Sign, You Can Sign Anything

The gin that Alexei Stukov offered was intensely aromatic and enticing. Considering the distance between Earth and the Koprulu Sector, such a drink would be hard to come by again.

As he savored the spicy liquor in his glass, Augustus naturally thought of its birthplace, Earth, humanity's ancient home. The Earth of today must be completely different from the one Augustus remembered; nations are history, and whether ancient cities and even place names will still exist 500 years from now remains an unknown.

Green Bar finally quieted down, and even the owner and bartender had disappeared. Augustus leisurely drank while repeatedly reviewing the peace treaty, finishing his drink on the third read.

Arcturus and Kerrigan stood on either side of Augustus. The former was scrutinizing Alexei Stukov with a hint of hostility, but more with curiosity, while the latter's gaze seemed to pierce right through the UED officer.

After a while, Kerrigan's brows furrowed. She wasn't sure if Alexei Stukov himself possessed Psionics or if he was using some kind of advanced anti- Psionics device. In any case, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't figure out his thoughts.

Alexei Stukov noticed their gazes but ignored them.

"Well, not bad, huh?" Alexei Stukov took out a cigarette and lighter from the pocket of his thick general's coat, and squinted at Augustus while lighting the cigarette.

"You drafted it?" Augustus chuckled.

"Part of it," Alexei Stukov didn't specify which part. "I was originally only in charge of technology-related research, not involved in military decision-making."

"In addition to the sectors mentioned in the agreement, I also need Adena, Sutur V, Vygoire," Augustus rattled off a list of planets and star systems, enough to connect the scattered Revolutionary Army territories.

The agreement did not include a map with the location names marked; Augustus recited the words entirely from memory, and he suspected that Alexei Stukov might not have known about these areas beforehand.

"Then Heimdall IV (the Norse god), Helios (the sun god), New Sydney, and its satellite Hermes (the god of commerce and theft)." He went on to name several more worlds. The first two were worlds near the main star of Tarsonis, while New Sydney was Edge World.

These colonies have relatively young histories, but their strength and development potential should not be underestimated.

Meanwhile, on the star map, although these main stars are located in another direction of Tarsonis, they are not far from the main star world currently controlled by the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet. From a strategic point of view, they are almost completely adjacent.

If Augustus smart enough, he should have chosen to leave a buffer zone between the Revolutionary Army and the UED-controlled area. But in reality, Augustus's move was merely a test of the UED's bottom line.

"You have quite the appetite." For a moment, Alexei Stukov fell silent, but Augustus simply placed his empty wine glass in front of him.

Alexei Stukov glanced at Augustus, poured Augustus a glass himself, and continued, "Those peripheral planets are not a problem, but Admiral DuGalle has already sent troops to Helios and Heimdall."

These two planets are second only to powerful host worlds like Brontes in importance. Helios boasts a massive naval port, home to the Confederacy's main shipyards and weapons laboratories. Heimdall, on the other hand, is renowned for its incredibly vast coastline, golden beaches, and stunningly blue ocean, beneath which lie nearly inexhaustible natural resources.

"In that case, I will not make any concessions to New Sydney or Hermes." Augustus finished his drink in a short while and placed the empty glass in front of Alexei Stukov once again.

New Sydney is a major arms manufacturing world, and like one of its satellites Hermes, it is a planet supported by thriving commerce and advanced technology, with tourism being its third most important pillar industry.

Hermes is even more famous than the planet it orbits. It doesn't attract tourists with its beautiful scenery, but rather with its enormous casinos, bustling commercial cities, mega-portals, and commendable "inclusivity" that have made it renowned throughout the many colonies of the Terran Confederacy.

In Hermes, as long as you have money, no matter what your identity was elsewhere in the Milky Way Galaxy —whether you were a ruthless serial killer or an upright sheriff—even if you weren't a person, you can change your identity and live a new life here.

Hermes is also a world where martial spirit prevails. Hermes prefers to resolve conflicts through pistol duels rather than legal means, even if the other party has simply dirtied his tie while drinking in a bar.

The Guild Wars inflicted immense damage on Hermes, but they quickly recovered. The First Total War did not reach Hermes, which allowed the world to preserve its strength considerably.

Since the Korhal uprising, New Sydney and Hermes had never clearly taken sides, but recently, both planets have sided with Augustus.

