After everyone boarded, the transport took off. Ryan looked out the window as they ascended from North Sentinel Island. He wondered what other mysteries the island and her ancient people had kept hidden all these years. Maybe one day he’d find out.
Exhausted, he collapsed in his seat and dozed off. After what seemed like mere minutes, he awoke to the sound of the transport touching down at Fleet Headquarters, just outside the hangar where the Altarran ship was hidden. It was hard to believe they’d finally reached the end of the road. All that was left was getting the Altarran ship into space and back with their fleet.
The transport taxied into the hangar. When they had deplaned, Ryan approached his father. “What’s next, sir?” he said.
“Everyone needs to get checked out by medical,” said the admiral. “Then we have a debriefing. I’ll see you in the hangar at 1900 hours. Get cleaned up and have something to eat. We’re repairing your ships. Since we only have nine active ships from our fleet, until we can build more, we’re going to overhaul yours.”
It seemed like a lifetime ago that Ryan was with his crew on the Churchill. He was looking forward to seeing Tanner and Paul. Even Jill and Nicole would be a sight for sore eyes. He didn’t think he could have said that a few weeks ago.
“Those ships served us well, sir,” he said. “We even used their x-ray labs for our microfilms. By the way, did you find anything in the files about the IC-12 unit, or an inner circle?”
“Not a damn thing,” said the admiral. “The president knew nothing about it either. Hell, there could be more of them out there for all we know, but we got their leader. We’ll be launching a worldwide investigation.”
“I wouldn’t mind being part of that,” said Ryan.
“You’ll have plenty else to do, starting with heading down to medical and getting checked out.”
Ryan saluted his father. “Will do, sir.”
He went to medical, where he received four stitches in his left shoulder, as well as a couple of injections. Then he and Amanda went to the mess hall. As they entered, he spotted Tanner, Paul, Nicole, and Jill sitting at a table, waiting for them. They all stood up and applauded. Nicole and Jill had tears in their eyes. Even Tanner looked pretty touched.
Tanner was the first to speak up. “The buzz around here,” he said, “is that we all now have a goddess to worship.”
“Damn, Tanner,” said Ryan. “We just got out of debriefing. Where are you getting your information?”
Tanner pointed to the corner of the mess hall. The area was cordoned off for the crew from Granthaxe’s ship. “The big guy whose head is scraping the ceiling told me all about it.”
Ryan looked over at Granthaxe, who spotted him.
From the corner of his eye, Ryan saw his father heading his way with a female officer by his side. At first he thought it was Commodore Laurent. As they came closer, he realized who it was. Could this be? And if so, how?
He looked over at Nicole, who had taken a seat, and smiled, shaking his head in disbelief.
She looked confused, but gave a slight smile and waved to him. “What are you smiling at?” she said, obviously not realizing who was behind her, walking with the admiral.
Ryan looked over Nicole’s shoulder at her sister, Tara, who, for all intents and purposes, should have been dead, since the Lexington had been destroyed.
“C’mon, Nikki,” said Tara. “I taught you better than that. What are you smiling at, Captain?”
Nicole froze, looking as if she’d heard a ghost. Tears welled up in her eyes as she jumped up and turned around. “Tara?! I thought you were dead!” She threw her arms around her sister and the two embraced.
“How did you survive?” said Nicole. “We heard your ship was destroyed.”
“It was awful, Nikki. We’d already taken heavy damage, and Captain Ramsey ordered us to abandon ship. We were leaving in the escape pods when I saw the Lexington speed up, right into the path of the missiles headed for Admiral Thompson’s ship. The last I saw, I . . .” Her voice trailed off. She was obviously upset by the event.
“He’s a hero,” said Admiral Thompson. “And I’ll make sure that nobody ever forgets that.”
Hawthorne approached. “Admiral,” he said, “it’s time.”
Ryan looked at the clock and realized it was time for them to go to the hangar so the admiral could address the fleet. He motioned to Amanda, who came to join him. His father went ahead.
As he walked with Amanda, two hulking figures, the queen and Granthaxe, came to greet them.
“Ryan Thompson and Amanda Williamson,” said Granthaxe. “You have both done a great service to the Altarran people. True warriors you are, putting your own lives at risk to rescue our queen . . . my mother. We came close to destroying one another. But now, I give you both my personal pledge to bind our races as kin.”
