by Saxon Andrew
“I’m glad to assist you any way I can. Is there an issue?”
“We’re about to complete the construction and I need to know how much advanced technology you want put in this ship.”
“I’m not sure what you mean.”
“We’ve developed a means of communicating that is currently classified. Is the information that this ship is going to provide worth the risk of using it on this mission?”
“Did you ask Fleet Admiral Osborn about it?”
“I did and she said she trusted that you would use good judgment and it should be left up to you.”
“Tell me what we’re talking about here.”
“We’ve developed what we call a void pulse.”
“A what?”
“You know how the stardrive takes a ship out of normal space and into a void that is not located in normal space.” Connor nodded. “We have developed a transmitter that sends pulses through the void that is faster than anything we’ve ever measured. The transmitter takes data and sends it out into the void to all locations in the universe instantly.”
Connor stared at Hudson and shook his head, “I’m not clear on what you’re describing, Charlie.”
“Sir, you know the void exists everywhere just outside normal space, right?”
“Well, it makes sense that it’s everywhere because the stardrives can enter it anywhere.”
“This transmitter broadcasts inside the void and the pulses move everywhere instantly. The receiver has an antenna inside the void and will hear those pulses.”
“Are you saying there is no limit on how far the transmitter and the receiver can be separated?”
“We’ve tested it all the way out to Andromeda and it worked.”
“Why aren’t we using it now?”
“Fleet Admiral Osborn put a hold on using it. She worries that advanced species might be using it and would hear our transmissions.”
“Have you picked up any other transmissions in the void?”
Hudson stared at Connor and shook his head, “No, we’ve not detected any.”
“Is it possible that a different frequency might not be heard by our receiver?”
Charlie thought for a moment and started slowly shaking his head, “I don’t know for sure but I doubt it.”
“Why?”
“The pulses are not frequency driven. They’re like waves that move out from the center of an event. Sort of like waves that spread out from a rock being thrown in water. Only they travel across immense distances instantly. We honestly don’t really know how far they travel but they lost no power when they were received at Andromeda.”
“Have you detected any pulses that might have been responding to our pulses?”
“No Sir.”
“I don’t want the system put on this ship.”
“I agree with you but why do you think it should be left out?”
“I want the transmissions detected this time. I hope they will see them sent in the direction of the Traugh Empire. I also worry that they may disable the ship and have access to the systems on board.”
“That’s why you wanted disintegrators and not the new blasters installed.”
“Yes it is.”
“I couldn’t discuss this with you except in person. I apologize for making you come here.”
“How close are you to finishing the ship?”
“It will be ready to leave in five days. The receiving buoys will be placed in four days.”
“When will Admiral McAlistor arrive to start preparing for the mission?”
“He’s here now and on board the ship imprinting the new helmet.”
“Does this ship have a self-destruct?”
“It does.”
Connor looked across the huge field and saw the Traugh Warship’s shape. “I’m going to see Wade and see if I can offer some suggestions.”
“Yes Sir. See me before you leave.”
“I will and thanks, Charlie. I really appreciate your making this happen.”
“Actually, it was Fleet Admiral Osborn that removed all the obstacles that might slow us down.” Connor nodded and stared walking toward the large warship. “Do you need a ride, Admiral?”
“No, I don’t get many chances to walk. I need the exercise.” By the time he arrived at the ship, he wished he had taken Charlies’ offer. The ship was a lot further than he thought. He sat down on the ramp and caught his breath. He looked up at the grey clouds blowing past overhead and smelled the moisture in the air. It was going to rain. Heck, it was London. People living there never tanned, they rusted.
He looked at the vehicles rushing around the giant facility and was amazed at the size of the place. The main construction hangar looked like it was a short distance away but knew his eyes were deceiving him. It was a good five miles away. Its massive size distorted what the eye was seeing. He felt the first cold drops of rain blow in on his face and he stood up and jogged up the ramp before the storm rolled in. He was too tired to run, he had to start an exercise program. He was getting soft.
• • •
He entered the bridge and saw Wade sitting in the command chair. He shook his head. Wade was a good hundred pounds lighter. “How’s it going, Admiral?” Wade turned around and jumped to attention, “As you were.”
Wade smiled and sat back down, “Admiral Hudson did a great job on the ship, Sir.”
“Wade, let’s forgo the formality of rank for a while. Talk to me like a friend.”
“Yes Sir…uhhhh, ok.”
“Call me Steve.”
“It’s going good, Steve.”
“How do you feel?”
“Actually, I feel better than I have for a very long time. The doctors tell me that’s normal when I’m getting close to the end.”
“Did they tell you how much longer you have?”
“They said I’ve taken good care of myself and I still have about sixty days.”
“Has anyone discussed how you should go about your scouting efforts?”
“No one who knows what they’re talking about.”
“Oh?”
“They say I should approach the area from directly above the galaxy. I think I should go in at an angle from above Traugh Territory.”
