The Definitive SpaceFed Trilogy (SpaceFed StarShips Trilogy).: A thrilling, action-packed Sci-fi space adventure. (SpaceFed StarShips Series Book 8)

by Gerry A. Saunders

  ‘The pulse isn’t like anything we've come across before. So, their implants must have changed somehow.

  Or perhaps their implants deteriorated over time, inhibiting operation of the pulse, and now they’ve been tweaked their efficiency has improved and they’re working as they should have been.’

  ‘This sophisticated pulse circuitry, could it have been designed by the Acarea’s scientists? Or maybe by the Crillons?’ Frank asked.

  'No, much too advanced.’

  ‘Then. Is there another player? Another species, who may have been here for a long time?’ he asked.

  Receiving no immediate reply, he asked again.

  ‘Do you agree, Andromeda?’

  'Maybe. I'm beginning to think that there was a second event.

  Each time I scanned their implants, the implant somehow knew it was being checked.’

  'What!' Frank almost said aloud. 'How can that be?’

  'The Pavonisiens think that their implants came from their old ship. I believe they're right, they probably did.’

  ‘So?’

  'Something’s been added since. Something more advanced than our technology could design, without a doubt.’

  Frank was startled.

  'Then you'd better set up a blanking field to operate when they’re close to you. That will ensure nothing can be retransmitted out from them.’

  'Alright,’ she replied.

  ‘Then if they ask why they can’t hear anything when they come to see me, I can tell them that no implants can be active in my presence because it could affect me.’

  'Right, that sounds good,’ he agreed.

  ‘Andromeda, I'm also curious about what actually happened to their fifth city, Hero.

  They said a volcano destroyed it. But maybe something else did?’ He finished, letting his thoughts ramble a bit.

  'It’s possible,' she thought back.

  'Right. Let’s dispatch a couple of stealth drones to carry out a complete survey of the area where city Hero was located.’

  'I'll send drones 23, and 17,' she replied.

  ‘Drone 23’s got the best vision recording equipment, and Drone 17’s specialities are magnetic and radar mapping.’

  'Good, do it now.’

  'Initializing. Ah, just in time. I see Susanna's friends are here to see me.’

  'Keep me up to speed, Andromeda.’

  'Yes, of course.’

  'More complications!' Frank thought.

  Then feeling tired, relaxed his mind.

  Andromeda opened a door, allowing Susanna's group to enter a small annexe, the door closing securely behind them.

  Facing them, was a transparent synthetic glass wall. Beyond this, sat a large, cream coloured block, about five metres by six metres, and two metres high.

  This was Andromeda's processing unit. Her brain.

  On the side facing them, was a square metre panel full of ever changing pinpoints of multi-coloured lights.

  Another smaller unit was physically connected to the first and had two smoked glass domes on the top. A faint hum could be heard in the background.

  “Don’t you have interconnections to the other unit?” Bren queried.

  “No,” came Andromeda's voice over the loudspeakers in the annexe.

  “This is my ‘primary brain’ if you like. I have other smaller units throughout the ship. Each has backup data and helps me repair myself. Using the droids, of course.”

  “Andromeda, why is my implant dead?” Acarea asked.

  “Implants are not allowed to function close to me, sorry.”

  “That's fine, I just wondered.”

  “So, that’s all there is, not much to see I'm afraid,” she said, re-opening the door to the annexe.

  “Short and sweet,” Susanna said, ushering them back into the corridor.

  Then the general background noise returned to their implants.

  An hour later, and Bren and Acarea had been shown the habitation block and some of the labs and technical bays.

  Then finally, looking through another simulated glass window, they could see the power plant.

  An immense evil looking black object that had the ability to distort the fabric of space. Attached to the power plant were two short rails, on which sat the round crystal holding chambers.

  Afterwards, they sat in the ship’s main recreation room chatting with Susanna and sampling some of the food that was available from the ships auto dispensers.

  When asked, Brendereen and Acarea politely said that the food was all right though very different from the food they produced at home.

  But then, agreed between them that they weren’t sure they would want to partake of it very often.

  The three of them then headed back to the loading bay. With Bren groaning as he saw the force-craft and, of course, the dreaded marine pilot, T-Rex.

  Susanna received a private call from Frank, 'All Ok?' came his thought.

  'Yes. Do you want me to go down with them?’

  'They should be okay with T-Rex.’

  She couldn't help a smile, thinking that would scare them to death.

  ‘What do you want me to tell them?’

  'Tell them that SD 23 will be our communication’s link with them but not for about two days, as it has a job to complete first. Then tell T-Rex to take them where they want to go.’

  'OK. I'll be with you soon.’

  Susanna walked with them to the force-craft, telling T-Rex to drop them off, wherever they wanted.

  Then said, “You need to call Mark, T-Rex. I think he wants to be picked up.”

  Turned to Bren and Acarea, and said, “Hop in, and he'll take you back. Fun, isn’t it?”

  Both cringed at the thought. Shook hands with Susanna and said. “We'll see you soon then.”

  “Remember, SD 23 will be with you in two days,” Susanna replied.

