Chapter 17: The Calm Before the Storm

The bright trails streaked past the zerg, forming a contrast against the black emptiness of space as the terran ships fired toward them. Like a colony of ants scurrying beneath a stone, the zerg faded from view, vanishing through a warp rift. The remnants of the zerg fliers were purged from the orbit of Korhal as the UED fleet slammed down on them like an iron fist.

Zeratul turned away from the screen displaying the observer's feed. "The zerg have failed in their mission. The application of their new device has granted the terrans their victory."

Raynor slumped back into his chair. "After all this, all this fighting and death and Mengsk is still standing. What a waste of lives. I told her not to go, but lookin' back, maybe this could've gone differently if I'd joined in. Maybe then we could've gotten something outta this killing."

"There is no shame so long as you remain steadfast to your principles," Fenix told Raynor. "No one can know the full consequences of any choice. Perhaps joining in the battle would only have resulted in the zerg turning on you in the confusion."

"Right," Raynor nodded. "Sometimes I just think about what could've been."

"Now, the question remains of what action, if any, would be suitable for us," Zeratul. "These events could have implications that may eventually involve us."

"This is not our fight," Fenix said. "It is not our place to involve ourselves with Kerrigan's personal feud. She may be justified in settling her scores, but the terrans are well within their rights to defend themselves by any means."

"The situation is unstable. The alliance between the Dominion and the UED marks a shift in the balance of power," Artanis said. "The zerg on Char are still substantial, so I do not believe they will fall easily if the terrans go on the offensive, even with the aid of their new device. For now, the situation looks like it will lead to a stalemate."

"Should that be the case, then we shall not need to be concerned about either the terrans focusing their attention on us nor Kerrigan deciding to strike at us if she was concealing a desire for absolute control," Zeratul said. "However, that is not to say we should not take some contingency measures. The device the terrans acquired that could disrupt the zerg may be of relevance."

"We should be able to attempt to use our sensors to track down the source of the signal," Artanis said. "That will allow us to locate the device and observe it."

Zeratul nodded. "Should we acquire knowledge of the location of the UED's weapon, that would allow for us to deal with it or take possession of it should such an action be needed. We should begin the investigation at once."

"I think I'll check up with some of my contacts in terran space. An old acquaintance, the former Magistrate of Mar Sara, has been active in the fringe worlds. I could ask them what's been going on out there and figure out what the UED is up to," Raynor said. "Earth getting involved might not be good news judging by their history, and the folks out in the colonies might not like what is coming. Better to be careful and see what they want with us."

"Good. But for now we should continue focusing our strength on Aiur," Artanis said. "We are making excellent progress and perhaps we can use this base to expand our control over the surrounding regions, perhaps paving the way to reclaim Aiur."

Aboard his ship, the battlecruiser Borealis, Roland leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh. "I respect my colleagues, I really do, but sometimes they are just a bit much to deal with."

"Tough day sir?" Hector asked.

"The strategy meeting with the officers leading the other strike teams got rather heated. Our upcoming mission to invade the zerg homeworld is of critical importance. It is a huge effort and we will be attacking multiple important locations on the planet. Everyone has their ideas on what to do." Roland gestured toward the cabinet at the side of the room. "Could you fetch the bottle of vodka that the vice admiral gifted me after our most recent mission."

When his aide returned with the bottle, Roland uncorked it and poured out two shots. "I think we both need this. So, did you finish sorting out the supply situation with the quartermasters?"

"I managed to wrangle it out of them eventually." Hector took a sip from the vodka. "You know how it is, competing priorities and all that. Sure, the other teams are all screaming just as hard for more but there should be plenty to go around, especially with the resources the Dominion has been sending to us."

"I'm glad that we managed to reach an accommodation with the Dominion," Roland said. "It would be rather difficult for us to fight everyone. And regardless of the unsavory nature of their emperor, not all of them are that bad. The man the Dominion sent over to head their contingent, Colonel Richardson, seems to have a good head on his shoulder at least. I don't agree with him on some things, but at least he's leagues better than that bastard Krenz."

Hector shook his head with a bit of amusement. "Still feuding with him, eh?"

Roland took another shot of vodka. "I can't stand garbage teammates. After the mess during the expedition against the pirates in the Altair system, I can't believe he's still a captain. Must have brown nosed his way up."

"That expedition didn't go poorly," Hector said wryly.

Roland slapped his hand on the table. "That's because I saved it. But afterwards he claimed that his risky as hell maneuver was what won us the battle."

Hector nodded. "Of course, Captain. So, was the strategy meeting at least productive though, despite the disagreements?"

"Sure, we talked about plenty of things and came up with some plans," Roland said. "Of course, no plan will survive contact with the enemy. The records of the battles the Dominion fought against the zerg show their danger and unpredictability, and the Dominion acquitted themselves quite well considering they fought against an enemy they knew little about. Did you know, there is a rumor among the Dominion officer corp about some strategic genius believed to have secured Mengsk's rise to power, winning battles even outnumbered a thousand to one."

"Do you believe they are real?" Hector asked. "If they are, why aren't they the ones leading the Dominion's armies?"

