Chapter 1
Inception
Twenty years ago:
The night was silent and the moon hanged in the sky lighting what it could of the almost solitary countryside. The light wind made the leaves on the trees sway back and forth. A white car drove alone on the dark and empty road. Without warning the head lights shut off and the engine went dead. The car slowly came to a stop. The pregnant woman was worried. Who wouldn’t be being alone in the middle of nowhere? She asked her husband, “What’s wrong?” The husband tried again and again to start the car, “I don’t know. The car won’t start.” But it was no use. “I’ll go outside to check what’s wrong with it,” he said. He placed his hand on the door handle but before he could open the door a bright light appeared above the car. “What is that?” he asked. They covered their eyes for a few seconds but after their eyes became accustomed they looked at the light. They stared, mesmerized, at the emanating light. It felt warm and soothing. The wind stopped. It was all silent like calmness before the storm. Whatever it was it wasn’t giving off any sounds whatsoever. The woman felt the kicking of her unborn child and she was snapped out of the trance. She became very concerned. She began to breathe heavily. She touched her belly, “My baby…” Start the car, start the car,” she cried out. Her cries snapped her husband back to reality from the hold the light had on him. He desperately tried to start the car again, “C’mon, c’mon, c’mon.”
And in the blink of an eye the car was once again moving down the road. The bright light was completely gone. Had it all been a dream? The man and woman kept on course home as if nothing happened. The car eventually disappeared beyond the hills. Hovering above the sky was the origin of the light, a strange flying object, saucer shaped with a metallic look. It hovered for a moment before shooting off into the sky.
Present Day:
At the edge of the Sol System there was the Kuiper belt. It was inhabited by millions of asteroids and volatile ice rocks that were in constant collisions. Much dust and ice spread across the region from the resulting collisions. For ships, it was impossible to get accurate sensor readings due to much interference. This was mainly due not only to the many asteroids and ices in the region, but to the existence of the star streams which gave out considerable amounts of an unknown type of energy.
The star streams were doorways that bridged the worlds together. No civilization in the star stream network had yet broken the barrier that was the speed of light. Therefore, star streams were vital for traveling across the stars. Having done great research and having studied the star charts, the known worlds in the star stream network had concluded that not every solar system possessed star streams. There was far too much space and too many stars in the expanse between star stream worlds. What made these worlds so special? Perhaps star streams were another improbable haphazard creation. Or it may possibly be that their inception was a result of a transcendent design for which they came to exist for a specific purpose.
Three Galactic Knight warships held their position behind one of the larger asteroids in the Kuiper belt. The lead warship was called Inception. It was the first ever Galactic Knight warship. Captain Benjamin Rivers had the honor to be the first human starship captain after the original captain, who happened to be a Magoni, lost his life in battle. The Galactic Knights were a rather exiguous military force. Their fleet consisted of six warships with each of them carrying up to fifty fighters. It was not much but nothing more could be expected from the way the war was developing. Additionally, they were created by an alien race called the magoni so that they could recruit humans to fight alongside of them. The creation of the Galactic Knights was done illegally. The Galactic Amalgam was an alliance of dozens of worlds in the star stream network. They had forbidden all members the interaction with more primitive species. Some circumstances allowed for contact but they were rare and the primitive specimen never retained their memory of such events. When, not if because one day, sooner rather than later, it would happen, the Galactic Knights existence came to the ears of the Galactic Amalgam the magoni home world would deny their involvement and instead redirect it towards a rogue magoni cabal.
The Inception was a large scale ship, slow in movement but armed to the teeth. For energy weapons it had eight laser batteries and an energy cannon which was their main weapon. It wasn’t much but because of power issues it was the best they could do so they tried to make up for it by arming their warships with fifty nuclear warheads, which could be launched from any of five missile launchers, and fourteen rail guns.
Captain Rivers sat on the captain’s chair in the center part of the bridge. Slightly ahead of him were the first officer’s and the pilot’s chairs. The bridge was built in a circular shape with dozens of panels running on the back, on each side of the entrance, which was straight behind the captain’s chair. Along the panels there were several stations from where various functions were controlled. At the front of the bridge there was a large window that could also be turned into a viewing screen. When in combat a large metallic barrier would slide down to cover the window. And on the floor between the three chairs in the center of the room there was a holoprojector. It was a circular piece of glass where three-dimensional images could be projected.
