by Saxon Andrew
The room was silent, and Eddie saw Tag and Danielle staring at Janie. He stood up and announced, “But it needs to be understood that any of our warships sent to fight them cannot come back to the Realm. They will fight and either win or die in that universe where we attack them. Our ships cannot escape their pursuit.”
Rose looked at Admiral Thompson, “How many of our Primes have been modified with the Mag-Cannons?”
“Only ten-thousand, Your Majesty.”
Rose flinched at the honorific. “Your Majesty.”
Rose turned to the Bear Senior Commander. “All of our Primes have the new Mag-Cannons as well as a new system to keep them armed.”
Rose’s head went back, as Sprigly quickly interrupted, “What system are you talking about?”
“I think everyone knows that the Mag-Cannons fire an extremely dense dark matter projectile, right.” Sprigly nodded. “Well, the biggest liability of a warship involved in heavy fighting is running out of munitions. We took Admiral Taylor’s design for a tube that can be used to gather and compress dark matter. We put the tube on all of our warships and all it has to do to replenish its projectiles is to fly at faster-than-light speed through a field of dark matter. The dark matter will be compressed in the tube and then moved through to a cutting section that will cut the compressed dark matter into five-foot long sections and then feed them into the projectile feeder.”
“And you say all of your warships have been modified?” Rose asked.
“They have, Your Majesty.”
“Can you start modifying our Primes?”
“That’s why I came here; to offer our assistance in doing so.”
Rose turned to Marc, “Admiral, get with the Commander and set it up!” Rose turned to Eddie, “How long do we have before that probe completes scouting the universe close to us?”
“They don’t appear to be in a rush, Your Majesty. There is only one probe and it normally takes ten-probes six-months to scout a new universe for them to attack.”
“How long will it take them to complete the attack on the fourth-universe your Second mentioned?”
“About ten-months, Your Majesty.”
“That explains why they’ve not sent more probes,” James commented.
Rose looked around the room, “Alright, we know what we have to do. Admiral Higginson, I want our freighters and transports modified with the new Mag-Cannons and have them ready to join the attack in less than eight-months; use the Defense Facility to make it happen.”
“Will do.”
“Sprigly…”
“I’ll get a copy of the system the Bears are using, and we should be able to modify our own Primes, Your Majesty.”
“Can you do it in time?”
“You know how fast we work under pressure.”
“Alright, everyone, get moving and keep me informed on what’s going on.”
The meeting broke up and Rose rushed to Danielle, “Mom, we’ve found a way out of this; you don’t have to abdicate.”
Danielle looked up at Rose with red eyes, “And if we’re defeated fighting them, will you not attack them in the innocent universe before you defend the Realm?”
Rose blew out a breath, “I can’t promise that.”
“Then you will remain the Realm’s Queen.”
Rose put her arms around and Danielle and wept with her. Danielle held her and said quietly, “Never sell your soul out, my Daughter. Do the right thing no matter what.”
Tag held them in his arms and Rose looked at him, “You will command the psychic ships in the coming conflict.” Tag nodded and held them tighter.
• • •
Eddie and Janie left the conference room and Eddie looked at her, “That was a pretty darn good idea.”
“She told us to come up with a plan.”
“Why didn’t you discuss it with me before we arrived?”
Janie smiled slightly, “I developed it while sitting there.”
Eddie started laughing, “You are amazing. We need to get the Nightmare out into OA territory and make sure nothing happens that throws off the schedule.”
“The ship is ready, and I think the crew is itching to do something,” Janie replied.
Eddie nodded and pressed his communicator, “Nightmare, two to teleport.” A moment later, they arrived on the bridge.
“Sir, we should install those dark matter compression tubes before we leave.”
“Our first stop will be one of the Bear’s manufacturing facilities. They’re going to install the tube and then we’ll shove off.”
“How long will that take, Sir?’
“About two-days.”
“Do tell?”
“They have manufacturing down to a science. I discussed it with the commander before the meeting started and he set it up.”
“Now who’s keeping things secret?”
“You’re better at it than I am, Janie.” Eddie went to his command chair and Janie shrugged; he was right. He just didn’t know how right he was.
• • •
Tag looked at Danielle as they arrived on the Kosiev and went to their command chairs. Tag was silent, and Danielle saw how despondent he was, and his gloomy expression almost broke her heart. She reached over and took his hand. He raised his eyes to her and sighed heavily, “I’m so sorry.” Danielle smiled slightly, and his expression turned somber, “How can you smile at a time like this?”
Danielle’s blue eyes were bright as she squeezed his hand, “You see this as a bad thing?” she asked.
Tag’s face turned grim, “You’ve just abdicated the throne! Are you crazy?”
“Tag, what would happen if we somehow manage to win this war?”
Tag’s eyes narrowed, “What do you mean?”
“Wellllll…what other enemy does the Realm have to face if the OAs are removed?” Tag was silent as he focused on her question, “Perhaps the Red Civilization could become an issue.”
