Admiral Rodriguez and his Second Officer, Soren Mudrose, slow to a stop in front of Megla and Lord Drall. The Terran crosses his arms while staring at the seated Kraktol leader grimly.
"Do you have anything to say to me, or should I simply call you out right here and now?"
His words, though hostile, carry an air of amusement, as if he's just caught a child with their hand in the cookie jar. He looks at the Kraktol commander not as an insidious spy, but like a buffoon who stumbled into something far outside his realm of control.
Lord Drall's heart immediately leaps in fright. However, as a long-lived old crocodile, he doesn't allow even a flicker of emotion to cross his face.
"Admiral Rodriguez? I do not understand, graugh! Is something the matter? You seem displeased."
Drall remains seated, acting completely unmoved by the Terran's bold words. Megla glances at him from behind, yet says nothing, instead frowning as she observes the exchange between her father and Admiral.
"Don't even try to play the fool," José says. "I've caught you red-handed. Honestly, I can't say I'm surprised, but I am disappointed. I expected better from Megla's father."
Lord Drall scratches his head and blinks innocently. His voice takes on a tone of disbelief. "Graugh? I... I don't know what you're talking about! Caught red handed? Are you saying that I somehow offended you? I must say, that was never my intention! You told me that my soldiers could take any technology from the Buzor's base that they found. If you wish to keep it for yourself, I won't object, it's just..."
The Kraktol leader trails off, allowing his words to hang in the air. An implication lingers, one which implies the Admiral has verbally assaulted him without cause.
José sighs. "...Alright. It seems you want to do things the hard way. Let's play ball, then. Umi has already recorded your recent conversations in great detail. I know you've been going around behind my back, talking to the Kraktol and plotting to capture or kill me."
As Admiral Rodriguez speaks, another burst of fear ignites in the back of Drall's mind.
What? He recorded me? But how?! None of our soldiers are wearing any recording-capable equipment! Could I have overlooked something? I was always careful when I spoke to-
Drall's eyes flicker to a nearby Kraktol commando, one of his average warriors who led the assault on the Buzor. In a flash, Drall sizes the soldier up, only for his eyes to fixate on the energy carbine held in the warrior's arms.
Gah. Stupid me! Fiftieth Era technology cannot be understood through common sense. Most likely, even mere weapons and armor taken from the Admiral's ship must possess recording functionality. How could I be so blind?!
José frowns. Even though Drall's eyes barely flick away for a fraction of a second, the Admiral instantly notices the shiftiness in his gaze.
"Since you seem hesitant to admit your deception, I'll play your words back for everyone here."
The Admiral flicks out a handheld datapad, taps a few buttons on its surface, and plays an audio recording of Lord Drall's voice.
"That's right. I need to know if, when the time comes, you will stand by your vows to the Thülvik, or if you'll succumb to temptation from somebody you haven't even known for a fraction of your life..."
Lord Drall, upon hearing the recording, immediately leaps to his feet. "Audacious! I cannot believe your nerve, Admiral Rodriguez! You sure have guts!"
Momentarily stunned, the Terran blinks twice. "...I- I beg your pardon? These are your own words, Lord Drall. Are you denying having spoken them?"
The Kraktol commander snorts defiantly while puffing out his chest. "To slander me so viciously, it seems I misjudged you! I knew from the beginning that you were secretly wriggling your tongue inside the ears of my sons and daughters, but never did I imagine you would go so far as to slander me with outright lies! Falsified recordings and flapping lips; truly, a Terran's mightiest weapon lies not in his blaster, but his words!"
Several Kraktol take notice of Lord Drall's outburst. They mutter to the others nearby and begin walking over, slowly swelling into a huge crowd. Amidst their ranks, countless tiny Kessu perk their ears up as well, not certain why Drall seems to be shouting so much.
"You're saying I faked this recording?" José asks, disbelief on his face. "I didn't. The one you spoke to was your Fourth Group's warrior, Kodon Muckfist."
José turns his head slightly and picks out a black-scaled Kraktol amidst the crowd. "Kodon. Come here."
The Kraktol hesitates for a moment before nodding. He wades through his brothers and sisters to stand between Drall and José, clearly uneasy about their conversation.
"Tell everyone what Lord Drall said to you," José says, smiling faintly. "Was this recording accurate?"
Kodon Muckfist looks at the Terran for a moment. He flicks his eyes to Drall, who assumes an impassive posture. "Go on, Kodon. Let everyone hear the truth of the matter."
Reassured by his leader's confident posture, Kodon clears his throat. "...Graugh! Regarding this accusation... the Admiral is lying! I said no such thing!"
