“What’s your reason for wanting to keep it aboard ship?”
“This new system sounds great, but it’s still really new and— well— unproven. I’d like to hold onto the old system until we know the new system is totally reliable. If we experience a malfunction, we can change the console in an hour and restore S-Band communications.”
“Your parts inventory will include replacements for everything that might break down, won’t it?”
“Yes, ma’am. But— well— the new technology is quite a bit more complex. If something happens and the new system fails, we could be stuck without any communications.”
“We’ll still have the CPS-16s around us.”
“Yes, ma’am. But if we’re out on patrol and separated from the CPSs, we might not be able to contact anyone. And if the system as a whole goes down, we’ll still need basic S-Band capability.”
Christa looked at the faces of the station’s engineers and then at the faces of the Koshi’s engineers before saying, “The console doesn’t take up very much space, so it won’t inconvenience us to store it in a hold for a short time.” Looking at the engineer from the station who was charged with installing the new com system, she said, “Lieutenant, we’re going to hang onto the old com console until my people feel comfortable with the new system. If Captain Allanton insists that we not store it aboard ship while we’re out on our next cruise, we’ll deliver it to you at the base.”
“Yes, Captain. Then I guess we’re done here. Your new system is installed and we’ve performed a full diagnostic test. It was powered up for ninety-six hours before you arrived, so if any of the components were going to fail prematurely, we would have identified them already. We found no problems or anything that indicates a problem might develop.”
“Fine. And we have the old system just in case. Thank you for installing our new system, Lieutenant.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
~ ~ ~
The Ares entered Widden SCB and was directed to a pier near an entrance into the habitat. As the ship completed its maneuvers, the station’s administrator, Captain Sandra Pettle, waited expectantly on the pier.
Captain Lawrence Gavin was the first to exit via the bow airlock, followed immediately by Commander Eliza Carver.
“Larry, how are you?” Captain Pettle asked, a wide, genuine smile adorning her face both before and after her greeting.
“I’m fine, Sandra. You’re looking very well.”
“Thank you. I am.”
“Sandra, allow me to introduce my XO, Commander Eliza Carver.”
Captain Pettle extended her hand as she said, “Hello, Commander. Welcome to Widden SCB.”
“Thank you, Captain.”
Turning back towards Gavin, Pettle said, “So, do you have time to visit, or do you just want to get your load of satellites and your replacement com system and scoot out of here?”
“I’ll visit while Eliza supervises the loading and engineering work.”
“Good. Follow me. Eliza, nice meeting you.”
“Likewise, Captain.”
~ ~
“The shipment of satellites are all aboard and secure in a storage hold, sir,” Eliza said when Gavin returned to the Ares and they were seated in Gavin’s bridge office. “The new com system console is now in place on the bridge. It’s only half the size of the original one.”
“Very good. Was there any problem with the transfer of satellites via the CJ Gate?”
“According to the officer who supervised the transfer from start to end, it went without a hitch. Quesann sent a message when they were ready to ship, and the engineers here in the base connected the power to the Gate. As soon as the transfer was complete, the engineers disconnected the power again so no cyborgs could sneak into the base.”
“Excellent. I wonder if the Denubbewa know we’re using their own system against them.”
“I think I’d be just as happy if we never learn the answer to that question, sir. They say that ‘no news is good news.’”
“Curiosity always gets the best of me.”
Eliza smiled. “Me, too. There’s something about having all the answers that’s so satisfying because it helps you prepare for most situations.”
“At this point, I don’t know if their discovery could hurt us. We’re already seeding G.A. space with these satellites, so even if they block us from using their system, we’ll have our own system up soon. Sandra said Quesann is still testing the new system and we’ll be notified when to make the switch. But if the Denubbewa cut us off before we’ve switched, Quesann said to change the system over and try to make contact because if we do get cut off, they’ll end their testing and go live.”
“That’s good to know.”
“Okay, Eliza. Let’s get started with the satellite distribution in Region Four. Two of the CPS-16s assigned to patrol the closest areas of Region Four will be meeting us at the border to take on the satellites they’ll be seeding at designated locations. Take us out.”
“Yes, sir,” Eliza said as she stood up and headed for the door.
~ ~ ~
“I just received a message from Widden SCB,” Admiral Holt said when the call went through to Jenetta. “Captain Pettle reported that Larry Gavin picked up the satellites we sent there for distribution in Region Four. By now, the Ares is under way. They’ll link up with all the CPS-16s assigned to the region so the initial batch of satellites can be placed throughout the entire region as they patrol.”
“That’s wonderful, Brian. You know, as incredible as it is that we can now send a message to our ships when they’re thousands of light-years away and get their responses in less than a minute, it’s even more remarkable that we can now send objects. I can understand how Alexander Graham Bell must have felt when he spoke the first message into his recently invented telephone and his assistant Watson heard his words through a receiver in another room.”
“Yes, I feel that way as well, Jen. I have to admit that when you told me you were going to send those new satellites to Widden SCB via the CJ Gate booths, I had my doubts that it would actually work. I guess I thought the Denubbewa would somehow realize what we were doing and stop us.”
