Maty

  1

  April 2, 154956

  Szequat System (Voku Capitol, Home One Kingdom)

  Nergthen

  Lord Hightower stood next to a very large red dragon in front of what he guessed were some 6 million Voku lining the courtyards and streets and every rooftop within view of the elevated platform he and their Elder were standing upon in the sky looking down on the city around the Zak’de’ron’s now deconstructed lair on the planet. The pullout had begun quicker than Star Force expected, with whatever had transpired inside the Neofan Temple between them and the dragons having resulted in a rush to relinquish their holdings and leave this galaxy.

  So far the leaving hadn’t happened yet, but the near abandonment of their servant races was progressing quickly as they pulled back their leadership and retreated to their own worlds…which were also undergoing deconstruction, for it seemed the Zak’de’ron did not wish anyone to inherit their technology or structures. A cleansing of the galaxy of their presence was ongoing, and soon they would be reduced to nothing more than legend as they were when Star Force began, only this time of their own choosing rather than a nearly complete purge by the V’kit’no’sat.

  The Voku here didn’t know this, but the red dragon speaking to them on their departure and how they were assigning Star Force to take care of them in their absence along with a lot of other half-truths was actually one of their lowest ranking members. The red scales were those of the adolescent, with the more mature ones already having abandoned the Voku and the other servant races. Fortunately they had coordinated with Star Force for the handover of them all simultaneously rather than just leaving and letting chaos ensue, but it was clear this Zak’de’ron had drawn the short straw and got to be the last to leave the ‘primitives’ behind, as they had been called by the Zak’de’ron in the meeting that Hightower had attended where the details of the handover were ironed out.

  He and many other Monarchs had been there, for Director Davis had been planning for this for only two decades when they had assumed they would have hundreds of years, but the Zak’de’ron had not caught them off guard. Star Force was ready, and it was clear the Zak’de’ron no longer wanted to be here and were eager to disappear from their failed galactic domination and do something else…though that something else neither they nor the Neofan would speak of, citing it to be Bond of Resistance matters, and since Star Force refused to join, there would be no discussion of it other than how Star Force was going to supply the necessary Essence for the Zak’de’ron travel to another galaxy.

  That handover wouldn’t take place until they were ready to leave, and Star Force would be there to witness it as a condition of the agreement. No, right now the dragons were pulling back and isolating themselves, and this one here was the last the Voku were ever going to see.

  Lord Hightower, along with most of the other Monarchs, had decent telepathic abilities, and what he was sensing from the crowd was so strong even a novice could not have missed it. They were bound by duty, but there was immense sorrow at the Elders’ leaving of this planet, their race, and the galaxy as a whole. But there wasn’t a single voice, moan, or movement to be spotted. Every one of them was silent, still, and listening as the dragon’s amplified voice boomed across the otherwise silent landscape, speaking in the Voku’s native language.

  Hightower had learned it in preparation for his assignment here, as had the other Monarchs going out to the thousands of servant races the Zak’de’ron had revealed themselves to have. And right about now they were all getting the same message.

  The Elders were departing for another galaxy and putting Star Force in charge of affairs in this one at their direction…making it seem like this was all part of their plan when in fact it was abdication and abandonment, and Hightower wasn’t going to let the lies stand, no matter how much trouble that would make for him in the near future.

  The dragon finished his explanation without a word of thanks or appreciation to the Voku for their loyal service. He simply ended with his order that Star Force orders be followed, and without even looking at Hightower he walked across the platform a few steps as his toe rings melted and covered his entire body with equally red armor, then he took flight with a flap of his huge wings and rocketed into the sky, heading for his ship in orbit and leaving the planet and the entire Voku race behind permanently.

  “Prick,” Hightower whispered as he walked up towards the edge of the platform and looked down on all the Voku assembled, with not one of them moving as they waited for his orders, but he could feel their well-controlled despair waft over him, for even those who were not telepathic gave off certain energies in a very crude sense when strong emotion was present, and right now this city was choking with it even when Hightower did not intentionally try and search the minds below.

