“But those take enormous power, the kind of power generated by the fusion reactor of a star ship.” He sat down again, adjusting his tight, red velvet suit jacket. “How can you possibly get something that big into CENTRAL?”
“That's the beauty of this new device,” Cedric said, trying to appear more confident. “The mechanism is not big at all, only about the size of a large luggage case. The critical part is focusing power to it. We plan to use four star ships in earth orbit at the critical angles of focus. Each will focus a different, very tightly configured energy beam of a specific frequency to the mechanism. The device will then combine the different frequencies to form the proper spectrum to feed the device and generate the power for the cloak. The cloak will be absolute. It will render everyone and everything under it totally invisible to every form of sensor.”
“How large will the area of invisibility actually be?”
“A radius of seven hundred and fifty meters. It is a huge area. That is why four ships are necessary to generate the enormous amount of power needed.”
“Will not your ships be noticed as they generate the energy beams?” Izax said, squinting at him.
“The energy beams will mimic standard communication transfer beams but with much higher power. Only another ship in close proximity will notice it. We will just be careful that no other ships are close by.”
“Very good!” Izax said. “How will you get through the walls into the heart of the Computer?”
“A ‘can-opener’, a nuclear cutter from an Octopus unit. We were finally able to obtain one. They are fast and relatively silent. We can tap the power of the cloaking mechanism to drive it.”
“How ironic, for that is how they captured Franelli in the first place,” Izax said. “Tell me, how many operatives will you have for this little piece of business?”
“Four should do nicely. With the help of our contact, it will be relatively easy to slip four into the system.”
“I see, Mr. Cedric. This all seems very good, very well planned. But just how will you bring in your operatives and take out Franelli with PCC ships everywhere?”
“A small space-plane will be used that also employs a cloaking mechanism, focusing power from the four star ships,” Cedric said, brimming with confidence. “Timing will be crucial, but we have been studying the flight patterns and times of regular air traffic. There are a number of opportunities that will work.”
“You are quite sure of your plan, Mr. Cedric? What odds do you give for your success?” Izax said, a gleam in his eyes.
“We are ninety-five percent sure of success. If everything goes as planned and the Empire does not stumble upon us by accident, it should be easy and quick. A little luck is always in the equation.”
“I have a small change in the plans that will be to your benefit, and I will still pay you the full price. You see how generous I can be? Here is my little change. Bestmarke’s ship will be cloaked and in high earth orbit. You will be given the exact coordinates to rendezvous with him and transfer Franelli. Then our brazen Mr. Bestmarke can make a run for it, and receive all the glorious attention from our beloved Empire. It saves you a long trip back here, and allows you to go about your business immediately, drawing no attention to yourself, or most importantly, to me.”
“I like the plan, Mr. Izax. However, there is one small question that I have – when and where will I be paid?”
“And that is an excellent question, Mr. Cedric. I must compliment you, you are starting to think like me!” Izax said. “You make regular freight runs to Luna One, don’t you?”
“Yes, sir, I have a regular schedule, just like clockwork.”
“Good. At your next drop on Luna One, after you have delivered Mr. Franelli, your payment in full will be waiting for you at your loading dock. It will be hidden in a scan-proof shipment bound for New London on Mars. It will appear as ordinary food stuffs. At least that is what the blocking device will tell the scanners. Load it as normal and do not open it until you are well on your way and you are sure no one is following you,” Izax said, pointing his finger at him. “Can you do that, Mr. Cedric? If you are thorough, I am sure we can do business again.”
“I am always thorough, Mr. Izax. I have to be.”
“You will need to be this time, Mr. Cedric,” Izax said, an unusual seriousness about him. “No one in four hundred and seventy five years has broken into CENTRAL.”
Chapter XXXIII
Earth Date: 475 N.V.A.
Location: CENTRAL, Earth
“Do you know what the surprise is, Star-Commander?” Rogerton said, walking from their rooms to the Chambers where they had first met the Guardians.
“I am not sure, but I think it has something to do with the ancient man,” VanDevere said. “They did not tell me much. I find the situation intriguing, we will find out soon enough.”
The cozy fire added to the relaxed atmosphere. More chairs were in the room and more Guardians than their first encounter. The Guardians all wore simple white uniforms, each identified by a ten-pointed black onyx star by the left shoulder. The Lieutenant counted nine in attendance. Three were familiar as she recognized Guardians I, II, and X. She wondered at the absence of Guardian VII. The other six were new to her, but she felt the warmth and kindness in their gentle demeanor. All were standing except Guardian I who was very old and preferred sitting by the fire. Had she been standing, she would have been quite tall. Her gray hair was divided into two long braids, one on each side of her wrinkled, reddish-skinned face, falling down her chest nearly to her slender waist. She had clear, dark eyes, full of life.
