by David Buck
The room fell silent as Admiral Baredio now re-entered the room and strode boldly to the head of the table, before he addressed the assembled vassal races.
‘Admiral, thank you for the vote of confidence in myself and my fleet, and I assure you we will not come short in your expectations. I also think the Cephrit intelligence about the Maveen is not correct.’
The Barus Admiral stopped and gave a formal bow of acknowledgement towards the others seated at the table. The other races gave short nods of response and waited for the admiral to speak again. Admiral Baredio fixed long glances at both the Cephrit Admiral and the Deltas Vass envoy before he again spoke.
‘For the record, I agree with the earlier tactical evaluations of the Tilmud we discussed before I left the room. The Cephrit forces are over extended in this part of their range and the Tilmud admiral seeks to take advantage.’
The Barus admiral stopped speaking for several seconds as he used a remote control to highlight areas of concern in the hologram of Cephrit star systems.
‘Now I have no authorization to protect Cephrit star bases, whereas the Deltas Vass are entitled to offer protection to star bases where they have merchant interests, and this is of course all the star bases on the hologram.’
Polite laughter and chirrs of amusement issued momentarily from those assembled in the room. The Deltas Vass store keeper was a very common occurrence throughout known space, and they were usually allowed to trade without hindrance, even if other vassal races were embroiled in a full scale war.
Admiral Baredio gave a tight grin and then spoke again.
‘We will gather up the nearby Barus research fleet when we leave in three days and they can be part of our fleet when we reach Earth. We obviously hope to resolve this matter peacefully and we will later return to this former colony world.’
Baredio strode from the meeting room after another formal bow. As he left he considered the news he had received earlier, and he promised himself that he would have a very direct discussion with Omerio if he was with the research fleet.
***
Ian Ridge held tightly onto the handset as he spoke with other leaders in yet another phone conference. The UK prime minister was speaking with the US president and the Chinese premier in turn. Ian paced the smaller penthouse room in the Geraldton hotel and sought to both retain calm and not interrupt the other speakers. The Chinese premier was adamant that no agreement would be made unless he could hold lengthy deliberations with his co-rulers, and that no allowances would be made for an alien timeframe.
The UK prime minister and James Whiting, the US president were in agreement, they would agree to the Maveen deal and had already specified marshalling points, which Ian copied down on his notepad. The European leaders were wavering in support of the deal, as were the Russians and Indians, and Ian knew that something would have to give to allow consensus. After the Russian premier expressed yet further concerns and hedges, Ian spotted the opportunity he had been seeking with the benefit of his foreign affairs background.
‘I understand your concerns premier Bulyanko, we still know so little of the Traders let alone the Maveen. However the deal does seem an excellent way to gain a second world to use as a sanctuary for humanity. The timescale is very tight indeed and you would lose nothing by specifying your own marshalling points. Also we should attach two or three points of our own to the deal.’
The phone line remained silent for several seconds before the UK prime minister spoke again.
‘Ian, you obviously have some ideas of the points we should consider adding to the deal. I for one would like a non aggression pact signed with both the Maveen and the Traders to come into effect after they leave our world. Now what else should we be adding to our requirements of the deal?’
A clamor erupted down the phone line as several world leaders tried to speak at once. For several minutes the leaders discussed the points they would like to add.
Ian thought it most interesting that the Chinese premier warmed to the non aggression pact immediately, but he considered this in light of Chinese policies over the last one hundred years and found no surprises. Ian then seized on a point that both the Chinese premier and the Indian prime minister had agreed to support.
‘As there is a residual concern about a second epidemic we could mitigate the risk by sending through the mission team to the new world. We will need some of the mission team to remain here as we need them to explain what they have learnt from the Traders. We could use a larger island on the Abrolhos group as a quarantine station for the people that remain behind.’
James Whiting readily supported and then expanded on Ian’s comment.
‘The mission team that leaves could form the beginnings of the leadership team that the colonists would need on the new world. I would also support that point and recommend that it be agreed to by all of us.’
Several acknowledgements came down the phone line and the UK prime minister now spoke to Ian Ridge directly.
‘Ian, can you meet with these Traders as the senior Earth representative? You will have to go into quarantine afterwards with the mission team members that remain behind.’
Ian considered the request and had no problem with his answer.
‘Well I am already preparing to go out there shortly, so the answer is yes. Now I think that as a final point we should just add a generic request for unspecified aid in the future as the first point does not commit either the Maveen or the Traders to actually assist us. ‘
Premier Bulyanko picked up on the comment and he ventured the reasons for his own agreement.
‘Prime Minister Ridge, I see your point and it is a valid one as we need to open the door to allied status with these two alien races. Now I would like to add additional points but I feel your generic request would cover them in the future. Basically we could spend the rest of the day adding points for every eventually and we cannot go down this path in the present circumstances.’
The US president now took charge of the discussion as the leaders of China and India gave their cautious agreement to the three new points.
