Verron_Birth of a Nation

by Douglas Varnell

  Paul and Zimuel looked at each other without saying a word, both realizing just how much they didn’t know about this new world. They headed for the door with Paul saying, “Let’s take a look at this place.” Lucy informed them, “I can’t go like this.” Her image disappeared and as quickly they both heard her in their heads, “Now, that’s better. I’m ready.” Zimuel looked at Paul and came back with, “Think we’ll ever get used to this?” They walked down the hall in the direction of the mountain and soon reached, of course, a security station with a bullet proof glass walled station for an armed guard and, no doubt scanners and codes to be negotiated. To their surprise the heavy steel doors before them snapped open and they had a clear path all the way through to the floor of the manufacturing plant. Paul asked, “Couldn’t you have done this at the other places we’ve been?” Lucy retorted, “You never asked before.” Paul realized that he had just been thinking how nice it would be to not to be bothered with all the security devices. The lights came on as they stepped onto the factory floor. It was cavernous; beyond anything Paul could describe with words, and this section was behind the smaller set of doors. Right in front of Paul were a dozen Speeders in various stages of assembly. They looked tiny in this monstrous room. He noticed they were considerably smaller than the Speeder he had learned to fly on Xhondar; not more than 10 feet long and with a different stabilizer wing system than his old Speeder. He noticed that the thrusters at the rear were unique as well. Before he could ask, he heard, “These have the latest versions of whitematter reactor, antigravity reactor and L.S. drive. They are built of a new metal unique to Verron. It’s manufactured in the mill and refinery you will hopefully see later today, if you don’t get carried away here that is. Anyway, since we can get considerably more performance from the new systems, we are able to make them much smaller and still get better output than we ever had with the old and much larger design. Thus, we can make smaller, faster and more maneuverable ships with better operational parameters than ever before. Let’s move to the next bay”

  As they walked across the factory floor the little Speeders looked swallowed-up in the gigantic room. There was room on this one line to build hundreds of this tiny craft. Lucy interjected as they walked towards the next manufacturing bay, “These 12 are simply prototypes for building larger ships. The next bay is tooled to produce the next generation Fighter. The new Class X Fighter is faster, smaller and more heavily armed than the handful still in inexistence on Xhondar. They also carry a new force field that is ten times better than previous designs. The whitematter power system has enough energy to provide the extra power required to run the more powerful systems on board.” They went through a truck-sized opening between work bays and spread out across the massive floor were at least 100 fighters; once again in various levels of completion. Paul headed for the one that seemed to be at the end of the line and ready to fly and climbed into the cockpit. It had that very familiar feel of an Xhondarian designed ship. He really did think he could climb from one craft to another and the feel of the controls would be identical. He did notice some much more advanced targeting systems identical to the Destroyer he had been flying. He heard through his neuro-feed, “This Fighter has double the speed and double the fire power of the Class V Fighter you flew on Xhondar I. Due to the power and small size of the FTL 50mm whitematter missile, this ship is capable of carrying up to 100 of them along with a very generous inventory of 10,000 rounds of 10mm plasma projectiles, 6 photon torpedoes, 2-500 MT Thermonuclear bombs and 1000 20mm Armor Piercing Laser Missiles. It has all the same targeting systems as the Light Destroyer but only a third of the firepower.” Paul couldn’t resist, he switched on the controls and heard the reactor engage, he hovered the ship above its position and then rotated it 360 degrees and set it back down. He climbed out and told Zimuel, “Let me teach you to fly one of these things. Have you ever flown a fighter?” Zimuel shook his head no and responded, “You decide that since you couldn’t kill me on that obstacle course this morning you would try it in a Fighter?” Paul thought a moment about this morning’s run and Lucy responded, “You two must have gotten off the trail somehow. I did a satellite scan of the trail last evening and it was smooth enough for an old lady to walk it.” Zimuel frowned at Paul and Paul did his couldn’t-be-my-fault look and replied, “Well my way ended up being a lot more fun and challenging as well.” Zimuel quipped, “Lucy from now on give me directions if they need to be followed correctly.” While Paul was laughing, they began their walk to the next bay.

