Three Square Meals Ch. 089

The Captain's Chair was centred on a slightly raised dais at the rear of the Bridge, but the imposing stone structure was empty. Bhaken led them past it without a second glance, his attention on a second set of guards flanking an ornate door. They snapped to attention then opened the door for him, but Bhaken paused there, turning to look at his guests. "The Fleet Warden is waiting for you inside," he said, bowing to them respectfully.

John gave him a nod in gratitude, then he and Calara strode into the gloomy chamber beyond. It had dark-grey walls like the rest of the rooms and corridors in this vessel, but the glowing lights that were set into the ceiling only provided dim illumination. In the centre of the room was a ten-sided granite table with a glowing blue holograph shining brightly above it. It appeared to be a Tactical Map of the Delta Corvus system, clearly showing the debris field of smashed vessels around the battlecarrier.

Through that icy-blue light, John saw the familiar figure of the Fleet Warden in his hulking body armour. The Trankaran leader's face was illuminated by the glowing crimson lines, throwing a blood-red light over his sombre features.

"It's good to see you, Fleet Warden," John said, walking around the table. "I'm sorry we had to meet again in such dire circumstances."

The Trankaran officer raised a paw-like armoured fist and rubbed his tired face. He gave John a wan smile when he pulled his hand away, before extending his other hand in friendship. "My feelings exactly, Vice Admiral Blake," he said in his deep, rumbling voice as the two of them shook hands. "I hope you'll forgive me for the less than jovial greeting. It's been a very long day."

"Nothing to forgive, Thandrun," John said, removing his Paragon helmet and giving the Trankaran an understanding look. "I only wish we'd been able to arrive sooner, then we could have helped you in the battle."

"I appreciate the sentiments, Lion of the Federation," Thandrun replied, smiling faintly. "But one vessel would not have made that great a difference. The Kirrix came at us with a vast horde... We were very fortunate that as much of our fleet survived the onslaught as it did."

Calara had been staring at the map and she removed her own Paragon helmet before saying quietly, "With all due respect, Fleet Warden, I believe luck had very little to do with it. Your decision to cluster your fleet in defensive rings was an excellent tactic. If you'd attempted to engage the Kirrix using more traditional battle lines, they would have enveloped and overcome your forces piecemeal. The counterattack where you pierced through their lines to hit the drone carriers was an inspired move."

"Thank you, Commander Fernandez," Thandrun replied, looking startled by her warm praise. "How did you know how the battle unfolded? Did one of my men speak to you about it?"

She waved her hand towards the holographic depiction of the battlefield. "The debris patterns tell the full story if you know what to look for, Fleet Warden."

John smiled at her, then turned back to look at the surprised Trankaran officer. "I don't think I've introduced you to Calara before, but you seem to be well informed about my crew and our current ranks within the Terran military. I'm guessing that you saw the recent award ceremony?"

"That I did, Lion of the Federation," Thandrun said, his slab-like features lifting into a broad smile. "It was a most impressive affair."

Hesitating for a moment, John said rather awkwardly, "I hope you didn't take offense at my jingoistic speech at the end of the ceremony. I wasn't disparaging you or your forces."

Thandrun chuckled, the booming sound of his mirth like an avalanche of boulders. "I've rallied troops before, Vice Admiral, I recognised a bit of hyperbole when I heard it. Do not worry... we Trankarans have long memories and we remember what you did for us."

Feeling greatly relieved, John smiled at the friendly Trankaran leader. "Please, just call me John." He glanced at the holographic map floating above the table. "From what we've seen so far, it looks like the Republic might need some help again."

The Fleet Warden's smile died on his thick lips and he gave John a despairing look. "I fear I've wasted your time in calling you here. I had hoped to ask for your assistance in rescuing Chancellor Niskera, but now... all hope is lost."

John gave Calara a worried look. "What's happened here, Thandrun? Everything seemed so positive when we left you and that was only a couple of months ago!"

Thandrun heaved a heavy sigh, then waved them towards chairs set up in the corner of the Command Chamber. The Fleet Warden slumped in a huge sturdy chair that was sized for his massive frame, while John and Calara sat in ones designed for Terrans. John recognised the smaller chairs from his previous meeting with Chancellor Niskera and realised Thandrun must have had them moved here especially.