‘Ian, please convey the personal assurances of all the leaders in this meeting that there will be no attacks by human forces on either the Maveen or the Traders. Also specify the three points but accept the Maveen deal regardless.’
Several mutters of concern came down the line, but James Whiting ignored them before continuing again.
‘We do not have the luxury of protracted discussions on this matter and I see no reason why the alien races would not provide these assurances. I suggest we all issue a joint media release after Ian advises that the Maveen deal is in place.’
The same voices acknowledged the impeccable logic of the US president and now the UK prime minister spoke again.
‘We each need to contact our neighbors and advise them in confidence of this deal. For example with Ian that is Indonesia, Malaysia and New Zealand. For James that is Canada, Mexico and the South American nations. I will speak to the Middle East countries with the assistance of the Indian Prime Minister, plus Japan and Korea. And the Russian and Chinese leaders can talk to other countries including Vietnam, Ukraine and Poland.’
The phone conference ended shortly afterwards and Ian spent another two hours making phone calls to the leaders in neighboring countries. He checked with his communications manager that a suitable aircraft was arranged for first light and then proceeded to get a few hours sleep. As Ian closed his tired eyes, he admitted to himself that he did feel a real sense of anticipation towards meeting the aliens.
***
Omerio cautiously piloted his scout ship in pursuit of the remaining Tilmud frigate. The strange alien ship had rapidly closed the frigate and made series of strafing runs to keep the pressure on the fleeing ship. Omerio looked at the course of the frigate with real concern. It was quite possible that the frigate could reach Tilmud space several systems away and summon reinforcements before he repaired his ship. He considered the remaining pr
obes in his cargo hold and realized that one of the larger probes was possibly helpful in this situation.
Omerio again raised the unknown ship in a tight beam transmission and advised on what he was considering. In moments he had agreement and he rapidly made the required remote changes to his last message probe before launching the probe at the Tilmud frigate. The strange alien ship immediately broke off another strafing run and attempted to place real distance between itself and the Tilmud ship.
The message probe raced away from his ship and cloaked before it could be detected by the frigate. The probe rapidly closed the frigate and hovered a close distance behind the ship for several seconds as it began to enter hyper space. Within milliseconds the probe had fired its own hyper drive engine and then taken a course directly through the space still occupied by the Tilmud frigate. The probe dropped out of phase from hyper space directly inside the fusion generator for the frigate, and resulting explosion blew small fragments of the frigate directly into the forming hyper space window. Omerio gave a sigh of relief before opening a communications line to talk to the strange alien ship.
‘Thank you for your assistance. Please know that I mean you no harm and value you assistance. So what race are you?’
There was a moment's silence and Omerio was starting to consider the possibility that alien could turn on him now. However the strangely accented Barus voice again spoke through his speakers.
‘My name is Altarebe and you must not make a recording of my presence, as it will surely lead to the Vorinne killing you. I am an Ancient and I am the ship you see in front of you. I have been seeking others of my kind for many centuries via mutual friends. I wish only to repair my cloak and leave peacefully.’
Omerio was stunned by what he had just heard and it showed in his reply to the ancient.
‘But your race is supposed to be extinct, at least in this galaxy. Also you are supposed to be dangerous to all vassal races and not be capable of being dealt with peacefully.’
Polite amusement was evident as Altarebe replied.
‘Omerio, I admit our larger females can occasionally be quick to fight, not that I have seen any for many years. The rumors of our warlike nature are just an effort by the Zronte and Vorinne to describe us in a negative manner to their benefit. I myself was looking forward to an academic career before I started this search.’
Omerio now considered the status of his own ship as he continued to speak with Altarebe.
‘I will need several days to repair the power conduit fault affecting my ship. Unfortunately the power conduit runs externally immediately forward of the third engine and I will have to make a space walk to repair the damage.’
The speakers on his ship radio were silent for several seconds as Altarebe considered the information and scanned Omerio’s ship.
‘Omerio, I can do better than that, I will help you repair your conduit using my manipulators, as I can see the damaged locations. Can you ensure you drop all power to the conduit? Also can you tell me exactly why the Tilmud were seeking to destroy you?’
In moments Omerio had the power conduit isolated and proceeded to tell Altarebe of his mission tracking the three Tilmud ships. He supplied navigation data of the course the three ships had taken, and the ancient asked several questions about any stops the three ships might have made. Altarebe then asked how Omerio happened to first discover the malicious actions of the Tilmud, and the Barus Trader had no hesitation with trusting the ancient as he replied.
‘Altarebe, I have direct knowledge that the Tilmud instigated Voorde infestation led to both a Jerecab lifter and a Trader ship being infested. The Jerecab ship was later destroyed, apparently by the Tilmud, and the Trader lifting wing landed on an ocean planet in an attempt to eliminate the Voorde.’
Omerio was aware that the ancient’s efforts to fix his ship had stopped momentarily, before the voice in his speakers calmly spoke again.
‘It is a pity the Jerecab ship was destroyed, as they once showed so much promise so I am told. Now you are sure that the Trader ship is one of their heavy armed freighters with sneak ships? Also have you encountered any Maveen recently?’
