our probe to your board; the frequency is on your com. If we attack you will see explosions from the rear of the brown ships. You may then return and we will allow you first crack at the Keepers’ forces on the planet.”
The Cainth Warriors were excited to have an opportunity to vent their rage on the creatures that killed their world.
The Collective absorbed the data from the messenger and presented it to the other Quadrants. “It appears that even if they are able to jump inside the drive band, their ships are ineffective against our hulls. It seems that nothing has prevented us from killing whenever we choose.”
Technology added, “I’m troubled by their ability to deceive our scanners. We scan huge populations and arrive to an empty planet. How can that possibly happen?”
The Collective turned its attention to Science who responded, “If they broadcast a huge signal on the frequency of the brains of the local population, it might be seen as a population.”
“But why would they do that?”
The Collective pondered that question and said, “What if our scans are not wrong? Is there a possibility of the population actually leaving the planet unobserved?”
Technology answered, “I know they can jump inside the drive band, but it takes enormous power for that to happen. There is no way individuals can jump from a planet’s surface.”
Production asked, “I’m also puzzled by the fuel that was in the system where we lost our fleet. If that blue wave killed them, why would the ships have lost fuel?”
The Collective paused and then ordered, “We will combine for two intervals and examine these questions in unity. We’ll discuss our findings after we complete the examination.”
All of the quadrants melded into the overall structure of the Collective, and the immense mind began taking all the collected data and processing it.
Twig looked at Sprig and said, “You’ve not said much since the rescue of the colonists.”
Sprig gave a mental sigh, “I made a mistake not believing Valerie Gardner’s vision.” Twig started shaking her branches and Sprig interrupted, “I know, I know; there was nothing to support it becoming reality. But you and I have seen the power of these human psychics. Even now I doubt Jake Talant will be able to overcome this threat.”
“Valerie has not said he will; she only says he is our only hope.” Twig paused a few moments and then said, “Do you remember when we were looking for a way to kill the Eight Leg Invaders and both of us were frustrated to the point of feeling that the war was lost?”
Sprig leaned forward.
“Well, that is where we are at this moment in time. I believe that there is a way to beat these creatures and it is right in front of us again, but we don’t see it.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Matt Gardner, thousands of years ago, postulated that our Realm was created to bring balance back to creation. These creatures go against everything we’ve seen about the creative force. I believe he was right and a way will be found. I doubted it at first, but I am now certain that we not only must, but will, win this war or all creation will look like their universe. Jake is not here by accident and to quote a very famous queen, “There are few accidents.”
“Then you know what that means. The only way to stop them from coming here is to take the war to their turf. There will be monumental loss of life if we are forced to do that.”
“You worry that it is not in us to do what’s necessary?”
“Yes, I am.”
“That is why you should believe we will prevail.”
Sprig just looked at her puzzled.
“It’s why Jake was the perfect choice to lead us; he was raised on Gambia and knows what it means to struggle to survive. We may lack the courage to do what’s necessary, but do you doubt for a moment that he isn’t strong enough to make the hard decisions? The ones you should worry about are those creatures that had the stupidity to kill his home.”
Sprig thought, and said, “What will we become if we take that path?”
“Survivors, my love; survivors.”
“Manny, what’s happening at Brayent?”
“We are waiting to see if the Keepers Fleet parks in orbit to launch landing craft. So far they have destroyed the entire population, and they may not stop long enough for us to attack. Jake jumped the remaining Brayent warships out of the system so we’re hoping they follow normal doctrine, Valerie.”
Valerie hesitated but then asked, “How are our ships reacting to Jake giving orders?”
“The Red Warriors and transport crews that moved the colonists away from the Keepers’’ planet have been contacted by huge numbers of our military and told about the fighting powers of the White Demon. That information has a way of traveling fast in our navy, and there is a huge amount of curiosity about how he was able to do the things he accomplished. The word has also leaked out that he is the psychic savior of the Realm that the Queen has foretold.”
“White Demon?”
“The Red Warriors that fought with him against the Keepers’ garrison were amazed at the damage he caused to the Keepers; they say he fought like a demon. Some of their recordings of his bravery have been released to the fleet, and the numbers that have viewed them is staggering. Trust me, Valerie, his actions have earned him more respect than anything we could ever say.”
“How are the colonists?”
“Their happiness makes all the risks we took worth it. We need to remember why we fight, and they are a great example. They are in another universe on a planet of humans that are caring for them.”
“Thank you for accepting your new role, Uncle. I know the Navy is excited to be working for you.”
Manny nodded and Valerie ended the connection. She leaned back in her chair and missed Jake. She closed her eyes and saw Junior just outside the Brayent ships in another galaxy and wondered how he was going to turn things around. She wanted to be with him but he was right, the Realm was almost in a panic. She thought about it and decided to return to Ross and the Castle. The Realm needed the reassurance that the Queen was not running scared. If the Keepers Fleet showed up she would teleport away, but for now it was time to be the Queen. Her eighteenth birthday was three weeks away; she hoped Jake would be there to celebrate with her.
“Director, those ships have jumped away.”
“Where did they go?”
“They are no longer in this galaxy. We will need to leave the planet for a better scan. Are you planning to collect food stores?”
“I wasn’t, but the uncertainty of finding another planet to attack soon leads me to lean in that direction. Is there enough left to collect?”
“We will arrive at a medium city in one third interval with the required numbers. It is the only one remaining with population enough to meet our needs.”
The Director knew that if he didn’t take the stores from a densely population area, the landing craft would have to touch down over wide areas to gather enough stores. “Issue the orders to modulate the beams over that city.”
