As a white beam streaked through space, brilliant explosions blossomed across the darkness like fireworks, visible even to the people of Earth from thousands of miles away.
Those with a clear view saw a thin beam of white light emerge from the horizon, moving at astonishing speed across the sky, leaving behind bursts of vibrant "fireworks."
"How beautiful!" a woman exclaimed as she and her boyfriend paused to watch, her eyes filled with awe.
"That must be part of the Federation's 600th-anniversary celebrations," her boyfriend speculated, though he sounded uncertain. The "fireworks" were oddly linear, not arranged to create a pleasing spectacle. What kind of organizer would plan such an unimaginative display?
Earth's civilization had known peace for so long that most people could no longer recognize the sight of warships exploding above. To them, the massive blasts looked like an elaborate show, blissfully ignorant of the truth.
Meanwhile, Earth's government and military were anything but oblivious. Inside the Federation's command centers, the leadership was in a state of frenzied panic, fully aware of the situation.
Outside Earth, however, chaos reigned among the remnants of the fleet. Countless shattered warships drifted through the cold darkness, their wreckage suspended in the void. The surviving ships had hastily raised their energy shields, rattled by the scale of the attack.
The most terrifying sight was the massive satellite fortress at the center, which had sustained a hole punched clean through it. The edges of the gaping wound still glowed with molten metal from the high-energy impact. Earth's prized fortress, constructed with countless resources, had been demolished by an attack from afar.
But what truly filled the survivors with horror and rage was the knowledge that the Federation's highest leader had been aboard that fortress, delivering a speech at the moment of impact. As the fortress was torn apart, the leader's image vanished, along with any trace of his presence, as if he had disintegrated like those colleagues killed in the attack.
It was clear to anyone with half a mind that the assault had targeted Earth's highest leader, while the ships obliterated in the beam's path were merely collateral damage.
In mere seconds, thousands of warships had been destroyed. Though most of the ships had been alerted, the Flash attack was too fast, giving the pilots little time to react. Only those who immediately veered off course in response to the alert had escaped, while the others were left as floating debris.
"Officers of the Earth Federation, this is the Speaker of the United Federation Council!"
As the remnants of the fleet floundered in disarray, the image of their leader reappeared, his voice laced with anger.
"I hereby declare Councilors Hera, Jorge Viotti, and thirty-seven others to be traitors of our civilization.
"These thirty-nine councilors, in their pursuit of prolonged life, have secretly funded the super-powered beings of Pandora and repeatedly sold advanced Earth technology to primitive races in that world to satisfy their personal ambitions.
"This attack was orchestrated by those traitorous councilors who provided coordinates to an extraordinary being from Pandora in an attempt to assassinate me and overthrow the Federation's government, hoping to curry favor with that being.
"I hereby order the immediate arrest of Hera, Jorge Viotti, and the others, stripping them of political rights and personal assets. Additionally, in response to this attempt by Pandora's beings to undermine the Federation, I am declaring war!"
The Speaker's sudden appearance and impassioned announcement left the Federation's soldiers in shock. It was staggering to learn that so many high-ranking leaders had been traitors, attempting a coup at the cost of Earth's future.
Yet, as the Speaker explained the attack, a few soldiers began to view him with suspicion. Judging by his tone, it seemed he had known about the assault in advance. Still, he had acted as if nothing were amiss, holding the military parade as planned. The result was unprepared warships and thousands of unnecessary casualties.
Had they been warned in advance, such losses would have been avoided. But the Speaker, despite his foreknowledge, had kept silent.
"Effective immediately, we will launch a war against Pandora. Before we do so, let us observe a three-minute silence for those who perished in the recent attack."
As some soldiers harbored doubts, the Speaker continued, his hologram flickering on their screens.
"To all those who died, I am deeply sorry. While I did receive advance warning of a potential attack on my life, I was unaware of when, where, or how it would occur.
"They died because of me. But I ask that you not direct your hatred toward me. Their deaths were caused by the traitorous councilors and the super-powered entities of Pandora. Let your fury be aimed at them!"
...
"The Speaker saw right through my scheme. It seems I have a mole in my ranks. I'll need to conduct a purge myself!" Jorge Viotti laughed, watching the Speaker declare him a traitor on the screen. He showed no concern for his current predicament.
"It was one thing if you just wanted to eliminate us peace-seeking councilors. But to exploit this situation to launch a war with Pandora? I don't know whether to call you foolish or brain-dead. Ha!"
"How do you plan to handle the being by King Ul's side, who's beyond the level of any known ruler? That creature could absorb endless firepower and remain unscathed! Go ahead, I'm waiting for the day you're defeated!"
Hidden in a secret chamber on Earth, Jorge chuckled bitterly, muttering to himself, "You call me a traitor? When you lead our civilization to ruin in a hopeless war with Pandora's gods, you'll be the real criminal!"
...
"Those cowards, relying on trades to acquire life crystals from a god!"
The Speaker, having finished rallying the fleet, ended his broadcast and wore a look of disdain. While he too desired immortality, as the highest leader, he would not grovel to obtain it.
"Those gods and their army should be above the atmosphere by now. This clears the way for me to use certain weapons without restraint. Based on the estimated resilience of their god, he should survive… probably."
Tilting his head thoughtfully, the Speaker reflected on his plan to use the assassination attempt to lure in this god and capture him. He had been informed of the plot in advance and had chosen to turn it to his advantage. The Speaker had no intention of begging for longevity; instead, he planned to command the god to extend his life.
"Hopefully, he won't die. But if he does, it's no great loss. I don't believe Pandora has only one god. I'll use his corpse to intimidate the others."
...
Outside Pandora's atmosphere, the female officer that Muria had ejected from his cabin was left stunned as she stared at her screen. She had just recalculated Seraphim's attack trajectory and confirmed that the beam was precisely targeting the coordinates she had received.
While she reeled, an unremarkable officer in a small room aboard the ship took out a tiny device, pressed a button, and quickly sent a message.
"For the Federation!" he murmured with steely resolve, his face set in a grim determination.
Simultaneously, a massive war machine orbiting Earth unfolded its monstrous weapons, filling the sky with brilliant, radiant halos that rivaled the sun in intensity.
_________________________
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!]
[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]
[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter] [+5 Reviews = +1 Chapter]