by Saxon Andrew
Four days later, Kyle lifted his glass. Legune looked at Kyle, “Why did you punch him.”
“His irresponsibility killed my co-pilot.” Legune stared at Kyle and remained silent. Kyle sighed and sipped his tequila. He winced and sighed. “I was on vacation and he assigned another pilot along with Callie to trial a new ship. I told him before I left that the ship wasn’t ready for trials; the distance safeguards were unreliable and it could kill the crew.”
“Safe Guards?”
“It’s the software in the computer that prevents a ship from hitting the object the ship is skipping to. It should have stopped the ship at a specified distance from the target. I was told by the Lead Engineer that it wasn’t reliable but Admiral Dawkins decided to trial it anyway. Both of them died when they hit an asteroid. Kiley called me and told me what happened.”
“What did you do?”
“I walked into Fleet Headquarters and hit the good Admiral. It broke my hand but he ended up in the hospital with a severe concussion. I was kicked out of the service a week later. The Board of Inquiry knew the Admiral was at fault but they couldn’t condone my behavior. They allowed me to retire with my full retirement and he was never brought to trial. He’s been taking his revenge in little ways ever since.”
“Why didn’t you take it to a higher authority?”
“Callie was gone and nothing was going to bring her back.”
Legune stared at him, “You blame yourself for not being there?”
“If I had been there, we would have never made the initial skip toward a solid object. The pilot he assigned to the mission was a gung ho Captain who wanted to impress the Admiral. The tapes later showed that Callie objected to skipping to the asteroid first but he overrode her objections.”
“Why did he choose your co-pilot?” Kyle shrugged as he took another sip. “Kyle, why did he choose her?”
Kyle finished wincing and looked at her, “I’ve never really thought about it.” Legune stared at him and Kyle shook his head, “What are you thinking?”
“Did the Admiral not know the system was unreliable?”
“I don’t know. I knew it and had told him before I left for vacation.”
“I suspect he knew.” Kyle stared at her and she took a deep breath and blew it out. “It sounds to me like he wanted you to do something that would get you in trouble.”
“What?”
“What if Callie hadn’t died but was ordered to trial that system. What would you have done?”
Kyle thought a moment and his eyes narrowed, “I’d have done the same thing for endangering her.”
“And you would have still ended up out of the service. I suspect he saw you as an adversary and didn’t want you to be promoted over him. You fell into his trap. I suspect he really didn’t intend for anyone to die. He just wanted you removed.”
Kyle took another sip, winced, and then his face turned to rage, “That son-of-a…”
Kyle’s tirade was stopped mid-sentence when six armored warriors burst into the bar with their amplified speakers at full volume, “KYLE AMROSE!” Kyle looked at Legune and wondered what Dawkins was up to now. He put his hand on Legune’s arm and shook his head. The Lieutenant leading the warriors looked at the warrior beside him, “Scan for him.”
The warrior lifted his arm and swept it across the room. “He’s at the bar, Sir.”
The Lieutenant walked forward and Kyle knew there was no possibility of escape. The Warrior arrived in front of him and her armor disappeared, “I apologize for this intrusion, but the Alliance Leadership have requested your presence along with your guest.”
“Under whose orders?”
“The High Leader of Goran has been chosen to replace High Leader Hensel. He requests that you come with us.”
Kyle looked at Legune who was smiling. “Lead the way, Lieutenant.”
• • •
Kyle and Legune were led into Hensel’s former quarters and found the High Leader of Goran waiting for them to arrive. Kyle looked to the left and saw Amelee, Kyley, and Admiral Dawkins sitting in chairs next to the wall. He immediately saw Amelee and Kyley were very nervous. Dawkins expression was one of anger but it changed when he saw Kyle’s expression. He instinctively knew something had changed.
“Mr. Ambrose, thank you for coming on such short notice.” Kyle turned to him. “It took some time to learn that Admiral Dawkins had issued some orders countermanding his superior’s instructions. It’s taken two days for us to find you.”
“Kyley knew where I was.”
“It appears the Admiral sent her on a mission where she was not allowed to communicate.” Kyle looked at Kyley and she nodded. “However, the Admiral has been brought up to date and he is now cooperative.”
Legune said, “Did you know he stopped Kyle’s retirement pay?” Kyle saw Dawkins wince.
The Goran looked at Dawkins, “Is this true?” Dawkins remained silent. “Admiral, if I ask you a question and you don’t respond, I will have you put in prison where you will remain for the rest of your life. I asked you a question!”
“Yes, High Leader.”
“On whose authority?”
Dawkins hesitated and saw the Goran’s anger, “On my own.”
The new High Leader shook his head, “I was going to handle this after the meeting but it’s clear it can’t wait.” He looked at Dawkins, “On whose authority did you recall the Light Ship the Alliance Leadership assigned to Mr. Ambrose?”
“I thought the ship was assigned by High Leader Hensel.”
“During a meeting of the Alliance Leadership. On whose authority did you override that order?”
“My own.”
“And on whose authority did you stop the account that was paying for a guest of the Alliance to stay on Earth?”