“I agree. If this deception is going to work, you’ve got to make it look like you came from that direction. I would also suggest that if you’re detected by one of the warships in that area you’re scouting, you should start transmitting your data instantly.”
“That is exactly what I intend to do.”
“Try to get a good scan of any warship you encounter and run at top speed immediately.”
“Sir, I will get a measure on their ship’s capabilities. If I can outrun them, I will.”
“How’s your daughter?”
Wade’s smile was huge, “She’s great, Steve.”
Connor spent the next four hours discussing Wade’s family and things he might try during the mission. At the end, both of them knew they had forged a bond between them and Steve hugged him before he left. “Wade, I will make sure your daughter is taken care of. I will check on her personally whenever I come home.”
Wade hugged him tighter and said, “That means more to me than you know.”
Connor nodded and left the ship. He collected all the information on Cali McAlistor and set her birthday in his communicator. He swore he would be there for her when she needed a father. He saw the rain had become little more than a mist and he chose to walk back to the main building. He needed time to think about what was coming. He decided to go home and visit his family and be present for Wade’s departure.
• • •
Wade received clearance and he lifted the large warship off the tarmac. It rose smoothly and he was impressed that ship handled as well as his warship. It also didn’t feel slower, even though it had two fewer reactors. He pushed the bow thruster handle lightly and began a shallow ascent through the atmosphere. He arrived in high orbit, lifted the communication cabl
e, and plugged it into his helmet. “Since there’s no one on board with me, I’m going to do a lot of talking to myself. Once I’m over Traugh Territory, I’m shutting down the broadcast and simply record everything I say for later broadcast. To avoid long gaps, I’ve programmed the helmet to only record when I’m speaking. I’m headed out of the galaxy and will start my descent into that UE’s space when I’m at the far side of the Traugh’s Empire.”
“Good luck, Wade. Be careful and try to collect as much information as possible.”
“I will, Sir. Please thank Admiral Hudson for the excellent job his team did on this vessel. Also thank Admiral Connor for all he’s done to make this possible. Tell them I won’t let them down.”
“I will pass your messages on. Is there anything you need from the Senior Staff?”
“No Sir. Thank you for allowing me to fly this mission, Admiral Osborn.”
“No thanks are needed, just surprise us and come back home.”
Wade smiled, “I’ll do my best.” Wade activated the stardrive and pushed the thruster handle forward. The ship accelerated at an incredible speed as Wade pointed the ship’ bow toward intergalactic space above the plane of the Milky Way. He flew for an hour and then started moving in a long curve that took him over the top of the Traugh Empire. He was approaching the end of Traugh Space and he started the ship moving in a shallow path that took it outside of Traugh scanner range but leveled out just above the galaxy as it moved away from the Traugh toward the distant black hole in the center of the galaxy.
He kept the ship at one-third speed and conserved his power as he flew toward the center of the Milky Way. In four days, he saw the bright bar that ran through the massive black hole and turned the ship toward the right end of the bar. According to the information gathered, this Unknown Enemy was located around ten thousand light years from the end of the bar where the Perseus Arm began. He moved closer and changed course. He flew toward the bar from inside the edge of the galaxy and swerved outside it to avoid the massive gravitational pull. He stayed four thousand light years away and them moved into the Perseus Arm and activated his scanners. He set up a flight program to bring the ship close to G type stars as he flew deeper into the Perseus Arm. He found nothing interesting for the first six days. On the seventh, he knew he was getting close to the UE.
“I haven’t been saying much during the first two weeks of the mission. There really hasn’t been anything worth talking about. However, today I found a planet located in the habitation zone of a G type star. It is devoid of an atmosphere and I can now see on my monitor a giant crater on the planet’s surface. Analysis shows that it is more than two thousand miles across and sixty miles deep. I’m moving around the planet as I’m speaking.”
“Sorry for the break. The alarm you probably heard was the main scanner detecting artificial structures. On the opposite side of the planet from the crater are ruins of what must have been a large city. Most of the ruins are little more than rubble but a few of the buildings are still standing. This was once an inhabited planet and the evidence supports that it was destroyed by whatever made that giant crater. It looks like the existence of the UE has now been verified. From this moment forward, I’m keeping the sonic scanner active.”
• • •
“It’s been two days since my last recording. I’ve found another destroyed planet circling a Red Giant Star. I found it when my scanner detected a huge amount of space debris circling it. I’ve scanned the wreckage and there was a massive space battle fought at this planet. I’m going to take some time and see what I can learn about the ships that fought it.”
• • •
“It’s been three days since my last recording. There were two types of warships that participated in the battle around the destroyed planet. The obvious loser of the battle has tens of thousands of blasted and derelict ships hanging in space. I only found three of the other ships and it appears the attackers that won this battle blasted them before they left so there wouldn’t be anything left behind to reveal their technology. I’ve been able to determine that the three attacker ships that were killed were rammed by suicide ships crashing into them. I’m signing off, my scanner has detected something on one of the planet’s moons. I’m going to investigate what it is.”
