The Invasion Begins

by Thomas DePrima

  ~ ~ ~

  “I’d gotten used to seeing the taskforce ships on the bridge monitors throughout my watch,” XO Mollago said as he sat in Christa’s office for their morning briefing. “It seems so strange not to see them anymore. Now all I see are the twenty CPS- 16s that are part of our squadron. Quite a difference when you’re used to seeing a battleship, a Quartermaster ship, a ship-transporter, and a handful of destroyers. It was almost like we were in the Fleet Harbor at Quesann.”

  Christa smiled and said, “I sort of like seeing the uncluttered view. Get used to it because I don’t expect us to be part of any major operation again for a while. The Denubbewa now know that we can defeat them in space or on planetary surfaces, but— we have to constantly be on the lookout for their next stratagem. We believe they’ve been on a crusade to replace all biological life for centuries, so they must have acquired an amazing amount of warfare experience. So far, they seem to have been testing us with thrusts here and there, which we’ve been able to parry. It’s possible they haven’t been devoting all of their attention towards us because they’re currently at war with civilizations in other parts of the Milky Way, or even in other galaxies. It’s frustrating that our knowledge of the Denubbewa is so limited. Although we’ve beaten them at every encounter, we have no idea what they’re really capable of. For example, do they have weapons that are a thousand times more powerful than our WOLaR ordnance, or have we seen all they have and their only move left is to overwhelm us with cyborgs?”

  “I think waiting for the other shoe to drop is the most difficult part of warfare.”

  “Yes, but even with their advanced modes of personal travel, the real impediment is the distances involved. We just have to hope that when they get another Armada CJ Gate constructed to transport ships, we’re prepared for them.”

  ~ ~

  “You wanted to see me, Captain?” XO Mollago said as he entered Christa’s office a few hours later.

  “Yes. I’ve just received new orders from Quesann. The squadron is to resume patrol along the border from here up to Region Two and then back. Prepare the ship for departure.”

  “Yes, ma’am. What about the Marines on Husteus?”

  “Most of the Marines left after all the CJ Gates were removed from the planet. They returned to the Artemis before it departed. General Peter Burr is still in command on Husteus, but the size of his force has been considerably diminished. They’re receiving their orders directly from Quesann now, via forwarding by Ellask SCB. The Winston will be arriving here soon to collect the remains of the Denubbewa ships destroyed by the Miami. I understand they’ll also be placing one of the new communication satellites in orbit near here. Once activated, it should be usable immediately, so anyone with an authorization to use the system will have near-instantaneous communications with Quesann.”

  “I wish we could get one of the new systems installed in the Koshi.”

  “We will. Quesann is manufacturing and shipping the new com systems as fast as they can. We just have to wait our turn. Because we’re so far out, we’re higher on the priority list than Scout-Destroyers operating closer to Quesann. When our new com system arrives out here, we’ll be told to report to one of the new Space Command bases. I understand the installation can be completed in hours. In the meantime, our communications time has been reduced from a month to just seconds when we go through Ellask, plus the time required for our S-Band signal to make the trip to the station.”

  “What about our CPS-16s?”

  “They’ll all be getting the new system as soon as equipment is available, but they’re at the bottom of the list of Space Command vessels because they aren’t normally that far from us. S-Band is still highly effective for short-distance communications. And they have little need to communicate with anyone other than us until the system is available for personal communications. For the time being, all messages can be relayed through us once we have our new system installed.”

  “Sometimes we operate at considerable distances from the 16s so I hope we don’t have to wait too long to get everyone properly equipped.”

  * * *

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  ~ January 3rd, 2293 ~

  “We’re approaching the next search area, Captain,” the navigator said to Christa.

  Christa shifted in her chair and then said, “Com, alert all ships to come to a stop and then move out to their designated search positions.”

  “Aye, Captain,” the com chief said, then touched a few contact points on his console and relayed the message.

  Some fifteen minutes later, the com chief said, “All vessels have reached their positions, Captain, and are ready to begin the search.”

  “Give the signal to commence. Helm, let’s move out.”

  Both said, “Aye, Captain,” as the Koshi surged ahead.

  Christa’s orders were to continue the search routines they had employed when they came across the Denubbewa ship that held the cyborg scientists now working for Space Command at Lorense-Three. Since it was possible that Denubbewa ships in Region Three might be sheathed in Dakinium, the tac officer on every ship had their workstations programmed to watch the stars and alert the tac officer if any of them winked out briefly. If any did and there was no reasonable explanation, such as a planet or an asteroid or space junk, the squadron would stop and investigate. The chance that the computer would even record the absence of starlight given the speed the ships were traveling was slim, but it never hurt to use all available tools.

  The squadron had been searching for anything out of the ordinary for several days, so it was a relief from the dull routine when the Koshi received a message from Quesann. Christa rose from the command chair and walked to her office after ordering the navigation officer to take command in her absence.

