The Grand Technomugar Fortress had just completed another space warp.

The monstrous construction was now only 15,000 lightyears away from Earth. In the huge Fortress, workers and soldiers worked on upgrading the massive ship's systems as per the Dark Lord's command.

Organic slaves under the lashes of their cruel Technomugar overseers performed some of the work, laboring as they moved heavy objects into place. The worst work was always assigned to these slaves. It mattered little to the Dark Lord if any of these slaves died on duty or not.

As for Ekogaru, the ancient cyborg cackled and wheezed as he staggered into his Central Meeting Chamber, sitting down upon his throne in the center of a semicircle of his generals and advisors. "All right," he hissed. "I was busy in my meditations after having fought Aliscea and the accursed Earth woman who was Yvona's niece. It is too bad that we cannot capture them and break them to do My bidding…they would make great slaves. But, I have already decided that the Terran and Pellian races have forfeited their existences; and they shall begin to die soon. Now, what is it you gentlemen need? I am a busy man."

General Hollander spoke first.

"My Lord," he said. "Ergitz, myself, Pavlen, Migdal, Bralak, Marda and Tra'Chariv have been your advisors, generals, and servants for three thousand years. We have followed you faithfully, Lord, through victory, defeat, triumph, and tragedy. We have seen your great effort grow from a small scientific experiment on Rikasha to one of the greatest Empires known to humanity anywhere. We believe that your efforts in cyborgization and the improvement of the human race are unparalleled, and are achievements that will last forever. We should have died three millenia ago, yet we still live, and we still reign."

"You are the oldest of us, My Lord," said Ergitz in a soft voice. "As your advisors, as well as your friends, we could not help noticing that this war with Earth and Pellias has recently…drained you a great deal. We have met, and we have considered your leadership as of late, Sire. Unfortunately, we have come to a conclusion that you may not like, so please bear with us."

"You have been conspiring against me?" hissed Ekogaru. "You, my friends…acting against my orders to…?"

"We are still your friends," said Bralak.

"Lordship, this is an example of what we see in your leadership that concerns us," said Tra'Chariv, who was Ekogaru's Grand Physician. "We see that you are ill. Sick, tired, and irrationally paranoid, that is. You see ghosts around every corner, and you even think your friends conspire against you. Earth is a great source of potential slaves and resources for us, for example. It would make a great beachhead for our Empire here in the Milky Way as we re-establish ourselves. Instead, you mean to destroy it. That is not like you, Lord. You used to think rationally. But now?"

"What is it that you are saying?" demanded Ekogaru. "WHAT?"

Ergitz stood and spoke. "We have also taken much damage, my Lord. The Phased Density Cannon is almost repaired, but we are unsure of its ability to operate. From an engineering standpoint, your recent battles with the Rikashans and with Aliscea…and, yes, even with the Terran woman have damaged both you and the Grand Fortress. Both require time to heal. I am proposing two changes in course for now. Will you hear me out?"

"Speak," spat Ekogaru, whose eyes were going red.

"Lord, we are only concerned for you and the Empire," said Hollander in a quiet voice. "We mean no harm to you. And this is merely what I advised you before, in a reasonable fashion. Do we not live forever? Can we not wait for a time? Let us hold back, use our Third and Ninth Fleets, and let us use the Dark Nebulans to aid us and destroy the Argo and Aliscea before we head onwards to Earth. It is more necessary than ever due to our cause's most recent setback."

"Setback?" hissed Ekogaru.

Marda of Rikasha stood. "Lordship, I have left Voton's presence for now. It is a good thing, as I have just heard from him. His First Carrier Special Task Force was completely defeated and virtually destroyed by Wildstar at Alpha Centauri earlier this evening. I do not know how the Terranische do it, but we have failed in our first glorious thrust of the ji'had, the action that shows the true glory of the Rikashan race and those who are loyal to you."

"What has happened?" hissed Ekogaru.

"Lord, that first thrust has been beaten back by the Earth Forces with no major losses on their part…this is unheard of in the history of the R'Khell priesthood! And Aliscea did not aid them, either. She is in a healing trance at the moment and cannot assist them. The Earthlings won this victory themselves, in hard-won battle, and they have taken Centaurus and are occupying it even now. We are actually losing ground to this young, aggressive race! They are beginning to spit upon us as they spat upon Gamilon and as they spat upon the Cometines! Even I must reluctantly respect them for that. They will not be as easy to defeat as you think, my Lord!"

"We believe we need more time to win," said Migdal. "I will lead the Third and Ninth Fleets!"

"I will not allow it," said Ekogaru. "The thrust must go on! We are only three days away from our goal!"

Hollander stood as the others sat down. "Lord, we have come to the following consensus about you, and about your…"

Then, klaxons began to go off.

"What?" said Ekogaru. "An attack? NOW?"

"Lordship," said an anonymous voice over the speakers. "A small enemy force has warped in past our inner perimeter of gas clouds and magnetic fields. They are heading towards the equator of the Fortress at full attack speed!"

"Prepare our guns, identify the enemy," said Ekogaru. "Who are they?"

"There are fifteen ships, suicidally brave…one battleship, two carriers, ten destroyers, three missile cruisers. The enemy is identified as Gamilon, my Lord. They are coming in at very high speed…they…ARRRGGHH!"

There was a dull explosion, and the Technomugar Fortress actually shook.

"What is going on?" demanded Ekogaru.

"This is Observation Post Two Hundred twelve at the equator," said a voice. "I have a visual of the enemy fleet. It is led by a carrier, and they have launched dive bombers."

The visual came up; it was a green Gamilon battle-carrier in the midst of launching high-speed dive-bombers.

"Why aren't you stopping them?" demanded Ekogaru.

"Because, Lord, our local anti-small craft batteries have been damaged and we can't track these things with the heavy equatorial guns. Seek permission to launch interceptors."

"Granted," said Ekogaru.

"Sire," said Hollander. "The Gamilon Commander wishes to speak with you on visual."

"Put him on."

