Goddess of the Galacticide Episode 4 - Just Another Battle

Episode 4

Causality bombs.

They ripped holes into spacetime—ending the rule of cause and effect. Linuka watched the recovery team carrying two of the dreaded weapons down the space tug’s small loading ramp. Each bomb cylinder measured just over the length of an adult human.

“These devices look ats,” said one of the many bystanders, marveling at the haul of the alien super-tech the tug crew had secured before attaching the cables to the diin’s body. If they had looted less and retrieved the carcass faster… Linuka shook her head. Then they’d have a dead diin, but might not even know the Võmémééř fleet brought more than one bomb—the one she had seen before it vanished alongside her father, when the trap closed.

“What does ats mean?” she asked Me-Ruu, hovering next to Linuka.

“It means weird, strange, bizarre, or peculiar.”

The bombs looked weird indeed. A thin wire seemed coiled around the length of the cylinder, leaving visible gaps between the coils, giving the entire device an aura of translucency. But no light shone through them, and the gaps tricked one’s eyes into believing they’d reveal the innards of the weapon. But when Linuka focused her gaze, the surface closed into a solid dark gray.

Non-integer dimensionality. Looking like it’s not quite there, not quite in tune with the surroundings. Father had told stories about his mission to the Võmémééř’s home galaxy, using one of their own sphere drives. Describing the stolen tech’s appearance to young Linuka had always been a challenge for him, and now she understood why.

“It appears like our enemy wanted to be certain about our destruction.” Base commander Ksheep had joined the growing crowd. “Other crews report they found similar devices.”

“More causality bombs?” asked Linuka. “That makes no sense.”

“Why not? If this location is as critical to the war as your father told us, they surely had planned for a massive bombardment.”

Linuka shook her head. “It’s not that kind of weapon, Commander. One of these would have causally disconnected the entire planet Prral from the rest of reality. That’s all the Dark Ones needed. That’s what led them here: getting rid of the root cause of their future destruction.”

She could sense the Traaz contemplating, tying to understand her frustration. “This war is bigger than us outrunning the invaders, isn’t it?” asked Ksheep. “Traaz, Isonomih, humans, and so many others, fighting everywhere in this galaxy—it’s just another battle.”

“No, Commander, this here…” Linuka made a sweeping gesture. “…it’s THE battle. We were certain this is where it would end, where we could beat them.”

“This conflict is fought backwards through time,” said Me-Ruu.

The AI core meant well, but she could feel Ksheep’s struggle with the nature of the war deepened. Linuka sighed. The Commander had been close to getting it.

Linuka’s forehead wrinkled. “Maybe they were not 100% certain that this place and time was the correct target to strike. Maybe they carried extra bombs for other targets, other realities.”

“It is a possibility,” said Me-Ruu. “This scenario would explain their staggered arrival, a behavior previously not observed. The Võmémééř always struck with a decisive force. The first arrival here was a single ship, which likely alerted the others after finding the base.”

“This was an improvised task force then. They didn’t know the Prral system was the target until they found us. They had planned for a longer campaign.”

“So, the enemy had less intelligence than you assumed,” said Ksheep. “This is good.”

“No, it’s terrible. That means we have no idea who else is still out there. We have two diin here. One vanished in our trap, the other just exploded out in space. There might be more. More bombs, too.” She clenched her fists. “We achieved nothing here!”

Ksheep’s mental embrace felt warm and genuine. “You saved us. I say you achieved a great deal.”

Linuka knew he was right, but she could not feel accomplished. Mission success. Well done. Nreedz, she could feel none of it. Worst of all, the more possibilities existed for her trap not having ended the war, the less likely was her father’s survival being the reason for her complete memory of the events. She would have to face the cold reality of her father’s sacrifice on Prral not being the glorious end. It was, as Commander Ksheep had said, just another battle. She had to believe it was a victory, though, and an important one. The breeding couple vanishing in the trap had a shock effect on the Võmémééř assembled here. It had to ripple through the realities, bought them time, an unspoken cease-fire, maybe. A cease-fire she planned to take advantage of.

“Me-Ruu,” she said “Let’s go home.”

“If by ‘home’ you mean the part of this reality where Raar and Commander Dzeeny are holding off boarders from the Levy Fleet on board the battlecruiser we stole, then yes.”

Ksheep’s mind did not let her go. Ironic. When they first met he could not get rid of his strange guests fast enough, even contemplated having them killed and thrown out into one of Prral’s many slot canyons. Their departure now troubled him.

“It sounds like wherever you go, Linuka, ward of Zihriik, offspring of Kel, trouble is not far. I have been a warrior for most of my life and I understand the mindset. But you? You could go to any reality you want to. Why do you fight?”

Linuka suppressed her immediate thought: It’s all I got. Instead, she said, “Any reality? Not anymore. No place, no time is safe from this enemy. We’ll have to beat them everywhere.”

“Good luck—seems what your fellow humans wish in these situations. I hope it will suffice.”

Ksheep might have thought his words were hollow, but Linuka realized how comforting his mental embrace had been when the Traaz released her to her own, lonely, thoughts.

“Can we do anything else for you?”

Linuka switched realities before, but she could count the successful traversals on one hand, with fingers to spare. She knew Me-Ruu, her guide, was prepared, but she needed a quiet place.

“Maybe we could have the shrine room for ourselves? It would… make things easier for me.”

* * *

Ksheep led the way to the Iihe Et shrine, the narrow room where her father, Me-Ruu and Linuka had arrived, resolved to end the war. Steadfast optimism could be a dangerous companion, and neither her father, nor the optimism, would return to her own timeline.

The Traaz had already said what needed saying, and left them unceremoniously in the place of worship to the solar sailor god, now deserted, the faithful busy with cheering on the returning salvage crews and their loot. Even if only 10% of the tech was recoverable, it would help re-building this galaxy.

Linuka sat down in front of the shrine. It was covered with trinkets and little figurines, likely asking the gods of space travel for granting safe passage for all their journeys. I wonder if Iihe Et had time to watch over reality travelers?

“Are you ready?” asked Me-Ruu.

Linuka closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Again—and again. Breathing in through her nose, she could smell pungent sweat, stinging alcohol, and metallic tang, typical for the atmosphere on a permanently crewed spaceship. The destination also carried the sounds of struggle. There were frantic footsteps, heavy doors opening and closing. Trouble is not far, had Ksheep said.

Linuka steadied her breathing and answered the AI core: “Yes, I’m ready.”

She was ready to travel space and time, to face the struggle.

What scared her was having to tell Raar, her father’s friend of 30 orbits, that the great Kel Chaada, who united the warring factions, who saved Raar’s child, was not coming home with her. It would break the galaxy’s bravest warrior’s spirit at the time they needed it most.

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