by Saxon Andrew
“I have. It appears the Filament Makers have told our people about you and Elena going out to fight more than ten-thousand-warriors. As if your reputations didn’t need a boost, they certainly have one.”
“Toren, you saved the day.”
“No, it was Kaylee getting the sword here that did that.”
“I imagine your delivery of it made a huge impact on them.”
“Yes, I suppose it did.”
“Let’s go home.”
“Get on board and we’ll get moving,” the computer replied. Gregor and Elena went to the bridge, as the Dragon Fly rose into the sky and headed home.
Gregor settle in and sighed, “We should have taken a shot at that Greng Warship. We missed an opportunity. I don’t see any way we’ll be able to find their planets.”
Elena pursed her lips, “We don’t need to find them; they’ll find us the moment we activate a full scan. Besides, next time we can follow them.”
Gregor shook his head, “Computer, how was that ship able to follow a route away from us to its civilization.”
“They just followed an optical view.” Gregor rolled his eyes. “You might be interested in knowing that I got a line on their course from the Filament Maker’s derelict. We can find them easily enough…if that’s what you want.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I agree with Elena; it’s better to make them come to us. One bee is better than the whole hive.”
“If you’re scared…”
“Gregor, I’m scared. That warship was incredibly powerful.
Chapter Twenty
Gregor sat still and finally asked, “You must have done an analysis of the scan you made?”
The computer answered, “I’ve done as much as I can with a passive scan. The force field around that ship was stronger than a Main Tronan Battleship. And it operated with the stardrive being used. They clearly have the capability to use multiple fields.”
“Were you able to determine what sort of defenses the ship carried.”
I could see through the force field with an optical scanner. The vessel is about 50% larger than a Tronan Warship and it had a hundred-heavy-blasters on the side of the ship facing us. I was able to count double that number of missile ports.”
“That’s not so different from the Tronan’s armaments.”
“Gregor, the Tronan Blasters were 40% smaller and the missile ports were half-the-diameter of the ports on that vessel. This species is more advanced than the Tronan and, I believe, have more powerful weapons.”
“Do you think the attack ships can penetrate the force field and hulls?”
“I have no idea. They had no trouble blowing through the Tronan warships…”
Elena said, “But?”
The computer continued, “This new warship can travel faster-than-light outside the filaments; our attack ships can’t. You can’t hit what you can’t catch.” The Computer paused, “There’s one other thing you need to keep in mind, Gregor.”
“What is that?”
“If the new stardrive field is activated…they will be able to see us.”
Gregor’s expression changed immediately, and he stood up, “OUR STEALTH SYSTEMS WON’T FUNCTION!!”
“Exactly right. They will be able to track and target us. And keep in mind that we only won against the Tronan because our ships were faster and were able to hit them with the Attack Ships. I suspect if our ships are hit with one of their missiles, the shock of impact might kill the crew.”
“Are the missile ports on that ship that big?” Gregor asked as he sat down.
“One of our Attack Ships could land in the missile port.”
Elena said softly, “Perhaps it’s a good thing we delayed a confrontation.” Gregor turned to her and was suddenly struck by how much she looked like her mother. Her blonde hair looked almost white and her blue eyes, with the gold ring around them, were wide.
“Have I ever told you that you look like your mother.”
Elena chuckled, “I get that all the time. We’re about the same size and some mistake us for each other.”
“I thought she was taller.”
“She was, Gregor. But we’re both about five-seven now; I’ve grown over the last year. Why do you ask?”
“I don’t know,” Gregor replied. “But I do think you should be considering a family; Bellingham needs you and your mother’s visions, and I suspect your children will have the same talent.”
Elena sighed, “I know. It’s just…well…”
“No one interests you?”
Elena shrugged, and then nodded, “I’m still young, I have some time.”
“The computer made some good points when you had your argument. I just hope you think about it.”
“I always make good points!” the computer interjected.
Gregor lowered his head in his hands, “I knew I shouldn’t have said that…now he’s going to be insufferable.”
“You just need to keep in mind how smart I am.”
Gregor looked at Elena, “See.”
Elena laughed and Toren asked, “Perhaps you should allow your mother to choose someone for you.” Elena and Gregor turned immediately to the white cloud floating on the bridge. “I hate to intrude into your conversation, but you may not be in a position to see things clearly. I suspect your mother, if she’s anything like you’ve described, would make a good choice for you.”
Elena started to tell Toren to stick it, but Gregor spoke first, “I know I’d pick someone special for Deuce. I’d take a really good look at anyone before I’d recommend them.”
Elena looked at Gregor and thought about it. This was something she’d consider; she certainly hadn’t found anyone. She turned to Toren, “It appears your parents didn’t make a good choice for you.”
“Their motivations are different than your species.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Elena, the one chosen for me would have to, first; have a good genetic-lineage, and second, not have done anything embarrassing to the community.”
“Didn’t they interview Gen-L before choosing her?”
“No, the Link is set up by the parents.”
Elena lowered her eyes, “Perhaps, in the future, they’ll interview both parties and allow the one’s being linked to be present.” Toren was silent and, after a minute, Elena asked, “You don’t think that is a good idea?”
