6 Billion A.D./The Order Attacks

Chapter 6: ...

Tentative Synopsis: War looms as the Order sets out to unleash havoc on the galaxy.

Negotiations

"Drink this," he said.

Gulp.

"Now you're immortal."

"What?!"

"Just kidding. We have to process it into an oxide first. But it tastes bitter, doesn't it?"

-

The parties sat down on opposite sides of the table. On each side, behind reflective visors, serious faces looked out at the other side. They stared each other down. Each side had come ready to negotiate. Both sides feared the other.

-

Seeing so much space, she grimaced; he smiled.

-

In one of the seedier parts of the system, some of the lesser populations met.

-

Long lines of identical solutions poured out. Equal amounts dispensed into each tube. The workers examined the data sheets. Looked right.

-

"You have one of our agents," said Morp, a representative sitting near the center of the chemists.

"That's what you alleged before," replied Vespa.

Morp choked back a harsh laugh. "We have traces. We want her back."

Vespa ignored the comment. "Your idiotic application of strengthening compounds has leaked throughout the inner star system. We want this cleaned up."

Data swept through the room. As the representatives from both sides considered the deal, sub-clauses were added and removed. Instantly the updated deal propagated to the different representatives' visors.

-

"It's a violation! We can have you arrested."

"You know as well as we do that half the judges use it as well. You'll get laughed out of court."

-

Vespa leaned over to Rigel.

-

Rigel looked in the mirror. Is this what he wanted?

-

"Ah, so the MONDians were right!" he exclaimed.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Just an old joke."

-

The laws had become confused when society spread out into space. Now, several different legal systems applied to different populations -- or at least thought they did. Most people had no idea what laws if any applied to them. The Thraxans even parlayed this into a profitable enterprise, producing custom laws for anyone who had a dispute.

-

Both sides agreed to the deal. Visors instantly reflected the agreement, which was also sent back to the political and military headquarters of each side. Morp shook Vespa's hand. She pulled it back in pain.

"If she is not returned within twenty orbits, we will start executing prisoners."

Vespa turned around, walking away fast. The rest of her side swept alongside her.

-

Morp walked briskly through the rows of identical lab benches. He seemed to have a different air here than at the negotiating table.

"Doctor Morp, the solution has precipitated. It confirms your theory," said a young chemical technician to Morp. Nodding curtly, he kept on walking.

-

Vespa paced nervously. "If they continue this madness, our entire star system will soon be spoilt."

"Like the star they came from," said Tuner.

"We have to find a way to stop them."

"But how?"

Return of the Order

Rigel felt comfortable in the Order uniform. Somehow, it seemed to fit him.

-

No one was entirely sure, even within the Order, how the Order managed to survive so many collapses.

-

"We think they're trying to arrange another large collapse."

"Why would the Order do that?"

"⁵H is only known to be produced in the explosions following such a collapse. Their society depends on it."

-

Suffering from the denial of his romantic interest, and his unfixable infection, Rigel wept.

-

"I can't take this any longer," he said. "I have to do something. Anything. Maybe the Order is onto something. Maybe they're our only hope."

-

"You look fine in that uniform," Morp said to Rigel.

"Thank you, sir," Rigel replied, saluting.

-

Morp strode through the ranks. Rigel, along with thousands of other troops, stood firmly, weapons at the ready. The inspection went without a hitch.

-

"As new enlistees in the Order of Defenders of the Core, your mission is a noble one," boomed Morp at the troops. "You will attack weakness wherever you find it. You will destroy overconfidence. You will harrass the enemy. You will win!"

On the last line, the troops broke out in wild cheers.

-

Rigel's unit was sent to the front. Together with other Order troops, Rigel packed his weapon, his meals, and his other equipment. They boarded the troop transporter. As the lights dimmed, a quiet descended on the troops.

-

"Are you scared?"

"Huh?" said Rigel.

Another Order soldier was looking at him, with fearful eyes.

"I didn't really want to be here," said the scared soldier. "I thought I would enlist for the pay, but not be sent to the front."

"Oh," said Rigel dejectedly.

"You don't seem scared," said the soldier.

Rigel looked off to the distance. He thought of Sophiy. He thought of his infection.

"Why don't you say anything?" asked the other soldier.

"Look," said Rigel. "I'm scared, We're all scared. It's normal. We're on the front line." He hoped the other soldier would leave him alone.

"Do you-- Do you have anyone back home?" asked the soldier.

Rigel blanched. "I-- Look, just leave me alone."

-

"Another star went out."

"How did another star go out?!" yelled the commanding officer. "Stars don't just disappear."

"We're looking into it."

"Looking into it? A star randomly disappears, and you're looking into it?!"

"We think the Order is behind this."

"Of course the Order is behind this!"

"We have traces of their ships in the region just before the disappearance."

"Well, go and track down those ships!"

-

At a meeting of the League's top officers, the main topic was the ongoing series of star disappearances. Also, there was concern mentioned about the increasing number of troop defections.

