Chapter Three: Momentum
Names and faces scrolled before Serena's eyes on the tablet. As she did, the television spoke the news. For once, it was almost entirely accurate.
"And in other news, Dominion scouts report that the Queen of the Zerg has defeated the UED slave broods," said Donny Vermillion, the anchor. "Our sources in the Dominion military inform us that it was a hard-fought battle. Millions of casualties were inflicted by the zerg on both sides every day in a week-long slugfest.
"We have here footage caught by some of the Dominion's observers now. Our embedded reporter is on the scene."
The screen showed zerg, tens of thousands of zerg tearing one another apart in the ruins of a cityscape. One could hardly tell the difference before them by uniform. But the UED broods were less organized. There was a certain blunt force approach to their assaults, and not all their formations were as good. Kaloth, meanwhile, used feints and tactics to get the most out of his forces.
Of course, he did.
Kaloth was probably invested in the survival of the swarm. Serena suspected that Dugalle intended to exterminate them once they outlived their usefulness. Getting massive numbers of zerg killed to destroy more zerg was an ideal scenario. So no one was being remote careful with their forces.
Sloppy.
It was dangerous and sloppy. Kerrigan could still ruin things for them.
The view changed.
"Emperor Arcturus has this to say," said Donny. The door near Serena's office opened.
Mengsk appeared onscreen in his office, dressed in a military uniform. He was looking quite impressive and regal. "Our enemies are destroying one another. As things stand, the UED invaders and the alien abominations shall continue to fight. So long as this conflict continues, the Dominion must work to rebuild our strength. The retaking of Korhal has been a miraculous triumph.
"However, our work is not yet complete. And the Dominion, alongside all good men and women of the sector, must stand together against the zerg.
"Make no mistake, our enemies are distracted. But we must use this time to strengthen ourselves for the coming trials ahead."
Raynor approached and turned the TV off. "Well, Mengsk seems to be going well on the propaganda front. I'll admit, I was hoping the war on Tarsonis would drag on a bit. A full-blown zerg on zerg conflict leaves us the winner either way."
"Well, you can't expect to have everything go our way, Jim," said Serena with a shrug. "The good news is that Kerrigan is pulling her troops out of the Dominion entirely. After she kicked the UED off Tarsonis, he broods made a mass exodus off-world. She then started calling up all the lesser broods she could."
"So, you think she's going after the Second Overmind, then?" asked Raynor.
"Yes," said Serena, analyzing. "And she can't possibly win."
Raynor raised an eyebrow. "What makes you say that?"
Serena sighed. "The UED is the most dangerous terran military in history. It is commanded by ruthless, competent officers. Once the UED gets full control of the Second Overmind, she's back to square one. Only this time, she's alienated all potential allies. And she has the entire sector baying for her blood.
"That means Kerrigan has no choice but to attack a superior opponent where they are strongest. The UED slave broods outnumber her, even discounting their terran armies. The losses they took on Tarsonis can be easily replaced by the feral zerg that no one controls. And the UED's human troops are highly experienced at fighting the zerg."
"Well yeah, but Kerrigan has Kaloth," noted Raynor. "That's gotta count for something. What if she pulls off a victory?"
"Then Kerrigan still loses," said Serena with a shrug. "Her entire plan was doomed to failure from the start."
"Is this one of those 'doomed moral victor' things?" asked Raynor.
"No," said Serena. "Just the sad truth. It's an obvious conclusion that Kerrigan would have come to if she'd thought about her plan. I suspect she did think of the problem and is engaging in wishful thinking about her solution."
"I don't follow," said Raynor.
"Let me break it down for you," said Serena, remembering that Raynor was not good on long-term stuff. "The Overmind controls the swarm through cerebrates. Kerrigan's plan is to replace the Overmind as leader of the Swarm after it died. But, the cerebrates want to replace the Overmind with another Overmind. Now, Kerrigan doesn't like this idea and so got one cerebrate to help her in killing all the other cerebrates.
"So her plan is to kill every other commander, zerg, and become Queen of the Swarm."
"So?" asked Raynor.
"Kerrigan needs to kill the Overmind in its infant stages so it can't take control of her," said Serena. She was hoping he could see the obvious.
"What's your point?" asked Raynor.
