Stand or Fall by Kevin Ikenberry

Author:Kevin Ikenberry [Ikenberry, Kevin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Seventh Seal Press
Published: 2018-08-07T06:00:00+00:00

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Chapter Nineteen

Weqq

The Quiet Storm settled on an isthmus of high ground between expansive marshlands and thick, canopied jungle. Rsach recognized the terrain from the full report filed by Jessica Francis after her mission. A few kilometers away, the MinSha continued to strip and re-purpose Raleigh Reilly’s fallen command ship, Satisfaction. Through the foliage to the immediate east of the marshlands rested the MinSha science compound Jessica had been instrumental in saving. Seeing the terrain gave Rsach a sense of the obstacles she faced, and overcame, through the course of the mission. Fresh gouges remained in the dense, green marshes as if a giant Oogar had slapped the ground with its massive claws. In some places, he could see larger cargo units and the wreckage of Human CASPers poking through the intense greenery. Behind the foliage, though, lay Weqq’s greatest resource in the seeded, cultivated flora the MinSha spread more than a millennium ago. Despite Jessica’s successful mission and the news of the TriRusk’s re-admittance to the Union, the rest of the galaxy had no idea about the trove of medicinal compounds hidden in the jungles of Weqq. As the Peacemaker’s rally point, it was a critical location, as they hoped to get the support of the newly-approachable MinSha and the TriRusk. Still, Rsach worried.

The Mercenary Guild was far better organized, manned, and equipped for open warfare than the Peacemaker Guild. Aside from weaponry and capabilities, though, Peacemakers remained strewn across the galaxy in their myriad of barracks and assignments. Consolidating them to mount an offensive action, even something as simple as aiding the Four Horsemen, would prove difficult. In the eyes of the Mercenary Guild, it was impossible—far beyond what the Peacemaker Guild was capable of—and that was exactly what Rsach wanted. Like the guild masters before him, Rsach understood the galaxy’s tenuous grasp on peace was likely to fail in spectacular fashion.

How ironic it was that a Veetanho would once again go after a species she believed could be subverted. Yet, while the TriRusk ran and hid for several hundred years, Rsach knew the Humans were not about to flee. They would make their stand, not only on Earth but throughout the galaxy, in places Peepo and her council might not expect, with more ferocity than the Mercenary Guild believed possible. He didn’t know if Peepo was a student of history, but the Veetanho race’s approach to the Flesset War had been much different and far quicker than their seeming blockade and menacing tactics displayed on Earth. Things might have been different if humanity’s reaction to Peepo’s initial strikes hadn’t been to withdraw to unknown destinations, of course, but time was skewed in favor of the Humans. Rsach expected the Four Horsemen—and several other capable companies—to join the fray in the very near future. Their initial attacks would be critical, and when they succeeded, as Rsach and his advisors expected, they would need a calculated, timely response from a powerful, committed ally.

We will give them what they need.

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