"These are definitely the same android type as the ones that the fleet encountered," Kadri said, bringing up a cross-section of the one that was taken aboard the War Forge after it was briefly activated. With a flick of her hand another cross section appeared. "It took a lot of raw scan data to put this second image together, but we got a complete picture of one of them. I'd say the original, the one aboard the War Forge, is about two hundred years old. The tech is still amazing, they're analysing it, everyone wants samples and scan time, but it's an older version of artificial neural tissue technology." She focused in on the heads of both of them, pointing to a thick strip of brain that was interconnected with a cybernetic casing. "Here there are actual wires, they're made of some kind of neural chain materials, so they're not like wires we use. No, they have built in buffering, they can sense electrical fields, feed data to the synthetic brain and store overflow. It's like they're super-wires, providing something like a sixth sense. That was two hundred years ago."
"The new version looks different, no wires," Jake said, looking at the scan of the new android from the nearest newcomer ship. The synthetic neural tissue looked more like half chewed gum that had been tied and twisted into waves and knots. It was submerged in a blue and green fluid inside a thick case.
Kadri looked over her shoulder at a dark-haired young Nafalli. He smacked his lips nervously, but pushed on to explain what they were looking at. "Admiral Valent," he started. "Yes, um, yes, the new brain is denser. You can see in its shape, but you'd expect that after two centuries. The liquid around it is conductive, we're still analysing the solution. It's like a neural fluid that makes connections and does everything those wires that weren't just wires in the older version did. So, there's extra processing power, memory, and all kinds of other stuff in that gel. By 'stuff' I mean, well, a lot, like a solution that protects the neural tissue from disease, nanowires that form and dissolve as they're needed, and we have to assume that the ability to feel different types of energy carried forward to this, more current model, because there's no way I'd leave a whole new sense behind after having it in a previous version. I mean, would you? Anyway, these things, these androids are fascinating. There are two sub-processor clusters under the synthetic tissue brain, our best theory is that they work in tandem, assisting with locomotion, sensation, even communicating with the entity inside. They could be supplementary computing power, but the way they're connected suggests more of a companion computer like our command and control units than a secondary processing system."
"So they would have a mental connection to their command and control systems," Jake said.
"Exactly. Like the nervous system interface that's in all our com-con units, only this can answer your questions, communicate and show you data at the speed of thought. I might be getting ahead of myself, here, but I don't think these people see reality the way we do. I believe they can see sensor data the way we see everything around us. These secondary processor nodes also connect to exterior ports, so there's every reason to believe that they connect to their computers directly."
"That does extend through their nervous system," Kadri said. "By touching an active surface with their finger, they could make a direct mental connection with a computer, or a whole ship, if the Ensign is right. I think he is."
"Right. For all the advancements, though, they still use a rather primitive set of servos, power unit and skin. They don't have much of a sense of smell, taste or touch as far as we can tell, all those synthetic systems are primitive. The nerve conductivity is at human speed, too, at least, away from the brain, which suggests a few things that I don't want to speculate on just yet," the Ensign said.
"Thank you, this is good, this is a lot of information," Jake said. "What about their ship?"
"Their weaponry isn't elegant, they use pulse cannons and a couple rapid fire rail guns, but their missile systems are brilliant. They're rapid fire, they can empty a bay of thirty missiles registering at three tons each in five seconds or less," Kadri said. "Each one of those missiles carries between three and ninety projectiles, depending on the load. Two of their ships could take the Merciless down. Their thruster technology is primitive, so they're not manoeuvrable, but their shields are tough, using three quarters of the energy they generate on board to maintain. It's a sloppy, outdated barrier type technology, but as long as their reactors are running we wouldn't get through with most of our weapons."
"Any other stand-out differences?" Jake asked.
"The antenna and sensor receptors are plates that run the length of the ship. They're impossible to pick out with the naked eye. There are thousands of armoured plates sensitive to all kinds of energy, they're probably part of their power generation system, too, we just haven't gotten enough data to determine that. There are a hundred fifty androids on each ship exactly, they move like humans and still use verbal speech. Everything else is speculation now, but we're getting more data every second, so we'll learn more."
"Wait, isn't this some kind of antenna?" Jake asked, pointing at the new and old versions of the androids. There was a conspicuous wire running down the necks of each out to their left shoulder under their skin.
"We're still confirming that," Kadri said. "But we suspect it is."
A high priority communication prompted Jake to look at his command and control unit, where he found Ayan, who was aboard the War Forge, opening a call to Quan, who was aboard the Clever Dream. It started, and Jake turned on privacy mode as he found a seat in the communications station. "Jake, I wanted you to listen in on this," Ayan said as Quan's face appeared opposite hers.
"I'm listening," Jake said.
"Quan, I tried talking to the Lorander leadership aboard the War Forge, but they shut up as soon as I showed them an image of the ships the Merciless is about to open communications with. That's when I put the call out and you signalled that you knew something about these people?"
