Star Force: Proving Ground (SF66) (11 page)

“
We won
,” he
said, speaking to the dead. “
We won
.”

Several hours later Bronsor made his return run across
the grasslands, having put the last bits of unfinished business to rest in his
memories as his mind turned to the future as the horizon in front of him was
filled with the spires of the ever growing Calavari city. He felt so small
compared to them and the grandiose landscape he was in that it was both
humbling and exhilarating. He was a part of something so vast and complicated
that he could never hope to understand it all, but he didn’t have to. Star
Force had earned his trust long ago and never given him cause to second guess
them, and his people had assimilated to their way enough that they were now
equally Star Force and also deserving of that trust.

That meant Bronsor could revel in all that they’d
accomplished together without having to be responsible for anything other than
his tiny role in all of it…and he knew that’s the way it worked for everyone
else, even the trailblazers, for right now they had no idea he was out here
running across the wilds getting in a workout. That workout was his
responsibility and totally off their radar. He held up his end, they’d hold up
theirs. That was how Star Force worked and downright thrived, not through
forcing or constricting people into a philosophy and supplanting their own
judgement with an exterior edict, but in trusting each person to figure things
out on their own and do what was needed without monitoring or nudging.

The population in general would always have losers, in
various forms, but so long as enough people held true to their personal
responsibilities they could carry the rest of the living baggage with ease.
Bronsor was part of an empire that thrived on freedom and trust, giving people
time to experiment and learn and fail, then grow stronger from it if they
chose. Some wouldn’t, some would, but those that did would add to their ranks,
for they would never grow old and the longer Star Force remained in existence
the greater the numbers of the responsible ones would grow and overshadow the
losers.

Those would eventually die off from their own
stupidity and laziness, but Bronsor and the others would remain indefinitely,
continuing to grow and learn from each other, further strengthening the empire
in ways that the Calavari had never before dreamed possible. Bronsor was
literally living a dream right now, after having fought his way through a very
long gauntlet to earn it.

And
him
being here now wasn’t
just for himself, but in memory of all those who had fallen along the way. Not
in some misplaced sense of debt, but in the understanding that what Star Force
was
had
to be protected. It was too
valuable, too sacred to allow to be damaged, let alone destroyed, and being here,
now, with all of the past memories fresh in mind, he realized more than ever
that the galaxy and life itself was more than just chaos and death. There was
good and light to be found amongst the darkness, and he had finally come to it.

For the sake of the fallen, he would protect Star
Force in every facet to his dying breath, including himself. He was part of
Star Force, and his own body was a battleground that only he could fight on.
Saving and strengthening others was important, but it would never be more
important than the battle within. He was a piece of Star Force territory, no
matter what planet he was on or what circumstances he found himself in.
Maintaining that piece was his sole responsibility, and he’d never compromise
it.

Others would eventually tire of the training and
fighting, ‘retiring’ to civilian life and gradually losing their
self-sufficiency, perhaps to wake up and realize their mistake before it was
too late, perhaps not. He would never go down that road, for it would be a
betrayal of who and what he was, in addition to being a betrayal of all those
who had fallen and not lived to see this golden age. He would not die for Star
Force, he would fight until he was dead for it, always striving to survive,
persist, and overcome…but never sacrifice.

For sacrifice was the same as surrendering, and was a
betrayal of all that Star Force was. They didn’t stand for something, they
were
something. Something real and
tangible, not an idea or belief. Star Force was the literal light in the
galaxy, from every building to warship, every uniform to cookie, and every
Scionate to Human. They were all Star Force, but each with their own path and
purpose, right down to the shoes that were protecting his feet as he ran across
the grasslands.

Bronsor wasn’t just fighting for the light, he was the
light. And as such he could affect great things within the galaxy…or be
consumed by the forces of darkness, whether they be an invading army or the
insidious corruption of apathy and laziness. This was real, not academic, and
for the first time he truly understood how closed off he had been after the
fall of the old Calavari empire, with the parts of him that truly cared closing
themselves off in virtual denial of the horrors around him.

But turn away from it as he may have, he was never out
of the game. He was always live, and had found a way through it all, which is
why this victory now felt visceral, for the threats were still out there. He
wasn’t safe, Star Force wasn’t safe, and they never would be. Life was a fight,
one battle to the next with no guarantees, and if the light of the galaxy was
going to persist it had to earn its way forward, one day, one mission at a
time. There would never be a finish line. Battles would be won, but the war
would never end.

So what was the point of it all? Bronsor now knew,
both from what he had learned and the perspective he had given his age and all
he had witnessed. The purpose of life was to be the one in the right, to be the
light and fight the darkness, in all its forms. Now that he was here and he
knew what the light truly was he felt fulfilled, but not
finished.
Never finished. He was complete but always with more work to do, more enemies
to fight, more workouts to complete.

Life was a
neverending
story, and the ultimate victory lay in being the light, moment to moment.

That is what Star Force was, and the transformative
cleansing that Varasiss had undergone stood as a testament to a vital fact that
Bronsor would never forget.

He
was
Star
Force.

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