by Scott Baron
“It’s a good idea, Daisy, but that will rely on the abilities of your Chithiid friends, and how well their rebel spies have been able to infiltrate the Ra’az fleet.”
“I’ve got faith in them, Captain.”
“Faith is fine, so long as it is not blind. I want you to talk to your contacts and see just how possible this idea is, then report back.”
“Will do,” she replied.
“What did you just get us into, Daze?” Sarah asked.
A world of shit, most likely, she replied. But that’s par for the course at this point, isn’t it?
“From you, I suppose I should expect nothing less.”
Chapter Ten
The week since Freya had failed in her attempts to utilize the hypersonic missiles––seemingly at her disposal yet frustratingly non-functional––had passed quickly, as other weapons systems at their disposal came online, allowing the burgeoning fleet and their little AI-piloted entourage to blow things up with greater aplomb.
Coaching the inexperienced AI craft in how best to utilize each of their strengths and work around their weaknesses seemed to mature Freya a bit. The role of teacher and mentor suited her, and the AIs lucky enough to train under her tutelage progressed faster than the rest of the ships in the fleet.
Joshua, in the meantime, was in the dog house, so to speak. Freya had taken great umbrage at his violation of her inner workings, and as a result, she had left him to his own devices since that day. Of course, she was constantly tempted to patch things up with him, but her new duties allowed her to focus her mind on other, less difficult problems.
For Chu, the opportunity to branch out and work with the great minds of the human fleet was a dream come true after so many years of relative boredom on Dark Side. That is, of course, not counting the months since Daisy had arrived and turned things upside down.
With the warp tests among the newly retrofitted Chithiid and Ra’az ships they had captured going exceedingly well, it really did seem like it was only a matter of time before they would be prepared to infiltrate and ultimately disable and destroy the main body of the advancing Ra’az fleet.
Zed, for his part, was having a wonderful time of it, and of all the ships comprising his growing flotilla, Freya and Marty had quickly become among his favorites. Their unusual personalities and refreshing banter kept him on his toes, figuratively speaking, and he was loving every moment of it.
“Zed,” Celeste said as she surveyed the readouts aboard her command ship, “has the Chithiid troop carrier managed a successful warp test yet?”
“Yes and no,” he replied.
“It wasn’t a two-answer question.”
“I know. It’s just that yes, they have successfully warped, but for some reason the automatic return protocol keeps triggering on the largest of the ships. I think it’s because we’re utilizing a single warp bubble instead of a cascaded series that the system is likely reading a perfectly stable warp field as less than adequate.”
Celeste massaged her temples, though she’d had very few headaches since she and her husband had finally reconnected after so many years apart.
“Is there any way to shut that system off?” she inquired.
“Well, that’s the thing. You see, in theory it should be a piece of cake cutting that bit out of the warp loop, but for whatever reason, it’s hardwired into things in such a way that no matter what we do, we just can’t seem to get it to stay off.”
“And no input from Chu or the others?”
“Everyone has theories, but it’s kind of a crapshoot, given this is totally new technology for us. I mean, our techs are picking it up quickly, and the Chithiid have been a great help, but only loyalists and Ra’az knew the detailed inner workings of these things, so we’re on our own, learning as we go.”
“What about Freya? Or even Marty? Those two seem to have a knack for solving unusual problems.”
“I was hoping to get it up and running without bothering them––they’re training the AI assault ships, and I didn’t want to pull them away from that.”
“It looks like you may have no choice.”
“Yeah, it does indeed,” he agreed. “I’ll reach out to them when they’re done with the day’s training and have made their jumps to the Ra’az fleet.”
“It’s going well, isn’t it, my friend?” Celeste said. “I hate to get my hopes up, but it really does appear we are making positive headway.”
“You know me, Celeste. I’m always a pessimist until given concrete reason not to be. But that in mind, I have to say, it does look like our plan is working so far.”
“How many of our ships have infiltrated the Ra’az fleet so far to date? Last I saw, we had nearly three dozen embedded.”
“It’s up to almost sixty ships now,” Zed informed her. “That’s nearly ten percent of their fleet.”
“And how many of the ships our people are replacing were we able to capture while they were off running surveys away from the main body of the fleet?”
“Forty-two of them, so far. Of course, that was partially aided by our managing to get our own Chithiid on board those ships before they peeled off to do a reconnaissance mission to find new worlds to invade.”
“Which was just dumb luck on our part.”
“Yes indeed, that it was. But if Lady Luck wants to smile on us for a change, I’m not one to complain.”
“Neither am I,” she agreed.
“Now, there is one issue we still have to address,” Zed mentioned.
“There always is, isn’t there?”
“I know I don’t even need to answer that question,” he replied with a chuckle. “So, we’ve had a few dozen of our rebels doing ship-to-ship transfers, pretending to be delivering supplies and whatnot throughout their fleet. Those men have been fairly successful in disabling the Ra’az self-destruct mechanisms tied into each ship’s warp core, while also quietly raising a rebellion.”
“Without letting on that our fleet is coming.”