“I knew there was always a chance they would stumble across our activity, but they’re not infallible. And we do have them at a distinct disadvantage.”
“We have them at a distinct disadvantage? Jen, they’ve been at this for centuries— possibly millennia.”
“We believe that’s true, but there’s one advantage we know we have.”
Jen was silent as Brian waited to hear the rest. Finally he said, “Okay, don’t keep me waiting. What advantage do we have over a race that’s been destroying other civilizations for centuries and absorbing their technology, and who appears to have virtually unlimited resources?”
“We have dedicated, freethinking scientist leaders in our research operations and dedicated, freethinking leaders in command of our military personnel. The Denubbewa rely on what are essentially programmed robots. In my opinion, that gives us an enormous advantage.”
“Okay, I’ll concede that in a one-to-one situation, I’d want the dedicated, freethinker rather than a robot. But they can throw a thousand times the number of soldiers at us than we have available to defend the Galactic Alliance. Perhaps even a hundred thousand times the number we have.”
“Yes, but I’ll still take our people over robots any day, even when the odds are stacked so enormously against us.”
* * *
Chapter Twenty-Seven
~ February 16th, 2293 ~
“What’s the count, Eliza?” Captain Gavin asked his XO as they sat in his office for their daily briefing session.
“Just under fifty percent of the satellites have been offloaded to the CPS-16s that will deliver them to their designated locations. The actual number is forty-eight point three percent. And, of course, each CPS-16 has a dozen or so replacement satellites as a reserve in case of failure after the satellite is launched.
In that case, they must recover the satellite and launch a new one after updating the positioning information.”
“I guess they don’t have to worry about shipping damage. Kind of hard to damage satellites sheathed in Dakinium.”
“Yes, sir. I’m sure any damage wouldn’t happen accidentally. These satellites could get hit by a stray asteroid and just shrug off the impact. But I’m sure that under the possible damage reference, Space Command is considering intentional destruction and curiosity.”
“Curiosity?”
“Yes, sir. Should anyone somehow spot one of the satellites and attempt to open it to learn our secrets, the satellite will self-destruct without warning. We have classified instructions for handling them that cover internal inspection. But for anyone who doesn’t have those instructions, their attempt to open one of our satellites will be their last act of espionage.”
“Good Lord! I wasn’t informed that the satellites were booby-trapped. Are the Denubbewa satellites booby-trapped?”
“The Denubbewa satellites, like ours, are incredibly difficult to locate, but we’ve found a few. And no, they weren’t booby trapped. And ours are even more difficult to locate because they’re smaller and because they’re covered in Dakinium. But we can’t rule out the possibility that someone will come across one someday. Perhaps it will be their last day.”
“Do they present a danger to anyone deploying them?”
“Only if anyone aboard the ship attempts to open one without accessing the disassembly instructions. The positioning information has already been entered into each satellite, but that can be changed easily through use of a computer probe that plugs into the unit externally as long as the engineer has the satellite’s ID. So there’s almost no reason to ever open one.”
“May God protect any of our people who must open one.”
“Actually, Space Command protects them if they read the disassembly instructions. The satellite can be completely disarmed by using the computer probe that’s provided.”
“What’s the explosive force if they don’t?”
“It has a miniaturized core like that of our WOLaR bombs, and it could easily wreck a large section of a Scout-Destroyer if the satellite was inside the ship when it blew.”
“You’ve alerted all of our engineering people to the danger?”
“Yes, sir, as well as the engineering people on every CPS-16 who’ve received the satellites to date. Actually, I even require them to acknowledge receipt of the disassembly instructions with a thumbprint.”
“Excellent. That last part should really impress upon them the possible danger of toying with these innocuous-looking satellites. Are we underway to our next rendezvous location?”
“Yes, sir, and we’ve received confirmation from the two ships that they’ll be waiting for us.”
“Now that you’ve told me how dangerous those satellites are, I can’t wait to see them all distributed.”
“They’re only dangerous if someone messes with them. And we do already have thousands of WOLaR bombs in our holds.”
Gavin took a deep breath and then released it slowly before saying, with a smile, “Don’t remind me.”
Eliza smiled back and said, “Never again, sir.”
~ ~ ~
“Captain, I have a contact,” the tac officer said to Lieutenant Juliet Wiscarski of the CPS-16 ship Angels 62.
“A freighter?”
“Negative, Captain. It’s really big, but it doesn’t appear to be a freighter. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s a Denubbewa warship.”
“Denubbewa? Navigation, are we still in Region Four?”
“Aye, Captain. We’re close to the extreme outside border, but we’re still at least a light-year inside G.A. space.”
“Tac, is that ship underway or stationary?”
“It’s underway, ma’am— at the reputed top speed for Denubbewa warships. It’s headed directly towards the border.”
“Send the directional information to the helm. Helm, let’s catch up with that ship.”
“Aye, Captain. I have the data. At Marc-One, we should overtake that ship in— eight seconds.”
“When we catch up, match its speed and course.”
