She sent a command to her glove, and it opened with a hiss. She upped her air production to increase the pressure in the suit, keeping a positive airflow and filtering out any foreign bodies. Reaching out, she pressed her thumb to the scanner and waited. After a three count, the familiar green line rolled down the pad, scanning her thumb. She closed the glove and stood back, waiting for whatever was about to happen to happen.
The panel on the side of the podium came to life, obviously going through a boot sequence, then went blank. They stood there waiting, but nothing happened.
Sara turned to look at the others. Boon shrugged, while Baxter looked around in the dark for any threats.
“Maybe it doesn’t have enough power?” Boon asked.
“Maybe…” Sara began, but was cut off by a rumbling, deep within the ship.
A shield popped up around them. Baxter was holding out a hand, powering it, and watching for danger. Sara thought the sound was familiar somehow. Then the rumbling subsided to a hum that was more felt than heard, and it hit her.
“Those are reactors coming online,” Sara said, cocking her head to the side to hear better. “It’s what the simulation at the Academy sounded like when we practiced emergency shutdown and restart procedures.”
“Maybe, but how will we—” Baxter was cut off when the lights came on.
The room, if you could call it that, filled with light as panels in the ceiling came to life, projecting the image of a blue sky with white fluffy clouds. Sara stumbled back a few steps as she took it all in.
The space was easily a kilometer long, and half as wide and tall. The artificial sky made the dead and dried patches of dirt look ominous in their desolation. There were structures dotting the landscape that looked like facilities for the old park, along with depressions that were obviously dried up ponds and lakes.
“This is incredible,” she said, spinning around to see it all. “How can this ship be this big?”
“It was designed as a colony ship, and only later re-engineered as a warship,” a friendly male voice said.
Sara, Baxter, and Boon all spun at once, each throwing up shields, so that there was a barrier three shields thick between them and the podium. Standing in the center of the podium was a man wearing a battlesuit and an open, hooded robe; he had a small, large-eared, cat sitting regally next him.
“Alant?” Sara asked, confusion raising her voice an octave.
The figure took a bow. “At your service, War Mage.”
Chapter 23
Grimms walked down the corridor, his face tight with concern. He had his hands clasped behind his back, and his shoulders were stiff as he mulled privately. Sir Reitus walked beside him, keeping quiet as Grimms swam through the muddy thoughts of his next action.
“Will the prince be amenable to answering questions?” Grimms asked the tall Elif suddenly, after a few minutes of walking in silence.
“Yes, he wants to help,” Sir Reitus said, then added, “but be aware that my prince is very young, despite his appearance. He is not yet twenty of your years old. In my people’s time, that is barely out of childhood.”
Grimms nodded. “Thank you for the warning. After the interview, I would like to talk with you again.”
“I am at your disposal, Colonel,” he said, bowing slightly as they walked.
Grimms had spoken with Cora earlier, in the ready room, once the Raven had escaped into warp. So far, they had not detected any Aether bursts to give away their location, or direction of travel. However, both he and Cora agreed that it was rather suspicious that the prince had been able to escape at all. The entire planet of Effrit, including the space above it, was crawling with Teifen at the time, and the yacht had no means of defense or evasion, beyond a few PDCs.
Cora decided she would not make her presence known to the prince, instead staying silent. That way she could monitor him and his guards to see if they let anything slip. Grimms planned on having Sir Reitus with him after the interview to be sure the prince stayed unaware of Cora’s monitoring.
They turned at the next corridor intersection, coming to the room they had set aside for the prince. Two Elif soldiers stood guard outside the door, both in battlesuits after having been told they must leave their Aetheric armor in the cargo bay. Grimms and Cora didn't want an armored force not under their control freely roaming their ship. Grimms had gone so far as to have a squad of his Marines, led by Specialist Gonders, fully kitted for battle and placed on standby, just in case.
