E:A Vol 1 Ch 21—April 11, 2118

The following Monday, Zy’nayth and Victoria were meeting with Vince and Chris.

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Vince Cavanaugh asked in search of more information as to what Zy’nayth was concerned over.

“No,” Zy’nayth answered.

“If you just let us know what or who you’re looking for, we can do a little searching when the teams are off-world,” Vince said.

“I appreciate the offer, General, but your teams would not stand a chance if I am right about this.”

“I wish I knew what ‘this’ was,” Chris Chapman spoke up. “And I wish we had a way to defend against it,” he said hoping to get a few stunners from the Rayth, something, anything. “Anyway, is it the Gyhan base? Traitors supplying them with advanced tech? Come on, High Chancellor, fill us in, let us do something.”

“You have enough to handle with the Gyhan attacking human villages. You can help me by keeping the Gyhan occupied.”

“Guys, he’s not going to tell you anything. I’ve tried,” Victoria chimed in.

“I understand,” Vince said, “but this problem is ours as well, High Chancellor. I don’t have many troops at my disposal, but we’re being called upon by every village and town we’ve encountered in this galaxy to defend them against the Gyhan. We don’t have your resources but my teams are good, we just need some intel so I can put them to work.”

“Victoria,” Zy’nayth said after a sigh, “see if Lutia or Janice will watch over our children. General Cavanaugh, have the rest of the Alpha Team and Kaven meet with us in your conference room. Dr. McKenna and Simon Harris should be there as well. I will also have Ja’val and my First Commander join us. I do not want your full command staff. I trust only those I have mentioned.”

“Will do. Anything else?”

“I would like to have Ja’val set up a video feed to the Vice Chancellor, he should be in on the discussion as well.”

“Equipment’s already in the room, the First Science Commander can do whatever he needs to,” Vince said.

“Very well,” Zy’nayth said and stood, “I will contact my people. Is fifteen minutes sufficient time to gather everyone?”

***

“Whatever you do,” Victoria said addressing the humans in the conference room, “do not forget that the Vice Chancellor and First Commander are Rayth. I know things have gotten a little informal with the First Science Commander here on site and my husband’s visits, but make no mistake, if you are condescending in any way, if you do not show the proper respect, you will be…well, you’d see a side of the High Chancellor you’d wish you hadn’t.”

Ja’val finished up his connection as he spoke, “It’s a side most do not walk away from.”

“Sorry,” Victoria said, “I didn’t mean to scare you guys, but it’s important.”

The intercom chimed and one of the Control Room technicians said that the High Chancellor had just teleported in with the First Commander. “Send them in,” Vince replied, his office and the conference room just up a set of steps from the Control Room. At the same time, Ja’val established his link with the Vice Chancellor and greeted him in Raythian.

Zy’nayth and the First Commander, imposing in his own right, entered the conference room. The First Commander took a seat as Zy’nayth introduced those around the table. “Vice Chancellor, thank you for joining us on such short notice.”

“I’m here to serve you, High Chancellor, at any time,” he said with a nod.

“First Commander,” Zy’nayth said as he sat at the head of the table, “I owe you an apology. There is much going on that I have not revealed to you. I returned as Supreme Commander not just to get the fleet back into shape but to search out and destroy those who are betraying the Empire. Though you have proven trustworthy in the past, with the unveiling of how far these traitors have advanced through the ranks, I had to be sure you were loyal to me. You have proven so and I will be relying heavily on you from here on out. I have come to realize that things are far beyond my ability to handle alone.”

The First Commander gave him a nod in response. “I’m honored, sir. I will not disappoint.”

Zy’nayth then took the rest of those around the table into his gaze, “Nothing leaves this room. You will not talk about it among yourselves unless you are in a secure location. The First Science Commander can set up several locations where you cannot be overheard. This room has already been isolated and secured.”

Vince gave the High Chancellor a questioning look, wondering when and how that had been accomplished, but followed it with a nod.

