by Ben Winston
She came around the chair and took a seat on the couch. "No, you didn't attack them; you didn't have to. They did it themselves, you simply made it possible for the people of the world to see them as the idiots they really are. By broadcasting everything you did all the time, the people got to know and see that you were really doing exactly what you said you were doing. So all of the lies and half-truths they’ve tried to spread about you were shown to be false from the very beginning. The drubbing stems from that. You gave them the opportunity to not only show how stupid they are, but you also showed the whole world just how much all those touted American Civil Rights are respected by those in power. I dare say that even the real terrorists have a better understanding of the situation in the United States now.
"On your website, they made themselves look like the corrupt, power-hungry, megalomaniacs they are. That's why none of the other nations have done anything overtly against you. I would imagine there are many that would dearly love to get the opportunity, but would never do it since you made sure to televise everything.
"I would expect that you will soon be getting a bit more respect and offers of cooperation from the world leaders now. Although, I would be very careful about trusting them, they will always want what you have. That will never change. Not until the people of the planet force them to," she finished and sipped her drink. She sighed after the sip. "Damn, even the tea is better up here."
"Actually, as far as I'm concerned, the governments can all go to hell in a shuttlecraft. They had their chance and blew it. We're dealing with the people directly now. I honestly wonder if we shouldn't have simply done that from the beginning," Greg replied.
"Possibly, but there might come a point where that might not be the best thing to do. People are fickle creatures, they're on your side for the time being, but that could easily change with one little mistake the governments could exploit. For example, the alliance you are forming with the other races you mentioned. By and large, the people of our planet are still wary of the term ‘alien’’ I wouldn’t call it xenophobia, but more like a serious lack of unbiased information. All the government would have to do is create an incident and that would do it," Joyce explained. "There was something I wanted to talk to you about, though."
"What is it? I'll answer if I can," Greg replied.
"It's about this Code business. What exactly is this Abraxis Code?" she asked.
"As I understand it, one of the original designers of the Abraxis Construct built in a ‘kill code’ of some kind. He then hid that code on a far away, obscure planet no one had ever heard of. We have no idea what that code is, or even what it looks like since it could be encoded," Greg explained.
"So we need to keep our eyes open for this code as well huh?" Joyce asked. "Have you checked with the oldest peoples? Like the aboriginals or the Maori back home?"
Greg shook his head. "Honestly, I've been so busy getting all of this going, I haven't had the time to look for anything."
"It would have to be something that would survive the ages. So that pretty much eliminates anything written and most things carved in stone since that stuff weathers and wears away. What else is left?" Joyce asked rhetorically.
"I have no idea. It could be anything from DNA encoding to the molecular structure of a specific rock on any given planet. We don't even know what system the designer put it in. To be honest though, I have no idea what we would do with it if we found it. We sure couldn't use it at this point," Greg replied sighing.
"Why not?" Joyce asked. "I'd think putting an end to this mess would be your biggest priority?"
"Oh it is, but you have to look at it from a tactical point of view. If we had the code, how would we get it to the place it was needed? It would have to be input manually because the Abraxis system is fast enough to catch a transmission and cancel it. Besides, where could we send it from? They literally have thousands of Ranger teams and if the Prime Nexus knew we had the code to shut it down, it would do everything in its power to destroy us and the code along with it. We couldn't simply jump in our sleds and fly out there because we’d never make it. Even if we did, we have no way to know just what is at the end of that jump. Prime is a decentralized AI, how would we get the code into him in such a way as to ensure it works?" Greg shook his head. "No, the Abraxis Code is a nice dream, but not a very realistic one I'm afraid. We're just going to have to do this the hard way; and that's finding a way to stay alive long enough to defeat the Drellians the old fashion way. It will probably take centuries, but as long as we work together and don't lose heart, we can do it."
Alpha Team Residence
Grimaldi Ridge Base
Ocean of Storms
Selene, Earth's Moon
Since it was getting close to the time he and the girls were supposed to go to Carl's for dinner, Greg excused himself to see if the girls were ready.
The design of the quarters being used for the Rangers was based on a residential unit, which meant that each team had an apartment to themselves and each apartment shared the common area where Greg had been speaking to Joyce. When Greg returned to his apartment, he found that Jolene and Mandi were ready and Bella was just getting out of the shower.
"Excuse me Greg, but my I ask you a question?" Abraxis said via the room's speaker system.
"Of course, Abraxis," Greg replied.
"May I ask when you discovered Mandi carried the Abraxis Code?" the old AI asked. "I was monitoring your conversation with Ranger Fighter Joyce."
Greg was silent a moment. "For me, it was shortly after you told me about how Mandi and you discovered a way to prevent you from becoming infected. There was really only one way you could have done that."
"I must say I am impressed with your deductive reasoning. I also hope you understand why I did not inform you of it as soon as we discovered it," Abraxis replied.
