Shadows

by Brian Whiting

  Alex had come to respect Squalm for his intelligence and ability to think about complex matters. He had the ability not to argue directly but subtly point out the error in ones own logic. It was a sign of how close they had become that Squalm felt comfortable in telling Alex that his temper was getting short.

  “Go ahead,” Alex responded, more calmly. He would try to stop with the sighing.

  “The FTL has hit the first overheat warning mark.”

  “Alter our course between the nearest of two stars please, and shut down the FTL.”

  “Course altered, ETA four minutes,” the Gothan responded.

  “Tulie, to the bridge, please,” Alex commanded over the intercom as he made his way to the bridge, leaving Squalm in the dining room.

  Alex found his chair and buckled in. Before he knew it Tulie had placed her hand on his shoulder. Alex looked up at her and smiled briefly, noticing the ship was no longer in FTL.

  “Scan the nearest two star systems for whichever one offers the best chance of obtaining the things we need,” Alex asked, still looking at Tulie. She seemed more and more caring lately. In the back of Alex’s mind he knew the attention would have been for Annunen if he were still alive. They both waited patiently as the Gothans busy analyzed results.

  “How far are we from Earth?” Alex quietly asked Tulie.

  “We are about sixty percent of the way there, but with the increased FTL breakdowns, we are still about eight months away. And that’s if the engine lasts the entire journey. That’s also assuming we can fully replace the specific materials we need to create more valence connectors.”

  “Can we just use the dissembler to recycle the burnt-out connectors so the fabricator can create new ones?”

  “No, the dissembler breaks down the material into its atomic components, which are then blown out into space as exhaust.”

  Alex looked at the viewscreen at the unique star patterns visible from his vantage point. Every time they stopped to repair the FTL engine, he would try to make out new constellations. It was an odd experience, because a few of the stars never moved. He knew they really weren’t stars, but rather galaxies that were so far away they looked like stars.

  “The star six light-years aft has a large collection of planets. Our best chance is to go there.”

  “By all means set a course,” Alex said as he gently pushed Tulie away from his chair. Within moments the FTL engine came to life once again for a short four-minute journey to the star system.

  Minutes later, Gs Port Tha said, “Dropping out of FTL.”

  Up ahead was a bright yellow star, surrounded by fourteen planets, some with their own moons.

  “Water! Fourth planet,” Gs Port Tha stated.

  “Set a course.”

  “Squalm will be pleased,” Tulie said.

  Over the course of a couple of hours, the planet slowly turned from a dot on the screen to a large planet as they got closer.The bridge crew had become distracted with other things as they waited to approach the planet under normal anti gravity propulsion.

  One of the Gothans started saying, “It’s a tad larger than Ear–”

  The sudden pause in conversation did not go unnoticed.

  “What is it?” Tulie asked.

  “I’m picking up infestation signals on the planet.”

  “Location?”

  “Northern hemisphere.” As the Gothan described the location, the viewscreen zoomed in on the area on the surface from which the signal was originating.

  Alex went from mellow and relaxed to rigid and alert. He adjusted himself in his chair and cleared off the entertainment from his display screen to bring up tactical and sensor information.

  The ship appeared to be one of those few large ones that were located in the middle of the square. It was much longer than the rest of the pill shaped ships. It looked like it had crashed into the surface at a low speed. It was mostly intact.

  “The ship is communicating, sending signals.”

  “To who, where?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t see anyone in this system.”

  “What’s our FTL like?”

  “Five to ten light-years before it melts down. We might make it to the other star we almost went to.”

  “There’s water here,” Tulie said. “It’s too much to pass up. That ship has crashed and is not a threat. Besides, we should go to the crashed ship and collect information about our foe.”

  Alex lowered his head, knowing she was right. But the thought of Annunen was still heavy on his mind. He looked at her, and she at him. Her face was expressionless as she patiently waited for an answer.

  “OK, set us down about one kilometer away.”

  Alex looked at the crashed ship and memories of finding dark star and kalibri came to mind.

  It was a smooth flight into the atmosphere, which was thin compared to the size of the planet. They set down neatly, right where they intended to, without a problem.

  “The air is extremely toxic. We would be dead within a minute. Don’t breathe the air,” Tulie stated.

  “I’m going to suit up. You stay here in case I get into trouble,” Alex said, looking at Tulie, then followed with, “If one of the Gothans wants to come, I’ll permit it.”

  Ga Ra Tor unstrapped gatself from gat pole and made gat way to the EVA room with Alex.

  Alex spent time considering the armament options, and ended up with a shotgun loaded with buck and the alien pulse weapon. It was becoming his weapon of choice. Stepping out on the ramp, he and Ga Ra Tor made their way to the alien ship.

  The ship itself seemed largely intact and there was no visible means of entry. After circling the ship twice Alex decided his best option was to blast a hole in the side.

  He used a Thean rifle the metal poured away quite nicely, but Alex had to fire nearly half of his supplied ammo count to melt enough hull and conduits away to make way into an open part of the ship.

