Fury to the Stars (Universe in Flames Book 2) (17 page)

Again, no reaction. No answer. No sign she even
registered the question.

An image of Sarah’s hand sticking up out of the
smoldering rubble flashed through his head and he leaned forward with a glare.

“Do you realize the enormity of the crime you were
about to commit?” he thundered, just inches from her face. “The number of
people who could have lost their lives? Quadrinium is a very volatile element,
but you knew that already since you were near its storage chamber.”

Again, words didn’t seem to impact her at all.
Let’s
try a threat then
.

“I’d be talking to me, if I was you. If you don’t,
I’ll send my Droxian friend in here and things might get real ugly real fast.”

For the first time, the words hit home. She looked
him right in the eyes and smiled.

She was clearly taunting him. For what reason, Chase
simply couldn’t understand. What was the motivation here? Shaking his head in
exasperation, he took a step back. Perhaps a show of force was required.

His face hardened as he slowly lifted his hand. A
second later, a magnificent blue fireball spun into view. He approached her
slowly, letting her view it from every angle.

It clearly got her attention. Her eyes sparkled and
flashed as the light streaked across them. But while her expression changed, it
wasn’t fear that changed it. It was something else.

“Freak!”

He took a step back as she spat out the word, the
fire dissipating in his hand.

“Perhaps I am a freak. But I don’t kill people like
a coward.”

What happened next took him by surprise.

“Or so you think.” Her eyes flashed in anger. “I
believe a few million souls down there would disagree with that statement.”

The words stung Chase’s heart. It was an affirmation
of everything he’d been blaming himself for during the last few weeks. But he
brushed the thoughts away. Now was not the time. It looked like they were
finally getting somewhere. Grief was where the game would be played.

“And I believe we saved the seven plus billion souls
still alive, included you. Or does that count for nothing?” he asked softly.

“I don’t care about them, I…” Her voice trailed off,
but the words she wouldn’t let herself say were suddenly clear.

“Who did you lose?”

She looked at Chase defiantly.

“You think your parents would agree with what you
tried to do?”

No reaction.

“Do you have children?”

This time the anger was mixed with sheer pain, utter
sorrow.

“I see...” he said with soft sympathy. “How old were
they?”

Tears started running down her face. She tried to
wipe them only to be reminded that she was still in handcuffs. Chase leaned
forward to do it for her, but she reeled back.

“Don’t touch me—this is all your fault! You should
never have come to our planet!”

The words hit home. It was a touchy subject, one
that was often at the center of his thoughts. This time there was no brushing
it away. Hearing an Earthling actually say it to his face had more impact that
he thought possible.

“Perhaps...” he murmured pensively.

As he debated what to do next, Daniel breezed into
the brig. Deciding it was best to give both himself and the prisoner a moment
to cool off, Chase slipped back out of the cell.

“Where were you?” he asked Daniel, giving him a
playful hit on the shoulder.

“I was making sure there were no other devices on
the ship. And I also visited a prisoner of my own today. Chase, you’re not
going to believe it…”

“Really? Who?”

“We didn't know it until now, but you know those
cells on Earth where we keep the Zarlacks from the
Dragon’s Claw
locked
up? Well, it turns out we have a rather distinctive guest amongst them.”

“You got me curious. Who?”

Daniel raised his eyebrows importantly. “The emperor
himself.”

“You’re yanking my chain!”

“No, I’m serious. I went to confirm it myself just
now. And let me tell you, Chase, he has some pretty interesting things to say…”

Chase considered this before glancing back at his
own prisoner. “I’m not getting through to her. I don’t know if she’ll talk
without being physically coerced.”

Daniel looked surprised. “Are we even entertaining
that?”

“Normally I would say no, but things could get out
of control real fast if we don’t try to locate the source of these acts of
terror.”

“I don’t know, man.” Daniel shook his head. “That’s
a slippery slope.”

“I know...” Chase said with a sigh. He clicked his
comm. “Commodore, tell Ryonna she’s up next.”

“What about the emperor, Chase?”

“Let’s go visit him. Now. I’m getting nowhere with
this one anyway.”

But deep down, Chase knew that was only partially
true. It wasn’t that he was getting nowhere with the prisoner. It was that she
was starting to get to him.

*   *   *

As Ryonna entered the brig, she instructed the guard
to stop any video recording. She didn’t know if it was her imposing stature or
because she had been seen on the ship a few times already with Chase and the
commodore, but he immediately complied even though Ryonna knew very well
Saroudis wouldn’t sanction what would come next. She then told the officer to
release the prisoner’s wrist bands and wait outside.

