Y:10 D:4
Argos
The satellite that was sent to scan the second planet of the solar system had
returned its data and was currently arriving at the first planet. Solis-B had a tragic
past, just as much as Gaia. The planet was littered with ancient cities but with no sign
of technological civilization. It was expected that primitive remnants of the same
species would be found there as well.
In the meantime, the Orcs had made their first contact. They were witnesses to the
battle that was nearly fought between the Goblins and the humans.
Habo, the leader of a large settlement, visited Argos to contact Alex.
Although they did not meet that day, Habo and his party of four were
asked to help humans learn their language. They spoke some Goblin, which helped
speed the process, and soon their language was ready to be used. Habo was asked
to join Alex for a meeting on the outskirts of Argos, in the same tent where he met
Ags.
Entering the tent, Habo was visibly worried.
“Why do you look worried?” asked Alex in Orcish. “There is no danger for you
here.”
“This is Goblin land,” answered Habo “I would be a fool to not worry.”
“Sit, Habo. Let’s learn about each other. You approached me first, so there
must be something on your mind.”
“I want to know who you are. Whom do you stand with?”
“We are visitors from the stars. You knew that. We are not standing with
anyone. I told the same to Ags. We will not fight anyone, unless it is to protect
ourselves.”
“Then why has Ags let you stay on his land?”
“That I do not know yet. I also wondered.”
“It seems that your wisdom does not match your technology.”
“That remains to be seen, Habo. Tell me. What do you know of your history?”
Back when those cities were built.”
“Our history is as old as the stars. Most of it forgotten over the eons. This is
not the time to speak of history, however.”
“What is it you want to speak about, Habo?”
“War. What else? You stand on Goblin land alive, and you wonder? Goblins
are not easy to defeat or to reason with. You must have agreed something with
them.”
“I have agreed nothing. They seemed to be reasonable to us. Why do you
fight them?”
“Why fight them? Are you a child? Because they are Goblins. Because we are
Orc. If you have not agreed with them over anything, then you will soon meet their
axes.”
“Why are you so sure they will attack us?”
“If they don’t, then you are even more dangerous to us.”
“I don’t understand,” said Alex, confused. “Why is it there is no way for us to
speak outside of the premise of war?”
“Because Goblins want to conquer. More than anyone else. And now they
found the way through you. They will use you one way or another.”
“You are underestimating us, Habo. We came from the stars. We have
technology. You can’t force our hand to do anything we don’t want to do.”
“It is time for me to leave. I don’t find the way to trust in your words. Perhaps
in the future, Alex of the humans.”
Y:10 D:59
Argos
The situation in the city was growing strange. It felt like there was constant
preparation for war. Many weapons were made, and defensive structures were taking
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.up increasingly more space. The once-beautiful plan for a green city now looked like
something of the distant past. Every excursion out of the city was accompanied by
drones that scanned the area around and warned of possible hostility. Alex and his
team understood that there could be things at play yet to be revealed. Drones flying
high were taking turns monitoring the neighboring cities of the Orcs and the Goblins
alike. The Orcs were gathering a large number of people over the days. Anais was
reporting movement over at the Goblin side too. The Goblins and the Orcs were
preparing for war, just as Argos was. Most of the humans had not come face to face
with the Orcs, and even more so, had never felt the fear of another creature hurting
them. The nanobots in the body could make everyone superhuman, so there was a
very strong sense of security. Alex and Bara, however, know that this was not trust
well placed. Orcs were a lot bigger than Goblins, bigger than humans. If their bodies
were filled with the same war technology as the Goblins, it would mean that they
were impossible to fight against in close combat. Open war would be an easy win for
humans, but it was never open war that Alex and Bara were afraid of.
Alex and his team were making plans and scare tactics in order to avoid any
upcoming battle again. All plans finished at the same line—the showdown with the
Cerberus landing and a last stand at the walls of the city. Alex insisted that defense
would send the right message in any situation. Resources had been gathered for
long periods of time, and within a couple of days, the Eagle had been armed to act as
aerial support if needed. It did not become an efficient combat machine but enough
to fight off a wave of Orcs or Goblins.
