by Saxon Andrew
His tears started again as he watched his home dying before his eyes. He was born there and lived his life in a city that no longer existed. All the places where memories of his life happened were burned out of existence. He wept for New Britannia but also for Melanie and Scott. They were better people than him, but he survived; it just wasn’t fair! He should have died here! Not them! He lowered his head into his hands and wept.
• • •
He finally raised his head and stared at the burning planet. It deserved his respect and he would bear witness to what happened here. He shook his head and then his eyes narrowed. Something…was…happening. He closed his eyes and focused. Then he heard it. A distant thought at the edge of his ability to hear it was moving closer. Soon the single thought turned into ten, then a hundred, and finally thousands of thoughts began entering his mind. He put on his combat helmet and tried to focus on a single thought, but the roar was too loud. He shut down all of the scout’s systems except for environmental and his console. He waited as the roar of thoughts increased in his mind. He activated the communicator and spun the dial until he heard the aliens communicating with each other. He tried to hear what they were saying but they were talking over each other. He saw three large formations of warships move in around the burning planet from three directions. He listened closely and heard a loud order over his communicator, “ALL SHIPS WILL BE SILENT!!” The Communication channel cleared, and he heard, “This was a consummate waste of time!!”
Chapter Fifteen
Most of the crews on the alien’s warships were silent listening to their communication speakers and Funny Man located the Alien Leader’s thoughts. Another alien replied to him, “We held off coming here until after the missiles were launched.”
Funny Man turned the volume down on the communicator as the computer recorded the conversation. Funny Man focused on the two alien leader’s thoughts.
“You insisted that my fleets be here to assist in removing the human’s warships. We arrive and none of them are present. You’ve also destroyed the planet, so they had no reason to stay for us to attack. Why did you insist on launching the missiles first?”
“We lost close to a thousand warships to the humans and we believed that if their fleets tried to gather around the planet to stop the missiles, many of them would be destroyed leaving better odds for us.”
Funny Man now knew that the last leader to speak came from the Stealth Civilization and the other came from one of the two civilizations on the other side of the black hole in the Milky Way.
“We should have closely followed the missiles in and attacked their warships before they could escape!”
“The missiles were staggered in their launches and our ships would have been in jeopardy if we did that.”
“So we would have lost a few warships, but we would have destroyed the human’s fleets. You are not only stupid but a coward as well! I am returning to the Grang with my fleets and report this nonsense.”
“Wait, I need your fleet to assist us in finding the human’s Colonies.”
The Grang Commander sneered, “Are you telling me you launched this attack without knowing their locations?”
“Our scouts were forced to leave before their locations were discovered. We must find them and eliminate the human survivors.”
“Do you know where they might be located?”
“No, not really. We believe they are in this sector of the galaxy either in this spiral arm or the one closer to the center of the galaxy.”
“THERE ARE MILLIONS OF STARS IN THAT SECTOR!!”
“That’s why we need your fleet to help find them!”
“My ships are not provisioned for a long search and even if they were, I wouldn’t do it. We promised to come and assist you against their warships, not participate in a long search. If you find them, contact us and we’ll assist you in attacking them. That’s what we’ve promised and that is all we’re going to do. ALL SHIPS, MOVE INTO FORMATIONS AND PREPARE TO MOVE BACK TO THE GRANG.”
“WAIT, YOU MUST HELP US! IT COULD TAKE YEARS TO FIND EVEN ONE OF THEIR COLONIES!!”
“That’s your problem. This exercise was a waste of time, fuel, and energy. You are incredibly stupid attacking them before you discovered their other locations!”
Funny Man watched two of the large formations close to New Britannia turn and start moving away from the planet. He focused on the Stealth Commander and heard, “YOU MUST STOP THEM!!”
The Stealth Commander replied to his Second-in-Command, “Be my guest. Go right ahead and give it a go.”
“But we must have their assistance!”
“I think I told them that. Would you like to try?”
“The Council is not going to like this at all!”
“So convince them to stay.” The Second stared at the Commander and the Commander chuckled, “You don’t want your voice associated with this colossal failure do you?” The Second was silent and the Commander looked at the burning planet, “The Council is also going to be unhappy that we will not be able to use this planet to build the new hulls.”
“But we didn’t fire near enough nuclear missiles to cause this much damage,” the Second replied.
“Evidently, the humans had numerous facilities on the planet’s surface storing nuclear weapons; our missiles hit them, and this is the result. The Commander thought, “All ships form up and prepare to head back to our galaxy.”
• • •
Funny Man asked, “Computer, did you record the conversation?”
“Only what was transmitted over their electronic communicators.”
“That’s good enough.” Funny Man listened to the roar of thoughts start diminishing and knew that the aliens from the core weren’t being honest with the Stealth Commander. They were going back because some advanced scouts had been detected scouting their territory. They were traced back to the Triangulum Galaxy and the Grang Commander was ordered not to stay very long on his mission. Funny Man saw the advanced scouts in the alien’s thoughts; they were quite large. He also heard in the Stealth Commander’s mind that only one of the two civilizations at the core were sent to each planet being attacked; they didn’t trust them to mix their forces. What a mess.
