Into the Battle

by Rosone, James

  Halsey smiled as she returned the slight bow. She was really starting to love their customs—the Sumerians were actually a very respectful culture. They were also brilliant, far ahead of Earth technologically in many ways.

  “Thank you, Hadad. Please, just call me Abigail.”

  She then held her arm out, gesturing where they should go. “Let’s go to my office and talk. We made a discovery, and I’d like to get your take on it.”

  As Abigail guided them off the bridge, she signaled for Captain Johnson to join her. She wanted her XO involved in this discussion as well.

  When they entered her office, the three of them took a seat.

  “You look concerned, Abigail. What’s wrong? What can I help you with?” Hadad asked gently.

  “You always are perceptive,” Halsey replied. “We received a message from one of our other ships. They believe they found a stargate, and they’re moving to investigate it now. What can you tell us about the stargates, Hadad?”

  Hadad sat back in his chair momentarily; he didn’t answer right away. He thought for a moment before he finally cautioned, “You need to be careful with the stargate, Abigail. None of us know what is on the other end.”

  Halsey held a hand up to stop him. “Actually, Hadad, we do.” She reached for her tablet. Moments later, a holographic map floated in the center of the coffee table near them. She pointed to the Rhea system. “This is us. According to this star map, the stargate here connects us with a region of space the Zodarks call Ratan. This stargate leads to a system called SN9S-N. From there, it looks like it branches out into a host of other systems—”

  “Abigail, are you saying you have a functional Zodark navigational star map?” Hadad interjected, clearly surprised.

  Abigail smiled and nodded. “That Zodark ship we captured had a working star map. We’ve been trying to study it, but there’s still some parts of the language that we don’t fully understand. Maybe you could help us with the translation.”

  “May I?” asked Hadad as he reached out a hand to the holographic image.

  Halsey nodded. She and Johnson watched as Hadad navigated through several layers of the star map. He eventually pulled up a system and somehow linked that system with the one they were in.

  “This is my home system. The Zodarks call it YV-FDG; my people call it Lagash after our sun. It’s a yellow dwarf, just like your own.” Hadad then highlighted several other systems that traveled down what looked like a chain until it dead-ended. “Our system, Lagash, connects to a string of other star systems. I personally have never left our system except as a servant to the Zodark NOS. However, hundreds of years ago, before the Zodarks restricted our travel, we had an expedition that explored the chain. They were gone for several years, and when they returned, they reported that each system had at least one habitable planet,” Hadad explained, getting more and more excited as he spoke.

  “Our people were incredibly optimistic about what we had found.” He paused, becoming somber. “This was right around the same time we made the discovery that we could travel through space using the folding of space and time to transport ourselves from one star system to another without the use of the stargates. We were just about to test the theory when the Zodarks learned of what we were doing and stopped us. It was during this period that they also restricted us from leaving our system and colonizing these other planets or exploring them further. They gave us free rein in Lagash, but we could not leave.”

  Halsey leaned forward. “Hadad, why did the Zodarks allow your people to explore space and then suddenly, out of the blue, decide they needed to rein you in? Were the Zodarks not present that often in your system?”

  Hadad reached for a glass from Halsey’s desk and filled it with water from her pitcher. He took a drink as he thought over what she’d said for a moment. “Abigail, there is much I do not know about the Zodarks, but I will do my best. Our history tells us we first encountered the Zodarks somewhere around two thousand years ago. Before then, it was rumored that a different alien species had been involved with our people, but we do not have very much evidence or information about them other than some prehistoric drawings on cave walls and stone tablets.

  “When the Zodarks came, they set up a small city on the planet. They taught us industrial farming, medical science, and many other things. Society on our planet leaped forward. They ended wars and conflicts between various nations and groups and forced everyone to get along. Their presence in our world was viewed by most as a good thing. And then the tributes started.

  “When the Zodarks began the tributes, they told our people this was the price to be paid for their benevolence and the advances in technology they were providing. I cannot say what the initial response was, but over thousands of years, our society came to accept them and found ways to deal with them. As you know, many believe the Zodarks eat the people given in tribute, and others believe the Zodarks are using those taken to act as slaves or perform some other function on other worlds the Zodarks control. To be honest, Abigail, we don’t know for certain what they are doing with those who are taken.

  “As you saw when you liberated us from the mining camp, some of those at the camp were prisoners who broke the Zodark rules. Some were people who had been taken as part of the yearly tribute. Now that you have freed me, I hope to learn one day what they are doing with all the people they are taking with their annual tribute.”

  Halsey leaned forward, balancing her chin on her hand. “But were the Zodarks not that involved in your planet prior to your people making that discovery in space travel?” she asked.

  “I believe the Zodarks were distracted elsewhere. The Zodarks have been involved in a galactic war against some other species.” Hadad held a hand up to forestall her from asking a question. “Before you ask me about that, there is little I can say. I have never been to any of their other worlds. I do not know much about their war other than that I know they have been involved in one, and it’s been going on for hundreds of years. Hosni might be able to tell you more about it than I can, but that is why I believe the Zodarks didn’t know we had left our star system or about this new space travel technology we had invented until we were about to use it.”

