“How exciting,” Lullina praised, “do continue,” she waved her hand daintily to indicate for the handsome Officer to proceed.
“Majesty,” he began again, “there is a group of five solar systems within the Nezadir galaxy that have no affiliation to the Universal Alliance. They are strategically located between the two main power blocs of the Alliance; the Thexxian...”
“Do not mention that name in my presence!” Lullina snapped, her mood changing in an instant.
“Majesty, a thousand pardons, but I merely wish to demonstrate a weakness that could well lead to the destruction of that, shall we say, troublesome, species,” Batarrien bowed once more.
“Really?” Lullina suddenly smiled sweetly to the young Officer, “please tell us,” she simpered.
“If I may, Your Majesty,” Batarrien activated a huge holographic Display Screen that projected from equipment hidden in the Throne Room’s high ceiling, “the current territorial extent of the Universal Alliance,”
On the huge screen, two large intersecting blobs, one blue and one red, indicating a schematic of the Universal Alliance as viewed from above.
“To Your Majesty’s left, centred around the planet of Gardarus, we have THAT species expanding out towards the unclaimed territories beyond our frontier,” he indicated, “to the right, we have the bloc centred around the planets of Colos, Therallian and Skrax that are pushing out towards the Ganthoran frontiers and those unclaimed territories.”
“Yes, that’s all very nice, but we are well aware of the Alliance’s geography,” Lullina started to lose interest even in the handsome young Officer.
“But with Your Majesty’s permission, the Alliance is not a unified body within that territory. There are systems and species that have refused to join the Alliance or are uninhabited or are considered too primitive for membership, and are, thus, undefended,” the young Officer activated the screen once more where patches of black appeared within the red and blue, “if I could draw Your Majesty’s attention to this section.”
The image zoomed down to five black areas, bordered by white, at the edge of the red sector that formed a ragged path from one side of the very edge of the red bloc to the other. The Empress, a very strategically aware creature, like most of those on her Military Advisory Council, stared open-mouthed at what appeared to be a fatal weakness in the Alliance’s territorial possession.
“What are these systems, Officer?” the Empress watched the screen intently scrutinising the details and a plan forming in her mind.
“Erm, they are Praxos, Terra, Sidionas,” Batarrien began to list the systems.
“Terra!?” the Empress interrupted, “did you say Terra!? Earth!?” she suddenly challenged, leaping up from her throne.
“Yes, Majesty, the second system,” the confused Batarrien highlighted the second black shape in yellow, “is the Terran system; it has a yellow dwarf star and one inhabited planet called Terra or Earth.”
“Majesty, if we could…” the General who spoke for the Council interjected excitedly.
“Yes, General, if we could,” the Empress smiled, “Officer Batarrien, if we could drive a wedge between the two Alliance blocs, what would the effect be on our enemies?”
“Majesty,” Batarrien began, “politically, the Alliance is still quite fragile. There is no centralised political control apparatus. Other than the military, this Alliance exists only as some abstract concept. If we can split the two blocs, those species such as the Hraxxon, the Ceradors and the Kalthans would abandon the Alliance and sue for peace with us. Withdrawing those species from the Alliance Fleet would seriously weaken their combat power. Many other species would question the wisdom of joining in the first place leaving the rump of this Alliance divided and, militarily, much weakened.”
“Your Majesty, if we could only…” the General interrupted again, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
“Calm yourself, my dear, gallant, loyal, General Tetherrien,” the Empress soothed her old war horse, “Fate has presented us with an opportunity to smite our enemies and bring glory and conquest to our Imperial forces, but we must lay our plans carefully if we are to succeed.”
“Majesty, I live to serve,” the elderly General bowed lowly, almost bursting into tears.
“Officer Batarrien, you have done well; we shall speak again later,” Lullina promised, “Councillors, go back to your commands, prepare for battle and await instructions. We must meet with our Imperial Strategic Staff,” she dismissed them all.
