The Pike Chronicles - Books 1 - 10

by Hudson, G. P.

  The pace of the last two weeks had left him exhausted. The crew had worked around the clock to have the Hermes ready for its launch date. For Jon it had been twice as hard. For two weeks he slept no more than three hours a night.

  On top of making sure the Hermes was ready on time, he also had to learn a ton of new information. He needed to know the Hermes inside out, brush up on starship battle strategies and tactics, and become familiar with his officers and the rest of the crew.

  His special forces training had prepared him well for it. As a covert operative he had the ability to become an expert on any subject matter in a very short time. So, along with the Hermes, Jon had been ready by the deadline.

  But now he needed rest, and with the Juttari ship out there he didn’t know when he would have another chance for sleep.

  He walked through a sliding door into the bedroom. Jon sat on the end of the bed and thought again about the Juttari and their motives.

  He understood that they wanted the jump system. That technology would give the Diakans an overwhelming strategic advantage. If the Juttari had the same technology, however, the balance of power would remain. So why were they out here trying to ambush the Hermes?

  It had to be the lost colonies. If they destroyed the Hermes and found the colonies themselves, then they would gain control of that region of space and deny the Diakans access to it. Just another move in the galactic chess game.

  Satisfied with the conclusion, Jon undressed, lay down and fell sleep.

  The creature had given Jon many exceptional abilities. Most people noticed his combat prowess. They saw speed and power. They didn’t see the more subtle traits, like his sense of smell.

  Jon knew people simply by their odor. He could be blindfolded and still know who was in the room, and even who had been in the room recently.

  He could also identify emotions. Most people are unaware of the odors their body secretes when they are happy, or sad, hostile, or scared. A person’s smell, for example, tells a dog if you are a threat. And it was that odor in particular that woke Jon.

  The intruder moved stealthily, but to Jon he could’ve been a rampaging elephant. He heard the man approach the foot of his bed. He smelled the mix of fear and hostile intent. He recognized the subtle sound of his shirt sleeve brushing against his side. Jon knew what that sound meant.

  Jon dove off the bed and hit the floor just as an energy blast burned a hole through the mattress. The assassin shifted and continued to fire, following Jon’s movement. Jon rolled just as another burst hit the floor.

  Jon’s eyes had adapted to the darkness and he could see the gunman, who wasn’t trying to take cover at all. He could obviously see as well making Jon wonder if the man had been augmented. The man continued to fire and Jon moved again.

  The bedroom did not offer too many options for cover, so Jon did the only thing he could and attacked.

  Jon tumbled across the floor at a speed the assassin couldn’t match. He then sprang up off the ground and struck the man’s arm making him fire at the ceiling. Jon’s elbow came up at the same time catching the man perfectly in the throat.

  A killing blow. The man recoiled backward, his momentum bouncing him off the wall and onto the floor.

  The man made a horrible gurgling sound as he choked on his own blood and then fell silent. Blood streamed from his mouth down his cheek and began to pool on the floor. Jon stripped the gun from his hand and checked the man’s vitals. He was dead.

  Kevin’s voice came over the comm system, “Captain, we’re reading multiple energy discharges in your quarters. Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine, although my guest here has seen better days.”

  “A security team has been dispatched. They’ll be there momentarily. I’m on route as well. St. Clair out.”

  Jon got up and put on his clothes. He looked over at the time display. Four hours of sleep. I suppose it’s better than three, he thought.

  The security team arrived with Kevin following closely behind. Kevin had the team run a full scan on Jon’s quarters to ensure there were no other surprises hiding there.

  Jon and Kevin both studied the corpse. The man wore a medical uniform. A good cover. Medical personnel did not have access to vital ship systems, so wouldn’t be under as much scrutiny as say someone in engineering. Doctor Ellerbeck soon arrived and identified the body.

  “His name is Brian Myles. He was one of my junior officers,” said Ellerbeck.

