Chapter 5
Second-in-Command Pax Curad
The human was sound asleep when I left the next day. I wanted nothing to do with disturbing her slumber and went to work without a word.
I had been fuming all night as I thought of Grod’s cruelty, fuming with past slights combined with the insult of not being included in his current plans. Plans that, should he be successful, might make the Earth completely uninhabitable.
“Do you have any idea how short-sighted you are being?” I demanded, bursting through the door of Grod’s office, despite his security officers charging after me and telling me that my brother wanted no visitors.
“Ah, brother! I was expecting you,” Grod said, a sick and twisted smile creeping across his face. How was it that I always seemed to forget just how depraved Grod could be when I wasn’t around him? My mind resorted to seeing him as a brother, not as a power-hungry monster. But time and again, he continued to prove me wrong.
“What’s the meaning of this?” I demanded, pulling out the document stating Grod’s intent to destroy some of Earth’s most bountiful resources and shoving it at my brother. He grinned patiently and gave a small, infuriating shrug.
“Sometimes, when it comes to matters of war, small sacrifices must be made.”
“Grod, this would make the past few centuries of war completely irrelevant! All the bloodshed over so many years would be for a land that our people could only survive on for a short time! We would basically be resigning ourselves to living on another Helna just within a matter of generations!”
“Oh, Pax, you always take these sorts of things much too seriously. You don’t see how this will benefit us now. Think of it! We will have stricken the blow that is needed to put ourselves at the top: to win the war once and for all!”
“I don’t see how this would help us, Grod. I just don’t,” I said, shaking my head and stuffing the document back in my satchel. “Please, tell me what you’re thinking. Because, in my opinion, you’re making a huge mistake, and I’m not going to hide how I feel about it.”
“Well, the thing about that, Commander, is that how you feel makes absolutely no difference. You can be as angry and outraged as you want. But this is what’s going to happen. I am going to win.”
Grod held my gaze, and I was chilled suddenly, deeply, right to the bone, by his cold eyes. The way he said he was going to win. Not “we.” Not the Verian people. Just Grod.
It was too telling for me to be comfortable with. I wanted to believe my brother was capable of great things, but the fact remained that he was just as selfish now as he had ever been. Even when his primary concern should have been the safety and well-being of our people, he was focusing solely on himself. I knew I shouldn’t be surprised, but still, it was a very difficult and disturbing reality.
“Please, just explain to me why. How are you going to win this way?”
Grod sighed heavily.
“Leave me,” he said to his guards. They nodded and abruptly left us alone in the big office, and Grod turned his smiling face back to me. I looked at him steadily, refusing to allow him to get a sense on just how uncomfortable his thirst for domination was making me. It was the surest way to an altercation, and I wanted to know for sure, with a clear head, what my brother was up to.
“Frankly, Pax, I am going to win because I am determined to win. There is a small cluster of Earthlings who live on this very plentiful patch of land. Many are refugees, but many are also very talented minds. I have intel that there may be some scientists among them seeking refuge from the danger of Zone 70: those who believe the attack is imminent. They continue to supply the Zones with information and research. With those great minds in hiding, the Earth may still have an advantage. And we cannot abide by that. Is that clear enough to you, dear brother?”
I was quiet for a moment.
The words made sense, and I could acknowledge the reasoning behind them. In fact, they were probably part of the most logical plan I had heard my brother come up with to date.
And yet, there was something else behind his words: a malice and a glee that made me extremely uncomfortable. I wanted nothing to do with him at that moment, and turned away, unable to hide my disgust.
“But what of the resources?” I asked darkly. “Is there not a more sustainable way to rid the Earth of the pesky humans that may threaten to destroy our efforts at victory?”
Grod laughed, a slow, dark sound that made bile rise in my throat. I wanted to shout at him, to knock the sense into him somehow. But there was nothing I could do. I was but second-in-command to the doyan. It was my duty to provide the planet with a victory; it was his job to choose how that victory would be achieved. He had the strength of the entire Verian army, while I had nothing. And if he suspected I wasn’t behind him, one hundred percent, there was no telling what lengths he would go to in order to punish me and exert his control once again. Frankly, it was infuriating.
“My way is the only way, Pax. I know you understand that. I am only doing what is best.”
I nodded grimly, keeping the thought to myself that Grod was only doing what he thought was best for himself. He loved the toils of war and bloodshed. He felt it was his birthright. Ever since our family had been placed in power, the war had taken a serious and violent turn. The men of our family were fighters: short-tempered and sometimes even a little bit arrogant. It stood to reason that Grod had taken those traits and turned them into something awful. It wasn’t as if he’d had a great fatherly figure growing up.
