Empire's End (Empire Rising Book 20), page 1
Empire’s End
Empire Rising Book 20
D. J. Holmes
https://www.facebook.com/Author.D.J.Holmes
d.j.holmess@hotmail.com
Comments welcome!
Cover illustrated by Tom Edwards:
tomedwardsconcepts@gmail.com
https://tomedwardsdesign.com/
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to any persons living or dead, business establishments, events or locales are entirely coincidental.
Copyright © D. J. Holmes 2024
Prologue
Slayer, former Zeta Fort system, 22nd June 2513 AD, (six hours after the battle of Zeta Fort).
“Imperator, Rear Admiral Cons’las has signaled to inform you he is ready to depart.”
“Instruct him he may do so immediately,” Tanaka-lan replied. “Then signal the ships clearing the debris to use antimatter warheads to finish this job; this is taking too long.”
“At once, Imperator,” Tanaka-lan’s Chief of Staff responded as he bowed his head.
Moments later, thousands of antimatter warheads began to be launched by the hundreds of frigates and destroyers that had been sifting through the remains of the Human fleet base. After destroying its battlestations and hangars, Tanaka-lan had hoped to capture its supply stations, but the Humans had detonated all of them at the last moment. In formation with Slayer, Tanaka-lan had tens of thousands of freighters, many of them were carrying the materials needed to begin constructing new supply stations. Yet, they couldn't come close to the former fleet base until every piece of debris had been checked to make sure it wasn’t hiding enemy missile pods or single-shot energy weapons.
Tanaka-lan knew that every minute he gave Somerville to regroup would end up costing him more ships when he began his advance again. He was fed up with watching his ships meticulously scan every piece of debris. Missiles he could replace, lost time he could not. Satisfied the planet’s orbitals would soon be clear, he turned to watch Rear Admiral Cons’las's ships begin to break away from his battlefleet.
From the Zeta Fort system, four artificial shift passages led to other nearby forts. Tanaka-lan’s scouts already reported the forts’ garrison fleets had all abandoned their forts. Cons’las was on his way with ten thousand warships to destroy the battlestations of the nearest one. Tanaka-lan wasn’t going to waste time taking out the Humans' fixed defenses, he had breached them and so they could not be used against him again. Nevertheless, he needed to consolidate his position before he advanced further, and so while he had the time taking out the forts would ensure the Humans couldn’t try and tow battlestations away from them.
Once Cons’las's fleet was underway, Tanaka-lan surveyed the rest of the system. Everywhere he looked, thousands of ships were on the move. Twenty thousand heavily damaged ships were headed north back to the fleet bases that had the repair yards they needed. Of the sixty thousand he had left, many were patrolling the shift passage that led into the system, just in case the Humans tried a surprise counter-attack. Others, almost as many as he had dispatched with Cons’las, were heading towards other shift passages.
From his scouts, Tanaka-lan knew Somerville’s main fleet was retreating towards a colony they called New Shanghai. If he was in the enemy’s shoes, Tanaka-lan would have done the same. Somerville was protecting the most direct route from Zeta Fort to Humanity’s homeworld. Yet falling back there left tens of other Human colonies all but undefended. Split across four fleets, Tanaka-lan had dispatched nine thousand warships to begin to raid as many of them as they could. If Somerville refused to move out and try to protect them, then his fleets would cause immeasurable damage to the human systems, and if Somerville did move out, then Tanaka-lan would pounce on New Shanghai and then Earth.
Without your forts, there is no hope for you, Tanaka-lan thought towards Somerville. And I have three more battlefleets on their way to join me here as well!
Now that he had taken Zeta Fort and breached the Humans’ system of border forts, Tanaka-lan had sent out orders to consolidate all his battlefleet into one force. It meant he could reduce his five supply lines down to one and allow it to be far better protected. Once his fleets were all combined and Zeta Fort built up enough to act as a supply hub for his final push on Earth, he would be ready to proceed with his final push against the Humans. Three weeks was the estimate his chief logistics officer had given him for how long it would take to construct enough of the supply hub to the point where it would be operational. Three weeks and then I will be coming for you once again, Tanaka-lan promised the Human Emperor.
*
Anaconsada, (Silizzarus homeworld).
Agent Pytaron trembled as her small craft jumped into the home system far closer to its sun than any ship had done so in ten thousand years. At the touch of a button, she sent her ship racing towards Anaconsada, breaking every protocol as she did. Every fiber of her body protested at doing what she was doing. She knew every eye on her homeworld would be fixed upon her. All would be judging her. Many would already be ready to order her execution.
The laws of her species had been laid down millennia ago. Entering a system always left a trace of exotic particles, as did accelerating at such high velocities. Pytaron’s actions were leaving clues that an advanced species could one day follow to lead them to her species' homeworld. She was all but blaspheming everything her species stood for; everything she had been indoctrinated to believe, and everything she had committed her life to protect. Yet, despite her body’s revulsion at what she was doing, her mind didn’t waver. If her life was forfeit, then it would be forfeit. She had no choice. The news she carried was simply too great.