"Actually, that took me a while longer," Greg replied. "At the time, we would have tried to use the code to end the conflict once and for all. Since I have the ability to over-rule you, I probably would not have understood your disagreement with the mission."
"I still don't get that part. If you knew about the code, why are we still here?" Bella asked from the door to the shared bathroom.
"It's simple really, how close do you think we could actually get? How long do you think we would survive once we exited hyper? We're talking about the Prime Nexus here, not a node like Abraxis. That's only if we could actually find the damn thing to begin with!" Greg replied.
"What do you mean, we know where the Prime is! We only need to fly in there, input the code and that's it. Game over for the Drellian Empire!" Bella said angrily.
"No, we don't know where the Prime Nexus is located; the main Alliance system was destroyed, remember? As a decentralized AI, the Prime Nexus could literally be anywhere. But for the sake of argument, let's just say we located it. How would we get close enough to it, for a long enough period to enter the code?" Greg asked.
"We jump in, destroy the guardian team, land and input the code. It seems pretty simple to me," Bella replied.
"The Prime Nexus would not have a single team guarding its location. In addition to that, it is very likely that there are more than just Ranger teams as guards. One single team would stand no chance at all of infiltrating the system and applying the code manually into a terminal directly connected to the Prime Nexus," Abraxis replied. "Even if the location was known to us, the odds of such a mission achieving success are zero. There are simply too many unknown variables to even consider that type of mission at this point."
"So what you're telling us is that you withheld the information about the code because you were protecting us?" Bella asked. "Don't we have the right to make that decision ourselves?"
"Abraxis acted correctly, Bella," Greg replied. "His primary function is our protection and to assist us to ensure our continued ability to perform our duties. Giving us that information at that time would have been the same as killing us himself, plus it had the a
dded effect of the potential loss of the code itself."
"Do you honestly feel we wouldn't stand a chance, Greg?" Bella asked.
"Bella, I agree with him. There is simply too much we don't know; if we tried to do this now, we'd be dead long before we ever found the Prime Nexus," Jolene added. "At this point, I think it would be suicide to even try."
"To answer your question, Bella, no, I don't think we stand any chance at all right now, which is why I am officially instructing Abraxis to consider this information classified under a need to know restriction. No one is to be given this information without my knowledge and agreement," Greg replied. "That being said, other than Mandi, who else has either figured it out, or was in on it from the beginning?"
"Jarad and Sharon Danielson, Colony Governor Carl Hollister, NSA Director Gerry Whiteshield, Colonel Susan Florence USAF and director of intelligence operations, Mr. John Stapleton. I do not believe the last three remember it though as the information has not appeared in any official reports or documentation," Abraxis replied.
Greg nodded. "Okay, from now on, it's one of the most highly guarded secrets we have. No one is to discuss this with anyone outside of a controlled area."
"Why do we need to keep it a secret? Shouldn't we at least tell our allies?" Jolene asked.
"The less people that know about it, the less the chance of the Drellians learning we have it. I'll consider letting our allies in on the secret, but only after we have actually formed the Alliance and we have a council or a ruling body for it. Until then, we have to keep this knowledge to ourselves or we won't get the time to defend ourselves; the Prime Nexus will order every fighting unit it has here immediately."
Governor's Residence
Grimaldi Ridge Base
Ocean of Storms
Selene, Earth's Moon
Greg could tell Bella wasn't happy with the situation, but he hoped she would come to understand his reasoning. Regardless, she dropped the subject and went into her room to get dressed for dinner. Jolene, went with her to try to calm her down and explain better. Leaving Greg and Mandi alone together.
"That's not the only thing bothering Bella, Greg," Mandi said quietly.
"What else is bothering her? We really need to talk about all of this, it could really hurt us as a team if we don't," he replied.
"Well, this isn't very easy to talk about, Greg. But I can safely tell you the same thing is bothering Jolene as well, although she is less likely to let it get to her," Mandi added. "But, it will become a problem if it isn't fixed soon."
"What's the problem? If they are having a hard time talking to me about it, can you? At least if I know of the issue I can try to fix it," Greg reasoned.
Mandi chuckled. "You're a wonder, Greg. I've known you for a long time, and in all that time, I have never seen you have a girlfriend, or even go out on a date. Can I ask why?"
Greg was taken by surprise for a moment. "Uh, I never found anyone I was that interested in. What does all that have to do with this?"
"Because, you dork, there are two girls that are very interested in you, and your attention seems to be taken by another girl," Mandi replied.
"Bella and Jolly are interested in me? I had no idea, I thought we were all just friends!" Greg said, surprised and confused. "What the hell am I supposed to do to fix this? I can't date either one of them or the other will be offended. This is one of those impossible situations girls always put boys in! What the hell am I supposed to do?"
Mandi shrugged. "I think just being aware of it will help. It might just take care of itself given enough time. The question then becomes how do you feel about them?"
"I care about them obviously, but I've just never considered either of them… Not that way, we always got along so well as friends they’re almost like sisters!" Greg replied.
