Colony (Terran Chronicles Book 3)

by James Jackson

  Warning: Once started, the process cannot be stopped, which explains why the aliens gave away a power unit. We have determined that its core is almost depleted, with perhaps twenty years of use left, that is, if utilized at its full capacity. Replacing an active core is a risky endeavor. If there is any reaction material left at all, the results would be catastrophic, even cataclysmic.

  The unit’s minimum setting is a fraction of one percent, and just enough to maintain the power to its surrounding gravity plating. The area the core is suspended inside is square, at two meters in size, not round, leading to conjecture that the design can be improved upon. This core is protected by massive amounts of reflective shielding, in the form of thick armor plating. This material is highly specialized and designed to deflect particles back into the reaction chamber. The space on either side of the core is taken up by a pair of high density capacitors. These will require their own specialized manufacturing process, and must be installed prior to the core being activated.

  Notes: An active core can’t be shut down. In addition, once the capacitors are full the core will eventually overload the unit, causing an explosion of immeasurable power. These power units are designed with many automatic features. The control system maintains the capacitors at around fifty percent, though this can be overridden. Each power unit is able to generate approximately two hundred fifty gigawatts of power. The life expectancy of each is estimated to be in excess of two thousand years.

  Your Faithful Servant.

  Guo

  As Jie puts the report down his eyes widen, perhaps I should read more of these. Jie suddenly has an epiphany, picking up his phone, he tries to remain calm as he speaks into it. “Assemble everyone, now!”

  Jie knows the order will be difficult to accomplish, but he also knows that it will be done. An hour later he stands on the balcony once more. The massive courtyard, purpose built to allow vast numbers of people to stand together, is filled to capacity.

  Commander Jie steps forward, lifts the letter he had read earlier, then with his voice amplified through an array of microphones, begins his speech. “The Central Government is pleased with our efforts, as am I. However, as always, they demand even more from us. I hereby decree that tomorrow shall be a day of rest for most of you. Some of us never rest in our duty. As such, I will meet with all science heads in the morning. The day after shall see us working toward a new goal, an ambitious plan, one we must not fail.”

  The crowd cheers, they always cheer, he thinks. I give them a day off per month, and they are happy. I give them two, and they are overjoyed at my generosity. Jie smiles as he waves condescendingly at the crowd, then steps back inside.

  The following morning, Jie meets with the dozens of scientists that make up the department heads. He stands proudly before them all and points authoritatively at the first scientist, “Report,” he states bluntly.

  The short scientist stands, nods in respect, then calmly responds. “The section of alien plating has helped us immensely. We can now manufacture internal gravity plating and external gravity lift plating.” He sits down, a single droplet of sweat works its way down his face. I should tell him that the gravity plating is probably going to be pre-set to the alien’s standards. The man ponders the pros and cons for a long time before deciding to wait and see.

  Meanwhile, another scientist is calmly giving his report, “We now know that the Terran lifted off with navigational shields, but no main shields.” The man beams with excitement, “And we can construct both!” He adds with pride.

  Commander Jie is usually bored by now during these sessions, but not today, he points to the next man in line.

  The man stands, and then nervously speaks. “We are getting closer to creating a powerful laser beam, but have yet to achieve success.” He gulps, failure is rewarded with demotion, or death. Sweat begins to build up in his armpits, it rolls down his sides while he waits anxiously.

  Commander Jie surprises everyone in the room with this calm response, “Continue your work. If you require additional resources, they will be made available to you.”

  The sweating man nods in shock, “It will be done, sir.”

  Jie nods as he looks the distressed man up and down, these people understand that failure is not an option, good! He points to another man, who is also obviously nervous.

  The man licks his lips then timidly speaks, his voice almost too quiet to hear. “The absorption/creation tool eludes us.” He gulps again, his voice gaining a little confidence, “We have to manufacture everything via a more standard approach. But so far we have been able to do this, though the power requirements are high, and the workforce needed is large.”

  Jie nods his head in understanding, “Soon you will have an abundance of power, and as for people, that has never been an issue for us.”

  The reports drag on through life support systems, control systems, and more. Finally he points to Guo, “I read your report, what can you add to it?”

  Guo stands, offers a courteous bow as he prepares his words carefully, thinking, it was rumored that reports went unread. He begins, “Every step of the process is undergoing final testing, then we can start the assembly line. Each power unit will take four months to complete from start to finish. But once we start the production line, we’ll be able to produce a new power unit each month. I expect the testing to be concluded in a matter of weeks, and our first power unit should be available in five months.”

  Jie stands up and then unexpectedly claps, “Congratulations to all.”

  This rare display actually scares most of the men in the room. Jie then begins his long oration. By the time he has finished outlining his plan, they are all stunned at the massive scale of the endeavor, but they agree it can be done. His scientists learned early on that disagreeing with their Commander is hazardous to one’s health. Failure is akin to certain death.

