by Gary Caplan
C HAP TE R 14
THE LAST ANDROSYNTH
He and his security escort Chief Petty Officer Jones were approaching his quarters, which were more spacious than what he had been used to on the Endeavor. The security alert level in this docking facility was elevated, because, several days ago, another ship had been sabotaged in the dry dock in an attempt to take out a high-ranking officer who was inspecting his ship.
As Commodore Sheppard was returning to his quarters onboard the Phoenix, he noticed a flickering of the hall lights, as if there was a short power loss in one of the energy conduits. As Sheppard thought about it, the fading effect and the second of power loss was unusual. Turning into the next corridor, Sheppard could see that the docking airlock at the far end of the hall corridor had not been affected, probably since the system was on a reserve power coupling. Sheppard removed his commlink unit and attempted to access the engineering duty officer to report the occurrence. After all, this small problem might be forgotten by tomorrow, so it would be best to log it now and have engineering staff look into it.
As Chief Jones began to use his commlink device to open the door of the commodore’s quarters, Sheppard noticed his commlink was not accessing the engineering duty officer. Moreover, there seemed to be signal interference or possibly jamming.
93 A Star Knight premonition caused Sheppard to look up and suddenly roll to the side. As his quarters’ door opened, there was the loud blast of an explosion. Debris and a small fireball erupted and struck Chief Jones, hurling him back toward the turbo-lift.
Sheppard caught only a small portion of the concussive force, as he was already moving away. He realized his uniform’s sensors would notify the closest medical office of his condition, and Chief Jones’s sensors would send signals to initiate a medical emergency alert.
Sheppard waited for the emergency sirens, but they never went off. No siren or other warning, and the fire suppression also seemed to be malfunctioning, thought Sheppard.
Then he noticed an engineering technician moving toward him, and as he got up he sensed something was wrong. No other crew members were in the corridor, and the area behind the technician was sealed off by the emergency bulkheads used to close damaged corridors. The technician looked at the unconscious and critically injured security person and then at Sheppard. Sheppard went for his commlink unit, but it had dropped off his belt during the explosion.
The technician reached Sheppard and picked up the device. He then crushed it in his hand.
That’s not something a human should be able to do, thought Sheppard.
“Identify yourself,” Sheppard said as he moved toward the open end of the corridor, away from his ruined quarters. Unfortunately, because they were in dry dock, he was not carrying a weapon. Glancing down at the security officer’s weapon, it was clear that it was damaged beyond use.
Sheppard realized this “technician” was likely the last of the androsynths, and as he was now effectively a high-level officer, he was its target. Sheppard began to concentrate to tap into the skills of the Star Knights to enhance his speed and strength. His Star Knight disciplines would at least give him some time until someone in security noticed a bulkhead section had come down or an internal sensor indicated combustible products were in the air and damage control came investigate.
The andro-synth moved quickly to intercept but had not anticipated that Sheppard could move fast as well. As it moved toward Sheppard who had now moved further down the corridor and grabbed at his uniform its grip was strong but not well placed, and Sheppard was able to twist and extricate himself. Sheppard focused on his spatial awareness disciplines and was able to anticipate movements before the andro-synth made them. He realized, however, that he would not be able to keep that up indefinitely. This synth was apparently able to become frustrated after about ten attempts, because it looked at Sheppard angrily, apparently because he had been able to thwart it so far. Sheppard had not previously believed the synths capable of emotion.
After a few minutes of anticipating and then deflecting blows, Sheppard began to weaken. Even with using his Star Knight abilities and boosting his strength speed and endurance the physical efforts Sheppard needed to continue to keep one step ahead were having a toll. The synth saw Sheppard tire, and it successfully landed some blows that knocked Sheppard back and cracked two of his ribs. In the tussle, the two had moved farther toward the airlock area.
Sheppard wondered where security was. Had this Synth, posing as a technician, affected the monitors and internal sensors as well? Realizing without some rest he would soon be exhausted, Sheppard had a thought and the beginnings of a plan. If I can get it closer to the airlock, maybe I can use telekinesis to activate the controls and blow this Synth into the space and zero-G of the dry dock. There was an emergency power coupling cable behind one of the nearby service access hatchway that he could telekinetically remove then reach in secure himself when the airlock opened.
As Sheppard weakened further, the andro-synth was able to grab him. Sheppard tried as best he could but could not loosen the synth’s grip.
The andro-synth said, “I and another tried to take you out in the magtrain, but you escaped. I am designed to finish my tasks.”
One of its hands went to grab Sheppard’s throat, while the other secured him to the wall. Even a few well-placed martial kicks from Sheppard’s boot did not stop the synth from squeezing his neck. He used what telekinetic power he had to help pry the neck grip loose, yet the synth still held him against the wall.
Sheppard concentrated and activated the initial sequence to open the airlock; they were only ten meters away in a relatively smooth hallway. Chief Jones was a good distance away from the airlock, and there should be enough time to secure him.
