by Saxon Andrew
“I want you to just wear the helmet while you’re teaching. Nothing more.”
“Why?”
“The helmet has to be trained to your optical nerves.”
“Ok.”
“Thank you very much for helping me.”
“No problem.” Tyler left and the Regent saw that he could clearly see everyone in the room. His eyes weren’t as good as they once were when he was younger and this helmet made his vision as strong as it had ever been. He knew Tyler only asked for him to wear the helmet in class but he found he was soon wearing it all day. Whenever he took it off, he hated his failing eyesight. Besides, Tyler had designed the front of the Helmet to look like the visage of a Raptor. He liked the response of others when they saw it.
He was talking with his mate one evening and she said, “Will you take that helmet off. I’m close to forgetting what you look like.”
He lifted the helmet and shrugged, “I’ve grown so accustomed to wearing it that I no longer notice it.”
“What’s it supposed to do?”
“I’m not sure but if it does nothing else but correct my vision I’ll continue to wear it.”
“My vision is not as good as it was.”
“I’ll have Tyler make you a helmet.”
“I won’t wear that?”
“Why?”
“Because, because…”
“You think it will detract from your beauty.”
“Something like that?”
“Do you think it might gain you some respect from the warriors?” She stared at him and he said, “You’ve always complained they don’t respond to you as quickly as they do with me. I think this helmet might be a little intimidating to them.”
She started nodding after a minute and said, “See if Tyler will make me a helmet.”
• • •
Tyler made her a helmet and three weeks later he had them join him on the ship’s bridge. “Thank you for coming. I want to see if I can connect you.”
“Connect me?”
“Yes. Hold on just a moment.” Tyler went to the helmet and pushed a small module into a socket on the back of the helmet. Tyler looked at the Navigator and nodded. The Navigator shrugged and activated the external scanners. Tyler took the Regent’s hand and placed it on the side of the helmet and said, “Do you feel this switch?” The Regent nodded. “Alright, I want you to push it up.”
The Regent pushed the switch up and almost fell, “What the…”
“I’ve connected your helmet to your ship’s scanners. Focus on one of the images.”
The Regent stared at an image showing some of his warriors working on the ship’s hull. He found he could move the view in closer or back out from it. He focused on another image and saw Andy talking with the human named Harvey. He focused closely and could hear what they were saying. He reached up and pulled the switch down. “What have you done?”
“I’ve made it possible for you to use the ship’s scanners to view anything the ship sees. If the ship is scanning a planet, you’ll be able to focus on it. If the scanners are viewing a fleet of enemy ships, you’ll be able to see it and if you choose, focus on just one ship or all of them.”
The Regent took off the helmet and looked at Tyler, “And I’ll be able to send my thought beam at whatever I’m focused on?”
Tyler nodded, “That’s the plan.”
“How are you able to do that?”
“The helmet will move an electronic field around your head so that your thoughts will only go out toward what you’re focused on.”
“It will block them from going in any other direction.” Tyler nodded. “You know we can hear each other’s thoughts if we’re in close proximity?”
“I do.”
“We’ve never told you we could do that.”
“It stands to reason that if you can project a killing thought thousands of miles, you’d have to possess some telepathic ability. Besides, I have a device that can detect telepathic patterns.”
“And it will block my thoughts.”
Tyler shrugged, “It will also block ours. I’ve built a helmet for Linnae and Harmony and they have been able to find peace for the first time in their lives without the thoughts of others barraging them every moment.”
The Regent tilted his head, “And it works.” Tyler nodded. The Regent looked at Grandel, “You’ve learned to use the mind weapon.” Grandel nodded. The Regent looked back at Tyler, “Does this mean all of those that can use the weapon will wear a helmet?”
“It does.”
“Why?”
“One day in the future, we’re going to make friends with other civilizations. It will make them more comfortable having us around if they think the thought weapon is produced by your helmets.”
The Regent stared at Tyler and shook his head, “But we would be at our most dangerous if we’re not wearing the helmets.”
“True, and if they’re so stupid as to attempt something treacherous, they’ll find out the hard way not to ever do that again.” Tyler paused, “Regent, others are very uncomfortable around telepaths; they fear their thoughts will betray them. One of our community secrets is that we are going to tell all the civilizations we contact that our mental powers are produced technologically. Then we’ll move among them without the helmets. They will be at ease and they will also be open to us to see if they can be trusted.”
The Regent stared at Tyler and shook his head, “You are thinking centuries ahead of us.”
“Just trying to make the path smooth for those that come after us.”
The Regent slowly shook his head and heard his Mate say, “I want the connection to the scanners installed.”
Tyler smiled, “I have one right here for you.” Tyler pushed the module into the slot and said, “I’ve also developed a helmet for your blaster operators that connect them to the scanners as well and they can operate the weapons from their helmet.”
The Regent shook his head and Grandel said, “The Lead Engineer says he should take his place.”
The Regent laughed, “I must say that I agree with him.” He put his hand on Tyler’s shoulder, “Lead us into the future, Tyler. The union of our species is something that fate must have demanded.”
