Star Alliance (30 page)

“We used something similar to these platforms on Nerva,” Kaylan said.

Their transport brought them to the main docking area near the ship, and Kladomaor was already there with Ma’jasalax. They exited the platform and greeted Kladomaor and his crew. Some of his crew wore their powered armor, which made Kaylan wonder if they were in more danger than they’d originally thought.
 

Large doors opened and a contingent of Boxan soldiers headed toward them. They were led by a large Boxan who wore a green uniform that reminded Kaylan of the battle mesh the Nershals wore.

Kladomaor saluted, and his soldiers followed suit. “Thank you for your help with our ship, Prax’pedax.”

The large Boxan approached, and Zack whispered that it was like they were surrounded by giants. Kaylan smiled and saw some of the others grin softly. It was good to have the crew back together.

“We couldn’t leave you floating in the great expanse,” Prax’pedax said, and looked at Etanu and Ezerah, bowing his head. “It gladdens my heart to see the Nershals among the Boxans once more.”

Etanu and Ezerah gave Prax’pedax a slight bow of their heads in return, and the Boxan station commander turned to Ma’jasalax.

“Our station is at your service. We had no idea one of the Mardoxian sect was in the Nerva star system,” Prax’pedax said.

“A new development, Commander,” Ma’jasalax answered.

Prax’pedax turned to address the crew of the Athena. “Kladomaor’s report mentioned the discovery of a new species. It is an honor to stand before you.”

The crew of the Athena bobbed their heads respectfully.

Prax’pedax turned back to Kladomaor. “Your mission summary said you took on four Xiiginn warships in the Nerva star system.”

“That is correct,” Kladomaor said.

Prax’pedax let out a booming laugh. “I was on the approval board for your mission to Nerva. Nowhere did it say that you expected to have open conflict with the Xiiginns, except on the ground, of course.”

Kladomaor glanced pointedly at the crew of the Athena. “We had more than a few surprises. I am happy to report that the Nershals are actively rebelling against the Xiiginns. I’m not sure whether they will reach out to the council, but I’ve left several of their leaders a means of doing so.”

Prax’pedax nodded and his expression turned serious. “Which of them was held captive by the Xiiginns?” he asked.

Kaylan noted that the surrounding Boxan soldiers seemed to stiffen at this. Zack stepped forward and was quickly joined by Etanu.

“The Nershals have proven to be resistant to the Xiiginn influence, and you are therefore excluded from this,” Prax’pedax said to Etanu, then gestured toward Zack. “Human, it is my understanding that you were a prisoner of the Xiiginns?”

“Yes,” Zack said.

Prax’pedax gestured to two Boxan soldiers, who approached. “Apologies, but I must put you in a holding cell.”

“What’s the meaning of this?” Kladomaor asked.

“Our work here is too important to risk falling into the hands of the Xiiginns. At this point, it is unknown whether the Humans can resist the Xiiginn influence,” Prax’pedax said.

“I’m not being controlled by the Xiiginn,” Zack said.

“Forgive me if this appears harsh, but that is exactly what someone who is under their influence would say,” Prax’pedax said.

“Commander,” Etanu said. “I can vouch for Zack. The Xiiginn did try to control him with compulsion, but he not only resisted them, he defied them. This I saw with my own eyes.”

“It’s all right,” Zack said. “Go ahead and detain me.”

“No, it’s not all right,” Kaylan said. “Zack is a member of my crew. We’re supposed to be guests here. In fact, the only reason we’re here at all is because of the monitoring station you built in our own star system. Zack just escaped from a Xiiginn research facility and prison. I’m not going to stand idly by while you try and stick him in another one.”

No one actually moved, but it felt as if the crew of the Athena inched closer together.
 

Prax’pedax’s jaw set and his muscles tightened.

“Perhaps a compromise,” Ma’jasalax said. “To address your concerns, assign an armed escort for Zack. This way you can monitor where the Human goes. Would that work for you?”

Prax’pedax’s features softened. “The wisdom of the Mardoxian is always welcome. It will be as you say.”

The Boxan looked at Kaylan, and she nodded.

“Now, if you’ll follow me, I shall give you a brief tour of our station, and then we can plan our next move,” Prax’pedax said.

As the Athena crew followed the Boxans out, Hicks leaned in so only Kaylan could hear. “Good job, Commander.”

She flashed him a smile as they followed the others to the station’s interior.
 

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they had been able to find the asteroid station; otherwise, they would have been in real trouble. And he wasn’t at all surprised by Prax’pedax’s attempt to have Zack detained. If he’d been running the station, he would have done the same. The Human appeared to be fine, but Kladomaor still had his suspicions where Zack was concerned. He knew firsthand what the Xiiginns could do to someone. On the flip side, he was also impressed with Kaylan’s argument for Zack not to be detained. It was the mark of a good commander to defend their crew.
 

The short tour was as much for Prax’pedax to form an opinion of them as it was for their benefit. They saw that repairs of their ships were already underway, which was a good thing. The sooner the repairs were completed, the better. Kladomaor had left Triflan aboard the stealth ship to oversee the repairs and get the ship resupplied.

There were thousands of Boxans serving on the station, and Kladomaor experienced mixed feelings about being around so many of his own kind. Despite his reputation earned during their war with the Xiiginns, he was a bit of an outcast. Once a Boxan had been subjected to the Xiiginn influence, very few were able to retain their sanity if they ever became free of them. Most Boxans were trained to recognize the signs that they were coming under Xiiginn influence and begged to be killed, like one of his own crew had done. Death was a mercy, because for most Boxans, there was no cure for the Xiiginn influence. Kladomaor’s case was the exception, and it was only because of Ma’jasalax that he was able to serve in the Boxan military at all. Most Boxans were leery of working with him, but as he proved himself, the requests to join his division steadily grew.

