Chapter 2: A Cold Breeze Part 1

Two days would pass. Thousands of light years away from Riga’jal was the cold planet of Palora. Colonized by the UWA in the early 24th century, the ice world was the polar opposite of the desert world of Cipra. Covered in a shade of light blue and white, the habitable globe was a frozen sphere. The snow caps were everywhere. Mountains and flatland resided, marking the landscape in a blanket of ice and snow. Despite the cold environment, the people of Palora call their world the winter wonderland. Several small cities dot the surface, spread out mostly in the equator regions where the temperatures are the warmest. Despite this, the very few green spots are little more than cold tundra.

In the darkness of space, the civilian commercial fleet arrives and departs from the large gate ring installation of Fort Redentor. Meanwhile, a few UHN battleships patrol the outer boundary ring, which serves as defense platforms in case of pirate attacks. Various lights can be seen from a freighter as it is about to enter the powered gate that leads to the neighboring Paloran asteroid belt. More warships could be seen in the planet’s northern and southern polar regions.

All is well until radio alarms begin to go off. The lights on the gray cylindrical warships switch to red. It is the sign of General Quarters, the highest alert status that any warship can attain.

A series of wormholes begin to appear in the vast distance past the dark-lit side of Palora. Upon zooming well past the planet, the vortexes can be seen in greater detail. They are small, emitting tiny blue particles that slowly spin in place.

What started as a few began to multiply. Within less than a minute, hundreds appeared. The earliest wormholes continued to grow in size. Within another minute, there were thousands, and the number only grew.

The UHN fleets are the first to respond. Many of the battleships and lend-leased Itrean ships start to alter their movements in preparation for leaving orbit. All in all, there were at least 70 warships in total.

It is not enough, as the number of wormholes continues to grow. By now, it had reached well over 5,000. Another minute has gone by. The earliest established gates are nearing completion. The hints of blue lightning could be seen appearing from the black epicenters. The particles were spinning in harmony.

The UHN defenses are being mounted ... an invasion is imminent...

Over a hundred light years away, inside the spinning centripetal ring of a more recently built UHN military transport, there was a single dark room. The rotating module allowed induced gravity to exist where most of the crew lived and relaxed, all except for one.

She was sitting behind her desk; the illumination reduced considerably, just as the captain preferred. The room itself appeared to be the CO and XO’s stateroom. There was a series of alcoves allocated to beds, along with display screens mounted on portions of the wall. In the center was a table where the captain was sitting next to. The smell of smoke filled the air.

Dressed in the red and blue officer’s jumpsuit uniform was a Shal’rein. The Itrean captain was unique amongst the others around her. Her shark-like features, fin-like ears, large finned tail, purple hair, and gray skin were evident. Only one side of her face could be noted, as her hair blocked much of her other eye and snout. One set of four-digit fingers was neatly holding onto a lit cigarette. Her single yellow eye was focused on a lit wall display of the room.

The captain appeared to be watching a news feed of current events. She would tap her lit cigarette onto the carriable ashtray box next to her.

The person depicted on the news was all too familiar. A certain paleontologist and his three wives were basking in the glory of some great archeological find while explaining their life stories to the press.

The captain continued to say nothing but only took another drag of her cigarette. She remained neutral in her observations, noting the paleontologist’s discovery.

The door slid open, revealing a man with a black beard and mustache. Much like the captain, he was an officer. He had a somewhat pale complexion and appeared to be of Peruvian descent from former Earth. When the door closed behind him, he approached the table to see what the captain was looking at.

“Little bit of a bumpy ride this morning with roll call,” he remarked with a hint of a smile. “Somebody apparently lit a stink bomb in restroom 2-A. Quite ... potent. I got clean-up crews already taking care of it.” He tapped his tablet to his hand. “I think a certain individual from Oshun might have done it...”

There was a pause as the man looked at the captain. His attention went to the display screen and back at her. He noted that she either heard him and ignored him or decided to acknowledge it silently. Smoke billowed from her nostrils before she lowered the cigarette to the side.

“Shira?” he called out to her.

“Observe the news, Javier,” Shira remarked calmly.