There was a beeping sound and a light on the captain’s chair flashed on and off. He pressed the flashing button, “Go ahead.” A voice came through the comm. system, “Captain Rivers, I have some concerns with the supplies we received. We just finished unpacking them and I’ve noticed that we have received too little supplies. If we go into combat I’m afraid there might not be enough to treat the wounded.”
“As you know, intelligence suggests an attack is quite probable. I understand your concerns Dr. Conway. Unfortunately that is all we could be provided with. You will have to make do with what you have.”
“Let us hope it doesn’t come to that.”
“You and I both doctor. Captain Rivers out.”
The Galactic Knights were created to help the Magoni in their war. As soon as a new ship was built, a new crew was assembled. It didn’t matter how many hours they had logged in the simulators. All that mattered was putting numbers in space because frankly, there weren’t many. Supplies were scarce because the war had been brought to the Sol system, home of Earth, not in big numbers but the Galactic Knights didn’t have them either. Captain Rivers knew that but he also knew nothing could be done about it, “What can they possibly expect us to accomplish when we don’t even have the resources,” he said out loud. Knight Cantor was the weapons officer. He was running weapon diagnostics on his station, “I’m just glad I get to kick some ass. Hand me a gun and send me into the battlefield. Nothing I’d rather do more than take out the enemy,” he replied to the captain’s comment.
“Don’t let that cocky attitude get you killed,” Captain Rivers replied as he made eye contact with him.
“Never, captain,” Knight Cantor responded with confidence.
Some short distance past the Kuiper belt laid the Sol-Sirius star streams. They connected Sol with the nearest solar system, Sirius. Sol had two pairs of star streams. One pair bridged Sol and Sirius together. The other was at the other end of the solar system and it bridged Sol with Tau Ceti.
Two ships appeared through the inbound star stream from Sirius. The alarms activated on the Inception. The first officer and the rest of the bridge crew arrived in the bridge and swiftly took their posts. The first officer, Commander Enos Lorum, was not human but Magoni. The Magoni were taller than humans and most had robust bodies as they were a race of warriors. Their most common skin colors were brown and very dark red.
The protective barrier came down and sealed the front of the bridge. An officer informed the captain, “Two Akinox warships have exited the star stream.”
“On screen.”
The image came up on the screen. The ships were seen heading their way and behind them the bright, bluish star stream stood radiant as ever. “Have we been detected?” Captain Rivers asked without taking his eyes off the viewing screen. The same officer replied, “It’s hard to tell with all the interference. However, they’re staying on course.”
“What’s the status on out defense network?” Commander Lorum asked.
“All weapon platforms are powered up and fully operational,” an officer responded as he pressed some buttons on his console and gathered information.
“With our newly placed weapon platforms surrounding the star stream, they will have no choice but to move in our direction,” Captain Rivers affirmed with confidence. Commander Lorum turned and looked at the captain, “It’s a shame our defense network isn’t complete yet. Should we prepare to launch fighters?”
“Negative. The environment is too hostile. I don’t want to send them out with the odds heavily against them. Three warships should be enough, as long as we get them by surprise,” Captain Rivers stated. His first officer didn’t believe him and neither did he. It was farfetched to think their three warships were an even counterpart to the akinox warships. It was quite the opposite. The akinox had superior technology and completing their mission would prove a difficult task. “Order all ships to standby. Do not power up weapons until we fire the first shot,” Captain Rivers ordered. They needed to avoid being detected and once they powered up their weapons that is precisely what would happen. The akinox ships moved slowly into the belt. They maneuvered around the larger asteroids. The smaller objects deflected off their shields without much trouble. Captain Rivers watched carefully through the viewing screen as the enemy warships entered their line of fire. “Power up weapons and prepare to fire,” Commander Lorum instructed.
Knight Cantor pressed some buttons on his console, “Weapons are fully powered.”
“Fire!” Captain Rivers shouted.
