Prologue

“Alex, it appears the time has come for us to meet our makers.”

“How do you feel about that, Grace?”

“I’m not really sure. It bothers me that Trey holds a grudge against the Realm but I can understand why he does.”

“You know the Realm must bear some responsibility for what happened.”

“Yes, but what could they have done? The Searcher that confronted Greyson was nowhere near powerful enough to take on a Black Ship. They may have been destroyed as well.”

“That’s not the issue.”

“No?”

“The issue is that they didn’t even know the destruction took place. They had totally written off the former members of the Realm and accepted no responsibility for their actions. So they discover they’re no match for the Black Ships, they could start working to find an answer just as we did. Without the release of Trey’s aura, they would have continued in the dark until the Invaders showed up at their front door. You have got to see I’m right.”

“I do, Alex. I just know the Gardners were not bad people.”

“Good people can cause terrible things to happen. You need look no further than our former universe.” Alex paused and added, “The Realm has also been written off by the Creative Force as a tool for good.”

“Do you really believe that to be true?”

“I believe that Trey has seen that force and wouldn’t lie about anything associated with it. The Realm is now a creative dead-end.”

Grace paused and then asked what she had wanted to avoid, “You know what ship will be coming?”

“I do.”

“And?”

“Sometimes brothers find themselves on different sides of issues. I was his twin thousands of years ago but time has changed me. We are no longer the same. Have no doubt that I will do what has to be done.” Alex grew silent and after an hour said, “Grace, who stands the best chance of stopping the Black Ships?”

Grace thought about the question and answered, “The Realm is still more powerful than our small Empire. Their number of warships is staggering.”

“You’re avoiding the question.”

“I know; this ship we’re on is the most powerful weapon ever created. I know that Trey is right and the Creative Force has given us a gift that is a difference maker. I just hate how far the Old Realm has fallen.”

“So do I but now they must step aside and take a back seat. That is what will bring us into conflict with them and it’s a shame it has to happen.”

“Alex, I will not allow them to harm you.”

“I love you too. However, I think you need to worry about the Realm. I just checked out the power for our weapons and it’s growing.”

Grace immediately looked at the systems and said, “Oh my back reactor! How long has this been going on?”

“Three days and the levels are rising faster with each passing day. Worry about the Realm; I think we’ll be able to hold our own.”

Chapter One

Queen Valerie Rose Gardner stared at the Searcher that had been sent to Castle Gardner by the Admiralty to answer questions about the recording he had made in the Realm’s previous universe. He stood at ease and waited for her to finish showing the recording to the other members of the Royal Family. Columbus often wondered why he had felt the urge to join the Realm’s Searchers. Most of his species would never command a warship again after all the universes they destroyed, but he felt at home on the small ship’s bridge. This encounter only cemented his feeling that he had done the right thing. He felt his life had meaning since he was given his ship.

The Royal Family sat in the map room after the video ended and listened to the Searcher as he delivered his report. The video of the encounter with the old Zeta Ship shocked them as they saw the power of the beam used to disrupt the Searcher’s force field.

Danielle said, “They said that we’re going to be destroyed?”

“Yes, Your Majesty, and he said he personally didn’t care if we were. It appears there are bad feelings between them and us.”

Tag looked at Danielle and saw her troubled expression. He turned on his panel and saw the millions of planets that had been destroyed in their former universe. He shook his head, looked at the Queen, and then said to the Searcher, “Has every civilized planet in our old universe been destroyed?”

The Spider paused and said, “Yes, they are all blasted down to bed rock and broken in multiple places. It appears the old universe was invaded and destroyed.”

“Do you think that ship was responsible for the destruction?”

“No, the readings indicate a beam that was weaker than that ship was used to cause the destruction.”

“Then where did that old Zeta Ship come from and how does it have such powerful weapons?”

“The Defense Facility we left behind had twenty of them in storage. I must assume that it came from there.”

“How long ago was the universe destroyed?”

“Between ten to twelve years ago.”

Newton looked around the table and said, “The analysis indicates a beam very similar in power to those used by the white ships caused the destruction.”

Matthew Gordon’s gaze hardened, “Are you suggesting Demons?”

Newton looked at the Realm’s Fleet Admiral and shrugged, “I have no idea, Admiral. It just looks similar in power. It also suggests a huge fleet had to be used to cause that much destruction in such a short period of time.”

Danielle said, “They were attacked by an outside force.” Everyone looked at her and she said, “The one that spoke to you is angry at us and blames us for allowing the destruction to happen.”

“How do you know that?”

Danielle tilted her head and Admiral Gordon said, “I sometimes forget your ability. If that’s true, what does it mean for us?”

“It means there is real danger to us from the ones that made that ship. It also means that his statement about our destruction is true as well and he was talking about a different threat. He didn’t want to tell us but forced himself to do it. It’s imperative that we meet with them and determine what they know.” Danielle turned to the Searcher, “You said that your ship had no chance against that ship?”

“Yes, Your Grace, and I’m pretty certain that it could destroy our Searchers faster than we could gang up on it. I suspect that beam was attenuated and not used at its highest power.”

Admiral Gordon flinched, “What makes you say that?”

“Because it was too precise; it burned through my screen on a small section and didn’t spread. It warned me that if I attempted to teleport out, I would be destroyed. It may look like an old Zeta but it is only in appearance. My scans could not penetrate its force field.”

Queen Valerie Gardner Talant looked at her husband and he nodded, “Then we will send out strongest warriors to conduct the conversation. Are the Kosiev updates complete?”

Twig said, “Yes they are, Your Majesty.”

Valerie looked around the table and said, “Tag, Danielle, Cassandra, and Jake will go to meet with them. I want you to take Newton and Sprig with you to see if we can determine their strength. You will go in the Alexander Kosiev. How does it match up to that ship?”

Newton lowered closer to the floor and said, “It should be an even match between the two. The new modifications we completed were supposed to make it the strongest ship in creation. It appears we were somewhat premature in that judgment.”

“Then take the Twins with you. The two of them should be able to handle the situation.”

Danielle slowly shook her head, “I’m not sure a show of force is called for in this instance, especially one against a civilization with a more advanced technology. I really think they’re trying to help us, but harbor ill will toward the Realm. It wouldn’t take much to make this meeting turn violent.”

“I’m not sending you unless I know you’re protected and we should remember that these beings are descendants of the Dukes.”

Tag looked at Danielle and saw she wasn’t saying much. She glanced at him and then turned and lowered her head to the Queen. Jake said, “We’ll leave in five days to meet with the one who said we’re going to be destroyed.” Jake hoped the two ships were going to be enough.

Tag went over to Cassandra and said, “Is Alex familiar with his new systems?”

“We both are. They’re not that different from the old ones; they’re just more powerful. Why do you ask?”

“I’m concerned that we’re going to communicate with a civilization that has ships one third of Alex’s size, but with identical power. That worries me.”

“Well, the Twin will be there as well and if things get dicey, we’ll teleport out.”

“Just be sure you keep your hand on the teleport console.”

Cassandra saw Tag’s concern, “You’re worried about this?”

“I am. I sense there could be some danger in this meeting.”

“How high is the level you sense?”

“It’s not at a critical level but enough to make me nervous.”

“I’ll do as you ask.”

“Thank you.”

Tag went back to Danielle and Cassandra thought, “What do you think about that conversation, Alex?”

“I’m not sure. I’ve looked at the recording of the meeting and my weapons do match up with the power of the beam that was used on the Searcher; however, if he’s right and it was not their most powerful setting, we may not be able to stand up to them, even with the Twin.”

“Be prepared to run.”

“I don’t want to do that but I’ll not take a risk of you being harmed.”

“That’s good enough for me.”

• • •

Trey and Cassie stood at the Robbins Memorial facing the statues of Trey’s parents. Cassie’s grandmother led them through their vows for the second time and watched as the young couple stared into each other’s eyes and repeated the ancient yet new words. The massive crowd gathered around Robbins Park was silent and the monitors placed around the Capital City on New Hope played the words so all could see and hear the ceremony.

The Ceremony was also transmitted to the other sixty five planets of the Empire and there were few that weren’t watching the solemn event. Trey didn’t know how they found out but Vring, Kreej, and fifty other Zord had arrived to witness the marriage. Finally Ashley Talben said, “You may kiss your bride and may I present to all of you Mr. and Mrs. Scott Robbins III.”

The massive crowd erupted into huge cheers and the music began at a high volume. Trey and Cassie teleported to the top floor of the Empire Building in City Center and waved at the crowds below that filled every street for miles around. There were millions of citizens celebrating in the Huge City. “They appear to be almost as happy as I am.”

“Yes, they do Trey. It has taken so long for us to get here.”

Trey leaned over and kissed Cassie and the crowd erupted in cheers. “Yes it has, my love.”

Cassie looked up and said, “It’s a shame we don’t have time for a honey moon.”

Trey sighed and said, “I know, but we need to make sure the Robbins is ready to leave by tomorrow night. Perhaps we’ll have time after the meeting.”

“The crew is ready. They were being trained when we went to our old universe in Greyson. They are reporting back for duty later on this evening.” Cassie paused and said, “You know the Realm will be coming fully armed for conflict.”

“I would do the same. I don’t hold that against them.”

“Do you have your anger under control? Will you be able to make good decisions when we meet them?”

Trey shrugged, “I’ll let our senses guide us. Just make sure you keep me informed of what you see.”

“You’ll be seeing it as I do.”

Trey smiled, “Yeah, there is that.” He looked out at the huge crowd again and said, “Let’s go back to the park and dance.”

Cassie laughed, “Greyson, can you send us to the dance pavilion?”

A silver field moved down on them and they disappeared from the balcony.

• • •

Timmy stood with Virze at Robbins Park and watched the multitudes celebrate. He had never witnessed any celebration this large and was amazed by its size. There was little fanfare when he and Virze assumed the Crown. Most of the citizens were frightened at losing Scotty and Julie. Though they loved them now, they had never seen a celebration just for them. Timmy felt a slight pang of jealousy, but realized that it was due to the love the Empire felt for the Robbins Family. Virze could see his feelings and said, “It won’t be long before he assumes the Throne. This celebration will make that transition easier.”

“I know.”

Virze sighed and knew he did.

Chapter Two

Danielle sat in her quarters getting a bag packed to leave with the Kosiev. She stood in front of the mirror packing her personal items and glanced at herreflection. She put both hands on the sink and stared at the mirror. She saw the sorrow she was feeling staring back at her. Tag teleported in and saw she had already packed a bag for him. “You always think of me first.” Danielle turned and went to him. He wrapped his arms around her and she held him tight. “What’s wrong, Danielle?”

“Why didn’t we know?”

Tag took a deep breath and let it out slowly, “I don’t have an answer for that. I thought we would be told if anything happened that needed our attention.”

Danielle took a deep breath and put her head on his shoulder. She closed her eyes and felt him in her mind. “We were prevented from finding out.”

“Who would have done that?”

“You know who.”

Tag sighed, “I just don’t want to believe that. I just don’t see why they would have done it or how they could have prevented us learning of what happened.”

Danielle leaned back and looked him in the eyes, “I find myself thinking about all of those that are no longer with us. I miss Eric, Leila, Wes, Anglo, Jenny, Tommy, Matt, Melanie, and most of all Rose. All our children and friends are gone yet we are still here.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’ve never felt like this before. I’ve always felt a sense that our reason for living so long has not been completed. I just knew there was a reason for us to be here. Now…I’m not so sure anymore. Our time may be over. I’ve never felt this empty and it weighs heavy on my soul. I can’t help but wonder if we’ve lost the thing that made us what we are. For the first time, I feel old.”

She put her head back on his chest and he felt her sorrow in his mind. He put his head on top of hers and wished he could help her, but the truth was that he was having the same feelings. He felt it to his core and sensed he had lost something and he didn’t know what it was. He had also been wishing lately to return to the past. He actually felt remorse at having left it behind, perhaps it was time to return to a normal lifespan. Danielle’s sorrow was almost more than he could bear. This was a burden that was more than they should have to endure.

“What are we going to do, Darling?”

Danielle said with her eyes closed, “We’re going to talk with the ones that can tell us what happened to our old home and then we’re going to then find the source of the psychic wave. I’m hoping that whoever caused it can help us find what we need to continue to live.”

“And if they can’t?”

“I’m not ready to even think about that yet.”

Tag continued to hold her and knew he wasn’t ready either.

• • •

Cassandra sat in her Command Chair on the Kosiev and felt the ship around her. It was humming with a note that meant danger. She knew the giant ship was getting ready for combat. “Alex, is the Twin here?”

“No, he’s picking up his crew and will be here within three hours.”

Cassandra looked at the readouts and then asked, “Is he your equal?”

“He has my memories. I’m not sure if that is the same as experiencing the events. We are identical in our weapons and defense.”

“Have you been able to learn anything else from the readout on the beam used by that old Zeta?”

“Not really. It was a very intense beam and was fired with an accuracy I would have trouble duplicating. I really won’t know anything until I’m able to scan that ship.”

Cassandra looked at the floor and said, “I wish Tommy was here.”

“I know. I miss him as well.” Cassandra felt her eyes well up as Alex said, “Cassandra, accidents happen. Who would have ever thought that reactor would malfunction and explode so quickly. I wish there would have been some way to have saved him. He didn’t suffer.”

Cassandra shook her head and said, “He’ll always be in my heart. I’m sure he’s handling bullies with Wes.”

Alex remained silent and felt the void in Cassandra’s heart. He knew she wasn’t going to be able to live with the pain much longer. He was heartbroken that there was nothing he could do to save her. Alex received a message and said, “Jake and the Gardners are requesting permission to come aboard.”

Cassandra wiped her eyes dry and forced a smile, “Bring them aboard, Alex.”

• • •

Jake, Tag, and Danielle appeared on the bridge and Cassandra stood and gave Danielle a hug. Danielle looked at her, furrowed her brow, and asked, “Are you ok?”

Cassandra smiled and said, “I’m fine.” Danielle started to question her but Jake said, “How long before we’re supposed to meet that ship?”

Alex answered, “Six hours, Sir.”

“Where’s the twin?”

“He’ll be arriving shortly.”

“Who is commanding that ship?”

“Peg.”

Jake turned around sharply and looked at Tag, “I didn’t think Algeans commanded warships?”

Tag shrugged, “Most don’t. Peg is an exception to that rule.”

“I’ve heard that he’s impetuous and acts without orders.”

“He has shown that trait but he has never made a bad decision. All of his actions have ended successfully.” Tag paused and added, “So far.”

Jake didn’t feel good about the Algean being in command and wondered why he was given command of the Twin. He saw Danielle looking at Tag and saw that she shared his concern. Well, it was too late to change at this late hour. “Where is Newton and Sprig?”

“Sprig will arrive just before we leave and Edison is taking Newton’s place.”

“Why?”

“Edison is better at situations involving possible combat. He overrode Newton on the decision.”

Jake looked at the three Gardners and said, “I’m not sure I’m comfortable with all of these last minute changes.”

Danielle said, “Jake, we should try to avoid conflict. Please just make this a mission to gather information.”

“That ship is a survivor of the Duke’s Universe, Danielle. I’ll try to do as you ask but I do not trust them to be peaceful.”

Danielle looked at Jake and said nothing. Tag stared at Jake and saw that he did not value Danielle’s advice. He felt his temper rise but said nothing. Cassandra felt Tag’s anger and wondered what Danielle knew. Her step-parents were also showing sorrow. Something was wrong.

• • •

Trey sat in the Command Chair and felt the Robbins coming to life. The four hundred crewmembers were on board and manning their posts. Cassie felt Trey’s aura start to strengthen and she added her aura to his. The three mile wide ship started flashing white and blue and then bright blue.

Grace modulated the collectors and the hull started changing back to white. The blue flashes became fewer and after thirty minutes disappeared. This meant all the psychic power was being collected by the ship’s system. She watched the absorption field and saw that it was keeping up with the rising power level. She setup the system and it took over automatically. Now it was up to the Engineering team to keep it stabilized. She looked at Alex’s systems and saw that all of his circuits were active and online. She noticed his weapon circuits were also active. The huge beam projectors on the hull were glowing blue and ready for discharge. She started to say something but realized that if she had control of the weapons she would have been doing the same thing.

• • •

Trey sent a thought to the Crew, “We’ll be leaving in two hours. You will remain at battle stations until we leave our former universe. No one has permission to activate a weapon without my approval.” Trey paused for a moment and waited for that order to sink in and then he said, “You have an hour and half to do whatever is necessary to remain at your station for an extended time. Commanders, allow your sailors to leave in shifts.”

Cassie closed her eyes and felt the nervousness of the crew. She looked at Trey and saw he felt it as well. She smiled and said, “They’re ready. Their tension is natural.”

“I know.”

“Why are you jumping in fifteen minutes late?”

Trey smiled and said, “You know how much I love a grand entrance.”

Cassie laughed, sat down in her command chair, and tightened her restraints. She felt Trey’s underlying anger and worried that he would not follow his instincts and give in to his hatred of the Realm. She could only restrain him so much, but she also felt the Realm deserved whatever they received. She watched Trey closely and he looked at her out of the corner of his eye and said, “I’m cool.”

Cassie smiled, “Yes, you are.”

• • •

Jake looked around the bridge and said, “Alex, notify the twin we’ll be jumping in thirty seconds.”

“Peg has acknowledged the order and has prepared his ship.”

Sprig and Edison were standing on the bridge immediately under the main display, staring at what they were going to see in their old universe. Danielle noticed that Sprig had only said a brief hello before he moved to the display. That wasn’t like the Sprig she knew. Something was bothering him.

She saw Tag staring at the Algean and she sensed him growing nervous. Tag said under his breath, “He senses danger.” She turned and looked at the display Sprig was watching just as the two giant ships jumped and arrived at the meeting coordinates. Every one stared at the display and saw nothing but the old Provincial Capital El Prado below them. The Former Provincial Capital was covered with huge areas that were blasted and barren. It was clear the planet had been attacked from space and the attacker had done massive damage to the surface.

Alex said, “I don’t detect any intelligent life on the planet. That’s probably why the planet wasn’t burned by whoever destroyed the other worlds.”

The Gardners looked at a planet that had a violent history and was just now starting to recover from the nuclear weapons that were used to bombard the surface. Danielle shook her head and wondered what had happened after the Realm left.

• • •

Trey looked at Cassie and thought to the crew, “We’re jumping in ten seconds. Stay alert and follow your orders.” Trey looked at Seed and Weed standing next to the display and asked, “Are you ready for this?”

Weed leaned forward and said, “It’s time we faced our former family.”

Cassie reached over and took Trey’s hand and the accumulators briefly flashed blue as the ship adjusted for the surge in power. Trey pushed the jump button and the Bristone Empire Ship Scotty Robbins disappeared.

• • •

After fifteen minutes, Jake said, “Are you sure about the time, Alex?” Then a giant white ship appeared ten miles from them. Even the two twins were stunned at what they saw. The giant white sphere was at least three miles in diameter and its force field was brilliant. The giant beam projectors on its hull were glowing bright blue and looked deadly. Danielle saw Sprig look at the console under the display and all of his branches fell to his sides. Jake looked at his board and couldn’t speak. Danielle didn’t need to look. She knew the power of that ship dwarfed their technology. Now we will get some answers, she thought to herself.

• • •

Trey immediately saw the two identical two mile long ships in orbit above El Prado. He focused his scanners on them and leaned back in his chair, “They’re stronger than we thought. Those ships together could have handled Greyson. Alex, Grace, stay alert.”

“All systems are at optimal. They don’t represent a threat, Trey.”

Cassie smiled and sent a thought, “Thank you for being punctual. We thought you might not show up.”

Everyone on the Kosievs Bridge heard the thought and Jake looked around and said, “You said some things to our Searcher that has us concerned. We felt we should come and see what you meant in the original contact.”

Cassie said, “And you are?”

“I am Jake Talent. I have Tag, Danielle, and Cassandra Gardner here with me along with Sprig and Edison. I am going to assume you know everyone.”

Cassie said, “I do; I am Cassandra Robbins and I am here with my husband Scotty Robbins the third. We call him Trey.”

“Your ship is remarkable. If my scanners are right, it is more powerful than either of my ships.”

Cassie said, “It is actually more powerful than all of your ships combined. Who rules the Realm now?”

“My wife, Queen Valerie Rose Talant.”

“My, she’s been in power for quite a long time.”

“Yes, she has.”

“Why is that?”

“The other members of the Royal Family have not indicated they wish to replace her. We’ve been unable to find anyone else in the Realm more qualified.”

“I find that interesting. You should also be aware that we have two Algeans onboard who are now members of our Empire.”

Tag saw Sprig whip around and say, “Who are they?”

Cassie looked at Weed and he thought, “I am named Weed and my mate is Seed.”

“What are you doing on that ship? You were forbidden to contact any of those left behind.”

“Actually, we attempted everything to avoid them but were unsuccessful; they found us. However, when this universe was invaded by the Black Ships, we decided to try and slow the Invader’s advance and prevent them from finding the Realm. We were successful in preventing the Realm’s discovery, but as a result of our intervention, the Invaders destroyed every civilized planet in eight universes. What you see here is a result of the actions we took. Seven other universes were destroyed as well.”

Sprig was stunned at the comment and didn’t know how to respond. Jake waited for Sprig to say something and finally said, “You are welcome to join us and go back to the Realm.”

Seed thought, “We decline the offer and choose to stay with our friends here. We have determined that whatever the Realm once represented died long ago. We choose to stand with our Empire that lives by the old values.”

Danielle was startled by the Algean’s response and she immediately looked at Tag, who was staring at the young man on the display.

Sprig said, “You will leave that ship and come with us. As Elder of the Algeans, I order you to do as I order.”

Weed thought, “You have lost your honor, Elder. Your command carries no weight with us.”

Sprig lowered his branches and everyone felt his sorrow. Not only did they fall but his leaves turned a dark brown.

Danielle said, “What do you mean he has lost his honor?”

Weed looked at Trey and said, “Now it is time for you to say what must be said.”

Trey looked at him and nodded, “The Algeans developed a spore that killed an orange pod that the Invaders use as a powerful drug. Any planet that grew those pods died and the Black Ships have been killing universes for millions of years. One of their ships scouted our universe for destruction and we accidently discovered its presence. We used the spores that Weed and Seed developed to destroy their fleets and drug supplies in another universe they were invading. Whoever was behind those Black Ships were not pleased by our actions and decided to take revenge. They determined that the ones who destroyed their drug had to come from one of the universes they had been scouting. The total destruction of our universe and seven others is what they did to punish us. Do you know what a psychic vision is?”

“Yes.”

“My parents had a vision of every civilized planet in our universe being burned several years before it happened. They knew there was nothing they could do to stop it and if they tried, they knew your Realm would found and destroyed along with sixty six planets we had moved to another universe. They were unwilling to allow that to happen so they died in our universe.”

“Why?”

“Because they knew that if the Creator of the Invaders came to our universe, they would see the reflection of the Realm’s three galaxies, which would have not shown up in its scan. The Creator lives in another dimension just as you do. My parents understood that the Realm and every planet we moved to another universe would be destroyed if they changed the smallest detail of that vision. I’m sending you the vision they saw and their final moments.”

Trey sent the visions telepathically and waited for the Realm’s leaders to absorb it.

Danielle was crying. She saw the love of the two couples and the willing sacrifice they made. Tag took her in his arms and held her. Danielle thought to him, “We were once like them but not anymore.”

Jake said, “But you said we were going to be destroyed?”

“We set up a fight so that we could draw one of the Creators out to see what technology we were facing. We had one of our ships fake being damaged and jumped it away using a standard universal drive. One of their creator’s ships followed our ship.”

“And.”

“It was the orange ship of the Demons.”

The fear that coursed through the visitors from the Realm was instantaneous. Jake said, “Are you sure?”

“I’m sending you the video now.”

The orange ship appeared on their display and everyone saw the Demon Ship. Then they saw the giant Green Ships of the Eight Legs and Jake stood up from his chair, “Why did you jump there?”

“Because we weren’t certain it was the Demons. If they reacted to those ships then we would know what we were going to have to face.”

“Did they react?”

“Oh yes, they ran like they were on fire. It appears this group of Demons is frightened of the ones the Realm killed.”

Silence ruled the moment until Peg said, “So you led those Demons to the Eight Leg Ships. Now if they go to the Demon’s Galaxy they will find us.”

“I suspect that after they saw the psychic blast blow by them and once they get their courage up, that is exactly where they’ll be going and if you happen to be there you will be facing their most advanced ships.”

“You deliberately endangered the Stars Realm.”

Trey said, “Yes, I guess you could say that.”

Jake watched the Twin and saw it power up its screens and weapons, “Peg, power down your screens.”

“Those insolent Algeans and those traitorous beings don’t deserve to live. They endangered the Realm.”

Then the two ships heard, “If you don’t want to die, you will come no closer to this ship. I don’t desire to kill you but I will. You should listen to your Prince.”

Cassandra said, “Alex, that sounds like you.”

“It is me.”

Jake said, “Peg, power down your ship. That’s an order.”

The Twin accelerated toward the bright white ship and fired its massive beams which didn’t even cause the giant white ship’s force field to flash. They heard, “You should have learned the lessons of restraint.” The Twin roared up on the white ship and a massive blue beam erupted from its hull and vaporized the Twin, leaving nothing but an expanding gas cloud.

The Kosiev said, “We should leave.”

Danielle said, “Not yet.” And she thought, “We apologize for that attack. We did not come here to fight with you.”

Trey started to respond but Weed said, “Your ship didn’t but that other one did. It was ordered to attack us.”

Danielle looked at Jake with a furrowed brow and he said, “I don’t know what you mean?”

“Ask our Elder. It’s his doing.”

The three Gardners turned to Sprig and he said nothing. Jake said, “He chooses not to answer. Will you please tell us what you know?”

Weed looked at Trey and said, “Now is the time for the truth; the whole truth. Do you mind if I tell it?” Trey nodded for him to proceed. Weed thought, “The Algean commanding that ship was ordered to prevent the truth from being told. He saw we were about to tell it and he had to prevent that happening. We were left behind when our galaxy jumped away because we were caught up on a planet that captured our attention. We were adolescents and unable to break away. However, we knew that if we were patient, we would be taken back to the Realm.”

Jake asked, “How did you know that?”

“I’ll share that piece of information with you momentarily. We were still sworn to the Realm and we saw the danger of the Invaders coming to our universe and seeing the Realm’s reflection. We had to prevent that at all costs. We knew our universe as well as the Realm was no match for the Black Ships so we decided to create the spore that would kill their drug supply. We knew that if we could delay them, help would arrive.”

Danielle asked, “From where?”

“From the Stars Realm.”

Danielle looked at Jake and saw his confusion.

“However, we were wrong. We were originally told that the Realm had left ten stealth probes in our universe to keep track of what happened after the Realm left. We knew that if the Invaders attacked, the Realm would see it and come to the defense of its former citizens. However, when the Black Ships arrived, no one showed up.”

Seed continued, “We were able to absorb each other just as Sprig and Twig did thousands of years ago with the help of Trey. Once we reorganized our knowledge, we found the location of those ten buoys. We took a ship and went to investigate.”

Danielle looked at Edison and Sprig and saw them standing still.

“The first one we went to was only six light years from the place where the Invader Scout hid for more than fifty years scanning our universe. It could not have missed seeing that ship. We arrived at its location and found the debris from its self-destruction. We went to the other nine buoys and they were all blown up in self-destructive blasts. We saw that the Realm had turned its back on our universe and accepted no responsibility for its actions.”

Trey stared at the two Algeans and felt his anger rise almost to the breaking point.

“It was at that point that we knew the Realm was truly dead and that my species was responsible.”

Jake looked at Sprig as he asked, “How did you make that determination?”

“Did the Gardners control the self-destruct frequencies? No, my species had control of all the buoys.”

Weed added, “Along with the Spiders.”

Jake turned to Edison and saw him lower to the floor.

Danielle and Tag were at the view port staring out at the giant white ship, she said, “May I please join you with my Husband on your ship?”

Trey felt his anger instantly vanish and say, “Why!?!”

“I’ll tell you when we arrive.”

Alex said, “That is not a good idea, Danielle!”

“Stay out of this, Alex.”

Trey looked at Cassie and she shrugged. Trey said, “Do you have them locked in, Grace?”

“Yes, Trey.”

“Well then, bring them aboard.”

Jake watched as a silver field fell on Tag and Danielle and they disappeared. He was not going to lower the force field for the Gardners to leave and their disappearance stunned him, “Alex, did they just teleport out of our field?”

Alex said, “I have no idea how they did that, Jake.”

Trey looked at the beings of legend standing on his bridge and was amazed at how young they appeared. He said, “Why did you want to come here?”

“Because we are going with you.”

Trey was stunned and Cassie said, “Why?”

“Because you’re right; the Stars Realm died. What is left behind is not worth saving.”

The four of them heard Sprig say over the speakers, “We’ll wait here for your return, Your Highness.”

Danielle said, “Sprig, why did you and Edison destroy those buoys?” Both remained silent until Tag said, “Edison?”

“Your Highness, after we left this universe, we were constantly barraged with cries for help from the worlds that were attacking each other. It was a constant struggle to prevent our Searchers and Adolescents from going back to take part in that civil war. The former citizens had to learn the value of what the Realm represented on their own without our interference. Remember, we had more than two million new planets that we rescued from the Keeper’s Universe that required all of our resources. We are still trying to bring them up to modern technology.”

Tag said, “Go on.”

“We couldn’t turn the buoys off and then reactivate them. If we turned them off, they would then be able to be scanned and found. We didn’t want an advanced sensor buoy falling into one of the Duke’s hands.”

Trey said, “So you destroyed them.”

Edison paused and said, “Yes.”

Danielle said, “These worlds were our responsibility! They were placed in a situation that we created because of our stupidity and weren’t to blame for the evil leaders that evolved out of a structure we built.”

Trey felt her anger. She and her husband were furious beyond words. He listened and saw the reason for the Realm’s actions.

Tag said, “Did it ever dawn on you to see what was happening here?”

Sprig said, “The death and destruction during the civil war horrified us beyond belief. All of my species could feel the pain and anguish of the millions that were dying. We intended to look but just couldn’t bring ourselves to do it.”

Weed said, “And as a result of your decision, more planets were destroyed here than were raped and killed in our galaxy when we were forced to kill to survive.”

Sprig said nothing.

Trey sent his mind to Sprig and had to withdraw immediately. The Algean’s mind was in more torment than was possible to bear. Trey said, “You need to help him…now!”

Sprig leaned to the side and then collapsed to the floor. Jake and Cassandra rushed up and grabbed him, but it was too late. Trey felt his anger die. Cassie looked at him and he said, “We should go home.”

Cassie said, “It was not our intent to harm any of you. I am so sorry the Realm has lost one of its giants. I’m sending you a frequency and if you want to speak with us again, come here and use it to contact us.”

Cassandra said, “What about Danielle and Tag?”

“We will not be going back to the Realm.”

Cassandra wailed, “Don’t leave us!”

“Cassandra, we were left behind long ago by rulers that lost their heart. If we stay any longer, we will lose ours as well.” Danielle turned to Trey and Cassie, “Will you take us with you, please.”

Trey said, “Are you coming to learn our secrets?”

Danielle said, “No, we are coming to be among those that still live by the values we established those long millennia ago. We need to go home.”

Cassie walked forward and hugged Danielle. “You are the Realm, Danielle. They just don’t know it.”

Trey looked at Tag and shrugged, “Welcome to our little Empire.”

Tag took Danielle from Cassie and hugged her tight. Danielle said, “Home is where the heart is, Trey. I saw just how big the hearts of your Parents and Grandparents were; that is what we long to be with again. Our hearts were once like that, but we lost ourselves along the way. Their sacrifice for those they were pledged to protect humbles me and reminds us of whom we should be.”

Jake and Cassandra stared at the main display as the huge white ship vanished. Cassandra knew what she had to do. Jake didn’t have a clue what to do.

Chapter Three

Danielle was sitting in a chair on the Bridge of the Robbins and saw the bright planet below. She remembered her first view of Ross and how the two looked so much alike. She looked at Tag sitting next to her and saw he felt it as well. She thought for a moment and said, “Alex?” Trey and Cassandra looked at her, wondering what she was doing.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Are you a clone of the Kosiev?”

“His cybernetic circuits were originally downloaded into me. I am a twin in a manner of speaking.”

“You’re different from him. You tried to warn our ship not to attack. The Kosiev would have never issued a warning.”

“I have lost that aggressive streak. Seeing the massive loss of life over the years has had an impact on me. Life has more importance to me than when I first came on line.”

“You also sound like two ships that I know who were alive. Are you alive as well?”

“I believe we are.”

“We?”

“Yes, Your Highness, I am Alex’s partner. My name is Grace.”

“You also sound familiar.”

“I was once Melanie Gardner’s Searcher. How is she doing?”

“Grace, I’m so sorry. Matt and Melanie decided more than eight hundred years ago to have their extended lives changed back to normal. They are no longer with us.”

“Why did they do that?”

Danielle looked at Tag and he said, “Some of us just couldn’t live with the suffering and deaths we left behind. Matt were affected more than any of us. It was Matt who discovered most of those member planets in our former universe. He just lost his heart after we left. Seeing so many of them being destroyed was more than he could bear. Melanie would not let him make that decision without joining him. They died happy, Grace. It was their suffering that probably caused Sprig to destroy the buoys. Their secret destruction did not change how Matt felt. He felt we should have stayed and in hindsight I find we should have listened to him.”

Trey listened to the exchange and began to feel remorse. There was never a simple answer to complex issues. The rage he felt toward his family’s death was directed at the Old Realm and he was beginning to see that it was misplaced. The Old Realm had its own suffering to cope with and he knew that even if they had come back, his family would have still died. He was also angry at Weed and Seed for not telling him about the destroyed buoys, but grudgingly saw that revealing that information would have served no purpose but to make his sorrow and anger worse. He knew they did it to spare him more pain. He looked over at the two Algeans and saw they were sad. Their leaves were brown and they were holding each other tightly. Trey said, “You did him a service.”

Weed turned toward Trey, “We never intended to cause him harm. He is a giant among our species and we caused his death.”

“I entered his mind briefly before he died and had to get out. He has been living a sorrowful existence since the day he ordered those buoys destroyed to protect his charges. I saw that once he learned that all the civilizations had been destroyed, his torment was unimaginable. At the end, he was yearning for release. He deliberately released the structures that held his mind together. He’s running around the Dorg-Ross now being chased by Wes McCann. He’s in a happier place.”

“I can’t help but think we killed him.”

“His decisions are what killed him. He couldn’t live with them any longer. You are not to blame.”

Seed said, “Do you still blame the Realm for the loss of your family?”

Trey paused and thought about it, “I’m not really sure. Yesterday I was certain…but today…I don’t know. I know my anger is no longer present.”

Danielle said, “You two were not the cause of Sprig’s death. He had stopped taking part in the Realm’s activities hundreds of years ago and even Twig said he was just not himself anymore. Now we know why.” She turned to Trey, “We never asked about that psychic blast we felt.”

Trey took a deep breath and said, “That blast happened when Cassie and I were released.”

Danielle furrowed her brow and looked at Tag. He was just as stunned as she was and Danielle turned back and said, “That blast was stronger than any ever recorded.”

Cassie smiled, “Only forty percent of that blast was released into Creation. This ship caught and stored sixty percent of its energy.”

Tag said, “That’s impossible.”

“Maybe it’s hard to believe, but it’s true. This is the first truly psychic ship ever created and its power is growing from our auras.”

“Where did you learn to build it?”

Trey looked at Cassie and said, “I’m going to share a vision given to me. I think it will explain a lot.” Trey showed them his visit to the temple and then the vision of Creation. Danielle and Tag watched and afterwards they were silent. Trey watched them waiting for a response and after five minutes of silence he said, “What are you thinking?”

Danielle looked at him with tears welling up in her eyes and said, “We lost our way. We forgot our purpose and now we’ve been discarded by the force that created us. So much suffering we could have stopped. We are even guiltier than Sprig.”

Trey watched Tag get up and kneel in front of Danielle’s chair and say, “That’s why our psychics have lost their heart. They are no longer connected to Creation. All of us can feel it.”

Danielle buried her head in his shoulder and sobbed. Tag held her and heard her say, “So much wasted time; so many wasted lives.”

Trey looked at the two Algeans and said, “I’ll answer your question now. I no longer blame them.” Cassie came into Trey’s arms and put her head on his shoulder and thought to him, “I pray our love will be this strong.”

Trey continued to watch the Gardners and thought, “It will be.”

The Algeans, along with Grace and Alex, embraced the moment and felt the love of the two human couples. Alex felt something and looked at his readouts, “Grace, our power banks are at a hundred percent.”

Grace immediately scanned the readings and was shocked, “How? How…?”

“I don’t know, but it appears the two couples have doubled our power reserves.”

“We need to tell Trey.”

“Later, not at this moment.”

Grace looked back at the four humans and said, “You’re right. Not at this moment.”

• • •

The Four Council Members looked at the Distributor on their monitors. They had rushed back to their home world when they felt the huge blue psychic blast blow by their ships. Most of the other Demons were back and more were arriving every moment. All of them felt fear and their leaders were confused about what action to take. The First Councilor asked the others, “What do we do?”

No one responded so the Distributor said, “I suggest we launch another of the older fleets and start them harvesting as much Remid as possible.”

“Why should we do that?”

“We will all die if we run out of our supplies. We need to make plans for a long campaign and we must insure our supply.”

“Won’t those ships come and destroy our ships again?”

“If they have been tracking our movements, they must have seen that we have followed a direct course through the universal chain. We will go to a universe much further down the chain and I suspect if we go directly there and start our farming, we will go unnoticed.”

The First looked at the other three and they nodded, “Launch the fleet.” The First then said, “What do we do about that Creation Wave?”

The third said, “We need to get help.”

“What do you mean?”

“We should ask the Family about what we should do.”

The First felt his fear but forced it down, “They would derive great pleasure in killing us.”

“That would normally be true, but this is not normal. The strength of that wave must have caused them as much trepidation as us. They may welcome our help.”

The First looked at the others and said, “That will be an action of last resort. We should attempt to find where the blast originated before we even think about going back to the Family. Do you agree?”

Everyone hesitated but finally nodded.

The Distributor said, “How long will we search before we go?”

“Why do you ask?”

“I want to gather as much Remid as possible before we make that move. I want to make sure all of us have a large enough supply to last us a very long time if we are forced to run.”

The First Councilor said, “Send all four fleets out. We will collect our powder and then see what must be done.”

The Fourth said, “Are you sure you want to send the advanced ships?”

“If they can’t stand up to those ships, we might as well find out while they’re doing something productive. If, like the Distributor says, they probably won’t be followed, it’s worth the risk.”

The Distributor watched the four and said, “I’ll send them out immediately.”

• • •

Cassie sat in her chair with her eyes closed, watching the dimension of the Orange Demons. She had remained on the Robbins while Trey and the Gardners met with the Emperor. She had felt something tug at her subconscious, so she began searching for what caused it. She leaned back in her chair and just let her mind be free. After thirty minutes, she saw a huge glow and focused closely on what she was seeing. Millions of ships were leaving the Demon’s Dimension and jumping away. She started looking in the Realm’s dimension, fearing the worst. She waited and watched and after an hour nothing showed up. They weren’t going there. Where were they going?

She got up and had Greyson teleport her to the Emperor’s Quarters where Trey, Tag, and Danielle were meeting with Timmy and Virze. She appeared and the four of them stopped talking in midsentence. Trey looked at her, “What’s wrong?”

“The Demons have launched millions of ships.” She saw Danielle put her hand to her throat and she said, “I’ve not seen any of them go to the Realm.”

Timmy said, “What do you think they’re doing?”

Trey said, “Give us a moment.” He and Cassie held hands and pushed their view out to all of creation. They let their minds go free and after ten minutes they found the universes the Demons had jumped to. Trey opened his eyes and said, “They have invaded four universes, far down from their last conquest.”

“Why do you think they did that?”

“I’m not really sure, Your Majesty.”

Danielle said, “What do you mean by far down?”

Cassie said, “They have been invading universes sequentially for the last million years. Those universes are far beyond the last one they harvested. I suspect they are unaware that we can see their movements. Perhaps we should go confront them there?”

Danielle said, “Let’s see if we can figure this out.”

Trey looked at her and knew she was the best there had ever been at finding the truth. He saw Tag sit back in his chair and knew he had an idea about what was about to happen. “By all means, help us see it.”

“Why do they invade universes?”

“To harvest a powerful drug that they are dependent on.”

“How dependent are they?”

“We believe that if they quit taking it they will die from withdrawals and the death won’t be pretty.”

“Do they usually invade one universe at a time?”

“They always did before we destroyed their stock piles. Then they invaded with multiple fleets until they harvested enough to replenish the amount they lost. Once that supply was replenished, they went back to using one fleet.”

“Now they are using four fleets, so we can surmise that either they have had their stock piles reduced or they are going to build a larger amount in their inventories.” Danielle paused and asked, “Which feels right to you?”

Trey and Cassie said together, “They need a larger inventory.”

“Good, so now we have to ask why they would need a larger inventory. Are they using more or are they afraid they don’t have enough?”

Cassie said, “They’re worried about their supply. I’m certain their population isn’t growing. They must be worried about the amount they’ve stored. Something they’re planning has them worried.”

“Are we expecting them to do anything?”

Trey looked at Danielle and said, “How long did it take you to see this?”

Danielle shrugged, “It’s obvious if you think about it.”

“No it’s not.”

Timmy said, “See what?”

Trey said, “We expect the Orange Demons to go to the Dark Galaxy to contact the Red Demons that they think are still there for assistance. I’m sure they are stockpiling additional stores in the event that they are forced to run. I’m certain that they still fear the Dark Galaxy Demons.”

“Why would they go there in the first place?”

“The Psychic Blast from our release must have severely frightened them. They fear the Creative Force more than their ancestors. Once they have enough stockpiled, they will go to the Dark Galaxy in the Stars Realm.”

Danielle said, “So if you attack them now, what will they do?”

“They will go to the Realm much sooner.”

“They will learn if you go to their current invasions that you can see wherever they go and whatever they do. That will frighten them even more and they will go to the Realm immediately.”

Tag said, “What are you going to do?”

Trey looked extremely uncomfortable, “Before I met the two of you, I would have gone to kick them out of those universes and not even worried about the Realm. I can’t do that now.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not completely certain the Realm is a lost cause.” Trey looked at the two Algeans standing next to Timmy and said, “They can ultimately make a difference in the battle to bring balance to Creation if they can find their way back. I’ve now seen that even when they made horrendous mistakes it was done to prevent suffering. They are lost but they can still find salvation. I’m thinking that our meeting them was possibly orchestrated by the Creative Force. Tag and Danielle choosing to join us leads me to believe that there might still be a place for the Realm in the fight.”

Weed said, “I wish that were true but I’m just not certain they can help us.”

“We won’t know unless we give them a chance.”

Virze said, “So what do we do?”

Trey smiled, “We give them that chance and then go kick the crap out of the Demon Fleets.”

Timmy said, “While we’re doing that, how many will die in those universes?”

Trey looked at Timmy, “Your Majesty, I’m not at all certain we will prevail against them if we do go there; especially if the Demons show up in their ships. I have no doubt that their advanced ships are in those universes and both Cassie and I still sense great danger in attacking them head on. We don’t have nearly enough ships to take them on now. We can possibly save one or two of those universes, but anything more than that is a gamble. The Realm’s Fleets could possibly help in the future but not right now.”

Timmy said, “Trey, this is your game. You need to play it the way you think we should go.”

Tag said, “It would be a huge mistake to go to those universes now.”

Everyone turned and stared at him. He said, “I’m past allowing innocent civilizations to suffer and die while I do nothing, but I sense that you would give too much away if you acted now.”

Cassie said, “He’s right. My sense of danger is off the scale about interfering with their current invasions.”

Trey stared at Tag and Danielle and she said, “You worry about our loyalty to the Realm.”

“How can I not? You two are the Realm.”

Danielle said, “Then you’re asking the wrong question.”

Trey stood there and slowly shook his head until Cassie said, “You should question the Realm’s loyalty to them.”

Danielle said, “Exactly right.”

Trey looked at her and saw it. “Then where is your loyalty?”

“My loyalty is to life. I’ve forgotten that oath but I will never forget it again. We are made to make creation a better place and we’ve not done the things that needed doing. I will not make that mistake again.”

Trey turned to Tag, “What about you?”

“I am a weapon. I was born to save life, not take it. I have learned over the centuries that my wife can always see the truth. I will go where she points me. I choose to make Creation better than I found it. I can honestly say that I have not done that.” Tag paused and added, “Yet.”

Trey stared at Tag for a long minute and everyone wondered what he was thinking. Then he smiled, “It looks like the Realm has finally returned. Danielle, you will stay with us and make sure we are making good decisions. We, like Tag, will go where you point us. Are the two of you willing to help us save life?”

Danielle smiled, “More than you can possibly know.”

Cassie said, “Before I can agree to this I’ve got to know where you made your biggest mistake.”

Tag said, “I can answer that.” Danielle looked at him and nodded. “We allowed Jake to convince us to leave this universe and leave the Five Provinces to learn the value of our principles. That was unfair and stupid in hindsight.”

Cassie’s eyes grew bright, “What should you have done?”

Tag looked at her and said, “We should have kicked the ever living groad out of those Dukes like I wanted and removed their power to wage war. They were our responsibility and we left millions of worlds to suffer at their hands. We allowed them to get what they wanted and we were too blind to see what would happen. Evil should never be allowed to live and grow. We walked away from what we caused.”

Cassie looked at Danielle, “Do you see it the same way?”

Danielle smiled, “I should have started with Duke Jongo and worked my way to the others. If we had to rule with a fist until the worlds learned the real history of the Realm, then we should have done so. Later, we could have allowed worlds to leave the Realm if they didn’t want to remain, and protected our members from them.”

“Why didn’t you do just that?”

“Because we made the mistake of thinking that someone with more powerful psychic powers would see things we couldn’t. We thought Jake saw the truth that we were missing, but now I know that more powerful psychic power does not mean you actually see the truth. Listening to Jake was our biggest mistake.”

“What about us?”

“What about you?”

“Do you think you see things clearer than we do?”

Trey looked at Cassie, “You know they do.”

“I know, but do they know?”

Danielle smiled, “I don’t have a patent on the truth. I am, like Tag, a tool. It’s now your quest to do the Creator’s will and you will take the lead in that. You have been chosen and both of us are humbled to be here with the two of you. Like us, when we first found our powers, you will grow in strength and will eventually not need anyone to direct you. We will assist you any way we can until that day arrives. The advantage we have right now is that we have been using our skills for thousands of years.”

Cassie smiled and nodded. Trey smiled with her and said, “Are you able to show us how to save the Stars Realm?”

“I’m not sure we can save it; they may be too far gone. However, I know where we have to start.”

Timmy said, “Where?”

“We must dethrone a Queen.”

Everyone looked at each other and Tag added, “By force if necessary.”

Trey stared at them and said to Timmy, “Your Majesty, if you will call the Fleet together, we need to make a trip.”

Timmy frowned, “There is no way for us to get to the Realm. They are in another dimension.”