A moment later, an image of a brown-haired Gamilon with a dueling scar came on the screen. He looked very serious. "I am Major-General Gustaf of the 30th Battle Fleet. Your Fortress has just pierced territorial space claimed by the Gamilon-Garuman Empire. You are endangering our security and the security of our allies by this aggressive act. In the name of Leader Desslok, I demand that you turn back now, or suffer a greater destruction."

"You cannot hurt us," hissed Ekogaru.

"On the contrary," said Gustaf. "We have hurt you! We will soon attack your major weapons rangefinder and targeting arrays, neutralizing your heavy weapons. What do you say to that?"

Ekogaru slathered in rage. "Cut him off," he hissed.

Migdal nodded, changing the view to the outside of the Grand Fortress, showing another explosion that illuminated Migdal's light-skinned face below his ceremonial headdress. "Now, they've taken out another gunnery post, Lord!"

"We can't take much more of this, sire," said Ergitz to Migdal's right.

"Can't we launch our carriers?" asked Hollander.

"It would take too much time now," said Migdal. We must fight them with what we have, Lord!"

"All of you are like weak-willed teenage girls," hissed Ekogaru. "Fight, damn you!"

"Can we?" said Marda.

"What? Are you a defeatist?" roared Ekogaru.

Hollander said, "Lord, there is a danger. With those batteries down, their planes can hurt us. And our energy absorption fields are still under repair. I recommend a short warp."

"What?" said Ekogaru.

"A short warp of a hundred lightyears deeper into their territory, towards Earth," said Hollander. "That would give us time to repair for the next battle. They will be tracking us like hounds from here out."

"All right," said Ekogaru. "Put up repelling fire from our heavy batteries, and warp us a hundred lightyears away!"

On his carrier, the Azonite, Gustaf said through gritted teeth, "I would have expected more resistance! Prepare our main guns…let's target those targeting arrays. They're two hundred and fifty gerad upwards from our plane of attack. It won't take long for us to get into range…"

"General!" said a commander on one of the destroyers. "I am reading an energy buildup…"

"All planes, return to base!" said Gustaf with an angry, frustrated look on his face. "Heavy guns, ready to fire…our first target will be…"

At that, the Fortress suddenly went many different colors, and it faded away.

"What?" said Gustaf.

"Sir," said his first officer, a man named Yarvis. "I think we've forced them to run."

"I'm not so sure. Scientific unit, track that warp signature," said Gustaf. "We need to find them and report back to Leader Desslok! Then we can finish what I started! I'd rather see us destroy them then see the Earthlings do it! Then, we shall have the glory of the kill!"

"Agreed." said Yarvis.

"You see," said Hollander as the Fortress warped back into normal space a hundred lightyears away from the battle. "These races have us on the run! That has never before happened."

"There is a large nebula ahead," said a voice from a control room. "I recommend that we head there. Then, we will be hidden from scanners while we repair our defensive systems!"

Ekogaru nodded. "Do it. Although it is not what I would wish! I want those infidels DEAD!"

"You see, my Lord," said Tra'Chariv. "You cannot anticipate these setbacks as you once did. Your psionic senses are fading. Your mind is not as sharp as it was. Your health is fading, Lord! I even see signs of age and senescence in your organic components. You are old, my Lord. Perhaps you have lived too long."

"What does that mean?" hissed Ekogaru. "Would you kill me? If that is the case…then…"

"No," said Hollander. "We will never abandon you. You are our creator, our God, our master. But, perhaps for your good, and the good of the Empire, the time has come for us to change how you exert your leadership over us."

"What?" hissed Ekogaru.

"Your health is not what it was, Lord," said Migdal. "Because of your frequent use of your psionic powers, you have aged prematurely. You are becoming irrational and cannot change your mind rapidly enough to cope with circumstances that are going against us. You are, perhaps, at the very edge of madness, Lord. We propose, therefore, that as of tonight, you continue to reign, but cease to rule…at least on a day-to-day basis. We can guard your interests best, my Lord. Step down from actively running this war, and please let us act in your stead as your regents, at least until you are well again."

"What?" said Ekogaru; his jaw was working as he clenched his fists.

"We are agreed on this, all of us," said Hollander. "Let us take this war at a slower pace; find a place of safety to make repairs, perhaps leave this galactic system and leave the invasions of Earth and Gamilon to our fleets over months, perhaps years. We have time, Lord. We are in no rush. And affairs are safe in the Blackeye Galaxy. No one will dare rebel against our rulership there. Once professional military men occupy the planets we wish in this Local Group, if you are well enough after receiving a new form, then you can rule again. But this is what we recommend, Lord. It is for your welfare, and the welfare of your people. Please see reason, step down and husband your strength in your meditations, my Lord. Leave the war to us, at least for a time."

Ekogaru stood. "Give me a day to consider your words. They are close to treason! I need to see if I can accept this or not."

"Then you will consider it?" said Marda.

"Perhaps I will," said Ekogaru as he walked away, leaning on his staff. "Perhaps I will not. Remember, I am not bereft of all power yet! I will not enter a dotage…a retirement…without good reason! I will leave you now. You will hear my decision tomorrow morning, after our next warp to Earth."

"Next warp?" said Hollander.

Ekogaru nodded. "The warps continue as long as I am our active ruler. Understood?"

"Yes, Lord," said Hollander as Ekogaru disappeared.

"What do you think?" said Tra'Chariv. "I think he's mad."

"So do I," said Hollander. "And I have noted he cannot monitor our words as he once did…and he cannot monitor our thoughts as well, either. His powers have faded. He is no longer what he was."

"So? What do we do?" said Marda.

"Force him to step down tomorrow," said Hollander.

"And if he does not?" whispered Marda seductively.

"Then we kill him and continue to rule…in his name, of course," said Hollander. "We can tell his worshippers that he was martyred in battle."

"Yes," said Migdal. "We are agreed on this."

Leader Desslok spoke with General Talan and Empress Astrena on the bridge of the Gamilstadt when they got word from Gustaf about the battle of the Vonchard Gap and the fact that they had spotted the Fortress.

"You didn't tell him to pursue the attack again even though you know that Ekogaru is now in the Vonchard Nebula?" asked Talan.

