Greener Green I: Where Does the Circle Begin

by Peter Sowatskey

  I was about to take a sip when Paula came through, INVESTIGATE THE MOONS.

  I was about to sit my mug down and go immediately and do what she suggested, but she would understand my reluctance to waste good beer. I drained the mug, washed it at a nearby sink and hung it on my hook and went to find M.Verdai. I ran into Torme first, “I feel a need to go out of this room for a couple of hours.”

  “Certainly, all goes well. Baked fish tonight. Not to miss.”

  “We’ll be back before 1700.”

  I moved on and saw her across the table. I made, discretely, ‘the assemble on me and lets get the hell out of here motion’. She understood, made apologies, and we started for the same door. As we went through it I said quietly, “Paula, moons.”

  She nodded. No word passed between us until we were aboard the Frigate. Once inside she said, “You take left chair. I’ll have to devote full attention to my scanning equipment. Put that helmet on. Think us into motion. To begin with just say your commands in your head, or out loud if you prefer.”

  I did as bid, making sure my ‘H’ harness was in place. Yes I knew all about inertia dampeners and contra G force fields. But the last time an ’H’ harness failed was a long time ago. I said, “Please, ship, put us in an orbit around this planets closest moon at 5,000 feet.”

  There was no sensation of movement at all and a small time period, maybe 10 minutes, and we were circling the moon. I thought, 'what has she done with this ship? Knowing I probably wouldn’t understand the answer were I so dumb to ask.

  She said, “Very distinct orders Rafe, good going. Just relax while I run through the array of tests.”

  I relaxed and listened to the helmet. It wasn’t like telepathy because it wasn’t directed but the data filtered into my mind, shields at maximum, weapons ready, a long list of 100% available. Some things I never heard of like state of flux between inner and outer hull. Two hulls? Made sense in a way. I came out of my fog to her tense voice saying, “Ready for the next moon.”

  I said, Ship please go to the other moon of this planet and circle at the same height.’

  When we came around the planet the DO from III called asking if we needed assistance.

  I answered, “Routine requested moon survey mission. We’ll copy your records section.” I guess it was routine, but why was M.Verdai so tense. I hadn’t been drinking that much beer.

  We went into orbit smoothly. We’d used up some amount of something and we were recharging. She interrupted the litany to say, in a voice even more tense, “Request clearance for docking at ARK III’s Ready Dock.”

  I did. They said they’d turn the lights on. I passed that on through the helmet in a command and soon, damn we were fast, we were sitting on the steel alloy floor. I took the Helmet off and asked, “Now what?”

  “ANNU KI.”

  “Our ANNU KI out here on the Reg moon?”

  “No, not ours, slight variance, but there’s a listening post here, two posts, and they’re active. I didn’t want to risk a transmission through space. We’re done. I’ve transmitted the data to Paula’s counterpart. Now we go back to the palace like nothing happened.”

  I said, “Please ship, go back to Palace.” The moment I got the Helmet on. Very shortly we were planet side and back in the Project Hall, well before 1700.

  She spoke with Torme and came to me saying, “We’re going to our rooms to get ready for dinner.”

  Once there she set up a secure screen between Gina and her. Gina was sitting in the middle of a vast library of books, twenty feet high shelves all around and down the middle. M.Verdai was asking, “What’s the time period covered by the records?”

  “They start at 734,000 years ago. All of a sudden this body of knowledge just comes into being. Not a lot of changes. The library came to this planet 300,599 years ago. Evidently the Reg came with it but changed in structure afterward. There’s no Medical knowledge here, or anything but basic tech knowledge. Is it elsewhere, or is it destroyed. Joshua is very good at this research. He finds strains of development I miss. He says they were running from something. Whether they died here, or kept on running is not sure. He’s betting on the running theory. We’ll need access to Tech and Med data base to give a complete picture.”

  M.Verdai said, “I’ll try, right now. Be back to you soon.”

