Nemesis: The Search for Orion

by Saxon Andrew

  “I hope we don’t have to use them.”

  Telah bobbed, “You haven’t been able to talk him out of it?”

  “No, I haven’t.”

  “I’m so sorry, Cinny.”

  Cinny nodded and looked out of the viewport. After five minutes she stood up and Telah said, “You should go.”

  “I told him I’d not speak to him if he wouldn’t back off.”

  “He needs your support.”

  Cinny nodded and ran off the bridge.

  The Watcher looked at his panel and saw two thousand more Heavy Battleships had arrived and were forming up above the planet. The final six thousand should arrive within the next seven days and then the planned invasion could begin. He shook his head and activated his display and replayed the videos from the first invasion.

  He watched his ships being destroyed and knew it was due to his being tied down to covering the troops on the planet. He looked at his panel and pulled up the videos made by the ground forces. He shook his head at the violence those giant creatures had inflicted on the troops dropped on the largest city. He pulled up the casualty figures and saw that more than three thousand had died there. He started to turn the video off but suddenly noticed that more than two thousand troops were lost in the other drops. His eyes narrowed and he pressed his communicator. The Lead Mover appeared on his display and he said, “I’ve just noticed that you lost more than two thousand troops at cities other than the largest one where the beasts attacked.”

  “Yes Watcher. The numbers have been revived and the number lost is now more than four thousand.”

  “How were they killed?”

  The Mover stared at the Watcher and said, “I assume their armor was overwhelmed by enemy blaster fire.”

  “Your videos show their bodies are on the ground and don’t appear to have been burned.”

  “Give me a moment.” The Watcher waited and two minutes later the Mover appeared, “It seems you are right. They don’t appear to have been burned.”

  “Then what killed them?”

  “My troops were unable to investigate. They were under heavy fire and we were forced to evacuate before we could examine them.”

  “See if any of your troops saw anything.”

  “Yes Watcher.”

  The Watcher stared at the dark display. Did this new enemy have a means of penetrating the troops’ armor? The troops used a force field similar to the one used by his warships, only on a much smaller scale. He pulled up the video again and stared at the dead bodies littering the streets. He pulled in the view on one of them and stared at it. There was no visible trace of damage to the dead trooper’s armor. How was he killed? He looked over his shoulder at his Lead Seeker and said, “I want you to go and interview the surviving troops from the first invasion. I want to know how some of them were killed in other cities where the beasts did not appear.”

  “Yes Watcher. I’ll leave immediately.” The Watcher watched him leave and shook his head. He wasn’t going to depend on the Lead Mover to get answers. If the ground troops’ force fields were penetrated, what did that say about the safety of his warships? He didn’t feel good about what was happening.

  • • •

  “Cinny, have the ships been given their targets?”

  “Ana used the recordings I made and has extrapolated their warships’ locations based on our position. Before you emerge into normal space, our warships will enter and move in on their targets.”

  “Shouldn’t you wait until you see what happens?”

  “Would you?”

  Grant stared at her and after a moment shook his head, “No, I guess I wouldn’t.”

  “Well, we have the rest of today. However, I need another finger.”

  “Why?”

  “The one you left doesn’t have the memories of anything that’s happened since before the first invasion. I want you…” Cinny grabbed his cheeks and made him look at her, “You as you are at this moment.”

  Grant stared at her and then reached for his knife, “You know this will delay me coming back.”

  “The first one won’t understand when I tell him ‘I told you so’. Besides, you’re worth the wait.”

  “What are you going to do with the first one?”

  “Blast it after I’m sure this one is growing. There can only be one of you.”

  Grant smiled and raised the knife.

  • • •

  The High Priest looked at the weapon operator, “What do you want?”

  “We want permission to start building warships.”

  “You know I cannot allow that.”

  “There is a new enemy that must be faced.”

  “I know that but my concern lies with old enemies.”

  “We can help in this coming conflict.”

  “Then you should have never agreed to my requirements for you to come here.”

  “Surely you can see that we’re needed?”

  “Even if I could; I’d not allow you to build warships.”

  “Why?”

  “You have a debt you intend to collect from Earth.”

  “What business is that of yours?”

  “It wasn’t my business until you begged me to allow you to come here. If you had gone elsewhere, I’d not have anything to say. However, I will not allow anyone that accepts our hospitality to go out and commit mass murder.”

  “They did it.”

  “They were not invited into my home.”

  “We control the weapons on this planet.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “We could force you to allow us to build ships.”

  “Then stop wasting my time and do it.” The Operator stared at the High Priest and saw he was not bothered by the threat. “Leave my quarters.”

  “But…”

  “Leave my quarters. I do not communicate with those that are dishonorable.” The Operator turned and left the room.

  The Head Servant watched him go and turned to the High Priest, “What are you going to do about this?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

  “Leave them alone. Once they take a good look at this new species that fancies itself a conqueror, they’ll lose their desire to leave.”

