by Unknown
The first crewman continued his job of monitoring what the King was saying. "Sir, you may want to hear this," he warned.
Levid tore his eyes from the Lexington and turned around again and looked at the screen. The King was still into his speech.
"Our missiles will destroy our enemy," the King explained. "I have placed a television camera in the nose of the second rocket so you can see first-hand who our enemy is." The image on the screen suddenly switched to the Amad Por and stayed there. The ship was getting closer and closer on the screen. "For 60 years an alien being with his own interstellar ship has been manipulating us, causing us to hate our friends and even killing our people. There is the enemy we seek to destroy. We have joined forces with the Oreupens to rid ourselves from this menace. The people of our planet must be free to govern ourselves. To make our own progress, and our own mistakes. Our destiny will be determined by us."
Levid went white. He began to tremble with rage and terror. He looked back and forth at his crew. "Those barbarians," he screamed, “Engage our engines. Move the ship from orbit!"
His engineer looked at him in exasperation. "The engines are cold sir. I have started the process for ignition, but it will take some minutes. The only thing we have is thrusters."
Levid threw a pad of paper at him. "Then use the thrusters and get us out of the way of those missiles."
"Yes sir," the engineer said initiating the actions.
It was then that Hadaie’s final instructions to the Amad Por's computer were initiated. With the startup sequence for the main engines activated, the gimbals for each of the main engine thrusters trained to different positions, slammed into their stops and locked there. All but one set of thrusters shut down and released their fuel into space.
The Amad Por began moving slowly away from her station. Her few remaining thrusters were almost continually engaged as they tried to push the great mass of the ship. It was a feeble effort but she was moving, barely.
Aboard the Lexington the bridge crew watched her slowly leave her station.
"Sir, she is moving,” Day reported.
"Plot a course to put us directly in her path," Dickson said calmly. The Lexington had more than enough speed and maneuverability to keep the Amad Por at bay.
Day entered the commands and said, "Laid in sir."
"Make it so."
Lieutenant Day looked up from his position on the sensor console and reported, "Sir, the shuttle Galileo has gone sub-light and is entering orbit."
The shuttle suddenly slipped into a position a short distance from the Lexington and came to a stationary relative position. Commander Thompson appeared on the viewscreen.
"Thompson to Lexington. We have monitored what's happening. Where do you need us to help head him off?"
Dickson grinned at his First Officer. "Hang back and position yourself to cut him off if he tries to evade us. Is the ambassador appraised?"
Thedor stepped into view. "I am sir. You have the authority to detain and arrest Levid and his crew as necessary," he said with authority.
Dickson raised his hand. "That may not be necessary. It seems the people from this world have taken matters in their own hands."
Day turned in his seat. "Sir, there is another ship coming towards us at transpace speed. It will be here in less than one minute."
"Sir, we are being hailed," the communications watch said.
Now the face of Emir Toscan appeared on the viewscreen. "Lexington this is Emir Toscan aboard the Tetan ship Serus. I hope that we have arrived in time to assist you," the Emir said.
Thompson appeared when he spoke. "Captain, we weren't expecting them, but these gentlemen are from the planet Tetan."
The Emir appeared again with a grin on his face. He hadn't noticed that the shuttle had arrived. "Commander! I see we almost beat you here. When we were successful, I wanted to get here as fast as I could," he said.
"You are most welcome sir," said Dickson. "But right now we must keep Levid from escaping."
The Emir's face turned to a nasty scowl. "Leave that to me," he said, then turning to his crew, "Place me on a dual frequency so that I can talk to Levid and the others." When the man behind him nodded he turned again. "Amad Por, this is the Tetan ship Serus. Stop where you are," he demanded.
Levid's voice came through the system. "Tosca! So many years have passed. I see you still run things in your usual way."
The Emir was not about to be baited by the man. "Levid. I order you to stop your ship now and surrender yourself."
Levid began to laugh at the Emir. "I didn't then and I won't now," he began to scream.
"Then I order your crew to do so, at peril of death," he said to Levid's crew.
With the Emir's words, Levid pressed the firing sequence for the ship's main engines. When the engines fired, the gimbals of each unlocked and began slamming back and forth to each side in a random order according to the instructions Hadaie had programmed. The resulting confusion of thrust did no more than add a little more forward movement. More importantly, the large reinforced hoses providing fuel to the engines had been designed to be flexible so that the engines could move freely. But that had been 65 years ago. Years in the vacuum of space had caused the hoses to become brittle. Within minutes, raw fuel and oxidizer began to be pumped in great quantities into the areas surrounding the engines. It was inevitable that the searing heat of combustion from one of the engines would ignite the mixture. The resulting explosion blew the stern completely off the Amad Por.
On the bridge of the Amad Por, Levid was blown off his feet. He quickly recovered and struggled to stand next to the transmitter station. He stood there glaring at the speaker on the bulkhead. How dare he interfere after all these years. He should know better by now. Behind Levid the crewmen were slowly getting off the deck and pulling themselves into their seats. They sat there looking at each other.
"My crew is loyal to me. Our superiority will win out," Levid screamed into the microphone.