  Jie gazes around the large meeting room, groups of men huddle here and there clearly formulating plans. He surprises them with one last comment. “I give you one year to produce what I have asked for.”

  Jie smiles at his own wisdom, I don’t want my people taking unnecessary risks, besides almost all of the alien technology can be replicated now. The Americans are so far behind, thanks to my efforts. He gazes off at the far wall as another thought comes to mind. Perhaps I should give the suicide squad some posthumous award for their brave actions at the Nevada facility. In one stroke, I not only destroyed their research, I crippled their economy.

  Commander Jie leaves the room smiling, knowing that as always, his wishes will be followed.

  One Year after the Nevada Incident

  Location:

  White House

  Washington DC

  The President stares at the mirror, then shakes his head slowly. He has aged badly over the last few years. Not only does it show on his face, but he also feels extremely run down. Leaving the bathroom and walking to the Oval Office, he is once again expecting bad news. When the Joint Chiefs call a meeting, and request my presence, it’s never good news, he muses.

  Stepping into the room, he notices the serious expressions on the faces of those present. He walks to his chair, sighs, and asks, “What’s going on people?”

  An old General turns his head, looks around at the others, and then speaks up. “Sir. We have some disturbing news. It would seem that the Chinese have been manufacturing components in an effort to construct, amongst other things, a spaceship of their own.”

  The President sits down, relieved. Is that all? He thinks, but instead, he says, “This was to be expected, they did have full access to the alien spacecraft in the Australian Outback.”

  The General nods, then continues, “This brings up another point, Mister President.” He pauses, then speaks his mind, “We should be in charge of the alien facility, not the Australians.” Shaking his head, he adds, “Progress on the new spaceship is too slow.”

  The President nods in agreement, then motions to the chairman. “Your thoug
hts?”

  Standing up, the chairman purses his lips while he carefully considers his response. “If we were in charge of the Australian facility, the construction efforts on both the new ship, and the space station, would be handled more efficiently. At the same time, we would also improve security, the existing measures are laughable. With us controlling the flow of resources, we could also prioritize our domestic rebuilding program.” He paces behind his chair, frustration building in his voice as he continues, “We still have millions living in tents following the disastrous quakes.” He pauses for a moment, looks around. His voice is full of disdain as he concludes, “A civilian should not have been put in charge of the Terran’s mission either. I am sure that’s why it’s lost. The next ship launched should be a military operation, one led by the US.”

  The President sits back in his chair and ponders. The disaster in Nevada has cost trillions, and almost bankrupted our economy. If it were not for the Russians, we wouldn’t have an alien technology program anymore. He stares at those in the room and says, “The Australians have been pressing us to assist them in the construction of a new space station. They are holding out hope that the Terran will return. Perhaps we could come to some mutually beneficial agreement? Then there are the Russians, they have an alien power module facility which should be online soon.”

  The talks continue for a long period of time. Afterward, calls are made and deals are brokered, as is the way of politics. The leaders of the many countries making up the consortium finally come to a consensus. Some of the member nations are happy with the group’s decision, others are not.

  Robert fidgets in his chair then sighs. He gazes around the room and reflects, special presidential reporter indeed, more like a gag order to me. He plasters a well practiced smile on his face as he takes a few more pictures, then makes some notes that may or may not ever see the light of day. National security indeed, everything I do is vetted for content. Well, better than the alternative, I suppose. His mind wanders back to the day the military transport picked him up at the site of the crater. Radiation exposure concerns! Another cover story! He glances up to see the President looking at him. Robert nods in respect, well damn it, he is the President, and this is an assignment others would give their eye-teeth for. This last positive thought lifts his spirits. If nothing else, he really is in the thick of it, and loving it, most of the time anyway.

  Location:

  KGB Headquarters

  Minsk, Russia

  Igor and Pavel are sitting together quietly when the rest of the group assembles. Seeing the two men in such a passive state causes quite a stir amongst the others in the room.

  Pavel stands up, then addresses the assembly. “The President will not be attending today’s session, therefore we shall begin immediately.” He gazes around the room before continuing. “We have been instructed to send the new power units to the Australian facility.”

  The room goes dead quiet. Igor rests back in his chair, then after a few moments, breaks the silence. “Pavel and I are in agreement! We should send all but the first one. We have our own power shortages to contend with, after all.”

  A bedlam of noise breaks out as the men in the room loudly disagree. It takes Igor and Pavel a while to get the room under control.

  Igor shakes his head in disappointment. “This is something we must do if we are to beat the Chinese to space.”

  The statement hangs in the air for a moment, then Pavel continues. “I know what some of you are thinking, that we should ally with the Chinese. But I tell you now, that is a most dangerous path.”

  Many of the men nod in agreement, but none dare speak up. Igor and Pavel stare at each other for a few seconds, their uncanny behavior causing concern more than anything else.

  Igor slowly stands, and walks to the expansive windows. “We have fresh reports that China is close to a breakthrough, and may have already begun construction of their own spacecraft.”

