by J W Murison
‘Back to the Dent then Charlie.’
‘Aye, sorry Steven, we were getting a wee bit side tracked there. If there are any of those people there, then it is something you will have to consider before entering into negotiations, simply because they will have no home world to return to. We could rescue them only to have them wiped out by their natural competition. Something will have to be done with them. Also, with no use for them, the Ortea may not be happy to be left with them. Once they have domestic livestock again the Ortea may well wipe them out.’
Steven rubbed his face, ‘So if we don’t look out for these people, then no one will.’
‘Exactly.’
‘I get it now. Thank you.’
Charlie checked his notes. ‘Where was I… right! With the demise of the Dent, the war changed hands. Unbelievably the Emperor’s people made exactly the same mistake with the Ortea as their predecessors. They found some of them living on the surface, and gassed them. Then they landed and tried to terraform the planet. The Ortea attacked and captured a load of colonists as well as their ships. It was about this time that they themselves began colonising nearby star systems. Himari, would you like to take over?’
Himari was a little bit nervous, but also excited. Komoru smiled at her.
‘The two other star systems that the Ortea inhabit are very close to their home star. With this move, the Ortea had access to three different races, and those who trade with them. These star systems have very little in the way of planets and are very much large asteroid fields. There are what could be considered dwarf planets within these, like in the Kuiper Belt at home.
‘No one has any idea how many Ortea there are in these areas, but we do know they can field large fleets. We believe the technology they use at home is what enables them to live in these areas. Speculation has it that they burrow out the insides of asteroids and set up home. As no one who has entered these areas has ever left alive, it is not known whether they have terraformed any of these small dwarf planets. It seems highly unlikely though, as they do not need grass to survive.
‘Again, speculation suggests that they have plenty water and may even have underwater seas on some of these asteroids.’
‘Where does that assumption come from?’ Komoru asked.
‘From this team. Charlie told me that the captive he interrogated admitted that they have underground seas at home, and from these seas they harvest the seaweed that keeps their slaves fed. It is not too hard to imagine that they seeded these asteroid underground seas with seaweed then moved in with their food source.’
‘That idea has a lot of merit. I doubt they could transport seaweed to these new planetoids or asteroids. Not on a very large scale anyway. What do you think Steven?’
‘It makes sense. They could import fish, seaweed, feed themselves. Well done team, good thinking.’
Himari gave a small bow and handed the briefing over to Lady Jane.
Jane had an old-fashioned set of notes which she tapped on the table. It proved a little awkward as there was only a couple of pages.
‘Culturally, we know little or nothing about this race. Every race that comes across these people simply tries to wipe them out. A long time ago prisoners were taken to try and extract information, however, it would seem the Ortea have a very high pain threshold, and little information was ever gained from them. There has never been a turncoat of any kind. The chances are that if there were, they would have been killed on sight.
‘Apart from our captive who knelt and bowed in front of the Ambassadors, we know nothing about their protocols or customs. The captive let slip that there are three leaders, one from each star system, with the senior being the leader of their home world. Culturally, that really is as much as we know. Their diet consists of fish, and the meat from the slaves they keep. How those slaves are integrated into their lives we do not know; neither that nor the conditions they are kept in. We do know that they practice birth control to keep their own numbers down, most likely to prevent starvation. Much of that must also be connected to the birth rate of the slaves they keep as well.’
Jane handed the briefing over to Jeb. ‘Militarily, they seem to be more on par with Earth than any of the other races that we have met so far. The one we took captive even swore. They are capable of acting as individuals, or as individual units; unlike many of the species within the federation. The individual we met was physically fit and capable. They are also very fast; if there had been anyone else in that room other than Charlie, they would have been dead. Our captive didn’t realise that throughout his stay. Their ships are those that they have captured. Even the pistol that he wore was an old pistol, probably taken as a prize somewhere. Do they produce their own weapons? We simply don’t know. We know they use captured ships, but they don’t manufacture them. Tactically, from what we can gleam, they will attack anything that moves through their space. They aren’t stupid though and will often try to draw away an escort before attacking a convoy of freighters. Tactics that we Humans recognise. They will also ambush the unwary. Neither do they have any fear of ground warfare. That’s all we have sir.’ Jeb apologised.
Steven rubbed his chin, ‘It isn’t much.’ His eyes turned to Charlie. ‘Did you hear about the communication we received?’
‘No.’
‘Came in this morning from the leader of the Ortea. They know we have builder ships. We have been instructed to come in visible. Any attempt at concealment will be treated as hostile. It was sent directly to me. We have to meet them in the more temperate region of their planet; we already have the coordinates. Two armed escorts only. Both ships must land. I want you as one Charlie. Any suggestion as to the second?’
‘Soto. He is the best martial artist we have.’
‘I can live with that.’ He turned to Komoru, ‘Do you agree?’
‘Yes.’
‘Settled then.’
The meeting broke up, but Himari sought out Komoru. She caught her on the way back to their own ship.
‘Komoru.’ She ran up.
Komoru smiled, ‘Himari, I have been meaning to talk to you. How are you finding it?’
