by Saxon Andrew
“And you wouldn’t do the same thing with the Animals?”
Grant’s mouth closed. He was going to point out the evil Earth had done but Cinny’s question shocked him. He stared at her in silence and she said, “You wouldn’t step back and let every other civilization die in order to prevent the deaths of the Animals?”
Grant took in a deep breath and slowly blew it out. He lowered his eyes and said, “I would do exactly that.”
“Yet you point your finger at Earth and call them evil for doing exactly what you’d do.”
Grant raised his eyes and stared at Cinny, “Alright, you’ve made your point. Humans deserve a chance to make up for their past actions. Why is this such an issue now?”
“How do you think any survivors of Avalon might feel about the same issue?”
Suddenly, Grant saw it. He started shaking his head, “They’d look for an opportunity to blast Earth down to the planet’ bedrock.”
“And if there are survivors on the Choten-Zan’s planet?”
“They will expect us to feel the same.”
“Are you sure you want to go there before we attempt to handle this new civilization?”
“Cinny, the Zan don’t have any starships.”
“Is that because they can’t or because they won’t?”
“I’m not sure what you’re saying?”
“What if the Zan know the Avalon Survivors would go after Earth if they had the means, what would they do?”
Grant thought for a moment and looked up, “They would not allow any warships to land or be built on their planet. They would not play a part in another planet’s destruction.”
“And here we go flying in with a Warship trying to make contact with them. What do you think they’ll want us to do?”
“Take them to the Orion.”
“Are you prepared to use the Orion to destroy Earth?”
Grant looked up, “Telah, what do you think about this?”
“Are you willing to say no to them if they’re there?”
Grant looked at Cinny, “Could you say no?”
“I’m not sure, Grant, they are, after all, our creators. I want to avoid being asked.”
Grant slowly nodded and looked up. “Ana, take us home.”
Cinny leapt out of her chair and jumped on Grant’s lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. “I love you, Grant.”
“I love you, too, Cinny. Thanks for helping me see this.”
“I’m truly thankful you could.”
• • •
The Dream arrived above the Animals’ Planet and Telah said, “Iggy and Slick have requested you remain in orbit until they resolve the issue confronting them.”
Grant looked at Cinny, closed his eyes while shaking his head, and said, “I didn’t think this through, did I?”
“No, you didn’t. You let you anger control you and now Earth will have to pay a price for your hatred.”
Grant lowered his head and shook it, “If they choose not to assist Earth, you and I can.”
“And just how long do you think we’d last without the Animals protecting us on our ships’ hulls?”
Grant put his head in his hands and said, “Please talk some sense into me next time before I do something this stupid.” Grant looked up, “Why didn’t you do it this time?”
“Grant, I didn’t really see it until Telah pointed out what we were moving toward.”
Grant sighed, “Let’s hope they think like Telah.”
“I don’t think you’d want that, Grant.”
“Why not?”
“I have nothing good to say about Earth. I am not sure if the Universe might not be better off without Humans. You two, and possibly those on Blake’s ship, are the only Humans I’ve come into contact with that are worth saving.”
Grant nodded and said, “Are you taking part in the discussion?”
“No. I think I’ve been contaminated by my intimate contact with you and Cinny. I’ve told them I’ll accept whatever they decide.”
Grant looked at Cinny and shook his head.
Chapter Fifteen
“Admiral Blake.”
“Yes Telee.”
“My family had decided that they will not assist you against this new civilization. The Genetics will be sending a ship to take me home.”
Blake felt immediate shock that was instantly replaced with fear. He felt his gut tighten, “Are you sure there’s no way we could convince you?”
Cleve blew out a breath and Blake looked at him, “Admiral, you can’t blame them. We’ve done everything in our power to kill them and we actually did kill some of them on what we thought was their home planet.”
“But we didn’t know.”
“No, but we should have known. We’d didn’t care enough to really look. You can’t blame them and you have to understand why they feel this way.”
Blake stared at Cleve and then looked at Telee, “He’s right. Thank you for all you’ve done to help us, Telee.” Blake looked at Aubrey, “Get Admiral Stockard on my panel.”
Blake waited and after a few minutes, Channing appeared. He saw Blake’s expression and sat back in his chair, “They’re not going to help us.”
“No Sir, they’re not.” Blake watched Channing’s expression and said, “What do we do now, Sir?”
“I’ve discussed this with my Father and we’re going to have to do this alone.”
“What do you mean?”
“We can’t allow the planets we’ve conquered to face this new conqueror. “We’ll send the modified cruisers and try to slow them down. We’ll fight until we have nothing left to fight them with.”
“Yes Sir.”
Telee said, “Admiral.”
Blake sighed, “Yes Telee.”
“It would be wiser to withdraw and hide while you build up your defenses.”
Channing said, “What was just said?”
“The Spider says we should withdraw and hide while we build up our defenses.”
Channing shook his head, “We are responsible for these civilizations being defenseless. We cannot…no we will not leave them during their hour of need. It’s not the right thing to do.”