“Four years ago, shortly before your Expedition arrived in this galaxy, the trouble began. The Gyhan, technologically superior to other humans in the galaxy, had a sudden leap in their technological advancement. They went from a pre-industrial society to one capable of building weapons such as yours, though not quite as advanced, seemingly overnight. This, in and of itself, was not a threat to my people, however, there were a few among those of us in the upper echelon, as it were, who knew this was not a natural progression. The Gyhan had been given the information, the technology, by an advanced race. Other than my people, the only other race in this galaxy that had such knowledge were the ancient Mythicans, but they were destroyed ten thousand years ago.

“It was at that time that I instructed my First Science Commander to start monitoring the bridge portal activity from all of the ancient Mythican cities. I originally thought that perhaps there had been some Mythicans who had been in cryosleep or stasis, and were now seeking revenge on the Rayth.”

John Hagen raised his hand slightly and the High Chancellor gave him a nod, “A few questions for those of us a little slow. How did you know where this city was? And did you say ‘all’ Mythican cities? This isn’t the only one left?”

“I was alive when this city was attacked ten thousand years ago. I remembered the location, and those of the few other remaining Mythican cities in the galaxy. There are a handful of others. And by monitoring their portal activity, I knew the moment your Expedition bridged into Andromeda.”

“But you knew we weren’t Mythicans, apparently,” John said.

“Because the address from which you arrived was outside of this galaxy, and because you did not bridge off-world for several weeks, I surmised that you did not know any, or very few, portal addresses. The life support systems and electrical power took several days to come online, and that too indicated that you were not of Mythican descent.”

John raised an eyebrow, “You’ve been keeping pretty close tabs on us all along.”

“Indeed,” Zy’nayth said. “It was shortly after your arrival that some of my jets began disappearing. At first, I was not concerned. Though it is rare for a jet to be lost outside of battle, it has happened. In fact, most are lost during training exercises, but a few are downed when gathering in an industrial area that has weapons that harm the jet if shields are not in place. There are also some commanders who are not as diligent as they should be in passing along such information and keeping their logs up to date. Inventories could be months old since jets are usually not lost.

“It took a couple of months before I realized that more than a dozen jets had disappeared. That is roughly the same time that the Gyhan began attacking human villages far outside of their normal range of travel. That was when I began investigating the disappearance of the jets and found that in actuality, over fifty had gone missing. With the size of my fleet, that number is insignificant, but it is noteworthy. As I said, it is not common to lose them.

“The Gyhan began using them as transportation: they would bridge to a world in their jets, much as you do with your shuttles, but they did not just attack the nearest village or city to the bridge portal, they used the jets to go farther from the village and attack any settlement they came across. I believe it was their seventh attack on a human settlement, Be’atta’s village, that your Expedition first encountered them—and us. Be’atta,” he said, turning to her, “I am sorry for your loss, and I am sorry I have not expressed so before now.”

He turned back to the rest of the group, “Though it was not my flagship that was gathering the village, I do get reports on all gatherings. I knew your Expedition had bridged to the village just before the gathering and the subsequent attack by the Gyhan began. Though your weapons are not as advanced as ours, I was impressed with your ability to fend off the Gyhan so readily. As a man who likes to take every possible advantage in any situation, I began monitoring your activity much more closely and found that perhaps you would prove an unlikely ally in my fight against the Gyhan rebels.

“As I continued to uncover information about the Gyhan forces, I discovered that there was a traitor, or traitors, within the Raythian Empire, most likely stationed on spaceships or at our outposts. Within our culture,” he said, “it is not uncommon for one Rayth to betray another in order to rise in the ranks. However, there has never been, to my knowledge, a betrayal of the Empire. So to think that there were Rayth willing to turn their backs on their own people and align themselves with humans was something I did not wish to consider. I, perhaps, slowed my own investigation by not taking such an idea seriously. When I realized that this was a serious possibility, that is when I knew that I needed someone to keep the Gyhan occupied while I dug into finding out which Rayth would betray us.

“Because I did not trust any Rayth, not even you, First Commander, I did not want to order any of my men to attack the Gyhan in an outright aggressive move. Though I was sure we could quell their uprising for a time, it would also mean quelling any way of finding the traitors. After all, if those they are allying with are suddenly wiped out, I would have no trails to follow. That is when I decided to become a little more familiar with this Expedition: Andromeda team.

“I had intended on making myself known to one of their teams that I had been tracking. Allow myself to be captured and, in the process, arrange things so that I would prove valuable to them.”