"Kerrigan is weaker than the Second Overmind. And it needs cerebrates," said Serena. "How is she going to administer the swarm after killing everyone who could control it? If Kerrigan wins, she isn't going to become the ruler of the swarm. She's going to become the ruler of a small fragment of the swarm. And the rest is just going to fall into anarchy like the Garm Brood did after Zasz died.
"And we all know how well that turned out for the zerg."
Raynor seemed to consider this. "...What if she tries to create a strain of infested terrans. Like her, I mean."
"I'm sure she is planning to," said Serena. "But that plan will never work.
Kerrigan is one of the most powerful terran psychics on record. She's about on the level of a cerebrate and was in peak physical condition. Most terrans who get infested go insane or die. And the ones that don't haven't been anywhere near Kerrigan.
"Maybe she could create a more stable strain of infested terran. But she doesn't infested marines; she needs psychic powerhouses. Infested terrans capable of commanding armies and administering hives. How many of the people she is infesting are going to be able to do that? And how many of them are going to be good at it?
"Kerrigan has military training and command experience. Most people don't. And of those people, most will die or go insane.
"With years of work, maybe Kerrigan could create a few infested terran commanders. She might be able to gain effective control of Char. Maybe a few colonies. But they'd never be anything more than a poor man's imitation of the real thing. And you can bet we'll be using those years to break up her empire."
"...So Kerrigan has already lost the war?" said Raynor, voice odd.
"Yup," said Serena, scrolling down on her tablet and reading a few more names. "She just doesn't know it yet. This is why it is very important to think more than two steps ahead.
"Honestly, her winning is the best-case scenario for us. I can come up with plenty of ways to fight Kerrigan if she wins. But if the UED gets complete control of the Swarm and some reinforcements, we're done.
"If Dugalle wins, we have to surrender with terms or be eradicated. Arcturus is already negotiating with Dugalle. His propaganda corps are working on spinning it."
"So everything we did was for nothing?" asked Raynor.
Serena considered that Raynor had rushed in to save the Dominion from the UED. Saving Mengsk was just a means to an end. The way things were headed, Raynor would have saved Mengsk and gotten his best friend killed to do it. Not a very profitable transaction.
"More or less," said Serena with a sigh. "But, at least we'll get to lose on our own terms, with a bit of dignity. At least the Dominion can bow out gracefully, having not completely lost."
"Yeah, that makes all the difference," said Raynor with a sigh. "Well, maybe we'll get a miracle. What are you reading anyway?"
"Oh, they are the names and faces of men who died in the retaking of Korhal," said Serena, offering the tablet to him.
"That's going to drive you nuts," said Raynor.
"I know," said Serena. "But I feel obligated to do it. These men gave their lives because I ordered them into battle. This is a necessary acknowledgment of their sacrifice."
"Well, either way, Mengsk wants to meet with us," said Raynor. "Apparently, he wants to make another offer before I head out on the Hyperion."
"You know, you don't have to give him the time of day, right?" asked Serena. "You could tell him to go to hell."
"I got the feeling this is going to be one of those offers you can't refuse," said Raynor. "Word from Matt is that the Kel'morian Combine has been handing out a bunch of those. Mostly to Dominion worlds, even Umoja is getting in on the action."
Serena shrugged, remembering the reports she'd gotten. "It's only natural.
"The Dominion managed to prevent itself from ceasing to exist. But it remains a broken power, and the other terran factions see a chance to make a buck."
"You'd think the Kel'morians would be more worried about the zerg," said Raynor. "Fenix, Kerrigan, and I wrecked a lot of the Guilds on a fuel raid. Figured we've prevented just this sort of thing, I guess."
Serena sighed as she remembered the reports she'd read. Familiarizing herself with the combat reports had been unpleasant. And raised unfortunate implications. "Congratulations.
"You're no better than Mengsk."
"Hey, we deliberately avoided civilian targets!" said Raynor. "Everybody we went after were from the mining guilds, and those are as bad as the Confederates."
"And the infested terrans Kaloth used during the 'liberation of Korhal?" asked Serena. "Where did they come from?"
Raynor shifted uneasily. "...We didn't control what Kaloth did."
"But you helped Kerrigan do it," said Serena. "You might have told yourself she wanted to change, but the red flags were all there. Once she started infesting people en masse, you should have broken with her. Or at least had some kind of plan to take her out once you won."