  They didn’t need to spend much time in this manufacturing bay. It contained 40 Class IX Light Destroyers; almost all were completely ready to fly. Lucy realizing their observation declared, “All you have to do is add ammunition.” Paul could only imagine how much damage could be done with the 40 ships. That thought was over shadowed as he entered the next bay. There before him was what Lucy called the Gljarne Class Destroyer. It was a monster; he now understood why they refer to the other little destroyer as light. There were only two under construction in this bay. They were at least the size of a U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier. Lucy proceeded to give a brief description, informing them, “Obviously named after General Gljarne, these Destroyers are 750 feet in length and 300 feet wide and have five levels. It is capable of carrying 24 Class X Fighters or 20 Fighters and 4 Cloaked Troop Landing Vessels. In addition it will carry 100 Marines for ground assaults or ship boarding parties. There is a crew of only 50. One of the Destroyers is capable of unbelievable fire power. It is a 100 times more heavily armed than the Light Destroyer. Without going through all the data, just understand it carries most of the same weapons as the light Destroyer, but in larger sizes 50mm Plasma Projectiles, 100mm Armor Piercing Laser Missiles, Heavier Load Photon Torpedoes, 1000 MK Nukes and HKMs (high-speed kinetic missiles); think of the mess a solid steel mass of 20,000 pounds will make when it hits a target at 4 times the speed of light; this also has a medical bay, carries 4 armored tanks with 100mm plasma cannons and complete body armor for the ship passengers and crew and I mustn’t forget the really neat workout room. In it you can adjust the gravity levels in order to prepare for fighting battles on low or high gravity worlds; adjustable from 0g to 5g. We have these two over 80% complete, plus 6 in the yard ready and armed.” Paul replied, “Can I take one home?” He was ignored.

  Lucy told them, “Let’s take a quick look at the next assembly floor so you can see the Cloaked Troop Landing Vessels.” (They were already walking that way) The ships looked like Chinook Helicopters, only a bit larger and with no rotors. They had short stubby stabilizer wings, which Paul soon realized carried weapon pods. Lucy began, “These have a weapon and targeting system, armor and all weapons needed for a landing or ship assault. They will fly in atmosphere or outer space and are reentry capable and can hit an exit velocity of 30,000 mph. They are only capable of .6 LS for a top speed. But here’s the best part about the ship. General Gljarne was about to incorporate this into all our ships before the virus, I know you will want to follow through with it.” Before his eyes a ship simple disappeared. Paul was standing no more than 10 feet away when it just vanished. He walked over until he bumped into the side and knocked on the hull. He still could not see it. His mouth hung open in amazement as he looked at Zimuel and said, “Lucy I want an entire fleet of invisible ships, we’ve got to make this happen.” Lucy answered, “As you wish. However, I have saved the best until the last. Let’s take a walk to the other end of the complex shall we, the next production floor is empty anyway.”