Funny Man sat in his chair staring at the remains of New Britannia until the thoughts disappeared. He activated the scout’s systems and continued to stare at the still burning planet. He knew he was self-centered and selfish…but the loss of his home revealed to him just how insignificant he was. Scott and Melanie died sacrificing themselves to defend humanity. He could see their families in his mind and now they would be weeping for their loss of a loved one. No one would weep for him if he died and that’s what made his survival a travesty; one of them should have survived! But they didn’t.
He pondered why he didn’t flee like he planned but went in and carried out the mission. He should have died doing it, but fate had other plans for him. He realized in that moment that he went in because of his anger at Scott and Melanie’s deaths; he was willing to sacrifice himself for two normal humans. He paused and decided that talking with them had changed his view of normal humans. He always looked down his nose at non-telepathic humans, but Scott and Melanie showed him that normal humans are special as well. They were worth saving. He looked up at the burning planet and said, “It’s a good day to die Funny Man; you will die with New Britannia.” He sighed and said a prayer for the planet he loved along with Scott and Melanie. He raised the ship and entered the coordinates for the new home. Funny Man wouldn’t be going with him.
• • •
The old Earth Scout took a week to arrive inside communication range of Britannia. He sent the recordings made during his mission to Fleet Control and took off his combat helmet. He instantly heard Cami in his mind, “FUNNY MAN, I THOUGHT YOU HAD DIED!!”
“Funny Man died with New Britannia, Cami. My name is Justin Brown and that’s what I’ll answer to in the future.”
“What happened?”
“The other two pilots were killed by the missiles. They were twice the person I am, Cami. I should have been the one to die.”
“Will you show me what happened…Justin?”
Another thought appeared, “I’d like to see as well, if you don’t mind.” Hundreds of thoughts began pouring in asking to view what happened and Justin said, “I’m opening my mind to all of you. Cami, you may enter my thoughts and the others can see them by sharing what you see.”
Cami said, “There are too many of us to do this with just me. I’ll allow one of you to see what I’m seeing and then all the rest of you link up and watch.”
Cami paused and Justin said, “I’m not going to hide anything.”
Cami nodded and entered Justin’s mind.
• • •
At the end, Cami thought softly, “I’m so sorry you had to witness this.”
Justin sighed, “I fully intended to run. Funny Man wouldn’t have hesitated, but Justin wouldn’t allow me to do it; Funny Man died with New Britannia.” Justin paused and thought, “I’ve learned something from this experience. I looked down my nose at normal humans but now I know that all of us, telepaths and normal humans, are one family. One day all humans will be telepathic if what I’ve been told is true. Human is what we are and all of us should do whatever possible to insure our survival. I walked away from my parents as a young boy but the first thing I’m going to do when I arrive at my new home is find them and ask them to forgive me. If any of you are estranged from your families, you should do the same. I learned from Scott and Melanie that it’s love that ties us all together.”
Cami left Justin’s mind and he lifted his combat helmet to insure his privacy… but there was still one telepath in his mind. He paused and said, “Charlotte?”
“I’m so sorry for what you had to endure.” Justin sighed and Charlotte added, “If you’re still interested, perhaps you and I can…”
“What are you suggesting? Charlotte, I’ve been selfish, self-centered, and completely oblivious to those around me. You should have left me; I deserved it.”
“Funny Man deserved it but the man I see now isn’t him. I like what I see and I’m willing to give it another go if you are.”
“You are the best thing to ever happen to me, Charlotte. I don’t deserve you, but I can’t say no either. I guess prayers are answered.”
“I’ll see you on Britannia.”
“I look forward to it.”
• • •
The second thing Justin did on Britannia was find his parents and they welcomed him with open arms. The first thing he did was find Charlotte standing outside his scout when he opened the port.
• • •
Grady and Taffy were getting Grady’s new office organized in Fleet Operations. Cami walked in and stood just inside the door. After a few moments, Taffy saw her and smiled, “Do you want something, dear?” Grady looked up from the box he was unpacking, and Cami said, “You appear to be busy.”
Taffy nodded, “We are.” Cami nodded and Taffy turned back to the desk she was working on. After a moment, Grady saw Cami was still standing just inside the door, “Honey?”
Cami didn’t say anything, and Taffy’s eyes narrowed, “Cami, I know that expression; what’s on your mind.”
“Well, I was wondering if you’ve looked at the data on the destruction of New Britannia?”
Grady lifted a globe out of the box he was unpacking and said, “We intend to do that after we unpack everything.” Cami nodded and they went back to work.
Taffy glanced at the door a few minutes later and Cami was still standing there. “Cami, spit it out; what do you want?”
“I looked into Justin’s mind when he came back and saw what happened at Britannia; I want to show it to you.”
“Who’s Justin?” Taffy asked.
“He called himself Funny Man but now he’s using his real name.”
“Now?” Grady asked. Cami nodded. “Will it take long?”
“Not very long.”
Grady looked at Taffy and she shrugged. “Ok, we’ll take a break and you can show us.”
“You might want to sit down.”
“I thought you said it won’t take long,” Taffy remarked.
