The General jumped in. “An army could take its best and strongest trooper, scan him, make augmentations and print out as many super copies as wanted. They could create a super race in no time.”
“That means we have to control the supply of Carbonado diamonds. If the bandits get a hold of them we’ll have problems. I’m sure that’s why they’re here,” I stated.
I nodded and said, “Control is difficult. Who knows how many the bandits already have? Keep in mind that once someone creates a new technology it will get developed. If it’s viable, sooner or later it will be developed. Look at nuclear weapons. Once the Americans showed it was possible, it was a matter of time until Russian, China, and even North Korea developed their own.”
“That technology was kept at the strictest security level and still got out to America’s enemies.” The General added.
“Well, General the sooner your people interrogate this man the better,” Julie stated.
Julie knew full well that the military interrogation used drugs which often left a person with brain damage. They would wring out every bit of information from a subject but leave him a babbling and drooling shell. She was suggesting the military do this to her father.
We adjourned our little meeting. Julie and I remained in the room to clear the table and wash the cups.
“Julie, are you sure you’re okay with all this?” I asked
“Jack, I came to terms with not having a father, years ago. My mother told me he’d left and not died when I was in my teens. I kept telling people he died when I was a baby, only because it was easier and that's what my mother wanted. Liam Horan is a stranger to me. The only thing we have in common is our surname and some DNA. Remember, slimy deep-sea acorn worms and I share 70% of our DNA. With that in mind, Liam’s contribution doesn’t mean much.” She answered.
Chapter 27
Over the next few days, the Genus troopers cleared up the debris left scattered around the hilltop and in the forest from the battle. The caverns opened, and the Trolls came back out into the sun. Our relief cargo ship arrived captained by my old friend John.
Aboard that ship was a passenger I was excited to speak with, Thom Rustack. I had Jim Thule meet him and take him around. I was afraid there could be friction between the two. Not so much from Thom, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it came from Jim. After all, reviving the alien spacecraft was his idea and he had done all the work to prepare it. I told him to sit and wait for Thom. I realize now Jim must have felt I didn't have faith in his ability.
I was down on Chico 7 and went to the mess tent for dinner. Our new cooks had joined right in and tonight’s dinner was at the level it should be. Two main entrees, crispy pan-fried chicken with creamy mashed potatoes and country gravy or tangy BBQ pork roast with mac and cheese. The hard-working Genus troopers love it. They ended the meal with a creamy bread pudding drizzled with a sweet bourbon sauce and a scoop of home-made vanilla ice cream. As I always say, everything is better a la mode. Of course, there was a do it yourself salad station and a choice of grilled balsamic asparagus, sweet corn on the cob, or tasty rice pilaf. Every trooper had his tray piled high with some of everything.
Sitting at a table by themselves were the two engineers. They were deep in their conversation when I approached with my loaded tray. “Can I join you, gentlemen?” I asked.
They cleared a spot for me, moving their pads to make room. “How are things going? Have you taken Thom down to the ship yet?” I asked
Jim answered. “Thanks for making me wait. I might have blown us all up without him here. He found a flaw in my venting plan. We corrected it and have it running now. The sensors show the gases in the ship and the cavern to be at safe levels. We're hoping to try a power-up after dinner if that is okay with you.”
“Thom, what do you think?” I asked.
In his slow and steady manner, he replied. “It’s ready. Jim, here did a great job of identifying the components. I’m positive he can power it up and we can pull the data. Those green crystals are nifty. Whoever designed the ship's systems sure knew what they were doing with quantum computing.” Thom answered.
“Quantum computing? How do you know that?”
“It’s the only thing those circuits could be. Their central computer and AI are quantum computers. They run everything on board that ship, including the warp engines. He said.
“I’m not quite up to date, warp engines? I sounded puzzled because I was.
Thom replied. “That’s all they could be. Plus, there are the remains of warp field antenna on the hull. Most have broken off over the centuries, but the mounts are still there.”
“No one has ever seen a warp engine or warp field antenna before. How can you be so sure that is what they are?” I wanted to know.
“Well, what else could they be? If they aren’t warp engines and antennas, then I have no idea.” Thom said.
“You’re joking,” I said
“Not at all. I know no one has made one yet, but that doesn’t mean anything. We never knew of these Trolls until recently, now did we?” Thom said.
I looked at Jim for confirmation. “What do you think?”
Jim Thule smiled at me and said, “Jack, I think he’s right.”
“Okay, no one turns on anything until I get there. I have to go take care of something else first, but I will be there when you power up the ship, understand?”
I had to talk to Chris and the General. This was a more significant discovery than the Trolls. I found them at the command tent. They were working out the exchange of prisoners and our special guest Liam Horan. Horan had stayed aboard Lola so that Julie and I could continue to interview him.