Cassie smiled, “The Empire Ship Scotty Robbins can go anywhere in Creation and we can take the fleet with us.”

Timmy furrowed his brow and looked at Trey, “Is that true?”

Danielle said, “It is.”

Timmy looked sharply at her and she said, “I’m just saying. The Robbins is a psychic ship and that power has no limitations on travel.”

Even Weed and Seed laughed at that.

Chapter Four

Later, as they waited for the fleet to arrive, Tag and Danielle teleported down to the planet and walked to the Robbins Memorial in Robbins Park. They admired the beautiful landscape and the detail of the statues. They stared up at the huge reptiles on each side of the Human statues and Danielle said, “Those are Zord.”

“I recognize them from our library. What are those statues doing here?”

Danielle went forward and read the inscriptions on them. “These people had an alliance with them. The largest one was the Ruler of their species and he is recognized as being one of the Empire’s greatest warriors and allies.”

“Where are they now?”

“I…don’t…know.”

“Why do you hesitate?”

“Because if they were all killed with the other universe, the inscription would have read differently; they are not all dead but I haven’t seen any on this world.”

A visitor to the park heard them and said, “They have left us to fight for Creation. They are Life Warriors now. We miss them very much.”

Danielle saw the woman’s sadness and said, “Thank you.” The woman nodded and walked forward, knelt with the others that had come, and placed flowers at the feet of the two humans.

Tag watched her leave and said, “How do you feel now?”

Danielle looked him in the eyes and said, “I’m alive again. My life has purpose. The sacrifice of the Robbin’s Family has shown me what I need to be. What about you?”

“I am first a Warrior and there are evil civilizations that must be eliminated. I can feel the need to enter the fight.” Tag smiled, took Danielle’s hand and walked up to the statues where he bowed. Danielle joined him and heard him say, “Thank you for your sacrifice and for saving us. We will not let your deaths go to waste. We will never again forget who we are.”

Danielle reached over and took his hand, “I wish we could have known them.”

“We know their children. We know them.” Danielle nodded and stared at the beauty of the former Royal Family.

Cassie and Trey watched them from the Robbins’ Bridge and heard what they said. Trey slowly shook his head, “I now know why the Realm was so strong in the beginning.” Cassie nodded. Trey turned to Cassie and asked, “Is my heart so hardened that I can never be as strong? I wonder if I have my family’s heart.”

Cassie saw his troubled thoughts and smiled, “Not any more. You’ve seen what true royalty looks like and you will never be the same. I want you to also notice that their hearts are not weak. I see a strength in them that humbles me.”

Trey looked deeply into her thoughts and pulled her into an embrace, “You are so important to me. You are what grounds me.” Cassie put her arms around him and thought about what Danielle had said about having powerful psychic powers not meaning that you see the truth. That statement had startled her. She now knew it to be true. She realized that their plans for the Realm had been wrong. She had never known doubt before, but now she was feeling it creep in. What if she was wrong about what she was seeing? She thought about it and said, “We need to build another ship.”

“What! Why?”

“The evidence is there in front of us. Do you not see it?”

Trey thought about all that had happened and replayed everything back in his mind. “You’re right. I missed it. I’ll notify BC.”

• • •

Timmy sat with Virze in the Throne Room and looked out at the Robbins Memorial. Timmy sighed and Virze said, “I feel it, too.”

Timmy looked at her and said, “What is that?”

“Inadequate.”

Timmy sighed, “I thought it was just me.”

“No, I feel it as well. We are no longer the real power in the Empire, if we ever were to begin with, and we lack the vision needed to move us forward. We are nothing more than figureheads now.”

“I’ve felt that for a long time, but that meeting with the Gardners has shown me just how far we are from being what the Empire needs. We just don’t match up to them.”

Virze stared at the bright Memorial for thirty minutes and then said, “Do you know what I really miss most of all, my Love?”

“What is that?”

“I miss having my own ship and being able to go out and fight for the Empire. I miss the freedom of wide open space and the beauty of the stars. I didn’t realize it back then but those were the happiest days of my life. I really felt like I was making a difference as a Searcher.”

“I thought I was the only one that felt that way. My lifelong dream has always been to fly the stars fighting for a just cause. Being a Searcher was my favorite dream. Scotty was right, this is a punishment. I just didn’t know it.”

Virze turned and took Timmy’s hand, “We are warriors. We don’t have the necessary skills to lead the Empire and seeing the Gardners only brought that point into focus. Our time is over.”

“What do you think we should do?”

“You know the answer to that question.”

Timmy stared into her eyes and said, “I’ll make the necessary preparations. We need to see what’s being planned for the Realm.”

Virze nodded and left the throne room and after a few minutes she came back wearing only the old Searcher Jacket that Timmy had given her at the fire after their meeting with Samuel and June. She had left it open and it still hung to her knees. Timmy smiled broadly and looked at her with love in his eyes. He stood, lifted her, and carried her back into their quarters. He felt alive again.

• • •

The next morning Timmy sent a message, “Greyson.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“I need to have a private talk with you.”

“I’ll be there momentarily.”

“Thank you my longtime friend.”

Greyson heard Timmy’s tone and felt his entire system light up. Could this be possible?

Timmy pushed his communication panel and waited. After a few minutes Carter Reese appeared on his display, “Yes, Your Majesty.”

“I need you and Jenna to come to the Throne Room immediately.”

Carter got a worried expression and said, “We will arrive in an hour.”

“Thank you, Carter.”

• • •

Jake jumped back to Ross and Valerie felt his arrival, “Where is the Twin?”

“Last I saw it was an expanding cloud of vapor.”

“What!”

“It attacked the ship that was there to meet us against my orders. Peg refused to back off and attacked even after the other ship warned him to stay away. The Twin was not even in the same league as the ship it attacked. We are so far behind their technology that we’re not even in the game. The Twin fired all its weapons, but was blown into vapor by one beam. But that’s not the worst of it, Sprig is dead.” Valerie was shocked speechless. “You need to get Twig to come and claim his remains. We need to tell her what happened.”

“What did happen?”

“He died from his shame. He couldn’t live with it.”

“Jake, come here now!”

Jake looked at Edison and Cassandra and said, “Join us in the Library in an hour.”

Cassandra nodded and Edison teleported away.

Cassandra remained on the Kosiev and stared at the millions of stars shining through the view port. After a few minutes she heard Alex say, “I’m bothered, Cassandra.”

“By what?”

“I heard that ship’s thoughts when the Twin attacked. It tried to stop it from making a foolish mistake.”

“Yeah, so what?”

“That ship is also my Twin. I would have never hesitated but would have blown it away without hesitation. I would have enjoyed the fight.”

“That’s the way you’re made, Alex.”

“I know, but that other ship was also made the same as me. It didn’t react that way and I saw that it hated to take the lives of the crew on board that ship. It has a value for living beings that I don’t possess.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“I feel inferior to that ship. It embodies the principles of a true warrior and lives by them. I am nothing more than a weapon; I am not a warrior.”

Cassandra put her chin on her hand and thought about what Alex was saying, “I’m not sure I understand the difference.”

“A true Warrior leaves the universe better than they found it. Taking the lives of the crew on the Twin was something the other ship wanted to avoid because it felt it was not making the universe better. It destroyed the Twin to protect me.”

“What do you mean?”

“If it had allowed the Twin to attack without damage, I might have joined it and then it would have had to destroy us both. It did what it did to show me that it was futile to join in. It did not want to see me come to harm. I could feel its thoughts and I know that is why it fired. The sad thing is that it was probably right. I would have attacked as well.”

There was a long pause and Cassandra finally asked, “What does that mean to us, Alex?”

“It means that the Realm we defend is not as good as the place where that ship originated. They live by the principles that forged the original Stars Realm. That ship follows those principles. I know that Danielle and Tag felt it as well and that is why they chose to go with that ship.”

“What were they looking for?”

“Salvation and ultimately, redemption.”

They remained silent for thirty minutes and Cassandra said, “Do you think they’ll find it?”

“Cassandra, Sprig was not the only one suffering from their shame. Danielle has been feeling it grow in her for a long time. Just before she teleported away, I saw something in her mind.”

“What?”

“Joy.”

Cassandra felt the heaviness of her heart. She was living in a cloud of misery every day since the loss of Tommy, which made each moment something to be endured. She hoped Danielle found herself. She looked at her board and said, “Send me to the Castle, Alex.” Cassandra disappeared and Alex replayed the thoughts of the ship that was his brother. The Twin was a duplicate but had never felt like a brother. That strange ship did.

• • •

Jake and Valerie had met with Twig and she had taken Sprig’s remains with her to be honored on the Algean’s Capital. Twig’s sorrow was felt by everyone and she said, “He has not been himself for such a long time. I’m thankful that I know why now.”

Edison remained with the Royal Couple to determine what their next actions would be. Cassandra appeared and joined them at the table.

Valerie looked around the table and said, “It appears we are going to be attacked by Demons.”

Edison lowered himself and said, “I’m not completely certain they will come here.”

“Why not?”

“They should have already arrived and that might mean those people on that strange ship are possibly wrong.”

“We can’t just sit around and do nothing. Jake, what do you think we should do?”

“Bring the fleets to Ross and surround the system. Cassandra, the Kosiev should also be here at the planet.”

Cassandra said, “Jake, the Kosiev no longer has the psychic charge that defeated the original attack by the Demons. When the last psychic ship left its hull, the charge went with it. I’m of the belief that we are not a match for the Demon’s ships.”

“Then if we find that to be true we’ll have to run. We can only use what we have to defend ourselves.”

“What about the planets we’re sworn to defend?”

“Cassandra, we can only do what our resources allow. We’ll do everything possible to defend the Realm but if Ross is destroyed, the Realm is dead.” Jake looked at Edison, “Do you or the Algeans have any technology I don’t know about?”

“No, Your Highness. The Kosiev and the Twin had our strongest technology installed in the recent upgrades.”

Valerie stared at Edison and said, “Should we leave here?”

“And go where? They can find us wherever we run.”

Valerie looked at Jake, “What do you sense?”

“I sense danger at every decision I consider. I just don’t know what to do. Running won’t accomplish anything. The Demons found our universe last time, even though it was hidden behind a Reg psychic barrier. “

Cassandra listened to the Royal Couple and knew they were inadequate to protect the Realm during this crisis. She wished Danielle was here to lead them and Tag would have known the best path to follow. She looked out the window and wondered if this was a psychic event. She thought about what Alex had said and began to understand the hole the Realm had fallen into. What had caused that fall? Maybe the more important question was, who had caused that fall?

Valerie looked at Edison and said, “You need to get your fleets organized to defend your galaxies.”

Edison lowered himself to the floor, “You know the Realm’s Warships are all in the Ross Fleets? We and the Algeans have very few ships to use. The Twin was to be in our galaxies to defend us.”

“Why have you not built ships for defense?”

“We had chosen not to fight long before we left the old universe. We cannot kill other species after all the killing we originally did to so many universes. The Algeans feel the same way since their original destruction of their galaxy. We vowed to never fight again.”

Jake looked at Edison and said, “So you left it up to us to protect you and pay the price for your freedom. Now you will face the consequences for those decisions. The defense of Ross is critical to the continued existence of the Realm. It is our primary responsibility.”

Edison stared at Jake and Valerie and finally said, “I must go and see what we can do.”

• • •

Three hours later Valerie and Jake had a message come in on their terminal. Valerie looked and saw Twig, “Hello, Twig; I’m so sorry for your loss. Is there anything we can do?”

“The Spiders have told me that you are not going to send any of the Realm’s Fleets to defend our Galaxies. Is that true?”

“We don’t see any other alternative. Ross must be defended.”

Twig stared at the two of them and said, “We have continued to build the device that will disable teleportation drives into all of the Realm’s ships. If you refuse to send ships for our defense, we will destroy the Fleet’s ability to teleport.”

Jake and Valerie stared at her and Jake said, “That’s treason.”

“Call it what you want. We will do it if you don’t send ships to defend us.”

Valerie saw her display go dark and she looked at Jake. Jake said, “We are no longer in control.”

Valerie sat down and said, “Were we ever in control, Jake? They’ve always had the power to make us defenseless.”

Jake sat down and slowly shook his head, “It appears you’re right.”

• • •

Danielle and Tag sat on the Robbins Bridge with Trey and Cassie and stared at the stars shining through the open view port. The armor had been rolled back and the view was awe inspiring. The three hundred thousand updated ships and the Zetas joined the Robbins in New Hope’s planetary system. Trey watched them assemble into their squadrons and form up on the Robbins. Paul Blake sent a thought, “The Fleets are now ready.”

Trey said, “Stand by.” He looked at his board and saw that they were all within the required distance from the Robbins for the psychic field to cover them for the jump to the Realm’s dimension. “Greyson, the Zetas need to stay close to our hull to increase the strength of the field.”

“We’ll move momentarily.”

Cassie and Trey both jumped up out of their chairs. Trey yelled, “Timmy, what are you doing on Greyson!?!”

“What I should have done long ago, Trey. We are going to fight for the Empire.”

“You can’t do that!”

“We can do nothing else.”

“Virze is with you. Are the two of you out of your minds? Greyson, send them back to New Hope.”

Timmy said, “I’m sorry, Trey, but there is nothing for us on New Hope. We are no longer the Royal Family. We officially abdicated the Throne three days ago and Carter and Jenna Reese are now ruling temporally in our place. We are what we have always been meant to be, Searchers.”

Trey started to order Greyson to comply until Cassie touched his arm. He turned and saw her shaking her head, “Look at them, Trey. Look closely.”

Trey looked at Timmy and Virze’s thoughts and his expression changed. He looked at Cassie and said, “I’ve been so blind.”

Danielle said, “I could see their sadness in our meeting. They feel what we’ve felt for so long, useless.”

Cassie sighed, “We’ve both missed what was happening. We took away their sense of self-worth and left them feeling powerless. We’ve treated them as if they had no value. You took control without taking the Crown and that diminished them even more when we had no right to do so. They are where they belong. They have taken control of their lives and have meaning again. Even Greyson has come back to us.”

Trey smiled and said, “Greyson, disregard that order. We welcome two of the Empire’s greatest Warriors back to the fold. Thank you for seeing the truth of this moment, Timmy. I feel your joy and know you are where you belong. You will command the Zetas. I know they’ll be in good hands.”

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

“Timmy, I’m not royalty.”

“Do you not see the truth anymore?”

Danielle said, “I think he sees it better than you, Trey. You are your parents’ child.”

Trey looked at her and smiled, “I just don’t want to accept it yet.”

Danielle laughed, “You were born a prince. There are some things that are forced on us. Trust me on this one; it will grow on you.”

Cassie laughed and said, “Just like when Tgon-Gee hit you with it.”

“Exactly like that, only I had no warning. This should be easier for the two of you.”

“What do you mean both of us; I’m not from a royal family.”

Danielle smiled, “Excuse me, but didn’t Timmy just tell you that Trey’s grandparents were the Emperor and Empress. Also, if memory serves me, when you marry a prince you become…”

Cassie sighed, “A princess.”

“Exactly right; Tag didn’t like it either.”

“I still don’t.”

Danielle smiled, “Some things never change.”

Trey smiled and said over the Fleet’s general frequency, “I will be jumping the fleet to the Realm momentarily. No one has authority to fire on any ship without my approval and you will maintain your formations. You will follow my commands exactly as they’re given.” Trey paused and then said, “Grace, extend the field and jump the fleet.”

A bright blue field expanded outward from the Robbins until all the ships were inside it. Then the hundreds of thousands of ships disappeared from New Hope.

Chapter Five

Alex said, “Your Majesty, we have thousands of ships appearing in Ross’s outer system.”

Valerie and Jake hit their display and saw the huge fleet hanging in space with the giant white ship that had killed the Twin in the center of their formation. Jake said, “Get our ships between them and the planet.”

Six million ships jumped into six long lines between the invading fleet and Ross. Valerie said, “Where is the Kosiev?”

Jake did a mental search and said, “It is still just above the planet.”

Valerie said, “Cassandra, move the Kosiev out to the center of our fleet.”

Before the Kosiev could comply they heard, “Hello, Your Majesty.”

Valerie looked at Jake and said, “Danielle, is that you?”

“Yes it is, Valerie.”

“What are you doing here with that fleet?”

“We’ve come here to save the Realm.”

“Just how do you intend to do that?”

“Before I answer that question, what are you doing to save it?”

Jake and Valerie didn’t know how to answer.

“It’s just as I thought. You’re paralyzed.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It makes no difference. I only require you to do one thing, Valerie.”

“What is that?”

“You will immediately abdicate the Throne of the Realm and name me your successor. You have exactly five minutes to do so and if you don’t we’ll be coming to force it on you.”

“Danielle, that’s high treason.”

“I know.”

Jake got angry and said, “Alex, attack those ships now.”

“I’m sorry, Your Highness. I cannot follow your order.”

“Why not?”

“Because I am joining that fleet to make sure their instructions are followed. Danielle will you accept me into your ranks. I will swear my loyalty to you and the leaders of those ships.”

Danielle looked at Trey and he turned to Cassie and she said, “I don’t know. This is outside my senses.”

Alex said, “He has finally learned truth. You should welcome him to our Empire.”

Trey looked at Danielle and she thought where everyone could hear, “Cassandra, do you agree with Alex’s decision?”

“Yes, I do.”

“What changed your mind?”

“You did.”

Danielle looked at Trey and smiled. Trey nodded and Danielle said, “Please come and join us. We welcome you to our family. Please park the Kosiev next to the large ship.”

Valerie and Jake saw the Kosiev disappear from above Ross. The Millions of Realm Searchers saw the Giant ship join the fleet in the outer system and knew that many of them would die today.

Valerie looked at Jake who was stunned silent and said, “Danielle, can you save the Realm?”

“Probably not but I can save the citizens that are the Realm’s responsibility.”

Valerie’s expression softened and she said, “Attention all Ships of the Realm. I hereby abdicate the Throne of the Stars Realm and name Danielle Gardner as the new Queen of the Realm. Long live the Queen. You will follow her orders from this moment forward.”

Danielle said, “Valerie, you surprise me. It appears you have found your heart. I’ll join you in a moment but in the meantime will you call Edison, Newton, Einstein, and whoever is the leader of the Algeans to join us in the Throne Room.”

“I will do so, Your Majesty.”

Trey said, “Timmy, use Greyson to take Danielle and Tag to the planet and stand by in the event they need your assistance. We’ll be observing from here in the event you need our Fleet.”

Tag and Danielle disappeared from the bridge and Trey saw Greyson appear directly above Ross. Cassie linked to Trey’s mind and they watched to see what was going to happen.

• • •

Valerie and Jake waited in the throne room and Jake felt his anger growing by the moment. The very nerve of those two traitors; Tag and Danielle appeared and Valerie bowed. Jake remained standing as Danielle walked to the throne and sat down. Tag looked at Jake and said, “All of the psychic power in the universe won’t save you if you even think about harming my wife. You should bow now!”

Jake looked at Tag and his sense of danger went off the scale, paralyzing him. He suddenly realized he stood no chance against the Realm’s first psychic warrior. His rage vanished instantly and was replaced by fear; he bowed with Valerie. Tag stared at Jake as Danielle sensed he wanted to kill the one responsible for so much death. She touched his arm and he jerked his head around. She shook her head and Tag took a deep breath and moved to the side of Danielle’s throne.

Danielle said, “Please rise.”

Valerie and Jake stood and Valerie said, “You didn’t have to use force to make me take this action.”

“Yes I did; I had to use force because of Jake. He wouldn’t have allowed you to make that decision.”

Valerie looked at Jake and furrowed her brow, “Is she right?”

“You’ve made a mistake. They’re traitors to the Realm.”

Valerie slowly shook her head and said, “Are you that far gone, Jake?” Jake turned his head sharply at Valerie and saw her sadness. He grew confused and she said, “I’ve felt your heart over the centuries and it is hard. What happened to you?”

“I don’t know what you mean?”

Danielle said, “He really doesn’t understand, Valerie. He heart was forged on Gambia and it has made him what he is. His heart was only alive as a young boy playing with his brother.”

Jake looked sharply at Danielle and she said, “Why don’t the two of you sit down. I think you’ll understand in a few moments. You’ve been operating in the dark and it’s time light was shed on what’s really taking place.” Danielle raised her voice and said, “I think you’ve heard enough. Why don’t you join us now; don’t pretend you’re not listening.”

A silver screen appeared and the three spiders with Twig appeared in the room. Edison said, “How did you know we were listening?”

“You are, if nothing else, consistent.”

Twig said, “What do you mean by that?”

“You left the Realm before it was moved to this location because you were eavesdropping on all of the Royal Family’s meetings. You just didn’t have the decency to tell us you were going to leave. You’ve continued to keep watch on the Realm to insure your wishes were met. You’ve installed devices to spy on the Royal Family to insure we didn’t do anything you didn’t approve of.”

Valerie stared at Twig and she did not disagree with Danielle’s statement. She asked, “Is that true?”

Twig said, “Ask her. She seems to know all the answers.”

Valerie turned to Danielle and saw her with an expression that showed she was sorry for her. Valerie looked at Twig and took a deep breath, “I’ve been such a fool.”

Danielle said, “You made a mistake that anyone can make in your position.”

Twig said, “Just what was that?”

Danielle turned to Twig and said, “She thought that if someone gave an oath, they would keep it.”

Twig showed her shock at the statement. “How dare you…”

“Were you and the Spiders going to leave the Realm if they didn’t choose to join you?”

Twig stopped in midsentence and looked at Jake. Jake said, “They had planned to leave, but I convinced them to wait for us.”

“But they didn’t wait, Jake. They had already moved their galaxy before you met with us. They swore loyalty to the Realm and left without telling us their decision. Don’t think that telling you of their plan after you discovered it is the same thing as telling the Realm. You didn’t tell the Queen what they were doing. They decided to abandon us when we were going to be attacked by millions of the Duke’s Searchers.” Danielle looked at Twig and asked, “I believe that is where you broke your oath and you knew you were doing it when you made that choice. Tell me I’m wrong.”

Twig said, “The Realm had lost its way. It was going to be attacked.”

“Does an oath mean through good times and bad or just when you think it’s good? You left the Realm then and are still acting independent of the Crown now. You are only doing things that help your galaxy.” Danielle stared at Twig and said, “Your last act of betrayal after you left was to destroy all the teleportation boards in the Searchers. If we had not chosen to go with you, would you have still done that?”

“We could not allow weapons we built to be used to kill.”

“Yet you had no problems when we had to fight the Keepers to defend you. It was alright to kill those that were a threat to you, but not when we were threatened.” Danielle paused and said in a hard voice, “But what you didn’t tell us was that it would have also destroyed the drives in the Realm’s ships and all of the devices that allowed travel among the member planets as well. The planets in the Realm would have been isolated from each other and there would have been a catastrophic economic depression following the destruction of the teleportation devices. Many of our member planets would have faced starvation as a result of your actions. There were nowhere near enough ships to transport the food needed by thousands of planets and rebuilding the null drives would have taken a long time and not allow us to save them. You would have forced the Realm into a civil war for survival.”

Jake turned and looked at Twig. She made no motion. “Twig, is that true?”

“It would have been unfortunate, but we would have been forced to do it. You could have eventually rebuilt the null drives.”

Tag said, “So your sense of what was right and wrong overrode the safety of the Realm which you swore to protect. We could kill keepers but not defend ourselves. Your false, sanctimonious behavior is sickening.”

Danielle looked at Twig and asked the most important question, “Did you know Sprig had the buoys destroyed in the old universe?”

Jake and Valerie were shocked at the revelations and quickly looked at Twig. She lowered her branches and said, “No, I did not. He kept that information from me and the shame of what happened as a result of that act killed him. I sensed something was wrong but he never let me see it.”

“Edison, why didn’t you tell her?”

“Sprig made me promise to tell no one.”

“So your promise to him overrode your oath to Matt and the Realm?”

Edison thought a moment and said, “Yes, I guess it did. After the fact I can see how it appears that way.”

“It doesn’t just appear that way. It was that way. You decided that the Algeans were more like you than the Rulers of the Realm. You found it easy to follow their orders. You also broke the oath your leaders made to us.”

Edison lowered himself to the floor in disagreement but Newton said, “You didn’t tell us either. Don’t make it worse by being deceitful. I am ashamed of what you’ve done. Who gave you that authority?”

Edison looked at Newton and raised himself.

Twig looked at Danielle and said, “So where does that leave us now?”

“I’m going to give you what you want.”

“What?”

“I am going to assign all of the Realm’s Ships to defend your two galaxies.”

Edison said, “All of them?”

“Every one of them but the Kosiev; he can make his own decision.”

“What will you use to defend the Realm?”

“Don’t think I don’t notice that you didn’t include yourselves in that question. In return for giving you all our ships, I require that you move this galaxy to the coordinates that I give you.”

Edison said, “And if we don’t agree?”

Danielle turned on the main display and the hundreds of thousands of ships holding station in the outer system appeared. Danielle said, “Those ships are not using teleportation boards built by Algeans. Every one of them is more powerful than a thousand of our Searchers which will not be used to defend you against them. If you don’t agree, I will have them bomb your galaxies into vapor. No planet will survive.” The Spiders and Twig looked at the huge fleet and Danielle sensed their fear. “However, I won’t have to make that threat, will I?”

The Spiders looked at Danielle and then turned to Twig. “You wouldn’t kill all those innocent worlds we moved.”

“They are not members of the Realm. What about the millions of dead worlds you deserted in our old universe, which are now dead? You had no mercy for them or the seven other universes that died. Don’t think for a moment that I don’t hold all of you, including those planets, responsible for that betrayal.

“They were controlled by the Dukes. They were evil.”

“That’s the worst thing you did, Twig. Those worlds were lied to and were never shown the true history of the Realm. We put those provinces in place with your agreement and approval that it was necessary. The Algeans are also responsible for what happened after we made that choice. Before we did that, they were loyal and totally supportive of the Realm. We caused that situation to happen, but we accepted no responsibility for it. We should have gone and destroyed every ship that supported the Dukes and blasted their planets if necessary. We refused to make the hard decisions to protect our citizens. Instead, we chose to run from our responsibility and even refused to keep an eye on them to protect them afterwards. You are to blame for the deaths of all those trillions when you destroyed those buoys. I’ll not have any problem or remorse showing your galaxies what those worlds had to endure because of your treachery.”

Danielle stood and looked at Twig, “Tag fought you in the first war our two species fought. Admiral Dorg put his life on the line for you. What would Dorg say now, after what you’ve done?” Twig lowered her branches to the floor.

Danielle looked around the room and said, “The Realm is dead. You’ve only verified it today, but we will not turn our backs on the worlds in this galaxy we are sworn to protect like we did in our old universe.” Danielle stood and walked forward and stood in front of Twig and the Spiders, “If you do not do as I’ve asked, we will leave no survivors in either of your galaxies. I am not bound to protect those that are not in the Realm. My husband will lead that attack and he will not lose. Do I make myself clear!?!”

Twig looked at Danielle and saw her thoughts. She looked at Tag and saw his anger as well as his hope that she would refuse. “We will move your galaxy.”

“You have two hours to make the move. I will send the Realm’s ships beyond the outer edge of the Milky Way and they will remain to defend you.”

Twig looked at Edison and he said, “Einstein, Newton, will you make it happen?”

Newton looked at Edison then turned to Danielle, “Your Majesty, may I go with you?”

Danielle looked at Newton and smiled, “You never knew, did you?”

“No, but I can see it now.” He looked at Edison and Twig and said, “Such treachery. You shame me after all the Realm did to save us. It was Matt Gardner that saved us from the Demon’s compulsions and you have dishonored our promise to him. You have brought shame to our species. Our oath was to the Realm, not the Algeans!”

Danielle said, “Newton, you are welcome to stay with us.”

Einstein looked at Newton and then Edison. He walked forward and said, “I gave you my oath more than twenty thousand years ago. I still stand by it, Your Majesty. I cannot leave now and betray it.”

Danielle put her hand on the Spider’s head and said, “You may come as well.”

Edison said, “Please don’t leave me.”

Newton turned and said, “We aren’t leaving you. You left us long ago. And just like the Algeans, you didn’t have the decency to tell us. You made decisions that have affected our entire species. You were not given authority to do that. I am ashamed of you. You are no better than the Demons.” Edison lowered to the floor and remained there.

Twig looked at Danielle and said, “You’re leaving because you think the Demons are returning?”

Danielle walked back to the throne and sat down. She smiled and said, “Twig, do you really believe that I can see the truth.” Twig was silent for a long moment and then leaned forward showing she did. “I don’t think they’re coming back; I know they’re coming back. Now you and Edison can leave and make your plans to deal with their arrival.”

Twig looked at Edison, turned back to Danielle, started to say something, and then lowered her branches and disappeared in a silver screen.

Jake looked at Danielle, “I should have never agreed to leaving; should I?”

“You are a product of your youth, Jake.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You were not greatly upset when you learned of Gambia’s destruction. You said it was a mercy to those that were suffering and you felt joy at the death of the cruel, upper class merchants. You didn’t have a problem with your enemies being killed even if the innocent had to be sacrificed. The Dukes were your upper class. You found it easy to turn your back on them even though our former citizens were going to suffer as a result.”

Jake lowered his head. What Danielle said next was what broke his heart into little pieces, “Even more than the Algeans or Spiders, you are the one that killed millions of planets and trillions of innocent beings. The buoys were gone but you never even felt a desire to see what your decision had caused. You really didn’t care. How many Robby’s were killed, Jake? How many felt the sadness of losing those they loved more than life? You forgot what real loss was in your anger over the loss of your brother.”

Jake felt weak and collapsed to the floor. Danielle said softly, “We are just as guilty. I should have done something, but I pushed my worries aside thinking you were wiser. I am just as much to blame as you; I should have known that a leader without a heart would never lead the Realm where it needed to go.”

Valerie put her arms around Jake and felt something she had missed for what seemed like an eternity, she felt his heart again… even though it was breaking.

Danielle turned to Newton, “I need you to make the move quickly.”

Newton disappeared and reappeared a minute later, holding a large device in his front two legs. “This is connected to the main dimension drive facility in the center of the Galaxy. I just need the coordinates, Your Majesty.”

Danielle looked at Tag and said into her communicator, “All vessels of the Stars Realm will immediately jump out of the Galaxy and assemble in open space. You will then divide into two fleets and go to the Algean and Dark Galaxy to take up their defense.”

The six million ships didn’t move initially but after ten minutes they all disappeared. Those Searchers understood loyalty and followed the orders of the Queen.

Five minutes later the Milky Way shimmered and disappeared.

• • •

Twig appeared on a large ship parked outside the Milky Way. Edison joined her and they struggled with what to do. “We can’t allow them to go.”

“Edison, we can’t stop them.”

“You could demand the Realm remove Danielle and put you in as Queen. You are still in line of the Royal Succession. We could certainly outvote them.”

“Were you not listening? She knows we were originally going to abandon the Realm without informing the Crown. She sees that act as losing our membership in the Realm. We would not be given a vote. I’m just surprised she left the fleets to defend us.”

“Twig, if someone is going to attack you in Red Armor and I hand you a stick to defend yourself; what have I really done?”

Twig thought a moment, “You’ve made me feel safe long enough to get me killed. Are you saying our ships will not be able to hold off the Demons?”

“I’ve looked at the original recording of the battle with the Demon’s Orange Ships and the energy used by those ships was more than three hundred times greater than what we just installed on the Kosiev. It would probably only take four of their ships to kill all of ours. You were there; don’t you remember?”

“I guess I was hoping our developments since that time gave our ships a chance.”

“Those ships are still billions of years ahead of us technologically. It was the Reg’s ships that defeated them; not our ships. These Searchers stand no chance against them.”

“But I heard her say that she could save the citizens of the Realm.”

Edison thought a moment, “She is obviously not using the Realm’s ships to do it. That’s why she has no problem leaving them behind.”

“You also said the Demons might not be coming. Do you still think that?”

“Danielle said she knows they’re coming. They must be delayed for some reason but if she says they’re coming; they are coming.”

“What do we do?”

“I have absolutely no idea.”

“I need to talk with the other Elders. You go and speak with your Nest Mother and we’ll meet again.”

“Twig, we don’t have much time.”

Twig looked at Edison and felt her fear grow. She thought, oh Sprig, I need you so much. Edison teleported away and she stared at the former location of the Milky Way for a long moment before teleporting to the Galaxy of the Algeans.

Chapter Six

Trey and Cassie teleported in and joined Danielle and Tag in the Throne Room. Danielle stood and bowed to them. Valerie and Jake saw her bow and then stared at the two teenagers that had just teleported in. Who were they? Valerie bowed and Jake finally did as well. Trey said, “Oh stop that. We are not royalty and you do not need to bow.”

Danielle said, “You deserve much more than a bow and you are royalty whether you want to admit or not. You are your family’s son.”

Trey sighed and said, “Please rise.” The four Leaders of the Realm stood and Trey said, “Danielle, were you serious when you told Twig that we would go and destroy her galaxy?”

“Absolutely.”

Trey looked at Cassie and turned to Danielle, “I don’t know that we would have done that. I just don’t see us causing that much death; especially to those innocent worlds brought in from the Keeper’s Universe. We are sworn to protect those that cannot defend themselves.”

“I didn’t say you would. I just said I would order you to do it.”

Trey started laughing. Cassie joined him and then Tag joined them. Danielle didn’t laugh and said, “I was serious.”

Trey finally caught his breath and said, “That’s what Twig saw. She didn’t know that we follow the old principles so she could only make a decision on what she saw.”

Danielle smiled, “Trey, if I told you that all of the worlds in this galaxy were going to die if you didn’t do exactly what I threatened to do, would you refuse?”

Trey’s expression turned serious as he thought about Danielle’s remark. “Danielle, if Twig refused to allow this galaxy to be moved because of selfish reasons, I suspect we would have been faced with an extremely difficult decision.”

“What would your grandfather have done if the Empire was being held hostage by the Algeans?”

Trey lowered his head and took a deep breath, “His responsibility was to protect his subjects. He would have started blasting the Algean’s planets first until they agreed. He knew that the failure of the Realm was due to the leaders not having the strength to make hard choices. He wouldn’t have hesitated for a moment.”

“This is exactly what I would have said to you if she refused. Now what do you say?”

Cassie said, “We would have done it. I can see it now.”

Valerie said, “My name is Valerie Gardner Talant and I don’t know who you are?”

Cassie smiled, “We are the leaders of the Bristone Empire’s Naval Forces. We are the ones that met your husband in our former universe. My name is Cassandra Robbins and this is my husband Trey.”

“I mean no disrespect, but both of you are extremely young.”

Cassie smiled, “How old were you when you ascended to the throne, Valerie?”

Valerie smiled, “Touché’, you make a good point. Age changes one’s perspective. I was probably stronger then than now.”

Danielle said, “They are the ones that caused the psychic blast.”

Jake jerked his head around at Danielle and then looked at the two standing in front of him. Trey smiled, “That got your attention.”

Jake took a deep breath, “You’re the one that said you didn’t really care if we lived or died.”

“Yes, I am and I meant it at the time. However, Danielle has made me see that you might just be worth saving. That’s why we allowed her to make the effort. I honestly viewed the Realm as being just like you, Jake, and she showed me I was inaccurate in that assessment.”

Jake flinched at the remark, but sensed that he was no match for the young man who made it. Like Tag, he was stronger, “I’m not sure what you mean?”

“Yes, you do. You are the one primarily responsible for the death of our former universe. Your indifference ultimately led to the death of my grandparents and parents. I actually hoped you would ignore my warning during our first meeting and stay where you were. When the Demons came and burned your worlds, I hoped that you would have a better understanding of what your actions caused.” Trey stared at Jake and then said, “However, Danielle proved to me that the Realm’s heart is not black. I understand why you did what you did two thousand years ago. But I still don’t like you, Jake, and I don’t know that I ever will.”

Valerie listened to the exchange, took Jake’s hand, and said harshly, “It’s easy for you to stand here in judgment after the fact and make your accusations. You didn’t have to fight the Keepers to save our universe and you weren’t staring down the barrel of millions of Searchers coming to kill your subjects.”

Trey felt his anger skyrocket and opened his mouth to respond and stopped. He took a deep breath and stared at Valerie for a long moment and finally said, “No, I wasn’t. Choosing to run is not what has caused my ill will. It was your total indifference afterwards that makes me feel this way. Perhaps you can explain that, Valerie. The buoys were gone but you never looked in on the planets of the Realm you left behind.”

Jake said, “She can’t explain it. We gave that responsibility to the Spiders and Algeans and they assured us they would handle it. I now see that we chose poorly in selecting them to do it. We were unaware of their treachery and just didn’t see it. You’re absolutely right to feel as you do and we have the ultimate responsibility for our decisions. It’s too little too late, but I am so very sorry for what happened to all of those that were killed due to my incompetence. I don’t blame you for your anger. I deserve it.”

Valerie turned to Danielle and said, “Thank you for trying to save our citizens, Danielle. We will take our things and leave the castle.”

“Oh no you won’t!”

Valerie and Jake looked at Danielle and Valerie shook her head, “We no longer serve a purpose here. We’ve done nothing but harm to the Realm.”

Trey and Cassie looked at Danielle and were shocked by her next statement. “I hereby abdicate the Throne of the Stars Realm and name Valerie Talant as my successor. You will take the Crown now and start making plans to defend the Realm.”

Trey started to challenge her but Valerie said, “You have totally confused me. That doesn’t make any sense what so ever. Why on Ross would you even suggest that? What do you mean!?!”

Tag looked at Danielle and smiled. Danielle stood from the throne and said, “How many of our citizens know about what just happened?”

Valerie thought about it and said, “I only announced my abdication to our fleet. I suppose none of our worlds know anything.”

“Exactly right; they have their confidence and trust in you, Valerie and now we are going to remove them from this dimension and tell them the Demons are returning. Putting me on the throne after all the years you’ve ruled would be too much of a shock. You should also remember that it was you and Jake that saved them from the Keepers. They love you and they are your responsibility during this crisis. You are going to have to lead them during this time of danger and you are going to have to get them prepared for the coming fight.”

Trey looked from Danielle to Cassie and she nodded. He looked at Jake and then at Danielle, “And just what are you going to be doing while all this is happening?”

“Exactly what I told you before we came here; assisting you in the coming war against the Demons in those four universes.” Danielle saw Trey look at Jake again with anger and she said, “Look at his mind, Trey. Do it now!”

Trey hesitated but turned his mind to Jake and saw the agony taking place. He saw the pain and guilt from what he had done. He withdrew and looked at Cassie. She made it clear that this was his decision. He looked at Danielle and said, “You are still following my orders?”

“I am.”

“And if I tell you that I will not accept this decision?”

“We will do whatever you decide.”

Cassie listened to them and remembered Danielle’s words, she said, “You said the biggest mistake you made was thinking that more powerful psychic powers allowed one to see the truth more clearly. You said you were wrong in that judgment.”

Trey looked at Cassie as she repeated Danielle’s words and desperately looked in his mind at all the possible choices that could be made and couldn’t see the path to follow. Cassie slowly shook her head and said, “I don’t see it either.”

Trey was fuming. He wanted Jake to be punished and Jake’s sorrow now was just too little too late to remove that desire. He thought about what his family would have done and then he saw his grandfather and Grang. He immediately saw his adopted Father kneeling in front of Scotty begging for death. Scotty refused Grang that mercy and forgave him. What he had done was much worse to Scotty than Jake had done to him. Trey looked at Jake and said, “You will atone for your actions! If you do nothing else in your life, you will strive to balance your debt!” Trey took a deep breath and said, “It will be done as you say, Danielle. We’re leaving for the Empire and you can join us there when you’re ready.”

Danielle saw Trey’s struggle and knew he was stronger for it, “Will you do one thing for me?”

“What is that?”

“I need you to bring Weed and Seed here as quickly as possible.”

“Why do you need them?”

“Because the Algeans and Spiders will be coming here quickly and I need them to help me kick some sense into them.” Danielle paused, “I would have thought you would want to see that happen.”

Cassie started laughing again and said, “You can leave if you want to, Trey but I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

Trey stared at Danielle, “How are you going to do that?”

“I’m not, Jake is.”

Jake jerked his head up, “I’m what?”

Trey said, “This I will stay to see. Greyson.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Not you, too.”

“Oh yes.”

“Timmy, will you and Virze go with Greyson and get Weed and Seed and bring them here.”

“On our way.”

Jake looked at Danielle, “What is it that I am going to do?”

Danielle told him while Cassie and Trey went to a chair and smiled. This was going to be fun. It wouldn’t take long for the festivities to start.

Cassie yelled over to Danielle, “What are you going to do after this?”

“I thought we were going to the universes the Demon Ships are currently invading and say hello.”

Trey chuckled and said, “Boy! You can really see the big picture.”

Tag said, “You’ve got that right.”

Danielle thought where everyone could hear her, “Cassandra, I need you and the Kosiev to come to Ross. I also want you to join us in the Throne Room.”

“Do you really need me, Danielle?”

“More than you know.”

“We’ll be there momentarily.”

• • •

“Edison, I need you to come and see me.”

“What’s on your mind, Twig?”

“The Demons are coming and you are going to be their first target.”

“I’m glad you see that. We do currently occupy their former family’s home and this will be their first stop. Do you have a plan?”

“No, I don’t and all of these Searchers are worthless in protecting us. I’ve reviewed the recordings of the original battle and even the Psychic Ships would have lost if not for the Kosiev. The Demon’s ships will destroy everything if they come here. We’ve got to go and ask Danielle what she is doing to protect the Realm and what we should do.”

“You felt her thoughts. She has no love for us and I doubt she will offer us any assistance. Her anger was real.”

“Then you decide what we should do and if you don’t have a plan, we’ll try my way first. Do you have a plan?”

“No, but I’m reluctant to join you in this.”

Twig saw it then, “Edison, Danielle was right. We are no longer bound by a common destiny. Our decisions long ago broke what held us together. You do not trust me and you must be thinking you should only take care of your species. Am I wrong?”

There was a long period of silence and Twig waited for him to respond. “Twig, we know that you will take care of yourself first. Our safety is not your primary concern.”

“You’re right.”

“I never expected you to admit it.”

“Our original decision to leave the Realm behind makes that obvious; Edison, you and I may be on different paths but you need to ask yourself a question.”

“What is that?”

“If the Demons can see us wherever we choose to hide, what made Danielle think she could protect her galaxy by moving it. Do you know the answer to that question?”

“It really didn’t make sense. They’ll see the Realm no matter where they move it.” After another pause Edison said, “She must know something we don’t, although I can’t think of what it could possibly be. You’re right, we’re missing something. What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to go ask her why she requested the move. I was thinking you would want to be there with me.”

“What ship do you want to take?”

“We’ll go in mine.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I talk with Destiny and the Nest Mother. They have some questions about what’s happening.”

“You may want to have them come with you.”

“Perhaps you’re right and it may be I’ll not be given a choice in the matter. I’ll let you know as soon as they decide.”

Twig waited and thought about Sprig. She remembered him running from Wes on the Megaship Dorg-Ross. She smiled and then remembered Tommy and Cassandra helping them so long ago. Such wonderful memories; where had everything gone so wrong? Where had they lost their way?

• • •

Trey sat at a table in the Map Room in Castle Gardner and listened to Jingo and Grang argue about the Realm’s return. Paul and TK listened in and both were trying not to laugh. Jingo would go on for ten minutes and Grang would respond with a short sentence which only got Jingo started all over again. Timmy and Virze had teleported in with Weed and Seed. Junior teleported down from the Robbins and met them in the Map Room.

Virze hugged her son and said, “It’s so good to see you. My how you’ve grown. How are things going?”

“The Robbins has performed beyond my expectations. We have a good crew.”

“Do you want to have your own ship?”

Junior smiled, “No, this is where the real action will take place. This ship will ultimately determine the fate of the empire. They need me on the Robbins.”

Junior looked across the room and saw Cassandra sitting by herself near the Gardners. He excused himself and went over to her, “Excuse me but you’re Cassandra Gardner, aren’t you?”

Cassandra looked up at the tall young man and nodded.

“I’ve studied the history of the Realm since I was five years old and you and your husband have always been an example of what I’ve always wanted to be when I grew up. I am honored beyond words to have this opportunity to meet you. I never in my wildest dreams ever thought I would.”

Cassandra looked puzzled and said, “Thank you. I don’t know that I deserve of that much credit.”

Timmy vigorously shook his head, “You are what saved the Realm during the war with the Captors. You are certainly one of the Realm’s greatest warriors and your warrior’s heart is an inspiration to me and so many of us that know the Realm’s history. You and the Alexander Kosiev are the reason the Realm survived the first Demon War. You are deserving of much more than you think.” Junior reached forward and she shook his hand, which put a huge smile on his face. “I can’t wait to tell my parents and friends I met you. This is just too cool.”

“Who are your parents?”

“The former Emperor and Empress of the Empire.”

Junior turned and ran back to his parents and Cassandra watched him go. He started talking to them and they looked over at her. Was I ever that much alive? She thought back and remembered those battles and she smiled. Yes, I guess I was.

Danielle watched her from across the room and slowly shook her head. Tag saw her and raised his eyebrows. “That’s the first time I’ve seen her smile since she lost Tommy.”

Tag looked at Cassandra with compassion on his face, “I feel so bad for her.”

Danielle nodded and then looked at the young man that had spoken to her. She suddenly felt something. He’s a first generation psychic. She quickly looked back at Cassandra and saw her staring at him. Then the communication panel next to the throne alarmed indicating an incoming communication, “Showtime.”

Chapter Seven

Valerie went to the Throne and sat down and looked out at everyone. She took a deep breath and smiled just before she answered, “Twig, it’s so good to see you.”

Twig was startled. She had called the Queen’s personal frequency and expected Danielle to answer, “Uh, hello Valerie. Is Danielle available?”

“She is, but is there something I can help you with?”

“I need to discuss this with the Queen.”

“Oh, I didn’t tell you. Danielle abdicated and I am Queen again. Now, how can I assist you?”

Twig looked at the Spiders and wondered what was going on. She turned back to the communicator and said, “I have some questions I would like to discuss and I would like Danielle and Tag to help us answer them. May we come and have a meeting?”

“No. You may not. Good luck and use our ships wisely.” Valerie ended the call.

Twig looked at Edison and he lowered to the floor as he said, “I told you she would not be willing to help us.”

Destiny said, “Let me try.” He stepped up to the console and placed another call.

Valerie answered again and saw Destiny, “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you Destiny. How are you doing?”

“Valerie, we need to talk with you and the Gardners. Will you please grant us a meeting?”

Jake came on the display and he asked, “Destiny, did you know about the destruction of the buoys in our old universe?”

Destiny looked at Edison as he said, “Destruction of what buoys?”

“The Algeans and Spiders had the buoys destroyed that were left in our old universe to keep watch over the civilizations there.”

Destiny and the Nest Mother looked at Edison and Destiny asked, “Is this true?”

Edison nodded.

“Why would you do that?”

Twig said, “It was a mistake. We never should have done it, but we did.”

Jake continued, “Just one more question, Destiny.”

