Page 229 of Scorching the Alien Empire
Then—above.
An orb appears.
Small. Dark. It pulses, shimmering with cosmic hues, light bending and curling around it like a star collapsing. The air shifts. Sound distorts.
Despite its size, it hums with unthinkable force—potential. As if grown larger, it could consume this room, this ship, thissystem.
I reach instinctively, catching Princesa’s tiny human frame as it tugs at her hair, Todd clinging tightly like a brooch.
“Imperator’sballs!” The Imperator gasps, nearly tumbling from his disc. Around him, chaos erupts. The irksome, high-pitched airy music dies as the musicians abandon their instruments. Nobles duck. Even warriors falter—retreating toward exits with haste unbecoming of warriors.
Only the two purple Battlesuits hold fast. One levels a cannon and opens fire—crimson bolts vanish mid-air, twisted and unraveled by the gravitational maw.
“Icouldstop it,” Princesa murmurs sweetly, fluttering lashes at me. “But you’ll have to give me a little sip of that yummy, Mr. Frowny Face, bond juice,” she purrs, eyebrows bouncing suggestively.
She lies.Nothing can stop this—the power to unmake reality itself.
Then, just as suddenly, it vanishes.
“Krogoth Star-Eyes!” Chief Borrthak drops to his knees, arms outstretched, eyes lifted skyward. “The Gods walk among us!”
Krogoth stands proud and tall, his black cloak swirling in the cosmic wake beside the pure white of Rocks’. They are radiant together, twin pillars of might and grace. The jeweled horns of his crown gleam in the orange and blue glow of the dual stars above.
A regal figure—a High Chieftain in truth.
The greatest... if not for me.
Will he submit to a vote? Or face me as a mortal? My fists tighten, Rush seething molten hot beneath my skin at the thought of such a brutal contest. At last, a foe worthy of my fury.
The Nebians’ frantic muttering dies down, their fear and confusion fading.
“They should all shave their heads in shame!” Voryx, Second of Clan Aquaxus snorts, doubled over in laughter. Others join him—some mocking, some unsettled.
Up on the balcony, the Imperator grips the edge of his perch. Pale-blue knuckles strain over smooth stone. Over the precipice, his celestial collar is setting, reality now dawning on his false assumptions and ambitions.
“What... how?” he whispers, orange eyes blinking rapidly as he peers past the railing. “Poof from thin air... just like that—the power todevour suns.” He shakes his head, gaze landing on Krogoth. “By the twin suns, I’m just grateful you didn’t unleash this... ability during our war.”
He chuckles dryly—but there’s nothing light in the sound.
“Seeing this only affirms my strategy,” he mutters, eyes glowing with renewed urgency. “The Warrior of Peace—Xandor—urged me to dismantle our NeuroLinks systems. He claimed it was only a matter of time before the Fallen would compromise the network. He spoke of things with... unsettling certainty.”
His words draw scattered mutters from the now-recovering Nebians.
“He told me of things heshouldn’thave known. I didn’t listen. I see now, they’ve come to pass. As will his NeuroLink prediction.” The Imperator lifts his gaze. “Together, as allies, I propose we pursue the Fallen into their core systems. First, we strikeSothis Prime. With my fleet. Your powers, we’ll crush them before they can regroup.”
“Sothis Prime is no more,” I growl, savoring the memory of those cold, dead worlds of metal engulfed in oceans of searing plasma. Planetary rings of smoldering wreckage—their silent graveyard. “Reduced to ash by my wrath.”
The room freezes. Gasps ripple across the chamber.
“You jest,” the Imperator says, frowning. “Our intel—limited as it is—marks Sothis as their primary manufacturing nexus. Billions of vessels, an industrial fortress. You’d need a fleet larger than—”
“Two warships,” I interrupt.
Silence.
“Within the Crucible, I faced the Voidbringer.” My fists clench, bones creaking beneath my strength. “It tried to break me. But together with the Gods,” I nod to Princesa, “weimprisonedit. Long enough for vengeance. Long enough to rescue the clones and Revered Mothers.”
Krogoth’s gaze sharpens, understanding. He’s seen the truth through the Mortakin-Tok. The others frown, confusion and disbelief painting their expressions.
