Naram Sin stood in line for the next game. When others saw who it was, they stepped aside for him out of respect.

  He was one of the most celebrated chess masters in the colony.

  Naram Sin loved reading chess books and loved playing. He had memorized many of the opening moves and then moves beyond. It had allowed him to gain a higher understanding of the game. These days, he could see countless moves ahead.

  The colonists believed that Valiants inherently saw farther than Earthlings, able to make deeper plans and follow through more exactly. Perhaps that was one reason chess had become such an obsession in the colony. It rewarded such “Valiant” attributes.

  Interestingly, Chief Marshal Assur didn’t play chess, although he claimed that if he did, he would be among the best masters.

  Now, Tiglath, the space marine group leader, looked up with delight as Naram Sin sat down across from him.

  “Aha! A rematch,” Tiglath said.

  The space marine set up the pieces as a crowd gathered. Many considered Tiglath one of the better players, one who could possibly defeat Naram Sin.

  The game started strong for Naram Sin because of his memorized openings. He also understood what to do when encountering certain counters against his moves.

  Soon, as watchers began to trickle away and others groaned, Naram Sin had Tiglath on the defensive.

  Six moves later, Naram Sin sat back and proclaimed, “I can defeat you in eleven moves.”

  “Come now,” Tiglath said, scowling. “Not even you can see that far ahead.”

  Naram Sin raised an eyebrow. At times, he could see even further, but he disliked bragging.

  “I don’t believe you,” Tiglath said, no doubt understanding the eyebrow raise for what it was.

  Seven moves later, Tiglath’s eyes darted back and forth as he studied the board. He reached up and tipped over his king. “You win,” he said. “I guess you can see that far ahead.”

  There were more groans, a few knowing smiles, and a small exchange of credits between some watchers. The Valiants hadn’t been gamblers before reaching the solar system. However, after watching many TV poker championships, Valiants began to experiment with gambling. Higher command frowned on the practice, although most considered it harmless. A few gamblers had become addicted and tried hard to hide that.

  “Take a walk with me,” Tiglath said as he rose from his seat.

  “Of course,” Naram Sin replied, also rising.

  They left the table, and others immediately took their vacated spots. The two began to walk along a boulevard that contained a small open canal of running water.

  “Your game was off,” Tiglath said. “For a moment, I thought I had a chance.”

  “You did.”

  “No,” Tiglath said, “be honest, I had no chance.”

  “I suppose not,” Naram Sin said.

  “What makes you so good at chess?”

  “The game is a matter of logic and foreseeing what is coming. It is what I do, a forecaster of what is going to be.”

  “Whereas what is my abiding trait?” Tiglath asked.

  “Too much aggression,” Naram Sin said with a laugh. “You are too easily lured into traps. It’s your greatest fault.”

  “At least I have style, wouldn’t you say?” Tiglath asked.

  “I would indeed.”

  This was something new for Naram Sin. He didn’t know if he was lying, or if it was using social oil that he had been lacking before. It might be why in the past he had so few friends. For the last six months, he had been attempting to utter these little lies, untruths, socialisms, as he liked to call them. People found him easier to take than before because of them.

  That meant he spent less time alone. In the past, he hardly cared, as that left him time to study his numbers and probabilities.

  “What is it?” Tiglath asked. “You look more troubled than ever.”

  “Excuse me a moment.” Naram Sin took out his device, clicked it on, hiding it in his huge hand. He scanned the general area. There was a couple behind them, but the two did not look like security personnel. Naram Sin did not spot any eavesdropping equipment. He clicked off the device and put it away.

  “What was that?” Tiglath asked, as they moved along a corridor between small housing blocks.

  “Something of my own devising,” Naram Sin said. “It can spot a spy stick or a parabolic microphone.”

  “How?” asked Tiglath.

  “It’s complicated.”

  Tiglath nodded as if that was how it should be. “I’m surprised you’re allowed to keep it.”