“Of course. We still don’t know how many loyalist spies may be in their ranks, so it has to look like it’s organically starting from within,” Zed said. “Now Freya and Marty have been successfully soft-sealing with some of the Ra’az ships crewed by loyalists. It’s been hairy, but they managed to get a handful of our men with the loyalist brands on their shoulders on board.”
“All according to plan,” Celeste said, allowing herself a little smile, though she knew she was tempting Murphy by it. “How goes their sabotage?”
“Slow, as you’d expect. The Ra’az are a particular group, and their loyalists are far more suspicious than regular Chithiid. Our people have to move very carefully so as not to draw any attention to themselves. Plus, there’s the difference in technology between the Chithiid ships and the Ra’az ones. Those are just tougher nuts to crack, no two ways about it.”
“I know,” Celeste said. “But one way or another, the time is almost upon us, and if we can’t sabotage them with our spies, then we’ll just have to hope Freya’s modified virus is able to knock out enough of their systems to give us a fighting chance.”
“It worked okay on that Ra’az ship we used as a guinea pig,” Zed noted.
“Yes, but ‘okay’ isn’t enough. It took down the warp drive, but left most of the weapons systems active. We need something more.”
“I agree. And that’s not even getting into the teams on Taangaar,” Zed added. “I just hope Maarl’s men are as good as he believes them to be. But that’s out of our hands, for the most part.”
“I swear, this is exhausting, Zed.”
“Why don’t you take a break? Maybe head over to the Váli for a bit of R&R with Lars. You’ve earned it.”
“I’d love nothing more, believe me, but I see him in our off-duty hours, and that will have to suffice.”
Zed laughed.
“At least as commander of the fleet, you get to make your own schedule,” he said.
“Yes, I do,” Celeste agreed with
a grin. “And it just so happens, our duty-shifts align perfectly.”
“Now who’d have ever thought something like that could happen? What a coincidence.”
“The happiest kind,” she said with a bright laugh, before settling back into her battle prep analysis.
It really looked like they might just succeed in this utterly mad mission. She just hoped they didn’t lose too many lives in the process.
Zed had been correct to have concerns about the abilities of Maarl’s men being sent to the Chithiid homeworld of Taangaar to infiltrate the key groups of captive Chithiid on the ground. They were mostly mere boys, barely of the age to be frozen and shipped off to join the fleet when they were taken, but what they lacked in age, they more than made up for with motivation.
Maarl and Aarvin had been steadily seeding the population with their operatives, ensuring they had men on the ground in the vast majority of key regions across the planet. It was taking a lot of time, though. Taangaar was large, and with so few males present, inserting their operatives into the Chithiid ranks was a risky endeavor.
Some of the youths––the more feminine of them––masqueraded as females, blending in with the masses of Chithiid women. Unless one of the loyalist overseers took a fancy to them, they would be able to spread word of an uprising far easier than their young male-appearing counterparts. Passing as a woman had certain advantages.
Of course, there were also risks involved. Mainly that of the Ra’az deciding to subject the captives to a round of forced breeding to fill the ranks. Fortunately, that was a rarity, and one only inflicted upon a small number.
Far above the planet, Freya and Marty were stretching themselves thin, training AIs with the human fleet and ferrying Chithiid, sneaking them into both the Ra’az fleet, as well as down to the surface of Taangaar.
On top of that, they were also helping sneak a select few aboard the dozen Ra’az battle stations orbiting above the planet. A far more dangerous prospect.
It was those incredibly destructive satellites that kept the planet in fear far more than the Ra’az on the ground. With a simple command, they would unleash a firestorm, killing billions on the ground without breaking a sweat.
Freya had been the one to come up with a rather inspired idea to slow any attacks on the surface once the battle began.
“Why don’t we do what we did on Earth?” she said.
“Because, child, the Ra’az surrounding my world do not rely on terrestrial communications facilities, but rather, speak directly with one another from above,” Maarl replied.
“I know. That’s the point,” Freya continued. “See, I was thinking, if we sneak a team onto the exterior of the battle stations, then have those guys nestle a powerful explosive charge hidden within the comms array on each one of the ships––”
“They would not be able to communicate with one another,” Maarl said, realizing what she was suggesting. “And if they were unable to communicate, they would not dare launch a destructive attack on the population below without first confirming with the rest of the hive.”
“Exactly. Your people are far too valuable a resource to just start blasting away willy-nilly, and they wouldn’t risk targeting their own people if they couldn’t confirm they were clear of the area first.”
“This is a sound plan, Freya,” Maarl said, appreciatively. “The Ra’azes’ reliance on hive-like group think will give our forces the advantage. At least for a time. We must plan further.”
After the survey of Taangaar, Freya and Marty had then jumped back to do another pass of the Ra’az fleet, dropping off yet another load of rebel infiltrators in the process.
“Hey, Marty. Do you see what I see?”
The pair of stealth ships surveyed the fleet before them. Indeed, something was up.
“Looks like they’re gearing up for something,” Arlo said.
“Yeah, I think they’re getting ready to consolidate their ships in preparation for a warp to a new sector,” Marty agreed. “If I’m reading this right, they’re probably finishing up their last surveys of this solar system before heading off to the next one.”
