《The Black》
Chapter 1
1st Lt James ¡°BigMac¡± Mackenzie, ¡°Houston Docking clearance, ESS- Concord; information Juliet; request push back for departure as filed.¡±
Mac always had to restrain a chuckle when contacting ¡°Houston¡±. The monstrous centrifugal section that contained the HAB section of Houston Orbital International loomed in familiar silence over the canopy of his Concord ¡°LEAP¡± (Light-speed Experimental Aerospace Propulsion) craft as she lay to her moorings along the central core. The LEAP program was not old, less than 5 years removed for the Great Sol War of 2365 between Earth and Mars. Mac had seen more than his share of horrors of combat in the Black of that conflict. He shook his head; he needed focus not¡
¡°Concord, Houston Clearance; you are cleared as filed; pushback on your mark; departure vector two five seven, mark three niner one. maintain 500kph until clear of HAB-D. Once clear, direct Pandora MOA approved pilot¡¯s discretion, good hunting Mac, I¡¯ll keep your seat at the Golden Arches warm,¡± Houston Control shattered his trip down memory lane, none too soon by Mac¡¯s reckoning.
Mac almost rolled his eyes as he read back and got confirmed he had his Clearance. Clint never passed a chance at a reference. He could practically see his former Weapons officer turned Orbital STC controller¡¯s shit eating grin as he heard ¡°read-back correct good hunting.¡±
Mac initiated push back, the now familiar hiss and shudder of the umbilical, containing shore power, shutting down and breaking away from his vessel. His cockpit¡¯s HUD indications exchanged icons. Concord was now fully transferred to her twin Fusion Core power plants. A familiar singular thump shuddered through her as the mooring clamps deactivated, imparting gentle separation velocity in now perfect silence. Mac¡¯s hands moved with practiced gentleness. Concord responded to his touch, slipping from her birth with the dangerous grace her lineage demanded. She stalked her way through the HAB rings external diameter ¡°no wake¡± zone, under maneuvering thrusters alone.
Lethality was her heritage; however, science was the mission at hand. Mac could feel her asking. The low whine of the main drive at high idle begged to be loosed upon the void not unlike a Belgian Mal awaiting the toss of her favorite toy. As They eased past the final marker for HAB-D¡¯s outer limits and Mac Obliged; smoothly swinging her head ¡®round to heading as he began feeding power into her final drive. her engines roared to life with barely tamed grace and Concord leaped for the testing area.
This couldn¡¯t get any better¡ Mac Caught himself humming an ancient tune from his grandpa¡¯s media collection,
¡°take me out, to the black...
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¡ tell them I ain¡¯t comin¡¯ back..¡±
Mac hummed as he settled into his cockpit chair. He scratched his nose on the inside of his helmet where he had taped a bit of Velcro. Concord was a modified version of the Terran Republics TALON class two-man heavy fighters. His Uncle once told him she very much looked like the lethal love child between an F22 and an SR71. Despite being half again as large as the venerable black bird, the TALONS were the smallest interplanetary rated military craft involved in the GSW.
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Their job had traditionally been deep space stealth escort/infiltration. Even with her skin currently painted in bright NASA colors, Concord needed keep her ADS-B transponder active or she would be invisible to almost all passive sensors outside of 1000m; and as far as 10km for active scanning. Those numbers might seem like a lot¡ but that was well inside of ¡°knife fighting range¡± in the vastness of the black, and the TALON squadrons were used to extensive effect in escort duties and strike missions on both sides, including some rare engagements with each other during the sieges on both LUNA and Titan respectively. Concord had kept her claws as a matter of tradition and testing. She was dressed up in her Sunday best for this mission:
? 25-AIM 12x/iff¡¯s (hyper-sparrows). These little murder fish had proven that in a vacuum, supped up fox2¡¯s with IFF were not going anywhere in aerospace combat. It turns out that it is incredibly hard to shed heat in a vacuum.
? Phoenix 9s¡¯s, 10 of them to be exact half a traditional payload and half were of an ¡°anti-ship, Strategic¡± payload for delivering warheads of the nuclear variety to larger enemy capital ships. The big change the new Phoenix missiles had over the old were their ability to be fired as a manually guided missile as well as a fox3.
? Her pride however was her twin GAU28- Rotary Mac Cannons. 3000rpm each of magnetically accelerated 34mm tungsten hate traveling at 1 percent of the speed of light. The 34mm GAU or ¡°34Gau¡± in common shorthand, was essentially a 30mm tungsten cored steel dart with a 4mm titanium alloy sabot.
Everything concord had on her today either fired from a retractable port, or from internal launching bays. All this ordinance, including the nukes, were aboard because of the slip drive. Before the GSW, there was very little need for faster than light travel. Overpopulation, however, had led to a war that almost ended humanity as a civilization. In the end, the war showed humanity one thing, we were running out of space, and therefore time. The Slip drive was the answer to that dilemma, and no one knew what FTL would do to... well¡ anything.
Mac was pulled from his revelries to the tune of a beep that had alerted him to his arrival at the Military Operations Area (MOA) known as ¡°Pandora¡±. Swapping to the LEAP secure frequencies, Mac straightened in his seat ¡®time to go to work¡¯.
¡°LEAP control, this is ESS-Condor mission code fife niner three seven Juliet Gulf. Entering Pandora on station monitoring point tree seven. How copy?¡± Mac was gone, only Lt Mackenzie and his infuriatingly smug airline captains voice was left. After all, It was go time.
¡°Condor, this is LEAP, ADS-B and code received and confirmed. New heading of 115/330 and accelerate/maintain a 14g acceleration profile please.¡±
Lt Mackenzie¡¯s hands followed their instructions and Concord Howled to life, baying into the void as she Leapt forward. ¡®Thank god they figured out inertial dampers¡¯ passed through Mac''s mind as he was pressed into his seat at a more sedately 2.5 G¡¯s. ¡°Control, Concord: on heading, on profile, beginning slip-space drive spool up. ¡°
A deep hum reverberated through Concord''s bones. An experimental monster, created of the joint minds of a newly reconciled Terra and Mars began to stir. After a few minutes, that monster awakened.
¡°LEAP control, Concord: slipstream board is green, internal board green Concord ready for test commence countdown¡± came Lt Mackenzie¡¯s voice of practiced calm.
¡°Concord, LEAP: one minute, sync countdown¡ now, T-57 and counting ¡¡¡. 30 seconds.¡± Lt Mackenzie took a deep breath, reaching for the secondary lever next to his throttle quadrants.
¡®Burn the land, boil the sea¡¯ he hummed as he listened to the countdown. ¡°5-4-3-2-1 commend jump.¡±
¡®You can¡¯t take the sky from me¡¯ from behind the LT¡¯s professionally stern face Mac finished the line, and jumped¡
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two minutes went by, then two hours, at the third hour Clint was scrambling search and rescue cursing and sweating to all the god he could think of, that if the last words to his best friend were a Mac Donald¡¯s joke, he would hunt them down, and strangle them himself.
By the 12th hour the search was done. No debris, only a slight trail of rapidly dissipating Gama particles from the slip space wake was all they found.
Chapter 2
The low familiar hum soaked through her bulk as the hulking trading freighter hurtled through subspace. She tread through old stomping grounds, hard pressed under FTL. The captain walked her corridors, arriving upon the bridge just in time for the changing of shifts. ¡®Such a fine day for sailing, too bad for deadlines.¡¯ grumped Cpt. Miccurious Silu Drilumerum, captain under The Void of the trade ship Lucid Traveler. The ancient vessel had been his since his father had passed it to him, and his father before him, gods rest his soul to the Void. She was a generational ship, as was the custom for most familial trading vessels of the Delmarcian Confederation. He was currently pushing his command harder than he would have liked. The Subspace drives had been flogged to their limits over the last 14 cycles to make it to Bricus 4 with the relief supplies Traveler had been contracted to deliver.
Travelled was a well-known ship, respected for her family heritage and her service record; but she was long in the tooth, woefully lacking in repairs and upgrades she sorely needed. Like all traders, she was designed and built for function over form. 1000Gsu (galactic standard unit) wide by almost a 3000Gsu long, she never did cut a figure. None of that really mattered. Captain Silu, to his friends and shipmates (he never really liked his first name given as a symbol of his taking command of Traveler), had run the numbers. This haul alone would give him the GTC (Galactic Trade Credits) to finally bring his precious command into the 4th age. Depending on if he found a deal, he might even be able to swing an ATRE (atmospheric re-entry) upgrade module. That particular upgrade would begin to help with the ever increasing ¡°Fees¡± from the orbital transfer companies. ¡®Being able to deliver direct would save 1000s in¡.¡¯
Silu¡¯s thoughts were cut off violently by the master alarm. The Klaxon assaulted his senses as Traveler was viscous torn from subspace. In front of Silu, out of the bridge¡¯s observation viewport, was a sight his many years of void work had never given him. The spiraling pail blue and white streaking distortion seemed to hang there, twisting in on itself until it spat out¡ well¡ a ship.
¡°REPORT¡±- Cpt Silu Barked.
¡°Sir, telescopics can barely make it out, but there is nothing, I repeat NOTHING on scanners, active or passive¡± came the none to calm response from his nephew, Bryton. He sat wide eyed at his station, the newly promoted Sensor/navigation officer, ¡°If it wasn¡¯t painted so brightly, we would have never seen it leave¡. Whatever the Void THAT was¡±
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They watched as the strange craft approached¡. ¡®No.. she¡¯s adrift¡¡± Silu pondered. This would make him late¡ ¡°life signs?¡± He asked.
¡°I can¡¯t tell uncle, uh, sir. our sensors cannot see through the crafts hull.. wait,¡± Bryton stated quickly swapping settings ¡°I have something on telescopics. That craft has a glass dome of some kind. One, what looks like an ancient void suit there, possibly the pilot... I can¡¯t tell if he is alive.. uh¡ sir¡± Bryton rallied through his chagrin.
¡°Disengage the gravity and depressurize Larboard side hanger number 3, we will have to hope that craft can survive a few bumps. Con, take us in.¡± He smiled down at his second youngest niece who looked up at him with more than a little trepidation, ¡°nice and easy, let¡¯s not damage what we don¡¯t have to.¡± Cpt Silu Settled back into his chair. There was no law out here, not really¡..but the Code of the Void was engrained in him since birth. The Void Born help their own, and anyone crazy enough to try whatever the fuck that was.. all the way out here¡ in a ship barely bigger than an escape pod¡ was Void Born.
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PAIN¡ everything hurt¡ Mac¡¯s last memories were of him chuckling to himself as he activated the slipstream test. The jump, then PAIN¡.
He opened his eyes to scan the cockpit as his senses began to return to him.
¡°WARNING, WARNING¡± wailed the computers. ¡°PROXIMITY ALERT! WARNING! MAIN POWER OFFLINE, MAIN DRIVES OFFLINE, SLIP-DRIVE OVERLOAD, AUTO JETTISON COMPLETE EMERGENCY POWER AND SENSORS ONLY, PROXIMITY ALERT¡.¡±
The problems kept listing off ¡®¡.wait.. proximity alert?¡¯ Ignoring the Talons of agony mauling his body, Mac¡¯s head snapped up to a visual scan. His efforts were met with a Titanic blue, silver, and orange hulk of a ship bearing down on him. Its roughly rounded rectangular hulk loomed over his vessel. Its prow distinctively reminded him of an early earth era transport airliner. On the side was emblazoned a name¡ in a language he had never seen.
¡°Warning, internal bleeding detected, do not move, injection initiated. Please lie still¡.¡±
The suits repeating warning faded from existence as the survival nano tech and sedatives took effect. Mac knew he was fucked. Both earth and Mars had developed nano tech, but neither had gotten past the ¡°it will keep you alive, sorta, to get you to the docs¡± phase. His vision faded as he watched a monstrous cavity open on the flanks of this artificial behemoth.
¡®fuck¡¯¡.. then nothing. Concord, pilot in tow was slowly enveloped by the left side hanger 3 and gently set on the deck. Traveler, unknown cargo secured, swung her head back ¡®round to course and began spooling up her subspace drives once more.
Chapter 3
Siccuro lr¡¯merd watched through Hanger 3¡¯s observation port. As chief of security, he was now observing the recovery of the derelict. Hanger Three was currently devoid of breathable atmosphere as the strange craft floated inside. He was in the process of sending the con orientation corrections when the craft started spraying strange puffs of gas, orienting itself to the deck and extending its landing apparatus¡ with¡. Wheels.. on them instead of landing pads. The little puffs of gas continued. The strangely designed craft slowly maneuvered until it was mere fractions of a GSU above the hanger floor then ceased its movement and just waited.
¡°Uhh.. captain, I don¡¯t know if we triggered automation, or if the pilot is alive; but the craft appears to have oriented itself¡ Recommend we restore gravity and atmo.¡± Releasing the lapel mic as he spoke, he turned back to the ship in question with a shiver. It was ¡°looking¡± right at him, triggering some ancient instinct begging him to run, to hide. He gripped his sidearm as an old fear, deep in his blood, awakened. This ship was... No, this was the ship of a predator... This realization did not sit well. He prayed to all the gods of the void he was¡ chunk gravity kicked back on, and the bird of prey sank to its landing apparatus smoothly absorbing the impacted then stood there in its stationary stalk, still piercing his soul¡
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Mac woke to the telltale sound of his landing gear touching down inside the hanger, but he could barely move¡ barely breath.
¡°Activate emergency voice authorization gamma three one one five niner, lock all access under this encryption. unlock cockpit but freeze control of everything else.¡± He croaked through the agony. A wracking hack overtook him as the taste of Iron reached his lips. ¡®fuck. I guess the Nanites weren¡¯t enough. Time to pray for a miracle¡¯ ¡°Execute auto shutdown, maximum stealth protocol.¡± With that a shape loomed over him, the pain of him being moved caused him to black out once more.
¡°By the gods it¡¯s heavy!!¡± One of the med techs groaned as they dragged the suit entombed figure out of the cockpit. Whatever it was, was roughly their size, but it weighed substantially more. The tech hoped it was all suit. The ships doctor quickly ran a scanner over the suit ¡°ok, good news is ¡°he¡± breaths near enough to our atmosphere that he will survive. Bad news is, I am reading multiple internal hemorrhage points, and he appears to be an endo-skeletal species as I am reading multiple fractures. He needs the bio bed, NOW! Get the anti-grav and the cutters we don¡¯t have time to be nice about it!!¡±
A pallet usually reserved for heavy equipment and supplies was quickly pushed over and the being was laid on it and rushed off to medical. Siccuro watched as they whisked the being away. Slowly turning back to the bird of prey it came from.. ¡®Heavy, very heavy. But I exceed him in height by almost a unit. Void help us.¡¯
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Lights, pale blue, bright, blindingly so. Mac tried to move but failed. ¡®Sleep paralysis? No worse, restraints.¡¯ He tried to open his eyes, but it was too bright. Suddenly he heard voices, a strangely lyrical conversation was apparently finishing. Someone leaned over him shadowing the abusive light. Mac opened his eyes. Bending over him, tapping into the beds control pad was¡ something... no, someone! Deep auburn hair short cut, maybe, but it didn¡¯t stop at the head, but disappeared under a lab coat of some kind. This one, possibly male, was about 7ft tall, with a thin build, medium shoulders and light orange and silver skin that alternated in an almost tribal pattern. Was it natural? Was it a decoration? Mac had no idea, but he noticed Mac staring, gave a gentle smile and spoke. Nothing he said made sense. ¡°I would offer my hand in greeting, but I seem to be immobilized. Lt Mackenzie.. and you are?¡± Mac relaxed a little when the man dimmed the lights and gave a curt nod before walking around to work on the bed. controls once more.
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¡°Lou rum man mutoir .. my ¡ bra couit¡ you can.. Triasti mulligar¡ you can understand me now, yes¡± can the man¡¯s voice as he kept adjusting controls at his bedside.
¡®Ok¡ mind fuckin blown¡¯ Mac gave a low whistle ¡°how?¡± He finally got out.
¡°The bed, hooked up to¡ suit.. computer¡ incomplete translation. Name Icario, in your tongue I am¡ healer or doctor.. ¡° Icario spoke, broken translation through the medical bed. ¡°Wait one ¡®guilca¡¯ translation almost done¡± with that Icario showed Mac a linked set of devices that looked like high tech hearing aids, and Mac obliged. Icario inserted them and Mac let out a grunt of surprise as they began to mold to his ear canal, producing perfect comfort.
¡°Is this good? how copy now?¡± asked Mac as the translators settled in.
¡°I¡¯m unsure what you mean about copying Lt Mackenzie, but I can understand you quite well now.¡± the now much smoother voice came through, no hint of the original language from Icario. ¡°Now please relax. You were heavily damaged during your escapades; and I¡¯m afraid, releasing your restraints would be fatal.¡±
¡®Whelp, this is happening¡¯ Mac let out a chuckle ¡°what happened to me?¡±
¡°You have a severed spine in three places, internal bleeding from organs I have never seen before, and an internal skeletal system that I have had to rebreak in multiple places to get them into what I assume is the correct position. Your lungs were punctured by three of your thoracic cage structures. Honestly, if you were anyone else in the void, you would not have lived long enough to make it to my table. Our nanites were able to get your DNA code off of your nanites¡ if we can even call them that.. before flushing them so we could finish repairing you.¡° Icarios¡¯ voice was stern, apparently Terran Nanites were not up to ¡°standard¡±. ¡°How you managed to do that, I have no idea. Now please relax, you will be fixed up in a quarter cycle and then the captain would li..¡±
¡°Is he here!! Is he here!!¡± A second alien came bounding into the room in time to interrupt Icario. She skidded to a halt next to the doctor and stared.
¡°Lyrian you know better than to leave your post? Who¡¯s covering for you at con this time!¡± A mildly scolding tone from Icario couldn¡¯t hide the twitch on the corner of his mouth. The back of Mac¡¯s whirring mind caught this as he struggled to put everything together. This new voice was a melodically higher register, but He was still unable to see anything but the doctor fully. Mac¡¯s eyes widened as Lyrian then bounced over, leaning across the bed he lay on. She leaned in close to get a good look at him. She was Definitely all female. Long SILVER hair flowed over one shoulders with orange and silver tribal skin markings that were almost the reverse of the Doctors. She wore, what Max could only assume was an Exo Suit of some kind, but MUCH more form fitting, at least from what he could tell from beneath her poncho style top covering ¡°You don¡¯t look so scary? Succuro is freaking out over him?!?¡±
¡°Lyrian, the con¡¡± Icario asked, more sternly this time.
¡°Oh papa, it¡¯s three quarter cycle, I¡¯ve been off since about 5 (min) ago!¡± Lyrian giggled.
She finally stood up from over top of Mac, who was now ACUTELY aware that he is not wearing anything but a sheet.
The medical bed beeped and Icario grunted ¡°Ah, good as new. Lyrian, Care to give our guests some privacy whilst he changes? Mackenzie, we found a bag of clothes inside the living quarters of your vessel, I hope they are sufficient. We also had the Fab print you a void suit from the measurements of the medical bed.. sadly we had to cut away your own suit.. we had not the time to figure out how to operate it.
Mac quickly moved to a sitting position, bunching his sheet up around his waist as he slowly stood, the good doctor had a good eight inches on him and his daughter a good two or three. ¡°I don¡¯t know how it¡¯s done here, but we shake hands in thanks and greeting. Pleasure to meet both of you¡± He gave a firm handshake to the Doctor, then gave Lyrian a gentler one. ¡°I guess we shouldn¡¯t keep the captain waiting.¡±
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Icario rubbed his hand as he stepped out of the room, his daughter in tow. This beings¡¯ hands we¡¯re like a warm vice. Icario mulled over the results from the medical bed scans. The bed registered this being''s bone density as almost 3 times the galactic standard for an endo-skeletal species, of which were a minority in the greater galactic Unity. The medical bed had also noted some disturbing aspects of his physiology he wanted to ask about in front of the captain. The short mane-less man¡¯s body was densely packed with more muscle than Icario thought possible. He was almost hairless except on his head and apparently face when it wasn¡¯t sliced off with some sort of blade according to the bed. His arms and legs seemed to be of Delmar proportions, and the shocked look when his daughter leaned over him made him suspect much more. This hairless sapient promised to be much more than he appeared, that was for sure. Maybe he had better go have a talk with Siccuro.
The door opened and ¡°Mackenzie¡± stepped out, wearing what Icario guessed was a military-esque uniform.
¡°Ah, ready, are we?¡± He asked.
¡°Let¡¯s not keep the captain waiting¡± responded Mackenzie.
Chapter 4
Lyrian tried not to stare. This ¡°Mackenzie¡± was a strange being indeed. She had noticed her father nursing the hand that he used to ¡°shake¡±, and her own ¡°handshake¡± was almost a velvet vice. He was gentle; yet she had no doubt he could have crushed her hand effortlessly. He was short by Delmar standards, barely shorter than her. Of what she could see, he was almost completely hairless outside of the short cut fur on top of his head, and some light fuzz on his arms and legs. His skin was pale, a bit pink, but warm, very warm. He must be from an extremely cold climate compared to her home world. The Delmar race originated from a cradle world of 90 percent jungle on its land masses and. 40 percent ocean by surface area. While her race was considered endothermic, they had never developed the capacity for cold weather.
Then there was his gait. It unnerved her, his legs had the same joint structure and mechanics as hers; but A Delmar¡¯s walk tended to focus on the balls of their feet. This came from their development, ready to bound through treetops and after small prey in their ancient times. This being¡. Stalked his way through the halls. Heel to toe, almost silently. In fact, his footfalls would have had a totally silent gait, had the bulkhead floors not groaned under his weight. ¡®By The Void? What kind of world would create a being so dense, so dangerous.¡¯ Then there were his eyes. They mostly followed her and her father, but were constantly searching, aware, calm, but ready. She was starting to understand Siccuro¡¯s fear. The Delmar race was one of several minor predators of their world, learning tools and language before their World¡¯s Apex species. This Mackenzie walked like an APEX. And it was all she could do not to flinch with every almost silent footfall behind her.
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¡®This ship is insane!¡¯ Mac could barely contain himself as he walked behind the doc and his daughter. He was torn between following where they were going and trying not to stare. The ship was massive!! How long, he had no clue; but the corridors and bulkheads were sized to his benefactors. It made them all just a touch tall, adding to the impression of the Vessels massive bulk. The slight creaking under foot told him that he was apparently on the heavier side for this ship. At 5:10 and 184, Mac was on the heavier side for a pilot but by no means a monster specimen of a human.
Then there was what he was trying not to stare at. This male he had met was tall and stately. He walked with a long smooth gate that oozed composure. The younger female, possibly the male¡¯s daughter was a painfully exotic beauty¡ High delicate cheek bones and round eyes dominated her face, with nose and mouth to match. Her silver hair turned into a racing stripe down her back at least until it disappeared into her Exo Suit. she had a sleek ¡°long hourglass shape¡± that the Exo-suit left little to the imagination, thankfully she had her top half stayed covered in a patterned Shaw/pancho that helped a little with the distraction. They moved with a bounding step despite having feet that appeared to at least be similarly shaped. Maybe a life in zero g? Maybe a tree-based origin?
Speaking of, they were here. A door the translator read to him as ¡°conference c¡± but the two heavily armed and armored guards waiting at the door would have tipped him off. Mac put his game face on. No Human in existence had trained for anything remotely like what was about to happen, but Mac drew on his lifetime of experience in tight terrifying situations. Mac forced down the lingering trepidation. Calm, collected, confident Lt Mackenzie stepped into the room.
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Cpt Silu stood as the trio walked in, closely followed by Siccuro and his second of security. Icario had turned to his daughter and said something that had shoe¡¯d her away from the meeting. ¡®Good, at 20 cycles, she need not be involved in this part of the life, not yet anyway.¡¯
¡°Welcome, I am Captain Miccurious Silu Drilumerum master under the Void of the freighter Lucid Traveler, please sit.¡± Silu opened before waving to a seat. The strange being standing before him nodded and sat down with the doctor, and security flanking him. Only the doctor sat down with him.
¡°Lieutenant James Mackenzie joint Terran/Mars LEAP program, nice to meet you.¡± ¡®Same pattern as the dog auburn hair with more orange in the skin. Gender pattern maybe¡¯ Mac thought, regarding the alien across from him. The captain of this ship was the same height as the doctor, he wore an almost cutlass style blade on his hip, and bulky vaguely handgun shaped holster that did not immediately ring a bell. He was missing a bit of his main on the left side of his head with burn marks most likely explaining it. His left eye was also cloudy, most likely from the same incident that scarred him. This was not a man to trifle with. Mac took a deep breath ¡®Here we go¡¯.
¡°Captain, first off let me thank you for saving myself and my ship, you did not have to, but I would not be here if you had not.¡± Mackenzie tried to put as much professionalism and gratitude into his manner as possible at that statement.
¡°The void born take care of their own, you are of the Void, or you would not be crazy enough to pull whatever you did to arrive here. It is the code, but I accept your thanks¡±. The captain nodded and leaned back in his seat, ¡°that being said, I have a ship I cannot scan in my hold, and I have a being I have never seen before in my ship. We are headed into a system in crisis zone. I need to take the measure of my new charge. So first off, without being insulting¡ WHAT are you, and from where do you hail from.¡±
Mackenzie leaned forward in his seat as the crushing weight of confirmation flooded over him. He waited several moments to think before responding. ¡°The first, I can answer easy enough. We call ourselves HUMAN. Sadly, the second becomes¡ difficult...¡±
¡°Please make the attempt Lieutenant.¡± Silo asked, edging his words in a warning tone.
Mac took a deep breath forcing into words his new reality for the first time, ¡°Captain, until earlier today, I was under the impression that the Human race was alone in the universe. I am our first and only faster than light attempt in my species history so far,¡± He paused as the demeanor of the Alien Captain infront of him changed completely upon the impact of those words, ¡°I have no clue where I am. How to get home, or how to contact my home system¡± The alien captain sat very still for what felt like an eternity.
Captain Silu leaned forward slowly, planting his elbows on the table between them, ¡°You mean to say that you¡¯re the first of your kind to meet anyone outside your species?¡±.
¡°Yes¡± was Mackenzie¡¯s reply, ¡°I was not even supposed to leave my home solar system. My mission was a quick hop to our outer planets and possibly back. The last thing I remember before arriving next to your ship was pulling the lever to activate our slipstream drive.. then, *grunt* pain. Doc here states I almost didn¡¯t make it.¡±
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¡°Indeed, Doctor Icario¡¯s report is quite intere¡¡± Silu never finished the sentence.
*CAPTAIN TO THE BRIGDE, CAPTAIN TO THE BRIDGE! ALL HANDS TO STATIONS!!*
The captain leaped out of his chair and Mac stood carefully, not sure where to go but deciding to follow the captain. He felt his escorts behind him.
¡°REPORT¡± Silu barked as he entered the main con.
¡°We have dropped out of subspace at the beacon¡¯s Initial way point. we are being tracked. It looks like one of the pirate fleets caught wind of the relief supplies. We have inbound. Three garbage barges and a wing of snub fighters¡±
¡°Shields and weapons, begin Decel burn for Bricus, eta on contact?¡± Ordered the captain, concern bleeding through his orders, this wasn¡¯t the usual rabble fare to be run off with flak cannon and laser. They were in trouble if¡
Mac¡¯s blood boiled, He had watched the screens. The language was different, but the Icons told him all he needed to know. This freighter was to be murdered. Old feelings, thought lost, raged through his being as he took a single step forward.
¡°Captain, I need someone to get me to my ship¡± - everyone in the room stiffened as if ice water was poured down their spine. His tone frosted cold¡ hard¡ dangerous¡
The captain slowly turned to look at Mackenzie. No, he didn¡¯t see the profession test pilot.. he saw the eyes of a Killer. Barely bridled lethality burned from behind eyes of ice-cold blue hatred.
Those eyes pierced him again- ¡°Captain, I doubt you have enough firepower to get out of this. Get. Me. To. My. Ship.¡±
¡°There are three capital ships out there, and 6 fighters. What is one test plane going to do but be a snack!¡± Silo shot back, still struggling to comprehend the rapid change in the being before him.
¡°Captain, my test plane, was also testing how well ordinance could withstand slipstream jumps. She still retains her full capabilities. Concord¡ is a Warship; my warship.¡± the voice behind those piercing eyes continued ¡°You do not survive this, otherwise.¡± the man who had been Mackenzie bared his teeth ¡°Let me return the favor.¡±
Silu stood frozen, locked in Mackenzies arctic gaze for a moment before nodding quickly. ¡°we will transmit updates to your translator, including our Coms frequencies/protocols. Chief! Get this man to his ship.¡±
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BIGMAC hoped he had made the right choice, the look of terror on the captain¡¯s face was one thing. The petrified expression on Lyrians face was worse. He followed the big Delmar officer through the corridors at a mild jog until they reached the hanger, the alien was barely able to breathe. ¡°There¡ call, when inside¡ will ¡ depressurize¡¡± Big Mac didn¡¯t wait. He unleashed his one trump card... gravity on this ship was weak. He bounded the 100m distance in two strides, and the third had him up the 25 ft from the deck into Concord¡¯s cockpit.
¡°Emergency code gamma three one one five niner!¡± barked BigMac into his reserve headset. He would be going into this one without a G/pressure suit ''This''ll be fun''. No one had bothered to show him how his void suit worked yet.
¡°Emergency activation Jarvis, solo combat Lt James Mackenzie authorization code three two niner niner, execute!¡±
*Jarvis artificial WSO online, running systems check*
BigMac ran through his flow, the slipstream drive was gone, but its ejection had not caused more than an emergency shutdown. Soon he had the twin Fusion Cores online. Concords pulse returned to her, and with it, her eagerness.
¡°Jarvis. Interlink with the device in my ears. Sync with new comms update embedded in it. Security override: charlie two one.¡±
*sync complete*
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
*Lucid Traveler this is ESS-Concord, ready for pushback and departure*- came that same steel cold voice over the coms.
¡°*meep*, I mean, captain, Mackenzie appears ready to launch¡± Bryton¡¯s voice could not hide his terror. He knew how bad the situation was.
¡°Patch me in¡ Mackenzie, you are cleared, sequence will be gravity, pressure, door... Void guide you¡. Launch him¡± Silu ordered. Praying he hadn¡¯t just sent a man to his death.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
BigMac launched. Using his maneuvering thrusters to slip out of the hanger before feeding in the main drives-
¡°Jarvis target analysis¡± he ordered as Concords final drives howled to life; she was practically Baying for the hunt.
*Commander, fighters appear to be armed with energy weapons, possibly plasma, and they are unshielded¡ current time to intercept the freighter, 30seconds*
¡°Plot me a targeting solution, both Mac guns 2second burst.¡±
*Plotted. Cone on your hud*
BigMac slammed the throttles closed and snapped a 15g pitch reorientation. Luckily the ID¡¯s made that a more sedately 4.
*bust in 3¡2¡1¡fire*
BRRRRRRRRRRRT- the tell tell vibrations of the venerable GAU cannons reverberated through Concord¡¯s bones as she spoke in anger for the first time in 5 years.
¡°Burst complete. full sensors sweep on these capital ships, show me what they are workin'' with¡±-BigMac pushed the throttled up to a 12g profile. Concords twin final drives Howled and Bellowed into the void as she leapt at her new bigger prey.
*Commander, three ships that appear to be a mix of several designs. Shielded, but weakly. Strategic unnecessary.*
¡°Put em in the hud, arm fox3s¡±- Big Mac noted the three big ugly bastards. But they were two far away. Mac pushed the final drives harder 20g acceleration, he began to grunt as the cockpit dampeners kept it down to sedately 5g.
*Mac impact in 3¡.2¡.1¡*
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
¡°Captain, where did he go!!!! He¡¯s not sensors!! Optics can¡¯t pick him up!!! Fighter intercepting in .15 uni¡. ¡°- the sensor officer was cut off by a flare on his scope and the explosions outside the windscreen. All but 2 of the fighters were¡. Gone, just gone¡
¡°Weapons. Focus the remaining two.. I think we have our answer.¡± Ordered Silu from the chair. ¡®But how, we saw nothing on sensor¡ no weapon outside of a lucky shot from capital ship plasma does that two a hole wing..¡¯ A bright flair lit the bridge viewports..
¡°Captain!! One garbage barge is destroyed. Second and third are running¡ Dear Void¡ the second one is..¡°
a second core detonation flared in the viewport.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
BRRRRRRTT- the GAU¡¯s sang for a second and third times, ripping through the cores of the second and third cobbled together capital ship. The Phoenix 9s had done their job. Overloading the shields of the capital ships with a combination EM/HE resonance charge designed to feedback loop most shield systems whilst feeding extra heat into the system to force a shutdown. It¡¯s why both Terra and Mars still built ships with heavy ablative plating. Concord had her own plating, but her true armor was stealth.
*Second capital ship eliminated commander, third out of range and has gone into an FTL state. one fighter left near the Traveler. she is taking damage.*
¡®Shit, Death-star effect¡¯ During the fight with the pirate¡¯s capital ships, BigMac and Concord had slowed to a sedately 300kpm, Mac grunted once more as he pushed past 30g profile on the final drives. His seat auto tilted to keep him from passing out as the internal G peaked past 7, and he held the wide-open burn till he reached 900kpm before throttling down. ¡®I¡¯m gonna feel that one in the morning.¡¯
*ETA 40 seconds commander*
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
The first remaining fighter had made an easy target, it tried to keep its distance, the second knew better. Silu cursed as another flak cannon went down. He couldn¡¯t believe his situation. Two pirate frigates sunk in as many minutes. He suspected Mackenzie, but how were the Voids own secrets. So was the location of the ¡®Human¡¯. It had been two min since this fighter had attacked. The snub pilot knew he was a dead-man, so his attack was one of desperation born success. Fly away and get picked off. Be annoying enough and you might get lucky and kill your killer. Traveler shuddered as another hit landed home. The snub fighter screamed past the bridge window, coming about to¡¡ its left wing disappeared onto splinters.
From the larboard side came a visionary of death. The voids own predator swinging in from the left, dispatching the last attacker left on the field with nothing but a slight shimmer from her bow, not plasma, not laser, nothing.. A second sparkle, and the rest of the fighters turned into party confetti.
*Sorry I took so long, I needed a safe angle* Mackenzie¡¯s voice rang out through the bridge speakers.
¡°Sir, we still can¡¯t see him on any of our sensors even though he is right there!!!¡± Squawked the sensor officer.
*Oh, um, ADS-B set to transmit¡ do you read me on your scope?* responded Mackenzie.
¡°I have something off our starboard bow 1000GSU. I can¡¯t understand any of this data, but I guess it¡¯s him¡±-a still somewhat frantic crewman reported.
¡°Mackenzie, return to a hanger 3, the one you left from. We have much to discuss after our delivery.¡± Cpt Silu walked off to the captain¡¯s room to coordinate with the local relief effort. ¡®By the Void, what have we found..¡¯
Chapter 5
".... ADS-B set to transmit... Do you read me on your scope?" Mac was breathing heavily now. Everything hurt, again. TALONs were never built to be used without a High G rated Exo-suit. The human body was not designed to be subjected to the long periods of High G during the extended acceleration and deceleration burns necessary in an escort fighter class of deep space warship such as Concord. Concord had switched to its EGC (Emergency G Compensation) when his regular suit did not connect to the seat on startup, but it was not a fun ride. Mac could feel a Migraine coming on. likely caused by micro inefficiencies in the backup system¡¯s regulation of his blood flow. The system allowed him to survive, even fight.. There were consequences, however, and even short-term operations under backups alone could cause the User to Stroke out.
"... Hanger3, the one you left from, we have much to discuss after our delivery."- Mac had only caught part of the transmission, but enough.
"Wilco, returning to Hanger3" he eased over in a rolling split S to port as his main drives purred to life once more, slowing his velocity to match that of the traveler''s.
*Velocity Match* came Jarvis in his ear, causing Mac to flick Concord ¡®round and shut down her final drives. Activating Concords maneuvering jets alone, Mac gingerly eased Concord back and down towards the open hanger door he assumed was number 3. Ghosting into the bay, Mac decided to orient Nose outboard and settled her within inches of the hanger deck.
He made the call- "ESS-Concord, hanger3, ready Gravity". He felt Concord Thump down as the Hanger''s Plates reactivated, then the tell-tale return of sounds from outside Concord as the Doors Closed and Pressure returned.
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Chief Siccuro watched the strange craft now known as Concord stalked into the hanger, her massive rear facing engines still glowing with residual heat. This Mackenzie called saying he was ready for the bay to be secured, and the Craft Thumped down from its place right above the deck. The Hanger pressurized and the Ships Living area cracked open with a faint hiss.
Mackenzie Immerged, covered in... water? The being he had watched defy gravity itself slowly crawling down the ladder that had extended itself from the side of the ship. Landing unceremoniously on the deck, The drenched being flopped to his back, waving Siccuro over. Mackenzie was clearly in distress, his chest heaving violently for air.
"Are.. Are you Injured?" Siccuro questioned, trying, and failing to sound calm.
"Not sure.... had to use... Emergency Systems... I think I need Doc.."- Panted Mackenzie between heaves of desperate lung-full¡¯s of air.
"Icario, Siccuro. I need you and a team down to hangar 3 again. the Being Mackenzie appears to be in distress, possibly injured"- releasing the lapel mic, Siccuro looked up at the ship, it was untouched!! It had Presumably just killed two capital ships and 5 Fighters, but it didn''t have a scratch on it... It just, sat there, ticking, and creaking as the heat bled from it into the Recycled air.
He looked down at Mackenzie and his eyes widened. The Being was now sitting up cross legged and wiping flowing red from his nose. ¡°Shit" he heard Mackenzie Curse. "I guess I over did it a little."
Doc Icario decided to make his appearance just then, "Get him on the Lift!" he barked, then turned his tone softer, "Alright Mackenzie, let¡¯s get you patched up". the Being looked up and smirked "Its Mac, to my friends, Doc". With that he laid back on the lift and was hauled away.
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Sometime later, Mac Woke up in a familiar position. However, this time he was not restrained. Doc Icario was by the far wall working at his desk, Lyrian was on a waiting couch curled up into a ball just staring, not at him, he suspected, not at anything.
"Ah, you''re awake. So, what may I ask gave you the great idea to subject yourself to that level of Torture?!?"- Icario, raised his voice. Lyrian flinched but otherwise didn¡¯t move. Doc was none too pleased.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
"what''s the Damage, Doc", groaned Mac. Rising to a Sitting position slowly.
"You almost Killed yourself, again. What in all the gods of the Void gave you the idea to subject yourself to such forces?"- huffed Icario.
"Those ''forces¡¯ are pretty normal, if I had my suit anyway. I didn''t think I had a choice" Mac shrugged, stretching out the familiar pops and twinges that came with High G combat.
Doc just looked at him, arms crossed finger tapping his left arm.. "I think I need a base line. Mac, How Much Gravity does your world produce?"
Mac shrugged, "I donno, we always based it off of Earth¡¯s Gravity, just called it 1G... maybe this will help. can you show me what a standard unit of length is for you? not the name, but show me".
Doc nodded and walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a Ruler looking piece of material roughly a Meter Long "This" He stated, "Is one Galactic Standard Unit"
Mac took a moment to look at it. "hmm, ok. That looks to be about a meter... how do you measure your sleep cycles. one complete Day"...
"Ah" Doc had taken a moment to figure out the translation given "one Cycle is our equivalent to your day, may i see your time piece?" Mac extended his arm, and Doc took a scanner from his desk and recorded the time piece for a moment, "and one complete revolution of the smaller piece is a whole day?" he asked,
"No, two. This is an older piece my uncle gave me for finishing flight school. the small ''hand'' must make it to the 12 on top twice, each number is one of our ''hours'' and 24 of our hours is one revolution of our planet around its axis, give or take." mac explained.
"Ah, one moment then" Doc Icario walked back to his desk and started typing into his computer.
"Ah, here we go. ok so our cycles make up roughly 26 of your Hours, broken up into 10 segments we call ''hours'' (Mac guessed the translator was helping there), that we can break up into further 1000 ''seconds'' if you would like." Icario''s read back from his computer.
Mac rubbed the back of his head, "Oh boy¡" he pulled out his phone that he had left in his pocket before he stuffed his clothes into the his "Cockpit Bag" they had grabbed for him when he first arrived. Luckily, they hadn''t figured out how to get into the Hab section of Concord yet. "Let me give this a shot" he asked waving one finger pointed up and started mumbling "So... one hour of theirs is...... 9360 seconds give or take... hmm", he straightened up, "I''m no Mathematician, but If I got this right, every one of your ''seconds'' would have my world accelerate an object in a vacuum 92ish of those¡± He pointed to the measuring stick.
Icario was stunned, stumbling back to his chair to put that into his console.. "Mac, your world has over twice the Gravity our world does.. and we are on the upper end of the "Eden" classifications... by the Void¡ Mac... How many of your ''g''s'' did you put upon your body during the battle¡" He just sat there in shock.. ¡®How could a being like this survive, make it to space...¡¯
Mac Shrugged, "The last in cockpit number I remember reading was¡ 7.2 I think. I wasn''t really looking. the Inertial Dampers keep the forces on my body down. The Last burn back to the Traveler topped out at um... allot¡ on my acceleration profile. Our upper limits for craft/suit/pilot are classified I''m afraid, I am unable to share other than¡ I suspect that I was fairly close to Stroking out if I had had to do that a couple more times."
Icario just stared at Mac from his seat.. "Mac, There is no record of any being close to you in Galactic Unity governmental census¡¡± Icario slowly shook his head in bewilderment, ¡°we can figure the rest out later, the captain wanted to see you as soon as you were up, and please... Don''t push that hard again until we can replace your suit.. you were closer to that ''stroke'' of yours than you know."
Mac stood up from off the table "I guess that explains the Headache, Got any pain meds?"
Icario shook his head, "you are on what I felt safe giving you. The damage to your body is repaired, but the inflammation will remain as your body dot''s its ''i''s, so to speak. I recommend you stay on light duty rest until the offload is at least complete." he continued as they walked to the door.
A gentle sob, almost more imagined than heard escaped the young Delmar female curled up on the chair. Mac stopped and gazed down at Lyrian. She had her knees pulled to chest, and didn¡¯t acknowledge him, staring into nothing. Icario put a hand on Mac¡¯s shoulder, "She lost an uncle today in one of the flak guns, we are a proud Freighter Tribe, but a poor one, we were hoping to upgrade to automation sometime soon, just, not soon enough. she watched it happen from the Con, saw the panel indication... right before you made it back."
a stone sank into the Mac''s gut... Everything clicked...He turned toward the mourning Lyrian.
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"Lyrian", a deeper voice than any Delmar could muster rumbled as an undertone to the translation that also spoke her name. Lyrian slowly lifted her head, hastily wiping her eyes clear. Mackenzie walked over in front of her, crouching down to one knee, "I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t know your uncle, but he must have been brave to man the guns", she nodded her head, still unable to speak her grief.
"Is he the first one you''ve lost?" She nodded again, tears breaking free once more. Mac¡¯s voice softened, "I lost my uncle in front of my eyes as well. He was aboard a warship I was escorting to a battle that almost ended my species." her eyes snapped up to his. His gemstone blue¡¯s bored into hers. She searched them for the ice-cold hatred she had shrunk away from on the bridge. She found none; only a gentle kind of sorrow, hooded in memory. "It should not be easy to lose those we love. The loss is proof that we loved them all the more. Know that I am truly sorry I did not get back in time to save him." with that he reached out with that warm vice of a hand, and gave her shoulder a small squeeze.. then he was gone.
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"Thank you, She and my brother were close.", Icario whispered to Mac as the door closed to the His office. "She is but 20 ''years'', she has not known war or suffering. Today she saw the end of her family flash before her eyes before you launched. We would not have survived that attack without you. she knows this..."
"For what its worth, I meant every word. Those that attack the innocent... deserve no quarter"-the Ice was back in Mac''s voice at that last part- "but I¡¯m not drunk enough to tell that story,
Doc. not yet anyway" Doc looked over to see a smile that bared all of mac''s teeth.
The two walked in silence to the captains office. ''no guards this time, that''s a plus'' mused Mac as they reached the door¡ just to have Cheif Siccuro open it, eyes boring into him. Mac could only chuckle and walk in.
Chapter 6
Mac stepped past Siccuro into the Captain¡¯s cabin. It was spartan, but the impression of Generational History lay about its modest space. The captain turned from his workstation and offered Mac a seat with a wave of a hand, "Thank you Icario, Sicurro. That will be all". There was the barest hesitation from the chief of security; but Doc, simply nodded and withdrew from the cabin.
"So, I guess that makes us even, Code or not" sighed Cpt Silu.
"I don''t see it that way Captian M.." Silu interrupted Mac, "Lt Mackenzie, simply captain, or Cpt Silu will due, my first name is a traditional one held by the captain of this vessel since her launching. It has been in my family for 12 generations..." then Silu chuckled "and I hate it".
Mac suppressed his own amusement, "Well then Captain Silu, to my friends, I''m Mac. but I suspect we have a bit more on the table right now."
"Indeed, Namely how you simultaneously disappeared from our sensors almost the Moment you left the Hanger, yet sank two pirate Barges and 5 fighters... without so much as a scratch, or return fire."- Cpt Silu stated, equal parts Incredulous and Interested.
Mac Pondered his next words carefully. He had seen the level of tech on the pirate ships.. no armor, limited shield, with an almost 100 percent energy-based weapons... and plasma at that... something terra and Mars had abandoned due to projectile velocity and stabilization issues. "Captain, you put me in a... precarious situation... I know my life is in your debt, whatever the last few events have shown. I can give you some answers, but know that much of what you ask is of a nature I have sworn an Oath to protect. In my Military, it¡¯s called ''classified: top secret'' and it is the highest magnitude of secrecy we have. Having said that, I may be required to paint with.. broader strokes in some areas. If you can accept that I may tell you that I cannot answer that question or divulge any further details; I will try to answer what I can."
Silu Leaned back in his chair, hands steepled in thought for a full ''minute'', "I''m not sure if I am happy about that, but I am willing to accept these premises, for now. Where shall we begin?"
Mac nodded, "Everything I told you before is true. But there is a a bit more. I guess I will start at the beginning. You know my name. However, what you may not know is that Concord and I go back almost 8 years and a War of... almost extinction between two factions of my species. To understand this, you need to understand Earth, or Terra as we call her now, our home world and cradle of our species. About 34 ish of your ''years'' ago a large group of our species decided that Terra was no longer for them, they felt life there... stagnant. Universal Basic Income combined with cracking the resources of our asteroid belt had made living and providing too easy for them. So, they procured funding and struck out for Terra''s closest Neighbor, Mars. Over the next 23 years, these settlers slowly formed Mars to their will, Terraforming under Bio Domes while slowly seeding the rest of the planet to accept life... and more importantly, becoming Disillusioned with the Terran Federation. This came to a head where it would ultimately end, CenterPoint Station. the Halfway stop between Terra and Mars. and the Seat of the TF Legislative body. Mars Declared her Independence that day including the confiscation of all Terran/ Militia/ and First Responder Assets on Mars. Terra was Infuriated, well, most of Terra, the USA was heavily amused, but outvoted when war was declared by the TF. In the end Enough American Naval Assets had been confiscated to at least secure the United States participation. The TF needed their ships. They had the biggest Navy. Everyone thought it would be easy.... We were wrong... Mars was ready, she was the one who first introduced the class of ship Concord draws her design from. More importantly, Mars introduced Stealth Tech...BUT, they made a mistake. One of Mars''s first engagements had several of their pilots died due to brain embolisms known as ''strokes'' to my people, essentially, they pushed too hard and to fast in space combat and bled to death through their brains. The recovery of these Vehicles was... gory... but now Terra had these new ships, and the Key to Stealth Tech, and more importantly Cerebral Scan technology. See, Mars had been working on more efficiently using automation to progress their terraforming process, but they found out that automation wasn''t what they needed at all. you see, my species consciously only uses about 10-15 percent of our total brain capacity. Mar''s greatest minds managed to... unlock the mind. At first it was used to allow Terra-formers and Industrialists to Manage multiple Manufacturing Drones and Terraforming Bots at once from one location, massively increasing Mar''s Productiveness; and massively increasing here Navy''s effectiveness in both Capital Ship control. and Fighters¡."
A massive Growl interrupted Mac''s story.. "My apologies Captain, but i have not eaten in quite some time.."
Silu broke from his seating position, like a Prize fighter shaking a punch, "Right, we have been a bit busy of late" he leaned over to his console and pushed a couple of buttons "Mess this is the captain, have to two of everything on the menu sent to my cabin."
"My thanks, Captain. Now, With Terra knowing how far she was behind, she started upgrading her industry for the first time in 3 centuries. Concord is the third Generation of TALON if you will." Mac took a deep breath, "Her name was inherited from Her Mars Captured Siblings. Terra Took what Mars had been using as a carrier-based escort fighter, and they duplicated it for their first two models. The design for the third generation TALON turned her into a ''Fleet Escort and Deep Space Interception and Interdiction Fighter''..." mac chuckled after that one "you can see why ''FEDSIIF'' never managed to beat TALON in the naming scheme."
Mac pauses his story as the Food was Delivered. "Ah yes, Thank you Philios. Now, we were not sure what your species is capable or required to eat, but I had brought a bit of everything. Our Race, The Delmarcian''s Evolved as Plant biased omnivores. We do consume some meat, much to the horror of some other races, but we do not require it in large quantities. Our race also learned how to clone meat many generations ago, allowing us to streamline our production considerably. There are some races that prefer the meat of a living being, and worse yet, some prefer the meat of The Sapient... but we are not among them." Silo Explained as a Venerable banquet was laid out before the two of them."
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Mac Nodded, "In honesty, I am a bit relieved. Our species share the Omnivore trait. However, Humanity evolved into persistence hunters, and our bodies work best with a significant Protein intake. That said, Humans are a diverse bunch, we long figured out how to safely eat diets both Heavy in meat, and with No meat at all. I can¡¯t deny a propensity for a juicy cut of perfectly cooked steak, but I have been in space almost my whole adult life, I can eat just about anything. For us Humans, ''if it tastes funny, don¡¯t eat it'' can serve us well, in a pinch. May I?"
Cpt Silu nodded, waving to the platters in between them. "Please, we can finish when we have both been satisfied."
Mac and the dapper captain finished quickly, Mac setting aside a few pieces but generally commenting on the palatability of the options at hand. before long, both were re-ensconced in their chairs. Mac Swirled a tumbler of something smokey produced from under the Captain¡¯s desk. It wasn''t as strong as whiskey, but it was nicely balanced with a strong but not unpleasant Earthy undertone. "Oh, this is good.¡±
¡°So, we were talking about your vessel. Concord was it?¡± Silu asked, he was nursing his own amber filled Crystal tumbler.
¡°I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t tell you what she is capable of, or what some of what she is armed with.¡± Mackenzie paused, staring down into his drink before continuing, ¡°I can say this. She is so much more than just a fighter. She was my Home for the better part of 7 years, well myself and Clint''s homes. At home, this is public knowledge, but the 3rd Generation Talons, such as Concord, were the first-generation tandem Deep Space Fighters equipped with Cerebral Scanning. the 1st Generations were extremely simple hacks, allowing our pilots added abilities in their carrier-based fighters. 2nd Generation was... brutal... we tried to do what Mars had done. Predictably, our pilots overexerted themselves. you see, when you are linked up to your ship, you can FEEL what she is capable of. She is more an extension of your will than a tool in your hands. Our single seat Gen 2''s often created an invincibility syndrome in the pilot. Many who pushed their craft far past what their bodies could withstand never came home. It¡¯s the reason I almost died today. The first of the biggest changes between the 2nd Gen and the 3rd Gen TALONS were the SGES''s, or ''sustained G-force Exo-Suits''. These suits less dulled the pilots link to the craft, but biologically monitored and manipulated the Human body through pressure to bring the pilot up to the Capabilities of their TALONS. This also allowed us to unlock orders of magnitude more of the Human brain to conscious use through ship interface. This came at a severe cost. The second major change came in the use of two crewman. It took 3 years to fully integrate a pilot and weapons officer to their ship. Any faster, and the training could create significant brain damage and incapacitate both crew members. This happened a few times, often killing at least one of pair that pushed past their limits. Once integrated, No ship can integrate with another Human pilot; and a pilot who has lost his ship, while still connected, often was never fit to fly again. I¡¯ve known many of my contemporaries who felt every part of their partners death. Most never recovered. The rare ones who could, had to take another 3 years to ''bond'' with a new TALON, and a new partner. Second, we learned through Generation 2¡¯s that single piloted craft over saturated the pilot¡¯s ability to think, causing errors in judgement, and fatal mistakes due to cockpit resource management failures. In short, Gen3 Talons; while they can be single piloted; are only done so in an emergency with an automated ''weapons system officer'' computer helping take up the workload. Both the pilot and the WSO must go through ''the bonding'' together and end up sharing more through the ship than most people ever tell their closest lovers in a lifetime."
¡°You mentioned your partner. Why is he not with you?¡± Silu asked carefully.
Mac took a deep breath, "my brother from another Mother, Clint Stevens, he was brother in every way but blood, and in some ways closer. we survived 3 years of the hellish training during ''the bonding'' and we fought, slept, ate, and shit, bled and killed together in Concord for the better part of 5 years before the wars end. In the end we survived, our race backed away from the cliff of extinction... why, I''m not ready to tell that story. It¡¯s been 5 years since that day, and I''m still not ready to talk about it with someone who wasn''t there. Sufficed to say, Terra and Mars Reconciled, half of each planet¡¯s population was obliterated, and a mutual aid treaty had been put in place to help both planets recover. Clint chose to get out of the cockpit. His passion was not in flying itself as mine was.¡±
Mac took a pull from his glass before continuing. ¡°In that time, LEAP was created. I spent the next 5 years with that Organization. Our goal, get Humanity out of the Sol system. We needed to stretch our legs, ''Explore new worlds, to boldly go'' as it were. Humanity has out-grown her cradle, It is expand or die for us." Mac suppressed a chuckle "I was to be the first step in that process, a New Star Drive, the ''Slip-space Jump Drive'' SJD, a nice name, but we all just called it the slip-space drive. I pulled the lever and ended up here."
Silu gazed at this ¡°human¡± in front of him. Siccurro had come to him while Mackenzie was in the infirmary. The Veteran of multiple peace keeping missions under Unity command had voiced his concerns. Under the circumstances, they were not unwarranted. Silu had agreed. Mackenzie would have to be watched closely. ¡°Mackenzie, I must ask this. What are your plans going forward.¡±
Mac leaned forward and met the captain¡¯s gaze levelly "I know what I am about to ask¡ You do not know me, and the picture I have painted of my race is, grim. I have nowhere to go. I don''t even know where to go If I had the means. Concord Ejected the drive that got me here during the test flight.... striking out on my own is suicide.¡± Mac seemed to straighten in his chair, clearly having made a decision. ¡°If you will permit me. I offer my services, and my... expertise to you, Your ship, and your people for so long as I am able, or until I find a way home. You are good people, I have seen enough death, Horror, and Evil out in the Black to see this. You were attacked for doing nothing more than bringing in relief supplies, Lost men, and had the world of a wonderful young woman shattered with her first experience with death. *Mac raised his glass* I could do worse. "
Silu sat in silence for a moment, "I will need to give this some thought. I hope you understand that I cannot make a decision of this magnitude without consideration.¡± Mac nodded slowly, before slumping back into his chair and draining his glass. Silu quirked an eyebrow. Mackenzie seemed much older, in a sad resigned way. ¡°If I may ask, you do not look far along in years, how long do your species tend to live".
Mac pondered that for a moment, "With our modern medicine capabilities, I think our current average is between 115-125 years of age. The age we are considered to have started our adult lives is roughly 16ish of your ''years'', 18 by ours. I am currently 25ish of your years old."
Silu sat up in shock, "You went to war as a child!?!"
Mac nodded, "The war had been going on for years Captain... there were allowances made as my training would take a minimum of 3 years. I did not see true combat until after I attained adulthood. They were desperate times... So, enough abou..."
A *knock* came from the door, and a muffled voice spoke through "Sir, final docking has been initiated at the Orbital Distribution Platform, the GHO has sent a representative."
"GHO?" inquired Mac.
"Galactic Health Organization. They are overseeing the Delivery of Supplies. at least I don''t have to deal with a middleman this time... I hope. Lt Mac, I feel I owe you more than just asking questions. Doctor Icario Has recommended you to light duty and rest until the offload is complete, which should take several ''days''. I will happily answer any questions you might have once we are under way again. The Corporal here will see you to temporary quarters while more permanent accommodations are arranged. "
"Sounds fair enough Captain, I could use a shower and a good sack out... sorry, sleep¡ a good sleep. Until next time. " Replied Mac, who then turned and followed the Corporal down the hall.
Chapter 7
Cpt Silu stepped through the Larboard Side Docking Airlock into the ODP. These "Orbital Distribution Platforms¡± were technically mobile Crisis Command and Management Stations. These were colossal egg shaped structures were built with barely enough sub-light capability to break out of orbit, often times needing the help of the local Orbital Tugs Gilds; but they had MASSIVE sub-space engines capable of FTL jumps that few of the latest warships in the unity could match. They had one purpose, to GET to where the crisis was and take control of the response. Politics being what they were, many inside the Unity''s purview considered the GHO to be more harm than good. Just as many heralded the GHO as a higher calling to serve in times of crisis. In Silu''s experience, it was big organization, with all the bloat associated... As such, it usually came down to who got sent where, as to which GHO you actually got.
Luck would be on his side it seemed, as an aging Saurian lumbered over upon his exit, "Ah! Captain Silu, my old friend! I was hoping you had picked up the contract! How was the Voyage, you old Star-Strider."
"Mostly quiet, till the end at least. Any word on who tipped off the Local Rabble?", Silu''s retort was part amused, part relieved as he stared up at the much larger being before she lowered her head to his level and placed her forehead on his chest. "No idea, but by the results, it seems you have quite the story to tell." She rumbled into his chest. She was speaking Galactic Common, an amalgamation of several languages smashed together over the millennia then adopted by the GU as Standard. Luckily, it was a good system, though most single species crews spoke their native tongue when on voyage or with just each other.
Her name was Aminaira, and she was one of his oldest friends, and closest contacts inside the GHO. standing at 6 ''meters''. head fully raised. The Saurian species was the largest species on record with a home world gravity much closer to Silu''s 1.5 (Galactic standard), and an obligate herbivore by nature. Silu could not have known it, but Aminaira would have fit in nicely as a slightly larger "Camptosaurus" from the Jurassic period of Mac''s Home world. There were notable differences; retractable defensive claws in her for hands, slightly longer forearms, and a slimmer more evolved/ refines structure that tended to come with prolonged genetic development in most races. Her species had kept their grassland foliage and dirt tones that spoke of the camouflaged requirements of times gone. Her race was one of the few who did not wear clothes, being as large as they were, most preferred a more utilitarian harness system for carrying everyday items. Ami''s was traditionally styled in the patterns of her house, but with the purple and white of the GHO as its colors. They also happened to be one of the longer-lived races in the galaxy with the average life expectancy of 325 ''years'' being fairly easily achieved. Ami had spent most of her life in the GHO, currently going on her 280th year of service.
She lifted her head to meet his eyes, "But THAT, my old friend is for over drinks. I was told an emergency shipment was coming but they were a little short on details. The Storms on the planet have subsided, but a third of the planet''s infrastructure has been flattened."
Silu winced at that last statement. Bricus 4 had always been a tumultuous planet. with no natural sapient species of its own, it was colonized in the early years of the post Unity Wars. The surface was ninety percent covered in Water, with a smattering of Island archipelago clusters scattered across the planet. Much of her industry was either afloat, or on stilts in the Shallows. Modern Technology and Forcefield technology had rendered much of the boisterousness of the planet relatively harmless, but on occasion, Bricus 4 would speak of her displeasure more firmly than usual. People tended to Die in those times.
"Our inventory is ''first wave''. emergency rations, shelters, force field emitters, and micro-fabs to aid in shoring up the infrastructure and stopping the loss of life. I am told a second Ship is coming with more... substantial equipment." Silu responded, reaching into his jacket to produce a data-pad. "The detailed manifest is on here" he touched it to her pad, transferring the data "we have larboard hangers 4, 6, and 8 staged for the shuttles. I figured you would want to skip shuffling it through the station. the Hangers can fit class4''s so we should be able to empty out the Traveler in 3 ''days'' tops this way."
"Good! never one to suffer the middle man/ or woman." Ami chuckled, "I¡¯ll have the Shuttles over by end of the cycle, most are down on the surface delivering the last of the stations first response." she swung her head away for a moment and nodded to her aid, an much younger Saurian with similar features.
"Relative of yours?" mused Silu.
"My niece. She has grand Idea''s, but just as grand Nativity. her parents wanted me to take her on to test her mettle, NOW, about that drink!" she rumbled.
Silu threw his head back in a laugh, "My old friend, you know me too well".
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mac woke up. fumbling around in the dark for a moment until the lights turned themselves on. Nothing made since... this wasn''t his bed. This wasn¡¯t his room. nothing looked right... where was...
Mac''s brain finished waking up as the turmoil of the last few days all flooded back to him. The test, the malfunction, waking up in pain, the Delmar, the pirates, Traveler, Icario, Lyrian, Silu, Siccuro..
"Oh, fuck me. I was hoping this was a dream" He grumbled as he slowly swung his legs over the side. ''Oh right, slightly taller'' he remembered as his legs dangled off the bed a couple inches off the ground. Letting his eyes adjust, he looked around the room, settling on a desk with a console, His clothes, hung up on a bar next to it, his bag next to them on the floor, and a pad of some sort on the desk.
"Oohkaaay, I guess I get room service with a master key.. not sure how I feel about that." He definitely remembered stripping down to his boxers before face planting the bed last night.. ¡®was it night? when do their day/night cycles start.. oh boy¡¯.
Groaning, Mac finally got up and walked over to the desk. The pad¡¯s screen had a single button rendered. When Mac pushed it, Doc Icario''s face appeared and the message started, "Ah, you must be awake, I was able to get this Data-pad translated to your language visually, keep it with you until we figure out something better. It will link with your translator after this message and will give you real time translations as you move about the ship. It can also show you where to go. Traveler is a big Ship, so I programmed a short list of places you can go for food and facilities. If you need myself or someone, type into the pad and a com line will go through your translators. My apologies for not being available when you woke up. We are ramping up our offload, and I am currently on the planet aiding in the injured. I may be out of contact because of that. Take it easy until we are offloaded, there isn''t much for you to do, and doctors¡¯ orders are light recreation and rest. enjoy your free time," with that the image if Icario waved and vanished, being replaced with a layout of the Traveler and a ''menu'' of places to go on it.
¡®How long was I out?¡¯ Mac looked down at the pad and did some simple math.. ''fuck I''ve been out well over a day.'' He then looked down the list again.
¡®Hmm, recreation/exercise room. Sounds like a good place to start, if I am going to be living in this gravity, I''m going to need to up my game¡¯, with that Mac tapped it in and was off.
A few ''minutes'' later Mac wandered into the Rec/Ex room. It was completely empty, ''well dumbass, what you expect, there is a planetary crisis on'' he chuckled to himself, eyes scanning around the room. It was a big oval room, probably 40 ''meters'' wide at its widest point and 150 ''meters'' long, or thereabouts. Mac smirked as he noticed a running track that appeared to circle the edge of the room. "I guess I''ll start there" he mused, walking over to one of the slightly longer chairs than human standard with a table next to it. He set his data-pad down, then took off his shirt and laid it over the top of the chair "That''ll have to do as a towel after I guess". He pulled out his phone and, on a guess, opened up his blue tooth. "Unknown device, naw, it can¡¯t be this easy?" he gawked, clicking the device, and activating his workout music. --Thunderstruck-- began playing through his translators, "yup, I guess that easy" and Mac was off, the pad had told him the distance he would travel in one circuit, so he knew he needed to make 15 to get to 10k, which was roughly double his running day''s average. "Whelp, half the gravity, double the distance, let¡¯s see how I feel after".
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
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Sometime later, Mac stepped off the jogging loop. He felt like he had just run a 5K on terra, and stepped over to his pad. A harsh snort escaped him as he clicked through the stats: 25k. "holy shit, well I guess gravity really doesn''t scale Linearly." he had paused every 5 laps or so to do pullups on a nearby beam, and every 10 laps he did as many pushups or sit-ups (alternating) as he could. He hadn''t kept count, but he did know one thing now. he was going to have to figure out something to make exercising more efficient in this gravity. He looked down at the clock on the pad and realized that it had been 4 hours since he started.. and he was HUNGRY. He picked up his shirt to wipe off, then remembered, he had not retrieved a spare yet.. The entrance behind him Hissed open, and there was a gasp. Mac turned to see a Delmar woman staring at him...
"Um, hi! is there a shower and towels around here?" He tried, tentatively flashing a wide smile.
She stared for a moment wide eyed and completely frozen, then shook her head, snapping out her consternation, and spoke, "Not here, through that door" she pointed at a male looking logo with what appeared to be water pouring on him, or something. With that she turned and walked out the door. Her tail flowing behind her..
¡®A tail? huh, how did I miss a tail¡¯ Mac was still processing that one as he towel''s off, luckily the shower had a port in it, the translator told him was for clothes. His clothes were ready for him when he got out.
''Right, food time. I¡¯m fuckin starving'' Mused Mac as he plugged in "Mess Hall" into the data-pad, and started off.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Doctor Icario Mulhinu Grarzia had seen many crises on many planets. This was his second time responding to Bricus4, but this was by far the worst of the two visits. Two cyclones Had converged, and combined... Because of the lack of land mass available to break up such storms, this super-cyclone ravaged the planet for the last 3 ''months''. Weather Shields had failed, stilts buckled, Homes and business were sent to the depths of the ocean. along with many of Bricus4''s citizens.
Icario was currently in one of the Emergency Shielded zones, recently established by some of the first Emergency Shield Generators brought down by Traveler. He was stabilizing a young Lycan Child, her fur matted with blood and soaked to the bone with seawater. Her scan''s showed him multiple broken ribs and her liver was hemorrhaging violently. an Injection of standard Nano tech would keep her alive, but she needed a Bio-Bed, of which there were precious few, to give the nanites more instruction for repair and recovery. The standard nanite treatments of the Galaxy at large were robust and refined, but they lacked processing power. They could seal wounds, prevent exsanguination. and stabilize breathing and brain function, but they lacked the comprehensive database that a bio-bed could provide, or the scanners that a bio-bed could be used to create a data-base, should it not have a species'' information already uploaded. Icario had had to use that function on Mackenzie when he had first arrived.
The Injection took hold, and the little girl''s eyes shot open, and her ears pinned back. Icario turned her over on her side as she purged her lungs of the fluid the Nanites were pushing out of her respiratory system. She began her kind¡¯s, keening weep that called for mother/ expressed pain, and he nodded to a resident to come over and get her to a bed, "Urgent but stable" he imprinted onto the bracelet all patients got upon entry, "now, little one, what''s your name. Let''s see if we can find you some family". He asked as gently as he could.
"Juel''s, Juel''s k''lorgan" she got out between sobs. Icario tapped that in, "Nice to meet you Juel''s, go with the nice man and we can get you someplace proper to lie down." She was then carried away, still crying, tail tucked and shivering.
¡®Poor Las¡¯ Icario leaned back, stretching his lean frame out, trying to pull out the knots, when a hand clamped on his shoulder. He turned to see his captain, "Sir?"
"I''m here to get you back to the ship, they tell me you haven''t eaten more than a snack, and you just finished a triple. My friend, take a break. We will be here at least another few cycles. You can come back down in the morning. Don''t make this an order my friend. take care of yourself" the last part was a bit firmer than was Silu¡¯s want to say to Icario, but It needed saying. Icario nodded and his shoulders slumped. The pain and soreness from the day at hand finally allowed to be shown. "Alright Silu, alright. I could use a hot meal from the Traveler anyway. I''ll be on the next shuttle... Nurse? I''ll be taking my relief now." and with that, Icario trudged off towards the landing zone.
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The Mess Hall was about 2/3rd full when Mac finally made his way into its entrance. ''Hm, some things never change, no matter where you are'' he mused to himself as he wandered up to the obvious chow line.
"Ah, the Human! My, you are a strange looking one." Came a Cheery voice from around the corner of the kitchen. "Did you enjoy my spread the captain requested the other cycle", a rather Jovial Delmar bounded around the corner. He was a stark difference to the rest of the species that Mac had encountered. he had what could only be called a ''dad bod'' and sported a fluffy full auburn beard, the same auburn as the rest of the males of his species, although somewhat streaked with grey. and a Gigantic Santa Clause smile, "My name is Martin Nurcono, cook for the Traveler" he shoved out a hand "your custom, yes?"
Mac was taken aback, and shook the broadly smiling cook, "It is, Martin huh?"
"Yes, you say it well, why do you ask?" the amused man cocked his head slightly.
"Well, Martin is a fairly common Name for my species. It was also the Name of my uncle." Mac stated with a smile before turning back to the bar at hand, "I¡¯m still not sure what they are called, but I''ll take two servings of the grilled meat, and one of your tuber''s. and some of..¡± Mac gave up and just pointed, ¡°those vegetables. I''m sorry for the amount. I have been told that I come from a planet with significantly more gravity and my body has increased requirements because of it."
Martin simply nodded, "Oh! Not to worry, Doc sent me over all the Bio-Bed Data of your digestive requirements. So, I wouldn''t accidentally poison or under feed you. So, I would advise this instead of the tuber, I think you will find it a bit better" Martin pointed over to a sticky rice looking item.
"If it¡¯s one thing I have learned over my life, Martin. It''s never argue with the Cook. My meal is in your hands." Mac said with a chuckle.
Martin gave a quick laugh and filled up Mac''s plate with a respectable portion of his requests. with a couple of extras thrown in. "some new things to try, let me know what you think". and Mac nodded his thanks, "See you soon my friend". and headed off to the tables just as he caught a glimpse of the doctor¡¯s daughter. The young woman was wearing her poncho, but instead of a void suit, she was in a simple pair of flowing pants and simple looking sandals.
Mac smiled sadly as he recognized her picking at her food, and wandered over, ¡°Lyrian, is it? Care for some company?¡±
His voice startled her slightly and she just stared up at him for a moment. It took a moment for Lyrian to shake herself out of it, nodding quickly before returning to the staring contest she was losing with her own plate. Mac settled down next to her, setting his plate down and began exploring the cook¡¯s selection on his plate. After a few moments, he caught Lyrian staring at his plate this time, ¡°Want some?¡±.
¡°You¡¯re going to eat all of that?¡± She asked in shock.
Mac only shrugged, ¡°Probably, I¡¯m starvin¡¯. ¡± He smiled at her shocked face as he popped a massive fork full of meat into his mouth, ¡°Ooh.. this is Good¡¡± He noticed his ploy worked, as the action seemed to break the cycle of inactivity for Lyrain. She began to eat, slowly, but she was no longer trying to stare her food into oblivion. Mac took another bite, combining the sticky rice stuff with a few of the vegetables. ¡°So, I hear you are the one that scooped me up.¡± He tried. He had seen this many times before, the poor young las needed a break from her own mind.
¡°Uh, yea. I¡¯m Senior Helm. I¡¯ve been flying Traveler for 3 years. I flew orbital shuttles before that¡± Lyrain visibly brightened as she began to speak about her training and flying history. She was a Pilot, a universal affliction that was apparently one more galactic constant. ¡°It has been my dream to Helm a freighter since I was little.¡±
¡°I¡¯de like to see it sometime, Your helm. Most of my people¡¯s larger ships are mostly digital control panels.¡± Mac responded, ¡°I¡¯m curious to see what a non-human helm looks like.¡±
¡°You fly like a squadron level defense pilot. Surely, you have seen many a helm.¡± Lyrain asked between bites.
¡°Oh, I¡¯ve seen many bridges and Many Helm positions. But only Human ones. My people¡ they think they are all alone in the universe. We¡¯ve never met anyone¡ else¡ They still haven¡¯t. I have no way of contacting them.¡± Mac admitted with a sad smile, which turned into a genuine one as the realization flushed across the young Woman¡¯s face.
¡°You¡¯ve never.. I.. We are the first Sapients you have met?¡± The shock on her face rendered an adorable expression.
Mac scratched the back of his head, ¡°Yup, It¡¯s a pleasant surprise really. Humans have a long tradition of telling Horror stories about ¡®Aliens from outer space¡¯. I haven¡¯t been experimented on yet or anything, so I call it a win.¡± Mac grinned as Lyrian¡¯s face warped between shocked, then horrified. She had caught his expression and shrank back slightly, this time in genuine fear. ¡°Hey, what¡¯s wrong. What did I do?¡± Mac¡¯s smile disappeared instantly.
¡°Does your species always show their teeth when happy? For us.. Teeth is¡ aggression, possession, or anger. Never happiness.¡± Lyrian asked softly.
¡°Oh¡ yea, Humans show their teeth for happiness and amusement. It can be those other things too, but not in this context. I didn¡¯t mean to scare you.¡± Mac offered gently, smiling with his mouth closed this time. She looked as if she was about to say something else but instead waved at the door to the Mess.
Icario trudged in, waving back to his daughter before meeting with a Delmar female in the line. Soon enough, the two of them had filled their trays; and they sat down at the table with Mac and Lyrian. ¡°Hi Doc.¡± Mac smiled again as they sat down, just in time to remember and close his mouth. The female, the same one who discovered him in the Rec room, gave him a warry expression. She settled down next to Lyrian with a distinctly protectively watchful gaze.
"It is fine Tili, this is a Human greeting. the teeth don''t always mean aggression with them" Lyrian offered quickly.
Icario raised an eyebrow before he leaned over and patted the woman on his arm. "Mac, Tili''ay Grarzia my wife. Tili, James BigMack Mackenzie"
Mac chuckled for a few seconds, "Nice to meet you again Tili. and it¡¯s just James Mackenzie, or Mac to my friends. the normal ones anyway."
"Oh, we count as Normal for you now" Icario''s left eyebrow raised a second time, his eyes twinkling.
"Normal is relative, and I figure I gat''ta start somewhere." smiled Mac, this time covering without showing his teeth, "Although, I suspect I have some cultural learning to do.¡±
"Certainly" Icario said as he dug into his own plate. Tili just stared at mac¡¯s plate, still heaping with food.
Mac laughed at that, "I guess you missed most of that conversation. My world has a bit over twice the gravity of yours".
Icario then spoke up, "Indeed, His body is built denser, uses more energy, and requires a bit over double the calories, and three times the proteins. Hence all the meat."
Mac finished a bite of food, "So, the teeth thing. I might need a crash course on that one. I keep scaring people.¡± It was obvious that the concept amused him, but he was trying control himself.
Icario nodded slowly, obviously considering his words. "Our Species, from what I can tell, developed in fairly similar paths. However, when your species apparently moved out to grassland habitats, you developed into long distance hunters/scavengers, whereas we retained more of our ambush and tree climbing ability. Hence why our hands and feet are almost identical, but you have no tail, and we kept the main down the middle of our backs to our tail. Scholars say at one point it helped us determine air current directions in the jungle where wind could be fleeting and light. For us, showing teeth is almost exclusively a sign of possessiveness or aggression."
"Ah, I see, so if I wanna be friendly, no teeth. If I''m telling someone that something is mine, or telling them to fuc.. uh, go away or I will hurt you, teeth. that''s gonna be interesting. May I ask about the tails? I never saw one when I first boarded. Tili here threw me for a loop when i saw her''s as she left the Rec room." Mac commented between bites of food.
"The void suits", It was Lyrian who spoke. "We wear our void suits on long passages, only taking them off to bath/change/bathroom ect. One leg in the suit is designed to accommodate the tail when we dress for a long voyage. It¡¯s cheaper than the alternative, and easier to maintain in even if we lose the use of our tail if we lose gravity. we tend to not wear our Void suits when we are in port or in safer sectors."
"Ah" Mac commented, taking a sip of water, the grilled meat was quickly growing on him, and cook was right, the sticky rice stuff was fantastic, a little sweet but an excellent balance to the meat and veggies.
Tili spoke next, "what... what were you doing in the Rec room, I''m part of the maintenance department for Traveler, I got an alert from the Rec room for excessive vibrations and moisture content in the room. when I got there, you were.. soaked to the bone.. with no shirt on...¡± She looked up at her husband, "I couldn''t find any sign of the vibration, but we had to put in an order to replace three of the rubber tiles on the running loop."
"Oh... Sorry. I was exercising." Mac rubbed the back of his head again, smiling sheepishly, "My home world having such high gravity means that I have to exercise more here. If I don''t, I will lose bone mass and muscle mass, and possibly become pretty sick. Calisthenics were ruthlessly drilled into me growing up. It served me well during the TALON program because of our long durations in deep space without gravity. Humanity has not quite figured out artificial gravity yet. we have to spin sections of our space stations to simulate it in our living quarters."
"Ah, right. I''ll have your new quarters set up so you can control its gravity, just be careful what the setting is if you have visitor''s" Icario nodded, pulling out a data-pad, only to have it confiscated by his wife.
"Now Ici, Captain ordered you off duty. it can wait." she scolded him.
"... Ici?" Mac asked with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. receiving a scowl of titanic proportions from Icario, "I think I''ll stick with Doc, sounds safer for my health." Mac chuckled as Doc nodded, then gave a mildly annoyed glare to his wife as he went back to his food. Her smile back was, unrepentant.
"As for our cultural, species specifics" Icario continued, clearing his throat, "we are a tribal race. Most tribes of Delmar are Traders. We have residences on tribal property on our home planet; but the majority of the our tribe, most of our family, lives aboard Lucid Traveler or her sister ships, most of the ''year''. The rest of the Tribe take care of and protect tribal lands. We live a communal life but are paid independently. you keep what you earn but are encouraged to help out where you can. We are monogamous family units, and we can only bear one child at a time, Lyrian is our 3rd and youngest. My oldest, my son, is currently the second officer of the second of our Tribes three ships, Celestial Traveler. My oldest Daughter and her Husband work in Engineering on the same Ship, as my son. Lyrian became old enough to serve aboard relatively recently. Most everyone on this ship is either Blood related, or by marriage. Our marriages are.. Semi Arranged, the family''s must approve, but either party can veto or initiate the arrangement."
"How long do you usually serve on one of the freighters?" asked Mac. He had finished most of his meal but began eyeing up some of the Cooks desert recommendations.
"Most of the tribe does a 5-6 cycle stint between 2-3 cycles taking on the property. some of us Spend our whole lives aboard Ship." Icario explained.
"And some like Uncle Rico were going to retire after this season" Lyrian whispered softly, no longer reaching for her food, Her shoulder shuddering in suppressed sobs. Mac looked over at her, watching her recede back into her own grief. He didn''t think, he reached over and pulled her into an instinctive hug, laying her head on his shoulder, as the sobs softly broke free. It took her several moments before realizing where she was and pulled away. Mac let her go, but the sobs at least stopped. He looked over at her parents, Tili had a look of shock on her face, but Icario just gave him a small nod with a grateful look.
"Sorry," Mac said sheepishly.
"Its ok," Lyrian "I dont know what that was, but it was nice. made me feel better."
"They are called Hugs. We humans use them to comfort and emotional support, among other things." Mac replied
"Well, that was unexpected" Doc spoke up at last breaking the silence, "So what about you Humans, what else do you do besides these ''hugs''."
"Well, The Human race is a rather complicated bunch" Mac started, putting away his eating utensils, "So how about I tell you about the culture I grew up in. My father was From America, the Gulf coast area; basically meaning he grew up near a giant sea. Our planet has several large land masses separated by massive oceans. My mother was of Scottish Decent but also grew up in the south. I grew up with more Traditional Sensibilities from both cultures. Monogamy is something we share culturally, although we moved away from arranged marriages some 300 ''years'' ago. Not all Humans are like this, but it¡¯s how I was raised. I was also raised to be self-sufficient and responsible for my own actions. I was taught to Hunt, and fish and protect myself at an early age. It¡¯s one of the reasons I ended up joining the War...¡± All Three Delmar looked up as Mac paused almost a full minute... just... staring down at his plate or rather, through it¡ to a memory... , "Im sorry... I haven''t thought about that in a long time... I didnt mean to pu..." Mac was interrupted by Lyrian, wrapping him up in a ''hug'' of her own. she pulled away after a moment.
"Sorry" she gave a sheepish smile, "It helped for me, you looked like you needed one."
"Thanks" Mac gave her a smile. He then took a bite of one of the cook¡¯s specials, "Oh my, this is sweet, I like it, what''s it called."
"Corba Fruit Cake" Tili responded, "Its a desert of sorts".
"I like it!" Mac announced.
"I figured you would!" Martin Hollered from across the mess.
"HAHA, always trust the chef!!" Mac yelled back, waving the last piece, and shoving it in mouth.
The mess hall had cleared out mostly by this time, "what time is it by the way, I hope this translates, but i was hoping to find out meal schedules and day night cycles for the Traveler" Mac turned his attention back to Doc Icario.
"It¡¯s been a long day" Doc responded running his hands through his hair "but I guess this is evening meal, so it¡¯s the end of the cycle here on traveler, Morning starts in about 6 hours and the usual morning shift wakes at 0700. "I think it¡¯s time we all turn in."
"Good enough for me. I want to get my sleep schedule synced with the rest of the crew. Have a good night, all" Mac stood up, disposed of his trash and tray, and headed to his bunk.
The next 4 days passed fairly mundanely for Mac. Icario Kept a more reasonable pace down at the aid stations. By the 4th day Mac was feeling completely recovered, He had moved into His Permanent Cabin that had given him the option of having earth native gravity on it. That felt good, especially since he could do exercises under his own natural weight outside of running.
Day5 Saw Lucid Traveler Joined by another Delmar Freighter, Void Dancer. who was at least double the size of Lucid Traveler. She was poignantly NOT attacked during her approach to Bricus4. Mac had spent a nervous four hours in the cockpit of Concord just in case anyway. He did not want to have to do that again without his SGE-Suit.
Later that Evening, Cpt Silu got on the Ship-wide: "This is the captain, this is the Captain. 1 ''hour'' warning before we loose moorings. Normally, we would be picking up a contract outbound, but the GHO has agreed to a transfer fee that will cover our costs to our next contract in Pru''Mrul Prime. All hands prep for departure, Senior Crew to the Bridge."
Mac keyed his translator through his Data-pad and called the captain. "You want me on standby, captain?"
"Best to be sure" Cpt Silu replied, "Let¡¯s Hope we don''t need you."
They didn''t. Soon after, Lucid Traveler was on her hard burn towards the Sub-space Jump point.
Chapter 8
¡°Captain, we are at the jump point, exit coordinates laid in, eta, 2 cycles¡±- the voice from navigation rang out in the mostly silent bridge.
¡°Transfer to the Helm¡± Cpt Silu responded.
¡°Helm received. 10 seconds to jump¡¡¡..3¡¡ jump drives ready.¡± Lyrian''s voice range out
¡°Helm, jump at your Discretion¡±- Silu nodded to his niece.
Lyrian waited but a moment, then engaged the drives and Traveler leaped into subspace. ¡°Jump complete, drives stable, all systems nominal.¡±
¡°Well done¡± Silu nodded to all and keyed his comm ¡°night watch to the bridge, night watch to the bridge, jump complete. Senior crew stand down. Concord, you as well.¡±
Silu leaned over to the screen on his command chair to monitor the confirmations coming in, including the shutdown of the absurd power readings inside hanger 3. ¡®I need to ask more about that¡¯ as the readings faded as Mackenzie shut down Concord.
¡°Concord coming off standby.¡± came the slightly deeper voice of the ¡®Human¡¯.
Silu nodded to the night watch as they filed in, relieving the senior bridge crew with a smattering of small talk. Relief being the prevailing topic.
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Doc Icario turned his attention from his console as the door chime to his private office next to the infirmary chimed, ¡°COME!¡± He announced. Simultaneously giving permission and unlocking the door by voice command, the door slid open, and Silu entered with a bottle in one hand, and pair of tumblers in the other.
¡°And what do I owe the occasion?¡± Icario asked, raising an eyebrow.
Silu chuckled pouring a pair of stout glasses of their tribes traditional whiskey, ¡°I hear you spent a bit of time with our newest resident over our stay at Bricus...¡± he handed the glass to him, ¡°care to compare notes?¡±
An ¡®hour¡¯ later, and a few more pours of whisky down. Both men had thoroughly settled into their chairs. Silu leaned forward, ¡°So, I¡¯m inclined to grant his request from our first conversation. My concern is Tribal law.. He is not Delmar, he may not understand. Worse he may feel pressured into going through the motions. I need to make some calls.¡±
¡°That may not be as big an issue as we may think. We can have him on as a security contractor for a time. That would give us some breathing room¡ as for the rest, we shall see.¡± Icario took a sip to cover a smirk.
¡°My old friend, you know something,¡± Silu gruffed.
¡°Suspect, not know. We shall see¡± Icario¡¯s unrepentant grin finally broke through ¡°SOKAL!¡± And both finished their drinks before heading to their respective cabins.
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The next morning, Mac wandered into the infirmary to find Icario at his more public desk in the infirmary proper, ¡°Ah, Mac. What can I do for you. ¡°
¡°Doc, I need a vest and some weights. If am going to keep myself healthy, I need to exercise. I can do most of it in my room under my own gravity. But I need a weighted vest for my runs. Assuming the floor can take it.¡± Mac winced at that last part.
¡°I figured as much after my Tili found you and your later explanation. He indicated to a rather more industrial looking floating pallet. ¡°This should be about right,¡± in the pallet was a vest and a set of weights. Doc stood and followed him over, ¡°the vest currently has enough weights to cover the difference in gravity. Next to it are a few extra weights for you to use should you want more or less weight.¡±
Mac hefted the vest and put it on. It felt about right, His body almost visibly uncoiled as he bounced on the balls of his feet, and smiled at the return of the familiar tension in his legs as the weight settled in.
¡°This will do nicely, Doc. How did you know my size. Is there a tailor in the family?¡±
¡°Ah, No. The bio-bed, however, probably knows more about you than you do now.¡± Doc laughed.
¡°Ah, true¡± Mac hefted the extra weights in one arm, and kept the vest on. ¡°Off to go run, warn your poor wife for me, I wouldn¡¯t want her thinking something¡¯s going wrong in the compartment again.¡±
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Martin was settling into the rec room after breakfast rush, ¡°Tristen! You¡¯re gonna get dizzy running that loop too long!¡±
Tristen just scoffed at his friend, ¡°One of us has to work off all that fruit cake!¡±
Martin gave a belly laugh at that and threw a towel at Tristen as he went by, only to have it caught and slung around the running man¡¯s neck.
As Tristen kept up his pace as he passed the entrance, the door hissed open. As he passed a light thumping sound heralded a pinky skinned Delmarnoid figure wearing a strange green colored shorts, shirt, and a strange vest the same color light grey of a void suit.
Tristen coasted to a stop, just staring. ¡°Who the fuck are you!¡±
A belly laugh erupted from the pudgy cook, ¡°Mackenzie!!! Finally got your sleep cycles set? Tristen! Meet Mac, Mac¡ Tristen, a gym rat who never seems to know when to quit!¡±
Martin ate a previously thrown towel in the face for that one. ¡°Speaking of, what the void are you wearing?!?¡±
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Mac gave a chuckle, ¡°It¡¯s a running vest of sorts. Doc had it fabb¡¯d up for me to compensate for your gravity. It¡¯s so I can do my running without spending the extra laps.¡± As Mac finished the explanation, Tristan finished his interrupted lap and walked up to the shorter being. Sizing him up.
¡°What do you mean, our gravity is some of the highest known to the galaxy¡± he asked looking over the vest. And the extra weights under Macs arm.
¡°Well, me and Doc haven¡¯t refined for perfect accuracy. But we estimate Terra to be just a touch over 2 times Delmar¡¯s gravity.¡± Mac shrugged at the dumbfounded Tristen. He then shrugged off the vest and hefted it, ¡°this is roughly the difference between what I weigh in your gravity. And what I should weigh in mine. Wanna give it a go?¡±.
Tristen looked convincingly like the Delmar equivalent of the gym rat. He was much sturdier than the leaner Doc Icario; or the softer, lithe, slender frames that seemed typical of Delmar Females. Mac shrugged and held the vest open for Tristen to shrug into, "you sure about this? Im not entirely sure how heavy this is in your ''kilo''s''
" Im good to go. lets see what you got", Tristen responded
.... "Okay.." and Mac let go of the Vest. An inelegant grunt escaped Tristen as the added weight slammed him to his knees.
"Holy shit" what all Tristen could muster. struggling to his feet and staggering off down the running loop. Another belly laugh escaped Martin as he watched his friend rally, struggling to make a loop.
Tristen, made it most of the way back to Mac before finally succumbing. He fell heavily as he was driven bodily to his knees, then to his belly. "Little.... help.... can¡¯t.... breath..."
"OH shit!" Mac vaulted over the 20 yards to Tristen in explosive leaps, grabbing the poor Delmar by the Vest and hoisting him up to standing. Tristen wiggled out of the Vest as Mac supported the extra weight.
"That''s... that''s how much..... I would............. weigh on........... your world?" Gasped Tristen, leaning on the wall, recovering.
"I''m not sure. Thats how much I would weigh. How much do you weigh" mac asked. Tristen walked over to the console in the corner and stepped up on its foot plate. "
" 30 kg" Tristen responded after a second.
Mac nodded, "then you would be a touch lighter. I weigh 41kg in this gravity without the vest. 83 kg with the vest... you probably topped out around 70ish kg with that vest on."
Martin started clapping "Congrats Tristen, you just beat your own lift record, then ran a lap with it! who knew!"
Tristen let out a low singsong sound somewhat like a whistle, "dam".
Mac put back on the Vest and started stretching, "Whelp, I need to get my running on. You up for a running partner?"
"Sure, but you keep the vest, that way I might have a chance!" laughed Tristen. The two of them resumed stretching as Tristen had stopped running long enough to need to warm up again.
Their backs were to the door as Tili and Lyrian walked in. Tili had been warned that Mac would be running and decided to observe/monitor the deck plating to see if it needed to be reinforced. Lyrian had been given some time off on account of Uncle Rico''s passing. Lack of anything else to do, curiosity carried her footfalls. She had followed her mother, dressed to go for a run. They were about to speak up when Martin waved them over frantically making motions for them to keep quiet.
As they got closer to the jovial cook he whispered to them, "Just watch, this is gonna be good" before he noticed that Tili was the only one who followed. Tili looked a question over to her daughter, only to find an empty space.
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Mac had figured out how to download his workout music to his data pad over the last few days and was currently listening to one of his more ancient songs from a band called "Black Sabbath" when there was a tap on his shoulder from the other side of him from Tristen. he tapped the left side of his translator buds to pause the music and turned to find himself looking face to face with Lyrian, minus her void suit, but sporting what he guessed was the female version of sports attire and minus the traditional Poncho he had only seen her or any other Delmar female in so far¡ and¡.she was fucking gorgeous. It was clear that when Doc said that their species had developed very similarly, that he wasn''t kidding. her race had a fair amount of Gender dimorphism so while the males were considerably taller than Mac, she was only about a half head taller than him. The Dimorphism continued along Human lines. Lyrian was what earth would have called a C-cup which fit well with her long lean body. Mac brain shorted for a second, "Uh... hai... *cough* what''s up" ''God dammit Mac, get it together'' was all he got out before pointedly going back to stretching. trying not to stare ''these people¡¯s idea of personal space is... not''
"Care of another runner?" she chimed in that beautiful song voice that the translator infuriatingly persisted in translating so well into English.
"Uh.. Sure. One more can''t hurt" Mac responded, standing up and bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet sending a slight tremor through the deck plating, turning his music back on but keeping it quiet for conversation.
"She''s a regular, and quick too. She''ll keep up" Tristen added.
Lyrain did a quick stretch and warmed up as Mac and Tristen started off and started off herself with them as they passed by on their first lap.
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They were about a third of the way through Mac''s 10K. It felt like ten would be enough with the vest thank God, and Mac had started to sweat. Tristen had glanced over a couple of times with a worried expression, now finally spoke up, "Are you ok? you''re sweating a lot.. if you were one of us i would be forcing you to go to the infirmary."
Mac looked over with a smile, "It''s natural for my species. Doc thinks that Humans and Delmar Evolved in very similar ways. however, it appears that your world stayed in its tropical state instead of shifting to a multi-climate pattern. My species left the jungles and moved to the grassland with less shade, and longer distances to hunt for prey. Where you guys grew longer and kept your tails because you stayed in the trees longer, we lost our tails and developed to be able to run extremely long distances. To keep us cool, (he wiped his forehead with a towel he had snagged in an early lap) we sweat. ALOT", the tree strode along for another few laps.
Mac looked over at the other two, "can i ask a question?" the other two nodded "your skin patterns, and hair patterns, are they natural or decorative. I also noticed the opposite nature of both. curiosity has me on that one."
Lyrian spoke up, possibly panting a little bit, and starting to sweat herself, but at a much more normal rate, for a Delmar at least. "It¡¯s natural.... our world''s Jungles are this color pattern... as for the opposite nature. our Scientists think that it was to aid in finding a mate during our more primitive history... can I ask in return, you were a bit pink when we got here, now you are more red in places, like your ears and face."
"Ah, another cooling mechanism, our blood is red, so when I get hot, my body will pump my blood up to areas closer to my skin to aid in cooling combining with my sweat evaporation. Our hair Doesn''t really mean much of anything other than genetics. Humans have many different patterns of skin and hair color. None of them are for camouflage, as far as I am aware anyway." mac looked down up at the track, "we are coming up on 5k, halfway there."
There was a squawk from Tristain, "how far can you usually run!!!"
Mac, "I usually run a 10K in Terra¡¯s gravity. the other day before I had the vest, I ran 25 to get the same work out."
Tristen just stared at him, Lyrian, seeing Tristen''s face dissolved into giggles.
"Fuck it! 10k it is!!!" Bellowed Tristen as he redoubled his efforts and shouldered up to Mac.
"Well, while you boys keep at it, I think I''m done at 5." Lyrian got out between giggles, peeling off toward Martin and her Mother. She did not notice her mother watching her observe the boys around the track as she cooled down.
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"Do you see what I see"- Martin leaned over to Tili with a whisper and a chuckle. They had been watching the Three of Them Circuit the Rec Room.
"He is very sweet, I''ll give him that. But, Mackenzie is not Delmar.¡± Tili whispered. It was clear she did not like what she was seeing in her daughter. ¡°He Scares me.. So many things we don''t know about him" She responded as the settled into more conspiratorial speaking tones, "Ici''s Told me about Mac''s interaction in with Lyrian just after the battle. She genuinely started feeling better after.¡±
¡°That is good, is it not?¡± Martin¡¯s brow creased. ¡°If he were Delmar, she could do much worse.¡±
¡°But he isn¡¯t...Silu and Lyrain have told me about his reaction on the bridge¡ She was terrified of him... There is an Ice cold Darkness deep inside that man. He keeps it locked away, but it¡¯s there.. His species even shows their teeth to emote happiness...¡± A shiver ran down her as Tili watched her daughter clearly watching Mackenzie closely.
Martin continued, prodding. ¡°Icario seems comfortable with him, I¡¯ve never known him to make poor judgements in character.¡±
¡° ''All men have a darkness in them. his is well controlled, it''s a sign of strength'' ¡° Tili waved air quotes as she recounted him. ¡°but Silu is keeping him watched... This human is so relaxed.. yet so... aware... so... intense. He is a predator, an Apex on his world.. he has to be. Apex races are volatile¡ I don¡¯t want my daughter bonding with one, even if she could."
¡°Tili¡ Lyrian seems to like him." Martin mentioned softly.
"She does... She has never been very touchy with anyone outside of family, but she wrapped herself around him the other day in a ''hug''. That''s new for her. She told me he is very warm. I think she liked that¡ but¡" Tili mused, remembering the first day of offload in the mess hall after the captain had forced her precious Icario to stop working himself to death.
"Hi mom! you should run more, it¡¯s fun" Lyrian bounded up, panting, and wiping the sweat from her face and neck. Mac was sweating just as much as she had seen him that first time, but he just kept going. Tristen gamely keeping up.
"Honey, I get plenty of exercise crawling the maintenance tunnels and ladders", She chuckled to her daughter.
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The thumping picked up pace as Tili, Martin, and Lyrian turned to watch as Boys proceeded to be boys and the competition was on.
Tristen had said something to Mac that had him Laughing, "Now you done it! Let¡¯s go!" and they picked up the pace once more.
Chapter 9
United Galactic Navy ship Convergent Dawn finished Her decel burn into geosynchronous Orbit above Bricus4. Her sleek, aggressive form glided to a relative halt 50,000 ¡®Kilometers¡¯ away from the GHO station.
A whistling Klakson sounded as Captain Kar Grekurious entered the CIC.
¡°Captain on deck!¡± Barked chief of the watch before relinquishing the command chair to the Master under the void of the Dawn. Like most warships of the Galactic Unity, Convergent Dawn was a Thermian Crew, the Traditional warrior cast species of the the Galactic Unity.
Thermians were roughly 3 ¡®meter¡¯ tall barrel chested bipedal reptile species that developed on a desert planet that became their namesake as its apex. Plated in tan and brown scales, they possessed a natural armor. Thicker parts of their body had proven semi resistant to short burn laser and infantry level plasma weapons. a short-ish lizard like tail proved a powerful weapon. It was often also used to sit/stabilize on. A longish neck connected to what a human would most closely associate with a bearded dragon.
¡°Hail the GHO facility¡±- Kar¡¯s Curt air of command was long familiar to his veteran crew.
The hologram of an older female Saurian sharpened itself in front of the command chair ¡°Coordinator Aminaira, your reputation precedes you. I am Kar, Captain of the Convergent Dawn. We are here on an investigation of the recent pirate incident.¡±
Ami nodded Cordially, ¡°A pleasure, we have a serious situation to work on. I apologize for any curtness, But What can I do for you.¡±
¡°We don¡¯t intend any interference in your operation. All we require is your sensor logs of the incident. We will also be conducting salvage operations in the system regarding the same incident. A couple of larger pieces of the second pirate barge made it to the surface it seems. We will see to those as well. Gods guide you in your mission. ¡° Kar glanced at the Comm station, already flashing with incoming data. As to be expected from one of the Legends of the Void.
¡°And with yours, Transmission packet sent. GHO Aminairi out¡± The Saurian nodded her courtesy and the hologram vanished.
¡°Hm, efficient and concise. Admirable.¡± Cpt Kar rumbled to himself, ¡°Comms, send it down to analysis. Let¡¯s see what the brains down there can figure out.
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¡°Holy fuckin¡¯ Void! HOW!¡± Tristen was in trouble. They were two laps from 10k and his legs were on fire, his lungs heaving for oxygen... Mac was breathing heavily and soaked to the bone in his own sweat.
¡°When¡ we moved¡ to open space¡¡¡ hunting¡. We learned¡. To¡ persistence hunt¡¡ basically running ¡¡our prey into¡¡. the ground¡ until ¡..they collapsed from exhaustion¡..¡± them Mac gave him a big TOOTHY grin, ¡°LIKE THIS!¡± Tristen wast startled by the grin ¡®is he mad at me¡¯. Then Mac did something Tristen had no answer for.. Mac made the last loop of the 10k at a dead sprint. The room shook as he almost doubled his previous speed and thundered around the track in his infernal weighted vest. A full 2 ¡®minutes¡¯ later, Tristen struggled up to where Mac had stopped next to his spare weights, data pad and towel.
¡°What¡. The¡. Actual¡. Fucking¡ Fuck.. Was¡ That!¡± He struggled to get out as Mac handed him his towel. Then started chugging a massive container of light green fluid for himself.
"That is what I was holding back. One final push in the last lap. Its Kinda my tradition for running. Finish Strong, never surrender." Mac responded, albeit after finishing his drink and walking another full lap with his hands on his head, Tristen in tow. Both knew when it was time to cool down.
"That''s... terrifying...", Tristen mumbled. still recovering a little.
Martin finally got up from where he was talking to Tili, "Met your match have now have you Tristen?" he called out. then clamped Mac on the shoulder, "Now it makes since why you eat so much. 25k without the vest hmm?"
Mac only shrugged, Feeling the eyes of Lyrian and her mother burning holes in the back of his shirt. "Something like that."
Tristen finally caught his breath, "That makes you the new Ship Record Holder. Nobody here can do a 10K outside of me and you.. and you smoked me on time with that ''sprint'' of yours. Let¡¯s get showered up. our duty shift starts in a half-hour."
The showers turned out to be communal, but THANKFULLY segregated, and Tristen seemed to be content to just get cleaned up instead of ask questions. Mac, Tristen, and Lyrian all emerged from their respective showers just in time for the ships bell to ring. Mac waved to them and prepared to head down to Hanger3. he needed to grab some sundries from the Hab section of Concord.
Mac reached for his translators to start another playlist just as a sliver and auburn hand landed on his forearm.
He turned to see Lyrian step up beside him, "Where ya goin''."
"Uh, my ship; Concord. I need to pick up a few uh-things." Mac stuttered just a little ''oh for fucks sake, am I still in high-school? I''m a grown ass man stuttering in front of a grown ass woman.''
"May I come? I''m still on... leave.. Ma'' and Da'' are on shift. I don''t really feel like being alone right now" she looked down at something very interesting at her feet.
"Oh", Mac recognized that all too familiar sentiment. He put on a smile ''no teeth this time dumbass'' "Hey, Sure! Can¡¯t hurt anything. Just don''t touch stuff i tell you not to ok? wouldn''t want to accidentally Fox 2 Sicurro while he lurks on us getting my toothbrush"
There was a Huff from behind them.
A soft slightly confused giggle escaped Lyrian, "Fox 2?"
Mac just let out a laugh, "common, TomTom says it¡¯s this way" waving his data-pad. That successfully got a proper laugh out of the Girl.
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Mac and Lyrian finally reached hanger3 and the doors hissed open to reveal Concord, crouched where Mac had left her, Starboard side facing the Door, Nose Pointed toward the Exterior Doors.
"Whoa...¡± a flash of a terrified whisper escaped Lyrian, ¡° That''s... It looks... " She stammered.
"She, Concord is a she" Mac responded gently. ¡°You need not fear her.¡±
"She?" The confusion was clear on her face.
"Its a Human custom. ships, cars, aircraft, and spacecraft have all been traditionally ''female''", mac shrugged, "Its been going on for millenia on my home world"
"Oh, well.. She looks... Dangerous" Lyrian finished.
"She can be, although few of her opponents ever saw her." Mac mused, then shook himself, He hoped the shadows in his eyes weren¡¯t too visible. "Anyway, let¡¯s get what I came for" He walked over to a panel under the cockpit and Concord Hissed as her cockpit opened and a ladder folded itself out and down to where they were standing. "let me get up there first, I need to put in some codes to get access". He set his vest on the ground, and quickly climbed the ladder."Alright, come on up" he said after a moment.
"Hop in the back seat, you need to be in the seat to get into the Living quarters", Mac indicated to the seat behind the one he was sitting in as she crested the lip of the cockpit seal. She nodded, climbing down into a seat that was a touch small, but not uncomfortable.
"You good back there?" Mac asked. She nodded then started to get worried when the canopy started to come down.
"Uh... Mac?" her Trepidation bled through her question.
"We aren''t launching, It¡¯s a safety feature, you cannot get into the Living space without the canopy closed and sealed. It¡¯s why you guys only thought this was the ''living compartment'' when I first arrived.". Mac explained, "Now, don''t panic, what''s next is how you get in. Just keep your hands in your lap. It won¡¯t activate if they aren''t." Mac waited a moment, then hit the button. Both chairs dropped away from all the consoles and screens in the canopy. The two of them Descended down through the floor about one and a half meters to reveal a passage on the right side of the chairs.
"Now, if you roll out of the chair to the right, you should be able to crawl back behind your seat into the Living compartment. our G suits are bulkier than your void suits, and this a no suit hop so you should have plenty room... don''t worry, I''m right behind you." Mac called from in front of her.
She poked her head into the crawls space and found that she could probably crouch walk through it, she looked forward to find Mac out of his seat, on his hands and knees. He gave her a reassuring wave, "This was designed for us to get into the seats, in our suits, in zero-G. you won¡¯t get stuck I promise. Martin might be a tight squeeze though" He smiled as he elicited a giggle that seemed to calm Lyrian a bit. She led the way back behind the two chairs. into a more open space 3 ''meters'' behind the aft chair. She stood up into a room with a single corridor just barely tall enough to stand in with one small single person bunk on either side and storage compartments above and below the small sleeping culverts.
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"You lived like this?" She whispered... then jumped a little when she heard him take a deep breath behind her. She did not like small spaces. She turned around to face him to find their bodies almost touching. She had to crouch a little to fit in the standing room available and that had brought her forehead to forehead with Mac, who was standing comfortably; well, almost.
"It might be easier if you crawled into one of the bunks, Concord wasn''t built with comfort in mind, only survival. What I am after, is behind you" Mac explained with a reassuring smile.
She thought for a moment, then crawled into the Larboard side bunk, having to curl up just a bit. and looked up at him,
"How long did you live like this" She asked.
"Many training missions, then years in the field. The navy jokingly called us the "Second Silent Service" on account of just how like early submariners we ended up living.... sorry. early internal combustion and electric boats designed to live and fight under water. ironically, they had about the same living room as these did. Hence the reference" Mac explained, recognizing her confusion.
"Your people fought wars like that?" She asked in horror.
Mac looked around, somehow casually indicating their current predicament, "Still do". He chuckled, "Now here we go, jackpot.¡± He opened the storage over the other bed and pulled out a massive green duffel bag, then shifted into a trapdoor style compartment to the rear of the Ship¡¯s hab. It disappeared with a faintly hydraulic hiss. He then turned to face her and did the same with another duffel over the top of the Bed she was laying in.
"That should about do it. I should be able to cover the Three s''s for a bit. and at least give me some variety in what i can wear." Mac mumbled, mentally checking off a list. Then he paused, bending down to face her as she lay there.
"Um.." she began as he leaned in towards her.
"I brought a spare suit, it¡¯s under you" Mac mentioned, before opening the compartment below her and pulling out a white duffel back with yellow stitching. Mac placed it into the trapdoors with the other.
"There, that should about do it", Me mused reaching a hand down to her, "Ready to go?"
Lyrian Nodded, Taking his hand, and wiggling out of the cramped Berth she had been watching from.
"You good?" He grasped her on the shoulder with one hand. He steadied her with it while, with his other hand, helped her up.
"Yea, Im fine. I just don''t like tight spaces normally", She replied slowly.
"Yea, this can be an acquired taste. Clint almost failed a training module because of that." Mac chuckled. "He hated small spaces too, in the beginning. We had to be able to live here, for over a year at times. physically recovering from long missions sucked. It¡¯s partly why I''m kind of a Gym rat now. Took me a month to get space worthy again after that Mission." Mac turned and settled down on all fours, "Out we go."
Lyrian followed him back down the crawl space to the chairs and settled back into the rear seat as Mac pecked at a control and the chairs raised themselves back onto the cockpit proper. the canopy opened and Mac laughed, "I''ve always wanted to do this" and he launched himself out of the front seat with a shout to plummet down to the Hanger floor with a thunderous landing¡ He landed right next to chief Sicurro, who was scrambling away from him, cursing.
The Security chief caught Lyrian looking over the lip of the cockpit seal giggling and spun angrily to Mac.
"What were you doing in there!! You were in there too long! Why did your dome close! where did you go!!" He started Waving a finger at Mac as Lyrian began climbing down the ladder at a more sedate pace. pausing at the bottom rung at the bit of a drop below.
"Shit, forgot the last step is a duezey. just Let go, I got you" Mac waved Lyrian down... She paused, then jumped towards him, Mac catching her easily around the waist, "Your light" He mused, pausing slightly before setting her down on her feet.
He turned to the Irate Chief of Security. "Easy Chief, Nothin bad happened. You guys just didn''t know that there was a living space inside. I went to get some clothes, and personal things like teeth cleaning and soap. Lyrian wanted to come along" Mac kept his voice calm. It was Siccuro''s job. He didn''t blame the Irate Delmar for watching a strange being disappear inside a strange ship with the Niece of the captain in tow ''great job dumbass, think that one through next time''.
"Here, I''ll show you" Mac raised his palms to face Sicurro and then pointed toward the back of Concord.
Siccuro Nodded slowly and Mac walked over and pulled a small tool from his pocket. quickly opened a panel and pulled a lever. Concord Hissed as a larger panel lowered to reveal the three Duffel bags Lyrian had seen Mac put into the trapdoors inside.
"Its a Cargo lift for the Hab" Mac explained, "These are what I went in to get."
Mac grabbed two of the duffels with one hand, and the G suit bag with the other, "this gets much easier in your gravity. but I might want one of those pallets for the haul to my room." Mac dropped all three onto the anti grav pallet with a thump and walked over to Concord, closing the lift and the canopy from the outside.
"I''ll help" Lyrian bounced up Jumping onto the floating pallet, completely nonplussed by Siccurro¡¯s reaction. "You push, I¡¯ll Nav. Staring at that dam pad will have you running into stuff." the Smirk she had on made Mac let out a belly laugh.
"Lead on, my dear!" he waved a hand toward the door.
"I¡¯m watching you, Human" Siccuro Scowled but otherwise didn''t impede their departure down the corridor.
A Rumble came from Mac¡¯s passenger as he pushed the pallet through the corridors between Hanger 3 and his quarters. "Hungry?" He called out to Lyrian who was sitting cross legged at the front of the pallet.
Lyrian looked at her time piece/comm/data piece, sighing "Looks like we skipped lunch. dinner won¡¯t be for another 3 ''hours'' or so." She responded.
"Whelp, you are in luck. aside from my glorious collection of Hawaiian Shirts, we may be transporting one of the most rare, and PREACIOUS commodity in this part of the galaxy" He teased.
"OH really? Take a right Here at 429, What are you talking about... and what is a Hawaiian Shirt." she looked back, giving him a heart stopping adorably quizzical look.
"Snacks... HUMAN snacks.. " Mac gave a Smile baring his teeth for a moment before covering them, "Shit sorry, teeth bad."
Lyrian looked at him for a moment, then giggled, "Ill forgive you. for the promise of HUUUMON, SNACKS" she mispronounced His species on purpose with an evil smile, this time baring her teeth as well.
"Ok, I¡¯m confused, I thought teeth are bad. or are you messing with me" Mac quirked an eyebrow.
Lyrian pondered for a moment one dainty finger on her chin, "Yes" she said finally.
Mac just Barked a laugh and continued.
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20 min later, Mac and Lyrian arrived at Mac''s quarters. "Open" Mac ordered, and the Door recognized his voice and opened. mac pushed the pallet in, and the Lights came on. mac pulled the pallet to the side.
"Mac?.... Uhg.... " Came a distressed sound from Lyrian. Mac turned to look at her in worry to see her straining to hold herself up with her arms, still cross legged.
"OH FUCK!" Mac sprinted to the desk console and dialed the gravity back down to Delmar standard.
Lyrian Collapsed to her elbows and began to fall off the pallet.
"I got you; Im so sorry" Mac bounded over in the much lower gravity and caught the panting Lyrian turning her fall into a lean on his shoulder.
"That... Hurt... need.. a min" Lyrian groaned.
" Let¡¯s get you laid down" Mac answered kindly. Worry creased his face as he shifter her to bridle carry and effortlessly hoisted her off the pallet and to his bed, "I forgot I had left My room at earth standard. Are you sure you are OK? Do need to get your father?"
She leaned into him for a moment, she didn''t want to admit she liked how warm he was. then relented when he set her on his bed. "I''ll be fine, But I think definitely owe me snacks now." she sat up, not completely comfortable laying out on HIS bed.
"Yup, I think I do. Humans like three main things for snack''s that aren''t atrociously sweet or extremely bad for you" Mac began, "Dried Meat, Dried Fruit, and Mixed Nuts. Doc Gave me a scanner to use while I figured out what I could eat, it should work in reverse" Mac pulled a medical scanner from his desk. Then he opened one of the duffel bags and pulled out a smaller bag, walking over to the bed dragging the desk chair behind him.
Lyrian scooted toward the foot of the bed and Mac sat down in the chair at its head, pouring out the bag apparently FULL of human snacks.
Mac waved the scanner across the pile, pulling out some packets and placing them aside and leaving others. soon there were three piles, "Ok, this pile¡± he pointed to the furthest pile from her, ¡°are no goes. Apparently Humans have some tastes in seasonings that could possibly hurt or kill you. The pile in the middle is questionable. Basically, the Scanner has no clue. Everything close to you shouldn''t give you any trouble. let¡¯s stick to that pile till we get more info, shall we?"
Lyrian nodded, pointing to a packet of single strip original jerky, "what¡¯s that".
"That''s the dried smoked meat I told you about. meat cloning was in its infancy when I left on the test that brought me here, so much of the meat came from a living being, not cloned meat. Not intelligent life just Farmed animals. We don''t eat people. The only option available would have been each other, and we consider that abhorrent. My brain kind of transfer''s that a little, so I''m pretty sure I have no interest in eating fresh thinking alien.¡±
"We still farm a little bit. So, I think it will be ok. I¡¯ll try it." Lyrian picked it up quickly tearing into it the packaging ignoring the recommended opening spots.
She looked up just as Mac opened his packet the right way and he chuckled at her, "Oh this is going to be a blast". He mused, watching her slowly pull the package out of her mouth to open it correctly with a sheepish expression.
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Two days had passed. Cpt Kar had been requested to the conference room by the analysts in charge of the Pirate engagement investigation. They were... unusually enthusiastic... It was unsettling.
Kar settled into his chair at the head of the table, flanked by his number 1 and His Navigational Chief who doubled as a ''Science officer'' when needed aboard a warship. ¡®I guess its good to have hobbies.¡¯
"Alright, Yurgari, you seem to consider this extremely urgent. Let¡¯s have it", Kar''s Reptilian eyes bored into the thin Lycan Scientist in his lab coat.
"Yes, well.. Um Captain.. We don''t know much.. but what we do know is.. disturbing. We were unable to recover the smaller crafts black boxes, but we acquired both of the Pirate Barges Flight recorders..." Yurgari perked his ears waiting. Kar nodded for him to continue.
"We only know three things for sure captain. and 2 that we suspect but cannot prove conclusively.First, ALL of the Damage to the Hull''s of both of the Pirate Barges, and the Fighters... was kinetic..
Kar slowly sat up, "That''s odd, but not entirely out of the ordinary, many of the more primitive or poorer races use kinetics in space. The Delmar seem to be particularly attached to their ''Flak Kannon''¡±
Yurgari nodded vigorously, "Normally you would be correct, My captain, but we have not seen any kinetics that expel a projectile at both this high rate of fire... and with such high of a projectile velocity...
"How fast are we talking" Kar responded, eyes narrowing. Something had these Scientists spooked.
"A significant percentage of the speed of light. Captain" Yurgari stated, "So fast in fact that the projectiles themselves have not been found. We can trace their trajectories through all of the larger targets, and estimate their paths on the smaller targets... they... They didn''t stop Captain. they blew clean through pirate capital ships at about a percent of the speed of light.."
Kars eyes widened and he sat back, His chief or Nav let out a low whistle, "Captain, do you know of anything capable of that?"
"I do not, Drakori... Yurgari how large of a projectile was it" Kar turned his attention from his old friend to the rented science team leader.
"That''s one of the things we suspect, but cannot prove... we suspect that each projectile to be no more than 30 ''millimeters'' in diameter... and we suspect, by the impacts recorded on the flight recorders, that we are dealing with a weapon that has a rate of fire several thousand projectiles per second..
"that''s... that should not be possible.. " Kar had sat up fully. "My apologies, continue."
Yugari nodded "Anyway, the second thing we know for sure is that there was a launch detected aboard the would-be victim... a freighter by the name of... Lucid Traveler, Delmar Confederation flagged. but There are no sensor readings of ANYTHING coming out of their larboard hanger or any new sensor readings from the GHO, or the pirate Barges until after the fight."
"What changed after the fight" Kar asked.
"There was an internal beacon brought online inside of whatever it was. and that beacon entered into the Hanger of the Lucid Traveler. the Same hanger that a launch was previously reported from.
"Do we have the data from this Lucid Traveler?" Kar demanded.
"No, my captain. They departed days later for.... Pru''Mrul Prime with a transit payment as thanks by the GHO for their quick response. They will be picking up their new Contract in that system most likely today.¡±
"Prep for jump, Notify the GHO of our immediate departure. let move people, we have a Freighter to Catch" Captain Kar rose from his chair, but the room was already half empty.
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Cpt Silu Leaned back in his private quarter¡¯s office chair. Had been on the Horn with the Law-masters on Delmar Prime and searching the books since their departure from Bricus4, and all the way through their Contract Pickup on Pru''Mrul Prime. Lucid Traveler was currently full to bursting with farming supplies and Seed bound for a long haul out to a Rim World known as Argorania... It would be a 3 week trip at standard Sub-Space. He had taken an extra day to have the Final Drives and the Subspace field generators cleaned. ''I don''t like long hauls like this. but the money is good. and they need this for the colony to succeed.'' he thought. scrolling through his messages one final time before they reached the beacon out of Pru''Mrul. he noticed a new message flashing urgent... from the GHO..
Silu sat up straight and opened it. it was from Ami..
Ami''s face appeared on his viewscreen, "Silu, my dear friend... I pray to the Gods of the void that this Message reaches you in time. A UGN Warship showed up hours after you left. No, you are not in trouble... technically.... but there is something you should know." Twenty ''minutes'' later Silu sat back in his chair fingers pinching the bridge of his nose. His mind whirred with options and possible outcomes... severely limited though they would now be. He keyed his Intercom.
"Icario here. Something the matter, Captain?"
Chapter 10
-flashback to the arrival at Pru¡¯Mrul-
The trip from Bricus to Pru¡¯Mrul went by in a dizzied blur for Mac. He had spent his time with Doc Icario and later with chief navigator and 2nd in command Margaretti Solvilque, Bryton¡¯s mother, in an attempt to figure out where he had actually ended up, compared to Sol. He was hesitant at first, but he eventually shared his star charts aboard Concord with Chief Marg (she seemed to insist on that one). He and Lyrian had been spending most of the last few days together, mostly swapping snacks and cultural tidbits. Mac had finally gotten his blue tooth speakers to work with Delmar tech, and an entire evening was been spent in the Rec room. Mac, Lyrian, Martin, Tristen and Bryton explored through several genres of Human music. Tristen and Bryton had gravitated to techno industrial instrumental music , and promptly demanded play lists to workout to. Apparently life aboard a freighter had made the majority of the Delmar exceedingly health conscious. Martin has gotten a Kick out of Reggae, and had promptly received Macs entire Bob Marley collection. Lyrian had been more reluctant to say anything until Mac had stumbled into his Uncle Martins Slow Jazz/Blues collection. She had just sat there in stunned silence as one of the tracts finished before asking for a copy of all of it. That had made Mac smile. Martin and the crowd had wandered off by that point and Lyrian had absent mindedly leaned against his shoulder with her eyes closed, head on his the top of his shoulder. tail wrapped around his waist, completely lost in the music. Tili had wandered in at some point to check on her daughter, staying to observe as the evening wound down.
*cough* ¡°Lyrian, Dear it¡¯s late, your leave ends tonight, you have the Con for our arrival tomorrow¡±. Lyrian jumped at her mothers voice. She sat back up from Mac who had had a hand gently tracing the main down the back of her neck. It turned out that All Delmar were basically as hairless as humans, save for a ¡®mane¡¯ that started from where their very human like hair ended at the base of their head, down their spine like a velvety soft razor back. Mac had been lost, deep in memory of the man who had saved him, given him purpose. His uncle Martin for whom these songs belonged. He shifted awkwardly, but didn¡¯t protest. He let her go as she jumped up.
¡°Shit it''s late, I¡¯ll send you all this in a data pack.¡± He had yawned.
¡°Yea¡ uh¡ see you tomorrow¡±, Lyrian mumbled as she practically ran out of the room.
Tili remained and watched Mac pack and clean up from the groups musical exploration, Human snacks and all. ¡®I hope I didn¡¯t give Martin too many ideas¡¯ Mac thought before noticing Tili Was still there.
He sling his backpack and started to walk by her toward the entrance.
¡°Please¡.. ¡° Tili started
¡°Hmm?¡± Mac paused and turned to look at her
¡°I¡¡± Tili rallied, ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are, nobody does... what I see confuses me¡ I see a being capable of great violence¡ and of great darkness¡ yet you are so Kind...¡°
Mac set the backpack down, ¡°And you don¡¯t want me to hurt your daughter¡± he walked over to Tili.
¡°.....Yes¡ my husband trusts you.. my captain is beginning to do the same¡ but¡ I fear you¡ I have never seen Lyrian react to another male like she does to you¡ please don¡¯t betray that. Ours is a dangerous life; and while my daughter has been aboard ship since her age of majority, she has been luckier than most. These last 6 years have been very peaceful. It is not always so¡ she has much to learn despite her age.¡±
Mac reached out suddenly and pulled Tili into a human hug ¡®he is warm¡¯ she though going stiff for a moment before relaxing into the embrace.
¡°The truth is, you are not wrong. I have lived more of my life on the edge of Death, survival, vengeance, and slaughter¡ than I have lived it in peace.¡± Tilli not so much heard his words as felt them rumble through the embrace, ¡°I feel that, for the first time, I am healing. I cannot say I am fully at peace¡ yet.. That¡¯s a long road for me.. but your daughter treats me like something other than a roaming silent assassin of the Black. And I like that.¡± He released Tili from the hug and picked up his pack again, ¡°I hope you can understand what that means to me. And I hope that gives you your answer.¡± He finished with a small smile. Then a big goofy yawn ended the conversation.
¡°Shit, it¡¯s late, ¡®night¡± he waved, and left her there to her thoughts.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
It was just after the next morning''s breakfast. Lyrian was currently on duty, and Max had just finished his run. He was wandering into Doc Icario¡¯s office to meet the two of them, an the look on their faces gave him pause¡ They had found something¡. And it was not good.
¡°Mac, sit down.¡±, Doc Icario spoke first, clearly attempting to soften what he could of the blow to come.
¡°You found something¡± Mac sat in the offered chair.
Marg started, ¡°We Did. We took what you gave us and analyzed what we had from the sensor reading from when you first arrived. We don¡¯t know how you did it. But your ¡®slip-space drive¡¯ has never been attempted before. It appeared to be surfing on the boarder of subspace and real space. It is taking advantage of calculations we have never seen before, as incomplete as what we could dig up is; but we did find one thing. Your slip space drive and our subspace drives both have one key similarity. They are both orders of magnitude easier to control, when there is a beginning and an end coordinate. Your ¡®LEAP¡¯ research assumed that you could figure out distance as a function of speed. Subspace does not work like that.. you need the two points together to both regulate the drives output and keep from being thrown off course from subspace compression and fluctuation. Simply put¡ you had no end beacon¡ so your test was doomed from the start.¡±
Mac hung his head, he suspected something like this. But hearing it as fact was¡¡ devastating.
¡°We do have ... more. ¡± Doc Icario spoke up. ¡°We found the Sol system.¡±
Macs head shot up! ¡°Whah!! How!¡±
¡°The beacon you were to use as a reference.¡± Icario began.
Light house protocol¡± Max finished. I guess they had turned it on.
¡°Yes, well they did. At least for a few days. It was enough to register with the Galactic Unity Astrophysicist Ministry as a subspace beacon. But they dismissed it as a natural phenomena because it ceased so quickly," Icario continued, ¡°but it matches your flight timeline that you gave us from concord. And the conversion of the charts you gave us. It¡¯s Sol." Icario took a breath, "Mac, it¡¯s also 20years away by traditional subspace¡ through currently unexplored space¡ without figuring out your slip space drive¡ I don¡¯t think you can go home any time soon.¡±
A Stone sank deep into his gut¡.¡®Shit¡¯ Mac sat motionless¡
¡°Doc, Marg.. If that¡¯s all, I think I need to retire to my cabin¡ ¡°
Mac got up and walked out of Doc¡¯s office.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Lyrian bounded out of the Bridge, at end of shift. The Traveler was safely docked and taking on her next contract. Lyrian was looking forward to more of they Human ¡®jazz¡¯ music of Mac¡¯s. Rounding the corner of the corridor to the mess hall her stomach rumbled.
¡°Martin! Got anything entertaining for dinner? Maybe something Humooon.¡± she was hoping Max would hear that. It got a laugh about of him every time, and he had promised to explain it, one day.¡±
¡°Yea, he calls em ¡®Sandwiches¡¯ but I haven¡¯t seen him since this morning.¡± Martin replied. "But I''ve been super busy, these ¡®sandwiches¡¯ were a hit."
¡°He won¡¯t be joining us for dinner.¡± Lyrian heard her mothers voice from behind her.
¡°What, why?¡± Lyrian asked looking up as her mother and father walked up. Da¡¯ had a look on his face¡ the look she had only seen after giving a patient the news that modern medicine had run out of options.
¡°Da¡¯?¡± She asked, worry crept into that one syllable..
Tili looked up at her husband and Icario took a long pause before sighing, ¡°We found Sol¡. It¡¯s 20 years away.¡±
The entire mess hall was instantly silenced at the sound of a metal tray and dishes clattering to the ground, but Lyrian was already well down the corridor
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
The Door chimed, Mac lifted his head from in his hands. A mostly empty bottle of Jeremiah Weed and a tumbler with another two fingers in it sat on his desk.. he had lost so many friends during the war.. he had actually grown to tolerate the taste. The bottle had started full.
¡°Whooiiissirt!¡± He half shouted
¡°It¡¯s me¡. May I come in?¡± He knew that voice.
¡°Please, Da¡¯ told me¡¡± she tried, he could hear her voice quaver.
Mac reached over and slapped at the console on his desk finally managing to get the gravity down and unlocking the door.. ¡°Oooopeeeggnn¡± he said standing up just to stumble into his hanging spare G suit. He wisely sat back down.
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The door opened and a familiar figure rushed in, silver locks a-fly as she buried his head in her shoulder. He fell off the chair, down to the floor, she sat there with him. Arms and tail wrapped around him, ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, James, I¡¯m so sorry¡± was all she whispered to him.
''when did she¡'' It was too much, It broke him, he reached up and wrapped his own arms around her¡.
And wept.
It took the entire cargo on-boarding to get Mac to come out of his cabin. Lyrian was the only one he let in. She asked about his home, his Martin, his Sol. He didn¡¯t tell her much, but he let her ground him.. he emerged for breakfast on the day they departed for Argorania. Weighted vest on and all. Headed to the Rec room mumbling a song to himself
¡°Take me out, to the Black..¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
-return to current time-
Silu¡¯s conversation with Icario been both more and less productive as he had hoped. He leaned back as Traveler made her burn toward the jump point remembering the conversation.
¡°We have a UGN ship on an intercept for us.¡± Silu had started. Icario settling down into the indicated chair.
¡°Well, that escalated quickly? I assume it has to do with Mackenzie?¡± Icario offered taking the dram poured for him by his captain.
¡°It¡¯s is.. and it has placed both him and us in a very precarious position.¡± Silu started. ¡°As you know, Mackenzie has indicated that he has a serious interest in staying with this ship long term.. until now, hiring him as a security contractor was going to be enough¡. We could ride the out the rest of the season and refit to wait for his license and paperwork to come in to make it legal, and move on.¡±
¡°We definitely don¡¯t have time for that any longer, I assume. ¡± Icario stated taking a sip.
¡°No, they will most likely catch us half way to Argorania. The licenses won¡¯t be ready.¡± Silu nodded. ¡°And without those papers¡ or tribe membership¡ we can do nothing to protect him from the UGN confiscating his ship, or worse¡ sinking them or running isn''t an option.. that would risk our flag, our tribe, and our livelihood through Traveler.¡±
¡°Shit..¡± Icario nodded draining his glass.
¡°Shit..¡± Silu agreed finishing his as well.
¡°I will talk to Tili in the morning.¡± Icario stood to leave.
¡°What? No my friend, I would not ask that.¡± Silu stopped him.
¡°Maybe, but it is the only mildly safe path forward, and not the worst one I can imagine.¡± Icario gave a genuine smile. ¡°Hopefully you won¡¯t see me on a bio-bed in the morning¡± Icario chuckled, then departed for his cabin he shared with his wife and dauther.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°NO! It¡¯s too soon!!!! WE KNOW NOTHING!!¡± Shouted Tili the next morning. Lyrian had left that morning to meet Mac for morning run before duty shifts and was out of the family cabin.
¡°It¡¯s the only way.. Tili, we need him just as badly as he needs us, and without this he will become a pawn of the GU or worse, their science project. We both know what they do to species they can get away with experimenting on until the threat of reprisal becomes too great? Mac is 20years from home. There is none of his government¡¯s power to keep them from filleting him alive! We owe it to him.. or we would not be here now. We still don¡¯t know who ratted is out at Bricus¡ we need him. He also told the captain that he wanted ¡®in¡¯ but I suspect he didn¡¯t know what that meant at the time.
¡°What do you mean..¡± Tili asked. At least a little more conversational.
¡°To quote what Silu told me, ¡®If you will have me, I offer my services, and my... expertise to you, Your ship, and your people for so long as I am able, or until I find a way home. You are good people, I have seen enough death, Horror, and Evil out in the Black to see this. You were attacked for doing nothing but bringing in relief supplies, lost men and had the world of that wonderful young woman shattered with her first experience with Death¡. I could do worse¡¯.¡±Icario finished.
¡°¡. something other than a roaming silent assassin of the Black¡¡± Tili mumbled to herself.
¡°I¡¯m sorry what?¡± Icario¡¯s asked confused.
¡°I caught them leaning on each other in the Rec room the other day¡ before you broke the news to Mackenzie. I¡ asked him not to hurt our daughter¡ that¡¯s what he said in return, ¡®your daughter treats me like something other than a roaming silent assassin of the Black.¡¯ and that ¡®I hope you understand what that means to me¡¯. ¡° Tili shuddered then took a deep breath. ¡°Ok¡ but we will not pressure ANYONE!! We tell them both. At the same time, all our cards on the table. Let them choose.¡± Tili out as much sternness in her voice as she could.
¡°We can give them a week¡± Icario nodded, ¡°Mac needs time to recover from the news about Sol¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
-one week later-
Mac¡¯s brain hurt. He was trying to learn a new language¡ and it SUCKED. The Delmar language was a beautiful language. A cross somewhere between classical French and Italian. He could make all the sounds at least, but god dam was it difficult. He was fumbling through some work sheets Doc had given him to do on the desk console. Calling it a computer was a stretch as it was not a singular unit, but simply an interface to the ships mainframe supercomputer.
*beep* a light lit on the console, he had an incoming call I hope this won¡¯t take long, it¡¯s almost dinner time.
¡°Yello!¡± He called, tapping the button to receive.
¡°Mackenzie, so was hoping to catch you before dinner, for the second half of that chat I promised you.¡± Silu¡¯s voice spoke through the console, ¡°10 ¡®minutes¡¯ ?¡±
¡°Uh, Captain.. Sure be right there. Mackenzie out.¡± Mac closed the call ¡®fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck¡¯ he had just convinced Martin to make proper mayonnaise for BLT¡¯s and it was supposed to be a surprise for Lyrian. Mac hoped he could keep this short. Maybe he could pass it off on Doc, after all he had gotten most of what he was gonna ask the captain, from Icario.
10 min later, Mac walked up to one of the conference rooms, odd.. and stepped through the door..
Doc was there, along with an apprehensive looking Tili, and a thoroughly confused Lyrian, who bounded up to give him a quick hug before retaking her seat.
¡°What¡¯s going on¡± he asked quickly during the hug, ¡°no idea, I¡¯m hungry.¡± was her response.
Mac suppressed a chuckle and sat down in an open chair next to Icario.
Silu leaned forward and began, ¡°Mackenzie, this is obviously not the part two you were hoping for in our conversation,¡± he paused until Mac nodded, ¡±However, current situations have¡ limited our options.¡°
¡°That does not sound comforting Captain¡± Mac responded. Practiced cool in full swing. Save for Lyrian, she could see a slight pinch in the corner of his eyes, he was concerned.
¡°Quite, So I will put it simply, the UGN sent a warship to investigate our, little skirmish. The Convergent Dawn, I think its name is, is on its way to intercept us. And we cannot risk our charter or our ship by trying to dodge them. They picked up our flight plan at Pru¡¯Mrul and are following us. They will reach us in 4 days time.
¡°Shit¡± Mac spat. ¡°Options?¡±
¡°First, we were going to sign you up as a security contractor. Seeing as this is our last stop before we return to Delmar for our yearly refit/upgrade, that would have given you enough time to get paper work in order as a SecCon. We no longer have that time. The UGN Ship is faster, heavily armed, and the GU likes to¡. Experiment on races and technology that doesn¡¯t have the full force of inter species war as a threat of reprisal¡. Simply put, humanity is too far away and not FTL capable¡ if we were to turn you over, you would be filleted alive and Concord ripped apart to her last bolt.
¡°Well where does that leave us¡±, Mac looked down trodden, ¡°concord is in your ships computers as at least a launch and retrieval, not to mention my beacon¡ ¡°
¡°The Tribe¡± Icario interrupted. ¡°That leaves the Tribe¡±
¡°I don¡¯t follow¡± Mac said flatly, ¡°I¡¯m not going to put your people under threat.¡± His voice was stern
¡°You misunderstand¡± Icario began, ¡°There is an ancient treaty between the Delmar Confederation and the GU. While we are part of the GU technically, we hold our own government, our own laws. We also own our own rights to technology, weapons, ships, and people and intellectual property. The Delmar as a species controls the transport of roughly 80 percent of the entire economy of the GU. Our close knit familial nature allows us to make longer voyages than most races are capable of doing without significant physiological strain, hence the cornered market. Simply put, if you were to become Delmar; you, Concord, all your belongings, and all your intellectual property, becomes protected under Delmar Confederation Treaty."
¡°I must ask this once and only once¡± captain Silu¡¯s voice cut true. Eyes burning into Mac¡¯s, ¡°what you said during our first conversation.. do you still hold it true.¡±
¡°Yes, nothing has changed, if anything what I have learned of your tribe has only confirmed it as the course I must take. What must I do to become Delmar?¡±
Icario spoke once more, ¡°For an outsider? Simply put, You must marry in.¡±
Lyrian sucked in an explosive breath and Mac just Stiffened as he put it together.
¡°My boy, I did tell you about my cultures propensity for arraigned marriage..¡± Icario was nervous, but also enjoying himself.
¡°You did, but it¡¯s been barely a couple of weeks. I can¡¯t and won¡¯t force anyone into that kind of com¡
¡°Yes,¡± everyone went silent as Lyrian spoke ¡°yes,¡± she repeated, ¡°I agree.¡±
Mac turned in his chair to face her, ¡°Lyrian, are you sure, it hasn¡¯t been that long. By my people¡¯s culture, we barely know each other; and from what I¡¯ve learned from you, Delmar don¡¯t take these things back.¡±
She looked him in the eye¡¯s, ¡°James, I care for you, more than anyone I have met aside from Ma¡¯ and Da¡¯. I don¡¯t know where this will go, but I will not loose you. So yes, I am sure.¡±
Mac was taken aback by her using his first name, it had become her thing during his grieving for the practical loss of his species. Max sat up a bit straighter but he was looking gently at Lyrain before turning to her father, ¡°Ok, I accept and agree.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll have the paperwork ready tomorrow¡± Silu stood, ¡°I¡¯ll transmit it before breakfast. Lyrian, Mac, congratulations.
The group filed out of the Conference room. Mac and Lyrian slowly walked back to the dining hall, but Lyrian stopped at his door, "Can we Talk."
''Oh boy, here it comes'' Mac thought, His heart sinking, "Sure" he opened the door and lead her in.
As soon as the door closed, Lyrian turned and wrapped him into an embrace that did not feel like a normal hug. She pulled him close at the waist with her tail and pressed him into a full bodied pressing affair. he wrapped his arms around her putting her head on his shoulder. She said nothing, but proceeded to turn her face into the crook of his neck softly humming. she didn''t let him go for 2 full minutes.
"You really want this.." he whispered to her, equal parts surprise and joy.
"Yes James, I do." She used his first name again as she nuzzled her head down further. "Things move a bit faster with Delmar than with Humans I guess." She gave a soft giggle
"I guess they do", he finally pulled her away from their embrace, She gave a token of resistance. before being slightly startled by his Hand under her chin.
He pulled her chin in and gave her a Peck on the lips. He let her go as she bounced back in wide eyed surprise while touching her mouth with her fingers, "What was that?" she asked slowly licking her upper lip.
"Its called a Kiss, and its like a Hug; but only for very very special people" Mac answered with an amused twinkle in his eyes
She leaned in and kissed him again with a quick peck before pulling away again licking her lip. "I think I like kisses" She giggled
"They are n...." Mac chuckled, just as Lyrians Stomach gave a mighty grumble.
"BLT''s?" He asked instead.
"BLTs" she laughed, grabbing him by the hand and They walked out to dinner.
Chapter 11
Mac and Lyrian walked, hands entwined, into the Mess¡. Straight into a cheering whoop led by a serving spoon wielding Martin. Lyrian¡¯s auburn skin patterns flushed brightly, and Mac gave Martin a mildly reproachful look before dissolving into a laugh as Martin feigned his innocence.
¡°Alright! alright, we had our fun.¡± Martin finally bellowed over the din, waving away the last of the crowd as they went back to their meals.
Dinner went by with a blur. Mac sat with Lyrians family, and was joined by a grinning Tristen, and a somewhat more subdued Bryton. Everyone chatting excitedly, except for Ma¡¯ Tili. She just watched, clutching Docs Left hand.
Mac¡¯s mind spun. It was obvious that the news of him and Lyrians engagement was not universally positive. About a third of the mess had not reacted or just watched with diverting levels of either disapproval or apathy.
lyrian snuggled closer to him throughout the evening. Their friends had slowly peeled off as the evening wound down until it was just the four of them.
Mac took a sip of what had turned out to be a kind of Delmaracian light Beer, ¡°well Doc, I guess we are family. So, what happens tribally and legally now. ¡°
Doc gave a smile, ¡°Well, you would take on the Tribal Name, as you are the one marrying in. your sir name will become both of yours middle name of sorts. You would take on our family name at the end, and Lyrian would take your family name in the middle. In this case, you would become James BigMac Mackenzie Grarzia, and Lyrian would become Lyrian BigMac Mackenzie Grarzia...¡±
Mac tried to hold it in¡ he really did¡ then Lyrian looked up at him confused wrinkle of her nose and he lost it. Mac roared in laughter, wheezing for air between bouts. By the time he had wrangled himself back into composure his ¡®fianc¨¦e¡¯ and her parents were just staring at him. Tili was looking Particularly incensed.
¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Mac got out through heavy breathing.. ¡°It¡¯s just¡ BIGMAC. HAHAHAHAHA oh boy, explanation time¡±
¡°It is your name is it not? It¡¯s what we found on the suit we cut off of you.¡± Doc Icario rather pointedly was not amused.
¡°Oh, I¡¯m sure it was on there.¡± Mac said, wiping a tear from his eye, ¡°but it¡¯s not my real name, at least not the ¡®Big Mac¡¯ part." Mac took a deep breath, lifting his hands in a patting placating motion.
"Humans have a tradition, Specifically Humans that ended up in my profession. It started many, many centuries ago. when the age of single crew fighter aircraft. We call them ''call signs'' and it was a way to both obscure your name from the enemy, and good-natured ribbing comradery. In my case, my real name is only ''James Mackenzie'', and BigMac is my call sign. Each call sign is given, you cannot give yourself one. It must be given by someone in your profession, a fellow pilot, a commanding officer, ect.." Mac explained.
Doc''s eyes scrunched. Then he began to chuckle, "Oh I see. So, no need to give my daughter the name ''big mac''. what a profound relief." Lyrian started giggling and her mother tried and failing to keep her angry face on.
Lyrian finally got control of herself, "So, why BigMac."
"I liked a human dish, burgers. These specific ¡°BigMac¡± burgers come from a quick food place called ''McDonalds''. That alone would not be enough to garner me a call sign... but when you eat two of them... then go on a surprise simulated dogfight sortie.. uh.. mission... then proceed to spray the contents of your stomach, said two bigmacs, into your G suit.. in zero G... 40 seconds into your first Set..." Lyrian''s eyes widened then Lost to the proper laughter as Mac turned green recounting the story of having to clean out Concord after he had to open his helmet in zero G so he could see to get himself and Clint home.
"......I couldn''t get the smell out for 3 months.. and ''BigMac'' was born." Mac finished up, "Its been my Callsign ever since"
"I will go correct the paperwork then" Doc stood to leave, "After all, it must all be filed in the morning."
"Please do." Mac responded with a Chortle.
Doc and Tili stood to leave and Lyrian pulled away to get up, Mac stood quickly, looking a concerned question at her as he stood.
She just smiled and gave him another intoxicating full body embrace with that little humming sound she had made before, up against his neck, "I have to go with them, to pack. You may be marrying into my family; but by tradition, The female moves into Her Mate''s lodgings once ''paired''." she purred as she released him, "We may use the modern names of ''husband'' and ''wife'', but we Hold our older traditions close." She pulled away from him just far enough to look him in the eyes "But I can get used to new things too, like these." and she leaned in for a quick kiss, and got one. As she pulled back, Mac could see a hurricane of emotions boiling in Her mother¡¯s eyes. Her father just smirked.
''Old man has stories, got it.'' Mac Thought as Lyrian pulled away and left with her parents.
Mac walked back to his Cabin and took a very, very cold shower. Afterward, he Frantically started cleaning up. He had spread out quite a bit and had not yet fully unpacked due to some of the more... sensitive items he had buried in with his clothes...
It was early morning before Mac could get his brain to turn off enough to sleep.
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Tristen and Bryton walked into the Rec room at 0700, to see Mac and Lyrian Just finishing up their running. Mac had taken to doing his ''pushups'' and ''sit-ups'' and other ''calisthenics'' in the Rec room with the others and he was finishing up on one of the Bars he had ordered from the Fabricator,
"You two are up early¡" Tristen gruffed, still not completely awake.
"Paper work.... first... thing... no time... before shift otherwise" Mac gasped between pull ups he finished his set and dropped off the bar.
"Right, the Big day" Bryton remembered. "When do you have to meet with the captain?
Lyrian checked her wrist unit. "20 minutes or so" she huffed, finishing up her last lap, and headed to the Female¡¯s Showers.
Mac huffed, "Don''t worry, we will go back to joining you guys tomorrow."
Tristen returned a smile, they were nervous. he recognized Mac''s mannerisms from when He was a Paired.
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"That should Do It"- Captain Silu finished tapping his Data Pad. "James Mackenzie Grarzia; Lyrian Mackenzie Grarzia a mated pair in good standing of the Helyon Tribe of the Delmaracian Confederation. He gave a slight bow to the both of them, "Congratulations" he turned to Mac and accepted the outstretched human¡¯s hand and shook it, "I''m not sure what your culture does for pairing, but we hold our celebrations as a tribe, on tribal land during the years end refit/upgrade cycle. That way no one is left out. Until then," Silu took a deep breath, "I''ll have Lyrians things brought to Your room. Mackenzie, it was explained to you?"
"Yes, I take the name of the tribe as the one marrying in. and Lyrian Moves in with me as a sign of being paired" Mac responded with a nod ''whelp, when in Rome''.
"Good. Lyrian, I''ll see you at the con in 5. Mac, we are entering the window that the Convergent Dawn may make her intercept. I have sent the Information Packet announcing yours and Lyrains tribal status ahead to the Data Hub at our destination. It will get there inside the Hour. Be ready to Launch in case we need some... Frontier Diplomacy" Silu finished then turned to leave.
"UH...." Mac started. then paused. and took a deep breath, "I am a member of Helyon, correct?"
Silu nodded,
Mac continued carefully, "And everything in my possession is now a combination of protected and quasi-Helyon Property/Recourses?"
Silu nodded again.
Mac locked eyes on the Captain, "What are the limits of what a tribe of the Confederacy is allowed to have."
Silu considered Mac¡¯s tone for a second, "Lyrian, I''ll see you on the bridge in a moment" he dismissed her. his tone allowing no acceptions.
Mac gave her hand a sqeeze and she left.
"I may get court martialled for state secrets, but I won¡¯t put your family, my family now, at risk. what can and what can¡¯t we own as a tribe" Mac''s tone was deadly serious.
"There is Very little we cannot own outside of Biological weapons and Boarding specific tools. Those are the trappings of pirates and Cowards" Silu began,
"Atomic weapons?" Mac asked. Very, very quietly. holding Silu''s eyes with his own icy blue''s.
"Rare but allowed, why would.........." Silu stopped short as the implication hit home, "you have Atomics on board..." he said fatly.
"5 of them" Mac said flatly, "And the reactor that powers Concord.. is two reactors. of a plasma Based Nuclear Fusion type pioneered by a company with an ironically similar name to your Tribe."
Silu sank to his chair, "5 Atomic weapons, In your Small ship... How... The smallest of such devices ever produced was the size of Traveler.. and so unwieldly for its low destructive potential that The Unity moved on to plasma."
"My world was, and is very rich in radioactive material," Mac began, "From my research, far more than basically anywhere else in your known galaxy.. We use Atomics to power everything. Since the move to Plasma based Fusion, we don''t have accidents. What is on Concord, is relatively low yield. 500 ¡®Kilo tons¡¯ apiece, or so. During my species civil war, we used these to crack the shields of our bigger capital ships."
"500 ''kilotons''... if the translator did its job... that''s 50 times more destructive power than anything we ever produced... including the power cores of the biggest military Assault Carriers.... Mackenzie... you bare dangerous gifts."
"And bare a Dangerous burden" Mac responded, "But I need to know what I can and can¡¯t use to scare off an overzealous UGN captain. and what the blow back will be."
"I see... When we are intercepted... I will let you decide... but know this, you cannot reveal your atomics until or unless the Dawn crosses a line. That line is threatening this vessel... I will let you know if he does. but for now, when we heave to. I will launch you. Use this ''stealth'' of yours." Silu stood once more, "and pray we do not need you to fire.".
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The rest of the day passed mundanely. Mac had a further discussion with the Captain about Concords True capabilities. at least... some of them. They decided that nothing official was going to be put down until the return to Delmar. Mac spent the day working through the Delmar Language and trying to figure out His next move.
Technically, he was the singular ranking officer inside this part of space. He had no contact with Sol. There was no manual for this... but... ''I need to find out where the frontiers are expanding. I may need to figure out a way to prepare Sol for what''s out here.¡¯
"fuck! I need to talk to Marg" Mac cursed out loud, then looked up at the time just as the door to his cabin opened.
"Hey.... uh.. Hi." a familiar voice spoke from behind him. he turned to see Lyrian, in traditional black skin tight void suit and poncho standing at his door way.
"You cleaned up; it¡¯s nice..." She said looking over the rest of the room. Her things had been bought to his room in a ''sea trunk'' of sorts. Mac had guessed that she did not really own much considering her whole adult life was spent aboard traveler. He actually had more possessions than she did on account of all the kit he had been required to bring to test the effects of slip-space travel. He had taken the wardrobe closest to the desk, which butted up to the head of the bed. The desk and two wardrobes were on the far side of the door, the bed lay against the far wall to the right. and the right wall had a hook he had hung his G suit on, next to the Delmar equivalent of a shower, which was basically a high velocity mixture of steam and mist contained by forcefields. there was a separate hook on the other side next to Lyrains to be wardrobe.
"Oh hey, you off shift already? I''ve been.. well.. This.." he pointed to the computer console. She walked over and promptly sat on his lap and leaned up against his chest. He was going to have to get used to her combined height, yet extremely dainty and light figure. She didn''t wrap her tail around him. ''Oh right, void suit''.
"Oh, we use these to teach the young ones." She giggled.
"So I gathered... Uh.. Help you unpack?" Mac gruffed before changing the subject. Lyrian gave a nervous wiggle and got up.
"Sure" she whispered.
The next hour or so they unpacked. Mac had to move Lyrians Hook a bit, she didn''t like them so close to the shower. She hung a spare void suit on it. An assortment of poncho''s and what she called "shore clothes".
Lyrian had been about to call it good until dinner when the door chimed. Mac opened the door to find the captain¡¯s aid, "compliments of the Captain. He figured you two could use some time without prying eyes."
Mac looked over the platters at hand. he could definitely see martins custom touch and chuckled, "Always trust the Chef, my compliments to the captain... and Tell Martin he has outdone himself."
The aid nodded and disappeared after pushing the floating ''cart'' into the door. Mac tapped the button to close the door and pulled a card from the middle of the the ensemble.
"May you have the blessings of the gods of the Void- Silu" it read.
Mac took a few moments to pop the tops on the entrees and break open the packing on the cutlery. "Your uncle is a softy at heart", Mac mentioned over his shoulder. "Looks Like Martin is having to much fun with the Human food idea''s."
".....James?" Lyrian''s voice waivered around the edges
Mac turned around; eyebrows creased with worry then flew wide with in surprise.
Lyrian was standing just inside arm¡¯s length, one arm across her chest, the other wrapped around her waist... her tail was wrapped around her right leg, where it resided when she wore her void suit the tip gave its telltale twitch Mac had learned betrayed her nerves...
With that, Mac''s brain came screeching to a halt.... She was NOT wearing her void suit...
Chapter 12
¡°¡.. James?¡±
Lyrian repeated, clearly getting worried as Mac stood frozen ¡®it¡¯s too soon, oh gods, it¡¯s too soon¡ what if..¡¯
Her panicked thoughts were interrupted, ¡°¡.. whoa¡¡± Mac let out, his features unfreezing and his face taking on an expression she had not seen before. He slowly approached her¡. ¡°you¡ your¡ whoa¡¡± Mac breathed out slowing moving his eyes over every inch of her body¡ it made her shiver slightly.
¡°Is this what you want?¡± She heard Mac ask gently, and she focused on his eyes. Macs icy blue eyes were locked on her pale silver ones. ¡°I don¡¯t want you to feel rushed.¡±
She took a few strides toward him, uncurling her tail and pushing her arm down from covering her breasts. Mac inhaled sharply as she revealed the last of herself to him, slowly walked up until her chest was pressed up against his. Then she slowly activated the Nanite seal on his void suit and ¡®unzipping¡¯ it, as Mac had once called it¡. pulling it down to his waist. Pressing herself against his warm chest, she pressed her forehead to his.
Her voice was barely above a whisper, ¡°It is. This is the part I feared would scare you away. The Part I pray works.¡± She paused, and took a deep breath, ¡°For a Delmar, being paired is a legal apparatus, but there is more. Delmar are a semi telepathic and an imprinting species.¡± She paused, reaching for his arms and wrapping them around herself as she wrapped her tail around his waist. Lyrian held his eyes locked in hers, ¡°This imprinting¡ we call it ¡®the claiming¡¯¡. its matriarchal James¡ marriages are arraigned, but the female decides who she imprints on¡ and when done.. it is done, mind, body, and soul. The only thing left is to finish it after the legal part is done¡ which is like this. She leaned in, and their lips met, but this time she opened her mouth. Their tongues intertwined for a micro eternity before she pulled away, biting his lower lip just enough to draw a drop of blood with what humans would call ¡®fangs¡¯ on a cat..
¡°You are mine.¡± she whispered breathlessly from the kiss. She felt a fizz in the back of her mind as it reached out to his, and she prayed she could find him. In their entire recorded history, very few Delmar had ever successfully claimed a non-Delmar¡ ¡°I had chosen you¡ the night before you learned that your world was lost to you. I was going to tell you that the next day.. It¡¯s why my mother interrupted us while we were listening to your uncles Jazz. She wanted to talk me out of it.¡±
Mac reached up, tracing a finger around an areola then down the side of her breast. Then the back of the same hand traced the outline of her slender body, down her side until it was pressed against the small of her back. Her body shuddered as a whispered moan escaped her lips. His breath was long but heavy. She felt it. The hunger. He wanted her. The realization swept over her as flickers of his emotions began to bleed through a hazy connection.
Mac opened his mouth to say something, but Lyrian locked her lips on his, pulling for a deeper kiss. A small eternity passes as she began to feed her primal need for contact with her mate, the link was slowly solidifying, and she began to feel something ancient awaken in Mac as his warm powerful hands explored her body.
The two of them finally came up for air. Lyrian¡¯s voice was but a whisper, ¡°¡ James¡ know this¡ Since that day¡ I could no more resist you than I could refuse to breathe¡. I need this.. I need you, James¡ more than air itself.¡±
Mac gently separated himself from her, took a couple of steps toward the door, she began to worry as he keyed the lock on the door. His emotions were a roaring bonfire of passion, ripping into her mind as they broiled off of him, and Lyrian¡¯s heart raced with equal part fear and desire.
Lyrian found herself frozen stock, helpless even to move as Mac turned and pierced her with his gaze. A flicker of fear flashed through her as she recognized the unbridled desire she had awakened. ¡°Then you will have me.¡± He rumbled, eyes flashing the predator. Her breath caught in her throat as he dropped all pretenses. Before her, all the mannerisms, the masks he had developed over the weeks to fit in with the crew, fell away. He stalked over to her with silent footsteps, and she felt every bit the hunted prey that she had just become. To see and feel him like this was both terrifying and exhilarating. Her breath quickened, breasts heaving as he got closer. He shed the lower half of his suit as he strode, scooping her motionless form into a bridle Carry without breaking that slow methodical stride, his left hand just brushing her left breast as he carried her to the bed.
¡ª¡ª
She was so light. Mac slowly walked to the bed first deeply kissing Lyrian, then slowly kissing his way down the right side of her neck until he got to where her neck met her slender, soft skinned shoulder. On a hunch, he very gently gave her a nip which caused her whole body to shudder as she grabbed the back of his head and wrapped her tail around his waist as another barely audible moan escaped her.
He laid her down on the bed, then crawled over her as she spread her thighs to him. Delmar females were indeed completely hairless outside of their mane. Mac slowly lowered himself down barely hovering over her, mindful of his status of being from significantly higher gravity... he would not hurt her¡ . He began kissing down the left side of her neck, finishing with the same gentle nip. This time he had combined it with running the soft part of the finger tips of his left hand down the outside of her breast, down to her waist and back up again. A louder moan escaped her lips and her body arched to meet his, her tail tightened around his waist as her hips pushed up to meet him. Her sex touched his shaft and both of them shuddered as if electrocuted. She rubbed herself on him for a moment before opening her eyes looking deeply into his.
¡°¡.. please¡ ¡° she gasped.
His response was to wrap an arm around her waist, lifting her ever so gently up to where her she was aligned gently upon the tip of his shaft. She gasped at the pressure.. and he paused. Lyrian opened her eyes. And locked them on his. And slowly began grinding her hips, working him around her entrance. She was soaked. Soon so was he. He let out a shudder, and she knew. She pulled his head towards hers until their noses touched. Lips barely brushing each other.
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Then she nodded¡
Her body exploded with electricity as he pressed passed her entrance. Her prehensile tail involuntarily clenched down on his waist. Her back arched driving him a bit further into her, as she started panting. ¡°¡.more¡± she begged.
With Mac¡¯s arm around her waist, he pressed down in one smooth motion, slowly driving himself into the hilt. Lyrian let out a long moan as he bottomed out, their hips pressed together, her legs wrapped around him like a vice..
¡°Oh my gods! ¡° she breathed. Then Mac did something new. He leaned down, still completely still, as he let her body get used to his manhood. He gently ran his lips over one nipple. Then the next. Her body spasmed, Her sex gripping at his manhood, her back arching. And she let out a low scream.
Mac grunted as her intrusion into his mind flickered with the first hints of her emotions... He froze as her passion whispered into his mind. ¡®What the fuck¡¯.
¡°What¡ what was that¡¡± he panted as she calmed down slightly, her body still wrapped around him.
¡°It¡¯s¡¡ ooooooo¡. It¡¯s.. the bonding.. semi telepathic ¡. We can feel each ¡¡other¡ in here..¡± she touched over his heart ¡°and here¡± she touched their foreheads together ¡°not just here¡° she worked her hips a little, rocking his manhood around inside her ¡°no.. scare¡ don¡¯t be¡ scared¡¡± she panted.
It was strengthening now. He could feel her emotions more strongly now that he knew what to look for. ¡°Am I¡. Your first?¡± He panted, slowly beginning to move a little, Sliding in and out ever so slightly. She gave another shudder and began working her hips in time. ¡°Yes¡ ¡°she said between gasps, ¡°we wait¡. The claiming too strong to risk¡ Oooo¡.¡± She never finished speaking as Mac started sucking on her breasts as he began to make his thrusts longer, and stronger. Keeping the same slow cadence, but working up to where he was pulling almost completely out of her, before driving back into her. He kept slow, aware of how easily he could break her. She was his. His to protect. His to care for.. His to love. That emotion almost sent him to climax as Lyrian felt it too and bucked in a screaming earth-shattering orgasm.
¡°¡. Wha!¡ OOOOooo gods!!¡± Was all she got out, Mac¡¯s slow pace taking over once more. He alternated between her breasts and her neck and her lips, saving his little nips for when he felt her close to climax through the link. Mac slowly lost track of time, every moment their own eternity of passion, and discovery, and ecstasy¡¡.
He felt her building again. This one was different. Her pleasure started building with his own. He had been close for a while easing down to keep going as Lyrians climaxes would subside. But he wasn¡¯t going to be able to do that this time. She started flexing herself on him. Her body begged at him as he moved inside her. Her legs and hips began shaking uncontrollably as her moans and his began to get louder.
He crossed the point of no return just as Lyrians body arched, she pressed his head to her breasts and began to come. Harder this time. Her sex pulsing and flexing on him as he kept his thrusting going just a few moments longer before her shuddering bucking hips received their reward. Mac pressed himself into her until their hips pressed together and exploded.
Lyrian had felt him building, she felt him go over the edge as he drove deeper into her than she thought possible and emptied himself into her. The heat from his seed and his emotions as he climaxed overwhelmed her¡. It drove her over the edge a final time, as she arched up into him. She began shaking uncontrollably as their combined waves of pleasure crashed against each other.
Mac barely made it to her side, so as to not crush her, before passing out next to her unconscious body.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
two hours later, Mac woke up, to an angel of Silver laced with Orange stirring and mumbling from her position next to him. Her right arm and leg draped themselves across him, perfect breasts pressed against him. Tail curled around his right leg.
Mac looked down on his wife, no, his Life mate.. his soul.. he could feel it through her¡ he hadn¡¯t felt that since¡. Since his first mission during the GSW. she was too perfect, too fragile compared to him. He ran his fingers down her slander flank. Her skin was soft as velvet, completely hairless. He could feel slight...... something¡¯s that seemed to follow the patterns of her coloration across her body.
¡°Hmm that¡¯s heavenly¡¡± came a musical coo from perfection resting her head on his chest.
¡°What are these¡¡° Mac asked. Running his fingers along the slight textures on the side of her breast and flank.
¡°They are me.¡± she coo¡¯d back.
He rumbled a chuckle, ¡°well, As much as I would love to lay here forever¡ I need to use the little boy¡¯s room.¡±
She giggled a little as he got up and walked to the shower, pressing the button that triggered the privacy field and slid out the toilet. Traveler was big, but space was still to be conserved.
He finished and washed, dropping the field and turning to see Lyrian, wrapped in the bed sheet, slowly picking over the now cold food on the pallet. She put each top back on each entree in turn then pressed a button. The floating platform hummed for a moment. Steam , and delicious aroma, rose from the dishes once more.
¡°Oh that¡¯s a neat trick¡± mac walked over pushing the platform over to the bed as Lyrian climbed back in to it. Spreading the sheets back out but still covering up
¡°Oh we can¡¯t have that ¡° Mac smiling and evil grin, bearing All his teeth. Then snatching the sheets away from her. she chased after the stolen coverings only to be scooped up in a powerful warm fondling embrace as their lips met. She melted in his arms, and Mac released her after a moment. He slid in behind her to sit, wrapping his arms around her from Behind as she gruffed about the lost sheets. The pout did not last but a moment as Lyrian realized she had a warm muscular replacement already wrapped around her. She leaned into him, soaking up his body¡¯s warmth.
¡°You¡¯re are mine,¡± he whispered into her ear as the pecked at the food, ¡°and I like to see, and touch¡± he ran his fingers up the inside of her thigh ¡°what is mine¡±
She gave a squeak as his fingers brushed her sex, he noticed and returned them as he made small swirling motions making Lyrian lose control for a moment, arching into him as he worked.
¡°But.. I¡¯m¡ oh gods¡. Hungry¡ ¡° she panted as he withdrew.
¡°I could use some too.¡± He admitted.
They both picked at the food, neither eating a large portion as they noticed that Martin had been his usual crafty self and selected a menu that were easy bite sized dishes.
They were both finished, drinking some water when Lyrian wiggled down into Macs lap, and found him ready again.. pressed up against her ass and lower back. She leaned back into him and coo¡¯d, ¡°let me,¡± raised herself up, smoothly sliding down to bury him deep inside her from where they sat.
Mac grunted, ¡°oh fuck¡± and Lyrian looked over her shoulder, ¡°it¡¯s my turn, now lean back and don¡¯t you dare move¡± she growled at him playfully.
¡°Yes¡ ma¡¯am¡OH, shit¡± was his response as he leaned back on his elbows.
Lyrian did not start bouncing. She slowly flexed herself on him and released with her hips moving in time. She slowly stirred him around inside her, slowly working him in deep circles with her hips, squeezing and releasing as she went. She felt him building through their link.. and she slowed down even more. Gently keeping time with her hips, she worked him over slowly. Building him until he was riding the edge of a bridge too far.. she slowed down further¡ Holding him there¡ working her hips just enough to keep him from finishing until she felt herself building. She started building quickly. She could feel it. He was not Delmar, and that meant he was considerably bigger. Reaching deep into her when fully in. She could feel her sex open up as she kept slowing working the tip of Mac¡¯s manhood in slow deep squeezing circles inside.
She was there now. On the edge with him. She could hear him breathing raggedly, pressure building. She quickened her pace. Just that little bit and he crested. A deep groan came from behind her as Mac sat up and wrapped his arms around her as her body arched once more. he pulled her down to himself as his lips found her neck. she came with him, somehow managing to keep her rythm from failing her. Her body pulled at him, drinking in everything he could give her. He obliged until they both collapsed, unable to move.
They did not wake up until morning.
Chapter 13
The desk Console chimed 0645 and something stirred next to Mac. He looked down to find Lyrian staring up at him from her head on his chest. He could feel her emotions flicker through the back of his mind as last night¡¯s memories came flooding back. She must have noticed, because a smirk washed over her features as she pushed herself up to kiss him.
¡°Oh hai, I guess I wasn¡¯t dreaming that¡±, Mac chuckled and returned the kiss, gently running his hand up and down on the almost microfiber soft razorback of a mane that constituted the only hair on a Delmar¡¯s body outside of their head.
¡°I love you¡± he rumbled with another kiss this time high on her neck just below her jaw line. Then smirked as he gave her a little nip with his teeth, making her whole body shiver.
¡°And I you¡± she said, ¡°Gods we don¡¯t have time.¡± She groaned as she got up heading for the shower. Slinking away as he watched. The two of them showered quickly. Sadly, Travelers showers were not built for two. They dried quickly and put on their void suits and gym clothes. Lyrian caught Mac humming to himself as they dressed (Spill the Wine- Eric Burdon/War) , ¡°I haven¡¯t heard that one yet.¡±
Mac laughed and tossed her a set of blue tooth ear buds, connecting them to what was playing in his translators. She put them in her ears just in time for the for the first verse. Soon she was giggling and dancing down the hall toward the Rec room as Mac over acted the lyrics just behind her, weighted vest slung over one shoulder.
¡°SPILL WINE! TAKE THAT GIRL!¡± He belted out, blatantly off key. as they entered the Rec room to meet Tristen and Brayton. The two spun at the sounds with shocked looks on their face.
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¡°Mac, brother, we need to talk¡¡± Tristen walked up To Mac as he shrugged on his vest and dropped down to start with pushups. Trusten dropped down to join him.
¡°Ya?¡± Max got out between reps.
Tristen continued between his own reps ¡°What the void¡. did you two¡. do last night¡ ¡®Bro¡¯ I get that the claiming is intense¡ but the walls aren¡¯t THAT soundproof.¡±
Max paused at the top of a pushup, ¡°Oh, what did you hear.. ¡° he glanced over at Lyrian, she thankfully had his earbuds still in, she was stretching for the run. Her exercises were more akin to yoga or gymnastic flexibility training at the moment.
¡°Enough¡ ¡° mentioned Brayton as he wandered over and Mac took the recently vacated pull up bar.
¡°Shit¡± Max let out. Starting on his bar work. It was hell on the core. More so now considering last nights¡ events. He struggled to get through some of his reps.
¡°Well?¡± Tristen prodded again..
¡°Well, what?¡±, Lyrian bounded over.
Tristen faltered, ¡°Uh¡¡±
Macs mischievously streak flared up. He flashed Tristen a shit eating grin that would make a tiger shark of earth blush. Tristens eyes widened in equal parts terrified and and confused at the very human expression. ¡°Right, teeth¡± Mac said closing his mouth into an evil smirk. Then looked at Lyrian, ¡°We um, we were to loud last night, apparently.¡±
Just then, Lyrians parents made their entrance¡ lead by a very worries looking Tili. The auburn in her patterns turned bright as Lyrian blushed in realization. ¡°oh gods¡¡± she looked back at Mac, who was still smirking unrepentantly at her. His expression, combined with the emotions boiling off him, was too much. Lryian dissolved into giggles as the 4 started their jog.
Five kilometers was the order of the morning for Lyrian, with the Boys pushing each other, well, other than mac, up to 10k. They goaded each other on. Bryton almost made it, and Tristen didn¡¯t look quite so far behind during the final sprint. Lyrian chose to do her calisthenics while the boys did their longer run, only to be interrupted by her mother. Doc Icario simply observing the conversation. Max noticed the blushing on Tili¡¯s face as lyrian broke away from her toward the showers. Soon everyone cooled down and showered. Tristen waved as they each headed to their cabins to dress for duty shift.
The couple were just leaving the Rec Room followed by Doc and Tili when the master alarm sounded.
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Captain Kar stepped onto the bridge of the Convergent Dawn, ¡°report.¡±
¡°Weapons banks charged, emitters on standby Captain. We are inside the dilation envelope for real time Comms, audio only.¡± barked the chief of the watch.
¡°Time to intercept?¡± Inquired the captain, taking his place on the command chair, which resembled more of a stool with a slot cut for a tail, as Kar¡¯s people did not make use of back rests.
¡°If they heave to immediately, 17 ¡®minutes¡¯.¡± came the answer from the Helm.
¡°Very well, open a Frequency.¡± ordered Kar settling into his chair with a practiced eye scanning the information being fed into its HUD.
¡°D.C. freighter Lucid Traveler¡ D.C. freighter Lucid Traveler, this is UGN Convergent Dawn.. acting under section 1¡ Heave to and prepare for intercept¡ monitor point 7-6.¡± Kar listened to the Comm repeat the Hail.. twice more. ¡®Hmm they probably have aging comms, might need to get clo¡.¡¯
¡°Captain, confirmation received. They are Hove to, ETA 16 ¡®minutes¡¯.¡±
¡°Very good¡± Kar nodded to the young man. The kid had done well to raise the Traveler at this distance. Something to note in his file.
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¡°This is the captain speaking¡± Silu¡¯s voice cut over the Klakson as his shipwide intercom overrode it. ¡°We have been hailed by the UGC Convergent Dawn and are heaving to in compliance with Section 1. All hands, prepare for Intercept. Senior crew to the bridge..¡±
¡°Fuck!¡± Mac cursed and started sprinting for his quarters. Lyrian arrived just a moment later to find him tearing off his vest and void suit.
¡°What are you doing!!¡± She cried as she threw on her poncho and security ID.
Mac waved to his clunkier G suit on the wall, ¡°Go! I need to get into that thing! It will help keep me from stroking out If I have to fight!¡±
¡°Fuck!¡± She swore pausing just enough to help him get his suit over his shoulders. He Zipped it up and she handed him his helmet. ¡°Don¡¯t you DARE die on me!¡± She growled, bearing her fangs at him before kissing him deeply.
He kissed her back then pulled away, ¡°GO!¡± He ordered. She could feel his worry. But something else, that Icy danger she saw in his eyes during the pirate attack broiling just below the surface.
She did what she was told and Bolted for the Bridge. She was the best pilot on the Traveler despite he age, she was needed. In the back of her mind the wheels turned ¡®what was that I felt.. and why did he feel so¡ different¡ but so calm¡¯.
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BigMac came thundering down the corridors, listening to directions to get to Hanger three through his translator. He knew most of the way by now, but now was not the time for mistakes. The TALON G-suit was bulkier than a void suit, but very light compared to earlier models. It only made him a third again as heavy than he was without; less than half his exercise vest.
People made way and he pounded by, shaking the bulkheads as he used the lower gravity to press his speed, down to Hanger 3. He slowed just enough to let the corridor door open then he bounded in, the steps and a jump made it most of the way up. The G suit slowed him more than the void suit he was in last time. He keyed the Concords code through his mic and the ladder extended in time for him to grab it a vault inside to the front seat. Mac barked out the codes as he felt his seat connect with Concord, it began to cycle it pressure points as it synced up with both him and a concord.
¡°Concord here, ready for launch sequence start¡± Mac barked, keying his com.
¡°Cleared for launch, we are hove to and waiting. Gods be with you.¡± a voice from the bridge responded. Nobody he recognized.
The hiss of air cycling out of the hanger slowly faded to silence. It was replaced by the Hum as Concord awakened from her slumber. Her twin cores silently spun up as Concords final drives Howled to life with their familiar Baying that accompanied high output Drives of this type. Mac had been amused when he first heard it. Many likened the noise to the unholy combination of supercharger whine from a 21st century Hemi v8 and a Tie fighter from the cult classic ¡®Star wars¡¯. Nobody outside of Mac could hear it now, but Concords bones spoke to his.. Her frame resonated with the sounds of her keening¡Begging to be loosed¡Baying for Blood.
Mac pressed his throttles forward slightly, engaging high idle instead of maneuvering thrusters this time. It was why he had parked Concord as he had, bow to the Hanger Doors.
¡°Jarvis, systems check¡± BigMac ordered, easing Concord out of the hanger and flicked her into spiraling dive down into Traveler¡¯s shadow. Mac simultaneously reorienting and matching velocities as he concealed himself alongside the Freighters Bulk. Traveler was currently ¡°hove to¡± still on course and in motion, but only at 1/3 her sublight capability. It was standard procedure for Intercepts this far from the Galactic unity core worlds.
*Propulsion, green¡ Powerplant.. green.. Life Support¡ Green, Suit link and calibration.. green¡. Con-Ord (conventional ordinance) ¡ green. Conventional Phenix¡¯s 50percent capacity. ¡ Strategic¡ green, all warheads accounted for and stable¡.Guns¡. Green, ammunition at 70 percent. All systems nominal* BigMac winced at that¡ that was not a lot of ammo to use on the main guns. He needed to be able to conserve ammunition until he could secure more or get it manufactured.
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¡°Jarvis, weapons reconfigure, Set the GAU to 5 round burst alternating.¡±
*Reconfigure complete. Warning: New contact, bearing 198 by 175*
BigMac looked over his left shoulder and slightly up, in time to see a flash of blue fading as the UGN capital ship emerged from Subspace.
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Convergent Dawn quickly overtook Lucid Traveler. She was a Frontier Brigantine class warship of the UGN, little more than half the size of Traveler by displacement. She boasted not the weight of doom that a Fleet level Warship would demand, but speed and sustainability were her weapons.
She was a relatively sleek design, a long central core with a cluster of direct fire lasers set up in a fixed battery, fully automated ship grade plasma and laser turrets for point defense. She had no missile bays or guided plasma torpedo¡¯s. She mostly didn¡¯t need them. Her power core, oversized by UGN standards was capable of charging her weapons banks in a little over an hour, but those weapons banks could keep every laser and plasma weapon on her firing at the same time for close to three. With an oversized engine cluster at the rear, the warship reminded BigMac of a rocket-powered Top fuel dragster made of Lego¡¯s,¡± ¡. In spaaaaace¡¡± he smirked to himself.
Big Mac eased Concord¡¯s bow around, pointing the most sensitive array he had at this looming warship. Concord was equipped with spherical active and passive scanning, but her most sensitive equipment was installed in her bow.
¡°Jarvis, full passive scan. What am I looking at.¡± Mac ordered¡ moments ticked by
Mac had updated Jarvis, and Concord, with a data packet from Captain Silu, after revealing some more of concords capabilities. Jarvis had what he needed to know what he was looking at.
After a few moments, *Target is a light Destoyer class, registers as ¡®Frontier Brigantine Convergent Dawn¡¯. Moderately armed, energy based only. A capacitance design as well. Shields are either weakened or lack the strength of Terra-Mars designs. Strategic not needed. Two fox2¡¯s would be required to neutralize. *
¡°Wait¡. Two fox2¡¯s? What about those pirates¡ We used phoenixes on them..¡±
*calculating¡ post battle preliminary data suggests that Phoenixes were a waste of ordinance in that engagement.*
¡°Fuck..¡± Mac cursed, ¡°warm the fox 2¡¯s to stand by, and find me its power core. Maintain silent running.¡±
Capacitance based weapons banks¡ meant that taking the core wont stop the Dawn from opening fire¡ not without a massive power surge.. It also meant that This ship was several decades behind Sol in reactor development. ¡®Or maybe lack of deuterium resource¡¯s¡¯ he thought for a moment.
¡°Jarvis, plan two primary targets, plot MAC targeting solutions for the weapons banks, and the the core. I want options. Keep the HUD in declutter for now. Essential info only.¡±
*confirmed.*
The Retro Thrusters flickered out on the Dawn as she matched Travelers pace, 500 ¡®kilometer¡¯ to port. the Coms lit up for the first time as the warship Hailed his new Home.. BigMac inched his nose on the Velcro inside his helmet¡ He Hated waiting.
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¡°Incoming hale, It¡¯s the Dawn¡± Comms reported.
Captain Silu took a deep breath, ¡°Receive, put it on my monitor¡±
The screen He turned to flashed to life with the image of Thermian in a command chair, ¡°Captain Miccurious Drillumerum I presume¡ thank you for your efficiency in our request. I am Kar, captain of the Convergent Dawn.. We are here on an investigation looking into a Peculiar Pirate Skirmish out of Bricus4.¡± He began in perfect Galactic Common.
¡°A pleasure, Captain Kar. Yes, we are familiar with the incident. How can we be of service to the Unity.¡± Responded Silu.
¡°We have most of what we need. You, Captain, are in no legal trouble. By all sensor records, you were the Defensive party. Ours is of a more¡ scientific nature.¡± Kar continued, ¡°We believe you have a unique vessel on board. One with capabilities unknown to the Delmar or the greater galaxy. We have it¡¯s beacon data, we know it re entered your ship and was not seen again after the battle. We know it sank two pirate Barges and downed 5 snub fighter class craft, all the while refusing to show any signs on anyone¡¯s sensors. We require that vessel to complete our¡ investigation.¡±
¡®Well, here goes¡¯ thought Silu, keeping his practiced calm. ¡°Captain Kar, all of your information is indeed accurate. We do have the vessel with us. It was responsible for our defense in bringing aid to Bricus4 under the flag and protection of the Unity under the GHO¡± Silu chose his words with deadly precision.. He needed footing.
Thermians, as their name suggests, have notoriously good heat sensing vision. It made them natural lie detectors. Supposedly, Delmar were notoriously bad at fooling Thermian inquisitors during the Unity Wars. That was not a legend Silu wanted to test today, ¡°However, there is a matter of law preventing me from handing over said vessel.¡±
He could see Kar¡¯s eyes narrow their slits further, to his credit he showed no other emotion. Thermians disliked not being obeyed. ¡°Oh?¡± Kar¡¯s tone took on a deadly edge.
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¡°Oh, Shit¡± BigMac swore into his helmet as the deadly tone registered. ¡°JARVIS! full tactical read out!! Bring the GAU online. Wake up the Fox2¡¯s. How close can we get without them seeing us.¡±
BigMac edged the throttles forward on the Drives, keeping Concord nose on to keep the howling demons thrust hidden behind her stealth skin. If he had to go loud, He was going to be in knife range. He kicked Concord over and began a spiral approach. Maximizing Delta V while keeping nose on to the Warship Commanded by a Man who had just made a decision.
*Sensor analysis complete. We can get within 8.45 Kilometers before their active sensors will acquire us. 10.41 if we go active our-self*
¡°Go active, plot a spiral approach I need an angle on those weapons banks that won¡¯t have me shooting Traveler¡± ¡®and having that captain pointing weapons at them trying to get to me¡¯.
*course laid in* a virtual course appeared on his HUD, Concord Bellowed her Fury into the black as BigMac advanced the throttles.
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¡°Oh?¡±
Silu heard the warning in that one word. This was a dangerous game. He kept his composure the best he could, ¡°I am afraid that there has been a development. The man whose vessel is responsible for saving our lives is a member of Tribe Helyon of the Delmar Confederacy. And as per treaty, all of his possessions/property/ and personhood fall under Delmar¡¯s treaty with the Galactic Unity.¡± Silu, was about to continue when a small twinkle of light caught his attention our the Bridges front windows. ¡®Oh shit¡¯ His every ounce of discipline kept him from showing emotion, ¡°I could no more turn him over to you than I could my own brother under section1.¡±
Someone handed a pad to the Thermian Captain. This time he did scowl, ¡°We see it, a¡ James Mackenzie Grarzia and a Lyrian Mackenzie Grarzia. Come now Captain, this is dated less than two days ago, what is to stop me from putting a freeze on this to check for authenticity.
This time Silu¡¯s voice edged dangerous, ¡°The same treaty the keeps your economy afloat. And has for millennia... it is authentic¡ Captain¡. I assure you. ¡°
Kar sat back in his seat, then a smile crept across his face. He didn¡¯t bother to hide his teeth, ¡°Captain be reasonable, maybe we can come to an¡ accommodation...¡±
¡°My sincerest apologies captain, but I do not see one available.¡± Silu responded, a stone sinking deep in his gut.
¡°I see one¡¡± Kar waved the offending data-pad and threw it on the ground off screen, ¡°you rescind this little charade of a document, and hand over the vessel and its owner so we may¡. Investigate¡. Or I will take that vessel whilst sifting through the bodies of your tribesmen and the shattered remains of that relic you call a freighter. This is the frontier, Captain¡ there is no one who will bother to learn the truth,¡± he leaned to his right, ¡°bring the Lasers online.. no need to waste plasma.¡±
¡°You cross a line, Kar¡¡± Silu responded.. spitting the man¡¯s name, as two streaks arc out from a point in space far closer to the Dawn than he could have ever imagined. Then he realized the hail was still active as the impacts reverberated into the conversation
¡°Shields down captain! Searching! No Tar¡ ¡° the Tactical station was interrupted by the shredding sound of shrieking Metal.
¡°Captain! Our weapons banks are offline. Section 2-3 and 3-6 are venting atmosphere! Offensive capabilities Inop!¡± Came a voice over the hail as Kar swung his head toward the view screen, ¡°you dare attack a warship of the UNITY!¡±
¡°I did no such thing,¡± Silu responded coolly.
A new voice broke into the Hail.
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¡°No, But I did.¡± that Icy hatred shattered onto the frequency. ¡°Captain Kar..¡± the Distain from this new voice caught Kar¡¯s attention.
¡°You have just threatened a treaty you swore to protect when you were commissioned as an officer. This exchange has been recorded and will be sent to every Delmar and Unity official inside the halls of government and the Military.¡± the voice continued.
¡°You are unauthorized to be on this frequency! IDENTIFY YOURSELF.¡± Kar barked.
¡°Captain, one contact! Off our bow, Gods it¡¯s coming right to the bridge viewports.¡± The Nav/sensor officer cursed. Kar turned to see a demon in white, accented with blue and Red appear out of the void.
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Big Mac fought to control his rage. He stalked up to writhing 20 ¡®meters¡¯ of the view port of the now defenseless Convergent Dawn¡¯s bridge ¡®go big or home, right Mac?¡¯
He keyed his microphone, ¡° I.. Am.. Your Executioner¡± he released his mic key , ¡°Jarvis. Open everything. Full active, warm up strategic, authorization Sic Semper Tyranus 6-7-4-4¡±
Concord bore her fangs at the disabled warship.
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A warning Klakson spoke in the bridge of the Convergent Dawn the Sensor station swore, ¡°ATOMICS ALERT! ATOMICS ALERT!! Captain, 10 Atomic signatures, 20 meters.! ¡°
Kar turned his attention back to the the floating Predator outside his observation window with enough on board, he realized, to end a planet. It spoke once more.
Big Mac keyed the mic once more, ¡°I... Am.. Death¡ The Destroyer of Worlds. And I¡. Am¡. Helyon. You will withdraw or I will defend my tribe under article 6 of the Delmar/Unity treaty. I will erase you from the universe should you not comply inside 1minute.¡± ¡®Thank you Doc for the crash course.¡¯
¡°We will meet again, Demon.¡± Kar¡¯s voice dripped with venom.
¡°I look forward to it.¡± BigMac low rumbling response dripped with heartfelt anticipation, narrowing the Thermian captains gaze in understanding. Kar cut the Hail. Convergent Dawn, smoking from her starboard side, and still venting atmosphere, swung round and started her Burn for FTL...... back the way she had come. Fifteen minutes later, Concord eased into Hanger3, taking her place facing the door.
Chapter 13
Mac finished shutting down Concord, hands flying with practiced finesse, eyes unfocused, his mind broiling with fear... and memory... ¡®I hope that was right¡¯ he thought. He needed time to think. This was escalating too quickly. ¡®This only leads to reprisal¡¯¡
Mac heard the tell-tale background noise of Atmosphere returning to the hanger, the crew at Hanger 3 had gotten good at smoothly ramping up the gravity; and as such, Concord settled into her berth with narely a bump.
He popped the seal on his helmet but didn¡¯t remove it until he was down the ladder. Only after he removed it was his mental spiral broken by Lyrian¡¯ s face in his, kissing him profusely.
¡°Hey babe.. didn¡¯t die.¡± He joked as she released him. Siccuro walked up shortly after. Mac was checking over Concord with lyrian, showing her little things here and there. Mostly just letting her be near him after what just happened. He needed her grounding, her soul¡
¡°*cough* Captain wants to see you.¡± Siccuro broke the silence.
Mac gave him a weak smile, trying not to let the adrenaline crash show. ¡°Tell him I will be there as soon as I¡¯m changed.¡± He tugged at the metal collar that made up the suit side of his helmet seal. ¡°This thing¡¯s no void suit¡±.
Siccuro nodded and Lyrian lead him back to their quarters¡ It was several minutes later when they arrived at their room. Lyrian could feel her Mac¡¯s mind¡¯s storm of exhaustion and emotion. She helped him out of his G suit and he stumbled to his chair and collapsed into it.
¡°James¡ what¡¯s wrong¡.¡± Worry creased her face..
¡°I¡¯m ok.. just an adrenaline crash¡. In my wardrobe. Left side bottom. You will find a box labeled ¡°E¡± pass it to me with a bottle of water.¡±
She found the box and the bottle of water, ¡°Here.¡± she gave it to him.
He opened the box. Pulling out a powder pack, ripped it open, and poured the powder into the bottle of water and proceeded to chug. ¡°That¡¯ll have to do.¡± He got up and Lyrian rushed over to help him up, but he seemed to be doing better.
¡°What did you take?¡± She asked, reaching over to the torn open packet.. She sniffed the opening. Then touched it with her tongue almost immediately jerking away in disgust, ¡°what the fuck¡ ugh sour..¡± she reached for another bottle of water and started chugging furiously. She was interrupted by Mac struggling to strangle down a laugh, and failing miserably.
¡°It¡¯s called an energy drink/ electrolyte packet.. you know how I sweat a lot more than you do?¡± He asked, waiting for a nod which he got. ¡°Well this drink¡. replaces some of the minerals my body needs¡that I sweat out¡± he continued, ¡°It also has Caffeine in it. When my body gets its fight or flight reflexes triggered. It releases a chemical that heightens reflexes, dulls pain, and sharpens my senses. When the threat is over, my body purges that chemical, adrenaline¡ it¡¯s called an adrenaline crash. The caffeine is a light stimulant that will help cover for the crash until my body levels out.¡± He reached for her and pulled her into an embrace.
¡®This sucks with void suits on¡¯ she thought until he kissed her on the neck, triggering a gasp. ¡°See you tonight¡± he purred in her ear. She grabbed him and pressed him close ¡°tonight¡± she hummed back to him.
And then they were off. She was back to the bridge to finish her shift at the Con, and Mac was along side, headed to the bridge as well, to see Silu.
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Captain Silu turned as the newly paired couple entered the bridge. Lyrian took her station. Mac walked up to him and came to a stop in an odd posture, heels together, spine ramrod straight, ¡°you asked to see me sir¡± Mac stated.
¡°My office,¡± Silu commanded, and they departed for the side door. Once inside, Silu relaxed a tad, ¡°Sit down Mackenzie¡± Mac did so, and Silu continued, ¡°You certainly know how to leave and impression¡ What the Void were you doing¡¡±
¡°Making a statement.¡± Mackenzie stated flatly.
¡°But, did you have to fire on a UGN warship? Yes, they technically crossed the line first, and I have already transmitted the Data to UGN high command and the Delmar Delegation in the Legislature. But you made an enemy here today. ¡°
¡°In Kar¡.. ¡° Mac sank into his chair with a sigh, ¡°I know, but at the time, I did not believe I had a choice. I still don¡¯t.¡±
¡°I fear you are correct, but this is going to linger.. UGN frontier vessels, like that, get defeated on occasion¡. usually by overwhelming pirate numbers. But you humiliated one, and then shoed him away, seemingly as if he was not even worth killing¡ Thermians are a warrior Caste, that¡¯s going to have repercussions...... *sigh* Ours a dangerous game.¡± Silu stated. Mac nodded, but sat forward in his seat.
¡°Silu¡ that ship¡ is it¡ representative of the UGN at large.¡± Mac asked in a quite level tone.
¡°I¡¯m not sure what you mean.¡± Silu responded, confused.
Mac raised a finger. Then lowered it. Searching for the words, ¡°Is it the UGN doctrine to set up their ships like the Dawn was set up. Capacitor banks powering weapons, undersized power cores, weak shields.. weaker sensors¡¡±
¡°I wouldn¡¯t call a ship of that class weak at all.. the UGN doesn¡¯t tend to skimp on shields and sensors. What we faced today was a Frontier patrol ship.. designed to live and work and fight with minimal resources and opportunity to resupply.¡± Silu thought for a moment before continuing, ¡°the only real difference between a frontier brig, and a fleet warship, would be its weapons and main core power. The UGN intentionally arms their frontier patrols with exclusively energy based weapons. And slightly bigger power core¡ generally a power core designed for one ship larger than the frontier vessel. It¡¯s how they get around omitting consumable munitions like guided plasma missiles, EM missiles, or Kinetics.¡±
¡°The UGN uses Kinetics?¡± Max questioned carefully.
¡°Not much anymore¡ the Flak Kannon, not unlike what we have on traveler, used to be the companion of plasma before direct energy replaced it for point defense. Kinetics are looked down on as a weapon of the poor now. Even the most strict core worlds don¡¯t even regulate the carriage of kinetics on one¡¯s person because of their antique status.¡± Silu finished.
¡°I¡see..¡± Mac took a moment to process. His eyes searched the space between them, and Silu got the distinct feeling that the human was coming to an earth-shattering realization.
Mac finally looked back at his uncle in law. His voice was a slow deliberate cadence, ¡°Silu, every ship I have destroyed or disabled, since you met me, has been through Kinetics or explosives. Concord does not have a single energy weapon on her.¡±
Silu¡¯s eyes widened at the implications, ¡°why are you telling me this¡ Aren¡¯t these one of your ¡®top secrets¡¯ ¡°.
¡°That¡¯s just it,¡± Mac continued carefully, ¡°Our kinetic weapons technology is common knowledge to humanity, and it is not even a military secret. Humans have been perfecting the art of throwing rocks at each other and blowing things up for Thousands of years¡ The vast majority of our weapons development has been done by civilian companies, not the government¡.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t follow,¡± Silu stated.
