Hye shared his hard-won experience with his friends and generals, turning a potential slaughter into a coordinated repositioning. Five hours had passed since the first shot was fired, five hours of grinding attrition. Hye decided it was ti to close the trap.
[Moth, activate the defensive net now!] Hye ssaged, a predatory grin forming. [It’s ti to roast these motherfckers!]
The silence that followed was only a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity. Then, a reply flickered that made Hye’s blood run cold.
[Give an hour!]
Hye stared at the words, unable to process the sheer absurdity of the statent. [An hour? What do you an, an hour? Don’t tell you lost the defensive centres already!]
That was the only logical conclusion. If the planetary defence control centres had fallen to the enemy, the plan would have been shot dead in the heart. But the reality was far worse. Hye had underestimated just how deep the poison of treason had seeped into the Hescos’ high command.
[The centres are secure, but the problem is here at the Council!] Moth’s reply ca in a frantic burst of text.
The report was a nightmare. Hye thought he had flushed every rat out of the Elder Council, but a few sleeper agents had remained. The mont the planetary shields had gone down, and Hye had transitioned to outer space, they had struck. A massive bomb and many explosives had been detonated inside the main eting hall.
The carnage was significant. Several loyalist Elders were dead, and the Grand Elder himself had been wounded in the blast. If the majority of the leadership hadn’t moved to a secondary hall minutes before, tracking Hye’s progress against the God Weapon, the entire Hescos’ high command would have been decapitated in a single second.
But the damage was wider than just hurting the elders. The main control units that linked the elders with the defensive centres had been vaporised in the blast. To reactivate the connection, they now had to send couriers with new equipnt to each individual centre. And with the centres currently surrounded by traitors, getting a ssenger through was a suicidal mission.
[At least tell you have active portals linked to the centre’s locations!] Hye demanded, his patience snapping.
[What use are portals when they open into a warzone?] Moth responded, his panic palpable. [The centres are under siege from the outside. Sending a handful of ssengers into that is suicide!]
[Just prepare to open them,] Hye countered, his mind working hard and fast, preparing for the counterattack of this move. [How long until you can stabilise them?]
Hye had no interest in waiting an hour for the Hescos to find their courage. The enemy was already firing the God Weapon, and every minute the planetary grid stayed dark was a minute the Toranks could use to reorganise. He chose the most direct, most brutal solution available.
[Five minutes, top,] Moth replied, bewildered. [But Hye, what are you planning to do?]
[You’ll see. See you in five then!] Hye closed the ssage and opened lots of others, and began sending a series of rapid-fire orders to his kingdom generals and his friends. He didn’t have ti for a long explanation.
While he coordinated, the first incomplete shot from the God Weapon mirrors was finally discharged. The mirrors shed pure energy coats that rged together, travelled through space at an accelerating pace, vaporising a dozen of his vanguard ships that had failed to clear the path in ti.
It wasn’t the world-ending blow the Toranks had hoped for, but it was a clear sign that the clock had run out.
[Keep targeting those mirrors!] Hye commanded his fleet. [Destroy every piece of them you can reach!]
Then, as Moth signalled the portals were live, Hye didn’t send a ssenger. He opened a portal and passed through it with his ship.
As Hye’s ship passed through, the full scale of the devastation unfolded below. The council building had been sheared clean in half by the blast. Thick bellows of black smoke roiled into the sky, swirling like dark spirits over the mangled remains of the architecture.
The heat still shimring off the scorched stone told Hye everything he needed to know: the strike was fresh. This explained Moth’s erratic behaviour. He didn’t get over the shock of the sudden attack and its devastating effects when he spoke with Hye.
"You ca back?!!"
The mont Hye’s ship passed through the portal, Moth instantly recognised it and ran to et the human. Moth’ face was a mask of desperation, his eyes darting toward the sky as if expecting another hamr blow from the heavens. "Is everything okay up there? What’s the status of the battle?!"
"It is stable for the mont," Hye replied, his voice a cold contrast to the chaos surrounding them. He paused, his gaze sweeping over the burning debris. "However, the situation on your front is far less fortunate. I am here to intervene. Open the portals and stand back."
Moth didn’t hesitate. He knew they couldn’t waste a single second. Without a single word of protest or a secondary question, he retreated, his hands flying over a portable command interface. Within a minute, the air groaned as dozens of shimring portals tore open across the area, each linked to a different planetary defence control centre scattered across the world.
"Lucas, listen well..." Hye summoned his most trusted subordinate.
In the next instant, the leader of the Soulers and Reapers erged. Lucas was a warrior who was stationed with Olana before Hye ca to the Hescos’ holand. It had been a necessary separation, but the ti for passive observation was over. There was no risk at Olana’s side to guard against. And Hye needed him here; the mission required a cold-hearted leader like Lucas.
"The situation is exactly as I described," Hye continued, gesturing toward the swirling portals. "Deploy all units to these coordinates imdiately. Secure the periters and eliminate any enemy presence around the centres. Once a center is cleared, report to that man over there."
User Comments
0 comments from readers