Admiral Karladen’s eyes were fixed on the wide chair at the end of the bridge, his steps seeming hesitant as he approached, the large screen above his station flickering as Sky Commander Petaski indicated to the female supervisor, ‘Please continue briefing the admiral on what we know…’
The woman rose, adjusting her deep blue uniform nervously, ‘Yes sir…’ She hesitated briefly as the admiral slowly lowered himself into his chair, seeming to relish the experience, the female smiling fondly before continuing, ‘Admiral…the Morgons have two Decimator warships in the upper earth’s atmosphere. They have fired twice and our sensors have indicated that if they fire again at one of earth’s weakest volcanoes or at Yellowstone Park in the United States, then the planet will become weakened beyond retrieval for human…and our survival.’ The female officer swallowed deeply, glancing across at Petaski and Chergui nervously, both nodding for her to continue as she gulped once more, ‘Analysing the messages between the human leaders, we believe they are no longer as coordinated as they were…in short, the relationships are becoming fragmented. The Chinese have gone silent and with the destruction of Moscow, the Russian leadership is in some chaos…perhaps now even under military rule, or their old KGB secret service command…something the Americans seem oblivious to or confused with.’
The officer looked down at reports on her screen in dread, clearing her throat, ‘Intelligence is clear on what they believe will happen. Without any assistance from fleet command and with the enemy’s current progress…they believe the planet will fall to the Morgons within days or perhaps a couple of weeks at most. The human defences are simply unable to resist or are too weak to defend against such aggression. Admiral, the Morgons have been here for years...perhaps decades, studying their prey. Their overwhelming attacks have exposed the humans as totally inadequate defensively…they simply are unable to resist effectively. Sir, we have completely overestimated this weak race…they are simply losing…and rapidly. Our intelligence recommends we leave immediately, let the planet fall and relocate to the nearest area of war, Zaxon B…to reinforce our divisions there…this will extend the enemy’s manpower and resources. The planet is far from here; the report suggests we should abandon this situation to a now inevitable fate.’ The female officer shifted uncomfortably before glancing down at her screen once more, ‘The intelligence summary is one sentence…uncloak and rise…fly out at maximum velocity and the chances are, we may survive the Morgon blockade.’
Sky Commander Petaski stepped forward, addressing his commander with a subservient bowed head as Chergui winced and shook his head in disbelief at the report, ‘Admiral…we are all here…the humans need not know. We have now only two hundred and seventy three surviving personnel in earth’s hospitals nearby…we can recall them discretely and be underway in a matter of two or three earth hours. We will be gone before the humans realise what is happening.’ Petaski ran a nervous hand through his hair, ‘It is only a matter of time before the Morgons discover where we are…then we will be destroyed.’
Admiral Karladen sighed, staring up at the scrolling intelligence report on the main screen, his hands clasping the robust seat sides tightly as he gritted his teeth. Slowly the chair turned, Petaski stepping back as Chergui’s eyes widened, the vice admiral nodding to his commander discretely to indicate his support.
The admiral pursed his lips, cheeks flushing as he stared up at Petaski, his voice rising in anger, ‘We are here to stay and these are our allies…there will be no retreat!’ Karladen pushed himself upwards, his arms rising in exasperation, ‘Damn intelligence reports...I am the only one in charge here! How dare you even suggest such a thing? This is virtual sedition…to propose deserting an ally in their darkest hour?’
Sky Commander Petaski’s head lowered in subservience as the commander stood before him, the bridge officer lowering into her seat as the admiral’s head turned to stare at her, his frame almost shaking with anger, ‘It appears I have spent too much time away from my vessel…that my staff have taken it upon themselves to devise a new strategy for us...the empire to adopt.’ He shook his flushed face vigorously, ‘No…not whilst I am in charge. These humans have welcomed us and suffered horrendous losses in a war we brought to them…can you imagine what they would think if we simply left? It may even shatter the empire…think of our allies across the galaxies…of our constitution and beliefs…all that we stand for would be undermined and contradicted! We would be viewed as cowards across the galaxies!’
Admiral Karladen’s head moved slowly across the bridge, staring incriminatingly at each ensign individually, most with their heads bowed, his voice a low determined whisper, ‘We will stay here and give our new friends every support we can…they are already manufacturing our body armour and assault rifles, our medical services are assisting them and the schematics for our armoured vehicles are with their military. They are fighting for their own survival across this planet…and we are here with them!’
He indicated to Chergui, ‘You can inform the British government that I will be basing myself here from now on…coordinating our efforts. With immediate effect, Sky Commander Petaski will be based with the British Prime Minister and will ensure our communications are routed through to this ship...he will complete no broadcasts or meetings without my input!’ He indicated to the female bridge officer, ‘You will be moved to ground operations…reporting to Dryden. I want additional cooperation with our allies on medical
