War Against the White Knights by Tim C. Taylor Page A

the Hummers evolved to peer into the future? You say you knew of this ‘Z’ Fleet for a hundred generations. Who is to say the Hummers did not foresee this a hundred generations before that?”
    “That is a risk, I do not deny,” said Arun. “But we have taken every precaution to achieve secrecy. Even the White Knight Emperor has no idea of ‘Z’ Fleet’s existence.”
    “You have chosen to strip essential forces from across our newly won territories,” said Pedro who held his antennae solemnly rigid. “Reinforced by their Hardit allies, the New Empire is threatening several systems. The Muranyi Accord advance at will from the old frontier and will shortly reach Legion systems. We do not have the means to defend ourselves. We will lose planets to invaders because of your secret fleet.”
    “Possibly, yes,” Arun admitted.
    “You have committed us to this pincer movement to capture the Emperor.”
    “I have. It is a commander-in-chief’s decision to make.”
    “And you made it without consulting us. I find that personally disappointing and hypocritical, given your past pronouncements on secrecy.”
    Arun had no defense against the accusations. Pedro’s comments cut him like the tip of a combat blade, poisoned by truth.
    “Nonetheless,” said Pedro, “your actions are optimal considering the context. I would do the same in your position. You have the full support of the Legion-aligned Troglodyte colonies that I represent.”
    “As I pledge the forces of Littoran,” said Kreippil. “We must never forget that war is risky, even holy war, yet this is our best chance and I place my confidence in General McEwan. Commanders, I have previously offered you the war chant of ‘Freedom can be won’. As we proceed to the final battle for control of the empire, I withdraw that chant. I give you a new battle cry in its place: Freedom shall be won!”
    Arun had heard this room echo with chanting before now as great victories were celebrated. The reaction to Kreippil’s new war cry was far more muted.
    “Let’s do it,” said the Gliesan commander with a nervous twitch of his wings.
    “This is our best hope,” said Indiya. Arun had hoped for more enthusiasm from her, since she had been involved from the start. Even Xin looked thoughtful.
    Arun hadn’t entirely won over his commanders, but he could read the room well enough to know no one would back out of the alliance now. This was it… the next destination would be the White Knight homeworld.
    He shot a glance at Xin who winked back.
    It wasn’t until that moment that Arun fully realized that his life was about to change. The war that had consumed most of his life would soon be over. He couldn’t wait to walk away from it all and try out a civilian life with Xin, and – he felt a burst of deep satisfaction such that he’d never experienced – his daughter.

—— PART III ——
    LINES
OF
CONTRAVALLATION

Human Legion
— INFOPEDIA —
    HISTORY OF THE LEGION
    – Civil Administration and Politics Part II
     
    Most of the worlds liberated by the Human Legion had been under the control of the White Knights for longer than Homo sapiens had been in existence. There was much the Legion found itself responsible for: healthcare, taxation, law and order, economic and industrial production geared to the needs of the Human Legion war machine… Liberty was a powerful concept to those who fought in its name, but the implementation of liberty was a perplexing challenge that often seemed impossible to achieve.
    Further, those in the Legion who freed worlds all followed the legal story that they did so in the name of the White Knight Emperor, temporarily administering the Imperial fiefdoms until such time as they could be returned to their lawful owner. And yet, underneath this legal fiction bitter rivalries soon emerged between the constituent races of the Human Legion, and other forms of division.
    What if this legal fiction became a reality? What if these worlds