Both former system masters were terrified at this point, and in their panic, they screamed:
-The Five races federation…
-It was the Five Races Federation; they stood behind it all.
The two of them spilled the beans at the same time.
-Well, sorry fellas, but it seems like we have a tie.
Andrew said to the two bulky aliens standing next to him.
-I have an Idea, let's split them between ourselves, what do you say, boss?
Drevon said with a voice that promised agony to whoever ended up as his victim.
-There is another question I have for them, so let's start round two, and you may have the loser.
-But your Admiral promised that I would not be killed if I surrendered.
The terrified system master screamed in a panic, trying to save himself.
-True, you won't die, but no one said that you will remain in one piece.
Andrew shrugged.
-Now then, my second question is…
Andrew paused for a moment to add some more tension.
-What are the federation's plans, since they could not expect to conquer my whole empire with the forces they sent here?
The two prisoners looked at each other, then Dranel started to speak first.
-They planned to weaken your empire and let the others finish the job, but so many jumped at the chance to take you down that they decided to simply use you to weaken them as much as possible, before they took you down.
They even predicted that you would most likely flee to the other galaxy through the wormhole, leaving the shipyard behind, and while everyone else would be fighting among themselves for the shipyard, the Federation forces planned to swoop in and take them all out getting a vast territory a lot of slaves and the shipyard along with the wormhole to another galaxy.
The ugly alien said as fast as he could.
-That's all I know.
He added, finishing his confession.
The other prisoner was so shocked at the moment that he almost forgot what awaited him.
-Thank you.
Andrew said, standing up.
- Droids, take him away.
He pointed at Dranel, who was immediately dragged out of the improvised cell.
The ugly bastard even smiled when he heard the whining and the screams of the other prisoner.
He was dragged to another improvised cell, but to his surprise, he was not alone in there.
There was a group of people waiting inside.
-The emperor is done with this one.
Vulcan's voice came from thin air.
-He is all yours.
The AI added, and before the airlock could even close, screams could be heard from inside as the family members and friends of the fallen exacted a brutal revenge on the one who betrayed the empire and lured the fleet into an ambush, causing the death of their loved ones.
In the other cell, the former system master was so frightened that he fainted.
-This poor guy will be traumatized after this.
Andrew said while shaking his head.
-Who told him to try and attack us?
Droga shrugged; he felt no sympathy for the prisoner.
-Would you really do it if they didn't tell you what you wanted to know?
Drevon asked.
Andrew didn't reply, just took a small box from his pocket and opened it, revealing two small glass containers with liquid inside and an automatic syringe.
-These things are pricey, but if they didn't break, I would have implanted them with a chip.
Andrew revealed his plan B with a smile.
-Take him to the med bay.
He then turned to the droids waiting at the entrance.
An hour later, the alien woke up with a scream, fighting against the restraints that held him in place on the bed.
-Calm down, you're safe.
One of the Adurian doctors said, witnessing the panic attack the patient had, and understanding why he was bound.
-Where am I?
The alien looked around, hearing the doctor's words.
-In a med bay, you fainted from fear, but that's it, you are not hurt or injured in any way, but his majesty might have overdone it a bit.
The doctor explained.
-So that…
-It was all an act to make you talk; no one was going to eat you or insert spikes into you.
The doctor explained.
-Now, try to get some rest.
The medic said before leaving the former system master to tend to other patients.
At this time, Andrew was sitting in the command chair, thinking about everything that had happened lately and what to do about it.
The Federation was unable to take the Empire on directly, but they had already demonstrated that they could and would use others to do the dirty work for them.
At the same time Andrew could not simply send a fleet to the federation space to destroy them as he was certain that they would expect him to do so and had prepared accordingly.
Additionally, thanks to the recent war, his fleet was seriously weakened, and it would take a while before it was back to its previous strength.
-You look worried.
Aelita said after a while.
-That's because I am worried.
The empire took a lot of damage, while the ones who stood behind the whole thing are safe and have the resources to try again.
What's worse, I have no clue how to stop them or even see them coming.
He said in a tired voice.
This whole situation made him feel helpless, and he hated this feeling.
-Then maybe I could help?
Tarina asked.
-How?
Andrew asked.
-Well, the Federation is not structured like our empire.
In Federation, a protocol has to be followed, no matter what.
The only exceptions are situations when protocols can't guarantee the outcome they want to achieve.