"Well don't tell them that! I was pissed at you for two months when you told me that!" Mandi admitted, grinning.
"Well, you are my sister, Imp!" Greg countered.
Mandi shook her head. "At the time I wasn't and technically, I'm still not. However, I did get over my crush on you and I understand you a lot better now. But Jolly and Bella share most of our history. While they do see you as a friend, to them, that actually helps them see you as possibly something more. Of course, Delion's comment during your last battle didn't help either; it got both of them thinking about it."
"Huh? What comment?" Greg asked.
"Ranger Fighter Delion referred to them as your mates. Both Jolly and Bella teased you horribly over it, but it also got them thinking about it. Whether you can return their feelings or not, Greg, this is going to be something you guys are going to have to figure out. Since you are our only protection against the Drellians, I think you three need to figure it out sooner, rather than later," Mandi said. "Now, I'll butt out and let you handle it. Just don't break their hearts or I'll bust your nose."
Greg was still deep in thought when the other two girls rejoined them. As a group they all left for Carl's, neither Jolene nor Bella asked Greg what he was thinking so hard about.
By the time they arrived at Carl's the group of friends were acting almost normal. "Welcome to my home, Rangers! Please come in!" Carl said happily. "Greg, before we get started, I just wanted to thank you for moving me up here and giving me this job. I'm really a lot happier here."
"Actually, I think it was Jarad that suggested it, Sir. I just agreed with him," Greg replied grinning. "But I have to say, I'm glad I did. I don't think anyone else could have accomplished everything you have in so short amount of time."
"That wasn't me," Carl replied waving it off. "That's all the people up here. Come on in, and have a seat so I can tell you all about it. Dinner won't be ready for a little while yet."
Carl's apartment wasn't overly huge, but it was pretty big. Greg would find out later that it was a standard two-bedroom unit no different than those available to the public. He had opted for the two bedroom unit and used the second bedroom as a home office. However, he guided his guests into the living area.
After they all got drinks and took seats, Carl began. "Jarad and Sharon will be joining us shortly, but they already know most of what's been going on up here. Now, before we begin, I want you all to know, everything we've done up here is mostly in accordance with your original plan, Greg. However, due mostly to the influx of personnel, it's been upgraded quite a bit."
Greg nodded. "That much I could see when we landed. I was stunned that so much has gotten accomplished in such a short amount of time."
Carl nodded. "I am too, but like I said, it's the people we've recruited. One of the first things I started working on when I got here was the trade commodity issue; basically how will we get all that food stuff gathered and shipped out to where it needs to go. We had recruited a couple of people that worked as shipping managers for some pretty big outfits so I asked them for suggestions.
"The main issue would be landing the big freighters and getting them loaded while protecting them from planetary officials trying to capture them. The answer, don't have them land on Earth. It's by far faster and easier to load a bulk cargo shuttle than it is a freighter. So, we built the main facility here and have been buying the supplies by the train-car load. We make contact with the company that has the product and ask them where they want us to pick it up. We land the shuttle beside the grain terminal, right on the tracks used by trains. They can load us up in about thirty minutes. We haul it up here, off-load it into our storage area and when the big freighters start coming, we'll be ready to load them.
"I sent a request to Fighter Delion for the specifications of the bulk freighters, so we could build the appropriate facility for them. She had the information back to me in less than ten minutes, and the facility got built really quickly as it was a priority. So for that aspect, we're set and ready to go. In fact, we're going to need the freighters to start running soon; we're getting pretty full."
Greg nodded. "Okay, I'll get on the comms tomorrow and get it going
. We already know the Greynus are ready and willing, but are we ready for them? They were pretty anxious to get started."
"As far as residential areas, we built what Abraxis recommended for them, so they should have a place to live. However, we don't really have anything for them to do yet once they get here. We're getting the ore ships built, but have been having difficulty deciding on a design for the processing facilities. Also, we have no real idea what sort of commercial facilities to build for them, so when you speak to them again, please ask what sort of mercantile needs they will have."
Greg nodded. "I will, but I need to back up for a moment. The first shipment to the Greynus; we're going to need a few specialists willing to go to their home world to teach them how to grow this stuff… What?" Greg asked because Carl was grinning.
"We have a team already formed and they've been studying Greynus culture and mannerisms. A large shuttle has been built so it's more like an RV for them to live in for an extended period of time while they assist the Greynus. They're just waiting for permission to go."
"Permission from who?" Greg asked.
Carl smiled. "Security. You have to approve all missions out of our solar system. Well, your 'office' does."
"I have an office?" Greg asked.
Carl nodded. "At least for the time being, 'Security' falls under the military's jurisdiction. I had thought of forming the office and listing Jarad as the head of that office, but I hadn't actually had a chance to speak to either of you about it. That's one of the reasons I wanted them here tonight."
"Both Jarad and Sharon might be going through Ranger training…" Greg shook his head. "Even with everything that's been done, there is still so much more than needs to be done! It's mind blowing!"