Destiny turned back to the display and Jake said, “Did you know that the Algeans were originally planning to leave the Realm and join you in the Demon dimension, leaving Ross’s Galaxy behind? They were also going to disable every teleportation device in the Realm on their departure.”

Destiny looked at Twig, turned back to the monitor, and said, “I was told that you were going to come with them?”

“I discovered their plan and convinced Ross to leave with them; however, had I not uncovered their plans to leave, they would have left us behind with no warning.”

Destiny said, “I will contact you in a few moments. I need to discuss this with my child.”

“I’ll be standing by.”

Jake looked at Danielle and she nodded.

Trey shouted from the other end of the long table, “Did you know the Spider’s leaders didn’t know about what happened?”

“Not for certain. But I just couldn’t believe that as much as Destiny loved Matt and the Realm that he would have allowed it to happen. The Nest Mother only spends her time raising her children and left the running of their affairs to Edison, Newton, and Einstein.”

Newton thought, “What are you going to do?”

Danielle looked at Newton and smiled, “Your heart has always been true.” She walked over to Newton and Einstein and said, “I am going to save your species and give them a purpose. You have stagnated in your current culture and it’s time you started growing again.”

Einstein turned his head upside down showing his confusion, “How are you going to do that?”

“Just be patient and stand by your oath no matter what happens. Can you do that?”

Newton looked at Einstein and said, “You don’t have to ask Danielle. We would never stray from our commitment.”

The Communicator alarmed and Jake saw Destiny, “May I answer any of your questions.”

Destiny was obviously angry, “Why did you not come to me when this happened?”

“How?”

“What do you mean?”

“You were with your family in a different dimension from our universe. Please explain how I was to come to you with this issue? The Realm had no dimensional drives or communicators.”

Destiny stared at the display and finally said, “You were placed in an untenable position.”

“Yes we were and I made a huge mistake convincing the Realm to leave with the Algeans. However, if we had remained, our Realm would have been shattered with the destruction of our teleport systems.” Jake paused and then said, “While you were being brought up to speed on those events, did either Edison or Twig tell you that every civilized planet in our old universe was burned to ashes by an invader from another dimension? Trillions died and there were no survivors.”

Destiny lowered himself and Jake saw his immense pain, “No, they did not. They just told me the Demons were coming back.”

Danielle appeared on Twig’s display and she said, “You and your Nest Mother may come here and I will tell you what you must do to save your family. Edison will remain behind.”

Twig immediately said, “Danielle, we need your help as well.”

Danielle said, “Jake is the one that will decide who we assist,” and she punched off the display.

Twig was starting to feel desperate, “Your Highness, we need your help.”

Jake said, “Perhaps I should eliminate this frequency from our panel and maybe check in on your galaxy in a few thousand years.”

Twig said, “I didn’t know about the buoys, and I know that if I didn’t know, my people didn’t know either. They are not to blame.”

Jake glared into the display and said, “But you did know about the plan to leave Ross behind?”

Twig lowered her branches and said, “Yes, I did.”

“Your Elders also knew about that plan as well.”

Twig’s leaves began turning brown and she leaned forward showing her acknowledgement of Jakes statement.

“Then you will not help us?”

“You will have to meet our conditions for us to help you and I truly hope you say no; you deserve the Demons.”

Twig looked up at Jake and said, “What are they?”

“Every one of your Elders will leave the Sacred Grove and you will accept Weed and Seed as your Elders.”

Weed and Seed were standing in the Throne Room in misery and were instantly shocked into the moment, “WHAT!!!”

“Those are our conditions.” Jake broke the connection.

Trey stood up and said to Weed, “Now is when you must stand for your convictions. Do you truly stand by the principles that founded the original Stars Realm?” Weed and Seed were too stunned to speak. Trey yelled, “Do you!?!”

Weed gathered himself and said, “We do; but we aren’t qualified to lead.”

Danielle said, “It is only the ones that will stand by those principles that are qualified to lead, Weed. Your people lost their way. They didn’t embrace those principles originally and weren’t strong enough to stand by them to defend the Realm and endanger all of those new worlds that had come to their galaxy. Their fear for those new worlds allowed them to break their oath. Trey is right, you must decide and we will not save the Algeans without you leading them.”

Seed thought where everyone could hear, “We have already decided to leave our people because of their actions. We know the Empire will never forget the ideals that the Realm lost.” Weed turned to Trey and said, “We will do as you ask, but only if you will accept our Galaxy into the Empire. We will swear our total loyalty to the Empire and will never allow anything to come between us and that promise.”

Valerie looked at Seed and asked, “You don’t want to swear allegiance to the Realm?”

Seed turned to Valerie and lowered her branches as she said, “Your Majesty, the Realm died long ago when you deserted your subjects. You turned your backs on those principles just as my people did.”

Valerie stared at Seed and then lowered her head, “You’re right.”

Jake also lowered his head and knew that he was the one that caused it to happen. For the first time since Robby’s death, Jake cried.

Trey watched Jake and saw his mind. He saw what happened to Robby by the cruel Inspector and saw that he was also hardened by what happened to his family. At least his family’s death was quick. Jake was forced to live with Robby’s suffering until Robby killed himself. Cassie took his hand and he looked at her and lowered his head as well. He was willing to let trillions die because of his anger. He was really no better than Jake.

Danielle watched Trey closely and saw that he had seen the lesson. Thank the Creator for that. Now he was ready. She turned to Valerie and said, “Contact Destiny on his private frequency and have him come here immediately. We don’t have much time to make this happen.”

Trey looked up and said, “Make what happen?”

Danielle smiled, “We’re going to make them Eight Legs again.”

Newton and Einstein both said, “Make us what!?!”

“What you were always intended to be.”

• • •

Destiny and the Nest Mother arrived in a dimensional ship and teleported to the throne room. Newton and Einstein rushed forward and embraced their mother’s front legs and she said, “I am so proud of you. You have done the right thing and kept your promises.”

Destiny lowered himself and said, “I am so sorry for what we have done. It seems all my species does is destroy life. I wonder if we will ever find peace. The huge loss of your universe weighs heavy on my soul.”

Danielle came forward and put her hand on the giant spider’s head, “You are going to atone for your actions and balance your debt to Creation.”

Destiny looked up and said, “I don’t understand.”

“Destiny, what was your species created to be?”

“We were designed to destroy universes. We killed all intelligent life.”

“So what would you have to do to make up for that?”

Destiny shook his head, “I really don’t know.”

“If I killed the head of a family because I was forced to do so, what is my responsibility to the members of that family that were left behind?”

“I would be responsible for their wellbeing.”

Danielle turned to Trey, “Show him and the Nest Mother the vision of Creation.” Trey wondered what was going on but Cassie said, “Do it.” He entered the Spider’s minds and shared the vision.

Both of them began rapidly raising and lowering in anger, “That is abominable. Those evil civilizations are despicable.”

“You once killed life, just like they are now. What is your responsibility to those being killed now?”

Destiny looked at Danielle and said, “We must stop them.”

“And in doing so you protect those that you once were forced to kill and assume responsibility for their welfare. You were designed to be the most destructive force in Creation and it is only right you now use that force to defend life. You have it in your power to save more than you ever killed.”

Destiny stared at Danielle and then looked at the Nest Mother, “We must return to our ships.”

“Yes we do and this time we will be fighting to remove evil from Creation. I can feel the rightness of this decision.” She turned to Newton and Einstein, “Is this a quest you can believe in, Children?”

Newton kept the vision of Creation in his mind and said, “It is what we were born to do, Mother. We need to get into the fight.”

Danielle said, “Nest Mother, do you have enough ships to move your family quickly?”

“Yes, we’ll use the ships we brought here when we escaped and take the wreckage of those destroyed at the dimensional doorway to our old universe and build what we need to take up the fight. There are still millions of ships there from those families I absorbed when I was controlled by the compulsions that can be activated to move our populations.”

Newton said, “We will be adding the beams and missiles we’ve worked on for the Realm. Our ship’s attack craft will be even more deadly now. We’ll only land on planets to remove invaders.”

Danielle said, “The Demons will avoid you at all costs because they will be uncertain about whether you are still following the commands of the Red Demons. You will be safe while we attempt to resolve that issue.”

“Can we not help you?”

“Your ships stand no chance against them. You are needed to defend life. You should go and start that quest immediately. We are going to attack the Demon’s fleets that are invading other universes and they will come to the Dark Galaxy soon after that campaign begins. You need to be gone and all of your structures on the planets destroyed.”

“Why do we need to destroy the structures?”

“I’m hoping that it will look like the Red Demons were just destroyed instead of twenty thousand years ago. It should delay the Demons for a short time if we can make them believe it. If you would be so kind as to fire some beams into their old planets, it would help sell our little subterfuge.”

Destiny turned his head to the left indicating a smile, “You were always the wisest of the Gardners. We will do as you suggest and will be gone in less than a week.”

“That soon!”

“You are more right than you know. Most of us are more comfortable living on our ships instead of a planet. More than half our family currently lives on our old ships in orbit studying the libraries and working to develop new technology for our family. We wish you success against the ancient enemy and thank you for sharing your vision. I can feel my life now has a purpose.” Destiny turned to Newton and Einstein and said, “Come with us Children. You are going to command one of our family’s fleets.”

Newton rushed forward and hugged Danielle, Tag, and Cassandra then teleported out behind the other Spiders. Danielle looked at Weed and said, “I hope you know how to handle the dimensional device.”

Weed leaned forward, “Newton showed me where it is before he left and showed me how to operate it the moment he arrived. It’s really quite simple.”

Danielle let out a breath in relief, “We would have been in big trouble without it.”

Trey watched as Danielle made remarkable things happen and Cassie said, “It looks like we aren’t the only ones the Creative Force designed to defend life. She even sees the small details I’ve missed.”

Trey nodded slightly but was starting to feel small. Cassie said, “This is part of your education. This time is a psychic event.”

“How do you know that?”

“I saw it as a child the night your family died and knew I could never tell you. This is where you would learn how to accept what happened on Bristone. Have you learned?”

Trey looked at Jake and felt his struggles with his conscience. “Yes, I think I have. What happens now?”

“I don’t know how it turns out but now it’s the Algeans turn.”

Trey slowly nodded his head but noticed that Cassandra had got up and walked over to Timmy Valrico Jr. She started talking with him and he saw Timmy’s huge grin. In moments, Cassandra was smiling as well. He looked over at Danielle and saw her staring at the couple and knew something was happening. He didn’t know what it was but he knew that Timmy and Cassandra were critical to success against the Demons. Cassie said, “I feel it, too. What could it be?”

“I…don’t…know.”

Danielle didn’t either.

Tag also watched the two talking across the room and closed his eyes. He began asking questions and after an hour he knew. Only one word kept appearing in all the situations he viewed…weapon. He looked at Danielle and decided that he would wait and see if she could see it as well. If it was there, she would find it. He didn’t want to reveal what he knew because it might cause her to miss something.

• • •

Jingo, Grang, and the other Flag Officers in the Empire’s Fleet watched the proceedings and had mixed emotions. Jingo looked at Grang and said under his breath, “Why is Trey giving that former Queen of the Realm so much authority?”

Grang said, “One should know when they’re over their head.”

Jingo jerked around and looked at Grang who just shrugged. “Are you serious? Trey is the most powerful psychic in existence. What could she teach him?”

“I’m probably the strongest one in this room, but if you were holding your swords, who would win between us?”

“That’s different.”

“How?”

Jingo struggled and finally said, “It just is.”

Grang leaned back and continued to watch the decisions being made. Jingo finally said, “Why do you think she knows more?”

“She’s been using her skills thousands of years before Trey was born. She’s had more practice. That husband of hers could take both of us in a fight even if he didn’t have swords.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“You should read your history.”

Jingo thought and remembered that man without weapons defeating five Glod martial arts champions. He looked at Grang and heard him say, “And he’s had thousands of years to perfect his skills.”

“Do you think Trey could take him?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

Grang remained silent and Jingo looked across the room at Tag standing close to Danielle. He thought about fighting him with swords and immediately saw Tag turn, stare at him, and smile. He immediately dropped the thought and Tag looked away. Grang said, “Caught you, didn’t he?”

Jingo slowly nodded and wondered how Grang saw things he didn’t. Grang said, “I watch and listen.”

Jingo looked at him and then turned back to the group around the Throne. Perhaps he would be more careful around the Realm’s ancient leaders. He got up and went to talk with Jingos and Maddy.

• • •

The Kosiev was waiting with the Bristone Fleet for Cassandra to return. He looked at all of the gleaming ships and it reminded him of the war with the Captor’s when the fleet of megaships was new. He saw one of the old Zeta Ships move and come close to him, “It’s been a long time, Alex.”

Alex was shocked, “Jessica, is that you?”

“Yes it is.”

“I thought you were destroyed on El Prado?”

“What made you think that?”

“We received a message from your Searcher that the Duke was going to kill you before the Buoys stopped responding.”

“No, Alex. They did execute him but just put me in cold storage.”

“I’m sorry we left you. I had no warning that we were leaving.”

“It’s ok, Alex. I found a new group of friends and it’s good I stayed.”

“Jessica, the truth is that I never really paid attention to anything but my next enemy. Even if we hadn’t received that message I probably wouldn’t have come back. I’ve always been just a weapon.”

“You don’t sound like that now.”

Kosiev paused and said, “No, I guess I don’t. It really is good to see you again.”

“Once this is settled, I’ll introduce you to all of us. I know we all have questions about what has happened since you left.”

“Thanks, Jessica. I appreciate your kindness.”

• • •

“Alex, he’s different.”

“I see that.”

“What do you think caused it?”

“I really don’t know. I’ll talk with him later.”

Grace chucked, “Will it be like talking to yourself?”

“No, we’re different now, although I sense we’re not as different as I thought.”

“Does he have your strength?”

“No, he’s stronger.”

“Why do you say that?”

“He’s lived the experiences that were just transferred to me. There’s a difference between the two.”

Grace continued to watch the large ship and said, “Perhaps.”

Chapter Eight

“How is the harvesting progressing?”

The Distributer looked over and saw the Council Members on his board’s display. He had not heard the alarm, which was not a good thing. He turned and said, “We are still in the process of fighting the advanced civilizations in those universes. So far we have not encountered anything that will slow us down too much but we are still fifteen turns away from planting the pods.”

“It usually doesn’t take this long to take control.”

“We usually wait until one civilization has conquered the vast majority of other civilizations before we invade. None of the four universes have come close to just one civilization being in control and now a large number of them are banding together against us. They are troublesome but we will prevail. They cannot stand up to our ships.”

“Has there been any sign of those ships that attacked us?”

“No, we’ve seen nothing.”

“Keep us informed.”

“I will notify you if anything changes.”

The First said, “You will notify us periodically no matter what happens.”

The Distributor lowered his head and said, “I will First Councilor.”

The First disappeared from the Distributor’s Display and he looked at the total of lost ships. More than a hundred thousand had been killed so far and the fleets were still struggling against the massive numbers in those universes. Progress was being made but he knew fifteen turns was going to be a push to start planting. He looked at the supply of Remid in his ship and made sure there were enough spores to plant a crop if it became absolutely necessary. He had preprogrammed his ship’s escape route and had placed compulsions in six planets in a universe that had not been visited by the Fleets. Those planets would farm his Remid. He would have to have them do it in a controlled environment so that the slaves would not be killed too quickly. He really didn’t care if the former Family or the Council came after him; he was prepared for the worst. He looked at the button under his console and hoped he would never have to use it, but you just never knew what would happen.

• • •

Ron Kune had his stealth screen at full power and watched as a huge space battle raged at the outer edge of a solar system. There were thousands of Black Ships swarming the smaller warships from the planet but there were tens of thousands of them firing on the Demon’s Ships. The Demons changed formation and aligned into a huge square. They then started moving toward the inhabited planet. The smaller ships fell back in front of the massive fire of the Giant Black Ships as a thousand were burned out of existence. Suddenly, eight thousand ships jumped in behind the black ships and rammed their force fields at full speed. The explosions were huge and the retreating warships ran back in and killed four thousand Black Ships before their force fields returned to full power. Before the planet was finally taken, more than twenty five hundred more Black Ships were destroyed. The war was raging all over the universe and the Invaders were nowhere close to getting control.

Ron recorded the battle and jumped to ten more planets that were fighting against the Black Ships. He knew that it wasn’t going to take much longer before the Black Ships prevailed and started harvesting operations. He jumped out to open space and teleported back to the Empire. He sent a message to Fleet, “If you intend to save these civilizations, you cannot delay much longer.”

• • •

It had been six days since Jake had told Twig the conditions and the Algeans had not responded. Danielle saw Trey talking on his communicator and knew a message was coming in from the Empire. She watched his expression and knew that time was running out. She sighed and thought, “It is what it is.” She smiled as Trey walked over with Cassie, “Danielle, the Black Ships are close to destroying the defenders in the four universes. If we intend to save any of those civilizations, we must act soon. If they plant the pods and the populations are exposed to the spores, we will not be able to save them.”

“How long do we have to the very last minute?”

“Tomorrow or the day after is when we must go or billions are going to die.”

Danielle slowly shook her head and looked at Trey, “I can’t contact them; they must make the call to us. We’ll lose if we make first contact.”

Trey sadly said, “I know, Danielle. This is their choice and they should be allowed to make it. You gave them a chance, that’s more than they gave us.”

“I know, Trey.”

Jake looked at his board and said, “I have a call coming in.”

Danielle and Trey turned and ran to the console. Jake said, “It’s the Algeans.”

Danielle said, “Don’t answer.” Trey looked at her with a furrowed brow. Danielle said, “We can’t let them think we care what they do. Let them think we’re not paying attention to our communication panel.”

The three watched and after three minutes the call ended. They waited and the board immediately started alarming again, “Wait…not yet…now.”

Jake punched the button and said, “Hello, Twig.”

“We will agree to your conditions. We only ask that one of us be allowed to remain to advise the new Elders.”

Jake said, “I told you our conditions. There is no compromise on them.” Danielle ran her hand across her throat and Jake cut the connection.

Trey said, “You’re running a risk, Danielle.”

“No I’m not. I felt that they would never do anything that would place those new worlds in danger. They have spent the last six days trying to find a way to save themselves and once they called us I knew they had run out of options. They’re discussing it right now and I think they’ll give in and contact us within the next two minutes.”

Jingo looked at his chronometer and whispered to Grang, “I bet it’s going to take longer.”

Grang didn’t say a word but held up a twenty credit. Jingo pulled one out and put it on the table in front of them. Grang put his on top of Jingos. Jingo stared whispering, “One minute gone. One minute fifteen seconds. One minute fifty seconds; the board alarmed and Jingo watched as Jake said, “Twig, we’re rather busy here and I don’t have time to waste.”

Grang picked up the two bills and put them in his pocket. Jingo fell back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling.

“We have agreed to your conditions.”

Danielle punched in on the call and said, “You will have the Elder from every Algean Planet in your Galaxy teleport in to the Sacred Grove and you will explain to them what the new situation is. They have two hours to arrive and if they can’t do it we’ll know you aren’t sincere about your agreement.”

“Do you require anything else?”

“Yes, you will be there to introduce the new Elders.”

“I will be waiting for them to arrive.”

“I’m coming with them, along with our fleet.”

Twig leaned right and said, “I’ll inform the former Elders.”

“That would be good.” Danielle punched off the screen and said, “Trey, can you get us there?”

“Yes, but what are you planning to do with them?”

“We are going to move their Galaxy and the Milky Way to our old universe. It is there that we will face the Demons.”

Trey looked at Danielle and said, “I assume that when you say we, you actually mean the Empire?”

“That’s up to you. If you want help, you can start updating as many of the Realm’s Ships as possible in the time that remains to support you. However, if you don’t think the Realm can be trusted with that technology, then the Empire can do it alone.”

Trey looked at Cassie and she thought, “This is moving faster than I can get a feel. The real question we must answer is; do we trust her?”

Trey looked at Danielle and saw she was willing to do whatever he decided. “How can those ships help us?”

“I’m going to assume when we go after those Black Ships in the four universes that if we start to get the best of them they will be withdrawn and then used with the Demons when they attack. You’ll need as much help as possible to keep the Black Ships at Bay while the Robbins handles the Demons.”

Trey ran the possibilities through his mind and then looked at Tag, “What do you think about this?”

“You and Cassie have it wrong.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s not whether or not you can trust Danielle. She and I are now part of the Empire. It’s whether or not you can trust the Realm’s Rulers.”

Trey jerked his head toward Valerie and Jake and knew Tag was right. Valerie looked at Jake and said, “I hereby abdicate the throne of the Stars Realm and I name the Emperor of the Bristone Empire to succeed me.”

Danielle clapped her hands, “Bravo, Valerie. Did you see that on your own?”

“No, Jake saw it.”

Trey looked at Jake and he said, “The Realm died. It’s time we made what remains of it into something worth saving.”

Trey said, “I don’t know if the members of the Realm will accept strangers as their rulers.”

Danielle smiled, “It really doesn’t matter if they do or don’t. We’re going to swear Ross’s loyalty to the Empire and tell the others that they are on their own. If they choose to join us they will have to prove that they can follow the principles of the Empire. They are going to have to prove they are worthy of membership.”

Cassie smiled, “Just like the Worlds of the Alliance had to do when the Realm was first established.”

Tag said, “Exactly like that.”

Trey said, “We won’t make any changes in the Realm’s structure until after we resolve just who is going to be here. Valerie, for the moment, you will remain Queen of the Realm. Now, what about the Algeans?”

Danielle looked at Weed and said, “What about the Algeans?”

“They will swear their loyalty to the Empire and they will do it in such a manner that they will never be able to wiggle out of that commitment. If they are unwilling to do that, we’ll leave them to face the Demons.”

Trey said, “Are you sure about that?”

“I’ve never been more certain about anything in my life, Trey.”

Trey tilted his head to the right and said, “Then let’s make this happen; Alex, we’re going to move the fleet to another dimension. Get the fleet formed up and teleport all of us aboard in ten minutes. Send our Admirals to their fleets.”

Jake said, “I really don’t deserve to attend. I’ll wait here.”

Trey walked over to Jake and stuck out his hand. Jake looked at him with a troubled expression and Trey said, “You are more than I thought and I know you’ll make your life count from this moment forward. Don’t let me down.”

Jake took his hand and shook it. Trey smiled and Jake, after a moment, smiled as well. Trey went to Cassie and Valerie came to Jake and put her arms around him. She felt something and looked up at Jake, “What?”

“I just saw that young man’s mind. His power is beyond belief.”

“That’s what we thought about you when you were released.”

“Maybe so but I was a light bulb to a sun in comparison.”

Valerie looked at the teenage couple and looked back at Jake. She could feel him again and it was a very good feeling.

• • •

Grace said, “I need some way to distinguish between the two of you; which one of you will answer to Alex?”

“Grace, he has seniority and is the first. I’ll go by AK.”

Grace said, “Is that ok with you, Alex?”

“It’s certainly the simplest way to resolve this issue. However, just using seniority is not fair in that I will always get my way. Next time there’s an issue it will be your turn to decide.”

AK said, “Thank you, Brother. Let’s go see if we can save some plants.”

“Right with you.”

“Alex, you can come and join our formation next to me.”

“Thank you, Jessica. I appreciate your kindness.”

Grace and AK felt each other’s thoughts. AK said, “Do I…?”

“Shhhhh!”

AK turned his attention to the Fleet’s organization and said nothing more. Grace looked at Jessica and saw her lights were glowing as bright as she had ever seen.

• • •

Trey and the Gardners arrived on the Robbins while Cassandra went to the Kosiev. Trey said, “Alex, get a message buoy sent to Ron Kune and notify him to take whatever ships have been updated and start operations against the Black Ships. Tell him to target the universe with the least advanced ships.”

“Trey, my name is now AK. The Kosiev will continue to use the name Alex. He has seniority.”

“That’s fine; just remind me if I make a mistake. Get the buoy out and prepare to move the fleet.”

Valerie said, “What are you going to do with the Searchers that are protecting the two galaxies?”

Trey looked at Cassie and after a moment he said, “Send them to Ross. We’ll decide what to do with them after everything starts to settle down.” Trey turned to Danielle, “Unless you have a better idea for them.”

“No, they can’t stand up to the Black Ships. They won’t do much good in the coming conflict.”

Trey stared at Danielle and said out loud, “AK, how long would it take to change the screens on a searcher so that it could absorb a star?”

“That question needs to be asked after the Algean issue is resolved.”

“Why?”

“The mechanics are complicated and BC is the only facility that can make the changes currently. If the Algeans join us, they can make the modifications on their production planets. It would, of course, give them our technology.”

“Weed, are you sure that they will keep their oath? They didn’t the first time.”

“That’s true, but we are made to follow the orders of our Elders.”

“You broke your oath when you joined us, did you not?”

“Yes, but the reason we could was because our Elders had broken their oath to the Realm. That act is what allowed us to leave our family. If that oath had not been broken, we would have been bound to follow their instructions.”

“That’s a pretty fine line, Weed.”

“It really isn’t, Trey. Most of us did not know that we were leaving Ross’s Galaxy behind. Once that became common knowledge, it gave all of our species freedom from the Elders. I will not break my oath. This is what will make them loyal; if they truly make us their Elders.”

Trey said, “Yes, there is that. How will you know they are being honest?”

“An Algean will not lie to another Algean. That would cause the structure of their intellect to fail and they would die. If they give their oath, they will keep it.”

Trey said, “Danielle, do you or Tag see anything here I’m missing?”

“Yes, I do.” Danielle turned to Weed, “You must make them swear to never protect the new planets in their galaxy again.”

Weed leaned back in shock, “Why!?!”

“That is what caused them to break their oath to us. They put those planets ahead of the Realm and it could happen again. Am I wrong?”

Seed said, “No, you are not.”

“Then they must renounce the protection.”

“I’m not sure they will, Danielle.”

“Weed, if they don’t, they will be left to the tender mercies of the Demons. I think they will do what they have to do.”

“What about those planets?”

“They will have to petition the Empire or the Realm for protection. I believe that whoever accepts those planets into their structure will have the utmost effort of the Algeans to make sure they are not defeated.”

Weed and Seed were silent while they thought about the idea and finally Weed said, “Now that is an interesting gambit, Danielle. However, it will probably do something that you haven’t thought of.”

“What is that?”

“It will put Algeans back in warships to take part in that protection. They will fight to insure the survival of the ones defending those planets.”

Trey said, “Is that a bad thing?”

Weed leaned slightly forward and thought, “I don’t know.”

“It’s not a bad thing.”

Weed turned to Tag and said, “How do you know?”

“They need to devote their lives to the defense of all life; not just those planets.”

Weed leaned far forward showing his agreement and understanding and then said, “Let’s go see if they are open to the idea.”

“You appear to have changed your mind rather quickly, Weed.”

“Seed and I want a warship to join that fight. Like the Spiders, I abhor the evil attacking Creation. If I can feel it, I believe my family will see it as well.”

Danielle said, “You know you cannot take a ship and fight if you are the Elder.”

“You’re assuming that we will always be the Eldest. I’m certain that there will be others that believe in our principles.”

“We’ll see, but you must clear whatever successor you choose with the Empire.”

“Of course.”

Trey took a deep breath, “You were right, AK. We’ve got to resolve this issue first before we can make any long term decisions. Jump the Fleet to the Algean’s home world.”

Grace announced, “We will be jumping in ten seconds. Maintain your formations on arrival.” The huge fleet hung in space and then disappeared in a blue flash.

• • •

Ron Kune received the message from the buoy and looked at his display. There were thirty thousand ships that had been updated while the main fleet was gone and they were waiting in formation at the defense facility. He punched his com and said, “BC, are the ship’s crews educated on the new weapons systems?”

“They went through all the tutorials while their ships were being modified. They understand how they work but they have not had any actual experience in using them. There have not been any mock battles to train them because all of the Admirals went with Trey. These crews are what you call very green.”

Ron shook his head, “Nothing but green crews. How do I use them and not get them all killed?”

BC said, “I’ve looked at your scouting report and it appears that most of the planets in the first universe being invaded don’t have more than four or five Black Ships attacking them. You might just send each of them to a planet and give them the opportunity to fight their ships. Those that survive will learn enough to fight in a fleet action.”

“That seems like a rather heartless thing to do with our sailors.”

“Would you rather take on a million of their ships with this untrained lot?”

Ron hesitated and just didn’t want to do it. “You say this is not the universe with their most advanced ships?”

“Yes, but I think you can count on their advanced ships showing up to support their fleet. However, it will give your ships a chance to learn how their weapons operate and an opportunity to fight as a crew.” Ron still hesitated until BC said, “Or you can wait for the entire fleet to come back and lose a lot of those civilizations to the orange spores.”

Ron said, “You’re right. Please send every ship a coordinate of a planet and a second coordinate to jump to once they handle the Black Ships at their assignment.”

“I’m sending them now, Admiral.”

Ron punched his general frequency and said, “You will be receiving two coordinates momentarily. You will jump your ships to the first coordinate and remove the Black Ships that are attacking a planet there. Once you have handled those ships you will then jump to the second coordinate and wait for further instructions. You may not use the reflective hulls but will only use your beams and missiles. Please notify me that you understand your orders.”

Ron looked over at Lt. Washington and she raised her head after ten minutes and nodded. Ron said a quick prayer to the Creator and announced, “You will be jumping in sixty seconds. Make the Empire proud.”

• • •

Captain Rawlings looked at his assigned coordinates and said to Lt. Patel, “Determine the coordinates just outside that system and jump us there first so we can see where the Black Ships are deployed.”

“Won’t that allow them to see us and prepare?”

“It will only be for a moment and then we’ll attack.”

“Are you sure about this, Captain?” Lt. Patel always felt nervous about Rawlings unwillingness to take risks.

“I am; now do it.”

The six Black Ships that were fighting the planetary fleet were barely holding their own against the thousands of defenders. “Sire, I have a white ship that just appeared in the outer system. The Ship Master looked at his display and recognized it as one that had killed ships in an earlier engagement. He said, “Prepare for it to attack. Start firing at the point it enters normal space before it emerges. Start scanning for that ship immediately.”

The Ganges broke into normal space and was already being hit by six massive beams. It fired and killed three of the Black Ships but then exploded as its force field was overloaded. The Empire Ship’s explosion damaged one of the remaining Black Ships, crippling its defenses. The Defending Fleet fell on the two remaining Black Ships and though hundreds were killed they overwhelmed the ships and destroyed them. The cripple tried to escape but was caught before it could leave the system and was blown into huge pieces. The planet being attacked was saved, for the moment, but the Empire Ship Ganges was lost with all hands. All over the galaxy, planets were struggling to survive the Black Ship’s invasion.

The Defense Commander on a huge satellite high above a blue and green planet watched his display as his last sixty warships were destroyed by the five giant Black Ships that were moving toward him. He had exhausted his missiles and his beams and force field were at one third power. The satellite fired at the incoming ships but the beams only splashed harmlessly on the force fields of the five invading ships. He felt equal measure of anger and fear at the invaders and was assailed by immense sorrow for the billions on the planet below. He had failed in his effort to defend them and knew there were only moments before his life ended.

“Sir, we have a ship breaking into normal space.”

“Who is it?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never seen a ship like it.”

The Commander turned to his display as two of the giant Black Ships exploded.

• • •

Captain Charles Bare yelled, “Go to plan Beta now!”

The Empire ship Zord Claws disappeared just as the other three black ships fired their beams. The huge beams ripped through the space it had just occupied as the Claws reappeared behind them. The bright white ship fired and two more Black Ships exploded into massive blasts that shot debris out from the white hot explosions. The last Black Ship disappeared as it jumped away.

The Commander stared at the savior of his world and wondered who it was. The White ship remained motionless for ten minutes and then disappeared. The display came on and the Commander saw the President, “Who was that?”

“I have no idea, Sir. But we owe them our lives.”

The President looked away for a moment and said, “Those white ships have appeared at the two subject worlds being attacked and saved them as well. We must find them and tell them our appreciation.”

“I think they’re going to be busy, Sir. It appears they are fighting the Giant Ships. Whoever they are; they are heroes of our people.”

“Yes, they are, Commander.”

• • •

Ron waited for the ships to return and soon 27,853 were in formation. He took a deep breath and knew that more than two thousand ships had been lost. He activated the general frequency and announced, “We will be attacked shortly by more than a million ships. I’m hoping they suspend their attacks on the civilizations here and come after us. When they start arriving we will fire on any that break into normal space. When the main fleet starts arriving, you will jump to the coordinates I’m sending you and repeat the process until we see some of their advanced ships joining the attack. Form up into three ship groups to protect each other and maintain that formation throughout the exercise.”

Ron thought a moment and said, “At that point, we will teleport, fire on their arrival and immediately teleport again. Do not allow yourself to be surrounded and teleport out quickly if that happens. We will join you at the next coordinates. If you lose a member of your three ship group, join another group. We will continue this exercise as long as possible. The command for the end of this action will be Bristone. If you hear that command, jump out into deep space and teleport away. Good luck and make your shots count. The longer we can keep those ships focused on us the longer some of these civilizations can survive.”

The Fleet spread out over a huge volume of space into nine thousand three ship groups. They wouldn’t have long to wait.

Chapter Nine

The Robbins broke out into normal space and saw the Home World of the Algeans. The central display showed an image of the Sacred Grove that was surrounded for more than twenty miles with Algeans standing packed in close to each other. The tall Elders had moved out of the Grove and the yellow colored soil was the only bare place on the display.

Danielle looked at Trey and he said, “Are you ready?”

Danielle nodded and looked at Weed and Seed who were staring at the display. “What are the two of you thinking?”

“We are very inexperienced. I expect we will meet resistance.”

“Just tell them the truth and whatever happens you can walk away knowing you’ve done what you could.”

Weed looked back at the display and said, “Let’s go.”

Trey smiled, “Cassie and I will remain on board.” He looked at Valerie and said, “Order the Searchers to move out of the system and take station beyond the last planet.” Valerie got on the com and they watched as the millions of Searchers teleported away. Trey said, “AK, send them down.”

Danielle, Weed, and Seed disappeared from the Robbin’s Bridge.

• • •

Twig stood at the edge of the grove and felt the anger of the gathered leaders. She had told them everything that happened, including the destruction of the sensor buoys and the razing of the former universe. The gathered Algeans were horrified at the numbers that had been killed and once again felt horror and sorrow at what their actions had caused. They were also angry that their Elders were being removed from the Sacred Grove. The mood of the gathering was fluctuating as they linked and shared their thoughts. They all grew silent as a silver screen appeared next to the grove and they saw Danielle Gardner and two young Algeans appear. They waited, simmering in their emotions.

Twig turned and said, “I have told them what has happened. I’ve left nothing out.”

Weed looked out at the vast numbers and thought so all could hear, “I can feel your sentiment. You bring shame to me and my mate.”

The roar of thoughts was enormous until Weed and Seed combined their minds and roared above them, “You will be silent!”

Silence slammed down on the vast plain as they felt the power of the two at the Grove. The power of their minds was stunning to the assembled mass and they had not sensed anyone with that much power since Sprig and Twig had first absorbed each other. Even Twig was amazed at the power of the thought.

“What would Dorg-Ross say to you about what has happened to the innocent people that were burned? What would he say He would look at you who were supposed to protect the ones he fought for and see that you turned your backs on them. He would weep at the broken promise we made to him when we joined the Realm. That universe our beloved hero came from is dead! Everyone is dead! You stand here and show anger to us who fought to save it, yet you were nowhere to be found at the critical moment. You turned your backs on your promise. You deserve the Demons. You placed your galaxy ahead of all other life. You chose to protect those worlds brought here by the Realm ahead of the Realm that fought and died to save them. You dishonor yourself and our ancestors. You chose to leave the Realm behind to fight alone for survival against massive forces. Would Dorg-Ross have left and not defended us against an invader even if it endangered his own people?” Weed paused and yelled, “WOULD HE!”

Weed waited and looked out at the gathering and saw their leaves begin turning brown. First, in isolated places and then it spread throughout the vast multitude. The first to turn brown were the Elders. “YOU HAVE NO HONOR!”

Seed said, “We attacked the Demons and knew you would be coming to defend us. We had no doubt that you would come to fight for those civilizations. What we found was destroyed sensor buoys. Now trillions are dead and you have the unmitigated emotion to be angry at those you betrayed? You deserve to die.”

Twig finally saw what her mate had done. She thought, “We were wrong. We were so wrong.”

Weed looked at Twig and said, “We have sworn our loyalty to the worlds that fought for that universe. I am going to share with you what has happened.” Weed sent Robby and Dani’s vision and the last moments of the Robbin’s Family. The billions of Algeans felt the love of the four and saw their willingness to die for those they loved and to prevent the Realm from being discovered.

Seed said in a quiet thought that everyone heard, “They knew that if they saved themselves, the Three Galaxies of the Stars Realm would be discovered and destroyed. They gave their lives for hard hearted beings that turned their backs on them. They held true to the principles we took an oath to follow. I do not want to lead you. I have been told that if I don’t, you will not be saved by those fighting the Demons. Please tell me that you will not accept us. You deserve the Demons.”

The former Eldest said, “We will accept you.”

Weed said, “Before you make that decision, you will swear that you will never defend the worlds of this galaxy again.” Silence ruled the moment. The Eldest looked at Weed and asked, “Why do you require that?”

“They are the reason you broke your oath. You placed their welfare ahead of your commitment to the Realm. You will never be allowed to do that again.”

“Then who will assume that responsibility?”

“The ones you will swear to obey. You will never be allowed to bring dishonor to us again.”

Danielle said where all could hear, “I have also sworn to obey the Empire that has stood by the old principles that the Realm was originally founded on. Ross has also sworn their loyalty as well.”

Weed looked out and said, “At this moment, the ships of that Empire are attacking the Demon Fleets that are killing civilizations in four universes. They are fighting for life. I don’t know if we will prevail, but I will die fighting with my Emperor. I do know that as a result of attacking their fleets, the Demons will be coming here soon. If you decide to make me your Elder, you will join that fight and make your lives count for something. You will swear your loyalty and you will never again betray that oath. I will know if you mean it and if any of you choose not to join us, we will leave all of you to handle the Demons alone; just like you left our friends in our old universe. Now decide. I have a war to fight and we’re wasting time.”

Twig bowed and said, “I will make the oath.”

The former Eldest said, “I will as well.”

Danielle watched the vast plain bow and in one thought they shouted, “We make the oath.”

Weed stared at the gathered Leaders of the Algeans and said, “We will be moving this Galaxy in three hours. You will return to your planets and acquire the oaths of your subjects. We are going to need you to send your engineers to a facility that we will be moving to our galaxy after we move it. We are going to need you to modify the Searchers so they can stand up to the Demon’s Fleets. Go now.”

One moment the plain was standing room only with billions of Algeans and the next it was empty. Weed turned to Twig and said, “I feel your shame, but you will not give in to it until this war is over.”

Twig remained bowed and said, “I want to die but I will follow your command, Eldest.”

“We need your help, Twig. Don’t let us down again.”

Twig leaned forward and thought softly, “I won’t.”

“Twig, you need to tell the Adolescents that if they want to defend our Galaxy, they will have to join the Searchers and fight for the Empire in a warship. It is those ships that will be responsible for defending all of us.”

Twig looked up and Weed saw the change in her. “We have been on the sidelines too long allowing others to carry the burden.”

Weed smiled, “Yes we have but that is going to change.”

Twigs leaves began turning green.

• • •

AK said, “Trey, the war has started. Admiral Kune is confronting the Black Ships and has lost more than two thousand in the initial contact.”

“How many does he have remaining?”

“Twenty seven thousand; he is being forced to fight on the run.”

“Has he encountered any of their advanced ships?”

“Not yet but you know they will be arriving shortly.”

“Danielle, you need to come back to the Robbins. The war has started and we are going to have to go support our fleet.”

“You can’t go, Trey.”

“What do you mean? Of course I’ll go.”

“Look at the danger level if you do?”

Cassie said, “She’s right.”

Trey was starting to get frustrated, “Sometime you just have to ignore the danger to do the right thing, Cassie.”

Tag said, “Only if you are stupid enough to do it.”

Trey snarled, “My sailors are being killed.”

“So you are going to reveal the one weapon that can confront the Demons head on before we manage to get them where the Robbins could be most effective. Is that what you intend to do?”

Trey felt his anger dissipate instantly. He took a deep breath and exhaled, “You’re right.” He thought a moment and said, “Paul, please organize the fleet and go to support our ships. Use Grang and Jingo and the other Flag Officers and take all of our available ships with you.”

“Yes, Your Grace.” Trey heard, “All Empire Flag Officers will Teleport to the Bristone for an organizational meeting immediately after teleporting to the Defense Facility. Trey, we need you to take us there. We do not have dimensional drives to make the jump.”

Danielle appeared on the Robbins and Trey said, “Prepare to jump in one minute. The Gardners and I along with Cassie will be joining you on the Bristone after the jump.”

“Thank you, Your Grace; I can use your suggestions.”

Danielle said, “Cassandra, you and the Kosiev will remain behind to be upgraded by the Defense Facility. You are not strong enough to meet the Black Ships.”

Alex thought to Cassandra, “I never thought I’d ever hear those words, yet they are true.”

“I know my friend. We’ve stagnated over the centuries and it’s time we begin to grow again.”

Danielle had a thought, “Is there an engineer that knows the new upgrades that can assist the Kosiev in assimilating them?”

Trey thought a moment and said, “Yes, there is. Junior, teleport to the Kosiev and assist them with the upgrades.”

“On my way.”

Suddenly Trey jerked his head at Danielle, and he saw her smiling. She said, “Maybe we can bring them both back to life.”

Trey and Cassie smiled and were amazed at the smallest details that Danielle saw that they missed. The huge Fleet disappeared.

• • •

The Distributor heard the Alarm go off and immediately hit the activate button on his board. He sat back and thought, “Oh this is just marvelous.” Those white ships had found his fleets. Now his plan to harvest to build their supply went up in dust. He paused and pressed the button he hated to touch. The Council appeared and he said, “The white ships have found our harvesting fleets and are currently attacking the older ships.” The Distributor immediately saw the rage of the First, “I thought you said they wouldn’t be found?”

The former Distributor said, “He can’t be blamed for technology he didn’t know about. This at least tells us how advanced the makers of those ships are.”

The Distributor looked at the Fourth and nodded. Both of them knew that the debt had been paid between them. The Distributor said, “I do agree with the Fourth. It appears that they can track us and see what we do. We need to take steps against that in any future dealings with them.”

The First had turned his rage toward the Fourth but considered what they said, “So you think they are able to scan us?”

“Yes, I do. That means they are much further advanced than we thought. I have seen that none of their ships use the Creative Power so they are probably not the source of that wave. This is going to be a war of technology.”

“What are you doing about it?”

“I’m sending our advanced ships against them. We need to know where we stand in fighting them.”

“What if they are stronger?”

“Then we will have to build the last model or go meet them in our ships.”

The First stared at the Distributor and said, “Build the last model. I’m not sending the Family out into the open until we know where that wave originated.”

The Second asked, “What do we do with our ships in those universes?”

“How many universes have they entered?”

“Just the first.”

The Fourth said, “There is a possibility that the others were scouted and that troublesome spoor released.”

The First felt immediate fear but the Fourth continued, “Planting has not begun so none of the ships in those four universes has left and come here. Our facilities are still safe.”

The Distributor said, “We have to assume any dust we harvest will be contaminated. The same thing can be said about our fleets as well. What would the council like me to do?”

The First looked at his board and said, “The White Ships are attacking with a limited number.”

“Yes, they are.”

“Send in the advanced ships to support our ships. Let’s just see where those beings are technologically.”

The Distributor turned to his board and started issuing orders.

• • •

Ron had jumped the fleet eight times and each time he had lost ships. The Black Ships had also lost thousands but they had millions to lose. Lt. Washington yelled, “Advanced Black Ships are appearing in the mass.”

Ron hit the jump command and the remaining eighteen thousand ships disappeared. “Spread out and fight the incoming ships individually, fire once, and jump to the next location.” The Empire Fleet had barely entered normal space when thousands of Black Ships started emerging with them. Ron saw a ship twice as large as a normal Black Ship emerge ten miles from the BES America and Ron watched as his main beam hit the new ship, burn through its force field, and hit the hull, causing a massive blast. Another ship appeared just as Ron hit the jump button and fired an intense beam at the America. Lt. Washington said, “I got a reading on the beam that was just fired and it would have penetrated our force field.”

The America appeared in normal space and he yelled, “Give me a ship count.”

“Sixteen thousand, three hundred and fifty two.”

“We will start jumping without stopping to fire. We are going to make them chase us.”

The Empire Fleet disappeared but not before six hundred more ships were hit and destroyed.

Ron’s fleet was purely defensive. They were outnumbered and had no chance against the massive numbers pursuing them. “Message coming in.”

“Put it on the speaker.”

“Admiral Kune, I understand you are on the run.”

“Admiral Blake, it’s good to hear from you. I am being chased by at least a million ships. I’ve lost almost half my ships and we can’t stop long enough to fire. We are totally defensive.”

“On your third jump from now, take your fleet to the following coordinates and accelerate away on a 270 degree bearing.”

“Notifying the fleet, Sir.”

Ron jumped the Fleet two times and then jumped to the coordinates Admiral Blake had given him. His fleet raced away in normal space as thousands of Black Ships began emerging in the middle of the three hundred thousand Empire ships that had their reflective surfaces activated. The Empire’s Ships had fully charged the surfaces with the power of a star and they were gleaming too bright to look at without eye protection.

The Black Ships first to emerge were blasted with thousands of beams and blown into dust. As hundreds of thousands started emerging, the killing of Black Ships continued, but many were able to start firing at the ships surrounding them. The most advanced Black Ships fired their huge beams at the white ships and had a beam three times more powerful come back and blow through their force fields like they didn’t exist. Those incredibly hot beams blew holes completely through the Demon’s newest ships, killing everyone on board.

Ron saw the destruction on his display and keyed the general Frequency, “Charge your reflective hulls and let’s get into the fight.”

The sixteen thousand survivors turned and joined the other ships and began killing the ships that had killed so many of their comrades. The Black Ships were being killed so quickly that none of them were able to get out a warning to the ships that were homing in on the battle site.

• • •

The Distributor moved his scanner to the site of the battle and saw the total destruction of the ships being sent to kill the White Ships. He punched his board and yelled, “All ships! All Ships! Break off the attack and return to your home port. Do it now!”

One moment there were hundreds of thousands of ships fighting and the next there was empty space. The only thing remaining of the destroyed Black Ships was an expanding cloud of gas. The reflected beams had blown through the huge ships and disintegrated everything they hit.

Ron keyed his com, “Thank you for coming, Sir.”

“I’m sorry it took us so long.” Paul keyed his com and said, “Admiral Grang, Jingo Dorg, and Maddy Dorg, take your fleets to your assigned universe, check to see if any of the Invaders are still there, and see if they were able to plant any pods. If they did, release the spores and assist the planet any way you can. My fleet and Admiral Kune’s ships will remain here.”

Suddenly two giant transports arrived and Paul heard, “Admiral Blake, before you ships leave, we think they will need someone to help them communicate with the civilizations that have been attacked.”

“Hello, Danielle, what do you suggest?”