¡°Captain.¡± Mac continued seriously, ¡°The only thing keeping my species from erasing the Galactic unity from the face of the Black, the void, the universe; whatever you want to call it¡.. is the fact that we haven¡¯t figured out faster than light yet.¡± Mac¡¯s tone frosted over with deadly precision as he continued, ¡°Captain. I got close enough for an¡. Intimate¡ scan of the Convergent Dawn.. One Terran fusion reactor, identical to Concord¡¯s, could power everything on that warship twice over, with a safety buffer and reserve power cushion.¡± Macs eyes bored into Silu, ¡°And Concord carries two¡¡±
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Silu sucked in a lung full of air but Mac held him there with those frozen Ice blue eyes, ¡°Most Terran or Martian ships that were the size of Convergent Dawn have about 20 percent more sensor capabilities, 3 times the shield heat dissipation and Impact/HE resilience, and almost 5 times the firepower.. If, no, WHEN my people reach for the Stars again¡ It could go very very badly if a greedy UGN cruiser gets their first and tries to pull what the Dawn tried to pull today¡¡±
¡°I think I understand. But why tell me this¡¡± Silu asked.
Mac took a sip of his strange drink he brought with him. ¡°Because, I am Human¡ I am also Helyon¡ and I do not want the Galaxy to devolve into a war of extinction. Because If humanity is pushed¡. We WILL wage one.. It is our nature to hit back twice as hard, and to not stop striking until the job is done¡It¡¯s how we almost exterminated ourselves. I won¡¯t have Lyrian subject to the level of brutality I was forged in¡¡± Mac stood, ¡°I think I need to have a conversation with Doc. Also, when we get to Delmar; I may need to speak to your tribes elders, and scientists. And, If you could spare her; I need some time to pic Marg¡¯s brain as soon as she is free.¡±
Silu nodded, ¡°I can set up a meeting with Marg tomorrow morning if you would like. The rest, will have to wait until we get home. Dismissed for now.¡±
Mac stood and stiffened steel straight for a moment then departed.
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¡°Now, what did we learn.¡± Doc Icario finished up sealing up the young Delmar male¡¯s arm before wrapping it.
¡°Double check the conduit is fully discharged. Or next time I might lose an arm.¡± the annoyed young engineer parroted.
¡°Or your head¡± reminded Icario, ¡°now, off with you. Light duty for the next 8 hours or I¡¯ll have to rebreak it, so it heals properly.¡±
The crewman nodded and departed sickbay just to bounce off Mac as he was walking in, ¡°easy, you good?¡± Mac flashed a smile.. the poor man stuttered,¡± I¡¯m f-f-fine, sorry.¡± and bolted down the corridor at a dead run.
¡°Fuckin hell. Teeth bad.. accept, when they aren¡¯t, god dammit.¡± grumbled Mac as he wandered in toward Doc. He then spoke with a strange nasally tone, ¡°Heh, what¡¯s up Doc?¡±
¡°Excuse me?¡± Icario¡¯s confused look breaking the joke. Mac chuckled waving away the comment.
¡°Must bet lost in translation,¡± he mused the turned serious. ¡°Doc, you got a min?¡±
¡°If it¡¯s about the other night¡yes I heard¡ no, Tili is not amused..¡± Doc Gruffed, the twinkle in his eye ruining the act.
¡°You sly old fox¡ you do have stories¡± responded Mac with an evil smirk.
Doc scowled, menacingly waving a scanner at Mac, ¡°Not¡drunk¡enough¡±.
¡°Yet¡± Mac finished, and they both relented with a chuckle.
¡°What do you need, son. I doubt you came here to learn ¡®tricks of the trade¡¯.¡± Doc mused.
¡°Ha! Ah, no. I wanted to ask you.. how did the marriage contract get out so fast. It¡¯s been less than two days.¡± Mac settled into a chair next to Icario¡¯s desk as the older Delmar settled in behind it.
¡°Well, mostly automation and transfer algorithms, combined with the physics of subspace.¡± Icario remarked.
¡°The physics of subspace.¡± Mac repeated back to Icario; leaned forward, interested.
¡°We, like the greater galaxy, figured out that it is much easier and faster to send data packets through subspace at faster than light speed as long as there is a destination and enough energy. So a trip, like one we are currently on, might take two or three weeks for a void ship like Traveler; but it would only take the data containing your marriage roughly¡. Eight hours, maybe eight and a half?¡± Icario pondered.
Mac looked at him, dumbfounded, ¡°almost 1000 to one¡. What is the power ratio needed, and how do you solve for signal degradation.¡±
¡°My boy, I¡¯m a doctor not a physicist. I¡¯m not sure¡ what¡¯s so funny¡± Icario paused as Mac Snarfed into his drink, shoulders shaking I suppressed laughter. It became not-so-suppressed laughter after a few seconds.
¡°I¡¯m sorry Bones, I mean Doc. You unintentionally made a Human reference, a dam good one. I¡¯m listening.¡± Mac finished, finally containing himself.
Icario gave him a sideways glance, ¡°Anyway, I do not know the power numbers. But I do know that signals do not degrade in subspace. If you remember our explanation of why your LEAP test failed. The same applies to data. There must be a start and an end coordinate or beacon.¡±
Mac nodded, ¡°I see..¡± he was interrupted by in infirmary door being kicked open.
A female with a nasty burn on her face was rushed in and placed on a bed. Her companion looking to Icario, ¡°coolant pipe micro fracture near section 6. We neutralized what we could.¡±
¡°Ah,¡± Icario stood as Mac did the same, ¡°a healer¡¯s job on an aging freighter is never done.¡±
¡°I bet. See ya later¡. Bones¡± Mac¡¯s smirk could not be withered by Icario¡¯s glare. And Mac just waved as he headed toward the Mess hall.
Lunch passed quickly, Mac meeting up with Lyrian for a quick bite before she finished her shift.
Mac wandered back to their quarters¡ he had some research to do. He flipped through the desk console until he found the section containing Subspace Communications.
He cranked up his music and began reading. Doc¡¯s lessons had helped, but reading Delmar was still out of his reach. He reached for his data-pad to pull up a translation, deciding to change up his playlist as well, choosing to use his speakers instead of his translator buds.
(Sleepin¡¯ on the Blacktop- Colter Wall) came on the shuffle, and Mac started reading.
¡°Sunshine beating on the good times, Moonlight raising from the grave.
String band playing worn out honky-tonks, Pretty young thing going dancing in¡¡±
The music faded to the back of consciousness as Mac dove deeper into his research. There was a lot of math involved. Not the kind a combat pilot could see with his eyes and intuition.. the kind that needed formula¡¯s¡ and white lab coats¡ maybe some crazy hair...
¡°What¡¯s so amusing?¡± Macs ¡®zone¡¯ was burst, now hours later, by a familiar voice and the bubbling of amusement and warmth in the back of his mind that told him that Lyrian was close enough for their bond to be felt.
He turned in his chair to her, ¡°I¡¯m picturing a wild white haired old man who just so happened to be my species Pioneer on theoretical physics, give a lecture on subspace data.¡± He mused back at her, ¡°I didn¡¯t miss dinner, did I?¡±
He glanced down at his Delmar made Comm/ Time piece/ Data interface. His Uncles present currently sat on a stand on his desk that slowly spun off axis to the watch to keep the mechanical winding in good working order and lubricated properly. It had pained Mac a bit to remove his prized possession, but 28 Terran hour days, cut into tenths, meant that he simply needed something calibrated to his new life. The watch, and stand, currently rested in its place of honor on his desk though. That was enough.
¡°Not yet. I just got off shift, I came home to change before dinner¡± she said as she put her uniform poncho and Security Badge over her void suit and hung it up up in her wardrobe. She paused as she was grabbing one from her ¡®shore clothes¡¯ Poncho¡¯s. She smirked then turned and sauntered over, straddling Mac¡¯s lap as he watched her before leaning in for his lips. he responded and their lips met.. void suits pressed together.
¡°Hmmm¡ dinner can wait¡¡± she half coo¡¯d half growling as she reached down to give his neck a nip/kiss. ¡°You¡me.¡± She bared her teeth, ¡°now..¡± she growled and kissed him on the lips again, more fiercely this time.
Mac didn¡¯t bother turning off the music
*Feathered Indians-Tyler Childers echoed in the background*
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A couple hours later a very satisfied looking, and slightly wobbly, Lyrian, hand in hand with a grinning Mac, wandered in to see what was left in the Mess for dinner. Lyrian had her Helyon Tribal patterned Poncho on over her suit. Three star like shapes orbiting what Mac had been told was was the Delmaracian version of wheat. The whole thing circled in a patterned very similar to Her own markings. The crest was colored to match her skin. Satin silver filled with deep auburn outlines. The Tribal crest was set on one corner of the poncho with the flat blue background making up the bulk of the material trimmed in Auburn.
Luckily, Dinner was a four hour affair on account of shifts ending and beginning, so the food was still hot and coming out. The faint sounds of Bob Marley could be heard as Martin finished up the latest batch of items for the chow line.
¡°Hey, look who finally made it! Mac, when are you going to let me try something Human Spicy!¡± Martin called from behind the kitchens almost 50¡¯s diner style three quarters wall that separated the cooking area from the serving bar.
¡°When I¡¯m sure that Cayenne doesn¡¯t constitute a chemical weapon!¡± Mac threw back with a laugh grabbing a pair of trays and handing one to Lyrian, ¡°Lyri got a rather rude introduction to energy drinks, so I suspect Human spices might end up a bit well.. exciting.¡±
Lyrian made a face, ¡°yuk! not fun. Too sour, and my head was buzzing for an hour after.¡±
¡°Lime, the flavor is Lime¡± Mac clarified, suppressing a laugh. Then turned to Martin, ¡°I promise, I¡¯ll bring samples to Doc in the morning. He gets final say though.¡±
¡°Fine, that¡¯s Fair I guess.¡± grumped the Chef before his eyes brightened up and he grabbed their plates of their trays and disappeared into the back for a moment. He came back with full plates of assorted steaming goodness, Mac¡¯s with a bit more meat on his that Lyrians, and returned the plates with a shooing motion. ¡°Go, Go. I¡¯ve got you¡± he said, eyes sparkling.
Mac just laughed, ¡°Always trust the Chef.¡± He said with an abbreviated human salute and spun to catch Lyrian who was headed for a table with Tristen and Brayton already there, chowing down on their meals.
¡°Lyri?¡± Lyrian asked with a mock scowl.
¡°What.¡± Mac feigned innocents, ¡°your mom is ¡®Tili¡¯. Shortening someone¡¯s name seems to be something we have in common. We call em ¡®nicknames¡¯, and we give them to people close to us.¡±
Lyrian smirked then leaned in until her lips just brushed Mac¡¯s ear, ¡°Am I close enough to you?¡± She coo¡¯d. picking at a lobe with one of her fangs.
Mac stiffened slightly, then wrapped an arm around her waist, ¡°Do I need to show you again?¡±
He rumbled back at her, dissolving her into giggles just as they reached the table.
¡°What¡¯s so funny¡± the younger Brayton asked, looking up from his food.
Mac flashed an evil, yet Delmar kosher grin, ¡°Inside joke¡±.
Lyrian clouted Mac on the back of the head and Tristen snarfed into the drink he was unfortunately taking a sip of at the moment. Poor young Brayton was completely lost.
¡°I regret nothing¡± Mac stated before taking a drink from his own glass, as the fours conversation shifted into various topics.
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The remains of the three-week crossing to Argorania passed in relative peace. Mac met with Marg about once a week, as he picked her brain on subspace physics. She wasn¡¯t an expert, but it helped him figure out what to ask when they got to Delmar.
Lyri had taken to her nickname, refusing to let Mac not use it now... well mostly. She had taken to tutoring him in her people¡¯s language, getting him to tell her stories of Terra, but only in Delmar. Some nights had less Tutoring in them than others.
On week two, Mac had placed two requests. First was with the Auto Fab unit¡¯s que, it had taken some measuring and scanning, but 2 days before their arrival, Mac got the call, and had the items sent to Hanger3. He was proud that he had gotten through that conversation in Delmar, well, mostly. He had kept one translator ear plug on but on standby just in case he needed it. This left the other ear free to hear, untranslated and to help him ¡®work on his accent¡¯ as Lyri had chided.
The second was for Doc Icario. Mac had tried, but ¡®Bones¡¯ hadn¡¯t stuck... at least not yet, but Mac finally given Doc a collection of spices from his travel bag, and been given a crash course on void suit tech. Then, Mac gifted Icario his G suit to study along with a spec sheet, and the second request.
Mac had spent the day before, and the morning of arrival day, in Concord; slowly whittling down the pile of packaged items on the floor of the hanger while Lyri was on the bridge.
That afternoon another package was delivered to Max and Lyri¡¯s quarters. And hung up on the hook usually holding Mac¡¯s G suit. A note from Doc was attached to the outside.
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The bridge door hissed open, and Captain Silu looked over to see Mac walk in, standing at what he had learned was ¡°parade rest¡± next to the command chair. It was a better position than that board stiff ¡°attention¡± Mac had used before. Silu had insisted on Parade rest since Mac insisted on Military courtesy while being observed by the crew.
¡°Do you have a moment, Captain¡± Mac¡¯s Delmar was coming along nicely. Silu noticed a smirk tug at the Corner of his niece¡¯s lips.
¡®Good girl¡¯, ¡°Con, ETA on Beacon¡± Silu both praised internally, and commanded our loud.
¡°7 ¡®minutes¡¯ Captain,¡± Her crisp responses never could get rid of the slight melodic cadence she had kept from childhood.
Silu swiveled in his chair to face his nephew in law, ¡°it appears i have 7 of them Lieutenant, my office.¡± He stood, ¡°NAV HAS THE BRIDGE¡± he called out, as he and Mac disappeared into what Mac has dubbed his ¡®ready room¡¯.
The door hissed shut behind them, ¡°Ok Mac, what is it.¡± He voice was calm but expectant. Mac did not tend to waste his time.
¡°Silu, I need your¡ advice...¡± Mac stated. Voice wavering slightly, more imagined than real. Silu knew better, but he just sat down behind his desk waited for Mac to get it out. The man was clearly carrying something heavy on his mind.
Mac sat down across from his wife¡¯s Uncle.. Leaning forward until his elbows rested on his knees.
Mac voice was barely but a whisper, ¡°I think I can contact Sol¡ ¡°
Chapter 14
¡°I Think I can contact Sol¡± Both men sat for a full two minutes.¡°I think I can get a data packet to Terra..¡± Mac whispered, ¡°It has to survive a hundred eighty-ish of your hours. And not be missed when it gets there.¡±
¡°Go on¡¡± Silu¡¯s mind raced over the conversation with Mac post Intercept Incident¡
Mac began, ¡°The day Icario told me that my species, my world was lost to me, he stated that they had found Sol¡¡±
Silu took a deep breath, ¡°I remember. Something about a subspace flare with no meaningful data linked to the timeline borrowed from Concords sensors.¡±
¡°Yes.. a subspace flare¡ a recorded subspace flare¡.. in the right part of the galaxy¡.. With recorded coordinates¡ ¡° Mac finished..
¡°Fuck..¡± Silu swore, ¡°20 years of travel would be a little over a week for a data packet¡¡± Silu mumbled. The Galactic Unity was vast. Spanning a 35 year diameter at its widest point, for a freighter such as Traveler. This was why subspace and advanced algorithms were heavily used just to keep the galaxy updated with itself.
Silu shook his head. His mind shifted through their previous conversations, unsure of how to respond. Finally, he squared his shoulders and decided to face the main problem head on, ¡°I¡¯m not sure that this message would be wise.¡± He said finally.
Mac¡¯s head sank heavily, his voice but a whisper. ¡°Kobiashi Maru¡± Mac wasn¡¯t wearing his translators right now, at least not actively, he could see them hanging around his neck just in case. Whatever he had just said was not in Delmar, but the agony transcended language..
¡°I¡¯m sorry, what do you mean¡± Silu tried
Mac gave a weak laugh, and returned to Delmar, ¡°It¡¯s a name¡ ¡®Kobiashi Maru¡¯¡ It¡¯s a fake void ship from a form of visual entertainment we called ¡°movies¡±. They influenced culture in a way few things from my race ever did.. Kobiashi Maru, is a cultural reference meaning ¡®a no win scenario¡¯.¡± Mac held up a hand to continue, ¡°And this may just be a no-win situation. Every option requires a lot of faith in at least one aspect.¡±
¡°Can you give me details?¡± Silu asked carefully.
¡°I¡¯ll try," Mac sighed and steadied himself, ¡°the first option is the easiest. We don¡¯t send Humanity anything. This also has the strongest and possibly bloodiest downsides... FTL is an inevitability for my people.... we know it can be done now because even my test failure showed them that light speed wall can be broken¡ and we are Human¡ We WILL break it¡. If only for the simple reason of ¡°because we can¡±.¡± A dark chuckle escaped Mac as he finally sat back in his chair to continue. ¡°Considering how far ahead we Humans are in power generation, shields, weapons, sensors, and stealth tech; once we get here¡. once we figure out the coordinate problem, and start jumping around...¡±
¡°We will be playing a galactic game of chance¡¡± Silu finished.
Max nodded, ¡°If humanities first impressions of the Galaxy at large¡ is an overgrown pompous lizard trying to collect test subject specimens¡.¡± Mac¡¯s voice trailed off as Silu¡¯s eyes widened at the Venom dripping from those words.
Mac sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers. ¡°Captain, didn¡¯t you ever wonder why I never tried to escape. Never put up a real fight¡. How, despite the shock of being the first human in our history to meet non-human intelligent life, it was relatively easy to communicate, and understand each other?¡±
¡°Well, we are all Sapients after all.¡± Silu tried diplomatically.
¡°While as enlightened as that is as a philosophy¡. It is incorrect¡ You and your crew did not end up murdered by me in a desperate attempt to escape, because we look similar.. No I¡¯m not talking about race, creed, skin color, or religion. I¡¯m talking about biology¡ I have heard the rumblings among the crew¡ the word, ¡°apex¡± has been thrown around. Let me ask you, do you assume Humanity to be the Apex species of our cradle world?¡±
¡°Well¡ until now¡± that revelation was not what Silu expected.
¡°We are not.. we are not even close. Earth.. Terra.. does not have one climate. Because of that, We have over 70 different species that we consider to be apex predators on our world. Humanity is simply the one that figured out tools.. much like the Delmar.¡± Silu just stared at him, utterly speechlessly.. so Mac continued.. ¡°Many of the predators, humanity has competed with for our whole existence, look very close to some of the species of the Galactic Unity¡. Enough so, that if provoked, Humanity would treat them like the very deadly non sapients they remind us of back home. We have Millennia of ecological competition and mutual predation to do anything else¡. ¡°
Mac took a breath, ¡°Captain, I fear that if Delmar were not so close to Humans in appearance, Things would not have gone so¡ smoothly¡ between us. Yours is the only race in the Unity that developed along our same path, with the only difference being that Humanity became more adapted to grassland, long distance hunting, big game predation in higher gravity.¡±
¡°Delmar is a singular climate outside of the poles,¡± Silu offered, ¡°a complete jungle for all land masses, we never had to leave the trees to look for bigger game.¡±
¡°Or submit yourselves to the danger of leaving the safety of the tree¡¯s so early. So you kept your tails, grew longer and leaner. You kept more of your abilities from being tree dwellers. But through all that, we still look ¡®related¡¯... Faces, mouths, ears, even language... forgive me, I know she is your niece; but my human baser instincts treat Lyrian as more an exotic beautiful human than an ¡®Alien¡¯¡ someone to be pursued for mating, securing generations¡ someone to be protected at great cost.¡± Silu stirred uncomfortably, but Max wasn¡¯t finished, ¡°Thermians, Saurians, the adult Lycan species trigger the ¡°Danger, kill it.. maybe eat it later", instinct in myself and therefore Humanity. Had I woken up to a Saurian, or a Thermian tending to me, or experimenting on me, on my first day.. my very human fight or flight instincts, combined with the shock of living my whole life without knowledge of the greater galaxy and it¡¯s species¡ would have ensured a much bloodier and violent ending.¡±
¡°Forgive me, but I have to ask.. what¡¯s to stop them if you contact them anyway¡¡± Silu asked carefully.
¡°Knowledge¡ " Mac stated flatly, "Humanity has a saying, ¡®Knowledge is power¡¯. The only way I see this ending well, is if Humanity joins the Galactic community with their eyes open¡. As I see it, we either trust Sol with the knowledge, and offer them the information to find a way in without bloodshed¡ or we trust the Unity not to fuck up first contact with a race of heavily armed apex predators with a planet sized ¡®fuck around and find out¡¯ mentality.¡±
¡°I noticed, you said community, not unity..¡± Silu¡¯s tone was one of understandable concern.
¡°Humanity would never consent to the Unity¡± Mac said flatly. ¡°We are a fiercely independent species, who have been in an almost constant state of war throughout the majority of our own history. The second worst thing the Unity could possibly do, would be to demand Sol bend the knee. The first, would be to try and force them.¡±
¡°So, pray to the gods that Humanity doesn¡¯t stumble blindly into a Galaxtic war of exterminatus¡ or pray to the gods, that The Unity doesn¡¯t start one when humanity introduces itself.¡± Silu rubbed the bridge between his eyes.
*Captain to the bridge* the overhead barked
¡°We can finish this later, if you wish.¡± Mac stood and flicked a quick human salute.
Silu chuckled at the mannerism. ¡°Yes. Although maybe less sobriety would be warranted¡±
Mac flashed a smile, mostly not showing his teeth this time, ¡°Don¡¯t threaten me with a good time, Captain.¡±
¡°Ha! Dismissed Lieutenant.¡± And with that, Silu returned to the bridge. They were coming up on Argorania, it was time to go to work.
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Lyrian eased Lucid Traveler out of subspace just in time for her Captain to arrive back on the Bridge. ¡°CAPTAIN HAS THE CON!¡± Barked Marg, giving him a nod as she vacated ¡®The chair¡¯, as Mac called it.
¡°Subspace retrograde complete, beginning Decl Burn. ETA 45 ¡®minutes¡¯ to He¡¯rth (Hearth) Station.¡± Lyrian stated, anticipating Silu¡¯s request for a report, as she eased Travelers head ¡®round to face her main drives into her inertia. Traveler let out a low growl through her bones as she sub-light drives spooled up under Lyrian''s encouraging hand on the quadrants.
She loved this part almost as much as she loved reentry. Traveler was an old ship. She was well kept, but her Keel had been laid over two Millennia before. She had gone through countless refits and upgrades. But money for an, admittedly, smaller commerce tribe was always tight. Traveler had been built without retro-grade Drives to save money and weight.
Even now, upgrading to the power-hungry forward-facing engines was considered a Luxury for a ship of her age; and many owner/operators preferred to keep expenses down and Lines fare when it came to this generation of ship. The result was the need to reverse orientation to decelerate from anything more than 1/16th of Travelers sub-light cruise speed, which was not all that great to begin with. The second thing Traveler lacked was high level Automation. Yes, many essential systems had been upgraded to some level of self management, but Navigation, Comms, and Lyrians favorite; the helm or Con; were still very much a hands-on affair. The Information side was very much computer assisted, but the execution was still very much ¡®stick and rudder¡¯. Lyrian''s station was one of only two that were required to be harnessed into during ¡®critical phases¡¯, such as entry and retro jumps into and out of both subspace and inter-planetary. Nav, because they were needed to keep the telemetry feeding properly to con; and the con because Lyrian was using both hands and feet to Maneuver Traveler. Mac had chuckled at that but failed to elaborate the first time Lyri had shown him her station.
Her left hand was primary pitch and roll control. It had a ¡®high rate¡¯ setting for transit and open void maneuvering, and a ¡®low rate¡¯ setting for fine control in orbital and docking operations. It was located on an arm rest section of her console it had buttons to let her key her wire frame headset if she needed to talk to another station without shouting across the bridge, as well as a multi directional thumb switch that let her flick through her multi function displays without having to leave her controls.
At her right hand, also at arm rest level, was a singular throttle quadrant. It controlled all of Travelers main drives at once. It also had a thumb joystick that gave her control over the slewing functions of the ships maneuvering thrusters. This allowed her to slide the ship to Larboard or Starboard, and to raise and lower the ship without changing Travelers orientation. It too had a high and low-rate setting. The second control cluster was on a gimbal that snapped into place just above Lyrian¡¯s primary throttle, but it spent most of its life swung out of the way. It was a second throttle quadrant with each of Travelers 4 main drives on a separate lever. This could be moved out of the way when not needed, or quickly snapped down should asymmetric main thrust be needed, or if one of Travelers engines needed emergency shut down separate from the rest. Lyrian had rarely used that one outside of docking the occasional tight docking slip.
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Lyrians feet rested on a set of pedals. They were the simplest of her controls. They were linked at the middle so that when you pushed one forward. The other would come back toward you. Each pedal had also rotated individually. You could rotate the pedal forward by pressing with your toes at the top. Pushing the left pedal would activate the maneuvering thrusters to yaw Traveler to the left, pushing the right pedal would yaw traveler to the right. Pressing the toe would rotate the pedal and add main drive vectoring or bleed drive output directionally to add more to the yawning affect respectively. Each toe axis had a lock out. You could not use two directions at once.
The center of her console was made up of two separate screens. They were equal size and shape. The left one showed her primary instruments and essential navigation. It could be decluttered to essentials or detail could be added through Lyrians left thumb. The right screen was for star charts, detailed engine and thruster information, Tactical read outs and ancillaries as needed depending on the situation. Lyrian could flick through those settings as well from her left thumb. Mac had nodded approvingly at her ¡®PFD¡¯ and ¡®MFD¡¯ layout. Again, not expounding further, just letting her show him and observing. All of these controls were designed to allow the Con to have almost complete control of all of Travelers Axes¡¯ of travel with minimal jumping between hand and feet positions. User configurable Artificial feedback was provided to the Con operator to give them a tactile response to work with their muscle memory.
Traveler, being an older ship, had a voice. Her main drives were felt more strongly through her frame than in newer, more modern vessels of her type. Because the Con was a ¡®harnessed¡¯ station at times; piloting her during those ¡®critical phases¡¯ was a very sensory saturated experience. Lyrian smiled, taking it in, listening as Traveler spoke. Piloting an old freighter was more ¡®akin to riding a steed-beast than controlling a machine at times like this. ¡®I love my job.¡¯
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The doors to Mac¡¯s and Lyri¡¯s quarters closed as Mac stepped in. They were 15 min from docking at He¡¯rth station. Lyri had promised to tour guide him on his first experience outside of Traveler. ¡®Alright, intergalactic tourist Mac, that¡¯s me I guess¡¯ he rummaged around his wardrobe. He had done a quick image search of the ships computer to see other species present in the Galactic Unity.. He was happy to have her as a guide considering the results. He started unzipping his hanging bag for the first time since packing for his test flight¡
Mac¡¯s original LEAP test flight plan had been to ¡°jump¡± to somewhere near the orbital plane of Titan Industries predictably named Titan Station, on Saturns moon of the same name, then back to Pandora MOA. His alternates had been Rheinmetall¡¯s Aerospace testing facility on Europa if he his jump had been short of prediction, or the NASA deep space observatory orbiting Neptune if he had jumped long. He was to make the jump; then burn for the closest of his options and wait for pickup if he could not jump back. Concord had been stuffed with enough MRE-DS¡¯s (deep space versions of the venerable concoctions) to last him until his pickup at the furthest alternate. Even with Concords limited storage. That had been easy considering that she was designed to sustain a two-man crew for 18 months, and Macs test was a solo run. All this to say, Mac had packed a lot of clothes¡ deep space being what it was, he was not authorized to use up precious resources as a guest for non essentials like laundry. Mac had not been keen on wearing the same set of clothes for months or years waiting for pickup, and he smiled as he unfurled the bag to reveal he¡¯s entire collection¡ of vintage and new Hawaiian and Caribbean style shirts.
Lyrian had not seen these yet. They were a legacy from his uncle Martin. The man¡¯s love for the classics, even dubious classics, was legendary in the Terran Navy. It was a passion he had passed down to a traumatized young man who had just lost his family.¡®Marty you beautiful old bastard,¡¯ he stopped on his 19th birthday present from His Uncle, a perfect authentically made replica of the iconic red Hawaiian shirt worn by the main character in the ancient tv cult classic ¡°Magnum Pi¡±. It was later rebooted in the early 21st century, but Mac had watched the original with the old man.. there was no replacement. Mac cackled to himself as he reached for his pair of aviators that he had packed in a separate padded compartment.
¡®You will do nicely¡¯.
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Traveler shuddered as the Mooring clamps of He¡¯rth station locked and stabilized her bulk. She was currently docked nose on, allowing hangers on both sides to be utilized for orbit to surface transfer of the supplies. Lyrian settled back on her chair with a satisfied sigh and un-strapped.
¡°Moorings secured, Airlock secured. Main Drives coming offline¡± Lyrian listed off, reaching for the few controls not directly at her fingertips.
¡°Captain, He¡¯rth station transmitting permission to come ¡®aboard. They regret that they do not have shore power available. We are too large for them to run our systems.¡± Marg added looking over at the Coms stations shoulder.
¡°It will have to do, bring the auxiliary core online and shut down nonessentials. Let¡¯s not bleed money we don¡¯t have to.¡± Silu ordered. Travelers faint thrum changed slightly as those orders were carried out.¡°Senior Bridge crew dismissed. It¡¯s lunch time people, consider yourself off the rest of the week save skeleton rotation. We will be here a while. Good work.¡± Silu smiled. Then stretched and followed the bridge crew out to be replaced by the Dock skeleton crew that rotated out every 9hours during long lay overs.
The senior bridge crew were exempt from first watch, but everyone got a turn on a stay this long. Lyrian almost skipped off having gotten a message from Mac that he was home, ready for their date. They were going to go eat at the station and Mac was going to get his first experience in a public transit hub. A couple minutes later she flit into their quarter, coming to a screeching halt just inside the door to their quarters and just staring at her man.. at least she thought it was her man¡ he felt like her man through their bond, but he was covered in the most obnoxiously Vibrant shirt she had ever laid eyes on¡ a pair of blue ¡®pants¡¯ of some kinds and gigantic tinted eye covering¡ She remembered him calling them ''blue jeans''. Mac lost the staring contests failing to portray an innocent face and grinned unrepentantly.
¡°What the Void are you wearing!¡±, she finally asked. She could feel his emotions, a wild mix of amusement and anticipation, she realized, of her reaction. Apparently, she had not disappointed him on the second one.
¡°It¡¯s a Hawaiian shirt!¡± He proudly proclaimed, ¡°Traditionally made, in Kawaii.¡±
She stood gawking for a moment, remembering him mentioning those, ¡°THAT is a Hawaiian shirt?¡±
¡°No,¡± Max turned and opened his wardrobe, ¡°THESE are Hawaiian shirts¡± She walked over and beheld the loudest collection of clothing she had seen in her life. Some with animals that must be from his home world. Some with water and white/tan shore lines with strange trees. Some were covered with giant round leaves and brightly colored flowers. Others sported with strange mechanical and vaguely avian monstrosities that appeared to by flying around each other wearing various codes of arms spewing fire from their wings...
¡°So?¡± Mac asked.
Lyri jumped a little bit as she felt his arms wrap around her waist from behind ¡®I forget how quiet he is when he wants to be¡¯ she mused, leaning back on him, ¡°They are.. loud.¡±
¡°They are supposed to be. They are a cultural garb from one of my favorite places on earth¡± he rumbled into her chest. She could feel his slight twinge of morning at that statement.
¡°Earth?¡± She asked at the untranslated Human word. Mac must not have his translators in. He had been needing them much less of late.
¡°Earth is Terra¡¯s other name.¡± He answered. Letting her go once more and turning her to face him, ¡°anything going to offend a species I don¡¯t know about?¡± He did a quick spin.
¡°I don¡¯t think so, the red is loud, but It doesn¡¯t mean much in most fashions.¡± She nodded. She quickly shimmied out of her uniform and void suit, changing into a white skin tight shirt topped with a more subdued poncho and a tan flowing skirt that hugged at the hips but flowed below mid thigh. She dressed quickly or risk missing lunch and dinner, judging by the desire burning off of Mac.¡®Good¡¯ she finished just as he pulled her in for an kiss, and her arms bumped up against something solid on his left hip on their way around him..
She pulled his shirt up to look, ¡°what¡¯s this.¡±
Mac gently separated from her with a sigh, ¡°protection¡± he said. She looked a pointed question at him, and he nodded to himself. Pulling the item out from inside his waistband leaving some kind of holster behind. He very carefully pulled a long rectangular piece out of where he was holding it, and slid the top half of the rest back until it locked, pocketing something that had popped out.He then held it sideways resting it on the his hands for her to look at. ¡°This is a much much smaller version of the guns on Concord¡± he explained. Lyri felt a spike of fear run through her as his emotions slammed into stoic seriousness. Mac felt her fear and softened a little bit. ¡°It can¡¯t hurt you right now. I was going to teach you when we got to your home world and had the proper open space.¡± He shifted it closer to her, still held in his hand, ¡°a hot metal projectile comes out of this end¡± He pointed the slender end pointed away from both of them, ¡°and is fed new ones by this.¡± He reached into his pocket to show her the rectangle he had removed earlier. ¡°it pulls another one of these,¡± he pocketed the rectangle and produced a small object tipped with a rounded but finned dart encased in thee little pieces.
It appeared to be designed to pop off easily from the bronze colored casing it was held in ¡°in after every shot. It is called a CZ P-488S Compact Gauss Pistol, my people usually just call them ¡®handguns¡¯, or ¡®Gun¡¯ or ¡®firearm¡¯ although we have not needed chemical propellant since the breakthrough in Micro Capacitors 200 years ago. It¡¯s safe to hold, don¡¯t be afraid¡± Lyri gingerly picked up the weapon. Plasma and laser pistols were the same general shape, and probably followed the same general rules for handling. So, she kept the dangerous end pointed away for both of them.
¡°It¡¯s heavy..¡± she said at last. ¡°This is a Kinetic isn¡¯t it.¡± She asked, handing it back to him and watching him load it before placing it back in its holster. It then disappeared under his obnoxiously bright shirt.
¡°Yes, it works alot like your Flak Kannons. Just only one projectile at a time. And at much higher projectile speeds, usually.¡± he stated.
¡°Won¡¯t that put holes in the station?¡± She asked.
Mac felt her worry, ¡°Not this type of ammunition, these particulate projectiles are frangible, designed to damage soft tissue but break up on something hard like metal; and because it uses capacitors instead of propellant in the cartridges, I can use the AMU, sorry the ¡°ammunition management Unit¡± He pointed to a nondescript box she had just assumed was nothing, ¡°to partially drain the cartridge capacitors to a slower velocity. This is still deadly, and it will go through some walls depending on how they are constructed. but it won¡¯t be able to exit travelers pressure hull, or the stations.¡± Mac then visibly brightened. He rubbed his hands together, ¡°Now! Enough doom and gloom!¡± He smiled, ¡°Care to go on a date, luv? I hear there are strange new worlds to explore. Shall we boldly go?¡± He felt her confusion and just laughed
¡°I have no idea what that means, but I saw a lovely cafe on the observation deck in the listings.¡± she gave him a not to convincing reproaching glare.
¡°Lead on my dear!¡± Mac stuck his right elbow out and Lyri looped her arm through it as they headed for the airlock.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°Holy¡ shit¡¡± Mac swore in English, as Lyri giggled next to them. Mac was staring at the water tubes running along the walls of the observation deck. Most were made of metal, but glass bulbs were positioned every so many ¡®meters¡¯ and Aquatic races of all types were swimming between the bulbs, enjoying the view. Little bipedal and multipedal crustacean esque children scuttled around frantically, chasing another child that looked like a cuter version of Squidward around a group of adults. The invertebrate children were clearly lost in a game of water tube tag and enjoying themselves. A Child that looked like a Husky puppy on two legs ran up and waved at one of the bipedal crab/waterbug looking children through the glass, the child ran to its parents for what appeared like a conversation, then swam over to a steel air lock¡ maybe water lock.. and popped out moments later with a towel around its upper thorax to hug the Husky pup. They ran off to a deck vendor as the aquatic child¡¯s parents cycled through and waved to the pups parents.
Further away from the windows were a pair of, ¡°Holy fuck, Dinosaur!!!¡± Mac whispered into Lyri¡¯s ear. She was struggling not to laugh as wave after wave of new experience washed over her through their link. He paused as he felt her smirk through their bond. ¡°What''d I say?¡± taking a sip from the water bottle he had brought with him.
¡°So this is what little kid Jamie was like.¡± She teased him causing him to choke on the sip he was taking, ¡°ha! Mine!¡± She laughed pressing her advantage to steal the bottle for a sip of her own.
Mac coughed and sputtered for a second, ¡°God Dammit. *cough* pictures my ass, that fucker is huge!!¡± He finally got out.
¡°She, is huge..¡± Lyri corrected, ¡°Thats a Saurian.¡± Mac regained himself enough to remember the pictures from the ships computers as Lyri continued, ¡°The kids in the aquatics section are K¡¯Claram¡¯s¡± she pointed at the crustacean looking individuals, ¡°and Mauk¡¯lur¡± She pointed at adorable mini squid-ward.
¡°But there are two different ones with shells¡± Mac offered.
¡°Puberty. K¡¯Claram are hatched multi-pedal, they stay that way until around 12, then molt into Bipeds and start developing the ability to breathe atmosphere.¡± She explained then pointed to the fluffy Husky, ¡°He is Lycan. Maybe 10 or 11. They grow slow until 16, then very fast until adulthood at 17.¡± Lyri had just finished the explanation when they arrived at the Cafe, and were seated.
¡°This is¡. A lot¡ ¡° he paused as one of the Avian species soared over head low enough to look around, but high enough to not clip anything with its wings, ¡°¡ to take in..¡± he finished, watching the large bird species soar by.
¡°Kawmari, a young female¡± Lyri indicated to the avian, who had just landed at a shop. ¡°She won¡¯t get much taller, but her wings will double in size over her life span¡±.
Mac realized that she had a pair of arms as well, as they hinged out from joints just below the wings joints, ¡°we are not ready¡¡± escaped a sober murmur from Mac.
¡°James, if this is too much..¡± she began, but he shook his head. Whatever it was passed from his feelings and was replaced with content happiness. ¡°I can feel you worry too you know.¡± he smiled back at her, ¡°Not today, today is for us.¡±
¡°Are you ready to order?¡± A large Gecko with six arms and a waiters bib asked in GC. Mac jumped just a bit, distracted by the newness of it all and fumbled in his shirt pocket, producing his left side translator , ¡°Oh shit! Oh hai, sorry. My galactic common is poor. Can we start with drinks?¡± He asked once it was on place.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Growrmun Drumorsik eyed the young couple from across the promenade. Casually sipping a glass of Lycan ale and generally being unassuming. He watched as the pale skinned being placed a translator in his ear and began talking to the waitress. ¡®Good¡¯ he picked up the weak signal through the din, casually stretching out to point his left arm towards the two. ¡°Can we start with drinks,¡± came over his own translator, as it was tied into his eves-dropping microphone located under his cloak on his left arm. His translator chirped , ¡°98 percent match,¡±He pulled out his data pad and started tapping. Pulling up its optical scanner and zooming in, snapping a picture he saved it. Then turned to look out the window, back to the couple, nominally looking through a SubNet article.*Packet compiled* chirped into his ear,¡°Send¡± he commanded. A slight wag of his tail that he allowed slip as he enjoyed the view, over the planet; for it was truly exceptional.
Soon enough, the couple finished their meal, electing to walk the Bazzar. Growrmun followed behind, causally looking at items. The Human¡¯s scent was.. unique, and the Lycan spy used that smell to keep tabs on his target as they made their way through the shops. His revulsion heightened as he watched them play the tourist, buying little foibles and generally sightseeing. This being appeared completely oblivious to his status as hunted, to the point where Growrmun was able to get within claw striking distance of the demon several times throughout the day.
At one point, Growrmun was surprised as the Strange being doubled back quickly, slamming into him with a surprising amount of heft. Growrmun looked down at the Being and suppressed a grunt from the impact. What was more interesting was this demon¡¯s reaction to him. It seemed to snap its head up to look him in the eyes, something herbivores did not tend to do when faced with a carnivorous species. Growrmun felt the being quickly analyze him quickly before mumbling an ¡°excuse me¡± and moving on. ¡®Meek, but intelligent. I wonder if Command is mistaken¡¡¯ Growrmun broke contact, having gotten all he needed for the moment, and The Lycan spy returned to his favored table and ordered another drink, making sure to be seen there by the couple as he enjoyed the view once more.
Chapter 15
¡°That¡ was¡ amazing¡¡± Mac flopped down on the bed later that evening. He and Lyri had spent the entire afternoon walking the promenades, and it was nice to get out of the Traveler.
H¡¯erth station sported three separate promenades, each holding a different charm. The main one looked over the planet. A pale green, and blue orb with large rivers running from oversized glaciers. 60 percent was apparently land, with much of the water that would be missing being located underground in large naturally forming cisterns, or residing in the aforementioned Glaciers.
Argorania was physically bigger than Terra, by about 70 percent, but that was due to her much weaker gravity, contributing to her less dense structure. At 1/3rd earth¡¯s gravity, she was considered a Utopian world. And her large land mass, uninhabited status, and her large water resources made her ideal for a farming world.
The second Promenade was facing toward Argo 7, the planet¡¯s star. Argo 7 was an aging red dwarf with several millennia left to her. Her softer heat, and Argorania''s low axial tilt made for ideal weather patterns for farming. Much of the rainy season was set in spring and ¡®summer¡¯, consisting of soft showers and little to no Cumulonimbus activity. Argo 7 also had a habit of throwing Solar Flares that spanned half the distance to Argorania and watching the long ropes of glowing plasma had been mesmerizing.
The last promenade faced the departure and arrival zones. Today was a slow day, so it was relatively empty, but the occasional shuttle or transit liner did show up, and Mac got to get a fantastic view of Lucid Traveler as she lay to her moorings. He could see the occasional shuttle zip into her hanger bays to be filled with supplies, while others would come out at a more sedate pace, presumably loaded to the gills, headed for the surface of the planet.
Mac stretched out lazily, thinking over the day¡¯s events, ¡°I had no idea there were so many, and so different.¡±
Lyrian wandered over and settled in with him, inhabiting her customary position on his chest, looking up at him, ¡°I enjoyed it too. Feeling you discover so much was a new experience for me. Although you scared me a couple of times.¡±
¡°Sorry, Humans are very visual in their threat processing. Our fight or flight instincts are sometimes a visceral experience.¡± Mac started, ¡°Several of the species we saw today are very close in characteristic to some of our more deadly apex predators on Terra.¡±
Lyri lifted her head¡ ¡°Wait, aren¡¯t you an Apex? I have felt it from you¡.. it¡¯s¡ terrifying¡± she admitted, lowing her head to look away.
Mac could feel her shame ¡°Lyrian¡ there is no shame in that. Human emotions and Human instinct can be hard on even humans. Sometimes, they are even terrifying to the one emoting them..¡± he didn¡¯t use her full name often anymore¡ it made it more special when he did. She liked that. He tilted his head and kissed the top of hers and started drawing circles on her back. That elicited was a Hum out of her as she looked back to him, just to have him tap her nose with the pointer finger of his other hand.
¡°Boop¡± he smirked down at her.
She bared her teeth at him and pushed herself up to get face to face. And nipped him on the lower lip, ¡°I¡¯ll show you a ¡®boop¡¯¡± she said, in that possessive Growling coo of hers.
Mac bared his teeth back at her, intentionally pushing his own passion and possessive nature back at her through the bond. ¡°Don¡¯t threaten me with a good time¡± he rumbled back before turning out the lights.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mac woke before Lyri the next morning, slowly disentangling from her so as to not wake his sleeping Exotic soulmate, and made for the shower. The steam/high-velocity mist was an acquired taste. Before long he heard/felt her stir, and Mac hit a button on his Delmar-made Smart-Chrono. He had finally figured out how to link everything up, and had downloaded His entire Library of music to the Ships computer core ''I wonder how long it will take for someone to deep dive that one, there are some gem''s in there'' He chuckled to himself as one of those gem''s; the Legendary sounds of Earth, Wind, and Fire going through the beginning riffs of "Shining Star" Filter through their quarters. Mac smirked again as he felt her interest perk up. ''gocha'' He thought as he finished up in the shower and stepped out. He paused, stunned as he found her, absent mindedly twisting and moving to the music with just a sheet tucked around just enough of her to be technically descent. she was scrolling through his music, while her body flowed to the smooth sounds of 70''s Soul.
She noticed him watching her, of course, and turned to slowly dance up to him and kiss him good morning, "Morning" she cooed.
"Morning" he responded before wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her in for another kiss. "I''d love to... but we have plans."
she was captured about the waist, but leaned back just enough to look at him, "We do?" He had hidden something from her. She wasn''t sure how she felt about that.
"Yes," He released her fully and walked over to his wall hook where a bag she hadn''t noticed before was hanging, "and we will be needing these." Mac unzipped the hanging bag to reveal a pair of Void suits with their helmet deployed.
"We''re in orbit, and docked at that," She looked them over. They didn''t look quite right, "Suits aren''t required right now."
"These aren''t for Regular use, my dear. This one" He pulled the much slimmer suit, still slightly bulkier in odd places, out of the bag, "Is yours... For Concord" She spun around, looking at him in shock. He handed it to her. Her hands trembled slightly as she took it, but he continued, "A few weeks ago I went to your father, and the Fab guys. I gave him my spare suit, a list of parameters, and told him to Make me a void suit I could interface with Concord with. I told him to do the research, if he could, and get back to me before he started anything. They figured it out using my suit, my spec''s, the data from my infirmary record. These are a bit better than my G- suit actually. I might be able to set some records with it. He showed me what he had come up with, and I ordered two made.
"James.. I... Concord is your ship" Lyri stammered, clutching her new suit.
"She is ours now." He stated, "At the end of the war, I had... accrued some clout... The TALON 3s were going to be phased out. So, I requested I be allowed to Keep Concord as a personal Vessel, and I made my case that I was going straight into the LEAP program, and a fully capable TALON3 was the perfect vessel for testing. I had to agree to having her De''milled and retrofitted with Non classified software and hardware upon my completion of my tour or tours at LEAP. Obviously It never got that far, but TALON is legally mine in both Sol and Delmar law.. So, she belongs to you now as well" He kissed her on the forehead before shooing her toward the shower stealing her sheet in the process, "Now! go get ready!! we have flying lessons to start!!" She flew through the shower, and they donned their Gym clothes for a quick run, Mac ever in his weighted vest, before stopping by the mess for a quick bite.
A few minutes later, they were stepping into Hanger 3 with a very amused Siccurro in tow. Lyrian let out a gasp, and turned around just in time for Mac to actually fist bump Sicurro.
Concord was no longer in her NASA colors. She was returned to her Dangerous sleek grey with one major difference. She had the Flag of United Sol next to the Helyon Clan Crest just under the cockpit seal where the NASA logo had been, In Auburn, Mac''s new full name with Callsign shown just below his front seat, and Lyrian''s full name with a space missing where Mac''s call sign was on his name.
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"I don''t have a call sign?" She pouted slightly, running her finger over her name on their ship.
"Call signs are earned. Either by Fame or Infamy. I''m sure yours will reveal itself" Mac put on his best Sage''s voice before cracking a smile, "now IN!" laughing as she jumped and scrambled up the ladder, settling into the snug pilot seat.. it felt just as snug, but different some how more shaped to fit her anat...
*Identification requested* a voice spoke into her helmet
she froze, "Uh... Hello?"
*Voice recognition match. welcome aboard Ms Grarzia* The voice spoke again. Mac was just settling into his seat in the front. the voice had spoken in english. Lyrian hopped that was ok. she wasn''t wearing a translator.
Mac flipped a few switches.
*Startup Authorization Required*
"James Mackenzie, Lieutenant. Gamma three one one five Niner" Mac Spoke in English
*Acknowledged, welcome aboard commander*
"Jarvis, Activate Admin Access, Edit name James Mackenzie, new identification; James Mackenzie Grarzia"
*Acknowledged, Changes Confirmed*
"Jarvis, add user; Lyrian Mackenzie Grarzia, status; student. two seat operations only. Authorization gama three one one five niner"
*Acknowledged, Changes Confirmed*
"Las one Jarvis, Connect and download Linguistic database for Delmar. Activate Bilingual Mode, Delmar and English Commands Authorized"
*Acknowledged, Changes Confirmed* Lyrian jumped at the voice this time. It spoke in Delmar this time.
Then it spoke once more speaking her language, *Repeating Last greeting, Voice Recognition match. Welcome aboard Ms Grarzia* Lyri Gasped, "It knows my voice?¡±
*Affirmative* Jarvis got out before Mac could say anything, he just laughed, "I''ve been busy. TALONS by their nature are modular, I have had some modules made. Look around, you might recognize some stuff" Mac said over his shoulder before returning to his flow list.
*Ms Grarzia do not be alarmed, Suit Calibration commencing*
Lyrian panic''d for a moment as the entire suit squeezed her startled breath out of her, causing her vision to go slightly red. Once.. then twice.. then three times slowly reducing the constricting pressure until it squeezed no more. "What the hell!" she gasped.
"This is a G suit, my love. it squeezes parts of your body where blood pools under high centrifugal maneuvers, forcing it back into your brain to keep you conscious. It has to do that once so it can tune itself to your body" Came Mac''s voice in her helmet.
"Thanks for the warning" she said flatly; and began to look around her new cockpit, still completely in shock. he had planned this¡ and she had had no idea, ''of course silly, he''s not Delmar after all''. Her feet found very familiar pedals, she touched them gingerly not wanting to break anything. Mac apparently felt her trepidation, "Ah, found the flight controls? Don''t worry. I have Your controls deactivated, feel free to move/press do whatever, you can¡¯t hurt anything, at the moment."
She pressed her feet fully onto the pedals sliding her heels down to the heel stops that were part of the pedals themselves... just like Traveler. she pushed them left and right, feeling the pressure, the spring tension, "Feedback?" she asked. *yup, not online yet though* came the response in her helmet. She looked around some more.
Her MFD''s were different, but sitting just above level with her lap was Traveler''s Left Stick. Sure it was in the middle, sticking up from between her thighs; but it was molded correctly for her left hand. It had its selector hat, and the com button in the right spot. It had some extra buttons on it as well. and her fingers felt a strange chunk of metal in front right at the top of the joystick. She rowed the Stick around through its full travel with her left arm. ''hmm the same, but different. more arm, less wrist. so that''s why you wanted to see the Con station.'' she felt to her right and found her throttle quadrant, well mostly. Again, everything she knew was there, but there were some extra buttons. and a lever on the inside of its base, she snapped the lever over center to the rear and HER THROTTLE SPLIT APART!! She thought she had broken it until she experimented with it a bit more. Not broken, but Mac had combined her standard, and individual engine throttle together into one control, ''why haven''t we done thi...
her pondering was interrupted by Mac. "Hanger 3, Concord. Let¡¯s do this a little different. Kill the Lights, Depressurize, then open the Doors. We are going out quiet.¡±
"Just don''t get caught, we don''t have a Delmar flagged transponder installed yet" It was Sicurro''s voice.
"Chief, you can''t find me even if you tried, and the station isn''t looking. We will be ok" Mac conveniently left out that he had enough boom on Concord to Turn the shining Utopia they were orbiting to glass inside of 4 minutes.
The hiss of Atmosphere being pulled out of Hanger 3''s cavernous expanse faded away to silence. Mac spoke again, "Jarvis, activate HUDs, Alpha Sync for myself, essential only. Use Standard Helmet for WSO full passive.¡±
Lyrians world exploded in color as her helmet seemed to disappear, but she could feel its weight It was replaced with a 360 by 360 panoramic and movement synchronized situational display. she could literally look down through the floor of concord to contact information ''below'' them as Mac eased Concord out of the hanger under Maneuvering Thrusters alone.
"My gods... I can see everything" she whispered.
"It can get a little hectic, you are getting more information because you are technically at the ''weapons system operator''" Mac explained, "If you were my real WSO (he pronounced it ''wizzo'') you would be getting a lot more, for now. I would just like you to make sure we don''t hit anyone on our way out. We are running full silent at the moment. NOBODY can see us. That cuts both ways."
Lyrian nodded, "looks like¡¡± she looked at the double compass in the corner of her vision. it was almost exactly like theirs, ¡°054 uh 332 will get us out of orbit cleanly." she stated.
"Got it, 054 by 332. Main Drives Coming online" Mac''s Metronome delivery rang out with practiced cadence.
Lyri was looking around getting used to this new HUD when her thoughts were cut short by a piercing, whining, howl, accented with a low frequency roar that was almost an imagined nightmare than real. It started off so quietly that Lyri almost missed it. Soon it resonated in her bones, and she stiffened in terror. ''NO! We are going to blow up, not like this!... no...'' she forced her eyes closed. she listened. forcing herself to listen with her whole body. The noise increased, in both volume and intensity. the High pitched whine gave way haunting, baying, roaring howl as Concord greeted Lyrian properly for the first time. ''by the gods, you are magnificent.'' Concord just Purred, if you could even stretch the term far enough, under Her.
"She is... isn''t she" her eyes snapped open. Mac hadn''t heard her thoughts, had he?
She could feel him smile at her through the bond, "This is nothing, my love..." She just looked at him in utter disbelief.
He continued, "Your controls are live now, but I have master override just in case. They should be as close to your Con as I could get them and still meet Concord''s needs. Just remember, she is a Heavy fighter class Warship. I''ve limited down the controls considerably, but she will feel VERY different. Don''t try to force her. Think her in a direction, and she will follow." Lyrian just nodded "whenever you are ready.." He turned back and just waited.
Lyrian closed her eyes once more, slowly reaching for the controls. feeling Concord speak through her hands very soul. She begged to be loosed. Lyrians right hand pushed the throttle forward, past idle and as far as they would go, which wasn''t much. Mac had indeed set manual limits on her controls.. Concord Roared her Gratitude into Lyrians very being, bellowing into the Void, Staring into the Black and demanding the Black fear Her.
Concord Howled toward the Large red dwarf at this systems center. Lyrian was not comfortable. She felt her Suit compensate and her seat/ control assembly tilt to keep her conscious. She had to force her breath every inhale a struggle and every exhale crushed out of her. her vision faded slightly, but she kept conscious.
It didn''t matter that Mac had limited her throttle to the same 14 human G profile, or that Lyrian was fighting a mere 2.5 Human G''s. Jarvis had pulled up her in helmet feed for him to watch her in case she passed out. she didn''t. She fought, grunting her defiance against the forces trying to crush her, a feral full fanged grin plastered on her face. He watched and felt as the spark of a Predator lit inside the woman he loved.
Lyrian relented after a 2 ''minute burn. She closed the throttles, heaving for air inside her helmet, sweating heavily for a Delmar. A startlingly maniacal laugh ripped itself from her being. She couldn''t stop herself. It was born of victory fueled exhaustion. She knew how she sounded. She sounded insane, she felt insane. Exhilaratingly Insane for a few moments, reveling in the pure unbridled (as far as she knew) power at her fingertips.
"Intoxicating isn''t it" Mac spoke after she calmed down. She nodded, still giggling a bit, closing her eyes to feel Concord Lope along easily under her as Mac engaged the autopilot and swung her head ''round to heading and Concord spoke again, a bit more sedately this time.
"She is... She is.. Magnificent" Lyrian echo''d her earlier thoughts. Mac popped his helmet¡¯s face open, and she did the same. he turned fully to show her his face. Mac was smiling broadly.
"My love, That was roughly 15 percent of her throttle.." Mac stated softly..
"By the gods... How fast" Lyrian began before stopping herself.
"A touch over 90 earth G''s actual acceleration, somewhere near or over 200 Delmar Gravities. The cockpit pairs inertial dampening with the G-suits. What you felt was roughly 5 of your gravities, 2.2 of earths." he stated.
"My current record at home was a 4 Gravity pull during my training." Lyrian panted, still recovering slightly. "I guess I broke it.."
"I''d say. Lyrian, what you did was even more impressive, you pulled 5 Delmar Gravities, constantly, for almost 2 ''minutes''" Mac confirmed, "Let¡¯s take a rest, We have... 2 hours till we get to our practice area. Then we will start basic maneuvers. Let¡¯s get you and Concord acquainted.¡±
Mac turned back and both settled into their seats for a day of training. The autopilot was on, but the controls were still alive. They moved ever so slightly as the computer guided Concord to Mac''s intended destination.
Lyrian closed her eyes, lightly placing her hands and feet on Concords reigns once more... and listened.
Chapter 16
The evening was a quiet one. Captain Silu paused as he entered the infirmary; Doc Icario was at his ¡®bed desk¡¯, in the infirmary proper, with his feet propped up, browsing through one medical journal or another.
¡°Ah, Captain. What can I do for you.¡± Icario disembarked from his quite comfortable moorings, walking briskly over to Silu.
¡°I think I tweaked my elbow again. Dam thing never quite healed right.¡± Grumped Silu, kneading his right arm at the offending elbow.
¡°Considering it was nearly severed, the joint is synthetic, and you refuse to let me grow you a new one¡¡± The doctor teased his old friend with a sigh, ¡°come sit down.¡± Icario pointed to one of the empty beds. It soon became the only occupied one as Silu settled onto it, sitting rather than laying down.
Icario plodded over with a scanner and began assessing the offending appendage, ¡°It¡¯s been exceedingly quiet, I assume the offload is going well?¡±
¡°As well as to be expected.¡± Silu sighed, ¡°They had fewer shuttles operational than they led on. It might take a bit more than a week to get offloaded. I did beat down the shuttle guild fee¡¯s because of it. I almost feel bad, but we are going to make a bit more Net than we would have if they had kept their garbage operational.¡±
¡°So a good haul?¡± Icario put down the scanner and started tapping at the bed controls to pull up the results.
¡°Not good enough. The refit will go fine, but the damage we took in Bricus means some upgrades will have to wait. We still won¡¯t have enough for automating our point defenses¡ That¡¯s the one I really want. I can live with losing guns¡ losing people is always harder.¡± Silu¡¯s shoulders slumped slightly.
¡°It¡¯s been a lucky six years hasn¡¯t it¡ What in the Void¡¯s name did you do to that elbow. I¡¯m showing micro fractures along the pivoting seams... like you over rotated it repeatedly.¡± Icario gave his patient a moderately stern gaze, ¡°you have been trying some of Mac¡¯s workouts.¡±
¡°Guilty,¡± came Silu¡¯s answer, ¡°a captain has to at least be able to keep up with his crew.¡±
Icario scoffed, ¡°I thought I recognized this type of damage. I¡¯ll tell you what I have told others trying this, go talk to Mac. He can tell you how to do these exercises correctly¡ WITHOUT breaking yourself.¡± Icario brandished the hand tool needed to repair the captains aging artificial joint, ¡°or I¡¯m going to fix you the slow way next time.¡± The doctor finished his lecture, running the tool over Silu¡¯s elbow, mending the damage.
¡°I¡¯ll talk to him, if I can find him¡ Him and your daughter haven¡¯t been seen since breakfast.¡± Silu smirked a little at his own friend, ¡°Judging from the lack of noise complaints, they aren¡¯t in their quarters, but I had someone check anyway¡ they also haven¡¯t signed out as ¡®on shore¡¯.¡±
His old friend gave him a thoroughly unamused face, ¡°I still remember a very young captain experiencing his first year of the claiming¡ I believe the next refit installed sound proofing in the ready room.¡±
Silu let out a coughing laugh, ¡°point taken! But I still need to know where they are.¡±
Icario nodded, crossing his arms then slowly stiffened. He aimed pointed look towards captain and walked to his console, keying in a sector code.
*Hanger 3*
¡°Have you happened to see my daughter and her husband.¡± Icario asked, with a fathers ¡®I know what you did so don¡¯t lie to me¡¯ tone hinting around the edges.
*Uh¡ yes sir¡*
Silu spoke up, ¡°Report crewman¡±
*Uh, Concord departed with Mr and Ms Grarzia this morning. They mentioned something about flight training and a return time of¡ tomorrow evening.*
¡°Thank you, son. Icario out¡± Doc closed the call, then turned to a very unamused Captain.
¡°You knew,¡± Silu stated flatly.
¡°I suspected¡±, Icario corrected, ¡°Mac gave me his combat suit, and enough information to figure out how to make void suits with the same capabilities. The tech is a paradox of advances in ways we, frankly, should have thought of by now; and simplisticity to the point of absurdity in its execution. I showed him what I found, and he requested two made. One for him, one for my daughter. I suspect she is having a rather energetic time at the controls of that ship of his.¡±
¡°Is it safe?¡± Silu asked, worried for his niece.
¡°No more dangerous than void work itself, I hope¡¡± Icario shrugged, ¡°I am doomed to have all of my lineage looking to the stars it seems.¡±
¡°Occupational hazard,¡± Silu chuckled, Doc joining in after a moment. Silu sobered up after a moment.
¡°Has Mackenzie spoken to you¡ about contacting his world¡± He asked softly.
¡°He has,¡± Icario began ¡°I think it might be worth the risk. I think we better take this onto my office¡± He finished, standing up and heading for his private working office separate from his station in the Infirmary. ¡°Besides, that¡¯s where I hide the booze.¡±
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Lyri¡¯s whole body was sore. As promised, Mac had started their flight training. They had started off small. Heading to heading turns, slow speed slewing ¡®strafing¡¯ as he called it, cruise , decel burns. These were all things Lyri knew how to do in a freighter. Concord¡ she was no freighter.
When they had gotten to the coordinate destination, a point in space about 3/4 the distance from the systems star to Argorania. Max had adjusted her controls again, keeping her throttle limited, but he released all of Concorde attitude controls to Lyrian.
¡°Take is slow, but it¡¯s better this way¡± he had explained, ¡°building muscle memory is easier if you aren¡¯t constantly changing sensitivity of the reactions to your movements. ¡°
It had been extremely difficult. Lyrian found that Mac was indeed correct, you slam around controls on a ship like Concord.. you put your hands and feet on them, a thought about where you were going. Concord would just do it, but if you put conscious thought into actually feeling the controls move.. you were using to much of them and Concord would ¡®spin out¡¯ as Mac called it. Meaning over correct and end up off course, upside down, and backwards.
It was coming up on the 24th hour of the 28hour day when Mac called it, ¡°Thats enough for today love.¡±
¡°Dam, ok, I guess we can head back¡± Lyrian sagged in her harness just a bit. They had not exceeded 2.5 human G¡¯s for most of the day. Most experiences past that were short, brutal stabs of crushing force during a ¡®spin out¡¯. But nothing more than about 3 human G¡¯s
¡°Who said anything about heading back¡± Mac¡¯s amusement bled through is voice. ¡°I have something to show you. My controls.¡±
¡°Your controls¡± she repeated back quickly, taking her hands off of concord and placing them on her legs. It was one of the first procedures Mac had taught her, explaining that because of Concords abilities, she was inherently dangerous. There could be no discrepancy of who thought who was in control of her at any given time.
Concord bent to Macs touch as he guided her along a new heading before speaking, ¡° Jarvis give me a geosync solution¡±
*course laid in, HUD waypoint actual*
An icon appeared on both of HUDS, and Concord leaped to her inputs. 15 minutes later they were There and Mac. Shut the Drives down fully, ¡°Jarvis initiate Camp protocol, keep us in this orbit, wake up 07.00 local. Return to, and maintain silent running until then.¡± He ordered as Concord fell into a silent slumber. The Hum of life support and various little noises were all that remained.
*Confirmed,*
Mac pressed a button and Lyrian remembered for the first time, about concords ¡®Hab¡¯ as their seats cycled down. This time the canopy didn¡¯t seal off above them.
¡°We¡¯ll head back in the morning. ¡°Mac unbuckled from his Harness and retracted his helmet into the suit. Lyri followed his lead.
¡°More surprises?¡± She asked.
¡°Yup, come up here¡± Mac had floated up out of his chair and was currently stationary back up at canopy level.
¡°Right, no artificial gravity¡± she remembered out loud, gingerly pushing off her seat to join him. He caught her around the waist and gently guided her to little rectangular seams in the now accessible side below the canopy seal, now that the command assembly was down below them. He pressed her right hand in on one the spring loaded trap door gave way to an inlaid hand hold.
A little *ah* escaped her as she found the rest of the hand and foot holds.
¡°Hold tight¡± Mac whispered as he tapped on a flexible pad on the underside of his wrist. She looked to find she had one too. It currently had various health and ship condition read outs alternating across it.
She looked up quickly as she heard Concord¡¯s thruster¡¯s sputter. The ship sedately rolled on her longitudinal axis barely moving until her canopy was facing Argo 7 instead of deep space. Lyrian gasped as she realized they were in the front row seat to a massive looping, roping solar flare.
¡°Usually Humans camp with a Bonfire, but I think this will have to do.¡± he whispered, his left arm still wrapped around her waist.
¡°It¡¯s perfect.¡± She leaned into his embrace.
¡°We can come back to it; I have one more surprise.¡± He chuckled and then led her down the now very easy to traverse weightless access corridor to the Hab.
It looked unchanged, until Mac hit a button on the wall, a cushioned panel slid out across the center walk/float way, turning two quarter berths into one bed.
¡°It didn¡¯t happen often. But on occasion, a TALON crew would become¡ intimate... Because of the extremely short nature of TALON crews¡¯ life expectancy; and the isolation we had signed up for; Crews that became involved were allowed to request this module. It was almost encouraged by the end of the war. Something about ¡®coupled crews¡¯ actually having more survivability¡±.
¡°Did you ever¡¡± Lyri whispered. A spike of pain and worry.
¡°No¡ my WSO was my childhood friend, Clint ¡®NITRO¡¯ Stevens. That man could never not get electrocuted if he was working on anything. But no, our Alpha Sync developed into more like telepathic twins than lovers. Thank god, cause I¡¯m very much a tits man. And Clint¡¯s rather limited in that department, being a dude and all..¡±
Lyrian snarfed, then broke down in giggles before being interrupted by an arm around her waist and a kiss.
¡°Nitro?¡± lyrian questioned, getting back on topic as she pronounced the English word slowly. Mac had told her stories of Terra when she had tutored him in Delmar. But never anything personal; just descriptions and places. This was personal, she wanted to know more.
¡°A character from an ancient Terran comedy movie about underwater fighting ships called submarines. Down Periscope was its name. The character¡¯s name was Nitro and he was excessively prone to ride the lightning, I mean, get electrocuted, as he worked on an aging subs wiring. It¡¯s a cult classic in the Sol Navy.¡±
¡°I¡¯m going to have to see these movies, you keep referencing.¡± she quipped before asking another question as they floated back to the canopy. ¡°what¡¯s ¡®Alpha sync¡±
Mac delved into the workings he had explained to Silu weeks before. ¡°I think that¡¯s why your claiming worked so intensely despite me not being Delmar. My brain was already used to being linked to someone in high stress/high intensity situations. I had Jarvis monitor both of us all day today to see if you can maybe Alpha Sync as well.¡± Mac finished.
¡°Tomorrow?¡± Lyri expectant voice asked.
¡°No. Alpha sync is deadly if not performed professionally. Remember, that usually takes 3 years. I¡¯m not even sure if Concord will be able to make the swap. TALONS can¡¯t with human brains, but I¡¯m banking on you being mildly telepathically linked to me already¡. And not human.¡± His worry was apparent in word and emotion.
¡°Ok, let¡¯s do this right then.¡± She said, capturing his face in her hands, ¡°for now. Let¡¯s get some rest¡± she kissed him.
¡°Not if you keep kissing like that¡± he raised an eyebrow.
She giggled. And kissed him again.
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Silu stumbled back to his quarters significantly less than sober. He lived alone for this season. His wife was home playing grandmother to his youngest daughter first birthing. A set of twins no less. He looked forward to stowing his Captain persona in favor of Grandpa when they got home.
He readied for sleep, checking his console on last time to find an urgent message. He swore to himself and opened it.
An elderly Delmar with thick grey on his auburn mane appeared on screen. ¡°Captain Silu, I hope this message finds you well. I am Chancellor Druvid, head of the Confederacies delegation to the Unity. I come bringing you both good and bad news¡¡±
Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.
10 minutes later Silu sat back. The good news was, his ship, his crew, even Mac; had been cleared of all wrongdoing in the Convergent Dawn incident. The bad news was that the under secretary of the United Galactic Navy had insisted on ¡®providing an escort¡¯ for his freighter back to Delmar territory to prevent ¡®any further incidents¡¯. The Admiral of the Unity, the head of the entire UGN, had backed this play. He had, of course apologized for the actions of ¡®one rogue captain¡¯. It was a familiar line; one that usually ended with someone going missing or an unfortunate accident. The Chancellor had ordered a Delmar escort sorte under his own authority of the Confederation, nominally to ¡®aid in these trying times¡¯, but classified orders had been given to the Delmar ships to make all possible speed and get Traveler out before the Thermian crewed vessels arrived.
The Delmar sorte would be here in two days.. the Thermian ¡®escort¡¯ in three.. the Delmar sorte had a decoy freighter in transit that Silu was to offload his remaining cargo on with all speed and depart for Delmar.
This was gonna be close, ''Damit you two¡ get your ass back here.''
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A gild shuttle landed in Hanger 6 on the starboard aft quarter of Lucid Traveler. The two-man flight crew and 4 cargo crew began loading up on a load of fertilizer. 40 min later 300 tons of the stuff and five crew departed for the surface.
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It was Evening again when Concord stalked her way back to the Harbor section of He¡¯rth station. Pausing just outside of the closed door of Traveler¡¯s Hanger 3. Mac had arranged for the doors to open at 23.00 and they had about 5min to spare. Mac looked back at Lyrian through the HUD feed. She was completely worn out yet had demanded to be allowed to fly them in anyway after a day of G-test maneuvers and an introduction to BSFM (Basic Starfighter Maneuvers).
They were simple scenario¡¯s. Mac would load one maneuver into the Hud and play a demonstration video. They would then discuss it until he felt she understood. After that, Max would load up a simulation of a target to perform the maneuver on. There was no target, but Concord was real enough; and lyrian had spent most of the day ¡®shadow boxing¡¯ as Mac called it. Mac had set the training safeties to 4 Terran G¡¯s internal. This was enough of a margin to cause a black out of lyrian made a mistake, but not enough to kill her. She had been told this, and encouraged to test her limits. She did indeed pass out a couple of times, and ¡®greyed out¡¯ several more.
During these modules, Mac had also inserted and taught her the proper breathing and muscle technique to combat G¡¯s, squeezing her glutes, thighs while relaxing her upper body to keep blood flow to her head and heart. It took her a few tries, but at the end, she had managed an intercept successfully at 4 Human G¡¯s internal for 5 seconds, completing the merge simulation without blacking out. He had shown her the conversion Graf from the pilot handbook later showing the real to inertial damper curves. She had just pulled 16 Terran G¡¯s actual which was 35 Delmar gravities. She had asked if that was good, and he had to admit that Terran fighter pilots had to be able to stay awake at 9 Terran G for 10 seconds without dampening to qualify for training to be TALON crew. She pouted at that until he reminded her, she had pulled 8.8 Delmar G¡¯s, more than doubling her previous personal best.
The doors to Hanger3 opened on time and Concord, obedient to Lyrians command, slid back into her lair. Not a soul on He¡¯rth station was the wiser.
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Silu and Icario watched from the control room as Concord returned to her berth, waiting for the cycle to complete so that the Hanger held breathable air once more.
They stepped out on deck just as Lyrian vaulted off the last ring of the ladder landing with a thunk, Mac following close behind.
She bounded up to her father and gave him an exhausted yet triumphant grin, ¡°4G!¡± She declared.
¡°Lyrian, you look aweful. What in the gods of the void did you, BOTH of you do up there.¡± he adjusted his gaze to look at Mac as well. He also looked moderately tired, but nowhere near as haggard as his daughter.
¡°Training,¡± Mac said, ¡°Setting Lyri up as a student pilot in Concord¡¯s command codes, gettin her used to the flight controls I installed in the ¡®wizzo¡¯ section. We even got to some simulated intercepts at the end.
¡°And I pulled FOUR Huuuumon G!¡± Lyrian announced again.
¡°Mac?¡± Icario gave his son in law an unimpressed look quickly replaced with shock when Mac responded with , ¡°it¡¯s only 8.8 Delmar gravities.¡±
¡°What the fuck Mac! Lyrian, we need to get you to the infirmary. Now!¡± Icario was irate... he turned to Mac, ¡°No Delmar has pulled more than 7 Delmar G and lived¡ suit system or no, I¡¯m tending to my daughter¡± he snarled with his teeth, getting a raised eyebrow from Silu and a somber look from Mac.
¡°I¡¯m fine!¡± Lyrian complained, recovering already from the days escapades. ¡°I feel gre..¡±
¡°Lyrian, go with your father. Let¡¯s just make sure.¡± Max cut her off. ¡°I¡¯ll be along shortly after I button up the ship.¡±
¡°Fine,¡± she was not amused, and her father insisted she sit on a palette and be pushed to the infirmary.
Mac was hurrying through his post-flight when he interrupted by Silu, ¡°Captain?¡±
¡°I like the look,¡± He nodded to the change of Concord¡¯s paint job, ¡°I received a message from the Chancellor of the Confederations delegatoriate...¡± He began, ¡°we have a problem¡¡±
_____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°I don¡¯t understand it. Lyrian, ¡®little one¡¯ you should be dead. No one has survived what you have and lived.¡± Icario was not happy with his daughter, or her husband for that matter, but the Infirmary¡¯s bed did not lie. She was maybe even a little better than fine. Her muscles were severely fatigued, almost to the point of failure, yet not injured. He had seen something like this in Delmar ground forces. Where a soldier who survived extreme physical exertion and stress sometimes got lucky in not actually breaking anything, and his body¡¯s repair functions would kick in. Since there was nothing to repair, these functions would reinforce and build upon the exhausted but healthy muscles and bones, and the soldier would end up stronger than before. It was rare, and not widely studied.
¡°Promise me you won¡¯t do that again,¡± he knew the answer, but he had to ask.
¡°Da,¡° his heart sank as she invoked her childhood name for him, ¡°I can¡¯t do that, Da¡ Mac is not Delmar; but He is mine, and I his. If I am to be worthy of being with him, I must do this.¡±
¡°I know, just¡ be careful.¡± He pulled their foreheads together for a moment in a more Delmar traditional sign of affection.
Icario stood up, ¡°I¡¯m still going to monitor you.¡±
¡°I would expect so,¡± came a voice from the Infirmary entrance. Mac had stalked into the room. Lyrian giggled. She had felt him enter right before her father¡¯s embrace.
Icario¡¯s surprise turned into a glare. ¡°I know this is going to be hard, but¡ Lyri, we are going to have to increase your physical training so that I don¡¯t accidentally kill you defending us if we get attacked in Concord. Yes she has firepower.. but her strength is in her speed and her stealth. She can;t take a hit, at least from human weapons. And I would rather not test her durability against Unity ordinance with you in there with me.¡± Mac stated. There was no room for discussion.
¡°I know.¡± She whispered.
Mac closed the gap between them and wrapped her up in an embrace, ¡°Hey, none of that now. You do realize that you are probably on your way to becoming the greatest Delmaracian fighter pilot of all time.¡± She perked up a little, ¡°how?¡±..
He kissed her forehead, ¡°let¡¯s start with thriving in centrifugal forces that have killed all who have come before.¡±
¡°now¡± he helped her off the bed, ¡°let¡¯s get showered and get these suits cleaned. I doubt either of us smell very good.¡±
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Growrmun was tapping through the console inside his target¡¯s quarters. At least it smelled like his target¡¯s quarters. Lycans were well renowned for their tracking and sense of smell. Growrmun had used this to his advantage, memorizing the oder of his target as he followed them through the station a few days before. It was¡ distinctive. He had even bumped into this demon when he and his Delmar bitch had doubled back to look at a shop. That had been an experience. Growrmun had definitely smelled fear, if only for an instant; only to be replaced with the smell of aggression and a calculating gaze from those predatory blue eyes. He was an Apex alright, but not any apex on record. If he could get the data needed for the capture, his promotion would be almost ce¡¡¡¡±
The door hissed open, and Growrmun came face to face with the demon, and his bitch. Both were wearing strange void suits¡ and they reeked¡. Growrmun didn¡¯t hesitate, leaning into the instincts of his ancestors that had aided him in many missions. He loosed a deep snarl, and charged¡. He charged not the demon, but his weakness.. his Delmar bitch.. He readied to strike her down. To make the Demon choose whether to pursue or to aid his mate.
The next thing he felt was his throat and chest erupt in agony.
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BigMac recognized this one. They had even bumped into him at the station. He had just assumed this Lycan was another passenger, taking in the sights. He didn¡¯t behave threatening, so Mac had written him off as new to the galaxy paranoia.
Now, Mac knew better.. an ancient switch flipped in his soul, and BigMac knew It was time to go to work.
The large Husky-esque man snarled, then charged Lyrian. BigMac met him halfway, with one explosive push from legs used to twice the current gravity. BigMac parted the claws to either side, slamming his shoulder into the throat/collarbone area of the intruder. BigMac felt a bone pop ¡®maybe the collar bone¡¯ driving through the charge with a second step and slamming the Lycan into the far wall. BigMac felt two of the intruder¡¯s ribs let go on impact.
This being was pro though, fighting through the pain, this wolf man growled again and took a swing. BigMac blocked the claw swipe to the head catching more lacerations to his left forearm, upper arm and shoulder, responding with body shot to ribs with his right, claiming to more with a crunch, and pulping the wolf¡¯s left lung.
That was finally too much for Growrmun, and he began to slump over in agony only to have the fur on the back of his head wrenched into a vice and his snout driven down into a knee of stone.
¡®This, is a demon¡¯ He thought as his jaw shattered on impact¡ Then nothing.
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Mac turned to find Lyrian on her knees¡ violently shaking and staring at him as crew from the Traveler came running to the sounds of combat. Some with either plasma or laser weapons in hand.
¡°Get this thing out of my face. He¡¯s going to need Doc.. tell doc to keep him alive but don¡¯t make it comfortable¡ if he asks why, tell him he attacked Lyrian.¡± The unfiltered wrath in his voice froze everyone in place.
Mac visibly took a deep breath, visibly calming himself, ¡°Now please, before he bleeds out and we get nothing.¡±
The crewmen nodded and walked past him to the unconscious intruder. Mac cautiously walked over and knelt down Lyrian.. This was likely the first time she had seen this side of him. He could feel the turmoil of her mind, and realized that she had FELT his Violence, not merely watched it. Mac stopped a step away, unsure of what to do. Lyrian looked up at him as he knelt and slowly offered a hand to his terrified bride. She froze for a moment before lunging for him, and her sobs broke free as she clung to him while the crew dragged the would-be assassin¡¯s ruined body to the infirmary.
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His¡ patient¡ was no longer in danger of dying, but not much more. Icario had to put several pins in the Lycan¡¯s shoulder, and the Doctor needed to extract several rib fragments from one lung. He also had to completely remove the other lung, and it looked like had been completely obliterated along with two of the Lower ribs on the same side. The being¡¯s jaw had also been wired shut after being reconstructed. It too looked had been hit by a falling structural beam. This would a long road to recovery¡. That Icario prayed to the void that this monster of a being would be denied the opportunity.
The Lycan stirred; is awareness stuggling for sentience through the agony it to wade through to reach anything approaching conscious thought. He tried and failed to stay quiet. A soft wheezing whimper escaped him with every breath. A middle-aged Delmar in a Doctors cloak walked over to him, noticing his awareness returning to him. The man leaned in, pressing gently Growrmuns still slightly deflated chest. Tidal waves of agony spread through his psyche as the man reveled in the reaction. ¡°Good, you are awake¡± he smiled, baring his teeth. Growrmun knew this was not a typical polite Delmar expression¡ This man was not happy with him..
¡°Pain¡ please¡¡± Growrmun choked out between steel bound teeth, shattering his world in agony once again from yet another part of his body. ¡®What the void happened, who did this t¡..¡¯ it all came flooding back, the pale Demon with explosive speed, and violence of power that he expected out of a land vehicle accident.
The Delmar smiled at him as he returned, it grew as he pressed on his chest again. ¡°You tried to kill my daughter. For that I get the privilege of watching you suffer. ¡°
¡°How is our patient doing¡± A familiar voice asked.. a familiar voice, and a familiar smell..
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Mac walked in, Lyrian clinging tightly to him. She had not released him since she broke down on the floor of their quarters. They had changed out of their void suits. Mac was wearing one of his gym ¡®Tshirts¡¯ and a pair of tan pants, and He had laser pistol hung in a holster from his left hip. ¡®No¡¯ Icario realized, it was too slim and too angular to be a laser or a plasma pistol, it must be a human weapon of some kind. His left arm was entire wrapped in bandage wrap. Even so, very obvious claw wound shaped red streaks saturating through. He casually sat down on another bed and just waited for Doc¡¯s answer. His daughter clung to him, but her eyes were hollow. Her hands and right arm were still stained red.
¡°He is alive. What the gods happened. I got this three quarters dead piece of sapient refuse dumped in my infirmary, am told to keep him alive, and am told he attacked my daughter.. Then you walk in with claw marks and she looks, well..¡± Icario¡¯s rant flared out when Lyrian just pulled closer to Mac.
¡°I¡¯m sorry ¡®little one¡¯. I just thought almost lost you twice in one day..¡± Icario walked and leaned down to her face. ¡°Are you ok¡±
She just nodded. Still staring off into nothing.
¡°I¡¯m going to have to send you that new g suit for repair¡ he must have sharpened his claws, they l went clean through the suit and got me good¡± Mac shrugged to his mauled arm. And shoulder.
¡°This guy? What the Void did you hit him with. I had to remove a lung, couldn¡¯t save it¡± Icario asked.
Mac reached around the back of his head and scratched it a moment, ¡°I kinda body slammed him into a wall, and punched him twice. The face was my knee.¡±
Icario just stared at him, ¡°you did this to him unarmed?!?¡±
¡°Kinda¡± Mac shrugged, ¡°will he live?¡±
¡°Yes, now why am I keeping him alive again?¡± Icario demanded.
¡°Information¡± Mac¡¯s voice frosted over for a moment then softened as Lyrian cringed.
Icario raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth just in time for Tili to come flying into the Infirmary headed straight for her daughter, ¡°What happened. What did you do! Are you alright.. ¡° the list of demands went on for a few moments then petered out.
¡°He,¡± Mac pointed ¡°was in our room when we went to shower¡¡° Mac settled Lyrian next to her mother then knelt in front of both of them. Lyrian protested for a moment, begging him with her eyes before finally sitting next to her mother, ¡°Tili, do you remember our conversation in the Rec room. About my capacity for violence.¡± he waited for her to nod before continuing, Lyrian had stiffened a little, listening intently, ¡°That man over there got caught by us and he tried to kill Lyri¡ She is untouched, but she had to see me use that violence. It¡¯s not something I have ever shown her, but she is safe, I swear it.¡±
Tili looked over at the barely alive Lycan, ¡°you did that.. to him¡ with these,¡° she picked up his scabbing hands, her fingers running over the bandaged claw marks along his forearms.
¡°Yes¡± Mac said simply.
¡°¡.. thank you¡¡± Tili whispered. Mac just smiled and squeezed her shoulder.
¡°Be with her, I have to deal with him¡± Mac tossed his head to the occupied bed.
The women walked out the door, and Icario locked it behind them after letting the captain in.
Mac turned to lean over Growrmun.
¡°Now, where we¡¯re we.¡± Big Macs fury shone from behind Macs eyes as he slowly leaned into the vision of his attacker, now fully restrained inside the biobed¡¯s forcefields, ¡°Now, let¡¯s start at the beginning. Your name.¡± Mac¡¯s low growling voice widened Growrmun¡¯s eyes slightly.
Behind him, Icario and stiffened visibly as the gentle being that had married his daughter was replaced. Mac was gone, and something¡ else¡ had replaced him. An Aura promised brutality raged off of the Human as he loomed over the biobed.
¡°I will not¡ Demon.¡± The Lycan spy growled weakly. He had clearly seen the same thing as the Doctor. ¡°Kill me and be done with it.. I will tell you nothing.¡±
Mac only smiled. There was no humor in that expression as he noted the slight quaver around the edges of the Wolfman¡¯s defiance, ¡°Oh?¡± Mac¡¯s tone could flash freeze an engine core, ¡°There are many fates worse than death, shall we explore them.¡±
The spy¡¯s eyes widened further as Icario¡¯s expression registered, slowly swallowing as the Demon reached toward a cart full of surgical instruments, ¡°They sent me to get intelligence¡ on the demon. On you, they did not tell me why. They only said that you were an unknown threat. They refused to tell me more.
The Human paused as he was reaching for a particularly sharp looking implement. ¡°Huh, Demon. I can work with that¡± Mac mused, almost absently, before setting the surgical cutter back down. ¡°I suspected as much.¡± The Human took a deep breath before turning to the Delmar Doctor with a much warmer tone, ¡°See he is made comfortable, we don¡¯t need the heat of alleged torture right now.¡±
Growrmun¡¯s dreams were haunted by the profound relief on the face of the Delmar doctor as the sedatives released him of his consciousness, and his pain.
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Doc Icario had stabilized him fully by the next day, but refused to waste nanites on him, ¡°He will heal the slow way.¡± he stated; and dumped him at the stations security with a note.
Mac and Lyrian had spent the night talking. Lyrian had been shocked by Mac¡¯s violence, and She had Felt everything as he beat the man senseless. It turned out that she was not afraid of Mac.. but afraid of how seeing and feeling that would be murderer almost killed had made her feel.
¡°Your father is right, we all have a darkness in us we must come to terms with. There is no shame in that¡± Mac had whispered to her as they sat cuddling on the bed.
The next saw the arrival of the Delmar Sorte. Two heavy cruisers and a 4 man wing of heavy fighters. The decoy freighter docked right next to Traveler to hit swap cargo. The day before departure Macs void suit had been returned from repair. By mid-day, Traveler had undocked. She and the rest of the Delmar Sorte started their burn for the jump beacon.
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Commandant Folmuri Sawliq paced the bridge of the Confederate Cruiser Protectorate. While not his ship, this escort Sorte was under his command. ¡°Status¡± he ordered.
¡°Protectorate board is a go, Bastion reports a go as well, Taurs 1-4 report on station. Er¡ Concord reports on standby. Time to jump point 20 minutes.¡±
¡°Very good. With any¡¡± he never finished the thought
¡°Contact! 3 Contacts! Bearing 334 by 042; 750 thousand out. They are Hard burning, eta¡ 15 ¡®minutes¡¯¡. Their beacons are flying UGN Colors sir. Codes say one escort Carrier and two Brigs!¡± The Sensor station reported.
¡°Shit, Hail the lead Carrier¡± order Folmori ¡®someone tipped them off¡¯.
a large fat Thermian, with a scar running from his forehead over his left eye and to his left ear appeared on the hologram and started speaking before Folmuri could, ¡°surrender now Pirates, and Heave to, you have Kidnapped a vessel under our protection, this is your only warning.¡± The Fat Lizard killed the connection.
¡°He broadcast that to the whole system and has started jamming civilian and low priority Military channels¡± Folmuri listened to the Coms report with a frown.
¡°Well, that¡¯s not good, but we can work with this. Keep recording and transmitting on the Confederacy Intelligence Frequencies. It looks like they still don¡¯t know about those. Scramble the Taurs to screen halfway and slowly withdraw towards us. Let¡¯s make them come to us¡hold this¡ Concord¡ in reserve. It doesn¡¯t have a subspace drive and we may need jump in a pinch.
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*Concord maintain standby. We need you in the Hanger or when we jump, you will be left behind.* The combat control frequency responded.
Mac swore. He hated being told to let other people fight. It was the worst part about Fleet work in a TALON. you got to be the harbinger of Death itself, until the fleets finally met.. then you had to watch. Both side¡¯s TALONs were so good that each finding the other was a statistical impossibility. Both sides had fielded thousands of TALONS¡ and there were fewer than 100 TALON on TALON kills in the almost two decades long war. Mac had been a freak of statistics and had two of those kills, both a freak of luck when he noticed a star or two disappear and began stalking with expert passive sensor work from Nitro each time. Both kills were made at less than 500m with guns in a war with engagement distances measured in orbital planes and Delta V.
Mac hated waiting. ¡®334 by 042¡ 15 min..¡¯ his mind churned on that data as he scrolled through the sensor data concord was receiving as part of the defense. His eyes widened.
¡°Concord, bridge¡± he said on a second frequency.
*Bridge here* ¡®it¡¯s Silu, thank God¡¯
¡°Captain, I need you to open hanger 3. I have an idea that doesn¡¯t involve my launching.¡±
*im listening*
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¡°Traveler wants to do what?!?¡± Fulmori blurted.
¡°They have requested Bastion break formation and.. I quote.. ¡°give us a shot to Larboard.¡±
¡°Oh for voids sake. Time to intercept? ¡° Folmuri asked pinching the bridge of his nose.
¡°10minutes until they are fighter launch range¡± Tactical reported.
¡°Tell Bastion to shift as requested for no more than 5 minutes¡± Folmuri said finally, ¡°I Know Silu personally. If he wants to try something... we might as well let him do it with us watching.¡±
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Krigor Maw chuckled as the puny fleet ran. He was the master of the carrier Void Bane. He didn¡¯t care what the names of the brigs were. They are inconsequential. In 10 minute he would be close enough launch fighter, and then the ¡®Delmar pirates¡¯ will perish¡ tragically along with their ¡°prize¡±. ¡°Tactical, status.¡±
¡°Shield and weapons banks ready. Shield emitters and weapons on standby, all power directed to the main drives.¡± Came the report.
¡°Good, raise the shields at ETA two minutes or if you detect incomming, maintain burn.¡± Krigor barked. kar, his nephew was called away for questioning, and never returned. The demon would pay for that with his life. They had a face now, knew that this Demon had overwhelmed the Dawn from extremely close range. They also had a good idea that his cursed ship was not able to jump¡ they hoped. So all he had to do was wait for their own range to come in.. or force them to risk abandoning this¡ abomina¡
The sound of tearing metal and 12000 rounds of 34GAU spread between the three of Krigor''s ships impacted at over 2 million meters per second interrupted his thoughts permanently. The 30mm tungsten cores perforated straight through the length of the ship. Taking the power cores with them¡ the UGN did not depressurize for combat¡ the shock waves of the semi luminal projectiles passing through the complete length of the ships pressure vessel split the carrier into 13 banana peel shaped sections¡ the Voids Bane¡¯s escorts fared little better.
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Jarvis had picked up on the fact that the incoming Thermians were saving their power for their engines and weren¡¯t burning power on shields at this such a great distance of 120 thousand kilometers. Concord loosed her hate at just shy of 90 thousand kilometers, eased back into her berth, and secured for jump. 3 min later the 12000 rounds of GAU cannon ammunition impacted.
9 minutes later the Delmar fleet jumped for Home.
Chapter 17
The trip home to Delmar was a long one, and the threat of intercept forced them to stay in subspace for the duration. It had taken the first three weeks for Lyrian to begin to act like her old self. Silu had pulled her from the Con the moment they jumped out of Argorania, putting her on light duty until their arrival. Mac had desperately wanted to do something, but Doc had to explain to him that she needed to do this on her own.
¡°Just be near her my boy. And be calm. Be her roots for now.¡± Was all he had said.
Their routine stayed the same. Morning exercise, then breakfast, Mac found that she relaxed a little more when his uncle¡¯s jazz collection stumbled into the music shuffle. He had sorted out a playlist and left it on repeat.
By the second week, the nightmares subsided for her. That was a blessing as the accompanying emotions tended to wake him up. It turns out that Delmar did not wake up from nightmares like humans can, and night terrors were not a thing either. Mac instead just had to lay there, awakened by the emotional Hurricane howling through their bond. He could do little, as she fought her demons. He had taken to gently stroking her hair and mane while she twitched and whimpered laying against his side; often with her head on his chest; trying to push calm through their bind until he felt her emotions stabilized and the nightmare faded.
He had once again asked Doc if there was anything to be done.
¡°Mac, you must look at it from our point of view.¡± He had responded gently, ¡°You are a warrior of a species forged in a world of death and turmoil. You personally were tempered by the wrath of a war that almost ended your kind. My daughter is going through what many of my people experience upon their first brushes with such violence. While we are¡. capable¡. of violence, it is a learned behavior. It does not come as instinctual for us. When I was much younger, I was a ¡®medic¡¯ I guess you could call it for our ground forces. I have seen this many times after an untested unit had a particularly difficult blooding. You are doing the right things. She will return to us, in time.¡±
The beginning of week four started like any other. Max had taken to walking around the ship in his weighted vest on top of his void suit during the day. He spent the afternoon in the astrometric chart room. With Marge and some of her subordinates comparing notes. He swung by the mess to pick up dinner for Lyri and himself.
When he got home, Lyri was in the bed napping as he set the two trays on the desk,
¡°Hey babe, dinners here.¡± He could feel her stir. ¡®No nightmares, good¡¯
¡°You want to listen to..¡± he was interrupted as he was turned around by Lyrian, and her lips reached for his. She grabbed him by the collar and pulled him into her kiss, then moved her lips to his neck and ran her fangs across his skin. He felt her fire through their bond.
She bit him just under the chin. Not enough to draw blood. But it was no nip.
¡°I want what¡¯s mine¡± she growled, letting go of his skin, placing her lips on his neck and letting out that resonant hum of hers that he had come to crave. ¡°Now¡± she whispered into his soul.
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Silu was enjoying a glass of Delmar brandy alone in his office. He was currently watching a message from his wife showing off his two newest grand babies with a beaming mother in tow. A digital chirp had him pause the video as a message on the ships alert line popped up¡ ¡®Captains work is never done¡¯ His brow furrowed as he opened the alert then erupted in a deep laugh. It was a cathartic feeling, and Silu let this belly laugh run its course. It purged his soul of the stress of the last few month¡¯s events.
Finally containing himself, he flicked his console over to the refit list and schedule. Sliding over to the interiors tab; he added an entry.
Couples Berth 343- install sound proofing.
A low chuckle escaped him as saved and closed the file.
He picked up his beverage and went back to watching his grand babies burble into the camera¡
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It was the early morning hours, and Mac was on his back staring at the ceiling, tracing circles into the down soft streak of mane that all Delmar had running from their hair to the tip of their tail. The one he was currently playing with belonged to someone priceless, but she was different somehow. She was definitely still his Lyrian; of that there was no doubt. She had always been playfully possessive, but this time she had been.. aggressive. She Still playful, but she definitely was more intense in some ways. ¡®Maybe this is what Doc talked about¡¯. Mac was fine with that, he was no wilting flower in that regard either.
¡°Hmmmmm that tickles¡± she coo¡¯d from his shoulder.
He felt a guilty spark; he knew he had awoken her. ¡°Well hi there,¡± he whispered back, kissing her on the nose. ¡°That was¡. Exciting¡± he offered.
She slowly pushed away from him shifting to lay partially on-top of him diagonally to look into his face, ¡°I want to see Earth¡± she used Terra¡¯s ancient name carefully.
¡°Huh?¡± Mac offered, sitting up until she crawled into his lap still facing him.
¡°I want to see Earth.¡± She repeated, ¡°with my own eyes¡± She lowered her voice dramatically at that last part.
Mac barked a laugh, "Im soooo glad I convinced you to do movie nights". Then he looked into her eyes for a second, ¡°what brought this on?¡± He asked after a moment.
She pulled back off his lap and sat cross legged in front of him, ¡°I¡¯ve only heard bits in passing. From you, from Da¡¯, from Uncle Silu. You plan on trying to message your home, to see if there is a way home.¡± She said finally, ¡°I want you to take me with you.¡±
A wave of realization swept over Mac, ¡°Ah, you¡¯re close, but that¡¯s not why I want to contact Terra¡± he said.
¡°Then why?¡± Her confusion bled through voice and bond.
Mac spent the next hour explaining his plan to her. Pulling her into his lap about half way through so she could use his chest as a backrest. ¡°So, you are trying to prevent a war.¡± she said finally, ¡°at least an extinction level one.¡±
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¡°Yea,¡± he said simply, ¡°I know my people¡Surprise, especially coated in death, breeds over reaction. Even in me.¡±
She turned to Sit sideways. If he was standing, she would be in a bridal carry.
¡°You?¡±
Mac sighed, ¡°I have never told you many personal stories from Terra. It¡¯s because almost all of them are stained in blood. They make up the events that pushed me to a dark place... a place where I became a killer, a hunter of other humans in the Black of my home solar system.¡±
She felt his grief, his shame. She did not shy away; and cupped the back of his head with both hands and looked up at him, ¡°tell me, I need to see you¡±.
Mac started with his childhood. His father was a shipwright for Macdonald Douglas¡¯ Interstellar division. He oversaw their Galveston Bay module construction facilities. This facility had started constructing modules for the Terran navy when the Great Sol War began. His fathers oversaw final assembly of each module before it was sent to orbit to become part of a Terran warship.
¡°I was on a school trip north of Huston, when It happened. Mars had launched the first of its ¡®Rod from God¡¯ attacks. Basically, take a 20 metric ton concrete and steel shaft and destabilize from its orbit around my system¡¯s Star, Sol. If you do enough of the math right, and there is a lot of it, you can hit anything on the way down. Mars had done their math. And that cursed pillar slammed into the shipping channel with all the speed it built up from an almost 380 million ¡®kilometer¡¯ drop towards Sol. Everything south of the Astros stadium in down town Houston was simply gone. The tidal wave killed thousands more in Florida and the Caribbean. In one flash of light, my entire family, and most of my friends evaporated in a mushroom cloud I watched rise into the atmosphere.¡±
Tears began trickling down Lyrians face as Mac continued. He explained that Clint had been on the same field trip, on the same buss. His Uncle Martin had taken an emergency leave, instantly making himself the guardian of his devastated Nephew and the devastated boy¡¯s best friend. Martin and his wife Gwen had moved the boys into their home in Johnson City Tennesee.
Aunt Gwen, also an officer in the Terran Navy had resigned her commission as Commodore to take care of the boys while Martin stayed as the admiral of the Terran home fleet. Mars had claimed to be targeting military infrastructure instillations only¡ but they had been separated from Terra to long, forgetting how densely populated the planet was compared to their sporadic domed society. The war had been going on for years, but this was the first attack that had reached the surface of either Terra or Mars. The collateral damage united Terra, as the population collectively Bayed for retribution.
A Year later, no one batted an eye when two kids, barely over 17, showed up at the Deep Space Naval Combat training facility with a letter from an Admiral granting them the appropriate wavers. 8 years later those two boys were war heroes of a selective group of the space born ¡°silent service¡±. The manor at which these elite crews fought, lived, and died had taken them to the hearts of both submariner community who roamed Terra¡¯s oceans still, and the fighter/star-fighter community that had been a military staple for generations.
¡°We were broken boys, taught to be killers, who turned into war hero¡¯s.. but we are¡¡± Mac took a shuddering deep breath, ¡°¡I am¡ still that broken little boy. I bare the blood of thousands of my own species¡ people I personally pulled the trigger on¡ on my hands. I know Humanity, we are not United in most things, but when¡ not if.. when, we make it to the greater galaxy. ¡If we are ambushed¡.surprised into provocation¡ murdered without reason¡ we will wage war.. and it is not a war I want to see you, or anyone else out here experience. I have lived it.. at times I have rejoiced in it¡ worshipped it even¡.I have stared into the Black long enough to catch its gaze, dare it to come for me, and laugh at its failure. That is who you claimed¡ a broken angry child turned soulless Demon of the Black¡± he spat the name he learned UGN intelligence had given him. his words finally failed him as his shoulders slumped. He had not dared to think about such things since the Armistice. Mac looked down at his own hands, emotionally spent.
Lyrian felt his surprise as she took those same hands in hers, sliding out of his lap to face him as he looked at her face searching. ¡°I am yours, still.¡± she whispered, ¡°We do this together. I will help you prepare your people for the galaxy. I¡¯ll be your soul. You will be my strength. You will prepare me for Earth. Because your soul will follow you, even there.¡± she pulled his hands to either side and buried his head in her chest, ¡°I think I¡¯m going to need a vest.¡±
¡°I guess so¡± he whispered, sagging into her as she laid them both back down. She kept his head on her chest and just stroked his hair until they both were awoken by their morning alarms..
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Doc Icario had protested the vest, only giving way when both of them promised to let him do monthly physicals on his daughter as she built herself up to withstand Mac¡¯s home world.
Two weeks before they reached Delmar, Lyrian began her training. They were deliberate and cautious. Lyrian had to make it to 10k after double her usual calisthenics. Doc had told them about Lyrian¡¯s body¡¯s reaction to the G¡¯s and to being brought to the brink of failure but not crossing it. So that¡¯s what they did. They both weekly trained to failure, but not injury, with more normal daily exercises throughout the week and a day of rest after failure day. Mac had reduced the gravity in their living space back to Delmar standard when Lyri had moved in. Once she made it to 10k, they would start gradually increasing the room¡¯s gravity with earth 1G being the goal.
Lyrian made it to 10k for the first time, the day before Traveler arrived home. She flopped down on the floor of the Rec room after a quick cool down walk. That same slightly crazed giggling laugh from her first flight in Concord escaped her as she heaved for air.
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Clint ''Nitro'' Stevens walked into the Flagg Office of Houston Station, "Lieutenant Clint Stevens reporting as ordered" he snapped a salute off captain who received him.
"This way please Lieutenant" he responded before leading them into the Commanders Office.
the man smartly opened the door, "Lieutenant Stevens to see you Admiral." he stated.
"Come!" the Admiral replied. ''That''s not the commander'' Clint recognized that voice.
Clint walked in and snapped his spine straight, "Reporting as ordered, Admiral" he barked out.
"That will be all Wikkerson," the admiral waved away the Captain, who saluted and turned, closing the door behind him.
"Admiral?" Clint offered.
"Oh, cut the Shit, Nitro, and give your Aunt Gwen a hug," Admiral Gwen Mackenzie Trenton, the wife of the late Martin James Trenton was a towering silver haired Titan of a Scott. She stood 6ft 6in tall and had won several Highland Games in her youth. She had become an American by marriage to Martin and had lost most of her accent, but the old ways still burned brightly in some respects. She was also the one who started the boy¡¯s Gym addictions. Martin had always gone to keep his health, but Aunt Gwen and the boys had a fire for it that he lacked. She was no longer in competitive form, but no less cut a striking figure in her Uniform.
"So.. I guess I''m not in trouble?" Cling offered, finally breaking free of His Aunt. She grinned at him.
"Oh no M''boy, you got caught. You always had a good head for analysis. It¡¯s what kept you and Jamie alive more than once." She said as they both sat down next to the desk. Admiral Gwen refused to stand on ceremony any more than necessary with her adopted boys.
"That''s where I come in," She said. Then his eyes widened as she switched to Scott¡¯s Gaelic, " Tha mi a¡¯ smaoineachadh gun do lorg thu rudeigin. Agus ''tha mi ''g iarraidh ort an t-sreang ud a tharruing, fo mo chead. (I think you found something, and I want you to pull on that string, under my permission.)"
" Taigh-Solais, tha fios agam Ma'' (Lighthouse, I ken Ma¡¯)." Clint responded in Gaelic, " Mar sin tha thu a¡¯ smaoineachadh nach b¡¯ ann air thuaiream a bha an ¨¤rdachadh ann am fuaim (So you think that uptick in noise wasn''t random)."
"No" She said, speaking in English once more, "I don''t. I want you to find out" then she slapped his leg, "So! How do''you fancy working for your Auntie one more time!"
"Aye, Admiral. I''m in." Smiled Clint.
Chapter 18
The small Delmar fleet exited subspace into the outskirts of their home system. Delmar was the second Planet of 2 with a substantial asteroid field acting as a belt between the two planets. This Ring was in an off-axis orbit that made for some spectacular shooting star showers during the fall and spring months of the year. An ancient religion of primitive Delmar had dubbed their star "Signus" sometime during their pre written times.
No one knew what religion, but the name had stuck. Technically the Delmar Confederation resided in the Signus Prime system on the official star charts. The Signus system also resided on the far edge of the Galactic Unity. Due to the almost total Delmaracian monopoly on the Freight hauling capabilities of the G.U., Delmar lacked the normal heavy hand of the Unity in an open uniformed presence. While The Delmar had Lost their bid against the Unities expansion, the "Delmaracian Confederacy Tribal Land" remained under the direct control of their Defense forces under penalty of economic collapse.
Mac had joined Lyrian on the bridge for the entry into Delmar taking one of the observation seats provided just aft and to starboard of the ''captains chair''. Mac had to stifle down a bit of a chuckle.. ''If Jene Roddenberry had lived to see that he guessed the bridge lay out right..'' raced through his mind as Lucid Travelers forward viewports flashed blue as she exited subspace. "First time I''ve seen that" mac whispered over to Silu.
"I suppose so, you would have been on standby in your ship for most of these." he responded.
"Jump complete, ETA 4 Hours to Decel burn. Turning on course 061 by 227" Came Lyri''s voice from the Con Silu sighed, "Very good. status on our escort."
"All escorts report in, their commander would have a word with you and.... Mackenzie." came the reply from Coms.
"Well then, tell him we will meet in Hanger2" Silu responded, "Marge you have the bridge."
Silu stood, "Lieutenant, let¡¯s not keep the commander waiting." He nodded to Mac, who stood and followed the captain out.
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Commander Folmuri exited the shuttle into Hanger 2 of Lucid Traveler. Captain Silu and.. well.. someone stepped through the Hangers Corridor entrance and began walking over to them.
"Commander, A pleasure to finally meet you", Captain Silu offered with a nod.
"Likewise, Captain. Your request on our exit from Argorania was certainly energetic." Folmuri offered. "And who might be your guest?''
"Lieutenant James Mackenzie Grarzia, Commander under the void of Concord", the Being responded in almost perfect Delmar.
"Grarzia, wait... This is him? This is your Niece¡¯s claim?" Folmuri looked him over. His was basically the same height of a Delmar female not the significantly taller Males of the species, He lacked any skin patterns made him a strange looking being with his brown hair cut short. He was wearing a void suit, but it was slightly bulky in odd places around his upper and lower legs. Folmuri returned his gaze to Grarzia¡¯s face, almost causing him to balk. This Lieutenant Grarzia''s eyes were an icy blue and they felt like they were piercing his very soul. They were colder than just a moment ago during introductions, more calculating. Folmuri got the very distinct feeling that the mind behind those eyes was methodically deciding if he was worth killing.
"Yes, commander. Lyrian is my wife." the Ice in this mans eyes came out of his mouth and sliced into the commander¡¯s spine with warning.
''This is a dangerous man, I walk a thin branch''. Commander Folmur rallied, "I meant no offense, it is just that you are not Delmar. You are fluent in our language; of that I am impressed."
"Thank you, Commander. No offense taken, call me Mac." The being said. With a flash, the over tones of danger were gone from his features, and He smiled. "Now, what can I do for you?"
"I watched the engagement during our burn out of Argorania. I know from the lack of visible light signature that you had to have used a Kinetic, but I cannot just put, "I Donno" down in my report.¡± Folmuri offered.
"Ah... Well, Commander. without getting into too great technical detail. What I used is very similar in concept to the Flak Kanons that you possess already. The primary difference, is that while your point defense Kinetics fire with a projectile speed of around 150 ''kilometers'' a second. The MAC cannon, that''s what we call them, are firing projectiles much closer to 30,000 ''kilometers a second'', with a combined output of several thousand projectiles a second''." Mac explained to a mouth agape Folmuri.
"You can¡¯t be serious... How do you have the capacitance for that!" he asked.
"I don''t, They are run directly off the reactor." Mac held up a hand, "I cannot tell you how much power Concord makes. That is Classified under an oath I took years before being flung into this part of the galaxy. I hope to remedy that, but for now just know that I could power every energy weapon on most UGN ships of the line for months of continuous fire. Concord produces more than enough power to fling shaped metal rocks at relativistic speeds".
"Considering your claims, I guess the reports of your ship being armed with Atomics are accurate?" asked Folmur.
"They are. What I can tell you is in Silu''s report" Stated Mac.
"I see, May I see this¡ Concord?"Folmur asked carefully.
"Right this way Commander" Silu responded. This had been predicted, and Mac had given his consent to an external tour in an earlier conversation with Silu. A few minutes later, the three men walked into Hanger3.
"This, is Concord" Mac announces stepping out in front with a wave of his hand.
They walked around the nose then the left wing, "I''m confused, I see no weapons at all. No hard points. No guns. Nothing," Folmur observed.
"Concord is a 3rd Generation Fleet Escort and Interdiction Fighter. All of her weapons systems are internally mounted, even the port that the G.A.U. cannons fire from is covered with a panel that opens just before firing." Mac interjected, "I''m sorry, but I cannot open the panel''s. Classified."
"You walk a thin branch, Lieutenant" Folmur stated sternly. "You are a member of Tribe Helyon are you not."
Mac''s eyes locked in his, "I am, but I hold Oaths that precede Helyon. Imagine what you would do if your weapons officer went and married into another tribe, then started spilling secrets." the cold warning was back.
"I¡ get your meaning" Folmur nodded, "Thank you for the tour. I believe I have enough for my report." He glanced once more as the sleek grey predatory machine sitting in the hanger. It triggered ancient instincts he disliked immensely.
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Lyrian hopped up from the Con as Traveler was taken under Tow. The orbital tugs plied to their Charge, Guiding Traveler. Soon enough, she lay to her moorings inside the Helyon''s orbital shipyard facility. From there, most of the Crew would be ferried down to their ancestral lands for the Celebration of Return.
Mac had dubbed it, "Homecoming". She was not joining the rest in the shuttles. When She and Mac had wed, the Tribe had been notified and his pay/bonuses had been calculated into the construction of a private residence. She and Mac had received a generous payout this season. Lyrian, for being senior Bridge crew, had received a handsome raise from her last season. Mac had recorded his Kill''s. Although the weapons he used were not like anything anyone had ever seen, His ''gun cam'' had shown irrefutable proof that he had indeed sunk 2 Pirate Barges, 3 UGN warships, and 5 snub fighters. They had chosen not to count disabling of the now dishonored Convergent Dawn. They had used the extra funds to have Gravity plating installed under the flooring of their lodge. Mac had spent a large amount on having a 20000 ''meter'' by 120 ''meter wide section of their property cleared, leveled, packed down, and paved with Duracrete .5meters thick. She had noticed that when it popped up on their console as completed but had not had the opportunity to ask. Delmar was a largely jungle world so finding enough open property to make that happen had been a challenge. They had ended up with one end of this paved strip butting up against the Helisty straight. a body of salt water that had been the origins of Tribe Helyon''s seafaring, then space fairing traditions. Mac had approved of them so now Lyrian was in their Quarters double checking everything was ready for the Movers. She finished putting on her G-suit on. ''Is it getting tighter?'' she wondered, heading down to Hanger3 to Join mac in Concord for their trip down to the surface.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mac finished up his walk around just as Lyri, positively skipping, entered the Hanger and bounced up to him, "We ready?" She asked.
"Mostly. Time for another lesson, you have to know how to check over a ship like this. Your job-while I finish up down here- is to get into your seat and boot up Jarvis and ask him for ''preflight checklist walkthrough''. He will walk you through what you would need to check as the back seater, then as the pilot." He slapped her on the rump then pecked the cheek of her shocked face, "off you go!" He grinned and turned back to the outside of Concord.
"Cretin!" she scoffed and started climbing up the ladder. She didn''t notice him leaning back to watch her go up from below. ''he''s gonna pay for that later'' she smirked to her self as she hopped in her seat, "Uh.. Jarvis?" she asked tentatively.
*Voice authentication accepted. Greetings Ms Grarzia*
"Uh, Hi. Mac told me to ask for the ''preflight checklist'' walkthrough?" Lyri asked tentatively, still unused to having conversations with a computer.
*Preflight Checklist tutorial Walkthrough initiated, please activate your helmet. This Module is HUD based*
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"Right, uh, thank you." she said, deploying her suites Helmet and listening for the tell tale sounds of it sealing properly.
*Helmet Hud boot up detected, Starting Module. Ms Grarzia, Jarvis is linked directly to this module as a voice interface. you can pause at any time and ask question through voice interaction*
"Uh.. thanks. Jarvis, start module." She stated and her helmets HUD came to life pointing out with virtual Icons where everything was as Jarvis'' voice went through the list and indicating action. She was just finishing up as Mac crested the cockpit seal and hopped into his own seat up front.
"Figure it out?" he asked as he started flicking through buttons and controls with practiced ease.
"Yea, I think. could you check me?" Lyri asked.
"I am, you haven''t missed anything so far. I am going to have you run that tutorial until you don''t need it as part of learning Concord.... Looks like you got all the Wizzo stuff, and what I asked jarvis to include on the Pilot/commander side. Button up, lets get out of here before they close the Shipyard for the night." Mac activated his helmet and the Canopy started closing as Concord started to awaken. Lyrian''s helmet was already on, and she let her hands and feet fall to her controls, feeling the Ship¡¯s familiar barely contained power at her finger tips.
Mac called the Hanger control room and started the opening sequence. Then, swapping frequencies he checked something on his arm data pad. "Helyon harbormaster, Helyon harbormaster, this is Concord, Concord." he spoke in practiced clarity.
*Helyon Shipyard harbormaster, Concord. We were told to expect you, Exit Hanger 3 then turn to bearing 020 by 355. Main Drives are not permitted until crossing the Shipyard main door threshold. upon reaching the doors contact departure on point 79.*
"Exit Hanger 3, direct heading 020 by 335, maneuvering jets only till exterior, point seven niner for departure at the doors" Mac repeated over the Coms.
*Readback correct Concord. Cleared to the doors as read, Harbor out*
Concord stalked out of her home for the past few months and turned toward the large yellow trimmed doors. Lyrian could hear fait puffs of gas as Concord tip toed up to the hanger doors. Mac Turned on the now installed Delmar Ship Becon as he closed on the doors "Helyon shipyard departure, this is Concord. Concord. at the outer doors in station keeping, transmitting on point seven niner" he called.
*Concord, Helyon departure, I barely see you on sensors, just your beacon*
"Concord is designed to do that, Beacon transmitting 224867 is accurate. that''s us, you should be able to see us with your optical systems" Mac was being understandably patient. Stealth was not something this part of the galaxy had even considered as an option in spacecraft.
*We have a visual now Concord. Gods your tiny. I''ve not seen a ship like yours before. Gates cycling, cleared to the surface along Homestar 3 approach via Tri then direct Homestar3. Welcome Home Concord* Mac plugged in the approach details into the Nav and eased Concord out of the doors.
"Homestar3 is clear, nobody on sensors anywhere near our route." Lyrian reported.
"I''ll make a fighter pilot out of you, yet" Mac chuckled engaging the main drives of Concord settling them into Low idle.
"Looks like they cleared us down through the scenic route, Homestar3 is one of my favorites." Lyrian looked over the Nav inputs.
"Care to do the honor''s?" mac asked, "your controls. Keep it under 1.5 Human Gravities. Take us down to atmo, I''ll handle reentry then hand it back. You don''t know Concord''s reentry profile. I''ll give her back once we are in atmo."
"My controls, got it." Lyrian responded, and Concord leaped to her finger tips as they made for the approach markers. Lyrian flew the approach down to the upper atmosphere. she gasped a little when Mac took over.
He promptly pitched concord up hard until her engines were pointed along their route of flight, as he gunned them. Concord Howled as He started his deceleration profile, slowly bleeding off speed until Jarvis told him that Concord was safely on profile, Mac then shut the engines down and pitched down until they were facing forward again. Lyrian had to work a bit at staying awake, feeling the internal dampeners muting the external forces to 3 human G¡¯s inside the cocpit. She smirked as she realized it was considerably easier to manage than her first flight. ''My training is working'' she thought as she looked around as Concord spoke anew. She looked around outside and noticed that Concord was glowing slightly, and that huge, perforated panels had deployed from her wings. "Uh, mac? we''re glowing.¡±
"That''s normal for Concord on reentry. Remember she is designed for war in deep space. A powered reentry system was considered unnecessary for her class. Concord was designed for a powered retro burn then friction braking. Normally I would be doing this at around 6 Human G''s. I had Jarvis calculate out a more palatable profile for you. Jarvis, Deploy scram. and mode swap-Aero¡±
*Changes Confirmed*
Concord was no longer glowing at this point and Lyrian could see bits of the wing moving on their own and Concords Atmosphere borne fighter jet lineage flexed their muscles once more. Concord¡¯s bellowing howl changed as well as Ram intakes opened, providing Concord with oxygen to feed from as well. This air was mostly for cooling, but it also added considerable thrust as it was super heated while being fed through the main drives. This allowed Concord to compensate for the drag of flying in atmosphere. In this configuration, Concord could fly at a significantly lower power setting than with her intakes closed. The airflow also metamorphosized Her engine notes. Her customary baying howl was accompanied by a Low-frequency rushing roar; akin to air rushing past the ear if one was standing in a tornado.
"Your controls" Mac called over their helmets, "you have the coordinates, take us down."
"My controls" Lyrian repeated back and gently caressed The Sticks. Concord was not as twitchy in atmosphere. and Lyrian had to remember her early flight training in power gliders to remember to think in terms of control surfaces not thrust vectors and maneuvering jets. Concord shared another of her secrets with Lyrian. This aggressive, twitchy Predator of the Void became buttery SMOOTH to fly in atmosphere. Lyrian had gotten a taste of her Fury in the Void over Argorania. In the Skys above her home-world, Lyrian got to experience her grace. Lyrian giggled as she inverted Concord through a series of gentle 2 G rolling spirals as she frolicked with Concord among the clouds and air currents. The Sensors paired to the HUD made every cloud transparent as she found one of the Crew return shuttles and soared over, settling in off its left wing with ease and waving to the pilot and passengers. They couldn''t see her face through her helmet, but She could see them. The pilots face was one of awe and fear. The fear faded as the predator failed to kill anyone, but the Awe remained. Hardly anyone from Traveler had actually seen Concord, and Lyri saw the Pilot have to compensate as the entire weight of passengers pressed against one side, clamoring for a look at the Warship.
"Wiggle the wings slightly back and forth" Mac offered, "It makes you look like concord is waving to them.
She gave concord a slow oscillating role for 2 or 3 evolutions then waved one more time before barrel rolling over the top of the shuttle and diving for the surface. She felt a flicker of worry from Mac before it subsided as she closed the throttles.
"I forget you were a pilot before we met. you have the throttles closed, ease them back up to high idle, we are in atmosphere with our intakes out. we need to maintain a little power to prevent a flame out, or shock cooling." he explained, never once requesting the controls back, "reach down with your right hand, just inside and below the throttles. feel the lever? that''s your air brake, throw it over center back toward you" She did so and those perforated panels deployed from Concords wings. She felt concord slow as the airbrakes bled her dive speed back to a more sedate pace, "That''s good, close ''em" Mac called hands interlocked behind his head, obviously relaxing. She flipped the levers and leveled out about 2000m above the surface of the Helisty straight. Lyrian restarted their descent until they were below the level of the jungle on the shore line, but about 150 meters above the water. Mac was enjoying himself letting out a little "whohoo!!" as she weaved back and forth feeling out this new language Concord was speaking. The conversation between pilot and steed continued for several minutes as they wove their way up the straight.
*Waypoint Marked HomeSweet 1 20km out and closing* Came the voice of Jarvis and Lyrians breath caught in her throat. Mac had input a custom beacon for their Lodge and named it.
"James, it¡¯s perfect" she Coo''d.
"Thanks, now my controls. Concord does not have Vertical take off and landing capabilities, its why i had them build a runway." Mac called.
"That explains those messages, your controls." lyrian responded.
Mac whipped a quick 3 HG turn to course and started a slight climb while throttling down slightly, "I¡¯m going to talk through this so that you have an idea, when we do this for practice." Mac called over his shoulder. Lyrian nodded. They could see each other through little cameras in their helmets and display section in their HUDS.
Mac found what he was looking for, "under 600 first notch of flaps, turning downwind to runway 23" he called, "you will be able to see it over our left wing". concord slowed further as they flew out over the water from the shore line, "under 400 second notch, landing gear deploy." Mac turned in a slow hook keeping his eye on the runways threshold. As the nose of concord lined up with the fresh Duracrete and painted stripes Mac called again, "below 350 final notch. landing flaps deployed , confirmed gear down and locked. approach speed in this gravity and air density three zero zero.
Concord wafted in, hanging on her wings, slightly nose up, as the water seemed to close on them from below. Lyrian couldn''t see the ''runway'' anymore, she hoped mac could. The beach came rushing by so close that Lyrian felt like she could touch it, then the end of the runway flashed under them just moments before *CHIRP*, the wheels on Concords landing struts contacted and she touched down. Mac shut the engines down then pulled up on the throttles lifting them out of their mount slightly then he pulled them back some more. she heard a clunk sound as deflectors clamped over the exhaust of the Final drives. Mac pulled the throttles back even further, spooling up the final drives as they bellowed into their muzzles. The engines howled again, deflecting exhaust out and slightly forward. Lyrian sagged forward in her seat at the unexpected braking¡ and then it was done. Mac returned the Engines to low idle and closed the Atmo Intakes. concord coasted up to a strange giant shed with huge doors as Mac shut down the drives entirely.
"Concord is still a starship first. I dont have a true jet turbines to taxi her around properly. Luckily, the crazy nerds at Skunk Works gave her an electric motor in each of my main gear axles. Time to put her to bed." he chuckled as he flipped a few switches and Concord silently stalked into her new home, spinning on her wheels until she was pointed towards the door just like on Traveler.
Mac started flipping switches, "go through the post flight with Jarvis. I''ll beat you there and start on the exterior. Join me when you''re done." Lyrian nodded and activated the module once more.
She hopped off the bottom rung of the ladder just as Mac was finishing up placing little red ''remove before flight'' tabs of little openings he needed to protect from critters. "Well that was not what I expected Concord to sound like" the familiar voice of her father rang out through the hanger.
She waved and then checked up on Mac before running to her parents with a Hug, "Oh my gods.. Da''! Ma''! she''s a warship in space, but a dancer on the wind."
"We were on that shuttle, you made an impression Mac, your vessel does dance, indeed. " Tili half scolded as Mac joined them.
"Don''t look at me, Lyrian took us in. I just did the re-entry and landing. It was her the whole time. I was to busy staring at your world. an Auburn and Silver Jungle foliage. It¡¯s magnificent!" Mac finished before noticing Tili staring at Lyrian in shock. That got a belly laugh out of Mac and a Chuckle out of Doc Icario.
Lyri tried and failed to look innocent, fizzling into a bout of giggles.
"Come" Icario said finally, "Let¡¯s not be late to the party."
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Mac was Proud of Lyrian. She seemed at home among the clouds, and she was taking to Concord quickly. Mac, had spent the entire descent taking in This new world. It was the first planet he had been on outside of Terra, as he never had even set foot on Mars. The sweeping waves of Auburn and Silver contrasted with the Deep Blues and Greens of the Winding inlets and Seas. Delmar was broken up into 3 land masses that appeared like their edges had been shattered in an explosion of Archipelagos. Lyrians Ancestral Home was abutted against one of the bigger coastal bodies dubbed the Helisty Strait. Mac knew he was acting like a little kid at Christmas. He didn''t Care, they were going to a Home-coming.
Chapter 19
The Landing strip and Hanger were about a 2 minute walk from the house. The four of them walked along a cleared path on the jungle floor, although there were walkways at several levels up and down canopy of trees. The Jungle, as the Delmar called it, was not like the jungles of earth. The tree¡¯s stood hundreds of feet tall. The individual tree¡¯s resembled the great Redwood forests of earth crossed with the fictional Wookie home world from Star Wars. The jungle floor was surprisingly open, and the trees grew vary large limbs relatively sporadically down low, with the density of growth thickening much higher up. The trees were a wild combination of Auburn, Silver, and Brown. Doc had explained that the trees here photosynthesize much like Terran plants, but the soils nutrients needed in aid of this caused the coloration. Mac could easily see Tristen or Brayton disappearing into the canopy with their natural camouflage rendering them invisible in moment.
The group reached the House, and had to climb a ladder 20 meters into the canopy, to reach the doorstep. ¡°We use trams for most of our travel, but Tili and I bought you a housewarming present.¡± Doc mentioned waving the couple over to the side of the house
.
Lyrian literally squealed as she sprinted over to what looked like the combination of a 1937 Studabaker 4 door President with a cluster of some kind of lifting drives replacing what would normally be the wheel wells.
¡°Doc, this is a mighty hefty house warming gift¡± Mac offered. Slowly eyeing up the craft.
¡°Mac, the majority of my life has been aboard Traveler, not needing a lot of stuff for decades, but still getting paid, means I can afford to buy 7 of those and drive them into a cliff. You two deserve it¡± Doc smiled.
Max raised an eyebrow at him, ¡°One day, I am going to get you drunk enough to spill your stories, Ole Man¡± Doc Icario just smirked back at him.
Lyrian bounded back over to the three were standing. ¡°Da¡¯ she¡¯s beautiful!! Thank you!!¡± She wrapped up her father in law in a massive hug.
Doc wasn¡¯t used to hugs; Delmar didn¡¯t use them so much as they touched forehead. He sputtered for a second, taking a step back obsorb the impact, then returned the gesture somewhat awkwardly.
¡°Now. IN! get changed, we¡¯re gonna be late!¡± Tili said, shooing the two towards their front door.
¡°So, this is home¡¡± Mac whispered as he punched in the code to unlock the door. Lyrian let out a squeak of surprise as Mac spun as she got to the front door, scooping her up in his arms bridal carry.
¡°A tradition of my people,¡± he said, ¡°The man Carries his bride across the threshold of their first house¡± he stated as they entered, Lyri sitting rather smugly in his arms. He sat her down on the other side as the door swung closed behind them. The Delmar called their planet side homes ¡®lodges¡¯. It reminded Mac of a Rocky mounting Hunting lodge on the inside, with almost Nordic accents on the exterior around the exterior trim and roof. The rustic feel was only slightly broken up by the very not rustic modern appliances. Delmar liked their vertical space so all of the bedrooms were upstairs with a small sitting balcony over looking the open concept dining room/living room/ kitchen area.
¡°Just missing a glass gun cabinet and a few trophies¡± Mentioned Mac.
¡°A what now?¡± Doc asked.
¡°Humanity has many different styles of housing, your architecture has blended two of them together with surprising accuracy. In a large area of mountains in my home country, we build houses like this. We call them ¡®Hunting lodges¡¯ and Humans build them in areas they like to hunt at, but don¡¯t want to damage the habitat of their prey.¡± Mac said from around the corner before closing the master bedroom door for Lyri and himself to get out of their flight suits and into more party ready clothes.
¡°Simultaneously killing, and protecting prey animals of your home world. Humanity is certainly a paradox¡± Doc pondered. Then looked up in surprise as Lyrian walked out holding¡ ¡°what on earth are you wearing!¡±
¡°A Hawaiian shirt!¡± Announced Lyri waving dramatically to Macs boisterously pattered attire. Lyrian was grinning as she posed on her equally vibrant poncho over white halter top and tan pants. ¡°I told you It was worth it¡± she told her husband. Mac was wearing a new shirt. In fact, it was very new.
Lyrian had decided to have it made along with her matching Poncho as a surprise. She had put an order into the Travelers autofab for a matching pair of Delmar themed Hawaiian attire. Her poncho was a blue background smattered with Delmar foliage in Silver with Auburn. while her poncho contained slightly more silvers than auburn, Mac¡¯s shirt was a matching inverse with the Same background color and leaf pattern but biased with more auburn than silver foliage.
Mac grinned widely, forgetting about his teeth for a moment, ¡°Oh the look on your faces.¡± He laughed before grabbing a small backpack and slinging in while donning a pair of Aviators, ¡°party time!¡± He bellowed. The four climbed into the new air-car; Mac relinquishing the drivers seat to Lyrian until he had time to learn the new craft. And they departed for the main ¡®Hall¡¯.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Silu had finally had to pry himself away from being grandpa. The twins were adorable. His daughter had been beaming when he stepped off the transit shuttle onto the transit Hub tarmac. His wife Marisala was holding one of the twins, his daughter Filori had the other. He had spent the mid day meal with the twins and his girls. Their father was the Harbor Master of the shipyard, he would be joining them later at the main lodge.
Silu straightened his shoulders and back, one does not keep the head of Helyon waiting. He range the chime on the office door.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Darclemus Rubrian Cluras had been head of Tribe Helyon for 60 ¡®years. He had seen a few outsiders marry into the tribe. It was fairly common, encouraged to keep the children strong and unburdened by the malformations inherent in excessive inbreeding . Rare was it for a non-Delmar to marry in, and unheard of for a successful Claiming to take place with a non-Delmar. This, in fact, was the first recorded successful claiming of a non-Delmar mate in over a thousand years, and it warranted a thorough investigation at a minimum. The door chimed, and the ancient Delmar pushed the button on his desk, ¡°Come!¡±
The Captain of the Lucid Traveler stepped through the door, still in his working uniform. ¡°You asked to see me, Sir?¡±
¡°Yes, I trust you got to see your new grandchildren already?¡± Darclemus asked. He knew it was Arrival Day. He had intentionally sent his summons with an addendum to come after mid-day meal, giving the captain at least some time for reunion.
¡°Yes. Mari and I got to share a meal with them before I came. Thank you for that.¡± Silu gave a small formal nodded, taking the indicated to seat across from his wife¡¯s great uncle and Tribal head of state. ¡°How may I be of service.¡± he asked leaning back and settling in.
¡°I require clarity. This James Mackenzie. I need your ¡. perspective¡. nephew.¡± He raised his hand to prevent interruption, ¡°Silu, you are not under investigation. I can find no fault in your actions considering what you knew, when you knew it, and the heavy hand that the UGN used in all of this. However, there are some disturbing holes in what I have had come across my desk. I need the full story.¡±
¡°Certainly, uncle.¡± Silu nodded. Took a deep breath. And began with the emergency exit from Subspace¡..
Two hours later, Darclemus leaned forward in his chair. ¡°Thank you, my boy. Now I must ask you the unpleasant questions about your niece. This claiming, do you believe it to be successful. We have few records of this happening before, but rarely. It usually does not end well for the female¡¯s mind.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll have to answer that in two parts. Yes, I believe the Claiming was successful at a deep level. My own records of.. uh¡ noise complaints¡ are proof enough of that. Yet, I have also noticed a change in mannerisms in both parties. Mackenzie comes from a race that is one of several competing Apex species on his planet. As such, he exhibits both the care and gentleness of a communal family unit culture that is very similar to us. He also exhibits extreme apex tendencies towards aggression and violence. Lyrian has picked up some of those aggressive tendencies, and Mackenzie has started exhibiting more Delmar manerism. There was one incident where Mackenzie was forced to use violence to protect my niece. She was very close to him and experienced his reaction intimately. She recovered, albeit slowly, but Doctor Icario sees no lasting effects.¡±
¡°I see.¡± The head of states scratched his chin, ¡°What of this plan of his..to contact his home world.. should we aid him, or hinder.¡±
¡°M¡¯Lord, I trust him. The blood on his hands, in protection of my ship, my crew, and my family demand it of me.¡± Silu stated flatly, ¡°I believe meeting with him would give you a more impartial assessment on this count. I cannot give one.¡± he finished with another slight bow.
¡°I appreciate the candor, Captain.¡± The older man said solemnly. Then visibly brightened, ¡°Now enough official business, off with you! Enjoy the celebrations. I¡¯ll see you at the Hall for a pint.¡±
With that, the meeting was done, and Silu took his leave.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Tristen ribbed Martin with his elbow, ¡°They¡¯re here¡ holy shit!¡±
Martin turned to look at the entrance to ¡°The Hall¡± and erupted into one of his trademark belly laughs.
¡°Oh, this will be remembered.¡± He gasped between bouts of laughter. He finished his drink, ¡°Well don¡¯t just stand there! Let¡¯s go say hi!¡± he bellowed, wrapping Tristen¡¯s neck in the crook of his elbow and dragging the younger man along toward to two most obnoxiously vibrant outfits he had seen in his entire life, and his friends wearing them.
¡°Martin!¡± Lyri exclaimed. She had seen them coming immediately and rushed over, Mac in tow.
¡°Well, you two know how to make an entrance¡± Tristen laughed, finally able to fight off the Pudgy Chef. ¡°What the hell is that.¡± he pointed at the both of them.
¡°Hawaiian meets Delmar, the best of both!¡± Mac Laughed, snagging a pair of bottled Ales from a wandering server¡¯s tray. He handed one to Lyrian, ¡°Her idea.¡± He nodded to his bride.
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¡°Well, at least you got the colors right¡± Tristen offered.
Dinner was served ad hock. There was a giant central table with some finger food and sides. The serving staff had main courses on their platters, and they wondered the halls near the edges of the hall. The tables lined those same edges, and people quickly found old friends while filling their plates. The space in between was for mingling, talking, and wandering; but there was a space on the opposite end of the hall with a live musical group. They would take song requests, or play ambiance music throughout the night. In front of them, in a space between the end of the central table and the stage, the floor was kept clear for dancing. The dancing was sporadic, mostly due to certain age groups coming and going from the dance floor as music from their youth shuffled through.
Tristen, Brayton, Martin, Lyrian, Mac, and eventually Doc Icario had ensconced themselves at a table on the edge of the dance floor. Mac was slightly buzzed. Martin was plastered with Lyrian slightly drunker than Mac. Brayton was sipping a Delmar version of a Soda, being to young to drink alcohol for another season or so.
Mac finally nodded and started fiddling around in his backpack, pulling out a Delmar made Data stick. ¡°It¡¯s time we had our first dance.¡± he said before standing up and heading for the band.
¡°Can you guys play from a stick?¡± He called over to the lead guy.
¡°Yea, what you got!¡± He called over through the din of the Hall, walking over to the edge where Mac was standing.
¡°It¡¯s a special song from my home, just let it play. I¡¯m newly married, and we never got to do a tradition of my homeworld. We never got a first dance.¡± Mac explained.
¡°Im not sure what a first dance is, but I think I can do something. You got 1 min before the music starts¡± the Lead said, walking over to his spot next to a cross between a keyboard and a DJ scratch board.
Mac walked back to the group, ¡°Lyri, hop up for a min, I got a surprise.¡±
¡°Oh? Still hiding stuff from me?¡± she asked in a mock hurt voice as he caught her hand and led her to the dance floor.
¡°Nah, I just thought of this one actually.¡± he said just as the music paused and the lead guy started speaking.
¡°Sorry to interrupt. I have an, I suspect, special song request. These two over here.¡± he pointed to Mac and a very confused Lyrian, ¡°Were bonded and wed while on passage. Mackenzie here has a tradition from his home world called a ¡®first dance¡¯. So, this next song is for them. Im told there is a translation available for the screen.¡± he finished.
Mac took Lyrian around the waist with his left hand and took her left hand in his right, ¡°I¡¯ll lead, you follow. I¡¯ll go slow¡± he whispered pulling her in close into a dancing position that felt both formal and intimate at the same time. Several people closer to the dance floor turned to watch, as the dance floor cleared out to look on as well.
The opening violins of ¡®At Last- Etta James¡¯ played over the speakers. Mac started moving the two of them as the Ancient Voice Rang out in English with the translation playing behind them on the screen. Mac worked in a slow waltzing square, letting Lyrian both have time to follow and read the translation on the screen.
Lyrian stopped reading after the first chorus, she didn¡¯t need to. She just leaned into Mac as they glided gracefully, if not quickly, around the dance floor. She only stepped on his toes once.
The music faded, and Mac turned to give a slight bow of thanks to the band leader before guiding Lyrian back to the table.
¡°That was.. wow¡ im stealing that tradition.¡± Brayton spoke first. Shattering the reverent silence as Mac and Lyri made it back and sat down.
¡°The song was Beautiful. What is that dance called.¡± Lyrian asked as mac pushed her seat in and sat down himself.
¡°I modified a human dance called the ¡®waltz¡¯ to fit the music.¡± Mac responded, ¡°I think it turned out well.¡±
¡°I loved it, Delmar doesn¡¯t have a dance that¡ close to each other.¡± Lyrian said.
¡°Until now, look.¡± Martin pointed back at the dance floor. Another song was on, a slow one somewhat similar to Mac¡¯s request. The floor was almost half full, of couples trying to imitate the dance that Mac had led Lyrian in during their first dance¡ to varying degrees of success.
¡°Well shit. I guess I just dropped a cluster bomb on Delmar culture with that one.. my bad.¡± Mac chuckled. The group had a good gafa over that one and went back to drinking and cutting up amongst themselves.
¡°Well that was something.¡± Silu¡¯s eyes darted over his shoulder as Icario and Tili joined him near the dance floor. ¡°I see a new dancing trend in our future.¡±
¡°But they are so close, their bodies are touching.¡± Tili complained.
¡°Yet its so formal looking, even respectful.¡± Silu responded.
¡°It is, you know what? Lets go.¡± Doc said taking Tili¡¯s hand. Her shocked face staring incredulously back at him.
¡°You can¡¯t be serious!¡± she gasped, but Icario just pulled her to him too quickly for her to further protest, catching her around the waist while still holding on to her hand.
¡°I am, come my love. Let¡¯s see what the floor holds for us.¡± Icario coo¡¯d into her ear.
Tili was a propper woman, she never really liked public displays of affection. However, she melted slightly at His voice, and his emotions through their bond, ¡°Ok dear, just this one dance.¡±
¡°That¡¯s my girl¡± Icario whispered as he started their waltzing glide out onto the dance floor. He smirked a little as he remembered coming to Mac after discovering classical human music late one boring night on passage. Mac had told him about the waltz and given him a quick run down. He put his lesson to good use.
Two songs later, Mac turned to survey the dance floor. The band had gone into a groove session of sorts. His ¡®first dance¡¯ choice had become a Hit, and the band was now improvising a dam good representation of the Genre. A familiar face, no, pair of faces caught his eye. Doc Icario noticed him smiling and shot him a wink. Tili was too busy leaning into Doc with her head on his shoulder, Lost as much in the movement as she was in the song, or his touch.
¡°I was wondering if you would remember, you old sly devil.¡± he muttered, then turned to see the others faces and pointed back at Doc, ¡°Ol¡¯ man still has it.¡± he said. There were good natured, if quiet laughs all around. They struggled to not let them get louder as they caught Silu, his bride in tow, somewhat less gracefully making their way around the dance floor. Mac doubted they cared, considering the smiles on their faces.
Later that evening, Mac started to walk the Hall with Lyrian. They had slowed their drinking considerably, so as not to get too drunk; and Mac had wanted to go exploring. They had ended up on the second floor of the Hall that wrapped around the edge of the lower floor with a balcony facing inward to see below. Mac and Lyri slowly paced the balcony, watching the children run around¡ sometimes chased by frantic parents¡ as they walked arm in arm. Mac paused as he heard gruff male voices singing, off in the corner. ¡°Some things stay the same the galaxy over.¡± Mac said, nodding to the gaggle of Sailors, ¡®definitely sailors¡¯, sat singing drinking songs and telling stories.
¡°I¡¯ll be right back,¡± he said. Darting back down to grab his backpack before returning. Together they walked up to the group.
¡°How¡¯s it going¡± Mac said sitting down in an open spot. The men looked confused and Lyrian perched herself on a table just behind him to lean in.
¡°Uh, you lookin¡¯ for someone? I didn¡¯t know we had vis¡¯tors.¡± one offered. It was cute, they were trying to be polite.
¡°Oh, I¡¯m right where I wanna be,¡± Mac said with a smile, pulling out a bottle of Lycan Brandy from his pack. Setting down on the table between them with a thump, ¡°James Mackenzie Grarzia, And I know a group o¡¯ Sailors when I See em¡¯. Even if we sail the Black these days and not the Blue.¡±.
One of the men popped up his head, ¡°Mac! I know you! You came in on the Traveler! Im Brukvur, I run one of the Larboard Flak guns when I¡¯m not in Astrometrics.¡±
¡°Ah! I remember you, you have a scary mind for trajectory.¡± Mac laughed opening the bottle, ¡°Lets not let it go to waste, boys!¡± he bellowed as they offered their glasses, some downing the remainder of what they had before getting a new pour. Drinks were had, Stories were told, some real, some fake, nobody cared. Lyrian eventually sat down next to Mac when they realized she was Senior Con officer. A couple of them were defense fighters, and they began to compare combat stories. Some darker, some not. Everyone had lost friends over the years.
One of the Delmar pilots finally spoke up, ¡°A toast! To the ones who rest in the void. The ones who never made it back so that we could.¡± A cheer went ¡®round and drinks were slammed down. Lyrian swallowed her drink, but looked over with concern as a very intense sadness broiled off of Mac for a moment, staring into the middle of, or maybe through the middle of the table.
Mac finally spoke, ¡°I would like to do a toast to the fallen, as well.¡± He slowly reached down, pulling out a three quarters empty amber bottle with a green label. Gold lettering reading ¡®Jeremiah Weed¡¯.
¡°This is a tradition where I come from. I was a deep space fighter pilot in my home system during a war that claimed almost half my species. I have lost many. Would you do me the honor of this traditional salute.¡± He stated somberly, and the table quickly silenced.
They all nodded, and Mac produced several tiny glasses from his pack. One for each of the men at the table, 8 in total. And one for Lyrian. he clustered them together in a circle each touching the next. He then opened the bottle, almost reverently, ¡°To Danny and Miles lost over Centerpoint to a stray MAC round¡ To Salina and Jacob they took out that big martian bastard over ceres. I owe them my life. To Conner and Bruce, lost over the moon defending Luna Base from an insertion team¡..¡± Mac had a name for each pour of the bottle, ending with Lyrian¡¯s glass. He spoke as he poured the last of the bottle into her glass, ¡°To your Uncle Rico, Whom gave the highest sacrifice over Bricus. He granted me a little more time to get a shot.¡±
He held up his hand as they reached for the drinks, ¡°They aren¡¯t quite ready yet. My people have a weapon. It looks for and chases heat signatures on void craft.¡± Mac began as he pulled out a little square device from his pocket and flicked it open, ¡°Its so dangerous; that when we fire one in combat, we let everyone of our own know that it is on the loose by calling ¡®fox2¡¯ over our Coms when we fire. Whatever you do, commit and you won¡¯t be harmed.¡±
With that Mac lit the cigarette lighter and touched it to the shot glass closest to him. The alcohol fumes lit immediately and soon the flame spread to all the glasses in turn. Mac nodded and took his glass. As the others did He held it out. ¡°FOX 2!¡± He bellowed and threw back the flaming shot, swallowing the liquor and extinguishing the flames.
¡°Fox2!¡± The rest shouted, including Lyrian, and did the same. Everyone made it through without burning themselves. Mac slammed the now hot shot glass down on the table, ¡°Good Kill¡± he said softly¡ ¡°Now! Who wants to teach me one of your drinking songs!!¡±
And they were off, Drunkenly trading shanties into the night..
Chapter20
Clint rubbed his eyes¡ and reached for his mug, only for him to find it empty. ¡°Fuck¡ Elena, start the pot again, dark roast.¡± Clint grumbled, starting the coffee through the smart home system. He wasn¡¯t sure what day it was, not even sure the week. He rose from the position he had fallen asleep in, checking his watch. 0352¡. He stumbled twice as he slowly worked his way to the bathroom door. The motion activation triggered, and he swore again as the obnoxiously bright light flickered on overhead.
Finishing up, he lumbered to the kitchen, scooping the pot of coffee out of its base triggering the auto pause feature in the brewing process. ¡®The rest of the pot will taste like shit¡ but I need the kick¡¯ he thought as he poured the half-done coffee into his cup. He knew that this diluted the rest of the pot. He didn¡¯t care.
It had been a rough few days. Clint had just officially started working for LEAP. Unofficially, he had been burning processing power trying to brute force some logic into the strange information in front of him. He had first noticed it two weeks after his brother went missing. He was on duty at the time in Houston stations OTC (orbital traffic control). He watched as the sensor grid keeping watch over Pandora received a massive burst of abnormal energy before failing completely, triggering a shutdown that played hell with the rest of his day. Two days later he reviewed the sensor logs¡ he found a discrepancy. The energy burst had only impacted a narrow bracket of arrays. these arrays neatly lined up with the emergency quantum beacon ¡°light-house¡± , and the course that his brother had disappeared on. Clint had smuggled in a personal USB Q into the sensors server banks on break and pulled everything on the incident; including all the raw data that did the overloading in the first place.
Over a month later and he had gotten nowhere. On top of that, he had gotten caught, by his adoptive mother no less. The good news was that he now had access to the quantum computing core at LEAP headquarters¡ the bad news was, he had to leave Houston Station. He stretched¡now he had to produce results. Clint wasn¡¯t averse to hard work, but promising results without knowing if results are possible¡. that was something else¡.
His computer chirped. It was the LEAP Quantum Super Computer on Ceres. He opened the portal to remote in, browsing through his inbox. No other new messages appeared, and Clint opened and decompressed the file. Bandwidth was precious to deep space facilities after all.
He was scanning the first sections when his eyes flew wide as he recognized what he was looking at. ¡°Jesus Christ¡ it¡¯s an algorithm¡¡±
Clint shot-gunned the rest of his coffee ignoring its biting heat and quickly went to refill his cup. No sleep tonight, and possibly tomorrow. There was a reason that Clint had not been transferred to Ceres with the Admiral. She had not wanted prying eyes easily seeing what he was researching.
Clint first opened his E-mail, and sent a message to his adoptive mother and commanding officer in the obscure language She had taught him to stop casual prying ears.
It was a simple message:
¡°chan eil sinn nar n-aonar (We are not alone).¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°Heave her home boys..
Let her go boys..
swing her head ¡®round into the weather¡
Heave her home boys..
let her go boys!
Sailing homeward to Mingalay..¡±
Mac finished leading in another round of drinks and song. He had been translating some of earth¡¯s ancient sailing songs on the fly most of the night to moderate success.
Most of the rest of the party goers had left. And Lyrian was laying on the beach beside him with her head on his lap. The Boys who were left finally started to get up.
¡°Get your bride home safe, my boy.¡± said an older voids-man as they parted with clasped arms and newly learned ¡®man hugs¡¯. ¡°You¡¯re welcome ¡®round the table any time¡±.
Mac had stopped drinking hours ago and had just been enjoying being around ¡®old salts¡¯ again. ¡°Will do, it¡¯s been an honor.¡± with that he started stroking Lyrians hair gently rousing her
¡°Hey love, let¡¯s go home.¡± he whispered to her as she stretched, looking groggily around. ¡°Oh boy, you¡¯re still drunk...¡± he chuckled. ¡°And I don¡¯t know how to fly the car.¡±
¡°Hmm¡ auto piluuut. Has.. autopiiiluut. Home.. s¡¯ved¡± was all she got out. Mac scooped her up and headed for the main hall door. Martin was crashed out on the floor next to a slightly pudgy female. Tristen was nowhere to be found. Neither was Brayton. Doc Icario was slowly dancing with his wife. He was humming a tune in time to their steps, as the band had long gone.
Mac poured Lyri into the back seat of the air-car then sat down in the combination drivers/pilot¡¯s seat. He found the MFD and found the saved coordinates for home. The car hummed to life as he activated the autopilot and the car eased into the air and made for their lodge.
Lyri poked her head up between the seats momentarily, nodding at whatever made her think he had done it right. The curled back up on the back seat. A few ¡®minutes¡¯ later, the car set itself down on the Landing platform of their house. Mac gently coaxed Lyri into his arms once more, opening the door and creeping up the stairs. He got her to bed then just flopped down and curled up to her little spoon and played big spoon.
They slept until the next afternoon.
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Pain¡.. but this kind of pain was an old friend¡ Mac groaned and rolled away from the window, covering his head with a pillow. He heard a whimper from next to him as Lyri stirred as well.
¡°I¡¯m dying, Signus is murdering me¡¡± she whimpered softly into her pillow.
¡°Lets get you fixed up..¡± Mac whispered, as she winced at the sound. Mac trundled over after digging around in his seabag for a med scanner. He waved it over a couple of different items before finding one safe for Lyri.
¡°Start with this, then come down for breakfast¡± he said, still just above a whisper, as he broke an Aspirin in half and gave Lyri one piece and a little water. Mac himself took another 500mg of the stuff and stumbled down to the kitchen. Luckily, they had requested the Kitchen get fully stocked before They arrived, So Mac picked out one of Lyri¡¯s favorite fruits, one Delmar Tuber, and a few strips of the type of cloned meat that he had found came the closest to bacon. Grabbing a pan, he started with the meat. The thin strips cooked quickly, and he left their renderings in the pan as he set them aside to cool. He stirred in the sliced tuber and covered it to let it cook while he sliced up the fruit. It wouldn¡¯t quite be hash browns, but it would have to do until he could have a shredder made.
¡°You know, that¡¯s supposed to be my job.¡± came a mumble from across the counter behind him. Lyrian was semi functional again, the Aspirin beginning to take its effect.
Mac poured her a glass of water and handed it to her, ¡°You¡¯re a bit worse off than I am. I¡¯m used to Hangovers. Drink this, it will help.¡± She made a face as he poured a quarter of a packet of energy/electrolyte mix into the water and stirred it in. After her escapade of licking the packet early in their relationship, Mac had taken one of the packets to Doc Icario to make sure it was safe. It was close enough as long as she didn¡¯t have too much caffeine, so a partial packet it was.
¡°Ugh, you know I hate this stuff..¡± she said, taking the glass from him.
¡°I do, but it¡¯s got electrolytes safe for you. It will help with the headache. Bottoms up.¡± He responded as he poured the rest into his own glass and stirred it in. Then Mac clinked it to her¡¯s, ¡°Sl¨¤inte¡± then he downed his own drink. Lyri looked at him in confusion before chugging her own glass with a cringe.
¡°That wasn¡¯t English.¡± she said, setting the glass on the counter and snagging a piece of fruit.
¡°No, it¡¯s Scots Gaelic. My Aunt was American by marriage, but Highland Scot by Blood. She taught us some of the old ways.¡± Mac explained.
¡°Teach me?¡± She asked.
¡°I guess but let¡¯s get your English up to speed first. It will be more useful to you.¡± Mac said as he uncovered the pan and stirred the tuber. He re-covered it so that they could simmer a bit longer.
¡°What¡¯s a ¡®Scot¡¯¡± Lyri asked after being poured more water. She leaned a hip up against the countertop and watched Mac finish up the food. It was afternoon, so breakfast for dinner was in order.
¡°Remember all those places I talked about when you were teaching me Delmar? Well, Humans don¡¯t have just one language. We have several hundred. My Aunt Gwen was born and raised in Scottland. As was her brother who moved to America, My mom¡¯s Grandfather.¡± Mac explained, finally pulling the ad hock ¡®hash browns¡¯ off the heating element and making up a pair of plates. Extra meat for him, extra fruit, and Tuber for Lyrian.
¡°Don¡¯t your people take the family name of the male?¡± she asked, taking the plate as they both headed for the table.
¡°They do. However, I took my mother¡¯s maiden name when they separated. I was mad at my dad. I only learned later that he had pushed us away on purpose. He had gotten a warning from the Terran Navy that his facility could be attacked.¡± he said sadly.
Breakfast done, Lyrian Shoo¡¯d mac into the shower. She insisted on cleaning up. Mac cranked on the steaming misting shower and stepped in and let It soak him to the bone. The bombardment slowly washing the last of his hangover away as he began to reach for his soa¡¡±
He was interrupted by a pair of familiar arms around his waist¡
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
Maruk was nervous. He was on official business this evening, but he disliked being this far out on the outskirts near Dusk. He stepped out of the Tram and started along the walkway to the newly constructed Lodge. Predator attacks were rare, but not unheard of this far away from Tribal Civilization; and Maruk¡¯s head swiveled nervously from side to side as he made his way to the front door. He was about to touch the Chime when the door swung open and a Shorter Pink skinned Being opened it, ¡°What Can I do for ya.¡± he asked in almost perfect Delmar. He was shirtless with a towel wrapped around his waist. He had no Natural Markings on him. His skin was pale pink, not the Auburn and Silver of the Delmar. He had no mane, but a growing Mop of short, damp brown hair on his head. His icy blue eyes were piercing, as if sizing him up. But his face had a friendly set to it.
¡°Uh.. Hi.. Um¡ Maruk.. my name is Maruk, I¡¯m here on behalf of Clan Head Darclemus. M.. May I come in?
¡°Mac, he¡¯s a Courier for the Helyon Tribal leader. I recognize the uniform.¡± A female voice called from inside. This pale skinned being nodded.
¡°Come in, take a seat in the living room. You will have to beg our pardon a moment, we just finished up a shower. He turned to the side, and Maruk was treated to a cavernous ground floor living area with a gorgeous female wrapped modestly in a towel waving him in from a set of stairs.
¡°Take a seat, we will be down in a moment¡± She chimed and vanished into one of the upstairs rooms. This Mac bounded up the stairs, skipping several in each stride ¡®what the fuck is he¡¯ Maruk thought as he vanished in the same door. About a minute later they both emerge fully dressed. The female was in a Delmar Traditional Poncho, a black top and pants. The man was in an almost headache inducing brightly patterned shirt covered in plant designs he had not seen before.
¡°My apologies, Mr Maruk.¡± The man nodded and extended one hand as Maruk stood.
Maruk looked at the hand, then extended his own awkwardly before this Mac took it in his vice of a hand and shook it firmly once. ¡°I am here to request a Mr¡.¡± he looked at his wrist com¡¯s screen ¡°Mackenzie Grarzia to join Clan Head Darclemus at the Hall. He wishes to meet with you.
¡°Ah, I was wondering when this would happen.¡± Mac stood, ¡°Just me, or is Lyrian invited as well.¡±
¡°You were all I was instructed to return with,¡± Maruk responded, somewhat apologetically.
¡°I guess it can¡¯t be helped. Babe? I guess, figure out what you want to show me next for when I get back?¡± he pulled the female into an embrace and put his lips on the top of her head. It was a foreign but affectionate mannerism.
¡°Take your time, Love. Great Uncle Darclemus tends to be Thorough. I won¡¯t expect you back until late. Take the Car.¡± Lyrian stood to shake Maruk¡¯s hand, ¡°A pleasure¡± she said as the three then walked to the door.
¡°I¡¯ll leave the car for you. Im curious about this Tram system¡± Mac remarked, failing to see Maruk deflate slightly.
¡°This way then Mr Grarzia.¡± Maruk stated as they left the house and headed up the hanging path toward the tram station. It was going to be a substantial walk to get there.
¡°Oh no... Mr Grarzia is my father-in-law. My friends call me Mac. I think it will do.¡± Mac chuckled as they rounded the corner. They were in sight of the tram station now and Maruk began to relax a little.
¡°Mac then. We are almost to the station thank the voi¡.¡± Maruk froze as he heard a piercing shriek from their left and above them. A looming creature roughly half again bigger than a Delmar swooped into view bearing all of its teeth. It was a Gri¡¯Kra. It was one of the larger predators of the planet and generally considered Delmar¡¯s Apex. Most had learned to fear the Delmar civilized area¡¯s, but this was not in the civilized area¡ It was a short furred beast with large skin flaps between its 6 legs that could be stretched out into a gliding wing. Its eyes were set close together and it was missing a ¡®nose¡¯. Its mouth had two venom injecting fangs surrounded by serrated teeth that were constantly being cycled out by new ones growing in. This was a beast purpose built to kill and eat anything on the planet. Maruk prepared for the end as the Giant fanged Beast opened its Maw to claim its vic¡.
Maruk was flung aside as this ¡®Mac¡¯ body checked him out of the way, drawing a strange device from under that infernally bright shirt and pointing it at the looming Death beast.. The device spoke; Releasing a piercing, shrieking bark. This was followed by a loud CRACK of something breaking the sound barrier These two sounds blended into one terrible noise; stunning Maruk partially as his ears began to ring. The device repeated this noise 5 times in rapid succession as Mac took a strange stance, both hands on the weapon, arms outstretched and slightly bent, legs shoulder width apart and slightly bent at the knees.
The beast was within 15meters when its head, just above its upper jaw, exploded into bits of bone and brains, two more holes appeared in the Beast¡¯s upper torso with one hole appearing in its flying membrane and then the middle arm of the opposite wing was severed. The bone just above the elbow joined evaporating into an auburn Mist of bone and blood. Mac Jumped to the side, grabbing the Dazed Courier and dragging him bodily into the Tram Station. The Gri¡¯Kra slammed into the elevated walkway, wedged between two safety rails, oozing its life¡¯s blood onto the plating.
¡°Well... that happened...¡± Maruk¡¯s head snapped over to the absurdly calm voice beside him. Mac was calmly pulling a rectangular piece out of the bottom of this weapon of his; pocketing it as he withdrew another one from under his shirt on the other side from where he had produced this device. He snapped the new rectangle into the bottom of this weapon and raised it again to point at the dead Gri¡¯Kra. A shiver ran down Maruk¡¯s spine as this Man calmly stalked up to the dead apex¡¯s body and then kicked it in the face slightly. It was almost as if he was daring it to come back to life.
¡°Yup, it¡¯s dead¡± Mac stated before turning around. Maruk took a step back in shock when a predator¡¯s triumphant expression flashed across this beings visage. It lingered just a moment before all of it disappeared and a more pleasant expression replaced the Predator.
¡°What the ¡®Fuck¡¯ was that!¡± Maruk practically squawked.
Mac only shrugged, ¡°You tell me, never seen one before¡±, still perfectly calm.
¡°Not the Gri¡¯Kra, That!¡± Maruk pointed at the device still in Mac¡¯s hands, pointed down by his feet.
¡°Oh, this. It¡¯s called a Gauss Pistol. I believe you would recognize it more as a ¡®kinetic¡¯.¡± Mac responded. ¡°My people really like their kinetics.¡± he shrugged again.
Maruk just stared at him, unable to say anything as Mac just slid the smallest Kinetics weapon, he had ever seen, back under his shirt. It snapped into a black contraption in his waistband obviously designed to hold it but keep it ready for instant use.
Mac straightened his shirt over the weapon just as the Tram arrived. They boarded the tram and departed for the main hall in silence.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Darclemus looked up as the office door chimed. ¡°Come!¡± He called as one of his security personnel opened the door. A rather exhausted and distraught Maruk entered followed by an utterly calm, if exceedingly loudly dressed, Mackenzie. He caught an amused smirk as the man noticed the elder Delmar looking him over.
¡°Ah, Mr Mackenzie Grarzia I presume.¡± Darclemus offered, standing to greet the two men. He paused as he noticed the frantic look on Maruk¡¯s face. He was about to ask what was wrong when Mackenzie spoke, ¡°I believe this should make everyone feel better.¡± He offered. Mackenzie moved his hand painstakingly slowly. It slipped to his side and withdrew from his waistband a strange-looking item that looked like a very small laser or energy weapon. The room became very still as the security guards stiffened and began to reach for their own weapons. A shake from the head of states head froze them as Mackenzie nodded his thanks. Pulling a strange rectangular piece out of where he was holding it, then sliding the perpendicular top backward toward himself with a click. The moving part locked back and a small cylinder of coppery color with a black and silver tip snapped onto the air before being caught and pocketed by Mackenzie.
He turned to one of the security guards and flipped this weapon around to hand it to him grip first followed by the strange rectangle, ¡°we had an incident on the way here. A beast of some kind attacked us, a Gri¡¯kra Maruk called it. Maruk knows I am armed because of this. If you leave it as I have given it to you, it is harmless and completely inert.¡± He finished the explanation and finished handing it to the guards with a nod.
¡°Thank you, take a seat Mr Grarzia¡± Darclemus stated with practiced calm, ¡°let us begin.¡±
¡°Please call me Mac, as I would like to consider you a friend.¡± Mackenzie settled into the chair across from the aging Delmar.
¡°Very well, Mac. I have spoken to Captain Silu, and read Commander Folmuri¡¯s report. I was given the recommendation to speak to you for myself.¡± Darclemus settled into his seat ¡°I wish to hear your perspective, from the beginning please¡±
¡®This is going to be a long night¡¯ Mac thought as he began as instructed.
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It was two hours to midnight when Mackenzie finished.
¡°Well, Mac. I appreciate your thoroughness¡± The elder head of state offered.
¡°Admittedly, I was forewarned by Lyrian. M¡¯Lord¡± Mac had chuckled when he had to ask what to call Darclemus but continued to use the honorific out of respect.
¡°Ah, well I fear I must ask some question. Please know that I do not ask lightly or intend any offense.¡± the tribal leader said carefully.
¡°I have been a military man my entire adult life, sir. I know a debriefing when I see one.¡± Mac responded stoically.
¡°Very well, I need to know your honest opinion about ¡ Humanity, I believe you call yourselves. How big of a threat are they to my people first, the Galaxy second.¡° Darclemus asked leaning forward to put his elbows on his desk. He was studying this Mackenzie. He was an Apex predator. He had said as much, but Mackenzie had surprised the head of state by explaining that his species was one of many species of beings considered equal to that status on his homeworld. Humans simply made it to sapience whereas the others did not.
¡°That¡. Depends¡¡° Macs tone had gone deadly serious, ¡°When, not if, they reach the Unity¡¯s boarder; they will be incredibly dangerous to anyone they view as a threat to their species¡ Make no mistake M¡¯Lord, if they are blindsided in such a way that humans die, or worse, are tortured and dissected; Humanity will wage a very human style war¡ we have a term for it.. Total War. It is brutal, and it is complete. You have seen my gun camera footage as I explained some of what my ship is capable of. Know this. Concord is among the smallest and least effective warships in humanities arsenal in terms of direct combat. Her strength comes in her ability to go unseen, to strike with Blackness of the void her cloak and herself as the dagger. Frankly, that should terrify you.¡±
¡°And yet you would request our aid in reaching them¡ telling them we, and the Unity exists¡ Delmar has no love for the Unity¡ but I do not want the blood of Trillions on my hands¡± Darclemus stated sternly.
¡°I understand. However, I believe the death toll will be greater if I, with your help, do not act. I do not know all of the details, but I have been told a little about the conflict between Delmar and the GU. I know you have been looking for a way to strengthen your hand. I suspect¡¡± Mac paused suddenly¡ glancing around the room before sitting back in silence.
Darclemus narrowed his gaze; then finallly spoke, not to Mackenzie, but to his detail, ¡°leave us.¡± he ordered. Dangerous tones warned against protest. The security detail froze for a moment, then filed out silently.
The door closed and Darclemus activated the anti-eavesdropping system in his office. He turned back to Mac and nodded. ¡°You were saying?¡± His warning was clear.
¡°I believe you wish to break from your conquerors.¡± Mac said simply.
Chapter 21
Mac held his gaze for a long-pointed moment before continuing, ¡°You want to shed the shackles of Unity. I want to keep my species from being provoked into a war for extinction. For me, Humanity arriving at this part of the galaxy is a certainty. I know from the telemetry of Concord¡¯s test, that she was in contact with our observation systems before, during, and after she crossed the light speed barrier¡ humanity now knows it can be done¡. Frankly¡ considering my recorded flight time¡ if humanity continues down the road of slip-space. They will be here much sooner than 20 or 30 years. You and I have an opportunity. To Guide where Humanity entered Unity space, who they meet, and more importantly¡ who they view as friend or foe when they get here. That, M¡¯Lord, might not just save lives¡ but save civilizations. I have too much blood on my hands already to do nothing. I would have Sol ally with Delmar, and I would prefer Tribal approval.¡± Mac finished. The two sat in silence for a moment.
¡°I see your reasoning. I must ask you one final question. About my great grandniece... I know she claimed you... that is not often something successfully done with other species. I must hear it from you¡¡± Declamus said softly.
¡°We share emotions through a bond through some sort of empathic connection. I can feel her nightmares, they have woken me from sleep on occasion. She has felt my wrath, as I nearly killed the Lycan spy, mentioned previously, with my bare hands for attacking her¡ the rest, a gentleman never tells.¡± Mac smirked at the last part, drawing an involuntary chuckle from the older Delmar.
¡°Indeed... that will be all, Mac. I¡¯m sending you home in my personal air-car. It¡¯s a little late to be out that far alone at night. Dismissed¡± Darclemus stood and shook the offered hand of Mackenzie. He pondered what had transpired and decided to sit alone until morning. He had much to ponder.
Mac was dropped off just after midnight. Thanking the 28-hour days for the extra time, he slipped inside and quietly crept up the stairs. Lyri was asleep, curled up in their massive bed in their master suite. 10 min later she gave a happy mumble as he slid up behind her, wrapping one arm around her and passed out as big spoon to her as she faded back out of consciousness.
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Later that night, the door to Darclemus¡¯ office chimed. ¡°Come¡± he ordered.
His head of security stepped through the door. He was wearing his customary deep sea blue uniform with bright auburn stitching and what a Terran Marine would all Blood stripes, but in silver. ¡°We recovered the Gri¡¯kra from where Maruk and Mr Grarzia were attacked¡¡± the man paused. It was unlike him to break from efficiency.
¡°Go on Plorus, if you please¡± Darclemus ordered, but gently. The man¡¯s face shown this was no normal report.
¡°Sir, I¡¯m not sure you would believe me... I still don¡¯t, I came to bring you to see the beast¡ or what is left of it..¡± Plorus responded. Darclemus raised an eyebrow, He had been at this a long time. He knew all of his staff as intimately as close family, and most of their families as well. If his chief of security was going to break from protocol, it was for a reason, and Darclemus was not in the Habit of surrounding himself with fools.
¡°Very well,¡± he stood, giving the younger man a smile, ¡°Lead on.¡± and he followed his chief of security down to a department normally resourced for solving mysteries of a more criminal nature. They also dissected the occasional beast to ensure it was the correct one on the rare occasion they had to hunt a ¡®man eater¡¯ on their land.
What was left of the beast was laid out on the examining table. Plorus had been right to bring him down here, He would not have believed a verbal report, ¡°What am I looking at here.¡±
His security chief nodded to the lab coated Delmar male currently washing at the sink. ¡°Tell him what you told me.¡±
The tech walked up to where some of the head of the beast was laid out, ¡°I guess we should start out somewhere. There was not much left of the beast¡¯s cranial vault. You can see a small entry hole here;¡± he pointed to a perfect circle roughly 5 and a half millimeters in diameter ¡°just above the upper mandible. We have some bits of metal embedded in the torso, but we believe it to be some kind of casing. Not the main projectile. Whatever the main impact was, it was kinetic; and it was traveling well in excess of the speed of sound. It acted almost like a Flak Kannon flechette on soft tissue, causing a shock wave in the water content of the brain. This turned the tissue itself into a bomb, shattering the orbital bones and facial structure. As you can see¡± the tech indicated to the bottom jaw ¡°it sent bone shrapnel and hydrostatic shock down as well. The lower mandible is shattered in 6 separate places at its hinges. The primary projectile exited the back of the cranial vault and was not recovered.¡±
The tech stepped away from the ruined head of Delmar¡¯s most dangerous species, working his way down its body, ¡°These holes in the thoracic cavity tell much the same story. Massive hydrostatic shock liquifying the organs and shards of bone lacerating the surviving ones. I would note that we have not found all the pieces. Whether those bone fragments were pulverized on impact or flung from the thoracic cavity, I do not know. The left wing¡¯s membrane has one 5 and a half millimeters wide hole in it with several lesser secondary impacts. This did the least damage. The membrane was stretched out in flight and had little for the projectile to influence. The last hit we will look at is on the other wing. We can see a direct impact to one of the limb joints. 4 cm on either side. And the joint itself is simply gone.¡± The scientist finished his analysis, and the room fell silent. Faces creased with both concern and incredulity in equal measure.
It was the tech who spoke first, ¡°M,Lord.. this beast looks like it took a hit from a ship grade kinetic¡. I have read the report. Is it true that this animal was felled by a handheld device?¡±
¡°It is¡¡± Darclemus nodded slowly.
¡°I would say that is not possible¡ but I know Maruk as a personal friend... skittish as the poor man may be, he does not lie. I would like to have a look at the weapon that did this¡ if we can scale it to our ships¡...¡± his voice trailed off.
The scientist, Professor Quintius Grem was pulling double duty. Monster dissections were rare. As such, no permanent position existed for autopsies and dissections. Professor Grem simply had minored in Delmar biology and had taught himself to be a forensic analyst on the side. His true vocation was in Aerospace Design for ships, weapons, engines, ect¡and Energy research. He was the head of the Helyon R&D think tank that tried to improve life for the freighter captains and crew.
¡®So, this is what small human weapons are capable of... Void, Mackenzie might be right¡ at least right enough to take the chance¡¡¯
The head of state shook himself out of internal thought. ¡°Thank you, professor. I¡¯ll see what I can do.¡± He nodded and departed for his office.
6hours later his wife Clarise walked into his office, ¡°Come dear, you¡¯re practically asleep already. Tomorrow¡¯s troubles can wait.¡± She walked with a cane, but her voice was strong still.
¡°Hmm indeed,¡± Grumped her Dar, ¡°you always were the smart one¡± he whispered, taking her hand, and following her down the hall to their quarters, as head of state was traditionally to live on The Hall.
¡°I know¡± she smiled.
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Over the next week, Mac and Lyrian settled into a routine. Exercise in the morning, with a 10K run and calisthenics in their vests. Both of them enjoyed this run more now that they got to do a run through the jungle on various elevated walkways. They had incorporated ladders into their run to push Lyrian Just a bit. The hardest was the gravity. Mac had explained to Lyrian that they needed to slowly acclimate her heart and circulatory system to Terran gravity as well. So, at the beginning of week two, Mac had turned on the custom gravity plating in the houses foundations up to 1.25 Delmar G. This was hard on Lyri as her body strained under the unrelenting feeling of being slightly heavier. The few days fell away more ease as her body responded. Failure week had them do calisthenics inside under elevated G in their vests until failure. They pushed the run to the afternoon to give Lyri time to recover.
Mac had several more meetings with the Helyon head of state. The man was cautious. Mac could not blame him. Darclemus had finally given his limited permission. Mac to begin his plan and contact Sol. He had instructed Mac on what he wanted in the message. Mac agreed with the caution and easily agreed to the restrictions.
The beginning of the first month saw Mac and Lyri, in her now altered to fit her physique void suit, climb into Concord, and depart for one of Delmars research facilities and Orbital subspace relays. They had taken sporadic flights, staying in atmosphere. Lyrian was still learning how to land but had become proficient at taking off.
Darclemus had insisted on seeing the famous/infamous ship depart. He was amused at how a ship so advanced and powerful had no vertical takeoff ability. Mac had handed out ear protection before following Lyrian up the ladder. She finished off the checklist right as he strapped in. Concord awoke from her slumber with her customary baying screaming Howl. Mac noticed that most of the viewing entourage had stumbled back slightly in fear as Concord bellowed her greeting.
¡°Ok, that¡¯s enough messing with the poor civies.¡± Mac said into the intercom.
If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.
¡°Skies clear, we have our flight plan, we are to report to Delmar Departure when we leave atmosphere¡± Lyri read off behind him, ¡°scopes clear, beacon is on.¡± she finished.
Mac smirked into the camera as Lyri caught his expression, ¡°Engage.¡± He said.
He could hear her giggles over the com as she pressed the throttles forward.
The small crowd took several more steps back as Concord roared past. And leapt for the black once more.
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Captain Clint Stevens leaned back in his office hair. He was back in Houston Station. This time in one of the offices near the research labs. Admiral Gwen had been forced to contact the United Sol Command after he had shown her what he found. Someone had caught wind and FOIA requests had broken the news to the public. LEAP was not a classified program after all. After all, one of its purposes was to mend deep wounds through the pursuit of science. ¡°We are not alone¡± headlines had washed through both Terran and Martian headlines almost consistently since. This resulted in Terran command being pressured into refusing to classify LEAP. Whatever they found¡ everyone would know.
The result was Clint¡¯s promotion and elevation to minor celebrity status on top of his and Mac¡¯s service record. He hated it. Mac and him both hated the fame of being the single most deadly TALON crew on the Terran side of the GSW. This was worse, because every dumbass with a press badge inevitably brought out the one with the other. He was relieved to be able to leave Terra and return to Houston Station. It was easier to hide there¡ or just lock the doors claiming sensitive processes or testing. Most of the time the claim was even accurate.
Mac¡¯s console beeped, ¡°yes?¡± He answered.
¡°We are ready for the test, sir,¡± the voice stated, ¡°We have authorization to utilize lighthouse, finally.¡±
¡°Outstanding, prep the sensor array and run a fill system check with Johansson. Stevens out.¡± Clint closed the call and stood, straightening his uniform. It had been months since he had lost a brother. The pain had fueled him. Mac had sacrificed himself for this program. Clint refused to let the work go unfinished.
They had deciphered much of what the original data stream had Been. They could tell it was in code, or maybe a language, but they didn¡¯t have enough information. 6 weeks from now, the second slip space test was scheduled. It would be unmanned this time. The probe was built, but the ftl eggheads were waiting for him. Some of the raw math found suggested a layer below slip space, but they needed more. This test was to hopefully get that for them... in time.
Clint entered the main lab. ¡°Status,¡±.
¡°Array¡¯s Board is green.¡± Johansson reported.
¡°Light house synced to our input, go.¡± came another voice, Kraus maybe.
The rest of his staff sounded off.
¡°Activate Light House¡± Clint commanded. Nothing happened. At least not dramatically. The consoles streamed data past Him, and the quantum beacon flared to life for exactly two minutes then shut down.
¡°Light-house cycle complete. Pandora array active.¡± came the conformation call.
The array that had been overloaded had been renamed after the MOA that had claimed his brother. To be more accurate. The array was not overloaded as much as over saturated. It had been too sensitive in its calibration and had been unable to handle the intensity and density of the packet of data that it received, triggering an emergency shot down about 25 percent of the way into the reception. Pandora array had been recalibrated and isolated from the deep space listening system. It stayed in its exact location, but now it was listening for the right patterns.
¡°Now¡ we wait¡¡± Clint mumbled, ¡°call me if you get anything. It may take a while.¡±
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Mac settled heavily into the offered seat. It was finally ready. The research facility¡¯s array could finally handle the power required for the transmission test. Lyrian was standing over the Coms station watching the data being compiled. Mac was sitting at the power management console. He had linked Concord to a data pad in his lap. They were going through the final preparations. Darclemus had approved of everything, even the private message he had included to his brother, as well as to his Aunt Gwen. The head of state had respected his privacy there, only asking that the private messages be held to the same information restrictions. They were, of course, but Mac appreciated not having to play them for the Patriarch.
The Techs on the station were practically drooling over Concord, or at least her power numbers. Concords twin Helion Industries, formerly Helion energy, fusion cores followed standard nuclear designs dating back to the early 21st century. The only difference is she did not require steam to produce her power. She made electrical energy directly from the plasma based fusion reaction. The tradeoff was that the Helion based design was extremely efficient, but only when running at full capacity. So, the standard procedure was to carry enough fuel onboard the reactor to continually run until it¡¯s overhaul. As such, Concord could run her twin cores for a total of 3 years continually. With Mac being in a position to have a parent vessel, and not having to run continuously, he had a considerably longer duration before that became a problem.
That¡¯s not what the techs were drooling over¡ they had run a full power test on Concord¡ and she had enough juice to run their biggest capital ships¡. For two months with every system on and ever weapon firing before the capacitance-based power banks would stop being charged. Max was no scientist. But he did ask how Delmar reactors operated. This side of the galaxy had settled on magnetic confinement. It worked better with the fuel available in this part of the universe. But it was power limited to several orders of magnitude lower output because of molecular degradation of the reactor walls. Otherwise, the electrical current phases were very close in compatibility. There was just the not so simple task of beefing up the space station¡¯s grid, so they didn¡¯t blow themselves up trying to send their message.
Mac monitored the power output, easing a little more into the system as he slowly fed the research facility. Concord lent her strength to the massive subspace emitters as she prepared to ¡®phone home¡¯. Mac had dug through his files to find that movie. He and Lyri had watched it the night before they departed for orbit. He caught a movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see Lyri staring at him with a smirk... Lyri¡¯s smirk turned into a smile as she hunched over slightly, raising her index finger on her right hand, slowly waving in a circle. Mac snarfed into his water glass, then smothered his laugh with a cough. He turned his attention back to avoid the grin of triumph from Lyri he reached for the power controls it was about time to...
¡°Mackenzie! We have contact! The subspace contact is back!¡± a frantic Delmar scientist came bolting in waving a pad. A stone sank in Mac¡¯s gut as he bolted to his feet. He swung around and snatched the pad as the tech ran past him. Mac frantically scrolled through the Data¡
¡°GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!!!¡± Mac bellowed, roaring his rage before sinking heavily to his chair. The entire room froze. The Delmar techs looked on in terror, and no one dared move, save for Lyri who was experiencing everything in excruciating detail. She rushed to his side, cupping his cheeks in her hands, and pressing her forehead to his, ¡°What is it, love.¡± She was equal parts trying to calm him as she was trying to show the rest of the techs unfamiliar to humans that he wasn¡¯t angry, at least at them. One or two slowly unwound but no one moved.
Mac dropped the pad, leaning into the gesture before pulling her hands into his left and picking up the discarded pad¡ ¡°They activated Light-House¡¡±
¡°Oh Gods¡¡± Lyrian gasped, she remembered the details as to why Mac ended up where he did.
¡°were there two signals?¡± she asked softly..
Mac shook his head, ¡°No... 2 earth minutes. That¡¯s all they activated it for¡ the same procedure as for me... They just sent someone else¡ to god knows where¡±. His head sank, ¡°Dhia, gl¨¨idh iad. (God save them.)¡±¡.
¡°Mackenzie, Sir, we are almost ready.¡± one of the techs said softly. Mac nodded and straightened, paying in the last 10 percent of the power needed from Concord. A low Thrum started building in the station¡¯s bones as it struggled to control the energy coursing through its artificial veins.
¡°Array ready! Transmitting!!¡± shouted the lead Researcher, Professor Grem, over the building Din.
A full minute passed before, ¡°COMPETE! Shut it down!!!!¡± the professor shouted lunging away from a console that started sparking and smoking violently. Mac triggered the emergency shut down on Concord, cutting the power off to the station. Two more consoles failed, but the power bled down into a prepared overflow capacitor bank left empty for this operation.
¡°Well, Mackenzie, that was certainly exciting¡± Professor Quintius chuckled, picking himself off the the floor. He had a slight burn mark on one lab coat arm, otherwise unhurt.
¡°Other than the poor soul they just sent to his death¡¡± Mac mumbled, clearly emotionally spent.
¡°Yes. Well, hopefully they will see our message before they do it again. You couldn¡¯t expect them to stop testing, could we?¡± the Professor placed a hand on Mac¡¯s shoulder, ¡°now come! Let¡¯s get some food into all of us, its going to take a day to disconnect your mechanical marvel. Rest, we can look over the data later¡±. Lyri and Mac nodded their thanks and headed to the small mess.
Delmar was, ironically, on the boarder of the Galactic Unity closest to Sol. They had loosed their message true, but not fully undetected. A small intelligence satellite kicked out of the garbage airlock of the last Brig to patrol the edge of the Delmar Confederacy caught the transmissions power readings and vector... It also recorded the subspace pulse created by Light-House.. Its algorithms were not power hungry but were efficient. It compiled the little it snagged and sent a message. Deep in the catacombs of a governmental building on Termistrius Prime, the capital planet of the Galactic Unity, an alert popped up on the console of an Inquisitorius Analyst¡
Chapter 22
Professor Quintius stepped into the research station¡¯s mess. Mac sat in solemn silence, picking at his food with Lyrian not doing much better. Mac looked up from his plate, smiling ruefully at the thick bearded scientist. ¡°Well Doctor Grem, what¡¯s the reapers bill.¡± Mac said with a dark chuckle that was far from settling. Mac must have noticed. He took a breath and visibly calmed himself, ¡°My apologies, Humans use dark humor as a coping mechanism sometimes.¡±
¡°I¡see, well I believe I have the report on the exercise you were referencing.¡± The professor responded as he took a seat with them, passing over a data pad. Mac looked over the information.
¡°I don¡¯t see any signs of corruption in the transmission. We might be ok. Doctor Grem, I never got to ask this, but why does data travel so much faster than solid matter in subspace?¡± Mac out the slate down and took another bite of food.
¡°Well, it¡¯s a combination of a couple of factors. First, is the fact that it has no mass. In subspace, we cannot accelerate or decelerate. Only jump in and out. The power used in the jump, compared to the mass and velocity of the object jumping determines speed in subspace. The deeper you go into subspace, the faster you go¡ except for data. With Data, we transfer it in the transient border between real and subspace. The rules of power to mass are greatly exaggerated, but because data has no mass, we can simply overpower those rules for transmission, and distance becomes the issue. In the border between subspace and real space, an object of any mass slows over time. So, because of our current technology being unable to provide velocity, post jump, in subspace; the transient border is of little use to us for shipping, but invaluable for information exchange throughout Unity. Lyri took a quick glance at him. Mac¡¯s face has not changed, but their bond flashed with an ¡®ah ha¡¯ style of emotional excitement. Mac had put something together, but he wasn¡¯t going to tell the Professor.
¡°That sounds like a lot of math, and none of it the kind I am good at.¡± he finally said with a smile. Lyrian pointedly looked back to her food as Mac gave her a little reassuring squeeze on the forearm. ¡°What¡¯s the status on disconnecting Concord?¡± Mac changed the subject, ¡°I¡¯d like to depart soon. I promised Lyri some more seat time in orbit before we head home.¡±
¡°Your ship should be ready for you inside the next two hours. The techs are having a much easier time of it than expected. The overflow banks took on enough power that we won¡¯t need to tax our reactor for another 2 or 3 days. She is a truly remarkable vessel.¡± Professor Grem obviously wanted to see how Concord ticked.
¡°In time Professor Quin. In time. However, Human Kinetic Small arms have never been classified. They were developed in the private sector. Tell you what, tell me where to meet you next week, and I¡¯ll Bring some¡ toys¡ for us to play with.¡± Mac gave the bearded scientist a smirk as he set the hook.
Professor Grem¡¯s eyes widened slightly, ¡°considering what happened to the Gri¡¯Kra that attacked you, I look forward to it.¡± he said, ¡°Now if you will excuse me, we may have gotten off with relatively light damage, but damaged we are. I must oversee the repairs.¡± He gave a nod and departed.
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The almost imagined sounds of recycled air were sporadically drowned out by the puff from the emergency thrusters in Lyri¡¯s G-suit. It was just a touch less snug, and she cursed herself for it. There was very little room for exercise aboard the cramped research station. Mac had compensated some by getting authority to modify the gravity of their quarters. He had set it to 1.4 DG, which had been hard on her the first week. The problem was, they had been limited to an only partial Calisthenic work out without their vests. She felt ridiculous. She was in the best shape of her life, possibly the strongest Delmar in existence right now¡ She still cut a striking woman¡¯s figure, but she was still pissed that she had lost ground. This mission could not have waited, however; and she refused to skip out on a single flight in concord if she could help it..
Mac had increased her food, particularly protein and animal fats, intake as she increased her strength. When they met, she was eating maybe a quarter of what he did. She was now approaching one third of his calorie intake. Luckily, according to Mac, Delmar females differed from human females in that human female bodies tended to scavenge the body of all fat, causing them to deflate some under extreme strength training. Delmar biology did not. Lyri was happy that her body had kept her womanlier proportions, even as chords of thickened muscle were showing their first signs of ripples beneath her skin. Her focus re-centered as they approached Concord¡¯s open cockpit as she lay to her thrusters. Her thrusters had been in station keeping ever since their arrival. One of the problems they had to overcome was the incompatibility of Terran Docking clamps, vs GU standard docking formats. The solution had been found in Concords strength. They had only needed about 90 percent of her twin reactors¡¯ total output for the transmission. This left enough power to keep Jarvis and the maneuvering jets online after shutting down the rest of her systems. They had fabricated and adapted umbilical to access Concord¡¯s shore power connections. This was the trickiest part since Concord could easily fry every system on the station instantly, but only on the station side of things.
Concord was built to Terran Navy ¡®best practices¡¯ standards. As such, all terran navy ships capable of producing their own power, had and umbilical connection that was capable of transmitting power as well as receiving it. This had been used more than once to limp a wounded ship home from a firefight. Mac and Clint had personally used it to save his flight lead early in his career during his first mission. The sorte had not gone to plan, and the three-ship of TALONS had found themselves in a running dogfight back to their parent fleet after a Martian cruiser got lucky and spotted them on their optical array.
All of this had forced a spacewalk between concord and the station. The standard emergency thrusters had done the job nicely. The distance was minimal, less than 40 meters from the airlock to Concord¡¯s cockpit. She ran through her checklist as Mac floated around Concord once, doing a quick external inspection before settling into his own seat. This was their 9th void walk of the trip. Some to prepare for their transmission shot, but several to continue Lyri¡¯s training. She had spent hours inside her cockpit seat using the HUDS motionless simulation training modules. She had not practiced any combat maneuvers, but she HAD completed multiple simulated takeoffs, landings, and re-entries. She had passed the modules finally, and Mac had promised her something special. She looked up from her checklist to see mac floating next to her holding on to the lip of the canopy from the outside.
¡°You¡¯re in the wrong seat¡± he said through their intercom, ¡°you¡¯re pilot in command today... I¡¯ve checked your scores. You are ready. Take us home.¡± he smiled at her as she looked back at him in shock, then he laughed as she scrambled to unstrap herself before floating out of the back seat, pulling herself into the front seat. She had done a couple of simulations from Mac¡¯s seat, mostly to get her some experience at his controls. The most notable difference between their controls was that Macs stick and throttle were reversed from hers. He flew with his right hand on the stick, and his left on the throttles. She settled in and tightened down the straps as Mac did the same. The canopy lowered and sealed as they double checked each other¡¯s preflight.
¡°Boards geeen,¡± she called in the traditional Terran call.
¡°Same, reactors online. We are green back here¡± came Max¡¯s ¡®airline pilot voice¡¯. He was playing his part for this test. It was time for her to do as well.
¡°Main drive starts up, now.¡± she called as she personally awoke Concord for the first time. She monitored the engine data as Concord began to speak.
¡°Drives online, navigation online, optical online.¡± she reported.
¡°Weapons online, targeting online, sensors online, ¡°wizzo¡± go, scopes clear.¡± Mack reported back.
¡°Pilot go, launching¡± Lyri reported. They were being more formal than was their want, but this was a test after all. Lyri plied her will to Concord, and the vessel¡¯s low howl of idle blossomed into her customary roaring bellow with the bare hint in upper frequencies of hearing. Concord leapt for the planet under Lyrians touch as she made for the upper atmosphere. Lyri bore her fangs in a very human smile as she read 4 human G¡¯s internal on the HUD, she was barely exerting herself under a weight that would have crushed her not so long ago.
¡°Retro Initial Point in 45 seconds.¡± came the call behind her as she double-checked their flight profile status.
¡°On profile, retro in 30¡¡± she called. Pulling back on Concord¡¯s main drives to keep from overspeeding her reentry initial velocity.
¡°10 seconds¡± she heard the report, as a bubble of nerves and anticipation rose on her chest.
¡®Holy shit I¡¯m doing this¡¯ she thought as the timer reached zero. ¡°Initiating retro burn!¡± She accidentally shouted i excitement as she hauled back on the stick and goaded Concord once more to speak her rage into the void. Her HUD showed her trajectory as she looked up, but simultaneously looked down at her home planet. The HUD projected an artificial curve that she maneuvered Concord¡¯s attitude to match with the actual horizon of her planet. she held Concord there with the barest thought and pressure on the controls as velocity numbers bled away. A couple of minutes passed as they pierced Delmar¡¯s atmosphere with Meteoric intent. Lyri smiled as Mac started singing softly. She recognized the song he had shared with her while on passage, and joined in.
¡°Four, three, two, one
Earth below us
Drifting, falling
Floating weightless,
Calling calling ho-o-oo-ome¡±
¡°Retro complete¡± Mac interrupted their harmony as Concord reached the correct altitude and speed ensuring she would no longer be in danger of kipping off of Delmar¡¯s Atmosphere. Lyri executed the recovery, pressing the nose back down and activating the air brakes as Concord buffeted slightly at Delmars token resistance.
¡°Activating Aero, SCRAM active, controls responding green.¡± Lyrian called as she reconfigured Concord for aerodynamic flight.
