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  "As a friend to both the Alliance and the Talosians, could you discretely pass this message along to Admiral Goya? Perhaps a way can be found to end this animosity towards them. Speaking as a friend, and not as the Commander of ARC forces, perhaps they would consider a Benesian delegation to assist their internal investigations. I feel that would silence a great many that will refuse to accept the truth once uncovered."

  After rereading the message again, he asked Mel to get him a secured line to Admiral Goya.

  The call was made and Admiral Goya smiled at him from the room's big monitor.

  "It's good to see you again, Admiral Williams. As you requested this to be a secure line, I assume something has come up?"

  Ian nodded. "You could say that, Sir. I just received a rather troubling message from the Fleet Admiral." Ian read the entire message to Goya, including the press release.

  "I know Talosian relations with the ARC Council have been strained in the past, but I think this could very well break it. Is there anyway the High Council would allow someone else to at least observe the investigations?" Ian asked.

  Goya looked thoughtful. "I am certain that you or some of your people would be the preferred choice, but then again, many on the ARC Council still view you as Talosian, regardless of current events. H’joles is correct in recommending the Benesians. They have a reputation of fairness that is almost legendary. However, I don't know how the new Council will take that. Noren already has her hands full just trying to make sure everyone understands that we are not hiding anything. That alone is hampering our investigation.

  "I'm sure the people would allow it, but we're not talking about them. It's the House leaders that will resist this," Goya explained. "None of them trusts the others anymore."

  "I could understand that. But if you lose ARC support, you'll be a sitting duck for the Empire. We'd come to your assistance of course, but that might not be enough," Ian said.

  Goya nodded. "Let me talk to Noren about it. If we can make them see the danger here, or get the people on our side, it would go a long way to mending bridges with ARC. It might even help get these prosaic morons to trust each other again." He sighed. "While I've got you on the line, what do you make of this Imperial withdrawal? What do you think it means?"

  "I honestly have no idea, but I don't feel like it’s going to be anything good for us. I've had Star gathering as much information as she can about this war and the actions the Empire has been taking here. We've always believed this is a war of conquest staged to expand the Empire," Ian said slowly.

  "Yes, have you found something that disproves that?" Goya asked.

  "Well, not really. But there are several things that are bothering me about it. I'm starting to believe that it isn't so much about expansion as there is a specific target or purpose behind all of this." Ian took a moment to compose his thoughts. "I think the empire is after something here; something they don't have in their own galaxy."

  "Like what? We haven't seen them do anything out of line with what we would expect. What else could be their objective here?" Goya asked, curiously.

  Ian shook his head. "I don't really have any proof, but I think they are after 'us', humanity, which in this instance would include the Benesians based on genetic make-up. All the battles they've fought with the other races and the worlds they have taken are simply because they were either in the way, or they were needed as a base of operations. If you look at the figures, the race with the most occupied worlds is the Talosians with reference to your total pre-war population. They also seem to be trying to reach Benesian worlds as well, but are having less luck since the main forces of the Alliance are stronger there."

  "Why would they be after us? You're not getting paranoid are you, Ian?" Goya asked, but he had lost some of his humor.

  "No, not really. I'm just thinking we might find more on Hyperion than we are expecting. That also opens a whole new can of worms, if I can prove it. What will the other races do if we prove that this whole war was about humans? Will they still try to protect us, or will they let the Empire take us if it means they get their worlds and people back? There is a lot of nationalism among the races of ARC. Many of them could decide to back out of the Alliance if this were to be proved." Ian said.

  "Now, let's not invite trouble here. You said yourself there is no proof! To be honest, I think you might be seeing something that isn't there this time. You're a hell of a leader that has a knack for anticipating the enemy, so I'll get my folks working on this too. But I honestly think we aren't going to find anything," Goya replied.

  "I hope you're right, Sir. But either way, the retreat of the Imperial forces cannot be a good omen," Ian replied.

  Chapter 16

  Theabes Industrial Holdings

  Theabes Trinary System,

  Gorrath Ni Sector.

  Federated Rybold Republic

  (ARC member race)

  Djorell had worked hard to get to the position he was now in. Driving one of the ore haulers for Theabes had been a goal that had taken him almost twenty cycles to achieve. Now, he could afford to relax for a while before working out his next career goal. His family had gained status in the corporate estate, they were respected and would be taken care of if anything ever happened to Djorell.

  The seemingly never ending war with the Empire, curse them, had ensured that Djorell and his family would be financially secure for the rest of their days. The big ship he drove was little more than a cockpit with huge engines strapped to massive ore pods that could carry enough raw ore to keep one of the great refineries running for almost a week. He had a small jump engine as well, since the asteroid field currently being worked was almost four lights from the inner system refineries and processing facilities. While he plotted the jump back with his current load, he contemplated entering a contract with the corporation to purchase the ore ship. It was possible - even encouraged by the corporation for their ore drivers to do so. It would give him and his family even more revenue, as well as give them more freedoms and prestige.

  He was just about to make the jump when he got a flash priority message from the refinery dock master. Flash priority was the highest priority civilian comm systems had and was only to be used in the most dire of emergencies; as such, it absolutely could not be ignored. He accepted the message.

