The Lost Fleet: Search for the Originators: A Slaver Wars Novel

by Raymond L. Weil

  “No,” replied Jolban. “There is a hyperspace dampener attached to the intergalactic hyperdrive which prevents such a malfunction. When the ship exits hyperspace it is fully operational.”

  Kathryn nodded. She would have to remember that. It could play an important part in future strategy when she engaged the Simulins.

  “Sensors, what are we picking up?”

  “Simulins,” Captain Reynolds said worriedly. “They’re seventeen light years further in toward the galactic center, but they’re definitely there. If I’m reading the long-range sensors correctly there’s twenty-seven battlecruisers and forty-two escort cruisers in the system.”

  Kathryn was surprised to find such a large Simulin fleet so close. “What about Ornellia, are there any Simulin ships there?”

  Captain Reynolds was quiet for several seconds as he seemed to be double-checking the sensors. Then he turned toward the admiral with a confused look on his face. “There are a large number of Federation ships orbiting Ornellia; over one hundred. There also seems to be a defense grid in place consisting of hundreds of particle beam satellites as well as six Type Two battlestations.”

  Kathryn drew in a sharp breath. She had never expected this.

  “Clarissa, what are Federation ships doing way out here?”

  “I suspect Jeremy sent them,” she said. “You promised Dax you would return. It seems Jeremy kept your promise. If they were successful in finding survivors, then the goal would be to set up a base to search for allies in the outer regions of this galaxy the Simulins have not cleansed of organic life.”

  “Should we go on to Ornellia and make contact with the Federation fleet?” asked Commander Grissim.

  “No,” Kathryn replied after a moment of thought. “We’ll go ahead and do our shakedown cruise. We can keep an eye on the Simulins and stay close enough to Ornellia to watch for any developments.”

  “That explains the large Simulin fleet,” Grissim said frowning. “They must know about the Federation ships at Ornellia. They may be gathering a force to attack.”

  Kathryn agreed. “We’ll begin our drills in two hours. I expect this crew to be ready for anything.”

  “They will be,” responded Commander Grissim. “We’ll put them through the ringer over the next two weeks. If we have to engage that Simulin fleet, we’ll be ready.”

  Kathryn leaned back in her command chair as she gazed at the nearby holographic tactical display. It showed all the nearer stars and planets. Using her command console, she adjusted the screen to show the Ornellian System. She was surprised to see a few Ornellian warships in orbit around Ornellia. There were a large number of AI warspheres, Alton battleships, and battlecruisers, as well as various Human warships including four battleships. Kathryn strongly suspected Alton admiral Bachal would be in charge of the Alton ships, but she wasn’t sure who led the Human ones. With a deep sigh, she knew that would have to wait. She had two weeks to get her ship ready for combat. Glancing at another tactical display showing the Simulin fleet, she just hoped she had the time she needed.

  -

  Above Ornellia Admiral Jackson was feeling nervous. Several strikecruisers on patrol had located a sizable Simulin fleet just thirty-seven light years distant. The ships had been jumping from star to star and using their long-range sensors to scan for enemy ships.

  “That fleet is there for a reason,” Alton Admiral Bachal said.

  Jackson nodded his agreement. The two were in a small briefing room discussing what to do if the Simulins launched an attack. “The particle beam satellites and the six Type Two battlestations can protect the planet from missile attack. I’ll also position the two battlecarriers and all the non-combat ships beneath the defense grid. The battlecarriers can use their fighters to take out any missiles that might make it past the defenses.”

  “What about the two battlecarriers and our other ships over Absom?”

  Jackson had already been thinking about that. More survivors were being found every day, and a safe zone had been established where the survivors could be processed before being placed on passenger and cargo ships and brought to Ornellia. A number of Marines and Ornellian military personnel were being used to patrol the perimeter of the safe zone as the planet was still infested with Conqueror Drones. Commander Frisk of the Exeter and Commander Marcus of the Reprisal were using their fighters and bombers to patrol the immediate area around the safe zone as well as flying combat missions across the planet.

