by Kris Powers
“A message from Fleet Admiral Nelson,” Peter said, handing a link to Elliot. Elliot read through it quickly before he returned his attention to Nadine.
“I’m commander of the fleet now.”
“Why would they do that now?” Nadine asked.
Maria’s ears perked up at the conversation. She left her attempts to locate the saboteur to a group of junior officers and joined the conversation. “I’ve got seniority here,” she said. “I should have been given command.”
“It’s only because I have training in this situation, Maria. The Phoenix Command Center is equipped to handle this and I’ve been trained in its use.”
“Fair enough. What is the current situation with the Admiralty?”
“The Admiralty is not likely to survive the next few minutes of battle. That is why command has been transferred here.”
“But they were on their way to Mars!” Maria protested.
“They were intercepted. The Government Body has escaped and are on there way to board one of the new ships but a price had to be paid.”
“The Hood and the rest of the battle group.”
“Yes,” Elliot said. “Now I need you to leave the base and join the rest of the evacuation to the new fleet on Mars.”
“Excuse me?”
“Someone needs to ensure the Admiralty continues on. That’s you,” Elliot said.
“Like Hell, that’s you! You’re in command and we need every Admiral left to rebuild command.”
“That’s an order, Admiral. I need to take control of the situation here, not to mention that Nadine and I will have to try and stop the saboteur from activating the warhead,” Elliot said.
“Yes Sir,” Maria replied, curtly. “There is another seat on the shuttle. Who shall I take with me?”
“Joshua and Madison will accompany you.”
“No, we’re not!” Joshua exclaimed.
“You need to leave now, Josh. You weren’t supposed to be here in the first place.”
“I am not leaving,” Joshua said.
“Neither am I,” Madison confirmed.
“You’ll have to stun us.”
“I will, or I can have security guards personally escort you to the shuttle, with or without your cooperation,” Elliot said. At the shock on their faces to his harsh words, his stern expression softened.
“You have to go,” Elliot said in a whisper.
“Why?” Madison implored. “We’re here and you need the help.”
“Because you are what Lily and I were ten years ago.”
“Maria said there’s only room for one more,” Joshua said.
“You two can share a seat. Joshua, I’m giving you a field promotion to Commodore and Madison to Captain. Help Maria to rebuild the brass.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Come on,” Maria said and left for the exit. Madison looked at Elliot with tears in her eyes and followed.
“Madison!” Elliot said to her back. She turned towards him and her husband also stopped at the exit with Maria. “You have fallen from the sky. Your body is broken.”
Madison looked at him and recited the last of the poem that Lilly had taught them. “But I have brought you back from death. You are Phoenix: you will bathe worlds in your light.”
With that last exchange the trio left the command center for the shuttle. Peter heard a unique beep from his earpiece and took advantage of the situation. He left his post at the communications station and slipped out of the command center unnoticed.
The threesome boarded the small, abnormally shaped ship that had two small FTL emitters mounted on its wings, giving it the capability of leaving the Earth and reaching Mars in seconds. The high speed of the shuttle would allow them to circumvent the Coalition blockade waiting for orders to attack the base. Maria took the pilot’s seat. Joshua and Madison squeezed into the chair next to her.
“Ready?”
“About as much as we can be,” Joshua replied, while Madison shifted herself into a better position on his lap.
“What was that Elliot was reciting?” Maria asked while she readied the shuttle for launch.
“It’s called Divinity Touches the Phoenix,” Madison replied.
“I’ve never heard it.”
“It’s a poem by a little known author from the Twenty—Second Century, but Lily loved it. Elliot and I know it by heart.”
“I hope it turns out to be prophetic in this case.”
The shuttle bay doors opened above them and Maria guided the shuttle up off the ground and then obtained a near vertical position above the main dome in the complex.
“Going to FTL now!” Maria exclaimed. The two small emitters on the shuttle flashed a bright light and the craft went to a velocity some ten times the speed of light towards Mars. A thunderclap was left behind in its wake.
The vessel’s three passengers saw a bright flash of light, and a moment later the Earth’s ring was passing by. Just moments later Mars seemed to warp into the space in front of them.
The shuttle’s view port soon had a large number of massive white ships occupying it. Maria immediately opened a channel.
“This is Admiral Maria Peterson. I’m taking command of the fleet by order of Admiral Fredericks.”
“We were expecting the entire admiralty,” a voice over the speakers said.
“They’re not coming. Prepare to receive my shuttle. The moment we’re aboard, activate the fold drives.”
“We can’t, Admiral. Lathiel said they’re dangerous to use within our sun’s gravitational influence. We have to head for the edge of the system.”
“Christ. Alright head for the edge of the system as soon as we’re aboard. Can you do that much?” Maria demanded.
“She isn’t like Eli,” Madison said to her husband in a whisper.
“Nothing like Eli.”
Elliot watched their departure while the staff continued to direct the remains of the Alliance fleet against the Coalition.