Omerio considered the question with interest as he gave a lengthy reply.
‘The Trader ship is indeed one of their massive armed lifting wings. I know nothing of any Maveen in this area of space. I was actually on my way to the Dradfer research mission to join other Barus ships to report the actions of the Tilmud ships before I then head to Earth. I surmise we will attempt to get the Traders to surrender as they have landed on a haven world populated by a race nearly ready for galactic contact. However there is a complication caused by one of our own research ships earlier.’
After several further probing questions Altarebe was aware of the inadvertent epidemic unleashed by Gindane’s research vessel, the Dradfer research, the original meeting between Omerio and the Traders, and the cargo he had transferred.
‘Omerio, my apologies to you for all these questions, as for obvious reasons I do not keep up to date on what is happening. Do you have a specification of the cruiser guns you transferred to their ship?’
Omerio gave a pause as he considered the question and he cautiously replied.
‘The gun design is the latest Vorinne offering and offers a real decrease in weight versus firepower. However I do understand that they have had some reliability problems with the gun.’
Altarebe considered how few Trader ships were in this part of the galaxy as he now cautioned the Barus trader.
‘Omerio, the Traders risk the fury of the Vorinne as do you. Now remember the fate of the Dradfer colonies and you should highlight the risks of their research to your leaders. I think that you can attribute this information to a senior race like the Cephrit.’
Altarebe resumed work on Omerio’s ship as he continued to talk.
‘Also you should ensure you disable your long range sensors, your recording computer, and your cloaking device for now until you return to the other Barus ships. I did not repair your cloak and have jury rigged a repair to your third engine. You have fifty percent thrust in that engine and that should allow you to remain out of trouble. To explain your own survival, just say that the Sspol took an exception to the efforts of the Tilmud and destroyed the two frigates after they cornered you.’
Omerio looked with disbelief at the ship clock as he heard this news, before he gingerly accessed the diagnostics of the now working third engine. He nervously spoke a heartfelt reply to Altarebe.
‘Thank you so much for your assistance as this repair would have taken me days to perform. Can you be more specific as to the risks of the Dradfer research that I can attribute in turn to the Cephrit?’
Altarebe had no trouble in providing this information and an additional warning, with Omerio coughing in distress as he took in the dire details. Altarebe then switched the conversation back to what Omerio had mentioned earlier.
‘Omerio, can I have full copies of all the information we discussed on the Traders, your deal details and this world called Earth?’
Omerio readily agreed and the information was transferred as he began preparations to leave this star system. He now in turn asked two questions of the ancient.
‘So can you make your own repairs to your cloak effectively? And how can I contact you if I discover more information?’
The accented Barus voice gave a hearty chuckle as Altarebe replied.
‘Omerio, thank you for your concern, as I will make the limited repairs I need before I leave this system in a few hours. I will find you when the time is right and you can help in this by monitoring the remote worlds visited by the Tilmud lifter.’
Omerio liked the nature and merit of the reply, and made his gratitude known again as he piloted his ship to the edge of star system.
‘Altarebe, I am in your debt for the rescue, the repair and the information on the Dradfer. Stay safe and no doubt I will encounter you in a remote system in the future.’
After the Bar
us trading ship left the star system, Altarebe returned to the shadows of the large asteroid and considered the information carefully as the automated systems in his body repaired the cloaking mechanism. Due to the interleaved nature of the new information he made to the only decision available to him and prepared to leave the system. As he left rejoin his father, a massive silver globe two kilometers across rose from the atmosphere of the star systems’ gas giant planet and leisurely followed Altarebe out of the system.
***
Chapter 2
Steve ordered that the helicopter deck be cleared, and Mark piloted their helicopter over to the Lotus Marai, even as the aircraft carrying the Australian prime minister approached his ship. He earlier had enough warning to done his old naval uniform, as his bridge crew had earlier received the flight details of the unique aircraft now lining up to land on his ship. Samantha reached over to straighten the corner of his uniform jacket and flash him a nervous smile, as he turned his attention back to the approaching plane slowing over his ship.
The plane was a third generation model of the V22 Osprey now produced under license in Australia. The latest Osprey featured two smaller five bladed finer progressive pitched propellers developed by Australian engineers. The changes allowed the newest Osprey to fly both faster and safer than the original US version that had utilized the two larger three bladed course pitched propellers. Steve watched as the Osprey seemed to fill the helicopter deck of his ship before the pilot shut down the engines. The side door opened, he braced and held a salute, as Ian Ridge led three other people from the Osprey towards Steve and Samantha.
‘Sir, welcome aboard the Aurora Discovery. This is my wife Samantha.’
Ian looked Steve in the eye as he shook hands with the both of them. He quietly spoke in reply as he now took in the ship and his surroundings.
‘At ease Captain, and it is a pleasure to finally meet you and your wife. I will have a short meeting with your entire mission team before we go across to meet the aliens.’