  Naram Sin looked closely at his friend. That comment was telling. “That is interesting. I think you’re correct. Surely, the authorities must know I have it and that I constantly check it.”

  “What’s that mean, check it?” asked Tiglath.

  “I run a diagnostic on it each night.” Naram Sin frowned and said quietly, “Why do they let me keep it?” He looked sharply at Tiglath. “What do you know?”

  “What can you mean by that?”

  Naram Sin shook his head. He towered over the bulkier, possibly stronger Valiant. As an elite space marine, Tiglath was a practiced combat specialist. The man honed his skills with the best.

  “What do you know?” Naram Sin asked a second time.

  Tiglath looked away, his eyes hooded. He thrust his hands in his pockets and hunched his shoulders.

  “I know we’re being watched,” the space marine said. “I know your device works against electronics, but not against a trained lip reader… if you’re looking the wrong way.”

  “Is that why you’re not looking at me?” Naram Sin asked.

  “Maybe…”

  “I’m trapped, aren’t I?”

  “Be careful what you say,” Tiglath replied.

  The gloom Naram Sin had been feeling increased. “You’re one of them. You report about what we’re saying, don’t you?”

  “Of course I report,” Tiglath said. “I’d be a fool if I didn’t. Do I tell them everything you say? Maybe I fail to report a few items, but I’m passing along the interesting things. That’s having an effect. Maybe not the one you want, but it is having an effect.”

  Naram Sin groaned. “Have I put you at risk?”

  “Me?” Tiglath asked, facing him as they walked with their heads lowered, having completed a circuit as the chess tables came into view again. “That’s what you’re worried about? You putting me at risk? No, no, my friend, I have put you at risk.”

  “But—”

  “Surely, you don’t think the Chief Marshal is a babe in the woods when it comes to intrigue. He is a master at intrigue. How do you think he became the Chief Marshal?”

  “I’ve read the ship annals,” Naram Sin said. “I never realized… I never put it together…” He stared at the sidewalk in disbelief. He thought he had been so careful.

  “This is because of your innocence,” Tiglath said. “It both protects you and ensures that you will never achieve your goals. You’re fantastic at chess. You may be the best player on the colony. I also think you can see further ahead than anyone.”

  Naram Sin shook his head.

  “But that’s not going to help you in the end. If you weren’t so useful to the Chief Marshal, he would…” Tiglath made a quick slicing motion with his thumb across his throat.

  “I gave him my findings,” Naram Sin said. “I didn’t give him the obvious solution, though.”

  “The obvious solution, you say. What are your findings? What did you discover?”

  “Are you sure you want to hear it?” Naram Sin asked.

  “Of course,” Tiglath said. “I’ll tell my handlers and they’ll pass it on to even more people. That way we disseminate the thought.”

  Naram Sin’s eyes widened as he studied his friend. “Is that your game? Is that why you’ve been doing this, so that more people learn the truth?”

  Tiglath grinned. “Tell me your so-called truth.”

  “I will,” Naram Sin said, wondering where to start. “You do realize that the probability we can conquer Earth is minimal?”

  “I know no such thing, but go on.”

  “Our chances of defeating the Earthlings are poor,” Naram Sin said. “However, suppose we did conquer Earth.”

  “Not suppose,” Tiglath said. “We will. It’s a foregone conclusion.”

  “You’re wrong about that,” Naram Sin said. “But even if you’re right—that we will conquer Earth—we will still lose in the end. Earth’s history shows that. The old nation state of China is an excellent example of what I’m suggesting.”

  “Who?”

  “Not who, but what, as China is a country,” Naram Sin said. “Many conquerors have ridden roughshod over the ancient civilization: Mongols, Turks, Koreans, and many others still. Yet every time foreign warriors conquered China, the Chinese and their splendid civilization and numbers swept the invader away—in time. The Mongols are a particularly interesting case study. They were vastly superior in a military sense and with small numbers. The Mongols were much like the Valiants. If the Valiants conquer Earth like the Mongols conquered China, in the end, China will conquer the Mongols and turn them into Chinese.”