"Where to begin..." Thandrun said, leaning back and staring up at the ceiling for a moment.

John studied the weary Trankaran for a moment. "Start from when we left you two months ago. We'd taken care of the Glowing Queen for you, ending the rebellion. In return, the Chancellor held up her end of our bargain, equipping the Invictus with your best military-grade engines. We completed a separate trade of technology in exchange for ores, then parted on friendly terms. What happened next?"

Squaring his shoulders, Thandrun nodded. "Alright... Well, as I said before, we had no more problems with the rebellion, as their forces capitulated without a fight. The trouble started after that, with the Senate tying itself in knots trying to decide what to do with the rebels."

"What do you mean?" John asked, frowning in confusion. "If the rebels all surrendered peacefully, what was the problem?"

Looking full of regret, Thandrun replied quietly, "You must understand the nature of my people for this to make sense. Trankarans can be ferocious when provoked, but normally we are a calm and placid species. That calmness comes with a certain lack of decisiveness that can make decision-making amongst the Senate an incredibly laborious process."

His amber eyes gazed off into the distance as he rumbled, "A Reconciliation Committee was created to investigate the behaviour of the rebels during their insurrection. Some factions within the Senate wished to inter the perpetrators for life, whereas others had heard how contrite the rebels were and wished to declare an amnesty. With the Committee deadlocked, no decisions were made... not one!"

"So what about the fleet of ships that had been in rebel control?" John asked, seeing where this was going.

"Left crewless until a course of action could be determined," Thandrun replied, sounding haggard. "As some Senators wished the original crews to be reinstated, it was deemed 'inappropriate' to assign new crews to those vessels, even as a temporary measure."

"But that's ridiculous!" Calara protested. "That robbed you of half your fleet assets!"

"All new ship construction was also halted as the Republic's shipyards had fallen under rebel control. The engineering crews have been incarcerated until their fate is determined," the Fleet Warden admitted, looking shamefaced. "Please don't think that the Chancellor had anything to do with this insanity. She did her best, but with the rebels captured, any sense of urgency dissipated amongst the Senate."

"Then the Kirrix started probing your borders and you couldn't crush them badly enough to deter further encroachment," Calara reasoned, her expression grim.

"They're a filthy parasitic race that thrives on weakness," Thandrun said, his expression haunted as he confirmed her suspicions. "I warned Niskera that we were vulnerable, but I must confess that even I underestimated the Kirrix strength. They attacked en masse four weeks ago and have taken several well-established worlds... the civilians there numbered in the hundreds-of-thousands..."

John leaned forward in his chair, his face shadowed with worry. "This is far worse than the worst-case scenarios I'd pictured! Where's Niskera now? What the hell happened to her?!"

The Fleet Warden sighed, his face filled with remorse. "When we realised what we faced, she contacted the Terran Federation asking for assistance. Invoking the mutual protection treaties signed by the Galactic League, she requested immediate aid against the Kirrix threat. Your High Command turned us down... they have withdrawn from the Galactic League and abrogated all treaties."

"What the fuck are they thinking?!" John snarled, gritting his teeth in fury. "They must know how dangerous the Kirrix are to everyone!"

Sounding angry, Thandrun shook his head. "I have no idea! We always assumed that our relationship with the Terrans was based on mutual respect and friendship. This rejection was a bitter blow."

Calara frowned and asked hesitantly, "Are the Maliri, Brimorians, or the Ashanath signed up to the same mutual-protection pacts?"

"The Maliri?" Thandrun replied, looking incredulous. "Of course not! No Maliri ship has left their territory in over nine-thousand years. The Brimorians refused to sign the pact when the Terran Federation did and the Ashanath have always been insular, uninterested in wider galactic politics."

John shared a meaningful look with Calara at the mention of the Maliri. Turning his attention back to Thandrun, he prompted the glowering Trankaran, "And what did Niskera do then?"

The Fleet Warden's face shadowed with grief. "She was always such a visionary. She sought to form a new Galactic League, with the Trankarans uniting all the minor empires into an alliance that could stand firm against the Kirrix. She invited representatives from a dozen species for a summit, hoping that they would rally to her cause."

"Where did this summit take place?" John asked, in a hushed voice.