“Of course,” I said begrudgingly. “So, what shall I do to ensure that our mission is a success?”
“You just leave all the planning to me,” Grod said, a twinkle in his eye. “Everything will fall into place as it is meant to, and I don’t intend for anybody to stand in my way. Not even you, brother.”
“Of course,” I said. “Please excuse my intrusion. I suppose I like to understand what is going on. Just tell me what I can do to help.”
Grod’s smile remained frozen on his face, and my immense discomfort caused me to turn away from him and leave the room.
As soon as I was by myself again, I had to stop and wonder what was really going on. Usually, Grod jumped at the chance to put me to work. In a way, I had been baiting him by offering myself to his plan. The more self-serving and dark it was, the less likely he would be to keep me around to witness it. Maybe I reminded him of his conscience; or perhaps he just didn’t want me nagging at him the whole time.
Regardless, I knew from his behavior that whatever was going on, it wasn’t good. And, in fact, it was probably just going to get worse. I had to get to the bottom of things once and for all, and if my brother wasn’t going to be honest with me, I would just have to figure out another way to reveal the truth.
***
“Pax!”
I was startled when I came through the door of my home and found the human sitting in wait. Normally she avoided me as if I were the plague, and the only times we saw each other were during meals. For some reason though, now she was out and about, waiting for me. It was perplexing.
“Yes, human? What is it?”
I studied her serious face; the curious pinkness of her cheeks as she looked away from me and hesitated in the doorway.
“Human, it is unlike you to be so coy. Just tell me what is on your mind.”
The female sighed and approached me.
“Do you have somewhere that we can talk?”
I nodded, beckoning her to follow me down the hall. We went across the altar room to my study, and I invited her to take a seat in one of the overstuffed chairs that had been passed down to me from my father. It had been his father’s chair as well, and I suppose he felt I should have something of their legacy as the true power of the doyan’s role was not an option for the younger of his two sons. Ever since Doyan Yoltaz had been in power, our system had converted to one more like a monarchy; doyans were no longer elected. Only the oldest sons of the Yoltaz clan were allowed to take power.
The people seemed to prefer this, as it freed their minds to focus more on war strategy and survival rather than politics, and in the short time that my family had been in power, we had finally raised the impressive army of supersoldiers that were going to destroy the human’s opposition and provide us with the tools we needed for victory.
“Now tell me, human, what is it that you want to talk about? Are you sure we cannot do it over a meal?”
“No,” Ali said, her beautiful face set in determination. This was one human whose spirt I could admire. She seemed not to have a fear in the world, and if she did, she faced them. “I want to focus on what I am going to tell you. I’ve decided to be honest with you about something that is very important to me.”
“Then please, Yula,” I said. “By all means. Tell me what it is you have to say.”
Again, the human hesitated, her face contorted by concern. But she didn’t let this stop her, and she finally met my eyes, the deep, ocean-colored orbs boring into mine with a fierce passion I could not pinpoint without her cause.
“I know I don’t have any reason to trust you…and you said you don’t make deals with humans. But there is something that I need help with…”
Her voice broke, and those oceanic eyes of hers began to glitter with tears. It was rather alarming—I had never dealt with the depths of human emotion before—and I stood up from my own seat and came toward her in a panic, reaching out as if my touch might be able to lift the burden of pain from her shoulders. Grod always said humans used tears as a manipulation tactic, but somehow, in my heart, I knew that her pain was genuine.
“What is it, Yula?” I asked, unable to keep my words back. “You can ask anything of me.”
She looked at me, her expression as surprised to hear my words as I was to speak them. But when her expression softened, I knew that the words I spoke were true, and she could sense that somehow.
“I need to get out of this house,” Ari said, her lower lip still trembling. “Don’t get me wrong. It’s a beautiful house…it’s just that in my world, my lifeforce consisted of going outside and doing things, and never staying in one place for long. Even in my lab, I was coming back and forth, collecting samples and breathing the fresh air.”
I studied the human curiously as she spoke, and then, she took my hand and whispered, “I’m worried if I stay inside much longer, I’m going to go crazy.”
I was startled by the idea of the beautiful human losing a grip on her sanity, and soon my mind was racing. What could I do to help this Yula? She was being completely serious. Was there anywhere I could possibly take her that might help her to feel better? I had never really thought about what a lack of a change in scenery could do to a fragile human mind; they were such delicate, funny little creatures.
