Legacy of the Void Fleet

Calm down, calm down, Jarkon thought internally!! Gradually, his anger began to settle. This isn’t the time to get angry over a few words from someone who is going to die anyway!! But this loss of face won’t be forgotten; I’ll have his entire family pay for the insult he has caused me.

Jarkon clenched his fists before relaxing them. He looked at the Minotaur who had just spoken with a neutral face—one with no expression of anger or frustration!!

”Whether you believe me or not isn’t up for debate. All I need is to have the others on my side, and that’s it... If you want to die, then please do so; go to some ship on the front line!! The enemy ahead cannot be defended against!! No matter how powerful we are, no matter who has our backs!!”

”Furthermore,” Jarkon continued, his voice dropping to a cold edge, ”if you believe the Star Empire and the others are going to come and save your ass, then you are very mistaken!!”

”For it is a big question whether they could save their own asses or not once they see the true might of the Void Humans!! So, what I say is this: we take advantage of the situation while they are not taking the Void Humans seriously at all!!

Though they might be surprised by the defensive ability of the Void Humans at that moment, they surely won’t take them seriously afterward. They are the mighty Tier One powers, after all!! How could an unknown upstart faction be on their level?? That is the general belief that all the top powers share...

Something we do as well to those who we consider weaker than us... ”Jarkon thought silently, recalling how he had paid dearly for his own ignorance back at the Rigid Star System.

”So, we should definitely utilize this. We must cut our losses now, while simultaneously preparing to evacuate the star system entirely...”

Looking at everyone, Jarkon spoke in a low, slow voice. He was guiding everyone exactly where he wanted them to go...

While the Minotaur official fumed at the way he was being spoken to—not to mention the looks of disdain the others directed toward him—he felt the environment becoming increasingly humiliating. He wanted to speak!! He wanted to regain his face!! He wanted the others to pay attention to him, not to some rich bastard who had lost all his face value and his pride as a warrior!!

But he truly wasn’t able to do so, because the others were a step ahead of him!! They were actually quite agreeable to the plan Jarkon was proposing!! It was more believable to them because Jarkon was prioritizing the lives of their own clan members. He was able to see something obvious that the other official couldn’t, even though it was right in front of his eyes!!

While there was some truth in what the skeptic said—like the shame of running from the battlefield with their tails tucked between their legs—everyone knew that if things were hopeless, there was no point in fighting it out and losing their lives over it.

They looked briefly at the Minotaur official before ignoring him as if he didn’t even exist!! They turned their eyes to Jarkon, who at this moment had become the absolute center of attention

”What you speak of does have some merit, Vice Admiral Jarkon,” Mimosa said with a thoughtful look. His expression turned serious as his eyes narrowed a bit. In a low voice, just loud enough to reach the others’ ears clearly, he continued.

”But a few things are still unclear to me. If you can fill in those details, you will have my support on this. Though manipulating the Star Empire and the others is something very close to impossible, that task will be left to you—provided your plan is truly to our benefit!!”

”So, what I want to know is not how you will do it... but what will be the impact of this escape in relation to those Tier One powers? They are forces we have no hope of fighting against. It would be preferable to escape with our fleet and people while avoiding a future war with them!!”

”If it is possible, tell us now. If not, then we had rather not talk about it at all, and you should forget whatever you are thinking about at this moment!! We will leave it to the rest of us to come up with a plan that is actually worth the risk!!”

”Indeed, I have the same question as Secretary Mimosa, Vice Admiral Jarkon!! That is something I am also a bit unclear about, and I think the others are no exception...”

Grand Admiral Agronas spoke up while directing his eyes at every high officer present, whether they were there physically or via holographic projection!! Seeing his gaze, they all nodded their heads as well, showing that this was indeed something they were all curious about.

Jarkon, seeing their looks, understood he really needed to clarify it if he wanted the others to follow his plan!! This was something he had expected to happen and was prepared for, yet he sighed internally.

They really are so persistent... can’t they just follow what I say? He thought with a spark of frustration. Sigh... I miss the days when I was a Grand Admiral and didn’t have to convince others to follow my plans. All it took was a word from me, and the whole fleet would follow with no questions asked. What a time that was!! Had it not been for those bitches of the human race, wouldn’t I still be at the helm of that position? I might have even been promoted to the rank of Commandant of the Main Battle Fleet!!

Sigh... but no worries. I’ll have my revenge, humans... I’ll have my revenge!!

One way or another, humans, I will have my revenge!! I will bring you all down beneath my feet and stand on top of that leader of yours, just like you all did with him!! I will tear their bones apart, every single one of them!!

Jarkon’s mind began to wander in the pleasure of the revenge he would have—how he would take it, and when. But just as quickly as his thoughts drifted, the influence of the Soul Fire cleared his mind, returning him to normal.

What better place than this to start my revenge on you humans? he thought, before finally addressing the others.

”I understand your concern. Indeed, I do not have any plans to make the ’allies of today’ the ’enemies of tomorrow.’ That would only bring destruction to our own clan, something I would rather not do. What benefit would there be in running from here to another place, only to be attacked by our own allies? That would be stupid, and I won’t do that...”

”But,” Jarkon said, his voice turning deadly serious, ”what I am about to suggest will demand more sacrifice within our own ranks if we want the others to believe that what we do is out of desperation, and not by our own will!!”

The others first sighed with relief, but their faces quickly turned grim at the word ”sacrifice.”

They all fully understood what Jarkon meant when he spoke of needing ”a few more sacrifices.” They could automatically grasp what his plan was!!

Commander Zyth, who had been silent all the while, finally spoke up. ”This could indeed be done!! If we go through with this plan, we might be able to safeguard more than 60 percent of our forces here and escape!!”

Though there were inconsistencies in the plan itself, Zyth knew he had to support it. He was already aligned with Jarkon, and he knew he needed to back him no matter what—otherwise, who knew what this son of a gun would do!!

Hearing him, murmurs broke out on the command bridge as the others exchanged words. But to the surprise of everyone, none rejected the plan—even though it demanded the sacrifice of more than 30 percent of the forces deployed here. They also conveniently ignored the general population, whom they hadn’t accounted for at all!!

But there were still some who felt this plan wasn’t good at all. Despite knowing the chances for survival were much higher if they followed Jarkon’s proposal, those who were natives of this star system—where their families and relatives lived—felt unwilling to leave them behind.

To leave them in the hands of an enemy who, ancestors only know what they will do to their families and people, while the fleet escapes with their tails between their legs... it was something deeply shameful!!

”How could we do that? While the plan might be able to conserve our fleet strength to an extent, what about the common people living on those seven habitable planets around the star system?? What about them??” one officer cried out.

”We can’t leave them here, can we?? Just like that—left to their own devices and their fate?? That is unfair to them, isn’t it??”