Annihilation 09: Dahlia's Deception Read online

  Annihilation Series

  Book Ten

  Dahlia’s Deception

  Contents

  Introduction

  Chapter One • Chapter Two • Chapter Three • Chapter Four • Chapter Five • Chapter Six • Chapter Seven • Chapter Eight • Chapter Nine • Chapter Ten • Chapter Eleven • Chapter Twelve • Chapter Thirteen • Chapter Fourteen • Chapter Fifteen • Chapter Sixteen • Chapter Seventeen • Chapter Eighteen • Chapter Nineteen • Chapter Twenty • Chapter Twenty-One • Chapter Twenty-Two

  Epilogue

  Books by Saxon Andrew

  About Saxon Andrew

  Introduction

  Ping looked up at the dense canopy of leaves waving in the forest high overhead and saw sunlight sparkling through the numerous branches. It was beginning to get hot and he loosened the collar of his uniform, as he wiped the back of his neck with his left hand. He rubbed his neck slowly and knew he was too young to feel sore muscles first thing in the morning. He swiveled his head back and forth and felt the tense muscles start to relax. He heard a loud splash and looked quickly out into the stream he was soaking his feet in and saw a huge pattern of ripples spreading out from the other side of the fast moving water. Something big must have just made a meal of one of the large bugs that darted across the water’s surface. The water was initially cold but felt good on his feet a few moments after putting them into the stream. The initial shock quickly disappeared and he leaned forward on the bank and looked down in the little eddy he was sitting next to.

  The water in the eddy was smooth and made a small circle as the fast moving stream rushed past it, brushed the edge, and slowly began to spin. The entrance to the eddy was below the pool it formed and the water in it was calm. He saw his reflection staring back at him. He sighed and slowly shook his head…he missed Nicole so much. They had so little time together before she was gone. He closed his eyes and saw her on the beach laughing with him in the waves. God, he missed her. Now, there would never be a family for him and love was a distant gift. He thought about Mios and Jody and felt his anger rise. He longed to go and attack the Black Civilization that killed them and end his miserable existence…but even that was taken from him. He was Dahlia’s designated defender and he knew that he would dishonor Nicole’s memory if he turned his back on that calling. He heard another splash and lifted his eyes. He saw a rock skipping across the stream. It made six skips before disappearing. It was a pretty good throw.

  “I thought this was my special place.”

  Ping looked behind him and saw Dahlia leaning against a tree staring at him. Ping shook his head, “I’ll leave.”

  “No, you’re welcome to stay; I just came to get away from all the confusion in the Holes and found you here. Am I interrupting anything?”

  “No, not really.”

  Dahlia stared at his expression, “You miss her.”

  Ping was surprised at Dahlia’s comment; he was silent for a moment and then looked back at the stream. He finally nodded, “Very much.”

  Dahlia came over, sat down beside him, and took her boots off; she put her feet in the water and pulled them out instantly, “Crap that’s cold. How do you stand that?” Ping smiled as she slowly put them back into the water and winced. She stayed tense for a minute and then grew accustomed to the temperature and lowered her shoulders. “You have to let her go, Ping.”

  “That’s not going to happen.”

  Dahlia stared at him and after a moment looked out at the stream with him. They sat there in silence for a while and then Dahlia said, “Do you know what my people believe about what happens to those we love who die before us?”

  Ping’s brow furrowed and he tilted his head, “No, I don’t.”

  Dahlia continued to stare at the stream and said, “We believe that the spirits of those we love remain in our world a short time before leaving to their next existence. They stay here long enough to make sure that those they left behind are going to be ok.” Ping continued to stare straight ahead without blinking. “If the ones they love are in turmoil and pain, they won’t leave. They’ll stay and suffer with their loved ones.” Dahlia looked at Ping, “How do you think you would feel if you saw Nicole suffering as much as you are?”

  “That’s not a fair question!”

  “Do you think she loved you less?”

  Ping blew out a breath and looked Dahlia in her eyes, “No, I’m positive she loved me more. I was the reluctant one. She cared from the beginning.”

  “Do you believe her spirit exists?” Ping remained silent. “If you do; what would she be feeling at this moment as she watched your suffering?”

  Ping’s eyes narrowed and Dahlia saw his immediate anger. He stood, picked up his boots, and stormed away. Dahlia shook her head and looked out at the water flowing quickly past her. Some people just refused to leave their place of sorrow. Somehow, they felt they deserved their sadness and would always beat themselves up. Ping’s sorrow was a huge sign of how much he loved his deceased wife. He would have to forgive himself before he could ever really smile again. She didn’t know if that would ever happen.

  She had really come to the stream to see if he was ready to answer a difficult question…but she saw he wasn’t ready for it at this moment. She’d give him some time to recover and then she’d hit him with it. She tossed a flat stone she had picked up on the way to the stream and watched it skip five times. That was a good toss considering she was sitting down and the stream was flowing at a rapid pace. She hadn’t lost her touch, although twelve skips was the record when she was twelve years old. She’d never done it since. Of course the stream was smooth and it was a day with a Y in it, a month with a consonant; everything was perfect. Dahlia shook her head; those perfect days are rare. It seemed nothing was perfect anymore and all the future seemed to hold was death and sorrow. Even Ping didn’t see what was coming. Perhaps his grief was more than any normal person should have to bear, but she knew he had to be told and there was no way she could prevent what followed. She looked up at the sky and decided to give it some more time.