"We would need to have the whole Fleet there to assault him," said Desslok. "Surely you should see that, Talan."

"What do you mean to do?" asked Talan. ''We cannot let things be. Ekogaru must be crushed, and soon."

"My first child lies between life and death now, trying to heal herself," said Astrena. She grasped her pregnant belly. "And my second child will soon cry his way into the universe. Pellian gestation periods are shorter than yours or those of the Terrans."

"We have decided that we should draw Ekogaru into a trap," said Desslok as he held hands with Astrena for a moment. "But, first our back must be clear of enemies. That is why I have decided to meet with Wildstar again."

"You are apportioning the Cometine base worlds, sir?" asked Talan. "I do not know if that is wise. I do not fully trust these Terrans. You recall that they wiped out millions of our people on Gamilon."

Desslok nodded. "True. But they were fighting for their lives, just as we were fighting for our own lives. Enough of this debate for now, I have made my decision already. Come over to the screen. This is the plan I am presenting to Wildstar and the Earth Government. I recently contacted their Defense Command regarding the need to attack those Cometine positions in their backyard, and their Commander approved, fortunately. At least some Terrans can see reason and look past their prejudices. We must do the same, Talan."

"Of course, sir," said Talan, who bowed his head, quite humiliated at his Leader's rather calm, logical outburst.

They walked over to a briefing screen on the bridge. Talan brought up a graphic. "This is the space we are now in, Leader Desslok. According to the intelligence that Earth has shared with us, we have confirmed that the greater concentration of Cometine ships is here, at Procyon VI, under the command of a General Devat."

"Another one of the fools that surrounded Zordar," mused Desslok. "I believe you recall him, Talan."

"I do, sir. Since the troop concentration at Procyon VI is the greater of the two, I advise that we capture Procyon and claim the system for ourselves as a listening post."

"Sound logic," said Desslok. "In turn, the Terrans can attack the smaller Cometine base at Sirius and occupy it as a forward listening post. The Sirius-Procyon area, once we win the war with the Technomugar, can also be a region of joint operations for our vessels and the Terrans' ships. An area of intersect, as it were, between the Earth Federation and our Empire."

"I pray that Aliscea lives," said Astrena.

"And if she doesn't?" said Desslok.

"She has made alternate plans, which I am not at liberty to share with you, Desslok," said Astrena respectfully. "They involve secret rites of our people. With no disrespect, my Lord, we do not usually discuss them with outsiders. But, bear in mind she has chosen a possible successor."

"It would be interesting to see whom it might be," said Desslok. "Starsha, perhaps?" he purred.

"I cannot say now," said Astrena.

"Sir," said an officer. "The majority of the Earth Fleet has just arrived!"

The image came up on the screen. "Hmmm," said Desslok. "One of their space battleships, two of their cruisers, and three destroyers are missing. Did they suffer losses at Centaurus as the cost of their victory?"

"No," said Astrena. "Wildstar left the Potemkin, Danube, and their destroyers behind along with a Marine Group from the Potemkin to guard Centaurus."

"I see," said Desslok. "Talan, contact the Argo. We need to make arrangements…"

In the Captain's Quarters, Nova and Derek had just finished a light lunch.

"I don't feel like myself," said Nova.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm so tired…and…well…I put a knife in someone yesterday. I never knew I was capable of that," she said sadly.

"Nova, the man you put a knife into was our worst enemy! You did a very brave thing, attacking him like that."

"Oh?" she said, picking at her food. "Putting a knife in someone's guts should make me feel good?" She slammed down her fork and began to cry.

"Nova, I love your compassion…but sometimes, compassion can only go so far. You know Ekogaru is dangerous…don't you?"

Nova nodded slowly. "I do. I just…I don't know. I feel things I've never felt before. I can sense the Dark Lord…sort of like Aliscea can. I think I'm sharing in her power. I feel his hate…his rage…his pain. It feels like there's a deep stab wound in my stomach. How can Aliscea put up with sensing him all the time like that? Now I'm starting to understand why she's a bit crazy sometimes."

"Nova, once this war is over…"

"Derek, once this war is over, please promise me you'll let me go back to just being me; a Living Group Officer, nurse, and your wife with my little garden. And stop telling me how great I am. Right now, I don't feel great."

Derek did all he could under the circumstances. He held his wife.

A few minutes later, after they arrived back on the bridge, Homer perked up at his post.

"Message from Desslok!" cried Homer.

"Put him up on the main screen," said Wildstar.

Desslok's image came up a few moments later. "Wildstar, I have heard of your victory at Centaurus from your Defense Command. I congratulate you on your victory there."

"Thank you, Desslok. But we still have work to do. What do you have in mind for our plans to assault those Cometine bases?"

"This is what I propose, Wildstar. I propose that your forces should attack the smaller base at Sirius V and occupy it. In turn, I will attack the larger Cometine citadel at Procyon VI, since I have a greater number of ships. We will occupy Procyon VI as an advance monitoring station, which will be to the advantage of both of our races."

"It sounds like a good idea to me," replied Derek. "But, I'm not sure how my Defense Command will take having a Gamilon base only eleven lightyears away from Earth."

"Would they rather have a Cometine base there?" asked Desslok.

"Yes…you have a point," said Derek. "There are just some on Earth…"

"I am aware of those on your world who do not look at things in the same manner that you do. They consider us in a truce rather than in an alliance. Trust me; in time, they shall see that the alliance I made with you at Iscandar is real. And they will understand my intentions when I aid you against Ekogaru."

"You're not heading back to Gamilon yet?"

"Wildstar, the war is about to reach its final stage. A true ally does not pull out of the conflict when it is about to end. My forces have recently fought the Dark Lord. He is now fourteen thousand, nine hundred lightyears away from your world and is bearing down upon it. I will send you the coordinates, and our best guess as to when he will arrive in your star system."

"When do you think that will be?"

