by R J Murray
“Can you tell me why we are only encountering the older Catroph ships?” Eric asked.
“They have moved further out the spiral arm of the galaxy leaving the damaged and obsolete behind. The Catroph consume but they do not build or recreate once they have taken all from a world. We have added the history of the last nine thousand years into the ships computers to give you a clear understanding of the current situation. Assets, both ours and the enemies have been added and updated as well as dead worlds formerly occupied by one or the other. We have arrived. Please direct any further questions to your ships library computer. Thank you for joining the fight.”
“You’re welcome. Thank you for the ships and information.” Eric responded. “Move out. We have a ship to learn.”
~~~~~~
“Ryu Akai to Astangii come in please.” Hector and Lee waited for any response.
“It’s a three week trip. Even if they took a vacation they should have someone on watch at the com.” Lee mumbled to himself.
“Astangii, respond or I will personally kick your ass!” Hector bellowed into the com.
“That would hurt and you would probably miss anyway.” Eric answered. “New call sign is Dorn Tehage. It means Hell Bringer in the Otstrand language.”
“Where have you been for three months, almost four and why didn’t you answer the com?” Lee asked.
“Well, the com frequencies were a little different on this ship and we had to take a little detour due to a mistaken entry in the nav system. It took a while to get back to this arm of the galaxy. Kind of embarrassed about that part. We just got into range of your com about ten minutes ago.” Eric explained.
“Isn’t your range the same as ours?” Hector asked.
“Not anymore. We are now eighty light years out. Be there in thirty minutes. Dorn Tehage out.”
“Thirty minutes? Are you nuts? Wait, come back. Do NOT leave us hanging! Who are the Otstrand?” Horace yelled.
Thirty minutes later a frantic call came from the watch stations on the moon.
“Alert! Alert! Unknown ship out of FTL! Five kilometers in diameter and armed to the teeth. They are right on top of us! I never saw anything like this on scans! Alert!”
“Calm down. Ask if it’s the Darn something or other.” Horace called.
“Dorn Tehage you barbarian. Get it right. Maddwell here. Coming in for standard equatorial orbit.”
“Thank the Maker. My whole life flashed before my eyes. It was boring too. Welcome home Commodore. Where did you find that ship?” The watch post asked.
“Found it drifting. We couldn’t bring it and the Astangii back so we parked her on a moon and came back with the big one.” Eric lied.
Lee looked at Horace. “Open channel. Guess this is a secret too.”
“We talked to him and he didn’t lie. Maybe.” Horace said.
“Ship to ship is directional and encoded once you have a response. Wartime regulations so you don’t give away your position. Don’t you know anything about a starship?”
“I forget the tiny unimportant details.” Horace huffed.
In the time it took for the Dorn to enter orbit the news of a new ship had spread across the landing port and most of the colony. Lee and Horace were on the Ryu Akai and docked with the ship as soon as it entered orbit.
~~~~~~
“I felt like a ping pong ball when we docked. This thing is huge! Now, tell me all because I am not leaving until you do.” Lee said energetically.
“No problem, we can talk safely on board. Let’s go to the lounge.” Eric led the way through the corridors to a lift. He touched the pad and the doors shut, the lift moving immediately. The doors opened and they entered a new deck.
“How many decks?” Horace asked.
“Forty counting engineering, weapons and the bridge plus engine spaces, storage bays and energy production levels. Heavy shields that stop most weapons fire including reducing damage from smaller nukes, faster engines, faster FTL, more advanced everything.” Eric was excited to show off his new toy.
“Most of which he has no clue how it works.” Martha said. “Welcome to the lounge. Can I offer you a drink?”
Lee and Horace took it all in. The lounge was big, tables scattered around the floor, booths around the edges and a few other areas for small groups beyond the main area. A dance floor was in the center and a few couples were using it as soft music played. A long bar took up one end of the room, u shaped and circling the dance floor at a distance of about five meters. It had stool’s on one side near the dance floor. It was a bit over decorated with magnolias as the central theme.
“Where is the brothel?” Horace asked.
“This is a bit much Eric. Did you do this just for us?” Lee asked.
“Actually, it was decorated at the base while we waited for the ship to be prepped. They took a picture from the computer of a lounge from an old vid and reproduced it here. It is nice though.” Martha explained. She did not say that she picked the picture when she went to the lavatory at the lounge on the moon base. It only took a few minutes to explain what she wanted to the computer and they were happy to oblige.
“Who, perchance are THEY?” Horace asked.
“Take a seat and let the robot get your order first.”
Eric pushed the two toward a table and sat with them and Martha. A small serving robot such as they had encountered on the moon base floated to the table. “Welcome. May I take your order or would you like to see a menu?”
Horace and Lee were unable to speak.
“Menu please.” Martha asked. A screen popped up in front of each person.
“I’ll come back when you signal. Please use the button in the center of the table to notify me that you are ready.” The robot floated back and disappeared behind the bar.
“So, what do you think?” Eric said.
“I want one. Can I have one please?” Lee begged.
~~~~~~
“So you have three different engines? Explain how that gets you thirty light years in thirty minutes.” Horace asked.
