by Damon Alan
Thea watched her go. Eris was a good kid, as was Peter.
The experiment Thea was running had been, in her mind, purely to have the option in reserve if it was needed. She hadn’t even told Sarah about it. But Eris was right. There were things the colony needed, and not only new guns. Last week Thea had performed her first scalpel surgery since medical school.
A compound fracture that she’d had to set manually and sew up by hand.
The scarring was going to be ridiculous.
The thought of once again having an available supply of medical nanites satisfied her that Peter’s goal and Thea’s idea were worth pursuing.
Besides, if Sarah got access to the galaxy again, there would be plenty of people there who would follow the legendary Sarah Dayson. These people here, in the city, they wouldn’t have to fight if they didn’t want to fight anymore.
That would have to be good enough for her conscience. She wouldn’t necessarily, by inventing yet another drug for the adepts abilities, be throwing her people, the people of this city and young nation, back into the fire.
Thea sighed.
Maybe Peter would brief Sarah. Thea didn’t want to listen to all the war potential such a thing was going to unlock.
She looked up at a missile defense platform sitting out near the barrier reef.
She was sick of war.
Chapter 35 - Unexpected Enthusiasm
29 Jand 15330
Peter Corriea felt strange in a suit. Not long ago he was Lieutenant Commander Corriea. Today he was Mister, and not in the way Admiral Dayson used it.
He was surprised how nervous meeting her made him. For the last few weeks she’d been encamped on the Stennis with Heinrich and the refit crew.
His shuttle, one of the new civilian ground to orbit models, approached the Fyurigan broadside. The ship he wanted to see was hidden behind the larger vessel. The fleet still suffered from a lack of pilots, so Peter was flying himself. That made getting the grand tour easy.
He crossed over the engineering vessel, and slowly the Stennis appeared.
By the stars. Damn.
It was a different ship.
He brought himself down between the two vessels, into the shadow of the cruiser. Lights flared along its length, illuminating sections of hull being worked on. The brilliant blue flares of welders dotted the scene. Small maneuvering scooters rushed along the surface, carrying work details to and from their assigned tasks.
He stopped his movement between the ships, and studied what was the FTL drive housing at one time. The largest section of the ship, it was now dotted with uncompleted and completed hangars, one of which surprised him. Sitting in a large bay, one open to vacuum, was the EF-2358. Apparently Admiral Dayson… well, more likely Commander Heinrich had made plans to bring the tiny escort frigate with them.
Probably to make up for the lack of railgun coverage the big ship suffered.
“Greetings, Ambassador Corriea, this is Stennis proximity control. You have permission to dock in the Admiral’s hangar, forward, command module port side.”
“I remember where that hangar is, Halani,” Peter said.
“We weren’t sure, with all that civilian time you’ve been logging,” she responded.
“I’ll be on board shortly,” Peter said, laughing.
He flew lower relative to the kilometer long vessel, passing underneath and rising until he was level with the front midspar. Ahead of him, in the command section, was the bay he’d dock at.
He expertly slid the ship into the berth, and let out his breath as the magnetic skids locked onto the hull. One other shuttle sat next to his in the small bay, with a big red 1A on the side.
Well, she was still here at least.
He waited for the space doors to close behind him and the room to pressurize. A button press on the console and the back doors of the shuttle opened wide. Heat from the engines radiated toward him as he pushed his feet down to the hangar deck and activated his boots.
“I see you can still maneuver yourself,” Seto said to him.
He turned to face her. “It has been a while.”
“The admiral and Captain Heinrich are waiting for you in the bridge briefing room.” Seto smiled. “I’m on duty right now, so we can go there together.”
Not a moment of the trip was silent. Halani wanted to know what Peter was doing, was he making weapons, did he have a new project with the adepts, and what he had for lunch most days. How married life was for him, and what it was like for her and Harmeen.
Peter pried her for information about his former crewmates, and what they were up to.
She told him Heinrich had changed the tone of the vessel. At first everyone was subdued when she took command, but the XO showed a knowledgeable interest in every aspect of the refit. She learned the names of low ranking crewmen, knew schedules, made parts and supplies show up when nobody thought it possible.
She’d recovered the bodies of the dead on the Hinden, and somehow instead of reminding the crew that it was her expertise in combat that had killed those people, she’d convinced most that that same expertise was now going to give them hope when the next battle with the Hive began.
“You think the Hive are really going to come here?” Peter asked.
“The admiral does, that’s good enough for me,” Halani answered.
“You might be surprised,” he cautioned as they arrived at the bridge.
She floated in ahead of him, and he quickly followed. Harmeen was next to the engineering station, eating an apple.
“Peter!” his friend said and pushed toward him.
They hugged, shook hands, and Peter talked to Navin a bit before a voice called out from the briefing room.
“Is that Peter I hear?”
“Yes ma’am,” Harmeen said. “I was giving him directions to the bridge briefing room.”
Peter rolled his eyes. Apparently razzing him was going to be the fun thing of the day.
He slipped through the briefing room door and the admiral pointed toward a seat. She was sitting at the head of the table, Heinrich next to her. Peter sat down opposite the XO.