“Well, I think it’s an excellent idea; I just wonder how getting the community to accept the process could be done.”
“We’re approaching the 440-filament. I can see it on the long-range scanner.” The computer announced.
“Computer, take a close look and see if there’s any traffic on the 440.”
“There shouldn’t be, Gregor. I think the Greng have attacked anything on the filaments close to their territory; there was no traffic at this end of the filament.”
“If that’s still true, activate the new stardrive before entering the filament. Don’t use any thrusters, just see if it makes a difference in our speed moving in the filament; we’ll try the thrusters later.”
“Will do. I’m not seeing any signs of traffic. We should be ok.”
Gregor sat back and saw the distant white thread appear on the monitor. It was growing larger by the minute. Gregor stared at it and ordered, “Computer, I don’t want to activate the new stardrive until we’re a long way from this galaxy. We’ll take the filament out and keep our stealth systems active.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want us detected leaving this galaxy. Enter the 440 inside the galaxy and use it to take us a long way from it.”
“Who would be looking for us?”
“I honestly don’t know, but I can’t help being paranoid. Just get us far outside this galaxy before attempting to use the new stardrive!”
“You’re the boss.”
• • •
Six days later, the Dragon Fly moved outside the edge of the filament and Gregor
and Elena buckled their harnesses snugly. This monster filament was moving at incredible speed and they expected a severe burst of acceleration. They weren’t disappointed. The Dragon Fly entered the filament while moving at high speed and they were punched back into their seats. The brutal acceleration continued for ten-seconds and then it eased off. “Perhaps we should enter the filament normally and then activate the new stardrive,” the computer suggested.
“Then get out of the filament and try it that way,” Gregor ordered. The Dragon Fly exited the filament and slowed quickly.
“I’m accelerating to maximum speed before entering.” They felt the ship accelerate and then smoothly enter the filament. They braced themselves, but the shock was greatly reduced. “Activating new stardrive…NOW!” There was another burst of acceleration that quickly smoothed out.
“How does our speed compare to not using the stardrive?” Gregor asked.
“We’re moving at the exact speed of the filament. Without it, we’d be moving twenty-percent slower.”
“Why is that?”
“Gregor, there is normal resistance in the filament’s flow. This new stardrive eliminates it.”
Gregor nodded, “Is the filament still devoid of traffic?”
“It is as far as my scanners can see.”
“Ok, I want you to go to full thrusters and see if you can slow the Dragon Fly using the forward thrusters.”
“Say what?”
“You know the Dragon Fly can fly in all directions, right?”
“Yesssss.” The computer answered hesitantly.
“Well, see how fast you can slow down using them. If we encounter traffic, we’re either going to have to slow down or get out of the filament to avoid hitting them.”
“Buckle up!” Gregor and Elena tightened their restraints and Toren attached himself to the wall. “Full thrusters…NOW!” The Dragon Fly bolted ahead like a shot. Suddenly, it slowed so fast Elena and Gregor were pushed hard against their restraints. “HEY, THAT WAS GREAT!!”
Gregor fell back in his chair and said, “Computer, that hurt!”
“Oh, sorry about that. I won’t have to stop that quickly in the future. I’ve learned the ship’s stopping capabilities.”
Gregor glanced at Elena and saw her rubbing her shoulders, “Computer, can you stop like that and then hover in place?”
“I don’t know. I don’t want to hurt you again to find out.”
“We’ll do it this way. Just before you stop, swivel our chairs around a hundred-and-eighty-degrees and our chair’s cushions will absorb the deceleration forces.” Elena rolled her eyes and Gregor smiled, “We need to know the ship’s capabilities if we’re being pursued. Remember, we can be detected with the new stardrive.” Elena nodded, and Gregor looked up, “Give it a go, Computer.”
The Dragon Fly shot forward and, in ten-seconds, their chairs swung around facing the rear of the ship. The ship came to a hard stop and Gregor felt the hard deceleration push him hard into his command chair; it wasn’t nearly as bad as being thrown against the harness. “Computer, now leave the filament and do the same thing is subspace.”
“Why?”
“Because the Greng don’t have filaments in their territory and we’ll need to be able to either outrun them or stop faster. Give it a go.”
The ship left the filament and accelerated to its maximum speed. Their seats swung around again, and the forces were harder. “Gregor, the speed of the filament makes deceleration easier than open subspace,” the computer announced. “However, we do stop a lot faster than in the filament.”
“Ok, let’s move back in the filament and start heading home. Have you been able to determine how much faster we travel with the new stardrive?” Gregor inquired.
“It took us seven-months to get here. If traffic isn’t bad, we should make it back in less than six weeks.”
“Holy crap!” Elena exclaimed.
“Traffic will be the main variable on how long it takes. This stardrive increases our top-speed more than a hundred-times normal. And remember, our normal speed is faster than any ship in the Alliance Navy,” the computer noted with a sense of satisfaction in its voice.
“Are you going to be able to maneuver through traffic?” Elena asked.
