Star Man 2: Star Rise

by I. G. Roberts

  Colin arrived at Commodore Nicholson’s Headquarters to give his verbal report. When he walked in, Sonya was shaking her head and laughing. He wondered what she was laughing about then decided she would tell him when she was ready, so he stood patiently waiting while Sonya brought herself under control.

  Finally, she looked at Colin, chuckled once more, then said with amusement dancing in her eyes, “I can’t let you out of my sight without trouble brewing. Colin, every time you go anywhere in that Cobra of yours, you end up killing or capturing Pirates and sometimes their ships. What’s worse, you’re corrupting some of my most reliable and stable Officers. Carl came back from Lahoshar singing your praises, and now Siobhan comes back from a short trip intended to show the flag at Conomar, and she’s telling me the trip was the most fun she’s ever had. On top of that, you arrive back here with a representative of the Federation Council in tow. The Council wants to place an order for an obscene number of Cobras and Taipans. I’m starting to think you’re going to be my Commanding Officer before long. How do you manage it, Colin?”

  “I only go where you send me Commodore, and play the cards that I’m dealt. Did I do something wrong?”

  “No, no, you didn’t do anything wrong. Colin, it seems you’re a magnet for trouble. Most Navy Captains have to go actively searching for enemies to fight, but you sir, appear to have them trained to come to you willingly.”

  Colin had no reply to this comment, so he kept his mouth shut, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Sonya obviously wanted to tell him something but wouldn’t until she was ready. Finally, Colin could see a more serious look cross Sonya’s face, so he waited for her to tell him what she had in mind.

  Sonya said, “Seriously Colin, FNS Destiny was on her way here with FNS Shurana to see how the Cobras performed against the same class of ship. The Helimon class are the standard to beat in the Federation, at least they were. You and Captain Fraser amply demonstrated Shurana’s obsolescence in Conomar, with a little help from some of your pet Pirates of course. Our government is currently negotiating contracts with the Federation for the supply of upwards on two hundred Cobras. Our shipyard is about to triple or even quadruple in size. We’ll be having a few people coming to Cambridge soon, mostly Tangesha and Codai, at least initially but you are very popular with our President right now. You have single handedly ensured the prosperity of Cambridge for the foreseeable future. When Cambridge embarked on the task of designing the Cobras six years ago, we had no shipyard and the intent was to build an affordable but powerful System Defence Boat, hence the Taipan. Along the way, relatively early, in fact, we realized we needed the ability to project power outside of the System, so the Cobra was born. We hoped to be able to secure some modest contracts selling these two types to the Systems which weren’t important enough for a full-time Navy presence, Systems such as Lahoshar for example. They have enough wealth to make some modest investment of this nature but not enough to completely go it alone.”

  Colin listened to the Commodore feeling rather dumbfounded by the successes. He was willing to accept some responsibility for the successes the Cobra was enjoying, but all he did really was to help develop some innovative tactics to use the type to its best effect. Even now, part of his mind was on furnishing his home rather than the conversation.

  Sonya said, “Did you hear what I said, Colin?”

  Colin came down with a thump, saying, “I apologize Commodore. My mind wandered off onto an entirely unrelated topic. Now, you have my complete and undivided attention. What was it you asked?”

  Commodore Nicholson repeated her question, “I asked, do you think your XO would be up to taking Theseus for a patrol in this System?”

  Colin looked at her, wondering why she was asking him this just now but answered her anyway, “He would be okay as long as the excrement didn’t hit the fan and he stayed within the System. Theseus and Anne should be able to keep him on the straight and narrow. Why do you ask?”

  “I think you need an extended break from operations. I want you to take a full month off while you can. Your ship can depart in two weeks’ time for a quick patrol of the System. I think removing you as Sam’s crutch will do him a lot of good. We need to make him pony up. This way, we’ll kill four birds with one stone.”

  “Four birds Sonya? What four birds would these be?”

  “Well Colin, you are needed here in Cambridge, you badly need rest, I can see it in your eyes, and you’re not your usual sharp self. I need the ship out there patrolling, and Lieutenant Harland needs the opportunity to practice command for real. For that matter, Anne should have a taste of the XO’s chair as well. If it turns into anything more than a routine patrol, his orders will be to run for home and pick you up. I promise.”

