Changing of the Guard (A Galaxy Unknown - Book 11)

by Thomas DePrima

  "It seems clear that we should concentrate on finding those missing warships," Admiral Bradlee said. "I move that we bring every ship in G.A. space that's capable of Marc-One to Region Three and have them start searching."

  "There's that other wrinkle, Roger," Jenetta said. "All ships involved in the search will have to be equipped with a Neutrino Measurement Sensor in case the ships are Dakinium sheathed."

  "Then equip them with that device."

  "We would if we had a ready supply," Admiral Plimley said. "It will take months to manufacture enough devices and many more months to install them. I'm not saying it's not possible. It's just going to take time."

  "The hundred ships we currently have out there have the device installed already, right, Loretta?"

  "Yes, Roger."

  "Then we should get them started with the search and just keep sending the rest to join the effort as you get them outfitted. Isn't there an old saying that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step?"

  "Has anyone asked the cyborgs we're holding if they know where the others would go if they needed a place to hide?" Admiral Ressler asked.

  "I doubt the cyborgs we have in custody would be entrusted with that information, Shana," Admiral Bradlee said.

  "Didn't Jenetta say the cyborgs have no control over the dissemination of information? So if one knows, they might all know."

  "You're right, Shana," Jenetta said. "Good idea. We'll ask them. It can't hurt."

  "Okay, we have two ideas on how to proceed. Any others?"

  When no one spoke up, Jenetta said, "Loretta, how long before you can start turning out those Neutrino Measurement Sensors in quantity?"

  "We needed a hundred for the CPS-16s so my people really got rolling after a few days. If we know how many we need, I can come up with a schedule."

  "We'll need one for every single ship in Space Command, even if they aren't sent out to look for Denubbewa. If every ship has one, ships that are dark to conceal their presence won't have to turn on their running lights in order to be seen by other Space Command vessels."

  "Okay, one Neutrino Measurement Sensor for every ship in Space Command. I'd guess we can fill that order in about eight months, unless I give it top priority over everything else. Do I stop the construction of new ships to make the sensors?"

  "Of course not," Jenetta said. "Eight months will be fine as long as we can begin installing the first ones within a month."

  "Can do."

  "Great, let's do it."

  "Who's going to approach Sywasock and the others about possible concealment locations the warships might use?"

  "I established something of a rapport with Sywasock during our first talk," Jenetta said. "I'll speak to them."

  ~ ~ ~

  "Hello, Sywasock," Jenetta said as she entered the room where the cyborg was waiting. Two armed security people accompanied her since the cyborg wasn't secured.

  "Hello, Admiral Carver."

  "How are you getting on?"

  "Quite well, I think. All things considered."

  "Good. Do you have any needs I can help you with?"

  "I'd like to have a meeting with my countrymen."

  "That will be possible very soon. Right now, we need you to continue with the work you've been doing. Once that's finished, you'll be reunited with your countrymen."

  "Why can't I be reunited with them now?"

  "It's an issue we call cross-contamination."

  "You believe I'll influence them in some way and they'll influence me."

  "Exactly."

  "You're afraid we'll compare notes and decide what to teach you about our work."

  "If you're being completely honest, as you've promised, there's no danger of that."

  "And if I am not being completely honest and the others don't know enough to remain silent about it, they might say or do something that will provide proof I'm not being honest and forthright?"

  "Yes."

  "I've promised that I'll be completely forthright."

  "Then there shouldn't be a problem."

  "Except that I'm denied companionship."

  "Only until you've completed the work you've started— for the reason I've already stated."

  "So I should get back to work then."

  "Yes, but first I've come here to put a question to you. It's the same question being put to all of the others."

  "I'll answer it if I know the answer."

  "Do you have any knowledge related to possible alternate rendezvous areas where Denubbewa ships would amass if the invasion effort began to fail?"

  "Has the invasion effort begun to fail?"

  "Wasn't that your goal?"

  "Uh, yes."

  "Then let's assume you were successful. Where would the Denubbewa ships go to reorganize?"

  "I don't know."

  "You've told me that the cyborg collective has no secrets. I believe you said it's like a single entity with hundreds of eyes and arms, all controlled by one brain. That means you never have to stop and discuss things because everyone has the same information."

  "That's true."

  "But now you claim you have no knowledge of alternate plans should things not go as planned."

  "That information, if it exists, was obviously kept secret."

  "How is that possible?"

  "Most information is automatically stored in my body's memory banks so that the data is available to anyone who wants to access it. But some I'm able to retain in my biological brain. The Denubbewa supervisors are only able to keep lesser cyborgs in line because all their information is stored in their memory banks. Any surreptitious plans they try to make would be seen by all. Most cyborgs don't know that I and my countrymen weren't programmed as they were. While their ability to store information in their brains is extremely restricted, the overseers couldn't do that to us or it would have caused problems with our ability to perform the special tasks they require of us. Other cyborgs would constantly be accessing information they shouldn't be aware of."