  "Attention all ore drivers and mining operations. The central system is under attack by Imperial warships. Do not approach the inner system! Our long range comms have been destroyed. All ore drivers are ordered to drop their loads and immediately jump to the Veritle Reef agro colony. We are counting on you to get word of this attack to the Alliance. I say again we are under heavy attack by Imperial warships! Drop your loads and go! Now! This is by order of President Jthran! Drop your loads and jump away while you still can!

  "All mining operations are to halt immediately. Miners must shut down all radiated emissions and set your comms to receive only! All mining units are ordered to go dark immediately!"

  Djorell's ship was an older model and did not have long range scanning ability, so he could not verify the attack. There had been a data file attached to the message, and his ship had automatically downloaded it when he received the message. Briefly, he worried about his family back at the main facilities, but quickly entered the commands to jettison his cargo. Once free of the mass he turned his ship around and went to full power for the system boundary.

  Veritle Reef was more than a week away but he could make it; if he limited himself to one meal a day and did not bathe. He entered the commands into the navigation computer and jumped as soon as the destination was verified.

  Only minutes after the big ore hauler made the jump another jump point formed and an Imperial light cruiser emerged. Although the Imperial ships were staging the attack, they knew there were no enemy ships in the system to oppose them. So other than the standard energy shield used to travel through hyperspace, the ship did not have its shields raised, nor did it have its weapons charged.

&n
bsp; Hyperspace events were usually restricted to locations outside of a solar system because of the short term gravity events they caused. In a system such as this one, where the only objects of significant mass were closer to the primaries, that was less of a concern. That fact, coupled with a very accurate plot of the entire system, was how the ore haulers could jump from one point to another in the system.

  The Imperial ships did not have that plot, but in this case it would not have made a difference. The mass Djorell had been hauling was roughly that of a small destroyer. When the cruiser emerged in such close proximity to it, the gravity well of the event pulled the load in as if it were in free fall.

  While the load had been basically smaller pieces of ore rock, it was held together by its own mass into one solid object. Only the bridge crew had time to see it before it slammed into the top of the ship, crushing the bridge, as well as the primary computer core that was on the deck below. Several other crew members died as a result of loss of hull integrity and the collision impact itself. By the time another ship arrived to rescue the crew and recover the ship, half of the crew had expired. The incident was listed as navigational error and not as a result of combat.

  A week later, a very dirty and hungry Djorell arrived at the Vertile Reef Agricultural complex and delivered the message of disaster. The distress call was responded to immediately by the local forces since they were closer, but ten days had passed before any Alliance ships could make it to the remote corporate township.

  Of the nine million beings living and working in the mining system, forty-three starving and cold miners were rescued from one of the mines that the Imperial ships had missed. Djorell had been the only ore driver to escape the system. If not for him, the atrocity that took place there would not have become known for at least a month. Upon learning of the fate of his family, Djorell ip Theabes, disembarked from the orbital facility and jumped his ship into the local primary.

  Four other attacks were also staged, destroying two colony worlds and four industrial centers. The loss of the heavy industries was bad enough for the already stretched Alliance. However, the terroristic nature of the attacks had a devastating effect on the civilian populations of the Alliance. The Empire had made it perfectly clear to the civilians; none of them were safe.

  An urgent call to council was issued by ARC for all members and their military leaders. Fleet Admiral H’joles called Ian in person to request not only Terran participation, but to offer the Talosian Rulers transportation to the emergency meeting. Ian noticed a change in the normally unflappable being. The Empire had found the weakness in the Alliance of Races and H'joles had no idea how to combat this new threat. Fleet Admiral H'joles of ARC High Command was scared.

  Admiral's Office

  TDF Star Dancer

  Pleiades One Orbital Shipyard

  Planet Atlas, Centauri System

  Sol Sector

  Before Ian could act, Luke Belden contacted him. "Ian, did you get the message about the emergency session at ARC HQ?"

  Ian nodded. "I did. I was just about to start issuing orders to prepare for our departure. We can't take Star Dancer this time, so we're all going to have to ride in the Tiamat. Since the Prometheus has finished her upgrades, I was going to send her back to New Talos for their leaders."

  "You're our military commander, Ian, so forgive me for asking this, but is this a good time to take the two most powerful ships we have away with the Empire doing the whole fly-by shooting slash terror attack thing? With both the Prometheus and the Tiamat gone, that'll only leave the Pegasus here for defense," Luke asked.

  "Star Dancer will be finished in about a week. There are four light cruisers due off the lines the following week, and their crews should be ready about the same time, but even if they aren't, training command already has them scheduled for hands on training in the ships. That'll give us a battle cruiser, a heavy cruiser, and four light cruisers as primary defense, not counting all the condors and fighters we still have. I am also told that several of the smaller warships will be finished very soon as well. So, we'll have destroyers, missile boats, and mine layers in addition to the defense network. Honestly, Luke, as we are right now, we're better defended than most of the Alliance core worlds." Ian paused. "But, I do intend to take most of our unassigned Raptor teams with us and turn them loose in Alliance space."