Another Kraktol from the back raises her claw. "Kyargh! I will attest to his words! I overheard Lord Drall talking to Kodon! My father merely exchanged some pointers regarding Kodon's earlier fight!"
Drall snorts haughtily. "Harrumph! There, you see? The Admiral is lying! Did you think I would be too frightened by your Fiftieth Era technology, Admiral Rodriguez? Did you think I would be too afraid to call you out? I am an upright warrior of the Kraktol! When you asked for soldiers to pursue the Demon Emperor, was it not me who sought to deepen our relationship? I offered the lives of my beloved sons and daughters, and look at how you have repaid us!"
Gesturing toward the crowd of assembled Kraktol, Drall beats his chest in grief. "Graugh! Nine hundred and fifty of my beloved children came with us on this mission, but now only seven hundred remain! I have lost so many of my spawn while helping you to selfishly pursue your most hated enemy, but what have I gained? Nothing! Even so, you cannot help but thirst for my children's strength! You wish to steal them away for yourself!"
Completely dumbfounded by this turn of events, it takes José a few moments to clear his thoughts. "...This is an interesting ploy, Lord Drall. So, you are claiming that I am making some big move to steal your warriors for myself? Am I hearing you correctly? I don't care about your children. I can easily pursue Yama on my-"
Before José can finish his sentence, Drall hurriedly interjects. "There it is, Admiral! You've admitted the truth! You don't care about my children at all! To you, their lives are nothing but turds buried in the soil! No wonder you threw away their lives so flippantly; they never meant anything to you at all. Oh, how tragic! For you to cast my poor sons and daughters into the abyss, how could I be so blind? The Ancient Ones will never allow me to enter the Forbidden Swamp upon my death... you damned fiend! Your sin has become mine, ten times over!"
Several Kraktol glare at the back of José's head. "Kyargh! Did you hear that? The Admiral doesn't care about us in the least! All those days we spent training under him, but he never thought of us as anything more than warm bodies to throw at the Buzor!"
"I should have known better. That Admiral barely even showed up; he always had Megla guide us in our training!"
"Yeah! To think I even looked up to him!"
"Truly despicable! I nearly fell for the Terran's deception!"
The clamoring voices heighten in intensity as many Kraktol glower at José, enraged by his callous disregard for their lives.
"No, that's not right!" A Kraktol female shouts. She steps forward, revealing her aqua-blue scales. "My Darling would not betray us! I think my father has simply made a mistake."
"A mistake?" Drall asks. "Sapphire, you unfilial child! I have raised you with love and care, even going so far as to make you one of my head officers, yet you dare to call my mental faculties into question? Do you think we are all blind and stupid? We know well how your doting gaze has landed upon the Admiral. You have fallen for his charms, and in doing so, betrayed your Thülvik!"
Several Kraktol nod vigorously. "That's right. Sapphire has practically glued herself to the Admiral's side. She's too naïve, falling for his deceptions so easily."
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Sapphire's scales flush with color. "H-hey! Kyargh! So what if I possess feelings for the Admiral? He has treated all of us well. It's not as if I'm calling my father's morals into question, only his reasoning! Why don't we hear my Darling out? I'm sure he has some evidence he can present."
José nods. "Everyone, there's no reason to become agitated. It's not as if I was planning to attack or harm Lord Drall. I merely wanted to call him out on his skullduggery. He's been skulking about behind my back during this mission, plotting and planning to kill me, all so he can steal my technology. Really, can you blame him? If the Kraktol were to seize my weapons, your power would certainly skyrocket among the other Sentients. Lord Drall has the motive, and I have the recordings of his whisperings. All the proof is right here for anyone to see."
The Admiral holds up his datapad and waves it from side to side, while turning to look at the crowd. Several Kraktol hesitate, uncertain about who they should believe.
Lord Drall's irises narrow to slits. He eyes the Terran hungrily, wracking his brain over how to deal with the Terran once and for all.
I cannot allow the Admiral to keep talking. I've already dug a hole. If I back down now, he'll have every right to execute me once we return. I need to convince everyone to join my side now, while we still have him trapped underground. Seven hundred Kraktol should be more than enough to kill a single Terran while overwhelming his Kessu pets!
The Kraktol leader starts to speak, only for one of the junior Kraktol to pipe up instead. "You're lying, Admiral Rodriguez! I don't believe you at all! You already agreed to cooperate with and assist the Kraktol in the future. Lord Drall has no reason to backstab you, given the circumstances. You, on the other hand, need crew for your ship! Those Kessu are too small and weak to serve as planet-side combatants, so you want to take control of us as your elite fighting force!"
