The Star Cross: Galaxy in Peril

by Raymond L. Weil

  “Well, I’m glad to hear it’s working out. I think it will be at least several generations before Earth is ready to attempt something like that. We still have numerous places across the planet with poor education systems that need a lot of assistance.”

  Kurt nodded. “The government of Mars has asked to send some observers to the new schools we’re setting up. If they like what they see, they may put in the same system.”

  “Times are changing,” Rod said with a deep sigh. “Hell, just a few years ago, we thought we were alone in the universe. Now look at us.”

  “I couldn’t agree more.”

  “What about these Destroyers of Worlds? What’s the latest word on them?”

  Kurt’s expression turned grim. “They’re still sweeping through the galaxy, culling world after world. Space battles are reported daily. So far the Protector Worlds are on the losing end. No one’s found an effective strategy to use against the black ships. Lomatz and Mara feel we’re relatively safe out here, being so far off the beaten path. It may be years before they find us, if they ever do.”

  “Mara,” repeated Rod. “I heard she was with the Aurelia.”

  Kurt leaned back and gazed at Rod. “The Lakiams are trying to form an alliance with other Protector Worlds so they can put up a united front against the black ships. Fleet Commodore Dreen believes, if he can rally enough Protector Worlds to his cause, he might be able to save some of the Enlightened Worlds from the black ships.”

  “Will they be successful?”

  Kurt slowly shook his head. “They might delay the Destroyers of Worlds some with their dark matter missiles. But, from what Mara has told me and what I’ve seen of some of the battles between Lakiam vessels and the black ships, I don’t think they will be successful. It takes fourteen or more of those massive warheads exploding within microseconds of each other to pop a black ship’s shield. They don’t have the construction capacity to manufacture enough dark matter warheads quickly enough, especially when considering how massive the fleet of black ships must be.”

  “We need a better and more powerful weapon,” Rod said, his eyes narrowing sharply. “Where will we find it?”

  Kurt hesitated. He had only revealed to a few people his plans to search for the Glaymons. If they could be found, and if they had the technology to mine a neutron star, maybe it would give Newton and Earth and its alliance the weapon they needed. “We may have a lead on that, but it’s a distant one, and I still must speak to a few people.”

  Rod accepted that and didn’t inquire further. “Have you been to any of the three new humanoid worlds we’re trading with recently?”

  “No,” replied Kurt. “However, I plan on taking the Star Cross to Julbian on this cruise before returning to Newton.”

  “Julbian’s an interesting world,” Rod said, nodding. “I was there a few weeks ago, working on the joint defense treaty. Walking around on the planet almost made me think I was on Earth. In another few years their technology will be on the same level as ours.”

  “We’re trying to update all the worlds to the same technological level,” responded Kurt. “It may take a while, but we’ll get it done.”

  “I don’t know if any of us will be able to match Newton. If Lomatz’s people are as good as you say they are, they give Newton a distinct advantage.”

  “How’s the training of your replacement going?”

  “Fleet Admiral Aaron Colmes is coming along fine. He’s a good officer and dedicated to the fleet. I’ve already informed him that, as soon as the election is over, I will be retiring to Newton.”

  “We’ll be glad to have you,” replied Kurt, smiling.

  “A quiet home on the beach,” Rod said with a relaxed smile. “I’m really looking forward to sitting in the sand and listening to the waves wash up on the shore. Maybe I’ll even do a little bit of fishing.”

  Kurt nodded. Rod certainly deserved his retirement after all he had been through on Earth and with the Profiteers. Fleet Admiral Tomalson had always supported Kurt, and, thanks to Rod, Newton was the world it was today.

  “So, how about that tour?”

  Kurt stood. “Let’s go. I think some of the technology on this ship will amaze you.”

  -

  A few hours later they were in the Command Center. Rod looked breathlessly around at all the changes from the old Star Cross.

  “Your sensors can reach out for fifteen light-years?”