“Not if they’re brought into this conflict with us.”
“What?”
“Tag, if we fight…they will come.”
“You don’t know that!”
“If we fight…they will come and join us. You just have to go and persuade them it’s in their best interests to do it.”
“And just how am I going to do that?!”
“I’ve had Sprigly send one of the new Primes to our landing bay. We are going to deliver it to them and get them moving on modifying their warships.”
“But…”
“They don’t trust us, Tag. And by your earlier remark, we don’t trust them, either. It’s time to bridge that gap.”
“Danielle, you expected to abdicate the crown during that meeting!!”
“I did.”
“Why, for creation’s sake?”
“Tag, are you willing to spend the rest of our lives running the Realm?” Tag blinked. “Don’t tell me you like it! I know you don’t!”
“But…”
“You miss going out and having the freedom to roam the cosmos doing good. You’re a modern-day Robin Hood and being stuck on a throne will only cause you…and me…to lose interest in life. This is not our place anymore and it only took ruling the Realm for a few years to show me. It’s better to make the change now than afterwards.”
Tag’s expression was somber as he thought about what Danielle was saying. He turned his eyes to Danielle, “If we win this war, the Realm will panic at the thought of you and I leaving. If we win with Rose ruling the Realm, they will insist on her remaining on the throne.” Danielle tipped an imaginary hat. “But…what if we lose?”
“Then the Realm will cease to exist, and we’ll have to go out alone anyway, if we survive.”
“Danielle, we can’t defeat their motherships; how can we possibly win?”
“I’d rather be in the Kosiev fighting them, so I can leave and survive with my family, than be stuck on the throne and have to die with the Realm. My family comes first.”
“What about Rose?
”
“Tag, I’m not intending to lose this fight and the Realm stands a better chance if we are not tied down in the Realm. It’s the best strategic decision and you know it. If I have to forcibly teleport Rose and JP to the Kosiev before we run, I’ll do it and ignore her screams for a few hundred-years.”
“You were putting on an act to force them to accept Rose.”
Danielle lowered her eyes and had a sly expression, “Yes…and no. I meant what I said about saving that innocent universe, but I see that’s probably not possible due to our earlier decisions. I decided to make the best of a bad situation and set things up, so we would be free to do what must be done.”
“What things?”
“We are going to give the First Controller of the Red Civilization our newest technologies and you know that I would have had to run that by the Leadership Council if I were still Queen.”
Tag tilted his head and then straightened it up, “They would never agree to that.”
“But, it’s the right thing to do. If for no other reason than to give them the chance to survive if we lose this war. I’ve told you that I’m done with decisions that go against my sense of right and wrong. We are tools of creation to save life and the Reds deserve the opportunity to live. We are going to do it and hope they are as smart as I think they are.”
“You think they will join the fight.”
Danielle smiled, “Look inside, Tag. If we fight…they will come.”
Tag blew out a big sigh, “I really hope you’re right, Danielle.”
“Only one way to find out.” Danielle looked up, “Alex.”
“I know, take us to the First Controller’s planet.”
“We’ve got to do this now! We won’t be missed for a while. Everyone will think we left so Tag can console me. Let’s go!” The Kosiev disappeared from above Ross and no one wondered why it left.
• • •
The First Controller looked around the chamber and said, “I need a report on what we know about the status of the OAs.”
Suddenly, everyone in the chamber heard a thought, “I think I can handle that issue.”
The First Controller straightened up in his chair, “I’ve not heard from you for a long time.”
“A lot has been going on,” Tag replied.
“Then by all means educate me.”
“The OAs managed to find the coordinates of the universe where we destroyed the fleets from the Five-Empires that tried to attack us. They’ve been operating on the presumption that the empires died from a plague but are now learning that wasn’t true. They are planning an attack on that universe and will find us if we don’t do something about it.”
“What can you possibly do to stop them?” the First Controller inquired.
“We’ve been busy developing technology that can destroy their warships.”
“What about the giant OA warships?”
Tag paused, “We’re still working on that.”
“Then you can’t win.”
“At the moment, we’re just hoping to slow them down long enough to develop what we need to defeat their motherships.”
“Why did you come here to tell me this?”
“Because I’m going to give you the technology we’ve developed and hope you’ll use it to strengthen your ships.”
“Is that all?”
“You’re pretty smart. I hope you will join us in the attack.”
“And why would I even consider doing that?”
“Because you can’t move your populations fast enough to save them if we lose.”
“But you said we are below the critical threshold necessary for them to attack.”
“That was before they discovered that a plague didn’t kill the Five-Empires. They will logically deduce that the Five-Empires had some connection with the civilization that destroyed them and that it had to be your Empires that removed their ships. They will bring their fleets here to investigate and that will lead to them attacking you.”
The First Controller looked out at the gathering as he thought, “We could tell them we had nothing to do with it.”