She watched the young Lieutenant and caught her eye. Smiling broadly, she motioned for her to come over. “Sit down, please, my dear young Lieutenant.” Her voice resonated youthfully. “I am Guardian I. We have met briefly before and I have been anxious to speak with you. Guardian VII has kept me informed of your remarkable progress with the panther. You have deep feelings for animals, it seems. That is a gift. You remind me of my ancestors many, many generations back who lived on the plains of ancient North America, the Lakota Sioux. They were a noble race in tune with nature. They understood the animals and the cycles of Earth. That kind of understanding has all but disappeared. But sometimes these qualities reappear in surprising intensity.”
Her words touched the Lieutenant’s heart and she felt drawn to this wise, older woman. “I am honored to meet you, Guardian. I regret that I know little about your ancestors and their obvious love for Earth. To have that kind of love would indeed be riches beyond compare,” she said, gazing into the ageless eyes of the Guardian.
“You are beginning to understand, my dear, your wisdom and appreciation will continue to grow. We will talk more of this later. Guardian II now has interesting and exciting news for us.”
As if on cue, Guardian II asked them all to sit. With obvious delight and animated facial expressions, she began her presentation. “We are happy to be gathered here for this momentous occasion in the history of the New Victorian Empire. We are seeing historic progress that may help us in solving our greatest dilemma of perpetuating the human race. As you know, we have been working hard to complete the android body for the ancient man. That has now been accomplished, and Guardian VII has informed us of the successful connection and restoration of the man, Martin Charles Bucklann.” Then with enthusiasm she announced: “I am pleased at this time to present him to you!”
The door at the far end opened, revealing Guardian VII, smiling and clutching the arm of a tall man walking smoothly beside her. There was, indeed, a collective gasp and then applause as the couple walked into the room. Guardian VII said with great pride: “May I present to you all, Martin Charles Bucklann!”
The Lieutenant looked at him with admiration. She also realized that the heart of every woman there was instantly stolen by this tall, athletic looking man with looks that harkened back to a time beyond any of their memories but for ancient photographs and legends. Wearing the dark forest-green unifor
m of the Planetary Control Corps, he stood tall, smiling at them, and spoke in a strong, steady voice.
“I’ve never had much speaking experience before, but I feel it's important to tell you ladies what’s on my mind and in my heart. I'm thankful and grateful for being alive. And just look at me! I really can’t believe it myself,” Martin said, holding out his arms to the group. “It’s miraculous! It’s amazing what Guardian VII has done for me. All I can say is thank you from the bottom of my heart. I don’t know the right words to tell you how grateful I am for what the Empire has done, but you have given me back hope when all my hope was gone. When I was Bestmarke’s trophy, trapped in that pedestal, my life looked black with no way out for me or my father. Now it’s like the sun has come up and I can see my way again. Now I see how I can help my father, too. For the first time in my life I have a real purpose – you know, something I feel that I must do. I must help capture Bestmarke so we can rescue my father.”
Martin paused as if reflecting on a distant memory. Then he stood at attention and raised his right hand. “I promise to serve the Empire in whatever way I can. I promise to work hard to change the situation that brought me here, and to bring Bestmarke and his cohorts to justice for their crimes against the Empire. I will help in any way I can to prevent the extinction of the human race and do it in a way that brings dignity, honor, and peace to everyone.” He lowered his right arm and looked at everyone in the room. “Thank you for being my friends, my true friends, when I didn’t have any. Thank you for helping me when my life looked black and empty. Thank you, my friends.”
For a few seconds the only sound was the hiss and crackle of the fire. Twelve women watched, totally enraptured. Some had tears running down their faces, all had strongly beating hearts. Loud applause and joyful comments followed as they voiced their praise and approval. They could scarcely believe their eyes, so well constructed and life-like was his android body. They all wanted to touch him, to feel his strength, the smoothness of his skin, to marvel at his perfect physique.
He talked and listened to all the Guardians, especially Guardian I and Guardian II who found it difficult to relinquish their attention to him. Finally, he approached the Lieutenant and Star-Commander. He spoke first to VanDevere. “I want to thank you, Star-Commander, because you helped so much in my rescue. Your leadership and guidance made it possible for me to be saved. Thank you so much,” he said, bowing deeply, unsettling the stoic Star-Commander. She could only stammer in reply. “You – you are welcome, Martin.”
He turned to Lieutenant Rogerton, momentarily gazing at her blue-green eyes, the tiny freckles on her small straight nose, and her thick auburn hair tumbling upon her shoulders, glistening in the firelight. Almost instinctively, he gently took her hand, and bowing low, kissed it tenderly. Letting go, he stood and looked her in the eyes. “I owe the most thanks to you, Lieutenant. You rescued me from Bestmarke’s ship and made it possible for me to live and hope again. You saved me from despair. I’m forever thankful to you, Lieutenant Janet Rogerton.” He bowed low again.
The Lieutenant thought her heart was going to jump from her chest. She sensed the heated rush of blood into her face, overwhelmed by the simple beauty and sublime elegance of the moment.
“Thank you, Martin,” she said, as if in a daze. She just looked at him, enamored and speechless, taken by the moment and her own hopeful thoughts.
Martin continued to study her face. He heard Guardian VII approaching. “Please, Martin, come sit down. We still have some important matters to consider.” She took his arm and led him to one of the chairs, all eyes following him as he sat down.
