(Main Bridge, BSN Shinokage, Tsk’neth System, Free Worlds Alliance)

“Admiral, Major Valcyne is reporting in. Tsk’neth III is secure. Black Star Marines are currently sweeping through the colony, to ensure that no more infected are hiding. Frostwolf, Laughing Skull, and Warsong are patrolling the surface, to make sure no infected escaped.”

I nodded to Captain Inatumal. “Very good. I doubt that any that did get outside went far. Even though the lack of atmosphere isn’t an issue for them, the colony is the only part of the planet that really matters. There’s no tactical or strategic reason for them to go out too far, that we know of.”

I paused, and then said, “Captain, put through a request to Work Chief Ruak, if you will, and see if he will join us on the Shinokage. It is time we settled the matter of Tsk’neth IV.”

“Yes, sir.”

Two hours later, two Ihm were shown into Shinokage’s conference room. I recognized Work Chief Ruak’s formidable frame instantly, and nodded to him. “Work Chief, welcome to the Shinokage. I trust the Marines haven’t caused any trouble?”

The Ihm shook his head. “Thank you, Admiral. And no, the Marines have been no trouble at all. Any worker may turn their tools into weapons, but that does not make them warriors. According to our scans, the… undead, as your people call them, would have broken through our doors eventually, though by that point we would have likely starved to death, anyway. Suffice to say that everyone on Tsk’neth III is quite happy to do almost anything the Marines could possibly ask. There are a few hissers, but they are quickly shut down by the others.”

“That’s good to hear. Your people have lost a lot. It is only natural to seek to find someone to blame, and the Marines are both ‘not locals’ and ‘close to hand’, making them a perfect target for that kind of resentment. So long as it doesn’t fester, and turn into something I cannot ignore, like attacks on my people, I have no interest in cracking down on those lashing out in pain.”

Ruak nodded, and said, “That certainly removes one of the worries people had.”

I motioned to the female Ihm standing next to him. Unlike Ruak, who was dressed in his work uniform, she was wearing the Ihm equivalent of office clothes, and she had been silent this whole time. “Speaking of people, are you going to introduce me to your friend?”

Ruak looked embarrassed for a moment, and said, “Ah, yes. Admiral Mollen, this is Administrative Second Othi. She is the highest-ranking member of the Yathru Corporation still surviving, just as I am the highest-ranking surviving member of the work force.” He looked over to Othi, and said, “Administrator, this is Admiral Mollen, of the Black Star Navy.”

I nodded. “A pleasure, I’m sure.”

Othi breathed in sharply, and said, “I’m sure it is, for you. Unfortunately, I have to represent the Yathru Corporation, and the near-total loss of corporate assets in the system is going to be a significant blow to the corporation. I can only hope that, with the governmental station destroyed that the communications lockout can be removed, so that someone more qualified can be brought in to assess the situation.”

Well, at least she was being honest. That would help everything along. “Well, I’m afraid you won’t be able to wait for the central office to find anyone better. Raven, bring up the images from the surface.”

The room’s main view screen came to life, and began showing the footage we were getting from our spy drones of the surface. It was the stuff of nightmares and zombie movie marathons. The entire planet was overrun. The last enclave of survivors was on the northern continent, but even that was quickly being overrun as the zombie Ihm used their powerful frames to break through makeshift barricades.

There simply weren’t enough people trained to fight. Even with weapons, the civilians were far too outnumbered. According to the files that Raven had hacked from the planetary database, the armed forces had tried to treat the infected as a riot, and, unsurprisingly, psychic stun rounds did absolutely nothing to the dead. The infection had spread through the military forces, taking out the trained fighters, and trapping weapons behind enemy lines.

The planet’s response? Send in the police and corporate forces to hold the line. This time, at least, they were armed with lethal weapons, but it was too little, too late. They were overwhelmed, and the people began to panic, which doomed so many more.

Turning back to the two horrified Ihm. “We have determined that the ‘Infected’ are, in fact, dead. They are corpses reanimated by unknown powers, expected to be related to the chaotic dimension that the Ihm Empress punched open a rift to. According to our sensors, the entire population of Tsk’neth IV, all 800 thousand of them, are dead.

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“We have cleansed local space of all ships and stations harboring the infection. Even now, our troops are continuing to sweep Tsk’neth III to determine if there are any surviving necroforms, so we can terminate their existence. At the moment, we believe it possible in the short term to contain this threat to Tsk’neth IV.”

I took a breath, and said, “However, we do not have the resources for a full military blockade lasting indefinitely. And it would take only a single breach of quarantine to allow the necroform plague to spread to the sector and the galaxy at large. Further, it is possible that… less well-meaning individuals may seek to gain access to the plague for use in bioweapons research.”

I could see that they both understood the gravity of that statement. This ‘outbreak’ had wiped a thriving agriworld clean of life, sentient life, at least, in a matter of weeks. If it could be refined, and turned into a weapon? It would be devastating.

That was good, because there was a very good chance that, if this wasn’t contained, it could spread to the rest of Known Space. That would be a problem, since, other than Nomads, there wasn’t anyone in this world that knew how to deal with zombies. Fortunately, I was here, and I wasn’t about to let this ruin my game.