Next, he used his telekinetic ability to unlock the service hatch and ready the emergency cable, but not open the hatch until the right moment. He realized that, in a few seconds, his neck would probably snap. As he initiated the override to the airlock mechanism, he used his remaining telekinetic forces to loosen the synth’s grip.
The airlock opened, and the andro-synth looked in that direction, as both he and Sheppard pulled away from the wall, due to the negative pressure and into the corridor. Robert Sheppard used a martial maneuver and some enhanced agility to break the distracted synth’s one-handed grip on his neck and extricate his pinioned arm. As both were dragged toward the open airlock, Sheppard concentrated using his Star Knight skills and tele-manipulatied into his hands the cable from the previously telekinetically opened access hatchway both had just passed. Sheppard then telekinetically pulled the cable from the open hatchway and halted his movement. His combatant tried to grab him but had moved too far.
The synth flew out towards the open the airlock.
Sheppard used the last of his remaining telekinetic energy to keep the andro-synth in the middle of the hall, out of gripping reach of the door. Sheppard grabbed for Jones, who was being pulled out with some debris from the door explosion. Lastly, Sheppard initiated the airlock closing sequence. Due to lack of oxygen and his previous exertions, Sheppard passed out for a few minutes.
When it had passed across the airlock threshold, the andro-synth realized it would fail its mission. Its sensors picked up that Alliance of Worlds security officers were heading in the general direction of the commodore. The synth initiated an explosive destruct sequence. About twenty meters from the hull, it exploded. By then, the airlock’s triple hatch had just sealed. The resulting explosion destroyed two of the hatches and damaged the neighboring hull.
When Sheppard regained consciousness, a medical team with Doctor Grey in charge was checking his vitals, examining him with a medical scanner, and giving him extra oxygen. Sheppard had developed some fatigue, nausea, mild dizziness, and a tingling sensation in his extremities. He did not have any vision changes. Sheppard related what had happened to both Doctor Grey and Ares, who had arrived within minutes of the airlock opening.
“You’re lucky, Rober
t,” said Grey. “Lucky you paid attention during your Star Knight training and had the necessary control over your telekinetic abilities.”
Sheppard nodded and rested a moment, as he felt slightly lightheaded from the oxygen loss and pressure changes when the airlock opened.
Sheppard had cleared his medical exam and was sitting at his desk. He could hear the damage control crews working on repairing the airlock section to prevent its loss of seal integrity. He was going to collect some personal things and go to the sickbay, because Doctor Grey wanted to have him monitored for subsequent hypoxic effects for a few hours. Sheppard planned on taking his rest in sickbay and then later resuming his normal duty. Doctor Grey or another physician could watch him while he slept, if they wanted. He looked around at the damage to his quarters and was glad to see that most of his personal belongings that he stowed in the bedroom or the office section of his rather large quarters were intact, especially his cello’s case. It absorbed the damage and kept the cello, which he had inherited from his grandfather, safe.
After talking with some of the other security officers, Lieutenant Commander Ares stepped to Commodore Sheppard’s shattered doorway and looked in. Ares knocked at the door edge to get Commodore Sheppard’s attention. He nodded for her to enter as he completed his task.
“Sir,” Ares said, “we determined that this andro-synth posed as an engineering technician and co-opted the local power relay and set an explosive device in your quarters. The engineering team has found the device that the synth likely used to control the power on this level, suppress the alarms, and deactivate the fire suppression, internal sensors, and damage control monitors. I realized something was wrong when we detected a feedback loop and initiated a thorough diagnostic.”
Sheppard said, “I’m glad you were eventually able to find the problem. Now, this thing may have had a backup plan, so conduct a ship wide survey, Lieutenant Commander Ares, and get someone to install the latest version of the internal sensor upgrade in the Phoenix. I’ve had about as much andro-synths as I can handle at the moment.”
“Actually, sir, we have almost finished the process of upgrading the internal sensors,” replied Ares. “I think this is probably the androsynth that had previously placed an explosive device in the neighboring Constellation-class battlecarrier Murlar two days ago, in the adjacent ship dock. When I examined inter-ship shuttle records corresponding to the andro-synth’s identification code, they indicated that the shuttle carried a docking technician to Phoenix. This andro-synth probably took an intra-ship shuttle to avoid being directly scanned by Star One’s upgraded internal sensors, or the upgraded sensors in the docking entry areas which were just recently installed into the starship construction and docking yards.”
“Good work, Lieutenant Commander Ares. Keep me, posted and inform Captain Wilder and our new liaison officer, Fleet Captain Sherman.”
Ares saluted and left to finish her work as Sheppard contemplated being eventually able to move back to his quarters when the door was replaced and his internal security upgraded.
C HAP TE R 15
PRIME MINSTER DESSERIX'S SPEECH
In the conference room in the prime minister’s complex, near the Grand Council Hall, there was a frenzy of activity as Prime Minister Desserix prepared for his “Declaration of War” speech before the Alliance of Worlds Grand Council. Surrounding him were his public relations staff and his speechwriter, all vying for his last-minute attentions.