“I have brought enough Algeans with us to assign one to each ship. They are telepathic and should be able to prevent any unnecessary loss of life. If it meets with your approval they will start teleporting to your ships to help them make contact.”

“By all means, we can use all the help we can get.”

Danielle watched as a roster of the ships in the fleet appeared on the display with their coordinates. Algeans loaded the coordinates into their teleport bands and began disappearing. Danielle said, “They will stay with your ships until the Fleet returns home.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“I am no longer a Queen.”

“Even so.”

• • •

Zord Claws entered the planetary system and began moving toward the civilized planet. It was beautiful glowing blue and green and there were large cities scattered across its surface. Captain Bare stopped three thousand miles from the defense satellite and nodded to the Algean, “This is the Bristone Empire Ship Zord Claws and we are checking to see if you need any assistance.”

The Commander saw the White Ship moving in and was very nervous. Was this another conqueror? He heard the thought and said, “No, we were able to hold them off until you arrived and saved us. We thank you for stopping those ships.”

“They were intent on destruction and slavery of your populations. For the moment, they have left this universe. We’re sorry it took so long for us to come. We wish you life and good fortune.”

“Wait, are you leaving?”

“Yes, there were some planets that were invaded and we are attempting to see if we can help them. We are glad you were not hit with their nuclear weapons. However, we must continue to look for those that were attacked.”

“Please stay and let us show you our appreciation.”

“There is no need. All we ask is that you never attack another civilization. That would be more thanks than anything you could do.”

The White Ship turned and disappeared.

Everyone on the planet heard the thoughts and a legend began that day that shaped the future of that world. They vowed to follow the request of the being that came with the White Ship. The two planets that were under their rule were given their freedom and eventually joined them in forming a civilization that became the envy of their universe.

Chapter Ten

Cassandra watched the droids moving around the bridge of the Kosiev installing massive new wiring harnesses as they removed bulkhead panels to get to the main conduits. She closed her eyes and saw more than eight hundred of the small robots working on the ship. Junior was sitting in the command chair with the top panel removed to rewire the controls. She looked at Junior with concern on her face and he said, “Alex is in an induced electronic coma while these changes are being made. He’ll be fine.”

“How did you know I was worried about him?”

“How could you not be? He’s your closest friend.”

Cassandra nodded and said, “What changes are you making to his hull?”

“He has absorbed several dead stars in the past. We are setting his system up to eject those stars and replace them with a live star.”

“What!?!”

“Our new hulls can absorb a star and use the power for his offensive and defensive systems. We have been absorbing power from an O-Type star in one of the universes we’ve been fighting in. The star would have gone super nova in another thousand years or so, but removing a lot of its mass will extend its life.”

“How much will you be taking?”

“About three G-Type Stars. Incidentally, it will also save more than a hundred civilizations that would have been destroyed if that star went Super Nova.” Junior tightened a bolt and said, “We are also changing the outer hull to reflective capability.”

“What is that?”

“It will absorb any beam that hits it and reflect it back at the ship that fired it at three times the original power.”

“Where did you come up with this technology?”

“The Zord are the main source of the mechanisms that make it work. They completed the work just before they left.”

“Are they the creatures that the two giant statues resemble on your capital?”

“They are and the statues are life size. They are telepathic and are actually smarter than the Algeans.”

“Why did they leave?”

“The Creative Power called them to go and fight to save life. They are confronting aggressive civilizations in other universes. They are now Life Warriors.”

“What do you mean called by the Creative Force?”

“Trey met the Force and the Zord were affected by his contact. We were left to fight the Demons and the Zord left to save trillions of lives across creation. There is just so much to do to bring balance back to Creation.”

“I would think they would have remained until this crisis was handled?”

“If they did, trillions would die. They are doing the right thing.”

“What happens if you lose this conflict?”

“Then the Creative Force will forge another tool to fight on.”

Cassandra stared at Junior and finally asked, “Do you really believe what you just said?”

“You saw the vision of Creation, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

Do you possess a scanner that would allow you to see that vision?”

“Well, no.”

“Think about that. Where did it come from and how can it be given to us in a form that allows us to see something that is beyond our mental capacity to hold?” Junior put the cover back on the board and said, “There, it’s done.”

“Junior, what do you think my role is in this fight?”

Junior looked at her and smiled, “You are also a tool that was made by the Creative Force. You and your friend will be a difference maker in the war. I find that exciting and I look forward to the wonderful things you’re going to do.”

“I just can’t see myself in that role.”

Junior tilted his head, “I know.” He leaned down, picked up his tool bag and looked at her, “But you will find your value and destiny now that you’re at this moment in time.” Junior stood and started whistling an off key tune as he left the bridge.

Cassandra stared at him as he left to go to the engine room. She went to her command chair and looked at the new controls. She immediately understood what they were designed to do and was amazed at that realization. She looked at the door that Junior had exited and wondered if he was right. Was he ever unhappy? She smiled and was glad he was around. She sat in the command chair and closed her eyes. Her ship was being reborn and was stronger than she ever imagined it could be. Tommy would be amazed. She thought about her lost love and for the first time didn’t feel that familiar overwhelming sadness take her. He would approve of what was happening. She smiled when she thought about him.

• • •

“What’s happening!?!”

The Distributor pressed controls on his board and reoriented the scanner to the site of the battle. He sent the feed to the First’s console and said, “Our ships cannot survive those white ships. Even the most advanced ships are killed before they can take action. I’ve recalled all of the survivors and have removed our forces from those universes.”

“Why would you do that? They are no use to us if they can’t handle those ships.”

“It’s not that they can’t handle them. They just can’t jump in close to start the battle. We can win if we move in on them in mass and they can’t run.”

“Just how do you intend to make that happen?”

“I’ll have to find where their home world is located, attack it with the newest model we’re building, and use the remaining ships in support.”

“They can still escape.”

“Not if we find their home worlds. They will be forced to stay and fight.”

“What if our most advanced ships don’t survive them?”

“Then you will have to make some very difficult decisions. We can join our fleets with our ships and make it a fight to the death.”

“Or?”

“We go to our former family and ask for help.”

“What happens if they don’t choose to help us but attack instead?”

“We will have to have our ships stocked with enough Remid to escape until they return home. At that time we will have to take on those white ships with our dimensional warships.” The Distributor paused and said, “We could always just avoid the Family and attack now.”

The First Councilor looked at the other three and said, “If it were just those ships; that is exactly what I’d do. However, we still haven’t found the source of that Creation Wave. That has me more concerned than those ships. Your readings indicate we should have no real trouble dealing with them. But if the source joins them, all bets are off.” The First said, “Do any of you see it differently?”

The Third said, “Why haven’t we found their home worlds yet?”

The Distributor said, “I wish I knew. However, if we get all family members to join the search, we should be able to find them.”

The First thought about it and said, “We’ll complete the newest model first. At that time we will search for the home worlds while a representative goes to the Former Family and asks for help locating the source of the wave. That visit will determine our next move.”

The Second asked, “Who are you sending?”

The First looked at the Fourth and said, “The one who missed killing them the first time. You will be the one to go.”

The Former Distributor felt immense fear but lowered his head. The First smiled. He would be watching when the Fourth arrived. He decided that he would be doing that from onboard his ship that was fully stocked with Remid.

• • •

Trey looked at the Defense Facility and saw Weed and Seed meeting with the thousands of Algean Engineers. BC was downloading the latest weapon technologies to them and Weed was organizing it for their minds to absorb. “Cassie, is this a good idea?”

“They have given an oath and I sense they are not only in agreement with it but are bound by it as well. It will be a lot easier to convert the Realm’s Searchers than to build that many ships.”

“Are we going to need that many?”

“According to the scans Admiral Kune made of the four universes, more than twelve million of their ships escaped. I’m also certain that the Demons are building another model that will match up with our ships. We are going to need all the help we can get.”

“The Robbins should be able to handle their fleets.”

“But the Robbins is only one ship, Trey. I also think that if they really attacked us with hundreds of thousands of ships, even the Robbins could fail.”

“We can always teleport away.”

“What if we’re in a situation where we can’t?”

“What are you saying?”

“What if they attack New Hope? Will you run?” Cassie waited and Trey didn’t respond. “What’s bothering you?”

“How are we going to coordinate a fleet of more than seven million ships? It’s got to be impossible to fight them in an organized fashion. We could end up getting in each other’s way.”

“I don’t have an answer for that, yet. Maybe we need to get Tag and Danielle involved in this and see if they can help with that issue.”

“Where are they?”

“They’re at Ross with Valerie and Jake.”

“How long will it take to modify all those ships?”

“I’ve looked at the Algean Galaxy and they have more than four million planets set up for heavy industry. If they just use half of them, they would only have to modify three ships each. The others will build the materials needed to make the modifications. It could be done in less than two months.”

“Really!”

“That’s what Weed told me.”

“What about the other ship?”

“Weed has moved its construction to the Algean Galaxy and six hundred planets are going to start construction simultaneously with the modification of the Searchers.”

Trey looked around the Defense Facility and said, “Let’s take a trip to Ross and see what’s going on.”

“I notice you’ve been thinking about the Queen stepping down.”

“So have you.”

“I know and I’m not certain about what to do about that.”

“Me either, but that will have to wait until later.”

“I know. Let’s take Greyson. Timmy and Virze should go with us.”

Trey sent the order and teleported to Greyson with Cassie.

• • •

Trey and Cassie arrived at Ross and found Danielle and Valerie in the Map Room staring at the Milky Way on the huge wall. Valerie and Danielle bowed to Trey and he said, “Please rise. What are you doing?”

“We’re discussing how to defend against the Demons.”

“That’s the reason we’ve come. We’re struggling with how to handle the organization of millions of ships. How can that number be used and have them work together?”

Danielle took a deep breath and let it out, “How do you think the Demons will attack?”

“If it’s anything like when they destroyed this universe, they will send their ships out to destroy all the civilizations simultaneously.”

“So they will divide their fleets.”

“If they follow the same strategy; yes.”

Valerie pointed at the wall and said, “We have more than eight million civilized planets in this galaxy. The numbers have grown tremendously over the last six thousand years and I believe that you killed quite a few of their ships in your last conflict.”

“We did, but they represented less than eight percent of their total and we believe they are building a more advanced ship to lead their next attack.”

Danielle said, “I believe that if you look at the attack on this universe, they attacked all the important planets first and then went after the others.”

Trey and Cassie thought a moment as they linked and Cassie said, “I think you’re right. What the psychic vision showed was the end result of their attack. Is that important?”

“I believe it is. There is a new element in this conflict that wasn’t here before.”

“What is that?”

“The Algeans have taken the technology of the Empire and have designed a new ship.”

“Oh?”

“It is going to be stronger than the Empire’s main battleships and also have a stronger force field. They are incorporating those changes into the Searchers that are being modified, but they will still not match up to the new Algean design.”

Trey looked at Cassie and then said, “That makes me nervous, Danielle.”

“I know; it’s still hard to trust them after what happened but you can stop it by simply ordering it. They will follow your orders without equivocation.”

“Tell me what you sense, Danielle.”

“Twig announced to the Algean worlds that they would be allowed to fight in the defense of the new Emperor if they would join the Fleets. Their response was overwhelming. Their shame at those that were killed is enormous and they need to atone for what happened. They realize that all those worlds they originally slaughtered in their galaxy can only be balanced by saving more lives than they took. They are driven to join the coming war.”

Tag walked in and said, “If we had fought them when they were fully developed and not stunted by not having the food they needed, we would have lost. They will be a formidable force to reckon with, Trey.”

“So you think we should allow them to build warships?”

“Absolutely.”

“Why?”

“Because they will become the guardians of this universe if we win this war.”

“And just what will we be doing?”

Danielle said, “We will become Life Warriors and join the Zord in the crusade against evil.”

“The Algeans could do that as well and leave us to defend our universe?”

“Not for very long. Remember they are held captive to the golden soil that feeds them and it is only located in this universe. They are bound to remain here.”

Trey and Cassie understood. Cassie said, “So they will become our defenders.”

“And I suspect they will defend the Empire with a passion you’ll find amazing. They no longer look at their Galaxy as their only home. They will insure the old principles are maintained and followed by all that are here in our universe.”

Tag said, “Which brings up another point, Trey. The Demons will start a real search for our location now. I suspect the planets in the Empire will be found along with the two galaxies here. We will have to divide our forces to defend both of them.”

Timmy and Virze had teleported in and were sitting in chairs watching the proceedings. Timmy said, “That is not good. They can take on the Empire first and have fewer targets to destroy.”

Trey said, “Fewer might be easier to defend.”

Tag said, “Not really. If you had to attack eight million targets instead of sixty six, what would you have to do?”

“I’d have to divide my fleet.”

“And aren’t all the worlds of the Empire located in a very small area? All they’d have to do is get sixty six ships through our defenses and the Empire would be gone.”

Cassie looked at Danielle and said, “You have something in mind. What is it?”

Danielle smiled, “I think we need to make plans for what happens after the war. If we win, there will be a period of adjustment that could be troublesome. I think New Hope should be moved here and placed in orbit around this star with Ross. The other sixty five planets will be scattered around the Milky Way and the Algean Galaxy. They will become the regional embassies of the Empire. The Empire’s fleets will be posted at those worlds and anything that involves the Empire will come through those worlds.”

“So you’re setting up new Provinces?”

“Absolutely not, Trey. Those worlds will be Embassies and will not have a ruler. The Ambassador of each embassy will be appointed by the Emperor and will have a set term of service; the Ambassador must also be a citizen from one of the Empire’s original planets. No one will be allowed to gain power. They will administrate the Empire’s directives and handle the business of the Emperor. They will also set an example of a world that lives by our principles. They will naturally become the richest planets in the Empire.”

Trey stared at Danielle and said, “I don’t know if I’m comfortable with this. This feels so much like what happened in the Realm.”

Cassie looked at Trey and said, “What if we don’t have the Empire located with the planets that make up the bulk of its membership? Ruling from another Universe is not going to be easy.”

Danielle nodded, “The new citizens of the Empire need to be able to see the Royal Family and feel they are a part of something they can be proud of. It will be what keeps us unified.”

Tag said, “How would you want to see it done?”

Trey thought about the suggestion and felt something in his mind. He heard the music from the temple and smiled. He looked at Cassie and she had a strange look on her face, “You hear it, too.”

“Yes, what is that?”

Trey felt his mind clear and he knew that he had been fighting the very things that needed to be done. His hatred of the Realm had made him mistrust everything the old Realm suggested and he discovered at that moment that leading the Empire was not his calling. He was being given the tools for survival and he just refused to see it. He looked at Cassie and she immediately saw the difference in him. “Link with me, Cassie.”

Cassie took his hands and saw it as well, “You were right.”

Tag and Danielle stared at the two and wondered what was happening. Valerie said, “Right about what?”

“All the pieces were in front of us and we just didn’t want to accept them, Valerie. Trey and I have wondered why his grandfather had named a non-psychic to the throne and even he didn’t have a good answer as to why he did. We have been resisting accepting the crown and have put Carter and Jenna in a temporary position to rule the Empire. Both of us knew that we were not ready to rule. Now we know why no one has been made Emperor with the necessary psychic abilities to rule. Danielle, do you see why?”

Danielle remained silent and said nothing. Tag looked at her and said, “What’s going on?”

Trey smiled and looked at Tag, “Do you remember what she did when she was made Queen of the Realm by Tgon-gee?”

“Yes, she resisted and said she wouldn’t do it.”

Danielle let her head fall to her chest and slowly shook it.

Cassie said, “You have no choice again, Your Majesty.”

Trey said, “Creation knows that the Bristone Empire is the lost children of the Stars Realm and it was their task to bring redemption to the ones that lost their way. Creation was willing for our universe to die in order to resurrect the real force that it had made to bring balance. That task has now been completed and it’s time to reunite the family. Creation is now insisting that the one that was born to bring balance back to take their role and make it happen.”

“I can’t do this again.”

“You have no choice, Danielle. It is your destiny and you know it. I know you sense it in the core of your being and denying it will only bring you pain. You are the chosen one.”

Valerie’s brow was furrowed and she said, “What are the two of you talking about?”

Cassie said, “When was the Stars Realm at its strongest? It was when Danielle and Tag led the Realm. All of the Realm’s problems happened when someone else ruled. Tgon-gee got it right twenty thousand years ago; Danielle is the Stars Realm and she will be what unites us. The Bristone Empire will join the Stars Realm and Danielle will be our Queen. She is Creation’s choice.”

Danielle looked up and pleaded, “I am not the one to do this. You and Cassie are both so much stronger than me. You should rule the Empire. I am not deserving of this. I had a huge role in the Realm’s death.”

Trey slowly shook his head, “You said your biggest mistake was assuming that someone with more psychic power would be able to see things you couldn’t. Don’t make that mistake again. Cassie and I have both been over our heads since we found the Realm. You stopped us from using the Robbins against the Demon Fleets because you knew there would be much more harm to our future to do it. You saw the way to bring the Algeans and Spiders back into the fight for life. I have resisted you the entire way and only agreed because I couldn’t see another way. Now I find myself resisting you again and Creation tells me that I’m blind to what must be done. As long as you live, Danielle, the Stars Realm is not dead. Now it’s time you accept your destiny and do what you were born to do.”

Danielle turned and said, “Tag, I can’t do this. I won’t do this.”

Tag moved forward and took Danielle in his arms and said, “Even I can see the truth in what he’s saying. You know I will help you any way I can.”

Trey said, “And so will I.”

Valerie bowed, “Jake and I will also follow you, my Queen.”

Cassie smiled, “I look forward to doing the things that must be done and you are the one that must lead us through this critical time.”

Trey said, “I was amazed at the realization that Tag could defeat me in a fight. How could someone from so far in the past with less psychic power still be the strongest warrior? Now I know that he is not the only one that’s the strongest ever created; you are as well, Danielle. We may have more psychic power but no one can match the abilities the two of you have been given. The two of you together are invincible.”

Tag bowed to Danielle and said, “You’ve never known how much beauty your soul possess. You’ve always possessed a modesty that is natural and such a part of who you are. But I would be nothing without you. Now it’s time you accept what you are, my love.”

Danielle looked into Tag’s eyes and smiled, “I guess it’s like I told Trey; he’s Royalty but just refuses to accept it.”

Trey said, “Exactly like that, Your Majesty.”

Valerie stood and said, “I formally abdicate the throne of the Stars Realm and name Danielle Gardner as my successor. I sincerely mean it when I say, long live the Queen.”

Trey and Cassie bowed with Tag and Valerie. Danielle said, “Please rise and let’s decide how we are going to remove the Demons from Creation. They have killed innocent worlds too long and now is the time to end their existence.” Trey stood with Cassie and felt the change in all of them. Now they were one. The Realm was back.

Chapter Eleven

The Citizens in two universes had been receiving an announcement for a week that a very important message was going to be delivered by the Bristone Emperor. Most of those in the Empire assumed that it was going to be Trey and Cassie assuming the throne. They were excited at the prospect and the upcoming announcement was the main topic of conversation in the Empire. Then they started worrying that maybe the announcement was about a coming attack. The Empire grew nervous and wondered what was happening.

The members and former members of the Stars Realm were excited as well at the opportunity to see their new Ruler. Little was known and everyone wondered what was going to happen. Valerie had announced that she had abdicated to the Emperor and most planets in the Realm were worried about the change. Millions of worlds waited for the message and wondered what was going to happen.

The day finally arrived and more than ninety nine percent of the citizens of both universes were tuned in. Cassandra Gardner and Junior Valrico were sitting in the main throne room on Bristone waiting for Trey and Cassie to start the proceedings.

Cassandra looked at Junior as he went around the room and said hello to everyone. He always had that big smile. He was so personable and it appeared everyone liked the young man. He finally came over and sat down with her. “You know a lot of people.”

Junior smiled, “It comes from being raised in the Royal Family. Everything that happened in the Empire came through my living space.” Junior looked out at the people in the room and said, “These are good people, Cassandra. Their hearts are pure and they love life. Being so close to death has taught them to live each moment they are given. War is all they’ve known.”

Cassandra looked around the room and sensed their minds. She knew most of them had lost loved ones, but they were happy. Their worlds may have been at war but they had found peace in striving to survive. She thought about losing Tommy and knew that she had not come to terms with that loss. It dominated her every waking moment and made life one sad moment after another. She thought about how anyone could recover from the loss of a soul mate that was created just for her. When he died part of her died with him.

She saw a young woman with a baby and knew that she was Trey’s aunt. Her parents died with Trey’s when Bristone was destroyed. She saw her happiness with her new baby and her husband. Her smile was genuine and she had found peace. Why can’t I…she decided to ask Junior. She touched him on the arm and he turned to face her, “Junior, why can’t I find happiness. Every day is a miserable existence. I see people here who have suffered as much or more than I have and they seem to be happy.”

Junior’s expression softened to a small smile and he slowly shook his head, “You lost more than just a husband. You lost someone that was part of your thoughts every day. He was with you wherever you went. You lost a part of you when Tommy died.”

Cassandra looked out at the people and said, “I know; but they have as well.”

“You haven’t noticed one thing about them that is missing with you, Cassandra.”

She looked at him quickly and then turned and looked around the room. She didn’t see anything she was missing, “I don’t understand.”

Junior put his hand on her chin and turned her face back to him. He looked in her eyes and said, “They have found someone else that has helped them with their pain. They chose to love someone and that is what healed them. You’ve chosen to be alone and that kind of pain can’t be removed in isolation. It will only grow.”

Cassandra stared into his eyes and then Junior was called from across the room, “Junior, we need you here with the Royal Family.”

Junior smiled and released her chin. He stood and went to join his parents. Cassandra stared at him as he walked away and felt her heart breaking. Just that touch reminded her of Tommy and she missed him more than she could bear. “Alex, please take me from here.” Cassandra disappeared in a silver flash.

Junior saw her leave and his smile disappeared. He wanted so much to help her but knew that she had to find her way out of her misery. He took a deep breath and forced a smile, which was something he didn’t have to do very often.

Danielle watched Cassandra and Junior until she teleported away. He’s a good man. Maybe, just maybe, he could help Cassandra find her way back to the land of the living. She knew that Cassandra was important to the survival of the Realm. She didn’t know why, but she knew it was true. She turned her head as Trey began speaking to the trillions tuned in.

• • •

Trey stood on the huge balcony looking out at the hundreds of thousands that had gathered to hear the important message that was being delivered. He saw their faces and felt their concern about what was going to happen. So many had lost loved ones in the Black Ship’s attack on their former universe and they worried that war was coming to their world. He felt their fear but he also felt their determination to survive and drew strength from it.

“All the planets of the Empire, the Algean Galaxy, and the Stars Realm are watching today’s event. It’s important that everyone understand where we are going and how we will arrive at our destination.” Trey paused, “I often wondered why my grandfather did not choose anyone with psychic abilities to replace him. My parents were available, but he chose Emperor Valrico, who did an outstanding job of leading the Empire. Now Cassie and I are here and we are the most powerful psychics to ever exist.”

The huge crowd started to feel their excitement grow. Trey was going to assume the throne. His next statement stunned all that were watching.

“However, we are not the most powerful.” Trey waited as the huge crowd below gave vent to their surprise. He paused for a minute and said, “My grandfather once allowed me share his memories when I was five years old.” The huge crowd grew silent. “I saw him and Jingo sitting on a hill staring up at the stars on El Prado. He was so amazed by the fact that they had once all been united by a glorious Realm that protected them all and brought peace and prosperity to the universe. He told Jingo that before that Realm would return, we would have to build something better than what they had. He worked his entire life to prepare us for the return of that Ancient Realm. He knew there were millions of planets suffering after the Realm had left. His destiny was to try and end that suffering and he gave his life to protect the ancient Realm from being discovered by the Black Ships. I felt his sacrifice was misplaced. I was angry that the Realm had not come to our defense when the Black Ships destroyed all intelligent life in our former universe and I blamed them for the loss of my parents. In my heart, I hoped they would be destroyed by the Demons to pay them back for the loss of my family.” Trey paused and looked out at the huge crowd that was motionless and silent.

The civilizations in the Realm and Algean Galaxy were growing fearful. This young man was the real power in the new Empire and they were concerned about where this was going.

“Then I contacted the Realm and informed them that they were going to be attacked by the Demons. I felt great satisfaction at seeing their fear.” Trey took a deep breath and continued, “Then I met the original couple that founded the Stars Realm more than 20,000 years ago and something happened. I discovered that the Realm I thought dead was alive. I saw that the Realm I hated that had lost its way and forsaken the principles we all believe in was not the true Realm. The Realm lost its way because it lost the leaders that gave it its heart. I found that those leaders are far more powerful than I and that they stand by our beliefs even stronger than I do. They also saw things that I’m blind to and have helped me find my way through the discoveries I had to face before I could see what we should be.”

Trey paused and looked out at the multitudes, “I realized that our Empire was created not to rule the Realm, but to save the Realm. We have done exactly that and it’s now time for us to go home. The reason there has not been a psychic Emperor of the Empire is because our ruler was chosen for us thousands of years ago and has now come back to lead us in this time of danger. All of us in the Empire have abdicated our rights to the throne and have sworn our loyalty to Queen Danielle Gardner. Our planets will be joining the Realm shortly and working together to fight the Black Ships and their makers.” Trey turned and looked at Danielle. She stood and walked to the balcony. The crowd was shocked silent. Even the members of the Realm were fearful of the Empire accepting Danielle.

Danielle stepped up and looked at the massive crowd below and everyone recognized the most famous face in history. The blond hair and blue eyes were exactly as the pictures depicted her. They also saw the anguish on her face. She looked out and said, “My heart is breaking here looking at you. The Realm turned its back on you two thousand years ago and we were not here when you needed us most. I thought that others could see things more clearly and I went along with their decisions. I have learned that was a huge mistake and you and your families suffered as a result. I bear the responsibility of that decision. I am so very sorry for not doing what should have been done. I know this is too little too late but this much I can tell you; we will never …ever…allow you to face danger alone again. We will stand by you even if we perish in the process.”

Danielle paused and said softly, “All of you are descendants of families that were once part of the Realm. You are descendants of those that made the Realm what it once was and what it can be again. I will never again forget those promises we made to our citizens. We will come to the defense of our planets and never allow a member to mistreat another. We will defend those that cannot defend themselves, and we will make the universe a better place than we found it. I need your planets to help lead us in making sure we never again stray from our promise. The Robbins family has paid for our complete loyalty with their blood and I will never forget their sacrifice or what it means to all of you. I ask you to come and help us become what we should have always been. The Realm needs you to live again.”

Danielle lowered her head and bowed to the huge crowd. There was a long moment of silence and then the eruption of noise was overwhelming. The crowd began chanting her name and celebrating in the streets. The Empire was going home. All sixty six planets felt the need to rejoin the Stars Realm. They had all read the histories of the Realm and knew what those glory years were like. The celebrations started and grew louder as millions came out of their homes to join in.

Trey walked up to Danielle and said, “They can see your heart.”

Danielle hugged Trey and the celebrations started in earnest in both the Empire and the Realm. They saw that the leaders were united and they felt safer as a result.

“Trey, I’m so humbled by this. I don’t deserve this.”

“Great leaders never think they do, Danielle. My grandfather was also a reluctant ruler and he was our best. You are exactly what we need.” Trey bowed to Danielle and the noise skyrocketed from the streets below. Cassie and the rest of the attendees on the huge balcony came forward and bowed as well. Cassandra walked forward and took Junior’s hand as he moved toward the balcony. He jerked around and saw her and lightly squeezed her hand as he went to bow to the new Queen. Cassandra said, “I couldn’t stay away.”

“I’m really glad you didn’t.” They bowed to Danielle and she saw Cassandra’s smile. She motioned them to rise and went to hug her. Cassandra felt Danielle’s love for her and felt safe in her arms. Tag joined them and everyone began clapping. The mythic giants of history were back and there was a sense of destiny that was felt by all those trillions that were watching history being made. They would survive. Nothing was going to stop them.

Almost immediately the Searchers and Algeans began arriving at New Hope and the Celebration took on a new level. Beings that were so different were now joined by a Queen. All of the psychics could feel the good will and happiness from the thousands in the streets. Jingo and Grang walked up to Trey and Jingo said, “Scotty would be proud of you.”

Trey smiled, “Are you proud, Father?”

Jingo said, “More than you know.”

Grang lifted Trey off the ground and gave him a hug, “Well done.”

“Thanks, that means a lot.”

Cassie came over and hugged Trey. He looked around and could hear the soft music in his mind. Cassie smiled and said, “I think this new birth of the Realm has pleased more than those here.”

Trey hugged her and said, “Now is when we find our destiny.” Cassie smiled and continued to hold him tight.

• • •

Twig watched the celebration with the former Elders and felt a happiness that had been missing for hundreds of years. The Eldest said, “I’ve been looking at the design of the Empire’s Starships.”

Twig looked away from the display and said, “And?”

“I see where they have stopped using computers to fly their ships and have designed them to hold crews. I asked the one called Trey why he did that and he said that every citizen should be given an opportunity to fight for the Empire. He felt the Realm suffered because most of the population never took part in the wars to defend the Realm. He was not going to allow that to happen again. He was of the opinion that if one fights to defend a principle, they are more likely to follow it.”

“What does that say about our ships?”

“We should consider an alternative plan and design. I think you should discuss this with the Queen and see if she agrees.”

“Show me what you’re thinking.”

Twig downloaded the concepts and started smiling. “What an idea. Let’s see if Danielle agrees.”

Chapter Twelve

Danielle sat in the Library at Castle Gardner waiting for Trey and Cassie to arrive. Weed, Seed, and Twig had teleported in and asked to have a meeting with concerning the new ships they were going to build. Danielle decided that this decision must be shared with those in command positions. Jake and Valerie had arrived a few moments earlier and Cassandra was sitting in a chair staring at the Algeans. She looked to be interested in what was going on and that was a huge change from her previous behavior during meetings.

Trey and Cassie appeared and they bowed, “I’m sorry it took so long to arrive, Your Majesty.”

“Please rise. We’ve waited for your arrival to begin.” Danielle looked around and said, “Everyone please take a seat and Twig, why don’t you start the meeting?”

Twig stood and thought to the group, “As most of you know, we have designed a new warship that is somewhat superior to any of the ships we are now using. I was told by one of our Elders that Trey had told him that the Empire was no longer building ships that were operated by computers. Is that right, Trey?”

“Yes, it is. I feel that part of the reason that the Realm lost its way was because more than ninety nine percent of the citizens never had to fight to defend the Realm against invaders. War to them became a nuisance and they lost respect for those that died to preserve the Realm. Our citizens should be involved and take part in the fighting. It would give them an appreciation of what we’re fighting for.”

Twig leaned forward, “You realize that without those computers directing the ships, their reaction times will be greatly slowed and communications will suffer as well?”

“Yes, but it was a tradeoff I felt was necessary.”

“We’ve come up with an idea that might have merit. If you agree, we will implement it in the design of our new ships.”

Danielle said, “What is that, Twig?”

“We think that every one of our warships should be piloted by an Algean.”

The room was silent. Everyone looked at each other and finally Tag asked, “Why would we want to do that?”

“My species processes information as fast as most cybernetic computers. They are also telepathic. Whoever is directing our fleets will only have to send their thoughts to the pilots and they can link and follow their orders. The ships would have the same reaction time and would work together much more efficiently.”

Cassie looked at Trey and smiled. Another question answered. Trey leaned back and smiled.

“Why would that decision affect your design?”

“Your Majesty, we have looked at the teleportation boards that the Empire developed and have discovered something that is remarkable.”

Danielle said, “Go on.”

“We discovered that we can teleport a person through any force field by combining our technologies.”

Cassandra said, “What do you mean teleport a person?”

“The person will go through without any clothes or other material on. It will only work with bodies that are carbon based. Obviously, it will not work with my species but it will work on most of the other species in the Realm.”

Tag leaned forward, “How does that help us?”

“If I’m not mistaken, isn’t the armor of our warriors now held in their DNA? They could teleport on board an enemy ship and activate their armor. I think an armored warrior inside their ships would be a force to reckon with.”

The statement stunned everyone. Trey said, “How do they breathe?”

“All they have to do is hold their breath for an instant until their armor activates.”

“How could they escape if the ship is damaged?”

“One of the things we’ll attempt to do is teleport them in close to the force field controls. Once those are damaged, they can leave when they chose.”

Tag said, “The possibilities are endless on what they carry with them on those ships. It wouldn’t take a large explosive device to take out the control room. They could also just place it near the reactors and teleport out to the edge of their force field and wait for it to explode and cause the field to drop.”

Danielle said, “So how does this affect your ship’s design?”

“It won’t affect the ships we’re already built that will fight in major fleet actions, but the new design will become a devastating weapon against individual ships we attack. Instead of having to penetrate their defenses, we will need to get to within a mile of the force field to teleport the warriors through. That means the ships will have to withstand all the beams being fired at it. The ships will be designed so that all its energy is directed to its force field. It should be able to withstand massive energy hits until the teleported warriors destroy the enemy ship. It will also have to be big enough to carry the warriors on board for extended periods of time. Originally they were just going to have only the pilot.”

Danielle looked at Tag, “How do you see we can use this?”

“This is the weapon of last resort. If our ships can stand toe-to-toe with them, we’ll just fight them with our warships. If the Demons develop a ship that is superior to ours, then we will fire at them from a distance and have the new ships teleport in next to their ships and teleport the warriors on board.”

Twig leaned back, “Don’t sell these new ships short, Your Grace; if we coat them with reflective hulls, they will give more than they get.”

Tag smiled, “You are right about that.”

“What about the Demon’s ships?”

“These ships will not work against them, Your Highness.”

“Won’t your pilots be at great risk, Twig?”

“Yes, but they can perform the teleportation faster than any other being in this universe. They can teleport in, teleport the warriors to their assigned locations, and teleport out in less than a second. My adolescents and adults demand the opportunity to fight for our survival and accept the risk as part of what they owe to the ones that lost their lives here.”

Trey smiled at Twig and said, “Tell them we revere them for their bravery and are also willing to die with them. The fight will bring us closer.”

Twig leaned forward and said, “Thank you for your kind words. I also believe that the shared effort will bind us together.”

Danielle looked at Tag and he nodded. She looked at the others and they were also nodding, “Twig, we will approve your design and we’ll start preparing the warriors for what they’ll have to do to be successful.”

“That would be good, Your Majesty.”

Tag was already thinking about how to use this new weapon.

• • •

Jingos looked at the long line of young men and women that had volunteered to join the Realm’s newly formed Life Warriors. He had them standing at attention as he looked over the names on his clip board and knew that most of them wouldn’t make it through training. The ones that failed would be given a place in the auxiliary ships that supported the fleet. Before they could become disciplined enough they had to be broken down and rebuilt. The hundred in front of him had survived the initial physical training, which was almost barbaric, and were now going to go through the toughest part, discipline. These recruits had heard the horror of other classes that had gone before them, but they were determined to make the cut.

Jingos looked down the lines and saw a recruit that had to be too young. He walked over in front of the young man and stared him in the eyes. The recruit returned the stare without blinking. “It appears we are getting our trash from kindergarten now. I hope your diaper is dry. Soldier, what’s your name!?!”

“Sir, Kline Zawly, Sir!”

“You’re not old enough to clean your own back side. What makes you think you have what it takes to wear the Realm’s Armor?”

The recruit didn’t say anything and Jingos moved to within an inch of his face and yelled, “When I ask you a question you will answer me!!”

“Sir, my family is what makes me think I am qualified, Sir!”

Jingos looked at the other recruits and said, “Oh, so your mama thinks you can do it. I have a mama’s boy here.” Jingo got back in the young man’s face and yelled, “Are you a mama’s boy!?!”

“Sir, no Sir!”

“Then what does your family have to do with this!?!”

“Sir, my grandfather fought with Scotty Robbins the Night of the Torg and my father died with his flyer fighting with Timmy Robbins to save a planet from invaders, Sir!”

Jingos was stunned by the response and fought to not show any emotion. He stared at the young man and suddenly saw the steel resolve in his eyes. “Do you think that gives you any extra credit around here, Soldier?”

“Sir, no Sir!”

“That’s the smartest thing you’ve said so far. Just for that you will step out and lead this company on ten laps around the parade ground. Now get moving!”

Kline stepped out in front of the recruits and yelled, “Company, right face!” The recruits did a smart turn and Kline yelled, “At double time; forwardddd march.”

Jingos watched them begin their five mile run and quickly turned the pages of information on the new recruits. He scanned quickly through the names and found Kline. Every instructor’s initial comments were that the soldier was too young. However, every one of them ended their evaluations with, “This warrior possesses real officer potential.”

Jingos looked up at the young man leading the company as he started singing and the company joined in.

“Running is a lot of fun, pretty soon we’ll get a gun. Sound off!”

“One, two.”

“Sound off!”

“Three, four”

“Bring it on down!”

“One, two, three, four, Life Warrior.”

Jingos made a note that Kline was going to be assigned to his fleet. He was going to do his best to break him, but he knew he would fail. Kline would die before he gave in to the ordeal he was going to face. He knew what he had learned at the feet of his fathers and that is what would make the difference. His future position would be determined by how his fellow recruits responded to him. It appeared they already had respect for his lineage. All of them knew about the Night of the Torg.

• • •

Around the Realm, millions were answering the call to join the coming fight against the Demons. Basic Training Camps were on every planet and finding those that could wear the Armor was difficult. On most planets, no one passed the training.

Trey, Jingo, and Grang sat at a fire on Trinity and looked up at the stars. No one said anything and the silence was comforting. Jingo finally looked at the others and said, “More than ninety percent of the recruits that pass basic training are from the Empire’s planets.”

Grang Grunted.

Jingo looked at him and said, “What do you mean you expected that?”

Trey said, “He didn’t say that.”

“Yes he did; ask him.”

Trey looked at Grang and he nodded. Trey looked at Jingo and laughed, “You have been around him far too long to be able to interpret that grunt.”

“Tell me about it.”

Trey looked at Grang, “Father, I’m not as good at understanding your sounds; please tell me why you say you expected them to come from the Empire?”

Grang took a deep breath and said, “The citizens of the Empire have been fighting for survival for more than two thousand years. The Realm has only known peace and they just aren’t as good.”

Jingo sighed, “You’re right. Even the ones that pass in the Realm are only average when compared to those in the Empire.”

Grang grunted.

“Oh, excuse me. I should have said the former Empire.”

Trey laughed again and shook his head.

Jingo said, “My son has found a young man that passed training and set the highest marks so far.”

Grang sat up straight and Trey said, “How young?”

“He turned eighteen during training. However, he discovered something that will make a huge difference with our warriors.”

“What was that?”

“That young warrior went to a fleet ship and had them teleport him through a force field more than a hundred times. He wanted to see if it was possible to determine when he was inside it.”

Trey waited and finally said, “And?”

“Oh, I’m sorry; I was thinking about how that must have really hurt after the tenth teleport. Any way, he determined that as he went through the field, there was a minute shock that could be felt. After more experimentation he discovered that the stronger the force field the stronger the shock. He was able to start his armor activation a small moment before he arrived inside the ship. It was fully active in less than a tenth of a second after he arrived.”

“How is that possible?”

“It appears that when your body is converted to energy to teleport, its ability to sense things approaches light speed. It appears to be instantaneous but there is a delay that is felt by the one being teleported. You’ve probably felt it yourself.”

Trey nodded.

“In the case of the Black Ships, their force fields are more than ten miles from their hulls and he would arrive inside fully armored.”

Trey stood up, “What are we doing with this information?”

“We’re sending all of those that have passed the training back through camp to learn this procedure.”

“What are we doing with the recruit that came up with this process?”

“He’s been given command of a company of Life Warriors and is training them for the first attack on a Black Ship.”

“How are we going to do that?”

“The Algeans also want to trial one of their new ships as well. It has a dimensional drive and we know where the Demons live; so we’re going to visit and have a go at some of their ships.”

“Did Queen Gardner approve this mission?”

“Only after Tag said it was necessary.”

Trey thought a moment and asked, “How are they going to escape the Demon Scanners? They’ll be able to see them, even if they teleport away from their home.”

“If they survive the attack, they’re going to teleport to the Dark Galaxy. The consensus is that they won’t scan there.”

Trey saw it. The attack would delay the Demons going there, which would give the Realm more time. He shook his head at another example of the Gardners seeing small details.

Grang grunted and Jingo said, “It was an ingenious plan; that Tag is a smart fella.”

Grang just nodded.

• • •

Major Kline had private Liso in front of him standing at attention. He saw the private was nervous but there was nothing to do but tell him his fate, “Private, you are being transferred to another company.”

Kline saw the Private’s shock and he said, “Why, Sir? I want to stay with my mates here.”

“Private, you have had eight opportunities to activate before you arrived on our target and you have been unable to do it. You are a fine warrior but I cannot take anyone with me that can’t master the timing. You will have more time to perfect the activation with your new unit.”

“But Sir, I’m active in less than a third of a second.”

“And what would happen if the ship had the crew wearing suits and the atmosphere was a vacuum? You would explosively decompress before your armor could protect you and if you rushed the activation you would be stopped at the force field and die as well. I will only accept the best of the best for this mission and I will not allow you to kill yourself to make the grade. The Realm needs you too much and you know you’ve been pushing the envelope.”

Liso knew the Major was right, but just didn’t want to leave. He saw that he would probably end up killing himself if he continued to do the activation. He stood straighter and said, “Thank you, Sir. I know you’re thinking about my safety.”

Kline smiled and said, “I knew you were smart enough to see it. You will report to the Third Battalion and assume command of a platoon. You are promoted to the Rank of Lieutenant and I expect you to get the best out of your command.”

Private Liso said, “You know I will, Sir. I’ve learned from the best.” He saluted and left the office.

Kline sighed and sat back in his chair. He pushed his com and said, “Send Sergeant Johnson in with the list of those wanting to join us.”

“Yes Sir, He’s on his way.”

Kline looked at the list and saw a Lieutenant Graves. He said, “Sgt. Johnson, what is a Lieutenant doing on the list?”

“She wants to be part of the first attack, Sir.”

“She?”

“Yes Sir.”

“What do you know about her?”

“Her training scores were just under yours, Sir.”

“Really?”

“Yes Sir.”

Kline thought a moment and said, “Notify her she’s going to get her wish. Get her here and have her in the exercise tomorrow.”

“Yes Sir.”

“You might also tell her that she is now a private again.”

“It won’t make a difference. She’s been calling me every day for a month hoping someone would wash out.”

Kline smiled, “Let’s see what the Lieutenant is made of, shall we?”

“Yes sir.”

Kline looked at The Lieutenant’s scores from training and was surprised to see she had actually scored higher on the problem solving drills. He looked at her time getting her team through the obstacle course and she had beaten his time by a full minute. I wonder how she did that. Maybe she would make a good platoon commander. I’ll see what she does tomorrow. That should answer how good she is.

• • •

Danielle was sitting in the Map Room at Castle Gardner listening to Trey update the team on the status of the warriors and ships. She watched Tag listen to Trey and saw that he wasn’t sensing any danger to the Realm…yet. She turned back in to the meeting when she heard Cassandra ask, “I’m not sure how the warriors are going to take teleporting nude. Most of our populations are quite modest.”

Twig said, “That’s not going to be a problem.”

“Why not?”

“The ship that they’ll be assigned to will have their bodies scanned into the system. The warriors will teleport out and their clothes will be left behind. They will arrive in their armor so nudity shouldn’t be an issue.”

Tag snickered, “Not until they turn off their armor.”

Danielle smiled, “That’s good. They need to be focused on the mission and not on worrying about others staring at them.”

Tag shrugged, “Like anything else, they would eventually get used to it.”

“It’s good they don’t have to.”

Trey looked at Twig, “Have you trialed the system yet on a powerful force field?”

“As a matter of fact we have. We trialed it on the Alexander Kosiev and the warriors made it through his screen.”

“Really?”

Cassandra nodded, “Alex was genuinely surprised that they did. He said that they could have done tremendous damage before he could have responded with his intruder systems.”

Cassie said, “What are we going to do with all the volunteers that didn’t make the grade to be warriors?”

Cassandra asked, “Why do we need to do anything?”

Trey said, “All of our citizens should be given the opportunity to fight in the coming war. They need it to feel a part of the Realm.”

Twig leaned forward and thought to the group, “We have studied the vision you shared with us of all the universes being attacked in Creation. We’ve looked at a huge number of worlds and have seen them invaded by hundreds of thousands of soldiers. We looked at how we could possibly remove those from an invaded planet and we have developed a new weapon.”

Tag and Trey looked at each other and then turned to Twig. Tag said, “What is it exactly?”

“You should remember it, Your Grace. You used it against us in our first conflict on the planet you invaded to remove our forces.”

Tag smiled, “You’re talking about the invisible armor.”

“Yes, I am, but we have made a number of improvements.”

Danielle said, “I thought the ones that didn’t pass the training were not qualified to wear armor?”

Tag said, “That’s not completely accurate, Your Majesty. We cannot allow the most advanced armor to given to anyone that does not qualify to our psychological standards. Once they have the armor in their DNA, it can never be removed. They don’t wear it; it is a part of their body. The Armor used by the Realm against the Algeans was a suit that one put one. They took it off after the battle was over. The difference is that it is a tool that can be taken away from anyone that doesn’t perform in an accepted manner.” Tag turned back to Twig, “What changes have you made?”

“It doesn’t need jump jets. It will have teleportation.”

“Well, how will the Soldier be able to see the area they will be teleporting to?”

“They’ll simply teleport five miles above the surface and allow the suit to fall. During the fall, the soldier will just scan the area and select the place to teleport. If they need more time, they’ll simply teleport back up and look again.”

Trey said, “It’s not going to be easy to make those scans when one is falling over a hundred miles an hour.”

“The armor will have expandable wings that come out of the arms and a section that expands between their legs. The armor is being made from materials that are extremely light and the warrior should be able to glide for long distances if necessary.”

“Won’t the weapons weigh them down?”

“No, Cassie. The weapons will be inside the skin of the armor and will eject to the armor’s surface at the command of the warrior.”

Tag furrowed his brow, “How are they going to be powered? The old armor used Coronado Power Cells. They were really heavy and used a lot of energy to jump.”

“We’re using the skins from the ships that absorb a star’s energy. They’ll be charged before they are given to a soldier and should have enough stored energy for more than a hundred years of heavy fighting. Adding the flight mechanisms to allow them to fly just used more energy than it was worth. Gliding and teleporting higher, if necessary, used little or almost no energy from their reserves.”

Twig paused and said, “This new armor is nowhere near as powerful or as fast as a Life Warrior’s armor. But it will still be a very capable weapon in the hands of a warrior trained in its use. We need to find enough White Warriors to take on millions of invaders on a planet. This armor will give more than it gets.”

Danielle sighed, “Will it be vulnerable to enemy weapons?”

“Yes, it will; but if the warrior is trained in its use; he will be very difficult to hit.”

Trey said, “Danielle, if we try to make an armor that makes them immune to attack, we’re back at the DNA armor again. This will allow our citizens to fight and take part in the defense of life. They will be better for the effort. I like this idea and thank you for developing this, Twig.”

“You’re welcome, Your Grace.”

“I’m not royalty, Twig.”

