The Dark Crusade by Walter H. Hunt

Author:Walter H. Hunt [Hunt, Walter H.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, science fiction, military, General, War & Military
ISBN: 9780765349835
Publisher: Tor Science Fiction
Published: 2006-05-29T15:00:00+00:00

In the Imperial Assembly, rumors abounded about what was happening beyond the Rip. After the battle at SS Aurigae—there were two, of course, several days apart, but that was glossed over in 3-V and in debate—the stories of what was going on out there were full of hyperbole. KEYSTONE was not the homeworld of the enemy, but rather a sort of gateway to the area of space from which they had come. Their space was somewhere between hundreds and tens of thousands of parsecs away, depending on the source you listened to; and the Imperial Navy was killing vuhls by the tens of thousands everywhere they went.

Exaggeration aside, most speculation centered on the "specialists" whose contribution had changed the course of the war. A holo of the leader—the man named Smith—appeared on the comnet several Standard days after Anderson's fleet had charged through the Rip and captured Portal System: it was of a young man, handsome yet aloof and distant. At his neck was a scarf held in place by a pin with a star shrouded in mist—the Blazing Star, the name of his organization. Scholarly commentators observed the symbolism: of a bright luminary that shone through obscuring clouds, of the ancient association of that star with Divine Providence. After the victory at KEYSTONE, it represented the turning of the tide.

Some of Smith's philosophy made its way back to the Solar Empire. The very nature of the enemy, the way they were characterized, was altered from an inimical alien race to a hostile, malign pestilence that required eradication wherever it was encountered. It was echoed on 3-V; it was welcomed from all quarters. It was even embraced by members of the Imperial Assembly. Its popularity grew with amazing speed.

As a departure from the strategies that had prevailed for more than twenty-five years, it was almost too good to be true.

Smith offered no interviews, made no proclamations, issued no statements. He left the conduct of the campaign, at least in public, to Sir Erich Anderson; the same talking heads that spoke of the symbolism of the Blazing Star offered comparisons between Admiral Anderson and his storied ancestors.

And beyond the Rip, the killing continued.

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