The War Against Earth: A Chance Encounter
Page 22
“I don’t…”
“You should talk to them,” Meredith interrupted Rory. He looked at her and she said, “I have. And Admiral Hamlin is right, you’re not doing them any favors by denying their requests. You don’t know what living is like when all of those you love were brutally executed and you’re left alone to live with that knowledge.”
Rory stared at Meredith and said, “What about the rest of you? What do you think about this?”
Dan looked at Rory and shrugged, “Sir, I feel like you do…but, I’ve not walked in their shoes. If we refuse them, I suspect they will ultimately end their own lives. Their hope of revenge is the only thing that keeps them alive.”
Rory looked at Logan, “What about you?”
“Sir, of the six-hundred or so former agents, only about a hundred or so have managed to start a new live in the Colonies. The others have refused to assimilate and are pretty much loners. Their only friends are the ones that have suffered the same fate. These sailors are pretty much the walking-dead.”
Rory sighed heavily, “I just can’t do it! My sailors are important to me and I just can’t deliberately allow them to go into a situation they can’t survive.”
“I’ll take command of them, Sir,” Dean suggested. Rory looked at him and Dean said, “I’ll give them their opportunity and, except for eighty or so of them, the others will be able to survive if they so choose.”
Rory stared at Dean and said, “Perhaps you should be in overall command, Admiral.”
“No, that wouldn’t be a good thing, Admiral. The Fleet believes in you because you put their interests first. This is a special circumstance and I pray no one else ever has to suffer through what these sailors have endured. I think that is part of what keeps them going.”
Rory looked at Meredith and she nodded. He took a deep breath, blew it out slowly, and said, “Admiral Hamlin, if you are going to do this, make sure they are able to be successful.”
“I’ll need some of the new Scouts specially prepared for them, Sir.”
“Do what has to be done.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“How much longer do we have, Sir.”
Rory looked at Dan, “I suspect not much longer. I have a Scout Wing at Earth waiting to record what happens.”
“You should be there with them, Admiral.” Rory tilted his head and Meredith said, “You know Thorpe is going to announce his attack on the Colonies to Earth and you should be there to offer a rebuttal.”
“Is that possible?”
“Lt. Cambridge says that we can interrupt his transmissions and present our side of what’s going on. You are the only one that will make Thorpe stumble.”
“Notify the Scouts to let me know the moment they detect Thorpe’s subterfuge happening.”
“They’re intercepting the Communications between the Defense Satellites and their fleet. You should move your Squadron inside Communication range when that happens. The rest of the Fleet will start moving behind you.”
Rory nodded, “Get your forces ready…it won’t be much longer.”
• • •
Duke Haley was sitting on the New Defense Satellite Churchill and heard, “Your Highness, Baron Kitchens wishes to speak with you.”
“Put the call through.”
Kitchen’s appeared on his panel and said, “I have the Destroyers ready, their crews have been replaced with Knights and they’re getting their orders now.”
“When do you plan to do this?”
“Five-days from now. I’ll send you the approach vectors to the satellites by tomorrow. The nuclear missiles will be delivered in four-days.”
“What do you think about this, Kitchens.”
“Does it matter?”
Haley shrugged, “Not really.”
“Five-days.”
“We’ll be ready.”
• • •
Sherry listened to the exchange and launched a communication probe.
• • •
Thorpe looked at his Intelligence Service Leader, “Is everything ready?”
“The Camera Team will be in place early and the others will be brought immediately in citing a planetary emergency as the excuse, Your Majesty.”
“I’ve already prepared my speech.” Thorpe smiled, “I’ve been so looking forward to this.”
“It won’t be much longer.”
“Even a minute is too long to wait,” Thorpe responded.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The New Scout Wings spread out around Earth and turned their scanners toward the Defense Satellites. Megan watched them and waited for Thorpe’s countdown to complete. Antonio had the Churchill Defense Satellite and knew he’d do a good job. She was concerned that Fleet Admiral Mankin was present; the Fleet couldn’t afford to lose him. Perhaps Thorpe’s attack would be delayed. Naaa…he had no patience. The war was going to start and she might as well get used to the idea. Those four new Carriers Thorpe had in his fleet concerned her. Two of their Six-Carriers were left behind at the Colonies to take on anything that made it through. She heard a voice on her monitor and turned to listen.”
• • •
“Duke Haley, I am moving my ships out from behind the Defense Satellites.”
“We have your ships plotted, Sir Jeffery. Notify me when you arrive at your firing points.”
“Yes, Your Highness,”
• • •
Eight-four Destroyers moved out between two of the giant Defense Satellites and then scattered moving around Earth. Each Destroyer was assigned to one Defense Satellite each and they moved more than eight-thousand miles above them. Once they arrived at their assigned positions, Megan heard, “Your Highness, we are in position to launch.”
“Give me a count down, Sir Jeffery.”
“Sixty-seconds from…NOW!”
Haley lifted his communicator, “All Satellites, launch will take place in fifty-seconds from…now. You have the courses the missiles will be taking and make sure you have them locked in to your tracking computers.” Haley sat back and waited for the launch.