Dawkins was starting to sweat. “On my own.”
“And on whose authority did you cancel the frequency being used by Mr. Ambrose’s wrist unit that was assigned to him by the Alliance Leadership?”
Dawkins took a deep breath and lowered his head, “On my own authority, High Leader.”
The High Leader looked at the armored warriors still standing in the elevator, “Lieutenant, take Admiral Dawkins and place him under arrest pending a court martial.”
“But High Leader, Ambrose attacked me.”
“Only after you deliberately placed two officers in danger to forward your own career.” Dawkins face showed his shock. “Hensel knew about it and offered to assist Mr. Ambrose against the charges.” The High Leader looked at Kyle, “But he refused. Why did you do that?”
“He didn’t tell me he knew Dawkins act was deliberate.”
“He knew you would have killed him if he did. Why did you refuse?”
Kyle wanted to kill Dawkins now. He collected himself and shook his head, “Because I am responsible for my actions and using him to avoid the consequences of my behavior would not have been the right thing to do.”
The High Leader looked at Dawkins, “By stopping his retirement, you have allowed Fleet to reopen the case against Mr. Ambrose. I will be testifying on behalf of Hensel and revealing your motivations. After the flagrant abuse of your power in deliberately changing the orders of the Alliance Leadership, I feel treason is an appropriate charge.” Dawkins’ face turned white. I’m certain yesterday was your last day of freedom. Lieutenant, take him out of here.”
Dawkins was marched toward the elevator and just as he passed Kyle, he pulled the warriors blaster out of its holster. He turned toward Kyle just as Kyle hit him on the chin hard enough to lift him off the floor with the power of the punch. Legune ran up to Kyle and took his hand shaking her head. Kyle winced, “I think I broke it again.”
The Lieutenant bent down over Dawkins and felt for a pulse. He shook his head and the High Leader thought, “Good riddance.”
Kyle looked at the dead Fleet Admiral and tried to feel bad but couldn’t pull it off. The Goran said, “Don’t even try. Are you ready for the meeting or do you need some time?”
“No, let’s get this over with. I have some tequila calling my name.”
• • •
The leaders of the Alliance were linked in and they offered their congratulations to the Goran. He thanked them and thought, “Before Hensel died, he linked with me and transferred what he was planning to do. I am going to follow his plan because, honestly, I don’t have a better one. Do any of you wish to present a plan to move us forward?”
The Audon Leader thought, “None of us has his ability to put all the pieces together. Are you sure he sent everything?”
“I am. He knew he was dying and the transfer only took a few moments. His last wish for all of us to continue to protect those we represent.” The Leaders felt the immense loss of Hensel and the Welken thought, “So what are we going to do about what we saw?”
“The first thing is we’re going to do is appoint a First Commander to lead our forces.” The Goran saw the shock among the Leaders. “I know that after Talel died we took over the task of pushing our species forward. But Hensel saw that it was time for another warrior to lead us.”
“Who did he choose to do it?”
The Goran looked at the New High Leader on Goran and turned to Kyle, “He chose Kyle Ambrose to be the First Commander.”
Kyle shook his head, “OH HELL NO!”
The Goran stared at Kyle and smiled. “I know there are no arguments I can use to convince you to do this.”
“You’re right!”
“But there’s one that I really think will work to get you to agree.”
“Nothing you could say will change my mind.”
“You told Hensel before he died that you would never dishonor any request he made. Do you remember what he said?” Kyle closed his eyes, shook his head, and blew out a long breath. “Do you?”
“He asked me if I was certain about that.”
“And what was your response?”
Kyle shook his head. Everyone on the link waited in silence for him to respond. Finally, Kyle looked up with tears in his eyes and said, “I told him I was.”
“His dying wish is for you to lead us. Are you going to dishonor his last request?”
Kyle’s head was down and he shook it, “He set me up.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“I don’t want this!”
“That’s still not an answer.”
Kyle looked at the New High Leader of the Alliance, “You would force me to do this?”
“Again, not an answer.”
Kyley stood up and walked over to Kyle, “You’ve always stood by your promises. It’s the one lesson Mom and Dad insisted on. Hensel knew that and he deliberately used it to make you do this.” Kyle looked in her eyes and nodded. “But, he felt it was necessary because he knew something we don’t. He needed you to do this. I trust he would never make us do something wrong.”
Kyle stared at her and, after a moment, nodded. He looked at the Goran, “I will keep my word.”
“What are your first orders, First Commander?”
“Kyley will replace Admiral Dawkins over Fleet Operations and don’t even think about saying no, Kyley. If I’m going to do this I need someone I can trust.” He looked at Amelee, “You will take the command of all our fleets.”
“What?”
“Same reason; I trust you. Now go and recall every ship we have out searching for the Feeders. I want them back at their home bases before the day is over!” Amelee saluted and left the room.
Legune looked at Kyle, “What about me?”
“I’ll let the High Leader assign you a new guide.” Legune stared at Kyle as he left the room.
The Welken Royal thought, “What is he doing, High Leader?”
