For glory, p.19
For Glory, page 19
“I see. I suppose you consider this mercy.”
“I do. The way I see it, you only have two options. Either you leave and never return, or I incinerate the planet with your population still on it. Either way, I cannot allow you to remain. You and the Maeficus present too great a threat.”
Ypaat surprised Jon by smiling at that. “You really have no idea.”
It would be a shame to see Diakus burn once more. General Tallos remembered the words of High Commander Klat, the Mistraan who had spoken to him in the Juttari star system he had conquered. He had clearly threatened to destroy Diakus if Tallos did not join them and the Maeficus against the humans. Tallos stared down at the Mistraan home world from orbit, thinking about that threat. So long as these Mistraan live, Diakus will always be under threat.
Tallos knew that Jon was negotiating their surrender. They had stood down their ships and orbital defenses, allowing the fleet to take control of their orbit. That could only mean one outcome. Admiral Pike would negotiate a surrender and either occupy the planet or force the population to go elsewhere. Considering the Mistraan had originally come from another galaxy, that option seemed possible.
The problem with this thinking was it did not take jumpspace into account. Even if the Mistraan left this galaxy, they could still strike at Diakus through jumpspace. That may work for Jon Pike, but it didn’t work for Tallos. The other option was just as bad. How could you occupy a planet full of telepaths? It defied logic. Certainly, the occupiers would eventually be subverted, making the Mistraan a threat once more.
The more Tallos thought about it, the more he realized that there could be only one solution. His crusade against the Juttari taught him that. Like the Juttari, these creatures were evil, as was their master, the Maeficus. They would not flinch at eradicating all Diakans or all humans. So why were they giving them that future option? They could not.
Jon Pike may be of the Temple, but he could also be naive. Despite the harshness of his life, he still possessed that human frailty that shied away from the truly terrible options. Thankfully, Diakans were not humans and did not share that weakness. At that moment, Tallos knew what had to be done. It would anger Jon Pike. Nonetheless, it was a necessity. He would have to deal with Jon Pike’s fury later.
Still, he had to show Jon Pike some respect and give him the option to come on side. Pike could not stop him if he chose to incinerate the planet. His ships were in orbit already and could launch an orbital strike at a moment’s notice.
He opened a comm, and soon, Jon Pike appeared on his display. “Admiral, I have to ask you what your plans are for the Mistraan.”
Pike studied Tallos for a moment as if trying to read his mind, then said, “They have agreed to evacuate the planet and leave the galaxy.”
“Do you think that is wise? They can always strike at us through jumpspace, whether they are in this galaxy or not.”
“They could, but it’ll be a long time before that is even a possibility for them. They have lost their military, and they will lose their industrial base once they leave the planet. They will have to settle on a new planet first, establish an industrial base, and then get around to building a military. Even then, they will have a lot of difficulty building anything that can rival our forces, considering they are starting from scratch.”
“The Mistraan will always be a threat, no matter where they go. Why would you allow that?”
“They’re not the Juttari, Tallos, and this is not another of your crusades. We can’t just exterminate them.”
“Strange that you use the word “we.” Why is it that you think you can judge what Diakus can or cannot do?”
“So what are you saying? That Diakans have turned into a race of genocidal monsters?”
“Tread carefully, Admiral,” Tallos said icily, barely controlling his anger. “Even our relationship has its limits.”
“Do you remember what you told me about how you thought something was wrong with your symbionts? About how you were concerned that they were no longer controlling your more aggressive qualities? Do you think that this desire to eradicate the Mistraan is a result of that?”
“What I am proposing is simple common sense and has nothing to do with my symbiont.”
“Really? Because I don’t remember a time before the death of the Great See’er where Diakans wiped out entire civilizations.”
“Do not lecture me on Diakan history. Whatever we did before is irrelevant. We have two histories now. Before the Great Disaster and after. The attack on Diakus changed us. That is the reality. The Mistraan have already threatened Diakus with destruction. Given the opportunity, they would exterminate us. Why would we not do the same to them?”
“Because you are better than that, Tallos. Don’t you see? If you go down this path, then how are you any better than the Mistraan?”
Tallos shook his head. “There is no better or worse. No right and wrong. There is only survival. I sincerely hope we can remain allies.”
“Tallos, wait. Don’t do this.”
Tallos ended the comm with Jon Pike and opened a comm with his fleet, “All ships, prepare for orbital strike. Nuclear weapons only.” Tallos waited for confirmation of readiness from all ships to come in. Once that had been received, he said, “Initiate orbital strike.”