Telee said, “Well, if that’s how you want to handle it, then we have no choice but to join you in their defense.”
Blake’s eyes narrowed, “I don’t understand.”
Telee bobbed once, “My family decided that Earth was not worthy of being defended. However, there was a large number of my family that felt that Earth is not like it once was. We decided to test you to see. If you had abandoned the civilizations you invaded, we would not work with you even to defend Earth. If you decided to defend the conquered planets, then that would tell us you are worth saving. I will give you coordinates to deliver the modified cruisers and we will take them to attack the Invaders on their turf.”
The entire bridge erupted into cheers and Channing was yelling for someone to tell him what was going on. He couldn’t hear Telee’s thoughts. “Sir, they’re going to help us.” Channing’s eyes narrowed and Blake said, “Your decision to defend the conquered planets is what made the difference.” Channing smiled and Blake’s display went dark.
• • •
Cinny and Grant sat with the Animals at the Lagoon and watched what was happening on Blake’s ship. Telee was sending the images to her sisters and they were sharing them with the gathering. When Channing said they would not leave the conquered planets defenseless, a huge cheer went up. Blake lowered his head and breathed a sigh of relief. Cinny put her arms around his shoulders and hugged him tightly.
Iggy looked at Slick and shook his head, “Who would have expected this?”
Slick bobbed twice, “Our children. They’re the ones that wanted to help them. They appear to know these humans better than we do.”
A young female Spider thought to them, “You weren’t there when the human fleet fought the invaders. They were willing to die to defend that planet. We knew they were h
onorable when we listened to their thoughts during the battle. The soldiers on the planet were also willing to die to fight off the Invaders’ ground forces. They really are worth saving.”
Iggy looked at Slick and tilted his head, “Well, I guess we should start getting ready to go to war.” Iggy crawled over to Grant and Cinny, “I want you to know that we all appreciate you allowing us to decide this on our own.”
Grant looked up and Iggy saw his fatigue. He hadn’t slept for more than four days while they made the decision. Grant smiled, “Thank you. You made the right decision.”
“No, they made the right decision. It should have been theirs to make. I must say that I didn’t expect it. Maybe they’ve changed.”
Cinny nodded, “Everything I’ve seen since their old leaders were removed supports they’re different.”
Iggy nodded and went to start organizing his children.
• • •
Stockard looked at Tatum and heard his father say, “Why did you tell them we would not abandon the conquered planets?”
“Because we shouldn’t.”
“That doesn’t mean we wouldn’t.”
Channing stared at his father and said, “Would you like me to play this conversation to Earth’s population and see what they think about their new leader abandoning the planets we’ve conquered?”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
“Sir, if you haven’t learned that craven desire for power is a receipt for disaster, you should really take a good look at your predecessors.”
Tatum stared at his son and leaned back, “You’re daring me to remove you.”
“Yes I am. I happen to believe you’re better than you’re acting. I pray you’ll prove me right.”
Tatum watched the monitor go dark and he sat in his office for an hour before he pulled up recordings of meetings the former Prime Minister had held. He watched the man and saw him abuse his power numerous times to strengthen his position.
Two hours later he sighed and turned off the recordings. He had to decide what road to travel. He lifted his hand to send a team of Special Warriors to arrest Channing but then asked himself an important question. If he had to follow Channing or the old Prime Minister, whom would he choose? He lowered his hand and began smiling. Perhaps he was better than he thought.
• • •
“Cinny, I’m concerned about what this new aggressor might be capable of doing.”
Cinny sighed, “Do you really think they removed the bulk of the galaxy they’re located in?”
“I sincerely hope they didn’t but if they did…”
Cinny nodded slowly, “They have a weapon that is beyond anything we can imagine.”
“If they do, nothing can stand up to that level of power. We would need to find the Orion if they do.”
“How can we find it?” Grant blew out a breath and shook his head. “Should we attempt to see if our feeling is stronger as we move around the galaxies around Earth?”
“Cinny, the strength of those feelings haven’t changed in the slightest no matter where we gone during this conflict.” Grant stood up and walked over to the front viewport on the Nemesis and stared out at the thousands of ships Earth had delivered to them. He shook his head and said, “I feel I should try to negotiate a settlement.”
Cinny jumped out of her chair rushed up to Grant. She grabbed his chin and made him look at her, “What are you considering?”
“Before we launch an attack on them, we should see if it’s possible to stop their attacks.”
“Grant, they’ll kill you if you try! Besides they won’t listen.”
Grant turned to Cinny, “How do you know that?” Cinny stared at Grant in silence and he slowly shook his head, “We don’t know if they’d listen. We have to try before we start an interstellar war that would lead to billions of deaths.”
“Grant, don’t do this!”
“It has to be done; can’t you see this?” Cinny’s tears started and she wrapped her arms around him. Grant lifted her chin and said, “If the worst happens, Slick and Iggy have my finger growing.”