I burst in, a little out of breath, and accepted a bottle of water from the General before I told them of the new developments. They agreed they wanted to be there for the power up.
We met Jim Thule and Thom Rustack in the cavern. Jim was taking final sensor readings to ensure the gas had cleared the spaceship and the cavern. The last thing he wanted was to spark an explosion. Dr. Francis and Dr. Mariano were also there. This might be the discovery of a lifetime and there would be no way they’d miss it.
Last to arrive were Dora and Goorow. We had all agreed Goorow needed to be there. It was, after all, his people’s ship and in a way, a shrine. Jim asked Dora if Goorow would like to press the button to power up the systems. She told Goorow and he responded he would be happy to do so.
The only people in the spacecraft during the power-up were Jim and Thom. Both were in their power suits and wearing their helmets with the visors sealed. Should there be problems this might protect them from electrocution or a flash fire. I liked the idea and had insisted that everyone else do the same.
Word had spread about Thom’s idea about the ship and anyone who could found their way to the cavern. Jim and Thom had programmed a few safeguards into the power-up sequence. It would look for safety problems and stop the power up. “After all,” Thom said, “This ship has lied buried for a millennium, no need to rush things if they aren’t safe.”
If excitement could power up the ship, it would be lit like a billboard sign by now. Everyone tried to position themselves for a better view inside the spacecraft. Jim called for silence so that they could hear if there were any problems with the power up.
Once Thom and Jim were in place, they asked Dora to have Goorow press the power button. His big finger pressed down on the red power button and the ship began to come alive. Inside the ship’s cockpit, lights came on in sequence. Like any computer, the systems began to boot up.
I expected this would occur. It can take up to twenty minutes for Lola to boot up from a cold start. We always keep a shore power line connected or a generator going. That’s why it surprised me when Thom announced the ship’s computers had booted up in less than one minute.
Jim announced from inside the ship, the systems appear to be up and running properly. He added the disclaimer that he didn’t know what properly was for this ship. Thom asked fo
r the two scientists to step inside. Francis and Mariano stepped with care into the ship. No else stepped forward. I had made it clear that the experts needed time to evaluate and make sure the systems were safe.
After a nerve-wracking ten minutes, Mariano and Francis stepped out of the spacecraft and lifted their visors. Smiles spread from ear to ear on both their faces. They waved to me and Chris to come forward. Mariano spoke for the two of them, “You’re going to want to see this.”
We stepped inside the Troll’s ship and went forward towards the cockpit. As we neared, I could hear a muffled voice speaking a foreign language. The voice didn’t belong to Thom or Jim. Those two knelt with their backs to us. Their attention was locked on a small dashboard display in front of the pilot’s seat.
The voice was clear now that we’d approached. The language, foreign but somehow familiar, it had both a Germanic and Gaelic sound. This didn’t surprise me much. I had recently learned from Dr. Mariano, both those languages shared an overlap in their lineage. While separate languages, they borrowed much from each other in their development. The people speaking the two lived in adjacent areas and trade between the two was common. A shared lexicon benefited them. As their culture spread through more of Europe, this amalgam of languages spread with them.
I see now why the two scientists were smiling. They knew they’d be able to translate this language into English.
Thom and Jim were examining the dashboard with renewed interest. Jim saw me and said, “The two specialists think they can translate and decipher the runes. They were going back to their computers with a copy of the voice. By the way, this is what the pilot of this craft looked like.” He pointed at the small screen. There seated in the pilot’s seat and speaking to us was a creature that bore a great resemblance to Goorow, apart from lighter brown hair rather than black, and a less protruding brow ridge. I could swear this creature was a Sasquatch.
I called Dora to come forward with Goorow. A moment later the two entered. We made a way for Goorow to come forward. He sat in the pilot’s seat and looked down at the video display. Dora explained what he was looking at.
Goorow turned to me. “This is good. Goorow thank you.” He said.
Once we were back up on the surface Julie, Chris, Nicky, the General, and I sat around a table in the command tent discussing what had occurred.
“I half expected some disaster like you see in the movies. You know something like that one with the WWII ship that disappears for a minute then returns and the sailors aboard are now melted into the structure. As big a discovery, it was almost a let-down.” I said.
They all chuckled and agreed. The General asked, “Any idea when they’ll be able to determine the function of the drives? Are they Warp drives?”
Chris answered, “Thom and Jim promised to let us know as soon as possible. I promise to let you know when I do.”
Julie spoke up. “Gentlemen, it’s getting late and I want to sleep in my own bed on Lola tonight. We have the prisoner transfer in the morning, so I suggest we all get moving.”
She was right, so we all departed to our shuttles which would take us to our respective ships. Once aboard Lola, Julie and I went to our cabin. We'd intended to be amorous tonight, but the excitement and activity of the day overruled our intentions, and we both fell asleep before we knew it.
