Dark Fate, Chapter 242

Chapter 242 – Reunion

It was a scene that had played out countless times before, in books, in film, and in the real world. Tired warriors returning from combat abroad, stepping of a ship, and seeing the gathered families, friends, and other service members there to honor and greet them upon their return. The only thing different about it was that the returning crews now included men and women of species that were definitely not human, and the waiting families gathered under magical displays using simple illusion spells instead of hand-drawn banners.

There was also the fact that this gathering was not being held on Earth. We were on Ceres, after all, though the wonders of artificial gravity meant no one was suffering from prolonged exposure to microgravity. Humans weren’t meant to live in less than 9.8 m/s gravity. Not for long.

Still, other than that, it was basically the same as any other such gathering throughout history. The task force under the CRN Mercurial had been out, in enemy territory, for the last few months, making it the first extended campaign by the Ceresan military since its inception. Naturally, it was a big deal for all the families involved, but it also was something that concerned the Empire as a whole. Which is why a few reporters were at the edge of the crowd, taking pictures. Respectfully, and from a distance.

Of course, most of the reporters weren’t focused on the crowd as a whole, but me, in my true form, with Crown Princess Lilith at one side, and Mhyreth, my familiar, at my other. Behind me were Talia and the rest of my personal guards, all having worked hard to get to Level 21 in Tier 2, along with Harahel, the Greater Angel who looked slightly uncomfortable, given the roundness of her belly. Only a few more months until she was due, and we could see what kind of being was born from the union of a Greater Incubus and a Greater Angel. I expected the result would be… interesting. Oh, and Lieutenant Estella Ferranti, my aide and Chief of Staff, the only Tier 1 member of the group.

Of course, not all the ships could fit at this one dock. The four corvettes were gathered at other docks nearby, on different levels, and smaller crowds awaited them, there. This was the Mercurial’s dock. It was the flagship of Third Fleet, and the largest of the five ships currently assigned to it. That meant any official reception from the Emperor needed to be here. Of course, this was also the ship where four of my slaves were stationed, so I would have been here, even if there wasn’t an official reason for it.

Naturally, the first off was Captain Griboyedov. Custom said that the dead and wounded were highest priority, but the only dead from the mission were on the Invader, and I knew that the procession off that ship was being lead by twelve sailors in dress uniforms, holding folded flags. The bodies, if any had been recoverable, would have been sent into the closest star, a fitting funeral for warriors, that also glossed over the fact that sometimes there wasn’t enough left of someone to fill a casket. War in space was nasty like that.

As for the wounded, healing magic meant all but the most serious wounds could be handled in the field. There had been twelve dead, and under a hundred wounded, across the fleet. Of the wounded, only twenty had wounds grievous enough that they couldn’t be handled with the healing magic and science available, forcing them to be kept in stasis until the end of the tour, and none of them were on Mercurial.

Not that the Mercurial or her squadrons had gotten off unscathed, of course. Two of Angel Squadron’s fighters had been lost, and twenty other craft across Angel, Beast, and Cinder Squadrons had been damaged during the campaign. All the pilots had been recovered, and healed up, but they were still going to get recognition, when time came for such things.

As the Emperor, I was up front and center with my companions as Captain Griboyedov and his command staff walked off the ship. They sharply arranged themselves in formation, and saluted. To an outsider, they looked a motley bunch, with humans, dwarves, elves, and more in the mix, but when they all saluted as one, that all faded into the background. When I returned the salute, Griboyedov and his people went to at ease positions.

When I spoke, I used magic to amplify my voice, so that the crowd (and reporters) could hear. “Captain Griboyedov, welcome home. We’ll talk more during the debrief tomorrow, but I wanted to say congratulations on a job well done. It was dark work I gave to you, but necessary, and you and the fleet did not let me down. Through the actions of you, and those under you, you have saved countless billions from being eaten alive by omnicidal creatures who threaten this entire Orion Spur of the spiral arm. You have given hope to trillions more who lived under the shadow of slow, but inevitable defeat, giving the Systems Commonwealth time to recover and prepare, rather than simply react to the Incux advance. Let all who hear my voice know that I honor you, and your crews, for doing the grim task that had to be done, and not shirking your duty in the face of horror. Well done, Captain, and welcome back.”

The captain shook his offered hand, and then snapped an order to his crew, dismissing them. I just nodded as he went to his family, who happened to be in the crowd nearby. Wife and two adult children, who hand families of their own. Good for him.

Once the command staff of the carrier stepped off, the rest of the crew began making their way out. Most tossed a salute or nod my way before going out into the crowd to find their loved ones. A few had a haunted look that they were plastering over. Oh, they probably hid it well enough for the people in the crowd, but between my skills, and having a WIS of over a thousand, I could tell. Fortunately, I’d made certain that everyone on the mission would be having sessions with the counselors, to make sure they were OK.