He raised his hand as John began to say something. “I assure you, Colonel Hagen, the computer virus and the explosion that nearly killed you were not anything I planned. The last thing I wanted was for the one group in the galaxy able to fight the Gyhan effectively, other than Rayth, to be rendered helpless and unable to get off-world. In any case, my plan was to cultivate a friendship with you so that I could use you against the Gyhan while I dealt with the traitors in the Empire.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Zy’nayth noticed Victoria had stiffened and was staring down at the table. “Victoria, you did provide a way for me to get into the city, but our meeting and all that has happened between us was not something that was intentionally planned. I have never lied to you about my feelings for you, do you believe this?”

Her head was still bowed but she nodded. Zy’nayth wasn’t quite sure he believed her but now was not the time to discuss that part of his life, so he continued, “After meeting Victoria and finding out that she and Dr. McKenna were working on a way to restart Rayth digestive systems and find an alternate food supply for us, I was certain that working with the Expedition: Andromeda team would benefit both of our peoples. But as all of you in this room know, most Rayth do not see the need for an alternate food source; they simply prefer being the alpha in this galaxy. However, I have spent most of my life trying to find a way, a solution. The Vice Chancellor and my First Science Commander have been on board with this venture for quite a few millennia. And though my First Commander has not been one to voice his preference on the matter, he has known about my endeavors in this area and has not tried to block them.

“These two things, the Gyhan and the endeavor to find a food solution, were two separate issues, as far as I was concerned, until my brother’s death. Or rather, until I began going through his personal journals after his death.”

Zy’nayth sighed, “I have not allowed Victoria to share with you how I became High Chancellor. It is not something I am proud of, it is not something I wanted to do, but it happened and now you must know the truth.

“When I returned to my homeworld after rescuing my wife from those on Earth who wished to use her to betray me, I was summoned by my superior, the High Chancellor. He was my elder brother. My father held the position before him. My brother wanted to know, or appeared to want to know, why I felt it important to take the flagship and go to another galaxy to get one human.

“It was perhaps not the wisest strategic move,” Zy’nayth said, “and if one of my subordinates were to do such a thing, I, too, would question them. However, I love my wife very much and I wanted her back. I had the means to do so. After making sure that the homeworld was safe, and planning for every contingency that might arise, I went and got her.

“My brother was not satisfied with my answer and accused me of betraying him and even accusing me of falling under her influence and suggesting that she was using me to destroy the Empire. He ordered me to destroy Terra 2 and stated that until I did so, he would hold Victoria captive and…rape her.

“I summoned the High Council then and there and told them. Both his order to destroy Terra 2, a viable and expanding food source, forgive me, it is how most Rayth see this Expedition of yours, and his threat against my wife were punishable by death. He denied the accusations, but got caught in a lie regarding the destruction of this city. He then…he thrust a dagger into Victoria’s neck. Having thus harmed another Rayth’s mate, I could attack him without being punished. A fight ensued. I killed him. In our culture, if you are able to justifiably, and I use that term loosely, kill someone of rank over you, you can claim their position as your own. That is how I became High Chancellor.”

“I now understand why you didn’t want to be congratulated,” Chris Chapman said.

“Victoria, you never mentioned this stabbing,” Becket said.

“It would have led to too many questions. Obviously, my husband was able to heal me.”

“High Chancellor,” John spoke up, “I’ve been out in the field a lot and I’ve seen Rayth warriors up close and a little too personal for my liking, but I’ve never seen any that appeared to be as strong as you are. Not even close. Surely your brother, unless he was built similarly to you, knew you could take him in a fight.”

“He knew,” Zy’nayth said. “And if he did not, both myself and the Vice Chancellor told him that he could not win. I found his last journal entry that stated that he knew one of us would die that day and that he wanted it to be him. It was not, however, until shortly after I resumed my position on the flagship, that I found out why.”

Victoria immediately shot him a glance. She hadn’t been told of anything. For all she knew, he hadn’t been going through his brother’s files since finding out she was pregnant. Nothing had been mentioned since then.

“Only the Vice Chancellor knows,” Zy’nayth said as if reading her mind, “I have not even told Victoria, and I want this information, more than anything else that I reveal here today, to be kept to yourselves. My brother was the one who initiated contact with the Gyhan. He, and some of his loyal followers, gave them the technology to try and draw us into another war.”