  “Okay Sonya, point taken. Can I at least give him a pep talk before his departure.”

  Sonya nodded and dismissed Colin. She thought the conversation went better than expected. She was worried about her favourite Captain, though. His mind clearly wasn’t in the here and now just then.

  Colin left Sonya’s office and called Siobhan to ask if she and Anne would be able to help him find the right furniture for his new home. They immediately agreed and told him to wait for them to come and pick him up. When the two women arrived, they had Julia with them as well and insisted on visiting the property first, to get a feel for the place as they put it. The four of them drove down to his home and let themselves in. It was completely empty now, but there were a few bits of debris around, and the house smelled a little musty from being shut up and vacant for so long. Colin decided to arrange for a cleaning service to come out and give the place a good scrub. He found somebody local who was suitable by asking his neighbours for a recommendation. Colin contacted the firm and arranged for someone to come out on the following day. After that little chore had been completed, the four of them went into the local town, where Colin found a place to have duplicate keys made. When he had his spares, he took one to the cleaning company so they could enter his home the next day. After finishing that little task, they all went shopping. In all, it took three days for them to buy everything Colin needed for his home. Deliveries were happening quite quickly so Colin asked Julia if she could be at the house to accept them. He wasn’t particularly concerned where things were put in the short term. He just needed someone there who could let people bring things into his house. She agreed, and between the four of them, everything made its way to his house. In the end, Colin was wondering if he’d need to take out a mortgage for the furnishings and other odds and ends every home needs. Odds and ends that were generally accumulated over an extended length of time.

  When everything was in place, Colin hired a couple of strong young lads from nearby to help him put everything where it was needed. Julia came to help as well, making a never-ending supply of food and beverages for everyone as they worked. Colin noticed, her beginning to become a little more assertive, even telling him he was wrong on a couple of occasions when they disagreed. Eventually, everything was in place, and the house was ready to accept guests. Colin asked Julia if she would be willing to work for him for a while. He explained what that meant. Colin would pay her an hourly rate so she would have some money of her own, money she’d earned, and in return she would help him by looking after him and his guests, cooking meals and such. He explained she could say no, but once they agreed on her duties, then she would be expected to carry them out. The two of them decided on a suitable pay scale, and on her duties, so Julia became Colin’s housekeeper.

  Not long after Colin had his house organized, Sophon Carlon contacted him to ask about having the talk they spoke about. Colin agreed and arranged for Carlon to stay with him for a few days. He explained about Julia, who, and what she was. While Sophon didn’t want her listening in on the conversation, they both knew it would not be too difficult to make sure she couldn’t.

  Chapter 10

  Colin drove to Navy Headquarters in Harmon to pick Sophon Carlon up and drive him back to the h
ouse. When they arrived at his home, Colin gave him a little time to settle in while Julia made them something to drink, then the two Officers sat on the veranda overlooking the ocean. Not long after the two of them relaxed, Julia left to go to the markets for a few supplies, so Colin took the opportunity to ask Sophon what he wanted to talk about. Colin still retained the surveillance scrambler he was given for his mission at the Academy, not knowing if they wanted it back or didn’t care. He hoped they just hadn’t been able to catch up with him yet because he hadn’t spent very much time on Cambridge since returning. The other alternative was that they wanted him to have it because they thought Colin would need it. Either way, he still had the device, so he activated it before Sophon started talking.

  Sophon said, “Colin, the Federation doesn’t know how lucky we were when you turned up at Conomar. You saved us there, and you saved us at a time when we were rapidly running out of options. I brought a high-value representative from the Federation Council to Cambridge, so your intervention was fortuitous. The reason for the trip here has for us to evaluate the Cobra and Taipan designs. We were going to put one up against FNS Shurana but saw how only two of your Cobras demolished that Pirate fleet. We did have reports from Lahoshar, but in all honesty, nobody believed them, not entirely, they were thought to be exaggerations. I saw what you could achieve and now know if anything, the capabilities are understated. Your Cobras are absolute little monsters. The Pirates will be having nightmares about them now I think. How many ships have you destroyed with those beasts?”