Chapter 28
I was in the ship’s mess hall enjoying my breakfast. How could you miss with Eggs Benedict, fresh fruit, and a great cup of coffee? I had gotten there early, so there weren’t many eating yet. They'd be here soon.
As if they had coordinated it, Julie and Chris came through the hatch together. They saw me at a table and grabbed their breakfast before joining me. Julie decided on a lighter breakfast, fresh fruit, and a soft-boiled egg. Chris had gone for the gut buster. Biscuits and gravy, breakfast sausage, a side of pancakes, and of course they both had coffee. They sat down and arranged their meals in front of them.
After each had a bite, I began. “How are we doing the prisoner transfer this morning?”
“They're using one of the frigates, the USS Illinois, for the prisoners. Our shuttles can’t dock with them. They don’t have a hangar, so they’ll be sending their shuttle and guards for our prisoner in an hour. They’ve already retrieved the prisoners from the planet, and they’re waiting on our one special guest.” Chris answered.
Julie responded, “Let’s hope it goes smooth and we can be rid of the prisoners. I want to finish up here on Chico 7 and go home.”
Chris and I agreed with her. It had been an intense stay even if it wasn’t that long.
“Jack, have you heard anything from Thom or Jim this morning? I imagine they were up most of the night working on the spacecraft. Same goes for Francis and Mariano.” Chris asked.
“No, nothing yet. I’m not surprised. They must be like kids on Christmas morning. I’ll check on them after we eat." I answered.
Once done with breakfast, I wound my way to the bridge. While sending the message to Jim Thule asking for an update, we received a call from the Illinois’s shuttle. It was on its way.
I contacted Chris and let him know. He’d arrange to have the prisoner brought to the hangar bay. I then let Julie know. I thought she might like to be there to see her father off. I still didn’t understand her lack of emotion for this man. It didn’t make sense to me.
I excused myself from the bridge and went up to the hangar bay. Chris was there waiting. He had four troopers, all with sidearms. Between them stood Liam Horan. Shackled with his hands behind his back and in leg irons. Chris wasn’t taking any chances.
“Well Captain Tracey, nice of you to see me off. I never did thank you for rescuing me from the dying ship. By the way is my dear sweet daughter coming to see me off?” Horan asked.
“Oh, I wouldn’t miss it for the galaxy,” Julie said with a hint of sarcasm, as she walked up behind us.
In a heavy brogue but with that warm Irish lilt, Liam answered, “Ah my darling lass. You look beautiful this morning. Captain, you be sure to take good care of her or I’ll be sure to haunt you. Get to work and make me a grandfather too. I'd love a bunch of wee ones.” He paused for a moment and looked at Julie. “I suppose it is too much to ask to have you name one after me. Liam Tracey does have a nice ring to it.”
I answered for Julie, “Yes, it is too much to ask.”
The military shuttle pulled through the hangar door and taxied near to us. Once they’d shut down the engines and the hangar crew connected the shore power, we stepped through the hatch. Chris led the way, followed by his men escorting the Rapparee. I stayed behind as did Julie. Without a word, she turned and left as Liam looked over his shoulder to see if she was still there.
The shuttle raised its hatch and our deck crew disconnected the shore power. Chris and the troopers stepped back through the hatchway as the shuttle began to taxi towards the hangar doors.
Once back on the bridge, I had the ship’s video feed follow the military shuttle and watched it on the big holo-screen at the front of the bridge. The shuttle began to maneuver for its docking procedure. The Illinois had come about and was facing Lola.
Off to the Illinois’s port side, there was a glow. An egg-shaped plasma field grew. It couldn’t be much further away than a kilometer. As the glowing field grew and I began to see detail. It was a ship. An electric blue-green beam lanced out from the mystery ship to the shuttle. It lasted no more than two seconds. Before anyone could react a photon cannon on the ghostly ship lashed out at the shuttle. The shuttle exploded in a brilliant blast. Nothing and no one could have survived that.
“Battle Stations, Battle Stations,” I shouted into the ship's intercom. I had also hit the alarm button sounding the klaxon around the ship. People were running in the corridors and hatches were slamming.
“Iwona raise the Illinois bridge immediately. Forward the video we’re watching to them. Al, on weapons, go hot with everything. We’re under attack, at least our group is.” I ordered. “Target
the new ship and fire.”
Before Al could get off a snapshot, the mystery ship turned away from us, and in an instant, it was gone.
“What the hell happened,” I asked myself.
Chris came running into the bridge moments later. “What happened?” He asked.
Iwona replayed the incident for him.
“Are there any survivors?” Chris asked.
“We’re not picking up any signs of survivors. We’re not picking up any signs of anything larger than dust. That shuttle disintegrated.” She said.
My concern right now was the safety of our ship. “Do our sensors show any hostiles in the area?” I asked.
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