The Great Betrayal

Chapter TWO

The collapse of law and order in the Helios system was the trigger point for a series of calamities that would befoul the Orion Nebula. The similarities with the past troubles on Prime and other Alliance worlds served as stark reminders as to what might come to pass, if action was not taken to avoid the rot spreading outside of Helios and to its neighboring star systems. As the quarrels and troubles spread, so did the strength of the enemy grow.



Orion – The future?





Admiral Lanthua looked out at his assembled fleet and smiled with satisfaction. It was one of the largest peacetime fleets ever assembled, and his core of Khreenk Federation battleships formed the strongest part. Most of the ships were actually moving backward with their engines on full burn to slow their approach. The Khreenk ships were different though, and their engines were able to swivel one hundred and eighty degrees to alter the direction of thrust, without changing their actual heading.

“Report?” he called to the captain of the fleet over the communication array. One by one they submitted their information, including readiness, speed, and status. Every ship was functioning as expected, apart from the small Alliance contingent. He glanced briefly at the Alliance officer, snorted, and then looked back at the disposition of his fleet.

What do these primitives know of war?

The assembled Narau fleet was now in its final twelve hours of deceleration as they approached the third planet of the Anicinàbe. Until then they were a race the Alliance knew little of, though rumor had it their people controlled the largest and most diverse empire of the eight known powers. The Helions implied they had control over more territory than the Alliance, the T’Kari, and the even the great enemy, the Biomechs, all combined. There were more than sixty ships in the fleet, with the majority supplied by the Khreenk Federation. A scattering of Helion ships drifted toward the rear, but most of their effort had been forced to remain at home to deal with the growing insurrection or because their own crews had sided with the rebels.

“What happens next?” asked Alliance Liaison Officer, Captain Tory Campbell.

He waited amongst the group of aliens and stood out like a Jötnar in a room full of humans. On his ear was a translator unit that seemed overly large for what it actually did. Much like the more advanced T’Kari models, it was able to convert his conversation directly in a number of native languages, including the common tongue of the Khreenk. Their language sounded nothing like the dialects used by the Helions, and he was forced to try and ignore the sounds coming from the device as he spoke. The small group of Khreenk officers continued speaking with each other, and he could do nothing but wait. He was a middle-aged man and had moved from politics to military service just seven years earlier. Though he was only of average height, next to the officers of the Narau Fleet he was taller than almost every one of them. His light blonde hair and large blue eyes seemed to draw attention no matter where he traveled on the Helion ship. Finally, one of them moved toward him.

“Alliance officer, what is it?” he asked through his own translator.

Captain Campbell could easily identify the look of scorn on the man’s face. They were very similar in build and coloring to those human oriental people, yet of smaller build. Each had been augmented in some form or other, and this one was no exception. Part of his face was missing and had been replaced with a skin color metallic plate.

“I asked, what happens next?”

This time his voice was raised slightly so that he was almost shouting. Several of the other Khreenk looked at him, but none actually responded. Captain Campbell looked at the man’s face and recalled where he had seen the officer before. It had been three days earlier when the fleet had broken free of the Khreenk Rift and met up with a scattered formation of Anicinàbe ships. He had come aboard from one of the other ships.

“We move to the target and scout for the enemy.”

He then turned and walked back to his comrades. Campbell watched him go and shook his head as he was once more left alone.

This assignment is a waste of time.

He looked down at his secpad for what must have been the hundredth time and relooked at the article assembled by the Alliance intelligence agencies on the Anicinàbe. He had so far managed to avoid meeting a single one of this illusive race, even though they occupied a vast region of space. According to the article they controlled large numbers of planets, yet refused to be governed by a single central authority. There were factions made up of people from all the races through the Anicinàbe system, each of them in a state of permanent competition with the other. It reminded him of the stories of the ancient indigenous tribes back on Earth in its glory days. People like the North American Indians who had never been one nation.

Is that a good thing, or not? he thought, now even more confused.

They were positioned near the front of the ship and in a room able to take twenty or thirty people. Tiny computer screens ran around a circular central area where the commander of the ship stood. On the outside of the room on three sides were massive windows, each almost the exact size of the outer wall itself. Campbell found himself wondering quite how strong they might be, especially as they were in such an obvious and vulnerable position. He could see the shapes of the nearest vessels, as well as the tiny squadron of three Alliance frigates that had been sent to assist. They were nowhere near powerful enough to do anything of note, but they did fly the flag of the Alliance and guaranteed them a place amongst this diverse group of people.