  The message wasn’t a Priority-One so a retinal scan wasn’t required. Christa tapped the spot on the touchpad that would play the message and then leaned back to watch.

  “Good morning, Christa,” the smiling image of Admiral Holt said. “I have two items to mention. First, I want to congratulate you on a job well done with the CJ Gate booths on Husteus. Admiral Plimley’s people are busy examining and collating all the transfer information you were able to collect. Hopefully, it will help us identify locations of fixed booths as we accumulate more and more data. As we recycle wreckage at Lorense-Four and find more booths, we immediately turn them over to the experts now and the cache memory information is downloaded before the power is disconnected.

  “The other item I have is to inform you that your new com system is waiting for the Koshi at Jussento SCB. We believe that’s the closest Space Command base to the area of space you should be searching at present. In addition to the com station you’ll be receiving, there are four additional stations for four of your CPS-16s. Install them in ships having commanders you trust most because they’re the ships mostly likely to be sent on missions that take them farthest away from the Koshi.

  “Eventually, we’ll get every ship in your squadron fixed up with a new system. For the present, use the new system only for military communications. We expect to open the system up to all communications within two months. S-Band communications will naturally continue to be available on all ships because planets and civilian shipping will not have the military com systems available for some time. Ultimately we hope to make the new capability available to everyone, such as freight haulers and passenger liners who have a special account, as well as to telecommunications providers who will pay a fee for each minute of usage.

  “That’s all, Christa. Jen says hi.

  “Brian Devon Holt, Vice-Admiral, Quesann Command. End of message.”

  Christa was smiling as she returned to the bridge. As the navigator yielded the command chair and she sat down, Christa said, “Nav, are we closer to Jussento SCB now than we’ll be at the end of our search route?”

  “I’ll check, ma’am. Give me ten seconds.”

  Ten seconds later, the navigator said, “We
’ll be closer at the end of the search pattern.”

  “Okay, we’ll finish this search run. But at the end of the run we want to head to Jussento. Compute a course and forward the data to all the other ships.”

  “Aye, Captain.”

  ~ ~

  As the Koshi and its squadron of CPS-16s entered Jussento, Christa was surprised by the number of civilian ships inside the port. Being a former Denubbewa mothership, the port area was enormous and could house a virtual armada of Space Command vessels, so it took quite a number to give a first impression that it was anything other than barren.

  The Koshi and the four ships that would receive the new communications equipment were assigned to berths near entrances into the pressurized area of the base in order to facilitate access to the ship by station workers.

  After docking was complete and the airlock connections had been tested and certified, the hatch of the Koshi and the airlock entrance to the enclosed piers and docks were opened.

  As Christa stepped onto the pier and began walking towards the station, S.C. engineers guiding oh-gee sleds filled with equipment and testing equipment were slowly walking towards the Koshi airlock.

  Having been the temporary administer at Jussento SCB when it still bore the provisional name of Doc, Christa was intimately familiar with the layout of the space station and had met the new administrator when he arrived to take permanent command. Her destination now was his office.

  Upon entering the office of the station administrator, Christa was surprised to see several individuals seated in the waiting area. The administrator’s secretary/clerk looked up from her keyboard and smiled before saying, “Good afternoon, Commander. Can I help you?”

  “I was hoping to see Captain Allanton, but it appears he’ll be tied up for a while. I’ll come back at a different time.”

  “Let me tell him you’re here and see when he’ll be able to squeeze you in.”

  After speaking the message to her computer screen, she read the reply and said, “He would like to see you now. Please go in.”

  Christa walked to the door of the captain’s office without looking directly at the people who were waiting, but from the corner of her eye she could sense they were unhappy about her being seen immediately. She stepped into the room as the door slid open and then closed behind her.

  “Christa,” the captain said as he came out from behind his desk and extended his hand, “it’s wonderful to see you again.”

  Christa smiled and said, “It’s great to see you again, Captain.”

  “Ronald, please.”

  “Okay, Ronald. How are you doing out here?”

  “It’s been a new experience, that’s for sure. I can say one thing about this job— you don’t get bored. Frustrated, yes. Bored, never.” Gesturing towards his informal seating area, he said, “Let’s sit down and talk.”

  After taking seats, Christa said, “I couldn’t help but notice that the port seems unusually busy. Is there a problem?”