When the Council had gone, Lullina looked once more at the ragged pathway through the Thexxian territories and wondered why none of her planners had spotted this weakness. Perhaps, it was time for another purge of the intelligence services, she considered, and then dismissed the idea. What had originally been a retribution strike against Caudwell’s home planet was now taking on a much greater significance.
One question still niggled at the back of Lullina’s mind. Would Caudwell defend his home planet or the Alliance frontier? If Caudwell was a weak sentimental human, then the Alliance would fall, the loss of the Imperial Fleet Carriers would be avenged and the hated Thexxians finally exterminated.
It was far too good a chance to pass up, she considered.
Chapter 10
The Star-Cruiser Aquarius
Intelligence Technician (Junior Grade) Marilla Thapes drew in one last anxious breath and sighed heavily. Steeling herself, she stepped forward onto the pressure plate that would announce her presence to Senior Intelligence Officer Karap Sownus.
Clutching three red Intelligence folios in her right hand she wondered, for the dozenth time in the last hour, whether she was making a mistake or not. However, having stood on the red fifteen centimetre square pressure plate, she realised there was no turning back now.
“Yes!?” came the familiar soft and reassuring reply from within his Private Office; the opaque grey force-shielding of the door cleared, allowing Marilla to enter.
“Sorry to bother you, sir…if you’re busy I can…” Marilla began nervously.
“No, not at all, Marilla,” Sownus beckoned her into his work space.
“I’m sorry to trouble you, sir, but there’s something bothering me about some data I’ve viewed,” Marilla drew a deep breath and approached the huge, harshly-lit work desk that was strewn with reports and data folios.
“What’s on your mind, Marilla?” Sownus said in his usual matter-of-fact way.
Marilla Thapes, as one of the Intelligence Technicians aboard the Aquarius had an access to her senior Officer that very few Junior Grade, or JG, Technicians in other fields enjoyed. Karap Sownus actively encouraged this degree of access to his office, and greater informality, since he believed strict adherence to ranks and structures acted as a barrier to the communication that was so vital to this section.
“You might think this is pretty stupid, sir...” Marilla began stopping at the colossal desk; the three red folios in her clammy, sweaty hand suddenly felt very heavy.
“There’s no such thing as stupid in Intelligence, Marilla; possibly wrong, but never stupid,” Sownus began with a gentle smile, “take a seat and tell me what you think you’ve got.”
Long experience had taught Karap Sownus never to ignore the suspicions of any of his Officers or Technicians. Even the craziest and most outlandish Intelligence Assessments could hold some vital nugget of truth or information. So, dismissing concerns out of hand was not part of Sownus’ normal response. From the side of the huge desk, a large black rectangle emerged and folded out into a high-backed chair.
“Thank you, sir,” Marilla smiled awkwardly and set the folios on the desktop.
At just under one metre fifty, Marilla had to activate the adjustment control lever on the side of the seat to allow her to clamber onto the comfortable chair. As a Thexxian, like Sownus himself, Marilla Thapes had pale olive skin with straight dark hair. Where Sownus kept his hair regulation short, Marilla kept her hair long, as was tradition in her family. And, whe
re Sownus wore the two-piece tunic and trousers uniform that allowed him to conceal his bowed legs, Marilla was happier in the figure-hugging one-piece overall.
“Well, sir,” Marilla began, “I was scanning some of the data from the Bardomil Desk, and I think there’s a possible development that you should be aware of.”
Like most Intelligence organisations, the Universal Alliance divided its operations into what were called ‘Desks’. There were currently twelve desks under the supervision of Karap Sownus, the Bardomil Desk being the largest in terms of people and resources. The Bardomil, as a hostile species, bore closer watching than the others. Some Desks were smaller, with only one Technician to monitor activities. And, some of these one-person Desks could cover whole sectors with hundreds of planets within them. It all depended on the level of threat that each species or area presented. The Bardomil Desk currently occupied almost one fifth of the capacity of Karap Sownus’ department, with hundreds of Officers and Technicians, monitoring, sifting and analysing the data from a myriad of gathering sources. But, they all had the same objective; they were looking for patterns and clues to try to predict any possible threats and dangers from the Bardomil.