The commander now spoke, but his crew seemed to spare him no attention. He walked about the center of the bridge, taking special note of the work conducted by each and every one of them, especially one of the taller Khreenk who was trying to show him something on a display screen. The translator seemed to take an age before it altered his voice.

“All ships, destination approaches. Check weapons, Raiders forward.”

It was a strange message, especially once the translator had torn it apart into English. They were a long distance from their final destination, yet the Khreenk commanding officer appeared apprehensive, perhaps even nervous at their mission.

What the hell are Raiders? he wondered.

He grabbed his secpad and put in the details, but the closest match was a vague reference to Khreenk Special Forces and something about piracy. It meant nothing to him other than that it implied asymmetric warfare.

Scouts perhaps? Or skirmishers.

He wanted to ask the Khreenk officer about the destination, but his eyes were drawn to a line of light yellow dots off in the distance. He lifted his hand to point, but two of the navigators had already spotted it and drawn it to the attention of the commander. His expression changed, and he looked about at each of them. Campbell couldn’t tell if he was excited, angry, or both.

“It’s a trick! All ships separate!”

There were no internal alarms or emergency lighting inside this alien vessel. Instead, the commander and then the senior officers below him walked about and shouted at the crew. It seemed a slow method, but the results were surprisingly fast. Campbell watched from his position a short distance from the commander, as the formation of ships used their maneuvering thrusters to slightly alter their trajectories.

So, we have twelve more hours to go with our engines on full reverse before we reach the target. If we change our angle of attack, the fleet will be separated when we get there.

It was a serious problem, and the more he considered it, he realized they could end up hours apart and right in the middle of a potential deadly enemy. Even more worrying was he still had no idea who the enemy was, or what they would do when they reached their destination. His secpad vibrated, and he pulled it out to look at the screen, the face was a young man in a naval officer’s uniform.

“Captain Campbell, we’re detecting a shift in the Anicinàbe Rift. The Narau commander is ignoring our hails.”

It was the commander of ANS Spearfish, the lead ship in the frigate squadron. Though small compared to most of the Alliance fleet, there were still hundreds of men and women on board, and they were capable of taking on anything up to a cruiser when working together.

“What kind of shift?”

The commander of the ship looked surprisingly concerned.

“A serious one. My chief engineer says it could be a prelude to closing down the Rift. You know what that will mean.”

That caught his attention immediately. If the Rift shut, they would be trapped in Anicinàbe space for who knew how long. There was always the fear the Rift might never be opened again, and that would leave them stuck in another part of the galaxy, perhaps forever. He nodded to the commander.

“Understood, I will speak with him.”

Captain Campbell marched over to the Khreenk leader of the fleet, but two of his officers spotted his approach and blocked his path. He tried to move past them, but they sidestepped and then physically halted his progress.

“I need to speak with the Admiral.”

The two muttered and growled in such a way that his translator device was completely incapable of doing its job.

“Captain,” said a quiet voice from his secpad, “we don’t have much time!”

Captain Campbell could sense the concern in the ship commander’s voice, and he knew too well the risks they faced if they were trapped out there. He reached out to step forward, and as the Khreenk officer grabbed his arm, he took his chance. With a quick movement, he grabbed the alien’s forearm and yanked him forward. Taken by surprise he stumbled, and Campbell chopped him in the middle of the back with his right fist. The Khreenk fell down, and he was past him and in front of the Admiral. More Khreenk rushed to assist, but not before he was able to speak.

“Admiral, my Alliance frigates are reporting trouble with the Rift.”

The Admiral looked at him impassively, even as a trio of Khreenk moved around the Alliance officer and held on tightly, preventing him from drawing any closer to the Admiral. It seemed he was ignoring him, but then his eyes drifted to the right so that he could check the computer displays. Finally, he looked back.

“I will speak with your commanders.”

He then turned his attention to his officers and barked an order. They released him before Campbell’s translator even uttered a sound. The Admiral engaged in a short discussion with the Alliance officers then turned and shouted at his own crew. It must have been in code of some type because the translator once again did nothing. Eventually, the Admiral looked back at him. He lowered his head slightly in a passive gesture.

“On behalf of the Khreenk, I apologize.”