Even as he did some of the crewmen began manipulating the controls, killing the remaining thrusters. The Amad Por slowed. They then sat back and placed their hands in their laps, waiting for the inevitable.
Levid suddenly noticed that the ship was slowing and the sounds of the thrusters no longer carried through the hull. "What are you doing!" he cried. "Get this ship underway immediately!"
Aboard the Lexington, Captain Dickson watched the flames from the rear of the ship begin to travel through the hull. He watched the Amad Por slow and eventually stop. Although he couldn't see inside the ship, he could imagine what was going on. The fear and panic of a fire in space and the fear of their own leader were combining to drive Levid's men to desperation. Emir Toscan saw the same and asked, "Captain, can you assist us in getting the crew off?"
Dickson looked back at the Emir and nodded. It was a good plan. The crew was probably fed up after decades of subjugation. Now they had found their courage and needed rescuing.
"Certainly," he said to the Emir. "Streamer room, bring the crew of the Amad Por aboard. All but Levid."
On the Amad Por bridge, in a series of flashes, the crew vanished as Levid was busy punching instructions into the ship's control system. When he turned to his crew, he suddenly found himself alone. He turned and looked all around him and cursed. "Damn you Toscan!" he yelled shaking his fist at the transmitter. On the monitors behind him, the images from the missiles were getting closer and closer.
Emir Toscan also saw the warheads getting near. He decided to play his hand. "Levid, as the leader of the Tetan people, I, by the authority of my office, find you guilty of high crimes already determined by courts of law from your own world. In addition, I find enough evidence to find you guilty of murdering people from this world, interfering with the normal evolution of this planet, espionage, willful deceit and slander, conspiracy to murder and destroy said planet and its population through use of technology you control. All of these are capital crimes on your own world. I hereby sentence you
to death through your own seeds of destruction."
Levid sat down in his throne on the Amad Por bridge. Looking around him at his ship he began to chuckle. "My own seeds, you say? Well Emir. Just remember that those seeds have already taken root," he said with a snort. Then Levid began an almost maniacal laugh, gaining in intensity and pitch as it haunted the empty ship in which he was already entombed. At that same instant, the dual warheads from the Theran missiles exploded in a brilliant white flash as their energy engulfed and vaporized the Amad Por, burning through every molecule of the poor vessel's hull. The sturdy ship which had served her master for over 60 years didn't have the strength to withstand such an assault and evaporated in the intense heat and radiation. The Amad Por simply ceased to exist.
Aboard the Lexington, the sound of King Raterc's speech was still coming through the speakers. On Dickson's order, the television image was placed on the main viewscreen.
"So ends the enemies of our people," he said solemnly. "However there is more to our effort. We learned of this threat from other people who came to our planet in peace. They had come to learn and to offer friendship. For years we thought we were alone in this vast universe. Now we know it is not so. Although there is still evil out there, there is also much good. I join President Rapheli and other world leaders to welcome our new friends. To thank them for their support in what we had to do, and invite them to join with us in the peace and freedom we now share."
He seemed to look off camera a moment and then smile back into the lens. "It is time we saw who our friends are," he said. Suddenly the picture from space came back onto the screen and the image seemed to be turning. Within a moment, the shape of the Lexington came clearly into view on the screen. Her graceful lines were in sharp contrast to the image of the Amad Por. "I know they are listening, and invite them to join us on the surface in celebration of our new freedom," the King said.
Dickson tried to watch the image of the Lexington through the eyes of the people below. He wondered whether it would mean welcome, suspicion, friendship or pure terror. Finally he made his decision and a smile slowly emerged on his face. "She looks good doesn't she," he said.
Thompson's image came on the screen. "Permission to dock in the shuttle bay, Captain."
Dickson smiled at him. "Make it so, Number One. Emir Toscan. Would you care to join us on the planet's surface?"
"Gladly sir," came the immediate reply.
Chapter 20
New Beginnings
The day was bright and the sky sprinkled with clouds. The warmth of the sun gently settled on the small group of men talking on the patio of the King's palace. There, men from three different worlds were celebrating their own victories. At one point, a servant brought over a tray of drinks and each man selected one. Then a glass was raised.
"To new friends," King Raterc said.
Each glass was raised in turn and all drank, filled with the pleasure of knowing the great impact each had in helping bring this about. For the King and his friend, President Rapheli, there was the restoration of their world, and the ability to truly govern for the good of their own people again. For the Emir, it meant the opening of a whole new universe for his world and the chance to become a part of something much grander than they imagined. For Dickson, the upholding of what was right, not only for the Alliance, but personally as well, without the use of violence, was very reassuring. He also had more good news for all that had come.
"With your permission, Your Majesty. On behalf of the Alliance of Planets I extend to the people of Thera provisional membership in the Alliance. This will allow us to provide assistance and cultural and educational exchanges until you can become full members," he said.
Several of the Theran representatives, including their new Prime Minister Fredo, were pleasantly surprised. Fredo had thought that with their lack of the sophisticated technology their planet would be nothing more than a stopover toward some distant world. This was good news indeed, and from the applause of the others, welcome news as well. The King turned and winked at him.
