Starship Vengeance

Chapter 35

Fleet Commander Ballyx studied the surrounding space carefully. The small, yet surprisingly lightweight sphere sat carefully in his right hand. The small Zrynt fleets they had been tracking were finally converging. The Xryllyan command sphere in his hand was a unique device among the fleet. Xryllyan was the founder of the Klixrax, thus the psionic enhancing alloy had been named in his honor. The command sphere allowed him to send commands to the fleet, communicate with the Klixrax, and a large number of other things necessary for the commanding of a Xroex fleet. Some of the abilities bestowed by the command sphere were more disturbing than others. Communication with the Klixrax was impossible with the distance that now separated them from the fleet, but they would be passing close enough on the return trip to the new Terran home world that the Klixrax would be able to get any information they demanded.

Commander Ballyx sat in the small, cramped bridge studying the information available to him. The bridge wasn't as quiet as one would expect on a Xroex ship. Their underdeveloped hearing failed to capture the background noise that would drive most other species mad. Despite the outward appearance, an incredible amount of information was being passed. Today was busier than usual. They were busy monitoring a particular system that had a nasty infestation. This was the largest gathering of Zrynt anyone had seen for a very long time.

Ship movements were being tracked. This included ships that were easily found and those who wished to remain hidden. Commander Ballyx had received the information on the new Zrynt ships, and found them rather easy to detect. Commander Ballyx had yet to find a ship that wasn't easily found using their psionic abilities. His orders from Admiral Ryan had been clear on what their mission was. While Ballyx had no indications that a Zrynt Lord was anywhere close by, the gathering of so many ships couldn't be ignored. That brought him to the most difficult part of his assignment, making decisions. It was a topic that he was uncomfortable with, and frightened by .
***
Ballyx fought the emotions that threatened to emerge. Emotions were a manifestation of the taint. The recent crackdown on the tainted was more severe than ever. Tens of thousands were missing; many of his associates were among them. More than once Ballyx found himself cursing the Terrans for cooperating with the tyrannical Klixrax. His summons led him to a large, ornate door. An ancient Klixrax law decreed that wasting resources for decorative purposes, whether object or person, to be a crime with severe punishments. This door appeared to indicate that the Klixrax were exempt from the law. The amount of resources wasted on this door alone was staggering. The large door was encrusted with large gems, creating an intricate mural of Xryllyan in his final victory over the tainted.

The true story of Xryllyan was truly ironic. It different greatly from the falsehood taught today. Xryllyan was a tyrant bent on ruling both planets inhabited by the Xroex. This led to the bloodiest conflict in their history. His eventual victory came at the cost of a third of the population. The numbers increased to half by the time he was done "cleansing" the population. His claim that individualism was evil forced him to create the Klixrax in order to keep the peace. He attempted to install himself as the head of the Klixrax, but was quickly and silently removed for displaying his lust for power. Even he wasn't exempt from the laws laid down by the Klixrax.

Ballyx regained control over his thoughts and took a calming breath before placing his hand on a sapphire the size of his head and pushed. The massive door swung open with ease and Ballyx found himself entering the personal living space of the Klixrax. He was enveloped by such opulence, that it took several minutes before his mind caught up. Precious metals and jewels were worked into everything imaginable. He stood there, unsure of what to do next when a psionic impulse more powerful than any he had ever experienced compelled him to walk.

He was guided to a sitting room where the Klixrax were engaged in various activities on overstuffed furniture. He was commanded to stop, and his body complied. The Klixrax ceased their gluttonous and lascivious activities to focus on the newcomer.