The Great Betrayal Read Online Free PDF Page A

officer and held on tightly, preventing him from drawing any closer to the Admiral. It seemed he was ignoring him, but then his eyes drifted to the right so that he could check the computer displays. Finally, he looked back.
    “I will speak with your commanders.”
    He then turned his attention to his officers and barked an order. They released him before Campbell’s translator even uttered a sound. The Admiral engaged in a short discussion with the Alliance officers then turned and shouted at his own crew. It must have been in code of some type because the translator once again did nothing. Eventually, the Admiral looked back at him. He lowered his head slightly in a passive gesture.
    “On behalf of the Khreenk, I apologize.”
    Campbell nodded politely and answered.
    “What now?”
    The Admiral shrugged, using both his chest and his shoulders. It was almost comical, and he might have laughed if it hadn’t been for their particular predicament.
    “Perhaps if I had listened to your officer’s counsel, I might have left scouts at the Rift. Instead...I fear we are soon to be trapped here...”
    He looked at the massive glass display at the front of the ship and took a step closer, as if this would somehow allow him a better view of whatever it was that waited out there for the fleet. A clicking sound came from somewhere in his body, perhaps his throat but sounded more like it was coming from the center of his chest.
    “We are not experienced in war. The Narau fleet is for show, for politics. We cannot turn back, not until we have finished our deceleration...”
    The Admiral turned and looked at Campbell.
    “...and we are on our way to destruction in this place, look.”
    He indicated to a dot in the distance. With a simple gesture, the window image transformed and enlarged as if a massive telescope. Captain Campbell was fascinated by the technology but forced himself from asking the obvious and looked at the shape. It was a ship, but of a form he was unfamiliar with. It was impossible to gauge the size, but the design was like two long cylinders fitted around a wide central box structure. Thick ribs ran down its length between which were scores of openings.
    “What is it?” he asked.
    The Admiral let out a long sigh; it was almost like the hiss of a snake. He reached up and scratched at the metal plates fitted to his cheek and forehead.
    “Yes, I’ve seen this type of ship before. It is a ship of the Enemy. One we have not seen for hundreds of years. Have you been to Helios before?”
    Captain Campbell nodded.
    “Yes, only for a few days. I didn’t get to see much. Why?”
    The alien Admiral considered his reply before finally speaking.
    “There is a famous painting in the capital. It shows one of the great space battles between the Helions and the machines.”
    He pointed at the ship ahead of them.
    “Those ships were the heart of the enemy fleet. There must have been dozens of them in the painting. I think the Helions named them Ravagers. Yes, that’s it. They are large warships that carry troops and fighters and attack moons and small colonies.”
    He sighed, a sound and gesture that was surpassingly human.
    “I never believed it until now, perhaps the prophecy that the Enemy would return is true. When the comet rises, Helios will burn. Soon my friend, soon…we shall face them.”
    Captain Campbell was shocked at the news of the ship. Yes, there had been rumors that there were small numbers of Biomechs still remaining throughout the galaxy, but not like this. From the assessments already coming in from the Alliance escorts, this ship was big. He checked back to the vessel that had tried to break through to Helios when the Alliance had first made contact with the Helions, and it showed up as bigger in every way.
    “How powerful are these things?” he asked, dreading the answer.
    The Admiral looked at him with slightly glazed eyes.
    “If this is a Ravager, then many of my ships’ captains will want to