Space Chronicles: The Last Human War

by Dean Sault

  Dr. Hadje flew low and followed the now-familiar route down the mountain passes to the jungle. Below them, small groups of humans, accompanied by hicays, followed old trails leading to captivity. Those same people would make contact early in the morning at surrender locations.

  For the first time in days, the doctor felt overpowered by the weight of sleep deprivation.

  “Jix.” There was no answer. “Jix?”

  “He’s sleeping, Doc,” Adam said. “The old man’s out, too.”

  “Thank you. We’ve been very busy the past few days. I think I’m going to set the autopilot and get some rest. When we enter the quarry, a ground proximity alarm will sound. Don’t be concerned. The ship can land itself. You’ll have to excuse me, I must get some sleep.”

  Dr. Hadje fell into a deep sleep, only seconds after his last comment.

  Adam stared out a small window. Lush jungle passed slowly below, and he wondered how his life would change under freedom. Try as he might, he couldn’t imagine anything much different than the world he had always enjoyed. In fact, freedom seemed intimidating. There were so many demands associated with this new existence. He fondly recalled the simpler Tasker-directed existence. Everything he needed had been provided. Life was simple. Life was good. Why change?

  Chapter 29

  All eyes in the War Room were on General Tragge. This was the first real combat any of his staff had experienced. The current generation of Tanaracs knew only peace during their lifetimes. Even the general was only a young officer during the Syntic Tribe Rebellion, two hundred years earlier.

  He looked from eye to eye among his soldiers and recalled the memoirs of an old general who commanded during the Human War. That military leader said officers could, and would, make mistakes, but the first rule of command was never to appear in doubt. He realized this was one of those moments. Confidence was just as important as actual decisions.

  “As you just heard,” he addressed his staff, “Heptari forces launched a second offensive at Wallow Minor. Our brothers in deep space are fighting and dying as we speak to save our way of life. It is our duty, and privilege, to make sure our capitol is prepared for anything that may come. I am counting on each of you for strong leadership in the coming trials. We will prevail.”

  The tired general began issuing orders to bring the Tanarac home world to a high state of readiness. His staff responded with vigor and purpose. In the background, monitors gave vivid witness to the raging space war between by the Ninth Battle Group and Rotaga’s forces outside the Tanarac solar system. Strained voices of war broke through the comm channels, providing a constant reminder of the price being paid by their comrades.

  “General, do you want me to turn down the sound?”

  “No. Hear those voices.” He looked up at the nearest speaker and said with deep resolve, “Our spacers are giving their lives that we may prevail, that we may live in peace. Hear them, and honor their sacrifice.”

  He arose and spoke over his shoulder as he headed into his private office.

  “Get me the Council General.”

  He left the War Room to break the bad news to the Council. There was a lot of planetary preparation needed and very little time. It would be essential to have cooperation of every member of the Council.

  “Hello, Jol. Byn Tragge here. Our problems with the Heps have escalated. I’m afraid Chairman Uleb was right. The ugly truth is the Heptari Empire is not interested in humans. They attacked us in two places with forces far greater than could be justified by any human issue. We’ve sustained major losses, and the enemy main fleet is just outside our home system. We need to prepare the public, and position our planetary assets, in case they get through our perimeter defenses. How would you like to proceed?”

  “Did you try your idea about admitting the existence of the humans and our recent decision?”

  “Yes. As I said, they aren’t interested in humans. The human issue is simply a pretense for hostilities. I think they’re expanding their empire, plain and simple, and they believe they can defeat us. The Heps would not have started this war, if they did not think they could win. My friend, I fear we spent the past three hundred years living in peace, while they prepared for war.”

  “Okay,” the Council General said. “I’ll call an emergency session of the Council and provide them with your report. I’ll ask for a Declaration of Public Emergency. This will make the entire resources of Tanarac available to you, without bureaucratic delays. Thank you for your efforts. When can you hold a press conference? I’m sure there will be a lot of questions.”

