The Moon
Spectre Moon Base
August 14, 2019
16:48 EDT

“..we’ll load up all the supplies you want to take with you and put them in Abi’s dimensional storage first. After that, we’ll load the shipping containers one by one. Now, as you said earlier, Black dragons can lift their own weight using telekinesis, right? We were thinking the best way to load the shipping containers would be to have a Black dragon lift them into place.”

“How heavy do you estimate the shipping containers will be when full?” Selalea asked

“Around three point five to three point eight metric tons each. A lot of that is the shipping containers themselves, but the eggs and their individual boxes add a sizeable amount,” Gabriel replied.

“That is well within an adult Black dragon’s capabilities.”

“Perfect. Well, based on the rate at which Abi is leveling, we want to aim for a departure date of August 24 at the latest. If we miss that window, then we’ll need to wait until September 3.”

Selalea had a puzzled look on her face. “I’m not quite sure I understand. Why do we need to depart during certain windows?”

“As you know, Abi is able to grow in size,” Alexandra replied. “When she goes through these growths, there is the slight possibility that things inside can be damaged or destroyed. To negate such risks entirely, we are setting the departure date to be right after her latest growth. We need to do it this way, because mana can’t keep accumulating for very long. Sooner or later she has to initiate the next growth. Fortunately, these growths take twice as long each time they happen, giving us longer and longer windows.”

“I see. We should be able to have things loaded in time, assuming you’ll have the shipping containers soon.”

Alexandra nodded. “Jonathan’s sisters have managed to find a company willing to sell us six hundred shipping containers. We’ll be—”

[Sorry to interrupt,] Abi said. [Kor, I am receiving a message from someone named Xigios Dryth aboard the ship Nira’s Revenge. The man is requesting to speak with you or Jonuth as soon as possible. He also seems to know that there are six hundred ships on their way to Earth right now.]

[Xigios Dryth?!] Tich exclaimed. [I know him, but why would he be trying to contact you or Jonuth?]

[I don’t know a Xigios Dryth. What can you tell us about him?]

---

“Has something happened?” Selalea asked.

“My apologies.” Alexandra answered. “Abi has received a message from Scyftan space. We’ll need some time to see what the person wants.”

“Is it unusual to receive messages such as this one?”

“It is when we don’t know the person. If you’ll excuse us for a few minutes.”

“Certainly,” Selalea said, sitting down and viewing the tablet in front of her.

---

[He had one of the best strategic minds I’ve ever encountered. He finished top of his class in the Naval Academy and quickly rose through the ranks. If I remember correctly, the fleet he was commanding was patrolling a stretch of our border with The Confederation. Beyond that, I don’t know much else about him,] Tich explained.

[I have some more information. He was an admiral in the Scyftan fleet until the coup happened, abandoning his fleet by stealing one of their hyperspace capable shuttles. After that, he was off the grid for over four hundred years before reappearing, now leading the mercenary group ‘The Indomitables.’ They have had a very good track record, especially since he took over.]

[It appears he had a wife, Nira Dryth,] Abi continued. [She died when a beam weapon from a ship allied with Kaldrus Dhir impacted the part of the space station she worked in. Digging further, it seems that his wife gave birth to a daughter, Esriro Dryth, but Xigios appears to not have known about the pregnancy. Esriro was adopted by family friends and joined the navy when she was of age. She graduated with high marks and rose through the ranks for two hundred years before retiring and falling off the grid as well. Nothing seems to be known about her since then.]

[Interesting,] Kor said, sitting behind his desk. [It sounds like he may have been biding his time, just as we have. Put him through, Abi. Narrow field of view for now. I don’t want him seeing anyone else.]

[Putting him through now.]

---

Somewhere in the Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy
The Indomitables Flagship - Nira’s Revenge
08:56 SET (16:56 EDT)
August 15, 12610 (August 14, 2019)

Xigios strummed his fingers on his armrests while he waited. An AI had answered his transmission and then quickly put him on hold when he asked to speak to Kor Gidres or Jonuth Kidravia. He had only heard her voice, but she sounded a lot different than the AIs he was used to talking to. He also had a feeling he had heard that voice before, but couldn’t place it. Without notice, a headshot of a human man was projected above his desk.

