Wolves
Belligerence

Traw lie awake in his bunk aboard their small, dingedship. It still sat in the middle of the hangar bay, along with theirweapons. Evidently Duk trusted them enough at that point. Traw, whohad politely declined from accepting the alien accommodations, laidwith one hand behind his sweaty head and the other atop his hardenedmidriff. Long hours of idleness gave him plenty of time for exercise,so he was well built physically.

Listening to the sound of Aveer snoring, he thoughtonly of Venko. He thought of what that man, if he even deserved to becalled a man, was doing at that very moment. For a moment, Traw thethought occurred to Traw that Venko could do as he pleased with thecaptives, including Louise, or even Luella. He could feel his musclesclenching and becoming terse at the thought. “You think of him,no?” Clayton inquired. He was sitting at one of the tables, adjusting the knobs on the communication relay to try to make contact again with General Derringer.

“All the time,” Traw answered. “Every night, Ithink of ripping his limps off...grabbing a hold of his jaw and justtearing it from his skull. Taking a knife and digging it into hisface.” Clayton looked at Traw as he never had before.

“Would you say he's a monster?” Clayton wondered,somewhat curious.

“Without a doubt,” Traw answered, staring up at theceiling of his bunk. Clayton nodded pensively.

“You just described mutilating a man, and I could seethe satisfaction in your face. I could hear it in your voice. I couldsense it from your heart. Yet you claim you're better than him.Explain.”

Traw turned and sat on the side of the bed. He leanedtoward Clayton with his elbows resting on his knees. With a voicelike rolling thunder in the distance, he explained, “You've neverfelt it. If you had, you wouldn't be judging me now. You've neverfelt this burning, dark sensation...the rage...the distant feelingthat no matter what your enemy does to those you care about, you willbe forever stranded in the grim void of space, helpless to save them.The feeling that the ones you swore to protect could be in mortaldanger, or worse yet, on the verge of being violated, and you cannotknow, nor can you do anything to save them. You are isolated here.That is but a fraction of what my heart feels. Even if my wife anddaughter are returned to me entirely unharmed and unviolated, I willstill seek to break open the bones of my enemy. And if they areviolated...the torment Venko endures will not cease. It will nevercease. I will ensure that he stays alive, purely for the purpose ofmaking him endure more pain. I'm no monster for caring about myfamily.”

Clayton rose from his seat and wiped the motor oil fromhis suit. “I don't know what you're using to justify that hate, butI would suggest cutting it out.” At that, Clayton stepped out thenarrow door and left Traw with those last words.

Traw'sthoughts drifted back to the Indefatigable,but more particularly, the picture he had in his quarters aboard theship. It was such a small room, but he enjoyed having it nonetheless.He almost smirked as he realized what a far cry it was from theaccommodations he had with his family, and those he had been promisedduring his service with the GAM. That was one of many lies he hadbeen served by Venko's administration.

In a fit of boredom, Traw left the hangar bay andentered the curved, dark hallway. Here and there, Nektro footsoldiersscurried about, executing different tasks. Some carried crates,others pushed carts. Occasionally, Traw would encounter a rankedformation of marching soldiers, and quietly back himself against thewall. The last thing he wanted to do was disrupt the well-oiledmachine which served as his host.

To his knowledge, he had permission from thedignitaries to wander about the cruiser as he pleased, so long as hecaused no disturbance to any of the crew. Then, after no small dealof aimless meandering, he came across a broad-doored room, andstopped before it. Above the doors an inscription was written in theNektro tongue. The characters had a curved, elegant look to them,with many dots and circles. Though he was by no means an expertlinguist, he tried to decipher what the inscription meant, noting thebasic characters and repeated figures. There seemed to be no methodor specific stroke to any of what was written, so he walked towardthe doors, which opened simply from his approaching movement.

The room behind was no doubt a library, from the rowsof tall shelves and several desks. Traw came up between the shelvesand examined the contents themselves. There were no tangible books tobe found: only a dark surface, with diminutive blue lights flickeringabout at random points on the side. He touched his finger to thesurface, and a slim disk smoothly protruded. He grabbed it from itsplace in the side of the shelf. A voice began speaking in the Nektrotongue, to which Traw replied by simply saying, “Human.”

The disk briefly recalibrated, then continued in avoice that was a bit choppy from the translation, “The earth is nodoubt the beginning of human life, as there have been several pointsof evidence leading to early primitive civilizations there. It isestimated that human civilization on earth spanned for some eightthousand years, followed by a sudden exodus. On the surface of theplanet itself are millions of human remains, which Nektro scientistsspeculate are the unfortunate ones who could not partake in theexodus, and attempted to revolt. Much like the Jakat rebellion of12276 Charted Time, those revolting were many in number, butsuccumbed to the superior firepower and fortifications of those inpower.