The second they were alone, Ryonna swept into the
cell and grabbed the prisoner by her throat, lifting her up and slamming her
into the wall. Nina’s eyes flashed with terror as she gasped for air, but
Ryonna held strong, intending to keep her there until the fear Nina was so
obviously lacking was firmly in place.

When it looked like she was about to pass out,
Ryonna suddenly released her just enough so she could get some much needed air.
As she gasped and wheezed in pain, Ryonna leaned in with a flat smile.

“I think we started on the wrong foot here. You
tried to blow our ship, and now you don’t want to talk. If that’s what you want
to keep doing, please tell me now so I can put you out of your misery.”

She let go and Nina collapsed to the ground with a
thud. She clutched her throat and looked up in terror as Ryonna towered over
her.

“I’m listening… or would you like to go for another
trip against the wall?”

Droxians were known for their brutal interrogations.
More often than not, the subjects would either speak or succumb to their
wounds. And in this case, Ryonna had no emotional attachment to the life of
someone who would have killed thousands if not more with her previous actions.
She knew the commodore and Chase had second thoughts, backed by the principles
of their Alliance allegiance. She, however, didn’t recognize them yet. And as
long as no official treaty or alliance had been signed by her people, she would
treat the subject as it would be on Droxian soil.

Also, unluckily for Nina, Ryonna had lost her power
to see a person’s time of death, so she had no idea if she would end Nina
today, or if the prisoner would eventually speak.

When she stayed silent too long, Ryonna took a
sudden step towards her, but Nina raised her hands protectively over her face.
“W-wait.”

“I won’t wait long.”

Nina took a deep breath and managed a whisper. “I’ll
tell you what you want to know.”

“That’s better.” Ryonna softened infinitesimally. “I
understand you lost someone close to you. I’m very sorry for that. But if you
think the Alliance is at fault, you’re wrong.”

Silent tears flowed down Nina’s face and Ryonna took
a maternal guess.

“What was his or her name?” she asked quietly.

The woman sobbed. “Angeliki. Her name was Angeliki.
She was just thirteen.”

Ryonna sighed. She understood the mother’s pain—how
could she not? For the last few weeks, she hadn’t known if Ronan was alive or
dead. But this woman had tried to do something that would have blown up a lot
of people. Ryonna needed information.

“Who told you to blow up the ship? Who provided the
explosive?”

Nina looked down guiltily. Ryonna knelt down and
lifted her chin with a stiff finger.

“Look at me, Nina. I don’t want to hurt you anymore,
but I will if you don’t start telling me who asked you to do this. I am sorry
for your little angel; I understand your pain. But the person who convinced you
to act this way must be stopped or many Angelikis will lose their lives. Do you
have any idea how many sons and daughters would have lost their lives today if
you had succeeded? What would Angeliki think of you then?”

That last sentence hit home and Nina sobbed
uncontrollably. When she’d finally cried herself out, she looked up at Ryonna
in despair. “You’re right,” she whispered. Then she proceeded to tell her everything…

A few moments after Nina finished telling her story,
the brig door opened and Commodore Saroudis stormed inside accompanied by two
security goons.

“What have you done?” he demanded.

Ryonna got back up on her feet and looked the
commodore straight in the eye. “I did what was necessary. I have the
information we will need to track the perpetrators.”

“You should not have used violence to acquire that
information.”

“Would you rather one of your precious ships gets
blown out of existence before doing what needs to be done?”

His face flushed red. “This is not our way!”

“I know, but it is mine.”

Chase and Daniel
landed near the prison and were soon directed to where the Obsidian emperor was
being held.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t come to the funeral with you
today,” Daniel said as they walked.

“It’s okay, I understand. Would have been weird
timing anyway. I was visited by yet another Olympian.”

“Really? Who was it? What did they want?”

“It was Ares. He wanted to help me master my powers…
and he trained me to do so.”

Daniel was surprised. “In such a little time?”

“From what I gathered, time passes much slower in
the vision than on Earth. In fact, only a few minutes had passed when I felt I
trained for hours.”

“What did you learn about your powers?”

“That I could destroy entire planets if I’m not
careful.”

Dan’s jaw dropped.

“Yeah, I feel the same, bro.”

“Anything else? I’m almost afraid to ask.”

“Well, he’s certain Argos let me live on both our
encounters on purpose.”

Daniel frowned. “Why?”

“He doesn’t know, but that worries the hell out of
me.”

“I bet.” Daniel shook his head in astonishment then
gestured up ahead. “We’re almost there.”

Chase nodded quickly. “Okay, once we’re in there,
let me speak to him. Don’t intervene unless absolutely necessary.”

Daniel nodded in agreement.

As they approached, two heavily armed security
guards saluted them and moved aside to open the cell. It was poorly lit but
when they stepped inside, the Emperor stood up.

“Who might you—” His voice cut off with a gasp when
he saw Chase’s face.