  The Star Force Lord stood in his Monarch’s uniform with his personal armor concealed on his forearms beneath it, but a small rivulet poked up from beneath his collar as he mentally triggered it to produce a microphone linked to the platform’s transmission equipment and local speakers so he could address all here and across the planet, with copies of this historic event being transmitted out via great lag to all other Voku systems.

  “I did not want to be here,” he admitted. “Leadership of your race should belong to Cal-com, previous Dafchor who was exiled by the Elders…who I will now refer to by their given name of Zak’de’ron. They sent him away because he started to ask questions they did not want to answer. He became too smart for their lies, and had to be silenced. I do not know what they told you about him, or if he is still known to you, but he should be the one returning here, for he is one of our Reclaimers, and they are tasked with reclaiming civilizations in decline and bringing them into Star Force, which is the very task before me.”

  “But he refused. Not because he isn’t loyal to the Voku, but because he said you would not trust him. That your blind obedience to the Zak’de’ron, while somewhat meritous, would limit his effectiveness here, and that a new face would serve you better in your transition. I am that new face, but I will not harbor the Zak’de’ron propaganda. Cal-com said you were a strong people, so I will not coddle you. In order to carry out your duty as protectors of the galaxy, you must have the truth. Truth is not a luxury, it is a necessity. And this truth is going to hurt you more than you already have been by the Zak’de’ron leaving. I can feel your pain, but if I do not cut to the heart of the problem now, it will linger forever. I will not subject you to that, so we will face the harshness of the fact that he,” Hightower said, pointing in the direction of the now distant dragon, “is a liar.”

  A ripple of more than thought started to muffle through the crowd, but Hightower new better than to react to them. They needed to react to him, and the faster he delivered this the better.

  “The Zak’de’ron have done many good things in their history, but always for their own benefit. They have also done many bad things, also for their benefit. They do not care about honor. About right and wrong. They do not care about being the good guys or protectors of the galaxy…unless it is beneficial to them. They taught you, ironically, to be better than they were, because they needed protectors to serve them. But ultimately they did not deserve your loyalty, for they have betrayed you in many ways that the Bo’ja will tell you about, and I hereby order them to do so when asked.”

  Hightower pointed down to a section of the largest courtyard before him, which was packed shoulder to shoulder so tightly he couldn’t see the ground they were standing on, but there in a different colored group were the Bo’ja…or at least some of them…as all had been returned to Voku worlds as part of the withdrawal agreement. The Zak’de’ron were not taking them with them anyway, but they had not been back to Voku territory in millennia, for once a Voku was elevated and transforme
d into a Bo’ja, they never came back. Leaving the Voku sucked dry of their best and brightest, only now to have them returned.

  “Tell them what they ordered you to do. Tell them who and where you fought, and for what. Tell them how the Zak’de’ron used the Voku as breeding stock to produce Bo’ja, and how Cal-com was sent away because he wished to do more than oversee that stock. The Zak’de’ron cultivated the Voku into protectors, only to reduce you to a training group to sift out who was and wasn’t worthy to become Bo’ja. Tell them. Tell them everything.”

  “But I will tell you what they cannot. The Zak’de’ron are leaving this galaxy behind forever. They are abandoning it because they could not dominate it. They have joined an alliance of other races more powerful than them called the Bond of Resistance, of which the Neofan are a primary member. The Zak’de’ron are now the junior member in this alliance, and they cannot take you with them. Nor do they wish to do so. They want to leave this galaxy behind, because to them it is failure. They failed multiple times, for during their great absence from the Voku they were nearly destroyed. Only a single Zak’de’ron survived in stasis along with a large number of eggs as a backup plan if they lost their war, and they did. They lost their war, though they have never told you this. Nor did they tell you who they fought, or why.”