Five nuclear warheads were initially launched. They gracefully moved, dodging debris until they hit their target. For a split moment, flashes of light brought light into the coldness of space. After the Galactic Knight warships attacked, the akinox promptly returned fire. The violent Kuiper belt became even more unstable when some of the attacks began to impact its drifting objects. The Galactic Knights fired everything they had except for their main weapons. Those would only be used as a last resort as using them would severely drain their power supply. After some time, the ice particles built up and it became difficult to see the battlefield. Furthermore, there was too much interference for the sensors to get an accurate fix on the enemy. The battlefield had turned into a fog of war.
Realizing the favorable circumstances that were unfolding, Commander Lorum ordered a barrage on the icy objects around the akinox warships. The result came out just as he planned. A heavy amount of icy particles and dust surrounded the akinox ships. Neither side could visually see the other. The akinox stopped firing so that they would not give away their exact position. Commander Lorum had more experience than Captain Rivers in those kinds of situations. He knew what needed to be done and ordered random attacks in the last known location of the enemy ships. Not many hits would be landed but they wanted to flush the akinox out of the ice cloud that had formed. And the akinox had no choice but to move even though there was the probability the enemy would be waiting for them. But in the ice cloud they were in a far worst position than the Galactic Knight warships because the enemy had a larger area to move around in without being detected.
The akinox ships emerged from within the ice cloud. Two Galactic Knight warships were waiting for them, one on each side. The Inception followed closely from behind. The Akinox sped up and followed their course without slowing down. “What are they thinking? Going at that speed they’re risking colliding with objects in the belt,” Commander Lorum said with a surprised tone of voice.
“Match their course and speed. Don’t let them escape,” Captain Rivers ordered. The Inception matched speed with the enemy ships. Even as the chase continued, both sides continued shooting at each other. The ship received a tremendous hit. It caused several hull breaches. There were several explosions on the bridge. Knight Cantor dropped dead as sparks shot off from his station. His face was bloodied and burnt. Another officer moved to replace him at his station. “We have lost power to all energy weapons,” an officer shouted, “Shields are down to fifteen percent. Power levels are at critical levels,” another officer shouted.
Damn. I waited too long. Now we can’t use the energy cannon, Captain Rivers thought. “Seal all sections venting atmosphere. Reroute all available power to weapons. Reroute half shield power as well. I don’t care what you have to do just get the damn weapons online. We will not let them get away,” Captain Rivers demanded.
“Are you sure it is wise? Don’t get me wrong I’m all for a great fight. However, in order to keep fighting, sometimes it is wise to retreat,” Commander Lorum advised.
Captain Rivers knew it was an enormous risk but he would do anything to protect his home. “You know better than any of us why we cannot let them go. If they reach Earth and find what they are looking all will be over.” He looked at the ships in the viewing screen, “If we fall it won’t be without them.”
The Inception took another massive hit. A few shots got through the weakened shields and tore several parts of the ships armor. “Captain, we have hull breaches in three areas. The shields are beginning to fail,” informed Commander Lorum.
“Transfer all shield power to forward shields.”
“That will leave the rest of the ship exposed to the Kuiper belt.”
“I know.”
“Just making sure.”
Commander Lorum looked at the officer in charge of power distribution, “Do it.”
The other two Galactic Knight ships were in similar situations. One ship was leaking fuel and the other had dozens of hull breaches. The akinox ships were losing their shields as well. They stopped firing their weapons in order to transfer power to their shields. The two Akinox warships changed course as they went around a large asteroid. The Galactic Knights lost sight of them. “Have the Valkyrie and the Orb Veil power up their energy cannon. When the akinox come around, destroy them,” Captain Rivers ordered. He was taking a huge gamble. If the energy cannons weren’t powerful enough to destroy the akinox, then it surely would mean the end of his ships.
Suddenly there were massive explosions. The asteroid began to split as several bursts of the anteceding explosion tore it apart. Everyone stared at the edge of their seats in disbelief. The akinox warships were nowhere to be seen. “Take us in for a closer look. Have the Valkyrie and the Orb Veil circle around the other side. And take a look at our sensors. See if you can pick up anything,” Captain Rivers commanded. As they took a closer look they saw much debris scattered everywhere. They were certain the enemy ships had been destroyed.