¡°One contact 020/001 it¡¯s an orbital shuttle, negative intercept. Our course is clear¡± came Mac¡¯s report as Lyri punched HS1 into the nav bringing up the permanent waypoint to their home. An hour later, Concord once again roared up Hylisti straight toward their lodge at just below 900kph as Lyri¡¯s visual scan found the runway. She opted for a long straight in approach to give her plenty of time to go through the landing progression. Non vtol landing just wasn¡¯t a thing anymore in the greater galaxy, so this would be her first one. From the front seat, Lyrian could see so much more, and it made all the difference. Soon enough, the main tires chirped as she touched down 150 meters after the threshold numbers. A moderate burst of reverse thrust and it was time to shut the main drives down and close the SCRAM intakes.
¡°Well done.¡± Mac called as Concord came to a stop facing the door inside her hanger; and Lyri let out a massive sigh of relief. She flashed a victorious grin as she dropped down the ladders last wrung to be envelopes in Macs embrace.
¡°Go call some friends, let¡¯s go out and celebrate, you earned it...¡± he said.
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The Celebration dinner was an upscale jungle side cafe, Martin arrived with the woman who Mac had seen passed out with him during the homecoming party, his wife Mavira. Tristen and his wife Juelana; Brayton, Icario, and Tili were there of course. Lyri also invited her siblings, but they couldn¡¯t break away from their plans. Frieya, and Pamaris came. Mac learned that they were childhood friends and that they had ended up on different freighters when they graduated. Apparently Lyri was the first of them to claim someone. ¡°Frie (Fray) and Pam¡± got there first and pummeled the two of them with questions before the rest arrived. Silu and his bride had swung by with twins in tow to congratulate her but didn¡¯t stay, as they were on their own special outing with the grand babies. Mac decided he liked this side of ¡®Grandpa Silu¡¯. The Dinner lasted well into the night, with very drunk Frie and Pam going home with Mac and Lyri. They had carpooled in an air car here but decided to sleep off the night¡¯s festivities in a guest room rather than risk a trip home.
The rest of the week went uneventfully. Pam and Frie both demanded rides in Concord. Mac decided to let Lyri do a quick traditional solo. Three takeoffs and three landings in succession. This earned her her her full ¡®civilian wings¡¯ as Mac called it. She was allowed to take her friends up on the condition she stay under 2 human G¡¯s. She had nodded when Mac reminded her that her friends were not taking the intensive physical training she was doing and would likely get hurt if she pushed to hard. In the end, she stayed close. Choosing to roar up and down the beach with one in the cockpit and the other on the beach watching. Lyri then did the same with her mother and father. Mac decided it was only fare and talked Tristen and Martin into quick flights. Martin, the poor man, lost his lunch after his hop.
Mac took some time to use the house¡¯s auto fab to rig up a quick Gun Safe, where he deposited all the small arms that had been on concord for testing. It had long been decided that nothing would change molecularly through the knowledge the greater galaxy had on the subject. The lasts day of the week, he received an email from Professor Grem setting up a time for the meeting.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Clint walked into the meeting room at 0755 and sat down. It had been about 14 days since they had flashed Light-House. In fact, in about 10 minutes, it would be two weeks exactly. Clint settled into his seat to wait for the daily briefing. It was going to be another boring ¡°we are yet to receive anything¡± briefing followed by power consumption numbers and various other smaller experiments his department was responsible for, ¡®I wonder if Johannson is going to request another quantum computing session. It will be his 3rd one this month.¡¯ He had relented twice, but Cint couldn¡¯t do it this ti..
The door was nearly ripped out of its slots as the man behind it refused to let it open fully before entering. ¡°Sir! Contact!! We have an incoming signal!¡± it was Johannson.
¡°No need to shout Corporal, we knew we would get¡¡± the Swedish Scientist actually interrupted him.
¡°Sir, it has Sol encryption¡ It has Lt Mackenzie¡¯s LEAP codes... It¡¯s in our program langu¡.¡± The Swede never finished, the steel coffee cup pinged off the ground, but the two of them were already sprinting down the halls.
2 minutes later Clint and the Corporal arrived at the lab, ¡°REPORT!¡± Clint bellowed, more forceful than his want.
¡°Sir, we have it... all of it¡ Sir, it¡¯s over a Peta-Byte of data, including an entire Internal Log from ESS-Concord that includes several months of operations. It has Sensor and Gun camera footage.
¡°Jesus Christ, I want everything. Notify the Admiral. I want to kno¡¡± It was just Clint¡¯s day to be interrupted today.
¡°Sir, you need to see this. There is a Cover Message¡ Its Lt Mackenzie¡± one of the newer techs spoke up.
¡°Put it up.¡± Clint ordered. And the main view screen of the internally situated laboratory had its customary startfield image replaced with the Image of his best friend and adoptive brother staring back at him. His face had a formal set to it, and he was wearing his Terran Navy Dress Uniform. It was almost a black deep blue collor with silver strips down the outside of the legs, His Tunic was pressed, and he wore his wings without his official combat medals only the fruit salad. ¡®Definitely Mac, he hated his medals¡¯. He was sitting in a very strange cabin. It was reminisced of a northwestern American Rocky Mountain Hunting Lodge crossed with an Old Norwegian traditional accents.
¡°This is Lt James Mackenzie Authorization Code: Three two niner niner. This message and its contents are to be delivered immediately to Sol united Command. Cease all Test of the Slips-pace drive. I repeat, cease all test of LEAP slips-pace jumps. Inside this data packet is detailed information on what we are missing. I have included my entire recording from my flight data recorder. And separate messages with further detail. Mackenzie out.¡± The image of his brother froze as the message ended.
Clint stood frozen, staring at the man closer to him than any blood relative. He was alive, he was ok. He was in a position to send a message... could that mea¡
¡°Captain, we have found two messages marked private. One for you, one for the admiral.¡± Johannson reported. ¡°We received a message from the Admiral, she will be here within 2 Hours.¡±
¡°Send everything as instructed. Lt Mackenzie most likely has a better idea of what happened than we do. Contact LEAP and recommend they cancel the upcoming drone test. Send them anything that appears pertinent. Knowing Mac, he will be unimaginative with his file names.¡±
¡°Sir¡± it was a very young Tech, barely 17 years old. ¡°You sound familiar with this man.¡±
Nitro smiled out from behind Clint¡¯s eyes, ¡°He is my brother.¡± he smirked, ¡°LET¡¯S GO PEOPLE!¡±
2 Hours later Clint¡¯s office door slid open and Admiral Gwen Trenton rushed in. There were no salutes, Clint stood and the two hugged, both fighting back tears.
¡°Have you seen it?¡± she asked, finally breaking away from him. He pulled a seat around behind the desk and gave her his.
¡°No, Just the Cover Message. The one everyone has seen. He Sent two personal messages. One for each of us. I wanted to wait for you¡± His shock bled through his tone as His Adoptive Aunt nodded.
¡°Together¡± she said, wiping her eyes. ¡°Show me¡±
Clint pulled up the first one, ¡°ladies first¡± he said as he clicked play on the one addressed to Gwen.
¡°Auntie, tha mi an d¨°chas gun lorg an teachdaireachd seo gu math thu. Seadh, is mise (Auntie, I hope this message finds you well. Yes, it¡¯s me)¡± Mac started in Gaelic as his Aunt stiffened, frozen in place as irrefutable proof that it was indeed her Mac slammed into her like one of those accursed Rods from God fired during the war. ¡°Aunt Gwen¡± he continued in Gaelic, ¡°Tha an turas air an robh mi air a bhith air a dhol seachad air mo mhac-meanmna as fiadhaich (The journey I have been set on has been one beyond my wildest imagination)¡±, ¡®he was always one to speak the old tongue with a fourish¡¯ she thought as he continued, ¡°Feumaidh mi fios a bhith agad gu bheil mi s¨¤bhailte, nam bodhaig cho math ris an anam. Gu dearbh, tha mi nas s¨¤bhailte ann an anam na bha mi o chionn iomadh bliadhna, agus bu mhath leam gun coinnich thu rithe. (I need you to know that I am safe, in body as well as in soul. Indeed, I am safer in soul than I have been in many a year¡¯s gone, and I would like you to meet her)¡± he said. Turning to look off camera and switching to a language no other human had ever heard before.
¡°Holy Shit¡¡± Clint swore as an absolutely Gorgeous, and not quite Human, woman walked up and pulled mac¡¯s forehead to hers before kissing him on the lips and wrapping her tale around him and turning to the camera. She was slightly taller than Mac, maybe 6ft1 at most with the figure of a Supermodel mixed with an Amazon from fairy tale. She was wearing a short blue poncho with Auburn and silver trim crested on one corner with a code of arms of some kind. It layed atop one shoulder exposing the other. Underneath it was a black high necked halter top that exposed just a bit of her midriff above skintight black pants. Her skin was ornately Silver and Auburn patterned in an almost tribal spiraling mosaic that somehow evokes a cross between culture and camouflage. She had shoulder length silver hair with a razorback of shorter hair running down the back of her neck to disappear into her poncho, only to return along the back of her tail ending in a little tuft. Deep silver grey eyes peered into the camera as she took a deep breath.
¡°Tha mi an d¨°chas coinneachadh riut a dh¡¯ aithghearr (I hope to meet you soon).¡± she said in almost perfect Scottish Gaelic. Gwen let out a little gasp.
¡°you¡¯ve been practicing¡± Mac said in English.
¡°A little. I wanted special, to be special, yes?¡± She said in somewhat halted English.
Mac responded in that unknown language, and it made her smile and lean into him while looking back at the camera.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
¡°Auntie, I know you worried about me. What the war did to me. You know I believed I had lost my soul...¡± he said in English,
¡°Ma'' chan eil mi air chall tuilleadh (Ma¡¯ I¡¯m not lost anymore).¡± He whispered in Gaelic, then spoke in more normal tones, still in the ancient language, ¡°Na innis dha clint, tha mi airson gun innis thu dhomh c¨° ris a bha aodann coltach (Don¡¯t tell clint, I want you to tell me what his face looked like).¡±
He returned to English, ¡°I don¡¯t know if or when we will see each other again. There is much for Sol to learn before they reach for the stars. It¡¯s all in my official report. For now, I love you Ma¡¯. I hope to hear from you soon.¡± and with that the woman walked over behind the camera and the message ended.
Clint closed the file. They both sat there in shock, until it was Gwen who broke the silence with a deep cleansing chuckle that turned into a laugh as Clint looked over at her.
¡°He¡¯s right on one thing, your face was priceless.¡± she got out between gasps of laughter. She finally calmed herself once more, ¡°He¡¯s alive¡ our Mac is alive¡and thriving from the looks of it.¡±
¡°He is¡± Clint reached around the shoulders of his aunt, giving her a small squeeze, ¡°What of his warning?¡±
¡°In due time. First, your message.¡± She said, and Clint opened the next file¡
Clint¡¯s message que¡¯d up. The Camera had started recording and the striking alien woman was sitting on the couch speaking to someone off camera.
¡°This one¡¯s for Nitro?¡± The subtitles read as the same stunning Alien sat on the couch staring incredulously off camera.
¡°How¡¯d you guess¡± Came subtitles accompanying Mac¡¯s voice, speaking the alien tongue, appeared as he stepped into view and sat on the couch next to her in the same room as before¡ only he was wearing one of his obnoxiously loud Hawaiian Shirts and blue jeans with sandals. ¡®Classic Mac¡¯ he thought as the woman made a show of looking him up and down.
¡°Oh, right¡± the subtitles scrolled as Mac spoke in what apparently was the women¡¯s native language. He turned to the camera and spoke English, ¡°What¡¯s up Nitro! Has artificial Lightning killed you yet?¡± Mac said with a smile, ¡°Surprise!!¡± he finished before laughing at himself. Then he sobered, ¡°Brother, I think you know it¡¯s me. Im ok¡ Clint, I¡¯m ¡.¡± His eyes grew distant. The woman next to him grew concerned and drew close to him, lowering her head below his before giving him a little nip on the neck right below his jaw. ¡®Ok, she has fangs¡¯ Clint thought.
¡°I¡¯m ok, love¡± the strangely musical language sang as the captions scrolled. He looked back to the camera and continued in English, ¡°Clint, Brother, I don¡¯t know where you are, or if you are even still in the USN, but I fear they will need you. I have asked them to reach out to you in the official data stream that includes this message. Sol must tread with deadly care. The reigning power out here is likely to provoke Humanity if we stumble into them with closed eyes. That is what I hope to accomplish with this message, prevent bloodshed. The Unity, as they call themselves, have a history of¡. Experimenting¡ on individuals of new races until they can defend their own¡ Most just end up being swallowed up by this leviathan. I know Humanity better. We need strength. And we need strength in enough numbers to pressure peace. We have neither. Brother, I know you. I¡¯ve been inside your mind, and you inside mine. You know the gravity of my words...¡± Mac paused as a hand touched his arm. He turned and nodded to the woman.
¡°Enough doom, death, and destruction!¡± he slapped his leg with the other hand. ¡°Those are tomorrow¡¯s problems. I want you to meet someone.¡± He turned slightly to put his arm around the woman who leaned into him as if pulled by gravity. Or rather, as if they orbited each other.
¡°I would like to introduce, Lyrian Mackenzie Grarzia. Your sister-in-law, and my bride.¡± Macs smile was predictive as Clint snarfed into the mug he was sipping from, spraying coffee all over the desk. ¡°While you clean up the coffee, we met while her father was putting me back together after our little superluminal experiment. Her Species is called the Delmaracian, we mostly just use ¡°Delmar¡± in common conversation.¡± Mac¡¯s face straightened, and he switched to Gaelic, ¡°I want them as allies to Sol.¡± He smiled, then switched back to English, ¡°I guess you could say that I am a dual citizen. I am of Sol, but now¡ I am also James Mackenzie Grarzia, Tribe Helyon of the Delmaracian Confederation. She is the senior Con of the Freighter that found me when I washed out of slip-space. I don¡¯t live without these people, Clint. I had some ¡®fun¡¯ and scored some more victories, solo this time. Concord is her old self. I swear that ship has the soul, maybe from bits of us.¡± Mac paused in thought.
¡°Mac speaks¡ greatly of you¡± Lyrian spoke in somewhat halted English. ¡°In time... ¡°We meet¡ no.. will meet.¡± she gave up and the subtitles flowed as she finished in her own language, ¡°Mac has shared so much of his life with me. You are his family, and so you shall be my family as well.¡±
Mac spoke after she finished, ¡°What she is saying is, the Delmar have extremely strong family bonds. Its why I bear her last name, and She bares mine. The order Signifies the binding of two houses but recognizes who is joining the tribe from the outside. I joined Helyon through Lyri, she joined Clan Mackenzie through me in marriage, but is not leaving Helyon. So, she bares the Mackenzie name in the middle. I¡¯m sure you have a million questions but know this one thing. I have found peace, at least in here *he tapped his chest*. Know that it is possible¡. for men like us.¡± Mac paused.
¡°Gun ¨¨irich an rathad gus coinneachadh riut (May the road rise to meet you.)¡± he said finally. Lyri stood and walked over and turned off the camera. The message blacked out and Clint closed the file.
Clints mind whirred, ¡®Holy shit, I have a sister-in-law¡ an alien sister-in-law¡ and a galaxy waiting to play high school biology if we don¡¯t come with a strong enough hand to protect our people¡.¡¯
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
The Sol Federation Council was in emergency session. Chancellor Franklin Marovanski raised his hand, commanding silence. The entire chamber, and the entirety of both Terra and mars had watched both the Introduction, and the Official report of the wayward Lt Mackenzie. It took much to break the composure of the Council, but this had done it as sporadic conversation turned into a low din of chaos.
The Sol federation council was fairly simple, one representative of each country/dome of both Terra and Mars. Each representative was limited to one 5 year term and could not run again for another 10 years. There was an allowance made for the first counsel. To spread out the roll over cycle of elections, lots were drawn, and you could either draw a 3, 5, 7, or 9 year term. The 3 candidates were chosen from the representatives, by the representatives and then the entirety of both Terra and Mars picked one of them. It wasn¡¯t a perfect system, but it was the best idea at the time when everyone needed to have a voice NOW to preserve the tenuous peace after the Second Battle of CenterPoint. It appeared to be working so far as there was a relatively new batch of representatives and Franklin himself was in his 5th year, having drawn a 7-year lot. Silence did not come, and Franklin was forced to use his gavel.
13 hours later, the debate was tabled for the morning. Some wanted to send an emergency Force. Others wanted to cut all communication and fortify earth. A growing majority had taken Mac¡¯s suggestion to heart. Give the man on the ground the authority to share technology and secrets and build a power base for which Humanity can begin to trade with and Ally to. If this ¡°subspace data¡± was correct, information might be the only commodity available for quite some time.
The aid Coalition inside the Sol Counsel slowly grew over the next 4 days until it was voted on. Sol would be naming Lt Mackenzie as Acting Liaison/ambassador to the Delmar Confederation. He had authorization to share power production and engine technology and basic MAC technology. The highly advanced guidance systems aboard Concord had been veto¡¯d by counsel vote. The hang-up was in science. The Head of LEAP and Admiral Gwen Trenton had put a hold request on the execution order stating that her scientists needed to fully digest the data sent to them before they were to give a recommendation or input.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
It had been 3 weeks since they had received Mac¡¯s Transmission. Clint pinched the bridge of his nose. He was not a scientist, but he was a dam good analyst. It¡¯s what made him so good as Mac¡¯s back seater. Something in the back end of the code had caught his eye as familiar, and he had turned some of his Techs onto it. He had received a message from the night crew marked urgent. He had stumbled awake at 0245, and it was currently 0306 as he finally made his way into the Night crews lab... The smell of Coffee drew him to his command chair, and he found a fresh cup steaming in its cup holder and a positively migraine inducing radiant smile plastered on the Night crew chief. Clint held up one finger as the clearly excited man opened that smiling mug of his. To make a point Clint took a long pull from the coffee, then set it down and nodded to the scientist... The chief was practically danced from foot to foot.
¡°It was in the beacon, our engines did nothing wrong.¡± the man blurted out
¡°Calm down Harrison, what was in the beacon, and why did our engines do nothing wrong.¡± grumbled Clint slowly feeling the Caffeine begin to rouse him. He took another pull of coffee as the young Lt Harrison composed himself.
¡°Captain, We finished our data analysis on what you pointed out¡. It¡¯s the beacons... this subspace needs two sets of coordinates to travel accurately at any distance. Pure test runs using power won¡¯t work because of how you enter and exit subspace.. BUT..¡± he waved a singular finger, then handed Clint a data pad, ¡°We weren¡¯t trying to get into subspace, we didn¡¯t know it existed¡ we were trying to get into the boundary between subspace and real space, the space that you have to slip through to get to their version of FTL. And we can still do it. We analyzed the quantum data involved in getting the data packet here from such a long distance. We also studied their power outputs and reactor readings from the engagements that Lt Mackenzie was a part of after his arrival. They don¡¯t have the power to generate the quantum waveforms needed to ride slip space¡ we do¡ Sir¡. Your brother... he just gave us FTL¡. And an FTL that will be orders of magnitude faster than anything they will have on their end.¡± The man was practically bouncing.
The last of Clints brain fog burned away at that last statement, ¡°How fast¡±
¡°we don¡¯t have exact numbers yet.. but if we installed a Higgs Bosun mass regulator on the Drone¡ we might be able to make the trip in 4 months one way.¡± Harrison said.
¡°Holy shit... Do we have the ability to retransmit yet?¡± Clint asked, tapping out as email as he waited for the response.
¡°We do, we have just been waiting on a message.¡± Harrison said after a moment.
Clint nodded, ¡°I just notified the Admiral; we need to get on this yesterday. Prep a Packet and get the pandora array a full inspection. We are going to need to push its limits a little to get this sent.¡±
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Lyri was nervous as they descended towards Helyon¡¯s city center. She was in the passenger seat this time as the teacher. Mac was a terrifyingly good pilot, but he spent most of his life in craft that did not have vertical take-off or hovering capabilities for one reason or another. It had been an interesting experience teaching the veteran aerospace fighter pilot the finer point of not dying in a hover. This, however, was not the reason for her nerves. This was going to be her first full physical since she starting her regimen designed to give her the ability to follow Mac to his home world should he go there. There was more she wanted to ask her father, and now was the opportunity. Her first checkup happened to be on the day that Mac was meeting Professor Grem at their ad hock weapons testing facility. He would not be able to join her during her examination. She lightly touched her right skirt pocket, feeling the lump of the small glass vial.
¡°You¡¯re goin¡¯ to do great, love.¡± Mac¡¯s soothing voice interrupted her mope as they gently setting them down in front of her father¡¯s planet side clinic. He was more the owner of the medical facility but made a point to see patients when Traveler was on refit. Her appointment was in 5 ¡®minutes¡¯ or so.
¡°You¡¯re getting good at that. I barely felt us touch down.¡± She said smiling at him bravely before giving he gave her a peck.
¡°I had a good teacher, now go! Don¡¯t want to be late for your weigh in¡± he chuckled, using the term he knew teased her.
It was an unaffordable side effect of building herself up to withstand higher gravity. When Lyrian had met Mac, she had weighed a slight 25 ¡®kg¡¯. Now¡ she could feel it. Her body wasn¡¯t getting that much bigger physically, but she was heavier, her legs were beginning to ripple with muscle as she walked, and her core/abdominals were the same, if a tiny bit bigger long hourglass. The difference was that now that long hourglass rippled with what Mac called a ¡®six pack¡¯ she glanced down at the small, exposed portion of her midriff and flexed as she headed for the door, smiling as she saw her abs crease her stomach. She opened the door and stepped through.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
¡°Oh!¡± The receptionist squeaked as an intense Delmar woman with the body of a female warrior of the old tales stepped into the waiting room. The receptionist finally recognized the face of Icario¡¯s Daughter after a frozen moment.
¡°Lyrian! oh! wow! hi! Doctor Icario is expecting you. Please this way.¡± the receptionist stammered as she led Lyri to the back.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Mac settled the air car he had dubbed ¡°Vito¡±, much to Lyrians confusion, down on the sands of a rather large beach further to the south of his own property as a group of Delmar approached with a wave. He stepped out of the paradox of an air car and was greeted by Doctor Grem and an almost identical male Delmar, minus the beard, stepped up next to him.
¡°Ah, Mac! Good of you to join us, this is my brother Professor Bartrus Grem. He and I joint head ¡®aerospace and weapons¡¯ development for Tribe Helyon.¡± Professors Grem smiled at him.
¡°Wait, twins?¡± Mac asked back in shock ¡®you have to be shitting me¡¯
¡°A rarity for us, but yes Bart is my twin brother.¡± Doctor Quin responded.
Mac struggled down a laugh with a cough. ¡°Well then, my gear is in the trunk, sorry, cargo compartment. Give me a moment and I¡¯ll meet you at the benches.¡± Mac finished with a nod over to where some tables had been set up facing a shallow sloping dug bout berm that Mac had insisted that they build. There were three large tables made of a white composite of some kind. They had laid out some weapons of their own. There were some handheld, some possibly designed to be fired from the shoulder, and a few even larger, possibly squad level or crew served weapons on various mounts next to the tables.
Mac pulled a 1.5 meter long crate out of the back of ¡®Vito¡¯, he had had to drop the left side rear seat to make it fit, and calmly walked it over to the tables. He noticed the gaggle of eggheads stop tapping on their data pads and just stare as he solo hefted the crate on one shoulder and walked it to the tables. ¡®Right, heavy gravity bro stuff.¡¯ Mac remembered as he set the crate down next to the tables. He opened it to reveal two neatly stacked Gauss rifles, one made by Knights Armament, one made by Steyr.
The two resembled and were in fact further iterations of the original designs from the mid-20th century. When Humanity had moved away from propellant, they had discovered just how future-proof the venerable designs from the 20th century truly were. The weapons mimicked their ancestors in their exterior ergonomics and controls. They still fed from a 30-round box magazine of self-contained brass cartridges, ejecting the spent case after every round fired; and even used basically the same bolt and bolt carrier systems respectively. The difference came in the operating system.
Mac finished setting up in the open table area, ensuring that the weapons were empty and safe to handle, ¡°alright. Professor, this is your show... where would you like to start. All of my weapons have been rendered safe, but not inert.¡± He stated.
¡°May I¡± Bart, the professors twin asked, indicating to one of the rifles.
¡°Feel free.¡± Mac picked up the Steyr and handed it to the Delmar whose eyes immediately widened in shock. He looked at the rest of the group then hefted it, muzzle up, in on hand. The shock spread before he put it back in both hands and examining it, keeping the muzzle pointed toward the berm. ¡®Right, they have ranged weapons. Of course, they would know where to point the spicy end.¡¯ Mac chided himself as he relaxed a little. The weapon was unloaded, but bad weapons handling had always irked him.
¡°It¡¯s so light¡. How do you get the power pack to hold any shots?¡± He asked.
¡°There is no power pack, humanity calls them batteries, in it. What you are holding is mechanically triggered.¡± Mac responded. ¡°The rifle is unloaded, you can test the trigger if you like, the small lever just below where you are holding your index finger along the receiver, sorry, main housing.¡° Mac indicated to the trigger of the weapon. The beardless professor Grem squeezed the trigger as his bearded twin and group watched on. A prominent *CLICK* resounded from inside of the weapon.
¡°If you have no power pack, how is it fired? If I remember the reports, human small arms use magnetic acceleration not unlike our shipboard Flak weapons.¡± The bearded Doctor Quin asked.
Mac turned to him and pulled out a cartridge and projectile he had in his pocket. He had discharged the capacitor in the case completely, and had carefully removed the bullet, keeping the sabots intact. He handed the disassembled components to the man. ¡°Humanity figured out how to make very high powered Capacitors, the same type of thing in your power banks, very very small... the cartridge case,¡° he indicated to the brass ¡°is a capacitor. The projectile,¡± he indicated to the dart still wrapped in its sabot ¡°is pressed into the front. And on firing the case provides all the electrical energy needed to power the GAUSS components for one shot. The outer rim of the flat part of the back of the case is negative half of the electrical connection. The small circle in the middle is the first half of positive conductor. That small circle is spring loaded to not allow accidental completion of the circuit. The mechanical firing pen depresses it on firing, completing the circuit and the power from the case¡¯s capacitor to the system.¡± Mac finished. Everyone was paying attention now¡ Even Bart had stopped fidgeting with the Steyr and was listening.
¡°How powerful are these ¡®capacitors¡¯¡± he asked slowly.
¡°This is a 4.8 gram dart wrapped on a .1 gram Sabot with a total diameter of 7mm out of the weapon you are holding. This ¡®bullet¡¯ will exit the barrel at just under 1400 ¡®meters¡¯ per ¡®second¡¯¡± Max responded.
¡°How can you be producing over 3 times our fastest hand held Kenetics¡¡± Bart asked somewhat incredulously, ¡°without melting your weapon almost after the first shot...¡±
Mac had a hunch, ¡°may I see one of your kinetics?¡± He asked.
¡°Certainly¡± Quin said and walked away, returning with a very blocky yet bulgy, obviously, shoulder fired thing. He hefted it into Macs hands.
Max held it in his hands a moment, it was easily twice or three times as heavy as either of the rifles he brought today. It obviously had a power pack on board and looked like a combination of a war-hammer Bolter and an old G-11 from Heckler and Koch¡¯s failed caseless ammunition experiment. It too, fed from the bottom from a detachable magazine. Mac was happy to see that safety was universal, and that he had been handed a cleared weapon. ¡°May I see what it fires?¡± He asked and was handed a long rod of metal with a rounded tip.
¡°Ah, I believe I see the difference.¡± He laid the weapon back down holding their projectile in on hand. He walked over to his crate and picked up a full magazine and removed one of the cartridges from it. ¡°We tried to do what you have in the beginning and had the same heating issues. Human weapons can go several hundred to several thousand rounds before overheating to failure. And this is why.¡± he held up the intact cartridge, ¡°let me ask you this. Where does all the heat go. After you fire¡±
¡°Well, into the system¡± Bart responded.
¡°Why?¡± Mac asked.
¡°Because that¡¯s all that is available.¡± Bart reacted, somewhat incredulously.
¡°What if it wasn¡¯t?¡± Mac asked. Bart just gave him a pointed look, so Mac continued, ¡°We¡¯ve used chemical propellants to fire our weapons for centuries. In point of fact, some civilian enthusiast weapons still do. During that time period, we learned that this brass bit, we call the cartridge case, acts as a heat sink, and removes a significant amount of heat from the weapon as it is ejected to clear the way for the next firing. When we went to Gauss weapons. We tried, and quickly ditched, designs such as yours. It turned out, getting rid of the case was a great way to make a weapon that overheats quickly. So, we ditched putting energy into the guns, and returned to energizing the ammunition, only this time with capacitors and electricity instead of with controlled explosions.¡±
Doctor Quin blurted out in awe, ¡°and kept your guns from overheating! It¡¯s brilliant!¡±
The conversation dissolved as the Delmar scientists all now wanted to shoot Human kinetics. An hour and 200rounds of spent ammunition, Mac¡¯s supply was understandably scarce, and Professor Bart finally asked, ¡°why are you showing us this. These weapons are incredibly advanced. Superior even to energy weapons because of their energy output on target at distance¡ Why are you showing us these secrets before your human government gives you permission¡±?
¡°Because they aren¡¯t secrets. Humanity has been perfecting the art of throwing chunks of rock and metal at very high speeds for over 1000 of our years. These weapons were not created by our government. They were invented by private citizens, then sold to our government. In some places of my planet, it is considered a Human being¡¯s birthright to own, possess, even wear for protection on one¡¯s person, any of these weapons, even this¡±. Mac produced the pistol he killed the Gri¡¯kra from his waistband, quickly unloaded it, and handed it to Bart. ¡°This birthright is why you have a dead Gri¡¯kra in your lab.. It was slain using this very weapon. Had I not worn it that night, as is my want, we would not be having this conversation.¡±
¡°I see.¡± Bart waved Quin over and showed him the weapon. The bearded professors¡¯ eyes went wide as he was told that this was the weapon responsible for the damage to the Gri¡¯kra.
Mac dug in the crate for a moment and found a few loaded pistol magazines, and they went for one last shooting session.
Chapter 23
The tiles clicked on a dark hallway as it skittered through the halls of the Grand Unity building. It had no name. The inquisitorium had acquired it from its death row sentence. No choice was given to it as if portions of its brain were scooped out and replaced with compliance hardware... It was a face worse than death, as it was gone, yet doomed to roam the halls of power as little more than an automated courier. It used to be a Kri¡¯klis¡¯erklae an insect race from the earliest days of the Unity. It boasted six and like legs out of a curved thorax that served as both its legs foundations and a centaur like upper torso and foundation for its carpenter ant¡¯s head. It has no arms as such. However, its front two legs had two small claws each that it used to manipulate its world around it.
The Kri¡¯ ,as most just tended to call them, typically have a deep maroon color if they were healthy. This one¡¯s carapace was a sickly black with hairline fractures creeping along its joints and ¡®hip¡¯ area of its thorax. Its abdomen was shriveled and gaunt, indicative of a Kri¡¯ on the brink of starvation. The being would normally have stood proudly 1.5meters, but the normally rigid upper thorax stooped slightly as its weak exoskeletal walls were beginning to buckle from malnutrition. This courier drone would not last much longer. The wireless automaton reached the desired door and one of its forward legs touched the chime... the two massive doors opened. And it skittered through... it plugged a small data chip into the side of the desk leg it approached. No sooner had it done that, than a massive mechanical fist twice the size of a healthy Kri¡¯ flattened the drone... there was surprisingly little in the way of spatter, as this drone was almost dead anyway and three quarters starved. The hand then swiped the carcass aside and the animatronic monstrosity straightened back up as it returned to its resting position on its seat. The face plate of the Golem of steel flickered occasionally as the information was digested internally. 20 ¡®minutes¡¯ went by until it moved one more. Reaching for a com console, a faint glow appeared from one finger as console buttons depressed on their own before the iron giant sat back once more. The com connected.
[unscheduled report, state business,] a very digital language barked out
[sector 65294 has resurfaced¡ contact confirmed... recommendation: summon Unity Tetrarcy] the golem rumbled it¡¯s response like an avalanche speaking in binary.
[understood, grand inquisitor, expect response 2 ¡®days¡¯] the comm cut off.
The Metal Monstrosity checks its internal scanner scanners before uncharacteristically reaching up to its left temple and touched a panel. There was a hiss of a breaking seal as the entire face plate of the man of metal pivoted up and a pair of concerned beady eyes looked out. It leaned its engorged head back against its seat and slowly scratched its chin ¡®so much for fairy tales¡¯ it thought. Before a chime rang and the plate came back down on the Golem.
Time to go back to work.
Doc Icario stepped through the sliding door into the examination room to a warm, and very firm hug from his daughter.
¡°Oof, easy ¡®little one¡¯. Hello to you too.¡± he got out after she released him from a semi crushing embrace. Worry and anxiety creased her features as she sat back down on the bio bed. ¡°I know. Let¡¯s get started.¡± Icario said. Lyrian glared at him for a second, she had always been a bit more modest than your average Delmar. Getting a physical from her own father throughout her life had not helped. He struggled not to raise a surprised eyebrow as she disrobed tersely to her undergarments. She was still his slender daughter, but she rippled with new energy and power as the work she had put in so far made itself known under her skin.
She then did something very lyrian. She crawled up under the bio bed blanket and tossed the last two pieces of clothing out from under it before laying down fully on her back.
¡°Alright, let¡¯s start with the scan¡± Icario said, tapping the controls in front of him.
He started with a deep detailed full body scan, followed by specialized scans for each of her bodies systems: nervous, endocrine, circulatory, pulmonary, ect. The individual scans took a total of an hour. Icario then handed her some hospital exercise clothes, left her to dress, went to set up the stationary running test on the ¡®treadmill¡¯ she met him and performed a standard distance based cardio test. How long can one go at a standardized speed. When Lyrian finally called it quits, the test had recorded a 18 km distance with very little in the way of strain, and a final failure distance of 25 km. ¡®Gods, she is in better shape than most athletes.¡¯ He returned her to her room to change and told her to meet him in his office for the final word.
A few minutes later she entered his office in her more normal clothes, breathing more normally than anyone, Delmar anyway, had any right to be after her run.
¡°So, what¡¯s the word¡ Da?¡± She asked as he didnt immediately answer.
¡°Mac has done his homework; you are in the best shape of your life. He has you eating properly, so I¡¯m not seeing signs of malnutrition. At this point you could probably flatten Tristen.¡± Icario said.
¡°So, I¡¯m good to continue?¡± She asked carefully.
¡°Yes, I don¡¯t want to admit it but yes.¡± He admitted, ¡°Do you have any questions for me?¡± He looked up from his console and noticed the sudden change of attitude. She looked down at her lap for a long moment.
¡°Da¡¯¡.¡± She halted for a moment, gathering herself, ¡°I want to know if I can have children, with Mac¡± she said just above a whisper.
Icario took a deep breath. Children, in Delmar culture, were sacred to the point the large families were almost expected. Lyrian was the youngest of 3. 3 children were average in Delmar culture, with many choosing to have as many as 7 or 8.
¡°Has he asked?¡± Icario questioned very softly.
¡°Not in words. But I can feel him when he interacts with the little ones... He wants to be a father eventually. He''s tried to hide it, but he is not as good at that as he thinks he is.¡± she gave a small smile to her father.
¡°And you?¡± Icario asked, quickly putting his hands up in mock surrender at the lethal incredulity of his daughter¡¯s glare. ¡°Ok ok, I should know better, but I had to ask, as your doctor¡± she almost believed him.
¡°Well,¡± he continued, ¡°truly as your doctor this time I need both of your genetic material to do the analysis. You are Delmar, but I¡¯ll need some ¡ *cough* from him as well.¡± Icario was quickly becoming uncomfortable.
¡°I can help there too,¡± lyrian said, blushing brightly. She pulled a small called vial out of her pocket, ¡°I think this will work.¡±
Icario accepted the vial, and slid it into a bag, trying desperately not to think too much about it. ¡°I guess you always were a doctor¡¯s daughter. I¡¯ll start the tests ¡®little one¡¯. You will know when I do.¡±
¡°Thank you Da¡¯.¡± Lyrian gave him a more traditional show of affection and turned to leave, ¡°I¡¯m meeting Frie for lunch, care to join?¡±
¡°I¡¯m still not caught up from passage yet. Another time¡± he replied, ¡°have fun¡±.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mac was packing up after the demonstration and science experiments at the temporary rifle range. The Delmar research scientists were taking one of the rifles and a magazine of ammunition to do some testing back at their lab. He was mostly alone, taking in the beach and this strange new world as he slowly packed up his crate. The wind had died down from its earlier ocean breeze and the various flying fauna had returned not that the environment was no longer being violated by the supersonic sounds of gunfire. Mac paused just before closing the crate and leaned against the table he was working at just to take in the view.
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His memory wandered to being a child and young teen with his father and uncle on the water. The Mackenzie clan had kept a sailing yacht. Great Uncle Mackenzie had commissioned her in the style of the ancient pilot boats of Bristol Bay, but with modern materials. The boat was 150 years old the last time Mac had been aboard her, as beautiful as the day she was new. She spent many a season up and down the east coast. One summer mac had been pulled out of school 3 days early to sail the whole summer down to the Caribbean and back. He was 12 at the time. His reverie was interrupted by a tug on his pants. He looked down to see a young Delmar of about three or four.
¡°Are you an Alien¡± he asked. His tail was curled around his hand, and he was playing nervously with the tuft at the end. ¡®Little man is trying to be brave¡¯ It Melted Mac and he knelt to face the little boy.
¡°I guess I am, I¡¯m human. I¡¯m also Helyon. My wife is Delmar.¡± Mac said kindly, smiling gently and being careful to not spook the kid by keeping the gesture Delmar safe ¡°I¡¯m Mac, what¡¯s your name little man.¡± He ask gently.
¡°Lario, Lario Tilkmar¡± the kid said, ¡°my Ma is.. my Ma is¡¡± Lario started to get exceedingly nervous as he realized his mother wasn¡¯t where he thought she was.
¡°Hey hey hey, its ok. Did you guys come by aircar?¡± Mac asked, Lario nodded. ¡°Hey, so did I, Let¡¯s see if we can find her.¡± Mac said. Quickly closing the crate and putting it in the trunk of Vito. ¡°Do you know where you walked from?¡± Lario pointed toward a small building complex near the treeline, some kind of Caf¨¦.
¡°Alright little man, hop in the front. Let¡¯s head over and see if we can find her.¡± mac said. The kid lit up at the idea of riding in the car, Mac rolled down the windows down and started Vito. Mac had a good laugh as he hovered about a half meter off the sand and headed towards the caf¨¦¡ Lario was in the front seat having the time of his life trying to keep time with ¡°LowRider-War¡± on the shuffle. They arrived at the caf¨¦ and Mac shut down again. Lario, being a typical 4-year-old, clambered over the seat to come out of the same door as Mac. He picked the little man up and put him on his shoulders, ¡°Now you got the view, where¡¯s your mom.¡±
Lario grabbed a fist full of Mac¡¯s hair. It had grown a bit during the research station adventure, and he hadn¡¯t cut it since. The started walking to the caf¨¦ entrance when he heard a frantic female voice. ¡°lari!!!! Lari!!!¡± A Delmar woman came running out of the store next door wearing a simple tank top and skirt with sandals.
¡°MA! MA! I found an Alien!¡± Little Lari was bouncing on Mac¡¯s shoulders now as Mac laughed and wandered over to the woman.
¡°I think I found someone you might know.¡± he said with a chuckle. Setting the excited little boy down into the arms of his mother¡¯s arms.
¡°Lario Demitrius Tilkmar, did you go running off again!¡± She scolded the boy even as she hugged him tightly.
¡°Im sorry Ma¡¯¡± Lari responded somberly.
She glared at her son in only the way a mother can, then turned to Mac, ¡°Thank you, He loves the beach.¡± She sighed.
¡°I did too at his age, still do. I must admit, these beaches are pretty special.¡± Mac said.
¡°Mac let me fly in his car!!¡± Lari rally¡¯d, ¡°and he had music!!¡±
¡°He did, did he¡± she gave him a squeeze, ¡°What do you say then?¡±
¡°Thank you, Mac!¡± Lari beamed, and Mac ruffled his hair.
¡°Stick closer to family little man, you got lucky this time.¡± Ma scolded gently, but his heart wasn¡¯t in it. He looked at his mother, ¡°I hope you have a better afternoon Ms...¡±
¡°Tairilir Tilkmar.¡± She said, ¡°and Thank you.¡±
Mac waved to little Lari, then felt a tickle of amusement in the back of his mind. He turned to find Lyri standing with her hip against the half wall separating the walkway from the caf¨¦ seating. A strange wave of emotions hit him all at once from her. He decided to have a little fun and switched his gate. She bit her lip at him as he closed on her with utterly silent footsteps. he blew straight through her almost nonexistent public personal bubble, grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into him with a big kiss. Lyri stiffened just slightly in surprise, then melted into the lip lock, wrapping her arms around his neck. A snicker next to her brought them both back to reality as Frie just watched them.
¡°Oooh, steamy. Where do I get one.¡± she said and Lyri blushed. Mac just gave her a very human shit eating grin. That one threw her for a loop until he finally relented and closed his mouth for a less toothy version.
¡°Oh my, you two are intense.¡± she said as He joined them.
¡°Sorry,¡± Lyri responded as Mac stole a slice of tuber that was this planets version of a French fry and smiled.
¡°How¡¯d it go with Doc?¡± he asked
¡°Clean bill of health, Da¡¯ said I could probably fight Tristen and break him¡± She chuckled.
¡°Good, time to up the gravity then.¡± Mac said.
¡°Wait, what? What are you doing to my Lyrian.¡± came Frie¡¯s worried voice?
¡°Mac is helping me get strong enough to visit his world¡± Lyri responded with a smile.
¡°Is that why you look like a Fary tale warrior?¡± Frie asked, clearly worried.
¡°We are taking it as it comes, not pushing her body too far to quickly, but yes. She is training to be able to survive my world¡¯s gravity, and to survive Concord.¡± Mac responded this time, snagging another fry and dodging a playful swipe from Lyri. She gave him the barest flash of a fang, and Frie gasped a little at the show of aggression by her oldest friend and fellow flight college mate. Mac seemed completely unfazed and gave her a toothy grin then sat back in his chair and waved over a waiter.
¡°Delmar¡¯s gravity is, like, second highest in the known galaxy¡± Fie said eyeing up Mac incredulously.
¡°I¡¯m not from the known galaxy. Terra, my home, is 2.2 times Delmar¡¯s Gravity¡± Mac said, before his pocket buzzed and he pulled out a small device that looked like a mini data pad, ¡°Shit.¡± He said Darkly. Frie actually jumped a little, and Lyrian¡¯s head snapped to him.
¡°What happened¡± Her tone was a blend of worry and seriousness.
¡°DDF found a spy satellite. It may have noticed our transmission. It definitely noticed the second Lighthouse. It had this emblem on it.¡± He leaned over and turned the screen to them.
¡°Fuck¡± Lyri Swore violently in English. Frie just stared at her friend. ¡°That¡¯s and Inquistorius satellite¡¡± she said finally.
¡°Darclemus want to meet.¡± Mac said finally.
¡°Why? The Satellite?¡± Lyri asked. Mac shrugged as his food arrived,
¡°Let¡¯s eat, we can go after. he didn¡¯t give me a timeline. Just ¡®this afternoon¡¯¡± Mac said. Digging into his meal of chunks of grilled sea creature of some kind on a salad. He hadn¡¯t asked for extra meat or protein. They compensated by cooking for themselves most days to correct their diet.
¡°So, what¡¯s this I hear about you going back to school?¡± Lyri asked her friend to change the subject.
¡°Yea, I had fun being a shuttle pilot, but I want a Helm slot on a bigger ship. I¡¯m finishing my Category certifications this year and to go out with the freighters as a Con certified.¡± Fie Explained. ¡°I wanna get out there. I¡¯ve spent so much time buzzing around at home.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t be so sure, there are some wonderful advantages to staying at home.¡± Mac responded. Voice slightly pained.
¡°I say go for it! I was terrified to go. But I did, and I found him.¡± Lyri said. Giving Mac¡¯s arm a squeeze.
¡°I guess I could say the same. I don¡¯t think I end up here.¡± He smiled before stood up and tapped the console in the middle of the table, paying for the meal, ¡°my treat for crashing the Girl¡¯s date.¡± he said as they stood.
¡°Thanks, it was fun anyway. You¡¯re good with kids¡± Frie said then gave Lyri a wink before they parted ways. Frie headed to the Tram station and Lyri followed Mac to where he had parked the Car.
20 minutes later they were setting down at The Hall and headed for Darclemus¡¯ office.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
It was just after sundown on Termistrius Prime as 4 large metal bipedal monstrosities lumbered toward the Heart of Unity Politics. Ir¡¯Cothal was the capital city of The Galactic Unity. Terminstrius Prime was an Eden world. It had one of the lowest gravity ratings in the entirety of known Unity space. History had swallowed the first race, most people believed it was a small of stature species called the Corth¡¯Lithral, but they had not been seen in Millenia. The population of Ir¡¯Corthal had been confined to their homes by Unity Decree Alert. The Tetrarcy was myth and Legend to most common Unity subjects. They had been called only 2 times in the last 1000 years. Many of the denizens of Ir¡¯Cothal clamored at their windows to see the 30 ¡®meter¡¯ Metal beings as they lumbered, each towards one of the 4 massive doors built into the capital building in the city¡¯s centre.
The ground shook as the 3 pillars of guidance and their champion marched into the capital building¡¯s main tower as the doors closed behind them. Mystrius, Legaticar, and Aiericastum were the three of the Tetrarcy, the 4th metal being was their sword. The Head of the Inquisitorum, The Inquisitorius Maximar. Deep In the bowels of the monolith, the 4 men of Metal and fiber optic stood face to face, each ¡®chin just cresting a pedal of a podium that stood between them. As one, all four faces hissed along the edges around the circumference of the front of their heads. Each face pivoted about a hinge located about where a human would have a hairline. Stares extended from the cavity at the chin, and 4 much smaller beings stepped out and trundled toward the center of the podium where chairs arose from the floor.
The Corth¡¯Lithral were not quite as extinct as the greater galaxy would believe. In fact. There were exactly 4 of them left. Locked in Immortality and doomed to sterility. An enlarged head crowned a small lugubrious face punctuated with dead yet alert beady black irisless eyes. Their short legs pattered up to the seats as they held their longer arms bent at the elbow to prevent them from dragging their fingertips. These appendages were spindly. Indeed, they struggled to support the being¡¯s weight even in one tenth of Terra¡¯s gravity. Each being had no gender identifiers to speak of, even though three of them would have been female under DNA examination.
Each wore the same expression, the same slick transluscent skin that boardered on the edge of a greyish blue of an overcast day on the Moor¡¯s of the British Isles.
There was no pretense, no fanfare, no pomp and circumstance. Straight to business
¡°Inquisitorious, you called us. We have seen the information parcels. Do we have confirmation through other means.¡± It was Mystrius the overall leader of the last of a dead race, and manipulators of Unity.
¡°Do I have DNA confirmation, No Mystrius. However, I have this. The Inquisitorius Maximar waved a hand over the hologram that appeared before him, flinging into the center of the room a picture of Concord, taken during her encounter with Convergent Dawn. The head investigator of Unity focused on the side of the predatory craft to the logo on the side of the ship.
¡°They appear to have kept their archaic propensity for imagery. We have records of this organization from before the cataclysm.¡± The inquisitorius finished his adjustments to reveal a clear picture of a pair of flags. One was of a world surrounded by a pair of golden fauna. The second was of a red and whit background with a blue square in the upper left corner filled with stylized celestial bodies.
Legaticar spoke next, ¡°So the Archive seeding was successful, despite the inhospitability of the chosen soil.¡± He always had slightly more flourish in speech than the others. ¡°Does that mean¡¡±
¡°It is too early¡± Aiericastum cut him off, ¡°we must not fall to desperation, not again. For now, we watch, we wait. We do nothing. Should we deem it safe, we will act. Considering the capabilities of that one craft, we would have to reveal ourselves in such a way we cannot afford to bring enough forces to bare to be certain of victory. Legaticar, I will pull the Thermians off the scent and away from Confederation borders. We need the Legal system to make some... convenient rulings quickly.¡± He finished with a slight nod. Mystrius nodded as well, followed by Legaticar.
¡°It is done.¡± Mystrius stated, unceremoniously closing the greatest hall of power in this part of the galaxy. Each being trundled back to their Golems.
¡®Humanity survived; there may yet be a path.¡¯ Thought Aiericastum, ¡®there is much work to do¡¯.
Chapter 24
It had been over 5 weeks since the message to earth had been sent. Mac and Lyrian settled into a routine of heavy morning workouts followed by various personal and tribe meetings. Tristen had started running with them again about a week after the events at the research station. This time, he had his own vest in tow. He, his wife, and all 6 of his children lived about 20 minutes away by high-speed jungle tram.
Lyri passed another physical from her father and Mac had decided to cook human style over a fire pit and invited Tristen and his family for a cookout. Mac had smoked a titanic amount of cloned ¡®roast¡¯ and Lyrian made a massive spread of sides and deserts. Tristen¡¯s family arrived and the kids immediately bolted for the hanger to see ¡°Uncle Mac¡¯s¡± ship. Mac disabled all the controls and let them climb around in the cockpit for a few minutes before they headed back to play a game of tag mixed with hide and seek. Eventually, Mac became the ¡°great Smokey monster¡± and he spent half an hour chasing them all around until he was finally ¡°slain¡± by Tristen¡¯s oldest. He fell dramatically only to be piled on by the rest to confirm the kill. Mac dug a kid¡¯s movie out of his archives of his ¡®try not to die of boredom¡¯ hard drive he had filled before his fateful test flight. The evening finished with a dog pile of little ones on the couch inside watching ¡°Treasure Planet¡± while the adults sipping a Delmar made beverage that Mac swore tasted almost like Brandy.
Normal Evenings were spent watching a movie in English. Lyri had an ear for language, her English was good enough that Mac had banned translations during movies so that she could get at least some immersion. Gaelic had been harder. Mac had been immersed in it at a young age by his mother¡¯s side of the family. He had to go slow with the old tongue with Lyri because of this. She was beginning to understand it, and respond in kind in short phrases, but writing it a struggle still. He tried to get in a little immersion here and there, using the old tongue around the house for simple exchanges. That had gotten him in a rather pleasant sort of trouble when he greeted Lyri one morning by calling her his ¡°R¨¬bhinn Airgid¡± or ¡°Bonny silver lass¡±. The morning run started a bit late after that one.
Mac had also spent a few afternoons with a borrowed earth mover. He had scraped a 300m long shallow ramp into the ground along the clearing that had been made for the landing strip, and he had piled all the dirt up and packed it down into what he called a ¡®shooting berm¡¯. It was time to fulfill a promise.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
The day came, and Mac awoken early to the smell of cooking meat. He groaned a little before surrendering to consciousness as he threw some shorts on and stumbled down the stairs. ¡®This does not get any easier without coffee¡¯ he mused as he wandered into the kitchen to see what Lyri had concocted for breakfast.
Lyrian had forcibly taken a more traditional Delmar female roles around the house. The kitchen was her domain at breakfast. If Mac wasn¡¯t grabbing a glass of water for himself, hanging out for a conversation or showing her a new human dish, he was banned from the kitchen until at least lunch. No cooking, no cleaning, nothing. She had also flatly refused to let him help her clean up after meals at all until he began teasing her incessantly with little nips and kisses on her neck and shoulders while her hands were too busy to defend herself against his wandering finger. After a few¡ delays¡ in after lunch cleanups, she had relented to joint cleanup for lunch and dinner. Breakfast remained sacredly her Queendom, and she was damn good at it.
This morning went no different. Breakfast was meat and protein heavy. Lyri had graduated to 1.6 Delmar gravities at home a week ago. Her strength was getting more defined. Her body continued to hold its female physique. She would never bulge or bulk up like a Terran body builder. Her strength was long, sleek, and lean, her arms, legs and core were more defined, and she no longer had to flex for her abdominal muscles to hint at their potential. Mac had also been adding weight to his vest. He was up to double what he needed to be his Terran weight. He was bulking up a bit. He wasn¡¯t going for anything crazy; but he liked the progress, and it kept him from feeling like he was slacking off, considering how hard his Lyri was working.
He rounded the corner, following the smell of ¡®bacon¡¯ and some kind of egg. ¡°Smells good, luv.¡± He said as she looked up hearing his voice. She was wearing a running top, not unlike a sports bra and short running shorts. She looked him over for a moment and bit her lower lip with a fang, seeing him shirtless. She must have picked that mannerism up from one of his movies. He took a few steps toward her snagging her by the waist, drawing her in and planting a kiss on her. He couldn¡¯t manhandle her as easily now, but she liked to let him anyway. He had asked why once, ¡°The claiming is a paradox. The female gets to possess the mind, and some would say the7 soul, of her mate; but in doing so she is also surrendering a significant part of her will to him.¡± she had said.
He felt the discipline it took on her part, as she pulled away from him after a moment. She leaned back, with both hands on his chest, his hands still interlocked about the small of her back, ¡°We don¡¯t have time, you promised guns.¡± she whispered. He smiled, then broke through her defenses with a squeeze and planted a kiss/nip on her neck.
¡°I know, I¡¯ll go pack up¡± he said before breaking away from her entirely, dodging the swat of a dish towel. She gave him a pointed look as he retreated up the stairs to the gun case.
Breakfast, a run, and a shower later, both were walking out past the hanger to the improvised shooting range, Mac had finished earlier in the week. Mac had acquired a plasma ¡®rifle¡¯ and a laser pistol, and he started by having her shoot something familiar first. He observed her safety habits. The targets were a large, watermelon sized fruit that he had been given since they had gone bad from sitting too long. He had about a dozen, but only three were out right now. Delmar had very little in the way of civilian support for martial sports, so Mac could not just pop down to the gun store for targets. He had to make do.
Lyrian had been around ranged weapons before due to her training requirements to crew Traveler. She knew how to be safe, unfortunately this is where Mac ran into some blatant differences in galactic weapons development.
The laser pistol was universal inside the GU. Visually it reminded a second or 3rd generation of a buck rodgers ray gun. Sleeker, and less retro, but still very ¡®1980¡¯s futurism¡¯. The weapon had no recoil, generally did an acceptable amount of damage, and was the easiest to make in sidearm form. It held 20 shots worth of charge, but the power pack could not be replaced without tools. When you ran out, you were done. It also had an overheating tendency. If it were fired as fast as it could cycle, it would automatically disengage the button that served as the trigger after 7 shots to prevent overheated and allow the weapon to cool down to a certain point before allowing more shooting. Lyrian fired it the same way Mac had seen the scientists first fire his handgun. She turned her body to the side with one arm stretched out in what a Terran would consider 18th century duelist shooting position. She was a fair shot with the laser pistol. Making 5 quick hits out of 7shots before she put the weapon down to cool.
The plasma ¡®rifle¡¯ was next. It too had no noticeable recoil, it was chunkier than the laser pistol with a square brick of a power pack sticking out of the side. It also sported a curved butt-plate, not unlike a Pennsylvania long rifle. This weapon could only fire 8 times before reloading. The power pack doubled as a heat sink and was too hot to touch by the 6th round. Instead, the user was to fire until empty. The weapon then auto ejected the power pack, and the heat it was storing, to be replaced with a fresh pack by the user. On top of being unwieldy and low capacity, the projectile it fired was a cartoonish imitation of a Star Wars blaster bolt. The plasma ¡°bolt¡± was shaped like a rugby ball, and the plasma and containment field projectile traveled about the speed of a hand thrown clay pigeon. It did do more damage. The laser pistol had put neat, cauterized Holes in its melon, but the plasma projectile set the target on fire while flash boiling its internals. It was effective, if it got to its target that is.
Satisfied with Her habits and general weapons handling, Mac picked up his personal carry pistol. All the weapons for today were laid out on the hand build wooden shooting bench with their respective actions open, full magazine save one round set next to them. And a single round on top of each magazine.
¡°Good, I¡¯m glad I don¡¯t have to train safely, we can get to the fun stuff.¡± Mac started, handing the empty pistol to her, ¡°this is a gauss pistol, it holds and points much like the laser pistol. This is what it shoots.¡± Max held up the loose pistol cartridge. The caliber was a direct descendant from 357 sig, accept the 9mm hollow point projectile was now a 7mm dart shaped projectile with 2mm thick sabot.
¡°Only part pressed onto the front is the projectile, the brass bit holds a capacitor that is used to power the firing sequence for one shot. It is then ejected out of the port on the top,¡± Mack explained while picking up the magazine, ¡°and another, what we call a ¡®cartridge¡¯, is stripped out of here¡± he handed the magazine to her ¡°and placed in the firing position in the barrel.¡± Mac finished. He let her look at the magazine for a moment before he took it from her. ¡°Ok, pull the slide, the part on the top, back slightly and let it go.¡± She did so and the slide slammed home with a clunk, ¡°alright, take a shooting stance, I¡¯ll be adjusting it for this new weapon.
She took the same right-handed pistol pose as before, and Mac slowly walked around behind her. He wrapped his right arm around her waist, lifting slightly to support her as he used his left foot to slide her left leg and foot forward, her hips followed her foot until she was square to the target melon with her feet shoulder width apart. ¡°Ben your knees slightly, love. And shift your weight to the balls of your feet¡± he coached as he ran his left hand up between her shoulder blades and gently pressed forward until she was leaning slightly over her toes.
He then pulled her waist shifting her hips and core slightly to balance out into an isosceles stance. He finished her repositioning by taking her left hand and placing it in the gap of the grip left by her right hand, rotating her wrist forward until her left thumb was sitting under her right and her left-hand fingers were wrapped around her right hand. He squeezed her hands, ¡°this weapon has recoil, because it is a high velocity mechanically cycling kinetic. Squeeze the grip with about half of your grip strength to retain control before you fire. There is no button, the trigger is a mechanical lever that releases a firing pin. Pull straight back and let it be a surprise when it goes off. The three dots you see on the tabs on top? They are the rear leaf and front post of your sights. Line the dots up in a row and place the center dot on the target. Go ahead and try it.¡± He stepped back and watched her as her finger found the trigger and squeezed¡.. *CLICK* the striker fell, and she barely flinched, but after not before. That was a good sign.
¡°Well done, now let¡¯s try it for real,¡± he walked over to her left side and placed the magazine in her left hand. ¡°Insert it in the grip, pointy part of the ammunition towards the target, and pull back on the slide as hard as you can. then let it go.¡±
Lyri did so and the weapon was soon loaded and ready. Mac nodded, ¡°These do not overheat like laser pistols. You have 16 rounds; you can shoot many many magazines before the pistol becomes overheated. Put your earmuffs and glasses on and take your time. You may fire when ready.¡±
Mac had elected to leave hearing protection off until she was ready so that she could hear his instruction. She set the pistol down and donned her muffs and glass. She picked up the pistol once more and took the two-handed stance once more. A few moments later the weapon in her hand bucked as the pistol¡¯s voice range out.
Gauss weapons had a strange report. They used no gunpowder, so the traditional boom of a chemical explosion seemed pointedly absent. This brought to the fore a quick piercing shriek of metal as the sabot interacted with the rifling, an electrical pop of rapidly discharged electricity that sounded like an industrial grade solid state fuse failing, and the crack of the projectile breaking the sound Barrier as the dart left the diminutive handheld weapon at just over 900 meters per second.
Lyri grunted in surprise as the shot rang out. The weapon bucked in her hand as the muzzle tilted up and the sliding part on top slammed to the rear, spitting out a brass cylinder missing its tip, then slammed back into position. She wasn¡¯t, however, gasping entirely at the weapons¡¯ movements. She was staring at the melon she had hit, or rather, where the melon used to be. The skin had peeled away as the fruit¡¯s meat exploded from the inside, disintegrating as the shockwave of the projectile turned the fluid inside the melon into an incompressible water hammer. There was nothing bigger than her little finger left intact of the melon. ¡°Holy shit!¡° she half chuckled, half gasped in English. She readjusted herself back to the strange, but solid stance that Mac had put her in, lined up on the melon with the laser pistol holes in it, and erased it from existence with a gentle squeeze of the trigger. This time, she had her grip pressure a little more correct and the weapon bucked less in her hands.
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2 hours later, she had fired both Human pistol and Rifle. She liked the ¡®Steyr¡¯ better than the pistol. Things were beginning to wind down as Mac called her over to the Steyr one last time. He had a magazine already loaded in it.
¡°Last lesson, full auto.¡± He said, and she looked at him confused. ¡°You have been firing one shot every time you pull the trigger. If I flip this switch over to here¡± he did so ¡°as long as you hold the trigger down, you will keep shooting until you release.¡± He handed her favorite back her and stood behind her with a hand pressed gently, yet firmly between her shoulder blades.
¡°Now, lean into the weapon, almost to the point of falling forward¡¡± he nodded as she did so, but he kept pressure on her back, ¡°Good, now aim for the middle of the berm, when I yell fire, you squeeze the trigger, no surprise this time, squeeze deliberately and say ¡®Die motherfucker die¡¯. ¡± he spoke the phrase in English ¡°Release the trigger on the last word.¡± He finished. She nodded, leaning in a little bit more and putting the dot of her rifle¡¯s optical sight in the middle of the berm.
¡°FIRE!¡± Mac barked, and Lyri squeezed.
She could feel her mouth moving, but her voice was drowned out by the unrequited wrath bellowing from Gauss rifle on full auto. The dot rose a bit, but stayed on the berm as she ripped 6 rounds off before she uttered the second ¡®die¡¯ and released the trigger.
¡°Good, again. Fire!¡± mac ordered, and Lyri ripped off a 7-round burst. And let out a squeal of delight.
¡°Again!¡± And Lyrian ripped off another burst. Mac withdrew his hand from her back, and they repeated this twice more before the magazine ran dry. Lyri could see whispers of heat quaver off the barrel at the end of her weapon. Her heart was pounding with exhilaration. She slowly lowered the weapon, extracting the magazine and leaving the bolt open on its last round hold open tab. She looked over to Mac and saw him beaming at her.
She clutched the Steyr ¡®Aug-G¡¯, taking care to not burn herself, ¡°can I keep it!¡± She begged.
¡°HAHAHA, sure. It¡¯s yours, my baby is currently with Doctor Quin.¡± Mac laughed.
They finished packing up and headed for home. Lyri refused to release her new rifle until it was time to put it in the safe, Smiling like a kid at Christmas the entire time.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
As they were finishing up, Mac got a message from the ¡®Brothers Grem¡¯. They wanted to show him something. He made a quick trip down to the Hanger and climbed into the cockpit of concord. He wasn¡¯t sure about his missiles, and they were classified anyway, but he wanted to get a 34GAU projectile to the twins. He had used up a substantial portion of his ammunition. The twin rotary MAC cannons were Concords Primary weapons due to quirk of space combat making missiles susceptible to point defense when inside of the shield bubble diameters of capital ships. The small steel wrapped tungsten packages of Wrath traveling at relativistic speeds were harder to shoot down. Mac activated the jam clear function on his left gun and shut back down. He hopped down to pick up the 30mm dart still wrapped in its sabot. He jogged back to the house and tossed in his ¡®day pack¡¯ he stuffed in Vito whenever he went anywhere.
¡°Let¡¯s go! I¡¯m flying.¡± Lyrian bounded down the stairs in her typical attire and stole the key fob from their hook. Mac just chuckled and followed her out to Vito.
¡°You make an offer I canna¡¯ refuse.¡± he said sliding into the passenger seat.
30 seconds later they were off headed to meet their favorite pair of twin aerospace eggheads. ¡°They seem pretty dam exciting.. excited.¡± Lyri said. She was practicing her English.
¡°They do, I wonder what they¡¯ll show us.¡± Mac chuckled in English as she corrected herself.
¡°Boolits¡± Lyri said with a confident, if slightly garbled pronunciation.
¡°How you figure?¡± Mac asked.
¡°Well, it¡¯s what you showed them lastly.. last. Assuming you don¡¯t have any metals in them that we ¡ uh.. ¡®can¡¯t¡¯ get, and auto fab should be able to¡ ¡®duplicate¡¯ it.
¡° Can¡¯t and Duplicate¡± Mac offered as she nodded as he filled in the blanks she had used Delmar instead of of English. She was doing quite well for someone who had only recently started learning.
¡°I hadn¡¯t thought of that, honestly. My home-world doesn¡¯t have autofabs as such. At least not on a mass scale.¡± Mac pondered
¡°And I need more boolits¡± Lyri said, deliberately mispronouncing the term this time, with an unrepentant smirk.
¡°Yes, we need more boolits¡± he said imitating her with a smile.
¡°I also need replacement ammunition for Concord. I can¡¯t share the classified tech in my missiles, but I¡¯m hoping I can have possible cannon ammunition made. I fear we will need it.¡± Mac said somberly.
¡°But not yet. Darclemus spoke as much. The Satellite didn¡¯t pick up any details. Just the act. Unity has always been fairly hesitant to intercede in Confederation business. We have time.¡± She reassured him with an arm squeeze.
¡°I hope so¡ I worry. We haven¡¯t received a transmission. And we will need to sweep the system constantly now¡¡± Mac¡¯s tone was one of an overwhelmed man.
¡°God dammit, I¡¯m a fucking fighter pilot... I never had the head for broader tactics¡¡± he struggled not to punch the upholstery.
¡°Bi ci¨´in a ghr¨¤idh (Be calm my love)¡± Lyri pushed calm through their link, ¡°F¨¤g an trioblaid a-m¨¤ireach a bhith (leave the problem tomorrow to be)¡±
He felt her do it and took a deep breath, raising an eyebrow at her use of Gaelic, ¡°Tha thu air a bhith a ''cumail a-mach orm (You¡¯ve been holding out on me)¡±
¡°D¨¬reach beagan (Just a little)¡± she gave him a sheepish grin.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Professors Grem turned as the door to the cavernous building turned ballistics laboratory slid open and a familiar pale skinned alien and bubbly Delmar female stepped through. ¡°AH! There you are! Come, come! ¡°, he waved them over to a countertop where the other of Macs rifles sat facing out to where a variety of targets stood against an angled and pitted backstop that angled steeply into a pit that appeared to be full of a kind of rubber.
¡°I see you figured out backstops.¡± Max greeted the bearded twin with a handshake. Doctor Quinn smiled at the gesture and returned it.
¡°We did indeed, the hard way I¡¯m afraid. Luckily no injuries. Just a scarred tree or two. Here, come I have a surprise for you!¡±
Doc turned to pick up a rifle cartridge and handed it to Mac. Mac turned it over in his hand before flipping it to look the cartridge base with a raised eyebrow.
¡°This isn¡¯t my cartridge... you didn¡¯t.¡± Max said in shock.
¡°Sadly no, we didn¡¯t. That is our prototype cartridge. It will fit and feed in the rifle you graciously lent us. It will not fire, however. Your capacitor technology is brilliant. We can almost replicate it, but we are still figuring out how to produce one component. I know you are not a scientist, but what can you tell me about the micro sheets of pure carbon that replace the traditional metal foil spirals?¡± Professor Bart Grem walked up to join the conversation.
¡°Ah, humanity calls it ¡®Graphene¡¯ and it¡¯s a sheet of pure carbon bonded in a hexagonal pattern exactly one molecule thick. As for the rest, sorry. I just know that because it¡¯s history to me. It was discovered then mass produced around 200 of your years ago.¡± Mac scratched the back of his head and shrugged.
¡°I was afraid of that. It was a long shot, but you have given us something. Your description confirms what we thought we knew and gives us direction. Ah! Yes, to return your weapon to you¡± the bearded Professor Grem picked up a case from under the testing bench and handed it to Mac who froze when he took the handle. It was heavy enough that his rifle was in the case, but there was clearly a rifle still on the¡
Mac realization was interrupted by a tech sprinting through the doors ¡°SIR! Contact! The station reports incoming data!!! It¡¯s in the code that Mackenzie gave us!!¡±
Chapter 25
Mac, Lyri, and Silu filed into the conference room inside The Hall. Tribal Head Darclemus was there, as well as standard security and a few members of the tribal council.
¡°Please sit.¡± Darclemus offered, and the three of them settled into the chairs indicated. ¡°I¡¯m sure you heard; we have received word from Sol. They have sent us several messages along with some other data not in video media. Our tech is sending personal messages to your personal devices. I am told there is a cover video to see. I asked you all here to watch it together.¡± He nodded to one of his aids and a screen was lowered on the wall.
Soon, the image of an aging man in an expensive suit appeared to stare back at them. Subtitles began to flow as he started speaking in English. ¡°Greetings. I am Franklin Marovanski, the elected chancellor of the Sol Federation Council. I hope I will be able to make all your acquaintances in due time. First off, ¡®Chief¡¯ Darclemus, I wish to express my utmost interest in opening a dialogue with you. This may be little more than information exchange, at the moment; but great oaks start from small beginnings. I will put it bluntly. The human species must expand or die, but our history is littered with our treading on each other to do so. Our recent history has shown that we cannot afford to make those same mistakes. We wish to enlist your people in aiding us to enter the galactic community with as little¡ unpleasantness as possible. To that end. The Sol Federation has named Lt Mackenzie... uh... Grarzia as our acting agent in the field until such time as we can send an ambassadorial envoy. As such, he is authorized to negotiate the exchange of sensitive information at his sole discretion. We are sending a separate data packet and have more substantial messages addressed to different parties and departments inside your government. These are subject to the approval of agent Mackenzie and the Helyon head of state. Mackenzie is the closest thing to an expert we have on the greater galaxy; we will be trusting him to help us avoid any cultural misunderstandings. I look forward to hearing from you, Chief Darclemus. Good day, and good luck.¡± The message ended.
Darclemus turned to look at Mac, ¡°What is your take on this¡ franklin?¡± the head of Helyon Looked to Mac.
¡°He is an elected leader. He is being cautious. The real information will be in the packets.¡± Mac responded. But his heart wasn¡¯t in it. It had been little more than an hour since the news that Sol had received their message. Mac wasn¡¯t thinking like a diplomat. He was thinking like a desperate soldier who just got his first letter from home all over again.
¡°I am to authorize individual messages to different departments to open dialogue and information exchange. I¡¯m sure they intended for me to vet all of them, but I don¡¯t see this working without full transparency. Consider Everything they send, authorized. We cannot afford to hide anything. Now, if you will excuse me, I need to time to¡.¡±
Darclemus raised his hand, ¡°I understand. This is hardest on you right now. We can talk at weeks end when this matter has had time to dull its edge. Go, be with family.¡± The head of state dismissed them all. Lyri flew a stunned Mac home. The emotions broiling off him made it hard for her to focus on keeping Vito Airborne.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silu, Icario, Tristen and Tili met them at their lodge, Tili had brought food and the men sat with Mac as the women prepared dinner.
¡°Martin sent me one of your Human dishes to try, it¡¯s become a household favorite.¡± Tili smiled as she placed a plate of kababs on the large sitting table. The cubes of meat were a bit smaller than a normal Kabab and the skewers were a touch light on the meat, but Mac raised an eyebrow as he noticed char marks.
¡°You grilled these?¡± He asked.
¡°Icario did, I merely prep¡¯d them. He has been experimenting with cooking more over open flame since Tristen started raging about your cookout.¡± Tili responded as everyone sat down, ¡°there is more in the kitchen, we like them more bite sized than the human version.
¡±Thank you,¡± Lyri gave her mother a human hug, she had been doing that more lately. ¡°Today¡¯s been a little overwhelming.¡± Then paused as her mother looked at her in confusion.
¡°Love¡¯, she doesn¡¯t have translators in. You said that in English, perfectly by the way.¡± Mac chuckled to her in Delmar.
¡°Oops!¡± Lyri giggled and repeated herself in her native tongue.
¡°Lyri wanted to learn English and Gaelic, I wanted to give her some Immersion to help, so we have been only using those two around the house.¡± Mac explained after.
¡°Tha e coltach gu bheil e ag obair gu math (It seems to work well)¡± Lyri said causing Mac to make a face, before she skipped off into the kitchen for more Skewers for everyone. She returned and sat down next to Mac, stealing a skewer from his plate with a peck on the cheek.
Mac finally gave an explosive sigh, ¡°Fuck it! Who wants to meet the the other side of the family.¡± He spoke. He didn¡¯t let anyone reply as he activated the wall mounted console screen and que¡¯s the first message. Holographic technology was prevalent, but long-distance messages were still sent in ¡®2d¡¯ to save on data. The image of a very tan young human adult male appeared. He was sitting at an office desk, in a military uniform similar to the one in Mac¡¯s wardrobe.
His clothes appeared clean, but slightly disheveled as one might expect after a long day in them. The top button on his shirt was unbuttoned and his almost black, brown hair topped equally dark, and very intense brown eyes. Tili gasped a little in surprise as the man bared his teeth in a very human smile, pouring from a bottle of Jeremiah Weed into a metal tin cup.
Captions scrolled as he began to speak ¡°Lysol, alcohol, a touch of gasoline¡¡± the man mused, ¡°Tha gr¨¤in agam fhathast gun d ''fhuair thu mi gu dearbh mar an cac seo. (I still hate that you got me to actually like this shit).¡± He threw the shot back before pouring another. ¡°Mac, I know you, better than anyone else on this planet at least. So, I¡¯ll start with the answer to your question. No. We didn¡¯t send anyone else... about a week after your accident, we got a burst of interstellar noise directly along your flight path that disabled the the deep space array listening over Pandora. Turns out we just didn¡¯t know how to listen. I may have stolen that interstellar noise data and figured out it was a transmission of sorts. Aimed at LightHouse. I got caught, but Ma¡¯ stepped in. She suspected what I did after she took her recommission to run LEAP. We triggered LightHouse after reconfiguring Pandora Array to not be overwhelmed. We were hoping to get another burst of ¡®noise¡¯. We got your message instead.¡±
His intense serious expression vanished in a goofy grin as he took a sip of the whisky this time, ¡°In other news you crazy motherfucker, you gave us FTL! Your basic explanation let us place the last pieces. Titan industries is launching an arrival beacon next week to try a drone test¡ but Slipstream is viable. We need more data, but we might be able to get to you in 4-9 months if we launched today.¡±
Captain Silu swore in shock at that one.
¡°We aren¡¯t totally sure yet. We have no idea how you made your trip with such haste, but it¡¯s not something we feel safe trying, Yet. Ma¡¯ and I have been pulled off LEAP to oversee the research team. I now outrank your ass. HA!¡± The man Barked a fierce laugh as Mac finally noticed the Commodore insignia on his Brother¡¯s uniform.
¡°So, I get to torture you with this next part¡ CAPTAIN¡ it¡¯s all on our official transmission, but you are being field promoted commensurate with your status as acting agent of Sol, and your outstanding effort in NOT FUCKING DYING despite the eggheads best efforts. Congratulations, captain. Now! That¡¯s all I got, falbh p¨°g m¨°r air a¡¯ bhan-dia iomlan sin de bhoireannach a bha e coltach gun do mheall thu a bhith c¨°mhla riut. (Go kiss that absolute Goddess of a woman you seemed to have tricked into being with you.)¡± He whipped out a lighter¡ and lit the entire remaining contents of the mug on fire¡. ¡°FOX2!¡± He bellowed and slammed back the flaming beverage, somehow managing to still extinguish the flames despite the cups wide mouth.
The message ended with Clint tapping a button.
¡°And that, was Nitro¡± Mac chuckled... slowly sitting back to ponder what he had just watched.
¡°That¡¯s your brother?¡± Tilli asked, ¡°I thought you two were related?¡±
If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
¡°Bonds formed in death and bloodshed are one of the few bonds that rival family among humanity. He is kin in every way that matters.¡± Mac explained.
¡°He¡¯s¡ intense.¡± Tristen said carefully. Tili nodded at that.
.
¡°I like¡¯em¡± Lyri announced proudly, triggering a burble of involuntary laughter from her father and Silu.
¡°You would. Void born know their own after all.¡± Silu said sagely, only for the moment to be ruined by his smirk.
¡°One more to go, who wants to meet my aunt.¡± Mac said finally, breaking the silence.
¡°Oh yes please!¡± Giggled lyrian as she bounced back from the kitchen holding Delmar soft drinks for everyone. Some things turned out to be universal across the Galaxy. Carbonation was one of them. Mac and Lyrian did not drink them often, but they kept some for special occasions or entertaining company when alcohol wasn¡¯t on the menu. She handed all the bottles out then plopped back down, popped the cap off her bottle and took a swig.
What happened next happened quickly. Lyri had not been careful with her own drink; And the carbonation responded to her over exuberance just as the bottle touched her lips. The effervescent pressurized foam forced its way out of the bottle just as Lyri tried to drink. She tried to keep from spilling, instantly realizing her predicament. It was too late, and the amber foam exploded out of the corners of her mouth, then both nostrils as she hosed the front of her poncho down in the sticky elixir.
Mac lost it first. Snarfing into his more gingerly handled drink before a belly laugh washed away much of his inner stress. He was closely followed by Tili¡¯s laugh, and soon the whole room was howling, including Lyrian after she regained her composure.
¡°Fizz¡± Mac said finally, after taking a minute to regain his composure.
¡°What?¡± Tristen asked.
¡°Fizz¡± Mac repeated the same word jerking his thumb to point at Lyrian.
¡°Wait, what? NO!!¡± Lyrians head snapped up for where she was dabbing her poncho. Her face a mixture of horror¡¯d understanding.
¡°Too late!¡± Mac laughed again.
¡°I¡¯m confused.¡± Silu looked a question at Icario. Who was just smiling like an idiot. He had put it together from his snafu with the wedding papers.
¡°Fizz¡± her father nodded to Lyrian.
¡°Nooooooo!¡± Lyri¡¯s begging dissolved into resigned laughter.
¡°It¡¯s a Human tradition in military flight training. Eventually everyone gets a call sign issued to them. It must be given and earned through an event of note, fame or infamy.¡± Mac finally got out, waving dramatically at his wife, ¡°Fizz¡± he stated like he was making an introduction. The realization smacked Tristen across the psyche and he dissolved into laughter finally.
After a few moments of resumed laughter and clean up everyone settled back in as Mac started the second message. It was obviously the same room as the screen snapped back on and the young male had been replaced by a statuesque older female Human sitting at the same desk. She had a regulation naval hair style of silver laced with grey. Assuming she was indeed at the same room, she was considerably taller than Mac¡¯s brother. Her uniform was immaculately tailored and in perfect condition. Mac got his Icy blue eyes from this side of the family, and it shone as a matching pair bored into the camera with calm, unquestioned authority.
¡°James Mackenzie,¡± a strong commanding soprano voice rang as she spoke, ¡°you were always the one that trouble followed.¡± she scolded.
¡°Yes Ma¡¯ ¡± Mac mumbled involuntarily.
She held her gaze on the camera for a moment before her features softened considerably, ¡°Tha d¨¤n-thuras cumhachdach air a bhith agad, tha e coltach, a bhalaich.(You''ve had a mighty adventure, it seems, my boy.)¡± her voice finally relented as her relief bled through. ¡°Mura biodh d¡¯ uncail air m¡¯ fhalt a thionndadh liath, bhiodh tu air cr¨¬och a chuir air an obair (If your uncle hadn''t turned my hair grey, you would have finished the job)¡±
Mac snorted and raised his soft drink in mock salute.
¡°Clint said most of it in his message, you are to thank for much of what we have learned. I¡¯m heading up the group deciphering it all.. it¡¯s, breathtaking. You are right. Sol must tread carefully for the sake of the Galaxy. I still don¡¯t understand how that part of the Galaxy made it to space as they have.¡± She explained, switching to English, a hint of her Gaelic accent around the edges.
¡°Now, to happier things, Jamie,¡± She was the only one who still called him by his childhood moniker, ¡°Your bride, she¡¯s stunning. It seems the Almighty has seen fit to have one of my prayers answered. Treat her well my boy, you deserve your happiness. Share it with her. And permit your aunt her tradition.¡± Her eyes sparkled as a mischievous smirk tugged at the corners of her features. ¡°Tha mi an d¨´il gum milleadh oghaichean thu tuigse (I¡¯m expecting grandchildren to spoil, you understand).¡± she let the suppressed smirk free before ending the recording.
Lyri looked over to catch a slight blush on Macs face as she felt her cheeks heat.¡°You have her eyes.¡± Tili was the first to speak.
¡°Aye¡ I mean, yes, the eyes run in the Mackenzie clan. They skipped my mother, Aunt Gwen¡¯s sister, and I ended up with them.¡±
Tristen whistled, ¡°She¡¯s almost as terrifying as you can be.¡±
¡°She¡¯s a full blooded Highland Scot, you have no idea.¡± chuckled Mac as he stood up ¡°Thank you, for the food and the company. I think I needed it.¡± Mac stretched with a yawn as it was getting late.
¡°Let¡¯s leave you two to get some rest, the future hold little in the way of relaxation.¡± Silu spoke as he stood up stretching. Everyone said their goodbyes.
Icario surprised Lyri by pulling her into an uncharacteristically human embrace, pulling her close, ¡°The tests came back this morning. ¡®Little one¡¯ The DNA is compatible¡± he whispered in her ear before releasing her.
He smiled as her shock at his hug became an entirely different shocked expression. Mac quickly glanced over to her as her emotional roller coaster slammed into his mind. He finished up his goodbyes and tossed Icario the key to Vito, insisting that it was after dark and that he would swing by in the morning to get it. He closed the door to their home with a wave and turned to see a stunned frozen Lyri.
¡°Luv?¡±
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clint and Gwen were standing in the observation room at LEAP control as the glass door in the observation window opened and a young man wearing a simple suit minus the jacket stepped through.
¡°Admiral, Commodore; if you wish to take a seat, the test is about to begin¡± He stated. ¡°I am Doctor Matthew Bennington Jr, the Station Chief for this Operation. I just see to any last-minute questions.¡±
¡°Thank you doctor, we have read the report. It was quite thorough.¡± Admiral Gwen responded. Clint nodded as well and both took a seat as the station chief retreated back to his domain.
¡°What do you think? You were always the brains of you two.¡± Gwen asked quietly, leaning over to her adoptive nephiew.
¡°I think It¡¯s a coin toss between whether James is remembered as Julius Oppenheimer, or Orville Wright.¡± Clint responded in equal measure. ¡°The scary part is¡ our actions will end up being the deciding factor.¡±
The Admiral nodded, ¡°Sadly... Your brother is right, however, we are expanding. We either do so blindly, or we do so smartly. Humanity cannot survive any other way.¡±
¡°We could just bring him home, slowly expand through the unknown space between us and the ¡®Unity¡¯.¡± Clint offered with a wince, ¡°I have been hearing rumblings of that.¡±
¡°I know. We risk losing the one ally that may be able to help us prevent an invasion with that course.¡± Gwen offered.
¡°I know, I heard your remarks with the Council. Quite the show.¡± Clint Chuckled.
Gwen went to the hearing with all her notes. She and Clint had worked through the night to prepare her for all the questions. In the end, the scans of Mac¡¯s injuries after his Jump, then after their bio bed and nanites did their job sold it. Mac would be permanently grounded, possibly a vegetable. That is the kind of Tech we can use to recover. So much of Humaity is suffering from one medical problem or the other from the damage we have done to both our planets¡ Right now, Healing Sells, or we will continue to dwindle as the Injured and sick die.
¡°We were always better at killing each other than healing each other.¡± Gwen agreed. Clint watched as the camera ship behind the Test Drone followed it into pandora. This time they had two beacons set up. Mac''s test, in typical Human fashion, didn¡¯t know how much power they needed for the exercise. So, all the power was used for the beacon and the slip drive. The numbers from Mac¡¯s test had confirmed how much power they needed to get a slip-space jump. They were using it just that much. They also had both beacons weakened to the point where the one in orbit above Titan Industries was barely receivable from light house. Light house was then matched in broadcast energy.
The drone was on remote control, LEAP Control was ensuring that the Test drone, little more than a Capital ship to Capital ship Nuclear missile with a slip drive and a nav computer replacing the warhead, had signal lock on both beacons. Then it would jump at a minimum power setting. The two watched as the control room personnel worked. Their chatter of confirmation and counter confirmation of information falling to an almost indistinguishable din through the glass of the Observation Room.
¡°T minus 30¡± the microphone in the room keyed on, broadcasting the sounds of the room.
¡°All green, spooling the drive.¡± Another voice said
¡°AutoNav handshake Green, we are Autonomous.¡± a third said.
¡°10-9-8¡¡± the first voice began, and Gwen reached and grasped the hand of her adoptive nephew. He patted the back of her hand.
¡°3-2-1..¡± The voice finished.
Clint let out a little gasp as the Drone vanished, leaving the barest wisp of plasma contrail. ¡°What¡¯s the Delay to Titan industries?¡± Gwen asked.
¡°With the new Coms. Less than a minute.¡± Clint responded. Looking at his watch as the moments ticked by.
¡°Receiving from Titan station. OH¡ MY¡ GOD¡¡± came a stunned voice and the microphone shut off completely as the Control room descended into complete mayhem. Clint and Gwen looked at each other then stood and opened the door to the control room and stepped in.
¡°REPORT!¡± Admiral Gwen rose to her full height and the room silenced immediately.
The head of control walked up slowly, ¡°The test was a success, Its... It¡¯s the data that is the surprise... we need to analyze it before we¡¡±
¡°Try me...¡± Clint¡¯s voice had taken on a ¡°you will not bull shit me¡± tone of command as well.
¡°Well... Um¡ Commodore, Admiral¡ the on-board clock in the drone goes out to 20 decimals... The travel time¡ it¡¡± The man started to Stammer, saved by another who ran up.
¡°Sir, we did the quick Estimate¡.. Its Hyper-Luminal¡± The man¡¯s Awe was apparent, but he continued, ¡°It explains why Captain Mackenzie made it so far¡ and why his injuries were so severe¡. With the power to weight ratio¡ it was like strapping a saturn5 onto a housefly¡ It almost certainly completely overwhelmed his Inertial dampening systems. He Is lucky to be alive¡±.
The man whipped out a calculator and started pounding away at it, ¡°If we used this same power setting, which is the absolute minimum we can use and still have a stable slip space drive core¡. We could sent send one of the Destroyer class Ships from Terra or Mars Orbit to Pluto and back in less than 10 minutes¡ and 5 of that would be turning it around and recalculating the route¡ Admiral. If we chose to¡ we could send ship the size of the Largest Ships presents at the Second Battle of CenterPoint to the Delmar Home world in less than a year at the most. At maximum theoretical velocity¡¡± the man started tapping again. How he was making these calculations on a simple pocket calculator was far beyond Clint. ¡°5 of our months...¡±
¡°Jesus Christ, how much power would that need, would we need to shut down systems?¡± Clint asked.
¡°Negative, our main problem is acceleration, it takes an exorbitant amount of power to get into slip space. However, our drives appear to ride their own wake, so to speak. Once in, Maintenance power is greatly reduced from initial acceleration. It¡¯s the other reason the captain almost died; we didn¡¯t know we needed to throttle back once we crossed the threshold.
Clint could only stare at the man
_____________________________________________________
Darclemus sat back in his chair. He had spent until the early hours of the morning personally sifting through Humanities¡¯ first extra solar diplomatic overture. It did not include any Slip-Drive data, only what Sol was offering in both friendship and aid as a starting point. ¡®If even half of this is true¡.¡¯ He looked over the offer once more. Professor Quinn and his brother had received everything and were starting their analysis in the morning.
¡°I can feel you from down the hall, my dear.¡± His wife closed the door behind her walking over and perching herself in his lap as was her want since their earliest days as bonded. ¡°Tell me¡±
He handed her the pad, ¡°freedom,¡± he said just above a whisper, ¡°Delmar freedom¡.¡±
Chapter 26
¡°Luv?¡±
Mac Had just said goodbye to the crew after watching messages from his aunt and his brother. Lyrian was frozen, staring at the door and him. He could feel her emotions in chaos.
He took a tentative step towards her, ¡°Lov¡¯?¡± he asked again, ¡°A bheil rudeigin ce¨¤rr? (is something wrong)¡±
Lyri eyes refocused as she shook herself and slowly walked up to Mac, slowly put a hand on each side of his waist, ¡°I didn¡¯t¡ didn¡¯t want¡ to say until Da had results. Your Aunt¡¡± Her English faltered, and Mac¡¯s eyes widened as she switched to Gaelic instead of Delmar, ¡°Is d¨°cha gum faigh piuthar-m¨¤thar Gwen a miann (maybe Aunt Gwen will get her wish)¡± She looked down before looking him back in the eyes, ¡°Bha deuchainn Da agam a dh¡¯fhaicinn... feuch am b¡¯ urrainn dhomh do leanabh a ghi¨´lan. (I had a Da test to see... see if I could carry your child.)¡± She said finally.
¡°tha thu dha-r¨¬ribh air a bhith a¡¯ cumail a-mach orm (you¡¯ve really been holding out on me)¡± Mac whispered before switching back to Delmar. Now was not the time to practice another language, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡± he asked.
She followed his lead, ¡°I didn¡¯t want to get your hopes up. I¡¯ve seen you. I¡¯ve felt how you feel when watching the young ones at the hall during the reunion party, how you played with Tristen¡¯s Children. You want to be a father... I... I didn¡¯t want to get your hopes up. I¡¯m sorry¡± she finally broke and leaned into him crying softly, ¡°I should have tol¡¡± She gasped in shock as Mac scooped her up bridal carry, just as easily as the first time; and he carried her over to the couch sitting down with her wrapped up in his arms.
¡°Don¡¯t... you did nothing wrong. So, tell me, what did your father say¡± He asked gently, pulling her head to his shoulder and wiping her eyes.
¡°Not much. Just that our DNA is compatible. There is so much more though¡¡± she whispered, leaning into his Human body heat.
¡°Yea, can you carry to term safely, can your body deliver a partially human baby, what gravity do you need to live in while pregnant, how much can you do or not do¡¡± he started listing off concerns.
¡°You¡ you¡¯ve thought about this¡± She realized, looking up from her happy place in his lap, head on his shoulder.
¡°I have, I may have been an only child, but I come from a huge family. I just didn¡¯t believe that I deserved children after the War.¡± He said softly, he kissed the top of her forehead. ¡°Your poor father¡± he whispered after a moment.
¡°why?¡± Lyri asked, sitting up to look at him.
¡°Lov¡¯ If ¡®testing viability¡¯ requires what it requires on Terra, I think we owe your father a bottle of really good booze¡± he said smiling. ¡°Let¡¯s get to bed, I want to talk to Darclemus in the morning.¡±
Mac started to get up, just to be pushed back onto the couch by Lyri. ¡°later¡± she coo¡¯d into his ear, and a shiver went through him as her hands began to wander...
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The next day stretched into the next few weeks as Mac stopped off at the Professors Grem to get them started back engineering 34GAU from the round he had pulled form Concord. He spent about half his time meeting with the Helyon leadership, led by Darclemus. Sol sent its first overtures and some detailed information about common Human Power generation and computing technology that were not considered state secrets. They wanted medical technology in response, as an initial exchange to break the ice. Mac was no politician, but he understood building trust. He also got Darclemus to declare the Human Technologies as Helyon state secrets. Mac hated this but He also understood that by doing this, it protected the information from getting out to the greater galaxy too quickly. Technology was going to be their edge, not numbers. In response, Mac decided to request a compete data pack on older Human propellant-based kinetic weapons. It had taken some convincing to get the Helyon council to at least be open to the idea of ¡°such primitive a weapon¡±.
No race had truly figured out gunpowder. The Unity had accidentally made it that way. The ¡®prime directive¡¯ turned out to be just what its Hollywood origins would suggest, a fantasy. After the ¡°Unity Wars¡±; the newly formed ¡°Galactic Unity¡± had taken the policy of finding races that were either on the cusp of, or just achieving the beginnings of civilization, and initiating contact. Clan Helyon was ancient, one of the few species to be space-faring at the time of their contact with The Unity. their records showed that if the species that reacted poorly were quietly exterminated, their worlds were left for nature to reclaim until such time as the Unity could ¡°discover¡± an ¡°uninhabited world¡± perfect for colonization or farming, or industry. Delmar had almost been one Had it not been to expensive to destroy. The Confederation had slowly clawed back a modicum of autonomy through economic monopoly. This autonomy was why Delmar space was largely under the control of The Delmar Defense Force. They were spied on occasionally, but losing Galactic shipping was considered too great a risk to act more openly.
The compliant races, ones who did not resist ¡°unification¡±, quickly found themselves awash in magical new technology, and the philosophies of the Unity pressed up on their overwhelmed minds. The unintended consequence was that no species represented in the Unity, other than the few originals, had gone through the natural weapons development and perfection that Human weapons originated from. Doctor Quinn had balked at this until mac had demonstrated how deadly these ¡°archaic¡± weapons were. For all intents and purposes, a gunpowder-based kinetic weapon was considered so useless that It would be easily passed off as a ¡°Cultural or Religious Item¡±, or as just ¡°it¡¯s not a laser pistol, who cares¡±. Mac had been told that security technologies had been so geared toward spotting energy-based weapons, that one could carry massive amounts of mechanical/chemical propellant-based weapons and be unstopped, even as the weapons detecting rods and scanners were swept over the weapons you are carrying.
During this same timeframe, Mac had started Lyri in her Aero/space Combat training as she continued her intensive training. Their house was at a solid 1.8 Delmar G¡¯s now, and She was almost due for another Doctor''s Visit. She was able to pull 5-6 Terran G¡¯s internal now on a limited basis. She officially held the record of the most G¡¯s pulled by a Delmar and survived category. Thankfully her physical training only furthered to define her shape, not bulk her up. She was eating about two-thirds of Mac¡¯s normal calorie intake, and Mac had decided to halt his own progress when he weighed his Vest and found that it would weigh as much as another one of him in earth¡¯s gravity. Mac also gave Doctor Bart Grem access to Concord¡¯s Reactors and Inertial dampening system under his authority as an Agent to Delmar.
Mac also decide to take precautions with Traveler. It took long conversation with Captain Silu, but he convinced the captain to upload a Simplified Version of Jarvis to Lucid Travelers main frame patrician. It would helped monitor /power/ and control the manned point defenses. Mac had to drag the poor captain into one of the Defensive batteries¡¯ turrets with a void suit on to show him his gunner¡¯s new HUD interface. It wasn¡¯t automation, but it was free, and it would greatly aid in the gunners¡¯ awareness, and therefore survivability. Mac also took this time as an opportunity to stuff Silu into the back of Concord for the trip to Traveler, the aging captain was game, but Mac could see him wobble slightly after their return flight.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Mac woke up to the smell of food. It was the beginning of week 6 after he got his messages from Clint and Aunt Gwen. He checked his watch. He had flown Concord up to the Transmission station 3 days ago and the response to Terra¡¯s overtures had gone much more smoothly than the last attempt at galactic telephone. Lyri had not come with, on account of being scheduled for another physical with her father. He had wanted to go to get some more details from him on certain compatibilities, but Murphy interceded, and he was forced to miss it.
On his way back down, he had been intercepted in the atmosphere by two Delmar Fighters who turned out to be more curious than anything else. A quick formation flight and game of friendly grab-ass turned into a message from the Defense Wing commander to come to their training facility for a tour the next day. Lyri had been learning Terran Aeronautical and space-born dogfighting tactics and was itching to come too. Considering the scores Mac was seeing her put up in her Mock battles using Concord in ¡°shadow Boxing¡± mode, He was looking forward to it.
Lyri pulled a personal best on their run after breakfast and before long, they were in the air car with Lyri at the controls. She loved Vito and was pressing the paradox of a futuristic air car to its limit as they reached the Wing¡¯s base. The look on the pilots¡¯ faces when she stepped out of the driver¡¯s/pilot¡¯s seat after a somewhat flashy landing was priceless.
Stolen novel; please report.
¡°Wing Commander Himar Sutrizu, a pleaser to finally meet you Mr Grarzia.¡± the Middle-aged Delmar nodded to the two of them.
¡°Likewise, I look forward to seeing what the Delmar Defense Wings are all about¡± Mac returned the nod.
¡°And you are? Miss...¡± Commander Himar began.
¡°Lyrian Grarzia,¡± Lyri smiled, ¡°I¡¯m his ¡®Wizzo¡¯ and his wife¡± nodding to the Commander.
The officer quirked an eyebrow, ¡°excuse me?¡± and Mac chuckled.
¡°Concord, the ship I was in when your pilots got curious, she is designed to fight with a two-person crew. Lyri is training as my backseater, called a weapons systems operator, or ¡®wizzo¡¯.¡± Mac explained.
¡°I see, I did not expect your ship to be a multi-person crew considering how she maneuvers.¡± the Wing commander admitted, ¡°Now! Let¡¯s start that tour; and, if you are willing, My pilots would like a go at you in the simulators. You seem to have sparked their competitive nature, and maybe some exaggerated stories. Some of the boys want to test those stories.¡± Himar chuckled, then led them into the hanger.
The Wing command facilities were simple, yet effective. The Wing had a Hanger, where their fighters were stored. That hanger, however, was 30 meters up, built up on a particularly massive limb off of one of Delmar¡¯s Jungle Tree¡¯s. the hanger led into the Pilots lounge/living area. The pilot¡¯s lounge was split in half with 6 fully enclosed simulators in one half of the room, and the entertainment/relaxation area for being called to alert on the other.
Mac turned his attention to the Craft in the hanger. There were two types resting to their berths. 5 appearing to be fighters, and two bigger attackers looking craft.
¡°We utilize two primary craft¡± Commander Himar began, ¡°Our Fighter/interceptors are of Helyon Defensive Industries design, we call them the HDI-21 ¡®rangers¡¯. Capable of both atmospheric combat and inter-solar interception and defensive operations. They are powered by a Single Fusion Reactor capable of charging both the weapons and shield banks in under 20 minutes while providing War Emergency Power to the main thrust drive. Our drives can take us from stationary to the relativistic barrier at a 15 Delmar G profile true, that is reduced to a 7.5 Delmar G profile inside the cockpit with inertial dampening.¡±
¡°Weapons and sensors?¡± Mac asked, almost absent mindedly as he slowly circled one of the interceptors. The fighter was a rear cockpit design, with a long portion of the fuselage that tapered from the cockpit to the rounded sensor dome at the nose. Mac could see the teardrop shape of weapons ports atop and below the wing structure. A few of the weapons appeared to be fuselage mounted as well. Mac assumed by the size of the emitters that the fuselage-mounted weapons were of the Direct Energy variety. The wing was a mid-fuselage mounted supersonic Delta design. Each wing began almost immediately aft of the radar dome and swooped rearward at probably a 15-degree angle from the center line of the craft save for a reverse cut out at the tip of the wing right at the front. Mac was considering this cut out with curiosity when a 6th Fighter approached the hanger''s landing pad with a piercing, almost whistling whine and came in for a landing. Mac watched as the forward part of the wing was revealed to be, in fact, a retractable Canard Atmospheric surface. The craft hover taxied in and took its place in an open space before landing on its struts, retracting the canard surface into the position that Mac had seen on the other fighters. ¡®Ok, that¡¯s a decent solution¡¯ He thought as the pilot hopped out and positively swaggered over to the group.
¡°Ah, this is Captain Ivar Tras, The Wing¡¯s flight lead and 2 times Ace in pirate interdiction operations.¡± Commander Himar nodded to the pilot who walked up, clearly sizing up the smaller ¡®human¡¯ and his woman.
¡°So, which of you spooked the boys¡± he asked with a grin.
¡°That would be me, Captain James ¡®BigMac¡¯ Mackenzie Grarzia.¡± Mac gave a Delmar greeting nod then put a hand on Lyris back at shoulder level as an introduction, ¡°My wife and back seater, Lyrian ¡®Fizz¡¯ Mackenzie Grarzia.¡±
Ivar paused, Mac smirked as he noticed it. It was a small tell, but it was there. Ivar had assumed Concord was a single-seated interceptor like the 21¡¯s. Mac didn¡¯t want to reveal just how little he had asked of Concord during the game of aerial grab-ass that had led to this tour. Ivar turned to his Commander.
¡°Has he seen the sims yet?¡± He grinned at Himar.
¡°We were just getting there. To answer your question, Captain Grarzia, we use 4 hull-mounted ship-grade pulse lasers in the body, and there are a pair of plasma cannons located in each wing. The plasma is slow, but if you can get in under capital ship''s point defense bubble, they do a great deal of damage at close range to larger vessels. We also do not need nearly the logistic support that comes with expendable ordinance¡± Commander Himar explained.
¡°Now, I¡¯m afraid my Pilots are very excited to cross you in combat. The simulators are this way.
¡°Only if you have room for one more, Fizz¡¯s been working on her primary atmo/intersteller combat training, I would like to see how she does against real people.¡± Mac responded,
pointedly ignoring Lyri¡¯s amusement-ruined glare at the use of her Callsign.
¡°Sure, what''s one more¡± Ivar¡¯eke said shrugging. He clearly didn¡¯t mind ¡®extra fodder¡¯.
Lyrian leaned to whisper in Mac¡¯s ear, ¡°You sure this is a good idea?¡±
¡°Luv, you can probably pull enough G to rip the wings off these fighters... and I have seen your module recordings¡ Go do your best. It will be excellent training either way. Fighting people is always a little different than the hardest computer. It¡¯s time you experienced it¡± Mac smiled back at her. She could feel his emotions, he was being maniacal again. She had no idea why, but she gave him a private fang-filled evil grin to show him she knew he was up to something. They were interrupted by a shout and a clamor as the rest of the combat wing¡¯s fighter pilots sprinted over and started arguing over who would get the 6 sims first. Eventually, the two that intercepted Mac were kicked out on the technicality that they already faced Mac. Everyone settled into their Sims as Commander Himar started the safety brief through the coms as the sims sealed themselves.
¡°Pilots! We will be starting in-atmosphere. The Grarzias will be opfor in identical Rangers. This will be a 4 on two, but do not take your opponent lightly. You will both start on opposite sides of the Hylisti straight with the mission win of the neutralization of the other force. As always, these are full immersion Simulators equipped with spherical artificial gravity manipulation. You will feel EVERYTHING, and you can lose consciousness. All participants ready yourselves! Opfor, switch to channel point 2268 for private coms. Monitor .8871 for exercise command.
Everyone sounded off and the Sims were initialized. The inert cockpits came to life and Mac found himself in an unfamiliar cockpit. ¡®Fuck, time to push buttons¡¯ He found that the controls mimic¡¯d Lyrians preferred setup with the throttle on the right, and he found some cheat labels in Delmar showing where the weapons and sensor controls were.
¡°Begin!¡± Himars voice came over the channel and the simulation began.
Lyrian immediately formed up on Mac¡¯s left, ¡°what¡¯s the plan¡± she asked.
¡°Let¡¯s see how they handle the basics. Four Targets point 334 001. We¡¯ll introduce them to my old friend, Thatch.¡± Mac said as he turned toward the 4 fighters that had split into 2 flights of two. The two teams closed on each other until the head-on was assured.
¡°BREAK!¡± Mac called as He and Lyrian fired a spread of suppressing laser fire and split. Thatch¡¯s principle was as simple as it was ancient. Each pilot flew crossing patterns designed to clear each other¡¯s tail. Mac snapped his aircraft into a right-hand roll and hauled back on the controls. *Over G. Over G. Over G* the warning klackson sounded as Mac slammed the Ranger straight to its maximum limit then a little beyond. He came screaming around his half of the pattern more violently than any Delmar aside from Lyri could handle, and raked the leader of the two-flight chasing Lyri with laser fire. The burst severed the pilot¡¯s left wing in two at the root and set the main drive on fire as it spun in. ¡°splash 1¡± Mac called. He looked back to see the furthest of his two pursuers detonate in an impressive fireball as Lyrian had passed to within 30ft of her target before dumping a salvo of plasma into his path as she screamed by. At that distance, even slow projectiles were not avoidable. and the pilot had flown straight into enough hate to eviscerate a Frontier Brig.
*Splash 1, reversing!* Lyrian shouted into the frequency as she took the space Mac had given her to do her level best to rip the wings off her ranger in an almost 8 Delmar G turn, cutting the throttles and slamming the air brakes. Mac almost whooped as he watched his pupil pull off a masterful overshoot, forcing her pursuer into rolling scissors that she was quickly winning with her ability to effortlessly keep her ranger at the limit. "Engaged Offensive!" she called.
¡®Jesus, she is magnificent¡¯ Mac thought just as laser fire slapped him out of spectating his wife picking apart a veteran Delmar pilot. Two shots scored glancing blows with little damage. He snapped over into a rolling split S and looked behind him. He noticed the markings. It was the Wing lead. The man was good. Staying right on Mac¡¯s ass as he slowly cranked up from 4 to 5 to 6 to 7 Delmar G¡¯s. Mac smiled. This was going to be a battle of endurance¡ Mac slammed his throttle into differential thrust and stabbed the rudders over hard pulling the craft into mind-bending decelerating corkscrew. He could hear the Klaxon going off again with its G warnings, but he simply didn¡¯t care.
Ivar followed him through, not quite overshooting, but ending in a neutral flat scissors, both craft kicking up spray, barely a meteroff the water. Mac saw a flash of laser fire as Lyrian obliterated her second target and flew over to him. In reality, they were feet from each other, and she just circled. She could feel his hunger. Bigmac was on the hunt. She was caught up in watching the duel. He would have to talk to her about that later; but for now, there was work to do. Mac eased off his pull, matching Ivar move for move, staying neutral. The ace pilot began to tire, and one of the scissor merges was just a little too wide. Mac slapped the rudder, slamming the stick over and gunning the throttles in a nose-high initiated Snap roll that cashed in all of Mac¡¯s ranger¡¯s energy to reverse directions and slot in on Ivar¡¯s tail. Mac pulled hard again *Over G, Over G, Over G, Over G*, His shot finally lined up and Mac fired. Staccato pulses of lasers slammed into the other fighter just behind the cockpit tracing a line down the right side of the fuselage and taking out one of the two main drives. The crippled craft lazily rolled over and impacted the water.
The simulation ended and Mac climbed out looking over to Lyrian. Neither one had broken much of a sweat. The two pilots they had taken out early were staring in Awe at the observation screen. Ivar had to be helped out of his Sim and was laid out on a couch breathing heavily.
Commander Himar finally turned to look at Lyrian, ¡°How, Delmar can¡¯t pull those G¡¯s. How are you not dead?¡±
Lyrian gave him a cheeky smile and caught a bottle of water Mac tossed to her, ¡°Ive been practicing¡± was all she said.
Commander Himar turned to Mac, ¡°And you, you did more damage to your own aircraft than the enemy did. We recorded you at over 11 Delmar G in that last engagement with Ivar.. How are you not paste...¡±
¡°My home planet¡¯s gravity is over 2 times that of Delmar, I was trained to over twice the Centrifugal stresses that were pulled today.¡± Mac said simply.
¡°I had no chance¡ none at all¡± It was Ivar. He was sitting now, looking over the back of the couch at the two of them. ¡°If she can do what I saw her do... Can we?¡± He asked his commander.
¡°Not without a price,¡± It was Lyri her voice soft and serious, ¡°I can only do this because I am putting my body through hell so that I may one day visit his home world, should we ever be given the opportunity¡ It¡¯s not something to be taken lightly. All of this...¡± her body rippled in a quick flex. ¡°Has a price, paid in dedication and suffering.¡±
That caused another bout of silence as those words sank in.
¡°I can teach you what I know, tactically.¡± Mac offered, ¡°From what I have seen, I think I can offer you a massive improvement in Skill and tactics alone. For example, our opening maneuver. In my home world it has a name, ¡®The Thatch Weave¡¯, and it is over 300 years old.¡±
¡°If you are willing, I think that would be a great idea. I will get permission for you to see our files. Now, care for another bout? The two of you against each other?¡± Commander Himar.
¡°Let¡¯s go, I owe you for my callsign¡± There were worried looks when Lyrian gave Mac a fang-filled aggressive smile.
¡°Just don¡¯t Fizz out too quickly,¡± Mac returned the expression.
¡°Oh it¡¯s on.. Huuumon¡± She half snarled.
They both settled back into the simulators.
Chapter 27
Admiral Gwen Trenton stepped into the foyer of the Sol Federation Chancellor¡¯s office. Much had happened over the past several weeks, culminating in one more unmanned and one manned slip space test. Clint was officially her chief of staff now. He was still grousing a little at being even further removed from the ¡®action¡¯, but Gwen needed him where he was. The official report on her department¡¯s findings would be ready later this week, but when the leader of the Sol system ¡°requests¡± a meeting¡
¡°Admiral Trenton, welcome. This way please,¡± a young woman in professional business attire met Gwen just inside the door and turned to be followed as they both started down the hallway, ¡°The chancellor will see you in the conference room¡± she said as she stopped at a pair of ornate double doors.
¡°Ah, Admiral Trenton! Welcome to the Capital. Please sit.¡± Chancellor Franklin stood quickly, shaking Gwen¡¯s hand before they both sat next to each other.
¡®Good, he doesn¡¯t like power plays.¡¯ Gwen thought as Franklin refused to return to the head of the table and instead sat next to her.
¡°Thank you, Chancellor, it¡¯s been a while. What can I do for you¡± she responded.
¡°First off,¡± Chancellor Franklin began ¡°I have been following the progress reports of your department personally. To say that Sol owes you a debt equal to the one we owe your husband¡ would be more than fair.¡± He held up a hand to prevent a protest he suspected was coming, ¡°This makes what I must do all the harder. I asked you here, to personally request your resignation from LEAP¡.¡± His voice was apologetic, but his eyes were serious.
¡°I assume you have a good reason for this?¡± Admiral Trenton¡¯s eyes flashed. This was not at all what she was expecting. She had half a mind to refuse and make this man drag her out of what had become her second life¡¯s work.
Franklin winced at her tone, but calmly responded, ¡°I suspect that I know what this means to you¡ and you will not be removed should you refuse. I meant what I said, your work is invaluable. In truth, I do not want to remove you... However, I need you to hear me out with an open mind.¡± The Chancellor''s tone was firm, and his eyes bored into hers.
Admiral Gwen Trenton took a moment to mentally calm herself. It took her decades of military professionalism to not walk out the door, ¡°Very well, I¡¯m listening.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Two and a half hours later, Franklin shut down the conference room screen. He simply waited. Admiral Gwen Trenton¡¯s ice blues bored into the elected leader of the Sol system, ¡°volunteer only¡± she said finally, ¡°and I pick my command staff¡± she said simply.
¡°I wouldn¡¯t have it any other way¡± Chancellor Franklin nodded.
¡°In that case, I accept.¡± Admiral Trenton rose, straightening her tunic as the Chancellor stood as well offering his hand,
¡°I will have the documentation and complete information packet forwarded to you by this afternoon. Good day, Admiral.¡± He stated as they shook hands.
¡°Good day, Chancellor.¡± Admiral Trenton nodded, releasing the handshake, and turned to be escorted back to the elevators.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Mac and Lyrian, exited the simulators, both were breathing heavily. Lyrian was worse off than Mac, but both started chugging bottles of water from Mac¡¯s Day bag.
They had gone four rounds. Mac had predictably won three of them on pure experience alone. The fourth showed how quickly Lyrian had been studying him on the last three merges. They had been more even in performance than Mac had expected. It was likely due to the fact that the Ranger fighter/interceptors were only capable of the upper edge of what a typical Delmar pilot could do. Lyri used this to great effect in keeping Mac honest in the 1 circle. She could pull just as hard as he could, and for almost as long before fatigue set in.
On the 4th fight. She had jumped the merge slightly, pulling vertically in a maximum G pull. He followed her up and they ascended quickly in a vertical rolling scissors until both planes began to falter as they reached the upper altitudes due to being in atmospheric configuration. This is where Fizz got her revenge. Just as both craft stalled out, she slammed her bird into hover mode and gunned the thrusters. Her Ranger slammed over inverted and regained control as she started to fall like an upside-down attack helicopter. Mac was attempting a differential thrust hammer head to get on target as she came racing past his port wing firing both laser and plasma as she went. She didn¡¯t need to be accurate. She had passed within 50 meters of him when she raked him with her firepower. Alarms sounded as both of his drives blew and his left-wing disintegrated. He watched her slam back into normal flight mode. Pointing the nose at the ground finally and recovering to normal flight. Mac hit the ejection lever signaling the end of the sim.
He stepped out to a haggard but triumphant Fizz getting carried around like a conquering hero on the shoulders of the rest of the wing that had apparently been watching their simulated sparring matches.
She hopped down and ran over to him, ¡°Finally gotcha!¡± She said with a grin.
¡°I had no idea that was a thing.¡± Mac said.
¡°Neither did I, I just remembered that hover can only be initiated below 220. When I saw my airspeed fall under it¡¡± she shrugged.
¡°Well, it was a good kill, I''m going to have to advance your training a bit earlier than I was ready to. I''m proud of you.¡± He smiled.
¡°Those were the wildest fights I have witnessed in my career. We¡¯ll have to send the recording off to get analyzed.¡± Wing Commander Himar walked up. ¡°I just heard back from Helyon central command. We are approved as an experimental squadron. Many higher-ups aren¡¯t happy to hear that generations of doctrine might be completely obsolete. We are to take 3 months to have you teach us, then participate in war games to test the efficacy of these new tactics.¡±
Mac chuckled, ¡°I guess the more things change, the more things stay the same. I¡¯ll have some required reading for both atmospheric and interstellar combat sent to you by the end of the day. I will be willing to give a lecture on the subject once a week. I''m no instructor, but I will explain to your pilots how I fight if that is acceptable.¡± He finished.
¡°If we can pick up even half of what you demonstrated today in tactics alone¡ you have just revolutionized fighter combat for Confederation. I look forward to the first lecture.¡± Commander Himar nodded. He was joined by the entire fighter core of the defense wing. ¡°Now, how about drinks? First round on Ivar!¡± a cheer rose.
Ivar just chuckled in resignation, ¡°I guess I deserved that.¡±
The group was headed for the door when Mac¡¯s wrist chirped. ¡°Oh boy, I¡¯ll have to take a rain check. Darclemus is requesting us at the Hall ¡®with all haste¡¯.¡±
¡°Oh¡ shit, good luck. Maybe next time¡± Ivar mentioned. Everyone waved everyone farewell and Mac stole the driver seat from Lyri as they got into Vito. Soon they were soaring toward the hall a little faster than was technically reasonable.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Darclemus stood as Mac and Lyri stepped into his office, ¡°I appreciate the promptness, but the two of you look like you ran a marathon. I could have waited a few more minutes.¡±
¡°We were at one of the defensive wings, Commander Himar¡¯s batch, in the simulators. We didn¡¯t have time to get home. It sounded important¡± Mac stated.
¡°So that¡¯s what the request for ¡®experimental training¡¯ that came across my desk was from. Himar is a good man. If he put a rush on it, it''s usually worth it.¡± Darclemus responded, kneading his chin with one hand. ¡°Well, now that you are here, let¡¯s get to business. We received a response from Sol that we must respond to immediately... I need your opinion on it. But first I must ask something of you.¡±
¡°Sounds ominous¡± Lyri mumbled and Mac nodded.
¡°What can we do for you¡± Mac voice went serious.
¡°I¡¯m afraid that Lucid Traveler must departing without the two of you.¡± Darclemus stated firmly. He held up a hand to prevent interruption as Lyrian opened her mouth in shock, ¡°It¡¯s not an easy decision for me, but both of you are of exorbitant value to Tribe Helyon, and to the Confederacy. While we have won the Legal battles presiding over your fate, Mac; our contacts deep inside the UGN have been hearing a great many things... I feel that the Safest thing for Traveler, and the two of you, is to publicly promote you to some station on the home world. This would help take the target from the back of Traveler and provide you with the protection of the Defense forces. Captain Silu agree¡¯s, though it pained him to admit it. He is very happy with the upgrades to his defensive arrays. You have left him better than he was when you arrived.¡±
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
Mac rubbed Lyrians back. She was profoundly upset, he could feel that; but she was also nodding in understanding. ¡°I was afraid something like this would happen. What else do you require of us.¡± He stated formally.
¡°I need you to hear this message and tell me if I should accept, or reject the offer presented¡ I do not ask for the answer today. But I will need it from you in the morning. Sol wishes to¡ further explore their options in our part of space...¡±
Mac raised an eyebrow, ¡°I guess I should see what Sol has to say.¡± he stated, turning toward the Viewer on the wall as one of Darclemus¡¯s aids initiated the message.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Mac opened the door for Lryi as they arrived home well after dark. Today was a hell of a wild one, Lyri had been upset at losing her seat as senior Con for Traveler. She understood why, but it still hurt. They both took a quick shower before bed to clean the exertion and sweat from their simulator sparring match of earlier today. Mac was tired, but more mentally exhausted. He finished preparing for bed first and slid into their nest of a bed first. Delmar Beds were an interesting experience. first, they were circular. The second was that they were intentionally designed in a flight-concave fashion towards the middle. Apparently, it was a holdover from earlier times where whole family units would sleep together for during the cooler winter months. It had finally explained why Lyri was so drawn to his body heat. She had explained that Delmar don¡¯t retain heat very well, so temperature changes affected them more aggressively because of it. Mac crawled into the center and flopped on his back, pulling one of the segmented radial sheets across his waist just in time for Lyri to come dragging in, clearly exhausted, to flop down and pull herself to her customary spot next to him with her head on his chest.
¡°HMMMMM warm.¡± she said, entwining his body hers, her tail wrapped around his left leg.
¡°What do you make of Sol¡¯s message¡± He asked, his spike of worry got her attention and she shifted to look up at him.
¡°I think It¡¯s a risk, one we must take... as a people.¡± Lyri whispered before settling back down, ¡°The Unity murdered two-thirds of my people before the armistice. The only reason they stopped was because the Tetrarchy pulled on the leash of the Thermians. We were deemed to be too useful to the Galactic Economy.¡±
¡°Jesus, that¡¯s why you hate the Unity so much, why you push your monopoly. I knew you wanted to be free. Until now I just assumed it was good old-fashioned yearning for freedom. Who is the Tetrarchy¡± Mac started stroking her mane, causing a slight shiver.
¡°They are the total rulers of the Unity. Three Giant Metal beings make up the Unity Tetrarchy... there is a 4th metal monstrosity that is the head of the Inquisitorum.¡± She said, fully settling in for the night.
¡°Artificial beings control the Unity?¡± he asked.
¡°We don¡¯t know. There are always whispers. But the Tetrarchy only meets when absolutely necessary. I think they have only shown themselves once in the last 400 years, and only to walk to the Tower of the Unity where they meet, then leave again.¡± She whispered, already fading from consciousness.
Mac chuckled and kissed her on the top of the head as her breathing slowed and deepened. Her body melted slightly as the last conscious control fled to her being. ¡°Sweet dreams¡± he whispered and reached over, turning out the lights. Soon, he followed her into slumber.
The Next morning, He sent a message to Darclemus as Lyrian finished breakfast. They did an abbreviated morning run at 1.5 times their normal weights, then launched in Concord headed for the research-turned-communications station. Mac had dubbed the orbiting laboratory ¡°Alexander Station¡±. Doctor Quinn had approved when Mac had explained that it was the first name of the human that pioneered long-range voice communication.
Lyri had graduated to doing the walk around as Mac climbed in to do the front seat preflight. Lyri soon joined him, and they quickly began Howling for orbit. They were technically a civilian flight at the moment, so they had to follow the clearances. Mac chuckled as Ivar and a wingman, that were on a standard patrol, heard their radio calls and swung by to waggle wings in greeting before returning to their route.
The Transmission went smoothly, and They returned to the planet, having left Alexander Station with another surplus of power. Mac traded off to Lyri for the return trip, leaning back and relaxing in the back seat as Lyri bent Concord to her will as they screamed out of orbit.
¡°I was thinking, we have been doing a lot of bouncing around on Helyon business, but I haven¡¯t really gotten to see your culture.¡± Mac mentioned as Lyri executed a flawless recovery from reentry and configured Concord for Atmo.
¡°It''s because we don¡¯t have much in the way of cultural events happening right now. The tribes have always been focused on the refits when the freighters are home. I¡¯m going to be dragging you to all of it when we get the freighters Sent out for the season.¡± there was a little pain in her voice.
¡°I''m sorry you have to stay.¡± He offered.
¡°No, it''s ok. I knew this was coming the second you were named ¡®agent¡¯, and there is no way I was going to leave you to go on Voyage. Delmar have a tradition. Newly bonded couples either go on voyage together or stay at home-world together until they produce offspring. The claiming makes it so that a female most likely cannot reproduce with someone else should her mate not come home. So, it is the way of things¡± she explained.
¡°We have some time this evening. Let¡¯s swing by your father''s Office, I have some questions for him. And a bottle of whiskey I believe he¡¯s earned.¡± Mac chuckled from the back seat.
40 minutes later Concord''s wheels chirped as Lyrian set her down. Losing Traveler was painful, but she had Concord. The dangerously beautiful warship she was piloting was more than compensation for losing the Con of a freighter. She also learned that Mac had recommended her as an instructor to teach in tandem with him. She was to teach Himar¡¯s Wing the basic merges and foundational concepts that Mac was going to weave into more advanced strategy and complex Merge fighting techniques. Mac had tried to call it ¡®dogfighting¡¯ but such an animal simply didn¡¯t exist on Delmar, and made no sense to anyone but him. So ¡®Merge fights¡¯ or ¡®Merges¡¯ it was. Mac had given her a basic level text explaining what he called ¡°beyond visual range¡± combat. And she had been shocked at the distances that were commonplace for Humans to kill one another in the sky and the void. They quickly changed out of their G suits and hopped in Vito to head into town.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Doc Icario was just finishing up his last report when his door opened. His front desk clerk walked in with a worried face, ¡°Uh, Doctor. We have a walk-in¡¡±
¡°Can they come back? It''s 5 minutes to close. Is it urgent?¡± he asked rubbing his eyes.
¡°They say it''s urgent...¡± She was apologetic but there was something else.
Icario sighed, ¡°alright, set them up in exam 2. I¡¯ll be there in¡¡± Icario was interrupted as His daughter bounded past the clerk and gave her old man a very human hug.
¡°It''s Us Da!¡± She squealed as Mac walked in at a more sedate pace.
¡°I don¡¯t think an exam room will be necessary, Thanks for the help¡± He nodded to the now smirking Clerk.
Icario chuckled and stood to hug his daughter back before raising an eyebrow as Mac pulled out a bottle of very expensive booze. ¡°Do we need to be celebrating something?¡±
Mac snorted, ¡°Not yet. Lyri finally told me about the testing she had you do, that¡¯s a big thank you for... obvious reasons.¡± Mac and Icario shared a knowing uncomfortable look. ¡°She told me you got some promising results, but we want to know everything.¡±
Icario took a deep breath, ¡°well, first off. I need to know a bit about human embryonic development.¡± He started, slowly opening a drawer and pulling out three glasses, ¡°and as much as I am a professional, I am not having this conversation sober.¡±
Mac barked a laugh and Lyrian blushed brightly as Mac produced a truly expensive bottle of Delmar vintage and began pouring.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Inquisitorious sat motionless in his massive office chambers. Maximar sat in his command chair, his skin was showing the strain of too little sleep and too much frustration. The Delmar Confederation, specifically the Helyon Tribe, had been upping their security. Floating Drones in with the garbage was no longer working, and there was no information worthy of more overt actions. Well, no information fit to become a public record anyway. The chime rang, and another one of those infernal insect-living drones walked in. This one¡¯s torso was cracked, and its head languished to the side as it fumbled with the data chip. He put it out of its misery before pulling up the information. Another burst of energy headed for Humanity from Delmar. How they were generating, and storing the power to send data that far was beyond anything currently known, and he could not get any closer without triggering major repercussions throughout the Unity¡ at least not officially. He keyed up a message. This was a risk, but he needed data. Too much did not make sense. Humanity had only had just over 4 centuries of existence since the last transmission from the detachment sent to monitor the Sol system. It had been a risk, taken millennia before his time. The seeding, the buffer. The much later beginnings of the cataclysm of his race¡
He shook his head, nothing made sense¡ he Sent the message and initiated a sleep cycle, a much-needed comatose state glazed over his unblinking eyes as he settled back onto the command chair that was now tilting to accommodate the rest period.
The sinking feeling in his digestive tract followed him into the haze.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Admiral Gwen stood on board the USN Tranquility, named after the brutal engagement on Luna that shared its name with the ancient first landing site. Tranquility was a Langley class Escort Carrier of Terran design. The admiral looked around, watching the controlled chaos of the bridge, noting that almost a third of the Bridge crew wore Martian Insignia. The United Sol Navy had compromised in its attire. The Uniforms were a smart blend of the two previously hostile navies, but you were allowed to wear the home flag of your nation next to the Sol Federation¡¯s colors. Tensions had been slowly smoothing as both militaries had integrated, but the first Combined Designs were still in the shipyard.
Tranquility was an early war design, somehow a flying miracle that survived the extreme attrition of Total Interplanetary War. She carried a complement of F-43 Raptor II¡¯s, and SAG-89 Aardvark Carrier based Anti-capital ship light bombers. These craft, while potent during the war, were being phased out, and therefore available to The Admiral and her Flag Commander. Tranquility was escorted by two Martian Tharsis class Destroyers and a Terran Eros Class Dreadnaught. The small fleet of ships was currently in orbit around Luna as the LEAP techs finished their final checks. Each Crewman was a volunteer, and each man or woman was given triple pay with two-thirds of it being paid directly to their families should they not live through their mission.
Each one had a reason for being here. Many saw this as their chance to escape the system that held so many horrific memories for them. Others had families suffering from the aftermath of near extinction. Still more were simply not ready to retire and were fleeing the shrinkage of both militaries to a peacetime footing. All had been thoroughly vetted. The escort ships of both Terran and Martian make were designed to be operated with a minimum crew. Roughly 1000 Humans made up the crews of those ships with another 700 on board the Carrier, which included flight crew and support personnel. The number should be closer to 1000 souls, but There were so few pilots left after the war. Fewer still considered combat-ready. Of the 24 Raptors and 10 Aardvarks, Tranquility had enough pilots to launch 13 Raptors and 3 Aardvarks. The remaining ships were backups.
¡°The board is green, ready for departure¡± a familiar voice spoke behind Admiral Gwen. Commodore Clint Stevens was the commander of the Fleet under her. She nodded to him and looked back out of the observation windows.
¡°Captain Willows! Initiate handshake protocols. Let¡¯s sync the Drives and the Computers. Jump when ready.¡± Clint ordered.
Captain Peter Willows nodded and began barking orders as the 4 ships began to hum with power. Each ship was an older design for a reason. Each ship had been retrofitted with a 3rd generation slip drive and Engine Management and Navigational system to attempt fleet-level Slipspace jumps. Their destination was Neptune¡¯s Beacon.
5 minutes went by.. ¡°Handshake Green, All drives report green!. Jump in 10... mark!¡± Captain Willows barked, and the silent countdown began. All the ships were Data Linked to Tranquility who was providing the jump data. The jump data was being double, triple and quadruple checked by each of the other ships¡¯ computer systems for safety and quality control.
There were a few gasps when the Black outside the observation windows started bleeding streaks of white and blue. Whisps of plasma contrails bled off the trailing edges of the Carrier and her Escorts.
Then, with a flash. It was over and the fleet appeared over Neptune.
¡°Jump complete. All systems read nominal¡± one of the bridge crew called out.
¡°Well done everyone. We will be having the LEAP crew do a full check of all 4 vessels. Have the fleet establish orbit over Neptune until that is completed.¡± Clint turned to Gwen and gave her a long-relieved look.
After all, they weren¡¯t dead, yet.
Chapter 28
Mac and Lyri headed home after their visit with her father. They were cruising along the coast in Vito, taking in the last light before heading home for the evening
¡°Well, that was enlightening.¡± Mac chuckled.
¡°Which part? I¡¯m not exactly calm about possibly having to carry deliver a five and a half kilo baby¡± Lyri chuckled.
¡°Well. Yea. I wasn¡¯t expecting Delmar babies to be born so small or so early.¡± Mac commented. ¡°Your father doesn¡¯t seem to think there will be any complication, other than conception. He isn¡¯t quite sure how human sperm are going to interact with a Delmar underutilized egg.¡± Macs voice was quiet, almost contemplative. ¡°It might be a problem considering how often we make love without any protection.. if you were human, you would already be pregnant.¡±
¡°We haven¡¯t.. been making love without ¡®protection¡¯¡± lyrian mumbled as she landed Vito. Mac gave her a quizzical look as they got out and headed for the door.
She saw it and giggled, blushing slightly. ¡°I forget that you aren¡¯t Delmar sometimes¡ you''re so¡± she bit her lower lip ¡°good with me¡±.
Lyri stepped through the door and Mac closed it quickly before slipping up behind her and driving a hand down the front of her pants, hooking two fingers inside before pulling her to him. ¡°You were saying about protection¡± he whispered in her ear withdrawing his soaked fingers just far enough to move them in infuriatingly slow circles.
Lyri managed to regain control just enough to dislodge his fingers and turned to face him, still biting her lip. ¡°Females have¡¡± was all she got out Before he overwhelmed her again with his will and drove both hands under her top, stripping off her undershirt and poncho, pushing her up against the wall, and using them to capture her arms over her head before locking lips around her left nipple.
¡°Mhmm?¡± He mumbled as his tongue swirled around her aureola before sucking as much of her breast into his mouth as he could and reversing direction with his tongue rabidly flicking the tip of her nipple with it as her will failed. She was pinned against the wall with his left hand holding both her arms over her head, his right began to unlace her pants before sliding down to her womanhood once more. All she could do was arch her back. Bucking slightly to his touch. She finally got one hand free and tugged at his belt. A few moments later his belt was loose and his pants and boxers fell to his ankles. He had switched breasts and now released her right nipple from his lips and locked eyes with her.
She could feel him through the claiming. Tonight wasn¡¯t going to be about babies, or love making. His emotions almost overpowered her, and she grabbed him about his waist with her legs and lifted herself until the tip of his manhood was just inside her. She took a few moments to work his tip, slowly coating him with herself. Then, with the last of her will, she bared her fangs at him, daring him to dominate her. She would not submit to him tonight. With all her newfound strength, she wrapped her caves around the back of him, and drove herself bodily down onto him. She refused to moan, not yet. She pushed all her possessiveness through her link to meet his own. He grunted as he sank into her, she took all of him, driving him in with her legs until their hips slammed together. She gripped his hips like a vice. Daring him to fight her.
He released her captured arm and grabbed her by the hips. He began grinding into her, stirring small circles around inside her in a maddeningly slow movement. Her grip around his waist faltered and the hunter took his advantage, driving his arms between her thighs and hooking her knees in his elbows as he planted his hands wide on the wall. He took advantage of her mistake and soon she was suspended from his arms by her legs in an almost split. He still hadn¡¯t moved inside her. Using his manhood and his hips to keep her up against the wall during this. Now, with her weight supported by his arms. He pulled all the way out until his tip was just spreading her entrance. Then he drove back into her until their hips collided. He slowly sped up until he was pounding away at her womanhood. She finally released a moan as she began to climax.
Mac had learned that Lyrian did not tend to have multiple orgasms. She tended to reach climax and stay there as long as he could last. He could feel her fight for control of her body. She wrapped her hands around the back of his neck and head for stability, her abs rippling under her skin as she used the leverage to drive her hips into his every thrust. Mac felt himself building and so did Lyri as her control finally failed her. She wrapped her arms around him as he drove into her a final time and their hips slammed together as he exploded... he held here there, and she held him to her chest with her arms. He kissed and teased each of her nipples in turn as they rode each other¡¯s waves of ecstasy until they faded. He slipped from her after a few minutes more and he carried her to their shower.
Soon after, they collapsed onto the bed. Mac was in the center, lying on his back. His angel¡¯s skin was pressed against his side. She had wiggled in until his rib cage was between her breasts, he could see a still perky nipple peeking out on top. She had her head on his chest with her left leg wrapped around his waist. He felt the slight heat between her thighs as she rocked her hips against his upper thigh, pressing her womanhood to his leg. Her tail was wrapped around his lower leg as she drank in his body heat with that contented hum of hers.
¡°So, what¡¯s this about protection again?¡± Mac picked up their passionately interrupted conversation. It was early yet, and neither one was ready for sleep.
She hummed one more time into his chest before starting, ¡°Do you remember when I told you that the female is the only one who can claim a man, and that it was too dangerous to have sexual flings? It¡¯s why I was a ¡®virgin¡¯ the night I claimed you.¡±
¡°You were pretty skilled for a virgin, luv.¡± he teased gently.
¡°The link helps with that. Delmar claiming instincts do the rest. Once a Delmar female claims her mate, she is biologically programmed to get¡ creative until she feels what her mate likes. Although, tonight was different. I¡¯ve never felt you like that before. It was intense, predatory. If we weren¡¯t linked I would have been terrified.¡± she kisses his chest. Then pushed herself up to lock his lips in hers before nipping his lower lip. Pulling it gently with her fangs being careful not to draw blood. ¡°I loved it¡± She whispered to him.
Mac had learned that this was a female side effect of the claiming. Once a male was claimed the female¡¯s possessiveness would become more aggressive.
¡°Your species is a paradox, you know that?¡± He chucked as she pushed up to straddle him, pressing her breasts to his chest as he looked into her eyes. ¡°Human females are either dominant or submissive in personality. If you are an incredibly dominantly possessive, especially with me; but I know I could take you at any moment and you would not be able or even desire to resist.¡±
She felt herself moisten at his words, unable to keep from grinding her hips on his manhood. He smiled and grabbed her ass, lifting her up only to slide her back down his quickly hardening shaft as she whimpered and went limp, collapsing onto his chest.
¡°No I couldn¡¯t stop ¡..ooooooohhhhh you from doing anything right now.¡± She regained her composure as Mac was content to simply invade her womanhood without moving further. Despite that, her body spasmed about his manhood causing her to shudder and him to grunt.
¡°This the other half of the claiming. When a female claims a man, she also biologically surrenders the choice of children to him. Each bond creates a ¡.. hmmmmmm¡. unique ¡®trigger¡¯. It¡¯s subconscious and most bonded stumble onto it by the second year of the claiming. Ooooooo¡. When it happens, if basic needs like food, water, shelter, and safety are considered met; the females cannot say no, her body will release a flood of hormones both remove her body¡¯s ability to kill off male seed, but also boost the male''s endurance and production, while removing her ability to control her instincts.¡± She explained. Very slightly rocking her hips to keep them both stimulated. ¡°In short... ohh gods¡ a female Delmar cannot get pregnant until the male tells her¡. Uuuhhhhh¡.. to. And after the first time. The male can initiate it at any time. His mate''s body will react immediately as long as she is without a child, fed and safe. We think it is This way because of our need to secure future generations in a dangerou¡.. ¡° she never finished as Mac sat up and drove himself further in, pulling her breasts to lips.
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This time was all lovemaking. Slow, passionate, gentle, yet deep and powerful. Lyrian climaxed first and Mac flipped her over on her back to hold her in ecstasy for another hour before he gave in and pressed himself in as far as he could go, he bottomed out inside her and came hard a second time. At least he thought he did until lyri moaned and snapped her legs around him. His climax caused her to squeeze him like a vice, driving the last of him fully inside her, his tip slammed into furthest folds of her woman hood as he filled her. They collapsed a second time, as mac rolled to have her return to her position up against his side. The void had more air than the space between them as they drifted off to sleep.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Lyri felt the warmth of the sun on her face as it crept into their room through their picturesque glass door. It overlooked the cleared area that housed the hanger, the runway, and a big portion of the fine sand beaches of the straight. She felt the characteristic heat from her mate radiating behind her. She stirred slightly, only to feel him at full mast, his manhood pressed between her ass cheeks and up against her lower back. She remembered him telling her about human male ¡®morning wood¡¯ and a wave of desire swept over her despite last night¡¯s passion. She could feel him softly breathing behind her. They had somehow ended up spooning sometime in the middle of the night. She knew he wasn¡¯t awake; but she decided to change that. She gently worked her tail around his waist and arced her back, slowly sliding her ass up his body until his manhood slid free and came to rest between her thighs. Her body ached for him to fill her, but she waited. She wanted to give him a special wake up call. She ever so slowly slid herself back down, being careful not to wake him until the tip of his shaft was slowly worked in between the folds of her womanhood, but not quite through the entrance. She focused on him through their bond, slowly rolling her hips soaking his manhood with herself. She felt him stir but not quite awake, she ground on his tip until she felt the spark of consciousness. He was waking up, she arched her back further. She turned her head to whisper over her shoulder as she reached her arms over her head to caress his cheeks just as his eyes began to open.
¡°good morning¡± she coo¡¯d.
She had wrapped her tail around one of his knees; In one smooth motion she drove herself downward onto him. His manhood sank into her, as she felt his emotions flare as his body shuddered. She smiled to herself and slowly began to squeeze him in what she had learned his kind called Kegals. Flexing her core and her pelvic floor to massage his manhood deep inside her. She reached down to follow his hands as they moved, feeling his tip press deep into her as his manhood twitched on its own with her movements.
¡®Oh fuck... I¡¯m awake now¡¯ equal parts surprise and ecstasy burned through the last of the fog of Mac¡¯s unconsciousness. He had been slowly coming to when she had given him his ¡®wakeup call¡¯. He could feel her. She wasn¡¯t moving her hips, but she was flexing her pelvic floor methodically; making her sex both squeeze him and try to pull him on further. He wrapped one arm around her chest, snaking it over her breast to gently tease erect nipples. he snaked his other hand down her long, lean defined abs, past her bellybutton and down between her thighs. It was her turn to shudder as he found the spot he was looking for and began to trace circles with his fingers. That got him a long squeeze from her as she involuntarily clamped down on him.
¡°Hell of a¡. Mmm ¡ good morning.¡± he moaned into her ear from over her shoulder. She flaunted her flexibility as she arched and twisted her upper body slightly more to be able to look into his eyes. She locked him in her gaze and said nothing as she began to move her hips. She bit his lip gently as she timed her squeezing and her grinding to the circles She was still tracing his finger around the pleasure points on her sex. She had been shocked when he found them, but apparently, her species shared many biological similarities in pleasure and procreation. Mac was focused on their bond as well and he started grinding his hips in time as they both reveled in each other.
Suddenly, Mac felt something stir in his soul and he didn¡¯t think. On one smooth motion, he pressed Lyri to him and sat up so that she was on all fours with him kneeling behind her, still buried deep in her. He spread her knees out into a half-split before grabbing her around the chest and lifting her up for him to kiss her neck. His wife had shown her flexibility early on, and she arched her back to meet him, still flexing her sex on him in a moderate rhythm. ¡®God she is getting really good at that¡¯. he latched onto her neck with his lips and teeth harder than he usually did and gave a very low-frequency humming growl. He felt her whole body instantly stiffen.
¡°James¡wha.. are you..OOOHHHHH¡¡± was all she got out before she let out a long low moaning growl of her own. Her head snapped around and she kissed him over her shoulder then drove her fangs into his lower lip drawing blood before her body collapsed to the mattress hips and legs being held up by Macs hands and manhood. She began to regain some composure, as he gently wrapped a hand around either side of her waist at the hips and started slow, he withdrew his manhood, the tip just barely remaining, only to drive it at the same speed back into her. He slowly increased his tempo until he felt her climax with a howling moan. Then he held his pace, driving deep into her with every thrust. Her body was shaking, her emotions a wild hurricane of feral need, pleasure, and something older¡ more primal. His mind started to blur. She had lost control of her body, consumed by his methodical driving rythm keeping her in the throes of climax. He could feel her spasm and buck to his movements. Her entrance then started to tighten, and deep inside her something flowered open. Lyrian had been thorough during their time on board Traveler, and Mac knew every inch of her, inside and out. This was new as he kept his rythm, cascades of Lyri¡¯s ecstasy washing over him as he both held her in climax and tried to stave off his own. He teased this new feeling spot inside her, gently pressing on her back to arch her hips. Her body molded to his touch and soon her entire body above her belly button was pressed to the mattress with her back arched steeply. Her thighs spread further into the semi split as she moaned her complete surrender to him. ¡°James¡¡± was all she got out before sentient thought was washed away in a tidal wave of passion.
. The human, at least Mac¡¯s, manhood was several centimeters to the longer side of Delmar average. But more importantly, It was almost twice as thick. And stayed fully erect compared to a Delmar that would only be partially hard until right before the finish. Because of this, their passion, until very recently, had mostly consisted of fineness and gentle technique¡
Not this morning. Lyrian felt it too and was locked in instinct. She followed her lover¡¯s hands and felt herself open up to him as much as she could considering her lack of any real voluntary control over her mind. Her body begged as he kept that maddening pace. Each time, a new thrust ended with him impacting her hips with his. It sent her deeper into climax with each impact... Time stopped; she couldn¡¯t think. Her body moved on its own. She bucked and cried out as each new wave of pleasure crashed into her. For the second time, Mac stopped holding back, driving everything he had into her over and over again on that maddeningly stimulating rythm.
Mac lost his pace, driving as deep as he could into her with each thrust. She was barely conscious now, lost in her eternal climax, The shift in angle of her body drove the tip of his manhood deep into this new unfolded area. It wrapped around the head of his manhood with every thrust. He felt himself building after a small eternity as his mind shut down and he stopped fighting his climax. He felt the new folds of her womanhood pull at him. Latching around the head of his manhood as his final thrust pushed him into his own climax. His hips lost the last of their rhythm, bucking wildly as he climaxed.. her sex pulled at him, the head of his manhood was wrapped in a vice deep inside her. The velvet vice pulled at him, rubbing the sensitive areas on the underside of his head. She slammed back into him with a long low-pitched howl, as her hips bucked wildly with his. Her womanhood clamped down, capturing his tip deep inside her as they rode the waves of climax, feeding off of each other¡¯s emotions in a sort of feedback loop that lasted almost 2 minutes. They both collapsed into a spooning position. Mac was vaguely aware that He had not gone soft. Lyri¡¯s entrance relaxed, but the new folds of her deep womanhood refused to release the head of his shaft. The velvet vice pulsed and massaged his tip causing little micro bucks and shudders as his body involuntarily responded, giving more and more of his seed in little spurts and sputters. Lyrian¡¯s body shuddered and bucked in time with his staccato¡¯d releases.
Lyrian and Mac were not in control. Their bodies were caught in a feedback loop as one being¡¯s slight buck, squeeze, twitch or thrust sent waves of ecstasy through both of their beings. It had been an hour since Lyrian had given her surprise wake up call to Mac¡ It took 20min for them to come down from climax. And another hour before Lyrian¡¯s womanhood relaxed and Mac softened enough to slip out of her.
¡°Holy¡.. shit¡. What¡ what was.. that¡± Mac gasped as his Brain started working again.
Lyrian moaned and pulled herself up to kiss him before collapsing on her side next to him. ¡°I think¡ that was it¡ that was our trigger¡. You asked for a child¡ when you did that thing with my neck and your teeth.¡±
Memory flooded back to Mack. He had bitten her skin HARD and gave her a humming growl. That was what had started all of this. ¡°Wow¡ that happened¡¡± he pulled her closer and started tracing circles on her stomach. ¡°Now we wait.¡± He said. Before kissing her stomach and pulling her into an embrace. They spent the rest of the morning in bed, only to be roused by Macs growling stomach. Lyri winced as she attempted to get up. Last night and this morning had taken their toll.
¡°No.¡± Mac said pushing as much authority into his voice as he could.
¡°But we need food¡± she grumped before he physically overpowered her and laid her back in bed.
¡°You give us a shot at having a child. And last night was none too gentle either. I¡¯m grilling Kababs, you are sitting on the porch with a fruity drink and watching. No exceptions.¡± He stated before nipping her on the ear and departing.
The smell of wood burning, and meat searing wafted through the house as she finally got up and wobbled to the back patio where the wood-fired grill was.
As promised. She found a sunbathing chair and a fruity drink. She didn¡¯t bother dressing, letting the autumn sun soak into every inch of her. Mac had a pair of shorts on, she suspected for protecting sensitive areas from stray embers.
20 minutes later he walked over to the matching sunchair and placed a plate of kababs between them and poured a glass of juice into his own glass.
They did not leave their lodge till the next day.
Chapter 29
Jakruth Murgorz pondered his console, rereading the message for the third time. This could only end one way¡ unless he got very very lucky. Unfortunately, Inquisitorius Maximar was not one to allow descent. He ran one clawed hand over his console, typing out his confirmation. He sat back in His cramped but private cabin.
Jakruth was not his name¡ He had lost that almost a century ago along with his freedom. He shared that with every being in his modest command. He commanded a pirate fleet named Void¡¯s Revenge¡. That accursed name preceded Jakruth¡¯s time in servitude and would outlast his death. He currently commanded 10 light barges. The barges had no specific design pattern. Instead, they resembled several semi-rusted-out industrial facilities bolted together with engines and weapons welded on.
There were also 3 ¡®stolen¡¯ Thermian frontier Brigs, including the disgraced Convergent Dawn and her crew. Only now, she was renamed Black Kar after her descended late captain. The Kar was now commanded by the disgraced Thermian¡¯s first officer, but she was a mixed crew now. Her original crew had been spread between the other two brigs with her own crew augmented by Lycan and Kawmari. The ¡®Void¡¯s Revenge¡¯ fleet were free to act as pirates, free to raid and pillage the outer systems, until the Maximar called. They were the Inquisitorum¡¯s insurance policy, her shrouded dagger. When summoned, they were to sail, fight, and die without question.
He stepped onto the bridge of his capital ship, the light barge ¡®Cloaked Shank¡¯ ¡°Give me the fleet¡± he ordered. A K¡¯Claram male scuttled up to him with an archaic microphone on a wire.
¡°Void¡¯s Revenge! Now hear this¡. Maximar calls! Our destination is Delmar space.. Our mission is one of mayhem. We will hit them hard! Make them beg for Unity aid.. our ¡®benifactor¡¯ *his voice dropped with hate* wishes an excuse to enter their space. It matters not why. Prepare yourselves!!! It will be several months in subspace. We jump in 2 hours time¡ Void take those that don¡¯t make it.. Die well! Jakruth out.¡± He released the ancient microphone letting it swing away from him.
¡°Navigation, begin slaving the fleet to our computer. Plot is a course for Signus¡ we have a date to keep.¡±
Jakruth did not wait for a response. Every crew member on every ship, himself included; was a spared condemned criminal in the eyes of the Inquisition. Considered already dead, but still too useful for servitorship. His will would be carried out.
He returned to his cabin.
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¡°I think my mind is leaking out of my ears¡± Ivar groaned as he dropped the reading material homework on 1circle vs 2circle merges in atmosphere vs in the void.
¡°Oh, common Ivar, this stuff works, you saw it. Hell, you did it to me this morning in the sim!¡± One of the other fighter pilots, Srillorin maybe, shouted back.
¡°I know, so much of it goes against instinct. It¡¯s hard to stay disciplined.¡± Ivar grumbled. ¡°How can a species turn combat into a science?¡±
¡°One whose occupation, for the last 6 thousand years of recorded history, has been war¡± a sing song female voice rang out into the room as Lyrian stepped into the room from the hanger. ¡®Well, not perfectly accurate; but it¡¯s a dam good line¡¯ she thought as she walked to the podium as the wings pilots scrambled to find seating.
¡°Alright, let us start the BFM lecture with atmospheric combat,¡± Lyrian began her lesson¡
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Mac walked into the lair of the professors Gem, or rather, their laboratory of research and development. Mac was met by one of the interns and led to the back of the back of the building. The out of it. The two of them stepped out to be met by Doctor Quinn holding out two copies of Mac over-ear hearing protection. Mac accepted it and donned them obediently. He surveyed the area and saw a smattering of small arms and one really big weapon about the length of one of Concords GAU¡¯s. Doctor Bart was hovering over the big weapon before waving everyone away. He stepped away and pressed a button on the lanyard. The large gun bucked on its 4-legged low mount and the tell-tale report of a large caliber Gauss discharge rang out into the jungle. A new hole appeared in an old, rusted air car at the far end of the clearing and a 40-meter-tall berm produced a cloud of dust as it captured the projectile. Those details registered in the back of Mac¡¯s mind as the recoil of the weapon opened an ejection port and a colossal brass-colored spent cartridge case was spat out. The foliage under it sizzled as it landed, almost glowing with heat.
¡°Well, you seem to have been busy.¡± Mac mused, walking over to the weapon at hand.
¡°Indeed, sadly nowhere near what you are capable of.¡± Prof Bart stood, walking over to the other three.
Mac removed his ear protection now that the range was cold, ¡°So what am I looking at?¡±
¡°This is our first Attacker/bomber born Gauss Cannon.¡± Professor Quinn began, ¡°We simply cannot make the sort of absurd power numbers that your ship is capable of. Currently, we have converted the capacitance cartridge design for fighter, attacker, and bomber applications. It will require a capital ship to charge the cartridges and provide reloading capabilities. Currently, it takes a full ¡®day¡¯ to charge 100 cartridges using a class 4 Delmar Reactor while underway in standard non-combat power loads.¡±
¡°Class 4?¡± Mac asked.
¡°Class 1 is the fighter class and small shuttle/attacker fusion cores. Class 2 is used on small destroyers and escort gunboats designed to be subspace capable. Class 3 is a cruiser-class fusion core, and Class 4 is our current biggest reactor. We use them on orbital platforms and our largest class capital ships.¡± Professor Bart chimed in.
¡°So, charging the weapon itself is out of the question with our current fighters and bombers. The projectile is a 41mm ¡®durrasteel¡¯ dart with 4mm Sabot. We can get 1300 m/s in atmosphere and 10,000 meters per second in a vacuum. We have not figured out how to swap on the fly, so the mission-specific cartridge will have to be loaded before launch. Each bomber will be able to use one of these in a hardpoint-mounted Pod with 25 rounds. Sadly, this won''t be a fighter-on-fighter weapon, but our initial testing is promising against capital ships. We can currently fire roughly 5 rounds a ¡®second¡¯ without risking overheating. 10 if we only want to shoot 7 rounds before letting the weapon cool. Repid firing all twenty-five requires a rebuild of the weapon.¡± Professor Quinn finished the explanation.
¡°So, you solved the capacitor problem?¡± Mac asked, picking up the heavy cartridge off the ground now that it had cooled.
¡°In a way.¡± Professor Bart alternated with his brother. ¡°Our graphene capacitors are not as potent as Human versions, but we can get our small arms and ship-grade weapons combat effective. Without the ability to make power though, we may be limited on what velocities we are capable of; or what designs we can use effectively.¡±
¡°Sadly, the power problem is resource based, unless we find some asteroids or a planetoid with what you need to make a Plasma-based fusion device and fuel for it¡ It¡¯s a wise decision to work around what you have. Considering what I have seen from the UGN. If you were to add this as an offensive weapon to a capital ship. Or an array of 3 or 4 of them. You will be in a superior position until your power runs out.¡± Mac stooped down to look over the weapon squatting on its mounts. ¡°Make sure you don¡¯t skimp on the support structure and recoil management.¡± He finally stood. ¡°I like it, what else did you want me to look at?¡±
The next 3 hours Had Mac test firing and discussing various small arms. Their Gauss small arms were a bit chunkier, and they had not bothered trying pistols. Mac had also inspected and test-fired some of the Chemical propellant weapons on the range. Those were showing more promise, even though the Delmar had decided to go with lighter powder charges and smaller calibers due to their weaker physical abilities. Mac had pulled out a couple of blueprints and requested a couple of chemical propellant weapons for himself and Lyrian. He was still unsure if the capacitors in his Gauss ammunition would trigger security and wanted options.
The Tests ended with professors Grem taking some notes and Mac heading off to meet Lryian after her lecture.
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Admiral Gwen sat in her Flag quarters sipping her morning coffee. She was 5 minutes away from her weekly meeting with Clint. They had done two more Jump tests with the fleet as well as with a Drone converted Cargo transport. They had just finished dropping the LEAP techs off after upgrading the cooling systems of the Slip-Drives after the last few rapid jump tests showed the need.
Her computer chimed, and she opened the alert. Her eyes widened slightly as she read the message. Taking a breath, Gwen calmly finished her coffee more out of personal discipline than apathy. She placed the Cup in its place to be washed and walked toward the Bridge of the Tranquility. Clint met her just outside the door, ¡°I guess you got it too?¡± She asked.
¡°Yes, Admiral.¡± His voice was practiced calm, to anyone but those who knew him best. He was practically bouncing on his toes.
They entered the Bridge together. ¡°Admiral on Deck!¡± Clint Barked and the room silenced as everyone stood and faced them. Admiral Gwen reached for the left arm of her command chair and activated the fleet-wide Com button.
¡°This is the Admiral speaking. I won¡¯t beat around the bush. We have received confirmation that our mission is a go. We will be departing in 3 hour¡¯s time. Run final checks and sync the computers. Take your time people. Let¡¯s get this right, everyone. We may hold the fate of the Human species in our hands. As we are a go, I will give you the full mission that has been classified until now. We are one of 7 fleets scheduled to depart toward the far side of the galaxy. Each has a different beacon provided to us by our Ally on the out-skirts of this ¡°Galactic Unity¡¯s¡± domain. The rest are to depart for their respective destinations, dropping beacons at regular intervals and seeding the space between for exploration by slip-space. We will be doing the same, however, we will not be returning immediately. I have been named Ambassador to the Delmar Confederation. Our mission is to represent Humanity. Our return trip will depend on what we find when we get there. This is your last chance to back out. You have until the last shuttle returning the logistics and preparation crews to their stations to decide. Make no mistake; this is not safe. We do not even know if we will make it. There are hostile forces that we may encounter on arrival, and we do not know what lies between us and our Ally. We are sailing off the edge of the map Gentlemen and women. That is all.¡± She released the button on her chair. ¡°Let¡¯s go people!¡± She said finally, snapping everyone out of their frozen positions.
3 hours later. Admiral Gwen¡¯s Expedition fleet winked out of existence trailing whisps of plasma as they jumped for slip space. Over the next 2 months, small fleets of mixed Terran and Martian warships were retrofitted and sent out on separate missions. Delmar had given Sol the beacon coordinates for 6 other beacons on the outer edges of Unity space. Sol had formatted their Beacons to not interface with the Unities network, acting more like receivers. The Sol beacons were designed to receive a signal with the correct code, then directionally broadcast back to the coded message. It would be a slow process, but a secure one in that the UGN would not be able to use the Sol beacons to reach Humanity¡¯s cradle system. With luck, the Unity would not even notice the Sol beacons as they would not be actively transmitting unless requested. For the first time in human history, Sol reached outside her star¡¯s orbit with manned flight.
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The day had arrived. Mac, Lyrian, and Commander Himar stood inside the observation room of the Delmar Confederation Fighter Defense headquarters. Their arrival had had mixed reactions. Himar¡¯s wing had rushed up to them with excited ¡®handshakes¡¯ and ¡®bro-hugs¡¯ for ¡®BigMac and Fizz¡¯. Lyrian had let it slip the tradition of call signs and Ivar had begged Himar to give them some. Himar was still on the fence about it, and Mac had refused stating that it was not his place. Rules you see.
Himar¡¯s wing settled into their sim pods and the ¡®home wing¡¯ settled into their own pods. ¡®home wing¡¯ was supposed to be the best of the best from all the tribes. To them, Himar¡¯s wing was just some outskirts pilots in need of an attitude adjustment.
¡°Teams! Take your position! This will be a two-scenario exercise. Three matches per scenario. The first will be starting in low-level atmosphere over the Hilisti straight. The second will be in orbit over Delmar. Both scenarios will be Air superiority. Each team must take and hold the central zone until it is captured. Match ends when one team is eliminated, or the point is captured. As always, there are no safeties engaged in these simulators, you can and may cause blackouts and/or injury. Take care pilots. BEGIN IN 30!¡± The head instructor announced. And pressed the initiation button to spin up the scenario.
A Grizzled old Delmar in a high officer¡¯s uniform glanced a glare are them, ¡°So, you are responsible for wasting resources on useless concepts. I¡¯ll be heading up an investigation after this, boy.¡± He grunted. He was the largest Delmar Mac had seen thus far. The man looked every bit the part of a portly, politically commissioned officer.
Mac intentionally gave him a grin full of teeth while holding his gaze, then turned to face the screens as the battle commenced. The home wing immediately scattered, trying to individually encircle the tighter flying Wing flown by Himar¡¯s Pilots. Ivar shouted a break command and His flight of 8 snapped into 4 flights of two. Each flight targeted an individual Home Flight pilot and 8 enemies turned into 4 enemies. The surviving pilots predictably dove for the tail of the pairs of Himar¡¯s flight only to be gunned down as the pairs of wingmen began crossing each other¡¯s flight paths raking any trailers in laser and plasma. The fight was over in under 3 minutes with only one of Ivar¡¯s pilots taking moderate damage.
This repeated itself twice more and Himar¡¯s flight only lost two fighters total in the three engagements. Mac could feel the aging staff officer¡¯s glare, but he pointedly ignored him entirely, only speaking to Lyrian and Himar.
The exercise moved on to the orbital combat portion and ¡®home wing¡¯ fared little better. Mac had taught them the Terran Max Delta V spiral approach, and Ivar had modified it to work without ballistics, and for two flights of 4. In the first match, When the home wing tried to imitate the formation-based fighting from earlier Ivar¡¯s wings split into two flights and began concentric spiraling approaches that filled the entire capture point with laser and plasma fire creating a kill box that obliterated the home wing without a single hit of return fire. The second and third matches went little better as Ivar proved he was paying attention. The skilled Delmar flight leader effortlessly called different tactics to each adjustment that the ¡®home wing¡¯ made.
The exercise ended. And the Staff officer huffed off claiming he was going to have the entire scenario investigated down to the connections between simulator pods. Mac just chuckled and shook his head as the actual Head of the Training facility stepped over to shake Himar¡¯s hand.
¡°I would like to see the curriculum you put in place to train your pilots to this level.¡± he stated to Himar.
¡°I cannot take credit. This was demonstrated then taught by these two.¡± He pointed to Mac and Lyri who were politely standing there.
¡°I can have the reading material and recorded lectures sent to you by the end of day, if you like.¡± Mac responded.
¡°I would. Now if you will excuse me. I have an aging Colonel to talk down.¡± The man chuckled.
Mac, and Lyri cashed in that rain check and Himar¡¯s wing went out for the evening to treat their instructors to a victory celebration.
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Mac and Lyri stood on the tarmac of the Shuttles departing for the freighter fleet. Lyri was saying goodbye to her father, mother, Martin, Tristen, and Brayton. Mac was doing the same. They both hated this. Lyri wanted to be on the Con, and Mac did not like the idea of hoping the Unity ignored the Lucid Traveler because of his absence. He had taken steps, however. Mac had Started Doctor Quenn into figuring out if Concord could be retrofitted with a subspace drive. It wouldn¡¯t be much. But if the call came, he wouldn¡¯t be stuck in some fucking hanger because he couldn¡¯t jump. Traveler had also been upgraded with new capacitors for their weapons and shield banks. She had more teeth and could bear them for longer now. Mac silently prayed that would be enough.
The two of them went home that day, and just cuddled. Lyrian spent the evening curled up in his lap having a good mope. He stroked her hair and main as they watched an evening movie.
¡°bithidh iad ceart gu leoir (They will be fine)¡± He whispered to her.
¡°Tha fios agam, tha e d¨¬reach a¡¯ faireachdainn ce¨¤rr (I know, it just feels wrong).¡± She whispered back before turning off the screen and taking his hand.
¡°fuirich ri mo thaobh a-nochd (stay by my side tonight)¡± She coo¡¯d to him as he stood, scooping her in his arms
¡°Gu dearbh (of course)¡± he said before leaning into her to kiss her on her chin, then down to her neck before nipping her hard on the neck and giving her a low humming growl into her soul.
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Jakruth surveyed his fleet. Two of the barges were not going to make the jump, such was life. He cared not that the crews were begging for leniency. Maximar did not allow for divergence from his orders. The rest of his fleet was synced up, and slowly closing formation under slaved navigation to his flagship.
¡°Systems green Jakruth,¡± The navigational station called out.
¡°Execute¡± Jakruth ordered. All the ready ships began their run to subspace. The two barges that were having difficulties tried to follow. The nearest barge to the formation started to flicker its external lights. Following a small explosion on its larboard side, the main drive on the same side flickered then failed, and the stricken barge began yawing the stricken vessel to port before it detonated. The second barge made its acceleration burn to subspace. It attempted to make the jump and its subspace drive overloaded, ripping the ship apart with a cloud of venting atmosphere before its Fusion Core detonated as well.
Jakruth barely noted the blips disappearing from his HUD. The Void¡¯s Revenge waits for no one.
Chapter 30
¡°Ugh!! KCHH!! Hhuuuugh¡ KCHH!!!¡± Fizz was in a 9g felt reversal, her target had taken it into the vertical, reference to the planet below them, and was cashing in for the shot. She held her turn as long as she dared until she was forced to slam the stick over to dodge her enemy fire as it pulled lead, she juked, slapping Concord into profile to minimize her presentation as Her HUD showed her just how close she had come to dying. She slammed her throttles into differential thrust and reversed her rudder, spinning Concord¡¯s nose in the opposite direction as she reversed her roll and slammed down on the stick. Her single spiral negative G pirouette got her seeing red just for a moment before she pulled back into the positive. She snapped her throttles back in place and slammed them both forward. Concord leaped to her commands, but she had only neutralized the engagement. She saw no tracers, only the HUD¡¯s sensors were telling her when her enemy took his shots. She fought on. The spiraling, crossing, spinning dance of death. She couldn¡¯t quite get her nose around, and she could tell she was fatiguing quickly as she snapped a reversal again to force the 1 circle. ¡®Shit, defensive again. Gatta juke the nose an¡¡¡¯ a TAKATAKATAKA sound of impacting rounds on metal and blaring alarms broke her concentration before blackness enveloped her.
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¡°So¡ what did we learn¡¡± Mac asked as he helped Lyrian out of the sim. Mac had been impressed by the artificial gravity-based full motion simulators that the Delmar used. He had requested a pair of them and had installed them in the back corner of the living room. They shared the space with their small gym area and had become part of their daily workout. Mac had downloaded Jarvis¡¯ entire flight profile of Concord into both sims before isolating them from any outside connections save for each other. Sim time had become both essential training and exercise as Lyrian continued her quest to become ¡°earth ready¡±. Mac had bumped the gravity in their home up to 2.0 Delmar G, and Lyrian had taken to marking off the occasions on the wall next to the dial in mini celebrations.
¡°Don¡¯t fight humans¡ they¡¯re crazy¡¡± she grunted, leaning on him moderately, her legs were a bit wobbly from the fight. It still took everything she had to keep up with Mac in a merge. Her ¡®Beyond Visual Range¡¯ training was almost complete, and she could match Mac fairly consistently until the merge. He was still victorious more times than not, but she had finally forced him to exert himself properly in BVR fights.
¡°Well, other than that¡± Mac chided gently as Lyri¡¯s body recovered and she stood up tentatively on her own.
¡°The overshoot, I spent too much energy... then you used your crazy human gravity skills on me.¡± She finally answers more seriously.
¡°That¡¯s my girl. Congratulations, by the way.¡± Mac smiled.
¡°What for getting my ass kicked again?¡± Lyrian accepted a water bottle with a bright blue liquid in it. Her father had taken Mac¡¯s energy/electrolyte drink and reverse-engineered it to be more Delmar compatible. Doc was going to make another fortune on that bit of intellectual brilliance.
¡°No, you set a record. 9.1Human G in that last reversal. That¡¯s the upper limit of Human capability without advanced G suits and inertial dampening.¡± Mac congratulated.
¡°But I¡¯m using both the suit and the ID¡¯s.¡± She protested.
¡°Love, your average human passes out at 4 to 5, suit or no suit.¡± Mac chided, ¡°Would you like to do the honors?¡±
¡°Now, really? Are you sure I¡¯m ready?¡± Lyri asked.
Mac just nodded, and they both walked over to the gravity controls... lyri took a big breath and began to move the dial: 2.1-2.15-2.2. She felt the added weight settle into her bones. It was moderately uncomfortable, but not unbearable like the first time she had experienced it in Mac¡¯s room for the first time.
She bounced, somewhat heavily, on her toes and moved her arms around. Lyrian began walking in a slow circle and finished by sitting down on the couch and rising again. ¡°I think I¡¯m ok. Do we have plans today? I¡¯d like to take some time to adjust.¡±
¡°Sure, a lounge day it is,¡± Mac scooped her up easily, even on this gravity as she giggled at him before he walked over to the couch and sat down with her sitting in his lap. Lyrian wiggled down until she was on her back with her head on his lap looking up as he stroked her hair.
¡°You know, now that the freighters are on-voyage for the season, I believe you owe me some Delmar culture. Tell me, what do i have to look forward to?¡± Mac asked. He could feel her breathing was slightly labored, but he initiated the conversation anyway. Weights and workouts could only do so much. For Lyrian to survive earth, her cardiovascular system needed to learn to pump heavier blood, and her pulmonary system needed to learn to breathe heavier air. He was working on the latter by getting her to talk to him.
¡°Well, the fall celebrations will be in about a week. It¡¯s a tradition built on the tribe presenting what they have stored for the winter and celebrating the end of the gathering season. Big feast, some competitive events, mostly for the little ones...¡± she paused with a pinch of sadness.
Mac responded to her by gently rubbing a circle on her stomach before placing his hand there, ¡°We knew it might take a few tries. We are compatible, just not perfectly so. Your father thinks that the more we try, the more your body will figure out what it needs.¡± Delmar females were not born with a fixed number of potential embryos like Humans. The Delmar female produced them one at a time for each attempt at conception. The claiming allowed the female''s body to automatically adjust to her mate''s genetic makeup to ensure further generation. Her father had warned them that it may take several tries before Lyrian would conceive. It still hurt a little every time she was told ¡°Not yet¡±.
¡°I know. I¡¯m ok, I promise.¡± she smiled up at him before continuing, ¡°Once winter sets in, things get pretty quiet. It won¡¯t get that cold for you, but we tend to slow our manufacturing and agriculture and focus on family and staying warm. The coldest day of the year has a tradition though. We collect all of the driftwood along the Hilisti coast and make a giant driftwood tree. We set it on fire and do a ritual dance to ward off the cold and Harold the arrival of summer. It¡¯s our oldest tradition. No one remembers which religion started it, but some pray to the gods of the void still. It¡¯s a special celebration for them Akin to the Human new year that you told me about. That¡¯s about 6 ¡®months¡¯ away.¡±
¡°Hmm so Christmas, Yule tide, and New Year¡¯s all rolled into one. I think I¡¯ll like that.¡± Mac had not moved his hand from her stomach and was absently, and gently rubbing his thumb back and forth.
¡°In the meantime, what did you do as a little one. Before¡¡± she asked. Mac smirked down at her.
¡°When I was really young, getting into trouble. Summer vacation was spent on my family''s sailing yacht, well sort of. Her name is Eliana and she¡¯s a 12 ¡®meter¡¯ Bristol cutter-style boat. Her keel was laid in 1908, and she was rebuilt and maintained by the Mackenzie clan for generations, first as a workhorse, then later as a pleasure craft. She was finally rebuilt with modern synthetic Timbers in 2150 as natural lumber became more expensive. I spent my childhood on her many a year. We sailed up and down the North American east coast and Caribbean. When I was 15, my father, Uncle Martin, and I sailed her to Scotland and back over that summer. It was a tradition in my family as a rite of passage.¡± Mac finished. It felt good to think of before his world went to shit.
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¡°I¡¯m not familiar with this boat. What is a ¡®Bristol cutter¡¯ ¡°Lyrian pronounced it slowly.
¡°A ship that is powered by the wind alone. They used to be used to bring harbor pilots, like you get every once in a while when you enter a tricky system, to the big freighters to guide them into a tricky port. In this case, the port was Bristol Bay, and the ships built carried their name.¡± Mac began, ¡°We had an engine. But we rarely used it. We plied wind and current alone to travel thousands of ¡®kilometers.¡± Mac paused, ¡°do you have wind-powered watercraft?¡±
¡°We haven¡¯t used a wind-powered water vessel since we developed fusion¡±. Lyri responded, ¡°Why?¡±
¡°I miss sailing. And your seas are mostly what humanity would consider ¡®sheltered waters¡¯. It¡¯s perfect easy sailing conditions.¡± Mac mentioned, ¡°I wonder if I still have Eli¡¯s plans¡¡±
Mac noticed Lyri settling in and felt her snuggle into the couch and his lap. He decided to put on a movie on the wall viewer. It sat above a wood-burning fireplace. Mac thanked whatever gods might be out there that Delmar knew what a fireplace was. Lyrian stayed on his lap, resting. It was the usual routine when they added gravity. It took Lyri a couple of days to get used to it, and she usually moved to indoor workouts for about a week to cement the new gravity into her body¡¯s muscle memory.
Mac smiled as he flipped through his collection, settling on ¡°Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.¡± ¡®Oh, the Irony¡¯.
He hit play.
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Admiral Gwen looked up from her morning coffee as her chief of staff and fleet commander, Commodore Clint Stevens knocked on her door.
¡°Come!¡± She answered. The door slid open, and Clint stepped through
¡°The second Beacon is away admiral, we confirmed it through Handshake.¡±
¡°Have there been any data of note?¡± Gwen asked her nephew.
¡°None, Admiral. The first beacon appears to be in deep space. The second is still under power, possibly establishing an orbit or stationary location.¡±
Admiral Gwen nodded. The beacons had a twofold job. Their primary job was to establish themselves in a stable safe position by either maintaining station keeping in the deep black; or, in what appeared to be the case with the second week''s beacon, to establish a stable safe orbit should its sensors detect a Star. These beacon locations could be adjusted or replaced later, but the first seeds of exploration would be essential for proper expedition ships who¡¯s keels were being laid as Gwen and the other task forces were trail-breaking. They had 5 and a half months to travel in total and 23 beacons to drop. Each, of the other task forces, would have a little more than one beacon a week of travel on board. Slowly they would build a network. The other half was an experiment. Drones were being built on Mars. They would be sent away from Sol in the other direction. Some would be at sublight speeds. The Scientists of both worlds were trying to figure out if they could overcome the navigational requirements for both subspace and slip space travel. If that could be solved¡¡
¡°Thank you, Clint, how are your studies coming?¡± Gwen asked more informally.
¡°They are coming, Mac had it easy with the immersion aspect, but I think I can get to fluency in Galactic Common at least. Delmar is proving to be a bit tricky¡± Clint admitted.
¡°I¡¯m having trouble getting my head about GU. Delmar is beautiful though. I am enjoying it.¡± Gwen chuckled.
¡°Maybe we can compare notes, we need to get these two down if we are going to be any use at our jobs.¡± Clint nodded.
¡°Indeed, how about a working dinner tomorrow, Cartography has been up my ass since the first beacon. I guess I need to go see to that.¡± Gwen¡¯s rueful smile made Clint laugh.
¡°Good luck, see you tomorrow.¡± Clint waved a salute.
¡°Tomorrow dismissed Commodore¡± Gwen liked poking Clint with his rank. She knew he hated being upper command. Such was Duty.
She stretched for a moment after He left. Long voyages never suited her in cramped ships. Luckily, one of the first transmissions from Delmar gave them the secret to Gravity plating. The scientists of Sol were embarrassed they had not figured it out after seeing the information. All the deep space Task forces were outfitted with first-generation artificial gravity. It wasn¡¯t much. Only the living quarters, Engineering, and the Bridge had gravity, but it helped keep the crew healthy, as the Exercise room in each ship was also gravity-plated. She stepped out of her office into the zero-G hallway and departed for cartography.
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Jakruth grimaced at the older notification on his console again... Another Barge had reported overheating issues with its subspace drive... it was struggling to not fall back into normal space... They were not stopping, they could not; but Jakruth did not like losing firepower¡ He was forced to refuse to slow, as servitude demanded it. He looked over his charts again. They were still months out, and he had time to plan his attack.
Delmar Tribal Space was a unique nut to crack. They were not UGN, they had their own tactics. Their ships were slightly sturdier because of their planet of origins gravity being some of the highest in the known galaxy. While their freighters were only averagely armed, and with proportionally more of the less effective kinetic point defense flak kannons, most average pirates would have significant trouble with a ship armed as such. Delmar Defense forces were another story. They flew and operated no standard UGN technology and have not been engaged in over a century. No one really knew what their capabilities were. Captured pirate survivors handed over to the UGN had claimed a stuttering laser of some kind and plasma cannons on the Delmar fighters that they faced, The Inquisitorum had questioned these prisoners, but could not verify their veracity.
The engagement over Argorania was also a wash of useless information, even though Maximar had sent him the recovered data, such as it was. Jakruth had also pulled the data from the Black Kar and compared the two. It was obvious that the Delmar Sorte had not fired. And the damage data matched more with the weapons reportedly used by the Demon. No, The Void¡¯s Revenge Pirates were going in blind. His console beeped again, and he swore silently. The stricken barge had succumbed to her ailments, her subspace drive had overheated, and she had breached before breaking up and falling into real space. He wondered if it would hit anything. Maybe the living dead in that hulk would have the honor of killing something with their corpses... It mattered not.
He turned back to his hologram of the Delmar system. He was down 3 capital ships... He needed to change his strategy... a piercing strike¡ at the heart of the Delmar species... yes, he would hit Delmar itself, dealing as much damage as he could before they called for UGN aid. That was the plan after all. He had time to plan. ¡®We will die well¡¯ he thought as a K¡¯Claram version of a smile crept across his features. It was not a pleasant expression.
________________________________________________________________
Captain Silu was sitting in his chair on the bridge. They were currently dealing with the aftermath of a rag-tag group of pirates that had jumped the Lucid Traveler on her way into Gurelir 2. There had been a surprise in store for Silu when he went to combat stations. Mac had been holding out on him... The moment he called for battle stations, his Klakson had rung with Jarvis speaking in Delmar.
*Battle stations, battle stations, this is not a drill, repeat. Battle stations, battle stations, this is not a drill*
Not only had this freed Silu up to do other things but the warning had auto shut off as soon as all gun stations reported in and extended themselves from their storage positions as the Traveler bared her teeth. Then a further surprise revealed itself. The entire bridge lighting dimmed to black minus the backlit consoles and controls. The darkness was quickly replaced with a holographic dome of tactical HUD data that appeared around his command chair. Another around Marge¡¯s station and another around the Con¡¯s station. Each station had separate data. Marge was basically tactical, she could call out any individual target to any individual gun as priority and it would pop up on the gunners HUD as such. Silu was shown a better overview. He didn¡¯t have every target on his HUD, but he had the most dangerous ones as well as damage data and trajectory read-outs. Con had a cone of information fore and aft. As well as the ability to pulse individual engines with a voice command.
Two wings of pirate fighters had engaged them from an unknown command ship. Possibly hiding in the shadow of an interplanetary body. Only one wing made it to Flak Kannon range. Silu and Marge had been able to coordinate the forward laser batteries. While their range was limited, they had greater range than more scatter-shot designed Flak guns. 6 laser beams had streaked out the moment the fighters were in range. Not a single enemy was hit by more than one gun. That was the point, all 6 were smoking venting hulks before they passed by Traveler in their attempt at a head on. Gunners then started reporting that they had some sort of aim-assist function. The laser gunners could lock individual targets and the turrets would follow the target on their own, leaving the laser gunners to fine tune their aim instead of chasing rates and specks in the sky. Through the HUD the flak gunners were getting lead indicators from Jarvis on anything they locked. They two were also getting the auto chase function making shooting significantly easier.
It was over in 4 minutes... two remaining pirate fighters fled in the aftermath of Traveler¡¯s wrath. She had left molten metal and quickly freezing bodies in her wake, and when Silu canceled Battle Stations Jarvis shut down the HUD¡¯s, returning Travelers bridge to its normal operation configuration.
¡°Well, that was... something¡¡± Marg sat there for a moment.
¡°I¡¯m going to have a talk with Mackenzie...¡± Silu growled, but his heart wasn¡¯t in it. ¡°He could have at least warned me that it was going to become this easy. I¡¯m not even sure where he managed to hide all of the emitters!¡±
*Traveler come in, Lucid Traveler, do you read us! This is Gurelir Sector Security. We received reports of weapons fire in your area and have two pirate snubs on radar outbound. Do you require assistance? * A voice came over the headphones of the Com station.
¡°Sir. Gurelir Security are contacting us, they are asking if we require assistance¡± The young woman said.
¡°Well, I guess we better respond then.¡± Silu chuckled.
Chapter 31
*¡..thicc¡. Ith¡. Da¡ lose¡ rty¡.. ond*
BIGMAC pulled lead at 7G internal, and Concord claimed her 8th victory of the engagement. The pirate fighter was set aflame as its main drives exploded. ¡®That was English!¡¯ The realization screamed into his consciousness.
¡°FIZZ! Get me that signal!¡± He yelled.
¡°ON IT! Laz Incoming!!! 228 by 090!¡± Came Lyrian¡¯s instant reply
Mac cranked on the stick to reverse his roll to dodge another capital ship volley of laser. The laser weapons were instantaneous travel weapons, impossible to dodge if they had a proper targeting solution. These barges had no such targeting solutions on Concord; they must have been using their optical arrays. They could obviously track him enough to attempt to lay laser fire along his predictive path. Unfortunately for them, even with Concord safety limited to 9G for Lyri¡¯s sake, Concord was far more maneuverable than anything on the field this day. The ship-to-ship laser and plasma weapons being volleyed at him simply couldn¡¯t keep up.
It was her saving grace. Concord was not built for a stand-up fight, but she was in one. Home wing was now down to 3 ships and Ivar had lost 2 of his own pilots. They were the only two wings left standing from planetary defense. Surviving Delmar¡¯s capital ships were spread through the system, with the only 3 that could have responded already engaged. They were fighting a desperately outnumbered screening action, trying to fight through the edges of the enemy fleet to get between the planet and the pirates. Everything else left in Delmar¡¯s arsenal was on hard burn for the homeworld, the closest one being three hours out. There were fifteen or so enemy fighters left, and they were now screening the pirate capital-ships. Concord could not risk loosing a nuclear tipped Phoenix until the fighters were gone. Mac had gotten 2 of his Fox2¡¯s off at one of the barges, the first overloading its shields and the second impacted amidships. That barge was currently disabled, falling toward the planet slowly, belching flaming atmosphere and charred bodies from the hole in her side. Mac had wasted 5 more missiles trying to get another capital ship. Whoever the commander was had adjusted, and each missile was kamikaze¡¯d by a fighter, failing to reach its target. He hates it when the enemy wa¡¡
¡°Ithaca, Ithaca, Ithaca Danger close thirty seconds to firing¡± Lyri got the signal cleaned up and it repeated one more time.
¡°Holy shit..¡± Mac breathed¡ he keyed the frequency Lyri had cleaned up, ¡°This is Cobra 224! Friendlies in the cone! I repeat Friendlies on the cone! Request 60 seconds and bearing of incoming!¡± He prayed whoever was out there received him. He snapped to the Delmar Tactical frequencies, ¡°This is Mackenzie! Emergency break!!! All forces make for the North Pole!!! Danger close incoming imminent!! Make for the northern pole!¡±
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-4 ¡®months¡¯ earlier-
¡°All that¡¯s missing is pumpkin-spiced everything. I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m missing that flavor¡± Mac chuckled. He and Lyri were currently arm in arm. Lyri had her hair down a Delmar version of a French braid with leaves, vines, and fall-seasoned flowers woven in for the celebration. It had taken her most of the morning with the help of Fie. They were currently outside of the great hall. The clearing around the building was stuffed to the brim with food vendors, trinket tents, and themed children¡¯s play areas.
Traditional religious dancers pranced through the crowd as they celebrated the plentiful year. The women dancers were covered in vines and flowers woven into their outfits, some even going so far as to weave foliage down to the tip of their tails along their mane. Inside was more for adults. Food, drink, and the dance floor were the defining features of the evening, and Mac was treated to a combination of traditional dances mixed with the Waltz he had introduced gliding around the dance floor. Tristens wife walked up with 4 kids in tow, as they headed for outside. She had a slight but pronounced baby bump.
¡°Another!¡± Lyri exclaimed.
¡°He said something about ¡®being inspired¡¯. You wouldn¡¯t know anything about that would you!¡± She laughed.
¡°Sorry, our bad.¡± Mac grinned before all three started laughing.
¡°Ma! We¡¯ll miss the toss!!!¡± The youngest protested
¡°Oh, we can¡¯t have that can we.¡± she said, waving goodbye and waddling slightly as the group made off toward the door
¡°I forget your species likes large families, sometimes.¡± Mac chuckled.
¡°Hopefully she can manage while Tristen is gone. Those two usually time it better¡± Lyri¡¯s retort had just a little edge to it, but she pushed passed it. ¡°I see your ¡®waltz¡¯ has caught on.¡±
¡°I probably shouldn¡¯t request ¡®footloose¡¯. I¡¯ve already created enough cultural pollution already.¡± Mac¡¯s smile was unrepentant, and Lyri lost to a burble of giggles as they escaped her control. They had watched that movie during her Gravity acclimation rest days.
The festivities continued for a full week, every other day had a traditional harvest celebration or play, and the rest was a free for all. The weather had started to turn from the low 30¡¯s C and began dipping into the 25, 26 deg range. Lyrian had surprised Mac with a thin Delmar sweater that almost mimic¡¯d an earth turtleneck on the last day of the festival. Delmar would dip down to 10 deg C in the next few months and Delmar agriculture would take a break until ¡®spring¡¯. Hydroponics had made the actual break unnecessary, but some traditions were good for the mind and soul.
Mac was still in a T shirt or a Hawaiian shirt and jeans. He wouldn¡¯t need his jacket until almost the winter celebration.
¡°You never told me what this festival is called.¡± he mentioned as they grabbed some food.
¡°Lia¡¯Guris, the winter celebration is ¡®Brrush¡¯Girmon¡¯¡± she pronounced the second one with a long roll of the ¡®r¡¯ like she was warding off the cold.
¡°That doesn¡¯t sound like Delmar.¡± Mac gave her a confused look.
¡°We don¡¯t know what it is. Whatever language created these festivals is long gone.¡± She mumbled between bites. She was eating equal to Mac nowadays. They had followed the plan laid out by her father.
¡®My god, your perfection¡¯ Mac looked over her as she ate. She had all the power, density, and agility of a human female professional cross-fitter, but she still fit in every piece of clothing she had since before he met her. She had never bulked out, but her body rippled with hidden power when she moved. In some cases, Mac had observed other Delmar giving her concerned glances¡ The same ones, Mac realized, that they gave him on occasion when he let his more human tendencies slip into his everyday life.
After the celebration, things wound down. For next two months, Mac worked with the professors Grem to polish Delmar¡¯s first military-grade GAUSS weapons for fleet use. The capital ship development of the Gauss weapons were experiencing problems, so they had moved on to fitting the attackers while a research team attempted to smooth out the wrinkles. Using cartridge-based ammunition in capital ships was floated and then rejected. The Delmar-made capacitor cartridge cases simply couldn¡¯t be recharged efficiently enough for the velocities they were capable of. It was decided on a power bank-style system using larger versions of Concord''s caseless ammunition. Sadly, the first production installations were almost a year out because of slow development.
Lyrian had begun Helyon wide BFM classes in preparation for Mac to teach the advanced classes in the spring. The end of spring was the annual tribe-on-tribe war games where the entire system¡¯s defense forces would cycle through the simulators in a rolling mock battle for Delmar. It was going to be Tribe Helyons turn to ¡°invade¡± and Mac was looking forward to it. Helyon had taken backlash from the other tribes for investing in ¡®obselete technology¡¯ and Mac was invested in some payback.
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
Lyrian started getting cuddlier as the weather turned. Delmar was on the warm side for Mac, especially when sleeping. Delmar were warm-blooded, but had a 89.2 deg F normal body temperature with skin temperatures dropping into the 70s when sleeping. Night times were nicely balanced as she loved his warmth; and he enjoyed her coolness to balance the moist jungle heat.
Another quirk of Delmar society showed itself in that, aside from a wood or heating element fireplace, there was no climate control. There was powered air circulation. But no HVAC systems in any Delmar homes. They simply didn¡¯t need them. Mac had taken to opening the screened windows at night. The clearing that the airstrip had required funneled cool ocean air in nicely, the extra cuddles were a bonus.
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It had been 3 months since voyage start, and Captain Silu was looking over his charts. They were back at He¡¯rth station with a second delivery of fertilizer to the farming planet below. He had two days left on his offload and would be taking the first of the cash crops to market in the core. His console beeped as a new message marked urgent arrived. It was in a text from his old friend in the GHO. It wasn¡¯t like Ami to send an urgent message.
20 minutes later, he had canceled his next contract. He typed a quick message and encrypted it on an old tribe Helyon cipher he hoped would hold up. He hit send just as his door was kicked open by a K¡¯Claram male. The Assassin stormed in with a knife in each clawed hand.
Silu had been chastised his entire life for continuing to wear his officers¡¯ saber even during his tour in the DCDF. he had stopped taking backlash for keeping it razor sharp after an unfortunate boarding incident that almost took his arm. He kicked his chair out of the way and drew the weapon in a practiced slicing draw¡ ignoring the pained heat as one blade was buried in his gut by the monstrosity. The operative had disabled the emergency coms systems, but the bellows of hate and agony coming from the captains¡¯ quarters quickly drew security.
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Mac was enjoying a rare morning in the kitchen. Lyri was still sleeping soundly, although that was possibly going to change, when the morning breeze kicked up. Mac was cooking something he had not shown her yet, so at least he had an out. He had finally found an appropriate bread and he was in the process of introducing His Delmar Bride to French Toast. He was paring it with an omelet filled with bacon, ¡®onion¡¯ (or near enough) and a veggie that tasted fairly close to a bell pepper. Bulk Milk wasn¡¯t a thing in Delmar Society. Mac had found small bottles of basically half and half that was dedicated for cooking and had to make do. Breakfast citrus-based fruit juices were a thing; and Mac had figured out a couple of local flavors that blended into a passable version of OJ.
¡°tha fios agad air na riaghailtean (You know the rules)¡¡± an ominous sing song soprano growled at him, he felt a genuine spike of anger from her, just a little.
¡°Recipe ¨´r an-diugh. Tha mi air a bhith ga sh¨¤bhaladh gus an lorg mi a h-uile dad (New recipe today. I have been saving it until I found everything),¡± Mac grinned up at her, still mixing up the French toast batter.
¡°OH?¡± Her annoyance turned into curiosity as she sauntered over, wearing one of his Hawaiian shirts who¡¯s length barely made her descent. She had swapped to English, so he followed suit.
¡°It¡¯s called French toast, and it¡¯s over 2000 Human years old.¡± he said, showing her what he was doing and handing her the printout of the recipe He had stolen from His Uncle Martin. ¡°If it turns out right, I¡¯m going to be sending that to Martin. He¡¯ll be a legend.¡±
She dipped her pinky finger into the batter and dodged a playful smack before sticking it and her prize into her mouth, sucking the batter clean suggestively at him. ¡°Hmm, promising. I¡¯ll pardon you,¡± she leaned over and teased his ear with a fang, ¡°for now.¡±
¡°Hmm, so possessive.¡± He scooped her to him by the small of her back and planted a kiss on her lips, ¡°Don¡¯t threaten me with a good time, we¡¯ll miss breakfast.¡±
She leaned in and pressed herself to his chest, ¡°Fuck Breakfast¡± she growled at him.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Jakruth glowered at the tactical readout on his office console''s screen. He had received an addendum en route and dispatched a Barge to the ordered task. It had been a month since he had heard anything, the check-in transmission was 2 ¡®days¡¯ late. They were no longer the Living Dead. Jakruth did not like his dwindling situation. He was down to 6 Barges and the 3 Frontier Brigantines. Almost 20 percent of his firepower was gone. He would have to adjust. He had 2 weeks left on his run through Subspace. The engines were taxed to their limits. Fates would decide if They would be capable of another jump on arrival. He was stuck in formation.
Course adjustments were not a capability in subspace without dropping out. Jakruth had arranged his fleet in an attack formation before the jump with the Brigantines leading in a three ship ¡®v¡¯ shape with the barges in the middle to respond to attack or press any advantage. What he could time was his drop out of subspace. It was dangerous, but they were the undead of Void¡¯s Revenge. They would make do.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mac and Lyri were both back in the kitchen finishing up Breakfast and Dishes. Today was Mac¡¯s first lecture on advanced atmospheric and interplanetary fighter combat. Lyri had been teasing him about being a low-key good teacher, using herself as irrefutable proof.