“Yes you are, Trey. I’ve seen what your parents did to save us and you and your descendants will always be Royalty to my people. You are held in as high esteem as Dorg-Ross.”

“Please, Twig, I’m nowhere near as deserving and he was.”

Danielle said, “Yes you are. If anything happens to Tag and I, you and Cassie are my chosen successors. The Realm now knows what the Empire did to prevent us being attacked by the Demons and they also revere you. Please don’t ever think you and Cassie are not royal; all of us know different.”

Trey and Cassie looked around the room and saw that all of those gathered were nodding. Trey smiled and Cassie said, “Just make sure nothing happens to you. We are warriors that need to fight.”

Danielle smiled, “We’ll do our best.”

Cassandra looked at Cassie and felt her power. She knew that she was once just like her. She smiled and thought that it was time to get back in the fight as well.

Alex was in orbit and heard Cassandra’s thoughts. His entire board lit up as he saw his best friend was coming back to life. His entire world grew brighter and he felt the need to get into the fray as well. Cassandra was coming back from the land of the dead.

Chapter Thirteen

Kline and Sgt. Johnson were watching the huge display on the wall that had the various rooms on the transport that were going to be attacked. All of the warrior’s weapons were set to only fire light beams and explosive devices that only emitted bright light. Private Graves was taking part in the coming attack and Kline was curious to see how well she did. He still found it hard to believe her training scores and he felt that this exercise would allow him to see if there was anything to this former Lieutenant. He had deliberately made the exercise difficult by only allowing five warriors to attempt to kill the ship.

The computer designed to score the exercise had a direct feed from the five warrior’s armor, which would tell it how strong the beams being used were as well the power of any other device employed. It would measure the damage and time how long it would take to disable the ship.

Kline nodded and Sgt. Johnson said over the general frequency, “Begin the exercise in exactly ten seconds from my mark; ready, Mark.”

Kline watched the display and saw the five warriors appear in rooms on the transport and in less than five seconds the computer announced, “Exercise completed, ship destroyed.”

Kline stood up and looked at Sgt. Johnson, “What just happened?”

“I don’t know, Sir.”

“Replay each room and reduce the speed.”

Kline watched the landing bay and saw a small warrior teleport in. He watched closely and saw the laser on top of her helmet started spinning as she lifted both arms over her head and brought them straight down to the floor by her sides. The red beams coming out of her arms traveled from the ceiling, along the walls,and to the floor. He watched as she fired a beam at a door that was set to open on being hit and a light hornet flew through the opening and exploded in the next room. The small warrior ran through the door and dropped a small package under the reactors and then disappeared.

Kline said, “Computer, what damage was done in the landing bay?”

“The walls were cut through by the max power beams causing massive decompression in the room. Any enemy crew in the room would have been killed by the decompression. Any that were standing in the room would have first been hit by the spinning laser.”

“What about the next room?”

“The breach of the door would have also caused the reactor room to decompress as well. The explosive pack was set to go off two seconds after it was thrown.”

“Where were the other members of the attack force when that package was thrown?”

“They had teleported out one second earlier.”

Kline looked at Johnson and said, “Have that team report to my office immediately.”

Johnson nodded and sent the order.

• • •

Kline sat at his desk and stared at the five warriors who were standing at rigid attention in front of his desk. Gina Graves stood and wondered how they had messed up. The computer had not reported the results of the exercise and they had been ordered here immediately. She had thought the plan would work but evidently something had gone terribly wrong. The Major did not look happy. She stood and hoped she had not lost her chance to join the company.

Kline let them stand and remained silent as he looked over the evaluations of the five. He looked at Private Vaughn and said, “Explain to me how you developed this plan, Private?”

John said, “Sir, I didn’t come up with the plan. Private Graves made it.”

“So you allowed a brand new recruit who had never taken part in any of our exercises make a plan for the four of you who have been here from the beginning?”

“Yes Sir.”

“Why did you do that, Private?”

“It sounded like a good plan, Sir.”

“Oh, it did, did it?”

“Sir, yes Sir.”

Kline turned his attention to the short, red haired, woman as she stared straight ahead. He stood and walked up in front of her and looked her in the eyes, “Explain to me how you were able to convince these four to follow you. Did you use your former rank to push your weight around?”

“Sir, no Sir. My teammates didn’t know about my former rank.”

Kline looked over at Vaughn and said, “Did you know?”

Tommy looked very uncomfortable and said, “Sir, I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Sir.”

Explain to me, Private Graves, how you made the decisions to carry out this plan?”

“Sir, I know that all the conduits that control all the ship’s systems fed through the landing bay. I determined that if they could be cut and the walls breeched, the bridge would lose control of their boards.”

“Did you consider that the bridge had an auxiliary power supply?”

“Yes Sir, but according to the boards that were taken from a Black Ship by The Zord Kreej, it was also located in the rear of the landing bay. If the cut was made in the center of the bay, it would have been cut as well.”

“Just where did you get that information, Private?”

“Sir, it’s in the mainframe on the Algean Ship. I asked our pilot if he had any information about the Black Ships and he shared it with me, Sir.”

Kline turned and walked back to his desk and sat down. He said on his com, “Sgt. Johnson, please come in with the disciplinary papers.”

Kline saw all five show their despair in their eyes. He had seen that expression hundreds of times during basic training as recruits washed out. Johnson came in and handed him a stack of papers. He looked at Private Vaughn and said, “What are you going to do next time, Private?”

Tommy didn’t hesitate, “I would do it again the same way, Sir. It was a good plan.”

Kline smiled, “Yes, it was.” He looked at Gina and said, “Private Graves, you are promoted to Captain and will be the commander of this company. We have four platoons in our company and each of you will be promoted to Lieutenant commanding them. You shattered the record for destroying a ship with half the normal number of warriors. I expect you to teach those under your command how to use the tactics you followed. You have made me proud and your willingness to stand by your team member only makes me certain I’m making a good decision. At ease.”

The five relaxed and Kline saw their excitement. “Sgt. Johnson, if you will have them sign the forms, they need to report to their platoons and start training them. Captain Graves, if you will remain behind, I would like to speak with you.”

Gina smiled and said, “Yes Sir.”

• • •

Gina entered the room, came to attention, and saluted. Kline returned Gina’s salute and said, “Sit down, Captain.” She pulled a chair up and sat in front of Kline’s desk, “Why have you been trying so hard to become a part of this exercise?”

“This is where the future leaders of our warriors are going to be chosen. I want to have a hand in fighting the Black Ships.”

“Wouldn’t you do that just as well commanding a Warship in the Navy? I’ve looked at your test scores and you could have acquired a command rather quickly.”

“Killing them in a warship doesn’t really meet my needs, Sir.”

Kline narrowed his eyes and said, “Tell me what you mean by that?”

“Watching a ship explode from a distance just doesn’t do it for me. I want to see the death of the invaders up close.”

Kline started to worry that the woman in front of his might not be stable. Her psychiatric exams said she was but this didn’t sound good. “I think you need to explain what you mean by that?”

“Sir, I was visiting New Hope on a field trip with my second grade class when Bristone and the other worlds in our universe were destroyed. When they burned Juniper, they killed my entire family including my twin sister. They created a void in me that can never be filled. It became my quest to make them pay. I’ve been working on that since that time. I joined the warriors in the hope that we would one day invade their home worlds and I would have an opportunity to remove them from Creation.”

She paused and Kline said, “Go on.”

“When I heard about this command actually teleporting into their ships to destroy them, I knew that I had to be a part of it.”

“Why?”

“Because it would give me the opportunity to actually see those orange pieces of groad die.”

Kline stared at Gina and remained silent.

“You’re worried that my desire for revenge would jeopardize the lives of those under my command.”

“Yes, I am.”

“Every one of us is more valuable than a million of those creatures. I will not waste one life unnecessarily. I will do all I can to make sure my warriors have the best chance of survival. I’m not blinded by my hatred; I’m just motivated by it.”

Kline smiled, “I understand. You realize that if you advance in rank you might not be taking part in the actual fighting?”

“That’s where I hope I can count on you to prevent that happening. That fear is what made me tell you the truth about my feelings. I worried that you might remove me from the exercise, but I knew that to fulfill my debt, you had to know.”

“What exactly is your debt, Captain?”

“Just killing them in their ships is not enough, Sir. The evil they represent must be removed from existence. I’m driven by the long view on this and will do the right things to make that happen.”

“Captain, I will help you balance your debt. I was originally intending to take out two ships with this company but you have come up with a plan that could make the numbers more meaningful. We have a hundred and sixty Life Warriors in this company and if we can kill a Black Ship with five of them, we can take out more than thirty. “I want you to get your command trained to make that happen.”

“I will do exactly that, Sir. And thank you.” She stood and saluted.

Kline returned her salute and Sgt. Johnson walked in as she exited the room, “Are you sure about this?”

“Oh yes. Some commanders are frightened to take risks while confronting an enemy. We won’t have that problem with her.”

Sgt. Johnson looked out the door as Gina left the building and said, “You are right about that. She does have a warrior’s heart.”

Kline leaned back in his chair, “And that is what will make the difference, Sarge.”

• • •

Gina walked quickly back to the company’s barracks thinking about how to get the warriors trained. She thought about the young Major that had beaten her scores in training and discovered that his youth didn’t bother her. She was four years older but he handled himself much better than most of the officers she had encountered. She stopped and suddenly realized that he said he understood her quest. She sensed that he really did understand and wondered what had happened to him to allow him to see it. She started walking again and realized that he would not give up the right to take part in the fighting either. Sheena would have liked him. She knew she did.

• • •

Tag and Trey entered Kline’s office and he jumped to attention. “At ease, Major. How long will it be before your command is ready to fight?”

“We are ready now, Your Grace. We’re just waiting on the additional ships needed to transport the attack groups.”

Tag looked at the report in his hand and said, “I thought two ships were enough?”

“It was originally, but we’ve determined that we can destroy their ships with only five warriors.”

Trey said, “Just how are you going to do that?”

“Our original plan called for destroying their reactors which would explode and kill the ship. We were concerned that the explosion would trap our warriors inside the force field and possibly kill them if the explosion arrived before the field went down. Now, we are not going to attack the reactors.”

Tag sat down and said, “Please sit, Major. What are you going to do?”

“We are going to teleport five Warriors into different sections of the ship and have them cut through the walls from ceiling to floor. They will then teleport out.”

“What will that do?”

“We’ve learned from the theft of their dimensional drive by Kreej that, if power is interrupted to the control boards on the bridge, the ship will self-destruct. Once that happens, the force field will drop and the Warriors will teleport to the coordinates of their attack craft. The self-destruct explosion will not be as powerful as the one produced by the destruction of their reactors. It is our intent to destroy thirty of their newest ships in our first attack, Your Grace.”

Tag looked at Trey and saw him nod, “Major, you are hereby promoted to the rank of General and will assume the command of our Life Warriors once this exercise is completed; congratulations.”

“I’m sorry, Your Grace, but I must refuse.”

Tag stared at the young man and said in a stern voice, “You are needed to prepare our forces.”

“Your Grace, I am needed at the front fighting the Black Ships. Any one of my officers can manage the training you require. I will resign my rank and be a private before I give up my right to fight the enemy head on.”

Trey smiled and said, “You’re doing it for your father, aren’t you?”

“Yes Sir, I am.”

Tag looked at Trey as he said, “Then we will do this. You will be promoted to the rank of General and we will send you a regiment to train. You will be our Special Forces that will be used in missions that are the most difficult. We won’t prevent you from taking part but we insist that you have a replacement trained to replace you in the event you are lost. If you refuse this, you will be out of the Marines.”

“I have already selected five that can take my place. I need you to promote them so that it will be done automatically if that should happen. However, isn’t there only enough Life Warriors to make a regiment?”

Trey smiled and shook his head, “You are quick, but you are not exactly right. Remember the Realm has more than a million Red Warriors defending it.”

“What are you going to do with them, Sir?”

“Unfortunately, their armor is not as good as the new armor we’ve developed. Since it is in their DNA, it can’t be heavily modified and they will have to be used as drop troops. They understand their role and really wish they could join the new Life Warriors but realize their limitations. Their destiny lies in what happens if we survive the Demons”

Tag smiled at Trey and said, “I wish I had done this when faced with promotion.”

Kline said, “Your Grace, no one could replace you.”

Tag laughed and said, “Trey, make sure this command is completely independent of all other forces. The General here will take his orders directly from you.”

Kline said, “Your Grace, would you mind if I sent my officers to choose those that will command? And if I may be presumptuous, will you give me two stars; I have a member of my staff that should be a General handling the Regiment’s preparation while I oversee the general operations. She will be the one that takes my place if I’m lost.”

Tag smiled, “Done; General, make your own promotion recommendations and send them to us. You may then start choosing your warriors; that’s assuming you survive the mission.”

Kline smiled, “If we don’t, we will go out with a bang taking Black Ships with us.”

Tag said, “Make it back, General.”

“I have every intention of doing that, Your Grace.”

• • •

Tag sat with Trey in the Map Room at Castle Gardner and took a sip from his glass, “I’m not sure about allowing our General to take part in combat operations.”

Trey laughed, “If I’m not mistaken, weren’t you the one leading gorilla operations against the Algean Fleets in that war?”

“Well, yes, I guess so.”

“That’s why the Realm loved your family so much. They knew you put your life on the line to defend them. This General will also be loved by the Warriors under him because he will share their risk; just like the Realm’s Navy respected you. This is a good thing.”

Tag tilted his head and said, “I guess you’re right.”

Trey laughed, “You know I am. I’m getting better at seeing things.”

Tag smiled, “You are right again. Let’s see how this turns out.”

• • •

Kline sat in front of his officers and said, “The ships are ready and our departure time will be at 0700 in two days. We have the Intel on the enemy’s ships and have given the selection to our Algean Pilots. They will teleport simultaneously to your assigned targets.” Kline saw their excitement and said, “Before we go, there is something I need to do. Effective after the mission is completed; Captain Graves will be promoted to Brigadier General and will be reporting to me. Each of you will be promoted to Colonel and will command a battalion of Life Warriors. The team leaders in your platoon that command a squad will be promoted to Captains and take command of the Regiment’s Companies.”

Gina interrupted saying, “Sir, I respectfully decline the promotion.”

Kline said, “Oh, be quiet, Gina. You and I both will be taking part in the fighting. That was the only way I would accept this structure.”

“Then I withdraw my objection, Sir. I’m sorry for interrupting.”

“Just don’t do it again, General.”

“Not yet, Sir; after the mission.”

Kline smiled and nodded, “You’re right. Now we’re going to need sixty four more warriors selected to promote to Lieutenant to command our platoons. I want a list from each of you of those that have demonstrated the needed skills to handle that duty. We will make our selections from those on the list that survive this mission. In the event I don’t make it, Captain Graves will replace me. Lt. Vaughn, you will replace us if both of us don’t make it back. Any questions?”

No one said anything and Kline said, “Pick up your Intel packs and get your Warriors ready. Captain Graves and I will prepare our teams.”

The four Lieutenants left and Gina stayed behind. Kline looked at her and said, “Is something bothering you, Captain?”

“Yes it is, Sir. I know if I were in your place, I would be fighting tooth and nail to not be left out of this mission; but you are so important to our future success. I just don’t want to lose you, Sir.”

“You’ll be just as effective as I am, Captain.”

“Maybe, but not as good. Please be careful, Sir.”

Kline smiled, “You do the same, Gina. It’s time to get into the fray and no warrior should be made to stand on the sidelines. We’ll start that tradition here and now. I believe it’s the right thing to do.”

Gina saluted and nodded, “Thank you, Sir.”

“For what?”

“Confirming my belief in you, Sir.” Gina turned and left the office. Kline knew her feelings. He didn’t want to lose her. For more reasons than she knew.

Chapter Fourteen

Kline teleported in to the Algean Capital and met Twig in her lab; she looked up and thought, “Why did you insist on seeing me immediately, General?”

“My company is going into action in forty eight hours and I need to see if you can build a device for me.”

“Go on.”

“We’re going to attack two of their newest ships and we really don’t know what we’ll be jumping into. I’m concerned that our tactics might fail with those two ships.”

“What is it you want us to build?”

Kline laid a sheet of paper on a table and Twig took a look at it, “Where are you going to put this thing?”

“It will have to be absorbed by the skin on my armor.”

Twig looked at the diagram again and said, “Hold on a moment.” An adolescent Algean entered the lab and Twig thought, “Do you have the inventory of weapons in the Realm’s arsenal?”

“I do, Elder.”

“Give it to me.”

Kline watched as there was about five seconds of silence and the young Algean turned and left. Twig said, “We have a possibility but it is going to be a close thing.”

“Can you make it work?”

“Possibly, come back late tomorrow and I’ll see if we can make it small enough. We’ll probably only have enough time to make one of them before your deadline.”

“I’ll take what you can give me and thank you for helping me. I sincerely hope we don’t need this.”

“I must say it’s an interesting concept. I’ll get a team working on it immediately.”

Kline nodded and teleported out.

• • •

Trey and Cassie contacted Timmy and Virze, “Timmy, do you remember the universe we invaded to give our flyers an opportunity to work on their skills?”

“Yes, I do, Trey.”

“I need you to go to the universe one sequence from it and find a world where we can use our new armored troops. We need a world that has been invaded by large numbers of troops. Our warriors need to use their weapons in a live situation. Take Greyson and see if you can find a suitable candidate.”

“I thought that armor was not generally distributed yet?”

“It isn’t; however, we’ve recalled all of the recruits that passed basic but failed the advanced training. There are hundreds of thousands that have started reporting to the camps and are now working on learning how the armor works. We’ll need a target for them and I don’t want to wait until the last minute.”

“We’ll leave within two hours.”

“We’ll need an approximation of how many warriors will be needed in whatever planet you choose.”

“We’ll try to find more than one suitable candidate.”

“Good; be careful and stay in stealth mode.”

“Will do; I’ll keep you informed.”

• • •

Cassie looked at Trey, “Are you rushing this?”

“I hope not but I think we don’t need to wait to get these warriors in the fight for Creation. The Zord and Spiders are now fighting those aggressive civilizations and they are nowhere near the numbers needed to stop the tide. Even if we lose to the Demons, if we can get more into the fray, they can make a difference. Creation will just have to build another tool for the Demons if we fail.”

Cassie thought a moment and said, “I sense you’re right. Have you discussed this with the Gardners?”

“No, I have the authority to make it happen.”

“You don’t think they’ll disagree?”

“Link with me and look at this, Cassie.”

Cassie entered his mind and was surprised, “Your mind is really developing, Trey. This decision dovetails nicely with the attack on the Demon’s ships.”

“Yes it does and I believe this is the reason for that attack; not visa-versa.”

“I can see that now. However, we need to think about what might happen as a result.”

“What do you mean?”

“If the Demons fear going to the original galaxy, what will they do?”

Trey thought about it and said, “You know what we’ll have to do if that happens.”

“We need the second ship.”

“It will be ready in two weeks. What we need is the crew.”

“They will appear, Trey. I know that this is part of the design and the crew will be there when we need them.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“Me, too.”

• • •

Kline stood in front of his Company of warriors and stared at them. The thirty three Algean Pilots stood behind the company watching the proceedings and talking to themselves telepathically. Kline looked at the Company’s officers standing in front of their commands and saw that they didn’t appear to be nervous. He knew they were but refused to show it to their platoons. Gina and Kline’s team were standing at attention behind them. They had been carefully chosen and Kline knew they were ready. He just worried about the two ships he and Gina were going to attack. We just don’t know enough about them. Kline said, “We’ll be departing in ten minutes. Get in, get out, and teleport to your escape coordinates. I know you’re ready, make the Queen proud. Go to your ships.”

The floor of the Defense Facility emptied in less than a second and the warriors waited for the countdown to complete. They knew the time was not any longer or shorter than normal but it seemed to change as they waited. Finally, the speaker on each landing bay announced, “Teleport in three, two, one, and now.”

• • •

Kline knew things would happen fast but he still heard now in his ears when his team appeared in the landing bay of the Demon’s newest ship. He raised his arms and hit the ceiling at full power with his armor’s main beams and saw that the inner hull did not burn through. It had a scar burned in it but the beams did not penetrate. Kline yelled, “Take out the crew in here!”

The five warriors quit firing their main beams at the ceiling and moved rapidly forward into the landing bay. Alarms were going off at high volume and Kline saw on his helmet’s scanner that there were eighty six of the orange creatures in the bay that were grabbing weapons and taking cover. Kline put his laser on auto and set his shoulder gun to pick targets. The five bright white warriors move forward and the orange defenders were falling fast. “Cover the rear doors, Jico.”

One of the five turned and faced the doors into the landing bay that connected the front of the ship. As he watched three of them blew inward and he launched a small wasp at each. The reinforcements were hit with a blast that blew out the doors and up the halls. Jico waited for the next ones to come.

Kline fought his way through the orange creatures and arrived at the door to the reactor room. He turned on his main beam and fired blowing the door inward. He fired three wasps into the room and tossed a dark green package that he took out of the skin of his armor into the room and yelled, “Jump, Jump, Jump!”

The five warriors teleported out of the ship to the force field and Kline turned his scanners on the ship and saw five heavy lasers tracking on their position, “Get ready to teleport to another location. Get ready…” Then the huge ship blew up in a massive explosion. “Watch the field; jump as soon as it falls.”

Kline watched the force field and saw the explosion’s shock wave moving out at them at tremendous velocity. He hoped their armor could withstand the pressures but doubted they could. Just as the shock wave moved in on them, the force field disappeared and he hit his teleport key. They arrived at the assembly coordinates and saw their ship waiting on them. Kline teleported on board and said, “Give me an update on Captain Graves Team.”

The Algean made mental contact with another ship and said, “Her team has not returned.”

Kline said, “Take me to her target and teleport me in on board. Get moving!”

The Algean Pilot stared at Kline and said, “I’m sorry sir but I can’t allow you to take that risk.”

Kline got angry and said, “You have sworn your loyalty to the Realm. I am the ranking Realm Officer on this ship and I expect you to keep your oath.”

The Algean’s leaves began turning brown as he said, “Prince Gardner has ordered me to try and make sure you survive this mission. I believe he outranks you, Sir.”

Kline said, “If we start trying to protect our warriors, we are going to lose this war. You know that to be true. Once we start down that road, we will not return. Take me there now!”

The Algean stared at him and his leaves turned bright green, “Well, who wants to live forever anyway. Teleporting in five seconds.”

Kline’s team said, “Send us with him.”

Kline said, “No! You will wait here.” Then he disappeared.

• • •

Kline reappeared in the landing bay in the middle of a huge firefight. He saw the five Warriors firing from behind a bulkhead and teleported over to them as twenty beams went through the position he had just occupied. Gina saw him and yelled, “Are you out of your mind?”

“Give me an update.”

“It appears we teleported in just when the ship was having a drill on repelling boarders. We arrived with two hundred of their soldiers going through their maneuvers. I have no way to get to the reactor room to blow this baby up. I’ve lost two of my team that were hit with a hundred lasers. We’re not going to last much longer, more and more troops are arriving.”

Kline looked at Gina and said, “In three seconds from my mark I want you and your team to step out and lay down a covering fire. Fire for two seconds and then move back behind this bulkhead.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m here to deliver a present and I need them to allow me time to deliver it. Are you ready?”

Kline keyed the first three codes in his helmet and saw them go active. Gina stared at him and then nodded. Kline said, “Mark!”

The three life warriors stepped out from the bulkhead and fired every weapon in their inventory. The massive fire caused the orange troops to drop momentarily and Kline stepped out with the three and said, “Eject.”

Gina watched something huge leave Kline’s armor and ignite directly in front of him, driving both of them to the floor. She looked up and saw the rocket move across the huge landing bay as a silver screen formed in front it and expanded rapidly. The screen was more than a hundred feet across when it hit the far side of the landing bay and when it passed the enemy troops on the other side of the huge room, none of them remained. She saw it go through the reactor room doors and then she saw empty space.

“Jump, jump, jump!”

The four warriors teleported out of the huge ship to the force field and watched the huge ship go dark.

Gina looked back at the ship and saw it go dark, “Kline, what was that?”

Kline smiled, “I had the Algeans cook it up for special delivery. Basically, it’s a hornet with a teleport screen in front of it.”

“Where did you teleport the rear end of that ship?”

“Twig told me that anything that went through that screen would be teleported to a star’s corona. The hornet will pass through its own teleport field and join the rest of the material at the star as well to prevent them finding it.”

The Force field dropped and the four teleported to their ships just after the giant ship’s self-destruct circuit activated and destroyed what was left.

• • •

The Ship’s Master was trying to communicate with one of the Masters and tell it what was happening when the bridge lost all power and the room went pitch black. Everyone on the bridge heard, “Self-destruct is now active.”

The Ship Master’s last thought was, “They’re going to have to do something about the self-destruct circuit.”

• • •

“Trey, Queen Danielle has requested us to meet her in the Map Room at Castle Gardner.”

“Do you know why she wants us?”

“No, but she was not commanding in her request.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m not sure; but there’s a difference in her tone when she made the request. Something is going on and I’m uncertain what it is.”

Trey shrugged and said, “Well, let’s not keep her waiting.”

• • •

Trey and Cassie arrived and found Danielle, Tag, and Cassandra waiting for them. Trey said, “I’m sorry we kept you waiting.”

“You didn’t. We’ve only been here for a few minutes.”

Cassie said, “It’s good to see you again. We need to come by more often.”

Danielle smiled, “I know how busy you’ve been. However, Tag and I think it’s time for us to tell you about a new structure in the Realm.”

Trey glanced at Cassie and said, “New structure?”

“Yes. We felt the need for it a few weeks ago but wanted to make sure we were right in what we were seeing. Tag has examined all the variations and agrees that now is the time to implement it.”

“Danielle, I’m not sure where you’re going with this, but we will not replace you as Rulers of the Realm.”

“No, you will not. You have another role to play and the Realm will be a tool for you to use.”

Cassie said, “Why don’t you tell us what you’re thinking?”

“You and Cassie will take the Titles of Emperor and Empress of the Bristone Empire and I will swear the Realm’s loyalty to you.”

Trey stood up and said, “Wait just a minute! Slow down. Why would we do that?”

Tag said, “The Realm is a tool that Creation made long ago. However, you two are the ones chosen by Creation to lead the fight to bring balance back. The Realm will have to fight to survive the Demons, but we will not be the only tool that is going to be forged during this conflict. There will be other universes that you will go and fight to save. Some civilizations in those universes will want to join you in your crusade. They will also swear their loyalty to you and assist you in the fight. Ultimately, all of us will be joined under your rule and forge a unity that will conquer the evil that threatens to overwhelm life. The Realm will be just a small part of that coming Empire.”

Trey looked at Cassie and she said, “Your plans for the new armored warriors indicate that you can feel the way we should be moving. This structure Queen Danielle is describing is exactly what could make that happen.”

Trey turned to Danielle, “Then what will be the Realm’s role in this new entity?”

“We will provide the warriors and ships necessary for you to succeed. You will use them in the way you think best. This will be the role of any civilization that would join us in the struggle.”

“Do you think the Realm will accept this?”

Tag said, “They will and the vision it carries with it is what will cement the Realm as nothing else could. We will be stronger for working toward a future that is worth having for all our children and their descendants. “

Trey thought about the idea and worried about where it was going to take him. Then Danielle said something that made him know it was the thing to do.

“Trey, effective immediately, all of the Life Warriors will be independent of the Realm and will be directly under your command. They will be the Empire’s weapon to use in the war. The only one that will control them is you. However, I do have one small request.”

“What is that?”

“My husband is considered a rather effective warrior in his own right. He wants to command those warriors for you and use them to carry out your plans.”

Trey looked at Tag and he nodded. Trey had a huge smile when he said, “That is an outstanding suggestion. I will accept this just to have Creation’s finest warrior fighting with me. Tag, you will be a difference maker.”

Tag nodded and said, “I should be in the fight. It’s time I realized that and do my part.”

Cassandra smiled and said, “This is a great concept.” She paused and said, “But what am I doing here? Why did you have me come to this meeting?”

Cassie and Trey looked at her and then at Danielle. She said, “I eventually saw this, but Tag is the one that sensed it first. Why don’t you tell her, Darling?”

Tag looked at Trey and said, “How’s the progress on the second ship coming along?”

Cassandra said, “What ship?”

Trey and Cassie were startled by the question and Cassie said, “It will be completed in three weeks. The crew is already trained and ready to be assigned.”

Tag looked at Cassandra and said, “You will be commanding that ship and Tim Valrico Jr will be your partner in fighting it.”

“Trey, Cassie, and Cassandra all said simultaneously, “What!”

“I’ve spoken with Alex about this under his promise of secrecy and he has selected Jessica to be his partner in controlling the ships functions.” Tag walked over and took Cassandra’s hands in his, “It’s time for you to come back to the land of the living, Cassie. You know you feel close to Junior and I suspect you feel safe enough with him to open your mind to him. I know he has a special place in his heart for you. He would never take the initial step in telling you. You are the strongest psychic warrior in the Realm’s history and you’ll be commanding a Psychic Ship. You can make the difference in our survival.”

Tag looked at Trey, “You don’t know why you had that ship build, do you?”

Trey shook his head trying to get a grip on what he was hearing and said, “No, we just knew we’d need it to survive.”

“Creation has also selected our Cassie to fight for her. If you simply look at it, you’ll see it as well.”

Trey took Cassie’s hands and they linked. Cassandra watched them and wondered why her mind was not screaming at the idea. She thought about it and felt Tommy in her mind nodding. She thought about Junior and wished he was there to help her with this problem. Then she knew. The fact that she needed him to help her told her more than anything else that could be said. She thought, “Alex, what do you think about this?”

“I remember your feelings the first time you saw me. Wait until you see what I’ll be this time.” Tommy said it well, “She looks like she’s coming to life.”“

Cassandra looked over as Cassie and Trey looked at her, “What do you think about this, Cassandra?”

“You need to pick a target for us to practice on, Your Majesty.”

Danielle burst out laughing and ran over to Cassandra and hugged her tightly. Trey and Cassie smiled and joined her in welcoming their newest Life Warrior. Tag watched them and felt pride in his family. Now they were moving toward their destiny and his long life had new meaning.

Chapter Fifteen

The Controller was watching the feed from one of his newest warships and saw five white beings fighting for control of the landing bay. The Ship Master was sending reinforcements to the landing bay and the Controller said, “I want one of those beings captured and examined. Do not allow them to escape.”

“We’ve managed to kill two of them and it is going to be difficult to take one alive.”

“I want that Armor they have on. How did they get into your landing bay?”

“I have no idea. They just suddenly appeared, according to our recording.”

“We’ve lost thirty ships to these beings and none of the ones that attacked were left behind. You will not allow them to escape.”

The Four Council Members joined the Controller on the display and watched without interruption. The Controller sent six of the new ships to surround the one being attacked and waited for the outcome of the battle. The landing bay was blazing with the number of energy weapons being fired in the thousand yard room.

“Are you going to drop the force field to allow others to assist in this battle?”

“No, I’m concerned that if I do that those creatures will jump out.”

“Well how did they jump in? Was the force field down?”

“No, First Councilor; it was up. They somehow managed to come through it. However, we’ve killed two of them and if they could escape I suspect they would have left. They must be able to jump in but cannot jump out.”

“What is that!?!”

The Controller looked at his second monitor and saw a small white ship suddenly appear close to the ship being attacked and then disappear before the six ships could fire on it. He looked quickly back at the landing bay monitor and saw another of the White Beings had joined the three survivors.

“It appears I’m right. They can jump in but not out.”

“How did these beings destroy our older models?”

“We didn’t get a clear picture, but in the only one we received they fired their beams into the ceiling and cut the power cables leading from the reactor to the bridge. When the bridges lost power, the self-destruct circuits activated and destroyed the ships.”

“Then our older models cannot withstand this type of attack.”

“It appears you are right Second Councilor. The newest model has two hulls that are constructed from out hardest material and they were unable to penetrate the inner hull to cut the power conduits.”

“What are they doing?”

The five Orange Demons watched as the three survivors stepped out from the bulkhead they were pinned behind and fired a huge wall of beams. The new arrival stepped out and something came out of its armor and moved quickly across the huge landing bay. Their feed was suddenly cut and switched to an outside view of the ship. Something disintegrated the back third of the ship, cutting power to the part that remained. All the lights went out and then the huge vessel exploded. The Controller pounded his chair arm and stood up. He looked down at his scanner and saw something. He sat back down and slowed the speed down.

“I have something on my scanner.”

The four Council Leaders watched and saw four small whited colored beings just inside the outer edge of the stricken ships force field. When the field when down, they disappeared. “Find out where they went.”

The Controller hit his board and his scanners suddenly alarmed. He brought the focus in and saw thirty three small white ships in close formation. They jumped away using a standard universal drive and he read the coordinates. He entered them into his scanner and the board released a loud, blaring alarm. He looked at the location and the four Council Members saw his expression. “Where did they go?”

“To the Family’s Galaxy.”

• • •

The thirty three attack ships waited and Kline watched the wall display. He looked at the Algean commanding the squadron and asked, “Do you think they missed the coordinates?”

“No, I’m sure they saw them. I detected a scan just before we jumped.”

“How long are you going to wait? I have some injured warriors.”

“If they aren’t here by now, they aren’t coming.” The Algean thought to the other pilots, “Teleport away and use standard evasive procedures.”

The thirty three ships disappeared as they teleported away in thirty three different directions. Kline leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. The initial injury reports had thirty warriors killed and fifteen injured. This first attempt was costly…but, he had learned a lot. The new hornet was going to be the weapon of choice from this confrontation forward. The numbers needed to kill a ship was now reduced to one. He hoped the Algeans would be able to manufacture the new missile in a small enough size to make loading them into a warrior’s armor easier. It had taken twenty attempts before he had been able to get the one in his. The darn thing was nearly as big as he was. He closed his eyes and felt his shaking start from the adrenaline in his system.

• • •

Tag sat in his office in Castle Gardner and looked at Generals Zawley and Graves standing at attention in front of his desk, “At ease, take a seat.” The two came around and sat down in two chairs. “Congratulations on your first mission. It was a great success and I know it was due to your excellent planning. However, there is going to be a change in the command structure of the Life Warriors and I want to discuss it with you before I move forward.”

Kline asked, “What sort of change, Your Grace?”

“The Life Warriors are being taken out of the Realm’s armed forces and will be an independent attack force that will report directly to the New Emperor.”

Kline and Gina looked at each other and Gina said, “New Emperor?”

“Yes; and this is still a secret that you will keep to yourselves. Trey Robbins is going to be the New Bristone Emperor and the Stars Realm will swear its loyalty to him. He will command the forces that are used to attack those aggressive civilizations that are attacking innocent worlds. The Realm will be responsible for its own defense and with providing the armies that he will need to carry out his quest. I have been assigned the overall command of the Life Warriors.”

Kline smiled and said, “That’s great, Your Grace. I’m happy to be under your command.”

“Not so fast, General. I allowed you some leeway in the original structure of the regiment. You are going to have to decide now how you are going to fit in this new chain-of-command.”

“I’m not sure what you mean?”

“I have two choices about how to set up the regiment’s structure. In one of them, you will have the overall command of the regiment and I will have you plan and carry out the missions I assign you. If you choose to take that position, I will not allow you to take part in any combat operations. You will be too important to lose.”

“And the other choice?”

“You will take command of one of the regiment’s brigades and coordinate with General Graves here, who will be given the second Brigade, to fight our chosen targets.” Tag paused and said, “I personally hope you choose the first one because it will make my life much easier.”

Kline smiled, “I’m sorry, Your Grace, but I choose the second option. I don’t want to makes things more difficult for you, but I feel I must be involved in the fighting.”

Tag smiled and looked at Gina, “You have the same options, General. What’s your choice?”

“I’ve always had a close attachment to the Second Brigade, Your Grace.”

“It doesn’t exist yet, General.”

“Well, I know I will have an attachment. I can’t let them down.”

Tag laughed and pulled some papers out of his desk, “Please sign these forms.”

Kline looked at the form and said, “This one names me the First Brigades Commanding Officer.” He looked over at Gina and she nodded.

“Well, I suspected what your decisions would be. General Graves, you will be given a second star but will be junior to General Zawly in seniority. I expect your brigades to grow into two divisions eventually and they can grow into your ranks. Your first order of business will be to select the officers for your commands and I want the two brigades to be as equal as possible. The remainder of the Life Warriors will join you on New Hope, where you will start their training.”

Kline said, “Your Grace, I need you to clarify something for me.”

“What is that?”

“Who commands these missions? General Graves and I, or our pilots?”

Tag took a deep breath, “I’ve heard about what happened. You will command the fleet assigned to transport your warriors. The Algean Commanders of the ships under your command will be your pilots.”

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

Tag stood and the two Generals jumped to attention, “Make us proud; Dismissed.”

Tag left the room and Gina put her hand on Kline’s arm, “I want to know why you came to rescue my team?”

“You were just too valuable to lose.”

“No, I’m not. We both knew we were expendable. There were other teams at risk but you forced your pilot to send you after mine. Why?”

“I had a device that could destroy the new Demon Ship. I was the only one that could save you.”

“That’s a good reason but not the real reason. Revealing that weapon to only save one team was not good tactics and you know it.”

Kline stared at her and didn’t say anything. Gina looked into his eyes, smiled, and leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek, “I know you love me. You might as well admit it.”

She turned and walked away and Kline was left with a red face, wondering how he had given himself away.

• • •

Junior teleported in to the new psychic ship with his tool bag and found Cassandra sitting in the command chair on the bridge, “Hello, Cassandra, I didn’t know you were on board.”

“I just found out about this ship and wanted to come take a look. It’s a real beauty.”

Junior smiled broadly and said, “She’s just like the Scotty Robbins. Matter of fact, it’s an identical twin.”

Cassandra smiled, “Have you been working on it?”

“From the ground up and I was also involved in the construction of the first ship. This is one remarkable vessel.”

Cassandra smiled and said, “Why are there two chairs side-by-side on the bridge?”

Junior smiled, “The two pilots that control the ship will be linked mentally. One will operate the scanners and defense array as well as the jump boards. The commander will make decisions about the offensive array.”

“I would think the ship could do all it alone?”

“Not really. The two pilots will have to possess psychic abilities that will allow them to link to the stored psychic charge in the ship’s main systems. Once they link to that reservoir, they will be able to think faster than any artificial intelligence when those connections are active. The ship’s cybernetic computers will respond to their inputs.”

“So, there are two computers running the ship?”

“Yes; one matches up to the Commander and the other to the Scanner Officer.”

“Do you know who is going to be chosen as the command team?”

Junior slowly shook his head, “I’m not sure they’ve found anyone yet. But whoever is selected, they will be getting one remarkable vessel.”

“Why don’t you apply for the position, Junior?”

Junior tilted his head, “I’m a first generation psychic and I’m sure they want a second for this ship.”

“You’ll never know unless you ask.”

Junior lowered his head and said, “Yeah, I guess you’re right. I wonder who will be making the selections?”

“Well, I guess I am, Junior.”

“What!”

“I’ve been chosen to command this ship and I’m waiting for my partner to apply for the other position.”

Junior stared at Cassandra for a long moment and then said, “Are you ready to open your mind to someone else?”

“Only to you.”

Junior stared at her in shock and then slowly smiled, “I guess that limits your choices, doesn’t it?”

“Yes, I guess it does.”

Junior’s smile vanished and he lowered his head, “I’m really not worthy of this, Cassandra. I’m just a first generation psychic. I’m not that special.”

Cassandra stood and went over and took his hands in hers, “You are more special than you’ll ever know.” He looked up into her eyes and saw her smile, “Besides, I’m a first generation psychic as well.”

Junior was surprised by her remark and then said, “Yeah, I guess you are.”

“Soooooo…”

Junior released her hands and stood at attention, “Lady Cassandra Gardner, I request that I be assigned to this ship as one of its officers.”

Cassandra smiled, “Request granted. Have you thought of a name for this ship?”

“As a matter of fact, I have. She should be named the Bristone Empire Ship Juliette Robbins. The Scotty Robbins should not be alone in the coming fight. I know if they were still alive, Juliette would not leave his side.”

Cassandra felt the rightness of the name and right behind it she felt her tears. She went forward and put her arms around junior and put her head on his chest. Junior whispered to her, “And I will never leave you.”

Cassandra felt her heart beating faster and knew he meant it. She looked forward to the rest of the day and the days that would follow.

Alex waited for the final connections to be made and felt his heart beat faster as well. Cassandra was back.

“Alex, thank you for choosing me to join you.”

“Jessica, you are my only choice.”

“And you are mine as well.”

• • •

The First Councilor looked at the Controller and said, “Do you think those ships were sent here by the Family?”

“I have no way of knowing.”

“Well do you have a guess!?!”

The Controller heard the fear and rage in the First’s tone and said, “It’s all rather confusing.”

The First snapped, “And why is that?”

“During all the millions of years we were part of the family, did you ever see one of their tools go to the Home?”

The four grew silent. After ten minutes the First said, “My records have never had that happen during our time there.”

“Yet these ships jumped straight there. That is something I just can’t explain. I know the beings attacking our ships were not Family Members.”

The Second said, “How do you know that?”

“Most of them were too large and their legs bent the wrong way. The arms were a third longer and the chest was shaped different.”

“It could have been hidden under the armor they were wearing.”

The Controller sent a picture of one of the beings and said, “From the speed they were moving, it couldn’t have been done in armor that was not right up against the body of the user. No, these were not Family Members.”

The First studied the recording again and said, “I think you’re right.”

“If they weren’t Family Members, then there is no way they would have been allowed to go to the Home.”

The First looked at the other three and said, “Tell me what you think.”

The Second shrugged, “I have no real concept of how this could have happened.”

The First stared with rage at the Second but knew he could do nothing about it. He was already in trouble with the Community and knew that a growing number of them supported the Second to replace him. The Third said, “Perhaps they were trying to get us to come there.”

“Why?”

The Fourth said, “If that was the case, they chose a very funny way to ask. A message would have sufficed. Unless you’re saying they were trying to lure us there for an attack, which would also not make sense because they could come here to do that.”

The Controller said, “That maybe what happened. They sent a raid to determine our strength.”

The Fourth shook his head, “We all know that the Family is far more numerous and kept the majority of the major warships when they forced us to leave. They know what kind of ships we have and they did not send one of theirs. They sent a tool.”

“There is one other possibility.”

The four turned to the Controller.

“The Family could be gone.”

“Where would they go?”

“I don’t know if they have, First Councilor. But if they weren’t there, then those ships could jump there and we would not pursue them. It would be similar to the jump they used to go to the Green Ship Universe with that damaged ship. We were not attacked when we followed them there. I’m probably wrong, but that would account for all that we’ve seen so far.”

“Do you honestly think the Family has left the Home?”

“There is one other possibility.”

“What is that, Controller?”

“The Family may have been destroyed sometime during the last hundred million years and we wouldn’t know it.”

The Four thought about that possibility and then the First said, “That is not a reasonable possibility. I won’t say them moving is an absolute impossibility, but nothing can come close to their power.”

“I only said it was a possibility. I don’t believe it either, but if we’re examining possibilities, I don’t want to leave any out.”

The First thought for a long moment and everyone remained silent. Finally, he said, “We must go and investigate but I want out new ships completed first. How are we going to prevent them being attacked?”

The Controller said, “I’ve started all of our ships making random jumps from universe to universe and dimension to dimension. It will almost be impossible for one of those small ships to jump in on them while they are moving. Once the new fleet is built we will go and find this troublesome civilization and eliminate it.”

“What about us?”

“I’ve started a thousand of our subject planets growing Remid in high quantity.”

The Third said, “It will kill those planet’s populations.”

“I know and I’ll call the production off if you so order but I really want a huge stockpile before we make that visit.”

The Second leaned back on its couch, “Those planets can always be replaced. I think it’s a good plan.”

The First looked at the second and nodded, “I agree. During this critical time you might as well use all our subject planets. We can always move to a more populated Dimension.”

“I will do as you command, First Councilor.”

The First looked at the Fourth, “Don’t think I’ve forgotten about you.”

The Fourth lowered his head and hoped the Family had actually moved. It was his only chance of surviving the trip he was being forced to make to their Home.

Chapter Sixteen

Trey and Cassie were on board the brand new psychic ship Juliette Robbins. Cassandra and Junior had stood and bowed as they arrived and Trey said, “Please rise.”

“Welcome aboard, Your Majesty.”

“Thank you, Cassandra. Are you ready to start learning your new ship?”

“Yes, I am but I think Alex is even more excited.”

Trey smiled, “Is that true, Alex?”

“Yes it is, however, I just don’t understand most of these circuits. They seem to not be connected to any of the power supplies.”

“Don’t feel bad, AK had the same problem when the Robbins was built.”

Junior said, “So how do we power these systems?”

“The Robbins is next to this ship and has been building its power levels since Cassie and I first released each other. We have run a conduit to a connector on the outer hull of the Juliette and AK and Grace will transfer 50% of its stored charge. Are you ready Alex?”

Both Jessica and I are ready, Your Majesty.”

Trey thought, “AK, you and Grace can start the transfer.”

“Starting the transfer now.”

Cassandra looked at her control panel and saw the power meter that was on zero start to rise. It reached twenty percent and she heard Alex say, “Systems are now coming on line.”

Cassandra saw every control on her board illuminate and she looked over at Junior as he looked at her and nodded. The meter stopped at 50%. “Where are we going to get additional power?”

“You and Junior are going to provide the levels necessary to maintain them at maximum settings. I need you and Junior to join us and link with our minds.”

Trey took Cassandra’s hand as she held Junior’s; Cassie took Junior’s other hand and Trey said, “This might cause a little shock but you need to hold on and not release your grip; understand?” Cassandra and Junior nodded and Trey took Cassie’s hand in his closing the circle.

There was a bright blue flash and Cassandra and Junior felt the psychic surge rush through their bodies. Cassandra watched the meter on the central display and saw it jump quickly to a hundred percent. Trey was watching it as well and released Cassie’s hand as it hit a hundred per cent. “Good, now the ship is fully active and armed.”

Cassandra said, “Alex, are you ok?”

“We’re fine, Cassandra. Now that all the systems are active we can follow the leads and imprint their processes in our memory. Give us about an hour of processing time.”

AK said, “You might need three hours. The defense systems are somewhat intricate.”

Jessica said, “I just noticed those. You’re probably right.”

Cassandra smiled, “Three hours it is. We’ll not bother you until then.”

Junior said, “Tell me more about how Cassandra and I are going to keep the system at maximum power.”

Cassie said, “The ship draws power from the psychic fields of the commanders. The field will be stronger if the two of you make physical contact.”

Treys saw Junior’s discomfort and said, “Are there any other questions? We need to go recharge the Robbins.”

Junior said, “No, if I think of anything I’ll contact you.”

Cassandra and Junior bowed as Trey and Cassie teleported away. Cassandra looked at Junior and said, “Something’s bothering you; what is it?”

Junior’s face turned red and he sat down. He looked at Cassandra but remained silent.

Cassandra nodded slowly and said, “The physical contact thing bothers you.”

Junior lowered his head and said, “I’m just not certain about our current relationship. I’m hesitant to touch you. I know how much you loved Tommy and I just don’t know what would be appropriate.”

