The Legend of Earth

Chapter 44



Three of the larger Kracori starships positioned themselves at equal distance from the giant space rock, lined up at about nine hundred meters apart. The rock itself was only about half a kilometer in width, and nearly the same in depth, however, even with gravity drive, the three ships would have difficulty moving the massive boulder.

The problem with moving the rock came not with the power of the ships pulling it, but rather with the proximity of the ships to one another. Nine hundred meters was way too close to create effective singularities. They would have to be very shallow and constantly monitored for any crossover. Still, with three ships pulling, the rock would move.

Each ship sent down forty massive cables to the surface and secured them with explosives charges, sending the grapples deep into the solid nickel and iron asteroid. No one in the fleet had ever attempted such a feat, unlike the massive mining ships that were specially designed for this kind of work. But nevertheless they tried, and soon the tiny wells were engaged … and the rock began to move.

The tiny asteroid field was located about two million kilometers from Juir and if Kaddof had any chance of his plan succeeding in time he would have to have the asteroid in position in less than three weeks. The bulk of his forces was already embarking on their various starships and would be bolting out of the area in four days. Kaddof and a small contingent would remain in-system to see his final solution to the Juirean problem all the way to the end.

His remaining six ships would not leave any lasting gravity waves for the Humans to follow, so Kaddof felt secure in his actions. He had not even informed the Ludif Council of his plan.

As the momentum of the small asteroid grew, the transit time toward Juir began to shorten. His own ship stayed off at a distance and watched the tow units, and with each successive day, Kaddof grew more excited. Soon the planet Juir loomed ahead.

Kaddof had tried to have the scientists attached his fleet provide him with the best trajectory and timing that would send the asteroid directly down onto the Kacoran Plain, but they had been unable to do the proper calculations. And besides, even if they had, he doubted if he would have that much control over the rock the closer it got to Juir. The best the scientists could provide was an estimate. It would have to do.

At the proper moment, the three tow ships detonated explosive bolts that released the massive cables and the rock was free. Over the intervening two weeks, the asteroid had increasingly gained speed and momentum until it was now traveling at close to ten thousand kilometers per hour. This was far below the normal velocity for a traditional impact event, but it would have to do. It would not be a planet-killer, but it would cause considerable dishevel across the entire surface, lasting long enough for most of the surviving Juireans to die in the aftermath.

The asteroid entered the atmosphere and immediately began to heat up, its leading edge glowing molten red, with great plumes of fiery material trailing off and creating a long tail of black and white clouds behind it. The actual impact took place about one hundred kilometers out to sea and off the coast of Juir City. Kaddof would have to be satisfied with that.

The ocean at the point of impact was about two kilometers in depth so it was only a millisecond from the time the asteroid contacted the ocean’s surface before in plunged deep into the rocky surface of the planet itself. Instantly, billions of liters of seawater were flashed into steam as the giant rock continued into bury itself deep into the planet to a depth of over two kilometers. A great outpouring of molten ejecta flew out of the massive crater in all directions, sending projectiles of fire onto land surfaces at a distance of over five hundred kilometers from the impact zone. These fireballs ignited massive conflagrations in the forests of Juir and soon it looked as though half the planet was on fire.

Kaddof watched from orbit with a wicked grin. He saw the great gray cloud of ash, rock and water vapor erupt out from the impact crater, to be caught up in the planet’s prevailing winds. Over the next two days he watched as the deadly cloud encircled the planet and spread from pole to pole. Soon the entire surface of Juir was obscured by a uniform gray cover – a color appropriately matching that of Kracori skin

Satisfied, Kaddof gave the order. It was time to return home.



The impact event had set off massive earthquakes within a thousand kilometers, followed immediately by incredible series of waves, many over a hundred meters high, that spread out in circular ripples, sweeping across islands and shoreline all around the Southern Sea.

Within minutes of the impact, the first great wave sweep in over the white sand beaches located two kilometers from the outer suburbs of Juir City – what was left of it – and traveled inland at over a hundred kilometers per hour. It washed over the smoldering ruins of the city, scrapping away everything down to a depth of ten meters. Then the giant wave ran up to the very base of the Kacoran Plain and slid upwards to half the mountain’s height. When the water receded, it took with it millions of tons of boulders and soil, now deposited on the long sloping plain leading back to the ocean.

All around the planet, the long strings of refugees fleeing their burning cities and already suffering from days of being without food or shelter, were suddenly choking on the suffocating ash and smoke cloud that was everywhere. Those within five hundred kilometers of the impact also experienced rain of fire and a blistering heat wave that swept over the area, killing them instantly. And these were the lucky ones.

Although Kaddof had already departed for Eilsion by this time, he knew that the next phase of his plan would be the most long-lasting and devastating for the planet Juir. With the entire surface of the planet now covered in a thick cloud of ash and smoke, temperatures began to drop precipitously. Within a week of the impact, temperatures had plunged twenty degrees below normal. And then the snows began to fall.

Within a month of the attack, the cloud encircling the planet had all but dissipated, but now a great sheet of ice and snow covered much of the planet. With the reflective quality of this white sheet, stellar radiation was sent back off into space. Temperatures dropped even more.

By the time the Humans arrived, the planet Juir was a nearly-uniform ball of thin, white ice. Any Juireans who had survived the initial Kracori attack were now long-dead, either from starvation or the cold.

Kaddof had done it. He had killed off the last of the Juireans on Juir. He was sure Jonnif Vinn would have been pleased with his results.