A Big Shot

"First of all, we must recognize that this was a glorious victory, an epic triumph, perhaps even the beginning of a legend. In the not-too-distant future, if you and those who come after you become an invincible force roaming the stars, this victory will surely be the beginning of a glorious history. You all have a chance to go down in history, too."

Yu Lian's words made the soldiers a little embarrassed. They weren't exactly ambitious about making history, but being praised like that still made them feel honored.

"Of course, I do have a few small, rather unpolished suggestions. In future battles, I hope you'll choose your moments to charge more carefully. If you can shoot them all dead, why go at them with an axe? Oh, Baka, I'm not having a go at you. I understand that's what the infantry manual teaches. But I need everyone to think about the purpose of a battle. This was a rout, not an annihilation. In fact, several hundred of the enemy had lizard mounts, so wiping them out wasn't realistic. That makes it all the more important to take care of yourselves. All right, in the end, the main thing is that we won and saved a thousand ordinary citizens. You've all lived up to your status as soldiers and done honor to the Blue Star Shield insignia on your sleeves!" Yu Lian clapped his hands, then rose amid everyone's admiring gazes and began assigning tasks.

"Uncle Karl, Doctor Banks, take some people down the mountain and meet up with the civilians. Bring them to the valley we found earlier. Yes, it's spacious and well hidden—there's room for everyone to take shelter. Baka, keep everyone orderly, but be mindful of how you handle things. Don't scare the children. Nurse... Miss, you go with them too. Make sure everyone stays calm."

"Youyou, Ruel, you two head to the camp. Yes, the one over by the valley. Set up a watch post in advance."

"Communications officer? We have a communications officer, right? Yes, you. Find a high spot and keep trying to reach Tulong on shortwave. Remember to use the military encrypted channel!"

"Ina, come with me to scout the enemy! Oh, right, don't forget to paint two stars on your tank."

"I'm not planning on retraining as a tank operator," the female sergeant replied.

Once everything had been arranged, Yu Lian and Ina—the first and second-in-command of the entire force, and its only two psychics—set off. He had no idea that a councilor was extremely displeased at not seeing him, the "supreme commander," right away. Even if he had known, he probably wouldn't have cared.

The psychics, clad in power armor, soon crossed a ridge and found a fairly secluded spot. From there, they could see Tulong's urban district in the distance, the enormous landing pads of the central spaceport, and the city's shield generators, which towered like skyscrapers.

But they could also see the densely packed Sand People encampments surrounding the outskirts of the city, layered upon one another like termite mounds.

They really did look like giant anthills. New Jade Gate was a dry, mountainous planet, with surface water covering less than thirty percent of its surface and little vegetation—though groundwater was plentiful. The Sand People, who had evolved into a civilized species in this environment, had developed a way to quickly glue mud and sand into nests. They also liked living surrounded by soil; it stirred memories of their evolutionary past.

Ina looked out and saw the Sand People's nests encircling three sides of Tulong Port. The fourth side faced an inland sea, leaving the city completely cut off. Their camp sprawled so far that it stretched beyond her field of vision.

She could even see many Sand People piling up tall mounds of earth inside their camp and working around them without pause. They were growing a native New Jade Gate crop called sand yam, a staple of the Sand People's diet. The tall cultivation mounds also bred large numbers of insects and earthworms, an important source of protein.

There were plenty of "ordinary" flat fields, too. Most of the high-yield crops from other planets had already sprouted, and only genetically modified crops could grow so quickly. Anyone who looked at this and still claimed the Sand People had no backers was a fool.

It was clear the Sand People were prepared for a long siege. Those enormous encampments were less like military camps than a gigantic monster made up of thousands upon thousands of Sand People settlements—absurd, bizarre, and twisted. At that scale, though, they were also awe-inspiring and terrifying.

"I thought the claim of over a million was just an exaggeration..." Ina was genuinely stunned.

To be precise, by three days later, on October 18, 829, the besieging force would number more than 1.8 million. In the age of cold weapons, no civilization or government had ever possessed the organizational capacity to muster such a force, but the Sand People had managed it. Partly, they had support from behind the scenes; partly, they had produced heroes of their own, born of the times.

Everyone who fought unyieldingly for their people's dignity and independence was a hero, and worthy of respect. It was just a shame they were ultimately enemies of humanity...

At that thought, Yu Lian's spirits sank. He let out a quiet sigh. "...Forget it. Against an enemy on this scale, there's nothing we can do right now. We can only see if we can contact Tulong. Let's head back."

"A wise decision," Ina agreed. She was the unit's tactical officer—brave, but not foolhardy.