  “Do you remember him acting strangely? Doing anything out of the ordinary?” asked Kevin.

  “No, he was a competent medical officer. Always did a good job. I never had any problems with him. Frankly, I’m shocked.”

  “I probably shouldn’t have killed him,” said Jon. “Kind of difficult to interrogate him now.”

  “Well he was only firing an energy weapon at you. You probably should’ve taken it easy on him,” Kevin joked.

  Jon glanced at Kevin and suppressed the urge to laugh. He returned to Ellerbeck. “Doctor, I’ll need a full autopsy on Mr. Myles. Let me know if you find anything out of the ordinary.”

  “Yes, Captain. Is there something you are looking for?”

  “Anything at all, especially signs of augmentation.”

  “Yes, Sir. I’ll get started right away.”

  “Thank you, Doctor.”

  Jon looked at Kevin and nodded for him to follow. They left his quarters and walked down the corridor until they found a quiet location.

  “Looks like we found our spy,” said Jon.

  “Yes, Sir,” said Kevin. “Pretty foolish of him to try and kill you.”

  “He must’ve been desperate. The ambush failed and your team has been doing a great job. Probably the only option he had left.”

  “It also could’ve been a pre-existing order. He could’ve been the contingency plan if the ambush failed.”

  “Agreed,” said Jon. “That makes sense. The question now is if he was plan B, is there a plan C?”

  “Maybe. I think we have to assume that there is a plan C,” Kevin said.

  “Agreed.”

  “I’ll keep my teams on high alert, and I’m going to post guards outside your quarters.”

  Jon frowned. “That really isn’t necessary.”

  “Maybe not, but the Captain’s safety is my responsibility, and a threat on the Captain’s life requires the posting of a security detail.” Kevin smiled at Jon. “I didn’t make the rules, Sir.”

  Jon rolled his eyes. “Fine, post your detail. In the meantime, I’m heading back to the bridge. I need to get Commander Wolfe up to speed and get ready for the next round of jumps.”

  CHAPTER 14

  Doctor Ellerbeck looked down at the naked body of her junior officer. She knew the man was an enemy spy and that he tried to kill the Captain, yet still felt sympathy for the man.

  He had shown considerable promise. She knew it had all been a deception, but she also knew that it was a result of the brainwashing he received since his abduction as a child. His life had not been his own since that awful moment. And now he lay dead on her table. A bitter end to a wasted life.

  She loathed the Juttari for what they had done to human children. Could this man still be considered human?

  As her autopsy progressed, she found all the telltale signs of Juttari augmentation, although the implants were now gone. His body had been altered with alien technology since childhood, and now, likely for this mission, that technology had been ripped out of him to avoid detection.

  Still, she saw the subtle differences in bone and muscle formation. Everything would have had to conform to the implants. Bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments had to accommodate the foreign technology. It must have been a massive shock to have the implants removed after a lifetime adjusting to them.

  No more of a shock than being taken from his parents all those years ago. How many families had been ripped apart during the occupation? How many parents helplessly watched their children taken away, knowing that t
hey could one day be used as weapons against Earth?

  At least in this case she could trace this man’s DNA back to his family and they could have some closure. That was more than most families received.

  Of course, most parents whose child was taken for the Chaanisar just considered the child dead. They knew that the child wouldn’t just be altered physically, but mentally as well.

  Juttari indoctrination was brutally efficient and the child soon lost all attachment to Earth, humanity, and family. A Chaanisar lived only to serve and die for the Empire. Any trace of who he was before the Chaanisar was exterminated.

  Continuing her autopsy, she was surprised to find that not all the augmentation had been removed. He still had his chip. Like a tiny seed, it sat deep within the frontal lobe. Made up entirely of organic compounds it would not have been detected by the ship’s systems, unless someone specifically looked for it.

  Ellerbeck carefully removed the chip, desperate not to damage it. She knew the Captain would want it studied. A Chaanisar chip was responsible for many functions. First and foremost, it was a communication tool.