  “You’re saying the Earthlings will turn Valiants into tiny weaklings like them?” Tiglath asked.

  “Precisely,” Naram Sin said. “Valiants and humans can mate. That means our paltry one hundred and seventy thousand will quickly drown in the teeming hordes of Earth. After ten generations, Valiants will hardly be a thought except for the historians. Genetically, we’ll all be Earthers because Valiant genes will sink in theirs. Thus, even if the Valiants win, we lose. There might be a facet of our culture or ways here and there. But a culture practices what it is comfortable doing. That means even Valiant customs will disappear over time. Perhaps only some of our technology will help Earthers advance. But a Valiant victory, given these numbers and given the long-term scheme of things, is impossible.”

  “Impossible ten generations from now?” Tiglath said slowly. He frowned and then brightened. “Who cares? We’ll long be dead by then.”

  “I care,” Naram Sin said.

  “Yeah, but no one else is like you. You’re the chess master. You see countless moves ahead. Others do not. They’ll be content with a victory in the here and now. Chief Marshal Assur won’t care, either. As for me, what do I care? What will my space marine comrades care? We will win and enjoy our victory, and that will be that.”

  “You can say that knowing your children will be swept aside by the Earthlings? Their culture and genes will swamp ours. There might be a few tall Earthmen many generations later, a few with a light tinge of blue. But over time, the Valiant race will disappear.”

  “The Mongols disappeared?” Tiglath asked.

  “Perhaps the Mongols haven’t disappeared completely,” Naram Sin said. “They had their own country they could flee to. But many historical Earth conquerors with smaller numbers have then been subsumed or drowned in the vast numbers of those they conquered. So you see, our war is all futility.”

  “No,” Tiglath said. “I don’t believe you. Look, the sun might explode. Your leg might fall off. Who’s to know what tomorrow brings? Today, you fight and do the best you can. Winning in the short term is all that matters.”

  “Don’t you understand?” asked Naram Sin. “Don’t you want our race, our people to survive? Don’t you want the names of Valiants to ring throughout the centuries?”

  “Sure, if it’s possible.”

  “That’s just it,” Naram Sin said. “We can win. There is a way to win in the long term. There is a way for us to turn this all around.”

  “What is it?” Tiglath asked, genuinely interested.

  Before Naram Sin could say, three hisses sounded as powerful knockout darts sank into his back.

  Tiglath whirled around.

  Naram Sin staggered, worked his mouth several times as he heard screams. From what seemed like far away, he collapsed in the public square and blacked out.

  -5-

  Chief Marshal Assur stepped into the medical chamber and saw Naram Sin strapped down on a cot with an IV drip attached to his arm.

  Assur glanced at the doctor, a tall, thin Valiant, much older than average. What was funny to Assur was that the man was three to four times younger than he was, and yet the doctor wasn’t as supple and spry.

  Assur never told anyone about his treatments, as that would destroy the myth of his uniqueness. He was the oldest one, blessed by the gods with an extended lifespan. Because of it, he ruled and made generational decisions. Assur had long pondered about the superiority of having one leader who stayed in power for hundreds of years over having many sequential rulers with their varied ideas and plans.

  Assur sighed. He was woolgathering too much again. It was the waiting for events to take place. He hated waiting. He wanted to be doing.

  A door opened, and Security Chief Sardu entered. Sardu was a bald, older, cranky individual, but he was thorough. His black uniform looked rumpled and there was a stain on his black cap.

  “How would you like it, sir?” Sardu asked in his gravelly voice.

  “In writing, of course,” Assur said.

  Sardu handed him a tablet.

  Assur snapped his fingers, demanding a chair.

  One of Sardu’s agents carried one in, setting it down.