  We had been given rooms, two bedrooms, bath, and sitting room on a higher level than the Hall. A simple phone system which went through an operator. M.Verdai picked it up and said, “If his schedule permits, ask The First Reg to come by our rooms before dinner.”

  I continued to ‘speculate’; someone would include me in some loop eventually. In the sitting room she arranged two 3D projectors to create a view of the planet with the two moons revolving. They stood off from the planet at equal distances above the equator. The question, from my Terra Forming days, occurred to me. What were the chances of that occurring naturally? Slim to none was the answer. What had we, Paula, discovered here?

  We didn’t have long to wait. A knock and I went to the door and let him in. I motioned to the 3D view when we were out of the short hallway, and to a seat. M.Verdai bowed slightly and said, “Thank you for recognizing the delicacy of the subject and coming soon. We have been out and around your moons. Your sensor relays are working normally. However, for some reason, you have not looked at your Moons and seen what they contained.”

  She adjusted both projectors and they now showed a huge chamber in the middle of the both of them. His eyes got wide, and his jaw dropped, whoops, fish gone, I thought. His body tensed. I don’t know what he was about to do, but something drastic for sure. She held her hand up in a cautionary manner and he settled back in his seat.

  She spoke, “Rangers do what they do with small numbers because of the sensory pickup data. You have nothing which could show the inside of the moons without putting a team on the surface and setting off blasts to measure shock waves. Why would you do that? You have a plentiful supply of all minerals here on the planet. Measurements are being done now to find out how long these residents have been there. That will take a few days.”

  “I find no data in my mind about sensors through time.”

  “You find no data about ARKs either. We can do as I’ve said.” M.Verdai gently insisted.

  I suppose he considered what else Thelma had brought to the Reg world and accepted her assertion.

  “What then is your recommendation?”

  “We wait for the time scans to be completed. Meanwhile you give us access to every bit of data you possess. I can understand your hesitancy. You have to make a decision to accept us as your ally, or not. I would recommend you make that decision on your own. Also you have to prepare your people to accept a large number of workers to put your libraries on data discs for our computers.”

  I concluded we were going to be late for dinner, but not too late, as his face cleared. He spoke into a wrist comm device, “I have made the decision to have our data bases, all of them, put into computers.”

  Evidently he got some feed back to the contrary, “Do I have to remind of my title?

  No. Good. Have Security arrange the necessary number of escorts. Starting 2400 today. Out.”

  “They are set in their ways, me too, but I can change, many others can’t. The escorts are for your safety. Your workers will be going where non Regs are incinerated automatically. It would be too time consuming to change the system. Do you need time to make arrangements?”

  “No.” She said, “The moment you gave permission it was done. The data people will come down with the nightly supply run.”

  “So, let’s go eat. It may be long to the next meal.”

  It probably wouldn’t be, but we ate like it was true.

  Chapter 40

  Rafe

  We convened again, 48 hours later. Same people plus Paula. She and Torme had come to an agreement that they would not be impressed by each other. She was to explain what our endeavors of the past days had wrought. She started wit
h, “We are recording this conversation so you may pass the findings along to your people, Torme, at your discretion. I recommend you do so, but it’s your decision. What we have found is that your Germanic creators were indeed running from the ANNU KI. We don’t know yet whether they are the same ones who are on Earth, but their result is the same, slavery, of mind and body. A planet in your creator's vicinity was taken over. They could not fight, not having enough of a war machine so they ran. They escaped for a while and created and educated you while they were dying out as a race. We will know why when the long time mission to the past has returned. Nevertheless they died. Some moved further on before that, but they didn’t say where they were going, if they knew. As your planet grew colder you adapted by sending forth your young to die. There from, you gathered what you needed to have your race go on. The ANNU KI that is now in the center of your moon discovered you. Their advance scouts travel in threes, so you can know that a home world, or home fleet, knows about your existence. These above are just watchers. They report every 500 years to someone. They reported last time 294 years ago. We know how to destroy them but their persistence time wise leads us to conclude they are spread over time in such a manner that destroying them in any given time/point avails little. It is doubly awkward that we have, in good intentions, brought the Brenesi here. You could abandon your world and flee, but to where, and if that where is discovered, how do you know that the enemy wouldn’t appear again? So, what’s it to be, Torme?”