“My name is Kor Gidres. I was told you wished to speak with me. Xigios Dryth, is it?”

“Yes, sir. I have recently been informed that six hundred ships recently departed from the Warvyn Industries shipyards and are currently enroute to Earth. I also know that is where Jonuth Kidravia and you, yourself are currently located. I would appreciate it if those ships could halt their journey to Earth long enough to take one of my crew onboard.”

“What makes you think I am in command of those ships, or would even turn them around if I did? I don’t know you. In fact, I had never heard about you until today.”

“I got your contact information from Ercan Warvyn who all but confirmed that you commissioned those six hundred ships, and they are on their way to Earth. I also assume that someone on your end told you all about me before you answered the call. You, Jonuth Kidravia and I have a mutual interest.”

“Ercan told you, eh? I assume that ‘mutual interest’ is Kaldrus Dhir? So what. We’ve got enough ships and personnel to deal with Dhir. I have no reason to trust you, even if Ercan seems to.”

“I want that bastard to pay for what he has done!” Xigios spat. “His thirst for power got my wife and billions of our people murdered! You have no idea how hard it was for my daughter and I to stand in front of Kaldrus Dhir not two days ago and not be able to do anything about it! Sure we have the ships and manpower to roll over what little defenses are in place, but that would solve nothing. Without Jonuth Kidravia to immediately take his rightful place, the power vacuum would tear our people apart.”

“So you do know about your daughter, then. What were the two of you doing standing in front of Dhir in the palace he never leaves?”

“Two days ago he had a message put out looking for a mercenary group to accomplish a mission for him. We were nearby for some R&R, so I did some digging. I have a contact within Naval Command who claimed that a ship by the name of The Fang of Khigil had received a message containing the location of Jonuth Kidravia. Everyone knows that Dhir has been searching for the last thorn in his side forever. When I realized his intentions, The Indomitables were the first to answer. I wasn’t about to let some other mercenary group take the job, because any one of them would have actually fulfilled it.”

“You admit to taking a contract put out by Dhir. Why would I ever let you or any of your crew near Jonuth Kidravia after hearing that?”

“Because I would never harm the only hope for our people to return to what they once were, and I had something I thought he needed to take his throne back. The Indomitables are the most respected mercenary group in this quadrant. I have one thousand one hundred and twenty two ships with the men and women to crew them. I had planned to offer them to Jonuth Kidravia when we arrived there in ten months, but by the time we arrive, he’ll have been long gone.”

“You’ve given me something to think about. I need to confer with some people and will re-initiate this transmission in twenty minutes, alright?”

Xigios nodded. “I’ll be waiting. Thank you.”

Kor didn’t say anything, he just ended the transmission. Xigios ran his hands through his hair before getting up and grabbing another bottle of Scyftan ale.

“Do you think they’ll go for it?” Esriro asked.

“I don’t know,” he replied after taking a swig of ale. “He is a hard man to read.”

“I was racking my brain trying to remember where I heard the female voice from at the beginning of the transmission. It took me a few minutes, but I finally remembered. It was Abi, Derech Kidravia’s bondmate. I came across some old recordings while in the academy. Apparently she was able to read people..”

---

The Moon
Spectre Moon Base
August 14, 2019
17:06 EDT

[Well?] Thomas asked the room.

[He hadn’t spoken a lie in the entire transmission, Thomas. I’ve also been doing some more digging and found that since he took over The Indomitables, they haven’t once taken a contract against the Scyftan people or any of our old allies. In a lot of cases, he has stepped in and prevented other mercenary groups from striking any of the aforementioned parties. I believe we can trust him,] Abi answered.

[Another eleven hundred ships wouldn’t hurt either,] Tich replied. [The majority of the people manning our ships will be green recruits, while he probably has two million or so experienced crew. That could prove invaluable if any shots are fired.]

[I agree,] Thomas said. [Abi, can you teleport Jonathan up to you and ask him to make his way here?]

[Certainly.]

[I’ll go and meet him and escort him here,] Alexandra said, teleporting out of the room.

---

[You’re needed up on the Moon, Jonathan,] Abi said.

[Okay, I’ll be right up.]

[There isn’t enough time, I’m teleporting you up now.]