“We want to give our highest praise to Guardian VII, and her staff, for a job well done!” Guardian II said, her expressive face beaming with joy. “Would you all agree that her final results are remarkable?”
Joyous applause ensued, finally dying down, allowing Guardian II to continue. “The completion of the android body for Martin is indeed a milestone and a great accomplishment. However, the general knowledge of this whole situation and how Martin arrived here in the first place must be kept strictly confidential. If the facts were known that time travel in its truest sense is possible, the repercussions to society within the Empire could be devastating and far reaching. To the lawless factions outside, the temptation of time travel through the Keyhole would be too much for them to resist. We would have to guard it constantly. It would become a continuous battle, and the expense would be great in lives and resources.
“We cannot hide Martin and ultimately the panther, too, nor should we desire to hide them. Their lives need to be open and deserving of the dignity we can afford them,” Guardian II said. “Therefore, we need to present them as the latest technological breakthrough in cybernetic android research. They will be presented as one hundred percent fully working machines, total androids.” She paused for a moment. “Really, this is true for the most part as only their heads are truly alive. We will continue the ruse as a protection for the Empire, for Martin, and the panther. We will assign them to space duty to limit their interaction with other people.”
Guardian II paused again and Martin raised his hand. “Yes, Martin would you like to speak once more?”
“Uh ... yes, Ma’am, I would if it’s okay,” Martin said. “I really didn’t plan to say anything more but I feel it’s important for you all to know that I completely agree with this arrangement. It’s been seventeen long years since my father disappeared. My mother and I suffered terribly all those years, not knowing what really happened. And now she is suffering even more because I’m gone, too. That breaks my heart,” Martin said, his voice cracking.
The room grew quiet as he paused for a moment, looking down, struggling to control his emotions. Finally he looked up again, his jaw firmly set. “Like I said, I agree with the plan because it will give me the chance to help capture Bestmarke – to hunt him down, capture his ship, and rescue my father. I hope that time-travel will be figured out so the situation that brought my father and I here can be reversed. I hope that somehow I can reverse the pain that my mother is continuing to go through. Guardian VII has given me great strength and power in my new body. I will continue to look to the Empire for direction in using my new power to accomplish the most good!”
All twelve women immediately rose to their feet with a loud burst of applause. Martin continued to stand, a peaceful look on his face. Guardian II continued to applaud and invited Star-Commander VanDevere to continue.
“As you can see by his uniform, Martin will be assigned a position of responsibility on one of our ships. A rapid and aggressive training program in the rigors of space-duty will be started for him immediately,” she said, looking over to him. “Guardian VII hopes to have Martin and the panther working together as a dynamic team. If she is successful we will combine their extraordinary strength, speed, and agility in our quest to capture Bestmarke and his ship.”
She sat down and all eyes turned to Guardian I as she rose, lifted up her hands, and concluded. “Four hundred seventy five years of stability and relative peace hang in the balance. History will be the final judge of our decisions and actions, as will the continuation of the New Victorian Empire, as we know it,” she said. “We must proceed with careful thought and wisdom, always remembering our ultimate goal of preserving the human race forever.”
They all stood and concluded by raising their clenched left fists over their hearts.
Chapter XXXIV
“He looks so real, Guardian, his hair and long tail are perfect! He's so big and muscular, his large paws, and sharp claws that are deadly looking. He is admirable, but formidable,” Rogerton said as she watched the screen. “Is he ready to be awakened?”
“In a few minutes,” Guardian VII said, seated at her controls and instruments, not even looking up. “I want to run a few more tests of his circuitry, particularly the interface between his living tissue and the primary androidal circuits. To this point everything has worked well, just as with our an
cient man Martin. He turned out very well, do not you agree, Lieutenant?”
Very well indeed, Rogerton thought to herself, remembering their previous meeting at his presentation to the Guardians. No one before had ever touched her heart like he had done when he gently kissed her hand and spoke those kind words to her. It still resonated within her like a scene from a fairy tale she had read long ago as a young girl. She sighed, absently looking away.
“Lieutenant?” said the Guardian, looking at her curiously.
“Yes, Guardian? Oh! Yes! He turned out very well. Yes, very well indeed,” she said, her face blushing slightly.
The Guardian smiled broadly and looked down again at her instruments. “Martin will be helping us with the panther’s training once you and the big cat have completed your bonding process. You are both very close now. There is one more critical phase, though. While he was in the pedestal, you were in control. Now he will feel his strength, power, and speed. He may try to dominate you. He is deadly now, and he may figure that out. We will take every precaution for your safety. If he seems to go out of control, we will shut him off immediately. We expect your bonding to hold, but we are prepared if it does not.”
“If it doesn’t hold, that may break my heart, too,” she said, her mind drifting off again.
“There, the testing is done. Let us now awaken him,” Guardian VII said, looking up from her controls.
The panther was in a much larger room for this test. Thick tropical foliage and the chirps and cries of insects, birds, and monkeys were faithfully reproduced by the holographic generator. The humid smell of sweet decay completed the authentic jungle landscape.
TROPHY Page 17