Aces High (Reality Benders Book #6) LitRPG Series Read online

  Aces High

  a novel

  by Michael Atamanov

  Reality Benders

  Book#6

  Magic Dome Books

  Reality Benders

  Book #6: Aces High

  Copyright © Michael Atamanov 2020

  Cover Art © Vladimir Manyukhin 2020

  English translation copyright © Andrew Schmitt 2020

  Published by Magic Dome Books, 2020

  All Rights Reserved

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This book is entirely a work of fiction. Any correlation with real people or events is coincidental.

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  Table of Contents:

  Introduction. Long-Term Plans

  Chapter One. In an Alien Galaxy

  Chapter Two. Ancient Laboratory

  Chapter Three. Witness of the Past

  Chapter Four. Discipline Lesson

  Chapter Five. Failed to Leave

  Chapter Six. Playing Tag

  Chapter Seven. An Important Conversation

  Chapter Eight. New Home

  Chapter Nine. Voluntold into War

  Chapter Ten. Primus Inter Pares

  Chapter Eleven. Insurgents and Plans

  Chapter Twelve. A Hatchet in Space Battle

  Chapter Thirteen. Going Home!!!

  Chapter Fourteen. An Old Debt

  Chapter Fifteen. A Mission of Epic Difficulty

  Chapter Sixteen. The Embodiment of Absolute Evil

  Chapter Seventeen. Big Interview

  Chapter Eighteen. Duel

  Chapter Nineteen. Set a Course for Earth!

  Chapter Twenty. The Solar System

  Chapter Twenty-One. Out of the Game and into the Real

  Chapter Twenty-Two. Terrestrial Affairs

  Chapter Twenty-Three. Instructor of the Army of Earth

  Chapter Twenty-Four. The Army of Earth

  Chapter Twenty-Five. Shock Is How We Do Things!

  Chapter Twenty-Six. An Offer that Cannot be Refused

  Chapter Twenty-Seven. Ultimatum

  Chapter Twenty-Eight. A Nighttime Conversation

  Chapter Twenty-Nine. Safe Haven

  Chapter Thirty. Gnat on a Rampage

  Chapter Thirty-One. Uline’s Wedding

  Chapter Thirty-Two. The Price of Freedom

  Chapter Thirty-Three. Three-Barbed Parasites

  Chapter Thirty-Four. To Kill Fox

  Chapter Thirty-Five. It Has Begun!

  Addendum. Crew list of the frigate Tamara the Paladin

  About the Author

  Introduction. Long-Term Plans

  Planet Urmi II, ancestral homeworld of the Miyelonian race

  Star City, capital of the Union of Miyelonian Prides

  Western Shrine of the Great First Female

  “ALL LEADERS are present, the assembly may commence,” the maidservant whispered to her preoccupied mistress and, after she finished combing the magnificent pearly white fur of the Great Priestess, collected her implements and swiftly departed.

  Amiru U-Mayaoo, who Miyelonian society believed embodied the incarnation of their Great First Female with her wisdom and flawless feminine beauty, stood unhurriedly from her chair in a dignified manner. She first took a long attentive survey of the traditional meeting place of the Miyelonian rulers to personally make certain all twenty-seven glowing holograms were in position around the perimeter of the round dais she was perched atop. Yes, all the rulers were present and in the right place.

  “Respected pride leaders, I have called this assembly to discuss two important topics which directly pertain to the interests of our Miyelonian race,” Amiru U-Mayaoo started her speech with the well composed tone of an experienced orator. “First of all, via official diplomatic channels, I have received a message from the leaders of our Meleyephatian enemies. In essence, the message consists of an ultimatum with a healthy dose of threats. The Meleyephatian Horde says that it will cease interstellar expansion in all directions and transfer all its combat starships to the area of the military conflict with the Miyelonian and Geckho races.”