“Long enough for you to be uncomfortable standing up,” Cami replied. Taffy pulled two chairs over and Cami pulled a third in front of them. They sat down and Cami closed her eyes and entered their minds.
Grady immediately sneered, “I knew that piece of crap was going to run!!”
“Shhhh!” Taffy responded.
• • •
Three hours later, Cami opened her eyes and saw Taffy was softly weeping. Grady’s eyes were moist, and he was shaking his head. Taffy turned to Grady, “This is just like losing Britannia all over again.” Grady sighed and nodded. Taffy wiped her tears with her sleeve and said, “You were wrong about Funny Man.”
“No, I wasn’t. I was wrong about Justin.”
Taffy said in a shaky voice, “He feels just like I did when the Core Aliens destroyed Britannia. For years I wondered why I lived when so many others died.”
“He’s going to have to come to terms with it just like you did Taffy. Losing your world changes you. He’s not the same person now.”
Taffy held out her arms and Cami went and sat on her lap, “Thank you for showing us this; the recordings would never be as real as what Justin witnessed.” Cami nodded. Grady sat and continued to wipe his eyes. He jerked his head to Taffy as she said loudly, “THIS MAKES ME SO ANGRY I COULD SCREAM!!”
“Losing New Britannia makes me feel the same way.”
Taffy’s eyes narrowed and she started shaking her head, “GRADY HENRICKS, ARE YOU THAT BLIND!?!”
Grady’s head went back slightly, and his eyes widened, “What?”
“Losing New Britannia isn’t what makes me want to scream!”
“Then what?” Taffy rolled her eyes and looked up at the ceiling. Grady could only raise his shoulders.
Cami said softly, “We can’t attack the civilizations over the core.”
Taffy brought her head down and nodded, “Even Cami sees it!” she said smugly.
Grady shook his head, “Sees what?”
Taffy blew out a rough breath, “Did you not hear that alien’s thoughts about his civilization being scouted by an advanced civilization from the Triangulum Galaxy.” Grady’s eyes widened and Taffy said loudly, “WHY IS THIS UNIVERSE SO DANGEROUS!?! I’M OVER IT ALREADY!!” Taffy took a deep breath and said softly, “We may have to live underground a lot longer than I thought.”
Grady stared at her and his mind was working furiously. Cami said softly, “You have a lot going on, or you would have seen it Dad.”
Grady nodded, “We can’t attack those civilizations.”
Cami’s head tilted, “Why not. We just wait a while and then attack.”
“Cami, you’re missing the point. We can’t remove those two core civilizations as long as they are being scouted.”
“Why not?”
“Darling, what if that civilization scouting them is more dangerous than they are?” Taffy answered.
“We have to leave them alone; they might be a buffer between us and that new civilization,” Grady replied. “I think it’s clear they are hostile.”
“I didn’t see that in the alien’s thoughts Grady.”
“You saw that they attacked some of those scouts, didn’t you?” Taffy nodded. “You don’t keep sending scouts into an aggressive civilization’s territory unless you have an ulterior motive. Oh they’re up to something alright and I believe the Grang know it.” Grady paused and said absently, “That other civilization on the other side of the core is close to the Grang. I wonder if they’re being scouted as well.”
Cami smiled, “Well, this may prevent them from helping that mean civilization in Andromeda.”
Grady nodded, “You make a good point.”
Taffy sat up straight, “We have to find out.”
Grady
nodded, “I’ll have a discussion with RJ this evening about sending a scout out to see what’s going on.”
• • •
RJ looked at Grady on the display and said, “You’re absolutely right; a scout has to be sent to the Triangulum Galaxy to find out what’s happening. I’m going to order Admiral Grinstead to take his ship there and find out.”
“Why have you chosen him?”
“He went to the Stealth Civilization’s main planet and he’s also spent the last eleven months scouting them near Andromeda; he and his weapons officer are the most experienced officers I have. Leave it up to me and I’ll handle it.” RJ ended the contact, sat back in his chair and smiled.
“You’re pretty satisfied with yourself, aren’t you?” RJ turned his chair around and saw Sweets standing behind him. “The only reason you’ve chosen Charlie to go is to keep him away from me.”
“That’s not true; he is the most experienced scouting officer I have.”
“You’ve never lied to me before but you’re doing it now!!”
Candy walked in the room Holding Rick and saw Sweets and RJ glaring at each other, “What’s going on?”
“Dad is sending Charlie out to scout the Triangulum Galaxy for an aggressive alien species; he’s doing it to keep him away from me and he’s setting Charlie up to get killed.”
Candy turned to RJ, “Is this true?”
“Absolutely not! Admiral Grinstead is the most experienced officer I have in scouting aliens. He’s the perfect choice.”
Candy turned to Sweets, “I think you owe your father an apology.”
“Mom, would you like to know how I know he’s lying?”
“RJ doesn’t lie.”
“Then answer me this; he’s sending Charlie and his weapons officer out to scout that galaxy.”
“So?”
“He’s not sending a telepath with them. What does that tell you?”
Candy’s eyes narrowed and she turned to RJ, “Is it customary to send an Admiral out to scout an alien civilization?”
“It’s been done in the past,” RJ replied.