Void Wraith (The Void Wraith Trilogy Book 2) (20 page)

Lena and Atrea looked at each other, as if each was unsure who should defer. Nolan caught Hannan hiding a smile out of the corner of his eye, clearly amused by the scholars as they tripped over each other trying to be polite.
 

"I believe we may have a way," Atrea said, resting a leathery hand on Lena's shoulder. "Lena, please correct me if you have a better approach, but we don't need to disable all the chips. We merely need to disable the transmitter. Who holds the leash? Eliminate that threat, and it won't matter if these men have chips. They're not dangerous if no one can activate them."

Nolan blinked at the simple audacity of the suggestion. It made sense. He held his tongue, waiting for the others to offer their opinions of Atrea's idea before he weighed in. That was a trick he'd picked up from Dryker.

"How will we find the transmitter?" Hannan asked, suddenly more interested in the conversation. "If it's Mendez, won't he just issue his orders before the battle? Delta, how often do you receive orders on that thing?"

"Almost never," Delta said, his words just above a whisper. He'd been mostly silent since Ship had used the Judicator assembly to restore his eyesight.

"Excellent point," Nolan said, drawing everyone's attention. "The only way we'd be able to find the transmitter is if we were able to bait the person in control into using it. Delta, what kind of circumstance might force them to use it?"

"Hmm," Delta said, rousing from his funk. "I'd guess one of two men will be holding the reins, either Admiral Mendez or Admiral Chu. Those are the top dogs among the human brass. One of those two men is likely to be in charge of the assault on Tigrana."

"It will be Chu," Nolan said, without hesitation. His eyes narrowed, as he considered his former benefactor. "Mendez is too smart to be caught in the open like that. Chu likes glory, so I'm betting Mendez puts him in charge of the battle. We find a way to force Chu to activate the chips, which identifies his flagship. Then we attack that ship."

"What if you're wrong about the person in charge?" Lena asked, sipping her tea as if she were drinking from fine porcelain instead of a military surplus cup.

"It won't matter," Nolan said. "Whoever uses the chip is in command, so if we get a signal we take down whoever is using it."

"We're down to a handful of Judicators, just the ones that were being repaired when we hit the library," Hannan cautioned. "Edwards is in a bad way, too. He needs a major refitting. Even if he didn't, he's not going to fit through a UFC starship's corridors. That's means it's the people in this room, plus a handful of expendable robots, to take on an entire capital ship. Their Marine detachment will be at least thirty-six men, and that's if it's been stripped. It's much more likely they'll have over a hundred battle-trained Marines."

"That's why they can't be allowed to see us coming. We're going to use Void Wraith cloaking tech," Nolan said. He couldn't help but grin as he pressed the button on the top of his new belt buckle. A tingle of static electricity rippled out from the belt, up to his head and down to his feet. A moment later, Hannan's jaw fell open. Nolan tapped the button again and the field dissipated. "We have four of these. That's enough to get a small infiltration team onto the bridge. They won't be ready for plasma fire, and they won't see us coming. We kill Chu, and take the chip transmitter."

"That still leaves the issue of the chipped soldiers," Delta cautioned. He seemed uncomfortable with everyone staring at him, but after clearing his throat he finally continued. "If they receive an order, they'll follow it. Even if we stop Chu, the captains will follow whatever order he gives. They'll take suicidal action, and if he tells them to ram the Tigris, they will."

Nolan considered that, waiting to see if anyone else spoke. No one did.
 

"We're going to have to jam the chip's quantum entanglement," Nolan finally said, the plan forming as he spoke. "We can get the entanglement from the chip in Delta, and when we hit the system we can start broadcasting. That will prevent the person from giving the order."

"How do we detect that person transmitting?" Atrea asked in her gravelly voice. She leaned forward, meeting Nolan's gaze. "If you jam the entanglement, then you block the very signal you're monitoring for."

"Good point," Nolan said, sighing. "I can't think of a way around that."

"Pardon me, Captain," Ship said. "I may be able to solve that problem."

"How?" Nolan asked, glancing up.

"I can write an algorithm that will monitor the entanglement. Any time it detects an activation, it will also activate," Ship explained. "This will log any attempt to use the network, and prevent the bulk of any message from arriving."