“All right, Yula. I will figure something out for you. And when I do, you will rest assured that your sanity will no longer be in question.”
Everything about the human seemed to relax once I made my vow, and she took a deep breath, her face bright with what almost looked like a smile playing at her lips.
“Thank you,” she said, and then, quickly correcting herself, “Dershalga.”
I studied her, caught off-guard by the sweet sound and sensual movement of the human’s lips as she spoke my native tongue. It was flawless, and very impressive. I wanted to reach out to her then, to take her in my arms and demonstrate the claim I had on her once and for all, but I restrained myself. Now was not the time. I had to focus on finding out just what was going on with my brother. My people could be at stake.
“Is that all, human?” I asked, clearing my throat and trying to also clear my mind of the inappropriate desires that the human seemed to inspire within me. They were inconvenient and difficult to manage, so I had to remove myself before did something I would regret.
“Yes,” she said, standing up and giving me a small nod. “That’s all for now.”
Watching her move to leave the room made me panic momentarily. I didn’t want to see her go; the thought was almost unbearable. And yet it was such a silly feeling, one that made no sense and couldn’t possibly affect me. She was in my home constantly. It wasn’t as if I was going to lose her because we were in different areas of the house.
“Wait,” I said, my reasoning and logic meaningless as my panic prompted me to speak.
The human froze in the doorway and looked back at me, her eyes fearful and concerned.
“What is it?” she asked me. The mistrust in her voice was like a knife to my heart, and I scrambled to come up with a valid question to ask her.
“Have you eaten?” I asked, desperately hoping to bridge the gap between us so that this vast loneliness creeping over me would dissipate.
“Yes,” Ali said. “Thank you. Good night.”
She left the room, a tentative little smile offered to me: a smile begging me not to harm her. I hated the idea of being a tyrant to the Yula I cared for. My pull to claim her was overwhelming. But if she didn’t trust me, I didn’t know what more I could do.
Perhaps if I solved this riddle, if I gave her the freedom she needed in order to truly be happy, then she would open herself to me. I would do whatever it took to enforce my claim.
But first, I had more important matters to attend to. If my brother was planning something dangerous or self-serving, I had to know about it. And there was only one way I would be able to find out.
***
“Commander! What a pleasant surprise!”
“Pecha, I am pleased to be welcomed by you.”
We greeted each other formally, each of us being military men who knew the true way to honor a comrade. We were equals, in a way, and in a way, Pecha was so much more than I would ever be.
“Please, come in. Are you well? Would you like refreshments? I know my little hovel is quite out of the way, even for a man of your stature…”
Pecha turned his back to me and hobbled slowly to the open kitchen. I looked around what he had referred to as his hovel, both impressed and depressed by it. Leave it to the most brilliant mind on Helna to learn how to make himself at home even in the most adverse of conditions.
“I am well,” I said, unable to refuse the small glass of bubbling yerna that Pecha offered me. I sipped it and closed my eyes. It was the good stuff.
“Come, sit down with me,” Pecha said, leading the way to his modest seating. I followed his lead, and soon we were looking levelly at each other from the comfort of his living quarters. “What is it that you need? I don’t get many visitors.”
“And for that, I truly apologize. My brother’s banishment was completely uncalled for.”
“No, no,” Pecha said, holding his hand up to silence me. “We all know how turbulent the doyan’s emotions can be. If he truly wanted to harm me, he would have. As it is, I am comfortable in my life here.”
“I am glad to hear it,” I said, unable to rid myself of the guilt I felt over my brother’s actions.
“Now, tell me why you’re here,” Pecha said. “How may I assist you?”
“You’ve been a special part of the military for a very long time,” I said quietly. “And lately there are some issues that have been causing me great concern. I was hoping perhaps you could shed light on them.”
“Of course,” Pecha said. “Proceed.”
I took a deep breath. “Grod is planning to go after a group of humans he claims are in hiding. He says they are intelligent and something like a secret weapon for the humans. But the attack he is preparing to launch on these humans is going to cause excessive damage to the resources that the Verians are going to need to survive for an extended period of time on Earth.”
Pecha looked up at me, his features creased in worry. He drew in a sharp breath, and immediately I knew that my hunch was right. Something was very, very wrong with this strategy. And, probably, with my brother’s reasons for choosing it.
“You’re sure?” Pecha asked, standing up slowly and creakily as aging Verian men are wont to do without the proper dosages of Vari-X.
