Chapter 62
Viltrix
Atop my throne, I watch as the denizen’s of the Pyramid hunt for what’s left from the last batch of awakened. It has been more than a hundred years since I forced these pathetic creatures into the Pyramid. These final days are always the most tedious of the games. By this time, all of the true warriors have died to the hordes of evolved beasts, failing to grow in power and ascend to the next level. Now, all that is left are the cowardly few that have hidden themselves away in hopes that they will be forgotten by their pursuers when the next species of climbers arrive.
The games, my most powerful tool of manipulation. As long as I give the people what they want, they stay docile, grow fat, stop asking questions, and do what they are told. The price for such power is a measly inhabited planet every hundred years. A pittance. I send in barely awakened beings, then the pyramid kindly follows their progress and broadcasts it across the galaxy directly into the minds of those that wish to see it. With a thought, your point of view can be over a battlefield then over the shoulder of your favorite climber. The perfect form of entertainment for my bloodthirsty citizens.
Grinning, I watched as a thirty-foot long serpent darted down a hole and the pain-filled scream of the scaled bi-ped being eaten echoed through my head. I sat back in my throne with a contented smile on my face as I continued to watch the beast swallow the squirming girl head first.
The moment was ruined as a knock sounded out. My smile was replaced by a toothy scowl as the armored form scuttled into the room. The runner was one of the crustacean species that were employed throughout the capital due to their inability to rebel. Holding their only breeding queens hostage has proven to be an effective collar.
The runner stopped twenty feet from my throne and eased itself down onto its belly, turning its eye stocks downward in supplication. Impatiently, I said, “Speak.”
As my words resonated through the room, the effect it had on the crustacean was profound. The segmented legs all drew in on themselves, covering the vulnerable joints. Its entire body began to shake, and its color began to mimic the metallic floor before it said, “Lord Viltrix, I was sent to report that the Integration fleet led by Lady Tetra entered the system not thirty minutes ago.”
The news sent a thrill through me. Being the ruler did not exempt me from enjoying the games as much as anyone else. The need to see more blood spilled was overwhelming at times, but with a new integration came a springtime of prosperity. Most unrest was washed away with the tide of blood coming from the Pyramid. That, coupled with the influx of profits and productivity from the slaves, was always welcomed.
I was distracted from my musing when I noticed the runner was still in the same spot, shaking more violently than before. I turned my void-like eyes to the being and said, “Do you care so little for your life, little crab? I heard your message. Now leave me before my mood sours.”
The shaking grew even more pronounced, and the shell of the runner was completely silver. Surprisingly, the being gathered its courage and spoke, “Lord Viltrix, there is more news. Minutes after the fleet entered the system, they deviated from their heading from the slave distribution satellite and accelerated to the maximum safe operating speed for this part of space.”
My eyes narrowed, and I stood from my throne. With a thought, my heads-up display manifested, and I accessed the communication relay and hailed the fleet. For a full minute, I tried and failed to gain contact. I looked down at the shaking form and said, “Have any attempts to gain contact or remote control been successful?”
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The eye stocks shook from side to side in a clear gesture of denial, and my blood began to boil. I began stomping towards the throne room doors, gesturing to my attendants as I went. In my haste, I felt a slight resistance under my booted foot followed by a muffled scream, then a satisfying crunch of breaking shell. The death of the runner was nothing more than a fleeting distraction.
As I made my way down the corridor towards my personal hanger, I spoke aloud, “Sound the alarm, prepare my dreadnought to launch. Tetra has finally made her move, and I will not allow her actions to go unpunished. Find out her heading immediately.”
The attendant made a complex set of hand gestures to another, and they both took off in a sprint. One took a left while calling out orders over his communication device, while the other disappeared in the direction of the hanger.
Arriving at my hanger, the colossal size of the dreadnought always had a calming effect on me. The largest of all vessels in my armada, I had spent hundreds of years having it built to unrealistic specifications by an army of shipwrights. No force in the galaxy could stand before it.
Approaching the titan of a ship, the walkway was lined by thousands of people frantically making preparations until they noticed my approach. Like a wave of comprehension, they fell to their knees and placed their foreheads against the ground. There they remained until I boarded my vessel in fear of what I would do to them if they dared to lay eyes on my god-like visage.
I was escorted to the command deck where I found several members of my council patiently waiting for my arrival. I took my seat at the center of the room and began drumming my fingers against the armrest of the chair, then said, “What is the status of the fleet?”
An unassuming man stepped forward, needing his hands together while staring down at his feet. He fell to one knee then said, “Lord Viltrix, we have determined that the fleet is heading directly towards the Pyramid. Since your last briefing, the fleet has begun pushing their Tachyon drives past their recommended maximum. Our engineers estimate they will be able to maintain their current speeds for approximately five more hours, then the engines will melt down.”
Scrunching my brows, I pulled up the navigation interface and asked, “What is their ETA?”
The councilmen shot one another furtive glances then said, “Lord, they will arrive within the hour.”
Shooting to my feet, I roared, “What! How long till we can take off?”
The fear written across their faces grew as the energy began radiating off me, then they all fell to their knees, and the youngest of their number turned his head towards me with blood streaming from his eyes and nose shakily he said, “Lord, at this rate we will barely be clear of the hanger when they arrive. I can instruct the crew to abandon non-essential checks and have us 60% operational, but it will only save us ten extra minutes.”
The voids in my sockets began to draw in all the light in the room. A cacophony of screams could be heard as everything was plunged into darkness, followed by an aerie silence. I took a deep breath in and released it. As I reined in my emotions, the curtain of black receded, revealing the emaciated corpses of the councilmen and crew. Rolling my eyes, I accessed the intercom system and said, “Get me a crew to the bridge now! I want this ship in the air and ready for a fight in half an hour!”
I ignored the new crew as they streamed into the newly vacant space, stepping over the corpses to take up their stations. I retook my seat pointed at the communication officer and said, “Contact the officer in charge of patrolling the space surrounding the Pyramid. Tell him to fire everything he has at the fleet the second they come within range of his cannons!”
The terrified woman nodded quickly and began to turn back towards her station when I said, “Also send out a broadcast of my words towards the fleet. Tetra I have known for years that you were up to something. I would have never guessed you would be so foolish to think this plan would actually work. If you think you can escape me by fleeing to the Pyramid, you're dead wrong. I'll kill everyone and everything in that fleet to get to you. Goodbye Tetra The Protector!”