“When does the new fleet launch?” Elliot asked the Tactical Officer.
“Just now, Sir.”
“And the situation?”
“Nearly fifty percent of the fleet has been destroyed,” he responded.
“Sir, the ships surrounding Phoenix Base have begun their approach,” the weapons officer said.
“Activate the outer defense grid and divert all power to weapons,” Elliot ordered, and set his earpiece to be heard across the base. “Everyone is to set their stations to automatic and evacuate. Take the route to the mainland or go by air. All staff members have permission to commandeer whatever shuttles or escape vehicles you can. The base’s automatic defense systems will give you cover.”
“Communications, I need you to stay behind for a moment. Tell whatever fighters are still out there to reinforce the base’s defenses and do whatever they can to give the ground vehicles cover.”
Elliot realized a moment later that he hadn’t heard a confirmation to his order and looked to the empty communications station.
“Where’s Commander Stuart?”
The occupied officers at adjacent stations looked up in surprise.
“Get someone to that station and carry out my orders. Lock it down and set it to automatic as soon as they’ve finished.” Elliot said. “Why would he leave now?”
Nadine was the only one to answer him. “There might be a very good reason. What is the Commander’s full name?”
“Peter Stuart,” Elliot replied.
“How exactly is his last name spelled?”
“S—T—U—A—R—T. Why?”
“Stuart,” Nadine thought aloud. “Stuart—Hanover.”
“What is it?”
“The Stuart—Hanover dynasty of England. The hyphenated name marked the fact that they were the product of two royal families,” Nadine said and then realized who she had just missed. “Elliot, I have a younger brother. He’d be about forty—five now.”
“That’s about Peter’s age, but I never sensed anythin
g from him.”
“You wouldn’t. Peter was a failed MERA operative. Catherine relegated him to regular undercover work because he was too volatile for work as a MERA Aggressive, but he can shield himself from others. You would never know his real intentions. He would use a codename like that; it has a significance attached to it that only someone from MERA would understand.”
“We’ve got to find him.”
“Let’s go,” Nadine said and headed towards the exit.
“Wait,” Elliot said and drew his sidearm. He walked to a small panel on the door and entered in a pass code. The panel slid aside to reveal a small weapons locker. He took a Particle Beam Pistol from it and passed it to Nadine.
“You’ll need this.”
There has been a great deal of debate as to how many Alliance ships actually survived the very short First War of the Colonized Sphere. The events transpired in an incredibly brief period of time. General Order Thirty—Eight was transmitted only twenty minutes after the war began and brought about its premature end.
Some have said that thousands survived but my research leads me to believe this to be unlikely. The total size of the Alliance fleet prior to the war was thirty—two hundred warships. We know that at least sixty percent of the fleet was already destroyed by the time General Order Thirty—Eight was given. With that conservative estimate, there wouldn’t be much more than twelve hundred ships left.
I believe the latter popular belief that there were only a few dozen at most left after the war. I must admit though, that I have spent many nights looking up into the sky and wondered how many of them were still out there.
Alliance: Legend or Reality?
by Michael Ludwig
Chapter XIX
“Give Peter the order to activate the warhead,” Catherine said. Alexander nodded and sent a signal from a device on his wrist. The Twelve rose from their seats and exited the chamber they had occupied for most of their adult lives. They knew they would likely never see it again but did not so much as issue a second glance to the twelve sided room. Their robes swished across the floor as they traveled down a long corridor and out the main door into the courtyard.
The distant thunder of explosions was heard from numerous battles playing out across the globe. The center of the courtyard was occupied by a large shuttle capable of holding all twelve of the council members.
“Is it safe to leave yet?” Catherine asked a General standing near the entrance to the shuttle.
“The Alliance’s First Battle Group has been intercepted near Mars. Their Second and Third Battle Groups have also been intercepted over Europe and South America. The Second is giving us some trouble, but it’s nothing to be concerned about. The way is clear,” the General reported.
“Good. We’re leaving,” Catherine replied, and entered the shuttle.
“How big is this installation?” Nadine asked.
“Too big,” Elliot replied, while they moved down empty corridors. Elliot held a scanner in his hand relaying the base’s scans directly to the device. “With so many people, I doubt we can locate him.”
“Where are we going then?” Nadine asked as Elliot led her into a lift. He punched a command into the small panel fixed to the lift wall and it jumped into motion.
“To the warhead room. It’s our best bet at the moment.”
“How many of your personnel are leaving?”
“Everyone but the guards at the warhead access points and the people in the room itself,” Elliot replied.
“That will make things easier.”
“Hmm,” Elliot said and scrutinized the scanner’s readings. “Most of the people have already left the base or are at exit points like the garage.”
Nadine stayed silent while Elliot scrutinized the results.
“Stop the lift!”
Nadine slapped the appropriate button on the panel and waited for an explanation. He moved the scanner’s display so both of them could examine it.