"Three days from now," said Desslok. The Argo's bridge crew gasped at that. "And we believe he has advance fleets ahead of the Fortress far stronger than the fleet you just defeated at Centaurus. After this battle, we will remain in touch; I will send you the intelligence you need as I gather our forces to aid you in assaulting the Fortress. Best wishes, Wildstar."

Desslok saluted and the screen went dark. A moment later, Homer said, "The Gamilons are uploading the data now."

"Hmmm," said Sandor as the upload came through and the data was translated. He put it up on an auxiliary screen near the Captain's post a few minutes later. "This is where he is now, Wildstar…and this is where they expect the Fortress to be tomorrow, if he stays on course…and continues to warp 5000 lightyears per day."

"The Cygnus Gap," said Derek. "We passed that area on our way back from Rikasha but never really explored it. If Aliscea is healed, that might be a good place to assault the Fortress."

"Yes," mused Nova. "It's nine thousand, nine hundred lightyears away from Earth. If we can be there around midnight tomorrow…"

"That will remain to be seen," said Derek. "Venture, prepare a course for Sirius V. It looks like our next battle is going to be there."

"Yessir. We'll be ready to warp in fifteen minutes."

"I'll send the coordinates to the rest of the Fleet," said Homer.

"Good," said Wildstar. "All hands…take your stations."

Wildstar had the crew assembled in the Argo's Central Briefing Room.

Two recon squadrons had been sent out not long ago to probe the area around Sirius V. One squadron, led by a pilot known as Goldstein, had taken off from the Lexington.

The other squadron was a variation of the one that had left the Argo yesterday to probe the R'Khell fleet. The only difference in personnel was that Nova and IQ-9 had replaced one of the pilots after she had suggested that they should probe the planet's environment and atmospheric conditions to see what sort of protection the invading Marines would need.

Derek sensed the real reason; she wanted to keep busy, so she wouldn't have to think about feeling the Dark Lord's looming presence through her mysterious bond with Aliscea.

The Star Force was discussing the results of this probe at length.

"You're telling us what?" said Wildstar. "You met no resistance?"

Sandor nodded. "They painted us with radar, but that was it. No planes, no signs of missile batteries, nothing."

"And I didn't pick up much in the way of life signs there, either," said Nova. "The base looks semi-abandoned."

"Why would the Cometines have a skeleton crew at a major base?" said Derek as they studied images of the base on the large deck screen.

"Maybe they transferred everyone to Procyon, and maybe they don't think anyone is going to hit this base?" said Venture.

"That might explain why I picked up heavy traces of radiation in space around the base," said Sandor. "I think that perhaps a major fleet just left here…and that Desslok might be facing a worse threat than he anticipates."

"What's the environment like, Nova?"

"Earth-like, but very cold…near zero degrees Centigrade. There is a breathable atmosphere down there, and traces of vegetation, mostly stands of coniferous trees like Douglas fir."

"So the landing parties will just need cold-weather gear?"

Nova nodded. "Sensors even picked up some liquid water down there in small streams near the base. The base is on the planet's nightside right now, so the landing parties will probably need some night-vision equipment, too."

"Done," said Wildstar. He turned to Hardy. "Hardy, you'll lead the attack at fourteen hundred hours. Squadrons from the other ships will back you up in case you encounter resistance."

"Understood," said Hardy.

"Hemsford," he said to his Marine Group Leader. "You'll stand ready with your Marines. You'll also be in command…you'll be working with a Lieutenant DeVito from the Lexington who'll be leading in a much larger force. Your mission is to eliminate resistance and establish a beachhead as soon as possible for DeVito's men. If we successfully occupy the base area, you might stay behind as part of a long-term occupation force."

"Of course," said Hemsford. "It'll be kinda nice to be back on the ground again, but we'll miss the Argo. You guys were great to work with."

"Thanks," said Wildstar.

It was fourteen hundred hours.

The Black Tigers had just left the Argo, followed by the planes from the Lexington and the Bolivia. Wildstar, Spears, and Peronada were forming a well-oiled machine, backed up by their escorts.

"What resistance do we have?" asked Lubyanska, who was leading the second squadron of Tigers.

"Not much so far," said Hardy. "Hold that! We're getting painted by enemy radar. Everybody, keep your heads up."

"Roger that," said Commander Mohammed Alzeer from the Lexington. The young Saudi was the squadron leader of the Widowmakers. The two other Groups from his ship, namely the Green Hornets and the Jolly Rodgers accompanied his Group and the Black Tigers in. The Hell's Belles from the Bolivia had remained behind to provide fighter cover for the rest of the Task Force. "I think we're gonna really kick their butts, Hardy," added Alzeer.

"I think so, too," said Hardy.

"I'm picking up a missile launch at FT-105," said Lt. Commander Sarah Jane Wright, the newly appointed Group Leader of the Hell's Belles, and the EDF's very first female Flight Group Leader. "Nice big spread. We woke up somebody down there!"

"Okay, everyone," said Hardy. "Get those missiles with your wing guns!"

All of the missiles but one were shot down; it hit a Tiger that was in the Jolly Rogers. The Earth plane went down screaming into the cold surface, blowing up on impact.

A moment later, Hardy and his wingmen fired missiles of their own at FT-105, followed by a spread launched by the Hell's Belles. After the first spread was fired, a second spread was fired straight at another missile battery they had spotted.

I miss Conroy right about now, thought Hardy as he watched the Tigers firing missiles. Hope we can get those Cometine SOB's to keep their heads down….

A moment later, the enemy commander, a Cometine named Colonel Basra, looked at the radar spread in his bunker. "They're wrecking our missile batteries, the Earthling scum. Launch fighters! Shoot them all out of the sky!"

"Yessir!" said the Cometine interceptor leader. "Launching High speed interceptors now!"

The Cometine planes soon roared up from a runway in the night.

And soon, the Earth planes were involved in a nasty dogfight.

"There must be over ninety of these guys!" said Alzeer. "May Allah damn them!"

"I've got two of 'em on top of me," said Angie Hartcliffe. She had to do quite a lot of hard flying to escape the trap that the Cometine planes were trying to box her into. But, finally, she jigged upwards, dodged the first plane, got it, and then right as Bryan was showing up to help, she dived downwards and blasted apart her other tormentor.

