They jumped in the car and Wayne drove back down the beach about an eighth of a mile, then turned around again and pointed the Nomad toward the area between the tidal pools. The car surged forward when he put it in drive and pushed hard on the accelerator. Fifteen feet from the middle of the wet area Wayne could feel the mucky soil’s resistance. The Nomad moved forward but slowed in the mire and then bogged down. Their momentum had carried them past the halfway point, but the wet soil was too wide and deep to cross.
They got out of the Nomad to determine how deep the tires had gone. Blackie noticed water wicking up around his shoes as he stepped toward the back of the car.
“Maybe we can back it up a little, then fill the tracks with dry sand. We can push it while you give it some gas.”
They tried Blackie’s suggestion several times hoping the Nomad could develop enough momentum to free itself from the muck. After four tries, it surged forward and Wayne guided it out of the muck and up the beach onto dry gravel near the tree line. As Blackie, Amelia and Joules reached the car, a behemoth crashed onto the beach from behind the tidal pool and rushed toward them. At a height of two stories tall, he towered over the low trees along the beach.
Blackie yelled at everyone to get in the car. The behemoth had surprised them. They had been checking up and down the beach for signs of a behemoth, but never expected one to come bursting out of the upper tidal pool. There wasn’t enough time to use the Jump Starter and they knew it. Their only chance was to outrun it in the Nomad. Blackie looked out the window as the behemoth threw back his head and raged toward the sky.
“What did he say? We’ve done nothing of the sort,” said Amelia angrily, and she jumped out of the car and yelled back as loud as she could,” Why are you trying to hurt us, we didn’t do anything to you. It’s your own fault you’re being slaughtered.”
The behemoth was so startled he stopped yelling. All he had ever heard from the Goyspers was gibberish, but this one he could understand.
“If you don’t make peace with the Goyspers you will all be wiped out. Do you get that. Your kind will disappear, maybe from the entire universe,” she yelled, as Wayne tried to convince her to get back in the car.
“We tried,” he bellowed.
Blackie, Wayne and Joules were shocked. They hadn’t heard him clearly before, but now they understood what he said. Before anyone could say another word, Wayne threw open the driver’s side door and jumped out of the car.
“What do you mean you tried?” he shouted.
“The old Judge, our old leader died. We took time to grieve his passing, then, our new leader took us up into the mountains to find the Goyspers, to make peace. But we couldn’t find them. We despise the mountains. We were only trying to make peace.”
“The Goyspers thought you were going to attack them,” said Joules, who had crawled out of the back seat and was standing next to the open passenger door. “What do you want now?”
“The new Judge says peace with the invisible ones is our only hope for survival.”
“The Goyspers planned to attack you at your village,” yelled Blackie, “to kill all of you. They thought they had no choice. But this morning their leader told us they had changed their minds. They don’t’ want to destroy you. Do you understand? You have a chance to survive, but you need to talk to them.”
“We don’t understand them, and they don’t understand us. They speak gibberish.”
They all thought for a moment. How do you send the right message when you don’t speak the same language? “Gather some food,” said Wayne. “Take it to the mountains and leave it there. They will understand a peace offering.”
“We have to go back,” said Amelia. “We can help them sort this. Thanks to the Jump Starter, we can speak both languages. We can help stop this needless hostility before it wipes them out.”
“We have company,” yelled Blackie, catching everyone’s attention.
A shadowy black mass appeared above the Nomad’s roof, and in a matter of seconds the billowing essence coalesced. Anonoi floated above the car and communicated to the four of them it was time to leave.
“We can’t leave yet,” said Amelia. “We have a chance to do some good here. We can help these beings find a solution. It could end their fighting.”
“The path is open now. It will not be open for long. The World Eaters are harvesting all around this planet. We must go now.”
As he finished communicating, a Goysper stepped out of the forest. He was dressed differently than the other Goyspers they had seen. As soon as the behemoth saw him, he backed away and hunkered down into a defensive posture; he expected him to disappear and attack.
“Wait,” said Joules to the behemoth. “He doesn’t have a weapon.
“You speak to them?” asked the Goysper.
“Yes,” said Joules, “we can speak to them. Who are you?”
“I am a Gazer.”
“A Stargazer?” asked Joules.
“Yes, a Stargazer.”
Amelia’s mind was racing. She knew she didn’t have much time. They were not going to persuade Anonoi to stay much longer.
“This man told the Goyspers you are not the problem,” she yelled at the behemoth. “We can make him understand you want peace. If you do, I have a plan.”
The behemoth nodded his agreement as Joules, Blackie and Wayne joined Amelia. Now, she was talking fast and furious to the Stargazer.
“Would you agree to that?” asked Amelia.
“Yes, I think that might work.”
“Good. Then he will take you back to the village to explain the plan to the Judge and other behemoths. They will gather food for a meal and then take you into the mountains. It will be up to you to convince the Goyspers to join them. Can you do that?”
“The behemoths are not the problem. The gazers have always known that to be true. We will convince them. It would be a shame to survive such a great storm,” he said, looking up at the sky, “only to die here in a needless conflict.”