Campbell nodded politely and answered.

“What now?”

The Admiral shrugged, using both his chest and his shoulders. It was almost comical, and he might have laughed if it hadn’t been for their particular predicament.

“Perhaps if I had listened to your officer’s counsel, I might have left scouts at the Rift. Instead...I fear we are soon to be trapped here...”

He looked at the massive glass display at the front of the ship and took a step closer, as if this would somehow allow him a better view of whatever it was that waited out there for the fleet. A clicking sound came from somewhere in his body, perhaps his throat but sounded more like it was coming from the center of his chest.

“We are not experienced in war. The Narau fleet is for show, for politics. We cannot turn back, not until we have finished our deceleration...”

The Admiral turned and looked at Campbell.

“...and we are on our way to destruction in this place, look.”

He indicated to a dot in the distance. With a simple gesture, the window image transformed and enlarged as if a massive telescope. Captain Campbell was fascinated by the technology but forced himself from asking the obvious and looked at the shape. It was a ship, but of a form he was unfamiliar with. It was impossible to gauge the size, but the design was like two long cylinders fitted around a wide central box structure. Thick ribs ran down its length between which were scores of openings.

“What is it?” he asked.

The Admiral let out a long sigh; it was almost like the hiss of a snake. He reached up and scratched at the metal plates fitted to his cheek and forehead.

“Yes, I’ve seen this type of ship before. It is a ship of the Enemy. One we have not seen for hundreds of years. Have you been to Helios before?”

Captain Campbell nodded.

“Yes, only for a few days. I didn’t get to see much. Why?”

The alien Admiral considered his reply before finally speaking.

“There is a famous painting in the capital. It shows one of the great space battles between the Helions and the machines.”

He pointed at the ship ahead of them.

“Those ships were the heart of the enemy fleet. There must have been dozens of them in the painting. I think the Helions named them Ravagers. Yes, that’s it. They are large warships that carry troops and fighters and attack moons and small colonies.”

He sighed, a sound and gesture that was surpassingly human.

“I never believed it until now, perhaps the prophecy that the Enemy would return is true. When the comet rises, Helios will burn. Soon my friend, soon…we shall face them.”

Captain Campbell was shocked at the news of the ship. Yes, there had been rumors that there were small numbers of Biomechs still remaining throughout the galaxy, but not like this. From the assessments already coming in from the Alliance escorts, this ship was big. He checked back to the vessel that had tried to break through to Helios when the Alliance had first made contact with the Helions, and it showed up as bigger in every way.

“How powerful are these things?” he asked, dreading the answer.

The Admiral looked at him with slightly glazed eyes.

“If this is a Ravager, then many of my ships’ captains will want to flee. The Helions lost an entire task force to one of these ships in the war. It is a famous story. The Helions were sending a small force to reinforce one of their colony moons. There were two famous battleships, the pride of the Helion fleet and four escorts. The Ravager caught them and destroyed them all with fighter attacks.”

Now Captain Campbell was starting to understand. The description and design matched his assessment of the powerful warship.

“So, the Ravager is a hybrid aircraft carrier. Do you have any idea how many craft it can carry?”

The Admiral shook his head.

“No, we have never captured one. I would estimate over a hundred though, a mixture of fighters and bombers.”

Captain Campbell could see the difficulty they were in, both as a fleet and as individual ships. The Narau fleet was substantial in number but lacked carriers and fighter cover. For fighting fleets of warships they should be just fine, against a major carrier they would be vulnerable. But what really concerned the Captain was the suggestion that discipline was poor in the fleet. He suspected this might be because it was only a polyglot force that held a fragile allegiance to its elected Admiral. The mission had been a simple one of a reconnaissance in force in the Anicinàbe sector, due to distress signals emanating from a number of their colonies, not a call to war.

“What about the Rift?”

The Admiral nodded at the glass once more. Campbell looked at it and spotted the silhouette of a ship he didn’t recognize. It was the long, sleek shape of a large class of warship. The design was long, smooth, and it bristled with antenna.

“Anicinàbe cruisers?”

“Yes, they must have been forced to help the Enemy.”

Campbell shook his head.

“Or they have sided with them. I wonder what they were promised.”

The Khreenk Admiral pressed several buttons on his console and then shouted orders to his officers. Every one of them pulled at strapped and harnesses.

“What’s going on?”