¡°Hey love, you still meeting with Frie today?¡± He asked between trips to the cupboard with clean plates.
¡°yea, She want¡¯s to meet at Himar¡¯s wings hanger. She is thinking about going into a defense wing.¡± Lyri mentioned over her shoulder.
¡°You think she can do it?¡± Mac asked.
¡°She was a great pilot in flight school, but it¡¯s been a while since I have flown with her. We will see.¡± was Lyri¡¯s response, putting away the last of the cookware.
¡°Mine!¡± Mac shouted as he won the dash for the Keys to Vito. Receiving a pout from Lyri, ¡°Oh common.¡± He grumped until she pulled him into a kiss.
¡°Drop me off?¡± She asked.
¡°Sure, just let me gra¡.¡± Mac began before both of their wrist Chronos rang with a ring tone they only used for Darclemus.
Mac read the message first and was halfway to the air car as Lyri grabbed her poncho and sprinted to meet him.
It was Traveler, she was burning Hard for orbit¡
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Doctor Icario was sitting in his office on Traveler¡ covered in to many other people¡¯s blood¡
*Doc, we are entering orbit. The hospital shuttle will be here in 5.* Marg¡¯s voice barely registered.
Traveler had Burned out her Subspace Drive to get here, she had run on minimum system to shunt everything into weapons and engines. She had gotten as close to relativistic speeds as she could before jumping out of Argorania, making the 6 week trip in 2 by destroying her drives in the process. It had been a running firefight all the way to the jump point by a pirate barge with weapons to well maintained for its ilk. Traveler was hurt. She had lost 4 of her 10 Flak guns and 6 of her 9 Laser cannon turrets. She was venting atmosphere from a dozen different micro-fractures with the main breeches from incoming fire having been sealed. Icario thanked the gods of the void that Silu had taken Mac¡¯s advice, calling for helmets on before depressurizing the entirety of Travler¡¯s Insides. It had meant that many of the actual hits she took were not subject to flash oxygen fires and secondary damage. Mac¡¯s Upgrades had barely saved them. Letting them disarm, then disable their attacker. The Barge had fallen away under asemetric thrust as Traveler took out its Larboard side main drives..
His Captain and oldest friend was stable.. but in bad shape. Icario prayed he would make it long enough to get to a hospital. Captain Silu was going to need at least 3 new artificial or regrown Organs. He had been practically disemboweled when Security found him slumped in his chair with a decapitated K¡¯Claram at his feet. He was going to lose his ¡®liver¡¯ and most of his small intestines at a minimum. Nanites could do a lot, but they needed a foundation of good structure to work with. If the damage is too great, there is nothing for the Nanites to use as a foundation, and they tended to not produce survivable results.
He stepped out into the Bio Bed room just as the Medical Shuttle EMTs stepped in from the corridor, ¡°Bed 2. He won''t like it. But He is the worst off, of the living. I¡¯ll handle him if he survives to complain,¡±. Icario was breaking Delmar tradition. The captain usually disembarked last. He didn¡¯t care. Silu wasn¡¯t in any condition to overrule him.
¡°I¡¯ll be along after the rest are evacuated. Tell the Hospital to prep for the surgery and I¡¯ll be joining to assist. I don¡¯t think my hands are steady enough right now.¡± He instructed the Lead EMT.
Inside of 10 minutes, the surviving wounded were out and he was alone with the Dead.. He walked over to the preservation chambers.. 3 of the Flak Kannon gunners had died instantly. Tristen was on the 4th. He had lost an eye and his left arm below the elbow. He was in a coma, and might never wake up. The Six laser turret gunners never made it. One lived for 3 days before succumbing to his full-body flash burns.
The last chamber on the left was the hardest to inventory¡. It was Marg¡¯s little boy. Brayton. He been on the bridge at the Navigational station when one of the plasma barrages hit just in front of the Bridge window. The impact shattering the 2-foot thick Tricarbonate pane into shards that had taken the Com¡¯s station¡¯s left leg... and cut the young man in half in front of his mother. Marg had continued to fight the ship, saving the Traveler and getting them into subspace before collapsing next to her boy. She did not leave her quarters until they reached Delmar.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mac and Lyri were sitting in the waiting room of the hospital surgery ward. Mac had seen Tristen¡¯s Pregnant Juelana sobbing alone, and they had put her between them as they cradled her on the benched seats. She had been familiar with How Lyrian and Mac displayed affection differently but stiffened at first as they gave her a ¡°group hug¡± before melting into the situation. She was still in shock, but no longer sobbing. Lyrian had an arm around her shoulders and Mac was gently holding both of her hands in his left mit. Martin came rushing in about 40 minutes later a bandage over his left shoulder down to his wrist with Silu¡¯s Wife Mari and Daughter close behind. Martin¡¯s Wife had volunteered to take care of all the kids, and they were currently at Mac¡¯s house watching a Movie.
Mac¡¯s eyes looked to Martin as he saw Silu¡¯s wife.
Martin walked over and sat beside him, ¡°Assassin tried for the Captain. The old fucker took the Bug¡¯s head off, but he took it in the gut for it. He was holding his ¡®innards in when they found him.¡± Martin was livid, bearing his teeth for the first time Mac had ever seen.
¡°Bug?¡± Mac asked.
¡°K¡¯Claram. It gets worse. Captain got a message from Ami, His Saurian contact in the GHO. A shattered wreck of a pirate barge was found destroyed from a fall from subspace¡. IT was wearing ¡®Void¡¯s Revenge¡¯ colors.. and they traced its trajectory to Delmar¡ Darclemas is in conference with the Confederation. We will be deploying immediately.¡± Martin Growled¡ ¡°We think that¡¯s why the assassin took his swing. We got hit by a VR barge on our burnout.. It killed a lot of people¡ We killed it though, thanks to your upgrades.¡±
¡°How many,¡± Mac whispered, he noticed Lyrian¡¯s glance, but he could not hold back the rage building inside him.
¡°We lost 3 Flak Gunners and 6 of the Laser gunners¡ Traveler was hole¡¯d 4 times and that killed another 6¡ Depressurizing is the only reason we made it.¡± Martin gave his friend a squeeze at the knee. ¡°We lost Brayton... right in front of his mother as she fought for our escape¡ She¡¯s in a bad way¡¡±
Mac sucked in an explosive breath of air.. Brayton was the youngest of their group. Not even old enough to have alcohol¡ It was going to be his second Voyage season, and he had just met a girl and begun courting her when they had left.
¡°These fuckers are coming here?¡± Mac¡¯s voice was ice. Martin must have been really pissed because he matched Mac¡¯s gaze.
¡°Yes. Why?¡± he whispered.
¡°Because I¡¯m going to murder them all.¡± Mac¡¯s voice was hammered steel, forged in the fire of experience and Vengeance¡
Then it was gone, He knew what he needed to do. Juelana, Mari and the others needed support right now. The time would come.
They would be ready.
Chapter 32
-2 weeks earlier-
Commodore Gregory Burgoyne stood on the bridge of the escort Carrier Tours. He was in command of Pathfinder Task Force Echo comprising his flag, the Terran Eros-class Cruiser Kyle, and the Martian Corvette-class Destroyers Gale and Valles .
Gregory was still getting used to his command. He tugged on his tunic and crossed his arms, absent-mindedly running his thumb over the Martian Flag on his arm. Commanding a Terran vessel had been an interesting experience so far. Commanding a hybrid fleet from a Terran flag ship you had been given 3 weeks before departure into the ¡®beyond here, there be dragons¡¯ part of the galaxy; even more so.
¡°Destination coordinates 2 minutes out, Sir.¡± Captain Andretti Franco mentioned, walking up to him.
¡®Artificial gravity, another first¡¯ Burgoyne mused turning to the Tour¡¯s Diminutive but intense Captain, ¡°Very good, we don¡¯t know what we are dropping into. Clear for action if you please but keep Fire Control on standby for now.¡±
Captain Franco nodded and returned to the captain¡¯s chair pressing a button on his armrest. The main Coms station started transmitting the orders fleet-wide, and the Commodore tapped his wrist pad on his uniform and mentally chuckled as the helmet on his combination uniform/vacuum suit assembled itself about his head.
One of the first exchanges between Delmar and Sol had included medical GU nanotechnology. The eggheads in Sol had quickly reappropriated the little miracle machines into all sorts of new and interesting directions, including uniforms. During the GSW, crew and officers had to change into bulky ¡®exo suits¡¯ before battle so that the ship could be depressurized. Not so anymore because of nano tech. The first of the hybrid uniforms had been issued to the Expedition forces. As such the very slightly bulkier than it should be uniform held not only low-profile armor, but an entire sealing and rebreather system. The war for Sol had taught both sides that keeping a starship pressurized during battle was suicide. Thus, standard practice had become to suit up and depressurize as part of ¡°clearing for action¡±.
Burgoyne nodded in his helmet at the board flashed green, indicating every crew member aboard Tours was sealed up. This was quickly followed by a faint and fading hiss of depressurization.
¡°Point defense and main guns reporting in Captain.¡± the man at Tactical barked through the bridge intercom.
¡°20 seconds to arrival.¡± came the report from the Helm.
¡°Take us out on the mark Mr. Sikorsky if you please.¡± came the calm tones of Captain Franco
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Ami sank to a knee once more as another blast rocked the GHO station.
¡°Where are our escorts!!!!¡± Bellowed a nearby crewman frantically.
They had been knocked out of subspace less than 10 ¡®minutes¡¯ ago and had been immediately taken under fire by 5 cobbled together scrap Barges that were the standard fare for Piracy inside the Unity. The three Frontier Brigs of the UGN had not followed them out into real space. Luckily the weapons on the pirate capital ships were as unrefined as their hulls. While a GHO Orbital Distribution Platforms had no weapons, their shields were legendary in their ability to take punishment. They could not last forever however, and the barges were preventing a run for subspace bodily.
She checked over her console. 3 hours, they had 3 hours until their shields failed.
She keyed up the Unity Emergency frequency once more, ¡°This is Coordinator Aminaira, aboard the ODP 871459. We are under pirate attack! I repeat we are under attack! No escorts present. Shield failure on 3hours. Request immediate assistance! I repeat, we are under¡¡±
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¡°Jump complete, fleet reports green¡± the Con of Tours reported.
¡°Captain, Energy signatures 084 mark 007. They match weapons fire signatures from our Data.¡± The Tac station reported.
¡°At us?¡± Asked the Commodore
¡°Negative sir, we have sensor image now¡± came the voice of the combination sensor/fire control station.
¡°Put it up¡± Franco barked.
An image of a massive egg-shaped station/ship thing being bombarded by several floating junkyards spitting laser and plasma
¡°Captain, we are receiving a transmission. It matches the emergency frequencies given to us for the Galactic Health Organization.¡± Came a report from the con.
¡°On the overhead¡± Commodore Burgoyne commanded, and Ami¡¯s message rang out through the speakers.
¡°Tactical assessment.¡± Gregory turned to the Tactical station.
¡°Danger close fire mission sir, I recommend against using the Kyle. I like Gale and Valles for this.¡± Came the Terran''s response before he gave his commodore a grin, ¡°You red dirt Rambos always did love building for close-in and surgical, keep Tours and Kyle in support to pick off any stragglers.¡±
Burgoyne gave him a toothy grin, ¡°Very well,¡± he turned to the Com ¡°Signal Gale and Valles: Danger close, PAC¡¯s and Harpoons except for emergency. Kyle and Tours to open order support. Launch a close support fighter screen to cover the Corvettes. Execute.¡±
Organized chaos exploded around him as his orders were carried out. He glanced at the observation window to see the two Martian destroyers surge away toward the battle under hard burn.
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It took 40 minutes for Ami to get to the bridge. Gravity had stuttered twice and failed entirely, once. She had landed hard on her Right knee from the fall and was limping badly as she entered the command deck of the Station.
¡°Report!¡± She grunted through the pain.
¡°No response. I¡¯m not even getting a standard signal from the UGN. It¡¯s like we don¡¯t exi¡..¡± A massive flash of light erupted as the barge furthest from them detonated and began to break up.
¡°Gods!! We have contact!! 311 by284 how the hell did they get so close!! Hulls do not match anything in the computer!¡± A crewman howled. The Lycan man had his ears pinned back in shock as two small craft, barely half the size of the pirate barges came screaming down toward them under hard deceleration burn. They were long for their size a roughly oval central hull with massive main drives, 3 at the rear and two more in swiveling pods amidships. The lead ship released 4 little puffs of smoke from its dorsal section. These turned into a trail of white as Ami looked on in shock. These white trails CURVED from their initial path and began CHASING one pirate barge that tried to dodge. Two of these puffs made for that barge as two more ended in a flash of explosive light. The first flash overloaded the barge''s shields and the second literally blew the barge into 3 pieces. The second strange vessel shut down its rear most engines and its mishap engine pods swiveled to oppose each h other and fired. Swing the blunt prow of the craft to bare on the last barge. Ami threw her hands up to cover her eyes as a yellow-orange column of light erupted from use below the centerline of the strange ship¡¯s prow, cleanly bifurcating the last remaining barge stern to bow.
It was over in a matter of seconds. One clean strafing pass and the two spun again and began a ridiculously hard burn back toward the two contacts on sensors that had not engaged. The command deck was utterly silent for several minutes. Before the Comm station began beeping.
¡°Uh¡ Coordinator¡ we are receiving a hale. 2D only.¡± the crewman stammered.
¡°Well, this should be enlightening¡ put it on the main viewer.¡± She stated trying to regain some composure herself
The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
The main viewer descended over the observation window and activated. Ami¡¯s eyes widened as a bipedal being in a perfectly pressed almost black, blue military uniform trimmed in silver appeared before her. He was standing in a strange command center with several of the same beings bent to various tasks. She caught a quick strange look on his face and the hair patch over one of those dark brown piercing eyes raised for a moment. He unclasped his hands from the small of his back and gave a slight bow.
¡°Galactic Health Organization vessel, I am Commodore Gregory Bergoine of the United Sol Federation Navy at your service. Whom do I have the Honor of addressing?¡± he offered, in perfect Galactic Common.
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-2hours before-
Mac was looking over the linked chains of ammunition being fed into Concord¡¯s loading doors. Concord spun her feeder palls as she inhaled the long belts of the first Delmar-made 34GAU ever produced. The fab units were able to duplicate the weight, design, dimensions, and quality of the Terran made projectiles; however, Tungsten was not available as a resource here. Instead, Dura Steel had proven to be an a worthy replacement. These new projectiles had no core, encapsulated in the 4mm Sabots was a 100 percent Durasteel dart, retaining the balance, conductivity, and weight of the original darts so that Concord was tested to not be able to tell the different or even need a targeting recalibration. At 1% of the speed of light, these would do nicely.
Concord had spent 80 percent of her GAU¡¯s magazine capacity since Mac¡¯s arrival. Now, she was returning to her 10,000 round fully loaded state. She was still down 3 normal Phoenixes and 2 Sparrows; this would have to do.
He smiled as he felt Lyri come ¡®into range¡¯ as he called it.
She wrapped her arms around him from behind and gave a squeeze, keeping her hands free of the rapidly moving belt Mac was feeding into the ship.
¡°Hey, luv¡± he said over his shoulder ¡°You sure you want this? No one survives their first taste of war. The ones that come home, they aren¡¯t the same people¡¡±
¡°If this fleet is as big as we suspect¡ and they are V.R¡.. I can¡¯t afford not to go with you.¡± she turned him around just as the last of the ammunition flowed into Concord, locking his eyes in her¡¯s, ¡°We do this. Together¡ I¡¯m making sure you come home to me, you hear me.¡± she whispered as she laid a head on his shoulder.
¡°You need a moment?¡± A familiar voice called from across the Hanger. Ivar sauntering in with the rest of Himar¡¯s wing. They had moved their Rangers to Mac¡¯s airfield after the news broke. concord had been attached to the wing, and Mac had had to explain why he started chuckling when he had learned that Himar¡¯s wing was technically officially designated 303 wing. They had brought food, and everyone settled into the folding chairs and tables to chow while on alert. Mac had opened his home to the boys, and they had spent the last week dueling with each other in the sim, working out on the home gym. Or seeing who passed out the fastest in the back seat of Concord.
¡°That was fast. Where¡¯d lunch from thi¡.¡±
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Jakruth stood on the bridge of his flagship barge studying the readouts.
¡°1 ¡®minute¡¯ to arrival¡± the navigation station¡¯s occupant announced.
¡°Set manual subspace drop. 1.03 seconds¡± Jakruth decided.
This was a deadly gambit. Strict adherence to the beacon points was the safest way. Changing any variable could end in dropping into normal space inside a planet, or a Star, or an asteroid field. It mattered not to Jakruth. They were already dead, after all.
They dropped from subspace at 1.03 into the welcoming party of Delmar Defense frigates. It would have been four of them¡ would have¡
Jakruth¡¯s plan had worked. The Void¡¯s Revenge Armada dropped out of subspace too close to avoid. The three Brigs slammed into the Delmar frigates, tearing each other apart in a brutal collision. The Delmar ships had been waiting in ambush a 1 hour burn from the traditional arrival point. They were not ready for action. The combined pieces of six destroyed ships hammered into the final Delmar frigate, ripping gaping holes in her side as she vented her guts to the void.
The 6 Barges had been ordered to prepare shields and weapons. Their defensive fields flickered and sparked as they plowed through the debris. Firing on the remaining Wounded Frigate to ensure its destruction. They were two hours from Delmar at full burn.
¡°Make for the planet, launch fighters... kill¡¡± Jakruth began¡
¡°EVERYTHING!¡± The crew around him chanted in response.
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-45 minutes before-
Tranquility, Hathcock, Holden, and Jezero flashed into normal space at their destination beacon. Their voyage was over as the plasma whisps of prolonged travel on the border of real space and subspace e trailed off of their hulls.
¡°Jesus¡.¡± Captain Brian Willows exhaled as a graveyard of freshly murdered starships greeted him through the sensor viewer.
¡°Get the admiral! I want a full long- and short-range scan!¡± He bellowed.
The Terran ambassadorial fleet had to burn hard subjectively ¡®up¡¯ to avoid crashing into the expanding carnage of metal and organic remains.
¡°REPORT!¡± The Admiral barked as she followed her Chief of staff, who had beaten her there, through the door.
¡°Scan complete Captai¡ I mean Admiral, unknown design mixed with components of reported Delmar designs. It was a collision followed by a short firefight. Long range reports a second engagement already joined. 40 Delmar signatures¡ and a Terran Beacon. Reading ¡®Cobra224¡¯. They appear to be trying to screen the planet. Three small Delmar capital ships on the Star side of the battle. 6 unknown designs all being painted as hostile. Captain. It¡¯s bad.¡±
Admiral Gwen didn¡¯t have time for sentiment. She had to act. ¡°Tranquility and Hathcock, hard burn on present course. Holden, and Jezero make for the battle at maximum acceleration. Hathcock you are cleared to fire when solution does not include the planet as a backstop. Holden and Jezero, focus on remaining capital ships upon arrival. Execute!¡± She turned to Clint, ¡°Commodore, get to a shuttle. Launch search and rescue. 5 fighter escorts. Find anyone still alive then burn for the planet, or the nearest Delmar ship. Go!¡± she commanded.
The fleet split as ordered, it would be 40 minutes until her Eros could engage without risk of killing millions on the planet.
The Eros class Dreadnoughts class, named as a backhanded nod to the Greek god of passion¡¯s skill with a bow, were a legitimate threat to most celestial bodies. Traditionally named after famous or infamous Terran snipers, Hathcock Measured over 10 kilometers long with a central hill 2 kilometers in diameter. The forward third to her prow split into 4 equal pieces with gaps in between in the shape of a plus sign from the front.
The entire front 2/3rd of her was dedicated to her primary weapon, a Rheinmetall G.A.O.A (Gauss Accelerated Orbital Artillary) - 4820. Most Terran Sailors just called the weapon ¡°Vulkan¡± on account of its tendency to superheat its rounds on firing causing them to melt slightly and elongate in transit. The 40 in her designation Indicated her projectile length in meters, the 20 the projectiles diameter without Sabot. In short Hathcock could accelerate a 100 ton molten tungsten Cored steel projectile 40 meters long by 20 meters wide to 15 percent of the speed of light.
Her operation was so violent, that she had two massive ¡®wings¡¯ attached to a recoil track. these wings terminated in a pod that housed the crew and the main engines. ¡®Vulkan ¡¯ would simply kill anyone in the main hull and damage her main drives any other way. A set of smaller special-purpose drives were installed on the aft of the main hull. They had one purpose, to mitigate the recoil of firing and return the main hull ¡°into battery¡± for the next shot.
She was the only ship in the Sol arsenal that required a power bank to fire the main gun.
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303 wing was under full burn making for the enemy. Concord was tail-end Charlie on account of her main drives being dangerous to any Ranger in formation behind her.
The call had come out just as they were eating lunch. The interdiction fleet was gone. Three Delmar Corvettes and the planetary defense wings were all that was left.
¡°Fighters! Gods lots of fighters!¡± Fizz called everyone.
¡°Break! Kill zone, Charlie!¡± Ivar barked. BigMac slammed the controls over, ceasing their deceleration burn and pointing his powerful frontal radar at the incoming.
¡°Paint¡¯em up!¡± He barked even as Fizz started feeding him targeting solutions. The GAUs barked again and again as Concord filled the enemy''s path with hate. Dozens of explosions appeared as he and the rest of the fighters scored an enormous first reaping as each of the Rangers expended their 30-round Delmar-made Gauss pods before ejecting them for more maneuverability. Then¡ the battle was joined.
303 squadron held discipline breaking a hole in the formation that gave Concord an opportunity to claim the first Barge with a pair of Sparrows.
Time ceased. There was nothing but the wail of engines. The screams of the dying over the radio and the sound of their own guns firing as BigMac and Fizz desperately fought to get to the capital ships. They needed to end this before the Barges reached orbit.
It didn¡¯t happen. The enemy adapted. Suicidally so, and the Delmar forces began fighting a desperate retreat towards the planet.
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¡°Admiral, Hathcock reports clear firing solution,¡± Captain willows reported.
¡°Fire at will, target the enemy capital ships.¡± The Admiral responded. The Martian destroyers were 4 minutes out, and the Delmar contingent was dwindling and had almost been forced back to their own orbit.
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Captain Wyatt Colburn turned to face the forward once more, ¡°Give me Ithaca, two round spread. Call it.¡±
¡°Chargin¡¯ ¡± the chief gunner drawled back his confirmation.
¡°Ithaca Ithaca Ithaca danger close 30 seconds to firing.¡± the Coms began to warn on secure frequency as Colburn prayed Mackenzie could hear them.
Ithaca was an ammunition type for the Eros class. It was a segmented projectile designed to execute a controlled break up on firing. It turned Hathcock into an interplanetary fire breathing shotgun. The power banks could only do double taps such as this once every hour. ¡®This is going to have to count.¡¯
*This is Cobra 224 Friendlies in the cone! I repeat, Friendlies in the cone!! I request 60 seconds and bearing of incoming! *
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The last few defenders turned to flee, and Jakruth gave an evil chuckle. ¡°let the fighters chase them, hold course for De¡.¡±
The universe flashed molten yellow as 30 thousand shards of semi liquid steel and depleted uranium impacted 4 of his Barges at relativistic speeds. 3 of them simply ceased to exist leaving behind a bubble of expanding gas and molten fragments. The fourth had lost her entire aft quarter and was ablaze, spinning wildly spilling atmosphere and bodies onto the void.
¡°Jakruth!! We have incoming! Two unknown designs! I¡¯m reading massive powe¡¡±
The two Martian Destroyers opened fire with their PAC batteries. A PAC was what happened when you gave a scientist crazy enough to terraform a world the picture of a massive laser cannon, and the picture of a particle accelerator. Then you force feed this scientist a kilo of stimulants and order him to combine the items pictured onto a working ship grade weapon. It was the most blatant abuse of energy consumption outside of Eros. The two beams of particle laced light beams dissected the final Barges, super heating the atmosphere inside and flash roasting any survivors.
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Thankfully Mac had been listened to. The pirate fighters had followed them into a low polar orbit where the surviving Delmar forces were given front seats to Humanity¡¯s wrath incarnate.
¡°Gods¡ that is¡ ¡° Ivar Qued over the mic. The fighters were still perusing. There were 13 enemy fighters left.
¡°Yes, it is¡¡± Mac¡¯s voice was Frigid, ¡°Fizz I¡¯m coming about, spoole the sparrows for data link. paint everything not Delmar.¡± Mac cut his engines and kicked concord around to face the enemy while flying backwards. He was already receiving locks as the seeker heads started screaming in his ears.
The ¡®hyper-sparrow¡¯ was indeed heat seeking, but heat seekers had come a long way. Concord locked each fighter individually and transmitted each individual heat signature to a separate sparrow.
Mac grinned into his helmet as the last seeker head went from growling to screaming,
¡°Fox 2!¡± He Growled, losing 13 individually hunting missiles onto the black.
It was over in seconds.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Mac slumped in his seat after shutting down concord in her hanger¡ Lyri was breathing heavily in the back seat, but they were alive.. He Dragged himself down the ladder and waited for Lyri. She barely had the strength to get down and he scooped her up as she stepped off the last rung. She clung to him, part exhaustion, part relief, topped with anguish. This did not feel like a victory.
¡°My gods¡¡± she sobbed softly into his shoulder. ¡°My gods¡.¡±
¡°I know... but we are alive, Delmar is safe for now...¡± he whispered to her. He could feel her struggling with what had just happened.
¡°We lost so many...¡± She sobbed, tears flowing freely now.
¡°We saved so many more. The dead will be honored by the living. They will be remembered.¡± he knew it wasn¡¯t much. She had helped teach many of the ones that didn¡¯t return this day. They were her, and his students; some of them were friends.
¡°Come, let¡¯s get showered and changed. Darclemus wants us both there to meet this Ambassador of theirs.¡± Mac said as he carried her to the house. This was the longest day ¡®in the saddle¡¯ she had done, and the most G intensive. He had not been able to spare her, even with Concord set to a 9G limit, as they fought for their lives.
They showered and dressed. Mac put on his dress uniform, and Lyrian put on formal attire in the form of a Modest but form fitting floor length dress that matched his uniforms blackish blue. She put on a pendant necklace with tribe Helyon¡¯s code of arms as its centerpiece. Mac flew them to the Hall in Vito and they arrived to be waved over to stand next to Darclemus.
¡°I apologize, I know it has been trying day. I need your eyes and ears Mac. Right now, you are the only human I fully trust. Watch for me tonight my friend. Lyrian, you did not have to come¡± he whispered, clearly worried about how the two of them were holding up.
¡°where he goes..¡± She said simply.
Chapter 33
Ambassador Gwen Mackenzie Trenton stepped off her shuttle and admired ¡®The Hall¡¯. Clint would be landing shortly as well by air car from the hospi¡
The aircar approached and began to land as Gwen raised an eyebrow.. It would have been a dead ringer for anything from the 1920s or 30s America if it had wheels instead of hover jet clusters in its wheel wells. Clint stepped out of the passenger seat and waved an abbreviated salute as the car lifted off once more, presumably back to the hospital.
He quickly spoke to one of the Delmar security details, and Gwen had to suppress a chuckle as the Delmar guardsman¡¯s shock at being spoken to in his native tongue bled through his features.
¡°How many did we get¡± she asked quietly in English.
¡°15¡ they didn¡¯t have time to decompress from the look of the damage¡.¡± He whispered. ¡°It wasn¡¯t pretty¡¡±
¡°We can debrief later, let¡¯s go. I¡¯ve been waiting months for this. Your brother doesn¡¯t know¡± Gwen¡¯s eyes twinkled.
¡°Doesn¡¯t know what?¡± Clint asked slowly
¡°Who the Ambassadorial staff are. I put in a ¡.. personal¡. Request to have specific names left out of the official messages.¡± Ambassador Trenton said primly.
A massive feral grin spread across Clint¡¯s features as he realized what was about to happen. A few of the Delmar security contingent took a step back. The Human marines simply chuckled.
¡°Oh you evil woman... ¡° he said in a low playfully menacing tone, ¡°let¡¯s not keep them waiting then¡¡±
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Lyrian barely managed to only flinch slightly as a nuclear bomb went off inside Mac¡¯s mind. A mushroom cloud of surprise and elation almost flattened her as she snapped her head over to him. He was frozen, locked in iron discipline that was straining under the weight of his feelings... she turned to follow his gaze as the doors closed behind the Ambassadorial designation, and her hand flew up to over her shocked face as Mac¡¯s only living mother figure and his brother formally walked up the hall to the Delmar delegation.
The Ambassador was a titanic specimen of a female human. She stood rail straight and was nearly as tall as a Delmar male. Even with her advanced years and silver/grey hair. Her presence clearly dared anyone to give her an excuse to snap them in half. She shared Mac¡¯s piercing ice blues as they scanned the room in a familiar calculating gaze.
Mac¡¯s brother behind her and to the side was of less legendary proportions. He was within an inch or so of her Mac¡¯s height with darker hair and brown almost black eyes. The two of them walked up the center of the hall to greet Darclemus and his entourage stopping a few steps away under the watchful eye of both security teams.
The mountain of a Scot gave a Delmar nod of greeting, ¡°Ambassador Gwen Mackenzie Trenton and my chief of staff Commodore Clint Stevens; a pleasure to finally meet you.¡± she said in perfect if not a touch formal Delmar.
¡°Ambassador Trenton, I am Tribal Head Darclemus. Just Darclemus will due, petty formality has always felt... wasteful.¡± He responded before extending a very human handshake gesture to the shock of Clint and the amusement of the ambassador.
¡°Ah, I see we both have been studying each other. Gwen will do nicely then.¡± she glanced at a still-shocked Mac and then back to the Head of the Helyon tribe.
¡°Mackenzie, I believe I have a tribesman of yours, He has been quite the surprise. Go on boy, we are all family here.¡± He outright reached over a pushed Mac out of formation. Mac took two steps before him, and his aunt impacted in a long overdue, and mildly violent embrace.
¡°Ciamar (how come)¡± Mac gasped finally releasing his and only to catch a bear hug from Clint, shit-eating grin and all.
This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
¡°Sgeulachd fhada (long story)¡± Gwen responded before walking over to the glorious Delmar female who was smiling at their exchange. ¡°Let me look at you,¡± she said in Delmar, taking Lyrian by the forearms and smiling down at her niece-in-law for the first time,
¡°Christ, he got lucky with you!¡± She said finally. She released Lyri only to have lyrian pull Gwen''s head towards her own in a traditional family greeting of Delmar
¡°Chan eil e cha mh¨°r cho fortanach sa tha mi (not nearly as lucky as I am)¡± Lyri whispered in Gaelic before drawing the stunned woman into a full human hug.
The small family reunion complete, Ambassador Gwen turned back to the head of Helyon. ¡°Thank you. Now, I believe we have matters of state to attend to.¡±
¡°Yes, now that matters of family are tended, we shall move this to the conference room. The Grarzia¡¯s have opened their home to the two of you, and I have made transit shuttles available should you wish to rotate your crews for shore leave.¡± He began, turning toward Mac and Lyrian, ¡°you two take the evening. You look exhausted from this afternoon¡¯s events, get some rest.¡± He then turned to lead the ambassador away.
¡°Clint, go with them. See to our accommodations. I¡¯ll send for a shuttle to catch up. ¡± Gwen knew he didn¡¯t need to. She was releasing him to be with his brother and his new sister-in-law.
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¡°Ok, you crazy fuck! What the hell! I send you off with one stupid joke, and the next time I see you, you¡¯re married, part of an alien tribe, no offense; and pissing off an entire galactic government¡ oh and merc¡¯ing a metric shit ton of pirates along the way.¡± Clint laughed as they walked over to Vito. Lyri drove while the two caught up. By the time they were settling in Mac had finished his story from the beginning. Lyri made a point of circling around the hanger and the landing strip, finally touching down on the pad built into the balcony/foundation of the elevated structure.
¡°Welcome to our home.¡± lyri said in English. And Clint raised an eyebrow.
¡°English and Gaelic? How busy have you been.¡± He asked.
¡°Too busy¡± she replied with a giggle.
¡°She wants to visit Earth, and she caught me saying a few things in the old tongue. After that, it was all immersion. We mostly speak English or Garlic at home. It started as a way of giving her some immersion, but now it¡¯s just our thing¡± Mac explained.
¡°Chuir mi iongnadh air leis cho luath sa dh¡¯ ionnsaich mi an t-seann ch¨¤nan. Ach tha gaol agam air (I surprised him with how quickly I learned the old tongue. But I love it)¡± She grinned at Clint.
¡°Cha bhithinn a ''tachairt a bhith a'' faighinn piuthar a tha singilte? (You wouldn¡¯t happen to have a sister that¡¯s single?)¡± Clint smirked at her confused look.
¡°Down, nitro, it doesn¡¯t quite work that way here!¡± Mac said with a laugh. Clint looked a question at him, so Mac continued, ¡°Mix Victorian England with James Cameron¡¯s Avatar. Then sprinkle in a little old fashioned arranged marriage and you come close.¡±
Lyrian snorted at Mac¡¯s analogy, then opened their front door.
¡°Holy fuck¡. This place is yours?¡± Clint¡¯s awe crept in.
¡°Yup. Apparently protecting a freighter from Pirates is a dam good bonus. The rest is a sort of Tribal inheritance for Lyrian once she wed. We got a bigger plot on account of being so far from ¡®in town¡¯. Keep your sidearm on you at night. This place has flying bat, snake, tiger shark things that like to jump people this far out.¡±
¡°Oh? How do they taste?¡± Clint laughed as Lyri whipped her head around in shock.
¡°Donno, yet.¡± Mac chuckled.
¡°Huuuumons..¡± Lyri said in her habitual deliberate mispronunciation. Promoting Clint to break down into a true belly laugh.
The three of them grabbed Delmar¡¯s version of Beer while Mac pulled some food from the ¡®food cooler¡¯ and reheated them on the stove. Lyrian asked about embarrassing stories and the war of the tall tales began.
3 hours later Aunt Gwen arrived and joined in in the little family reunion.
Exhaustion eventually demanded its revenge as everyone crashed out one by one.
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Mac was woken early the next morning by a sharp ping of terror. Lyri was whimpering next to him. She hadn¡¯t had a nightmare since the assassin¡¯s attack. Thankfully it was a short one as the morning sun woke her to him holding her and gently stroking her head and mane.
¡°I saw their faces¡ everyone we lost¡¡±
She sobbed softly into his chest.
¡°I know¡ I know¡ it¡¯s ok¡ the first battle is always the hardest¡¡± He felt a pinch of his own sadness at her having to go through this.
¡°Don¡¯t¡± she said looking up at him, ¡°don¡¯t you dare. I chose this¡¡± she nuzzled back Down on his chest. ¡°I have you, I¡¯ll be ok.¡±
A cuddling hour later, Lyri snapped her head up to the sounds of the kitchen and the smell of food.
¡®Oh boy,¡¯ Mac thought before opening his mouth, ¡°Easy Tiger, It¡¯s Aunt Gwen¡¯s tradition. She always cooked for me and Clint after we got back from a rough one. And I don¡¯t quite think you could take her enough to kick her out of the kitchen... yet anyway.¡±
¡°I¡¯m going down there. She might need help.¡± Lyri decided. And Mac just chuckled.
He followed her downstairs and found Clint sitting at the table already. Aunt Gwen was looking very confusedly in the Delmar style refrigerator. Lyri flashed the boys a smirk before walking over to ¡®help¡¯.
¡°This is gonna be good.¡± Mac said sitting down.
¡°Huh?¡± Clint was clearly hung over.
¡°Oh, you¡¯ll see.¡± Mac leaned back in his chair, as the great battle of the Breakfast After commenced.
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Darclemus looked up from his own breakfast as an aid walked in. Without knocking.
¡°Sir, we have a problem¡ a ¡®patrol fleet¡¯ from the UGN is claiming to have heard reports of a pirate raid on the Delmar homeworld. They are demanding entry into Delmar Territorial space under the ¡®exigent circumstances¡¯ clause of the treaty.¡± the man said quickly.
Darclemus¡¯ annoyance disappeared as the urgency of the matter matched the young man¡¯s actions. ¡°Details of this ¡®fleet¡¯.¡±
¡°It¡¯s a full-on battle group, sir¡ an assault carrier, two ¡®Compliance¡¯ class frigates and three frontier Brigantines.¡± The man said quickly.
¡°They knew. How is for another day; Recall everything, we have left. Is the Confederation Council aware?¡± Darclemus asked.
¡°Yes, the other tribes are recalling their ships as well. But we don¡¯t have many. We Lack the weight of numbers or firepower to stop them. We lost too much in the attack.¡± The man¡¯s head fell. He had lost two brothers at the failed beacon ambush.
¡°Send a car for the ambassador, she needs to be aware of this. Put all surviving Helyon fighters and attackers on Alert. Get them in orbit.¡± Darclemus stood, ¡°I will have words with the council, we have no time.¡±
Chapter 34
Admiral Krurog Morgatar was the commander of the Fifth Inquisitorius Battle Fleet. He stood on the bridge of his flagship, The UGN Wrath of Conformity. His flagship was a 40 kilometer by 130-kilometer monster with 12 main drives primary propulsion and 6 main drives in blisters amidships pointed forwards for deceleration maneuvers. Her primary weapons consisted of 16 orbital array laser cannons. They were arrayed about her dorsal and keel in pairs of two emitter super firing turrets. She bore six class four reactors with the ability to charge all 200 of her weapons power banks and 500 of her shield power banks in under 6 hours. With a full charge. Every weapon on the ship could fire for 18 hours continually before exhausting her weapons banks. A Friggates shields were designed to withstand planet-to-orbit ordinance and energy weapons, and most engagements that Krurog had commanded rarely saw his flagship below 80 percent of her shield bank strength.
Krurog himself, a Thermian, was a contrarian among his peers for his preference of fighting his fleet from a frigate instead of a carrier, and for fighting from the front... His fleet consisted of another frigate, the Hand of Security, the assault carrier Devine Unity and three brigantines; Insured Reliance, Protectorate¡¯s Claw, and Loyal Servant.
¡°Admiral, we are receiving an official response from the Confederation. They assure us that the situation is under control.¡± The Comms lieutenant reported.
¡°Admiral, if I may.¡± it was his flag, Commodore. He was the only soul on board who knew their true orders, ¡°long-range sensor relays picked up on of our satellites¡¯ signals.¡± He refrained from openly voicing that the inquisitor satellite was launched by their¡ insurance policy... ¡°It is picking up massive power readings and multiple ships of unknown origin in very close orbit to the planet. It may be¡ prudent¡ to assume they are under duress¡¡± He stated diplomatically.
¡°I see, prepare the fleet to jump I want the Brigs in a screen in front of us, Wrath and security will be in formation with the Unity. All vessels charge all banks, we jump in 7 hours.¡± He turned to his first officer as the crew bent to his will, ¡°Send a full report and confirmation or authorization over the priority channel. Request a decision within 6 hours.¡±
Krurog watched as his first mate nodded and left. Pirate Barges often showed up on sensors as unidentified because of their cobbled-together nature. No two were ever alike, and the mix of different ships¡¯ signatures present in the scavenged hull sections always forced the designation through on the sensor algorithms. Something felt off. The power readings from the Inquisitorum¡¯s automated spy were too high to be real. They were higher than the mythical capabilities of the long dead Corth¡¯ Founders. His orders were clear on that point, use any and all legally plausible means to get into Delmar space. Acquire ¡®The Demon¡¯ and its ship, while ostensibly helping Delmar recover from a crippling Pirate Invasion. This was a well-used page from the Inquisitorum¡¯s book. The Mayhem created by the ¡®pirates¡¯ was always so great that the missing target was often forgotten or assumed dead upon the UGN¡¯s and the GHO¡¯s departure.
He stepped off the bridge to his ready room to pull up the charts for the Delmar home world one last time.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
The epic battle of whom got to make breakfast had turned into a tag team feast of epic proportions, only to be interrupted by all 4 of their Chrono¡¯s going off with scramble codes. 303 wing would meet them in the air as Mac and Lyri scrambled into their G suits. A car was just landing to pick up Gwen and Clint as Concord Roared into the air, burning hard for The Black.
The moment Clint and Gwen were in the car, Gwen activated the car¡¯s headrest viewer. ¡°Darclemus, what¡¯s the situation.¡±
¡°We have a possible Galactic Unity Inquitorial Fleet inbound for Delmar. We do not know how they knew about the pirate attack, but If they decide to stretch the treaty; they will jump in to ¡®assist¡¯. We are an old race. We have seen this before. We suspect that their true goal is the acquisition of ¡®the demon¡¯.
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¡°That would be me¡± a familiar voice, slightly backdropped by a familiar howl, cut into the conversation. ¡°I may or may not have threatened to nuke a UGN cruiser for preparing to fire on Lucid Traveler.¡±
Clint choked for a moment on his water, ¡°You, what?¡±
¡°I may have disabled them, flown up to their bridge, and armed every nuke on Concord for them to have a good look. If you haven¡¯t noticed, this part of the galaxy is lacking in highly radioactive compounds that we use as fuel.¡± Mac finished.
¡°Wait, you use fuel more energetic than our own?¡± Darclemus had been letting R and D do their own thing, while he focused on diplomacy.
¡°Dar, your largest class 4 reactor is a quarter of one of the two fusion cores on Concord¡ and Concord makes less than 1 100th of the power output as the smallest escort that the Ambassador brought with her¡± Mac stated flatly, ¡°It¡¯s one of the things that we are offering in trade. Fuel and energy technology.¡±
¡°I see¡± Darclemus stated.
¡°I need Mac on the bridge of Tranquility. From the reports, he will be a face and a voice they recognize. I may need that.¡± Gwen offered.
¡°Very well, Mac, Lyri?¡± Darclemus asked?
¡°On it, Fizz get me a vector¡± Mac barked.
¡°On it.. 228 mar¡¡± Lyrians voice was cut off as they left the channel.
¡°¡. Fizz?¡± Gwen looked the question to Clint.
Clint just chuckled, ¡°Now that¡¯s a story I need to hear.¡±
15 minutes later, the Sol shuttle was airborne with Admiral Gwen and Commodore Stevens onboard.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mac eased Concord into Tranquility¡¯s massive hanger bay. She held station-keeping while the ground crew sputtered and soared around in zero g attaching the Hanger Moorings to Concord magnetic hard points. Soon she was safely tied to the deck
¡°Remember, no gravity here. I¡¯ve heard they put gravity in the living quarters and the essential hallways. But we will be floating for a bit.¡± Mac instructed as he popped the canopy seal. The hanger had been repressurized some time ago. ¡°Wait for them to run a line. We use the line to get to the exit.¡±
Soon they were soaring through open space, with a line in one hand as it guided them toward the hanger corridor entrance. Lyri and Mac flew down the cooridors until they got to the center main artery of the Ship. Tranquility was a massively wide based triangle with two huge forward-facing hangers on each side of her prow. The Main Bridge was right up front near the bow. Mac landed easily and Lyrian thumped down next to them as they began to walk toward the bridge. Lyrian noticed many of the crew men and women gasp as she walked by. She realized that she was firstly in a skintight void suit, and secondly, the first non-human they had ever seen. The corridor was in familiar earth 1g, and Lyrian felt the familiar weight of it as they reached the bridge. The doors Hissed open as They stepped through only to be followed by Admiral Gwen and the Commodore.
¡°So, what¡¯s the plan¡± Mac asked.
¡°Standard High orbit Defensive formation.¡± Admiral Gwen barked, ¡°Get me whoever is in charge of the Delmar survivors.¡±
¡°Commander Folmuri responding Ma¡¯am¡± the Coms officer responded after a few minutes.
¡°Put him on¡. Commander, I recognize that I am not in your military; However, I want to politely request that you fold in between Holden and Jezero. I ask this for your safety. Should we be joined in battle, our Dreadnaught Hathcock will be the first to fire. She is designed to make hits at semi-interplanetary distances. Getting anywhere near her discharge energy cone could destroy your ships.¡± Admiral Gwen was polite but firm. She needed them where they were asked to go, ¡°I also need you to fill out the formation and help protect Tranquility. She has the most powerful sensors and is designed to provide fire control to an entire battle group. We will link you into the network as well.¡±
¡°I see, I will request permission from the Council; but will preemptively fall in as requested. I do appreciate the courtesy. Do we know what the timetable of the attack will be?¡± He finished, nodding to his own Coms station.
¡°The Sol fleet will be holding this position oriented toward the beacon until Delmar hears back from the UGN confirming their fleet¡¯s stand-down order. I do not have a timetable at present.¡± Gwen admitted.
¡°We will stand with you. Folmuri out¡± The Delmar Commander cut the communication and the sensors showed the surviving Delmar Patrol vessels, none bigger than a destroyer class, fell into the formation and were linked to the Digital Sensor field provided by Tranquility.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
5 hours later-
Krurog scanned his sensors as they jumped into Delmar space. There was a still rapidly expanding debris field from the initial pirate ¡®engagement¡¯.. ¡®Good, more political cover¡¯ he then turned his attention to the long-range scans as they rendered an image of a fleet in high orbit... His eyes narrowed; these were not pirate ships¡. these were not Delmar ships, some of them anyway.
¡°Hail them¡± He rumbled.
¡°They are responding, Viewer and audio only.¡± The Con reported.
The view screen extended across the observation windows and a strange command center appeared. Four beings one of them significantly taller than the others, and one a Delmar female in a void suit were standing in the middle of the Command room. The Male in the Delmar Void suit. He recognized.
His eyes Bored into the Demon as he spoke, ¡°I am Krurog of the 5th Inquisitorius Battle Fleet Responding under exigence to a report of unidentified Vessels placing Delmar under Seige. All non-Delmar Vessels are to Power down weapons and shields. Prepare to be boarded.¡±
Chapter 35
¡. prepare to be boarded.¡±
Mac raised an eyebrow.
¡°I am Admiral Gwen Mackenzie Trenton, Ambassador to the Delmar Confederation from the United Sol Federation, and commander of the United Sol navy Expeditionary Fleet Alpha. We are here under a flag of peace. The report you have is indeed correct. A pirate fleet under the flag of the Voids Revenge did indeed try¡.. and fail¡. to brutalize this planet. However, they have been repelled.¡± the tall female stated diplomatically.
¡°Irrelevant, we received word that unidentified ships were in this system and that the planet Delmar was under siege. I do not recognize you, your ships, or your ¡®Federation¡¯. Submit or be destroyed.¡±
¡°Delmar transmitted no distress call, where did you get your exigence basis from?¡± The cursed voice of the demon spoke.
¡°I do not need to disclose my sources, and I tire of your machinations.¡± Krurog growled, ¡°Have Hand fire the cleanser, target one of their escorts.¡± He didn¡¯t bother turning off the transmission and turned back to look at these strange beings as they began to speak in another language to each other.
The Hand fired her main weapon. It was a centerline mounted orbital grade hybrid plasma laser cannon that represented the absolute pinnacle of Unity firepower. A 250-meter-wide, 4-kilometer-long beam of wrath erupted from his flag¡¯s sister ship and sped away toward the formation. His eyebrow arched as they did not scatter, his HUD reported massive power readings coming from the formation, and his eyes narrowed.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°Admiral, reading a massive discharge of some kind of energy weapon. 1 min to impact¡± Tactical reported stoically.
¡°Activate Shield-Wall, and tell the Delmar ships to withdraw to the center of our formation.¡± The Admiral barked as the Mars-made destroyers linked their shields together as Hathcock and Tranquility¡¯s shields combined and extended to connect with that of their escorts. The massive frontal wall of energy shimmered slightly as the combat data link meshed the deflector frequency rotations.
Admiral Gwen turned back toward the viewer, ¡°You commit an act of war Krurog. What is the meaning of this¡± Her eyes were cold. Her tone, a growl.
¡°Your insolence is amusing; I shall rid Delmar of its attackers. I look forward to examining your corpse¡±. The overgrown lizard smiled.
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¡°10 seconds¡± Tactical called as the streak of laser and plasma raced in, impacting a wall of energy 150 meters in front of the Sol Destroyer screen at the front of the formation. The Shield Wall crackled and flared, Defying the assault as the incoming hate, and several seconds crawled by until the last of the massively long beam of Death finally ceased.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Krurog¡¯s eyes widened as his sensors recorded the impact and the com connection barely flickered.
¡°Admiral, shield wall at 94 percent, no damage reported on any vessels¡± a subordinate off screen reported.
The tall female who called herself admiral narrowed her eyes and bored them into his, ¡°That was a mistake¡ Hathcock¡ counterbattery, one round.. Fire when ready.¡±
¡°SIR!! Massive power readings coming from the enemy formation! Something¡¯s¡¡±
Eros Dreadnought Hathcock had targeted the Hand of Security with a 40 meter long tungsten cored steel dart weighing 100 tons. It left her barrel at 15 percent the speed of light. In the next 7 seconds, that superheated dart went semi molten, and elongated into a molten spike 70 meters in length and 10 meters in diameter. At second number 8, that spike impacted the Hand of Security. Her shields never had the time to properly fail. Hathcock¡¯s wrath came within 30 meters of one of the Brigs¡ which was now burning from a melted streak along its starboard side... its shields stripped by the glancing impact as the voice of an Eros disemboweled the Hand of Security from bow to stern. The fact that an Eros superheats its projectiles on firing was a designed result. The molten projectile began to break up upon contact with Hand¡¯s shields, losing about 20 percent of its total velocity as the shards ruptured the bow, flash cooking everything and everyone in their path.
The Hand of Security burst like a watermelon full of napalm, splitting into dozens of long strips of flaming hull segments. Several sections slammed into the Wrath of Conformity¡¯s shields as Krurog was thrown from his command chair at the impact.
¡°Report!¡± He roared.
¡°The Hand, sir. She¡¯s gone.¡±
¡°WHAT THE VOID HIT US¡± He bellowed, sitting back in his chair.
¡°Humanity¡± a familiar voice spoke. Krurog cursed himself for forgetting the hailing connection was still active. He slowly turned back to the viewer.
¡°Demon...¡± He hammered his hate into that one word. The cursed being responded.
¡°Leave, now. The second shot will not be a warning.¡± Admiral Gwen¡¯s voice was hammered steel.
¡°A warning!! I will personally fillet each and every o¡.¡±
A titanic monstrosity 500 kilometers by 1000 kilometers flashed into existence between the two fleets.
¡°No, you will not.¡± a deep metallic voice sounded over the open hail. Both images on their respective screens were replaced with the face of a massive metal being. Krurog instantly fell to one knee.
¡°Aiericastum..¡± he bowed
¡°Your orders are rescinded. They were not authorized by the council. You could not know this; you shall not be punished. Depart now, return to the capital, and await interview.¡± The metal being ordered. It closed the connection with the inquisitorial fleet as it swung around to burn for the jump point.
¡°Hathcock ready Ithaca¡± Gwen snapped.
¡°That will not be necessary¡ Human.¡± the voice spoke.
Everyone on the bridge froze.
¡°You are known to us, Human. However, Humanity is not known to the Unity. You are far from home¡ Admiral.¡± The voice continued.
¡°How can we be known to you, but not the Unity.¡± Admiral Gwen demanded. She pointedly did not cancel the order to Hathcock.
¡°In Due time. For now, know that the Tetrarchy knows of your talks with Delmar. We are willing to allow them to continue under one condition.¡± the Metal being rumbled.
¡°And that would be?¡± Admiral Gwen crossed her arms.
¡°That you send your species name and description to the Unity so that this¡ unfortunate experience does not happen a second time. We are willing to¡ overlook the lack of home-world and system coordinates at this time.¡± The metal monster ended the hale, and trails of plasma began trailing from the corners of the titanic football-shaped disk of a void ship¡. Then it vanished in a flash of white light. No burn, no run-up to subspace.
It was gone.
Chapter 36
The Bridge of Tranquility fell totally silent for a full minute after the hail was terminated and the Massive Ship winked from existence.
¡°Was that...¡± Mac began.
¡°A Tetrarchy ship¡. No one has seen one in a millennium.¡± Lyri spoke barely above a whisper.
¡°Save all the sensor data, I want to send everything we have back to Sol in the next transmission.¡± Admiral Gwen snapped everyone out of their stupor.
¡°Admiral, the Head of the Confederation Council is requesting to meet.¡± Came a voice from Coms.
¡°Ask for coordinates, and tell him we will be there in two hours,¡± the Admiral turned to Clint, ¡°You have the fleet, Commodore. Deploy us defensively into high orbit stay between the planet and the systems beacon.¡±
¡°Yes Admiral.¡± Clint snapped off a salute.
¡°Captain, I¡¯m having a car sent to your airstrip to take you to the council meeting. I want you and the lead of 303 wings as escorts down to the surface. I have some information I need to pick up from my planet-side quarters before I meet with the council.¡±
¡°Aye Ma¡¯am¡± Mac spun on his heels with Lyrian close behind.
An hour later, The Admiral turned Ambassador touched down and Gwen quickly retrieved a packet from her room.
The Car was waiting for her on the balcony pad next to Vito.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Two days later Ivar was returning to the Grarzia airfield to pick up his Ranger to return it to the Wing¡¯s hanger. His ranger had taken some damage but was not leaking any critical fluids. She had a few scars on her wings from laser fire burning off some of the armor, and his vertical stabilizer has 4 separate holes. He was just finishing his walk around as he heard thunder crackling on a clear morning sky. He raised an eyebrow at the familiar sonic booms of re-entry, but these were closer. Another set of booms shook the hanger and Ivar walked out of the hanger to look down the runway. Three Fighters of a make he had never seen before roared overhead just below the speed of sound. They traveled the length of the Runway at treetop level before soaring out over the water and reversing course for landing.
¡°Ah, I was hoping you would be here for this.¡± Ivar jumped at the utterly infernally silent approach of Mackenzie as he finally spoke from where he was leaned up against the hanger door behind Ivar.
¡°Fuck Mac, I¡¯m not going to get used to your Apex slinkin¡¯ ass creepin'' up on me. Who are they?¡±
¡°The Volunteer Interceptor Pratrol and Extrasolar Reaction Squadron. They worked way too hard to be ¡®VIPER squadron¡¯. They are split into 3 flights of three with one bird in reserve for whichever mission needs a little extra kick.¡± Mac explained. He pulled out a square box with a long antenna that Ivar realized was a portable radio of some kind
¡°VIPER 1-1, VIPER 1-1, This is COBRA 224. Runway 23 is clear at your discretion. Welcome to Delmar.¡± Mac spoke into the transmitter and released the button on the side.
*Maldito infierno (Fuckin Hell). Speak of the legend, himself. This your Casa?* Came the return call over the radio.
¡°Chika, That you? I thought you would be on a beach in the south of Italy by now!¡± Mac laughed at the very confused Expression on Ivar¡¯s face.
*Airlines weren¡¯t hiring, not enough people left to make it worth it¡ I wasn¡¯t gonna sit my ass in a desk the rest of my Career. Viper 1-1 flight of three short final 23. See you in 5 Cobra 224* the voice over the radio answered.
Three Raptor II¡¯s swept down toward the approach end of the runway and landed as one. Raptor II¡¯s were a Pre GSW design that proved that very little was new in the world of single-seat fighter design. Everything forward of the wing root could be a carbon copy of the Venerable Raptor of the early twenty first century. That¡¯s where the similarities ended. For 1 the Raptor II¡¯s were roughly 50 meters longer, and they had no rudder and elevator combination. They had a Long thin forward-swept wing with a retractable Cannard for interstellar flight. They carried their ordinance internally like a TALON but were not designed to work outside of a carrier. They had a much smaller fusion core and only had a single Primary Drive for thrust. Their twin vertical stabilizers for yaw control in atmosphere folded into the wings during Space flight and for storage. They were long, lean, and dangerous, and Ivar gave a small whistle as they taxi¡¯d up to the hanger and shut down.
¡°Chika?¡± he asked Mac.
¡°Captain Martina Aquilar formerly of the Terran Super Carrier Enterprise SVF-6 fighter wing. We spent quite a bit of time in the same piece of Black together. TALONS operated as fleet screening fighters, and Enterprise was in my charge for many a mission.¡± Mac explained as the three pilots climbed out of their steeds and did a quick walk around before walking towards Mac and Ivar.
Ivar was not quite familiar with Human Naming conventions and took a massive double take as the Curves in the lead pilots G suit registered. His eyes widened as Captain Aquilar pulled off her helmet and shook out her shoulder-length raven black hair.
¡°Cabron! Your survival instincts are trash! Come here.¡± She bellowed her challenge, and Ivar took a step back as the two collided in a big embrace before she let go of Mac and gave his shoulder a slap, ¡°How the fuck am I supposed to pass your ass if you go and find AN ENTIRE MOTHA-FUCKIN GALAXY for humanity to fight.¡± She dodged a playful swipe from Mac and then Gave Ivar a smile followed by a wink, ¡°He¡¯s cute. Tall too.¡±
¡°Down Chika, you would probably break him in half. You never change.¡± Mac laughed, ¡°How many more you got comin¡¯.¡±.
¡°The rest of the Squadron; we got a shuttle following the rest down. I wanted to come check over the strip first. Not bad for a single approach with an early decision point.¡±
¡°It will have to do for now. The Delmar like their jungle, I barely got them to clear enough for this.¡± Mac chuckled just as a few more booms echoed through the trees and more Human Fighters began their strange landing process. Ivar was torn between watching the fighters land and watching ¡®Captain Martina¡¯ finish waving in the rest of the fighters. She caught him staring and pointedly looked him up and down with a playful lower lip bite.
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¡°Be careful with that one.¡± Ivar jumped as Mac had somehow snuck directly up behind his left shoulder, ¡°She¡¯s not one to trifle with. I haven¡¯t seen the man yet to tame that Latina. Humans don¡¯t have a Claiming, some have a very different view of Intimacy than the Delmar.¡± Mac clamped him on the shoulder., ¡°Now! Get your bird in the air! Don¡¯t you dare be late for the Meet and greet party.¡±
Ivar nodded and boarded his own Ranger. He initiated Hover taxi mode and crept his bird out of the hanger. He noticed Captain Martina watching his Ranger leave and gave a quick Salute he had seen Mac use on occasion before sealing the cockpit and roaring for home.
¡°Are all Delmar that Gorgeous?¡± Mac turned from watching Ivar depart as Martina stepped up beside him.
¡°Be careful Chika, these people are very different from us. They don¡¯t have flings, at all. Try not to flirt too much till you get the Cultural briefing. Compreder?¡±
¡°I read ya. I¡¯ll keep the international incidents to a minimum.¡± Her Feral Grin Made Mac bark a laugh.
¡°Oh boy, fair enough. Let¡¯s get¡¡± Mac was interrupted by Lyri walking around the corner of the hangar to investigate all the commotion. He waved her over.
Martina raised an eyebrow in surprise as a drop-dead gorgeous Delmar woman bounded over to Mac before he scooped her up with a spin and planted a deep kiss on her. She nipped his chin with her cat like fangs before he set her down. ¡®holy fuck, she¡¯s gorgeous¡¯
¡°Hey love, meet an old friend. Captain Martina ¡®Chika¡¯ Aquilar. She¡¯s commanding the Fighter Squadron on Tranquility. We¡¯ve lost count on who has saved who a long time ago¡± Mac indicated to Martina.
¡°I thought you said to take things easy here on the intimacy side?¡± Martina gently teased.
¡°Ha, well Martina Aquilar; Meet Lyrian ¡®Fizz¡¯ Mackenzie Grarzia. My bride.¡± Mac¡¯s grin only widened as the shock nearly flattened Martina.
¡°Well, shit!¡± Martina said, finally switching to Galactic common, ¡°I... uh... congrats... uh Congratulations¡± She stumbled through the unmastered language before Lyri smiled and saved her.
¡°Thank you Captain, I appreciate the well wishes.¡± Lyri responded in perfect English.
¡°Oh thank fuck! I don¡¯t do well with Languages outside of Spanish and Murican.¡± Martina gasped in relief. Lyrian chuckled.
The shuttle they were waiting on set down and the fighter Squadron plus two boarded for the flight to the hall.
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Ambassador Gwen turned and raised an eyebrow as The Hall¡¯s great doors opened and a clamoring of Delmar and Human Fighter pilots tumbled in laughing and Haranguing ¡®I guess some things are truly universal¡¯ she thought as she turned back to her conversation with Druvid and Darclemus.
¡°I¡¯ve looked over your sensor data. I still can¡¯t believe that your ships were capable of piercing the Tetrarchy Shields with their sensors.¡± Druvid continued their previous conversation, ¡°The readings during its¡ departure¡ are interesting, to say the least.¡±
¡°Indeed, the fact that The Tetrarchy ship did not use a beacon point will be a subject of great investigation for both our people¡¯s scientific minds. For now, I wish to discuss what we have brought with us. I¡¯m aware that I was painting with broad strokes during my meeting with the council, but I wish to get specific with a more, discrete audience.¡± She smiled, but there was very little humor in her expression.
¡°You believe there to be an infiltration of the Confederation council?¡± Druvid was more than slightly offended.
¡°Chancellor, we still don¡¯t know how the inquisitorial Fleet knew that you were attacked. Until we know where they got their information, I trust few. Both of you have earned that trust.¡± She took a breath, ¡° Frankly, we got lucky. Sol had the reports, but we had no true confirmation of the status of our technology vs that of the rest of the Galactic Unity. It''s one of the reasons we put an Eros in every expeditionary fleet. The Eros Class warships are, well, overkill for almost anything out here but a planet-born defensive network.¡± She took a sip as the two men pondered her words.
¡°I find it concerning. I have seen the disclosed Power Generation numbers from your ships¡ Quite Frankly, I would not have believed them without the Battle recordings from both firing events of Hathcock. Anyway, what details are you wishing to bring forth.¡± Darclemus mentioned.
¡°We have an unmanned freighter, It was sent on a delay at the last minute. It contains a significant amount of Technology that we are offering for our end of the deal¡. Including slip drives We think may be capable of being installed on Delmar ships.¡± She held up her hand to preempt the shocked comments of the two men, ¡°We did not mention this in the official negotiations because we do not know if this will work. We took your Fusion Generator information at face value, and we believe that we have designed something that will only just get you into slip space with your power requirements. We have some requests though. We do not want these installed on any Freighters¡ This tech will revolutionize Space travel in this part of the galaxy. It CANNOT fall into the hands of the Unity¡ This, Humanity cannot allow; at least not yet. What we propose in exchange for slipdrive technology is a Joint Human, Delmar response fleet. We want to work together to build a series of hybrid fleets that will eventually be capable of responding to any Confederation or Human Freighter anywhere between Sol and the Far side of the Unity.¡± Ambassador Qwen explained.
¡°Human freighters?¡± Druvid said nervously. ¡°You plan to bring human freighters to this side of the galaxy?¡±
¡°Yes, and No. We currently have untold worlds and systems that Humanity needs to explore, clear for threats, make treaties with, or avoid between Sol and Delmar space. Human Freighters are being built with Slip-drive technology only. That will be needed to traverse the vast distances required quickly during our early exploration. We wish to make Delmar the Hub, a conversion point, where Human Freighters can make their transfer point to Delmar Freight to go to the rest of the galaxy. You are our buffer, even our most basic freighters could change the balance of power between Sol and The Unity, if they were to be captured. What I am proposing is this. Human-flagged Freighters will operate between Delmar and Sol, and Delmar Freighters will operate as they have.¡±
¡°I noticed you mentioned, ¡®Delmar flagged¡¯ and ¡®Human Flagged¡¯. Are you offering what I think you are offering? Darclemus had set his drink down now.
¡°Yes. It is my hope, that in the coming years and Decades of our Alliance, that Both Human and Delmar serve and even command ship under each Flag. Humanity needs to learn about the greater galaxy; to gain real-world experience. Delmar Needs free of Unity control, free of the UGN¡¯s abuse of power. Humanity has the experience to do that. My plan is to Succeed in Gaining Delmar Independence with as little bloodshed as possible. I may fail, but that is my goal.¡± She nodded solemnly.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°¡ and so here I am, covered in Jaru Soda, with my whole family pointing at me with Mac laughing his ass off. and thus, I became ¡®Fizz¡¯.¡± Lyrian finished to howling applause. The entire Terran Fighter squadron, the Old Salts that had chosen to Sit this season out, and the Survivors from Home Wing and 303 Wing had invaded a three-table area, pushing them together and were currently telling drinking stories.
¡°So! Chika.. You¡¯re next!!¡± Lyrian was a bit buzzed, but not slurring yet
¡°Oh you bitch!¡± Martina laughed before draining the rest of her Delmar Beer of some Autumn flavor of theirs, ¡°I think I hold the record for the quickest given call sign here.¡±
Mac just started laughing, before drowning it in tug from his own beer bottle, ¡°Oh gawd, but you gave such a great effort!¡± he didn¡¯t quite dodge Martina¡¯s hook to his ribs, ¡°OOF!!¡±
¡°So, I decided that first impressions were the best, so I walked into the training building on my first day of indoctrination¡. Dressed to the nines. Silky black dress, hair done, nails done, professionally done makeup¡ I got put down HARD in basic, but the day one name stuck as my DI dubbed me ¡®Chika¡¯ and well, here I am!¡± She laughed as Ivar pointedly took a loooong swig at the mental image.
¡°I remember Di Rios. That crazy fucker never did know when to quit.¡± Clint stepped into an open seat, flipping it around to straddle it and lean on its back rest. ¡°He turned into a Dam good Commander¡.¡±
¡°He was¡ ¡°Mac stated somberly, ¡°He was my First C.O. He lost his Wizzo on Clint and I¡¯s fist mission. He couldn¡¯t handle the trauma from being linked to Buzz when he died¡¡±
Clint nodded, digging in his backpack, ¡°A toast then!¡± he slammed a bottle that Mac and Lyrian were familiar with.. an unopened bottle of Jeremiah Weed.
A quick explanation and shot glasses were circled around, each commander of each squadron naming their fallen before Mac lit the First glass watching the flame spread.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°FOX 2!!!¡± came the roar of the rowdy table across the room as Icario chuckled into his drink. Humans and Delmar were mingled all around the Hall, The Party would go long into the night. The Human Warship Crews were being Ferried down in shifts so that they could all participate. Ambassador Gwen¡¯s fleet continued to hold vigil over Delmar as the Confederation defense forces licked their wounds. Icario¡¯s thoughts were interrupted by a soft familiar voice at his side.
Tili laid a hand softly on his arm, ¡°How are Tristen and Silu¡¡±
¡°Tristen will make it fine. His new arm is almost done growing. His eye is unrecoverable. There is too much thermal damage to the brain side of the optical nerve. There is simply not enough to work off of for the nanites.¡± Icario patted her hand.
¡°And Silu?¡± She whispered.
¡°Not good, the organs he needs take time to grow¡ He is barely hanging on¡ it''s in the Void''s hands until his replacements finish growing.¡± Icario whispered back.
¡°I¡¯m sorry, You two went through everything together... I will pray for him¡± She gave him a nuzzle on his neck.
¡°At this point, I¡¯m willing to join you in the old ways. He needs everything he can get.¡± Icario nodded.
Chapter 37
Tristen flexed his new arm. It still tingled around the bandaged seam just below his elbow. He knew the nanites were still finishing up, and that the finished scar would be barely visible when he was fully healed. His eye was another matter. There was now a jagged scar, 2cm wide, at its widest that streaked from just below his hairline to the corner of his lip. He stared at himself in the mirror, inspecting his recently sown shut and sealed eye socket. ¡®I guess I¡¯ll have to get used to thi¡¡¯
¡°Oh, that¡¯s not going to do, not at all.¡± came a familiar voice from the doorway of his hospital room.
Tristen turned to glare at the Human casually leaning against the doorway, ¡°Chicks dig scars¡± he said indignantly.
¡°That they do, but let¡¯s give you a bit of dashing to go with your new rugged swagger.¡± Mac said, holding out a piece of black material shaped almost perfectly to fit the orbital bones surrounding his empty eye socket. ¡°It¡¯s designed to adhere when you press on its edges. And release when you pull on the part nearest your temple.¡±
Tristen gave Mac one last pointed look before pressing the patch to his face and feeling it secure itself before almost completely disappearing from the felt sensation. He turned back to look at his reflection and just stood there, It was definitely an improvement. He felt himself smirking to himself.
¡°Oh¡ that¡¯s hot.¡± the voice of his pregnant wife Juelana startled him out of his staring contest with himself.
Juelana walked up to him with a possessive fang-filled smile, ¡°You¡¯ll do nicely.¡± She growled at him as he looked on in shock at her possessive display in front of Mac before she stood on her toes and kissed him before backing away.
¡°Dam son,¡± Mac laughed as Lyri rounded the corner giggling before looking at Tristen, then back to Mac, then back to Tristen, finally back to Mac.
¡°Why don¡¯t you have one of those?¡± she asked.
¡°B¡¯cause I still have both my eyes¡.¡± Mac began only to be cut off by a nip to his jaw line.
Lyrian pulled away and bit her lower lip at him, ¡°So?¡± She Coo¡¯d.
Juelana was snickering now as Mac smirked before whipping out a second one, slapping it over his right eye, ¡°Aye¡ keep it up woman, and Aarrr be comin¡¯ furrr Da¡¯t booty¡±
¡°Hmmm promise?¡± Lyri just smirked before nipping his lower lip.
Tristen lost it first, laughing hard. He was quickly followed by the rest of the room.
¡°Common ye lubber¡¯s we have a pAARty to go to.¡± Mac laughed before removing his patch. ¡°This is a breakout! I¡¯m smoking a fuck load of everything over at my place. Get yer shit!¡±
10 minutes later the four hopped into Vito. Tili had already taken the gaggle of kids to the ¡®Ranch house¡¯ as Mac had dubbed it. And Icario was not far behind.
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Maximar sat in his office inside his Golem¡ the only reason it was still his office was because literally no other Corth¡¯ existed to take his place anymore. It had been made excruciatingly clear that any more off-book attempts at information gathering would result in a reassessment of even that fact.
He smirked, it was a calculated Gambit, but it had born some fruit. The data from the sensors of both his insurance policies and his fleet had born fruit dressed in code. Humanity had indeed reached the stars in mass as he had hoped. Their Technology had taken an interesting turn. He wondered when exactly the monitoring crews had succumbed to the cataclysm. How long had they had a hand in Humaniy¡¯s Journey. He sighed as he began digging through the first segments of information. His eyes widened, and he began to read the initial sensor reading from the Pirates¡ it was going to be a very interesting read indeed.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Darclemus was unsure of why he had been invited to this event at the Mackenzie Grarzia estate, though he had to admit it was a well thought out abode. A cheer erupted as Mac, Clint, and Tristen walked in from the outside smoker with a titanic amount of grilled and smoked meats and vegetables. Clint had raided the Tranquility¡¯s stores for several racks of ribs and a 15lb prime rib roast he had stowed away for this very event. The combined Delmar and Human dinner spread soon had everyone gathering around. Ivar and Martina had been leading the respective mingling with a couple of other flight crews both Human and Delmar, but the smell coming from the platers as Mac cut the roast up into serving portions had everyone¡¯s attention. Even Ambassador Gwen and Tili had been pulled out of their conversation as Mac stuck his fingers in his mouth and whistled, silencing the crowd.
¡°Alright people! Before we devolve into tonight¡¯s feeding frenzy. I¡¯m looking at you ¡°Boris.¡± Mac waved a knife in the skinny stick figure of a Romanian Gunship Pilot.
¡°Go ralph in cockpit, BigMac!¡± Called the man in a ridiculously thick accent. And the entire airmen of both contingents roared in laughter.
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¡°Ok, I deserved that, it¡¯s nice to see everyone getting on so well. Each and every one of you represents someone close to me and Lyrian. You are our inner circle, the ones present here on this side of the galaxy at least. The rest will get this recording in the next transmission. Yes, this party is for both sides to meet. To get to know each other, but it is more.¡± Mac finished and Lyrian stepped forward.
¡°Aunt Gwen, Ma¡¯; I hope you two are ready, ¡°Lyrian said softly before turning to the confused crowd and spoke more loudly, ¡°All of you have new members of this family on the way. We found out This morning. I carry twins of both Delmar and Human blood.¡±
Aunt Gwen¡¯ hands flew to her mouth and Tili squeaked in shock looking over to her Husband who just smirked at her. Icario had been the one to do the test. He hadn¡¯t told his wife for want of her reaction. She did not disappoint.
The rest of the room began to cheer.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
He faded into consciousness. He did not know how long he was out. He did not know where he was. He tried to move and found he was restrained. He opened his eyes and recognized the ceiling of the main Helyon hospital on Delmar. It didn¡¯t fit, the last thing he remembered was¡.
The memories of this cabin. The K¡¯Claram assassin. The pain in his gut as the knife plunged. The man¡¯s head coming off. The burning inside and the tearing of his body as the weight of the dead man drove him into his chair as the knife was ripped across his insides as the dead man¡¯s weight dragged the handle with it as it fell.
All these slammed into Captain Silu¡¯s mind as the sedatives burned away. His eyes flew wide as he found he could not make more than a rasp. The panic began to set in as his heart started racing, throwing itself against his chest in frantic fury as Silu fought for control.
¡°Easy old friend, you are among friends... rest easy...¡± The comfort of a familiar voice washed over Silu as the familiar face of Icario leaned into his vision, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the restraints my captain, but your attacker used Ku¡¯kris to stab you. You lost a few organs from the acid. The cloned ones aren¡¯t quite ready for implantation. We must keep you perfectly still for the bed to keep you alive.¡±
Silu blinked¡.K¡¯Claram had vestibular spines that carried a very mild acidic toxin as a defensive measure in their ancient past. If a K¡¯Claram chose to collect and concentrate it, it became a powerful weapon if injected into an enemy. Adding such a toxin to an edged weapon was commonplace for K¡¯Claram criminals and assassins to ensure success and to offset their very hard, but very brittle exoskeletal bodies weaknesses to impact.
¡°as¡ assassin?¡± Silu rasped and his old friend Just nodded.
¡°Much has happened, you are stable enough for a visitor for a few minutes, but then I¡¯m afraid I have to re-induce the coma until surgery.¡± Icario turned to the door, ¡°3 minutes, then he goes back under.¡±
Icario disappeared from view as the heads of Mac, Lyri, and a man Silu had never seen before stepped into view. His eyes widened as he realized the newcomer was also human.
¡°Captain Silu, I am Commodore Clint Stevens, Mac¡¯s brother. I know you don¡¯t know me, but I wanted to personally thank the man who saved my brother¡¯s life when he first arrived. Thank you, sir, sincerely.¡± the man said in almost perfect Delmar before stepping away and he heard the door open and close behind him.
¡°Traveler is safe, she made it home to warn us. Marge fought traveler well, she cut the Barge that sent the assassin to pieces when it tried to finish the job on your departure burn.¡±
¡°How¡ how many¡¡± Silu rasped.
¡°From Traveler, I¡¯m not sure. we got hit by the VR shortly after you arrived.¡± Silu¡¯s heart sank at the name of the biblically infamous pirate group, ¡°They did not survive¡± Mac flashed him a vicious smile both predatory and Triumphant. ¡°But that¡¯s not important right now.¡±
Silu looked at him incredulously as Lyri started grinning. She leaned into Silu¡¯s ear ¡°We found out this yesterday. You better make it through. You have great uncle duties to fulfill.¡± she said, absently holding her stomach. Silu¡¯s eyes widened in understanding.
¡°You¡¯re¡¡± he began before Lyrian rested a hand on his shoulder and raised two fingers. ¡®She bares twins!¡¯ His brain was buzzing in questions. But Mac shook his head to make sure he rested.
¡°To quote one of my old CO¡¯s ¡®I do not authorize you to die, Captain.¡¯¡± Mac said in a low menacing voice, only to be ruined by the grin on his face.
¡°Aye..¡± Silu rasped, holding Mac¡¯s gaze as Icario stepped back into view.
¡°Back to sleep I¡¯m afraid.¡± he said typing into the bed
¡°See you on the other side, Captain.¡± Mac snapped a salute and Lyri placed a hand on his arm as Silu¡¯s mind faded into the medically induced fog of coma.
He smiled.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Clint stood outside the Hospital room in the Vacuum Exposure Ward. The patient in the room had been given the reversal drugs to come out of a long medical coma. She was one of the fifteen that the rescue flotilla under His command had picked up from the wreckage of the doomed Delmar beacon defense fleet. He had come to learn that she was the second officer of the one cruiser that did not get rammed at near relativistic speeds. All the survivors came from that one cruiser. Clint had personally EVA¡¯d to check on what he had thought was her corpse. He assumed from the metal shard in her abdomen and the blood in her helmet, that her suit had ruptured. It had almost. She had suffered catastrophic depressurization momentarily as the emergency functions of the Void suit activated. The suit''s nanites had sealed in around the shard and bonded to it, and emergency air was used to repressurize her suit. This had taken just enough time for her to experience severe vacuum exposure while still saving her life. Clint had quickly looked her over and had been about to thruster pack back to the shuttle when he felt a weak grip on his arm from her hand, he had used to real in her body in the first place.
¡°Is she ok?¡± another young Delmar Woman spoke from beside him. She had approached him while he was lost in the memory of that event.
¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m still getting used to your medical capabilities. ¡°We would not have been able to save her, on my world.¡± He responded just above a whisper.
¡°I¡¯m Frie, by the way. She is my older sister¡ It¡¯s a miracle the Rescue shuttles found her.¡± Frie whispered back, matching his volume.
Clint wasn¡¯t sure what to say, ¡°You¡¯re Lyri¡¯s friend.¡± He managed finally.
¡°Yea, How¡¡± She quirked an eyebrow before realizing who he was, ¡°Your Mac¡¯s brother!¡± she whispered in excitement, ¡°What are you doing¡¡±
A small Gasp interrupted them both as the woman in the bed opened her eyes, she was restrained by the bio-bed for her protection and couldn¡¯t so much as move her head. Her eyes fluttered around the room violently as she whimpered at the realization of her situation.
Frie called down the hall, ¡°Doc!! Hera¡¯lene¡¯s awake!¡± before rushing into the room to her sister. She was followed by Clint at a more sedately pace.
¡°Hera¡¯, Hera¡¯, shhh. It''s ok. Your safe, your alive.¡± Frie Coo¡¯d softly to her sister, standing over her so she could be seen easily.
¡°I¡¯m¡ I¡¯m not dead?¡± she rasped as the doctors rushed in checking all her vitals. ¡°Water...¡± she asked for next and one of the doctors gave her a small ice chip to suck on.
¡°No, you made it. The Human rescue party found you and 14 others. You were the worse off¡± Frie whispered. Clint slowly walked over beside Frie and Hera¡¯s eyes went wide.
¡°You!¡± She spoke a little easier this time with a wetted throat.
¡°Him?¡± Frie asked, confused.
¡°Yes¡¡± Clint confirmed just as the doctors allowed the bed to release her arms and head movement. The rest of her body would have to stay immobilized until the Nanites finished repairing the damage.
Hera reached up with her right hand and touched Clint¡¯s arm where she had grabbed his suit that fateful night, ¡°You¡ Thank you..¡±
Frie¡¯s eyes flew open and turned to stare at Clint, ¡°you?!?¡±
Clint looked between the two of them before gently taking Hera¡¯s hand in his, patting it gently, ¡°I was in command of the Rescue Flotilla.. Your Hera¡¯ here was the last one we found.. I thought she was dead until she grabbed my EVA suit.¡±
¡°You saved my life¡¡± Hera¡¯s eyes began to tear up, not letting go of Clints hand, Clint *oofed* as Frie slammed into him in a sobbing hug. ¡®Mac must be rubbing off more than he thought¡¯.
¡°Thank you for saving my sister...¡± Frie whispered before releasing him, ¡°Sorry.¡±
¡°It¡¯s ok¡± he said, before turning to the Bedridden Hera¡¯, ¡° rest now¡± He released Hera¡¯s hand and sat down in one of the room''s reclining chairs, Frie took the other and the three of them talked, mostly Clint and Frie bringing Hera¡¯ up to speed as she rested.
Chapter 38
Commodore Gregory Burgoyne and his fleet had been in sub-light for over a 4weeks now. Those weeks had been in lightening as the GHO station he had been escorting had carried its own share of surprises. The station had almost every species in the galaxy as an occupant. The being in command could have stepped into the jungles of Earth¡¯s Cretaceous period without being out of place. Ami, as she insisted on being called, proved to be a wealth of information and had given his crew some much-needed R&R while they waited for a GHO-marked Escort. This was apparently rare. The GHO had very few armed ¡®void ships¡¯, and mostly used The Unity¡¯s navy for protection. The UGN was in a bit of turmoil, at the moment, with the Tetrarchy acting directly for the first time in living memory; the Grand Admiral, and his inner council had been summarily replaced as well as a staggering number of crews from several entire battlefleets.
Sadly, this meant that they had another two weeks to wait. Burgoyne¡¯s ships were only capable of Slip jumps; while the GHO station had a subspace drive. That was until one of the LEAP engineers had taken a look at the station¡¯s drive and had a terrifyingly brilliant idea. This idea was what brought him to the Coordinator¡¯s Office.
¡°Ah! Gregory, I was told you were coming.¡± The now familiar rumbling soprano rang out from the cavernous office that was required for a being of her size and length. She stood from her seating behind the large desk and lumbered over to shake his hand. He smiled at the gesture.
¡°Ami, thank you for seeing me on such short notice. Yes, I may have a solution to our current Dilemma. But first I need to ask you some questions about your station.¡± he asked carefully. ¡°Specifically, I need to know if It could handle being towed at Superluminal velocities.¡±
¡°Oh? It has been done in the past, it is not normally recommended to be done often. What do you have planned¡± her eyes narrowed.
¡°One of our engineers on Tours believes we can get your station into a slip-jump¡¡± Gregory responded simply. ¡°We would need you to completely sync your computers with ours, and surrender control of your vessel for the duration of the jump, but we think it can be done.¡±
Ami¡¯s eyes widened at both the implication, and the request. ¡°I have two questions. I need you to define ¡®surrender control¡¯ first.¡± She said very carefully, ¡°Forgive me, I know that you saved us and this station; but you ask much when we know so little of you.¡±
Gregory raised one hand in a placating gesture, ¡°You need not apologize, I know what I ask. In short. You would give us control of propulsion, and navigation. This will be a delicately calculated maneuver, and we would be folding your station into the data link system that we use for fleet jumps. I would be happy to have a small command staff, myself included, perform the jump from your station¡¯s command deck; and we would be working with your engineers closely for calculations and preparations. Quite frankly, this either works or we all end up as space dust, but I do not like the idea of floating around out here waiting to get attacked again.¡±
¡°No, you are quite right about the risk we incur by remaining stuck here.¡± She reached for the com button on her desk, ¡°Ji¡¯ril,¡± she said.
¡°Ji¡¯ril here, what can I do for you Coordinator.¡± Came a voice back.
¡°I¡¯m authorizing a Joint procedure with the Humans. Contact their chief engineer¡± she looked a question to the Commodore.
¡°Derek Anderson.¡± Gregory said simply.
¡°Derek Anderson. Tell him we are on board and ready to get started as soon as possible, Ami out¡± she closed the connection. And returned her gaze to the commodore. ¡°Now, I need to know how this is going to happen, in broad strokes at least¡±
¡°It¡¯s a simple concept, with the execution being difficult. Simply put, without going into classified tech, our slip drives have two components to them. One is our propulsion on slip space, the other allows us to control the mass of our starships. It¡¯s relatively new tech, within the last 50 of our years, but it exerts a field around the starship it is installed in, reducing its mass to near 20 percent of the original. This allows for a quick acceleration to jump velocities. We call it the Higgs Bosun field, simply the ¡®Higgs field¡¯. If we mag clamp all of my ships around the circumference of your station, we may be able to sync our drives to accelerate the station to the required velocities. We think, if you shut down to critical systems, and shunt all the extra power into your subspace drive, we may be able to use its field as a foundation link and stretch our Higgs fields around your station. If it works, we can go anywhere in this sector within about a day. We could probably reach Delmar in two.¡±
¡°Ancestors¡. How!¡± Ami¡¯s eyes were wide with confusion and surprise.
¡°I guess we have been talking about the rest of the galaxy more than you have been asking us about humanity. If you were to jump for Sol using your subspace drive. It would take you 20 ish years at maximum velocity. We made it to you in a week under 5 months. Furthermore, my flagship Tours generates enough power to run everything on your station somewhere between 7 and 10 times over, while still powering her own systems. It¡¯s the reason we chose not to just install a spare slip drive on your station. The power required to jump would blow your entire grid.¡± The Commodore explained to ever more shocked Saurian.
¡°I see, I look forward to the updates.¡± she said as they both stood.
¡°Before I forget, I brought you a file. Your species closely resembles an extinct form of life our Terra produced pre-Human evolution. We piece together a few examples of what we think they looked like over the years. I thought you might find it interesting.¡± Gregory set a human data stick on her desk.
¡°Thank you, I look forward to browsing through it.¡± She said as they shook hands. The commodore made a small, tilted head bow that was a human approximation of a Saurian formal mannerism and left.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Her doorbell rang, and Marge stood from her ¡®couch¡¯. She had not left her quarters since Traveler¡¯s desperate sprint for home. She didn¡¯t know what day it was; she didn¡¯t know what time it was. She was losing weight quickly, barely able to eat. All she knew was that her last son was gone. Her husband had died from an offloading accident two seasons ago on another ship. Delmar women could not choose a mate a second time, not that Marge ever wanted another, as a rule. The bonding process was too complete. Brayton was the last child she would have, and he was gone. She opened the door and was immediately pounced on by a concerned Lyrian who wrapped her up in a full body and tail hug as Mac slowly walked into the house behind her.
¡°I¡¯m so sorry, I¡¯m so sorry. We should have been there...¡± Lyrian gently sobbed into Marge¡¯s shoulder as her own tears broke free once more.
She leaned into the embrace, wrapping her own tail around Lyrian. This was not a Delmar way to show affection at all, but Marge had come to understand Mac¡¯s Human mannerisms of affection and support. She melted into Lyrians arms for a moment and let herself be comforted.
¡°It¡¯s ok, you were following orders.¡± she said finally. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I was not at the house for the mingling party. I just couldn¡¯t¡.¡±
¡°It¡¯s ok. It gave us time¡± Mac said.
¡°Time?¡± Marge pulled away from the hug as Lyrian drew her into the living room.
¡°Sit,¡± the much younger woman said as they all sat on the L shaped piece of furniture. Marge was on one side, Max and Lyrian on the other.
¡°The party was to introduce my Human friends and family to my Delmar family¡± Mac started, ¡°but it was for more.¡±
¡°We wanted to wait until we knew for sure. Marge, we are having twins,¡± Marge¡¯s face drew a shocked expression, but Lyrian continued, ¡°Mac said that it gave us time because¡ Da¡¯ confirmed it this morning. It¡¯s a boy and a girl. We decided together, we would like our little boy to carry your son¡¯s name.¡±
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Marge broke down into sobs. Giving a child the name of a family member or friend was sacred in Delmar culture, more so it was a way of binding two family groups that shared no direct blood. Marge had married into Tribe Helyon, outside of her children. She had no Ken near her. Because of her status as a widow, doing this meant that Mac and Lyrian had just named her and her offspring as equal to direct blood family.
Lyrian surged across the gap and wrapped her into another embrace, gently cooing soothingly to her. ¡°It¡¯s too soon, I¡¯m sorry.¡±
¡°No, don¡¯t apologize¡± Marge said finally Wiped her tears and looking at the to, ¡°I am honored you would call me blood¡I accept¡±.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
It was early afternoon when Clint stepped into the Hall of the of the Vacuum Exposure ward; only to be greeted by a wave from Frie and a smile from Hera¡¯ who was in a Delmar floating version of a wheelchair, ¡°We¡¯re going to the roof!!¡± Frie proclaimed.
¡°I see¡± Clint smiled back, ¡°I brought food, I Hijacked my brother¡¯s grill after I tried what you call Hospital food. We are feasting for dinner!¡± He raised a small box with a handle.
¡°It¡¯s a little early don¡¯t you think?¡± Hera eyed the strange container.
¡°We will make a cookout of it.¡± Clint chuckled and followed the girls into the lift. Soon they exited into half covered pavilion at the top of the Hospital. The Hospital comprised multiple stories that stretched well into the upper canopy, being attached to the parent tree at several points along the way. Streaks of unobstructed sunlight blazed through, and the Auburn and Silver Foliage was punctuated by highlights of blue sky peaking through the edges and openings in the sea of leaves.
Frie settled Hera into a spot next to a table overlooking the Jungle. Hera was taking in the outdoors for the first time in weeks and Frie was watching her sister perk up from the galactically universal stuffiness of Hospital ward rooms. She turned just in time for Her to catch Clint gawking at the view.
Clint had spent much of his time in orbit, or in conference with the Confederation council with Admiral Gwen. He had not had a chance to see the Jungle this way yet.
¡°What do you think?¡± she asked, startling Clint from his stupor.
¡°Chan eil faclan agam (I have no words)¡± Clint responded bare¡¯ above a whisper, ¡°I mean... I, I¡¯m speechless¡±
¡°Do what now?¡± Hera asked, ¡°What was that first part.¡±
¡°The old tongue¡± Clint responded. ¡°Anway, this is your afternoon, How are you feeling.¡± He asked sitting down on the bench next to Hera with Frie perched on the other side of her sister.
¡°Sore, but I needed this. What¡¯s this dinner you speak of. It¡¯s early, but I haven¡¯t been eating. The food here is terrifyingly bad.¡±
¡°Cheeseburgers, I even found a lettuce and a Tomato substitute.¡± Clint set the strange box in his lap and opened it to reveal three chilled patties of ground meat and accompanying bread, and condiments. He took them all out before flipping the lid over entirely revealing four pads.
¡°Let¡¯s let the Patties warm naturally for a moment, I didn¡¯t cook them fully so that I could have them hot for us when I got here.¡± Clint mused. Looking over at the scene before him again.
¡°How are you going to heat them.¡± Hera asked.
¡°Humans have always had handheld ¡®coolers¡¯ or ¡®ice chests¡¯ of some kind. When we learned to be really really good at making and storing power; we figured out how to put heating elements and cooling elements into our portable food storage.¡± He said, pointing to the four circles, ¡°Those are four cooking surfaces,¡± He pulled a hidden tray out of the bottom of the ¡®ice chest¡¯ and placed it on top of the elements. ¡°It¡¯s conductive, those four will heat the pan, the pan will finish cooking the burgers. They already have all of their smoke and flavoring from Mac¡¯s grill, they just need a little finish to them.¡±
¡°I want one.. This isn¡¯t one of those classified thingies now is it.¡± Hera waggled a finger at him.
Clint just chuckled, ¡°Not classified, I¡¯m guessing that Delmar will start producing all sorts of stuff like this if the brothers Grem have anything to say about it.¡±
¡°Why do you and Mac call them that.¡± Frie asked.
¡°Their last name is very close to a pair of brothers who helped create what are now very old Human children¡¯s tales. The look on their face when Mac Gave them a book on the subject, was priceless.¡± Clint spun when he heard a pair of familiar chuckles.
¡°It took quite a while to get those translated into Common.¡± Mac said walking up arm in arm with Lyrian.
¡°You too!?!¡± Clint pouted looking at Lyrian, ¡°He taught you that hunters walk of his didn¡¯t he.¡±
¡°Not tellin.¡¯¡± She said letting go of Mac and pantomiming a cartoon tip-toe sneaking motion before pouncing on Frie with a ¡°HA!¡±
¡°Hey! Come here you!!¡± Frie shouted before chasing her childhood friend around the table once before they both settled down on the benches again.
¡°You and your Human freaky speed¡¡± Huffed Frie as Mac pulled a round of Beers out of his backpack and handed them out to everyone but Hera. He handed her a Soda since she was still on medication to help with her recovery and prevent infection.
¡°Thanks, it sucks having to heal the slow way¡± She pouted, ¡°How are we going to open these things anyway.¡±
Mac and Clint shared a toothy grin before Mac tucked the lip of his bottle cap under his Dura steel ring with tungsten inlays and flicked. Clint hooked the cap on the lip of the table and slammed his palm into it before taking a tug. Mac handed the open bottle to Lyri and opened the bottle she traded him for.
¡°So that¡¯s why you were insistent on a durable ring.¡± Lyri giggled, Mac just shrugged.
Clint Opened both Frie and Hera¡¯s drinks before they all settled in. ¡°We didn¡¯t know you were coming, or I would have made more paddies.¡±
¡°Nah, we already ate. We heard last minute that Hera was good for a small jailbreak and decided to drop by.¡± Lyri responded.
¡°Its nice to be out¡ I thought I would never see any of this again.¡± Hera turned and looked out over the Jungle again. ¡°So many didn¡¯t¡¡±
¡°Hey,¡± She jumped at Clint''s forceful tone, whipping her head around to get locked in his gaze, ¡°Don¡¯t... It will eat you until you go mad or take your own life¡¡±
¡°How... But they are dead and I¡¯m alive. I should be wi..¡± She was interrupted by Clint''s tone again.
¡°No¡ Live the rest of your life in their memory if you feel you must, but never believe you were supposed to join them¡ It¡¯s too dangerous... It only leads to¡.¡± Clint''s eyes fell, staring down at his drink.
¡°I went through what you are going through after Mac and I survived the war... Mac found me in my apartment with an empty bottle of rotgut whiskey in one hand and a loaded pistol in the other¡± Clint shook himself before continuing, ¡°It¡¯s not worth it¡± he said finally.
Mac just bowed his head a moment and clamped a hand on his brother¡¯s shoulder, ¡°C¨´m br¨¤thair luath (keep fast brother)¡±
Clint shook himself once more, ¡°Yea, fuck that place¡± he visibly brightened, ¡°Alright, burger time!¡±
¡°You guys enjoy. We have a date at the Harbor.¡± Mac chuckled at Lyri¡¯s groan.
¡°How romantic¡wait¡¡± Clint shot Mac a look, who just grinned at him. ¡°Oh of course you would.¡± Clint laughed.
Lyrian just looked between the two of them several times before sighing in exasperation, ¡°I¡¯m going to have to get used to this aren¡¯t I¡±
¡°Sorry love, we spent 8 years practically reading each other¡¯s minds. It''s gonna happen.¡± He turned to Clint. Frie¡¯s eyes widened and Hera actually recoiled a bit as Mac dropped his Delmar safe front, ¡°Nitro, Not. Another. Word.¡± He growled at his brother, but the smirk ruined it for Clint.
¡°Ha! Roger, Go, before I make you prove it!¡± Clint barked then chuckled as His brother and His sister-in-law headed for the lift
¡°What the fuck¡.¡± Hera was just staring, ¡°What the hell was that? I thought he was going to kill you.¡±
Clint broke down laughing and both Frie and Hera just stared at him. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, time to cook!¡± he said as he slapped the patties on the pan and the smells of deliciousness drew their attention.
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¡°So, what do you think is going to happen there.¡± Mac asked as he and Lyri lifted off in Vito to head for the Harbor docks.
¡°I think Frie has competition. Did you see how Hera was looking at Clint?¡± Lyrian giggled, ¡°Those two always had similar tastes.¡±
¡°Sad thing is, Clint is about as oblivious as Ivar. The poor man has no Idea that Martina has a crush on him. I worry about that one.¡± Mac responded in thought as they banked out of the jungle¡¯s edge and soared up the coast toward the cluster of water-going vessels that made up the fishing fleets of Tribe Helyon. Seafood was a bigger thing in Helyon than in other landlocked tribes, and the fishing fleets made a comfortable living selling to the coastal restaurants that dotted the beach line of the straight.
¡°Because Human Females don¡¯t have a claiming...¡± Lyri realized.
¡°That and Humans are quicker to become intimate, and less willing to commit compared to Delmar.¡± Mac said, ¡°I hope Martina understands, or she is going to fuck up hard with Ivar. If she can even get him to figure it out...¡±
¡°Do I need to talk to her? Give her a girl-on-girl crash course on Delmar traditions?¡± Lyri asked.
¡°Ha! Now that I would love to see, but you might be on to something. Good luck. Ah, here we are.¡± Mac landed Vito a short way away from the actual harbor and shut down their venerable air car. Mac activated Vito¡¯s home function, sending the air car back to their home as he led Lyri to a small inflatable power craft that was tied to a tree and soon they were blasting through the surf toward a small peninsula of land that jutted out past the harbor to its south. Lyrian started to get concerned at how far Mac was taking them offshore in such a small boat until that concern was replaced with curiosity as a Pole with a streamer began to peak around the rocky peninsula¡¯s outcroppings. She crept to the bow of the Bucking Dingy beneath her as they rounded the small Horn of land. She hadn¡¯t noticed Mac watching her closely as their destination appeared from behind the Cliffs. He heard a gasp as Lyrian saw her. Mac slowed to a crawl as they closed on the long fair lines of the Sailing Yacht, a perfect Duplicate of the one Mac¡¯s family had owned for generations, as she lay to her anchor.
Lyri¡¯s hands flew to her mouth as she read the wording stenciled in Delmar on her Stern. She was painted an iridescent silver top and down to the waterline where she was adorned with a deep-sea blue color from there to her full keel. She was flying a long pennant of deep blue with the crest of Helyon atop her main mast with the flag of Delmar just above the Flag of Sol flown from her larboard side shrouds. Her name, ¡°Silver Lass¡± was in bold auburn Delmar cursive on her the starboard side of her stern. She bucked and rolled gently at anchor in the dying light of the evening. She had a small modern fusion Core that could power all her electrical systems even if it was Delmar-designed. There was a direct drive electric motor for emergencies and becalmings. Her main Strength was still tucked away on the rollers and under her Sail covers.
¡°James, is she¡¡± Lyrian finally spoke recognizing the name as a version of one of Mac¡¯s names for her.
Mac pulled alongside and tied off the Dingy to its tow line. ¡°Yes, she¡¯s ours.¡± he said as he pulled down the metal/composite ladder from the starboard quarter and waved lyrian onto it as he steadied the Dingy. ¡°Let¡¯s just say that I paid a little extra to put a rush on the Fabricators. She¡¯s still Better Built than Eli¡±
¡°How! When!¡± Lyrain gasped as she looked around the cockpit of a yacht.
¡°Remember when we talked about my family¡¯s boat? I sent the message that night to get her started. I¡¯m still reeling from how quickly the Fabricators can finish something like this. On Sol, she would have taken 2 standard years to build. I wanted her to be finished before the Winter Celebrations. We are going to be joining in style.¡±
¡°She¡¯s Beautiful, but when do we leave?¡± She asked as mac walked to the cabin door.
¡°In the morning, she is fully provisioned and ready for her trials. We could sail the length of Hilisty straight before we ran out of food and water. We depart in the morning.¡± He took a few steps down into the cabin before helping her down, as she was still getting used to the motion of a ship at sea. Inside she was a carbon copy of Eli, down to the deep earthy browns and Reds of a Ship born of Terra¡¯s 19th Century. Mac shifted past her to close up the hatch. The galley was wrapped around the Larboard (port) side. Mac had always chuckled a little at The Greater Galaxy never making the change from ¡°Larboard¡± to ¡°Port¡± It turned out that the pronunciation of the two was different enough in Common and in most other languages that the confusion of the two never have happened.
¡°We are staying in here?¡± Lyrian asked. The inside was gorgeous but set up for living in, not sleeping in
¡°No love. Tonight.¡± He shifted past her to hit a button opening a sliding door behind her on the Starboard side of the Main Hatch stairs. Lyrian spun to see the entire quarter of the stern, beam to beam, was a massive master cabin with a comfortably if humanly, decorated double Berth. Lyrian¡¯s breath caught as she stepped up to the door as the lights illuminated their Suit.
Mac startled out of her stunned state by sneaking up behind her and wrapping his arms around her, pulling her to him to whisper in her ear, ¡°Come to Bed, Love.¡±
Chapter 39
¡°Navigation, go!¡±
¡°Propulsion, go!¡±
¡°Slip drive shell, go!¡±
¡°Data link, go. All vessels report successful integration.¡±
Ami watched the Commodore, flicking through pages of data on his wrist pad before walking over to the station''s command chair and flicking through some more data on the holographic projectors.
¡°Coordinator? All we need is a destination to seal our fate.¡± He turned to her.
¡°If what I think happened, I believe Delmar space will be the safest. I believe you already have their beacon coordinates.¡± she stated.
¡°That we do. NAVIGATION, lay us to Confederation space, commence burn at your digression.¡± Commodore Burgoyne barked before taking a strange stance facing the viewer with his feet shoulder-width apart and his hands clasped behind his back.
¡°Humanity is certainly an interesting bunch. Are you sure this will work?¡± She took a step to stand alongside the
¡°Derek gives us about 80 percent. The man is always a pessimist. It doesn¡¯t matter, Tours picked up a mass of ships in subspace headed to us from the opposite direction your escorts were supposed to come from.¡± The Commodore was maybe in his mid-40¡¯s he had a short professional cut to his salt and pepper hair, and he was currently stroking a short beard he had grown since his arrival. ¡°We counted 20 individual signatures, I¡¯m not worried for my fleet, but I could not defeat them and protect you at the same time. Too many to not have one sneak through.¡±
¡°No indeed. We were stuck out here for to long. Word must have gotten out. A GHO station is a once-in-a-lifetime prize.¡± Ami nodded.
¡°Course laid in sir, commencing burn.¡± the commodore turned to sit on the command chair that had been made for him for this occasion. Ami just lowered her tail to lean on.
¡°Very good, time to jump?¡± He asked.
¡°Jump velocity in 20 minutes, Commodore.¡± Came the voice of one of Ami¡¯s engineers.
¡°Very good,¡± the commodore responded before he began typing on his console. Ami just saw numbers and letters of gibberish before he sealed in a data packet. ¡°Tours, send this on a directional transmission to the Delmar home-world.¡±
¡°Affirm¡¯ Commodore.¡± Came the voice of the carrier¡¯s Captain.
Ami looked a question at Gregory.
¡°We received an intel update late last night from Sol, Delmar was attacked recently by a group called ¡®Voids Revenge¡¯ then an Inquisitorial fleet that believed our ambassador¡¯s ships were the attackers.¡± he stated with an absurd calmness.
¡°Ancestors¡ how bad was it¡. Did your ambassador survive?¡± Ami whispered, ¡°I¡¯m so sorry.¡±
The commodore quirked an eyebrow at her, ¡°Why are you apologizing. the Delmar defense fleet is a bit banged up, but the Ambassador¡¯s fleet took no damage.¡±
¡°How... the VR are not your average pirates¡ and an inquisitorial fleet is a death sentence to anyone who crosses its. Commander¡ just one of their frigates would be enough to take most of a full-strength Delmar Defense force to defeat. Your standard defense fleet has two plus¡¯s a carrier. How?!?¡± Her eyes were wide in panic which turned to terror as she took a step back from the commodore as he gave her a horrifyingly predatory smile.
His tone matched his smile, ¡°Her Eros took one of those frigates with a single shot...¡±
Ami slowly peeled her eyes off of the Human¡¯s expression to look toward the one ship that was not towing her station. The USN Kyle burned in formation with the station, but her duty was protection. Her long spear like center reminded Ami of a flying dagger that crackled with barely contained energy. The Kyle was at full alert with a two-round salvo of Ithaca prepped for a quick firing if needed. She turned back to the man next to her to find the expression gone and his attention back on the task at hand.
¡®Humanity is terrifying¡¯ she thought as she suppressed her flight instincts.
¡°Jump velocity reached Commodore.¡± came a voice over the comms, ¡°we are on course, and on velocity. Ready to jump.¡±
Commodore straightened and activated the fleet-wide, ¡°All hands, all hands, this is Commodore Gregory Burgoyne. We are about to jump into the history books once again, one way or another. Godspeed, and¡¡± The humans in the stations command deck interrupted him with a roar that startled the non-human contingent ¡°I¡¯LL SEE YOU IN HELL!!¡±
Gregory just chuckled into the ship-wide. ¡°Very well, jump in 5¡ Mark!¡± He shut off the ship-wide and settled into his chair as the silent count wound down and the computers all activated the jump together.
Ami let out an explosive gasp as the stars did not blink out like a normal jump to subspace but stretched and bent as pale blue plasma started trailing from the edges of the station and her attached ships.
The first No Human Jump to Slips-pace winked out of existence.
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Silu woke up, he was being pushed down a hallway. His life mate, and wife, was walking by his side.
¡°Hi dear, it¡¯s time,¡± she whispered. Gripping his hand.
¡°How long.¡± he croaked,
¡°The surgery should take the day, it¡¯s currently mid-morning; everything is ready. This isn¡¯t the first time I¡¯ve bolted you back together.¡± Icario leaned into his vision, ¡°I wanted you two to have a moment, this one¡¯s going to be a rough one.¡±
¡°I love you... I¡¯ll see you soon.¡± His mate was holding back tears.
¡°And I you... I¡¯ll look for you when I wake up, my dear.¡± Silu said as she stopped at the doors to the sterile operating room.
¡°See you soon,¡± Icario said as he pressed a sedative injector to his neck.
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The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
Lyrian woke up. Something was off, her Mac was gone, and the bed was¡. Moving. Lyri had never been prone to sea sickness, but a flicker of it flared through her for a second until the memory of last evening came flooding back ¡®we¡¯re on the water, in a big boat¡¯ she looked up to see that Mac had hung some warmer clothes for her on the door and they were leaned to one side¡ no... the BOAT was listing to one side, and was bucking a touch more than last night.
Lyrian dressed quickly, almost tumbling a couple of times, before making for the main hatch. A whisp of spray caressed her face as her eyes found her husband in a wide stance, stable as a mountain, with a hand on the long pole attached to the rudder. Lyrian had been on the water before for a couple of field trips and an outing on a schoolmate¡¯s parents-powered skiff, this was another experience entirely. Lyri ducked slightly as the wind shifted causing a luff in the giant piece of cloth above her head. She staggered over to Mac as he caught her and held her to him as she looked out over the deck.
Lass was heeling gently to a single reefed gaff rigged main and a three quarter Jenoa. Mac had her gently loping along in the 15knot winds, headed down the coast to the south. Compared to a motorized skiff or a fishing trawler, she was almost silent except for wind, wave, and hum of rigging.
¡°Good morning, how did you sleep?¡± He asked through the wondrously new, yet strangely peaceful noises.
¡°The bed is comfy. If we went moving, I might not have come up. You got up early?¡± She nuzzled into him, sharing in his human warmth. It was barely 20 deg, which felt much colder under wind and spray. The warm sun shone down through cloudless skies as she leaned into him to look up at the canvas pressed tight by the wind, driving Lass as she frolicked in the soft 1.2-meter surf.
¡°I wanted to get an early start, and you looked too peaceful. But now that you are up, let¡¯s get some more drive on her, we have a day¡¯s sail to the shore of the Winter celebration.¡± He coo¡¯d to her before handing her a harness that was tied off to a central loop on the deck. She shrugged it on as Mac engaged the very un-period correct autopilot.
He set the autopilot to maintain the current wind angle and moved forward to the main mast. He eased its sheets to take pressure off the canvas before removing the reeding lines and hoisting her to full sail. Lyri held onto the windward deck-rail as Mac sheeted the main home, pulling the mainsail tightly back into position. Lass surged under her new press of power, but Mac then stepped back to the aft winches and shook the last reef out of the Jenoa before pulling on another set of lines to draw a smaller staysail from its Furler.
Lyrian sucked in the fresh ocean air in surprise as Silver Lass listed further to leeward as she leaped to the press of the power she made under full sail. She was no longer frolicking. She was a raging beast crashing through the swell with barely a shudder.
¡°Are we ok? We are listing hard to starboard.¡± She asked as Mac returned to her with a wild grin on his face.
¡°Heeling, love. Sailing ships heel to the press of their sails. Listing implies flooding or bad cargo distribution. And we aren¡¯t even near her limit. She is a copy of my family¡¯s Bristol Cutter. She can safely Heel ¡®till her leeward scupper¡¯s are awash.¡±
He took her safety cord and clipped it to the line he had run along the centerline of the boat, ¡°Go on, walk around a little. Time to get your sea legs.¡±
Lyri made a quick circuit of the deck before ending up back around and leaning on the aft windward deck railing just watching the sails work. Two of them were both pure white, and the Staysail was silver with an ornate version of the Delmar skin pattern on it.
Lyri wandered into the galley after a bit and came up with simple sandwiches for the both of them and the afternoon was spent with Mac sharing what all the ropes and winches did, the names of everything, and some lessons on keeping the sails drawing properly. They also had several visitors. Two fishing trawlers had trundled over to see this strange craft as Silver Lass plied herself to wind and wave. One of the recovering Defense wings that had been decimated, in the previous fight with the VR, were on a training flight. Ivar had spotted the Lass and had led them in a wide circle around the Yacht before departing. The crown jewel of the visitors was a 3-man coastal patrol boat that had chased them down from there the harbor they had spent the night near. The captain was a younger man who had apparently watched the Lass get assembled and asked to come aboard to see her finished state. Mac hove the Lass to and the three sailors ogled at her inside and out for a half hour asking questions.
Later that evening, around last light, Mac settled the Lass to her anchor in 15 meters of water. They settled in for the evening, just a few hundred meters from the beach of the still-being-collected and assembled celebration Pyres.
Lyri started on a hot dinner as Mac tied off the snubber and put the lass to bed once more. Mac had been towing a line all day and ended up snagging one of the edible fish Delmar had to offer, so fresh, hot steaming fish tacos by sunset light punctuated perfect day sail.
The next morning Mac woke up to a buzz on his communicator.
¡°Hmm?¡± Came a question from his sleepy angel next to him.
¡°Oh, that¡¯s amazing news.¡± Mac half prayed before kissing the top his wife¡¯s head, ¡°It¡¯s Silu, he made it through surgery.¡±
¡°Thank the gods.¡± Lyri whispered.
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Ami sat curled up on the padded mat the constituted a couch in Saurian culture. She was browsing the latest reports on the station¡¯s first trip in a realm previously thought only useful for data packets. The blue-white streaks of starlight pranced past her viewer. It was currently set to show her the view from out of the station¡¯s optical sensors. The ship was showing some alarming flexing along its central equator, but they were within acceptable limits for now. She flicked back to the report she had yet to write.
The official acceptance of Humanity as a sapient species by the galactic unity was¡. Unorthodox... the news that a new species had simply arrived on the galactic scene without an officially known home world had thrown everyone from the scientific community and the military community into turmoil. The scientific community secretly lamented that they had not been given the opportunity to examine Humanity ¡®properly¡¯ *she had scoffed at that remark*, The media was clamoring for interviews with this ¡®ambassador Gwen Trenton¡¯; and the military was screaming for blood claiming that a Demon attacked them unprovoked during the commission of their duties, and that Humanity should be sanctioned as to violent to be allowed in The Unity.
Ami threw the pad down in disgust at that article. It skittered along the floor until it came to rest at her quarters desk. She perked up at the gift that Gregory had left her. A data packet from the prehistoric times of his home world, or rather what their scientists think prehistoric times looked like. She hoisted herself up and lumbered over to retrieve the pad and the stick. She used the adapter she had made to get the stick to download to her pad, and soon she had it all.
She sauntered down to her ¡®couch¡¯ and opened the file.
An hour later she finally closed the file. Shaking uncontrollably, she tapped out a private message bound for the Saurian home world, then reopened the file once more.
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Rear Admiral Folmur stood on the bridge of the Surviving Helyon cruiser Warden. It was about a week until the Winter Festival, he was due to be relieved in 2 day, so He would make the bonfire this ye¡.¡±
A massive flash of spiraling blue and white Erupted from the Beacon arrival point as a massive monstrosity erupted into real space shedding tails of blue plasma from its edges. Folmur had learned from the failed ambush that cost so many ships and had spread his fleet out to maximize angles of fire and minimize collateral impacts.
¡°Report!¡± He bellowed as the monstrosity broke pieces of itself off and began to reorientate. A moment later he recognized the detachments as ships and his eyes widened as he realized that the central monstrosity was a GHO Response Platform.
¡°Sir! That matched Humanity¡¯s Slip Drive profile!! That did not come from subspace!!¡± came the frantic voice of his Sensor officer.
¡°Sir, we are being Hailed Their code matches the one that we received two days ago.¡± Coms responded.
¡°Put them through.¡± Folmur responded standing as a Holographic image of a Saurian¡ and a Human appeared in front of him.
The Delmar Admiral raised an eyebrow, ¡°Well, this is a surprise. Coordinator Ami I presume. Commodore Burgoyne, we do appreciate the heads up; However, you failed to mention successfully dragging a GHO space station into a slip jump in you previous transmission.
¡°My apologies Admiral, We were racing against time. Coordinator Ami¡¯s ¡®escorts¡¯ were late, and we picked up subspace contacts from another direction on intercept, too many to fend off without losing the station.¡± Commodore Burgoyne stated, ¡°With your permission, we request entry into Delmar orbit for a refit and debrief before we depart for Sol.¡±
¡°Permission granted; we will send the Tugs to properly tow the Station to an orbital Mooring. Folmur out.¡± Folmur received a nod from both before terminating Hale, ¡°Com¡¯s Contact Delmar. Tell them we have a few extra guests for the festivities.
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Ambassador Gwen Trenton stood next to Darclemus. They were in the grand hall, and She was trying not to stare. A literal Dinosaur out of the pages of Earth Ancient history just walked into the building flanked by a bipedal wolf and¡. A Gecko with extra arms¡. ¡®Jesus Christ how do I write this report¡¯ She thought to herself as the three walked up and the Saurian extended her hand in a Human greeting, ¡°Ambassador Trenton, It¡¯s a pleasure. I am Coordinator Aminaira of the GHO. I apologize for my short notice, but extenuating circumstances forced our arrival here.¡±
¡°I hear Commodore Gregory had an exciting several weeks. His little feat is going to be quite the Talk of Sol.¡± Ambassador Gwen began, ¡°Please, no apologizing needed. In fact, you are just in time to join Humanity, and Me in experiencing our first Delmar Festival. I am aware that you requested to see me, may I inquire to the nature?¡± Gwen eyed up, quite literally in this case, the woman before her. She seemed... agitated.
¡°Perhaps we could take a walk for some.. privacy.¡± Aminaira stated quietly.
The two of them walked out of the Hall¡¯s front doors and down a ground level foot path with their respective Entourage¡¯s a good distance behind them. ¡°I must say You have me intrigued, Coordinator...¡± The Ambassador began before Aminaira shooke her head.
¡°Please, call me Ami, It is your adopted son that saved one of my closest friends after all, I happen to have known Captain Silu for most of his adult life. It is good to know He is well¡± Ami stated.
¡°Im sorry, you don¡¯t know. Captain Silu was attacked by a VR assassin shortly after receiving your message.¡± She waved a placating hand as the much larger being began to panic in shock, ¡°He is alive! He is alive¡ He came out of Clone Organ Implantation Surgery today; He is still in a medical coma however. I have it on good authority that he has been ordered to live.¡±
¡°Oh, now there is a story I would love to hear. Who could possibly order Silu to do anything.¡± Ami chuckled
¡°His niece, Lyrian, is Married, sorry bonded, to my Mac. We just found out that she is carrying twins. I¡¯m told, that incentive was dangled as part of the order. And call me Gwen.¡± The older Human chuckled.
¡°Oh congratulations!! Delmar Twins are so rare.¡± Ami smiled, ¡°That¡¯s good, That¡¯s good. I wish to be there when he wakes up. He is.. precious to me... I consider him family in many ways stronger than blood¡. which¡ brings me to what I must ask of you¡¡± Her voice dropped incredibly low in volume for a being of that size as Ami lowered her head to directly next to Gwens, ¡°I need a sample of Human DNA, blood preferably. I do not ask this lightly, and I do not ask this as a member of the GHO, or any Unity Science Gild. I ask this for my people¡I apologize.¡± The woman finished, bowing her head slightly as both of them stopped.
¡°I am not angry, I will give a sample myself if it is that important, but I must know why.¡± Gwen turned to face the Saurian fully standing directly in front of her massive head.
¡°You¡¯re Gregory gave me a file on your Ancient ¡®Dinosaur¡¯ species from the prehistoric era of your world... My people, we have deep legends. Of many monsters and Demons of Fire and Death that we consider our species version of ¡®horror¡¯ entertainment.¡± Ami finally lifter her head, ¡°They match almost perfectly with what Your Gregory gave me¡ Many of my people have speculated that our home world is not so¡ We have never had any proof, and sometimes have been hunted down for our beliefs¡ until now...¡±
Chapter 40
Franklin looked up from his desk as his door chimed. ¡°Enter!¡±
¡°Sir, we have received our first transmission from Delmar space. Admiral Trenton made successful contact with the Delmar people.¡° The young aid stated.
¡°Very good. Anything of note I should be aware of before the council sits?¡± Franklin began to ease back in his chair.
¡°Uh, a private message was addressed to you by the ambassador¡. It¡¯s marked urgent. I have it keyed up on your screen, sir¡± the aid explained.
¡°Hmm, tell the council that we will be delayed.¡± Franklin re-seated himself and pressed play.
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¡°That¡¯s the third Unity brig to jump in on ¡°Patrol¡± this in the past four days.¡± Greg mumbled to himself. He was in a day room near both Clint and himself¡¯s working offices. They had taken to a meeting here at lunch to compare notes between the two fleets.
¡°Did they eject trash again?¡± Clint asked before taking a sip of coffee.
¡°Take a guess.¡± Greg snorted, as Clint refused formalities in this setting, chuckled before taking a sip of Earl Grey.
¡°I guess they¡¯re that desperate. Technically we can¡¯t stop them. The Delmar Beacon is technically ¡®international waters¡¯, if you will, and it is on the registered Unity patrol route for this sector. How many of these patrols usually pass through?¡± Greg finished off his tea.
¡°Folmuri claims 2-3 brigs a year. They are definitely curious.¡± Clint paused as his pad beeped, ¡°Whelp, looks like three more of those pieces of ¡®garbage¡¯ have been destroyed for being spy satellites again.¡±
¡°Indeed, are you going to the festivities tomorrow? I hear it¡¯s going to be an all-night food and bonfire affair.¡± Greg asked.
¡°Hera is getting out of the Hospital this evening. I suspect I¡¯ll end up going with her and her sister for the party.¡± Clint responded off-handedly.
¡°Oh?¡± Greg added a hint of innuendo to his tone.
¡°Oh, fuck off Greg! I¡¯m not even sure I¡¯m ready for how seriously our new Allies take intimate relationships... I¡¯m not sure I want someone being forced to share what goes on in here¡± he tapped his head ¡°for the rest of their life.¡± Clint slumped a little.
¡°Aye, they were dark times¡. I forget how young some of the Terran crews were.¡± Greg response was tinted with its own dark undertones.
He and Clint had been on opposite sides of the conflict that had eventually united the Human Race. Mac, Clint, and himself had shared drinks the first night of his arrival on Delmar. It turned out, that they had shot at each other no less than 3 times, and were present at 5 separate engagements, including the final one at Center-point.
Greg watched Clint shake whatever had just gone through his head and smirked, ¡°You like one of them.. the sisters.¡±
¡°Oh fuck you old man. You¡¯re enjoying this!¡± Clint growled before sobering, ¡°I care for both of them¡. I just don¡¯t know in what way.¡± He took a deep breath, ¡°Mac explained why Delmar move so quickly romantically, and it worked out for him. He was always more impulsive with his decisions than I am. I can¡¯t do that, and I don¡¯t want to start anything with either of them until I¡¯m sure any relationship won¡¯t just be based off some sort of hero worship.¡±
¡°Spoken like a true Wizzo¡± Greg chuckled.
¡°Pardon?¡± Clint looked at him confused.
¡°I wasn¡¯t always a Capital ship wrangler. I started out just like you, in the back seat of a starfighter trying to keep my impulsive stick jockey partner alive.¡± Greg responded before Clint snorted into the last of his coffee and they both had a laugh.
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Darclemus stepped out of his air-car onto the beach and looked out over the preparations. The fires would not be lit until tomorrow night. This year¡¯s celebration would be one of remembrance as well. The successful defense of Delmar had cost more lives than any single engagement since his people¡¯s failed war for independence. There was the traditional bonfire tree, but it was acompanied by the driftwood-built likeness of a Ranger interceptor burning for the heavens. That one would be lit in a ceremony held by the survivors of the battle that nearly claimed their home-world. Apparently, the entire VIPER wing had heard of this and had stacked deep at Mackenzie¡¯s airfield. Ambassador Gwen explained the long Human history of combat air-crew community that often times transcended friend or foe. The Human fighter pilots would be there to Honor the lost Delmar crews.
¡°Dar, you¡¯re lost again,¡± came his wife¡¯s gentle chide as he patted her hand and began walking around the tree, only to pause as a strange watercraft peeked out from behind the bonfire to-be. It had a bluff bow and long raking lines to its stern. It was anchored just offshore and a much smaller boat had just departed it, streaking for the shore. This small swift inflatable skiff-like craft barreled up to the shore before its driver cut the power at just the right time to coast in on a gentle wave, depositing the craft on the shore. Dar¡¯s eyes widened as Mac and Lyrian stepped out of the skiff. Mac drug an anchor attached to a metal chain several feet up the shore before pressing it into the sand to secure the small craft.
¡°Dar!¡± Lyri bound through the sand to give him a quick Delmar greeting followed by a more extensive human hug. Mac just walked and shook the elder man¡¯s hand.
¡°I take it, that vessel is yours?¡± He asked the Mac.
¡°It is, I had her made from plans I had of my families ¡®Yacht¡¯ on my home-world.¡± Mac replied, hooking Lyrians arm in the crook of his elbow. ¡°Her design is almost 400 of your years old.¡±
¡°Oh? How is she powered, and why do you have a massive flagpole sticking out in the middle.¡± Dar¡¯ wife inquired.
¡°How about you meet us here tomorrow morning to find out, I¡¯m taking a small group of friends and family out before the fires are lit. Join us.¡± Mac grinned.
Dar was about to politely decline until he felt his beloved¡¯s spike of excitement and caught her ¡°please, please, please¡± look.
He chuckled, ¡°very well. We will be in in the morning.¡± He acquiesced as an air car on autopilot landed near his own.
¡°I sorry for our curtness, but we just received word that Silu is being woken up this evening. We are going to see him.¡± Lyri gave a quick nod of respect that Mac mimicked before they both jogged off to their air-car.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
¡°Those two are going to turn Helyon upside down¡± his wife chuckled next to him.
¡°I know. Not sure how I feel about that yet.¡± He whispered before kissing her on the top of the head. ¡°Shall we continue?¡±
They resumed their walk through the preparations.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
It was late evening when Franklin finally made it back to his ¡°in council¡± quarters for the evening. Admiral Gwen had lived up to her bold reputation. Her offer of joint transport and Freighter crews was brilliant. Eventually the Council had agreed on 2 ¡®season¡¯ tours for current or former Terran or Martian Navy members to start, with the intention of offering those volunteers positions as instructors and cadre to train those of Humanity who wished to reach for the stars how to handle themselves in the greater Galaxy.
However, her personal message to him contained data NOT in the official transmission. Its contents were terrifying, and intriguing in equal measure. He typed out a quick message to Captain Johansen, who was now leading Gwen¡¯s former research department, along with Gwen¡¯s private data packet marked for them. She had revealed her ¡®Saurian¡¯ contact¡¯s suspicions and had gotten the GHO official to trade DNA and tissue samples. The sample itself was being sent by slip-space messenger drone, but the deep tissue full scans of both the samples, and the being it came from, had been sent as data. Johansen¡¯s crew would have to make do until the drone arrived.
Franklin pulled open his decanter cabinet and poured the amber liquid into a glass.
Tonight, he poured a double, then re-opened his copy of the private messages data packet.
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Clint stepped off the lift into the discharge waiting room and was waved over to a seat by Frie.
¡°How much longer?¡± He asked, sitting down and relaxing back into the arm-rest.
¡°She sent me a message a few minutes ago. She should be out soon.¡± Frie was wearing a warm but very form-fitting sweater and long form-fitting but equally warm pants. It was cooling off in Delmar, the days rarely broke 20 deg C and the nights dipped below 10 deg at times. Clint was having trouble getting used to how much the natural beauty of Delmar females tugged at the Human male instincts.
¡®Fuck you Greg, no wonder Mac made the jump. These people are someth¡..¡¯ his thoughts were interrupted by the hospital side door opening and Hera being floated out by an attendant. Frie squealed a little and ran over to her gingerly standing older sister.
Clint walked over more calmly, Hera was in a similar outfit to Frie, but this was the first time Mac had seen her outside of her baggy hospital robes. She was definitely Frie¡¯s sister, but there were differences. Frie was smaller around the bust and rump with an extremely slender build and a slightly more rounded face. Hera almost had her sister¡¯s waist and torso, but she was filled out significantly more in the chest and slightly more on the rump. He noticed.
Hera whispered to Frie and Clint realized he had been busted. He felt his cheek heat slightly as he finished walking over to the two.
¡°Where too?¡± Frie asked, ¡°Hera¡¯s choice.¡±
¡°Home, let¡¯s just go home¡± Hera whispered a touch breathlessly. ¡°I might need a hand.¡±
¡°You need a chair? I can go nab one¡± Clint offered.
¡°No, No. I¡¯m tired of being an invalid.¡± Hera snaked her right arm through the crook of Fries elbow, then did the same with her left; capturing Clint¡¯s arm and drawing both of them to her sides, ¡°Just, take it slow. I¡¯ll rest on the tram.¡±
Hera trundled her way slowly to the hospital tram station flanked by her younger sister and Clint. Even so, she was breathing heavily as they sat down in the unoccupied car.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Silu opened his eyes. Everything was sore, but he realized he was not restrained about the head and arms. He could not sit up or move his legs, however. He also realized his room was massive, and on the ground floor unit designed for larger visiting being¡¯s they could not fit in the main hospital.
¡°He¡¯s awake!¡± He heard his wife call and then the floor started shaking as an earthquake shook the building. ¡®Not an earthquake, footsteps¡¯ his mind recognized the shaking just as his wife and Ami rushed into the room. They were closely followed by Icario, Mac and Lyrian
¡°Hey..¡± his wife whispered, putting a hand on his cheek.
¡°Hey back¡± he wrapped before Icario fed him an ice chip since he could not sit to drink properly.
¡°You were kept asleep about a day after. It¡¯s the night before the winter solstice. We will be releasing you to home care for tomorrow, but you are bed or chair-ridden for the near future. As long as you have your wife do everything for you, I¡¯m authorizing a short visit to the festival for the lighting ceremonies.¡± Icario began followed by a list of all of his do¡¯s and don¡¯ts.
Silu turned to Ami ,¡°Your message, why are you here. Did they?¡±
¡°They did. They ambushed us. We got lucky; a human fleet jumped in to save us.¡±
The Saurian rumbled softly from above him. ¡°Rest, I fear I may be here on Delmar for a while. Much has happened since your attack.¡±
¡° I¡¯ll have a hospital shuttle bring you home. We have a biobed installed in your guest room to monitor your progress. The rest is in your body¡¯s hands. Come, let¡¯s get you home.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
The tram stopped and Clint stood to help Frie support Hera as she stood to make for the door. She almost made it, before her knees gave out. Frie squeaked in surprise and fear as Hera fell. Clint moved quickly, unencumbered in less than half of Terra¡¯s gravity, caught her about the waist and one handedly hoisted her into his arms bridal carry like he was scooping up a small child.
¡°Nope, enough of that, you survived getting Kabobbed by a fucking structural beam in deep space. Stop trying to prove anything.¡± He scolded her gently before looking to Frie, ¡°Lead the way.¡±
¡°You sure?¡± Frie looked skeptically at him
¡°I¡¯ve had hiking packs heavier than the two of you put together. I¡¯m fine.¡± He stated flatly. Before his face softened, ¡°Let¡¯s just get her home.¡±
Frie nodded and led the way into a duplex-looking area, unlocking one of the doors, ¡°we usually rotate who is in the void and who is on shore leave. We each have keys to both places to take care of each other¡¯s homes while the other is away.¡±
The three entered the home as the lights auto-cycled on with their presence.
¡°I¡¯m ordering food¡± Frie shouted from the kitchen as Clint set Hera down on the couch.
¡°No¡ warm¡± Hera weakly clinging to Clint. She fought being put down, but Clint covered her in a blanket that seemed to settle her some.
¡°Foods on the way, oh.¡± Frie stopped short at the site of her sister curled up in a blanket, Clint had settled in at the end of the couch and Hera had wiggled up to put her head in his lap he looked up at Frie and sighed heavily
¡°I think I need¡¡± Frie turned to leave before a hand caught, he wrist. It was a gentle yet immovable grip. His face made it clear he was not letting her go.
¡°Sit¡± Clint¡¯s tone was an order and she slowly walked around the couch. Clint scooped one hand under the head of the now wide-eyed Hera and guided Frie to his spot as he stood. He turned and sat on the table in front of the couch to face them, as Hera settled back and rested her head on Frie¡¯s lap this time.
¡°I was afraid of this. Please listen to me before you say anything.¡° He took a deep breath. ¡°Mac has told me a bit about how your species find life partners. I know that is what may be happening here. I know Delmar move more quickly in this than humans. I also know that only one claiming can happen and that casual intimacy is extremely dangerous for your kind. We need to talk about this before I end up hurting one or both of you, or you end up hurting yourselves or each other.¡± Clint folded his hands and waited.
¡°What do you mean when you say ¡®casual intimacy¡¯¡± It was Frie, she sounded hurt, possibly at the insinuation.
Clint nodded, ¡°humans do not have anything that remotely resembles the Delmar ¡®Claiming¡¯. Intimacy without emotional attachments doesn¡¯t risk the same level of psychological damage that you would be at risk of.¡±
¡°Are you saying you don¡¯t see us as...¡± Hera began slowly.
¡°That¡¯s just it¡± Clint cut her off, ¡°I don¡¯t know how I see you. I know that I¡¯ve come to care for both of you, deeply; but it¡¯s¡. Complicated¡±
¡°Complicated how¡± Hera was sitting up now next to her sister.
¡°Human male instinct is very visually driven when it comes to beauty and intimacy. Frankly, you two are both exotically alluring and intensely beautiful.¡± Clint paused looking down and taking each of their hands in his own, ¡°If you were human, or if Delmar did not have a claiming¡ I would be struggling not to bed the two of you¡ together... right now¡ just from physical desire alone.¡± Clint held their shocked gaze, ¡°I can¡¯t do that. I won¡¯t hurt either of you that way. That¡¯s the difference between human physical attraction and human emotional bonding.¡± The three sat in silence for several moments.
¡°I¡¯m sorry, we should have seen sooner.¡± It was Hera who spoke as the two leaned toward Clint each still holding one of his hands.
¡°It¡¯s our turn to explain,¡± Frie spoke next, ¡°We both are and aren¡¯t competing for you. Your brother told you about the arranged marriage aspect of our culture?¡±
Clint nodded.
¡°When there are no immediate family available to choose a mate between siblings, we do it ourselves, together¡ females of our ki¡¡¡±Hera spoke in turn
The doorbell rang and Frie hopped up and grabbed the food. Before setting it in the kitchen and sitting back down.
¡°It¡¯s different for us¡± Hera began. ¡°To put it in human terms. We are¡ evaluating you.¡± She waved a placating hand at the slightly hurt look from Clint, ¡°It¡¯s nothing so analytically cold as the word implies. It involves more instinct than conscious thought other than the awareness that it is happening. We simply interact with you. As it progresses, the female who interacts more compatibly with the male starts to take a more dominant role in the interactions.¡±
¡°I see,¡± Clint wasn¡¯t upset anymore. He looked more... contemplative, ¡°I¡¯m willing to go through this with the two of you, but I need to know two things. First, that whoever is not ¡®chosen¡¯ will not be hurt emotionally. I would rather stop this whole thing right here, keeping both of you as close friends, than lose one of you as someone close to me because of the other.¡±
¡°That won¡¯t happen. Surface-level emotional feelings are part of this. But Delmar don¡¯t develop the type of extreme heartbreaking emotional connection with someone until a successful Claiming.¡± Frie stated.
Clint nodded, ¡°Fair enough. I also need to know that we can try to take this very, very slow. I am not Delmar, I¡¯m not even sure if I am a good human being. From what I heard from Lyrian, some of the more.. intense aspects my brother''s humanity shocking her at first. Some of it frightened and even momentarily terrified her. Mac and I spent 8 years with our minds linked almost to the point of telepathic communication. Our emotional and reactive mental landscapes are very similar. I will have to share that with whoever I bond with... I need you two to be able to understand that going in.¡±
The two sisters looked at each other, ¡°we can do that.¡± Hera stated after a moment.
¡°Now! Foods getting. Cold! Let¡¯s eat!¡± Frie jumped up and the three headed to the kitchen.
The three had dinner and then stayed up talking until Hera passed out. Clint carried Hera to the master suite. He returned to the living room as Frie was throwing some blankets out on the couch,
¡°The trams aren¡¯t safe this late near Mac¡¯s house.¡± she said, ¡°you can stay here tonight.¡±
¡°What about you?¡± He asked as he threw away some of the loose takeaway wrappings.
¡°We¡¯re sisters silly.¡± Came Frie voice as Clint turned to find her standing very close to him. She wrapped her arms under his and pulled herself to him. Clint reflexively grabbed her about the waist before stiffening as she pressed against him. She lowered her face to his neck and took a long slow electrifying sniff that made his neck hair stand on end.
¡°Frie?¡± He asked tentatively as they separated, he noticed the impish grin on her face.
¡°That¡¯s payback for my sister getting to be carried around by you all night. Now we¡¯re even.¡± Then she flashed a smile and darted off to join her sister, closing the door behind her.
¡®Fucking hell, what am I in for.¡¯ Clint thought, he still had his doubts about their comprehension of certain human physical responses. He laid down, taking long slow calming breaths.
Chapter 41
Mac and Lyrian woke up the next morning and dingy¡¯d for the shore. Clint was there with Frie and Hera, Darclemus and his wife Clarise were there as well and were talking with the three of them. Tristen and Juelana were walking up from the Tram station with their 3 older kids. Icario and Tili Were going to spend the day with Silo, Ami and family for the day. Gwen was in her Auntie Gwen mode and had the galley at full song making food as the ferrying of people to Silver Lass commenced.
An Hour later, everyone was on board and settled in along the deck and aft quarter.
¡°So, you promised to tell me How she makes her way.¡± Clarise teased from her position sitting on windward side of the pilot¡¯s bench, ¡°What kind of engine does she use?¡±
¡°She has an engine, but we don¡¯t use it much¡± Mac smiled down at her as he unbuttoned the Sail covers, ¡°We use wind and tide¡± He paused his conversation with her as the cover went below to be stored in the Forward Lazarette, ¡°Start takin¡¯ in the Anchor!¡± he called to clint who was forward by the windlass controls. Lass was a hybrid of old and new. Her rig was centuries old, quite possibly the only wind powered vessel on the planet, but her electrical power core was modern Delmar fusion technology and all of her winches and her windlass had an electrical option to make short-handing more easily achieved. Lass¡¯ started drifting to the leeward as her anchor broke free and and Mac started hoisting the mainsail, ¡°Helm a¡¯lee, let¡¯s take it on the beem shall we.¡± he called to Lyrian who had come above to snag the tiller. Clint was already next to her on the Jenoa and then the Yankee Sheet winches. In moments Lass bloomed as the two Brothers set her canvas afly, then she surged in the light serf as sheets were tightened and the Canvas went ridged under the press of 30 kph winds. It was not warm by Delmar Standards, 15 Deg with a promise of 19-20 for a daytime high. Everyone was dressed semi-warmly, but the cloudless sky made for a beautiful and pleasant day.
Various shouts and comment of surprise were had as Lass picked up her pace, heeling moderately to the press of her sails. Mac looked back to see Lyrian lightly leaning on the tiller, watching the streamer and the sails to keep them drawing properly. He walked over, and she handed off the tiller to sesttle next to him on the pilot¡¯s bench. ¡°That¡¯s never going to get old.¡± she hummed as she leaned to him, but her eyes quickly fell elsewhere as she caught both Frie and her sister watching Clint intently as he finished trimming Lass¡¯ sails for the broad reach to the south.
¡°No engine, you never turned it on.¡± Clarise said.
¡°It¡¯s certainly very quiet. How fast will she go.¡± Dar asked, walking up to the main boom, and running a hand over it as if feeling the power harnessed.
¡°10 knots, er, about 18 Kilometers an hour in a blow. Right now, we are doing about 5-6 knots, about 11kph.¡± Mac ran the mainsail sheet to a Kleet on the tiller and an elastic band with a tensioner to another from the other side, he looked up and tightened the elastic band until he was satisfied. ¡°And now, the Lass will sail herself, without auto-pilot.¡± And she did, every time her bow drifted a little windward, the main sail sheet would lose tension as the mainsail depowered, and the elastic band would pull the tiller towards itself, causing the rudder to shift slightly and swing the bow back around the leeward until the wind was drawing properly again and the main sail tightened up its sheet again due to the wind pressure.
¡°How did you figure that one out.¡± Tristen sauntered over, maybe waddling a bit in the swell and movement of the cutter.
¡°I didn¡¯t, this technique is centuries old.¡± Mac said.
They spent the next couple of hours sailing southward until Mac got everyone to sit low, so the boom would not hit anyone. Then he gave the tiller to Lyri once more and called out instructions to her as Clint and himself plied themselves to the sheets once more to round her about to reverse her course. They chose to tack into the wind instead of jibe, and the Canvas luffed and flapped slightly as they passed through directly upwind.
Soon Lass was once again gathering speed as she took the wind just aft of her beam on the other side.
¡°Smartly done. Lyri is a quick study.¡± Gwen had been watching from the main hatch, ¡°You two always did love these old boats. Sandwiches are almost ready.¡± she went back down the hatch to be chased by Juel and Lyrian to help. Soon everyone including the kids had hearty ¡®ham¡¯ sandwiches on thick cut Delmar ¡®Rye¡¯ bread. Belly¡¯s full, Mac gave each of the young ones a turn at the tiller with a little lesson, then let them run the tiller through a tack each as lass zig zagged her way up and down the straight. Soon it was mid-afternoon when Mac turned her up into the wind and dropped the Anchor almost back where they started. The swell was 2 meters, but it was in long slow oscillations, and everyone relaxed on deck talking, visiting and exploring the ship as she rocked gently to her anchor.
Mac leaned up against the Mast with Lyri leaned against him, her back pressed against his chest with his arms around her belly. She wasn¡¯t quite showing yet, but Delmar pregnancies were quicker than Human ones; so she would be soon. Both were watching Clint, Frie and Hera. Clint was in the middle with Hera and Frie cuddling close for warmth. To Mac¡¯s surprise, no one seemed to care, especially the Delmar contingent on board.
¡°I may need to have a talk with my brother. I thought he would know better than to¡¡± Mac began to grumble before Lyri interrupted him
¡°I don¡¯t think you need to. In fact, don¡¯t say a single word to him. I suspect he has enough on his plate.¡± Lyri said.
Mac turned her around and wrapped his arms around the small of her back, ¡°Oh? You know something?¡±
¡°Remember how I told you that the marriages are arranged, but the Female makes the final yes, or no?¡± She waited for his nod, ¡°Well, that¡¯s the way it''s done when other family is around. Frie¡¯s and Hera¡¯s Grandparent are passed, and Their parents are away on Voyage. What happens when there is no one to do the arranging and vetting of the male, and two females want him?¡± She paused as Mac pondered.
¡°Ok¡ I see where you are going, but I don¡¯t understand how it can be done without at least one person leaving hurt and rejected.¡± Mac finally responded.
¡°That¡¯s because Delmar do not have the same emotional drive to find a mate. Let¡¯s take you and I. I didn¡¯t choose you because you were hot, or super good-looking, or because you were super warm and comfy. I chose you because I saw a Kind man, strong enough to protect my family. Who could be extremely violent, yes; but knew when not to be. I knew instinctively, that I was both safe from you, and with you; that my children with you would be safe. That your drive to protect and work would always keep us provided for.¡± She kissed him on the nose, ¡°Delmar females don¡¯t fall in love, James. They choose to step into love. We don¡¯t have casual intimate flings because those emotions lie dormant until a Claiming. I liked you, I cared for you, I knew I wanted you to be my life mate. But I did not ¡®love¡¯ you as Humans do until our wedding night when I claimed you and chose to release those feelings. The claiming is the one and only time a Delmar female can ¡®fall in love¡¯. That¡¯s why it¡¯s so dangerous, why I was so nervous when I gave myself to you the first time; and why we take it so seriously.¡± Mac pulled her into a tight embrace before giving her a brush of his lips on her neck.
¡°So, those two are ¡®fighting¡¯ over who gets to claim Nitro?¡± Mac stifled a chuckle, then sobered.
¡°Yes and no. It is a competition of sorts, but it is also a ¡®vetting¡¯ process to use one of your words. We still rely on our instincts more than Humans do. You can call this stage a ¡®crush¡¯. Frie and Hera¡¯ have a crush on Clint. As he spends time with them and reacts to them as they pursue him. He will prove himself more compatible with one of them or the other, or neither of them. Whichever female becomes the ¡®winner¡¯ will end up being more dominant in the interactions with the other beginning to feel more familiar or simply friendly toward the male as her instincts push her towards realizing he isn¡¯t the right match for her.¡± Lyri finished the explanation.
¡°This is going to suck for Clint,¡± Mac whispered, ¡°I hope he explained a few things. Because If they ¡®interact¡¯ with him in intimate ways too many times. They may end up making him very romantically emotionally attached to both. Forcing him to choose if he ends up ¡®loving¡¯ both would be very painful for him.
¡°You have to trust him, James; just like I have to trust my Best Friend.¡± She answered a bit more sagely than she felt. Mac caught it and just chuckled.
Stolen story; please report.
¡°But we can still worry about them.¡± He said as he watched the three talk and huddle together.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Ivar and his three survivors of the Battle over Delmar were just finishing adding the kindling to the bottom of their memorial pyre when he heard a familiar voice.
¡°What¡¯s up, Hombre!¡± Called Martina as she led the Human pilots up to the very confused Ivar. They were dragging various folding chairs and coolers with them as they greeted the Delmar pilots.
¡°I don¡¯t understand. Why are you guys here?¡± Ivar asked.
¡°To enjoy the party. And to stand with you, in honor of the ones who didn¡¯t make it home.¡± one of the other pilots stated, handing Ivar a Human Beer. He nodded his thanks and took a small sip. Human beer was significantly more potent than the Delmar equivalent, he would have to take care of how much he had through the night.
He turned to Martina. She was a strange one to read. She was shorter than most of the Human females that he had seen roaming around during their ¡®shore leave¡¯. She cut a feminine figure in her green-trimmed red dress with green shawl wrapped around her. ¡°I¡¯m still not understanding, you are not Delmar. None of your comrades died here.¡±
She gave him an odd look before walking him away from the crowd, ¡°We know¡ It¡¯s a Human thing. Our earliest records of fighting in the air were one of respect and Honor, even among enemies. Over the centuries, men from both sides of a conflict would occasionally refuse to shoot down, or even protect a disabled foe. Humanity has kept trying to keep this tradition, to varying degrees of success; because in the end, we are part of a rare group, the ones who tread the sky of our own volition. That transcends culture, species, and even battle lines to us. Your pilots died. We are all pilots, Pilots are family. We stand with our family.¡±
¡°I think I understand, thank you.¡± Ivar looked down slightly ashamed in not catching on sooner, just to get pulled down by surprisingly strong arms into a human hug.
¡°Now! The boys have a little something we would like to add to the pyre.¡± Martina said, releasing him.
She waved over a group of guys and produced a bag full of little metal wing-like insignia, one for each of the pilots lost. One by one the prongs on the back were driven into the wood with a human fist, a tribute to the Fraternity of The Black.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Mac and Lyri finished off-loading the last of their passengers and Mac¡¯s communicator beeped, ¡°Oh, well things just got interesting.¡±
¡°Luv?¡± Lyri asked as she tucked away the last of the Galley bits and bobs.
¡°The Brothers Grem are here, and they say that ¡®It works¡¯.¡± Mac said cryptically.
¡°What works¡± She asked.
¡°You¡¯ll see, it¡¯s a human tradition that matches up with Brush¡¯Girmon.¡± he said.
Mac drove them to the shore before kissing Lyri a quick goodbye and running to the house in Vito to pick up a firepit grate/ grill for cooking and some meats and veggies. He grabbed a bag full of cooking firewood. Tonight was going to be a feast.
The festivities started around dinner time. Mac was not the only one who brought food. Brrush¡¯, as everyone shortened it to, was a kind of potluck festival. Mac had a roaring fire going with a massive chunk of meat slowly spinning above it and Delmar mixed with Human Veggitables cooking below on the grate. He would slice a piece of cooked meat off his rotisserie and add some veggies and hand them out to whoever wanted some. Lyri was helping with the plating and soon Clint, Hera and Frie made their way over to hang out. Icario wandered by quickly with Tili, Silu, His wife Mari, and Ami in tow. Ami was delighted by the veggie plate that Lyri whipped up for her. Silu was still on soft foods but Mac gave him a bottle of water so he could participate. Silu¡¯s twin Grandchildren showed up around that time and Their mother absolutely had to steal Lryi to give twins advice. Mac noticed Gregory wandering around the Event, but he had not made his way over to them yet. Friends, family and strangers all passed through making the rounds. Tili and Mari took Silu home while Icario manned the fort to let Mac, Lyri and Clint wander the rest of the food selection before it became to dark. The Brothers Grem were off toward the seaside with a big squat square bod that was angled out over the water. And they were fiddling with wires and data pads.
¡°Oh, this will do,¡± Mac said as he handed out a couple of plates to the grateful scientists.
¡°You still haven¡¯t told me what they are.¡± Lyri pouted.
Bart stood, stretching his back for a moment, ¡°Remember when we were given the formula for Human Chemical powered weapons? Well, Humans apparently have a love for explosives that truly defies definition.¡±
¡°Explosives?¡± Lyri took a tentative step back.
¡°All quite safe luv, these will be electronically activated from a safe distance. It¡¯s a two-stage ordinance. One to launch it into the air, then the other to explode it in bright colors a few hundred feet up. Humanity Calls them ¡®fireworks¡¯¡±. Mac soothed as Lyrian gave him a sideways glance.
¡°Humans and their need to make things go boom.¡± Chuckled Bart Grem.
¡°Dam fuckin¡¯ straight!¡± It was Greg, ¡°Is this what I think it is?¡±
¡°If it works, yea. ¡°Mac laughed clasping hands with the man. ¡°Don¡¯t you tell a dam soul, not even the stick jockeys know we got this planned.¡±
¡°Consider it Classified.¡± Greg laughed before saluting with his beer and wandering off.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
The Sun sank below the horizon and the pyres were lit. The Memorial Pyre was lit after a Delmar Funeral song was played followed by Human ¡®taps. Gregory was wandering aimlessly around the festival area. He had no real interest in going anywhere in particular, or meeting anyone. He was just enjoying the beach and the warmth of the fires as the temperature dropped. He was in his ¡®civi¡¯s¡¯. Blue Jeans, a sweater, and an old Leather Jacket he had had since his WSO days. ¡®Hmm I wonder when the fireworks are going to start¡¯ he was beginning to wander back to where the Grem¡¯s were setting up when he stumbled into a lone figure. He dam near bowled her over and had to catch her, she was so light. He turned her around to find a Middle aged, but still stunning Delmar female in a dark sweater and dark pants. Her sweater had the logo of Lucid Traveler on it.
¡°I¡¯m sorry ma¡¯am, Are you ok Ms¡¡± he began.
¡°Margaretti Solvilque, Just Marg is fine Mr¡¡± She responded somberly
¡°Commodore Gregory Burgoyne Ma¡¯am. Greg to my friends.¡± he bow¡¯d slightly
She gave him a small smile, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I may not be good company Gregory.¡± She turned back to the Memorial pyre as the flames licked at the now blackened likeness of a Delmar Ranger. ¡°I lost my youngest getting back to warn everyone.¡±
¡°You¡¯re that Marg, my condolences.¡± Greg took her hand, ¡°Good or bad company, you need not be alone.¡± He hooked her arm under his and walked over to a local vendor and snagged two Delmar beverages handing one to her, ¡°I¡¯ve lost my share of those around me. Even ones I called closer than blood. A toast, to the remembered. To your son¡¡±
¡°Brayton. To the remembered.¡± she said weekly and took a sip. They turned back to the pyre for a moment and Greg felt her shiver slightly. He had drastically overdressed for the weather, and quickly wrapped the jacket he had stripped off earlier around her.
Quinn Grem finished wiring up the remote and both Brothers walked back to the main event. Bart gave his brother an evil smirk and hit the start program button.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Luckly the two scientific maniacs had done it right, and balls of sparkling fire began to shoot up over the water, scaring some, surprising others. The whoops and cheers from the Humans aided to calm the terrified among the Delmar. The display lasted 5 minutes. It was dominated by Silves and Auburn, but reds, blues, yellows, and whites were also sent a-fly. The entire event applauded after it was over.
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Over the next weeks and months. Things slowly began to wind back up. The first of the Human Freighter Crews would be arriving within the week. Lucid Traveler had been repaired and heavily upgraded with Human defensive systems and targeting systems modified to work within her Power envelope. She had a new subspace drive as well, complements of the Delmar Confederation for heralding the warning that quite possibly saved Delmar.
Mac had steadily trained up the new recruits to the fighter defense wings. He was also set to Command one of the new Rapid Response Fleets that were being jointly built to provide trusted protection to the Freighters of both Humanity and Delmar. Mac had complained until the design of the fleets had been shown to him. He had made one request, ¡°These fleet. I have a name for them. Unity insists on calling me a ¡®Demon¡¯. They are incorrect. Our name¡ is legion.¡± He had gotten his request.
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Lyrian spent the last 3 months of her pregnancy at home in Terran Gravity to ensure the twins she carried would develop properly. Her father had kept a close eye on her and the babies. Scans had discovered that the twins would come out looking identical to a Delmar, but would be Human sized and have the additional Human organs and bone structure requirements that Delmar lacked. They would need to spend their first year in as much 1g terran as possible grow healthily. Lyrian didn¡¯t like being house-restricted during her last trimester. She lost a bit of her progress for being able to handle Concord but Being in 1g terran had kept her from losing too much. She had experienced D¨¦j¨¤ vu when her mother had walked into the house using the key but forgot to hit the code outside to lower the interior gravity. Lyri had awoken to a scream of shock and had waddled down the stairs to the controls as her mother struggled against getting flattened. That afternoon, Mac set up controls at the top of the stairs so that the incident wouldn¡¯t be easily repeated, or at least remedied more quickly.
The day came. Lyrian was never going to be able to deliver a human-sized baby. The birth had to be surgical, and a Human Nurse was flown down from Tranquility to help Monitor the Children from their home in their natural gravity.
Little Brayton had typical Delmar coloring, hair, main, tail, and patterns. His Eyes, however, retained His father¡¯s Ice Blue¡¯s. The little girl Lyrian named Trisiria after a distant aunt that had passed when she was younger, and She retained her mother''s eyes and features.
The Schedule was to upgrade the freighters and finish training Legion in time for the Next Voyage season. It was still up in the air if Captain Silu would be well enough to take command by then. Until then, Traveler sat in drydock as the workers finished her second lease on life.
Chapter 42
Ambassador Gwen stepped off the shuttle and into the hanger of Port Royal station as she hung in the void near the beacon into the Delmar system. The station''s outer ring measured a wide flat 40 kilometers with a central hub, and the floating structure would not have looked out of place as the centrifugal living section of a Sol-designed station. It did not have a spinning habitation section, however. Port Royal was fully artificially gravity-plated and in the final stages of systems checks and internal furnishing. The station was also built with the help of the now Ambassador Aminaira, agent of the Saurian race to humanity. It was compatible with multiple different species. It would need to be, considering its purpose.
¡°Ami! So good to see you!¡± Gwen wrapped her arms around the massive head pressed against her chest in a traditional greeting that the Saurian race had used on smaller bipedal species for millennia.
¡°And I, you.¡± Rumbled the larger being in a throaty soprano. ¡°I did not expect you here quite yet.¡±
¡°I was in the neighborhood,¡± Gwen responded, ¡°We got a message from the first convoy. They will be here a little early. In fact, they should be here right about¡¡±
*Slip jump detected, *slip jump detected* the Klaxon warned, and the Two stepped out to the windows to see 5 human cargo ships and a Martian Corvette appeared in a swirling flash of blues and whites, trailing faint traces of plasma.
Human Cargo ships differed from their Delmar cousins in that they maximized hauling capacity while minimizing habitation. The Human ships were basically a cramped command deck and living quarters in a front squared-off prow, followed by a massive central spine designed to have cargo attached to it using the upgraded for interstellar travel, but ever venerable Conex containers. Each of these vessels could attach 1500 containers at their maximum load per container. The trailing freighter carried 3000 empty containers for Delmar to test with this season.
The human freighters also only had a 20-25 person crew depending on needs vs the 300-400 person crew for most of the rest of the galaxy. The end of the freighter¡¯s spine housed massive set of pods holding a total of 6 final drives. A Human freighter needed only 3-4 drives to make the run up to slip space, but Humanities need for redundancy had accidentally made a vessel that could get to jump velocity more quickly than some of the USN¡¯s capital ships. Humanity shared Delmar¡¯s desire for simplicity, and the 5 freighters spun on their axes to present their engines for deceleration.
The Freighters blinked into view as they finished their deceleration burns and began docking for customs. Darclemus and Gwen both hated the idea of customs and duties, but it was important not to crash either of their people¡¯s economies as this blending of technology and expertise was initiated between Delmar and Humanity. The Customs system was a known way to help prevent that, at least until something better could be hammered out.
¡°How is the Commander holding up?¡± Gwen asked softly.
¡°He is adjusting, I think he is more relieved than upset. He¡¯s just not ready to admit it yet.¡± Ami replied, ¡°He¡¯s quite good at his new post though. I think being able to watch the twins grow up in person will win the day.¡± she finished with a smile.
The two moved on down the promenade, catching up on various subjects as they headed for Ami¡¯s office.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Gregory woke up. Even at 48, He was still a very light sleeper. The reason he awakened, stirred next to him. The slender soft being rolled over and kissed him on the on the neck before rising to his chest. She locked his lips with hers for a moment before biting his lower lip with her fangs.
Gregory chuckled and looked down to see Marg watching his features closely.
¡°Good morning,¡± he said kissing her on the forehead.
¡°Hi...¡± she whispered back, ¡°it¡¯s weird, not feeling your emotions.¡± She twirled a finger in his now full executive-style beard.
It had been several months since the two of them met. Both were widowed with grown-up children. They had slowly grown closer over that time, but last night had been the first time she had stayed.
¡°We need to talk, about last night¡.¡± Marg began, ¡°I don¡¯t know where to go from here¡¡±
¡°There¡¯s no rush¡± Greg said pulling her to him. ¡°I know relationships like this are not the norm for your people. I know you will never be able to claim me. So let¡¯s not do this the Delmar way.¡±
¡°What are you saying?¡± Marg lifted her head.
¡°We kind of already have been. If we were on earth, you would already have a title, my ¡°Girlfriend¡± so how about we just keep doing what we have been. Getting to know each other. We take it slow. Last night was amazing, but we won¡¯t have to make it the norm. You¡¯re my girl, let¡¯s see where it goes.¡±
¡°Ok, I accept.¡± she responded, and Greg chuckled at the formal tone to it.
¡°Now let¡¯s go for breakfast.¡± he whispered. ¡°There is a little place down the road that I haven¡¯t tried yet.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
¡°You will have final diagnostics for life support and tactical by first shift, commander.¡± the Young Human officer said, ¡°anything else.¡±
Commander Silu Drilumerum, master under the void of the joint Sol/Delmar hub Port Royal gazed over his data pad at his first officer. The young Sudanese man¡¯s name was Philip Kenyi, and he had taken the job of preparing and running the station with the aggressive tenacity that Silu had come to expect from Humanity.
¡°I believe that covers it, Philip. Give my compliments to the work crews. Take the rest of the evening. Everything else is tomorrow¡¯s problem.¡± Silu responded gently. He stood and reached for his walking cane, working his way around his desk to give his X.O. a handshake.
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¡°Have a good evening, sir¡± Lieutenant Commander Kenyi shook the older man¡¯s hand firmly but gently before departing the office.
Silu followed the Human out, leaning on his cane as he walked down the spoke nearest his office to the circular outer ring. He wondered, not for the first time, who would get command of Traveler. He wanted to be upset that he had lost Her, but the long road he had to go through, to simply walk again, had convinced him to bow out of the Younger Man¡¯s Game of her captaincy. He had made the recommendation that She be the first Delmar Freighter to have a Human Captain. This was part of the Treaty struck with Sol. Two of Delmar¡¯s Freighter fleet would get Human Captains, and Two of Sol Freighters would get Delmar Captains. These two selectees would Captain 3 years respectively in their respective parts of the Galaxy then be the foundation of a Joint Training program designed to facilitate the next generation. That would take place here on Port Royal in time.
¡°Ah! There you are. I was about to call you.¡± Ami said from her Saurian style seat next to their customary table. Mari was with Her already. The two of them had become fast friends after Ami¡¯s arrival in Delmar space. The Saurians had quickly requested her resignation from the GHO and named her Ambassador to Humanity. She was the First non-Delmar diplomat to reach out to Sol. Silu still did not understand why, as the Saurian Species were never very interested in the fringes of Unity politics.
¡°I made it. No need for a rescue party.¡± Silu Chuckled.
The three spent their evenings at the same caf¨¦, overlooking the inner system. Pictures flashed; the twins were starting to try walking. Ami¡¯s 8th Daughter had hatched another brood. Silu noticed some of the New Human Freighter Crewmen walking the rings observation balconies. He noticed a number of Human Females among them as well, cutting up with the Men. All of them had a slight Military air to them, which was to be expected.
¡°I hope This goes well, Everything is changing so fast.¡± Mari said, breaking to lul in the conversation.
¡°It is, we will see.¡± Silu responded and took a sip. Smiling at a station crewman who recognized him and gave an abbreviated salute. ¡®we will see¡¯.
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¡°Luv?¡± Mac called as he stepped into the family home.
¡°In here!¡± came a breathless reply. He peeked around the corner into the living room to see Lyrian pounding away on a treadmill at a fast jog. ¡°How is the training going?¡±
¡°It¡¯s getting done. The first response fleets will be ready soon. First fleet is sticking around until the rest are trained, and until the DCDF can rebuild.¡± Mac walked into the kitchen for some water and smelled the oven. ¡°Roast?¡±
¡°Ya¡¯, wanted something easy tonight. Bry and Tris are sleeping right now. I need to get back in form. Oh btw, Clint came over and ferried Concord to the R&D Airfield. Something about a refit¡± She slowed to a cool-down speed and chugged on a bottle next to here in the cup holder.
¡°Yea, they are replacing the subspace drive with a slip space one. They also want to touch up the stealth coating and refill her Munitions. I hope Clint remembered how to fly her.¡± Mac chuckled.
¡°I stuffed his ass in one of the sims to make sure.¡± Lyri grinned at him, ¡°He¡¯s rusty, but he won¡¯t crash. He was not amused.¡±
Mac barked a laugh and walked up to give his Glistening wife a pec before heading for the bedroom to get into his workout gear. He missed the Jungle runs, but until the Twins didn¡¯t need constant earth 1g, treadmills and weights at the house would have to do. He paused at the top of the stairs as His mate moved to the weights. She had almost completely lost the baby weight, but she was definitely more top-heavy because of the needed Milk production for the twins. She was eating slightly more than him right now because of her return to training and breastfeeding at the same time. She caught him staring and gave him a wink before settling in for weights.
Mac made it downstairs just in time for the first crys escaped from the baby monitor downstairs.
¡°Right on time.¡± Lyrian put up the barbell she was working with, ¡°I was starting to feel uncomfortably full. She shifted her top and gave Mac a kiss, ¡°Be back in a few. I won¡¯t be mad if you pull the Roast out before I get back.¡± She gave him a wink and headed up the stairs to feed the twins. Mac put a quick run in with a vest to give himself 1.5 times his body weight. ¡®That¡¯s not as fun as it used to be. I guess I¡¯ve fallen behind too¡¯. He mused as he shut the treadmill down and pulled the Roast just as it came up to temp. The tubers and veggies were in with the roast so he set them to rest and returned to his weights.
Soon Mac was finished, and he wandered up to the twin¡¯s room just in time to see Bryton attempting an escape from diaper change with Tris crawling around on the floor making for the now open door. ¡°What are you up to.¡± he scooped her up, and she just burbled at him.
Bryton was already starting to dose into a milk coma as Lyri finished burping him. Soon the two of them were back in their shared Crib. Apparently Delmar Twins were rare, but tended to need to sleep together to stay calm for the first year or so.
¡°So, when am I going to lose you to Legion.¡± Lyrian asked, somewhat somberly as they sat down with their food.
¡°Not for another year at least. First fleet is going to be playing training Cadre for the foreseeable future. For both the DDF and for Legion. We also have to wait for the probes to reach their destinations to drop their beacons... That¡¯s going to take a while even if they hug the Relativistic barrier to get to their coordinates¡± Mac explained between bites of food, ¡°Wait, is this Cheyenne? Is it safe?¡±
¡°It is when diluted like this. I wanted to give it a shot, I like it so far. We will see how I survive later, but it should be safe.¡± She said. The roast was fantastic, and Lyrian had become very good at cooking meat indoors. She left the open fire cooking to the Men.
¡°Tomorrow I am headed out to Port Royal with Greg and Marg. Those two seem to be getting serious.¡± Mac shrugged, ¡°Anyway, He doesn¡¯t know it yet, but While I will be taking first fleet. He will be in command of the entire Combined forces. His Expeditionary force will be folded into System defense until they can rebuild.¡±
They finished dinner just in time for another feeding. The Twins were between Delmar, and Human infants. They were developing their motor skills for movement very quickly like a Delmar child, but their brains and cognitive ability would develop more along the lines of a Human child. They would Have fewer instinctive cue¡¯s than a Delmar, but more than a Human. Icario believed that if they lived in 1 human G for the first year, and the house was kept at 1g, they would be Grow to be Human Strong. For now, they were just little bundles of eat, sleep, mess, cry, and occasionally burble. The two little ones were fed and put to bed. Mac and Lyri crashed out into bed until the next feeding.
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¡°You look Terrible,¡± Greg chuckled as Mac met him at the Port Royal shuttle.
¡°Lyri is a saint... The little ones are always hungry, day or night.¡± Mac grumbled, nursing a cup of coffee.
¡°I remember my son, becomes a distant memory until they start making it through the night. ¡°For you, that should come a little earlier with them being half Delmar.¡± he chuckled, patting the young father on the back, ¡°Don¡¯t worry my son, this too shall pass. I haven¡¯t seen Clint in a while, how is the poor bastard.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t think I could do what he is without going mad. He cares for those two a great deal. To be willing to let them pick which one he marries? ¡ I don¡¯t know if I could do it.¡± Mac shuddered at the thought.
¡°It¡¯s very inhuman, I¡¯ll give you that. But the ¡®when in Rome¡¯ factor of the greater galaxy is going to be something we will just have to adapt to. So, what brings you to Port Royal.¡± The older man asked as they lifted off. it would be a 2-hour flight to the beacon and the Station being built to serve as an all-purpose hub, diplomatic site, and defensive stronghold.
¡°I¡¯m taking delivery of some equipment for First fleet, they won''t tell me what it is. Probably just to keep away from prying ears. You?¡± Mac feigned ignorance.
¡°New orders. Ambassador Gwen got a new message from Sol.¡± Greg shrugged.
The small talk continued until they were docked. Mac got a message from Clint asking to use the Lass¡¯- *Of course! You know that* he responded before stepping into the station.
¡°See you later Mac, drink after?¡± Greg called.
¡°Maybe just one. Dad adulting is best done sober.¡± Mac laughed back.
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¡°James Mackenzie Grarzia?¡± The harbor master asked as the Young Human male, maybe a bit worse for ware, strolled into the hanger with a combination Void/G-suit slung over one shoulder.
¡°That would be me. Just Mac is fine. I''m assuming whatever I¡¯m picking up involves one of these?¡± He indicated to the suit.
¡°It would. You are aware of the Raptor¡¯s currently in use in this sector? Well, this one is yours. However, I am told to give you this packet and to say, ¡°Watch this before you kill your dumb ass¡±. The middle-aged Delmar Harbor master winced at the phrase.
¡°I smell Nitro. I¡¯ll watch the tutorial.¡± Mac walked to a quick changing area to cha¡.
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A K¡¯Claram flagged Freighter dropped out of subspace and burned for the Station, firing its weapons. The Escort Corvettes on either side of the station opened fire, instantly cutting the unidentified craft to pieces, but three escape pods were fired. The pods bore the scars of the crude reinforcements common among pirates, and they slammed into the side of Port Royals observation ring. The life pods carried the entire skeleton crew of the doomed freighter. 5 K¡¯Claram, 3 Thermians, stepped out of each pod. The last pod to hit carried an extra passenger. A large Lycan man with a pronounced mechanical Wheeze... Port Royal was still 2 weeks from fully operational. The Armories had been installed and stocked, but the security personnel were to arrive in two days.
Each of the boarders carried 2 laser pistols and a laser rifle. They opened fire on everyone they saw.
Chapter 43
Mac stumbled at the impact as he was changing into his Void suit. He had just taken off his Delmar Themed Hawaiian shirt when it happened. The explosion was immediately followed by the ¡°Intruder Alert¡± Klaxon. Mac dropped what he was doing, and grabbed the CZ made Gauss Pistol he carried with him everywhere. That explosion was big, and close¡ He crept out of the pilot¡¯s changing room to see a massive, jagged hole in the Hanger roof and an escape pod of some kind laying on top of the Crushed Raptor. The emergency force field covering the hole shimmered as it fought against the atmospheric pressure. 3 K¡¯Claram were climbing over the wreckage, and 2 more were waving weapons at the ground crew huddled in the corner. Mac was about to make his move when 3 of those dam Lizard people, Thermians, stepped out of the Hatch of the weaponized pod with larger weapons. Mac glanced at his Day Bag. He had his spare magazines in there. If he could get to an armory, he would be golden. His planning was interrupted by the voice of one of the Thermians barking an order¡ and the Three K¡¯Claram raised their weapons to the heads of the Delmar Hanger crew...
Mac stopped thinking. He ripped off 7 rounds into the would-be ¡®executioners¡¯. 4 rounds hit two of the bipedal crustaceans before the 3rd spun to open fire on Mac. Mac dove passed his Bag, nabbing it as he slid behind a metal chair and table combination. He tipped the table over to provide cover and emptied the remaining 9 round at the rest of the intruders, hitting two Thermians and one more K¡¯ Claram intruder before his weapon ran dry and Mac took a Laser pistol shot in the shoulder just above his collar bone. Mac felt the hit, but it didn¡¯t move him. He ducked behind the table and felt for blood. He could feel a burned hole, but he wasn¡¯t bleeding. He hoped that the Laser hit had cauterized the wound for him and he drew his mag pouch belt from its coiled up position in his day bag to reload. He was grabbed by the hair by one of the two surviving lizards.. Mac roared in pain mixed with Anger and wrenched around violently to face his attacker. The maw of the Lizard opened, and the Being was obviously using its more natural weapons to finish him off. Mac saw the Being lung forward to bite his neck, and Mac instinctively threw up a hand to protect the vital part of his body. That forearm intercepted the lower jaw of the Lizard man and snapped his jaw hard enough to snap his head upward and he released Mac¡¯s hair, hissing a roar of pain. Mac saw his opportunity, He grabbed the arm that had first grabbed him by the wrist, yanking HARD and twisting in a classic dislocation technique to give him space... What he got instead was the Lizard Mans arm... literally. Mac felt a light ripping sensation and lukewarm liquid splashed across his chest. He looked down as his attacker fell to the ground spraying blood from his shoulder where his arm used to be. Mac lifted his right hand where he had grabbed the being wrist to find himself holding the severed appendage. A distraught, and surprised Roar came from Mac¡¯s left as the last surviving member of the boarding party, a Thermian, rolled its eyes into the back of its head and leaped at Mac with its jaws wide open. Mac reflexively reacted with the only weapon he had in his hands at the moment. The Hanger resounded with a meaty *SLAP* and the severed end of the arm Mac had swung connected with the head of the irate Thermian. Its head spun almost completely around as its body went limp from a severed spinal cord.
He turned to the Terrified Delmar ground crew as they watched the embodiment of Death, covered in the Gore of Beings thought nearly impossible to kill by the greater galaxy calmly picked up his backpack, reloaded his weapon and walked over to them.
¡°Would you kindly show me to the Armory?¡± BigMac asked, looking out from behind Macs Emotionless Icy blue eyes.
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Jacob Irving was chuckling with 5 of the other Humans who had just arrived in the Transfer Freighters. There had been a few freighters that had made this jump, but the ones that had just arrived were bringing Crew to learn Delmar Freighter and Galactic Unity skills to take back to Sol. The trip would be 3 years for him, then he was told he would be offered an instructorship. ¡®If I survive¡¯ he thought. As if the Universe had a sense of Humor, a massive spiked and reinforced Escape Pod slammed into the Promenade not 300m from his group. The sound of escaping atmosphere followed just for a second as the emergency systems kicked in. Jacob looked down to see the Pod open and 7 alien species he had only just learned about stepped out. One pointed a weapon at him and fired. Jacob screamed in pain as a flash of a laser burst his right eye but went no further. The 4 other humans ducked and one of them looked over the wounded man.
¡°Easy, your head is intact.¡± One of them whipped out a bandage from the IFAC that all of them habitually carried as part of spaceborn Military training. Another slapped a mild painkiller patch on him.
¡°Give Me 30 seconds then we move!¡± Irving barked in english. ¡°These fuckers are in the residential area. We take them out. More laser fire splashed off the railing and the wall behind them.
¡°Fuck it. Let Go Boys!!!¡± Jacob felt the painkillers kick in, he drew the Service knife he had smuggled home from the war from his belt. It would have to do. The 6 Humans; 3 Martians, and 3 Terrans. Leaped down from their balcony walkway and landed easily in the much lighter ¡°Galactic Standard¡± gravity. They landed 30 ft from the combined Thermian, and K¡¯Claram attackers. Jacob was only vaguely aware of the others, he made for the fucker that shot him. He roared as the shell-encrusted being raised its pistol at him. It was too late. the Humans had maintained their body to Terran 1 G standards. They were simply too fast as they closed on their enemy. Jacob slapped away the weapon, only vaguely aware that the hand holding the weapon went with said weapon as it flew. Jacob saw the being reach for a curved blade on its hip and threw a hybrid hook/Close line and his eyes widened as the being head detonated from the impact of his fist and forearm. It was over in a matter of moment, and the dismembered and disemboweled remains of the escape pod occupants littered the floor, covering the Human defenders in various colors of Alien blood.
Silu finally stepped breathlessly into his office from his quarters. It was the Intruder alert. He stood quickly and grabbed his Cane. He was unable to support the weight of his customary Saber, but he still had his laz pistol. Philip burst into the room as he was strapping his sidearm on
¡°Sir, we¡¯ve been boarded. internal sensors read impacts on the beacon side outer ring. We are getting radio calls of shots fired. We need to get you to the evacu¡¡± The young man began.
¡°No, we hold this station. Get everyone who is authorized personnel to the respective armories. We HOLD... Send an emergency message to the home world for reinforcements. GO!¡± Silu stepped out of the office door and set aside his cane.
¡°Now why would you do a foolish thing like that.¡± Silu spun to see Mackenzie stepping out of a flickering side corridor. He was covered in blood, none of it his.
Silu stared in shock at Mac as he slowly stepped forward, picking up the discarded cane. ¡°I was going to let you in on our gift¡¯s little secret. But Lyri went into labor the day after we sent it to you.¡± Mac gripped the cane above and below a decorative metal ring about a quarter of the way from the top and twisted one-quarter turn before unsheathing a short rapier-style blade that began to Humm faintly.
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¡°Don¡¯t touch that blade to anything you don¡¯t want to cut instantly. Unsheathing it activates a micro-vibration system that basically makes cutting into flesh and soft tissue, even bone, fairly effortless.¡± Mac explained before returning the weapon to its hiding spot and re-rotating it to lock in place.
Silu just glared at him, ¡°We need to have a talk about your Paranoia, Mackenzie.¡± He said.
¡°It¡¯s not Paranoia if they are all out to get you.¡± the shirtless human covered in gore lifted both hands, indicating to the entire situation around them.
Silu snorted, not really having an answer for that. ¡°Lets go.¡±
Moments later they walked into the CIC room where Philip was handing out Human Gauss Rifles to Human crew, and lighter recoiling Delmar versions to the non-human personnel.
¡°How many pods made it in.¡± Mac asked as he nodded his thanks for a rifle and a combination Armor/Ammunition carrying vest.
¡°Three impacted Captain, The Hanger reported that you took care of one rather, extensively.¡± The Sudan man pointedly looked the Gore-covered Mac up and down. ¡°And we received an all-clear from the second pods impact point. One of our soon-to-be transfer captains, a Jacob Irving, was with a group of Humans who reacted to it. One casualty reported on our side. The Third group should be on the sector 448 floor just outside the Aquatic sections.¡±
¡°Seal that area, we will be responding to that. MOVE!¡± Silu Barked before turning to jog down the corridor with his men. He was in pain, Mac could see it; but the Older Delmar was a warrior at heart. He did not fall behind.
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Ambassador Ami was trying to shield Gwen, but Gwen was not making it easy. Saurian¡¯s slowly continued to grow their entire lives, once past a certain age, a Saurian was simply impervious to most handheld weapons inside the Galactic Unity. They would have been incorporated into the Unity¡¯s military if it weren¡¯t for their extremely passive and peaceful mindsets. Ami roared in pain as another salvo of Laser fire burned her skin, but otherwise left her largely unharmed. Gwen had taken one shot to her right thigh, and one to her left arm at the elbow joint. Both hits had cauterized, but Gwen could do little but hobble and fire her pistol one-handed. The pistol had 3 rounds left in it, before she had to try to reload one-handed.
¡°Stay down you crazy human!¡± Ami pleaded as Gwen peeked around the Dinosaur like woman¡¯s body to take another pot shot, hitting a Thermian in the torso and blowing a 20 centimeter hole out of his back, spraying Gore across the only remaining lizard and two of the Crustacean attackers.
Ami swung her tail frantically, trying to keep the rest away, but they were slowly advancing. She could see the Poison dripping from their knives as they waited for her to swipe at them again. They began their advance once more just as a ripping sound of fully automatic fire exploded from above and behind the two beleaguered friends. Gwen looked up to see Silu along with Mac, Philip and the entire command crew pouring fire into the last of the attackers, as they were quickly reduced to quivering tissue and bone/exoskeletal fragments.
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A lone hooded figure crept into Commander Silu¡¯s office and plugged in a device he had received by dead drop. He downloaded the entire camera data of the Human''s response to the attack. He also downloaded the entire database available on the station. Some of it was heavily encrypted, some of it not so. He did not care, It would be there to hack later. He gave little thought to the rubes he had convinced to attack the ¡®unfinished and easy target¡¯ of the station. They had done their job. The device beeped, and he slipped down one of the more unfinished corridors to one of the construction air locks. He quickly donned his helmet and shed his cloak to reveal a large thruster pack with external tank attached. He cycled the air lock and fired the main thruster to give him velocity. The Capital ships were to busy looking for real threats to notice him gliding past like so much trash until he was safely past. He pulled up his small Nav database from the Data pad. It was secured to his waist and fed information and course corrections into his helmet. He adjusted his course for the Asteroid belt separating the two planets of the Sonir System.
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Greg was nowhere near any of the attacks. The station was big enough that by the time he had made it to the beacon side, the fighting was over. He quirked an eye at some of the freighter crews and Mac¡¯s condition. Mac was being looked over by a medic for a wound on his shoulder and laughing at just how gross he felt.
¡°What the hell did you do to yourself¡± he finally said with a chuckle after wading through the on lookers.
¡°I might have accidentally ripped a giant Lizards arm off... and beat another to death with it¡ Serious Wookie Vibes¡± Mac smiled. It was a bit forced, but Greg Knew to let it be. Mac was coping, so he played along.
¡°I guess I really should see the other guy.¡± he said with a smile of his own. ¡°Thanks for the warning BTW, are you going to be ok being technically my subordinate?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll manage, you won¡¯t have me for a while though. My Fleet has the most trained crews. We¡¯ll have to use them to train the rest before I go play space police with you¡± Mac winced as the Human medic prodded the laser wound once again. ¡°Am I gonna live doc?¡±
¡°You will, the shot pierced the skinn and muscle, but it didn¡¯t make it to the shoulder blade¡± the Delmar EMT said, ¡°You are lucky that it was a ricochet.¡±
¡°Uh.. Doc? That wasn¡¯t a ricochet... the fucker shot me from 20 meters dead on¡¡± Mac corrected with a confused look.
¡°Bull Shit!! It would have gone straight throught!¡± The doctor just looked at him, ¡°You¡¯re not joking... you took a laser rifle shot from 20 meters and only got this damage?!?¡± The man ranted... shaking his head, ¡°Great, so now we have another species that is basically immune to laser fire, WONDERFUL!¡± The man just raised his hands in surrender, ¡°Just keep it clean. It sealed itself with the heat. You will be fine¡±.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°Ami, Ami are you with me.¡± Gwen was cradling the massive Beings head in her lap as the EMT literally climbed over her bruised and shot up body to make sure she wasn¡¯t still hemorrhaging internally.
¡°oooooowwwwww¡± The Saurian woman groaned as the medical professionals found a particularly tender spot, ¡°It¡¯s been a century since I¡¯ve been shot... I forgot how bad it sucks!!¡± She moaned.
Ami blinked as a bit of water splashed on her face, she looked up at Gwen to see her eyes watering, no, crying tears down on her, ¡°Thank you¡ Thank you.¡± The silver-haired Human said softly stroking the massive woman¡¯s neck, ¡°You saved my life.¡±
¡°And you saved mine, If they were not so afraid of your Human weapon, They would have stabbed me with those knives. Saurians have an almost universal anaphalactic reaction to K¡¯Claram poison. I would be dead without you as well.¡± Ami said up to Gwen, ¡°Even?¡±
¡°Fine, even. But this makes us family, born in death and horror, but family all the same.¡± Gwen whispered.
Ami just nodded.
¡°I see you two are getting along swimmingly¡± Came Silu¡¯s voice. From next to Gwen, ¡°Ami, you¡¯re almost as reckless as I am. The techs say that you will need to rest for the next month, but that none of the hits got to anything life threatening. We will have someone come with a freight pallet mover soon to get you to your quarters. Gwen, I need you to walk with me a moment.¡± He handed Gwen a pillow he had been carrying with him. She stood and laid Ami¡¯s head on the cushion before turning to follow the Station Commander
Gwen stood with a wince and limped after him. She had refused treatment until the Saurian woman was checked over. Silu slowed his gate to match her limp.
¡°Someone got away.¡± Silu said, ¡°We found evidence of a database copy from my terminal during this attack... ¡°This was nothing but a diversion.¡±
¡°Fuck¡ What was downloaded. What did they get?¡± Gwen asked quietly.
¡°We don¡¯t know, we did not keep anything highly classified in the computer banks, but who knows what they were after. We will be looking into that as soon as we have everything back up and running¡± Silu sighed, ¡°This is going to get worse before it gets better.¡±
72 hours of suit flight later, Growrmun Slipped into the waiting courier craft. It was little more than a subspace-capable single-person pod. Growrmun had welded bits to it to make it appear like trash and programed it to stay dormant until it reached the asteroid field, then bribed one of the Brig¡¯s captains to dump it with the rest of the trash. He shed the extra thrusters and the oxygen pod before climbing into the cockpit of the minimalist craft. He hooked everything up to its onboard computer and started a small burn toward the beacon. It would take him a week to creep along the edge of the asteroid field to get to the beacon unnoticed enough to make the jump. He took a sip of the nutrient paste that would keep him alive until he finished his mission.
¡®Soon now everyone will see you and your kind, Demon¡¯ he smiled to himself, leaving the vessel on autopilot.
Chapter 44
Clint tucked the tiller under an arm as he watched the two sisters sun bath. It was late summer, and the two women were on the cabin basking in the warm summer conditions.
The winds were light, the barest of gusts neared a paltry 7knots. The main sail was up for rocking stability but was not providing much driving power today. A massive billowing almost bag-like sail was a fly from the forestay. Mac had ordered the asymmetric Spinnaker in the lightest fabric he could find that would still be durable, it was a deep blue solid color with the Auburn and silver crest of Helyon at its center. Clint¡¯s mind drifted over the last several month''s experiences¡.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
-1week after the Brrush¡¯ celebration.-
Clint walked up the elevated walkway toward the Tram station nearest his lodging at his brother¡¯s massive house. He stepped through the sliding doors to wait for the tram ¡®I wonder what those two have pla¡¡¯
Clint found out as Hera and Frie startled him as they stepped out from where they were sitting, and each grabbed one of his hands.
Frie pulled herself close, pressing herself against his arm as she pulled close to him ¡°boo¡± she whispered in his ear.
Hera wouldn¡¯t be outdone and leaned in as well, brushing her nose ever so slightly against the side of his neck to take in his scent. ¡°Frie¡¯s right, you do smell good¡± she coo¡¯d into his ear.
¡°Girls¡.¡± Mac half warned and half pleaded. They both finally relented and stopped teasing him... neither one had released his hands, however. Clint breathed a calming sigh. ¡°What are you two doing here, I thought we were meeting in town.¡±
¡°That¡¯s what we told you¡¡± Hera said with a grin as the high-speed tram showed itself as it slid into the station on its single rail.
¡°So¡. What are we actually doing?¡± Clint asked.
¡°You¡¯ll see,¡± Frie said as they boarded the tram.
The doors closed as the three took a seat. Clint sighed internally as he was being cuddled up against from both sides again. He was about to protest when he noticed the slightest of shivers. It was still ¡®deep winter¡¯ for this part of Delmar.
¡°Oh, come here you two¡± he pulled his hand free to wrap his arm around them both and pulled them to his core. ¡°I¡¯m guessing this isn¡¯t something normally done in winter?¡±
¡°Not really.¡± Hera said, snuggling down into him.
¡°We are headed to the Hall, there is a big fireplace that is kept going all winter, we want to get to know you, and for you to get to know us.¡± Frie finished.
The tram slowed after a few more minutes to reveal the stop built into the Helyon tribe¡¯s de facto capital building, event center. The three walked into the main hall to feel a blast of warmth coming from a fireplace that was built into the back wall of the main floor where the music stage was usually assembled. The would-be dance floor was no more, replaced with deep cushioned furniture that half resembled a Delmar style bed with backrests. ¡®Oh boy¡¯ thought Clint as the sisters jumped into one of these titanic couch/bed things and he settled into an edge. Hera and Frie had seen his discomfort and decided to give him a little space, but only a little as they settled in next to the roaring fire.
¡°So... Is this a game of 20 questions? Or life story time?¡± Clint asked warily.
¡°20 questions?¡± Hera asked.
¡°Um, a human game, where we all take turns asking one question each.¡± Clint explained, leaning back against the backrest. The roaring fire both calmed his nerves and created an infuriatingly romantic setting.
¡°Hmm I quite like that,¡± Frie nodded
¡°Me as well, how do you want to play,¡± Hera said.
¡°Since I¡¯m going be the one double-teamed, I¡¯ll ask questions that both of you have to answer, and then you can each ask a question for me to do the same.¡± Clint offered.
¡°I¡¯ll go first,¡± Frie said, ¡°let¡¯s get the obvious out of the way, how old are you?¡±
¡°By your calendar, somewhere around 23-24 or so. By the Sol calendar, I¡¯m 25.¡± Clint answered.
¡°How long have you known Mac?¡± Hera asked.
¡°My whole life, our families were neighbors during our childhood. We¡ we were in same classes in school most years¡¡± Clint mentioned somewhat hesitantly.
¡°Wait, I thought you two were brothers?¡± Frie blurted out, ¡°Wait, I''m sorry. Your turn¡±
¡°It''s fine¡± Clint dismissed, ¡°How about you two, a gentleman never asked a lady her age, but you opened the door so..¡±
¡°I''m 19¡± Frie said she saw Clints face smooth in shock, ¡°It''s not like that! Our species become adults Mentally and physically at about 15 of our years, we generally do not claim any younger than 17 of our years, and we stop ¡®developing¡¯ until we are 24 years old. It has to do with how quickly we had to mature and reproduce being a non-apex species on our planet. I¡¯ve actually been an orbital Shuttle pilot since I was 15.¡± She said quickly, ¡°I take it that Humans don¡¯t develop as quickly?¡±
¡°No,¡± Clint began relaxing visibly, ¡°we are not considered adults until 18 of our years of age, we are capable of reproduction much sooner; but our brains continue to mature until about 18-20 years old¡± Clint said, looking his same question to Hera.
¡°I¡¯m 26 of our ¡®years¡¯ old.¡± She said somewhat ashamed, ¡°I should be bonded by now, but I loved being on a starship. I wanted to make captain before¡¡± She started to Hug herself as a flashback of her ship¡¯s destruction hooded her eyes for a moment.
Clint reached over and put a hand on her shoulder. She smiled at him before asking a question of her own once more, ¡°How long were you two together as flight crew.¡± She asked.
¡°8 years,¡± Clint said simply. ¡°We walked into the training facility together at 17 with a letter from Uncle Martin. The program we went into was a 3 year training program, so we were allowed in a year before we became adults because we wouldn¡¯t be seeing combat until after we came of age.¡± His eyes shadowed his own memories.
Clint shook himself and changed the subject, ¡°Here¡¯s one for you two, what do your parents think of me?¡± He smirked at their exchanged glances.
¡°They, know¡ about you¡ They know that you are human... They aren¡¯t happy about not being part of this, but they understand¡ They will probably grill you when they get back if we are still figuring this out when the ships return for the season.¡±
¡°They have been trying to get Hera¡¯ Hitched for years.¡± Frie admitted, ¡°I don¡¯t want to be pushed away if they¡¡¡±
This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
¡°You wont be, even if I have to stop this whole thing and explain how I feel to the two of them.¡± Clint said darkly. The two of them flinched slightly at his tone, ¡°Sorry, in my culture, the male oftentimes is the one to pursue the female. I¡¯m still not used to being the one chased.¡±
They asked menial questions the rest of the day and into the night. Clint shared Mac¡¯s pention for day bags and had brought snacks and drinks. He stood up to throw some wood on the fire and when he turned around he saw the two whispering to each other.
¡°Clint, we want to ask a... sensitive question. Please don¡¯t be mad at us.¡± Hera said quietly.
Clint smiled, projecting calmness when he was worried as hell, ¡°It¡¯s ok, go ahead. We will have to learn the not-so-nice part of each other eventually¡± he steeled himself for questions about his time in the war... So many over the years had asked him these, and it always ended up coming up one way or another.
¡°That night before the Brrush¡¯, when you explained to us about your people¡¯s physical desires¡ Have you ever¡ um¡¡± Hera faltered for the words.
¡°I have..¡± Clint said gently, watching their faces closely. Frie turned to look at him fully, she was intrigued more than shocked or appalled. Hera was more reserved.
¡°Can you... explain? It¡¯s not something that is done in our species... We want to know¡¡± Frie said.
¡°I¡¯ve been intimate with one human female in my life. Like I said before, Humans don¡¯t have the same mental bonding dangers associated with intimacy.. We were both in a dark place and needed comfort. We ¡®had sex¡¯ a couple of times before Mac and I were given our next orders. Humans call it a ¡®fling¡¯. I don¡¯t even know if she survived the war. I¡¯m sorry if that taints me somehow.¡± Clint said, holding their eyes in his own.
The two of them looked at each other before crawling to either side of him and cuddling in, ¡°It doesn¡¯t, but it hurt you to admit it to us knowing our culture. Thank you for being honest with us.¡± Hera said.
¡°My turn¡± Clint said, ¡°how does Delmar affection work, outside of claiming. I don¡¯t want to do something that would be considered wrong, or to far.¡±
¡°For trusted loved ones; like immediate family and close family, it is not uncommon for us to curl up in one bed during visits. Personal space is nonexistent there. We do it because our body temperature drops at night, In the winter, it gets pretty uncomfortable alone.¡± Frie said.