Amelia turned and walked right up to the behemoth, who was still crouched in a defensive posture and explained to him what needed to be done. By the time she finished, he had a different expression on his face, maybe the closest thing to a smile he could manage. He beckoned the Stargazer to join him. It was a complete surprise to everyone when he reached down, picked up the Gazer and put him on his shoulder.
“We will try,” said the behemoth.
“That’s all we ask,” said Amelia.
“It is time,” announced Anonoi, looking at the sky. “We must leave. The window for our safe passage will close soon.”
“Good luck,” yelled Wayne.
The Stargazer and behemoth both replied at the same time. It was odd, hearing ‘thank you’ simultaneously when it had been spoken in two different languages.
Blackie and Joules piled in the back seat while Wayne got behind the steering wheel and Amelia jumped into the front passenger seat. As Anonoi drifted over the hood of the Nomad, Wayne turned and stared at Amelia.
“What?”
“I don’t know what came over you,” he said, “but that was incredibly brave, and spot on genius.”
“Mixed with a slight death wish,” added Blackie from the back seat.
Joules chimed in to support Wayne, “Amelia, that was awesome.”
Amelia smiled broadly. As Anonoi began the time and space shift, she caught a final glimpse of the behemoth with the Stargazer sitting on his shoulder. Before the first twitch, she buried her face in her hands. Seconds later, the Nomad disappeared.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
THE ATTACK ON KORGANRA
The Centorian fleet captains checked the new coordinates for their phalanx formation over Korganra, and at Bert’s command, each of them engaged their translocation drives. The predetermined fleet translocation sequence embedded in the system controllers ensured each of them would arrive in the correct order, at the right location, and at the right time.
As the Alphas dropped
out of translocation over Korganra, each ship would be perfectly aligned with the adjacent ship, so their individual shields would form an interlocked, impenetrable phalanx. The transition from regular propulsion engines to translocation drive was seamless. Their new technology gave the Centorians the most reliable and fastest means of traveling the universe.
But at that moment, it wasn’t fast enough for Bert Warrington. The situation at Korganra needed to be evaluated, and he was anxious to arrive there, form the phalanx, and evaluate conditions he knew would soon change dramatically. His mission parameters hadn’t officially changed, but he knew they might, and he wanted to know how a new mission directive might fit the conditions on Korganra. The problem was, he still wasn’t sure what the mission would be.
Bert theorized he only needed to be ready for one of two scenarios. The first one was a shooting war, and for that he would need to meet with the commander of his onboard weapons systems and the commander of the Stealth Fighters unit. Bert turned to his communications officer.
“Contact Gary Remlap and Jim Mason. Tell them to meet with me in fifteen minutes in the captain’s conference room.” Then he turned to his second in command, “Captain Williams, you have the com deck. I’m going for a walk.” Bert marched across the com and out the open security doors.
“That’s not a good sign,” said Korchava. “The last time I saw him do that we stormed into the middle of a trade dispute in the Soltvian Sector and ended up in the center of a shoot-out that lasted six days. It didn’t end until every Korvian and Slagerlean ship involved was disabled, or destroyed. Unfortunately for several of them, they pushed the Captain a little too far.”
“You were on that mission?”
“Yeah, it was the first time our new Alphas were deployed to battle conditions.”
“How many went?”
“Just two. Captain Warrington in one, and the Chairman in the other one.”
“Criminy, that must have been scary.”
“We didn’t have time to be scared. The whole crew was on duty for six straight days. After the first twenty-eight hours, Sly told us no help or replacements would be coming due to a disturbance in Quadren-do; the other two new Alphas were sent there. Our medical team administered Asketolomene to our entire crew. I was still wide awake two days after we returned to Centoria.”
“And you volunteered for this mission?”
“I’ve served with Bert Warrington several times now. All my experiences have brought me to one obvious conclusion.”
“What is that?”
“I’m safer in a firefight with Bert Warrington as Captain than I am sleeping in my own bed at home.”
Bert finished his walkabout and went to the conference room after commanders Remlap and Mason arrived.
“Keep your seats gentlemen. You have things to do, so we’ll try to make this as brief as possible.” Bert laid out their current orders and asked for an open discussion about defense of the Alpha ships, and how they thought the stealth fleet stacked up against the Korganraim fighters offensively.
Both commanders made brief comments. They were familiar with Korganraim technology and the Giant’s offensive and defensive capabilities, and they were convinced their mission would be successful.
“They don’t have an answer to our new shield system,” offered Commander Mason, “honestly no one does. The likelihood is high we complete this mission and not lose one stealth fighter.”
“The Korganraim close range fighters are no match for our targeting array,” offered Commander Remlap. “Our shield capabilities and weapons deployment are the best in the universe. I would be willing to bet this ship will return to Centoria without a scratch. It would be suicide for them to attack an Alpha gunship.”
“If I had to choose one descriptor to characterize the Korganraim Giants, it would be suicidal,” replied Bert. “I’ve personally seen them do reckless and absurdly crazy things, so have your men ready.”
