Legacy Of Korr (23 page)

“It’s beyond words.”

“I bet,” Jessica said and waved a file in her hand. “There is an old mining town near the base that can accommodate your people. If you agree to it, I will evacuate the town this week.”

Mara’s eyes widened. “That’s very generous. How are you going to convince the residents to leave?”

“I’m sure we can find a reason to make it uninhabitable.”

Mara laughed. “You’re ruthless.”

“They don’t like to admit it, but our people elect us to make the tough decisions and do the dirty work they know is necessary but wouldn’t do themselves.”

“Well, it’s a great idea.”

“I get one or two of those a year,” Jessica said with a short laugh. “I imagine they’ll be a lot of help in our preparations. Are they trained?”

“They’re seasoned soldiers who trained for a thousand years, and the ship is a powerful vessel, but it might need modifications and tweaks. I’m afraid we still need the same level of commitment from you.”

“Yes, the President approved it.”

“And your allies.”

“They’re on board,” Jessica said. “We’re building two manufacturing facilities for ships and weapons in Canada and Europe, but we’re bringing the soldiers here for training.”

“I’ll have Shara inspect their facilities before they start manufacturing battleships.”

Jessica nodded. “I’ve arranged for that. I hope you’re not overwhelmed, training thousands of soldiers.”

“No, it’ll be a breeze now that I have my soldiers to help me. Besides, we can do basic training here for two months and send them back to Europe until it’s time.”

Shara worked out her problem, but Mara was far from figuring out hers. How many of the Manakaris remained? Was this—the preparations, the ships, the soldiers—enough?

She recalled the last thing she had seen before she’d warped away from Korr. The black hole that’d expanded and expanded. It sucked in thousands of Manakaris’ battleships. Her ship had been far from the influence radius, but she’d felt the massive pull. The last thing she had seen before she warped was battleships, pulling away with blazing speed to escape the invisible tentacles that stretched for thousands of kilometers. But how many? A question that would decide the fate of Earth.

*****

May 25, 2032 – Days to Earth destruction: 12

Emily marched to the director’s office. Her face was pale and her eyes were red with black pockets underneath. For a year, she followed the alien army’s moves. Flashing lights on her screen. That’s all they were. Now, the lights became real. The energy signature became more defined. It was becoming alive.

With Shara’s set up, Emily isolated the individual signatures of the ships—the larger ones, at least. This, far from helping, brought the digital monster to life. She could imagine the ten thousand ship metal monster, inching closer to Earth. Every time they warped, she felt the rope around her neck tighten.

The director was busy with his work as usual. Emily knocked and waited until he looked up from his hologram.

“They’ve reached the Great Andromeda Nebula.”

His lips trembled before he removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes. “How long do we have?”

For a long moment, she examined him. He was wearing the same suit he’d been wearing for the past two days. His hair was messy, and his eyes were red. He hadn’t slept in days. Under different circumstances, she’d tell him to go home, take a shower, and get some rest. But given the dire situation, no one was going anywhere.

She probably looked worse. She couldn’t tell. It’d been a while since she looked in a mirror.

“Ten days. They’re moving faster than we expected,” Emily said.

She tried to make it sound like a scientific fact, but it came out as a death sentence. Ten billion human beings were on death row with no chance at a stay of execution.

“Oh, dear god,” he murmured, and covered his face with his hands.

He had to alert the army or the intelligence agency or both, but fear crippled him. Emily didn’t have the heart to say anything. She was glad she never got married or had children. This would be more depressing if she had. Emily stood there and watched him for a minute or two until he lifted his head, put his glasses back on and picked up his phone.

“I have to tell everyone,” he said.

“What can I do to help?”

He jerked as if her presence surprised him. “Oh yes, keep monitoring.”

Emily nodded. She turned around to leave, but she stopped at the door. She clasped the frame with one hand and tilted her head to look at the director. “Do you think we’ll survive?”

He shook his head and sighed. “I hope so Emily.”

The army worked nonstop since the aliens had landed. Other nations around the globe did, too, for a year and half to prepare for this day. A question worth ten-billion lives burned in her brain.

Was it enough?

“I hope so,” he repeated.

She left the director’s office to her office and looked at the large energy signature that represented over a million warriors, hell-bent on destroying Earth.

A million?

