That was not going to happen here, One-who-Decides thought firmly. War was the last resort of the incompetent. The proper thing to do was not to place oneself in a position where such an outrage was required. The very thought of it sent a subcutaneous ripple down the mottled torso.
Sometimes the Commander wondered what it would be like to have a skeleton instead of a flexible internal webwork of ligaments and tendons. Bones were an evolutionary throwback, of course, restrictive and confining. They compelled the species to concentrate on physical development to the concurrent neglect of the mind. All the higher intelligences were invertebrates, with only a few exceptions, like the Ashregan and Crigolit.
Amplitur bioengineers had managed to free individual Ashregan from their skeletons. But the results, while functional, were considered aesthetically unpleasing to the species involved. So there was very little work done in that area anymore. The Ashregan and their biological relations were doomed to haul their calcified innards around with them to the end of time. Still, they were accepted as equals within the Purpose, even if the biologists did tend to regard them as evolutionary freaks. They were to be admired, thought One-who-Decides, for having developed intelligence in spite of such a handicap.
That was the true beauty of the Purpose, that it excluded no one. An Ashregan could stand side by side with a Molitar, while an Amplitur mediated between them.
That was what really mattered, the Commander knew. The meeting of minds, the unity of understanding and Purpose. That was what bound together such a diverse assemblage of peoples. Not insignificances like physical differentiation.
The work ahead filled One-who-Decides with trepidation as worst-case scenarios were anticipated. Nevertheless, it would be pursued with vigor and dedication in the knowledge that the end result would be an important expansion of the Purpose and the greater mystery for which it stood.
Just because they were fighting the Sspari did not mean the commander had to like it, even though it was the work for which it had been trained.
Fighting was a disagreeable business, smelling strongly of uncivilization, as did the need to maintain enormous stocks of war material and the fleets to transport it. One could not even take joy in victory, since achieving it would require the death of large numbers of the enemy … all intelligent minds lost to the Purpose. The only satisfaction lay in knowing that the surviving Sspari would be fully integrated into the delights of the Purpose. And because those Sspari who would perish would never know that pleasure, One-who-Decides regretted their forthcoming deaths even more than those that might occur among its own kind.
There seemed no other way. All avenues of persuasion had been tried. Though a diminutive and physically unimposing race, the Sspari were possessed of a stubbornness and inability to see reason out of all proportion to their size.
All of which meant nothing, One-who-Decides knew. It was intelligence which mattered. That the Sspari had, though not to any great or remarkable degree. Enough, however, to warrant their inclusion in the Purpose, as soon as they could be taught not to resist their own destiny.
Even the traditional show of force had failed to convince, serving only to warn them of what was to come and allowing them time to prepare. The Amplitur knew that might be the result, but they tried it anyway. The peoples of the Purpose did not attack without first trying persuasion. They were integrators, not conquerors.
Next had come the traditional attempt at subverting the government, through innuendo and bribery carried out by allies who physically resembled the Sspari. The morality of such methods was often questioned, but the Amplitur would do anything to avoid war, that obscene offense against reason.
Unfortunately, the government of the Sspari had not fallen.
The resultant conflict had raged for years, with the Sspari occasionally making advances. Though they fought with a tenacity which was as determined as it was foolish, the overwhelming strength and diversity of the Peoples was slowly pushing them back to their homeworld. When the Amplitur gained ground, they rarely surrendered it back no matter what the cost, while the Sspari could be induced to make orderly retreats.
How could they stand against the peoples, who fought from a position of moral as well as physical and intellectual strength? Racial or planetary sovereignty counted for nothing when ranged against the Purpose. Furthermore, the Amplitur possessed the patience of the ages, and the confidence that victory was inevitable. The only variable was time.
One-who-Decides did not understand how the Sspari could fail to see this. Could they not see that full integration was inevitable? That was the destiny of all intelligences, save those two whose extermination had been regretfully required. That would not happen to the Sspari, the Commander vowed. And when the war was over, only a minimum of genetic reengineering would be necessary to insure their eternal happiness.
It was terrible, though, that intelligent beings on both sides had to die to bring that about.
The instrument arc that clung to the Commander’s forebody above the eyes provided a steady flow of information about the ongoing battle. Had the flagship been positioned a few more planetary diameters in, it might have been possible to see the small flashes of light which signified the presence of warships dropping troop shuttles to the surface of the Sspari homeworld. Ships of the Purpose would phase out of normal space to be confronted by the Sspari defense forces, there would follow a brief exchange of immensely powerful weaponry, and then one ship or the other would retreat back into Underspace.
The idea of combat in Underspace, at supralight speeds, was naturally absurd. You could hardly do battle when your presumed target outpaced both weapons and tracking devices. So combat took place in orbit around contested worlds, when ships materialized back into real space. If damaged, one could retreat back into Underspace and safety, so long as there was power to do so. Such encounters were a matter of guesswork and seconds.