  “Yes,” answered Kurt. “Not only that, we have equipment on board which makes our ships undetectable in hyperspace, at least to the types of sensors the Profiteers have. It wouldn’t surprise me if the Lakiams could still track us, but less developed worlds shouldn’t be able to.”

  Rod’s gaze moved across the Command Center, taking in everything. “This is an amazing ship. I suppose the battlecruisers possess the same technology?”

  “Yes,” answered Kurt. “Our battlecruisers are more powerful than Lakiam ones.”

  Rod grinned. “At least the Profiteers will give you a wide berth from now on.”

  Kurt nodded. “They’d better, if they know what’s good for them.”

  Rod let out a deep sigh. “President Mayfield wants to meet with you while you’re here.”

  “How’s the election going?”

  “Recent polls show Mayfield will lose so he’s throwing his support behind Ellen Lambert, who will keep most of Mayfield’s policies in effect.”

  “I’ve never met her,” Kurt said, wondering what she was like.

  “She’s a very practical person. I’ve spoken to her a few times, and she’s well aware of the threats in the galaxy. She’ll keep Earth’s defenses up and will be a big supporter of the fleet.”

  Kurt looked at a large viewscreen, showing a new shipyard under construction. “How soon before the shipyard is done?”

  “A few more months and we can start ship construction.”

  All the major governments on Earth were involved in building the new shipyard. “Would Earth be interested in several of Lomatz’s construction ships helping with the shipyard?”

  Rod shook his head. “No, that would not be a wise decision. A lot of hard feelings are still harbored toward the Profiteers, and, even though Lomatz and his people aren’t Profiteers, they are still from the Gothan Empire, and many of them worked on Kubitz. I think it would only complicate the issue.”

  Kurt nodded. He understood their reluctance, but the construction techniques Lomatz’s people could emplace would radically improve shipbuilding. “What if we built several construction bays at Newton and then used the big fleet tugs to bring them here?”

  Rod looked thoughtful as he considered Kurt’s offer. “That might work. Mention it to President Mayfield when you talk to him. We could certainly use the increased ship-building capacity.”

  “I’ll try to speak to him tomorrow. I want to get on with this shakedown cruise.”

  “I’d better return to the Retribution. Fleet Admiral Colmes is due on board, and we’ll be reviewing some tactical information on his battle with the Profiteers.”

  Kurt took a data disk from his pocket and handed it to Rod. “The two of you might want to take a look at this. It contains information on the Lakiams’ battles with the black fleet as well as what happened when some Dacroni mercenary ships came into contact with a black fleet as well. There are recordings of sensor scans as well as videos of the battles.”

  Rod took the disk. “We’ll review it. I’ve been curious about the black ships for quite some time. I can’t believe those ships are as powerful as everyone claims.”

  “They are,” responded Kurt. “After you view the disk, let me know what you think.” Kurt was curious to hear Fleet Admiral Tomalson’s interpretation of the data. Maybe he would pick up on something Kurt had missed.

  -

  Late the next afternoon the Star Cross and her escorts were ready to leave the solar system. Kurt had met briefly with President Mayfield and expressed his gratitude for Mayfield’s support
of Newton. The president had promised to speak with the other Earth governments about Newton building two construction bays for the new Earth shipyard.

  The Star Cross and her four escorts settled into formation and set out toward Mars at full sublight. Kurt wanted to test the ship’s sublight engines as well as a few other systems on the ship. Traveling through the solar system was a good test for the ship’s sensors and other systems due to all the traffic. The ship traffic in the solar system was much heavier than any of the other Human systems in the alliance.

  “I thought the space around Newton was busy,” muttered Andrew as four new contacts appeared on the long-range sensors.

  “Four cargo ships from Maldon,” reported Lieutenant Brooks. “A flight of Lance fighters from the light carrier Wasp is outbound to confirm their identity.”

  Kurt had reassigned some ships to the solar system. Fleet Admiral Tomalson now had four battleships, two light battlecarriers, and fourteen battlecruisers under his command. All the battleships and battlecruisers had been purchased from Kubitz and updated at Newton. “Inbound cargo ships are required to exit hyperspace at designated coordinates. That’s where the Wasp and the Dante are deployed.” Kurt was pleased with how thorough the fleet assigned to the solar system was in checking out new ship contacts.

