The Voyage Home

by D. J. Holmes

  “The first time is like that,” Simmons smiled. “You will grow more used to it.”

  “Is everyone always of one accord?” Sarah followed up. “I can’t believe how united it felt in there. The galaxy isn’t like that, not at all. Everyone is out for themselves.”

  “From what you have told me, you and Divar aren’t just out for yourselves,” Simmons said with a smile. “But no, you’re right. The records suggest that it isn’t always like that. There have been boisterous Collaborations in Hope V’s past. The worst was when the then Director wanted to build this asteroid base. The population was split sixty, forty over the issue. I’ve read that on Earth, Collaborations were rarely so united. The only exception was the Collaboration was held to decide how to respond to the Elders. There was unity that day.”

  “That I can well believe,” Sarah said.

  “The difference for us is that we are largely a homogenous group,” Simmons continued. “Everyone on Hope V knows why we are here, what our ultimate goal is. We may have minor disagreements on how best to get there, but we are all working in the same direction.”

  “I see,” Sarah said. A rumble in her stomach reminded Sarah she hadn’t eaten in days. “You mentioned a tour. There wouldn’t happen to be a restaurant or a food galley in this tour, would there?” she asked. Her mind suddenly had a new priority.

  Simmons smiled. “I’m sure we can add that to the list. We have some clothes for you. I can give you a moment of privacy and then I would be happy to take you on a tour.”

  “You don’t have my flight suit, do you?” Sarah asked when she saw the clothes Simmons had laid out for her. They looked nice, but she had grown accustomed to Alexandra’s flight suit.

  “We have it, but I thought you might look out of place in it. Everyone on Hope V wears a uniform similar to what we have for you. I didn’t want you feeling self-conscious.

  “They will do just fine then,” Sarah said.

  After taking several minutes to put on her clothes, Sarah walked out of the room she had been kept in. It had taken a couple of attempts to get her shirt on, her body still felt unfamiliar to her. “I’m ready,” she said with a smile when she met Simmons’ eyes.

  *

  Three hours later Sarah collapsed onto the bed in the quarters she had been given. She had loved seeing the asteroid. It felt like the first tour Alexandra had given her of Destiny. Around every corner there had been a new piece of technology or new marvel to catch her attention. She had also enjoyed meeting so many new humans. She must have spoken to more than a hundred people and there had been many others who had just sent her a neural nod. The strangest thing had been that every time she had met a new person, it had felt like she already knew them. Even though she hadn’t consciously taken in every person who had been a part of the Collaboration, her mind had touched theirs. The experience left a lingering presence that meant everyone Sarah met seemed familiar to her. It had been weird and pleasant at the same time.

  A number of scientists had tried to interrupt her tour. Simmons had already sent Alexandra’s datachip to be analyzed. Each time they had visited a department just beginning to go over the Elder technology, scientists had flocked to Sarah. They all had questions they wanted answered. It seemed it was one thing to read, or even mentally process how something worked, it was another thing to be able to chat to someone who had used it. Their questions had been unceasing.

  Letting out a breath, Sarah dismissed the scientists from her mind. She was finally able to get some peace. Slowly, she went through her body and consciously unwound every muscle. She felt very tense. Walking around for so long had been tiring. It had taken a great deal of mental and physical effort to stay upright. Her body was beginning to feel more normal, but it had taken a lot of work to just stay on her feet.

  As Sarah relaxed, she reflected on her day. Before waking up, her last thoughts had been of being betrayed. Now she knew that wasn’t the case. Her father had been protecting her. Her world had been turned upside down. She had known she was important before. Not because she was special, but because of the knowledge she had obtained from Alexandra. Now it is me that’s special, Sarah thought. Simmons may treat me like a friend, we may even become friends in time, but she sees me primarily as an asset. Everyone does. I am a critical component in their desire to free Earth. It suddenly dawned on her. This can never be my home. I will always be the hybrid. I will never be seen for just me.

  Sarah was all too aware that Simmons didn’t intend to let her leave Hope V. She could see the Director’s point. If Sarah was captured it could put a serious dent in any effort to free Earth. It could set back Simmons’ plans by more than a hundred years. Yet, she had to find her friends. She had promised to help Divar get home. Maybe there was a way to sneak him home without being caught and executed as a pirate. That would be risky though, Sarah said to herself. At the very least I need to tell them I’m ok. She couldn’t just disappear for twenty years and leave them alone without an explanation. Not after everything they had been through. I owe them that much.

  And I want to see my father again, Sarah realized as she examined her emotions. Now that she knew more about the situation, about how important she was, her parents’ actions made more sense. She didn’t know if she could ever bring herself to forgive her father for shooting her mother. But she still wanted to meet him again. To talk to him, to get to know him and find out what her mother was like. If she stayed on Hope V, she would never get to do those things. I will do all I can to help Simmons free Earth, but I’m not staying here for twenty years, Sarah promised herself.

