Chapter Seven: Debriefing
The Hyperion was a very nice ship.
It had obviously been maintained well, and there were fairly elaborate designs on it. The Confederacy had built it for the specific purpose of luxury. A place where the Old Families could shelter while at war. It had been taken by the Sons of Korhal. From there, it was taken by Raynor's Raiders when the Dominion was founded.
That day at the Dylerian Shipyards had been a very dramatic one. It was the Original Sin of the Dominion's founding myth.
Nova walked the halls as the ship took off. Getting on board had taken a while, but she'd been glad to see the piles of corpses behind. Most of them had been zerg, and there were mountains of them on the bridge.
"People of Mar Sara, the zerg's main hive clusters have been destroyed. The zerg are in retreat," said Serena Calabas over the intercom. "I have reason to believe that the remaining elements of the zerg will leave the system with the Hyperion.
"Well done, all of you.
"This is a victory, not just for the Dominion, but for Mar Sara and all of humanity. The rogue Moebius Corp soldiers are being hunted down as we speak. But we must stand firm against any further invasion. Inform the militia if you see any sign of the zerg and do not go out alone or unarmed."
"I wish she'd stop gloating," muttered Nova.
"Magistrate Calabas is kind of a bitch, but she definitely gets the job done," said one man. "Not a lot of other people could have won us this battle.
"Not Mengsk, and maybe not even Raynor."
"You may be right," said Nova.
"Damn fine woman, though," said a man.
Nova opted to avoid them. She didn't like the way they thought about her or Calabas. Making her way on, however, she sensed a familiar presence. Looking back, Nova saw Samuel, freshly cleaned up, running after her.
"Nova, wait up," he said.
"Samuel?" asked Nova. "What are you doing joining the Raiders?"
Samuel shrugged. "My home is wrecked, most of the people I know are dead, and my business is shot. There's nothing for me left out here. I figure I may as well try to fight the good fight while I can."
"It might not be what you're hoping for," noted Nova.
"Maybe not, but it's my only option at this point," said Samuel. "Why are you going?"
"I'm probably going to jump ship as soon as I can get somewhere else," admitted Nova. "Right now, this is my only way off-planet."
"That makes two of us, I guess," said Nova. Then she saw Tychus Findlay and Jim Raynor round the corner.
"Damn, Jimmy," said Tychus. "You've been holding out on me."
"Can the chatter, we're not out of this yet," said Raynor. "The zerg fleet is on an intercept course with us. Tychus, let's get to the bridge."
Nova looked to Samuel and shifted. "I want to get to a window."
And together, they raced out looking for one. Eventually, they came to one, and through the energy field, saw the planet of Mar Sara. It was far below now, but in the distance, they saw masses and masses of mutalisks. And beyond those, Nova saw a mass of greenish flesh and tendrils.
And Nova felt a presence. It was something she'd only sensed briefly and only from afar, but it was unmistakable. She felt like her entire universe revolved around it, and she flinched away. And yet she sensed... frustration and anger, not control.
"That's uh... that's a lot of zerg flyers," said Samuel.
"Maybe, but it's a fraction of what they had before," realized Nova. She sensed down to Mar Sara where the zerg were being eradicated. "Think about all the mutalisks we killed, Samuel. Then multiply that by all the other battlefields we didn't see.
"The Queen of Blades wasn't expecting to be resisted, and we gave her a bloody nose."
"The Queen of Blades is here?" asked Samuel, voice afraid.
"I... well, I think I can sense her," said Nova. "She's sort of a psychic beacon, and when you're near her, you get this... gnawing sensation. Like you exist to be her plaything. You feel it too, don't you?"
"Yeah, sort of," said Samuel. "I didn't realize it before now, though."
"That's because it's subconscious for you," said Nova. "Psychics feel the same stuff normal people do; they're just more aware of it."
"Here they come," said Samuel.
On came the mutalisks that began to tear at them. Nova watched as the turrets mowed them down. Waves of plasma bolts shut them down, even as the mutalisks tore at them. Nova wondered what was so important about the artifact piece or whatever.
"Attention crew, this is Matt Horner!" said a voice. "All hands to battle stations, I repeat! All hands to battle stations! We're going to have to warp out of here quick!"
It went on for a while, and suddenly the outward blurred, and they were out in empty space. Nova sensed no sign of the zerg that had been following them.
"Attention crew," said Matt. "We've made it into warp space and should be safe for the moment. Well done, people."
Nova sat down and rested her back against the wall. As she did, she closed her eyes and reached out with her thoughts. Reaching the bridge of the Hyperion, she saw Jim Raynor looking at a viewscreen. Images of horror played across the screen as news stations reported.
"-Zerg swarm launched a full-scale attack-
"-Devastation spread throughout all outer rim planets-
"-Sustained heavy losses-
"-Casualties in the billions-
"-Minutes ago the zerg attacked a Dominion military research facility-"
The channel cut out as an explosion ran across it.
"-New, exclusive video footage confirms the Queen of Blades is, in fact, leading the swarm!"
And the image froze on a picture of the Queen of Blades. A beautiful mockery of the human hair with hair like tendrils and wings like blades. She went clad in a chitinous one piece outfit like leather, and her hands were clawed.
A man in a military uniform looked to Raynor. "We always knew she'd be back. But what's she after?"
"She's come to finish the job," said Raynor. Then he opened a channel. "Alright, listen up, people. I realize some of you are new and hoping for some easy first missions. But we don't have any of those at the moment. The zerg have initiated a new offensive across the sector, and we gotta pull our weight.
"Our primary objective as of this moment is to play damage control and check the zerg wherever we can. We'll be heading to the more isolated colonies. We're going to protect the people that the Dominion can't, or won't.