The Admiral looked at him and smiled.

“We are preparing for an emergency direction shift; we need to get to the secondary Rift before they can trap us.”

“What Rift?”

“It will take us back to the border of the Klithi. We can regroup with their fleet.”

The ship began to shake as the engines put in massive amounts of additional thrust. Captain Campbell could feel the change in gravity, and he immediately felt heavier.

“Strap yourself in, Captain, before it is too late.”

He was already heading for one of the emergency seating areas, and an officer helped strap him in just as another series of bursts from the engines almost caused him to vomit. His secpad flew from his left hand, but he stopped it with the right hand before it could crash into the bulkhead. The face of the Alliance officer still showed.

“We’re too late!” said the man on the screen.

Captain Campbell had no idea what he meant and looked up at the glass windows. They had changed again, and this time showed a view of the fleet as it scattered, each trying to slow down and change course. It was a mess because they were all still traveling at great speed to their destination. Each of the factions had set a different course while a small number continued onward. Two vessels must have hit something because they were engulfed in a blue flash that spread through their hulls like burning hot plasma. That was when Campbell spotted it.

Mother of God!

It was a ship; identical to the ship they had been looking at near their destination. This one was right in the heart of the fleet and had somehow matched their overall course and heading.

This can’t be, he thought, even as he tried to calculate the complex trajectories to be able to do that. He gave up after realizing it was irrelevant right then. All he had to worry about was surviving. Ripples of light ran down the hull of the ship, and each one was matched to a series of explosions and flashes on the ships of the fleet. One Khreenk heavy cruiser took a volley of gunfire that tore the top off its superstructure from the rest of the ship. He counted a dozen ships that were already burning before a single vessel returned fire. Unsurprisingly, it looked like the Alliance frigates were the first to respond. His secpad lit up, and he grabbed it and brought it close to his face.

“Captain, we have to get out of here. I’m sending you and the fleet coordinates. Persuade the Admiral to follow us.”

The secpad faded to black, but the face of the commander of the ship and the sparks and flashes behind him stayed firmly in Campbell’s thoughts. The secpad flashed for a second, and then a number of schematics and navmaps appeared. He gave it a cursory look and called out to the Admiral. The commander of the fleet twisted his head to look at the young Alliance officer.

“The coordinates, they are an acceleration vector. You need to move the fleet.”

It was obvious to Captain Campbell that the Narau commanding officers had no idea how to act in a battle situation. The Alliance had been involved in battle since its early inception back in the Great War, roughly seventy years earlier. Even when not at war, they faced insurrections and pirate raids throughout the scattered colonies. Thankfully, the Admiral seemed to appreciate this and quickly deferred to the man as he checked the incoming signals.

“Yes, this is good,” he said without even looking at him.

He gave a series of coarse commands to his crew. Most were surprised at what he said, but not one of them dared to question his orders. In seconds, the ship shuddered once more, and vibrations spread through every part of the mighty vessel’s hull.

The engines, he’s changing direction!

The Admiral threw him a quick glance.

“If we survive this, I will owe your commander a life debt. Now, hold on, we have a small chance of getting through this.”

The ship shook violently as dozens of kinetic rounds slammed into its hull. The Khreenk warships were well built and very strong though. After a minute of nearly continuous bombardment, they were away from the ruins of the fleet and accelerating on a vector that would move them slightly from their original destination. More importantly, by accelerating, they were making use of their already substantial momentum, and each second took them further from harm.



* * *





It was a large room, easily capable of holding fifty officers, perhaps more. Models of dozens of ships from the Alliance and the Confederacy’s past adorned the walls, and in the center stood an oval table; on it a model of the station that was still under construction. Everything seemed smart and clean, perhaps too clean. It was a measure of the brand new station that every part of it looked as though it had just arrived from an Alliance factory. At one end of the table was a floating video projection showing multiple feeds of violent events on the world of Helios. There were a large number of explosions before all but one of the feeds turned black.

“This is the most important section,” said the officer on the right-hand side. His face impossible to make out while the unit ran and the lights were dimmed.

A crowd of people ran down a shattered street, and small ducted fan bikes and vehicles flashed by overhead. A large tower structure crashed to the ground as the camera team ran for cover before being washed with dust and debris. The aircraft slowed down and opened fire at those running, finally striking an area near the camera crew. The last shot was of the camera on its side, facing down the street toward four dead Zathee, the largest ethnic group of Helions that were now in open revolt.

