Chapter 17 – Cyprus

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  Reloculan was a wasteland of sand and stone. Not unlike Kleth’altho in it’s unremarkable barreness. Even so, Kleth’altho still felt alive, a bustling population of individuals who thrived below surface level.

  This place just felt dead, and a little sad.

  Cyprus couldn’t quite put a finger on it, but as they descended and she saw the blackened remnants of a greatness long passed, she felt depressed.

  In Dromedar’s infant stages, Reloculan was a superpower. A goliath in technological advancement and engineering. She had seen photos of their cities and they were incredible, a marvel unlike anything she had seen before and that included the cities of the major planets today.

  That all changed when Hokku launched their crusade, an emotion-fueled rampage that led the grey skinned aliens half way across the star system. Unfortunately Reloculan was their first stop, and it burned to cinders as a result. The poor world hadn’t focused on military development, not like Hokku had, and it proved to be their downfall. Though Cyprus wasn’t sure if anything could have stopped the Hokkonians at that time, they were on another level, plain and simple.

  Their ship touched down in a sandy valley, stone cliffs rose on either side like the banks of a ravine. At the base of the walls were small metal structures, tents Cyprus realized, like the ones her family used on their overnight treks into the Gasaan wilderness. Though these ones seemed a little more permanent, judging by the slowly collecting sandbanks threatening to bury a few, the tents had been there a long time.

  Through the ship’s viewport, figures could be seen marching through the torrent of sand and wind.

  Marching? Snakes didn’t march, they slithered, on their bellies. “What are they wearing?”

  “Not wearing, Piloting.” Recli’s deep rasping voice made her jump, she didn’t mean to voice her question out loud.

  Piloting? How did he know, to her they just looked like large humanoid silhouettes. She envisioned Hokkonians stalking through the sand and her heart lurched.

  Get a grip of yourself, there’s no Hokkonians here.

  “Let’s go,” Recli hissed in her ear.

  She obeyed with a silent meekness that shamed her. There was a phantom leash around her throat, and it dragged her along with cruel mockery.

  The moment the door opened sand spilled into the cargo hold and the wind’s howl muffled any sound their steps made on the ramp. The grit stung her face, and she held a hand up as a shield.

  Recli’s hulking shape moved, and she had no choice but to follow. He led them to shelter, one of the metal tents along the ridge.

  Motion-sensing lights illuminated the area as they stumbled out of the storm. The wind lessened to a mournful moan, lamenting their escape to shelter.

  “That was horrible,” Cyprus muttered, spitting out sand, “is it always like that here?”

  “Not always.” A watery and robotic voice said.

  She turned to see one of the humanoid figures standing in the entry, significantly larger than her, but still dwarfed by Recli’s bulk.

  Her eyes widened at the sight, Recli was right. It wasn’t a biological at all, but a suit of armor controlled by a snake-like life-form.

  The head and torso of the machine were made up of two transparent spheres filled with an unknown fluid. Suspended within the liquid was the coiled body of the alien. His scales were bright orange, with yellow triangular markings patterning down his spine. He had two biological arms, but they hung limply at his side, underdeveloped and unneeded.

  Wires were attached to the floating reptiles body, all of which extended to the four metal limbs that comprised the bipedal machine.

  “Interesting,” she heard Recli whisper.

  She glanced up to see his murderous eyes flashing with curiosity. No doubt he was already assessing the alien’s strength with efficient precision.

  The Reloc continued, “there are tornadoes that pluck the roots of our settlements out of the sand like weeds.”

  The fluid submerging the snake’s head drained, and the transparent globe retracted into the shoulder ridges of the machine. The Reloc’s head, now exposed to the air, looked sickly. It shook it’s head free of any remaining droplets, and eyed them with a guarded suspicion. His yellow eyes were like Recli’s, but they lacked the predatory gleam.

  “You are the one I spoke with, from the Union? I am lLieutenant Geld.”

