As the Kela mining frigate exited Kela Minor's atmosphere, the red sands of Kela Major filled the bridge's viewport. Looking out through the viewport, Garrun smiled. Kela Major, homeworld of the Siiraan and Kela peoples, had been the crown jewel of the - admittedly small - United Siiraan Empire (USE), before the Orr'uns had conquered it nearly ten years ago. The Battle of Kela Major had been one of the hardest fought battles Garrun had participated in, and his achievements in the battle had earned him a Flying Zronyx to pin on his uniform.
He sighed. Memories of the Orr'uns' previous glories always made him emotional; he turned away from the viewport, blinking back tears.
They had been lucky that Kela Minor was a newer Vorion territory, not yet assigned any space patrols. As such, exiting Kela space was markedly easier than it should have been.
Cayyon tapped her computer terminal. 'Still radio silence, sir.'
'Good,' Garrun replied. Radio silence meant they weren't in trouble - yet. 'I'm going down to the hold. Prepare a broadcast for me, straight to the Vorion forts on Kela Minor. I have something their beloved Emperor would surely love to hear.'
Followed by Vax, he strode to the door at the back of the bridge and pressed his palm against the console. The console beeped and the door slid open. They strode through and began making their way down to the cargo hold, where the others were assembled.
The cargo hold was a huge cavernous chamber, encircled by a ringed catwalk. It was crammed with bodies, Orr'uns and other creatures. As Garrun stepped out onto the catwalk, the crowd cheered. Chants of "Wildwater!" echoed through the hold.
Garrun smiled, heart roaring with pride. He waved for them to be quiet. 'Thank you. Thank you.' He chuckled. As the final embers of cheering died, he began, 'Congratulations, you're free - all of you. The Orr'uns have suffered so at the hands of the Imperium, but no more. We shall resurrect the Orr'un Conquest and reclaim the worlds our traitorous elders forsook to the Imperium!' The cheers started again, louder and wilder, though Garrun noticed the non-Orr'uns did not cheer.
'And I,' he continued. 'shall lead you as your conquistador, Conquistador Garrun the Wildwater!' More cheers, though yet again, the non-Orr'uns remained muted, shifting nervously. Garrun didn't much care about them - they were non-Orr'uns, after all - but that didn't mean he was just going to discard them.
'To you non-Orr'uns who fought for freedom alongside us in the caves, we offer you citizenship within the Conquest, a very great honour. No non-Orr'un has ever achieved citizenship in the Orr'un Conquest; you will all be the first.'
The crowd descended into murmurs. Garrun noticed several Orr'uns and non-Orr'uns alike shaking their heads. Apparently, his idea was not a popular. Apparently, they did not see the honour in joining the Conquest, the glory that they could achieve fighting for him and for the Orr'un Conquest.
He glanced questioningly over his shoulder at Vax, who simply shrugged. Garrun nodded. Then, it was decided.
He signaled to Vax, who reached towards the wall, pulling away a computer terminal; the big man nodded.
From behind came a shout of, 'What if we don't want to join the Conquest?'
Garrun turned his head. 'Come up here,' he said. 'Any who do not wish to join the rebirthed Orr'un Conquest, come up.' He pointed to the set of stairs at the side of the hold leading up to the catwalk.
Much to his dismay, a decent number of people - around twenty in all - made their way up to the catwalk. Even more to Garrun's dismay, a little under half of the dissenters were Orr'uns - one among them being Volh'gaag. No doubt the old elder disliked not being part of the new Orr'un ruling class. Also among the dissenters was Cayyon's caninoid boyfriend.
They don't understand, Garrun thought angrily. They probably think they should just go back to being slaves on Kela Minor just because the elders ordered it. His eyes fixed on Volh'gaag, hard and steely. Still, they will be dealt with.
He gestured for the dissenters to stand on the opposite side of the catwalk, then turned to the rest of the crowd. 'Here is the alternative to joining us,' he announced.
Above where the dissenters were stood, four holes opened up in the ceiling of the hold. Out fell rocks, falling down in a great shower. The frigate had been a mining frigate, and it was in special mining storages above the hold where they stored the mined material. The dissenters screamed as rocks rained down upon them, covering the catwalk in a thick film of dust and stone. Finally, the screaming stopped.
They are dealt with. They threatened the Conquest and were justly executed. It was execution, not murder. A burst of ice blossomed in Garrun's chest, chilling him. It was execution, not murder, he thought again, as if to drum it in his mind.
Garrun turned to Vax and gestured with his hand. The big man nodded and pressed a button on his terminal; the holes in the ceiling closed, cutting off the streams of falling rock.
'That is your alternative,' Garrun declared. He glared at the crowd, before he and Vax left the hold, proceeding back to the bridge.
Back at the bridge, Garrun sat down at one of the terminals and began to write his broadcast to the Vorions stationed at Kela Minor. Once finished, he sent it to Cayyon to beam it down to the moon. The female Orr'un worked swiftly; she still hadn't yet discovered her boyfriend's fate.
As she beamed the broadcast, he read through it again, smiling.
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DECLARATION OF WILDWATER
To all who receive this message: beware. No doubt you are fully aware of the recent breakout of slaves from one of the Vorion Imperium's mines on the moon of Kela Minor. However, there is more.
I, Conquistador Garrun the Wildwater, declare the foundation of the free peoples of the Orr'uns and the resurrection of the Orr'un Conquest. And upon the Vorion Imperium, we declare war...
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