"Whatever, Admiral DuGalle doesn't intend to control any more planets." Alexei Stukov shrugged and simply handed the bottle of gin to Augustus: "This was originally a gift from the Admiral to you."

Augustus tell that Alexei Stukov had a very good relationship with his superior, and he was practically attributing all the good things to DuGalle: "This wine is really good."

Immediately afterwards, Augustus picked up a bottle and began to demonstrate his amazing drinking capacity; the Mengsk family members were all known for their exceptionally high alcohol tolerance.

In the Revolutionary Army, Augustus rarely drank alcohol, only taking a few sips at victory banquets. But when it came to truly precious wine, Augustus had little resistance.

"--Drink less." Arcturus suddenly coughed.

"That's right, you can drink it for me." Augustus handed Arcturus the bottle of wine, which was soon down to half-full.

"..." Arcturus accepted it without batting an eye.

"I can tell you enjoy drinking." Alexei Stukov suddenly pulled two clear bottles of liquor from his large pocket. "I have some personal stashes too. Don't worry, back in my hometown, it's just water diluted with alcohol."

"That son of a bitch DuGalle, he'd never guess I've been hiding a lot of good stuff." As he spoke, Alexei Stukov, who was carrying vodka, glanced at the UED captain beside him.

"He absolutely mustn't find out about this. You know what to do."

"This is good wine too." In Augustus's eyes, Alexei Stukov, who was handing him the wine, was just short of saying: Comrade, vodka.

"Is General Alexei Stukov a human?"

The United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet included not only Earthlings, but also many soldiers from other colonies.

"Yes," Alexei Stukov said matter-of-factly. "That's my homeland, that beautiful land that means mother to us. Every time I go to war, I always miss the green hills and clear waters of my hometown."

"The Earth is the undisputed homeland of all humankind," Augustus declared. "There is no essential difference between the Terrans and Earthlings today."

"No, in my opinion, it's quite different," Alexei Stukov replied.

Before long, Augustus and Alexei Stukov had been drinking quite a bit. Afterwards, they chatted even more happily, dividing the vast territory of the Terran Confederacy into numerous sections as easily as slicing a cake.

Having lost Tarsonis and most of the core worlds, the Terran Confederacy, which already lacked control over the Edge World, had little chance of making a comeback. Even the battered Confederacy government in exile was founded by surviving Old Families, and those in high positions in the Confederate Congress were either imprisoned by the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet or died in mass assassinations.

The Old Families, large and small, and the Old Earth nobles who supported them are still waiting for an opportunity to reclaim everything they have lost and restore the glory of their ancestors, but their enemies have become stronger than ever before.

After talking for a long time, Augustus and Alexei Stukov were generally satisfied with the divided sphere of influence, and their faces were flushed from drinking.

"Sign?" Alexei Stukov asked.

"Sign, you can sign," Augustus replied as readily as he did when he was drinking.

Augustus could guess Alexei Stukov's motive for being so eager to avoid fighting the Revolutionary Army.

Firstly, the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet inflicted countless casualties and incalculable economic losses during its attack on Tarsonis, making it difficult to consolidate its rule. If it could not win the hearts and minds of the people, it would be necessary to enforce strict decrees and send out sufficient troops to suppress the rebellion.

If DuGalle decides to fight the Revolutionary Army, the battle lines will inevitably be stretched, and the rear, lacking sufficient troops to suppress the rebellion, will be neither stable nor vulnerable to attack.

If Alexei Stukov had investigated Augustus, he should know that Augustus was skilled in guerrilla tactics. Abandoning his home world Korhal, to wage guerrilla warfare against the Confederacy, such a ruthless character would be more difficult to deal with than the powerful but internally corrupt Confederacy.

Secondly, right now, the main force of the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet has likely already left Tarsonis and set off for Char to capture the Zerg Overmind.

In fact, if they had set off immediately after capturing Tarsonis, they would certainly have arrived in Char by now.

Alexei Stukov had to conceal this intention; if he had enough troops, he was even willing to wage war on two fronts against Augustus to ensure the successful implementation of "Project Black Flag," which aimed to control the Zerg Overmind.

But now it seems he didn't.

But Alexei Stukov had an advantage he could exploit: the UED's information technology far surpassed that of the Terrans, and their Fleets could even bypass radar arrays. Most importantly, he was certain that Augustus couldn't possibly know about the top-secret Project Black Flag.