¡°For situations like ours, it would not be uncommon for us to share a bed for sleeping, but other than that and what you call ¡®teasing¡¯. Not much happens. The ¡®teasing¡¯ isn¡¯t intentional. We aren¡¯t used to a male being so sensitive to physical contact.¡± Hera said even as she twirled a lock of his hair in her hand.
¡°What do you think of my people, so far¡± Frie asked
¡°I think you know how I feel about you two, the rest I am still learning. I¡¯m not as good at not scaring the civilian populace, so I sometimes terrify some poor guy or gal with a tooth-filled laugh, or look.¡± Clint admitted with a chuckle, ¡°It¡¯s like I¡¯m Konan the Barbarian or something. It¡¯s a weird feeling, sometimes I¡¯m not sure I dislike it.¡± he flashed a very human evil smile. He felt Hera stir uncomfortably, ¡°Sorry¡± He kissed her on the top of the head gently, but felt her stiffen. ¡°Ok, what did I do.¡± he asked
¡°What did you mean by what you just did?¡± Frie was worried.
Clint smiled and leaned down to kiss her on the head as well, ¡°It''s something Humans do to comfort those they care about. It¡¯s not considered sexually intimate. A father might kiss his child on the head to console him about a hurt finger, or broken toy.¡± he said. He felt both of them relax a little. ¡°We can play 20 questions in the Tram; it¡¯s dark out and I have an idea. Mind if I crash at your place?¡± He smiled as their faces lit up.
¡°I¡¯ll order food on the way there.¡± Hera said whipping out her communicator.
It started to rain as they reached their destination station and the jungle decided to drench them as they ran to the duplex¡¯s that the sisters shared. Frie¡¯s home was a touch closer, and they dove in the door laughing as the storm reached full force.
Frie looked at Clint as his body was steaming from the sprint through the rain. Hera started heading for the bathroom to change and Frie followed her sister, as Clint made for the guest bathroom and pulled out a change of basic t shirt and pants from his pack. When he came out Frie was answering the door as the food was once again delivered and He noticed the two of them were basically in silky form fitting Pajama pants and shirts. ¡®God fucking dammit, these two just won¡¯t give me a break¡¯.
They ate and Chatted until the food was all gone. Clint pulled a pad with some Human Movies subtitled in Delmar.
¡°So what do you guys think of Humanity so far..¡± Clint asked as he set up the tablet on the table in front of their smaller couch.
¡°You¡¯re¡ Intense¡± Hera said softly, she had sat down next to clint. ¡°It¡¯s terrifying sometimes, and I know you are holding back most of the time¡¡± She looked away slightly.
¡°I want to know...¡± Frie said as she walked in. Clint stood to refill his water.
¡°Want to know what.¡± Clint said as she met him half way.
¡°How intense you Humans actually are.¡± She smirked as she intentionally slid against him as they passed.
That wasn¡¯t going unanswered this time. Hera gasped and Frie squeaked in surprise as Clint''s cup of water clattered to the floor as he spun with the totality of his human agility in lighter gravity, grabbing Frie around the shoulders, and he spun her around to press her back against the wall firmly without injuring her. She dropped the cups she was holding in surprise as she Met Clint''s gaze. He was piercing her soul with his eyes and the Hungry look on his face made her whole body seize up in primal terror while her mind raced in equal parts fascination, fear, and exhilaration. He pushed her up against the wall firmly with his entire body up against her¡¯s. She saw his smile broaden as he realized she was not wearing any supporting undergarments beneath her Pajamas.
¡°Do you trust me.¡± He said in that low voice that practically rumbled from his chest into her soul.
Frie Gulped, eyes still fixed on his for a long moment, before slowly nodding.
As soon as she did, he released her shoulders, keeping her there with his own body weight up against her, he lowered his head to her neck and half whispered half growled into her soul as his lips brushed her neck with every syllable, ¡°This is for teasing me.¡± He said as her body shuddered at his breath and the brushes of his lips as he spoke. She shuddered again as he brushed his lips against her neck in soft barely imagined Kisses that set her sense of touch ablaze. He worked his way up the left side of her neck and she felt herself arch her back into him on its own only to freeze as she felt his hands slide just under the edge of the bottom of her shirt. His touch was soft, teasing her skin along her sides and stomach as he slowly slid them up her body. He moved them up in time to the kisses on her neck. His lips reached her jaw line just as his thumbs lightly brushed the undersides of her breasts before his hands dropped just slightly to rub up and down her sides without fondling her.
¡°Clint...?¡± she barely whimpered... he pulled his head away just far enough to let her meet his gaze, his lips were bare millimeters from hers but he refused to kiss her. She was breathing heavily, her instincts were screaming at her, part run, part something¡ else. Delmar was not supposed to feel passion outside of the claiming, but She was eyes locked with a man she had not claimed, begging internally that he take her. Yet, she could feel it. There was no claiming happening.
¡°Mac told me the claiming includes a kiss..¡± he breathed onto her lips, ¡°I will go no further, and this is the only time I will show you this until this is over, but you must understand what I feel¡¡± he went back down and kissed Frie more strongly on the crook of her kneck and shoulder. Smiling a bit as she shuddered involuntarily, ¡°¡what I want to do, every time you get close to me¡±. He looked her in the eyes once more before releasing her.
Frie¡¯s Chest Heaved repeatedly as she caught her breath. She looked up at him to see the Apex was once more tucked away as he smiled gently at her with a touch of worry ¡®he¡¯s worried he went to far¡¯. She wouldn¡¯t have that. Frie took two steps toward him before placing her hands on his chest, leaning in and giving him a single kiss on the neck like he had done to her, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± she whispered to him. ¡°You were right, I needed to know. I didn¡¯t realize your reactions were quite so¡ intense.¡± She looked over his shoulder and nodded before stepping back.
Clint turned to find Hera standing in front of him as she whispered, ¡°Frie is right, you are not Delmar. We need to understand¡. I need to understand¡¡±
Clint saw her apprehension, Frie was always the teaser. Hera tended to be more timid and cuddly. She did not need the brutal wake-up call that Frie had. This time Clint moved slowly, locking his eyes into Hera¡¯s as she stiffened much like Frie as he let his barriers down again. He didn¡¯t push her up against the wall. This time he lowered his chin and silently stalked the few steps between them. Moving ever so slowly he took Hera around the waist with his hands and pressed her to himself. He repeated what he had done to Frie, and he felt her trembling at his touch. He heard her gasp as his started brushing his lips to her neck and sliding his hands under her shirt. He paused when he felt her arms reach for his as if to stop him, before she obviously changed her mind and rested her hands around his waist as he resumed... the same gentle brushes of lips on neck, the barest touch of his fingers up her sides ending in the same gentle swipe of the underside of her breasts. He finished with the same single kiss on the neck and withdrew from her.
¡°That was¡ wow¡ That¡¯s how you feel when...¡± her breathless whisper was ragged under the heaves of her chest, as she fought for the control to calm herself.
¡°Yes, I¡¯m better at controlling it, because I have lived with those urges my entire life. But it is there, even right now...¡± Clint whispered before pulling both girls into a much more reassuring embrace, ¡°I¡¯m truly sorry if I terrified you just now... I just didn¡¯t know how else to try to explain to you what you would be jumping into if one of you chose to claim me. I won¡¯t say that it is always this way with all Humans, but You two have chosen me. I need you to know who you have chosen. This¡ and what my people''s war did to me and My brother.¡±
They sat together on the couch, the pad forgotten, ¡°Tell us when you are ready...¡± Frie said finally, ¡°We haven¡¯t asked because we can tell it¡¯s painful for you.¡±
Clint smiled at the two of them before drawing them into himself for a reassuring hug, ¡°If I can''t talk about it with you, then I don¡¯t deserve you..¡± He took a deep breath before starting ¡°It started with a school trip to the North of my Home city¡..¡±
The two of them had returned to the master bedroom and came back with a more modest addition of braws and underwear under their Pj¡¯s. They had been naturally horrified by the majority of his story... he had spared them nothing. Like Mac, Clint¡¯s wartime body count numbered in the thousands. He had expected them to need space after he finished his story. He had been too shocked to resist when they took his hands and pulled him into the master bedroom, pushing him into the middle of the circular Delmar-style bed before crawling up beside him on either side and resting their heads on pillows next to his. This did not feel like their teasing, and Clint realized that they were trying to comfort him.
¡°Sleep, you don¡¯t need to be alone after reliving that.¡± It was Frie, She was taking the lead on this one; and Hera just nodded, not saying a word.
Clint just nodded and pulled them close, ¡°Thank you.¡± He mumbled before passing out from pure psychological exhaustion.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
-now-
Clint smiled at the memory. Things smoothed out much more quickly after that. The two girls still teased him occasionally, but he gave as good as he got. He had noticed that Frie was beginning to tease him a bit more than Hera. He wondered if that was something to do with their little ¡°competition¡±. He had long since stopped worrying about that part of it. The last several months had seen Frie noticeably fill out as promised, and Clint was having trouble keeping his hands off of her at times...
The water was perfect for light wind sailing today. The ship barely rocked, and the Girls were enjoying themselves in the sun. The Delmar truly loved warm weather. The wind finally died down the last hour of the day and Clint was forced to Motor back to the Spot where Mac had left her. Mac was currently at the soon-to-be-finished Port Royal. Today was just a day''s sail to enjoy the wonderful weather, and soon Clint was back at the apartment complex that contained both of their homes.
¡°See you guys tomorrow?¡± Clint said as they headed into Frie¡¯s home.
¡°Ya, We are going to go to see the top of the canopy. There is a Hiking area that can take us to the top of the Jungle¡± Frie said before heading inside.
¡°See ya tomorrow,¡± Hera said, giving him a quick hug.
¡°Bye,¡± Clint said. It was still light as he made it to Mac¡¯s house to be greeted by Lyrian bouncing the twins on her lap, hugging them fiercely.
Clint''s face dropped to seriousness, her distraught expression registering ¡°What happened¡¡±
Lyri waved a finger and stepped-up upstairs to put the little ones down for bed. She came back down the stairs and flung herself around Clint in a desperate embrace,
¡°Port Royal was attacked¡.¡± She sobbed into his shoulder. ¡°No one will tell me anything¡. Clint¡ Mac went up there today¡ I can¡¯t reach him¡¡±
Chapter 45
Mac worked his injured shoulder around. The human Medic had patched him up nicely; and the Delmar doctor on the station was busy looking over his scans, still not quite believing Mac¡¯s story. It had been several hours since the attack, and communication with the planet was still half an hour from being online.
Mac had taken a shower and had his pants cleaned. Considering his ride was currently crushed under a makeshift boarding pod, Mac was stuck, at the station, for the moment. He wandered back into the station command center and placed the rifle he had gotten from the armory back into its slot. After, Mac nabbed a box of pistol ammunition off the shelf to top his own personal expenditures off. He had just finished refilling his personal magazines when Silu walked in to be intercepted by a human officer from the reinforcement transport shuttle that had been scrambled from Delmar.
¡°Comms are back up commander, Delmar is asking for a report. It appears nobody there knows whether Port Royal still stands.¡± The man said.
¡°I see, here¡± Silu handed him a small data stick, ¡°here is the report from about an hour ago. Send it with the all-clear message. Un-encrypt the data link between us and Delmar. Whoever did this is long gone, no point in making loved ones suffer.¡±
A couple of minutes later, Mac¡¯s communicator blew up with messages from the civilian channels flooding in. Lyri was frantic, but Clint was with her. Good. He typed a quick message *I''m ok, we held. I¡¯ll be back on the morning shuttle with Greg. I¡¯ll tell you about it when I get home. *
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°Frie?¡± Frie wasn¡¯t quite asleep, she rolled over to the sound of her older sister¡¯s voice.
¡°Can¡¯t sleep?¡±she asked her older sister.
¡°No¡. I''m worried.¡± Hera said as Frie pulled her into a forehead touch that was the Delmar version of a hug.
¡°We got the all clear. Everyone on the station is safe..¡± Frie said. They had been a part of the message conversation since the news broke. Lyrian was inconsolable until Mac sent everyone the ¡°I''m ok¡± message.
¡°It¡¯s not that¡. I don¡¯t think¡. I don¡¯t know if I am strong enough¡ not right now.¡± Hera said.. ¡°for Clint¡¡± she finally admitted, but continued, ¡°I lost everything. My ship, my crew, my captain¡ I don¡¯t even know if I want to return to space at all¡.¡±
¡°Hera¡¡± Frie started before being interrupted.
¡°Frie, it¡¯s not just this¡ I¡¯ve seen how you react to him when he teases us back. That one night he let his guard completely down. It was so¡. Intense¡.. when he touched you, I was sure HE was going to be the one; like he was claiming you..¡± Hera paused as Frie bit her lip remembering the caress of Clints hands and lips on her.
¡°He did it to you, too.¡± Frie said, trying to comfort her sister¡
¡°I didn¡¯t react the way you did¡I felt every touch, every brush on my neck, but I wasn¡¯t electrifying. I didn¡¯t feel the attraction. Only the intensity of him¡I know I am safe with him¡ I knew he wasn¡¯t going to do anything to me¡ I was even ok with him showing me what Human physical passion was.. but I¡ I didn¡¯t like it Frie, at least not right now.¡± Hera admitted. She wasn¡¯t crying, she wasn¡¯t upset. She was resigned, ¡°He¡¯s not right for me¡ He will always be the one that saved me.. and I want him as close to me as family.. but I know he is not my mate¡¡± Hera took a deep breath before finishing, ¡°He is yours. I began to feel it from that first demonstration. You feed off his energy, sister. You two are perfect for each other¡±
Frie¡¯s heart leapt¡ but she refused to jump just yet, ¡°are you sure? Like, really sure.¡±
¡°I am, little sister. I am...¡± Hera nodded.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Mac ended up catching a Redeye transport back to Delmar with about half of the reinforcements that got sent during the previous days¡ entertainment¡ The other half had stayed to be security for the near future. Mac had struck up a conversation with the grunts. And one soon to be Delmar freight or Captain with a bandage over his eye..
¡°Found out you are laser proof the hard way?¡± Mac chuckled, ¡°James Mackenzie Grarzia¡± he shook the man¡¯s hand.
¡°Jake irving.. getting shot with a laser sucks¡± the younger man chuckled.
Mac pulled down his shirt to show the bandage near his collar bone, ¡°fucker got me with a rifle at 20 meters. Doc says it never made it past the muscle. I¡¯m not sure how I feel about being literally laser proof¡. Wait¡ Irving.. you¡¯re the New Captain of Traveler.¡±
¡°I am. I start training in her once this heals¡± Irving tapped his bandage.
Max chuckled then froze as he put his hand in his pocket. A belly laugh escaped him as he pulled out the spare eye patch from his pocket. He tossed it to the soon to be captain, ¡°looks like you¡¯ll be needin¡¯ this more than I.¡±
An hour and 40 minutes later, Max touched Vito down at home. He had taken the aircar to the space port for the morning shuttle, and decided to land the car at the hanger so he didn¡¯t wake the house.
Mac quietly crept in the front door to see Clint and Lyri on their more human shaped main couch. She was covered in a blanket with her head on Clint¡¯s lap. He was gently petting her head absently while ¡°planes, trains, and automobiles¡± played softly on the viewer. He turned to see Mac come in and had a look of relief mixed with an apology on his face.
¡°She didn¡¯t want me to leave.¡± he whispered to Mac as he came and sat down.
¡°Welcome to Delmar culture. You are her family, they are much more dependent on close family contact than we are. You did fine.¡± Mac whispered.
Lyrian¡¯s eyes fluttered open as she heard Mac''s voice and felt his emotions sift into the back of her mind. She smiled up at him, ¡°Tha thu tr¨¤th (you are early)¡± she mumbled.
Mac smiled at her choice of language, ¡°Fhuair mi d¨¬reach air ais. (I just got back).¡±
She sat up and looked at the clock on the wall. It was an old human style analog time piece that had been calibrated to Delmar units. ¡°The twins will wake soon¡± she switched back to English.
Mac followed her up the stairs as they took care of the two little ones. Lyri was barely conscious, clearly spent.
Mac got her to bed and turned on a space heater in their room that he used when she needed to sleep, but he still had to work. She pouted a little at the action until Mac planted a kiss/nip on her lips, ¡°I won¡¯t be long, I need to talk to Clint for a moment.¡± He whispered as he covered her in an extra blanket. He could feel her skin rapidly cooling as her Delmar biology betrayed her need to sleep.
Mac gently closed the master bedroom door and silently crept down the stairs as Clint still sat on the couch watching the famous Chris Farley in one of his iconic roles.. Mac made for the kitchen and grabbed a couple of Human Lagers, cracking them open and settled onto the couch.
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¡°Well¡. That was exciting.¡± His chuckle was dark as he handed the beer to his brother. The range of the emotional bond that Mac shared with Lyri was short. About 10 meters or so. The couch was just ¡®out of range¡¯, so Mac wasn¡¯t worried about waking her up.
¡°How bad..¡± Clint asked, taking a pull of the offered beverage.
¡°All things considered; we barely took a scratch. Aunt Gwen is a bit banged up, and Ami is apparently laser proof, she took 57 hits keeping our aunt alive. Gwen will need some time for her elbow to recover but the hit to her leg was just muscle damage. She refused to leave the station, and is being treated there... Apparently, the thicker parts of humans are also laser rifle proof,¡± Mac chuckled as he pulled his shirt down showing the bandage, ¡°fuckin lizard/bearded dragon mother fucker nailed me at barely 20 meters. Scan says it barely made it most of the way through the muscle. It didn¡¯t even bleed¡¡±
Clint took a long pull, ¡°the Galaxy may be way more fragile than we imagined.¡±
¡°Yea¡. Well, it was a setup¡ someone got into the data banks¡ including the jump codes for the Delmar beacon. We can change those, but they also got all the CCTV¡from the fight¡± Mac said softly,
¡°I don¡¯t follow¡± Clint said carefully.
¡°The fight was¡. Messy¡ and very one sided¡¡± Mac pulled up his data pad and ran the footage for Clint.
¡°Jesus¡ Did we record any outgoing transmissions?¡± Clint asked quietly as the footage of human after human dismembering supposed some of the strongest Unity species.
¡°Not yet¡ whoever has the copy is still in the system. We still don¡¯t know how they got off the station¡.¡± Mac trailed off.
¡°They could edit this and make some serious trouble on the diplomatic side.¡± Clint mumbled. Shutting the tablet down and taking another pull from his bottle. ¡°I need some advice¡ on the girls¡¡±
¡°Oh? Mac turned fully to his brother, ¡°Did something happen today?¡±
¡°Not today¡ but¡ I¡¯m falling for one of them. Pretty hard.¡± Clint admitted, staring into his bottle.
¡°I think Frie is falling for you too, brother.¡± Mac smiled as Clint¡¯s face whipped around to look at him, ¡°you¡¯ve always had a type, Nitro.¡± Mac finished.
Clint finally snorted, ¡°Fair, but I¡¯m having trouble reading the two of them. Both are always so hands-on.¡±
¡°Lyri was the same way. Skin contact is very important to them. I think it has something to do with their skin temperature changes and how family units¡¯ bond in winter. It saved my life.¡± Mac mumbled the last part.
¡°Oh?¡± It was Clint¡¯s turn to ask.
¡°Brother, when I found out that earth was 20 years away with Unity tech¡ That I could not go home¡ I made an excuse about needing some time ¡ I was going to drink myself into a stupor. And when I was done with my bottle, I was going to end it. Lyri ran to my quarters after her shift ended and begged to be let in. This was well before she claimed me¡ before everything. I had a 6th of a bottle left to go, and a pistol just inside the desk drawer. She wrapped herself around me and didn¡¯t let go. I don¡¯t think she knows about the last bit of my plan. But she spent several days with me, just holding me, forcing me to talk to her about my home, keeping me from drinking myself under again.¡± Mac finished, draining the last of his beer.
¡°But what about their ways. I don¡¯t really have a say, unless I break with my promise to them, and with their culture.¡± Clint said finishing off his own drink.
¡°A bridge for tomorrow¡± Mac clamped his brother on the shoulder, ¡°tonight. Sleep.¡±
Clint headed for his room and Mac snuck into the master bedroom, stripping down for bed before turning the space heater off and crawling under the covers toward Lyri. He lay in his normal spot and waited. Right on que, a soft grumble came from his sleeping angel as the room started to cool. Her unconscious migration landed her in his arms, and his bubble of warmth as predicted, and he wrapped his arms around her body and passed to unconsciousness.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Gregory had taken a more normally scheduled shuttle back from Port Royal the following morning. He smiled as Marg met him at the shuttle terminal. She checked over him for wounds before relaxing, kissing him deeply. He returned it and wrapped her up in his arms¡
¡°Mom?¡± An adult female voice gasped.
Marg turned quickly to see her oldest daughter Cam¡¯iel staring wide eyed at the two of them. Her daughter was flanked by 3 confused young boys and a very unamused Delmar Man.
¡°Mom¡. Who is this¡¡± Marg¡¯s daughter asked again flatly.
Marg froze for a minute before feeling a calming hand on the small of back. ¡°Cam¡¯iel, I would like to meet Greg, Commodore of the United Sol Navy. We are together.¡± She stated.
30 long, silent minutes later, the group was in Marg¡¯s home.
¡°What the hell is going on?!?¡± Marg raised an eyebrow at her daughter¡¯s outburst as soon as they were indoors.
¡°Sit down Cam.¡± Marg tried, but her daughter was having none of it.
¡°No! You tell me what the hell you are doing. And what the hell you have been doing with him! Your destro¡¡.¡±
¡°SIT. DOWN.¡± It was not yell. It was statement of fact dripping in command with a promise of fury.
Everyone turned to see Gregory with his arms crossed, rage flickered at the edges of his features as he forced all emotion from his expression.
¡°You don¡¯t get to speak human; I should kick you out the door mysel¡¡¡± Cam¡¯iel¡¯s husband got a little too close during his fist-clenching advance on Greg. A human arm wrapped in corded muscle that might as well have been steel snapped out and a vice wrapped around the man¡¯s throat.
Greg dropped all pretenses, letting his face and body show the disgust and rage inside. He gently increased the pressure. Making sure not to trigger any bruising while closing the man¡¯s airways with one fist. He drew the man¡¯s face to within inches of his.
¡°I have enough blood on my hands to drown your entire species, boy¡¡± he spat in perfect Delmar. Then he spread his face in a teeth-filled humorless smile, ¡°You may test that at your pleasure.¡±
Greg then released the taller man, allowing him to take his first breath in over a minute. Turning to the rest of the group, ¡°Now, let¡¯s start from the beginning, shall we¡± his face was once again wearing a pleasant expression. Cam¡¯iel and her still gasping husband sat down, too shocked at the display from Greg to argue. He sat next to Marg who pointedly took his hand and wrapped her fingers through his before leaning into a quick hug.
¡°Ok, from the beginning¡¡± Marg began with the Assassination attempt of then Captain Silu aboard the Lucid Traveler, followed by their fight to get out of the system. She shriveled into Greg¡¯s arm¡¯s when she had to talk about Brayton¡¯ death. The Cam¡¯iel¡¯s eyes widened when Greg effortlessly scooped her mother up onto his lap and into an encompassing embrace as she broke down momentarily. The Humans eyes hooded slightly and glistened for a moment until Marg pulled herself back together and slid back off Greg¡¯s lap. Their meeting was next and how they grew closer. Finally, Marg was done and a much more thoughtful Cam sat next to a still angry, but somewhat more... careful Husband.
¡°Mom, what about father...¡± Cam finally said.
¡°Honey, I loved your father dearly, but he has been gone for some time. He will never be replaced. I care about Greg; He is special to me. It''s different from your father, more complicated maybe.¡±
¡°May I,¡± Greg asked Marg gently. She nodded, ¡°Cam,¡± he ignored the Husband. It was clear the man was not listening. ¡°I am not Delmar; I do not expect a claiming. Your mother knows this already, but I had a wife and a family on Mars. My Son is still alive, but the war that claimed half of my species took my wife. Marg and I, what we have, is not blind passion or replacing lost ones. I am no more capable of that than she is. We are two adults who have found some Peace and companionship with each other. In time, I hope to bring my son to this side of the Galaxy. Humanity may not be as mono-cultural, but many of us have as strong a stance on family as your people do. Marg and I are taking this slow, the Human way. You must trust your mother, even if you don¡¯t trust me.¡±
¡°You¡¯re a Killer, you said so.. earlier.¡± Cam¡¯iel winced at her husband¡¯s tone as he glared at Greg not willing to go a second round with him.
¡°I am. I have killed thousands of my own kind in defense of millions more. I do not shy from that. You are fortunate to have not experienced your people''s war for their very survival.¡± Greg stated flatly. The man opened his mouth, then closed it again.
¡°You are free to unpack in the guest rooms¡± Marg stated getting up, ¡°Gregory and myself have reservations for lunch to get to.¡± And with that Marg took Greg¡¯s hand and they walked out of the house.
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Hera and Frie stood as they arrived at the Tram station to Mac and Lyri¡¯s place.
Frie looked at Hera, she was more relaxed than she had been in months ¡®maybe she is ok with thi¡¡¯
Her thoughts were cut short as Hera betrayed her, shoving her out of the tram before closing the door and waving goodbye.
¡°Good luck!!!¡± Hera waved as the Tram began to return to the city centers. Frie gave her a rude gesture before her heart caught in her throat. It was almost midday and there were hikers out and about enjoying the jungle this far away from the bustle of Helyon center. She made her way to the house that Clint was staying at. Lyrian must have seen her coming, because as soon as she got to the door, her lifelong friend opened the door.
¡°Hey you!¡± She said pulling Frie inside. ¡°It happened didn¡¯t it¡± Lyri said quietly, noting Hera¡¯s abscence.
¡°Hera is not interested anymore... Clint is too... intense for her¡¡± Frie said nervously, ¡°I need a witness... She surprised me by leaving me out of the tram and going home.¡± she said.
¡°It¡¯s for the best. This is for you and Clint¡± Lyri whispered,
Mac wandered around the corner drying his own hair, ¡°Sup.¡±
¡°James, we are spending the day downstairs¡ as witness.¡± Lyri said. Glancing at Frie pointedly
Mac nodded slowly, then walked over to Frie and kissed her on the forehead, ¡°Congrats Kiddo, all of the guest rooms are all completely soundproof, his is the second on the left. Nobody will disturb you¡ Go to him¡¡±
Frie nodded, she was shivering slightly with nerves and excitement as she climbed the stairs and disappeared into Clint¡¯s room.
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An oblong vaguely aquatic looking craft exited subspace at the Beacon to Delmar, it began transmitting the correct post-attack codes. It haled Port Royal
¡°Commander, The vessel registers as a Civilian transport under The Interplanetary News Guild. They are requesting permission to doc under media credentials.¡± The Coms station reported. Silu sauntered over to the station and leaned against his cane.
¡°Allow them limited Escorted access to the station. Docking Bay 7 is undisturbed from the recent unpleasantness. Clear them for Bay 7.¡± Philip stated, as Silu nodded. He approved of the young man¡¯s assessment and did not interfere. Instead, he headed to the moving walkway the Humans seemed fond of, travelling out to the docking bay with 4 of the new guards. Silu was secretly happy for the hidden blade, but he kept his officer¡¯s pistol on as he went to great the Transport.
The doors hissed as an Aging Mauk¡¯lur man disembarked with the distinctive 9 appendaged walk that was indicative of a soft invertebrate that had learned to walk upright in at least some gravity.
¡°Commander Silu of the Trade and Diplomatic Station Port Royal. To what do we owe the visit?¡± Silu greeted in G.C.
¡°Your system is a long way from the Core, Commander.¡± the Squid/octopus hybrid looking species responded. ¡°We are here to do a news piece on this ¡®humanity¡¯ you have discovered. We are on a sanctioned mission by the I.N.G. We would like to start with any non-classified or non-sensitive information you might have. Little is known outside this system. We wish to spend the first two days researching so that the correct questions may be asked.¡± The being was struggling even in this gravity. The Mauk¡¯lur were a largely aquatic species, and it took considerable training to stand in most gravities unless introduced to them as an infant. This Mauk¡¯lur was clearly not in that second category and his supporting arm/legs shook slightly.
¡°We will have the requested data sent to the ship by the end of the day. We have an aquatic section; however, it took damage during the attack, and we have not tested the water quality post-repair. Your ship will be the safest place for you for now I am afraid¡± Silu bowed a slight bow of apology.
¡°Very well, I can understand that. Thank you for the courtesy. Good day, Commander¡± The Mauk¡¯lur stated before returning to its ship.
Chapter 46
Clint rolled out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom. He still couldn¡¯t believe that Mac and Lyri had built a house with an attached bathroom for each guest bedroom. He stripped down and slapped the shower controls, he turned to stare at himself in the mirror as the shower temperature stabilized. His hair was getting a little shaggy, he would have to take a trip up to the Barber on Tranquility soon for a trim. He took that moment to do a quick lather and shave. He would use the shower to clean off the little bits of hair that always clung to the skin no matter how careful he was. That done he stepped into the Delmar style misting/raining/steaming shower, leaning into the heat and spray; but his thoughts were a million miles away.
His night had not been peaceful¡ and had involved even less sleep. His talk with his brother had made him realize that he had indeed chosen one of the two beautiful Delmar women who were courting him. He couldn¡¯t change that, and it left him feeling torn. He promised them that he would do this with them. They had taken it slow for him.. did he have the right to make this decision?
¡°Make what decision¡± Clint¡¯s eyes snapped open at the familiar voice.
He turned to the opaque door to the enormous shower/sauna to look out only to have it open. He stopped short as it revealed Frie standing there in a human string strapped floral sun dress she had traded some Delmar clothing for. She had made the trade with one of the female sailors on a trip up to see the fleet.
¡°Frie? ¡° he finally got out, too stunned to cover up.
¡°It¡¯s just me now¡¡± was all she said before she tugged at both strings and let the dress fall to the ground. She was wearing nothing underneath as she stepped through the door to the shower, closing it behind her.
Clint stayed very still as she walked up to him. She was on the shorter side of a Delmar Female, 1.7 meters head to toe. She actually had to look up to Clint who was a touch taller than Mac at 1.8 meters.
Frie stopped just shy of her breasts touching his chest. Her nipples brushed him slightly as her breathing quickened. She looked down at his chest and traced circles on it with a finger..
¡°Hera isn¡¯t coming, she.. she said you were too intense for her¡± Frie looked up at him, as he shivered with her touch. The fear and worry shone on her face, ¡°make what decision¡±
Clint slowly raised one hand to Frie¡¯s cheek, the mist rained down on both of them as he watched the water follow the contours of her body. ¡°It seems I don¡¯t need to anymore. Frie, I was terrified that it wouldn¡¯t be you standing here right now.¡± he said. She leaned into his touch on her cheek, ¡°Hera is a wonderful girl, but you are the one I want.. I¡¯ve wanted you since the day you ¡®got even¡¯ for me carrying your sister home from the hospital. I almost took you the night I decided to get payback.¡± Frie gasped a little as Clint ran his other hand up and down her side lightly, still not taking advantage of her. Despite this, her body ached into him involuntarily. Her breasts pressed against his chest as she felt his manhood twitch as it pressed up against her stomach from the front.
Clint could feel a fizzle in the back of his head, and he kept her gaze as she cupped the back of his head in her hands
¡°I take you, by the traditions of the ¡®Olde Ways¡¯ ¡± Frie whispered in the rarely spoken formal Delmar, none of the words were actually different. It was akin to reading an old King James Bible as a modern English speaker. ,¡±by the old rights.. you are mine.¡± she finished as their lips met for the first time. She kissed him deeply, and fiercely. Letting the spark he had ignited in her chest that night in the storm free to roar its heat and passion.
Each claiming was different. The rapid nature of Mac and Lyrian¡¯s beginnings made their bond trickle into existence, like a set of blinds being slowly opened on a sunny day. It was not so with Clint and Frie.. Their relationship had been slowly and meticulously built over months of cautious teasing, talking, testing, and time spent together.
There was no trickle, it was like a nuclear warhead going off inside the Hoover Dam. The Flood waters of their bond crashed into their minds like a tidal wave, Frie and Clint broke their kiss and Clint wrapped his arms around Frie as they both clung to each other as they rode the forming of their link like two life rafts tied together in a hurricane. This lasted a full minute that felt like an eternity. Frie was shaking against Clint as it subsided. Clint was no better, he could barely stand for a moment as he let out a long quavering breath.
¡°Holy shit¡± he gasped.
Moments later Frie came down from her own emotional roller coaster. She could feel him, it was more intense than she could have imagined. His Fire raged with her own as the two experienced each other¡¯s emotions fully for the first time.
Frie turned to Clint and stepped away from him. Pressing herself against the wall of the shower before taking her arms, lifting them over her head and intertwining her fingers, ¡°I have taken you, now take me. Clint, finish what you started that night in the storm.¡± She whispered as she surrendered herself to him. Then she bore her fangs at him for the first time. ¡°Don¡¯t hold back.¡± she challenged.
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Clint''s emotions crackled and bloomed like human fireworks as all barriers became nonexistent between them. He closed the distance and their bodies touched as he gently, but firmly pinned her to the wall of the shower. He leaned into her kneck and began kissing her, working his way up from her shoulder to her jaw line. She gasped a moan as she felt his manhood slide between her thighs and its length against her folds from below. The ridge of the top of his tip teased her womanhood as he rubbed back and forth. His hands followed a familiar route up her body, but did not avoid her breasts as he cupped both of them. His thumbs rubbed circles on her nipples as she bucked slightly to his touch.
¡°Where were we.¡± his voice rumbled into her ear as he finished repeating their first touch. ¡°Oh, I know¡± he whispered as he kissed his way down the other side of her neck, holding her gently aching and bucking body to the wall with his own weight. Her arms finally fell around his neck and head she sank her fingers into his mop of hair as he kissed passed her collar bone and latched onto her breasts, kissing down until his lips passed her belly button. With a scoop he lifted her in his arms as he continues to kiss down past her belly button. He was learning her, she realized just as his tongue flicked her womanhood for the first time. Fries eyes flew wide as she realized where he was headed, ¡°CLINT, what are you.. uuuoooohhhh. You don¡¯t ha¡¡± his lips latched onto the sensitive bud causing her to arch her hips to him, he took his advantage slipping her thighs to his shoulders and reaching up to fondle her nipples once more. His tongue removed all conscious thought from Frie as he teased her folds before swirling it into her entrance. Her first climax was explosive as her fingers dug into his hair, her legs wrapped around the back of his head involuntarily and he dove his tongue as deep into her as he could in response, exploring every surface in reach with long circles and swirls. Her moan was cut off in the explosion of ecstasy as he body arched, her eye rolled back and her mouth open in a long scream at the top of her lungs as she convulsed to his attention.
She was only just coming back to sentience as she felt herself be lowered down, Clint kissing every inch of her on the way back up to her breasts. Swirling the neglected one with his tongue causing another micro shudder from Frie.
Her feet never touched the ground, she felt the tip of his shaft flick across her folds before coming to rest at her entrance. Clint lowered her slightly to keep his manhood in place, but the pressure triggered another convulsion of climax from Frie. Clint¡¯s hands slipped and Frie¡¯s body weight slammed down, driving Clint¡¯s shaft into her completely in one quick slam as their hips met. Frie cried out in surprise, wrapping her legs around Clint, opening herself more to him and driving him the last bit into her. Clint grunted. Her womanhood convulsed uncontrollably at the invasion and almost drove him to climax over the next several moments. He held her tight as she shook and bucked through her ecstasy. Moans and grunts escaped her as her body slowly calmed enough for her to move under her own control.
Clint was breathing heavily. Frie could feel everything Clint was going through. She could feel him almost climax as her body betrayed her control and she rode wave after wave. She finally regained control of herself and lifted her head from his shoulder, releasing the death grip around her chest.
¡°Are you ok?¡± He asked gently kissing her gently he shifted his weight picking her up slightly, making him withdraw slightly. The motion made Frie bite her lip to keep control.
¡°I¡¯m better than ok... I can¡¯t control¡ Give me more...¡± she whimpered between deep kisses.
¡°I¡¯m not going to last¡¡± Clint gasped for air.
¡°Then don¡¯t hold back¡± Frie bit him on the lip before squeezing her legs around him and slamming him back the rest of the way into her.
Clint grunted, rocking his hips against her¡¯s as he broke her control once more. His rocks turned to thrusts. His thrusts lengthened until the ridge around his tip teased her entrance before slamming back into her. Clint could feel it, he had set every nerve of her body on fire, and she was along for the ride begging for more between moans and out right screams.
He gave it to her, driving himself into her as he came, he pumped his shaft in and out of her, following the waves of his climax with every thrust. He felt her clinch around him as his ecstasy slammed into her mind, driving her over harder than she had any time before. Be bucked into her as she did in turn. His climax lasted longer than humanly normal because of their emotional feedback loop.
They both sank to the floor of the still-running shower. Kissing and touching. Clint had gone soft some time ago.
¡°No¡¡± begged Frie refusing to get out of his lap, as they continued to explore each other. 5 min later she smiled as he began to grow into her once more. She wrapped her arms around him and began to bounce on him. She rode him there, on the floor of the still-going shower until neither one could go any longer.
Clint staggered out of the shower sometime later, grabbing two towels. Frie was having trouble standing so he wrapped her in a towel, using the last of his strength to get them both to bed. He dried her off first, tucking her in before he did the same for himself. Her body gravitated toward his as he crawled into bed. Her tail coiled around his leg, her leg wrapped around his waist, and she pressed herself up under his arm, her body drinking in his warmth.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Clint woke up that afternoon and snuck out from Frie¡¯s sleeping grasp. He put on some pants and waddled downstairs to the kitchen to find a very satisfied, if somewhat worse for wear Lyrian handing a coffee mug to a grinning Mac.
¡°Brother,¡± Mac said calmly, ¡°I told Frie the bedrooms were soundproof¡. The bathrooms are, uh, less so.¡± he finished; calmly taking a sip of his drink, never breaking from his grin.
Clint gave his brother a middle finger, and Lyri dissolved into barely suppressed giggles. Clint finally chuckled before grabbing a couple of bottles of water and heading back upstairs. He quietly slipped back into the room to hear soft moans from the bed. Their link tipped him off to Frie¡¯s dream and he set the bottles aside and snuck back into bed.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Frie¡¯s eyes fluttered open as she woke from a dream of Clint¡¯s body on Her¡¯s. Suddenly, her eyes went from fluttering to wide open as she realized how she had been woken up. She looked down to see Clint¡¯s mop of hair between her legs as his tongue did its work on her womanhood.
¡°Oh gods¡ I wasn¡¯t Drea¡ Uhhhhhhhhh dreaming that.¡± she grabbed his hair and pressed his head to herself as he sucked on her bud. He released her before kissing his way up her body to hover over her just for a moment. Her eyes widened at his intentions but could not react as he drove his manhood deep inside her from above. Her body was trapped under his as their hips grinded together... She had taught him through the link as well and he built her pleasure slowly enough for her to stay with him before bringing both to the edge and quickening his thrusts to finish with her.
¡°Whoa¡ ¡°Frie said, finally regaining her voice once more, ¡°That¡¯s a hell of a good morning.¡±
¡°Babe, it¡¯s afternoon,¡± Clint said, swirling her hair in his hand before stroking her main up and down her back making Frie shiver. ¡°Let¡¯s shower,¡± she bit her lip at him, ¡°for real this time. I want to go out with my Wife, with my love.¡± she melted at the last part. He smiled at her.
¡°I love you too.¡± She whispered into his ear before propping herself up. ¡°We can get up. As long as there¡¯s food. I¡¯m starving!¡±
Clint laughed heartily. ¡°Yes, food is involved.¡±
Chapter 47
Silu walked into his office with his morning beverage, he had become quite attached to Human coffee, even if he could only have it in very limited quantities. He sipped from his mug and settled into his chair for the morning. He grumbled as the console screen scrolled, listing even more documents requested by the I.N.G. Delegation. He had no choice in the matter, Unity sanctioned News stories were allowed any and all information that was not considered sensitive for security or trade secrets. Unfortunately, These scoop story types knew exactly where the line was. They had even requested permission to send a shuttle down to the surface of Delmar to interview people. He was forced to approve the majority of the request from the over night shift.
Silu sat back in his chair. He smelled a Hit Piece. He had a pretty good Idea of where, and whom it was aimed at. He tapped his com unit.
¡°Ambassador Gwen here¡± She sounded breathless, and Silu mentally kicked himself for forgetting about The Towering Scott¡¯s morning workout routine. She was working extra hard to make up for what she had lost because of her injuries. Icario had personally shuttled to Port Royal to perform the reconstruction of Her elbow, and the Nanites had taken care of the laser hit to her thigh. The doctors were still completely aghast at Humanities ability to be at least mildly Laser resistant¡ and of course, those records were requested by this I.N.G¡.
¡°My apologies for the interruption, can we speak when you are through? It''s about the I.N.G.¡± Silu asked
¡°Absolutely, Ill be there inside the hour, Gwen out,¡± The ambassador cut the connection and Silu sat back in his chair. Over the next hour he compiled every request made since the I.N.G.¡¯s arrival as well as all of the data known to be copied during the attack on Port Royal. He was just finishing up when a freshly showered and alert Ambassador Gwen walked into his office.
¡°Ah Ambassador, Thank you for the meeting on short notice,¡± Silu stood and shook the womans hand. She still had a slight limp, but was otherwise recovered from her harrowing experience.
¡°If this is about what I think it''s about, We may as well clear our schedules. I want to be ready for this. I¡¯ve already received a¡ request¡ for an interview at a to-be-determined date¡ I suspect an ambush¡± Gwen said flatly.
¡°I would not be surprised, this is too quickly on the heels of the attack that seemed to be a¡ diversion..¡± Silu¡¯s distaste for unnecessary bloodshed was apparent. ¡°I¡¯ve compiled everything they have requested, approved or rejected, and everything we think was copied.¡±
¡°You think we can figure out what they want, or rather, what they want to ambush us with,¡± Gwen said softly. ¡°Oh, you and Martin would get along nicely¡± She chuckled, ¡°Let us begin.¡±
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Growrmun coughed again, tasting blood this time. He had not been able to afford a quality cloned lung, but rather had to pay for a machine lung until he could purchase better care. Unity had dumped him like so much trash. The I.N.G. promised an expense-paid treatment and further employment if he were to complete this job... so far, things had transpired according to plan. His courier pod floated at the edge of the asteroid field, and he could just make out the station the Delmar and Humans called ¡°Port Royal¡±. The signal had woken him from hibernation, but his condition continued deteriorating. He was forced to wait, there was no debris, or garbage dump to cover him to the ING transport. A console light illuminated as a tight beam transmission was received,
*Hold position, two days*
Growrmun would have growled at this, but it hurt too much.. his body was in the late stages of rejecting the mechanical lung. He had a week at most before it killed him, or was replaced.
He set the timer and reactivated hibernation. It would slow his metabolic rate and therefore slow the rejection process. He prayed it would be enough as consciousness took him.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Jacob Irving sat on the bio bed in the main hospital of Tribe Helyon, ¡°So what are my options¡± he asked. He was idly spinning the eye patch Captain Mackenzie had given him in his left hand.
¡°Honestly, you have two. The Eye is gone, and there is not enough left to do a proper clone. The easiest thing to do would be to seal your socket and be done with it. However, there is another. It is still in trials, and quite frankly you would be our test subject for proof of finished product. I can tell you that if you accept, and we are successful, you would be getting all of your medical procedures for free, and you may end up with binocular vision again, as a baseline¡± Doctor Bart Gremm stated
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¡°As a baseline? What do you have in mind?¡± Irving asked.
¡°Humanity has always been capable of superior computing power and power output because of the system you call your home. However, Humans never quite figured out the Nano Tech that The Unity did, until now. I am working with a pen pal of sorts over in Sol. We believe that we can use the combination of the two to create nano-driven prosthetics. Creating an Artificial Eye that may be able to do more than just see, seems like a good place to start. Unfortunately, Wounds such as yours that do not prove fatal are nonexistent. Your Optic nerve is intact enough to rebuild, and we may be able to use it to connect your brain to a new digital eye.¡±
¡°Fuck me¡¡± Irving swore.
¡°I beg your pardon?¡± Bart asked.
¡°Sorry Doc, just an expression. How long until this would be ready?¡± Irving stated.
¡°We would do the testing now, before you left on Traveler for the season. The first prototype would be ready by the time you returned for Refit. It will not be a quick process. I¡¯m sorry, but I believe it holds promise.¡± Bart explained.
¡°Im in. Until then, I guess you would have to seal me up for the time being?¡± Jacob asked.
¡°After the tests, yes; but that will not threaten further procedures.¡± Bart reassured him.
¡°Then let¡¯s get started¡± Jacob felt excited. He hated the patch and did not want to live the rest of his life with one eye. Bart simply nodded and guided Jake through the paperwork, then to do some more tests.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
It had been two days since the heated conversation between Marg and her oldest daughter. Marg had refused to not include Greg for any of their time visiting, much to the dismay of Cam¡¯s husband, and the departure farewells were warm, if not a little strained. Greg held Marg¡¯s hand as the family departed the transport shuttle for a neighboring Tribe where her daughter had married in.
¡°I hope this doesn¡¯t stir up too much trouble for you.¡± Greg pulled Marg close into a side hug, ¡°I would hate to cause a rift in your family, especially since I am shipping out so soon.¡±
¡°I know, but we knew you would be leaving. We aren¡¯t young ones anymore. I¡¯m not worried about us leaving. I am worried about you. Have the Sol contingent of Legion arrived yet?¡± She asked.
¡°They will be here within the month. Most of the Response fleets are ready to go on this side. I think Mac and First fleet are getting tired of classroom work. All that is left is joint exercises, and to deploy. The Sol ships are carrying our new beacons. The encryption is Human, and we will be the only ones who will be able to jump to them. They will serve as our ¡®on station¡¯ points.¡± Greg said. ¡°I haven¡¯t been told what they are sending. All I have been told, is that they are moving Terran and Mars designs out here as they lay keel for the next generation of combined Tech ships.¡± Greg''s voice lowered a little to keep the conversation private.
¡°I want to be there when they arrive.¡± Marg stated, ¡°I still find it hard to wrap my head around how fast your Slip Drives are capable of jumping. ¡°
¡°I should be getting an accurate arrival estimation in the next day or so. It''s not usual for them to wait this long, but its not without precedent¡± Greg shrugged, ¡°Where to next?¡±
¡°Home, maybe a Human ¡°movie night¡± would be a good idea after all the drama.¡± Marg admitted.
¡°Human Movie night it is.¡± Greg chuckled.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Clint paid the tab as he and Frie stepped out of the restaurant into the nightlife that was Tribe Helyon after dark. Clint was wearing a casual pair of jeans and a plaid button-up shirt untucked. Frie was back in her Sun Dress, which was catching a number of looks from all sides.
¡°I think they are Jelly.¡± Clint chuckled to her.
¡°I would be, I love this thing!¡± Frie gave a twirl as they headed for the parking structure that housed Vito. Mac had lent them the car for their first night out as a real couple, and Frie had decided to spend the next few days with Clint figuring out what¡¯s next.
Frie took Vito out over the water on the way home, climbing high into the atmosphere during the cloudless night. Clint could fly, he just preferred not to. ¡°We should go up there soon.¡± She mused.
¡°We might be there sooner than you think.¡± Clint returned, ¡°I am the Ambassador¡¯s chief of staff. When Port Royal is finished, I will be stationed there semi-permanently. Should I request a couple¡¯s, Berth?¡±
¡°Oh yes please.¡± Frie coo¡¯d, ¡°What would I do up there though. I¡¯m a shuttle pilot, changing over to a fighter pilot...¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know enough about what will be available when the Station is finished to say yet. But im sure you could at a minimum take a shot at the Shuttle services between it and the homeworld. I won¡¯t know more until later.¡±
¡°It¡¯s a start.¡± She said as they touched down on the air car pad and used the linked balcony around the outside of the house to slip into Clint¡¯s room without waking anyone.
Clint closed the balcony door and locked it just in time to be slammed into by Frie who proceeded to kiss him fiercely, ¡°Until then, I want more.¡± She whispered into his ear.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
It was just after midnight Gwen and Silu finally concluded their deep dive together.. Mostly eaten food punctuated the mess of Data pads and memory sticks¡
¡°So, they are going to Hit Humanity... They are going to try to turn you into the scourge of the Galaxy¡ Much like they did us...¡± Silu Spat the words.
¡°Maybe, If we let them. I take it that the instantaneous data, or near instantaneous is where people usually focus on more than legacy media outlets?¡±
¡°Some do, Others are looking to point out where The ING was wrong.¡± Silu remarked.
¡°Silu, I need you to accept the venue of the main conference room for the interview, in 4 day¡¯s time, Rig it for sound and video. They want to make a hit piece; they will have to race us. I want to be prepared to replay the entirety of our interview without them being able to equivocate or slink off¡± Gwen sighed.
¡°More coffee?¡± Silu¡¯s hands quivered slightly; He was at his limit of caffeine intake for himself.
Gwen got up, ¡°Thank you, no. Tomorrow night, we prepare for the interview and figure out where to hide all the cameras.¡±
The two stood up just as the Chief of the Watch knocked on the door. ¡°Commander, my apologies, but we found something on Sensors¡.¡±
Chapter 48
Frie¡¯s consciousness fluttered out of her slumber as the light filtered into the window. She was warm, much warmer than normal... she wrapped herself more tightly around her softly snoring heat source and looked up at Clint as his arm tightened around her as well.
¡°Morning,¡± he whispered, kissing the top of her head.
¡°Did I wake you?¡± she asked as she looked up at him nipping him under the chin before getting a proper kiss in return.
¡°I¡¯ve always slept light.¡± Clint groaned, as he stretched out while still captured by Frie. ¡°Let¡¯s get some breakfast, then I need to get to Port Royal. Aunt Gwen sent me an urgent message this morning. We can pick out some quarters while we are there, I want to add some tweaks to them while they are still being finished off.¡±
The two finally rose and took a shower that¡ almost¡ went without delay. Finally ready for the day, the two made it down the stairs to find Lyri in the kitchen and 4 plates of food on the table. Lyri was bouncing Tris on one hip, while Mac was being mauled by a very mouthy Bryton.
¡°Ow! Whelp, that ends that. Found a tooth.¡± Mac chuckled before removing his knuckle from the now unamused little one¡¯s reach. He turned to watch Clint and Frie walk in. ¡°I see you two didn¡¯t learn your lesson.¡± Mac chuckled before spooning a scoop of food into his son¡¯s mouth.
¡°Shit, you heard.¡± Clint said instantly.
¡°Enough...¡± Lyri chuckled before embracing her lifelong friend, ¡°welcome to the family¡± she said as she warmly hugged a still-confused Frie.
¡°But you said they were soundproof!¡± Frie cried out as the reason for Clint¡¯s emotions registered.
¡°I said the bedrooms were soundproof¡ you two weren¡¯t in the bedroom were you...¡± Mac said carefully barely holding an amused smirk at bay.
¡°Oh¡. My¡ Gawds!!¡± Frie¡¯s auburn coloring turned bright as she hid her head in Clint¡¯s chest in horror. Clint and Mac lost it at the same time, laughing hard enough that Mac had to set Brayton in his kiddy chair. Lyrian dissolved into a fit of giggles.
Frie refused to look at them, hiding in her human mate¡¯s chest as it heaved in laughter.
¡°It¡¯s ok, you are in good company.¡± Lyri finally composed herself.
¡°HOOOW¡± Frie was still distraught.
¡°Let¡¯s just say¡. that we are the reason that custom soundproofing¡.has been added to ¡¡a certain couples berth on Lucid Traveler¡. Silu still ribs me about noise complaints to this day.¡± Mac got out between gasps for air.
Fries eyes flew wide at that, ¡°You were on her for months¡¡±
¡°Yes, yes we were¡ luckily, Concord is a little more¡ soundproof¡¡± lyrian made a point of looking at Mac with a pronounced lower lip bite, fang and all.
Clint snarfed into his coffee, ¡°Whelp, I¡¯m never sleeping in there again.¡± The four shared a laugh at that, as there was a ring at the door.
The human nurse, Nicole Broussard, had watched over the twins when they were infants. She had become good friends with Max and Lyri and had offered to babysit for the next couple of days. The twins had taken to her. Nicole, in her very Cajun way, had convinced Lyri to get out of the house for a few days.
Mac and Clint had been called back to Port Royal. Gwen had refused to state why over the comms. Lyri and Frie were going with their men.
¡°Doc Quinn Com¡¯d earlier,¡± Lyri said with a smile, ¡°Concord is quote ¡®done.¡¯¡±
¡°Oh, I¡¯m guessing you want to go up in her¡± Mac asked with a mischievous smile, ¡°you think you are back up to shape?¡±
Lyri gave him an aggressive grin, ¡°let¡¯s find out.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Professor Quinn stood as the door to the R&D hanger opened, ¡°Ah! I was wondering when you four would make it!¡± He stood and greeted the two couples before pausing, ¡°Frie, Clint. I see congratulations are in order.¡± He gave each of them a formal Delmar Greeting.
¡°Thank you.¡± Clint said. And Frie just nodded with a smile on her face.
Mac steered the conversation as the 5 walked toward the familiar Predator crouched in the corner of the Hanger. ¡°So, you said Concord was ¡®done¡¯ but you never actually discussed what you had done to her.¡±
¡°Concord is¡ Remarkable... We have lived so many generations with limits to our power output... that it was a struggle to decide what NOT to put on Concord.¡± Professor Bart stated as he walked up from Behind the craft, ¡°In the end I believe you will be impressed.¡±
¡°First off, Concord now only has one GAU. I know you humans are fond of your kinetics, however, we wanted to add a primary weapons option that would allow you to conserve ammunition.¡± Quin began, holding up a hand to plead to continue, ¡°Humanity has never really had to worry about how efficient their energy weapons were; you simply used more power.¡±
¡°Brutally effective, with minimal complexity. It¡¯s quite brilliant¡± Bart followed up, ¡°Anyway, we were given permission to examine one of your ¡®PAC¡¯ hybrid beam and particle weapon. Your engineers and ours were able to combine our efficiency-based designs into your power generation capabilities¡¡±
Mac¡¯s eyes widened, ¡°You didn¡¯t¡. You put a PAC in concord?¡±
¡°In the exact location and dimensions of your number two GAU¡± Quinn said with a smile, ¡°It is still a fixed weapon, so you will still have to aim your craft to fire. We simply couldn¡¯t fit a targeting lens and keep your weapons doors. We know you wanted to keep your stealth as much as possible.¡±
Mac stepped to the Port side of Concord, he activated the inspection function, and a panel opened. Mac looked inside to see an emitter, not a barrel staring back at him.
¡°Its performance?¡± he asked, buttoning up Concord once again.
¡°The beam will be narrower, 34 Millimeters in Diameter to keep the clearances the same for your firing port. However, inside of 10 Kilometers; you will have the half of cutting power the PAC¡¯s mounted on your Tharsis class destroyers.¡± Bart positively beamed.
¡°That¡¯s¡ not¡ Capacitors?¡± Mac¡¯s mind finally clicked into place, ¡°What¡¯s my rate of fire?¡±
¡°One 10 second burst followed by a 35 second recharge if you use it all at once. These numbers are using max draw from Concords other systems. So, with the Slip Drive, and the Shields being charged as well as the rest of your normal systems.¡± Quinn responded.
¡°Christ almighty¡ wait¡ did you say shields?¡± Clint coughed; he had been drinking from a water bottle.
¡°Yes, you have Sol pattern shields... retrofitted with our bank-style systems using your capacitors. It takes about 2 minutes to charge.¡± Bart looked at Mac who looked concerned.
¡°We could have technically put shields on Concord when she was built, but she is a stealth platform. Shields would light her up like a firework explosion on a cloudless night...¡± Mac stated.
Quinn put a hand on his shoulder, ¡°Keep an open mind, I will explain. You are correct, We could have installed human-style shield systems without much trouble... But we chose to use a Shield power bank for a reason.¡± He walked over and picked up a drone from its charging slot, and a data pad to control it. He launched the drone and Mac noticed a few new panels on top of Concord.
¡°Those new panels, they are the panels covering your shield emitters. We chose the power bank system because we wanted you to have the most instant shield activation possible, but without having to power them up from zero. Concord can power her banks without activating her shields keeping her stealth. Mac, you are not going to be solely stealth as part of Legion¡¯s first fleet. Concord will need to be able to stand toe to toe with the enemy and take her licks. Her shield¡¯s configuration will let you stay in stealth but Give you the staying power to brawl.¡± Bart explained, pointing out the new additions.
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Mac nodded, ¡°You make a good point, and you kept her stealth. It¡¯s a good move, thank you. Anything else?¡±
Bart pulled out a pad and looked down on it, ¡°Admiral Gwen authorized, ¡®BLOCK45 ASTRI¡¯ whatever that is. The admiral told me to tell you that.
¡°Jesus tap dancing Christ¡± Mac swore.
¡°I don¡¯t follow¡± Clint said.
¡°Concord now had the AI WSO capabilities and sensor package from the TALON 4¡¯s¡. Please tell me that it doesn¡¯t have to be used.¡± Mac asked quickly, he felt Lyri¡¯s hurt worry.
¡°Yes, I am told that the Sensor¡¯s and the AI are individually activatable. Concord retains her full traditional two seat capabilities.¡± Quinn then put a massive smile on his face, ¡°The last part. I need you two to climb into your seats. Mac power up Concord if you please, everything but your propulsion will do.¡±
Mac gave the Brothers Grem a sideways glance as he and Lyri climbed into their warship. Bart put on a wire headset. Mac initiated Concord and the canopy closed.
*Start up initiated* the familiar voice of Jarvis spoke through the speakers in the cockpit *Welcome Captain, and Misses Grarzia. Please relax, Initiating Alpha Synce Selection 2*
¡°Wha¡?¡± was all Lyri could say before her link with Mac exploded into detail.
¡°We were given permission by Admiral Gwen herself to look at the 3rd generation Syncing system,¡± Quinn¡¯s voice came over the comm, ¡°We combined it with our medical knowledge of Delmar Claiming to build a second setting for Concord. It won¡¯t be perfect at first, but If you could both relax into the Synce you should be able to connect properly.¡±
Lyri was panicking. So much was flashing in her mind, not all of them Her¡¯s. ¡®Why was she seeing a hud, her helmet wasn¡¯t on. Why am I seeing small children. What¡¯s goin..¡¯
¡°Breath and relax, love¡± a voice blasted Through he chaos, ¡°This is Alpha sync. Close your eyes and focus on clearing your mind. Our minds are linking together, our memories, our thoughts, our emotions are all being blended and meshed... trust me love.¡± Mac¡¯s soothing voice slowly brought Lyrian back down as she leaned back and closed her eyes, listening and focusing like she had with Concord that first time.
Images flashed before both of their minds, the Wilde cyclone of a first time Alpha sync took only 20 seconds, but it felt much longer for the two of them. Lyrian experienced most of mac¡¯s life in hyper-fast forward, yet in perfect clarity. Mac was experiencing the same.
¡°how are you two doing,¡± Quinn asked over the com¡¯s
¡°We are fine, that was intense.¡± Lyri and Mac said at once, almost in one voice.
*whoa, that¡¯s crazy* Lyri thought
*Uh¡ I don¡¯t think we are supposed to be able to think to each other.* Mac responded in her mind.
*That¡¯s not normal? * she asked
*Oh Hell no! let me ask.* Mac responded before speaking out loud, ¡°Uh, Doc? How deep is this Link supposed to go?¡±
¡°We.. uh¡ we don¡¯t know¡ You are our first try. We think that the claiming link will deepen the sync, but we don¡¯t know by how much.. Why?¡±
¡°Doc.. I think it worked, maybe better than you realize..¡± It was Lyri over the com, ¡°Mac and I¡ We can talk to each other¡ without actually talking¡¡± She stammered.
Clint did a double take and let in an explosive inhale of surprise, ¡°You¡¯re shitting me... You can think to each other?!?¡±
¡°Yea.. we can¡± Both of them stated in perfect unison, ¡°Shutting Concord down now¡± They finished as Concord powered down and the link between them retreated to their original emotional connection.
They both stepped off the bottom of the ladder in turn, ¡°Well, that was unexpected¡± Mac stated, handing Bart and Quinn, ¡°I believe you will want to look at this, I flashed it with our Sync data. I need to know if it is safe.¡±
Quin nodded and shuffled off to the Console as Bart frowned while rubbing his beard, ¡°I was not ready to hear you can read each other minds¡¡±
¡°Can you give us a minute Professor¡± Lyrian asked him before walking Mac away from the group.
¡°Luv?¡± Mac looked at her worried, ¡°what is it¡±
¡°I saw it¡ the RFG strike on your home... through your eyes... I saw everything, or at least pieces of everything... James, I saw it all¡¡± She shivered, ¡°All of it including our time together. What was that¡±?
¡°I don¡¯t know, but I saw the same. You and Frie in school, you¡¯re training. Your time on Traveler, meeting me... all of it.¡± Mac whispered to her, pulling her into an embrace, ¡°I think they may have created something that used our memories to sync our minds completely. That¡¯s never been done before¡ ever¡¡±
Quin started to walk back over to the group and Lyri followed Mac back as well, ¡°Well professor? Did you create your own Frankenstein?¡±
Bart snorted at the reference, and Quin just nodded, ¡°I may have¡ We may need to do a more controlled test, but it appears that The Sync used the Link you two have. It dove deep into your subconscious to use Memory as a building block for a complete Merge of the Minds.¡±
¡°Holy fucking Spock..¡± Clint mumbled¡
¡°Spock?¡± Frie asked in confusion.
Lyri giggled finally breaking the tension, ¡°I¡¯ll make sure we bring the appropriate movies for movie night tonight.¡± She said.
¡°Anything else before I stumble on the ability to make goats faint doc?¡± Mac asked only half amused.
¡°We... Uh¡ We were able to use the Slip Drives Higgs Boson field separately from the Jump engine. It won¡¯t work for bigger craft, but.. Concord can now reduce her mass enough to achieve Hover and Vtol.¡±
Mac just started laughing... ¡°Of course you did.¡±
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Frie Landed the shuttle in the middle of Port Royal¡¯s commuter Hangers as a Ranger landed to her starboard, and Concord touched down to the Larboard. She shut the shuttle down and stepped out behind the rest of the passengers, Clint included, to hand it off to the returning pilot. ¡°Watch number 4 thruster, it¡¯s been sluggish lately¡± she mentioned as the other pilot nodded and stepped into the cockpit
¡°Well! I see Concord has some new tricks.¡± Ambassador Gwen states as the four of them walked away from their craft. ¡°Everything shake out just Fi..¡±
Lyrian wrapped the much taller Scot into a tight Human embrace.
¡°Oh, my. Hai, Is everything ok?¡± Gwen asked immediately, worried.
¡°Later, everything is fine¡± Mac assured her as Lyrian let her go. ¡°What was so hush-hush that we needed to come up here?¡±
¡°My office then,¡± Gwen stated, and they followed her down the hall to the Ambassador''s Office.
5 minutes later Gwen closed the Door behind them and sat down on the couch next to a waiting Silu.
¡°In 2 days, the ING are going to be conducting a set of interviews. Some here, Some down on the planet. As you know, much of our data kept on the station it was duplicated. We think they are setting up a Hit piece on Humanity.¡± Silu began.
The next two days were a blur of information and strategy. The ING delegation never stopped making requests, and were incensed at how much that Humanity considered Top Secret¡ The group analyzed each request. Clint got a partial face from a corrupted video file from one of the Freight air locks in a former construction zone. Mac had gone out late one evening in Concord with Lyri and done a stealth sweep of the area.
What they found was... interesting¡
_____________________________________________________________________________________
The room felt almost weightless, almost. It was at the request of the ING¡±s News investigator. The Invertebrate Being sat in the offered chair overlooking a viewer that currently showed the view toward the beacon and out into deep space, Gwen checked her watch, then smiled as the Being pulled out a data pad and nodded to His Camera Crews.
It was customary for the ING ¡®agent¡¯ Investigators to not give their name, a tradition of ¡°impartiality¡± that meant very little in the current age. The being in front of Ambassador Gwen was likely given the questions to ask, and how to ask them by HQ. He was nothing but a puppet.
¡°Let us begin, Your name for the record?¡± The interviewer asked.
¡°Admiral Gwen Mackenzie Trenton. Commander of the first Expeditionary Fleet and Ambassador to the Delmar People on behalf of Humanity and the Sol system. For the purposes here, you may address me as Ambassador or Ambassador Gwen. I am not here in this interview in a Military capacity¡± Gwen answered calmly and evenly.
¡°But you are a Military Commander first are you not, Ambassador? You even give it Prominence in your previous answer?¡± The interviewer asked coolly.
¡®Ah, one of these¡¯ Gwen thought before answering, ¡°I was given the title of Admiral before I was given the Honor of being an ambassador. Since I still Hold both Positions, it matters very little which one comes first¡±
¡°I see, Well, let us get started properly then, Humanity has had a rather Unorthodox entry into the Galactic Unity, As I understand it, Your First contact was accidentally accomplished by a Test pilot during a failed attempt to achieve faster-than-light travel?¡±
¡°Yes, Captain Grarzia, Then Lt Mackenzie, was participating in our first attempt at FTL, sorry ¡®faster than light¡¯. ¡°
¡°This ¡®eff tee el¡¯ is a type of engine?¡± The interviewer probed.
¡°No, it is the acronym for my home languages are the first letters in the words that mean ¡®faster than light¡¯¡± Gwen explained.
¡°Ah a linguistic shortening, I see. You say his last name used to be Mackenzie?¡± The Interviewer prompted.
¡°Yes, he is my blood relative. Since his little adventure, He has married into Tribe Helyon of Delmar¡± Gwen responded with a smile.
¡°A political boon no doubt for Humanities entry into The most lucrative Trading monopoly in Galactic history.¡± The interviewer said seriously.
¡®There it is¡¯ ¡°Now Sir, we know you have done your research. You know exactly why Captain Grarzia was initially Wed into tribe Helyon. We owe them a great debt, not the other way around.¡± Gwen chided.
¡°Oh? Care to elaborate?¡± The interviewer was not happy with that response.
¡°You should know the long history of ¡®rogue¡¯ factions of the Unity military and Science guilds experimenting on new races, only to be found out when that new race becomes politically or militarily strong enough to cause problems.¡± Gwen¡¯s voice was calm, ¡°In fact. Mackenzie participated in repelling two such attempts at ¡°acquisition¡± while on board Lucid Traveler. The Unity courts have deemed it so.¡±
¡°Yes, 3 Pirate Barges, an escort carrier, and two Frontier Brigantines claimed destroyed. Another Disabled Brigantine the¡ Convergent Dawn. which subsequently went rogue to join the Void¡¯s Revenge. All done by one Human, how fanciful. You cannot possibly expect us to believe that?¡± the being scoffed his tentacles writhing slightly in irritation.
¡°We do not expect you to. However, we are here, we are interested in very little more than trade and exploration. We are not toothless However, and we consider a single Human violated, pre or post ¡®mortem¡¯ to be an act of war.¡± Gwen held the being''s gaze levelly, showing just a touch of the calculated human gaze that so many in the greater galaxy felt ancient Prey instincts while under.
¡°So violent¡± the interviewer stated.
Gwen looked at her watch and forced her face to not smirk, ¡°My people have a saying, Interviewer. ¡®Peacefulness without the capacity or will to do extraordinary violence is not peacefulness, but merely Helplessness¡¯. Humanity Strives for Peacefulness but make no mistake. We will not suffer abuse.¡± Gwen turned to indicate to the viewer, ¡°You mentioned our entry into Unity, We have done no such thing. WE, the United Sol Federation, are opening relations with who we deem appropriate inside The Unity. I accepted this interview to see if our suspicions were correct. And to make a statement to the Greater Galactic body politic.¡±
¡°And that would be¡± the Intense interviewer said coolly. No doubt looking at a gold mine of edited gatcha clips.
¡°That this is a hit piece on humanity. As you know, we were attacked here in Port Royal. We know It was an espionage Hit. We have cross-referenced every piece of requested data, denied, or approved against every piece of information stolen from us in that raid.¡± Gwen waited for a response. The interviewer started changing colors quickly and Gwen released her smile as she continued, ¡°We do not believe that this visit is a coincidence. An emergency medical shuttle is on its way to Delmar at this instance with a very Familiar Lycan Man in critical condition from a botched mechanical Lung transplant. The pod he was in was very... enlightening¡¡±
¡°WE are the ING! WE are impartial, how dare you! I will Bury you and all of Humanity!! You will be hunted when I am finished with this piece!¡± He finished with a wheeze of exhaustion.
¡°Interviewer, we suspected this from the start. Gwen¡¯s smile broadened as the viewer flashed blue and white as 20 Human pattern Capital ships jumped into the Delmar system. The interviewer froze at the scene and could only watch.
¡°We are implementing a Joint Trade agreement with the Delmaracian Confederation. We will be giving Delmar Captains Human freighters to travel our territories, learning our ways, teaching Humanity about themselves, and likewise Human Captains will soon be captaining Delmar flagged ships. This¡± Gwen pointed to the view screen, ¡°Is our response to the recent attacks on our people and this system. Delmar has suffered greatly in their defense of my people. We will Defend them, their freighters, and their home as they rebuild their defense fleets.¡±
The interviewer stood; he doubted This Gwen could understand his emotional colors at all. He Had her, He had enough to destroy her species reputation. He would be promoted for this. He bowed slightly in mock salute, ¡°I have all I need here... Admiral.¡±
___________________________________________________________________________________
¡°You think they took the bait?¡± Clint asked, he was currently sitting on the couch of a Caf¨¦/lounge with his bride leaning up against him as a back rest. He twirled the main tuft in the tip of Frie¡¯s tail in his fingers causing her to melt into him.
¡°Hmmm I like that¡± She mumbled; eyes half closed.
¡°I think they did, that guy has to think our entire race is unhinged and barbaric¡± Mac chuckled. Lyrian was off with Aunt Gwen giggling and Cooing over baby videos on the other side of the room.
¡°They were always going to spin it. Humanity is the outsider for now.¡± Silu started sipping his drink.
¡°At least there will be two versions out there. That is about all we can do. How is our patient doing?¡± Mac asked.
¡°Icario reports him as stable, whoever ¡®helped¡¯ him butchered the man. He keeps begging to be killed, something about his family in danger if he is deemed a traitor¡± Silu stated.
¡°Shit¡¡± Mac stated, ¡°I guess we talk to him in the morning.¡±
Chapter 49
Commodore Gregory Burgoyne stood as 20 human captains 15 men and 5 women stepped into the conference room.
20 Ships of the USN had just arrived the previous morning, representing the Sol contingent of the Legion QRF. Delmar had always focused on smaller, more versatile ships in the past, and had very little experience producing true Capital ships.
Sol had sent 3 more EROS Dreadnaughts; the USN Simo, the USN Furlong, and the USN York. Sol had also sent what was to be the backbone and the Flag of each response fleet- Three Texas class ¡®ships of the line¡¯: The Terran designed USN Texas, the lines namesake, the USN Galveston, and the USN Houston. 3 Olympus class ¡®ships of the line¡¯ were also present: the Martian designed USN Olympus Mons,
-the class¡¯ namesake-, USN Tharsis, and the USN Aeolis Mons. One massive 100 kilometer by 50 kilometer cargo transport named USN Timmy rounded out the larger capital ships with the remaining ten ships being corvette class Terran and Martian destroyers.
The ¡°ship of the line¡± concept was an ancient idea born anew and forged in the cold expanse of interstellar combat. The aircraft carrier of old simply had a fatal flaw when sea state and planetary curvature were removed from the equation. The vastness and emptiness of space allowed a traditional carrier-style capital ship to be targeted too easily by human weapons capable of relativistic and near relativistic velocities. This fact, combined with the removal of a carrier''s advantage of being ¡®beyond the horizon¡¯¡.and a dedicated carrier was simply too fragile. Early high attrition rates during the opening battles of the GSW had resurrecting the ¡°battleship¡± as the semi-dominant weapon on Sol¡¯s interstellar battlefield. True battleships began appearing in combat only to find that, while the Carrier had become obsolete, the Carrier-based fighters and bombers had not. Thus, after a surprising number of true battleships perished from fighter/bomber attacks on both sides, the ¡°Ship of the Line¡± was ripped from the pages of 18th century naval history and reborn anew. Exceptions like the Super Carrier Enterprise existed, but not many were made, and the few that survived were husbanded carefully with excessively large battle groups and TALON support.
The S.O.L.¡¯s ¡°Souls¡±, as both sides were want to call them, were indeed the beating heart and soul of the late war battle group. Terran SOL¡¯s tended to be slightly longer than their Martian-made counterparts. The Texas class Ships of the Line measured 55 Kilometers stem to stern, and over 20 kilometers at the beam.
Her beam was two thirds of the way back from her bow and was where her Hanger decks were located. Her hull was shaped much like a long obsidian stone spear head with a bluff bow. Her upper and lower hulls met almost like two long thin clamshells with a 1km gap between them. The doors to her a hanger bays were situated in that gap at the beam and a thin white line traced the upper edge of the lower hull. All Terran class ships were designed to be Earth Seaworthy. While the Texas class did have a ¡°bridge¡± the bow, the command crew fought these ships from the ¡°CIC¡± deep in her core protected by the bulk of the entire vessel and her armor. When cleared for action the Texas class boasted twin Rheinmetall GAOA 1005¡¯s in a fixed forward firing position, a smaller version of the ¡®Vulkan¡¯ on the Eros class. These fired 10 meter long by 5 meter wide versions of the same ammunition as an Eros, but did not requires any special recoil mitigation as it only propelled its ordinance at 5 percent the speed of light instead of 15. Her main battery was emplaced in super firing twin turrets. 2 turrets with 3 1005¡¯s a piece and 6 total pairs of turrets. 3 pair on the upper hull and 3 pair on the lower hull. Her point defense included 30 GAU34 automated anti-fighter/bomber turrets, each paired with a laser anti-missile turret.
Unless they needed to be disassembled, Terran capital ships were designed to complete reentry and land in Terra¡¯s oceans and bays for more ease of refit and resupply. With the addition of Higgs bosun generators, this became the de-facto maintenance protocol for any Terran ship not requiring an orbital dry dock to repair hull breaches.
Martian SOLs were slightly shorter at 48 kilometers bow to stern. Her profile resembled a vertical trapezoidal rectangle with a sharp pointed prow and a long taper almost to her midships. Mars had reverse-engineered the MAC cannons even before the war, but their weapon of choice had always been the PAC. The Olympus class Martian SOL¡¯s carried two MWI orbital PAC-20s that fired a 20m in diameter phased laser and accelerated particle beam at essentially the speed of light. It lacked punch at long range so to attenuation, but it was known to cut opposing vessels into literal chunks once their shields failed under closer quarters assault.
4 more PAC 20 emitters were in low-profile swivel turrets along her upper hull and 3 on her lower hull. Much like her counterpart. Laser and GAU34 made up her 48-point defense emplacements.
The drastic design difference between the two classes came down to form following function. The long flat curved nature of the Terran ships gave the Martian PACs as many directions to bleed energy as it could if the shields failed; while the sharp pointed prow and long rake to the Martian ships gave the Terran MAC rounds a significant ricochet chance under the same shield failure condition.
The room settled,
¡°Now, I¡¯ll begin by introduction. I am Gregory Burgoyne commodore for the Legion QRF. You are the other half of a joint response force instituted to protect the hybrid Delmar/Human crewed freighters in this sector. We are more than those gentlemen and women. Let¡¯s begin¡± The room groaned at the death by PowerPoint that was surely to begin¡.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
There was no pain¡. The nagging need to cough was completely gone. So was his ability to move. Growrmun opened his eyes to a dimly lit room. He found that he could look around. He could smell it. He was not in an ING medical facility. He smelled¡ he froze his looking as his eyes came to rest on a Delmar female sitting with her arms crossed. Next to her¡
¡°Demon..¡± his voice croaked
¡°Luv, fetch the doctor, will you?¡± The Demon spoke before the female Delmar kissed him and stood up.
¡°Be good.¡± her voice said as she faded from view.
The Demon stood and Growrmun watched him closely as he picked up a pitcher of water and poured two cups before sticking a straw in one. He took a drink from his cup before approaching the bed.
¡°Slowly, your surgery almost ended you.¡± The Demon tucked the straw in the corner of Growrmun¡¯s mouth. Seeing as this ¡®Human¡¯ drank the same water, he drank slowly from the straw.
¡°Kill me¡.¡± Growrmun said quietly, but more clearly as his voice returned to him.
¡°An interesting proposition, not one I expected.¡± The Demon, ¡°why?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve seen you fight firsthand. I¡¯ve seen the footage of the attack. I¡¯m the one who planned it. Kill me, tell the ING I died on the mission.¡± Growrmun¡¯s voice was a growl of disgust.
¡°Is that how you wish to save your family?¡±
The Demon said softly as Growrmuns eyes flew wide, ¡°How long do we have.¡±
¡°Why do you care..¡± Growrmun glared at the Demon
¡°Because I draw the line at the innocent. I know who you are, I know you attacked my wife on that freighter¡ but I will not let a child be murdered if I can help it. Where are they. And how much time do we have.¡± The Demon glared at him, clearly losing patience.
¡°You are a Demon¡.¡± Growrmun chuckled darkly, ¡°You care not.¡±
¡°I am a father,¡± the Demon growled, ¡°and I am your only option. What choice do you have?¡±
Growrmun knew it to be true. He sighed heavily before beginning.
¡°A day from when the message is sent from the delegation. They will be put out into the wilderness of my home-world with no provisions save for one suicide pill each, and the threat of execution upon the entry of any civilized location.¡±
¡°Is this your people¡¯s culture or unity?¡± the demon asked.
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¡°Unity, my people will enforce it, or risk execution themselves.
¡°I can work with that. How do I find them?¡±
The Demon seemed to calm.
¡°My suit, cut a piece off of it. You will need my scent. My mate, I had a tracker implanted, ¡®8827450¡¯ that should pull it up on most sensors.¡± Growrmun let his head fall finally ¡°You will never make it. Drowrl, it¡¯s three months from here.¡±
¡°Captain? The transport just sent a message. It¡¯s coded for the Lycan home world.¡± An unknown voice interrupted.
¡°Get Greg on the horn, tell him I¡¯m going to need a Texas¡.¡± The Demons face contorted in a terrifying expression. ¡°It¡¯s time to make a statement. Growrmun, I need you to answer this one question to allow me to act¡ do you request asylum for you and your family from the Delmar Confederation and or the United Sol Federation¡±
¡°Yes¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
*you ready for this?* Mac¡¯s thoughts washed over her as Lyrian settled into the seat as Concord burned for the beacon.
*I am, no one deserves this. They are going to force a mother to kill her child.* lyrian responded just as a hale intruded on their conversation. She flicked over to com1 with a thought and man keyed it up as soon as he felt her do it.
-Cobra224 Cobra224 USN Galveston transmitting on point 997-
*Jesus, they brought the Gally* ¡°Galveston, Cobra224 on 997. Jesus Christ is that who I think it is?¡± Mac was in shock. He had known some Texas class SOLs were coming but...
-We need to stop meeting like this Mac, I brought my tall boots this time, how much shit we steppin¡¯ in this time-
¡°Well Bill, It¡¯s the worst best kind of mission. Extraction with a time limit and plenty of targets. Concord jumps in 30 seconds. We are going in quiet, exfil expected to be Dodge City.¡±
-I¡¯ll wear my special hat. Happy hunting 224, we await your signal Galveston out-
*Details, give.* lyri demanded even as her mind whipped through the jump procedure faster than her fingers could fly.
*That was Samuel ¡°Wild Bill¡± Harrison. He earned his call sign the hard way. How that fucker kept the Galveston alive through some of his shit, is the subject of master¡¯s papers. *
Mac spooled the slip drive up as the countdown reached zero¡
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Vivaria Drumorsik and her pup huddled in the corner of the Hover transport as it skimmed along the grasslands of their home planet. It had taken them a full day to find her hide. Regarai, poor little boy, got hungry at the one moment when a Thermian Enforcer was standing over the floor plank they were hiding under. She had shielded her infant son with her body as the beatings started. They got worse when little Raga latched on to one of their attackers and drew blood. It hurt to breath, she was sure that she had at least one broken rib and could taste blood every exhale.
The Hover craft jolted as it set down. The pilot shut the craft down as the two Lizards that found her walked to the corner where she huddled.
¡°What do you think Krorak. I¡¯ve never had a mammal. I hear they are¡ warm.¡± The first one said, snapping an arm out and grabbing Mowria by the ears, dragging her bodily outside of the craft and thew he onto the ground. She clutched Regarai in a fetal position.
¡°Goruk, you know that would leave evidence¡ go pay for a mammal back in town.¡± The second one said, drawing his sidearm and holding it at his side, ¡°Besides This one doesn¡¯t get the pill, commands orders. It seems her spineless mate was captured¡ We can¡¯t have Him go unpunished now, can we? Someone might find the Bitch before she gives up.¡±
¡°You know Mammals are expensive for us. I want this one.¡± The first Lizard fumbled with his pants for a moment, ¡°A little acid an no one will be th¡.¡±
Dozens of impacts slammed into the ground all around the two lizards. 250 furrows were dug into the dirt at 5000 meters per second, as Concord¡¯s gun was in its atmospheric mode, at the moment. 120 of them impacted the two Lecherous Reptiles. They popped like Balloons full of bone and gore. The Hover Craft began to take off frantically and got 500 meters before a Hyper sparrow connected and reduced it to scrap.
Vivaria clutched her son¡¯s ears and pinned her own back as the sudden explosive shower of gore was drowned out by a feral howl mixed with a blood-curdling scream. Out of the darkness, a predator¡¯s wings flickered in the light as it bled speed to come to rest facing her. It hovered for a moment, snarling at her before settling down to the ground and whining slowly to silence. Two strange creatures in suits got out and one of them opened it¡¯s helmet.
Vivaria¡¯s eyes widened when the head of a Delmar Female appeared. ¡®Delmar aren¡¯t aggressive, what the hell is going on¡¯
She held out a patch of fabric, ¡°8827450¡± she stated matter of factly.
Vivaria¡¯s opened her mouth before recognizing the numbers, they were her tracking implants code... the wind tussled the hair of the woman before bringing a scent to Vivaria¡¯s nose. ¡°Growr¡± She whispered. Then jumped as the speaker in the other one¡¯s helmet activated.
¡°We don¡¯t have much time, you are under asylum protection if we can get you out of here. Let¡¯s go!!¡± The helmet shouted and it started climbing back up the ladder on the side of the metal death bird in front of them.
¡°Hand him your son¡± The female said kindly, and Vivaria shrank away.
¡°He is the father of my children, hand him your son¡± She soothed reaching again for Ragarai.
Vivaria hesitated then handed him to the woman who promptly LEAPT the entire height from the ground to the cockpit to hand the boy to the man in the front seat.
¡°Follow me up¡± The Delmar commanded and again vaulted up the ladder.
Vivaria followed up in a more traditional manner and was promptly and forcefully pulled into the lap of the female delmar in the rear seat as the glass bubble above them began to lower. The woman leaned her head back on the rest and closed her eyes for a moment before they snapped open,
¡°Jarvis Hab override 1817 Juliet, deploy harnesses¡± both the Delmar female and the male said in perfect unison before the entire seating area plus the consoles lowered itself down to reveal a corridor to the right.
¡°Go in there. Behind the seats. You will find a room. Strap in.¡± the two said in unison. ¡°GO!¡± The order came in stereo as the mother and son scrambled for the back, finding a bed with harnesses extended. Vivaria secured her little one and watched as the harness self-adjusted and secured her infant¡¯s head and kneck in addition to the normal supports. She then harnessed herself.
The two must have been watching because she saw the seats rise to their original position and faint lighting ignited to give her something other than pitch black.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
*her son is so small, will he survive? * lyri thought while running through her threat checks as they exited the atmosphere at a more stately pace than they had entered.
*I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ll take it as gently as I can, but we can¡¯t get spotted.* Mac thought back as he started accelerating at 2 human G¡¯s. Concord was in full stealth, and Maximum stealth meant minimum acceleration.
*Only one Lycan cruiser as a possible, Let¡¯s does not shoot down local craft if we can help it. This needs to go without Lycan lives taken.* She thought to him.
*Yea, I¡¯m cutting the engines to lower our¡ shit. *
Lyrian saw it at the same time. Two massive Thermian Frigates exited at the jump point and turned to flank it at 100 kilometers distance.
*Crybaby Cry* Mac grumbled
*Make yo mamma sigh.* Lyrian thought back as she activated the subspace signal to the Galveston.
She had jumped 4 hours after Mac and Lyrian had and was currently 5 minutes out by timing. The subspace signal was a tight beam, directionally aimed. It turned Concord into Galveston¡¯s forward observer, feeding her increasingly more real-time tactical and target data..
_____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°Captain! Receiving Crybaby, looks like a pinching ambush along our dropout trajectory.¡±
Captain Harrison Sighed, reaching behind him to take his grandfather¡¯s authentic Buffalo Stetson from its place hanging on his command chair. He slipped it on his head over the top of his suits low profile helmet with one hand, ¡°Alright, Clear for Action. Prep Hickok. Batteries are cleared to fire are they bear¡¡±
He didn¡¯t bother giving the execute order, His tone was all his boys needed... he caught his chief tactical officer smiling like a little kid on Christmas. He returned it.
Hickok was a ¡°Wild Bill¡± Special. It did not exist in any tactical handbook. It was the maneuver with which Samual Harrison had earned his call sign. Each tube of the main Gauss batteries had a 6-round rotary magazine. Each Turret had 3 tubes. By pointing each upper and lower battery out at a 45-degree angle to their trajectory. he could essentially double strafe a pincer maneuver at full burn. Usually, this was done in sublight. This time, it would have the element of surprise.
Galveston dropped into the Drowrl system with ALL of her six-guns out. Her opponents were almost where they were supposed to be.
¡°Captain! Targeting solutions will be no good! They are off by 48 degrees radially!¡± Tactical barked
¡°Full value roll to starboard, get us lined up Helm¡± Harrison Barked
¡°No good sir! We need 12 deg¡¯ per second to get there, we can only get to 8 in time.¡± Helm pleaded as the Galveston started to roll to the right.
Harrison¡¯s eyes looked over everything at the speed of thought, making calculations, desperate to figure out how to gi¡ He smiled.
¡°Tactical, Dump the Port side Atmo Tanks through the thrusters¡± Harrison barked.
¡°But sir!¡± His second in command looked at him in horror.
¡°We are either dead or we are down to 2 years of air instead of 4, on a two-day sortie. DO IT¡± Harrison Bawled
¡°Venting!!!¡± Tactical called and Galveston¡¯s roll accelerated.
¡°We have 12 DPS!! Cut it!¡± called the helm and the tanks were sealed once more.
¡°AS YOU BARE!¡± Bellowed Harrison just as the helm arrested the roll and the first guns found their marks.
____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°You brilliant, crazy fuck!¡± Mac said out loud as Lyrian watched the atmosphere bellow from the Port side of Galveston, spinning the Titanic battleship/carrier hybrid just quickly enough to get her guns on target. Thousands of pounds of hate spewed from her flanks as Galveston¡¯s Batteries spoke for the first time since the Second Battle of Centerpoint. Only one of the frigates had gotten its shields up. The other was reduced to scrap. Laser and plasma splashed off of Galveston¡¯s shields as she curved around the struggling frigate, crossing her T to the aft and pouring concentrated gauss fire into her aft main drives. The Doomed Thermian¡¯s shields overloaded in seconds and the vessel burst like a methane filled balloon popped with a lighter.
Mac went fully active, flicking on his FFID beacon and burning hard for Galveston. Two Fox2¡¯s in quick succession disabled the one brigantine fast enough to respond to the counter-ambush of the Galveston.
*We have our jump parameters* he heard Lyrian ¡®say¡¯ just as Galveston completed her turn and leaped back for Slipspace.
Concord flashed into FTL moments later, returning with precious cargo safe and secured...
______________________________________________________________________________
She was a prisoner... She and her boy had passed out twice during their captivity. She had been told that they were only going to be in their cell for a day.
She was allowed to unstrap and was told where the facilities were. ¡®at least I¡¯m not treated like an animal¡¯ she had thought before being ordered back into the straps sometime the next ¡®Day¡¯. If they were telling the truth...
She had passed out again as their prison shook and howled. It was of little comfort as she could hear her little boy whining in terror. It felt like an eternity until their flying nightmare came to a stop and stopped making its infernal racket¡ There was nothing to be of use, she did not keep her claws sharp like her husband did. Vivaria clutched at her still whimpering son as the corridor she had crawled down all that time ago illuminated once more and a Delmar Female stepped into their cell.
¡°Are you two ok? Concord is not made to carry passengers, but she is the only ship we have that could sneak into and out of your planet¡¯s defenses.¡± It was the same woman as before.
¡°May we¡ please... please leave this place¡± Vivaria was making no attempt to hide her terror.
¡°Of course, crawl through the corridor like you did the last time, and both of you sit in the front seat. I¡¯ll cycle the Cockpit up and open the canopy. My husband is already outside doing his post-flight checks. The ladder will be on the right. You go down first, and I will hand the little one to you¡± She smiled.
¡®I have no choice¡¯ thought Vivaria as she did as ordered. Everything happened as explained and soon Mother, son, and Delmar were all safely on the hanger floor. Little Ragarai started reaching for a fluttering orange flag waving from the predator they rode in on.
¡°Easy little man, that one needs to stay on for now.¡± Vivaria froze¡ and slowly turned to the Voice that the whole galaxy knew.
The most Infamous ¡°Human¡± in the entire Unity stepped out from around the other side of the ship.
¡°Demon! We must go!!¡± She frantically scooped up only watch the Delmar woman giggle.
¡°Vivaria, It''s only My Husband, no demons here.¡± She walked up and planted a kiss on the Face the Unity had claimed as pure evil.
Chapter 50
¡°You said¡ you said!!!¡± Vivaria stammered finally.
¡°That he is the father of my children, he is.¡± the Delmar Female said kindly.
¡°Mrs Drumorsik, like I told your husband, what choice do you have but to trust me? What have we done to violate that trust¡± the Demon spoke, surprisingly gently.
¡°We were stuck in that dark place!! You knocked us out with something, while we were strapped in.¡± Vivaria rallied.
¡°We did not knock you out, ma¡¯am. You passed out from centrifugal forces on your body. That could not be helped, as I was forced to ask Concord to perform those high-stress maneuvers to keep us all alive.¡± The Demon stated levelly.
¡°Come, enough talk in here.¡± the Delmar woman waved at the enclosed empty space. ¡°Let¡¯s get you some food and a warm bed.¡±
Her two rescuers/abductors started for a small side door, and Vivaria followed.
¡°It¡¯s nighttime here, there are some things that like hunt at night.¡± the Demon stated as he stepped to a small metal cabinet and pulled out a strange weapon, ¡°this isn¡¯t for you, you are not a prisoner.¡± He stated as he loaded it then slung it across his chest.
The walk was uneventful however and soon they were at the elevated balcony front door of a large cabin-looking structure.
¡°Welcome, to our home. We can get you some proper quarters tomorrow.¡± The Female said as she punched in a code and twisted a dial.
Vivaria, still clutching her baby boy, stepped into a massive home; only to be startled by another demon, this one a female smile broadly at the two in front of her before wrapping the Delmar female in a strange full-bodied greeting.
¡°Mon Cher¡¯ you¡¯re back late. Oh, hello there.¡± She smiled again, this time with no teeth to Vivaria and her son, ¡°you two must vary tired, come. I still have some ¡®Gumbo¡¯ on the stove Cooling.¡±
The strange female Demon lead them into the kitchen and scooped an enticingly savory smelling concoction into a bowl and heated it once more. ¡°Can ¡®Petit¡¯ eat solid food yet?¡± giving Ragarai a playful tap on the snout.
¡°Just a little, he is curious but not quite ready to wean,¡± Vivaria spoke before she could think. This strange female was putting her at ease without trying.
Two steaming bowls set down in front of Vivaria, ¡°Bon¡¯ appetite¡± This new Demon reached down and gave Ragarai an a ruffle behind the ear, ¡°it means enjoy, it should be safe for you.¡±
¡°We can clean up Nicole, you have been a saint. How are the little ones.¡± The female asked while the Demon walked upstairs, un loading the strange weapon.
¡°Oh Mon Chere, they were angels. They will be one soon, do you have plans?¡±
¡°The beach, Mac is going to sail the Lass up the coast to the beach near the airfields end. Lots of food, boat rides, swimming. Can you believe we haven¡¯t gone swimming yet?!¡± The Delmar female giggled.
¡°You two have been so busy, and with the twins needing 1G until now, you¡¯ve been cooped up too long. You know I¡¯ll be there.¡± ¡®Nicole¡¯ said.
¡°Wouldn¡¯t have it any other way.¡± the Demon walked over with two steaming bowls of the same concoction and handed one to the Delmar woman, ¡°I know you want to refuse, but the cash is transferred. You¡¯re a god send. Take one of the rooms. I¡¯ll fly you back in the morning. ¡±
¡°Ah, yes.¡± Nicole chuckled, ¡°It is a bit dark. Mind if I take the car? I can send it back, but I need to be at work early.¡±
¡°Sure.¡± The Demon tossed her the keys and the strange woman left.
¡°Now, please. My name is Mackenzie. I am no demon. Welcome to our home.¡± Mackenzie sat down at the kitchen table followed by the Delmar female. ¡°This is my wife, Lyrian. I¡¯m sure you have questions.¡±
Vivaria scooped a spoon full of food into her mouth just to find her bowl empty. Lyrian smiled and handed her the untouched bowl in front of her and stood to get another.
¡°Uh¡ thank you. Where is my mate. Where is Growr..¡± she stammered.
¡°In the Main Helyon hospital. He was going through rejection. He is stable, but the cloned lung should be close to ready by now.¡± Mackenzie said gently and began to eat from his own bowl.
¡°So, he is still far away¡. Where am I.¡± Vivaria asked between bites of food. If her captors were eating it, it would truly be safe. It was a bit hot, seasoning-wise, but she felt her muscles relax as the warmth spread through her.
Lyrian scooped up little Ragarai and set him in kiddie chair with his little sample of food. ¡°There, make a mess. It¡¯s more fun that way.¡± she coo¡¯d to the pup who promptly dumped the bowl out onto the attached tray and started grabbing at the contents.
¡°You are on Delmar, we can take you in to see your husband tomorrow.¡± Lyrian said, still engrossed in the little pup¡¯s antics.
¡°That¡¯s impossible. You told me that we were only inside that ship for a day or so. Delmar is 3 months away.¡±
¡°Human ships are very fast¡± Mackenzie chuckled. ¡°We can prove it to you tomorrow. For now, it¡¯s too dark to see anything.¡±
A long silence followed¡.
¡°Why¡ I know who both of you are¡ my husband fought you. You took his lung with but a blow.. We are enemies... why...¡± Vivaria started a keening sob, finally succumbing to the enormity of it all.
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¡°Because Children are sacred. And because The Unity is our enemy, not its people. I defended myself and Lyrian from Growrmun that day, we may never be friends; but he had his orders¡ and I won¡¯t fault him for acting on them. He has requested asylum for himself and for you... I¡¯m following orders too. Bringing you back to him was my mission.¡± Mackenzie explained, taking the four empty bowls and setting them in the kitchen sink. At least some of the food had made it into little Ragarai¡¯s mouth and he was greedily trying to repeat the process. Lyrian giggled and scooped a bit of meat up in a utensil and got it to the pup¡¯s mouth to chew. Some of it even made it down.
¡°The upstairs is where all the guest bedrooms are. The far left is the twin¡¯s room. Mac¡¯s brother and his wife are in the one next to the twins. The second on the right is yours. It has a bathroom to itself.¡± Lyrian explained as she lifted the little one up and started wiping him off.
¡°Please don¡¯t run, everything is unlockable from the inside, but we are serious about being on Delmar. Our lodge is out in a more rural area because of the airfield. Predators do hunt out here at night on occasion.¡± Mackenzie warned. ¡°I¡¯d rather not explain to your mate why you are half-eaten in the morgue.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Commodore Gregory Burgoyne sat at his desk eyeing up the man on the other side of it. The man in front of him should have been an admiral by now. Captain Samual ¡°Wild Bill¡± Harrison, master under the Black of the USN Galveston was a colorful individual. He wore a mop of sandy blond hair just on the ragged edge of military code. His uniform was pressed perfectly, but the man refused to go anywhere without a Stetson that must be over 200 years old now... All officers were required to be armed. Indeed, Gregory was wearing the standard issue officer''s pistol. Not Wild Bill¡. He had figured out that there was a loophole in regulation. Officers must be armed, no one had specified what they must be armed with. It had been irrelevant¡ until Captain Harrison found out and began wearing a positively ancient leather revolver gun belt, complete with cartridge loops. In its holster was a relic of antiquity, A Smith and Wesson model 29. The man was a walking paradox of modern tactical brilliance and ancient fossil.
¡°Captain?¡± The commodore began, ¡°Care to tell me why you vented a third of your oxygen to vacuum in the middle of a firefight?¡±
¡°Have you read the report sir?¡± Harrison smiled.
¡°I have, now I am asking you.¡± Gregory¡¯s voice was stern.
¡°Very well, we were getting telemetry from Concord through crybaby. We knew that two UGN Frigates were waiting for us, Concord even recorded their transmissions for description.¡± Harrison began with an absurdly steady tone for the situation,
¡°I cleared for action and we dropped ready to fight. We needed to roll a starboard to make my call work, but they were too close. We were moving too fast to slow down, so I... improvised.¡±
¡°I see. Well, under the circumstances the solution, while incredibly dangerous, cannot be argued. Well done on your first engagement with UGN forces. What is the Damage report.¡± Burgoyne sighed ¡®some captains¡¯ ¡°I¡¯ve yet to receive a copy¡±
¡°Ah, well the final report is not finished. Damage control has two more sections to inspect along her port side. It¡¯s not a maneuver I would suggest doing often.¡± Harrison stated with a hint of myrth.
The two men stood, concluding the formal part of the post battle interview, ¡°I hear that Captain Gleeson is none too happy with you, Bill¡± Greg smirked as he shook the captain''s hand.
¡°Don always wanted to be the first one to ¡®Gangster lean¡¯ a Texas, commanding her namesake and all... It was our idea, back in the war. We would spend evenings on coms in our ready rooms spit spitballing strategies, anything to keep you reds on your toes. We Never got to use that one during the war.¡± The two men laughed.
¡°You cowboys always did have a way with those girls. That Hickok of yours was bad enough the first time.¡± Greg chuckled.
¡°Aye, you learned quickly though. If you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯m gonna¡¯ sack out for a bit. I¡¯m closin¡¯ in on 72 hours.¡± Harrison stretched.
¡°Dismissed Captain. Go get some rack time¡± The Commodore slapped Wild Bill on the shoulder as the two of them left his office.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Vivaria woke up¡ She had been stirred by an empty feeling in her gut as her stomach groaned its protest. Her eyes fluttered open to check on her¡ Her son was not where she left him. Vivaria shot up, letting out a loud Keen that was immediately responded to¡ from outside of the cracked door to her room. She bolted from her room, barely letting the door open fully as the events of the evening flooded to her. She stumbled at the weight she felt. It wasn¡¯t noticeable last night because of her overwhelmed state, but whatever planet they were on had significantly heavier gravity than Her home. She stumbled and slammed into¡. Lyrian.
The Delmar female felt like a steel column, and Vivaria bounced off the woman with an *OOF* only to be caught by arms with no right being that strong.
¡°Easy, Easy, Your little one snuck out, He smelled the twin¡¯s breakfast. He¡¯s downstairs in the kitchen.¡± Lyrian steadied Vivaria as she got her feet.
The wolf mother bounced heavily on her feet, ¡°Heavy, where are we.¡±
¡°We told you, Delmar. It¡¯s got significantly more gravity than your home world. Come, breakfast is still hot.¡± Lyri smiled and helped the wobbly Lycan woman down to the kitchen.
Ragarai was in the seat he was in last night, and two Delmar of maybe 1 year old were sitting in booster seats. They looked like Delmar, but they were somehow much sturdier-looking.
Breakfast was pleasant. Mac moved Vivaria¡¯s pup next to her and plated food for the woman while Lyrian fussed with the twins. All three little ones were a mess, but the food was not runny. The round bread product pulled into strips and the skillet cooked pieces of meat were as divine as they were easy to eat.
¡°What is this?¡± Vivaria asked, eyes half closed savoring the meat. Lycan, and Thermian were the only known species considered to be true ¡°Carnivores¡± in the Unity.
¡°Bacon¡± Mac said, popping another strip into his mouth, ¡°It¡¯s from my home world. It¡¯s a breakfast stapple going back thousands of years¡±
¡°You are carnivores?¡± Vivaria asked.
¡°Omnivores, but we require quite a lot of protein in our diet. We developed on a high gravity world.¡± Mac said.
¡°Delmar is High gravity. They do not need this much.¡± Vivaria quipped.
¡°Terra is over double Delmar in gravity¡± Mac shrugged as Vivaria almost choked on her food.
¡°You¡ There isn¡¯t a habitable planet with that gravity inside the Unity!¡± She gasped, drinking some juice of some kind to wash down the offending bite of food.
¡°Humanity is not in The Unity¡± Lyri smiled.
There was a ding and Lyrian checked her wrist, ¡°Mac, He goes under in 2 hours.¡±
¡°Whelp let¡¯s get going,¡± mac said, ¡°Vivarai, Lyri is staying here with the twins. They need to get back to 1G. You and your son are coming with me.¡±
¡°Uh¡ wha¡ why¡¡± Vivarai suddenly became very very nervous...
¡°Your husband¡¯s cloned lung is ready; he goes into surgery in 2 hours. I¡¯m to deliver you to the Hospital¡± Mac stated, dropping the dishes in the sink, and scooping each of the twin Delmar children in kisses and tickles before engulfing Lyrian in a scandalously complete embrace and deep lip lock.
Vivaria had Ragarai on her hip as he keened and looked around sadly.
¡°Don¡¯t worry little man, if your mom is ok with it, you can come visit.¡± Mac scruffled the young Lycan between the ears and they walked out to the waiting air car.
________________________________________________________________
¡°My Mate¡ Growr¡ Is it you?¡± Growrmun¡¯s eyes snapped open. A familiar voice spoke in his native language. He slowly turned his head to see the doorway in time to be rushed by His wife and infant son. The Demon stood leaned against the door frame of the hospital room.
¡°How¡¡± he choaked back tears as His mate keened and cried softly against the fur on his neck. Little Ragarai looked confused but crept up to lay beside his father with his head on his chest like he would in their evenings together.
¡°I told you, I draw the line at Kids¡ Two more UGN Frigates paid the price trying to keep your family from you¡ Rest now, Take to your family for now. We will have time to talk after your surgery.¡± Mac turned to walk away
¡°Thank you¡¡± a small female voice keened. It was Vivaria. Mac simply nodded and left the family to reunite.
_______________________________________________________________
Ambassador Gwen was sitting in her Port Royal Quarters having her morning coffee and reading the morning reports. ¡°Enter¡± she said as the Door Chimed.
¡°I see the reports were on time.¡± Chuckled Silu as he walked in, leaning slightly on his cane. ¡°We received a Message from the New UGN Admiral Surpreme¡ They wish to... Talk¡¡±
¡°This is a development now isn¡¯t it... when¡± Gwen mused.
¡°One week before halfway through our annual refit¡¡± Silu was not happy.
¡°Just in time to be able to attempt a blockade of Helyon, and therefore this sector¡¯s freighters when you have the most need of revenue, having spent so much in refit, naturally.¡± Gwen actually smiled.
¡°You¡¯re pleased with this?¡± Silu asked incredulously.
¡°I am, it means they are both desperate and have no Idea just how much of Humanity¡¯s might is here. They wish to squeeze you, Sliu. I suspected a move like this after the Extraction.¡± Gwen mentioned.
¡°What happened, I haven¡¯t had a chance to read that report.¡± Silu asked warily.
¡°The Galveston went toe to toe with two UGN Frigates¡ and came back with barely a scratch. The Frigates are still being cleaned out of Drowrl¡¯s beacon jump point. I had Harrison ¡®drop his trash¡¯ as he jumped out. The engagement lasted less than 3 minutes.¡± Gwen stated.
¡°Gods¡. That explains quite a bit. What are your plans?¡± Silu asked carefully.
¡°Nothing has changed, Legion was never going to be deployed until the end of the coming refit. What they will be, when the UGN come to ¡®talk¡¯ is trained and practiced and in their own command structures. Delmar is in very little danger. We set up recording devices throughout the system. We dot our I¡¯s and cross our T¡¯s politically.¡± Gwen explained.
¡°That only works if we hold long enough to create the political backlash¡± Silu countered, none too happy.
Gwen took a sip, choosing her words, ¡°The history of my people is littered with as many evil leaders as good ones. To grow, one must study both. One man, a dictator in his own right stated this truth, ¡®political power grows out of the barrel of a gun¡¯. Right now, whether the UGN knows it or not; Delmar has more political power than it has ever had in its entire history.¡±
¡°Void Help us..¡± Silu whispered.
¡°God helps those who help themselves...¡± Gwen counted, raising her glass in salute.
Chapter 51
3 months later-
¡°God fucking dammit!!¡± Mac spat as the simulation wound down.
Clint stepped out of the other sim in the Grarzia house. ¡°You are improving, but I know your impulsiveness too well, brother.¡±
¡°I¡¯m going to be Commodore of First Fleet. I need to be able to, at least, beat you.¡± Mac stated, rubbing his temples, ¡°Fleet combat is just so different from fighter combat¡¡±
¡°You will get there.¡± Clint reassured as an enthusiastic Bryton tugged at his pant leg.
¡°Uh!!! Uh!!!¡± The little one begged as Clint smiled and picked up the boy, ¡°And how are we doing, my dude.¡± He chuckled with a wince as Bry got a fist full of the half inch long beard that Clint had grown since his arrival.
¡°Uh oh, he¡¯s got the initial advantage. What¡¯s your opening move?¡± Lyrian walked in from where she and Frie were sunbathing. She wore a string bikini and had two water bottles in her hands as she handed them to the boys. ¡°You two need to start the grill soon. I just got a message from Gwen, Clint and Greg, they¡¯ve just departed Port Royal.¡± She gave her husband a nip/peck and returned to the balcony with a smile.
¡°I¡¯m not going to get used to that.¡± Mac shifted uncomfortably to adjust. ¡°She bore me twins less than a year ago, and she¡¯s still as stunning as the day we met.¡±
¡°Yea, their idea of being a tease can be¡.¡± Clint chuckled.
The two of them walked out to be with the girls, started up the grill, and began to talk training once again. Mac was soon to become a commodore and placed in command of the First Fleet. His promotion was soon to come after Gregory was promoted to Rear Admiral to take on his new duties as overall commander of the L-QRF. To everyone¡¯s surprise, Margarette had crushed the qualifications to make the transfer to Legion as a flag officer. Mac suspected some¡ personal... tutoring in that respect, but he didn¡¯t pry. The Captain of the Olympus Mons was up to take over the 4th fleet, and Gregory had requested Marg to be her captain. Her blooding in the desperate artillery duel between Lucid Traveler and the VR barge, combined with scores in training made the confirmation interview but a formality.
In fact. Greg was returning from Port Royal with Marg she had just returned from a 2-week shake-down on the S.O.L. Olympus, her final stage of learning her new command. They had not seen each other in over 2 months and were absolutely welcome.
The original two aging carrier-based battle groups from Admiral Gwen and Commodore Gregory were to remain in Delmar¡¯s home system. They had been put under Delmar Defense fleet command, and blended crews were quickly being trained to learn the intricacies of different species requirements in one warship. Now Admiral Folmuri, had chosen Hathcock as his flag. It was unorthodox but not unheard of. A few of Terra¡¯s greatest flag officers had commanded from an Eros, including Mac¡¯s uncle; Admiral Martin Trenton.
¡°Real talk, brother¡ am I ready. I¡¯m used to taking my own life in my hands¡ you were of the same mind, and Lyrian flat refuses to let me protect her at times, but¡. Ordering hundreds, maybe thousands to their deaths... even to save thousands more¡ I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m built for that.¡± Mac and Clint stayed silent... staring into the coals slowly coming to temperature.
¡°No one ever is¡. I wasn¡¯t happy when Gwen gave me Third fleet¡. Life was simpler when it was just our asses on the line¡..¡± Clint said somberly as he unpackaged the meat course for tonight. It was a special occasion. A large portion of what had become their extended family were coming.
Clint had just finished laying out the authentic bovine ribeyes when a pair of arms wrapped themselves around his chest. ¡°We¡¯re going in to start the sides,¡± Frie purred into Clint¡¯s ear before nipping an earlobe with one of her fangs and almost dodging an ass slap from Clint as she darted for the kitchen.
¡°Fuck me¡¡± Clint whispered before cracking a pair of beers and handing one to Mac
¡°Pass, but I¡¯m pretty sure she will.¡± Mac smirked as his timing paid off and Clint sputtered into his beer bottle.
¡°*cough, hack* FUCK YOU!¡± Clint managed finally.
¡°Hands off, that¡¯s my job!¡± Came the amused voice of Lyrian through the open kitchen window.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
The console beeped, rousing Maximar from his chemical slumber. His species had lost its ability to regulate its own sleep cycles in the pursuit of intellectual perfection many generations before the cataclysm.
¡®Ah, it paid off¡¯ he thought as the data began to pour in. Humanity and the Delmar had caught on to his more traditional satellite insertion techniques, but the survival of the VR barge that had fallen from subspace under complete system¡¯s failure had proved an idea that Maximar had been toying with. The first of his modified spy satellites had been dropped in time for the ING investigation team to arrive in system. It had coasted through the system over the course of several weeks before transmitting and self-destructing outside the system. He didn¡¯t bother crushing the survetor this time, a leg had snapped, and the once being had crumpled to the floor pumping its life fluids through the cracks turned gaps in its shell from the fall¡¯s impact.
The data poured into his ever more worried soul as he watched the armada of human ships arrive¡ his eyes widened as he realized what he was looking at. Maximar quickly ran an algorithm based on ship design and date/time matrix¡
He watched in horror as one of those ships that had arrived from Humanity dropped out of FTL in the Drowrl system and obliterated two of the most powerful class of ships the Unity had to offer. Surprise had been a factor, but this Human ship had broken through the shields of the second Frigate with ease.
Hey keyed up his messages. He was still under a short leash since his last failed operation. They would not be happy to hear from him.
¡°Meeting requested: Subject, Humanity. New development.¡± Was all he wrote before sending. He sent his findings along with the message. ¡®They will return to me¡ if they do not ignore the message outright.¡¯ He thought before triggering another injection, returning him to his status slumber.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Captain Bjorn Johansson sat in the lab¡¯s observation chair. This was going to be the make-or-break test of a new navigational program. He had caught something that Mackenzie had said during one of his messages. ¡°Jumping requires two coordinates¡± he had stated before explaining the beacon system that the USN had ultimately adopted.
The first expedition fleets had returned save for the two in the Sonir system. They had seeded the galactic sectors between Sol and Unity space with a secure network of beacons in Sol¡¯s control. There were still gaps. Some measuring centuries if traversed in sub-light terms. Others measured millennia of travel, even by probe at near relativistic speeds. This is what this test was trying to confirm.
Bjorn immediately thought about triangulation the moment he heard Mackenzie¡¯s first transmissions to Terra. The transmission containing the Tetrarchy ship¡¯s interference in the Delmar system had given him the proof to secure funding. This was his baby, but he was running out of funding with little in the way of results to secure more.
This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
His first tests were attempted inside of pandora. It took three tests to figure out that the testing area was too small, even at minimum jump speeds. This test would be different. The USN had seeded the Sol system with encrypted beacons for military use, but only to the essential locations and orbits. There was no beacon near the once planet named Pluto. Johansson would be using 5 USN beacons to triangulate a jump coordinate for a near Pluto jump followed by an orbital insertion of a beacon before a jump back to Pandora.
¡°Captain, board is green, the probe has reached jump velocity.¡± A young ensign, no more than 19, reported. Poor kid still hadn¡¯t had that fresh boot smell knocked off of him.
¡°What¡¯s your name ensign.¡± Bjorn smiled gently at the boy.
¡°Saresh, Raj Saresh Captain.¡± The young man calmed slightly.
¡°Well, mister Saresh. A pleasure to meet you. Commence the test. You may Call the ball, if you please.¡±
¡°Aye Captain!¡± The young man¡¯s eyes sparkled as his commander gave him the honors of starting this test. ¡°Commence test in 10¡.. mark!¡± He barked, doing his best to imitate the voice of command.
¡°Smartly done, take your station.¡± Bjorn stated as the young man saluted and returned to his chair. The clock counted down as the data streams and command computers synced. The former ICBM turned test drone started trailing whips of plasma as the slip drive spooled up dragging the drone out of real space.
2 minutes went by before the station monitoring the Pandora array spoke ¡°I¡¯m receiving telemetry from the beacon. It¡¯s near Pluto.¡±
The drone returned to pandora MOA and began a programmed decel burn.
¡°Captain! Beacon is on a stable orbit!! Mission success!!¡± A cheer erupted from. The control room. Captain Johansson let it die down naturally.
¡°Send the nav computer to analysis. I need a research vessel out there to inspect the beacon yesterday.¡± Bjorn ordered. ¡®If this worked, it changes¡. Everything.¡¯
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°Captain Johansson, Welcome!¡± Chancellor Franklin welcomed a very stiff USN officer into his office, ¡°Captain, please, take a seat. I was surprised by your rather¡ forceful request to see me, but I am not a man want to discipline without reason.¡±
Captain Bjorn Johansson calmed a little bit his serious demeanor remained, ¡°Chancellor, I promise that this is urgent. You are aware of my testing of advanced navigation through slip-space?¡± He waited for the Chancellor to respond.
¡°In broad strokes, sadly putting together the exploration and colonization efforts have taken too much of my time to know much more of your project.¡±
¡°Sir, to put it simply. We are working off a hunch that we do need a destination beacon to jump, merely a destination coordinate¡ our fourth test was today¡. It was a success.¡± Bjorn said flatly.
¡°Pardon my interruption, but why don¡¯t you sound excited about it?¡± The chancellor asked, somewhat cautiously.
¡°Because, as we were doing the tests¡. I realized something, chancellor¡. This is why I locked down my department, and Gag ordered my team¡.¡± Bjorn voice was haunted. ¡°Sir, were you there¡ at the second center point?¡±
¡°I was not¡¡± Franklin admitted.
¡°Chancellor, imagine if we could create another second center point¡ from anywhere in the galaxy¡ to anywhere in the galaxy¡. That¡¯s what I have created¡± Bjorn stated softly, ¡°the beacon we dropped off at Pluto¡ it¡¯s the size and weight of the Planet Buster that detonated at 2nd CenterPoint¡ it took 2min to get to Pluto¡¡±
It was very quiet in the office for a long time.
Finally Chancellor spoke, ¡°How easy is this type of weapon to build¡±
¡°Too easy, anything that can be guided and can power a slip drive is now an intergalactic weapon¡. Any location we can calculate, we can hit with any amount of ordinance we choose¡¡± Bjorn stated.
¡°The Oppenheimer effect is not one to be rushed mentally.¡± Franklin said gently, ¡°Take some time Captain. Yes, you have created an unprecedented technology for destruction, you have also unlocked the Universe for us far more quickly than otherwise thought.¡±
¡°Thank you, chancellor, but I have one more thing.¡± Bjorn handed a data stick to the Chancellor, ¡°This needs to get to Delmar yesterday. The beauty of this discovery¡ is that it is a simple software upgrade. Every vessel currently in Delmar space, human or otherwise, should be able to make use of these algorithms immediately, no hardware upgrades needed, and for either drive system.¡±
¡°I see, I will add it to next week¡¯s transmission myself,¡± Franklin assured the man.
¡°I¡¯ve transmitted it to the normal channels, but this can¡¯t wait, not after the information in the last message.¡± Bjorn said before saluting ¡°Permission to depart?¡±
¡°Granted Captain, get some rest.¡± Franklin returned the salute. He didn¡¯t need to; he was a civil leader. Nonetheless, sometimes you just saluted back.
He sat down and inserted the data chip, sending its contents in his personal allotment directly to Ambassador Gwen. It was too late to get it in the official transmission, but it needed to get to Delmar yesterday.
¡°Oppenheimer, you have company.¡± Franklin mumbled to himself, chuckling darkly as he poured a glass of whiskey and reflected in today¡¯s repercussions.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
¡°Ok, how are you supposed to tell the rest of the Unity that humans are omnivores when you can cook meat like this¡ hell I WANT to be a carnivore after this!!¡± Ivar was out at the grill with the men, all of them had either a brew of Delmar or Human vintage as the steaks were fastidiously attended to. Each man had a small cut of meat that Mac and Clint called ¡°chefs¡¯ samplers.¡± Ostensibly they were checking the meat for quality. Most would almost believe them.
¡°I¡¯m taking notes Mackenzie. The Traveler¡¯s crew are going to be living large this season.¡± Martin laughed from somewhere in the gaggle which included Greg, Ivar, Clint, Mac, Tristen, and Doc Icario.
¡°Easy, Martin. Try not to give too many of them obesity.¡± Doc chuckled.
¡°Oh, challenge accepted old man.¡± Martin shot back to a good round of laughter. ¡°Besides, after the magic of the grill was shown to me, no veggie is safe either!¡±
¡°Looks like everything is about ready, I¡¯ll get the platters¡± Mac headed for the door.
¡°Mac wait up!¡± Ivar jogged up, ¡°I¡¯ll help¡± he grinned before saying more softly, ¡°I need to pick your brain...¡±
Everyone filed into an equally aromatic kitchen and dining area as the women all bustled around with the ovens and stovetops. Mac raised an eyebrow as he saw Martina in the kitchen crowd.
¡°Mac,¡± Ivar followed him out to pull the steaks in. ¡°I need some advice.. on Human women¡¡±
¡°So, you and Chika finally getting serious?¡± Mac smiled, ¡°I¡¯ve known her practically our entire adult life. I¡¯ve only seen her in the kitchen one other time¡ she¡¯s serious about you.¡±
¡°I know, but I¡¯m not sure where to go from here.¡± Ivar asked
¡°Well, McLovin, where exactly is here? Have you two..¡± Mac asked with a smirk.
¡°No¡ not yet. I think Martina calls it ¡®second base¡¯.¡± Ivar said, ¡°is that¡ good?¡±
¡°Considering the differences in your cultures. I would call that a start.¡± Mac said, ¡°Alright, McLovin; I¡¯m not going to give you the birds and the bees, but the plumbing is about the same. Humanity doesn¡¯t have a claiming, so our view towards.. home plate.. can be a bit different depending on the person. You need to have this conversation with her, my friend.¡±
¡°Why, I know that Human males hunt their mates, not the other way around¡± Ivar questioned only to have Mac dissolve into laughter.
¡°Ivar, you are being hunted, trust me.¡± Mac said, ¡°She is into you¡ BIG into you. Just remember that your relationship will be different and decide if you want to make the leap.¡± Mac then clamped the taller Man on the shoulder, ¡°Good Hunting.¡±
The two of them walked back in each carrying a massive platter of beef ribeye to the serving table.
¡°Problem?¡± Lyrian whispered to Mac as he sat down.
¡°Not really, Ivar needed advice... on Chika¡± he whispered back.
¡°Oh? Should I talk to her?¡± Lyrian asked
¡°Best not, she is trying to play by Delmar rules. Otherwise, Ivar wouldn¡¯t have had to ask about¡. Plumbing¡± Mac chuckled
¡°Oh, they haven¡¯t?¡± Lyri¡¯s eyes widened.
¡°Nope, it¡¯s theirs to figure out¡± Mac chuckled, recognizing her surprise, and gave her a hug.
The party was a traditional Delmar serve-yourself semi-potluck. Marg and Tili had brought a fruit-based dessert of some kind and Martin had brought a massive Delmar version of a potato salad.
The twins had been allowed to hang out for dinner but were soon put down to bed as the festivities progressed. Commander Silu stopped by a little later in the evening by Air car, and Ami had phoned in briefly. Something had come up at her Home-World and she had been forced to miss the festivities. It felt good to be around family again, and Lyrian was quickly scooped up into a conspiratorial cluster as the Twin¡¯s Birthday party was planned. Martina and Ivar were getting cuddly before leaving and Mac gave a confused Icario a wink.
The night wound down with everyone in good spirits. The Freighters were soon to return and It would be a big family reunion. Mac was secretly looking forward to seeing what the Human contingent would think of the homecoming party.
__________________________________________________
¡°Alright, Maximar, you have our attention¡± it was Mystrius speaking. She was unimpressed but listening.
¡°I believe the Human threat has increased; I trust that you have seen my report?¡± Maximar kept his tone cool. They were speaking over subspace relay from their respective positions across Terminstrius¡¯ deep lost history.
¡°We have seen, what we want; is for you to explain why you called us here. You very nearly brought us over the brink of War, last time.¡± Airicastum was unimpressed, having portions of ¡°his¡± military hidden and usurped did not sit well with him. It had forced Maximar to slowly rebuild his, ¡°pirate fleets¡±. He had also been forced to do so considerably more conservatively than was his want.
¡°We need to figure out what to do with YOUR new Head of the Navy¡ He is headed toward the Signus system to pressure the Delmar.. into what I do not know¡±
¡°What makes you so sure of that?¡± Legaticar asked diplomatically.
¡°The timing, the nature of the communications... other factors as well.¡± Maximar stopped short of naming all of his sources.
¡°I see, fortunately for you, that is not what the Admiral is there to do. He is there to¡ Negotiate, and Guage the measure of Humanity. He is¡ Trusted, with our secret.¡± Aiericastum stated flatly, ¡°I warn you Maximar, you may be among the last of us, but any interferrance on your part will be met with the possibility of extermination. Do I make myself clear... There are other¡ factors¡ at play¡¡±
¡°Oh?¡± Maximar asked.
¡°Not for this conversation¡± Mystrius stated, ¡°We are concluded.¡±
The session ended and Maximar leaned back in his control seat, initiating a search of all non-Human files he had been filtering to his ¡°later¡± pile¡
5 min later, Humanity held little concern.
________________________________________________________________
¡°Mac and Lyrian put on the best parties¡± Martina yawned as she and Ivar walked the last of the distance to Her shoreside apartment. She had been taking on more of the Fighter training of the Recently stood up Delmar defense and interceptor squadrons. She was growing to like Ivar, but she didn¡¯t want to screw anything up. He was Delmar, they were not as casual with their intimacy as Humans could be. Ivar was curious, and they had fooled around a couple of times, but He was a gentleman of the old school, ending it as soon as it started getting serious. He was holding her arm and seemed a bit absent-minded.
¡°I¡¯m going to need to get some of those steaks, I hear you make a mean Fajita¡± He smiled down at her.
¡°I¡¯m not sure if my family recipe would be suicidal for you to try. We Latina¡¯s can be dangerous¡± She quipped. They got to her door.
¡°How dangerous,¡± He asked.
She shrugged, ¡°Depends on how serious you want to be.¡± She unlocked the door and turned to bump into him standing behind her.
Martina was not a large woman. In this Gravity she weighted about as much as a Delmar Female in a much more compact 5.4 frame. She squeaked as Ivar did the most aggressive thing he had done in their relationship. He scooped her up and slammed the door behind them, kissing her lips, then her neck fiercely.
¡°Show me¡± was all he said.
Chapter 52
Morino Yasushi sat in the captain¡¯s chair of the SEV Excelsior, namesake of her class. No amount of ribbing was spared by his friends, family, and some of his crew on his appointment to her Captaincy. His first officer had even gifted him a picture of George Takei in uniform as ¡°Captain Sulu¡± on the bridge of the science fiction ship of the same name.
Excelsior held little resemblance to her fantasy-inspired namesake. She was a squat squared-off torpedo shape with a bulbous-nosed bow and a cluster of 5 sub-light drives in pods on her aft. Her bow¡¯s shape was from following function, and she carried a vast sensor suite for orbital survey and planetary scanning. She also carried a much larger than normal, for her size, crew complement. At 7km in length by just over 4km at her beam, a warship of her size should only carry 1500 crewmen and women. Excelsior was packed with almost 4000 men and women along with terraforming equipment, shuttles, and food stores. Her working crew was only about 2000, with the other half being terraforming/exploration crews and surveyors. Humanity had learned from the aggressiveness of the Unity''s first contacts with them, and Excelsior was armed. She did not carry the weight of fire of a warship her size, but she could deploy a single R.M. 1005 from the forward section of her keel that could fire in a 270-degree arc centered about the bow. She also carried 6 automated GAU34 turrets and 4 turreted laser emitters for point defense. She did not carry the ammunition stores of a warship, but she could bear her claws if needed.
The Excelsiors were the heart of an exploration flotilla. There were 25, of these flotillas, being deployed throughout unexplored sectors, in the next few weeks. A total of 250 would be loosed upon the void as the vessels¡¯ construction completed. Each flotilla had an exploration vessel such as Excelsior at their core surrounded by 2 new alliance class destroyers.
These new ships were the first off the line of new combined Terra - Mars designs and contained the latest of both Design evolutions. Each of the new Alliances¡¯, coated in latest generation Martian stealth, adopted the Terran Rheinmetall RM1005s as the primary forward fixed armament. Each Destroyer had a pair of them in deployable pods that could fire in a 25-degree arch in front of the destroyers.
While their point defenses mimicked Excelsior in both number and type, each Alliance had the next-generation Fusion core power system. This allowed them, with the aid of the ¡°Bank¡± system, to power 2 PAC emitter Turrets. One turret located along their dorsal section amidships, and one along the keel just aft of the beam, these new ships theoretically packed the destructive power of a light cruiser, while being slightly larger than the corvette class Destroyers of the war. The new alliance class destroyer only measured 2km stem to stern and 250 meters at the beam, and a prow reminiscent of a black tip reef shark of Terra.
Humanity had combined the bank systems used by the Delmar and the rest of the Unity with their own capacitance technology, and their power output capabilities. While the main cores were designed to power all systems at the same time, it was no longer required to in emergency or exigent circumstances. This modified version of the ¡°power bank¡± system allowed power to be transferred as need be. Each alliance class had 4 ¡°reserve banks¡±. Shields, point defense, PACs, and MAC all had back up power banks should the core be needed to provide extra power to one system or another, allowing a ¡®neglected¡¯ system to stay operational for a time while the main power was needed elsewhere.
Excelsior would commence her 2 year, or two-planet exploration voyage in a matter of moments. The two-planet limit was due to her supplies. Excelsior¡¯s goal was to drop two exploration crews 1000 strong at individual planets respectively. One Destroyer would remain in orbit above each selected planet, and Excelsior was to jump for Sol to get two more exploration crews and two more destroyers. Her escorts for this maiden voyage were the USN Phobus and USN Luna. He smiled as he looked out of the observation blister of the navigational bridge, observing the two sleek hulls in formation with his charge. Someone on Luna, possibly her Floridian Captain, had gotten a shark¡¯s face painted about the bow of his command. Yasushi shook his head and chuckled, ¡®at least it¡¯s smartly done¡¯.
The Sol Federation had decided to name all combined designed ¡°Hybrid¡± ships that were to become the backbone of the USN after a fashion. All Destroyers of any class were to be named after moons in the Sol system, all Cruiser classes would be named after pre GSW Military figures, Dreadnaught classes were to be named from the planets of Sol. The names of the yet-to-be-built Ships of the Line would be reserved as Memorial to Humanity: Locations, places, landmarks, Battles, distinguished ships of the war ect.. exceptions would be on an individual basis and had to be petitioned by the inaugural crew before launch and voted on by the council.
¡°Captain, Excelsior reads green across the board.. Luna and Phobos report ready for nav-sync.¡± The young ensign reported from a distinctly civilian hybrid internal/external communication station called ¡°Ops¡±.
¡°Nav¡¯s synced and locked in Captain.¡± Called the Nav station.
¡°Excellent, execute Burn, standard Rate. Helm, Jump when ready.¡±
The hum of power shifted only slightly as Excelsior¡¯s sublight drives bellowed to life, their faint blue glow of idle giving way to a brighter hue with flickers of orange and white as the drive¡¯s burner nozzles managed the flow of power. The Exploration ship burned for her jump point at a sedately 4 Human G¡¯s, which was a standard acceleration rate chosen by Sol. Inertial dampeners on ships of this size made the burn almost imperceptible.
20 min later, SEV Excelsior and her entourage departed for their first leg into the Black
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Celestial Traveler dropped out of subspace and Captain Olyvia Morallus¡¯ eyes widened in shock.
¡°Captain! Multiple targetting systems have locked us!¡± The Sensor/navigation station cried moments after their arrival.
¡°COME ABOUT, make 228 by 339! Ahead Flank!!¡±
Celestial Traveller had been on a long haul with a faulty subspace transceiver. This was the first time they had contacted the home-world in almost 2 years, skipping one of her overhauls to complete the contract. The aging Freighter heaved to her orders as sensors showed multiple unidentified and heavily armed warships flanking a station that shouldn¡¯t be there... Captain Morallus mentally prepared herself for incoming fire¡. But nothing happened¡.
¡°Uh¡. Ma¡¯am, we are being Haled, a ¡®Commander Silu¡¯ of ¡®Port Royal¡¯ station.¡±
Olyvia glanced at her sensor officer, ¡°Commander Silu? Status on those locks!¡±
¡°We are reading the sensor lock, but no longer the targeting arrays. no energy patterns consistent with weapons banks. These power readings are off the charts.¡± Came the response
¡°Put up the hale¡ resume course, keep the shields up.¡±
The Holographic feed sputtered to life, flickering slightly from the freighter-damaged Com¡¯s array.
¡°Captain Morallus, Welcome to Port Royal.¡± The former captain of her freighter¡¯s sister ship looked a little older, same familiar scar and blind eye though. He lacked his habitual Saber but leaned unobtrusively against a sturdy straight cane.
¡°Commander Silu, do you mind telling me why I am being targeted by Foreign Warships, upon entry into my Home system?¡± Morallus was fuming. ¡®What the fuck is going on¡¯.
¡°Captain, my apologies. Much has changed since your last departure. We did send out Delmar security codes over the private channels some months ago, along with an explanation.¡± Silu remarked just as a Dark-skinned Alien in a strange uniform walked up to him and whispered something in his ear, ¡°Ah, thank you, Philip. We are reading that you have a disabled long-distance Subspace Array. That would explain much of your consternation. Please Captain, Dock and Come aboard Port Royal for Debriefing. Customs will be going through its inspection shortly. It is one of the newer¡ precautions we have had to take.¡±
Captain Morallus recognized the hint of an order in his voice. Silu was being polite, but this was not an optional request. ¡°Confirmed, I see a clearance for Bay 4. We will proceed there presently.¡± She nodded her acceptance.
Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
¡°Please do not trouble yourself Captain. Your questions will soon be answered¡± Silu smiled and cut the connection.
¡°What the fuck was that!¡± Lieutenant Grarzia asked quietly.
¡°I suspect we will find out¡± Captain Morallus responded as two very fast and strange-shaped fighters flew out to meet Celestial Traveler and escorted her into her assigned docking bay.. The fighters broke off with a maneuver that made Morallus worry what kind of Inertial dampeners they had.
¡°Lieutenant, finish the docking procedure.¡± She gave him a smirk, ¡°Don¡¯t scratch my ship, Grarzia¡±. With that, she left the bridge.
5 minutes later Olyvia Morralus stepped off the airlock tube into the titanic outer ring of Port Royal as she recognized Silu walking up with the same dark skinned shorter Being in the strange almost black, blue uniform with silver accents.
¡°Silu, you old Pirate¡ you got your hands on a space station? And some new friends I see.¡± She prodded gently with a smile.
¡°It¡¯s good to see you to Oly, yes, I am in command of Port Royal; but much more is happening and has happened. I would like you to meet my first officer.¡±
¡°Lieutenant Philip Kenyi, United Sol Navy, Human; at your service Ma¡¯am.¡± the strange being said with a slight accent to his Delmar. He gave a traditional Delmar greeting before smiling at Olyvia¡¯s shock as another being, with pasty whitish pink skin and shaggy brown hair walked past the group and saluted both Silu and Philip.
Olyvia looked Silu¡¯s first officer over. He was a chocolate brown, almost the color of the void itself from head to toe with bright active brown eyes that never seemed to stop moving completely as he paid close attention to his surroundings. The palms of his hands were a slightly lighter color of the same brown and he had short, cropped hair and a clean shaved face. ¡°A pleasure to meet you Mr. Kenyi¡± She said finally, growing even more confused as a third ¡®human¡¯ walked by with shaggy dark reddish hair and bright blue eyes with little dots on her cheeks.
¡°Hey Phil, are we still on for tonight?¡± The young woman asked.
¡°Of course, 1920?¡± Philip responded. The woman nodded and flashed a smile that showed all her teeth before spinning and walking off. She was wearing civilian-style clothing, not a uniform.
¡°Ok¡ What the hell is going on...¡± Oly finally cracked, glaring at Silu.
¡°Yes, let us begin that in my office, shall we? Philip, send an orderly with some refreshments then see we are not disturbed. Then, take the day saving an emergency¡± Silu nodded to the shorter, ¡®human¡¯.
¡°Grazia, you deal with this new, ¡®customs¡¯. I want a full report on what they touched and didn¡¯t in the morning.¡±
¡°Yes, Captain¡± Grarzia bowed slightly then made his way back into Celestial Traveler.
¡°Oly, Come. We have much to discuss.¡± Silu waved her towards his side as they walked to his office.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Mac rang the doorbell on one of the doors of the Guest apartments in The Hall of Tribe Helyon. The door opened after a moment and Growrmun stared down at him. ¡°¡. Mackenzie¡± he growled. He still spat his name like he had spat the name ¡°Demon¡± but at least he was using Mac¡¯s real name.
¡°May I come in?¡± Mac asked calmly.
¡°Dear?¡± Came His mate''s voice from deeper inside the abode. Mac caught a glimpse of her, with their son on her hip feeding him a bottle.
¡°Come¡± Growrmun grumbled and stood aside, waving Mac into the Living room. He moved passed Mac, to sit in one of the chairs facing a fireplace that was unused at the current season. ¡°What do you want Mackenzie.¡±
¡°Two things really. The Unity is sending an Envoy fleet to open a dialogue. I am here to ask you to meet with the Delmar Council. They hope you can provide some insight.¡± Mac stated.
¡°I will disappoint them. I was just an Operative, They... pointed me at a problem and told me to solve it. They never told me why. However, I will meet with the council, I am granted Asylum after all..¡± Growrmun didn¡¯t look up. He just stared at his claws. ¡°I have no purpose Mackenzie¡¡±
Young Ragarai bounded up on all fours, looking every bit the adorable Husky puppy from terra, and stood up to ask to be picked up by his father. Growrmun picked him up and gave him a scratch behind the ears.
¡°I would say you have a pretty important purpose right there. That¡¯s the second thing I wanted to talk to you about. The twins and your boy are fairly close in age. They seemed to enjoy each other¡¯s company. I would like to invite your son to my twins¡¯ first-year birthday party. Your whole family is welcome. It¡¯s not for a couple of months yet. You don¡¯t have to give us an answer now.¡± Mac stood and offered a hand in what Growrmun had learned was a human gesture of friendship, ¡°I know we won¡¯t be friends, but I do want us as allies.¡±
¡°We will see, Mackenzie. Thank you for stopping by.¡± Growrmun took the offered hand and Mac gave it one shake before walking to the door and leaving.
Growrmun watched Mackenzie go and stared at the door, absent-mindedly scratching his son¡¯s ears.
¡°Dear?¡± Vivaria asked again, coming in to check on the two, ¡°Supper is ready.¡±
¡°Ah, smells wonderful¡. What do you make of... Mackenzie¡± Growrmun followed his wife into the kitchen table area and settles young Ragarai into his chair.
¡°He is strange. Very intense, but very gentle with his little ones and with our son. His mate is a little bubbly, but very motherly, and much stronger than a normal Delmar. They are well-matched. I lean toward trusting them. Why?¡± She responded.
¡°They wish Ragarai to come to their twin''s birth party.¡± Growrmun.
¡°I see no problem with Ragarai going. I can take him if you do not wish to go.¡± Vivarai earned a complicated gaze from her mate.
¡°Do you afford them that level of comfort?¡± He asked.
¡°I don¡¯t know, I do know that they bent over backward to keep me and our son safe. I doubt he will be in any danger from them at a children¡¯s birth party.¡± Vivaria responded.
¡°Perhaps. Let¡¯s eat.¡± Growrmun states as the family settled in for dinner.
-____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°I think I¡¯ll take something a bit stronger,¡± Olyvia stated after a long moment of contemplation. Much had been revealed in the Debrief that had changed her outlook on the entire galaxy, ¡°You¡¯re telling me, that a fluke accident, by a race that just discovered FTL¡ sent one of their own 20 years distance in a matter of hours, have technology that renders most UGN capital ships into space dust, and are now allies that aren¡¯t trying to take over the Galaxy?¡±
¡°Well, when you put it that way, I seem downright terrifying.¡± Chuckled Ambassador Gwen chuckled from her seat, sipping on a coffee.
¡°That¡¯s because you are Ambassador¡ Humanity, the Galaxy is not ready for you.¡± Olyvia stated flatly, ¡°Now, with This ¡®Diplomatic¡¯ group from the UGN coming¡¡±
¡°We will take each bridge as it comes. I know you will like the upgrades to Celest. Humanity is gifting every freighter that will accept it, a remote gunnery system and their Cerebral Scan Technology for the gunners. You won¡¯t lose people every time a turret gets taken out anymore.¡± Gwen stated.
¡°I truly thank you for that Captain. What I am not sure of are the hybrid crews. Humans and Delmar¡ I just don¡¯t know.¡± Olyvia stared earnestly into Gwen¡¯s eyes.
¡°We will have plenty of time to figure that out.¡± Silu looked down at his console, ¡°Customs has cleared you Captain, it appears that Fearless Traveler has seen fit to join us. If you could, we would swap your two ships. Consider your ship cleared for departure for drydock.¡±
The three of them stood to leave and Some time later Olyvia stood again on the bridge of her Celest. ¡°Something bothering you, Captain?¡± It was Corellus Grarzia, her second in command.
¡°Many things, but not enough time to explain. Loose Moorings, Lieutenant. We will continue this after we are under weigh,¡± Captain Morallus states and stepped into her ready room. She had transfers to look over. She had planned to promote Grarzia to first officer with her previous first officer in medbay with a virus picked up in their offload port. He was stable, but needed a hospital and was basically 1st officer in name only. She hadn¡¯t had the heart to remove him on his last trip before retirement, and Grarzia had insisted he stay at his current rank in honor of the man who had mentored him.
This was going to be a long refit...
_____________________________________________________________________________________
It was early the next morning when Nicole showed up to watch the kids, on another day off. She had been dubbed ¡°Aniky¡± by the twins who were just now starting to try words, a little quicker for Human babies, a little slower than a Delmar.
¡°You ok ¡®Aunt Nicky¡¯¡± Lyrian giggled as she grabbed her and Mac¡¯s day packs. Mac pulled his G suit fully on.
¡°Oh go, me and the little ones will meet you on the tarmac!¡± Nicole giggled. She had a pranking streak almost as wide as Mac¡¯s. Lyrian and Her had become very close over the last year. Nicole was basically family at this point. ¡°We¡¯re Fine Cher¡¯, Geaux!¡± she said, putting her Cajun inflection into the word.
With that Lyrian bounded out the door after Mac who was already doing the exterior preflight for Concord.
¡°We good?¡± She called as she rounded the corner to find Mac unclipping the last of the ¡®remove before flight¡¯ tabs.
¡°Yup! You got his Shuttle code?¡± Mac said, vaulting up to the canopy, quickly followed by Lyrian.
¡°Got it, 2877409. A little bird told me he just launched. He always did like to fly himself, when he could.¡± Lyri said, strapping into Concord.
The Alpha Sync was activated shortly after and in-cockpit checks flew past them at the speed of the mind.
Concord Roared to life, not bothering to initiate a hover as she howled down the runway and into the skies above Delmar.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
*Celest Shuttle 2877409, Helyon atmospheric approach control on point 778. How copy 409*
¡®that¡¯s odd, we just got cleared¡¯ ¡°409 copies on 778. Is there a problem, Control?¡± Lt Corellus Grarzia keyed into the mic.
*We have an inspection on approach. Maintain course and speed. They will be there in the next 90 seconds*
¡°Inspection? Control, 409, am I leaking something?¡± Corellus furrowed his brow, re-checking his instruments
*Unsure, they used the Military inspection codes, it¡¯s not up to me. They have reported you in-site*
¡°Roger Control, 409 looking.¡± Corelius released his mic key and looked around, ¡°You see them, Laris.¡±
¡°Nope Cory, I aint got shit.¡± Laris, his copilot and oldest friend on Celest muttered, still scanning visually.
¡°Control, 409 is no joy, holding course and speed.¡± Corelius spoke into the mic.
*Off your Larboard Cory* came a new voice into his headset. A shadow crossed over Corelius¡¯s control panel as his head snapped to the left just in time to see a Massive grey and black fighter of some kind loom up from below his left side and gracefully role to match his course and speed, but upside down with its canopy facing the cockpit of the shuttle from above.
¡°Holy Fucking Shit Where did you come from!¡± Corellus swore.
*From below you* The voice said, *Inspection complete, Cobra 224 breaking off* and the shuttle shook as the metallic bird of prey throttled up and barrel rolled out in front of the shuttle before accelerating away faster than anything Corellus had seen in his life.
¡°L.T¡. That thing didn¡¯t come up on sensors¡ at all¡¡± Laris whispered, ¡°We were looking right at it from 3 meters¡ and the Sensors couldn¡¯t pick it up¡¡±
¡°What the void happened while we were gone¡¡± Corellus and Laris shared a look and proceeded to the landing zone.
20 minutes later, they were touched down at the shuttle terminal. Laris was just finishing the offload of crew and equipment before handing the shuttle off to its normal crew when a soul-shaking deep piercing Howl drowned out all sound on the shuttle tarmac. That same Death-Bird came soaring overhead coming to rest in one of the open shuttle slots. Moments later, the cockpit opened, and two Void-suit clad individuals climbed out and nodded to security who had quardened off the terrifyingly predatory ship from the rest of the tarmac. The two void-suits walked toward the shuttle as Corellus stepped out down the ramp.
Laris flicked a glance, alerting Corellus to their visitors.
Corellus put on his best stern face, ¡°You two not finished your ¡®inspection¡¯ yet?¡±
The seals hisses as the helmets retracted themselves; Corellus¡¯ stern scolding morphed into pure unadulterated shock as long silver hair and a familiar face was freed into the late summer air.
¡°Oh Cory, you were always so easy to rile.¡± The now familiar voice spoke behind a satisfied smirk and mischievous eyes.
¡°LYRIAN!¡± Cory squawked as he realized what had just happened. Lyrian pounced and gave him a crushing hug.
¡°I¡¯ve missed you brother, I¡¯ve missed you!¡± She held the embrace for several moments until a wheeze for air finally escaped her older brother. She released him a little sheepishly.
Cory sucked in a massive breath of air, ¡°When did you start crushing people! And When did you learn to fly a Fighter... like THAT!!¡± Cory swiped away the poking finger of a catatonically shocked Larus ¡°Wait, HOW do you own a fucking starfighter!!¡± he heaved, finally running out of breath. ¡°WHAT!!¡± He turned to Laris.
¡°Most of those I can explain easily.¡± Lyrian grinned as she walked over to the subject of Laris¡¯ shock causing Cory to follow her with his eyes only to have them widen as he realized; the speaker in the other void suit was human.
Lyian grinned unrepentantly, ¡°I¡¯d like you to meet my Husband, Mac. Mac, my oldest Brother Cory.¡±
Chapter 53
Corellus just stood there. Staring in a complete stupor at his baby sister. ¡°Lyri, no more games, what¡¯s going on¡¡±
¡°No games Cory¡± the Human Lyri was standing next to spoke, ¡°We have been married since before last season¡¯s refits. James Mackenzie Grarzia¡± he offered.
A small air car zipped overhead and landed at the parking area.
¡°I see Aunt Niky is here.¡± Lyri giggled, ¡°come meet the rest of the family!¡± Mac clasped her hand, and a dumbfounded Cory followed them to the car just in time to see a Human Female step out of the car and scoop two Delmar children out of the back seat.
¡°Who knew traffic existed while airborne. Not a fan Cher¡¯.¡± the woman laughed and handed children off before reaching for Cory¡¯s hand and patting it, ¡°you must be Cory. Welcome home. I¡¯m Nicole Broussard, I take care of Bry and Tris when Lyri needs to get out.
¡°She¡¯s more like family than she wants to admit.¡± Max chuckled.
After making a quick stop at Cory¡¯s house to drop off his things, the 7 went out for lunch.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Ami, Gwen, Silu, and Dar sat with the small contingent of the Confederation council as Growrmun stepped into the room.
While Delmar was the home system of the Confederation, it was not their only planet. Many races could not handle the gravity of the Delmar species'' birth, and the Unity¡¯s needed them to sustain the links of an economically prosperous civilization spanning the distances the Unity claimed as its own. As such, The Delmaracian Confederation controlled a total of 145 Planets spread around the Unity. These colonies/transport hubs functioned on the same seasonal refit and voyage model with their own sectors of responsibility, and were broken up by major tribes: Centarus, Helyon, Praugh, Burellious, and Astris. Every planet in Delmar control was within 5 percent of their home planets gravity, and they were largely considered to be uninhabitable by the rest of the Unity. Each planet had its own piece of the council and ruled largely as a representative Democracy. There were many more here than physically present in the room.
¡°Mr Growrmun, please sit,¡± Darclemus spoke first. As the large wolf man settled into the offered furnishings. ¡°First off, please understand that you are under no obligation to break any oaths sworn in good faith or otherwise that you do not wish to. This is a meeting to feel out, the UGN fleet headed toward us for a ¡®diplomatic meeting¡¯.¡±
Growrmun slowly looked around the room gauging the faces shown to him, hologram as well as flesh and blood. His eyes finally came to rest on Darclemus once more, ¡°Thank you, sadly my ability to inform you on this matter is somewhat limited. I have one primary thing to say that may be of use to you... You have shown me the reports of the size of the force headed to Delmar... From that, I can tell you... the Admiral of the Navy himself is coming¡ not a representative.¡±
A low murmur erupted in the council room as this information hit, but Growrmun was ignoring it all. The Lycan was focused on the Human Admiral turned ambassador. His eyes narrowed as his sense of smell and hearing confirmed what his eyes were telling him. Everyone else present in the room reeked of fear and worry..
Ambassador Gwen¡¯s mannerisms never wavered. She sat patiently, he could hear her breathing slowly and regularly. She smelled not of fear.. but if something else. Growrmun instinctively tilted his head slightly, and Gwen¡¯s head slowly turned to him as she noticed his attention. This time her mannerisms changed. She lowered her chin slightly from her patient observatory expression and her eyes locked into his. He finally recognized the scent. He had smelled the scent boiling from her only once before. The day he almost lost his life, just before he was practically ripped apart in moments by a demon turned savior of his family¡ Her face never actually changed expression, but those ice blue eyes she shared with Mackenzie triggered every hair on his back to stand on end, his whole being screaming ¡®danger¡¯ at the tip of its ancient instinctual lungs.
Then it was gone, and she gave him an almost gentle smile before turning back to the conversation.
The Chancellor of the confederation silenced the room with a clear of the throat, ¡°Ambassador, you do not share in our concern?¡±
¡°I have seen the number and design of the ships coming to face us at Delmar¡ we may lose ships; but since our analysis of Captain Mackenzie¡¯s engagements thus far, I fear very little. We have made some changes in our construction of the Hybrid fleets. The Signus system currently has 6 Hybrid response fleets, all currently being retrofitted with stealth coating and countermeasures. Each of those fleets is centered around SOL, sorry, a ¡®Ship of the Line¡¯ which is the same ship that took two UGN frigates in a matter of minutes without receiving a single casualty, and half of those fleets are commanded by Delmar. We also have multiple Eros in high orbit around Delmar with established lanes of fire. And our crews are fully trained. Many of them were formerly blooded veterans through previous operations. Chancellor, with respect; if we chose, Delmar could invade the sector with what is arrayed in her defense... the combined might of Sol and Delmar stand with your Home-world.¡±
¡°I see¡ But what does that mean for the rest of our outpost planets¡± the Chancellor spoke carefully.
¡°Chancellor, we do not want war, unfortunately, it only takes one side to start one. Economic reprisal is our deterrent, Sol is committed to defending what we can, and evacuating what we cannot. I apologize for not being able to do more. It takes time to get our ships and their crews over to this part of the galaxy.¡±
¡°I was under the impression that you had sent all that you could.¡± one of the other counselors asked. ¡°How many more ships does Sol Have?¡±
¡°Currently, a total of one third of the active warships from mars and Terra are in Delmar space. We could theoretically send half of what remains before we ran out of trained crews.¡± Gwen stated flatly. ¡°The buffer between our system and Unity space allows us this capability. We have new model, combined designs supporting our exploration efforts to bridge that gap as well.¡±
¡°Is Humanity truly that aggressive?¡± One of the other tribal council members, one in the room, asked.
¡°Prepared, councilman.¡± Gwen responded.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Mac, Lyrian, Cory, Laris, and Nicole all sat on a blanket in the sand with the remnants of lunch tucked into a bag off to the side. The twins had hit their markers early and Icario had cleared the two little ones to spend days in the weaker Delmar gravity as long as they still slept in Terran gravity. The Bry and Tris were spending their first day at the beach and they were a mess of wet sand and giggles.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
¡°So¡ my niece and nephew can thrive in twice our gravity thanks to their father¡. Who you were able to claim¡ despite him not being Delmar¡¡± Cory shook his head, still wrapping his head around the conversation over lunch
¡°Don¡¯t forget, Fizz can fly the pants off of any Delmar pilot alive, thanks to her building herself to Human gravity standards and beyond.¡± Mac chuckled.
¡°Sorry about the squeeze, it¡¯s called a ¡®hug¡¯¡± Lyri gave him a sheepish look, ¡°I kinda Huuumon¡¯d out on you for a second.¡±
Mac snarfed, ¡°That¡¯s going to end up a thing.¡±
¡°Do you think Delmar is ready for this ¡®diplomatic¡¯ fleet?¡± Laris spoke softly.
¡°We are, especially since we have added stealth tech to the capital ships.¡± Mac chuckled at Lyrians reaction to that.
¡°You mean what you used to sneak up on us in the shuttle. That was just a shuttle. How good is this ¡®stealth¡¯ really..¡± Cory asked, as he was impacted by Bryton who decided to attempt a tackle on his new uncle. At a year old in a few days, the twins were mobile much earlier than human children. But a few months later than Delmar children. Cory chuckled and riffled the little boys hair before sending him trundling back into the sand.
¡°Cory.. your home-world is as safe as we can make it. ¡° Mac said seriously. ¡°Anyway, enough about that¡ what sent your ship on a 2-year mission?¡±
¡°That¡¯s a story and a half¡ We went on a disaster relief run on the edge of the sector. It was¡. Bad. Rogue asteroid, extinction level event bad¡ Olyvia decided to stay and help with the evacuation. It took us a year and a half to get everyone off the planet.. none of it made sense.¡±
¡°Which world?¡± Nicole asked quietly, Tris was currently in her lap playing with the Nurses fingers.
¡°Promes¡¯erea Prime¡± Laris said
¡°That¡¯s on the edge of the Unity isn¡¯t it?¡± Mac asked
¡°It is, and it¡¯s not the only Fringe world that has experienced this¡. Two fringe worlds on the up-spin side of the Unity and one more on the fringe on the leading-edge boarders¡. ¡° Cory stated, ¡°On our last day, we were reaching the jump beacon just as a frigate and two Cruisers jumped in and burned for the planet.. They completely ignored our hales... one of the cruisers came close enough to us to damage our antenna. It¡¯s why Celest didn¡¯t transmit the new clearance codes to Port Royal.¡±
Mac turned to look as Bry started beating on his accumulated pile of sand with a stick, stabbing it in victory and running to Mac¡¯s arms. ¡°Did you win little man?¡±
¡°Yuhah!¡± The exuberant toddler whooped.
¡°Does Command know about this?¡± Mac hugged his son while returning to the conversation.
¡°Captain Olyvia went with Silu and your ambassador at the station, I dealt with customs. I do not know.¡± Cory admitted.
The group packed up soon after and Nicole offered to drop Cory and Laris off on her way home before sending Vito back in return mode.
Soon the twins were asleep after a thorough shower/bath, and Lyri was curled up next to Mac. ¡°I can feel that you know. Spill¡±
Mac chuckled, ¡°My paranoia won¡¯t let go of what your brother told us. It doesn¡¯t add up in the ¡®natural disaster¡¯ cate¡.¡±
Mac froze as Lyians wandering fingers found their mark. She leaned up and growl-hummed into his soul before reaching over him to turn out the lights.
___________________________________________
The next day was the biggest Homecomming party Tribe Helyon had held to date. Mac, Lyrian, Clint and Frie all showed up mid-morning with a massive amount of charcoal and a fire pit grill. Mac began a repeat performance of his cookout during Brrusch¡¯. Soon his fire-kissed contributions were laid alongside the massive amount of food in the Hall¡¯s central table. Martina and Ivar showed up together, as did Greg and Marg. The Old Salts table had become an entire section of the upstairs with Human and Delmar Void Sailors, all doing what Sailors do best. By early evening the party was in full swing, and the old Traveller group settled into the table from last year. The Twins were old enough to be in the Kids area, so Nicole waved a couple of times as she explored the event.
¡°You think Chika bagged Ivar?¡± Clint chuckled, watching the two of them on the dance floor.
¡°Oh yea,¡± Frie responded, ¡°but I heard it was Ivar who made the move. He might be the first male in 1000 years to claim his own female.¡± She giggled.
¡°Who claimed what?!?¡± Mac tumbled back into his seat from getting another plate of food.
¡°Ivar and Martina are fuckin¡¯¡± Martin grinned unrepentantly at his timing as Mac choked.
¡°About dam time¡± It was Himar, He had just been passing by, ¡°That poor fuck has been swooning over her since she blew into his life at your airfield. BTW, what the hell is a ¡®McLovin¡¯. Apparently, you called him that a couple times, and Now Martina and the rest of the pilots won¡¯t stop.¡±
Lyrian lost it, laughing hard enough to lean on the table with her hands, ¡°McLovin!! Oh, nooo Mac¡ you didn¡¯t.¡±
¡°I guess I did, one way to find out¡ HEY MCLOVIN!¡± Mac shouted onto the dance floor.
¡°Fuck you, BigMac!¡± came Ivars voice along with Martina¡¯s laugh.
¡°Yup, I guess I did.¡± Mac shrugged.
¡°McLovin caught the Chika, I know entire squadrons that are now jealous.¡± Clint chuckled.
The conversation meandered into the night until the Band started playing requests.
¡°It¡¯s time.¡± Clint said. Mac head whipped to him,
¡°Don¡¯t make me do it!¡± Mac bawled, ¡°I already introduced the waltz to them.¡±
¡°Nope, it¡¯s happening.¡± Clint grinned back
¡°Hell yea it is,¡± Frie bounced on her toes, ¡°I¡¯ve been practicing.¡±
¡°So have I.¡± Lyrian purred into Mac¡¯s ear ¡°Common Hun, what¡¯s a little cultural cross-pollination between species?¡±
Mac¡¯s face turned red for a moment before he stood, ¡°Fuck it. Let¡¯s do this.¡±
¡°Are we doin it?¡± It was Greg and Marg walking up.
¡°Are you Fuckin¡ NITRO! How many people have you roped into this!!!¡± Mac bellowed.
¡°Enough¡± It was Doc Icario and Tili
¡°Care for a few more?¡± Tristen and Juel smiled as they walked up.
Clint whipped out a data stick and headed for the band.
The cult Classic Track ¡°Foot Loose¡± started playing and the group began introducing the Delmar people to yet another Human piece of Dance culture. About halfway through the song the bystanders were on the dance floor and the song really got into full gear.
As the song wound down, the group staggered back to their table to relax for a bit.
¡°I can¡¯t believe you did that¡to these poor souls.¡± Mac chuckled, slightly winded.
¡°At least we had enough people to get the idea across.¡± Frie gasped from her spot, leaning up to a positively unrepentant Clint.
Martin wandered over and waved more beer in front of everyone¡¯s face, ¡°Refreshments!¡± he bellowed, ¡°You look like you need em!¡±
Martina and Ivar wandered over from the dance floor a few minutes later. And Ivar received a lot of ribbing until he flat planted a spicy French kiss on Martina in front of everyone, then Bore his teeth slightly, ¡°My Chika!¡± he growled before laughing at everyone¡¯s reaction.
¡°But the real question,¡± Clint asked seriously, ¡°did you survive her Floutas¡±
The look of Horror on Ivars face dissolved the table into hilarity once again.
¡°I did, but only just... You do realize that some Mexican seasonings could be used as riot control on most planets of the Unity?¡± Ivar cringed, ¡°It tasted great after my face went numb¡ 7 hours later was¡. Less fun.¡± Ivar shuddered visibly.
¡°We might have to figure out some substitutes.¡± Martina said sheepishly, ¡°I was excited for him to try it¡ and did the full authentic recipe with sides¡ We almost had to get his stomach pumped... almost.¡±
Later that night the group finally started to split up. Mac went and retrieved the Twins so they could experience the Hall properly. A couple of samples of food and a foot race down the balcony later, and it was time to head home.
_____________________________________________________
¡°Olyvia, it¡¯s late, is there something wrong?¡± Silu asked in his private quarter''s office sipping a glass of whiskey before turning on for the night. His wife was already asleep in the bedroom.
¡°It is indeed late, what¡¯s going on,¡± a haggard-looking Gwen grumbled as she entered the call.
¡°Something may be¡ wrong¡ I was so shocked at your news that I omitted to give my report. Things have¡ pointedly jostled my memory. My 1st officer just died in the hospital. He picked up a virus on our long haul.¡±
¡°My condolences, I guess you better start from the top, Captain.¡± Gwen stated formally.
Olyvia began with their contract acquisition for an evacuation and emergency supply, moving on to the evacuations as the Planets ecosystem began to fail from the rogue asteroid impact. Her 1st officer had ended up investigating a shard that had been expelled from the impact site. He had cut himself on the shard as it had gone through his specimen gloves. He was rushed to the med bay where he was already showing symptoms and was put into a medical coma and isolated. She finished with their encounter with a UGN fleet that ignored them and damaged their long-distance comms in a near miss..
¡°This isn¡¯t the first world like this. I¡¯ve done some digging. 15 worlds in the last 20 years have been ¡®lost¡¯ to the Unity in this manor¡ The same thing always happens. The Planet gets deemed lost and subsequently ignored and forgotten.¡± Olyvia finished.
¡°This is.. Concerning.¡± Silu agree¡¯d
¡°More-so if you add the fact that a large fleet is on its way here, possibly with the Head Admiral of the Unity on board.¡± Ambassador Gwen was fully awake at this point, nursing her second cup of coffee. ¡°I¡¯ll need to transmit this to Sol, some of those planets are on this side of Unity space. We need to keep our Exploration fleets informed and aware.¡±
¡°Indeed, I¡¯ll inform Gregory in the morning. I want to redeploy Simo and Kyle in a reserve capacity in case they need to deal with a spontaneous ¡®rogue¡¯ asteroid.¡± Silu stated.
¡°Agreed¡± Gwen stated, ¡°Looks like I''m not going to sleep for a while, I have a transmission from Sol to browse through. Olyvia, Thank you for waking us up for this. It was indeed as important as you feared.¡±
¡°Get some rest Oly, we can continue in the morning.¡± Silu stated gently
¡°Thank you, both of you. Have a good rest of your night.¡± Olyvia bowed slightly before leaving the call. Gwen and Silu nodded to each other and left the call.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Gwen settled into her chair 3 hours later. The latest information from Sol was promising. The encrypted private message from Johanssen through Franklin of all people had been... intense. She had already forwarded it into a morning update for the entire Fleet and had called for a meeting of all the captains for this coming mid-morning¡ ¡°Poor Bjorn is right¡ Being able to do this¡ it is a deadly gift¡± she muttered to herself. She had 5 hours until the captain¡¯s meeting. She decided to see how much of it could be spent unconsciously.
Chapter 54
Admiral Basalar Karmarin stepped out onto the bridge of His flag.
UGN Protectorate was the assault carrier in the heart of the Naval Armada that consisted of 4 Frigates, 6 plasma beam armed screening cruisers and 10 Frontier Brigs. Protectorate herself could bare her talons as well. She carried 150 void fighter Mk7s each armed with two laser cannons and a plasma launcher about the nose of their needle-like 14-meter fuselage. Long thin wings extended from the back half of their fuselage. The wings leading edge starting just behind the cockpit with the trailing edge returning to the fuselage just in front of the three main sub light drives. These wings, although large enough in surface area were long and thin, incapable of atmospheric flight. They served the combined purpose of moving maneuvering thrusters out on a lever arm to aid in maneuverability, and to collect solar energy to help their power cores in running ship functions at higher electrical loads. These fighters were to survive by maneuverability, and all weight was shaved to that end. The MK7¡¯s had no pressurization, no shields, no armor of any kind. All pilot survivability was sacrificed to the alter of performance.
Admiral Karmarin despised jumping into a system blind, but the Inquisititorum had been¡. Cagey with what they claimed they knew as of late.
¡°We are within a day, admiral. Permission to send codes?¡± the sailor at the Navigations station reported.
¡°Very well, let¡¯s play their game Ensign. You may transmit.¡± Admiral Karmarin spoke in Galactic Common, Protectorate was a mixed crew of Thermian, Lycan and Kawmari¡ after the beginning of intervention by the Tetrarchy in the Delmar system, they had continued their open displeasure by summarily investigating a large portion of the Thermian naval command structure. Heads rolled, some literally, as illegal experimentation and apprehension dating back fifty years was ¡°uncovered¡± and ¡°dealt with¡±¡ The shakeup was so severe that Admiral Karmarin represented the first non-Thermian Admiral of the Navy in over 200 years, but Karmarin suspected that his previous station¡¯s proximity to Delmar contributed heavily to his recent elevation.
To that end, he was almost universally despised by the Thermian¡¯s left in the navy, but most individuals were smart enough to keep their heads down and respect the office. He stepped up to the chair next to the Captain and sat down. The captain, another new development, was a muscle-bound mountain of a Lycan man with short trimmed fur. He casually looked up from his holoscreens and tilted his head on intrigue.
¡°Admiral?¡± His species'' deep growling, rumbling pronunciations, enhanced by the man¡¯s stature and build, bled into his GC.
¡°Captain Drawrcan Wraurgth, what do you make of our destination.¡± Admiral Karmarin asked, shaking out his feathers slightly in a more relaxed manner for his Kawmari heritage.
¡°This reeks of a trap¡ unless our mission is truly diplomatic relations, Making this jump was a mistake.¡± Drawrcan counter after a moment.
¡°I tend to agree, I want these next orders to spread to the captains quietly. I want all our power banks charged and shields active before we drop into Signus¡¡± The Admiral paused as Drawrcan¡¯s eyes widened, ¡°but, and this is important, I do not want our weapons cleared for action, and I want our Fire control scanners on standby, I want to be ready for an ambush, without actually triggering a response.¡±
The two stared at each other for a long moment.
¡°This is a diplomatic mission,¡± the massive wolf man took a long slow inhale through his nose, not even bothering to hide it from his admiral, ¡°You know more than you are¡ than you can tell me.¡±
The Kawrmari admiral clicked his massive beak together in an expression of amusement and contemplation, ¡°I see I have chosen my flag captain well. Yes, there is more. No, I cannot disclose at this time.¡±
¡°Understood Admiral, I¡¯ll get on those orders presently.¡± the captain turned back to his screens.
¡°Excellent¡± The Admiral stood smoothed his feathers to a more professional air and returned to his ready room.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Admiral Gwen was currently profusely thanking the inventor of espresso as she sat in the conference room opposite the captains, who were arrayed in hologram form. A few of them appeared to have enjoyed ¡®homecoming¡¯ a little more than others.
Rear Admiral Gregory Burgoyne was among the holograms. The signal that the UGN fleet was to arrive just after mid-day local time had seen him and Captain Margaretti transfer fully over to Olympus in preparation for their arrival.
¡°We don¡¯t have much time, I¡¯m calling this conference to personally inform you of a new development from Sol R&D combined with LEAP. Simply put gentleman our brilliant Captain Bjorn Johansson has cracked the code.. Commodore Mackenzie¡± she glanced at her nephew, ¡°Gave us FTL, however, it appears that Captain Johansson has given us the Galaxy. The navigational routines are in your systems already gentlemen, but the short and curlies are this. We no longer need to jump between beacons.¡±
Several gasps were heard from both Delmar and Human commanders at this.
¡°Simply put¡± Gwen continued, silencing the murmurs, ¡°Johansson had a hunch that you do one need two beacons to jump, you merely need two sets of coordinates. Meaning gentleman, if we can see three or more beacons, we can triangulate any coordinates we need.¡±
This time the commotion was louder as orders sounded off and captains began looking to their navigational crew for confirmation. 6 minutes went by before Gwen interrupted the quieting din, ¡°The calculations will take longer, but it is confirmed. All of you have trained together for months. I trust your combat skills, take the time to learn this. We will most likely not need it here, but we WILL be using this technique as standard. There is more, and a formal in person meeting is to happen, after we deal with the Unity Admiral. Gwen out¡±
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Mac was now the commodore of First Fleet, and as such he got to choose his flag ship. He was sitting in Concord with Lyrian as they floated silently above and behind the USN Galveston. Mac had not been dumb enough to permanently make Concord his Flag, but until he had perfected fleet combat from a bridge, Mac was able to see the battlefield and command better from the cockpit.
His ship was up to the task, her upgraded sensor and data link packages made her the perfect hub of combat awareness, and Mac was highly trained in not being seen while observing a fleet battle.
*5 minutes until they get here* lyrians mind brushed up against his.
First fleet, and Third fleet were on the front lines for this, flanking Port Royal about either side of the station at 100,000km from the beacon. the station and her supporting armada were data-linked and in full active sensor mode with Shield Wall activated. Three Eros escorted by Second and fifth fleet¡¯s flag with Rear Admiral Burgoyne aboard, were arrayed in the asteroid field on the Star side the station 50,000km at a 45 degree crossfire angle in full stealth. They were supported by the totality of Ninth fleet.
The Jump point near the beacon and the UGN armada dropped into existence inside Delmar space.
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Stolen story; please report.
Alarms immediately began to blare around Admiral Karmarin as his fleet dropped into the Signus system.
What looked like two separate fleets flanking a massive space station stood directly in his fleet of 21 ships path. Each of the fleets before him had 1 of the same ships that sank two frigates on the Lycan system, and two destoyer sized ships that he did not recognize. 2 Delmar heavy cruisers and 2 Delmar destroyers filled out each formation and there was an energy field just in front of those fleets that spread across their collective bows as they took on a nose first battle line position. ¡®16 to my 21¡ but those big bastards could be a problem¡¯ his mind clicked off before he remembered his mission and overrode his training
¡°Maintain orders, open a Hale¡± he ordered. ¡°Keep our guns cold! If there is to be war, let them start it!¡± He barked as his orders were carried out.
Moments later the hologram generator shimmered into the form of a dapper Delmar in uniform slightly leaning on a cane with one hand and a Laz pistol on his opposite hip. A chocolate brown almost void skinned Human stood in a respectful manor just behind and to one side and a very tall grey hairs imposing specimen of a human female stood next to the Delmar.
Karmarin noticed the scars and the eye of the Delmar, and his eyes narrowed in recognition reading the Delmar insignia on the man¡¯s chest, ¡°Commander Silu I presume. The slayer of the pirate assassin now commands a space station, I see.¡±
¡°Admiral Karmarin, it has been a long time. Welcome to the Delmar system.¡± Silu said slowly, ¡°Do we fly, or die this day, Admiral?¡± Silu stated formally in Galactic common.
¡®You remember, Well played¡¯ ¡°We fly Commander. I come to speak to the humans in peace, but one must always prepare for war. As you have as well.¡±
¡°Very well admiral, we will escort your fleet to Port Royals mooring field. I¡¯m sure you want to avoid docking for security purposes.¡± Silu nodded to someone off-screen.
Admiral Karmarin was about to dissuade Silu from sending his ships out until a new set of 26 ships drive signatures sent his tactical officer into a quick panic as they revealed themselves in the asteroid field. These three new fleets took up escort positions but did not have their weapons or fire controls powered. ¡°I look forward to our meeting, Admiral Karmarin out.¡±
¡°By the void,¡± his flag captain whispered, ¡°they could take this whole sector and half of the next before we could do anything about it¡¡±
¡°So it would seem. Shut down the shields and weapons; they won¡¯t do us any good anyway, keep our sensors active. I want to record everything.¡± The Admiral ordered.
¡°Consider it done, we are the closest any UGN ship has gotten to a human one and survived to share data. This will be a gold mine.¡± the Flag captain responded before turning to carry out the orders.
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¡°Weren¡¯t admirals of the unity supposed to be Thermians?¡± Ambassador Gwen asked quizzically toward Silu, ¡°and how do you know this one.¡±
¡°This admiral was a captain when I met him. But that¡¯s a long story. He was a good man then, one of the few non-Thermian naval officers I ever met. Kawmari are incredibly intelligent. We should be in for interesting times.¡± Silu shrugged.
First and third fleet resumed their original positions of loose protection around Port Royal. Mac and Clint were summoned to the station itself to sit in on the talks as a second and third brain. Lyrian stayed with Mac until they landed in a hanger, then gave him a peck and wandered off to find Ami and Silu¡¯s wife to do some shopping.
Mac and Clint made it to the shuttle bay just in time to meet the UGN Admirals shuttle.
Mac had seen one of these avian species on He¡¯rth station. He whistled slightly as the Admiral stepped out of his shuttle and spread his wings.
A fully grown Kawmari male measured around 2.5 meters from bill to tail feathers, with a full-grown wingspan of almost 5 meters. Their wings were set into quadruple shoulder joints, two on each shoulder, and shared these with a pair of feathered arms of about a meter in length with 4 fingered articulating talons in place of hands. Their 2-meter-long legs were black and featherless much like a stork species of terra. Admiral Kamarin revealed that gender Dimorphism was also present in this species. Kawmari females tended to have light colored long, narrow refined herring like bills, while male¡¯s bills were large powerful almost shoebill in shape. Their towering stature was a paradox to their weight. Being a flighted avian species, a full grown male Kawmari weighted a mere 20 kg; with their bulk mostly made up of flight, protective, and insulating feathers.
¡°Admiral Kamarin Welcome to Port Royal.¡± Silu greeted the towering mass of off-white feathers topped with piercing grey eyes, ¡°Allow me to introduce Ambassador Gwen Mackenzie Trenton of Sol. She also holds the Title of Admiral and wields the might of Sol in this part of the galaxy.¡±
¡°Admiral and Ambassador hmm,¡± Karmarin mused, ¡°Well met. The gambit at the beacon was yours I take it?¡±
¡°It was a Group Effort. I know my ships, Commander Silu knows the ¡®terrain¡¯ as it were.¡± Ambassador Gwen offered. ¡°Shall we retire to the conference room?¡±
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Admiral Kamarin stepped into the conference room to find a selection of food and drink. It was Modest, yet adequate. They had accounted for his species aquatic taste in protein with fish-based dishes, as well as fruits and roughage.
¡°All Three of our species are Omnivores, Admiral. Everything should be in order.¡± Silu stated as they sat down.
¡°Thank you, I do tire of pomp, but our little stand-off has left me with an appetite. It¡¯s not often an Admiral of the Unity is put on his back foot. I found it refreshing.¡± Kamarin settled into his chair folding his wings over the backrest for space.
¡°A necessity I¡¯m afraid. Humanity has had very little positive interaction with UGN forces to date. I hope to change that with this visit.¡± Admiral Gwen stated, taking her seat as well with Silu taking a third.
¡°Yes, the¡ Rot¡ your encounters with our forces exposed was¡ surprising¡ It is part of the reason I am here. If we may indulge in business for the moment¡± Karmarin waited as the other two nodded, ¡°Simply put, the Unity is terrified of Humanity. You are a mystery shrouded in Death and Turmoil to most citizens. This was sadly fanned by the former Admiralty and the science division, in an effort to¡ examine a specimen, a practice most of us thought abolished almost a millennia ago.¡±
¡°It was a reason for our apprehension. Our Initial report from Unity space carried that information.¡± Ambassador Gwen stated, ¡°Our first Human to contact another species, James Mackenzie, had to be wed to a Delmar woman to protect himself from such an attempt.¡±
¡°Mackenzie, he shares a name with yourself?¡± Karmarin noted.
¡°My blood nephew, luckily the two already cared a great deal for each other and are Thriving.¡± The ambassador finished.
¡°I see. Well, I hope that that horrible practice of specimen acquisition is over, sadly I doubt it is. Humanity is off the list however, your capacity for death and destruction have made that so at a minimum. It is for the best.¡± Karmarin. ¡°I would stay on the station for the night, with your blessing, I would have trusted members of my crew do so as well. Part of my mission here is to assess the truth that is Humanity.¡±
¡°I¡¯m sure that can be arranged. This is a joint-built station, and I see no problem with you or any of your crew who wish for R and R to come aboard¡± The ambassador stated.
¡°Indeed, it is agreed¡± Silu stated, ¡°Is there anything else before we retire to see to those shore leaves.¡±
Karmarin nodded solemnly, ¡°I need.. to speak to Ambassador Gwen.. alone¡±
Silu and Gwen shared a look and Gwen nodded imperceptibly as the silence fell on the room.
¡°Certainly, I¡¯ll go see to your lodgings for the night¡± Silu stood with practiced calm and left the room.
¡°Well, this is certainly unexpected¡ Color me intrigued Admiral.¡± Gwen¡¯s eyes watched the Admiral as he slowly moved a hand to a small pouch and withdrew a puck from it.
¡°It is safe, it is a privacy device. If you have not been recording our meeting from the start you are a fool.¡± He activated it and a slight background of static crackled momentarily before stabilizing. ¡°Admiral, I am here on more than just Unity business¡ I am the personal agent of the Tetrarchy in this matter. They wish to meet face to face. No games, no measure of intrigue or subterfuge. They wish to see¡ ¡®how humanity has progressed¡¯. ¡± Gwens eyes widened as he spoke the last part in English.
¡°Admiral, you have my attention. I must ask why. Our only interaction was over the viewer screen. We only know that ¡°humanity is known¡± to them.¡± Gwen said slowly.
¡°I have been told that you will be very skeptical. I suspect I know why, but I will convey the message I have been sent to deliver¡.¡± The UGN admiral switched to English one final time, ¡°24June1947, Arnold was wrong, we were doing 1,950 miles per hour.¡±
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Captain Yasushi awoke to a Com¡¯s request coming from his computer. He rose slowly, allowing the fog to clear away to calm focus before reaching over and tapping to receive the request. ¡°Go for Morino¡± he grumbled.
¡°Captain... It¡¯s the Expedition lead¡ He is headed back to the Excelsior; He will be here in 45minutes. He says it¡¯s urgent.
Yasushi groaned, ¡°I¡¯ll be there, conference2. Morino out.¡±
Silas Burke was one of the Original Martian Teraformers and surveyors. At 74 He had forgotten more about how planets work than most ever learned. It had taken 3 jumps to find their first habitable planet. It was a forest world. Burke had been testing the world for short term habitation since they had cleared the atmosphere as breathable. Yasushi had begun the preparations for sending down the rest of the Research team the afternoon before today...
Captain Yasushi stepped into the conference room to meet a very somber and shaken Burke, ¡°Silas¡ Mind telling me what is going on?¡±
¡°Certainly captain. But I feel I need to show you as well.¡± The shaken man put his backpack on the table and withdrew a wrapped package. He carefully unwrapped it to reveal a weathered Humanoid skull. The room gasped as one before going deadly silent.
¡°Silas, what did you find¡± Yasushi¡¯s voice was firm, breaking the Tera former out of his haunted stare at the skull.
¡°We found a Civilization, Captain¡ a murdered civilization¡¡± Burk said softly.
¡°Silas¡± Captain Yasushi walked over and sat the shaken man down into a chair and waved everyone else into a seat before taking one, not at the head, but next to the man who had become a friend over this voyage, ¡°Start from the beginning. Take your time.¡±
¡°Yasu¡ Captain, we started out like we planned, we brought extra spelunking gear and rock climbing due to the hilly and tumultuous terrain on the planet. We were exploring a valley when Sven decided we should check out a peak. It was a wonder to us why a temperate world could have peaks so high that did not have frozen precipitation on them year-round. We packed up and began the hike up the nearest mountain. The weather cooled but did not require extra clothing until we were near the peak. Marley was the first one to spot something. She found a rock¡ with a marking on it.. It.. It was porcelain Captain. We started finding artifacts higher up the mountain we climbed... the more we found.¡± Burke to a shaky breath.
¡°I sent Sven and another crew by shuttle to a the top of another mountain. They found more¡ items that required machining¡ ruins of steel reinforced concrete structures¡ then this...¡± the haunted man pointed at the skull ¡°We found that in a half-destroyed metal casket¡ They were Technologically progressed¡ but only to the level of our 1930¡¯s.. not enough to¡ to¡¡± Burke started to shake, staring at his hands.
¡°Silas, I need to know what they were not advanced enough for.¡± The captain clamped a hand on his shoulder reassuringly.
¡°I had a Hunch Yasu¡ I took out a carbon dating kit and an exotic elements kit... I went back down into the valley and took several samples¡ Yasu¡ Those are not valleys... they are craters¡ all of them. I had teams duplicate the tests in several different sites¡ The soil and plant life shows signs of biologically adapted and repaired Antimatter degradation in the Flora and Fauna DNA¡¡± Burk looked up at his Captain, ¡°You know how long it takes for that to happen¡ These people... they were murdered by antimatter weapons, weapons they could not have possibly produced themselves, almost 4000 years ago¡¡±
Chapter 55
Ambassador Gwen sat back in her office chair. lt was after dinner, and her titanic diplomat¡¯s office was more full than usual.
The diplomatic offices aboard Port Royal were designed to accommodate even the largest races of the Unity. Ami was settled onto a large cushion with her head turned in to the conversation. Mac, Clint, and Silu were ensconced in comfortable guest Chairs with Gwen behind her desk. A bottle of Glenfiddich 18 sat on the desk and everyone had a portion in glasses, save Ami.
¡°So, he referenced one of our earliest historical UFO sightings¡.¡± Clint asked slowly, still not sure he believed his ears.
¡°In English¡ and he provided latitudinal and Longitudinal coordinates, and specifically asked for them to be sent back to Terra along with a data package; and a reply received before we proceed¡.¡± Gwen¡¯s tone was still tinged with her shock.
¡°So what are we saying¡¡± Mac took a sip of the expensive Scotch, ¡°That Terra and humanity has been watched for thousands if not hundreds of thousands of years?¡±
¡°That would¡. Explain much¡± every head turned to Ami, who had been silent until now¡ ¡°Gwen, remember when we first met? What I wanted?¡±
Mac and Clint quirked identical Eyebrows at their aunt. Gwen nodded before speaking, ¡°you wanted to trade DNA samples¡ our scientists are still working on that,¡±
¡°Ours are as well, but we have found one thing. You see, every planet has a signature it leaves on native species. Our medical technology has the ability to see that signature. The Saurian race, second only to the Corth¡¯ are the oldest race in the Unity, even before the Thermians, and the Kri¡¯. Each of those species carried the genetic markers of their home-world. It is a closely guarded secret among the Saurian¡. That we do not. Some have called it a fluke, maybe when the Corth¡¯ enlightens us, they somehow deleted it. That had been the going theory¡ until last week¡¡± Ami visibly steeled herself, ¡°I received a communique from Sarass, our home-world. Our ¡®Origin-Gene¡¯ matches that of Humanity. This cannot leave this room. I am not even authorized to tell you at all. The Sarass council does not want to be genetically linked to Humanity at this time for fear of retaliation. We are not very far from the Thermian home-world, and Mackenzie, through no fault of his own, has made the Thermians an enemy of Humanity.¡±
¡°That explains the crew make up of the fleet here. Only a quarter of the entire complement of personnel from the UGN fleet is Thermian.. and no Thermians are on the shore leave manifests¡± Silu remarked.
¡°That¡¯s¡ heavy¡ Ami, does your people have a mythology? Humanity has a pretty extensive mythos of legend and lore that predates or coincides with our earliest written history.¡± Clint asked.
¡°We do¡± Ami nodded. ¡°I will have it sent over.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll send you ours, at this point let¡¯s see if anything matches up.¡± Clint responded before downing the last of his scotch, ¡°I have a shuttle to catch, let me know if anything develops.¡± He stood, said his goodbyes, and left for the shuttle bays. Just as Lyri poked her head in
¡°I¡¯m lookin¡¯ for that one¡± she mused pointing at Mac.
¡°Sorry Luv¡¯ It¡¯s been a heavy one. You mind being PIC this time?¡± Mac waggled his drink.
¡°Are you kidding? Hell yea!¡± She laughed.
Mac drained the last of his drink, ¡°I¡¯ll fill you in if Ami is ok with that.¡±
The Saurian nodded her head, ¡°she is fine.¡±
Mac followed lyri out after giving a quick salute.
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-one week later-
Captain Yasushi sat back in his chair. He had sent an urgent report back to Sol after poor Silas¡¯ grim discovery¡ and received a disturbingly quick response back. Five other expeditions had found pristine planets with the remnants of murdered civilizations on them. Some were more primitive, two of them had technology equal to that of The Unity. Every single dead civilization was subject to either an anti-matter attack, or a massive Asteroid impact. the planet Yasushi was orbiting was the youngest of the discover genocide planets. The oldest dated event appeared to be dated around 127 million years previous. Burke had ralleyed long enough to find enough evidence to amend his previous estimate of the planets inhabitants capabilities of that of around Terra circa 1960ish.
Sol¡¯s response had been simple. Excelsior was to hold station over their current discovery as a more anthropological response team was shipped out to him. They would be here in two days¡¯ time, a significantly shorter duration considering they did not stop to search beacon locations as Excelsior and her entourage had.
*Captain to the bridge, Tactical Alert*
The overhead blared a second time, but Yasushi was already out of his quarters at a full sprint, snapping his combination uniform/ emergency EVA suit tunic closed as the nanites sealed the seams and deployed his helmet. The captaincy level Alpha sync buzzed into the back of his mind as it projected his customized HUD into his vision.
Excelsior was well drilled, and she reported full depressurization, shields up and cleared for action by the time Captain Yasushi stepped into the ¡°battle bridge¡± his crew insisted on calling it.
¡°Report¡± Yasushi ordered, sitting in the central chair, scanning his HUD. There was no viewer on the battle bridge. All senior crew had a minimal receive only version of Alpha Sync that allowed them a HUD interface with the ship. Control of Excelsior was still done with flesh and blood interface.
¡°Reporting a chemical propellant launch Captain. It appears to be a crude intercontinental missile. Sensors report basic conventional explosives¡¡± came the reply from the tactical station as the captain was sent the sensor images.
¡°Dumb fire?¡± Yasushi asked scanning the data sent.
¡°Appears so sir. Whatever launched it did enough math to get close. It will pass within 20km of Excelsior if we hold our present orbit.¡±
¡°How long do we have until our near miss.¡± Yasushi asked, scratching his chin.
¡°43 minutes, Captain. Phobos reporting a firing solution.¡± Tactical reported
¡°Tell Phobos to hold her fire, we will let it reach us. Helm, get us within 2 klicks of its path. Tactical, ready the tow lines. If it doesn¡¯t proximity detonate, I want to take the missile under tow for disarming and research.¡±
¡°Aye Captain.¡± the two stations said in unison.
¡°Phobos reporting a stand down.¡± Ops reported.
¡°Very good. Ops, use the rocket trail, find me where that Missile came from. If something is intact enough to launch, it¡¯s intact enough to have something in the planet¡¯s previous inhabitants. When you have a coordinated solution, we are going down there. Tell Silas to assemble a team.¡± Yasushi settled into his chair.
Confirmations rang out and information scrolled past his vision as Excelsior prepared to lasso a crude, 4000-year-old alien ballistic missile.
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Martina stirred with a half-asleep squeak as she realized she was alone. The smell of human coffee alerted her as to why. She stretched, and dragged herself out of bed to find one of her summer dresses hanging from the mirror. ¡®Right the twin¡¯s birthdays today¡¯ she smiled at Ivar¡¯s choice. ¡®He certainly has a thing for shoulder less tops.¡¯ She thought as she dressed and followed the hallowed scent of fresh caffeine into the kitchen.
¡°Since when did you learn coffee,¡± She mused before taking the offered the cup and smelling the Spices in her¡¯s, ¡°Oh you spoil me¡±
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Ivar smiled at her before turning back to the coffee maker to pour himself a more meager serving, ¡°The Cayenne tried to kill me, I¡¯m fine, but my head is the clearest it¡¯s been in¡. ever¡±
Martina laughed before grabbing a couple of bowls and pouring some Human style Cereal and milk for the two of them, ¡°I see you grabbed your favorite¡± She twirled for him before sitting down.
¡°Never heard you complain¡± Ivar was smirking, kissing her on the neck, finishing with a nip. ¡°You look great¡± he said awkwardly.
¡°McLovin, don¡¯t go all bashful on me. Not after the last few months.¡± She bit her lip and rounded her eyes at him.
A low growl resonated from Ivar as he looked her over. he leaned in to her, ¡°Chika, I was going to do this the Human way, but you are making me¡ reconsider¡±
¡°Oh? What were you¡¡± her tone hiccupped as his wandering fingers caught her off guard, ¡°re¡ reconsidering¡± she said quietly.
Ivar regarded her for a moment as amber eyes met brown, ¡°I know that we will never experience the claiming. I don¡¯t care. Chika, I want you for mine. Permanently¡±
Martina¡¯s voice caught, ¡°Are you sure?¡± she asked.
¡°I am, do you trust me?¡± Ivar said.
¡°With my life¡± Martina whispered.
Ivar pulled her close, running his fangs up her neck making her shiver, ¡°I can¡¯t claim you Martina, but I will mark you as mine.¡±
Martina shivered at his touch before he pulled away finally, ¡°That¡¯s it?¡±
¡°Look down¡± Ivar said playing with something on her hand, ¡°We don¡¯t have a concept of Jewelry as a species, it took me a while to have something made correctly¡±
Martina looked down at his hand holding hers to find a massive Daimond arrangement in the snape of a flower that matched her dress, each pedal a separate stone with a center stone almost perfectly carved to match her dress. ¡°Ivar, how¡. Yes, yes.¡±
She tackled Ivar, curling up in his lap kissing him deeply.
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It would be blisteringly hot were it not for the soft caress of sea breeze and the occasional cloud whisp overhead. The twins would not actually be one for another few weeks, but so many of their family and friends would be departing for the season, the Beach Birthday Bash was happening early. Tristen and Martin¡¯s gaggles of little ones were running around with a few other kids. Growmun¡¯s mate and their son arrived shortly after. The little huskyesque toddler bolted for the cavorting little ones as his mother timidly stepped over to the adults. Her ears and fur told everyone of her unease, but she quickly calmed after the women dragged her into the group. The warm reception seemed to calm her greatly. The twins, Tristen¡¯s youngest, and Silu¡¯s grand kid twins were all close enough in age to be happily under the watchful eye of Juel¡¯s, Lyrian, Nicole, and Frie.
The Delmar Men of the ¡°Inner Circle¡± as Clint insisted on calling it had hole heartedly taken to Mac¡¯s introduction of cooking meat and certain vegetables over open flame. In true Fire roasted tradition, the men slowly circuited the fire, Lager¡¯s in hand, being methodical chased by the fire smoke.
A shuttle landed 200 yards away. It had to, due to its size as the ramp lowered to reveal the arrival of Gwen, Ami, Silu, Gregory and Marg. All of the children, big or small instantly ogled Ami¡¯s massive features. She laughed a healthy belly laugh before settling down in the sand and waving the little ones over.