“I’ll slow down with the forward thrusters and avoid any ships. Obviously, heavy traffic will slow us a lot. But the 440 is huge and most of the time, we’ll be moving a lot faster than we did coming out here.”
“Send us what you’ve determined about that Greng warship to our monitors along with any comments you’ve made. Toren, take a look at the information and see if you determine anything the computer missed.”
“Will do. I’ll look at it on your monitor.”
The Dragon Fly entered the filament and went to maximum acceleration.
• • •
Ana contacted Gem on his wrist unit, “Gem, the Insectoid King has requested you to contact him.”
Thanks, love. I’ll use the communicator here in the hangar.” Gem ran across the giant hangar and went into the communications center. He entered a frequency and saw Gold appear on the monitor, “Good-day, Majesty.”
“Good-day to you, Gem. We’ve had a gathering of the Royal Families and we’ve discussed your suggestion.”
“I made that suggestion months ago.”
“I know, Gem; but you know how long it takes for a gathering to decide even simple issues, much less agreeing to a Gramget.”
“What was your decision?”
“We have agreed to a Gramget promising that we will treat the members of the Alliance like planets in the Kingdom.”
Gem’s eyes narrowed, “That isn’t what I expected. You have attacked planets in the Kingdom in the past.”
“Only when they revolted against the Royalty and tried to overthrow the Kingdom. Do you think any planet in the Alliance would ever attempt to do that?”
Gem thought about it and finally answered, “Nooo…I don’t think so.”
“And only the planet that attacked the Kingdom would be at risk.”
Gem stared at Gold and then said, “You’re worried about Bellingham?”
“Do you think you can speak for them and they would adhere to your promise. I know Gregor and he doesn’t exactly follow orders.”
Gem nodded. After a moment, he replied, “Bellingham will have to agree with this in order for it to work.”
“That’s how I see it, and I know how much Gregor hates us for developing a weapon that threatens the Bellingham coatings on your vessels. He may have forgiven you, but I’m not so sure he’ll be as forgiving toward us.”
“Let’s agree to not do anything to endanger this agreement until Gregor comes back and I can try to convince him this is the right thing to do.”
“I’ll make sure all our warships are informed. I expect you to do the same with your forces.”
“I will send out the orders.”
“When will Gregor return?”
“I’m not sure. If something happens to him, Kaylee will make the decision.”
“That’s not much better.”
“I know. But we will do what we have to do to insure peace between us.”
“Fair enough. Let me know.”
“You’ll be one of the first, Gold.” The monitor went dark, and Gem sighed; Gregor was not going to be an easy nut to crack. He thought about it and entered another frequency.
Kaylee appeared on the monitor, “What’s up, Gem?”
“I have an issue I want to discuss with you.”
“Go ahead.” Gem told her what the Insectoid King and Royals had agreed on and the importance of making a Gramget to enforce it. “So, you’re saying the Gramget would prevent the Insectoids from ever attacking a member of the Alliance?” Gem nodded. “And you’re worried that Gregor would never accept an agreement made with the Insectoids.”
“Something like that.”
Kaylee was silent a moment and then spoke, “Bellingham has never attacked another p
lanet without being attacked first. Even if Gregor doesn’t agree with this, the end result would be the same.”
Gem shook his head, “That’s probably not going to cut it with the King. He’ll insist on an agreement from all the Alliance Worlds, including Bellingham. I’d want the same if I were in his place.”
“Gem, I’ll discuss this with him, but you have no idea how angry he was about what they did.”
“I know how angry he was, Kaylee; he would have no contact with me. I’m sure he’ll believe that I’m still working with them in trying to make this happen, but I’m not. I want to insure the safety of my family and this is a unique opportunity to make that happen.”
“You can tell him this Gramget cannot be violated by the Insectoids, but I don’t think he’ll believe it. He’s seen them say one thing and do another in the past. I’m really not sure I believe it, either.”
“A Gramget has never been broken, Kaylee.”
“I’m sure you know that, and the King knows that, but we don’t. Your history is a closed book to everyone else.”
“Please ask him to think about it and I’ll discuss it with him when he comes back.”
“I think he’ll do that. I don’t think he will agree to it, though. He’s a warrior, not a politician.”
“I can only pray he will give it an open mind.”
“He doesn’t have an open mind when it comes to the safety of Bellingham. However, he’s the smartest man I’ve ever known, and I could be wrong about that.”
“No offense, but I hope you are.”
“None taken. We’ll see.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Gregor stared at the image of the giant Greng warship and heard Toren say, “I have noticed something.”
“WHAT DID I MISS?” the computer inquired defensively.
“Don’t get your transistors in a wad!” Elena replied. “Let’s hear what Toren noticed.”
“Probably won’t be much.”
Gregor smiled, “Now you’re sulking. Go ahead, Toren.”
“First, will all of us agree, and that includes you, computer, that the Greng warship was coming here at its maximum speed?”
“I think that’s obvious, Toren,” the computer replied.
“If that’s true, then we only saw it moving toward us on a straight course that didn’t deviate, right?”