After spending several minutes making sure the enemy was, in fact, destroyed, the captain ordered a course be set towards Earth. The three warships powered up their lightdrives and jumped into light speed. After they left, ships in the cloud began to move from behind the rocks. They were smaller than warships, but bigger than fighters. They were akinox war cruisers.
The taxi cab came to a complete stop. Antony stepped out and watched the sun setting at sea. He helped Elena out of the car. It had been some time since Antony last saw the beach and what better day to be back. Antony had been in the air force for two years. He was the top of his class and already well underway to becoming one of the best pilots, a feat that had his instructors astonished. When receiving vacation time he didn’t think about it twice and decided to take his fiancée to meet his family. His family was gathered at the beach waiting for him. Antony got their luggage out of the car and with Elena they went to greet his family. He was happy to see them and so were they. Although one member of his family was not there: his mother. She died a long time ago. Alexander was also there. They had been best friends since they were seven years old.
At night time there were still people on the beach but most were already gone. Antony’s family set up a small bonfire. Alexander and Antony sat alone by the water. After having spent most of their childhood together, they each went their separate ways when high school was over. They still kept in touch but it just wasn’t the same. And after two years they were glad to be together again. “Still looking at the stars, Alexander?” Antony asked before taking a drink of his beer.
Alexander looked up at the stars, “Every night.” “How is the air force?” he added.
“It’s great. I haven’t failed and I don’t plan to. My instructors say they’ve never seen anyone like me,” Antony paused for a moment, “I’m living both of our dreams.”
“That was a long time ago.”
“You always wanted to be a pilot. Nothing amazed you more than seeing a fighter plane speeding and cutting through the air. That was one of my dreams, one of your dreams.” He took a glance at Elena, “You don’t want to hurt anyone. I understand that. But I would do anything to protect my family.”
“I know you would Antony. You’re brave, but I’m not.”
“C’mon you’re my best friend. No friend of mine is a wimp. You’ve just never had the opportunity to prove yourself.” Antony didn’t want to push it further, “So you told me you were attending only the most prestigious university in the country. Way to go! What are you majoring in?”
“Astrophysics.”
“You’ve sure aimed high,” Antony said.
“I’ve always had an eye for the stars as you know.” A thought came across him, “Now that you mention it, a professor of mine is going to have a conference at the university. You should come. I heard he is going to reveal something that, according to him, is going to change the world forever.”
“I highly doubt it. I’ve seen my fair share of secrets. If it is as important as you say it the government wouldn’t let him show it.”
“Maybe they don’t know.”
“Oh trust me, they would know. But alright, I’ll go. I want to be there to see your disappointed face,” Antony responded with a smile.
“Don’t bet on it.”
Like a gleaming sapphire, the Earth hanged in the ocean of stars that was the galaxy; one breathing world among many. Just above the atmosphere two Akinox fighters hovered like hawks waiting to prey on the unsuspecting world. They powered up their engines and in a swift movement they darted towards the Earth.
Professor Davis was staying in a hotel. It was night but the city was very much lively. He was talking with his wife over the telephone, “I’ll see you in a few days.” She was very concerned for his well being, “Are you sure you want to go through with it Charles?”
“Don’t worry, everything will be fine.”
“You promise?”
Professor Davis hesitated, “I promise. I better get ready for bed. I have a long day tomorrow. I love you.”
“I love you too. Please be careful.”
“Goodnight,” he said as he hanged up the phone. He went to a counter and placed two cubes of ice on a small glass. Then he grabbed a bottle of liquor and poured it in. He sat down on a chair that faced the window. From the room there was a very good view of the city. He stared blankly at the skyline as he pondered about tomorrow. His face was pale and his eyes showed fear and concern. But he knew what needed to be done. For a brighter future he would do whatever it took, even if it could cost him his life.
Elena accompanied Alexander and Antony to the conference. The day was warm and the streets were teeming with people. The university was located in downtown. Ahead of them they saw the tall, half domed auditorium. On the front side, it was covered by glass windows. Ahead of them was one of the most prestigious schools in the country. “I’m glad you decided to join us Elena,” Antony said.