"Well Mengsk-" began Raynor.
Mengsk wasn't a get-out-of-jail free card for Raynor this time. "Mengsk was your guest aboard the Hyperion during the campaign. An implicit hostage.
"He wasn't in a position to bargain. You were.
"That makes Kerrigan your responsibility. She's not Mengsk's sin to make up for, Raynor. Not anymore."
Raynor shifted. "...Duly noted."
"So, what happened to those Command Centers, Raynor? Where are they now?" asked Serena.
"My boys are scouting for em," said Raynor. "They ain't on Tarsonis though, Mengsk's sources say so. I haven't found em anywhere on Korhal. My guess is Kerrigan has taken them somewhere safe. She'll set them up wherever she makes her permanent capital.
"Probably planning something with them."
"Wonderful," said Serena. "Well, we'll have to correct your mistake as soon as we get the chance, won't we?"
"What do you think she wants them for?" asked Raynor.
"You're not this dumb, Jim," said Serena. "You know why she wanted them. What have you been talking about all this time?"
"...She's trying to replace the cerebrates she is killing off," said Raynor.
"Right," said Serena. "Why else would she want Kaloth to grab all those test subjects in large numbers. I can't believe you let her do that, Jim!
"What were you thinking?!"
Raynor sighed. "...We weren't."
Serena sighed in turn and stood up before pulling on her military jacket. It was a bit tight around the chest. Her custom-made wardrobe had gotten lost in all the movement. Few military uniforms were designed to account for the body type of an Old Family scion.
That was one more issue with being born in a test tube to be breeding stock. Added to programmed bisexuality and blatant objectification. "Well, at least you're honest about it.
"Just remember that you now have a responsibility to put those people out of their misery. If you have to choose between that and revenge on Kerrigan, I expect you to pick the latter."
"Alright, alright, let's just get to the meeting," said Raynor.
They walked in silence through the halls.
The building had been repaired completely by now. Many of the buildings outside had been fixed up. Some of the streets were being repaved, and trucks could be seen moving with equipment: cement and neo-steel.
And at last, they came to the same round table. Mengsk was sitting there again, and with him was Nova Terra. The majestically beautiful blonde had her hair tied into a ponytail. She looked fairly well since Serena forced her to become a recruitment poster sex symbol. Serena had a few of her pin-ups back at her office.
Well, at the very least, she looked very nice in a skintight outfit. Nova had been bred to be curvaceous but not quite as buxom. She made a much better pin-up girl than a ghost, which was impressive. It was a very high bar to clear.
"So, we're all here. Now we can get started," said Mengsk, motioning for them to sit down. "Gentlemen, you've done very well. With the zerg destroyed on Korhal, the Queen of the Zerg has been dealt a serious setback. But we've got some bad news as well.
"My informants report that the Kel'morian Combine has been planning an offensive."
"Forget it, Arcturus," said Raynor suddenly. "Wiping out the zerg is one thing. But helping you reestablish your empire is not on my to-do list." Raynor was setting up a bargaining position, wasn't he?
"I suppose defending humanity isn't on your to-do list either," said Mengsk. "If my conflict with the Kel'morians escalates to full-scale war, then the Queen of the Zerg will have an easy time. We need to finish this battle quickly."
"He has a point," said Serena, wondering what Nova was doing here. Was Mengsk expecting Raynor to pull a gun on him? The idea had occurred to her.
"What do you want us to do?" asked Raynor.
Mengsk motioned to Nove. "This is Nova, my finest ghost. She was our observer on Tarsonis.
"She'll explain."
"Jim Raynor, Commander Calabas," said Nova. "I've heard a lot about both of you."
Her voice held a certain inviting charm like usual, but it was stronger now. Bewitching.
"Get to the point, lady," said Raynor, who worked with protoss for a living.
"The Kel'morian Guild heads in favor of war are gathering for a meeting on Moria," said Nova. "They are making plans for an invasion of the Dominion. If we can wipe them out, it will throw the Kel'morian command structure into chaos. It'll also make their replacements think twice before attacking us."
"I'm hoping that you two will be able to assist Nova in operation," said Mengsk. "I need you to land on Moria with a strike force and seize the Guild Leaders. We've already got a landing site prepared. Some of the Morians are less enthusiastic about this kind of confrontation.
