Resolute Strike (The War for Terra Book 7)

by James Prosser

  “One of my passengers has given us some information I thought best shared in person,” Lee replied. “It concerns the Gizzeen invasion and our mission. I’ll wait and let them fill you the rest of the way in.”

  “Speaking of your guests,” Telexo said, holding up the container. “We’ve been pickin’ this stuff outta our systems for the last few jumps. I gotta tell ya, it makes the ship run better, but it told us to bring it along.”

  “Told you?” Lee asked, looking at the golden fluid. “Let me guess, it projected a hologram of a pleasant-faced woman?”

  “How’d’ya guess?”

  “We’ve had some experience with the organism,” Lee replied. “In fact, you may get to meet that woman.”

  From that point the trio moved through the ship silently. One quick lift ride delivered them to the upper command deck buried under hull plating inside the ship. Lee led the way down the hallway and into the briefing room. He was startled when he entered to see Henry Moore standing in the corner. His arm was in a sling and his face was bandaged, but the man looked strong. Doctor Demsiri nodded as he acknowledged Farthing, but continued to scowl as Henry tried to move forward.

  “Farthing,” the old soldier said. “It’s good to see you again. It’s just like old times.”

  “Running for our lives with the Ch’Tauk and the Alliance shooting at us?” the Vadne officer replied, his whiskers twitching. “Yes, it does seem like we repeat ourselves.”

  “If you would all please be seated, we can begin,” Kama Yu said, stepping into the group and pointing at the empty seats nearby.

  As Telexo took a seat, one of the pleasant-faced women stepped up and took the container. He seemed amazed at her appearance but surrendered the fluid without comment. She quickly left the room, but another one was there almost immediately in her place. Telexo looked to Farthing, who simply chuffed a short laugh at his first officer. Lee stepped to the podium and pressed a button. The walls disappeared and the outside space blossomed around them. Kongo was visible alongside the battleship. The empty space around them glimmered with distant starlight.

  “I’m sure all of you have been wondering just what the hell has been going on lately,” Lee started without introduction. “I’ll make this as short as I possibly can. The Ch’Tauk attack on Alliance headquarters was precipitated by a reunion of sorts.”

  “We have been trying to make sense of our information, and we think we’ve got it nailed down,” Alice added, stepping up to the podium. “The Engineer rescued from Perigee has given us some new information. It is imperative we share this with the Alliance as soon as possible.”

  “The Gizzeen and the Ch’Tauk,” Lee said, pausing as he waited for everyone’s attention, “are both the same species.”

  There was a wave of quiet murmuring from the room. Farthing’s crest almost immediately went straight up. After a few seconds to allow the revelation to sink in, Lee continued.

  “We think the two species met at Proxima Centauri when the Alliance tried to intercept a damaged Gizzeen craft,” Lee explained, allowing the recorded attack to run on the holographic walls. “Since then, their alliance with us has served only their own interests. We think the discovery of the device by our own Na’Tora was what prompted the action by the sleeper agents embedded on each ship to activate. I think we can assume the betrayal has spread across the entire fleet.”

  “Captain,” the voice of Josh Goldstein sounded from the back of the room. “Can you explain what you meant about the Gizzeen and the Ch’Tauk being the same race? I mean, most of us fought in the war and we never saw one of those floating shrimp boats of the Gizzeen.”

  “Let me take this one,” Alice said, reaching across Lee and tapping a control on the podium. “The information we retrieved from the Engineer sort of goes like this: they were travelling through another dimension one day and found the Gizzeen. They were almost godlike beings who seemed almost perfect to the little guys. They were so peaceful the Engineers had to teach them the concept of war so they could ask why they had never heard of it.”

  “So it was the Engineers who started this whole thing again,” Henry said, stepping away from the wall. “Those little sons of bitches are on my list now.”

  “They are on all of our lists, Henry,” Lee said as the crowd let out staccato bursts of nervous laughter. “Go ahead Alice.”

