by Saxon Andrew
Violet sighed and Andi looked at her display and saw Violet shaking her head, “What!?
“Andi, you know spaceships are designed with a purpose in mine.”
“Yeah, so what?”
“You need to calm down, Sis and use your head and not your emotions. You’re not going to help us if you’re not thinking clearly.”
Andi glared at Violet, closed her eyes, and Drey was amazed at the sudden change. “Alright, go ahead.”
“A commercial ship is designed differently from a warship. They’re built to handle different purposes. Warships are also designed to accomplish different tasks as well. Drey asked me to focus on the blaster that killed Tad and I hated him asking me to dredge up those memories, but now I see why he did. The building on the moon that fired the beam that killed Tad did not fire a narrow beam and hit his ship. It simply fired an extremely wide beam and allowed Tad’s ship to run into it. I saw the small explosion, but if I had concentrated I would have seen that the beam was huge. However, it didn’t have a lot of power. It wasn’t that intense.”
Andi thought a moment and said, “So you think that ship is designed to kill FTL ships.”
Violet smiled, “Very good. Now you’re thinking. Those giant blasters that line the giant ship’s hull are similar to the ones put on the moons around that planet. They will fire all those beams and put a huge barrier in front of a FTL ship. The speed of the FTL is what will kill it when it hits those beams. At those speeds, the fleeting ship wouldn’t be much more than an energy wave and that weak beam will be enough to kill it. It will strip the Skinner field from the ship and without it the ship will convert to energy and explode.”
Andi’s expression changed and she said, “That would have to mean they can see the line a FTL takes.” Violet nodded. “It would also have to mean they would be able to immediately jump on that track so the system would have to be automatic.”
Ian said, “You lost me. Why would it have to be automatic?”
“They invested a huge amount in building a ship that big. They wouldn’t do that unless it performed its function. Time is always on the side of a FTL ship. If you delay any time at all, it will change course and you’ll lose it. It has to be done by computers.”
“And that will be their undoing.”
Andi looked at Drey with raised eyebrows, “We have the better computers.”
“That is true and false.”
Drey jerked his head toward the intercom, “Why do you say that, E.”
“The computer that directs that space facility is close to me. However, it is gigantic in size compared to us.”
Drey tilted his head, “Well, it’s a good thing we found them now.”
Violet said, “Why?”
Andi shook her head, “First they are made large and over time the size is decreased. I suspect in a hundred years or less they will have that computer on the facility directing their ships.” She paused and said, “This still won’t work.” Drey looked at her and she said, “How will we be able to follow you or that ship to view what happens? I can see why I need to be with Ian and Violet, but I don’t see any way to be where the confrontation takes place.”
Drey said, “Andi, I bet you could do it if you put your mind to it.”
“How?”
“Well, you know they’ll have my escape velocity.”
“Yeah.”
“They will also have the line I’m moving.”
“Go on.”
“You know how fast computer circuits operate. Though they’re close to the speed of light, they do take time to make a computation and energize a jump drive. If we know they’ve got to do it before the ship they’re chasing can change course and that should dictate where they would appear.”
Andi thought for a moment and then said, “You’ll be in real danger of getting killed, Drey.”
“Not really.”
“How can you say that? They’ll be on you quicker than white on rice.”
“Yes, but I have a computer that will stop my ship before the location you determine they’ll arrive. I’ll be there first and that’s where I’ll introduce them to Doc and myself.”
Andi shook her head, “If they can do it, there has to be away to track a ship that’s jumping.”
“That is where you come in again. I suspect that if E can observe one of their ships approaching in that other space, we’ll learn enough to determine what process they use. You need to be there to make sure we gather enough information to give us a chance to make that determination.”
“That means this will have to be done under very tightly controlled conditions. You will have to appear a specified distance from that ship and the route you take will also have to be predetermined. That’s the only way to make this happen.”
“How long will it take you to make your guess about where the ship will arrive?” Andi thought a moment, “If Doc will work with me I can set up the program to function within a half second.”
“Then that’s how long I have to appear and remain until I run away. That will allow you to be at the site ready to record.”
“That ship also has the high powered blasters as well.”
“Yes, but I suspect they will not be able to detect me and make a decision to fire them. The pursuit will be done automatically. I’ll have the force field at maximum until I go FTL.”
Andi shook her head, “I’m holding off my emotions and I still see there are many variables that could throw this whole idea off.” Andi looked at Drey, “You know as soon as I allow my emotions to return, I’m going to have a discussion with you.”
Drey turned his head and sighed, “I would think you would know this is the right thing to do.”
“That has nothing to do with emotions.”
Drey glanced at his display and saw Violet nodding.
Drey rubbed his forehead with his right hand and said, “I think I feel an aneurism coming on.”
Ian laughed and Violet immediately glared at him. Ian stopped laughing and said, “Welcome to the real world.”