“We came to start something new here, and now our city looks like a fortress,”
said Alex to Jain while preparing for sleep.
“We are adapting to the challenges we meet,” answered Jain.
“Sometimes I want to go tell them not to prepare for battle, but I am doing the
same. It will only sound stupid,” said Alex sadly.
“They might be gathering armies only as a means of defense, just like we do.”
“I asked Dimitri for his insight. He explained to me that the situation for them
is far more complex.”
“In what sense?” asked Jain.
“They don’t have a government. They have leaders of cities like humans did
in our ancient past.”
“Yes, I was aware of that. What does that mean, though?”
“It means that the ones who are gathering are soldiers are expecting
something in return. They need food and goods, and Habo will not be able to keep
them for too long. That means he is gathering them for an attack.”
“You think they might work with the Goblins to attack us together?”
“No. We’ve observed the Goblins for a while now. They are surely much
better organized than the Orcs and far smarter than we thought them to be.”
“If they come alone, then they stand no chance, do they?” asked Jain
worriedly.
“No, they stand no chance, even if they come together. It’s not the coming
battle that scares me. It’s the possibility of an ongoing war for generations, which
they are used to. We don’t have rich veins of every material here, and eventually we
will run out of supplies. We can’t be in constant war with this planet’s inhabitants.”
“I see your worries. It’s time to put them to rest, and tomorrow we will think of
solutions for everything.”
“Good night, Jain.”
“Good night, my love.”
Early the next morning, Bara alerted Alex to wake up. “They began to move,” he said.
“Who?” asked Alex. “Goblins or Orcs?”
“Orcs. Habo is coming with his army.”
“I am coming. Prepare the meeting, please.”
Twenty minutes later, the leaders were all gathered to discuss, and the gates
of Argos were closed. None was left outside.
“We have visual from the army,” stated Bara, “and it seems they have tamed
some animals that they are carrying with them.”
“Oh my,” said Dimitri. “Those look like Manticores. We have not seen those
around here. they must have brought them from another location on Gaia.”
“That’s a lion-looking thing. What did you call them?” asked Jain.
“Manticores. Yet another mythological creature manifested in front of us. I
guess this will be a discussion for another time.”
“How much time do we have?” asked Alex.
“They will be at the spot we have set the show in less than two days,” replied
Bara.
“I need to address everyone. Let’s gather everyone at the agora. In the
meantime, Bara, finalize the last details of our plan, and let’s make sure we will not
let this battle happen. “
Alex notified through the communicators for everyone to gather at the agora.
“Hello, everyone,” he started “We are currently being approached by a large
army of about fifteen thousand Orcs. Once again, we are called to stop the
bloodshed with tricks and scare tactics. We cannot be sure they will work, however,
so we need to prepare for the worst. If they reach our city, you will need to mount the
walls and act as you have been trained. There will be no heroics, and if anything
goes wrong with your weapon or if the enemy climbs the wall near you, use the hatch
and get to safety. I repeat, no heroics!” He took a deep breath and allowed a couple
of seconds for this to sink in, then he continued. “Fifteen thousand Orcs is a strong
army, but it stands no chance against our weapons. That does not mean that we will
not have a Cerberus ready to land in case we need it. That also does not mean that
the plan is perfect. It will all depend on you. If you can’t fire straight and if you can’t
keep our enemy away, they will overtake us. This is nothing to be taken lightly.”
Alex saw in the eyes of his people something scary. He saw no emotion. Near
apathy. Something he had not seen since he was on apostasis-infested Earth. After
his speech was over, he called for Jain, Bara, and Juuda.
“I don’t think they understand,” he said.
“I too think that we are at higher risk than they think,” said Bara. “If the scare
tactics fail, then these people are not going to hold well. Thirty soldiers cannot fire
fast enough against a perimeter-wide attack. We will be in peril.”
“Then let’s make sure the scare tactics don’t fail,” said Juuda.
“He is right,” added Alex. “We are not ready for war. We need to make sure
they will stop and not reach our city.”