  One of the men call out, “All the more reason we should join them.”

  Pavel shakes his head, “Don’t you see, we’re not in their plans, or we would have been contacted long ago. No, they are up to something. Our best efforts have not been able to shed any light as to what’s going on at their various research facilities.”

  With Pavel and Igor in agreement, and no one else willing to debate the decisions, the meeting breaks up quickly.

  Pavel stares at the table deep in thought, his mind racing as he recalls the events of these last two years. The Gamin gave China a functioning power unit! But what did these alien visitors get in exchange? Last year the American research facility is vaporized, and the ensuing earthquakes devastated their country. An accident? Somehow I think not.

  Location:

  Outback

  Western Australia

  General Walker steps from the doorway of the military transport plane, then stops and squints in the bright sunlight. His military uniform, complete with a jacket, is in pristine condition. While his eyes adjust to the brightness, the dry desert air stabs at his lungs. Even with these difficulties, he easily spots the distant buildings that dot the landscape. Suddenly noticing the alien construction dock, he stares at it, transfixed.

  Metallic fingers point upward, curling around a massive craft that rests inside its cradle. The sight is a far cry from the underground world of NORAD, his last assignment. Thinking back to his brief he smiles, words just don’t do this facility any justice. He stares in awe, it would be like calling NORAD a hole in the ground.

  A jeep pulls up at the bottom of the plane’s stairway, interrupting his thoughts. The driver quickly gets out, then salutes. Walker makes his way down to the dusty runway, then salutes the American soldier back. The drive to the nearby command post is a short one. Walker watches as the jeep kicks up a dust trail in their wake, it is hot and dry.

  General Walker is led inside the command center where he meets his Australian counterpart, General Hayes. Walker, with his shorter stature and muscular frame looks as fit as a fresh recruit, his grey hair marks him as the elder of the two. The younger Hayes, by comparison, almost looks disheveled with his wavy hair and dusty shirt.

  They stare at each other for a few seconds before Walker offers a crisp salute and states formally, “I hereby take command of the coalition’s starship construction facility.”

  General Hayes stiffly salutes back, “I am relieved.”

  Walker relaxes, then sighs, “I never wanted this to happen.” No one likes to lose a command, especially to a foreign force, no matter the circumstances.

  “Yeah, I know,” Hayes replies, genuinely feeling Walker’s empathy.

  The men understand each other’s position, and remain quiet for a few moments.

  Finally Walker nods, and asks, “Is there anything special I should know?”

  Hayes grins, “Sure. Come with me,” he says while thinking, he’s gonna love this. He frowns as he looks at Walker’s uniform, “You had better leave that jacket behind, it’s too damn hot, mate.”

  Walker hesitantly removes his jacket, then follows Hayes outside to the waiting jeep.

  Hayes points off into the distance, “That’s the colony ship Liberty, she’s yet to be officially named though. I will give you a tour, she’s a beauty.”

  Walker looks upward and notices a boxy looking craft coming in to land, ah the alien shuttle. He turns to Hayes and asks, “How’s the progress on the space station?”

  Hayes watches the shuttle land as he answers, “Slow, and I have to warn you, Lisa will be hounding you almost daily for updates.”

  “Lisa?” Walker replies curiously. There’s no Lisa on the military roster, he mentally runs through the list of names once again.

  Hayes frowns, “Oh, you will get to know her very well, she’s George’s wife.”

  Walker turns to Hayes in confusion, “George? The civilian advisor?”

  Hayes stares at Walker, his demeanor becoming quite serious. “If it were not for George, the Terran would
have exploded in that dock two years ago. We owe all we know to that man.”

  Walker nods, recalling some of the details from his mission briefing, I thought the Aussies had exaggerated his role. Perhaps not. “Well, I will be removing all civilians from this facility. Too much of a security risk.”

  Hayes nods as he replies, “Good luck with that one, Lisa can be quite, um, persuasive.” He glances around and wonders, security risk? There’s open desert in all directions, literally for as far as the eye can see.

  Walker is a man who is used to having his orders followed, not questioned. He has no doubt that Lisa will comply. Hayes grins as he recognizes Walker’s conviction, he too was resolute, until he met her, that is. The space station would still be just a concept, if it were not for her persistence, he muses.

  Hayes changes the subject quickly, “We were all saddened by the disaster in Nevada. How is the rebuilding going?”

  Walker sighs, “Yeah, those quakes shoved a shit load of California into the ocean. We’re building whole new cities, and towns, further inland. But it’s a mess.”

  Hayes nods in sympathetic understanding. Arriving at the ramp that leads up and into the spacecraft, Hayes watches Walker’s expression as it turns into one of awe. The Liberty is modeled along the same lines as the Terran, thus it is enormous.

  Walker’s thoughts of home are thrust aside as the size and scope of the project begins to sink in. This thing is huge, he realizes. Walker’s eyes bulge as he spots two metal humanoid robots working nearby. He points at them, his mouth agape.