“We must draw the human fleet into battle. Lets start destroying the population areas on these local planets,” said Wineena.
CHAPTER TWENTY: Portus
In the next two months the Raygin fleet attacked thirteen planets inhabited by humans. Estimates put the loss of human life at forty-seven billion. The military was learning how to fight a war based on enormous distances. The human fleet entered into several skirmishes with the Raygin. They used hit and run type tactics designed to inflict maximum damage to the enemy with minimal losses. They never committed to an all-out battle again. Every day, the secret human shipyards pumped out new ships.
Humans banned together like they never had before. The media couldn’t get their hands on enough war videos. The fighter pilot known as Sky Hawk became a legend. When the humans found out she was Mac’s wife everyone fell in love with her.
On the flip side, Mac gained the status of hero within the both the human universe and the Peoples Nation. Before Mahpee left Nokomis, he submitted paperwork to the Tellers. He invoked an ancient pre-earth exodus custom. He decreed Mac to be a tribal member. By risking his own life to save Ayashe’s life on more than one occasion, he was due Life for Life rights. Though not born from the People’s Nation, the Tellers voted for Mac to become a tribe member.
The military videos of Mac saving Ayashe proved Mahpee’s claims. His actions were indisputable. The media covered the unanimous vote by the Tellers. Mac received tribal membership. After the vote, the reclusive mystic, Nahimana, made her way to the media dais.
Her blind white eye looked right into the vid transmission devices. Children turned their heads to avoid looking at her. Many stories claimed if you looked into her eyes, she could see into your soul.
“The tide is changing, but do not celebrate or rejoice. The real battle has yet to begin.” She turned around and walked away. She disappeared into the crowd before anyone could ask her questions.
The foretelling by Nahimana troubled Ayashe. Mac watched the Nokomis video. He had felt great, right up to the point where the mystic spoke. No wonder she made Mahpee nervous. Even Mac felt queasy. He experienced a feeling like he had jumped from a great height. He felt like she was looking right at him when she spoke the dire words. His stomach told his brain, get ready, because something bad is going to happen.
*****
It seemed like forever since they made the big jump into the second ring. Within moments they would arrive at the Naktu solar system. Mahpee daydreamed of how Mac would talk to his grandchildren. Telling them about how Mahpee was the first human to cross into the universe’s second ring. He recalled as they approached the great void, how the number of stars became fewer and fewer. Not knowing what to expect, he used the ion drive to enter the void. As they entered the area of nothingness, the ion drive stopped working. It was an unexpected surprise. Not a single ion existed in the void. In fact, there was no sense of anything. They could not even see a single star as they coasted in what he hoped was a forward direction.
He recalled starting the singularity drive. With one pop they entered into the second ring. He missed the old drive. It slow popping sound comforted him many times as they traveled from place to place. This modified drive was way too fast. Pop, Pop, Pop. It drives me crazy. I feel anxious.
He knew they had to be getting close to their destination by now. “How much longer until we reach Tik? I thought we’d be there by now,” said Mahpee.
“A few more jumps and we will arrive,” grandfather pointed on the screen. “Right here is where we are going. We will miss you Mahpee.”
Was it foolish to feel sad? He and his fake yet so real grandfather had bonded after entering the second ring of the universe. The nanobots kept his grandfather’s form but they started to share their group minded robot thoughts with him. He discovered the tiny computers thought on a much grander scale than humans. They were one hundred percent goal driven. Time seemed irrelevant to them.
Mahpee was worried about the future of his tiny friends. “Before the last jump you need to get off the ship. Even you can’t survive the heat the Storm will create.”
An alarm sounded as the ship came to a halt between jumps. The computer displayed a message on the viewer.
Mahpee looked at the screen. “It’s a bunch of ones and zeros. Do you think it is Ogarii or Raygin?”
“Neither. It’s binary code. It’s how computers talk in the purest form.”
“Who are they and what do they want?” asked Mahpee.
“Hold on… It is a droid piloted cargo ship. I’m talking to it… No crew… No passengers… It’s hauling freight to Tik. The navigational droid needs a manual reboot. The ship is seeking assistance.”
“I say we leave it,” said Mahpee.
“Do not be too hasty. We may discover new information by linking to the droid.”
Mahpee hated the thought of a delay. He wanted to get it over with, but grandfather was right. Any additional information about the enemy could be consequential.
“Okay. I’ll pilot us to it and attach to the ship.”
“Good. I’ll take care of everything else,” said grandfather.
In two hours, the ship carrying the Storm pulled away from the alien cargo vessel. It was on its way with a special delivery. Mahpee felt excited as he watched the view screen. Within seconds there would be retribution.
*****
The second mind of Portus contemplated its success with malevolent enjoyment. It moved the Varn from their old home in the third ring to Tik. The new home was a deviant and degenerated place. Hundreds of thousands of Ogarii were drawn to the planet like ants to a sweet kobara tree. More were arriving every day. Word of its wickedness had spread. Portus gave them everything they could ever want.
The nefarious heads of state would never leave their paradise. They had lost control of their empire and didn’t care. The virus Portus created and blamed on the Drahce would ensure this would be the last generation of Ogarii. They were too useless of a race to use in its future plans.
At any given second Portus made billions of thoughts. Its mind controlled millions of activities. Its brain used a hierarchy of thought capable of trillions of petaFLOPS. A petaFLOP is a measure of a processor’s speed and Portus had no equal. The higher up the ladder a task moved the more attention it got. For simple jobs like turning on lights or watering vegetation, it didn’t even know it was doing the task.