He strapped in to stay in place, then looked at the admiral.
They sized each other up and down a moment, then both burst into grins simultaneously.
“Inez, this is Peter Corriea. When I have a problem that needs solved, he’s my guy,” Sarah Dayson said. “He’s the closest thing I have to living family. I love him like my son.”
Peter turned red. He hadn’t expected that. What’s gotten into her lately?
“A pleasure. I think we may have spoken a few times on the radio during fleet maneuvers,” Heinrich said to him as she extended her hand.
Peter took it, and studied her face as he did. She didn’t look like someone who could blow a ship out from under the admiral. “The pleasure is mine.”
“You’re sizing me up,” Heinrich said. “Probably a good idea, since you’re going to have to trust me as much as Admiral Dayson.”
She was direct, that’s for sure.
“No offense, Captain Heinrich, but I haven’t met you face to face before. You’re a bit infamous now, I’m sure you know.”
“I’m well aware,” she replied, frowning.
The admiral interrupted. “You two have to be friends, that’s an order.”
Heinrich smiled. It was warm enough.
“What have you got for me, Peter?”
“Admiral—”
“It’s Sarah now. I’m not your boss, at least not directly.”
Peter stared at her a moment. No… that wasn’t going to work. “I’m going to stick with admiral for the moment, it might take some getting used to calling you by name, sir.”
Her eyebrows furrowed. She didn’t like that response. Why was she feeling so maternal? He’d blurt out the reason he was here. That would make everything else irrelevant. “Dr. Jannis has a new drug that may work on the adepts.”
“We have a drug that neuters them alrea
dy,” Heinrich said. “What do we need another for?”
“This one doesn’t neuter them. It frees them,” Peter responded. “It allows them to withstand gravity waves without pain. That is, that’s the intention. If it works they’ll not be barred from the confines of the galaxy. We need a live test and you’ve been keeping Alarin and Emille up here with you.”
Admiral Dayson straightened herself in her chair, then leaned forward. She practically stared a hole in his face. “You mean to tell me you may have a drug that will allow us to take the adepts into the galaxy proper?”
She clearly grasped the implications of that immediately.
“Yes, that’s exactly what I mean,” Peter replied. “I will give you the details about how it works if you like, but the main thing is that it strengthens the sixth force cell wall gates against distortion by gravity waves. If it works next to the drive core of Gaia when she spins up her singularity, then it will certainly work anywhere in the galaxy.”
“We can go home?” Heinrich said.
“No!”
Peter and Heinrich looked at the admiral, both clearly shocked.
“This is our home. We are going to protect this place,” she said, resolute in her tone.
“I didn’t mean—” Heinrich started.
“I know you didn’t mean.” The admiral’s face softened and her tone changed. “If we are to test this, then do so. Once it’s done, we’ll try it with the EF-2358. If that works, we will have the means to get the things we need to fortify this system. Maybe get some new ships here.”
“We are running short of those,” Peter said, looking at Heinrich.
Admiral Dayson and Commander Heinrich both glared at him.
He threw up his hands. “I didn’t mean anything by that.”
“We are running short,” Admiral Dayson answered. “But we can fix that.”
“How?” the XO asked.
“As Fleet Commander, my quarters have a lot of significant information in the intelligence safe. One of which is the location of unmanned supply depots.”
“We’re going to raid those?” Peter blurted out.
“Many are in locations already taken by the Hive. We’ll see if the Hive has located them, and if not, we’ll liberate the supplies,” she answered. “In and out without anyone knowing we are there.”
“That’s a brilliant idea,” Peter said.
“I may know of a few near Korvand as well.” The admiral unlatched her seat strap. “Get this underway immediately. Get that test going with Gaia.” She stopped and looked him in the eye. “How is the QI anyway?”
“QI?” Peter asked.
“Quantum Intelligence,” Sarah replied.
“Gaia?” He’d asked a stupid question. Her stare at him verified that. How many Quantum Intelligences did they know? “I mean, she’s fine. Eris speaks with her every day for at least a few minutes. I do think she wonders if she has a purpose for us and herself.”
“I think she just might,” Admiral Dayson said. “Ask her if she’d be open to the use of her hull for transporting colonists again.”
It was Peter’s turn to stare. “Uhhhh… I’ll do that,” he said hesitantly. “I actually think she’s eager to help, Admiral, but you’d take her into the galaxy unarmed?”
“I’m still working on my plan, Peter. You’ll know as soon as I do exactly what I want,” she answered. “Do you think we could arm that ship? Railguns and missiles?”
“Now I have to ask the other side of that question. You’d trust her with weapons?”
“We can have humans controlling the weapons. Even now Gaia has said she doesn’t control navigation. Clearly she’s okay with some features being human controlled.”
“I’ll look into it,” he promised.
Peter didn’t point out that Gaia knew how to synthesize the mind-control drug. If she wanted the humans aboard to do her bidding, there’d be no stopping it. So indirectly, she could control navigation and weapons if she wanted. But he’d let Eris deal with that thorny issue. “As you wish, Admiral.”
“I’ll get word to Alarin and Emille that they’re to join you ASAP,” she assured him. “How soon can you get me results from the drug test?”