"They are hoping to focus on fighting the zerg instead of profit."
"Serena?" asked Raynor.
Serena paused. "Averting a war between Moria and the Dominion is integral to defeating Kerrigan. If we let petty hatred waste our strength, she'll walk right over us."
Raynor nodded. "Alright then, Mengsk. You've got yourself the Hyperion, but I'm going to need more men to launch this kind of plan."
"I assure you, you'll get them," said Mengsk. "The Guild Head you'll be meeting with is Tavish Kerr. Serena, I believe you took a loan from him some time ago?"
"I did," said Serena, looking to Nova. She felt her thoughts in her mind, trying to scan for Serena's intentions. Serena mentally began to imagine Lieutenant Idlen being tortured into an infested thing. She remembered shooting him dead as a mercy, the waves of bodies. Nova's mind withdrew. "We will be cooperating with Nova on this mission, then?"
"Just get my team to the compound. I'll take care of the rest," said Nova.
"...Fine," said Raynor. "We'll do your dirty work for you, Arcturus. But I want something in return."
"Name it, Jim," said Mengsk.
"I want you to give us the men and resources to recolonize Mar Sara," said Raynor. "There are a lot of refugee fleets in need of a home, and it will do a lot of good. And it's going to be independent of you. No taxes. No obligations. Nothing."
Mengsk nodded. There had been plans of recolonization for a while anyway. Mar Sara was of symbolic importance. "Fair enough. As soon as the crisis is over, we'll see to it that Mar Sara is recolonized. Anything else?"
"No. Let's get this over with," said Raynor.
Serena raised a hand. "I have something."
"What is it?" asked Mengsk.
"I would like the release of the family members you are holding hostage," said Serena. "I'm tired of having my service mandatory. And it's not like any of us have any choice besides cooperating."
"Done," said Mengsk.
This was never going to work.
How was Serena supposed to motivate the Dominion military to invade Moria?
Preparations were made, and a few days later, Serena Calabas met Nova Terra in her office. As she did, the ghost stood before her. "Nova Terra, is it?"
"Yes," said Nova. "What are your orders?"
"I want you to walk with me when I address the men," said Serena.
"Why?" asked Nova.
"Isn't it obvious? You look nice," said Serena. "The soldiers of the Dominion have just barely scraped by a victory. They've saved their planet and now are wondering if the Empire business is worth it. And now Arcturus is asking them to do a full-scale raid on Moria, in the most heavily guarded place.
"My speeches can focus them. But there's always the possibility they won't listen. If not, I'd much rather have them imagining two of us making out in our underwear than dying alone on foreign soil."
Nova shifted, looking away, her cheeks reddening. "Um... okay..."
"And don't say anything," said Serena. "I don't want you talking just; make yourself known. Your profile said you were able to psychically influence people." She'd always had a competitive streak.
"Yes," said Nova. "But it doesn't work on one person at a time. It also fades away."
"Don't force anyone to obey you," said Serena. "It's a waste of resources. Just... invite them to help the Dominion through us. We're going to pull out all the stops for the manipulations."
"Manipulations?" asked Nova. "Is that really the right word?"
"What do you think the Emperor does for a living?" asked Serena flatly.
"Runs the Dominion," said Nova.
"Yes, and how do you think he does it?" asked Serena.
"He inspires people," said Nova.
"By manipulating them," said Serena. "Now come on. I need to talk with them."
It was amazing how victory could crater morale.
It was sort of like spending an entire day working to put away a huge amount of boxes. Only to look up and see you hardly made a dent in it. These men had been through hell and back, faced impossible odds, and won. They'd won with minimal casualties and reclaimed Korhal in a blitz, and been known as heroes.
Most of them were about ready for the story to be over.
Others were just mercenaries or from Raynor.
None of them wanted to launch an assault on a terran faction when the zerg were threatening to eat the sector. So, Serena had to build them up again. "Men of the Dominion, mercenaries for hire, and otherwise unaffiliated.
"Congratulations are in order. Your heroism has saved Korhal and ensured Emperor Mengsk remains on his throne. You've also delayed the fall of the Dominion by a few weeks."
Murmurs. She needed to turn an unending slog into a challenge.