"Why are our soldiers deserting us?" asked a general. "Aren't we providing them better housing, better pay, a better mission?"

Another general chimed in. "And now of all times! When the universe is going haywire. Why, the Order is probably laughing at us! Shouldn't our soldiers be less likely now to desert?"

A political representative of the League spoke up. "These are important issues. We need your skills to resolve them. We still have a strong League, but it's at risk. Now more than ever, we need to defend our interests, if we are to survive."

-

The League developed new armaments that were more modern, and better able to target the Order combat ships that had become increasingly common. The League restructured its military, releasing numerous peripheral units from duty, and upgrading the remaining units. The entire League was overhauled, becoming almost unrecognizable. It was much smaller than the previous iteration of the League. A lean fighting machine, the military and political leadership hoped.

-

In occasional skirmishes along the front line, Order ships continued to outflank the League. Losses were mounting, in spite of the efforts of the League. Civilians became concerned, as media portrayed a growing threat of collapse.

-

"In other news, three more League battalions were defeated," said the newscaster. "This marks the worst toll for the League since the commencement of hostilities. An Order spokesperson declared the victory another step towards collapse. Observers have expressed concern."

-

Rigel's infection worsened. While he had become biologically immortal, able to regenerate his cells indefinitely, those same cells remained subject to diseases, mechanical attacks, and other susceptibilities. Rigel's body weakened under the strain of the virus. Beneath his uniform, his skin developed lesions. Rigel hoped they wouldn't spread to his face, where they would be seen by other soldiers, and he would be ejected to a certain death in space.

-

"The pandemic is spreading deeper into Order regions."

"At least there's some good news," he responded darkly.

"They probably want that, judging by their collapsist policies."

"They're not totally insane."

"I'm not so sure."

-

Rigel piloted the ship at his former allies. After his betrayal, he still retained fighting skills.

"You're flying well, soldier," said his commanding officer.

Rigel kept steering, with grim determination.

-

Stars kept disappearing. One after another, in growing sweeps of space. Entire parsecs went dark.

-

Now Vespa had contracted the virus. Panic set in. "What am I to do?!" she asked herself, rummaging quickly through the data banks.

She pulled up the info on the virus. Still no cure. Still no substantial understanding. A mysterious virus that had somehow swept through space, destroying entire civilizations. And now she was infected.

-

The Order racked up more sizable wins against the bolstered League. Panic went rampant, even among League generals. Was this the end of the League?

-

While off-duty, when he was supposed to be sleeping in his bunk, Rigel pulled up his communicator on his visor. Unable to stop thinking of her, he got ready to initiate a session.

-

Sophiy sat up in her bed.

-

Morp laughed. A loud, violent laugh. The small battle being waged among the images in his visor represented the larger battle being waged out in space. Much havoc was being wrought. And his side was winning.

-

Finally, a crack in the case.

"The virus seems to respond to this," she said, half-hopefully.

-

The next night, Rigel wept in his bunk.

-

Another soldier, seeing him, said: "Don't let it get to you. When you let your fear win, you let the enemy win."

Rigel, who already had two death sentences, one viral and one emotional, did not fear the war. He ignored the other soldier.

-

The Order triumphantly announced another round of victories. "We are now wiping out the remaining traces of the enemy," said a spokesperson. "Soon we will restore the dominance of our rightful leadership. There is no room for traitors."

-

Rigel's infection spread yet further. One of his lesions had just begun showing on his neck, outside of where his uniform covered. He took to wearing his uniform uncomfortably high, arousing bemusement if not suspicion among his fellow soldiers.

-

"What's with that style? I don't think it's regulation," said one soldier.

-

As the strains on the different populated planets tore them apart, the strains on Rigel's body and mind tore him apart.

-

The pandemic spread yet further. Giant tracking screens in the epidemiology center showed the virus having covered 95% of the observed region. The death toll statistics, constantly updating, grew into the quadrillions.

-

"This is the worst pandemic we've ever seen," said the epidemiology center representative.

"Is there any end in sight?" asked the newscaster.

"Unfortunately, no. We are still far from the worst of it."

The newscaster looked grim.

-

Rigel thought back to his earlier days, tending the plants on a League ship. They had not found any cure for the disease. He now realized that they wouldn't have found any cure, couldn't have.

-

Horgrodus paxiforum: Grows wild on the shores of planets in the Horse Nebula. Induces a sense of calm. Often used to comfort thte dying.

The Botanist's Book of Craft and Lore

6.3

The... ... ...

6.4

The...

6.5

There was destruction everywhere. Hundreds of ships burning.

...

... The screen started to (glitch). Sophiy are you okay? Rigel I need you to deliver a message to (...). Promise me. Yes, yes, I promise. It’s encoded in this transmission. They’re coming for me. I don’t have much time. Loud noises and fire consumed Sophiy’s screen. Rigel I’m so sorry for everything I put you through. “No, it’s fine, every moment with you has been wonderful, even the thoughts of you. Sophiy started to cry, Rigel, know that I do love you. I lov... the screen went black. Sophiy! Sophiy!