“Scientists also speculate that at one point theearth was fertile, designed perfectly around human organisms andeffectively catering to their biological needs with water, vegetationand breathable air. However, there apparently was some sort ofdevastating war among the different human nations, which had aravaging effect on the landscape and environment. Most believe thatthis was the primary cause for the great exodus. Additionally, mosthistorians agree that the great exodus served as a foundation for theState, which is now based in Neptune. The earth we now know isentirely habitable for Nektro life, both for Nektro individuals andwildlife. The dignitaries began to formulate a plan in 12384 CT thatwould involve the permanent colonization of earth, as it serves idealboth for civilian life and as a military vantage point.”

Traw put the disk back into the shelf wall. He smirkedto himself as he continued walking. “Those boys got the wrong ideaabout us. Anybody with half a brain inside their skull knows that westarted on Vaerius. Earth's always been dry.”

The doors opened behind him, interrupting his thoughts.He turned about, his mind in a place between relaxation and being onguard. In the curved doorway stood two Nektro high guards,accompanied by Duk. “Impressive, is it not?” Duk remarked,gracing is long, slender hand along the side of the shelf. “So muchinformation and memory, in these concentrated blocks of files.Knowing this makes them so beautiful in my eyes. Have you beenbrowsing a bit, hm?”

“Yes, I have. Your file on earth was...interesting,”Traw replied. “You believe humans had their origin there?”

“Perhaps, yes. I personally believe otherwise, but itseems most of the intellects hold a common theory. But I came for adifferent reason: the fleet has been assembled, and I would like youto accompany me on the command bridge, along with the rest of yourteam. We will enter hyperspace within the hour, and from there itwill take us approximately six hours to reach Neptune. Pleaseaccompany me now.”

Traw accompanied Duk without a word of complaint. As hespent time with the tall, old dignitary, Traw felt more at ease withhim. He had some sense in the back of his mind that there wassomething insidious about Duk, but he suspected that only came fromhis distrust of Venko. Though, somewhere, Traw felt that Duk was whatVenko should have been.

“So, you dignitaries...you look nothing like theNektro you lead. Why?” Traw inquired, more out of wanting to killthe silence than of curiosity.

“Ah, yes. It really is peculiar, when held incomparison to the other species we've studied. Myself and the otherdignitaries, are called the Vol-Dius, when directly translated fromour tongue to your own. The Nektro officers are known as Khado, theNektro footsoldiers are the Tadair, and the drones are called Haen.”

“Drones?” wondered Traw. He had never heard theterm in reference to the Nektro.

“Yes, aboard some of the lower class ships and theHigh Station, we have creatures known as Haen, or drones, as they aresometimes called. They're small creatures, assigned to the tasks ofengineering and lifting. Their skill in mechanics is superb, andtheir small size makes them ideal for the work. They are at thelowest point of the hierarchy, just below the Tadair.”

“And the Tadair are the footsoldiers?” Trawrecalled.

“Correct. By far, they are the most numerous of thedifferent classes. They are assigned to nearly every combat task,whether it be piloting space fighters or charging into enemyartillery fire. They are extremely dispensable, yet without theirhelp in the war, our armed forces would be near worthless. Now, theKhado are fundamentally similar to the Tadair, except the Khado havehigher intellect, fighting skill, greater height, and independence onthe battlefield. The Khado are hand-picked from the ranks of theTadair, because a small percentage of the Tadair show the traits ofpotential for becoming an Khado, or in other terms, an officer. TheKhado control their individual companies of footsoldiers, and reportdirectly to us, the Vol-Dius. We dignitaries hold supreme command ofthe armed and domestic powers. There are no further positions withinthe caste system we've established. As you can see, it's relativelysimple, contrary to many human organizations.”

Traw raised his eyebrows in surprise. It made perfectsense to him. “You seem awfully eager to share all that. Especiallyto a defected enemy,” remarked Traw.

“I know who to trust, Mr. Traw,” Duk assured. “Andeven if we could not trust you, this information is not vital. Youcould not possibly gain an advantage over us with what I have justtold you.”

“Fair enough,” Traw grinned. He realized thatevidently Duk was both intelligent and witty.

Duk approached the door to the command bridge andbreathed into a small vent on the wall. A green light above the doorawoke to life, and the door opened with a smooth sliding sound. “Youtwo are dismissed,” Duk informed the guards, who bowed at his wordand walked away.

The command bridge was dark, much like most of theother structures within the ship. A large, curved viewscreen coveredthe wall at the opposite end of the room, past a short row of chairswith a long desk. Four Nektro officers sat at the desk, each workingrigorously at their own task with nimble fingers tapping precisepoints on the desk. Three majestic chairs sat toward the rear of theroom, with the largest one in the center.