"Khalgron in the Alpha Tauri system," Thandrun said, slumping further in his chair. "It fell to the Kirrix four days ago."

"Why would you hold a summit so close to the border?!" John asked, shaking his head in disbelief. "That was a recipe for disaster!"

Thandrun nodded slowly. "In hindsight it surely seems that way, but at the time, it wasn't a completely irrational decision. Khalgron was chosen because it's a temperate planet with a climate well-suited to all the species invited to the summit. Niskera hoped that the representatives from the minor empires would identify with the world and by bringing the diplomats sufficiently close to the border, it would impress upon them the urgency of the Kirrix threat. When the location was initially decided, the Kirrix had only sent in a first wave of invaders. It was a second wave that pushed much deeper into our territory and eventually besieged the planet."

"So what was your plan for me?" John asked in confusion. "If Niskera's been killed, why did you call me out here to meet with you in person?"

"She isn't dead, not yet at least. I spoke to her early this morning; her forces have retreated to an underground fortress bringing the representatives from the minor empires with them. They're fighting a desperate defence against Kirrix ground troops," Thandrun said, his expression forlorn. "I intended to use my fleet to break the siege of Khalgron and while my ships engaged the Kirrix, I hoped that you'd be able to fight your way through the ground forces to rescue the Chancellor and the diplomats."

John leaned back in his chair as he finally understood. His said quietly, "Because we did something similar when we assassinated the Glowing Queen."

"Our analysts had concluded that striking into the heart of rebel-controlled territory to eliminate their leader was impossible. The Glowing Queen was defended by an elite battalion and yet you managed to fight your way through hundreds of crack troops to eliminate your target. If anyone could have rescued Niskera, it would have been you." The Fleet Warden darted a sorrowful glance at the tactical map and gestured to it with his hand. "Now my forces are in no fit state to fight a major engagement. Without us there to engage the Kirrix fleet, there's no way you'd be able to infiltrate the planet, let alone attempt a rescue operation."

Calara reached across the armrest of her chair to place her hand on John's wrist and they shared a meaningful glance. When he nodded imperceptibly, she looked back at Thandrun. "Fleet Warden, do you have any data on the Kirrix forces besieging Khalgron?"

He frowned at her in confusion, but eventually said, "The Trankaran fleet escorting Niskera was destroyed attempting to protect the planet. Before they were overwhelmed, they transmitted details on the Kirrix's full order of battle."

"May I see that data please?" Calara requested, rising from her chair and walking over to the ten-sided table.

Thandrun pressed a number of buttons on an interface built into his vambrace. The tactical map flickered and disappeared, then was replaced by long lists of data accompanied by slowly rotating images of Kirrix vessels. He watched the highly-focused Latina, his brow furrowing as he attempted to puzzle out why she was so interested in that fleet of ships.

"Thandrun, where's the rest of the Senate?" John asked, diverting the Fleet Warden's attention away from Calara.

The Trankaran Naval Commander turned back to look at John and had a faint smile on his face. "When I announced my intention to rescue Chancellor Niskera, the Senators decided it would be sensible for them to reconvene back on Trankara. There were three substantial fleets that remained loyal during the rebellion. This was the largest, the second attempted to defend the Alpha Tauri system until it was destroyed by the Kirrix, leaving the third which the Senate took back to Trankara. I sorely miss those ships, but I don't miss those Senators..."

Studying the Fleet Warden, John chose his next words carefully. "Now that the Senate's back on Trankara, can you see them overcoming this deadlock? Will they be able to get your immobilised fleets ready in time to respond to the Kirrix threat?"

"If anything, I suspect the paralysis will worsen," Thandrun said, his stony features looking even bleaker. "In times of crisis the Senate closely follows decisions made by the Chancellor. With Niskera missing and soon dead, the Senators will shift their focus to replacing her and electing a replacement. The politicking on that decision will take weeks to resolve!"

John considered his options for a moment, rubbing his chin with a gauntleted hand. This was an extremely bad situation, with significant risks involved whatever course of action he took. It seemed like he was stuck deciding between putting the Invictus and the girls in terrible danger, or walking away and letting the Trankaran Republic be conquered, abandoning their people to a horrific fate at the hands of the Kirrix. He had no way of knowing if the Kirrix had been goaded into this assault by the other Progenitor, but it seemed like an awfully big coincidence that they'd attacked at the precise moment when the Trankarans were at their weakest...

