Across the L2 cluster, sirens began to sound. Families watched in fear as tanks filled with Preventer troops rolled down streets. Local police forces found themselves being forcibly relieved of duty at gun-point. Factories were seized and prepared for conversion so that they would be able to produce war materials by the end of the week.
Highly trained Zero-G teams swarmed across the surface of the colonies, mounting laser cannons and missile launchers. Salvage teams were dispatched to the lunar surface in hopes of capturing or renovating any remaining tunnel systems.
At the aliens current rate of advance, L2 had one week to prepare before the massive fleet arrived.
* * *
Releena was sitting in her office watching the rain pound into here massive plate glass window. Heero sat in a small chair, his gun on the table beside him. Releena turned her chair and regarded her husband. "Do you think they would?"
Heero's eyes pierced her as he said quietly. "They would consider at a reasonable measure."
Releena shook her head in disbelief, "I don't believe they'd just go ahead and do it, not without my consent."
"You all ready gave your consent."
A sharp glare, "What?"
Heero shrugged. "Code Beta, sorry dear, but we all heard you say it."
Releena put her hands up in protest, "But, if this report is true, they've taken Code Beta far too seriously. Setting up shop on a colony without warning is out of the question!"
Heero shrugged again. "When this is all over, you're going to have to redefine Code Beta's protocols."
Releena propped her elbows on her desk. "We weren't ever supposed to need it. That's the only reason I agreed to it. Who could've know that we'd actually be invaded, by anyone?"
Heero stood and came around his wife's cumbersomely massive desk. He leaned in behind her and began to knead her knotted shoulders. "Protocols are laid down so that something can be done even if an unlikely situation arises."
"I don't think it gets more unlikely than this," she mumbled. Her voice was muffled by her arms.
"We still have to trust Sally and Noin and Zechs. Even Lady Une, she's always had good judgment in the past."
Releena let out a hollow laugh that echoed strangely in her spacious office. "I thought you didn't trust my brother."
Heero sighed and kneaded her back a bit harder. "That was twenty years ago. And he did a wonderful job of holding things together while I was laid up in hospital bed and the doctors severely doubted I'd ever walk again."
Releena was silent for a minute, listening to the torrents of rain lashing the thick glass. "Why did he do it?"
"Who?" Heero asked curiously.
"Duo."
Heero stopped massaging her and took a step back. He crossed his arms and looked distant for a moment. "Because he had to. Because it was closure."
"Do you think he's happy now?"
Heero thought for a moment longer. "I suppose he's either very happy or very bored."
Another hollow laugh. Heero began to massage her again. After a few more quiet moments, Releena murmured. "Do you really think they'd come here?"
Heero was saved from answering by the door bursting open. It was Frank, Releena's press secretary. He was out of breath and looked scared out of his wits. Heero was by the table and holding his gun in an instant.
Releena came quickly around the desk and grabbed Frank by the shoulders, straightening him. "What is it Frank?"
"Soldiers, they're here. They've got an armored limousine and they're under orders to bring you and the rest of the senior staff to a bunker for 'protective custody.'"
Releena spun to face Heero, "God Heero, what do we do?"
"That's not all," Frank wheezed, "There's a stand off in the lobby between the Preventer soldiers and your secret service."
"What? What the hell do you mean there's a stand off?"
"The soldiers are led by a General who's not following protocol. He's got a warrant but he won't accept secret service escort."
Heero nodded meaningfully to Releena. "That's gotta be Duke."
Releena nodded. "Sounds that way. We've got to get down there."
* * *
"You must be joking." Quatre remarked levelly as he regarded Lady Une's image on his phone screen.
"I'm afraid that that is not the case, Mr. Winner."
Quatre nodded amicably. "All right, but I need you to repeat your request on record so that I can review the constitution when this is all over."
Lady Une gave a frosty smile. "You'll be wasting your time, but I will repeat my order. You will turn the automated mecha fabrication facilities that your company maintains on the L4 colony cluster to Preventer forces. You will also instruct us in the programming of large scale weapons fabrication."
"No."
"Are you aware, Mr. Winner, that there is currently a state of Martial Law in affect. It is only do to your prestige and fame that I even warn you after you have denied a direct order. This is your last chance, Mr. Winner, turn over your facilities or prepare to have them seized by force."
"Yes I am aware of the current state of affairs in the Earthsphere." Quatre gritted his teeth. "So by all means, come and get me."
With that, he jabbed his finger down onto the disconnect button, the screen blinked off. Quatre sat for a moment and rubbed his eyes tiredly. Then he dialed up his chief of security. "Quincy, get up here. We're about to have a situation."
* * *
On board the relay station at the edge of the asteroid belt, things were in a frenzy and reaching the state of chaos and panic. Though it was quite obvious that the aliens were hostile, no one was quite sure how to deal with ships of such immense power.
Finally, after nearly an hour of debate, it was agreed that they should calculate firing solutions for a missile attack. A small forward group of light frigates, including the one that had destroyed the courier, was chosen to be the target. Laser tracers tracked their invisible way across the void until they reached a target, then they fed their information back to the missile tubes attached to their sensor bulb, acting like a sort of sonar at the speed of light. When each of the frigates had been 'painted' with a missile lock, the command was given to fire.