Javier turned to look at the display. The UWAN news depicted a recent discovery found on one of the T’rintar worlds. The civilian happily showed off a well-lit garage where a massive battle tank resided. The archeological find made some headway on the news, but it might have been considered somewhat overplayed and uninteresting to most UWA citizens.

“Somebody found a tank, pretty big one,” Javier remarked.

“It’s a Gober’hantra attack tank,” Shira explained fluently and almost with no emotion. “Most likely a model 105 or 106 series. What most Itreans today would consider a ‘super tank.’ Do you remember Doctor Fengge Yu?”

“Yes, the paleontologist we carried with us in finding the Alara’jal.”

Shira placed the feed on mute. “This is Doctor Tahir. He’s one of Fengge Yu’s best students, ... a ‘prodigy’ if you will. Unlike Fengge, who prefers to work on Earth, Tahir is willing to go to engage in archeological digs that take him to T’rintar worlds. It appears that his work has finally paid off.”

“I’d say ... Is it a Shal’rein vehicle?”

“As much as it would damage the Shal’rein ego, no. The tank is an Alara’jal construction.”

“Alara’jal?” Javier placed the tablet on the table and looked at Shira. “Besides what we found at the colony, I thought none of their vehicles survived the wars.”

“You are correct,” Shira explained. “There are a few mock display constructions throughout Itrean space, one of which is at Shal’tar. Some of the Shal’rein almost considered them to be a myth ... until now.”

“I can imagine. It looks perfectly intact. For a people that are so large, their vehicles must have been equally as great.”

“Indeed. Alara’jal used the most powerful ground assault vehicles of their time. While Alara’jal ground tactics might have been crude, the other Itrean clans were just as crude in return. It was here that the Alara’jal excelled in ground combat, often wielding machines that could dominate surface warfare. Even the Shal’rein learned to fear the Alara’jal when it came to fighting them on land.”

“The conquerors at sea met their match against something that was not only bigger than them but could overpower them.”

“Or any, for that matter. The only limitation of the Alara’jal was their dwindling resources. Even these great vehicles were limited in deployment in the final years of their operation, being trapped to their worlds as the Alara’jal could do nothing but watch the other clan species destroy them from afar.”

Javier watched on the display as a small Yutilian woman, most likely a Ko’min, jumped up and down with joy. She appeared to be wanting attention from the cameras while the human continued pointing at the vehicle behind him.

A beeping sound erupted from the table display. The news feed switched over to interrupt the current broadcast. Javier turned to look at Shira, who was busy tapping a few buttons on the table. A set of data was sent to her computer display.

“Over 5,000 gates have appeared near Palora,” Shira calmly explained. “This is not a T’rintar clan fleet.”

“What?” Javier remarked in surprise. “5,000...”

The man turned to look at the news feed. He saw numerous stabilizing vortexes. More were forming.

“The number is now reaching 7,000,” Shira remarked. “All Paloran defenses have been placed on Condition 1. Admiral Hazer has placed Martian fleets on Condition 2. T’rintar clan defenses have been mobilized. UHN Fleets NG-14 and NG-37 are enroute. Three T’rintar fleets have been mobilized.”

“Dios mio,” the officer reacted, giving Shira a stern look. “Have they been identified yet?”

“The data is not available yet. However, we will know very soon...”

Javier turned to look back at the display. From the zoomed-in camera feeds emerged dozens of warships. Multiple Itrean battleships and dreadnoughts emerged. Many of them were colored light purple, almost giving the appearance of dark blue. Most of the battleships carried the traditional boxy cylindrical look to them. The front bow consisted of the main bridges along with two forward-mounted heavy autocannons. Numerous other CIWS autocannon batteries lined their hulls. Near the forward mounted thrusters consisted of extended fins. The hangar facilities and dorsal and ventral multi-railgun turrets were in the mid-section. The rear compartment consisted of two spinning centripetal rings connected to the rear thruster module.

“Computer,” Shira addressed the display. “Confirm color palette recording. Match with current starlight pattern.” She looked at the data feed. “Confirmed.”

“Shal’rein clan invasion fleet?” Javier remarked. “Shit...”

“Continue to observe, Javier. Can you identify the warships that you see?”

