|
War.
Niese stared at the screens. "We have peace markers fully displayed." Deish sat back as the signal pulsed out to the satellite, orbiting the planet Laefan of the Qwei worlds. "So far nothing from them." "Prepare to dispatch the probes."
"We have incoming. Two Xix battle cruisers. M class and weapons active." "Go to active zero point 2, standby."
Suzac was in charge of the first of the Xix Qwei worlds battle cruisers. Whoever the intruders were into their worlds, she sensed it would be foolhardy to trust them. Peace markers displayed?
Approaching slowly towards the massive Flag ship, it looked like a tadpole in a pond in comparison.
"I'm commander Niese and we are flying the peace marker. Our probes that we wish to launch are looking for a specific."
His voice tailed off. A pause?
" They will only record and send back to us imaging IF what they probes seek, is found." Suzac received an incoming message about the probe. One of them had been examined, simple and probably they were speaking the truth.
"We will monitor the probes, any suspicious activity and you will be declared hostiles."
"Sending probes." An hour. Two hours. Four hours. Probes returning. Hypersonic induction cores on two of them had been damaged. Niese looked at Deish. Where those probes were, send out two more. Warn Commander Suzac if the probes are damaged from being attacked. I will consider such action to be a violation of the peace we have broached with them."
Suzac had been in touch with the zone regional commander Ausof. TO his knowledge the probes had not been attacked by any of his forces. He sent out a detachment to examine the area.
"Approaching the zone. We are detecting activity in amongst the hives." Keeji was in control of the ground forces. In the middle of this hive colony, was something being hidden by the natives. As she approached to investigate they were being attacked. Beating back the attackers and executing them on the spot, no mercy. She stared in front of her.
The craft was a disc shape. Silvery gold with burn spots from entering the atmosphere to crash here? She had never seen a vessel like this. How had they managed to conceal it? Suzac had the information. The craft? The alien vessel below.
Was it what the probes were searching for? Zard his second in command screamed at him.
Those probes have detected the craft and are sending back imaging."
Niese saw the images. His expression had changed. "Signs of weapons fire across it.
We have a probe locking onto its data com recorders. Will tell us all that happened to it before it crashed on that planet."
"Qwei markings. Clearly attacked by your people. The recorders show YOUR vessels fired first. What happened to the survivors?" Suzac was getting no answers. Secrecy. Zard knew from what he had heard, of the fate of that vessel.
Those from the hive had killed them. Every single one of them. "How do we tell them?"
Niese had overheard all of the conversation. Unknown to Suzac their systems could eavesdrop on other vessels, well most, with ease.
"Four craft have broken away from their main fleet. Headed towards the planet." "We are under attack." Keeji was seeing the incoming craft, targeting the hive area where the vessel was. Dropping devices to the ground that did not explode. Sat there.
The craft moving off at speed to rejoin their fleet in space.
Suzac was still awaiting orders on what to do next. On the planet the devices started to open up. As they did a bluish energy pulsating from them. A device inside each of them spinning at speed? Rising up and over the area. Those who were flesh and blood, people as we would know them, animals felt the pulse as it penetrated their ear drums, their bodies their life fluids boiling. Keeji was with the rest of her detachment. Dead.
A massive explosion the equivalent strength of a mini H bomb detonated.
The craft returned as Suzac watched them form up and move onto the next planet. Several Qwei vessels now attacking the fleet. His would be the second vessel to be destroyed.
The Qwei worlds scanned. Probes returned. Moving on to the next quadrant.
"We have found one of the escort vessels. I am confident, we will find, the other three including .."
To be continued.
|