I was walking down a hall with Mason, and then suddenly I was on Abi’s bridge.

“Alright, what’s so important?”

“We recently received a transmission from Scyftan space and you’re needed in Thomas’ office. Your mom is waiting outside of the hanger to escort you there.”

“Okay,” I said, turning and starting towards the exit of the ship. “What was the transmission about?”

“The leader of the mercenary group named ‘The Indomitables’ contacted me, looking to talk to either Thomas or you. Somehow he found out that there are six hundred ships on the way to Earth right now. It seems he wants to form an alliance, and wants to send one of his crew here.”

“How was he even able to contact you?”

“Thomas left contact information for his yacht with Ercan Warvyn. While his ship is in the hanger here, all transmissions are routed over to me.”

“I see. Why would a mercenary group want to ally with us? Aren’t mercenaries only in the mercenary business for the money?”

“In the majority of cases, yes. Some, like this one, are different. The leader is a man named Xigios Dryth. At the time of the coup, he was an admiral in the navy. He was patrolling Confederation space when he got word of the coup. His wife was working on a space station orbiting the planet of Edilan when it was struck by an errant beam weapon. She, along with hundreds of others were exposed to vacuum and died. Xigios disabled all the ships in his fleet and left on a stolen transport. He was off the grid for over four hundred years and when he reappeared, he was leading ‘The Indomitables’.”

[So he wants revenge?] I asked, switching to sending since I was about to leave the ship.

[It seems that way, yes. Your mom, Tich and Thomas will fill you in more.]

[Okay.]

I teleported over to the hangar door and pulsed my mana so it would open. I found my mom on the other side, like Abi said.

“Hey. Abi filled me in a bit. What’s going on? Why do I need to be up here?”

My mom started walking, and I followed beside her. She turned to me and began, “Xigios Dryth was on his way to Earth with a fleet of over eleven hundred ships when word got to them that six hundred state of the art ships were already on the way here. Apparently Kaldrus Dhir decided to hire a mercenary group in addition to sending the closest ship, as well as Xorin Nydror, a former Spectre. Xigios and the Indomitables took on the contract, though according to him, it was to stop one of the other mercenary groups taking it, and actually trying to complete it. Abi also claimed nothing he said in the transmission was a lie, and, to my knowledge, she has never been wrong.”

“What’s the problem, then? It sounds like he could be an ally. Why not take one of his crew on board one of the ships and bring them here? Also, why didn’t you mention a former Spectre before?”

“It’s not that simple. Pygmaean space is closer to Earth than Scyftan space is. It would take three days for the ships to meet with The Indomitables’ fleet, effectively adding six days of travel time, since we would have to send the entire fleet. We can’t afford to send those ships somewhere where they could be attacked or captured, which is a very real possibility. There are very small crews on board, just pilots and engineers. They wouldn’t be able to fight against a fleet.”

“As for the former Spectre. Xorin Nydror is the man who killed your mother and father, as well as three other Spectres.”

“The man who killed my parents is alive? Why is this the first I’m hearing about it?”

She nodded. “He was the strongest of all the Spectres, so he was charged with protecting your mother. While we were on our way to Earth, we finally found out why he betrayed us. Or Abi did, at least. Roughly a year before the coup took place, his wife and daughter were abducted by Kaldrus Dhir’s people. If he didn’t do what Dhir wanted, he would have them killed.”

“And now he’s on his way here,” I sighed. “Is it to finish the job?”

“Abi doesn’t seem to think so, for one simple reason. He knows about your sisters. Kaldrus Dhir, does not.”

---

Somewhere in the Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy
The Indomitables Flagship - Nira’s Revenge
09:15 SET (17:15 EDT)
August 15, 12610 (August 14, 2019)

“.. strong do you think Abi is now?” Esriro asked.

“There is no way to really know. It could have been years ago, or it could have been recently. Even if it was days ago, she would still be very formidable with a strong crew. The navy didn’t know all that much about her. Everyone knew that she was bonded to the King, and she got stronger as he did.”

“She got stronger by siphoning off the excess mana generated by the King, right?”

“Mhmm,” Xigios mumbled before taking another swig of ale. “Every time she reaches a new level, the amount of mana needed doubles. Theoretically, she can grow infinitely, though there is a safeguard built in to prevent that, put in by the race that built her, and others of her species.”