Drey looked up and said, “I hope I remember how to turn my emotions off.”
Ian laughed out loud and Violet had to smile as well. Andi just shook her head.
• • •
Drey stared at Andi as she yelled at him and did not show any emotion. She stopped and said, “You had better come out from behind that wall and talk to me!”
Drey continued to stare at her and said in an emotionless tone, “I am not equipped to handle this. Arguments like this are not something I’ve ever had to deal with.”
“No, you just shot the one who disagreed. It’s time to start growing up and this is part of it. You settle the differences between yourself and those that love you.” Drey’s expression underwent a myriad of changes and Andi said, “What!?”
“Did I hear you say you love me?”
“You big dummy of a genius; of course I love you. You haven’t been able to see that?”
“I just find it impossible to believe. How can you love someone like me?”
“I decided when you were having your arguments with my brother about the ship that you were the one I’d want in my life.”
“For God’s sake, why?”
“Because no one ever wins an argument with Cole and you did; that told me more about you than anything else.” Drey shook his head. Andi sighed and sat down in his lap. “Drey, you did it with patience. Maintaining patience with my brother is next to impossible but you did. That told me you weren’t the same Dark Nebula Officer everyone feared. I could see your brilliance and knew you were the one for me. You’ve only confirmed it since.”
“Andi, I’m not close to being worthy of someone like you.” Drey looked in her eyes and said, “I’m just not.”
“That is what convinced me, Drey. If you didn’t feel bad about all you’ve done, I’d have a different opinion.” She sighed and said, “I saw you go and put flowers on Natalie’s’ grave.”
Drey’s head shot
up, “No one saw that. I did it when no one could see.”
“I know. But you should have known that you would be monitored once you came to Euclid and worked on that ship. You had a device placed in your uniform to track you. I watched with my brother on his display when you left the week before liftoff.” She stared into Drey’s eyes and said, “I heard what you said.”
Drey lowered his head and slowly shook it.
Andi softly said, “That is the reason Cole finally relented and allowed me to escape with you.”
“She didn’t deserve what I did to her.”
“It wasn’t you that did it. It was the ones that drove out all of your emotions and created a monster. That monster died when you found your family.” Andi looked at Drey and for the second time she saw his tears. The first time was at Natalie’s grave.
• • •
The next morning Drey was up early sitting in his command chair staring out at the giant spiral galaxy below. His display illuminated and he saw Ian, “Hey, what’s up?”
Drey looked at the display and said, “I’ve never thanked you for not killing me at the restaurant.”
“It was a close call, Drey.”
“I’m just glad it wasn’t me making it.”
“What if you had to make it now?”
Drey thought a moment and said, “I’m not sure, Ian, and that bothers me.”
“Tell me what you’re thinking.”
Drey sighed, “I’m complicated in some areas but in others I’m somewhat inflexible. The Nebula was my home and I was determined to defend it against all enemies whether they were perceived or real. I’m still like that.”
“Oh?”
“It’s different now. The Nebula will always be something I’ll protect to the absolute best of my ability, but Euclid is now a place that I’ll defend to the death.” Ian stared at Drey and he said, “My mother and brother are there.” Drey paused and looked at Ian, “By extension that includes the Union. If it falls, Euclid goes with it. I’ll not allow that to happen if I can do something about it. However, I know I might be brutal in that defense. Holding back is not something I’ll easily do.”
“That’s what made me decide to not kill you.”
Drey stared at Ian and shook his head, “I’m not sure what you’re saying.”
“Once I learned that you were a Genetic from Euclid, I knew you had been twisted by the Dictator’s government. I had no doubt that once you learned what had been done to you and the way your family suffered, you would do something about it. I confess I used you as a weapon against the Nebula. You actually did things I never expected. I need you on this mission.”
“Why?”
“Because I’ll try to think things through and find a way to avoid unnecessary bloodshed; somewhere between the two of us is the right way to act. We balance each other out, but I’m coming closer to your point of view.”
Drey smiled, “Do tell.”
“This civilization that is enslaving other species is not one that will easily change their ways. To stop slavery, their worlds will have to die. That’s the only way they can survive.”
“I agree. There’s no civilization that would send all the products of their labor to feed them. They’ll die if the slaves are freed.”
“Their structure makes it impossible to deal with them and I know they realize it. I have no doubt they’ll shoot first. The only reason they wouldn’t is to uncover where we came from.”
“There’s something else we’ve got to factor into our decisions, Ian.”
“What is that?”
“The core of the galaxy is forty thousand light years from the Union.”
“Yeah?”
“Well if they move out toward our spiral arm, they will encounter the electromagnetic transmissions that started on Earth during the Industrial Revolution and the early nineteenth century. They’ll know where we live.”
“You’re right! I didn’t see that.”