“Thank you, Supreme Commander,” said Ryan. “Though I have to give most of the credit to Amanda. She never for one moment gave up hope for a peaceful resolution. A wise man once told us we were better together than apart, Amanda and I. And I guess he was right.”
Ryan looked and Amanda and smiled.
“And maybe the same can be said for humans and Altarrans,” added Amanda.
The queen had the amulet in her hand. “Amanda,” she said. “You have fulfilled my wishes even more than I could have ever hoped for. And for that, the amulet of the gods belongs with you, to keep as a sign of friendship between our two people.”
Amanda started to protest. “Oh no, I can’t accept that,” she said. “This is such an important piece of your history. I appreciate it, but please, take it with you.”
“No, my child,” said the queen. “Your family has kept it safe for many years. Without your beloved Robert Williamson, I would not be here today. Even worse, a terrible war would have occurred, at great loss to both our kind. No, my dear Amanda. The gods themselves would want this with you—for what greater bond is there than our greatest treasure?”
Ryan realized something. “But what about the rule,” he said, “that Altarrans must not lay eyes on the queen without her amulet?”
“Who do you think made the rule?” said the queen. “And a silly rule it was. It exists no more.”
“Then thank you,” said Amanda, holding the amulet to her heart. “I’ll cherish it and keep the family tradition of passing it down through the years.”
“It does us a great honor,” said the queen. “And speaking of honor,” she said, turning to Granthaxe. “My son, just how many of our ships were lost in this battle you forged against the humans?”
“Twenty-seven battleships, mother,” said Granthaxe, “though greater than half our crew members were able to evacuate in escape crafts. But I fear we lost three troop carriers as well. It was a great loss.”
“We lost three full troop carriers?” said the queen. “That’s over three hundred thousand warriors!”
Ryan thought now would be a good time to tell Granthaxe the good news before all the joy turned sour. “Hold on a minute,” he said. “About those troop carriers. They’re still in one piece. At least they were a few days ago when we left them.”
“Left them where?” said Granthaxe. “They live?”
“Yes, they live. They were too big for us to destroy, so we disabled their light-speed engines and destroyed their communications array. They should be somewhere between Pluto and Neptune. So you see, Queen Darthaxe, there’s no need to demote the commander or beat him to death.”
The queen looked oddly at Ryan. “Why would I beat my son to death?”
“You know,” said Ryan, “I’ve learned to love you and your people, but you really do need to work on your sense of humor.”
The queen looked at her son, confused.
Granthaxe smacked Ryan upside the head, almost knocking him off his feet. “Thank you, Ryan Thompson. That is very good news.”
Ryan held the back of his head. “What was that for?”
“Did I do something wrong?�
� said Granthaxe. “On more than one occasion I have seen both you and Amanda Williamson do the same to close friends of yours. I assumed it was a gesture of friendship.”
Amanda laughed. “No problem, Supreme Commander. But you—”
“Amanda Williamson,” said Granthaxe. “Humor . . . achieved.”
Ryan and Amanda both laughed.
“And now,” said the Supreme Commander, “we must prepare to leave. We have much to do and a long journey ahead. And we must stop to assist the damaged ships.”
“I’ll talk to my father about sending some engineers out to help you repair them,” said Ryan.
“You are most gracious,” said Granthaxe.
The queen smiled that hideous, fanged smile at Ryan. For some reason, that still unnerved him. He kept waiting for her to bite his neck.
“Farewell, dear friends,” said the queen.
Ryan and Amanda hugged the two giants that they’d probably never see again, and turned to join the cadets and the UEDF personnel as they made their way to the large hangar bay.
As they entered, Ryan watched his father step onto the makeshift stage at the front of the room. He felt a sense of pride as the admiral addressed the room of approximately two thousand officers and cadets.
Thompson cleared his throat and everyone quieted down.
“I wanted to take a few minutes,” he began, “to thank everyone in this room for their help in bringing this volatile situation to a peaceful end. It took a little wrangling and a lot of sides coming together to make this happen. As for our Altarran friends—and yes, we can consider them friends—I’ve already spoken with them about communication methods and protocols. Negotiations to reach a lasting peace agreement between our collective governments on Earth and Altarra have already begun.”
