"Yeah, I knew it was here. Stand by," the kid said. The screen flashed and Snow Leopard appeared suddenly, his pale face expressionless, his pink eyes focused right on us.
"Nice of you to drop by," he said quietly. "If you're listening to me now, it means you've made it back to Veda 6. That's good, but not as good as it could be. Our new mission is Uldo 4. Beta is under strength and we need you as soon as you can get there. I don't care how you do it—just get there! We'll be waiting. Your mission orders are attached. Beta One signing off."
The mission orders materialized in the doc tray. I called the young Legionnaire right back. "We need fast transportation to Uldo, trooper," I said. "What's available?"
"Sorry, Beta, there's nothing at all. Everything that could move is already on the way there. We're pretty much marooned here until the sit changes. Let's see…there's a supply run due here in two weeks—they're going on to the Meco Sector. That would put you in the general vicinity."
"Thanks—it won't do."
"We could use some extra help down here, guys—it's a bit quiet, but it's honest work."
"We'll let you know." I cut the transmission.
"Do we need another taxi ride?" Whit asked brightly.
Tara turned, and looked back over her shoulder. "We'll set a course for Uldo."
"Wait a frac, Cinta," I said. "We certainly appreciate your help, but you'll lose your ship if you show up at Uldo. A major Legion op is like a black hole—it sucks up everything around it. They'll confiscate the Maiden, and you'll be lucky to ever get it back."
"We know all about the Legion," Tara replied. "And we assure you we always know exactly what we're doing."
"Goodness gracious," Whit smiled, "So our guests are staying! That's nice!" She shot a knowing glance at Eight. He gave her a wolfish grin.
Uldo, I thought—we're bound for Uldo. They had mentioned Uldo in Basic, but I couldn't remember what they had said. Something historical—what was it? I knew nothing about Uldo.
"Set course for Uldo," Tara instructed the ship.
Uldo 4, I thought—a System world, under attack by the O's. And the Legion was intervening, with the System's open agreement. That was a first. Hadn't the Legion learned yet that Systies are not to be trusted? They had betrayed us on Mongera!
"This is the big one," Dragon said. "This is where we stop the O's—or they stop us."
A historical mission. The survival, or the end, of humanity. That's what was at stake, I knew, on Uldo. But I didn't care about history any more—I cared only about Beta. How many dead so far? And how many more dead, for Uldo? I felt trapped and doomed and helpless, rushing onward to certain destruction, caught up in a cosmic typhoon, a galactic maelstrom of catastrophic, uncontrollable events. We were just like ants, fighting for our nests. Will it really make any difference to the galaxy, who wins and who loses? No. But it will make a difference to us.
"I heard Uldo 4 is already lost," Priestess whispered. "Millions of O's have landed; the locals are being overwhelmed."
"We'll fix that," Dragon replied confidently.
The Omnis—they were a galactic curse. They had appeared as if from nowhere, invincible, merciless alien extremists with a brutal star fleet and seemingly endless resources, psychers with extraordinary powers swarming over world after world, focused only on exterminating human beings. Two billion humans had been killed so far.
We had faced one O on Mongera, and almost perished. We would be facing a whole army of O's on Uldo. I didn't even want to think about it. We're insane, I thought, the Legion is insane. We never beat the O's before; what makes them think we can do it now?
"I'll be right by your side, Thinker," Priestess said. She knew what I was thinking. Yes, we'd be together when we died. With luck, we'd be buried in Uldo's rocky soil, with maybe a Legion cross to mark the spot. Here they lie, two Legion immortals, crossed over to the other side, to fight Heaven's wars.
Immortality and death—that was what the Legion promised, and delivered. My blood was running cold. Uldo! I closed my eyes. My heart was pounding. Let it come. I'm a soldier of the Legion. I'm ready to die. I'm ready for anything! Deadman, do your damndest! I'll follow my orders to the death!
END OF MARCH OF THE LEGION: THE AUTHOR'S CUT
To be continued in Slave of the Legion
GLOSSARIES
Welcome to the Confederation of Free Worlds (ConFree). The citizens of ConFree greet you in friendship, and wish you a pleasant and productive visit. Your itinerary is designed to familiarize you with ConFree's society, history and government, as well as any specialized subjects in which you have declared an interest. We are proud of our Confederation and welcome information requests from both the System and unaligned worlds.
Your official guide is a ConFree citizen and a Government official. Your guide will answer any questions not covered in this handbook. The handbook covers basic facts regarding ConFree. We suggest you read it prior to commencing your tour. Please try to keep an open mind. You will find that the truth about ConFree is not what you were taught in System or USICOM worlds.
ConFree was founded by Outworlder refugees who fled the Inners to escape oppression and slavery under the United System Alliance (the System). They settled in the Crista Cluster on the edge of the Outvac, some 1,400 light years from the Inners. The early Outworlder pioneers were fiercely independent individualists who had personally suffered greatly at the hands of a tyrannical regime, and were deeply suspicious of organized government. They had also been fleeing racial extermination by the System, which viewed Outworlders as a dangerous gene pool fostering political resistance to the System's centralized control. These settlers found scores of habitable worlds in the Crista Cluster and formed independent governments on each world, wanting only to be left alone to live in peace. When the System launched slave raids and attempted to expand its zone of control into the Crista Cluster, however, the settlers quickly organized, forming the Confederation of Free Worlds in Year One, ConFree Galactic Standard (CGS).
ConFree's first act was to draw up a Constitution designed primarily to ensure that the government would never terrorize its citizens (see Constitution). The second act was to form Fleetcom and the ConFree Legion (see Fleetcom, Legion). With these instruments, ConFree was able to eventually repel Starfleet and the DefCorps, with great loss of life on both sides (see 'Conflict with the United System Alliance,' below). Our history reveals our character: we are extremists who worship freedom and independence and despise tyranny, while realizing that only through united resolve and violent action can we guarantee our independence and liberty in a hostile galaxy. Thus came about ConFree's unique blend of personal freedom and personal responsibility. We are proud of our history and our institutions and we apologize to no one.
The ConFree Constitution was written in blood by a free people originally representing 21 free and independent Crista Cluster worlds. The Confederation of Free Worlds is a voluntary association from which any member world can withdraw at any time should they lose faith in ConFree leadership. The ConFree Constitution and Bill of Rights guarantees ConFree citizens the right to overthrow a tyrannical government, the right to bear arms, the right to free speech, the right to justice, the right to vote and representation, the right to private property, the right to education, the right and duty to serve the people, and the duty to remain informed. ConFree civilians do not have a right to vote and representation, nor the duties to serve the people or to remain informed, but have all other rights. Citizenship is conferred after six years of community or military service to the people, and all civilians are eligible to volunteer. The ConFree Constitution guarantees member worlds the right to secede at will. None have as yet done so. ConFree's history has demonstrated that eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.