  “For now, the press will have to accept releases from my public relations officer. I don’t have time to joust with reporters. Just make sure the public understands why we are taking the entire planetary power grid for our shields.” General Tragge hesitated for a moment. “I’m not going to lie to you. We’re outgunned. We have two Battle Groups on the way, and the rest of our deep space fleet is defending the outer system. Jol, we’re in a full scale war.”

  “Byn, can I ask a personal favor?”

  “Of course, my friend.”

  “Have you heard any casualty reports from the 9th? My son commands a light cruiser under Admiral Paad.”

  “The 9th lost some ships but they seem to be holding their own. I’ll ask my exec to check on your son’s command. What is the ship’s name?”

  The Tanarac leaders ended their discussion to set about pressing duties. When the general returned to the War Room, every screen was alive with battle scenes or telemetry data. Sounds of war carried a new, more desperate, tone.

  “Byn, you there?” Several warning claxons on Admiral Paad’s ship made it hard to hear his words.

  “I’m here, Lorm.”

  “We’re in trouble. I’ve only got three fully functional heavies left.”

  All the displays went blank. The admiral’s voice communication crackled on and off for a few seconds, then telemetry and communications returned.

  “Byn, if you can hear this, we’re out numbered eight to one in heavies. Our small ships are useless. I’m withdrawing my remaining fleet into the asteroid field. Heps can’t hurt us in there. It will take an hour to navigate through the first field. Do you want us to make a stand at the next belt, or should we pull all the way back to Tanarac? Byn, are you there? We can’t stop them, but we can buy you some time. Byn, can you hear me?”

  “I hear you, Lorm. Bring your remaining fleet all the way back. We’ll extend our planetary shields as far as possible. It should give you better survivability. The Tenth and Eleventh are on the way. Do you read?”

  “That sounds good. Those shields might be just what we need. You were right about those new Heptari cannons. They’re brutal.”

  Monitors went blank as the 9th vanished deep into the asteroid belt. The general walked over to one of his staff.

  “Do we have a casualty report on the 9th yet?”

  “I have two lists, sir. The first is ships that are confirmed destroyed or dead in space. The second is a list of ships with no further telemetry or voice communication. We don’t know if those ships were destroyed or if they just lost a comm tower and can’t transmit. I’m sending a continuous update to your command reference library.”

  “Any word on the Cruiser Maicu?”

  “Just a second, sir.” The young officer checked his electronic notepad. “Here it is. She was part of the Arplee wing. When the Arplee went down, she transferred to the new Sladu/Tanno wing. Haven’t heard from her since she entered the asteroid belt.”

  “But did she make it into the belt?”

  “Yes, sir. We had a transponder signal until then. My guess is she’s still operational.”

  “Thanks Lieutenant. Comm, get me the Council General. I’ll take it in my office.”

  General Tragge updated the Council General on the recent military status before letting him know that his son’s cruiser survived the initial engagement. When the general returned to the War Room, he crossed to the lar
ge screen showing Tanarac’s shields. His trusted electronic whiz, Captain Ludic, was on duty.

  “Ludic, how far out can we safely extend our shields?”

  “Sir, I can extend them out as far as you want. In theory, any EMF-based shield can be projected to infinity, but the problem is they lose density as the square of the distance beyond optimal projection. Now, if I tap into our civilian geo-synch satellites as field extenders, I can probably double the effective field strength without—”

  “Ludic, don’t tell me how to build the damn thing. Just tell me how far out you can effectively extend our fields.” General Tragge appreciated the young officer’s expertise but didn’t have time for hyperbole.

  “Sorry, sir. Bottom line, we can double our shield altitude above Tanarac’s atmosphere without losing much strength. Beyond that, the shield will deteriorate fast.”

  “Sir, incoming comm from Wallow Minor. It’s Admiral Lu.”