“Why?” It was the first time the First Commander had spoken since arriving. “Sir, he was already the High Chancellor. There is no position higher that he could attain. Why throw us into another war? What was there for him to gain?”

“He did not want us to find another way to subsist. He truly believed that Rayth were the superior race and that humans should be nothing more than…livestock. He knew, of course, that I was trying to find an alternate food supply, he knew from the moment I began searching several millennia ago. I asked for his help. I think he got his idea from his wife who was equally as tyrannical as he was, more so, actually. Though our numbers are few,” he said speaking of Rayth who were searching for another way to feed, “recent years have seen more Rayth joining our cause. He allied with the Gyhan hoping they would destroy us. Destroy me. He knew I garnered the respect of Rayth throughout the Empire, and if I made my endeavor publicly known and asked for support of other Rayth, I could possibly get it. It threatened his position, or so he thought. But our people are not yet ready, or convinced, that finding an alternate food source is the right thing to do. That is why very few knew of what I was trying to achieve.

“And because he was a purist,” Zy’nayth looked around at the puzzled faces, “meaning he thought that having human mates was an abomination, when I took Victoria as my wife, it probably pushed him, or his wife to push him, to attack me personally. Even though he killed our parents to become High Chancellor, he never brought a hand to me. I do not think he wished to and not because he knew he could not win, but because, I would like to believe, that perhaps there was some brotherly love still in his heart.”

“So you believe the queen pressured him to take you on?” the First Commander asked.

“I believe that was part of it. I also believe he eventually came to realize that the Gyhan, even equipped with Rayth technology, were no match for me and my men. I think he lost control and did not know what else to do. He would not have asked for my help, though I would have willingly helped him. He was disgraced and saw no other way out. Better, he thought, for him to die than face a public humiliation.”

“So if he lost control of the situation,” Vince said, “that tells me there are numerous high-powered Rayth in control.”

“Indeed,” Zy’nayth replied, “and with the First Commander’s help, I have several places to begin. However I do not want this to escalate into a Raythian civil war. If I get rid of those who seem to be in charge, others would take their places, and because there has been some rumors of me becoming ‘soft’ since taking Victoria as my wife, my objective over the last few months was to reassert my authority as Supreme Commander. Once I am sure that my authority will not be questioned, I can start eliminating the threat at the top. Those lower in the ranks should fall in line after that. But in the meantime, the Gyhan need to be stopped.

“We have a handful of locations where we know they have bases, but trying to strike them has proven difficult. We have come to find out that they do not stay in one location for any length of time, and the duration of their stays are varied. The few times I have ordered a strike, something always seems to go wrong. Ships break down, wrong information conveyed; in other words, I cannot trust my commanders. This is where your team, General Cavanaugh, could be of assistance. I can turn over what information I have on their bases. I would like you to form a strike team. I am aware that you do not have the spaceships, but your team has been trained to infiltrate and disable without being detected.”

“What exactly do you want us to disable?” John asked.

“My jets. Right now they are the biggest threat against Rayth. Our ships can easily handle them, but they are destroying our…” he sighed, “our food supply, again, I apologize. The jets are not equipped to fly from planet to planet, but being able to bridge them to a planet, if they found a bridge portal wide enough, is to their advantage. I cannot patrol all portals to watch for fifty jets. Therefore, the jets will be your primary target. Science labs, any military facilities, armories, and the like should also be targets if you are able to get to them as well.”

“It would help us if we could get our hands on some of your tech,” John said. “We will be risking our necks for you.”

Zy’nayth sighed, “I do not wish to give away anything that could be used against my people by you or someone who might infiltrate your systems. I recall the Gyhan having already done so.”

“You’re not making this easy for us to say yes to,” John said.

“You are the ones who offered to help.”

“But you’re the one who’s limiting this strike force to my team, not all of the troops at my disposal, correct? Just the men in the is room, and Be’atta, of course.”

“Colonel Hagen, I cannot allow the information I have revealed to leave this room. If one single Rayth, no matter how low in the ranks, was to find out that I am planning on striking against leaders and commanders of my own race, I would lose what little advantage I have right now. I cannot risk this. As a military leader, certainly you must understand the situation.”