  “I’m sending all of Admiral Santeld’s ships to Absom,” Jackson said after a moment. “Our two fleet repair ships have been busy upgrading the Ornellian ships. They now have better shields and particle beam cannons. We’ve also modified their missile tubes to handle our Devastator missiles. With the progress we’ve made on the planet, I would hate to throw it all away.”

  “What if the Simulins attack in force?”

  “Then we’ll have a fight on our hands. Admiral Santeld understands if a major Simulin force jumps into the system he will have to return here immediately.”

  “How soon before Admiral Calmat arrives with reinforcements?”

  “Any day,” Jackson replied. They had laid a line of FTL communication buoys between Ornellia and the nebula which contained Gaia. A message took nearly a week to reach either Ornellia or Gaia, which meant it took two weeks to receive a reply to any message they sent.

  “The additional Type Two battlestations and particle beam satellites they’re bringing will greatly enhance Ornellia’s defense grid,” Bachal commented in his soft voice.

  “Plus the twenty AI warspheres,” Jackson was quick to point out. “If they make it here in time we just might have a chance against that Simulin fleet if it attacks.”

  “I will return to the Starlight and begin preparing for battle if the Simulin fleet we’ve detected approaches.”

  Jackson watched as the soft-spoken Alton admiral left. Turning toward the single viewscreen in the room, he studied one of the Type Two battlestations. He would give anything to have a few Indomitable class ones. If he had just two of those he wouldn’t be so concerned about the Simulins.

  Earlier in the day he had met with Oman Lantoll, the Ornellian councilman who was the only member of Ornellia’s ruling council to have survived on the planet. He was now the defacto head of the Ornellian government. They had laid out plans to extend the safe areas around the mountains and discussed other areas of the planet where needed supplies and war materials might be found.

  Getting up he changed the viewscreen to a different view. It showed the beginnings of a new shipyard being built in orbit. Parts of it were already finished as they had robbed sections off wrecked shipyards in orbit above several Ornellian planets. The two fleet repair ships had been busy with this as well as updating the Ornellian ships. Jackson hoped he hadn’t made a serious tactical mistake. He could have used the two fleet repair ships to create more particle beam satellites.

  -

  Dax Matol and Les Ketene were back in the underground bunker that had protected them from the Simulins until Admiral Jackson had shown up. Since it was close to Dorman, which now had a large and growing population, much work had been done to expand it and make it stronger. Laser turrets now surrounded the mountain and a number of Hunter interceptor missile launchers had been placed in strategic locations.

  Dax sat down in front of a console that was covered with numerous small screens. Each one was focused on a different part of the mountain. On several screens, he could see Ornellian military personnel working on small defensive bunkers. On others, crews were busy removing the remains of destroyed Conqueror Drones from the slope of the mountain where they had been destroyed by Admiral Jackson’s fighters and bombers. Les was in front of the bunker’s main sensor console, which had been considerably updated.

  “Something’s up,” Les said, pointing toward a screen. See how all the nonmilitary ships are moving beneath the defense grid?”

  Dax stood up and came over staring at the large tactical
screen. Les was right. All the supply ships and the hospital ship were in the process of moving beneath the grid. Even the two orbiting battlecarriers seemed to be moving closer. Only the two fleet repair ships, which were working on the new shipyard, remained unmoving.

  “Simulins must be close by,” Dax said with a cold chill running down his back. “Admiral Jackson must be expecting an attack soon.”

  “We’d better get the bunker ready,” Les said. “I’ll recall some of the emergency personnel and have them start activating the different sections.”

  “I’ll go into Dorman and speak to Councilor Lantoll and see if he’s heard anything. I also want to inspect the laser turret sites around the city.”

  “Let’s just hope we’re wrong and this is nothing more than a drill,” Les said as he went over to the communications console and began contacting a few key personnel.

  -

  For three days the Distant Horizon had been going through emergency drills. They were occurring at random intervals to simulate an actual battle or emergency situation.