  The Head Servant stared at the High Priest and then bowed and left his quarters.

  • • •

  “He said no.”

  “Did you tell him we control the weapons?”

  “I did and he told me quit wasting his time and use them.”

  “He must know that the majority does not support building warships.”

  “He must. However, I think this new enemy might make it easier for us to get what we want.”

  “Are you that blind?”

  “What?”

  “Do you think danger will be an impetus for us to leave the safest place in the Universe?” The Operator struggled with the concept and heard, “Your hatred of Earth blinds you to what is really happening around you. Many of us have seen the revolution on Earth and see they are doing the right things now. You need to go and visit the other sites and see how many think like you do.”

  The Operator stood up and walked away, “I’ll do just that.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  “All ships, we’ll be jumping in thirty minutes. Make sure you’re in contact with Telah at all time.”

  Cinny sat back and shook her head. Telah listened to her thoughts and said, “You know it’s the right thing to do.”

  “I should be taking part in the battle.”

  “Then who would take your place and make the strategic decisions that must be made?” Cinny fumed in silence. “Cinny if you were involved in combat, no one would be able to see the overall movements of the Invader ship’s to call a withdrawal if needed. We need you to be able to see the whole picture instead of just the ships you might be attacking.”

  Cinny blew out a breath, “I know…I just don’t like it!”

  Grant
appeared on Cinny’s display, “I’ll be jumping two minutes after your fleet.” Cinny nodded and Grant said, “Cinny, I can’t fight you on this any longer. If you tell me not to do it, I won’t.”

  Cinny’s smile was instant and then she looked at Telah. What was going to happen to the Animals of this war started? Then she saw the blasted cities on Hegoth. Her smile faded and she shook her head. “You’re right, someone has to do this.”

  “And if anyone else did…”

  Cinny sighed and nodded slowly, “Then their death would be permanent.” Cinny looked at Grant on her display, “I just love you so much I…”

  “I know. I hate putting you through this.”

  Cinny nodded and then smiled, “Maybe you can stop this madness.”

  “I intend to give it my best shot. I’ll see you, soon.”

  The display went dark and Cinny looked at the countdown. She started thinking and Telah sent her thoughts to the six thousand warships gathered above the Animals’ Planet, “You have your orders. If they open fire on The Nemesis, you will immediately hit your first targets. Waste no time firing on your secondary targets and then start firing on any Invader ship that presents an opportunity. Jumping in five, four, three, two, one…”

  • • •

  Grant waited and heard Ana say, “Why did you remove the Dragons and Spiders on your hull?”

  “The ships firing at me, if they do, are much more powerful than the ones that invaded Hegoth. I don’t believe they would survive if more than two of those ships fired on us.”

  “What if they fire as soon as you appear?”

  “Then I will have made a mistake. However, I’m not going to risk having them killed.”

  “Do you think they’ll listen?” Grant was silent and Ana said, “I thought so.”

  “It has to be done, Ana.”

  “Would you have done this with Earth if they hadn’t changed their ways?” Grant thought about the question and didn’t know how to answer it. A moment later Ana said, “Jumping now!”

  • • •

  “WATCHER! A small ship had appeared two thousand miles outside our formation. Defense ships are moving in on it now.”

  “I would like to communicate with whoever is in command of this fleet. My force field is down and my weapons are offline.”

  The Watcher looked at his Seeker and he nodded. “Hold off firing on that ship.” The Defense ships roared in on the Nemesis and gathered around it. The Watcher looked at his Seeker, “How did it come here without being seen?”

  “I have no idea how it did that.”

  “How has it been able to break through the encryption on our communications?” The Seeker could only shake his head. The Watcher pressed a button and after a moment, Chelag appeared on his panel, “What do you want!?”

  “Great Leader, a small ship has appeared here at the gathering of ships and has requested to communicate. What would you have me do?”

  “How did it arrive and still be alive?”

  “We have no answer for that. We also don’t know how it broke the encryption on our communications.”

  • • •

  Cinny looked at the tiny Spider sitting on her control panel furiously entering numbers on a small keyboard. Gaylee was one of Gayla’s children and possessed an extraordinary level of telepathic powers. Slick had insisted that she go with Cinny and Telah to assist them in coordinating the attack, “Gaylee, do you see where that transmission is originating?”

  The small Spider looked up and focused on the conversation, “The thoughts of the one conversing with the fleet’s Commander are coming from a planet across the void of this galaxy.”

  “Please tell Ana the coordinates.” Cinny turned back and watched her display as she heard the small Spider entering numbers at high speed on the keyboard. So far, Grant had not been attacked. She closed her eyes and prayed.

  • • •

  Chelag stared at the Watcher and said, “What would you do?”

  “There are some things about this new civilization that bothers me. How they are able to find us is one of the things we need to discover.”

  “See what they want and keep a channel open so I can hear what’s said.”