“I’m not Argos,” Chase said preemptively. “And as
per your original question, I’m the one who holds your fate in his hands right
about now.”

The emperor nodded slowly. “I see. Well, as I told
your friend, I have a proposition for you.”

“Let me get this straight…” Chase sneered. “You
attack this world, you kill millions of innocent people, and now you want to
negotiate for your life?”

“You should listen to me, boy.”

“Really? Give me a reason and perhaps I will.”

The emperor held up his hands to slow the pace of
the conversation. “First you must understand something. While our people have
been at war for as long as we can both remember, the Obsidian Empire didn’t
really have a choice here.”

Chase and Daniel shot each other a look. “You’re
gonna have to do a lot better than this.”

“Look, less than a year ago, I was approached by
Argos.” He faltered for another moment as he studied Chase. “I take it you two
are siblings?”

“That part is pretty new to me as well, but
apparently he’s my twin brother. That being said, I’m nothing like him—now keep
talking.”

“The fire in your eyes right now begs me to differ.”

Chase sighed, clearly annoyed, and gestured his
hands impatiently.

“Alright, let me explain what happened, and then you
can decide if you want to hear me out or not. When the Zarlacks and Argos
approached us, they promised us a swift victory over the Alliance. They helped
us improve our firepower and added hundreds upon hundreds of their very
powerful ships to our fleet. At first, we were feeling lucky with this
partnership. But it was not a partnership that your brother had in mind… As
time passed, I became more and more of a slave to your brother. Soon, I was
nothing but an empty title. Anyone who voiced their concerns regarding Argos’
plan was dealt with swiftly and definitively. It wasn’t long before I realized
the terrible mistake I had made joining forces with that mad man.”

The emperor paused as his face grew grave.

“You see, while I have no love for the Alliance, I
despise Argos even more. He took over my empire, and I want to make him pay for
that.”

Chase cocked his head. “So we can resume fighting
one another, as things should be?”

“Does it really matter at this point in time? Are
you not in clear numerical inferiority at the moment?”

“The influx of Droxian battle ships joining the
Earth Alliance balances it out somewhat.”

“Droxians?” The emperor was stunned “I didn’t know
they cared about other species.”

“They started to when Argos made the fatal mistake
to try and wipe them out a few days ago,” Chase explained.

“A bold move indeed,” the emperor mused. “Even at
the top of our expansion, I would never have given such an order.”

Chase shifted impatiently “Where is this going,
Emperor?”

“Right. I am still influential within my own fleet.
You may have noticed that the ships coming to Earth were Zarlacks.”

“Yes and yet you were onboard the biggest one,
apparently.”

“The
Dragon’s Claw
was a
gift
. It was
supposed to be a symbol of our alliance with the Zarlacks, but as soon as we
arrived on Earth, Argos took over, and without any of my fellow Obsidian
forces, I had no other choice but to let him do so. But I am done working for
that mad man. It’s not like I’m still emperor anyway…”

“I don’t follow.”

“Argos threatened to remove me from power numerous
times. I’m sure the first thing he did after leaving here was to elect a new
pawn to do his bidding.”

Chase paused. “So if you’re not the emperor anymore,
what good are you to me exactly?”

“I’m still the emperor, technically at least. When the
emperor is missing in action but there’s no body or proof of death, there is a
period of time during which an acting emperor is elected. If the emperor
doesn’t come back to claim his throne in time, this appointee would become the
full-fledged emperor.”

“So in fact, you’re actually not proposing help, but
want
my
help to recover your throne. I think I’ve heard enough.” Chase
turned and started walking away.

“Wait! I have vital information—a way for you to
even the odds.”

Chase stopped but didn’t turn around. “Talk fast…
former emperor.”

“When Argos came to us he had only a handful of
Zarlack ships, but we helped him construct a gigantic shipyard that can churn
out up to ten battleships a week. This is why you can destroy his armada—he
won’t mind; he’ll just build another. This installation is well hidden and even
better protected. And as long as it stands, you have no chance of even
contemplating your own survival. You need to take it out.”

Chase grinded his teeth. This was terrible news, but
at least he understood how Obsidian had defeated them so brutally and so fast.
He made a fist.

“Look, I understand how you must feel.” The emperor
tempered his anger. “But if we strike a deal, I will help you destroy this
shipyard, and then I’ll help you kill Argos. In fact, I might even join your
Earth Alliance if you let me.”

Chase turned around. “Finally, you have my full
attention.”

“Good. Because we have work to do.” He glanced
around the cell. “But if you don’t mind, I’ve been rotting here for quite long
enough.”

Acting on instinct, Chase created a bright fireball
in his hand. It crackled and sent lightning sparks that illuminated the darkly
lit cell as if it was daylight.