Thus, ¡°Climb the Saurian¡± became the newest and greatest game in the universe to anyone under 10.
¡°Are you sure this is, ok?¡± Lyrian asked Ami.
¡°Of course! This is normal, even for our hatchlings. It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve had the chance to see little ones.¡± Ami laughed as one of the older kids slid down her back and tail like a slide. ¡°I¡¯ve missed Children most of all being away from the Homeworld.¡± She gently swung her tail to catch Bry as he began a tumble off her flank.
¡°I forget you¡¯re a grandmother many times over.¡± Silu chuckled at the sight of the adorable invasion of Mount Ami as one of Tristens oldest attempted to summit her long neck to her head. He made it only just, draping himself over her armored forehead with a huff of victory.
¡°Well done young man¡± She looked up at him before setting her head down for him to get off. She discreetly increased her neck angle to dissuade any further attempts.
Ivar and Martina showed up late in Ivar¡¯s aircar. Mac heard an elated scream erupt from the girls¡¯ group as Martina showed them an absolutely massive engagement ring. Ivar was handed a beer and ribbed incessantly for a few minutes. Various friends and family passed through with Icario, Tili and Cory showing up later because of their work on the freighters.
All the fun was had all afternoon. Cake, Grilled food, good drink. A game of tag that circled Ami. The twins got the destroy they¡¯re on cakes, and some of it even ended up being eaten. Ami left a little early, tiring quickly in the higher-than-normal for her Gravity; but Mac sent her back with a big bag of her favorite grilled veggies. Bry was sad but gave the giant woman a soul-meltingly cute hug on the nose bye. Tris just stared as she stood up, transfixed by the largest being she had ever experienced. Silu and Gwen Joined Her to prepare for the next day with the visiting UGN admiral. Tristen and Juel¡¯s collected their gaggle, along with Martin and Mariva¡¯s youngling¡¯s; and headed off to meet various bedtimes and such.
Greg and Marg sat and chatted, and eventually, everyone ended up on Silver Lass for a champagne sail down the coast to Mac¡¯s property. By now it was just Clint, Frie, Greg, Marg, Icario, Cory, and Tili. Martina and Ivar were meeting them at the house in their air car.
Everyone tumbled into the house around sundown and the Twins were tucked into their soundproof rooms as the adult party began in full swing. Many of the ¡°Inner Circle¡± would be splitting up into different ships for the season. Lucid Traveler would be headed out under the command of a Human captain and a new first officer. Celestial traveler was staying under a Delmar Captain, but Void Dancer, Swift Sure, and Traveler would have Human Captains. Each of the three Freighters would have a third of their crew cycled out for Human crewmen for the next two seasons as Humanity did the same with their Human Freighters operating in the gap between Sol and Delmar as Humanity expanded toward Delmar Space.
The Party lasted into the wee hours of the morning with everyone beginning to retire to various Guest rooms around the house. Ivar and Martina headed for home and Nicole caught a ride with them, as did Cory.
The next morning was. slow¡ for all.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Captain Richard Averetti settled into his seat as the submerssable lowered into the waters of Terra¡¯s Pacific Ocean. Today they were going on a blind reconnaissance mission into the most dangerous place on the Planet of Terra. His team were checking each other off. Each man had a deep-water Exoskeleton suit with 2 hours of air on board when disconnected from shore air, which they would be, but these suits were designed to keep the extreme pressures of the deep ocean form crushing the human body. The 2-hour descent was excruciating. The first hour was piggybacked aboard one of earth¡¯s military submarines to its limit, then the submersible detached and descended the rest of the way. A soft thumb heralded the intercom announcement of touch down.
¡°Helmets on!¡± Richards ordered as the New to humanity Nanite technology sealed up their suits and deployed their helmets. Everyone slapped the man to his right on the arm after seals were checked. Soon their compartment began to fill with water. Pressure was equalized and the servos in their suits whined as they helped them move in under the massive pressure of miles of seawater above them. Richards slapped the door button and the door to the outside world opened. Richard drew a laser pistol from his belt. These were small, only worth 10 shots, but built to withstand these depths. Laser had found a place in the Sol infantry as an aquatic weapon. It still had attenuation problems, but with Human energy technologies, they were still orders of magnitude more effective than a kinetic weapon, whose projectiles tended to treat water like soft tissue and fragment, expand, slow down rapidly in water. Laser tended to super heat a small line of water, but otherwise not lose much range vs Kinetics when underwater.
Captain Richard Averetti stepped out of the submersible to become the first man to ¡°EVA¡± The Marianas Trench.
The water was slightly murky from the touchdown of the submersible, but the silt quickly cleared as they stepped carefully out toward the coordinates given to them by the Delmar expeditionary forces. Richards moved slowly, not because he wanted to not fall, but because any movement stirred up the silt on the ocean floor and would turn visibility to zero in seconds. Thermal and IR systems would help, but Ric didn¡¯t like the idea of not having real eyes and sight lines available.
After about 20 minutes of walking, Richard looked behind him to see a cloud of dust following his men, this cloud was suspended in the deep murk and was not going anywhere. The Submersible had taken off once more and was using buoyancy alone to provide some support from above them in the form of floodlights as they walked.
Slowly, a shape formed in the distance. Another 5 minutes of advance had it turn into a disk shape straight out of a 1950¡¯s alien film. A stereotypical giant flying saucer sat on the ocean floor in almost perfect condition. It was too deep for anything to grow on it. It appeared that the ramp was lowered and had been for some time. Richard and his men slowly advanced to the saucer before two men entered.
*Captain, uh¡ the area is clear¡ You are going to want to see this* came one of those men¡¯s voices on the radio
¡°On my way¡± Richard slowly made his way to the ramp then up it. A force field met him at the top of the ramp and He found himself and his suit completely dry inside the saucer. Everything was powered down save for a few systems. Two Aliens lay in their chairs, completely desiccated, and perfectly preserved. Their distended cranial cavities unmistakable against their frail small bodies.
*Jesus¡ Captain¡ There are status chambers back here. No life signs... It looks like they were shut down from the outside.
¡°Get the crew into the craft, and the rest back into the submersible¡± Richard switched frequencies ¡°¡. submersible Cousteau, submersible Cousteau land for team return. Operation Mary Ellan to initiate in three zero minutes.¡±
*Your call Cap, you think She¡¯ll Rise again? * the submersible pilot asked
¡°Ha, we will see. So far everything is as it was described.¡± Richards remarked.
20 minutes later the ramp had been raised via instructions Admiral Gwen had received from a confidential informant. And Richards gently lifted one of the Dead bodies of a Corth¡¯ Scientist out of the control seat and laid it gently on the floor. He inserted a preprogrammed stick into the slot in the console. The lights brightened and a high-pitched hum surged from the alien craft. As promised the Stick had triggered a location based automated flight program designed to get a ship home in the event of total crew death. This stick¡¯s program was modified.
3three hours, and several sonic booms later, an honest-to-God Alien Flying Saucer landed on the tarmac outside one of the hangers of the airfield on Area 51.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
It had been three days since the Grandchildren¡¯s birthday party. Gwen had finally received a response from Sol. They had been as Shocked as She was. They quickly sent a survey team to the coordinates to find the location deep in the Marianas Trench. What they found there were equal parts gruesome as it was enlightening. They had found the flying saucer full of dead aliens and a complete computer core. The Information Karmarin had given her had paid out. Mostly, it had unlocked some of the information inside the Corth Ship, and it was a Corth ship. The last message, of the commander of that ship, had presented some disturbingly interesting hints about Earth¡¯s true history.
Gwen¡¯s mind wandered as she reached Conference room. She took a deep breath and entered. The large Birdman was already seated, slowly stirring a mug of tea in his claws. He turned to look at her and his face recognized her emotions stirring behind her eyes.
¡°I see that what I told you has born fruit.¡± He stated gently, ¡°I recognize the look from the one in the mirror when I was told the Founding race of the Unity, thought extinct a thousand years ago, isn¡¯t quite extinct yet.¡±
¡°I¡¯m willing to consider a meeting, but only after I understand how this meeting will take place.¡± Gwen said carefully, seating herself facing the UGN flag officer.
¡°Simply put, Aiericastum Will come here in one week¡¯s time, You can meet with her on her ship. It is.. important that the existence of the Corth¡¯ be protected at all costs¡ I can give you my word, that her ship will stay in system until your talks with her are concluded, but she cannot risk leaving it.
¡°I understand. I will send word to expect her, but please have her jump into the system by the beacon. As you can see, our ¡®airspace¡¯ will be crowded as it is getting close to the beginning of the Freight season here.¡±
¡°I will pass along your request.¡± Karmarin stated, eyeing the Human ambassador with caution.
¡°Then I accept her meeting and await her arrival.¡± Gwen bowed a slight bow of respect before the two stood and adjourned.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Deep in the bowls of a long dead rogue planet, a low rumble of slumber was interrupted by a soft chime.
¡°Enter¡± the voice like crumbling granite spoke. A massive 6 digited hand flicked a light on as the door opened.
¡°Legaris, we have information... One of the last remaining abominations may be in our grasp¡± the equally deep voice, if less worn around the edges stated
¡°Prepare a Rock, Select from the Devoted. They will need to Sacrifice to cut their way into the target. Go.¡± the granite avalanche of a voice stated before the door closed. The owner of that voice stood and lumbered its 3-meter frame over to the combination sink and mirror. Deep glowing purple Irises inside slit-focused, binocular-oriented eyes stared at themselves behind a heavy grey brow and were framed with long wavy black eyebrows and shoulder-length black hair.
The colossus splashed himself in the face with refreshingly cold water, ¡°Well Patriarch, I guess your blood will be the one to end the cleansing after all.¡±
Chapter 56
It had been three days since Captain Yasushi had ordered the capture of an alien ballistic missile and the exploration of its launch point. The security and structural engineering team was still clearing the alien command post and silo of safety hazards before the irreplaceable scientists departed. The reports back were¡ disturbing¡.
The security team had been forced to enter using their EVA uniform function with rebreather tanks. It turned out that the installation¡¯s occupants had sealed themselves into the structure and attempted to wait out the antimatter apocalypse of their world. Their computing systems were rudimentary at best but appeared to function well enough. The security and structural teams had been forced to stabilize several hallways and seal off others for fear of collapse. Archeological teams would have to escalate the more dangerous locations at a later date. There were three other ¡®active¡¯ missiles in the silo section itself, and the race was on to get enough linguistic material to figure out which computer system contained Fire Control.
The initial infiltration, of this structure, had given the team their first glimpse at what the natural inhabitants looked like. So far, 25 perfectly preserved bodies were in Excelsior¡¯s Morg; being kept preserved inside of forcefield contained air that replicated the air readings inside. 12 males, 7 females, and 6 children: 4 girls and 2 boys. These beings stood a striking resemblance to humanity. That appears to stand roughly 1.6 to 1.7 meters tall, and had eye positions to allow for binocular vision, and their snout was slightly longer than a human¡¯s but shorter than a lycans. The individuals in the bunker also had a pronounced bony ridge that ran down the middle of their nose.
They appeared to be bipedal, but they retained an extra set of arms jointed just below the shoulder. Their skin was distorted by the mummification process, but tufts of short hair suggested a coarse-grained, short, full-bodied fur was likely. Autopsies would have to confirm this, but the set and shape of the ears suggested an echolocation ability.
Yasushi set the report down as a notification popped up on his ready room computer. He eyes narrowed as he read the update. The security team had found a message¡.
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Admiral Gwen sat in the living room of Mac and Lyri¡¯s lodge with the four of them.
¡°You are too valuable to the mission to go alone.¡± Clint said flatly.
¡°This is the mission, Clint. I do not think I have a choice if we are to get answers. The situation has become¡. Complicated¡± Gwen stated calmly
¡°How much more complicated can it be?¡± Mac asked sitting down next to a worried Lyrian.
¡°There has been news from the exploration fleets¡± Gwen stated, ¡°It¡¯s¡ not good news. And it requires the answer to questions that I cannot ask anyone else.¡± Gwen paused taking a breath, ¡°To date, every habitable planet that the exploration fleets have found¡¡ have been murdered worlds¡ ¡°
¡°The ¡®20years¡¯ between Sol and the Unity isn¡¯t natural¡¡± Mac¡¯s voice was dark, ¡°Jesus¡¡± He pulled Lyri to himself.
¡°We need to know what we are walking into¡ our species depends on it.¡± Gwen¡¯s resolve was firm. ¡°This is possibly our only shot to find out.¡±
¡°Shit¡± Clint spat, closely followed by Mac¡¯s own distaste.
Lyrian wrapped her tail around Mac¡¯s waist as he took a slow cleansing breath. ¡°Aunt¡. What do we know about this Aericastum¡¡± Mac asked slowly.
Gwen thought for a moment, ¡°Admiral Karmarin is bound by oath. He told me what he could, which wasn¡¯t much.¡±
¡°This reeks of a trap¡¡± Clint remarked, his own expression dark.
¡°We have no choice do we¡ too much has happened too quickly since Mac made it here¡. It¡¯s not adding up¡¡± Lyrian said quietly.
¡°It¡¯s settled then¡± Gwen stated... Slowly the rest nodded.
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Aiericastum¡¯s Tetrarchy starship, a familiar massive 1000km long obelisk, blinked into existence just outside the beacon zone as began burning past Port Royal for Delmar.
Silu stood on the observation deck of Ops. The long trapezoidal behemoth¡¯s stately progression past his station was both terrifying and awe-inspiring. He nodded to Philip, whom approached to stand next to his commander. Silu suppressed a smirk as the young man stalked up. Young Philip had never shaken his human walking gate and would regularly scare the void out humans and Delmar alike just by not making enough noise. Philip blamed it on his growing up with his uncle who enjoyed hunting in his people¡¯s traditional manner, with spear and cunning. Silu had yet to take the man up on a hunting trip down on the planet yet.
¡°She¡¯s still refusing hails.¡± Philip mentioned softly as he stood beside the older Delmar, contemplating the view before him.
¡°Did she transmit codes?¡± Silu glanced at Philip as he nodded, ¡°It will have to be good enough.¡±
¡°1st and 3rd fleet arrived last night. They are currently mobilizing to¡ escort the vessel to orbit. 4th and 5th are taking their place.¡± Philip turned to leave, ¡°Unless you need something, Commander.¡±
Silu shook himself from his thoughts, ¡°Ah, yes. Quite right. Thank you, dismissed Philip, I¡¯ll be along shortly.¡±
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Mac, with lyrian, exited the lift onto the battle bridge of the USN Galveston, quickly waving off her captain''s call to attention. ¡°As you were¡± he said quickly, before reaching to shake Cpt Harrison¡¯s hand. ¡°Well Bill, we never did stand on ceremony; let¡¯s not start now.¡± he grinned at the 40-year-old captain before activating the fleet-wide channel from his wrist pad. ¡°First Fleet! This is Commodore Grarzia speaking. I¡¯m not one for speeches, so this one is short! The ambassador will be boarding the Tetrarchy ship once we are in orbit over Delmar. Our mission is one of equal parts escort, and equal parts security. 3rd fleet will screen Delmar from our visitor, our job. To screen our visitors from incoming threats, and allied shipping from our visitor if need be. We will be on full alert in one hour ladies and gentlemen. That is all.¡± He closed the connection.
¡°How long will the Ambassador be meeting inside that ship?¡± Harrison asked.
¡°I honestly don¡¯t know. Oh, Captain Harrison, Lyrian ¡°FIZZ¡± Mackenzie Grarzia. Lyri, Captain Samual ¡°wild bill¡± Harrison. ¡°
Harrison¡¯s eyes sparkled with amusement, ¡°A pleasure to meet you, Lyrian.¡± He smiled at her surprise when he turned her handshake into a peck on the top of her hand ¡°Anyone brave enough be married to, and back seat for, this crazy fuck has my admiration.¡±
Mac chuckled as Lyrian glances a confused look at him, ¡°Wild Bill here is an¡. Old Soul... we just roll with it.¡±
Harrison barked a laugh and waved them to sit down, ¡°It will be a while before anything starts. So tell me, how did you too meet...¡±
The conversation meandered about until the time came to beat to quarters. 1st and 3rd fleets were not going to clear for action. Instead, their ships were to man combat stations in shifts, but leave the weapons systems and shields fully energized, but on standby.
¡°The ambassador¡¯s shuttle is on approach, one soul on board.¡± the sensors station reported
¡°I didn¡¯t know the Ambassador could fly a shuttle?¡± Harrison mentioned.
¡°This Aiericastum was strict about coming alone. I gave Gwen a crash course on basic shuttle maneuvers. Her orbital insertion and reentry is automated, but she can land and take off a maneuver well enough to do the rest.¡± Lyrian stated.
Lyrian could feel Mac¡¯s anxiety spike with hers as the shuttle disappeared onto the floating obelisk...
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
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Gwen winced as the shuttle thumped down a bit harder than she had intended, it took her a cheat sheet and few minutes to properly shut the shuttle down. By that time the landing bay she had flown into had filled with breathable atmosphere and some gravity had returned to the cavernous hanger the shuttle had come to rest in. She checked the sensors to confirm before unsealing the shuttle and lowering the boarding ramp into the unknown.
Gwen was met with a human-formed hologram with a small hovering drone projecting the androgynous form from inside the hologram.
¡°Greeting ambassador, welcome to the UGN ¦Â?¦Á¦É¦Ï? ¦Ð¦Ï¦É¦Ç¦Ó?? (violent Poet). Please, this way.¡± The bipedal artifice turned and began walking without further communication. Gwen raised an eyebrow and followed. For several minutes, Gwen followed her artificial guide. They travelled through identical, featureless pure white hallways until the hologram drone stopped and a seam appeared in this part of the wall as an opening received itself.
¡°Aiericastum will see you now¡± the hologram stated before shimmering and disappearing, leaving only the drone, which was already leaving. Gwen stared at the drone before taking a breath and entering the door. It snapped and sealed shut behind her and she felt vertical motion as the lift she had stepped in began a rapid ascent. Gwen watched herself fly up the wall of a titanic chasm inside the ship only to have to brace herself when the lift stopped. The window she was looking through moments before became a door as she stepped onto a walkway 4 meters wide that was the only thing lit in the room.
¡°Please, take a seat Ambassador.¡± A titanic voice echoed through the chamber as Gwen purposefully forced herself to walk calmly to a light-indicated chair, settling into it before crossing her legs and setting her hands on her lap.
A full minute went by, and Gwen was about to start talking when a low whirring of machinery stopped her. A titanic metal featureless face swung into view with its chin just above the other end of the platform that Gwen was sitting, ¡°thank you for coming ambassador,¡± the face said before a scanning beam swept across Gwen. It made her hair stand on end as it swept her 3 times before stopping.
¡°What is the meaning of this¡± Ambassador Gwen stated, realizing that she could not move during the scanning process. The scanner ceased and she was released, causing her to jump up. ¡°What the fuck did you just do!¡± She felt weird all over. Like millions of creepy crawlers were pricking every skin cell on her body.
¡°Please sir admiral. You have been externally sterilized for my protection. I no longer possess an immune system such as you know it.¡± The voice said as Gwen shook herself off and finally sat back down, staring angrily at the titanic Golem¡¯s face. Her eyes widened as vapor hissed from about its seams and the face opened vertically by hinges about its ¡®hairline¡¯. A ramp extended from its chin and a small being with distended head and long weedy arms walked out in a slow waddle, taking a seat that rose from the floor next to Gwen as it walked by, eyeing her up as Gwen did the same.
¡°I see Humanity has kept its edge.¡± A much quieter, timid almost by comparison, voice stated as the being sat.
¡°You¡¯re a¡.. I guess those were not all-weather balloons and animatronics¡± Gwen said finally. Taking in a breath, ¡°Aiericastumi presume, I guess I should thank you for keeping my species out of another war for extinction.¡±
¡°It was necessary.¡± the being said simply, ¡°Ambassador I do not have time, this form cannot survive outside of the Mech for very long. I fear I must start from the beginning for you to understand¡± Aiericastum began, ¡°my species, the Corth¡¯ Lithral, are extinct in all but finality. I am one of 4 left of my kind¡¡±
The Corth¡¯ labored slightly before adjusting a small contraption on her arm and sitting up straighter, ¡°I know you have questions, so please wait until I have finished¡± She held Admiral Gwen¡¯s gaze until the Human woman nodded, ¡°Very well, our species¡ we¡¯re not always as you see here. We trace our roots back over 300 million years to the capital planet of the Unity itself. We were a proud people, strong, smart, space faring. We believe that we may have been one of the first to reach another star system. In our Hubris we thought to improve ourselves. About 200 million years ago, my people began customizing our own genome sequences, but it was not so simple. We Corth¡¯ became obsessed with maximizing our brain power and logic functions to the detriment of everything else. Including our bodies¡. And our reproduction capabilities. Our race introduced cloning¡ and we were able to duplicate ourselves, combine ourselves, or combine any others of ourselves to create our ¡®children¡¯. The smartest among us were cloned regularly. With splices of the parents for legality¡¯s sake. Of course, a faction of our people believed that we should be focusing on physical power and adversity resistance for the conquest of the galaxy. They became known as the Vorath¡¯ Lithral. An uneasy peace was held for the next million years or so. We were all Lithral, it did not matter if you were Corth or Vorath¡ until the day it did.¡±
Aiericastum paused, tapping her controls to have water brought for the both of them. ¡°That¡¯s better, the day came to explore the part of the galaxy now Barron of life in it, or so we thought. We Corth¡¯ were the first to find a planet inhabited. We naively showed ourselves to the locals¡ they were just out of the Iron Age¡. Their response was bloody, And we lost many before we could agree to talks. That race was the Kri¡¯Klis¡¯erklae. We eventually were able to communicate with them. But the Vorath¡¯ saw this as Corth weakness. They began crushing underdeveloped sapient species under their increasingly physical prowess. The Corth were livid. Then, we were subjected to the same treatment. The Vorath Leader Legatus the first took his fleet to surround the Lithral homeworld and executed every Corth council member. It was ludicrously easy. The last million years had seen the Corth increasingly frail in body and strong in mind. This sparked a galactic conflict¡. One for our very survival¡ the Corth had just begun to explore in the direction that would eventually lead us to Terra¡ the Vorath followed¡. Chasing the metamaterials and energy-rich deposits your species never had want for. For the next 150 million years we fought¡ entire planets were murdered by the Vorath antimatter bombs to deny the Corth assets and Allies¡.. we returned in kind throwing engines on asteroids and sending them into Vorath stronghold worlds in desperation.¡±
Aiericastum¡¯s eyes fell, ¡°Our first Asteroid attacks surgical. They were successful without permanently damaging the ecosystem and peoples indigenous to the planet. We succeeded in crippling the manufacturing of the Vorath, allowing our Drone swarms to swing attrition in Corth favor. We eventually pushed the Vorath back from Saturn in your sol system, back to our home world.¡±
The Corth took a moment to gather herself, ¡°The last battle was over Termistrius Prime. The Corath Prime fleet, against what we thought was the last of the Vorath armada¡ we were wrong. The Vorath had always outbred us because of our need for cloning pods. What we truly faced was their rear guard¡ It was a trap, not for our Prime fleet.. but for everything else¡ Before that battle, the Vorath had evacuated most of their civilian and military population on Termistrius and departed for another Arm of this galaxy. They had sacrificed a huge force of aging ships to Make us believe we had defeated them¡ Then They revealed that they had learned well from us.. 65 million years ago the first of the Vorath asteroids hit earth... we didn¡¯t know how many they had sent at the time. But all across the galaxy, Asteroids had been selected, and prepared with subspace drives. These Asteriods, sometimes in clusters of smaller ones.. sometimes in one large one; appeared over the planets rich in resources we needed to rebuild. All of them carried an antimatter core charge in them ensuring the unusable nature of those planets for Millenia to come¡ It was the final nail in our coffin. We call this time, ¡®The Calamity¡¯. These last suicide missions ensured that the Corth had neither the energy, materials, nor genetic diversity to survive as a species¡ I remember the first hit on earth.¡±
The Corth looked Gwen in the eyes, ¡°We figured out how to render ourselves functionally ageless, but we require a high level of medical automation such as this monstrosity you see behind me. It was never going to be enough. We were doomed, We knew that. We would fade from protectorship of this part of the galaxy and the Vorath would eventually return.. We knew what genes we needed, We could not artificially create them. And our population had been decimated to the point where those Genes¡ They simply no longer existed naturally.¡±
¡°And you couldn¡¯t recreate them through natural means.¡± Gwen nodded.
¡°Indeed. But I digress, Earth was dying. It was also the most promising of the doomed planets because of the fact that the Antimater Charge in the asteroid aimed at her detonated deep in your oceans, smothering its poisonous potential. We had been watching a group of Saurians, they had started making tools. We tranquilized them and used them as a flagship experiment to see if we could reseed These worlds. We left a long-term mission crew on earth and left to do the transplant. 40 million years later, and many transfers as crews died out or retired, we figured out a stasis solution to immortality. The final Crew was to wake every 1 million years, observe, and send a report. Then rejuvenate and hibernate until the next wake update. We watched the Dinosaurs die out even as our small transplanted clan grew to become one of the most spectacular species in our Unity. We watched a couple of species spring up in the aftermath of apocalypse, but then a miracle happened¡ Humanity Happened...¡±
¡°You mean, the Corth created us?¡± Gwen was more than a little incredulous.
Aiercastum wheezed a chuckle, ¡°Oh no. We never could do anything like that. The Miracle of Humanity was your own. You possess an abundance of everything we Corth threw away. Yes, your skin was different. Your species is much more prone to violence, and your life spans are almost as short as ours were before we began ¡®Anti-Gerone¡¯. You were naturally producing DNA combinations that we believed could save our race.. If we had had enough people left to do so. We were but a mere 500 Corth when Humanity made its first steps into the stone age. We had retracted quietly from public life, perpetuated our own extinction story; and quietly infiltrated the halls of power to form the Unity. Our hope was to create a Multispecies unified front to face the Vorath after we were all gone¡¡±
¡°I¡¯m guessing that the Unity of today is not what you envisioned it to be,¡± Ambassador said levelly.
¡°No¡ but we could only do so much from the shadows. We chose to focus on Humanity as an option. You Were a species that could rival the Vorath¡¯ Lithral in physical strength as well as intellect. Your Natural Violence made you willing to fight. The most important part was Terra. Your world is the most violently hostile habitable world the Corth have discovered. Every other planet we encountered that we counted as worse, has been barren. We needed Humanity to succeed... So we... dabbled... minimal changes to aid in your development using the lessons we learned from our own failures. The jump from Neanderthalensis to Homo Sapiens was our first genetic nudge. Our second nudge was philosophical¡ Ancient Greece.¡±
¡°Wait¡ Your ship¡¯s name¡ It¡¯s not in your language. I recognize it. ¡®Violent Poet¡¯ I believe it says, roughly¡± Gwen¡¯s eyes widened as it all connected, ¡°That¡¯s not Greek¡ That¡¯s your language.. You gave ancient Greece your language, your philosophy¡¡±
¡°A version of it, yes. Modified to what we thought would be compatible with your species. We could project holograms well enough to fool the ¡®locals¡¯. One of our team, on Terra, was on the council of Alexander the Great. The human never knew it, but he was our first attempt at creating a higher culture for Humanity. It didn¡¯t end up the way we had hoped, but over the centuries it bloomed into something we could work with. Our greatest struggle was keeping you from obliterating yourselves.¡±
¡°We came close¡. Several times...¡± Gwen conceded, ¡°How long did you have a hand in Humanity¡¯s course?¡±
¡°I am unsure, We received reports from our team until your early 20th century. We could not do much of anything by then. Our team was dying out. They, sadly, tried a few times to extract DNA from some humans to help aid them in surviving their mission. In the reports at least, they claimed to always use non invasive techniques and keep the patient alive and fully healed upon their return. I was not happy about that, but Mystrius let it slide ¡®for the greater good¡¯.¡± Aiericastum shrugged uncomfortably.
¡°Jesus Christ¡ That explains what we found in the Trench¡± Gwen stated, ¡°We found your team. They had been dead for centuries, we could not date them because of a strange compound in their system. Area 51 in testing that compound as we speak¡±
¡°What compound?¡± the Corth asked
¡°We don¡¯t know, but I can show you the preliminary¡± Gwen slowly removed her wrist data pad and handed it to the Corth after pulling up the report
¡°By the Void¡. That¡¯s Anti-Gerone¡ We lost the ability to produce that twenty thousand years ago. The team had been taking it sparingly but were reporting reduced affects...¡±
¡°That matches up with the preliminary reports as well. Your team, if they were human, were showing all the signs of chronic drug resistance¡ the Anti-Gerone started being rejected by their bodies¡ How long had the oldest one been taking it?¡± Gwen asked.
¡°Arelious¡ um.. my last son¡ started his treatments 65 million years ago..¡± Aiericastum whispered.
Gwen stood up and began to walk over to the Corth woman, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. No parent should ever have to bury their child. How are you still alive?¡±
¡°the Golem¡¡± The Corth said, ¡°It brute forces any anti-aging we need.. I basically get printed a new body every 40-50 ye¡¡±
The lights in the room started flashing and a strange wailing sound started warbling. The Corth stood quickly waving her hands in the air as if sifting through something¡
¡°Gods¡ they sent one¡¡± She waved her hand again before shuddering, and turned to Gwen, ¡°the asteroid attacks of recent, we think they are the Vorath testing the Unity¡¯s strength. We don¡¯t know from where, but an asteroid just dropped out of subspace, on the opposite side of the system to your beacon. You are the only species besides us to figure out what you call ¡°Triangulation¡±. The Vorath know it too¡¡±
The Corth started to wave her hands again and a blinding white light contained Gwen holding her in place, ¡°I am sending you to your ¡®Galveston¡¯, you must hurry. This Asteroid is targeting me. And I cannot jump due to interference from its antimatter charge... Delmar will be destroyed if you can¡¯t take it out! Now GO!¡±
Gwen felt her insides lurch, and everything went white right before she found herself standing in the middle of the USN Galveston¡¯s Battle Bridge.
Chapter 57
-2 min earlier-
¡°Multiple contacts!!! 228 by 097! 60 plus Ships and an¡ Oh god¡¡± the Delmar Crewman at the sensor station of the USN Galveston visibly paled¡
¡°And what, Crewman¡± Harrison stated, his tone slightly muted, but urgent.
¡°Captain¡ Its an Asteroid at the center of the sensor cluster¡ I¡¯m getting antimatter readings from it¡± The Delmar got out finally, ¡°Captain¡ the Asteroid. It¡¯s registering course changes¡ It¡¯s under power and headed straight for the planet and the Tetrarchy ship.¡±
¡°Full alert! Have the fleet come about to intercept, Notify the Rear Admiral. We screen the Tetrarchy ship until further orders¡± Mac barked, ¡°Prepare for¡¡±
A blinding white flash flared out everyone¡¯s eyes and Ambassador Gwen was standing on the bridge when it faded, ¡°REPORT¡± she barked and received an update.
¡°Very good¡± she began, ¡°Give me fleet wide including a transmission to Port Royal.¡±
The briefest of pauses occurred before the comm nodded and Gwen began speaking, ¡°This is Admiral Gwen to all Fleets, make best possible speed to intercept incoming contacts. These are Hostile forces, I repeat. Consider all non-Delmar and Non UGN ships hostile until further notice. The Tetrarchy ship is stranded. Our priority is the Asteroid, I repeat. Our Priority is the Asteroid. Strategic is Authorized. This is not a Drill. Strategic is Authorized, this is NOT a drill.¡±
The Six Legion fleets, and the entire Delmar Defense Force reported in over the next two minutes, as Admiral Gwen nodded, ¡°Get me a secure line to Admiral Karmarin.¡±
¡°The admiral is on the Hail, Ambassador¡± Harrison stated after a moment. The image of the Kawmari officer flashed into view.
¡°Admiral, I assume you know the situation?¡± Gwen stated levelly.
¡°I do, I assume you have a more... complete understanding as of late?¡± he asked carefully.
¡°Affirmative, This is going to be a hard fight. We see you are mobilizing your ships. I am sending your flag ship a Beacon code set. Have each of your ships take one of the codes and broadcast it on your beacons. It will mark your fleet as Friendly, and our Datalink will not target you.¡± Gwen stated, nodding to the Coms-man as he sent the message.
¡°I see it, we will use the codes. We will be burning for an intercept in the next 5 minutes¡± The admiral responded.
¡°One moment admiral¡± Gwen held up her hand as a separate message came directly to her wrist unit, ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary. Rear Admiral Burgoyne will be in contact with you shortly. We are going to give your ships a lift.¡±
¡°I do not understand but will await his contact. Karmarin out.¡± The UGN admiral closed the connection.
¡°Game plan Admiral?¡± Mac stated.
¡°I need you here. I¡¯m sorry, Concords sitting this one out.¡± Gwen stated, ¡°You and Clint are taking 1st and 3rd are in position to protect Delmar, Set a defensive screen between the planet and the Hostiles. I am leaving you all of the 4 Eros currently in orbit.¡± She flashed a smile as Mac¡¯s eyes widened at the implication. ¡°Burgoyne is going to pull another piggyback. Subspace is being interfered with. But the slip-drives are reporting operational. Hail the Tetrarchy ship¡±
After a moment a giant metal head coalesced into reality, ¡°Admiral.¡±
¡°Aierecastum, please return me to your ship and allow me access to your communications and data transfer systems. Since you cannot run, I would have you synced with the fleets should they reach orbit. I will coordinate from there.¡± Gwen stated.
¡°As you wish¡¡± the being rumbled before a familiar flash blinded everyone and Gwen was once again gone from the Bridge of the Galveston
¡°You heard the woman! Clint you on the line?¡± Mac barked.
¡°Here brother, I know that tone. What are you planning¡¡± Clint¡¯s voice was cautious...
¡°Something out of a very old book. You remember Uncle Martin¡¯s Defense of Luna? The second day.¡± Mac¡¯s voice went cold, ¡°Prepare Close Order Shield wall by fleet, 50,000 km from the planet. I want the Eros firing from Cover.¡±
¡°Pickets Charge.¡± Clint said with a smile, ¡°Consider it done, 3rd will form to your right. Steven¡¯s out¡±
Mac turned to look at a stunned Captain Harrison, ¡°What?¡±
¡°And you call me an old soul.. YOU HEARD THE COMMODORE!¡± He bellowed, ¡°Spread the message to the fleet we move in 2 minutes!¡±
Mac synced up a mental image of the formation to Datalink, and it was sent out to the two fleets. He was taking a page out of history. The distances were so great that maneuvering was irrelevant and would only put the Planet in danger of incoming fire. So Mac created a fortress, using the close in formation of his fleet as well as 3rd fleet, to lend their shield power to one another to create a wall of energy to protect as much of the planet as possible. The Eros were split into two teams, one behind each fleet¡¯s wall. Their job was to provide superior targeting telemetry to both fleets for coordinated MAC fire. The enemy was 3 hours away from orbit. They had tried to surprise the defenders by jumping in on the opposite side of the system away from the beacon.
10 minutes later, the two fleets were in position, with the Tetrarch ship sitting just behind the Eros ¡®emplacements¡¯.
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Legaris watched from a ship that had jumped into the Asteroid field under cover of the Calamity, created by his Exterminatus Fleet¡¯s entry into the Signus system. Something did not feel right, He scanned his data feeds as his Capital ship ¡°Symphony of Death¡± floated in the void, ignored by the enemy as they left their station vulnerable to his ship. It made no since, the ship departing the station began clustering up as if to dock. He knew that they had to understand how futile an intercept was from these distances¡
¡°Sensors, focus on the enemy nearest the planet, give me a composite image with telemetry¡± he rumbled, settling into his command chair and leaning back and swinging his screens over to him, ¡°What are we dealing with.¡±
The screens scrolled with data as well as a composite image of the ships arrayed against the devoted. They were in two distinct defensive formations, smaller ships up front, larger ships behind with 4 concerningly shaped ships behind those formations. The Abomination sat just between those ships and slightly behind¡ His eyes widened as energy readings spiked and the space in front of these two formations seemed to shimmer slightly before going back to normal.
¡°I don¡¯t like these formations... How long until we are within weapons range¡± he asked, never looking over he shoulder.
¡°2 hours Legaris. Our Ballista type plasma batteries be the first to engage at 175,000 Kilometers¡± The sensor station responded.
¡°I see, give the order to raise shields, I don¡¯t like some of these numbers... It is almost as if they mean to engage us from tha¡¡± His eyes widened as the 4 elongated vessels spiked in their energy outputs. His sensors picked up the nose bow¡¯s of those weapons signatures as it rendered an image of the gaps in those ships prow¡¯s began to crackle and arc. ¡°GET THE FLEETS SHIELDS UP NOW!!!¡± He bellowed.
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Admiral Gwen once again found herself standing on the platform she had met one of the last remaining Corth on. This time a chair with a console and floating holograms flooded with data awaited her.
¡°Admiral, welcome back¡± Aiericastum stated from her seat inside the Golem¡¯s head. She had its face plate open, but it was clear she was receiving medical attention of some kind, ¡°Forgive my state, I spent too much time outside of my facilities. This body is being... repaired...¡±
¡°I see, I do need you to shift your vessel further to the rear. When an Eros fires, it is best not to be too close to it without proper compatibility. I don¡¯t know what the EM field of one of those would do to this ship... we are about to fire 4 at once¡¡±
The beady eyes widened, ¡°You wish to mark them from here? It would do little, The shield of a shuttle could deflect a laser fired from this ship''s main battery at that distance¡±
¡°We are not using Energy weapons¡¡± Gwen¡¯s voice was cold satisfaction, ¡°They are well inside our effective range¡± She keyed up the codes and clearances to link the Tetrarchy ship into USN Datalink, ¡°Talk to me boys¡± She spoke
*We eagerly await Picket, Ma¡¯am* Clints voice was cold humor.
The Corth actually shrank back as Gwen flashed all of her teeth in a feral smile, ¡°Martin would be proud, consider ¡®Pickets Charge¡¯ Approved. You may fire when ready.¡±
*All Eros, Rifle only. Even spacing Independent. The rest of 1st and 3rd fleet, alternating volley by fleet maximum rate 5 second delay at start. Confirm targeting solution. We focus the Asteroid, Let Burgoyne focus the fleet.*
If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
One by one the captains all sounded off confirmation of Fire Control Link integrity.
¡°Commence fire mission¡± Admiral Gwen stated after the coms silenced. ¡°Aiericastum, external view if you please¡± Gwen stated calmly.
A holographic representation of the two-fleet appeared in excruciating detail just in time for the front of every Eros erupted in blue fire laced with plasma as they bellowed as one battery. Similar, if smaller bubbles of wrath erupted from every MAC cannon 1005 caliber or larger. In under 10 seconds, over 1000 tons of Steel, Tungsten, and Depleted Uranium streaked out at various percentages of the speed of light.
The Corth flicked her wrist, and the image became a rendering of the enemy formation. They had 64 ships arrayed in a spherical cloud around the Asteroid. 12 of them were arrayed in front of asteroid.
Moments later, The Combined Superheated Kenetic Wrath of two Human fleets arrived to deliver their Molten Fury. 6 Vorath ships disappeared in a bubble of super-heated gasses and flaming shards of metal and polymers.. two of them simply were erased from existence as they were hit by an Eros semi solid superheated steel and depleted uranium ¡°rifle¡± ammo type. The other 4 were turned into balls of quickly cooling Horror¡¯s of expanding metal shards and flash cooked organic mist. This enemy apparently did not decompress for combat either.
¡°By the Void¡¡± Aiericastum whispered as almost a 10th of the Asteroid facing the Delmar Homeworld was ripped bodily from the primary mass and flung into 3 more ships. 2 of those ships survived but fell out of formation spewing atmosphere and flickering with the telltale signs of main power failure. ¡°What did you just do.¡±
¡°We are Humanity, we are very good at killing.¡± Gwen stated just as the second volleys erupted from the 1st and 3rd fleet. The Eros were only capable of 1 round every 20 minutes in slow fire. They could fire 2 within seconds of each other, but the Heat generated would slow their rate of fire to extensively. The S.O.L.¡¯s and the Terran Corvettes however, were designed around this very concept of ¡°Fill the air with Death, you will hit something.¡± Every MAC in Human Hands was firing at its optimal rate of fire. And the Reaper slicked his scythe with a bountiful harvest of Vorath crews.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Legaris¡¯ roared in anger, nearly crushing the screens in front of him as these strange ships engaged his devoted as over double his ships effective range, ¡°REPORT!¡± He bellowed.
¡°Sir, they are firing¡. They are firing Kinetics¡ From our distance calculations, some of these are coming in at over a tenth of the speed of light¡¡±
¡°All ships, Evasive. Shields to Double front. Get the Battle Cruisers to take the lead. We can¡¯t afford to lose that much of the Asset before it reaches Orbit. Keep the containment field from rupturing at all costs¡± he growled. His orders were carried out, His larger capital ships were moving to the fore, removing all but the minimum of shield from their aft quadrants and focusing all of their energy into deflecting this Catastrophic Cacophony of incoming fire. The massive rounds that had taken so much of the Asteroid had not returned yet. Maybe those weapons were slow to fire. He Hoped¡
¡°Legaris, it appears to be working, our Vengence class ships appear to be able to withstand the fire for now. They report the fire is not directed at them, It is directed solely at the asteroid. They are not being focused on.. yet.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Gwen Grimaced as the enemy adapted. ¡°Gregory, how much longer.¡±
¡°We are an hour from jump. Our Destroyers are itching to go. We don¡¯t have the space to attach them, so they are just on standby. Permission to Loose the Hounds Admiral.¡± Greg stated from the organized chaos.
¡°Granted. Keep strategic in reserve. I want to use that one altogether. Gwen out.¡± Gwen switched channels, ¡°Commander Silu, I need a report on Patriot.¡±
¡°Ah, Admiral. We are halfway through the retrofit. I have 150 Harpoon S¡¯s ready for you. 30 of them Strategic.¡± The Station commander responded.
¡°It will have to do. I want you to be on full alert, maximum shield and full active sensors. Let¡¯s not get caught with our pants down.¡± Gwen stated.
¡°Will do. Anything else I can do for you?¡± Silu asked.
¡°Record all of this, Send everything to Sol in the even this goes badly. Gwen out.¡± The ambassador clicked off the channel.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Legaris was down to 50 ships.. The larger weapons were indeed slower, but one of his strongest Battle cruisers took a direct hit from one and had been turned inside out, destroying 2 more escorts in its explosion. The weapon had still ripped chunks from the Asteroid as if the ship had never been there.
¡°Legaris! The smaller ships near the station¡ they jumped¡¡± His Tactical officer blurted out, ¡°They just jumped to the fleet inside of 30,000 Kilometers!!¡±
¡°Gods Dammit! We can figure out how later, all capital ships cruisers or bigger screen the Asteroid at all costs. Destroyers, and Escort gunships. Engage the enemy in close action.¡± He stated cooly, ¡°If they wish to die like devoted, we shall grant them that wish.¡±
The battle was joined. To Legaris¡¯s relief, none of these ships, that had somehow managed to evade subspace jamming and jump anyway, had brought the kinds of weapons that were ravaging his front lines. Laser and plasma boiled and streaked into the void as a more familiar battle began, at least at first¡ The enemy revealed yet another weapon when their smaller escort capital ships began launching ancient technology at his ships. Solid state rockets began erupting out of these enemy ships, and Legaris¡¯ eyes widened as these rockets turned to chase and intercept his ships. They exploded with some kind of combination shaped explosive and electromagnetic resonance charges. His crews started reporting their shields experiencing resonance destabilization on impact. And 4 ships lost shields almost immediately under multiple hits. They were quickly destroyed by concentrated fire before the survivors of the first fusillades of combat drove the enemy further out away from the asteroid. He watched as yet a third new weapon made its debut as one of his smaller escort ships was sliced in half like a scalpel on soft flesh by one of these deadly harasser¡¯s as it did a high G flying pass on a cluster of smaller gunships. ¡®these are not weapons of the corth¡ these designs are so far departed from anything the Lithral ever advocated... what in the gods did we find here¡ he switched data streams and focused again on the ships leaving the vicinity of the station... he watched them begin their burn, and the realization hit him as he watched the unknown designs finish docking with the Unity ships¡ ¡®they are going to jump docked, by the void¡¯ he surged to his feat
¡°Helm!! All ahead flank!! We need to disrupt their jump immediately!!! All weapons active! Fire at will, prioritize the docked ships and the station!!¡± he bellowed even as his ship surged out of the asteroid field and opened fire.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°Commander, an enemy ship has departed the asteroid field and has¡¡± Philip paused as another plasma blast impacted the shields of Port royal, ¡°opened fire on us, they are on hard burn. It looks like they mean to bypass us and hit the fleets.¡±
¡°Very well Philip, you may open fire. Target engines, and weapons. We may need answers after this is all done¡± Silu stated before turning back toward the viewer. The Sharply-raked battleship reminded him of the Tetrarchy ship, except instead of an obelisk, it was a spear tip with jagged pods of engines at its rear. Its flanks spat laser and plasma, ¡°Damage report¡±
¡°Shield 84 percent and holding. Harpoons away.¡± Philip responded. Pausing to wait for their affect on target, ¡°Their point defense took the missiles, and their shields are holding, switching to MAC and Laser¡±
Port Royal bellowed and roared as her defenses dispensed a withering fire on the Largest Enemy Capital ship on the field. It returned its hatred as the Artillery duel increased in its intensity. For the next 15 minutes Port Royal battered the Titanic Battle Cruiser until it slipped past toward Admiral Burgoyne¡¯s ships.
¡°Gregory, one BIG contact, headed your way.¡± Philip stated through the communication line he had kept open with Admiral Burgoyne.
¡°We jump in 10 seconds. Thank you for the warning.¡± The admiral then cut the connection.
The entire UGN fleet, each capital ship magnetically attached to a USN vessel blinked from existence as they were dragged bodily into slip space for a fraction of a second before dropping out into the teeth of the oncoming armada.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Legaris picked himself up off of he Bridge Deck as the first of the cursed station''s hate arrived. His Battle Cruiser was weathering the storm, but only just. Even the intercepted guided rockets packed enough punch to rock his ship from where they detonated.
¡°REPORT!!¡± he bellowed.
¡°The Ships we are intercepting jumped Sir. We don¡¯t know how. They are now engaging the Exterminatus fleet.¡±
¡°Charge the Subspace Drives, we are following them.¡± Legaris growled. His ships had adjusted their subspace drives to avoid the antimatter interference of the Asteroids little present, he could follow.
¡°Charged sir!¡± the Helm reported.
¡°Jump! Open fire immediately upon arrival¡± Legaris barked.
His warship blinked the distance between the station and the Battle in moments. Laser and plasma spewed from her the moment she arrived. Two of the smaller enemy ships exploded in the withering fire, and holes appeared in one of those infernal titanic monsters that were leading the charge.
¡°Show them the wrath of¡¡± Legaris began before being thrown from his seat once more. The ship he had hole¡¯d with his Ballista battery turned to face him, and its incoming wrath started causing His ships forward shields to spark and flicker. The battle was joined and the Clash of Titans commenced in full for several minutes.
¡°Damage report!!¡± Legaris bellowed, clutching his chair for stability.
¡°our Larboard side number 3 guns are down! We are venting atmosphere from decks 3-2-9-6 and 4! Away damage control.¡± Legaris¡¯ first officer reported and ordered simultaneously. ¡°They have reinforced their shields sir! We are not reading any power banks!! They are using their core only!¡±
¡°Keep firing! We need to overload thei¡¡± Legaris turned in shock as a junior officer at the tactical station interrupted him with a panic¡¯d shriek.
¡°ATOMICS ALERT. OH GODS! MANY ATOMICS ALERT!!¡± The young Vorath corporal just stared at his commander in shock.
Legaris spun to the observation screen in time for it to snap to the battle outside... streaks of white, much larger plumes this time arched from every enemy ship at once. His data scrolled... The radioactive energy readings he was witnessing had not been seen in millions of years¡
_____________________________________________________________________________________
The jumping of the enemy ship from the station had been a surprise. Olympus had suffered heavy damage and had been holed 4 times before she could recover from the initial barrage. Two of the Mars-made Destroyers had been vaporized in the process. The artillery duel between the two Void Titans was ongoing. Olympus was giving as good as she got. Her PAC¡¯s had punched clean through the forward shields thrice but had not penetrated the hull. Her Foe was cracked however, white mists of atmosphere sprayed from several seams as she fought on. Proximity-fused Harpoons had buckled several sections and taken more of the enemies¡¯ firepower, but Olympus was faltering.
Gregory Burgoyne grunted in agony as another shot of painkillers was administered automatically by his suit. He was now missing an arm now, courtesy of the opening salvo of the ship that ambushed them. Olympus Mons had taken Catastrophic damage before he could reorient his shields and engage... His suit had sealed the wound, but he would need attention soon. His Marg stood beside him; she had a piece of shattered steel embedded in her side but she refused to leave him.
¡°Give me an update please¡± he asked the first officer.
¡°Our slip drive is destroyed, Port engines 3 and 4 are down. Our core is stable as are shields and weapons, but we cannot sustain this for long.¡±
¡°Launch fighters and shuttles, get everyone off the ship¡± Greg stated even as he sat himself down in the command chair. His brain was beginning to fog. He had lost too much blood. ¡°Its been an honor gentlemen. Olympus has one final gift to give. GO!¡±
He turned to Marge, ¡°Its time.¡±
¡°I¡¯m too old to run like this¡ Come, I can introduce you to Bryton¡± she smiled gently.
Gregory sighed, he was too wounded to force her, and the crew had all departed the bridge, ¡°Very well, tap the comm for me will you love?¡±
She winced and reached for the buttons, keying up the entire combined fleets. The entire allied force could hear them.
¡°This is Admiral Gregory Burgoyne, Olympus has fallen. We are no longer combat-capable. All ships in the combat zone, MANHATTEN. I repeat, MANHATTEN. T-minus 5 minutes. Collect survivors and Burn to Delmar. It¡¯s been an Honor. Burgoyne out.¡± Greg tapped in the launch codes and data link did the rest. He watched as the automated guns kept pounding at Olympus¡¯ Murderer...
¡°I guess we see what¡¯s next together.¡± He chuckled as he leaned into Marg, his mind was fading in and out with the loss of blood.
Moments passed and the two felt the shudder of the repurposed and shielded ICBM type missiles leave Olympus to their pre-determined targets¡. Every ship fighting near the asteroid fired half of all the nukes they carried and Jumped with the survivors of Olympus.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Admiral Gwen stood and stared at the screen in front of her¡ Aiericastum watched with a combination of Horror and fascination as hundreds of millions of kilotons of Nuclear Fusion explosives reached their marks in a rolling ripple of blinding Rage that Humanity had often called, ¡°Canned Sunlight¡±. Every escort ship near the asteroid evaporated under the True Wrath of Sol incarnate. The Giant Battle Cruiser that had chased the fleet was spinning slowly, disabled by the repeated blasts. The Asteroid was in 25 distinct pieces having been blown apart when the antimatter containment field failed. None of the larger pieces were on a trajectory to Delmar, the Eros could pick off any of what was left that remained a threat.
Admiral Gwen focused her attention on the last remaining enemy vessel as it sputtered and flickered, trying to regain control of itself, ¡°Port Royal survivors, replace 1st fleet¡¯s position. 1st fleet¡. BRING. ME. THAT. SHIP.¡±
Chapter 58
A quick sharp pain in Legaris shoulder woke him from his spot on the floor of the bridge. His vision was a patchwork of artifacting and dark spots. He recognized the rush of nanites through his blood as his damaged vision began to return to him.
¡°Legaris, rise slowly. You have taken a massive dose of radiation.¡± It was the ships doctor.
¡°I will, get me to my chair.¡± Legaris grumbled, his strength slowly returning to him as his body was being repaired. He would need a bed later, but for now.. ¡°Someone, give me an update.¡± he stated as calmly as he couldn¡¯t muster.
¡°Our main drives are offline, 4 of our 7 main power generators are in emergency shutdown. Shields are at minimum power. Hull breaches on multiple decks are being sealed. We will be ready for subspace in 2 hours but for not much more than a jump for home. Sir, our weapons banks are completely destroyed.¡± His first officer took a deep breath before locking eyes with his commander, ¡°You are not Devoted. It pains me Legaris, but you must take the subspace shuttle.¡±
¡°You Dare!¡± Legaris began before seeing the pain in his first officer''s eyes, ¡°what is it..¡±
¡°The Exterminatus Fleet is gone, Legaris. The Rock is gone¡ All of it. We are all that is left. I have loaded the recorded data from This engagement into the shuttle, along with my personal report. We will need an eyewitness who can help Voralus learn from this failure. You are the best of us¡ if we are to face This new foe, we will need your mind. You were the only one of us who saw something off. Go, Legaris.¡± His first officer drew a ceremonial dagger from his uniform and handed it to Legaris. The younger Vorath had just given his superior officer a direct order. By tradition, Legaris had the right to take the man¡¯s life where he stood.
Legaris stood slowly, dagger held in a reverse grip, eyeing his first officer. The younger man put his hands behind his back in complete surrender, then flinched as Legaris¡¯ hand snapped out and blood flowed freely from the first officers left cheek as the blade cut cleanly if shallowly in a line across his face, bisecting his ear. Legaris had chosen an equally old tradition of sparing the younger man and marking him with honor.
¡°Get that tended to properly, true loyalty is a rare thing. It deserves note.¡± with that, Legaris walked towards the hanger where the waiting shuttle with its treasure of information awaited his presence.
First in line Magnarus touched his still bleeding cheek. He would allow the mark to heal slowly, preserving its scar with pride, possibly tucking some Flekko mane fibers in it to ensure its prominence. If he survived that is. With the stroke of a blade, his Legaris had both spared him, and given him command of the crippled Vorath Battle Cruiser.
¡°All hands, this is Magnarus. All surviving pilots to your ships. Launch all fighters and all gunboats. We must hold it while repairs are made. Die well!¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Mac could feel Lyrians agony as Olympus was engulfed in the fusion explosions that had ended the threat to Delmar. She was leaned up against his shoulder, he could feel her shake in suppressed sobs as 1st fleet prepared their own jump.
The four Eros Dreadnaughts were still firing, albeit at a slower pace. What was left of Gregory¡¯s fleet, which was three quarters of it thankfully, were falling into where first fleet had been defending, replacing their strength and taking targeting solutions from the Eros¡¯ to engage smaller chunks of asteroid not worth a ¡®Vulkan¡¯ round. These ships worked together rendered any remnants of incoming ship fragments or asteroid fragments small enough to burn up in the atmosphere of Delmar without impacting its surface. Delmar would have an exciting night sky, and complicated shuttle services to and from their orbital dry-dock for the next few weeks, but the planet was no longer in danger. The remaining Debris was going to take months, if not years to sift through for intel, and clean up.
The UGN fleet was burning back for Port Royal, Kamarin had wisely requested that they return to overwatch of the station while the Sol Navy cleaned up. He had lost 4 brigantines in the fighting and one of his Frigates was badly damaged. Port Royal would aid in repairs.
¡°Captain, we are detecting multiple launches from the enemy ship. Various sized fighter and attacker craft are setting up a screen.¡± The Tactical officer of the Galveston Put the sensor composite up on the CIC main screen.
¡°We go in slowly then, clear the fighters and board.¡± Harrison offered
¡°NO¡.¡± Mac turned to the Captain, ¡°Bill, we have a small contingent of fighters from Delmar with slip drives. Call up 303 wing, and Martina¡¯s VIPERS. Have the VIPERS load AMRAAMs. Give them the coordinates for 10,000 meters in front of the fighter screen. They will engage first. I will launch with Galveston¡¯s fighters as escort into the ship. Captain, prepare to jump your ship to cut off their retreat.¡±
¡°Alright, Mac.¡± Harrison nodded, and issued out the orders.
20 minutes later the VIPERS of Martina¡¯s squadron and Ivars 303 squadron made the jump. These two squadrons had been given emergency slip drives and had them installed in their ships. These slip drives were the bare minimum. Rated for 3 jumps maximum before overhaul, but they were enough for the micro hop needed to engage the enemy. They were being fed telemetry from the Galveston and her more powerful sensors, giving them signatures to feed the 23rd gen AMRAAMs. Gone was ¡°pit bull¡± mode where a Fox3 would latch on to anything it saw after ship-born radar guidance was lost, now a pilot could feed a radar signature into the memory of individual missiles and fire them with no lock at all.
It wasn¡¯t perfect, Galveston could only get fidelity on 152 of the 400 fighter signatures screening the enemy vessel. Those 152 were the unlucky ones the moment Ivar, and Martina dropped their squadrons back into real space.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°Fox 3!¡± Barked Martina into the mic as she loosed every AMRAAM she had on board the moment she was in real space. Every VIPER in her flight did the same, leaving them with guns and 6 internally carried sparrows each. Every Raptor 2 ejected their auxiliary missile pods the moment they were empty, and 25 seconds later, 135 of the 150 targeted enemy fighters exploded...
¡°Rifle rifle rifle!¡± Ivar barked over the microphone as his 303 squadron opened fire with their externally mounted Delmar native MAC pods. Another 450 Durasteel MAC rounds bellowed from the Delmar Ranger¡¯s, reaping another 125 kills, before they too ejected their external weights and prepared for the fight. Rangers still couldn¡¯t carry much in the way of Sol weaponry, but the ¡°Brothers Grem¡± had discovered a way to get the hyper sparrows to work. Each Delmar Ranger fighter only carried 2, but it was a game changer, as the dogfight was joined.
Martina bore her teeth in a feral smile as she watched 303 squadron get to work. After Lyrians had proven that a Delmar could survive many more G¡¯s with proper training, many of Ivars squadron had begun working at improving. Their ships were still limited, but the two forces had developed a ¡°hammer and anvil¡± approach that maximized each crafts strengths. Martina ripped off two sparrows in quick succession as her squadron focused on keeping the Rangers clear using missile fire. The 303 whipped into their combination thatched weave and concentric spiral Patten allowing them to clear their own tails as well as maximize their own delta v against the enemy. Martina¡¯s raptors soon dove in, most keeping 2 sparrows in reserve and engaged with quick GAU Bursts during their initial Merge. The deadly dance was quickly becoming one-sided.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Galveston dropped into real space on the opposite side of the enemy vessel with her destroyers immediately moving to encircle. A boarding shuttle launched along with Concord and Galveston¡¯s sub-light-only fighters as escort. Lt Alex Collins, with Galveston¡¯s marine detachment, would be leading a squad into the belly of the enemy vessel. The mission was Board and secure. They had been given images of what their foe might look like, but the warning was that the images were severely out of date.
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¡°30 seconds!! Sensors read gravity, but no atmo!¡± Called the shuttle pilot.
¡°Seals on!! ¡°Bellowed Alex¡¯s captan.
Every marine unhooked their armored helmets from their belts and snapped them into place. Activating the Hud and a cerebral link to the sensors and optics inside helmet. Weapons clattered as the standard issue Dessert Tech made MDR-G¡¯s were loaded and made ready.
The light turned green, and the ramp lowered. The marines stormed out and spread through the hanger securing it as they went.
Alex led 2nd squad toward the main entrance as a hiss of returning atmosphere froze everyone as air was pumped back into the hanger. Moments later a massive 3-meter-tall grey alien broiling in chords of muscle stepped out of the main door and froze as it stared at them. The spell was broken as the being roared and reached for a weapon at its hip.
Alex had selected burst fire for his rifle while in the shuttle. He pulled the trigger 3 times, sending 9 Gauss round into the torso of the alien at multiple times the speed of sound. The hall behind it exploded on dark bluish grey blood, organ, and bone fragments as the being fell.
¡®So much for surprise¡¯ Alex and his squad rushed the door and worked their way down the hall, they took the first right and were met with a hail of laser fire that scored their armored suit, puncturing Alex¡¯s left arm and glancing off his armored chest plates. A bellowing in a language his on board translator identified as mostly Greek urged the laser fire to continue. His suit sealed itself and his arm seemed functional outside of the burning pain.
¡°2-1 actual, heavy resistance, no casualties, over.¡±
*Copy 2-1, standby* the radio responded quickly followed by a tap on his shoulder. Alex turned to find a massive corporal carrying a riot shield and a rotary grenade launcher ¡°You called with a problem¡± the man¡¯s grin was felt through his voice.
The corporal didn¡¯t wait for an answer, he slapped the riot shield down as laser and plasma bounced off it and casually thumped out three grenades. All laser fire ceased, and he stood, ¡°CLEAR!¡± He shouted. And 2nd squad plus a very large and very pleased corporal continued their advance into the bowels of the ship.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Magnarus watched the feeds from inside of the ship. His men were being slaughtered en mass. These short stocky intruders were using weapons he had never seen before, they cut through his men¡¯s bodies like butter. The Vorath had been genetically selecting for reproduction, durability, and intellect in equal measure over the last several million years. The average Vorath Soldier class could shrug off most infantry standard laser and plasma weapons known to be used in the pathetic conflagration that the Corth had built as ¡°The Galactic Unity¡±. Vorath weapons were designed to be able to take down a Vorath, and yet these abominations carried weapons that dismembered his men bodily¡ and when hit with weapons that could fell one of his own¡ refused to die... Some of them were injured and pulled back to their boarding craft. But few had actually perished.
¡°Get closer¡± He ordered. It was a stopgap at best. ¡°Get close enough to lay hand on these smaller creatures and rend them bodily asunder with blade and claw¡± he finished.
The repairs were not complete. The ship did not possess enough main power to properly overload and self-destruct. They would not be repaired in time.. There was nothing left to do here. He walked over to the command chair and withdrew his spear and plasma pistol, and prepared for his final stand.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Lt. Collins pied the next corner and waved his squad around. They had seen a marked drop off in resistance as they advanced though the ship. It set into the pit of his stomach like a forest that had just gone too quiet.
He raised up a halt signal as they came to a series of doors. ¡®fuck¡¯ He swore internally as the ambush scenario registered¡
(by 2, left side) he hands signaled as he turned to move to the first door. A meaty hand clamped on his shoulder. He turned to find the stone face of Sgt Kurt Heinrich. The Mountain of a German gave him an all too familiar ¡°This is not officer¡¯s work¡± look familiar to butter bars of ages past. Alex began to protest but the big man simply shouldered past him to take his spot in the stack, shuffling Alex to the 3rd position. Alex signal¡¯d the breech once 1st squad had caught up. The private upfront reached for the door just as both doors on either side of the hall, the one they were about to breech, and the one slightly further down exploded into the hall from some sort of detonating charge.. and Alex found out why resistance had been so light.
1st and 2nd squad together had seventeen men left from various casualties throughout the boarding action. The two doors had indeed exploded into the corridor as part of the ambush. From each door poured a flood of 3 meter tall grey giants. Alex was flung backward as his stack was scattered by two of the beings coming through his door. Alex eyes flew wide as a massive spear cevered the arm of his Sargent and a second was driven through the private in the lead, severing the man¡¯s spine as it was driven through the front of his neck, getting lodged in the backplate of the dead marines armor. Half of 2nd squad was too close, and 1st squad was bellowing for them to clear the lines of fire. Alex rose to find himself face to face with one of the massive beings, it fired on him as it closed, hitting Alex multiple times in his chest armor that somehow held. Alex began to backpedal trying to raise his rifle only to have it swiped away by the spear in the being¡¯s other hand. The two weapons tangled, and the Alien dropped in favor of a massive dagger strapped to his waist. The young Lieutenant used the exchange as his opening. Reversing his direction, Alex dropped low, bending all his experience in training, and his football tight end play from college to his will. He lunged forward, just passed the slightly out-of-position blade and drove his shoulder into the stomach of the alien, lifting him bodily off of the ground and driving him with all the force alex could muster into the floor plating. The alien let out a wheeze of surprise and regained his composure only just in time to see Alex place his sidearm underneath the aliens chin and pull the trigger.
¡°STAY DOWN!!¡± Alex heard a human howl from behind him as the remaining rifles in action bellowed their wrath down the hallway. The remnants of the second squad had fallen back to first squad, and they had formed a loose firing line as the stack had fought for its life. The men stacked with Alex never broke, they simply died where they stood, and Alex added the rest of his magazine to the barrage. 40 aliens had charged them in the ambush. His stack of 5 had taken down 9 before they had fallen. 2 aliens made it around the corner of the corridor before the shooting stopped.
Alex looked over the carnage and found what he sought. He stumbled over to the body of the Sargent who had been his mentor. The Big German was still breathing but was quickly bleeding out from the stump of an arm he now possessed.
¡°You God dam Crazy fucking Kraut¡ If you survive this, I¡¯m buying you AMERICAN whiskey, and making you drink it¡± He growled at the man who was fading in and out of consciousness.
The Sargent just groaned as Alex whipped out his tourniquet and sinched it up, staunching the man¡¯s loss of blood.
¡°Sir, this way, sir¡± a medic stated as he gently grabbed Alex by the arm, ¡°sit down Sir¡±
¡°Im fine, tend to Kurt¡± Alex blinked as he registered his own slurred words, then got a confused look as he started to waver. He looked down to find an alien dagger buried to the hilt just above the side plate of his body armor, ¡°Fuck¡± he got out before coughing up a lung full of blood and crumpling to the ground.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Magnarus was the last of twelve Vorath, they stood at the door to the CIC where they had been pushed back to by these Aliens and their insane weapons. He suspected that he knew why his men fell so easily, but the fog of combat had kept him from deducing anything of real merit. The doors pounded as these short HEAVY and deadly beings reached the blast doors. This would be their final stand.
His ears quirked when he heard a familiar tongue if somewhat clipped, ¡°This is Captain Galanis of the Sol Federation Marine Corps. Surrender now, and I can guarantee you fair treatment.¡± The strange voice said, in Magnarus own native language ¡®how the void do they know our language¡¯.
¡°The Vorath Don¡¯t Surrender, Take us! We die well this day¡± Magnarus roared back, only to be immediately assaulted by an explosive detonation that blew the blast doors inward. His remaining men were quick, and Laser fire filled the manufactured gap for a full minute until a small device clinked into the room. Magnus roared as His eyes were seared with a light almost as bright as the atomic detonations that crippled his ship. He dropped his pistol and shook his head just to have his knees kicked out from under him. He dropped to one knee and looked up, just in time to see a being with fury in his green eyes, a full beard of Brown with hair atop his head to match, and a lit cigar in his mouth as he looked down at Magnarus
¡°Who said anythin¡¯ ¡®bout Dyin¡± the 1.9-meter-tall Captain Nico Galanis gave the Alien an evil grin around his stogie.
Magnarus began to move, only to feel a titanic Hammer of pain at the base of his neck as the grinning man clubbed him with the but of his rifle.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
*Ship secured, bringing her under tow now, Ambassador* the Voice of Mac filled Gwen with relief as the last engagement of this symphony of carnage wound down.
¡°Confirmed, Deliver the ship to Delmar orbit. I will get permission to use the shipyard to properly get to know our prize¡± Gwen stated before standing up from her seat. She looked over at Aiericastum to see a significantly paler grey awash over the being¡¯s body.
¡°No one has done that in several million years¡¡± She stated before straightening her seat inside of the Golems head, ¡°I must go. I will send you to you¡ USN Houston. I cannot be seen any more than I already have. Ambassador, they will send more. My Sensors have some data on where the attack may have come from. I will have the data sent to you. Good day Ambassador.¡±
With that Ambassador Gwen was flung from the Corth ship and into the command deck of the Houston with a flash of light. ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t like that.¡± Gwen growled just to hear the report that the Corth had departed without so much as a farewell or a thanks.
¡°Ambassador?¡± The Captain of the Huston quirked an eyebrow.
¡°I¡¯m starting to not like the Corth¡± Gwen steadied herself against a bit of railing, ¡°That is not a fun way to get around, Report.¡±
¡°Preliminary data is 17 dead, 12 wounded, Admiral. The Galveston reports one subspace signature trail heading away from the captured ship. We think it was launched just before we made the jump to board. We have 7 captured Vorath. We are transporting them to Galveston¡¯s bridge... They are¡ not what we expected... The combat footage will be in your inbox by end of day.¡± The captain nodded.
¡°Get me a shuttle. Have Galveston make for Port Royal. I will meet them there. We built in some proper containment facilities there for larger species.¡± Gwen stated.
¡°Hanger 2 should have your shuttle, Ambassador¡± Houston¡¯s Captain stated before nodding to her as she departed the bridge.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Aiericastum sat back in her chair as he ships soared toward the Deep inner systems of the Unity. Her ship had recorded the entire engagement. It had been both horrific and enlightening as to where Humanity had gone since the Cataclysm. Humanity¡¯s ability to wage war was a paradox of Primitive Brutality and an almost scientific sophistication that Had taken the Vorath completely by surprise. Aiericastum had intercepted the internal sensor and optical footage from the Boarding action. Watching Humans engage in hand-to-hand combat with Vorath had not happened since the beginning of the Lithral civil war. Her thoughts were interrupted by a beeping from her console.
¡®Ah¡¯ Aiericastum thought as she began scrolling through the data on the screen. An emotion clawed its way through her psyche as she began to dig into Information as it scrolled by.
Hope
Chapter 59
Ambassador Gwen sat in her Port Royal office with unfinished paperwork. 3 weeks had passed since the defense of Delmar, and the planet was reeling. The confederation council had called an emergency session in a public clamor for action. Gwen shook her head at that, remembering all too familiar public sentiment pushes during the opening bouts of the GSW.
¡°ENTER¡± Gwen barked as the door chimed, smiling as the doors parted to reveal Admiral Karmarin as he stepped through the entrance.
¡°Ah, Admiral. What can I do for you.¡± Gwen stated, somewhat pointedly setting down the condolence letter she had been struggling to finish.
¡°I came to offer my farewell, ambassador. Our repairs are complete enough for us to return to more extensive facilities, and I must make my official report on this incident.¡± The Avian stated formally before pulling out a familiar privacy device. ¡°From what I have seen, Signus is in good hands. May I ask what Aiericastum¡¯s motives for meeting you were?¡±
¡°She explained your history, and that of the Vorath Lithral. At least somewhat, I suspect much of the past has been omitted or forgotten.¡± Gwen said carefully, as she had been given no instruction on what the admiral knew.
¡°That¡¯s a name I¡¯ve not heard in some time. Legend has it that they would use¡.¡± The UGN Admiral¡¯s comment came to a screeching halt as understanding slammed into him like one of the human¡¯s ¡°strategics¡± he did not know existed until just recently. ¡°By the void¡ this was a Vorath attack.¡± he said softly, unable to look away from Gwen¡¯s eyes.
She simply nodded.
¡°How could they know¡ It was a secret on the highest order of the Tetrarchy visit¡¡± Karmarin¡¯s horror bled into his voice about the edges. He looked down to his data pad and began tapping a message before freezing at the tone that came from the other side of the desk.
¡°We will soon find out¡¡± Gwen¡¯s eyes were cold; her tone could have dropped the temperature in the room 5 degrees. ¡°Humanity doesn¡¯t take kindly to their Allie¡¯s being attacked¡¡± she finished just as her console beeped, ¡°go ahead¡± she stated.
*We have coordinates and confirmation of target from Crybaby* It was Philips voice over the intercom, *awaiting authorization*
¡°Patriot Authorization Conventional granted: sending codes, at you discretion; Gwen out...¡± Gwen stated formally before tapping at her console and sending her codes. It wouldn¡¯t due to speak them in front of unauthorized sources after all.
Karmarin¡¯s eyes widened as he felt the entire station shudder noticeably.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Legaris opened his eyes, taking a moment to gather his bearings. The Vorath had learned much in their fight with the Corth. The final lesson of that war had been the key to great distances with little supplies. Legaris was rising from the result of this very lesson. His people had been forced to flee for survival at the end of their conflict with the Corth, and they had chosen a separate spiral arm of the Galaxy to rebuild. Many had died in the travel time.
Those that had survived passed down a genetic mutation that allowed the Vorath to use a biobed to drop into an artificially regulated coma. This went deeper than a normal coma however, as it was more akin to stasis, or near death. A Vorath in ¡°Travel sleep¡± could survive on little to no sustenance for a decade or more before suffering any permanent damage. It had been a little over 3 weeks since he had been forced to flee the attempted Exterminatus of Delmar and Aiericastum¡
*unidentified craft you have entered mining Consortium space, transmit codes or be destroyed.* a voice stated. It was the cover that the Vorath had been using for 250 years now. Many such mining guilds had come and gone, they were an easy way to keep tabs on the rest of the galaxy, watching as they ripened for conquest. Legaris sent in the codes..
*Codes received, welcome Legaris. What brings you back so qu¡..Ly¡.. di¡¡¡en¡..* the transmission collapsed on itself
¡°Repeat? Station, repeat please¡ station, Legaris changing to frequency nine one five seve¡...¡± he stopped as his eyes caught a flicker¡ he instinctively snapped his shields up to full and laid the shuttle over hard in a right-handed reversal¡ just in time for his shields to get shattered by a burst of what Legaris now recognized as kinetic weapons fire.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
-2weeks earlier-
The wake for Greg and Marge had been earlier that day... It was currently 2100 as Mac, Lyri, Clint, Frie, and Gwen sat in the living room of the Grarzia lodge.
¡°Thanks for coming, everyone¡ I have some news¡± Gwen started as everyone got settled into various seating. ¡°I don¡¯t want to do this, but you guys would want to know. We found where the Asteroid attack came from. It¡¯s 4 days out by slip-drive. We matched the escape trajectory of the Shuttle that Launched from the Captured ship to an outer rim mining guild outpost. We sent a couple of captured Inquisititorum spy drones in. but they have been destroyed moments after they come online¡ ¡± Gwen sat back in her chair
¡°You need Concord for this¡¡± Mac sagged in his chair in recognition.
¡°Concord is the only ship that can get in and provide the last of the information we need to strike. From what we can tell, this is the only post big enough to provide a threat to Delmar.¡± Gwen said quietly.
¡°And we hope to intercept that shuttle. Chances are it has a gold mine of Intel for the Vorath on our combat abilities¡± Clint followed up, pointedly taking a swig of Delmar whiskey.
¡°I can¡¯t ask you to do this,¡± Gwen stated, ¡°We can go in strength, but we will lose ships. We don¡¯t know what their defensive capabilities are. A surprise strike before they can prepare.¡±
¡°It would take too long for an Eros to charge. And it¡¯s not safe to charge a shot in slip space.¡± Clint stated. ¡°Too many competing EM disturbances.¡±
¡°So, Concord goes in... or we do this the hard way¡± Lyrian said slowly. ¡°And goes in quietly.¡± She was broiling in mixed emotions. Marg¡¯s death had hit her the hardest of the group.
¡°I¡¯m not ordering you to do this¡± Gwen said to Mac and Lyri softly.
¡°You don¡¯t have to¡¡± Mac turned to Lyrian and she looked into his face. She searched his eyes for a moment before realizing his intent.
¡°NO, No, no¡.¡± She begged. Tears breaking free.
¡°I¡¯m sorry, but you aren¡¯t trained in the stealth aspects of Concord. This mission¡ It¡¯s what Clint and I were trained to do. Interdiction is a whole different world¡¡± Mac said softly, ¡°Besides The twins need their mother.¡±
¡°The twins need their father too¡± Lyri rallied, ¡°If its that dangerous don¡¯t. we can fortify here.¡±
Mac sighed, ¡°Fortifications need time. We won¡¯t have surprise to aid us next time¡¡± He took a sip from his own glass before setting it down and taking both of her hands. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t even be considering it if Clint wasn¡¯t here. We don¡¯t survive unless we do this perfectly. I couldn¡¯t even do it myself alone. Together, This becomes survivable. We need time, twins need time. Clint and I, we can create that time¡ and find out how much time we actually have.¡±
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Lyri sagged into her husband, feeling both his resolve, and her own logic failing to find an argument, ¡°I hate this¡ what the hell am I supposed to do while you are gone.¡±
¡°I can answer that.¡± Frie scooted over to take Lyri¡¯s hands, ¡°I¡¯m going to need to become human strong. I¡¯ll need some help to do it fairly quickly.¡±
¡°Huh? Why? It took me months to be able to fly in Concord¡± Lyri sat up to turn to her best friend.
¡°Not Fly, Lyri. Not Fly¡± Frie placed Lyrian¡¯s hand on her stomach and took a sip of water.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
-One Week Earlier-
¡°This is¡ Strange¡¡± Clint stated from the back seat of Concord, ¡°The last time I was here¡.¡±
¡°Yea, at least I saved your back seat, Lyri¡¯s might have been a bit of a squeeze¡± Mac chuckled as he finished his flow from the front seat. They were sitting in the Home Hanger of the Grarzia Lodge. Concord sat quietly powered down as everything was meticulously triple-checked. The ship had just come back from Tranquility where her stealth coatings were completely replaced, and her systems completely gone through by people trained to work on her. Her modifications had stayed yet been tested to ensure that she retained all her more clandestine capabilities as she would need them.
¡°you two ready in there?¡± Lyrian was on the ladder triple triple-checking everything else. She had shown just how much she had studied Concord over the last week. Now, she fussed with Mac¡¯s harness and Void suit.
¡°Luv, we will be ok¡± Mac said softly, ¡°Its time...¡± He gave her a kiss on the neck before she hugged him fiercely and jumped down from the ladder, Frie climbed up to do the same to Clint before the two women and Gwen stepped back as Concord Howled to life. 5 min later and the last whisps of Delmar Atmosphere were clawed free of Concord as she leaped for their jump trajectory.
¡°Cobra 224 with information X-ray. Requesting permission to jump.¡± Clint stated calmly, he still wasn¡¯t used to having controls of his own in the back, but they were well placed and easy to work around.
*Permission granted, 224. Jump your discretion. Good Hunting* The ATC controller responded before closing the frequency.
¡°Clint, Let¡¯s do this.¡± Mac said curtly. Both were in alpha sync. While not as¡ extensive¡ as the one Mac and Lyri enjoyed because of the claiming. It was one they were old friends with.
¡°Silent Running Protocol active¡± Clint''s familiar half distracted hollow tone betrayed his only tacit acknowledgement of his response to Mac.
Across the entire Delmar system, hundreds of sensors registered the disappearance of a single contact. Concord made her run to slip space completely unnoticed. Her mission-specific payload was safely stowed in one of her internal bays usually reserved for Concords Nuclear Payload and safely behind Stealth Tech as Concord Leapt for Slipspace
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4 days later Concord flashed into the outskirts of the system. Neither Pilot nor WSO spoke. Concord¡¯s passive sensors immediately picked up the main Asteroid turned Outpost headquarters by power readings alone. Concord began her long engineless glide into the target. Mac was in full concentration for the next 24 hours, the flight in was filled with small asteroids that would murder Concord if they were to collide. Mac spent 8 of those hours giving Concord Miniscule puffs of individual maneuvering jets to tweak Their approach just enough to miss the asteroids, but not enough to register as a contact, even a piece of trash. Concord slipped through nature¡¯s minefield in space, passing within 2.5 meters of one asteroid chunk during the insertion phase of the mission. Hour 12 had mac begin a tantalizingly gentle burn designed to have The Stealth fighter come to a stop in the shadow of the hidden base¡¯s parent rock.
Mac and Clint had not said a single word to each other since their arrival in system, but by the 23rd hour concord had slipped up against the surface of the asteroid, deep in an unused crater section.
Mac let out a low groan as he set back in his seat, shutting all but the suit life support systems down on concord as she hovered in the semi-permanent shadow of the Vorath Base that was nested inside of an asteroid the size of Terra¡¯s Moon.
¡°Status¡± he whispered, finally willing to speak for the first time.
¡°We¡¯re in the right spot. Ship patterns and Communications infrastructure matches. In 48 hours, I should have everything we need for Crybaby.¡± Clint whispered back. ¡°I have a few things to finish. I¡¯ll take first watch.¡±
Mac didn¡¯t argue and keyed up the HAB entry to float down into the resting area of Concord. Over the next two days the two men kept a methodical shift rotation. Coaxing every last byte of data out of their Foe¡¯s position. Transmissions painted a very interesting, and excruciatingly complete picture of Vorath Operations in this sector, as well as Just how far away from home they really were. Concord Stored everything in her Black Box. On the second night, Mac and Clint took dog watches to ensure both of them were rested and awake at the same time in the morning.
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Legaris was desperately flying on instinct alone. His shields been in basic space dust deflection levels when he had dropped into the outpost systems. He had been able to randomize his movements well enough to give them time to get to full strength before the next Kinetic impact had forced him to strap into the pilots¡¯ seat. No laser, and no plasma was being fired at him. His sensors registered fighter launches headed his way, but he could no longer hail anything through the massive interference in his communications.
Legaris swore as his random maneuvers were found to be not so random and a massive series of several hundred impacts rocked his shuttle once more.
*shield failure imminent, 25 percent remaining* the Klakson wailed. Legaris swore as another flicker of light forced him to dodge further out into the system. He began a firing sequence in the general direction of his attacker designed for arial denial... His optical systems had picked up flashes of something out there. The Kinetics weapons fire had been identified as the same type, of somewhat smaller, that had laid waste to his Exterminatus fleet. This Violent Poltergeist never fired from one spot. It moved like nothing Lagaris had ever seen. Impossibly fast, and completely immune to being detected.
*Shields failed, larboard weapons bank destroyed, external pressure hull breached, secondary hull intact* the Klakson listed off as Legaris once again was forced further away from the Station.
___________________________________________________________________________________
¡°30 seconds to Patriot¡± Clints monotone delivery betrayed nothing of the stress he was feeling, ¡°GAU at 35 percent. We have reached minimum safe distance. Crybaby still active¡±
¡°Give me control of the Sparrow¡¯s, I want to launch the moment we don¡¯t have to stay quiet¡± Mac growled. The pilot of the very Corth looking shuttle was of excellent quality, and his one GAU had made it impossible to overwhelm him with firepower ¡®im going to have to adjust some things when I get back, not being able to use the PAC while in stealth is a massive red flag¡¯ Mac thought as he squeezed off another burst.
¡°Shuttle¡¯s shields are gone; half its weapons banks went with it.¡± Clint reported. As the sparrows began to growl in Mac¡¯s ears as they were being fed heat signature data directly from Concord herself.
The 5 second warnings blared in both men¡¯s ears as Mac broke off from a laser barrage that was a little to close for comfort as the streaks of energy flashed past the cockpit. . The open space along the entry vector that Concord had originally used erupted in bright blue plasma as titanic beams of white light burst forth from slipspace and streaked out with an ever so slight bend to them.
The man who figured all of this out, Johansson, was right to fear his discovery¡ With his discovery of both the exponential nature of acceleration post entry into slipspace, and the ability to triangulate any jump location with enough data and the Patriot-ISR¡¯s, or Interstellar God Rods, were created. Three of these missiles had been launched from Port Royal. Without the need for a flesh and blood pilot, they were designed to accelerate at full burn even after their one-use-only slipspace engines were activated. Simply put, the longer these missiles had to go. The faster the longer they would be accelerating in slipspace.
Johansson had figured out that if you didn¡¯t need to decelerate, an automated missile could drop out of slipspace at the majority of the speed of light¡ As such. These Patriot missiles carried no payload, replacing the majority of the mass of the missile with fuel and solid-state seeker heads and guidance computers. The result was argueably worse than the antimatter Planet killing weapon stopped at 2nd Centerpoint. The Missile would shut down its slipdrives but continue its constant full power burn even as it dropped out of slipspace, causing the Missile to exit into normal space at between 70-90 percent the speed of light and hold that speed to the target, exempting any hard course corrections that would naturally slow it slightly.
These missiles had no such need for a course correction. Mac and Clint had opened one of their internal bay¡¯s and released a timed ¡°Crybaby¡± canister. Similar to the ¡°Crybaby¡± function that The TALON3 classes could use as a forward observation, a Crybaby canister was a high-density beacon and target data sensor pack that could be dropped and left for more¡ extensive. strikes on emplaced enemy positions. This Crybaby was nestled directly in one of the asteroid¡¯s own craters, and set up to pure beacon mode. It didn¡¯t need to last long. It was destroyed within moments of its activation, but it had painted its target. The Vorath Asteroid post was still charging its shield banks when three IGR¡¯s, each imparting twice the energy of the Martian Galveston strike that took Mac¡¯s parents, impacted the asteroid in a blinding flash of kinetic energy release.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Legaris sagged in his seat in shock and horror as his home of 25 years evaporated in the Incandescent Rage of Humanities Retribution. His catatonic state was disrupted by more impacts from his invisible foe.
¡°Computer, Home jump, maximum subspace velocity, execute.¡± Legaris growled. He had no choice... He did not know if he could survive the trip. But the Data treasure he carried had to.
*Enemy detected 188 by 182* the computer responded and Legaris¡¯s eyes widened at the composite picture of the visionary of Doom that shimmered into existence as his optical sensors lined up with the rest of his sensors. *Shields detected, enemy is firing* a bright beam of energy streaked out from its sharply raked prow and slammed into Legaris¡¯ shuttle once more, removing his partially recovered shields
*shields down, secondary hull breach. Total on board Oxygen loss in 25 second*
¡°Pull all remaining oxygen into the tanks. Prepare for suit-based life support. Jump immediately!¡± Legaris growled as he continued to dodge more incoming beams mixed with solid projectiles.
*Jump calculations complete, estimated travel time in current condition. 12 years, 13 hours, 5 minutes*
Legaris¡¯ looked on in shock as the ship pursuing him released all too familiar white trails of smoke that streaked toward him. He slammed his ship hard over, lining it up desperately with the course line to trigger the jump...
The proximity fuse of one of the missiles caused a detonation that took out the remaining sub-light engines of Legaris ship but escape velocity had been reached. The oddly almost Corth shuttle blinked out of real space and sped for parts unknown.
Legaris sagged into his chair. The impact of the final explosion had imparted a sickening spiraling spin, but otherwise, his shuttle was on course... ¡°Close viewer. Initiate Suit based Travel sleep.¡± He felt the prick of the chemicals used to induce his hibernation.
He closed his eyes and gave up on consciousness at last.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Concord¡¯s tires chirped as she touched down back at her home base¡¯s runway. It had been a long 4 days of sleepless flight back to Delmar space. Mac popped the cockpit a little early and let the fresh jungle/sea mixed air unwind his deep tension as he taxied his ship into the hanger with a waiting pair of Gorgeous Delmar Females waiting for them.
No words were said, Clint was barely conscious. It had been a while since he had had to fight like that. It was a rude reminder of just how much conditioning was required to fight in a ship as unyielding as Concord.
Mac was not much better and had asked Lyri to fly Vito down to the Hanger so they didn¡¯t have to walk back to their home.
¡°Easy, Easy.. I got you¡± Frie coo¡¯d to Clint as he stepped down the ladder first.
¡°I forgot how much that sucked.¡± Clint pained moan was creased by a dark chuckle.
Mac stumbled down the ladder after him, and into the arms of a tear-streaming Lyrian, ¡°Hi Luv, See. Didn¡¯t die¡± he whispered, referencing their first combat-based separation. She just tightened her hold on him.
¡°Food¡¯s warming in the house.¡± Gwen stepped out from around the corner, ¡°Let''s get you two recovered. I can have the Tech¡¯s pull the box.¡±
¡°He got away, The bastard that ran from us the first time... He fuckin got away¡¡± Mac growled.
¡°We can deal with that later. You boys did good, Let¡¯s let tomorrow lay.¡± Gwen said gently.
Chapter 60
Captain Jacob Irving settled into the captain¡¯s chair of Lucid Travelers bridge, taking in the new yet old sights and smells and sounds of departure. He was one of several Humans selected to command Delmar-flagged freighters. He smiled quietly at the thought of being called a ¡°freighter¡±. So much had changed since the ill-fated attack that had taken one of his eyes.
Delmar freighters were more like family colonies that took contracts. A third of the crew was now Human. Most of them had been ¡°adopted¡± by one family group or another, and last year¡¯s training and shake down cruises had already yielded a well-adjusted crew, and a couple of surprises. One of those surprises stepped up to him with a pad.
¡°We have the last of the crew aboard, we have been cleared out¡± - first officer Hera¡¯lene Orlivarro, formally of the Delmar Defence Force handed him the pad.
¡°Ah, thank you, Hera. Helm, let¡¯s light the fires. Loose moorings and come about. Make for the beacon, all ahead half.¡± the Human Captain ordered calmly.
Confirmation calls rang out as Jake laid a hand lightly on an arm rest, feeling Traveler come to life. He had been invited to dinner by the Grarzia¡¯s and the Stevens months ago now and had been surprised to meet the current commander of Port Royal, who also happened to be the previous captain of the Traveler. The night was spent with good food, good drink, and a crash course on all of Traveler¡¯s quirks by the people who knew her best. Hera had shown up as well, and Jacob had learned she was Frie¡¯s sister. Commodore Stevens had met his bride through Hera, but much had been left unsaid. Mackenzie had gotten a boisterous laugh out of Jake still wearing the eye patch given to him at their first meeting.
¡°Moorings loosed, coming about to course, ETA 3 hours¡± the Helm reported.
¡°Once on course, ahead full. Let¡¯s stretch her legs¡± Captain Irving stated standing and turning to his first officer with a polite smile. ¡°XO? Care to join me for a bite? I need your insight on our first stop.¡±
¡°Aye Captain,¡± Hera nodded; suppressing the urge to snap a salute, if somewhat more easily than her first weeks aboard, ¡°should I have our meals delivered to your office?¡±
¡°The mess will do, unless you¡¯re asking me out number 1?¡± Jake grinned, blatantly poking at Hera¡¯s sense of protocol, as one or two humans of the crew snorted.
¡°The mess will be fine¡ Captain¡± Hera leveled a withering stare that thoroughly failed to penetrate the human¡¯s grin.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Tristen stood in the middle of a very different style of bridge. He had jumped at the bonus to get certified and Captain a human ship, big families were expensive, and until Sol had reached out to Delmar; the captaincy berths were all filled.
¡°Captain, your old haunt is off the port side¡± Aaron Diggs, his XO mentioned before swinging the optical screens field of view to watch Lucid Traveler burn past Port Royal burn for the beacon. ¡°I still don¡¯t get how different our freighter designs are¡±
¡°They do differ quite a bit¡± Tristen chuckled, holding on to a bar next to his temple. He was only standing in principal. Human freighter chose to forgo artificial gravity in service to the alter of speed. ¡°Our stops have always been in a cluster of life, we had to plan to LIVE in between the stars, not just work in our own solar system. I suspect someone will blend the concepts and make both these types obsolete one day¡±
¡°Your lips to gods ears, I¡¯m on a waiting list for a Delmar Berth. I want to see what it¡¯s like.¡± The helms officer stated. Her brown hair tucked into a bun as she floated by to her ¡°cubie.¡±
Human ships were designed with crew comfort third. Tristen was standing at the one spot designed to be ¡°stood¡± at. It was just tall enough for him to stand, but his view was not that out of an observation window, but through a series of 9 screens that depicted either outside scenes, data or a HUD combination of both. Each position on the bridge was a sunken in slot in Tristen¡¯s ¡°floor¡± and a captain¡¯s chair could be extended from the floor Tristen was standing on.
The Delmar sensor and communications officer snuggled into her cubie next and poked at her controls ¡°we have our clearances, Captain. We can push back whenever we are ready.¡±
¡°Very well Risa¡¯del, sent them the launch request. We have a long way to go.¡± Tristen stated.
His command was ¡°S.F.S. Star Duster¡± was filled to her spine with cargo bound for Sol. Humanity had been just as starved for exotic foods and culture as Delmar had been for the same from Humanity. Half of her capacity was occupied with bio beds and Delmar made nano tech fabricators. They were going to jumpstart the drought that was humanities economy post extermination of half of their species in war. The other half of the cargo was food stuff, jewelry, hard drives full of Delmar media and galactic data to large in size to be transmitted. Data took energy and was still not expensive to send a movie in a subspace packet than to get that data to sol to be distributed there.
Star Duster shuddered as she was released of her docking clamps and began her turn toward the beacon, but not quite.
¡°Helm, get me a triangulated course, I want to drop out on our mission designated destination.¡±
¡°Course for pandora MOA, Terra is already laid in Captain¡± Risa smiled from the helm.
¡°All stations report green, Cap¡¯n.¡± Tristen¡¯s XO stated as he took his own cubical.
Tristen activated his captain¡¯s chair and settled in ¡°Jump in 20, MARK!¡± He stated as he scanned through his screens.
20 seconds later Tristen watched the front viewer as he took his 1st non simulated jump into Slipspace.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Captain Morino Yasushi settled into his command chair on SEV Excelsior as she Burned out of the Grasp of Mar¡¯s Gravity. Phobus had become the de- facto staging area for Humanities ¡°Galaxy Shot¡± His ship had just returned from refit and resupply from the mission that shattered Humanities understanding of the surrounding space between them and the Unity. As part of Yasu¡¯s debrief and update on information he would need for further missions, he had read the debrief and Report of the Ambassador to Delmar¡¯s defense of their home system from an attack by an enemy that was apparently responsible for the galactic scale genocide that was to be Terra¡¯s birthright¡ The captain shifted in his seat uncomfortable with Humanities place as the Benefactor of the resources left behind by not only hundreds of billions murdered¡ but possibly hundreds of civilizations exterminated in a galactic spanning species civil war that echo¡¯d all to close to familiar for Yasu¡¯s taste.
¡°Captain?¡± a young man asked a second time, stirring Yasushi from his thoughts.
¡°Yes, Ensign what can I do for you¡± The Captain stood to greet the young man.
¡°Ensign Patterson, Warren Patterson reporting for duty sir.¡± The young man responded.
¡°Ah, yes. Our new weapons officer, to see to our safety in this dangerous new expanse we find ourselves diving into.¡± Yasushi greeted the man with a warm smile, ¡°Forgive me, but Why Ensign.¡±
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¡°Your weapons and shields upgrades¡± Ensign Patterson stated, ¡°I helped design them, I wanted to be on the ship they were being rapid prototyped on so that I can ensure their function should we have any problems. As for why I am still an Ensign, I¡¯m still 17 years old Captain. I won¡¯t be of age to take a Lieutenants test for another 8 months.¡±
¡°Times are certainly interesting. Welcome aboard Ensign, I suspect that you will do well here. Run me through our upgrades if you please. I¡¯m afraid that was one of the files I was forced to skim during our lay- over.¡± Yasu smiled as he indicated to the Tactical controls alongside the Helm at the front of the bridge.
¡°Certainly captain¡± the Ensign instantly lit up, ¡°All of Excelsior¡¯s weapons are still of known types. However, our friends on the other side of ¡°The Pond¡±, as it were, have spent millennia working with minimal power generation abilities. Because Humanity has just been able to play a game of ¡°no replacement for displacement¡± our whole existence, we can generate absurd amounts of power by galactic standards, but our management of that power is.. sub par.¡±
The Ensign swiped his hand across one panel with practiced ease bringing up the power grid of Excelsior. ¡°Excelsior is one of the first retrofitted ships of Sol to have the power efficiency concepts and technologies incorporated into her existing grid. You will not be able to attain the efficiencies as any of our later purpose build Sol or Delmar Hybrid ships; but with our efficiency gains and an upgraded Plasma Fusion Reactor Cluster Core using the same concepts. You now have an old surplus Corvette Class Martian PAC nested in with your MAC cannon. One of our Brilliant Allies figured out a way to minimize a PAC to fit into a Terran TALON3, and sent the blueprints over some time ago. Half of your GAU34¡¯s have been replaced with Compact PAC¡¯s, or ¡°PAC-C¡¯s¡±. Yes, your power core cluster is capable of running everything at full power. However, you¡¯re power core is now backed up with system specific power banks using our capacitor technology and Delmar efficiency concepts so that should you need extra power to one system, or to say, a damage control forcefield...¡±
¡°Or an over stressed shield generator or heat dissipation system/¡± Yasushi stated pointedly.
¡°Well, yes, that as well¡± Patterson stated gamely. ¡°You have a 1 hour run time at maximum draw from each of the power banks from their respective systems. Simply put, you now have built in, constantly ready, breathing room for emergency situations.¡±
¡°Excelsior sounds more like a warship¡¡± Captain Yasushi stated warily.
¡°Captain. Excelsior, as she lays, could take any cruiser or destroyer class warships from the GSW in a duel, Martian or Terran.¡± Patterson waited as his Captain took in a low long breath at that, ¡°Our new model Warships will be that much more capable because we are building in this new technology from the ground up. The balance of power between science vessel and Warship will still be preserved, Captain.¡±
¡°I see, I pray we don¡¯t have to use this; but I fear we may be forced to as we stretch the edges of the map.¡±
¡°Hic Sunt Dracones¡± Patterson responded, drawing a raised eyebrow from his captain. ¡°It¡¯s Latin captain. It was a medieval practice of putting monsters and dragon iconography on the edges of maps denoting the lack of information of the unknown. We are, from a certain point of view, sailing off the edge of the maps.¡±
¡°I¡¯m aware of the reference, my boy. I¡¯m entertained to hear someone so young to make it¡± The captain smirked at the boy.
¡°We¡¯ve all had to grow up quickly, Captain.¡± The man said somberly.
¡°Indeed, Take you station Ensign. We depart shortly¡± The Captain slapped the man lightly on the back, and the young man sat in his chair and strapped in.
¡°Com, request our release, we have a schedule to keep.¡± Captain Yasushi returned to his chair, standing in front of it, casually scanning his bridge as the crewmen bent to their tasks.
¡°Release granted; Confirmation will trigger our moorings,¡± The Com¡¯s officer stated after a moment
¡°Confirm. Once loose come about to our scheduled Course. Notify Triton and Charon we will be meeting them at the departure point on schedule.¡± Yasushi stated. Excelsior barely shuddered as she shed her mooring and swung her head toward the outskirts of the Sol system.
______________________________________________________________
Hera settled back in her seat as she observed her captain as he wandered back from his second trip to the line to grab a desert this time. They had just initiated their first jump of the season, which had pushed lunch back considerably.
She had gotten to know Jacob a little bit, during her time with Clint and Frie; but this man was still a complete mystery. He acted nothing like Clint did. This Human was extremely abhorrent of protocol, and refused to use titles, or have titles used on him in informal settings. He lacked the Edge that made the Prey instincts of Hera tickle the back of her mind, like spending any amount of time with Clint or Mac tended to do when they let their guard down. This Jacob Irving seemed to not wear a mask of civility like most of the rest of the humans she had met were obviously wearing out of politeness. She shivered slightly as she remembered the night Clint had dropped his walls and shown her how intense Humanity could be.
¡°Cold?¡± Jacob startled her, settling down into his chair once more.
¡°No, just¡ Intense memories. So, what can I help you out with.¡± She pointedly changed the subject.
Jake just shrugged, ¡°Our first Contract is for semiconductors out of Ya¡¯shir 3. I¡¯ve read the report blurb on the planet. It¡¯s about 3 days from here. I want to know what¡¯s not going to be on the tourist pamphlet.¡±
¡°Ah, Ya¡¯shir is bit of a wildcard world. They are an industrial world that has long since lost its ecosystems. It still has a breathable atmosphere, but I would recommend at least a breathing apparatus for filtering out the pollution during our trips outside of the City¡¯s buildings. We will need to shuttle down to inspect the product as it is being loaded, this is a high-flow production facility. Our ship is a respectable freighter in the grand scheme of the Unity, but her cargo capacity could be written off in the margins of Ya¡¯shir¡¯s weekly schedule losses. It will be up to us to ensure we get what we came for.¡±
¡°Bribes?¡± Jake asked between bites, infuriatingly not worried in the slightest. He even took a moment to wave to some as they entered the mess.
¡°Not as such. But courtesy and ¡°Building Relationships¡± will be a big part of this. The Previous Captain of this Vessel had a contact that he maintained a mutual working relationship with.
¡°Ah, Ri¡¯lirithor Criguv¡¯orla. Silu told me about him. Slimy but straightforward. I¡¯ve known the type. I have a case of Human Whiskey¡¯s in my quarters for people like that. I doubt he will be able to resist something that literally doesn¡¯t exist anywhere else in the Unity.¡± Jake chuckled.
¡°A good start, to be sure. Just don¡¯t get him too accustomed to lavishness. Make this more of an ¡®introduction¡¯ gift.¡± Hera stated, observing her captain openly.
¡°Is there something on my face XO?¡± Jake half joked, but still wiped his mouth with a napkin just in case.
¡°No, it¡¯s¡ It¡¯s nothing¡± Hera stated
¡°Hera, It¡¯s not nothing. It¡¯s not been nothing since the dinner with the Commodores and the Ambassador.¡± Jacob stated flatly.
¡°Oh¡ It¡¯s.. You are very unlike almost every human. I was in a... Courting relationship with Clint and Frie.. You¡¯ve been informed on how Delmar chose mates?¡± She asked.
¡°Ah¡ Yes, I am. You and your sister chose to do it the more traditional way because of your parents¡¯ absence, I assume. It¡¯s the only way two of you would go after the same man in the modern era. I¡¯ve done my homework XO¡± Jake said softly, but leaned in. allowing her to talk more softly as she did the same.
¡°It¡¯s not common knowledge that I courted Clint, uh, Commodore Stevens¡ My sister ended up claiming him when I backed out.. I found his human side¡ intense, violent, and terrifying. He never hurt me or threatened me.. but the back of my mind couldn¡¯t shake the feeling of being inside a cage with a sleeping Gri¡¯Kra the entire time I was around him.¡± Hera shuddered slightly, ¡°I know my sister is safe with him, I will always consider him a friend. He pulled me from the void. when my ship was murdered by the V.R. in their attack¡± She paused as Jacob nodded in understanding, ¡°But the Apex Predator in him is always just below the surface¡ But you, I don¡¯t get you. If I didn¡¯t know better, I would swear you acted more Delmar.. or Something less aggressive than your species History and development suggests.¡±
¡°I see... Well, Thank you. That was not easy for you to tell me. I know you had to give your file to apply for this position. I have read it. It¡¯s the reason I asked for you personally.¡± Hera¡¯s head snapped up as she stared into Jacob¡¯s one remaining eye but he continued, ¡°You are trying to, what my people would call, ¡®get back on the horse¡¯. To translate, you love being in space, the void. But you don¡¯t want to return to the military service that took so much from you. You still want a life in The Black. I recognized myself in that respect.¡±
¡°you? You don¡¯t seem the type to have been front-line military¡± Hera raised an eyebrow.
¡°Some of us healed better than others¡ As for you and the Comodore, His branch during the war had two types of people serving in it. The hyper-calculatingly aggressive¡. And the dead. If Humanity is the Apex of Terra¡ People like James Mackenzie, and Clint Stevens are the Apexes of Humanity. You chose one of the most intense Humans I have ever met to try to have a relationship with. It¡¯s not for everyone, just the slightly insane ones.¡± Jake grinned slightly at the pointed look Hera gave him.
Hera held her look for a moment before sighing, ¡°I guess you have a point. Frie and Lryi were always the wild ones¡ Thank you.¡±
¡°I need my XO at her best. Now, tell me about the loading systems at Ya¡¯shir3.¡± Jacob smiled as His first officer visibly relaxed near him for the first time in his memory and began again on their destination.
____________________________________________________________________
Ambassador Gwen stepped into her physician¡¯s office of Tranquility, ¡°Doc you wished to see me?¡±
¡°Yes, I have some¡. Disturbing news for you Gwen.¡± Doc always used her real name when in private, it kept both of them grounded. ¡°We ran tests on your through the beds after you returned from the Corth ship¡ You are perfectly healthy, too perfectly healthy¡¡±
¡°Doc¡ Eric¡ Tell me straight.¡± Gwen asked slowly.
¡°We think it was the transportation technology that the Corth used¡ We have found de aging signs in your DNA, as well as evidence of a deep full body genetic sequencing scan¡ You were scanned down to the molecule during your trips in their ¡°transporter¡± ¡ Your visible age hasn¡¯t changed¡ but Your body is in perfect health for a woman 20 years your junior¡ This Corth¡ She both gave you a new lease on life¡ and took every piece of information on Humanity that your body had to offer¡¡±
Gwen wrapped her arms around herself tightly, ¡°That¡¯s¡ disturbing.¡± She couldn¡¯t shake the slight feeling of violation that this information gave her. ¡°Is there anything we can learn from my new condition?¡±
¡°There is, we believe that if we do the same deep scan, we can possibly figure out how to do it. I know you Gwen, I know you are thinking about it. Be sure, I don¡¯t want to push this on you¡± Eric said softly.
¡°Doc, Humanity needs to rebuild... If that bitch accidentally gave us the key to immortality¡ we need to know¡¡± Gwen stated through gritted teeth,
¡°Start the procedure¡±
______________________________________________________________________
Aiericastum monitored the satellite feed from the Delmar system. She had strategically placed piggyback programs into the network protocols that Delmar shared with the rest of the Unity to use their own satellites to monitor them. She had seen the earlier interaction between the Ambassador and her physicians. It had taken them far longer than she had expected to discover her little quid pro quo between Ambassador Gwen and herself. She had complete access to most of the minimally secure systems that shared Unity Technology. Terran Technology seemed to evade or obliterate her infiltrations, almost out of hand.
She watched as Ambassador Gwen sank into her office chair, pulling a half empty bottle of intoxicant from her desk before pouring a glass. ¡®That will not due¡¯ Aiericastum thought before initiating a live message.
Gwen was just touching the glass to her lips when her screen flashed black and block letters appeared... Gwen¡¯s eyes narrowed as the letters scrolled across the hijacked console.
¡°Ambassador, we must speak. Sober if possible¡±
Chapter 61
-30 million years ago-
¡°Jezzaria!!! Jezzaria!!!!¡± Jez¡¯s mother came screaming down the bunker¡¯s hallway in both voice and speed.
Jez stumbled up to her feet, knocked down by the latest impact, ¡°Maamma!! I¡¯m here! What¡¯s happening!!!¡±
¡°The cataclysm, Its here¡ you must do what we decided. Come my baby girl, your brother is already done¡± The Elerian female scooped her daughter up and sprinted for the elevator headed to the deepest chamber of the assault shelter. 4 days had passed since the Vorath Devoted had attacked. They were the remnants of beaten people, but they had one final task. Murder the galaxy.
The elevator opened at the bottom floor to a small room with a single ancient Corth stepping out of his rejuvenation chamber. His name was Attica, and he was the oldest of them all. ¡°Come child, all will be well¡±, your parent¡¯s pod is just beyond the doors. ¡°We must get you in first¡± The ancient fragile grey being coaxed the terrified girl, gently pressing her into the cryo-stasis pod and folding her wings in around her like a blanket before a hand shot out to stop the pod closing.
¡°Pappa? Where is Pappa!¡± She begged.
¡°He¡¯s coming dear one. But we can¡¯t get him safe until you are in, Jez..¡± Attica soothed, gently tucking the girl¡¯s arm back in and closing the pod. The expression on the little girl¡¯s face slowly faded to unconsciousness, as Attica bowed his head putting his forehead onto the girls pod.
¡°He¡¯s not coming is he.¡± The Corth asked softly.
¡°No.. The Command post was impacted 20 minutes ago. He died with his men.¡± Valira, the child¡¯s mother croaked, placing her own hands on the two pods before them. ¡°Will they live? Will it work?¡± she asked, tears streaking down her features.
¡°Time my dear, it will depend on time.¡± Attica patted her on the arm, ¡°Each of these will last as long as the thermal generators will. I pray to whatever deities may exist that it is enough.¡±
¡°I never thought you religious.¡± Valira quirked an eyebrow.
¡°I¡¯m Corth, but I am also mortal... facing death¡¯s scythe tends to¡ sharpen one''s perspective.¡± Attica stated, slowly stepping away from the two adolescents in the stasis.
¡°It¡¯s time I¡¯m afraid¡± The Corth spoke softly... turning to the last of the two pods, ¡°I¡¯m sorry I could not finish my work... we were so close¡¡±
¡°It''s not your doing, no one expected the Cataclysm¡ Just knowing there is a chance¡ It''s been an pleasure.¡± Valira nodded before stepping into her pod, soon taking on the same unconscious expression of cryo-sleep.
Attica nodded, shook himself, and waddled off to his ¡°rejuvenation pod..¡± he had reprogrammed it with a failsafe, one that was.. unsanctioned¡ He stepped into his pod and activated the strap system to keep himself in place, ¡°Protocol Atticus, activate.¡±
The pod said nothing, it recognized his voice and activated its cerebral linking systems.. a large spike speared the Corth from the top of his enlarged brain, reaching to the brain stem before tendrils of nanotech fiber invaded every micron of area between his brain¡¯s cells¡ The pod surged with power as the body of the Corth writhed and twitched, fighting feebly in its restraints.. 3 of Attica¡¯s teeth shattered under the force of gritted teeth... then it was done... the smoking eye sockets of ruptured and fried optical nerve and eyeball smoldered as the restraints release, and the corps of Attica sagged in the reclined seating as the room began shutting down into its survival mode.
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-current time-
¡°Ambassador, we must speak. Sober if possible¡±
Gwen glared at the screen; she knew who was sending her the message¡ ¡°What the fuck do you want, you seem to have gotten all that you wanted.¡±
The room flickered for a few moments until the image of Aiericastum shuddered to life ¡°sitting¡± in one of the chairs next to the Ambassador¡¯s desk, ¡°Humanity has always had the interesting ability to both be intolerably correct, and completely inaccurate, at the same time. It is¡ good¡ to see you, Ambassador.¡±
Gwen¡¯s eyes narrowed at the cordiality, and more importantly, its sincerity, ¡°Why are you here, I don¡¯t want to know what kind of energy output this required, or how you have broken the distance time delay. What could be so important that you would risk this...¡±
¡°Humanity, Ambassador... Humanity is special. We had hoped it worked, but we had no proof that it could before your Mackenzie was able to produce a child with a Delmaracian¡ When I scanned you, and yes, I corrected much of what ailed you Ambassador, It was to confirm what your Mac had brought us to suspect¡¡±
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¡°You did something to us¡¡± The Ambassador growled.
¡°No, not you¡ directly¡ but you are indirectly correct.¡± The Corth sighed and rubbed a hand over the bridge of her nose, ¡°Homosapien... your species transition to Homosapien was¡ assisted, in so much that at that time, Humanity was the perfect maturation chamber, and we used it¡ We had no choice.¡±
¡°Explain¡¡± Gwen¡¯s voice was calculatedly cold but not uncordial.
¡°I cannot, however, I was able to get into and review your recorded history of Humanity, I know of your struggles¡ I believe I can help you with that¡± The Corth waved his hand and Gwen¡¯s Console beeped. ¡°This we could never use, by the time we had developed it, our ability to replicate was¡ destroyed.¡±
¡°What am I looking at, some sort of hyper anti-aging syrum?¡± Gwen growled, ¡°You want to experiment on us some more?!?¡± she swung, destroying the console interface and flinging the debris against the wall and through her hologram, ¡°Thousands of years, countless wars. And you want humanity to be your testbed once again.¡± Gwen slumped back into her chair, ¡°but, knowing you¡ This is going to be an ¡®offer I cannot refuse.¡¯¡±
¡°No, and Yes Ambassador. That ¡®serum¡¯ will not grant you eternal life, but it may be able to grant Humanity¡¯s next generations a head start, I give this to you in contrition, not in malice. Allow me this one favor, send this to your scientists, along with the packet I have attached to the serum codex¡ I hope that it will explain everything.¡±
¡°I have no choice in this, you know that. Humanity cannot pass up opportunities such as this, no matter our military might or physical prowess. Is there anything else you wish to manipulate me on?¡± Gwen¡¯s voice was harsh, but no longer biting with rage.
¡°I do... not a word of warning, but a word of encouragement. Tell James and Lyrian to watch over their little ones, they are two of the three most precious beings in the galaxy. I pray that I see them gain adulthood.¡± Aiericastum bowed her head and vanished.
Gwen raised an eyebrow at the religious reference before scooping up a data pad to access the information, sands obliterated console. ¡®Fuck, this is going to have to get sent¡¯ she swore as she added it to tomorrow''s data packet to earth.
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-several months later-
Mac and Lyri skidded into the parking space and leaped out of Vito, both sprinting towards the Hospital. It had taken Mac and Lyri 20 hours to get back from the First fleet when the message came through. The Brothers Gremm were going to have to look at the slip drive before they departed again. Lyrian had gotten back into fighting form some time ago, and the Twins had settled into their schooling without undue complaint. Lyrian was visiting First Fleet to see Mac when the call had come.
4 levels up and Mac came to a skidding halt as he rounded the corner to see Clint standing in the waiting room, ¡°Did we make it in time?¡±
Clint raised an eyebrow as Lyrian came careening around the corner and catching herself on Mac as she slowed, ¡°She just went into surgery, just like you Lyri, the head wouldn¡¯t fit. I guess Humans make big babies.¡± He chuckled.
¡°Aw, I wanted to wish her good luck.¡± Lyri¡¯s pout face was overrun by the grin of excitement as she wrapped Clint up in a big hug, ¡°Congratulations, Dad. Now, say goodbye to sleep for me.¡± She giggled.
¡°Goodbye sleep¡± Clint chanted in his best ¡®yes mom¡¯ voice, and all three of them laughed.
Time went by excruciatingly slowly. The lying clock on the wall had claimed only 45 minutes before a nurse came out and called for Clint, who was followed by everyone else.
Everyone got quiet as they neared the door to the recovery room. Frie sat reclined in her bed with a little bundle of blanket cocooned around a bundle of silver hair, ¡°Come meet her, Come meet your daughter¡± Frie whispered, careful not to disturb the little bundle¡¯s first greedy feeding.
¡°A daughter...¡± Clint whispered, gently stroking the still damp mat of silver atop her haid, ¡°A deal¡¯s a deal, I guess you get to name her¡± he chuckled and Frie smirked.
¡°Hmm, Let me think. She will be called this for the rest of her life. It is to be a good one¡¡± She eyed Clint with a mischievous eye before going somber and serious. She looked dead in Clints eyes and whispered, ¡°Natalia, Her name... It will be Natalia Stevens.¡±
Clint and Mac froze. Frie knew what was coming, but Lyrian was blasted with a mix of emotions that almost overwhelmed her. She swayed just a bit before turning to look at Mac, ¡°James?¡± she whispered before being wrapped up in powerful arms to steady her and embrace her in one turn.
Mac finally broke from his trance just as Clint nodded, tears streaming down his face before kissing Frie on the forehead and then kissing his daughter gently on the exposed ear, ¡°Natalia, it''s perfect¡ She¡¯s perfect.¡± he croaked before sitting next to the two. Mac slowly coaxed Lyrian out of the room.
He gave her a small smile before answering the question in her eyes, ¡°Natalia was Clint¡¯s Mother¡ the one he lost in the Strike on Galveston¡¡± He hugged Lyrian closely, ¡°I did not see that one coming.¡± He whispered.
¡°I bet, you dam near knocked me over¡ Natalia, it¡¯s beautiful¡± Lyrian whispered.
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Franklin sat back in his chair, having read the last of his personal correspondence between Ambassador Gwen and himself¡ He felt the full weight of his final term in service. The vote had been cast; his successor chosen. Tomorrow would be the first time that Franklin would meet with the new Chancellor to unlock the ¡°vault of secrets¡± as it were. Sol had chosen wisely. The vast majority of Humanity was wrapped up in their ¡°greatest adventure yet¡±. This news from Delmar, no, from the Corth¡ was soon to shake the very foundations of how Humanity understood the galaxy. ¡®The worst part about all of this¡ I don¡¯t know which way we will jump¡¯ He groaned to himself.
*Sir, you told me to remind you when it is past 2130* a Com¡¯s men spoke through his wrist unit.
¡°Very well¡± Franklin stood, groaning as he did, feeling every one of his 71-year-old frame. He had forgone the restorative measures terra for a long time, his granddaughter¡¯s first child¡¯s announcement had convinced him to make use of the nanite base anti-aging repair¡¯s available thanks to the Delmar Medical technology. It wouldn¡¯t take too much out of his appearance, but his body would be restored mostly on the inside to a man 30 years his younger.
¡°George, I think I¡¯ll take the shuttle this time. I do not think I have the strength to walk today.¡± he stepped into the tube shuttle set about the perimeter of ¡°New CenterPoint¡±. It would take him to his quarters.
*As you wish ambassador* the robotic voice stated from the shuttle, opening the bay doors, and allowing Franklin to settle into his seating.
The shuttle departed on its stately 25-minute journey around the outer rim of the Space station turned Governmental head of the entire Sol system. Franklin lazily looked out the window, the fatigue of the day¡¯s activities settling into his bones. The view was immaculate. The void always held such an alure to him, even now when any chance of being an explorer has long since passed. The clear tube and the glass of his shuttle matched perfectly to be a seamless glimpse into the void. Franklin touched the glass gently, wishing to reach out for the stars before his hand settled back into his lap.
Franklins younger Sister heard the chime of the Shuttle, ¡°I see he finally listened to reason¡± she chuckled to herself as she made for the Tube entrance. He would no doubt need help exiting the cramped pod, but at least he didn¡¯t walk the infernal distance between his office and his home. The door opened and she smiled as she walked up to the pod. She could see her older brother resting in the pod looking out into space.
¡°Frankie, did you fall asleep? Come, I just finished dinner¡. Frank?¡±
She took his hand only to recoil as it remained limp and cold... ¡°Frankie?¡±
Chapter 62
¡°¡. With the absence of Chancellor Franklin, we are ordering you to send a senior representative to Sol so that we may brief the incoming¡..¡±
Gwen turned off the recording once more. She had heard it three times already¡. ¡°Fuck¡±¡ she swore to herself, taking a sip of coffee just as the doors opened to her Port Royal office.
Clint and Mackenzie stepped through the door and stood at attention just long enough for the door to close, breaking out into smiles and hugs for her. Gwen returned them somewhat somberly before waving them to their seats. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but this meeting is not one of good news. Chancellor Franklin has passed, the autopsy will tell how, but for now it appears to be of natural causes.¡±
Mac sat back in his chair, rubbing his chin while crossing his arms, ¡°I never met him, but he seemed genuine. My condolences, I know you two were closer due to work.¡±
¡°Yes, well; we have a bigger problem. The Sol council has requested a small group of my senior staff to return to Terra and brief the incoming Chancellor and newer council members¡ this will be a long trip¡ and unfortunately, it must be done quickly.¡±
¡°And the two of us are the only ones qualified aside from yourself. You are needed here. I hear the Lycans are sending over a delegation in a few weeks. With the Thermian stranglehold on the military broken, they have been freer to pursue their own endeavors.¡± Clint observed.
The news article smear piece has been published just in time for the attack on Delmar by the Vorath too. Have concluded. The images of humans sacrificing themselves for a planet not their own, and the unedited footage released by admiral Gwen had turned the smear piece into a grenade in the face of unity ¡°journalism¡±. Gwen hoped that with this new breathing room in the court of public opinion and her human captains currently making introductions through trade, that Humanity could carry this momentum forward.
¡°Unfortunately true, both of you have young families, but I am forced to choose between the two..¡± Gwen mused.
¡°Then don¡¯t. I will go, with Lyri and the kids.¡± Mac stated, ¡°We can school them on the way, they are old enough to travel, and while Frie Can tolerate Terran gravity, she struggled all through her pregnancy with the weight. She is not at home in 1G like Lyrian. I would also like to get Concord a refit. She has done well, but she is due a deep look. I also have some ideas on how to arm and refit her as well.¡± Mac stated.
¡°And Lyrian is dying to see Earth.¡± Clint chuckled.
¡°Well, that too.¡± Mac grinned.
¡°Well, I guess that¡¯s half of it, are you good with Mac returning to earth?¡± Gwen asked Clint simply.
¡°I don¡¯t see why not, I¡¯m not keen to leave Frie with little Natalia. And the two of them are not ready for terra. We can playhouse sitters so that Natalia can get her Terran gravity she needs. Seems like a good plan.¡± Clint conceded.
¡°Good, then that settles it. I¡¯ll have to find a new head for the first and third fleet. Clint, I need you as rear admiral of all the fleets. Gregory had no choice, but his loss is felt in more than just sentiment. You worked with him the longest. I need you in his stead to run Legion.¡± Gwen¡¯s formal tone held gravity, and Clint simply nodded, ¡°For the time being, I can see to it that you work from Delmar, at least for a little while.¡±
¡°That would be a relief, thanks¡± Clint smiled.
¡°Well. That¡¯s that. Mac, I¡¯m sending you back the carriers, we don¡¯t need them with the SOL¡¯s here. I¡¯ll be sending along ahead of your requests and requisitions for your return trip. You leave by week''s end.¡± Gwen stated. Standing once more, ¡°Godspeed, both of you. I¡¯m sorry but I¡¯ll be missing lunch. This particular wrench has landed particularly hard on us. I¡¯ll see you before you leave. Dismissed¡± She hugged the two of them before they departed, settling down in her chair once more. She didn¡¯t bother with the recording and began composing a response. Most of it would be the usual platitudes and requisitions. One however¡ would have to be delivered in person. She saved that in a data stick and set it aside.
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¡°I guess you¡¯ll outrank me forever now¡± Mac chuckled as he and his brother walked the promenade towards the cafe to meet Frie and Lyri. The children were probably home from school, and Saint Nicole was probably already feeding them some crazy Cajun dish or another.
Clint chuckled, then sobered, ¡°You never were the staff officer type, and we both know you would burn out, it¡¯s better this way. I¡¯m going to put in some requests as well. The Talon class ships have a place out here. I¡¯ll see what I can do about getting some more of them over to augment our recon forces. I want you to head up that unit when you return.¡±
¡°That sounds about my speed, honestly.¡± Mac admitted before the two of them rounded the corner to see Frie and Lyrian already at a table with Silu and Ami.
The two men wandered around the Promenade and into view of the Caf¨¦ that their wives were sitting along with Silu. Ami was settled into a nearby Saurian seating spot where she could swing her head over to the table. Silu chuckled as Frie gave Clint a sardonically chased peck on the cheek while Lyria straight up mauled Mac with a full embrace and a nip on the corner of his chin under his left ear.
¡°I was about to com Philip, it took you too long enough. I trust the Ambassador¡¯s news was not too grim?¡± He smiled, but quirked an eyebrow at the almost imagined glance the two gave each other as they settled into their seats. The Girls had ordered them their ¡°usual¡±, and it had arrived just as they did.
¡°It¡¯s a mixed bag¡¡± Clint began, ¡°The Sol Chancellor was found dead in his tube shuttle by his sister before the last transmission was sent, the one we received today. He was the only one cleared to know everything that has been going out here in Unity space...¡±
Mac spoke right as his brother finished, a trait shared only by natural twins and people who had undergone the Cerebral Synce training required to pilot a tandem TALON like Concord, ¡°Sol has ordered Gwen to send a Liaison to Sol to spin up the new Chancellor¡. It looks like Clint will be taking over Legion for the moment,¡± he paused feeling the slight spike in apprehension and anticipation from Lyri, ¡°I will be taking the older Escort Carriers Home for decommission and replacement, as well as acting as that Liaison.¡±
Lyrian¡¯s eyes fell, ¡°How long will you be gone¡ How much time do we have¡.¡± Mac pulled her in close and kissed the top of her head.
¡°We have until the end of the week to depart. Nicole has been recalled to the Tranquility. You and she will undoubtedly have your hands full keeping up with the twins schooling.¡± Mac¡¯s smug grin turned positively titanic as Lyrian jerked out of his arms with a shocked and surprised face as Mac finally let her in on the secret.
¡°A h-uile duine againn? Tha sinn a'' dol ... a dh''fhaicinn na Talmhainn? (All of us? We¡¯re going¡ to see Earth?)¡± she asked softly in Gaelic.
¡°A h-uile duine again (All of us)¡± Mac responded in kind before returning to English, ¡°We might be gone upward of a year, mostly living on Terra¡± Mac stated, ¡°I¡¯m not staying away from you that long.¡±
¡°And I¡¯m not strong enough to spend that much time in Terran gravity¡ Carrying Natalia was, brutal.¡± Frie admitted, ¡°You better take lots of photographs.¡±
¡°Always¡± Lyrian promised.
¡°Congratulations, I know you wanted to see his world for a long time.¡± Silu stated before leading a toast ¡°Slainte!¡± he stated, finally laughing at Mac and Clint''s raised eyebrows, ¡°I pay attention...¡± was all he said before they all drank.
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Captain Yasushi stepped out of his Captains Berth and began his walk to the bridge of the Excelsior. His feet felt heavy, not from gravity but from the weight of witness. They were approaching the next world in their assigned exploration sector... long range scans via probe, done before his departure, had proven promising. That was not a consolation to the man who was undoubtedly about to bear witness to the remnants of another slaughtered species. He had 3 destoyers as escort this time. One of them, the UGN Hyperion, was his permanent escort while the other two were to maintain the previous trips plans of escorting the research crews.
¡°Captain on deck!¡± Ensign Patterson snapped off.
¡°As you were, Ensign a moment if you please.¡± Yasu waved the young man over to the central captain¡¯s chair he was standing next to, ¡°I believe you are out of uniform.¡±
¡°Sir?¡± The young man patted himself down confirming everything was in in place before looking a question at his captain.
¡°No Lieutenant of mine is going to be on the bridge whilst missing his bars.¡± Yasu scolded slightly, before relenting with a grin and producing a small box with the young man¡¯s new insignia, ¡°Congratulations, Lieutenant. The approval should be here in a couple of days to match your birthday, but Captains privilege has its advantages. Care to take us out of Slip?¡±
¡°A..Aye Sir!¡± The young man beamed as the captain waved him to sit in the command chair as he stood behind it
¡°Con, update?¡± Lt. Patterson asked firmly but cordially.
¡°2min Lieutenant¡± the Con stated.
¡°Very well, signal our escorts. Shields up and weapons on standby, we don¡¯t know if this planet had a civilization, or what surprises they left behind with them. Let¡¯s take precautions.¡± The young man stated. The captain nodded his approval as the orders were carried out. ¡°Cover¡¯s on!¡± Called the replacement at tactical as everyone¡¯s built-in exosuit functions covered and sealed them inside of their uniforms. The hiss of depressurization that accompanied the preparation for combat faded as Excelsior packed her atmosphere deep into her core in pressurized tanks behind layers of armor.
*t minus 30 seconds* The digitized voice of the Con filtered through the helmets of the bridge crew.
¡°T minus 15¡. Mark! Drop on the numbers.¡± Lt Patterson ordered.
Excelsior dropped out of slip, on time, on target just on the outer edge of the System as per protocol.
¡°Well done, Lieutenant.¡± Captain Yasu stated into his helmet com, ¡°Take your station¡± he nodded as the young man saluted and returned to the tactical station of Excelsior, ¡°Take us in Con. All ahead two-thirds. Ops and Tactical, stretch our sensors forward. No surprises.¡±
A chorus of Aye¡¯s rang out in his helmet as his flotilla cautiously made its way toward the second of five planets in this system.
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He woke up¡ He didn¡¯t remember falling asleep. Attica tried to move only to realize something was off. He tried again, only to find himself looking out from an odd position in the upper corner of the room... Moments later the digital copy of Attica received a flood of downloaded information including a recording of Attica himself.
¡°Ah, there you are. If you are reading this, several things have miraculously happened. First, one or more of the Pods in my care have survived with at least minimal life signs. Secondly, you exist in compilation capable of reasoned and competent thought. Yes, you are me; yet not me. You are a copy of me turned to digital form as the guardian of the Elerian Race, such as it may exist or not so. What remains of the First family resides in the cryo-pods attached to this computer system. The Third miracle is that the sensor array attached to this computer system is both still capable and has had its passive systems triggered by the detection of ships not of Vorath make or sensor signature. No, you do not know who it is. That is what the fourth and final miracle will be for you to discover if it is to be. A download has been triggered to bring you up to speed on everything that has been collected on passive sensors. It will be your job to decide if contact is warranted, or if you are to return to dormancy and await a new... opportunity. You are of me; I trust you to make that judgment¡.¡± The recorded Corth paused briefly, ¡°I never was able to procreate¡ In a strange way, you are my only offspring. Good luck, my son.¡±
With that the recording ended, and the digital clone of Attica slid deep into the pool of data before him, soaking up every byte to assure himself he had the complete picture. 4 ships had entered the system in a manner unknown to the Corth at the time of this installation initiated its Dormancy Protocols. The installation itself was in a subpar shape. 3 of its 5 thermal reactors were no longer functional due to temperature drops from tectonic shifts. More than a few millions of years had passed since his¡ father¡ had initiated the pods and the shutdown¡ Their power supplies would not last another thousand at this rate. The Digital being turned its attention to the ships approaching at a descent yet, decidedly cautious rate and formation. One larger ship supported by three smaller ones, a pretty standard battle group formation. All ships had their shielding present, and their energy signature numbers were¡ impressive for ships of their size. They were armed, yet their weapons seemed to be ready but not actively being used...
The Digital Clone of a 30 plus million-year dead Corth figuratively ¡°sat back¡± and watched as the ships closed on the Aerisi home world.
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Concord eased into the Port Hanger Bay of USN Tranquility. The aging Carrier had been retrofitted with full artificial gravity by this time and was using the reduced gravity techniques pioneered by fighters operating in Delmar atmosphere and gravity to allow for Concord to touch down gracefully before gravity was returned to earth 1G.
Lt Lyrian Mackenzie Grarzia stepped out of the back seat of Concord and began the external post flight as Commodore James Mackenzie Grarzia finished up the in cockpit securing procedures. Soon both were on the deck walking toward the crew chief as they retracted their helmets.
Chief Bruce Kaminski raised an eyebrow at the two, ¡°Didn¡¯t expect a Delmar to be comfortable at 1g. welcome aboard Lieutenant¡± he gave a quick salute and a smile.
¡°I had to work at it, there aren¡¯t many of us.¡± Lyrian smiled back at him returning the salute before shaking his hand, ¡°I think 303 Wing might be the next ones to truly master Terran 1g. but not for a while yet.¡±
¡°Indeed. What can I do you and the Commodore for?¡± Kaminski smirked as he shook Mac¡¯s hand.
¡°Just a tie-down and refuel for now. She¡¯s full up on everything else. If you see something that needs doin¡¯, go right ahead. I¡¯ve seen how you guys keep the Raptors you brought, ill sign off on anything you find.¡±
¡°Aye sir, We¡¯ll give¡¯r the usual once over. Captn¡¯s waitin for you in the CIC, Ensin¡¯ over there is to take you to em¡¯.¡± Kaminski waved the younger man over before saluting and walking off toward the still-cooling and ticking Concord.
5 minutes of walking later, Mac and Lyrian were on the Bridge of the Tranquility, ¡°Commodore on deck!¡± Barked Captain Brian Willows as the two entered, ¡°A pleasure once again. I met your twins when Nicole brought them aboard, they are safely in your quarters¡± he shook Mac¡¯s hand after a waved-off salute and got a quick smile from Lyrian.
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¡°How¡¯s our schedule looking?¡± Mac asked, scanning the screens.
¡°We will be ready to jump in 20minutes.¡± Willows responded.
¡°Very good, I¡¯ll stick around until we hit slip. You know your ship Captain, carry on as scheduled.¡± Mac smiled before settling back into the ¡°observation chair¡±.
¡°I''m going to check on the kids, and possibly Save Nicole from another finger-painting apocalypse,¡± Lyrain said, saluting the captain dutifully and departing. Part of this Liaison trip was paperwork. As such, considering Lyrians service so far as Mac¡¯s backseater, Mac had used his Commodore¡¯s status to field commission her into the USN to make the paperwork simpler. She was still getting used to saluting and being saluted, but it was preferable to having to deal with the restricted area vs non-restricted area problem of having a civilian rattling around a warship for 4 months¡ and it would be a four-month trip. It had taken longer to get to Delmar space; however, the exigence of the situation warranted the extra strain on the engines to get the Sol.
20 min later, Tranquility, along with the other Carrier and two of the oldest destroyers jumped for Sol.
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The approach and transition into orbit had been extremely quiet for Captain Yasushi¡¯s flotilla... The inevitable discovery of Genocide had been found. This race had been more advanced than his last discovery. They had found evidence of intra system defenses and at least one orbital engagement with Vorath pattern ships and an armada of Corth combined with unknown designs. Cookie cutter chunks had been taken out of each of the planets 3 moons, most likely denoting antimatter detonations where military instillations had proven to tough to crack, or not worth the manpower and simply obliterated out of hand. The planet had been ravaged, but the eons had smoothed the edges so that one would be forgiven for mistaking the orbital bombardment as natural terrain. Life flourished, yet there was a minimum of megafauna. The planet was trying to heal itself, but only a few lager species had either redeveloped or had survived. Their civilization had not. Every cluster of Technology had been bombarded. What few survivors might have been left behind had not had enough genetic diversity to repopulate the planet, or were simply killed off in the fall out. There was evidence of primitive stone structures along the coasts of manufactured crater inlets. but no occupants.
Yasu rubbed his nose, avoiding the now familiar sick feeling in his stomach as he bore witness to another murdered race. He had long forgotten how many worlds humanity had explored so far¡ almost all their fell into one of three categories. To hostile to support life, a garden world that had never developed sapient life, or a murdered civilization world.. The Public Media had reported on each find¡ and Humanity had begun calling these Planetary graveyards, ¡°Death-worlds¡± ¡ A debate in the public space was currently raging as to whether we have the right to claim these worlds, or if Humanity should label them as graveyards and leave them be. Yasu shook his head as he heard a gasp from one of his bridge crew...
¡°Report¡± Yasu ordered, maybe a bit more firmly than he wanted.
¡°Sir... permission to throw this on the main screen¡± The young woman asked.
¡°Granted Crewman, what did you find.¡± Yasu said more gently this time.
The screen snapped to an overlay of the scanned topography of the planet¡¯s surface located directly below them. She then overlayed a passive sensor array scan designed to pick up energy readings.. There in the deepest part of one crater valley... was a hot spot, ¡°Captain¡ that was not there 20 minutes ago... I also have this¡¡± she posted an orbital overlay onto the screen, showing small, marked locations in orbit, ¡°Its subtle captain, but these are sensor array satellites of some kind... You can barely notice them, and I didn¡¯t until I found the energy signature¡ These satellites are tracking us. And transmitting to that energy source¡¡±
¡°Ok, so we have another automated system to shut down... have...¡± Yasu raised an eyebrow as the young woman rallied and interrupted him.
¡°Captain, the energy source is transmitting back¡ There is someone, or something actively controlling these satellites...¡±
-3months later-
The smell of strong coffee boiled away the last of the brain fog as Captain Irving clawed back consciousness from the brink of the security of slumber. Having an automated coffee machine was a godsend in these moments. The clock made him swear, 4 hours... 4 hours of sleep before they were to arrive. His shower was needlessly cold, a reminder to himself more than anything else. He found a fresh uniform in his standing closet and quickly dressed, readying and inserting his sidearm into its holster.
He wore the Delmar Confederation¡¯s traditional colors as a Captain of a ship flagged under them. The pistol at his hip was human, Austrian made in the style of the late 20th and 21st century manufacturer created by Gaston Glock. He preferred function over form, and outside of internal accommodations to modern capacitance-based ammunition, the outer design had not changed significantly in the intervening centuries.
Stepping out into the hallway was always a bit of fun. He, and all the human crew aboard, kept their rooms at earth 1G. Stepping out to the half G standard of a Delmar ship was something to be practiced. Quiet, calm yet brisk steps carried him to the bridge in a little under 5 minutes, and he was greeted with a refill of coffee from the Bridges Pot of Joe.
¡°That bad Hmm?¡± he asked Hera as she put the pot back down handing him a data pad
¡°Unfortunately, Regalor has always had a prickly harbor master who, of course, is also the shuttle guild rep for this system¡± Hera stated, ¡°I think I might even need some of that in full strength¡± she chuckled.
¡°You¡¯re funeral, I¡¯ve seen you on half-caf.¡± Jacob Irving chuckled back before raising an eyebrow at a genuine smile that fluttered across Hera¡¯s face ¡®Easy, you old hound,¡¯ he grumbled to himself nodding and returning to the data pad.
Regalor was a stunted system, they were on the outskirts of the Delmar home Transit sector. That normally would not be a problem, but Regalor was Kawmari colonized system. It turned out that the Admiral that assisted in the defense of Delmar was an¡ acception in temperament. The Kawmari as a whole tended to look down on any being that they could well... look down on... or fly over¡ They were prickly beings to negotiate with. Regalor often went without because the Governor tended to push the issue of trade and import fees.
¡°5 min to arrival¡± called the Helmsman, a Human by the name of Walker.
¡°On the Numbers please, Walker.¡± Irving responded, tacitly giving Walker the go ahead to drop them into Regular space. ¡°XO, are these the latest?¡±
¡°Unfortunately, they are high. Do you have any of your special human tokens left?¡± Hera asked hesitantly.
¡°None I am willing to part with¡ This one is going to hurt isn¡¯t it¡± Jake moaned.
¡°Possibly, it depends on how badly the people need this manifest.¡± Hera¡¯s tone was not optimistic.
The drop from subspace went without a hitch, and Lucid Traveler grumbled her protest as she burned hard to decelerate for orbit. Jake worked over the numbers, and the information about the system.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Mac awoke to a beeping on his console. He lifted his head to see that the priority 1 alert had been triggered, then flopped back down and received a trio of groans for his trouble. The twins were still acclimating to life aboard ship, and on occasion had piled into the main berth with Lyrian and himself. This was one such event as young Bry was firmly wedged in between Lyrian and himself, with Tris curled up under his opposite armpit, her tail covering her nose she snored softly into its silvery tuft. She grumbled slightly as he picked her up, moving her to his chest as he slid out of the covers and settled her next to Lyrian and her brother.
He snagged a pair of Pajama pants from the rack as he opened the message, before groaning again and stripping back down to get into the shower properly. ¡®at least it¡¯s a normal time in the morning¡¯.
10 minutes later he stepped out of the shower to see Lyrain feeding the little ones their breakfast. Wrapping his arms around her waist before hissing her on the neck, Mac turned her around properly and got a passionate kiss in return, ¡°morning¡± he chuckled as she played at his lower lip with her fangs.
¡°Morning to you. What got you up this early.¡± Che coo¡¯d back at him.
¡°One of the research teams called for support, we are the closest and Sol wants us to divert. I need to get to the bridge to get us going in the right direction.¡± He grumbled, ¡°I was enjoying dog pile cuddle time.¡±
¡°You keep mentioning this ¡®dog¡¯, I better be meeting one.¡± Lyri smiled before returning to catch an almost flying bowl of applesauce.
¡°I think I can manage that, got to go Luv.¡± He smooched her on the cheek before departing for the bridge.
A few minutes later Mac stepped foot onto the bridge of the Tranquility, ¡°As you were¡± he preempted the call to order upon his entrance, ¡°Captain, it appears that we will be taking the long way home.¡±
¡°Sir?¡± The captain of Tranquility quirked an eyebrow at him.
Mac handed a pad to the Navigations crewman on station and handed him a data stick, ¡°one of our exploration task forces found something... something ¡°Big¡±. Something big enough that they decided to request backup. We are the closest. Navigation, we will be doing a calculated drop and rejump. Once you have an Initial and Final Coordinate, have it checked by the other ships of the fleet. Let¡¯s not send ourselves to oblivion out of haste, Carryon.¡±
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Attica watched in curiosity as these strange new beings methodically checked every one of his observation satellites, then proceeded to drop surface teams fairly close to his actual location. They had had their work cut out for them, and he had noticed a tightly secured transmission sent within moments of their cautious recognition of his presence. He had not counted on that; they were apparently able to track his carefully masked transmissions to his sensor net. The crater they landed in was all that was left of the emergency bunker that had the first family of the murdered race he was charged with protecting.
It had taken two months for this strange new species to excavate. To his surprise they did so with incredible care, making sure to not destabilize any surviving structures as they descended. Their methodical persistence was rewarded as the first of these newcomers broke through into the hallway just outside the cryo chambers. Attica quickly shifted his digital abode into the mainframe of the singular functioning cryotube, triggering a shutdown and unlock of the final door.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Lt Patterson Stood quietly as the main security contingent went in the door, they had found at the bottom of a crater deeper than most of the other crater/valley¡¯s on this world. Whatever was here, the Vorath wanted gone... That made this a very interesting Crater indeed.
¡°CLEAR!¡± came the call as Warren nodded and followed through the door. Captain Yasushi had insisted on coming down for this final part, and Warren was not happy about it. The command group stepped into a surprisingly clean chamber. There were working computer components off to the right, some sort of early biobed in the middle. Two of the three pod-looking features were slightly frosted over, with the third revealing a gruesome sight of a mummified Corth with empty eye sockets and long dried black stains on its face.
Warren stepped up to the biobed and tapped a few controls, bringing up an interface, ¡°Recovery, Let''s get what we can off the bed and those consoles. It looks like these are at least responsive.¡±
Captain Yasu slowly approached the dead Corth, kneeling down and examining its almost charred features.
¡°Uh¡ Captain¡ You¡¯re going to want to see this¡¡± One of the Security team¡¯s tones snapped Yasu out of his revelry.
¡°Yes, specialist¡± His voice was level, but Warren had spent enough time with his captain to see the strain of trepidation on his face
¡°Sir, These pods... they are active¡ sir¡± The man stammered.
¡°I can see that specialist¡± Yasu stated.
¡°Sir... by active... I mean they are Occupied, or were... This one here has active bio signs, and an internal power supply¡ Sir, we have at least one survivor¡¡±
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Mac stood in the Infirmary of the Excelsior, staring at a strange cryopod as it lay on the floor, hooked up to ship''s power.
¡°I have to admit, when I asked for help, I was not expecting an Armada.¡± Captain Yasushi shook the hand of Mac as he entered, ¡°What can I do for the man who gave us the Galaxy?¡±
¡°It¡¯s more like what Can I do for you. My orders are one of assistance. You are still leading on this. I¡¯m just the muscle in case things get froggy. This is the first survivor we have encountered. There is much that we could learn.
*I¡¯m afraid that won¡¯t be the case here.* everyone in the room jumped and multiple weapons were drawn on the cryo pod as it spoke...
*My apologies, one moment.* the cryo pod flickered before a nearby bio bed¡¯s holographic generators activated showing the image of the Corth that was found dead on the surface *Please, do not be alarmed. I mean you no harm, but I fear for the young girl if you bring her back to us just yet*
Weapons slowly lowered as the Corth raised placating hands ¡°Ok, Who are you... well, what are you¡± Mackenzie spoke first.
*I am... Atticus. I am a digital clone of Attica, the Corth Delegate to the Elerian people¡ May I ask to see a star chart? *
Yasushi pulled up his data pad and faced it to the hologram, ¡°This is where you are.¡±
*Oh dear, oh dear¡ This is not good¡ I am obviously grateful, but it appears that the only surviving member of the Eleri is a young girl of barely 16 cycles¡ OUT!! EVERYONE OUT!* The hologram protested *Except you* he pointed straight at Warren *you are about her age, you will do. Everyone else, please trust me, Jezzaria was always terrified of strange adults, but she will not freak out with someone her own age and myself*
Yasushi began to protest but felt a hand on his arm, ¡°Captain, I¡¯ll do it. I am combat certified, I¡¯ll call if I need help.¡± young Warren¡¯s face was firm yet still asking permission.
¡°Very well. We will be right outside.¡±
_________________________________________________________________________________
She woke up, she didn¡¯t remember going to sleep or being so cold, as a gentle warmth wormed its way deep into her bones. Before long, she felt restless. She was on a bed; one she did not recognize as she slowly sat up; unwrapping her wings from around herself to throw her legs over the side to stand¡.
*Jezz* she snapped her head up to find Attica smiling at her *take it slowly my dear, it has been a long while since you went in.* Jezzaria¡¯s eyes narrowed as she recognized a synthesized voice
Jez tried to speak but could not. Instead, she began coughing a dry cough that would not stop. A warm hand gently took hers and guided it to a cup of water that she sipped before draining.
¡°You... *cough* you aren¡¯t Attica¡± She croaked finally.
*No, my dear, Attica is dead, 35 million years past. I am his shadow, his Legacy. As are you. *
¡°35 million years, that not..¡± Jezz froze as the memories of her last waking moments came flooding back to her. The Vorath, the death of Eleria¡ the Cryo Pods.. Her whole body shook as it all came flooding back. She looked over to the pod, ¡°Where¡¯s Momma and Pappa..¡±
She looked up as the hand took the cup from her gently, her eyes meeting a strange face of a young being that was watching her thoughtfully with kind eyes, ¡°Who are you¡¡±
The being responded with a strange set of sounds before raising one digit and slowly approaching her. She balked slightly as he reached for her face and he paused until she nodded once more. He brushed aside her hair and inserted a small device into one ear, then the other.
¡°Im Warren Patterson. It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you Jezzaria¡± He spoke through the translators.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Warren had watched as they had taken the young woman out of the cryo pod and placed her on the biobed for reanimation. She was bipedal with almost human-like skin, but with a distinctive transluscent blue to it. She wore a pair of pajama-style garments that were covered in dust and grime, hinting at her last moments of consciousness. Her figure was typical for a young Bipedal Female with the exception of a massive pair of feathered wings that made her look like an angel. Her wings were a combination of dark navy and bright green edges to her flight feathers. Green downy feathers ruffled along the leading edge of them and traced a line of feathers to the base of her neck. She appeared to have a normal, to humans, head of hair in the same deep navy blue accenting the pale hues of her face. After some water, She sat slowly and began conversing with the hologram in a strange avian language, and he quickly inserted one pair of translators into his ear.
¡°Where¡¯s Mom and Dad¡± ¡¡ ¡°Who are you..¡± were the first words he heard translated and began to speak before realizing she would not be able to understand him. He raised one finger and slowly approached her, brushing a lock of her hair behind an ear and inserting her own translators into ears that were fringed with the same green down feathers from her wings.
¡°I¡¯m Warren Patterson, it¡¯s a pleasure to meet you Jezzaria¡± he spoke in calm tones.
¡°What happened to Mom and Dad¡¡± Tears were already welling in her eyes.
¡°I¡¯m sorry, your pod¡¡± He took a step forward and took her hands in his, ¡°Your pod was the only one we found still working.¡± he winced as he felt her fingernails dig into his hands, but he didn¡¯t let it show
¡°I¡¯m the last¡ the pods weren¡¯t designed for this long¡ I¡¯m the last aren¡¯t I¡± the tears broke free.
Warren let go of one hand, ignoring the marks, and put one hand on her shoulder, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. We¡¯ve been here for months. You are the only survivor we have found.¡±
There was a long silence of several minutes as Warren simply stood there holding her hands as she sobbed into her own lap. She finally cried herself out and looked up at him, ¡°Where am I¡± she asked finally.
¡°Aboard a starship, the SES Excelsior. I am its Tactical officer¡± Warren offered, ¡°There are a lot of people who would like to meet you. I¡¯m told you don¡¯t do well with strange adults.¡±
¡°Yea, it''s stupid really. Mom and Dad had to work hard to get me to face it. I¡¯m still warry¡± She admitted.
¡®Ah, a phobia¡¯ Warraen nodded, ¡°Well, there are a lot of adults out of that door, that need to talk to you. We need to know what you remember.¡±
Jezzaria nodded weakly before brushing herself down the best she could and turned to sit facing the door. She never let go of Warrens left hand and he discreetly put his quickly scabbing right hand in a pocket
¡°Come!¡± he called out, and the door opened.
___________________________________________________________________________________
¡°Fucking Hell, you weren¡¯t kidding¡± Jake Irving whispered to Hera. She nodded as they stepped out of the docking port that Traveler was attached to. The place was a desolate abomination of poverty in the modern age¡ a growing crowd of hungry eye¡¯d citizens, exclusively Kawmari gathered around the bay that was to be Traveler¡¯s berth for the time being, a fluffy, immaculately preened fat example of the species waddled out, standing as tall as he could to look down-figuratively as well as literally- on the Traveler crew. He clapped his giant beak together in either mockery or an attempt to threaten and intimidate.
Jake Irving rolled his eyes, ¡°Harbor Master Hawik, I presume¡± He managed to keep his tone civil, but only just.
¡°Ah, so Delmar are outsourcing their trade now it seems. What the hell are you anyway, and what rock did they dig you from under¡± Hawik scoffed.
¡°I am Captain Jacob Irving. Master under the void of the Lucid Traveler.¡± Jacob paused as a thought ran through his head. He spoke again, loudly this time, waving an arm dramatically, ¡°I have come with food and medicine, enough to stave off the cold seasons. I have but one of two ships coming. IF we can negotiate a fair price and distribution...¡±
Hawik¡¯s eyes narrowed as he took two menacing steps forward and lowered his beak and clacked it next to Jacob¡¯s head, ¡°Watch your tone meat bag,¡±
Jacob simply smiled with all his teeth, causing the harbor master to pause, recognizing the flagrant act of aggression, ¡°It appears we cannot make a deal this day, good luck! We will deliver this to the next system¡± he loudly proclaimed, then whispered quietly to the fat bird, ¡°you might want to call security... they don¡¯t look too happy.¡±
Hawik looked around discreetly and his eyes widened as he saw meager arms pick up makeshift objects and glare at him, ¡°Come, let¡¯s not be too hasty. We can discuss terms in my office.¡± To his dismay, this new being simply ignored his request.
¡°Here are our terms, set forth by the Galactic Health Organization. You may take or leave them¡± Jacob smirked as the fat avian read through the paperwork, discreetly looking around at the growing angry crowd.
¡°These terms appear fair¡± his anger was not hidden in his eyes as he signed the contract, ¡°We will begin offloading immediately, feel free to enjoy the stations amenities¡± he spun on his heels and stomped back down the corridors.
2 hours later Jacob and Hera found themselves in a local pub, Jacob had made a point of tipping the bar tender heavily, and discreetly.
¡°What the hell was that¡± Hera stated flatly. ¡°How did you know he would fold like that.¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t, I just had a hunch. That fat fuck was so arrogant that he did not bring security with him. I made it plain that he would not get a single bag of grain off my ship if he refused the offer on the spot. And he would probably have not survived the run to his office if he had¡± Jacob mentioned.
¡°That¡¯s, evil.¡± Hera shivered,
¡°No, what the fat bird was doing to these people IS evil. If I wasn¡¯t representing Delmar right now¡ I might have put a bullet in him¡.¡± Jacob growled.
Hera gave him a sideways worried look.
¡°I know that look. What is it¡± Jake asked.
¡°That was, terrifyingly human. It¡¯s not a look I am used to from you¡± Hera admitted.
¡°I may not be as intense as some other Humans¡± Jacob sighed, ¡°but most of us get pretty infuriated by this kind of evil. We¡¯ve seen enough of it at home¡¡± he paused before a smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. ¡°So, you like my looks do you¡± Jake chuckled with a wink, the paused as Hera blushed slightly.
¡°Only when I¡¯m drinking¡± She covered before going quiet, ¡°the door, two Thermians¡ they are heading right over.¡±
Jacob turned to meet the two lizards, ¡°How¡¯s it going.¡±
Chapter 63
Jezzaria took a breath as the door opened, This Warren was patiently standing there His species was strangely similar to her own, save he was from a ground-based lineage and lacked her wings or feathers. His skin and body hair also reflected that in its earth-toned hair and pinkish tan skin. He was significantly taller than her1.6meters, and already over the average height that her species possessed. She startled for a second as her thoughts were interrupted by the entrance of more strangers. This time more strange adults. Three figures in total walked in. the first man wore a formal uniform, perfectly pressed. He had jet black hair with a slight hue to his skin and slightly narrower eyes than his species counterpart. Her brain whirred in confusion as the second man had a significantly lighter hair color, rounder and VERY blue eyes, and a slightly taller height. Almost every species she could remember from school did not display this level of dysmorphism outside of gender. These men were clearly the same species, yet as different as they were similar. She turned to see the third entrance and her eyes flew wide in utter shock. This species she knew, but only from her studies. The cascade of silver hair and the auburn patterns were not to be mistaken.
¡°Captain Morino Yasushi, Commodore James Mackenzie Grarzia, and Lieutenant Lyrian Grarzia.¡± Warren introduced gently.
Jezzaria gave a small smile, shrinking slightly before steeling herself, ¡°Hello..¡± She whispered, wrapping her wings around her.
¡°Jezzeria, I can¡¯t fathom what you are feeling right now. Can you tell us the last thing you remember?¡± It was the Black haired one in the perfect uniform.
¡°I... We were being attacked¡ the Devoted came for my world... Mamma put me in the cryo-stasis tube... Attica tucked me in and then... I¡¯m here, on this ship... millions of years later.. with a species I have never seen before, and one that was just developing sub-orbital exploration.¡± Jezzaria nodded to the Delmar Female who glanced in the direction of the lighter haired being before turning back to her. ¡°My home is gone isn¡¯t it.¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry¡ It appears the Vorath succeeded in their attack. We are scanning the surface for more locations like yours, but we have not found any as of yet. I''m Captain Yasushi. For now, just call me Yasu.¡± The one in uniform spoke gently.
¡°Forgive me, but what are you. I recognize your female as Delmaracian.. but Your species didn¡¯t exist in my textbook.¡± Jezzaria asked
¡°We are Human, our home planet is Terra in the Sol system¡± the lighter-haired one in some sort of less formal uniform with a vacuum suit poking out here and there.
¡°Do you remember the Saurian race?¡± the Delmaracian woman asked gently with a small smile as Jezzaria nodded, ¡°Well, their original homeworld recovered and Humanity Developed on it after the cataclysm. I''m Lyrian, just call me Lyri. Mac here is my husband.¡±
Jezzaria¡¯s eyes flew wide, ¡°Delmar can¡¯t pair outside of their species¡ How?¡±
¡°Humanity has been a surprise in more ways than one.¡± Lyrian smiled more warmly taking the human¡¯s hand.
¡°I¡¯ve missed a lot. What are you going to do with me?¡± Jezzaria asked, shrinking a little.
¡°Your world¡¯s gravity is quite low. But not unmanageable. We have several moons that you would be comfortable on. Humanity is expanding, we have outgrown our own home system. What we are to do with your world, and many like it; Is a subject of some debate.¡± Yasu mentioned, ¡°sadly, there simply is no infrastructure on your world for you to stay. If you are ok with it, we will take you to Sol. Get your knowledge gaps filled in, while letting us learn what you remember from before. After that, you could do almost anything. We have Delmar Captains on Human freighters and warships. And Humans commanding and crewing Delmar vessels. We could send you just about anywhere.¡±
¡°I think¡ I want to come back to help my world... whether or not My species is dead.¡± Jezzaria said finally.
¡°Very well, we will¡¡± Yasu paused as his wrist beeped¡ ¡°Well, my dear, you may be helping you¡¯re world sooner than you realized... Search and Rescue just found 2 more sites with faint power readings¡¡±
_____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°How¡¯s it going.¡±
Jacob was turned with his back to the bar, and Hera was to his left. Her right hand slowly dropped to the human-style pistol on her hip.
¡°I am Varkor¡ You¡ are human, yes?¡± the larger of the two Thermians hissed.
¡°Depends on who¡¯s asking...¡± Jacob gave a small smile.
¡°That will be good enough¡± Varkor hissed and his partner surged forward in a flash, snagging Hera¡¯s arm and sliding a curved blade up to her kneck, ¡°You will come with Me¡ Someone would like to¡ meet you... The dagger is poisoned... one prick, and your precious Mate will not survive¡¡±
¡°My mate?¡± Jacob raised an eyebrow.
¡°No. More. Talk. We know you can Mate with Delmar, you talk. Or. She. Dies. ¡± Varkor hissed as his partner jerked Hera up to her feet, pressing the knife to her throat enough for it to crease he skin but did not cut in. Jacob simply nodded slowly standing as the leader pulled both of their weapons from their holsters and drew his own knife. ¡°Thisss Way, Human.¡±
¡®fuck¡¯ Jacob thought as the two Thermians insisted that he walk in front of Hera... they slowly left the bar, taking a side passage down several stories until a rusted pressure door was opened and the two of them were marched in and strapped to a pair of chairs. The leader hissed something in the Thermian native tongue and the subordinate stood on the inside of the door, watching the two of them intently.
¡®This is not good¡¯ Jacob thought, slowly looking around. The good news was that his arms were tied up in front of him with some strange material that reminded him of sun melted duct tape¡ he tested his binding gently, making sure to appear weak and afraid. Hera was pulling frantically on her binds, clearly panicking. A warning hiss and the scrape of a blade leaving its sheath stopped her frantic pursuits... she descended into a panic¡¯d sob and just sat there shaking.
Two hours later, the door opened, and the lead Thermian walked in again. Carrying his own chair, ¡°I ssee you two have settled in. Now, Jacob Irving of the Lucid Traveler, I can start with you giving me the answersssers I require... or you can watch as I cut your precious Bitch into tiny pieces and feed them to my spawn one slice at a time. Do you undersssstand me...¡± Varkor¡¯s voice was slow, precise and level...
¡®This one has done this before¡¯ Jacob thought, he needed time, he had been putting slow pressure on his wrist bonds. He could feel them slowly freying internally. His bindings to his chair would be dealt with in a moment. ¡°I understand¡± he said slowly.
¡°Good, firstly I need to know where your home planet is. Thissss¡ Terra¡± Varkor¡¯s breath was stale and reeked of rotten meat...
¡°Terra is very far from here¡¡± Jacob started, he needed some time... ¡°Its in a very empty and vacant part of the galaxy¡±
¡°Oh?¡± Varkor struck, landing a closed fisted blow to Jacob¡¯s blind side, knocking his eye patch off, ¡°Your stalling, you know better.¡±
¡°You¡¯re right,¡± Jacob whispered coughing and sputtering, as his head languished backward, obviously dazed from the blow ¡°I¡¯ll tell you¡ Terra resides in a multi planet system¡± Varkor had leaned in to hear his weakening voice ¡°.. up your ASS!¡± Jacob used the last work as his moment. Slamming his wrists to his chest, using his bodies width as the lever arm to split his bindings. This was combined with a quick lurch forward driving his forehead into the Varkors snout. Varkors scales sliced into Jacob¡¯s skin but gave way as the denser human skull drove the Thermians nasal and a few jawbone fragments deep into the Lizards brain.
That blow actually did daze Jacob a bit as he tore from his restraints wobbling slightly as he stood over the lifeless lizard corpse. An enraged hiss erupted from the remaining sentry as it dove, blade first toward a stunned Hera. Jacob was on the wrong foot, still shaking off the blow he delivered as he did all he could do, tackling the second Thermian. He ignored the sharp pain in his thigh as he pinned the rank lizard to the floor, a sickening crunch under his right hand signaled the end of his captor¡¯s windpipe and spine. The second thermian¡¯s eyes bulged slightly before going limp as well.
Jacob stood, slowly. He looked down at the blade in his leg, he slowly withdrew it and injected an emergency Nanotech injection from his hidden sleeve braces directly into the wound. He felt the telltale burning of envenomation as the poison reached his bloodstream. ¡®fuck¡¯
He turned to Hera who was just shaking and sobbing, ¡°Hera, Hera!¡± his voice snapped her out, ¡°I¡¯m going to cut you free, you have to get us out of here. I don¡¯t know where to go¡± She nodded weakly as he cut her free. He hobbled over to the corner where their stuff had been thrown and retrieved their weapons. Hera took her¡¯s and they opened the door to be greeted by three more Thermians. Jacob used the shock of his appearance to open fire from the hip, blowing ragged blood and gore evacuating holes in all three before his gun locked back on empty. He holstered his weapons, his hands losing their feelings. He knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to reload. ¡°We need to go.¡±
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Hera rallied herself and led the two of them clear of the lower levels where she signaled for help from Traveler.
5 min later a group of heavily armed crewmen and women barged down the street bellowing to clear the way. ¡°Looks like the cavalry is here¡ just in...¡± Hera looked over just in time to see Jacob hit the deck back first, bouncing his head off the plating. No one noticed the dent in the plating as he was rushed to Travelers Infirmary.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Yasu scanned his screens, ¡°I can¡¯t say that I am terribly upset by this¡ Discovering Deathworlds was putting a serious dent on my Sake Supplies¡ How many Pods have we found so far?¡±
¡°Looks like¡. 326 so far. Almost all of them children or young teenagers. No one over the age of 17 so far¡ It appears that the Adult¡¯s bodies could not handle the extended time in stasis.¡± Mac reported gently.
¡°How many survivors would we need for a viable Genetic pool?¡± Lyrain asked.
¡°With genetic modification to help with inadequacies¡ 20 million or so¡¡± Atticus responded slowly, ¡°If we were¡ No, I don¡¯t think that would work. We would need 20 million. And we would have to take Draconian measures to ensure the right people were paired together to provide the greatest chance of one day creating a stable Genome¡ That¡¯s IF I had full Corth medical facilities to patch the gaps for say the next 150 generations or so.¡±
¡°Fuck¡¡± Mac swore, ¡°25 more pods in sector 883. I don¡¯t like our chances.¡±
¡°We are only one out of 5 contenents in. At this rate there will be survivors¡ but not enough Genetic Diversity¡¡± Atticus spoke from a near by speaker as he worked from an isolated computer console with limited but adequate access to Excelsior¡¯s mainframe. ¡°I¡¯m not sure what is more cruel, knowing that your species is dead and being forced to live with that knowledge... or having died with your people.¡±
¡°That is a heavy question... Let¡¯s keep to the mission¡± Mac grumbled.
¡°Another 42 stable pods found in sector 902¡ What is the timetable on the Hospital ship?¡± Atticus asked, thankfully with more professionalism.
¡°Two days. We have the spare power to run the pods. They are currently being looked over by the Engineering crews.¡± Yasu spoke.
Lyrian sat close to Mac, reading through the data stream from the Fleets pickets, ¡°How is young Jezzaria doing.¡±
¡°I pulled Warren off of his regular shifts¡± Yasu stated, ¡°He is the only crewman near her age, I hate to put the lad on babysitting duty, but needs must. We had to reduce the ships gravity in the unsecured sections. We can¡¯t have our new guests getting smashed to the floor with a wrong step.¡±
_____________________________________________________________________________________
¡°Ok, Ok. Can you come down from there?¡± Warren chuckled as ¡®Jezza¡¯ circled high above him in the biggest semi empty cargo bay in Excelsior. I¡¯m baby sitting an adolescent angle... this is happening¡¯ he shook his head to himself as Jezza swooped down, flaring out her wings as she bled speed to alight in front of him with a smile.
¡°Oh, gods I needed that.¡± She sighed, ¡°Sorry. Humans are a little too dense, or I would have taken you for a spin¡± she raised an eyebrow at the quickly reddening human in front of her, ¡°What?¡±
Warren simply shook his head, ¡°Its¡ nothing, lets get some food. You haven¡¯t eaten since before we started hunting mamoths...¡± He joked before pausing at her expression, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, It¡¯s military humor. Its how we deal with tragedy, we joke about it.¡±
¡°I think¡ I understand¡ I¡¯m ok, but you are correct... I¡¯m famished¡± Jezza said finally, hooking her arm around Warren¡¯s left arm, ¡°To food then!¡±
Warren tried not to recognize the stares as he and a literal angel species walked arm in arm to the mess hall.
Cheff was on point as usual, and the smells of the kitchen enveloped the two of them as they entered the mess, ¡°So. What does your people eat?¡± Warren asked, ¡°We are going to need to figure that out before we wake up the survivors.¡±
¡°Ma ken zeee gave me this after scanning me with it.¡± Jezza pulled a medical scanner out of her pocket, ¡°he told me to point it at food and eat the stuff that turns the screen green.¡±
¡°Well, Ok then.¡± Warren grabbed a pair of trays and headed for the line. He had to hold back a laugh several times as His charge dramatically waved the scanner over different items before making her selections. Soon... ish¡ they were done and headed for the tables to eat.
¡°So, You¡¯re an Omvnivore?¡± He asked between bites.
¡°Sort of, we developed to catch small prey, but we are able to subsist on fruits and nuts. So, I never actually asked.. what is all this.¡± She waved a fork over her food. Over the next hour or so, Warren would describe an item, then watch as Jezza tried it. Some food, like the grapes, and the chicken fingers, were a hit. Others, like the okra or the root vegetables did not ¡®taste good¡¯ and were discarded for now. Warren had to laugh as Jezza walked back to the Kitchen window, only to return with an entire red bell pepper that she was eating like an apple.
¡°where to next¡± Warren asked as both of them finished clearing their own table.
¡°I want to see my world,¡± Jezza said quietly, ¡°I know I can''t go down.. but I¡ I want to see it¡¡±
Warren looked down for a moment, before remembering something. ¡°I think we can do that. Follow me but stay quiet.¡±
____________________________________________________________________________________
Doc Icario stood next to the bio bed as Jacob lay covered in sweat with an old style IV in his arm. Hera stood next to him, she had cleaned up and changed, but the terror of the evening¡¯s previous events were present in her expression.
Mac had been stabbed by a blade coated in a toxin that was regulated to only Unity military personnel, and only for special operations... It had no known composition. No known antidote... its only known name was M8800¡ Most importantly, it had no known survivors¡
¡°I¡¯ve done all I can for him. I¡¯ve never seen this type of reaction, in this measure, from any being I know of. He should have been dead inside of minutes¡ His body is fighting the toxin, look¡± Icario walked over to a digital microscope. It zoomed in on a spec of Jake¡¯s blood. ¡°His immune system are those white cells.. they are literally eating and deconstructing the biotoxin as we sit here¡¡±
¡°Doc, He saved my life¡ What are his chances...¡± Hera asked, hugging herself slightly for comfort.
¡°If he makes it through the night, He should be mostly out of the woods¡± Icario said softly, ¡°you should get some rest.¡±
Hera only shook her head, curling into a chair she had dragged to the side of Jacobs bed, ¡°The offload is complete. We will be departing in the morning. We have another contract one system over. Traveler can¡¯t affort to run back to Delmar this time¡ Do everything you can Doctor.¡±
¡°I will. I¡¯ll be in my office, and the blankets are in that cabinet if you like.¡± Icario¡¯s soft tone let Hera know he was not kicking her out. ¡°Traveler needs you too, just remember that.¡±
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¡°wakey wakey jakey-boy¡ It''s time for your bath¡¡± a dark chuckled eroded away the darkness just in time for Jacob to see a damp cloth descend on his face, ¡°don¡¯t forget to scrub¡± the voice said as water started slowly pouring over the cloth. Jacob sputtered and coughed, gasping, and gagging in futility as the water kept pouring for what seemed like an eternity. His chest was heaving, heavy with the weight of a boot pressing down until he ribs creaked. ¡°Common Jakey-boy, don¡¯t give out on us now¡ the fun is just beginning¡±. The water stopped and the cloth came off. Jake heaved for air desperately.
Jake knew what was happening, he knew that he wasn¡¯t actually going to drown. It was little comfort as his body betrayed him to its subconscious panic. ¡°Fuck you... Duster¡± He sputtered just in time to be punched square in the gut. The blow removed any thought of breathing for a few moments as he reeled, strapped to a chair, without the ability to double over. He finally was able to force himself to breathe just in time for the cloth and water to come back.
¡°Common jakey-boy. Its not over that easy¡ You¡¯ve yet to answer me... Times a tickin!¡± The water began again. Jake steeled himself, fighting to keep slow steady breaths. ¡°Jakey boy!¡± the voice started distorting, ¡°Don¡¯t you pass out on me Jakey- boy¡± it slowly began shifting up in octive, ¡°jake, wake up. Common jake, wake up. What¡¯s happening. Common jake wake up.¡±
Jacob Irving¡¯s eyes snapped open he was breathing heavily, He couldn¡¯t move, every inch of him was pinned down with a mountain of weight, an oppressively white light blasting him in the face. He bellowed his rage, ¡°FUCK YOU DUSTER!!! YOU DOME CRAWLING SHITFUCK!! IM GONNA KILL YOU CUNT!!! IM GONNA RIP YOU LIMB FROM LIMB AND PIKE YOU HEAD YOU COCK SUCKING ASS MONK¡¡¡± Jacob froze, halting his litany, as a pair of hands placed themselves on either side of his face and a beautiful visage appeared in his vision.
¡°Jacob, Jacob.. it''s Ok, your ok¡ It was just the poison¡¡± Jake¡¯s brain finally put the face and the voice together Hera was terrified, but she was there non the less.
¡°Hera?¡± He asked more calmly this time.
¡°Yes, you got stabbed with M8800... You¡¯re alive, it¡¯s just the poison. You beat it... shhh, you are safe¡ You are on traveler¡± Hera repeated.
Jacob took several deep breaths, the Apparitions of his subconscious slowly receding as the last of the fog in his mind cleared, ¡°We made it?¡±
¡°Yes, we made it. You made it. We are in subspace, headed to our next contract. Doctor Icario said that a run for Delmar wouldn¡¯t save you anyway.¡± Hera said softly. Jacob¡¯s eyes focused on her face; he felt the drip of her tears onto his cheeks.
¡°Can I... get released... I think, I think I¡¯m ok now.¡± Jacob stated.
Icario stepped into view and did a few response tests before deactivating the restraining field, ¡°Slowly. You are literally the only being who has ever survived M8800. I¡¯m ordering you off duty for the next two weeks so I can monitor you. DOCTORS orders young man.¡±
Jacob sat up slowly. Then slid off the bed slowly. His legs almost instantly buckled, and he heard a grunt as he felt Hera catch him. He felt her small frame struggle to hold him, stead herself under his weight as he slowly added weight to his legs to try to help.
¡°Into the chair Captain. Hera, please get him to his Berth.¡± Icario stated curtly before leaving for his office.
Jacob sat in silence as hera pushed him on the lev-chair to the captain¡¯s quarters of the ship. He turned the gravity down from the outside before they entered, and Hera pushed him up to his bed. Jake couldn¡¯t so much as get out of the chair without Hera¡¯s help. Hera rallied and lifted him just enough for him to grab one of the zero-g emergency bars scattered about Traveler, this one was one of two set up over the bed to aid in case of emergency. Jake pulled and Hera guided him with her shoulder, forcing his head into her hair as she got him sitting on the bed. He felt her lean into him in exhaustion as they both just panted with the exertion.
Hera¡¯s whole body ached; she hadn¡¯t realized that she was so close to him until she felt his breath on her neck. Every hair on her mane stood as she shivered with the sensation slightly before pulling away to look him in the face. They paused just a moment, almost touching foreheads before Hera forced herself away and stood, ¡°Humans, you are so dam heavy.¡±
She leaned in and helped Jacob move his body into a comfortable seating position before turning to leave, ¡°If you need anything, let me know. I¡¯ll have Martin send over some easy-to-eat stuff. Any suggestions?¡±
¡°Uh¡ no¡ I think I¡¯ll leave that to martin.¡± Jacob said, already dosing off, ¡°Magnolia...¡±
Hera turned to respond, but Jacob was already out completely, snoring slowly. Hera checked the monitor that he was wearing as part of his release from her wrist pad. Then let a small smile flicker across her features before she left the room.
Chapter 64
¡°Wake up Jakey-boy¡.¡±
Jake¡¯s eye snapped open and frantically scanned the immediate area. Several seconds later his brain caught up with his body and a pained groan escaped him as his body reminded him of the wringer he had just survived. ¡°Fuuuuuuuuuuck¡± was all he could muster before staggering to his feet, barely conscious of his surroundings as he started stripping his clothes off in his slow plod toward the wall shower.
The misty, rainy steam enveloped him in its strange, but now familiar embrace, as he felt the night''s mind fuck of a dream drain from him. Leaning forehead to the wall, Jacob¡¯s remaining eye lost its focus as if seeing things from deep in time and space. Several minutes passed before he regained his composure, quickly lathering and rinsing before stepping out of the shower and reaching for the towel.
¡°Um, I''m sorry. I.. Uh¡.¡± Came a voice from his blind side, which also happened to be the side of his Captain¡¯s Berth where the door to the rest of the ship was located. He hadn¡¯t noticed the change in gravity until now, but Jake didn¡¯t bother responding. He calmly continued to his towel and wrapped it around his waist before turning to the door. The stewardess of the day was standing there with a levitating breakfast pushcart just staring at him in a combination of abashment and shock.
¡°Thank you, Ms¡¡± He placed his replacement patch on his sewn-shut and scarred eye before taking the tray from the young woman¡ she couldn¡¯t be more than 17 or 18.
¡°P.. Priva¡± She stammered.
¡°Thank you Ms Priva, that will be all.¡± His kind finality had her bob her head and positively bolt from his quarters and down the hallway. A dark chuckle escaped him as he pulled the towel free of his waist to continue drying himself. He dressed quickly, in his uniform and sidearm then picked through the assortment on the tray before just scarfing it all down anyway. Departing from his quarters he started wandering the halls with no real destination. ¡®I need to talk to the fab about a saber. Silu might have a point on that.¡¯ his thoughts meandered around on what form or fashion his weapon would take until his feet arrived at the Rec room. He saw that the room¡¯s gravity was set to about 20 percent above Delmar¡¯s gravity and decided to investigate. He stepped through the door to a ruckus of cheers/jeers and jovial laughter as a group of Humans and Delmar were watching two Delmar men trying to walk a loop in increasingly heavier weighted vests that had become standard exercise equipment since their introduction a couple of years ago. Plodding over to a chair currently occupied by non-other than Martin, Jacob just patted the cook on the shoulder and shook his head no as Martin reflexively was about to announce his presence. Martin just grinned and sat back down, never one to say no to a little extra entertainment. Jake simply leaned up against the side of the chair¡¯s back and watched. The two men were struggling. The other was hooting and hollering for him to get going as they staggered their way around the course. Both succeeded and thus more weights were added. Jacob estimated that they were both quickly reaching double their own body weight in this gravity. Several of the other spectators had taken up seats to rest in the extra weight of the room-adjusted settings.
Discretely typing a message into his wrist pad, Jacob watched as 2 other Delmar lifted each vest and put it on the contestants. The slightly smaller one was instantly driven to one knee, but gamely waved away assistance as he gathered himself and stood, starting his stagger around the loop behind his companion. It was not to be as about halfway through his legs failed him and he was driven bodily to the floor under the vests weight not 2 feet in front of Jacob.
¡°Quite a predicament you¡¯ve managed.¡± Jacob spoke for the first time, instantly alerting the crowd to his presence and he let out a quick ¡°As you were!¡± before anyone could shout for attention. He smiled down at the young man, who by this point was having trouble breathing under the vests weight, before reaching down to the hand hold on the back of the vest¡¯s head opening and hoisting the boy up with one hand and held the vest as he scrambled out of it. ¡°Valiant effort.¡±
¡°Thank you, Sir. I¡¯ll get him one of these days. He¡¯s my older brother.¡± The boy panted before being semi tackled by the other contestant and Jacob waved them both away to celebrate or commiserate. He suspected a bit of both.
Jacobs next stop was his ready room, settling somewhat heavily into his seat and opening his console¡¯s interface. He flicked through several screens before settling on an abbreviated star-chart with their course/speed/progress on it. He slewed its view over a few systems as their open contracts opened as he centered on each system. They were currently headed to pick up a load of control boards that were bound for a Shipyard on the edge of the home worlds operating area. He grimaced as he saw how far it was and began plotting alternatives when the door opened, and He found a mildly stern Hera glaring in at him
¡°Doc says no Duty, you¡¯re lucky he is busy checking up on those boys after their escapades with he vests¡± She scolded. ¡°Out, the ship will be fine until you get back on your feet.¡±
¡°I¡¯m just fine on my feet¡± Jacob responded halfheartedly. He rose to his feet with only a ¡ slight... wobble before walking to the door that was currently occupied with Hera¡¯s unimpressed presence. ¡°But I wouldn¡¯t recommend the trip that shit took me on¡¡± he said, almost to himself, as his eye drifted off before returning to a now concerned Hera.
¡°You are not well.¡± She stated firmly, ¡°We need to get you to Doc.¡±
¡°I¡¯m fine..¡± He tried, but his heart wasn¡¯t in it. Hera noticed and took a step forward, taking hold of him by the shoulders and looking at him in his good eye. She was searching for signs of concussion or something else wrong. He proceeded to resign himself to being inspected. As she flicked out a small light to check his pupil¡¯s, the recycler systems kicked on and the changing air currents ruffled her hair slightly, blowing her scent gently into his face. ¡®Magnolia¡¯s¡ huh?¡¯ went through his mind as the currents and the smell visibly relaxed him significantly¡ ¡°I¡¯ll be fine, eventually.¡± He mustered before gently pushing the light from his eye. As his flared-out vision cleared he saw a different look on Hera¡¯s face, one of concern mixed with sad suspicion.
¡°Go rest, please¡ I know I can¡¯t drag you to your quarters, but please¡ We are going to need you when we do this next drop off¡¡± Her voice held an odd pleading ¡®and don¡¯t do anything stupid¡¯ tone to hit.
¡°On one condition, before your shift ends, come give me a daily update. I hate being out of the loop. It¡¯s too dangerous.¡± He responded, ¡°I¡¯ll be good.¡±
¡°Fine, deal. Now get, before I send Doc after you.¡± Hera stood to the side to let him pass as he squeezed by her and headed to the door.
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Hera sat in the command chair on the bridge of the Traveler, ostensibly taking command of the day shift. Her mind was on her captain. The man was the strangest human she had met to date. Clint, Mac, and Gwen were clearly Warrior¡¯s, ¡°Apex¡¯s of Apex¡¯s¡± Jacob had described them, and it fit. She had met Martina in passing and she saw it in her as well. Nicole had made her acquaintance on one of her sister¡¯s early checkups after she conceived with Clint. Nicole was a gentle healer-type Human, yet still straight forward in how she acted and felt, if somewhat hard to understand at times linguistically.
Jacob wasn¡¯t any of those things. His oddly dashing eye-patched face held secrets. He was almost never thinking what she thought he was, and it made it hard for her to predict and augment his moves with Traveler. His smile held a sad edge even at his happiest, or the happiest he had shown her. It worried her, she saw some of the same demons she had been forced to face haunting behind his one remaining eye. They were more visible since his brush with M8800. Doc had confirmed that he was in the clear, but something felt off about her captain since. She needed to figure out what it was before these distractions turned into dangers.
Then there was the rest of it¡ She noticed him take in her scent and relax in his ready room. She had felt old feelings stir when she had to help him to his quarters from the infirmary. She had taken the position on Traveler to get away from all of that. She wasn¡¯t interested in Humans. They were too intense, so why was she interested in this one¡ She pushed the thoughts from her mind as her wrist monitor showed Jacob entering the infirmary ¡®good, maybe something is wrong.¡¯
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
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A Consortium Deep space Mining Vessel loomed over its prey, the Asteroid was 20km wide at its thickest, but that did not matter. A circular cavity opened in the bow of this titan and grinders began to spin like mechanical teeth in the maw of a creature of nightmares. The asteroid slowly drifted in, aided by the gravimetric pull from inside the back of the Maw¡¯s depths. Vacuum transmitted no sound, but he asteroid¡¯s destruction was as brutal as it was final, different pieces being drawn into separate parts of the ship as its precious metals were extracted while the res was discarded like the half-chewed remnants of a carcass of one of terra¡¯s great whale species after being mauled by a predator. Subspace rippled and flashed as a scarred and burned UGN frontier brig dropped out of FTL¡ It was named UGN Reliable Truth, and it was crewed by an all Thermian contingent that numbered but a skeleton of its former numbers.
*UGN vessel, you have entered Mining Consortium space, State designation and mission.* the automated signal sent in its mechanical monotone¡
The UGN ship opened a signal to the Automated titan, ¡°I am Kar, the Unity had betrayed uss¡ We know you are Vorath¡ I speak on behalf of the Thermian Primearch¡ we wish to.. talk¡±
The weapons that had been spun up halfway through the transmission paused¡ scans of the ship revealed as severe a firefight inside of the ship as well as outside of it.. This crew was not the registered crew of this vessel.
*Stand by*
The Thermian ship did not respond, only falling into formation with the slowly progressing autonomous Asteroid strip miner. Day¡¯s turned into a week. A week turned into two. On the 15th day, Kar decided to leave. He had sacrificed so much to earn this chance to erase his shame wrought by the Demon. His new crew had sacrificed in blood to take this ship in the height of UGN reorganization. He would not waste away in some fri¡.
Subspace flashed once more and a ship of unknown pattern dropped out of FTL, haling Kar¡¯s beleaguered vessel.
¡°Kar, this is Centurus. Slave your ship¡¯s navigation to ours. We will not ask twice.¡± the voice said. Not bothering to activate visual contact, or maybe refusing to.
Kar simply nodded to his Navigations officer... 10 minutes later, the two ships disappeared into subspace¡ the Deep space Mining vessel plodded on, devouring yet another asteroid in its insatiable hunger for precious metals.
________________________________________________________________________________
Hera rang the chime on the Capain¡¯s Berth a second time... It was the last day of her captain¡¯s ¡°purgatory¡± he called it. Aside from refusing to elaborate, He did little to explain his dark amusement at the term¡ This wasn¡¯t like him... She rang a third time, then opened to door and nearly closed it again in terror¡
The room was dark save for a weak overhead light, usually reserved for reading in bed. A shirtless Jacob sat on the edge of his bed, covered in dripping sweat. A mostly full bottle of human alcohol sat on his desk and the shards of a shattered sniffer coated in booze and blood lay at his feet. His left hand was covered in blood with a few bits of glass sticking out of it as he sat with his legs spread and his elbows on his knees. His hands were before him palms up, glass and blood occupying his left, and a Very different-looking Human pistol in his right. Its frame and slide were metal with some kindof reddish-tan coating. It was in rough shape; the muzzle was covered in a strange rust pattern running the length of the slide and down under the grips.
¡°Jacob?¡± she asked quietly as she stepped into the room and closed the door. She slowly walked up to him with her hands palms forward, ¡°Jacob.. Its Hera¡ can you hear me..¡± She slowly stepped toward him, staying in his surviving eye¡¯s vision as she watched the weapon in his hand. He made no motion of recognition, or of any other kind, as she slowly walked towards him. She paused slightly as she got close enough to recognize the rusted patterns on his weapon as handprints, finger prints¡ and blood smears rusted into the very being of the pistol. She finally arrived, standing directly in front of him as he remained frozen staring at his hands, and their contents. She took a deep breath, and slowly knelt in front of him. ¡°Jacob, Its Hera.. let¡¯s get you patched up¡ ok¡± she said as she knelt to his level, looking him in his eye. She held her gaze refusing to gawk at the scarred and healed wounds that pock-marked and marred his torso. He finally stirred, raising his head up to meet her gaze. Slowly, very slowly, he gave her a nod. He ignored her pulling the shards out of his hand and using the scanner to check for any glass stragglers before pulling a bandage from the drawers of his desk. She paused, under the bandage roll was a picture of a group wearing some kind of reddish-tan bulky armor and sort-of familiar human weapons. She picked it up, noticing a younger Jacob as one of the men. She also noticed the pistol in his right hand in the holster of one of the other men photographed¡ she set it back down, gently closing the drawer, and began to wrap his hand. Patch job done; she turned her attention to the weapon in his other hand. This he seemed to notice as she carefully placed her hand on top of his and the weapon, ¡°There¡¯s no threat. Traveler is safe. You don¡¯t need this right now.¡± He didn¡¯t seem to respond for a moment before she remembered his reaction in the ready room. Gathering herself, she closed with him and pulled his head to her shoulder with her other hand and prayed she was right. Several moments went by before a soft sound of a deep breath being taken in let her know she hadn¡¯t imagined the previous morning. His bandaged hand and arm wrapped around her and pulled her into a not quite crushing embrace His breathing became ragged for a moment before he released her and seemed to properly acknowledge her presence. ¡°There you are¡ Let¡¯s put this away for now, ok?¡± She patted the hand holding the gun as he looked down and nodded, sliding it back into the drawer that held the picture.
They sat for several minutes in silence, ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡ I must have terrified you. It¡¯s been a decade since I had a strong one of those¡¡± his voice began to regain some of its own strength, ¡°how long have you been here¡±.
¡°Just moments, I found you like this. The blood on your hand had already dried.¡± Hera kicked herself as a small quaver escaped around the edges of her voice. Jacob caught her fear¡ she decided to press forward, ¡°I think I Understand¡± he looked a question at her and she continued, ¡°I was the first officer of a Delmar Defense Warship when the V.R. attacked... Marg, void rest her, had just returned with Traveler to warn us; and we were set up about where port royal is now. Those animals sent in their smaller ships into a late drop¡ it was over in a few brutal moments... their screening ships slammed into us at barely sublight speeds and everyone died. I barely had time to trigger my void suit before my ship was hit. I survived because our killer had dealt a glancing blow, but we were dead in the water. Their heavier ships passed through the wake of their carnage, opening fire on us, on escape pods, on everything. I¡¯m only alive because a Metal shard caught me here.¡± she placed a hand on her side, ¡°and I was flung out of a hull breech moments before my ship died.¡± She shook slightly staring at nothing for a moment, ¡°Clint found me floating in space and almost left me for dead. That¡¯s how bad off I was. I spent weeks in the vacuum exposure unit on Delmar, most of it in bed. All alone,¡± she looked back to his gaze, ¡°with my Demons from that day.¡± Hera took several shaking breaths before rallying herself once more, ¡°If there is anyone on this tub that can talk to you and understand, it¡¯s me.¡±
The two stayed silent together for several more minutes before Jacob made the first move, reaching over with his right hand to take hold of her left, ¡°Ok¡. Ok¡ You deserve that much at least.¡± He said using his good hand to lead her to stand and come sit by him before reaching for the drawer and pulling out the picture, and the gun before smiling gently at her, before placing the pistol in her lap, ¡°for safe keeping.¡± He said quietly. She watched as he fought for control, looking at the picture for a long moment before she put a hand on his forearm. It seemed to steady him as he handed her the picture next and began¡
Jacob pointed to the man next to him, the one wearing the pistol in her lap, ¡°Jesse Ellis,¡± he continued down the line of men, ¡°Mike Vickerson, Kent Till, and Sean Cunningham¡ We were a team, all graduates from the same class in the same year of BUDs¡ We were inseparable, we were in our prime, and we were good at our job. It was a few years into Humanity¡¯s Civil War. Terra was trying to look for some way to break the stalemate. We caught wind that something big was being worked on by the Martians, and we got picked to go in to... well¡ stop it from being worked on and bring it back for us to use. We had TALON support all the way in and out, but nothing else. The TALONS could do it because they could stay hidden, anything bigger was going to get spotted and killed while they waited for us. It was a long trip. We spent it in a cramped stealth shuttle made for little more than eating, sleeping, shitting, and doing bodyweight exercises. We were good, we spent a year in that shuttle doing pretty much that, aside from all the digital media we brought for downtime. We were ready when it came time for insertion. It went flawlessly, too flawlessly. We landed on our mark and set off on our ruck to the target. We found it all right.
Kent was our demo guy, and we spent the next 30 hours sneaking up to every vent, every observation window, every pressure door, every air lock. We rigged the whole thing to go at once¡ Mike and I were on security and Sean was overwatch when we blew the place. Just enough explosives to cause too many breeches to survive, but not enough to break whatever they were working on. Kent triggered it all at once and I still remember the ground shake. We hit the front door hard but didn¡¯t need to. Everyone was already dead. The thing about Martian atmosphere, is it''s thin enough that it can¡¯t keep Terran pressures, so a human not wearing one of those suits has his blood literally boil out of his body. Its¡ messy. There were only three scientists in the structure, we were pulling cores when Sean triggered his com.. I still don¡¯t know what happened to him. We never found his body. And it was never returned¡ he got out a fraction of a warning before we heard him die over open coms. It was a trap.¡± Jacob began to shake in suppressed sobs, before settling and continuing, taking the picture from Hera, and holding it like a prized possession. ¡°Hell opened up and swallowed us. Mike died first... a crew-served energy weapon took the left side of his head off in a cookie cutter-shaped bite¡ he never screamed... he just fell and started filling our position with boiling blood. I got the APC that killed him with the missile launcher he was trying to aim when he died. They breached next. Kent kicked me out of the way and ate the first rounds to his plate. He didn¡¯t make it to cover, and his suit failed completely after about 100 rounds of impacts. Me and Jessie killed em all... their first breech was dead and boiling on the ground when I heard a burble from Jessie... one of the last shots got him in the throat and he was spraying blood out through an artery¡ he pulled that pistol from his holster and handed to me¡ He and I were on the same team in the same class of BUDS... we had a special... pact¡ we would never get taken alive. He handed me that gun and held the muzzle to his helmet¡ I couldn¡¯t do it¡ I was till shaking my head no when he stuck his thumb on my trigger finger and pressed¡ it took them 3 hours to take me¡ I had all of my dead friend¡¯s ordinance... by the 4th hour I had run out of ammunition and grenades¡ I was shot up, and bleeding out. I knew it. I was going to make them kill me¡ I failed...