"Who knows. Maybe they don't exist, or maybe they are considered politically unreliable. And I believe some accounts may be exaggerated," Roland said. "I did see recordings of battles that were conducted quite competently, more so than the usual. But as for whether it is one person or simply isolated cases of people having a spark of inspiration during a battle. However, no one has been able to tell me their name, or even their gender. The closest thing to an identifying trait that I could pick out from my conversation with the Dominion officers is that they once served as a Magistrate to some colony."

"It sounds like quite the urban legend," Hector said. "If they are real, I would like to meet them."

"As would I," Roland said. "But we cannot rely on hopes of an unknown savior. To earn victory we must do it ourselves. Now, you did get the information about Char our scouts obtained, right? Combined with the Dominion's own records we have at least a decent idea of what the terrain looks like."

"I am reviewing the material, along with the more specialized analysis," Hector replied. "Though given the highly volcanically active nature of the planet, terrain there may shift more rapidly than most planets. And that is ignoring all of the potential hazards that may arise at any time."

"Who knows what tricks the zerg may have up their sleeves," Roland said. "The material the Dominion sent us regarding zerg tactics has been rather useful in informing us of the zerg capabilities, but we can't be sure we know everything."

"What do you think of the one leading the zerg, this so called Queen of Blades?" Hector retrieved his tablet and opened up the files. "Rather interesting, isn't she?"

"I'm not sure if interesting is the word I would use, but an infested terran controlling the zerg is certainly not what I was expecting," Roland said. "And it is quite dissonant with the general theme of the zerg. The zerg are a race that makes use of vast quantities of expendable creatures that fight as a collective. But this Queen of Blades is a unique lifeform with unusually great power. She fights in the front and is quite a dangerous foe, but also places herself in a dangerous position. Quite unwise I would say for a leader to fight at the front, as killing the leader would disperse the zerg. That is why the Dominion tried so hard to pursue an attack on her, unknowingly leading themselves into a trap. Too much tunnel vision is an issue."

"Care to share your own plans on dealing with this creature then sir?" Hector smiled. "I'm sure you already have several ideas."

"Destroy the rest of the zerg and she will be easy to deal with." Roland shrugged. "If we have a good chance to do a decapitation strike, we can take it, but not at the expense of all else. The quickest way to victory is not always the best. As for her abilities, we'll have to keep them in mind during the battle."

A nearby lava flow bubbled and hissed while ash fell from the sky like a facsimile of snow. Though it did not rain on Char, the cloud of ash darked the sky as though a storm was approaching. In the hellish landscape, the only signs of life were the myriad zerg which skittered around between their nests.

Kerrigan paced back and forth as she observed the progress of her minions. The hives were birthing zerg as rapidly as they could, but it was not yet enough to make up for the numbers lost on Korhal. There were many things that weighed on her mind, from the vulnerable state of Char, the threat of the Psi Disruptor that could be turned on the planet at any moment, and above all the ever present reminder that Mengsk still lived.

She knew that Mengsk now feared her as he had been on the verge of being snuffed out. The two of them could not coexist. So she knew that the Dominion would strike at her along with their new allies. There would be a battle on the horizon.

Kerrigan reached out to the other cerebrates to keep herself apprised of their progress. Though they too had committed many of their forces in the invasion, their personal broods on Char were still substantial. Defending Char would depend on all of them as well.

"Have you properly fortified your assigned area, Daggoth?" Kerrigan asked. "You must make sure that the paths of approach are well guarded and keep in mind that the Psi Disruptor may preclude the use of delicate tactics."

"I do not need to be lectured on the basics," Daggoth scoffed. "I have lived for countless years as the Overmind's chief lieutenant. Unlike some, I am no reckless fool who would lose the bulk of the swarm in an ill plotted attack. Nor am I so new to commanding minions that I would let them run rampant so easily."

"Watch your tongue, Daggoth," Kerrigan snarled. "You would do well to remember your place. The Psi Disruptor was something that could not be anticipated, and you underestimate it at our peril."

"Of course, my queen." Daggoth's voice was mocking as he withdrew from the conversation.

"The nerve of that creature…" Kerrigan muttered to herself. She then turned her attention to Kaloth. "What is the progress on the efforts to mitigate the effects of the Psi Disruptor?"

"It is rather difficult," Kaloth replied plainly. "The hivemind is the very core of the zerg. Creatures cannot simply be expected to operate completely autonomously. And while we can brute force our way through the disruption, it greatly limits how many minions we can command. We could create some limited autonomy so that they can maintain simple commands once given, and not attack fellow zerg, but adapting our minions in that way will take quite a bit of time. Another long term option is to create more cerebrates to expand our command potential."

"I already have enough trouble keeping control over the current cerebrates," Kerrigan said. "They have become disobedient. If they weren't so critical right now I would have had him killed."

"Some of the other cerebrates have been having doubts," Kaloth acknowledged. "This is the first time the full might of the swarm has been defeated, and as a leader you have ultimate responsibility over our fate. It is only natural for their faith to be shaken."

"Are you starting to doubt me too, Kaloth?" Her tone became ever slightly more angry with some concern filtering in.

"Of course not," Kaloth quickly reassured her. "There was little that could have been done to allow us to win that battle, nor were any flaws in the strategy evident with the information we had at the time. Our misfortune was beyond what could have been foreseen. But that is all in the past now. What matters is for us to win the upcoming battle, if it comes."

"It will," Kerrigan said. "I know it. The terrans won't let up when they have the advantage."