  The moment Alex stepped into the open part of the ship, an odd pattern of computer noises erupted from somewhere, followed by an obvious speech pattern. Several moments of silence followed by yet another different kind of alien speech.

  “Alex, I surmise there’s an attempt to identify our method of communication,” Symboli said in Alex’s ear.

  “Hello, my name is Alex.”

  They waited a few moments but nothing seemed to happen. The interior of the ship was very dark. It seemed little to no attention was paid to keeping the floor uncluttered, nothing was smooth, things and objects were left jagged or sharp. At first Alex thought maybe it was a result of the crash. It soon became apparent that it was designed this way.

  He feared stepping away from the opening. Then, remembering the EVA suits came with a flashlight, he opened a leg pouch and pulled the light activating it. The interior of the ship was simply full of wiring and conduits. Three conduits crossed the middle of the room and prevented him from going too far into the ship.

  “This is a unholy ship design,” Ga Ra Tor said, walking closely next to Alex and holding gat weapon tightly.

  “Unholy ship,” a female voice said out of the darkness.

  “Are you the computer?” Alex asked, careful to step over piping and nodes of wires.

  Alex’s suit display began to flash. The hud disappeared from his view and then rebooted on its own.

  “Humans… Gothans… biologicals, consuming, counterproductive, flawed.”

  “Speak for yourself,” Alex rebutted.

  “Can you provide me with antimatter? I will make it worth your effort.” The computerized voice changed from female to male in mid sentence.

  “Antimatter?” Alex mumbled.

  “What are your intentions?” The voice changed; now it resembled a deep male voice.

  “We are here to learn more about the species that’s determined to eliminate the galaxy,” Alex said.

  “Have you found what you are looking for?” the same voice asked.

  Alex stopped and thought about what t
he mind behind the voice was thinking.

  “Alex, I suspect this is an artificial intelligence. Ask it to state its purpose,” Symboli said.

  “State your purpose.”

  “My purpose is to scout areas expected to offer heightened resistance.”

  “Ask if it is sentient.”

  “Are you sentient?”

  “I am aware.”

  “Ask how many of them there are.”

  “How many are there of you?”

  “We are many.”

  “Sounds like the Borg,” Alex mumbled thinking of a TV show.

  “Ask what is their ultimate goal.” Symboli said.

  “What is your race attempting to do with this galaxy?”

  “To create harmony.” It responded.

  “You have an odd way of creating harmony,” Alex responded.

  “We are the embodiment of perfect harmony, designed to create and maintain the highest standards of harmony.”

  “You’re like a broken record. Just explain to me how killing trillions of individuals creates harmony.”

  “Biologicals are aggressive, consuming, parasitic, an error. The elimination of the parasites will create harmony.”

  Alex stepped to the furthest part of the ship. Unable to get past the conduit, he raised his weapon and fired twice at each conduit.

  “STOP!” the voice yelled.

  “I don’t see why I should.”

  “Your efforts hamper the progress to harmony. Your people struggle to create harmony, do they not?”

  “Yes, but we don’t kill sentients to achieve that goal,” Alex replied and then stepped through the opening he had created.

  “Then you work toward your goal foolishly.”

  “Al—x… ap—ching.” Static came in thru Alex’s headset, but the voice sounded familiar.

  “What?”

  “ —t ou—. Now!”

  “Alex, I suggest you leave,” Symboli said.

  “Ga Ra Tor, get to the ship!” Alex ran into the area that he had previously opened up and jogged deeper into the ship. He came across a large box about the size of a deep freezer. Many of the conduits and wires went into and out of the box. Alex shot the left end of the box. The audio speaker in Alex’s suit went haywire, blaring odd tones and chaotic frequencies.

  Doing his best to ignore the sounds, Alex reached into the still-hot box and pulled on some of the components until something came loose, something about the size of a small toaster. He didn’t wait to see what might happen, instead he took it and made his way to leave the ship the same way he had come in, and as quickly as possible.

  Just before he reached the opening he had created in the ship, the entire vessel shuddered, and Alex was knocked to his hands and knees. He lunged forward as he got back up, determined to make up the time he just lost. He stepped through the opening and came face-to-face with the interior of the cargo bay. The communication was working once again.

  “ALEX!” Tulie yelled.

  “I’m on board.”

  The ship lifted off immediately. Alex almost lost his footing on the ramp as he struggled to walk deeper into the cargo bay. He watched for a moment as the ground began to get further and further away. A red beam cut across his field of vision.

  “Crap!” Alex pulled himself up trying even harder to make his way toward the bridge. As he struggled to get out of the cargo bay he found that getting to the bridge was less and less likely. The ship shuddered once and then again.

  “Ahhhh!” Alex found himself flung against the ceiling and then against the far wall as the ship begun to spin. He continued to struggle as the threat of being tossed out the still-open cargo door loomed heavily. His arm got caught in the cargo nets, and when it came free he found a loose cargo strap and clipped himself to the buckle. The shape of the planet was now visible out the cargo door.

  “No no no no no!” No longer was he pushed against the cargo net but now against the opposing wall. He felt an explosion nearby through his suit; he began coughing hard, and his back was in pain. He looked to his left out the shuttle bay door, where the planet was spinning, sky to ground and ground to sky. Another explosion.