Their group split up, with some of the Athena crew going on to explore more of the station.
 

Prax’pedax guided the rest of them to a room where they could speak openly and stopped before the entrance. “I don’t recall that Humans have been admitted to the Confederation.”

“The Confederation of Species is unaware of their existence,” Kladomaor said.

Prax’pedax glanced at Kaylan and the others for a few moments. “How did they come to be in the Nerva star system?” he asked.

“I will explain once we’re inside,” Kladomaor said.

“Before we do that, I would like to know your intentions for them,” Prax’pedax said.

“I intend to take them before the council and petition support for their home planet. The Xiiginns have learned of their presence and will now actively seek them out. I would spare the Humans becoming slaves to the Xiiginns,” Kladomaor said.

The Boxan station commander considered this for a few moments. “You’re proposing that we form an alliance with their species outside the Confederation?”

“The Confederation has all but cast us out,” Kladomaor said.

“Interesting,” Prax’pedax said, “considering that this is coming from you.”

“The Humans have proven worthy of an alliance with us, and even if they weren’t, we’re responsible for them being here,” Kladomaor said.

“Commander,” Ma’jasalax said. “You might agree that our former stance on diplomatic relations with other species could do with some improvement given the current state of affairs.”

Prax’pedax nodded. “I look forward to hearing more about this alliance you are going to propose,” he said, and gestured for them all to come inside.

The rocky walls of the station’s interior were a stark reminder that they were in an asteroid. The furnishings were a step above what they had on the Athena but nothing like what they had left behind on their home world.

“Please, sit,” Prax’pedax invited.

The circular room they were in was meant for information gatherings, and the furnishings were able to accommodate them all.
 

“Why have you returned here?” Kladomaor asked.

“The Qegi was the first species to fall victim to the Xiiginns,” Prax’pedax said. “This was where it all began, where we learned of their true intentions. The planet is a nuclear wasteland, and it will be many thousands of years before life will return to this star system. One of the reasons we came back was because this was one of the systems where there was a strong probability of finding a species with the Mardoxian potential.”

Kladomaor glanced at Kaylan and the others but didn’t say anything. He had left the Mardoxian potential in Humans out of his report. This wasn’t because he didn’t trust Prax’pedax, but he wanted to avoid any record of it until they’d returned to the colony.

“The Xiiginns had no idea; otherwise, they might have taken greater care when exploiting this species,” Prax’pedax said.

“That can’t be the only reason,” Kladomaor said.

Prax’pedax eyed Kladomaor for a moment but didn’t say anything.

“You’ve made a discovery,” Ma’jasalax said, “beyond the history here.”

Prax’pedax nodded. “We’ve found evidence of another spacefaring species that had been to this star system before.”

“What have you found?” Kladomaor asked.

A holoscreen came on and showed the partial remains of a ship that appeared to have crash-landed. The images magnified, and something about the ship’s design tugged at the back of his mind.

“The Drars?” Kladomaor asked. “You think this is the remains of a Drar ship?”

Prax’pedax nodded.

“But that’s impossible. We’ve found hardly any trace of them beyond our own home system,” Kladomaor said.

“Who is to say they didn’t leave more of their technology behind for other species to find?” Prax’pedax said.

Kladomaor frowned.

“Who are the Drars?” Kaylan asked.

Kladomaor glanced over at her. She was flanked by Hicks, Emma, and Zack. The rest had gone on to explore the station.

“Do you remember when I told you about how my species observed an interstellar war that began snuffing out entire star systems? Well, the Drars were one of those species that fought in that war. The name is derived from a partial data cache we managed to find while first exploring our own star system. Their technology is the basis for the Star Shroud,” Kladomaor said.

Zack frowned. “When you say basis, do you mean the Star Shroud was based on some other race’s design?”

“That is correct. The Drars had constructed a device that could protect entire star systems from attack. We only found reference to it, along with some prototype designs. We perfected it into the Star Shrouds as they are used today,” Kladomaor said, and turned toward Prax’pedax. “What were you able to learn from the wreckage?”

“We may have found out where they went,” Prax’pedax said.

Kladomaor glanced at Ma’jasalax, and the Mardoxian priestess was just as surprised as he was.

“Why is this so important to you?” Hicks asked.

“This was a species that was involved in one the most destructive interstellar wars we’ve ever come across. We’ve resisted resorting to practices that the Xiiginns have no qualms about employing—things such as genetic engineering and system-wide destruction. If the Xiiginns could harness the power of an entire star system, what’s to stop them from forcing the entire galaxy into submission?” Kladomaor said.

“Are you saying you could do such a thing?” Hicks asked.

Kladomaor shook his head. “We know it’s possible but won’t explore researching such a thing,” he said.

“Why not? You could turn the tide of your war with the Xiiginns,” Hicks said.

“Like me, you’re a soldier, and your first impulse is to protect your species, but when you engage in conflict you influence the battle by the way you choose to fight it. As with any war, there is also a risk of the weapon you use falling into enemy hands,” Kladomaor said.

Hicks nodded. “Yeah, but if your survival is at stake then . . .”

“That’s just it. We choose to fight our war with the Xiiginns on our own terms and prefer not to put the galaxy at risk as it once was,” Kladomaor said.

 
Hicks slowly nodded.

“There is more,” Prax’pedax said. “We might have deciphered the path the ship took to this system. If our analysis is correct, it came from a previously unexplored part of the galaxy.”

Kladomaor’s brows rose. “You’re hoping to follow them,” he said.

Prax’pedax nodded.

“Excuse me,” Kaylan said. “What is the connection between the Mardoxian species potential, the Drars, and the species that originally resided on the planet in this system?”