The soldiers slapped their fists to their hearts, coming to attention. Sir Reitus saluted them back with a tap of his fist to his own heart. “We will see the prince. Stay out here and make sure we are not disturbed.”
“Yes, sir,” the one on the left said, his voice much more sing-song than Grimms would have guessed from his imposing stature.
The door slid open, revealing a small guest cabin, where the prince was pacing back and forth and vigorously tugging at his ear tip—a sure sign of nervousness. He spun to the door as Sir Reitus and Grimms stepped into the room.
The prince was short for an Elif, maybe only a few centimeters taller than Grimms’ stocky build. He had golden blonde hair that hung to his shoulders, and blue eyes that were red and puffy from crying. If Grimms were to guess, he would put the prince’s age at fifteen human years, though the white robes that hung open over a golden battlesuit made him look older.
When the prince saw who had entered, he rushed to embrace the head of his guard, wrapping his arms around Sir Reitus’s waist and pulling him in tight. A tear slipped from the youth, but his face was hidden before he could begin crying in earnest.
Grimms was taken aback at the gesture until he remembered that Elif tended to be much more communal, often embracing in place of a handshake. He tended to forget that the Elif he was closest to, Dr. Hess and Ambassador Foss, had studied human cultures extensively, and refrained from the traditional contact when in public.
“Reitus, I am glad to see you. This isolation is not to my liking,” the prince said, his face buried in the much larger Elif’s chest.
“My apologies, your Highness. In the heat of battle, I forgot to assign you companions. I will have Sareet and Fromin join you after we are done speaking with Colonel Grimms,” Sir Reitus said, stroking the prince’s hair in a familiar way.
The two were obviously close; at least, the guard acted close to his charge. Grimms could not tell if it was genuine, or simply part of protecting the prince.
Protection comes in many forms, the colonel considered. I need to become more familiar with the Elif’s culture, if we are to be working this closely with them.
The prince finally released Sir Reitus, and stood tall in as regal a pose he could muster, then faced Grimms. “I thank you, Colonel Grimms, for the assistance. I fear what could have happened to me if you were not close by.”
Grimms, not knowing what else to do, gave a half-bow. “It was no trouble, your Highness. We ended up dealing the Teifen a grand blow, so I consider the task well worth the effort.” He cringed inwardly, realizing his words could be taken badly, but pushed forward in hopes it would slide. “Your Highness, I have a few questions I’m hoping you can answer for me.”
The prince stepped back and sat on the edge of the bunk, the only seating surface in the cabin, and reached up to tug at his ear, but stopped himself. He wiped his eyes with the back of his sleeve instead, and put on a brave face. “Of course, Colonel. What can I answer for you?”
Grimms crossed his arms, his default posture when processing information. “We don't have any direct intel on the attack on Effrit. Can you tell me what happened, from your perspective?”
The prince swallowed, staring off into the distance for a few seconds before beginning. “I was with my magic tutor when the alarms went off. I didn't know what was happening until a servant came and told us that the Teifen had warped their entire fleet into the system, and that the Navy was under attack. He said he would take me to my ship, so I followed him
to my family’s dock.” He fell silent, as if considering saying more on the subject, then rushed on just as the pause became obvious. “Then Sir Reitus showed up with a bunch of the guard, and they took me onboard the Empori. We took off and were attacked once we were in orbit, but we were able to go to warp and escape. Then you found us,” he said, smiling sheepishly up at Grimms’ gruff expression.
He was lying about something, or at least leaving something out, Grimms was sure. “The servant that brought you to the Empori, is he here with you?”
The prince’s face flushed at the question. “No. He said he would stay behind to help protect the palace.”
Grimms scratched his beard, considering, then gave the prince a warm smile. “I thank you, your Highness. I hope your stay with us is not too troublesome. We should be arriving at Earth soon, and you will be delivered to your embassy there.”
The young Elif stood. “Thank you, Colonel. I shall let them know that you treated me kindly,” he said with a bow of his head.
