Chapter 23: The Road to War

The fleet hung in the void, a silent armada of resurrected warriors. The G’Tarok stood at the heart of it, a beast of war now flanked by ships once thought lost to time.

The battle at the Kha’reli outpost had been our first victory. But it was just that—the first.

Now, we had their attention.

Now, we had a war to win.

A Council of Warlords

Back aboard the G’Tarok, I stood before a gathering of Narn officers—some freshly awakened from cryosleep, others recently promoted from Tor’Vek’s surviving soldiers. The room was tense, the air thick with expectation.

Tor’Vek spoke first. “We have reclaimed a fleet. But fleets do not win wars alone. We need allies.”

Ny’Vara, seated beside me, flicked her tail. “Who do you have in mind?”

I folded my arms. “The Centauri won’t help, that’s for sure. The Earth Alliance wouldn’t trust us with this much firepower.”

Tor’Vek gave a grim nod. “And the Minbari have their own wars to worry about.”

G’Lan adjusted his datapad. “What about the Brakiri? They’ve always had a flexible sense of loyalty.”

Tor’Vek scoffed. “Their fleets are scavengers, not warriors.”

I leaned forward. “What about the Y’Kar Dominion?”

Silence.

Ny’Vara’s ears perked up. “The Y’Kar? They disappeared centuries ago.”

Tor’Vek’s expression darkened. “They did not disappear. They were erased.”

I met his gaze. “By the Kha’reli?”

Tor’Vek gave a slow, grim nod.

That settled it.

I stood, looking across the room. “Then we find the Y’Kar. If they still exist, they might be the only ones who know how to win this war.”

Into the Unknown

The fleet set course for a region of space that hadn’t seen travelers in centuries—the Dead Expanse.

The Y’Kar homeworld was gone, reduced to dust long ago. But if there were survivors, they would have fled to the fringes of known space.

Days passed in tense silence as we moved deeper into the void. The farther we went, the less even our ancient star maps could guide us.

Then, the first sign.

“Captain,” Ny’Vara called out. “Picking up a weak distress signal ... and something else.”

I moved to her station. “What?”

She pointed to the readings. “An artificial structure. Large. Might be a station.”

G’Lan frowned. “No active power readings. Could be abandoned.”

Tor’Vek rumbled, “Or it could be a trap.”

I considered the risks. We were already deep into unknown territory. If this was a lead to the Y’Kar, we couldn’t ignore it.

“Take us in.”

Ghosts in the Dark

The station loomed before us, a colossal, weathered construct—half derelict, half fortress. Its surface bore scars of battle, long gashes in the hull from weapons far beyond anything I’d ever seen.