  Since all Chaanisar were chipped, they had the ability to communicate telepathically. A Chaanisar crew were all networked together through their chips. They each acted like a node and had the ability to communicate and share information with each other seamlessly.

  This ability bypassed all the inadequacies of language. For example, for someone to say the word “cat” they must first picture the cat in their mind and attach the word “cat” to the image. They then say the word, sending the message to the listener, who instantly decodes it.

  This coding and decoding happens almost instantly, but it is imperfect. The listener will likely produce a different image than the one the speaker intended.

  So straight off, with only one word, there is miscommunication. As you add more words to the mix the problems encountered compound, requiring people to “explain themselves” to produce a clearer understanding.

  A Chaanisar does not have these problems. If he sees a cat and wants to send the message to another Chaanisar, he does not say “cat”. Rather he simply sends the image of what he sees. In this way there is perfect understanding.

  The weakness of language is avoided, and response times are drastically reduced. In fact, the only time a Chaanisar would use spoken language would be when he is speaking to a non-Chaanisar.

  The chips also enhance several mental abilities, allowing them to process information and solve problems much faster than a regular human. Many think that the enhanced speed and strength is what makes the Chaanisar so formidable. In reality, the most formidable thing about the Chaanisar is their brain chips.

  A Chaanisar fire team acts as one. They instantly know the other’s position and can formulate strategy as a unit on the fly. This allows them to outthink their enemies. It is that mental speed that gives them the real edge in combat.

  Beyond all of that the chip is a monitoring device, giving Juttari command the ability to know what their Chaanisar soldiers are doing and thinking at all times.

  This serves as an added means of control. A Chaanisar could not have a seditious thought without his commanders knowing about it. In effect, there can be no secrets among the Chaanisar, and with no secrets there can be no rebellion.

  Ellerbeck opened a comm link with the Captain.

  “Yes, Doctor,” said Jon.

  “Sir, you were right. Your attacker was definitely Chaanisar.”

  CHAPTER 15

  “Jump system is at 100%. We are jump ready,” said Ensign Yao.

  “Initiate,” said Jon.

  The computer started the now familiar countdown. Jon’s body settled into a flexible readiness. They were the ones doing the hunting now. A comfortable role for Jon. The Hermes jumped and the lightheaded sensation returned.

  “Jump complete,” said the computer.

  “Report.”

  “We have successfully jumped into the Valen system. Fifty light years from our previous location. One hundred light years from the Sol system. Jump system at 76%. We are jump ready,” said Yao.

  “Reading all clear. No contacts,” said Ensign Petrovic.

  “Navigation, load coordinates for second jump.”

  “Coordinates loaded.”

  “Initiate.”

  The computer counted down and the Hermes jumped to its new coordinates.

  “Jump complete.”

  “Report.”

  “We have successfully jumped into the Draidan system. Fifty light years from our previous location. One hundred and fifty light years from the Sol system. Jump system is at 51%. We are jump ready,” said Yao.

  “Reading all clear. No contacts,” said Petrovic.

  Tallos turned to Jon, “Captain, we are now entering unexplored regions of space. This presents a unique opportunity to gather what may be invaluable intelligence.”

  Jon straightened his back and took a couple of deep breaths before responding. “Hunting down the Juttari vessel is our first priority,” he said in a dismissive tone. Why did this damn Diakan keep interfering with his command?

  He looked at the stars on the viewscreen and realized that Tallos might have a point. This region hadn’t been explored. At least there was no record of it. As the first human ship in this region he had a responsibility to Sol to at least have a look around. “Nonetheless, we can spend a few minutes conducting some deep scans. Commander, initiate long range scans of this region. We jump in five minutes.”

  “Yes, Sir,” said Wolfe.

  “Thank you, Captain,” said Tallos.

  Jon nodded.