  “It’s a relief to know the solar system is safe from the Profiteers,” commented Andrew. “At least that’s one less thing we have to worry about. How did your meeting with President Mayfield go?”

  “Pretty well,” Kurt replied with a frown. “However, one thing he mentioned concerns me. High Profiteer Creed’s body has never been found.”

  This announcement was met with silence from Andrew.

  “We know the Ascendant Destruction was destroyed, but Creed was on Earth during the attack. We assumed he died in the fighting, but Mayfield can’t confirm that.”

  “What if he survived?”

  “He’s not a threat anymore,” answered Kurt. “I’ll send word to Ambassador Tenner to have Avery Dolman and Grantz make some inquiries just to be certain.” Kurt didn’t mention that, if Creed did survive, Kurt would do everything possible to take Creed into custody and bring him to Earth to be put on trial for war crimes. Too many people had died to allow the greedy Profiteer to remain free. “Besides, there’s a good chance he died in the battle. A number of shuttles were destroyed, and he could have been on board one of them.”

  “Let’s hope so.”

  -

  At full sublight it didn’t take long for the Star Cross and her escorts to reach the red planet. On the main viewscreen, Mars rapidly grew larger. Even from this distance a few clouds were visible in the atmosphere, the result of the terraforming going on. From what Kurt understood, it was possible to walk on the surface near the terraformers without a breathing mask for very short periods of time. As the atmosphere thickened and the oxygen content increased, people could gradually stay out longer and longer, until one day the surface of Mars would be similar to Earth’s.

  “Contact with Phobos Station,” reported Lieutenant Pierce. “Two cargo ships will be passing close to our flight path.”

  “Already spotted them,” said Lieutenant Brooks. “They’ll pass above our flight path at a little over 1,500 kilometers.”

  Andrew shook his head. “Used to be that 1,500 kilometers sounded like a lot. But, at the speed we’re moving, it’s just a moment’s travel.”

  “Things have changed,” Kurt said in agreement. On the main viewscreen, Mars continued to grow. The larger settlements were visible as they were protected by huge atmospheric domes.

  Four violet icons appeared on the tactical display, representing the Class Two Orbital Defense Platforms, tasked with protecting the planet. Kurt wished there were more, but the backlog on platform orders at Kubitz was now over several years long.

  Mars continued to grow in size until they reached their closest approach. As the Star Cross and her escorts pulled away from the planet, Kurt was well satisfied with how the ship’s sublight drive performed. “Captain Randson, prepare to enter hyperspace. Let’s pay Julbian a visit.”

  Andrew smiled. “That should be a good test for the hyperdrive as Julbian is 412 light-years distant.”

  A few moments later Kurt felt the familiar twinge in his stomach as the Star Cross made the jump into hyperspace. It would take the small fleet eleven hours to reach the Julbian System. Kurt was anxious to see the progress that had been made there since his last visit after destroying the Profiteer fleet.

  -

  Early the next day Kurt watched the long-range sensors update data on the Julbian System. The trip in hyperspace had allowed them to test the ship’s long-range sensors as well as the hyperspace communicators. Normally ships in hyperspace could only communicate if they were within seventy thousand kilometers of each other. Otherwise their hyperspace speed would distort communication to the point it was incomprehensible. The system the Lakiams and the Andocks used allowed for hyperspace communication if ships were within three hundred thousand kilometers of each other. This was useful as it allowed entire fleets to stay in contact on their journey through hyperspace.

  “Hyperspace dropout in twenty minutes,” reported Lieutenant Styles.

  “All systems functioning normally,” Andrew said from his command console. “This has been the smoothest shakedown cruise I’ve ever been on.”

  “Don’t jinx it,” cautioned Lieutenant Mays. “We haven’t tried out the weapons yet.”