He turned back to his display of the planet below and watched the mushroom clouds blossom. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Jon Pike was hailing him. He ignored the comm for now, choosing to savor the elimination of another mortal enemy instead. Finally, he bowed his head and said, “By His will.”
Chapter twenty-nine
Kevin stood in the Mountain Complex Operations Center, analyzing a map of the galaxy and the current strategic situation. Jon was in the Mistraan star system with his invasion force, and Kevin felt confident that he would prevail there. He couldn’t imagine that the Mistraan could hold out against a force that size with the advanced weaponry at their disposal.
He waved his hand, manipulating the hologram and repositioning the star map to show the breadth of Diakan territory. The Diakans had been through a lot and had gone from an empire in all but name to a bunch of refugees and back to an empire again. In fact, when looking at everything through the lens of history, the Diakans now controlled more territory than ever, thanks to their crusade against the Juttari.
Kevin swiped the map again and repositioned it to show the Dvorkan Empire. They had also advanced, and, like the Diakans, the map showed their intricate jump gate network, a virtual spider web in the stars. Where the Diakans had gained new territory by taking it from the Juttari, the Dvorkans had acquired a substantial empire through past conquests that they now sought to expand through the building of new jump gates. UHSF Intelligence had a pretty good idea of how much they had gained, and it was all visible on the star map before Kevin, including the star system that had connected them to the Bane.
That had been another interesting development since his absence. These Bane were a blind spot in the galaxy and, by all available evidence, were a formidable species. They had an empire of their own, and its size was anybody’s guess.
They were like the Klag and Phema empires, two insectoid species that were at war with each other. Hishim had shown them to Jon once, where they fought a battle against each other with millions of ships. Kevin couldn’t imagine fighting against an opponent that powerful. He also couldn’t fathom how civilizations that large existed in the galaxy, and no one knew. It was a measure of how mind-numbingly large the galaxy truly was and how reliance on the jump gate networks gave the different civilizations a narrow view of it all. While the jump system opened some of that up, the majority of the galaxy was still unexplored.
Then, there was humanity and the UHSF. Kevin manipulated the map to show Earth and the colonies. UHSF territory did not rely as much on the jump gates, and while they had expanded through the conquest of the Kemmar and a couple of Juttari systems, human space remained largely unchanged. The main achievement had been its unification under one government, as opposed to the many corporate fiefdoms that existed before. A common enemy like the Kemmar and Juttari helped that consolidation along. Human ingenuity gave them an edge as well, allowing them to punch above their weight.
You paint a pretty picture, said the voice in his head.
I thought Hishim had gotten rid of you, Kevin replied.
You think that Ithian ghost could get rid of me? Do not insult me. I merely let him think he had won as it suited my purpose.
Kevin nodded. He should have expected as much. There really was no hope against the Maeficus. He manipulated the map again and zoomed into the Sol System, examining its defenses. Admiral Pike had taken the bulk of UHSF forces for the invasion of the Mistraan. There were enough ships still protecting the system in case anyone had any ideas, and no one expected the Mistraan to actually attack Earth while they were busy trying to defend their own homeworld. All things considered, there should be more than enough ships to defend Earth.
Complacency, said the voice. It is always costly.
Kevin manipulated the hologram, bringing up a real-time view of the Sol System. He zoomed into a section of the system in time to see hundreds of jumpspace portals opening up. Enormous globular ships, ranging from twenty to fifty kilometers in diameter, emerged from the portals, entering the Sol System in force. Of course, Kevin had seen these ships before. They were the same as the one he had encountered in the Maeficus-controlled galaxy he had visited.
Is it not a glorious sight? said the voice.
Yes, my Lord, said Kevin.
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Want to read something while waiting for the next Pike Book? Try the Jack Rhodes Chronicles Book 1
Other books by G.P. Hudson
The Pike Chronicles:
Sol Shall Rise – Book 1
Prevail – Book 2
Ronin – Book 3
Ghost Fleet – Book 4
Interstellar War – Book 5
Vanquish – Book 6
Galactic Empire – Book 7
Armada – Book 8
Galactic War – Book 9
Galactic Vanguard – Book 10
Cursed Stars – Book 11
Without Mercy – Book 12
For Glory – Book 13
The Jack Rhodes Chronicles
Kill First – Book 1
Earth Gambit – Book 2
Brutal Business – Book 3
Lethal Intent – Book 4
Fall of the Terran Empire:
War Without End – Book 1
The Tortuous Path – Book 2
G.P. Hudson, For Glory
