that there was no way to correct it. Suddenly a command came in over his board that was broadcast on an open frequency, “THE SHIPS OF THE HIVE WILL STOP ATTACKING AND WITHDRAW IMMEDIATELY.”
The Ship Controller saw that it was being broadcast on the Prince’s frequency. He turned his ship around along with the remaining survivors and rushed away from the site of the battle. Trey activated a matching frequency, “Cease firing; stop all defensive activities!” He looked at his scanner and saw a huge ship at the jump limit, “Now that’s what I’m talking about.”
“What is that?”
“The one I’ve been attempting to contact has arrived. Take us back to Greyson.” Trey changed frequency, “Day, you and Kreen need to move back onboard Greyson.”
“On our way.”
The Wasp Prince had watched the recording of the conversation between the Scout and whoever was trying to set up a meeting. He saw that the Scout’s scanners revealed nothing and its force field was pierced easily. When he saw the large moon exploded he immediately contacted Ship Control, “Yes, Hive Prince.”
“How good are our Scout’s scanners?”
“They are the best in the Hive Ships.”
“What about their force field?”
“It’s as strong as any we possess.”
“I wish to speak to Ship Controller.” There was a long pause and the Prince said, “I’m not going to tolerate a delay.”
“I’m sorry, Hive Prince. He has taken half a Hive of Ships and left to attack a foe of the Hive.”
“He did what!?!”
“He left a third rotation ago.”
“Get my ship ready to leave and you had better hope I arrive in time or you and your entire organization are dead!”
The Prince arrived at the solar system scheduled to be the next planet to gather hosts and saw the battle taking place. He looked at the Nest Master, “Tell me what you see.”
“More than nine hundred of our ships have been destroyed; now it’s a thousand.”
“A hundred were killed that fast?”
“Yes, it is now twelve hundred,”
“Give me an open frequency now!”
The Prince sat at the jump limit as the survivors moved out and surrounded his ship. The Ship Controller took his position and knew his life was forfeit for his acting without permission. He hoped the Prince would leave because he now knew the remaining ships could not protect him if the agency attacking his ships decided to go after his ship.
Trey looked at the others on Greyson’s bridge and said, “Now it starts.” He sat down in Greyson’s command chair and sent a thought, “I’m glad you were able to arrive before our deadline was over. May I assume you are here to communicate with me?”
The Prince was staggered by the comment. The one communicating with him didn’t mention the destruction of more than thirteen hundred of his ships. Almost as if they didn’t matter and were no consequence. He decided that the Hive was in great danger and he needed to be very careful, “Yes, that is why I came here.”
“Good, I’ll lift my threat to destroy your home world. Do you have the authority to speak for your species?”
“I can speak for my Hive.”
“What about the others?”
The Prince paused and decided to be honest, “The others will follow my lead if I show them what happened here. May I assume you can carry out your threat?”
“If you would like to pick a planet without life, I would be more than happy to demonstrate our capabilities. I would suggest picking a large planet so you can get the full effect.”
“No, that won’t be necessary. Why did you want me here?”
TK said, “He get’s straight to the point.”
Paul nodded and whispered, “Listen.”
“I am part of a civilization that lives by a number of principles that we hold to be inviolate. One of those is that we will protect those that cannot defend themselves against aggression. As you probably already know, this civilization cannot stand against your coming attack. They are peaceful and do not have the capability to defend themselves. The first thing I want you to know is that this planet will not be attacked. Do you agree to this?”
“I can agree to this planet, however, you might as well go ahead and destroy us because we are going to attack planets to acquire the Hosts we need.”
“That is the real reason why I wanted this conversation. We observed that you treated those you attacked at the last planet you invaded with dignity. We know you only took the number you needed. Did we see that correctly?”
The Prince was stunned that this being already knew about his species requirements. “You are correct. Our Hosts are honored by us and we feel sorrow at having to take them.”
“Not so much sorrow to not do it.”
“If it comes down to choosing whether we survive or not, I must admit we choose to be the ones that live.”
“Do you ever worry that one of the planets you attack will develop enough to come pay you back for your actions?”
“If that happens, they are justified. We can’t blame them for seeking balance.”
Trey smiled, “That’s a good word, balance. We are faced with a dilemma. If we turn our backs to your taking Hosts, we violate those principles we are sworn to follow. If we follow our principles, then we will have to destroy your species to stop you from attacking innocent planets. We need to find a way to resolve this issue.”
“Once again, I see no way for us to prevent you attacking my Hive. We have no other choice for our survival.”
“There is a way.”
The Prince was preparing to jump away to order evacuations but stopped, “What do you mean?”
“I noticed that you do not kill everyone when you attack and you try to avoid unnecessary destruction on the planet. What would you say to another species that did kill every living creature on a planet?”
“I would say they are committing a blasphemy. That violates all that we believe is true. I know you may find this hard to believe but we don’t want to kill anyone but we are forced to take hosts. We never feel joy at what we are forced to do.”
“I’m sending you a recording I would like you to view. Will you look at it?”
“Send it.”
Trey said, “Greyson, send the attack done by the Grey Ships.”
“Done.”
Trey waited and after ten minutes he heard, “This is blasphemy. Those creatures are the epitome of evil. These are the ones you should be eliminating.”
“We can do that. However, it was our thought that if you must have Hosts, those creatures on those ships would be some you might not feel bad about taking.”
The Prince looked at his display with a Grey Ship on it, “You’re right about that. However, how long would they be able to supply my Hive? We would have to return to our usual taking once they were gathered.”
“How long would it take before you would return to a planet you’ve attacked?”
“Usually a hundred revolutions around our star.”
“Well those creatures have conquered two galaxies and are moving into this one. I suspect that they would provide you with Hosts for hundreds of thousands of years if not indefinitely.”
“Do you know where they are located?”
“We know where ten of their home worlds are. I suspect if you send scouts you will discover thousands of