  As they headed the other direction past the Destroyers, Light Destroyers, Class X Fighters and the tiny little Speeders, Paul realized that this complex was literally miles across. “Do the employees walk everywhere they go?” He asked. “Lucy responded, “Most workers are restricted to the bay they work in with the exception of engineers and supervision. Those who must frequently move about the facility use a personal hover craft.” Paul had not seen one before, but decided he would have plenty of opportunity in
the future. After passing the Speeders they entered a much smaller hanger space that housed a sleek looking ship about 100 feet long. He asked what it was since it didn’t look like anything else he had seen and was undoubtedly not military. It looked far more like a very futuristic airplane. The short overhead wings swept back along the entire length of the ship. It appeared to be no more than 30 feet in height and was a bright and shinning gold color, much like anodized aluminum. He walked toward the craft as Lucy explained, “This ship was Illinasos’ personal transport. Although it is not military, it does have several weapons and the first cloaking devise installed. It is like an Earth executive jet, except this one is capable of warp speed, has a top speed of 5000 LS, can interface and control every ship in the fleet and comfortably accommodate 30 passengers. It has a dining room for 30 and a conference room of the same capacity, there is an executive office for Illinasos and General Gljarne.” As Paul reached to open the ships hatch, it opened for him automatically. He heard, “I have just programed the ships on-board computer to recognize you and in the future prepare the ship for your command.” Zimuel and Paul climbed the short set of steps into the ship. It was luxurious. Plush carpets, paneled walls, high ceilings; the seating and work areas were leather and fine beautifully grained woods. There were computer monitors and hologram devices readily available. The passenger seating in the forward cabin looked like leather upholstered La-z-boys. Each had a sound system, video system and communication device. The galley looked like it came from a fine restaurant. In the flight crew compartment was the same high tech controls he had been using in the Light Destroyer, except cosmetically far more pleasing to the eye; the seats were much lusher and the control panels covered in woods and leathers. The gauges that weren’t computerized had white faces and green numbers. Paul noticed a small panel between the controls of the pilot and co-pilot and reached over the open it. Inside were miniaturized controls for a laser cannon, thermos-grenade launcher, 20mm Plasma machine gun; Paul thought, “Not heavily armed, just enough to destroy a good sized city. He looked at Zimuel and beamed, “I am taking this one home with me. We will just leave the Destroyer here.” Zimuel nodded his approval. Lucy informed them, “No need to leave the Light Destroyer here. I will use my control system to override the ship navigational system and fly it back to Mountain City. It will be waiting for you when you get there. Zimuel smiled and said, “With Lucy around, I see no reason why I need to fly, or for that matter why you would either.” They started to exit the executive ship and Paul asked, “Lucy, why is this ship here?” She answered, “Illinasos was here at this facility when he died. No one bothered to return the ship to Mountain City; they simply moved it inside the hanger. There were too few people left to do much else.”

  As they headed toward another roll-up door large enough to put a five story house through, Paul couldn’t help but think, “If Illinasos Xhondar was still alive there would be no need for me. He had it all.” Lucy rebuked him saying, “If Illinasos were still alive you would still be the better man for the job. I’ve been inside both of your heads, yours is the one I would choose also. Illinasos was no doubt a gifted genius but I would trust his inventions more in your hands than his own. He did not possess one shred of concern for anyone but Illinasos. His whole world revolved around proving how smart he was and showing others to be wrong and inferior.” Paul pondered that thought a moment then realized how much Lucy’s comment had meant to him. Still thinking about what awaited him in the future and feeling a bit overwhelmed with this sudden acquisition of power and technology, Paul didn’t even look up until he was a good ways into the next assembly area. When he did finally look in front to see where he was going, he almost fell over. There before him was the biggest spaceship he had ever seen. Lucy informed them, “This is called the Man of War. I think that since it is a long ways from being formerly christened it should be called Verron Man of War.” Paul shook his head and readjusted his eyes to look again. He and Zimuel were speechless as Lucy critiqued them on the Man of War. “This is the largest ship that has ever been built with Xhondarian technology. Illinasos believed with all his heart that there would one day be other races, alien and human, that would invade the universe with ships even larger. This is the largest vessel that could be built in the underground facility. The battle cruiser is 6000 feet in length, 1800 feet in width and 800 feet in height. The aerodynamic structure will be capable of transporting 4 Destroyers, 10 Light Destroyers, 50 Class X Fighters and 10 Cloaked Troop Transports. There is room for 3000 Marines, a crew of 1000, enough stored weapons to supply the troops and ships with enough missiles and ammunition for a sustained six month engagement. In addition, there is a 200 bed infirmary, offices, swimming pool, gymnasium, entertainment center, storages for 20 Plasma Cannon equipped tanks and 20 armored 50-man troop ground transports. I will not try to give you a rundown on this ships weapons capability, but suffice it to say that it carries FTL missiles, plasma cannons, photon torpedoes, thermal grenades, and kinetic energy weapons as large as 100 tons. There are 12 whitematter reactors and drive systems. The ship can sustain the crew and passengers for up to 10 years if required. Every individual onboard will have access to the latest technology in body armor combined with a hazardous environment suite. There is a triple layered force-field and protective side armor 10 feet thick. It is capable of 8000 LS, has a very advanced navigation and targeting system capable of targeting from as far as 2 lights years away from a target.”