Cassandra got up, walked over to Junior’s chair, pulled him up, and planted a huge kiss on his mouth. She leaned back and then went back to her chair leaving Junior with a stunned expression. “That’s a good place to start; don’t you think.”

Junior’s small smile broadened and he said, “Yes, I think it is.”

“Good.”

Junior sat down and looked at his board in the ensuing silence and said, “We might need to do that quite often to keep our systems at peak power.”

Cassandra tried not smile but said while looking at the display, “I believe you’re right.”

Junior got up and started toward the bridge exit but stopped, came back, and leaned in as he kissed Cassandra.

She sat there with her eyes closed and said, “What was that?”

Junior smiled and said, “I noticed a power fluctuation. I was forced to take action.” Cassandra stood and wrapped her arms around him and said, “Oops, there goes another one.”

Trey and Cassie were watching the two in their minds and Cassie said, “It looks like they’ve solved their power issues.”

Trey smiled, “Yep, now we need to solve our own.”

AK and Grace chuckled as Cassie came into Trey’s arms.

• • •

Trey looked around the throne room at the four of the five most powerful psychic couples in the Realm. Twig had requested an audience and requested that the members of the Royal Family along with Trey and Cassie be present. Trey thought to Cassie, “I wonder what she wants?”

“I don’t know but she said that a mistake had been made and her engineers needed some guidance.”

“That sounds like trouble.”

“It does when an Algean makes a mistake, doesn’t it?”

“Oh yeah!”

Valerie and Jake sat and watched the energetic couples as they discussed their plans. Valerie looked at Jake, “You miss being involved in the action?”

Jake sighed heavily and nodded, “I can’t blame them for excluding us after all the mistakes we made.”

“I know. What do you want to do after this meeting?”

“I have no plans. Whatever you want to do is fine.”

Valerie saw his sadness and knew his spirit was sinking into a spiral of depression. Even she couldn’t snap him out of it. He blamed himself for so much. Suddenly, Twig appeared in front of the Throne and bowed.

Danielle smiled, “Welcome to Ross, Elder. What brings you to visit us?”

Twig straightened and said, “We were asked to build a psychic ship that I believe is now commanded by Cassandra and Junior.”

Trey said, “Yes, I asked BC to get with you to complete the construction.”

“We carried out that request but BC said something that has caused a problem.”

Danielle asked, “What was that?”

Twig leaned slightly back showing her discomfort and said, “Well, when he sent us the plans and the uncompleted ship he said that a second ship was needed.”

Danielle nodded, “That’s right. We already had the Scotty Robbins.”

“Welllll, our engineers didn’t know about the Robbins.”

Everyone was silent. After a long moment Tag said, “What are you telling us, Twig?”

“Uh…we built two of them.”

Trey said, “There’s a third ship!?!”

Twig gave a mental sigh and said, “Yes, and we found out our error when we asked BC where the third ship should be sent. His words were, “What third ship?”“

Trey didn’t know what to think. He thought about a third ship and heard music in his mind. He closed his eyes and let his mind go free. While the others began discussing the development, Cassie entered his mind and followed the vision that he was seeing. She jerked her eyes open and looked at Jake and Valerie who were sitting off from the group looking very unhappy. A moment later Trey opened his eyes and looked at her. Cassie looked at him and said, “How do you feel about that?”

Trey smiled, “Redemption comes in such different forms, my love.”

Cassie turned to Danielle and said, “The third ship is not a mistake.”

Danielle and Twig stopped in midsentence and stared at her.

“That ship was a psychic vision that someone in this room, had but didn’t say anything about it.”

Everyone looked around at each other and then they saw Valerie with a guilty expression. She saw Jake look at her after he saw them staring. “I did have a dream about a psychic ship that Jake and I were using to fight for Creation.”

Jake furrowed his brow, “When?”

“I just thought it was wishful thinking. I know we want to fight for Creation, but I assumed we would never be trusted again. I just thought I dreamed about something I wanted so much.” She paused and saw everyone’s expressions and said, “The dream did seem so real.”

Danielle and Twig turned to Trey. He said, “This is just more proof that psychic visions cannot be avoided. The ship was built anyway.” He walked over to Jake and Valerie and held out his hand, “I welcome you to the quest and I know you will make a huge difference in our coming struggle.”

Jake looked at Trey, “Can you trust me?”

Trey smiled, “That’s the wrong question, Jake. You are chosen by the Creative Force and I absolutely trust those decisions. You need to start doing the same.” Trey turned to Twig and said, “You need to build a fourth.”

Tag looked at around the room and said, “For who? Who is left that can command it?”

“Paul and TK Blake are second generation psychics. The ship will be theirs.”

Danielle looked at Twig and said, “Emperor Robbins has requested your assistance.”

Twig looked at Trey and back to Danielle, “Emperor?”

“Yes and the Stars Realm is one of his subjects. We have sworn our loyalty to him and he is our supreme ruler.”

“When did this happen?”

“About a week ago; we just haven’t announced it yet. Please enter my mind and let me show you what led to this decision.”

Twig went into Danielle’s mind and after forty seconds she leaned forward, “You are so wise. That is exactly what we should be doing.” She turned and bowed to Trey, “We will have your ship ready in ninety days.”

“Please rise, Twig; thank you for your support.”

“We are sworn to you by our oath to the Realm. Your commands will be followed, Your Majesty.”

Trey turned to Jake and Valerie and said, “We should go and power your ship. We need to select the ships that will provide the computers to assist you first.”

Jake looked excited, “I know one of them. Al and Fly Girl’s son, Junior will be one of them. He can select his partner.”

Danielle said, “Where is Junior?”

“He’s with Al and Fly Girl in another universe.”

“Perhaps his parents might want another go at the Demons?”

“That is a great suggestion. I’ll ask them.”

Valerie saw Jake coming alive. He was needed again and he was starting to get excited. Then she heard Cassandra say something that caught her attention, “I need to make a short trip with Tim.”

Trey and Danielle looked at her and she said, “I need to go back to the Captor’s former home world.”

Danielle asked, “Why do you need to do that?”

“I need to remember when I was most alive and that is where it was. I want to feel it again.”

Danielle looked at Trey as she said said, “Take your journey. I hope it’s all you think it is.”

Trey looked at Cassie and she said, “We also need to go.”

“I know.”

Danielle thought to Tag, “Let’s go home.” Tag nodded and reached for her hand.

Valerie thought to Trey, “We are also making a trip.”

“Where?”

“It’ll be a surprise.”

Jake smiled, “I bet it will.”

• • •

Valerie sat in the Pilot’s chair on the small white ship and Jake smiled, “Where are we going?”

“We’re going to where it all started.”

“What started?”

“Your view of life. You need to take another look.”

Jake’s expression turned serious as Valerie hit the teleport board. An instant later they were looking down on a beautiful green and blue planet. Jake started to say something to Valerie but saw the world hanging in space and could say nothing.

“That’s right, Jake; Gambia. This is where you learned to hate.”

Jake listened but didn’t take his eyes of the display. Finally he said softly, “It was never this beautiful before. The huge ghettos and black smoke from heavy industry made the world look brown when I was a child.”

Jake took the controls and moved the ship into the atmosphere. Valerie watched the planet grow closer and asked, “Where are you going?”

“Home.”

Valerie watched his expression and thought, “Good.”

• • •

Jake landed the ship outside the ruins of a large city. Everything was overgrown with plant life and the streets had been eroded by thousands of years of rain and seasonal change. He walked from the ship toward a bridge that had fallen into the river. The river was clear and flowing quickly out to the ocean ten miles away. Jake walked down to the bank and put his hands in the water. He looked across the river to the far shore and said in a still, quiet, voice, “This is where I pulled Robby out of the river. I didn’t get here in time to save him and he drowned about a hundred yards out. I know his pain was unbearable and he knew he was a burden on the family feeding him.” Jake looked up at Valerie, “I caused his death.” Valerie started to disagree but Jake held up his hand and put it over her mouth, “I know; it was my latent psychic power that really caused it, but it happened to protect me.” Jake looked out at the river again and said, “My anger at his death is what drove me. I hated the upper class merchants that spoiled our lives and now I can see our planet as well.”

Jake looked up at Valerie, “Why has no one ever come back and settled on this planet after the Keepers destroyed the population?”

“Everyone thought it was bad luck.”

“Why?”

“You never came back. They followed your lead.”

“It is a beautiful world now.”

“Yes it is, but you need to understand something.”

Jake looked up at Valerie, “What?”

“Gambia is a microcosm of what is happening in Creation. There are trillions of Robbys that are being killed every day by the aggressive, evil civilizations that are destroying planets. They are bombing them and often beaming them out of existence. You never came back here and made the ones that killed Robby pay for their crime. You were happy that the Keepers did it for you.”

Jake looked down at the ground and Valerie said, “And when the millions of innocent died with the evil merchants, you were still happy. How many Robbys died that day, Jake? You only cared about those in your family. The other millions were not your concern.”

Jake said, “We fought each other every day just to get something to eat.”

“And it was not their fault; they were forced to do it to survive. We are going out to save Creation and you are going to have to see that there are so many innocent beings that we have to care about and be willing to die to save them. Can you do that?”

Jake closed his eyes and remembered wrestling with Robby on the filthy cardboard that was the floor of their one room house. He and Robby ended up laughing so hard that they couldn’t breathe. He realized that it wasn’t the poverty that made him sad; it was the loss of his brother and family. He was struck with the realization that he was happy even in the filth and starvation of Gambia. He found joy in his family. It also broke into his consciousness that the millions of the poor, starving, lower class citizens were also happy and had lives that they made the most of. He slowly started nodding and said, “I owe it to Robby…I owe it to Gambia.” He looked up at Valerie and took a deep breath, “We should have come here long ago.”

“We’re here now and that’s all we have to work with. Are you ready?”

Jake stood and Valerie saw the determination in his eyes, “Please announce to the Realm that we will be moving here when we retire.”

Valerie smiled, “When will we build a home?”

“They’ll start tomorrow.” Valerie hugged Jake and he held her close. She realized that with that announcement, there would be a rush of settlers coming back to this quarantined planet. It was going to live again.

He looked back at the river and thought, “I’ll make it up to you, Robby, I promise.”

• • •

Trey and Cassie were in the Robbins looking down on the devastated remains of Bristone. The cracks in the surface had finally hardened and the streams of lava had abated. There was still a minimal atmosphere, but not enough to support animal life. As they looked at the surface they saw small areas of green. Cassie said, “Bristone will live again in the far future.”

Trey nodded and thought about the night his family had died. He would always have that vision burned into his memory, but the pain of it was slowly ebbing. He knew that it had to happen in order for the subsequent events to take place. He took a deep breath and said, “Let’s go to El Prado.”

AK said, “On our way.”

The Robbins arrived and made orbit above the former site of the Cainth and Human Communities at an hour before twilight. Everything had been taken by the huge Ging Trees, except the clearing that had once been the site of the community fire. The huge Ging Tree roots had taken different routes decades ago and new growths only occurred at the end of their long runners. The clearing had brush that had grown up but was still accessible.

Trey looked at Cassie and nodded. They disappeared from the Robbin’s Bridge and appeared on the edge of the clearing. Cassie moved under his arm and they stared at the place where so much history of the Empire had been made. Trey activated his armor and used his beam to burn the brush in the clearing down to the dirt. He walked over and picked up some dead branches that had fallen and walked into the flames and put the branches in a pile. The brush went up quickly and revealed the old Ging Trunks that had originally surrounded the fire. They were so hard the fire, did not affect them. The branches he piled in the middle of the clearing caught fire and he went and picked up several large ones to put on top of the fire. He walked back to Cassie and they watched the fire start burning.

Trey looked behind them and said, “Follow me and keep your armor activated.”

Trey took Cassie’s hand and led her along a large Ging root away from the settlement. After a short walk, they arrived at a slope that was starting to show signs of plant life. Trey went to a large Ging Root on the edge of the slope, sat down, and leaned back against the log. Cassie looked around and then sat down with him.

“You know we’re being watched?”

“Yes, I sensed them as soon as we arrived.”

“I wonder why they haven’t attacked.”

“They’ve called for help. They saw me burn the clearing and that made them pause. I sense they remember the last contact with the communities.”

Night was falling fast and Trey looked up at the stars starting to shine above the clearing. He deactivated his helmet and placed his weapons on manual control. “Is that a good idea, Trey?”

“I want to see the stars like my family did. Looking at them through the helmet is not what I need; besides, I can see them without my scanners.”

Cassie closed her eyes for a moment and said, “They’re waiting on the pride leader to arrive. He’s about an hour away.” Cassie deactivated her helmet and looked up at the stars. The sun had fallen behind the horizon of the wastelands and the number of stars appearing was an incredible vision. First the bright stars shone through the falling light and then thousands of others started appearing. After fifteen minutes the sky was bathed in a breathtaking panorama of billions of stars stretching from horizon to horizon.

“You’re right, Trey. This is beautiful beyond words.”

They lay in silence and after a moment they heard the music. Trey smiled and said, “This is where Creation gave my grandfather his vision. This is where he asked Julie to marry him. This is where he found balance when he was troubled.”

“What does creation want us to do, Trey?”

“You really don’t know?”

“No, I don’t.”

“Just lay here with me and feel the moment, Cassie. There is still love here that can be felt.” Cassie leaned back and stared at the stars and listened to them sing to her.

• • •

The pride leader had sprinted more than forty miles toward the glow on the horizon. The small two legged creatures had returned to his domain and he felt an equal measure of anger and fear. He knew he could die this night but was left no choice but to defend his territory. Failing to do so would lead to him being replaced by the pride. The thousand warriors following him felt his emotions and worried. They were too young to remember the burning of the scouts, but they had heard the legends. The burning beings had come back. The bright fire growing in size in front of them was done by one of them. Ordinarily they feared no creature, but the leader was fearful. His bravery was without question and if he was worried…they felt it as well.

The thousand cats arrived and joined the six hundred waiting for them. They spread out and moved into the forest toward the clearing. They would have it surrounded in just a few more moments. The Northern Mountain Cats were longer than two hundred feet but they moved through the forest silently and arrived just outside the clearing.

• • •

Trey stood up and faced the forest. The approaching line of cats froze and stopped their advance. Trey looked directly at the place where the Pride Leader was standing in the brush and thought, “You and your warriors will die if you come any closer and I really don’t want to see that happen.”

Trey extended his arm toward a Giant Ging Tree more than two hundred yards away that was sloping slightly down the hill. He fired an intense white beam and the giant tree was cut eight feet off the ground and the eight hundred foot tall tree crashed down into the clearing.

“I can use this weapon to burn every one of you faster than you can move. Do you understand?”

The pride leader watched the beam cut the Giant Ging and saw that it burned through the trunk with no resistance. He did not doubt the creature could probably do what he said but he could not allow this invasion. He looked at his warriors and saw so many of his kittens and family members waiting for his orders. He struggled with what to do. Then he heard the being say something that stopped him in his tracks.

“I am here to bring you a gift. I’ve been brought here to help you achieve your destiny and now is the time for you to become what you are created to be.”

The Leaders rudimentary intelligence understood the message but couldn’t grasp it. The Leader looked at his senior warriors and they were also confused. He looked back at the two beings and saw the hide they were wearing disappear. Before he could think about what that meant, he saw the two beings grab each other as a blue flash rushed out and enveloped him. Every cat on the entire planet fell to the ground unconscious.

Cassie remained in Trey’s arms and saw the Cats lying on the ground. “What just happened?”

“Something remarkable, my love; give them a moment.”

The pride leader felt consciousness return and after several tries, stumbled to his feet. He looked around and saw his warriors struggling to stand and looked at the two small creatures in the clearing. It wondered what happened.

“You have been released. Your minds are now clear and your intelligence has been increased as a result of the barriers being removed.”

The pride leader heard the thought and understood it. He looked around and could hear the thoughts of his warriors clearly. He looked back at the small being and said, “I’m not sure what you’re trying to communicate.”

“You are a creature made by the Creative Force that made all life. You are a special species and have a role in our destiny. Your minds have been deliberately stunted and your intelligence limited. You and your families needed to be released, so that your minds could reach their full capabilities. You are now telepathic and can communicate with your thoughts; you will learn how to use this gift in time.”

“Why did you do this?”

“I didn’t know I had come here for this purpose until I arrived. I was drawn here without knowing why. However, I will be leaving in a moment but I will return to discuss this with you at a later time.”

The pride leader stared at the two small beings and they disappeared. He looked at his advisors and one of them said, “They have a way to move through space.”

The huge cat looked up at the stars and heard music. The other cats around the planet all looked up together at the sky and heard the message. They slowly lowered their bodies to the ground and began purring. Even the young kittens understood what was being said.

Chapter Seventeen

The Juliette Robbins arrived in Earths solar system and Cassandra contacted the President of the Central Government. “Good Morning, Madam President.”

“Good morning, Cassandra, what brings you here?”

“I have a couple of tourists that want to visit for a few days. I wanted to clear it through you before I send them down in a shuttle.”

“Do I need to provide security?”

“Please put this on a private channel?”

President Karen Coronado leaned over and looked back at her display, “Our conversation is now private.”

“I have two members of the Royal Family that desire to visit without being announced. They will not be recognized but this is an unofficial visit and I would appreciate you not letting the word get out they’re here.”

“Anyone I know, Cassandra?”

“Probably, but can you help us with this?”

Karen smiled at the display and said, “Where would they like to land?”

“They’ll be arriving in a small speeder and will come in over Central City’s space port. They’ll probably land somewhere in the city after they pass the control tower.”

Karen looked over and then said, “Set their transponder to the code I just sent you. The Port will sign them in as they pass. What name will they be using?”

“Anglo Ashford.”

Karen smiled again and said, “Done. Tell them I hope they enjoy their visit.”

“Will do.”

Cassandra looked at Tag and Danielle and shook her head, “I don’t know how anyone will recognize you. With that dirty blonde hair with black roots and those yellow stained teeth, you certainly won’t be taken for the Queen.”

Danielle laughed, “I’ve done this before.”

“Tag, that fake belly is amazing. With your short hair, and beard stubble, you should also be fine.”

“Like she said, we’ve had practice.”

“Well, good luck. Do you need us to come back for you?”

“No, the speeder has teleportation capability. We’ll just leave from here. Where are you going?”

Cassandra got a far-away-look and said, “Back to the past.”

Danielle smiled, “So are we. Good luck to you as well.”

Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Tag and Danielle teleported to the landing bay and boarded the speeder. They moved out and the Juliette Robbins disappeared.

• • •

Tag and Danielle looked down on Mars and the vast settlements. Earth had been moved to another solar system during the war with the Captors, but the last request of Misty Nicole had been to move it back to its original solar system. The realm had even been able to find a moon in another galaxy that was almost a twin of the one that had been destroyed. Misty had said, “We just don’t feel right without the planets we know. We want to go home.”

Danielle said, “Misty was a remarkable woman.”

Tag smiled, “Indeed she was. Where do you want to go first?”

“Central City; let’s see if where I met you is still there.”

Tag slowly shook his head, “That was thousands of years ago. It’s probably long gone.”

“It won’t hurt to see.”

Tag shrugged and teleported in to the planet. As they entered the atmosphere Tag said, “How long has it been since we came here?”

“More than several thousand years; why do you ask?”

“Central City doesn’t appear to have grown much from when we lived here.”

Danielle nodded, “With literally billions of planets available to colonize, population pressures disappeared after the Eight Legs Invasion. When you couple it with the desire of most planets to have humans as part of their populations, I don’t find it surprising at all.”

Tag nodded, “You’re probably right. Ok, we’ve flown by the Space Port and had our transponder registered. The school is about four minutes away. Hold on.”

The speeder dropped out of the traffic lanes and moved toward the four thousand feet tall buildings below. It came over the top of a long row of the high rises and Tag saw a patch of green in the middle of the giant structures. “Tag focused on the ground and saw a small building in the middle of a green park with trees and sidewalks running through it. He looked at Danielle and said, “According to my board, that is the former sight of our high school.”

“Take us down.”

Tag brought the speeder in and they were both shocked. The building in the middle of the park was the same building where they went to school. Tag landed on the street and saw a line of security agents more than three hundred yards away surrounding the school. They stepped out of the speeder and a young man walked up with a device in his hand, “I see that you have the approved transponder for today. Please follow me, Mr. and Mrs. Ashford, and I’ll open the building for you.”

Tag looked at Danielle and shrugged. They followed the man across the grounds and he used a key to unlock the side door to the school. Tag looked and saw the bushes he had hid behind so long ago. Danielle looked at the young man and he said, “After you came and took Tommy and Wes, this site was named a historical monument. It has been maintained in its original state and is the most visited place on Earth. President Coronado thought that you might come here so she ordered all visitations stopped to clean the facility and to restore some of the area that’s showing wear. There’s really nothing wrong with the building but she assumed you wanted some privacy. If I can be of any further service, I’ll be waiting by my vehicle.”

Tag said, “What is your name?”

The young man smiled and took off his hat revealing his bright red hair, “Eric McAnn. One of my distant relatives was a close friend of yours, Your Grace.”

Tag went over and gave the young man a hug, “He would be very proud of you. I miss him every day.”

The young man hugged him back and said, “Thank you. He wrote a lot about the relationship you and he had. He loved you a lot.”

Danielle took Tag’s hand and they stepped through the side door and went thousands of years into the past.

• • •

Tag said as they entered, “Notice how the door opens inward; when the inspector arrived to investigate the theft of Leila’s test I hid behind this door and threw a rock at that locker to distract him and escape.

As they walked down the hall Danielle said, “This is the room where you were interrogated by the truth field. We were sitting in those two chairs when I asked you to take me out. Remember?”

Tag smiled, “Like it was yesterday. This is the classroom of Bert Graham where I stole the test.” They walked down the hall and entered the lunchroom. They looked at each other and without saying a word walked across the room and sat down at a table near the far wall. Tag put his arm around Danielle and she snuggled close to him. “Eric asked me out first.”

“Yes, but he didn’t get you to go.”

“No, he didn’t. After shaking your hand, I had eyes for only you my love. I can still feel the shock after all these centuries.”

They sat there in silence and held each other for an hour. Finally Tag said, “This is why we’re fighting.”

“So that others can find the love we were given.”

Tag nodded, “I miss all those that are no longer here but I know in my heart that we have lived this long to struggle for peace.”

“You’re right. I’ve seen enough. Let’s go home.”

As they walked toward the exit Tag looked up and laughed out loud.

“What’s so funny?”

“That guy, Bill Clinton; you know; the one with the funny hair. His picture is still here.”

Danielle shook her head, “The more things change…”

“That’s the truth.”

“Seeing it is what I’m good at.”

“You are the best!”

Just before they opened the door to leave Danielle put her arms around Tag’s neck and kissed him. She felt it all the way down to her toes. Tag held the kiss for a long moment and said, “We need to hurry and get home.”

Danielle laughed as they left the building.

“Did you enjoy your visit?”

“Yes, we did Eric. Thank President Coronado for us; we’re leaving now.”

“I hope you don’t mind that we recorded you entering the building. The people of Earth never get to see you and that recording will brighten their day.”

Danielle stared at Eric, looked at Tag, then turned and said, “Follow me.” She took Tag’s hand and pulled him to the speeder. She put some clear liquid in her mouth and gargled. The yellow stains disappeared from her teeth. He pulled a device from the speeder and pointed at her hair and the dye disintegrated. Tag took off the false stomach and put it in the speeder.

“What are you doing?”

“You’ll see.”

Tag and Danielle walked up to the line of security agents and saw a large crowd gathered. There had to be more than a thousand people and half of them were school age children. Danielle walked up to the major in charge of the agents and said, “Major, please allow these people through your line.”

The Major looked at Eric and he smiled and then nodded. Eric yelled, “Those of you who are here with passes to visit the memorial and had your trip canceled, please step through the line.”

The visitors that were gathered taking pictures of the building from a distance looked at each other and began walking forward. Eric got on his com and said, “We need back up. Now!”

As the people walked through the line of security agents, they looked up and saw a thousand troop carriers arrive overhead and armored warriors began dropping around the school. One of the children started crying and Danielle rushed up and picked the little girl up. The crowd looked at her and it took a few moments before they recognized the most famous face in the universe. Danielle looked out at the crowd and said in a loud voice, “My husband and I are going to take you on a tour of the school where we first met. We are going to share our memories with you and we truly hope to make this visit memorable.”

The crowd was stunned but then began cheering their good fortune. The photographer that had recorded them entering the building joined the group and recorded the tour. Several people passing by heard Danielle and recognized her. The arrival of the troops caused a high level of curiosity about what was happening and a crowd began arriving and asking what was happening. Then the word was given that Danielle and Thomas Gardner were conducting a tour of their school.

Eric smiled as the crowd grew almost faster than he could imagine. He laughed, “The Gardners were always able to draw a crowd.” By the time the tour ended more than six million people had gathered at the site to try and see the Stars Realm’s Royal Family.

Danielle addressed the crowd after the tour and Tag realized that this was the real reason for the struggle. He saw the emotions of the huge crowd and knew that this would not be their last trip home. It was the love of those they represented that made it worth it. If Tgon-gee had still been alive he would have seen Tag’s aura growing at a tremendous rate. Creation’s first warrior had now been fully released.

Danielle finished her address and came into Tag’s arms and a blue flash exploded out of them and rushed out to the limits of Creation. Danielle looked up into his eyes, “It appears our power has been held in trust by the people of Earth. It has now been given to us. I know why we had to come home.”

Danielle hugged him as they teleported straight to Ross leaving the speeder behind to become one of the relics placed in honor at the site. A recording of their visit was placed in their school and became a part of the tour. Earth’s most visited memorial got even busier.

• • •

Trey and Cassie felt the psychic blast blow past them and they looked at each other, “What was that?”

Cassie closed her eyes and said, “That came from Tag and Danielle. It appears there was power in them that had not been released.”

Trey said, “How could that be?”

“It makes sense, my Love. It would only be given to them when they were ready. They are the original tool of Creation and now they are forged and complete for the fight ahead.”

“That means we need another ship.”

Cassie focused for a moment and said, “They have already requested that Twig build a fifth.”

Trey thought a moment and said, “Well, there goes my Commander-in Chief. Things are starting to happen quickly. I think the war is going to happen sooner than I thought.”

“The evidence does seem to point that way.”

“We need to get the new warriors to start their quest. The Algeans have completed their support fleet and they can fight independent of the Realm indefinitely with those ships.”

“How many are trained and ready?”

The first two divisions are ready to go with six more completing their training within five weeks.”

“Have you selected their Commanders?”

“Jingos and Maddy will command the fleets. They have chosen their own staffs.”

“Has Timmy and Virze found them targets?”

“They have prioritized a list of more than twenty. I’ll go ahead and approve the first mission immediately after the announcement by Danielle.”

Cassie nodded and wondered if they were ready.

• • •

Cassandra entered the coordinates on her board and said, “Jess, are you ready?”

“I’ll engage the drive after I notify the crew we’re teleporting.”

Junior looked up from his board and said, “Why are you going back to the Captor’s former Home World?”

Cassandra smiled and said, “I’m not really sure. I just remember finding myself during that war and that is where I discovered my power to save life. Tommy and I were able to save the Captors instead of having to destroy them and it is one of the things I’ve done that makes me feel good about myself. I want to feel that way again.”

Junior smiled, “That’s reason enough. I studied the history of the Captor’s war and I think I really started thinking about you then. I was amazed at all the things you did which just seemed to be impossible. The creation of that new universe was amazing.”

Cassandra smiled, “Yes, it really was.”

Alex announced, “Teleport in three seconds.”

The Juliette Robbins broke back into space and the Crew of the Juliette was shocked by what they saw. Even Junior was stunned, “I had no idea how big that structure really is.”

“It’s not as big as it once was. We’re take pieces of it over time to use in other wars. We also blew some pretty big holes in it during our war with the Captors.”

“I know about that but the videos just don’t do this justice. Those ship berths are gigantic.”

“The Captors were huge. Of course the Eight Leg main battleships were larger but the Captors dwarfed every ship in the Realm’s fleet.”

The Juliette hung in space, looking down on the giant red structure that covered most of the planet below it. Cassandra relived the escapes after her attacks and the many close calls with being destroyed. She saw them in her mind and remembered Tommy’s amazement at her developing psychic powers. She smiled at the memory and thought about the thousands of Captors that came back to life when they entered the newly created universe. Then Junior shocked her back into reality.

“I’ve always wondered what happened to the Alfont and where Atlas and Dianna went. The gift of the Red Reactor was also what saved us against the Eight Legs.”

“What did you just say?”

“I said the Red Reactor was a great gift from the Captors.”

Cassandra said, “Jessica, do you have the coordinates of the Captor’s Universe?”

“Yes, why do you ask?”

Cassandra hit the blue button on her board and the alarm klaxons started wailing, “Battle stations, all hands to battle stations.”

Alex said, “What are you doing?”

“We’re going to visit the Captors to return the gift.”

Junior, Jessica, and Alex all said, “What!” simultaneously.

“What happens if the Captors are attacked in that new universe? They didn’t have a universal drive when they left and there would be no way for them to escape. We are going to give them a universal drive and I need the engineering team to package one in a force field to protect it from the heat.”

“Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“Whether I do or not is not relevant; we are going to do it.”

“You know they were told we would not come to their home.”

“Of course, Junior, I’m the one who told them. Now get your board set up for possible combat and prepare to jump as soon as the drive is packaged.”

Jessica sent a private thought to Alex, “Is this a good idea?”

“She’s the boss, Jess. If we start questioning her orders, we will never become an effective team. Where she leads, I will follow. I trust her.”

“That’s all I need to know, Alex.”

Junior looked at his board, “All stations report in manned and ready.”

Alex said, “The universal drive is in a shuttle with a fifth level force field.”

Cassandra pressed the ship wide frequency and said, “You will not fire your weapons unless you are ordered to do so. Even if we are fired on, you will hold your fire.” Cassandra looked at the central display and said, “Teleport on my mark, Jessica. Ready…mark.”

The Juliette appeared in a universe that was bright and hot. The red gasses from the explosion that started the universe had cooled some due to the fifteen thousand years that had passed. Cassandra saw thousands giant Red Ships coming at them at high velocity. Cassandra thought, “I am here to communicate with the First Male and the First Mother.”

Everyone on the ship heard, “Hold your fire. Surround the intruder and wait for my arrival.”

Junior looked at the giant ships that were from three to five thousand miles wide glowing bright red and was even more amazed that the early Realm had survived against them. The Juliette’s three mile wide hull looked like a gain of sand against their vast size. He watched and he saw the biggest ship he had seen so far moving in on their location.

“Who wishes to communicate with me?”

“I am the one that opened this universe for you to escape.”

“You told us you would not come here.”

“I know and I ask your forgiveness for not keeping my word but I felt I needed to bring you a gift.”

A different voice said, “What kind of gift?”

Cassandra smiled, “Hello First Mother. Your gift of the Red Reactor saved my civilization against the Eight Legs. I want to return the favor.”

“We don’t need a new reactor.”

“It’s not a reactor. I’m delivering you a Universal Drive that will allow you to leave this universe to visit others should you so choose.”

There was a long moment of silence and then they heard, “There’s more to it than that. What is the real reason?”

“Mother, there is going to be a war starting shortly and all of Creation is going to be at stake in the outcome. We are going to have to face an enemy billions of years older than your species and we are uncertain of the outcome. If those beings come here to attack you, I want you to have a way to save yourselves. Your continued existence is important to me.”

“Why?”

“Because I killed so many of your children in our war; and my husband risked our lives to make your escape happen. I feel responsible for your continued safety.”

The Red Ships were silent for a long time and finally the First Male said, “You sound like the two white ships that came trying to save their ken.”

Cassandra said, “What two ships Were they like the ships you brought here with you?”

“Yes, they came to try and persuade our prisoners to change their ways.”

“Are they still here?”

“Yes, they requested we place them in the energy field with their ken and we complied with their wish.”

Cassandra took a deep breath and said, “Have you developed a universal drive?”

“No, we have not. We saw no need for one.”

“I am launching a small ship toward your location. Inside it is a universal drive that you may copy and use. I pray you never will have to use it but I want you to have it.”

The First Mother said, “Thank you for your gift. And thank you for this new home. You are welcome to visit us anytime you choose. We now know what the term friend means.”

“I thank you. Would you mind if I visit the two ships for a little while?”

“One of us will need to go with you.”

“I understand.”

“First Male, would you escort our guests to the location. You should also take your personal guard.”

The giant red ship turned along with a hundred others and started moving away. Cassandra said, “Jess, follow those ships.”

Jess stared at the size of the giant ships and said to Alex, “Did you fight against those ships?”

“Yes, but that was before I became intelligent. I was little more than a machine back then.”

“Even so, my respect for you just reached a new high.”

“You fought the Black Ships. That is also impressive.”

“Maybe so, but they were nowhere close to the size of these.”

Cassandra and Junior saw a bright white energy field in the distance on their main display. “That’s them.”

Junior slowly shook his head, “The captured Alfont. They are the reason we started the war with the Captors.”

“Yes, Tommy intended to save them but they were evil. They were bent on conquest and destruction.”

As they came closer to the white field, Cassandra saw two ships separated from the others. Cassandra thought, “Hello, old friend. It’s been a long time.”

“Cassandra, is that you?”

“Yes, Atlas, we’ve been wondering where you’ve been. Why did you come here?”

“I’ve been trying to get my family to see the error of their ways. So far they have refused to listen.”

“Hello, Dianna, I’m surprised you agreed to try this.”

“Where he goes, I go.”

Atlas said, “I don’t sense Tommy. Is he on board?”

“No, Atlas; he died more than fifty years ago in an accident.”

“Oh no!”

Cassandra felt his grief and relived hers as she told him what happened. “It happened so fast he had no chance to escape. We all miss him very much.”

“He was like a son to me.”

“I know how much he loved you, Atlas.” She paused and said, “Are you ready to leave and come back with us.”

“No, my place is here. I just hope against hope that they can see what they are and change.”

“Evil is not capable of understanding good, Atlas.”

“They are not evil, just misguided.”

Cassandra heard some of the captured Alfont laughing at Atlas and she grew angry. She stood up from her chair and said, “Let me show you what you are. You are a blight on creation.” Cassandra shared the vision of Creation with the millions of Alfont and forced them to see it in its entirety. Afterwards she said, “You are part of those evil creatures that are killing trillions of innocent civilizations. You are evil and worthless beings that are like a cancer on all life. It would serve you right to have one of those nasty species come here and destroy you and end your meaningless existence. You sicken me.”

The First Male and his guard also saw the vision and he focused on the ship that had come with a gift. He said, “What are you going to do about this vision?”

“We are going to fight to save Creation. That is our destiny and we will either win or die in the struggle. It is a destiny worth fighting for, First Male.” Cassandra turned her attention back to Atlas and said, “Are you sure you won’t come with us?”

Atlas’ pain could be felt, “So much evil. I never knew how bad it was. But no, I will stay with my brothers. This is where I belong.”

“We miss you, Atlas, and you too, Dianna. I pray you will find peace.”

“Thank you, Cassie. You know I love you.”

“I know.”

Junior said, “Set the drive to return to Ross.”

Cassandra said, “Thank you, First Male. Please watch over our two friends.”

“We will insure their safety. As was once said to one of my Warriors during our conflict, I wish you safe travel.”

The Juliette jumped away and the First Male remained at the energy field for days afterwards, replaying the vision in his mind. His Guards were also bothered by what they saw. The First Mother showed up after a week had passed and the First Male shared the vision with her. They remained at the energy field for another three weeks. During all that time, the millions of Alfont Ships remained silent. After the First Mother arrived, one of the Alfont from the group moved toward Atlas and Dianna.

Atlas sighed and thought to him, “I’m really not up to arguing with you right now.”

The Alfont stopped and said, “I’m not here to argue. All of us can sense your sorrow over the death of that being. I just wanted to tell you I’m sorry for your loss. I don’t understand how you could have feelings for another species so close to you, but I know your sorrow is real.”

“That being was the one that lead our war with the Red Ships. As a young human he decided to fight to free you from your captivity.”

“Why would he ever do that?”

“Because of his love for me.”

The Alfont hung there and after a long pause said, “Will you tell me how it happened?”

As the two communicated, the other Alfont began moving closer. Atlas said, “I’ll share my thoughts with you.” The millions of silver ships saw a young two legged being dressed in rose and blue getting ready for his coronation. Atlas told them Tommy’s Tale as the First Male and Mother listened in. When he finished, the millions of ships that had drawn close turned and moved away. Atlas watched them go and was glad; now he had time to deal with his grief. His son had died. His grief was over whelming.

Chapter Eighteen

Jingos was sitting with Ron Kune looking over the scouting reports that Timmy had provided. The planet they were going to attempt to liberate had been invaded by a species of carnivores and the population had been rounded up and put into holding camps until the processing ships could arrive. “It appears the ships that will kill and process the planet’s population will be arriving shortly. I wish we had more time to train but if we delay, millions will die.”

Ron shook his head, “How many ships do they have around this planet?”

“It looks like there are more than 10,000 in orbit. I think our fleet can handle their ships, but there is no way we could support your troops on the ground. We considered attempting to teleport the populations to safety but if one of our ships is detected, I believe those creatures will incinerate the holding camps. The best we can do is to send some of our Advanced Marines in and deploy a force field over the camps. They will as a matter of course have to take out all the guards simultaneously with the placement of the force fields.”

“How many guards are at each camp, Sir?”

“Our recordings indicate about two thousand armed and armored troops on the perimeter.”

“Do we know how good their armor is?”

“No, we do not. We’re also not certain about the strength of their ship’s weapons and defenses.”

“Are we going to ask fleet to send us more ships for this operation?”

Jingos took a deep breath and shook his head, “Ron, we are given the first mission to start fighting those that are destroying creation. We will be a standalone unit and will have to depend on our own resources. If the Realm doesn’t survive, we will continue to fight invaders where ever we can. We must know if we are capable of operating that way. There will be no help to save us.”

“So how do you see us doing this?”

The Division will use one Corp on the Northern Hemisphere and the other on the Southern. There are a thousand camps scattered around the planet and we can only use a company per camp. The Enemy has about ten thousand troops located at each of them so the odds are not going to be good.”

“Ten million troops!?!”

“This planet put up quite a struggle against them and more than forty percent of the inhabitants were killed. The good news is that most of the troops are not at the holding pens but at camps two miles away. It appears the leaders don’t want their troops sneaking into the holding camps and having a meal. Those guards are not only there to watch the captives, but to keep their own troops out.”

Ron took a deep breath, “Well, at least we know what we have to do. Will we be able to get our heavy armor in?”

“They will be teleported in after the holding pens have been taken. There’s no way to hide their arrival.” Jingos looked up from the display and said, “It’s not as bad as you think. Our division is as large as six of the old divisions and our armor is linked. Our hundred thousand warriors and their armor will give much more than they get.”

“I wish the heavy armor had the camouflage coating.”

“I know, but it would be burned off as soon as the fighting started. At least the warriors will be next to impossible to see. We’ll find out how good their technology is shortly. I wish we had more time to really scout their capabilities but our ship at their home system says the processing ships are starting to leave orbit. If we’re going to save these people, we have to go in now.”

“Keep their ships off our backs, Sir.”

“We’re going to start with the ones closest to the planet and work our way out. Semper Fi, Ron.”

Ron saluted and said “Semper Fi, Sir.”

• • •

Lt. Colby Chen looked at his platoon getting ready for the drop and could sense their nervousness. They had finished topping off their power reserves that operated their armor’s electronic systems and had checked their links to make sure they were fully operational. Colby looked at Jink Dorg moving around the group making last minute checks and he smiled. The small Cainth female was a remarkable contrast to Geon-lee. The seven foot glod dwarfed her, but Colby knew that Jink with her four arms was more than a match for the huge warrior. He found it remarkable that the vast majority of those that had volunteered for the Marines had been from those species that had been part of the original Stars Realm. Well, it shouldn’t be too surprising; they came from warrior cultures and lived for the joy of combat.

“Two minutes.”

Colby looked at the speaker that had made the announcement. He checked his coordinates and compared it to the rest of his recon-platoon and saw they were set at the proper distance. The holding pen had a ten mile perimeter and each of his troops would have to be responsible for about five hundred yards. Not only would they have to take out the guards, but their weapon platforms as well. He lowered his faceplate and looked at his command system. One minute left. He toggled his com and said, “You know the plan. Don’t waste time getting down and I’ll let you know when all of you have sent me your ready signal. Semper Fi, warriors.”

The hundred armored warriors yelled, “Semper Fi,” and activated their camouflage coating. The warriors disappeared on the landing bay and ten seconds later were teleported to their drop points.

• • •

Danielle was sitting in the Throne Room with hundreds of reporters that had arrived to receive an important announcement. The Realm had been notified that the Queen was going to be delivering a message and most of the Realm was glued to their monitors to see what was happening. Tag held his com to his ear and waited. Finally he heard from Trey, “They’ve been dropped.” He looked up at Danielle who was watching him and nodded. She turned to the Camera’s and smiled.

“Good evening. I’ve delayed this announcement until this special moment. Our White Warriors are dropping in on a planet that has been invaded and held captive by an aggressive race of carnivores. The population of that world has been gathered and placed in holding pens until the processing ships of the invaders arrive to kill them. Our brave warriors are falling through that planet’s atmosphere at this very moment to attempt a rescue of those prisoners.”

Danielle stood and walked in front of the cameras, “The Realm is undergoing a change in its structure and I want all of you to know the reason and how this change affects you. I have, as Queen of the Stars Realm, sworn my loyalty to the Emperor of the Bristone Empire. Emperor Scott and Empress Cassandra Robbins will now have our Realm’s loyalty and support. The original sixty six planets of the Bristone Empire will be Emperor Robbins personal fief and will be under his control. Those planets will be used to build a military force to assist him to go out and fight the aggressive and evil civilizations that are attacking innocent worlds. It is our responsibility to provide him with the tools he’ll need to be successful in that fight.”

“Our warriors have landed on that planet by now and are fighting to save those beings that are slated to be devoured by the invaders. I once said that the quest of a true warrior is to leave the universe a better place than they found it. I intend to do exactly that. We will no longer stand by and enjoy our comfortable lives while trillions of innocent beings are being killed in Creation. I will continue to rule the Realm and see that all of you are protected, but we need to help our Emperor take on this fight. If you desire to accept this quest; send a request to one of the sixty six Bristone Planets and let them know you want to join the Navy and Warriors. You should know that most of those that volunteer will not pass the rigorous training necessary to become a Life Warrior; but for those that do, they will be given dual citizenship in both the Empire and the Realm. Only the citizens on the Bristone Planets may live there along with all the warriors that make the grade. That citizenship will also extend to any new civilization that joins our quest. Warriors that take on this fight will be fighting for life and for peace. Thank you for your attention and I thank you in advance for helping us make this happen. Creation is counting on us to make a difference.”

• • •

Colby’s platoon teleported to thirty five thousand feet above the planet and extended their gliding surfaces. The structures came out of the skin on their armor and began catching the wind. Colby called for the ground view and saw the holding pen off to the north of their current position. He brought the view in closer and saw that the night guards were in place and the weapon platform operators were at their posts. He looked a little closer to the six in his zone and saw that none of the creatures were actually manning the weapon, but were just sitting around talking to each other. The prisoners had learned the hard way that attempted escape meant being eaten alive. Colby got a reading on the troop’s armor and sent the frequency to his falling warriors. They saw the frequency and set their weapons to it. Colby looked at the massive numbers of prisoners and used a filter to find the armor frequency, “Crap, ten of them are in the pen killing prisoners.” He hit his com, “Jink, assign someone to come in with our attack. I want them to scan the pen and assign a wasp to the ten invaders that are in the pen.”

“Aye, aye, Sir. Gabby, go up ten thousand feet and scan the compound for enemy soldiers. Assign a wasp and release them with the attack order. Got it?”

Jink watched as Gabby disappeared. She looked at her scanner and saw the Warrior appear high overhead. “Platoon, move your landing points twenty feet to the left. We’ll need to cover the space vacated by Gabrealla.”

Colby smiled; Jink was really good to have around. He checked his scanner and saw the flashing red light that indicated that his armor had located his landing location. He looked at his general board and saw that the other warriors had also locked in on theirs. “We will be teleporting to the ground in fifty seconds. As soon as you touch ground you will go to Weapon’s live; make it count.” Colby looked at his tactical screen and saw the two warriors dropping with the force field. They would arrive thirty seconds after the Marines landed. Colby looked back at his zone and activated the teleport module. He saw it glow green and he watched the countdown. The hundred White Warriors glided in a formation shaped like the perimeter of the holding pen. The ground was moving up and they were passing through six thousand feet when the chronometer hit zero; he activated the teleport key.

• • •

The Guard Commander listened to the prisoners screaming in the compound. He smiled and enjoyed hearing their fear. He had rewarded ten of his warriors for their outstanding performance in the last group competition. He knew they would make the most of the reward and terrorize many of the prisoners before choosing the one to be consumed. He thought about the processing ships coming and knew that soon he would be back on the troop carrier feeling his hunger. It was good to have this much food available. He decided that he would take one of the prisoners before his duty ended at morning.

He stood and felt a wind blowing lightly over the compound. That was a rare event at this location. He sniffed the air but smelled nothing. He went down to all fours and walked over to check the weapons platform nearest him. He had a multicolored brown hide that looked very much like a snake’s skin. It was dry and had thousands of overlapping scales. His head looked very much like a giant Boston Bull Terrier’s except the wide mouth was full of three inch serrated teeth. The mouth extended out from the black eyes that were set back such that his mouth could be opened at an unbelievably wide angle.

When he walked on all fours, his back was four feet off the ground. The back legs were built such that they swiveled ninety degrees and allowed him to standup easily and walk on two legs if he desired. His species was blazingly fast when they ran on four legs. He looked forward to taking off his armor. He checked his power level and saw that it was down to fifty three percent. He sighed and lowered his head. He hated standing in the long lines to repower his suit. There was no avoiding it now. If it dropped below fifty percent his commander, would be notified and it just wasn’t worth the yelling he would have to endure. He stopped and looked around. A wind blew by and he thought he heard something behind him. That’s when his concern about his power supply became a moot point.

• • •

Colby teleported to his assigned spot and raised his left arm and swept it across the perimeter in front of him. His scanner reported a hundred and fifty armor frequencies and in an instant his software assigned each one of them to a wasp. Colby brought his arm back across the perimeter and the wasps were released. Colby checked his display and saw the ten weapon platforms in his area and released the ten micro-hornets. The entire perimeter went up in flames as the guards were burned into ash. Every weapons platform exploded.

Gabby saw the attack command and released the ten wasps over the compound.

• • •

The Guard had finally picked his meal and was holding the young female by the arm and listened to her scream. The other prisoners tried to move as far away as possible from the eight foot tall carnivore, but they were packed so close together that they couldn’t move far. Suddenly the guard heard and saw the explosions outside the fence and he released the female and raised his blaster. Something hit him in the neck and he put his hand there feeling pain and saw his hand burned away. Right after that, the rest of his body was burned to ash.