The officer looked at another warship that emerged through one of the wormholes. One of them had a long, conical look to it. The front to mid-section was lined with multiple twin light railgun turrets and heavy CIWS autocannon turrets that covered its hull. To the rear section was a large centripetal spinning ring and two massive fusion drives connected to an engine that almost gave the ship the appearance of an Orthoceras.

“ ... A Cancet class?” Javier said to himself. “That’s impossible ... those ships were used during the Emphra War ... the Shal’rein retired them twenty years ago.”

“And I recognize I’rala class Battleships,” Shira remarked. “Mid-Itrean Republican warships. The color matches that of the Kun...”

“The Kun?”

“The Helera’kun subclan, to be more exact ... curious as to why they’re here ... I think it’s time that I contact Admiral Thiago and Admiral Hazer.”

Javier reached down to the table and tapped a few buttons. “Attention, all hands,” he addressed the ship. “This is your XO. Place ship to Condition 2. All non-duty officers come to meeting room at 0920 for briefing. This is not a drill. More information will follow...”

The man shut down the overhead ship comms. He turned to look at Shira who was busy interfacing the main panel on the table. She seemed to be busy. Her gray fingers tapped away on the screen in an attempt to contact others.

“I’m attempting to contact either Admiral Thiago or Admiral Hazer,” Shira explained. “Both appear to be busy at the moment.”

“I would imagine so,” Javier replied.

“One of them will eventually gain the wisdom to contact me ... the sooner, the better. I have patched in the main channel of Palora’s UHN Defense Communication Network. For now, we continue to observe.”

She took another drag of her cigarette before pressing it against the ashes of her ashtray. She relaxed and pressed her fingers together, her hands resting against her small pregnant belly. Shira said it was such ease in her voice that Javier almost felt like the events at Palora were nothing more than simple tedium. The entire concept of a massive Itrean invasion was outright alarming. A massive battle was brewing, moderately small by Itrean standards but utterly enormous for the United Human Naval Forces. Humanity had no hope of ever repelling an attack. These were the days that mankind feared the most. A simple invasion force like this would have easily wiped out all defenses on Mars, Earth, or Cebravis alone. Even Batrice might not be able to repel it.

Javier continued to watch the feeds. More Shal’rein warships emerged. By now, a few had turned towards Palora. These consisted of winged transports, along with purple-colored freighters. However, the officer noted that many of these Helera’kun warships were not heading towards Palora. They were heading towards the other opening gates.

“What are they doing?” he asked.

“Your answer will come soon,” Shira replied.

Javier listened in on Palora’s communications traffic. Most of it was staff notifications, the readiness of Paloran defenses, traffic notifications, and UHN fleet movements. It formed a garbled mess of voices. He could only imagine the panic the Palorans felt. To remember the events that took place earlier in their Picaran and Oracip asteroid fields to this. This made the fight with the Nova Pirates seem like a joke in comparison.

“Hmmm...,” Shira remarked. “Palora is receiving a hail from the Kun fleet.”

There was a realm of static at first. Both officers listened closely. Eventually, a faint, somewhat deep female voice echoed from the communication feed. The sound of the Itrean accent could be heard along with the signs of clicks and chirps reminiscent of an alien woman who had poor knowledge of the English language.

“Humans ... UWA,” the female voice desperately explained. “This is Greater Adjunct Kas’ora ... leader of Kun fleets. We reject Shal’rein clan ... we flee and exile ... we wish to join the UWA ... we seek asylum ... our people need your help ... Do not attack us ... we mean no harm...”

“What?” Javier remarked.

“Interesting,” Shira replied. “And ... ultimately expected. I recall that the Blue Buccaneers had hijacked an Itrean communication hub in the Hesik Expanse a week ago. It appears that Captain Darin was successful.”

“What do you mean?”

Javier continued to observe the feeds. As more gates had formed, more warships continued to emerge in Paloran space. The area of space was becoming crowded, filled with numerous warships and Itrean civilian spaceships. More civilian transports and freighters were heading towards Palora in mass formation.

However, they weren’t alone. Additional Shal’rein warships emerged, these ones coming from the newest gates that had formed. Unlike the bluish-colored battleships, these were dark purple. Javier recognized many of these ships as the current standard Shal’rein battleships, along with dreadnoughts of modern construction. Many of these battleships had a boxier cylindrical profile but were longer, carried more power generators, and more powerful twin railgun turrets. One of the Helera’kun I’rala battleships was closing in on the dark purple warship that had just emerged into Paloran space.