  The Great Priestess listened as her audience gasped in surprise. Yes, something truly unbelievable had taken place: for the first time in the entirety of known history, the Meleyephatian Horde was no longer expanding through the stars and had brought its main combat fleet back from the edges of known space to deal with problems occurring far behind its back lines. And after all, ceaseless territorial expansion and the constant subjugation of ever more new races, whose living and productive resources were then merged into the Horde, were the very essence and philosophy of the Meleyephatians. Something truly unbelievable must have occurred to make the ghastly arachnid space invaders deviate from centuries’ old tradition.

  “Have our troopers perhaps overwhelmed our ancient nemesis with their recent noteworthy victories and dealt them an unacceptable blow?” suggested Ayvi U-Mawoo, a pure white graceful Miyelonian female, the youngest of the three currently living incarnations of the Great First Female.

  “As far as I know, no. The war was conducted strictly according to a plan approved by our strategists,” came the commander of the Fourth Star Fleet Keetsie-Myau, the most popular military leader among the rank-and-file. “Taking advantage of the fact that all of the Horde’s forces in the nearest sectors of space were tied up with the Geckho, all four of our fleets entered the war suddenly. The First Fleet captured twenty Meleyephatian stations and planets in its zone of responsibility without encountering particular resistance. The Second Fleet took sixteen. The Third twenty-two. And mine has taken another thirty-three stations from the Horde. For the Meleyephatian Horde, which controls forty percent of known space and thousands of star systems, such territorial losses are unpleasant but not exactly critical. We still have some margin before we reach the red line our analysts determined should draw elevated attention from the Horde. For the record, that would be one hundred thirty inhabitable planets. Obviously, the real reason the Meleyephatian Horde’s main fleet has returned must lie somewhere else entirely. Any suggestions?”

  The Great Priestess was lost in admiration for the Fourth Fleet Commander’s speech. Keetsie-Myau was making impressive progress! As an orator, wise strategist, capable fleet commander and above all else as the ruler of one of the most powerful Miyelonian prides in the galaxy. Not all that long ago she was still young and naive, in no way distinguished other than her outstanding appearance and exorbitant ambition. But now Keetsie had become an experienced politician as well. And the fact she had recently been promoted to Kung in the game that bends reality confirmed these observations. This young female had gotten her surging hormones well under control, reined in her boy-craziness, which was gossiped about throughout the galaxy, and tamed her innumerable male admirers. Kung Keetsie-Myau was on the cusp of being elevated to Krong — the sole absolute ruler of the whole Miyelonian race.

  And meanwhile, a cautious answer to the commander’s questio
n came from the middle-aged Teerr-Miauss, sagacious head of the Miyelonian archive service:

  “Perhaps the true reason for the return of the Meleyephatian main fleets is that they have sustained heavy losses. Rumors have been swirling that they were utterly eviscerated in the Aysar Cluster three tongs ago...”

  “That is no longer just rumor,” the Great Priestess hurried to cut in. “That highly contested information has now been authenticated. A recent dispatch from a deeply embedded Miyelonian agent contained detailed data on the state of affairs in the Meleyephatian Horde. And in it we discovered evidence of a grand battle in the Aysar Cluster star system three tongs ago, which the Meleyephatians lost. And they suffered a no less gruesome defeat when they attempted a second attack.”

  “Do we know who was able to put a stop to the triumphant march of the arthropod invaders?” came the commander of the First Star Fleet.

  Amiru U-Mayaoo could have answered herself, but she redirected the question to the usually taciturn head of Miyelonian intelligence Kung Wauu-Miaoo, who was the best informed about the state of affairs in deep space. The gray-haired Miyelonian, who was known to have a distaste for public speaking, bristled his whiskers in dismay but nevertheless gave a detailed overview to the assembly:

  “Yes, we do. It was Humans. A branch of that widely scattered race we were previously unaware of. As a matter of fact, we know extremely little for certain. The only definitive fact that has reached us is the identity of the fleet commander who blasted the Meleyephatian Horde’s stellar armada to atoms: a human woman by the name of Admiral Nicole ton Savoia. We have also heard the title and name of their ruler: Emperor Georg the First, although that is still unconfirmed. But in one way or another, the leaders of the Horde were severely frightened by the encounter with such a fearsome power and have ceased all active operations in that attack vector and all neighboring sectors. All Meleyephatian ships that were not destroyed have been recalled from the border and redeployed elsewhere. And that includes the ongoing war with the Union of Miyelonian Prides and the Geckho race.”