"I don't want anyone asking me to start staging a revolution while the zerg are a clear and present threat!
"We'll contact you once we've got more information."
And he cut the channel.
"What I wouldn't do for a ghost suit," thought Nova.
"Just how bad is it, Matt?" asked Raynor.
Matt Horner sighed. "Zerg are attacking all over the sector, sir. Mengsk pulled the fleet back to protect the Dominion core-worlds. He's leaving the fringe worlds to fend for themselves. It's a nightmare."
Raynor walked back and forth. "There's no way we can stop an alien invasion with one capital ship and a handful of volunteers."
"Best we just stay clear, partner," said Tychus simply. "We can earn ourselves a fortune working for Moebius while this whole thing blows over."
Horner sighed. "You don't get it, convict - this isn't gonna just 'blow over'! The zerg won't stop until we're all dead!"
And then Serena Calabas appeared in holographic form. "Calm yourself, Mr. Horner; our situation is stronger than you believe."
"Serena, what have you got for me?" asked Raynor.
"I've been filtering through a number of different transmissions," said Serena. "With the Dominion withdrawing their main fleet. Only the resident garrisons and militia provide resistance. Most of them seem to be putting up a pretty good fight, though."
"That little montage Matt put together seemed to imply otherwise," said Raynor.
"Maybe, but Mengsk has a vested interest in having everyone be jumping at shadows," said Serena. "It means they'll rely on him for support. The fact of the matter is that everyone in the sector has been preparing nonstop for this moment. And as soon as the zerg showed up, everyone dropped everything to fight them.
"You've got archenemies putting aside the old grudges all over the sector. Pirate groups have stopped raiding. Even the Kel'Morian Combine is mobilizing their entire army. They are selling their services as mercenaries on the cheap. I may have arranged for some of the treaties people are now calling on.
"You can't make a profit if you're dead.
"Also, while Kerrigan is attacking all over the sector, she is also attacking all over the sector. Her campaign is an unfocused mess that is fighting on a dozen different fronts at once. Even if she wins on many of these worlds, it won't do anything to destroy the Dominion. She's wasting valuable resources to try and hunt down people who aren't a threat.
"I couldn't do more to help Arcturus Mengsk if I tried. And I'm not his archenemy."
"That's not a very rational way to run a war, Serena," said Raynor. "What's she up to?"
"Well, she seems to seek Xel'naga artifacts," said Serena. "There are reports of attacks on several search teams. But if I had to guess, I'd say that Kerrigan doesn't have a strategy. Not a coherent one anyway."
"What do you mean?" asked Raynor. "She played us like a fiddled during the Brood War. She ought to have some kind of plan."
"Yes, but her strategies were all short-sighted and stupid," said Serena. "They simply should not have worked."
"They did work," noted Matt.
"Fenix predicted that Kerrigan would turn on you, didn't he? And you believe him?" asked Serena.
"Yeah," said Rayno.
"So, why weren't you prepared for her betrayal?" asked Serena.
"We never thought she'd try to fight the Second Overmind and the UED by herself," admitted Raynor.
"Exactly," said Serena. "The Second Overmind controlled the majority of the zerg broods in the sector. Kerrigan's broods had already been badly damaged by the Psi Disruptor. If she coordinated her efforts with you, Fenix, and the Dominion, she might have had a chance.
"Instead, she confronted an enemy that outnumbered her in a direct confrontation. This with an army that relied on numbers to win.
"Kerrigan's strategy should have failed miserably. History ought to have recorded that Kerrigan anticlimactically massacred against the Second Overmind.
"When war-gamed, Dugalle always wins that fight. I ran dozens of simulations, and even giving Kerrigan a major advantage doesn't help. The UED's defensive position was near insurmountable. And defeating Zeratul afterward is just insane."
"So why didn't he?" asked Raynor.
"Because the cerebrate Kaloth is a genius," said Serena. "He's doing the impossible with every battle. He conquered Aiur, killed Fenix and Duke, defeated the UED. Then he fought me, Mark, and Artanis at the same time with inferior numbers and won. This after killing Duke and Fenix. He is unquestioningly the greatest tactical genius the Koprolu Sector has ever seen.
"The Brood War was not a triumph of Kerrigan's genius, but of Kaloth's. If he'd had a competent strategist pulling strings, we would be working with him in the new regime."
"So... you think that Kerrigan is a moron?" asked Matt.
"No, she does make some intelligent decisions," said Serena. "She just isn't nearly as clever as people think she is. Everyone has been acting like she's a borderline omnipotent goddess. And Kerrigan may have bought into her own hype.
"I don't think she regarded this as an invasion. She probably figured she could walk over the fringe worlds for years. But everyone has been preparing to fight her for years. So she's hit much harder resistance and didn't send enough to any one world.
"She'll probably adjust her strategy soon. But for now, she has fed unprepared forces into the meatgrinder."
"...If so," said Matt, "then Kaloth is waiting in reserve.
"He was never one to underestimate us. As soon as Kerrigan starts taking this seriously, she's gonna unleash him on us."
"For now, we've got colonies to help," said Raynor. "All this talking doesn't do a lick of good if we don't act. Matt, find me some planets that ain't doing so well, and we'll help them. Serena, what are you going to do?"
"I'm going to start trying to arrange some alliances. If we can cooperate with some other special interest groups, we'll do better," said Serena. "Once we have a strong, mobile force, we can strike at her wherever she is most vulnerable. I'm going to pull up some of the strategies I outlined.
"In all honesty, though, it still probably won't be enough.
"But, if we do enough damage, we might be able to buy the Dominion a few decades. Maybe even take her down with us."
"Well, it wasn't like we had anything better to do," said Raynor. "Let's get to work, people."
Nova cut the connection.
Well, at least Nova would get to use her skills in what came next.