Suddenly, the guns on both warships took aim at one another. Their railguns opened fire, leaving wakes of purple and blue particles as hypervelocity rounds few upon one another. The tungsten shells struck so hard and so fast that they flew from one end of the compartment out to the other side of the warships, creating small explosions that rippled in space. The Kun warship had taken multiple hits but managed to inflict some damage against the current Shal’rein battleship. Their attacks continued to press forward.

“It can’t be,” Javier remarked. “It’s true ... The Shal’rein are fighting one another ... right at Palora’s doorstep.”

“Correct,” Shira replied. “It is both fortunate and unfortunate at the same time.”

“Are the Shal’rein in a civil war?”

“For the last ten years, all Itreans are engaged in a civil war, but ... there is always a rule to never have a revolution in a revolution.”

“But these aren’t normal circumstances, though, right?”

“Perhaps...”

A beeping sound emitted from the table. Shira turned her head slightly.

“It seems that Admiral Hazer is answering the call first,” she replied.

Javier took a stiff stance as he turned to face the table display. Shira pressed a button, establishing a communication link with UHN Command on Mars. Javier quickly recognized the admiral who appeared on the video feed sitting behind his desk. He had short black hair and a mixed pale complexion. Behind him was his office, carrying the UHN seal. Unlike in previous times, Javier knew the current situation had grown serious.

“Captain Shira,” Hazer addressed her calmly. “I had a feeling you would try to contact me the moment this would happen.”

“What is the status of the UHN fleets?” Shira asked him.

“Martian Fleets Alpha, Beta, and Gamma are ready,” Hazer replied. “Fleet Beta, led by Vice Admiral Da-Fu, is already being dispatched to Palora to reinforce their defenses. Batrice and Gillan are promising to dispatch Fleet Diamond, led by Vice Admiral Ratanak. The Lifen has already been assigned to Marine Fleet Omega. You’re on standby.”

“That isn’t going to be enough, Admiral,” Javier replied. “Sixty warships, not including what Batrice has, is barely going to put a dent in the Shal’rein fleet engagement taking place.”

“I know, Lieutenant,” Hazer continued to explain to both officers. “The T’rintar clan already have two fleets that are preparing to make the jump. This includes their response intercept fleet, ‘Otras’ken,’ and over 2,000 warships. They’ll be expected to arrive in seventeen more minutes. So far, we’re counting over 500 Shal’rein vessels heading towards Palora. They’re expected to reach the planet in about 20 minutes.” Hazer leaned towards his desk. “Now, Captain. There’s a reason why I’ve kept you close to Mars. I need all the information on what’s going on before I call Admiral Thiago to relay this information to him. I need your advice since you know more about what’s going on than I do.”

“Of course, Admiral,” Shira replied, her shark-like face attuned to him. “What is it that you wish to know?”

“Everything, including your recommendations...”

“Knowing Admiral Thiago, he’s smart enough not to send his fleets into the main battle. However, I’m inclined to believe that the Helera’kun led by this ... Kas’ora ... have openly rebelled against the Gok’shinta subclan.”

“What are the Helera’kun?” Hazer asked.

“They are the Shin’Fo’mil, the Fo’mil of the Shal’rein clans. They retain much of the original ancestry of the Shal’rein people.”

“I’m aware of the Fo’mil religion, but why would they rebel against their clan? Do you know Kas’ora?”

“I do not personally know her. However, I’m well aware that the Helera’kun have served as religious zealots of the Shal’rein clan. In the past, they openly oppose much of the Shal’rein leadership under Gok’shinta. However, much like many of the micro clans, their resources are insignificant against both Gok’shinta and Nak’ko’ken.”

“If their resources are limited and they try to oppose the stronger clans, won’t they lose the war?”

“Correct...,” Shira answered. “The Kun people are also aware of this as well. Instead, they choose to exile themselves to the UWA and the T’rintar clan.”

“We’re seeing a widespread defection,” Javier remarked.

“But a battle they’ll ultimately lose. They are depending on the UWA and the T’rintar to save them.”

Hazer sighed and shook his head. “And you believe that the other Shal’rein clans will devote their resources to exterminating these ... defectors?”