"Your algorithm wouldn't be detected until it started jamming, right?" Nolan asked, already warming to the plan.

"Precisely, Captain," Ship confirmed. "It would lay dormant until a signal was detected."

"Then I think we have a workable plan, people," Nolan said, rising to his feet. "Hannan, I want a detailed assault plan for a team to reach the bridge undetected. See what you and Annie can come up with. Lena, Atrea, keep working on this Forge."

"Captain, we're receiving an incoming transmission," Ship said.

"Put it on screen," Nolan said. A moment later, a hologram sprang into existence on the far side of the room. It showed a weary-looking Captain Dryker, still aboard the cavernous Primo vessel.

"Nolan, we've just arrived in-system at Tigrana. You need to get here. Now," Dryker said, expression pained. "The Tigris are beginning their assault on the human fleets. The 11
th
is bombarding the planet."

Chapter 53- Orders

Mendez was tired. The joining had provided him with many abilities, but using them came with a cost. Every day, he added another layer of exhaustion, and he knew he couldn't keep this up forever. Sooner or later, he'd buckle under the strain. He suspected the larva knew that--counted on it, even. That was troubling, but there was nothing he could do about it. God knew he'd tried. Over and over, at first. Now he accepted his role.

"Connect me with Chu," Mendez ordered, withdrawing a cigar from the breast pocket of his uniform. He took his time cutting the end, and then lighting it. By the time he'd taken his first puff, the view screen had flickered to life.

Chu's bridge was older than Mendez's ship, and the stations on Chu's vessel were still manned by active personnel. Mendez could see at a glance that they were terrified of Chu, and for good reason. He looked positively ghastly atop the captain's chair, his belly and limbs slightly distended. His skin was nearly translucent. If Mendez needed any proof that the larva meant ill for him, the proof was in Chu's health. How long had Chu been implanted before he'd done the same to Mendez? That would determine the time table, the amount of time Mendez had before he looked just like Chu.

"What do you want, Mendez? The Tigris are about to launch their assault. I need to attend to the battle," Chu said, his eyes narrowing in distaste.

Mendez had grown used to the contempt, and could hardly blame Chu. Chu had been the one to recruit Mendez, and before that had been the top agent among the admiralty. Now that was Mendez, and Chu had no one but himself to blame.

"That's why I'm contacting you, actually," Mendez said, giving Chu a friendly smile. "I wanted to clarify how this battle is to be conducted. I'm broadcasting a series of deployment orders now."

Chu glanced down at his data pad, his scowl deepening as he read. After nearly a minute his eyes shot up, spearing Mendez. "I can't give these orders. Some of these are suicidal. This is career ending. I'll be stripped of rank, if we even survive."

"Regrettably," Mendez said, without an ounce of regret, "the masters have decided that such a sacrifice is necessary. You'll send the best unimplanted captains to their deaths. The Tigris are receiving similar orders. Those likely to oppose us, on both sides, need to die in this battle. Casualties need to be immense. Is that understood, Admiral Chu?"

Chu's face twisted in emotional agony. He wrestled with it, seemingly unable to speak. Mendez waited patiently, letting the man twist. He truly did regret losing an agent with Chu's influence, but the damage they'd inflict here made the sacrifice worth it. Today would mark the beginning of the end for all resistance to the masters.

In one fell swoop, they'd wipe out the strongest parts of both humanity and the Tigris. After this, the implanted parts of their fleets would outnumber unimplanted parts. They could co-opt both species' militaries, using them to speed the masters' conquest. More, this attack ensured that the two races would never be able to unite.

"I understand," Chu finally said.
 

"Good. Best of luck, Admiral," Mendez said, then he severed the connection. He glanced at one of the drones jacked into the bridge. "Take us to the star's nadir point, then dive for the Helios Gate. I want to be gone by the time this battle gets underway."

Chapter 54- Career Suicide

Chu's wiped at his forehead, shocked when he saw the streak of red across the back of his hand. That wasn't sweat. It was blood. He began to tremble, struggling to hide from the truth he simply couldn't admit: the larva was still growing. As it grew, it fed on him. He was dying, sacrificed to the masters in a very literal way. He could feel it slithering through his nervous system, infecting every part of him like a cancer.