  Paul walked over to a personnel elevator at about the midpoint of the ship. He and Zimuel stepped in and the elevator carried them up to a large hanger door built into the side of the ship. It was plenty large enough to fly two Gljarne Class Destroyers through side-by-side. They started walking toward the front of the ship and an area that looked like there may be a stairwell, only to be told that the elevators were functional. The two of them boarded the elevator and rode it to the sixth floor control room. They exited and followed a long hall as they moved forward. It was mostly bare metal walls and floors with wires and duct work exposed overhead. There were dozens of large rooms off to either side of the corridor. When they got to the bridge, Paul could see that it was going to have a very high security entrance when finished. The flight control room was huge. There were places for at least a dozen control consoles for navigation, weapons, communication, monitoring of the reactors, and commanding the activities of ground forces. Paul went over to the as yet installed protective vision shield (windshield) and looked down. It was hard to comprehend that something this big could even get off the ground. He asked, “When can it be ready?” Lucy answered; “The ship is 70% complete. It should take approximately 30,000 hours using 5000 workers. That is approximately two years on Verron.” Paul knew how anxious he was to get everything up and operational, he commented, “Well, I can’t worry about that right now, first things first. Let’s go take a look at the boneyard under the tarp.” Zimuel looked at him questioningly; Paul said, “Earth thing.”

  When they exited through a small personnel door in the lower corner of the enormous hanger door, Paul noticed that the Light Destroyer they came in was gone and the sleek gold executive ship was sitting in its place. He couldn’t wait to show that to his Mom, and to think only a few years ago she had to co-sign for him to get his first car after prison. Wait till she gets a load of this. Paul didn’t realize it, but it was several miles to the outdoor storage facility; as Lucy called it. There were two personal hover crafts waiting for their use to cover the distance and use for their tour of the massive yard. They were interesting; a little larger than a Segway but remarkably alike. Paul noticed the difference immediately as he got on the hovercraft and gave it a handful of throttle. Expecting a typical acceleration that a Segway might have, he was exhilarated by what was equal to his old Honda CBR1000RR. He would swear it did 0 to 60 in less than 3 seconds. He realized that Zimuel was keeping pace and grinning like a kid in a candy store. They covered the distance to the shipyard in minutes. As they reached the f
ront edge of the monstrous covering, Paul realized that there was clearly more here to see than he had imagined; definitely more than he could see in just one day. “How many ships there, Lucy? Skip the inventory breakdown, total, what is the total number of spaceships in this yard?” “Sixty-two thousand seven-hundred and eighty-seven” was the answer. Paul stepped from the hovercraft and walked over to one of the ships. It was a ship of 300 feet and maybe 80 feet wide. The thrusters were mounted on the side instead of the rear. “Why’s this one so different?” Lucy replied, “That is a lander. The rear end opens much like an Earth military aircraft. It’s designed for shuttling supplies and equipment from a mother ship to a planet surface. Paul asked, “It doesn’t look all that military. Why is it here?” Zimuel answered for her this time, answering, “The government was so stringent in its removal of all weapons from Xhondar that instead of removing the few weapons that a ship may have on board to protect itself from hostiles on a planet surface or from a few rare pirates, they simply got rid of everything that had any kind of weapon. You will find a good many of these ships are nothing more than military transports, freighters and personnel carriers. Lucy added, “Of the sixty-two thousand seven hundred and eighty seven ships banned to this planet forty-six thousand nine-hundred and twenty-two are classified combat ships; Fighters, 2-Person Fighter Trainers, Destroyers, Battle Cruisers, Troop Landers, ship service vessels, and R4s make up most of that number. They are of various designs, ranging from very early designs to more recently updated models. Some of these ships are over 1000 years-old, the newest ships here are probably just over 300 years old.”