With her ship's impulse engines operating at full power, she quickly closed with Anaconsada. Her body twitched when her COM unit beeped. A glance at it told her someone from the planet's surface was demanding that she slow down and turn away. Pytaron pressed her forked tongue firmly against the roof of her mouth. She didn’t want to taste the fear and nerves that she knew were pouring from her body.
So great was her haste that as her ship reached her homeworld’s atmosphere, she still didn’t slow. If there had been any of her people on the planet's surface, which she knew there wasn’t, her arrival would have been unmistakable as her ship streaked down through the atmosphere in a giant fireball.
Tapping on her COM unit, she requested permission to land. Of course, permission was denied. Pytaron didn’t alter her course or begin to slow. Instead, she kept hurtling towards the large hatch that led to a subterranean hangar. Another tap sent a second request. It too was denied. This time, Pytaron charged one of her ship’s graviton cannons. No one could misunderstand her intentions. A couple of seconds passed and Pytaron mentally prepared herself to open fire on her own homeworld. Yet then a small crack appeared in front of her. The hatch was opening.
Ever so slowly, each side of the hatch began to retract from one another. The hatch only opened wide enough for Pytaron’s ship to just fit through. As soon as she saw the opening, Pytaron flipped her ship end over end and fired her impulse thrusters at maximum power to decelerate in time. Then she carefully guided her ship through the opening. Her ship descended through a full mile of sedimentary rock – that was the thickness of the hatch. It was designed to be invisible to even the most sophisticated orbital sensors. Then for another two minutes, Pytaron continued down a wide artificial shaft towards the heart of her species' homeworld.
A single landing pad began to flash out of the darkness and Pytaron set her ship down upon it. For a couple of seconds, she sat stationary as her whole body trembled. Then she summoned all the courage she could find, released her buckles, and slithered from her command chair towards the rear access ramp of her ship. Unsurprisingly, four Silizzarus stood waiting for her. Their blasters were all leveled at her chest. “I demand to speak to the High Court,” Pytaron said before any of those sent to arrest her could speak. “I bring intelligence vital to the survival of our species. I must be heard immediately.”
The four guardswomen stared at Pytaron, mouths open. Then their leader finally spoke. “You come into our system as you did, then you threaten to open fire on your very homeworld. And now you dare make such a request? Your ancestors will be cursing you within the Collective the moment they hear of this. The High Court will order your memories wiped forever.”
Pytaron raised her chin. With a great deal of effort, she pushed out all the confidence pheromones she could summon. “You are wrong, you know not the news I bring. Inform the High Court that I bring news about their missing Agent, and the Humans' growing knowledge of us. Inform them they must hear me at once.”
The leader sneered at Pytaron. But then her tongue flicked in and out several times. “Very well, on your head be it,” she said. Then she half turned and slithered a few meters behind her consorts. She was back just seconds later. Though the tone of her voice changed, disgust and contempt still poured from her body. “Your request has been granted. Though you will be under armed guard the entire time. Come with me at once.” Without waiting, the guardswoman turned and began to slither toward a hatch that led from the landing pad into the subterranean tunnels that were Pytaron’s species' home. Pytaron moved after her at once. After she passed them, the three other guardswomen followed, their weapons still trained on Pytaron.
At first, the tunnels she was led through were empty, yet when they came to the first open chamber, Pytaron was surprised to find a handful of other Silizzarus present. All took care to keep well out of the way of the guardswomen escorting her, yet they all stared at Pytaron unapologetically. From them, she could taste a mixture of curiosity, anger, and fear. Evidently, news of her arrival was already beginning to spread.
The further they went, the more of her people they encountered. Given that well over ninety-nine percent of her species who were still technically considered ‘alive’ spent all their time within the Collective, Pytaron guessed that a great deal of those outside the Collective who were actually stationed on the homeworld were trying to get a glimpse of her. The further she and her escorts went, the larger the crowds became, and the more the fear she tasted outweighed the curiosity and anger. As they approached the chamber that led to the High Court’s turbo lift, the numbers began to thin again. The chamber itself was empty. At the turbo lift, the leader of the guardswomen stopped. “I alone will escort you from here. Try anything and I have orders to execute you immediately.”
“I understand,” Pytaron said as she gave a simple nod of her head.
With a tap from her tail, the turbo lift doors opened for the guardswoman, and she slithered in. She then turned, pointed her blaster at Pytaron, and gestured for her to enter the turbo lift. In silence and complete darkness, they travelled up at least forty levels. Then the turbo lift stopped, and the doors opened. An equally dark chamber greeted them. “Follow me,” the guardswoman said as she slithered forward. Using the sound of her body slipping across the smooth surface and her taste as guides, Pytaron followed into the darkness.
After a few meters she stopped, and so did Pytaron. Though it only lasted for several seconds, standing still in the complete darkness of the High Court felt like an eternity. Almost since hatching, Pytaron had dreamed of one day standing before the High Court, receiving their praise for her service to her people. Yet now the experience was very different. Her heart was beating so fast and hard that she was certain the guardswoman could hear it. Her body was also throwing out waves of pheromones that were full of the scents and tastes of nerves that were so strong she was having to fight not to wretch.