“I’m positive,” I said, my eyes flashing. I was angry and disgusted by my brother. But more than anything, I was confused. “Please, Pecha. Tell me what you know. Why would my brother do this?”
Pecha was silent as he hobbled across the room and began to rummage through a small dresser. I watched him quietly, apprehension burning in my chest. But I was confident that Pecha would have the answers I needed.
He had been coveted by the Verian armed forces for decades. His intelligence was almost mystical in its effectiveness. He was a strategist through and through; his blood seemed to hold the answers to sought-after solutions to some of the most perplexing riddles in times of war and crisis. My grandfather, the doyan Yoltaz, had utilized Pecha’s precious mind during his reign, and so had my father. But when Grod had attempted to do the same, that is when things seemed to change.
Pecha was a tired old man; a man who, with age, was growing more stubborn and more firm in his convictions. If he had an issue with the way my brother was handling a situation, he let him know it. He was fearless, in his own quiet way, and because of his resistance to Grod’s command, he had been banished to this little shack of a home, deep in the ruinous forests of Kalendah.
“I was hoping that I was wrong about the path your brother was laying out before us,” Pecha said quietly. When he sat down again, he was holding a large binder, and slowly began to flip through the pages. “Look.”
What he showed me was difficult for my mind to process, as it was always difficult to view the face of an alien race for the first time. These men were round, with exaggerated features and large, angry eyes. They resembled the lions of Earth, in a way, but with red, ruddy, humanoid features. And they were large. Very large. One of them was three times my size.
“These men look fierce, don’t they?” Pecha said, laughing softly to himself. “But they are powerless. The pathetic Larex race. They are the bullies of the galaxy. The race that had attempted to enslave the Pelin before the Verians liberated them so long ago. The only power they have is what they exert over others, for sheer dominance and nothing more. They aren’t even intelligent enough to use their actions to benefit themselves. It’s all a power play. They are all bluster, and throw their weight around for the sole purpose of destruction.”
“What have these men to do with my brother?” I demanded. “He may be a fool but is comparing them really necessary?”
Pecha sighed.
“When I was a young man, I knew your grandfather. The doyan Yoltaz. He had a great interest in the Larex. He admired the way they seemed capable of taking matters into their own hands and providing themselves with whatever it is they sought out. He identified with them. And in so doing, he inspired a correspondence that would ultimately prove impossible to disentangle himself from.
“At first he regretted it. He wanted nothing more to do with the bumbling, power-hungry krocha, but they wouldn’t go anywhere. Your grandfather, of course, was very angered by their defiance at first, but then he grew used to them. He kept the correspondence a secret, of course, to everybody but myself. In this binder is a record of their demands.”
I thought Pecha was going to hand the binder over to me, but his hands gripped it tightly, as if reluctant to let them go.
“I was the advisor then. The strategist. The one he always turned to for advice, just as your father did. What the Larex were demanding was a price that was far too high to pay. They promised him glory; singular glory. For the price of Earth.”
I was stunned. We had been fighting for the Earth for centuries at this point. How could anyone even consider giving up the fight to compromise for something so selfish?
“But my grandfather refused, didn’t he?”
“Oh yes,” Pecha said, nodding sagely. “But that didn’t stop the Larex. Once they are in your life, it’s almost impossible to get them out again. They flatter you, suck you in, make you feel as if you are a very important and singular person. Then they study you and seek out your vulnerabilities. That’s how they manage their great manipulations. They are weak; they have small numbers. They love to harm those smaller than themselves.”
“What did the Larex want with my grandfather?” I asked, horrified by the information that was beginning to create a clear picture in my head. “And please, what do you know about Grod’s involvement in all of this?”
Pecha sighed and looked down at his hands. Finally, he handed me the binder.
I hesitated. What I found in this book could change everything. Was I really prepared for it?
“Take this with you, Commander. You deserve to have the truth. Since I was banished, I don’t know what all the Larex have been telling your brother. All I truly know is that they are dangerous, and if anybody can stop them, it is you.”
“Thank you, Pecha.”
I left the old man’s house feeling more confused than ever and kept the binder carefully hidden as I mounted my thuse. I couldn’t let anybody know where I had been or what I had discovered. Fortunately, being the second-in-command gave me entitlements to my privacy, so I wouldn’t be answering to Grod about my little adventure anytime soon. Because Pecha had been banished to the old forest, there was sure to be an altercation should my brother discover what I had been doing. It was best to keep my activities to myself.
When I returned back to my home, I hid the binder quickly where nobody would ever find it, and, with my heart thudding, proceeded to dinner as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened at all.