Among the crowd, four people made their way to join my group. All four of the girls had called to check in, once the communications restrictions were lifted. I was pleased to see that none of them had the especially haunted look that some of their crewmates had. They’d still be seeing the counselors, of course, but it looked as though they were coping, for now. Looking closer, I was pleased at how far they’d grown, with them all hitting Tier 2.

Isis ‘Goddess’ Saliba

Hellsworn High Elf Female

Level 28 Hellfire Sorceress / Star Reaper

Titles: Hotshot, Prodigy, Squadron Leader, Ace, Slave, Genocider

Attributes: STR 120, DEX 325, CON 110, INT 300, WIS 200, CHA 500

Market Value: 2,460,020 GP

Goddess was leading the way as all four walked together. The Egyptian-born commander of Angel Squadron was one hell of a pilot, from everything I’d heard. Of course, most of her levels had come through her profession, not her class, which is probably why she got one of the more common advancements for Flame Sorceress, but was gifted with the much rarer Star Reaper profession.

Lelia ‘Heretic’ Carollo

Apocalypse Succubus Female

Level 28 Legendsinger / Deathwing

Titles: Virgin’s Bane, Cunning, Squadron Leader, Slayer, Slave, Genocider

Attributes: STR 100, DEX 330, CON 120, INT 300, WIS 200, CHA 650

Market Value: 2,630,240 GP

I was less surprised to see that Heretic, the leader of Mercurial’s Cinder Squadron of Renegades, had managed to get the Apocalypse Succubus race upgrade. Helping blow up large portions of the surface of multiple planets was going to have effects like that. Given the way her hips were swaying as she walked, I could tell that she was quite happy to be home.

Gloria Leoz

Abyssal Nine-tailed Kitsune Female

Level 20 Fist of the Demon King / Abyssal Legionary

Titles: Tough, Unbroken, Slave, Flameproof, Genocider

Attributes: STR 290, DEX 410, CON 250, INT 110, WIS 500, CHA 120

Market Value: 1,895,500 GP

With them was Gloria, my Marine who had been part of a group of six with Ferranti that had gotten drunk on shore leave in the Commonwealth, and ended up in trouble because of it. I’d gambled a bit with the group to solve their problem. Three of her friends got off with just a ‘good ride’. They’d each blushed as they walked past, and I smiled at them.

Gloria had lost, and been forced to not only remain my slave, but fight in the Ceres Slavefight League. She’d won, handily, thanks to her training and skills, and that probably had something to do with how she got the Flameproof title, making her immune to normal fire (both real and magical). I did notice that a mix of foxfire and hellfire floated at the tips of her nine fox tails, which splayed out behind her like a fan. Oh, and the Class/Profession combo was a pair of rares, which was interesting in its own right.

Yi Ming

Hellsworn High Human Female

Level 20 Hellforged Artificer / Master Engineer

Titles: Genius, Creative, Slave, Genocider

Attributes: STR 100, DEX 150, CON 200, INT 500, WIS 300, CHA 100

Market Value: 1,660,090 GP

And then there was Yi Ming. She, like Ferranti, had ‘won’ the wager, but still lost, since she’d been too senseless after I fucked her to ask for her freedom back. However, that almost certainly contributed to the addition to her race, and the class she was offered, so she probably came out slightly ahead.

Well, she got more than that, it appeared, since, as Gloria’s tails swept out of the way, I could see that she was sporting a healthy baby bump. Roughly six months along, from the look of things. So, she would have been pregnant before the Mercurial left port. Which gave me a very good idea of who the father was. Apparently, the standard contraception offerings the Navy had were less effective against a Tier 2 being with a Tier 3 race. Probably would be even worse now that I was actually Tier 3.

I smiled at the blushing Chinese woman, before placing one hand on her stomach. “Well, I see that some of you have had more to deal with than others, while you were gone.” I chuckled as the four women rolled their eyes, and said, with a bit more seriousness, “Talk about the mission and such can wait until the debriefing tomorrow. All captains, XOs, and squadron leaders will be there, across the fleet. Either in person, or by video. This was the first major campaign we’ve completed since becoming a country. I want everyone to hear what went right, what went wrong, and contributing any ideas they have for what to change or improve. So, Goddess and Heretic will get to rehash things, tomorrow. Gloria, Ming, you both have meetings with the counselor tomorrow, though I expect you to stop by medical, as well, Ming. I’m sure you weren’t foolish enough to try and hide things on board the ship, but double-checking never hurt.”

Ming blushed, and nodded, so I didn’t single her out any further. “Welcome home, ladies. I know the mission wasn’t a pleasant one, but it was necessary, and I’m glad all four of you have come back to me. Tomorrow, things go back to normal. Tonight, we celebrate!”