Saga of the Bridgers-Year 6

Chapter 11: Rules of the Universe

April 14.

The last interrogation of the 'Cardinal', as the red-plated Kett called herself, plus the intel provided by the Moshae and shared by Bridger was giving quite the unsettling picture to Iulius and Darvos.

"Why are the Grysks experimenting so much with creating monsters?" asked the latter in the solitary room they had taken to discuss the matter.

"Other than creating an army for an invasion, I don't see much else."

"Yes. But according to Thrawn, the times he had to deal with them, they recurred mostly to subterfuge and plots, not straight-up violence and genetic manipulation."

"He has been away from his people for twenty years, by now. But perhaps these methods only look different. I think we should focus on whether they are aiming at our part of the galaxy or not."

"Honestly, after the beating we've given to the Kett, they must understand that they don't have much of a chance." Darvos was slowly pacing around the room, but at this point he halted and leaned against the small table where Iulius was sitting at. "Rather, have you found some intel on where the Kett come from?"

"If you're asking if they're all mutated Angara, they aren't. The Cardinal said that their leader, the Archon, comes from outside this sector. Apparently, the Kett homeworld is called Sarhesen and we don't know where it is. I'm honestly much more interested in the process they call 'Exaltation'."

"That thing where they turn aliens into themselves? Yeah, that's disturbing."

"Put aside the morality of the gesture, brother. My point is another one: why do the Kett, who possess such a technology where they can change the biology of an alien species into another in a matter of seconds, bother with converting their enemies into troops rather than just creating an army of clones?"

Darvos didn't need to think too long before a possible answer came to his mind and he expressed it. "You saw that structure and you saw Jordan's records. This process seems to have more of a religious value than anything. So maybe this is not a strategy imposed by the Grysks?"

"Glad we're on the same page." Iulius said with a smirk. "Your observation over the Grysks manipulating their pawns might still be very much viable. From what we have, it seems possible that the Grysks are having the Kett do their bidding. Kidnapping our colonists may be just a way to have test subjects that they can study."

"By the Force." Darvos murmured. "Just thinking of what those poor people are probably going through..."

Iulius, too, was still having his heart munched out by a sense of guilt: this entire campaign was supposed to rescue the colonists, but so far they hadn't met a single one. Even though they had proven without a doubt that the Kett stood no chance against the superior technology and armies of the rest of Andromeda, there was still no trail on the kidnapped humans of the Outer Rim.

"Unfortunately, I believe we should assume they are dead by now. All we can do now is to make sure the Kett will never be able to reach our galaxy again by helping the Angara reclaiming their territory."

"On that, I agree. But be frank with me, Iulius. Do you plan on making the Angara allies of the Empire?" Darvos asked in a tone that was way too frank for an enemy officer, even if the two of them were brothers.

"I have no intention to involve them in our war, and I don't think the Angara would ever accept that. Not to mention, they need to rebuild their strength, which might take generations. However, I do want them to act as a buffer between the Empire and the Grysks, though I guess you already thought about that."

"It's not that hard of a guess." Darvos simply commented. "Makes sense that we keep everybody else out while we kill each other."

"Was it the Bridger family that gave you such a dark sense of humor?" Iulius asked with a calm voice that still showed off some irony.