"We don't have a name for them," Quan said. Deep lines of worry creased his face. Alice sat down behind him in the seat above in the Clever Dream's gathering space. "My people call them Raiders. They send expeditions into areas where there's some kind of technology or resource that they don't have and steal whatever they can, killing anything that gets in their way. We've been able to fight them off when we were prepared, but they're dedicated and fearless."
"So, they steal technology? That's what they're after?" Jake asked.
"Yes, and other items of value. Certain rare raw materials that are difficult to produce synthetically are particularly important to them. I know of one world that had whole continents stripped down to bedrock for Omirdom, a material that formed in swamp land there. I'm sure there's a lot I'm forgetting, but that example stands out. An aquatic species much like the Mergillians were wiped out completely for that resource," Quan said. "There's one thing that I believe informs everything else, though. The Raiders are not people. They are things. Like a mechanic uses a spanner, the people behind the Raiders use their androids. We've detected signs of live communication between Raider ships and androids extending into trans-dimensional space. We've cut that off, thinking that the Raiders would be unable to function without the live link, and it failed. I don't know how, exactly, but we learned that every Raider android has a whole mind uploaded into it. The Raiders start out as empty androids, then their faces and body shapes change to suit the mind that's uploaded. Whoever controls them are masters at copying a consciousness into a complex synthetic brain, and when a Raider is successful, their ship departs for a place we haven't seen. The theory is that the people, probably humans or human like, put the captured technologies and resources to work for them, but that's not important. The most important…"
"Admiral, something is detecting the signal from the quad drive," Liara said, quietly alarmed. "They're tracking the communication back to us."
"…thing to know is that Raiders don't care if they die. That's what makes them dangerous," Quan finished in a rush.
Jake disconnected from the
call and looked to Agameg. "Reset all quad drives immediately."
Agameg nodded at Finn, who was beside him. "Resetting now," Finn replied.
"Thank you," Jake said to Liara. "Who was tracing that signal?"
"The new ships, that one in particular, number three," she pointed at the tactical display at the front of the bridge. "They probably knew where we were for a few seconds."
Ashley was already piloting the Merciless out of the area using a jagged, difficult to predict course. Jake made his way to the command seating and pushed Agameg back down in the captain's seat when he started to stand. He sat to his left instead. "I need you to prepare our simplest drone," Jake said. "I'll record a message into it, we'll launch it then see what happens when it broadcasts from a distance."
Agameg nodded at the tactical station, and two crewmembers got to work on it right away. He turned back to Jake. "Admiral, I'd like to mention that we are operating under the assumption that our cloaking systems are working. That may not be the case. Scanning rays have swept through our location five times. Our readings indicate that our cloaking systems worked, but…"
"Operate however you see fit," Jake said in a whisper. "If you think we've been detected, then act accordingly."
"We're ready for you to record your message," Liara said.
Jake stood and took his place in the middle of the bridge. "Record holographic, video and audio data isolating me. Do not include visual or audio background information." A holographic pointer appeared in front of him, focused on his face. It turned red. "Greetings from Haven Fleet. I am Admiral Jacob Valent and would like to open a dialogue. We are not the dominant power in the area and will be leaving soon, but we are in search of allies. With that in mind, I'd like to discuss a trade or cultural alliance. We are at war with the Order of Eden, Regent Galactic and their subsidiaries. You can contact us using the drone I've sent towards Nuaji, the planet your ships are currently orbiting." He nodded, and Liara deactivated the recording. "Good, send that to the drone, make sure it's not carrying any other important information, and launch."
"Yes, Sir," Agameg said. "That was carried out exactly as regulations suggest."
Jake sat down beside Agameg. "I haven't had the most reliable track record with diplomacy. May as well follow the rulebook, see how that works."
"Ready to launch the drone," Lieutenant Commander Huun announced from the tactical station.
"When the drone is launched, we will retreat to the asteroid I've selected," Agameg said. "Do it your way, Ashley."
"Yes, Captain," she replied. "Course plotted and ready."
"Fire the drone, Lieutenant Commander," Agameg said. "Be ready to set all shields to a high cycle rate, just in case."
The drone launched and the Merciless took a drastic turn away, rotating so its narrowest edge was facing the newcomer ships. Intense energy beams focused on the drone, then waved around it, looking for the origin point. "Scanning beams," Kadri said. "More intense than anything I've ever seen. One just passed over us."
The beam tried to keep up with the Merciless, trying to predict its trajectory, but failed as Ashley took them into a jagged turn upwards. "That beam detected something," Jake said. "Enough so they knew to keep looking, at least."
"The drone is playing your message," Liara said.
"Both the newcomer ships that were collecting nanobots on the planet surface are leaving, making best speed off Nuaji towards the drone, towards us," Huun said. "Generally."
"Ship Four has launched a missile with a grabber on the end towards the drone," Kadri said.
"Impact in seven seconds," Huun said.
"Is there any tech aboard that drone that's better than what they have?" Jake asked.
"Micro-servos and the battery," Kadri said, everyone at the sciences station nodding.
"Would they have gotten everything they needed from a scan to learn about those technologies?" Agameg asked.
"No, the drones have shielding," Kadri said.
"Activate its self-destruct," Jake ordered.