  “Thanks,” the pilot replied, looking back out over the crowd. “It seems that when they came to our side of M-space, they looked around for a race similar to the Gizzeen and found the Ch’Tauk … or what would become the Ch’Tauk anyways. In any case, the Ch’Tauk were like the larval stage of the Gizzeen. Time passes differently in the other dimension or something, and they saw an opportunity to recreate the perfect species they had inadvertently corrupted over there.”

  “The Ch’Tauk and the Gizzeen are both savage people who live only to conquer,” Farthing said. “It seems the Engineers failed.”

  “In a way,” Alice replied. “The genetic drift prevalent in our galaxy skewed the Ch’Tauk from the original template. The changes made on the other side must have taken millennia, but the result is the invasion we see here.”

  Alice paused the projection on the image of the damaged Gizzeen ship. She tapped a few keys and the damaged portion filled in and a framed model of the Gizzeen ship pulled away and began to revolve. The ship was smaller than most, but the design was standard. Another few taps and a Ch’Tauk insectoid ship appeared next to the Gizzeen. Seen side-by-side, the similarities were still subtle but more obvious obvious. The Gizzeen ship was partially organic, made up mostly of a creature not known to this galaxy, while the Ch’Tauk ships were all manufactured. Each ship sported banded armor over an elongated core. The Gizzeen tentacles were nearly matched by the small projections on the underside of the Ch’Tauk ships. More murmurs drifted through the briefing room and the two ships rotated together.

  “We think the Gizzeen ships are nearing full power by now and they may be ready to launch their final assault on the Alliance, if they haven’t already started. The first wave was just reconnaissance. A larger force must be massing somewhere while they acclimate to our universe,” Lee explained. “It’s really just a matter of time and numbers. As more of their ships pass through, they will mature and adapt. Our mission parameters are still the same. We’re going to try to close the Terran portal with the device we secured on Perigee.”

  “There are portals all across the galaxy,” Josh replied. “What will closing this one do?”

  “It will stop the largest of the invasion forces and give us a chance to close the others.”

  “The Engineer said they can make more pretty quickly if this one works,” Alice added. “We just need to test the design and close the one closest to Earth.”

  “Why?” Henry asked, startling the others with the blunt question. “Do we even know Earth is still around?”

  “We have to have faith, Henry,” Alice replied, looking at Lee for confidence. “It’s really all we’ve ever had.”

  “I tell you what I have faith in,” Henry said, stepping closer to the podium. “I have faith in plasma cannons and rocket launchers. I have faith that when we do get to Earth and close that damn portal, the Engineers will still be there to screw it up.”

  “Henry…” Alice said.

  “I tell you what I have faith in, Lee,” Henry said, staring at his former friend. “I have faith that even if we fix this hole in space there’s sure to be another big bad nasty coming through somewhere else to take away our planet and our loved ones. That’s what I believe, and you’re all lying to yourselves if you think it’s gonna be any other way.”

  “Henry,” said Lee, “I understand what you’re saying, but—”

  “Shut the hell up!” Henry shouted, pointing his good hand at Lee with an accusing finger. “You don’t have any idea what I’m going through. You never had to watch as someone you loved before all others died. You never lived through what I lived through, Lee. I know y
ou lost Alice and got her back, but I got Emma and now I’ve lost her too. Maybe it would have been better if I had stayed on Earth and not come out here with you, but I did and now all I got is what I got here and it ain’t enough. I want to get Emma back, and dammit you’re gonna help me because this is all your fault.”

  “Henry, that’s not fair,” Alice said, stepping between the enraged soldier and her fiancé. “Lee didn’t know what would happen when he asked you to come along. It’s not fair to say this is his fault.”

  “It is perfectly fair,” Henry said as Doctor Demsiri stepped closer. “I might have been there with her when she died if I hadn’t come along. Maybe if Lee hadn’t gone out there looking for his father’s killer, none of this would have happened, but it did and you are at the center of it all. Get your hands off me!”