  Chapter One

  The Twelve Mites teleported out from the planet and arrived in a star system with a blue and green planet glowing brightly inside the habitation zone. Ten silver colored starships hung in orbit above the planet and it was clear they were doing serious business with the planet’s inhabitants. A large city on the surface had fires raging out of control; it was hit from space with heavy blaster beams and thirty buildings had been vaporized.

  “You will start sending the shipments now!”

  “We’ll do it, but many of us will starve if you take most of our food storage.”

  “We can resolve that problem for you by simply finishing the destruction of your city. That should relieve the pressure of feeding your population.”

  “No, that won’t be necessary; we’ll start loading the shuttles momentarily.”

  • • •

  The Rageon Wing Commander smiled. This planet had been visited by the Royal’s Tax Collectors six months earlier and he knew how efficient they were at stealing the planet to the point of poverty. However, his wing had some time off and he decided to conduct a raid to increase his wealth. The Royals would never know and if the locals told them, they wouldn’t have any way to find out who did it. The food stores he was taking could be converted to rare metals. He leaned back in his command chair and smiled. He was already counting how much he would make from the theft.

  • • •

  “Brian, do you have your targets.”

  “Yes Sir; those ships are being pretty heavy handed.”

  “Let’s get this done before they start the shuttles
lifting. On my mark; three, two, one, MARK!”

  The Ten Silver ships hung in orbit with their landing bays open and their force fields down to receive the shuttles lifting from the planet. Twelve blue-green pulses reached out from empty space and hit every Silver Ship in the center. Each of the two Major Battleships in the wing was struck by two pulses. The ships glowed brilliant green and then started disintegrating. In less than ten seconds, there was nothing left in orbit above the planet. The twelve Mites teleported away leaving the planet’s leaders in total confusion, trying to find out what had happened. Three weeks passed and they began unloading the shuttles. It appeared no one would starve this year.

  • • •

  Two violet colored Drund Major Battleships appeared just outside the planet’s third moon and started moving forward. A Drund Official had been assassinated by one of the locals and they had arrived to administer punishment to the planet. Their force fields were glowing brightly and their heavy laser emplacements were active and moving to lock on the planet’s largest city. One of the Drund Commanders said, “I guess it was about time he got what he deserved.”

  “He was brutal but the planet had to know what was going to happen if they harmed any of our officials.”

  “They knew; they’re probably at the point where they don’t care. I’ve got the city locked into my targeting computers. Do you want to take a few shots to check your system’s accuracy?”

  “No, not really. I did that last week.”

  “We’ll be in range in a few more momen….”

  The Drund Commander didn’t finish his statement. Both ships disintegrated immediately after they were struck by a blue-green pulse. The Drund Empire was so massive that the two Warships weren’t missed for two years. The government bureaucracy had even lost the reason the two ships had been sent. The loss of the two warships were not included in the totals being kept by the Drund’s Admiralty. Ships were dying and their attackers could not be detected.

  • • •

  Four of the Five Rulers of the Major Powers looked at each other and wondered why the Rageon had called for this meeting. He didn’t appear to be very happy and they really didn’t want to waste time talking with their main competitors. The Rageon Ruler looked at the display and said, “How many of you have been losing warships to invisible ships?” The other four were clearly surprised by the question.

  The Chinga Emperor said, “What do you mean?”

  “Don’t act stupid. One of my ships saw two of yours blasted by a green beam.”

  “WERE YOU THE ONE THAT DID IT!?!”

  “Don’t act dumb; I know you’re smarter than that. If I did it, would I have just revealed my ship saw it happen? Quite frankly, I thought I was the only one losing warships but hearing that two of yours had been destroyed started me thinking. I thought it was one of you and I was trying to determine which one of you was doing it…but…it might be something else. So I ask you again, have the four of you been losing warships and you’re unable to explain how it’s happening?”

  The four remained silent but the Rageon could read their expressions. “So, we’re all having ships destroyed. That means someone outside of this conference is causing it to happen.”

  The Beast lowered its head, “I didn’t say I was losing ships.”

  “You didn’t have to; I saw it in your expression; am I wrong?”

  “No, I’ve been losing ships for more than six months.”

  The Hedgon said, “I’ve, also, been losing ships for six months.”

  The Drund Ruler said, “My first recorded instance was a little over seven months ago.”

  The Rageon shrugged, “It could be that we didn’t miss the first ships and only started noticing it a month later. Can we agree that between six and seven months ago; some agency has been killing our ships?” The other four nodded. “Can I get you to do a thorough search of your territories to see if this agency might be located within your area of control?”

  The Beast Master said, “What about the area’s not controlled by any of us?”

  The Rageon looked at the Beast, “I assume you’re talking about the disputed star cluster.”