  “The Zak’de’ron once held dominance in this galaxy over everything except the Hadarak. They did so by forming an alliance with other races of merit that they enhanced in various ways, similar to you. Except they didn’t tell them about you or the others they kept as part of their own servants. They were duplicitous, and that is why the Voku were not annihilated in their lost war…because their enemies did not know you existed.”

  “This was not for your benefit, but for theirs. The alliance they created in the Outer Core of the galaxy was called the V’kit’no’sat, and they led this in a triumvirate with two other races known as the Oso’lon and J’gar. Neither were as advanced, but were formidable. One of the air, one of the land, and one of the water. This triumvirate led more than a hundred other races as they sought to battle the Hadarak and do some other good things…as well as many bad things. Equality was the defining tenant of the V’kit’no’sat, but over time the other V’kit’no’sat learned the Zak’de’ron were holding back information and technology from them. So they did what the V’kit’no’sat would have done in their situation…they set an ambush, and launched a civil war against the Zak’de’ron. All of the V’kit’no’sat races uplifted by the Zak’de’ron turned against them and in a long and bitter war destroyed the Zak’de’ron, then hunted down the survivors across the galaxy, meaning to purge them from existence.”

  “They almost succeeded, and except for this stasis plan they would have succeeded. I know of this because it was Star Force who accidentally stumbled upon the stasis chamber and released the single survivor by the name of Zeno’dor. He is the current leader of the Zak’de’ron, because he is the last of the originals. All others were born from the eggs and future offspring. The time the Zak’de’ron were missing and the Voku were on their own, was because they were all dead except for Zeno’dor.”

  The sadness and growing anger were still there, but curiosity was beginning to override it. Hightower could feel it as he quickly searched select minds below to get a better assessment. Information about the Zak’de’ron was so scarce, they couldn’t help but be intrigued even if they did not like what they were hearing.

  “Zeno’dor rebuilt the Zak’de’ron, and reclaimed the Voku as their servants, as well as any others who had managed to survive on their own without them. And to be clear, the Zak’de’ron taught the Voku how to survive, along with many other things of value. I will never pretend otherwise. You owe them a great deal, but they are not benevolent the way you have been taught. And truth must now surface. The future depends on it.”

  “Once the Zak’de’ron rebuild their strength in secret, they came forth and joined in an alliance with the V’kit’no’sat and Star Force when the Hadarak surge began, knowing that it would not matter what they did or did not do if the Hadarak destroyed the entire galaxy. This was a noble gesture, but also self-serving. They fought against the Hadarak along with us, but then something occurred that no one expected. Another Zak’de’ron emerged, one from long, long ago. Millions of years ago, and one that had been found and incorporated into the Bond of Resistance as an apprentice who was to look after this galaxy and preserve those races worthy of one day being used to fight the Hadarak.”

  “He did not consider his own race worthy, but when the V’kit’no’sat acquired the Ysalamir technology and the ability to kill Hadarak more easily, they garnered his attention. When he came to them and demanded they follow him, the V’kit’no’sat refused. He then murdered their leadership and attempted to take direct control over their empire…nearly succeeding…but the V’kit’no’sat fleet guarding their capitol was able to finally kill him.”

  “The enraged V’kit’no’sat used this dead Zak’de’ron as an excuse to resume their war of annihilation against Zeno’dor’s Zak’de’ron and began the second war. A war that the V’kit’no’sat did not win. Star Force absorbed the pieces of the V’kit’no’sat that survived, protecting them against annihilation while adding them to our own empire. The Zak’de’ron were broken again, but they survived and rebuilt a second time…but by then Star Force was too powerful to dominate, and the Zak’de’ron realized they could no longer call this galaxy their own. They did not want to share it, or to continue the fight against the Hadarak. So when the opportunity came to leave this galaxy and start over, they welcomed it. And are abandoning you and every other servant race in the process.”

