Interstellar Age

Time passed and soon enough, as Tia had promised a datapad manufactured by an alien civilization had arrived on Thexkar. Erich had spent this time getting to know S'aleth, and by now the young Dvrakian beauty was starting to fall for a man she should not have feelings for.

But while seducing S'aleth was Erich's primary objective in this meeting, his superior the Deputy Leader of the Germanic Star-Empire was busy maintain a fine balance of diplomacy with the Dvrakian Consortium who only showed hospitality towards their two guests from the neighboring Empire because of the potential crisis they would soon be facing together.

And sure enough, the moment Erich got his hands on the datapad, he had Tia transfer the files over, where he then displayed the holographic projection of the Hive Fleet's current whereabouts as well as their projected course. Which traversed right through Dvrakian Territory, and eventually through Germanic Space.

Once S'varin saw this irrefutable proof, and had his own mathematicians confirm the trajectory of the Hive Fleet, he suddenly became far more friendly towards his neighbors from the south. After all, the Germanic Star Empire was indeed the only hope the Dvrakian race had of surviving such a catastrophe, and as Governor of Thexkar, S'varin had a prime opportunity to get in the good graces of the GSE. Hoping to not only focus on the defense of Thexkar and its inhabitants but also perhaps gain some spoils from the conflict with the Naraku.

With this in minds, S'varin summoned Karl and Erich to his office once more, where he informed him of how best to proceed with convincing the Dvrakian Assembly on how to agree to the Germanic Star-Empire's demands.

"It won't be easy to convince the Assembly to invest in defense. For as long as any living Dvrakian can remember, here has been peace and prosperity among our civilization. We have been protected by our suzerains from any potential threats, and if I'm being honest, the proximity we have towards your race has also helped in that matter.

To pass conscription measures, it is not a vote that is likely to succeed. Even with this evidence, there will be naysayers who will try to find a way to avoid war with the bugs. In fact, if this information were revealed to the media, then it will undoubtedly cause panic, and I know at least a few members of the assembly who would purposely do such a thing so that they can profit off the Chaos.

But without the assembly's approval of these measures which you both have proposed, then I am afraid they will never come to pass. This will be an enormous gamble. So... If you wish to have things proceed smoothly, I suggest you get rid of those assembly members who are likely to pass this news to the media so that they can profit...."

Before Karl could even respond, Erich spoke with a stoic expression on his face. His words causing both S'varin and Karl to be shocked by them.

"Just give me a list of names and I will have them dead before the day is over... Don't worry, there will be no trace of our involvement, or yours for that matter. There may be suspicions that these men were taken out, but there will be no evidence to prove such claims..."

Karl stared with his mouth agape at Erich... He did not expect the man to just come outright and accept the proposal to assassinate foreign politicians. Whereas S'varin was not only astounded by Erich's boldness, but his claims of how efficient he could be.

Because his own hide was on the line, and that of his household, S'varin could not help but clarify with Erich if he had the means to do as he said.

"Are you certain that you are capable of achieving this? If anyone finds out what we are plotting, there will be dire consequences for all of us. This will become an enormous international issue!"

Erich simply smirked as he nodded his head and confirmed such a flawless assassination was indeed in his means.

"Perhaps if we were talking about assassinating a dignitary of the Alfheim Dominion, I would face some difficulty, but when it comes to a minor power like the Dvrakian Consortium, there is nobody in your entire civilization who I can't kill and get away without leaving a trace."

This comment caused S'varin to break out into laughter, not because he find Erich's words to be humorous, but rather he found Erich's boldness to be absolutely refreshing which he was quick to comment on.

"As expected of a soldier, bold in the face of mortal danger.... Perhaps your civilization is onto something, making all of its citizens soldiers so that they can have such tenacity, and fearlessness even in civilian or political life....

Very well, I will leave the matter to you..."

After saying this, S'varin whispered a list of names which Tia confirmed in real time to be corrupt politicians, rather than just political rivals. And once the name was complete Tia spoke into Erich's ear with a tone that would be absolutely frightening to anyone else.

"Master, I have already begun neutralizing the targets. Remaining time until all targets are deceased, approximately 3 hours and 23 minutes. I will notify you when the job is done!"

Erich silently responded to Tia within his own mind, thanking her for her efforts, while also praising her for her efficiency.

"Thanks Tia, I can always count on you!"

With this said, the Germanic Star-Empire, or should I say Tia had begun to covertly assassinate over two dozen politicians from the Dvrakian Assembly, all of which who would prove to be an obstacle in Erich's goals to not only save and annex the Dvrakian Consortium, but to prevent the Terminus War from ever reaching his own borders.

As for the deaths of these politicians, they were done in such a manner that it could not be accurately confirmed whether they were assassinated, or whether they had suffered from a freak accident. And though rumors would arise of the "dead 28", and how they were assassianted either by an ambitious Dvrakian Politician or a foreign adversary. No proof would ever surface of these so called "conspiracy theories."

After all, Tia's capabilities to project force had grown rapidly since she first gained control of the systems that existed between the Germanic Star-Empire's borders and that of the Dvrakian Consortium. To the point where she could now produce lifelike androids to replace living beings, making it all the easier to assassinate targets.