  A long silence took hold. Everyone understood perfectly that, even after sustaining significant losses, the Meleyephatian fleet was still a very, very dreadful force. The coming of an enemy armada numbering in the thousands of starships to the local theater of combat would change the balance of power in an instant. The easy fast-paced war the Union of Miyelonian Prides thought it was engaged in would instantly transform into a bloodbath involving starship flotillas numbering in the thousands. Perhaps the very survival of the Miyelonian race would be at stake. No one wanted to let that happen.

  “What is the Meleyephatian ultimatum in a nutshell?” Ayvi U-Mawoo inquired. “Are they demanding we return the star systems we have captured?”

  The Great Priestess, who was better versed in military and political questions actually winced at her younger associate’s preposterous suggestion:

  “Not at all. And who would voluntarily give up such rich spoils? The Meleyephatians understand that perfectly and do not demand the impossible. They have asked us only to relinquish just the comet Un-Tau — it is a place of religious pilgrimage for several nests of Meleyephatian renegades. They also want to conclude an official peace treaty with us for a duration of nine tongs. The Meleyephatian Horde has given us until the end of the day to reply.”

  Everyone fell silent for a minute, thinking over what had been said. Finally, the commander of the Second Star Fleet Leng Raoo-Miayawoo — one of the most experienced and respected commanders of the Union of Miyelonian Prides — put in his word.

  “At the outset, our race looked on this war as a convenient opportunity to take a bite out of a historic enemy’s territories unchallenged, slightly weakening the Meleyephatian Horde by the same token. We never saw it as a fully-fledged drawn-out conflict where we might face off against large Meleyephatian forces. That would increase our side’s losses by many orders of magnitude. My opinion: our objectives for this military campaign have been accomplished. We should exit the war.”

  “That is my position as well,” Keetsie-Myau declared, after which the din from the other rulers instantly fell silent. “The Miyelonians are famed for the speed of our decision-making and the flexibility of our galactic politics. We saw a chance to grow stronger and we seized it. But the naïve, headstrong Geckho... to be honest, I actually feel a bit sorry for them!” The delight in commander Keetsie-Myau’s eyes made for a sharp contrast with the meaning behind her words. “Our predictable allies acted exactly the way we expected. They declared war, tied up the Meleyephatians’ forces and cleared the way for us. And now it is the Geckho who will bear the brunt of the war with the Meleyephatian Horde, which is now rallying from the surprise attack. And on top of that, as we are now finding out, the Horde will soon be sending the bulk of its forces to the front.”

  Great Priestess Amiru U-Mayaoo was again taken with admiration for Keetsie-Myau. How the head of the Pride of the Sharp Claw had grown into a wise politician and earned the respect of the other rulers! Must be why the Commander of the Fourth Star Fleet was already officially known as ‘the Great One’ even though, under Miyelonian law, that honorific was technically out of reach due to her young age. Leng Amiru spent a bit more time waiting, but none of the assembled rulers contradicted the Great One’s position.

  “Okay. Then I will answer the leaders of the Horde today that we accept their offer of peace unconditionally. The Union of Miyelonian Prides shall exit the war and sign a peace treaty for a duration of nine tongs. Miyelonian troops shall depart the Un-Tau comet in the next two or three ummi, while the remaining captured planets, stations and space settlements shall come under the legal dominion of our race.”

  Having wrapped up the first issue of the day’s agenda, Amiru U-Mayaoo moved on to the second point:

  “A reliable source has informed me of the discovery of a well-camouflaged mobile laboratory in space belonging to the ancient Relict race. What’s more, the laboratory is in working condition, is in fact still operating and is chock full of ancient devices, artifacts and technologies. I don’t imagine I’ll have to convince any of you that this laboratory is of great interest to Miyelonian science and must be delivered to a system under control of the Union of Miyelonian Prides at any cost.”