  “Freighters whose cargo isn’t quite ready for transport at nearby planets prefer to wait here where they’ll be safe from Denubbewa attack instead of sitting out in open space. When they get a firm date for when cargo containers will be ready, they’ll coordinate their travel to pick up the containers and begin their trip. And I’m sure you noticed the people in the outer office. They’re here to lobby me to assign one of our destroyers to safeguard their planet. I keep telling these planetary representatives that I only have three destroyers assigned to this base and two of them are always out on patrol. But they keep coming back to ask again and again. And then there’s the monumental task of getting this station set up with a food court, shopping concourse, and traveler housing. As you know, the profits from those amenities significantly reduce the annual cost of operating a base, so the G.A. Senate is anxious to see them made available as soon as possible. They’re even talking about charging a fee for parking a civilian ship inside the port. I’m sure I’ll eventually get a handle on all of it, but right now— whew.”

  “I understand what you’re going through, and I sympathize. I was stuck flying a desk on Dakistee for five years while I was the Space Command Operations Administrator there. I was afraid I might get appointed as administrator here, so I was ecstatic when you showed up to take command.”

  “It’s actually not so bad. And I’m sure the job is bound to get easier as everyone settles in and we get the station in shape.”

  “You’re not trying to talk me into taking this job again, are you, Ronald?”

  Allanton chuckled before saying, “No. I think I’d have an easier task trying to convince a Milora to have sex with a Pledgian.”

  “Good, because I love my job as a Scout-Destroyer captain with a squadron of CPS-16s.” After a slight pause, she asked, “Can a Milora mate with a Pledgian? How exactly does that work?”

  “I have no idea— to either question. It’s amusing to think about, though.”

  “I don’t even know how a Pledgian mates with another Pledgian. They’re like furry balls.”

  “Well, its eyestalks, arms, and legs all extend out from its body so its—”

  “That’s enough, Ronald,” Christa said with a smile. “I don’t think I want to hear what I think you intended to say next.”

  Allanton grinned. “Okay, enough said on that topic. Where’re you headed after you have the com system upgrade?”

  “Back out on patrol, I guess. I haven’t received any orders to the contrary.”

  “I very recently heard that you were personally responsible for Space Command having these seven new bases. Is there any truth to that rumor?”

  “Uh— guilty as charged. But let’s not make a big deal over it. I disobeyed orders and could have been court-martialed.”

  “Seriously?”

  “I’m afraid so. My official orders were to destroy every Denubbewa ship we found. However, there are times when you’re confronted with situations where it seems more advisable to follow the spirit of the orders rather than following them to the letter. I did violate my orders— technically. That’s something I never do and certainly never recommend. However, in this case I interpreted the orders as meaning we should destroy every Denubbewa we found. These seven vessels in pristine condition were empty of Denubbewa, so destroying them would not have eliminated a single cyborg. I believed it would better serve the G.A. if they were intact. Reducing them to scrap seemed like a waste of a potentially valuable resource. Fortunately for me, the Admiralty Board agreed.”

  “I’m not surprised. It would have cost the G.A. trillions of credits if we’d had to build them from scratch. And it would’ve taken perhaps two decades or more to complete them and move them into place if we’d commenced work immediately. I agree that a military officer or enlisted person must never violate their orders, but there may be a few times in our careers when we’re confronted with a situation like the one you faced where it appears more important to obey the spirit of the orders rather than the letter of the orders. As leaders of men and women, officers and noncoms issue orders daily, but we can’t possibly envision every situation our people will encounter when left to their own devices. As a result, our people are expected to exercise a certain degree of judgment as they follow their orders. Quesann Command could not possibly have foreseen that you would find seven empty motherships in like-new condition. I totally agree with the decision of the A.B., except for one point. They should have given you a medal and a promotion.”

  Christa chuckled. “It’s nice to be recognized for a job well done, but we don’t do the job for medals. And as for a promotion, I’d have to give up my ship and either take a destroyer or fly a desk again. I have four brothers who have destroyer commands in Region One, and every time I watch one of their vidMails, they sound like they’re bored out of their minds. My dad commands a Heavy Cruiser and his work life sounds just as bad.”

  “Medals are a part of the recognition process and show everyone else that you were recognized for
superior performance. It actually provides incentive for others to work harder to achieve the same recognition.”

  “That’s very true, but I’m not upset that I didn’t receive one.”

  “So you never want to move up to a bigger ship?”

  “Right now all the action is with Scout-Destroyers and CPS-16s. At some point, I may long for more responsibility and a larger command, but at the present I’m where I want to be. And with a full squadron of CPS-16s, I have as many SC personnel in my command as any destroyer captain. I just don’t have the four bars on my shoulders.”

  ~ ~

  Christa had enjoyed spending almost an hour talking with Captain Allanton before returning to the Koshi to check on the progress of the com system installation. There were at least a dozen engineers on the bridge engaged in discussions about the installation. They stopped talking when Christa entered.

  Surprised by the sudden silence, Christa said, “Is there a problem?”

  “Uh, no problem, Captain,” the lieutenant in charge of the engineering staff aboard the Koshi said. “We were just discussing the disposition of the old console. I want them to leave it and they say they have orders to bring it back with them when they’re finished.”