The Great Betrayal by Michael G. Thomas Read Free Book Online Page A

occasion.
    “Wait a minute, how the hell was this decision made? Unable to reproduce, I just don’t believe that.”
    General Daniels seemed to accept this point quite quickly, however.
    “It makes sense though. Think about it. These armored machines must be to protect their ancient bodies, so they build the armored cocoons that turn them into something like demigods. If you lived pretty much forever, would you want more people to share what you have? Soldiers are usually the youngest. What if this guy is the same?”
    He pointed at the image on the display.
    “Hmm, that is a rather tenuous link. What is it based on?” asked a dubious sounding Admiral Lewis.
    Anderson tapped the button, and the video feed zoomed in much closer to show the large head of the thing. All three stared at it with a mixture of fascination and horror. One similar creature had led the forces of Echidna back on Hyperion, but at the time, it was assumed the thing was some type of massive war machine.
    “It is through a mixture of interrogation and biological study. According to the captured soldier, it considers its own race some sort of master race. They learned to control life before they met the other races.”
    Admiral Lewis lowered his head to his hand.
    “If they can control life, why not simply create more? They can always use cloning. It’s not like they can’t do that. We are somewhat familiar with Biomechs and their creations. Do you remember the AI Hubs that took control of our ships?”
    Anderson seemed to like what he was hearing. The last thing he wanted was senior officers that simply carried out orders. He also knew that both of them would do whatever was necessary to protect the Alliance.
    “Yes, that is all very true. But if you remember, the genetic material of the Biomechs that we fought and the AI hubs was proven to be new, some of it a mere few years old. It was either harvested or created from scratch. Neither the soldier that tried to arrive at Hyperion, or this one were like that.”
    He pulled out his secpad and ran his fingers along the front. It was a simple gesture and sent a secure digital packet to both of them.
    “Look at that.”
    General Daniels had his device out first and was past the first page before his Navy opposite number had done the same. It was a modest report that had been assembled based on information gathered on Helios over the last three months. It included pictures of their paintings, sculptures, and artworks along with audio testimonials. Admiral Anderson only gave them a minute to read it before interrupting them.
    “I’ll let you read that in your own time. You’ll note the title is the Desperation War. It is the name the Helions and their allies used in the great battles against the Biomechs. You’ll note the reports describe all manner of Biomech creatures and machines, yet the soldiers like this one appear infrequently. In fact, there is a song that the Helions sing, one about the great battle of Pylos.”
    General Daniels face lit up.
    “Yes, I heard this when I visited the capital. It is about the surrender of a Biomech garrison, if I’m not mistaken.”
    “Indeed,” said Anderson.
    He reached forward and tapped a button. A recording of young Helions filled the room, and the three of them listened in silence, trying to imagine what was being said. It was short and over in less than a minute. Anderson leaned toward them as though revealing a great secret.
    “The song is about the fall of the T’Kari colony called Pylos by the Biomechs. A combined Helion and T’Kari fleet broke through and prepared an atomic bombardment for the world. According to legend, there were over a million Biomechs and six of the Biomech soldiers, this leadership caste. They surrendered the world and withdrew rather than lose six soldiers.”
    “I think I’d be more worried about losing a million Biomechs to be honest,” said Admiral Lewis with barely concealed sarcasm.
    Anderson nodded as though he