Captain Hart, a rough looking officer nodded as though the footage had just answered any question they might have. A dozen people sat around the table, including Rear Admiral Lewis, the commander of the 4th Heavy Strike Group. General Daniels, the commander of the 2nd Marine Corps Regiment plus the captains of the largest ships in the fleet.

“Our tactical reconnaissance drones have avoided detection so far, but without boots on the ground, our information is sketchy at best,” explained Captain Hart.

“Captain, thank you,” stated Admiral Anderson, the commander of the station.

He looked toward the virtual presence to his right of General Rivers, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. He was the highest-ranking military officer by law in the Alliance. His word carried the weight of the President and of the Alliance’s civilian authority.

“So, with this limited intelligence, we have been called on to assist in organizing a task force. To do what, exactly? Can you apprise us of the situation on Terra Nova?”

The time delay from the Admiral Jarvis Naval Station through T’Kari space and then to Terra Nova took considerable time. The signal was collected and repeated at Rift Spacebridges in T’Kari space, Prometheus space in Proxima Centauri, and finally Alpha Centauri, the home star system of the capital of the Alliance. A counter ran next to the video display, and it ran down as they waited for the General. While waiting, Admiral Anderson looked at the others.

“Since the start of the rebellion on Helios it has spread. The Khreenk Federation has offered assistance and to mediate a peace settlement. At the same time, T’Kari scouts report similar uprisings on many of the Helion’s other worlds.”

“Other worlds?” asked Captain Alyani Tinychai, commander of ANS Serenity.

Anderson pointed to Captain Hart who brought up an image of the Helios System on the projector unit.

“Helios is just one star and one planet. They use the term interchangeably. Just as we do though, they have many moons and dozens of other stars and worlds. They have been cagey at telling us everything, but so far we have already charted three more stars, each with inhabited worlds. All of them within six light years of Helios.”

Captain Tinychai seemed intrigued at this information.

“So the rumors of the Helions commanding a large empire were true, after all?”

Anderson shrugged. Captain Jose Pezal pointed at the Rift on the edge of Helion space. It was marked as the exchange point between Helion space and the Khreenk Federation.

“Admiral, where do we stand with the other empires, then?”

Before he could answer, the counter ran to zero, and a fuzzy image of the General appeared, correcting itself as more data arrived.

“Admiral Anderson, thank you for arranging this important meeting. There is urgent news from our new ambassador on Helios, as well as from our other contacts throughout the Orion Nebula.”

He paused while a clerk handed him something.

“As you are all aware, we have been collating data on these new regions of space. There are planets, races, and factions we had no idea even existed. Our big concern is this prophecy that the Helions keep referring to. We have analyzed all records we have access to, and it is clear they are convinced the Enemy will return to Helios for vengeance.”

Admiral Anderson nodded as if he were in a discussion with the General.

“Now, this prophecy is a common theme with each of the races, and there are even hints on Hyperion in our own territory. Normally, we would ignore this, but there is one thing they all have in common. It is this.”

His face moved to the side and was replaced by what looked like a common comet.

“This is C34A, a well known comet apparently amongst the races close to the Helions. It was last present during the defeat of the Biomechs and their incarceration on their own worlds. As you know, the Black Rift is the only fast route to cover the thousands of light years to their domain.”

The image returned to General Rivers.

“This comet is on its way back, and according to the Khreenk, the Helions, and all the rest, will signal the start of the next war.”

One of the younger officers muttered something and was quickly silenced by a nearby captain.

“Now, because of this potential threat, our entry into the Narau military as a temporary member has been accelerated. Our strength has already been recognized, and this places us at the heart of the political sphere of the Great Powers.”

The officers in the room looked at each other and then back to the virtual presence.

“The troubles on Helios have stark similarities with the problems we faced back on Proxima Prime at the very start of the Uprising. For those of us who were there at the time, you’ll recall how the situation changed from insurgency and terrorism to outright war.”

His image vanished and was replaced by a vast model that seemed to include all the territories of the Powers, including the Alliance. Helios was in the center and surrounded by four flashing stars.

“We know there are small groups of Biomech forces and their supporters, perhaps even around our own worlds. Alliance Intelligence has examined everything from the evidence left by them on Hades and Hyperion through to the prisoner that Admiral Anderson has on your station. Everything points to one thing; a long-term Biomech strategy to return to Helios.”

