Chapter 48

Earth

2027

Commander Vehru looked down upon Earth as she had at Lumiea and at each planet which came before it. At this moment, her generals led troops on missions in twelve countries to provide humanitarian aid that surely no one in need would be able to resist. Her replica continued to monitor all forms of media to track the Earthlings' evolving sentiment regarding the Federation, Vehru, her Witness, and their forces. And their bots fought the cultural war to sway people to her side.

Quite a few nations on Earth were doing surprisingly well working together against her. Coalitions were forming, along with agreements to refuse any aid offered by Vehru. Governments all around the world launched new humanitarian efforts of their own to try to counteract what Vehru was doing. Ironically, her conquest of Earth would temporarily result in more help for those who needed it. While there had not been any successful military campaigns against the bases that Vehru had taken over, multiple nations actually had managed to protect some of their networks from her, which made it a challenge to remotely disable their nuclear weapons. Impressive.

Still, not enough.

Heat popped beside her ten minutes earlier than she expected.

"Welcome to Earth, Morfrain." Vehru did not look at him.

Her partner hovered in the air with her as they both looked down to the patchwork of rolling farmlands. "You won't be able to kick me off this planet."

"You'll never get over it, will you?"

"Why are you hanging around up here?"

Vehru shrugged. "Perspective."

"Let's get back to where you've established headquarters. We have work to do."

"Why not enjoy some fresh air while we talk?"

Morfrain turned her way. "Talk? We have troops waiting on us."

Vehru drifted closer. "I was looking at how much energy it takes to live in the Ashby Hotel and comparing it to more extensive virtual realities. The population of the federation that has gone virtual does not require this much energy. Neither does our transportation system or–"

"It sounds like you should spend more time thinking about your job and less about matters that have nothing to do with you."

"My job is all about energy."

"It has nothing to do with how we spend energy."

She raised a brow. "Perhaps, there's another reason the Federation cares so much about the people of these worlds becoming loyal. That certainly has to do with my responsibilities."

"What are you implying?"

"It doesn't seem reasonable to believe the prime generation that seeded all these planets simply vanished. If they uploaded, then where's their energy source?"

His eyes narrowed.

"It's a nice image that the Federation has created for itself. We're on top of humanity, paving the way for a more advanced future. That's why we need all this energy. The truth is less impressive. We're hardly more than a middle man. Indentured servants, really. We gather the energy for the people who really are in power."

"That's a nice conspiracy theory."

"It's the truth. I proposed a different system other than conquering, one where we use ambassadors rather than Witnesses. There's no way I'm the only one to call for a more peaceful path forward. What's the reason for the resistance?"

Morfrain edged closer to her until his chest bumped her body. "It doesn't matter what you think."

"But it does, because I'm better at war than you." Vehru leaned in, whispering with a smile. "The Federation does not simply want to go digital. They want to take charge of a higher plane of existence and move on beyond our physical bodies. They've created loyal warrior planets that will be able to withstand the kind of war never before waged."

Vehru could see the information twisting in Morfrain's mind. Could see that he finally was realizing that he might have been right about her planning something but failed to see the scope. Surely, it could not be such a shock that Vehru had figured out the prime generation had not simply abandoned all control of their seeded planets to lesser evolved humans. Neither would they have uploaded without a way to protect their hardware and generate energy. Or to maintain their power in the physical universe. And she never bought into the theory that the entire civilization perished.

Likely, Morfrain figured that if Vehru suspected it, there was nothing she could do with the information. He always underestimated her.

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This was only the beginning. All her work up until this point, including what she was doing on Earth, was the first step.

She looked down his form, wondering how often he trained, and whether he'd let himself get complacent, or think that he could easily defeat her. "We have the opportunity to create a beautiful partnership, my dear friend. All we have to do is put this cold war behind us. Earth could be the turning point for us as partners."

"You should never have been trusted as a commander." Morfrain's upper lip curled. "What the hell have you been up to?"

"I've been conquering worlds. That's what I've been up to." She tapped his chest. "What about you?"

"Once I report back that you have these crazy ideas–"

"The High Commanders will applaud my work and question why someone like you who has been doing this for so long could not figure out how to match my results. I can deliver not only more energy, and purer energy, but also soldiers who are primed to fight impossible wars, because they've already done so."

Indignation and rage darkened his eyes. "You're insane."

"I simply appreciate the potential of a desperate human. Have you noticed that with each planet, the people get a little more clever? As if their rebellion somehow passes on from one world to the next? Or are you so high above it all that you fail to see this?"