  “To be, is an election tomorrow for a new First Reg. If I suggest running, my wife would kill me in my sleep and my children would cheer her on. I don’t think you can ever understand how Regs don’t run. All over the Galaxy everybody knows Regs don’t run. We die to a person, but we don’t run. Understand?”

  Paula answered, “Yes, we Essences already have Eternity. We achieved it the same way, not ever running, from anything.”

  Addressing me, she said, “I recommend force Field containment of both moons. Then an attack to capture the resident to take place every 100 years back to the time they landed on the moons. I’m beginning to understand our enemy. They/it does exist over a space of time, equally. When an enemy of they/it applies force now, they/it just refocuses to another time. But this attack plan will overcome that advantage. However the moons may be destroyed in the process. I’ve asked many, what effect that would have on the planet and the answer is none. We have scanned the planet proper from every angle and find no presence of the enemy. The plan requires much concentrated effort and close coordination. Essences will be there at every attack site to ensure that an energy level escape doesn’t happen. Our resources will be spread widely over time. Thelma says that if you decide to attack she will position ARKs II and V to act as recovery vehicles. Also she will send two more Rail Gun Docks to act as present time back up. We are serious in this. Are you Torme?”

  Torme was taken aback from the might we were willing to bring to bear. Also, I expect, our decisiveness.

  He said, “There is no thought of any other way. We will do this to the last Reg.”

  Paula was still for a moment, and then said, “Thelma conveys her wishes for success. She says the promised ships are underway right now.”

  We sat still. I think everyone, including me, was a bit stunned at what we had set into motion.

  M.Verdai spoke first, “It would be less noticeable to anyone were the, OICs, to come down with the 2400 supply run. I can see to that. Torme, I suggest you chose your leaders. There will be 726 strike teams. The leaders on both teams, you and us, can decide what’s needed for each team. Then we figure out what we have. By tomorrow this time we will have an idea. I suggest we meet again then and include General Niken, also your second, Torme.”

  That proposal seemed to go over with Paula, so I said, “Let’s do it. Keep everyone else in the loop.”

  I already missed my seat in the Hall and my mug on the wall.

  Paula said I DON’T THINK ANYONE WOULD BEGRUDGE YOU ONE STEIN, XO.

  I smiled ever so gratefully. But I knew I couldn’t.

  The meeting the next day was mostly an allocation of assets. It was decided to not delay the Farms effort but to make the moving and shifting of ships appear to be in aid for the Farms. Outer security was given over to the incoming ships per our plan. I knew it was going to appear we were totally disorganized so I didn’t think the ships slipping down time would be noticed especially if we brought supplies in from the ships standing off. Everyone knew what their jobs were. The encoding of Torme’s various data bases was going on without interruption.

  Four weeks later we met for the last time before AK day. Everyone, including myself, was frayed. Even Paula didn’t smile so freely anymore. The library people were on the edge of a breakthrough, but they weren’t talking before they knew exactly. I hoped people would still be around to care in 24 hours. The team in present time was going to strike at the same time as the team the furthest back in time, 7,260, years ago. The enemy would be squeezed toward, and back to a time 3,630 ago. Then the Regs had been simple farmers. I hope loosing their moons wouldn’t stunt the population growth. I gave the final word, “Vorewellen, roll over the bastards!”

  It flashed through my mind how much we were betting on this operation. We had over 90% of the assets of two ARKs and an entire Rail Gun Dock, 635 fighter craft involved. Over 7,000 Grouper Wagons with 20 Regs apiece had gone out along this time stretch. All of this for two observation posts, overkill? Everyone was backed up on Med Decks, and in the Express buffers, overkill?