"That felt good!" she cried over the comm circuit.

"Ah, yer' a party-pooper, Angie," teased Bryan.

"So? Another two little ships to paint on my plane. Too bad, hon. You'll get some."

"I got four already, luv."

"Oh, well," she said. "Nobody's perfect."

They both laughed before they parted to take care of some other planes.

Colonel Basra looked on in panic in his bunker as plane after plane took out his defenses.

I can't believe this! he thought. Why did General Devat order me to withdraw most of our forces from this base to Procyon? Who is the new superior who just showed up there? Who is giving these mad orders? Why do they want the Gamilons trapped but don't care about the Earthling devils?

Then, a voice came up on the comm circuit. It was female, but heavily accented. "Colonel Basra. My spies tell me it is going badly at Sirius? Why are we losink?"

"No…no," he said. "Not you! You're…you're…dead!"

She laughed. "I am not dead. I had my private means of escaping Father's fate. Someday, we will have our reckoning upon the Earthlings, but now, I want to give it to Desslok and tie down Earth there. You are expendable, as was your old base."

"Where did you come from?"

"That does not matter. I order you to commit suicide for your failures and let the Earthlings have the base!"

"Why?"

"Because I am the rightful heir of House Gatlantis, that is why! I am now your ruler. Gernitz shall soon bow the knee to me. And you will do as I say. Understood? I have years to plot our vengeance upon Earth and upon Gamilon. It does not all have to be done in one day. We have time."

"Yes, Princess," he said slowly. He could not bring himself to say her name out loud. But, he knew that she had survived.

Basra slowly drew his blaster, and aimed it at his own neck…

The battle took about an hour at Sirius. A Cometine destroyer took off from the base, but it ran and warped away before the Argo or Bolivia could target her.

Once the missile batteries and enemy planes were shot down, the Earth planes returned to their ships, with only six losses.

With the enemy air cover down, Commodore Wildstar gave the "go" signal for the Marines to land. Hemsford and the others boarded their landing craft and took off, heading down towards the base.

Surprisingly, they didn't face much resistance. The battles there were quick, and there were only a few tanks, which were taken out by multi-hit missile batteries that the Marines from the Lexington had brought. There were surprisingly few casualties, and they were quickly taken to the Sickbays on the Argo and the Lexington. On the Argo, Nova, Doctor Sane and the rest of the Medical Staff had a moderate amount of work in Sickbay, having only eight patients to deal with. Only one died. The other wounded would be taken back to Earth aboard a destroyer once they were stabilized.

Finally, as dawn began to fill the sky on Sirius, one of the Marines put the Earth Federation flag up on a hill near the empty Cometine Base. Sirius V now belonged to Earth.

"Leader Desslok?" asked Talan.

"Yes?"

"What method have you figured out for dealing with that stationary Magna-Flame Gun at Procyon? They could make things very difficult for us with it."

Desslok laughed. "Luckily, I am aware of their range. With our recent upgrade, the range of our S.M.I.T.E. equipment is just a little longer. I plan to exploit that to disable their gun. Do you recall our newest space mines?"

"Yes…the remote ones with the long range and anti-gravity generators?"

"My plan is simple," said Desslok. "We shall warp in and begin a "normal" attack with our forward destroyers. The enemy will prepare their Magna-Flame battery. Then, I will call back the destroyers and have our mines ready. They will be transported into their atmosphere. With them, I will surround their gun and bring it down by remote control. Then, our planes and long-range guns shall do the rest before I fire my Desslok Cannon…or before our troops land."

"And then?" asked Talan.

Desslok smiled. "If we land, I plan to use our radioactive sleeping gas again. Most of the enemy officers will not have spacesuits on. Thus, we can poison them, and I can assume command. I would prefer to take command of a nearly intact base…using my Gun is a secondary alternative, since it would destroy the base. I want the base intact, with dead Cometines."

"That sounds very bloodthirsty," said Astrena.

Desslok laughed. "I mean to guard our backs, our people, and I mean to help your daughter destroy our mutual enemy, Ekogaru. In order to do that, we must eliminate these Cometine pests."

"Amazing…that you refer to fellow sentients as pests."

"They are pests. I once served with them. Zordar was the greatest blowhard in the known Universe. Only Ekogaru might be worse. The Cometine race is a bloodthirsty, unprincipled group. They are a most vile race, and I will be glad to eliminate them from this galaxy at last. Surely you must support this effort?"

"Yes," said Astrena with tight lips. But I am not sure I approve of your cold, dispassionate methods, Desslok, she thought.

The Gamilon Fleet made its warp, and the destroyers headed in at high speed.

The enemy was waiting for them; missiles rained up from the base upon Devat's command after he received a call from a figure waiting in an inner office on the base. Missiles destroyed four Gamilon ships, and laser beams boiling up from the planet's surface blew two others apart. But the Gamilon destroyers managed, nonetheless, to damage the base defenses.

"How goes it?" said Devat.

"They're retreating," said an officer. "We will have a fleet ready in ten minutes to chase them away."

"Let's use our Magna-Flame battery to do that. I'll use our fleet to clean up any survivors."

"Devat," said an accented female voice over a speaker. "Be sure you let this go on a bit longer."

"A bit longer?" he replied with raised eyebrows.

"Yes. I want to meet Desslok personally. I want them to land, and I want the agony to continue."

"Princess, we can win…" And how is it you lived? Devat added to himself. And why did you just arrive here two days ago?

"But I want to humiliate him myself," said the voice as its owner strode out of an inner office. She was in white, and Devat looked thoroughly ill at her arrival. Her chief toady, General Dyre, followed her.

"How did you survive, Princess Invidia?" asked another officer, who looked horribly shocked.

"Did you not think that we would have only one means of escape?" asked Dyre with a laugh. "But, the Princess planned it."

"Where did you escape from? Gatlantis?"

"No," said Invidia. "It went like this…"

It was November of 2201.

Prince Zordar stood at the great hatch of his Dreadnought. He said, "Come on board! But I can't trust your judgment now, you've made too many mistakes!"