Commodore Sheppard had just received notification that the Phoenix was given clearance to leave the docking facility. As the ranking officer, he could give the orders to take the Phoenix out of dry dock if he so chose. Sheppard, however, ceded the privilege to Fleet Captain Wilder so he could watch Prime Minister Desserix’s speech on the tri-vid unit from his office near the ships bridge. As he looked at the devices three dimensional projections the view panned over the Alliance of Worlds Grand Council members and the Hall of Ministers as the last dignitaries took their seats.
Sheppard had one viewer set to the Grand Council Hall and activated another he set to a view of the Phoenix leaving Star One. They would not be allowed to engage the translight drive until the starship moved the appropriate distance to the entrance and exit zone, per established approach protocols.
Doctor Grey and Fleet Captain Sherman were in the commodore’s command office and were also very interested in at least part of the 99 prime minister’s speech. They had previously begun a discussion about the disposition of various task forces, including medical support and supplies. Sheppard and Grey had also discussed some staffing issues now that the good doctor had given his task force report and some opinions to Sheppard. In the background, Sheppard and his guests were listening to Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony, which he had activated earlier from his desk music archive.
Sheppard knew from information he got from Commodore Avery that the prime minister had been in discussions with several major members of the Alliance of Worlds. No doubt, the reason was to gather support for a large-scale offensive effort against the Varlon Empire. In the past, the Varlon’s aggressive actions among other events were what helped spur the organization of the Alliance of Worlds for mutual protection.
“I hope Prime Minister Desserix is successful,” said Grey. “We are going to need renewed help and the support of the membership in order to maintain our defense now that the Varlon have resolved their internal conflicts and are once again attempting to expand their empire.”
“You’re right,” noted Sherman. “We need more ships; even though there are plenty of starship yards, they are not that busy. Mostly only terraforming and colonization ships are being constructed to work on those territory grants the Hegemony turned over a few decades ago to the Alliance of Worlds for development. That colonization territory is vast, and it seems the business community is ready to exploit it.
”Just then, Sheppard’s desk tri-vid device generated and displayed an image of Prime Minister Desserix as he approached the podium for his address to the Grand Council. The chancellor of planetary governors accompanied him and took the seat on his right.
“The chancellor’s here too,” said Sheppard, “and if he is supporting the PM, it’s likely that the Alliance of Worlds House of Planetary Governors and Presidents is in agreement with the Grand Council of Members.”
They listened for a while as Desserix spoke making some introductory comments. Sometimes they would look at the threedimensional projection above the briefing table in the commodore’s office as they continued reviewing supplies and task force dispositions, occasionally pausing to listen to some of the prime minister’s speech.
“Fellow council members,” said Desserix. “As you know by now, several of our colonies in the Rhendal sector have been taken by the Varlon. The Alliance of Worlds has been attempting to support our other remaining planets, colonies, and bases there, as well as bolster our forces in the bordering outer sectors, such as the Quellus sector. As a result of this unprovoked attack on our colonies, and the failure of the Varlon to respond to our diplomatic actions, I want to formally declare a state of war between the Alliance of Worlds and the Varlon Empire and its allies.”
Sheppard noticed Garfield had entered the command office, before the lieutenant stationed outside the door could announce “Admiral on deck.” Sheppard stood and went to shake his old mentor’s hand. Garfield also began watching the prime minister.
After a moment, Garfield leaned over to say to Sheppard, “By the way, Bob, I will have to leave for a while, since I have Hegemony dealings to attend to; and, as you know, the affiliation treaty between the Hegemony and the Alliance of Worlds allows me to attend to such business. There may also be a diplomatic mission that I may assist on.”
Sheppard nodded; he was aware of the agreements between the Alliance of Worlds and the Hegemony, which included the officer exchange program that gave several unique privileges to those Karratins and other members of the Hegemony who chose to assist the Alliance of Worl
ds.
“Furthermore,” continued Prime Minister Desserix, “I would like to call upon all Alliance of Worlds home worlds, major colonies, as well as our allies to gather the necessary forces to repel this invasion of Alliance space. I would also request that our affiliates consider assisting the Alliance of Worlds at this time.
“That’s a good sign,” said Sherman as he watched
“We have to prepare to defend our worlds against the Varlon. We must begin to construct more effective starships to bolster the fleets, and gather resources to support what will probably be a protracted war. As many of you realize, the Varlon have completed their internal succession problems, with both parts of their empire reuniting. This means they will most likely begin to pose a very serious threat to us all. I want to ask all Alliance of Worlds businesses and concerned citizens to assist in whatever capacity they can against this threat.”
Sheppard and the others watched as Desserix delivered his last statements and then stepped down from the lectern dais. In Sheppard’s office, playing in the background, the last movement of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony reached a crescendo, a fitting conclusion for the speech.
Later, Sheppard left his office to go out onto the bridge, something he liked to do when heading out on a new mission. He liked to observe the crew at work. Watching a busy bridge with different species interacting in an orderly manner instilled confidence in him. The bridge was a large, oval structure, with its largest diameter at sixty meters. There were three access points: one was a turbo-lift directly to the bridge from the lower decks, and the others were from areas of deck one.