Tyler smiled as he pushed the switch up on the Queen’s helmet and heard her gasp.
• • •
Andy walked down to the end of the giant cave and felt a small rack fall hit him on the shoulder. He stopped and looked up, searching for where the rock had fallen. He saw cracks running from the area directly above him and shuddered. The Hole would have collapsed if the Regent hadn’t used his ship’s force field to strengthen it. The force field was kept in place until the quakes finally stopped and then the major cracks were reinforced, but there were so many that most of them were ignored. He waved Tamara over and showed her the rock, “I think you should get a team up and check out the area above me.”
Tamara looked at the rock and nodded, “I’ll get the engineers to take a look at it.”
“Thanks.” Tamara nodded and put her carry pouch on the floor to mark the spot. Andy continued to the back of the cave and found Linnae and Harmony leaning against the wall. The small pool of water they were sitting next to was slowly running over the barrier and out of a hole cut in the wall. Linnae saw him coming and removed her helmet, “What’s up?”
Andy knew the helmets Tyler had made for them was a Godsend; now they were able to shut out all the thoughts that once barraged them. “I’m going to need at least one of you to be without a helmet for the next several weeks.”
Linnae tilted her head and Harmony said, “Has that much time passed?” Linnae looked at her and lowered her eyebrows. Then she saw Harmony’s thoughts and looked back at Andy.
“It’s been six months since the impact and the Time Takers are due within a month. I’m not certain about how they measure time and I don’t want to be caught by surprise.”
Linnae waved a hand, “Their time is the same as ours. Th
eir thoughts translate into our measurements.”
“Even so.” Linnae looked at Harmony and she nodded. Andy sighed, “What did the two of you just decide?”
Linnae looked guilty, “I’m sorry, Dad; we have gotten out of the habit of sending you what we’re thinking. Mat’s telepathic ability had grown since he started using it with Harmony. He is also capable of hearing them. We’ll work out the schedule to make sure at least one of us is open all the time.”
“Girls, this is extremely important!”
Harmony smiled, “And we’re taking it seriously. We’ll handle it; however, I think they won’t arrive during nighttime.”
“They probably won’t but…”
“We’ll make sure one of us is watching at all hours.”
Andy smiled and Harmony’s quick response and said, “Some of the communities have started sending Riders out to explore the lands around their caves. Notify them that until we tell them differently, everyone must stay in their caves.”
“We’ll get the message out.”
“Thanks.” Andy turned to go and stopped. He turned around and said, “Do either of you remember the species that attacked the Talen’s home world?” Linnae and Harmony looked at each other and nodded. “Is it possible that you could find them again?”
Linnae shrugged, “Maybe, why would you want us to do that?”
“If you could find one of their starships and link with the one on board that flies it…”
Harmony nodded, “We could link some of our warriors with him and they could learn how to operate it. Do you think we’re going to come into possession of some of their ships?”
“The Regent knows where three of them are located with everyone on board dead.”
Linnae nodded, “And we’re going to need them.”
Andy nodded, “Exactly right.”
“Does it have to be them?”
“What do you mean, Harmony?”
“Wellllll…if the Regent’s mind waves work like we think they do, it might be a better idea to find ships that are more powerful than those three.”
Andy’s eyebrows came down and he thought about the idea. “We’ll still want to know how to use those dead ships. We can retrieve those without having to fight someone to get them. However, let me know if you find something else. One should never limit their options.” Andy turned and walked back towards the Talen Warship.
Linnae looked at Harmony, “Are you thinking about the brown ships?”
“I am. No one has been able to slow them down, not even the ones that destroyed the Talen’s planet. They’re also much larger, which is another benefit.”
“Then why don’t we do this; you try to find one of the brown ships and you’ll feed the pilot’s thoughts to Tyler and Mat. I’ll find the ones that left the three dead ships and feed the thoughts to whomever Dad and the Regent select.”
“Ok, do you want to be included in learning how to fly it?”
“You know you can just feed the information to me at night or when neither of us aren’t busy. I’m going to do the same with the three of you.”
Harmony nodded, “I’ll talk with Mat about it tonight. I’ll let you know what he thinks.”
Linnae smiled, “Let’s go ahead and contact all the communities and let them know they should stay inside. Then we can start looking for those two species.” Harmony nodded and closed her eyes.
• • •
“DAD, THEY’RE BACK!!”
Andy left Melody with Harvey and the priests. She was due to have her baby and he was staying close. He ran to the ship and rushed up to the bridge. He looked up at the monitor and saw the huge grey ship hovering over the site of the former community. He shook his head and looked at the Regent, “They’re a few weeks late.”
The nodded absently and stared at the monitor, “I wonder why they haven’t destroyed our scanner.”
Linnae entered the bridge just ahead of Harmony and said, “I think they’re going to take it with them.” Everyone looked at her and she shrugged, “That’s what they’re thinking about.”