"Father!" gasped Invidia. She knew this was close to a death warrant.

"Dyre, Gorse, you're also both to blame," said Zordar.

"But…but, sir," said Dyre.

"But come on," said Zordar. "I can still use you for minor tasks."

At that, they boarded.

Later, while Zordar was bombarding Earth, Invidia spoke to Dyre. "You know that when Father is done and he takes over Earth, we shall be demoted."

"Yes, I know," said Dyre. "We'll be lucky if we keep our heads."

"Things will not go well from that point on," said Invidia. "But I've always thought that perhaps my father should no longer rule this House?"

"What do you mean?" said Gorse.

"I know where a destroyer is docked aboard this ship," said Invidia. "Let us leave quickly, and let us head back to Petronia. I have forces there loyal to myself. Then, we can take over the Fleet anchorage at Procyon, and, in time, we can take Earth from my father…for ourselves. Then, we can openly launch a campaign against him."

"You would stab your own father in the back?" said Gorse. By Arishna, you are a treacherous snake! Gorse thought.

Invidia laughed. "Yes, I would," she said.

Finally, after the other two generals had agreed to Invidia's plan, they had stolen away right while Zordar was occupied in a barrage of the Megalopolis. Since Zordar died shortly afterwards, and they had warped quickly, neither the Star Force nor the rest of the Gatlantis High Command had noticed their departure. And, like a bacillus, they had escaped their dying host, to move on to infect another host…

"Now do you understand why I must humiliate him?" said Invidia a while later as she rambled on with Devat.

"You manipulated Desslok. You may even have been the cause of his defection," said Devat.

"Yes, because she felt he was a danger to us," said Dyre. "All he ever spoke of was destroying that aging space battleship from Earth."

"The Argo?" said Devat. "They can do nothing…they most likely have been destroyed at Sirius, even by that token force you allowed us to leave there, you…"

A buzzer went off. Devat ran over. "Yes?"

"General Devat, send reinforcements, please. The Argo is over Sirius with a fleet, they have raised the flag, their Marines have the remainder of us trapped in a room, they…"

Then, there was the sound of a laser gun, a scream, and silence.

Then, there came a deep voice. "Yo! Any of you green guys listening out there? This is Lieutenant Hemsford of Earth, the new CO here at Sirius. The last of your guys are dead now and we're eatin' from out of your cafeteria! Your food is good, you guys! Too bad you're probably having Gamilon problems now, and can't come do anything! See you guys in hell! Bye!" There was laughter on the other end, and the circuit went dead before Invidia could scream out a retort.

"Ready the Magna-Flame gun!" yelled Invidia. "Get them! I want to destroy Desslok NOW!"

"Of course," said Gorse. "May I operate it?"

"They're preparing to fire the gun, sir," said Talan.

"Wonderful," mocked Desslok. "Now, shall we send them some mines?"

Desslok nodded, and a crewman activated the S.M.I.T.E. unit.

The mines were transported to the area around the Magna-Flame Gun.

"Excellent," said Desslok.

"An interesting tactic," gasped Astrena. "Even I must say so."

"Astrena?" asked Desslok.

"I…I'll be all right."

Then, an image came up on the screen. "Message from the Cometines, sir!"

"Maybe they want to surrender?" mused Desslok. "Put them on."

"Greetings, Leader Desslok," said a heavily accented voice. "I just thought you would like to know who shall soon doom you."

Invidia moved in front of the screen.

"You still live?" said Desslok with slow, deadly emphasis.

Invidia laughed. "Yes, I still live, Desslok. But you will soon die. Watch my move as I train our second Magna-Flame Cannon upon you!" At that, she faded out with evil laughter as Desslok made an angry fist.

Invidia pressed a button, and a second Magna-Flame battery appeared. It powered up, fired, and warped its deadly payload right into the center of the Gamilon Fleet.

There was a great explosion. The Gamilstadt shook.

"The carrier Zenig has been destroyed!" said one Gamilon voice on Desslok's bridge.

"Destroyers 323 and 156 have been destroyed!"

"The battleship Bamirdan has taken a direct hit! She's scuttling!"

At the same time, as the Gamilstadt shook, Astrena moaned.

Desslok looked at her with concern and then turned back to Talan. "We've had enough of this! Launch our planes and attack that second battery! When they are finished softening up the base, we shall move in for the kill. We will hesitate no more!"

"Yessir!" snapped Talan.

"What?" said Devat about three minutes later just as Invidia was about to fire the Magna-Flame battery again, this time right at Desslok's flagship.

"Sir," said a voice over a comm system. "We can't launch planes…they're trashed the runway…and they got that second Magna-Flame battery…we…ARRGH!"

There was an explosion, and then silence.

Invidia looked out a window, and she saw several Gamilon planes warping in, thanks to S.M.I.T.E. Soon, they were diving towards the base.

Bombs fell. She and Dyre fell down, and she screamed as some of the wall screens fell down in the command bunker.

"Curse that Desslok!" said Invidia.

A few more minutes passed.

"Sir," said Fraken on a screen. "All of the planes have returned to our carrier."

"Excellent," said Desslok. "Now, pull in along beside our squadron. We shall begin the final charge."

"There will be no landing?" asked Talan.

"No. I'm sure that you understand I want her dead now?"

"Yes…anything to be rid of that evil woman at last, Leader Desslok!" said Talan.

"It sounds as if you two don't like her," said Astrena weakly.

"I have nothing but hatred for that woman…who threw Desslok in prison and held him there without a trial," said Talan. "The Earthers…they are barbarians. They can't help what they are. But, these Cometines…they are pure, malignant evil. I rue the day we ever made common cause with them, Leader Desslok!"

"So do I, General Talan," said Desslok softly. Then, he got up from his command chair. Desslok then stood at the head of his bridge and flipped his arm downwards. "All ships, bombard that base!"

The Gamilon Fleet plunged in towards the base at full attack speed. Destroyers flanked the Gamilstadt as the last attack run began. A moment later, space was filled with many pink beams as the Cometine destroyers that were beginning to take off were shot down one by one by the Gamilons. Soon, there was only sporadic resistance as the Gamilon Fleet stopped in low orbit, only a few hundred kilometers over the base.