  “Destroyed, let me see, Thor and Theseus killed eight and Captured one at Lahoshar, Oh, and we caught another one in FR-1427A. Then Theseus destroyed a spy ship here in Cambridge, and of course, there were the three we killed and one captured in Conomar. So, what does that make, twelve destroyed, three captured, I think. Of course, almost all of those were achieved in conjunction with another Cobra, we work far more efficiently as a pair. You know Sophon, Julia knows about all this. We captured her and her… owner… at Lahoshar. They were in a Spy ship watching everything we did. Until additional Taipans and Cobras arrived in the System, Dave could see everything we did. You should know, he chose not to relay the information about where we were and what we were doing to the Pirates we were fighting. DNI have been talking to Dave ever since we brought him back to Cambridge. About eighty percent of the intelligence he has given DNI was verified by other sources, sources he knows nothing about. Dave was tried on Piracy related charges and been sentenced to serve in the Navy for five years. He is in the middle of his recruit training now. Both Dave and Julia told us they wanted to escape the Peschal Alliance long before we caught up with them. The only reason the two of them didn’t end up here sooner was that Dave thought if he came to the Federation, jail or execution would be the only options.”

  “But Colin, this, Dave, is a slave owner. That is fundamentally against Federation policy.”

  “True enough Sophon. You do need to understand, Dave never treated Julia like a slave, in fact, he risked his life to keep her safe on more than one occasion. Those two think the world of each other. I know Julia is missing him, but she understands why they can’t be together very much right now. Both Dave and I have explained to Julia that she isn’t a slave here in the Federation. I think she may even be starting to understand what freedom means.”

  “One thing they won’t know Colin yet is the Federation intends to place orders for four hundred Taipans and two hundred Cobras. Negotiations are progressing even now. This is where things become interesting Colin, we will also be requesting Cambridge to provide an escort back to Cotoni Station. We were all badly shaken up by the attack in Conomar. The application has already been made. If it is approved Colin, you will be away from Cambridge for around four months in total.”

  Colin nodded, not trusting himself to speak. He knew Sonya would approve the request, she didn’t have much choice. Colin felt the worry beginning to creep in because of the concern the Pirates were going to do something here at Cambridge, probably sooner rather than later. Still, he could only do what seemed necessary at the time. If ordered to provide an escort, Colin would do so without argument.

  The two Captains sat side by side in companionable silence, watching the ocean waves rolling in as they immersed themselves in their own thoughts. They could hear the rumble as the water crashed against the headland and smell the fresh salt water smell. Colin thought the environment was very relaxing and realized he was beginning to enjoy living here already. He felt he was starting to put down roots here on Cambridge. Colin only wished Katherine was here to share all this with him.

  Colin allowed his mind to freewheel. How could they effectively defend Cambridge against a fleet of say, twenty or thirty Pirate ships? What would be the limitations? What would be the single point of failure? What if the Pirates came in through both Jump-Points simultaneously? How could they continue fighting if the Pirates reached the planet? How long would their ammunition hold out? All these questions and more tugged at Colin’s mind while the two of them sat, watching the sea and enjoying the cool breeze in companionable silence.

  Colin said, “Sophon, how long will we be here? How long before we depart for Cotoni Station?”

  “Not for at least another four weeks, perhaps even five or six. There are still a lot of negotiations to be concluded, contracts to sign, that sort of thing. Why do you ask?”

  “I’m planning a party, I would like you to come. It’s a bit of a tradition among some humans. We call it a housewarming. You invite your friends to come, and your family then just enjoy each other’s company in the new home. In some ways, we are telling those we invite, they are always welcome.”

  “I would be honoured to attend Colin. We have something similar on Taralyn, but people bring gifts for the home.”

  “Some people on Earth do that as well, bring gifts for the home. In this case, it isn’t necessary, just bring yourself, and perhaps if they can be spared on Destiny, Shulari, and Eri.”