Without warning, the giant computer broke all contact. It focused on a single threat. It ran millions of scenarios in a nano second. I can’t stop the ship. The second mind of Portus sent thousands of commands and questions to the ship’s computer while it tried to take control. There was no response.
Using satellites, it watched the small ship. It should have landed at a delivery terminal. Instead it plummeted straight into the planet and emitted a small, but powerful laser. The large planetary defenses were designed for attacks from space. Ground defenses included armies of droids and thousands of ships. It would take two point seven seconds to intercept the tiny ship. Portus launched its attack ships knowing it had no more than a percent of a percent chance of success.
The ship escaped detection by operating in the low hierarchy task range. What is it doing, wondered Portus? The ship created a super-heated tunnel. It flew straight into the planet. An uncountable number of scenarios ran through the mind of Portus. Planetary monitors detected radiation coming from the core of Tik. The computer performed tens of thousands of calculations. It understood what occurred with a 99.9998 percent certainty. Nuclear fusion. It is a genius plan. The giant computer’s unbreakable base broke. The planet’s crust started to crack. Tik was no longer a planet. It was becoming a small star. Everyone on the planet was already dead.
In the last attosecond of its life, the second mind of Portus transmitted a gigantic data burst.
*****
“Overseer,” radioed the captain of a nearby command ship. “We have lost control of all Raygin ships.”
“Is the loss human induced failure?”
“No. It seems to be a command initiated from your ship.”
“It can’t be. What is the command?”
“Return to the third ring.”
Before Wineena could respond the Raath began to move to the fleet’s interior.
“Navigator. I did not give the order to move into formation. Stop.”
“I apologize overseer,” said the navigation droid. “Your command has been overridden.”
“Overridden? No one can override my command. Who would perform such a treasonous act?” asked Wineena.
“The command came from Portus.”
“Portus. Portus is a computer. It cannot make command decisions! Navigator, I order you to disregard all commands from Portus.”
“I’m sorry overseer. I cannot override an instruction from Portus. Can I help you in some other way?”
Wineena pulled her plasma pistol from her waist and shot the droid, melting a hole in its metallic head. “No. I’ll take care of it myself. Iscar, you useless piece of bonard, move the trash heap of a navigator to the side! Taena, take the helm. Full stop.”
Iscar ran to the navigator’s metallic body and dragged it to the wall. Taena manipulated the controls but the ship did not respond.
“Overseer, the computer will not respond. It locked out all controls. I am unable to stop or move the ship.”
Wineena, still holding her pistol, lifted it, aimed at the ship’s computer…”
“No!” Screamed Taena. “Please don’t shoot, Wineena. Without the computer we cannot jump. The humans will capture us! Something serious must have occurred. Could the Drahce have attacked?”
“I don’t like this,” said Wineena. “We have no clue what’s going on. I guess you’re right, we don’t have a choice. So, home here we come.” She put her pistol back in the holster.
“What about me? Can you drop me off along the way?” asked Iscar.
“Didn’t you follow what’s happening stupid human? We aren’t in control of our own ships. You have no choice but to tag along. Wait, I’ve got it. I think I’ll put you in a cage and make you a pet for everyone to see.”
Iscar surveyed his surroundings. He wished he had worked on an escape plan.
*****
While talking to Tews about Raygin mind control, Mac received an alert. It read: Raygin fleet on the move. Left ground-based troops behind.
Oh, shit thought Mac. The Ogarii found a weakness in my defenses and they are moving on it. “I have a problem. I’ve got to go to the bridge. I’ll call you later.” Mac spun around and once again ran to the bridge. Crewmembers walking in the passageway stepped out of his way. Mac nodded his head at them. In the last couple months, they learned anytime he was running a major event was occurring.
When he got to the bridge, the crew already had the appropriate battle holographs on the table. He scrutinized their position and projected several possible paths. What were they up to? He couldn’t come up with a single objective that made any sense. The Ogarii didn’t try to hide their route. Hell, he thought, even a child flying a tracker could have followed the enemy fleet’s gravitational waves. They didn’t care they were being followed.
Mac took immediate action. He moved ships and troops to support some of the infested planets. After another week of following the Raygin fleet, he knew what they were doing. The enemy was leaving. The Ogarii were moving the Raygin fleet out of human space. Something big must have happened because at this point the Raygin were winning the war. He hoped it was Mahpee, but there was no way to know.
The humans called the day the Raygin fleet left the first ring Victory Over the Ogarii and Raygin day (VOOR day). The whole universe celebrated. Mac knew it was not a real victory, but he let the celebrations go on. He promised to stay on as the de facto president until an election could be held. Afterwards he would relinquish his authority and return to being a commodore. The human war machine would keep building ships, developing new weapons, and designing better planetary defenses. There were also plans to install an advanced warning system. The fleet of the People’s Nation joined the human fleet for the time being.
Mac’s beautiful wife was with him again on the Constellation. He felt happier than he could ever remember. They were enjoying each other’s company as they rested on their bed in their stateroom. The two leaders took advantage of the time by talking about their future plans.
“Mac, I want to have the baby on Nokomis.”
“I’m all for it, but remember I’m a tribal member now so I need to learn your language. I don’t want…” he paused and gave her a look, “our people to think you married an idiot.”
“Oh. Now it’s our people is it? I have news for you, President de facto McCormack. I have already told all my friends I married pretty, not smart.”
He laughed, grabbed her by the waist, snuggled up to her, and kissed her belly. “Pretty gets what pretty wants.”
“What is it my pretty wants?” Ayashe asked.
He smiled. “You. You and the baby.” After he spoke those words he shivered as he remembered the mystic’s words: … do not celebrate or rejoice. The real battle has yet to begin.
The End
The Raygin War Page 30