Both men acknowledged the Giant’s tendencies to do the unexpected and irrational, and after a brief dialogue about what that might entail, Bert advanced a new topic for discussion.
“Now, you should be aware of a new wrinkle in our mission objectives, a wrinkle I introduced a short time ago. Our Chairman is probably considering the alternative right now. He’ll think I’ve lost my ever-loving mind. It won’t be the first time. But, in the event he agrees with our new “solution” it will require you to alter your traditional offensive and defensive assignments.”
Bert paused to think for a moment about what those assignment changes might entail, then said, “One way or another we are going to solve the Giant problem by the end of this mission. The only question is how we choose to do it, and can we live with ourselves if we make the wrong choice.”
Bert expected some pushback, but he explained the plan he proposed to Sly, and waited. Both of the commanders were surprisingly supportive. But, if he had to summarize their input it would be - proceed at your own risk, we’re dealing with Korganraim Giants. After listening to their comments, Bert thanked them for their time, honesty, and for volunteering for the mission. With the exception both commanders also implied he might be a tad crazy, he thought the meeting had gone well.
*******************************************
Several days earlier, a long black tear had formed in the sky above Korganra. As you might expect, widespread panic was the order of the day. Everyone, including government officials feared one of their enemies was attacking them with some kind of new weapon. But after the tear formed nothing happened, and many of the Giants that had fled the planet when it first appeared, returned the next day, thinking it was an unexplained astrophysical phenomenon and there was nothing to fear.
As is often the case with Giants, they were right and dead wrong. While the population quieted, and mostly resumed its day-to-day activities, the Korganraim War Council was anything but quieted. Plans were made to send a long-range cruiser to investigate the tear the day after it appeared. The mission wasn’t reported to the public, to any government officials, or to any other divisions of the government.
When the cruiser reached the tear, her Captain made a quick assessment but had little to report to his superiors. The length of the tear was two times the diameter of Korganra and it was half as wide. When the cruiser captain’s transmission was received, everyone in the War Council’s Communications Center thought they misheard the captain’s report. How could the tear not have any depth? What was on the side opposite Korganra?
The Cruiser Captain received their questions and realized they thought a communications error had occurred. His next transmission was direct and to the point.
“We have flown around the tear and nothing is on the other side,” he said emphatically. “We maneuvered the ship to view the tear from the side, but when we did it vanished. When we viewed the distal side - the side opposite Korganra - it is a mirror image of the front side. Whatever this is, it seemingly has no depth.”
When they asked Captain Fusok what he thought it was, he told them he had no experience that would inform a good opinion. In the typical impetuous way of Giants, after his assessment, Captain Fusok had fired two missiles on the black mark. When his missiles went through with no effect, he flew his ship through the tear. It was as if nothing was there. After he reported this he suggested they contact their mining fleets. Maybe some of them had observed the phenomenon and could report other findings.
The War Council took Captain Fusok’s advice and sent communiques to every vessel away from Korganra. Most of them reported they hadn’t seen anything like what was described as a black tear in the sky. Three mining ships couldn’t be reached, or possibly they chose not to respond.
“It is nothing,” Lor Guldr told them. “Let the scientists have their way with it, but we will waste no more of this council’s resources when a clear reason for action is absent.”
“Should we send Captain Fusok to investigate the status of mining ships that didn’t respo
nd to our communique,” asked one of the junior officers.
“No,” yelled Lor Guldr, “instruct Captain Fusok to return to Korganra. We have real work to do here! Now, I have a meeting to attend.”
Erg Balor watched Guldr turn and leave the communications room. His experience had taught him every Giant, in every position was valuable, not only the Generals and Colonels. It was that belief that enamored him to his staff and associates. Those were the people Kor Tohl said would be true to him.
Erg stood up from his seat and wandered around the communications room. After several more people had left, and the effects of Lor Guldr’s rant had dissipated, he walked over to the junior officer, leaned down and told him to send Captain Fusok to check on the unresponsive mining ships. “I’ll take the heat if there is any.”
The officer looked sideways at Erg, “The communique is already written, Sir. I was waiting for you to come around. And, if this goes bad,” nodding his head toward the door where Guldr had exited, “you and Chairman Tohl have lots of support.”
“Thank you, we appreciate that. Now, I have to step downstairs for a moment. When we hear from Captain Fusok...”
“You’ll be the first to know, Sir,” replied the officer.
Erg put his hand on the officer’s shoulder and thanked him again. Then he went downstairs to visit with the receptionist.
“How are you today Erg,” asked the receptionist as he approached.
“I am well Margo, but I need a confidential favor, if it is possible. Lor Guldr is going to a meeting. I need to find out who he is meeting with.”
“Well, let’s see shall we,” and she uploaded the master schedule. Nothing is posted on his public schedule. How bad do you need to know?”
“Badly, but not enough to put you at risk.”
“I took this job so I could figure out what that war mongering jackal is up to. Give me a moment. I’ll have to route this inquiry around the system, that’s the solar system, a few times to make it untraceable. I have friends with incredible technology.”
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