He paused to let that piece of information sink in. The video was not in real-time, so he had no way to gauge exactly how they would react. Even so, the short pause was about right as they started to chatter with surprise and confusion at his news. His voice finally returned.

“We have every belief that the remaining Biomechs will seek to exploit this situation anyway they can, perhaps to try and reopen the Rift to their worlds. The President has therefore authorized me to take major action in this sector as part of a Narau Force under the authority of the Helion government. These forces will operate from an orbital deployment area based upon four capital ships. Admiral, if you would continue.”

He stopped for just a few seconds as a number of further documents and video files continued to arrive. Admiral Anderson then continued the briefing.

“The T’Kari will conduct patrols of the Helios System, especially the access points to the other Powers while flying the Alliance flag. Their ships are ideally suited to this kind of operation, and it will leave us to concentrate on Helios. We will also be sending a smaller fleet to meet with contingents from all the other Powers to guard the Black Rift.”

“This is madness,” snapped General Daniels, without even thinking.

“The Helions have treated their people like dogs. The uprising has spread, and the Zathee have already offered us support if and when war comes to us. And now we plan to send ground forces into the middle of all of this? This will simply allow the Helions to maintain control.”

Admiral Anderson exhaled slowly, the sound getting all of their attention.

“You’re missing the big picture, General. It is our job to ensure peace and stability for the Helions. This will guarantee resources and warriors for the fight, if it ever comes to it. If we send in troops right now, we will start a war with the Helions, a war we cannot afford to become embroiled in.”

General Daniels opened his mouth but Anderson stopped him.

“I know, we could handle them, but what about the others? What if the Klithi or the Khreenk side with them? In minutes, we could be at war with every single one of them, all so that we can offer military assistance to the Zathee, a culture we only knew of months ago.”

He pointed at the display.

“As you can see, General Rivers has already sent us the dispositions for Helios. Additional forces are en route so the entire 4th Heavy Strike Group can be committed to action. That is twelve ships under the commander of Rear Admiral Lewis plus the 2nd Marine Corp Regiment that will operate from orbit over Helios. I will ensure this station is made available for support craft, resupply, and anything else you might need.”

He paused for a second, getting his breath before continuing. In that brief moment, he looked at each of them and could see the tension in their faces. This was evidently far more serious than any of them had expected.

Captain Harris, the commander of ANS Crusader, one of the most famous ships now in the fleet, lifted the palm of his hand slightly to get attention.

“Admiral, this all seems hasty. Have we learned something new from the Biomech soldier? Why the rush? Comets have been the harbingers for a long time, even on our worlds.”

That one question turned the room to total silence. It was common knowledge that the soldier captured during the initial foray into Helios had been brought to this place for study. What wasn’t known though was what had happened since. Admiral Anderson looked at the man and smiled in a gesture that was hard to fully understand.

“Captain, it is a good question but perhaps not one for today.”

The video stream from General Rivers returned. Admiral Anderson signaled for his audience to turn their attention to his image.

“I am sending over all intelligence required for this operation. I must take my leave of you. You have everything you need, and I expect nothing but the utmost professionalism in your approach to this problem. Any requests may be made through Admiral Anderson, who is in command of all Alliance forces inside the Orion Nebula. Good luck to you all.”

With the General now gone, Admiral Anderson switched off the video feed and looked out to the men and women.

“The Admiral Jarvis Naval Station is fully operational, and it will now be your permanent base of operations, as well as the most remote border fortress we have out here. It is our job to stabilize this part of space, to prevent the enemy from taking ground, and most importantly, to ensure that no Biomech ever gets within a single AU of the Black Rift.”

His image vanished, and at the same time the Admiral stood up. He looked about the table at each of them. They looked eager for information, but there was no way he would be telling them any of what he had learned.

“That is all for now. Admiral Lewis, General Daniels, if you would stay behind please. We have further details to discuss.”

The rest of the officers left the room as quietly as they had arrived, and only the three senior commanders remained in the room. Anderson said nothing until the door shut behind them, and he was left with the other two.

“Well, what did they decide?” asked General Daniels.