  With her decision made, she began to think of how she could escape. Simmons would never let her leave. Even if it was just to go and find Destiny and return. She would have to find her own way out of Hope V. Sarah continued to think until sleep took her.

  Chapter 38

  The next few days were a blur for Sarah. She went through a number of orientation meetings and processes designed to familiarize her with Hope V and the people who called the asteroid home. They had all been designed for children, but Sarah found them helpful all the same. On top of that, Simmons sent file after file to her for her to process. Taking the Director’s advice to heart, Sarah made sure to get her hands on as many files on any given topic as possible. She didn’t intend to take any of the information Simmons gave her at face value.

  On the morning of her third day she was lying in bed going over everything that had happened to her. She found herself doing the same thing every morning. She was taking in so much information, she felt she needed some time alone every day to just make sense of it. She also needed time to plan. Getting off Hope V was going to be difficult. Her first two days had shown her that. There were a number of warships stationed within the asteroid. Sarah had been shown around one yesterday. They were impressive, but stealing one was out of the question. She had spotted a smaller ship docked near the warships. A quick search through Hope V’s files told her the ship was a small corvette. It was a prototype ship the scientists of Hope V had come up with. The idea was that a number of corvettes would play escort to the larger human warships. The escorts were designed to specialize in missile defense and provide extra protection against Elder anti-matter missiles.

  The prototype was called Hawk. As it was a prototype it wasn’t currently manned, Sarah figured that would make it much easier to steal. Even better, it was capable of entering subspace. Beyond that, Sarah didn’t know much about it. The files on Hawk were restricted. Therein lay the problem. Whilst Sarah now found herself with access to vast amounts of information, a lot of files on Hope V’s memory banks were restricted. The access codes to Hawk were just one of them. If she was going to escape she would need to break through quite a few of Hope V’s protection protocols.

  That would be hard. Yet it would be even harder to do so quietly. She had already tested her abilities against a small, insignificant file. The file contained the latest maintenance records for one of Hope V’s zero-poin
t energy reactors. She had only brushed up against the file’s protection barrier with her mind. It had been enough to know that she could bring it down and access the information if she wanted. Yet just bursting through it or any other restricted files would set off a whole host of alarms. If she was going to escape, she would have to find a way to get the information and access codes she needed without setting off any alarms.

  The one thing she had going for her were the techniques she had learned when she fought the Elder virus. From her research into human neural technology she had found that Simmons and her scientists had no concept of someone sending their mind through a neural interface and into a ship or station’s computer system. Simmons and the other humans on Hope V used computer programs to do that kind of thing. Whether it was her Elder DNA or the techniques Alexandra had taught her, Sarah seemed to have a big advantage. She could move around Hope V’s computers in ways Simmons couldn’t imagine. She just needed to find a way to use her skills to escape. As yet, she was coming up empty.

  A buzz from her door made Sarah jump. She hadn’t been expecting anyone. Normally Simmons sent her a mental communication requesting her presence. Rolling out of bed, Sarah threw on some clothes. “I’m coming,” she shouted when the door buzzed again. Only then did she remember she could reach out with her mind and see who was outside. She encountered a male she didn’t know. As their minds touched he gave her the mental equivalent of a smile. Then he sent a touch of impatience to her.

  Sarah withdrew her mind, though she couldn’t help but crack a small smile. The humans on Hope V were far more used to sharing their emotions, good or bad, than she was. It was a little unnerving when she was talking to someone about something serious, while all the time she was able to sense they were amused at the unusual way she spoke. To the Hope Fivers, as Sarah had come to call them, she sounded very strange. The fact they sounded strange to Sarah was lost on them.

  “Hello,” Sarah said formally after ordering her door to open.

  “Hello,” the young man said as he bowed slightly and held out his hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Kevin Simmons.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Sarah repeated from rote. All first meetings on Hope V followed this format. She tried not to sound too bored with it. She had met several hundred people over the last few days.

  “And a pleasure for me too,” Kevin said with a wide smile. “I have come to invite you to a war simulation.”

  Sarah’s interest immediately perked up. “A war simulation?”

  “Yes,” Kevin said as his smile widened. “I thought you might like to get a break from all of the dull official stuff my great grandmother has been dragging you through.”

  “Great grandmother? Do you mean Director Simmons?” Sarah asked. She had thought nothing of Kevin’s second name. There were more than a thousand Simmons on Hope V, she had checked.

  “I do indeed,” Kevin said. “I know how strict she can be about making sure you jump through all her hoops. Are you interested?”

  “Of course!” Sarah grinned. “Lead the way.”

  As they walked through the Hope V’s corridors, it felt like Kevin lost some of his confidence. He didn’t say anything and he kept steeling glances at her.

  “Is there something wrong?” Sarah eventually asked.

  “I’m just wondering, is it true?” Kevin said as he stopped and looked her in the eye.