  “I don’t understand the importance of this,” said Camlin as Kathryn simulated a failure of the ship’s life support systems. Only two hours earlier the crew had fought make believe fires raging through numerous compartments on the ship.

  “That’s because you’ve never been in battle,” Kathryn patiently explained. She had changed the large viewscreen to show various compartments on the ship. That way she could observe the crew’s reaction to the different drills. So far she was satisfied with the learning curve.

  Clarissa stepped over closer to Camlin. “So many changes have been made to the ship that the crew needs to be able to handle unexpected situations without hesitation. The ship has been greatly expanded with new compartments and equipment added nearly everywhere. It’s essential the crew know where they’re going and how to conduct the repairs.”

  “So that’s why you requested none of the AIs on board participate?”

  “Precisely,” replied Kathryn as she watched two crewmembers pause on one of the screens with a confused look on their faces. “Take those two, they’re both highly qualified engineers but they’re in a new section of the ship. They’re not quite sure where to go.”

  As they watched one of the two stepped over to a wall control panel and called up a schematic of the ship. After a moment he pointed to one section of it and then gestured toward a nearby corridor. Moments later the two were off running toward their destination.

  “Those two lost valuable seconds having to stop and consult a control panel to see where they were,” Clarissa said. “In a combat situation those few seconds could cost lives.”

  “I see,” Camlin said. “Our combat AIs would doubtlessly understand this, but we have so few of them.”

  “When are you going to start moving on the Dyson Spheres the Simulins control?” asked Commander Grissim. She frowned as it was evident the two engineers were lost again. They had stopped and were looking around in confusion.

  “Back at the Communication and Transport Hub, Captain Wilde and her Marines are being shown the intergalactic vortex Control Centers and what is necessary to disable them. We have a special key we’ve designed that will allow her access to the centers and when inserted in the master control console will shut it down. The intergalactic vortex then cannot be activated again without the use of a gold command key. After taking the one from the Simulins, we now have all of them in our position.”

  “Unless Kazak has one,” Kelnor said from his science console. “If the Dominator had all of the leading scientists on board then I strongly suspect several of the gold command keys could be on board as well.”

  “What about the Simulin ships inside the Dyson Spheres and around it?” asked Commander Grissim.

  “If they attack a Shrieel the automatic defenses will destroy them,” Camlin answered. “We have managed to modify the defensive programming of all Shrieels now to ensure that occurs.”

  “What if they don’t attack one of the Dyson Spheres?” asked Reesa.

  “That’s why we need Kazak,” Leeda said. She had just entered the Command Center. “Kazak was designed to be a leader of our warfleets and upon his orders he can activate the defensive systems on any Shrieel to destroy an enemy. It will also mean we don’t have to modify our programming.”

  Kathryn and Clarissa looked at each other in surprise. If what Leeda had just said was true, Kazak could have activated the defensive systems on the black matter Dyson Sphere, eliminating the Simulins. Kathryn felt suddenly frightened as she realized the ramifications. Kazak must have wanted the Dyson Sphere destroyed. There must have been something either on the Dyson Sphere or in one of its computer systems the Originator AI considered to be a threat.

  “Admiral, I’m picking up an inbound fleet on the long-range sensors,” reported Captain Reynolds.

  Kathryn looked over at the nearest tactical display expecting to see more red threat icons. Instead there were a large number of friendly green icons. “Where are those ships going?” She already knew the answer but wanted to confirm it.

  “Ornellia,” replied Reynolds.

  “Reinforcements,” commented Commander Grissim approvingly. “They must be expecting an attack from the Simulins so a reinforcing fleet has been sent.”

  “What about the Simulin fleet?”

  “Still holding its position,” Reynolds replied. “However, in the three days we’ve been here ten more battlecruisers and seventeen more escort cruisers have arrived.”

  Looking at the two different displays showing the gathered Simulin fleet and the inbound Federation fleet, Kathryn made a decision. “We’ll continue with our drills. However, I want to mix in some weapon drills as well. If that Simulin fleet moves toward Ornellia we’re going to intercept it as soon as it drops out of hyperspace.”