  The voice was coming from the machine, not from the Reloc’s mouth. A translator, and a refined one at that. The voice sounded deep and rich with intellect, attractive even.

  She cleared her throat and nodded, “Yes, I’m Cyprus, I have- had a seat on the council. I’m captain of the Terminus 14 at the moment.”

  The Reloculan said nothing and studied her for a moment before turning his attention to Recli. “And you? I’ve never travelled beyond the orbit of this world, but I am certain there were never any creatures like you mentioned in our historic texts.”

  The Shadari stepped forward and smiled, revealing rows of teeth. The Reloc didn’t move, and held his unflinching gaze. “I come from the Shadari Empire, I am the tip of the spear.”

  The Reloc’s eyes narrowed, “from beyond Dromedar?” He glanced at Cyprus, “an ally of the Union?”

  Her stomach churned, and she longed to scream at him for help, to run, to get as far away from here as possible. All she did was nod, and fix her feet into the sandy soil. “That’s actually why we're here.”

  The Reloc studied her for another moment and then turned his attention back to Recli, “The tip of the spear you say? That would imply an invasion into Dromedar, for what purpose?”

  Invasion? No they’re here to destroy the Sovereignty.

  Recli didn’t deny it, and she could hear the rumble of excitement thrum in his throat. “To watch the Sovereignty crumble, we exist for the slaughter of our enemies.”

  Geld twitched, a crack in his composure. A forked tongue flicked out of his mouth to taste the air. Cyprus glanced between the two reptilian aliens and suddenly felt very out of place.

  “They have wronged you as well?” The snake hissed.

  “Yes.” Came Recli whispered.

  Geld started to fidget. “And where does the Union stand on this?”

  Cyprus licked her lips, was she really about to do this? Admit to the secret ploy she had spent years dreaming of. She was here on a Union ship, in a Union uniform, under the pretense of Union sanctioned humanitarian mission, and she was about to admit to a declaration of war against the Sovereignty.

  Run. Run away. Back to Gasaan. Back to the sunlight filtered, leaf littered glens where dreams were only dreams.

  “The Union stands with the Shadari Empire, if Reloculan joins the Union we can officially start funneling resources and aid you in your fight against Hokku.” She spoke with a confidence that betrayed her inner turmoil.

  A strange noise emitted from the alien. An untranslated gurgle that slipped out of the snake’s mouth. He nodded his head, his stoicism gone like the wind that whistled outside.

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  “It is a pleasure to meet you both.” His head bobbed and his tongue flicked, “I apologize for the scrutiny, we do not get visitors.”

  “Not necessary, I understand.” She glanced at the weather still raging behind him. “Is there someplace official we should meet, a government building maybe? Sorry, but I’m completely ignorant of Reloculan’s infrastructure.”

  Geld’s head drooped a little, “The camp you’re standing in is one of four, but luckily the Lord General’s camp is not far off.”

  “Four camps within the region?”

  The Reloculan choked out a rueful laugh, “no, the planet.” He spread his robotic arms wide, “this is all that’s left.”

  Her eyes widened, were the Reloculans that close to extinction? The entire population condensed into four pitiful camps. They were teetering on the precipice of oblivion.

  “How many of you are-are-“

  “Left?” Geld’s eyes hardened, “We took a headcount after our last raid, there are four hundred battle-ready males. Our situation is dire, but thankfully four of seven remaining females are gravid.”

  “Gravid?” Cyprus asked.

  Geld paused with a tilt of head, “I believe you call it pregnancy.”

  “Oh, uhm,” the corner of Cyprus’ mouth twisted in an awkward smile, “Well that’s good then, right?”

  She wanted to palm her own face. It was far from good, they were dancing on the border of non-existence.

  The Reloc had the good graces to attempt a smile, “Yes, it’s good.”

  “You only have Three hundred occupying a planet this large?” Recli interrupted.

  Geld only nodded.

  Recli’s lip curled, “Your world could be dominated with a single battalion or stolen by a fleet of pirates.”