  “Star Force is happy the Zak’de’ron are leaving. We won’t have to fight a war against them now to stop their bad behavior. We knew one was coming, for they would not learn to be true protectors. Everything they did was in their own best interests, and they do not hesitate to kill or destroy others who get in their way or whose deaths are useful tools for them. You have probably never seen this, nor been told it, but the Zak’de’ron are not trustworthy, and some of the stories from the Bo’ja will confirm this, but they don’t know as much as we do. And I am here to rescue you from the Zak’de’ron’s abandonment.”

  “I know you do not want to hear this, but you must. They would leave you behind without orders, or with fake orders while they run away. They do not care about you, but Star Force cares about everyone. So even while we are fighting a war to protect the galaxy against the Hadarak, we are devoting some resources to the assimilation of the Zak’de’ron’s former servant races, though most of the work to be done will be your responsibility. The Grand Border must hold, for all our sakes, and there isn’t enough of us to come here and remake the Voku into what you deserve to be quickly. I will lead you, but it is you that will have to do the building. It will take time, but unlike the others we will be handling the Voku differently.”

  “Our typical protocol when incorporating new races is to put you into indoctrination. We use this word because it is accurate, though not matching what others use it for. We do not torture, we do not mentally alter, we do not compel through anything other than boredom. The race in question is put into a prison camp designed to train you in isolation. You have no access to others. No opportunity for them to affect your thinking. You are alone and must learn to think for yourself. If you wish to sit and do nothing, you may. But you are a prisoner and cannot go elsewhere. Eventually the boredom convinces many to use the training mechanisms we provide, and alone with nothing else to do, most reluctantly begin to learn…and once their eyes are opened to the truth, they devour it rapidly.”

  “When they learn enough they are released and join our empire as free individuals. If they wish to live under our protection and not contribute, they may. Those that wish to do more also may, if they earn it. Indoctrination is meant to teach you what you need to know in order to be part of our empire rather than be prisoners in it. It is a diff
icult transition for many, and those that are truly malevolent never make it out. They live the remainder of their lives in indoctrination as prisoners, but they keep themselves captive through their refusal to learn. What indoctrination offers is an individual path into our empire, while denying any other path. This is the process that has seen great success in uplifting more races than I can count. But I will not use it here.”

  “Cal-com said I should expect more of you, and that you can take more responsibility than others. He said you are blinded in your loyalty, but your loyalty is a powerful asset that should not be destroyed through indoctrination. He said you work together as a group, and that that should be your guiding direction. But the question is, will the group do what’s necessary?” he challenged.

  “You’ve been ordered by the Zak’de’ron to follow my orders, but here I am telling you they are not to be trusted. Do you still follow their orders, or take my counsel and don’t? You no longer have the option of blind loyalty. You must make a choice. A war for the fate of the galaxy is ongoing. Do you wish to become true protectors? The role the Zak’de’ron began to groom you for but then denied you? You can achieve it with Star Force and rise to become a power worthy of kindship with us, or you can cling to the departing Zak’de’ron and continue to be their dupes. Your usefulness to them is over, so they are abandoning you. Soon there won’t be a single one of them left in the galaxy…so what is to become of you?”

  He let that question hang in the air a moment.

  “Cal-com said if I called you to duty you would respond, so that is what I am doing. I call upon you to join us as protectors of this galaxy. To rid it of the Hadarak and all others who would pillage and destroy, and threaten the peaceful with annihilation or other evil. If you answer this call we can skip indoctrination and start building immediately. The war isn’t going to wait, and the sooner you join us in the fight the worse it will be for the Hadarak. So the question is now before you. Will you cling to the memories of the past and the lies of the Hadarak that have now left you behind? Or will you answer the call to war, and learn from us how to truly fight with honor and loyalty. The Zak’de’ron did not teach you everything, for they feared you might grow powerful enough to threaten them. Cal-com began to, which is why they had to get rid of him, and he says you can as well if given the opportunity.”