“Look: all of these people are moving out of the base and this is the Warhead Room. Notice anything?”
“There’s one life sign by itself over there,” Nadine said, pointing to one blip on the small screen.
“Exactly.”
Elliot changed the lift’s path to one that would deposit it near the life sign.
Peter stood in a small room that served as the access point to the communications system. The control room personnel would not question the head of the communications department’s presence and they were already gone, anyway. He entered his lockdown code into the system.
Elliot heard his earpiece crackle to life and a panicked voice issued from it.
“How?” Nadine heard Elliot ask and felt her stomach tighten in anxiety.
“There is nothing you can do?” he asked the person on the other end and listened to the response.
“I’ll try to stop it from the command center,” Elliot said and hung up on the caller.
“What’s wrong?”
“All of the command codes have just been invalidated. I need to go to command and see if I can do something from there.”
“I’ll get to Peter.”
“Are you sure? He is your brother and what if,” Elliot began.
“He’s also trying to kill billions of people. I’ll stop him,” Nadine finished. The lift stopped at its destination and Nadine got out with her pistol ready.
“I need to get back,” Elliot said from inside the lift. “Good Luck.”
Peter smiled in satisfaction now that he had full command of the warhead. He entered in a series of commands and authorization codes that would activate the device. The computer flashed a warning and asked for a countdown time limit.
Peter entered in ten minutes and pressed ENTER. He would need the time to leave the base and find shelter elsewhere. A signal to the Coalition forces would alert them to his status as a citizen and he would be allowed through. He had hidden away a small two—seat sub—light shuttle in one of the underground garages. Getting it out of the base would mean making use of its limited weapons, but it was the only way to ensure that no one else commandeered it.
The computer acknowledged the request with an affirming beep and a ten minute counter appeared on the screen.
“ENTER CODE FOR FINAL ACTIVATION,” appeared on the screen. He entered in nine of the ten digits of the authorization code and was about to input the last one and press ENTER when a voice halted his progress.
“Stop!” he heard from behind him. Although he was Nadine’s brother, she had never met him. They were both born in artificial wombs using the eggs harvested from Catherine before she had entered menopause.
“No,” he said and entered the last digit. He readied himself to swing around while drawing his sidearm. He would take down the interloper and make his escape. Nadine threw all of her mind’s abilities towards him but found her attempts to freeze him deflected by a consciousness that felt like it was made of titanium. The shock from the rebound of her mental forces caused her to stagger back and Peter, having felt the rebuffed assault looked up in realization of who was standing behind him.
“Nadine!” he exclaimed with pleasure. “The sibling who managed to take my place at Catherine’s side. I’m glad to see another one of her children has disappointed her.”
“This PBP is set to kill, Peter. I am familiar with MERA techniques and I already know about your sidearm. Believe me you won’t have the chance.”
“I don’t care,” Peter sneered.
“Stop this now. If you dislike her as much as I do, why even bother doing this?”
“I do this because I hate her. One day you’ll know just how much.”
Peter moved a finger to press the ENTER key. Nadine saw the movement and discharged a lethal burst into his back. He writhed in pain as he felt his life slip from him. His knees buckled and he began to slip to the floor. With one last burst of energy, his finger stabbed the ENTER key.
To Nadine’s horror, she saw the ten minute counter’s
color change from green to red and begin to tick down.
Ten minutes, zero seconds.
Nine minutes, fifty—nine seconds, Fifty—eight.
Nadine raced to the console now vacated by her estranged brother but found she could do nothing. She turned on one heel and raced for the lift in hopes that Elliot might be able to reverse the detonation order.
“Were you able to stop the countdown?” Nadine asked once she entered the command center. The multistory command room was eerily quiet as all of the tasks were autonomously handled by the advanced tactical computer buried in the basement below it.
“I’m trying,” Elliot said. He frantically worked at a large free—standing console near his seat.
“Do your command codes work at all?”
“Yes and no. I can access everything except for the warhead. When it comes to that system, all of my command codes are null and void.”
“I tried to stop him, Elliot.”
He turned from the station and faced her.
“What happened?”
“I’m an Elite Aggressive of MERA. I should’ve been able to snap his neck with a thought. He possessed something I never saw before. He couldn’t attack me but I couldn’t stop him either. It was like trying to break down a brick wall with a baseball bat.”
“He had something?” Elliot asked.
“I shot him to try and stop him, but he activated the sequence anyway.”
“I know,” Elliot said and tapped a screen on the console showing the countdown: seven minutes and seventeen seconds. “You did everything you could.”
“What do we do now?”
“I’ll keep trying.”
She watched him frantically attempt to break the command codes used by Peter to no avail. His further attempts became interrupted when they heard a piercing alarm from a station on the left wall of the command center. The label “Threat Analysis” was marked across its top. Elliot left his beleaguered work and attended to the station in the vacant center.
“The Coalition has broken through perimeter defenses on the coast. They’re heading here.”