Southern Cross by Windstar

"We are getting closer."
Lortal smiled, as Thuva carefully kept her eyes downcast. Looking the Gallor-Tal in the eye was
an easy way to become a sacrificial dinner.
"I agree, Thuva, we are getting closer. There have been sensor platforms in the last three
systems. At long last we will place the last of them under the yoke."
"Yes, Lord."
The Gallor-Tal examined his subdued second in command critically. She had always been
subdued, and he detected a note of almost sadness in her voice. His optical implant finished
relaying the last of the warp gate formations, as the last few ships slid into formation. It was one
of the largest Bak'ra fleets ever assembled, and Lortal felt a surge of pride that he had been
chosen to lead it.
"You sound almost sad, Thuva."
She chose her words with infinite care. A slip here would as surely end her life as stepping into a
fusion reactor.
"I will miss the hunt, My Lord. Once the Tiri are finished, who else shall we have to conquer?"
"There will always be someone else, Thuva. Always."
----------------
"There they are, Angwar. Right on schedule."
The command deck of the Guardian-class ship, North Star was eerily silent. Every one of her
officers were watching the display screen that was set above the tactical holo tank. The horde of
small red dots in the tank showed them more information than the display screen could, but
somehow it seemed more real to see those ships on the display. It certainly seemed to mean more
than a red dot with an ID code attached to it.
"How many do you think there are, Ma'am?"
That was her helmsman, a young man from Georgia if she remembered correctly. This was his
first trip outside of the solar system, although the Tiri had recruited him long before they had
made their presence known.
"A tad over four thousand of them, Nick."
The command deck, if anything, grew quieter.
"More than we expected, Emie."