  "I see. Then your answer to my question is that you have absolutely no knowledge of alternate rendezvous areas in G.A. territory."

  "No, not exactly. I have no knowledge of rendezvous areas in G.A. space specifically identified for use in case the invasion began to fail."

  "But you know of other rendezvous areas for Denubbewa ships."

  "Yes."

  "How many?"

  "Eighteen."

  "How many are within five hundred light-years of the invasion point where you arrived?"

  "Eighteen."

  * * *

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  ~ October 7th, 2291 ~

  "You confirmed that information with the other cyborgs, Jen?" Admiral Bradlee asked during the discussion in the closed session of the A.B.

  "Yes, Roger, I did."

  "And there's no way they could have colluded to provide that information?"

  "The cyborgs are all housed separately in areas where electronic signals are absorbed by Dakinium plating covering all of the walls and doors. We can't even use our CTs while in that area. The signal never reaches us. So the cyborgs cannot be sharing information. And what good would it do them to lie? We'd know the truth as soon as we checked out the locations. Statistically, at least one of the locations must be active as an RP."

  "And you recorded all the information?"

  "Of course. Every word was recorded."

  "So do we mount a major offensive immediately?" Admiral Holt asked.

  "I think we should hold off until we have enough ships with the new Neutrino Measurement Sensors installed."

  "But that could take months," Admiral Woo said.

  "Yes, Lon, but if the information is accurate, and if all the ships seen by our squadrons happen to be headed to the same location, we're talking about thousands of warships. If we barge in there with limited vessel support, some will escape. I want them all."

  "But what if they decide to begin their takeover before w
e get there?"

  "The information we now have suggests that the Denubbewa plans for the immediate future have been thrown into complete disarray. Since the Denubbewa still have the ability to travel via the personal Cosmic Jump Gates, we can probably assume that the remaining fleet here is still receiving orders from their high command, wherever that is. Given the damage our ships have been able to inflict thus far, they've probably received orders to maintain a low profile until they're reinforced by the full invasion fleet."

  "I thought we had their only Cosmic Jump Gate emitter," Admiral Burke said.

  "We have the emitter that was built here by the Elobian cyborgs," Jenetta said. "Our cyborg prisoners say it's the only one in this part of space capable of opening a Jump Gate large enough for ships to jump. But the Denubbewa still have the original emitters that allow personal transportation. In fact, they may have personal emitters in every single ship. Their senior people may be traveling back and forth daily."

  "Oh, right. I'd forgotten about the emitter that only opens a small Cosmic Jump Gate. I wouldn't mind having one of those myself."

  "Planning a little visit to the Denubbewa home world, Raymond?" Admiral Yuthkotl asked.

  Scowling, Admiral Burke said, "Of course not! I meant it would be nice to have a network of them here so we could travel to Earth or other planets in seconds."

  Admiral Yuthkotl chuckled and said, "Calm down, Raymond. I was just trying to inject a little levity into this rather somber conversation."

  "Setting up personal travel Jump Gate emitters on various planets is not a wildly imaginative dream anymore," Admiral Plimley said. "Nor is establishing jump points for military or commercial vessel traffic. It will take time to build the equipment and test the reliability of the system, but we've already learned so much from the cyborgs Commander Carver found and brought to us that it's difficult to quantify. However, I would speculate that their information has advanced our science on the subject of Cosmic Jump Gates by many decades or possibly even a century."

  "I'm as excited about the possibilities of Jump Gate travel as everyone else," Jenetta said, "but let's stick to the business at hand. We recently discussed the action we would need to take regarding the destruction of those thousands of warships. I would like to amend my recommendations at this time. I still believe we still need a Neutrino Measurement Sensor in every single ship in the fleet. But I wouldn't send every ship in the fleet to search for the Denubbewa warships. What I'd like to do is step up the production of the habitat containers we're attaching to the CPS-16s. I'm referring to the ones that carry and release the WOLaR bombs. The CPS-14s and CPS-15s are already equipped to transport them so all we'd have to do is install the special targeting systems in the CPS ships and train the crews in the bombing procedure. When we send them out, they can join the other searchers and actually participate in the bombing runs when we finally track the warships down. The larger ships, such as destroyers, might only get in the way.

  "We should also recall all Scout-Destroyers, equip them with the Neutrino Measurement Sensor and send them to join the other hunters. And I think I'm going to start calling it the NMS instead of the Neutrino Measurement Sensor. We have eighteen likely locations so we should forget about searching all of Region Three until we've checked out those eighteen locations."

  "I agree, Jen," Admiral Bradlee said, "on all points."

