The Phoenix Rising

by Gary Caplan

  “An excellent variety of adversaries!” bellowed Kra'ag happily. “It will be a glorious road to victory. I shall start planning our battle strategies.” He then turned to an officer on his left. “Summon Admirals M’agh and Rhiss.”

  “There is one final item of importance, Milord,” said Mor'ag as he activated the computer screen imaging system. “As you can see, there are two Talcon starcities in hyperspace en route to this galaxy. Our telemetry was not complete due to their jamming systems and the distance, but we have been able to ascertain that their automated defense systems are operational and that they should arrive in about six zilakh.” At this, Mor'ag cleared his throat and added nervously, “During the Feast of Ji’toth, I believe.”

  Kra’ag hissed by way of acknowledgment.

  Mor'ag knew that his cousin enjoyed the Feast of Ji’toth and would prefer it not to be disturbed by an enemy’s arrival.

  “They will most probably be arriving in that region of Alliance of Worlds space that they call the Beta quadrant,” continued Mor'ag. “The Talcon Starcities will most likely drop out of hyperspace at a distance of approximately sixty thousand light-years from any of our active colonies. It may cause a serious problem between the Talcon, who will be seeking territory and the Alliance of Worlds.”

  The Supreme Commander seemed to ponder this news for a long moment, and then replied, “I will investigate this matter personally when I arrive. For the time being, Mor’ag, continue with your plans to disrupt our enemies. Also, I want you to continue attempting to locate and mine any Quellien crystals. They will be very useful for our dealings with the Jiyarr.”

  “Understood, Milord,” responded Mor'ag, snapping a salute.

  The communication ended, and Mor'ag was relieved. His cousin would not likely punish him, but there was the possibility Kra’ag could order a few of his officers’ executions. Mor’ag had to find a way to appease his cousin’s potential wrath, so as not to lose any of his welltrained personal staff.

  C HAP TE R 3

  AN UNUSUAL CALL

  The morning of April 29, 2756, of the old Earth calendar, came hard for Fleet Captain Robert Allen Sheppard. He was awakened from a restless and all-too-brief rest period by the intra-ship communication system. Composing himself as best he could in the few seconds between hails, he answered the transmission.

  Clearing his throat, he said in a rough voice, “Yes, Bridge?” “Incoming transmission through the COMNET from Star One for you, sir," reported the voice of Lieutenant Bosq, the on-duty communications officer. “It's Admiral Wainright, and he's requesting to talk to you on the Alpha channel.” He paused. “Uh, sir, there's almost a twenty-second delay in transmission, even with the COMNET’s hyperspace-boosting capability, due to our distance here near the galactic rim, so be patient, sir.”

  “Yes, thank you, Lieutenant. I'll take it in my quarters.” This he said as his fingers found the processor console and punched up an order of hot coffee from the synthesizer. The device hummed quietly during the synthesis process.

  Admiral Wainright's picture appeared on the viewer, and he began delivering what Sheppard would describe later as cryptic orders, with few answers to Sheppard’s questions.

  18 Minutes later, Commander Adams received an open intercom order from Fleet Captain Sheppard. “Sheppard here,” the captain said. “Set course for Star One emergency speed; we’re being reassigned I will be headed toward the bridge soon, then I will need to coordinate with the other ship captains in Task Force Four."

  “All right,” said Commander Adams, addressing the flight control officer at the conn. “You heard the order, Lieutenant; emergency speed! How long before we can get back to Star One?”

  Lieutenant MacTavish’s fingers flew with precision over the navicomputer's touchpad as he inputted the course data, and then he sat back momentarily as the altered course data plotted. About a second later, he had his answer. Turning from the conn, he said, “Well, sir, since we're about ten thousand light-years out from Star One, at this distance.” Accessing astrogation to set a safe jump pathway Mac Tavish determined that traveling at the ships emergency speed of translight velocity equivalent to one hundred thousand times C, the speed of light. “Sir it will take us a little over thirty-six days to get back. Now, if we had the upgraded jump system, we could get there in half the time.”

  “That's fine, Lieutenant MacTavish. This ship’s engines can handle emergency speed for just about that long,” said Sheppard thoughtfully. “Take us home. Endeavor will put in for an overhaul while we’re at Star One.” Mac Tavish activated Endeavour’s translight hyperspace drive which initiated the formation a hyperspace transference tunnel allowing the entire ship to jump into a layer of hyperspace.

  Sheppard addressed the communications officer. “Lieutenant Bosq, open a coded communications to Captain Jarred. As he is the next-senior captain, I will have to give him command of the other eleven ships in this task force. Besides, Endeavor is due for a refit soon enough. Perhaps Commander Adams can even arrange to get the upgraded drive system when we arrive at Star One.”

  Star One was essentially a totally self-sufficient, multi-species Alliance of Worlds colony. The Star One facility included several communities with their own hydroponics, aquaculture, and gardens for food production. The huge space city inside Star One included multiple housing facilities for representatives of every member civilization and their families. Star One also contained the main campus of the Alliance of Worlds Academy, as well as two other universities. There were even training grounds for the starship officers and the space marines within the vast space station complex.