  The Watcher looked at his Talker and he nodded the channel was open. He pressed a button on his panel and said, “I am in command. Why are you violating our space?”

  Grant tilted his head, “I assumed from your uninvited arrival at the planet you just attacked that you don’t worry about violating anyone’s space. Should I have called in advance and requested an invitation?”

  “That disrespect can get you killed.”

  “I don’t intend it as disrespect. I’m following the behavior you’ve demonstrated. I’ve come here to try and prevent our civilizations from going to war against each other. We do not represent a danger to you and we will promise to never attack you. All we ask is that you leave us in peace.”

  The Watcher paused and knew Chelag was listening. He had no choice but to say the ideology of his species, “We do not allow other intelligent civilizations to survive to attack us. Yours is a wasted trip.”

  “But our civilizations are no match for your ships. Why is it necessary to kill other civilizations?”

  “We were attacked long ago and were at the point of extinction before we developed the weapons we needed to remove our attacker. That will never happen to us again.”

  “You sound like you really hate this attacker you describe.”

  “We exterminated that species and everything they built.”

  “So now you’ve become exactly like the one you hate so much. What you hate the most about that species, you’ve now become.” The Watcher was shocked by the statement and didn’t know how to respond to it. Then he heard, “I imagine that it was the goal of your people to destroy that attacker.”

  “It was!”

  “And I imagine that Attacker was much more powerful than you were when they first invaded.”

  “That’s why it took so long to exterminate them.”

  “Have you not considered that one of the civilizations you attack might just do to you what you did to your attacker? Do you think you are immune from what hatred can do to drive a species to avenge themselves?”

  The Watcher was stunned into silence. Suddenly, he heard Chelag come over the fleet’s general frequency and say, “Destroy that ship!” The thirty defensive ships all fired their massive beams at once. The small ship was vaporized in an instant and nothing remained, not even a vapor cloud. Chelag said, “We’ll kill them all; there won’t be anyone alive to seek revenge.”

  “Watcher, thousands of our warships are exploding!”

  Chelag’s eyes narrowed and he saw thousands of the giant warships gathered above the planet were exploding in massive fireballs. The Watcher yanked his communicator off his panel and yelled, “Spread out and open fire with your beams!” He watched his wall monitor and the destruction of his ships appeared to accelerate. He looked at his panel and saw eighteen thousand ships were little more than burning hulks and still the explosions rushed through his fleet. “Scatter and fire all your beams around your ships! DO IT NOW!!”

  The giant ships scattered and opened fire with their massive beams. They saw them hit something invisible that would suddenly disappear. More than a thousand of the giants had collisions with other ships but the explosions continued to walk through the ranks of the Invader fleet. The Watcher saw a line of ships fly forward firing their beams ahead of them and then he saw them attacked from behind and explode as something hit their thrusters and exploded the rear of the ships. He yelled, “Form a box and fire away from your formation.”

  The survivors formed box formations and began firing every beam away from them. Cinny saw that there was little more they could do, “All ships will gather at our assembly point.” A hundred cruisers had been destroyed in the fighting when they had been struck by numerous beams. The survivors gathered at the assembly coordinates and Cinny lifted her
Communicator, “Admiral Blake.”

  “Yes.”

  “Grant went to the Invader Fleet and tried to get them to call off this war; they killed him. Before they did that, I got a line on their leader’s location. I’m sending you his coordinates and requesting that you jump there with enough battleships to bombard the planet.”

  “Cinny, we can’t just kill innocent civilians.”

  “They told us they are going to kill every intelligent being in our civilizations so there won’t be anyone left behind to seek revenge. Do you want to deliver a message to this monster or not?”

  Blake stared at Cinny on his display, “My ships can’t stand up to their warships.”

  “I am going there to remove every ship above the planet and hold off any that show up during your bombardment. I need you to come in and level their largest city and then get out. Can you do that?”

  Blake stared at Cinny and said, “Send me the coordinates and contact me when you want me to come.” Cinny smiled and his display went dark. Blake looked at Aubrey, “Contact Twelfth Fleet and order them here now. I expect them to be at battle stations when they arrive.”

  “Yes Sir.”

  Blake looked at Cleve, “I suppose you disagree with this?”

  “Not at all. We should give them a bloody nose at every opportunity.” Blake smiled and picked up his communicator.

  • • •

  Chelag sat in the Council Chamber and thought about what the being had said. It was ludicrous to think anyone could ever prove dangerous to him. He had to stop that being from talking. “GREAT LEADER, WE ARE UNDER ATTACK!!”

  “WHAT?”

  “Move into the bunker, now!”

  Chelag and five other Leaders in the huge chamber ran over to the escape tube and rushed inside the door. It shot below the giant structure at high velocity and arrived at a bunker a thousand feet under the Capital City. Chelag rushed out and almost fell off his feet as the bunker was rocked. He felt fear course through him and heard the Seeker at the main panel say, “The city above us is being obliterated. I have no channels to the outside and we are operating on emergency power.”