Morfrain grabbed her arm tight. "What have you done?"

"Evolved. You're an old model if you won't evolve too." She ripped his hand off her. "Are you with me or not?"

"I'm taking over this operation. You're finished."

"Oh, Morfrain. I've already talked with the High Commanders. Did you really think we'd be having this conversation if I didn't have their blessing?"

"Then they don't understand what you're up to."

"What am I up to? I'm increasing output and training our troops."

He huffed out a loud breath. "You're trying to usurp authority."

"Whose? Yours? You surrendered it so easily."

His hand tightened into a fist. She looked down at it.

"We both are on this mission," Vehru said. "We have to conquer this world together. I suggest you control yourself for the duration of this partnership."

He reached for her throat and she slashed his hand with her forearm, knocking it away. Though he looked like he would try again, in the end, he only stared.

"And leave my humans alone," Vehru said. "I won't tolerate unnecessary cruelty."

"Because you're the only one allowed to torture your pets?"

It stung more than she wanted it to. "I look forward to continuing our work, Commander Morfrain."

He growled and then transported without saying another word.

Vehru tilted her head back, soaking up the sun's warmth, as she sighed in pleasure. After hundreds of years, she'd finally been able to be even slightly honest with him. It felt incredible. He'd talk to the High Commanders and they would put him in his place, because the old ways were not good enough. Vehru was new and the Federation liked new, effective things.

Of course, Morfrain knew her better than anyone else in the Federation. He was absolutely right that they shouldn't trust her. It wasn't that she had delusions about taking over the entire Federation or moving on to take over the prime generation who had originally seeded all these planets. Well, perhaps, she had a fantasy about it, at least. But Vehru did recognize the failure of the High Commanders. Like Morfrain, they had grown complacent. By the end of the this, the Federation would appreciate Vehru's efforts. In fact, the conquered worlds would too. The Witnesses would. She would make a better way.

Vehru wanted all this bloodshed and all of these sins to eventually mean something.

If through her efforts, she happened to have the chance to take more power than anyone from a conquered planet ever should dream of, then why not accept it? It really didn't matter what drove her anymore. It only mattered that she succeeded in what she first set out to do.

Vehru would save her planet. She would save it from dangers she had not even known existed when she first accepted the job as a conqueror of worlds. If a war between dimensions would one day come, then she wanted her home world to come out on top.

She floated through the air like it was her own private pool until a message came through her thoughts, one marked urgent.

It was her mother. Vehru closed her eyes and did not hesitate to transport to her mother's bedside.

Fear stormed through her.

The moment she arrived in the room, she locked eyes on her mother. The older woman stared without speaking. Relief at seeing her well welled in her heart, only to just as quickly drain away.

In many ways, Vehru's life felt infinite, sprawling over hundreds of years and spanning multiple solar systems. Her mother's eyes narrowed her world until it shrank down to a pinpoint and the only thing in existence was Vehru's shame.

Right beside her mother, tucked beneath her protective arm, sat Levi, staring with his haunting bronze eyes bright.

It had been a very long time since Vehru's emotions swelled to the point of making her feel as if she couldn't breathe. No words had been spoken. No moves taken. From the moment Vehru appeared in her mother's room, they all had been silent.

But everything about her mother, from the horrified look in her eye, to the defeated sag of her shoulders told Vehru far more than words ever could.

"I think you should give us a moment alone, Levi," Vehru said quietly.

Her mother's hold on him tightened. "He's not leaving my sight."

"Mama–"

"No."

Vehru breathed out slowly and lowered her head. "Levi," she said softly. "This conversation is not for young ears. Can I help you go to sleep for just a little while?"

Though he had his mother's eyes, his father's anger burned in them now. "I don't want to sleep. I stayed behind like I was supposed to and I'm tired of being left out. What's happening with my parents? Are they safe? When will they come home?"

"They're safe." Flashes of Jace and Rory twisting in pain flitted through her mind. "I promise I'll answer more questions if you sleep for now."

"It's okay," her mother said and ran her fingers through his hair. "I'll make sure you don't sleep for long."

He fidgeted and finally nodded. "Fine. We have to talk when I wake up, though."

"We will." Vehru could put him to sleep from here, but it was always safer and took less energy to get as close to the neuroweb as possible. So, she covered his eyes and helped him to fall asleep. Carefully, she lowered him onto the bed.

Then, she faced her mother.

"I know everything." Her mother's voice trembled. "Everything."