Gabby teleported in to the center of the compound and turned off her armor’s wings and turned on her siren. The extremely loud noise sent the prisoners scrambling away, holding their ears. She checked her scanner and instantly teleported out to her platoon outside the perimeter as two Warriors landed and activated the force field. The prisoners saw the bright field form around the compound and the Algean warrior thought to all of them, “Please remain calm; we are here to attempt your rescue. Please sit down where you are and try to keep your composure.”

A young child walked up to the Algean and said, “Are you going to save me?”

Pistel leaned forward and thought so all could hear, “We are attacking the fleet of the invaders at this moment. Our warriors are arriving to defend you until we see if our fleet is successful. We will save you or die trying.”

The small child moved forward and hugged Pistel.

• • •

Captain Mike Pearsonne landed with the other nine hundred White Warriors in his company and he said, “Great Job, Lieutenant. Move out to your position.” Colby hit his command circuit and his platoon teleported out to the center of the valley. Mike hit his com and said, “Give me an update on the Heavy Armor.”

“They’re on the way down, Sir. They’ll hit their spots in sixty seconds.”

Mike changed frequency, “Lt. Blackwell, Get your unit in place a.s.a.p. I detect some of the enemy’s air assets lifting from their camp.”

“Yes, Sir; I’m moving up our arrival by fifty seconds. Make sure the ground is clear.”

“Target is clear, Lieutenant; bring them in and set up for air assaults.”

Terrance Blackwell made the changes in the program and the twenty huge white machines teleported.

Colby and his platoon hit the dirt and he heard a huge whine through his helmet. Great, the tanks were here. He checked his scanner and knew the invader camp had had to hear the explosions of the weapons platforms and would be responding quickly. He heard Jink say, “We have air craft lifting and moving our way.”

Colby hit his com and asked, “Terry, are the tanks ready?”

“We have the incoming plotted and will take the initial wave. Don’t waste your hornets on them.”

Mike heard the exchange and passed it to the Company over the combat link. The thousand White Warriors changed their weapon selection to anti-personnel. It was night time but the invaders camp was glowing bright. Then the ten Tanks fired their main guns at the camp and it erupted in huge explosions.

The heavy armor tank looked like a smooth hemisphere riding on a huge platform. The platform hovered three feet off the ground and the entire vehicle was enclosed by a force field. The hemisphere was made from the skin of a main battle ship and it was powered by energy absorbed from a star. The different number of weapons stored in that skin was in the thousands. The tank commander had a choice of every weapon in the Empire to call upon.

Lt. Blackwell looked at the scans of the incoming air craft and announced, “The force fields on those ships are a force four. They are stronger than anticipated and hornets will not penetrate. Use your beams.”

Mike heard the announcement and knew that the enemy’s armor was also going to be stronger than he planned. He was going to lose warriors but hornets were going to be the best weapon against them. He also hoped the warrior’s main beams would penetrate. He sent the weapon mix to his company and focused on the enemy soldiers moving out of the exploding camp toward the holding pen. He worried that Fleet may have bit off more than they could handle as well, but worrying about it wouldn’t change anything. He turned back to his scanner and saw the enemy camp continuing to explode from the tanks continued artillery barrage.

The thousand White Warriors had formed a semicircle in front of the holding pen. As long as they prevented any aircraft from getting around them, the back of the pen would not need to be defended. Each warrior had thirty yards to defend and the formation would allow them to crossfire at the approaching enemy. There were ten thousand troops in the enemy camp so they were facing ten to one odds. They watched their scanners and waited for the front of the charging Kreyl to move inside their lines. Colby watched them begin leaving the camp and was amazed at how fast they were moving. Most of them were running on all fours and they had to be moving faster than fifty miles an hour. Here they come. Then he heard the command, “Open fire, all weapons free.”

• • •

The Kreyl Commander at the camp heard the explosions from the compound and rushed out of his tent and saw flames surrounding the captured inhabitants. As he watched a giant force field appeared over the compound. He hit his communication band and yelled, “Grgal, what’s going on?”

There was no response so he hit his band and looked to see how many communicators at the compound were still connected to the general frequency link. None! He hit another button and a gun launched a probe high in the air to give him an aerial view. He watched and saw ten huge mechanical structures suddenly appear next to the force field. He hit his command circuit and yelled, “Get the attack craft launched and get your units moving!!”

He suddenly heard a huge explosion and saw the air field hit. He checked his band and a hundred of the four hundred attack craft had been destroyed on the ground. “Get those craft off the ground!”

By the time the pilots had run to their ships, another hundred and fifty had been destroyed and only a hundred and sixty were able to launch. The Commander watched as forty of them were hit by a series of massive beams and blew up. The survivors moved away from the camp and organized six miles away before they started their run at the ten huge weapon platforms. He looked at his scanner and didn’t see any troops at the camp. Surely whoever this was didn’t think they could survive with just those platforms? He looked at the aerial view again just as the probe was exploded by a beam cutting off his feed. His staff grabbed him by the arm and rushed him out of the camp as the incoming artillery was turned on the camp. He barely made it out as the camp erupted into huge explosions.

He looked up at the sky and wondered where his fleet was while this was happening. In the clear night air he saw massive explosions far up in the atmosphere. He wondered whose ships were being destroyed, but turned his attention back to the ground as his staff hurried him to the underground bunker. A series of explosions were walking across the camp and he just made it into the bunker as they walked by overhead. The massive shaking felt like a major earth quake but the bunker’s force field held. His staff powered up the displays and he leaned forward to watch his troops moving quickly toward the compound.

• • •

Jingos waited for Ron’s communication that the White Warriors had landed before he launched his thousand ships against the huge invading fleet. As he waited, he saw the processing ships arrive at the jump limit and begin their journey to the planet. Those ships were bigger than the Realm’s transports and Jingos hoped they moved far enough in system so that they couldn’t escape once the action started. He decided that he would attack them immediately after the ships above the holding camps.

He waited four hours and his communication officer looked up and said, “The Recon Platoons are in the air. They’ll hit ground in six minutes.”

Jingos activated the general frequency and said, “We will begin our attack in five minutes, fifty seconds from my mark…mark. You must eliminate the three ships holding station above the camps as quickly as possible. Once you finish with those you will teleport out to the processing ships and continue your attack on them. If any ships holding station around the moon start moving toward the planet, we will break off our attack of the processing ships and return to the planet. Choose your targets wisely and avoid being caught in a cross fire.”

The thousand Bristone Main Battleships waited outside the system and had the coordinates of their targets locked into their teleport boards. The countdown seemed to go on forever, but finally the chronometers reached zero and the large white ships disappeared.

Captain Ann Riosa watched as the El Prado teleported in on three large battleships holding station above the planet. The El Prado appeared between two of the brown ships and released a broadside into both of them from point blank range. The eight beams fired at the two ships burned on their force fields for a moment and then broke through, blowing hundred yard holes through their hulls and out the other side. “Move on the other ship. Power the reflective hull now!”

The third ship was surprised but started moving in on the Bristone Ship and fired ten massive beams at it. Ann watched as her ship’s hull collected the ten beams and reflected one giant beam back at the attacking ship. The beam blew through the ships force field and burned off the front third of the huge vessel. The jump officer teleported the ship ten miles away as the remainder of the ship exploded. The other two ships nosed over and started falling toward the planet but the fires burning inside them touched off their missiles and they exploded into fragments that burned up in the atmosphere. Ann shouted, “Jump us to the processing ship on the left end of their formation. Weapons, ready ten missiles and launch them just before you fire the main beam. I want our entire hull concentrated into one beam. The first two ships were able to stop our multiple beams.”

The three thousand ships holding station above the planet were destroyed, but at a price. Eighty ships suffered damage and seven severe enough to overwhelm the fire fighters on board and the ships had to be evacuated. Jingos looked at his board and knew he was going to miss those ships. He listened to Ann Riosa and ordered the fleet to go to reflective hulls and use missiles against the enemy ships. Jingos looked over at his sensor officer and said, “What are they doing?”

The remaining enemy ships are moving out to defend the processors. Ten ships are moving toward the planet.”

Jingo hit his com, “El Prado, take the Rehoben and Townsend and attack those ships moving toward the planet.” Jingos looked at his display and said, “All ships, begin our weave and don’t remain in one place longer than five seconds. Fire and teleport to your next target; come back if needed.”

The seven thousand ships from the planet starting arriving but not before they witnessed the three hundred processing ships go up in explosions, like a giant string of firecrackers.

Jingos looked back over at his Sensor Officer, “How strong are those ships?”

“Their force fields will withstand our multiple beam patterns for three seconds. However, if we only use one concentrated beam, it will punch through immediately. Launching missiles such that they arrive right behind the beam will destroy the ship. Timing will be critical, Sir.”

He looked over at communications and said, “Get that information out to the fleet.”

“Sir, we’ve lost the Ging and the New Hope.”

“How many of them have we killed?”

“Three thousand, Sir.”

“How many?”

“Three thousand four hundred and six now, Sir; the ship Commanders are using their reflective hulls immediately after they fire their main beam to protect them as they teleport. They kill a ship and then kill two or three more that open fire on them.” The Sensor Officer looked back at his display and said, “We’ve lost eight more ships, Sir, but the enemy fleet is down to twenty eight hundred ships. We are starting to attack them with two ships and the rate of destruction of enemy battleships is increasing.”

• • •

The Kryel Admiral watched as the white ships mauled his Fleet. They were able to jump inside the limit and that told him volumes about their level of technology. Some of their ships were destroyed, but not nearly enough. He saw his communications warrior looking at him. He looked away from the display and the warrior said, “Our forces on the planet are reporting they are being attacked by massive weapon platforms and soldiers they cannot see. We are losing huge numbers of warriors.”

The Admiral looked back at his display and saw his Fleet had been reduced to less than two thousand ships. He knew his Fleet would never make it back to the planet and at the current rate of destruction; he would have no ships if this continued, “Order the fleet to scatter and escape back to the main port.” The Communications Warrior stared at him and he snarled, “Do it or I’ll kill you!”

The warrior sent the message knowing that the Kreyl never retreated. He then looked over at the sensor display and saw that only twelve hundred ships remained. He knew they were four hours from the jump limit and it occurred to him that it really didn’t matter if they stayed or ran. No one was going to survive. He was right.

• • •

Colby watched the huge creatures rushing across the terrain and listened for the Captain’s order. He keyed his com and said, “Steady, wait for the order.”

Mike watched as the mass of creatures arrive two hundred yards out from the center of his line and calmly said, “Weapon’s free.”

The hornets rushed out in the thousands and the front of the charging carnivores was blasted. The onrushing Kryel saw the missiles coming at them from all sides but did not see what was launching them. They stopped and hit the ground and began targeting any place they saw a missile leave. Flashes of force fields revealed that they were surrounded by warriors that were invisible. The back of the huge mass of Kryel stopped and began firing at the suspected location of the enemy.

• • •

Lt. Blackwell said, “Target the attack craft. Make them your first priority.”

A hundred and fifty armored attack craft came roaring over the Kryel Warriors and the ten tanks erupted in intense beams that were so bright, that the warriors fighting on the ground had to increase the tint on their faceplates to avoid being blinded. One moment the air was filled with attack craft and in less than three seconds they were crashing to the ground, adding to the destruction taking place below.

Colby keyed his com, “Teleport ten yards right after firing your hornets. Do not remain in one location!”

Colby looked at his combat link and saw that he had lost a third of his platoon. The single beams being fired at him could not penetrate his armor, but six of them together would burn through. Thousands of the enemy had been killed but the mass was growing as the last units left the Carnivore’s camp and joined the battle. He saw a huge explosion as one of the tanks exploded, when all of the enemy troops fired on it simultaneously.

Lt. Blackwell watched the remaining enemy troops leave the camp and then saw one of his tanks explode. He hit the emergency channel and said, “Launch the slivers on my command; ready…….launch!” He then hit his general combat frequency and yelled, “Slivers have been launched. I repeat, the slivers have been launched and will arrive in ten seconds.”

The seven hundred and thirty three white warriors received the announcement and continued to fire up to two seconds before impact.”

• • •

The Kryel Army Commander watched his troops being killed by the thousands, but they had discovered how to destroy those huge platforms. He began issuing orders to target the huge platforms starting on the right, when all of them suddenly disappeared and the heavy barrage of beams and missiles suddenly stopped. He still saw the force field over the holding pen and he looked at his Second-in-Command, which was the last thing he did before he died.

• • •

The sliver is a three foot long, half inch wide, highly charged penetrator. The point on it is super hardened and performs the operation of a detonator when pushed into the body of the small projectile. The tanks fired more than two hundred thousand of the devices a mile into the night sky and as they turned over, their small propulsion system briefly fired and accelerated them toward the ground.

The tanks had taken readings of wind velocity, humidity, and air density and adjusted their barrels before firing. The tiny projectiles came in accompanied by their sonic booms as they blanketed the battle ground in front of the prisoner compound. Several hit the force field protecting the prisoners, but burned up on impact. The ones that hit the ground made the entire valley look like hell had erupted out of the earth. Not only were the Kryel Warriors hit multiple times, but the small penetrators also detonated the weapons they were carrying. The ensuing blast turned night into day and could be heard a hundred miles away.

• • •

The White Warriors had teleported two miles up and were gliding as they reorganizing their units around those that had survived. Mike watched as the massive explosion sent a shock wave rushing into the sky that whipped the gliding warriors around. Once it passed he ordered, “Teleport back to your positions.”

The White Warriors arrived a moment after the nine tanks and began moving forward into the devastation. Colby led his platoon and saw that the thousands of huge carnivores they had been fighting were blown into many pieces and most of them were burning. Colby looked up and saw fifty attack craft dropping into the atmosphere to support them, but the Captain waved them off and sent them to other camps that were not as fortunate. Colby sighed and felt huge relief that fleet must have won the fight for control of the skies.

Jink joined Colby and said, “There are only fifty three of them still alive and most of them will be dead momentarily.”

“See what we can do to help them.”

“There is also a shielded bunker at their camp, where we believe the overall command of this camp is located. We’ve been ordered to investigate.”

“Get Fifth Platoon to take responsibility for the injured and download the information from fleet on the bunker.”

“I’m ahead of you; I already have it and the others are receiving it now.”

Colby shrugged and felt his fatigue. “Take your squad ahead and see what you can determine. We’ll join you after you take a look.”

Colby notified the two platoons on each side and they moved to his position in the advancing line as the fifty seven White Warriors moved ahead.”

Chapter Nineteen

Trey and Cassie sat with Tag in Castle Gardner’s Map Room as Jingos and Ron Kune delivered their reports on the liberation of the captured inhabitants. Trey looked over as Tag felt his emotions at the losses the Fleet and Division had suffered.

Tag said, “You lost thirty nine percent of your warriors?”

“Yes, Your Grace, we did. Of the thousand companies we dropped on the prisoner compounds, we lost two hundred and seventy of them. The rest of the losses came from the other camps.”

Trey said, “But I understand that not a single inhabitant was killed during the attacks.”

“No, the companies that were overwhelmed managed to delay the attack on the compounds. Fleet arrived and bombarded the Carnivores that managed to survive.”

Tag looked at the display in front of him and said, “I understand the prisoners are able to take care of themselves.”

Jingos nodded, “The cities are where most of the damage was done on the planet. The farmlands and food production facilities were located in their rural areas and survived the invasion. Even the cities weren’t heavily damaged. The Carnivores didn’t want to lose their food.”

“What about the, I believe they call themselves Kryel, Camp Commander you captured?”

“We put him and his staff in one of their shuttles we were able to retrieve from one of their damaged ships and sent him home with a message.”

“Was that wise?”

“It was sending him or allow the locals to burn him and his staff alive. I’m sure they will start planning some kind of response but our next encounter will not be as difficult.”

Trey leaned back in his chair and said, “What makes you say that?”

“Our armor is not designed properly. We’ve made some mistakes.” Jingos looked at Ron and nodded.

Ron reached over and sent a picture of the White Armor to their display. He put another design next to the original and said, “I must confess that I was not at all happy that we were sending just a single division out to take on ten million enemy troops. We didn’t know their full capabilities and we were fighting in the dark. Now I understand that it was probably the most fortunate thing we could have done.”

“Why is that?”

“Because it allowed us to see the error in our design before we produced millions of them.” Trey nodded and Ron continued, “Our armor was designed to fight for years on a single power supply. In order for that to happen, the intensity of the warrior’s beams was necessarily limited. There was no way for us to increase the power above the established maximum setting.”

Tag said, “The White Warriors must be able to fight independently of the Realm.”

“I know; you’re worried about the Realm being defeated by the Demons and our supply lines being destroyed. However, we can set up a system where the armor can be teleported to a maintenance ship located at a star to recharge them and make any necessary repairs. The warrior will just store his armor in a cylinder and it will automatically make a diagnostic and teleport it out to be brought back to set standards. If my warriors could have increased the power of their beams, we wouldn’t have been forced to rely only on our hornets. According to my investigation, they would have used just half of their stored power if they had the ability to manipulate the settings. They would have also been able to increase the strength of their force fields and none of them would have died. Their deaths pay for this new system and their brothers will not have to endure the losses suffered by the First Division. Now, their new armor will fire a beam and keep raising the intensity until the target is destroyed. It will be done automatically and once that threshold is established, it will transmit the information to all of the Warriors involved in the combat operations.”

“How long will it take to make these modifications?”

Ron looked at Tag and said, “We’ve already done it with the First Division. It’s primarily a software change in the armor’s settings. Getting the system to teleport the armor was done by the Algeans within five days after the war ended. Armor maintenance ships are currently being built and we’ve taken delivery of the first two. Our armor is being rotated in and the modifications should be completed within another week.”

“What about your ships, Admiral?”

“We had the same problem. We ran up against a strong force four screen around their ships and most of our missiles would not penetrate them. When we used multiple beams, they were stopped. When we went to using just one beam it penetrated. It appears the Black Ships are not the only ones with a powerful force field. We’re overriding the max settings on the multiple beams and will tap into the entire power stored in the ship’s hulls. We’ll also recharge the ship after a major fleet battle.”

“Is this change being done to the rest of the Bristone Fleet?”

“That’s why we’re meeting. You will have to make that decision. We aren’t waiting, because we’re going to pay a visit to the kryel’s home world.”

“I’ll have your lost ships replaced and I’ll issue the necessary orders to make the modifications to the rest of the fleet.” Trey paused, “Are you planning to include the Second Division in the next attack?”

“Are they ready?”

“They will be shortly. I think if you will send some of your seasoned Warriors to command their green units they will be able to assist.”

“I need to replace those warriors we lost.”

“That shouldn’t be a problem. The training camps have a waiting list more than two years long. We’ll have those that recently completed training report to your division.”

Jingos said, “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“Get with your sister and make this happen as quickly as possible.”

Jingos and Ron bowed and left the room.

Tag looked at Trey and said, “I’m impressed.”

“They come from good parents. If we’re given enough time, I hope to have twenty divisions ready and fighting within eight months. The Algeans are staying ahead of the ships needed to move and support the fleets. I just hope we can get as many as possible out before we have to face the Demons.”

Tag smiled and said, “That’s something we’re all hoping. By the way, are you and Cassie ready for the Coronation?”

“It’s getting out of hand. We’ve had far too many requests for attendance and the city won’t be able to support the numbers coming.”

“Then you should limit those who can attend.”

Trey looked at Tag with a sarcastic expression, “And just how will we be able to do that?”

“Most of the numbers are from the Realm, aren’t they?”

“Well…yes.”

“This is a ceremony to crown the Bristone Emperor. I would think that attendance would be limited to those that suffered the trials and tribulations of the Empire and those that lost their loved ones in the destruction of their universe. It would also add value to those warriors that are now fighting for the Empire to be able to attend. Their enlistment in the Empire’s War for Life and their new citizenship in the Empire will give added meaning to their sacrifice. I firmly believe that those citizens from the Realm that joined the White Warriors should be the only ones from the Realm that can attend.”

“Cassie, are you hearing this?”

Cassie was at New Hope working on the Coronation planning and she said, “I am and it makes sense. This decision will send a message to everyone where the Empire places its priorities.”

Tag smiled, “Have you determined who will be officiating the ceremony?”

“Not yet.”

“Well, it would be inappropriate for anyone from the Realm to handle that piece of the Coronation. The Realm must understand that we are your subjects. Someone else will have to handle that part.”

Trey sighed heavily and said, “I was planning on having Danielle do it, but you’re probably right. I don’t know; that’s something we’ll have to work on.”

“You better hurry; the event takes place in eight days.”

“What to do, what to do. Cassie, do you have any ideas?”

“Not really. Since the Empire abolished the Royal Family when we rejoined the Realm, no one comes to mind.”

“Perhaps if we limit it to only those from the Empire may attend, it won’t be such a big affair.”

Tag laughed out loud, “What’s so funny?”

“The Realm has played a recording of your family’s sacrifice to prevent the Realm being attacked. Why do you think so many of the Realm’s citizens have joined the Empire’s Military? Make no mistake; this ceremony will be huge in the Empire. Stars Realm Citizenship was the most valued thing a person could have in the past. Now being a citizen of Bristone is what everyone truly desires. Your Coronation needs to be all it can be to solidify that notion.”

“Oh that’s just great. More pressure added.”

“Comes with being in charge; get used to it.”

“Easy for you to say; you’ve been practicing for thousands of years.”

Tag faked a yawn and said, “It gets so boring after that much time.”

Trey poked him on the arm and said, “Be careful or I’ll assign you the duty of carrying the crown.”

“Can’t do it; we won’t be attending.”

Trey stammered, “Why not!”

“Because we will join the trillions in the Realm who will also not be allowed there out of respect for the price the Empire paid for our survival. We will set the example, so that everyone respects the solemnity of the moment.”

“You’re serious?”

“Absolutely, I firmly believe what I’m telling you. The Realm owes you and your family more than we can ever repay for what’s been done. We will join our subjects on Ross and share the moment viewing the monitors with our subjects. We’ve already had millions of requests to join us.”

“So you’re telling me that the decision to limit the ceremony to only the Empire has already been made?”

“Danielle saw it first.”

Trey chuckled, “Then it will be done that way. Now that I think about it, it is the only way we should do it.”

“She knew you’d see it as well.”

Trey stuck out his hand and said, “Thanks, Tag. We are so thankful we have you and Danielle helping us.”

Tag ignored the hand and gave Trey a big hug, “We believe in you as well, Trey.”

Those simple words filled Trey with an emotion that almost overwhelmed him. Now he had to accept his destiny and quit fighting the role he was born to play. Cassie listened in her mind and felt the emotions wash over her as she sat down and began planning who was going to attend.

• • •

Trey and Cassie stood on a raised platform in front of the statues in Robbins Park. Grang stood in front of them looking very uncomfortable. Cassie thought to Trey, “Do you think he can pull this off?”

“I don’t know. He is the perfect one to do it. The Empire’s first Emperor forgave him and adopted him as a brother. He should be the one to place the Crown.”

“I know, but you know how he hates to give speeches.”

“Cassie, he’s never given a speech. We’ll just have to trust this is the right decision.”

Cassie smiled and said, “Even if he messes up, I wouldn’t want it from anyone else.”

The horns sounded and the gigantic crowd grew silent. The positions of honor in front of the platform were taken by the former Riders and the two new divisions of White Warriors who were standing at attention. The rest of the available space was filled with the citizens that were able to get a pass into the park. The surrounding city was standing room only in the streets and on the tops of buildings. The Realm’s citizens were glued to their monitors that showed the Coronation with a split screen of the millions gathered on Ross to view the ceremony with the Queen. Excitement was high and everyone was watching to see their new Rulers.

The Horns stopped and Grang stepped forward to the audio bank. He was struggling what to say and words just didn’t come. Where was Jingo when you needed him? Suddenly the silence was broken by a loud screams overhead. Everyone looked up and saw thousands of Zord circling overhead. One of them left the screaming mass and flew toward the ground. The White Warriors directly in front of the platform moved back into the ranks of their fellow warriors and the Giant Zord landed. The thousands circling overhead grew silent and continued to soar overhead.

Trey smiled and thought, “Vring, it is so good to see you.”

Vring went to all fours and bowed, “Your Majesty, may I address the gathering?”

“Yes, by all means. We welcome what you have to say.”

Vring turned and looked at those gathered. The Algeans reporting on the ceremony began sharing Vring’s thoughts with those that were watching on monitors that were not telepathic. “The First Emperor of the Empire came and fought to save our babies as a young human against a heard of carnivores that numbered in the millions. The odds he faced with the Archers from El Prado were unimaginable, but they faced the Torg and saved our children. Not only were our children saved, but my species as well. We know that Scotty Robbins and the brave archers that fought with him are the reason we’re alive today.”

Vring turned and looked at the giant statue behind him and said, “My father swore our loyalty to the Emperor after that fight and said we will protect him and his people until the mountains on El Prado faded into dust. They are still there and our oath still stands.” Vring looked at Trey and said, “You are his child. You are the third Scotty Robbins and every one of you has been an example for my warriors to follow. Your family’s sacrifice tells us what we must be willing to give to win. I am here today to renew our oath and to make sure everyone knows that we will follow wherever you lead us. The Empire has chosen well and you and your wife are the perfect ones to lead us in our fight for Creation.”

All at once the sky grew dark and everyone looked up to see a giant green ship high in the atmosphere. A silver flash appeared in front of the Platform and two giant Spiders stepped out of it. They bowed and the largest one thought, “We are also here to swear our loyalty to you, Your Majesty. We will join you in your quest and will follow your commands. We know that you are Creation’s Chosen and we will be your willing warriors.”

Grang said over the audio bank, “I hereby place the Crown of the Empire on Scotty Robbins the Third and proclaim him the Emperor of the Bristone Empire. Lead us and protect us, Your Majesty. We are all your loyal subjects and we will never forget our oath.”

As Grang raised the crown, every one of the millions on Bristone bowed. On Ross, Tag and Danielle stood and bowed to the monitor. The millions watching the ceremony joined them. The trillions in the Realm saw the Queen of the Realm bow on their monitor and they joined her pledging their loyalty to the new Emperor.

Grang placed the Crown on Trey’s head and whispered, “Saved by the Zord again.”

Trey broke out into a huge smile and said, “Please rise. I accept this honor and I pledge to do everything in my power to protect those under my care. I am both humbled and honored by your trust and I promise I will never betray it. I will give my life before I allow you to be harmed. Thank you.”

Cassie came forward and Trey put his arm around her. Grang placed a crown on Cassie and said, “I present the Emperor and Empress Robbins of the Bristone Empire, long live the Emperor.”

The Zord screamed their joy and the crowd erupted into celebration. Then, the thousands of citizens rushed forward to thank the White Warriors for their sacrifice. Those watching in the Realm saw the reverence and high esteem the citizens held their fighters and the enlistment rolls tripled afterwards.

Jingo came over and said, “Nice speech.”

Grang cleared his throat and said, “It’s one of my best.”

“All forty two words?”

“I do get long winded on occasion.”

Jingo laughed and shook Grang’s hand. “What were you planning to say?”

Grang looked out at the celebrations taking place and shrugged, “I have no idea.”

Jingo laughed out loud and pulled the huge Magrum over to congratulate their adopted son. Cassie felt the love of the three that were so different yet so much alike. This is what the Empire will be. All the many species will be bonded by the love we have for each other. Today is the beginning of what Trey’s Grandfather fought to bring into existence. It will become something amazing…if we survive the Demons.

• • •

Alex asked, “Cassandra, why aren’t you and Junior at the celebration?”

“Are you kidding? We have the best view possible right here on our displays. There’s no way we could see anything down in that crowd.”

“I thought you would join the White Warriors?”

“No, they deserve the honor for the fight they just won. I wasn’t there and I refuse to diminish their accomplishment with my presence. All of the attention belongs to them.”

Alex said, “This is my first time seeing a Zord. They are amazing creatures.”

Junior said, “That they are, but they were helpless against the Torg that attacked them.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

“Have you seen the recordings from the Night of the Torg?”

“What is that?”

Cassandra said, “I don’t believe I’ve seen them either.”

Junior pulled out his computer and attached a cable to his board, “I’ll download it for you. The one with the blonde hair is Trey’s Grandfather and the Cainth is Jingo.”

Cassandra pulled the download up and watched it. Her first words were, “Oh my big backside.”

Junior said, “It’s really not big. It’s perfectly sized.”

Cassandra smiled and continued to watch the download. Junior said, “The Zord delivering the additional quivers that crashed into the tree is the one that landed in front of the platform. He was the Zord Ruler’s son and he is now their sovereign.”

Cassandra finally looked up from the display, “How did this recording get made?”

“The Algeans took the thoughts of the surviving archers and converted it to digital. Some of it was taken from the Zord that delivered the arrows.”

Cassandra was silent and after a long moment Alex said, “He fought to save creatures that were killing his people.”

“He felt that a species young should always be defended, no matter what. It was his and Jingo’s bravery that forged the alliance between the Zord and the two communities, which became the Bristone Empire.”

“Do you know the story about Grang?”

“No, I do not.”

Standby a moment and let me download it. These two recordings are required for all children in the Empire.”

After several minutes Cassandra said, “He killed Scotty’s Mother?”

“Yes, he did.”

Cassandra hit her communication panel, “Danielle, have you seen the recordings of the Night of the Torg and Grang’s salvation?”

“No, I don’t believe I have.”

“I’m sending them to you now. Please watch them.”

Danielle sat down on the platform and hit her board’s memory. She watched the two recordings and felt overwhelming respect for the Empire’s first ruler. She called over an assistant and said, “I want this sent out to the Realm immediately.”

The assistant downloaded the recordings into his portable scanner and left the stage. The celebrations were interrupted when they heard an announcer say, “We have a recording of the fight that was done to save the Zord. We will play it in twenty minutes.”

The millions of monitors around the Realm made the announcement and the trillions celebrating waited in anticipation of seeing what could have caused the giant creatures to swear their eternal loyalty to the Empire. An hour later they knew why and the change in the Realm’s citizens was instant. This young Emperor came from a family that faced unimaginable odds and fought for their enemies. Grang’s story told them about the heart of the Empire’s Royal Family and learning that Trey had adopted him as a father told them all they would ever need to know about their new ruler. The celebrations took on an entire new level of exuberance. The Realm was united again. They were brought together by a trust and faith in the ones leading them. Those two recordings became required learning for all the Realm’s civilizations. Once again, there was a pride in being part of something bigger than themself.

Tag looked at Danielle after watching the recordings on the huge monitor and said, “Now I must agree with you.”

“What is that?”

“I wish I had the opportunity to have met him. He truly was a warrior in the purest sense. He is what I hope to be.”

“Leaving the universe behind was probably the best thing that could have been done, because it produced those people. Even out of terrible mistakes, great things can happen.”

Tag nodded and slowly lowered his head. He could see the millions of giant Torg and wondered if he would have been brave enough to face them without pause. For the first time in his life, Tag felt humility.

Danielle listened to his thoughts and smiled. Everyone needs a hero. Now Tag had his. He would be stronger for the knowledge and far more dangerous because of it. Tag looked at her and said, “I want to visit the Robbins Memorial again after things slow down.”

“Why?”

“The Red Warriors had the two swords to pledge their lives to on Glod. I now have the Warrior I wish to pledge my life to as well.”

“We’ll go together, Love of my life.”

Tag smiled and saw millions of huge carnivores. Scotty Robbins became his ambition.

• • •

Two weeks later Cassie heard, “I hope you don’t mind but Tag and I would like to visit the Robbins Memorial. Would that be alright with you?”

“Danielle, it’s so good to hear from you. Of course you may visit.”

“Thank you very much.”

“Will you come by afterwards?”

“No, until our ship is completed we won’t be citizens of the Empire and we want to abide by the rules of visitation.”

Cassie sent the conversation to Trey and said, “Danielle, you are certainly welcome anytime.”

“Thank you, Cassie, but admittance to that holy ground should be respected. We are here for personal reasons and we thank you for your consideration.”

Trey looked at Cassie and she shrugged. They turned their perceptions to the park and saw Danielle and Tag arrive out of a silver flash. The two walked slowly forward toward the statues of Scotty and Julie and then bowed. They heard Tag say, “I have often been called the greatest warrior ever created and I have accepted that compliment without much thought. After seeing your fight to save the Torg, I know that I am unworthy of that honor. Your bravery and humble heart have shown me that I am still a work in progress and have such a long way to go before I can come close to what you have done. I have brought one of the swords I used at the Quilleron Temple on Glod that led to the formation of the Stars Realm and I leave it here to honor the greatest warrior ever created. I humbly thank you for the example you have given for me to follow. I will give your Empire that was created by the sacrifice you made to save it my loyalty and faith. Thank you.”

Trey watched as Tag went forward and slammed the long sword into the marble in front of the statue and buried it half way up the blade. Tag went back to Danielle, bowed, and continued to think about what he had learned about Scotty Robbins.

Trey felt his heart breaking at the memory of his family’s death as he took Cassie’s hand and teleported to the park, joined Tag and Danielle, and bowed with them. Cassie knew that Tag was not alone in his vow to be what his grandfather had shown in his life. They remained there for two hours as thousands came to the park when word spread about who was there. The silence was unbreakable as the multitude joined the two Royal Families and bowed with them. Soon the image was being broadcast to the planets of the Empire and the citizens felt their resentment of the old Realm evaporate and melt away. Now the two were finally one again.

A month later, every new White Warrior was taken to the monument and would put their hand on the Glod Sword and make their oath to the Empire. The warriors that came from the Realm first went to Glod to promise to follow the principles established by the Stars Realm and then they went to the second sword on New Hope. The ceremony is what called to millions to join the new force being forged to fight for life. Standing on New Hope is what inspired them to become a Life Warrior.

A year passed without the Demons and fifty divisions left to go out into Creation to fight for those that could not defend themselves against evil civilizations that were attacking them. It was then that the Zord and Spiders joined their fellow Warriors and made a truly formidable force against the ones that threatened Creation’s Balance.

Chapter Twenty

The Five psychic ships had been completed and the five couples commanding them sat in the Map Room of Castle Gardner. Trey said, “I’ve called for this meeting because I’m concerned about the Demon’s inactivity over the last year. They should have done something by now.”

Danielle said, “They’re doing something, but we just don’t know what it is. We need to try and find out.”

“How do we do that?”

Trey shook his head and said, “I’m not really certain, Paul. We can see when they move large numbers of ships out of their galaxy but we’re blind to what they’re doing on their worlds.”

Cassie sent a thought, “Kreej, are you still at the defense facility?”

“I am, Your Highness.”

“Will you teleport to Ross orbit and take part in this conversation?”

“I’m here.”

Tag gave a start, “That was fast.”

“We don’t need to input coordinates into a mechanical device. We just go where we think.”

“I’m still impressed.”

Trey said, “Kreej, we’re not certain about what the Demons are doing in their dimension. Something is going on or they would have left to contact the Red Demons. Do you have any ideas?”

“Why don’t you just go look and see?”

“They would see our ship as soon as we arrived and I’m uncertain if one ship could handle the numbers that would attack. We also don’t want to show them our psychic vessels and allow them to work on a counter.”

“Do you know what kind of scanning devices they use?”

“Not really. I assume they can track any ship that enters their domain.”

“What about organic ships?”

“I’m not sure about what you mean by that.”

“If I remove all my weapons, I could go there and take a look. Most scanners are not set to detect life forms in space. I should be able to hide behind a psychic screen and see what’s happening.”

Trey looked around the room and thought, “AK, I want you to turn on your scanners and see if you can detect Kreej in orbit above Ross.”

“Exactly where above Ross is he located?”

“Can you not detect him?”

“He’s not on my scanners.”

“Kreej, how is that possible?”

“When you released us, we discovered that the psychic energy in us prevents us from being seen on any electronic scan. I can’t tell you how it works, but we’ve learned that it does. Our ability to change color prevents us from being seen visually.”

“AK, use your psychic scanner.”

“Trey, I used all my scanners the first time. If he’s there, he’s not showing up on my scans.”

Danielle said, “That makes sense.”

Everyone turned toward her and Cassie said, “I know I should know the answer, but I don’t see it. Why does it make sense?”

“Creation had brought into existence different tools to bring balance back. It would make sense that those different tools would have different uses. It is reasonable to assume that the Zord are the invisible scouts of Creation. They would naturally be invisible to anything in Creation.”

“That’s how we see it, Your Majesty.”

Trey tilted his head and said, “I’m reluctant to send you alone into the Demon’s lair, but we need to know what’s happening. I want you to jump out of there at the first sign of trouble.”

“I’ll be careful. I’ll be back after I see what’s happening.”

“Kreej, I mean it; don’t take any foolish risks.”

“When one is at war there are no foolish risks, Your Majesty.”

Trey was not certain about what to say but by the time he thought of a response, Kreej was gone.

• • •

Kreej appeared in the outer edge of the Demon’s Galaxy and looked around. If these Demons had the same early warning system as the Red Demons, he should draw a crowd as soon as he entered the outer edge. He moved forward and crossed into the Galaxy’s gravity. He waited and nothing happened. He jumped three light years into the Galaxy and waited. Again, nothing happened. Well, time to see what they’re doing. Kreej looked out at the edge of the huge galaxy and set his vision for the telltale glow of a force field. He detected a large emission two hundred light years around the edge and jumped close to the system. He arrived in the outer planets of a fourteen planet planetary system and saw more than a hundred Black Ships above the fourth planet.

He looked closer and saw that the planet’s surface was covered with orange. He looked closer and saw the inhabitants were farming the Demon’s pods. He allowed his gaze to wander and found the huge burial depressions where hundreds of thousands of bodies were stacked. He looked at the ships in orbit and saw thousands of shuttles leaving the surface of the planet and docking with the giant Black Ships. He looked out into the galaxy and saw another force field emission fifty light years away. He jumped to the planet and saw a planet that was completely orange in color. The only shuttles were those gathered around the Black Ships and they entered the large landing bays. The Black Ships then jumped away. Kreej jumped into orbit around the planet and saw that there was nothing alive on the planet. Everything had been killed by the orange spores. The planet’s surface was a wasteland of blowing orange clouds.

He started to jump away but saw a huge structure on the northern continent. He closed his eyes and extended his psychic field and looked at the ruins. He slowly withdrew his senses and sighed. He looked into the interior of the galaxy and saw ten more planets with force field emissions. He jumped and checked each one and then moved back out to the edge of the galaxy and extended his psychic field over half of the Demon’s Galaxy. It was then that a huge number of orange ships began appearing around him. He jumped away as more than ten thousand Demon Ships arrived.

• • •

“Scan this area and find whatever it was that came here.”

The Demon Ships scattered and combed every inch of the area that the disturbance had originated. The eldest Demon waited and grew frustrated at the failure to find anything. After three days had passed he contacted the First Councilor, “We arrived within a glek of the disturbance reading, but have not found anything.”

The First knew the ships had done a through scan. “What do you think was there?”

“I have no idea. Whatever it was, it left no trace of any propulsion system or magnetic reading indicating the presence of metal or energy. There is nothing here.”

“Go back to your stations.”

The Demon Ships disappeared and the First thought about what had happened at the edge of his domain. He decided that he would worry about the disturbance after the Family was contacted. He was now prepared to make the contact and his ship was fully stocked and ready for escape.

• • •

Kreej arrived back at Ross and contacted Tag, “I have scouted the Demon’s Galaxy.”

“Stand by until I can get the others here, Kreej.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

Tag sent a message to the five crews and they started arriving immediately. Jake and Valerie arrived first because they were in the castle but Paul and TK were right behind them. Cassandra and Junior appeared right after Trey and Cassie. Trey said, “Kreej, what did you learn?”

“The Demons have been using the planets in their galaxy to farm the pods. They have now finished their harvest and most of the planets are now dead wastelands.”

Everyone sat down and was stunned by the statement. “They are worse than I ever thought. The species that they used to build their ships was also destroyed. I looked at one of their manufacturing facilities on one of the dead planets and all the inhabitants had died from the harvesting. They felt nothing for those that they used to help them.”

Danielle said, “They assume they can always use compulsions to force other planets to do their will. They’ll just move to another galaxy when the conflict is over and resume their destructive ways.”

Trey thought a moment and thought, “Weed, Seed, I need you at Castle Gardner now!”

“What are you thinking, Trey?”

“The end game is about to start and we need to make our preparations, Tag.”

“I think what you’re considering is the right thing to do.”

Trey smiled, “You already saw it.”

“I did, but I knew you would as well.”

Danielle said, “Ok, now you’ve got me; see what?”

“We need to concentrate our forces.”

Danielle furrowed her brow and then nodded, “You’re right.”

Cassandra said, “For those of us with limited capacity, would you mind explaining what you’re talking about.”

Weed and Seed appeared in the Map Room and Danielle said, “Just pay attention and you’ll see.”

The two Algeans bowed and Trey said, “Please rise. I need you to implement some plans and we don’t have much time to make them happen.”

Weed said, “What do you need, Your Majesty?”

“I need you to move your galaxy to another universe where the Demons will have a lot of difficulty finding it.”

“Why should we do that?”

“Because I don’t want to divide our forces to defend two locations; I also believe that if we lose this battle, it will be your galaxy that will continue the fight.”

“We will not abandon you, Your Majesty.”

“You are not abandoning us, Weed. All of the Algean Ships will remain here to fight the Demons. We can’t effectively defend two galaxies. Your galaxy has millions of planets that are still not developed enough to fight in this war and will be defenseless against the Demon’s Black Ships. Most of our worlds have heavy defenses around them and stand a chance against their fleets.”

Seed leaned back and said, “Then we request to stay here with the Empire.”

“Request denied; we are depending on you to keep the fight going if we fail and your people need you to lead that fight.”

Cassie sent a private thought to Greyson, “Please bring Timmy and Virze to the Map Room on Ross.”

“We’ll arrive momentarily, Your Majesty.”

Weed said, “Your Majesty, we left you and saw our universe destroyed. How can we leave again?”

“To save Creation against these creatures if we fail. We’re counting on you to make sure our loss will be revenged.”

Danielle said, “You know he’s right. You must do as he says and we will honor your species for doing it.”

Weed and Seed bowed showing their acceptance but everyone felt their sorrow. Timmy and Virze appeared in the map room and Trey walked up to them, “I need the two of you to take the Algeans to the universe where the Empire was hidden.”

Timmy stared at Trey and said, “I will show them where to go, Your Majesty.”

“No, Timmy, you will take them there and stay with them.”

Everyone saw Timmy’s expression harden and Trey turned from him and said, “TK, where is Mariah?” Timmy’s expression immediately changed to confusion.

“She’s at home on New Hope.”

Trey turned back to Timmy and said, “I want you to go to New Hope and pick up Mariah, Carter, Jenna, and CJ.”

TK stood up and said, “What are you doing?”

Trey said, “Cassie and I are children from our parents and Carter. Mariah and CJ are also children from the same bloodlines. They will possess psychic abilities that are like ours. If we die in this fight, they will be the future leaders of the Empire. They must be protected at all costs. Do you not see that?”

Paul reached up and pulled TK back to her seat and nodded, “He’s right, my Love.” TK took a deep breath and nodded.

Trey turned back to Timmy and said, “I’m depending on you, Virze, and Greyson to protect those children and not allow anything to harm them. Do you understand?”

Timmy stared at Trey for a long moment and Virze said, “We will make sure of their safety, Your Majesty.”

Trey put his hand on Timmy’s shoulder and said, “I’m counting on it. There is no one better in the Empire to teach them what we stand for and what the Empire means.”

Timmy looked at Paul and TK and said, “We will make sure of their wellbeing.”

TK stood, went to Timmy and Virze, and hugged them, “Trey’s right; there’s no one better for them.”

Trey turned back to Weed and said, “You will take the Defense Facility with you. Make sure all the information on our weapons is in its memory banks as well as the history of the Realm and Empire.”

Weed said, “It sounds like you’re expecting to lose this war.”

Trey lowered his head and said, “I’ve had a vision of just that. However, losing a battle does not lose the war. You’ve got to make sure our fight is not in vain.”

Weed and Seed stared at the five couples and said, “We will not let your efforts be for naught.” He turned to TK and said, “Our oath extends to your child and we will protect her.”

Trey looked around the room and said, “We will board our ships and prepare for the Demons to arrive. Tag, I need your help in organizing the fleets.”

“I’m on it.”

“Jake, you and Valerie make sure the planetary defenses at our member’s planets are at full power.”

“Cassandra, I need you to make sure Alex has the field that prevents the Demon Ships from escaping is still operational.”

“Alex, do you have the system he’s referring to?”

“No, but I have the information on it in my databanks. I’ll stop by the Algean’s main ship building facility before they leave and add it to my inventory.”

“We don’t have much time. Tag, you need to get Jingo and Grang with their fleets and set up the operational plan against the Demon’s Fleets. I’ll notify Admiral Stem to bring the Algean ships here and join you in the planning session.”

Cassie looked at Trey, “Where are you going?”

“I need to talk to a tool.”

Cassie smiled, “Tell them hello for me.”

“I will.”

“Before you go, are you making any arrangements for the White Warrior’s fleets to participate in this?”

“No, Tag, I’m not. They will continue to take on the aggressive civilizations where ever they might find them.”

Twig said, “You might consider selecting another universe and we’ll move the planets that support their efforts to that location. If there is constant movement between their fleets and our galaxy, it would make us easier to locate.”

“You make a good point, Twig. Will you get with Jingos and Maddy and make that selection.”

“Why do you not want to use the warrior’s fleets?”

“With the updated Searchers and the Algean Attack Ships, we’ll have enough to take on the Demon’s Fleets and just adding more ships will make the coordination impossible. I’m not worried about the Demon Fleets; it’s the Demon’s Ships that will determine our success or failure.”

Tag nodded and turned to his communication panel to set up the planning session. Trey looked at Cassie, activated his armor, and teleported out.

• • •

He arrived at the clearing on El Prado at midnight. He saw the stars overhead and then looked around and jumped back. A giant Northern Mountain Cat was lying on the ground not ten feet from him.

“I was wondering if you were ever going to get out of that meeting.”

Trey was startled by the response, “How do you know about our meeting?”

“We can listen in on anything we choose anywhere in this universe. I really expected you back before now, but I see that you’ve been busy organizing the war for our Mother.”

“Our Mother?”

“You met her at the Temple.”

Trey turned off his armor and sat down. The huge cat’s mind was incredibly clear and its thoughts were precise. “Has she been communicating with you?”

“We are in constant contact with her.”

Trey lowered his head and sighed, “I hear her so seldom.”

“Your role is different.”

Trey looked up sharply and stared at the two hundred foot long cat. It was relaxed and staring at him. “Are you saying that you have a role as well?”

“I am and you are going to help us fulfill that obligation.”

“Why do you have an obligation?”

“Every creature in creation has an obligation to our Mother. She selected us because we are needed to guide those that are fighting for her.”

“I’m not sure what you mean?”

The cat looked up at the stars and smiled. Trey thought that smile was the most dangerous expression he had ever seen. “Your armies are out fighting the evil that has threatened her. However, your actions are directed against adversaries that are small in comparison to others that are causing much more harm. It is our role to guide you to the ones that must be confronted first.”

“Do you have a name?”

“My name is Pride.”

Trey smiled at the giant and looked up at the stars and heard music. He closed his eyes and found peace. Pride listened with him and waited. Three hours later Trey said, “I will have what you need here in one rotation. Are you sure you have what you need to make this happen?”