“No funny business.”

The emperor nodded fearfully. “You have my word.”

“Excuse me if that weighs absolutely nothing in my
book.”

“I can respect that. Shall we?”

He sighed. “The commodore’s not going to like
this...”

*   *   *

One thing was for sure, the emperor in human clothes
definitely looked out of place. But it was to be expected, what with his red
complexion and orange war tattoos all over his skin.

The party arrived onboard the
Destiny’s
bridge, and, sure enough, the commodore reacted just about exactly as Chase
predicted he would.

“Lieutenant Commander! Are you insane? What is HE
doing here?”

Chase held up his hands. “It’s alright, Commodore,
he wants to help. Believe it or not.”

“The hell he does!” Saroudis raged. “This scum needs
to be executed! I had no idea he was even still alive. Guards!”

The security team raised their weapons just as Chase
raised a peaceable hand.

“Everyone cool down. I can deal with him if need
be.”

“No you can’t, Chase,” the commodore derided. “You
can’t control your powers so I forbid them, remember?”

“That… was the day before yesterday,” Chase answered
with a small smile.

“What?”

“Long story. In summary: I am in control now. And I
don’t need anyone’s help to deal with him. Trust me.”

The commodore looked dubious at best and Daniel
stepped in to help.

“Commodore, he’s telling the truth. They both are.
Chase seems to control his powers effortlessly now and the emperor has given us
some vital strategic information. We’re going to need his help.”

The commodore exhaled deeply. He made a quick
gesture and the men lowered their weapons. “It’s not like I’m in command of anything.
Perhaps you want to take over, Chase?”

“Nah, thanks, Commodore, I’m fine.”

“I was being sarcastic, Lieutenant Commander!” The
commodore shook his head. “Look, I know you mean well, Chase, but there is such
a thing as the chain of command. You report to me. You actually get your orders
from me. You don’t go on errands like this without clearing it with me first!”

“I know, sir, I’m... I’m sorry.” Chase flushed.
“Please understand that I’m not doing anything to endanger this ship or fleet.”

“I don’t doubt that for a single instant, Chase, but
that’s beside the point.”

“Right... My bad?” Chase tried again, raising an
eyebrow.

The commodore shook his head hopelessly. “Never
mind. Now would someone please tell me why I have the Obsidian emperor on my
bridge and give me a reason, any reason, why I shouldn’t blast him into space
from the nearest airlock?”

“Because he can help us put a serious wrench into
Argos’ plan.”

Chase explained the situation and the emperor added
even more details this time around. He explained everything in terms of
defenses, even said he knew the de-activation codes for the main shields. He
brought up the star map and showed exactly where the giant shipyard was located
and where to expect resistance. He even provided a safe route to avoid as many
battle groups as possible on the way. All in all, extremely useful information.
As if to seal the deal, he also prepared a message to be sent to a few select
ships captained by people he knew would follow his orders to the letter without
resistance and proposed that they meet them before the attack on the target.”

About the time he was finished, Ryonna and Tar’Lock
joined them on the bridge. At the sight of the emperor, Ryonna’s face tightened
and a deep growl rumbled in her chest.

“Easy, tiger.” Chase calmed her with a smile. “How
did it go?”

“I extracted the information we required and went to
see Yanis to help us locate the person who gave Nina her orders.”

“That’s good news. How did you convince her to
talk?”

The commodore raised his hand. “You don’t want to
know.”

Chase drew in a tight breath, but nodded. “We needed
that information, so thank you, Ryonna.”

“Finally, someone who understands.”

“Don’t get used to it,” warned the commodore.

“So what’s next?” Chase asked, glancing up again at
the star chart.

“I’ll report to Admiral Thassos, see what size fleet
we can devote to the destruction of this tactical target. And since it’s
getting late, you can all go get some rest. As for you, emperor, while I
appreciate the help and information you’ve provided, you will sleep in a nice
bunk located in our brig.”

“Absolutely,” the emperor complied immediately.

His nonchalance was unnerving and Chase had no doubt
that he had something up his sleeve. But at the moment, he had provided the
Earth Alliance with valuable information, information so valuable it could
possibly save all their lives. He’d have to bite his tongue.

“You two.” The commodore glanced at Ryonna and
Tar’Lock. “While you aren’t members of my crew, and therefore not subject to my
orders, could you please try to locate the person or persons responsible for
the acts of terrorisms before it gets even further out of hand?”

Ryonna nodded. “Absolutely. We’d be honored to
help.”

Chase approached her. “You alright? You seem a
little on edge… Can I help?”

“As a matter of fact, yes. I would like to keep
guard outside the brig while that
thing
”—he cast the emperor a vicious
look—“is amongst us. I don’t trust him.”