Drall's eyes light up with excitement. Ah! One of my loyal subordinates! He picked a great time to speak! Now, the Admiral will have a hard time refuting his words. Indeed, to my sons and daughters, I really don't have much reason to attack the Admiral. What a brilliant twisting of the facts. I must take care to promote him if we survive this ordeal!
José hesitates. He glances toward the green-scaled Kraktol who spoke and shakes his head.
"That's wrong. I was planning to travel to the underground depths anyway, whether you Kraktol were here or not. Even if the Kessu aren't your match in a physical battle, don't you think with all the technology on my ship I could have overcome their shortcomings? I do not need the Kraktol to form a powerful fighting force. I am a Terran. Even the dullest stick can become a lethal weapon in my hands. Having experienced Megla's training, which I previously imparted to her, you should all be crystal-clear on this matter."
Many Kraktol glance at each other, nodding silently as they roll the Admiral's words around in their brains, trying to counter them with what Drall said previously. Several looks of misgiving appear on their faces.
"Furthermore," José continues, "if I needed to assemble a fighting force of Kraktol, why would I bother with simply training you in the Terran arts and praying you would retain a sense of loyalty toward me? Instead, I could covertly install nanites in your brains to turn you into unquestioning zealots. Trust me when I say such a feat is child's play for any Terran worth their salt. Instead, I chose to work together with you out of goodwill, while Drall here tried to go behind my back. I didn't forge any fake evidence; he's lying, plain and simple."
Compared to Drall's grandiose gestures and emotion-laden speeches, José's simple and direct phrasing comes off as sincerely honest, lacking all fluff and frills. Several Kraktol scrunch up their faces in confusion, not sure who of the two leaders they should believe.
Suddenly, one Kraktol female steps forward. "I... I have something to say! Father Drall, he came to me just twenty minutes ago. Kyargh! He started talking about some weird stuff, hinting that I should be only loyal to the Thülvik and not to anyone else. I didn't think much of it before, but now... it does feel a bit odd!"
"Same!" Another male says. "Father approached me a few hours ago, shortly after our battle with the Buzor. He asked me something about how far I would go to follow the Admiral. When I told him I would follow the Admiral for the rest of my life, father looked very displeased! He immediately stopped talking to me and walked away."
Within seconds, several other Kraktol chime in, adding more tales regarding Drall's recent conduct.
Upon hearing their words, Drall's scales tremble with rage. "GRAUGH! You strife-sowers! In what way could my words be taken as an attack on the Admiral? I cannot believe you! I merely wished to know if you still bore loyalty to your Thülvik, but listen to you! Such a simple question instantly put you on edge! If I didn't know any better I would say... your loyalty has already evaporated into the wind!"
Having heard enough, Megla speaks from behind Drall. "But father, you did ask those questions. Earlier, you said the Admiral's recording was fake, but now you readily admit to saying such words. If you're trying to turn us against the Admiral, then consider my disappointment immeasurable. Kyargh!"
"The Admiral is not a bad person!" Grundle says. The former-weakest Kraktol steps out of the crowd and flexes his muscles. "I used to be a nobody, but now I am a proud Kraktol warrior! Given time, I may even walk among the elites, and it's all because of the Admiral's training. I stand by him!"
"Traitor!" A nearby female Kraktol bellows. "You filthy soft-scale! Kyargh! You swore a vow to the Thülvik to always uphold her as your highest existence! Such vows are not to be treated as wet paper, torn up when inconvenient. We must remember them even when the circumstances seem dire. I stand with my father! I stand with the Thülvik!"
She quickly crosses over to stand beside Drall protectively. Not long after, another Kraktol joins her, while a different one joins Grundle.
One by one, a bit more than half of the Kraktol separate to both sides, some standing near their father, while the others position themselves before the Admiral. Even so, the remaining Kraktol look on from a distance, unsure where they should place their loyalties.
Kisa, the Malvik, steps forward. Her body trembles as she looks from the Admiral to her father. "P-please! There is no need to fight! We mustn't come to blows, for we are all family here!"
"Family?" Drall echoes, as he shakes his head at Kisa. "I am your family, dear daughter. Those Mallali-lovers stand by the Admiral, betraying their Thülvik. Such beasts do not deserve to be counted as 'family,' let alone Kraktol."
Many of the Kessu retreat to a safer distance, but still keep near the Admiral in case he needs their help. Rags flicks his kitty-eyes in the Admiral's direction.
"Mraww! What should we do? Should we attack? We can't let the Kraktol hurt the Great Precursor!"
