Chapter Four: Welcoming Committee

The Hyperion had been chosen as the flagship for this mission.

Serena had made the call for several reasons. One was to prop up their cover story. The other was because most of their most experienced men were from Raynor's Raiders. The Medea, meanwhile, her own vessel, was simply flying alongside them. Looking out at it, Serena felt a real sense of depression.

She wondered how long it would be before the zerg overwhelmed them. How much damage would they do to the zerg broods before the end? Would the delay have any meaning? Would anyone even remember them?

Perhaps the UED, perhaps some faraway colony of protoss. It didn't matter.

What mattered is that humanity must fight to delay the end for an hour. Perhaps a day, or a year or even a decade. And as long as they were fighting, the end was postponed, and others could prepare. Every moment that passed meant the rest of the universe would be that much stronger.

So Serena told herself. Then she turned to the other members of the command staff. "When we arrive in Moria, we will be mercenaries having fled from Dominion service. Our information tells us that Moria has been hiring a lot of mercenaries for this operation.

"No one will question our presence. Once we arrive, we'll make contact with Guildmaster Tavish Kerr. He'll coordinate our forces with us to deal with the Guild Meeting."

"That's a nice start," said Raynor. "What's the plan?"

"Raynor's Raiders and the Dominion Taskforce are there to secure the area," said Nova. "Extensive forces are guarding it, so we'll need you to get us an entrance. Once we're there, you'll have to hold the position until we can secure the captives."

"I don't like the idea of using ghosts," said Matt suddenly.

"Why?" asked Nova. "Do you have a better plan?"

"Ghosts are professional murderers. They are called in to ignore the laws that bind us all for the convenience of the ruler," said Matt. "I considered making use of them as assassins or captive takers as an admission of defeat. A government that must use violence to compel its citizens to obey has already failed.

"The Confederacy failed because it had to use ghosts to compel people into slavery by fear. We should try to be better than that."

"This ain't exactly private citizens we're going after, Matt," said Raynor. "We're just sending a special forces team to take some enemy officers captive. Just like Antiga."

"And we all know how well that turned out," said Matt.

"...Good point," said Raynor. "You sure we have to do this?"

"And the Dominion Ghost Program is focused on special forces," said Nova. "We're not murderers."

"Yes, you are," said Serena simply.

"Yeah, I wasn't gonna say anything but..." Raynor shifted.

"The Dominion Ghost program has murdered numerous political dissidents. Mostly as a means of 'smoothing over' their annexation of the core worlds," said Matt. "Numerous free-thinkers and pro-democracy activists have been assassinated. The lucky ones get cared off to New Folsom."

"Why do you think the UED were able to just walk on in?" asked Serena. "The Dominion does not have a 100% approval rating. Many people were hoping for democracy. And there are a great many people who would love to watch Mengsk burn. Some of them are at this table."

"Then why are you helping the Dominion?" asked Nova, no doubt sensing around.

"Because we are not enslaved and defined by a desire for revenge," said Matt. "Our priorities are peace and justice. And we're not willing to burn the entire universe down because we can't have everything how we like it."

"Actually, my priority is to maintain a perpetual holding action. One that keeps the zerg in check," said Serena. "I don't want them getting out of this sector. Peace and justice seem an unattainable goal at the moment. If the zerg wipe everyone out, it's all been for nothing."

"Can we focus!" said Nova. "We're taking arms dealers and mobsters captive for the sake of peace. The best way to do that is to threaten the leadership and force their paid goons to stand down. My team is elite and has been specially trained for this kind of operation.

"So unless you have a better way to take them captive, you're only other option is conquering Moria."

Serena nodded. "I'll take it under advisement. Captain Horner, what is the status on the ammunition?"

"Ammunition?" asked Matt. "We're well supplied with it."

"Yes, but are all your troops equipped with U-238 rounds?" asked Serena. "Or will I have to send them?"

"No, we're all using it," said Matt. "Actually, the men on this ship have the best weapons and equipment we can get. Jim doesn't like his people dying."

"Wait, I'm confused. Are you telling me there are marines in the sector that don't use U-238 rounds?" asked Nova, who was technically part of the command staff. Technically. "They're a no-brainer. They aren't that expensive to produce after the initial investment, after all. And the extra range increases damage output and survivability. And since you lose fewer people, you don't have to replace them.

"In a few years, they'll be standard issue. Why would you not have them?"

Serena reminded herself that Nova mostly worked on battlefronts where a lot was at stake. Therefore the marines there would have the best equipment. Mengsk had also been very careful to invest in U-238 rounds wherever possible. "Desperation or an active desire to get your men killed."

"I'm guessing the Dominion is desperate," said Raynor. "Seeing as I saw you were having to hand the things out to a lot of your boys."