  Team one hit in present time. Twenty Regs hit the moons surface and bored down into the open chamber where the ANNU KI was. They died immediately. Their brain wave patterns went in many directions, on the monitor, and then stopped. The fail safes on their battle suits caused a quarter ton neutron bomb to explode. The force fields which were focused around the chamber held. The moon didn’t blow apart. No organism, no matter what the shielding was going to exist through that. It didn’t.

  It appeared in the middle of our Great Hall standing 5 feet off the floor. A figure like the descriptions, a giant with a huge ‘eye’ in the middle of its forehead. There was a malevolence, a hatred, and a desire to kill that I could feel in my core. It gathered itself and was about burn us all out when Paula suddenly grew to the same size it was and merged with it completely, whereupon they both vanished.

  We just stood there, where we’d been standing, knowing what death looked like. Sure we had personal shields, but they were for projectiles, for Plasma bursts. What defense was there for something which invaded your essence and could snuff it out? Would Paula win? Would Paula be Paula, or exist at all.

  I watched the monitors and saw team after team snuffed out. The 327th team had two survivors. After that the tide turned. The enemy grew weaker until we were losing no team members. I made myself move and rushed to the other side of the monitor bank where the feeds were coming in from the past time entry Teams. There they had encountered similar resistance, but the enemy had grown weaker sooner in the past. We were not losing anybody now.

  I raced back to the opposite monitor bank. No causalities now. I think they are retreating from the past and from now. What was going to happen when they met at the mid point? Both Sally and Molly were relaying orders from me. So far none but I was seeing a problem. If their force could create, when sufficiently concentrated we were just going to be helping them regroup and solidify. I sent, through my Aides, “One hundred attack sites on either side of zero double the attack teams. Fifty sites on either side of zero triple the attack teams. Twenty sites on either side of zero make the attack teams 5 times as strong.”

  I didn’t know whether Neutron radiation effected thought or not, but they weren’t going to put together much of a living organism in that much of it.

  Forty eight hours later we were coming to the home stretch. My strengthening commands had been carried out. Twelve more hours to go.

  They went slowly for eight hours. Then the ANNU
KI minds must have realized what was happening. They tried to dampen the explosions, but now it was too late. There were too many explosions, and too little intention to do anything. When they got to where the 5 x teams were, the resistance stopped. No more dampening fields. No more N space cracks to bleed the radiation into. Just nothing. It was like they had made a choice to not be, and they weren’t. Zero point was reached at the 60 hour mark. When the message was received in the Great Hall there weren’t any cheers. We were beyond cheers. One doesn’t cheer when so many have died. Everyone just sat down and started looking around.

  I suppose we were looking for the resolve on each other’s faces, if there was any more of that. Gradually the group mind, or whatever you want to call it, decided that there was indeed enough resolve to fight another day. Then we rose and went about our duties.

  “Molly, Sally, what about Paula?”

  Molly brought me a note, “Am in Earth space. Creature contained. Being questioned. Be back to you when not needed here. Betty promoted to Commander. Paula.” Odd how her note read its self into my mind without me seeing the words, odd.

  There was another note from Joshua, ‘Must meet soonest, ground shattering importance.’

  A thought crossed my mind about the remaining stability of the two moons.

  A short three minutes later Sally handed me a geological survey paper. The lead in paragraph said it all. ‘No damage to either moon has been found no matter which test we did. Hereinafter are those tests.’ I didn’t read the tests. I knew they weren’t natural moons. Otherwise they would be dust within force fields. Molly or Sally, get me to Joshua right away. As I walked out of my home for the last three days, I noticed my beer stein still on the wall. I needed it, it called to me, when Joshua was handled I would come back and have one for me, and Paula, and all the people who died. Some would come back, mentally, maybe all of them, but they wouldn’t be who they had been. I knew.