"Let's just watch and see what happens, kid," Ruuki says, flexing his muscles. He adjusts his thunder-gloves, readying himself to fight. "If things get nasty, take care not to get killed. I don't want your mom and pop chasing me in the Great Beyond."
José purses his lips. Seeing the rapid escalation of conflict, he shakes his head. "There is no need for us to fight. Lord Drall, let's call it quits here. I will return to the Bloodbearer, along with anyone who wishes to join my crew. The rest of you can stay here and I'll dispatch your ship to the planet so that you can return home, unmolested. I don't want to hurt any of you, especially after you all just fought for my sake against the Buzor. We all have a common enemy, so let's not get wrapped up in petty politics or power-plays."
Lord Drall's eyes flicker with anger. If the Terran leaves here alive, the Kraktol won't be his allies any longer. Not only will we not have his ship in our possession, but we also won't have him as an ally! Loreen will rip me apart when I return!
A cold chill goes down Drall's back. Realizing he has nothing to lose, he grabs hold of the last card in his deck.
"Filthy Terran! Do you think you can get away so easily, after speaking such hateful lies? I didn't want to say this, but you've left me no choice! You are a damned gravecrawler! Your real body died in the past, and the you standing before us now is nothing more than a ghoul revived through Terran sorcery! I've confirmed the matter already with Megla, your very own First Officer!"
Drall turns to look behind himself at a visibly-stunned Megla. "Tell everyone, daughter! Tell them what you told me!"
Megla's eyes widen in alarm. Shocked beyond belief, she stammers awkwardly. "N-n-no, that's not- I didn't say that! Admiral, I didn't mean to say that!"
José furrows his eyebrows. "Megla! I can't believe... I thought I told you not to say anything!"
The red-scaled Kraktol balls her claws into fists. "It's not my fault, Admiral! It's... it's yours! You barely even talk to me anymore! Since your revival, you just... you're never around! Kyargh!!"
Several Kraktol on José's side glance at him in horror. Their formerly iron-clad belief in his abilities shatter, making them take several steps away.
"He's a gravecrawler? I've heard of them! Accursed creatures! They never return to the Forbidden Swamp, instead roaming the void forever! No wonder he didn't die with the other Precursors..."
"How terrifying!" Another Kraktol says, her body shivering. "I can't believe I never noticed the aura of death surrounding him. We shouldn't let him live any longer."
José's eyes twitch. "Aura of death? You're acting a bit too superstitious about all of this. I didn't use magic to revive, just science, and I can only do it once. I'm not some... immortal heretic. Sigh."
"So you admit it!" Drall howls. "You did revive! There, you see? The Admiral is an undying monster! We cannot allow him to exist any longer! If we do-"
"Shut up!" Grundle bellows, taking a menacing step toward Drall. "The Admiral is a good person! You, however, are a liar, Drall! A dirty liar! You keep twisting the Admiral's words, and I'm sick of it! Say one more thing and I'll take you on myself!"
"Yeah!" Ruuki says, clapping his paws together. "The Precursor saved my people from you! If you wanna take him down, you'll have to go through me!"
"And me!" Rags yells.
"Me too!" Another Kessu says.
Several Kraktol and Kessu voices chime in, adding their support for the Admiral. However, with so many Sentients around, it becomes less and less clear just how many actually support the Admiral, and how many stand on Drall's side.
Hearing the voices of discontent escalate further and further, Drall glares viciously at José.
"Graugh. It seems there is only one way to settle this dispute."
José shakes his head. "Don't try it, Drall. You really don't want to make an enemy of me."
"You have left me no choice, Admiral."
As the Kessu and Kraktol start yelling at one another louder and louder, several key players watch from the sidelines, unsure what to do.
Megla retreats from Drall's side, yet still lingers in his vicinity. Father, why are you agitating the Admiral? Do you have a death wish?
Kisa pulls back, fearful of the fight she knows will soon erupt. Admiral! Father! I... I don't know who's in the right! Who should I help? What can I do to calm everyone down?
Kilgore, the half-Algaru warrior, cautiously disables his weapon's safety. If the worst comes to pass, I must protect the Thülvik's mate. Hurgh. Truly, the schemes of politicians always bring about the downfall of a species.
Soren remains at José's side, impassively watching with her arms crossed. It doesn't take a genius to figure out who will win here. Drall will be lucky to escape with his life. But... whose side will my sister choose?
Sapphire, too, stays close to the Admiral. I'll never abandon my Darling! How dare my father lie about him! And to think I once looked up to daddy dearest... I was such a fool!
All of them prepare their hearts for the upcoming fight, yet they already know... there can only be one victor.