Without warning, a bright light suddenly ignited and shone upon her. Pytaron's tail instinctively whipped up to cover her eyes. Shock and fear flowed from her every pore. “Bow before your superiors,” a cold booming voice demanded from the darkness far above. It immediately sent Pytaron's tail to the floor and her chin followed at once.
“I humbly submit my life to the High Court’s judgment,” Pytaron said as quickly as she could manage without her voice breaking. “I apologize unreservedly for the manner in which I have come here before you. Yet in my judgment, the news I bring needed to be heard at once. If you deem my actions wrong, then I will accept whatever fate you think I deserve.”
A different voice, quieter and more under control, responded. “You are of course known to us, Agent, as is the mission you were dispatched upon. Either you have gone crazy, and so will soon lose your body and soul, or you have dire news indeed. So speak, before the patience of this Court runs out.”
Pytaron couldn’t hide her relief. At least one was willing to listen to her! “Thank you. I know I have broken many protocols to come before you, but I deemed haste was better than secrecy. I come with news that I have failed to locate our missing Agent. However, I believe she and perhaps her ship have both been captured by the Humans.”
Hisses spilled over the large dais that Pytaron suspected the Senior Agents of the High Court were seated behind. “That cannot be,” one voice retorted. “It is unthinkable,” another added. Other voices whispered things Pytaron could not hear.
“Continue, Agent,” the second voice that had spoken to her requested, cutting off all the others. “I presume you have some evidence to back up this claim?”
Pytaron nodded, then with her head still pressed firmly onto the floor of the chamber, she continued. “I do. As I was tasked, I retraced Agent Cordra’s likely steps. I ascertained that she made contact with two of the covert cells Agent Rarmanca had set up. She left both with fresh orders that suggested she was intending to begin her operations against the Humans. However, her trail then went cold. Several other worlds that she should have visited had received no fresh orders in months. Then I myself came under attack.”
Pytaron paused as more hisses filled the chamber. Then she hurried to continue her story. “Whilst returning from visiting one world, the alien ship I had used to enter orbit was almost interdicted. Human warships had been lying in wait for me. I managed to return to my own ship, yet the Humans acted as if they expected this. They attempted to surround and engage me. I had no choice but to fight my way out. I destroyed many of their ships in the process, yet my own ship took damage too. That is why it has taken me so long to return here.
“I now believe that Agent Cordra was discovered and that the Humans learned of how we infiltrate their systems. That is the best explanation for why the Humans were watching for my arrival and were able to lay an ambush to try and capture me. If the Humans have one of our agents, or even just one of our ships…” Pytaron trailed off, unsure how to finish her sentence. Though the possibility had dominated her mind for the past several months, she had never spoken it out loud before. Even now, when her life depended on it, she could not bring herself to say it.
She didn’t need to, however, for the Senior Agents above her could complete her line of thinking easily enough. “If they have Cordra, they will torture her until they learn of us,” one voice said. Even from the height they were above her, Pytaron could taste her horror as she spoke.
“It is worse than that, if they have Cordra’s ship, they could have learned of our location!” another said. “They could be on their way here now.” Horror turned to terror around Pytaron as pheromones from several different Silizzarus washed over her.
A new voice heightened the tension even more. “We must wake our sisters. We must start building defenses. The Collective itself could be at risk!”
Again the second voice that had spoken to Pytaron brought a measure of calm, telling Pytaron she held a measure of sway over the others. “We already have many precautions in place for this kind of eventuality,” she said. “But it may still be prudent to take additional protective measures. We must also find out exactly what the Humans know. However, let us not forget that we have company below us. Let us discuss this once our privacy has been restored.”
Though no one spoke, the silence told Pytaron the other members of her species' High Court agreed. “You may leave us, Agent Pytaron,” the calm voice said a moment later. “We will judge the worthiness of your actions in your engagement with the Humans another time, but you have done well in bringing us this news in a timely fashion. Though for now, do not speak of any of this to anyone else. We will reveal this news to our people in our own time. The same goes for you too, guardswoman.”
“Of course, Senior Agent,” Pytaron responded at once, relief flowing from her. Without waiting for another word, she sprang up from the floor and moved as fast as she could towards where she thought the turbo lift doors were. She was still deeply troubled by the news she had brought, but at least now she no longer feared her own people would put her to death.
But what will the Humans do if they find us? She couldn’t help asking as the turbo lift doors opened for her. Moments later, as the doors closed behind them, Pytaron could taste the fear radiating from the guardswoman who no longer pointed her blaster at Pytaron. She is asking herself the same thing, Pytaron guessed. Tasting the same fear radiating off the guardswoman that she could taste from herself brought her no comfort.
Chapter 1
Discovering a newly inhabited world always comes with a pulse of excitement. Yet one must always be careful, for you never know what you might find.
-Excerpt from Empire Ascendant 3015 AD.
Pytheas, 20th May 2513 AD, (one month previous).
“Take us in,” Captain Cortez ordered her navigation officer. “Set a course for the nearest inhabited planet, five percent thrust.”