  “Tragge here. How are you guys holding up?”

  “It’s tough out here, General. We lost half our heavies before we found a way to counter their cannons. You weren’t kidding, those big Hep ships have incredible firepower. My e-warfare tech discovered that if we link and stack the shields of two heavies, we can survive their big cannons. Problem is, we can’t engage in tactical pursuit with two heavies in such close formation. My heavies are stuck fighting a purely defensive battle right now. They can’t hurt us, and we can’t fight back. The Heps are ignoring my light ships, so I ordered all my mediums and lights back to Tanarac. They’re useless against these Heptari cannons. Maybe you can use them.”

  “Can your heavies break free for a run back here?”

  “Negative. Our heavies can’t jump to grav drive this close together. If we separate them to make the jump, we lose the double shields, and their Rahls pick us off. We’re pinned down for the time being. My combat engineers are trying to rig portable shield generators in transport bays to increase individual ship shield capacity. We’re having trouble finding power conduits heavy enough to handle the load. It’ll be at least another day to complete modifications. Have you heard from the Tenth or Eleventh, yet?”

  “No. We broadcast an encrypted message to them on a narrow band, but they haven’t responded. Let us know if those shield modifications work. Good luck.”

  General Tragge seized on the admiral’s idea.

  “Ludic, what do you think about that . . . adding portable shields?”

  “Sir, it’s called compound shield theory. We studied it in EWS training. The limiting factor on a deep space ship is not power, it’s conduits to transfer power. If they can tap into the ship’s main energy grid, then the best they can do with free-standing portables is about twenty percent increase in shield density. Maybe that’ll be enough.” Ludic thought for a moment. “Sir, if we can find a way to link the portables directly into a ship’s shield array, we might be able to get more than forty percent increase in shield density. It’ll require building direct conduit connections.”

  General Tragge was thankful for any improvement about now.

  “Even twenty percent sounds pretty good. Contact the Depot and have them send all our portable generators to low orbit docks. When the 9th arrives, give them all the assistance they need to install those upgrades.”

  “Actually, sir, if we assemble shielded power conduits on the ground, those lines can be run right through the crew quarters directly to the shield grids. Retrofit wouldn’t take more than an hour for each ship, and they’ll have at least a forty percent upgrade.”

  “Make it happen. You have command authority to get the job done.”

  Captain Ludic jumped up from his seat and headed for the door.

  “Hold it, Ludic! Where are you going?”

  “Sir, you told me to get the job done.”

  “Yes, but do it from here. You’re far too valuable in this command room to be running around organizing supplies.”

  The general turned to his communications officer.

  “Connect my backup comm channel to Captain Ludic’s console.” General Tragge smiled at the captain. “You get to play general, Ludic. You tell people what to do, and they’ll figure out a way to get the job done. Make sure they report back regularly so you can track progress.”

  The captain donned his headset and used the general’s personal comm channel to contact the Home World Supply Depot. He was amazed when the depot commander personally answered.

  “Commander, this is General Tragge. Captain Ludic is on line with us. He’s going to give you instructions. His requests are to be treated as my personal orders. He has combat bypass authorization. Captain Ludic . . .”

  The young officer began relaying specifications for the conduit lengths and connectors needed for the portable field generators. The supply commander promised immediate action on the requisition.

  “Captain Ludic, do you want us to wait until we have all the conduits completed before we send them into orbit, or should we send them up in small batches as we get enough done for each ship?”

  Ludic had never made a command level logistics decision before. General Tragge had been listening and when his e-warfare officer looked at him for a decision, the general shrugged his shoulders and nodded for Ludic to make the decision.

  “Sir, transport each portable generator with a set of couplers as soon as they are complete. We’ll stockpile them in orbit.”

  General Tragge nodded his approval and turned his attention back to other matters.

  “Comm, any word from the 9th yet?”

  “No, sir. Outer system recon satellites went dead while you and Captain Ludic were on the conference call.”