  “I am.”

  “Stay on the channel after this conference is over; that’s something you and I will have to resolve.”

  The Hedgon said, “That is something that might also be of interest to me.”

  “Your interest means nothing to me. That cluster is currently a bone of contention between the Beast and myself; do you wish to enter the dispute?”

  The Hedgon saw the leaders of the two most powerful civilizations staring at him hoping he did. “No, I’ll search my domain.” He promptly disappeared from the display. The Drund and Chinga disappeared immediately afterwards.

  • • •

  The Beast Master looked at his wall monitor and listened to the Rageon Ruler. It felt like they had been arguing for a year. He didn’t want to work with his enemy but didn’t see a way out of it without starting a war. Too many ships had been lost and something had to be done, immediately. He waited for the Ruler to stop his incessant talking and said, “I will agree to not leave any of my ships behind. I only want to search that disputed star cluster to see if the ones killing our ships might be located there.”

  The Rageon Ruler was at the end of his patience. He stared at the Master and lowered his head, “Will you allow me to take my ships there and conduct the search? I, too, will promise not to leave any of my ships there as well.”

  “Absolutely not.”

  “Then why would I allow you to do it? Are you that egocentric?”

  “We’ll keep our promise not to invade.”

  “Just like you did the last time you invaded.”

  The Beast Master knew the Rageon had scored with that comment and acting stupid would only reveal it was an act if he rejected it. He knew this was an issue that would not be resolved in any manner he was completely comfortable with. That came from dealing with an enemy with more powerful warships. Thank the stars he had more to even the odds. He decided to try another track, “Do you think this is worth doing?”

  “I do.”

  “Then how do you want to make it happen, if neither of us will allow the other to make the search alone? You would have to start from the beginning and we have already scanned the majority of the cluster.”

  “Get real; you weren’t looking for an advanced civilization that might be hiding from your scans. You would have to start at the beginning as well.”

  “That may be true but we know what planets could be eliminated.”

  “Oh; and how would you do that?”

  “We could eliminate all of those we landed on. They were searched very thoroughly.”

  “And these attacks started after you left the cluster. What if the agency doing this went to one of those planets after you left?”

  “Then tell me how we do this; you’ve rejected every offer I’ve made.”

  “You have rejected mine as well.” The Rageon paused and then said, “We’ll pair up our ships and send them in to conduct the search.”

  “I’ll need to send two of my ships for each of yours.”

  The Rageon Ruler knew the huge creature was probably right; his ships were much more powerful than the Beast’s Black Ships. However, they weren’t twice as strong. “That won’t work either and you know it. You’re still trying to manipulate an advantage.” The Rageon Ruler thought for a moment and said, “What if we get one of the others to conduct the search?”

  The Beast shook his huge head, “Are you crazy! Would you want them to have a blue print of that cluster to use later if they choose to invade?”

  “They would have to come into the middle of our territories; we could certainly kick them out.”

  “And what if one of us is so weakened in the future that we couldn’t offer a defense? No, if a search is going to be done, we need to do it.” The Beast thought for a moment, “We’ll do it with our scouts.”

  “Wha
t!?!”

  “Our scout vessels are evenly matched and neither side will have an advantage in strength. We’ll pair up our scouts and they will conduct the search.”

  “What happens if the agency that has been killing our warships is actually located in that cluster and attacks our scouts?”

  “Then we’ll lose some scouts. If they attack the entire fleet of them, then we know they’re located in that cluster. If they attack one or two, they’re probably trying to convince us they’re there when they’re located elsewhere. Losing a few scouts won’t be a huge loss to either of us and, if enough of them are destroyed, we’ll send a combined fleet to investigate.”

  The Rageon Ruler didn’t like the compromise but didn’t have a better idea. The Beast wouldn’t be able to see anything his own scouts wouldn’t see… “We’ll do it your way. Where do you want to assemble the ships making the search?”

  The Beast reached down and turned a dial. He looked at the coordinates of a probe outside the cluster and sent them to the Rageon Ruler, “That coordinate is located just outside the star cluster. We’ll send our ships there to pair up and start the search.”

  “We’ll do it ten days from now.”

  The Beast saw his monitor darken and shook his head. He decided that he would order his ships to stay away from the planet where the lethal virus dangerous to his species was located. It would be best if that little bit of information wasn’t known; especially by a known enemy.

  • • •

  Dean looked at the main terminal in Hole One and listened to Tess delivering instructions to the main construction facilities under the North Polar Region. He leaned against the panel and an alarm started blaring. He jumped away from the panel and wondered how he had set off the alarm. He looked around and then looked up at his bank of displays. He silenced the alarm and saw everyone take their hands away from their ears, “We’ve got trouble!”

  Tess came running over, “What’s going on?”

  Dean stared at his panel, “It appears the Black Civilization and the Rageon are jumping in a huge number of their scouts just outside our star cluster.” Tess stared at the thousands of ships appearing in normal space and heard Dean say, “We knew this would eventually happen.” Dean looked up at Tess, “They’re looking for the location of the ships that have been attacking them.”