“And when have the OAs ever listened to anyone? They will come directly here, and your Empires will be destroyed. I would think you would rather face them in another universe before that happened.”
“But no weapon can kill the OAs! Even if we kill their ships, we can’t prevent them dropping on a planet.”
“I’m giving you plans for a new weapon that will kill the OAs, along with a design for armor that would allow them to be used.”
“You’re putting a lot of trust in one of your former enemies.”
“You are not one of our former enemies. You stopped invading and destroying other universes before we communicated and we believe you have a different perspective on things than the other First Controller that attacked us. But even if you don’t, you deserve the right to live. If you don’t choose to fight with us, we’re still giving you our technology. We believe that all life is precious, even yours. You might call this a gift and we do hope you can survive their attack. I’m downloading all the blueprints of our technology and I’m leaving a small Warship above your planet for your scientists to examine and use as a template for modifying your warships.”
“Did I hear you correctly that you’re above this planet?” the First Controller asked.
“You did. We could have destroyed you if we chose but you were right when we first contacted you.”
“About what?”
“That perhaps we would work together to help each other. I’m also sending you the coordinates where we will begin our attack in nine-months. I wish you prosperity and long life.”
The Second-Controller looked up from his panel, “Supremacy, a small warship has just appeared in orbit directly above this chamber. I’ve also received a huge download from the one that was here.”
The First Controller leaned back in his chair as the room exploded with loud shouts. He ignored them and thought about what to do. He was terrified by the thought of confronting their Original Enemy and saw everyone in the chamber felt the same.
• • •
The Kosiev jumped away and Danielle turned to Tag, “Do you think we can get Atlas and the Captors to join us?”
“No, Danielle.”
“Why not?! Atlas suggested the Alfont and Captors would assist us.”
Tag sighed, “Danielle, I spoke to Atlas when he came and extended Jimmy and Lola’s lives. Atlas determined that his species and the Captors cannot defeat the Motherships and would only die in the effort. He promised that they would be working together to develop technology that would ultimately defeat them one day, but he says it could take quite a long time to develop.”
Danielle shook her head, “Quite a long time to Atlas could be hundreds-of-years.”
Tag shrugged, “Probably more like thousands-of-years.”
“Tag, they are the most powerful civilizations in creation.”
“They held that title until we ran into the OA’s, Danielle.”
“I’m really starting to feel frightened about this, Tag. Are we certain the new psychic-ship’s beams won’t penetrate the mothership’s force field.”
“Sprigly used one of the psychic-warships to fire at one of the new primes that use the new circular force field; the beam didn’t penetrate it. Our warships are more powerful than any warship we’ve ever constructed but our force fields are only a mile in diameter. The mothership’s force field is twelve-miles wide.”
“How far did the psychic beam penetrate?”
“Three-quarters of a mile.”
“And they have weapons that fire through their force field?” Danielle asked plaintively.
“No, Danielle, the force field is their weapon. According to Eddie, the motherships do not have any weapons or missile ports on their hulls. They ram whatever they wish to destroy, and their force field burns it out of existence.”
“What if we used a hundred-psychic-ships to all
fire at the same place on the mothership’s hull.”
Tag shrugged, “Well, first of all, getting close enough to do that would allow the mothership to turn and ram them. Moving further out to fire would weaken the beam and the mothership would just rotate the hull to prevent any beams making it through.”
“Are they faster than the psychic ships.”
“They don’t have to be, Danielle.” Danielle’s brow furrowed. “You saw how fast they can track a ship they’re pursuing, and they’ll teleport instantly to any ship that’s fleeing. They’ll arrive in front of it and ram it.”
“That’s going to be difficult to avoid,” Danielle said softly.
“We’re going to have to train the pilots of the psychic-ships to program their teleport systems to jump and immediately teleport again in a different direction. The teleports will have to be done over a long distance to give them time to maneuver.”
“We need to start training them.”
Tag nodded, “We’ll divide the two-hundred-psychic-ships into two groups. Jimmy and Lola will command one and we’ll take the others.”
“We might as well get started. Do you know if Jimmy has your talent to see the psychic shadows?”
“No, I don’t. We need to see about that immediately. I believe he can learn how to do it,” Tag answered.
“Then contact him and let’s get started.” Tag nodded and reached for his communicator.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Eddie stared at the monitor with a brooding expression. Janie, send the totals to my console.”
“Coming right up, Sir.”
“I think we’re past the honorifics by now, Janie. Call me Eddie.”
“Yes Sir.”
Eddie rolled his eyes and looked at his display as the numbers appeared. Thirty-thousand OA motherships and each of them had two-thousand-warships with them. The numbers were staggering, and Eddie knew this was just one of the OA fleets. Once the battle began…creation only knew how many more would be called in. “I’m headed back to the Defense Facility; I think we’ve done all we can here.” Janie glanced at him and nodded. “Can you see anything else we can accomplish before we leave?”