  Luke cocked his head to one side. "On what mission?"

  "Emergency response and intelligence gathering. We need to know how the Empire is getting those ships to their destinations without anyone else seeing them. During the last two attacks, the fleet simply appeared in the target system and began the attack. No trace of them was detected before they appeared, and there should have been," Ian explained. "They were tracked when they departed, so we have to assume whatever got them there is a one-way deal. It can't be a new function of the ships, since they only recently left the front and haven't had enough time for an upgrade of this size. So it has to be a device of some kind that we simply haven't seen yet. I want the Raptors to find it, gather as much information about it as they can, then destroy it if possible."

  Luke nodded. "When would you like us to be ready to leave?"

  "In order for us to be there on time, Serena will have to leave today, we will have to leave no later than four days from now. The Tiamat's a bit faster than the cruisers, so we'll beat her and the Talosian delegation there, but I'd like to talk to Admiral H’joles about the Raptor missions before the summit anyway. It will also give you guys time to get to know the other delegates and leaders. So, let's say we head out at oh-nine-hundred hours the day after tomorrow."

  "That sounds like a good plan, Ian," Luke replied. "I'll make sure we're ready. Only half the Council will be going. Who will you be leaving in Command here?"

  "Probably Commodore Hawkins. Commander Egran has asked that if such a situation were to arise, he would prefer a Terran to be in command here. He and the Commodore are also pretty good friends, so they should get along pretty well," Ian replied.

  Luke chuckled. "Isaak is good friends with everyone! Okay, Ian, I'll make sure everyone is ready and on board by six hours prior to departure."

  Ian nodded to him. "Good Luck, High Councilor."

  "You too, Admiral!" Luke replied grinning.

  The comm had no more than closed when Ian was already asking Mel to connect him with Admiral Goya at Talosian High Command and Commander Serena on the Prometheus.

  "Serena! How have you been?" Goya asked as his image came up on the screen beside his commander.

  "I am well Admiral. The Prometheus is even better," the woman replied. "She was released from the yard yesterday. All upgrades have been completed."

  "That's excellent! I look forward to reading your report on the new systems. Ian, I assume you’re calling about the emergency meeting?" Goya asked.

  Ian nodded. "Yes sir, I am. I am sending the Prometheus to carry you and your Council representatives to the meeting. She's faster and far better armed than your existing ships. Besides, I don't think it would be a good thing to send one of your remaining ships away from the system given that the Empire is playing dirty."

  Goya nodded. "We had actually planned on taking the Zephyr for those very reasons, but it would leave the Council representatives somewhat more vulnerable than I would be comfortable with. If you can spare her, the Prometheus would be the better choice."

  "I think we'll be alright without her for this mission. Star Dancer will be coming out of the upgrade bay within the week, as well as a few other ships we have going. We'll be covered," Ian assured him.

  "Ah, so you're planning on taking the Tiamat then?" Goya asked.

  Ian nodded. "I plan on taking a squadron of Raptors along for a deep recon in Imperial space. We need information, and this type of thing is what they were designed for. Provided ARC Command approves, that is."

  "I'm pretty sure that's a forgone conclusion, Ian. This whole series of attacks has them rattled. I don't think they know how to
respond to this," Goya replied.

  "The tactics the Empire is using are not those of a Military. They are using terroristic assaults on civilian populations. There is no method or reason for this," Serena said. "It’s insane."

  "I won't argue that at all. But we better figure out what they're up to before we lose too many more people. As it is, the Alliance core worlds are beginning to panic. All of them have demanded that ARC position fleets to defend them. But if ARC does that, then they won't have anyone left to fight if the enemy does return to their old tactics," Goya said.

  "It's worse than that, Sir. If ARC spreads out their fleets, the Empire will destroy them piece by piece with overwhelming and concentrated force. They have some method of transporting large numbers of ships almost instantly, anywhere they want them. How long would your own forces last if the entire Imperial fleet appeared in your system right now?" Ian asked.

  Goya looked thoughtful. "Not very long at all. You don't think that's what they're up to, do you? Trying to get us to fracture our main fleets so they can destroy them in smaller pieces?"

  "That could very well be exactly what they are up to," Ian said. "It would also have the added benefit of demoralizing the civilian populations, which in turn would affect how our warriors will fight. This change in tactics could very well decide the outcome of this war very quickly. We need to find out how they are pulling this off, learn all we can about it, then destroy it utterly before any more worlds are razed by them. You know how I feel about the use of gravimetrics, Sir; this is one instance that I would consider their use. Hundreds of billions of lives may very well depend on it."

  Goya and Serena had both paled at his mentioning of that fearsome weapon. They both remembered the recent sacrifice of two of Ian's pilots to protect their own system from total destruction.

  "Let us hope that such extreme measures will not be needed, Ian," Goya said softly. "I asked the High Council to approve the construction of a memorial for the two pilots who saved our system; it was unanimously approved by the entire Grand Council. It is being built outside of Elysium. Every day, there are over a thousand visitors to the site."