“Yes. Any disobedience from the clan will be treated with utmost haste and vigilance in order to ensure that the other Shal’rein planets do not fall into similar disarray.”

“And how much are they going to devote to that purpose?”

“That depends on the leadership. You have two choices, Admiral. You either let the Helera’kun reach Palora and make their escape or deny their entry to the UWA.”

“Do you believe that the Shal’rein attackers will leave Palora if the Helera’kun are destroyed?”

“Yes, but there is no guarantee of that. It depends on who is leading the Shal’rein attack fleets. I would say that the Helera’Kun will lose the battle in another hour. You either choose to save them or not.”

Javier could see Hazer was hit with a lot of information. A decision had to be made quickly as the refuge ships were closing in on Palora. Shira was correct. Javier could observe that the Helera’kun were relying on more antiquated vessels, some of which hadn’t been used since the Emphra War. Not only that, but the Shal’rein attackers had newer, better equipment and fielded them in larger numbers. Explosions could be seen in the distance of the camera feeds over Palora. Nuclear blasts and railgun bursts would echo while ships were being obliterated. Desperate Helera’Kun warships were sacrificing themselves to cover the retreat of the civilian ships.

Space had become a chaotic battlefield. Some warships stayed behind, covering the retreat. Others were desperately defending freighters and civilian ships as attacking scout battleships would make attack runs on the civilian vessels. Javier watched as a small transport took multiple direct hits from an intercepting Shal’rein battleship on a suicidal attack run. Its railguns shredded and cut the transport to pieces as an I’rala battleship defended the other ships and diverted the attackers away from the convoys. More opening wormholes could be seen in orbit over Palora. It was going to be a matter of time before reinforcements would arrive to protect the planet.

To save a group of refugees or leave them to die. Either choice resulted in consequences...

“I’m passing this information along to Admiral Thiago,” Hazer explained as he typed on his display, submitting the details to him. “It’s my opinion that he should try to save as many refugees as he can without depleting his assets.”

“Do you believe that’s wise?” Shira questioned him. “Many resources will be expended in this process.”

“Yes,” Hazer replied. “I’m sure Thiago will agree as well. The UWA and the T’rintar clan have devoted their time to ensuring defectors are treated with mercy. If we turn down these refugees, then it’ll discourage the next rebellion that’ll take place in another system. The entire process of this war is to convince the others that not everyone is our enemy.”

“I agree. However, much like any ‘valiant’ attempt to play hero, there will be sacrifices, Admiral.”

“Of course, I could argue that there was some level of sacrifice in ensuring that you remain as officer ... especially after what you ordered Stone to do in that recent PR stunt you pulled at Palora’s asteroid field ... or the same after your defection trial a year ago.”

“One that has been calculated under a much smaller scale. Unlike myself or the few others that have managed to escape their people, the Helera’kun rebellion is on a much grander scale, one that will trigger an overwhelming response on their behalf.”

“And it’s why I kept you in command of the Lifen, too. I need you close to home.”

“If you’re going to save these people, Admiral,” Shira explained. “Then you need to ensure that Thiago does not directly engage in the main battle until all reinforcements have arrived. Provide cover fire from close orbit only.”

“Agreed,” Hazer continued to type on his keyboard. “In the meantime, I can contact the other UWA worlds and allow the refuge ships to flee to their sectors after they make their escape from the attacking Shal’rein.”

“That would be unwise.”

“Why?” Hazer gave a confused look at him. “If they remain in the Paloran system, the Helera’kun refuge ships will be placed in further danger of being destroyed.”

“Because there is the possibility that the Shal’rein attackers will calculate the exit vectors to the other UWA sectors. They will only launch further attacks on those worlds with the goal of eliminating the Helera’kun. You may want to save these people, but not at the cost of putting other worlds in danger or expending greater resources in the process.”

“Hmmm ... You recommend that the Helera’kun stay at Palora during the battle, I understand, but I’m not sure if Thiago would agree with that concept or not. I need to contact the other Admirals and formulate a plan in the coming hour. For now, I’m readying Marine Fleet Omega.”