  “Okay, what’s the catch?” the head of the Miyelonian archive service inquired. “What is so hard about towing the laboratory to any of our scientific stations and examining it there?”

  “The difficulty consists in the fact, esteemed Teerr-Miauss, that this discovery in the words of MY source,” Keetsie-Myau emphasized the penultimate word, “was initially located in Meleyephatian space in the uninhabitable H9045/WE system then, by some inconceivable method, was instantly transported to a neighboring galaxy!”

  The commander of the Fourth Star Fleet demonstrated an excellent awareness of the issue. Even the Great Priestess herself didn’t know all those details.

  “Holy cow, null transport!” came the starstruck Azari Ur-Maya, head of the department of scientific research, joining the discussion for the first time. “Our scientists predicted that form of transport three hundred tongs ago, but no one has yet been able to make it work in practice. And after all, whichever race is first to adopt such a technology will come to dominate the cosmos!”

  “One other difficulty,” the great Priestess rejoined the discussion, “is that the lost laboratory of the ancient race was not discovered by one of our research groups, but a mixed crew under a Free Captain containing members of all kinds of different races. And Miyelonians form a minority of the crew. Among the races present are Geckho, Meleyephatians, Humans, and even a Jarg. So I suspect all interested parties are already aware of the discovery. And soon, if we do not move first, the captain who discovered the valuable asset will be receiving offers from other players in the great game of galactic politics.”

  “Move? By that do you mean purchasing the ancient scientific base before the captain has recognized its true value? Or...”
the commander of the First Star Fleet made an evocative gesture, pretending to slit his throat with a sharp blade.

  Both Amiru U-Mayaoo and Keetsie-Myau snorted derisively. The commander of the Fourth Star Fleet explained her skepticism:

  “I have interacted with that Free Captain before. And so I can say in no uncertain terms: there’s no use deluding ourselves into thinking the captain might not be aware just what a valuable prize he has landed himself. He is aware and don’t you doubt it. And attacking such an experienced psionic discreetly, considering his well-developed danger sense, will not be possible. And another thing, if we do succeed in assassinating him, what would we do with the Relict scientific base then? Its security system’s artificial intelligence will only communicate with Relicts. And as far as I am aware, communication requires a rank of two or higher in the Pyramid hierarchy. Kill Leng Gnat and the security system won’t listen to anyone, leaving the priceless scientific station forever stranded in a distant galaxy. And to have the envenomated Leng Gnat as a personal enemy after he respawns without his precious discovery... at the very least it would irrational, given his Morphian has demonstrated an ability to reach even so far as Leng Amiru U-Mayaoo herself despite her innumerable guards.”

  The Great Priestess shuddered at the unpleasant memory. Yes, the assassination plan had been coordinated in advance with her, but the way it happened came as a true shock to the seasoned Miyelonian regardless. Being gutted alive is an extremely nasty sensation!

  “So, the Free Captain who found the laboratory is Leng Gnat? Yes, we have heard a great deal about that fortunate maverick...” the head of the Miyelonian archive service stroked the bridge of his nose thoughtfully with a clawed paw. “That captain is quite the extraordinary man! He works for Geckho Commander Kung Waid Shishish’s Third Strike Fleet and has already done quite a lot for him. But Leng Gnat’s sympathies for the Miyelonian race have been noted as well, and he has aided us on several occasions. Furthermore, he is an official enemy of the Meleyephatian Horde. My personal opinion: we must maintain amicable relations with the Free Captain, then Gnat will bring the sought-after Relict laboratory right into our paws. I have also laid eyes on a statement saying the human by the name of Leng Gnat has transferred his physical body to the Miyelonian station Kasti-Utsh III. That seems like a convenient excuse to have a heart-to-heart with him in the real world and come to an agreement.”