Star Brigade: The Supremacy (SB3)
Contents
C. C. EKEKE
Copyright © 2016 by C. C. Ekeke
STAR BRIGADE: The Supremacy
is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
STAR BRIGADE, characters, names and related indicia are registered trademarks of C.C. Ekeke.
Copyright © 2016 by C. C. Ekeke
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written prior permission of the copyright holder, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles.
ISBN:
978-0-9899119-7-9
Cover design:
Milan Jaram
For JZ
Your advice and encouragement
continue to motivate me.
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In the endless pitch-black of space, a lone human stood surrounded by stars. Given his imperious poise and urbane grey robes, some might mistake him for a god surveying his celestial kingdom.
From the Sol System to the edge of Ruby Space, the entire Galactic Union of Planetary Republics lay before him. But in truth, this version of Union Space was duplicated and scaled down via the 3D Real suite. Twinkling stars shone off the man’s dark skin, highlighting incisive russet-brown eyes. Just touching one of these heavenly bodies could call up summaries on any Union memberworld, colony or territory. Entire planetary profiles unfolded at his beck and call: population, flora, fauna, indigenous species, economics and a glut of other facts.
Tomoriq Fel, founder of v-world site UNIFY, was a regular earthborn human in the physical sense; above- average height, dark kinky locks trimmed to the scalp, sinewy build sculpted by regular exercise. Nonetheless, the trillionaire, with his vast influence and affluence, considered himself above mere mortals, brought to this universe to guide it toward a better tomorrow.
One didn’t create the known galaxy’s largest virtual world network without insatiable determination. And Fel wanted more—needed it like an addiction—regardless of the price.
“A sterling for your thoughts,
Fel
,” a female voice cooed behind him.
Tomoriq bristled. “You’re late, Korvenite.” He held a special loathing for the owner of that voice.
“Business on Santhoro.” The petite female moved through the ether to stand opposite Fel. “And remember,” she continued, running fingers through fluid silvery hair that spilled past her waist, “I am as far beyond Korvenites as they are beyond you, human.” The threat in her enchanting voice was obvious.
Fel chuckled. “So you keep saying, yet I recall us inferior humans taking your planet and throwing your worthless species into internment camps.”
The Korvenite responded with a smile that could have frozen Fel’s ears off. Indeed, Thaomé was Korvenite, but she resembled no Korvenite the Union public had ever seen. It looked like someone switched around a Korvenite’s violet hair color and chalk-white complexion, then traded the golden irises for colorless ones. Albino Korvenites were rare, outcasts among outcasts. Even Thaomé’s age remained a carefully guarded secret. Nevertheless, she carried that sylph-like figure like royalty in her bejeweled, ivory-toned evening gown.
“The past is irrelevant,” Thaomé said with a disarming laugh. “Shall we discuss the contest?”
Fel shrugged. “Fair enough.” He reached over Thaomé’s shoulder to one sparkling dot, tapping it. “Herope Cross.”
Instantly, two crooked and lengthy lines formed at opposite points in front of the duo. These glowing marks began linking several planetary systems. The billions living in these systems felt microscopic in Fel’s eyes, whether seen here or from a spacecraft viewport.
With a starry forest as their backdrop, the two lines rapidly wormed toward each other, finally intersecting at one star—Herope. These lines represented the Orthambra Trade Route and the Cercidalean Spine, the busiest hyperspacelanes in the Galactic Union. A short scrawl of data appeared next to the Herope star system intersection; description, origin, average ships passing through per day, revenue, and much more data comprised the long scrawl.
“I take it you are referring to the Herope Cross’s trade decline of late.” Thaomé glanced at the elaborate display, always sneering. “I’m sure it’s played hazik with your holdings in that area.”
Fel barely flinched at her taunt. “As it has yours.”
Thaomé stopped smiling. Despite being Korvenite nowadays, she wielded sizeable authority, much of it attained as an unseen powerbroker around Union Space. Fel felt elated knowing that Herope Cross’s current failings hurt her much more than him. He made no effort to hide his smugness. “Ironically enough,” he continued, “the flashpoint of the disruption is the very planet we compete over.”
With that, Fel reached out again and tapped a finger on the heart of the Herope Cross. The Orthambra Trade Route and Cercidalean Spine vanished from sight. Abruptly the dwarf star Herope zoomed in, front and center, burning bright red. Fel spoke a name, and Herope vanished, blowing out one of its four orbiting planets into full three-dimensional glory. “Faroor.”
At first glance, nothing about this Union memberworld merited any attention. Faroor was a rather small T-Type planet, with large swaths of bluish-green seas cutting through mountainous, grey landmasses, all swaddled in blankets of off-white. Yet, both Fel and Thaomé knew Faroor as the nexus of the Herope Cross’s busy trade junction—giving it prominence in the Galactic Union. This planet was also known for its grandiose city-states, aristocratic society, and a shameful conflict between its two native species. The latter point was what held Fel and Thaomé’s shared interest.