• • •
“It’s been six days since my last recording. I found something that should really help us see what we’re up against here. I found another attacker ship that crashed on the dark side of the moon. Unlike our moon, this one always has the same side facing the star in this system instead of the planet so one side remains in perpetual darkness. I put on a space suit and took a portable scanner and walked through the UE ship from one end to the other. I’m reasonably certain that I recorded the weapon that they use to destroy a planet. However, I don’t have the necessary tools to do an analysis of what I’ve found so I’m leaving that up to you. I have decided that the moment my sonic scanner detects a stardrive that I am going to send a mass dump of all the recordings and scans I’ve done since arriving. I’ll then fly away at top speed and continue my search. I’ll make the final data dump if my ship is detected and pursued by one of the dark grey ships being used by the UEs. Incidentally, the grey ships are larger than our Admiral’s Flagships and covered with some kind of beam emplacements. I’m leaving now and I’ll let you know if I find anything of interest. I’ve moved six thousand miles from the end of the bar into the Perseus Arm. If the information I was given is correct, I will be entering the area where this aggressive species is located within the next week if nothing of interest slows me down.”
• • •
“It’s been nine days since my last recording. I’ve found eight more destroyed planets and I’m now eleven thousand light years from the central bar. I’m sorry about not recording but I’m starting to feel the pain from the cancer. I’m forced to take the pain medication which forces me to shut down my systems and sleep six or nine hours after taking them. It appears I don’t have as much time as I thought. I’m taking a shot and I’ll report after I move the ship tomorrow.”
• • •
“My sonic scanner has just started humming. Whatever it’s detecting is a long way from my current position. Oh yeah, it’s been four days since my last recording. I’ve loaded all the data I’ve collected along with the recordings I’ve made and loaded them into the communicator. I’ll be sending it momentarily and then I’ll be running away from the direction my sonic scanner is detecting the stardrive.”
• • •
“It’s been three days and I’m being forced to constantly run from stardrives the sonic scanner is detecting. It does appear my communication was heard and the UE is vectoring ships into this region of space. I’ve considered shutting down all my systems and attempting to hide on a moon or planet but I don’t think I have much longer. The pain is incredible and I’ve decided that I need to allow them to find me to determine their top speed and range of their weapons. Did I say that I did not see any missile tubes in the wreckage I explored? I can’t remember if I did. Uh-oh, it looks like one of them has started moving directly toward me. Let me see…my sonic scanner picked up that ship’s stardrive four minutes ago. I’m going to continue talking and sending a continuous communication stream from now on. I’m sure it’s being detected and now my sonic scanner shows four stardrives getting stronger. I can now see one of them on the edge of my active scanner’s range. It’s coming fast and I’m going to go to full speed and see if it closes the gap.”
• • •
“Sorry about the delay. The ship has closed the gap but not as quickly as I thought it would. I was forced to change course when another of their ships came at me from head on. That allowed the first pursuer to cut the corner and move in closer. Their ships are definitely faster than my ship. OH CRAP!”
“Sorry, another ship came rushing in on my former course and I was forced to take another vector. A giant beam has just flashed past my ship from the first pursuer.
I’ve scanned it so you should have a reading on how much power it used. I’m starting to weave but that is allowing them to box me in. The first ship has not fired again and I suspect the one commanding them wants to make a close scan of my ship or try to capture it. I intend to fire my two disintegrators at the first ship that moves into range. Stand by.”
• • •
“I hit the first pursuer with both beams and its force field flared and shrugged them off. There was something about that force field that is different from other fields I’ve seen hit. Be sure to look closely at it. Now they’ve started firing again. I don’t think they liked the way I sent two little pecks at that ship. I don’t know how much longer I can evade them! I’m hit and the rear of my ship has been obliterated! I’m pressing the self-destruct…”
Chapter Four
Connor listened to the recording with the Senior Admirals and Fleet Admiral Osborn. He shook his head as the recordings abruptly ended and he closed his eyes and was thankful Wade had died quickly. The pain he was enduring had to be overwhelming him but he continued to carry out his mission until the last moment. He heard Admiral Osborn speaking and he focused on her, “….about their force field?”
Admiral Knott said, “Our scientists and engineers are still processing the data he sent in the first data dump. We should have more information soon.”
Connor looked at Pam, “Do we know if they followed the line of the communications?”
“The closest communication buoy’s sonic scanner did detect a stardrive moving toward it that matched the one Admiral McAlistor detected. The buoy self-destructed before it could be found.” Connor nodded.
Admiral Malone looked at Pam and said, “The scientists have made one determination.”
Pam looked at him, “What is that?”
“The ships chasing McAlistor were not the same ship he scanned on the moon. They are of the opinion that the battle at that planet had taken place a very long time in the past.”