As Ryan joined the crowd in applause, he couldn’t help shaking his head and smiling. Leave it to his father to have already begun secret negotiations. And with all the chaos, he hadn’t even thought about how they might stay in touch with the Altarrans. He’d assumed it was an impossibility. But then, when it came to Benjamin “Flash” Thompson, nothing was an impossibility.
“I’m not going to keep you any longer than necessary,” said the admiral. “It’s been a grueling two weeks, and I know most of you would very much like to relax. Before concluding, there is one more thing I’d like to do. I’d like Cadet Amanda Williamson and my son, Cadet Ryan Thompson, to come up to the stage.”
Ryan looked at Amanda with wide eyes. He had no idea they were going to be called up, and neither did she, apparently. He stood up and followed her to the stage.
They walked up the portable metal stairs and stood next to the admiral. As Ryan looked out toward the audience, he noticed a man enter the rear of the hangar. He knew right away who it was. He nudged Amanda, whose eyes lit up. Her father had come a long way for this event. Somehow, his visit must have been arranged prior to the outcome being known.
Admiral Williamson stood in the back of the room and saluted them. Ryan and Amanda saluted back.
Ryan’s father acknowledged his lifelong friend with a nod, and then turned to Ryan and Amanda.
“As Fleet Admiral of The United Earth Defense Fleet,” he said, “it gives me great pleasure to bestow a special award on both of you.”
The admiral slipped behind the podium and returned with two Golden Cadet trophies. “After a long discussion with Admiral Williamson,” he continued, “it has been decided that for the first time in history, two cadets will win the coveted award. Both the admiral and I couldn’t be more proud, not only because you are our legacy, but because you’ve both exceeded our wildest, and already high, expectations. Congratulations to both of you.”
As the two of them accepted their awards, their hands trembling, Ryan could see that Amanda was as astonished as he was. He choked up as the crowd stood and applauded. Amanda turned toward him, her face beaming. He couldn’t help thinking how fortunate he was. She was compassionate, smart, and beautiful. It killed him to think of how many times he’d nearly lost her. But he knew one thing for sure. He was never going to let anything come between them again, least of all, his own fears.
She looked nervous as she put out her hand to shake his, as was customary for the winner of the Golden Cadet Award. But he refused to extend his hand, instead giving her a serious look. As could be expected, she looked confused as he shook his head no. But he couldn’t keep the ruse going any longer. He smiled as he pulled her close and kissed her.
He could hear everyone cheering wildly as he whispered in her ear, “I love you, Amanda Williamson.”
About the Author
Edward Miller
As chief editor for a sci-fi gaming website for over fifteen years, Edward Miller has crafted hundreds of stories designed to take readers to new places and immerse them in mind-bending situations. His debut novel with co-author J.B. Manas, The Kronos Interference, was named to Kirkus Reviews’ Best of 2012. Kirkus called the book, “impressively original” and a “tour de force.”
In a former life as a musician, Edward toured the United States with such acts as Foghat, The Allman Brothers Band, Edgar Winter, 38 Special, and others. Edward resides in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania with his wife and family, along with their dog, Lady.
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, I would like to once again thank Paula Berinstein for her expert advice and keen editing eye. Also thanks to Jerry (J.B.) Manas, my friend and co-author on The Kronos Interference, who contributed many insights to this book as well. Thanks to Brian Thompson, veteran film actor and valued friend, for his thoughts during the writing process. Thanks also to Joseph Dilworth of Pop Culture Zoo Press.
Thanks also to my test readers for their candid and helpful feedback: Mary Keaser, Phil Fisher, Nancy Cutler, Robin Goldblum, Ann Beth Goldblum, Mary Kate Gillespie and Jonas Sosa, Jr. Thanks also to Tom Goldblum for his unending support.
Special thanks must go to my wife, Heidi Miller, for watching the back of my head as I wrote for months at a time. Also to Alfie and Geri Myers, Carl Miller, Stuart Goldstein, Nicole Gordon, Becki and Ben Gomez, and the next generation, Sophia, Gabe, and Alicia Gomez. And last but not least, to my dog, Lady, who may be old, but never complains about it.
Cadets Page 30