‘Interesting; I think.’
They both laughed. ‘Charlie isn’t being rude, is he?’
‘No, not at all. Jeb and Lady Jane bicker all the time, and Charlie refers to them as the old married couple, which seems to upset them a little; although not as much as they make out I think. It was about Charlie I wanted to see you. Jeb said something very strange during the briefing. Why would no one else have survived the attack from the alien, if Soto is the best martial artist that we have?’
‘Ah! You haven’t heard yet?’
‘No, heard what?’
‘Something bad happened to Charlie. Most of his body had to be replaced. Charlie is more cyborg than Human.’ Komoru reached out and touched her shoulder. ‘He is much stronger than a normal person Himari. Our Doctor also believes that because of what he went through, he might be a little unstable mentally. Be careful around him; keep him at a distance. I don’t think he would hurt you, but no one can really be sure what is going on inside his mind.’
‘Oh!’ Himari’s face flushed deeply.
‘Please don’t worry. Come, we have a lot to do.’
Himari’s knees felt very strange as she followed Komoru back to Ico.
Chapter 25
The Ortea’s home world was a very strange looking world. Great coloured bands ran around it in circles. Most of the planet was desert, and from space you could easily see the different minerals in the bands. The top and bottom of the planet was primarily green and blue. They had followed the instructions given, and were heading for the green band on the southern hemisphere when the ships arrived.
There was great tension within the crew. The Ortea fleet was a motley collection of different vessels. When one got too close, Steven ordered their weapons to target it. The ship backed off hastily. Nearly a hundred vessels surrounded them. As they approached to within a thousand mi
les of the atmosphere a small ship pulled in front of them.
‘We are being hailed Captain. I can put it on screen.’
‘Do so please.’
An old Ortea with a greying muzzle and a very thick neck appeared.
‘Ambassador Gordon?’
‘Yes that’s me.’
‘Please follow me down to the planet’s surface. I will guide you to the rendezvous site. The fleet will stay in orbit in case of a hostile incursion by any Federation vessels.’
‘I understand, please lead the way.’
The face stayed on the view screen for a few moments longer before it went blank. The being seemed to have been studying him.
Steven could feel the sweat trickle down his back as he stepped onto the surface of the planet. Even with Charlie at his shoulder he felt nervous.
‘We are surrounded by snipers.’ Charlie commented casually.
‘That’s reassuring, thanks Charlie.’
‘It’s to be expected Stevie. Take a deep breath, settle your nerves. I am not getting any bad vibes. They have been told to watch out for any troops other than ourselves coming from the ships. They aren’t interested in us. You can tell Komoru to join us.’
Steven and Charlie had gone down the ramp first. Steven sent a silent command then Komoru and Soto appeared. The Ambassadors wore their white robes, with intricate designs woven into the fabric along the edges, while Charlie and Soto were fully armed in combat attire. When Komoru reached Steven, Charlie stepped out ahead, his weapon slung across his chest in an offensive manner. They weren’t the high-tech weapons they normally used. One piece of information they had been able to dig up was that the Ortea had systems that could render those types of weapons inoperable. Babes had assured him it wouldn’t harm him if they did operate such a device. Nor would it harm the nanobots in their systems. So, they had decided on old fashioned weapons, with live ammunition.
Charlie headed through waist high grass towards what looked like a tent. An area fifty metres’ square had been flattened around it. Charlie stepped out of the grass. As they approached, the sides of the tent were dropped by four guards who were standing outside. The interior revealed three men sitting at a rather crude table with a couple of crude chairs for the Ambassadors.
One of the guards pointed something at them and Charlie felt something pass through him.
Charlie passed a message to all of them. ‘They just tried to render our weapons inoperable.’
‘I felt it.’ Soto answered.
‘This isn’t starting well.’ Steven answered.
‘I’m not reading any malice Stevie; they are just trying to protect their leaders.’
‘Let it slide then Charlie.’
‘Okay, will do. Soto, come up alongside the Ambassadors. Let’s meet them in a line.’
‘Yes sir.’
They stopped short of the four guards. Charlie’s senses were on high alert. ‘Stevie, the three guards, the two on the left and the one on the far right are the leaders. The three in the tent are dupes.’
‘Shit! What the hell do we do?’
‘Play along for a while.’
‘Right.’
They came to a stop in front of the four guards. The one who wasn’t a leader stepped forward. He had a large device on his ear.
He held up a hand. ‘Hand over your weapons.’
‘No. If you take a step closer, I will kill you.’
‘They are no longer working.’
Charlie turned his weapon sideways and ejected a round. The guard was able to catch it. ‘They are working just fine.’
He looked confused at the object in his hands. One of the others stepped forward and pulled him back by the elbow. The round was taken and inspected. As this was happening Charlie took out a plastic bag from his pocket and held it up.
‘Translators, modern ones.’ The bag was tossed over and caught. The three inside the tent moved forward and each took out a translator.
Steven and Komoru bowed. ‘I am Steven Gordon, and this is my mate Komoru. We are the Goodwill Ambassadors from Earth that you requested.’