  “Captain, I wanted to commend you on your success in battle against the Juttari vessel. You displayed an impressive command of battle tactics,” said Tallos.

  The compliment caught Jon off guard. Why was Tallos trying to kiss his butt all of a sudden?

  He couldn’t remember receiving a compliment from a Diakan before, and almost didn’t know how to respond. The whole thing felt awkward.

  He rolled his head across his shoulders, trying to relieve some of the tension building up there, and decided to acknowledge the compliment. “Thank you, Special Envoy.”

  “You are welcome, Captain. And, if I might add, your plan for pursuing the Juttari is tactically sound.”

  Now things were getting weird. He assumed that was a compliment as well. It must be difficult for the Diakan. Saying thank you to a Diakan sure was difficult for Jon.

  Five minutes later the hunt resumed.

  The Hermes jumped a third time. They were now deep in unexplored space. No ship, Diakan or Juttari, had traveled into this region of space before, primarily because there were no nearby jump gates to facilitate such a trip.

  The Diakan and Juttari empires spanned thousands of light years, primarily due to the jump gates. Exploring regions where there were no jump gates was unnecessary and impractical.

  Since the jump gates stretched from one end of the galaxy to the other, why would anyone bother venturing into regions where no jump gates existed?

  It was this fact alone that saved the lost colonies. By shutting down their jump gate they ensured their salvation, and isolation.

  The Hermes was now two hundred light years away from the Sol system. While Earth ships had faster than light speed (FTL) capabilities, it would still take a generation to reach this region of space from Earth.

  Jon doubted whether anyone even considered attempting the trip. The logistics of such a journey would be a nightmare. But now, with the jump drive, great swaths of unexplored space had become reachable, and the isolation of the colonies would inevitably come to an end.

  The Hermes landed in a system dominated by a red giant star. Even from a safe distance it dominated the viewscreen. Ten planets orbited the behemoth, none of them showing any evidence of life. Long range scans showed some promising data, but no signs of civilization.

  And so, the Hermes jumped for the fourth time, this time landing near a binar
y star system. Two blinding suns orbiting each other, swirling in a blue, fiery dance.

  The first star, the vampire, sucked energy from the second, and a stream of blazing blue clasped the two in a deadly embrace. This would be their last jump until the jump drive recharged. The Juttari would likely need to recharge their jump drive as well.

  “Are there any asteroid fields nearby?” Jon asked.

  “Reading a large, heavily congested asteroid field approximately eighty million kilometers away,” said Navigation.

  “Good, identify a decent cluster where the Hermes can stay hidden and send the coordinates to the helm. Helm, take us into the asteroid field. One quarter light.”

  “Setting course for asteroid field. One quarter light,” Said Richards.

  The field was abnormaly crowded making it a good hiding spot. The Juttari wouldn’t notice them unless they entered it themselves.

  The Hermes would wait amongst the rocks like a lion in the tall Savannah grass stalking its prey.

  Jon knew from the previous engagement that the Hermes was the superior ship in battle. She was faster, more agile, and had more firepower. Ambush had been the Juttari’s only advantage, and now the Hermes would use that same advantage against them.

  The Hermes entered the asteroid field and the stars practically disappeared from the viewscreen, the view now dominated by a rocky cluster that reminded Jon of the ball pit his daughters liked to play in.

  The rocks ranged in size from pebbles to small moons larger than the Hermes. Tiny stones bounced incessantly off the ship’s hull, creating a ghostly drumming sound throughout the ship. These didn’t pose much of a threat, yet the sound still unsettled the crew. The larger asteroids, however, were another matter.

  Ensign Richards showed no signs of stress, looking almost like a rock himself as he maneuvered the Hermes to avoid the giant boulders. His hands remained steady, and his eyes stayed focused on his controls. Even his legs didn’t move, or twitch. Could anything rattle this kid?

  “Don’t break my ship, Ensign,” said Jon.