  Sheppard did not want to tell anyone just now, but he was being promoted and would be reassigned. The admiral hadn’t provided much detail about his future assignment, but upon his promotion to the rank of commodore, he knew he would be required to transfer to a different ship.

  C HAP TE R 4

  AN OLD ALLY'S ARRIVAL

  The Karratin starship Zeloc cruised in stealth mode toward Star One on a trans-dimensional vector. Inside, Lord Gar fa’eld, the ambassador from Karro, determined the final destination coordinates and relayed them to the sentient starcruiser Zeloc. Almost immediately, the huge starship came out of translight drive. With its Decawarp slipstream main drive powering down, the Zeloc appeared within the equivalent of a hundred light-seconds distance from the Alliance of Worlds main base station and headquarters, known as Star One. That was closer than the Alliance liked to space traffic but the Zeloc was expected.

  The Star One station was a huge, completely self-sufficient community with an internal ecosystem of housing areas, complete with trees and plants. Star One contained all manner of public, corporate, and military facilities and housed the Alliance of Worlds Academy, as well as over two hundred embassies. There were life support systems and areas for several different species, and small communities for their habitation. There were medical facilities for health maintenance, and construction and docking facilities for starships.

  The Zeloc closed to ten light-seconds distance and established an orbit. At just over eight kilometers in length, the Zeloc would have to wait to be assigned one of the large docks of the 120-kilometer flattened spheroid station.

  21 Two figures appeared in the command chamber. The first was Pharzon, one of the Hytren, and the second presence Agronius, a Calyx; they were two of Gar fa’eld’s associates. The Karratin Lord seemed to pause and focus or concentrate as the others appeared, his mind connecting briefly with his greater essence or prime self to commune at a higher ascended level with his associates prime.

  “Do not look so amused, my friends,” sent Gar fa’eld telepathically. “I must prepare for unusual work; after all, I was asked to assist, and I rarely give up the chance to help in some capacity.”

  “We thought you would like a friendly send-off,” intoned Pharzon. “You will be occupied with dutiful matters, and as your actions are restricted, with the exception of the Star Knight abilities, we just want
ed to state we would miss our regular telepathic discourse.”

  “Yes, your insights and humor will be missed,” sent Agronius. “However, you have been called toward a noble cause. May your present percept and form keep the code and hold true to the boundaries.”

  “As always, I will try not to overstep my known power,” thought Gar fa’eld. “The Alliance of Worlds is expecting one of the ruling dukes of the Hegemony from Karro., As a Karratin, I was usually punctual, especially since I will be delivering information the Karratins obtained about the Alliance of Worlds’ present dilemma.”

  “I believe Kalst will join you eventually as his Cynz percept,” Agronius noted.

  “Yes, he is presently occupied elsewhere,” reminded Pharzon.

  All three bowed to one another, and with the briefest of mind contact, both Agronius and Pharzon phased away. Gar fa’eld took a deep breath and moved away from the command chamber.

  Docking instructions had been relayed to Zeloc, and the ship was beginning docking procedures. “Will you require anything?” inquired Zeloc.

  “No, not at this time,” Gar fa’eld responded. “I will gather a few pieces of equipment I will use here. I may send you on a mission, but not for a few days. Zeloc, there is a Betellian starship here and one Estrian starcruiser. You might as well commune with those, if you like, while I am away.”

  Before Gar fa’eld headed toward the docking exit, he changed from his more relaxed, one-piece, ship travel suit to his Karratin standard military uniform, embellished with a short, white-and-gold patterned cloak and vest, signifying his status as a Duke of Karro. As he exited the Zeloc, he gathered his belongings, which included several information discs and two multi-purpose devices. Proceeding out from the Zeloc, across the station’s connecting walkway and toward the reception platform, he heard the Karratin anthem and recalled that there was still a ceremonial side of the Alliance of Worlds.

  He considered using the gateway system in the Zeloc to enter the station undetected, but there were several political considerations. The Alliance of Worlds’ ceremonial side was something that he had not experienced often, not for over twenty cycles now, It was not something he looked forward to and it would likely be a few hours before he could begin his expected duties.

  C HAP TE R 5

  THE SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM

  The entire meeting and conference facility had been sensor-scanned three times by building security before the support crews were allowed inside. Then there were another three separate sweeps with handheld scanners, in addition to area sweeps done by the main internal sensor system in security command. Even the Betellians made a sensor sweep, as one of their senior officers was to give a presentation during the meeting. A pair of large, two-meter-tall battle droids set in guard mode was added to security measures. Lord Gar fa’eld had been appointed the acting chief of security and logistics and was not taking chances. Crew members and support staff noted his personal inspection of the meeting facility area and the surrounding rooms. All told, about one hundred people were going to be personally present; a few not physically present were to receive the presentation portion coded as an alpha platinum alert.