Sir Reitus bowed at the waist, and Grimms followed suit, not knowing the proper etiquette but figuring a bow never hurt.
“I will send you companions soon, your Highness,” Sir Reitus promised, then he opened the door, allowing Grimms to exit first.
Back in the corridor, Grimms walked in silence while Sir Reitus made arrangements for the prince’s companions. The servant was key, but Grimms was having trouble guessing how. The problem was that he had no perspective of Elif politics.
“What can you tell me about the events?” Grimms asked Sir Reitus, when he had finished with his orders.
Sir Reitus took a breath. “I was alerted of the attack just before the palace alarms went off. We had a training exercise in the yard, so I was on the other side of the palace from the prince. We track all the royal family members with devices implanted in their wrists, and I could see that he was heading for the dock, so I grabbed the men on the practice field, and we rushed to meet him. When I got there, he was standing at the base of the yacht’s ramp, and a servant was rushing out through another door. The rest happened just like he said; we took some damage, but were able to escape with a well-timed warp.”
They came to the bridge, and Grimms led him to the ready room, closing the door behind them.
“Did you recognize the servant?” Grimms asked, pouring coffee for himself, and tea for the Elif.
Sir Reitus thanked him and took a sip of the tea before answering. “Now that you mention it, I did not. However, I was not paying that much attention to him, and there are a lot of servants in the palace. You think the servant may have placed the tracking device?”
Grimms blew out a breath. “Someone did. And by both your accounts, the prince was off-planet before the Teifen got into the palace.” He paused, figuring out how to best word his next question. “You’ll have to forgive my lack of knowledge on the subject, I mean no offense, but are there Elif that would help the Teifen take over Effrit?”
Sir Reitus’s eyes became hard. “Elif and Teifen relations are difficult to comprehend sometimes. The first thing you need to consider is that both empires are vast, covering several hundred star systems, in the case of the Elif, and several thousand in the case of the Teifen. When you have that many people, the edges of the empires begin to get…” He considered his words. “Blurry.”
“So the systems on the edge are less loyal?” Grimms asked to clarify.
“I suppose you could call it that, but I would argue that it’s more a question of survival than loyalty. On the edges, things don't come as easily; it’s a hard life out there. The Elif and Teifen empires share borders where star systems held by each side are close in proximity. Those systems will trade with one another for survival.”
Grimms raised an eyebrow. “They trade? As in, they have professional relationships with each other?”
“Yes. Despite the highly aggressive nature of the Teifen, they are still a people that need to survive, just like you or I. Most of their aggression is concentrated in the armed forces, or closer to the governors and emperor. For the most part, they are just people, trying to make it to the next day. I say all of this to make it clear that there is not a hard line between our people. It is possible that a Teifen sympathizer could have gained entrance to the palace.”
“Interesting,” Grimms said, sipping his coffee.
After a minute, Sir Reitus said, “You told the prince we were heading to Earth. It was my understanding that we were first stopping in a system to make sure the Teifen were not following us.”
“Yes. I was just letting him know that it wouldn't be long,” Grimms said, not wanting to reveal his and Cora’s plan to find out if there was a traitor onboard.
“Very well. If there is nothing else?” Sir Reitus said, standing to go.
Grimms glanced at the clock, noting there was still half an hour before they’d reach their destination. “Actually, if you wouldn't mind, I would like to hear more about this edge culture of Teifen and Elif.”
Sir Reitus sat back down. “Of course, Colonel.”
Chapter 24
“What is this?” Boon asked, waving a hand through Alant’s figure, making it warp and blur where her hand interfered.
Alant didn’t answer. In fact, he didn't seem to react to Boon in any way.
Sara stepped forward and saw that his eyes followed her. “What are you?”
“I am all that is left of Alant. A program, built to transfer knowledge to the next generation.” He waved a hand at Sara. “And here you are.”