***

Alyssa kept a watchful eye on her friend as she walked through the overcrowded medical facility, followed closely by an entourage of awed Trankaran medics. Rachel had removed her Paragon helmet and was carrying it under one arm, her long tawny-brown hair tumbling around her shoulders. Her other hand was held at the ready, so that she could gently reach out and touch each of the Trankaran wounded. And there were so many of them... sprawled on robust gurneys, slumped against walls, even some lying untreated on the floors.

When the two girls arrived, they had found the Trankaran doctors overwhelmed by the sheer numbers injured in the ferocious fleet battle with the Kirrix. Those doctors were short-tempered with Rachel when she first offered to help. Sceptical of what assistance a Terran medic could possibly provide without expertise in Trankaran physiology and irritated at having to waste time pandering to this tiny Terran female, they had been abrupt to the point of rudeness.

Alyssa had been impressed by Rachel's composure as she calmly informed them that she was, in fact, an expert on the Trankaran physique. When they still remained unswayed, she simply smiled and offered to help with diagnostics; if the Trankaran doctors chose to heed her advice, that was entirely up to them. All objections had ceased the moment her eyes began to glow and her body was swathed in a soft grey aura.

Rachel approached a dying Trankaran marine and touched his arm, her misty shroud enveloping the mortally wounded rockman. The medics' looks of shock had turned into ones of wonder as Rachel sealed the gaping hole in his chest using only her mind.

Ignoring their flustered demands for an explanation, she knelt beside a groaning marine, this one sitting on the floor with his back propped up against the wall. He had an ugly, ragged wound in his armoured torso where he'd been shot several times by a neutron rifle. When she touched his bulky arm, the barely conscious soldier gasped, his eyes widening as he felt a gentle tingling in his chest. Offering the bewildered but rejuvenated Trankaran a kind smile, she rose to her feet and turned to face her stunned audience.

"I've healed the potentially fatal damage to his heart," she calmly informed the coterie of stunned Trankaran medics. "His condition is no longer critical, but he's still sustained a severe wound to his upper left torso and needs your attention."

Before they could respond, she rose to her feet and moved on through the throng of injured Trankarans. So it went as they progressed through the Medical Bay, Rachel healing the mortally wounded and advising the attending doctors of the conditions of all she touched. The Medics then moved to treat the worst of the injured, reluctantly tearing themselves away from this miracle sweeping through the injured.

Loud chaos made way for quiet order in Rachel's wake, like a soothing wave of benevolence and healing that glided through the medical facility and touched hundreds of Trankaran lives.

***

John's gaze drifted over to the ten-sided table and Calara turned away from her analysis of the Kirrix fleet data to face him. She wore a worried frown and he could see the anxiety in her dark-brown eyes. Despite her obvious doubts, she gave him a hesitant nod.

Thandrun missed the exchange, but saw the tense expression on John's face and let out a heavy sigh. "I'm so very sorry for bringing you all the way out here for noth-"

"We'll do it," John said quietly, cutting him off.

The Fleet Warden shook his head. "I appreciate the sentiment behind the offer, but you don't seem to understand. My forces are incapable of engaging the Kirrix at the moment..."

Leaning forward, John looked Thandrun square in the eye. "You're right, your forces took a real beating and are in no shape to help. Leave everything to us."

Thandrun looked at him in utter disbelief for a moment, then frowned, his expression darkening. "This isn't a joking matter, Vice Admiral. I respected Chancellor Niskera and-"

"I'm not joking," John said, his voice deadly serious. "You said earlier that one vessel couldn't make that great a difference. If we had arrived before your recent battle with the Kirrix, you probably wouldn't have lost a single ship. The Invictus is packing more firepower than a Terran dreadnought... in fact, we might even outgun the entire Terran Federation border fleet."

"That's preposterous!" Thandrun balked. "No ship is that powerful!"

"I know of at least two that are," John said, his expression unreadable. He rose to his feet as Calara walked back to join them.

"I'll begin preparing battle stratagems as soon as we return to the Invictus," she murmured, sounding lost in thought.