The Chosen One

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Galactic Standard Date: 152,323.02 AE

Earth Orbit: SRN ‘Jamaran’

Lieutenant Kasib

LT. KASIB

Dozens of viewing screens surrounded the SRN Jamaran's bridge. Most displayed grainy black-and-white footage, some of it body cameras carried by Sata'anic soldiers, while other screens displayed bug-eye views from three suborbital drones. Lieutenant Kasib placed his clawed hand on the joystick and piloted one of the drones to circle a primitive mud-brick village surrounded by cultivated fields.

In the command chair behind him, General Hudhafah leaned forward, his gold-green eyes aglow with excitement.

"Is that…?"

"Grain, Sir," Kasib hissed with excitement. "You can see the seed heads ripening."

He piloted the drone to skim the meter-high grass. Cereal grain! Millions of light-years from the nearest known colony!

General Hudhafah's sharp dorsal ridge reared into a thoughtful, not threatening, crown.

"What's the status of the away parties?" he asked.

"Both report extensive stores of minerals, Sir." Kasib tapped one of the screens to pull up the latest report. "Cobalt. Iron. Pristine stores of uranium. Almost limitless water. And extensive flora and fauna."

Hudhafah's tail twisted around the edge of his commander's chair, thoughtful, calculating, aggressive, brilliant…

"And what about the grain?"

Kasib understood what the General did not voice in the presence of the lower ranking men. How low are our supplies?

Kasib dared make direct eye contact with his esteemed commanding officer, one of Shay'tan's most decorated, and highly-ranked generals.

"It appears the planet is fully habitable, Sir."

The other crewmen, lizards and other Sata'anic species, all stopped pretending not to listen and leaned inward, waiting to hear what the general had to say.

Hudhafah glanced at the first image the away party had radioed back. A wingless Angelic male. The broadcast had caused the Angelic to blow his cover when he'd increased power to spy on their scans. On any other planet, natural radio wave static would have masked his equipment, but out here in Zulu sector, there was little subspace interference and the planet had no advanced technology. Since then, the away teams had discovered thousands of the creatures, scattered across the planet in primitive tents, huts, and even villages. The Alliance would come for this planet, for sure.

The question was, could they hold it this far from the Sata'anic Empire?

This far from their supply chain.

This far from the next-nearest habitable world?

"Sir?" Kasib asked. They were all just waiting for the order.

General Hudhafah's dewlap reddened into a deep, dignified burgundy.

"Set up a Forward Operating Base," he said gruffly. "Someplace warm. And near productive fields."

"Yes, Sir!"

With a genuflection to his forehead, Kasib pushed the talk button. A thrill of pride rippled through his body as the P.A. system hummed. Hudhafah was giving this honor to him. A low-ranking nobody! He poured every ounce of veritas he possessed into his voice.

"Attention all crew," he spoke clearly and crisply. "General Hudhafah has ordered annexation. I repeat. Begin Earth annexation. We shall civilize this planet for the glory of our god."

He genuflected again.

"Shay'tan be praised."

Throughout the ship, the metal echoed with cheers. There would be glory, and plunder, and honor for certain! This was the kind of expedition every soldier dreamed of.

Metallic thunks resonated through the ship as the docking clamps which kept the smaller troop carriers attached during hyperspace disengaged. The display screens captured two dozen smaller, boxy shapes detach themselves from the Jamaran's hull and race towards the earth.

It now belonged to the Sata'anic Empire.