"Very," admitted Serena. "The Dominion has had its industrial might damaged. It's having to pull out all the stops producing equipment for militias. We've had to pull out a lot of outdated tech from storage to shore things up.

"At this stage, the Dominion has a higher priority in getting people into the field. Quality isn't as important as quantity. It's better to have a hundred marines with subpar guns than ten with good ones. So a lot of them don't have U-238 rounds and are just launching human wave attacks."

"Couldn't that compromise our fighting power later?" asked Nova.

"Theoretically," said Serena. "But if we have a limited window of opportunity to take back territory and do damage to the swarm. General Carolina Davis is even flat out removing the marine suits. Just throwing men with flak jackets and light gauss rifles into the fray."

"It's not something we approve of," said Matt, who was wearing a military uniform. "But in the circumstances, we're in no position to complain about victory."

"In all honesty, I'm expecting there to famines and food shortages soon enough," said Serena. "A lot of the farming colonies got hit the worst. So it's better if some people die now hurting the swarm. Better than starving to death while dragging down the Dominion."

"That's a very bleak outlook, Serena," said Raynor.

"We're in a bleak situation," said Serena.

"Believe it or not, Serena is actually right," said Matt. "Not about the starving thing, but hunting the zerg. It turns out that certain strains of zerg are edible if cooked. A lot of colonies that run short of food took to hunting them in desperation.

"They were able to live for months off zerglings."

"Well then, it is as they say;

'Save a man from the zerg, help him for a day. Teach a man to kill zerg, help him for a lifetime,'" said Serena.

"Isn't that saying about fish?" asked Raynor.

"How many fish are in this sea of stars?" asked Serena flatly.

"Point taken," said Raynor.

The meeting continued. Raynor was using the onboard facilities on the Hyperion. Utilizing them, he upgraded the weaponry of the Dominion. Apparently, Matt had been recruiting a lot of troops from the colonies he helped. There hadn't been any friction between the factions so far. Everyone was pretty desperate, and the news of several other wins had put them in a good state. Nova reported genuine enthusiasm from some of the worlds the Dominion had rescued.

Serena felt as though she were living out her life again and watching it from the outside. Matt was filling her shoes now. A new set of soldiers was now equally enchanted by the same rhetoric and desperation. And she wondered if there had ever been any real help.

"...So, any doubts?" asked Raynor in private later.

"About what?" asked Serena.

"About putting Mengsk back in power?" asked Raynor.

Serena shrugged. "Not really.

"Humanity will outlive him. They might not outlive Kerrigan, so I'll take Arcturus. Arcturus is a slightly better person at least."

"No, he isn't," said Raynor.

"Do you really mean that," said Raynor.

"Serena, I know you used to like and respect the guy, but Mengsk is not a better person than Kerrigan," said Raynor. "He's just less destructive and hasn't done quite as much damage. But if their positions were reversed, he'd be just as bad, maybe worse."

"Mengsk has upheld his end of every bargain he's made, Raynor," said Serena. She felt obligated to defend him. "Kerrigan has broken every deal she made. Doesn't that show Mengsk has a sense of honor?"

"No," said Raynor. "The difference between Mengsk and Kerrigan isn't their personalities. It's in the armies they command. If Mengsk acted the way Kerrigan does, his own people would shoot him. So, he keeps his deals and pretends to be this benevolent Emperor. He needed to rely on human soldiers since brain-panned marines aren't good fighters.

"But if Mengsk ever got absolute power over the Dominion military, he'd do all the same things Kerrigan did."

"What makes you say that?" asked Serena, curious.

Raynor shrugged. Tarsonis. Mengsk broke his deal with Kerrigan when he abandoned her. Just because there wasn't a contract saying 'I won't leave you do die' means nothing.

"Mengsk had total power there. Everything was under his control. He might as well have been a god for a few hours up there, and we all saw what he did. People show you who they are when they have power."

"I'm not sure that's entirely fair," said Serena. "Mengsk never really chose the life he was in. He was forced into the revolutionary life by outside circumstances. He spent years on the run with his only real friend, his family's murderer. All that rage and hatred built up, and eventually, he had a chance to use it."

"Don't, Serena," said Raynor. "Mengsk was never a good person. He became a freedom fighter because his family's murder put him on the hit list of the Confederacy. He rescued us on Mar Sara because he wanted our manpower and good PR.

"The horrible things that happened to him didn't turn him into what he is. They just brought out the real Arcturus. If he'd never been forced into the revolutionary business. He'd have been a ruthless, exploitative libertarian. The kind who say that poor people ought to be left to starve if they can't take care of themselves."

"He doesn't seem like a terrible person now," mused Serena. "He might have learned from his defeat."

"Give it time," said Raynor. "Mengsk may have gone back to the way he was before, but this a necessary evil for him. Sooner or later, he's going to try and murder us. Now maybe it'll be a ghost assassin in the night; maybe he'd pull a New Gettysburg.