  The snake gave a humorless laugh, “Stolen? No one wants this world. It is plagued with souls of my people, infested. Everywhere you step is a burial site.”

  Cyprus shuddered and tried not to think of the poor individuals who were incinerated where she stood. She imagined that rising from the sand, twisting up her leg to constrict around her throat in some ancient spirit revenge.

  “I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but I was told you were in the process of rebuilding.” Cyprus ventured.

  Geld turned away, his robotic translation was devoid of emotion but she could see the pain in his eyes, “There was a city, a few thousand kilometers from here. An accumulation of our efforts to recolonize, hundreds of years spent rebuilding from the scraps. It was nothing like the cities from our archives but… we were proud of it.”

  The way he spoke in past tense sent a chill down Cyprus spine, what could have possibly happened to a city.

  Geld read Cyprus’ expression, “One standard week ago, there was an orbital bombardment and the city was decimated.”

  Cyprus jaw went slack and her voice caught in her throat. “But, I don’t understand, why? Why would the Sovereignty do that. What threat do you pose.”

  Recli growled beside her, “Fools.”

  She gave the lizard a questioning look, and back at Geld. The snake kept his eyes on the sand. For a moment only the wind spoke, a haunting howl that swept a fresh flurry of sand into the tent’s opening. The flaps of fabric shook, and Cyprus inched away.

  Geld’s robotic arms hung at his sides, “We… ambushed a Sovereignty convoy just outside our orbit. We killed all the Hokkonians, and we stole the cargo”

  “You didn’t kill all of them.” Recli muttered.

  “You took the spoils back to the city,” She whispered with dawning realization. “A Hokkonian ship escaped.”

  The Reloc turned to look at her, eyes so similar to Recli’s yet so different, filled with an incomprehensible brokenness. “They knew exactly where to strike… we- we didn’t think they would react like that.”

  The wind sounded different now, like the tormented wail of the world grieving. She wanted to join it; four hundred soldiers? That was all that Reloculan had to offer, a tiny militia filled with experts on how to lose.

  “Geld, your leader, I think we should speak with him.”

  He nodded, “Lord General Sseroch, I’ll take you to him.”

  The Reloculan tried to get them to walk the seven kilometers but Cyprus refused, and she would have laughed in his face if it wasn’t for their mind-numbingly depressing conversation. Instead, they flew, and landed at the second camp within minutes.

  The spirits at this camp were not much better, the grief hung in the air like a wet blanket. When she met Sseroch he practically vibrated with guilty energy. He was significantly older than Geld and his scales were a faded red. Though visually that was the only tell. His voice sounded identical to the attractive smoothness of Geld’s and his scale bore no haggardness.

  She wasn’t even sure if scales could wrinkle, not like an elderly human. Regardless, he was old. There was a depth of wisdom in his reptilian eyes that she recognized in Giantis.

  Cyprus explained the process of joining the Union, and described the documents she would have him sign once she could get a hold of them. He was only half listening, his gaze lingered on Recli.

  When she finished the lecture, he agreed to join without an argument. His only response was a single murmured word, ‘okay.’

  It was a word that spoke a thousand.

  What else did they have to lose at this point? She felt for him, but at the same time she blamed their own stubborn naivety. What did they think would happen? They had poked the bear for 300 years, the Sovereignty's harsh reaction was no surprise.

  “Well, is that side of business finished?” Sseroch asked.

  Cyprus blinked, “I suppose so yes, you understand all the details about joining the Union?”

  The snake wasn’t listening, his attention was now completely focused on Recli. Understandably she supposed, to them Recli was a shining beam of hope, a living weapon. Wasn’t that how she first perceived him too?

  “Now, there is not much I can offer you in return,” Sseroch said, nervously tasting the air, “I have approximately four hundred soldiers at my disposal.”

  “Recli shook his head, “I don’t need your soldiers, I need this world.”