Elena looked at him with a smile. “I’m happy I get to see the city you called home for so long.” She loved Antony very much. It was easy to tell by the way she looked at him.
“Oh just wait till tonight,” Antony responded with a mischievous look on his face.
Alexander looked at Antony, “You haven’t changed one bit.”
Across the street from the university there was a hotel. An agent in one of the higher rooms opened up a case. He was wearing a black uniform with no type of identification. Piece by piece he put together a sniper rifle. He placed it by the window hidden from plain sight. Through the scope he saw the auditorium. He communicated on his radio, “I’m in position, standing by.”
A man’s voice came through, “Acknowledged. I know how hard this must be for you. Having to take the life of an innocent person is never easy. But it is of great importance for our national security. We have to keep him silent. We must always stay ahead of the world.”
“I understand sir. I will complete my mission,” the agent responded with a calm voice. On the streets below, people walked and enjoyed the day having no clue of what was about to unfold. But, neither did the agent.
Backstage, Professor Davis was having one final talk with his bodyguards, “I hope nothing happens but if it does I’m in your care.”
“Don’t worry sir. We’ll take every necessary precaution,” the main guard responded. He turned back and looked at the other guards, “Everyone knows their assignments. Take your posts.”
“Yes sir,” the other guards responded in unison. Then, the bodyguards dispersed in every direction as they went to take their posts. One of the guards had long black hair that covered his ears. As he walked by himself, he took out a strange device and looked at it. “It seems I’m not alone. Well, I won’t let you take my prize,” he said with a slight smile. He proceeded to leave the building through a side exit.
No empty seats were left in the auditorium. There were several camera crews and reporters set up at the very back. “Front row seats eh. You two must be very close,” Antony said.
“I help him with his research from time to time.”
“And he didn’t tell you about this?”
“No,” Alexander responded. Antony could sense it. Alexander wasn’t being completely honest. He knew him to well to not realize it.
Professor Davis walked onto the stage. Everyone clapped loudly. Behind the professor, two of his assistants rolled out a container and set it beside him. They left and he stood still looking at the audience. There were a few flashing cameras around the room. Being a well renowned professor, he was used to this kind of speeches and talks. But even then, he had never been this worried in his entire life. He was able to use his experience and remain calm even though he feared for his life. “Thank you all for coming today. I am Professor Charles Davis. I’m sure you are all asking yourselves what could be so important that I would put my reputation on the line. Well, I have a question for every single one of you: If you discovered something so unbelievable, so fascinating, that could open humanity new possibilities that were only ever imagined, would you not do the impossible to share it? If you knew that in your hands you had the means to help the world, would you not?” The professor paused for a moment so that everyone could think of their own answer. Alexander sat focused on every word the professor said. The professor continued, “”Yes,” that is my answer and that is precisely what I want to share with you; mankind’s new frontier and perhaps, one day, its salvation.”
“You have a go. I repeat, you have a go,” a voice could be heard coming from the radio. However, there was no response from the agent. His weapon was still set by the window but he was not there. His body laid on the floor covered with dozens of wounds although, strangely, no blood appeared to have been shed. “You have a go, please respond,” the voice came through the radio again.
“Please res…what, who are you?” Several strange sounds were heard on the other side of the radio. And then, everything went silent. Through the radio another voice of a man was heard, cynical in every way, “Yes, please respond. Oh wait. You can’t! Because I just killed you ahahaha! You may look like us but you are not us. We’re taking your lives, we’re taking what belongs to us, and soon we will take your world. Ahahaha!”
In the auditorium, Professor Davis continued with his presentation. Although he wouldn’t show it, he was worried. But the potential results, in his eyes, were worth to die for, “Mankind has always been fascinated with the unknown. Curiosity drove us to the new world and it has driven us to the depths of the oceans. However, there is still that one frontier that we have not been able to cross, because the path is too complex. Today, today the barrier that has kept us from this frontier is about to be broken.”
Under the container there was a small device with a red blinking light. It didn’t look human made. Suddenly a cloud of smoke shot out from the device. It quickly engulfed the auditorium in its entirety. There was panic. People screamed and ran to the exits. Windows were shattered as strange sounds, which sounded like some kind of weapons fire, were heard. Alexander was kneeling on the floor confused, “Where are you guys?”