“Safeguard? I’ve never heard anything about a safeguard.”

“You wouldn’t. Not many people would. When Egoch Kidravia died, Abi quickly shrank back down to a crystal that would fit into the palm of your hand,” he explained, holding his hand out, palm up. “As such, Abi will only grow in strength as long as her bondmate is alive. If her bondmate dies, then the process starts all over again. Before Derech Kidravia’s death, Abi was over four kilometers long, one kilometer wide, and half a kilometer tall, with a crew of over ten thousand. If the report is true, and he was only woken fifteen years ago, then Abi probably is somewhere between a fifth and a quarter of her previous size.”

“What happens to the crew if her bondmate dies?”

“She didn’t begin to shrink immediately. I believe she had a few hours to get everyone to safety before they were in any danger.”

“What if it happened while she wasn’t anywhere near a planet. Wouldn’t they all get exposed to vacuum?”

“I’m not sure about that. Perhaps you’ll be able to ask her that when you see her.”

“You think they’ll say yes?” she asked.

“I do,” he replied with a nod. “They know that Kaldrus Dhir isn’t an idiot, and he could have any number of surprises in place just waiting for someone to oppose him. They’ll say yes because an extra eleven hundred ships changes things from a high likelihood of success to a guarantee. That doesn’t mean they won’t be cautious, though. While we may be on their side, that doesn’t mean that every mercenary in The Indomitables is.”

“You’re right about that,” a male voice said before the holographic projector turned on.

Esriro didn’t recognize the man, but Xigios did. Or rather, his voice.

“Fleet Admiral Igdaris!” he exclaimed, quickly standing at attention and saluting him.

“I’m not a Fleet Admiral anymore, but I appreciate the gesture. Please, sit.”

“How were you able to initiate the transmission without me accepting it?”

“Ah, I have a wonderful friend who is very, very good with computers.”

“Abi,” Xigios stated.

“Yes. You are right that every mercenary in your company isn’t on your side. Abi has already found eleven— my apologies, twelve people who report to someone in Kaldrus Dhir’s employ, and she has only just begun.”

“Just begun? I didn’t give permission for her or anyone else to go through our systems!”

“No, you haven’t. If you want to help remove Dhir from power, you’ll let her continue, though. This is the only way we will accept your assistance, and we will not be turning around any of our ships to take one of your crew aboard. Abi has told me you are within two weeks of Pygmaean space, correct?”

“Yes, we can make it there in around twelve days. Why?”

“When we’re done with this transmission, wait a full day and then set course for the Warvyn shipyards. Abi will send you a full list of traitors before you make the jump to hyperspace. Make sure all of the traitors are either executed or imprisoned before you arrive in Pygmaean space. We don’t need them letting Dhir know what is going on.”

“I don’t understand. Why go to Pygmaean space?

“I was getting to that. Maintain your shrouds to make sure no one can track you down and don’t worry about lowering them when you enter Pygmaean space, either. They can easily detect you even with them up. Once there, they will upgrade as many of your ships as they can in the next six months. In approximately three weeks, a ship will be departing the Warvyn shipyards heading for Earth. If you still want to send a member of your crew to Earth, you can send them then. You will be allowed to send along four guards with that person, if you wish. Is everything clear?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Very well, then. Abi will remain in the systems of your ships until she is sure she has discovered everyone who might be a spy for Dhir. Do not impede her work. If you wish to make contact, just speak verbally and Abi will pass it along.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Don’t thank me, I didn’t order this. Igdaris out,” he finished, ending the transmission.

“Well, that seems to have gone better than expected,” Esriro said.

“Yes, it did. It is troubling that she found so many traitors so quickly. Now you see why I don’t want you calling me ‘dad’ or ‘father’. If any of those spies found out and got word that you were my daughter, I have no doubt that you would have been taken prisoner when we met with him.”

“I’m much more careful than you think I am, dad. This is the one ship in the entire fleet that I can guarantee is traitor free. Checking out the other eleven hundred and twenty-one ships and over two million men and women isn’t as easy, though. I wouldn’t be surprised if we have to blow a ship or two out of the stars before making the jump to hyperspace. Abi, if you’re listening, can you please send a list of all the traitors to my tablet, as you find them?”