  “Do you believe these other planets in these systems are populated by people who were taken for tribute?” Halsey asked. “Is it possible the Zodarks have more planets like Sumer they are managing?”

  Hadad nodded. “It’s very likely that that is exactly what they are doing. I think the bigger question to ask is why are the Zodarks interested in growing the human population on other worlds? What are they ultimately using humans for?”

  “Hadad, when we talked with Hosni, he told us the Zodarks don’t cull the humans for food like many have been led to believe. He says they transport these humans to another system, where they are bred and trained to fight in their army,” Halsey explained. She wanted to see what more Hadad could add to Hosni’s claims.

  Hadad shrugged. “Hosni said he was a slave to a Zodark NOS, and that he grew up on their home world. If all that is true, then he probably would know more than me about this.”

  “You sound like you don’t believe him,” Abigail countered, lifting an eyebrow in surprise.

  Hadad opened his mouth to say something, then stopped. “I cannot say for certain if he is lying or telling the truth. There have been some rumors that the cullings are just that, a way for them to take our people and populate more worlds. Personally, I find it hard to believe that they would allow humans to fight alongside them as Hosni says. They would not allow us to fight alongside them, so I find it hard to believe that they’d allow other groups of humans to do so.”

  Abigail leaned forward as she fixed him with her steely gaze. “Hadad, is it possible that what Hosni has told us is true? Is it possible that the Zodarks have used an elaborate ruse to deceive your people?”

  Hadad sighed as his body slumped back in the chair. “Abigail, I, I just don’t know. I mean, maybe. Your world isn’t controlle
d by the Zodarks, and your own scientists say our DNA is a perfect match, and our language is a language that used to be spoken on your own planet. It could be possible; I just don’t know. But there are definitely other alien species out there besides just the Zodarks. Of that I am certain.”

  Feeling like she’d pressed him for as much as he knew about this subject, Abigail changed tracks to the real reason she’d called him up to her office. “Hadad, with a working star map, can you show us where the Zodark home worlds are and the territory they control?”

  He nodded and highlighted six systems—it was becoming very useful to have a Sumerian who’d lived with a Zodark NOS. Inside those six systems, there were a total of ten planets. “These are their core worlds. I can’t tell you how many people live on them. What I can tell you about the Zodarks is while they do live a long time, somewhere around four hundred of your years, they are very slow to reproduce. Zodark females may only have two or three offspring in their lifetime. Whereas on my planet, our women tend to have between six and ten children. So we procreate substantially faster and have grown our populations. Even with the tributes, we still produce more offspring than are chosen.”

  Halsey shook her head. She was still having a hard time accepting this practice by the Zodarks. She knew the Sumerians had no choice in the matter. Part of her hoped Hosni’s tale of them being repopulated on other planets was true. If so, then maybe they could be liberated from these beasts.

  “If I ordered our other ship to proceed through the stargate, do you know what would be waiting for them in that system…um…SN9S-N?” asked Halsey.

  Hadad shrugged. “I can’t say for certain, Abigail. What I can tell you is it took roughly three of your months to travel from my home system to here. I’m not sure how far the Zodark home systems are from New Eden—all I know is they are further away than my home world.”

  This caused Abigail to pause. She couldn’t shake the feeling that a Zodark fleet must be headed toward them.

  Seeing the puzzled, anxious look on her face, Hadad inquired, “What is troubling you, Abigail?”

  She let out a soft sigh. “I find it hard to believe, Hadad, that the Zodarks would send only two warships to New Eden. And when those ships didn’t report back, they didn’t dispatch more ships to find out what happened. Surely they know we are here by now?”

  Hadad thought for a moment. He eventually nodded in agreement. “You’re probably right, Abigail. They will most likely send another set of ships to investigate what happened. But please keep something in mind—Clovis, or by your name New Eden, is at the extreme end of their known systems. This is a very remote place for them. They are probably more concerned with what is happening in another region called Intrepid, where they are at war.

  “We Sumerians don’t know much about who this other species is, what they are called, or what they look like. We only know little bits and pieces overheard in passing. The only reason I know anything is because I heard a couple of the camp guards talking about the war, and not in very pleasant terms.”

  “Hadad, why am I only just now hearing about this other species and a Zodark war?” she asked. “This is pretty important information to know.”

  He blushed. “Abigail, I apologize if I kept this from you. I honestly hadn’t thought about it until you showed me the star map. Had I known you had a working copy of one, I could have shown you a lot more. I don’t fully understand the Zodarks’ written language, but I do understand enough of it to navigate their software. As a scientist on my own planet, I used this star map extensively at one point in my career.”

  Halsey leaned forward. “Here is what I need you to do, Hadad. I need you to sit down with some of our scientists and help us understand what all these symbols mean. Next, I want you to tell us everything you know about each of these stargates connecting New Eden to your home system and the Zodarks. I need as much tactical information as possible on what they have in each of these systems: what kind of industry they have, the number of ships they might have, etcetera.”