“Antony, Antony!” Elena called out panicking.
“I’m here. Keep your head down and head to the exit. We’ll be right behind you,” Antony calmly responded. Elena did as he said believing they were following her. Alexander started to move towards the exit but Antony grabbed his hand, “Follow me.” Antony stood up and jumped on the stage. Alexander followed him, “Where are you going?” On the stage they saw the professor’s dead body. Antony stared at Alexander, “You knew this would happen, didn’t you?” Alexander couldn’t believe it, “I, I didn’t know. I mean the last few days the professor had been acting strange. He feared for his life. But, but I never thought this would actually happen. Why would anyone do this to the professor?” Unlike Alexander, Antony stayed composed, “It seems you were right,” he looked to where the container used to be, “Whatever was in that container was so important that somebody wanted it to stay a secret.”
“Why, why is there no blood?” Alexander noticed.
Antony opened up the professor’s shirt and examined the wound, “Look at that.”
“No bullet wounds?” Alexander responded with a confused look.
“No, just some type of burn marks. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“We, We should get out of here. Whoever did this might still be around.”
“That is precisely why I can’t leave. I have to find out what’s happening.”
“What are you saying Antony? We have to get out of here. What about Elena?”
“I have to do this. I have to find out what is in that container. It could be a threat to national security. It is my duty to keep the people of this country safe. I’m going, you don’t have to.”
Alexander was afraid. He wanted to leave but at the same time something told him he should stay, “No, I’m going with you. You are my brother and I wouldn’t be much of one if I let you go alone.”
“Thank you Alexander.” They stood up and made their way backstage. On the way they saw dead guards with the same type of wounds. And like on the other cases, there was no blood. Antony picked up two guns. He wanted to hand one to Alexander but he was unwilling to take it. Using the trail of dead bodies left behind they found a secret underground entrance. They climbed down a ladder into a dark underground tunnel. There was only one way to go. “We can still turn back you know,” Alexander said.
“Now, would I ever back down?”
“Lead the way.”
Elena made it out of the auditorium. People were left shaken by the current events. Elena looked around desperately but she didn’t see Antony or Alexander anywhere, “Antony?! Antony?!” she called out. Realizing they must still be inside she tried to go back in but a police officer grabbed her, “Miss, you can’t go inside. It’s too dangerous.”
“But my fiancée and his best friend are still in there.” She desperately tried to set herself free.
“I’m sorry, you have to step back. When more help arrives we can…” at that moment there was a loud thunderous explosion. The police officer dropped to the ground and covered Elena. Fire and dust shot out as the building came crumbling down. Elena quickly stood up and stared in shock. “Antony!” she screamed in disbelief.
The guard with the long, black hair walked inside the underground tunnel. He felt the tremble caused by the crumbling auditorium. He held a device that pulled the container with what seemed to be cables made of energy. “I’ve got it Torell,” he talked into the communicator he held on one of his hands.
“And the professor?”
“You know me.”
“Excellent work Vaz. I’ll take care of the rest.”
“Don’t have too much fun.”
“You know me.”
Vaz put away his communication device. He took of his hat and pulled his hair back revealing his long pointy ears. Then, he took off his eye contacts which revealed his alien eyes; bright, purple eyes.
Antony ran through the tunnel. Alexander followed closely, “Slow down for a moment.”
“I can’t let him get away, “Antony replied.
They reached the end of the tunnel and climbed up the stairs. The exit led them to the nearby woods just outside of the city. “What is that?” Alexander asked as he stared at something ahead of them. Antony turned and saw the unknown craft, an akinox fighter, “It’s not like any airplane I’ve ever seen.”
“Can, can it be a spaceship?” The design of the craft was completely different from anything seen on earth. Alexander had no other explanation.
Without making much noise, the fighter’s engines seemed to power up. Antony looked at the cockpit and saw someone. It looked like a man but there were some differences. It was Vaz. Antony raised his gun and pointed it towards him, “You could’ve hurt Elena. One person is dead because of you. I won’t let you get away!” Vaz held up his hands as if he had given up. But he was just mocking them. He smiled and waved goodbye. He placed his hands back on the controls. The ship began to hover above the ground. Antony was determined to not let him get away. He fired several shots at the ship but the bullets bounced off without causing a single dent. Realizing there was nothing he could do, Antony lowered the gun as the ship took off. As Alexander and Antony looked up, they were hit on the back by several flashes of light. They fell to the ground and slowly lost consciousness.