“If they jump, we’ll have to start battle planning all over again,” Freya griped. “At some point, we’re going to have to act, whether the circumstances are perfect or not.”
“I have to agree,” Marty said. “The time to strike is rapidly approaching. We need to tell Zed and the others. They need to prep our fleet, gather up all the trained Chithiid they can, and get ready for warp.”
“Did you say get ready for war?”
“I said warp. But once all the pieces are in place for both assaults, we’ll be in battle in both deep space, and on––and above––Taangaar. I think in that circumstance, perhaps getting ready for war is the better phrase.”
“Okay, then. Power up, and let’s get out of here,” Freya said. “We’ve got a fleet to warn and a war to get ready for.”
The pair of ships silently slipped well clear of the Ra’az fleet under conventional power, then warped back to their own armada. Soon they would return, and they’d be bringing hellfire with them.
Chapter Eleven
“I’m glad you two are getting along so well,” Daisy said, sitting on a chair with her back to her boyfriend. “He’s a good guy, and I think it’s doing him some good, having another human friend.”
“Hold still,” Vince griped as he pulled another strand of her hair into her French braid.
“I am holding still. Sort of.”
“Uh-huh,” he said sarcastically. “But yeah, he’s a cool dude, and funny too. Who’d have thought a cyborg could be such a crack-up?”
“I know, right? And the rest of his guys are pretty much the same.”
“We’ve got a team of highly trained cybernetic killers in our midst that just happen to moonlight as a comedy troupe,” Vince laughed. “This shit just gets more surreal every day.”
Daisy agreed with him on that count for certain. In fact, in the relatively short time since she’d been ‘born’ from her cryo-stasis aboard the Váli, her life made Alice’s look like a walk in the park, and that was without a March Hare or Hatter in the mix––though she supposed Finn might qualify for the Hatter role, should they ever be casting it.
“Hey, have you talked to Sarah any more about maybe giving Finn a chance?” Vince asked. “I know it’s totally not my place to stick my nose in––”
“But you’re doing it anyway,” Daisy noted with a little smile.
“Well, yeah. He’s my friend, and he’s been nuts about her forever, and now, after thinking he lost his shot with her, she’s suddenly back––”
“And is blowing him off. I know, Vince. Believe me, I know. And hell, I was trying to get those two together before she died. Thing is, I know for a fact Sarah likes him, but near-death messed with her head a bit, and for whatever reason, she’s playing it this way. You know as well as I do that no one can force her to do anything she doesn’t want to. In fact, pressuring her may even make her push back harder.”
“Yeah, I know,” he said, pulling her braid tighter. “It’s just I wish there was some way to change her mind, you know? Life’s short, and though we seem to have won back Earth, we’ve still got a war to win. It’s just downright foolish to risk losing that opportunity again.”
“And Finn is a better cook when he’s happy,” Daisy added.
“Well, yeah. Of course,” he replied with a laugh. “That too. Finn in love means we’ll be eating like kings for months,” he said, slipping a small band onto the end of her braid. “Okay, done.”
Daisy slid from the chair and admired his handiwork in the mirror. It wasn’t a perfect braid by any stretch of the imagination, but it was actually quite good.
“Nice, babe. Thanks,” she said, collecting her things before heading out.
“So, I was thinking we could have a nice little dinner to ourselves when we are done with the Ra’az fleet. Just you and me. Maybe candles, even.”
�
�Ooh, gettin’ all fancy on me, now?” Daisy asked with a warm laugh.
“You deserve it. If you’re good, I may even splurge on multiple candles.”
“Oh, be still my beating heart,” she joked.
“Then it’s a plan,” he said. “Just tell Freya to take damn good care of you out there.”
“I’d say for you to tell Mal the same thing, but I already know she will,” she replied. Daisy gave him a quick kiss as she headed for the door. “Love you, babe.”
“Love you too. Have fun, and try not to break anything,” he called after her.
Sisters fight, it’s just the way of the world, but if a bystander had happened to wander into the space Daisy and Sarah had been using as a sparring room, if they didn’t know the pair violently fighting at inhuman speeds, they might have been more than a little concerned.
Fortunately, this had happened only once since visitors from the fleet had begun filtering down to Dark Side, but the panicked reaction of the poor fellow who stumbled upon them was enough to motivate a change of venue for their practices.
It required a bit of a walk to reach the new room, which was inaccessible from the main facilities but for a single corridor after the loyalist attack. This remoteness, however, meant the two had the place to themselves.
“Nice braid,” Sarah noted as she slipped her thinly padded sparring gloves on. “He’s getting pretty good at that.”
“Yeah, it’s kinda cool having a fella to do things like that for me.”
“Must be nice.”
“The back rubs are a nice little bonus feature, too.”
“I’m sure they are.”
“You know, just the other day––”
“Stop, okay? Just stop. I know what you’re doing, and I’m not changing my mind, so just quit it. Now come on, let’s go.”
Sarah didn’t wait, launching straight into an attack, her legs flashing kicks at Daisy’s head in rapid succession. She wasn’t worried about hurting her, though. While she might make contact once in a while, Daisy still outclassed her when it came to hand-to-hand fighting by a fairly decent amount.