“You saw it; do you think we’re ready?”
The Alliance Leaders looked at each other and shook their heads.
Legune looked at the Goran, “What did you see?”
The High Leader looked at her, “Hensel saw a battle being fought in a distant galaxy. The Feeder’s Warships numbered in the billions.”
She grabbed her throat with her right hand. “How is that possible?”
“Every time the Feeder looked in your mind, he left a sort of stored image of what was in his mind in your subconscious. That particular Feeder was contacted by one of their leaders, who was leading the fleets in that galaxy, shortly before he looked in your mind; you saw what it saw. That event took place eight months ago.”
Legune lowered her head, “I can’t see it.”
“It’s in your subconscious; you don’t have direct contact with it.” Legune shook her head and the High Leader thought, “There’s more.”
Legune’s head shot up, “What else?”
“It appears your subconscious also detects if there is a Feeder anywhere near you and knows exactly where it’s located.”
“What?”
“The primitive part of your brain detects the thought pattern of a Feeder. I don’t know if this is something that’s evolved in your species over the thousands of years you’ve been subjects of them or if it’s solely unique to you. This is something we must determine.”
“Why?”
“Because if it’s a common trait in your species, your people will be the most efficient early warning system of the Feeders’ presence.”
“What good will it do if we can’t sense it. We can’t tell you.”
“You don’t have to; a good telepath can keep their mind tuned to that primitive part of your brain and know if a Feeder is around.”
“Are you saying someone will be in my mind watching what I’m thinking all the time?”
“No, only the primitive part of your brain will be watched and your thoughts are not directly connected to it.”
“How far does my mind sense them?”
“I can see the ones on your planet while you’re standing here; they are the closest ones to our current location.”
“But my planet is more than a hundred million light years away.”
“It appears your sensitivity to them is quite high. That’s why you have to go back. We have to see if others possess this trait.”
“Why are you recalling all your ships?”
“We learned from your mind that we aren’t anywhere close to being ready to take them on. Their numbers could overwhelm all of the most powerful minds in the Alliance. Our minds are stronger than the Feeders, but thousands of them could kill our strongest telepaths and they have billions.”
“Kyle told me you have something called a thought blocker.”
“We do.”
“It seems to me you better start using them.”
The High Leader stared at her for a long moment and said, “Where did you come up with that thought?”
Legune’s eyes narrowed. She lowered her head, shook it, and looked at the High Leader, “It came from someone else. I don’t know who they are.” The High Leader stared at her and knew she detected the Nudges. How could she could hear them? What did that mean? Legune looked at the High Leader and blew out a breath. “There’s one thing you should know.”
“What is that?”
“I will not go back to my planet unless Kyle takes me.”
“What!”
“I don’t trust anyone else to do it.”
“But…”
“You were unaware of what was happening to us and Amelee and his sister didn’t come and help us. Kyle was the only one that stayed by me and made sure I stayed safe. It’s him or I don’t go.”
Chapter Four
“First Commander.”
“Yes High Leader.”
“An issue has arisen and I need you to speak with the Kerit female Amelee brought back with her.”
“What’s the issue?”
“I’ve requested she return to her home world where we can examine her species to see if her ability to detect the Feeders is a trait her species possess.”
“I understand her reluctance, High Leader. That planet is dangerous.”
/> “She will go but only if you take her.” Kyle was silent. “Did you hear me?”
“I did. I just don’t understand why she wants me to do it.”
“She is of the opinion that we failed her when Dawkins cut the two of you off. She rightly says that none of us came to her assistance and that you were the only one who stood by her. She says she will not go back or assist us in any way unless you go with her.”
“High Leader, I’m really tied up getting the fleets back.”
“Commander, I believe she is able to hear the Nudges.”
“What?”
“I know that’s hard to fathom. They’ve been able to hide from everyone but Hensel. She apparently hears them.”
Kyle looked up at the blue sky and rolled his eyes, “What does this mean, exactly? I thought the Nudges weren’t real.”
“Oh, they’re real. Hensel prevented them from interfering in our activities but he told me in the transfer that he made a mistake. He was of the belief that we needed them involved in our activities. He said he told them so. This female heard them give her a suggestion.”
“What was it?”
“She said that we should forget our superior mental abilities and start using thought blockers. When I questioned her about it, she focused and said the thought came from another species. She can’t directly hear the Feeders but she does hear the Nudges.”
“I think Hensel was right, High Leader.”
“About what?”
“The Nudges are much more mentally powerful than us and they were almost exterminated by the Feeders. They had to be overwhelmed by the numbers attacking them. We are in the same position now. If our minds aren’t strong enough to defeat really large numbers of them, we need to take another path to confront them.”
“You’re thinking we’ll have to do it with superior technology?”
“I do, unless we can produce a billion advanced telepaths in the short term and I don’t see that happening.”
“We really don’t know how many Feeders one of us can handle.”
“Perhaps we can go to her planet and make that determination.”
“What are you saying?”
“We have to find out if she can still detect the Feeders while she’s wearing a thought blocker.”