“I do understand it, sir, but I also trust my people. I wouldn’t tell them anything more than that we’re going to do a little covert op against the Gyhan.”

“There would be questions.”

“I can handle it.”

“There would be even more questions if I were to give you weapons and technology that are clearly Raythian. And those questions may not come from your people, but from mine. No. I cannot do this.”

“If I may,” the Vice Chancellor chimed in, “I think I might have an idea.”

“Go ahead,” Zy’nayth said.

“Over the last six months or so, we’ve been posturing your relationship with Victoria as being one that was contrived so that you could gain access to Terra 2 and Earth as well as provide you with children. I don’t think it would take much for Rayth to believe that perhaps, when given the opportunity, Victoria could steal some of our technology in an effort to strike back. She is a capable research scientist and has become familiar with our systems.”

“But I’m not a computer scientist,” Victoria said. “And I highly doubt people who know the High Chancellor would believe that something like this could happen on his watch. I’d never have an opportunity.”

“She’s correct,” the First Commander said, “however, there is another option. Colonel Hagen, how long do you think it will take you to plan a strike against the first Gyhan base?”

“Depends on the intel you guys give me. I’d want to do my own intel on top of it, maybe a month or so. Why?”

“Though Victoria would not be a likely suspect in stealing Rayth technology from the High Chancellor, there is someone who does have the skill to do so, and all we would need to do is create a reason for him to do it, and have a little time to spread such a rumor.”

Zy’nayth looked at his First Science Commander. “Lutia.”

“Lutia?” the First Commander asked.

“A nurse here on Terra 2 that my First Science Commander has taken a liking to. And perhaps…” Zy’nayth looked at the video screen, “Vice, what are your thoughts?”

“He’s been there a while, has earned their trust, has your trust, but perhaps the threat of having to leave the nurse…yes, it could work, however, an open betrayal by a Rayth would not be…healthy…for the First Science Commander.”

“And from what I know of you,” Victoria said to the First Science Commander, “you wouldn’t be the type to betray the High Chancellor.”

Ja’val looked at Zy’nayth, “I am willing to take the risk, sir. John’s team could use our help.”

After thinking about it a few minutes, Zy’nayth shook his head. “No. He is our best scientist, I cannot afford to have a bounty on his head.”

“If you think about it,” Chris spoke up, “if we were to come into some Rayth tech, no matter how it happened, fingers would point to the First Science Commander immediately. He would be the first suspect. John, we can do this without their tech. We have to. The Gyhan might have scanners set up to detect Rayth tech, we wouldn’t have any, that could play to our advantage.”

“Colonel Hagen,” Zy’nayth said, “I cannot risk my First Science Commander.”

“All right,” John said with a sigh, “but you owe us big time.”

“I believe I have saved your life, as well as the lives of Major Chapman, Dr. McKenna, and Victoria. I believe you owe me.”

John smiled, “I was hoping you forgot that little detail. In any case, sir, we’ll do this. I was just hoping to make things a little easier.”

“I will give you what help I can,” Zy’nayth said.

***

The group discussed a few more items then Victoria offered to give the First Commander a tour of their city, at least the part of it that was inhabited and operational. He found the shuttle bay the most intriguing. “So the roof retracts and also serves as a bridge portal? That is unique. Can you use it to transports humans?”

“If they want a hundred foot drop, sure,” Kaven said, having joined them. “We don’t know how it works, but if you’re in a shuttle and the portal’s activated, it works like the one in the control room.”

“Has the High Chancellor seen it? First Science? This could be quite beneficial to our ships.”

“I have seen it,” Zy’nayth said, “and if we could ever figure out how to stabilize energy to power one, we would have it on all of our vessels. Yet, not even First Science has been able to figure that out all of these millennia. Victoria, before you continue with the tour, you should tend to the children; I would like to discuss a few things with my two commanders while you do so.”

She nodded and walked out with the rest of the group that had joined them for the tour and headed for her quarters where Janice, who had the day off, was watching the babies.

“I was just about to feed them,” Janice said when Victoria entered her chambers.