In fact, there were ways to deal with them. It wouldn't matter if there were a million or ten times that many; a few minutes of orbital bombardment would do the job. But Tulong Port and the planet's orbit had no ships capable of orbital bombardment. The Commonwealth was, after all, a member of the Andromeda Galaxy Joint Development Treaty and the <Andromeda Galaxy Military Expansion Limitation Treaty>. In this new-continent-like galaxy, it had no powerful standing fleet.

In fact, the Commonwealth had only six destroyers and twelve assault ships in the entire Andromeda Galaxy, all meant to deal with pirates and smugglers. They were permanently stationed at Lushun No. 14 Starport, at least seven days' travel from Tulong.

Bombing from within the atmosphere was also possible. But the government wasn't made of money. Who would think to equip the security forces with low-altitude combat aircraft? Those outdated planes, easily replaced by orbital bombardment, were hardly manufactured anywhere anymore. If they did decide to equip the forces with them, they'd pay the price of antique works of art, not weapons!

Besides, who would they use them against? The native Sand People? Ahahahahaha!

Before a million-strong Sand People army had gathered, everyone must have laughed themselves silly like that.

Transport airships and drones could also carry out attacks, but the former were too clumsy, and the latter too fragile. More importantly, the Sand People had tanks now. Surely they had anti-aircraft weapons, too?

"With so few of us, we can't affect the bigger picture. We can only wait for an opportunity," Yu Lian said as he made his way back to their temporary camp.

After leaving the Enlighteners' ruins, they had crossed the mountains and found this valley in a hollow between them. Outside, sandstorms raged, but inside it was warm and humid, with springs and grassland. It was large enough, well concealed, and easy to defend, making it an ideal place to camp and rest.

He had barely stepped inside when Doctor Banks came over with a troubled look.

"Commander, um... how are things with the enemy?"

"We'll wait to hear from headquarters. We can't expect thirty exhausted stragglers like us to charge a million-strong army, can we?"

"W-well..." The doctor's face flushed red, then pale. After hesitating, he lowered his voice. "There's something I need to tell you. Please don't get angry..."

The doctor was interrupted by a voice that was just a little too enthusiastic and rather affected. "You must be Warrant Officer Yu Lian! Such a promising young man!"

Yu Lian turned toward the voice. The man before him was an Asian in his mid-forties, of average height, with a refined, easygoing air and an elegant bearing. His smile was a little forced, but he seemed friendly enough. All in all, he was the sort of middle-aged man people took to easily.

Well, he'd checked the man's face and didn't recognize him. But someone in the group behind him seemed vaguely familiar. That eye-catching bronze hair was impossible to miss.

Or perhaps it wasn't that he actually recognized him. Some inexplicable feeling just made the man seem familiar.

The bronze-haired man seemed to sense something. He turned around and began studying Yu Lian and Ina with interest.

Well, now he'd checked the man's face again. He looked much younger, but it was definitely that guy!

As he continued to observe the bronze-haired man discreetly, Yu Lian turned to the middle-aged man in front of him, who might have been someone important, and saluted properly. "Hello. Warrant Officer Yu Lian of the Commonwealth. May I ask who you are?"

For a moment, the middle-aged man looked displeased, as if to say, I'm famous, and you don't know who I am? But he quickly put on his genial smile again, took Yu Lian's hand, and shook it vigorously. "With an excellent officer like you here, we can rest easy."

"Councilor Jiang Yudong. He has a lot of influence in the colonial assembly," Doctor Banks whispered behind Yu Lian.

"Oh... A councilor, then. Everyone must have had quite a scare. Sorry I'm late." Yu Lian continued with the sort of diplomatic pleasantry that made one's teeth ache, while inwardly rolling his eyes.

Behind him, Ina was already rolling hers.

Come to think of it, it made sense for a colony that was practically under military rule to have an assembly. The aura of democracy and freedom had to matter more than practical concerns. After all, that was the foundation on which the Blue Star Commonwealth and the people of Earth were built!

"Not at all, not at all. Thanks to you, no one was hurt. We have your wisdom and bravery, and that of your comrades, to thank for it!" When it came to diplomatic pleasantries and bearing, the councilor was far more skilled than Yu Lian.

"But as you can see, there are so many elderly people, women, and children here. They're ordinary civilians who abandoned their homes and possessions to seek refuge in Tulong. They're exhausted and worried, and many are injured or ill. As their representative, I can't bear to see them exposed to the elements out here. As a soldier, I'm sure you feel the same way, don't you?"

"Uh, sorry, Councilor... Please, just say what you mean."

"What I mean is, do you have any way to escort us into the city?"