Huun pressed three sections of his control panel and the drone exploded an instant before the missile grappled with it. "Nothing remains."
Three of the newcomer ships opened missile bays and fired a barrage of barrel shaped projectiles. They accelerated at an incredible pace. "They're destroying the asteroid," Ashley said. "They're getting rid of our cover."
"Time to go," Jake said.
"I agree, Admiral," Agameg said, turning to the helm. "Ashley, open a wormhole that will take us out of the solar system and begin plotting a trans-dimensional course back over the Order of Eden territorial line."
"Aye," Ashley replied, two members of the sciences team joined her navigator so they could assist with the calculations as the Merciless turned away from the asteroid. The first of the newcomer missiles activated, beginning a chain of nuclear explosions that pummelled the asteroid, enveloping it in light.
"These are definitely the Raiders Quan was talking about," Jake said.
"Admiral, I could use you at tactical, if you would do us the honour," Agameg said in a hurry.
Jake stood and took Huun's place at his station. "Orders?"
"Those three Raider ships are coming. As I suspected, they're using the high energy pulses from the nuclear explosions to find us," Agameg said.
There was less then point three percent damage to the shields, Jake noted, but that only meant that they were close enough to catch some of the blast. It might have been enough for the Raider ships to detect them. "How much force do you want me to use if they open fire on us?"
"Admiral's discretion," Agameg said. "How are you doing on that wormhole, Ashley?"
"We need a few more seconds, there's a lot of energy dissipating out there," she replied.
The three Raider ships launched ten torpedoes each. They accelerated quickly. Jake saw the scan results and shook his head. Each of them had hundreds of small missiles made to send millions of grains of iron in all directions when they exploded. It was the simplest system he'd ever seen to detect cloaking devices. If they went off and the grains were energized, they would definitely be revealed. "They're going to detect us," Jake said. "They have a system." The torpedoes were slowly closing, using solid fuel they had an advantage.
"Are you certain? We may only need a minute," Agameg said, looking at the trajectory of the Merciless as it accelerated away from Nuaji. The torpedoes were going to miss, but not by much.
"I'm sure," Jake said.
"Then we will be detected on our terms," Agameg said. "Ashley, we are opening a trans-dimensional portal as soon as possible, abandoning the step of using a wormhole. I believe the risk of them learning from our quad drive system is lesser than the risk we take by prolonging our stay."
"Yes, Sir, we'll be out of here in twenty seconds," Ashley replied.
"Admiral, fire at will at the torpedoes. If the ships fire on us again, then use whatever force you deem necessary to ensure our escape."
Jake ordered the heavy railgun turrets along the bottom of the hull to aim at the Raider ships. Locking the beam weapons on the torpedoes was automatic, as simple as selecting his targets then setting the power to full, enough to melt through the hull of an Order of Eden destroyer in less than a second, before activating them. Lines of perfect white light were drawn between the beam emitters and the torpedoes as the Merciless's precision weapons obliterated them.
All three Raider ships opened up with pulse weapons and cannons. Gravitational shielding slowed the projectiles down while acting as a lens, reducing the effectiveness of the energy weapons. The barrier shields took the rest of the damage, some sections at the rear were battered down to eighty-four percent before Finn increased the power.
The Merciless' heavy railguns opened up, twin barrels rapid firing tons of energized metal at the lead Raider ship first. The Raider's shields held for several seconds, and Jake watched as the Merciless' rear shields started to fail, falling from eighty-four to seventy-seven, then to
seventy, and finally sixty-three before he drew energy from the reserve capacitors, bringing them back up to eighty-five.
The lead Raider ship's shields continued to stop the barrage of railgun fire, and Jake pointed the beam weapons at it. They were at full charge.
"Tactical, report?" Agameg asked.
"Their shielding is holding," Jake said. "But I have a theory. The bubble is about to pop." He activated the beam weapons, focusing in on a pinpoint. Dense metal battered the Raider ship's shields, a steady pummelling that even Frost would be proud of from the ship's heavy lower guns. The beam weapons finished firing, the capacitors down ten percent.
"Jake?" Agameg asked, worried as the Merciless' rear shield took a sudden dip below seventy percent.
All at once the lead Raider ship's shields disappeared, and its thick but bare hull was hammered by tons of high speed metal. The vessel turned away, the ships flanking it moved into the path of the Merciless' firepower as they followed. "Their shields are tied directly into a reactor," Jake said. "They don't lose integrity until they burn out completely."
The Merciless slipped into trans-dimensional space and was hundreds of thousands of kilometres away seconds later. "I'm happy you were right," Agameg said, his green eyes wide. "Huun, did you learn anything?"
"Yes," the Nafalli Tactical Officer said. "Thank you, Admiral."
"There's a more important lesson here," Jake said as he stepped aside and gestured for Lieutenant Commander Huun to take his place. "That was how much firepower the Raiders use when they want to learn about something. They were going light on us, trying to stop us from leaving." He pointed to the segments of their rear shielding that took the most damage. "Every shot they took was aimed at our main thrusters. If they wanted to kill us they would have had a chance."
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