“I’ll take care of it; go get yourself something to eat. I would like you back for a bit, though. I want to finish giving the First Commander a tour of the city.”

“Deal. Give me ten, I’ll be right back. Actually, if you’d like, I’d be happy to take the kids for the night. Give you and Zy’nayth a little time alone.”

“I’m not sure if he’d agree to that,” Victoria grinned, “I mean not having the babies under his roof. But I think I’d like it. I’ll ask him.”

Janice winked at her then went to the mess hall to grab some lunch. When she returned, Victoria was just finishing giving baby Ky’nayth his pureed carrots while Mik’kenna was playing in her crib.

“He’s more interested in trying to hold the spoon than actually eat,” Victoria said.

“I can take care of Kenna, if you want,” Janice said.

“Nah, eat your own food. I’m almost done with this little guy.”

The door opened and Zy’nayth walked in with the First Commander behind him. He took one look at his son’s orange-covered face and stifled a laugh. “I believe the food is to go into his mouth, Victoria, not on his face.”

“Sir, if your son would stop trying to grab the spoon, I might be able to do just that.”

“First Commander, this is Janice,” Zy’nayth said, “she is the head nurse here on Terra 2. One of the few people I allow to tend to my children.”

The First Commander gave her a slight bow, “It is an honor to meet you.”

Zy’nayth took Victoria’s seat and Ky’nayth clapped as his father began to feed him. There was no fighting for control over the spoon. Victoria shook her head. “I bet you use your telepathy to get him to mind.”

“I would not do something like that. First Commander, Victoria is more than able to show you around the city if you do not mind me staying behind to tend to my children, and she would be more able to calm any fears about an unknown Rayth walking through the corridors than I would.”

“Very well,” the First Commander said, “Victoria, after you.”

After the tour, they returned to Victoria’s quarters where the babies were now taking their naps while Zy’nayth and Janice talked in the small kitchenette.

“I see my wife did not get lost,” Zy’nayth said.

“Not this time, anyway,” she replied.

“So what do you think of their city?” he asked the First Commander.

“It’s quite different from what I’m used to. Their command is very…unstructured.”

“There’s structure,” Victoria said, “we have a chain of command and such, we’ve just found it more effective to work as a team. Let everyone voice their opinions.”

“But how are decisions made? Multiple opinions lead to multiple decisions then nothing gets accomplished.”

“Everyone has their opinions heard, but the department head makes the final call based on the information he has. If there’s disagreement, General Cavanaugh will make the final decision.”

“I don’t think that would work well in our culture.”

“Perhaps,” she replied, “but it doesn’t mean it’s wrong or inefficient or ineffective.”

“First Commander, would you like to spend the rest of the week down here?” Zy’nayth asked. “Victoria can arrange quarters for you.”

“You need someone on the ship, sir.”

“The Second needs a chance to prove his worth,” Zy’nayth replied. “However, if you are uncomfortable staying here, it is understandable.”

“If it would not inconvenience you, sir, I would like to explore more of this city. Victoria mentioned that they have some facilities set up on the mainland as well. Botanical, agricultural. I would like the chance to see that in case they are able to find an alternative food source for us, I would like to be familiar with these growing methods.”

“Do you wish us to find another way for us to feed?”

“Until the Gyhan spread that virus that killed us when we fed on infected humans, I would’ve said no. I’ve since changed my mind. I lost good friends to that.”

“We all did. Victoria, would you arrange quarters for the First Commander while he returns to the ship to gather anything he may need during his stay here?”

“Of course,” she smiled.

“Make sure the Second knows I expect my ship to be perfect when I return,” Zy’nayth said to the First Commander.

“I will, sir.” Then with a tap of his comlink, the First Commander gave the order to be teleported to the bridge of the flagship.

“So, did Janice ask you about keeping the kids tonight?” Victoria asked her husband.

“She did.”

“And?”

“I told her that was acceptable but only if she kept them until noon tomorrow. I would enjoy a little quiet time with my wife.”

“You really said it was okay?”

“I did. And once the First Commander has his quarters and is settled, I thought you and I could go out to the west dock and watch the sunset.”

Victoria threw her arms around her husband and kissed him. “I would love that.” Then she turned and thanked Janice before heading out to arrange quarters for the First Commander.