"Call that base," said Desslok. "I wish to speak to our enemy before I deliver the final blow."

"Of course," said Talan.

A moment later, a visual image of Desslok came up on screen. "Hello there, my Cometine friends!" he said in a mocking voice.

"Desslok!" screamed Invidia. "How dare you mock us and defect?"

"I have found better friends on the Argo than I ever found in your vile pesthouse, Princess Invidia. While I respected your father, and still feel I owe him a debt for brining me back to life, it was because of your wonderful kindness that I gave the Terrans the secret of how to destroy Gatlantis. I am glad that they succeeded, even though I am disappointed to observe that you did not die there. Perhaps I shall have a chance to redress that error today, when I kill you."

"How dare you say that I will die?"

Desslok smiled. "You may send a fleet against us. You may send planes. But it will all be for naught soon. We are over your base, and I plan to take care of you. I hoped to do so in person, but I don't think you will mind a long-distance gift from me; we can always take your secondary headquarters bunker."

Desslok snapped his fingers, and the firing grip for his Desslok Cannon came up. A pulsing noise began on his bridge.

"Farewell, Invidia. Say hello to your father for me!" said Desslok as he leaned over the firing grip.

"How dare he?" screamed Invidia. "Dyre, we must go to our ship…"

"Princess…"

"NOW!"

"But you are abandoning us?" said Devat.

"You can take care of yourself," said Invidia as she ran out. "Best wishes to you. Bow the knee to me again someday if you live."

And, at that, Invidia left.

"Thirty seconds to firing," said Talan.

"Wonderful," said Desslok with an evil light in his eyes. "It will be good, sending Invidia to the end she deserves."

"Ten seconds to firing," Talan said over the increasing pulse of the gun.

"Object approaching the ship!" yelled a crewman.

"What?" asked Desslok.

"Princess!" yelled Dyre aboard the speeding Cometine destroyer. "You're mad!"

"No, I just have good aim," laughed Invidia as she personally shoved aside a gunner to aim the destroyer's turrets. "He's ready to fire, and he's helpless! One quick barrage, and then…we warp out, and that is the end of the Gamilon Desslok. FIRE!"

Invidia personally thumbed the firing stud.

"What?" yelled Talan.

"Evasive!" yelled Desslok as he shut down the firing sequence. The Cometine destroyer roared in, evading protective fire from the rest of Desslok's fleet.

A few laser beams battered the Gamilstadt. There were several explosions as the bridge momentarily went dark on Desslok's flagship and Astrena screamed. Desslok himself fell to the deck, earning several bruises in the process. Only the flare of explosions illuminated the bridge as Invidia's ship blasted up and over the stunned Gamilon fleet. Only two ships fired upon her as she warped away to parts unknown.

A few moments later, Desslok heard a soft moaning. He ran to Astrena's side.

"My head," she moaned as she lay there bleeding with her coronet knocked off. "Hurt…"

"You have to pull through," whispered Desslok. "For yourself…and for the sake of our people. You carry the future within you."

"I know," she gasped. Then, she lay back, gasping. "Call the medics."

"Astrena?"

"Your heir is on the way," she said with a smile. "It will be difficult, but I think I will live…"

Then, she went unconscious. Talan came over. "Leader Desslok."

"Guard her, Talan. I must finish this!"

Desslok ran over to his firing grip. "Resume the sequence!" he said through gritted teeth. The pulsing hum of the Desslok cannon came up again as Talan held Astrena's hand. How do I tell him, thought Talan, that perhaps Fate has dogged him. His mother died having him…I was there when he came into the world, screaming in battle years ago at the Paldondia Front in the Magellenic Cloud. What if his son is fated to come into the Cosmos in the same way, leaving behind a dead mother and a grieving father? I pray that will not be the case here, not now. Desslok has been through too much!

The firing sequence ran through again. Finally, Desslok glared at the Cometine base through the gunsight with angry tears in his eyes and his uniform dirty from being thrown to the deck.

"Ten seconds to firing!" said Desslok. He completed the countdown, and finally pulled back his firing grip. "FIRE!"

Desslok ground his teeth and watched as his ship's windows went dark. A beam of energy blasted out of the firing gate, roaring down towards the main Cometine headquarters.

General Devat died moments later as the main part of his base was devastated in a flaming blast. In the lower docking bays, Cometine carriers, battleships, and destroyers were blown to bits before their crews could finish the needed steps to sortie. Scorpions were battered about in the flight bays like toys along with their pilots as the pink energy of the Desslok gun decimated the Cometine base at Procyon VI.

In moments, only a mushroom cloud was left as its tombstone. Desslok stood there with his head bowed as the medics came and carried Astrena off to his sickbay.

"I cannot leave the bridge now," said Desslok.

"I understand," said Talan.

"Prepare the landing operation. We need to occupy the outskirts of the base after the fires go out."

"And then?"

"And then we notify the Star Force."

On the bridge of the Argo, the crew gathered to hear Homer's latest message, with Dash standing right near Combat behind Commodore Wildstar as Homer spoke.

"Leader Desslok reports that, as of twenty-thirty hours, Earthtime, the Cometine Base at Procyon has been secured by Gamilon forces. He advises us that there is no longer any threat to us from enemy operations from that base. That will be all."

"Thank you, Homer," said Derek.

The bridge doors opened, and Aliscea stepped in a moment later, back in her usual black clothing. The crew looked at her in shock.

"I have completed my healing trance," she said. "I would advise you to ask your forces to occupy the fourth planet of the Arcturus system. Ten lightyears from there, I believe, in a region you call the Void of Cape Horn, is where the major Technomugar forces will be gathering for the battle. The Dark Lord expects to arrive there in a day and a half before he warps into your solar system. I believe that he can best be caught there, if he lives."

"What do you mean, if he lives?" asked Derek.