"But this ain't gonna last.

"Mengsk is only a hero when he's the underdog. As soon as he gets power, he starts using it to bully people."

"That's a matter of opinion," said Serena. "I think he's a man who wants to control his own life. He spent his whole life having everything he worked for destroyed. It happened over and over again, and it was always the Confederacy's fault.

"So, when he finally gained the total mastery, the first thing he did was destroy all his enemies.

"Now he's had to live with the consequences of his decision. I... well, I guess I hope he'll learn from this and become what he was meant to be. I hope that Arcturus Mengsk becomes the person he pretends to be. I know it's not likely, and I'm not pegging my plans on it."

Raynor sighed. "I hope your right, darling." Then he halted, remembering Serena's chiding words years ago. "Sorry, I forgot you don't like people-"

"No, it's fine," said Serena. "You can call me that if you want. Just not in front of the men."

The trip was easy.

And when they came to Moria, everything went off without a hitch.

The Hyperion and Medea arrived and were practically unchallenged. Some paper pusher heard their cover story about defecting from the Dominion. They had accepted it without a second thought. There had to be dozens of mercenary companies in orbit.

Serena could not help but feel a little offended.

She was no mercenary.

Either way, they arrived at a facility within sight of the enemy stronghold. The lay of the land looked like this;

In the far distance, Serena could see a huge military base. It was surrounded by turrets with fortified tanks all around. North and east of it was a sea, and Serena could see an island in the distance. To the south was a huge city, teeming with military forces of all kinds. To the east of that, Serena saw a huge plateau overlooking the city.

It was called Khazad, and it had been the first settlement founded by the Kel'Morians. Serena wondered if the people of the combine even remembered the reference. If so, they should also remember what had happened to Moria in Lord of the Rings.

That had been why Kaloth had descended on this place after all. Because Moria had delved too deep.

There were zerg all over it. Likewise, similar zerg signals could be sensed from the northern island. The creepy was gathering, and Serena could see a number of smaller outposts.

"Sir," said Matt. "The Hyperion is scanning. We're detecting numerous zerg biosignatures at multiple points on the planet. From the looks of things, the Kel'Morians have set up strongpoints to hem them in."

"Understood, Matt," said Raynor. "What is going on here?"

"My guess is that Kerrigan maintained her colonies here," said Serena. "Given that her broods on Korhal weren't aggressive, the ones on Moria are too."

"So we don't have to worry about them, then," said Nova. "They'll be the Kel'Morians problem."

"They'll be our problem too if they take over Moria and use it as a stronghold," said Serena. "Think about what will happen if Kerrigan gets control of one of the richest mineral nodes in the sector. She'll be able to fuel her armies even better than she is now.

"Imagine the 'liberation' of Korhal repeated over and over on a hundred worlds," Serena remembered the footage of unending swarms of zerg being destroyed. Even so, they had worn down the UED.

"Yes, but she won't be able to take the entire planet," said Nova. "Captain Horner said the Kel'Morians have set up strongpoints. They've probably come up with a plan to get rid of them as it is."

"They're planning an invasion of the Dominion with the zerg on their doorstep," said Serena. "I think they've assumed the zerg have gone dormant and will negotiate with the UED when they win. Their plan is probably to lock them down and cross that bridge when they come it."

"But what if Kerrigan wins?" asked Nova. "She'll want to come down here and wipe them out. How can they have a plan for taking the Dominion to pieces, but not for fighting the zerg."

"Because it would be hard," said Raynor. "The Kel'Morian guilds sold out their entire empire for membership in the Old Families. You really think they're going to put in the effort to fight the zerg when they can play it like a vulture. Take bites out of the dying Dominion?"

"But the zerg would wipe them out," said Nova.

"Yeah," said Raynor. "But it'll happen tomorrow. And all they care about is getting richer now. They figure the UED will win for sure, as Serena says. So they may as well eat the Dominion while they can.

"Why worry about tomorrow? If Moria does fall to the zerg, they've got a bunker somewhere they can flee to. You really think the rich and powerful are gonna be here when Kerrigan makes her move? It'll be the Baker's Dozen all over again."

"No one is that stupid," said Nova. "If everyone dies to the zerg, they'll be killed off last. And even if the UED does win, they aren't going to tolerate these kinds of games. Not after they've backstabbed every faction, they've ever worked with!

"They'll have all the Guild Heads shot and replaced with a new administration."

"Never underestimate an evil man's capacity for stupidity and self-delusion," said Serena. "Now, we're coming in for a landing."

The base, as it turned out, was very nice.

As their troops unloaded, Serena led the three of them out of the transport toward Tavish Kerr. The man looked a little leaner than before and had several cuts on his face. His uniform was not quite so fine as it once had been, and he had not bothered to replace it. "Commander Calabas, welcome to Moria."