“Eighty light years.” Lee corrected.
“I need to let Martha explain this. I am still confused. She had to navigate us back after, well, the incident.”
“Incident?”
“We were on our shakedown cruise. Is that the right word, shakedown? Anyway, Ash loaded the nav computer as usual but it seems he left off something it now requires and we jumped across the spiral arm almost a thousand light years in less than ten minutes.”
“Whoa. Ten minutes?” Lee asked.
“The third engine folds space. A wormhole opens and the ship crosses to a new sector. It is not unlimited though. We think it has a range of maybe two thousand light years before you need to recharge the generators. We call them generators but they are more like an energy storage device. They must be recharged between jumps no matter what the length. I don’t understand the principles behind the operation but I figured out enough with the help of Asi to get us back here.”
“Asi is till with you?” Lee asked.
“They transferred him intact along with Betty to the new ship. They also copied him and Betty to the base main frame for study and upgrading. Now here is the deal. They have two more ships like this one and a dozen smaller, but we can’t let anyone know what we have or where we got them. First, we don’t understand most of the systems well enough to repair them or to replace them. We lack the technology. Second, we trade old ships for new. The old are recycled and new built from them. We can order them but it takes months to build one from scratch and we don’t have the crews for all we have now.”
“So the Astangii is gone?” Horace asked. “I like that ship.”
“So did I but it was just metal and crystal. The heart came with us so we could stand the loss. Betty, Asi and the crew. When I dumped the Pathfinder, I felt guilty for months but I came to accept the need. These ships are shells and we can trade shells just like a crab does. We take the Earth ships back and crews. We
pick up more smaller ships like the Astangii and the two big ones we trade Catroph ships for.” Eric leaned forward and his voice intensified. “This is critical. Never, never go anywhere near an Astangii base or planet in anything but an Astangii ship. They will blow you away before you can take a breath. Otstrand, not Astangii. This is going to be hard.”
“How did we not know their name?” Lee asked.
Martha grinned. “You need to ask questions to receive information. Did you ever ask what the name was?”
“I felt my IQ drop ten points just then. Why do you hang with her?” Lee quipped.
“Because it rubs off after a long enough time, like osmosis.” Eric answered.
“If we can’t get near them how do we trade?” Horace asked. “See, I can do questions. Do I get something for that?”
“This is the procedure.” Eric began.
~~~~~~
Asgard entered the system trailing far behind the Dorn. Phil had Lee and his crew with him on this trip. They listened as the Dorn talked with the moon base then called the Asgard.
“Cut all power except life support. Do nothing, not even a sneeze. They are sending a tug and a warship out to meet you. Just sit tight.”
“Affirmative. Cutting power.” Phil answered. “You heard the man. Cut all power except life support or we are dead.”
Emergency lighting came on as the ship went dark. They waited until they felt a bump and they ship began to move. Then a second bump and a third a few minutes later.
“Wonder what they are doing?” Lee asked.
“Checking us out or planting a few nukes on the hull. Pick one.” Phil said.
The tug initiated an inertia-dampening field and all sense of motion stopped. Fifteen minutes later they felt a tiny bump as they landed.
“That was impressive and smooth. I am so glad we are on their side.” Lee said.
The com came on and a voice spoke.
“Your ship has been locked onto a landing pad. Please disembark in an orderly fashion. We apologize for the weapons trained on your ship and the exit port. Please remain calm. Prior to receiving port privileges, you will be taken to an inspection point and scanned for any alien nanobots or diseases. Thank you for your support.”
“You’re quite welcome. Let us depart people. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can get our new ship and start training.” Phil said, leading the way to the exit port. When they arrived they found a transport just like Eric had described. What he had not described was the small army of ships and robots pointing big weapons at them and the ship.
“Is that an emitter?” one of the crew asked, pointing at a unit near the ship’s hull.
“Probably. I would wipe the whole ship before I ever let it land. Not a bad precaution to do it again either.” Some one answered.
~~~~~~
Eric and his crew were in the lounge when they arrived.
“I have to admit this place is vast and impressive. I didn’t care for the reception but I understand the need. We don’t have to do that every time, do we?” Lee asked.
“Unless you arrive in an Otstrand ship, yes. We got the VIP treatment last time and this time.” Ash said.
The robot arrived and asked for an order.
“Give the new crews the sample trays like you did us the first time. They may enjoy several of the unique items you offer. I really liked the green juice.” He turned to the others at the table. “Stay away from the yak milk though.” Ash advised.
Lee grinned and Horace snatched up the yak milk as soon as it arrived, gagged and left to wash out his mouth.
“I did say it was terrible.” Ash said.
“Which is why he tried it. He figured you would lie about the good ones. I thought you would too, but this green stuff is good.”
“I thought you would think that so I told the truth this time. Want any suggestions about the foods?”
Horace came back and sat, taking a small sip of the green juice. “Never can tell when you’re lying. That was evil, pure and simple. Nice job.”
A globe robot came to the table where the three Captains and their execs sat.