Andy looked at the ship and shook his head. The sky was still covered with thick dark clouds, which made midday look like twilight. The black ground under the huge, hovering ship was covered in large accumulations of snow and ice. There was no movement on the ground. He looked at Linnae, “What are they doing?”
“They’re taking more time to scan the ground for the Talen’s ship. Last time they were being barraged by burning rocks and they were concerned that a really large piece might hit them. They can take their time and make sure. Do you want to hear what they’re saying?”
“Absolutely!”
The Regent took off his helmet, “I do as well.”
Andy could see the beings on the Time Taker’s ship from the eyes of one of them. They looked like large bronze lumps that continuously changed shape. Then he heard, “There just doesn’t appear to be enough mass for it to be their ship?”
“It’s really not far off from being the right amount, or do you disagree?” Andy sensed the one whose mind he was in contemplating whether or not to challenge the ship’s commander. “No, there is a large debris field under the mud. I just can’t see the important pieces. The power plants aren’t as big as they should be.” Andy looked at the Regent and remembered him suggesting that all the reactors from three landers should be gathered in one place. He nodded and the Regent smiled.
“Notice that the ground around them is burned and still emitting radioactivity. After seven months, a lot of the material could have burned away.”
“The ground is covered in carbon from the rocks that fell; it does inhibit some of our scans.”
The Commander looked at the speaker, “If it’s not their ship, what is it?” The speaker remained silent. “That debris matches the structure of their hull. The power units match the emissions of their fuel. It’s scattered over an area as large as their ship. What else could it be?”
Andy heard the speaker think that it could have been landers but he immediately dismissed the thought. Andy shook his head and saw the Regent doing the same. Then the speaker decided that it couldn’t have been anything else. The comet’s impact must have burned some of the ship, which would account for the missing mass. “You’re right. It has to be the remains of their ship. Are we going down to collect that piece of equipment that is still powered?”
The Commander looked at the scanner on his monitor and after a few moments of reflection he said, “No, just hit it with a blaster. We need to make sure none of the humans survived the impact.”
“Where do you want to start?”
“They didn’t have enough time to really spread out. We’ll start five hundred miles north of here and do a deep scan. We’ll then move around the former shoreline paying close attention to where we originally placed them.”
“And if none of them are found?”
“We will jump forward two years and look again. If we don’t see any, then we’ll have to jump to our time to see what this change has caused.”
Suddenly, a bright flash emerged from the grey ship and the wall monitor went dark. Andy and the Regent heard, “I’m moving the ship north of here.”
“That would be good.”
Andy looked at Linnae, “You can stop sending their thoughts. Let me know if anything important happens.” Linnae nodded. Andy looked at the Regent, “That was close.”
“Indeed it was. The Commander confirmed everything you told me.”
Andy nodded, “Which means, we have two years to get out of here.”
“How do you see that happening?”
“Once the girls confirm they’ve jumped away, we need to take your ship back to your planet and see if it’s still habitable. If it is, we’ll go out to capture ships to move us.”
“It’s been a year since we fled. I suspect there won’t be many enemy ships there, if any.”
“Linnae and Harmony will be able to see if there are.”
Harmo
ny tilted her head, “Dad, do you think it’s wise to take both of us?”
“Why do you ask?”
“One of us should remain here to pass on whatever orders you have for the communities.” Andy lowered his head a moment and Harmony said, “Also, I think it would be a better idea if you didn’t go at all. You know how your absence would affect the communities.”
Linnae quickly said, “And don’t forget about the baby.”
Harmony smiled, “Yeah, Mother is about to have her baby.”
The Regent looked at Andy, “You worry that I won’t keep my word.”
“Wouldn’t you worry if you were in my place?”
“I would. However, we’ve become dependent on Tyler’s inventions and most of my subjects would revolt if I even thought about backing out on our agreement.” The Regent looked at Harmony, “Which one of you would go with us?”
“Linnae and Tyler, along with Richard, Jennifer, and Manuel.”
Andy looked at Harmony, “Why would Rich, Jenn, and Manny be going?”
“They’re the ones that have learned how to pilot the three ships. I suspect you might want to go and pick them up.”
“I didn’t know you were teaching them. I thought we’d start that after the Time Takers appeared.”
Harmony shrugged, “We went ahead and started training them the day after you asked us about it. They’re good choices; all of them are single and highly rated warriors.”
A young Priest stepped on the bridge and said, “Pardon my bad manners for interrupting…” He looked at Andy, “Melody is in labor and is calling for you.”
Andy looked at the Regent and said loudly as he turned and ran away with the Priest, “Work it out with my daughters, I’m going to stay.”
Harmony looked at Linnae, “The Priest didn’t say that Mom is having twins again.”
Linnae’s head went back, “REALLY!”
“Yes, the first one has already arrived and it’s a boy.”
“REALLY!”
The Regent smiled, “Why don’t the two of you plan to sit down with me after the Grey Ships leaves and we’ll determine what we should do next.”
Harmony nodded and saw Linnae was back to following the Time Takers as they moved around the planet.