  “That’s a lot of ships,” Commander Grissim pointed out.

  “Can the Distant Horizon take on a fleet of that size?” Kathryn asked Jolban, who was standing nearby.

  The Originator AI nodded. “I think you will be surprised by what the Distant Horizon is capable of now. There is nothing in this galaxy, other than the Dominator, that is a danger to us.”

  Kathryn considered what to do next. She didn’t want to take the ship into battle without the weapons being thoroughly tested. “We’ll start alternating tomorrow between combat drills and emergency drills.”

  Commander Grissim nodded her approval. “I’ve been wanting to try out the new weapons. I’m sure I’m not the only one.”

  Looking back at the tactical display, Kathryn decided to take one more defensive measure. She didn’t want the Simulins or any Federation ships detecting the Distant Horizon until she was ready to make an appearance. “Until further notice I want the stealth shield up at all times.” The stealth shield would make the ship impervious to sensors scans, particularly after the modifications the Originator AIs had made.

  “Yes, Admiral,” Commander Grissim responded. “I’ll take care of it immediately.”

  Kathryn looked at her second in command and then spoke in a softer voice. “Anne, get some rest. We’re going to have a busy day tomorrow.”

  Anne nodded. “I will.”

  -

  The next day above Ornellia, Admiral Jackson was busy talking to Admiral Calmat. The massive Bear had come aboard Jackson’s flagship soon after arriving in orbit. Jackson had just finished briefing the Bear admiral on the Simulin forces gathering nearby.

  “It is well that I came when I did,” Calmat said, folding his massive arms across his chest. He towered over Admiral Jackson. “My fleet is ready for the hunt, and I place myself under your command. We will fight as one clan and destroy the Simulins.”

  “Admiral Bachal is already positioning the six Type Two battlestations you brought as well as the four hundred particle beam satellites. When the Simulins do attack, we will have much stronger teeth than they expect.”

  Calmat nodded in agreement. “Fleet Admiral
Strong needs Ornellia. He seeks allies in the outer regions of this galaxy so the Simulins’ genocidal war against all space-going species can be brought to an end. It is an honorable quest.”

  “If anyone can do it, it would be Fleet Admiral Strong and those that surround him.”

  “The Special Five,” spoke Calmat in agreement. “They are heroes on Careth and the Fleet Admiral is a member of Grayseth’s clan. Only a few times in the history of our race has an outsider been granted clan status. He is very wise and a capable leader.”

  “The people in our Federation feel much the same,” Admiral Jackson admitted.

  To the people of the Federation overall, the Special Five were almost legendary. It was rumored they had special abilities and could not be defeated in battle. Jackson knew as the years passed, the legend would only grow and become more unreal. In time, it was likely the people of the far future would question whether the Special Five were real or only made up to give the Federation hope in its darkest time. The same would most likely be said of Fleet Admiral Hedon Streth as well.

  “Where would you like my ships?”

  “The two fleet repair ships can begin working on the new shipyard we’re building. Once the Simulins are detected, all four ships will retreat beneath the defense grid. Have your two carriers join mine. They will use their fighters to intercept any stray missiles that get by the defense grid. The bombers may be needed for tactical strikes against damaged Simulin vessels. The Colony ships and the supply ships will take up positions beneath the grid as well. All of your warships will join mine. When the Simulins come, I intend to meet them away from the planet.”

  “May we be victorious in the hunt,” Calmat said solemnly.

  “To the hunt,” replied Admiral Jackson.

  -

  An hour later the warships in Calmat’s fleet began moving. The twenty AI warspheres joined the fifty-eight already present. The four Alton battleships moved into Admiral Bachal’s formation, joining his command and giving him twenty-three battleships and nineteen battlecruisers. The two battlecarriers joined the other two just outside the defense grid and began launching fighters to form a joint CSP. The two Carethian battlecruisers formed up on each side of the Hunter to aid in the battleship’s defense.