"Tavish Kerr, we're meeting under somewhat less than happy circumstances," said Serena. "This is Captain Raynor and Nova Terra."

"Of that, I am all too aware," said Kerr. "I've prepared a base camp for your forces to land at. I have also arranged for some of the other guilds to look the other way. We are not alone in opposing war with the Dominion.

"You should be able to achieve your objective."

"Well, that's great," said Raynor. "But why help us?"

"I'm a man who is interested in expanding his business opportunities," said Kerr. "That led me to provide support for the United Earth Directorate against you. However, if the zerg wipe out the entire sector, I won't have any customers.

"Many of the Guilds that are meeting to plan this operation see the zerg as a minor nuisance—a sort of pandemic that will blow over in time once resistance is developed to it.

"I disagree, and the zerg hive clusters on that hill should tell you why.

"Kaloth's broods are growing here and on several other worlds."

"How big an infestation are we talking?" asked Raynor.

"Quite large," said Tavish. "The zerg have been expanding, with more of them being landed by stealth. The Guild's lack any kind of coordination, and most of their enforcers aren't trained for this. Guild enforcers are used to bullying defenseless minors and breaking windows—tasks which they are paid quite handsomely for.

"Fighting the zerg is messy, horrific, and doesn't pay at all in the short term. We opted to avoid confrontation until Kaloth showed up and forced the issue. And now that he has left, our leadership has decided to ignore the problem. They imagine they can ask the UED for help later. Some plan to hire armies of mercenaries to fix it if the UED's loses.

"It's less risky and cheaper to try and outmaneuver the swarm and hope it goes away. Nobody wanted to be the one to engage the problem. So they just pretend it isn't a problem and cover it up.

"I did manage to organize some of them into a coalition to take out the zerg. But fighting the zerg is costly, and the benefits of doing so all happen in the longterm. After a few costly victories, the whole thing stalemated. Eventually, I took orders with the board room and got bored with not making slightly as many obscene trillions as usual. And they diverted the coalition to start muscling on the Dominion.

"I have managed to hem them in. The committee that I've had to make reports to isn't insane enough to leave the problem unchecked. But they won't authorize any more attacks and are pulling funding as part of a 'calculated risk.'" said Tavish. "I am no war leader, and I know my own limits. I succeeded in conquering worlds by picking easy targets, getting competent help, and quitting when I was ahead.

"Even so, I like to think that I have learned a thing or two by going all those places. I went there personally and spoke to people personally while I manipulated them into defecting. And right now, we're doomed.

"It's only a matter of time before the UED or Kerrigan wins. If Kerrigan wins, Kaloth will come right back here and kill us all. If the UED wins, they'll use the hive clusters to ensure our loyalty. If they don't just have us all murdered.

"Something has to be done.

"And nothing can be done when those idiots are diverting the army into a war, for they can make an extra 2% or something. I went to school with a lot of them, and I used to like them. But if you want to kill them all, go ahead.

"If they aren't taken out of power, everyone dies."

Raynor paused. "We'd better take care of this, Serena. No way can we hand another world over to these bugs."

"Hold on," said Nova. "As long as the zerg are here, they'll keep the Kel'morians distracted. This is an opportunity we should use to complete our mission."

"Do you really want the Queen of Blades to establish a secondary stronghold on Moria?" asked Serena.

"Who says she will?" asked Nova. "It's clear they are making some effort to deal with them.

"Our mission is to save the Dominion by seizing the Guild leaders while they meet. That's why Tavish Kerr came down here.

"Once we've dealt with the Kel'Morians, we can do something about the zerg."

"I've heard that before," muttered Serena. She remembered the ill-fated battle at New Gettysburg. All her preparations had blunted the main offensive, killing hundreds of zerg. But Mengsk forced them to pull out anyway.

Raynor paused. "...Your call, man. Whatever we do, we should do it quickly."

Serena paused and considered everything that had led to this point. It was a perfect pattern that had continued over and over since the zerg had arrived. But that pattern would be broken now. "No more half measures.

"Tavish Kerr, I need to coordinate with any forces you have here. We'll use our cover as mercenaries to wipe out the zerg. We'll eradicate the main zerg hive cluster here, then establish a forward base on the cliffs. Once done, we'll obliterate the northern hive.

"When the zerg have been obliterated from existence, we will crush the Kel'morians."

"Serena is there a reason you want to fight every single person in that region?" asked Raynor.

"Jim is right, Serena," said Tavish. "Picking a fight with everyone in that region at the same time would be risky and inefficient."

"It's not about efficiency. It's about sending a message," said Serena. "The Dominion is not to be trifled with. I want the zerg burnt to ashes, and the Kel'morian armies humiliated. The city of Khazad will be in our possession by the end of this battle."

Now the die was cast.