  “So, keep your locator on. We'll have a better idea of the timing by then.”

  After seeing they were seated, and their support bar was raised. Susanna waved them goodbye and walked into the airlock’s safe zone.

  The force-field came on, and their craft lifted a few centimetres. Then swung violently to line-up with the now open holding bay door.

  Its reactor flared, and the vehicle shot away. Accelerating quickly towards their planet.

  Susanna, smiling slightly, thought, 'Wow! What an exit. No wonder they were nervous.'

  By the time, Mark had returned to the Andromeda, construction of the portable containment-globes for the warp crystals was well underway in the engineering departments of both the Crillon and human ships.

  Once the warp crystal’s growing time had finished, there was a single one-minute period when a fully-grown crystal became dormant and could then be transferred into a containment-globe.

  It was critical that the warp crystal was moved during that one-minute period.

  If it wasn’t placed in the containment-globe, and its magnetic containment field wasn’t activated. Then the crystal would jump randomly in space-time, and nothing would be able to prevent it.

  However, once moved into the containment-globe, and with the globe’s magnetic containment field activated. It would stay dormant until pulsed by the ship's warp core.

  Transporting the crystals to the Crillon vessels in their containment-globes, would then be easy, with the globes, being mounted on the newly constructed conveyor system. Thus, enabling the Crillons to replace the dead crystals, each time they dropped into Normal-space.

  Two days later, the SD 23 and 17 drones returned to Andromeda. Their data and scans were uploaded from the drones to Andromeda and re-distributed to the Astro, Geo, and Data Analysis departments.

  The SD 23 drone then left, to go down and keep an eye on Brendereen and Acarea on the planet.

  The meeting was set to start in three hours. With Tim from Astro. Tom from Geo and Susanna from Data analysis being present.

  Susanna joined Frank an hour before the meeting, having already ch
ecked the data downloaded to her department.

  “I'd like a snack, what about you?”

  “What’ve you got babe?” he jokingly asked.

  “Glad to see haven’t lost your sense of humour, buddy. I assume your auto-vendor is working?”

  ” Yes, some of those potato things and meat subs will do me fine.”

  “I'll have the same.” She tapped in the request and one minute later; the food was on their plates.

  After they had eaten, they set the now empty plates into the vendor’s return slot, then sat together on the sofa.

  “This makes it all worthwhile,” she said, laying her head on his shoulder.

  They talked for a while until the door annunciator’s ping interrupted them. Tim Watson and Tom White were both waiting outside.

  They hurriedly straightened themselves up and got rid of the empty glasses.

  Frank ordered ‘Desk Extend. Door Open,” and as it slid open, his control desk then extended to accommodate the newcomers.

  “Neat,” Tim remarked.

  “Take a seat,” Frank said as four chairs then appeared, seeming to come out of the desk itself.

  Frank, set the main screen to show SD 23's visual mapping of city Hero's last known location.

  To their surprise, there was no sign of either the volcano or the devastated city Hero.

  “What are your conclusions, Tom?”

  Well, as we can see, there’s no evidence of any volcano in that area. No city remains either.

  Just rolling hills, which look as if they are still habitable.”

  “I agree,” Tim added, “Topside, there's no meteor crater or anything remotely like one.”

  “That's the same conclusion we came to,” Susanna concurred. “The data stream is original, and nothing has changed.”

  “Ok. What about the magnetic and radar scans?” Frank asked.

  “Well, they are interesting. The magnetic survey doesn’t show anything of interest. But, the radar map does,” he said, pausing.

  “Now, this could be natural of course, but it doesn’t look right,” he added, pointing to a faintly compressed area showing on the screen.

  “This area here, see?”

  “I know what you mean,” Tim agreed. Then zoomed in on the area.

  “If it were caused by an object dropping from space, the surface ground would have been disturbed.”

  “Not if something just sat on it,” Susanna pointed out.

  “Point taken,” Frank said. “If a ship caused it, have you been able to estimate its size?”

  Andromeda spoke for the first time, “About one point two kilometres long, and at least four hundred metres wide.

  That would make whatever it was, larger than even the Crillon ships.”

  “But there’s nothing there now,” Tom remarked.

  “It must have taken off again,” Tim ventured.

  “If it really was a ship. Getting a ship that size back into space would have been virtually impossible.”

  “For us, yes Andromeda,” Susanna replied.

  “OK, so something happened there. Yes? She asked, then continued without waiting for an answer.

  “Maybe that destroyed City Hero,” she suggested, stopping momentarily.

  ”But, we need to concentrate on the now. Get the Crillons out of our hair, and then look at this at our leisure.”

  “Susanna’s right,” Tim exclaimed. A broad smile beaming across his face.

  “Well, at least we've checked it out and have some information and data to work with,” Frank replied.

  “Tom, work with Tim. See if you can work back to when City Hero was reportedly destroyed. Maybe, the compression is greater at one end?

  It might give us a direction or something.”

  “We'll try Frank, but I don't hold out much hope.”

  “Well, try anyway. It could be valuable in the future. Let us know if you come up with anything.”