Emily couldn’t determine the size of their army. They were too far. Her devices couldn’t detect all the ships. And they traveled in waves. But now, they were close, and the signature was strong. She wouldn’t get the precise number, but the approximation would be more accurate than the guesstimate they used.

Emily launched a program next to the energy signatures. Her fingers manipulated a few parameters on the hologram before she started the calculation. If she was right, her program would isolate individual signatures and give her a number. Simple idea, but it would’ve taken her weeks if it hadn’t been for the incredible processing speed of her computer. To speed things up, she broke down the process and used other servers in the center.

“Attention everyone,” the director’s firm voice caught her attention. “Intelligence agents are on their way here to take over the center. I need you to leave everything as it is, but don’t go anywhere. Stay and help them any way you can. The center is now under lockdown.”

All employees—save Emily—listened in disbelief and gasped in horror as he explained the situation in a few sentences. He emphasized that leaking any of this information to the media would land them in jail.

Minutes later, the intelligence agents, led by Noah Williams, flooded the place. They occupied the desks of the Space Center employees while the rest escorted the employees to a large meeting hall.

“Emily, come with me,” Noah said without looking her way.

Her program was still running, but she followed him in quick steps.

“Tell me everything,” Noah said. “Don’t leave anything out—no matter how insignificant it might seem to you.”

Waiting for him to speak further, Emily looked at the director, but he motioned her to start.

“Me?”

“Yes, Emily,” the director said.

She swallowed and closed her eyes for a moment to gather her thoughts. “Well, my tracking equipment tells me they are at the edge of the Great Andromeda Nebula. Their energy signature is like nothing I’ve seen before. Strong, defined, and it extends through a large chunk of the nebula. In the past, individual ships warped as soon as they charged their interstellar drives. This time, they waited and warped together.”

Noah knitted his eyebrows. “Are you sure?”

She almost retracted her statement when she saw the tense expression on his face. “Well, I’ve detected the same unique energy signature but with different strengths which I assume means varying number of ships. This time, the signature was the strongest.”

“They didn’t want to arrive in waves,” the director said.

“No, they’re not stupid,” Noah said. “They saved time by warping when they were ready, but they must have a pre-set destination—a gathering location—near Earth, but not too close that we can take them out in small waves. Now they reached their destination, they’ll warp together. It’s good news. Our plan hinged on it. Good work, Emily.”

She raised her eyebrow in surprise for a second. “Thank you, sir!”

“If you think of anything else, let me know.”

“Well, there is something else.”

“What is it?”

Emily hesitated. She tried to explain her theory, but her lips closed shut. What if she was wrong? Her theory would lead them to the wrong conclusions. Her palms began to sweat, so she slipped them in her pockets. She felt stupid, opening her big mouth.

Noah grabbed her arm and looked her in the eye. “Emily, whatever you found out, I need to hear it.”

She swallowed before she made up her mind. “Let me show you something.”

Noah and the director followed Emily to her office. To her relief, the program had completed the calculations.

She filled in Noah and the director on her theory.

“That’s brilliant,” Noah said.

“Thank you,” Emily said, smiling. She glanced at the screen. Her smile disappeared, and her face became paler, if that was possible. “The program estimate is forty thousand battleships.”

Noah’s jaw dropped, his eyes narrowed, and he planted his hands on either side of his body. For a while, he was quiet. After a minute, he spoke. His words were cold, and his tone was official. “My agents are here to help you do your job. I’m heading to the US to support our forces.”

Her hands were shaking, and her legs felt like jelly. The responsibility was too much.
Careful what you wish for, right?

*****

Battleships, airships, and chargers flooded the barren Nevada desert around Area 51. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers from the US, Europe, Canada, and Australia. The most powerful army humanity had ever assembled.

Inside the command center underground, Mara led a war meeting with her sisters, Dara, and the commanders of the four armies.

“Alissara will lead the main strike force from our battleship with Dara. General David Harris is her second in command. Once your men and battleships arrive and your chargers are full, you’ll leave for Andromeda to intercept their army. Stick to our strategy and do what you must stop them.”

“Shouldn’t you lead the main force?” The European Commander asked.

“I will stay here with Shara to work on our second line of defense.”

“Are you that certain we’re fighting a losing battle?” The Canadian Commander asked.