  "Does anyone disagree?" Jenetta asked.

  As she looked around the table, everyone shook their heads.

  Admiral Woo said, "It sounds like a sensible plan. If we get lucky, we'll find those invading warships at one of the eighteen locations and wipe them out before they know what hit them."

  "Would it be wiser to wait until we've checked all eighteen locations before launching the first attack and then attack all locations at the same time?" Admiral Ressler said.

  "I think Shana has a point," Admiral Hillaire said. "If the Denubbewa think we've located all their RPs, they might move to an unknown area before we can get to them."

  "We'll order the commanders to only send in ships from locations at least a light-year away when performing flyovers, and the ship must return without filing a report before it's back," Jenetta said. "Once all eighteen locations have been checked, the ships can move in and perform their bombing runs in a coordinated attack on the RPs where the Denubbewa are located. Good. Any other suggestions?"

  When no one spoke up, Jenetta said, "Okay, we'll have quite a bit of time to think about it. I'm going to appear before the Senate Council because they need to be briefed."

  "I wish you didn't have to do that," Admiral Bradlee said. "I don't like passing Most Secret information to them because they have more leaks than a colander."

  "I understand, but they're the boss, even if they can't be trusted to keep their mouths zippered."

  ~ ~ ~

  "Good morning, Admiral Carver," the Senate president said. "Did you request this closed session meeting to discuss the Marine ground forces?"

  "No, Mr. President. That issue has been dwarfed by other problems facing the G.A."

  "Then tell us what you have on your mind."

  "Before I do, I'd like to request that all aides and clerical employees leave this chamber and that all recording devices be turned off."

  "Why?"

  "The information I'm about to share with the Council is too sensitive for anyone other than a senior military officer or an elected official to hear."

  "This is most unusual, Mr. President," the elected representative from the planet Sebastian said. "I protest."

  "What is this information, Admiral?"

  "I'll tell you when the room is cleared. If you decide my request is unwarranted, you certainly have the authority to invite the clerks back in."

  The president made eye contact with Jenetta and then with all other members of the Council for a full minute before ordering everyone except the elected officials out of the room. Before his aide left, he gave him orders to turn off all recording devices and ensure that no one in the communications center was listening in or recording anything. When the room was clear, Senate Council President Fluessa said, "This had better be damned good, Admiral."

  "It's not good, Mr. President. That's why I requested you clear the room and prevent anyone else from hearing what I'm about to report. I've already informed you of the threat we face from the Denubbewa. After many months of searching for the enemy, our ships located a battle group. We engaged the enemy and successfully destroyed two motherships and several hundred warships. Our forces continued to search and discovered another battle group. Throwing all our combined might at that second location, we destroyed three motherships and roughly one thousand warships. Those battles were a significant accomplishment because we lost no ships or personnel. Our fleet continued searching and finally located the remaining seven motherships. Unfortunately, all the warships were already gone. We estimate the missing warship count at roughly two thousand, seven hundred. Our weapons technology has so far proven to be superior, but we can't possibly protect shipping, or even planets, in Region Three with so many warships on the loose. But we have an even greater concern, and this is why I requested that the room be cleared. It's no secret that someone— or perhaps several someones— is leaking information on matters discussed in this chamber. Whether the information is being traded for favors or monetary gain or it's merely being overheard by waiters and attendants as Council members discuss Council business in the Senate dining hall within the earshot of civilian employees, this issue is far too sensitive to be leaked."

  When Jenetta paused for effect, the president grew impatient.

  "Continue Admiral." Glaring at the other senators, he said, "I promise you that no one will leak this information."

  "Very well, Mr. President. Here it is— the Denubbewa have developed Cosmic Jump Gate technology that allows them to send an entire invasion force directly from their home space to any point in G.A. space in the blink of an eye. The motherships and thousands o
f warships we've seen so far represent just a test of the new system. We've been convinced by a cyborg who wishes to be free of the Denubbewa that the Denubbewa have many, many thousands of those enormous motherships and many hundreds of thousands of warships, and trillions of soldier cyborgs. They are capable of overrunning Space Command in a matter of days if that new technology is used for an invasion."

  "And your source for this information is this defector?"

  "Yes. He tells us that cyborgs are not volunteers. They were once biological beings. Their brains were extracted from their biological bodies and placed into mechanical bodies. Most have been brainwashed and reduced to the level of mindless drones. He reports that the Denubbewa have been on a mission for thousands of years to control this entire galaxy and eventually the universe. When they find a society with advanced technology, they absorb it and use the technology to further their goals."

  "And you believe this defector?"

  "I do."

  "You believe he's being totally honest?"

  "I believe much of what he's told us. He's been teaching our scientists about the Cosmic Jump Gate technology the Denubbewa acquired from one of the civilizations they conquered and destroyed."