“The ship is a classic cruiser of the Catroph and is in excellent condition. We have viewed the record of its capture and we are impressed with your ingenuity. We welcome you and will give you all possible support short of returning to your galaxy. As allies, you have access to all remaining materials and bases within our sphere of influence within your galaxy. Savath Na Drith, council of elders, Home. End of message.”
“Who is that, Drith?” Eric asked.
“He is the current elder assigned to keep watch on this arm of the galaxy.”
“He is alive? Is he here?” Lee asked.
“He is alive and well. He is not here. He is on Home. The world where the Otstrand became the Otstrand. When he received our report, he reviewed the material and the data and approved of our decision to accept you as allies.”
“So he is in the other galaxy the Otstrand left for. You can communicate between galaxies.”
“Yes.”
“Thank him for us, if you would.” Eric finished.
“Of course.” The globe left, disappearing out a side door.
“Nice of them. We can have the leftovers and their good will but they will remain over there.” Horace said.
“No different than Earth history. Couple of hundred years ago they had a big war, before nukes. It took in most of the planet but one or two countries remained neutral. One was friendly to both sides at the beginning but eventually they decided one was a better neighbor than the other. They did not fight, but sent all their old weapons to the one they chose. Eventually they were drug into the war but they tried to stay out of it as long as they could. Lend lease they called it. Borrow the ships and guns, just give them back after it is over. I can live with Otstrand lend lease.” Eric said before taking a long drink of his ale.
“I just realized your drinking beer. They have human stuff too?” Horace asked.
“It’s their ale but yes. They took samples of our food and drink and analyzed it. They can make almost anything here.”
“Is their ale good?” Lee asked.
“It is different, which can be nice. This one is good. They have more than one type of alcohol just like we do and a few of them are not palatable, not to my delicate tongue.”
“How long before we can leave?”
“It took about two hours last time but we only got one ship. Did you ask about the lounge?” Eric asked.
“We need to ask? I thought it was automatic.” Horace said.
“Martha thinks I don’t know, but she asked about it and picked the one she wanted. The globe thing asked for my permission as captain before they would start it.” Eric grinned.
“Well that one is a bit much, but I want a lounge too.” Horace said, getting up and heading for the bar to talk to the robot there. Lee followed him over and looked at samples in the computer. When they were done they returned and the robot followed with a pitcher of beer and two mugs.
“Thirsty work.” Horace said.
“Just remember you are flying a ship five kilometers across out of here. What did you get?”
“Bavarian beer hall.” Horace answered.
“Speak easy.” Lee said.
“A what?” Eric asked.
“Speak easy. Early twentieth century illegal bar. You need the password to get in.”
“What is the password?” Horace asked.
“In a normal yet firm voice you say ‘Lee Tung Hoo is the greatest Starship captain in this galaxy’ and the door opens.”
Eric snorted and choked on his ale.
“Who we giving the new ship to? The one we are building in orbit around Acadia. Hobbs?”
Horace asked.
“How about John? He is still flying that ship he came out in, the Avenger. How do you say Avenger in Otstrand?” Lee asked.
“Oristal.” The robot answered.
Chapter 19 Less is Mo
re
Phyllis worked the controls and the ship spun on its axis and decelerated, changing course one hundred and eighty degrees in a few seconds. She punched the button and did a micro jump to ten thousand kilometers behind the target, which was now centered in the weapon officers targeting screen.
“Weapons fired. Shoot, shoot, shoot. Target destroyed.”
“End simulation. Nice work all of you. About as close to perfect as we poor humans can get.” Captain Hobbs, late of the Deaths Head looked at the results in his screen. His new ship was the Dalt Nevasht, a smaller Otstrand ship, was still bigger than any ship he had ever seen other than the three new monsters. Picking it up had been spooky. A long abandoned planet and a moon base totally controlled by machines was not what he expected when he joined the Earth fleet all those years ago. The ships were scouting back down the arm of the galaxy, looking for new planets and scouting for enemy bases.
“Resume base course Mr. Rimouski. We should get to the rendezvous with the Oristal in a few days. Keep alert for any enemy ships or bases. I will be in engineering for the next hour. Mr. Rimouski, you have the bridge.”
“Yes Sir.”
After Hobbs left the bridge, Steve leaned over and asked Phyllis. “What does the name of the ship mean anyway?”
“Dalt Nevasht? Dalt means blood and Nevasht means consume with lust. Blood Thirsty or Blood Lust would be a close guess.”
“Why couldn’t we change it to a real name that everyone can understand?” Chang asked. He was the weapons officer.
“Because it is bad luck to change the name for one thing. Second that is the name the Otstrand gave the ship. It only seems right to use it.” Phyllis added. “In addition, we were ordered to study the language, weren’t we?”
“Well I think we could name her whatever we want. The Astangii or Otstrand are long gone from here.” Chang said, his eyes still on his screen. “That and I suck at languages. Contact! Scanner active, on plotter.”
A pip appeared on the plot two million kilometers ahead. It was moving across the ships path at right angles.
“Call the captain. Yellow alert, close all bulkhead hatches. Shields up, weapons to standby.”