In such cases, it is possible to override a protocol with a direct order from the higher-ups.
She explained.
-And how does that help us?
Andrew asked, feeling that she was on to something.
-Well, organizing an operation like this requires extensive diplomatic involvement.
According to the protocol of the federation's Diplomatic services, talks on such a high level require a face to face meting.
-That doesn't help us.
Andrew shook his head.
- There is no way for us to monitor all of our neighbours and that's assuming that the diplomats would be coming here and not inviting them to the federation space.
-I can tell you that the diplomats of the federation need to go out for such talks.
The rule is that if the federation wants something from you, then they come to you showing their sincerity, and the reverse is also true.
If you want anything from the federation, you need to go to them.
That's their protocol, and I dont think they will break it anytime soon.
Tarina smiled.
-If that's the case all we need to do is to expand our relay net and set an alarm for any shigtings of Federation diplomatic vessels on our sensors.
That way, we won't need to monitor everything ourselves, and we will know who they are talking to.
Lanarine chimed in on the conversation.
-Sisters, you are forgetting about one detail.
The moment anyone sees our ships placing relays outside of our borders, they will know what we are doing, and I guarantee you that they won't be happy about it.
That's a great way to make more enemies.
Aelita shared her opinion, pouring a bucket of cold water on their enthusiasm about the whole thing.
-Unless they won't see anything.
Andrew whispered while in thought.
-What did you say?
Aelita asked, as she didn't hear what he said just now.
-I said that they don't need to see anything.
Andrew smiled, finally connecting the dots and seeing the whole picture.
-How many relays do we have in stock?
He asked.
-There are twenty in stock.
Jalina took a look at her tablet before answering.
All the ladies knew this expression on Andrew's face.
It meant that he finally figured out what to do and knew how to make it all work.
-Sarill call in the Ghost, the the captain that I wish to see him as soon as possible.
Hearing this, it all finally clicked for the ladies.
He was planning on using the stealth ship to drop off the relays.
-Also, start making more relays, we are going to need them.
Andre said with a wide smile.
Less than an hour later, The captain of the stealth frigate now known as the Ghost, was sitting with Andrew, Lan, Aelita, and Andrew while the entrance and the corridor leading to the conference room were guarded by battle droids to prevent anyone from eavesdropping on the conversation.
-Captain Verio, this operation is of the utmost importance, and it is extremely dangerous.
It will also be a long-term operation that only your ship can undertake with its unique abilities.
The objective is to place relays outside of the Empire's borders and preferably hide them, making it hard to find by anyone else.
This has to be done without being detected by anyone and moving to 45% of your ship's range, in every direction outside our borders.
He explained.
The margin of error was 10% which was quite a big safety net since Andrew didn't want to risk losing his only stealth ship because of lack of fuel.
-Once this is accomplished in the Andromeda galaxy you will proceed to the Milky Way galaxy and do the same.
In case of being detected or the stealth system failure, you are to immediately abandon the mission and return as soon as possible.
Andrew finished.
-Any questions?
-Yes your majesty.
What distance from one another should I place the relays, and do I need to place them in systems or is simply placing them in interstellar space allowed?
The captain asked.
-The optimal distance would be between two hundred and two hundred and fifty lightyears between the relays and it should be fine to drop them in interstellar space, but if possible It would be best to hide them somewhere.
Lanarine answered.
-Once the task is finished we hope to achieve a network of relays in the shape of a ball spanning at least a few thousand light years in every direction.
She added.
-Considering my vessel's maximum range, this network will extend well over ten thousand lightyears outside of the Empire's borders, the captain said after doing some math in his head.
-That's the idea, we need to know what's going on outside our borders, preferably without letting everyone know that we are doing so.
Andrew said.
-I accept the mission, when do we start?
The captain asked eagerly, it had been a while since his last assignment.
He had no problem operating as a part of the fleet but he preferred the stealth missions, which he found out were addictive and now he would have more than his fill of his favorite work for the next few weeks if not months.
-As soon as your ship is resupplied and loaded with relays.
Andrew smiled seeing the eagerness of the captain to go out and do his work.
It turned out that the Frigate could easily fit fifty relays into its cargo hold.
Giving them some spares in case one or more relays broke or were damaged.
The idea was to reach the maximum range and start planting the relays on their way back, which would make a rescue operation easier, if it was necessary to perform one.