Alpha One - Chris Burton [138]
“We have witnessed the Kryl in action before. We know what they are capable of and we have trained accordingly.”
“I thought you had never seen the Kryl before.”
“Seen, no; your perception of things is masked by your ignorance. We have developed beyond the senses of sight or hearing. We have sensed the Kryl from across this galaxy into the next and into the next.”
“Is this your religion or some kind of telepathy?”
Shenke found himself mocking the Sect Commander. He must restrain himself from digging deeper. This strange little man, human like only in form but alien in every other way asked him to allow them to take on the Kryl. They would all die. How long would they last?
“I cannot agree to pull out. I do, however, respect your beliefs, and if you don’t work with us then we will have to work side by side. Hopefully the outcome will be the same.”
“I cannot persuade you to leave the battle to us? Should you not be concentrating on righting your wrongs? The wormhole needs to be closed, if the Queen’s ship comes through everyone will die.”
“What is the Queen’s ship?”
“The Kryl have no planet they call their home. They have travelled the galaxies for eons reducing each galaxy to rubble and moving onto the next. The Queen’s ship is a vast citadel, home to millions of Kryl.”
Shenke was suddenly interested. The Sect Commander provided an insight into the Kryl, or the Sect’s belief in the Kryl. Maybe this should be explored further.
“How do they feed exactly? Sorry to deviate. This seems like an opportunity for you to give us valuable insight into what and who the Kryl are.”
“I welcome the opportunity Admiral, especially if it helps to convince you of the necessity for us to fight alone. However I won’t belabor the point. With regard to feeding, the answer is not in the way you think. They feed just like you and I do. They are omnivorous to the extent that, day by day, they eat meat and vegetables. By meat, I mean cultivated livestock, like cattle. They are divivorous too, meaning they have a periodic requirement for brain-stimulated, or electrical impulse, energy. This is derived from intelligent beings. Put simply, they suck the energy from the cerebral cortex, without touching it and without consuming the flesh, the bones, the organs or any part of the physical anatomy.”
“The Sect always suggested they consumed their prey.”
“Yes, we stayed away from revealing the true extent of their consumption. The fact is that to say they feed on electrical impulses from the body is hardly frightening, when you consider the alternatives. The Sect wanted people to fear the Kryl, to make them believe that they would be consumed, without explaining exactly how.”
“So, why the change of heart? Why are you telling me?”
“Because things have changed. First, the Kryl will begin to demonstrate their method of killing. The second is that we currently have no High Priestess to govern us, so I am no longer constrained from telling you the whole story. From my perspective, it serves to assist my reasoning.”
Shenke was impressed by the little man. He was intelligent, and his command of the English language was demonstrable. He wanted to explore this further but a comm link interrupted him.
“Sir, the Ionian Fleet just entered the Tri-Star region. Admiral Haines opened a secure comm link to you, sir.”
“Thanks. I will take in my study.” Shenke turned to the Sect Commander. “Can we continue this discussion shortly? I’ll arrange for some refreshments to be brought in.”
Shenke headed towards his study and opened the comm link.
“Admiral Haines. I heard about Rose. I presume you are in command of the Ionian Fleet.”
“I am, and I have been ordered to report to you, Admiral.”
“How many ships do you have?”
“Three hundred twenty ships of the line. We lost our flagship, but we are at battle readiness and have a full complement.”
“We were not expecting you for another few days.”
“Our orders were to proceed at maximum. We were aware of the need to get here as quickly as possible.”
“Okay, Admiral. Let’s meet A.S.A.P aboard