Stone and the Ravens (Guardian Stone Book 3)

by Don Koch

  "I was not worried about that aspect of this, because I know you will. Mara and I will miss them."

  "Ah you are forgetting that you and Mara can now project and we are close enough that you should probably do that on a daily basis. That will keep them grounded in reality because I have no doubt that we have some strange time ahead of us. We will send a shuttle over for them. I suspect we will have a time pulling their heads out of the clouds."

  "You are right, I did forget that. You are also right about pulling their heads out of the clouds too. This will be good for them because they have always marched to a different drummer. It will be good for them to see that their talents also have value, just different and that is ok. Talk to you later."

  "Later."

  Sam said, "I think it's a good idea to have them move in with us while they are here. I suspect you will be working with them quite a bit in the coming weeks and the informality here may trigger some breakthroughs."

  "Sounds good to me. That exchange was a bit unexpected. Looks like Fasix is a really great addition to the Antoran fleet though its not official yet. I like the way he has gone out to his people to encourage them to get reengaged. There is hope for those folks yet."

  "On another note, we need to start learning everything we can about the Gorth. Not the least of which is, exactly what are they. So we need to talk to Barnaby Hatch and Milica again."

 

  "Yes please Barana."

 

  "Barnaby, Milica, how are things at Alaok?"

  "I guess bizarre would be a good description. I actually had to use your suggestion and show up with a Snarf on leash. I had him roar once and that got their attention. I had to tell them to sit down, shut up and listen. Once that was accomplished, I sent Harvey back to the ship and told them if they wanted to start the noise up again, I would bring him back and he would stay until they all heard what I had to say. That finally had the desired effect and I was able to get my message across to them. I assured them that we had the means to stop this whole thing and we still had a lot of time. I fielded a lot of questions and responded as I hoped you would have. In fairness, they are in a bit of a panic so I understand why they are acting as they are. I told them that you are trying to find a permanent solution that does not include going out every 1,500 years or so and destroying a swarm. I pointed out that there was an intelligence there and we do not just wantonly destroy other intelligence without sufficient cause. There was some argument on that front but I told them there would be a solution and we would find it. I did not tell them that one of the options was total evacuation. They do not need to hear that at this point. Besides, that would be almost as devastating as arrival of the swarm. So I bought us some time."

  "Barnaby, great job, that can't have been easy. I do have a related job for you that I need ASAP. I want you to launch a protection group of warship to orbit the planet and then I want you to take the Station out there and get me a DNA sample without killing the subject and if possible without letting them know you were there. We need to start getting the data we require to find a solution to all of this. As soon as you have something and have tested it, send the report to all Stations in the region. I want to see if they have any surprises in store for us. See if you can also get a sample from a queen. Finally, draw samples of the various substances they are living on. You need to do these extractions without rupturing the pods they are in."

  "We are launching the Group now and will acquire the samples within the hour."

  "Thanks Barnaby, talk to you later."

  "Barana, now comes the big one, I need to talk to Giuseppe Antonelli with his Station AI Intan along with Isaac David with his Station AI Flametta please."

 

  "Hi guys and gals, the fun is about to start. We are starting to pull whatever information we can together so we can see what we are up against with the Gorth. What I want you to do is to find and locate all Gorth swarms in the region. Right now they should all be located just over 40 light years from Gorth, but we need to be sure. I want each of the Stations in your Divisions to start backtracking from each inhabited planet in the region all the way back to Gorth and the planets in that region. If there are more swarms inbound, we need to know that. In each swarm, I want you to draw DNA samples and samples of the substances they are using for food. Samples should be from the queen and from a worker. Do not rupture their pods in the process. I want all the locations identified on a single map with regional breakdowns as needed. Record any transmissions emanating from the individual swarms. I want an estimate of the size of the swarm. Do not assume that there is only one group of swarms per track. I want to know if we are facing multiples for a single planet. Scan for swarms not directly on a path to an inhabited planet. If you can do this without alerting the swarms, place a cloaked tracker with each swarm so we can see if they somehow change direction or change speed. This is pretty much a priority data gathering exercise. If there is any reaction to your presence or scans, let us know. Ok time to get busy. Do not engage them militarily. You have a speed and shielding advantage, use it if you need to. We do not know their capabilities. Any questions or am I missing anything."

  Isaac David spoke up, "Hank, is the alarm that Sitler placed at 40 lights from Gorth still operable?"

  "Good point, Isaac, we do not know, but that is worth checking out as well. Ok, be sure to alert everyone if there are any developments."

  Chapter 24: Gathering Intelligence

  Station 1 in Malone Orbit –

  April 2 – C Day 581

  Four hours later

 

  "Hi Barnaby and Milica, what do you have for me?"