"Ekogaru, at this time, shall soon face a challenge from within his own Empire. He will either die this night, or he will rise again in a more powerful and virulent form than before. What will happen, I do not know. He is now only two days and two hours away from your solar system." At that, the whole bridge crew audibly gasped. "I foresee that if his nation's drive will be stopped, he will either be stopped tonight by his own forces, or stopped by many Earth forces with my aid in one day and two hours from now. Or, barring that… he will be stopped by only three people, with a cost of two lives, just a few minutes before he destroys the Earth." Aliscea paused to let her words sink in.

"What do you mean, with a cost of two lives?" asked Nova softly.

"If the worst comes to worst, two of those who confront the Dark Lord will pass into the valley of the shadow of Death. But I do not know if that will be a temporary state, or a permanent one. As I am sure Mark Venture can tell you, Death is a strange thing. He has passed through that dark gate and survived. And you, Nova, were in the shadow of that grim gate yourself almost two years ago. But, Yamato will care for her own."

"Yamato?" said Commodore Wildstar. "Aliscea, with all respect, this ship was named Yamato, but now she has been renamed the Argo."

"Yet, if she survives this ordeal, with Earth, she will again bear her old name."

"I can't change her name," said Derek in shock. "Captain Avatar himself renamed this ship for the mission to Iscandar. I can't reverse what he did? With all respect, Aliscea, I think that you're being a little…"

"Think you not that, somewhere, your Captain does not still live?" asked Aliscea. "And do you not think that he can rename his ship if he chooses? And do you not think that he will tell you?"

"But, Aliscea, the Captain is…"

"You will soon see him again," said Aliscea slowly. "And at that time, you shall learn how elastic the border is between this world and the next. I can see things that you cannot perceive. And, I can see that you shall speak with your Captain Avatar, your former Commanding Admiral, once again before the end of this war. And it shall be on this Bridge. Do you not see him?" she said, looking right at Nova.

Nova's eyes went open. "I…I think…"

"You can see him, if only like a fog?"

Nova nodded. "Guys, you'll probably think I'm crazy, but…"

"You see him. Just as I see my mother in labor. My stepbrother is about to be born. Now, if you will excuse me, I must help her." Aliscea turned to leave. "Commodore Wildstar, please talk to your Commanding General. Ask him what he thinks about Arcturus. Now, if you will excuse me…"

Aliscea left. Finally, Venture turned to Nova quietly. "Did you really see him, Nova?"

"I…I don't want to say," she replied. "I need to sit down, please. I'm tired again. And I don’t know why."

At that, Derek helped Nova back to her post.

The Technomugar Fortress had just warped again. It was now a mere 9900 lightyears away from the Sol System.

"Two more warps," said Ekogaru as he sat on his throne. "Yes, a warp this time tomorrow, and a warp this time in the wee hours of what the Terrans call 'Thursday', and I we will be in their solar system at last and our vengeance will reach the Final Crescendo of my symphonic work of Death! Why the glum faces, my friends?"

"Lordship, we demand a decision from you," said Hollander.

"I know you have ordered me to take the Third and Ninth Carrier Fleets to help Kazan and Grodez set a trap for the Star Force near the Cape Horn Nebula," said Migdal. "But, before I leave, we must know! Will you accept our offer or not?"

"If you mean your puerile offer to retire, no, I absolutely refuse. And, I know you are planning to kill me, Hollander. Why not come clean, confess, and repent? I may let you live...for a short time longer," hissed Ekogaru.

"Very well," said Marda. "If we are to kill you, let it begin now!"

She nodded, and an anonymous crewman pressed a button on a console across the room.

Ekogaru's throne exploded…with him on it.

The Dark Lord fell screaming to the floor, gravely wounded. He fell to his knees, clutching at his throne.

"DAMN you!" he yelled to Marda. "You shall go first!" He raised his trembling hands, and fire flew forth from them.

With a scream, Marda was hit hard by the blast and her body was thrown across the room.

Hollander fired his blaster at Ekogaru. There were three shots, going straight through the ruined cyborg body of the Dark Lord.

"Even you, Hollander?" hissed Ekogaru.

"Yes, even me," said Hollander. He kicked the Dark Lord to his knees. "Now, deal with your own favorite thing, Death!"

"No, not now," hissed the dying Dark Lord. He grasped an arm of his ruined throne and pressed a button. It began to glow, and something like a dark cloud passed from the Dark Lord into a nearby computer console.

"Farewell," hissed Ekogaru, just before the light went out in his cyborg eyes. Then, the screens on the nearby console also gleamed bright red and then went dark. Only one screen was left. A single line of data, in Rikashan, remained on the screen.

It read: TRANSFERRENCE SUCCESSFUL.

"What does that mean?" said Migdal as he looked at the screen.

"Some mad experiment of his," said Hollander as he flicked a switch. The screen went black. He then felt Ekogaru's corpse. "Well, that is it. He's dead."

"You still want me to go to Cape Horn Nebula?"

"Yes, we need to fight the Terrans to cover our departure from this galaxy," said Hollander. Then, he looked around. "Does anyone object to my being our new Lord?"

Tra'Chariv took Ekogaru's cloak off the body and threw it over Hollander's shoulders. "Hail, Second Lord of the Technomugar, Hollander the Great."

The others cheered Hollander as he walked about to a microphone. "Attention, all hands," he said. "There was an explosion in the central meeting chamber. It was caused by a leftover from the Gamilon attack of yesterday. Ekogaru the Great fell shielding us from the blast. He is dead. He passed power to me before he died. Remember our first Lord as a great martyr, and let him rest in peace. We shall soon change course, but only after Migdal's fleet and the fleets of our allies teach Earth a lesson at the Cape Horn Nebula. We are heading back home for repairs. Someday, we shall return. But, now is not the day. Not yet. We shall rule this Galaxy, though, even if it takes us…a thousand years!"

At that, everyone cheered. But, deep in the Fortress' computer systems, a black spirit smiled. Hollander, you fool, it thought. If you think I am dead, than you know little. But you have played right into my hands, and ensured your own death. Now, all I need is time…time to learn how to use my new body! Then, you shall be dealt with, all of you!