“As the leader of a recognized Mercenary company under the Unified Mercenary Accords, I am invoking Article 345, section 27, of the Free Worlds Alliance Mercenary Extraordinary Force Act, specifically, authorization for Exterminatus action.” Both Ihm gasped in realization of what I was saying. “The target is Tsk’neth IV.”

I looked them in the eye, and said, “Please state your full names and ranks for the record.”

“Work Chief of Tsk’neth III colony, Ruak of Clan Dosk.”

“Administrative Second of Yathru Corporation holdings, Tsk’neth III colony, Othi of Clan Edrikaz.”

“Now, please confirm that you are here of your own volition, not under compulsion or duress.”

“I confirm.” “I confirm.”

I took a breath, and then said, “As the recognized leaders of the surviving authority in this system, do you confirm the existence of a plague which could pose a threat to the safety of this system, sector, and galaxy that cannot be contained by conventional methods?”

“I do.” “I do.”

“Then, according to the Unified Mercenary Accords and the Free Worlds Alliance Mercenary Extraordinary Force Act, I declare that Tsk’neth IV is declared Exterminatus.”

I took a breath, and then said, “Also for the record, do you confirm that Tsk’neth IV is no longer inhabited by a sentient species, as defined by the Superluminal Hostile Interdiction Treaty?”

“I confirm.” “I confirm.”

I nodded, and then said, slowly and clearly. “Then let the records show that, under the Free Worlds Alliance Mercenary Extraordinary Force Act and a declared Exterminatus event and, in concordance with the Superluminal Hostile Interdiction Treaty, that the restriction on superluminal weapons against planetary targets has been lifted. Recordings of these proceedings will be transmitted to the major powers, along with all sensor records of the planet in question.

“Raven, end recording.” I sighed, and took a moment to collect my thoughts. Turning to the two Ihm, I said, “Do you want to watch? I can understand if you say no.”

Othi hesitated for a moment, and then said, “What will happen?”

I looked her in the eye. “Now that the requirements for using superluminal weapons have been met, I am going to have Simo Hayha, Shadowdancer, Atlanta, and Artemis, four of my Assassin-class corvettes each launch one of our Mark II Heavy Starbolt torpedoes at the planet from different sides. The Heavy Starbolt is a one-thousand-kilogram mass that will be traveling at five hundred times the speed of light when it makes impact on the planet. This is five times heavier than the normal Starbolts, due to the increased density of the materials used.

“We will calculate the launch velocities so that the weapons will impact simultaneously at equidistant areas of the planet’s equator. Each will hit with a force of over one thousand one hundred and twenty-three yottaJoules. Naturally, much of that energy will be lost to heat, but one would be enough to make a planet permanently uninhabitable, perhaps even cracking it. Four will be certain to obliterate much of the planet, and any surviving fragments will be sent flying out of the system.”

Othi looked like she was about to faint. “Y-you would destroy the entire planet? Surely there has to be another way?”

“I do not have access to the Exterminatus weapons of the major powers, like the torpedo that stripped Jagloth of its atmosphere and all life upon its surface. The only ‘conventional’ planet-killer I have access to is Greenwave, and that would not solve the problem. Greenwave only works upon technology. These necroforms are not the work of technology.

“At best, it would simply isolate the zombies to this planet for a decade or two, while politicians and corporate overlords plotted and schemed. People would forget the truth, and as soon as they figured out a way to make themselves safe from the Greenwave, they would return, and the outbreak would spread again. That isn’t even considering that someone may find a way to get on and off the planet through dimensional rifts.”

I paused, to let her take all that in. “No, the only way to be sure that this will not spread is to eliminate it, now, before people have a chance to start thinking with their bank accounts instead of their heads, or before religious zealots or eco-nuts do something stupid. It is a command decision, and I am the commander on the scene. It is not the method I would prefer, but, since this is what I have, this is what I must use.”

Ruak nodded once. “Since it appears that I am the senior civilian representative in the system, I will officially endorse this plan of action, for what it is worth. And I will watch with you. Someone from Tsk’neth should be on hand to witness Tsk’neth IV’s destruction.”

I smiled at him. We both knew that the endorsement of a Work Chief from a resource extraction colony would not count for much, even if they were the senior civilian authority in the system. Still, it was a nice gesture. In the court of public opinion, it would go far.

Othi grit her teeth, and said, “As a representative of Yathru Corporation, I am forced to officially protest the destruction of Yathru infrastructure and holdings. The corporate lawyers will likely try and get some kind of restitution. My position does not allow me to do any different.”

“That is fine. The Exterminatus protocols override all property claims on the targeted planet, effective the moment Exterminatus is declared. They would be better off hoping their insurance covers Extterminatus events.”

Othi laughed grimly. “I have—no, I had a friend in the underwriting department, who lived on Tsk’neth IV. I am quite certaint hat the corporation’s insurance policies do not cover Exterminatus, especially since this would be only the second one declared in the last fifty years. It would be deemed an ‘unnecessary expense’ by the corporate overlords.”

That was typical, I thought, shaking my head. Some things never changed. “I expected as much. Unfortunately, Yathru is just going to have to hope that their reserves can cover the beating their stock is going to take. Perhaps if they hadn’t been complicit in bungling the response and covering up the event, they would not be in this situation. If word had been spread the moment it started, then something could have been done.”

Two hours later, both Ruak and Othi stood by my side in the conference room, as we watched the four Assassins take their shot.