"It's true," said Serena. "I know you were probably hoping for better results, but this is the world we live in. The fact of the matter is that the Dominion has lost its fleets. It has only a precious few armor divisions, and we have been raiding the salvage dumps for more.
"Comparatively speaking, Umoja and the Kel'Morian combine have come out unscathed.
"Even as we speak, they are propositioning the worlds that didn't come to help us. They are negotiating to get mining rights in exchange for protection. Or even for a world to join a Guild outright.
"At present, our glorious empire is held together by good intentions. Its armies consist of a rag-tag group of militias and a bluff. One that our enemies will very soon call.
"So, the question is;
"Are we going to stand for it?"
Murmured words to the effect of no.
"Answer the question, marines," said Serena.
"No, ma'am!" They said.
It wasn't nearly as enthusiastic as she wanted, but it would do. "Good.
"I knew I could count on you.
"Then this is what we are going to do. The Dominion has made an alliance with Raynor's Raiders purely out of convenience. Raynor is looking to get even with the Queen of the Zerg, and if the Dominion collapses in on itself, he can't do that. So he's going to assist us in our operation.
"We're going to attack Moria."
They'd been briefed on this before, of course, all of them had. But it was for effect. "No, you heard correctly.
"Fortunately for us, it's not quite as suicidal as it sounds. We have a number of allies in the Guilds, and they have set things up for us. Not all of the Kel'Morians are stupid enough to want the terrans killing one another while the zerg are a threat.
"So, we're going to crash a meeting between the Guild Leaders and kidnap them. Once they have been taken captive, we'll negotiate a cessation of hostility. By which I mean we will put a gun to their head and ask for a signature." She paused. "I won't lie to any of you.
"This plan is probably suicide. The most likely outcome of attempting this is that we all get slaughtered. At which point, the Dominion will fall apart. Unfortunately, that's going to happen even if we scrap the mission.
"On the other hand, if we win, we'll be able to stave off war with Moria and perhaps present a united front. By standing united, we may inconvenience the zerg.
"At least until the UED or the Queen of the Zerg kills off the other.
"Then we'll all be unceremoniously slaughtered by the winner. So we're pretty much doomed no matter what we do. Meaning there is no point in getting worked up over the fact. All we can do is make the best possible showing. Eventually, all of us are likely to be destroyed by forces beyond our comprehension.
"Soldiers of the Dominion; I challenge you to prove me wrong.
"Now, are we going to Moria?"
"YES, MA'AM!" They said.
The response was... unexpectedly enthusiastic. But Serena would take it. "Excellent. Then let's get to work."
More formalities. Nova stayed in Serena's shadow as Serena got herself a cup of coffee. Looking into the black liquid, she watched it go brown with creme. How long could they really keep this up?
"Why that speech?" asked Nova.
"Leadership is the art of channeling others toward a goal," said Serena, shifting. "Daring men to do the impossible when their hometown is going to die if they don't is easy. Try it to attack someone else's hometown, and you need a pretty good reason.
"Those men have already undertaken an entire heroic arc in the battle of Korhal. And they are immediately being sent off to do worse. They are resentful and feel like they are doomed. Getting them to be optimistic is basically a lost cause.
"So, I didn't.
"I made them decide to keep going even though they aren't optimistic. I told them the truth and hoped they'd appreciate it. I could have lied and told them Kel'morians are working with the zerg, but they wouldn't have believed me. At least by being honest, I establish some credibility.
"But why all the cynicism? You're acting like you hate the Dominion?" asked Nova.
Serena almost laughed and looked at her incredulously. "...Do you even remember the last three years?"
"Sometimes, the only way to go forward is to forget," said Nova.
The statement infuriated Serena. Pictures of all those names and faces scrolling down a screen, their lives claimed in service. Soon to be forgotten by uncaring bastards who saw them only as disposable cogs. And now this valley-girl was acting as if all those sacrifices should be forgotten. Shoved aside so the machine that chewed them up could run a little smoother.
Serena raised a hand to strike her, and Nova recoiled as if she'd already landed a blow. However, she mastered herself and lowered the hand. "Don't ever say that in my presence again. To forget your history is to forget your soul.
"Now, let's go to the firing range.
"I want to see you shoot."
It was time to see just what Nova was capable of.