Chapter 65
¡°I failed¡¡±
The all-too-familiar pain and anger in those words hung in the air between them casting a menacing shadow of events left unsaid.
¡°They wouldn¡¯t kill me¡ I stabbed two more of them before one of them got a tranquilizer needle in my side through the suit¡ I had my suspicions before... but a needle long enough, durable enough, and sharp enough to get through an exo-suit was a very particular sort of tool¡ They knew... they knew we were coming¡ they always wanted a prisoner¡ I¡ I was¡¡± Jacob¡¯s voice faltered and wavered as if he hit a brick wall, until he was stopped by a hand on his arm.
¡°Don¡¯t¡ I can guess. You do not need to tell me¡ you have relived enough...¡± He turned to see Hera¡¯s own flowing tears.
¡°I was medically ¡°retired¡± shortly after, I guess they thought I was too broken to be a threat. I needed something, so I took online classes and got a Captains certification for our interplanetary merchant marine... ¡°His eyes fell to his hands, ¡°I spent the rest of the war hauling cargo between colonies and outposts. I wanted off... off of terra, out of sol¡ anywhere not part of the regime that murdered friends I considered closer than family¡ when the call came, I volunteered my freighter. I couldn¡¯t get out fast enough¡¡± Jacob finished returning his gaze to his XO. He smiled a sad smile and reflexively reached up and thumbed away a falling drop on her cheek.
Hera was too shocked at his story and his touch to pull away, she blushed slightly before smiling back and hastily wiping the other cheek herself. Her hand moved from his forearm to his bandaged hand, ¡°Well, you are here now. Terra is a long way away.¡±
¡°It is,¡± Jacob seemed to brighten slightly, ¡°It is¡± he said more firmly, squeezing her hand, ¡°I guess I now fall into the Clint/Mac category of humans¡± His half sad smirk punched Hera in the gut.
Hera¡¯s chest froze, shaking her head forcefully, ¡°No.¡± she said firmly, ¡°you¡¯re not like them.¡± she said with finality. She paused as he gave her a strange look, ¡°I don¡¯t¡ I don¡¯t...¡± she faltered lost for words... she searched, looking down and his bandaged hand in her¡¯s.
¡°It¡¯s ok. I know you didn¡¯t transfer to the freighter life looking for lost connections. I know, humans are an intense experience¡ I don¡¯t blame you at al...¡± Jacob was interrupted by the forceful pull of his injured hand. Hera pulled his hand behind her and pulled him into as crushing a hug as he had felt out of a Delmar. He felt her pull his whole body toward her and was too surprised to stop it. He cupped the back of his head and pulled it to her chest, resting it on her colar bone, as he found his face pressed into her flowing hair.
¡°Stop¡¡± She whispered, ¡°stop¡± she shuddered slightly as she felt his breath on her neck, ¡°I don¡¯t fear you. I don¡¯t understand it... but I don¡¯t fear you. Your every day self... It¡¯s not a mask like theirs is. That¡¯s their story to tell, not mine. I don¡¯t fault them for it. I would trust either of them with my life.¡± Hera whispered, holding him tightly to herself, ¡°You are a kind, caring person first, and a warrior second. Maybe it¡¯s what happened to you, maybe it¡¯s how you always were... I don¡¯t know...¡± she finally relaxed her hold but did not pull away. She kept him there in her embrace for a few moments as neither one stirred.
¡°Ok¡.¡± He said, ¡°ok..¡± she felt him take a deep breath before His entire body seemed to uncoil all the tension form the past few hours. He finally moved, but not to pull away. A lightning bolt made her shudder as his lips met her neck, first at the crook, then the feeling of his lips worked its way up until it reached her ear before she could regain composure. In that moment, she wanted much more. But it was not the right time. Gently pressing on his shoulders, she felt him let her move him away from her.
He finally sat back enough to see her face, ¡°Not yet¡± she panted, she could see the confusion in his face, ¡°God¡¯s I want to, but not yet.¡± He sat back to let her gather herself.
¡°Too much?¡± He asked,
¡°No, just too fast¡± she said. ¡°How much do you know about Delmar Culture.¡±
¡°Not much, just the basic, ¡°keep it in your pants, they aren¡¯t like us¡± speech we all got when we volunteered.
¡°Ah.¡± Hera nodded and spent the next few minutes filling in the gaps before going silent to let Jacob think.
¡°So that¡¯s why you jumped to get on a human commanded freighter, you wanted time to sort things out.¡± his resignation rang clearly in his tone. ¡°I can¡¯t say I blame you.¡±
¡°Yes, but I don¡¯t want to push you away. Please don¡¯t take this as a no.¡± Hera squeezed his good hand before cupping his face in her hands, ¡°One season, let us get to know each other. Let us both heal together, instead of adding more.¡±
¡°I think I understand, but why the specific season?¡± Jacob asked.
A Feral smirk finally broke through hera¡¯s features, ¡°Because It¡¯s tradition for the parents to be involved. And They will be home this Refit. I want you to meet them before¡¡±
Jacob raised an eyebrow, ¡°Before what?¡±
Hera only smiled, leaning in and latching her lips onto his neck ¡®turn around is fair play¡¯ she thought before she nipped him and let out a low hum. She smiled as she felt him stiffen before she pulled away. ¡°Before.¡± Was all she said before standing and stretching, admiring the shocked possibly a little bit confused look on Jacob¡¯s face ¡®I wonder how the hunter feels about being hunted¡¯ she thought before Jacob barked a laugh
Jacob ran a finger over the two little welts on his neck that didn¡¯t quite pierce the skin, ¡°I guess my little Magnolia has fangs¡± he chuckled at her confusion before capturing her in a blur or movement. He held her to him and leaned in to take in the smell of her hair, ¡°I guess we will see who hunts who¡± he whispered into her ear, partially melting her soul under his touch. He let her go before reaching for his shirt, ¡°It¡¯s really late, Let¡¯s see what Martin has in his fridge.¡±
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¡°You¡¯re the phantom raider?!? He¡¯s been bitching about someone raiding his kitchen for months!¡± Hera blurted out.
¡°And you¡¯re not gonna tell him.¡± Jacob said sternly.
¡°Tell him what? I thought I was the only one doing it.¡± Hera laughed.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Excelsior was a little more crowded than normal. Warren bounced slightly as he worked his way down the halls of reduced gravity. It had been a painstaking search of Eleria. The result was 2500 cryo-pods found with a total of 912 survivors, almost all of them teenagers and young adults. Older Elerian¡¯s appeared to have succumbed to the passage of time and the rigors of cryo-status long before Humanity had learned to forge bronze. What was left was a largely adolescent, and woefully lacking in number remnant of the once prosperous Elerian people. This resulted in just under 1000 young, confused, impulsive and terrified. Warren rounded the corner just in time for a side door to open and a slender familiar hand to shoot out and grab his arm before pulling him into the side room. Warren was taken by surprise long enough to stumble into the small conference room before the door slid shut and was locked.
¡°Jezz? What the hell?¡± He asked before the teenager loudly shushed him.
¡°They will hear you!¡± she whispered.
¡°Who will hear me¡± Warren said, just a bit more quietly.
¡°The rest of the survivors¡ They¡¯re driving me insane!¡± Jezza put her back to the door and sank down to the floor in exhausted exasperation. ¡°They found out¡ about my dad¡¡± She mumbled finally, pulling her wings around her slender frame in a familiar expression of fearful timidity.
¡°Oh...¡± Warren set his data pad down on the table before settling down next to her. Eleria had been a Global Monarchy. The Monarch of Eleria was also head of the military, elected for life with past military experience being a requirement for eligibility. Her Father was the Monarch for 20 years before the Vorath attack that had murdered her planet. One of the survivors had recognized her as a member of the first family, and now the entire ¡°remnant¡± reflexively looked to her for leadership. This wasn¡¯t news to Warren. She had told him the day they had snuck off to the Observation window the day they met. She and Warren were fast becoming friends, and she leaned on him often when she felt overwhelmed.
¡°Pappa was so strong. They expect me to speak for him¡ To save them somehow¡ when we don¡¯t even have the numbers to restart our people¡¡± her muffled voice bled its sorrow and anxiety from behind her shroud of feathers. ¡°I¡¯m not him¡ I don¡¯t think I can be Him...¡±
¡°I know. We were really hoping to recover at least some adults... It was just too much time...¡± Warren scooted over, wrapping the bundle of feathers, wings, and all in one arm as she leaned up against his shoulder.
¡°Warren, what are we gonna do¡ Atticus keeps telling me there is hope but won¡¯t say more... we need millions more survivors to restart our race¡ and our world is unrecognizable.¡± She peeked her head out from over the top of her winged cocoon and laid it on his chest. She couldn¡¯t see warren¡¯s flash of happiness as she did it.
¡°One step at a time. First, we go to Sol, get all of you a full medical work up and correction. You guys survived, but 35 million years frozen took its toll. We need to get you to propper medical facilities, so we don¡¯t lose more of you.¡± Warren let her think for a moment before she slowly unfolded from herself.
¡°Then that¡¯s what I¡¯ll tell them... My people were fiercely loyal to Pappa. I guess I¡¯ll have to play the leader a while longer...¡± She groaned, standing at last and visibly steeling herself, ¡°Thank¡¯s¡± she said, giving him a small hug, ¡°See you at the mess for dinner?¡±
¡°Sure, But I need to get back, I am technically still on shift.¡± Warren scratched the back of his head awkwardly, making Jezz giggle before she unlocked the door.
¡°Until Dinner, Lieutenant¡± She teased before opening the door and releasing her impromptu captor.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Captain Yasushi stepped into the medical ward of Excelsior just to be startled by a small waddling figure of an androgenous-looking Corth as it greeted him, ¡°Ah, Captain¡± the mostly natural-sounding voice said, ¡°Good to see you, in the flesh. Well, mostly anyway¡± It said in Atticus¡¯ voice.
Yasushi recovered his composure almost instantly and instead scowled down at the animatronic faximaly, ¡°Care to explain yourself, and this?¡±
¡°Precautions Captain, precautions. You don¡¯t want a foreign, alien, possibly rogue Artificial intelligence running free in your ship¡¯s computer core... and I would prefer to remain¡ Compiled... as it were. I felt this was a healthy solution. The Corth heavily used Nanite Technology in our Cryopod fall back plan for Eleria. It¡¯s in the circuitry, in the hosts, but more importantly, in the recovery systems. Since we have been using the Bio Beds for our reanimation attempts, I have been extracting and collecting the Recovery Nanites. I finally attained enough to construct a body, of sorts and transfer myself to it. It¡¯s not perfect. It contains a heavy dose of what humans call ¡°uncanny valley¡± as it were, but it got me out of your computers. It seemed like the logical thing to do.¡±
Yasu sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, ¡°I won¡¯t fault your logic, but please¡ Notify me or another ranking officer the next time you decide to do something¡ asymmetric.¡±
¡°A point, Captain. I understand. Anyway, my new ¡®body¡¯ was not the reason why I requested this meeting. I believe I have found something, but I require a¡. favor.¡± The apprehension was apparent in Atticus¡¯s voice.
¡°Go on, I¡¯m listening¡± Captain Yasu stated with pained neutrality.
¡°How much do you know about the current Unity.¡± Atticus¡¯ careful tone was noticed.
¡°We know that they are aware of Humanity, and the Corth had a hand in Humanities development. Our relationship with them is¡ Tenuous. I know very few Corth remain. I have not been briefed beyond that.¡± Captain Yasu responded.
¡° ¡®had a hand¡¯ indeed. Captain, I will be privately recording a message to both Sol and to whoever you have in charge of your connection to Unity. This was well before my time, but I recognize my fundamental teachings anywhwere.¡± ¡®Atticus¡¯ turned and began tapping furiously into the medical console, clearly done with the conversation.
¡°Make it quick, we depart for Sol within the hour,¡± the Corth simply waved a hand in dismissive acceptance still typing furiously on the console. Yasu just raised an eyebrow before shaking his head and turning to leave the infirmary.
__________________________________________________________________________________
The cacophony of voices was overpowering as Jezzaria stepped back into the meeting room filled with the remnants of her people. One of the younger boys noticed her and called out, rendering her sneaky entrance irrelevant as all of them clamored towards her asking a million questions at once. Jezz tried to quiet them, but her voice was lost to the din of adolsescent impatience. An ear-splitting high-pitched sound cut through the voices, silencing everyone. Jezz looked over to see a sentry guard pull two fingers out his mouth and give her an abbreviated human salute.
¡°Alright, one at a time!¡± Jezz tried to remember her voice projection lessons, and silently cursed her dissentrist at the time.
¡°What are we gonna do¡± a little girl asked first hugging a stuffed toy she had brought into her pod with her.
¡°We are going to go with these nice people to see their home, for now.¡± She said kindly before booping the little one lightly on the nose and nodding to her slightly older brother holding her hand.
¡°Is it true? No Adults are coming?¡± another, older boy asked.
¡°yes.. It¡¯s true. Our parents sacrificed themselves so we could live. We were asleep for to long. Im sorry¡± Jezz spoke loudly, ¡°We will be going with these Humans, our world is not as we remember it. It has no cities, no infrastructure, no medical or agriculture. We cannot live there right now. We are going to a moon over their planet, where gravity is closer to what we remember. I know many of your last memories before the cataclysm were of what your next homework assignment was, or what grade you got on the next test. We will all have to grow up quickly.¡±
¡°Why, we will die out anyway!¡± one kid yelled followed by murmurs from the older kids.
Jezz steeled herself, ¡°We may... but doing nothing will ensure that we will go extinct. I have hope, and I will keep it. We go with the humans. We learn, we catch up. And we prepare to return. It may be a long time before we can return home. And it WILL be unrecognizable. But we will return. I promise. You look to me because of my father. You honor me. I will keep his legacy. He never made it to a pod. Atticus revealed to me that he died with his men, Defiant to the last. WE face our own fight against extinction. Will you rise to his example with me?¡±
It started mall, a little girl clapping, but it grew into a cheer before Jezzaria raised her hand and commanded silence. ¡°Get some rest and get your secondary checkups. We all have been marked by our long sleep. We will need time to heal and time to learn. Go rest. Tomorrow begins our life¡¯s work.¡±
Excited Murmuring was the dominant sound as the survivors filed out. Some returned to their bunks, others to the mess hall. Some of the rest started walking to the infirmary. Jezzaria stepped out into the hallway to see a Warren talking to the soldier who had silenced the crowd. He turned to see her, and a proud grin crossed his features, ¡°Ready for dinner?¡±
Chapter 66
Houston station hung like a pendant, silhouetted by the fire of fusion boiling from the sun, as it hurtled silently about its orbit around Terra. The Moon shimmered, like a lone pearl in the black, on the far side of the station as it followed a path eons old and still rock steady. ¡°Pandora¡± MOA had been converted to the Arrival point for exta-solar traffic headed for Terra. As with tradition, Houston station had a central working core. Recent advances had given that central hub artificial gravity, but she still held the vestiges of her microgravity heritage. The night shift was a skeleton crew. Sol had very little civilian traffic in and out of the system and the majority of it ended up at one of Mars¡¯s moons or Centerpoint due to their Exploratory nature. Most inter-solar travel was done during daytime local to consolidate as Humanity slowly learned their new Faster-than-Life Culture and Logistical technicalities. The warning beep almost went unnoticed save for the shift manager who snatched his headset from the desk and keyed the frequency just as a familiar spiral flash of blue and white erupted inside of Pandora¡¯s airspace as Excelsior accompanied by an Armada of Light Escort Carriers and one hybrid new model USN destroyer. Their hulls bled their hull charges in now familiar contrails of whitish blue spiraling wisps of plasma like the foam off the prows of the romanticized warships of old.
Mac took in a long slow shaky breath as the shining blue orb of a world he dared not hope to see again flashed into view and quickly began to grow in the dome window that represented the crowning feature of Excelsior¡¯s forward observation gazebo. A familiar pair of precious arms ensconced him as Lyri wrapped her arms around his chest, pressing her lithe body against his back and wrapping her tail around his waist. She knew what he felt, it rang through their shared existence in waves of joy, apprehension, longing, and relief. He smiled as he felt her head rest on his shoulder and felt her soft breath on his neck, ¡°I¡¯m ok, luv. This is just¡ I never¡.¡± His voice failed him as he placed a slightly shaky hand on the layered Lexan dome that protected them from the void.
Lyri¡¯s lips brushed his ear, ¡°Shh, I know¡ She¡¯s beautiful. Earth is beautiful¡ Show her to me.¡± She whispered before letting out a squeak as he spun to scoop her about the waist and their lips met.
Mac pulled away after doing a thorough job of melting his wife with the heat of passion, ¡°We stop at the Bridge first. I must transition the Fleet to the Luna Shipyards.¡± He smirked as he watched Lyri recover her composure.
10 minutes later, they stepped onto the bridge, contact was made with Luna Shipyard and the handoff was made. Apparently, new ships were awaiting the current crews of his fleet to take back to Unity space, after training and familiarization cruises were completed. Soon Mac and Lyrian slipped into Concord after donning their Void suits. The preflight checks were completed quickly, and the now familiar flash of memory and emotion flared through their minds as Concord Started up and the Alpha Synce initialized. Mac keyed in their Squak code into his hybrid Delmar/Terran Transponder and the Hanger doors of Tranquility soon released Concord as she howled into the void, dashing for the cradle world of humanity with her customary aggressive baying violence of grace.
Neither one spoke. Inside Concord, their¡¯s was a communion of thought and feeling. Over the flights after this new deeper link between them had been discovered possible, something very interesting happened. James Mackenzie and Lyrian Grarzia ceased to exist, only one mind remained. Every Married couple has heard the term, ¡°Two become one¡±. Inside concord, platitude became reality. Lyrian had summed it up succinctly after their mission to destroy the Vorath outpost, ¡°Concord has a soul now. We are her soul.¡± Procedures were flown through at the speed of thought linked with occasional physical action by one half of the other. Mac¡¯s Feelings and experience echo¡¯d through Lyrians mind. Her capacity for predictive intuition processed data together less like screens and signals, but more like sight and smell and hearing. Mac often found himself closing his eyes in flight and seeing totally through Concord and Lyrian when he didn¡¯t need them for a critical phase of flight or combat. He was not doing so now as he was soaking in every flare of heat and plasma, every coil of high-speed wingtip vortex boiling off of Concord as she pierced the oxygen-rich blanket surrounding the Human Homeworld at many times the speed of light. Sounds of air and turbulence slowly returned as their altitude plummeted and Concord rotated out of her deceleration burn and into her atmospheric configuration. The Pacific Ocean rushed past as Concord¡¯s almost suicidal dive at Mach3 was arrested with Mac¡¯s expert touch. Concord levelled off a mere 50 feet off the wave and bellowed for the west coast of the United States, ATC and airspaces were an afterthought, and soon Concord had decelerated to a much more sedate 1200 Knots as Priority clearances were given all the way to a Arnold¡¯s where Concord would be staying for the Grarzia¡¯s stay on Terra. A team of scientists was there to carefully inspect while Mac and Lyrian spent some well-earned R&R.
*that¡¯s a lot of people* Lyrian¡¯s thoughts whispered through their shared consciousness as they entered the pattern to land on runway 21. The fences were packed 5 and 6 deep of civilians all clamoring desperately for a look inside the airfield.
*Oh boy, I was afraid of this. ¡®Hale the conquering hero¡¯* Mac emoted back before keying his com, ¡°Arnold tower Cobra 224, request a low pass. I feel bad not giving at least something to everyone out there.¡±
*Cobra 224, cleared for a low pass. Just keep out of Mach and it should be fine* came the response
Mac reached for the air brake just as they deployed, for Concord truly did not like to slow down despite being in atmo; and Lyrian left them there until they achieved a stately 300 knots. Mac swung her nose ¡®round to the threshold of runway 21 and eased down for the deck. Concord crossed the threshold at a paltry 25 feet from the pavement before Mac snapped Concord into a knife edged ¡°presentation pass¡± with her cockpit and upper hull presented to the fence before snapping back level and pulling vertical using full military power to howl back into the sky. The next pass was a more sedate landing as Concords tires touched terra for the first time since Departing for her fate under the LEAP program¡¯s first FTL test.
Concord rolled to an appropriate taxi speed and angled off onto the taxiways leading to her assigned hanger, and was greeted by a patchwork of airmen, maintenance personnel, and the familiar white coats of the Science team assigned to learn what Concord had to teach them about the prolonged operation and combat in Unity space, along with her upgrades done by the Delmar Brothers Gremm. One man stood out among the rest, The Base commander strode up to Concord moments after her landing and waited patiently as the shutdown procedures were completed. His eyebrow raised slightly as Concord¡¯s Canopy opened earlier than expected and a helmetted sealed figure slid down the ladder before landing on the hangar¡¯s smooth foundation.
Mac¡¯s helmet retracted into its suit on command before extending a hand to the Base commander. No salutes were exchanged as they were part of different branches, but a firm polite handshake broke the ice, ¡°Commodore James Mackenzie Grarzia¡± He smiled at the grizzled older man.
¡°Commander Pete Sullivan. I assume you are the reason for all the consternation?¡± he asked politely, yet also undoubtedly annoyed.
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¡°Unfortunately, Commander, I guess I¡¯m kind of famous for surviving the typical Human test pilot stupidity.¡± Mac chuckled, releasing the older man¡¯s hand.
¡°Mackenzie, Well fuck me, Your James ¡°BigMac¡± Mackenzie.¡± Recognition swept over his face as he put it all together, ¡°I guess I¡¯m going to need to deal with this the whole time you are here?¡± he groaned.
¡°Hopefully not, let it leak that we aren¡¯t staying. In fact, if everything went according to plan, our ride should be stowed in the corner of this¡ ah, there she is¡± Mac smiled as he spotted a set of massive balloons like tires underneath a high-winged taildragger in the corner.
¡°Ah you mean that big, tired bastard. Yea, she got her a few weeks ago, fresh out of annual¡± The commander nodded. ¡°I guess you will be departing in ¡®er? She¡¯s not my cup, but she does strike a pose. I can respect that.¡±
¡°Aye Commander we will, but I have an idea. Do you have any other traffic coming in today?¡± Mac asked diplomatically.
¡°Not for another 3 hours or so. What do you have in... whoa.¡± He was interrupted as Lyrian, who had been throwing their luggage into the central cargo lift of Concord, had finished up and casually walked up to both before popping her helmet¡¯s seal and retracting it into her suit. ¡°You must be Ms. Grarzia.¡± The commander said before extending a hand to the first ever Extra-Terrestrial to publicly make planetfall on Terra. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize that Delmar could survive in Human Gravity.¡±
¡°It took a long time to get here¡± she smiled, Mac noticed, with a very triumphant and HUMAN toothy grin. ¡°Your world is extraordinary; I can¡¯t wait to be shown more of it.¡± Lyrian said in perfect English before pausing and looking over to Mac who had wandered out to the edge of the hanger doors and then slowly walked out into the sunlight. Turning toward the grass he slowly knelt and ran his right hand through the blades of green with his eyes closed as he took in his homeward without the need for flight profiles or procedures. He stayed there a full minute, before picking a wildflower from a patch of color on the ground and walked back into the hanger before slipping It over the ear of Lyrian and turning to the commander.
¡°I¡¯m sorry commander. It¡¯s been a long time since I even thought I could hope to come back... It¡¯s a bit overwhelming right now.¡± Mac said solemnly.
¡°I think I understand. Concord is in good hands; we will send you updates on what we find.¡± The commander said before shaking both of their hands and turning to head through the inner door of the hanger.
Lyrian pulled the flower from her ear and took a deep inhale of its scent, ¡°wow, so different. It¡¯s sweet, I like it. So, where are we going next.¡±
¡°First, we change. Then we take the Maule¡± Mac stated tilting his head toward the white, maroon, and blue aircraft sitting on positively enormous tires. Lyrian stood there looking at it in confused intrigue for a moment before catching her day pack that held her regular clothes. A few moments later, the two of them were hefting their luggage into the side doors of a M7-420 Maule. Mac walked around the aircraft doing a thorough walk around before climbing into the left side seat of the turboprop-powered taildragger.
Lyrian was sitting in the copilot seat staring blankly at the circular dials and nobs and levers, ¡°Ok¡ where¡¯s the reactor controls... This all looks ancient..¡±
¡°Ancient tech, yes. But all of this is a relatively new manufacture. The Maule has no reactor, she burns jet fuel to spin that propeller... Mac said before flicking through a few switches. A high-pitched whine began low in volume but increased as the propeller began to spin slowly. The Allison turbine began to spin up as the propeller began to growl before Mac unfathered it and the sound settled low frequency rumbling roar of the prop spinning accompanied by the high-pitched whine of turbine exhaust.
Mac called up the tower and told them they were ready and began taxiing. He exited the hanger before Lyrian¡¯s eyes widened as he turned left and taxied onto the grass and began trundling toward the fence at a brisk walking pace.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Jezz held on tightly to Warrens arm as the two of them stepped off the shuttle onto the foundation of the surface domes that represented half of Tranquility station/ Luna Shipyards. He had been given leave to act as liaison between the Elerians and Humanity and was thus attached to their defacto leader Jezzaria in an official capacity. A gaggle of the older survivors followed them while the younger of them, mere children, stayed behind.
Jezz grunted slightly as the gravity shifted. Luna was close to Eleria¡¯s gravity, but still heavier. ¡°Ooof, so this is Luna gravity.¡±
¡°You going to be, ok?¡± Warren asked, letting her lean on him as she felt the extra weight for the first time.
¡°No¡ no, I need to get used to this, but I don¡¯t think I could fly easily in this gravity¡± She admitted.
¡°Not much space to fly I¡¯m afraid. These places weren¡¯t built for angels.¡± Warren absently responded, carefully watching for their surface side contact.
¡°Angels? I don¡¯t follow.¡± Jezz asked and Warrens brain realized what he said. She noticed him become a particular shade of pink before stammering for a second.
¡°Sorry, it¡¯s a mythical being from a few of our religious legends. Some still believe in them.¡± Warren recovered before seeing who he was looking for. Waving to a man in a USN Uniform. A few pleasantries later Warren had a map to guide the refugees to their quarters. A fresh wing had been emergency fabricated for the Elerian¡¯s to aid in their comfort while next steps were decided. The maps were handed out to the group and the small but spartanly comfortable were looked over before the older of the survivors began going to retrieve the others. Warren and Jezz were left alone in the ¡°Elerian quarter¡± as she stepped into her quarters for the second time, looking around for more than just functionality.
¡°So this is our life now...¡± She said leaning her hip up against the small countertop in the open-concept kitchen/ dining room/living room space. she sighed before stepping into the middle of the room, Elerian clothing had long since accommodated their wings, and Jezzaria¡¯s short feathers extended from the base of her head down her back and widened out to her wing ¡°roots¡± before ending in a long taper down to her lower back. Jezz was wearing a low-backed sun dress at the moment to free her wings and turned around to face him before flaring out her wings to their full span, ¡°At least I can properly stretch out a little.¡± She said, ¡°So when are we taking the next step?¡±
¡°You will be meeting with the foreign affairs delegate in a few days. Excelsior is getting a once over since we are here, before departing for our next expedition.¡± Warren stated contemplating the sequence of events as he spoke. He looked up and noticed Jezz¡¯s look, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±
¡°You are leaving? With Excelsior¡¡± her voice wavered around the edges, she folded her wings around herself, ¡°I thought you were our Liaison.¡±
Warren heard the fear, ¡°I will be, for the time being, but I¡¯m no diplomat. I am supposed to introduce you and get the ball rolling, but..¡± He was cut off by Jezz taking quick steps toward him with eyes welling before flaring out her wings and wrapping him up in a desperate full body hug, with her wings wrapped around the both of them.
¡°Don¡¯t say it¡ I can¡¯t hear it¡ I don¡¯t want¡ I need you to stay.¡± Her shorter stature had her head buried into his chest as he returned her hug and cupped the back of her head.
¡°I know, but I have orders. I can¡¯t abandon them...¡± Warren said gently, ¡°I don¡¯t want to go either, but I don¡¯t have a choice.¡± He whispered into the top of her head.
She looked up at him with tears in her eye¡¯s, ¡°How long¡ How long do I have, with you¡± She murmured up at him.
Warren hurt at her phrasing, but tried to stay strong, ¡°one week, maybe two¡ We need to get more supplies to the exploration team on your planet. It¡¯s become a recovery mission¡¡±
She nodded before putting her head back down on his chest, ¡°I know, I know it has to be done. But I lean on you Warren, I don¡¯t know if I can do this without you...¡±
¡°You will still have me¡± Warren whispered. ¡°You can contact me any time through subspace¡¡±
¡°It¡¯s not the same¡± Jezz whispered, ¡°It¡¯s not the same as this¡± she squeezed him ¡°I need this too.¡± She whimpered into his chest.
Warran put his chin gently on the top of her head, rubbing her down like back feathers up and down in a slow motion that had soothed her in the past, ¡°need what?¡± he asked, his heart was pounding in his chest.. He didn¡¯t want to go. He knew he was going to have to board Excelsior and part with Jezz for months or even years. He cared for her, but never tried to pursue it because of her situation. She needed a friend, a sounding board. She had never acted towards him as anything other than a frie¡
Warren¡¯s thoughts were forcefully interrupted by Jezzaria shifting from her embrace and lifting up on her toe¡¯s, pressing her lips to his¡
Chapter 67
-earlier-
Warren was too surprised and stunned to kiss back in that moment. Jezzaria pulled back, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m so sorry. I didn¡¡± she was interrupted as Warren¡¯s mind caught up and saw the sad confusion.
¡°Shh¡± he said softly, wiping the budding tears from her face, ¡°don¡¯t..¡± he said gently before cupping her head with one hand and wrapping his other arm about the small of her back.
Jezz felt her feet leave the floor as he scooped her effortlessly up, holding her against his chest. Her heart raced with the realization that she knew nothing of human romantic rituals and that whatever happened next was completely out of her control, or physical power to stop.
Warren lifted her up before settling her onto the countertop putting her face level with his. She couldn¡¯t escape his coiled arm around her back, she didn¡¯t try. She felt his lips brush hers gently once then again as he kissed her gently. She leaned in, pressing her lips to his as they responded to each other. She shuddered a gasp as he released her head and coiled his other arm around her, running his fingers through the soft down between her shoulders and wing roots. She pulled at him with her arms, melting into his embrace for several moments before their lips parted and Warren released her, but didn¡¯t move.
¡°I didn¡¯t know.. I hoped but¡¡± he whispered.
¡°I thought you knew¡Warren, I need you here with me¡ I don¡¯t do well, alone.¡± She whispered, leaning into his chest, pulling him towards herself, before Warren shifted slightly awkwardly.
¡°Jezz?¡± He asked a question.
Jezz followed his gaze and blushed as she realized she had wrapped her legs around him when he picked her up. She let him go as his face reddened slightly and began to give her room, but she held on to his shirt.
She followed his movement, sliding off of the counter before Warren pulled her into a more... modest embrace.
¡°I wish we had more time¡¡± his soft sad tone echoed her emotions as they held each other for a small eternity.
¡°You have to go don¡¯t you...¡± Warren looked down as her resigned voice registered.
¡°I made a promise when I put on this uniform. Who would I be if I broke it.¡± His voice rumbled through his chest as he held her close, gently running a finger over the little line of down that outlined her slightly pointed ears.
¡°That tickles¡± she shivered nuzzling into him, ¡°I know you have to¡ momma always warned me of the ¡®daughters curse¡¯.¡± she smiled up at him as he raised an eyebrow, ¡°She always said that daughters end up falling for people like their dads¡ papa was¡¡± she choked up and couldn¡¯t finish. The loss was too fresh in the subjective time frame that taunted people who slept in stasis for long periods of time.
¡°Common, let¡¯s get you some fresher air. There is a terrarium in the middle of this dome. You haven¡¯t seen nature since you woke up.¡± Warren released her and held out a hand. She took it and they departed for the center of Luna shipyards Habitation Dome. Jezzaria had to fold her wings tightly to not bump into people in the cramped corridors, she held on tightly to Warren, still nervous around other people. Several of the Humans they passed gave her odd, shocked looks as they made their way to the center of the dome.
The corridor sliding glass door came with a warning ¡°Jump at your own risk¡±.
Jezz gave a little hop, ¡°I don¡¯t get it...¡± before an explosive snort left Warren.
¡°Common, I¡¯ll show you.¡± he grinned before stepping close enough for the door to open. A gasp escaped Jezzaria as they entered a room bursting with life. Trees, flowers, grass and even small bugs and critters enveloped them as the Dome center revealed its glory. ¡°All of these are Terran plants animals and insects. This is a complete eco system and operates as a combination oxygen generator and Co2 scrubber. It takes about a third of Lina¡¯s used air and cleans it. Plants on terra have a symbiotic relationship with animals. We breathe oxygen and exhale CO2. Plants do the reverse.¡±
Jezzaria took in a deep breath, surrendering to the first small pocket of nature in her life since her sleep, ¡°Its breathtaking¡ but I don¡¯t understand about the jumping¡± she turned to Warren.
¡°Well, we are in about 1/6th of earth¡¯s gravity¡± Warren said. ¡°I grew up on Terra, and I physically exercise myself so that I can stay functioning on her when I am in lighter gravities.¡±
Jezz just looked at him¡ ¡°you came from a planet with 6 times my homes gravity?!?. That would be over twice Delmar Gravity!! And they are the heaviest planet we discovered before... you¡¯re joking.¡± She gave him an unamused glare.
Warren shrugged before bending down and exploding upward in a push from a squat that sent him clean over Jezz head and landed on the other side, he landed easily, before turning to a shocked Jezz¡ ¡°What¡¯s not to believe?¡± He asked.
She crouched down and vaulted into the air. Flapping her angelic wings furiously, she only just got airborne, and could stay that way with effort for a short time.
¡°Your world is really very close to this gravity. Less than a percent difference. You would have to strength train, but you could learn to fly in here I bet.¡± Warren offered as she stopped flapping and did a short glide toward him, landing in his arms front first, ¡°although I would advise any flying escapades in a sun dress¡¡±Warren was slightly looking up at her in his arms. She ran her hands through his hair before leaning down for a peck on the lips.
¡°So, the story I read on the net is true¡¡± she pulled back from the kiss as he lowered her to the ground. ¡°I saw a unity story over the data network. Humans being able to rip the limbs off Thermians¡¡± she shuddered before sitting on a bench.
¡°What¡¯s wrong¡± Warren asked gently.
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¡°It¡ it doesn¡¯t make sense... I¡¯ve never seen you give a cross word¡ yet I suspect that you could kill me almost accidentally¡¡± Her thoughts were broken by Warren slowly moving his arm from around her. ¡°Don¡¯t, I¡¯m not scared of you¡± She pulled in closer to him leaning on his chest from the side, ¡°I¡¯m just remembering all the times I felt you being gentle. You have to be careful with me¡ don¡¯t you...¡±
Warren gave her a smile before kissing the top of her head, ¡°You¡¯re my porcelain angel, that¡¯s all.¡± He whispered. They were just settling in when both of their comm units chirped. ¡°The ambassador is here¡¡± he groaned¡ ¡°He wants to meet you...¡±
¡°1 hour¡ if I am to be the leader of my people¡ I decide when and who I meet. 1 hour, and you are coming with me.¡± She looked up at him with a look that refused all excuses.
¡°1hour it is then.¡± He smirked, sending the message before settling in and enjoying the company of his fiery little porcelain angel amongst the background of the pocket of imported Nature.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
One hour later Jezz and Warren walked into the conference room to meet the ambassador. The grey-haired older gentleman was accompanied by a trundling automaton that caught Warrens attention. Jezz smiled at the sight of the mechanical Corth, ¡°Attica!!¡± She smiled a surprised look down at him, ¡°how!¡±
¡°A long story little one, I would like to introduce Ambassador Evan Carter. He was sent by Sol.¡± Atticus stated formally. The older gentleman caned his way over before shaking Jezz¡¯s hand before Taking Warren¡¯s.
¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you. Please let us sit. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s the more comfortable option for me these days.¡± Ambassador Carter settled into his seat before continuing, ¡°I¡¯ve read your files, and am familiar with your situation. I have had the pleasure of picking Atticus¡¯ mind here on top of it, but I feel that I need to hear it from you. Ms Jezzaria, what is it that you and your people wish to do?¡±
Jezz took a shaky breath, suddenly feeling her right hand engulfed by Warren¡¯s left. The sensation helped settle her. ¡°I know your people are expanding. I don¡¯t fault you for it. I know that you rediscovered my world after eons of our slumber, and that we owe our very chance at defeating extinction to Humanity. Ambassador¡ we have lost everything, including our very culture. We have no elders to pass down traditions... we remember some of them, but more is lost then remembered¡ simply put, we cannot continue as a species without Humanities help¡. I have no choice but to ask for it.¡±
¡°I see, but what do you wish to do? Atticus has proposed some¡ interesting ideas¡ some born in data¡ Can the Eleri survive in such as their numbers?¡± Asked Carter gently.
¡°I¡ I don¡¯t know¡ but I know we have to try¡± Jezz¡¯s eyes fell to her hands, ¡°I don¡¯t want to have woken up just to lose my people over again...¡±
¡°I believe we may be able to save the Eleri¡. after a fashion.¡± It was Atticus who spoke carefully into the silence¡ ¡°I have some preliminary data that suggests that the Eleri salvation may lie along this chosen path. But I must be allowed to study it. I cannot do so without permission, and facilities.¡±
¡°What aren¡¯t you telling us¡± Warren¡¯s eyes were piercing, his voice hard with warning.
Even in his mechanical/digital state, Atticus barely suppressed a nervous fidget. ¡°Warren, I am a scientist. I also hold the burden of state secrets. I cannot tell you until I know for sure and have been given permission¡ it is the cost of business, you understand.¡±
¡°So, I assume you have the facilities then... then whose permission do you need?¡± Warren asked curtly. He did not like that answer, but He too held his own secrets bound by oath. He grudgingly respected the unsaid.
¡°Yours.. yours and Jezzaria¡¯s¡ Jezzaria, you are the oldest female Eleri. Time feels frozen in cryo stasis, but the truth is that when time is measured in Eons¡ even in cryo, one ages. You went in to cryo a 17-year-old girl. But you awakened, after 45 million years, closer to 19¡¡± Atticus sighed, ¡°To put it scientifically, you are the only reproductively mature Eleri in existence. I need permission for a sample of your¡ reproductive material... Warren, the same goes for you¡¡±
Jezz turned bright shades as her abashed look could not be conquered. Warren raised an eyebrow. ¡°Atticus, I have to ask¡ why myself?¡±
¡°Because you are invested my boy. You are simply the most likely to say yes. Humanity is unique in the galaxy in that you are one sapient species with many subspecies at the same time. You call them races, but these slight differences make humanity a perfect donor to aid in those¡ adjustments... that would be required to ensure a genetically stable Elerian population. The Eleri are too genetically homogenous to effect a repopulation with the current surviving number. I know you have questions... but I can say no more. Will you help me save her people¡± Atticus asked sincerely.
¡°Yes, whatever you need.¡± Warren answered without hesitation. He wasn¡¯t looking at Atticus.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Ambassador Gwen sat in her office. She had just finished trade and relations talks with the Lycan representatives, Growrmun had been returned to status on the homeworld. His family could return home. Over the coming months, Sol and Drowrl would exchange cultural and economic information. Gwen hoped there would be common ground there for lasting commerce. She settled down to the latest packet and noticed one from Mac as well as one from a Captain Yasushi simply labeled ¡°urgent¡±. The video file began its auto-play from Yasushi¡¯s packet and Gwen raised an eyebrow as a Corth appeared and began to speak. ¡°I am Atticus, digital copy of Attica. I Send this to the Sol representative in Unity space. I require contact with the remnant of the Corth that may be left. I understand that you have been in contact with them. There is much to discuss¡¡±
2 hours later, the video file closed¡ Gwen just sat in her chair for over a half hour afterword, before calling up an anti-encryption algorithmic program that she had placed on her console the day she moved in. She found what she was searching for. Smirking, she typed into the blank black screen, ¡°We need to talk, sober if possible. Attica sends his regards.¡±
Gwen sat back and waited... she did not wait long.
*How* came the response 2 minutes later
Gwen leaned into her keyboard ¡°You cracked the Delmar Code inside this mainframe¡ The Sol encryption and security algorithms, however, tracked this connection almost before I responded to you the first time.¡±
*I see. What Do you know of Attica*
¡°I know of the Eleri, We discovered their planet a month ago. There were survivors. Attica made it¡ after a fashion.¡±
*after a fashion?*
¡°His digital copy is on Luna Station as we speak, along with the survivors. He wishes to make contact. He has some¡ interesting¡ things to say about humanity.¡±
Gwen sat back in her chair and waited for a response. 5 minutes went by before she got one.
*If He knows. You know*
¡°Yes¡±
*48760993451-0002. Attica will know*
Gwen¡¯s console flickered before returning to normal operation after a 1 minute. Save for a new file in her documents folder with the last message as its only substance. She opened the security program again, only to see the connection terminated from the other side.
Gwen Titled the file for delivery and added it to the next transmission due to go out in 3 days.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
-present-
The sun was just sinking just below the tree line, scattering streaks of reds and pinks along the high altitude layer that had moved overtop them in the waning hours of their flight home. Mac¡¯s uncle Martin had purchased Willow Hills private field when He and Gwen had married, and it was where Mac and Clint had lived after the Galveston strike that orphaned them. Mac had spent many vacations here and had sent the kids down with Nicole while they delivered Concord to her caregivers. The big tire¡¯d Maule bobbed softly in the grass as its taxi¡¯s back behind the house. Mac stabbed the differential brakes and spun the tail dragged on one wheel before arresting its turn and reversing the propellers pitch and backing the plane into the hanger before shutting down.
¡°That was. Incredible¡¡± Lyri breathed as they stepped out and down out of the plane. The Maule ticked quietly as the turbo prop powerplant cooled in the crisp late spring evening air.
Mac just chuckled as he stacked their luggage on the golf cart that resided in the hanger. ¡°It feels so different¡ coming back... I didn¡¯t realize how much I missed Terra.¡± He looked up as the screen door on the back porch clattered shut and the twins bolted out to them.
¡°Ma! Da!! Everything is GREEN!!¡± Bry exclaimed. ¡°There¡¯s no orange!¡±
Mac belted a belly laugh, ¡°that¡¯s because the plants here use a different way to catch the sun.
¡°Where¡¯s the Jungle¡. It feels weird not in it¡± Tris¡¯s worried tone hovered on the edge of her wonder.
¡°Terra doesn¡¯t have just jungle. She has a lot of different places.¡± Lyri¡¯s gentle response was accompanied by scooping up her daughter while their son was busy sticking his head in the airplane.
¡°Da? This is a weird shuttle.. can it get to space?¡± He asked, his head and shoulder disappearing inside the cargo doors of the Maule.
¡°No bud, she¡¯s much older. She¡¯s called an airplane. My Uncle found her in this hanger. He and I spent many vacations putting her back together. He taught me to fly in her.¡± Max walked over, boosting Bry up and into the plane to explore. Mac walked around and opened the pilot¡¯s side door and found his son already sitting in the seat staring at all the gauges and switches.
¡°It¡¯s... weird¡. no screens.¡± Bry said. His legs still swung from the seat as he inspected the aircraft¡¯s instruments in the adorable seriousness only little ones are capable, ¡°can we fly?¡± He said finally.
¡°Tomorrow, it¡¯s getting late, we all need to get adjusted to our new day/night cycles. Terra¡¯s is a little shorter than standard.¡± Mac scruffled his son¡¯s shaggy auburn hair, ¡°you need a trim, come¡¯ ere.¡± He tapped his chest and Bry vaulted out of the plane without a second thought into his father¡¯s arms.
¡°Promise?¡± He stared into his dad¡¯s eyes, holding his extra super serious face before resolving into laughter as the tickle monster attacked.
¡°Promise.¡± Mac said, relenting before setting his boy on the ground and they all headed for the house only to make out Nicole leaning up against the hanger door. Lyrian walked over to give her a hug and they all headed inside. A new discovery awaited them inside, as Nicole had ordered¡
PIZZA
Chapter 68
Warren stepped quietly through the door of the Laboratory that was next to the Elerian Quarter. Over the last few weeks, acquiring test samples aside, has been some of the best in his life. His Jezz was a gem. She had spent as much time with him as she could between classes and matters of state. They had been out together countless times to dinners, movies, and more than a few of the more secluded places for heavy petting sessions. She had told him about her world. The world she remembered¡ It had made her sad more than once but talking about it seemed to give her closure. He showed her bits of Terra and Mars. She loved the central gardens, and his little porcelain angel had become very attached to having him boost her up in the air like a cheerleader, which, in this gravity, would send her soaring almost to the top of the dome for her to glide back down to him. She was getting stronger. Each flight lasted longer as her flight muscles grew out of the atrophy in Luna¡¯s gravity. No, everything was almost perfect, accept one thing. Her body was that of a full grown, mature, drop-dead gorgeous Eleri female, but she was still 17 in her mind. A 17-year-old girl who wanted him in a very¡. Biblical fashion.
¡°Ah, Lt. Warren. It¡¯s a surprise to see you here. How have you been.¡± Atticus trundled over, waving the young man in.
¡°Hi Atticus, I¡¯m doin¡¯ fine.¡± Warren started.
¡°Oh, my boy, I may be new to humans, but I am not new to that look. If you are here, it can only mean it¡¯s about Jezzaria. What happened.¡± Atticus asked, equal parts worry and curiosity.
Warren gave him a mild glare before slumping his shoulders, ¡°Can we speak privately... I don¡¯t want to...¡±
¡°Ah, yes. This way.¡± The trundling automaton waved toward his office section and settled into a chair, ¡°what¡¯s going on my boy.¡±
¡°I need to know when Jezz¡¯s birthday would have been¡ when would she have turned 18.¡± Warren asked carefully.
¡°I¡¯m afraid I don¡¯t understand. Her body is significantly older than 17 now. I haven¡¯t shared this with her, but accounting for cryo aging over 45 million years, she is physically about a year older than you are.¡± Atticus stated before his eyes widened, ¡°ah¡ I see. She was always quite forward when she was comfortable with someone. Much like her father that way. She has made¡ advances.¡±
Warren nodded, ¡°in my culture, one does not reach adulthood until 18 years. I know we are basically the same age... but her mind is still¡ she hasn¡¯t lived 18 years, merely been alive for 35 million. It¡¯s a very bad thing, to do what she wants us to do, with our ¡°age difference¡± in lived experience.¡± Warren leaned back in his chair slouching in mental exhaustion. ¡°I¡¯m not sure anyone else has a prayer of understanding this than you...¡±
¡°I think I do... give me a moment¡¡± Atticus stood and walked around to his desk and pecked at his keyboard. ¡°One week, 5 days, by your calendar. That¡¯s when her 18th birthday would be accounting for ¡°lived experience¡± of yours. Have you told her?¡±
¡°No¡ she got a little mad the other night and we haven¡¯t talked¡ it¡¯s not the, only worry I have¡ she is so, fragile. I¡¯m Human, I don¡¯t know how it would work between us... or if she could even survive¡ me...¡± Warrens face contorted in discomfort as he spoke changing into a very lovely shade of red by Atticus¡¯ estimation.
He dared not tease the boy, ¡°Have you had a mate before.¡±
Warrens head snapped up in shock before answering, ¡°if by mates you mean had sex with another¡. No¡ I haven¡¯t.¡±
¡°I assume you know what happens.¡± Atticus asked gently.
¡°I know what goes where.¡± Warren said uncomfortably carefully.
¡°Then first let me calm your fears of.. physical¡ comparability.¡± Atticus stated gently, ¡°as for your fear of hurting her¡.¡±
¡°I know I can crush her at will¡ She is so fragile Atticus. I want her safe, protected. Even if from me.¡± The last part clearly hurt Warren to say.
¡°Warren... is that not her decision to make? Isn¡¯t it her choice as well to be with you?¡± Atticus asked gently, ¡°The answer to your question is, yes. Mating an Eleri with a Human could easily end up with the Elerian¡¯s death. And any offspring from that union would undoubtedly need to be removed from the mother regardless of species and gestated artificially¡ but¡ It is possible, with the right partners, and a bit of care, to mate human and Eleri together safely and successfully¡¡± Atticus softened his tone ¡°Please, Warren. Talk to her. I¡¯m afraid you two must figure this out on your own. You two care for each other deeply, and you two must be the ones to work this out.¡±
Warren nodded before taking a deep breath. ¡°Ok¡ Atticus... I will. Sorry to bother you.¡±
¡°It¡¯s no bother my boy. In many ways, you and Jezzaria are to be apologized to...¡± Atticus¡¯ somber tone registered.
¡°Why?¡± Warren asked.
Atticus just smiled and shoo¡¯d him out of the laboratory.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Atticus shook his head in amusement as he trundled back to his office. ¡®At least that half of the experiment is going nicely. I wish them the best¡. Now¡¡¯ He pulled up a file again. One sent to him personally by the ambassador to the Unity, Gwen Mackenzie Trenton. It was a small file with a series of human numbers in it. To anyone else it would be meaningless... Atticus typed them into a program he had been working on since his reanimating. It was time to see if it was ready. If this worked, the lag time would be about 38 seconds one way. It appeared that Humanity still had much to learn about interstellar communication.
2 minutes went by¡ before his blank black screen pulsed with characters of the long dead Corth species.
*Attica? *
¡°Attica is dead, He copied himself rather than go into cryo, to preserve power for the young ones. I am that copy, Atticus.¡±
Atticus sat back in his chair waiting the response¡..
*why*
¡°I suspected an extended time scale. I knew anyone over the age of 20 would not survive. I took a gamble.¡±
*did they know? *
¡°No¡±
*Are you stable*
¡°For now, I project that this copy will degrade to failure in 2-5 standard years.¡±
*You must return, you can be saved*
¡°I cannot¡±
*You must*
¡°My final work must be completed¡ you started it in Humanity, didn¡¯t you, love.¡±
A full five minutes went by.
*The sequences*
¡°Yes, artfully done. This world has created something more than I could possibly imagine, but I recognized my sequencing regime in their base pairs.¡±
*Do they know? *
¡°Some¡¡±
*How much*
¡°Enough if they dig, I have sold myself as the one to investigate¡ they must be told.¡±
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A full 10 minutes went by¡..
*I know*
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Chancellor Thomas Durant sat in his Terran office, gazing out over Gulf St Vincent. He was finally to get the briefing he had be promised, but he couldn¡¯t fault the man coming to meet him. Chancellor Durant had been following the progress of James and Lyrian Mackenzie Grarzia as they, mostly Lyrian, literally won humanity over as they spent their time with their family and traveling across the globe towards his office down under. They had refused all but a modest security force as they leap frogged across terra, willingly being mobbed by the masses. It was quite a brilliant idea, and Thomas silently kicked himself for not thinking of it first. Today was all business, and just the two of them, instead of the whole family, we¡¯re flying by suborbital shuttle to meet him directly. His door buzzed, and he waved off his butler/bodyguards and opened it himself.
¡°Commodore James Grarzia reporting as ordered sir!¡± Mac snapped off a salute even as his wife tried, and mostly succeeded in holding in a spout of giggles.
¡°Oh, Come off it. Frank always hated that sort of fluff.¡± Thomas¡¯ accent made Lyrian¡¯s eyes widen.
¡°You win. The only one to possibly beat the Scottish.¡± She giggled and Mac gave her a ¡®told you¡¯ look before they both followed the chancellor in and sat down around the desk. ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you¡± she smiled warmly at the very tanned Chancellor Durant.
¡°I apologize for how late this meeting comes. It...¡± Mac stopped as the leader Humanity put up one hand.
¡°Don¡¯t, what you two came up with is frankly brilliant. Your little family vacation has done more for our cause than anything I would have planned.¡± Thomas¡¯ sincerity was not a hidden one, ¡°It helps that your wife truly loves our planet.¡± He smiled at her. ¡°Now, I have read everything I can get my hands on, but I want to hear it from you. What are we dealing with.¡±
¡°In Unity space, we have afforded ourselves some breathing room. Human power generation Technology renders anything outside of overwhelming numbers a certain victory. Unity doctrine almost completely ignores, and discounts Projectile and Kinetic weapons because they cannot generate the power needed to make them lethal. Simply put, we own the skies over Delmar and anywhere one of our warship¡¯s traverses through. Our Delmar Allies have taken what we have shown them and run with it. Frankly, one of the requests I would make of you is to coordinate with Delmar¡¯s R&D Department and create Joint Designs.¡±
¡°I read something about that, they have lived with a power deficit for their ships that their aptitude for efficiency exceeds our own.¡±
¡°That is an accurate assessment. As for the Unity¡ that both are, and are not, our biggest threat. Their upper leadership, this Tetrarchy, seems to either be ambivalent to Humanity, not ready for a confrontation, or need something from us. They have not made their traditional demands for unification that they have of other races. Our real enemy is known, but unknown.¡± Mac took a breath.
Thomas took that chance to ask, ¡°the Vorath. A ¡®super Corth¡¯ as it were. Ones thought gone, who are the unknown?¡±
¡°Currently that as well as the Thermians, and the C¡¯Claram. They were the backbone and the closet power of the unity. A recent military¡. Restructuring¡ has left them blaming humanity for their fall from grace¡ in truth it was our open public exposure of practices thought extinct, through surviving and winning, that caused it. Their own abuse of generational power was their own fall.¡± Mac paused for questions.
Thomas steepled his fingers, ¡°Are you telling me we are in a pseudo-war with two entire space-faring species?¡± He asked very carefully.
¡°We don¡¯t know. Piracy is prevalent in Unity space. They simply do not have the resources to cover that many parsecs. A robust recognition of this allows us to outfit even ours and our Delmar flagged freighters with significant firepower. It appears that after Lucid Travelers run in with a pirate fleet, most are simply unwilling to test our crews further.¡± Mac settled in his chair, ¡°We cannot rule out individual desperation for these attacks. To put a historical point on it, the same lack of work for trained sailors leaks to something similar in the Spanish Main between the. Seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.¡± He finished.
¡°I see, the ships being handed over to your crews at Luna will be a stabilizing force in the region, not an escalating one?¡± Thomas prodded.
¡°When we take over the GHO escort duties, yes. The Galactic Health Organization is generally seen as a positive force in dire situations. Ambassador Trenton hopes to associate that idea with our flag, and our vessels.¡± Mac responded.
Thomas seemed to pick over numbers in his brain, ¡°A bold move, do we have the ships?¡±
¡°We should. Currently, only Sol and Delmar flagged military vessels are slip Drive capable. The difference between slip-space jumps and subspace jumps are¡ indisputable.¡± It was Lyrian who spoke up this time, ¡°a trip that takes months, can now take hours. Simply put, if we used slip-drives for commerce in Unity space, we would crash the economies of entire systems... if not the entire sector. Unity is not ready for slip-space. You, Humanity, are fortunate to be able to create an economy around slip-space. It will be decades, if not centuries before we can slowly institute the changes to use slip-space for unity Commerce.¡±
¡°So, for now, the Sol/Delmar fleets are the fastest response fleet in the galaxy¡. That we know of.¡± Thomas stated, relaxing his position. ¡°Tell me about this Deathworld phenomenon we have stumbled into.¡±
The next 4 hours went on as expected. Food and water were brought up as the new Chancellor drank from the firehouse of intergalactic politics, economy, and human expansion into world murdered by a threat possibly capable of returning¡
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
It was late in the evening when Warren stopped in front of a familiar door. He paused at it for a moment, and raised his hand to knock when it slid open on its own as Jezz stood in front of him. ¡°Hi...¡± was all he said before she nodded for him to come in. He walked in slowly, her apartment was no longer sterile and unlived in. Jezz had pictures of earth, along with paintings of what he assumed were her memories of Eleri.
He sat down on the couch as she settled in next to him, ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± they said in unison, but Warren gently put a hand on her arm, ¡°Please, I need to say this¡¡±
Jezzaria immediately tensed up¡ she searched his face for several moments before barely nodding.
¡°Jezz, how old do you think I am..¡±. He started she just gave a shrug, ¡°I¡¯ll be 19 in the next few months or so... in my culture, you are not considered and adult until you are 18... and for an adult to¡. Becoming intimate with someone under 18¡ where I am from, it is considered rape outside of specific circumstances where both participants are under aged...¡± he spoke slowly, letting his words sink in, ¡°I know, that your body is physiologically over 18, but you haven¡¯t lived 18 years¡± he tapped his temple, ¡°In here.¡±
Jezz¡¯s eyes widened in understanding. ¡°You weren¡¯t rejecting me, you were¡¡±
Warren just nodded before continuing, ¡°Then there is the rest¡¡±
Jezz heart stopped. But he caressed the side of her face as she calmed once more.
¡°Jezz, it could kill you¡ I could¡ and I could kill you simply by ¡®mating¡¯ you.¡± He put air quotes up with his fingers. ¡°I could dismember you by accident. Crush your rib cage in an errant motion. I can¡¯t do that to you¡¡± Warren¡¯s voice brimmed with the horror of an overactive mind giving him mental images...
The two of them sat in silence before Jezz pulled closer to him, wiggling her way under his arm and pressing herself against his side, ¡°I know, I¡¯ve always known.¡± She murmured, noticing his surprise.
Warren searched her face before wrapping his arms around her and pulled her up to straddle is lap. There was no awkwardness now, and this brought her up to his eye level. Her wings flared out and she draped them over the two of them as she leaned in, pressing her body to his, ¡°I would risk it¡¡± she whispered brushing her lips on his, she took his right hand by the wrist, guiding it under her shirt. She let out a small moan as she guided his fingertips further than he had dared on his own. ¡°You won¡¯t hurt me¡± she gasped as his hand cupped her as she left his hand there and leaned in, and kissed the left side of his neck before pulling away,
¡°I¡¯m your porcelain angel. No one else¡¯s.¡± She pulled back to look him in the eyes and released his hand. Smiling as his hand didn¡¯t leave where she had placed it, she leaned into his touch, putting her forehead on his as she felt his fingers begin to explore on their own.
¡°One week 5 days¡± he whispered, still tracing the lines of her figure with his fingertips.
¡°Why so specific?¡± She managed between gasps and kisses.
¡°Because it¡¯s your 18th birthday¡± he whispered in her ear before releasing her.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Mackenzie, Lyrian, Bryton, and Trisiria stepped off the shuttle to Luna. The little ones immediately began their best imitation of a super ball as they took advantage of the 1/6th T.G. they stepped into. Lyrian caught herself floating with a few steps as she figured out how to walk on the moon, and Mac just laughed at the entire process as his family started meandering the corridors leading to the central gardens. As soon as they got there the twins bolted for the small play area with swings and slides but mostly seeing how high they could jump. Lyri and Mac settled into a bench as the twins ran off.
¡°I wish we had more time on earth¡± Lyrian leaned into Mac as they watched their twins play. ¡°Your home is beautiful.¡± Mac smiled as Lyri continued to habitually use Terra¡¯s ancient name.
¡°My home is with you, and them, but she is beautiful. I guess you are feeling what I felt the first time you showed me Delmar¡± Mac mused.
¡°Will we be able to come back? I know we need to go to Mars to meet with the Shipwrights on Deimos. I hope we can see some of Mars proper.¡± Lyri mused just as the twins came running back to them.
¡°Ma, Da! An Angel!!!¡± Bry belted out grabbing at his father''s hand, ¡°A real Angel!! She¡¯s flying around over there!!¡± Mac raised an eyebrow at his wife before allowing himself to be dragged by a still very bouncy Bryton down the walking paths to the other side of the Gardens. They rounded the corner just as a Familiar winged female Eleri touched down next to an equally familiar USN Lieutenant.
¡°See!!!! Angels are real!!!¡± Bryton triumphed as the two of them bounced, pulling Mac and Lyri over to the pair. Lyri couldn¡¯t help her habitual giggles and Mac just snorted in amusement.
Jezzaria turned in confusion at the sound of the twins only to smile and kneel down to meet them, ¡°and who are you two?¡±
¡°I¡¯m Bry!¡± Bryton grinned.
¡°And you little one?¡± Jezz asked.
¡°Tris...¡± Tris said, more timidly.
¡°Well, High Bry and Tris. Sorry to disappoint you, but I¡¯m Elerian. We aren¡¯t angels. My name is Jezzaria. I can¡¯t quite get into the air on my own here. My Warren here helps me take off.¡±
¡°But he has no wings...¡± Bryton put on an adorably confused, ¡°He¡¯s Human. Like Da¡¯.¡±
Jezz looked up and finally recognized Mac and Lyrian, ¡°Oh! Hello again! I thought you were on the ships while Mac was on Terra.¡±
¡°We were on Terra, but Mac¡¯s duties take him to Mars, so we are passing through.¡± Lyrian said, giving the Eleri woman a gentle hug.
Jezz paused for a moment looking at Lyrian oddly, ¡°WE? But.. Im sorry, I don¡¯t understand. How can you or the little ones survive Terran Gravity?¡±
¡°I spent a long time slowly building up my body to be able to handle not only Mac¡¯s Homeworld, but the rigors of Starfighter Combat. Mac and I fight together in a starfighter capable of¡ what... 53-54 times what we are standing in?¡± She turned to Mac.
¡°Sounds about right. And the twins here can handle Terra because They were born into and Developed in Human 1G. They are half human.¡± Mac stated and Jezz¡¯s eyes widened in stunned shock.
Jezz looked Lyrian up and down again, noticing the tell-tale signs of her physical prowess hidden in her easy posture and pleasant demeanor. She then bent down and picked up Bryton, giving him a quick hug, feeling the young one¡¯s heft before doing the same with Tris. ¡°I had no idea. I assumed they were orphans, you adopted them. Cross-species procreation is/was¡ completely unheard of¡¡± Jezz looked up at Warren before standing back up and visibly churning through her thoughts. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but¡ I know you two know about my people situation¡ Your little ones¡ They''re healthy¡ They''re strong¡ They¡¡± she shivered for a moment eliciting an embrace from Warren as he looked a worried question down at her. ¡°I¡¯m fine Warren¡¡± She reassured him before tip-toeing up and giving him a peck on the cheek. She didn¡¯t notice Mac¡¯s raised eyebrow and Lyrians knowing smile.
¡°Mr and Mrs Grarzia, would you be willing to come with me? I think there is someone you should meet,¡± she asked with a formal sincerity.
____________________________________
Atticus was working his way through his latest batch of data when his laboratory¡¯s main doors hissed open. He sighed; this was not a time when visitors were needed nor wanted. He recognized his precarious position at the moment, however, and placed a neutrally happy face on his still slightly animatronic features. He rounded the corner to his main workspace to see Jezz and Warren accompanied by the Human and Delmar Couple from the Excelsior standing at the counter separating the waiting/greeting area from the rest of his preciously fragile instrumentation. ¡°Ah, Jezz. This is unexpected, I must admit I did not expect visitors today. I¡¯m afraid I am in the middle of something quite sensitive.¡± He said diplomatically.
¡°I¡¯m sorry Atticus, but this¡ This can¡¯t wait¡¡± Jezz¡¯s tone registered, and Atticus put aside his data analysis mental file for later.
¡°My dear, did something happen?¡± He flashed a glance at Warren before returning his attention to her.
¡°Yes. But not to me. You remember Mac and Lyrian?¡± Jezz paused, waiting until he nodded, ¡°They aren¡¯t just married. Mac and Lyrian, had... they have...¡± she was interrupted by a small voice.
¡°Da¡¯! I can¡¯t see!¡± came a tiny voice, in a vague attempt at a whisper.
Atticus¡¯ mind screeched to a halt as Mac chuckled and lifted a pair of Delmar children onto the counter in front of him and instructed them to sit. His mind restarted as his gaze moved to them and recognized the subtle differences only a lifelong Zoological scientist would notice. He turned back to Jezz.
¡°Atticus, those aren¡¯t Delmar Orphans¡ They are half Human¡ Is it... could it¡¡± she stuttered.
Atticus quickly walked up the steps on the other side of the counter that brought him level with more normal-heighted bipeds, just as the twins noticed him and stared. ¡°Oh¡ my¡¡± He whispered. ¡°Natural gestation?¡± he asked the Delmar female.
¡°I carried them to term. We did have to perform a Cesarian for birth though¡± Lyrian said tentatively.
¡°You carried them¡¡± Atticus mused openly, ¡°Please, come into my office. We have much to discuss.¡±
This was more important indeed.
Chapter 69
Atticus¡¯ sat in his chair facing the 6 in front of them. Mac had pulled a toy car from his pocket for Bry and Tris was in Lyrian¡¯s lap munching on some snacks from Mac¡¯s Day pack. Tris just so happened to be munching on a small bag of Taki¡¯s¡ which Atticus¡¯ suspected might Kill Lyrian if she had the same serving by ratio¡ They were half human alright.
¡°Please forgive my directness, but I do not ask anything without excellent reason.¡± He began, ¡°May I ask about your pairing. If I remember the Delmar of my day correctly, the female psych actively binds herself to the mind of her chosen mate? How.. well.. did that process proceed. Were there any issues with the bonding itself or afterward?¡± He raised his hand in preparation of outrage, ¡°I recognize the personal nature of my question, please humor me.¡±
Lyrian looked over to her husband, who nodded slowly to her, ¡°We call it ¡°The Claiming¡± now. I felt no resistance, or partial connection during our claiming. My only inconsistency was the shier¡ intensity¡ of Mac¡¯s emotions. Humanity, I have learned since claiming my husband, might have the strongest control over their emotions than any race known or unknown. My Mac is a warrior of the void..¡± She looked a question to her husband and Mac nodded again. Atticus¡¯ eyes narrowed, ¡°His Legacy since before the age or majority is one of titanic loss and grief mixed with wars terrible wrath and death. He has lost many and killed many more. The first time he had to release his more¡ brutal¡ side in front of me was a traumatic experience. His instinct to Kill ruthlessly was hard to understand as I felt it echo¡¯d in my own soul as he physically incapacitated the Lycan infiltrator that tried to kill me. I felt everything from his side of the fight. It took me a considerable amount of time to process and reconcile that side of him with the kind husband and father I see every day. I have seen that side several more times, several times as a willing participant in combat alongside him. I think our bond is stronger than most because of it.¡± Lyrian finished and reached for her husband¡¯s hand. He merely smiled at her gently before petting Bry on the head as his lap was turned into a racetrack for the boys imagination.
Atticus tried not to smile at Jezzaria¡¯s expression of shock at the detail of the exchange, and the fact that a Delmar female admitted to willingly participating in the violence of war. ¡°Were there any problems¡ physically. I am aware of just how powerful the Human body can be. Their development in extreme gravity has made them extremely dense, and powerful for their size.¡±
Lyrian blushed slightly, ¡°No, He was extremely gentle with me during our first¡ time. I¡¯ve never been hurt by him during those... activities by accident or otherwise. When I progressed toward being able to survive Earth¡¯s Gravity, and fight with him in Concord, we found that we did not have to be so¡ careful.¡±
¡°Ah, a perfect segway out of the pricklier details¡± Atticus did smile at Jezz¡¯s soft giggle, ¡°Being able to adjust to minor changes of gravity is known. But training for 2.2 gravities heavier is not done, even today. You, my dear, are possibly the strongest Delmar to have ever lived... What was your process, and how did you not hurt yourself doing it?¡±
Lyrian¡¯s face hardened slightly, and Atticus noted the very human predatory intensity coming from her feature, ¡°Oh, it hurt¡ It Hurt a lot¡¡± she growled, ¡°I know sort of the basic¡¯s, but Mac and my father, worked together on the details.¡± She paused.
Mac hopped in where she left off, ¡°Doctor Icario Grarzia is a former Military Medic and now the Doctor in residence of the Delmar freighter Lucid Traveler. We discovered this when I took Lyri out for her first flight in Concord. Delmar, when pushed to their absolute limit, but not injured, trigger the same repair processes as if they were actually injured. With no injury to tend, Their body simply builds on top of the healthy bones and tissues in a way that returns a stronger body than before.¡± Mac started.
¡°We had suspected this when we first discovered them. We were waiting for them to achieve orbit before we intervened and explored further.¡± Atticus mentioned.
¡°Well, for lyrian, we abused that process. We put weights on her and ran her into the ground. We created a workout schedule that was both modular and capable of reliably rending her to that state of at the absolute limit of physiological failure, but not actual injury.¡± Mac rubbed his wife¡¯s leg, ¡°My Lyri waged her own war against herself to become who she is today, because on top of the physical training; we had to train her pulmonary and circulatory systems as well. For almost a year, our quarters, and later our home was installed with Gravity plating that kept us in a gravity that was difficult, but not impossible for her to survive in. We coordinated the gravity increases with her training until she is as she is now, as comfortable in 1 Terran Gravity as if she was born to it. This was a blessing in disguise as, when she conceived, she had to carry the twins a significant amount of time in 1 T.G. so that they could develop properly because of my genetic heritage. As such, Bry and Tris here have lived in 1TG their entire life, and coming to Terra held no issues for them. They look Delmar, but they have a few Human organs that make them capable of processing the more dangerous foods that humans like... such as those Taki¡¯s. They have enough spices dangerous to kill a Delmar child her size. Because our family lives largely in 1TG, They are also developing Humanities Muscle and bone mass needed to stay as strong as I am their whole life.¡±
¡°So, you trained yourself to near death to live in his world¡ then carried his children in his gravity¡ and survived?¡± It was Jezzaria, no longer able to keep silent.
¡°Yes, It¡¯s not for everyone. Let¡¯s not forget train until I was capable of surviving Void Combat inside Concord¡± Lyrian said gently, ¡°After learning to fight in a heavy fighter/interdictor, carrying Bry and Tris was a breeze.¡±
¡°Ah, yes. Let¡¯s talk about this Concord. I am unfamiliar with the type of ship.¡± Atticus asked.
¡°Concord is a Terran ship. She is a TALON3, which is basically a deep space stealth escort interceptor and interdictor. She was built before my race had FTL, so she is designed to keep her crew alive and fed during missions that can last years. She is capable of over 90 Terran Gravities of acceleration in the positive and negative Y axis. She has an inertial system that can keep that 90 G¡¯s at 9g¡¯s to the pilot and Weapons System Officer. She is a demanding ship to fly, let along fight. My Lyrian conquered her and is My WSO. She also has a mental data link system to aid in crew efficiency.¡± Mac stated.
Even Warren raised an eyebrow as Mac listed her published capabilities, knowing all too well that there were more accurate classified numbers on that ship. Atticus did a mental calculation and said the next statement very slowly, ¡°My dear, are you telling me¡ that you have not only survived 200 of your worlds gravities¡ but you learned to fight a fighter class starship in those conditions?¡±
Lyrian¡¯s smile was tooth filled as she bore her fangs in triumph, which was an answer in and of itself. Her feral grin sent a shiver down Jezz¡¯s spine. Her mind tried to grasp the expression as it fought with the fact that Delmar did not act as this one just did.
¡°I have¡± Lyrian said with finality.
The Mechanical avatar of the digital copy of Attica retained its primal senses and leaned back slightly as the smile of an Apex hung on the features of Lyrian for a moment before she seemed to recognize his reaction and return to a less threatening gesture. He glanced at her husband and just saw a knowing smirk as his eyes analyzed Atticus with that same Apex¡¯s Piercing gaze. He didn¡¯t bother reigning it in. Not in HIS home system.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
¡°This... Uh... Mental data link... How deep does it go¡± Atticus rallied to the next question.
¡°In humans, It¡¯s a heightened intuition. We are in tune with each other and can sense what the other is about to do. It would help the weapons officer select the target or weapons system that the pilot was thinking about attacking next or using. Or help the pilot see the possible battlefield the way the WSO was observing his data¡ With us¡¡± Mac stopped short and exchanged a long look with his wife.
¡°Please, I suspect that I am on the right track, but I must hear it from you¡± Atticus pressed.
¡°Inside Concord, in the link¡. We don¡¯t exist¡¡± Lyrian said slowly, and all eyes snapped to her accept Mac¡¯s who was just holding her hand, ¡°Our Delmar Scientists adjusted the data link to see if Mac and I could use it¡ The results were, when we initialized the link, our memories, our past, our emotions, everything, aggregate like two halves of one mind¡ When we are in Concord, we are Concord¡ We become one mind, one soul. Her soul¡¡± Lyrian finished.
¡°It has only deepened with each flight¡± Mac stated and Lyrian looked up at him, ¡°Its ok love, we need to know anyway. Our Claiming bond has changed. It¡¯s no longer emotions. Its intuition and, if we concentrate like now...¡±
¡°It is thought¡± Lyrian joined Mac in perfect unison as they continued together, ¡°we can think things to each other¡±.
A pin drop could be heard in the office outside of the sounds of happy kiddo noises.
¡°Mr and Ms Grarzia¡ While I suspect it is not, I have a modified medical bed in this facility... With your permission, I would like to do a full scan of both of you, as well as your children. I of course will give you copies of everything I find, now or later.¡± Atticus took a breath and looked as a very pale Jezzaria, ¡°I know you two know the plight of the Eleri, I am sincere when I say that this is essential to the fight to resurrect their species.¡±
Lyrian¡¯s eyes widened, and she looked over to the young, winged girl who clung to Lt Warren. Her expression softened, and glanced at Mac, ¡°Of course, you have our permission.¡±
Atticus tried to put the possibility of the first case of real telepathy in existence by sitting in his office away for later and began scanning each of them in turn. Pleasantries were exchanged on lighter notes as the twins peppered the animatronic Corth with questions, before farewells were exchanged.
Atticus settled into his chair, and opened the first file from the scans¡ he did not move from that position for 2 days.
________________________________________________
Warren settled into his usual spot on Jezz¡¯s couch as she cuddled up next to him. He had a glass of dark rootbeer in his hand and She had a glass of water in her glass, ¡°Today was¡ heavy¡¡± He breathed the last word.
Jezz took a sip of her glass, ¡°Do you think they are the key? What if¡ if¡¡± She dared not speak it, even now.
¡°If human genes could save your people? I know Atticus could do the splicing. You wouldn¡¯t be the same Eleri, but your people would survive..¡± He murmured as he gave her a peck on the head.
¡°No¡ What if..¡± She faltered before squeezing him with all her strength, ¡°What if you and I¡ if I could¡¡±
¡°Shh, it¡¯s too early to know for sure. For now, one step at a time.¡± He said gently before taking another sip, finishing his glass of human grade alcohol. Jezz pulled up and pushed herself on to his lap before kissing him on the lips.
¡°Whoa¡ that¡¯s sweet...¡± She giggled, before pushing her body to his and kissing him again, more deeply.
¡°Careful, I don¡¯t know how much you can handle¡± Warren chuckled as he noticed her slight waver in balance, ¡°Ok, no more kissing until I wash my mouth out...¡± They had learned early on that corn syrup acted like alcohol to Eleri.
¡°Buh¡ why¡ I feeuul, fantasti¡¯¡± she slurred.
Warren fished for the medical quick scanner from the end table and did a quick scan of her wrist to get check her vitals. She was still at a safe level for her species, but only just. He quickly laid her down and went to wash his mouth out and clean the cup, ¡°You are drunk, Jezz...¡± He chided.
¡°Thisss iith drun¡¯¡± she slurred before trying to stand and failing, falling back into Warrens arms, ¡°You¡¯re¡puurrrrdy¡± She murmured between giggles as Warren scooped her up and settled her into her bed. He gave her some extra water. Luckily ¡°sugar drunk¡± Eleri didn¡¯t have hangovers.
¡°Sleep. I¡¯ll see you in the morning.¡± He said softly to her as he stroked her hair while she drifted off. He checked her one more time to make sure she would be safe, and breathed a heavy sigh as he saw them stabilize and recede as her body began processing the corn syrup, and he tucked her in.
Warren left a note and let himself out. He had a birthday to plan.
_____________________________________________________
Mac tucked Bry and Tris into the small side bedroom in their Luna hotel lodgings for the night before sliding into the master bed and up next to Lyrian, ¡°Hmmm¡ warm...¡± she coo¡¯d as she wrapped her tail around his leg and curled herself around him to lay her head on his chest. She was not the fragile dainty Lyrian he had first met. In her Lythe frame hid hard-won strength. He felt her firmness as she settled into her customary spot on him.
¡°Those two are getting along like a house on fire¡± Mac chuckled.
Lyrian looked up at him, ¡°Warren and Jezzaria? You think they are serious?¡±
¡°Humanity has lost half its population, our need for¡ coupling is pressing. Did you see the way he subconsciously protected her the entire time we were with them. He is serious. Human men get very protective when the women they love are around, especially if she is significantly weaker than him.¡± He spun quickly, pinning his wife under him, ¡°you¡¯re not weaker, not anymore...¡± he rumbled as he leaned in and bit her hard on the neck, growling into her soul.
¡°Now? James¡ Oohhh¡± Lyrain gasped already beginning to feel the effects of his call.
Mac simply leaned over and flicked out the lights before returning his attention to his mate.
-____________________________________________________________
Lucid Traveler thrummed as she made her way through subspace toward their drop-off system. Hera was working through the latest batch of data from Delmar when she heard a chime on her door.
¡°Enter¡± She called, looking up from her console as Jacob Irving¡¯s expression registered. ¡°What happened¡¡±
¡°I just finished Dedrick¡¯s letter... He didn¡¯t make it. I just got the message from Delmar...¡± Jake sagged into a chair, ¡°I fuckin hate those letters...¡± He growled in painful memory. Dedrick had been the lone man who sealed the bridge crew and bought Freeman¡¯s team the time to get to the boarders bent on capturing the bridge.
Hera turned off her console and took his hand, ¡°Did you know him well?¡±
¡°Not well, but he was one of the guys with me when port royal was hit. I knew him well enough.¡± Jacob rubbed his nose, ¡°He had a daughter on the way¡¡±
¡°Oh¡¡± Hera said, ¡°Are you ok?¡± her worried tone bleed through and Jacob gave her a sad smile
¡°I¡¯m ok, I just don¡¯t like this part. We lost less than I hoped for, but more than I wanted in that fight. Poor Traveler is going to need a once over¡ and I owe that crazy fuck Mackenzie a big bottle of something expensive. The upgrades he put into her defensive systems saved our lives.¡±
Hera snorted but couldn¡¯t disagree on either point. She knew Mac and Clint well enough to know they would both wear the moniker proudly. ¡°The repairs should hold until seasons end. I¡¯ve noticed a few ¡°unknown contacts¡± rapidly leave the system when we drop in. I suspect that our reputation is preceding us. Did you hear the rumors from the last station?¡±
¡°Yea¡ I¡¯m not sayin shit to dissuade them as long as it keeps us out of fights¡ but seriously... if the ¡®The Dread Captain Irving took on 6 barges and a frigate¡¯... I wanna buy that man a drink¡± Jake¡¯s dark chuckle held an edge of familiar pain in it. ¡°So, what¡¯s our new stop?¡±
¡°A place we have been before. The GHO called, they purchased our cargo at a premium and reconciled with our contractors. We are diverting to He¡¯rth station. Our load of Insecticides is headed for an outbreak on Argorania. We have accepted a 3-trip run to drag in as much bug killer as we can stuff in our holds. It appears that some asshat didn¡¯t do the appropriate cleaning before touring the fields... and left behind extra planetary aphid eggs. It¡¯s bad. Argorania has lost 40 percent of its output in the last 3 months.¡± She read off her console.
¡°We had invasive species problems even regarding just different parts of Terra¡ I can¡¯t imagine a planet-wide infestation¡ Can our drives handle a max profile for the next three trips?¡± he asked?
¡°I¡¯ll check with the Chief in the morning, but I think so. They do have fresh rebuilds on them and Terran Power behind them.¡± She jotted a note down for later. ¡°I¡¯ll let the night crew know. We should be hitting our next beacon sometime after midnight. They will make the changes then.¡±
¡°Good, so all good for business.¡± He stood taking her hand once more, ¡°now for personal. I got a message from your father today.¡±
Hera¡¯s look of surprise confirmed it, ¡°Oh?¡±
¡°Yea, He wants to ¡®meet me¡¯ and is looking forward to talking to me ¡®face to face¡¯ when we get home.¡± Jake chuckled as Hera hung her head in her hands.
¡°Oh gawds...¡± She moaned. I guess I should have expected that response. ¡°He was not happy after Frie claimed Clint the old way.¡±
¡°So, what are we walking into. Are we talking about cleaning shotgun on kitchen table levels of dad or¡¡± Jake teased lightly as Hera gave him a pained look, ¡°worse?¡±
¡°Replace the shotgun with an orbital cannon¡± She grumbled.
¡°Ooohh..¡± Jacob said, ¡°He knows that doesn¡¯t actually work on Humans¡right?¡±
¡°I tried to tell him¡ please don¡¯t scare him too much? I want him to like you¡¡± She pleaded, standing to settle into his lap.
Jacob pulled her close and leaned in to kiss the top of her head, ¡°How about your mother?¡±
Hera giggled, ¡°She loves you already. There¡¯s that¡±
¡°Well, I have an in then.¡± Jacob said absently. ¡°I¡¯ll be good, promise.¡± He chuckled.
¡°Now, how about a movie.¡± he asked, as she leaned into him.
¡°I pick¡± she said finally, and his smile gave her the answer as they headed off to the rec room.
Chapter 70
Jezzaria awoke to the light coming in from the artificial day night cycles created by false windows that brightened and dimmed on schedule. She smiled as she read the note on her nightstand. A quick shower later she was just pulling on one of her favorite dresses when her door chime rang. Her memory raced back to her as it jogged her mind as to what day it was. Her heart was still racing as she keyed open the door to see a giant bundle of flowers with Warrens head poking out over the top.
¡°Happy Birthday!!¡± His goofy smile over the top of the flowers made her laugh as she took them and spent some time taking in the Terran bouquets aroma as Warren shuffled around for a vase to put them in. Settling on a decorative one from the living room, soon the flowers were taken care off.
¡°They smell wonderful¡ where?¡± She asked, still admiring them. She didn¡¯t notice Warren behind her and startled slightly as he slipped between her wings, wrapped his arms around her from behind in a capturing embrace. He burried his face in her hair as his lips touched her neck.
She felt his voice almost as much as heard it, ¡°they aren¡¯t the only thing that smells nice¡± his voice was a rumbling purr as he kissed her neck.
¡°Hmmmmmm¡¡± she responded to his touch as she reached over her head to run her hands through his hair, ¡°that spot¡ how do you know that spot¡± she panted, melting into his embrace.
Warren pulled back and let her turn to face him, ¡°what spot, you seem to like it when I kiss you there.¡±
¡°Hmm¡± Jezz pulled closer as her feet left the ground, Warren pulling her in for a proper good morning smooch. She had long gotten used to the effortless power her Warren used often to lift her to his eye level, or launch her into the air for one of her wing strength training sessions.
¡°Come on, we have a birthday to celebrate¡± he smiled down at her before they both headed down the hall. They first ended up at her favorite cafe for a late breakfast followed by an observation shuttle ride in earths orbit for lunch. Dinner was delivered to Jezz apartment before a whirlwind movie marathon where Warren finally showed her why he, and others occasionally called her an angel. Halfway through the second movie, Jezz slipped away for a moment and changed into her favorite night shirt, leaving her undergarments behind and curled up next to Warren for the second half of the movie.
Towards the end of the movie, Warren had pulled her to his chest and was idly running his fingers through her hair and tracing her neck and ears. He paused the movie after his hand brushed her shirt covering her chest and noticed her bra¡¯less condition. Their eyes locked as he slowly set the tv controls aside and reached for her waist.
Warren pulled her to him as She swung around to straddle his lap. Jezz wrapped her arms around his neck and her lips met his, as Warren captured her in his embrace. ¡°You sure?¡± He whispered after a moment breaking their lip lock.
¡°More than anything¡± Jezz gasped, she then did something he didn¡¯t expect. She leaned in and kissed the middle of the right side of his kneck before biting him hard and sucking on his skin, ¡°that, is how we mark our mates¡± she whispered leaning back out to admire her handiwork.
She looked to see him sizing her up, and a shiver ran down her as she felt him begin to tighten his embrace as she moved with him, her hands cupped the back of his head as she surrendered to his embrace, leaning her head slightly in her people¡¯s way of surrendering her body to him. His lips touched her skin as she guided his head to her, and she. Felt his teeth take hold and she winced slightly as she felt him mark her properly, followed by him releasing his embrace even as his lips kissed their way up to her lips before pulling away from her.
The moment their eyes met, Jezz found herself frozen in place. His eyes were locked on her¡¯s as of daring her to run, to fight him, searching for any sign of resistance; daring her to balk.
She was still entranced in his gaze when she discovered why he looked at her so. She gasped as his fingertips reached the bottom of her shirt. He held her gaze, searching her soul as his fingertips slowly began to slide under her shirt, lifting it.
His touch, set her body on fire as he began to work his way up past her midriff exposing her skin as it followed his hands up her body.
She couldn¡¯t move from his gaze, arching her back pushing her breasts toward him, surrendering completely as his hands brushed their sides. Warren had moved this hands to either side of her and was slowly pulling her shirt from over her nipples. The fabric¡¯s movement with his hands touch was intoxicating, as he teased her, all the while holding her eyes in his. She knew he was daring her to stop him, watching for any sign of her fear or uncertainty. Even now, as the last little bit of fabric clung to the underside of her breasts, her Warren was protecting her. He teased her with every millimeter of movement.. she still couldn¡¯t look away from his eyes as they locked her in her trembling position.
Then he paused. His eyes still searching, his hands still on her sides teasing the last few little bit of shirt clinging to her breasts. Then she realized, this was as far as they had gone. Only this time, he had placed her on top of him instead of him above her. ¡®He is waiting¡¯ she thought letting him see the desire in her eyes before she raised her own hands to the bottom of his, slowly pushing them the last bit up, then passing them and stripping the night shirt the rest of the way off, revealing she was wearing nothing underneath. She could feel him growing under her lap, stirring her souls primal need. She kept arms over her head, flaring her wing to their full span in her final act of presenting herself to him. She was giving him total control over her very existence. She smirked in small triumph this finally broke his piercing gaze as his eyes took in every inch of her.
¡°You¡¯re breathtaking ¡° his voice was as soft as his touch. Warren didn¡¯t try to hide it. He looked over every inch of her for several moments as he let his hands explore her body. Her pale blue faded lightly toward the middle of her Chest and smooth stomach, she had a small patch of down between her thighs above her woman hood that appeared to be neatly tended to. her breasts were not large, but her small fragile frame accented their size to make them the perfect size, despite being only large B¡¯s. His whole body aches to be close to her, and knowing what she told him over the last week and change of her peoples mating traditions, he understood her pose. It was one of complete surrender, a sign of complete trust and complete submission to her mate. ¡°Breathtaking¡± he whispered as he honored her surrender, leaning forward to take his prize¡
She noticed him move toward her ¡°Then take my breath aw¡ OOOOOooooooooo..¡± she didn¡¯t finish the sentence as Warren pulled her to him as his lips reached her nipples. Locking her in his powerful human arms as he rendered her powerless to resist him. He was no longer searching for her uncertainties¡. Her head arched back as His tongue gently flicked the tip of her nipples, hardening them further before swirling his tongue around each aureola in turn. Jezz¡¯s arms fell, and she ran her fingers through his hair as he worked his lips and tongue around the rest of her chest. Giving every inch of her exposed skin torturously slow gentle brushes and swirls. The fire in her core burned hotter, and she finally lost some control, gently grinding her hips on his lap, moaning at every touch. She was still breathing heavy when his mouth and tongue returned to her aching nipples. She involuntarily grabbed two fist Fulls of his locks, pulling his head to her. He returned to each breast in turn, teasing each with his tongue, before giving each one a slow tongue swirling suck that made her body arch more and her hips buck against his lap. He smiled to himself, kissing his way up her neck and taking her lips on his once more. She release his hair, moving her hands to his shirt.
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¡°Please¡± she moaned between lip locks, furiously pulled at his shirt until it broke free. She pulled it off of him as fast as she could before pressing her skin to his. his warmth drove melted her soul as he finally released her lips. She pulled at his belt and pants, and soon they joined his shirt as the last barriers between them fell.
She settled back into his lap, she felt his manhood against her, and she lost herself rubbing the outside of her woman hood up and down on his shaft. Grinding against him, ¡°you are my first, Warren.¡± She whispered as she felt his manhood glide between the folds of her womanhood.
Warren grunted at her hip¡¯s movement, he just kept kissing his way down her neck again..gently lifting her a little further forward, shuddering as she followed his movements, he felt her shudder as his manhood found her and his tip pressed on her entrance. She gasped as he gently released her. She held her position for a moment, twitching as she moaned at the pressure before one of those twitched moved her just the right direction and the head of his manhood disappeared inside her. This made her cry out in surprise, her thighs began to shake as she felt him inside her. She waited, breathing heavily as he womanhood coated the rest of his shaft further. She felt so full, with just his head, but her thighs began to fail her under this gravity and a small falter used her weight to drive more of him inside her. Warren let out a grunt. He looked her in the eyes as she panted, ¡°take your time¡¡± he whispered gently. She obeyed his command.
she began to grind her hips in a circle, each revolution driving his manhood slightly deeper into her until her legs gave out and slid the last inch fully inside her. Both of them let out a moan, but Jezz began to shake and buck uncontrollably as the fire in her core exploded its release as she filled herself with Warrens manhood. It was the first climax she ever had, she bucked and moaned as waves of pleasure took her mind from her.
Warren tried to hold still as every buck and hip twitch worked him around inside her.. his eyes widened as her body began to pulse with soft blue patterns of previously unseeable bioluminescence across her body. After several moments, the lines of blue faded as she calmed down enough to regain control of her faculties.
Her body came to rest once more as she stayed motionless on him, ¡°wha.. wha.. ooooo¡± she groaned, almost going over the edge as she leaned forward and she felt his manhood twitch involuntarily as Warren let out a grunt. She put her head on his shoulder. Her wings dropped as she melted into his skin. Warren wrapped his arms around her and stayed still for her.
A full minute went by as Warren let Jezz get used to him..
¡°That was¡ amazing¡± she panted, finally propping herself up on his shoulders.
¡°It¡¯s not over yet..¡± Warren smirked at her shocked look. She opened her mouth ask as he flexed his core, twitching his manhood him side her on purpose. A gasp was all that escaped her lips as Warren Reached up between her arms and cupping the back of her head with is hands, supporting her body with is for arms as he slowly began to work his hips. ¡°Follow my lead¡± he whispered as he started a slow rythm with his hips that began to move his manhood inside her.
She nodded even as she shuddered at the feeling of his manhood rubbing deep inside her. she felt another fire light in her core, fueled by his motion¡ she saw him smile as her lines of bioluminescence returned as she began working in sync with him, grinding against him adding a stirring motion to his thrusts into her.
She wanted to go faster, but Warren kept her slow. The building ball of heat swelled in her core just above his manhood as she dutifully followed her lover''s movements. Each thrust into her fueling the fire inside. She matched his body''s rythm with her own, she was not in control, she knew it. He was hers to command and guide. Her body moved on its own even as her mind faltered, overwhelmed by the fullness of her womanhood as her mate explored every inch of her. Even her bioluminescent patterns blinked and flashed in time as the burning fire of passion on her core burst, washing over her mind even as her body kept time with her mate¡¯s.
She held on to Warren this time, but he did not stop as she climaxed a second time. He fed her climax with a slow rolling movement that her body obeyed. Her mind was along for the ride, at the mercy of every hip roll. She heard him grunt, and felt herself chase him as he slowly sped up. She felt his breathing increase as she moved with him. His hands moved down to her hips as he sped up slightly more before letting out a moan, pressing down on her hips. She followed his command, pressing down on him with all of her as she felt him fill her as he climaxed. She felt her body shudder and shake as she contained him. Her fullness built until she felt a ball of warmth deep inside her before Warren released her hips and pulled her to his chest.
They sat like that for a small eternity until she felt him stir, as he picked her up and carried her effortless to her bedroom. She let him lay her down before he settled in next to her, pulling her close to his side before they both drifted off to sleep.
Warren awoke to a light pressure on his chest, he looked down and found his angel had decided to lay directly on top of him and was staring up at him.. ¡°Hi¡¡± he mumbled quietly as she pulled her naked form up his chest to kiss him
¡°Hi back..¡± she coo¡¯d sliding back down before bumping into his quickly hardening manhood. ¡°Huh? Ooo¡± she responded as her womanhood rubbed against the tip. ¡°How¡ we mated already..¡± she moaned, then shuddered a gasp as her body responded to Warrens touch. Warren place her on his manhood and push himself into her, once more lighting her body on fire. ¡°What.. Oooooooooooo¡±
Warren smiled before slowly sitting up, flipping the two of them over as he hovered over her. ¡°Humans don¡¯t mate. We make love¡¡± he purred into her soul, ¡°we make love for more than just reproduction, we do it for pleasure too.¡± He said between bouts teasing her body with his lips. He withdrew himself almost completely before slowly thrusting back into her. He began this long stroking rythm as he whispered to her, ¡°And we do it for love. And we do it often.¡±
¡°You.. wha¡ ma¡ for¡.uugghhh¡± Jezz lost her words as her body surrendered to him once more.
He looked over Jezz as her body obeyed his rythm and began to roll her hips with his movements. He slowly sped up his thrusts letting her body respond to each change of rythm until he saw what he was looking for. Jezz¡¯s eyes roll back as her back arched and her bioluminescent patterns went crazy as she climaxed. Her hands clenched the sheets as her knuckles turned white
¡°Warren!! OOOOOOOOOOOOOO¡± she moaned as he kept his pace, his lips travelled every inch of her, adding their touch to her experience as he felt himself come closer to his own. He slowed down at the last moment. Slowing his long thrusts for several moments before he burried himself inside her with a grunt and released. She felt her womanhood quiver and pulse as he filled her. He stayed inside her as they both came down from ecstacy as Jezz grabbed his hair with both fists and kissed him with all of her passion. They parted as he slipped from between her legs to safely lay down next to her without hurting her.
Jezz turned to her side even as her body pulsed and glowed. ¡°Holy¡ whoa¡¡±
¡°You told me that your kind¡¯s females reacted that way¡ but I thought you were exaggerating. Oh, and you light up when you come, you forgot to mention that.¡± He whispered as they melted into each others embrace
¡°I didn¡¯t forget, I had to leave something a surprise¡± she murmured, ¡°hmmmm human love making¡. I can get used to that¡¡±
¡°Are you ok?¡± Warren gently touched her body in different places ¡°Not hurt anywhere?¡±
¡°No more sore than I think is normal. You were so gentle. I just feel¡ full¡± she took his hands end wrapped his arms around her as he looked down at her with an eyebrow raised. ¡°It¡¯s nothing to worry about. My people. The men were off foraging, hunting, and fighting. They died¡ a lot¡ in our early history. Even Pappa was gone a lot, but not as much as before. We, females, have the ability to keep what her mate gives her, to ensure generations. We don¡¯t make love as you do, a female can produce several offspring from one pairing.¡± She guided one of his hands down her stomach to feel a slight bulge below her belly button, ¡°you were quite¡ generous¡ If I chose, we could have many children from just tonight.¡±
Warren stroked her stomach feeling the slight bulge for several moments, ¡°chose?¡±
¡°Yes, we females surrender to our mates in the pairing, but we alone choose when and if we conceive.¡± Her expression grew solemn for a moment, ¡°I think we need to wait¡ we need Atticus¡¯ research to finish before I¡¡± she looked up in him in worry¡ she knew he came from a big family and wanted to have a large one himself.
¡°Shhhhh Your not wrong. I want children.. but I won¡¯t have you kill yourself to give them to me ¡ we wait for now, and we take you to Atticus in the morning to make sure you are ok. ¡°He agreed and her entire body uncoiled as she relaxed once more into him.
¡°Deal, So.. tired¡ ¡°she murmured, as she draped one wing over both of them, settling into her Warren.
She was out before Warren could reach for the nightstand light.
Chapter 71
A single ship dropped out of subspace into the Thermian home system, it was largely ignored as its transponder reported the vessel as part of the Home Guard responsible for the security of the home system. Its fresh hull paint hid the slap-dash of patchwork repairs as it slid smoothly into orbit above the home-world. A single shuttle launched from the home-world burning for the black as it synchronized its orbit and entered the docking evolution on the bigger ships port side airlocks.
Kar stood erect as the airlock cycled, the being next to him stood in his own people¡¯s uniform. Small clicks and thumps heralded the docking procedure¡¯s completion as the hiss of air accompanied the other sounds as the shuttle¡¯s occupants cycled into the larger ship¡¯s atmosphere. The doors opened and a Mountain of a Thermian stomped in.
Kar snapped a salute, slamming his breastplate with his fist before bowing his head as the head of the Thermian species eyed up the two of them. He was not an old male, as Thermians did not elect leaders. There was leadership through violence and cunning. Hissari Wuarik¡¯s armor was still stained by the blood of a challenger dispatched just this morning as he stepped forward nodding his approval.
Kar stood at attention once more, ¡°Centarus, Representative of Vorath¡± he announced.
¡°Very good Kar, show us to the meeting room¡± The Hissari (roughly translated ¡°leader, or head¡±) rumbled and the group turned and began down the corridor.
Centarus observed the Thermian head of state, unobtrusively sizing the gigantic lizard up. Blatantly refusing security, he was easily almost twice the mass of a normal Thermian, and the unarmored portions of his person rippled beneath his scales with the promise of violence. He reeked of death, a recent kill. ¡®Maybe this species has promise.¡¯
The group of three entered the room, again Centarus noted the lack of guards, and his respect for this species increased another increment as they sat down across from each other the Durasteel bench creaked under Centarus¡¯ weight and the two Thermians simply settled back on their powerful tails.
¡°I see Kar¡¯s description of you was accurate, I am Centarus. I lead the Vorath in this arm of the Great Cyclone. As you can see, the legends of our existence are true.¡±
¡°Indeed, it is pleasing to see your existence is proven more than a child¡¯s fairy tale.¡± Wuarik¡¯s voice was a rumbling hiss.
¡°Straight to the point, you contacted us, we have observed this¡ Unity¡. For many centuries. You have been its strength for many of those centuries, why now... you have had a setback, yes, but you are in no danger.¡±
¡°Our¡ setback¡ has undone more than 300 years of progress¡. We were within a generation of rending the Unity asssunder. They have grown weak.¡± Waurik snarled.
¡°They were strong enough to remove your kind from military power¡± Centarus observed, a hint of challenge escaped him.
¡°A quarter of our previous number remain. Most of them in key positions, our remnant still in ¡°service¡± to the Unity had to be protected... sssacrifices were made. My agents deep inside the Unity are cogs in the machine, that hold no loyalty to it. If your legends hold true, you understand the importance of but a single cog.¡± The Thermian leader responded levelly, refusing to rise to the bait.
¡®Good, violent and controlled¡ this we can work with¡¯ Centarus then asked, ¡°you know what we seek, what our purpose is. Why join us.¡±
¡°Because we believe the other part of the legends. We wish to become stronger, as a people. My bile rises as birds, squid, monkeys and bitch hounds rule over us by vote of mob. FOOD should not rule¡ we know you added to yourself by other means besides the natural. I wish my children, and their children¡¯s children to have that power. I know we are the weaker race between the two of us. I may be able to best you personally, individual to individual, but my species has been denied the opportunity I know the Unity holds in its walking vaults¡¡± Waurik leaned forward, ¡°We know you lost the war, our ancestors helped defeat you, but¡ we have watched your enemy crumble into dust, we know only 4 remain, we know where they are, and how to expose them. We suspect your resources are¡ limited, at the moment. Aid us in asssending our species, and I will give you retribution, long delayed, but just as sssavory¡± The head of the Thermian race leaned back onto his tail, eyes boring into the Vorath in front of him.
¡°I see this trip has not been a waste..¡± Centarus bore his teeth in a predatory smile as the two Thermians matched his expression
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Warren stirred to a soft glow invaded his slumber.
¡°Hey you¡¡± a familiar voice whispered. His eyes opened as the previous night burned away the fog from his consciousness.
¡°Hey back¡¡± He smiled gently down at Jezz. She had woken up before him and was watching him sleep from her spot where they fell asleep.
¡°Your glowing¡± he murmured as she shifted lay further up on his chest, ¡°I thought¡¡±
¡°We don¡¯t just glow from that. Strong emotions, not everyday emotions, the really strong ones¡ trigger it too.¡± She smiled contentedly up at him before pulling up the last little bit to get her morning kiss, ¡°care to guess this one?¡±
¡°Hmmm¡± Mac mused, idly tracing shapes into the soft downy patch between her wings. A dainty shiver ran over his Jezz as her glow pulsed brighter for a moment. ¡°I love you too,¡± he whispered down at her before capturing her in his embrace. ¡°Let¡¯s get you to Atticus.¡±
¡°Awe, no fun.¡± She whimpered before relenting, climbing out of bed and heading for the shower. She had just gotten the water right when she felt a familiar pair of hands wrap around her.
¡°Room for two?¡± Warren asked before scooping her up and carrying her in with him.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Atticus was broken from his 2-day data crunch with a chime at his door. His animatronic body had not moved, but he himself had been busy sifting through the wealth of data provided by the Grarzia¡¯s scans. Slowly, a clearer and clearer picture was presenting itself. His musings carried him out of his office where he was met with a no longer quite glowing Jezzaria in a pair of tight fitting human style blue jeans and a Eleri cut top. She was accompanied by a Warren who had her sitting up on one of the medical beds and was standing behind her rubbing her back¡¯s down patch as she leaned into his touch.
¡°Ah, I see that you two have successfully paired.¡± Atticus congratulated, ¡°I assume you are here to assure nothing is amiss?¡±
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A pained look, Warren gave Atticus before the digital ghost of Attica relented, ¡°I am happy for both of you. Now, let¡¯s get you checked out. Lay down please.¡±
Jezz settled into the bed while Atticus brought up her previous scans to compare. ¡°Atticus?¡± Jezz asked, ¡°I don¡¯t have an older parent to ask things. And I need some answers.¡±
¡°I¡¯m not Eleri, but I know your species, I¡¯ll try.¡± Atticus nodded, and started the scan.
¡°Momma told me Eleri females can choose when to bear children. What happens if I choose not to, for a long time.¡± Jezz asked tenatively.
¡°I don¡¯t follow.¡±
¡°Warren and I want a big family¡ but¡¡±Jezz paused uncomfortably
¡°I won¡¯t have her risking her life, not until we know how to mitigate or eliminate those risks.¡± Warren squared his shoulders and finished the statement.
¡°Ah, I see. Your Fallopian pouch is close to capacity. If you chose to not conceive at all, your body would absorb the pouches contents naturally within a few weeks. You don¡¯t have to do anything intentional on your part.. why?¡± Atticus mused, still confused.
¡°Because Humans don¡¯t mate as we do, humans¡ make love¡ often¡. and not purely for conception¡.¡± Jezz blushed and her body flashed a slightly more purple hue as her embarrassment peaked.
¡°Ah, I see, let me finish the scans and I think I can give you a few answers.
Atticus spent the next half hour checking over Jezzaria health. There was minor trauma here and there, but all of it was only surface deep, and largely irrelevant. A few spikes in her blood chemistry had him double checking his finding. He finally released his patient, and they entered his office.
¡°The long and short of it, is that Warren did a laudable job considering your vast differences in physical durability, we will say. You are in almost perfect health Jezz. As for the¡. Frequency¡.. of Human physical affection. Your body should begin to adjust to Warrens attention. I advise stopping if any undue pain is felt, and return to me.¡± Atticus paused and took an artificial breath, ¡°I also want to see you weekly. I hate to foist this on you, but we don¡¯t know what a cross species relationship such as yours will do to you. Jezz, you and Warren will have to pioneer the data on this. I will be as¡ considerate as I can¡ but there is missing data in my research that I fear only your relationship can provide. Three months is all I ask. I should have what I need by then.¡±
¡°Our burden is it.¡± Warren mused, remembering his earlier conversation with Atticus, looking down at Jezz for a moment before nodding to Atticus, ¡°Three months.¡± He said formally for the both of them.
¡°Thank you, until next week, I give you a clean bill of health... now SHOO!! Go celebrate.¡± Atticus ushered them out of his laboratory before chuckling to himself as he settled back into his desk. His smile lingered on his artificial features as he dove back into the mystery before him.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Commodore James Mackenzie Grarzia stepped off the shuttle''s ramp in the last place he ever thought he would travel to in peacetime. The enormous cavern carved into the side of Phobos was both the main landing site and final inspection area of the Martian Military shipyards on Phobos. This facility was one of the few places in Sol that had not been ravaged by the turmoil of the Great Sol War. Terra had long considered her one of the Crown Jewels of Mars during the conflict, but never succeeded in laying a finger on her.
The scene before him was one of abject paradox. Half a dozen ships were nearly, arrayed on either side of his landing zone, he recognized both Terran and Martian gunships, escort fighters, a shuttle and at least two of Concord''s sister ships sat in various stages of disassembly and inspection. Shadows of memory flickered through his vision as he slowly walked toward the entrance corridor double doors.
The corridor was a corridor in name only. The massive sliding blast doors were currently cracked for personnel, but they could be opened wide enough to accept capital ship modules for final prep and inspection before sending them to the space side docking array for final assembly. A bald older man in an officer¡¯s uniform greeted in just as he reached the blast doors. His balding head contained alert and confident green eyes, garnishing an exceedingly thick salt and pepper Bandholz style beard.
¡°Commodore Grarzia. Welcome to Phobos shipyards.¡±
¡°Good morning, Commandant, this place is impressive. I¡¯m still in awe I am standing here¡¡±
¡°Ah, Captain¡¯d a ship during the war, son?¡± The old man said solemnly.
Mac chuckle held dark undertones, ¡°captained a ship? No. I spent my war in one of those¡¡± He pointed toward one of the TALONs being worked on, ¡° for 8 years.¡±
¡°The life expectancy of one of those was measured in months. forgive me, I know of almost all the crews that survived that long, I don¡¯t recognize yours.¡± He raised an eyebrow in curiosity.
¡°You wouldn¡¯t. I took the name Grarzia as part of the custom of marrying into a tribe of the Delmar confederation. My sir name during the conflict was Mackenzie. I admit, it is refreshing to be able to not get mobbed by ¡°war romantics¡± these days.¡± Mac chuckled at the recognition spreading on the man¡¯s face before it sobered.
¡°My brother was on the Trafalger¡¡± he said slowly.
Mac stiffened, the strike on Trafalger was a brutal mission, 6 TALONS were sent out, only Mac and one other had returned. ¡°My condolences¡ we all lost a piece of our humanity during that war¡ I lost my family as a teenager¡they lived in Galveston.¡±
The Commanders nodded, not in anger, but in memory, ¡°the old trope holds, war is hell.¡± Ghost¡¯s haunted his tone for a moment before he changing the subject, ¡°Come! let us focus on the future.¡±
With that, the two entered the blast door, Mac was mostly there to observe the progress of the second-generation new model USN designs as well as bring the TALON4 block2¡¯s. The Block ones were already in service and largely done being produced. The Block2¡¯s, however, had been early enough in development that they were going to be taking advantage of the combined Delmar/Human Tech that was coming out of the combined machinations of Captain Johansson and the Brothers Grem.
Mac settled into the cockpit of one of the prototype new model TALONs and most of the controls were in place. ¡°Familiar, I see we will be adding deflectors and PACs? Two?¡±
¡°Yes, the third-generation power distribution systems are just being finalized. These will be the first to get a power bank system. We cannot put a large enough reactor in to power the PACs in their entirety, but we have a bank on each wing that should give the weapons systems a decent enough rate of fire for anti-capital ship roles. By putting them on them on the wingtips, unlike Concord¡¯s nose mounted modification, we are able to double the ammunition quantity inside the forward magazine. We have several configurations that we hope to be modular for different missions. Anything from doubling the GAU34 onboard ammunition, to adding power banks for electronic warfare or a destroyer class RM1005 or PAC in an external pod.¡± the Commander stated.
¡°The block2 is big¡ she looks twice as big as the TALON3¡¯s or the block1-fours.¡± Mac observed.
¡°Closer to three times the size in fact. We have an upgraded Hab system that will be able to power gravity plates and other, long duration amenities that may be necessary. The BLOCK2s will be designed to be able to be configured for missions of up to 4 years.¡± The commander chuckled at Mac¡¯s unbelieving face.
¡°Come, I have a cut-away model in my office.¡± The Commander stated.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°Dropping in 3¡2¡1¡ engage!¡± barked Clint as First fleet dropped into their 4th response in as many weeks. Lucid Traveler continued to be given a wide berth considering her performance in her last engagement with pirates. They seemed to be too terrified of her after the recordings were ¡°leaked¡± of them single-handedly taking on an entire fleet. Other Delmar ships had not been fortunate.
¡°Open Fire!¡± Wild Bill was in full regalia, six-gun belt hung on his hip and a Stetson settled proudly over his Uniforms helmet. He bore his teeth at the enemy before them, ¡°Port Point Defense Batteries, focus on getting those fighter off of the Freighter!¡± he bellowed, clearly heard through the cacophony of shouted orders and callouts. Galveston bristled with wrath as her eviscerating main firepower was brought to bear on the biggest Pirate Garbage Barge They had engaged to date.
¡°Fuckin thing is the size of a Frigate!¡± One of the Delmar crew manning the PDB¡¯s murmured. Clint chuckled at the fact that the Crewman had sworn in English before turning to his monitors. The last of the fighters quickly blipped from the scanners, signaling their demise.
¡°Away Boarding teams! Expect heavy resistance, watch your fire. The captain of her reports there are still pockets of resistance. As long as the Bridge holds, we will take her back!¡±
Two assault shuttles carrying 25 Terran and Martian Marines each catapulted away from Galveston as the Giant Barge began to break up. Pirates still hadn¡¯t learned to depressurize for combat, and the escaping gas finished the job that Galveston¡¯s main guns had started.
¡°Captain, the Target¡¯s, core is heating up. Suspect Critical failure in 45 seconds.¡± The call was barely heard above the din, but it was heard.
¡°Helm, hard a Port- 288 mark119. Put us between the Barge and the Freighter. Starboard Point Defense, up your scans. You are on shrapnel duty. All Hands Brace!¡±
USN Galveston¡¯s main drives bellowed through the bones of her frame as they heaved the Ship of the Line forward as she came about, crossing the T of the Delmar Freighter and presenting her starboard side deflectors and point defense toward the stricken barge as its Fusion Core¡¯s detonated, superheating the atmosphere still inside the rusting monstrosity and shattering the Vessel from the inside. GAU34 bellowed and laser emitters began to glow from the heat of constant fire as they fought to render the larger chunks of the barge into small enough pieces to be taken care of by the shields. They almost succeeded.
Wild Bill was driven to one knee as the largest chunk of their prey slammed into his Starboard broadside shields ¡°Damage Report!¡± He bellowed.
¡°Shield held, but we are venting coolant on decks four, six, and nine! Damage control in route.¡± A crewman yelled back.
¡°Signal, our escorts. Security Peremeter Pattern Mike one niner. Update on our shuttles.¡± Clint Barked.
¡°Shuttles made it before the blast¡± came the response from the Sensor station.
The Com¡¯s crewman spoke up next, ¡°Captain Collins reports the landing zone secure and they are moving in toward the survivors. A... First Officer Grarzia is signaling from the bridge. Quote ¡°We are Holding, just.¡±¡±
¡°Fuck¡¡± Clint swore Vilely. Celestial Traveler was in a slow listless roll to port, her main Drives heavily damaged and inoperative. This was not the reason for Clints reaction.
¡°Admiral?¡± Bill noticed and stepped over.
¡°Mac¡¯s wife, her family name is Grarzia¡¡± Clint stated flicking to a private channel between them.
¡°Shit¡ Captain Collins was on the team that took the Vorath ship. He¡¯ll get it done...¡± Bill clamped his old friend on the shoulder before switching back to the main intercom channel for the bridge,
¡°Com¡¯s Signal Collins, Primary target alpha is the bridge, Possible Broken Arrow. Repeat, possible Broken Arrow on the bridge.¡±
Chapter 72
-earlier-
Captain Alex ¡°Dozer¡± Collin¡¯s glanced up at the shuttle¡¯s ¡°ramp light¡± as it flashed red ¡°THIRTY SECONDS!!! HELMS ON!¡± He bellowed. The now familiar data link spun up in his mind as his helmet sealed into place and pressurized.
¡°Check one two.¡± His monotone call out was not to be confused with calm. Every fiber of his being seared with anticipation mixed with violence as ¡°Dozer¡± Peered out through Captain Collin¡¯s calm features. He subconsciously ran through a double-check of his gear. Including a 50-centimeter Vorath dagger that now rode in ornate alien leather against his right leg. It was the weight of a short sword in earth gravity... in Delmar standard G¡ it was deadly fast.
¡°5 bah 5. Link is live¡± came the drawl of his counterpart and former CO Captain Nico Galanis. The towering Texan¡¯s drawl was crystal clear through his helmet.
¡°Team 2 is ready¡± Collin¡¯s reported as the last of his men¡¯s icons linked up and blinked green.
¡°Confirmed, team 1 likewise. We¡¯re hitt¡¯n the middle. You go fore, I¡¯ll go after. Priority is the bridge and survivors. Send survivors to the shuttles.¡± Galanis Drawled.
¡°Roger¡± Collins responded before swapping to his men¡¯s channels.
¡°Make ready!¡± He bellowed. He bore a snarling smile, Hearing the tale tell clattering of magazines slamming home and weapons chambering ammunition. ¡°Alright you Murder monkeys! We are the cavalry!! We make for the bow! We got friendlies mixed with enemies in pockets of resistance. Check your fire as you move! Second squad!! You are on port-side duty! Push survivors toward the shuttles.¡±
The telltale hiss of venting atmosphere dulled the sound, but a resounding ¡°HURAH!!¡± still rang through the helmet¡¯s speakers.
¡°First squad!! you boys are starboard side!! Same thing, watch your fire and push survivors a¡¯midships!¡± He bellowed. ¡°The fuckers wanna come for us and ours?! Teach them what the MEANS boys!!¡±
A roar of promised violence rose again just as the bow guns of the shuttle barked, vibrating the deck with their staccato song. The shuttle touched down bow first as the rear ramp dropped.
¡°On me!!¡± Dozer howled as he and his men barged out of the shuttle each squad rounding opposite corners of the shuttle unleashing a wall of GAUSS rifle rounds into the survivors of the shuttle''s first volleys. 45 seconds later only the armored men of Sol were left standing as the teams split and got to work.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
-current time-
Cory Grarzia was covered in blood and gore. He silently thanked whoever designed the new void suits that had been issued out since the Humans had arrived. He was shot in at least a dozen places. His left arm was hanging uselessly from a laser rifle blast to the shoulder joint. His right had taken three laser pistol blasts at least, only one had penetrated. It seemed that his suit had better armor than he had assumed as he had taken no less than 7 laser rifle hits to the chest and two glancing plasma hits that had burned away his overgarments. He, Laris, and one Human by the name of ¡°Jesse¡± were all that were left. Jesse wielded a human pistol while Laris and Cory both had three-quarters depleted laser pistols. Cory had scoffed at the human crew''s love of lowly kinetics until he watched Jesse turn two C¡¯Clarim into shattered ruin from the hydrostatic shock of a supersonic round passing through their insides. This was after Jesse had run his rifle dry hosing the corridor to the bridge with the blood and gore of a Thermian Squad in full armor and 6 beings strong. The door to the bridge was jammed half open and a console, ripped clean off the wall by Jesse, lay in the gap as both obstacle and cover. That had been an unpleasant surprise for Cory, who had ignored most of the reports on Humanities strength. Theirs was not a one-sided fight. Captain Olyvia was down, propped up on a cushion with her suit''s left leg providing tourniquet pressure on her upper thigh as she was missing her left leg just above the knee. She was unconscious from the blood loss or the pain. The bridge crew had numbered 8. 4 died in the first seconds. As the Pirates stormed in with laser and melee weapons. Jesse and one other human named Vince lead the counter by literally ripping the helmets off of the two Thermians leading the assault and snapping their knecks with their hands. Vince lay dead from a laser rifle blast through the back of his helmet that signaled the second attack. Jesse¡¯s rifle had turned the second attack into still dripping wall ornamentation as the blood¡¯s water was still boiling off in the vacuum. Unfortunately, that rifle now lay empty on the floor discarded for a sidearm that still had ammunition and a few spare mags.
¡°I got movement¡± Jesse¡¯s voice in Cory¡¯s helmet snapped him to reality. ¡°6¡ no¡ 7.. 4 Lizards, a wolf, and two Bugs.¡± He spat. ¡°They have pieces of deck plating in front of them. My pistol won¡¯t get through.¡±
¡°Fuck¡± Cory swore in English. Something about the word spoken in the Human language seemed to convey the sentiment correctly. ¡°It¡¯s been an¡¡±
Cory froze as his helmet crackled, ¡°Give me 20 seconds¡± a strange calm voice metronomed into his ears.
Jesse broke into a feral grin as he locked eyes with his XO. ¡°This will be good¡± he said before leaning out and emptied the magazine in his pistol into the oncoming enemy. He aimed for the walls as he sent ricochets along the edges of their attacker¡¯s makeshift armored shields. Fresh splashes of gore signaled at least a few new hits as the whole group crouched, huddling down behind the armor.
Just as the closing pirates lowered the plates to the ground in a sort of wall. They began to fire on the beleaguered bridge crew. Cory caught movement behind them as the most heavily armored void suits he had ever seen rounded the far corner.
Resistance had been heavy, but mostly futile, as Alex¡¯s squads moved through the ship. Human Marine¡¯s armor was designed to handle up to humanity''s supersonic kinetic weapons. The relatively low energy and low power laser and plasma weapons largely were ignored by their main armor. Alex was down 3 men from laser rifle shots to their slightly more exposed shoulders, arms and legs. Laser pistols could be ignored completely as ¡°Dozers¡± team bullied their way through a sea of carnage until they finally reached the bridge¡¯s entrance corridor.
When Captain Collin¡¯s saw the situation, he decided not to order open fire. He simply drew his Vorath dagger, itself a signal, as every one of his first squad drew their own hand-to-hand preferences. His mind absent-mindedly recognized that he had an audience as he and his men crashed into the pirates with the sharpened blades of cold steel.
Cory only looked on. Almost a full bloody minute later, only one Thermian was left. Holding a severed wrist, he crawled backward looking up at the leader of their rescuers. His eyes widened as the armored figure wielded a massive dagger of a type Cory had only seen in myth and deep legend. The figure knelt on one knee next to the last pirate before a deft flick of his arms seperated the pirates head from his shoulders leaving a perfectly cut line in the deck plating now quickly being covered in arterial spray.
¡°CLEAR!¡± Cory heard through the open channel. His blood froze as cold as ice as he realized the humans before him had dispatched the entire attacking force, in the corridor, without a single word or sound. The armored leader sheathed his blade before approaching the survivors. ¡°Cory Grarzia?¡±
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Cory could only nod.
¡°Captain Alex Collin¡¯s, get to work stabilizing the ship. I¡¯ll leave 3 men with you as security. We need to get your wounded to care.¡± He turned ¡°Send Doc up! We got wounded!!¡±
With that Captain Collins turned and departed, ¡°Three pull security! The rest, on me. We have more decks to clear!¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Patrick crouched inside the engineering tunnels of Celestial Traveler. He was not a large man, and he had never felt the need to learn how to fight. Yet, here he was, with 3 Delmar engineers and 2other human ones, all crouched in the crawl space hoping for a miracle. He decided to peek one more time. To his horror he saw one of the pirates poking at the Terran-made Fusion core. Warning lights flashed as the idiot came dangerously close to blowing everyone to space dust.
¡®Fuck fuck fuck fuck¡¯ he thought. There were three of them. All armed, and Patrick had nothing but an old revolver his pop sent him off with. He wasn¡¯t even sure the ancient chemical ammunition was still good. He had grabbed it out of nostalgia more than need when the alarm sounded and the pirates came.
¡°If they keep going, we won¡¯t be here much longer¡¡± one of the Delmar engineers, a female by the name of Camorra whispered, crawling up to him.
¡°I know Cammy,¡± Patrick used her nickname the Humans had taken to. ¡°Fuck. Tell the boys back there that I¡¯m going to need em.¡± He whispered.
Moments later the other three humans were up next to him ¡°What¡¯s up, boss?¡±
¡°They are fuckin with the fusion controls... almost blown us all to hell twice so far. We need to take them... I¡¯ll go first¡ but this thing only has six shots. I need you to hit them from the side while I make noise¡± he grumbled.
¡°Alright boss, give us 20 seconds to get ready,¡± the three said as they silently slid out of the service tunnel that was behind one of the desks.
Cammy crawled back up and watched the others get in position. ¡°Will it work?¡±
¡°Pops was meticulous... I hope it does¡± Patrick slowly pulled the ancient K frame from his pocket. He quietly slid the action open and checked the rounds. They seemed clean enough. ¡°Oh, you mean the plan¡ We don¡¯t have a choice¡± He murmured realizing she wasn¡¯t talking about the weapon.
He almost dropped one of the rounds as Cammy leaned in and blew him a kiss over the comms. ¡°For luck¡± she whispered before pulling back into the tunnel with the rest.
Patrick allowed himself a small smile, ¡°No pressure. Girls are watching.¡± He chuckled to himself before taking a deep breath.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Captain Galanis wiped the blade of his old K-Bar on his suit¡¯s pant leg before re-sheathing it as the eliminated pirate sentries guarding the entrance to engineering were dragged away. His men lined up to breach.
Nico activated the controls as the door slid open. His hand shot out in a halt command as he saw a young human engineer jump out from behind a console wielding a blued Smith and Wesson.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Patrick jumped to his feet and bellowed his hatred over open frequency, not so much as to scare his opponents, but to attract their attention. It worked, as he was the only non-pirate visible at the moment. His pop¡¯s old gun felt solid in his hands, evoking memories of his childhood, plinking cans in the Nevada desert. He leveled the weapon in front of him, seeing the familiar sights in front of him line up on the nearest pirate.
The pirate¡¯s head exploded as a 125 grain jacketed soft point entered the criminals helmet just below the visor at over 420 meters per second, Painting its insides with his brains.
Patrick¡¯s hand hurt as the pistol bucked in his hand, he had forgotten how different full power 357 magnum was from the 38¡¯s his pops let him plink with. He lined up on the second pirate who was already charging him. His pistol bucked a second time and the pirate¡¯s shoulder turned to mist as its left arm fell to the floor, a third shot into the lizard chest ceased its thrashing. The third never got a chance to run, he was tackled by the three other humans, which shattered 4 of its ribs; and it was being held down on the floor, Patrick¡¯s blood boiled as he walked over to the pirate. Noticing the murdered men and women, he called friends and colleagues, haphazardly piled up in one corner of the room... the ones that didn¡¯t make it to the service tunnels¡. He leaned over the struggling but subdued Thermian on the floor. He leaned in so their visors touched, making sure that even if it wasn¡¯t on wideband, he would be heard. ¡°Why!¡± He bellowed in common.
¡°Ordersss.¡± The Thermian grinned ¡°by now, our leader is tasting the flesh of your cap¡.¡± The pirate¡¯s head popped like a balloon as Patrick pulled the trigger. He had tucked the pistol up under the pirates chin... The 357 bullet entered the pirates lower jaw, mushrooming to the size of a silver dollar before exiting the top of its skull. The contact shot¡¯s bullet not only sent hydrostatic shock through the cranial cavity of the lizard, but the firing gasses of the kinetic weapons chemical reaction were forced into the helmet at extreme velocity and temporary wound cavity created detonated the lizard¡¯s head with enough force to crack its visor. There was nothing recognizable left as the overpressure sprayed blood and brain matter out both the entrance and the exit hole.
Patrick and his colleagues stood up from the lifeless pirate, and Patrick froze as he heard his helmet¡¯s com crackle to life. ¡°Well, Gawd Dayum, what the hell you need us for¡± came a very Texan voice over his radio. Patrick turned to the entrance to see an entire squad of human marines standing there casually watching with their commander walking up to him, ¡°Nico Galanis. Dam good shootin¡¯ son. How many survivors ya got. Let¡¯s get em to the shuttles.¡±
¡°We can¡¯t. These dumbasses nearly sent the core critical. I need everyone still capable to help me get the grid back under control, before we all go Big Badda Boom.¡± Patric said, holstering the ancient weapon with new respect.
¡°Ha! Well, I ain¡¯t gonna argue wit ya! We¡¯ll take the wounded and leave two guards. The mop-up should be over inside the hour.¡± Nico drawled. ¡°We¡¯ll let you know when to repressurize.¡±
Patrick nodded as his surviving engineering team crawled out of their hiding place. ¡°Let''s get to work, people!¡± He ordered as he turned for his own console.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°The Marines report all clear, admiral!¡± The Coms station yelled. A cheer rose from the Bridge crew and Clint let them for a moment before raising his hand, commanding silence. ¡°We got a long way to go, Celest is hurt worse than we thought. Captain, launch fighters, standard CAP rotations. We are going to be here a while.¡±
¡°Aye admiral¡± Captain Harrison responded, ¡°alright people let¡¯s get to work, I want anything not flying legitimate beacons dead or being watched carefully. We OWN the black in this part of space for as long as it takes.¡±
Clint nodded to his flag captain before turning towards the door, ¡°good work everyone¡± he said before departing. He had a report to write.
______________________________________________________________________________
Cory Grarzia sagged into the chair of the assault shuttle that had born his saviors 44 hours later. Celest was a broken hulk. Her Main drives were completely destroyed, and she was incapable of holding atmosphere. Her Core had been stabilized by the surviving engineering team, but the power grid was too badly damaged to risk relying on emergency containment fields. Cory was the last off the ship. She was shut down, and to be taken into the Galvestons main Destroyer Docking cavity amidship. There she would be clamped down and taken under tow back to Delmar. Cory looked out over her as they departed. Celest had been his home for 3 years¡ His pack shifted at his feet. He had been given enough time to pack up his belongings, as had the rest of the survivors. The rest would be cataloged and sent to the next of kin upon reaching Delmar Shipyards.
¡°Kid, you held. Whatever happens next, remember that.¡± came a rumbling voice next to him. Captain Alex Collin looked across the shuttle to him, being one of the few Humans who approached the shorter end of a Delmar male''s height at slightly over 2 meters tall. Alex was not the visionary of wrath that Cory had seen putting pirate scum to the steel. His face was relaxed, kind even as he looked over at the traumatized first officer.
¡°I never want to remember any of this¡.¡± Cory quipped, staring down at his hands, remembering the blood staining on his void suit from tending to his captain, she was alive, but only just.
Alex stood and walked over to sit next to Cory. ¡°Son... no¡ you are a warrior now. Cory¡¡± Cory¡¯s head snapped up as the man remembered his name, ¡°Do not try to forget. It will haunt you until you do something desperate or stupid¡ You are not the same man you were this morning. None of us survive our first taste of war unchanged. Some choose that path. You were forced down it. You must embrace that change, make it your own, become its master so that it does not become yours.¡±
Cory leaned forward with his elbow on his knees, ¡°I¡¯m no Apex¡ I don¡¯t know if I can do that.¡± He balled his single working fist, ¡°Those fucking pirates took my home from me¡¡± His voice turned into a growl as his fists tightened. He stopped short, startling himself at his own actions¡ His pause of silence was filled with a flood of all that had happened. ¡°I¡¯ll never be able to go back will I¡±
¡°That¡¯s the funny thing about change. It happens whether you like it or not.¡± Alex drew his Vorath Dagger, big enough to be a short sword for a human, ¡°It happens whether you like it or not¡± he thumbed the edge carefully, looking for any flat spots or dullness before inspecting the tip and sliding it back into its sheath.
¡°Is that what changed you?¡± Cory asked, unable to not stare at the weapon from a species that was relegated to myth and legend, until they threw an asteroid at his home-world.
¡°Aye, it did. It¡¯s how I got my nickname. Those big gray fuckers ambushed us when we captured their ship. It was my first real mission as an officer. A spear to my sergeant¡¯s arm before the big bastard holding it drew this blade and charged me... I hit that fucker right in the gut with my shoulder and plowed him into the plating before blowing his head off, but not before he stuck me¡¡± he drew the blade again, ¡°with this.¡± He handed it to Cory. It felt unusably heavy in his hands. He felt its heft, unable to believe entirely he was holding it as he gave it back, ¡°I figure it''s fair and all. The other guy doesn¡¯t need it anymore, and he gave it to me before he died anyway.¡± Alex finished with a dark chuckle.
Cory caught himself amused at the joke, ¡°seems fair¡± he added with his own snort. ¡°Thank you, Captain. I think I need some time to think¡± He admitted.
Cory got a hefty slap on the back, ¡°Good man. Take your time, these things are not to be rushed.¡± The Human stood and returned to his original seat, honoring Cory¡¯s request.
Cory was still staring at his hands when the Shuttle thumped lightly on the hanger deck of Galveston¡¯s port side hanger 1.
Chapter 73
Cory sat in the infirmary of the USN Galveston in a state of shocked awe. He was alive¡ His shoulder throbbed through his revelry as he shifted in the chair. He wasn¡¯t hurt that badly considering, His captain had gone behind the double doors of the ships ¡°ICU¡± room for emergency surgery as well as three of the crew from engineering that were left for dead by the pirates. They had survived. Their Human designed void suits had saved their lives, but only just. Cory overheard that one had taken several laser rifle and pistol rounds in the back and had stopped breathing in one of the other shuttles. The gravity was a touch heavy, but obviously tuned down as was procedure with mixed crews as Galveston now was. He had not had the chance to ask anything, he had just sat down nursing his arm, letting the Human doctors and surgeons do their frantic dance of saving lives. The head of Engineering had walked in for an update. Patrick¡¯s mop of oddly Delmar Auburn hair was soaked through with sweat and he wore an ancient pistol on his hip, whose holster was stained with dried Thermian blood. He came and checked on his people, getting a strangling hug from one of the surviving Delmar females the humans had dubbed ¡°Cammy¡±. He sat up slightly as a doctor broke from the group and walked straight to him with purpose.
¡°Name?¡± she asked quickly.
¡°Cory¡ Corelius Grarzia, first officer¡¡± Cory¡¯s absent tone did not go unnoticed.
¡°This way Mr. Grarzia.¡± He looked up as her softer tone registered. ¡°Let¡¯s get you patched up. Your sister is in... another... waiting room¡¡± She turned and led him past the mass medical beds and into a private room, and onto a bed. ¡°Wait here, please¡± she said before disappearing through the door once more. Cory leaned back until his head touched the wall the bed was pushed up next to, heaving a long cleansing breath just as the door blew open as his sister rushed, practically tackling him off the bed.
¡°Cory!! Gods, Cory¡¡± Was all Gennorra Grarzia Huellins got out before she broke down into sobs. Cory winced at the pain in his shoulder as his sister clung to him.
¡°Doctor? Where¡¯s Quellin¡.¡± Cory got out after a moment, ¡°I didn¡¯t see him in the other room¡¡±
His sister just looked up at him, tears still pouring, ¡°He saved me¡ they hit engineering¡ He covered me when they started shooting¡¡± She broke again... Cory pulled her to him with his better arm before looking to the doctor.
¡°Quellin Grarzia Huellins, the one with multiple energy shot wounds to the back¡¡± the Doctor¡¯s voice was quiet, ¡°He¡¯s still in surgery. I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t know any more than that. If he is still in surgery, there is hope. Ms Huellins, please, sit for a moment. Mr Grarzia has not been seen yet¡± The doctor nodded to Cory¡¯s shattered shoulder, already staining his borrowed ¡°T-Shirt¡± with blood as his wounds reopened from movement periodically.
His sister nodded weakly, finally releasing him as she sat down in the chair next to the bed. The Doctor approached with a scanner and ran it over his shoulder before nodding, ¡°You should have spoken up sooner, your shoulder blade is shattered into three pieces. The pieces are displaced and will have to be realigned before we can administer the Nanite injection. You¡¯re going to have to go in for surgery; let me see your other arm¡¡± She paused, stepping over to the other side of Cory, ¡°This one missed the bone, you are lucky.¡± She murmured logging everything into her data pad. ¡°Stay in here, I will get you on the list for surgery.¡± She turned and departed from the room.
¡°Gen, I saw Patrick¡ He looked, scary¡¡± Cory said into the deafening silence of the room.
¡°He protected the rest of us¡. I was in the Maintenance shafts with the rest when he went out with the other humans¡ I don¡¯t know what happened, but we were rescued shortly after¡¡±
Cory only nodded before sinking back again with his head on the wall behind him. His shoulder was pounding now that he had no distractions¡ His sister sat with him, clinging to his good hand until the Surgeon arrived.
A tall, for a human, thin man glided into the room wearing a perfectly clean pair of scrubs and wire-rimmed glasses. His mood went from grim to somewhat brighter as he noticed the two of them, ¡°Ah, Two birds with one stone. Corelius Grarzia and Gennora Huellins?¡± he asked gently.
The two of them looked over and he nodded, ¡°I just finished up with Mr Huellins. He lost a lung, and part of your kind¡¯s kidney, but the suit took the brunt of some of the shots for him. I¡¯ll have a nurse take Ms Huellins to his room once He is given one.¡± Fresh pain erupted from his shoulder as Cory¡¯s sister broke down into Sobs once more at the news before pulling away with a meek apology.
¡°Mr Grarzia, you appear to be a particularly hard Delmar to kill, Doctor Young seems to think you took multiple rounds during the incident.¡± He stated.
¡°I did, your new style void suits probably saved my life. It was so spent after, they had to cut it off of me.¡± Cory caught himself in a dark chuckle.
¡°Ah¡± The Surgeon murmured as the hover gurney was pushed in, ¡°let¡¯s get you prepped son, your shoulder seems to be the worst of it. This shouldn¡¯t take too long.¡±
Cory was whisked away moments later and he relaxed some as he recognized Cammy entering. She sat down with sister as he was whisked away.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Patrick O¡¯sullivan sat in the mess hall at a table in the corner of the room. He had not been issued temporary quarters yet. He sat with his gun belt on the table, the two unfired cartridges had been placed in the ancient gun belt¡¯s cartridge loops and the 4 spent cases had been pocketed. Patric sat with his Pop¡¯s ancient Smith sitting empty in front of him, a bottle of soap stolen from the kitchen, and a roll of paper towels, a pitcher of water, and a low single-use cooking tray. His cleaning Kit had been in his things that were still in transit from Celest, but He needed to get the blood and gore off of his family heirloom before it ruined the weapon¡¯s fragile Bluing. He picked up the bottle and was about to get to work when a Drawling voice stopped him.
¡°Son, that won¡¯t work too well alone. Here¡± Captain Nico settled into the booth next to him, handing Patrick the engineer''s own Pistol cleaning kit, the one from his seabag¡¯s. ¡°I went luggage divin¡¯. Figured you might need this after you got done with the soap.¡± The Titanic Texan rumbled.
¡°Thank you, Captain. I need to do something, it helps keep my mind busy¡¡± Patrick slowly resumed, pouring some soap into a glass of water, mixing it with his finger to get the right ratio before removing the rosewood grips and placing the weapon in the tray before covering it in the warm soapy mixture. Letting the concoction sit, he turned to the Man next to him. ¡°Does it get easier? I know they were pirates, but¡¡±
¡°You¡¯re hating yourself right now. You hate yourself because you didn¡¯t die with the rest. You¡¯re hating yourself because you didn¡¯t save all of em¡¯¡ and worse of all, you¡¯re hatin¡¯ yourself because you took lives. Sound about right son.¡± Nico settled into his seat casually watching the room as it slowly filled in for the dinner rush. ¡°Dam unfair of you. You did what you did, you saved lives. You killed some motherfuckers. If it ever gets easier, then you stop being human¡ You did good, son. You¡¯re not a trained soldier, you were never supposed to have to kill anyone.¡± The man drawled, even as he nodded to some, and observed others until he noticed someone and smothered a smirk. ¡°If you want to know if you will be able to go back to who you were, I think you know the answer to that, but I¡¯ll tell you one other thing.¡±
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Patrick looked up to see Nico smiling cordially to a familiar Delmar female holding two trays as she made straight for the small bubble of isolation that his weapon, and Nico¡¯s presence had created around his table, ¡°You saved lives. That¡¯s the part that counts the most, and I can think of one adorable little number, who wants to thank you for it.¡± He murmured to just the two of them before raising his voice to Cammy as she approached, ¡°Evenin¡¯ Mayum. I was just headin¡¯ for the chow line. See ya ¡®round¡Red.¡±
Patrick shook Nico¡¯s offered hand before sliding his soapy concoction over to the side, noting that the blood and gore was slowly beginning to rehydrate and lift off of the metal. Cammy slid one of the Trays over to him before settling into the booth next to him. Patric was very tall for a human, standing just tall enough to be half a head taller than most Delmar females. He smiled over before being surprised by a very real peck on the cheek this time. She suppressed a chuckle as she saw his light Irish complexion flush slightly.
Cammy scooted over, until she was sitting slightly against him, ¡°I know what the last one was for, but.¡± Patrick asked.
¡°The last one was for luck. This one was a thank you.¡± She said, ¡°I think I found most of what you like up there.¡±
¡°I think you did, I haven¡¯t been over to the infirmary since we got back. Any new news?¡± He tried to ask calmly. He almost succeeded.
¡°Quel¡¯s out¡ He is in their ICU. The doctors think he will live, but the next day will tell more. Gen is with him now. She¡¯s a mess. She told me They Took Cory into surgery for his shoulder. I don¡¯t know about the captain. They rushed her back and hadn¡¯t said anything yet when I left. The rest¡¡± she fell silent, neither one had touched their food.
Both pushed their trays away at the same time, looked at each other, and Patrick let out a snort. Before pulling back over the trey with his father¡¯s revolver in it, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but if it sits to long¡¡± he said before raising an eyebrow as Cammy pulled his belt over and reached for the towels and the soap.
¡°No, this is ok. I need to do something with my hands¡¡± she began.
¡°It keeps your mind from thinking¡± Patrick finished, catching her small smile, before dipping the towel in the soap/warm water mixture. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it was what he had. He handed it to her, and she started working on the blood transfer from the gun to the holster.
They worked in silence for a while. Cammy got done first and laid out a towel as Patric pulled the pistol out and started scrubbing. ¡°How much did you see...¡± he asked quietly, finally giving voice to the one question he feared to ask her.
¡°All of it¡¡± she said quietly. ¡°Brett and Tony too. I followed you out.¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t notice. Are you ok¡ with what happened? I know your people aren¡¯t known for natural aggression.¡± Patrick responded.
¡°I¡¯m ok. I was terrified, but they were trying to blow us up¡¡± She responded, ¡°You had to do it¡what are you doing?¡± She changed the subject just as Patric pulled a screwdriver out of his cleaning kit and began disassembling the pistol.
¡°This is a very old gun, made long before we mastered the Gauss weapons we have now. I have to pull it apart to get every little bit of gunk out or it will begin to rust¡ uh, degrade¡ until it stops working.¡± He explained as he pulled the swing arm out and disconnected the cylinder, handing it to her to look at. ¡°The soapy water isn¡¯t good for it if I leave it for too long. But it¡¯s all I could find to get the lizard blood off it. I¡¯ll have to dry everything before oiling it heavily to keep it looking nice.
¡°It shot lots of fire, even in the vacuum¡ How come it worked if it¡¯s not electrical?¡± she pulled one of the cartridges from its loop, inspecting it with an engineer¡¯s interest.
¡°We combined chemicals to produce a calibrated burning low-grade explosives over a thousand years ago. We call them ¡°Propellants¡±. The propellant powder has its own source of oxygen inside itself. Thats why it still worked.¡± Patric pulled one of the spent cases out ¡°the primer makes a spark when its hit¡± showing her the dimple from the hammer, ¡°and sets off the explosives, sending the bullet at the end out of the barrel. The cases also help cool the gun, because they are removed along with the heat they soak up. Kinda like a heat sink.¡±
¡°It¡¯s a very¡ Human weapon¡± She mused, ¡°Putting a bomb inside a tube in your hand just to throw a shaped rock faster than the speed of sound is so very Insanely Human. It''s pretty cool.¡± She added, putting the cartridge back into its loop, much more carefully this time and Patrick chuckled.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, it takes a very specific force in a very particular spot to set one off. I could throw one across the room and it would just clank off the deck plating. The propellant is so very particular, that it needs the pressure of the barrel keeping the case from exploding to burn properly. Otherwise, you just get a pop, and maybe a bit of brass in your skin most of the time.¡± He smiled at her inquisitive look.
His explanation and her help had his pistol as clean as it could be and he began oiling each part and reassembling it before covering it in a thin layer of the Ballistol he was using before replacing it in the holster. ¡°There. That will do until I find out where the armorer on this ship is. I want to run it through a sonic cleaner to be sure.¡± He stood, picking at his tray a little before throwing the rest away. ¡°Have they told us where we will be bunking?¡±
¡°Yea, On deck 23. I have the section saved on my Com.¡± She said, ¡°I¡¯ll show you¡± They set off together and she sent the housing roster to his Com. It took them the better part of 15 minutes to get to the right part of the ship. Cam pressed in a code and a door opened to see a small room with sea bags stacked on one side and a set of bunks built into the opposite was. ¡°Enough of us survived that we have to double up. My roomie hasn¡¯t shown up yet¡.¡± She paused as she saw a look of abject apprehension on Patrick¡¯s face as he looked up at the room number a second time, ¡°What¡¯s wrong.¡±
¡°Uh¡ I¡¯m... Uh¡¡± Patrick stammered, quickly turning a very vibrant pinky red about the cheeks and neck.
Cam took a peek at his com and then looked back at him in amusement as he finally found his words, ¡°Looks like I¡¯m your bunkmate¡± He said, he rubbed the back of his head, ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like a mistake either¡¡± He paused as he noticed Camy smirking at him, ¡°what...¡±
Camy slowly slinked up to him, closing to within millimeters of his face, pressing her body up against his as she put her arms around his waist, and he felt her breath on his neck as she tip-toed slightly to brush his ear with her lips. She felt his breath quicken, slowly leaning in to whisper in his ear, pausing just long enough to feel him reach for her waist, ¡°I get top bunk¡± she announced and bounced away from him giggling as she ran in and jumped into the top bunk of the room, breaking out into a laugh as she watched realization spread across his features.
¡°OOH, IT¡¯S ON NOW¡± He recovered, skewering her with a moderately incensed gaze that only made her laugh more.
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Mac stepped into the Trenton family home/airstrip as the door closed heavily, walking straight into the kitchen, and pouring a double from his Uncle¡¯s Sniffer. The smooth fire burned its way down as he took a deep breath,
¡°James?¡± Lyrian rounded the corner to find him in the kitchen. It was late, as Mac had been overseeing the final bits and bobs of putting together the return fleet to Unity space. His emotions however told a very different story as Lyrian closed on him with worry scored across her face, ¡°What happened¡±.
¡°Suidh s¨¬os a ghr¨¤idh (Sit down beloved)¡ It¡¯s not good news, and it changes our plans quite a bit¡± Mac said solemnly. The kids were currently out on a play date with a gaggle of cousins and would be home soon. Lyrian¡¯s eyes widened at his Gaelic. She did as asked and mac sat in the chair next to hers at the table, ¡°Celest got hit¡ It¡¯s bad. She¡¯s under tow by Galveston. Your brother and sister are alive. Cory is in surgery. Your brother-in-law is in critical care after his own surgery, and they plan on doing at least two more, if he can survive the week. That was what was in the last transmission.¡±
Lyrian was flattened. It took a full minute for her to say anything, ¡°Gods¡¡± She gasped, ¡°C¨° mheud(How Many)¡±
¡°We don¡¯t know for certain. Current best estimates put between a third and half of the crew survived. They were going for Boardings.¡± Mac said softly,
¡°Olyvia?¡± Lyrian asked.
¡°I don¡¯t know. She was listed as ¡°likely¡± in the message. That usually means that the person is currently alive but is likely to pass.¡± Mac said, and Lyrians hands clenched in his before he drew her to his lap. She clung to him, hugging him fiercely as her emotions crashed and howled like a gulf hurricane.
Lyrian stead herself after several minutes, ¡°You said it changes our plans. How bad is it¡¡±
Mac sighed, ¡°They hit 40 freighters across 5 A.O.¡¯s. the Delmar home-world Sector was well protected. We didn¡¯t lose any ships. 15 ships from neighboring Sectors have not checked in. Clint¡¯s boys have found 4 wrecks, and 2 more debris fields we think could be wrecks¡ Delmar has called for help, we are it.¡±
¡°How. I thought Humanity was still repopulating.¡± Lyrain said.
¡°We are, but that also means that we have a lot of ships we don¡¯t have the bodies to crew. Delmar has the bodies, and basic knowledge of our Tech. We are sending them ships.¡± Mac stated flatly.
¡°But what about Sol. She will be vulnerable.¡± Lyrain half protested. She had come to love this little pocket of beauty that Humanity called home.
¡°Thanks to our combining Terra and Mars technology with what your people have taught us¡ a single destroyer could gut any single old model fleet from the war before it was destroyed. Humanity is already well protected, and our new ships are being designed to be crewed by fewer, and able to do so much more. We owe your people as much as your people owe mine. Our next Generation ships will be able to safely make the trip in 3 months instead of the 4-6 that we will be taking when we leave.¡± Mac explained.
¡°When do we... When do we leave¡± Lyrian put a hand on her just barely visible baby bump, ¡°I was hoping to Give Birth to him on your home world¡±
¡°Him?¡± Mac asked, the sudden change of subject caught him off guard.
¡°Nicole did a full workup this morning while you and the twins were gone. Bidh mi a¡¯ gi¨´lan do mhac (I carry your son)¡± Lyrian said just in time to be scooped up and spun about in the kitchen, then kissed all over with Mac ending on a smooch of her little bump.
¡°When do we leave¡± She asked again, as he put her down.
¡°At next month¡¯s end. We are pulling These ships out of mothballs and installing Slip drives in all of them. They are not going to be fast, but we will be bringing a recently retired Hospital ship. Nicole is having the time of her life. I gave her and the medical crew from Tranquility a blank check. When the baby comes, we will be ready.¡±
¡°By the Void. James¡.How many ships is Sol sending¡± Lyrian asked.
Mac¡¯s smiled one of his predatory tooth-filled grin as BigMac¡¯s gaze flashed form behind his icy blues.
Chapter 74
A rusting Hulk slowly rumbled through an uninhabited system. This one was majority C¡¯Claram Crewed, and Its captain preferred to destroy her prey and cut the bounty out of the drifting hulk. The amalgamation of hap hazardly fitted sections of the ship groaned as the mismatched stresses in her hull worked against each other. One more clank went unnoticed as The Hulk clattered to the press of her engines, finally reaching the beacon before jumping out.
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Captain Yasushi stepped into the conference room to be met with Atticus as well as the Head of Humanities Interstellar Research and Development Director Bjorn Johansen. The Tall Blond Man stood smiling as they shook hands.
¡°A Pleasure captain, please sit. How has your refit been progressing¡± He asked as they both sat.
¡°Quicker than I had expected, slower than I had hoped. I fear by the time I¡¯ll need a whole new ship by the time I return with from the weight of progress¡± Yasushi sat accepting a mug of coffee from the steward, passing on the milk or sugar.
¡°You may be right; however, I think you will enjoy this next mission. You will be making a long loop. We have decided to adopt a twin-layered approach considering the death-world revelation. We want to prioritize the possibility of survivors, even now. Your mission, captain, is to catalog the planets for further exploration. We will be sending you with a supply of beacons. And a specialist for this task. In short, you are to triage the planets and systems you find. Humanity will be taking world without evidence of Genocide or habitation for colonization and development. We will be monitoring any pre-orbital civilizations for future contact if deemed appropriate. Lastly, you will be marking planets with evidence of Genocide for our response fleets to hot jump to. Not only are we interested in saving any lives, or civilizations. We are interested in Technology, and possible intel on the Vorath and their culture, tactics, engagements, and possible weaknesses. Our head of extra-terrestrial Zoology, Atticus, wants everything we can find. He seems to think there is something there to salvage.¡± Director Johansen paused inviting questions.
¡°That is a tall order. What do you expect our mission timeframe to be.¡± Asked The captain speculatively.
¡°You will have provisions for three to five years or so. You are free to return for repair and replenishment at your discretion, but that may or may not be feasible depending on where you end up.¡± Johansen responded.
¡°I have crewmen with families and children. A multiyear mission would be disastrous to more than a few of my crew¡± Yasushi stated, deliberately keeping a neutral tone.
¡°Ah, you mean bright young Lieutenant Patterson as well.¡± Bjorn Johansen smiled warmly, ¡°He was always on loan for you, courtesy of his assistance in the development of the weapons your Excelsior has been fitted with.¡±
¡°He is but one, but he is the most¡ politically sensitive... example. His relationship with the Eleri has been instrumental to that relationship.¡± Yasushi offered.
¡°Oh, I am fully briefed on his relationship with the Eleri, captain; but in this case, Mister Patterson is needed a bit closer to home, a position has opened at Phobos that I desperately need his mind for. I fear I will be robbing you of your exemplary weapons officer. I trust you can find a suitable replacement.¡± Johansen¡¯s Grin elicited a smirk from Excelsior¡¯s Captain as they both sipped the truly excellent coffee for a moment.
¡°I believe I can manage.¡± Yasushi stated confidently, ¡°How much time to I have before projected departure.¡±
¡°Your retrofit should be done by the end of the month, yes? I have a file in your email of young, unencumbered service members who would make great replacements for any of your current crew that wish to stay with their families. Our home fleet is growing quickly enough to find places for them with ease.¡± Johansen nodded before standing.
Yasushi followed suit and the two shook hands once more, ¡°I¡¯ll begin notifying the crew by end of day. If I am to take on fresh members, I will need to get them spun up in short order.¡±
¡°Reach out if you need anything. A member of the R&D department will be by before launch day to give you the data packet and host a training day for the new equipment. Good day captain¡± Johansen turned and walked down the hallway they had entered upon exiting the conference room, leaving Yasushi to his thoughts.
___________________________________________________
¡°Gods, how many?¡± First-season captain Luca B¡¯Rhall was panicking as 4 Pirate Capital ships bore down on him. His beleaguered Freighter, Reliable Son, was straining badly from her heavy cargo of Durasteel ingots. He knew how many were there, His mind just refused to believe it. The three barges were led by a ragged-looking Frontier brig that was transmitting Pirate IFF.
¡°Still 4, we will be in their range in thirty fi¡ Oh Gods¡ Atomics Alert!! Atomi¡ WHA?!?¡± was all his sensor officer before his rear facing optical array overloaded and shut down from a massive flash of intensely bright stars that were where the Pirates ships once were¡ alarms rang out as radiation shielding slammed down over the observation windows as 4 Nuclear explosions washed Reliable Son in waves of radiation¡ Terrifying moments went by, everyone in the freighter praying there were no breaches in their protocols. The all-clear was just sounding when two new transponders appeared out of the void as the orbs faded, leaving nothing but quickly expanding and dissipating clusters of irradiated space dust. They were alarmingly close, just outside twenty thousand Kilometers and closing with terrifying speed.
¡°Two new contacts! They are¡. Transmitting Delmar Defense codes¡ uh¡ Captain, we are being hailed...¡± The crewman¡¯s voice was still wavering as his mind grinded to a halt.
¡°Open a frequency¡± Luca responded sagging down into his chair as the audio channel opened.
*Ranger 1-1 to Reliable Son, come in Reliable. * The voice opened in Delmar.
¡°Reliable here, Thanks, but... watch out, someone just fired atomics that exceeded our measuring instruments limits¡± Luca answered.
*We know, we fired them* a new voice, a female, with an odd accent responded,
*A lot has changed reliable. Expect a capital ship escort in the next 28 hours, you will be briefed then. Until then, you have us. Permission to come aboard? *
¡°Come aboard?¡± Luca asked, confused.
*Look off you Larboard. Point zero two aft of the beams* the Female voice stated.
Luca nodded to his sensor station as optical sensors swung to match the rest looking at the new arrivals, ¡°Uh¡ captain¡ You are going to want to see this¡± the crewman didn¡¯t wait and put the image up on the main viewer. Luca leaned in close as he stared in disbelief at the two starfighters in front of him. One was clearly a modified Ranger class vessel, with strange long spiked tubes attached to its wingtips and two empty hard points near its wing roots, one on each side. A much larger spiked tube clung to its centerline. The second vessel was nothing he had ever seen and didn¡¯t appear to carry anything on its exterior.
¡°You came in starfighters? How? Where is your capital ship?¡± Luca asked incredulously.
*Houston is currently dealing with another problem; she will be here within the day. We will be with you until then. Like we said, a lot has changed* the male voice said.
¡°Well¡ permission granted, But I have questions.¡± Luca stated. ¡°Hanger 2 is opening.¡±
________________________
The two very different but sleek predators eased into Reliable¡¯s Hanger two with smooth grace before turning to face the doors and touching down. The Hanger Crew¡¯s stood beside their captain. The small group observed the new occupants with trepidation. One was clearly of a Delmar Descendant design. It was clearly a Ranger of some sort, accept it was half again larger than a standard ranger. The strange, spiked tubes turned out to be two tubes per wingtip like spears mixed with an arrow ready to be run through any who dare contest their ownership of the black. The second was of a completely different design. The Vanta black vessel seemed to be made of one single lone fluid piece. Thin wings flared out of the central hull, punctuated by two massive main drives and a sharply pointed prow. It was slightly smaller than its Delmar counterpart and bore no exterior signs of the spiked tubes at all.
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The group departed the observation and control room as the hanger was reconquered by the hissing rush of returning oxygen. The two glass bubble canopies opened together as two void suit clad figures dropped easily to the ground, barely slowing themselves with the ladders that deployed automatically from the sides of the vessels. The taller of the two touched the side of his void suit¡¯s neck seal and Luca¡¯s eyes bulged as the Helmet seemed to shimmer before disintegrating front to back as it absorbed itself into the neck of the suit.
¡°Captain Ivar¡¯eke Aquilar Tras 303 Wing, Nice to meet you¡± The intense, but cordial Delmar spoke with calm confidence only won through blood and victory. ¡°Thank you for the Berth, but please have your crews avoid servicing R¡¯Cari (Wraith) or Sombra (Ghost). If we need anything we will await our ships arrival. There¡¯s a significant number of things on them that go boom.¡± He chuckled darkly.
¡°We will see to it your vessels are left alone¡± Captain Luca stole a nervous glance at the two terrifying birds of prey who just dispatched 4 pirate capital ships in a matter of seconds. ¡°May I ask if your ships are safe to have in my ship?¡± he asked slowly.
¡°Quite safe¡± Captian Luca spun then his face smoothed in shock as the second pilot walked up. Sleek black hair flowed as the helmet retracted in the same manor as Captain Tras¡¯ had. The fierce eyes and shorter stature, a barely restrained aggressive smile flared across her features as Luca recognized the being before him, despite never seeing one in person. ¡°All the safeties are active. If your crew doesn¡¯t touch, your ship is safe. Captain Martina Aquilar Tras 303 wing, attached. A pleasure to meet you¡± she extended her hand in a very strange gesture.
¡°Human?!?¡± Luca stuttered, ¡°I¡ um¡ I didn¡¯t realise your kind had reached this far outside of the Delmar Home Sector.¡± He stated, slowly reaching for the offered hand with shaking fingers as the female human snatched it up with a powerful vice of a grip just this side of crushing, then shook it gently once before releasing it.
¡°Recent events have created certain necessities. There aren¡¯t many of us out this far, but we are trying to extend our umbrella to as many freighters as possible, considering¡± The female captain Tras explained, grinding Luca¡¯s brain to a halt.
¡°I... uh, See.¡± Luca looked between the two fighter pilots before him as the realization hit him, ¡°I¡¯ll uh, arrange a... uh... double berth for you, shortly¡¡± He turned to leave then paused, ¡°Thank you¡ I¡¯ve heard the rumors of freighters getting attacked in mass¡ I owe you my ship¡± he said, bowing slightly before turning and leading them into Corridor.
__________________________________________________________
¡°That Poor boy. This must be his first season¡± Ivar chuckled after he and Martina had just closed the door to their quarters aboard Reliable Son as they tossed their seabags on the floor and began to unpack.
¡°Madre, what a hell of a season to be a rookie¡± Martina pealed out of the outer layer of her Mark3 VHG. Setting the combination armor and inertial dampening/compression layer on a provided hook before activating the seam on her inner suit. The New Mark3 was designed to be modular, replacing the prototype suits that had ended up being the Mark1 and Mark2 suits. Armor and G mitigation systems were designed into the outer suit allowing for ease of replacement, and maintenance without sacrificing the safety of the wearer on long deep space journeys. The inner suit was largely a new generation of standardized void suit and retained all its emergency sealing and aid functions in case of emergency breech.
With both layers on, telling male from female apart from height was impossible. Outside of the outer suit, Martina cut an almost irresistibly female figure. She winked over her shoulder as she heard a low hungry growl behind her as she set her inner suit to self-clean and hopped into the shower. Ivar could not follow, as the standard shower on freighters such as this were very firmly single a cramped occupant in design.
The suits were not the only new models being field trialed. R¡¯Cari and Sombra were the product of Admiral Gwen¡¯s and Darclemus¡¯s Research and Development collaboration. The Brothers Gremm and their team had proven to be every bit the equal to their counterparts in Sol under Director Johansen. The Offspring of Their machinations were two new slip capable models of deep space heavy fighters, to go along with the standard carrier-based Raptor 2¡¯s and Ranger 1¡¯s. R¡¯Cari was the Delmar variant, she was a purpose designed to both accommodate Delmar¡¯s added needs and mission profiles as well as work seamlessly in tandem with Humanities next generation fighter. Dubbed the Ranger 2H, R¡¯Cari was compatible with all current Sol guided ordinance, Strategic and conventional, as well as fully Shielded and integrated into DataLink3.0 to which all new Delmar and Sol designs were being built to interface with. Where the Ranger 2¡¯s differed from their Human counterparts, was in main armament. While R¡¯Cari did carry a MAC cannon, it was single barreled, slower firing, but fired a larger 50 mm Dura-steel Dart in a 10 mm sabot at around 10 percent the speed of light. Her primary Merge-fighting armament, should it come to that, were her twin rotary Micro PACs. Each weapon had 6 ¡°Barrels¡± that were each basically a long capacitor with an emitter at the end. When firing, each was sequentially force fed enough energy to send a hybrid particle/laser beam out with an effective range of 5,000 kilometers. While the venerable GAU34¡¯s had the undisputed range advantage. The lack of cycling ammunition and speed of the further charging advancements wrought by the combined technologies of Delmar and Sol; each R-PAC in the wing roots of R¡¯Cari could be ramped up to over 10,000rpm for short durations. This hail of energy fire was devastating to any target close enough to receive it.
Sombra was in every way both the opposite and the equal of R¡¯Cari. Assuming equal pilot¡¯s the differences in pure maneuvering, acceleration, and integration were academic. Sombra was designated a Rapor 3H. Like the Ranger sitting next to her, she was categorized the big sister her Escort fighter counterparts. In reality, she was much more akin to the smaller sister ship to a TALON class vessel. She was full stealth when her shields were not active, she shared the same internal bay designs that all Sol fighters had, but she lacked the living compartment of a true TALON. Her primary difference was in her armament. Sombra¡¯s current configuration boasted not two but four GAU34¡¯s, sacrificing some of her missile capacity for ammunition bays to feed their insatiable appetite when operating at full song. The 3H¡¯s, however, were designed to have modules swapped out for different missions and armaments.
Martina shut off the shower, wrapping herself in a towel before stepping out to a fierce kiss from her Husband. He nipped her hard on the neck before stepping into the shower himself to wash off the previous mission. The two had legally ¡°Paired¡± just before Mac and Lyrian had set off for Terra but were waiting for the intricacies of Slipspace travel to pan out before they made the trip to Sol, or Martina¡¯s family made the trip to Delmar. Ivar had long started the ¡°Terran Challenge¡± as Lyrian had dubbed it one drinking night out with the Wing. He was quickly closing on the goal of being ¡°Huumon Strong¡±. It had an unexpected result in his selection for the testing of the prototype Fighters they had arrived in. Quite frankly, The Delmar Military had jumped at the Idea of ¡°super pilots¡± the moment Lyrian had shown her abilities and had built their next generation fighters and heavy fighters to be able to dish out human levels of punishment on its occupant. Ivar was quite literally the only Delmar in the sector that wouldn¡¯t get immediately turned to paste inside of R¡¯Cari. Even so, He was currently still flying with limiters on. They needed to be tested, and Ivar liked living. He finally shut the shower down and dried off, slipping back into his void suit fresh from a self-cleaning cycle. Martina slipped a pulled box from her luggage and slipped her rings back on.
¡°I¡¯m fuckin¡¯ starving. Let¡¯s see if Martin is really as good as he claims¡± Ivar chuckled, pulling Martina¡¯s arm into the crook of his elbow as they headed for the mess.
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A Pirate Barge exited subspace and heaved its hulk towards a large planetoid in a desolate system with a dying star. Radio chatter was the only thing giving a hint to life as the camouflaged doors to the cavity bored into the side of the hunk or rock opened, receiving the barge¡¯s girth with ease as the ship shuddered and groaned its way into the shipyard carved into the center of the orbiting body. Its Captain readied the ship for mooring, a belly full of cargo it had to offload to be laundered for resale in other parts of the galaxy or traded to other pirates for supplies and equipment. Rusted and patchwork-repaired tugs latched on to the looking Barge, guiding it into its berth as the Crew began heaving the cargo towar¡.
A blue flash of light winked into existence and a streak of burning blue and yellow plasma lanced from its center as a missile, spat from slip space at relativistic speeds, slammed into the Pirate base at eighty percent the speed of light. The missile held no payload other than its solid Durasteel tipped Concrete Core above its expended main drives and a slagged slip drive, striking the Planetoid with over 750 GN of energy...
2 and a half sectors away. Lieutenant Philip Kenyi nodded as his pad updated, ¡°Probe 82 Alpha has ceased transmitting, Commander.¡±
Silu looked up from his own pad and took sip from the steaming if semi decaffeinated cup of coffee in his mug, ¡°Very good. Status on the rest?¡±
¡°83 bravo is still in transit, but 91 delta and 34 Charlie have fresh feeds.¡± Philip flipped his pad around as Commander Silu observed the transmission feeds from the two probes in question. One showed the inside of a titanic metal structure of some kind, and the other appeared to have stopped at a decrepit-looking orbital shipyard of some sort.
¡°Do these coordinates match any known legitimate organizations or installations?¡± Silu asked cordially... nodding as Philip pulled the report and shook his head, ¡°Good, launches authorized.¡±
Silu sat back down in his chair inside of the CIC casually sipping from his mug, resuming his reading as Port Royal shuddered twice.
Chapter 75
Arnold Air Force base was experiencing its second bout of mass tourism as a familiar droning approached.
Mac gently touched his family''s Maule down on the main runway and taxied up to the hanger. The whole family was on board, including ¡°Annikky¡± and the crew piled out and started unloading. Nicole guided the twins into the waiting shuttle as Mac and Lyrian walked over to where Concord sat. Lyrian was wearing her flight suit, but a pronounced bump was beginning to protrude. It would not be long until fighter flights would have to be sidelined.
¡°Ah, Admiral Grarzia. Welcome back and thank you for letting us borrow your vessel. She has shared many of her secrets, and more than a few surprises.¡± The head scientist stated, shaking Mac¡¯s hand warmly.
¡°Yes, she has indeed¡± a familiar voice echoed the sentiment as a very unfamiliar animatronic figure appeared out from behind a wing.
The human-sized Corth WALKED around Concord''s wing and extended a hand.
¡°The wonder of having an artificial body, is that one can make adjustments to fit one¡¯s current circumstances.¡± Atticus shook Mac¡¯s hand firmly, ¡°This is what my species would have looked like, had we not mettled with ourselves so extensively. Minus the ability to survive this gravity, obviously.¡± The artificial being stated.
¡°I¡¯m seeing some undeniably similarities between us.¡± Mac observed. Atticus was roughly a touch over 1.7 meters. He wore a human sized lab coat open at the front with slacks and a button-down shirt and tie, looking every bit the scientist. His height brought his arms and legs into a more human proportionality. His skin was no longer a slick sickly grey, but rather an almost more natural flat grey with whisps of black patterns giving him a faintly mottled look. His head was still enlarged compared to a Humans, but only by about ten percent or so, compared to nearly 50 percent of his previous size.
¡°Yes. Well, one of the many reasons I chose to venture to humanity''s cradle. I must admit that it is much more¡.. impressive than I expected. Has your species really tamed predators as pets?¡± Atticus asked just as Gus, the Great Dane mascot of the airbase lumbered up to Atticus and sat patiently. Atticus eyed the gigantic dog''s longing stare before relenting and scruffling the slobbering pooch behind the ears. Gus¡¯s tail started thumping the hanger¡¯s concrete floor in happy triumph before one of the airmen called him back over with the bribe of a treat.
¡°I think he likes you,¡± Mac chuckled as Lyrian made for the titanic pooch and began administering copious scritches.
¡°Indeed. However, the two of you are my mission today¡ I found something¡¡± Atticus narrowed his eyes as Mac flicked his eyes over to his wife, who paused mid scratch and looked over. She nodded, almost imperceptibly, and began walking back to the two. ¡°I see that has gotten easier.¡±
¡°It¡¯s still voluntary, for now.¡± Mac smiled as she met them at the door to a small side office, giving him a squeeze of the hand before they entered.
Atticus sat down behind the desk as there were only three seats in the room, ¡°I¡¯ll start with the obvious, my body¡¯s similarities to both of yours. My people did indeed look as I do, many eons past. Before the cataclysm, half of the non-aquatically evolved species in our arm of the galaxy were as you are¡¡± Atticus bowed his head slightly, ¡°It is one of the things the Vorath took with their ¡®devoted¡¯.¡±
¡°We were taught that our¡¯s was a rare evolutionary tracked.¡± Lyrian mused.
¡°From what I have learned, happened; by the time of your conflict with the Unity, it would have been.¡± Atticus responded. ¡°My colleagues, after the last meteors fell, took steps. My people¡¯s thirst for knowledge is¡ insatiable. By the time of the cataclysm we had catalogued the vast majority of the galaxies races, but the catalogue¡¯s samples were degrading¡ And then Humanity, a miracle of a second species, evolving on an ideal, if harsh planet was discovered.¡±
¡°Admiral Gwen told us about the Corth¡¯s ¡®assistance¡¯ in humanities jump to HomoSapien. I¡¯m assuming you did more than assist¡± Mac chose his tone carefully.
¡°You are¡ well, you were, our last real chance at stabilizing our library¡ Should we find a remnant of those races murdered by the ¡®Devoted¡¯, Humanity is their key to resurrection. It¡¯s the reason why you, Mac, can bond with a Delmar, why your children look like they do, but have all of humanities strength. Your ancestors took the codex we gave them and pushed it further than even I could have possibly conceived.¡±
¡°So, we were designed to repopulate the galaxy?¡± Mac raised an eyebrow skeptically.
¡°No... you were modified so that we could retrieve missing DNA codexes we needed to reseed worlds... only, the Corth Unity fell, turning into this shell of its former self. The technology we were to use to undo the Devoted¡¯s damage has been lost. I had lost hope long before the Eleri home world fell¡ until I met you.¡± Atticus leaned forward, ¡°In our hubris, we assumed that the Corth would have to manufacture races from the keys we left in humanity, and combine them with those survivors we would have found, had we not dwindled... Your children, the child you carry even now, were concepts blind to us since we had abandoned natural reproduction.¡±
¡°Atticus¡. Humanity is quite busy rebuilding its own population. We don¡¯t have the population to sire entire races¡¡± Mac said carefully.
¡°You will not have to. Unfortunately, the timeframe that my people envisioned repopulating this part of the arm has long passed. Good Captain Yasushi has been tasked with looking for survivors, but¡ I fear his voyage will be largely fruitless.¡±
¡°There are also the Vorath¡¡± Lyrian added slowly rubbing the baby bump through her flight suit. ¡°They will return¡ it may be my children or grandchildren that face them¡ but they will return¡.¡±
¡°That is where humanity can act. I do not know if this will work¡ but I believe that the Keys we left in Humanity, have been forged through your cradle world¡¯s¡. Intensity¡.. into the keys we may be able to use to beat off the Vorath once again.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t follow¡± Mac said cautiously. He glanced a thought at lyrian and she looked at him in return.
¡°That is what I am talking about. Take the two of you. Pieces of Delmar code, left dormant in Humanity for millions of years, allowed your alpha synce technology to flourish, it has been fully awakened through your being claimed by Mrs Grarzia, and because of Terra¡¯s harsh tutelage of humanity¡ it has become something never seen before. I suspect that your twins, both of your twins, will be able to claim anyone they choose. They may even be able to make temporary connections with other humans or Delmar, time and training permitting. That is just the one example I have been fortunate enough to discover through your medical data.¡±
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¡°Holy shit¡± Mac and Lyrian breathed in unison, looking at each other then back at Atticus, ¡°how far will this go¡± they continued.
¡°I don¡¯t know¡ but I look forward to finding out. I will be sending a packet ahead of you and submitting my report. The ¡°brothers Grem¡± will probably be very occupied with its contents.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Lucid Traveler flashed into real space right in the center of the approach coordinates bracket just inside the Delmar. A pair of rangers and a pair of raptors screamed out to meet them. The two pairs broke in opposite directions showering their course with a salute of flares before escorting them through the congested traffic that surrounded Port Royal as a shuttle approached from the station.
¡°Captain, Customs is requesting to come aboard. They are doin¡¯ their inspection by shuttle this time.¡± The Coms station reported.
¡°Granted, tell them Hanger 3 is waiting to receive¡ Look alive people! The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we get home!¡± Captain Irving barked, clapping his hands together twice.
¡°Captain, they ask we sidestep starboard of course ten thousand K¡¯s, Emergency incoming.¡± Coms called out again.
¡°Confirm it. Helm, slide us over please¡± He swapped his personal screen to the aft optical array and sensors just in time to catch the blue flash. A massive Ship of the line broiled out of slipspace, a shattered wreck of a Delmar Freighter moored inside of her central capital ship sized docking bay. Jacob heard a quiet gasp. He turned to see Hera staring at the image on his screen, eyes brimming with tears fighting to be free¡¯d. ¡°Navigation has the Con, call my ready room when you get done with the customs agents.¡± Jacob reset his screen, ¡°XO, a moment, I want to go over our drydock priority list¡±.
¡°Huh? Uh.. yes, captain.¡± Hera stuttered as she drifted towards the door to the captain''s office just off the bridge.
He closed the door behind him just as Hera turned and pulled herself to his chest, loosing the tears she had fought to contain while on the bridge, ¡°Jake¡ That was Celest.. Celestial traveler. Oh God¡¯s..¡± She sagged into Jake as he held her gently. Her whole body shook as she fought to contain herself, failing miserably. Jake just cradled her as she slowly pulled herself together. ¡°I grew up with Lyrian¡¯s sister¡ She¡¯s an engineer on Celest¡ Her husband works with her, and Her brother is the XO¡ Olyvia, her captain, is family.¡±
Jacob slowly rubbed Hera¡¯s back, The hulk he saw in the image did not bode good news, ¡°I¡¯ll make a call. That was Galveston, I saved a very large cigar-smoking Texan stationed on that ship during the war. If he is still there, we will get answers.¡±
Jacob settled into his deck chair, pulling Hera¡¯s chair next to him as she sat down and began wiping her face, ¡°I¡¯ve never seen one of our freighters that bad and still brought back¡¡± She sniffed just as the code, that Jake poked in, went through, and a bushy Mustache wrapped around a smoldering Stogie, topped with intense eyes, and edged with a big smile appeared on the monitor.
¡°Whell if this ain¡¯t shit. Jake Irving, in the flesh. I heard you were dartin¡¯ around out here on the far side of the Galaxy. Lookin¡¯ ever more the Pirate I see.¡± The mountain of a man drawled from the other end of the connection.
¡°Captain Nico Galanis is it now? Well congratulations are in order, I guess. I¡¯m not sure what you did with the half-dead butter bars I dragged out of a crater in the belt. How are you, ya old dust kicker.¡± Jake responded with a laugh.
¡°Still kickin¡¯, But I suspect this ain¡¯t purely social¡± Nico¡¯s eyes narrowed, ¡°What ya need, cap¡¯n to cap¡¯n.¡±
¡°The freighter Gally has under tow, It¡¯s the Celest isn¡¯t it.¡± Jacob¡¯s voice turned sober, turning to put an arm on the back of Hera, ¡°Meet Hera, My XO, She recognized her when you jumped in. Give it to me straight.¡±
Captain Nico¡¯s smile vanished as he settled forward looking into the screen, ¡°It¡¯s not good. Over half the crew is KIA¡ almost everyone else is either walking wounded or in the infirmary¡ They got hit by a massive barge, bigger¡¯n any I¡¯ve seen before¡ they got boarded¡ We only just got there in time. Galveston turned the bastards outside into dust. Me¡¯n Collins lead the counterboard to retake the ship¡ Collin¡¯s told me the XO barely held the Bridge with two others¡ Their captain¡. She lost too much blood by the time we got her in surgery. Died on the table.¡± He paused as Hera started to shake in renewed sobs, ¡°I''m sorry ma¡¯am.¡± Nico¡¯s voice went soft, ¡°I¡¯m told the XO is out of surgery and recovering. I don¡¯t know much else, I know it¡¯s not good news.¡±
¡°Thanks Nico, I got a bottle of the good stuff with your name on it when we get planet-side.¡± Jacob gave a quick salute, receiving one in return.
¡°Take care of the Lass, Jake. She don¡¯t need to see my ugly mug. Nico out¡± The Texan closed the connection.
Hera didn¡¯t resist as Jacob curled her up in his lap and just held her.
___________________________________________________________________
Warren stepped into the Office on Luna to meet His Captain and a man he had not seen since his transfer to Excelsior. Director Johansen stood with the shorter captain and Warren shook each of their hands. ¡°Captain, Director. Nice to see both of you again.¡±
¡°I see you are thriving nicely, Captain Yasushi speaks highly of your time with him.¡± Bjorn smiled, ¡°It is part of why I asked both of you to this meeting. What are you aware of in regard to Excelsior''s upcoming mission.¡±
¡°It looks to be a long one Director, a rescue and recovery mission of sorts, to seek out dead worlds and murdered civilizations and species hoping for survivors. Scavenge for Tech and Intel on the Vorath Devoted. Not quite the ¡®Boldly Go¡¯ Roddenberry envisioned, but no less essential.¡± Warren suppressed a smile at the slight snort from Excelsior¡¯s captain at the reference.
¡°That sums it up nicely.¡± Johansen mused, ¡°Unfortunately, I am going to need you to prepare for departure¡¡± The director watched the wash of emotions work their way through the young man¡¯s jaw before finally relenting, ¡°I will be depriving you from the good captain. I need your mind elsewhere. You are to report to Phobos shipyards by the end of next week. I believe your Pilotage is up to date I trust?¡±
¡°I, uh, yes director.¡± A thunderstruck Warren stumbled over his words, ¡°I believe I have a flight review due, but otherwise I should be current.¡±
¡°Good! As part of your new duties, you will be stress-testing the next generation of our small craft slip drives. You will be given a vessel with a class one drive to transit to Phobos. I¡¯m afraid I must impose on you once more, as the test is going to require you to maintain a residence here on Luna. You will have 24/7 fast response should you experience a malfunction, but we need to see what high-frequency micro jumps will do to a drive, so that we can develop inter-solar FTL. I trust that won¡¯t be a problem?¡± The Director was working hard to hold his serious face as understanding flooded Warrens conscious thought.
¡°Yes, Yes sir!¡± Warren said eagerly, ¡°I mean, no. It won¡¯t be a problem, I think I have an idea of the problem at hand.¡±
¡°Good man, Dismissed. I¡¯m sure you would like time to clear out your things from Excelsior¡± Captain Yasushi spoke finally.
Warren snapped a hasty salute before leaving the conference room.
The door slid closed with a click and Yasushi turned to Johansen, ¡°You have a particular sense of humor¡¡±
Johansen only smirked.
_________________________________________________________
Mac and Lyrian stood on the Bridge of Tranquility once again. The aging Escort Carrier was once again burning for the departure beacon headed for Delmar, and Unity, space.
¡°Time to jump velocity 7 minutes, Admiral¡± The captain of Tranquility reported.
¡°Data Link is live, all navigation slaved to the Flag¡± The XO of tranquility turned from her data pad where she was running final checks. ¡°Skeleton crews report all green.¡±
¡°Good. Nice and easy people. We are in no rush; The goal is to get every ship delivered in good working order.¡± Mac nodded his approval.
Lyrian was in her ¡®maternity¡¯ void suit for comfort more than necessity. As she stood next to her husband, ¡°Its time. We should move to the Hospital ship before the jump¡± she said.
¡°USN Lucy has completed soft dock. If you are going to go, do it now. You can Com us if something comes up¡± The Tranquilities captain nodded before saluting, ¡°Safe Voyage.¡±
¡°Safe Voyage Captain¡± Mac nodded, returning the salute.
A soft dock was a semi-risky maneuver where a flexible docking airlock was extended between two ships whose navigation was slaved together for perfect coordination of movement. Mac and Lyrian traversed the wobbly tube with 3 minutes to spare, joining Nicole and the rest of their family on the Hospital ship.
On the mark, Tranquility and Lucy Jumped for Delmar. To be on the safe side, it would be an eight-month trip at low-velocity slip. The now familiar blue and white flash swallowed the two ships as they made their jump¡
They were not alone.
_____________________________________________________
Warren stepped into his Quarters with slumped shoulders, as Jezz wandered around the corner wrapped in a towl, using a second to dry her hair and wings, ¡°Warren?¡± she asked immediately getting worried, ¡°What happened.¡±
Warren sagged down into couch in the living room leaning back as Jezz came and sat next to him, ¡°I had a meeting with Captain Yasushi¡ It was¡ interesting¡± His sad tone registered and Jezz pulled close, clearly fighting to stay strong.
¡°How long do we have¡¡± She whispered.
¡°The end of next week¡± Warren turned to look down at her quickly growing confused expression at his massive grin, ¡°I have until the end of next week to report to Phobos shipyards. I will be working on micro-jump slip technology.¡±
¡°I can''t survive the gravity there, they use earth one G¡.¡± Jezz reminded him, still upset.
¡°That¡¯s just it. I¡¯m being given a shuttle with one of these drives, to test. They want me to ¡°commute¡± with it as part of the test.. from Luna.¡± He smiled down at her as she finally put it all together.
¡°Warren! That¡¯s not funny!!¡± She half-heartedly scolded him.
¡°It was a little funn.. OOOF¡± He got out before being tackled by a flurry of hair, feathers, and glowing skin.
_______________________________________________
Johansen enjoyed a glass of Mead occasionally, a familiarity that reminded him of home. He was just finishing his second pour when his office door chimed.
¡°Come!¡± He said cordially, today was a good day. The door opened and his eyes widened slightly before he remembered, ¡°Ah, Atticus. I had heard you had reinvented yourself, after a fashion.¡±
¡°Indeed, I have. I fear That is not why I have come, however. There is much to do.¡± Atticus sat and opened his pad, syncing it to the holographic projectors hidden in the desk between them, ¡°Most of this will be going out in the morning Data packet to the council and to Delmar. However, I think We need to have a.. discussion on one particular part¡±
¡°The Serum¡± Johansen said, putting down his glass and turning to the Corth.
¡°The Serum¡± Atticus nodded.
Chapter 76
Two flashes blinked outside of the observation windows of Port Royal as a pair of sleek hunters dropped out of slip space and headed for the planet. None of the occupants of the station could actually see the two vessels as they hurtled toward Delmar.
¡°Confirmation received, we are good to burn¡± Ivar spoke finally as R¡¯Cari bent to his touch, Sombra hot on his wing, as the two deep space predators ignited their main drives once more and began the burn for Delmar.
¡°I hope we made it in time. I haven¡¯t seen Frie¡¯s little one yet¡± Martina mused as Sombra¡¯s main drives purred under her command. ¡°I hear they had a little girl.¡±
¡°Is that jealousy I hear?¡± Ivar mused back at his wife.
¡°A little, but we have work to do. And I love it out here, with you, too much.¡± Martina admitted.
¡°I know¡± Ivar said gently, ¡°Mac and Lyrians kids are so cute, I do want to meet our own¡ someday¡± he finished.
The last few weeks had been an interesting event. As the USN Houston had arrived on station with Reliable Son, the husband and wife team had been sent to two more freighters. One was a false alarm, and the captain was not impressed... the other¡ the other had already been boarded by the time they arrived. The pair had to watch, unable to affect a rescue, as the freighter was stripped of its valuables and set adrift. They had tagged the pirate vessel, and it was currently being tracked by port Royal. They had received word that morning that one of the Delmar commanded cruisers had intercepted the barge and destroyed it, after rescuing a paltry 37 survivors from the derelict freighter.
Sol had promised a response, and supposedly Mac was bringing part of it. Martina worried, she knew the numbers¡ humanity lacked manpower, and their war of almost extinction had left them capable of defending their home system but¡
Off in the distance, the transponder of the USN Galveston blinked on their sensors. ¡°Gally¡¯s already back? That can¡¯t be good¡¡± Martina murmured as she tuned Sombra¡¯s forward array tighter to get a composite picture as they closed on the S.O.L. ¡°Madre de Dios¡¡±
¡°What is it¡. gods¡.¡± Ivar reacted as Martina fed him her sensors through data link. ¡°That¡¯s the Celest¡¡ Does Lyrian know?¡±
¡°I have no idea¡ but now we know why the Gally is in system..¡± Martina flicked her sensors back to TWS, unable to look at the barely recognizable hulk being ferried to the shipyards under Galveston¡¯s gentle care. The rest of the two-hour burn took on an eerie silence.
_________________________
Cammy bounded up to the forward windows pressing her nose against the clear material as Galveston eased into orbit over her home. ¡°This never gets old. I almost never get to see our approach. Engineering is always so¡¡busy.¡±
¡°It¡¯s a beautiful view¡± Patric strolled up beside her. ¡°Feels more important somehow¡ after everything.¡± He smiled down at Cammy. ¡°So. What are you going to do first?¡±
¡°I donno, my whole family is going to be there when I land, because of what happened. I probably won¡¯t be let out of sight for a month.¡± She groaned.
¡°Oh? Not even with an old friend?¡± Patrick chuckled as she playfully shoved him.
¡°You know what I mean. I doubt they would be able to argue with the three of you.¡± She laughed.
¡°Three?¡± Patrick gave her a quizzical look
¡°You, Smith, and Wesson¡± Cammy smirked as Patrick snorted at the joke.
The trip home after the attack had proven that their room assignments were not a mistake. Both had woken up to nightmares and being able to talk to each other had been helpful. Patrick had taken to wearing his heirloom weapon about the ship, albeit in a more modern and less ornate holster, than the one it had come with. It currently rode on Patrick¡¯s hip and received not so much as an eye bat from the crew of the Gally.
¡°Well, I guess the three of us could visit from time to time. I was just going to bunk in one of the naval apartments until I found a place¡ I didn¡¯t really expect to be back this soon. I¡¯m not even sure how my pay is going to work out, with the attack and all.¡± Patrick explained as they headed for the shuttles, the offload of survivors was beginning and the two of them had a shuttle to catch if they were to arrive with their things.
¡°What¡¯s your family like?¡± Cammy asked as they walked.
¡°My Mah, she and my father split up when I was younger.. I grew up bouncing from her house in Wisconsin in the summer to his house in Norfolk for the winter¡ I was an only kid. Mah passed from lung cancer two years ago. Pops is still working for the shipyards. I think he gets his pension this year.¡± Patrick took a breath, ¡°he never had any interest in space. He always thought we needed to focus on what we had right there at home.¡±
¡°What¡¯s it like, having no siblings.¡± Cammy asked as they sat down in the shuttle, ¡°I grew up with 3 brothers and a sister. I can¡¯t imagine being that¡ alone.¡± she admitted. She turned and looked up slightly at the taller Patrick, ¡°you¡¯re coming with me. No one stays alone for the holidays.¡±
Patrick looked back at her, giving her an odd expression, she didn¡¯t recognize. ¡°I¡¯de be delighted.¡± He finally answered with a warm smile.
The shuttle¡¯s dampeners muted the buffeting as it passed through the thickening atmosphere. And Patrick looked out the window. This part never got old for him. The shuttle¡¯s force fields shimmered as it managed the heat of reentry rather than forcing that on coating of the skin of the vessel. Patrick mused on his life as flickers of plasma licked at the invisible shield standing between the shuttle and fiery oblivion. His was an existence of boring but reliable engineering principles punctuated by episodes of pure elation or unfathomable terror. This incident seemed to combine the two, with the Terror of the Pirate attack punctuated with the following weeks of sorrow lined with the company of the most beautiful creature to give him the time of day, in his entire life. He knew she most likely just saw him as a friend, and he smashed the small bead of hope he felt when she invited him to visit her family. Delmar were this way after all. He went back to viewing the very uniquely Delmar scenery as the shuttle swooped in towards the offload zones.
¡°It never gets old¡¡± He murmured...
¡°No, it doesn¡¯t.¡± Patrick jumped as the sweet voice had shifted to his shoulder and startled him, he turned to find Cammy leaning over his shoulder looking through the same porthole.
____________________________________________
A pirate barge burned heavily towards a Delmar Freighter in the distance as its captain sized up the signature on his scanner¡¯s readouts.
¡°Launch fighters...¡± he bawled, he didn¡¯t like how fast his prey was, but he could have caught a captain between contracts, and the equipment from inside the vessel would pay for the attack if he could dispatch his prey quickly.
6 cobbled together snub fighters burst from the flanks of the barge and burned toward the freighter leaving dirty black particulate in their main drives exhaust wake.
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¡°Hale them.¡± The captain ordered before heaving his mass to his feet just as an image of one of those ¡®humans¡¯ appeared on his screens. He smiled, as he would be able to fetch a price for this one. ¡°Heave to and prepare to be boarded. I won¡¯t ask a second time.¡±
¡°I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to comply. Break pursuit, or we will respond with force.¡± The human¡¯s cool demeanor rang alarm bells deep in the pirate captain¡¯s mind, but his sensors still showed a single freighter and his fighters closing. They would be in range in 2 minutes.
¡°Fine, we do it the hard way. Your carcass will pay for this entire operation, Huuuuman. All batteries, Open fire.¡± He sneered. Every one of his forward Plasma batteries fired as one with his ship grade laser turrets lanced their hate into the void, slamming into the freighter. The balls and lances of energy pummeled the freighter, and the pirate smiled as it gave his onslaught covered his fighters approach, the were just about to¡
White puffs of smoke appeared from seeming nowhere, each streak arced out, chasing down each and every one of his fighters before more puffs of smoke arced out from the from even more seemingly empty spaces in the void and these curved toward his barge. The Hulk shook and groaned as his shields failed first before each and every one of his forward batteries was turned into slag. The captain bellowed orders into the bridge even as his sensors told him that more of these strange weapons had destroyed the output cones of his main drives.
¡°Now, Captain. Prepare to be boarded, I will not ask a second time..¡± The pirate captain turned to realize that the Hale had never been disconnected. The Human¡¯s surroundings shimmered and were replaced by a pristine white bridge with several other humans and Delmar at their positions all wearing the same uniform.
The USN Valles dropped her pretense and her faked energy and beacon signatures as she came about and launched her own boarding shuttles. The pirate captain¡¯s eyes widened in horror as no less than 3 separate Delmar Defense transponders activated around his ship, proving that the one thing his intended prey was not..
Was alone.
___________________________________________________________
Patrick stepped out of the shuttle and took a deep breath. The Delmar air¡¯s pleasant, yet uniquely alien scent just as he was yanked off towards the side by a familiar arm as Cammy practically dragged him toward a small group next to the Luggage pickup. Patrick chuckled as he allowed himself to be led toward the group. He snagged both of their seabags with ease in this gravity as they passed by without breaking stride. Smiling at the slight widening of one or two eyes as he did so.
Not a word was said as mother and daughter reunited with a more traditional embrace before Cammy wrapped her mother up in a Human hug. To Patrick¡¯s surprise, the mother returned the gesture without confusion ¡®huh, I guess that one stuck for good¡¯ he mused as he set the massive bags on the ground.