All across the station, compressed gasses and oxygen ignited in tubes to propel warheads across the airless reaches of space. The missiles were primarily plasma warheads and the gathered fleet commanders were anxious to see how such weapons performed against their untested foe. Fifty missiles screamed across the void, twisting and diving to avoid asteroids. The aliens did not seem to note the missiles approach, they continued their lethal and serene course across the star studded blackness.
The lead missile struck it's target along a wide swept wing, blinding plasma ate through armored plating and warped the structure of the entire port side of the ship. Other missiles hit their targets with equaled precision and still the aliens did not react, the targeted ship sailed gracefully into the massacre.
The command deck burst into cheering and back slapping. Each of the ten targeted frigates had been destroyed. Admiral Grapphin watched coolly as the officers celebrated. Then he cleared his throat. The happy exclamations of happiness subsided into murmuring quiet. "Need I remind you that there are still better than nine hundred thousand of those ships coming our way?"
Sobered silence.
* * *
It was like something out of a nightmare. In the middle of the pristine reception hall, two sets of commandos, one dressed in black and camouflage fatigues, the other in blue and gold livery, were facing off with automatic weapons. As Releena descended the stairways quickly, she was met by the gun barrels of both sides. A group of blue and gold clad secret service men pealed off of the flank and hurried up to circle her protectively.
A drawling, mocking voice projected from the rear of the Preventer formation. "I see her Madam-ship is ready to go."
A secret servicemen in crowd control armor gestured threateningly with his heavy repeater rifle as he bellowed, "She's the president of the Earth Sphere United Nation, and as such will be addressed with respect."
Duke shoved his way to the front of his ranks. "You are an organization under Preventer jurisdiction under orders to stand down and take the President custody. You will comply or be tried for treason!"
"We swore an oath to protect the President in all situations. You will not pass without her consent!" This comment was underscored by a red dot that appeared unwavering between Duke's eyes.
The words of the argument echoed surreally in the massive chamber. Therefor it took a Releena a moment to assimilate the scene before her. Finally it sunk in that this was not some new twist on an old nightmare, that this was real. She was dimly aware of the fact that Heero was shielding her from the majority of the opposing fire and that he had his gun aimed at the corpulent General.
But then the reality of the situation did sink in and she shoved her way forward. "Stop! Stop this nonsense at once! I'll come, but I'll have no blood staining this place of democracy."
Duke's pig-like face lit up in an awful smile. "Knew you'd see it my way. All yous over there, drop your weapons and hit the deck!" There was a clatter of automatic weapons being safetyed and dropped to the marble floor.
A contingent of black clad soldiers surrounded Releena and she found herself being swept out into the pouring rain.
* * *
The alien fleet stopped. Dead. It was an abrupt and terrible thing. Thousands of steadily advancing ships just coming to an immediate halt and hanging there, almost brooding.
A glowing ivory pod shot from a large ship towards the lateral left of the formation. It sped towards the station at such an awful speed that the screamed order "Brace for Impact!" was as much a reflex and an after thought as anything else. It also happened to be unnecessary. The pod drew short a thousand feet shy of the station, well within the patrol perimeter of the surprised destroyers. Grapphin had half a mind to blow the thing out of space for its sheer impudence. But it appeared to have something to say.
Suddenly, the wondrous and terrifying voice that Sect had heard before parting ways with the universe entered the head of every human on the station.
"Infidels! We of the noble and holy world Anagra, the mighty and righteous Aleraus, declare your world to be impure. We have come to cleanse this galaxy of all that is not in the glorious image of our God, Rammah! Do your holy duty! Bow before our blessed swords and accept your fate. Know that in your passing, you leave the Universe a place better suited to serve the will of Rammah. If you accept your fate, you shall have a place as servants in heaven, but if you deny our righteous will, you will burn in the eternal hell of Pagans and Infidels. We have come to cast out the demons of Genetic Impurity!"
With that, the pod turned and blasted back to the enemy formation. The fleet began to move again and everyone realized it hadn't been that bad when it had stopped after all.
Gloval, who was seated in the back corner of the observation bubble grimaced over a cup of coffee. "Wonderful. A holy war."
* * *
Trent Jacobs finally managed to pull Lady Une aside and breathlessly explain that he had found something amazing while in the hard-line lock down. He was excitedly waving a sheaf of papers that were the only record of hid work in the data quarantine.
She finally got him to calm down and pull him aside. "What is it?"
"Clones."
* * *
The wind was blowing westward in Southern Jordan. It blew through four towns and one Preventer base. Corporal Jack Stevens stood watch from one in the morning until the day break changing of the guard. He went back to his bunker and slept for about eight hours. He then woke up and went to the canteen to get some breakfast. Little did he know that he was announcing the death of nearly everyone in the room when he entered, even facilitating that death.
Corporal Jack Stevens was coughing.
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Next Chapter, Plaguescythe