“Certainly, Esriro,” a melodious voice came over the speakers. “I have found six more since, for a total of eighteen, and you are right about there not being any traitors on this ship. I commend you.”

“Thank you, Abi,” Esriro said, taking her tablet out of her dimensional storage. Turning it on, she navigated to the file and opened it.

As Xigios watched her read over the list, he saw her eyes turn hard, as well as her expression. “What’s wrong?”

“At this rate we may have to destroy more than one or two ships,” she answered in a very angry tone. She slid the tablet over to her father. “Take a look.”

As he read it over, he had only one word to say: “Fuck.”

---

The Moon
Spectre Moon Base
August 14, 2019
17:41 EDT

Everyone was sitting around a table discussing recent events. Having an extra eleven hundred ships would be very nice, but it would also make coordinating things harder. Coordinating five groups of one hundred twenty ships is a lot easier than nearly three times that amount, especially when they’re two separate navies.

“How many traitors do you think Abi will find?”

“A lot more than Xigios Dryth is probably expecting her to find, though that is to be expected when he is running a mercenary company with over two million employees,” Tich answered.

“Really? They have that many people on those ships?”

“Yup,” Tich replied with a nod. “That’s less than two thousand men and women per ship, which is close to the average. Smaller ships have less, but battleships, dreadnoughts and carriers all have a lot more than two thousand people to keep everything running smoothly. I’ll use an American naval vessel as an example. Nimitz class aircraft carriers have around six thousand crew members on board a comparatively tiny vessel, compared to the aircraft carriers currently enroute to Earth. Each one is just over three kilometers long, and will require twenty-two thousand men and women to effectively man each ship. We’re able to get away with so few thanks to automation. A Nimitz class aircraft carrier is nine times smaller, and requires over a quarter of the manpower.”

“Well, as much as I would like to discuss this some more, we’ve kept Selalea waiting for far too long. Now that Abi is making a pit stop in Pygmaean space, we need to make sure everything is on schedule,” my mom said.

“You don’t need me for that, so I’m going to make sure everything is set for Xigios’ arrival at the Warvyn shipyards. I’ll have to pull a lot of strings to get those ships refitted in time,” Thomas explained.

“We appreciate it, Thomas,” my mom replied, leaving the room and leading everyone to the adjoining room.

“Ah, I thought you had forgotten about me,” Selalea said with a smile. She was reclined on a couch reading the tablet, but sat up as we filed into the room.

“We apologise for keeping you waiting. There was some significant news from Scyftan space, and as a result, we can’t miss the window on August 24.”

“Can I ask what the news was?”

My mom nodded. “We were contacted by a Scyftan man who leads a mercenary company. He was on his way to Earth, but found out that there are six hundred ships already on their way here. His ships are much, much slower, and he wouldn’t make it here in time, so he contacted us. It seems he wants to form an alliance.”

“I see. Well, I was reading over everything on this,” she said, holding up the tablet. “I am confident we can get everything loaded in time to meet the window, though one thing isn’t very clear. How are the shipping containers going to get to where they need to go? There are many egg chambers scattered all over the world.”

“Ah, that’s where Purple and Black dragons come in,” Gabriel answered. “We have a large warehousing facility in Toronto. Tomorrow, all six hundred shipping containers will be transported to that facility via portals, and from there, they can be transported wherever you need them to go. I assume Purple dragons will be able to open portals to anywhere on the planet from Toronto?”

“That shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Perfect. Once the eggs are loaded into shipping containers, they can be transported back to the facility to await transfer over to Abi when she is done with her growth cycle.”

“How will the shipping containers be transferred from that facility to Abi, if she is up here?”

“There happens to be a very large airfield right next to the facility. Abi will land there, and all the eggs will be transferred over.”

“That works for me. We may not transfer eggs to the warehouse early, as we would prefer to not have them all in once place for very long. All of them being on one ship is already unnerving for a lot of my kind. We will transfer any food and other things we may want to take with us early, though.”

“That is perfectly fine,” my mom said. “If our kind produced eggs, we wouldn’t want them all in one place, either.