The three bowed in return. ‘I am the Grand Commander of the Ortea, Tern Do, this is Grand Commander Dylin Barli of one of our outer solar systems, and this is Grand Commander Gaun Dey, of our other solar system.’ He had held up a hand as he introduced each.
Before Steven could answer, Charlie interrupted, ‘He is lying. None of them are the commanders.’
There was a moment of stunned silence. ‘Who is this person?’ He began to bluster.
Steven bowed low and Komoru followed suit. ‘We will be leaving then.’
As they began to turn, the real Tern Do stepped forward. ‘Wait a moment please Ambassadors.’ Steven hesitated as the Ortea stripped off his tunic and was handed the one from the false Tern Do.
‘I am the real Tern Do.’ He was looking at Charlie as he spoke, and Charlie nodded to Steven. The other Commanders also swapped tunics. He introduced each quickly again. Then turned to Charlie.
‘You must be the formidable Charlie that Commander Morval Oralia spoke so highly of.’
Charlie nodded, ‘I am.’
‘You will not bow as the Ambassadors have?’
‘It is my job to watch you like a shite hawk, it’s their job to play protocol and be nice.’
‘As it should be.’ He held up the round Charlie ejected. ‘These are chemical-based weapons.’
‘That’s right.’
‘Brutal, unorthodox, very effective.’
‘Correct.’
‘I haven’t seen anything like this outside a museum. Did you know our enemy never developed chemical weapons like this? By the time they discovered they had enemies, they were already in space. Their weapons have always been energy based.’
‘I was actually aware of that.’
‘You are also aware we have devices that can render most of those weapons unserviceable?’
‘If we weren’t, we wouldn’t have brought these.’
‘May I keep this?’
‘Be my guest, just don’t do anything stupid with it.’
He turned it over and tapped the bottom, ‘The striker, what do you call this?’
‘The percussion cap. Hit that hard enough and it will explode. Don’t toss it into a fire either.’
‘I will remember that.’
He turned his attention back to Steven. ‘Please come, take a seat.’
When they had sat, Soto faced the other way.
Steven could see the intelligence in the creature’s eyes and wondered at the deception. He didn’t have to wait long to find out.
‘Please accept my apology for the trick Ambassador. After decades of fighting the federation, we are, I don’t know if this will translate, we are more than a little paranoid. It is hard to believe that they have accepted a meat eating race within their ranks.’
‘They haven’t quite accepted us yet, and many have doubts as to whether they actually ever will. We are discovering there is a lot of prejudice, even among those who call themselves allies.’
‘It doesn’t surprise me Ambassador. To me you have a mountain to climb, but it is shadowed by the one we are climbing now.’
‘Every journey begins with a single step, Grand Commander.’
Tern Do smiled, and hoped his smile didn’t come across as threatening to the Humans.
‘A single step. We have similar sayings. Yet I find myself hesitating. You see we consider you and your people as the biggest threat we have ever faced.’
Steven frowned. ‘Our commitment to the federation will never be enough to threaten your people. Not unless you go to war with us as a species.’
‘We are aware of that, yet you test weapons that are a far bigger threat to us, more so than any that we have ever come across before.’
Charlie’s voice shot into Steven’s head, ‘They investigated what we were up to and discovered the asteroids we destroyed.’
Steven and Komoru passed a look. Ste
ven glanced down, he just wasn’t sure what to say next. Komoru was.
‘You are indeed a very cautious race. I am beginning to understand why your people have survived so long against such odds. I am afraid you have caught us at a disadvantage. What we were doing was of the utmost secrecy. We did not think that it would be discovered so soon. The weapons we were testing were designed to cause confusion amongst our enemies at a later date.’
‘Do you understand why your weapon causes us so much consternation Ambassador?’
‘I am beginning to Grand Commander. Two of the solar systems that you inhabit are very much like the regions of the asteroid belt that we destroyed.’
‘That is exactly why we now consider you the biggest threat to our existence. I am not sure whether we should let these discussions proceed; not as long as you have that weapon. It will be first and foremost on our list. We wish for it to be banned before these discussions proceed any farther.’
‘That, I am afraid, is an impossibility.’
‘Then we really have nothing further to discuss Ambassadors. You will be allowed safe passage out of our solar system. Understand that we now regard all Human ships as a direct threat, and they will be attacked on sight.’
‘You do not understand fully our position Grand Commander,’ Komoru smiled. ‘You see the Federation is completely unaware that we have this weapon. To have that weapon banned, you will have to treaty with us directly and on a completely different level.’ She turned to Steven, ‘Is that the correct term Steven?’
‘More or less dear; the talks would have to be held off record, be completely secret. To have this mentioned on record would cause us to have to withdraw from these discussions.’
The three leaders passed a confused look. ‘You now have me curious.’ Tern Do admitted. ‘Can you possibly explain this further?’
Komoru handed the ball back to Steven. ‘Are you aware of the rules and regulations governing weapons that can cause a containment failure on a starship?’