“But you won’t be here if the war starts. We need you to guide us.”
“You can do it just as well as me, Cinny. I’ll join you later if they won’t listen.”
“Grant!”
“Cinny, if this war can be prevented, we have to try.”
“I could do it!”
Grant shook his head, “You’ve bonded with Telah and we need her helping us communicate. It would take months for me to get up to speed working with her. You know I’m the one that has to do this.”
Cinny wiped her tears and looked out of the viewport, “How do you intend to do this?”
“I’ll enter normal space and request them to communicate with me. Ana has broken their encryption and they’ll hear me.”
“What happens if they attack instead?”
Grant pointed out of the viewport, “Those ships will be there with us and they’ll take immediate action against their fleet.”
“Grant, those ships haven’t even been trialed against those new ships.”
“The science seems to be good. They build them similar to each other and we know they have four areas where they put their reactors. All we have to do is hit one of them. The Dragons and Spiders have demonstrated they can withstand their beams long enough to get off a shot. With the female Spiders keeping us organized, we should be able to make multiple attacks.”
“You don’t think they’ll listen, do you?”
“The evidence seems to say they are a very aggressive species. However, we won’t know unless we make the effort.”
“There’s no way I can talk you out of this?” Grant shook his head. “Then I want you to try to escape if they look aggressive.”
“Cinny, I know they’re going to surround me as soon as I enter normal space. Just how will I do what you’re asking?”
Cinny stamped her feet and said, “I DON’T WANT YOU TO DO THIS!!!”
Grant pulled her close and said, “Just make sure they pay a price for not listening.”
“Of that you can be sure…if this new weapon really works.”
“If it doesn’t, then that’s even more reason to do this.”
Cinny shook her head and held him tightly.
• • •
Blake looked at Aubrey and shook his head, “He’s going to do what?”
“Attempt to communicate with them and see if the war can be prevented.”
“That’s ludicrous.”
Cleve shrugged, “Someone should do it. Would you like to volunteer?”
“Don’t let your smart mouth write a check your backside can’t cash, Cleve. I said it’s ludicrous, where in that do you see a possibility I would even consider it? He shouldn’t do it either.”
Cleve nodded, “I apologize if I sounded disrespectful, Sir. However, someone should try and talk some sense into this civilization before an interstellar war kicks off.”
“IT’S ALREADY KICKED OFF!! THEY INVADED HEGOTH!” Cleve sat down and remained silent. Blake shook his head, “He’s crazy to do this.”
Bobbi leaned in and whispered, “I admire his chutzpah to try.” Cleve looked at her and nodded.
• • •
Cinny sat on the Dream staring at the cruisers forming up above the planet and then looked at Telah, “How many ships do we have ready to go?”
“All but eight hundred of them are crewed and ready. The others should be ready in another five days.”
“Have they been running trials on moving in on targets without being seen?”
“Earth has provided more than two thousand battleships for us to practice on for that purpose.”
“And?”
“So far, only one of our ships has been seen.”
“That’s one too many.”
“It didn’t have the hull completely covered. One of the Dragons was too young to grow large enough to cover his assigned position.”
“Do we h
ave enough to do this?”
“We actually have more than enough and Earth is going to send us more ships in four weeks.”
“Telah, I really hope this new weapon works. If it doesn’t, we’re in it up to our necks.”
“The Earth Specialists were able to get the force field working on one of the derelicts the Invaders left behind and…”
“Those ships are tiny compared to the ones at that planet.”
“Cinny, let me finish.”
“Go ahead.”
“The new splinter blew through that force field without even being slowed. That splinter was fired with a makeshift launcher that is nowhere near the power of the ones on our ships. The recording you brought back with you shows that those new ships use the same force field as the ships we faced here.”
“But it has to be more powerful.”
“I looked at the thoughts of the lead Specialist and he is of the opinion that power has nothing to do with the technology of the new splinter. He says it’s like hitting glass with a beam of light; the light will pass through it no matter how thick it is. However, that same piece of glass could stop a high powered armor round.”
Cinny looked up, “Ana, how many of those launchers do we have to use?”
“There are three of them that are placed between the two main beam projectors. The launchers can fire a spread of three splinters and reload the first tube before the third one fires.”
“What can either of you tell me about the splinter?”
Ana began reciting, “Its ten feet long, shaped like a small sewing needle, travels at more than a mile a second, and has a chemical explosive inside it that ignites after penetrating the hull.”
“It can’t hold very much explosive at that small size.”
“It could actually hold more than it does. That explosive is an order of magnitude stronger than anything I have in my databanks.”
“How much more?”
Telah thought to her, “I understand that nuclear explosions are described as kilo or metric tons of TNT, whatever that is. A nuclear explosion of a hundred metric tons would be expressed as a ton of this new explosive.”
Cinny whistled, “A small amount of that would vaporize our ship.”
Ana said, “And three splinters will be fired at each target. Another benefit of the small size is that even a cruiser could carry a thousand of them in its belts.”