Anderson scratched his chin for a second. The years had not been kind to him, and like General Rivers, starting to show his age. His skin looked tired and his hair a brilliant sheen of white. His eyes, however, glowed brightly, and he showed all the intellect and intelligence that he always had. He considered the General’s question. The other officers knew roughly what the plan was, but they were not privy to the overall strategy being adopted by High Command back in Terra Nova. He, on the other hand, had spoken with General Rivers six hours earlier and had argued vehemently against the decision that had been made. He looked at the two men and raised an eyebrow before speaking.

“Our strategy is...unexpected.”

General Daniels shook his head in an irritated fashion.

“Isn’t it always? We do have a plan then?”

Anderson opened his mouth in a narrow smile and reopened the star map that showed the known borders of the Great Powers. Each of their regions of space was colored differently, clearly showing the territory of the Anicinàbe was the largest in terms of star systems.

“We have the Helion League, the Khreenk Federation, Klithi, Byotai and Anicinàbe territories out here.”

He then pointed at the small region of space off to the left.

“This is us and our six star systems. We, of course, have territories in Alpha Centauri, Proxima Centauri, and Sol, plus our newest mining outposts and colonies at Epsilon Eridani, Gliese 876, and Procyon. And in the last few years, we have included T’Karan to this to make a total of seven stars.”

He looked back at them, clearly waiting to make a major announcement.

“Do you have any idea how many star systems the other Powers control?”

There was silence as the other two men looked at him impassively. Anderson knew all too well they would not know, even he wasn’t completely sure about the information passed on via the diplomats on Helios.

“I’ll tell you, gentlemen, forty-five stars and hundreds of worlds. Half of those are in Anicinàbe space. There could easily be as many again that we do not know about. Why do you think we have allowed our frigates to join the Narau fleet on one of its patrols?”

“Intelligence,” replied Rear Admiral Lewis in a slow, deliberate tone.

Anderson stood up and walked toward the nearest wall where he stopped and examined the model ships. Most he recognized, and some even brought back painful memories. The wrecked hulk of the Battlecruiser Crusader was the one that made him the think the hardest. It had been the pride of the fleet and the flagship of Admiral Jarvis, the heroine of the Uprising.

“Precisely,” he said, his back still to them.

He took the model from the wall and examined it with interest, finally turning to face his two guests.

“Stability for the Alliance is our priority, and the worry is that the Rift network is larger than anticipated and poorly mapped. The enemy is still out there, and all of our worlds are vulnerable.”

He walked back and placed the model on the table.

“It is simple, gentlemen. Our job is to keep these forty-five worlds stable and friendly. We must do all we can to explore the Rift network, and ultimately prepare for the day when the attack will come.”

Rear Admiral Lewis didn’t appear convinced.

“Attack? Who’s to say the Biomechs aren’t smashed or weakened beyond chance of recovery? If they’re so strong, then why aren’t they already here, taking us apart like before?”

Anderson smiled and returned to his seat. With a single tap, he brought up an image of a vast hangar type structure. Inside was an object bathed in white and yellow lamps. Both men leaned in closer to examine the shape. It was a large creature, like something from hell itself but a sickening mixture of machine and flesh. It moved a little before a fluorescent green fluid was automatically pumped into its body via a machine to its side.

“The Biomech soldier?” asked General Daniels.

“Yes,” answered Anderson.

Daniels shook his head in horror.

“What are you doing to it?”

Anderson was surprised at his discomfort. The Biomechs had been responsible for so much death; he would have thought the man would relish seeing the thing suffer.

“This is nothing, just drugs to stop it from turning on us. It has already killed eleven technicians since we brought it here.”

That piece of information seemed to placate him, at least for now.

“From our detailed studies, we have learned a great deal. Firstly, the living creature inside the machine is old.”

Daniels didn’t seem impressed.

“What do you mean, old?”

“Well, this particular creature is almost six hundred years old, yet its armored exterior is much older again.”

Admiral Lewis and General Daniels looked shocked at this revelation. Neither seemed to know what to say, so Anderson continued.

“There is more though. In our interrogations, we have established three key points. None are confirmed, but each of them makes sense in its own way. First, the Biomechs are an ancient but dying race. Our biological analysis confirms the genetic decay, but they have managed to avoid the worst effects in a way we do not understand. It is not completely clear, but we suspect they have a finite number of soldiers, and they cannot be replaced.”

Admiral Lewis lifted up his hand in surprise. He was one of the younger senior commanders in the Alliance military and known for his somewhat abrasive attitude on occasion.