The meeting looked like it was going to drag on for a while and since I wasn’t needed, I excused myself. Logistics is incredibly boring, and I’d leave that to my sisters since they seemed to enjoy it. I made my way back down to the base under the Rocky Mountains and looked for my friends. I checked their rooms first, and when I didn’t find them, I checked the cafeteria. I found them pretty quickly, and saw them sitting with my sisters and someone totally unexpected.

I went through the lineup gathering some food and grabbing something to drink, and headed over to the table.

“Hey guys,” I greeted, sitting in the only vacant spot, which happened to be beside Tessa.

“Hey, what happened, Jonathan? One second you were walking next to me and the next you went poof. All Abi said was that you were needed elsewhere.”

“Tessa’s father received a message from someone back in Scyftan space, so they needed me to go up there and make a decision.”

“Oh? I haven’t heard anything about that,” Tessa said.

I filled them in on what happened while I ate dinner, which didn’t seem to slow any of them down from eating, either. Everyone, even Tessa was eating as if they were starving. When I got to the part about the eleven hundred ships, Mason and Ben were excited about the prospect of seeing so many ships, while everyone else seemed indifferent about it.

“So what do you guys think about going into the dungeon tomorrow, instead of waiting until Saturday? I know we said we’d wait until then, but I’m getting incredibly bored. I didn’t get any ability that I need to level, outside of Precognition which can be leveled up sitting on a couch. Hopefully it will be less boring when we finally start some training.”

My sisters and Tessa started giggling while my friends had smiles on their faces.

“What?” I asked.

“We thought you wouldn’t ask,” Anja replied. “We were just talking about that before you arrived. All of us were going nuts practicing the same thing over and over for the past few days. It would be good to get back into the dungeon to break up the monotony.

“So we’re decided then? Back to the dungeon in the morning?”

“Hell yeah!” Mason exclaimed. “We should be able to get there a lot faster too. You said that the armor in our room has Mana Crystals or whatever incorporated into them, right? I think if I channel mana into mine, then I can make it all the way there without having to wait for mana to regen halfway. That would save us like a half hour of time, if we were driving there instead.”

“Good point, I hadn’t thought about that. So are you guys going to stay here tonight, or go back home?

“The latter for Sonja and myself,” Anja answered. “We’ll wait until after our parents chat with yours on Friday or Saturday. Until then, we’ll be staying at home since teleportation makes it so easy.”

“Ditto,” Mason replied.

“Same for me as well,” Ben said.

The nine of us made our way to the lobby when we were finished eating and spent the next few hours getting to know one another. My sisters hadn’t spent a lot of time talking with my friends, and everyone had only met Tessa recently. She told us what it was like growing up the past eighteen years while traveling between galaxies with her parents. She too, had been in stasis for over fourteen hundred years, while her parents waited for mine to wake me out of stasis.

Before long my friends and sisters went to sleep and it was just Tessa and myself sitting there chatting. We lost track of time, and didn’t notice that there were fewer and fewer people in the lobby. Eventually, my mom and dad made their way down and spotted us.

“So what are you two up to?” my mom asked.

“Just chatting. My friends went home and my sisters went to sleep a while ago. It seems like we lost track of time.”

“Well, you should be heading to bed if you want to be at the dungeon nice and early in the morning. It’s nearly midnight.

“Really?” I asked.

My dad nodded pointing behind me. “Take a look.”

I looked where he was pointing and saw the clock. It was 23:48 EDT. “Oh, shit, I forgot about Vixa,” he said before turning to Tessa, “So make sure to scan a dragon between now and Friday. Your parents or mine should be able to help you with that.”

“We certainly can. Why don’t you meet us for breakfast in the morning, Tessa,” my mom offered. “Selalea and her son will be there, so you will be able to scan a dragon then.”

“Sure,” Tessa replied.

“Perfect. Well, I’ve got to say good night to Vixa and then go to sleep.” I gently picked up Tessa’s hand and kissed the back of it, and then lowering it back down and letting go. “I’ll see you either tomorrow morning or for our date on Friday. It was very nice chatting with you tonight.”

“Good night, Jonathan. I had fun as well.”

I nodded and teleported to the elevator leading down to the enclosures.