  Henry whirled around as Demsiri placed an auto-syringe against the side of his neck. Farthing stepped from his seat and grabbed Henry’s arm as the man tried to swing at the doctor. The outburst was over in seconds as the sedative took hold, and Henry was eased down to the floor. Two medics, apparently waiting on Demsiri’s call, came in with a stretcher and carried the unconscious man out. As he left, Demsiri paused and looked at his captain for a long moment before stepping out into the hallway. Lee had stayed still during the entire affair. As the crowd settled back into their seats, he remained rooted to the spot by the podium. Alice placed a hand on his shoulder but he remained unmoved. The crew seemed to be unsure of what was supposed to happen next. There was a palpable relief as the comm signal buzzed on the podium and Lee tapped the key.

  “Pearce,” he said, in a voice on the verge of rage. “What is it?”

  “Captain,” the voice of the beta shift comm officer replied. “We’ve got a signal from the Alliance. It’s one of ours and they’re asking to speak to you.”

  “Thank you,” Lee said. “I’ll take it in here in just a minute.”

  “Sir, there’s one more thing,” Kama said in an uncharacteristically hesitant voice. “I had an idea. I’m not sure if it’ll work but I think maybe—”

  “Send it to my pad, Kama,” Lee said. “I’ll take all the help I can get.”

  Lee moved to the podium, retrieving a data pad assigned to him. He had brought the device in case he needed help explaining some of the technical details of the attack. As the idea scrolled along the screen, Lee’s heart quickened. He held the data pad up for Alice to see and she examined the screen closely. In a few short seconds, her eyes widened and she nodded to Lee. The crowd looked to him expectantly. The news of another Alliance ship was like a bright light in the darkness of the meeting. Lee took a deep breath before looking up at the crew. The lines in his face, never very deep, seemed to have grown through to his bones in just the last few moments.

  “Clear the room,” Lee said. “Captain Farthing and I will stay, but I want everyone else at your posts. Josh, get us ready to move. I want to be at Theta site as soon as Kongo undocks.”

  There were acknowledgements as the crews filed out into the hall. Farthing paused to give brief orders to Telexo before waiting for the room to clear. Last out was Alice, who seemed to think she was supposed to stay. A few whispered words and she was sent away as well. As the door closed, Farthing stepped closer to Lee and extended a hand to his old friend. Lee stepped away, turning and stepping back to the podium to tap a key.

  “Put the Alliance ship through now,” Lee said, handing the data pad to Farthing with a determined expression. “I think it’s time we took some of the wind out of the Gizzeen sails, Captain Farthing. Don’t you?”

  The Vadne captain’s crest rose steadily as he stared at the data pad. When he looked up, Lee could hear a deep rumbling from the man’s chest. Despite his peaceful nature, Farthing had always had the heart of a warrior. Lee had seen it back on Vadne and at other times as well. This time, however, the growl was not of anger but of excitement. The Vadne’s eyes twinkled and his whiskers twitched as he handed the pad back to Lee.

  “Indeed,” Farthing said to Lee. “I believe the winds have shifted to our backs. Let’s fill in the rest of the fleet, shall we?”

  Lee could only smile in return.

  24

  4…

  Orbit of Sedna – Empty Space

  Had there been anyone there to see it, the vortex would have looked bright and lively as the two ships exited together from M-space. As the light from the golden blue-brown portal faded, the two vessels separated. Beyond the light of the nearest star, the ships were running dark, with no external lights and a low electronic signature. As each took up position, the strange blue energy that clung to the surrounding space seemed to withdraw from the ships as if afraid of the contained power. As each ship came to a relative stop, the space paused in its retreat. Like the edge of an ocean, the blue mass appeared to be gathering itself for a wave, collecting energy from within to crash upon the two ships.