Real combat took place on the ground, where heavy weapons could not be used lest they fatally damage the very environment an attacker was seeking to control. The trick was to remain safely in real space long enough to land or reinforce troops. It was this that the Sspari were striving so strenuously to prevent. Let the attacking ground forces gain control of the Sspari centers of communication and technology, and there would no longer be reason to fight. The Amplitur had found they could leave the business of policing any postcataclysm fanatics to the local people themselves, once their allegiance to the Purpose had been secured.
One had to admit that for such an unprepossessing folk, the Sspari had fought long and hard. All for nothing. The fleet of the Peoples had reached the Sspari home system. The Sspari had tried to stop them near an impressive three-ringed gas giant, where the fleet had phased out of Underspace. Now they had been pushed back to their homeworld.
The Commander observed it through the towering transparent wall. A lovely world, all brown and green. Soon the command staff would be able to view it in person.
One-who-Decides was honored to direct this final assault force. Mottled orange hide rippled fluidly. It was always an emotional moment when a new species was brought to the Purpose.
At first there would be sadness among the Sspari for those who had perished. But the Amplitur were the kindliest of victors. They required no reparations, desired no vengeance. They wished only that which they had sought from the beginning of the unfortunate conflict: understanding.
Peace would be struck, whereupon the Sspari would find themselves living exactly as they had prior to the war, with the exception that instead of wasting their time striving for individual racial achievement they would now be contributing to the much vaster and more satisfying ends of the Purpose. This often produced an outburst of rage among the population, when they realized that their leaders had led them into battle and sacrifice for nothing.
The Amplitur and their allies would do their best to prevent such a bloodbath from occurring. For now, though, there was a final battle to be won. The information
arriving from the ships darting in and out of real space indicated that it should not take much longer.
So it came as something of a shock when Suern of the Korath and Co’oi of the Crigolit swung up in front of the Commander on a sickle of their own.
It was Co’oi who reported through the translator that hung against her thorax that the landing forces were being attacked in strength by an unknown, hitherto unsuspected group of vessels. One-who-Decides did not panic. That was not in the nature of the Amplitur.
The information arc allowed rapid communication with Amplitur on other ships. There were twelve in all: only twelve among thousands of other peoples, scattered throughout the fleet. Twelve to make final decisions and give advice. They were along more to offer moral support than strategy, since it had been assumed that the Korath and their allies were more than capable of putting an end to the Sspari resistance.
They were also present to aid in dealing with any unexpected developments, of which this certainly seemed to be one.
II
“I thought the location and number of all surviving Sspari warships down to the last were well known to us?”
“So was thought it,” said Co’oi of the Crigolit, antennae twitching uncontrollably.
“Calm yourself,” said One-who-Decides, issuing in addition to the words a projection of soothing reassurance. The Crigolit relaxed visibly.
“Explain the apparent contradiction.”
“The attacking vessels are other than Sspari.” The Korath’s voice was almost inaudible. “The fleet has been forced to cancel the planned landing to deal with the new threat.”
“How many attacking vessels?” asked One-who-Decides.
“Uncertain still.” The Crigolit paused as she listened to the reports competing for time on her headset. “Real-space conflict time is an approximation at best, but the number large is.”
“Capabilities?”
“Some weapons new, not yet analyzed. Explosive plasma. Dangerous and difficult to avoid.”
“Artificial intelligence guided?”
The Crigolit was hesitant. “Cannot yet be stated with any certitude.”
The Commander shifted on the cushion, wishing for the legs of a Molitar. “Change to defensive mode. Break off the proposed landing and contemplate an englobement.”
Suern of the Korath spoke up. “Might that not be premature, Commander? The Sspari will gain hope from it. I would rather deal with a dozen unexpected warships than give an enemy new hope.”
“I would rather be thought hesitant than reckless. My first concern must be for our own. We can phase to Underspace only a limited number of times. I would not like to be caught in real space, unable to phase out, with an overpowering force waiting for us.” One-who-Decides conveyed a mental imperative to the Korath, who blinked. “If this is a clever ploy of the Sspari we will find out soon enough. If not, wisdom dictates caution. We will worry about the psychological effects on the Sspari later. Presently we must do battle with what we can see.”
The Crigolit acknowledged with a wave of both antennae while the Korath spread its upper limbs.
One-who-Decides nudged a control and the sickle rose on its flexible arm, shifting to battle control on the far side of the room. Events bode ill. Whence this unexpected assault, these unanticipated reinforcements of a lost cause? Ships of unknown type, new weapons: everything pointed to a space-traversing race other than Ssparian. But the Peoples had been pushing back the Sspari for more than a hundred years. From the moment conflict had been joined to the present day they had no known allies.