"Having gone over the documents earlier with King Raterc, I am sure that I can expect our governments to adopt your provisions and sign the treaty in short order," the President said. "As a matter of fact, we have already mutually made arrangements for a planetary embassy and grounds to be located on our mutual borders. We hope to see your ambassador soon."
Again the applause was genuine and enthusiastic.
Then King Raterc stepped forward. "We also extend similar entreaties to the government of Tetan. Even though our problems came from your world, you were the ones to stand by us and help us rid ourselves of these problems. We ask that Ambassador Thedor remain with us to establish a similar treaty," he said to the Emir.
The Emir was about to respond when Dickson interrupted. "There may be no need. In addition to your provisional membership, I am authorized to offer full membership in the Alliance to the people of Tetan. When accepted, I anticipate you will both have a warm and lasting friendship. Besides, with membership in the Alliance, all planets share as equal members."
The Emir was elated. From the broad smile on his face, Dickson already knew his answer. "I can tell you now. It is accepted," the Emir said. "What is the use of being a great leader if you can't make quick decisions?"
They all laughed and applauded the decision.
"And I assure you. The Tetan people are not at all like Levid. We will do everything we can to right this wrong," he said extending his hand. King Raterc and President Raphelli each stepped forward to take it.
"We know," the President said with assurance. "Come let us celebrate. This is the beginning of a whole new world for all of us."
Again the applause came - this time with a warmer, deeper and more heartfelt meaning than before.
The cargo bay was dark. When the door opened, the automatic lighting systems came on and dimly lit the space as Mike and Jo walked in. They slowly made their way to a small silver colored plane sitting lonely in a corner of the huge space. Smudged with mud and marked with several holes in the wings, the Spirit sat patiently waiting for them to return.
Mike and Jo walked up to the plane, looking her over and gently rubbing their hands along her fabric covered wings and surfaces. This was their ship. As much as some loved the Lexington and what she did, Mike and Jo loved this little plane. Built with their own hands, it had carried them to freedom, and home.
Jo looked down into the two seated cockpit and saw the stains of her own blood where she had been shot and almost died in the escape. She was staring at the spot when Mike came up behind her and placed his arms around her to reassure her and give her a kiss on the neck.
"Do you think they will let us fly her again?" Jo asked.
"I hope so," Mike said, “On some world, where the sky is clean and the birds fly."
Jo squirmed around to face him. "You can take me on a belated honeymoon."
Mike smiled down on her and held up her hand. He then kissed the ring on her finger. "Thank Counselor Tosh for getting the ceremony set up. She was even able to get us a stateroom of our own. I don't think I could bear living with our parents."
Jo made a face. "Ugh. No. I want you all to myself for a while. Just you and me," she said as she pulled him to her for a more formal kiss.
The sound of someone else's voice startled them from their embrace. They had been so intent in their thoughts they had not heard someone else enter the bay.
"And what about us?" the voice asked.
Mike and Jo turned quickly and saw Rokka and Shala standing before them. They both went over to greet the friends they had grown to know so well. All were pleased at the reunion and showed it in the hugs and smiles and even the tears they shared.
"Came to see your craft, eh?" asked Rokka. "We thought you might be here."
"It is time that we should go back home, but wanted to see you one last time," Shala said gripping Mike's arm. It was plain that they didn't want to leave, and Mike and Jo didn't wan
t them to go. Rokka had been their "Best Man" and Shala had sat next to Jo's mother at the wedding. Jo had even wondered at one point who was crying more, her Mom or Shala.
"You are like our own children. We will miss," Rokka said.
"We will both miss you, too," said Mike at a loss for words.
"Maybe someday we will come back," Jo said.
"I believe that day will come sooner than you expected," came the voice of Captain Dickson. With him were King Raterc and President Rapheli. All were surprised, especially Rokka. He alone knew the men with the Captain.
"Your Majesty! Mr. President!
Rapheli walked forward and shook Rokka's hand warmly. "My old friend. It is good to see you safe."
Rokka was glad to see President Rapheli. They had grown close over the years while working on a variety of projects. He had not seen him for the last 12 years. "And my wife Shala, and two friends Mike and Jo. Yes it is good to see you again," he said.
Rapheli introduced the King. "Meet another friend."
King Raterc extended his hands. "I great pleasure. How often I studied your ideas and designs. I hope you will continue your work," he said warmly.
Rokka chuckled. "Oh, Your Majesty. I am growing older. It is not so easy."
Raterc nodded. "Then I think you need a worthy assistant," he said motioning for someone to come forward out of the darkness. A young man, in his mid-20s stepped into the light much to the surprise and emotional joy of Rokka and Shala.
"Panor!" Shala shrieked as she ran over to embrace her son. Rokka followed and threw his arms around both as they welcomed their son back.
"And Josen will be with you shortly," said the President. "He is performing some duties which delayed him."
Rokka was choking back the tears. He had placed his head next to his son's and was stroking his hair. He finally looked over at the people watching. "How can I thank you?"
"No thanks are necessary," said the King, shedding a tear of his own. "Now let me meet these two fine young people."