“A warrior shouldn't be surprised when a situation turns out to be different than what he expects. It's just a sign that the universe deems him worthy of a challenge.”

-Batlin

***Outer Rim***

***Levvi Batlin***

“What do you think?” I tilt my head and float closer to the large projection which displays the moon of an unnamed system, just a few lightyears away from Prip-controlled space. In galactic terms, the displayed scene is right in their front yard. Or backyard, depending on how they wish to interpret their starmap.

The small planetoid is pockmarked with craters, just like any other rock which lacks an atmosphere. Due to the non-existent withering effects, a crater on such a rock tends to be a permanent beauty spot. In a living world, even something cataclysmic tends to vanish within a few years.

But in this case, any random observer would immediately recognize that the largest and most significant crater is a very recent addition to the moon's surface. With almost five kilometres in diameter and three deep, the edges are still glowing with radiation. Someone used a lot of power and military-grade energy weapons to dig this hole.

It's certainly not some kind of obscure mining operation. Nobody would waste that much power on a whim. Space is a good insulator, but for the heat to take that long to dissipate, someone must have had the wish to utterly wipe out whatever was on the surface and beneath it.

The Prip were right to point us in this direction.

It almost makes me feel a little bad that the commander of the scouting force which encountered the new species was a little rash in his handling of the situation. It's true that the protocols require utmost speed and a firm hand when a crusading force encounters a species like the Prip. I just feel that a little more talking and less shooting could have gotten us their cooperation much quicker.

Sighing, I glance at another hologram, a three-dimensional representation of a Prip. They are basically humanoid and have stout torsos with long, lean limbs. Their jaws are a little elongated, but would still count as baseline if it weren't for the sharp fangs. The hands and feet come with four fingers and sets of retractable claws.

It's probably just my imagination, but their beady and dark little eyes look mean. Though the children of many species would probably mistake their furry appearance as cute.

According to the briefing, they like to use their natural weaponry as much for hunting, as for climbing on the rocky cliffs of their homeworld. The whole world is the result of the Prip shaping their environment according to their desires. High cliffs take turns with small patches of rainforest, occasionally interrupted by a waterfall and a small lake at the bottom of countless valleys.

The Prip build their cities in these cliffs, while the forested areas provide the game for their hunting parties. A quite inefficient way of handling the food problem, but the carnivorous Prip seem to like hunting.

There are three large landmasses and all are groomed in the same manner, making it clear that the Prip's civilisation is actually a very old one. I was surprised when I learned that they have no concept of death because of growing old. Their genetic makeup gives them a practically limitless lifespan.

Though, they still die like any other being because of violence, illness or boredom. Despite what nature has given them, they aren't very inspired when it comes to inventing new things. Their old are 'set in their ways', preferring to follow the principle of never changing a working system. Most innovation comes from their young, which they only have to replace actual losses to their population.

I suppose that's also the reason why they met our threats of violence in most cases rather stoically. A large part of their population is ancient and would regard dying as unpleasant, but not unbearable after having had a full life.

Ouluk sniffs loudly and clears his throat, waking me from my reminiscence. The little scientist was studying the hologram of the moon for a long time with a scrunched up face.

“I don't really know. I have a major in exobiology and subatomic manipulation. This moon looks like any other moon to me, though the large crater allows the speculation that someone was very angry at someone else. Was one of our ships responsible?”

I turn to him. “No. That's the problem. Someone out there has a tier-eight tech-base, possibly tier-nine. These images were taken in a system where a large fight has taken place. From the looks of it, it happened a few weeks ago and the remains imply human activity. The whole system is filled with wreckage. We managed to recover some wreckage of the battle, and it bristles with forbidden technology.”

Ouluk's expression lights up. “So the humans encountered someone who is giving them trouble! Isn't that exceptionally good news? In your prediction, you assumed that the humans would be able to reproduce unchallenged out here. If they were delayed, then that's just good for us.”

I suppress the urge to groan, but what do I expect from a scientist like Ouluk. He might be brilliant in his field of study, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he understands the tactical situation.

“It means that there is someone out there who might be able to impede our plans! They may be beneficial, but it could just as easily be that they will stand in our way. Unfortunately, or fortunately, we haven't made contact yet. The battlefield was abandoned. I task you with the job of finding out as much as you can about both combatants. For that purpose, your research team can soon expect as many research samples and pieces of wreckage as we can bring you.”

“I will do anything I can to stop the humans!” Ouluk bows to me with an eager expression on his face and leaves the room.

I watch him with a bit of concern. It's well and good to have subordinates who support our ideals, but Ouluk seems more and more like a zealot, the longer I know him.

After a few long moments, I dismiss the thought and call up a hologram of the system we are currently occupying with the main-body of our fleet.

I decided to call it New Horizon. The solar system has two planets in the habitable zone which can house most of the species who joined our crusade. There are several larger planets outside the habitable zone which are currently being dismantled for resources. Our dockyards are already eagerly waiting for materials to begin the production of a decent industry base. If everything goes well, then the combined efforts of the fleet should easily turn this system into a bastion which can't be taken easily.

First and foremost, I need to ensure that our base of operations can support the fleet. As much as I would like to charge ahead, even our ships have a limited operation time and in battle, little damages and the wear and tear of daily use of equipment can easily wear down key-components, eventually resulting in the end of a ship.

I have studied battles in which most of the enemy fleet wasn't beaten because their ships were destroyed, but because they ran out of resources after continued fighting. That's something that can happen all too easily even to my forces, simply because there are so many ships. Together with the conscripted forces, my fleet has over twenty-thousand ships.

A proud number, but sadly, most of those ships aren't on the same tech-level as the ones I brought from the core-worlds. Some are old tech or are based on completely different designs. There are even a few hundred ships from recently subjugated species which aren't much better than the Prip. Their ships need actual regular 'maintenance' in a dedicated dockyard.

I shudder at the mere thought of managing such forces. Probably I should only use them to patrol nearby areas and to protect resource transports from other systems. Either that or I should throw them against any target of opportunity as quickly as possible, just to cut down on the cost of maintaing them. If I am lucky, most of them will be destroyed by a stronger opponent, while they still do some damage.

Pondering the many things I have to do, I call for the Assistant to show me its recent predictions.