“Okay, what have you got, Marilla?” Sownus asked sitting back in his own comfortable chair.
“Well, it started with the report on the Bardomil Empress’ sightseeing tour of that big solar flare in the Artreaus System, sir,” Marilla opened, “quite a big flare from the yellow dwarf at the system’s heart, it scorched three planets of the system.”
“Go on,” Sownus indicated to the nervous Technician.
As Senior Intelligence Officer, Sownus monitored the activities of the Bardomil Empress and knew that sightseeing and celestial fireworks were not part of her normal routine.
“Analysis was kind of stumped by that one, and put it down tentatively to one of her various vicious amusements,” Marilla continued, “but, then I thought, sir, what causes large solar flares?”
“Magnetic anomalies within the star,” Sownus answered correctly, “go on,” he added, a strand of thought developing in his head.
“Then, I remembered a broadcast report from the planet Xanart,” Marilla continued, an edge of excitement in her voice as she scooped out the first folio from the pile, “if you could, sir,” she asked Sownus to put the folio on the reader.
Karap Sownus dropped the red folio onto the plate and watched the three-dimensional image of an elderly male Xanath, with long dark ringlets develop above the surface of his desk.
“This is Sammut Claggit, sir,” Marilla announced, “Claggit and his assistant Marrut Bem were, according to planetary sources, killed in a hunting accident several weeks ago, which is rather strange as Science Master Claggit had a weak heart, was a herbivore and had a major aversion to blood sports.”
“You suspect that he was killed?” Sownus asked.
“Yes, sir; furthermore, Sammut Claggit was a respected authority on magnetic and gravitational fields. In fact, it was last reported that he was researching magnetic field manipulation to alter planetary magnetospheres to make them suitable for habitation.”
“Well, well,” Sownus said with an edge of growing surprise and certainty in his voice, “our late friend Sammut Claggit was into magnetic field manipulation, was he?”
“Yes, sir,” Marilla answered growing more confident in her theory, “and his last known location was on Bardan working for the Imperial Academy of Sciences, Peace and Friendship,”
“That well-known weapons development facility close to the Imperial Palace,” Sownus smiled wryly.
“The very same, sir,” Marilla smiled at the shared irony.
“So, you are speculating that the Bardomil have developed some kind of weapon?” Sownus asked.
“It is one possible interpretation,” Marilla replied, “I contacted Long Range Scanners, and they sent me over the analysis from the Explorer-class Scientific Survey Ship, Vasco da Gama, which was scanning the Artreaus system’s area at the time,” she indicated the second folio on the desk.
“And, it indicated?” Sownus questioned half-knowing the response before it came.
“The Vasco da Gama data indicates that it is unlikely the solar flare was natural in origin,” Marilla began, “it was a quick-burn eruption outside the regular cyclical pattern of activity for that particular star, and it was a yellow dwarf, so it’s too young and small as a star to produce enough material to burn planets in the system under normal conditions.”
“So, our sightseeing friend, the Bardomil Empress, just happened to be passing when the Artreaus sun decided to magically become active with an unfeasibly large solar flare?” Sownus pushed the speculation onwards.
“A bit of a coincidence, sir,” Marilla replied, “and, the Vasco da Gama data showed a massive interruption in the Artreaus sun’s magnetic field prior to the eruption of the flare,”
“That would not be a natural phenomenon would it?” Sownus asked speculatively, seeing where the conversation was leading.
“Not by any stretch of the imagination, sir,” Marilla confirmed.
“Very well, I’ll bite, Marilla,” Sownus sighed wearily not liking the conclusion one little bit, “what do you suggest we do next?”
“Well, sir, with your permission, I could contact the Fleet Engineers Corps and speak to the people in Theoretical Weapons,” Marilla suggested relieved that her theory was being taken seriously.
