Horizon Storms - Kevin J. Anderson [113]
Several pinpoints changed course, swerving around and expanding their coverage. He began to hear sounds now, the rapid passage of something immense and distant. Shooting stars ripped across the sky, swooping lower.
In the village below, he heard confused shouts. Other colonists had emerged from their dwellings to stare up at the sky. Davlin remained on the rise where he had the best view.
When he heard a sizzling, rushing sound, he turned to look toward Crenna’s horizon. He knew what it was even before four of the large craft hurtled overhead, cruising in ominous reconnaissance.
Hydrogue warglobes.
The glowing spheres tumbled across the sky like spiked balls. Faint sparks of blue lightning crackled from their pyramidal protrusions. Davlin had heard of the devastating attacks on places such as Theroc and Boone’s Crossing. But the aliens had not attacked Crenna. Not yet.
The colonists in the village were in a panic now, shouting and rushing to shelter, pointing toward the sky. At least they were wise enough not to activate blaring alarms, which might have attracted the drogues.
A spiked warglobe roared overhead, scribing a turbulent wake against the starry backdrop. For a moment it eclipsed the bright moon, then passed by. The enemy gave no sign that it had even noted the human settlement. Then five more warglobes cruised across the sky. Still, none of them opened fire. These hydrogues must simply be on their way to another target.
Finally the flurry of warglobes dwindled into the distance, leaving the colony untouched. Even more of the white pinpoints crossed in front of the distant stars, a huge alien battle fleet converging somewhere in the Crenna system.
When the monstrous spheres had departed, Davlin drew a deep breath to focus his thoughts and to calm himself. The simple colonists here were in no position whatsoever to know what they were dealing with. They hadn’t the resources or experience to know how to react.
Davlin sprinted back down to the settlement. Unfortunately, given the tall tales and adventures Rlinda Kett had related about his exploits, all of these people would look to him for answers.
Chapter 56—MAGE-IMPERATOR JORA’H
As the Mage-Imperator’s warliner approached Dobro at last, Jora’h insisted on standing in the command nucleus, as he’d done with Adar Kori’nh when he was the Prime Designate. He stared out the wide viewport, watching the planet grow larger.
That was where his daughter lived. That was where Nira had died.
Aboard the Solar Navy ship, Septar Rhe’nh was alarmed to see the Mage-Imperator not riding in his chrysalis chair. The septar quickly and tenaciously offered to have his crew engineers build a substitute platform, but Jora’h insisted on walking for himself. “That tradition has changed,” he said. “The Solar Navy can follow my orders without further anxiety. I will stay here in the command nucleus.”
“Yes, Liege.” Rhe’nh clasped his hands to his chest in salute and turned back to guiding the vessel along its course. The crew, though in awe of having their leader aboard, did not understand his unusual behavior.
Despite the vastness of the Empire, Jora’h‘s corpulent father had almost never left Ildira, and only on rare occasions emerged from the Prism Palace; instead, pilgrims and supplicants had come to him. Jora’h intended to be a different sort of leader, though—an active part of the Empire rather than some sort of holy relic on permanent display.
“How soon will we secure orbit, Septar?”
“Within the hour, Liege. The Designate is preparing to meet us in a formal shuttle, as you requested.”
“I did not request my brother as escort. I intend to take my own guards and go see the planet for myself.” Jora’h paused, not wanting the military commander to guess the extent of his continuing anger toward Udru’h for his deceits and failures. “But that will be acceptable, I suppose. I am anxious to see…what is happening down there.”
Through the thism, Jora’h now had all the background information and understood the reasons for the desperate if unconscionable