  Hadad nodded.

  “We need a better understanding of the Zodark threat than I think you or your people have provided up to this point,” Halsey pressed. “If you want to stay free, and you want our help in liberating your home world, then I need to better understand what I’m facing. Understood?”

  The Sumerian agreed to help any way he could. He also offered to talk with the nine other Sumerians on the ship with him and see if any of them had additional information they could provide.

  *******

  Sol

  John Glenn Orbital Station

  As the destroyer approached the John Glenn Orbital Station, Admiral Bailey stood on the edge of the bridge, not wanting to get in the way of the captain and his crew. He observed the men and women as they did their duties. They were competent, professional, and ready for whatever might come. He felt good about that. It made him beam with pride that the intensive training programs he’d instituted were paying off.

  When he’d taken over as the admiral in charge of fleet operations many years ago, Bailey had instituted a revamp of both the officer and enlisted training programs. He had drilled into them esprit de corps, discipline, and empathy. The latter had earned him a few laughs. However, Admiral Bailey felt it essential for leaders not just to be hard-charging men and women who adhered to strict rules and orders but also to have the ability to empathize and understand what their subordinates were going through. He empowered his entire crew to find their individual strengths and leverage them for the good of the mission and the ship. Each officer and enlisted person had faults, but their shortcomings didn’t need to define them.

  Bailey looked at the monitor in front of the bridge; he had a good view of the station. He spotted a transport he hadn’t expected to see and walked up to the ship captain. “Ryker, is that the Wahoo in port?” he asked, pointing at the ship on the far side of the station.

  Captain Ryker called out to one of his officers to zoom in on the ship at the end of the dock. Sure enough, it was, in fact, the Wahoo, a large FTL-equipped freighter the TPA had sent on the Rhea mission with Admiral Halsey. It was a massive freighter, and it also wasn’t due in port for at least three months. Being one of the larger freighters, it was supposed to be one of the last ships to head back to Earth because it was supposed to be bringing a full cargo hold of the precious minerals they needed for their ships.

  When they eventually docked, Admiral Bailey said he wanted a full brief on why the Wahoo was back in port. As he disembarked the ship, he became connected to the station’s internal communications system. His neurolink synced up, and he received an inundation of information. He was also told a group of individuals was waiting to speak with him in his office at the station.

  Admiral Bailey didn’t work at his office on the John Glenn very often—typically only a couple of times a month at most. His time was spent mainly at Space Command headquarters and in the nation’s capital, arguing over funding requests.

  It took Bailey half an hour to navigate through the station to get to the military side. His security detachment escorted him past the sentries as they led him to his office. When Bailey walked into his assistant’s office in front of his own, he heard a lot of talking coming from inside his office. A minute later, he walked in, and someone called the room to attention.

  Bailey stood there for a second, looking at everyone who was in his office. He immediately spotted Captain Miles Hunt and then recognized several of Hunt’s senior officers from the Rook.

  “As you were, everyone,” Bailey said. “Oh, by the way, welcome back to Earth, and it’s damn good to see you all alive.” He shook hands as he walked through the crowd until he made his way up to his protégé.

  He looked Hunt in the eye and lowered his voice. “I’m glad you made it, Miles. My heart sank when I saw your ship fall into the planet. For a couple of days, I thought we had lost you.”

  Grimacing at the mention of his lost ship, Hunt said, “Thank y
ou, Admiral—it was a tough day for us. We lost a lot of good people that day.”

  Before Admiral Bailey could say anything else, Captain Hunt turned to the soldier standing next to him. He was the only person in the room in Delta fatigues and not the uniform of the Fleeters. “Admiral Bailey, this is Master Sergeant Brian Royce, now Lieutenant Royce. He’s the Delta who led the assault on the Zodark carrier we captured. It was also his company that saved my crew members on the planet when the Zodarks attacked us. Had their unit not arrived when it did, I’m honestly not sure any of my surviving crew would have made it out of there alive.”

  Bailey nodded as he surveyed the Special Forces operator, then extended his hand. “It is a true pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant. I watched the video of your assault, and I must say, I was in awe of your courage and bravery.”

  The lieutenant stood a bit taller. “I was just doing my job, sir—leading by example, as every NCO and officer should.”

  “Well, I’m not sure if Captain Hunt or anyone else has informed you, but we requested you to travel back to Earth because you’re being presented the Medal of Honor in a few days at the White House,” Admiral Bailey said, to the complete surprise of Lieutenant Royce. “As a matter of fact, the video of your heroics is going to be broadcast across the entire system in a few days.”

  “I, um…I’m not sure what to say, sir. Is that a wise idea?” The Delta suddenly had a look of horror etched across his face as he realized what he had just said to the fleet admiral, questioning his wisdom and judgment.

  Bailey just smiled at the man and chuckled. He pulled the Delta aside from the others for a moment. “You and I are actually going to talk privately tomorrow. I need some straight answers from someone on the ground, and I won’t get that from ship captains. I need a soldier’s perspective; I need your perspective, OK?”