“That’s a good idea, have a word with the ‘Funnies’ about it, see if such a thing is even feasible,” Sownus indicated the nickname of the Theoretical Weapons Developers who produced weapon solutions for some of the most unusual situations.
“Could I also have a look at some of the more sensitive data from the Bardomil Desk and the long-range data?” Marilla asked rising from her chair.
“Hmm, are we being just a little bit ambitious here Technician Thapes?” Sownus smiled, being aware that her Security Clearance was only a few steps above basic level.
“Sorry, sir, if I’ve over-stepped my…” Marilla replied swallowing heavily, her growing confidence now shaken.
“No, Marilla, not at all, I’m temporarily raising your Clearance level to bronze, that should give you access to the Sensitive-level data on the Bardomil Desk,” Sownus said, “you’ve earned this opportunity; if you do well, we can think about moving you up the board.”
“Yes, sir, thank you, sir,” Marilla Thapes beamed broadly.
In the Security structure of the Intelligence Department, bronze clearance was only three steps down from the Ultra-Sensitive level clearance that carried a Diamond-icon on their Security file. She had gained a significant temporary promotion, and was determined to do her absolute best with the project.
“Your new clearance should be active by the start of your next shift,” Sownus added, “now, take your findings to Officer Drang. She will be your supervisor on this and coordinate any resources you need to clarify what is going on here. But, you report your findings to me, am I clear?”
“Yes, sir,” Marilla barked, the broad beaming smile still plastered all over her olive face.
“Good,” Sownus said, “now, go and get some rest and be ready to hit the deck running first thing.”
“Sir,” Marilla replied and gathered up her folios before stepping briskly to the door.
“And, Marilla?” Sownus halted her just before the door.
“Sir?” she half-turned expecting more instructions.
“That’s a good piece of work, Technician,” Sownus praised.
“Thank you, sir,” Marilla’s smile got even broader as she stepped through the door and walked breezily along the corridor to her own quarters.
Back in Sownus’ office, the Senior Intelligence Officer now had a new nightmare to add to the growing pile of potential threats to the Alliance. Moving to his dimly-lit relaxation couch, Sownus scanned the folios left by Marilla Thapes and began asking himself the questions that First Admiral Caudwell would ask him. Is it feasible? Wh
ere would they target such a weapon? How would they deliver it to the intended target?
But, as he thought, he found the answers elusive.
Chapter 11
Planet Earth
“Emma, Billy, would you like some tea!?” Gillian Wallace called brightly from the foot of the stairs.
It had been a whole ten minutes since she had last offered them some refreshment. The constant procession of young men into the Wallace household had made Gillian Wallace cautious of just what has likely to be happening in her daughter’s bedroom. The liberally-minded parent understood that Emma needed her freedom to meet young men, but the mother in her wasn’t quite ready to let go of her ‘little Emma’ just yet.
“No thanks mum!” the voice of Emma Wallace replied from behind the solid rampart of her closed bedroom door.
“Some lemonade or juice!?” her mother persisted.
“No! Thanks mum!” Emma responded wearily.
“I think we should take a break,” Billy Caudwell suggested as he stood up from the cramped little table in the corner of Emma Wallace’s room.
It had been a long and exhausting two hours since he had arrived at the Wallace’s house to help Emma with her maths revision. Burying his face in his hands and wiping his eyes, Billy had to admit that in terms of mathematics, Emma Wallace was not the brightest candle on the tree. But, he had promised to help her through the pre-Qualification exams, and help her he would; even if it did take over half an hour for her to grasp the most fundamental concepts of equations.
Yet, strangely, Billy felt calm and at peace as he gently guided the struggling girl through the finer points of algebra; where x and y took on new meanings, but still retained some semblance of constancy and familiarity. Rather like his own life, Billy considered, as he tried to integrate a life on Earth with that of the First Admiral of the Universal Alliance Fleet. But, the worries of the rapidly expanding Alliance were far from the thoughts of Billy Caudwell this night.
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