If they can delay for one to two months, or even less, the UED can take control of the Overmind through a surprise attack, at which point they will be able to completely control the entire Koprulu Sector.

As for Augustus, he actually had no desire to maintain peace with the UED. If he could confirm the presence of the UED Fleets in Char, he would immediately launch an attack on the poorly defended Tarsonis.

UED's key to victory was the Overmind and the Psi Disrupter, but DuGalle and Alexei Stukov believed that Augustus couldn't possibly know their plans.

Even so, Augustus patiently came to sign the treaty with Alexei Stukov, precisely because he was still unsure of the location of the UED's main force.

After that, regardless of whether Alexei Stukov had the right to decide on the treaty, he was ready to sign it.

Soon, the new contract was reprinted using the printer brought by Alexei Stukov —Earthlings' nanotechnology was incredibly advanced. Either this technology was considered extremely outdated by Earthlings, or they believed its technological barriers were so high that the Terrans could hardly imitate it.

"DuGalle has given me full authority to handle this matter." Alexei Stukov produced a letter of authorization from Marshal Gerard DuGalle of the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet as he signed the document.

This scene was completely recorded by the nearby stereoscopic camera equipment, and it is likely that this footage will soon be broadcast as news throughout the Koprulu Sector.

Augustus also signed the agreement, and the peace talks concluded very successfully, leaving both sides happy, except for the Terran Confederacy.

"I have one more question for you, Lieutenant General." After ordering Kerrigan to put the contract away, Augustus stopped Alexei Stukov, who was about to leave.

"I will talk about anything I know," Alexei Stukov said.

"I've heard that a terrible monster has appeared in Tarsonis, killing people and committing all sorts of atrocities throughout the city," Augustus asked Alexei Stukov. "I've seen pictures of them, and they look like both Protoss and Zerg, but they're neither."

"Those are monsters that escaped from the Terran Confederacy's genetic laboratory." Alexei Stukov didn't even need to think before he spoke; he blurted out, "My men have done everything in their power to protect the citizens of Tarsonis from attacks by these monsters."

"We have now completely destroyed such laboratories—you may not be aware of the United Earth Directorate's policy, but genetic experiments have always been abhorred by the Council."

"Shouldn't it only target human genes?" Augustus only showed a little curiosity.

Meanwhile, Augustus was still drinking and showed no signs of getting drunk. This hearty drinking style and exceptional capacity for alcohol impressed Alexei Stukov deeply.

"The Terran Confederacy has been conducting evil and twisted genetic experiments on humans. Such experiments are far beyond what ordinary people can endure, and there would be no way we could find volunteers." Alexei Stukov was probably telling the truth, but this matter actually had nothing to do with Hybrid. However, it was extremely misleading to someone who knew nothing about Hybrid.

Alexei Stukov was clearly uninterested in the topic and kept quiet, but after Augustus finished speaking, he immediately became very attentive.

"I heard that the Terran Confederacy is also conducting experiments with Psi Disrupter. I presume you seized their experimental results after taking down Tarsonis?" Augustus simply asked, "What, did they succeed?"

"Of course, I know this is confidential, and you are perfectly free not to answer me."

It's no secret that the Revolutionary Army has been using Psi Disrupter on a large scale. --Psi Disrupter can protect human colonies from the Zerg threat, which is more important than anything else. The people also know that this device can protect them. It is not only the key to the stability of society on the Revolutionary Army's planet, but also a guarantee to attract immigrants.

In this respect, the Confederacy's research progress has consistently lagged behind that of the Revolutionary Army.

"The Confederacy scientists have succeeded, but their equipment is nothing compared to yours, neither in terms of effectiveness nor scope," Alexei Stukov shook his head.

The Psi Disrupter posed a significant threat to the Zerg, as did the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet, which was preparing to control the Overmind and command the Swarm in battle. Now, this device had become a thorn in Alexei Stukov's side.

Alexei Stukov could not have known that Augustus had already ordered his scientists to research Psi Crusher.

Further research into the Cerebrate Alpha led to a significant leap forward in the Revolutionary Army's Zerg of the Zerg hive's mind and Psionics link. At Augustus's request, they began designing a completely new device.

The Psi Crusher can corrupt the Zerg's hive mind, triggering a devastating chain reaction that can cause the entire Swarm to collapse, severely damage, and ultimately kill them.

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