  Sseroch blinked at him, “You need this place?” He started to laugh, “What you see, is what you get, the entire surface of the planet looks like this. There is no oasis here.”

  The Shadari bared his teeth in a grin, the horns running along his jaw seemed to shine. “My people are coming, and when they get here I need a place to keep them. Your planet will do fine. In return we will destroy the Sovereignty for you.”

  An insatiable need glimmered Sseroch’s reptilian eyes, a blinding, dream full filling desire. Though for a split second he hesitated, a small part of his brain screaming at him to think it through. What exactly would he be signing away? The thought was gone, Cyprus swore she could see it fading from eyes.

  “Destroy Hokku, and this world is yours.”

  A tremor ran through the Shadari’s spine, up to the base of his neck where he tossed his head like cattle shooing flies. His tail slapped against the ground, kicking up a cloud of sand and dust. A guttural laugh reverberated in his throat, and his grin widened into a fearsome murderous snarl.

  “A pleasure doing business with you.”

  ***

  They ate dried military rations that Sseroch fished from one of the nondescript crates in the tent. The General asked many questions, most of which involved the state of Dromedar and the Union’s growth. The proposal of Recli rejuvenated him, and for a moment it seemed as if he forgot about the devastating reality. Cyprus did her best to answer the questions, careful to avoid mentioning the Sovereignty. Though the conversation inevitably drifted in that direction, and Sseroch’s mood quickly darkened.

  “We’re hitting them again,” He said suddenly, as if he just remembered.

  “I’m sorry?”

  “The Hokkonians are sending out another convoy, we’re going to hit them again. This time, no survivors.”

  Cyprus grimaced, she was in no place to deny them their right for revenge, but the idea seemed idiotic. Surely the Hokkonians would be expecting it.

  “Fighting is all my people know, I can’t take that away from them now.”

  “It’s a suicide mission.” She argued.

  “Yes,” Sseroch nodded, “it absolutely is.”

  She glanced at Recli, but the Shadari only stared at the Reloculan, with his ever calculating gaze. He got the place he was searching for, why would he care if the inhabitants killed themselves.

  “But, we’ve been developing a secret weapon, it’s still in the early stages but with the right self-targeting precision modifications, it could easily turn the tide in any fight against a HWND.”

  Cyprus interest was peaked, and she forgot her concern. “What does it do?”

  “A laser, so narrow it’s beam exists only on a molecular level. We’ve tested it on scraps of Hokkonian steel, it penetrates it easily.”

  “So the laser is for the pilot, but with something that small can it even do any damage?”

  Sseroch looked confused, “It’s not for the pilot.” He narrowed his eyes at Cyprus puzzled expression, “Do you not know?”

  “I-” Cyprus looked at Recli, but the lizard was staring off into space, “No, I guess I don’t. What is the laser for?”

  The General tapped the side of his head, “How do you think they’re piloting those machines?”

  Before Cyprus could answer, another Reloc appeared at the entry.

  “Lord General! The Hokkonians are on the move, their convoy will be passing overhead shortly.”

  Sseroch clapped his metal hands together, and stood up. The robotic joints creaking loudly. “I want two squadrons on the move, and a third on me.”

  The Reloculan saluted and hurried off. Through the tent’s opening the camp seemed to come alive, teeming with Reloculan soldiers running to their posts. Eager to escape their own misery.

  “You two are in luck,” Sseroch said as he walked between them, “You’ll be able to see Reloculan fighters in action. Would you like to join?”

  “No” Cyprus definitively.

  The last thing she should be doing is joining a raid on a Hokkonian convoy. She didn’t even have an unmarked ship, and she certainly wasn’t about to climb onboard the snake-like vessels the Relocs flew. Not many of those would be coming back.

  “Yes.” Recli said.

  Cyprus wilted, she could feel the collar of fate tightening around her neck. She didn’t say a word as Recli led them back to her ship. Reloculan soldiers all around them rushing to their deaths.

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