• • •
On Earth, alarms began sounding in every city and community on the planet. Loud recordings announced, “EARTH IS UNDER A THREAT OF NUCLEAR ATTACK! SEEK SHELTER IMMEDIATELY!” The message continued to repeat but most civilians knew it was too late to do much. They went outside and stared at the skies.
• • •
Senior Captain Jeffery Nichols watched the countdown on his panel and when it hit zero, he said, “Launch Missiles!”
Those on Earth’s night side could see the small speck of the Defense Satellites high in the nighttime sky and then the bright lines of disruptor beams suddenly appeared followed by a massive flash of light. Then the entire sky was filled with the brilliant flashes of light covering the nighttime sky. The flashes could even be seen during daylight on the other side of the planet. They seemed to go on for a very long time before they stopped. It actually took thirty-minutes but to the people on the planet, it seemed so much longer.
Live videos from the night side of Earth were being shown around the world as the narrator was saying that the Defense Satellites were shooting down nuclear missiles fired at Earth’s major cities. Everyone on Earth wondered, who or what was attacking them? They were quickly given an answer.
The Alarms finally stopped blaring around the planet and people rushed into their homes to hear what was known about the attackers on their news channels. All of the broadcasters were professing no knowledge about what happened and then an announcement came over every channel that Emperor Thorpe would address them shortly.
• • •
Rory looked at Lisa, “Are you sure about this?”
“Once the links are established, I can lock them on and broadcast on them. I cannot make the links but I can use them.”
Meredith looked at Rory, “Have you decided what to say?”
“Yes, I’m not going to say anything.”
“But…Thorpe will ma
ke this into…”
Rory interrupted her, “If I interrupt him and argue with him on an open channel, what do you think all the people on the planet are going to think?” Meredith and the rest of the bridge crew stared at him. “They’ll think it’s highly suspicious that Earth is attacked and suddenly, here is the fleet from the colonies saying it wasn’t them. Thorpe will claim that everyone knows that those that hate Earth were sent to the Colonies and are now trying to kill those that didn’t execute them out the goodness of their hearts. It’s an argument that can’t be won.”
“So why do you want to get control of the broadcast?”
Rory smiled, “We do have some recordings of the Emperor’s Men and I think they could at least start making things somewhat difficult for him. He’ll have to wonder who is working against him in his government. It’s worth the effort.” Rory looked at Lisa, “Do you have all the recordings spliced in.”
“Ginger and Major Stanly just finished and I’m getting a down load now.”
“Be ready to send it on my signal.”
“Yes, Sir.”
• • •
Rory watched the wall monitor and suddenly saw General Thorpe appear on it. He had to admit, the General’s anger really looked genuine. Maybe it was due to him being angry all of the time.
• • •
“People of Earth, we have been viciously attacked by almost a hundred-warships that launched nuclear missiles at our major cities. Our glorious and victorious defenses destroyed every missile and none managed to get through. You can be proud of the forces you’ve built and they have shown they are worth every cent spent on them.”
Thorpe paused and his expression turned even more angry as he said, “We have found that the attacking warships were launched from the Colonies!!” Thorpe was silent for a long moment as he shook his head and glared at the screen. “I’ve sent every traitor and everyone who hates Earth out to the Colonies starting with those that fought against the unification of Earth. Instead of executing them for their treason, I allowed them to live and this is how they’re repaying you for your mercy. They intend to destroy the unity we’ve all fought so hard to bring into existence.”
Thorpe’s expression turned hard, “They will not get another chance to attack us. I am ordering the Fleet out to destroy them all, along with their treasonous views and treacherous behaviors. I will not allow them to endanger those I serve as your Emperor!!”
• • •
Rory pointed his finger at Lisa and the view on the monitor instantly changed. A message appeared in big white letters on a black background and began scrolling down the Screen.
• • •
“TWO-YEARS AGO, GENERAL THORPE ANSWERED A REPORTER WHEN HE WAS ASKED ABOUT DEFENDING THE COLONIES FROM THE ALIENS, HE REPLIED AS FOLLOWS;”
Video appeared showing General Thorpe in the news conference and he said, “I understand the Colonies doesn’t have any warships. But my main responsibility is to protect the birth place of mankind. It’s unfortunate, but we don’t have the forces to defend both.”
The video disappeared from the screen and the screen began scrolling again.
“IF THE COLONIES HAD NO SHIPS TO DEFEND IT. WHERE DID THE SHIPS THAT JUST ATTACKED EARTH COME FROM?”
The view on the monitor changed and turned to black but voices were heard:
“Your Highness, Baron Kitchens wishes to speak with you.”
“Put the call through.”
“I have the Destroyers ready, their crews have been replaced with the Knights and they’re getting their orders now.”
“When do you plan to do this?”
“Five-days from now. I’ll send you the approach vectors to the satellites by tomorrow. The nuclear missiles will be delivered in four-days.”
“What do you think about this, Kitchens.”
“Does it matter?”
“Not really.”
“Five-days.”
“We’ll be ready.”