“No, we have so much to lose, Commander,” Mara said, her voice firm. “Everything is possible, and we’re covering all the bases. That’s why I’m staying here with the infiltration force.” Mara stood up, and leaned forward with her hands resting on the table. “I won’t lie to you. The odds are not in our favor—we are outnumbered four to one—and our backs are against the wall.”

The European Commander waved his hand. “In this case, is it wise to split our force?”

Mara shook her head. “We’re not splitting our forces. We’re sending our battleships to Andromeda. The small force we’re keeping on Earth won’t provide much advantage in space, but it will be as effective as the main force from here. If we stack sheer numbers behind the same number of cannons in outer space, we’ll be wasting our limited resources. Have faith in our strategy and follow Alissara’s command. She is our best pilot, and she is a capable leader.”

The Commander shook his head and reiterated his point of view. “No, you’re the best warrior. You should lead.”

She was leading. After what happened to her world, she’d take no chances with the fate of this one. She’d fight the Manakaris in space, and she’d fight them on the ground where the battle that mattered would take place.

They’re not after the Earthen army. They’re after the planet, and one way or another, they’d land on Earth. That’s why she’d stay here and turn this vast desert to a colossal graveyard.

“I’m leading from here,” Mara said. “Our enemy is powerful, and they outnumber us. But that’s not why we must fear them. They’re more cunning than you realize. You may think they are nothing but brutes. I assure you there is more to them than you know. They have a reason for everything they do. Their alternate plans have alternate plans.” She looked toward the European commander. “You worry we’re splitting our forces too thin to have a fall back, and I worry we don’t have enough soldiers to add two more contingencies.”

They’re worried. So was she. But they had to push aside their fears the same way she did. They needed their head on a swivel, and doubts would cloud their judgment and stifle their conviction.

“It’s time to make your preparations, commanders,” Mara said and motioned them to leave.

*****

Days to Earth destruction: 5

The bright stars of Andromeda shined through the shield of the Command Airship, much brighter than they did on Earth. But Alissara didn’t notice them.

Alissara commanded half a million US soldiers and the same number from Europe, Canada, and Australia. Her Korran Battleship led the formation. The Queen’s royal pilots commanded it under Dara’s supervision. Aboard the ship, she had a thousand Australian soldiers because the Korran soldiers stayed with Mara. Behind the Command Battleship, thousands of battleships hovered in space—the largest army humans sent to space. Under her command.

Pride and an overwhelming sense of achievement filled her. Mara had trusted her to lead this vast army. She was as focused as ever. Her mind ran through many scenarios for the upcoming battle.

Alissara drew a mental line in space behind her army, and she would stop the Manakaris before they crossed it. At any cost. Regardless of how many ships would warp, she’d crush them. She would reduce the Manakaris’ battleships to scraps of metal. Forever floating through space in the great nebula.

For Korr, for her mother, for her sisters, and for Earth.

Mara had doubts about the war, but Alissara had none. She felt nothing but hate for the Manakaris. Today, she would unleash it in their faces.

First, Alissara would thin the herd.

“Send it now.”

The Command Battleship launched a large projectile that traveled for a while before it vanished. Shara couldn’t be here, but she sent a gift.

“We have a transmission from the Space Center,” Dara, the royal advisor, said.

That would be Emily—the Australian astronomer tracking the movement of the Manakaris.

Alissara took her eyes off the front shield. She had met Emily twice, and every time, she beamed happiness and optimism.

One of the communication holograms showed the young astronomer. Her hands were twitching. Her face was pale. And her eyes sunk in their sockets as if they were made of quicksand. If Alissara had to guess, she would say Emily hadn’t slept for several days.

“They’re warping now,” Emily said. “Expect the first ships to arrive within the hour, and from there, you have twenty hours before they warp again.”

Alissara smiled. “They’ll have to warp faster if they value their lives.”

Emily’s eyebrows lifted to reveal blood-red eyes. “What?”

“We sent them a potent bomb. Once it explodes, what’s left of their ships will warp at once.” If Alissara was lucky, the bomb would destroy most of their battleships. “I need you to watch them and tell me how many ships are left after the explosion.”

Emily scowled. “It might take a while.”

“You don’t have to give me a precise number. An estimate would do.”