  “OK, Frank,” Tom said.

  “Cue to go, I think,” and they all got up to leave.

  “Stay, please Susanna.”

  The door slid open, and Tom and Tim left.

  “Sues, are you sure nothing is affecting the drone’s data streams?”

  “I'm pretty sure, why?”

  “Well, it does look as if something is enhancing, or providing information to, the Pavonisiens.”

  “I see where this is going. You think somebody’s left a communication’s system here, don’t you?”

  “Seems logical to me.”

  “What does Andromeda think?”

  “Andromeda's not been asked,” she grumbled back.

  “You don't usually wait to be asked.”

  “I was giving you privacy. But since you’re now asking, I think we should revisit their old ship. Or rustic church as they call it. After all, we've plenty of time now.”

  “Why the old ship? We all know its dead.”

  “Because, my dear. Bren and Acarea said that's where they had their training. S.O or something.

  Don't forget, there was a droid running around the last time. Where does it get its power from?”

  “You may be,” Frank said and fell silent for a moment, thinking.

  “Sues, if you’re up to it, I’d like you to go. Take a couple of marines, and Jim Pickering from computer sciences.”

  “Why Jim?” Susanna asked.

  “In case any of the computers are still working,” Andromeda answered for him. “Plus, the little droid might be talkative, electronic wise.”

  “OK. Let’s do it. Susanna. You go with Bren and Acarea and check this old ship out. Everything's going on as planned here, so we have time.”

  “All right,” said Susanna. “I'd like to have a look, and I do feel fine.”

  “Right. Andromeda, I want drone 23 to be with Susanna.

  Any risk, or problems that may endanger her, or anyone. Get them out immediately. No matter what you have to do.”

  “Yes Frank,” she acknowledged.

  Chapter 28

  More Revelations.

  Bren and Acarea watched the force-craft swing in a full curve, then stop abruptly. Settling about ten centimetres off the ground and almost touching their cabin.

  “T-Rex, no doubt!” Acarea said.

  Susanna stepped off the craft's platform and almost tripped over chunks of what was apparently molten metal, now cooled.

  “Are these pieces the remains of the two patrol ships that were melted in flight?”

  “Yes. That's what destroyed our crops.”

  “We're lucky to be alive,” Bren added.

  Susanna, noticing the once molten droplets still clinging to the side of their cabin, said. “Very lucky indeed!”

  “Come in,” they both said together.

  “Just for a minute,” Susanna replied as they stepped inside. “Hm. It’s quite cosy.”

  “You mean small.”

  “No, it's nice.”

  “So, how do you make a living?”

  “We’re farmers. All of us occupy the area between the cities and their services. We don’t have a lot of protection or control. But we supply the people with the fresh food that the production plants can’t produce,” Bren said.

  “The problem is that, although our land is rich in iron and other materials. It only has a limited amount of surface water. And we don't usually have enough rain to make good crops,” Acarea added.

  “No, we just have to rely on condensation. Usually, it’s enough, but this year it’s not. So, basically, we try to live on some of what we produce and sell the rest to our city,” Bren added.

  Then, looking sad, said. “But without the city, I don't know. There's no one we can even barter with.”

  “We may be able to help,” said Susanna. Then she noticed the computer on the table.

  “I assume that's the computer you obtained. Yes?”

  “Yes,” Acarea confirmed. “We got it from an underground lab situated on the outskirts of City Atreen. Of course,
the lab was virtually all melted away, with the heat of city Atreen's destruction.”

  “Then, there's nothing else left?”

  “Nothing of any use.”

  “Right then. Did you get my message?”

  “Yes, your drone arrived ages ago, so we’re ready,” Bren answered, “It’s here, but why doesn’t it look solid?”

  “It has a stealth skin, which makes it virtually invisible when we want it to be. But we can’t turn its stealth skin entirely off.”

  “So, who's your pilot today?” Bren asked.

  “Well thankfully, not T-Rex. Even I draw the line at him. It's Jenny. You remember her, don’t you?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  All three left the cabin and boarded the waiting force-craft.

  “Hi Jenny,” Bren said enthusiastically.

  “Goodness Bren, you seem glad to see me. You like the way I fly then?”

  “I wouldn't go that far,” he replied, giving her a wink.

  Then shook hands with the other marine, who, like Jenny, wore body armour, with both their headpieces retracted into the armour's rear storage space.

  Their side-arms looked impressive to Bren.

  Looking again at Susanna, Bren smiled to himself, seeing that she also had side arms. One gun hanging on each side of her, like in the quick-draw western film Susanna had downloaded to his computer from their archives.

  His gaze turned to the other member, Jim Pickering from computer science. He was carrying a few small instruments and probes on his belt, but unlike the others, he didn’t have side arms. Bren assumed his backpack held a very sophisticated computer.

  “Good to meet you, Jim,” Acarea said.

  “Yes,” added Bren.

  “And you both. Heard a lot about you. Excellent things, by the way.”

  “OK. Tighten your seat belts,” Jenny joked. As the craft’s force-field came on and the hand rails snapped into place.