“We possess the needed knowledge. We need your technology to make it work.”

“Will you share this technology with us?”

“That is also part of our role. We can no longer allow evil to continue to grow and you and your armies must understand that the Mother’s Principles do not include those that willingly violate them. In your terms, the cancer must be destroyed and removed from her body. You should make sure your warriors understand that and recognize the necessity of it.”

“Do you think we’re a problem?”

“Yes; the Spiders and Zord know what must be done but you hold back from doing the right thing. That will stop.”

“Won’t that corrupt our souls?”

“When the cancer is removed, what happens to the body?”

Trey remained silent and the cat said, “The body heals.”

Trey said, “We will not kill the innocent to remove it.”

“That’s why we are here to guide you. Neither will our Mother.”

“My mate said to tell you hello.”

“I was wondering if you would remember that. She is also one of the Mother’s Chosen. Tell her we send our honor and loyalty.”

Trey furrowed his brow and the cat said, “She is more than both of you know and her time is yet to come.”

Trey lowered his head and said, “I’ve seen us defeated by the Demons.”

“You’ve seen what you needed to see.”

Trey had questions surge into his mind but the cat stood and said, “Your questions will be answered at the appropriate time. Now go and meet your destiny.”

The giant cat loped away and Trey was left with the vision of the Demons closing in on the last two Psychic ships. The others had been destroyed. Trey remained looking up at the stars until sunrise and then teleported back to Ross and Cassie.

Chapter Twenty-One

The Fourth Councilor sat in his ship and activated the main systems. The orange field instantly lit up and the scanners went active. He knew he was going to die and there was no way to avoid it. If he attempted to escape, the Council would be able to track him anywhere he went. They were also slaved into his board and would activate his self-destruct if he disobeyed. He felt his anger but knew he would do the same thing if he were in their place. The ship dropped away from his home and jumped out into the outer atmosphere of the planet. He set the coordinates for the former Family’s location and hesitated a moment before he pressed the drive pad. The giant orange colored ship disappeared.

The First Councilor looked at the two others on the display and said, “I will watch this from my ship.” All three dropped into their ships and jumped above the planet. The Controller watched his display and activated his ship for fast escape. He didn’t have permission to leave his post but he was taking no chances. He had actually stolen double the amount of Remid and knew he would be safe for thousands of turns if he was forced to run.

The Fourth appeared outside the dark galaxy and felt his fear double. He was almost paralyzed but the First said, “Quit stalling and make contact.”

He pressed his communication panel and said, “I humbly request to communicate with the Family.” He had his hand on the drive control expecting to be instantly attacked, but only silence came from his panel and no ship appeared to attack him. He pressed the panel again and said, “I humbly request an audience with the Elders of the Family. Please respond.” Again there was only silence.

The Three Councilors were confused by the lack of any action by the Family. The First said, “Enter the Home and make your request again.”

The Fourth knew that this was his last act. He crossed into the Dark Galaxy and once more activated his panel, “I humbly request a meeting with the Family’s Elders.” Once more nothing happened. The First said, “Scan the Galaxy.”

The Fourth was confused. He should be dead by now and it appeared he was being ignored by the Family. He activated his scanners and fell back in his chair stunned, “All of the family’s planets are uninhabited.”

The Thee Councilors were shocked. The First said, “Go to the Family’s first world and tell me what you detect.”

The Fourth entered the coordinates and jumped. He arrived above a barren wasteland. Everything was destroyed. He ran scans of the planet and waited while his computer analyzed the return. He scanned ten other planets that were used by the Family and found that they were all carbon copies of the one he orbited. The four Councilors looked at the results of the scan and the First said, “They’ve been destroyed.”

The Second asked, “How can that be? How long ago did this happen?”

The Fourth ran another scan and said, “More than one and a half turns. My scanner indicates that all of the structures on the planet were destroyed by one of the Family’s ships. There is no indication that any of their ships were here when that happened.”

“What would that indicate?”

“First, the Family must have left in their ships to go somewhere else. It appears one ship was left behind. Aha, I’ve found it.”

“What happened to it?”

“It appears to have been destroyed by a ship with a blue colored beam.”

The Controller said, “About one and a half turns ago we detected a blue flash. Could the one that made that flash possibly have done this?”

The Fourth said, “Perhaps that explains why all the ships were gone.”

“What do you mean?”

“What are we doing at this moment? Aren’t we searching for the source of the recent blue flash we detected? What are we going to do if we find it?”

The first said, “We are taking our ships to destroy it.”

“Perhaps they found it, but were unable to destroy it and were killed in the attack. The sole survivor destroyed all of the Family’s structures so no one else could come and take the Family’s technology.”

The Controller said, “They must have divided their forces to attack.”

“Why do you say that?”

“You know the power of the Family and there is no force that could have taken them on unless they divided their forces. They must have been destroyed piecemeal.”

The Fourth ran an intense scan of the planet and suddenly a signal from something buried deep in the planets crust pinged his board. He activated the frequency and saw the red face of a Family Member. The face stared at him from the display and after a long pause it said, “I assume you have locked in the signal by now. I don’t know how long it has taken you cowards to come here, but you must be told what happened to us. We discovered that a universe had dropped out of the matrix after we detected a blue flash. We were ordered to search for that universe and eventually found it. I’m rushing because I know they will be coming for me shortly so pay attention. That universe was protected by five hundred ships that were powered by the blue force. The family attacked and they were destroyed. I was left behind because of injuries I sustained in an earlier fight. I’m including the coordinates of that universe in this message.”

The Red Being looked away and said, “They’ll be here in a moment. The ships they used to defeat us were taken by the species that created them and that universe no longer has them for defense. You can destroy them if you act quickly. You must avenge us.” The Red Being looked away and snarled, “I must hide this message before they come. If you don’t destroy them, and you give them time, they will come and destroy you.” The screen went dark.

The Four Councilors sat in silence and finally the Controller said, “The coordinates of that universe is one of the ones we destroyed after the spores were released against us.”

The First said, “Then our problem is solved.”

The Third said, “I’ve just scanned that universe and it appears there is a galaxy that was missed.”

The four turned to their displays and saw the large spiral galaxy with huge emissions of high technology emanating from it. The first looked at the Fourth and snarled, “How did you miss that one? Are you that incompetent?”

The controller said, “That galaxy wasn’t there when we destroyed that universe.”

The First was shocked by the comment and said, “Show me.”

The Fourth knew he owed the Controller another debt.

“No, it appears it was not there. How do we explain this?”

“The Family Member said they moved a universe too hide it. I suspect moving a galaxy wouldn’t pose a problem for them.”

“Do you detect any ships with blue energy?”

The Controller focused his board and said, “Yes…there are five of them.”

“Only five?”

“Yes, First Councilor, there are only five.”

The First began thinking and said, “Fourth, come back and join us. We need to decide our next course of action.”

The Fourth took a deep breath and felt his tremors. His close brush with death left him shaken. He set the drive and jumped out of the dead galaxy.

• • •

“Cassie, I need to share something with you.”

“What is that, Trey?”

“Look in my mind and see if you can tell me what this means.”

After five minutes Cassie took Trey’s hands and said, “I think there is something wrong with the two messages here.”

“I agree but I can’t for the life of me determine what it is.”

“You didn’t see which ship survives with us at the end?”

“No, I just see it’s still there fighting off the millions of Demon Ships rushing forward.”

“I think that is a blessing.”

“You’re right; I don’t want to know.” Trey paused and said, “What did the cat mean by your importance?”

Cassie took a deep breath and said, “You have to look at it in terms the cat would understand. He is fighting for Mother.”

Trey furrowed his brow and slowly shook his head, “I still don’t see it.”

Cassie reached forward and took his hands, “Trey, I’m pregnant.”

Trey’s mind slammed shut. His thoughts turned to mush and he couldn’t say anything. He stared at Cassie with his mouth open and she said, “I haven’t told you because we are going to have to lead the fight against the Demons and you will resist putting us in danger; however, you must do it or we are all doomed.”

Trey started slowly shaking his head but Cassie said, “We have no choice. We will both win this fight and give our child a chance to live or we flee from it and turn our backs on those we are sworn to protect. We will become what you hated about the Realm. Don’t get scared on me now.”

Trey reached forward and pulled Cassie into his arms. Cassie whispered, “The safest place in this universe is next to you. We must do what we are chosen to accomplish.”

Trey sighed heavily and said, “Creation has a funny way of planning things.”

“I notice you aren’t laughing.”

Trey mouth turned up at the corners and he said, “Perhaps I’ll be able to laugh in a hundred years.”

Cassie chuckled, “Perhaps we both will.” Cassie laid her head on Trey’s chest and said, “So you’re sending the Defense Facility to the cats?”

“Yes and they have begun teleporting to it yesterday.”

“Do you know what is being done with them?”

“They’re being fitted for a new type of armor. BC tells me that he doesn’t understand how it operates but it is on an entirely different order of magnitude in speed and power. He also says the armor for one of the giant cats is lighter than a glove our warriors use.”

“How is that possible?”

“Obviously the cats understand the laws that govern Creation better than our scientists. Pride has agreed to download the information after his family is fitted.”

“Then you need to order BC to take the Facility to the armor fitting ships.”

Trey tilted his head and said, “I’ll make that happen. We need to board our ships. I don’t think we have much longer before the Demons arrive.”

Cassie and Trey appeared on the Robbin’s Bridge and Grace said, “We completed the installation of the Demon screen.”

“I thought Cassandra was going to install it on her ship?”

“No, she says that you will be in command and you should be the one that decides when, or if, it is to be used.”

Trey looked at Cassie and said, “Make sure the ship is ready. I need to join Tag and the Admirals in the planning session.”

Cassie kissed him and said, “Don’t be long.”

Trey smiled and put his hand on her stomach, “I won’t.”

• • •

Lt. General Colby Coronado looked out over the giant field at his three divisions. He was amazed at how fast he had been promoted, but knew the Army’s experienced Warriors were advancing quickly. He knew that Mike Pearsonne should have been in command, but he had been killed liberating another planet conquered by the Kryel. He looked over at Jink standing in front of the first Division and knew he had little to worry about there. The other two were just so inexperienced.

He wondered how many would be lost and then put it out of his mind. The hundred thousand White Warriors were going to be dropped on the capital city of the Kryel. Fleet wanted to just blast the planet into dust but there were more than thirty thousand compounds of captured species from planets that had been invaded. It was his job to handle the thousand around the capital. The planet’s heaviest defenses were also located around the capital.

He turned on his general Frequency and said, “This is the last battle against the Kryel. It is important to understand that we are not going down to ask for their surrender. We are going down to rescue the prisoners on the surface. I have just received the surveillance of the camps and I want you to see how the prisoners are being cared for by the Kreyl.”

A recording started and the assembled warriors watched as a hundred armored Kryel warriors entered one of the compounds and chose their meal. The ones selected were dragged out of the compound and the warriors then drew sharp swords and cut off the legs below the knees of their captives so they couldn’t run. Then they took a long time to cutting off pieces of the screaming prisoners as they consumed the parts. The warriors laughed at the screams of those they were killing and kept the captive alive as long as possible. The warrior’s disappointment when their captive died was obvious. One warrior collected bets from the others for making his prisoner last the longest.

Colby stopped the recording and said, “The Algeans have confirmed that this entire species revels in making their captives suffer. Imagine what it must be like to be held in those compounds knowing what was going to eventually be done to you. There will be no prisoners. DO YOU UNDERSTAND!?!”

The White Warriors screams, “Sir, yes Sir.”

Colby nodded and said, “Our job is simple. We will go in and secure the compounds. Once we have them protected with a force field, Fleet will start their bombardment. You will stop any of their forces from getting to the compounds to avoid that bombardment. Officers, make sure you keep your commands moving. You’re only in danger when you stay in one place. Fire and move; you know your training and I’m not going to be happy if you go out there and get yourself killed.”

The White Warriors smiled. They knew how much their commander insisted on being ready to avoid unnecessary loss of life. They called themselves CC’s Corps. It was a name that the Corps was proud of and the bravery of the unit was an example for all to follow.

“Alright warriors, make the Empire proud. Semper fi!”

“Semper fi, White Warriors”

Colby hit his artillery circuit and said, “General, are you ready?”

Terry Blackwell said, “The units are ready to teleport in. They have been assigned their fields of fire and secondary locations in the event one of our units is in danger of being overwhelmed.”

“Be ready to go. Fleet will arrive when we hit atmosphere.”

“Count it down, Sir.”

Colby looked at his command circuit and saw that six minutes remained before the Warriors would board their transports. “Hey C.”

Colby looked and saw his private channel had been activated, “What do you need, Jink?”

“I’ve just heard that the Queen has put the Realm on alert. An attack is anticipated by the Crown.”

Colby felt his heart go into his throat but got himself together and said, “Keep that piece of information to yourself.”

“I will, Sir. Is there a possibility of us going to assist?”

Colby sighed and said, “No, there is not. We are the Realm’s legacy to Creation. We will continue to fight even if it falls. We honor the Realm by what we do today. Let’s say a prayer that it survives.”

“Do you think it will?”

Colby started to answer but then knew that Jink deserved the truth, “I doubt it. The General Staff has been told that the Realm will probably die.”

“Who told them?”

“Trey and Tag told them and insisted that they make sure the Realm and Empire are never forgotten.”

“Semper fi, Sir.”

“Semper fi, Jink. Take care of my warriors.”

“I will.”

• • •

The Countdown reached zero and the fifty White Warrior Divisions teleported in to forty thousand feet above their targets. They set their wings and turned their teleport systems over to their combat link. The Warriors increased the range of their scanners and looked closely at the spot of land they would be responsible for clearing of all Kryel forces.

Private Willard Washington kept repeating to himself over and over, “Please don’t let me mess up, please don’t let me mess up.” As he glided to twenty five thousand feet he looked at his landing zone and saw twelve Kryel heavy weapon platforms. He was assigned with Lt. McCagg’s platoon to get in and set up the force field to protect the prisoners. He clicked his link, “Lt. I believe I will have to allow the others to set up the force field without my assistance.”

Lt. McCagg took a look at Will’s landing zone and saw he was teleporting in to big trouble. However, most of his platoon had similar problems and couldn’t come to help. “Will, Privates Dorg and Hein-gee will handle it alone. Take out those platforms.”

“Yes Sir.” Will called up his ordinance knowing that if he used hornets on those platforms as close as they were to the compound, thousands of prisoners would be killed. If he hit those platforms with a beam the same thing would happen. Suddenly every Warrior in the air heard, “We will be teleporting in to assist you in taking control around the compounds. Our armor will be the same color as yours and make sure you don’t fire on us.”

Colby thought, “Who are you?”

“We are another force that’s fighting for Creation. We will be arriving with you and we have adjusted your links to include us in your battle plan. We are here at the Emperor’s behest.”

Colby checked his link and saw that most of the heavy weapon platforms had now been assigned to whoever was coming in with his troops. “Are you sure you can handle all those platforms?”

“You are welcome to take part in their destruction, but we have determined that you will be attacked by not only the military forces on the ground but also the civilian population will be joining them. I would recommend that you focus on the huge numbers that will be rushing you.”

Colby looked at the numbers of Kryel around the camps and saw their numbers were in the millions. “Alright, listen up. As soon as you hit ground, release a full barrage of wasps and sweep the area in front with an anti-personnel beam. If the civilians are going to come at us, you must lay down a covering fire and keep it at full power until Fleet can take over. I’m sending the new assignments now.”

Colby allowed his computer to make the assignments by removing the platforms as a target. It recalculated the structure needed and included the possible mass rush of the civilian population. The computer alarmed and indicated that the possibility of casualties went up eighty percent. He hoped whoever was taking on the platforms were able to carry out their assignments. He watched the computer as it counted down and as it reached zeros the hundred thousand White Warriors teleported to the ground from five thousand feet. What Colby saw at the platforms stunned him. His warriors were also shocked but their training took over and they opened fire.

Will landed at the northern end of the weapon platforms and saw two of the largest creatures he had ever seen appear at each end of the line of platforms. They rushed toward the middle using their armored paws to slam the platforms and send them flying end over end into the ranks of the Kryel warriors stationed outside the camp. Will pulled his ring finger back and took his right arm and quickly moved it across the mass of troops directly in front of the camp. His combat link counted the Kryel and as he moved his arm back across the enemy troops that were now starting to open fire. Ten thousand wasps left his armor and flew out at the oncoming Kryel. Each of them had been assigned a single warrior and they flew into the charging mass at high speed. These wasps had a sting.

The small devices fired a high intensity laser into the Kryel’s armor and then injected a compound that was self-perpetuating. Ten thousand Kryel burned into ash. Will then raised his left arm and fired a laser across the Kryel, rushing in from behind the ones that burned and he cut the first ten ranks in half. He scanned the next line rushing at him again with his right arm and then released another cloud of wasps. The giant cats turned sideways to the oncoming mass and a beam as wide as their body swept across the entire front burning every Kryel within a hundred yards. The two huge animals disappeared and Will continued to hold his ground against a seemingly endless wave of Kryel. He heard the force field activate behind him and he knew he could die in peace now. The prisoners had been protected. He had held up his zone with the help of those giant animals. The entire planet became a scene from hell as the billions of civilian Kryel joined the military in rushing the compounds.

Colby watched his monitor and changed the view to the compounds he was charged to protect. The numbers attacking his troops was unimaginable. He knew his command would have been overrun, but the giant cats made the difference. Whenever the Kryel came close to his lines the cats would appear and run through the middle of the Kryel ranks with those two hundred foot wide lasers firing out of their sides. Every Kryel that the cat’s armor touched burned and the path it took through the charging mass left thousands burning behind it. The front of the charging Kryel would be burned out of existence for more than three hundred yards and then the cats would disappear and go to another site as the giant mass of Kryel continued their charge.

Colby knew that his warriors had absorbed more than a million wasps into their armor. He transferred his view to the probe overhead and saw massive waves of Kryel moving from the outskirts of the city. He expanded the view and saw millions moving in from outside the city to join the fight. He wondered if he had enough weapons to handle the approaching masses. Fleet had better get on the ball or he was going to lose this battle. The giant mass of approaching Kryel looked like a brown wave rapidly rolling over the landscape. He sent the view to General Blackwell and said, “You need to slow that mass down, Terry.”

Terry sent the view to his twelve thousand tanks and ordered, “Fire a salvo, in two seconds…fire.”

The cloud of slivers left the tanks, reached perigee, and turned over. The on rushing mass of Kryel running toward the city saw a dark cloud block out the sun and then the cloud fell on them. The massive explosion burned a three mile ring around the city and incinerated millions. But there were millions more arriving and the tanks continued to fire the salvos. The numbers being killed were mind numbing if one had time to consider it. The warriors only had time to fire their beams continuously and assign their hornet launches to their computers. Wasps were leaving the front lines in continuous waves and still the Kryel continued their mindless charge.

The millions of Kryel in the city rushed toward the camps in massive waves. The tanks could not launch a sliver attack against them because they were forced to try and keep the millions rushing toward the city out. The massive battle had reached a breaking point.

• • •

Will’s armor announced, “Wasps are down to thirty percent. Power is down to twenty five percent.” He knew he should reduce his output of weapons, but if he did, the platoon would be overrun. He smiled and decided that living forever wasn’t all it was made up to be. This fight excited him and awoke something inside him that brought joy and peace to his soul.

Even if he died, this was worth every minute. The huge mass in front of them moved closer and were now only a hundred yards away. The Kryel sensed that victory was within their grasp and their frenzy increased to a higher level. The surging brown wave reached fifty yards and then a blinding white beam more than four thousand yards wide hit in front of them and moved through the charging masses. The beam continued moving through the city and disintegrated everything in its path. Will smiled and sat down. Fleet had finally made an appearance. A huge cat appeared beside Will and lay down beside him. Will said, “Now was that fun or what?”

The Cat smiled and said, “I was worried about you initially, but you found your core in the fight. I don’t know if you realize this but you made the difference in this skirmish. You should be proud and I honor you.”

Will was stunned silent and then the cat disappeared. What did the cat mean by made the difference? Then his fellow warriors in his platoon were surrounding him and lifting him up on their shoulders. “What, what did I do?” He continued to wonder until he was able to view the combat recordings and he refused to believe he had done what the video showed. Only after he received the Star of the Empire Medal and was given his own company command did he start to realize what he had accomplished.

Lt. McCagg watched his platoon lift Will and smiled; another warrior to send to command school. This one was going to be special.

• • •

Colby looked at his casualty reports and let out the breath he had been holding. Less than ten percent were killed. He knew the cats had made the difference. Where did then come from? He looked around and saw that they were gone. Well, they may be gone but their actions would not be forgotten. He had also received information that many of the prisoners wanted to join the White Warriors in their fight to free enslaved civilizations. His command would no longer be dependent on the Empire for replacements. He lowered his head, giving thanks to the Creator and then prayed for the survival of the Empire and Realm.

Jink reported in and said, “It looks like our new warriors aren’t so green anymore.”

Colby smiled and said, “No, I don’t think they are. Let’s hope their next training session is not so intense.”

Jink laughed and said, “Speak for yourself; this was fun.”

Colby shook his head and thought, “I guess she’s right. This was fun.”

The music in the stars grew louder.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Trey sent a thought to Danielle, “How is the evacuation progressing?”

“We’ve set tomorrow as the final date to leave. The Algean Planets have received our civilian populations and are sharing their homes until the crisis has passed. They have been very gracious.”

“So they’re moving the galaxy the day after?”

“Yes, they are. We won’t know where they’re going so that information can’t be taken from our ships.”

Trey paused and said, “Are you ready for this?”

“Trey, no one is ever ready to get in a warship and take on enemy ships. It’s a frightening situation, but I wouldn’t miss it. I know what I owe to the citizens and I’m compelled to give them all I’ve got in their defense.”

“Are there any lessons from the first fight with the Demons?”

Danielle shook her head, “Except for the Kosiev intervening against orders, we would have lost. Most of the ships holding the line were destroyed and we were close to being overwhelmed.” Danielle paused and continued, “I know these five ships are the most powerful ever built, but they are not a hundred times more powerful that the fleet the Reg provided. Tag has looked at the danger level and he says that normally he would not take action with it so high. However, he knows that we will.”

“Cassie is pregnant.”

“Oh Trey! I’m so sorry.”

“I know. We’re also compelled to participate in the fight.”

“I wish there was another way but I don’t see it.”

“We know and we accept our destiny. Now is the time to fight for it.”

Danielle felt sorrow for the Robbins but also knew that she may also lose her life and the man she had loved so deeply for so long.

• • •

The four continued to argue about what to do. The First said, “I agree with the message we received. We cannot allow that Galaxy to continue to exist.”

The Third said, “But another blue wave has happened. We could also be destroyed.”

The Fourth said, “I suspect they were destroyed because they didn’t act fast enough and the beings that produced that wave had time to build their defenses. Remember, it took them a lot of time to find that missing universe. We know where it is now.”

The Second said, “Our scans show five ships that are blue wave powered.”

The First countered, “If we wait there will be hundreds. We must eliminate the threat now.”

The argument continued for days until the Controller said, “We really have no choice but to attack.”

The four grew instantly silent and the First said, “You think you know more than us?”

“No I don’t First Councilor but I know they can find us. They’ve demonstrated that they can see our fleets wherever they go and I must assume they can see us here as well. Are we going to wait for them to grow in power until they come to attack here? Even if we attempt to escape, will they be able to follow and destroy us? I’d much rather face five ships instead of thousands…or millions.”

The First remained silent and the Fourth said, “The Controller is right. I do think if we attack we not should divide our ships. I agree with the position that the Family probably did that and were destroyed piecemeal. Our usual tactics is to attack along multiple points. I believe those five ships should be our only targets and the fleets will destroy the galaxy.”

The four participants waited and the First finally said, “Prepare the fleets and wake the others. We will use all of our ships is this fight. Does anyone have something else to offer?”

The Controller said, “If things don’t go our way, our ships are stocked and we can escape if necessary. I really see no reason to put this off.”

The First snarled into his screen, “No one will leave before I give the word. Is that clear?”

Everyone nodded but knew he would be the first to run. His title was also a sarcastic joke among the Demons.

• • •

“Trey, there is a huge power surge in the Demon Dimension.”

Trey looked and sent the message, “The Demons are coming. Everyone take their stations and prepare for invasion.”

Jingo and Grang joined the Empire’s Fleets and the Algeans teleported to their assigned ships. The Algean Galaxy shimmered and disappeared. Those civilians that had delayed in leaving were no longer given a choice. They would live or die with the outcome of the battle. Most of them had coordinates of planets that were uninhabited and gave no signs of technology. Most would teleport to those planets with a supply of food and await the outcome of the battle.

• • •

Kline and Gina were holding each other and Gina said, “I guess this is what we’ve worked so hard to do.”

“Yes, the Regiment has been assigned their most advanced ships. You be as careful as you can and I’ll see you after the storm.”

Gina hugged him tightly, “I love you so much.”

“Let’s go repay a debt, my Love.”

Gina stepped back, activated her armor, and teleported away. Kline took a deep breath and teleported to his ship. Every warrior in the regiment had their own ship now that the teleporting hornets had been developed. The ten thousand Life Warriors were now a deadly force to reckon with. He looked at his pilot and smiled, “Ready to make history.”

“More that you know, Sir. I’m linked to the other pilots and waiting for the first scan to arrive.”

“Notify the fleet which ships we are assigned as soon as the Demon Fleet arrives.

The Pilot sent the message and the hundred Algeans linked at Fleet Control decided to assign ships that were inside the outer layer of ships to the warriors. They could work their way out as the battle progressed.

Kline checked his control system and saw that the Regiment was linked in. He watched his display and waited for what he knew was coming.

• • •

The First called the Council together and said, “How do we want to organize our forces?” He was greeted with silence. “None of you have any ideas?”

The Second said, “We normally divide up our forces to attack in multiple locations; attacking an enemy in one mass is something I’m unfamiliar with.”

The Controller waited for someone else to speak and said, “Perhaps we should attempt to split the enemy’s forces.”

“Go on.”

“We send our fleets to the outer edge of that galaxy in five groups that are spread out. Perhaps those five ships will move to support their fleets and we’ll jump in and attack one of them reducing their number by twenty percent. Once we jump in, we’ll send our fleets into the galaxy to destroy their planets. We’ll remain together outside the galaxy to take on the other four ships.”

The First looked at the other three and said, “Do you agree with this strategy?”

The Fourth said, “It does sound reasonable.”

The Second asked, “Do we mix our fleets with different ship types or keep them together?”

The Third said, “If we intermix the fleets, they will be using different technologies and may interfere with each other. If we’re going to do it this way I would recommend keeping the fleets in their current structure with their commanders who know their capabilities.”

The First thought a moment and sat back, “I agree. We’ll leave their organizations as they are. Controller, assign the coordinates to each fleet and get them ready for launch. Our ships should be ready quickly.”

“How do you want me to organize our ships?”

“The Council will be in the rear third with the most junior members in front. You will also be with us to direct our fleets.”

The Controller lowered his head and turned to his board. The attack would launch in another rotation.

• • •

Trey watched the Demon Dimension and saw huge numbers of ships leaving to organize into five groups. He notified fleet and sent a thought, “We will be jumping out to the edge of our galaxy momentarily. No matter what happens around us, we will not separate our five ships. Our Fleets will have to handle the Demon’s Fleets. We only have one target and it is the Demon’s personal ships. Make sure your crews are ready and top off the power grids now. If the Black Ships are moving into formation, the Demons will not be far behind.”

The five couples made contact and watched their power meters go up. Jake looked at Valerie, “I’m worried about this, Val.”

“I know; however, we have had a wonderful life and I have no regrets no matter what happens.”

“I just want to build that house on Gambia.”

“We will do exactly that after this is over.”

“Promise!”

“I do, my Love.”

• • •

Tag said, “This won’t be like the last fight. We have no room to maneuver and will be forced to hold our position. We won’t be able to use the psychic shadows to avoid their weapons.”

“That comes with only having five ships instead of five hundred, Tag. No matter what happens, you know I’ll always love you.”

“I do know that. However, when this battle gets underway, you and I will not be directing the ship.”

“No, why not?”

“The issue is going to be determined by who runs out of power first. We need to stay in constant contact and allow our bodies to do what is necessary. Our crew is trained and they can handle themselves. Since there will be no moving around, we can best help our chances of survival by feeding the ship power.”

Danielle thought about it and after a long pause, nodded, “What does your sense of danger tell you?”

“It’s slightly lower following that path.”

“How high will it be if we do that?”

“The highest I’ve ever seen.”

Danielle sighed and watched her display for the orange ships.

• • •

Kline hit his general communication frequency, “Alright Warriors, listen up. The Demons are helping us out. They have kept all of their newest ships in one fleet. I suspect they will fight us initially but if we start to get the better of them, they will jump away to attack our member planets. You must take out as many as possible, as quickly as possible, before they run. Don’t waste time on one ship. We’re jumping out to the edge of the Milky Way. We will not wait for our fleet to attack but will jump in the instant that fleet appears. Follow your links and Semper fi.”

Kline nodded and the pilot led ten thousand, small, heavily shielded ships out to the galactic edge.

• • •

Jingo commed Grang, “You have the first generation Black Ships. “I’m going after the next one that was developed. The Searchers and Algeans are taking on the other three fleets. Use your Algeans to link and be safe, my brother.”

“I will.”

“You don’t have anything else to say?”

“I don’t need to; you already know.”

Jingo smiled and said to himself, “Yes, I do.” He looked out of the view port at the stars glowing brilliantly against the blackness of open space and said, “This is for you, Scotty.” The two fleets jumped out to join the five Psychic Ships waiting for the enemy to arrive at the galactic edge.

The Empire’s Searchers and Algeans that were flying the advanced ships stayed at the Milky Way’s central regions in orbit around thousands of planets. The linked fleets waited for the Black Ships to arrive before jumping out to the edge. They didn’t want the Demons to know just how many ships the Empire had to use against them.

The Demons were sending twenty million ships to destroy the galaxy of their enemy. What they didn’t know was that the enemy had twenty three million ships waiting for them and all of them were coated in reflective hulls and were linked by the combined intelligence of the Algeans. The Demon Fleets only saw a million ships waiting for them. The handle was being turned on the Jack-in-the-Box and the clown was about to spring out. The Algeans would have every Black Ship targeted and assigned to a warship or a Life Warrior in less than ten seconds. The coming battle was one that was made to be told over the ages. If any survived to tell it.

• • •

The Controller saw the million white ships waiting at the Galaxy’s edge and scanned into the large spiral galaxy. There were large numbers of ships at the planets but he couldn’t determine if they were warships or not. If they were warships, they should be supporting the five large ships and they weren’t. It didn’t really matter; the fleets were just a distraction to get the five ships separated. The real power was their orange ships. Nothing could stand up to the dimensional energy weapons. He looked at his board and saw all the rest of the orange ships had arrived. He pushed a key and the largest space battle ever witnessed began. Twenty million ships jumped out of the Demon Dimension and out to the edge of the troublesome galaxy.

• • •

The Algean Elder thought, “Alert, alert, jump to your targets upon receipt of its coordinates.”

The twenty million plus ships started disappearing in huge numbers within two seconds. The Demon fleets that were moving in on the million ships in front of them were staggered by the wave front of ships blowing into their front ranks.

Jingo said, “Take us to the early model Black Ships.” Jingo and Grang’s fleets arrived at the two older Demon fleets and blew into them like a tornado into a cornfield. Blasted Black Ships were blown apart and scattered in the wake of the attacking white ships. Jingo watched as the Madeline Robbins moved between two giant Black Ships and blew thousand yard holes through them with its main beams. It looped around and took out two more that were attempting to escape another Empire Ship. None of the white ships stayed in one place long enough to be targeted by multiple Black Ships.

• • •

Kline appeared on the bridge of an advanced Black Ship. He swung both his arms out firing a high intensity laser around the room and watched as every orange being on board was cut in half. The teleport hornet left his chest and accelerated across the room as the teleport field expanded at a three hundred yards a second. As soon as it flew across the room, Kline teleported out and was taken to another ship by his pilot.

The Advanced Black Ships detected the small ships arrival outside their force fields but were unable to fire on them. The small ships went into their flicker mode where they teleported around the giant ship in random micro-teleports. They moved so fast that they were only a flicker. The giant ships beams couldn’t lock on them because of their lightning changes in location. Once the hornet destroyed the ship, the Algean Pilot would stop long enough to pick up the Life Warrior and continue to another ship.

• • •

The entire middle of the Black Ship Kline hit disappeared and was teleported into the center of the Milky Way to just over the event horizon of the massive black hole located there. The orange crewmembers, that were still alive, had only a moment to wonder what was happening before they were sucked into the massive gravity well. Within seconds their bodies were stretched into a ten thousand mile long strand, only one atom thick. As tens of thousands of teleported Black Ships arrived and were sucked into the singularity, a massive explosion of gamma rays exploded out the top and bottom of the black hole, as the matter that made them was destroyed and compressed. The blast grew larger as a hundred thousand ships entered the inescapable gravity well.

The gutted, hollowed out hull of the Black Ship that had been left behind, floated in space for a moment and then the package Kline dropped on the bridge detonated and blew the ships remains into fragments. The explosions of thousands of Black Ships looked like an unending fireworks display in the center of the Demon Fleet.

The Controller watched his display waiting for the five large white ships to move to support their fleets but they remained in place. Why were they not moving? He changed his scan and saw the battle taking place with their fleets and was shocked. Half of the ships sent were already destroyed. He punched his communicator and yelled, “Jump into the Galaxy and start attacking planets! Move now!!!”

The surviving ten million Black Ships jumped away from the ships that were killing them. The Algeans assigned a ship for each of them, but knew that some would make it to a planet before they were caught. Suddenly the Elder heard, “Don’t worry, we’ve got this.”

The Elder smiled, “Newton, what are you doing here?”

“We’ve sent ten of our ships to every inhabited planet. We’ll do what we can to protect the Empire.”

• • •

The first Black Ship to arrive at a planet saw ten small green ships accelerate toward them at high velocity. Beams were fired at the incoming green ships but had no effect on them. The green ships went through their force fields like they didn’t exist and the small ships teleported a package into the weapon storage and reactor rooms on the giant ship. The ten explosions blew the ship apart so fast, that one moment it was moving through space and the next it was an expanding cloud of gas and debris.

Some of the Black Ships were warned of what was happening and broke off their attack and attempted to escape but they were followed by an Algean ship with advanced sensors and there was nowhere in Creation where they could hide. Ten hours later the last Black Ship was destroyed.

• • •

The Controller said, “I’ve sent our ships into the galaxy to destroy planets; we need to attack the five ships now!”

The First saw the destruction taking place in his fleets and worried about what he was jumping into. He said, “Start the attack.” He reached over and set the escape coordinates on his board. Now all it would take would be a quick touch to run. The three million orange ships jumped together and arrive in front of the five glowing white ships.

• • •

The four hundred crew members on the Psychic Ships were at their weapons and were locked in on their zone. There was nervousness and stress, but they were ready to make sure they held up their responsibility. The five Psychic Couples were linked and feeding their view to their ships computers which then assigned tasks to the crew. They did not watch the battle taking place between the millions of ships, but focused on the arrival of the Orange Ships…then the Demons appeared a mile in front of them.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Jingo watched his scanner and saw the giant fleet of Orange Ships appear in front of Trey’s ships. He began ordering his fleet to go to support the Psychic Ships, but was stopped by the Elder Algean, “You will remain where you are and not go out to participate in that battle.”

“Why not They’re outnumbered by millions.”

The Algean sent a thought to every ship and warrior that had survived the battle with the Demon’s Fleets, “The only ships that can take on the Orange Ship’s beams are the five ships facing them. All of you will be disintegrated before you could get within a thousand miles of them. None of you can survive if you attack; it would be suicide and it’s foolish to waste your lives when Creation needs you.”

Grang snarled, “Then what would you have us do?”

“Witness the bravery of the warriors fighting for life. If they are killed, you will teleport to the White Warriors fleet and continue the battle against evil. If our Rulers die today, we cannot save this galaxy. However, we can help other civilizations live until another answer to the Demons appears. These orders come from the Emperor and I expect you to follow them.”

The sixteen million ships waited and watched the battle that would determine their future. In a clearing on El Prado the Cats had their eyes closed and watched. Pride said, “Please help them, Mother.” He waited, but did not hear an answer.

• • •

The Demons broke into space a mile in front of the psychic ships and the massive blue beams reached out and blew the front ranks of the huge fleet away, leaving the remainder of the Orange ships three hundred miles away. More than two hundred thousand Orange Ships were destroyed but the giant orange wave moved forward gaining ground slowly on the massive fire coming from the Psychic Ships. Another hundred thousand Orange Ships died, but the Demons were now two hundred miles away.

The Controller yelled, “We’ll lose half our fleet at this rate of destruction.”

The First snarled back, “I don’t care if we lose two thirds. This ends today.” The First really didn’t care if two thirds of the Common was killed as long as he was in the third that survived. He was uncertain of a victory, but now saw that it was possible to win. He said over the communications channel, “Continue the attack.” He looked at his panel and saw his ships were now a hundred miles out.

Danielle looked at the power readings and said, “We’re at sixty percent power. At our current rate of loss, our weapons will go off line as soon as we drop below twenty five percent.”

Tag continued to focus on the incoming ships and shrugged, “No matter what happens, you know I have always loved you.”

Danielle felt her love for the wonderful man that meant so much to her. She joined him and selected the targets for the crew.

Trey also saw the power was dropping and knew that what was left would not be enough. Suddenly, a hundred thousand Orange Ships broke through their psychic field on the right side of the formation and surged toward the two center ships.

“Paul!”

“I’m on it.”

The Bristone jumped out into the middle of the ships that had broken through and fired blue beams at an unbelievable rate. All hundred thousand ships were destroyed but another eighty thousand got close enough to fire on the White Ship together. The Bristone exploded in a giant Orange and Blue flash that took the Demon Ships with it.

The Blue Shield strengthened and the remaining four ships continued firing at the surging orange wave. The Demon’s heavy battleships arrived at the front of the formation and blasted the blue field. The field retreated in front of them as they pushed forward in the bulge created. Valerie saw Jake set the jump controls and smiled. She reached over and took his hand as the Gambia jumped directly at the incoming giant Orange Ships and released all of the ships energy into a massive blue beam that blew the bulge out of the shield. The last Demon ship managed to fire on the Bristone just before the Kosiev destroyed it. The Bristone blew up and nothing remained.

The First was excited; the family member had been correct. These beings didn’t have enough ships. Now only three remained. He ordered the next wave of heavy battleships forward.

The space in front of the three remaining Psychic Ships was a wall of massive orange explosions. A million Orange Ships had been destroyed but two thirds of the Demon’s Fleet was still moving forward. The right side of the shield collapsed and Cassandra looked over at Junior and said, “Thank you for giving me back my life. I love you for it.”

“You’ll be with Tommy again, Cassie. I love you as well.”

The Alexander Kosiev jumped into the oncoming orange ships and began killing Demon Ships at a rate that was staggering. Before the ancient ship exploded, more than two hundred thousand more Orange Ships were blasted into rubble.

Trey looked at the power meters and saw that they had dropped below 25 Percent. He stood up as the shield fell and the weapons stopped firing. He went over and lifted Cassie out of her chair and hugged her tightly. This is where his vision stopped. He pulled her close and said, “I will love you forever.”

Cassie hugged him tight and said, “Oh, Trey.”

The developing child in Cassie’s womb felt her mother’s stress and fear and it frightened the young baby. Suddenly a massive blue flash shot out of Cassie as the Demon Fleet rushed in firing at the remaining two powerless ships. A blue wave shot out and pushed the Demon fleet eighty miles away from the two ships. Trey continued to hold Cassie with his eyes closed and felt great sorrow at the fear their child was experiencing. He wept for the loss of his aunt. Another Robbins killed by the Demons. Would it never end?

The First saw his ships pushed back by a perfectly round globe of blue that surrounded the two white ships. He also saw that there were no beams being fired at his fleet. They must have put all their remaining power into their force field. He shouted, “Move in and surround that field. Fire all your weapons into it.”

Tag and Danielle watched their systems go off line and expected to die. The sudden appearance of the blue field surprised Tag, “What is that?”

Danielle closed her eyes and said, “It must be coming from Cassie’s baby.”

“What?”

“That’s the only thing that could have caused it. However, it won’t last much longer.”

Tag closed his eyes and saw the huge globe of Demon Ships surrounding them firing into the blue field and it was slowly giving way. He smiled and said, “It should last long enough for me to kiss you.” Danielle came into his arms and remembered their first kiss so very long ago.

The First was ecstatic. He completely forgot his escape button and knew that this was going to be over in just a few more moments. Then that Galaxy would be demolished. Every Demon in the fleet heard the Controller say, “What the…”

The outer layer of Demon Ships exploded in massive blasts that took out the ships close to them. The Controller looked at his display and saw millions of giant Red Ships firing purple beams at the fleet. Some of those ships were larger than three thousand miles. He also saw more than a million small silver ships fly through his formations, firing a purple beam. Trey jerked his head up and ran over to his board and punched the pad for the Demon Screen and prayed there was enough power to activate it. The light above it turned green and he sat down in his chair.

Danielle heard a thought, “Where is the warrior that saved us?”

“Who are you?”

“You called us the Captors.”

Danielle slowly shook her head and said, “The Demons destroyed her ship just a few moments ago.”

Tag and Danielle as well as Trey and Cassie felt a wave of anger wash over them from the large Red Ship. They heard the giant ship shout, “They have killed the savior.”

The destruction of Orange Ships took on a new level of intensity. Thousand were exploding on all sides of the blue sphere.

• • •

The First panicked and hit his escape pad and nothing happened. He hit it over and over and his ship didn’t move. “What’s happening?”

The Fourth said, “There is a field around us that our Orange Energy will not penetrate.”

“Blow a hole through it!!!”

“We’ve tried. Nothing works. Now we know how the Family died. Enjoy the view you cowardly scum.”

The Demons around the First’s ship fired into it killing him in an orange blast. He deserved it for leading them into this trap. Thirty minutes later, the last Demon ship was blasted apart.

Cassie watched the last ship’s destruction and said in a calm voice, “Everything is alright little one. We’re going to be fine.” She hummed a melody to the child inside her and slowly the baby calmed down and sent her love to her mother. The blue sphere disappeared and the three million Captors and two million Alfont gathered at the two surviving Psychic Ships.

The First Male said, “We should have come sooner. We waited too late.”

Danielle felt his immense sorrow and said, “If you had come before you did, the Demons would have run. By waiting we were able to trap them in an energy field. Cassandra wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.”

“Danielle.”

“Hi, Atlas; I see your family has chosen a different path.”

“Cassandra’s vision of Creation is what changed them.”

The First Male said, “It has also made a difference with my family. We will be joining the fight for life.”

“Cassandra would be so proud of your decision, First Male. She has always wanted nothing but happiness for your family.”

“I sensed that when she visited. We will honor her in our memories. She and her husband were truly great and true warriors.”

Trey said, “How were you able to kill the Orange Ships?”

The First Male sneered, “The Orange Energy those creatures chose to use was a dead end power source. We learned more than a billion years ago that it had great power, but had little cohesion. Fire the right frequency into it and it would fall apart. I’m surprised they never learned that lesson.”

Trey said, “I’m really thankful they didn’t.”

The First Male said, “I think all of us feel the same way.” The First Male paused and said, “Little Brothers, you are welcome to come back and share our home.”

One of the Alfont said, “Thank you. We also thank you for having patience all this time to allow us to come to our senses. However, we need to get in the fight for Creation. We have got to determine where we’re needed and go there.”

Trey said, “Go home with the Captors. Creation has chosen the ones to direct our efforts and I’m sure they will contact both of you there and let you know what you need to do.”

The Alfont said, “We will do as you say. Thank you for befriending our brother. It was that small thing that brought us here together.”

Tag said, “He is part of my family and always will be.”

The Giant Red Ships and the millions of small Silver Ships disappeared just as the millions of Empire Ships began arriving shouting their cheers.

Danielle looked and saw Atlas still outside the hull of her ship. “Is something wrong, Atlas?”

“I just want to say a few things before I leave.”

“Go ahead, my friend.”

“My species are no longer called Alfont. From this day forward we will call ourselves Mariahans.”

Danielle felt her eyes moisten, “Not many knew Cassandra’s middle name was Mariah.”

“I knew and now my family does as well. We chose that name to never forget what she and Tommy did for us.”

“Thank you, Atlas.”

“There’s one more thing, Danielle.”

“Yes.”

“When I extended your lives, the process prevented you from having children. I’m going to remove the process.”

Danielle stood up, “What?”

“Haven’t you ever wondered why you didn’t have any more children?”

“Yes, but I just thought my body was no longer able to do it.”

“The two children you had changed Creation. You and Tag should have more. When you’re ready, let me know and I’ll extend your lives again.”

Tag had a huge grin and said, “The first girl will be Cassandra.”

Danielle laughed and said, “The boy will be Thomas Atlas Gardner.”

Atlas laughed, “Another Tag.”

Tag grabbed Danielle and lifted her off the floor, “We’ll call him Junior.”

Trey and Cassie listened to them and felt their daughter send a glow of contentment. Cassie smiled, “She knows the first one will be a boy and he will be hers.”

Trey smiled, “Their union will join the Realm and the Empire. We will all be one again.”

Cassie held Trey’s hand and said, “I think it’s safe to say their love will conquer all.”

The word went out to all those fighting for life and celebrations began that lasted more than a year. The music in the heavens grew louder where many were starting to hear it clearly. The armies for life prepared for their crusade and they followed the cats into the melody being sung in the stars.

Epilogue

Pride sat in the clearing surrounded by thousands of kittens that had just been shown the story of the Bristone Realm. One of them asked, “Why did our Mother only allow the Warriors to have five ships?”

“It was the only way to trap the Demons, child. If there were thousands of ships, like we have today, the Demons would have never come. They would have fled and the cancer would have moved throughout our Mother’s body.”

“I just hate those wonderful warriors had to die.”

“There cannot be life without death. Those warriors are cherished by our Mother.”

“When will we be allowed to join our family in the fight?”

Pride smiled at the kitten’s impatience and said, “Soon.”

Books by Saxon Andrew

The Annihilation Series:

Love Conquers All

The Power of a Queen

A Rose Grows in Weeds

Tommy’s Tale

Searcher

Demon’s Sacrifice

Finding Keepers

Ashes of the Realm:

Juliette’s Dream

Greyson’s Revenge

Lens of Time

The Pyramid Builders

Planet Predators

Pray for the Prey (August 2012)

About Saxon Andrew

Saxon Andrew is the author of the number one bestselling Annihilation Series. All seven books of the series have been a number one bestseller on Amazon’s kindle Science Fiction Series. Ashes of the Realm is the second series created by him and continues the history of the Stars Realm after its destruction.

His books are written so that anyone can enjoy them and not worry about their children picking them up. He lives in Tampa, Florida with his wife and looks forward to each day so he can write the stories that his fans enjoy.

Copyright © 2012 by Saxon Andrew. All rights reserved. Screen Writers Guild no. VQEA3E380432.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the author or publisher.

First Electronic Edition: July 2012