“Okay,” Emily said before her picture disappeared from the hologram, and the transmission ended.

“Are you all right?” Dara asked.

“I’m worried.”

Dara smirked. “It’s only life.” She lowered her gaze to her wrinkled hands that clasped the top of her staff as if her life depended on it. “Besides, there is worse ways to go.”

Alissara chuckled. She had grown fond of Dara over the past year. The old advisor wasn’t afraid of much and always knew what to say.

“What do you care? You’re old.”

Dara waved her staff in a threatening manner. “You’re lucky we’re busy.”

“Speaking of busy, it’s time we prepare. Conference the commanders.”

Within minutes Alissara looked at the commanders of the American, Australian, Canadian, and European armies on four separate holograms. Judging by the looks on their faces, they were a lot more worried than she was.

“Commanders, please nod if you can hear me,” Alissara said.

All four of them nodded.

“Good, I know we’re going against the odds, but that’s not as bad as it sounds. Our bomb must’ve destroyed many of their ships. Now they’re rushing to warp, and we must use it to our advantage. We’ll annihilate their ships as they teleport. Once we destroy a wave, shuffle the formation. I want the first line of defense charged and ready at all times. Do not let your guard down no matter how easy the battle seems. When you least expect it, their last, biggest, and most vicious wave will strike. Prepare for combat.”

Alissara motioned the pilot to end the transmission. She hoped the brief message lifted their spirits, but it’d come down to how many Manakaris’ ships remained.

American battleships moved into formation in the heart of the army. European battleships formed the right wing while Australian and Canadian battleships merged to form the left wing.

Alissara examined the holograms, showing the formations. The army was a force to be reckoned with and a true testament to what humans could do when they faced an impossible choice. She and her sisters had helped. They’d provided the designs. They’d supervised everything from building manufacturing facilities for the airships to enhancing soldiers. Still, humans did the heavy lifting. They strengthened a thousand times since she first landed on Earth less than two years ago.

Her only regret was that her sisters weren’t here to fight alongside her. Just in case this was the end. She wanted their faces to be the last thing she’d see.

“Another transmission from Australia,” Dara said.

Emily’s picture appeared on the hologram. Her eyes sparkled, and her cheeks were flushed. She was a changed person.

“The bomb wiped out thousands of their battleships. They have around ten thousand ships, heading your way. I can’t believe it.”

“Thanks, Emily,” Alissara said and ended the transmission.

“And you’re worried,” Dara said, smiling. “You know it has been a long time since we had someone as bright as Shara.”

Alissara laughed. “We never had anyone as bright as Shara.”

Her enemy would soon warp, and the war would begin. Their numbers were manageable now. As long as she was quick on her feet and managed the battle well.

She had asked her soldiers to sleep long hours and exercise daily on the battleships to stay on form while waiting for the Manakaris to arrive. Her strategy paid off. Within an hour, the entire army was ready for war.

“The first wave is here. Ten ships,” Dara said.

Images of the ten ships appeared on the surveillance holograms. The black ships were the size of an Earthen battleship or smaller. They were long, tubular-shaped with a large, intimidating cannon in the front and two thin wings, each carried a smaller cannon.

“Destroy them,” Alissara said.

The battleships in the first line of defense fired long-range missiles that soared into space until they reached the ten ships and destroyed them.

More Manakari battleships arrived in groups of ten or twenty. Her battleships destroyed them with ease. Maybe that was the point. They took out the waves with ease, but they weren’t big enough to make a difference. An hour later, the waves stopped arriving altogether.

It would’ve made her job easier, but Alissara didn’t expect to annihilate their entire army ten ships at a time—they’re far too smart for that. Still, she was surprised they didn’t put up much of a fight, no elaborate maneuvers, and no advanced weapons. They never fired a single shot. They must’ve been busy doing something else.

What if they were scouts? Small groups of ships with the sole purpose of exploring the battlefield and making sure the area was safe before the rest of their army warped. If this was true, the Manakaris would have an accurate picture of her forces.

David Harris, the American commander, appeared on a hologram. “Why did they stop?”

“They required confirmation from every wave that warps before more followed. They know their ships are gone, and they know we are here.”

“What now?” David asked.

“They’re gathering on the other side. Once they’re ready, they’ll cross together.”

David nodded.