Flashing, brightly lit battle predictors gave One-who-Decides more information than had its subordinates. There lay the Sspari, trying to cover the space between their homeworld and the fleet. There the fleet itself was arrayed, ships phasing in and out of Underspace according to traditional tactics. And scattered among them were bright pinpoints of red, vessels of unknown origin trying to time their emergence into real space properly to engage the ships of the Purpose. Injuries were being suffered. Damage was heavy.
One-who-Decides sorrowed for the losses on both sides. It was not afraid for itself. No Amplitur who had served the Purpose for a lifetime feared mere physical dissolution, except insofar as that might inhibit or slow the advance of the Purpose.
There were decisions to be made, and One-who-Decides proposed them. Its good sense and confidence lent strength to worried officers and technicians. Simultaneously it stayed in contact with its fellow Amplitur throughout the fleet. One-who-Listens and Tall-straight-Walker had assumed personal command of the defense.
It was soul-rending to see a glowing dot—bright green in the case of the Peoples’ forces, yellow for the Sspari, intense red for the unknowns—vanish from a screen, indication that it had been impacted by a plasma ball or thermonuclear device or some other terrible weapon which caused the loss of hundreds, perhaps thousands of lives. Lights dancing on a screen were feeble indicators of the issues at stake.
So simple and silent, the vanishing of a light. With it perished offspring, families, clanmates, friends; hopes and dreams and fears. Not to mention the setback to the Purpose.
It was foolish and wasteful. The Amplitur passionately hated both.
There was little time for sleep all the rest of that day and the greater part of the following. As the Amplitur required less than many, One-who-Decides was still alert when the critical moment came.
According to the predictors, circumstances had degenerated to the point where a small group of hostiles might successfully interdict any landing without sufficient support from the fleet. This allowed the Sspari to divert vessels from planetary defense to attack.
Even as this was realized, one of the strange alien vessels materialized into normal space concurrent with the flagship. There was a brief exchange of firepower before the flagship could retire once more to Underspace. Damage had been sustained though hull integration had been maintained.
But the Korath had planned well. Inspired by temporary success, the Sspari had diverted too much of their effort to attack. Materializing from Underspace on the far side of the planet, ships of the Peoples managed to put substantial landing forces down on the surface before the defenders could react.
Upon learning this, the remaining Sspari vessels broke away in a desperate attempt to deal with the landing. Their new allies, realizing that the battle they had come to aid was lost, retreated permanently to Underspace.
Essentially the contest for Sspari was over. Ground combat, the real fighting, might take another hundred years, but Sspari resistance had been broken. Final victory was something the Crigolit, Ashregan, and other combative races would achieve. The Amplitur could go home.
Now was time to consider reproduction as well as the identity of those whose appearance had nearly turned triumph into defeat. Whoever they were, they had fought extremely well. Had they arrived earlier, the commander might now be contemplating disaster.
It was clear the unknowns were technologically advanced. More dangerously, they understood the components of warfare and were capable of employing them. Most races could not, being psychologically unsuited to the manipulation of the patently mad. Only extensive bioengineering had made the allies of the Amplitur combat-capable. What sort of methods did these unknown assailants use? It was imperative to learn more about them. One-who-Decides issued directives to that effect.
Not all the enemy had succeeded in avoiding or fleeing destruction. One severely damaged vessel was discovered drifting motionless in orbit, unable to move, unable to seek sanctuary in Underspace.
It was a great stroke of luck. The brief but intense moments of spatial combat between ships only infrequently produced survivors. This was due to the types of weapons used and the unforgiving nature of space itself, whose harsh conditions usually finished what complex weapons had begun.
A Segunian-commanded warship had located such a vessel. Whether its internal life-support systems had survived intact and functioning remaine
d to be determined, but One-who-Decides was hopeful.
Time and careful handling eased the captured vessel alongside the much larger flagship. Its shape was different from those used by the Peoples, but not incomprehensibly so. It was possible to divine function from observation.
Its drive was inoperative, but external inspection showed no evidence of implosion. Its builders were skilled.
Analysis revealed that the light which emerged from unbroken ports filled a normal chunk of the spectrum, suggesting that the crew possessed good vision within familiar parameters. The presence of oxygen and nitrogen in common proportions was noted.
Short of confrontation there was little means of judging physical shape, size, or capability. That was shortly to be remedied by a boarding party. They would go in prepared to deal with resistance but admonished above all else to secure live specimens.
Limited resistance there was, stubborn and frustrating. It was overcome by the introduction of a mild soporific into the ship’s ventilation system. A short while later it proved possible to extract the survivors one by one, like so many seeds from a pod. It developed that the appearance of the Sspari’s unexpected allies was to be but the first of many surprises.
Instead of finding representatives of one race as was normal, the boarders encountered individuals representing several different species. That much was self-evident even to nonspecialists, who were used to dealing with races whose types could include miniature workers, multiple sexes, or androgynous types like the Amplitur themselves.
That was not the case on board the captured vessel. Its crew was clearly composed of members of half a dozen different species, all working in apparent harmony and cooperation.