  “Colin, you promised to tell me how you broke that ship apart. Can you put me out of my misery now, please?”

  Colin smiled, “Yes Sophon, I can tell you now. You see, it’s our drive fields. These ships use technologies that are only just becoming available to move through space. They warp space itself, stretching it out behind the ship and shrinking it in front. If you are running the drives near maximum, then change polarity at just the right time as you pass by, the spatial distortion can be incredibly destructive for a nearby structure. When we did that, we combined it with some other techniques we’ve been working on to devastating effect. Our plan was basically to throw the Pirates around in their ships, so they were distracted when our missiles went live. Things worked out far better than we could’ve ever hoped. I’ve spoken to the Captain of the ship we captured. He said they were all utterly confused by our tactics. His ship never even fired a missile. By the time he surrendered the Shields on his ship were barely holding on. Another volley would’ve finished them.”

  “These Cobras are far more potent as a fighting platform than their small size suggests then.”

  “Oh yes, very powerful indeed, especially when we operate them as a pair. One of the biggest advantages is the Sixth-Generation AI we have in them. During the maneuver where we broke that ship in two, our helmsmen were not actually steering the ships. The AI’s on our Cobras performed a procedure we’ve called synchronization where they effectively turn the two ships into one, albeit with the two parts flying about fifty to one hundred metres apart. The AI’s operated that profile, they can do that much better than a human can. These AI’s are also quite original in their thinking. They have been making some very real not to mention, useful contributions to our tactics.”

  “You trust machine intelligence this much Colin?”

  “Yes, we do. It is our edge with the Cobras and the Taipans. The AI is the main reason these platforms are so insanely good. If we didn’t trust them, then the efficiency of those platforms would
drop by perhaps thirty percent. To those AI’s, the crew is their family. They show a lot of initiative as well, having information ready for us, telling us about things we need to know without waiting for us to ask, even requesting clearance for us to undock when they know the probability of departure is high enough. They’re as reliable as people in some areas, more so in others.”

  “Sixth Generation AI you say. I think the one on Destiny is only Fourth Generation. I admit, it has been very reliable, it’s just that I’ve never thought of it as anything more than a computer. I believe that this would take a little getting used to.”

  “Well Sophon, with these ones, they talk to you, and they don’t seem like anything but another person. You would be surprised at how easily you slip into thinking of them as a real person. There are benefits to the AI as well if they are treated as a real living breathing person. You bond with each other and look after each other's interests. We very quickly found treating the AIs as people brought on a much better interaction, they respond to our orders better because they are not processing random thoughts like trying to work out why their crew is treating them so badly when they are so vital to the running the ship. Most of our crews have been trained in that, all except the first two or three and they treated the AI correctly without having to be told.”

  Just then Julia returned so the two friends stopped talking shop, both out of consideration to her and because she didn’t need to know anything about their conversation. Colin asked Sophon if he would like to try a beer. Carlon agreed to try one, so Colin went inside to bring some out. While he was there, he took one out of the refrigerator for Julia as well. Over the last few days, the two of them had fallen into the habit of sitting outside, looking at the ocean and drinking a beer together. He told her to leave the groceries because it was beer o’clock. For her, this one simple ritual the two of them had fallen into was something that really drove home the fact she was free. Back before coming to the Federation, it was unheard of for a slave, especially a female slave to sit with the master and have a beer accompanied by a quiet, friendly conversation. While they sat there, Colin and his guest reminisced about a trip they had together on a ship called FNS Destiny. It all sounded terribly exciting to Julia, and the camaraderie was something she would like to have with someone else. Julia did have some of that with Dave, but she couldn’t see him very often right then. Dave didn’t have very much opportunity to see her so they stole the few moments they could. The help she had from Anne and Sarah was worthwhile though because Julia could write letters to him now. Actually, they were emails. In fact, she was encouraged to write to him, telling him her news and how things were going. He replied, and she loved reading about his new life. Dave was happy as well because, with each letter, he could see improvement in Julia’s writing. He knew she was a brilliant girl and her speed of development as she tried to obtain some educational qualifications only reinforced that.