  Assur sat down and began to read the tablet. It concerned the intelligence reports on Tiglath, Father Wolf, and the others Naram Sin had seen in the past week. Primarily, it was a written report on their conversations. In time, Assur set aside the tablet, closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

  After opening his eyes, Assur regarded the sleeping young giant. “You’re too honest, too good and far-seeing.”

  Assur realized that others in the colony pandered to his thinking and desires because they wanted power. He had a tight security net, having learned how to defend himself. He did this because he knew how he would attack if he were in someone else’s shoes. Assur had attacked like that in the past and won his power through such means.

  One problem troubled Assur. How could a person in his position retain his vigor? How did one remain alert after years of constant success? One way was to hear unpleasant truths in the proper doses and at the proper times. Naram Sin was a priceless asset in this regard. To simply slit the aide’s throat or shoot him, as he had done to his mother, would be a waste of a precious asset.

  However, Assur couldn’t afford to let the young man stir up dissidence throughout the colony. Everyone yearned for the great victory over the Earthers. They believed it would happen. They realized the initiative had passed from the Earthlings to the Valiants. Now that the third Enforcer was undergoing tests, and the Voyager Akkad had left Neptune over two years ago—

  Assur frowned as he calculated mentally. The Voyager would reach Saturn in another four months. By then, the Enforcers would have started their voyage to Earth’s Moon. Assur had great plans for the Voyager…

  He wondered about Naram Sin’s plans, and the correct way to deal with the hyper-intelligent, super-honest Valiant.

  Assur glanced at the doctor. “How soon will he be ready to speak to me?”

  “Do you want him under truth-serum?”

  “The exact opposite,” Assur said.

  “That will take several hours, Excellency.”

  “When he is ready, send him to my office.”

  “Of course, Excellency,” the doctor said with a bow.

  Assur departed the chamber and found Sardu limping after him.

  “If I may have a moment of your time, sir?” Sardu asked.

  Assur stopped and faced the Valiant. For some reason, he now recalled killing Security Chief Kaku. This was one of his weaknesses. He had to trust a few individuals. Sardu had good reasons to want him alive. Had anything changed in this regard?

  Assur had read about the Sword of Damocles. It was an Earth legend where a man told his kingly friend how lucky he was to be a ruler. The man said it once too often, however. So the king seated him at a sumptuous meal with a sword tied by a thread hanging point first over the man’s head. The thread could break at any moment, and the sword would plunge into the man’s head, killing him.

  “Enjoy yourself, Damocles,” the king said. “Eat and be merry.”

  “How can I do that with the sword hanging above me? It could kill me at any moment?”

  “That is what it means to be a ruler,” the king explained. “There is danger on every side. At any moment, the sword, knife, lance, or poison could end your life.”

  The Sword of Damocles became shorthand concerning the dangers of ruling. That danger intensified when one was a tyrant or a dictator.

  Assur nodded to Sardu.

  “Do you want any bugs or spy sticks on or near Naram Sin?”

  “Negative,” Assur said. “Escort him to my office and make sure nobody harms him. He must arrive with all his faculties intact.”

  “Forgetting what he has just gone through?” asked Sardu.

  “None of that,” Assur said. “I want to talk to him. I want to give him one more chance.”

  “Sir?” asked Sardu.

  Assur did not smile, shrug, or say anything more. He merely stared at the cranky Security Chief. Finally, “Are you asking me to give you my reasons?”

  “No, Excellency,” Sardu said hastily, bowing his head.

  “Is that it then?”

  “Yes, Excellency, thank you for listening to me.”

  Assur nodded and resumed his leave taking. It was time to prepare for Naram Sin, time to decide what to do with him. The aide could foresee the future better than any prognosticator he had ever known. Did that mean Naram Sin was too dangerous to keep alive?

  On all accounts, Assur must defeat the Earthlings so that he would become the great victor of the Valiants. The idea that over time the humans would sweep the Valiants in a DNA sea of retardery— No, he would never let that happen. Therefore, he needed a better invasion plan, one that would also let him win over the long term.