  “Is what true?” Sarah said, slightly irritated.

  “We all processed the report you prepared on Destiny,” Kevin said. “For the last five years, I have trained to fight a warship. I have fought countless Elder frigates and cruisers in simulations. They are tough opponents. I just find it hard to believe you managed to take on a frigate in an armored freighter.”

  “Well we’ll just have to see,” Sarah said with a wink. Eager to get on with the simulation, she brushed passed Kevin, forcing him to turn and rush to catch up with her. Outwardly she made an effort to hold her shoulders high. She wanted to exude confidence. Inwardly, Sarah was a little nervous. Humans didn’t fly ships using an interface helmet. It meant she would have to fly the ship like a normal pilot. Something she had never done before. There was a good chance that Kevin would be disappointed in her.

  On the other hand, she suspected the human pilots she would be up against were going to surprise her. She had processed a file on the latest battle tactics Simmons’ people had developed. In lieu of not having the capacity to use an interface helmet, Simmons’ scientists had developed what they called a ‘battle meld’. Since the Elder attack on Earth, a human admiral had been able to control all their ships through the mental link the neural implant allowed. Now, the Captain of a ship was able to form a small Collaboration with the key officers of his or her ship. A ship’s pilots, point defense gunners, weapons operators and sensor officers were all intimately connected with the Captain. It allowed for a level of coordination Sarah suspected would rival what she and Alexandra shared. She was certain she was going to have her work cut out for her.

  “Oh come on,” Kevin complained, some of his confidence obviously back. “You have experienced real combat. Can’t you tell me what it is like? None of our instructors have set foot off Hope V. You are the first human to fight the Elders in two thousand years.”

  “It can’t be described,” Sarah said. “All the simulations in the world won’t prepare you. When your life is really on the line. When the adrenaline is running. There is nothing that even comes close. The best I can do is show you what kind of enemy you will be up against. I assume you intend for me to pilot an Elder frigate in this simulation?”

  “I... ah... well, yes,” Kevin said. “It wasn’t just my idea though. All the cadets wanted to invite you.”

  “I see,” Sarah grinned. “So you thought you would test me by putting me in an inferior warship so that you and your friends can boast about beating the hybrid?” She knew that was the name some of the Hope Fivers had started calling her. Obviously, Kevin thought she didn’t. It was pleasant to see him caught out.

  “Em... well that’s not entirely true,” Kevin replied. “I for one am very much looking forward to seeing just what you can do. But it will also be reassuring to see that our destroyers can take on and defeat an Elder frigate with ease.”

  “Well I’m going to do my best to disappoint you,” Sarah said, trying to sound confident. She had processed as many files on the human warships’ abilities as she could. The destroyers were almost twice the size of Destiny. They were designed to take on an Elder cruiser and win, a frigate should be a breeze for them. Sarah believed it. On paper the destroyers were impressive. Simmons hadn’t managed to miniaturize her zero-point energy reactors to the point where they could fit on a warship. Even so, the refinements her ancestors had made to standard fusion reactors was impressive. Combined with the fact that they had come up with several exotic new weapon systems, she knew that to just survive, she was going to have her work cut out for her.

  “I hope you do,” Kevin said in response to Sarah’s promise. “We’re almost here,” he added. Moments later he came to a stop in front of a large access hatch. With a click, it unlocked and slowly opened.

  Inside Sarah was greeted by an impressive sight. The room was massive. It was a large semi-circle. All along the outer edge of the room there were alcoves. Each alcove was set up to resemble a ship’s bridge. It looked like the room could run simulations involving up to twelve warships with fully manned bridge crews.

  “Do you like our set up?” Kevin asked, obviously proud of where he spent a lot of his time.

  “It’s striking,” Sarah said. “It’s obviously built for the future.”

  “It sure is,” Kevin said with a smile. “The next two destroyers should be ready for their space trials in three months. After that, we’ll be building four a year for the next two years. Then it will be ramping up again, and again.”

  “I know,” Sarah said. “I’ve seen the projections. We’ll have quit
e the fleet in a couple of decades.”

  “And we’re going to need someone to train us and the next generations of fleet personnel for battle,” Kevin said. “I know that when the day comes, my mother has other plans for you. But until that day, I think we could all benefit from the skills and knowledge you have to give.”

  Sarah fell silent for several moments. She hadn’t thought about being involved in training the fleet that would eventually leave Hope V to take on the Elders. Sure, she had wanted to try out the destroyers in a simulation. But fighting the other human crews hadn’t occurred to her. Suddenly having to wait twenty years to take on the Elders didn’t appear as boring as she had feared. She could play a key role in building the fleet that would eventually liberate Earth. Still, Sarah thought. I’m going to find Alexandra and Divar. In fact, this is just another reason to leave. Alexandra has all the Elder combat simulations in her memory banks. They could prove invaluable to the fleet being trained here. Knowing the enemy’s playbook would be a big advantage.