“Hold tight, but keep an eye on that area, in case they send a bomb.”

“Speaking of bombs, should we send another one?”

Alissara had considered it, but they had one bomb left, and she’d use it if they lose the battle to make sure no one leaves this area alive.

“No, they’re not stupid. They’ll be ready for it.” She thought for a while. “Spread our forces.”

“You got it,” David said and ended the transmission.

Alissara sat down in the command chair. The battle would start soon, and she needed every cell in her core working overtime.

A
few hours later
,
the Manakaris army flooded the space in front of her battleship like big, angry sea waves, slamming against a smooth, sandy shore. Within minutes, thousands of ships arrived.

Their battleships were many times the size of the earlier ships which confirmed her thoughts—the small waves were scouting the battlefield. These battleships sported a large cannon in the front and no wings. On the sides, they had two cylinder-shaped parts attached to the ship’s body.

Alissara looked at the enormous army, blocking the light of the bright stars in the horizon. How big was their army before the bomb? How big was it when they attacked Korr? The Manakaris army had no pattern or organization. Their battleships didn’t line up in a specific formation. Their whole army was a random mess.

Emily appeared on the hologram again. This time, her face pale with a hint of confusion. “Their ships teleported, but not all of them teleported to your location.”

Genius! Once they estimated the size of her army, they left enough ships to defeat her and sent the rest to secure victory.

Alissara knew the answer, but she asked anyway. “Where did they go?”

“They’re headed for the Milky Way.”

“Are they behind us?”

“Yeah,” Emily said.

“Can you tell me how many ships in that force?”

Emily looked away from the screen to check her computers before she faced the hologram again. “Roughly, ten percent of their army.”

Trying to decide her next move, Alissara knitted her brows. Emily took the cue and ended her transmission. They’re not as unorganized as they’d seemed. They only appeared that way.

“Do you want to send a force to intercept them?” Dara asked.

“No, that’s what they’d want us to do.”

They wouldn’t destroy Earth, but if she split her army, she could lose both battles. She moved past Dara and activated the general communication channel.

“Attack,” Alissara ordered.

Her eyes lit up and her core burned. The moment she waited for was here. The engines roared, and the Korran Battleship vibrated and sent green energy waves toward the enemy’s location. They annihilated the battleships they touched.

Her first line of defense opened fire. Missiles, carrying atomic and hydrogen bombs, traversed the large space between the two armies. They sought the enemy’s battleships and exploded. If she could hear sound in space, Alissara was sure she’d be deaf. The explosion shined as bright as a thousand suns. The front lines of the enemy’s battleships burned in an inferno.

But the level of destruction didn’t faze the Manakaris at all. It fed their anger. They retaliated with missiles, projectiles, beams of energy, and high-impact bombs.

“Teleport,” Alissara said.

Her ship warped above the enemy’s army to a pre-determined location, as did the rest of the army. They warped above the Manakari army.

The enemy’s missiles and bombs exploded in a massive spectacle in the space her army occupied seconds ago. The only thing she left behind was the chargers—large batteries enclosed in energy shields that spread around the battlefield with the sole duty of absorbing energy from the enemy’s attacks.

In the meantime, her ships fired their close-range rockets and bombs to take out as many Manakari battleships as possible before they teleported back to their original location.

“Fire!”

Again, they opened fire at the enemy. The explosions were as violent as the last attack, but a large, powerful shield absorbed its energy.

She wasn’t the only one with tricks up her sleeve. Through the energy shield, more Manakari missiles and bombs targeted her battleships.

“We can’t teleport through their shield,” Dara said.

Alissara considered her options, then she leaned forward to the communication device. “Space out the battleships and put up your defensive shields.”

The commanders did as she asked, but it wasn’t enough to evade the massive bursts of energy and explosions. She lost tens of battleships. Large shrapnel of metal launched toward nearby ships and damaged them.

“Rescue soldiers from the damaged ships,” Alissara said, her eyes almost burned holes in the communication device. “Fall into formation and fire the antimatter launchers. Take down their shield.”

Following her orders, the battleships fell back into formation while small ships hovered near the destroyed battleships to extract survivors. Her first row of battleships in the formation launched their antimatter waves toward the Manakaris shield. The dark waves of death punched holes in the shield and destroyed adjacent battleships.