Vaz’s fighter exited the planet’s atmosphere. With the contents of the container in his possession, his mission was complete. Now, he was just waiting to be extracted. Then something appeared on his sensors. From behind, several shots were fired at his ship. Vaz dodged them as he turned his head from side to side in search for their origin. A Galactic Knight Fighter had appeared behind him.
Located in Antarctica, within a massive mountain range, was the Terra Citadel, home of the Galactic Knights. It was located in a place impossible to enter or see. From the command center they watched the battle. In the center of the room there was a table where the battlefield was being displayed through a holoprojector. Around the table, in a circular pattern, there were several stations. In the room there were both magoni and humans. Next to the table two Magoni, Klade and Sablik, watched carefully as the battle unfolded. Klade said, “Paladin Hightower, destroy the akinox fighter if you have to. They cannot get away with our technology.” Paladin Hightower’s response came through the speakers in the room, “Understood.”
Sablik realized something, “Getting through our defenses undetected would only be possible with a few fighters. Perhaps they sacrificed their warships in our previous battle. That must have been their plan.”
“A Beguile type warship…” Klade responded. It all began to make more sense.
“Hollow on the inside with enough room to transport smaller ships. This confirms our suspicions. Now we can be sure they exist.”
“But a fighter alone can’t make it back to the star stream. There has to be another ship,” Klade added.
Paladin Hightower chased the akinox fighter. Vaz tried to shake him off but the paladin was able to stay with him. In an attempt to finish the battle, Vaz slowed down his fighter rapidly as he tried to make the Galactic Knight fighter fly past him. However, Paladin Hightower reacted to his maneuver and slowed down as well. He positioned himself within point blank range. He took the shot and hit the akinox fighter. The fighter was heavily damaged. It was losing power very rapidly. Paladin Hightower was impressed by the pilot. He managed to avoid being destroyed from a point blank range shot. Paladin Hightower said, “One on one I’ll never lose. There’s no way you will escape from me.” At that moment, in the distance, an akinox war cruiser dropped out of light speed. “I won’t let you reach your friends.” The war cruiser launched fighters and soon the paladin was swarmed. He couldn’t continue with his pursuit and was forced to fight for his life.
Klade and Sablik continued monitoring the battle. Abigail Conway was in the command center sitting in one of the stations. She was in charge of communications, “I have located the professor’s home like you wanted. You’ll want to see this.”
“Put it on screen,” Sablik ordered.
The image came up on a screen set up on the opposite side of the entrance. The image showed the professor’s home located in the woods. It was on fire and rapidly decaying. Sablik was angry, “Damnit, there’s another one. He’s probably gone by now.”
“Where is the Inception?” Klade demanded to know.
The Akinox war cruiser fired at the paladin’s fighter with energy weapons. He was having trouble avoiding everything thrown at him by the war cruiser and the fighters. He knew he didn’t have much time, “I won’t go down without a fight.” Out of nowhere, the Inception entered the battlefield and it immediately unloaded everything on the Akinox war cruiser. The war cruiser fired back and recalled its fighters. It was receiving a lot of damage but so was the warship because it hadn’t completed its repairs. Once Vaz was aboard, the war cruiser powered up its lightdrive and went into light speed. The paladin received a communication from Captain Rivers, “Sorry for not arriving sooner. Are you alright Paladin Hightower?”
“Yes I’m alright.”
“Glad to hear it. You may come aboard.”
Paladin Hightower was angry for not destroying the enemy. The paladin’s were among the elite of the Galactic Knights. There were six paladins in total and above them were only the arch paladin and the archons. Being a paladin, it was humiliating for Paladin Hightower to have failed.
It was a rainy night. Torell was in the city wearing a black hooded coat. He received a communication from Vaz, “We are at the star stream. You know what you have to do Torell.”
“I will not fail. You can count on it,” he responded. He put away his communication device and walked away.