“I’ll set everything else up,” Peter replied. “As soon as I get adepts for the test, it should be at most a few days after that.”
“See to that, then.” She hugged him, and then pushed out the door, stopping at the threshold. “Dinner later in my quarters, Peter. Just you and me. Family.”
Smiling happily at her words, he nodded. He still felt like a kid in her presence, which was ludicrous. Now that he wasn’t an officer it was more impactful than ever. “I’ll be there. I have something for you.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t know. Something Gaia gave to Eris. A box. It’s still on the shuttle, I’ll get it and bring it with me.”
“The QI is sending me presents. Maybe she wants to bribe me to her side?”
“Wouldn’t that prove her similarity to us?” Peter asked in turn.
She shook her head and clucked her tongue. “I hope you use better logic than that on your wife, or she’ll eat you alive.” She exited abruptly and was gone.
Heinrich started to follow, but then stopped to look at him. “She’s quite the pinpoint of action once she gets started on something, isn’t she?”
“She’s always been like that,” Peter replied. “Always will be.”
“It was good to meet you, Ambassador,” she said on her way out the door.
He sighed. If he would even get approval to conduct the test was in doubt when he’d arrived, since it unleashed the adepts on a galaxy that didn’t even know they existed. To his surprise, the admiral who’d been building defense platforms all over the system abandoned her recent cautiousness and dove straight into his concept.
Supply depots indeed.
“I could use some new science equipment,” he mumbled as he unstrapped himself from his seat.
Chapter 36 - Unlikely Allies
Eislen peered through the bushes with his companions. Adepts, all three, they were as invisible to the army passing in front of him as possible. When an adept didn’t want to be sensed, it was like closing a door.
Even the most rudimentarily skilled adept could do it, although the stronger one’s gift, the tighter that door was shut.
Talya, oddly enough an Antecaran adept who’d defected to Eislen’s cause from Edolhirr, lay on the ground next to him. “I didn’t know Himalland had so many troops.”
“Neither did I,” Eislen whispered back. “And maybe they didn’t until they sensed Zeffult’s vulnerability.”
“Possibly,” she agreed.
“They are one cycle from Kampana,” Eislen said. “By mid-secondday we’ll know if they take the road to Torgard, or to our home. Take the other two adepts and go start the evacuation getting the wagons packed and the people ready to go. Take my horse as well, use it for Salla.”
“What of you?”
“I will watch them, and contact you as soon as I know which way they’re going. If they move north toward Kampana, everyone must be out of the village in fifteen minutes. Leave nobody, not even those who wish to stay,” Eislen ordered. “Particularly Salla, Talya. Force her to go with you by any means.”
Talya stared him in the face for a moment, concern in her eyes. “They say you are chosen of the gods, and I don’t know if that’s true or not. But you’re a fair man, and you care about your people. That is why I’m with you, and that’s why I’ll do as you wish.”
“I can ask no more,” Eislen replied. “You will decide in time your own truth.”
“That I will, Eislen,” she affirmed. “We three will ride hard to Kampana and wait for your word.”
Eislen didn’t reply, but went back to watching the camping soldiers.
The perception of Talya disappeared into the trees behind Eislen’s position, and shortly thereafter he felt truly alone.
Shortnight was over
way too fast.
The enemy troops rose, packed up camp, and moved onward.
* * *
He trailed behind them for most of the day, keeping a discreet distance and his mind closed. Now and then a contingent of armored horsemen fell back and searched the area for scouts that might be tailing them, but Eislen always sensed them and hid.
After a few minutes of searching an area, the riders would return to the main body. And Eislen would resume his careful stalking.
At midday, as predicted, they came to the trade road to Torgard. The army, much to Eislen’s displeasure, proceeded straight to the north.
Talya.
I am here.
Evacuate Kampana. The Himalland Army marches north.
Where do we go?
Salla already knows, I discussed this with her. You go north, as far as it takes. In two cycles you’ll cross into Antecar. Our aggressors would not dare cross that border.
But we shall?
If I know Master Edolhirr at all, he will be glad to welcome our refugees until this matter has passed. Time is short. Go now.
As you wish. Goodbye, Eislen. Make your way to us.
Goodbye, he replied in closing.
He hoped none of the enemy adepts were searching for pursuers during that exchange. By necessity his mind had been open. But it didn’t matter, he didn’t need to pursue them anymore. He set off west, down the trade road to Torgard, and soon he’d cut north across the countryside.
He’d make his way to the ridges west of Kampana, and from there observe the army as it moved in on the small burg. If they were there for him, he’d know in short order.
Grimly, he set off on his new path.
* * *
Kampana burned before him.
He’d failed. He’d been utterly crushed by a small nation, the very one he promised Alarin to protect Zeffult from. In exchange for autonomy. Now that he’d failed, Alarin had no duty to stand by his part of the bargain.
He was a false leader. He’d only pretended that he could ever stand up to the likes of Antecar or even Alarin once the Zeffult nation regained its footing.
As he lay miserable in the snow, wallowing in his own impotence and feeling sorry for himself, he heard something in the distance.