“Andi saw it and mentioned it to me last night. That means we can’t attack one of their ships on the Union’s side of the black hole. We need to do it on this side so they move all their search operations here.”
“There is still a huge risk.”
“Not as much as you might think. We need to see if their ships have the small missiles.”
“Why?”
“You know the power of the Obelisk system. I don’t believe these aliens could break through our current defenses with their current beam technology.”
Ian thought a moment and said, “You might be right. We really won’t know until we take on one of their ship killers.”
“They are smaller but are really much more powerful than the giant ships.”
Ian shook his head, “You’re right. I’m not sure the Obelisk could withstand a FTL hardened missile hitting it.”
“I’m not sure they have it, Ian.”
“Well, they lost ships at the dead planet to them.”
“Actually, they didn’t.” Ian looked confused. “They sent members of the planet’s species to remove them; I suspect as a kind of lesson to reinforce their slave status. They sent them in ships that were more advanced than the ones at the planet, but not more advanced than their own ships. I’m sure the ships they sent had tracking devices and did not have any means to leave the ship short of landing on the planet. The tracking devices would have plotted wherever they went so there was no way to escape. They were ordered to kill that planet or be killed themselves.”
Ian nodded, “Since the planet’s location was uncovered, the ones sent to kill it would know that if they refused, it would be killed anyway. They really had no choice.”
“I wondered why so many of the advanced ships had been hit. I think they did have one choice. They chose to die there with their species on the planet. I also do not believe they would have taken an advanced weapon back to their masters. I noticed that none of the ships on the planet with the missiles mounted under the wings had any of them removed.”
“They could have done it in space.”
“Not without shuttles or the means to possibly escape the ship. No, they didn’t take them in space. If they were taken it had to be on the planet and I reviewed your records on the ships you found. Those that had surviving wing pods still had the missiles on them.”
“We have to go back and destroy them.”
“We do, but it’s not going to be easy.”
“Why?”
“Now they know we were there. That planet will be staked out by one or more of their ships.”
“If we start a disturbance here, the ships might be brought back.”
“I believe all those out near the core will be recalled, but those at the planet won’t.”
“Why are you so sure about that?”
“We brought in the miners and they’ll know we had a large presence there. The miner’s tracks will confirm that suspicion. They’ll keep a ship there.”
“And if we kill that ship they will start a search in earnest on that side of the black hole.”
Drey nodded.
“What are we going to do about it?”
“I’m still thinking about that.”
Chapter Fifteen
The giant grey ship appeared next to the outer planet of a ten planet system. It scanned the outer planet and began moving toward the next planet.
“Great job, Doc.”
“I just used the star chart Andi produced to come here.”
“Yes, but you’re getting good at sensing the pressure waves.”
“That ship makes a huge one.”
“Have you got their path plotted?”
“Yes, they are maintaining a strict distance from the planets they’re scanning. After they complete the next planet, they’ll jump to sixty thousand miles out and move in on the left side of the next planet.”
“Move us there and stay under cover.” The small ship jumped and Drey looked at the passive scanner. “Does Andi have our location?”
“She does and I know she has that ship’s trajectory plotted.”
“How do you know?”
“She’s just used a passive light beam to send me the location of our arrival.”
“I’m surprised the light isn’t detected.”
“It’s just a small wattage beam. The light from the star will blind sensors to its presence. It’s also shining perpendicular to that ship’s course.”
“You do know where to emerge.”
“I do. Andi sent that as well.”
“She is, if nothing else, thorough.”
“That she is.”
• • •
Andi watched her display and waited. She prayed her calculations were accurate but just didn’t know. Ian watched her and saw her fear.
• • •
Drey turned the bow of the ship to their intended escape path and heard Doc say, “Emergence in five, four, three, two, one, now!” Drey saw normal space and then it disappeared a moment later.
• • •
The Commander of the major battleship was leaning back in his chair when suddenly normal space disappeared. “We have a small ship running at FTL from our former location. The ship has the trajectory locked in.”
“Fire all blasters on emergence and start scanners running.”
The giant ship emerged into normal space and the five hundred giant blasters on each side opened fire with their thousand mile wide beams. Most of them overlapped at the ship, but expanded to cover a space around the ship that was more than twenty thousand miles wide. He looked at his display and then turned to his sensor leader, “It’s not here.”
Suddenly the giant ship was rocked as the ship’s defense blasters on top of it were hit and blown apart. “Commander, the force field is out, the hull has been breached at the top blaster’s location, and the ship defense blasters on top of the ship are unresponsive.”
“Roll the ship to bring the lower blasters to bear. Launch missiles.”
The giant ship suddenly rolled and brought the high intensity blasters over to fire at the single small ship. Twenty large missiles ejected and rushed around the hull, seeking the ship that had damaged the giant vessel.
• • •