The rest of the Death Squad was already there, standingat the lefthand side of the room. Even in the dim green light, Trawcould sense their nervousness. It was not so clear as when they firstarrived aboard the ship, but it was no doubt present among them. Fora reason beyond his explanation, Traw felt at ease. He reckoned itwas Duk's serene demeanor he always carried with him.

With a commanding presence, Duk took his seat at thecenter, speaking to the officers in their native tongue. Traw walkedup beside the rest of the squad and stood in an at-ease position.“Open viewscreen,” Duk ordered, and the viewscreen came to lifein under a second. He resumed ordering the officers in their Nektrotongue, and all eyes were on the viewscreen. A live feed of Derringer in his command chair came online, and Duk greeted him with a basic salutation gesture.

"Y'all better start explaining things quickly now," Derringer began, pointing to the Death Squad standing in the corner. "First time I've ever chatted with a Nektro, and I'd like to know why."

"A diversion, sir. While we assassinate Venko, rescue the hostages and imprison the loyalists, they keep Venko's personal armada occupied in the sky and on the ground. Minimal civilian casualties, maximum loyalist deaths," Clayton explained concisely.

Derringer raised his brow in surprise and leaned back in his chair, soaking in the information. "Damn, son," he exclaimed with a half-chuckle. "Wasn't expecting that. Figured you were being held hostage. Well that's good enough for me. Worst case scenario, we all die in a blaze of hellfire and the Nektro come out on top, which might happen anyways. Plan's still to meet at the capitol in 47 hours?"

"If that works for you," Duk answered. "My fleet can be at Neptune in a quarter of that time to provide the diversion."

"You speak our language well. Extremely well. Man, this day just keeps getting more and more out of the ordinary. I'd love to be there sooner, but the point of my armada's arrival is to not arouse suspicion. Coming in that hot would put the defenses on high alert. And wait, what do you mean 'diversion'?"

"To engage Venko's loyal fleet in the atmosphere and keep the focus of the battle on them. In doing so we will both provide you cover to conduct your operations on the ground, and eliminate as many of the loyalists as possible."

Derringer paused, stroking his stubbled chin. "I'll tell my men to not engage your fleet. It's a solid plan, don't get me wrong on that account...I'm just trying to determine how your soldiers are going to differentiate my men from the loyalists."

Duk paused as well, realizing that had not been taken into consideration. "Three white stripes," Moore suggested. "On the hulls of the conspirators' ships, and the helmets of their soldiers. Duk, if you see three white stripes on a ship, hold your fire, and the rest of Death Squad, if you see three white stripes on a Marine's helmet, hold your fire. Derringer, you just gotta make sure every one of your ships and soldiers has those stripes."

"I like it. I like it a lot. Does that sound good to you, Duk?" Derringer asked.

"That sounds good. I'll make certain every one of my soldiers knows to only open fire on those without the stripes. I'll see you in 47 hours, then, General." Duk gave a vague salute, Derringer did the same, and the transmission ended. "Honorable man, he is. I hope he thought the same of me," Duk remarked to the Death Squad. The screen switched over to a full view of what lie ahead of the ship.

Several otherbattleships began to enter the wide line of sight, in rapidsuccession. They seemed to stream in endlessly, to the marvelingattitude of Clayton.

“Their coordination is flawless,” he marveled in awhisper to Traw. “Look how they assemble in perfect formation, evenreturning from hyperspace. I have never seen a fleet assemble quitelike this, let alone with such precise timing.”

“Only one thing I don't like about this ship,”Moore muttered.

“What's that?” Sanchez asked, sensing a wittyresponse incoming.

“No girls,” grinned Moore, to the quiet chucklingof Sanchez. Even Aveer cracked a brief smile.

The fleet continued to pour in, taking their places inthe formation without error. Certain ships were larger than others,and Traw guessed that some were designed for space combat, whileothers were designed to hold most of the space and aircraft. Therewas something beautiful about such a glorious array of war machines.Then Traw realized what their purpose was. All those beautiful shipsand elegant cannons were made for one purpose: the destruction ofhumans. Traw prayed for a brief moment to whatever being stood abovemankind that whatever happened, there would be few civiliancasualties. Though for some reason, he reckoned no one above would belistening: not to a man like him.

“The fleet is all present?” Duk asked one of theofficers, who replied with a silent nod of the head.

“Engage hyperspace on a course for Neptune,” Dukcommanded. The ship began to rumble in a low tone. Duk rose from hischair and turned to the Death Squad. “So we plunge into the maws ofdeath, in order to return peace. I cannot tell if this is heroism orfolly.”