What terrified him the most was how much he welcomed it.
 

"Sir," one of his bridge techs called. He hadn't bothered to learn their names. "The Tigris fleet will intercept in sixty seconds. Do you have orders you wish to convey to the captains? Several have already hailed us."

"Yes," Chu said, straightening despite the pain that had crept from his back into his chest. "Have the
Defiant
, the
Equilibrium
, the
Sojourn
, the
Midway
, and the
Rebel
move to intercept. The 11
th
will continue their orbital bombardment. The rest of the fleet will stand by for additional orders."

The tech protested. "Sir, are you sure--"
 

"Relay those orders, Lieutenant," Chu said, silencing the lieutenant with a chopping gesture.

"Aye, sir," the lieutenant said, moving back to his console.

Chu understood the man's protest. By continuing the bombardment, they would weaken their defense and drive the Tigris into a suicidal frenzy. The Tigris would stop at nothing to destroy the 11
th
fleet, the one that had belonged to Admiral Kelley until recently. It was the single largest concentration of loyal officers in the fleet, and if the Tigris wiped them out it would break the back of UFC resistance.

Chu watched as the vessels he'd named drifted from the rest of the fleet. They moved out alone, five ships against seventy. Would this be the order that convinced the chipped captains to mutiny? It might be. Were Chu the man he'd been before the larva, he'd certainly have defied these orders.

Chu's hand drifted to the little black box in his pocket, which reassured him. If the chipped captains rebelled, at least he possessed the means of bringing them back into line. They'd do their duty, killing loyal Tigris and humans alike. When the dust settled, Chu would be dead, but the masters' plan would be that much closer to completion.

Chu was racked by a fit of coughing, and raised his hand to see specks of blood all over his palm. It wouldn't be long now. His only regret was that he wouldn't be around to savor that victory, or to see what hatched from his corpse.

Chapter 55- Breaking the Accords

A ragged mixture of human and Primo vessels emerged from the star's corona, moving far enough away to escape the worst of the magnetic fields. That would allow them to scan the rest of the system, and allow Dryker to get a feel for the disposition of the assembled fleets before he engaged. He watched as the dome flickered briefly, then icons began to appear.

Dryker stood resolute, watching the single most horrifying event he'd ever witnessed play out before him. The 11
th
fleet continued to bombard the surface, little streaks dropping from each vessel. Moments later mushroom clouds dotted the surface. Then more streaks, and more clouds. Most of the planet's southern continent was coated in dust and ash.

"Our records indicate that the southern continent was the most densely populated," Celendra said, shifting her weight as she stared at the planet. "Rarely have we seen an atrocity on this level. Were there no Void Wraith threat, if the Tigris petitioned us to wipe out humanity, I believe my people would do it."

"I'm not sure they'd be wrong to," Dryker said, deeply disturbed by what he was witnessing.

A mass of Tigris ships had been automatically tagged with blue triangles. The moment they registered, the human vessels became orange squares. Five squares broke from the main human fleet, moving to intercept. Nearly seventy triangles overwhelmed those squares. The move puzzled Dryker for a split second, until he remembered that the whole goal of this attack was to wipe out loyal human captains.

This needed to be stopped, as quickly as possible. The longer the battle went on, the more vessels on both sides would be destroyed. But how did you stop a war between races who had every reason to hate each other, races with a history of violent conflict?

He had to try.

"Celendra, can you broadcast me across the Quantum Network to all human vessels in system?" Dryker asked.

"Yes, give me a moment to establish the connection," Celendra said, touching a button on the bracelet on her wrist. Her skin was lighter than it had been the day before, more sky blue than sea foam. Was that typical for Primo? "There. You are live, Admiral."

"Attention, officers of the UFC," Dryker began, licking his lips, then plunging forward. "Three months ago, a battle took place in the Ghantan system.
 
Humans and Tigris worked to stop a common threat. The people behind that threat twisted what happened there to convince our races to go to war. The Tigris are not our real enemy. Right now, each of you is receiving proof to back up my claims. Footage from battles with the Void Wraith, and evidence that the admiralty has been infiltrated.