“So, you’re an artificial intelligence?” Boon asked; again, Alant didn't answer.
Sara rolled her eyes for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. “I think it only responds to the one that activated it,” she said to the others.
“That is correct. This program will only recognize its user,” Alant confirmed, answering her unasked question.
“Okay, this isn’t going to be annoying,” Sara grumbled, but continued before he could make a comment. “Are you an artificial intelligence?” she asked, echoing Boon’s query.
“No. The Sentience Act of 638, following the Artificial War, forbade the creation of artificial sentience or programs that are able to act independently.”
Sara’s mouth dropped open. “Holy shit. The machines really did try to take over.”
“Correct. The Artificial War started when several super intelligences were created, and gained independence of manufacturing in the year 612. The—”
She cut him off with a hand gesture. “Stop. While that sounds like it will be incredibly interesting, we don't exactly have time for a history lesson right now.” She looked around at the piles of dirt and abandoned park buildings. “Can you refresh the air in the ship? It would be good to get out of these suits.”
“Of course,” Alant said, giving her a smile that creeped her out a little.
The air began to stir, starting as a soft breeze that quickly intensified. Dirt and dust was kicked up into swirling clouds, only to be sucked upward into unseen vents.
Sara stumbled back a step as a hard gust of wind hit her, knocking her off balance. “What the fuck are you doing?” she yelled over the howling wind.
“Refreshing the air to be breathable, as you asked,” Alant said, cocking his head to the side. “Do you wish me to stop?”
Sara checked on Boon, Baxter, and the familiars, but they seemed to be dealing with the winds without too much problem. “No it’s fine. How long will it take?”
The wind died as she asked, and returned to a soft breeze. “I am finished. The air will continue to recycle till the Exitium is shut down again. Would you like the rest of the systems brought back online?”
Sara checked her suit’s readout and saw that the air was now breathable. She blinked a few times to be sure her eyes were not tricking her. “How did you convert the air in here so quickly? There must be millions of tons of it to exchange.”
“The ship was designed to re-pressurize after a breach
in the shortest amount of time possible. Exchanging the air is part of the same process. The Exitium was designed to be efficient in times of trouble.”
Sara double-checked the readout on her suit, and decided to give it a try. She sent a mental command, and the faceplate opened with a hiss and slid to the top of her head. She took a few deep breaths; the air was crisp and clean, if not smelling a little of dust. She sent a second command, and the whole suit opened up, letting her step out. She stretched, reveling in the feeling of freedom.
Boon did the same, stepping out of her suit to stretch her arms above her head with a squeal. She lowered the shield bubble and let it fade when it touched the ground, freeing the familiars. Alister immediately jumped to Sara’s shoulder and rubbed his face on her cheek. She gave him a scratch under the chin.
“Aren’t you coming out, Baxter?” Boon asked, pushing her hips side to side, stretching them.
“No. One of us should stay suited, just in case,” he said, still checking the rest of the area for danger.
Sara chuckled to herself quietly, but he had a point, so she didn't give him any shit. Besides, she could feel his concern for her and Boon’s safety, and it warmed her heart to know he cared so much.
“Go ahead and get the rest of the systems online, Alant. While you’re doing that, maybe you can answer some questions,” Sara ventured, stepping up to the podium.
“That is why I am here; to answer your questions,” he said helpfully.
Sara considered her questions and ordered them in her mind. “First, how did this ship end up on Earth, and where did the humans that were already here come from?” Ever since she and Cora had discussed this ship, the fact that there were already humans here had intrigued her.
“We knew that the Elif were going to betray us to the Teifen—there was far too much pressure for them not to—so we prepared in stages. The first stage was to outfit four of the dreadnoughts for colonization. This ship and three others were selected. We selected four planets we knew were unknown to any of the other races, far from their spheres of influence. But before we could even re-outfit the ships, the Elif struck.
War Mage Chronicles- Part One Page 39