Free Out of the Ashes (Rise of the Empire Book 3) by Ivan Kal Page A

him. Adrian took a breath and turned to the Communication Handler.
    “Send the first prerecorded package to the coordinates Retsar Isani provided.” Adrian said.
    “Sending now.” She answered.
    “I’m detecting five ships close to our position.” Sensor Handler said.
    “Have they seen us?” Paul asked.
    “Not yet, but they will in another five minutes minimum.”
    “Send them the second package. What types are they?” Paul asked.
    “Light cruisers sir, same class as the ones at Nuva.” Sensor Handler answered.
    “Any chance that they ignore the message and attack?” Adrian asked Isani.
    “The message should convince them that we are not a threat, at least until the council sends their response. And even if they don’t believe it, I doubt they will attack the Leviathan.” Isani said.
    “Good, then we wait.” Adrian said, and made himself comfortable, it would be hours yet until they get the response from Nelus. Enough time for him to catch some shuteye, but first he needed to see if the five light cruisers will pose a problem.
    ***
    Retnor Savnai rushed to the bridge of his ship, Ras Var. He was woken by his first officer with the news that they have just detected three ships. And his five ship patrol was the closest one to them. As he ran, Savnai wondered if this was it, if the Sowir Dominion finally decided to wipe them out. It has been a long time since the Sowir visited the system. A decade at least. And as no other Nel colony survived there was no one else to whom the ships could belong to.
    Almost without breath Retnor Savnai entered the bridge.
    “What do we know? Are they Sowir?” Savnai asked as soon as he cleared the doors.
    “Their ships don’t match any signatures we have, Sowir or any other member of the Consortium.” Hosar Navani, Savnai’s first officer answered. She turned to look at Savnai and then manipulated her board. As Savnai found his spot in the commander's chair an image of the three ships appeared on the viewing screen. The ships were dark, almost black in color and the computer had to brighten the images in order for anything to be seen. The ships were obviously made for war. Their hulls bristled with weapons. But it was the difference in size between the three that caught Savnai’s eye.
    “Can we tell how large they are?” He asked.
    Navani turned her palms and the screen on Savnai’s chair changed.
    Savnai looked in disbelief at the information, “This can’t be right. That ship is twice as big as our battleships!”
    “It’s true Retnor.” Navani said simply.
    Savnai opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted.
    “We’ve received a message from the unidentified ships. They identify themselves as friends from Nuva. Retsar Isani is onboard, the ships belong to another race. They call themselves human.” Hosar Fasal from the communications said.
    Savnai recognized the name. Retsar Isani. There wasn’t a person living that didn’t. The one that retreated from the battle for Nesva, leaving an entire planet to the mercy of the Sowir. He defended himself saying that there was nothing his fleet could have done to turn the tide of the battle. After the records were studied, the council realized that it didn’t have justification to remove him. And they had no choice but to keep him in command. But a lot of great families had interest or acquaintances on Nesva, so they sent Isani to Nuva. To guard an insignificant world.
    “Has Retsar Isani’s presence been confirmed?” Savnai asked.
    “Yes Retnor.” The communication officer said sending a video message to Savnai’s screen.
    Opening the message Savnai was met with the face of Retsar Isani. It was a simple message, he gave only his name and identification code.
    “Has this been verified?” Savnai asked.
    “Yes Retnor. It is Retsar Isani, and the codes match those from our database.”
    “Bring us closer to their ships, keep our formation. And put all ships on high alert.” Savnai said, then he turned