“It is imperative that the Shal’rein attackers do not reach Palora’s soil, Admiral. I’ll be monitoring the battle closely and provide input as necessary. Once the Shal’rein face greater resistance against the escaping civilian ships, I believe they will retreat to their growing formation and regroup. This will allow some additional minutes before the main battle will commence.”

“Very well. I’ll contact you again shortly. Admiral Hazer out...”

The communication signal ended. Shira adjusted the UWAN camera feeds so that every display in the room depicted some form of schematics or details over Palora. For Javier, it was like watching a battle theater taking place.

“Hazer still seems to be a little grilled with you after Palora,” Javier remarked. “Although, I understand if he’s more flustered right now with the current events than anything else.”

Shira seemed unphased, observing the feeds. “It’s possible he had to pull some strings to ensure I stayed in command. Besides, I still gave Admiral Thiago what he wanted. The Nova Pirates have been thwarted in much of their campaign to attack the civilian mining ships.”

“Thanks to our actions. You calculated that Hazer wasn’t going to dismiss you after ordering Stone to torture a man to death and broadcasting into the Paloran asteroid belt.”

“The man that was executed was a known criminal convicted of crimes that would have been dealt with more harshly under the Itrean hierarchy. Besides, Stone always requires a certain ... finesse in dealing with. He is an important asset that can’t be discarded.”

Javier sighed. “I can’t help but think that there’s a certain coincidence happening right now. Maybe it’s a good thing that we’re part of the Martian fleets instead of the Paloran task forces. The Lifen couldn’t repel that sort of an attack.”

“Do not relax your guard just because we’re in the Sol system, my mate. Marine Fleet Omega is quite underpowered for the UHN. It’s likely the Lifen will be needed soon regardless of how the enemy operates.”

“Yeah, ever since Cipra, the UHN Marine Corps have been struggling to replace their ships. A few newly built of our ship class and a few surviving Phalanx Assault Carriers, along with whatever civilian requisitioned transports. I see what you meant earlier of keeping the Shal’rein from landing on Palora.”

Javier watched as the large Cancet dreadnought he saw earlier took damage. It used its multiple side-mounted light railguns to broadside and disable a Yu’il battleship. However, the Yu’il’s heavier railguns still smashed two holes through the front midsection of the warship. Venting fires from the heavy dreadnought could be seen. More and more warships were coming from the gates.

“Shal’rein fighting Shal’rein,” Javier remarked, shaking his head. “I remember the Garja and the attempt to escape from Shal’rein clan space, but seeing the Shal’rein fighting each other.”

“Since the ancient times,” Shira explained. “The Shal’rein always fought one another, far more than the other Itrean clans have ever accomplished. We were more dangerous to ourselves than the other clan species ever did to us.”

“Yeah, your people weren’t really unified until after the Rotorein Rebellion.”

“Correct, although even the subclans struggled to stay together. The Itreans, in their obvious wisdom, learned that the Shal’rein preferred heavy aquatic worlds. Instead, they let the Shal’rein fight themselves over those resources, weakening the species as a whole. It wasn’t until our people learned to start living on different worlds that they began to slowly work together.”

“I’ve never met a Shin’Fo’mil,” Javier replied. “What do you know about them?”

“I doubt many humans would have ever seen them. Very few of the Shin’Fo’mil ever moved past their planet, even long after the Emphra War. Unlike most Shal’rein, the Helera’kun are more dependent on water. They can live on land but only for short time periods. They require bathing once every few hours to keep their skin and lungs wet. Much like the Fo’mil of the other clan species, they also lay eggs. They are what we were 200,000 years ago. Their religion sees them as the heart and soul of all Shal’rein. To them, all the other Shal’rein are mere shadows of what they are.”

“I can see why they would have tension between the other subclans.”

“However, their resources have never been significant. Their non-cooperation with the other subclans and strict religion only served to keep them more excluded, hence why their tense disagreements rarely ever saw bloodshed.”

“Until now ... If the Helera’kun are in open rebellion with the Shal’rein clan, wouldn’t more people be fleeing from their planet? A thousand ships isn’t enough to warrant a true evacuation.”

“Without more information, anything else is only speculation as to what is happening to Kun and the extent of their rebellion. However, if the Helera’kun have committed to an all out rebellion, then the Shal’rein are devoting much of their resources to reconquering their planet and wiping out any and all resistance.”