“Wait a minute, how the hell was this decision made? Unable to reproduce, I just don’t believe that.”

General Daniels seemed to accept this point quite quickly, however.

“It makes sense though. Think about it. These armored machines must be to protect their ancient bodies, so they build the armored cocoons that turn them into something like demigods. If you lived pretty much forever, would you want more people to share what you have? Soldiers are usually the youngest. What if this guy is the same?”

He pointed at the image on the display.

“Hmm, that is a rather tenuous link. What is it based on?” asked a dubious sounding Admiral Lewis.

Anderson tapped the button, and the video feed zoomed in much closer to show the large head of the thing. All three stared at it with a mixture of fascination and horror. One similar creature had led the forces of Echidna back on Hyperion, but at the time, it was assumed the thing was some type of massive war machine.

“It is through a mixture of interrogation and biological study. According to the captured soldier, it considers its own race some sort of master race. They learned to control life before they met the other races.”

Admiral Lewis lowered his head to his hand.

“If they can control life, why not simply create more? They can always use cloning. It’s not like they can’t do that. We are somewhat familiar with Biomechs and their creations. Do you remember the AI Hubs that took control of our ships?”

Anderson seemed to like what he was hearing. The last thing he wanted was senior officers that simply carried out orders. He also knew that both of them would do whatever was necessary to protect the Alliance.

“Yes, that is all very true. But if you remember, the genetic material of the Biomechs that we fought and the AI hubs was proven to be new, some of it a mere few years old. It was either harvested or created from scratch. Neither the soldier that tried to arrive at Hyperion, or this one were like that.”

He pulled out his secpad and ran his fingers along the front. It was a simple gesture and sent a secure digital packet to both of them.

“Look at that.”

General Daniels had his device out first and was past the first page before his Navy opposite number had done the same. It was a modest report that had been assembled based on information gathered on Helios over the last three months. It included pictures of their paintings, sculptures, and artworks along with audio testimonials. Admiral Anderson only gave them a minute to read it before interrupting them.

“I’ll let you read that in your own time. You’ll note the title is the Desperation War. It is the name the Helions and their allies used in the great battles against the Biomechs. You’ll note the reports describe all manner of Biomech creatures and machines, yet the soldiers like this one appear infrequently. In fact, there is a song that the Helions sing, one about the great battle of Pylos.”

General Daniels face lit up.

“Yes, I heard this when I visited the capital. It is about the surrender of a Biomech garrison, if I’m not mistaken.”

“Indeed,” said Anderson.

He reached forward and tapped a button. A recording of young Helions filled the room, and the three of them listened in silence, trying to imagine what was being said. It was short and over in less than a minute. Anderson leaned toward them as though revealing a great secret.

“The song is about the fall of the T’Kari colony called Pylos by the Biomechs. A combined Helion and T’Kari fleet broke through and prepared an atomic bombardment for the world. According to legend, there were over a million Biomechs and six of the Biomech soldiers, this leadership caste. They surrendered the world and withdrew rather than lose six soldiers.”

“I think I’d be more worried about losing a million Biomechs to be honest,” said Admiral Lewis with barely concealed sarcasm.

Anderson nodded as though he were correct.

“True, except the million were executed autonomously by the soldiers as they left, all so that six might avoid death by the atomics.”

This silenced the Admiral, at least for now.

“With this information, we can determine the Biomechs were broken in this war. We know that small numbers of their soldiers, like the one we have here and the one destroyed during the collapse of the Hyperion Rift remain, each of them hiding and waiting.”

He straightened his back and again took a deep breath, as if preparing for some great speech.

“They have soldiers and ships throughout the old worlds, including our own. Their homeworld lies beyond the Black Rift, almost two thousand light years from Helios, and if the Helions are right, they have been working on their revenge since they were forced into exile.”

He then pointed at the image on the wall of the first photograph ever taken of Helios. It was becoming one of the most widely copied images in the history of humanity.

“Helios is the Nexus, the point at which every one of our races reaches the rest. High Command has determined that the Biomechs remain as a clear and present danger. We must therefore prepare ourselves and the other races if we want to avoid extinction.”

He looked at each of them, gauging their expressions.

“The days of wondering are over. From today, we are on a war footing, and we must do everything necessary to ensure we are ready. Because when they come, we will see a war that will make the Uprising look like a picnic.”