  This one must have been just out of sight as the interior walls of the cargo bay lit up. Then the lights cut out and flickered back on. Several holes appeared in the walls of the cargo bay as some unknown weapon was turning the ship into Swiss cheese. Debris showered the entire room.

  Alex wasn’t sure but something happened and it hurt a lot, and he was disoriented. When Alex opened his eyes he was floating in space. Unable to move or reorient his body, he began to scream uncontrollably. A red beam flashed across his vision and then another dull explosion. He thought he saw something zip past but he couldn’t be sure what it was. His body was being tugged harshly and it spun him around. He could see the Dauntless in front of him, perhaps eighty feet away, the cargo bay still open. The ship slowed and with no way to slow his momentum as well he rushed into the cargo bay at frightening speed, smashing into the interior bulkhead. He look at his helmet as it now sported a large crack, but it still seemed to be holding atmosphere. Grabbing onto a steel pole he looked back outside for a brief moment, and witnessed a pill-shaped ship approach from behind. “Of course,” he thought. The Dauntless reoriented slightly and a red beam tore the pill-shaped ship to shreds. The debris of the explosion showered the Dauntless, and some even entered the cargo bay.

  Alex reached out and hit the button for the cargo bay door, thankful it was now closing. There was another thud. Just before the cargo door closed he watched first-hand the forming of a warp buddle and then a grayness. Then the cargo bay door closed firmly.

  He found himself breathing heavily, which seemed to happen in the EVA suits under exertion. His body ached something terrible, but he knew they were safe. He got to his feet and he made his way toward the corridor.

  “Symboli?” Alex asked, but didn’t get a response. Another thud came from somewhere deep within the ship.

  “Tulie, anyone there?” Alex opened the door from the cargo bay to the corridor after he noticed there was no pressure in the corridor either. He slowly made his way down the corridor, passing room after room.

  Boom.

  The lights flickered. In front of Alex about thirty paces ahead a large emergency bulkhead dropped into place from overhead. Placing his hand on the wall he could feel intermittent vibrations coming from somewhere on the ship. Knowing he couldn’t get past the emergency bulkhead toward the bridge of the Dauntless he made his way toward the Hermes bridge.

  Roughly ten steps away from the bridge the ship shuddered again. The gravity was deactivated as his next step never found footing, and he somersaulted backward in the corridor moving forward. Grabbing onto one of the emergency bars that ran parallel along every corridor, he shuffled himself onto the bridge. The bridge was brightly lit, occupied only by Ga Ra Tor.

  “Ga Ra Tor!” Alex shouted, but there was no movement. Alex pushed himself toward his friend and floated across the room. Alex grabbed onto a bridge chair and spun himself to see Ga Ra Tor clearly. Gat helmet was off, and Alex remembered the ship was in vacuum. Gat body looked like it was twice its normal size.

  Alex made his way toward the next empty bridge chair. He pushed on the display screen, and it brightened up and activated. The ship shuddered again, this time more violently than before. Alex attempted to bring up the external cameras, but there was only an error message. Next he tried to bring up the ship systems’ status. Many areas of the ship displayed “no data,” including the bridge of the Dauntless, which was the portion of the conjoined ship the Gothans had built. In fact now he realized all the areas on the Dauntless portion of the ship displayed “no data.”

  Then Alex checked the water reserves, knowing they were interconnected with the Dauntless’s water systems. It displayed full pressure, functioning filtration systems, with fairly good but dropping water temperatures. If the water system was still intact, the ship isn’t as bad as it see
med, he thought. Could just be a cut connection line somewhere, he thought to himself.

  There was another thud, which seemed weak and far away. Alex tried the internal security screen. A list of functioning cameras appeared. The dining room was in shambles, with heavy debris floating around the room. Only one camera in the Dauntless section still functioned. A corridor camera showed some minor debris in the glow of the emergency lighting. A Gothan without an EVA suit passed in front of the camera, alive; Alex couldn’t tell who it was. Just offscreen the Gothan fired several rounds of his weapon. Suddenly the debris went from barely moving in place to rushing toward the right side of the screen where the Gothan had just gone. Alex watched as a bulkhead farther down the corridor dropped into place.

  Only then did Alex realize he no longer had his weapon. In fact, he wasn’t sure what happened to the toaster-sized box he had grabbed from the AI ship, either.

  “Damn,” he said, as he figured that it had been all tossed out the back of the ship into space just as he had been.

  He switched to an information screen on the status of the FTL engines. They were overheating dangerously.

  Boom.

  The sound of tearing metal, grinding, the twisting of conduits. It was as if the ship had just been dropped into a ship grinder. Immense pain and the weight of the universe was upon him. His vision quickly faded despite the struggle against it, suddenly something large fell from the ceiling.

  Chapter 24

  Fallen Dynasty

  The wind was heavy in her face, but the air was still warm and suffocating. She hated traveling in the valleys. Her juntard was getting tired. No matter how hard she squeezed both lobes on either side of its head, the animal would not go any faster, and her enemies were catching up.