Gordon was standing in the main control room of project codename Aethereon.
Before the alien incursion, and the introduction of the subspace drive, Humanity had many different theoretical ways to pass beyond the speed of light, but none had been quite feasible since power generation efficient enough to allow them was still beyond the grasp of human technology.
But with the help of the Demiossians, that wasn’t a problem anymore.
In fact, Gordon had been surprised to see that the demiossian researchers that had been assigned to project had been most impressed with the ingenuity of mankind.
But in testing, none of the drives had been quite functional.
Well, except one.
The Alcubierre drive had proven functional but highly impractical. The particles that the craft picked up during FTL were launched upon slowing down into an explosion of particles travelling well beyond the speed of light. It was a unstoppable force that could wipe a solar system clean of life in moments.
And it was the basis for project Aethereon.
Because when it couldn’t be used for transportation, the Alcubierre drive had been weaponized, and was now essentially the world’s longest-range cannon.
“Set aim for the gallatian homeworld.”
Gordon’s heart was heavy.
He was dooming several billion lives.
But if this war dragged on, the death toll would be far higher.
He was about to order the greatest war crime in history. This was how the history books would remember him.
The killer of billions.
The operator begins the launch procedures.
“Sir, are we sure about this?”
His hand hovers above the big red button.
Gordon sighs.
“No, we most certainly aren’t. But if it can end the war, we have little choice.”
The operator lowers his hand towards the button.
“Stop!”
The operator jolts in his chair, and Gordon steps forwards.
“Let me. No one else should bloody their hands with this.”
Gordon presses the button.
“oh gods.. sir, come and look at this.”
Yragi walked over to the holographic display. He had been watching the mounting number of deaths on his personal console.
“What is it?”
He can hear the operator swallow.
“Sir. The entire Ul system just went black. I can’t reach any of our stations in the region.
I was just in contact with Gallatian high command when everything cut out.
The Alliance have to have made it through.”
Yragi felt a chill run down his spine.
He had heard the rumors of Human stealth technology, but to make it all the way to the coreworlds undetected? How was that possible?
“Scramble scouting vessels. We need eyes in the system now.”
One cycle later reports came trickling in.
Every life in the Ul system had been wiped out, but there were no craters, no corpses, nothing.
As a matter of fact, the mighty cities had been reduced to dust and gravel.
There was nothing left, no salvage, nothing except fine burnt powder, and a crashed human vessel, smashed beyond recovery.
No cannon could have done what had happened here. No bomb could do such total destruction.
It was an impossibility.
Then the communication came from the Human leader.
They had wiped out the system with a new, experimental weapon.
The senate is in shambles. A second major power had suddenly been decapitated. All the leaders, military or otherwise, were gone.
The only gallatian leader remaining was the Chancellor.
And then worse news came.
The alliance had more weapons like that.
With most of the armadas gone due to the siege of Sol, there was no way the senate could stop their deployment.
The senate unanimously voted to surrender.
Olaf opened his eyes. He could feel every bone, every muscle in his body aching, and it felt like there was gravel stuck beneath his eyelids.
He groaned slightly, and he felt a warm hand brush away his hair, and soft lips kiss his forehead.
It took a while for his eyes to focus, and he could see Mayuki sitting on the bed next to him.
“What happened?”
She smiles slightly.
“You fainted when we found you. We brought you back to the ship.”
Olaf blinks a few times.
“The battle-”
Mayuki smiles.
“We won.”
Olaf starts to sit.
“Then we should move on to the next battlefie-”
Mayuki shakes her head.
“No. We didn’t just win the battle. We won the war. The senate surrendered.”
Olaf feels her pushing him back down into the bed.
“And you’re not going anywhere. You need to rest, and I intend to make sure you get it.”
She slides in beneath the covers next to him, and Olaf sighs.
He could probably not have thought of a better way to end a war than like this, resting with Mayuki’s arms around him.
He’ll miss the fighting, though.
Gordon slams his hands down on the table.
”No, god damn it. I will NOT allow it.”
Representative Sven of the Gamorrah system snarls at the representative of Earth.
”This isn’t your decision to make, Gordon. Or did you turn the alliance into your personal puppet when I was looking away?
You know that if we hadn’t won this war they wouldn’t show us the courtesy of letting us be free, if they even left one of us alive. What I’m suggesting is a way to keep humanity safe forever.
Do you not see what is going to happen? We beat them now, but what’s to stop them from raising a new armada and going to war against us again?
There’s no insurance that we’ll win the next war.”
Gordon sneers.
“That does not warrant us becoming that which we’ve fought so hard against. I will under no circumstance allow the installment of a slave system, or the direct conquest of the Senate worlds. We don’t have the manpower to even hold them if we did.
We’ve beaten them three times now. And I believe Aetherion-”
Now Sven rises from his seat.
“So you believe eradicating entire solar systems is more humane than instating a galactic human government?
You’ve already killed seven billion creatures, and now you shy away from preventing further human deaths?”
Angron rose.
“Gentlemen. If you would be so kind as to stop yelling at each other? Let’s do the thing this council was founded to do, and put Lord Sven’s proposal to a vote.
Those for instating Slavery and the foundation of a galactic empire, raise your hands.”
Angron was satisfied to see that none of the Alliance representatives, other than Sven and a few other from the rim colonies, raise their hands.
“Very well. Those against.”
Now Angron himself, Gukka of the Ysir, Flalgesh of the Dwillians, the Huujin representative, as well as Sasha Gray and Gordon all raised their hands, together with the central colonies’ representatives.
Angron couldn’t help but smile.
“Well then, by majority vote, let it be known that Representative Sven’s proposal has been dismissed.”
Sven snarled and glared at Angron.
“You smug alien bastard. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re doing with your pet representatives…”
He lets a disgusted glare fall over the other representatives.
“Let it be known that Gommorrah hereby secedes from the alliance, and I suggest that anyone that values their freedom does the same. I’m done with this alien-controlled council.
Power to Humanity, and no others!”
Sven turns and walks out of the council chamber, which is still in shocked silence.
For the first time since the first fa’la incursion, Humanity was once again fractured.