“Aye, Captain.”
~
“No doubt now, Captain,” the tac officer said a minute later. “It’s a Denubbewa warship.”
“Should I plan a flight path so we can drop a WOLaR inside its hull, Captain?” the helmsman asked.
“Negative. Go to Marc-One and remain on this course. I want to see where it’s headed at full speed. We can always come back and find it again when it’s time to destroy it.”
~ ~
Some forty minutes later, the navigation officer said, “We’re approaching the border of G.A. space, Captain.”
“Noted,” Wiscarski said.
“Should I stop before we cross the border, Captain?” the helmsman asked.
“The space outside this border is unclaimed so we won’t be trespassing in anyone’s domain. Don’t stop until we either learn where that Denubbewa ship is headed or I decide we’ve gone far enough.”
“Aye, Captain,” the helmsman said.
~ ~
At Marc-One, the ship was covering more than one and a half light-years each hour, and it was more than three hours before the Angels 62 vessel encountered something in their path.
“All stop,” Captain Wiscarski said as soon as the tac officer announced contact ahead. “Holy Piccoli,” she added as the monitor on the bridge revealed what was ahead.
The bridge lapsed into silence as the image filled the monitor.
“Tac,” Wiscarski said after several seconds, “can you estimate the size of that armada?”
“Negative, Captain. It’s too vast. It extends beyond our DeTect range.”
“Start filming with all cameras. Helm, take us to wherever this armada ends. Speed should be Light-1.”
“Aye, Captain. Light-1 speed.”
Because Angels 62 was in a double envelope, the Denubbewa aboard the ships would not be able to see the small Space Command vessel as it filmed the armada.
~
After completing several passes to film the armada from different directions, including a pass through the heart of many of the ships, Wiscarski ordered a halt well away from the Denubbewa fleet.
“Com, how close are we to the nearest com satellite?”
“We didn’t launch the last one after we sighted that Denubbewa ship headed to this location, Captain, so I estimate the S-Band time to a satellite is about seven hours.”
“That long?”
“Yes, Captain. Before crossing the border, we were in a remote area where there are very few inhabited planets. We’d been dropping satellites farther and farther apart because there was little need for them. I suspect Quesann wanted to have the majority of satellites in the first batch closer to the inhabited areas. If we had dropped that last one, the S-Band time would only be about two hours.”
“Damn. Tac, what if we were to drop a satellite here? Could we use it?”
“I don’t think so, Captain. The satellites are already preset with activation coordinates, and it would immediately try to reach those coordinates before accepting transmission information. It only has very limited movement capability that’s designed to keep it in place once deployed very near the preset coordinates. Given the distance to where we should have dropped the last satellite, I’d guess it would take a lifetime for the satellite to get back there on its own. It would go as far as it could and then would have to stop until its power was recharged.”
“Okay. Stand by, Com. I’m going to prepare a message for transmission to Quesann.”
“Aye, Captain.”
“Nav, give the coordinates of that armada to Com. Then you have the bridge command until I return.”
“Aye, Captain,” the navigator said.
~
Wiscarski flopped into the chair behind her desk and began composing a message in her head.
When she had organized her thoughts, she tapped a contact spot on her keyboard and began speaking.
“Priority-One message to Admiral Brian Holt, Quesann Command.
“Sir, I apologize for breaching protocol and messaging you directly, but the matter is of such importance that I believed it necessary due to possible delays from the information traveling up through normal channels. My ship, the CPS-16 Angels 62, is presently in unclaimed space outside Region Four. As we were about to deploy a com system satellite, we identified a Denubbewa warship traveling at full speed through G.A. space. It was headed for the border, and I decided to have my ship follow the same course at Marc-One to see where it was headed rather than destroying it immediately.
“We crossed the border without encountering any enemy vessels, so we continued on. After slightly more than three hours of travel time, and having covered roughly five light-years of distance, we encountered a Denubbewa fleet working to sheathe their motherships in Dakinium.
“I’m attaching the surveillance vid we shot during several passes through the armada, including one pass through the center of some of the motherships. We estimate there are roughly two hundred fifty motherships, each of which appear to contain some two hundred warships. Therefore, we’re facing roughly fifty thousand warships in a fleet of motherships sheathed in Dakinium. I’m glad now that we didn’t attack the lone Denubbewa warship we saw in Region Four because it might have alerted the Denubbewa to our presence.
“Sir, by our estimates we are seven S-Band hours from the nearest of the newly deployed satellites. Being just a CPS-16, we haven’t received one of the new communication consoles yet, so we’re limited to S-Band transmissions sent to a satellite for relay via the new system. Therefore, when you receive this message, it will be seven hours old.
“Angels 62 will stand by outside of G.A. space until we receive a response to this message. We await a reply from our Region Four command structure.
“Juliet A. Wiscarski, Lieutenant, Captain of the CPS-16 ship Angels 62. End of message.”
Touching her Command Ring and saying “com chief,” she waited until the chief answered before saying, “Append the coordinates of the armada and send that message immediately via the nearest satellite.”
The Invasion Begins Page 33