  The reason for the high security was that there had been several murders within Star One. At first, these deaths appeared accidental or due to natural causes, but they were later determined to be intentional assassinations. Several ranking officers and other important people died this way, until the security personnel caught on. Eventually, outright sabotage and terrorism began occurring, taking the lives of three of the top security officials, as well as several fleet officers.

  24 This type of sabotage attack was not typical of past enemy strikes against the Alliance of Worlds. Espionage was still a possibility, but nonaligned or hostile groups, such as the Meiosians, usually did not employ such underhanded tactics. It was not typical of the Varlon’s past actions either, as they had the military and technological force to strike directly. The technology used by these saboteurs and assassins was beyond the Alliance of Worlds’ standard technology. It seemed that most of the saboteurs were able to circumvent standard surveillance systems, even those that relied on visual identification, and fool or redirect the scanning devices, including masking or altering their biometric information.

  Information transfer and messaging had also been compromised; Vice Admiral N’qert had been in the process of recoding transmissions and had leads about who might be behind all this, when he himself was assassinated. As a result, the security command was in disarray, and the Alliance Governing Council sought help from its founding members and close affiliates.

  There were several other problems as well: A computer virus neutralized a section of the main computer core before it was eliminated. Many of the light-absorbing, hexagonal nanocrystals placed on the solar power panels situated on various sections of the vast hull of Star One had been compromised by a more advanced nano-technology similar to the Varlon’s technology. Somehow, small quantities of the Varlon nanobots had been released to damage the nanocrystals of the auxiliary solar power–gathering panels. Someone was needed to help with the various problems—someone who had skills beyond just security and logistics.

  The council also wanted someone who had had experience as an administrator at Star One in the past. Eventually, the Alliance of Worlds governing council committee settled on a noble member of the Karratin Hegemony whose reputation was beyond reproach. They settled on Gar’fa eld, since he had the relevant experience, having been the chair and professor of the Council Academy Sciences Branch. He also possessed experience in the military; he was a retired vice admiral in the Karratin Defense Force and, more recently, was an ambassador for the Karratins for more than two decades.

  26 GARYCAPLAN Perhaps almost as importantly, Gar’fa eld was known for being generally helpful, though not all Karratins were known to be interested in assisting the less technologically advanced civilizations.

  The Karratins were descended from some alternate, primate-like species from their own home world; however, as a species, they were generally more genetically advanced or evolved than most of the members of the Alliance of worlds. Essentially, the Karratins possessed high mental aptitude as a racial trait. The Karratins resembled humans somewhat, although they had slightly longer, tapered ears and perhaps a hint of green to the skin. Like humans, they possessed head and facial hair.

  As a Karratin, Gar’fa eld belonged to one of the most advanced of the space-faring civilizations, and as a result of his racial genetics and technologic cellular regeneration he had, according to record, lived for a few thousand standard years already. Presently he had long sideburns and hair growing down in front of his ears.

  During his time as an instructor at the Alliance of Worlds Academy, Gar’fa eld not only taught science and engineering classes but also some classes on psionic disciplines. Over time, many of his students had taken to calling him “Garfield,” the easiest phonetic pronunciation of the versions of his name. He accepted being called Professor Garfield, and it stuck.

  The security sweeps and scans done prior to the briefing revealed nothing subversive. The meeting itself was scheduled for a certain time frame, but to throw off potential sabotage, no official times or places were announced, and those who were to attend would be given instructions thirty minutes beforehand.

  Lord Garfield would also be presenting information at the Admirals Board meeting this morning, and he arranged that the exact room of the complex was not to be determined until one hour before. Any would-be saboteurs would be thwarted, and to increase protection, there was an independent force field generator borrowed for the meeting from the Betellians, in case someone wanted to crash a cloaked starfighter or transport vessel with explosives into the area.

  It was approximately five hours before the Admirals Board as Garfield drew himself into a meditation position. Using several disciplines, he set a mentallic protective barrier and then, let his perceptions expand. His consciousness flew about, wandering
from area to area, sensing and scanning.

  Just outside the periphery of the headquarters complex, not far from where the Admirals Board meeting would take place, an individual uniformed as an environmental maintenance crewman emerged from an air duct, then quickly exited and replaced the cover. His movements were casual, seemingly normal for someone in his uniform. He looked around. There were only a few distant personnel. He removed a communication device, not standard issue; it concealed greater sophistication.

  Garfield perceived and examined the individual; he possessed an unusual aura, not fully humanoid but more mechanical. There was also a device at work from the sensation; it was some form of shortrange sensor jamming of a sophisticated nature.

  Garfield psychically moved to make a telepathic mind scan, and at that point a barrier presented itself, which he easily passed. Moments later, a powerful, short-range psionic shockwave was released, forcing Garfield’s consciousness back to his quarters. Anyone of lesser strength and skill would have been injured or incapacitated by the device, a Jiyarri tool. The short meld had been enough to provide Garfield with some useful information; his light touch allowed a moment to access data before the defense system activated.

  Garfield stood in his private office and said out loud, “Now, I know more about who else is behind this.” He activated a communication terminal to give orders to Commodore Brandon Avery, one of his senior officers.