• • •
Then the monitor showed two lines of Warships moving away from Earth between two-defense satellites. The view showed them move out and scatter around Earth as more conversation was heard:
• • •
“Duke Haley, I am moving my ships out from behind the Defense Satellites.”
“We have your ships plotted, Sir Jeffery. Notify me when you arrive at your firing points.”
“Yes, Your Highness,”
• • •
The view on the monitor showed every Defense-Satellite had one of the ships move high above it. The screen showed four-different images from different positions around Earth. Then, voices said:
“Your Highness, we are in position to launch.”
“Give me a count down, Sir Jeffery.”
“Sixty-seconds from…NOW!”
“All Satellites, launch will take place in fifty-seconds from…now. You have the courses the missiles will be taking and make sure you have them locked in to your tracking computers.”
• • •
Thorpe was on his feet screaming, “SHUT THAT DOWN!!! SHUT IT DOWN NOW!!!”
The Intelligence Service Leader shook his head, “Your Majesty, someone has taken control of the communication links!! We’re trying to stop it now!!”
Thorpe almost shot the Officer but looked back up at the monitor and saw the writing had started again.
• • •
“IF GENERAL THORPE KNOWS THE COLONIES HAVE NO WARSHIPS, WHY WOULD HE FAKE THIS ATTACK FOR AN EXCUSE TO KILL EVERY HUMAN IN THE COLONIES? PERHAPS SOMEONE SHOULD ASK HIM.
The screen changed back to Thorpe’s studio and everyone on Earth heard him scream, “I WILL FIND WHO DID THIS AND KILL THEM!!”
The Intelligence Officer shouted, “WE’RE LIVE, YOUR MAJESTY!!”
Thorpe was instantly silent and he sat down on his throne and stared at the cameras. After a very long moment, he said, “This trash you’ve just seen is propaganda along with a faked video to convince you that the Colonies didn’t do it. I will stop their treason!!”
He looked at the producer and nodded. The broadcast shutdown instantly.
• • •
Rory looked at Lisa, “You’ve done an outstanding job, Commander.”
“Sir, I’m a Lieutenant.”
“Not any more. You’ve earned your new rank and you will be in command of all Fleet Communications.”
“Thank you, Sir.”
Rory looked at Meredith, “What could I have added to that?”
“You could have called Thorpe what he is; an insane, power-crazed, son-of-a…”
“And what good would that have done?” Rory interrupted.
Meredith shrugged, “Probably none but it would have made me feel better to see his expression.”
“I think his expression couldn’t have been any worse. I thought he might have a stroke.”
“Evil people usually have perfect health; we wouldn’t be so lucky,” Meredith replied.
Rory looked at Lisa, “Fleet Status.”
“The final units will be here in another twelve-hours, Sir.”
Rory nodded and sat back, “I suspect it will take longer than that for Thorpe to digest what just happened and investigate how it happened. I wish I could be a fly on the wall when he meets with his henchmen.”
• • •
All over Earth, people began asking how could this tape could have been faked when it showed the ships moving out from Earth and many immediately went on their computers and matched up the warship’s numbers against what was in Earth’s Fleet and discovered they matched exactly. A day later, the list of ships in Earth’s Fleet was removed from public consumption.
But many had printed the list and shared it with others. The fear of the Knights and this new revelation started an underground swell of suspicion and concern about whether giving a General complete and total control of their lives was a good thing after all. The telling piece of information came from amateur astronomers who actually ca
ptured the Destroyers moving back to the planet between the satellites; soon, the swell grew into a wave. But no one was willing to speak out publicly, there was always the Knights that would execute those that did.
• • •
Thorpe sat on his Throne in the giant palace that had been built outside the ruins of Nagoya, in Japan. It was a perfect place for the palace. All human structures had been blown away and the land cleared for more than twenty-miles around the palace. Walls had been erected and the Knights’ main training facility was inside the walls where they would be isolated from anyone but the Emperor’s Trainers. Once they were properly indoctrinated, they were sent out around the planet to insure the Emperor’s directives were followed.
Thorpe looked around the room and said, “Who did this? Haley, I heard you and Kitchens on that recording.”
“Your Majesty, I have no idea who recorded us. We were on an encrypted-channel when we had the discussion.”
Thorpe stared at them and his eyes narrowed, “That must mean it was done by someone inside Fleet.”
Haley shrugged, “Sir, that appears to be what happened.”
“Do you have any idea who had the resources to do this?’
“No, Your Majesty, I do not.”
Thorpe turned to his Intelligence Royal, “And I suppose you have no idea as well?”
“I do not, Your Majesty.”
Thorpe sneered, “What good is Intelligence if it doesn’t know anything.”
“I WANT THE TRAITOR WHO DID THIS BROUGHT TO ME!!!” Thorpe jerked his head around to the side wall and saw Jeffery Nichols and his Second-in-Command sitting in a chair watching the proceedings. “Are you the Traitor!?!”
Jeffery smiled slightly and looked around the room, “Sire, no one in this room betrayed you.”
“AND JUST HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT!?!”
Jeffery shrugged, “All it takes is looking at the images used in that recording.”
Everyone in the room turned and looked at him as Thorpe softly said, “Are you calling everyone here stupid?”