  The general glanced at the monitors that had earlier shown the battle outside the fifth asteroid ring. They were now black. Communications from the initial battlefront had all but ended. Only persistent pinging of emergency rescue beacons broke the white noise of deep space. He ordered those extraneous sounds to be screened out while they waited for the 9th to come out of the asteroid belt.

  “Sir, what are the Heps up to now?” The general’s radioman was very young. General Tragge understood in the face of the first serious conflict the young soldier had experienced.

  “Heps are closing the net,” the general said. “I expected them to take out our satellites as soon as the 9th retreated. They’re trying to isolate us. They don’t understand that every time one of our satellites fails, we have a good idea where they are located. Call me as soon as the 9th exits the last asteroid belt. I’ll be in my office.”

  General Tragge sat quietly staring at his wife’s picture. After a while, he spoke to her image.

  “I’m glad you aren’t here to see this Ara-lyn. You so loved peace. This would break your heart. God, how I miss you.”

  The general’s head canted gently back onto his headrest. Despite being a lifelong military officer, he longed for the peaceful days that now seemed far in the past.

  A small bird landed on the ledge of his window and sang happily in the late evening twilight. He envied the creature’s oblivion to looming threats. His eyes closed.

  Chapter 30

  “Shilgar, can I take my dolls?”

  A small girl sat among several dozen hand-crafted dolls, spread neatly around her.

  “Do you have a favorite?” Shilgar squatted to look more closely at her collection.

  “Yes, I like this one. She looks like mommy. And, I like this one because she’s sweet.”

  “Well, Bayal, you may take your two special dolls. We’ll put the rest back in your home. Some day, when you return, they will all be here to greet you.”

  A man hurried up from behind.

  “Shilgar, Shilgar! I heard the ship isn’t full. Can we take my father? I know he’s older than the profile, but he’s an excellent toolmaker. He’d be very useful on a new planet.”

  “You heard correctly, Faba, and you are right about your father’s skill. Did you know he made my first scout knife and sling? I would be hono
red to have your father join us. Please extend the invitation to him, on my behalf, but hurry, we leave soon for the ship.”

  “Thank you! He’ll be so happy.”

  The young man scampered off to tell his father the good news.

  Shilgar climbed a stairway carved into the rock wall at the back of the big cave. It led to the crier’s overlook. At the top, Haleb leaned against a hand-carved wood railing, carefully writing notes while studying people on the cave floor below.

  “What’s our count, Haleb?”

  “Less than six hundred, Shilgar. I have reports of a few stragglers caught in safe holes. They’ll resume their travels as soon as the Southern Sky Guard passes, but even if I include them, we still have only six hundred people.”

  “What is our male to female ratio?”

  “It’s a bit unbalanced to the female side, but there’s nothing more we can do about that now. There’s only one deep-hide close enough for people to reach us before we depart, and all of the willing young people in that hide are already here. Should we loosen our parameters to get more people on board?”

  “I agree. We have space for four hundred more. I’ll give the general order. I hope Dr. Hadje hurries with those fertilized eggs. Are you sure you won’t join us, Haleb? We could use your wisdom and organizational abilities in a new colony.”

  “No, my friend. I was born on Tanarac. I plan to spend my final days here, but I appreciate the offer. You’d better go to the tunnel entrance. Our people need to see you. Apprehension is becoming a problem for some, and I’m sure they’ll draw strength from your presence.”

  Shilgar gripped the old man’s forearm in traditional salute. He marveled at the aged scout’s muscle tone. Both men knew this would probably be the last time they ever saw each other.

  Without further discussion, he left the wooden deck. Soon, he stood in the entryway to the cave of The Wall, silhouetted by flickering light from inside where Kelly and Ammul busily lit torches to install along the tunnel path.

  “Kelly, do you remember the way to The Wall?” Shilgar made small talk while they waited.