 

 

  that she is directing the swarm course. We saw similar life support substances as those in use for the workers. We also saw an abundance of a substance not found with Earth bees and in some respects it is similar to royal jelly needed by the queen and developing larvae. The amount of the substance is disproportionate to the amount of royal jelly typically found in a hive, so we are not yet absolutely sure of its function. I am calling it Royal Jelly X or RJX for short.>

 

  "That is an interesting recommendation and I must admit that I am thinking in that direction as well." He then explained the information that has been coming together, not only in his and Sam's warning nodes but also in those of the Orpan, Walters and Grout kids. The Orpan and Walters kids were due to arrive in four days. "Once they are here, we will plan a trip out to Gorth. Another thing that just occurred to me, have you thought anymore of the signal they were emitting on that first encounter. Were there any variables in it? Was it the same the second time? Is there a pattern to be seen?"

 

  "I am glad you said that because now I know who else I want looking at this."

 

  "Exactly, after all, this is a puzzle, is it not. I will post their findings and conjectures on an ongoing basis. Also take a look at the other swarm signals as they are added. Lets also link a timeline to these signals because they may be communicating with each other. Let's get a continuous recording of the signals in case they are communications."

 

  # Two hours later #

  Barana noted,

 

 

  "Whoa, it sounds to me like the Gorth have decided to get serious about this. The first two waves would assure a beachhead and the last then goes to what would be normal operations."

 

  "Barana, you did say ten groups of swarms per group. I have nine planets listed and protected, what is the tenth?"

 

  "Oh well, what's one more complication. I'll send out Station 101, Samara to do the guard honors there."

  # Three hours later #

 

  "Ready when you are Barana."

 

  Chapter 25: The Grout Twins Arrive

  Station 1 in Malone Orbit –

  April 3 – C Day 582

  The shuttle that Hank had sent to Sitler to transport Anto and Goulf had just arrived. Hanks parents had volunteered to make the trip to pick them up. Once they landed back on Station One, Alexander Stone decided that it would be a good opportunity to give the boys the grand tour so he took them down to take a look at a warship deck and then the large and small commercial ship decks. From there they went down to one of the military training decks to watch some enhanced Marines in a training exercise. Then they took a four-person personnel carrier to their habitat. From there they took an elevator up to their apartment, adjoining Hank and Sam's apartment.

  Hank and Sam were waiting in their apartment. The four adults gave the boys a tour of the adjoining apartments and showed them to their room. "Boys, right across from the entry to your bedroom and study is a large open space, roughly 23 feet by 30 feet. It is fully programmable. When you return to Station 10, a similar workshop to the one you design will be waiting for you. A 20-foot section of the wall between this apartment and my parents apartment has been removed and opens up on a similar space in their apartment. These spaces will be the workspaces for you and the Walters and Orpan kids. Tonight, Barana will give you a course on how to create a workable structure for your lab/workshop. She can let you know what tools are available to you and will be actively helping you with whatever equipment and information you need. Tomorrow after you are set up, we will bring you up to date on what we have so far on concerning the Gorth. Today though, my parents want to complete the tour they started you on, with visits to the shops and malls on the ground level and then a picnic. Does that sound good?"

  Anto grinned and asked, "Do you have ice cream here too?"

  Sam smiled and responded, "Well, I am glad to see
that someone has their priorities straight around here. Why don't we insert a little exception to the plan right now, and go visit the 'Sweet Tooth Shoppe' down on level 2. Any takers?"

  All agreed. Sam went on, "Barana, would you please transport the six of us to the 'Sweet Tooth Shoppe'." In a heartbeat they were all standing outside the shop. "Just so you know, all the clothing and gear you guys brought over with you is in your room. Just let Barana know when you want to go there and she will transport you. Now where is that ice cream?"

  Later that day, back at the Stone's residence, the twins were still absorbing the events of the day. They had already had a visit from their parents and they were excited about structuring their work area. They also related the things they had seen and experienced that day leading Fasix to observe that they had seen more of the Station than had he and Mara.

  Hank had a chat with the boys about how he hoped they could help. "One of the biggest issues with trying to resolve this business with the swarms is communications. We do not know if they have tried to communicate with us and it is likely that if they did we did not recognize it for what it is. We have a lot of what appear to be signals and may well be communications but we can't decipher them. It is like a giant puzzle. We would like you two to apply your talents to this to see if you can make anything of it. One thought we have is that their communications are going through a matrix that might resemble a puzzle. If so there may be a chance that we can replicate that matrix and learn their language. This is really a shot in the dark but the talent that Sam and I have as well as that of the kids suggests that you might be key to resolving this. The kids also have the ability to hear communications made by other beings artificially. We have a strange mix of talents here and more that we can draw on as needed."