  Kurt was in agreement. A system beyond Julbian was full of large asteroids and planetary debris—an ideal place to test the new weapons on the Star Cross.

  The hatch to the Command Center opened, and Dr. Willis stepped in. He spent a moment looking around, frowning at two small repair robots standing idly in their charging slots. “Damn robots are everywhere,” he muttered. “Hell, I’ve even got a pair of them in my medical bay.”

  “They serve their purpose,” responded Kurt, grinning. “What brings you up to the Command Center?”

  “Bored to death,” replied Willis. “With the reduced crew size, my nurses can handle the minor stuff. I think we’ve treated several bruises and one severe laceration so far. I’m still trying to figure out how to operate some of the medical equipment I’m responsible for.”

  The ship had been equipped with the most modern medical equipment known. Keera had spent considerable time making sure the warship had the very best. “Shall I arrange for additional training for you and your staff?”

  “No, I’ve got a young hotshot intern who seems to understand it all pretty well. He’s explained how everything functions to the rest of us. I don’t feel comfortable with how computerized everything is. The new medical systems diagnose the injury, prescribe treatment, and then initiate the treatment. Most of the time we stand around and watch. Mark my words, a day will come when a Human won’t even be in the med bay. It’ll all be robots and computers.”

  “None of that can replace your friendly bedside manner,” commented Andrew.

  Dr. Willis frowned and shook his head. “What I actually came here for was to see if I could possibly go down to the surface of Julbian. They have an advanced medical center there that treats mental illness, and I would like to study their procedures.”

  Kurt nodded. “That might be possible. I was planning on spending a few days in the system.”

  “Hyperspace dropout in ten minutes,” reported Lieutenant Styles.

  As Dr. Willis left, Kurt returned his attention to the tactical display, showing the Julbian System, all twelve planets. Planet four was inhabited by the Julbians, who had already reached out and explored several nearby star systems. The people on the planet were very similar to Humans with their civilization just a few decades behind Earth’s. Steps were being taken to bring the Julbian civilization up to par with Earth’s through trade and exchange of certain technologies.

  The system steadily drew nearer until Lieutenant Styles announced it was time for the Star Cross and
her four escorts to drop from hyperspace. Kurt felt the familiar twinge as they exited hyperspace four million kilometers from the planet.

  “Lieutenant Pierce, inform Julbian Space Command of our arrival.”

  “Yes, Admiral,” replied Lieutenant Pierce.

  Andrew gazed at the blue-white globe on one of the ship’s viewscreens. “Julbian looks a lot like Earth.”

  On another screen, the small shipyard that orbited the planet swam into view. The Julbian government had allowed one of Lomatz’s construction ships to build an additional construction bay onto the station. All six of Julbian’s small cruisers had been updated, and two more modern battlecruisers had recently joined their fleet. In addition 6 Class Two Orbital Defense Platforms and 120 dual energy beam satellites orbited the planet.

  “Julbian Space Command has given us permission to go into orbit,” reported Lieutenant Pierce.

  “Take us in, Andrew,” ordered Kurt.

  “Several Earth cargo ships are in orbit,” reported Lieutenant Brooks. “Even a few Newton ships are here.”

  This pleased Kurt as it showed how successful interstellar trade between the humanoid worlds was. It brought all five star systems closer together. The systems were now protected from the Profiteers; however, he had to find a way to protect them from the Destroyers of Worlds or all that he had worked for would come crashing down.

  -

  For two days the Star Cross and her escorts orbited Julbian. Kurt met with several members of the Julbian government as well as their commanding fleet admiral. He also unloaded some hyperspace detection buoys for the Julbians to place around their star system. The buoys would give them advance warning of any inbound ship once it came within five light-years of the system. They also worked out some secure codes to be used in case of an attack. The shipyard above Julbian had a hyperspace transmitter on board that could reach Newton, though it took nearly an hour for the message to travel one way. Once he was satisfied the meetings had accomplished what he wanted, he ordered the Star Cross and her escorts to leave Julbian and enter hyperspace. Their destination was a small nearby star system where they would run their weapon tests.