  The larger of the two ships burst into bright light as energy contained within its metal shell surged. Soon after the first ship lit up, the second, smaller ship followed suit. Strange calculations seemed to emanate from the two ships, driving the blue energy back from their position. With a sudden lurch forward, both ships moved along parallel courses towards a target too far away to see. As the ships accelerated, the blue energy rippled and parted. The light from the ships grew brighter the closer they came to the thick blue ocean, lighting a path through the darkness of space.

  Contact was made as the smaller ship burst into the area of high energy particles. Like a wave breaking over a rock, the blue matter smashed itself against the bow of the ship, creating more ripples, and a pressure wave ahead of the ship. The second ship pushed ahead as well, hurling energy forward of its path, both parting the blue with an angry vengeance. As the pressure waves merged, the ships vaulted ahead, faster and faster until they seemed to be riding the energy wave they pushed. The blue ripples became a wedge hurtling towards an unseen target at nearly the speed of light. A burst of energy flew from both ships and a new vortex opened ahead of the bow waves. Both ships broke off their headlong flight and swerved away. Waves of blue punched into the M-space portal, buffeting the energy spiral and throwing the empty non-space beyond into chaos. The vortex lasted only a few more seconds before destabilizing completely and fading from space.

  With the space around the ships rippling and crashing against the disrupted pressure waves, the two ships surfed upstream through the raging tides of blue. As the ships left the swirling maelstrom, another M-space portal opened and both ships entered. Anyone watching them entering the vortex would have sworn they were seeing two great fish being swallowed by a mighty whale. After, the only evidence of their passing was a cleared area of space and ripples of blue-gold. Of course, nobody was there to see any of it.

  Theta Site

  Resolute exited the vortex in a shower of electric gold sparks. The space surrounding Theta site was awash in tiny magnetic particles which let off small explosions as the fiery corona bled away from the ship. Just after their exit, the smaller vortex translation of Kongo induced the same reaction in local space. Both ships angled away from their command exit point and moved towards their designated coordinates. It had taken another round of conversation with the Chang simulation to coax the full coordinates from the navigational computer. It seemed to be arguing with itself at times, but the vessels were able to make the journey in safety.

  The system they emerged into contained two planets circling a brown dwarf star. The nearest world was small and totally devoid of life. Tidal forces created by the orbit continually crushed the planet and twisted it into an egg shape as it neared. The other planet was further away and dotted with mining colonies. Rocky outcroppings stretched for miles into the thin atmosphere, beckoning orbiting processing stations to take their bounty. Lee called to the planet on a frequency usually reserved for children’s broadcasts on remote planets and waited. They were reading signals from multiple ships in the area, but none were immed
iately visible on their scanners. It didn’t take long for the first response to appear.

  Two ships, each of the same vintage as both Kongo and Resolute, moved from behind the shadow of the mining planet. Quick scans showed they were fully armed but equipped with weapons from multiple races. A cruiser, barely holding itself together with sheer grit and determination, moved quickly into intercept range with Resolute. A third and fourth pair moved from the cloud of magnetic debris to close off any chance of escape. Lee held the arms of his command chair as the ships spread out, encapsulating the two Alliance ships within a cordoned perimeter.

  “Resolute,” came a voice from the speaker overhead. “Drop your shields and prepare to be boarded.”

  “Like hell,” Lee said to himself before waving to Kama to open the channel. “Unknown vessel, this is Alliance battleship Resolute and Kongo responding to your hail. Please identify yourself and stand down.”

  “I ordered you to stand down and prepare to be boarded,” the voice returned in a gruff tone. “Why is that so hard for you humans to understand? Drop your shields and prepare to be boarded or we will open fire.”

  “What in the hell is going on over there?” Goldstein said from the pilot station. “Are their scanners functional? Can they see we are a fully functional battleship?”

  “Unknown vessel, if you open fire on this ship you will be destroyed,” Lee responded with tightened lips. “This is your last warning. Please identify yourself and stand down.”

  “Pearce,” the voice replied with a gruff tone. “You never did know how to follow orders. I should have shot you last time I saw you.”