¡°Mamma, I¡¯m ok Mamma.¡± Cammy patted her mother on the back.
Her mother straightened after a moment and turned to look at the human her daughter was still holding onto by the hand, ¡°Camorra, who is your friend, and why is he.. well¡ what is he wearing?¡±
Patric noticed the older woman¡¯s eyes stray to the pistol still on his hip and he thought quickly, ¡°Patric O¡¯sullivan ma¡¯am. It¡¯s an ancient weapon, it¡¯s been on me since the attack just in case we had more problems, I just forgot to take it off.¡± He smiled gently, remembering not to show his teeth.
The mother slowly looked him over for a moment before nodding, ¡°I guess that¡¯s fair, considering what happened. I trust it won¡¯t be as¡ prominently displayed in the future?¡± Her tone was neutral, but it was clear that the weapon worried her.
Patrick nodded and quickly untucked his civilian button up shirt and slid it over the pistol, ¡°If this makes you more comfortable, I can make do.¡± he said cordially. He felt Cammy unobtrusively squeeze his hand.
¡°Mother, it¡¯s been a horrible few weeks, and Patrick has no one to stay with for the Holidays, I invited him to stay with us.¡± Cammy said finally, breaking her mother¡¯s skeptical stare as her daughter finished.
¡°OH! Oh yes! Im sorry, where are my manors!¡± She exclaimed, ¡°Of course! I¡¯m Aria Bailins, this is my husband Kraystus.¡± She said as the older man of the group nodded toward Patrick, ¡°Well, the train station is this way, Is there anything else that needs to be transported?¡±
¡°I only have my sea bag, Cam?¡± Patrick smiled as the pistol was completely forgotten in a very out-of-sight-out-of-mind sort of way.
¡°I always packed light, Just the bag¡± she said as she hefted her own bag, with some effort to her shoulder.
¡°Well then, this is Pretty much all I left Sol with, so. I¡¯m good to go¡± Patrick flicked his sea bag over one shoulder.
The trip to the tram station and the tram ride was of filled with small talk, Cammy¡¯s mother wanted to know all about the more pleasant parts of the voyage, what Patrick did before leaving Sol, how comfortable the shuttle ride down from orbit was, where they went this year. Patrick understood. They were being polite, and staying away from open emotional wounds. Cam¡¯s father just sat there, and watched unobtrusively, nodding occasionally, to the conversation. The conversation meandered until they finally reached their destination stop and stepped out of the tram to a walkway one hundred meters in the air that led them to a house build into the trunk of an ancient jungle canopy tree.
Patrick looked up in awe at the dwelling, then glanced over as he heard a familiar laugh. ¡°What?!?¡± He broke off his stare to send a mild glare to its owner.
¡°The look on your face!¡± Cammy continued to laugh before imitating the gesture of an Italian chef that he had taught her, ¡°Priceless¡± she said in English, drawing a look of surprise from both Patrick and the rest of the group. ¡°Quit gawking, Red. Let¡¯s dump our shit!¡± She said finally, getting a reprimanding look from her mother before the older woman sighed and waved them in.
Patrick walked into a carved palace, complete with a central staircase and portraits on the walls. The house was 4 levels inside of the ancient tree. With a long elevator to the jungle floor. The same elevator shaft led up the tree to the top of the jungle canopy where a small observation deck was located. Patrick was shown to a room on the third floor by Cammy, who then bounded down a few doors and disappeared into another room returning without her seabag. Patrick stepped into the guest room and found an enormous Delmar style bed as its central feature with a fully separate bathroom off to one side and a closet to the other.
He smiled as he felt Cammy step up beside him, ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me your family was loaded¡± he mumbled. ¡°Uh, Rich.¡± He corrected quickly at her confused nose wrinkle. ¡°I feel like I¡¯ve stepped into a palace.¡±
¡°We are an older family. Many generations¡¯ blood and toil built this place. I¡¯ve lived my whole life before the freighters here.¡± Cammy explained. ¡°My people like to live in one place when we are on-world. It makes us feel¡¡±
¡°Planted.¡± Patrick turned, ¡°I know the feeling.¡± He said, intentionally taking Cam¡¯s hand, ¡°Thank you. It¡¯s nice not to be alone in my apartment for once.¡±
Cam just smiled and bounced on her feet, ¡°Oh Come on! Dinner is almost ready. I¡¯m starving!!¡± she begged, pulling at him as he once again was led down a labyrinth of ornately carved wood to a massive dining room.
By the time dinner was done, and the mild interrogation from Cammy¡¯s hoard of siblings, Patrick fell face first into his bed, asleep before his head hit the pillow. He was out like a light, but also suffered from being a very light sleeper. A few hours later a soft tapping sound woke him from his slumber. He rolled to his back, assuming the house creaked with the tree¡¯s movement. He was just about to go back to sleep when he heard it again, this time it was louder, and coming from his door. He groaned as he crawled out of bed and slowly trudged to the door. He opened the heavy old wooden-style swinging door slowly, only to be half tackled, half pulled into a desperate hug form a Terrified, Shaking Camorra.
¡°Hey, Shh. What¡¯s wrong. Did something happen?¡± He asked softly, gently putting his arms around her, very aware of how thin her night dress was, at the moment. She only clung to him more tightly, trembling as they stood there in the hallway. Patrick looked around before pulling her and him into his room and closing the door once more. ¡°Hey¡ shhh. It''s ok. We are at your home... Cam, talk to me. What¡¯s going on.¡± He whispered to her as he sat her down on one of the decorative chairs and knelt down to her level.
Camorra sat in the chair for several moments as the violent shaking slowly subsided and focus came back to her features. She finally lifted her face, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡ I was alone... in my room¡ It was so cold, I¡¡± She paused as if searching for something. She finally shook herself, ¡°I don¡¯t want to impose..¡± She stood to leave before being stopped by Patrick.
¡°No, talk to me. You were terrified just now. What¡¯s going on.¡± Patrick said with a gentle firmness. ¡°What happened¡±
Camorra sat back down, ¡°I feel crazy¡ woke up¡ you weren¡¯t there... I couldn¡¯t hear you... I was alone¡ I... got used to listening to you sleep¡ It helped keep the dreams away knowing you were in the bunk below me...¡± She admitted before looking him pleadingly in the eyes, ¡°Can I¡ Stay... I can sleep on a couch or the floor... I just don¡¯t want to be alone. I know Humans can get¡. Weird¡. with communal sleeping¡. I don¡¯t want to make you uncomfortable.¡±
Understanding flooded Patrick¡¯s features, recognizing the PTSD attack for what it was. ¡°Hey, you¡¯re not crazy. We went through something out of nightmares. It will take time to recover from it. We weren¡¯t wounded, but some hurt can¡¯t be seen. Come.¡± he stood, taking her hand, and leading her to stand, ¡°You can stay, on one request¡± he stood as she looked a question at him. ¡°Could you put on some more¡ modest¡ sleepware¡ Your night dress is¡ yea¡¡± Patrick smiled as the auburn patterns on Cammy¡¯s face and neck flared in an embarrassed blush.
Camorra darted down the hall and quickly returned wearing one of the thicker more covering versions of night attire he had seen her wear when they were roommates. ¡°Sorry¡¡± She murmured, walking over to one of the cabinets to pull out spare bedding to put down on the floor. She had not heard anything when an arm reached out and caught her about the shoulders. She gasped as she was spun around by Patrick with a very intense look on his face, ¡°Patrick?¡± She asked wearily as she was gently, but firmly pulled until she was up against his chest, He slowly walked the two of them toward the big guest bed, locking her eyes in his as he slowly pressed her down onto the bed, following her with his body until she was on her back with him hovering over her. He used his arms to block her escape as he leaned in and brushed his lips across her cheek then up to her ear. She quivered with his breath on her neck and his body keeping her from moving.
He held her there for just a moment before smiling and whispering, ¡°Payback¡± he smirked as he rolled over to the side and crawled into the bed.
She only lay there, panting for a moment before realization flooded across her face, ¡°Oh you bastard!¡± She laughed, her laugh grew into a cleansing full-bodied affair for a few moments before she sighed, ¡°Ok, I deserved that.¡± She finally said before beginning to get up, only to have her wrist caught again.
¡°No, we are in Delmar, not Terra. This is your house. You are not sleeping on the ground.¡± Patrick pulled her to the giant Delmar style bed; and she paused for a moment before settling down beside him, still keeping her distance.
¡°You sure? It¡¯s not your custom¡± She asked, only to be pulled closer.
¡°No, It¡¯s yours. And you aren¡¯t going to sleep on the floor. Not after that episode of yours,¡± Patrick stated finally before settling in and closing his eyes.
5 minutes later, Cammy gave in, crawling up next to Patrick and falling asleep to his familiar soft snore.
______________________________________________
A faceless monstrosity of armor and violence stomped into the bridge where the pirate captain was being held on his knees. The boarding action had been bloody, and very one sided. Not a single armored invader had been slain, and eighty percent of his crew was dead, and his walls still dripped with the gore of his bridge crew. Laser and plasma bounced off these monstrosities and their weapons obliterated flesh and bone.
¡°I see you are almost as valuable as you would be dead¡± The faceless armored monster rumbled. ¡°Your computer security is almost as bad as your shipbuilding skills.¡± He drew his sidearm, a strange squared-off thing with a large hole at the end that he pointed at the head of the captain.
¡°What do you want. I can share my trea..¡± The pirate¡¯s attempt was cut off as a supersonic Gauss pistol dart canoed his head, and his limp body was unceremoniously dumped on the deck.
The Armored Being turned and walked out of the bridge, stomping back to the Terran boarding shuttle. ¡°We have coordinates, Contact the Admiral.¡± The face plate retracted as Captain Alex ¡°Dozer¡± Collins stepped back into the boarding shuttle. ¡°We have a meeting to catch.¡±
Chapter 77
-earlier-
Captain Jacob Irving stepped off the last shuttle down from Lucid Traveler. In true captain¡¯s tradition, he was the last one off of his ship; but instead of abandoning her to the fate of the black, he had safely tucked her into a shipyard berth for her seasons repair and refit. He took a deep breath of clean Delmar air. A maelstrom of bodies seethed about him as families reunited. Sadly, so many were not going to see their loved ones again, and He noticed a few frantic faces, as that reality began to sink in. He felt an arm slide up under his blind-side arm as Hera joined him where he stood.
¡°I found my parents; they sent our luggage to their estate already.¡± Hera¡¯s voice broke through the mayhem, as he turned to look at her.
¡°Time to meet the parents, do I need to wear my armor?¡± He teased gently before sobering, ¡°are you sure? We can try and find some more information first.¡± He asked.
¡°No¡ I can¡¯t, I want to let the Grarzia¡¯s time to reunite before I intrude¡ I don¡¯t think Ma¡¯ is gonna let me out of her sight. Not after Olyvia¡ And Father¡ well, father will be father¡¡± Hera admitted as they walked.
¡°Was Olyvia your sister?¡± Jacob asked gently.
¡°My Aunt, sort of. Ma¡¯ and Aunt Oli were childhood friends¡ Aunt Oli never married. She was too attached to her ship. She poured her time into Me and Frie, when she was home. She became family, if not by blood.¡± Hera explained, just as a pair of older Delmar caught her attention.
Jacob suppressed a raised eyebrow as an older, incredibly beautiful Delmar female in more traditional garb walk forward and taking Hera into a very formal Delmar greeting, refraining from the human-style hug that had taken Delmar by storm. ¡®I see where Hera gets her figure¡¯ he mused before turning to regard the man behind the two. For the second time in as many seconds, he had to suppress the same raised eyebrow. The Delmar man behind them held his distance. He was big, for a Delmar at least, and had short, cropped hair a clean-shaven face with a hard expression. He noticed Jacob¡¯s analyzing gaze and he simply turned his head and met the gaze head on. ¡®A soldier. That, I didn¡¯t see coming¡¯ Jacob mused to himself as the two sized each other up, before a brush on his arm drew his attention back to Hera and her mother.
¡°Mother, I want you to meet Captain Jacob Irving.¡± Hera said formally as her mother turned to face him. Her gaze was skeptical at best, and she blatantly looked him over before turning to Hera.
¡°It¡¯s about time!¡± she scolded bluntly, before spinning on Jacob with a big smile and opened her arms in a very human hug, ¡°welcome to the family!¡± She positively gushed as she gave him a thoroughly full-bodied hug. A thoroughly surprised Jacob finally lost control of the wayward eyebrow, this time looking over at Hera who was blushing quite vibrantly.
¡°Ma!¡± Hera griped as she looked around hoping no one was watching.
A deep voice rumbled from the side, ¡°Sylia, come now. We just met Captain Irving.¡±
Her mother broke from the hug and gave Jacob a wink before recomposing herself into her previously more regal air. ¡°Oh Prallus. Well, come. Our aircar is in the east lot.¡± She said before hooking her arm inside the elbow of her husband as the two lead the small group off the shuttle ramp.
A forty-minute aircar ride went quickly as Prallus guided the vehicle to their family home. Soon the heavily laden vehicle touched down next to a USN-marked shuttle on the massive branch that served as both landing pad and foundation for a three story house that oozed Traditional Delmar motifs.
The front doors opened to the home and Jake recognized the Admiral of the Response fleets and his wife, Hera¡¯s younger sister, as they stepped out. The Admiral was holding their child as Frie rushed to Hera and the two embraced. Hera had to assure her younger sister that she was indeed ok, and was peppered with all sorts of questions before Hera just dragged a giggling Frie back towards Jacob.
¡°Jacob, this is Frie. Frie, Jacob.¡± She said exasperatingly as Frie took Jacob¡¯s hand in a human handshake.
¡°Nice to meet you. Good luck.¡± Frie teased, receiving a shove from her sister.
¡°She might be the one that needs the luck.¡± Jacob chuckled back, receiving a snort from their father.
The Admiral walked up to Jacob with a knowing look on his face. He waved off a reflexive salute from Jacob, ¡°Congratulations Jacob, and it¡¯s just Clint or nitro here, son.¡± He shook Jacob¡¯s hands. ¡°Be good to her, she¡¯s been through a lot. She¡¯s a special one.¡±
¡°I will Sir, and she is, and much more.¡± Jacob shook back.
Dinner was a hodgepodge of an awkward game of 20 questions mixed with the ever-present contemplative stare from Hera¡¯s father. He asked a few questions. Mostly what Jacob did before coming to Delmar space. Jacob answered to the best of his abilities, omitting the details not fit for polite company. Prallus only huffed, obviously not satisfied with what must have seemed to him like lies or obfuscation.
Frie had chosen to follow the Human tradition of naming upon marriage, keeping her family''s last name of Orlivarro as a middle name and taking Clint¡¯s sir name for her own. Their little girl, named for Clint¡¯s murdered mother Natalie sat just over 1 burbling into her food with the occasional word mixed in, and all of the mess nobody minded as the kiddy seat contained the explosion of substances that was a half Delmar half human yearling learning to eat. The little one garnered more than one laugh over the dinner.
After dinner, the women all headed for the living room to fawn over little Natalie. Clint, Jacob, and Prallus retired to a library of sorts.
¡°Now, Irving.¡± Prallus began, ¡°My Hera has been through more than her she should in her years. I know she isn¡¯t telling me everything. And tonight I had my suspicions confirmed when you¡ omitted¡ details from your story. Someone of your background would not have just quit. The women are not here son.. As her father, I need to know.¡± He finished.
Clint raised an eyebrow and almost began to say something but was halted by a glance from Jacob. ¡®He¡¯s read my file¡¯ Jake mused. ¡°You served¡¡± his tone was calm, but serious, and Prallus narrowed his gaze in recognition of it. ¡°That wasn¡¯t a question. You were a soldier, might still be; and you weren¡¯t a peacetime soldier either. The faint way you favor your right shoulder. Your left leg gets stiff when the weather changes. I noticed you shifted your footing slightly as dusk fell and the air cooled. You saw action, and action touched you. Again, not a question.¡±
Prallus slowly leaned back in his chair, ¡°Laser turret pulverized my shoulder, the field nanites were good but¡ there is no substitute for a biobed managing the repair. A pirate hideout that dared try to make its home in our asteroid belt. The leg.. the leg was crushed by a flipping crate, four years later. The Unity requested aid in quelling an insurrection on the Lycan homeworld. You do not refuse Unity¡ requests. I take your point son.. I¡¯ve lost men, some friends even. Duty has its risks.¡±
Jacob nodded, he slowly pulled a beaten-up box he had retrieved earlier, his thumbs gently caressed the top before he handed it to Clint who handed it to Prallus. The Large Delmar looked at Jacob for a moment before opening it.
Inside was a human Kinetic pistol, brown stains of blood marking its tan finish, and a photograph.
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¡°This was my family. These were my brothers, and they were murdered by a man millions of miles away with the click of a send button. We were to be sheep, sacrificed by our commanders¡ to the furnace of a war that almost murdered humanity itself. I lost trust in those giving the orders after losing every one of those men in one fight¡they died at my shoulder¡ I was not supposed to survive.¡± Jacob finished, sitting back in his chair, eyeing the man across from him.
Prallus slowly picked up the picture, setting the pistol on the side table facing the barrel towards the wall. He closed the box and spent several moments looking down at the photo.. ¡°What were their names, son.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
¡°Well, that sucked!¡± Warren said, clambering out of the smoking shuttle as the quick response corvette assigned to shadow him finished scooping him up out of the second failed jump this week. Only this time it threw him halfway to Jupiter, and it took him three days to get rescued. ¡°This fucking thing is gonna sling me into the sun!¡± He kicked the ramp as he walked back toward the exit of the hanger to the rest of the ship.
He was soon called by the chief of the department for a debrief.
¡°It did not go well sir, the standard slip drive just can¡¯t handle the micropulse of power it takes to make jumps small enough to stay in system. It shreds the field generators.¡±
¡°I see, we may have to can the entire idea. Sol is big relative to other inhabited star systems. We may have to rethink the project¡± the white-haired man on the other end of the line said.
¡°I¡¯ll be back on Luna in three days. Send everything from your end and I¡¯ll dig into it while I¡¯m stuck out here. Director, I have to go, I need to make a call, I have a very terrified fianc¨¦ to calm down.¡± Warren said. The man on the other side chuckled and then closed the connection.
Warren was about to code in for Luna when his console popped up with an incoming call. ¡°Hey angel, I¡¯m ok. I just got picked up.¡±
Jezz took a deep breath on the other end of the connection, ¡°that was too close, this thing is going to sling you into a star at some point. What the void happened!¡±
¡°The same thing that always happens, the field generators burned out. They can¡¯t handle the cycle times.¡± Warren grumbled, ¡°They are sending me home for the week, I can look over the data from our couch.¡±
¡°You¡¯re going to miss our next appointment. Atticus wants to run a full scan this time¡± Jezz¡¯s resignation bled into her tone.
¡°Three days. I ended up out past Jupiter. Then I will be home for the next seven. I¡¯m taking some personal leave after this one.¡± Warren sighed, slumping into his chair, ¡°They want to can the program Jezz¡ I know there is an answer. I just have to find it.¡±
¡°Please be careful, I love you.¡± Jezz sighed, ¡°See you in three.¡±
¡°See you in three. I love you too.¡± Warren blew a kiss before closing the connection.
He pulled a bottle of water from the mini fridge and chugged, trying to wash the ozone and smoke taste from his mouth. He had just finished the bottle when the data from Phobos arrived. He sighed, reaching for a coke this time, and began scrolling. The short delay allowed for almost instant messaging, and the next few hours were spent messaging back and forth with Jezz while he scanned through the data. He was just about to put it down for the night when a piece of the data, a scanner recording from his latest incident caught his attention.
*holy fucking shit*
*huh? What happened*
*image sent: what the hell you see*
*Gods, is that¡ how!*
*I have no idea, yet*
*Oh boy, you¡¯re not going to bed any time soon, are you¡*
*I''m on my third coke, This could solve¡ everything. Go to bed angel, I¡¯ll message you tomorrow*
*k. Night, come home quick-image received*
*well now I have to add a cold shower to my list of things to do tonight. Dayum*
*come home quickly, I miss you. night*
*night*
Warren closed the message window and began digging. 16 hours later, he sent a message to his department head and boss, requesting a meeting in 9 hours, and went to bed.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Jacob stepped out of the library several hours later. He wasn¡¯t sure how the conversation went, but it was a start. It was very late as Clint showed Jacob to his room.
¡°He¡¯s an acquired taste, but he comes from a good place.¡± Clint paused at the door, ¡°This one¡¯s yours. See you at breakfast.¡±
Jacob nodded his thanks before opening the door and stepping into his guest room. He shrugged off his shirt and pants before he began dragging himself out of the void suit he was still wearing. He was halfway through his suit, facing the hook he was going to hang it on when he froze as he heard a rustle.
¡°Jake?¡± Hera¡¯s voice came from the bed, he slowly turned, his void suit halfway off him and down to his waist. Hera sat up in the middle of the guest bed, with the bedsheet wrapped tightly around her as she hurried to cover herself, ¡°What¡ what are you doing?¡± she asked. Caution and worry clouded her voice as she eyed him.
¡°Uh¡ Clint walked me to this door, after we spoke with, uh.. your father¡ what are..¡± He was having trouble focusing as her beauty shown in the curves of the bedding surrounding her.
¡°Frie, she told me mamma set me up in this room. We have apartments in the city, we don¡¯t have rooms here¡why..¡± She paused as Jacob held up a hand and walked over to the walk-in closet at the far side of the room.
He slowly opened the door to the closet, finding both of their sea bags just inside the entrance. ¡°Do they think you claimed me already?¡± he asked looking over as the idea put a beautiful flush on her face.
¡°No... I told Pappa we hadn¡¯t. Why would they put¡ Mother.¡± Hera hung her head in her hands, ¡°She doesn¡¯t know about Human¡¯s awkwardness with the communal way we sometimes sleep. It¡¯s not uncommon for a courting pair to sleep in the same bed if space is limited. Clint and Frie are here with Natalie. That just leaves this room¡¡± She looked up at him finally as a mix of emotions billowed across her features.
Jacob just chuckled and shook his head, partially trying to distract himself from Hera¡¯s figure wearing naught but a sheet. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I can crash in a chair or on the floor. Where does your¡¡±
¡°No.¡± He raised an eyebrow as Hera shook her head, ¡°You¡¯re not doing that. Finish up, I won¡¯t look.¡±
Jacob sized up her expression for a moment before she turned her back to him. He shrugged and pulled the rest of void suit off, calling her bluff. He smirked as he saw her stiffen as the sounds of him changing seemed to echo in the room. He slipped into the bathroom with a towel and a pair of trunks and cleaned the grime of the voyage from him. He dried off before slipping on his trunks and stepping back into the bedroom.
Hera was still awake, watching him carefully as he crawled into the enormous Delmar style bed and slid7 into the bedding. ¡°You still good with this?¡± He looked over at her. She stayed still, just watching him. He shrugged and turned out the lights, settling in and giving Hera her space.
5 or so minutes later, Jake was just dosing off when he felt a hand touch his chest through the sheets. ¡°Jake¡ so cold¡± mumbled Hera. Jacob felt her nuzzle up under his arm, and he wasn¡¯t sure if she was asleep or awake. He was about to wake her when he felt her body slide up and press against the side of his. She scooted up until she was just laying her head on one side of his chest.
Jacob was definitely about to say something when he felt her slight shiver, remembering that Delmar¡¯s body temperature dropped when they went to sleep. He realized that the room had been set up for a cooler Human comfortable sleeping temperature. She vibrated against him in small shivers, ¡°Hera?¡± he whispered. He didn¡¯t want her to do something she wasn¡¯t aware of.
She looked up at him, her eyes were focused, sleepy; but she was still awake, ¡°Jake, I¡¯m so cold. Im..¡±
Jacob placed a finger on her lips, and she gasped as she felt his arm slide across her skin as he wrapped it around her and physically slid her further up against his side. Her face quickly shone its surprise as the space between them disappeared and he wrapped her up in his arms as she settled into position up against his side. ¡°When in Rome. Better?¡± He rumbled down at her as he fingered a lock of hair that had fallen into her face before slipping it behind her ear.
He felt her melt as his human core temperature warmed the pocket both of them now occupied. Her tail wrapped its way down his leg and she wrapped her arm over his chest, soaking in his warmth. ¡°Hmmmmm. Better¡ Are you ok? I know humans¡¡± Hera stuttered, still worried even as her body betrayed her and pressed against him. Jacob was absently stroking her main as he looked down at her eyes, openly smiling at her as she squirmed slightly at the designs he swirled on her back with his fingers.
¡°I¡¯m better than ok. Just wasn¡¯t expecting quite this.¡± He mused with a chuckle, ¡°Sleep, we can figure out the rest in the morning.¡± He gave her a little squeeze before closing his eyes once more.
____________________________________________
The Head of the Section assigned to study and experiment with extremely short slipspace jumps was up. It was four in the morning his time. Considering the amount of time logged by Lieutenant Patterson in the last two days, he wasn¡¯t about to complain when his star subordinate requested a meeting. He settled into his chair and que¡¯d up the conference viewer just as Warren, and Director Johansen appeared in the window.
¡°Director, I don¡¯t remember you being on the CC list. Is there something the matter?¡± the white-haired man questioned.
¡°I¡¯ve been monitoring the situation since the incident. I¡¯ve seen the data, and wanted to listen in. Is that a problem?¡± Johansen smiled cordially.
¡°Uh... No, sir.¡± The Section Head mustered, ¡°Now, Warren. You called this meeting and marked it urgent. What do you have for us, Son.¡±
¡°I want to lead with this, it is a composite sensor image, both visible and radio spectrum, from my shuttle at the moment of failure. What do the two of you see¡± Warren began, flicking the image up to the communal section of the screen.
The two older men stiffened before leaning in together, ¡°What the hell, is that¡¡± Johansen began.
¡°Luna, that is Luna.¡± Warren finished, ¡°This image was recorded just as I was exiting slip space near Jupiter. Sir¡¯s¡ At the moment this image was taken, my Sensor recorded that I was both only 50,000 kilometers from Luna departure point¡ and only 1.5 million kilometers from Jupiter¡ at the same time.¡± Warren posted a second slide.
¡°Jesus¡¡± The Department Head murmured, ¡°Is this accurate?¡± He tabbed through the data, scanning quickly.
¡°I think so, but I had been up for a while. It will need to be verified, but These two pieces sent me down a rabbit hole that ended here.¡± Warren posted a third slide, and both older men stiffened as the Iconic 1915 publishing¡¯s of Albert Einstein appeared on the shared presentation screen, ¡°I found the recorded energy surge readings when the field generators failed¡ and I found the exact coordinates from the precise moment of failure¡¡± Warren finished, sending his final slide into the call.
¡°My God¡ We will have to have these numbers checked¡ Warren, are you sure of what you found?¡± Bjorn Johansen set forward with his elbows on his desk, ¡°Son, Tell me. Are you sure¡¡±
¡°Director, the math needs to be checked¡ But, I am sure.¡± Warren squared figuratively to the Director of the entirety of Sol¡¯s research and development Program.
¡°Lieutenant, I want everything you found, the numbers you used, your formal recommendations on my desk in an official email. I want it in my inbox, CC¡¯d to Bill here, in the next 24 hours. This is all officially classified top secret until further notice. Well done, Son.¡± Director Johansen nodded before leaving the call.
¡°Holy shit..¡± Bill, the section head breathed as he scanned through everything again, ¡°Kid, you scare me. Go, get that email off. I need to get this sent to the numbers guys for double check. I¡¯ll check back in with you when you get back to luna.¡±
¡°Sir.¡± Warren saluted before the call ended, then slumped in his chair in shock. His Com beeped as Jezz messaged him a good morning, her time.
*how did the meeting go*
*I¡ well I think¡ I can''t say much more... the Director called, labeled everything T.S¡ Sorry*
*Gods, you think¡*
*Don''t know, but I can¡¯t say any more*
*K, See ya tomorrow*
*see ya*
Warren put down his personal com and pulled up his console. He knew there were better math people already on it, but His soul burned with the need to take a second look.
Chapter 78
Patrick slowly stirred from his light sleep, remaining motionless as his consciousness instantly snapped to. something was off. He swore silently as a shot of adrenaline pulsed through him. His revolver was in the desk across the room. He slowly scanned the room until his eyes came to rest on the reason for his human instincts ripping him from his slumber. His door was ajar. It had not been left that way.
Patrick began to slide from the bed when he felt a weight on his chest. He looked down as Camorra stirred slightly before nuzzling back down and stilling once more. She must have moved to him during the night. Ever so slowly, he slipped from her grasp, gently sliding his pillow under her head. He admired her contented expression momentarily before an almost imagined creak peaked his senses into overdrive. His practiced Delmar mannerisms disappeared, and the very human response kicked in. He took a few deadly silent steps, slipping the drawer open and retrieving his weapon, before ghosting over to the door.
He steadied his breath. Whoever was on the other side was still there, and he could hear them shift slightly. He waited one heartbeat more, a decision more felt than thought, before whipping the door open and jamming the revolver under his opponent¡¯s chin. The Second Click of the ancient Smith and Wesson heralded the Hammer slipping into full cock just as Patrick recognized the terrified expression on Krastus Baillins face.
The two of them locked eyes before Patrick slowly lowered his weapon and de-cocked it in a safe direction. He was still unsure what to say. He had just nearly killed Camorra¡¯s father.
¡°I was looking for Camorra. She is usually up with the dawn¡.¡± Her father began, his voice barely a whisper, ¡°I apologize, I know humans are different, but I didn¡¯t realize you would react so¡¡ violently.¡± His tone was still creased with worry. His eyes glanced at the door, noticing his daughter in Patrick¡¯s bed.
Patrick took a long cleansing breath, ¡°No, I should apologize. Trauma can make Humans¡. overprotective. Of themselves, and of those around them.¡± He nodded inviting the man in as they both stepped in out of the hallway. It was obvious that Krastus was still scared, but Patrick made a point of showing the pistol going into the desk and closing the drawer. Krastus smiled in gratitude as he sat at the edge of the bed, gently checking on his daughter whilst ensuring he didn¡¯t wake her.
Patrick slipped to his sea bag and pulled a pair of Sandals out and slipping them on. Krastus nodded as he stood, following him back out into the hallway. Patrick closed the door mostly, not wanting to trigger another episode if Camorra were to wake up. ¡°She had a panic attack last night.¡± He began.
Krastus¡¯ eyes widened in understanding, ¡°She always hated sleeping alone. She took the longest of the children to get sleeping in her own room. I thought she had gotten lost. She did that when she was young. Her panic didn¡¯t always awaken her fully; we found her in a hall closet or a hallway corner more than once. Why did she come to you¡ usually she comes to our room.¡±
¡°We were assigned as roommates after the attack. There wasn¡¯t enough space to give anyone a single berth. She told me she couldn¡¯t hear me sleeping near her. I think she had a nightmare from the attack and half woke up.¡± Patrick leaned in, making sure she wasn¡¯t growing restless, ¡°she wanted to sleep on the floor, I refused¡± Krastus leaned slightly to watch her sleep as Patrick smiled at a father being a good dad, ¡°I didn¡¯t want her on the ground after an episode that bad.¡±
Krastus got an odd look on his face before looking the lanky red-haired Human in the eyes, ¡°I¡¯ll not be mad, but tell me truthfully. Has she claimed you. I know humans don¡¯t tend to sleep with people they aren¡¯t romantically involved with. Are you family, son?¡±
Patrick smiled sadly, ¡°No sir, she has not. I¡¯m not even sure if she sees me that way.¡± He squared his shoulders to the older man, ¡°In all truth, I very much care for her in that way, sir; but I won¡¯t push that on her when her mind is still so fragile from the attack.¡±
¡°I see.¡± Krastus frowned as she stirred slightly, ¡°Is this you asking for a courtship, in due time? It would be appropriate, in the old ways.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know enough about your culture to even answer that question.¡± Patrick said, clearly starting to get worried as she stirred a second time.
Krastus noticed the humans change in attention, and Patrick missed an approving smile that flashed across the father''s features, ¡°Go to her, she feels safe with you. If I can¡¯t find her again, I¡¯ll know she is in good hands.¡± With that, he turned and walked off down the hall.
¡®This must be a Delmar thing¡¯ Patrick openly gawked as a father left his daughter in the bed of a stranger, rounding the corner to disappear into the carved labyrinth.
¡°Patrick?¡± A Soft voice drew him back as he returned to his room and closed the door. Cammy was sitting up as he slipped to a sink and poured his alibi.
¡°Hey, I¡¯m here, I needed to get a drink.¡± He took a sip of water as he sat on the edge of the bed, ¡°you feelin¡¯ better?¡±.
¡°MmHmm, until I got cold when you got up. may I?¡± She reached for the water, and drank after Patrick without a second thought. ¡°Did you sleep ok?¡±
¡°I did, you¡¯re a very gentle sleeper. I didn¡¯t even feel you curl up on me.¡± Patrick teased lightly, noting a slight blush.
¡°You were so warm, it was nice.¡± She put the water on the nightstand and reached for Patrick¡¯s hand, ¡°red?¡±
¡°Hmm?¡± He turned in time to catch her blatantly out on a pouting expression for him.
¡°I¡¯m cold¡± she said in her best whimper, and Patrick didn¡¯t have the heart to say no.
¡°Ok¡ ok, come here¡± he slid back into the bed as she grinned with a small squeak and curled up next to him just as he had found her when he woke up.
¡°Hmmmmmm better¡± she murmured relishing her redheaded hot water bottle for a long moment before propping her head up with her chin to his chest to look at him. ¡°What did Pappa want¡± she smirked at Patrick¡¯s raised eyebrow. ¡°I heard his footsteps before you came back.¡±
¡°He was worried. You apparently like waking up at the ass crack of dawn. He came looking for you.¡± Patrick whispered, ¡°He was fine after he came in to check on you. Something about you having a history of not liking being alone?¡±
¡°He told you?¡± She asked, burying her head in his chest, ¡°that¡¯s embarrassing.¡±
¡°Oh shhh. It got you permission for us to stay roomies.¡± Patrick encouraged, patting her on the back gently.
She looked up at him with a start, ¡°what?¡± She searched his face, looking for something before laying back down on his chest, ¡°I would like that¡ I would like that a lot.¡±
¡°I have one rule though,¡± Patrick looked down as she looked back up at him, ¡°no more of this sleeping on the floor business. You sleep up here, not down there.¡±
¡°Deal.¡± She mumbled before settling back down, in moments she was asleep again, and Patrick checked his com for time. It was indeed the ass crack of dawn and he was not a morning person. He settled in and let his mind drift as sleep settled on him once more.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Captain Alex Collins stepped up to the monitors in full armor. His helmet was hefted in one hand as he scanned the screens in front of him. The Marines were about to be attempting their most daring operation in this part of space. Their hit on the pirate barge had gifted them a gold mine in the form of Intelligence. The catch, it had to be acted on within the next day.
The barge had a scheduled stop, a black-market station with a reputation for also being a trafficking market. This was the most detailed information that Sol had gotten on the rampant space-born crime trades. Alex and a small squad were in a shuttle that was doing its level best impression of a piece of space junk as a more¡ indigenous¡ infiltration unit, led by Growrmun, made their way through the station. The Lycan had returned to his skill set, only this time for his people, who were growing ever closer in social-political ties with Delmar. A transport ship of Lycan families had been hit recently, and their government had reached out days before the hit on the pirate barge. The intel from that hit revealed that at least some of the families were here, among other beings. They were to be sold off to other Syndicates as forced labor, or worse.. forced pleasure¡ and that auction was today. Alex and his team were the Extraction contingent, whilst Growrmun''s group was Infiltration and Target confirmation.
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He worked his joints, feeling the up-armored suit¡¯s added heft. He probably couldn¡¯t have lifted this suit in earth gravity.. but it was comfortable in anything less than 1Delmar G. It was a Delmar design using joint technology, and had proven immune to even the heaviest handheld weapons so far. It was a vast improvement, taking on lessons learned from the study of the armor he and his men wore during the Boarding of the Vorath Command ship. It was, however, still a rapid prototype, and not fully trusted. There were also only 5 in existence¡ all of which were inside this shuttle, on his men.
The ¡°Brothers Gremm¡± had made a name for themselves with their willingness to tackle any technology, human or Delmar, and turn it on its head until it became something completely unexpected.
Dubbed the ¡°Mechanized Advanced Combat Exosuit Mk I¡± the MACE Mk1 would have weighed over 175 kg on Earth without modules. Leaning heavily on the bleeding edge of nanite technology and alpha-synce. The wearer¡¯s mind was directly linked to the suits mobility and survivability, Communications, and targeting systems. Currently powered by an equally experimental micro fusion core, the suit not only moved like the wearer¡¯s own skin but had enough power to run several configuration modules. Those module¡¯s development hinged heavily on the suit¡¯s performance, and Alex was wearing just a basic sensor and coms module on his back, and a rifle-grade laser emitter on his left gauntlet, everything else was standard marine weapons, magazines, and grenades save for the Vorath Dagger strapped on his leg.
An icon flashed in the HUD projected directly into his mind as Growrmon¡¯s team found the objective.
Go Time
______________________________________________________
Growrmon tucked the pocket transponder into his garments. He had discreetly put a tracking tag on the holding pens that contained the families he could find, as well as the rest of the captives. Now he had to wait. His team was a motley crew of sorts, and He nodded to himself as he noticed them filtering through the crowd of the slave flesh auction. His situation had changed drastically since his exile. Gone were his distasteful missions for the Unity. He was now an Agent of his people, and it felt good to work for the home-world again. His skills were undeniable, but this was not a normal mission or crew, however. The nature of their Target would have made an all Lycan team impossible. He was currently the only lycan on the station that wasn¡¯t in a slave pen, he was accompanied by Commander Silu of all people, and his Human first officer, Philip Kenye. The Delmar Commander had shown up, looking every bit the well-off Pirate, with a well-worn cutlass on one hip and a laser pistol holster on the other. His facial scars and opaque eye sold the look, as Delmar were not often Pirates; but it was not unheard of. He walked with a pronounced limp without his cane, but he mingled and blended with the best as he found his position and sat.
Philip was just gone... Growrmun couldn¡¯t figure out how a Human, currently the most notorious species known to the Unity, had just evaporated into the ether of the station¡¯s commotion. Philip had clicked his com to say he was in position, but even looking at the area he was supposed to be, Growrmun still failed to spot him. He was still searching for the elusive human when his earpiece beeped twice, a signal that his ¡°Reinforcements¡± were 30 seconds out. The rattling of bars signified the unlocking of the cages, as the auction began. The first few captives were dragged out and brutally stripped of their rags as the Auctioneer began the bidding process. Growrmun¡¯s bile raged as thinking beings of multiple races were humiliated and sold like livestock. He had not been told exactly what the signal would be, only that he wouldn¡¯t be able to miss it. The first group was just finishing up the bidding when a deafening explosion rumbled through the pressure vessel of Syndicate Station before sounds of distinctly human weapons fire rattled and stuttered faintly into his hearing. ¡®yup, can¡¯t miss that¡¯. Growrmun leapt from his position, leveling a Lycan made laser pistol and boiling the brain out of the Kawmari guard leading the captives back to their cells. The giant bird collapsed like a puppet with cut strings as faint yellow blood mixed with liquified brain matter oozed from smoking eye sockets, sinus cavities and mouth. Growrmun leapt from his position, rushing to his assigned of the three cages as he saw the flash of a saber and a wail of agony as Silu dismembered a C¡¯Claram guard that was guarding the second pen. A loud triplicate of pops followed as Silu¡¯s revealed that his sidearm was not, in fact, a laser pistol; and Silu¡¯s Delmar native Gauss pistol dropped two more guards. Growrmun looked toward the third pen just as a figure materialized out of the shadows and drove a strange ornate spear through the base of the skull cavity of the C¡¯Claram guard trying to lock the door. The spear twisted, fully shattering the insectoids head before Philip stepped to the side and flicked the gore from his Traditionally Sudanese designed spear custom made of Durasteel.
_______________________________________
Dozer¡¯s Gauss rifle rattled in his hand as he dispatched another Pirate. They had landed violently. The Shuttle was, in fact stripped out Terran Armored troop carrier. Its inside had been stripped of anything that would sacrifice space, and only carried two harpoon missiles on its stubby wingtips. One had been used to blow a hole in the armored hanger doors gliding through the emergency containment field that sprang up in response to the venting atmosphere. His team had stepped out of the shuttle and their MACE Mk1¡¯s immediately began taking a pounding from every weapon in the immediate area. The Captain¡¯s second was a shorter man with a pension for all things boom; Lieutenant Briggs immediately loosed a flurry of fire from his belt Fed M640-G. The great grandson of the Venerable Fabrique Nationale Herstal Mag58, The normally almost 12 Kilo light machine gun barely moved as it spat its hate. The Optic, while easily used from the shoulder, was also feeding targeting data through the alpha-sync to a calculated Reticle projected directly into the shooter¡¯s mind based Hud. The rest of his squad was made up riflemen save for one Grenadier. His specialist¡¯s module for testing was a shoulder mounted grenade launching system. Grenade launchers were one of the few Human weapons left that still used a propellant charge, on account of the advancements in grenade electronic fusing and programming. A Gauss powered firing system tended to play hell with the circuits inside the grenade when a capacitor dumps a micro emp into a set of coils right next to a microchip controlling the Grenades fuse and proximity programming. Sparks of heavier crew served laser and plasma weapons began impacting a few of the riflemen¡¯s armor, causing them to dip into cover. It was quickly silenced by the blooping bark of Specialist Turner¡¯s launcher. The Venerable 40 mm grenade had survived many attempts to replace it. This generation had a microtargeting and detonation mode computer inside the warhead that linked with the Mace¡¯s targeting systems. Turner had selected airburst and fired three rounds, raining a hail of shrapnel down on the crews of the larger weapons, quickly coating the immediate area with a collage of organic matter from multiple species. One Private had taken a crew served laser blast to the magazine of his rifle, fusing the magazine and weapon together and slagging the weapon¡¯s action. He slung the disabled rifle, drawing his sidearm and continuing to eliminate targets. Lieutenant Briggs had taken three of the same weapons laser discharges directly to the chest plate of his armor. All three failed to penetrate but left deep melted gouges. The assembly would need to be removed and replaced, with the damaged parts sent off for dissection by R&D. For now, the team moved at speed toward the beacons and tags. The Mace Mk1¡¯s allowed for ease of movement with exorbitant payloads, and the Team, minus a private and the Grenadier, began a brisk jogging speed through the station. Resistance tapered off as they went, it was anyone¡¯s guess whether it was out of fear, or number lost. An occasional splash of laser or plasma would bounce off of one team member or another, only to be quickly silenced by a short staccato¡¯d burst from a human weapon. It took Dozer¡¯s crew 6 minutes to get from the Hanger to the containment pens.
_____________________________________
Growrmun suppressed a look of shock as 3 armored Durasteel Horrors, covered in obvious weapons impact rumbled around the corner completely unphased by the punishment they had so obviously received.
¡°Growrmun, Silu, Philip?¡± one of the armored Titans stepped up, flicking open his visor to reveal a grim, serious expression, ¡°Captain Collins. How many do we have for evacuation.¡±
¡°We found a few of the families. I fear the rest lost. The pins hold a total of 25.¡± Growrmun reported to the most terrifying human he had seen to date.
¡°A tight fit, but we will manage. Gather them, we move in 1 minute¡± Collins turned to his two team members, ¡°Fan it out. If it has a weapon, it dies. Go.¡±
Commander Silu ambled up, barely limping as he led some of the captives. Philip brought up the rear with the rest before nodding to his superior.
Dozer activated his armored face visor once more. It slammed down with a satisfying clunk and hiss of re-pressurization. ¡°Move.¡± Was all he said, turning to head back the way they had come. The return trip was a much slower affair. 20 minutes went by before the hanger entrance made its appearance. The shuttle was packed tight just as a new barrage of energy weapons fire pelted the Marines on security. Someone had figured out the ¡°merchandise¡± was leaving and mounted a counter-assault of sorts. A steady thumping sound heralded the launch of more grenades. The rumbling bark accompanied a rain of belt-fed hate. The fresh defensive volley of ammunition and ordinance painted the corridors and walls with freshly disassembled enemies, causing the attack to falter. The Marines took the opportunity, reembarking into shuttle that began hovering back out of the hanger. Captain Collins elected not to order a second Harpoon launch, as he was not sure how many innocents were still in the structure. The shuttle pivoted upon its exit, swinging its head ¡®round to open space as its main drives spun up.
2 minutes later, slip jump velocity had been achieved and the vessel winked out of existence.
Chapter 79
Warmth. Radiating, intoxicating warmth. Hera¡¯s soul basked in her unfathomably comfortable reality. She lingered in that purgatory known to all who have clinged to a dream even as their conscious mind slowly opened the curtains of awareness. Hera truly did not want to move, and she lavished herself in that indulgence of sedentary limbo.
She finally moved, not to rise, but to bury herself deeper into the pocket of heaven she found herself enveloped in. Her arms stretched out, wrapping around and pulling tightly to her bosom the warm glow of intoxicating comfort.
¡°Well good morning to you too.¡± a soft low rumble reverberated in her chest, and the warm piece of heaven wrapped itself around her.
Hera¡¯s conscious mind flared to the surface as memory flashed like a slips-pace jump, bringing with it the details of the previous evening. She thought about pulling away in shock, but she couldn¡¯t bear the thought of separating herself from heaven itself. Her eyes fluttered open to reveal that she was indeed where she thought she was, pressed up against the side of her Jacob without a shred of fabric between them, save his shorts, covered in naught but a sheet that had ridden down over the night, and now lay clumped about their waist. ¡°Morning¡± she mumbled, still deciding what to do as she looked up at him from her position.
Jacob was looking down at her with a soft smile, she felt his fingertips begin tracing soothing shapes into her skin up and down her back, and through her mane. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to wake you. You looked happy.¡±
Hera realized that she, even in a position this compromising, was still supremely happy as she let out an unconscious little purr as he continued his finger doodling. ¡°I am.¡± She admitted after a long moment. The two of them didn¡¯t move from each other, relishing the long moment until Hera felt a slight fizzing sensation in the back of her mind. She felt a pang of surprise as the sensation electrified her senses. She had never felt it before, but every Delmar woman knew instinctively what that fizz was. Hera realized that she had made her decision. A wave of possessiveness and need boiled through her veins as her body prepared itself. She would take this man for her own. He was going to be hers, and that thought ripped a low mating growl from her chest as she raised up slightly to bear her fangs at him. His expression changed instantly at that sound as he recognized her hunger. His arms released her as she slid her body up his side, and his breath quickened when she shifted to slide her chest across his pecks until her face was millimeters from ¡
There was a knock at the door, and Hera froze just as her mother¡¯s voice floated into the room. ¡°Breakfast is ready soon.¡±
Hera couldn¡¯t breathe, ¡®This is what Frie and Lyrian had meant when they described it as more important than air¡¯ She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Her eyes pleaded with Jacob to do something.
¡°Thanks Mrs. O, we will be down in a minute¡± Jacob called out, never taking his eyes off of Hera. The two of them heard a faint, ¡°ok¡± as footsteps resumed once more and grew fainter
Hera didn¡¯t care that Jake could see and touch her anywhere he chose, not anymore. ¡°Jake?¡± She finally got out as her body came down from its heightened instincts. ¡°I need¡ I need to talk to my parents¡I want them.. I want them to approve.¡± she whispered. Her whole body was shaking now, coming down from the hormone dump that involved getting this close to claiming a male without following through. She couldn¡¯t hold herself up any longer, and she heaved for air as she collapsed onto his chest, shaking violently.
¡°Shhh¡¡± he coo¡¯d, pulling the sheets over the both of them and coiling his warm arms around her, pressing her body to his as she clung to him. Slowly, his warmth and his soothing tone settled her being. ¡°You don¡¯t have to claim me now. know that I belong to you. And I will belong to you after we win over your parents.¡± She looked up at him finally and he bore his teeth at her, ¡°and if they don¡¯t approve,¡± he growled, ¡°I will claim you, myself. By MY old ways¡± he rumbled.
Hera almost dared him to do it, but she had promised her parents that they would be involved after their absence with Frie¡¯s claiming. She groaned and slid off of Jacob¡¯s chest as he headed for the shower. He showered quickly and they swapped as he dressed while she showered. She found one of her favorite outfits hanging in the bathroom when she shut the shower off, having never heard Jacob enter or leave.
The two appeared at the breakfast table a few minutes later.
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The armored shuttle flashed out of slip space within 10,000 kilometers of USN Phobus. It had been a somber, and terrifying trip for the captives as the huddled as far away from the armored beings as possible. Growrmun had stayed with them, not in fear, but in comfort. He answered what he could, and attempted, with Silu¡¯s aid, to calm shaky nerves and frightened stares. The Marines stayed outwardly silent, chatting among themselves on their internal coms so as to not terrify the freed captives further. The shuttle lacked the facilities to remove their armor, so the Marines were still stuck inside them for the next few minutes.
There were no windows in the vessels crew compartment, even the pilots were behind solid ablative armor and flew with sensors and alpha sync alone. A light bump signified their arrival as the hum of power slowly faded as the aircrew performed their shutdown checks. A few of the captives jumped as the ramp lowered and a pristine light shown into the shuttle from outside.
R¡¯Ben shivered in the strange blanket that had been draped over him. He was not cold, he was terrified. He knew the truth. The galaxy had not seen them in generations, but he recognized the blade strapped to the faceless suit of armor. A blade that marked its wearer as the return of a species that nearly wiped out his people. He wished that he was still in the slave pens on that dreadful station. His skin flickered through the colors given to it through biology as he watched the ramp lower. He knew his fate, his was a weak species; he would be culled. The blinding light flared into view as he exited to his doom.
¡°Name, and species?¡± R¡¯Ben blinked, his mind wrenching to a stop as a Delmar female, in a strange yet undeniably military uniform smiled down at him.
¡°Wa.. what?¡± He stammered as his mind spun its wheels.
¡°You are Siraf, right? You are a long way from home. What¡¯s your name.¡± The gentle voice asked a second time.
¡°R.. R¡¯Ben just R¡¯Ben¡± he stammered. The Lycan that had been part of the team that took him walked past, catching his eye. The large for his species male walked up to the massive armored killer just as a series of arms descended from the small hanger¡¯s ceiling and began disconnecting large portions of the armor to reveal the last being he ever expected to see. The Human that stepped out of the armor was still wearing a sub layer of a void suit of some sort, but was no longer encased for war. He smiled at the Lycan that had ¡°saved¡± them and shook his paw once before departing deeper into the ship.
¡°Human?!?¡± R¡¯Ben gasped as he spun and looked at the walking uniforms more closely. More Human faces, mixed with almost as many Delmar faces walked by as he openly gawked.
¡°Well of course. This is a Legion Warship after all.¡± The Delmar woman in a Human uniform smiled warmly at him.
¡°But¡ I saw the tapes¡ they are violent¡. We aren¡¯t safe¡¡± R¡¯Ben gawked just as one of the human officers walked up.
¡°Any issues, midshipman?¡± He said to the Delmar woman.
¡°No, Sir. He¡¯s just a long way from home.¡± She said with a smile.
¡°Hmm¡± the man glanced through his pad for a moment, ¡°Siraf, I don¡¯t think we have encountered them just yet.¡±
¡°You wouldn¡¯t have, their home world is on the other side of the Unity from us-up arm. They don¡¯t usually stray far from their home world. Amphibion development, I pulled his requirements from the mainframe¡± the midshipman responded.
¡°Good, give him a solo room. It looks like he needs heightened humidity. I¡¯ll send these to Doc and chef for their needs respectively,¡± he spoke with a gentle firmness of command before turning to R¡¯Ben with a genuine, cordial smile, ¡°welcome aboard.¡± The Human officer stated.
The Delmar snapped off a salute that was returned before turning back to R¡¯Ben, ¡°Let¡¯s get you checked out. A lot has happened since you were taken.¡± she said gently.
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R¡¯Ben was too shocked to do anything but follow.
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Cory stood against one of the canopy trees as he gazed out over the sands covered shoreline. The wood for the bonfires of the winter celebrations was just beginning to be constructed, but he was having a hard time feeling the season¡ this would be the first holiday season he would spend at home as an adult, and it was not by his choice. Ma and Pa had refused to leave his side in the hospital, but the truth was, he needed space.
His shoulder was healing, slowly. The nanites were slaving away as he stood there knitting his shoulder blade back together, but the shot had vaporized a sizable chunk of his bone and that took time, and resources to heal. It was one of the reasons he was on a protein and calcium-rich 4 meal a day diet, to feed the nanites what they needed to mend him. For the next week however, his arm was in a special sling designed to keep everything aligned and monitor the progress.
He took another bite from his ¡°sandwich¡±. The mobile human food was another thing he was getting used to. Humanity¡¯s craving for exotic Delmar dishes was equaled by Delmar¡¯s fanatical adoption of Human culinary ideas as well. In any restaurant, his sandwich would have cost a supreme premium, being from not cloned, but real meat from the largest herbivore to roam Delmar. Early records of their people had long considered Gruvarette too dangerous to hunt, but their meat was considered a delicacy and was scavenged from a freshly dead animal throughout Delmar history. His brother in law, however, was not Delmar. He had quietly taken to the woods each year to actively hunt what he had dubbed ¡°Delmar Elk¡±, bringing home one of the older Bulls home each year. An entire beast, unspoiled by rot or predation was an enormous amount of food, and Mac had always spread the meat out among family and friends. Cory¡¯s father had given him a cut the Bull Mac had taken just before he departed for Sol. It was a cut of carefully smoked and cured shoulder that Icario had sliced thin and put in stasis. It made a sinfully glorious ¡°sandwich¡± and Cory had made them a delicious addition to his current rotation of meals.
He popped the last bit of his meal into his mouth and chewed appreciatively as he watched the waves, resting his hand in the pocket of his trousers. His forearm came to rest on a bump at his hip, and he grimaced at another change he noticed with himself. The bump was a Delmar copy of a Human Gauss pistol, and it rode in a holster just under his flowing summer shirt. His ridicule of human kinetic weapons had been thoroughly erased by the defense of Celest, and his new weapon was breaking in his own personal awkwardness with being armed. He had been taught how to use one while on Celest as part of cross-training that all crew authorized to arm themselves had to take, and he had bought the same make and model as the ship''s weapons, in case Celest ever returned to service.
Celestial Traveler was, well, she was destroyed. If she had been any other ship than one of the storied original three, purchased by a burgeoning young clan Helyon, she would have been scrapped. Cory feared that she might still be beyond repair. She had given herself protecting her crew, and the price had been high. Her keel was fractured in multiple places, and her pressure vessel seams had more ruptures than intact portions. She would not sail again for a long time, if ever. Cory had been offered the Captaincy of a replacement ship if Celest had to be scrapped. Cory had fought back tears when he read the recommendation letter his captain had written the morning before the attack. She was planning on retiring in 5 or so seasons, after she finished mentoring Cory as her replacement. That letter was now public record, but the original still rode in his pocket. His good hand fingered the edges of the folder, thinking on the woman who had been almost an aunt, and who had taught him everything he knew about out traversing the Void. His thoughts were still distant when he felt a touch on his arm.
¡°Are you ok Lieutenant?¡± Cory turned to the voice and was met by a cascade of long dark hair, framing gemstone green eyes, lightly make-up kissed cheeks, and punctuated with lightly glossed full lips. Those features were currently creased with question and concern as they did a quick, yet professionally thorough glance over of Cory¡¯s person.
¡°Doctor Young? I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t recognize you at first¡± Cory was taken aback as the tightly pulled back hair, professional frown, and scrubs were nowhere to be found; replaced by a waterfall of curls, a warm smile, and a Delmar style Poncho with flowing white pants.
¡°Jackeline, or Jacky outside of work. You seemed pained, is there something wrong with the sling?¡± She started, ¡°I can check it quickly if you like.¡±
Cory gave her a sad smile, ¡°I¡¯m in no physical pain, thank you Jacky. And It¡¯s just Cory. I hold no berth to be called an officer, at the moment.¡±
¡°I.. hadn¡¯t heard¡ I know we took Celest under tow, but I had not been told how badly she was damaged.¡± Jacky smiled gently.
¡°She most likely will not sail again. They will try. she is a one of the original three, but I don¡¯t think she can be repaired.¡± Cory finally put to words what he truly feared true.
¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Jacky said somberly before shaking herself, and suddenly changing the subject, ¡°This is my first shore leave on your home-world, and I have no idea where I¡¯m going or what¡¯s good to see. I could use a guide; I pay in ice cream and alcohol. Know any good hires?¡±
Her little pitch triggered something in Cory, and a chuckle forced its way out that turned into a laugh, ¡°I suspect I could scrounge one up,¡± he looped his good arms elbow out to her, ¡°I think I know just the starting place¡±
Her arm was looped in his in a flash and they started off down into the sand toward the shoreline. Several steps later he turned toward her, ¡°What¡¯s ice cream.¡±
Cory discovered The mighty doctor Jackeline Young snorted when she laughed.
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R¡¯Ben sat in his room. Soaking in the moisture through is skin. They had even found moss to serve as bedding instead of sheets that got all too sticky with his kind.
Siraf were an amphibian species that had just achieved space flight toward the end of the formal hostilities of the Corth/Vorath conflict. He was average for his species at 1.2 meters tall, and while he could stand on his two largest hind legs in tight vertical spaces, his species were naturally quadrupedal with two arms near the top of their torso. To a human, he would have looked like a four foot tall poison dart frog with 4 total jumping legs, two thin arm like legs and hands that worked as manipulators, and color-changing capabilities closer to a cuddle fish.
R¡¯Ben had been passed around from slave trader to slave trader as a kind of walking/ hopping attraction. Because his species rarely ventured far from their home system, his kind tended to become a sort of exotic slave pet that could do dishes. Eventually his kind¡¯s porous skin would pick something up that would kill them, and the Doctor on this vessel had in fact removed two such viruses and purged his body of a built-up of surfactants from his long years as a servant. He had not breathed this easy in over a decade, and he fully opened his pores for the first time in recent memory. He soaked in the moisture for an hour before he felt fully rejuvenated, and he settled into his moss for a long sleep. He was just beginning to doze off when his stomach made it known that there were higher priorities than slumber. R¡¯Ben groaned as he once again closed his skin¡¯s pores and prepared to brave the Human vessel once more.
It took him all of 2minutes to find the mess hall. He followed the smell of food as his stomach urged him on. He was about to get in line when he saw a man in a funny white hat wave him over to the side.
¡°You are the Siraf I was told about!¡± The jovial Human shouted as he waved him over. ¡°I was told you might be stopping by and to grab ya before you killed yourself on the chow line.¡±
¡°I¡¯m quite capable of keeping myself alive thank you.¡± R¡¯Ben bit back, more than a little incensed.
¡°I don¡¯t mean to offend¡ but it is Taco Tuesday. There is ALOT of Capsicum in that line up there.. your people absorb stuff through your skin, right?¡±
R¡¯Ben flashed through all of the colors of shock and horror before finally stuttering, ¡°Why are chemical riot control weapons in the kitchen!¡± He croaked out.
¡°For flavor, of course!¡± The chef laughed. ¡°We Humans consume Capsicum as a sort of seasoning on some foods. It¡¯s little more than an ingredient in hot sauce to most of us. It¡¯s why I pulled you aside. I had a plate that meets your diet put aside and sealed. I wouldn¡¯t want to kill off a first contact.¡± He finished.
¡°First contact? But you are already very close, it seems, with Delmar. ¡° R¡¯Ben responded.
¡°Well, yea. But we have barely met everyone outside of their homeworld¡¯s sector, unless there are another 4 foot tall giant frog species running around..¡± the chef chuckled.
¡°I beg your pardon!¡± R¡¯Ben flared up, truly angry.
¡°Easy bud. You just look a hell of a lot like a species of amphibian back home¡± the Chef said more seriously, ¡°here look.¡± He showed R¡¯Ben a picture of a small frog on someone¡¯s hand. ¡°It¡¯s a little wild for some of us who grew up with those critters to meet one the size of a¡ well.. you. Imagine meeting one of us, only we were size of a Saurian.¡±
¡°You would look like a giant tailless monkey¡± R¡¯Ben got out between croaking laughs, accompanied by a belly laugh from the chef, ¡°Ok, I get your point, now about that food.¡±
¡°Right here. Bon Apatite, just stay away from anything red and you should be fine at the tables.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡± R¡¯Ben nodded gratefully for the plate and headed off to find an empty place. It was the dinner rush, but he found a place in a booth near the back that had no containers of red murder on the table and began to eat.
He was halfway through a plate of wildly alien, yet completely satisfying food when the doors opened and the giant Human from the armor walked in. R¡¯Ben stopped eating, watching the man intently as he went through the normal line and started searching for a seat. R¡¯Ben froze as he realized that his booth was one of the only seats available, and the human, still wearing the Vorath dagger, was headed his way.
¡°Ya got room for one more¡± Alex Collins asked with a smile, ¡°¡¯place is packed!¡± He joked.
¡°I uh..¡± R¡¯Ben faltered.
¡°We pulled you out of the station today. It¡¯s ok, I¡¯de wanna be alone too. I can find another spot.¡±
¡°No.. Uh.. I must get used to being in strange places. Come, it is fine. Just keep the red stuff away from me. Capsicum is¡ dangerous to my people.¡±
¡°You got it, I¡¯m Alex Collins.¡± The big man set the bottles of sauce he was toting on another table and sat down with his plate, ¡°I don¡¯t think I got yours.¡±
¡°R¡¯Ben, just R¡¯Ben. My people do not have sir names as you would know them.¡± R¡¯Ben explained.
¡°Well, nice to meet you R¡¯Ben. I¡¯de shake your hand, but I was carrying¡¯ hot sauce. Prolly ought¡¯a play it safe.¡± Alex said between bites of a gloriously over filled crunchy taco. ¡°How are you settling in.¡±
¡°My room is quite adequate. It¡¯s been a while since I could relax my skin. Your doctor did his homework, they got it right with the moisture levels.¡± R¡¯Ben began eating again. Alex was a confusing one, undeniably dangerous, yet actively trying to put R¡¯Ben at ease. He respected the attempt and forced himself to relax and continue with his meal. ¡°Where did they find the moss?¡±
¡°They probably printed it. We have a couple of micro fabs on board. Did they get it right?¡± Alex offered.
¡°If it¡¯s fake, I was fooled.¡± R¡¯Ben admitted, ¡°I might get the first good sleep in a decade,¡± he said mournfully.
Alex nodded, not wanting to press. He inhaled his last taco and decided to give the amphibious survivor his space, ¡°have a good one. Thanks for the seat.¡± He stood to leave but was stopped by a moist hand on his arm.
¡°Sit. I need¡ I need answers¡ to that..¡± R¡¯Ben¡¯s skin flashed a few different colors that Alex didn¡¯t understand, but the man¡¯s voice was cut with severity as he nodded to the dagger on Alex¡¯ hip.
¡°You know what it is.¡± Alex said quietly, sitting back down.
¡°A Vorath dagger¡ I need to know, why you carry it with pride¡. That¡¯s an officers model¡ One that was most likely passed down for generations¡± R¡¯Ben stated seriously.
¡°That¡¯s news to me, how do you know so much about the Vorath..¡± Alex matched the mood of the conversation.
¡°I was a captive for¡ almost 30 years.. passed around as an oddity and a skilled butler¡ My mental escape was.. manuscripts¡ I have read much about the Vorath¡ some from prime sources¡ If I had access to the library of two of my masters ago, I might be able to tell you which family¡ where did you get it.¡± R¡¯Ben asked very carefully.
¡°It was given to me, from a certain point of view.¡± Alex turned slightly, lifting his shirt to show a jagged scar across his side. ¡°The Vorath that gave it to me did not survive the exchange.¡± Alex stated flatly.
¡°Humanity has met them in battle?¡± R¡¯Ben asked, surprise bleeding into the mixture of the conversation.
¡°We beat the Vorath¡ they sent an asteroid full of antimatter guarded by a battle fleet¡ we turned them into dust then boarded their command ship. Its survivors and the ship itself are being interrogated and examined respectively, last I heard. Why are you so interested.¡± Alex asked the last question with deadly intent. These were not normal questions.
R¡¯Ben, to his credit, did not flinch. ¡°Because I saw a dagger, with the same familial design on the station two weeks before you rescued us.. and the cloaked figure who brandished it was significantly bigger than you, Mr. Collins.¡±
Chapter 80
R¡¯Ben was standing in the office of the Captain of the USN Phobos with her captain behind his desk, and a severe looking grey-haired woman standing next to another officer on a hologram for the meeting.
¡°Mr. R¡¯Ben, please understand that you are in no trouble in any way. However, I must ask you to repeat the information you told Captain Collins to the Ambassador and the Admiral.¡± The captain¡¯s tone was firm, but cordial.
¡°Certainly. I have been a slave to one crime head or another for most of my adult life. How, is a story for another time. Two masters ago, almost a decade¡¯s time, I was under the ownership of a Kawmari Female who had taken a great interest in the Corth/Vorath war. She had amassed quite the library before I had been acquired by her, and it only grew during my stay. In time, once she realized our interests intersected, she allowed me access to the library. I was to clean and maintain the artifacts and learn as much as I could, and aid in the addition of more. For five years, I oversaw finding Vorath pieces and manuscripts from the war until I failed to acquire a particular item and was sold. To my knowledge she is still in possession of her collection.¡±
¡°Ambassador, I recognize that the time period may be¡ extended¡ in terms of intelligence gathering¡ but I think it may be worth a shot, at a minimum to see where the Vorath baseline for progress might be.¡± Phobos¡¯ captain stated, ¡°Mr R¡¯Ben has provided us with the coordinates, and I can have a team ready in 28 hours¡¡±
Ambassador Gwen gazed thoughtfully back through the connection, ¡°risks?¡±
¡°We don¡¯t know if the collection is still there¡ and, forgive me, R¡¯Ben is an untested asset.¡± Admiral Stevens ventured.
¡°No offense taken. Until this morning, I thought all of humanity were limb-ripping brutes of unfathomable violence. I may be able to acquire the information to assuage at least one of those risks. I would need Captain Collins¡¯ souvenir, however, to set the bait.¡± R¡¯Ben offered. ¡°The Warrior Captain Collins bested to acquire that dagger is from an old house. It is quite the prize, in a collection of any size. I believe I could get her to at least respond.¡±
¡°I see,¡± Admiral Stevens nodded, ¡°any objections to initiating contact?¡± He paused, the silence confirming consensus, ¡°Very well. Proceed. Report with the results of the call as soon as applicable, port Royal out¡±
The holograms winked out as Admiral Clint swapped his codes over and redialed Ambassador Gwen.
¡°You got a minute?¡± Clint said as soon as his Aunt appeared on the projector.
¡°What you got Nitro, I got about six.¡± Gwen responded, taking a sip of coffee.
¡°Ivar and Martina are coming to visit this afternoon. I believe they may be excellent candidates for CODEX. I¡¯m requesting permission to bring them into the discussion on this side of the gap.¡± Clint said sincerely.
¡°I see. Clint, we don¡¯t know quite what will happen. It will be a considerable risk for two of our best.¡± Gwen stated carefully.
¡°Maybe, but I can¡¯t think of any two people I both trust enough with this information and believe have a prayer of having it go well.¡± Clint stated.
¡°I¡¯m forced to agree with you¡ permission granted, carefully.¡± Gwen stated ¡°Don¡¯t let Chika jump. You know she will. Slowly, Nitro. Gwen out¡± The ambassador closed the call just as her next appointment called in.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°I must confess, It is very strange to be on this side of the equation¡± R¡¯Ben had indeed contacted his previous master, she was very excited at his ¡®new owner¡¯ being willing to sell such a priceless artifact. The meeting was in a neutral place of course, and a small Delmar Courier vessel was used as the meet vessel, with Phobos just outside minimum jump range monitoring through a crybaby connection.
¡°Don¡¯t get too comfortable. This can go wrong in so many ways¡± Captain Alex Collins was not in full ¡®battle rattle¡¯ but the low-profile armor still showed on his massive frame, if one knew where to look. ¡°I¡¯m going to be wanting that back¡¡± he grumbled, glancing down. His dagger, and its scabbard, were currently contained in an appropriately ornate display box.
¡°Indeed.¡±R¡¯Ben tried not to flash a terrified color as he felt the implied warning. He glanced over to the sensor screens just as a Vorath Corvette snapped into existence at the beacon and began burning towards an intercept.
¡°What the fuck!!¡± Collins swore and spun to order the pilots to abort.
¡°Ease, Captain. Ease. She has just decided to show up with strength. It took her 60 years to piece that thing back together.¡± R¡¯Ben caught a wary glance as Collins uncoiled slowly.
¡°What the fuck is she doing with a Vorath warship.¡± He demanded.
¡°Well, it¡¯s actually 18 different Vorath warships. That is her Libraries crown jewel, parted together from scavenged wrecks over the decades. Even today, it can hold its own against most of the riff-raff out on the edges of the Unity.¡± R¡¯Ben stated just as a hale was received.
R¡¯Ben answered it with polite, and completely fake amphibious smile, ¡°Ah, Quawrine. I see you have not lost your feathers for the dramatic.¡±
¡°R¡¯Ben, you are looking quite¡ moist. Airlock 4 is ready to receive you and your master.¡± Quawrine snapped off the connection as her ship began its deceleration burn to match speeds with theirs.
¡°I don¡¯t like this,¡± Collins rumbled before turning to the pilots, ¡°Ping Phobus, 5 minutes. Then Jump¡±
¡°Confirmed¡± the copilot answered as his fingers flew. ¡°sent.¡±
¡°Take us in.¡± Collins commanded and the Drives Lit on the Courier vessel as it approached the Cobbled together Vorath ship. Slightly rusted seams and imperfect lines betrayed the ships construct as the distance shrank, and 2 minutes later the doc was complete, and the airlock cycled between them and an impeccably preened older Kawmari female flanked by a pair of guards appeared as the doors opened. One guard was a Lycan with a matted patchwork of fur and a robotic left clawed hand. His right hand hovered steadily over a larger-than-normal laser pistol. The other was a C¡¯Claram with pieces of armor that appeared to be riveted to its exoskeleton. It wore a plasma launcher across its chest and its face was drawn into a sinisterly inviting expression.
¡°Is this really necessary¡± R¡¯Ben began as Alex stayed just out of site.
¡°You were always a slippery one. I have my doubts as to your master¡¯s intentions¡ He is a fool to send you alone, in such a ship.¡± Quawrine scowled.
¡°That would be inadvisable¡± came a deep baritone as Dozer rounded the corner glaring out through Alex¡¯s features. ¡°Unless you want to find out, the Hit pieces were¡. Incomplete.¡± R¡¯Ben openly shrunk back at the sinister smiling visage before him. Alex had not physically changed any of his accouterments¡ save for the massive belt-fed human weapon casually lying over one shoulder¡ The proof R¡¯Ben wasn¡¯t imagining the aura of unmitigated aggression emerged when both the bionic canid and the Insectoid moved instantly to put themselves in between their benefactor and the visage of death before them.
Stolen story; please report.
¡°You did not tell me that your new employer was¡ human.¡± Quawrine¡¯s feathers ruffled in an instinctive display designed to make herself appear bigger than she was. ¡°I believe we may have gotten off to the wrong beginnings¡ May we try this again?¡±
At that moment, USN Phobus dropped into real space a mere 50 kilometers from the two docked vessels and launched boarding shuttles. ¡°Yes,¡± Dozers voice was scored Durrasteel, ¡°Let¡¯s try this again¡¡±
Thumps could be heard as the courier vessel was used as a bridge between the assault shuttles and Quawrine¡¯s corvette. The rattle and hiss of airlocks was accompanied by the rumble of steel-studded boots as two more pairs of rifles poked out from either side of Dozers shoulders. These Marines were in full Battle Rattle, and their faceless helmets glimmered in the sterile artificial light. ¡°Unfortunately; We are not, in fact, here to make a deal. However, we are not here to steal from you.¡±
¡°Noble words, Human.¡± Quawrine waved her guards to stand down, they would be useless anyway. ¡°Why should I believe you, and what could you possibly offer that would make me cooperate with you.¡± She ruffled her feathers, not caring that she wasn¡¯t completely in control of the display.
¡°Because.¡± Dozer casually shattered the ornate box and strapped the dagger to his leg with deliberate slowness, ¡°I possess something far more valuable than a dagger. May we come aboard¡¡±
¡°As if I have a choice, Come. I¡¯ll take you to a conference room that will fit all of your¡ friends.¡± Quawrine squawked before spinning on her claws and stomping away to lead the way.
The Marine team left two at the airlock and proceeded with two as they entered the ancient corvette. Thankfully, it was not a room that was far away; undoubtedly to keep any prying eyes from seen more of the ship than was strictly necessary.
¡°Now, Human. What is this all about. It''s obviously not about a dagger, and I suspect that this is about my Library. You won¡¯t find it. Even your slave doesn¡¯t have the coordinates anymore.¡± Quawrine was irritated but resigned; playing the poor hand she had been dealt.
¡°You are correct in part; this is about your Library. It is not, however, about the acquisition of your library. My superiors wish to copy any information you have on the Vorath. We require combat data, cultural information, images, and tactical records if you have them.¡± Dozer stated simply.
¡°A copy? Why.¡± Quawrine¡¯s curiosity was slowly getting the better of her. ¡°Your superiors? What is this...¡±
¡°This, Ma¡¯am, is a requisition for information; a baseline if you will. We have reason to believe that the Vorath threat is returning, or is already returned. This is also the reason you have not been detained and the coordinates of your Library¡ extracted¡¡± Dozer continued with his flat formality mixed with aggression.
¡°That¡¯s flatly impossible. Those monsters have been gone for thousands of generations. Why are you chasing ghosts.¡± The giant bird''s feathers smoothed finally as she calmed from defensive to incredulous.
Dozer slowly drew his trophy from its scabbard and flipped it easily to slide it to the woman grip first, ¡°Take a look.¡±
The large birdwoman hefted the weapon, as a keen trained eye inspected the cartouches and finery about the handle and hilt before inspecting the spine of the weapons blade, ¡°This isn¡¯t possible. There are markings concurrent with their original language, but the ceremonial dates are¡ recent. Much more recent than anything I have seen in my lifetime¡¡±
She froze as something clicked in her brain, ¡°Where did you get this¡¡±
Dozer pulled a small device from his pocket and activated it. The pocket holographic projector unfolded itself on the table and began an auto playback. A helmet-cam filled with humans in a line getting rocked by a series of explosions before being rushed by monsters thought relegated to myth and legend. Alex took a deep breath as his helmet cam replayed his perspective of events during their first engagement with the Vorath; Ending in him looking down to find the dagger resting on the table, buried to its hilt in his side.
The playback ended and Dozer carefully pocketed the device, ¡°I¡¯m afraid I am going to have to insist on access to the library. We will never be friends, but I believe we have a common enemy. The Coordinates, please.¡±
Quawrine could do nothing as her feathers flattened against her skin in pure shock, slowly nodding after a moment.
-----------------------------------------
Jacob Irving stepped through the doors of the research and development building that housed the headquarters of the Brothers Gremm. He had expected this call, but it had not come from the doctor who tended to him after he lost his eye, not the Mad Lads on this side of the Delmar Sol Technological powerhouse.
¡°Captain!¡± His doctor called to him from down the hall, ¡°I see you are in good health, come.¡±
¡°Hi Doc, I got your message, if not from where I was expecting.¡± Jacob chuckled as he shook the Older Delmar¡¯s hand. ¡°I¡¯d be lying if I said I wasn¡¯t nervous.¡±
¡°Yes. Well, I thought it best to perform the test and fitting here. They developed it after all.¡± The doctor smiled as he produced a square box, opening it to reveal a smooth almost metallic porcelain looking orb.
¡°May I?¡± Jacob asked before carefully picking up the object, slowly turning it over in his hands. ¡°It¡¯s heavy¡ Is that going to be a problem¡±
¡°We don¡¯t believe so, It is a first generation. We hope to make improvements based on the data and feedback we get from you. Unfortunately, we could not get the functionality we wanted, and have it look real at the same time¡± The doctor began, turning the eye over and revealing a very artificially white Iris. Jacob¡¯s eyebrow rose over his surviving eye. He was naturally born with Browns.
¡°The Iris was a particularly difficult problem. However, we found a nanofilament weave we could control adequately for the optical part of the device; but I am afraid you are stuck with the color for now.¡± The doctor apologized as Jacob sat on the bio bed and laid down.
¡°Optical Part? Doc, What did the Brothers twist off on this time..¡± Jacob groaned.
¡°Oh just the basics, Optical, RADAR, and IR¡± came a second voice as Bart Grem stepped into the room.
¡°You gave this thing Predator vision?¡± Jacob gawked receiving a snort from Bart confirming the reference was not lost in the cultural ether.
¡°Bart, you can stay or go, but close the door. I need to begin¡± Scolded the doctor as Bart stepped fully in and closed the door.
¡°I¡¯m here to assist on the technical side of things. Proceed doctor.¡± Bart sat in a chair with a pad and began tapping on the device as Jacob felt a small prick on his eyebrow above his empty socket. The Nanite injection quickly dissolved the connection between his upper and lower eyelid and his eye socket snapped open as his Doctor began inspecting to ensure everything was in order.
¡°Ah, the Optic nerve has retracted as expected, but it remains in good health. Bart, the Device please.¡± The doctor retrieved the artificial eye and Jacob realized that the metallic porcelain globe was in fact a globe encase in a transparent coating of some kind. ¡°So, We could not figure out a way to attach your muscles to the device without compromising functionality, Instead the outer layer is an Acrylic globe that has a receiver for your nerve. The components can traverse within the globe. They should, with time, self-calibrate to your natural movements and commands. I¡¯m going to be locking you in place. Initial installation is finicky.¡±
Jacob felt his body go rigid as the biobed rendered him immobile. A second injection numbed his entire face as he began to feel pressure from the doctor beginning his procedure. It was not comfortable, and he smelled a light burning scent at one point before a second nanite injection was administered.
¡°Ok,¡± Bart walked over still looking over his pad, ¡°I¡¯m going to initialize the link. We have numbed you the best we can, but I honestly have no clue what¡¯s going to happen next. Say when.¡± He said sincerely.
Jacob took a deep breath, ¡°Go for it..¡±
For a moment, nothing happened, but only for a moment. An excruciating spike of agony flared deep into Jacob¡¯s brain in the most immediately violent migraine he had ever experienced. Luckily, he was still restrained.
¡°Fuuuck¡.¡± Jacob groaned, involuntarily fighting against the beds restraining fields.
¡°Easy son, just a few moments more. I have to synchronize the eye with your nerve¡¯s natural signals¡. I¡¯m almost through, how do you feel now.¡± Bart mumbled as he fiddled with his pad.
The pain seared for a moment longer before a flush warmth washed over Jacob as the pain vanished and he felt a flickering in his vision. Jacob winced in a little spike of pain as two separate images flashed across his mind fluttering in and out of sync with each other as his brain fought to figure out this new input.
¡°A little fuzzy, Is that you or me.¡± Jacob groaned.
¡°Ah, just a moment.¡± Bart stated. After a moment the desynced images stabilized into one binocular image as the right side of Jacob¡¯s peripheral vision returned to him.
¡°Holy shit!¡± Jacob breathed, ¡°I think it''s workin¡¯. The pain is mostly gone. Can I be let up now. I¡¯m starting to cramp up.¡±
¡°Certainly, take it easy. Again, this is completely new territory. Go slow please, Captain¡± Bart nodded to the doctor before the restraints were released.
Jacob rose slowly, sitting on the bed as he slowly looked around the room. The images destabilized slightly at first, his right side chasing his left as his brain relearned how to use the right side again. He scanned back and forth several times as the images slowly began to match themselves with more ease. ¡°Ok¡. Ok¡¡± Jacob breathed as the pain came back slightly.
¡°Good, very good for a start captain.¡± Bart handed him a data pad with a layout of one of his command chair pads on Traveler, ¡°Ok, captain. I need you to activate traveler¡¯s sensors.¡± Jacob instinctively tapped the controls into the dummy pad. ¡°Good. Now, ask your eye to do it, but imagine what you would see on one of your screens. Do not touch anything.¡±
Jacob thought for a second then glanced over at one of the console interfaces on the desk. His vision flickered and snapped into a composite image almost like layers on an onion. He mentally pressed deeper into the console, and the outer visual image dissolved, and the circuit boards appeared. The boards and wires pulsed with electrical energy as Jacob watched the console run its processes. He slowly imagined himself backing out of the console and his vision returned to the visible spectrum.
¡°Holy shit¡¡± Jacob looked over at Bart and the transition was immediate. Bart¡¯s visual image phased into a semi-transparent state as his clothes disappeared and Jacob quickly reversed the process. ¡°Ok, going to have to be careful with that.¡± He mumbled. Thinking about what he would see looking through an IR rifle scope, his vision shimmered once again and¡ ¡°Oh fuck¡ predator vision¡¡± He mumbled as he looked around the room. He began to feel strain as he kept this mode and eventually relented and simply returned to the optical spectrum.
¡°How did you get this into an eyeball¡± He asked in awe.
¡°Very carefully. The fatigue you are feeling is programmed. We want you to have to intentionally push into the other than visual spectrums, to prevent accidental activation. That will fade as you learn and use your new eye more.¡± Bart stated, handing Jacob a bottle of pills, ¡°These are just in case you get migraines. We expect that to happen occasionally for the first 72 hours or so. Do you have any questions or feedback so far?¡±
¡°You might want to warn people of the Radar setting¡ Your wife is a very¡ satisfied woman isn¡¯t she.¡± Jacob raised an eyebrow as Bart coughed into a drink and the Doctor began laughing, ¡°Not something I wanted to learn.¡± Jacob chuckled as Bart sputtered and recovered.
¡°Ok, point taken captain. Anything else.¡± Bart¡¯s mildly reproaching tone was accompanied with a very definite note made into his pad.
¡°I¡¯m having a dull ache in the back of my eye socket. Might be your attachment method. Will probably fad. I¡¯ll keep you apprised.¡±
¡°We¡¯ll keep a note of it. If there is nothing else, I advise you to head home and rest. Give your brain time to get used to using the default optical mode for a while before you try to use the RADAR or IR.¡± The doctor said, ¡°We are done for now.¡±
Jacob threw an abbreviated salute and departed. He smirked in a quick thought as a gasp reminded him that he now had the eye pattern more akin to an Australian shepherd than a human. He wandered the overhead walkways for an hour or so before deciding to head back to Hera¡¯s parent''s Estate. Hopefully, Hera wouldn¡¯t freak out too badly.
¡®On second thought¡¯ Jacob pressed his eye patch back on and smirked.
Chapter 81
Clint welcomed Ivar and Martina into the Orlivaro¡¯s home. Ivar gave Clint a warm ¡°man hug¡± and laughed as Martina completely ignored them with a squee as Frie popped around the corner holding a wide-eyed Natalia.
¡°Dam Admiral, you married up.¡± Ivar whistled as he looked about the estate, ¡°Thanks for having us over, Marty has been dying to see Frie and Natalia for months. She swears it¡¯s not baby fever, I almost believe her.¡±
Clint snorted as he handed Ivar a Delmar Beer as they followed the girls into the library where Natalia had her play area set up. Ivar didn¡¯t notice the smirk on Clint¡¯s face as the seasoned fighter pilot melted slightly at the sight of his wife rolling around on the ground with a little one. ¡°I¡¯m not sure she¡¯s the only one.. with the fever that is. You two talked about it?¡±
¡°Aye, we have. We want kids, but we want to keep flying together more, for the moment. Martina has introduced me to a significant amount of human ¡°fighter jock¡± history. The event ¡°battle of Britain¡± comes to mind. We need pilots, and she¡¯s fallen in love with Delmar almost as hard as she fell in love with me.¡± Ivar chuckled before taking A long pull from the bottle, ¡°We both want a Delmar we can leave to our kids; Marty isn¡¯t ready to step out of the cockpit just yet.¡±
¡°Hmm, and you?¡± Clint asked carefully, ¡°I know you took a big risk marrying Marty, from a cultural standpoint alone. How are you two doing without the claiming.¡±
¡°It was rough for the first little while. I was always told that I would be able to know my mate by thought and feeling. Learning to read her the ¡°human way¡± was a challenge. I got lucky there. I think she understood what I was trying to do and doesn¡¯t do some of the horror story behaviors I¡¯ve heard joked about by humans. She did have to get used to me asking really dumb questions at first.¡± Ivar glanced to the side at his commanding officer. On a hunch, he dropped the formalities. . ¡°Clint, what¡¯s this about. It¡¯s not like you to pry into personal business.¡±
¡°Forgive me, I have a good reason; but let¡¯s enjoy the evening first. We can get serious after Nat goes to bed.¡± Clint smiled up at his towering friend and they both joined the women to promptly get pounced on by a burbling and babbling little one.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Patrick was asleep. Well, mostly asleep. He was up in the gazebo that topped the canopy above Camorra¡¯s family home. It was the only constructed portion of the house, having been built up on top of the tree that made its base instead of carved into it. The wind was crisp at this height, howling lightly as it skimmed the top of the sea of silver and auburn. The waves of wind-swept foliage signified the planet-wide jungle that enveloped most of Delmar¡¯s landmasses. It had become his sanctuary for the afternoon as Camorra was off on a girl¡¯s date with some of her friends and family from other freighters, or who had chosen to stay on planet.
He had taken the chance to explore their home, trying to learn enough of his way around to not get lost in the intricately carved corridors and levels. He had eventually ended up here, at the crown jewel of the property, and he was currently on top of the gazebo¡¯s roof basking in the sun¡¯s rays, allowing the wind to blow about his ears.
He wanted space to think. Cammy had taken his offer to heart, completely ignoring her own room in the evenings to sleep in his bed. He knew it was a normal thing for a Delmar, but she was also a gorgeous young woman. Worse, she insisted on curling herself around him at night for warmth. It was intoxicating, and Patrick was beginning to dread the day she felt comfortable going back to her own room. More than once, he had caught himself stroking her hair as she dozed, often falling asleep well before him in the evenings. He knew he was falling for her, and he knew he couldn¡¯t tell her. She had already had one panic attack, and last night had returned a nightmare that had awoken him to her clenching his chest, whimpering.
He almost missed the sound of the elevator opening as someone else exited, ¡°Patrick, are you here?¡± He heard the voice of Krastus clearly enough and stood where he was. The roof creaked under his weight as he slipped down, hanging from one arm easily as he lowered himself back onto the platform and stepped into the gazebo proper.
¡°I am, If you are looking for Cammy, uh, Camorra, she¡¯s off with her girlfriends.¡± Patrick suppressed a smirk at the realization of just where exactly He had come from flooded through Krastus¡¯ features.
¡°I, uh, I was actually looking for you.¡± Krastus handed him a glass of water from the two he had in his hand and sat down in one of the comfortable chairs inside the structure.
¡°Ah, I see. I was wondering when the father talk was going to happen.¡± Patrick smiled before settling into his own chair, ¡°at least this one hasn¡¯t started with shotguns and veiled threats.¡±
Krastus snorted, ¡°If I had thought that would work, your first morning here would have¡ corrected¡ that assumption. Do your kind really threaten potential mates of your offspring?¡±
¡°Humans are¡ protective¡ we also do not have the same psychological risks associated with casual intimacy. You put those two traits together and¡ yea.¡± Patrick shrugged, ¡°if you think I shocked you when I mistook you for a threat; as a human, my jaw practically bounced off the floor when you seemed completely content in leaving your daughter in the bed of a young man you just met. That¡¯s just not done with my people.¡±
¡°It wasn¡¯t without worry; but I also must trust my daughter, and she trusts you.¡± Krastus took a sip from his own glass, ¡°I assume she has done so with reason¡. She won¡¯t tell me, and that worries me. I am¡ unaccustomed to that reaction from her, but I don¡¯t want to push her.¡±
¡°And you want to ask me.¡± Patrick set his glass down. Waiting patiently for Krastus to make his move.
¡°I must know. You have confided in me that you care for my daughter, and she is at a minimum comfortable enough with you to share a room and a bed with you. That alone is enough for me to consider your request favorably.¡± Krastus began, ¡°It is not done quite so formally these days, with the vast reaches that families can find themselves spread across, but Delmar families often find and approve of mates if the daughter has not expressly stated otherwise. This also applies to when a male is interested in a female, he approaches the family first. In a roundabout way, you have done this.¡±
¡°I see, and in true arranged marriage fashion, you wish to vet me for Camorra.¡± Patrick said slowly.
¡°It is my duty, along with her mother. That is why I must know.¡± Krastus stated formally, ¡°It¡¯s an old way, but It is our way.¡±
¡°I understand. And I will answer your question, but it is¡ a difficult story to tell¡ I suspect that is why Cammy has refused to answer. if both of you are to vet me, I wish to only tell the story once¡¡± Patrick rose.
¡°I can accept that; Aria is waiting for me in the library. Shall we?¡± Krastus pressed the button, recalling the elevator.
Patrick only nodded, taking a deep breath before following Krastus into the elevator as it arrived.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Quawrine¡¯s composite amalgamation of a Vorath corvette flashed out of subspace. A few short seconds later, USN Phobos ripped into normal space with its customary plasma contrails. Quawrine had been confused when the Humans had refused to do a linked subspace jump, but this Captain Collins of theirs, along with his team had stayed on her ship and relayed coordinates for the beacon. The three ships burned for a small planetoid in the middle of an otherwise desolate red dwarf system.
A four-hour burn resulted in not so much an orbit of the planetoid, but an interception and escort of it. ¡°We will have to take a shuttle from here.¡± The kawmari stated curtly.
¡°Signal Phobos, I want the research team to meet us in the hangar.¡± Collins ordered as the group followed the giant Avian to the shuttle bay. ¡°May I ask, how you manage a vessel this size? I see no crew.¡±
¡°I have managed to automate a great deal over the years. I was also not expecting a fight, I have a capable crew available should I need them.¡± Quawrine huffed.
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Three shuttles launched as Quawrine took her own, flanked by her bodyguards. The Marines, along with R¡¯Ben, boarded the Mars-manufactured human shuttle still attached to the courier vessel, and a second was launched from Phobos.
¡°Com, transmit to the rest of the fleet. Quote: ¡°I feel a draft¡± end quote.¡± the captain of Phobos drawled, ¡°full alert status. clear for action, minus decomp.¡±
The trio of shuttles settled onto the landing platform of the singular large hanger cut into the side of the planetoid as their pirate host activated the codes to close the doors and repressurized the space.
Quawrine and her bodyguards met with the marine team in front of their shuttles as the research team shuttle landed, ¡°I know this means nothing to you, but please¡ this is my life¡¯s passion. Be careful. R¡¯Ben will know the procedures. They have not changed. How long do you thi¡¡ what the void?!¡± She squawked as the research team, 2/3rds Delmar research team, stepped out from around their shuttle to join them. ¡°What¡¯s going on. Why is the Confederation here.!¡±
Captain Collins raised his hands in a firm but placating gesture. ¡°Ma¡¯am. You are not dealing with the confederation, please stay calm.¡±
¡°If you aren¡¯t confederation, and you aren¡¯t a human force¡WHO are you!¡± Quawrine demanded, clearly riffled.
¡°Remember the Pirate attacks that failed so fantastically in the Delmar home sector?¡± Collins asked.
¡°Of course! Several of my ships were obliterated by strange vessels that seemed to be able to ignore beacons entirely and¡¡± the Avian woman gawked at the people in shock as her memory was jogged of Phobos¡¯ arrival, decidedly not near a beacon upon their first meeting.. ¡°YOU?!?¡±
¡°Us.¡± Collins said simply.
¡°But how can you.. what do you¡ who are you¡¡± she stammered.
¡°We are Legion.¡± The head of the science team said simply, ¡°Where would you like us to start.¡±
¡°Uh.. yes¡ well¡ this way..¡± Quawrine stammered before leading them in a series of cavernous rooms.
¡°R¡¯Ben, is it?¡± The research team lead smiled down at the amphibious being. ¡°Mike, Mike Dawes. I assume we use the white glove treatment for artifacts? We shouldn¡¯t need to touch anything if what we are looking for is digital.¡±
¡°Well, yes. Nice to meet you. Protective gloves would be advisable. Anything in a locked case, come get me. Some of it can be moved, and some of it is too fragile for a physical inspection. The terminal to get into the digital archives is this way.¡± R¡¯Ben stated, shaking the man¡¯s hand.
Quawrine fluttered about, fretting over every movement of her ¡°guests¡± for several minutes until she finally admitted to herself that she was not, in fact, being sacked. She sat down on one of her favorite spots and just watched for the next 2hours. To her shock, the team asked her just as many questions as they did R¡¯Ben, and they seemed both genuinely interested in preserving the library, as well as collecting as much data as possible.
Curiosity finally got the best of her when the head of the research team openly asked R¡¯Ben for advice. ¡°R¡¯Ben, may I have a word.¡± She asked cautiously when she saw an opportunity. The amphibian hopped over after a moment, politely waiting for her to continue, ¡°Your new masters¡ I don¡¯t understand. Delmar finds slavery Abhorrent¡ were they conquered?¡±
¡°They are not masters¡ ¡° R¡¯Ben replied, ¡°That was a ploy I needed to contact you with. Humanity is from deep in an uncharted region, from what I can tell, and are allied with the Delmar. They seem to somehow have been able to make contact with the Unity without being forced to join it. There is a Rumor that they repelled an inquisitorum fleet, destroying a frigate in the process without suffering losses. I haven¡¯t seen the recordings, but I also have been told by Captain Collins that they repelled a full force Devoted¡¯s assault on the Delmar homeworld¡. Using Atomics¡¡± he finished.
¡°But¡ how.. atomics were too unwieldy, and abandoned generations ago..¡± Quawrine shot back.
¡°It¡¯s what I heard. Alex, Captain Collins calls it ¡°canned sunshine¡± and I tend to believe him.¡± R¡¯Ben said. He was about to say something else when one of the Delmar researchers called out, ¡°I think someone needs to see this!!¡±
Mike Dawes walked crisply over before stiffening visibly and turning to the team, ¡°changed plans! We bulk copy and download EVERYTHING. No exceptions!¡± He shouted before turning to Collins.
¡°Phobos needs to warm the Drives¡. We have a problem.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Clint glanced up as the door to the library cracked as Hera began to enter, then backed out, seeing that the room was occupied. He recognized the look on her face, but now was not the time.
Martina was sitting next to Ivar just staring at Clint in shock. Ivar¡¯s expression was more controlled, but held few secrets to those that knew him.
¡°Admi¡ Nitro, let me see if I got this straight. The same slimy grey aliens that apparently conducted abductions and observations on Humanity¡ have been here so long that they programmed all of humanity with the genetic keys to resurrect entire species?!?¡± Martina took a breath.
¡°In short yes. In long, yes and no. According to the copy of a Corth living on earth, they never expected catastrophic devastation wrought by the devoted. They had planned to pod-grow populations to augment survivors¡¯ genetics with the Codex they left in our own genome. It¡¯s apparently one of the reasons for Humanities wide variations in appearances.
¡°I always wondered about that¡± Ivar said, finally giving his voice to the conversation, ¡°Outside of gender differences, I can¡¯t actually think of another race with the level of genetic diversity to cause all of Humanities ¡°races¡±. Being an evolving library would probably do it though.¡± He paused, ¡°Why are you telling us this...¡± Clint sat back as Ivar made the connection. ¡°Oh¡¡±
¡°Atticus, the being in question, has been working closely with Johansen and his team on the other side. His original was apparently the¡ head¡. Of the project to see if it could be done.¡± Clint stated, ¡°The latest data stream included a formula, based on information he got from Mac¡¯s family bios can information while they were on Luna¡ We don¡¯t know what it will do.. it is completely untested¡ but there are prototype doses available. Blood sample tests have been promising, but we have not tested it on a human subject.¡±
¡°Clint, what are you saying¡¡± Martina asked very, very slowly as she looked over at Ivar for a long minute.
¡°I know you Chika, If I didn¡¯t give you this option to consider, I would wake up 24 hours after you found out missing body parts. I¡¯m saying, that with this particular version of project CODEX, you may be able to acquire some Delmar physical and mental traits. Now hear me on this Marty¡ this could just as easily kill you¡ we literally have no idea wh¡¡±
¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± Martina said firmly, she locked eyes with Clint, silencing the unspoken. Before turning to Ivar, ¡°I know it¡¯s stupid. But he is right. And there isn¡¯t anyone else in as unique a position as we are.¡±
¡°Take the evening. Talk to each other¡± Clint stated finally. ¡°I¡¯ll have an air car launched to bring you two home. I¡¯m truly sorry I had to drop this bomb on you two, know that it is a sign of the trust I hold in you both. This is TS¡ with all that entails. Go home and sleep on it, THAT is an order.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°What the void is going on!¡± Quawrine squawked as the ¡°Legion¡± team started filling storage drives as fast as they could, all the while packing up.
¡°Ma¡¯am, you need to see this¡± Captain Collins said, non too politely, ¡°you have a Vorath emergency transponder.¡± He stated. It wasn¡¯t a question.
¡°Yes, well I bought it for a pittance considering the owner didn¡¯t know what he had.¡± Quawrine huffed, ruffling herself in confused annoyance.
¡°I suggest you move your library, after jettisoning this thing.. it just activated.¡± Dawes said before his com Chirped again. ¡°Shit.¡±
The Vorath Cruiser that dropped into real space was only 150 years old, but she was fully manned and triple the tonnage of Phobos. It had been drawn from its usual silent observation of this arm of the galaxy by the emergency transponder¡¯s activation. It was one of the only standing orders that could remove it from its quietly watchful purpose. Its captain was not a stupid man, and had jump in full readiness, seeing the strange ship in front of him and rounded on Phobos to bring to bear its two primary weapons.
¡°Vent vent vent! Helm, get the PAC on her!¡± Phobos¡¯ captain bellowed even as his helmet snapped closed and a familiar muffling of sound took over in the impending vacuum. ¡°Shields double front! Forward GAU, open fire!¡±
The Vorath cruisers captain narrowed his eyes as his shield registered impact even as not a single laser or plasma weapon had been fired at him. His forward deflectors started flickering as his readout registered hundreds of thousands of Kinetic impacts rained upon in as both ships swung to bring their chase weapons to bear. The Impacts did not do much; but his scowl deepend, recognizing an alarming build up of heat in his generators as they were forced to compensate for the sheer volume and speed of the onslaught.
The Vorath ship acquired a targetting solution first. The Vorath preference was very laser heavy in their doctrine, allowing for an articulating lens at the end of the emitter. Phobos¡¯ Captain had not time to react as his ship was bracketed with a pair of immensely intense yellow beams, as the Vorath cruiser fired at last.
¡°Away damage control!!¡± The Captain bellowed.
¡°Shields down 40 percent, breaches on decks 9 and 10! Overheat situation in D.Gen 3. Compensating.¡±
A new flash of data caught the eye of Phobos¡¯ Captain as the planetoid began to move, slowly, but move on its own as the surface-mounted Pirate Barge modules lit their main drives, in a desperate bid for subspace. ¡°Com! Status on that window!¡± He barked before turning his attention to his opponent. Phobos was heavily out tonnage, and her GAU batteries appeared to be doing little, he prayed the next part of his gambit worked.
¡°Tactical, main PAC, continual discharge. Fire as you bear¡± he growled, ¡°warm up strategic, Helm get us between the Library and the enemy.¡±
Almost as he finished, the centerline PAC spoke as Phobos¡¯ tactical officer Opened up on the enemy cruiser with a maximum duration burn. Arcing the beam across the forward shields of the larger vessel.
-------------------
¡°Report!¡± Bellowed the Vorath captain as the strange ship finally fired a weapon he could see.
¡°Shield down 60 percent! No identification available on the weapon! Hill breaches on decks 12-16.¡± Came the reply. The captain released a sinister grin as this became a fight of worthy opponents. ¡°Begin defensive maneuvers, give me a shot at the fleeing theives.¡±
----------------
¡°Window in 40 seconds!¡± Coms could barely be heard over the crowded frequencies clamor of orders and callouts, ¡°Strategic ready!¡±
¡°Harpoon tubes 7-9, Fire.¡± Came the order over the din, and the space born descendants of the venerable antiship missiles arced away from Phobos¡¯ spine and burned for their target.
----------------
The Vorath captain raised an eyebrow as white streamers streaked up along the centerline of his foe, unsure of if this was a sign of surrender. He was about to order a stand down when every one of those white streamers turned and his sensors registered an ancient fear, long ignored but not forgotten. The Radiation alarms began to whale as the object on the streams of smoke bore down on him,
He didn¡¯t wait for the report, ¡°point defenses, open fire! Hard a Larboard! Nothing gets within 2000 kilometers!¡± He bellowed.
A wall of laser fire erupted from his vessel as she responded to her helm, curving her course to her orders. The captain¡¯s eyes widened as the streams of smoke began to dodge and weave. Two were vaporized with direct hits, the third took a glancing hit and began pinwheeling for a moment. The space between Phobos and the attacker erupted in blinding radioactive rage as the warhead triggered. A titanic shockwave of radiation, Thermal, and EM energy impacted both vessels like a rogue wave in a hurricane. Phobos lost most of the rest of her shields and ruptured her pressure hull in three more places.
The Vorath cruiser stood the test with little improvement. Her deflector power banks drained themselves in protection of their vessel, and one-third of the capacitance cells fused together in the heat transfer. Her captain had to shut down her point defense to redirect some of the power from weapons into keeping the shields alive. He was about to consider a withdrawal as two more Vorath cruisers flashed into existence almost perfectly in sync and within 12 minutes of being in range of the fight.
Phobos¡¯ starboard side main drives were forced into emergency shutdown during the blast from the radiation. The missile that exploded had done so outside of minimum safe distances, but only just. The blast had been almost equidistant from the dueling vessels and Phobus¡¯ captain growled as a pair of enemy ships dropped out of subspace and burned for the combat zone.
¡°How much lo¡?¡± The captain of Phobos began.
¡°More new contact! 198 mark 185!.¡± Came the Call from Phobos¡¯ sensor station as real space was rent asunder. The USN Texas flashed out of slipspace streaming brilliant trails of burning blue plasma to fall alongside Phobos.
¡°I see you started the party without us Demetri¡± Captain Hank Gleeson mused to himself from the captain¡¯s chair aboard USN Texas before raising his voice. ¡°Forward Batteries by 3¡ Fire.¡±
Chapter 82
¡°Pappa?¡± Hera poked into the library of her childhood home later that night after Ivar and Martina had departed from their visit. She found Her father and Mother in their customary evening spot, sitting on a loveseat-style couch as they both relaxed behind the same datapad, reading the same book together. Both looked up at once as Hera stepped into the room and closed the door.
¡°What¡¯s the matter, little one.¡± Her mother, Sylia asked first. ¡°Come, sit.¡±
¡°Nothing¡¯s the matter, Mamma¡± Hera responded softly, ¡°But¡ I need to talk to you, both of you. It¡¯s important.¡± She approached slowly, settling into a chair just next to the couch, ¡°It¡¯s about Jake.¡±
¡°I, see¡¡± Prallus set the tablet aside and shifted so that He and Sylia could sit more properly, ¡°Go on my dear.¡±
¡°I.. I need to know what you think of him. He has become special to me. I know my promise to you after Frie Paired with Clint. I wish to fulfill that promise.¡± Hera spoke more formally than she normally spoke to her parents.
¡°I think he is wonderful, dear.¡± Her mother began, ¡°I worry though, I thought you felt humans too intense?¡±
¡°I care for Clint as family, but I have learned more about how and why he is different. Jacob is intense, but he is.. it¡¯s not quite the same. I am unsure on how to explain it without betraying his privacy¡¡± Hera began before her father held up a hand.
¡°He and I had a discussion; I believe I know the incident that you are referring to. I fear that I do not understand how that makes him different. His history is almost as full of blood as Clint¡¯s.¡± Prallus was clearly concerned.
¡°Jacob¡ He is a Warrior, but He is a Warrior second. He told me once, that Humans like Clint are considered incredibly intense people, even by human standards. He may have fought in war, but he never let war consume him.¡± Hera finally fell silent.
¡°You truly wish for it to be him?¡± Sylia slid over to take Hera¡¯s hand. ¡°How close have you two become?¡±
¡°He has told me everything, I have seen the pistol. I have seen the picture. He has hidden nothing from me.¡± Hera squared her shoulders, ¡°If I had not promised you would be involved in choosing my mate, I would have claimed him¡ this morning. I was moments from taking him when you knocked on the door, mother.¡±
¡°Are you ok? Do I need to give you two separate quarters? I didn¡¯t realize that your relationship was that deep.¡± Sylia asked as Prallus leaned forward.
¡°No, Mamma. He knows our way. He wants your approval as much as I do; He won¡¯t do anything until I ask.¡± Hera decided to leave out the part where Jacob didn¡¯t actually need their approval, or his teasing threat to take her himself. She flushed slightly at the last thought.
¡°He is Human. I know your sister has done well with her choice, but it is not one I would have chosen for her. If you can promise me to wait until I can know Jacob better, I promise I will decide as soon as possible.¡± Prallus said slowly. ¡°I do agree with you, He is not Clint. I will give him an open mind, little one. I am sorry I cannot decide tonight.¡±
¡°Ok pappa.. ok¡± Hera said softly. She took her mother¡¯s outstretched hand and squeezed it. ¡°It¡¯s late, I¡¯m sure you want to talk alone. G¡¯night.¡±
¡°Good night¡± her parents parroted as she departed the library.
¡°I¡¯m not sure what choice she has left us,¡± Prallus grumbled once she left. ¡°She seems to have made up her mind. I thought we were done with this Human Foolishness with Frie.¡±
¡°Oh, Pral. You promised. Yes, she had made up her mind; but respect her restraint. It takes force of will to resist when the Claiming begins.¡± Sylia purred up at her mate, ¡°I would know. You were always so propper. I couldn¡¯t dare before my family made it official.¡±
¡°So you have told me, often.¡± Prallus pulled her into his lap and nipped her on the kneck, ¡°I guess I can see where our daughters get it from.¡± He purred down at her. ¡°Jacob is going to be family isn¡¯t he¡¡±
¡°Yes dear, I¡¯m afraid so. Is he really so bad?¡± Sylia coo¡¯d up at him.
¡°No, I guess he Isn¡¯t. So the big question is.. how long do we make them squirm.¡± He flashed an evil smirk that was matched by his mate.
¡°Oh, a month or so. Payback is only fair after all¡± Sylia chuckled, ¡°let''s Let them butter us up first.¡± She snuggled up and reached over for the reading pad, ¡°Where were we.¡±
__________________
Patrick followed Krastus into the ornately carved Library to be met by Aria sitting in a chair, cradling a mug of something hot and sweet smelling. Krastus took a seat in the chair next to her with a small table between them holding up a steaming cup of his own. ¡°Please, Sit.¡± He indicated to a chair facing them in an L shape. Aria stood, walking over to the roaring fireplace with a pot next to it and poured a third mug before returning and handing it to Patrick. Patrick took a sip cautiously, remembering that The Delmar get cold more quickly than Humans. The beverage was hot, but sweet. Almost like a nuttier version of Hot chocolate mixed with something that tasted very similar to Baliey¡¯s.
¡°Now son, please. What happened on that vessel.¡± Krastus asked gently.
¡°They hit the door to engineering with 12 and started shooting. They brought heavy weapons, and most of the engineering team died in the first few minutes. Lyrian¡¯s brother-in-law stepped in front of a shit load of incoming, pardon my language. How he is still alive is a mystery, but him, plus a burst coolant line gave us an opening and we ended up in a maintenance crawlspace. Many did not make it to the crawlspace¡ we all saw their bodies thrown into a pile. As procedure, when the ambush started. Those with training were to arm themselves. That¡¯s the only reason I even had my revolver with me. The other Humans were just engineers, I grew up in the desert. Shooting competitions and target practice was just enough to be ¡°qualified¡± but I was the only one.¡± He paused for a long moment looking down at his hands, ¡°I should have stayed.. died with them¡ but I¡.. by the time I got everyone else into the tunnel.. it was too late.¡±
Patrick continued, noticing the stillness of the Bailins as he got to through the events¡ Finishing with the assault on the three remaining guards before they could accidentally blow up Celest. ¡°I am human, and it is not easy for me to tell you this. Portions of this story still give me nightmares, just as it does Camorra. If this was not such a culturally sensitive situation¡ I would have told you nothing¡ I¡¯m still processing those events, and I suspect that both of us will be doing so for some time.¡± Patric took a deep breath, ¡°Every time our Exo suits activate, a recording device activates to record whatever happens. I have the recording of that day, and I have not been able to bring myself to watch it¡¡±
There was a long silence as Patrick stared down at his mug of steaming beverage. He wasn¡¯t sure what to say. The Horror of what had happened to their daughter hung in the air for what felt like an eternity before Krastus finally broke the silence, ¡°I understand. We will not press her about it¡ Thank you for telling us¡ and for our daughter¡¯s life¡ Whe¡¡± He was interrupted by a chime that resounded through the estate, denoting the front door opening with the security code. ¡°We can finish this later. Thank you, Patrick, that will be all.¡±
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
Patrick nodded before departing the library, heading down the hallway. ¡°You¡¯re back early?¡±
¡°Fuck them!!! All they want to know is what happened!! How many died!! Did I fuckin kill anyone!!¡± She bellowed into his chest sobbing, ¡°I don¡¯t wanna talk about it, GODS FUCKING DAMMIT!!¡± She bawled before dissolving into shaking sobs, ¡°I don¡¯t wanna talk about it¡ I don¡¯t want them to know. I don¡¯t want Mamma to know¡¡±
Patrick just let her rant until she petered out after a few minutes, ¡°What¡¯s that smell,¡± she said finally.
¡°Your mom made me a strange nutty hot chocolate drink. It¡¯s pretty good, want some?¡± he asked gently, looking down at her and gently wiping away a fallen tear.
¡°Uhhuh..¡± She mumbled, finally letting go of him as they headed toward the library to find it empty. Patrick poured them a couple of drinks and sat down on one of the chairs only to have Cammy promptly sit down in his lap and curl up in a shivering ball, calming quickly as Patrick wrapped his arms around her, ¡°Hmm¡¡ They wanted to meet you¡ May wanted to tell her parents about you¡ That bitch¡¡±
¡°Now, now. I¡¯m sure they are nice people.¡± Patrick soothed.
Cammy slowly settled down, sipping on the drink, ¡°Sorry. I got so mad. They weren¡¯t who I remember them as. It¡¯s like I grew up and they didn¡¯t. May got me to show her a picture of you. She looked it over like you were a piece of ass.¡±
Patrick snarfed into his drink at the very human expression, ¡°Oh my.¡± He said sagely, ¡°I¡¯m sure that went over well, ooof¡± His teasing was shortened by an elbow in the gut.
¡°Fuck her. She wants what she can¡¯t have.¡± Cammy gruffed.
Patrick raised an eyebrow down at her, ¡°Oh? I¡¯m yours now?¡±
¡°Yes!¡± Cammy said without thinking then froze and blushed vibrantly up at him, ¡°That¡¯s not... I didn¡¯t mean! What I was saying¡ I mean¡¡± She stuttered before giving up with an exasperated sound and settled back down again. ¡°You know what I mean.¡± She grumbled.
Patrick just chuckled and settled in to watch the fire. Two hours later he carried an exhausted and sleeping Camorra back to bed.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
¡°Forward Batteries by 3¡ Fire.¡±
As one, every 1005 capable of getting firing solution followed the order. USN Texas was a Terran designed ship of the line. She carried three sets of two primary turrets forward of her observation bridge amidships in both a dorsal and ventral positions and one pair aft of the observation bridge also dorsal and ventral. The command crew was currently deep in the inner hull on the battle bridge. The command of Captain Gleeson¡¯s was simple. Every 1005 capable of firing was to split their fire among the three targets, and fire off a single round whilst keeping their rotary emergency magazines filled. Fourteen 10 meter long and 5 meter in diameter Depleted Uranium cored Steel darts departed the Texas at five percent the speed of light. Her two fixed forward battery, which was designed to cover the small cone directly in front of Texa¡¯s centerline that the turrets could not fire, had to be swung slightly to come to bear on the beleaguered Vorath Cruiser closest to Phobos, and couldn¡¯t participate in this volley. The Port side forward batteries fired on the left most incoming cruiser, whilst the starboard forward batteries split their fire between Phobo¡¯s opponent and the other incoming cruiser.
The heavily damaged enemy vessel did not survive as 6 superheated and semiluminal projectiles evaporated the last of its shields. The Cruiser¡¯s hull bulged from amidships as the dart shaped projectiles disassembled themselves under the extreme heat and pressure of impacting durasteel at almost 15 million meters per second, superheating the atmosphere inside the enemy vessel even as the overpressure shockwaves banana peeled the pressure hull itself. Death was instant as the atmosphere was turned instantly into plasma as it bellowed from the center of the symphony of destruction, flash cooking all inside.
The Vorath Cruiser to Port fared little better. She and her sister had dropped completely ready to fight and had immediately fired both of their Ship grade laser cannons moments before the Wrath Texas¡¯ first volley arrived. She suffered the same fate as her Sistership under double the weight of volley, but she did not go quietly.
USN Texas¡¯ shields flared and glowed under the combined hatred of 4 direct hits from weapons capable of evaporating cities through atmosphere. Alarms inside of Texas blared as she lost two of forward shield generators to auto shutdown. The last 10 percent of one of the beams penetrated, slamming into Texas¡¯ Ablative bow plating ripping off several tons of reactive ablative armor. Texas had been designed to fight the Energy weapon-centric Martian Navy, and her armor did its job, boiling off the energy of the beam and dispersing it by controlled destruction of the armor itself.
¡°Away Damage Control! Status Report!¡± Gleeson bellowed into his helmet¡¯s microphone.
¡°Forward Deflectors at 7 percent!! Generators 3 and 4 inoperable, reading overheat! Forward Decks 29 and 30 reporting excessive temperatures on the Port Quarter! We lost 40 tons from the impact site!¡±
Gleeson¡¯s data flashed as the Planetoid finally reached subspace speeds and leapt, Captain Collins had tight beamed the destination Coordinates to the Texas before they left. It was time to go.
The Starboard side enemy vessel survived. She had received but half of the weight of ordinance that the other new arrival had been destroyed by. Her shields had held 4 of the 6 rounds that impacted her. The two 1005 projectiles that made it through were significantly slowed by their impact with the shields and had also been redirected just enough to prove to be only glancing blows. One barely kissed the starboard quarter abaft the beam, ripping a gauge down the side of the vessel before imbedding itself into one of the main drive blisters on that side. The gouge puked fire, atmosphere, and bodies for several seconds before emergency force fields could be established. The second impact was more substantial, slamming directly into the port side Primary Laser cannon¡¯s power banks, shorting them out entirely and causing a secondary explosion that blew a chunk out of the port side ventral plating of the enemy vessel.
The weight of debris from both sides damage rendered identifying effect on target largely impossible. Texas¡¯ momentum had already put her between the Beleagured Phobos, and the Library had safely exfiltrated. Captain Gleeson had no want to spend Human and Delmar lives if he did not have to.
¡°Come about! Double up deflectors on the Starboard broadside. Tell Phobos to prepare to be taken under tow. I don¡¯t care if she can still make way¡± Gleeson growled.
¡°Captain Demetri on the hale for you.¡± Coms replied.
¡°Captain, We are going to have to snatch you up. The Library is Gone, we need not stay.¡± Gleeson said to the man on the other side of the channel.
¡°Agree¡¯d, Phobos is Combat Ineffective, We are unable to make way. Requesting Evacuation once we are in the Bay.¡± Captain Demetri stated formally. ¡°She gave a good show, but¡¡±
¡°Understood, cables away, we are going to drag you into the bay. It won¡¯t be pretty, prepare for impact.¡± Gleeson saluted the Destroyers captain and closed the channel.
Tow cables bore almost whaling harpoon shaped heads at their tips. 6 of them speared into Phobos flank as she drifted listlessly in the middle of a cloud of her own wreckage. It was a dirty and destructive way of doing business, and only done in emergencies. The prongs did not go in far but lodged themselves into the Martian made Destroyer. Automated winched heaved to their charge, forcibly pulling Phobos into the central bay designed for smaller capital ships. Phobos was reeled in like a half-dead right whale until her hull impacted the hydraulically suspension-equipped magnetic pylons that secured her into position.
¡°30 seconds!¡± called the engineering team from the bay.
¡°Captain! More contacts 099 by 015! Its big sir!¡± Came sensors as a Monster of a Vorath Vessel, easily the equal of Texas by tonnage, broiled into realspace just over a million kilometers from the combat zone.
¡°Phobos Secure!¡± came the call form the engineers in the bay.
Captain Gleeson bore his teeth at the newcomer. ¡°Starboard Broadside, by division. Full spread, at the ready¡ Helm, all ahead flank, call when ready for jump¡± he growled into his helmet¡¯s com system.
Precious moments went by as Texas spun up and accelerated towards jump velocity. No less than 5 separate beams impacted her board-side deflector array, but the range was long, and energy weapon attenuation prevented any penetrations. Texas¡¯ Shields had dropped to a little under one quarters before the Helm made the call.
¡°Course and speed achieved! Jump ready!¡± Helm yelled out.
Gleeson¡¯s voice rang clear and calm, ¡°Starboard batteries... FIRE!¡±. Texas shook as the ¡®full spread¡¯ order was followed, dumping every one of the 24 tube¡¯s 6 round magazines, releasing a wall of hate toward the new enemy.
¡°Rounds complete!¡± came the call from tactical as the last tube fell silent.
¡°Jump.¡± Gleeson ordered. His duty was to his men, not to whether he had affect on target. The parting volley would aid in preventing any attempt at a pursuit or triangulation. Texas leaped into subspace, having left her own presents in her wake.
It took almost 2 seconds for the wall of unbridled fury to reach the Vorath frigate ¡°Wrath of Primus¡±. Her captain had watched the Texas through the Vorath version of data-link, and dumped all of his stored energy from both his shield and his weapons banks into his forward deflector screens the moment he dropped out of subspace. His vessel carried 8 generators for her forward shields alone. 6 of them detonated from power surges in the ensuing hurricane of depleted uranium and steel. Of the 144 rounds fired 105 struck true, 12 broke through the shields, and tore into the forward plating of the frigate. 3 made it past the hull but were too depleted in energy to superheat or overpressure the atmosphere inside, and instead passed through the forward quarter of the ship at an angle. 4 of them connected with the forward weapons banks and 1 ripped the power relays out of the sensor array before departing out of her port side amidships hull. The Wrath of Primus was crippled, but not immobile; and sent a message out for assistance. Four hours later two more Frigates dropped out of subspace to assist in the rescue mission.
Chapter 83
Jacob Irving left his eye patch on as he stepped into the Orlivaro estate. It was well after dark, and he had wanted to take the time to explore his new vision. He had given his feet license to go where they pleased, and he had ended up everywhere from the great hall to the planet-side facilities of the orbital shipyards to check on a few items for Lucid Traveler. He had figured out how to adjust the additions present with his artificial eye to make the patch over it essentially transparent during this, and a smirk flashed over his features as his Hera walked up to his formerly blind side.
¡°Hey, you¡± he said softly, smiling openly as she stiffened in surprise. Hera finishing her approach to give him a full-bodied hug¡
¡°Ok, give. How did you know.¡± She remarked as they headed down the hall toward their room. It was long past Natalia¡¯s bedtime and the Stevens had long retired for the evening as well.
¡°Sit,¡± James said as he closed the door behind them, ¡°Do you remember how I lost my eye?¡±
¡°The attack on the station, you hadn¡¯t been given Traveler yet, ¡± Hera said. ¡°You never did tell me how.¡±
¡°Well, one of the boarding pods impacted the promenade right in front of me and a few other humans as we were out exploring the station. You have seen the footage, but moments before, one of the attackers started shooting at us with laser pistols. One hit me directly in my eye socket and removed my eye.¡± Jacob stated
¡°That was you?¡± Hera gasped, ¡°I saw the entire footage from the promenade¡¯s CCTV. I saw you get shot, but I never put it together. They never released the names.¡±
¡°Well. The shot took my eye, but left my nerve intact. There was not enough of my actual right eye left to reconstruct, and cloning my other eye to replace it was not going to work because of the way human eyes operate. Shortly before I took command of Traveler, I met with The Brothers. They told me to give them time. They wanted a chance to develop a prosthetic¡ a working prosthetic. That¡¯s where I went today.¡± Jacob took a breath.
¡°But, your patch. It didn¡¯t work?¡± Hera paused, ¡°Wait¡. You saw me comming through the patch!?!¡±
¡°I did, but¡. Well, I¡¯m going to look very different without the patch. I didn¡¯t want to keep freaking everyone out.¡± Jacob said gently, ¡°Even you. The difference is¡ stark.¡±
Jacob had settled into one of the chairs in the room and Hera sitting in the other as she heard his story. ¡°Show me. It can¡¯t be that bad.¡±
Jacob chuckled and slowly reached up and removed his eye patch. ¡°The material they used for the Iris can¡¯t be dyed without compromising functionality. I¡¯m afraid Im stuck with the color.¡± He lowered his hand revealing the pure white iris to Hera.
¡°Oh wow.. Ok, that¡¯s¡ different.¡± Hera breathed as she got up and curled up in his lap to take a closer look at the prosthetic. ¡°Ah, I think I see what they did. It moves in a shell doesn¡¯t it.¡±
¡°Pretty much. I can look around like it¡¯s a real eye, and then some.¡± Jake chuckled at her inquisitive expression as Hera leaned in close, ¡°They practically stuffed a sensor suite into this thing.¡± He finished.
¡°Oh?¡± Hera asked, ¡°I¡¯m sure that will come in handy, find anything interesting?¡± She purred up at him. Dissolving to giggles as he raised an eyebrow at her.
¡°*cough* so, um¡ how did it go with your parents?¡± Jacob pointedly changed the subject as he set the eye patch down on the end table.
¡°About as well as I hoped. They worry. Momma likes you, but pappa worries that you are human. I just think it¡¯s so fast for them. I¡¯ve known you for a lot longer than they have.¡± Hera admitted.
¡°Hmmm¡ I see. I guess I should expect something like that.¡± Jacob shrugged with a sigh, ¡°You are going to have to take the lead on this one. My people don¡¯t do arrangements for marriage. We haven¡¯t for centuries. I don¡¯t know the first thing about it, or how your people do it.¡±
¡°It¡¯s mostly observation and interactions. Pappa might want to spend some time one on one. Mamma is probably going to harangue me with questions.¡± Hera groaned, ¡°Frie is gonna tease me to death.¡± Her voice was muffled as she buried her head on his shoulder for a moment.
¡°So basically We are being watched. Fun.¡± Jacob chuckled. He stood, eliciting a squeak from Hera as he effortlessly lifted her with him to be carried for a moment before he set her down on her feet, ¡°I¡¯m gonna shower real quick. It¡¯ll give you time to change.¡±
¡°Change?¡± Hera asked in confusion.
Jacob turned and saw her shiver as he refused to hide his human manner for a moment. He took two slow steps to close the gap between them and lifted Hera up on the small desk that was against the wall next to the bed, ¡°Hera¡ I am not Delmar,¡± he said in a soft growl in her ear as he pinned her to the wall gently, but firmly, ¡°You are the most beautiful woman I have laid eyes on¡If you come to bed as you did last night¡.¡± Hera¡¯s eyes widened in remembrance, then in shock as he entrapped her in an inescapable full body embrace. His lips brushed her neck, and the kiss into a nip as he pulling at her skin lightly with his teeth before withdrawing. ¡°I am still human, after all..¡± He whispered before releasing her and heading for a very very cold shower.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Quawrine¡¯s Library planetoid could barely make subspace jumps. She had hated making jumps in the best of times, and was currently praying to the void gods themselves that the cobbled together cluster of subspace drives held together to their destination.
¡°It¡¯s very strange, I would have expected a Pirate Queen to be surrounded by subjects.¡± A deep voice interrupted her interrogation of the console in her control/navigation room.
¡°Some things are too precious to risk even subjects. This is not just my obsession. It¡¯s my legacy. I won¡¯t leave it to just anyone¡¯s hands.¡± Quawrine huffed soberly. ¡°Not that it matters. If this gets out, that I worked with the butchers that hit the meat markets¡ I will be hunted down¡¡± she straightened once more, ¡°We drop out of subspace in 2minutes, are you sure this is ok? I¡¯ve never even seen this beacon before.
¡°It¡¯s safe.¡± Alex Collins reassured, ¡°As for your empire. We are going to need someone on the inside to keep their eyes to the void. When they come, they will hit the fringes first. You will die or be subjugated first. I¡¯m sure we can figure out a way to cover your reputation¡±.
¡°We shall see, dropping to real space now.¡± The Avian woman stated as she pulled on the levers controlling the Library¡¯s drives. A pronounced shudder rattled through the planetoid as it was spat from subspace only to have alarms go off. ¡°I thought you said this was safe!! We are being targeted!!¡±
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Alex Collins activated his Com, linked to the shuttle in the hanger, ¡°Hades actual, this is Collins-476639, clearence code echo 8814. Hold your fire.¡± He stated calmly.
*care to explain why you dropped a hostile marked planetoid in our lap?* came a none two happy voice over his com
¡°Exigence, Hades. We were perusing intel on Bravo Gulf, and were ambushed. No choice, I¡¯m afraid.¡±
*And your reason for dropping a pirate vessel into one of our forward HQ¡¯s Son?* it was Admiral Stevens. his voice was grainy, characteristic of a signal being received from extreme distances.
¡°Admiral, my apologies, but I did not have time to make another choice. This planetoid is a¡ Library¡ of sorts¡ ¡° Collins raised an eyebrow as Quawrine snatched his com microphone
¡°This is over 60 years of collecting artifacts and data on the Corth/ Vorath civil war.¡± She huffed before handing back the hand held.
*Is that true son?* the Admirals voice crackled over the strained connection.
¡°It is an¡ impressive collection Admiral. The Techs say that the Digital records are even more so. We were in the process of copying the data when we were engaged by one of the larger Vorath cruisers. Phobos took a pounding letting us escape¡ the Texas jumped in just as we were leaving. I haven¡¯t heard anything since.¡±
As if on cue, USN Texas broiled out of subspace trailing plasma and towing a battered Phobos in her central capital ship cavity.
*USN-Texas, echo 8814. Captain Gleeson speaking. Requesting medical and repair crews. USN Phobos is Charlie India. Heavy casualties.*
*I¡¯ll be arriving in 80 hours. I¡¯ll expect a full debrief when I arrive gentlemen* Admiral Stevens growled.
*Library, come about 223 by 288, slow to 10000 kph and prepare to receive a harbor pilot. Welcome back Texas, make for morning coordinates 2-4, medical and additional damage crews will meet you there.* the original voice called out.
¡°Well that went about as well as I expected it to. Go ahead, come about as instructed. I¡¯ll go tell the egg heads to slow down and take their time.¡± Collins stated before leaving the baffled Avian to her controls.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Captain Demitri Degturev sank into his ready room chair. He had already sent his essentials over to Hades station, and was spending the last moments aboard Phobos to copy down the combat records and data for his personal study. He was still in his uniform''s exosuit mode, and he leaned slightly to scratch his nose on a convenient seam as he pulled the data chip from its slot.
*captain, we are ready for you* a voice came over his com and he stood to begin the long walk toward the docking port where the last evacuation shuttle was waiting for him. His mind wandered as his feet carried him to his destination.
USN Phobos had a crew complement of two hundred and twelve sailors, both Human and Delmar. Eighteen of them would never return home, and five more were likely to not make the night. Thirty-five others were baring at least one injury of note, with twelve of those being of a serious or critical nature.
Phobos had accorded herself well, but she had been heavily outgunned by the cruiser she had faced. She had marked her opponent and had successfully screened the escape of their objective, but it had cost his command dearly. Her hull was holed in several places, and her power distribution had been damaged to the point of making emergency atmospheric containment fields untrustworthy. She would sail again, but she would need a loving and skilled hand to be returned to her former glory.
¡°All crew accounted for?¡± Demetri asked formally to the crewman at the docking port.
¡°You are the last, Captain.¡± The man responded over the coms.
¡°Very well,¡± Demetri stated and stepped into the shuttle to sit in one of the available seats. The hatch sealed, and a telltale hiss made its introduction as air was pumped into the shuttle. The signal came that it was safe to unseal, and Demetri retracted his uniform¡¯s vacuum sections and sank back heavily against the inner hull of the shuttle, breathing a long sigh of released tension.
What felt like mere moments later, Demetri stepped out of the shuttle and was shown to his temporary quarters. He didn¡¯t bother to shower, but stowed his data chip and left for the infirmary.
He had his men to attend to.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
It was very early morning, and Clint was dressing and packing as quietly as he could manage. his emotions still woke his sleeping bride, and he felt Frie stir as her consciousness returned to her in slow blinks.
¡°Something happened. What can you tell me?¡± Frie pushed herself up to sit as she watched him finish up.
¡°We engaged the Vorath. Someone found a repository of artifacts from their civil war and was ambushed for it. That¡¯s about all I know. I should be gone only a few days.¡± Clint grumbled. It was times like these where the Mental link between him and Frie was a godsend, as she could feel just how much he did not want to leave at this moment. ¡°One of our Sol¡¯s got tangled up in it, and a destroyer was almost sunk.¡±
¡°Gods, who? I met most of the captains when we had that conference on Port Royal.¡± Frie whispered.
¡°Phobos, sounds like she went toe to toe with something much bigger than herself.¡± Clint responded, slinging his hastily stuffed sea bag over his shoulder
¡°Demetri¡ I remember him. He¡¯s one of the younger ones, very crew oriented. I will keep him in prayer¡± Frie nodded. The Delmar freighter''s religion was a strange one. It was less named gods and more acceptance of the Black of deep space as the Territory of the Divine, and therefore it was a sort of composite deity all its own.
Clint had never been religious, but he smiled and stepped over to peck Frie on the lips, ¡°I should be back inside the week..¡± he rumbled. ¡°You better keep me up to speed on Jake and Hera. I don¡¯t want to miss all the fun.¡±
¡°Oh, I will. I suspect She already talked to mamma and pappa. This is gonna be exciting.¡± She smirked, receiving a chuckle from Clint.
¡°Good girl.¡± He smirked back before stepping out of the room. He was almost to the front door when a soft, and very deliberately made noise made him pause. ¡°I forget that you were JSOC.¡± Clint mused as he turned to see Jake Irving leaning up against a pitched black hallway door.
¡°Something happened. I know that look.¡± Jake stated, stepping into the light and revealing his artificial eye. He tapped it in response to the raised eyebrow from Clint, ¡°They gave me fuckin¡¯ predator vision. I can literally see in the dark now. It¡¯s better than any nods I¡¯ve ever been issued.¡±
¡°That¡¯s¡ mildly terrifying. Yes, something happened. I can¡¯t say much more than that.¡± Clint stated formally. ¡°How are you two doing? I hear you are trying to keep it traditional.¡±
¡°Hera¡¯s asleep. I heard you leaving, and that didn¡¯t track. I probably have 5 minutes before she wakes up from the cold. I hope her parents get on board soon¡¡± Jacob gave a pointed look as Clint broke into a low chuckle.
¡°Good luck.¡± Clint smiled a knowing expression.
¡°I suspect, you need it more than I, Admiral.¡± Jacob waved an abbreviated salute and disappeared down the vanta black corridor without so much as a sound.
¡®Yep, definitely terrifying¡¯ Clint mused to himself as he stepped onboard the waiting shuttle from Olympus.
Twenty minutes later he stepped off the shuttle onto the hanger deck of USN Tharsis, ¡°I¡¯m aboard Captain, no need to wait.¡± He spoke into his Com.
*Confirmed, jumping in 2* the response came. The hum inside the Martian-made ship of the line changed subtlety as Tharsis¡¯ main drives flared to full fury.
¡°I¡¯ll be in the conference room, 5 minutes. Have the data sent there..¡± Clint stated finally before closing his coms and starting for the corridors.
A few minutes later Clint stepped into the conference room. He snorted as an aroma of steaming hot coffee greeted him with not only a mug of it poured but an entire pot on a warmer next to the mug. Both were placed next to a data pad in the middle of the table. ¡°I see, I have become predictable.¡± He mused before sitting down, noting the telltale note change in the bones of the titanic starship as she made the jump to slipspace.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Jacob silently slipped into the room he shared with Hera and started stripping down to his trunks once more. Hera had thankfully granted his request and was currently asleep in one of his oversized gym shirt and a pair of her own pj pants. She had only done so after he promised to let her curl up on him as before, hence the shirtless look with trunks. He slipped into the Delmar-style bed to find arms already waiting for him. Hera never awoke fully, but instinctively migrated toward his bodies warmth until she was pressed firmly to his side.
Clint¡¯s departure bothered him. Jacob had long been out of the military loop, but this was different. His personal interactions with the ambassador as well as Stevens stirred old feelings from a past gone. His idle stroking of Hera¡¯s hair illicit a soft grumble from the incredible creature currently hell-bent on snuggling as close as possible. ¡®Jesse, How do I deserve to be so lucky¡¡¯ His thoughts were cut off by Hera stirring once more, and he leaned in to kiss the top of her head ¡®Magnolias¡. She smells like magnolias J¡. I wish you could have met her.¡¯ He fought the lump in his throat for a moment, breathing deeply the scent of the being at his side. Slowly, his eyelids gained their familiar weight as sleep conquered his mind.
There were no nightmares this night.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
¡°Captain¡. Demetri¡± Demetri started slightly as his awareness flooded back to him. ¡°Captain, you¡¯ve been here all night.¡± His eyes focused on the mountain speaking to him to reveal the concerned face of Alex Collins looking down at him.
¡°Collins¡.¡± Demetri looked around groggily, realizing he was still in the waiting room of the surgery ward on Hades station. ¡°How many¡ how long was I out¡±
¡°You spent the night here, sir. The surgeries are over for now. We only lost one of the likelies,¡± Collins took a step back as Demetri stood and slowly looked around.
¡°So nineteen dead¡¡± Demetri pinched the bridge of his nose, ¡°I¡¯ll need to get on those letters¡ their families¡ ¡°
¡°Can wait, captain.¡± A Middle-aged doctor walked up, face of stone firmness. ¡°I¡¯m ordering you on leave until the admiral arrives. I called Captain Collins here to enforce that order. You have two options, allow the good captain to escort you to your quarters to rest. Or lie down on one of the beds here and be restrained¡± The man¡¯s tone matched his expression, and Alex couldn¡¯t restrain an eyebrow from arching toward the ceiling.
¡°I take your point Doctor. I choose my quarters. Lead on Captain.¡± Demetri grumbled, waving dramatically toward the exit.
The two walked the halls of the station in tense silence. Demetri knew the Doctor was right, but it still chaffed.
¡°It¡¯s never easy losing people, and it shouldn¡¯t be.¡± The low voice of Captain Collins interrupted Demetri¡¯s brooding as they reached the door to his quarters.
¡°I¡¯ve lost men before¡ but not this many, it¡¯s¡ a lot.¡± Demetri admitted, ¡°They are my crew¡¡±
¡°In some ways, they¡¯re more than family.¡± Collins finished, ¡°Get some rest, sir. Your crew will need you fresh, soon enough.¡± Collins snapped off a salute that Demetri returned before disappearing into his quarters.
Chapter 84
USN Tharsis Broiled out of Slips-pace bleeding her hull¡¯s quantum charges off in trails of brilliant plasma. Admiral Clint Steven was stepping into his shuttle moments later, already coordinating with the Station for an immediate conference of all that were involved. His shuttle ejected itself from the midships hanger bay of Tharsis and burned hard for Hades station even before her mothership had been giving her mooring coordinates. Long moments later, Clint stepped crisply into the sparsely packed conference room.
Clint raised an eyebrow as Captain Collins called for attention. All the military personnel stood and assumed the stance. the Kawmari female present just stared around the room in confusion, and a strange amphibian being stood and gave Clint a strange formal nod. ¡°As you were. Let¡¯s get down to business. Ms Quawrine, thank you for coming. I have read the briefs and the data in the initial packet. I would like the more complete picture now, if you please.¡± Clint sat, followed by the rest of the military contingent, and the amphibian.
¡°Sir,¡± Captain Collins began, ¡°Mr R¡¯ben here,¡± he indicated to the Amphibian man, ¡°was picked up in our operation to rescue the Lycan transport families, we gained partial success, and those families are on their way back home as we speak. Mr R¡¯ben is a former lifelong slave who has worked for many owners. One such owner is the Kawmari female you see here. He and her shared a fascination of the Corth/ Vorath civil war and learned that we were looking for any information of the Vorath we could get. He offered to put us in touch with his former¡ employer¡ who curated the library planetoid you saw on your way in.¡± He paused and glanced to the Captain of Phobos.
Captain Demetri Degturev stood and clicked a button, lowering a holographic projector from the ceiling, and activated it. ¡°Phobos engaged the cruiser, admiral. She had us in tonnage and primary weaponry, but we did not have another option.¡± The sensor records of the deadly symphony crescendo¡¯d as Demetri visibly rallied before continuing, ¡°As you can see, we made the library make a run for it; my crew and myself engaged the Cruiser with everything in our arsenal¡ including Strategic. Phobos was rendered combat ineffective in the exchange, but we were able occupy the enemy long enough for the library to jump, and for Texas to show up. I lost 19 souls in the engagement, Admiral; And Phobos will need more than what we can give her here.¡± Demetri settled into his chair heavily and took a deep breath.
¡°We arrived roughly¡ here,¡± Captain Gleeson paused the recording just as Texas made her appearance, ¡°two more cruisers had jumped into the battle via subspace, I chose to engage all of them at once as a screen to aid in taking Phobos under tow. Phobos had maimed her foe, Admiral. In truth, I believe we wasted ammunition targeting the original aggressor with more than one turret.¡± He paused the recording just as Texas¡¯ forward deflectors flared under the withering fire of the two primary laser batteries of the Vorath vessels struck almost as one. ¡°This volley surprised me, their weapons appear to be of the standard laser variety; heavy hitting at closer ranges, with a severe attenuation penalty. These did not hit like any ship-grade laser battery I have seen. They seemed to feedback loop our shield generators causing more heat and damage internally than to the shields themselves. I believe that Delmar R&D should inspect the damaged components after they have been replaced,¡± Gleeson restarted the recording as Texas came about, plucking Phobos out of the black and tucking her safely into her central docking cavity designed to house smaller capital ships. ¡°By this time, our mission was complete. The library had jumped, and it was time to go. We left a parting¡ gift... just before we jumped, to ensure we would not be followed, or our trajectory tracked.¡± Gleeson smiled as an entire broadside salvo bellowed from the starboard flanks of Texas just before the recording ended.
¡°I see, I¡¯ve read much of this. However, the recording does give perspective. I do not have any fault to give in the actual engagement. Lt. Dawes, I know its early; but what have you found so far¡± The admiral nodded to the man to begin.
¡°Admiral, what we have found is nothing short of astounding. Ms Quawrine has, frankly, put together a Smithsonian-level collection on the conflict in question.¡± Dawes flicked his wrist on his pad and the hologram in the middle of the table lit once more. ¡°She has recordings of several major battles, as well as artifacts that show weapons damage, and possible material science data. We may need years to investigate the digital data alone. The artifacts, we have yet to start properly cataloguing them, however I suspect that they are already catalogued.¡± He gave a nod to the avian woman standing in the corner, watching intently. She stood stock still, eyes wide. This was the first time she had seen what exactly had transpired outside of her library during the intense events of a few days ago.
¡°Ms Quawrine, please. If you need a moment, you don¡¯t need to be here.¡± Clint offered but the bird woman shook her head severely.
¡°No¡ uh.. admiral. I do, however, have some insight if you would permit me.¡± She said carefully.
¡°By all means.¡± Clint¡¯s intrigued tone bled through as he yielded to the floor.
¡°The biggest insight is that I can give¡ Is to tell you that your, uh, Phobos, should not have survived that battle. These were not ¡®Vorath cruisers¡¯ as you say. They have two types of such vessel. One, and forgive me I cannot remember their names, has smaller main turrets designed for escort duties... the other, admiral, were designed to glass planets¡ superheat atmospheres¡ and destroy worlds. One of these cruisers was designed to be able to accomplish this task... There are records of these ships single handedly destroying Corth capital ships double the size of Texas, I can show you where they are if you want. You fought three of them and destroyed two before jumping out. This has simply never been done.¡± Quawrine looked around the table, ¡°The second. Is that Those designs do not appear to be appreciably different than the ones I have records for from the war. If you would like, I can give your scientists the contents codex of my library''s digital collection. I.. have one request...¡± She looked at the admiral, only beginning after receiving a slow nod, ¡°This is my lifes work. I know I am just a criminal to you¡ but I wish to retain possession of the Library when you have completed your inquiry.¡±
¡°Admiral,¡± Clint raised an eyebrow at Captain Collins, but the Marine simply continued, ¡°I believe we have an opportunity here. It is clear, the Vorath are working around the edges of civilized space. Mr R¡¯ben has seen a dagger, very much like the one i¡ acquired over Delmar, being worn by a cloaked figure mere weeks before our raid. I do not condone Quawrine¡¯s profession, but we need eyes on the fringe¡ Sir.¡±
Admiral Stevens raised a hand to rub his short but thick beard as he sat for several moments. ¡°A point, captain.¡± He conceded, ¡°Ms Quawrine, I have a proposition for you. I believe we can kill two birds with one stone, pardon the expression.¡±
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¡°I¡¯m listening, Admiral.¡± Quawrine ruffled her feathers slightly, her species sign of tension.
¡°My people need your library, at least temporarily, to learn all we can about our foe. You need an out, an alibi if you will, for how you escaped the clutches of Legion. I propose that we keep your Library here, at Hades station, and fully document its contents. You may provide any procedures for preservation you require, and they will be followed to the letter.¡± The Avian''s eyes widened but she held her tongue as the Admiral held up a hand to indicate that he was not finished, ¡°We are not taking them from you, but we need time to learn what you have studied your entire life. By us ¡®stealing¡¯ your library... and possibly a few well place, and completely harmless, weapons impacts on your Corvette¡ We should be able to provide you with the cover you need to maintain your status among the Syndicates. The truth is, Captain Collins is correct, we need intel from the fringe. We will give you a secure transmitter. If you find something, Contact us. The Vorath will hit you and your people first. I cannot say I will be upset when they wipe out the pirates. However, if you are willing to agree to this, we will get you and yours out, if at all possible, when the attacks do come. That will be what you get out of this. You and yours getting a personal extraction when the Vorath threat finally rears itself again.¡±
¡°What makes you believe that they are coming.¡± Quawrine asked intently. She could not find a lie in the man. He as human, so it was still possible, ¡°You are asking quite a lot on faith, admiral¡¡±
Admiral Stevens slowly drew a data stick, slipping it into the hologram projector, ¡°Because they already have.¡± He said simply, pressing play.
A familiar image to many in the room flared to life as the recordings of the Vorath attack on Delmar began it¡¯s replay.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Centarus stepped through the airlock onto the shattered wreck that was once a Vorath ¡°World Cleanser¡± Cruiser. Two of these formidable craft were nothing but expanding clouds of gas in a no-name sector of space, but this one¡ This one was precious. It was the first of his vessels to return from a confrontation with this new threat that his people would face when they returned to claim their birthright. Her captain thumped his armor in a salute, ¡°Centarus, I was not told you were coming personally.¡±
¡°I am here, nonetheless. I would see the ship that survived these¡ newcommers.¡± Centarus growled. ¡°Show me.¡±
The tour was brief as several sections of the ship were still exposed to vacuum. The captain knew his ship well, and his men better. His body seethed with the knowledge that his foe simply left instead of finishing him off honorably. The engineering section had plucked a warped and mangled chunk of foreign material from one of the decimated sections of the ship and had it on a table for inspection, ¡°We believe that we know what this ship used to defeat us, Centarus.¡± One of the engineers stated formally, ¡°This appears to have been fired from some sort of kinetic weapon of some kind. We believe it to have impacted our shield at semiluminal velocities.¡±
¡°I find that hard to believe, but your expertise is value¡¯d. Continue.¡± Centarus said slowly.
¡°Centarus, we believe this to be so because of the time between our registering their firing and the impact. That is not all¡ This material is in fact two distinct materials. One wrapped around the other with the core of an extremely dense and mildly radioactive structure.¡± The engineer waved a sensor over the mangled amalgamation of metal only to have it go off in a radioactive warning. ¡°We do not know the manner of discharge, but the energy requirements to be able to fire even one of these is immense. I¡¯m sure a detailed analysis would yield even greater insights.¡±
¡°I see, Granted. See that you present your findings personally.¡± Centarus stated before turning to the captain. ¡°I will be taking your entire sensor logs with me; you are to transfer your surviving crew to my ship to return to Praesidium. They will be debriefed and given leave while your vessel is returned to service.¡±
¡°Centarus, I¡¯m afraid I have been tasked with making a request of you. Some of my men, they will not survive the journey. They wish to take the right. I was going to send a request for authorization when you arrived. It pains me; we are but few this far from Domus Mundi. Our resources are limited. My men know this and wish not to be a burden¡± The captain¡¯s eyes were level, but his loyalty to his men did nothing to dull the pain of such a request.
¡°Show me to them¡± Centarus rumbled as he turned to follow the captain down the corridors once more, ending their trek at the entrance to the Infirmaria. The two of them stepped into the room, and the stench of death and blood seared through their nasal passages as the room¡¯s occupants struggled to come to some form of attention.
¡°Rest yourselves.¡± Barked Centarus, giving the wrecked bodies of these men the permission, they needed to relax once more. ¡°How many.¡± He turned toward the captain.
¡°These men will recover, but the 3 in the back. They will not¡ not in any useful way.¡± The captain said softly as he led the way to the private room in the back. Centarus¡¯ eyes narrowed as he saw the mass of carnage before him. There were indeed 3 men there, mostly. ¡°These men, their injuries were left unattended to for too long, there is not enough good tissue left to save. They were in the worst-hit areas. All spent too much time in the void without a suit.¡±
Centarus slowly walked up to the first man, his face was pealed like the skin of a fruit and already waxing a sickly black as the necrotic tissue spread, slowly claiming its victim. The Vorath had access to Bio Bed and nanite technology, but there were some wounds that exceeded its limits. ¡°Vorath, you wish to take the right.¡±
¡°Aye, Centarus. Do not force me to consume what will not save me.¡± The man''s lidless eyes saw nothing, and his face held little tissue left to emote with. But his voice held its formality, with bare but a waver.
¡°I Grant you this blade. Die well and be welcome in the halls of the Devoted¡± Centarus held his eyes on the young man as he silently slid his dagger from his sheath. Quickly slipping it between the crewman¡¯s ribs to sever the main artery from his heart to the rest of his body. Pride swelled in Centarus¡¯ core as the man made no sound, but simply nodded once before his body sagged in the passing of a warrior¡¯s soul.
Centarus granted the right to the next Soul with the same gentle swiftness. This man could not speak, his lower jaw was missing entirely, and the void bite was completely black with necrosis across his entire body. He simply nodded his answer and made but a grunt when the blade struck home. Centarus turned to the final Soul. This one was clearly the youngest, barely above the age of majority. He turned his head slowly and his eyes locked on the captain¡¯s face. The young man was practically skinned alive and covered in thermal blanket to keep him as comfortable as possible. His exposed tissues oozed and dripped as he shivered in the flashes of hot and cold. There was simply not enough of his skin left to reconstruct.
Centarus paused as the captain¡¯s hand shook slightly as he put a hand on his superior to halt him, ¡°Centarus, I wish to perform this one. He is¡ my youngest... He is blood.¡± Centarus understood the captain instantly, ignoring any perceived breach of decorum with a solemn nod.
¡°Lift me, father. I wish¡ to¡ take it.. upright..¡± The young man grunted through the pain. His father slowly lifted him into a sitting position. The man¡¯s teeth creaked as he fought the agony of simply changing position and ended up sitting up, leaning heavily on his father for support. The captain cupped the back of his boys head and slowly drew his own dagger.
¡°Marook, I grant you this blade¡Die well¡ Be welcome in the hall¡ of the Devoted.¡± The captain croaked, choking on the words as he sent the blade home with a practiced hand.
Marook grunted once, then held his father''s gaze as his eyes slowly lost their focus. His father cupped the mans head as he laid his lifeless form back down onto the bed before cleaning his blade on a bit of sheet before sheathing it.. He took a long shaky breath before turning to face Centarus, ¡°They took my blood from me. I would have my recompense.¡± He said slowly to his superior officer.
Centarus did something out of character, alone in the room with a man who had just put his own son out of his agony. He took two steps forward, his blade flashed as he slit his palm, reaching out with the bloody hand, ¡°You will have it.¡± He said simply.
The captain¡¯s eyes widened slightly before he slashed his own hand and clasped the offered appendage.
No further words were exchanged. The pact was sealed.
Chapter 85
The Terran freighter Star Duster ripped into real space on time and on target. Tristen scanned his screens with practiced ease. His Star Duster had returned to his home-world after his seasons voyage among the fledgling Human Colonization effort.
¡°Transmit the Codes¡± Tristen ordered smoothly. Pushing up to his visual monitor as his crew bent to their task.
¡°Port Royal Transmitting received and sent us welcome. We are cleared as filed for Orbit over Delmar.¡± His XO reported from his station.
¡°Gods, it¡¯s good to be home¡± His Delmar Crewman at sensors murmured before catching herself.
¡°It is. Looks like we will be here for a full refit. Delmar wants some practice maintaining a Terran Freighter. They¡¯d rather not learn while trying to save a damaged one. Com, get the Shipyard on the horn. let¡¯em know we¡¯re here.¡± Tristen ordered before turning to his XO, ¡°Digg¡¯s, you have the Con, I need to send the arrival report to Sol.¡±
¡°Aye Cap¡¯n¡± Aaron Diggs flicked him a quick abbreviated salute with a grin. ¡°Are we offload¡¯n from the yards or in orbit.¡±
¡°The Yards, I believe.¡± Tristen stated before floating out of the command deck.
Star Duster was fully laden when she left Sol. However, she carried less than half her capacity at this time. She had been tasked with making a drop at Eleria to assist the research and colonization efforts there, which had reduced their cargo by a third. The second third was spread out among the recovery/exploration ships, and Tristan had guided his command through several unknown systems to meet at preplanned locations to replenish the exploration fleet. Star Duster was a strangely Industrial ship, but he had come to love his command¡¯s blocky utilitarian complexion as she bent slip space to her will, sacrificing all to the gods of speed. He smiled as he felt the shift in Duster¡¯s positioning as he rotated to begin her deceleration. Her bones hummed a now familiar song, ringing in tune to her massive sub light drives as his crew slipped her into Delmar¡¯s orbit. Tristen refocused on his task, scanning over the past two hours of work before sending off his report to Sol. His bones ached for proper gravity. He had been fortunate to be able to take shore leave at Luna, then again down on Mars. To his sadness he had missed Mac and Lyri, but they had kept in touch. His mission had deemed his departure several months before their own, and thus he had beaten them back to Delmar.
His thoughts carried him to the Singular Shuttle that the Duster carried. She was designed for a minimal crew, and the rest of them had already piled in by the time he arrived, ¡°Under tow?¡±
¡°Under Tow Cap¡¯n, we were about to com ya.¡± Diggs snapped off with a grin, ¡°We saved ya the good seat.¡±
They had indeed saved him the good seat, right up next to his helmswoman. They quickly detached, and Clarise ¡°Charlie¡± Richardson pulled the stubby shuttle over the top of their ship in a rolling loop that settled them onto one of the approaches into atmosphere. The reentry was very humanly violent, it was a thrill every time Tristen had experienced it. The shuttle pirouetted quickly, raging against gravity with her main drives bellowing through the frame into everyone¡¯s bones before they were shut down and Charlie flicked her smaller charge¡¯s belly to the onslaught of atmospheric atoms. The exterior of the shuttle quickly heated, rendering them into a perfect imitation of a falling meteor.
¡°You¡¯re enjoying yourself,¡± Tristen laughed at the giant shit-eating grin on Charlies face as she hurtled them towards the planet through burning plasma and flame-filled superheated air.
¡°It''s my favorite part!¡± She yelled back over the cacophony of sounds that assaulted their senses. Moments later the sound ceased as the shuttle¡¯s lifting body finally reached thick enough atmosphere to fly properly. Almost to prove a point, Charlie slammed out the air brakes and flicked the shuttle inverted only to pull its nose to point straight down. Whoops and excited Yells could be heard from the back as the shuttle danced to the helmswoman¡¯s touch as she played around the edges of the scattered cloud layers before pulling out of her near-suicidal dive to make for the shuttle terminal.
Tristen¡¯s grin matched those of his crew, this was also his favorite part.
_____________________________________________________________________
Cory stepped into the planet side office of Delmar Shipyards, this was not a meeting he was ready to have. The message had been received two days ago with this date and time attached. He could have rescheduled, but he doubted it would change the outcome or the information. He stepped into the office to find Darclemus waiting for him along with the head of the shipyards Orbital Operations.
¡°Mr Grarzia , Cory, welcome. Come sit, my boy.¡± Darclemus¡¯ tone was a gentle command, and Cory found himself sitting across from the two men.
Cory took a deep breath and decided to rip the bandage off, ¡°Celest is not repairable, is she..¡± He said, eyes locked on the Shipyard representative.
¡°I¡¯m sorry son, she is not. It would take too much for us to repair her hull alone. Her metallurgy itself is compromised.¡± The lifelong shipwright said solemnly, ¡°I¡¯ve worked on the old girl my entire life¡ It¡¯s not an easy decision.¡±
¡°I understand, I suspected as much from the beginning. Forgive me for being forward; but what is there for me to do.¡± Cory asked carefully.
¡°You are her surviving ranking officer. She is sunk, but she is still your boat.¡± Darclemus spoke this time, ¡°You know the tradition. You have final say on her final resting place.¡±
Cory sat back for a long moment. Delmar tradition was that if a freighter survived to make it back to her home port, but could not be repaired; Her commanding officer had the rights of deciding where to lay his command to rest. Her Captain, Olyvia, had perished on the operating table from her wounds. Cory was her first officer, and thus the surviving commanding officer of Celestial Traveler during her tow back to Delmar. Cory¡¯s eyes glazed over for a moment in memory of that terrible day, and his right hand rubbed his trouser pocket where the copy of his captain¡¯s letter still resided¡ That ship was Olyvia¡¯s heart and soul, and everyone in the room wished she were here to make this final decision.
Cory found himself pulling the letter from his pocket, running his fingers over the frayed edges of the often read square of material. He knew¡ There was only one answer that would bring his soul to peace. ¡°Sir¡¯s. Captain Olyvia always wished to be buried at sea, sent into her home star¡¡± He paused as the lump in his throat cut off the last of his request. He took a few deep breaths before continuing, ¡°I believe Celest has one final voyage to take..¡± he finally got out. ¡°Could she be made to complete this final task?¡±
The representative of the shipyard thought for a moment before an old, grizzled hand settled onto his forearm. Darclemus simply looked at the man and nodded before turning toward Cory, ¡°It will be done. I¡¯ll notify the families. I don¡¯t fathom anyone will object.¡±
Cory simply nodded before standing, ¡°If you will excuse me, I have some personal things I need to attend to.¡±
¡°Go, son. I¡¯ll contact you when the preparations are complete.¡± Darclemus stated gently, releasing Cory from the meeting.
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Cory stepped out, and walked slowly from the building toward his aircar¡ The heavy weight of loss resurged itself afresh as his mind broiled its way back through memory. His time on the ship that had born him through so many years of his life in the void flashed through his eyes as he reached for the handle to¡
¡°Cory!¡± Jackie Young called from across the parking lot. Shattering his revelry as he turned toward those emerald greens as she jogged up to him. She was in full workout attire, complete with a vest that had become a human staple as they worked to maintain their physiological requirements in this much lighter gravity. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you were¡.¡± She stopped immediately from her jog in place to talk to him and reached out for his forarm, ¡°Something happened¡¡± her swing from greeting to concern forced a small sad smile onto Cory¡¯s features.
¡°I had to make a decision today¡ about Celest¡ She can¡¯t be saved¡¡± Cory¡¯s emotionally exhausted tone registered.
Jackie squeezed his arm before pulling him into a tight, if somewhat sweaty hug, ¡°Im sorry¡¡± she whispered before releasing him, ¡°Fuck it. Give me a ride?¡± She said, stripping off her weighted vest revealing a sports bra and glistening tanned skin underneath. Cory raised an eyebrow as she tossed the vest into his trunk, ¡°What, It''s fuckin hot on your planet. Give me a ride home? I need a shower, and you need to get drunk. What¡¯a you say?¡± She planted her hands on her hip and waited.
Cory just shook his head, ¡°Sure, yea¡ Hop in.¡± he finally relented as they hopped into his air car and lifted off. Twenty minutes later they touched down in the lot near her apartment and she led him to her studio sized temporary planet side crash pad. Cory barely had time to settle, as five minutes later, a still damp-haired Jackie, in a white tank top and blue jeans appeared still pulling at her cascading locks with a brush. ¡°Fuck makeup, this is a bar hop, let¡¯s go.¡± She groused before turning to him, ¡°Let¡¯s take the tram, you won¡¯t be airworthy when we are done with you.¡± She smirked at him.
¡°We?¡± Cory asked, concern quickly spreading through him just as the doorbell rang. The two of them stepped out to find Jacob, Hera, Patrick and Camorra standing there.
¡°Ok, how the fuck did you do that.¡± Cory looked over at Jackie who just tapped her temple.
¡°Alpha sync Coms, medical techs get¡¯em because it makes communicating through the infirmary in an emergency really fuckin easy.¡± Jackie grinned.
¡°Common, I know just the spot.¡± Hera nodded toward the Tram stop on the other side of the lot. Cory just shook his head, resigning himself to his fate. In truth, a small glimmer of something other than brooding sorrow sparked off. maybe this wasn¡¯t such a bad idea.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Bart and Quin looked up from the table where the experimental device lay a smoldering wreck of failure. The two of them had been given another inspiration over drinks the day before and had cobbled together a quick prototype before this appointment¡ Sadly, the smoldering shell of a pistol was proof that there was both great promise and great danger to their idea. Their attention had been drawn to the door that guarded the entrance to their ¡°fortress of insanity¡± as Mackenzie was wont to call it...
Ivar and Martina Tras stepped through the doors to the laboratory and walked crisply towards the brothers. Martina¡¯s Spanish motif summer dress flowed about her, and Ivar was in his typical utilitarian human tan ¡°tactical¡± pants and a Delmar-style flowing tunic. Quin instantly smiled, waving the two of them over to greet them.
¡°Smells like you blew something up.¡± Quipped Ivar with a smile before shaking the older man¡¯s hand, ¡°Do we need to give you time?¡±
¡°Yes, and no¡ Just a drunk inspiration turned promising slag.¡± Quin chuckled as he clasped hands with Ivar in the Human greeting. ¡°Please, this way. We were told to expect you¡± he said, leading the way to a separate room with no windows.
Bart stepped in behind them and walked over the the counter in the corner, ¡°The Admiral wishes to ¡®phone in¡¯. He seems to be very worried about you, my dear.¡± He mentioned to Martina as he punched in the code. It took a minute for the connection to stabilize, but the slightly distorted image of Clint Stevens sharpened into view up against the wall. He was clearly sleep deprived, with an almost empty pot of coffee behind him and multiple pads strewn about him as if a mild windstorm had coalesced in his office.
¡°Admiral?¡± Ivar raised an eyebrow in concern.
¡°Sadly, need to know McLovin.¡± Clint chuckled, ¡°Once I have a handle on this here, and a 3 day coma once I get back home, I should be able to share more.¡± A mug of coffee reached his lips as he shotguns the remains of the contents of the cup before rubbing his face with both hands. ¡°Martina,¡± Clint focused on her, ¡°I have to ask, are you sure about this¡¡±
¡°I am admiral.¡± She said simply, and with more formality that was her want with her old friend. She scooted up onto the biobed in the room and laid down as Quin reached for the controls.
¡°Admiral, we are taking every precaution. I am initiating a scan of Mrs Tras as we speak. I have also mixed the injection with our own nanites that will be programmed with her scan, to be able to immediately destroy the serum and restore any damage. The risk is not zero, but I believe we have mitigated as much as possible.¡± Quin stated while still performing the deep scan of Martina¡¯s current physiology. ¡°And¡. Complete, we have a complete template copy of Ms Tras in her current state. Martina, do you wish to continue.¡±
¡°I do, doctor.¡± Martina stated, beginning to sit up, only for the gentle hand of Bart to stop her. ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±
¡°For the template to be effective, in the event of an emergency; We need you to be lying perfectly still and restrained. We also do not know what your reaction to the serum will be.¡± Bart explained as Martina laid back down and nodded.
¡°I understand, I am ready.¡± She said as she settled into position. The air around her shimmered, and the flowing portions of her dress were visibly pressed against her figure as the fields rendered her entire body completely motionless, save for the programmed monitoring of her bodies required movements for breathing, blinking, and speaking.
The pressure on her body was terrifying, yet she was able to take deep breaths to calm herself. She could feel Ivar¡¯s hand on hers through the restraints, and he moved to the other side of her so he could stand in her field of view. ¡°I¡¯m here, Chika.¡± He cooed to her. This had been a difficult decision. Ivar was not convinced that this was a good idea, and it had been one of the few legitimate fights they had experienced as a couple. In the end, Martina convinced him to let her go through with it. He understood, but he could not completely keep the Terrified worry from his expression as she lay there helpless on the table.
¡°Ms Tras, I am administering it now. We are going to begin with half what we think your correct dose will be. We need to creep up on the correct dosage. I would rather it not work than kill you.¡± Quin stated as he pressed the injector to her wrist. ¡°Tell us everything, If you lose consciousness; we will abort immediately.¡±
Martina simply nodded, ¡°Let''s do this, doc¡± she responded, and winced as the injector fired. Nothing happened for about a minute, but thirty seconds into the second minute Martina began to sweat, ¡°Ooooh, I¡¯m getting really warm... It¡¯s uncomfortable, like a fever. Otherwise no change¡± The first spike of pain shot through her head, ¡°Scratch that, Migraine city.. Holy fuck¡± She gritted through clenched teeth as the spikes flashed and flared through her brain for the next few seconds before subsiding¡ Martina¡¯s eyes were watering from the previous pain and Ivar dabbed at them. ¡°Ok, the pain is gone, I¡¯m still warm, but I don¡¯t feel much different.¡±
¡°Ah, I see what¡¯s going on, your body is trying to destroy the serum. It is succeeding at an alarming rate.¡± Bart mumbled as he tried to compensate with the nanites. ¡°I think we are going to need the second half. Her immune system is... well¡ being human.¡±
¡°I can¡¯t nod, so im gonna say yes.¡± Martina panted. Her body temperature had risen to just under 40 C, and she was sweating profusely.
¡°Starting second injection.¡± Quin stated as he applied a second injector with practiced hands. ¡°Done.¡±
¡°Ohh shit!¡± Martina gasped almost instantly, ¡°Fuck¡¡± Was all she got out as her body temperature shot up to 40.05 almost instantly. ¡°This sucks¡ I¡¯m feeling like I¡¯m being electrocuted, up there¡ God.. DD¡± words failed her as she started grunting and groaning for the next two minutes. ¡°Im still here¡± and ¡°fuck¡± was sprinkled in here and there.
Ivar looked frantically over at Doctor Quin, ¡°Doc?¡± His voice wavered around the edges as he looked back down at his wife who was openly weeping from her eyes. It was obvious that she would be thrashing about if she were not restrained.
¡°Her heart is accelerated to 193 bpm, her temperature is stable at 39.8. Martina¡ How are you feeling.¡± Quin asked. Constantly tapping on the biobed¡¯s controls.
¡°Fuck, Doc. Im here. It hurts¡ It really fuckin hurts!¡± Martina groaned. ¡°Wait¡ HOLY FUU!¡± She yelled before letting out a long excruciatingly pained moan before going silent.
¡°Martina? Marty talk to me.¡± Ivar leaned over her, as she just began slowly blinking as a stunned expression flooded across her features.
¡°Her heart rate and temperature is stabilizing. Her brain scans are¡. Martina, I need you to talk to us please¡± Quin¡¯s voice was accenting Ivar¡¯s worry as he struggled to comprehend the data streaming.
¡°Doctor, I¡¯m¡ ok¡¡± Martina was taking long slow cleansing breaths as her heart returned from its breakneck pace, and her body began to cool quickly from the sweat that now soaked her, ¡°I think the pain is gone¡ It¡¯s very strange¡ May I be released please? I¡¯m getting¡ cold¡±
¡°Yes, of course.¡± Quin said quickly before the shimmers of the field ceased entirely and Ivar helped Martina up to a sitting position.
¡°Chika¡ Martina, talk to me honey¡ What the fuck just happened.¡± Ivar was equal parts worried, and relieved. She wasn¡¯t dead, but apart from that... he had no idea. He pulled her close to his chest as he pulled the blanket around her. He was about to ask again when his being was frozen in place by a low feral humming growling sound that resonated against his chest. He looked down to find Martina locking her eyes on his. His eyes widened as she actively bore her teeth at him in a very Delmar expression of possessiveness. ¡°Marty¡ what¡¯s going on¡ what are yo¡.¡± He was cut off by an aggressively passionate kiss from Martina that ended in her biting his lower lip HARD enough to draw blood before she pulled his forehead to her¡¯s. Her emotions ripped into his consciousness with all the violence of an Eros impact.
¡°What I¡¯ve wanted to do since you gave me this ring.¡± She panted as she felt him truly for the first time. They both rode the waves of Violent merging for several moments until the link settled down into a more sedately stable connection. Martina was still breathing heavily, partly from the previous ordeal; and partly from feeling her Ivar¡¯s emotions inside her own mind. She held on to the back of Ivar¡¯s head for a full minute holding their foreheads together before she released him and settled back down into his embrace.
The two of them were interrupted by a soft clatter of a data pad landing on a countertop. Ivar and Martina turned to see both Brothers Grem just standing next to the dumbfounded hologram of Clint Stevens, wearing matching expressions to the now very awake Admiral.
Chapter 86
Hera did indeed know the spot. The four of them were the last to leave the driftwood constructed bar set on the glimmering sandy shoreline. The moonlight shattered against the low waves in a crystalline pattern that made it a perfect setting for drunken commiserations. Jackie and Hera had conspired to buy a couple of bottles of the good stuff from the bar just before closing, whilst Jacob and Patrick had disappeared for a few moments before dragging the buzzed crew out to the beach to reveal a massive pile of driftwood already ablaze with other logs and stones set up about it. The group settled down to stare at the bonfire and crack the first of the bottles open.
Cory stared at the roaring flames for a small eternity, smiling his thanks at the offered cup of liquor before taking a sip. ¡°We have our winter celebrations, but I¡¯m unfamiliar with this tradition.¡± He said finally.
¡°Well, none of us are sober enough to go anywhere. So, we don¡¯t. We sit, drink, sing, laugh. The usual.¡± Patrick chuckled as he poured a drink for Camorra and himself. Cory raised an eyebrow as Cammy promptly curled up under his arm. They were reclining in the sand with a bar cushion at their back. Patrick caught his gaze and laughed, ¡°Strategically Transferred Equipment to an Alternate Location.¡± Was all he said, which triggered a coughing laugh as Jacob snarfed into his drink.
¡°Better?¡± Jackie settled down next to him on the log, breaking him from his observations.
¡°Getting there,¡± Cory said. Taking a pull from his cup, ¡°I didn¡¯t pin you for¡ this. You were so¡ professional¡ when we first met.¡±
¡°Ha! Work hard, play harder.¡± Jackie smiled, ¡°Common, Let¡¯s just enjoy tonight. Tomorrow is its own problem.¡± She finished.
¡°song! song!¡± Cammy chanted looking up at Patrick. ¡°Red has a wonderful voice.¡±
¡°Oh, does he, now.¡± Jacob chuckled before giving a quick smirk to Hera, ¡°Alright ¡®Red¡¯ let''s hear it¡± he taunted.
¡°Fuck, Ok. Here goes, but I¡¯m gonna need a beat. A simple one, follow me.¡± He began to thump his fist on the log next to him. Jacob immediately bore a fearsome grin as he recognized what Patrick was doing, and joined in, pounding the log he was sitting on in time. Soon the Delmar women slowly joined, each finding something to keep time with.
¡°Of all the tree¡¯s that grow so fair¡¡± Jacob began to sing as he recited the lyrics of a song born of the second coming of the seamen¡¯s from earths early twentieth century. Camorra tried not to giggle as Patrick transfixed the rest of the group with the first verse¡ the fire seemed to crackle in time as group kept time. At one point Patrick noticed Jacobs expression and nodded to him just before Jacob added his deep baritone in harmony for the chorus...
The look on Hera¡¯s face was priceless as Jake belted out ¡°Oak and Ash and Thorn good sirs, All on a Midsummers Morn¡± in time and on key with Patrick before Patrick¡¯s tenor fell silent as Jacob flawlessly blended into the second verse. The two alternated for through the song, coming together for the Chorus each time before finally falling silent.
¡°OK, When the fuck were you going to tell me you sang.¡± Hera glared at Jacob, with a grin ruining her valiant attempt at a scolding. ¡°And what was that. I¡¯ve never heard it.¡±
¡°It¡¯s a song hundreds of years old. All of us who choose a life at sea tend to have a soft spot for them. It kind of transferred over the Human space navies. Well done, Red.¡± Jacob raised his glass before draining it. He had just finished when a haunting sound echoed out from next to Cory as he noticed Jackie sitting bolt straight, staring at the hot core of the fire.
¡°The King and her men¡ stole the Queen¡ from her Bed.¡± Her haunting alto brought Cory¡¯s main on end as she finished the verse, and they were off again.
By the time they cracked the second bottle, Hera had shared some Delmar traditional songs of the void, and it was the humans turn to learn verse and chorus.
The group slowly settled in for the night, the boys had thrown on more wood and now everyone was tracing shapes in the embers with their imagination as the songs were long forgotten, ¡°Celest isn¡¯t coming back is she.¡± It was Hera, she was immediately wrapped up in an embrace from Jacob. she tore herself away from the fire to look at Cory, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I heard from a friend in the yards. I would like to be there when you find her resting place.¡±
¡°You will..¡± Cory said somberly, if a bit drunkenly. It still hurt to think about, but the companionship helped temper his pain, ¡°She¡¯s one last voyage to embark¡¡±
¡°Olyvia¡¡± Hera realized, as Cory nodded slowly, ¡°She would like that.¡±
More logs were thrown on the fire and the group spent the night. Jacob and Hera were obviously in the late stages of courting as they curled up close to one another near the fire, and Cory looked down in surprise as Jackie tucked herself up next to him and rested a head on his chest.
By morning, the Fire was but embers, and headache¡¯s from the previous evening¡¯s libations roared their own hot fury. Cory didn¡¯t care, not really. It had been completely worth it.
___________________________________________________________________________________
¡°Commander, Ambassador. 5 minutes...¡± Philip looked between the two images on his screens as Silu and Gwen stirred in their respective cabins.
¡°The¡¯re early.¡± Gwen stated slowly, reaching for her coffee maker to hit the start button on the pre prepped human grade go juice.
¡°Admiral Grarzia transmitted his codes just 20 minutes ago. He did not go into detail.¡± Philip said quickly. ¡°Promenade Sector 4 should be a good show.¡±
Silu, Ami, Gwen, and Philip made it to the indicated sector¡¯s view-ports just as a massive breach into real space ripped open with its customary violence. This one was massive, indicative of a large group of ships in close formation exiting slip-space together.
¡°How many ships did you say Mac is bringing back with him?¡± Ami asked, eyes wide as dinner plates at the massive blue and white maw that opened before them.
¡°I didn¡¯t¡± Gwen grinned a very human grin, unable to restrain her nature as vessels began pouring out of the event horizon between slip space and real space.
¡°Void take us¡¡± Silu breathed as he lost count. ¡°It¡¯s¡ it¡¯s.. and armada¡¡±
¡°Just one?¡± Philip¡¯s expression matched the ambassador¡¯s as even more ships poured in. before the rift closed. He pulled out a remote transmitter tied into the main command centers communications array. ¡°Welcome back Admiral, you do know how to make an entrance.¡± He keyed up before releasing the transmit button.
*Admiral Grarzia reporting in. Permission to make for Orbit, we have a few vessels in need of refit* Mac¡¯s voice filtered in over the hand held.
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Silu gave Philip a look, and the Tall Sudanese man laughed before handing the Com to his commanding officer, ¡°Mac, How many is a few, so I can inform the Shipyards.¡±
¡°We made it without losing a vessel, I have three hundred eighty Warships ready for refit and full crews.¡±
Ami made a rather loud noise of complete shock and Silu just stood dumbfounded as the Parade of Void born Human Power stately passed by the view window as they made for the Delmar Homeworld. Gwen noticed Philip raise a hand to his mouth as his shoulders heaved in suppressed laughter.
Silu looked at Gwen with complete stunned silence¡. Finding his voice after almost a full minute, ¡°you can¡¯t be serious¡ What of your own home system.¡±
¡°These are our outgoing obsolete designs¡ I assure you, Sol is well protected. We needed to be able to protect your people across the galaxy¡¡± Gwen stated seriously before waving a hand to the cascade of promised wrath as it glided past Port Royal. ¡°Now we have it. Humanity doesn¡¯t have the manpower to use all of these vessels, and won''t for a long time. but You, Your people. You will be able to secure half the galaxy for generations before they become outdated in this part of space.¡±
¡°Gods¡ you¡¯re serious.¡± Silu said quietly. Before being taken about the shoulders and turned to face Gwen as she bore her ice blue eyes into him.
¡°You brought my boy back to me. You opened up the galaxy to my people who were being strangled to death in their own system. We are a supergravity species, you call us an Apex species¡ We do not forget what you have done for Humanity itself. This¡ is Thank you.¡±
________________________________________________________
Mac settled Concord down onto the runway of his Delmar home with a gentle chirp of tire rubber. His familiar touch had her spinning on one main wheel as she came to rest perfectly in one side of the hanger just as a different roaring whine rose from the canopy as a larger shuttle came hovering down the runway to nestle itself into the open space next to Concord. Lyrain, Bry, and Tris and the newborn piled out of the shuttle along with Nicole before it took off once-more and departed back to the hospital ship. The family headed back to the house. They were just dropping off their luggage when a second shuttle landed with Gwen, Frie, and Frie¡¯s little one inside as they headed to the house. Warm greetings were heard all around as the family settled in. Drinks were passed down as it was well past dark, and no one was going anywhere tonight.
¡°Gwen, we have a surprise for you.¡± Lyrian giggled as she handed the ambassador a Delmar Beer. ¡°Come here.¡± She and Mac drew the small group up the stairs and into the baby room. ¡°Meet your new grandson, Jason Grarzia.¡± Lyri whispered as she scooped up the sleeping infant with a deft hand and laid him in the arms of his great aunt.
¡°He¡¯s perfect!¡± Gwen cood down at him, gently stroking the little mop of curls atop Jason¡¯s little head. The little one stirred with an accompanying adorable grumble before settling in. Jason, unlike his siblings, looked physically like a Human, mostly. No tale, pinkish primary coloring on his skin. He did still have a main, as well as a bright auburn mop of hair. However, the little sleeping newcomer to the family was hiding a secret.
¡°He has Mac¡¯s eyes...¡± Lyri whispered to Gwen with a happy smile, ¡°You will have to see tomorrow.¡±
The adults settled into the furnishing¡¯s downstairs, ¡°So, you weren¡¯t supposed to be here for another month, did something happen?¡± Gwen asked from her position ensconced in a deeply comfortable chair.
Lyrian and Mac looked at each other for a moment, ¡°Celest.¡± Lyri said after a moment. ¡°We wanted to be there for Cory, my sister, and her husband. Cory sent us a message saying that he did not believe that Celest was going to be repairable. Olyvia was very close with both our families. We came¡¡± Lyrian paused as Mac rubbed her back.
¡°We didn¡¯t want to miss the funeral.¡± Mac said gently, still rubbing Lyrian¡¯s back. ¡°How is Cory.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. He has been spending a lot of time alone.¡± Frie admitted. ¡°Olyvia¡¯s death hit him hard. She wrote a letter of recommendation, a very personal one, before she died. She was going to give him Celest and retire in the next few years.¡±
¡°Shit..¡± mac said softly. ¡°We were hoping to see him tonight, but he told us he was with friends¡ he sounded drunk.¡±
¡°Oh¡¡± Gwen contemplated before continueing, ¡°I guess it cant be helped. What are your plans for tomorrow?¡±
¡°We are going to head to the hospital to visit Quel and Gen, as well as give Jason and the twins a check up from the voyage.¡± Mac said. ¡°After the Freighters get refit, I¡¯m going to be very busy with building and training the new fleet. How¡¯s Clint holding up?¡±
¡°He¡¯s managing. He would be here, but one of his response groups found a Library of Vorath artifacts¡ then got ambushed. I don¡¯t know much more. I got a message from him that he would be back tomorrow evening.¡± Frie¡¯s voice was sad, she hated being this far from her Clint.
Lyrian wrapped her oldest friend up in a comforting embrace. ¡°You, ok?¡± She asked gently.
¡°I will be, when Clint¡¯s back.¡± Frie smiled up at her. ¡°Can we Crash here tonight? I don¡¯t feel like being alone.¡±
¡°Done.¡± Mac said as everyone stood. The guest rooms were kept good to go, so everyone had a place to crash for the night. Tomorrow could wait.
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USN Galveston eased elegantly through the ring of asteroids that bisected the Signus system between Delmar and Her star. Today she carried precious cargo, tucked gently in her central capital ship docking hanger. Her shields flared slightly as they repelled small bits of jagged space debris before her prow poked through the other edge of the ring of drifting rocks. She gave a slight shudder as her drives flickered and quieted. Galveston¡¯s forward observation deck housed a small but intimate gathering. The Grarzia family, including Quel leaning heavily on a cane with a nurse nearby, was present in full. Cory, Mack, Clint, Patrick, Camorra, Hera, and Jacob were all immaculate in their respective dress uniforms. Lyrian wore a traditional full-length dress in deep blue with a simple tribal symbol over one shoulder. There were no speeches, no commentary, no stories. Only Cory stood in front of the Group, ¡°We say goodbye today, Not only to the Vessel that helped make our people strong for generations, but to the men and women who died to defend her. These souls gave their final breath, so that many could stand here today to bear witness. Her captain always wished to be buried within the star of her home planet, consumed by the light that brought life to her home world. Today, The Celestial Traveler will aid her and those that died with her, on their final voyage¡¡± Cory paused a long moment before turning to Galveston¡¯s Captain, and simply nodded once.
Captain Harrison smiled sadly at the young man before handing him a small pad with one task programmed to it. Cory took a long shaky breath before tapping the pad once. A deep shudder resounded through the titanic Ship of the line as explosive bolts blew, releasing Celestial traveler from her moorings, before Galveston performed a preprogrammed separation burn. Thirty seconds after the maneuver, a lone sub light drive lit on Celest. It burned for exactly 5 minutes, imparting the needed trajectory to complete this final voyage. The viewing windows on the observation deck automatically tinted to dull the blinding visage before them. Galveston hove herself to, swinging her head around to watch the final voyage to its conclusion.
Both Delmar and Human¡¯s were entombed in her Hull. Every man and woman who had sacrificed themselves in the defense that had cost them the very ship they died on. They laid in state in the ventral hold, resting together as Celest bore down on Signus itself. Cory nodded his thanks before stepping down to be replaced by a single Human with a trumpet. This part of the ceremony was intentionally human. The burglar slowly began ¡°Taps.¡± As Celest disappeared from Galveston¡¯s sensor, consigning herself to her final resting place.
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Kar dropped out of Subspace... in command of a Thermian Cruiser that was in formation with a Vorath dreadnaught and two Thermian Destroyers. They had been given the revolutionary triangulation navigational technology that allowed them to insert themselves directly over top of the Unity¡¯s Capital Planet. There was no transmission sent, no demands made. The Vorath Dreadnaught immediately opened fire on the defensive arrays, ripping the unsuspecting defense platforms into burning wreckage as their orbits destabilized. They would do nicely as an opener.
Kar growled an order as his ship opened fire on the UGN Brig nearest him. He cared not the name. His new Vorath upgraded weapons ripped into the smaller ship as if it were made of old shed skin. The battle was over in minutes, and hundreds of landing craft sprung from the flanks of the dreadnaught. Their small specs of light flared to life as they burned toward the planet. Kar let a low aggressive snarl broil through his chest. ¡°Launch our own landing parties.¡± He growled.
Across the upspin side of the Galactic arm, a massive assault was expertly timed. Thermian infiltrators had strategically destroyed or neutralized early warning systems across that part of the galaxy. Combined Vorath, and Unity task forces ripped into normal space across thousands of worlds, ripping away what defenses were there. Crushing any response fleets with ease before slamming to the planets with shock troops bloody blitz and mass genocidal executions of all weak, or resistant individuals. In the span of the next 2 days. Hundreds of trillions died, and trillions more were enslaved in the onslaught of Horrors that ambushed them from the deep black.
The Thermians wanted to be stronger, the Vorath respected it as long as it was useful. That usefulness was born in the gaining of crucial resources and footholds for the coming fleet. They had to work quickly to establish strongholds that they could hold while the main Vorath Battle Fleets traversed the twenty-year listless void between galactic arms.
It took two days for the news to reach Delmar. They had not been attacked due to the unknown they presented... No system in millions of years had repelled a Devoted¡¯s attack, and even this new Vorath/Thermian alliance had logistical limits. It was simply more prudent to work down the galactic arm, than try to hit both sides simultaneously. Shuttles began returning from their mission as the last of the planet-side defenses were silenced. There would be no occupying force for the home-world of the Corth this day¡ Kar turned to watch the planet-glassing laser cannons ripped through the atmosphere of the galactic capital. This planet would not be spared, as the entire population was put to the flame from orbit.
No one knew if the Tetrarchy survived, only that the planet was rendered a dead orb of molten rock¡
___________________________________________________________________________________
Gwen sat in her Office, reading over the fragmented reports from the refugee¡¯s that had been pouring into the sector. The UGN was giving a fight, but they were heavily outclassed, if not outnumbered. Their vastly superior number of vessels was one of the only things stemming the tide of blood from consuming the entirety of Unity space. She had seen this brand of Evil before¡ sometimes even in herself during humanity''s brutal war in their own home system. The galaxy was falling apart, and She did not know if the resources existed to stop it. The worst part of it was¡ It was not up to her.
She packaged everything up in an extremely detailed data transfer and sent it to Alexander station just in time for the weekly transmission. She began closing her computer console when the screen went black before lettering began scrolling across the screen.
*Ambassador, we need to talk*
Chapter 87
*Ambassador we need to talk*
Gwen settled down in her chair once more, musing over the implications of the words on her console. The capital planet of the Unity had fallen in the opening genocide. The few survivors that remained reported that the planet itself had been fired upon until its atmosphere was consumed and its oceans boiled.
On a hunch, Gwen spoke softly into the open air. ¡°I¡¯m listening¡±
*Is Delmar safe*
¡°Safe enough. They appear to be focusing on a foothold up-spin. I suspect their forces in this sector were depleted in the attack, or we would have seen something by now.¡± Gwen responded.
*I seek¡ asylum. No others live. I am the last. *
¡°I see. Come to Port Royal, we can discuss it further in person¡± Gwen stated flatly.
*acceptable*
With that, the ambassador¡¯s console flickered and returned to its normal function.
Gwen leaned forward in her chair, resting her arms on her desk. She contemplated the repercussions of what had just transpired. Finally shaking herself, she keyed up a call.
¡°Ambassador?¡± Philip¡¯s cautiously curious tone matched his raised eyebrow.
¡°Re institute code 892-6. Let me know if any vessel jumps into Delmar using that clearance.¡± She stated.
Philips eyes narrowed as memory flared in understanding. ¡°I see, consider it done ambassador. Is there a projected arrival date?¡±
¡°Not at this time.¡± Gwen admitted.
¡°Understood, anything else Ambassador?¡± Philip asked formally.
¡°No Philip, that will be all. Thank you, Gwen out.¡± the ambassador closed the call, shutting the console down in earnest this time before departing for her quarters.
________________________________________________________________
Admiral Folmuri settled heavily into his chair aboard his flagship. It had been a long 5 months of barely contained chaos; racing to stem the tide of death. His fleet was 6 strong. He had been given USN Texas, fresh from her hasty repairs, as his flagship for this desperate mission. He was accompanied by the Delmar cruisers Bastion and Protectorate as well as USN Simo, Gales, and Valles. His mission, save lives.
Captain Gleeson had taken to keeping a pot of coffee on the bridge in these last few months, and Folmuri had taken to the black elixir cautiously. A steaming cup of it sat at his arm as he flicked through the data in front of him. These days, his hands no longer shook from the caffeine.
¡°5 minutes!!¡± Barked the Com, and Folmuri picked up his mug. He drained the last of its contents and stowed it for combat. His fleet had been comprised of the ships that were available, being sent out on a desperate mission of salvation. Hundreds of trillions of souls were fleeing the onslaught of the Vorath incursion, and the Piracy syndicates were reaping a grim bounty. His fleet had cut a path of destruction through every brigand he could find, jumping from distress call to distress call with merciless purpose. Texas was filled with as many extra jump-capable shuttles as possible. She had used them to ferry refugees that had to abandon ship to safer worlds, and returned with holds full of ammunition, medical, and food supplies to keep his fleet effective.
Today, they would not be facing Brigands. His fleet had finally reached their destination, the far side of Unity space; a core world turned front-line battlefield. Unity transmissions were clear. The Vorath were here, and they were winning.
¡°Signal all ships,¡± Folmuri¡¯s formal tone broke the silence, ¡°Clear for action¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Admiral Tagarin weighed his options. He had learned much from his experience in the Signus system against the Devoted, having then been flag captain for the now missing Grand Admiral. The problem was, he simply did not have the firepower to provide more than a pittance of what he had seen Humanity unleash. His battle line was ragged. Ships had begun a slow rotation between the vanguard and reserves, depleting their power banks before falling back to be replaced by ships fresh from replenishing their reserves. It was working, after a fashion. The world was lost, but he was fighting a slow retreat in an attempt to cover the few fleeing civilian vessels that had escaped.
Another one of his heavy cruisers broke formation, spewing plasma and atmosphere from her flanks. Her captain had been one of the few who had refused to adhere to the new decompression protocols that Tagarin had put in place after seeing human ships get holed more times than he had thought possible and still fight. Her crew paid the ultimate price for her captain¡¯s insolence as the hull began to buckle under the heat of the burning atmosphere inside.
¡®Thirty-four¡¯. He was down to thirty-four ships. He had started with ninety, having managed to sink only seven of the forty Vorath vessels that had dropped into the system.
One of the biggest of them, some kind of frigate, bore away, leaving the rest of the fleet to deal with the Unity ships. Tagarin looked on in horror as the massive Vorath vessel began firing on the planet with a sustained burst from some sort of a ¡°glassing¡± beam¡
¡°New contacts! 229 mark 117! Beacons are Delmar!¡± The sensor station belted out.
¡°Tell them to get back! The planet is lo¡¡± A blinding flash cut off the rest of the admiral¡¯s sentence as one of the largest Vorath ship classes set against them, the one murdering the planet¡.. exploded.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
¡°Simo reports a direct hit on the planet killer.¡± Captain Gleeson¡¯s voice was carved granite discipline, edged in rage.
Folmuri no longer flinched at his flag captain¡¯s barely caged agression, not anymore. He matched it with his own, ¡°Signal Simo, I want her, Valles, and Gales on containment, weapons free.¡± He turned to his Flag Captain and bore his teeth, ¡°Texas, Bastion, Protectorate: we will drive them from orbit. Engage, close action.¡± He was met with a matching expression from his Captain as the deck plating vibrated under the recoil of his flagship¡¯s wrath.
The massive Terran-built ship of the line, flanked by two of the most powerful warships the Delmar Confederation had ever built, dove headlong into the teeth of the Vorath fleet. Texas retained her original weaponry, and her Batteries began to reap their vengeance. In seconds, two Vorath Cruisers were eviscerated under withering fire. She quickly came under fire from a second frigate. It was only slightly smaller than the one that had tried to glass the planet. High above the dying world, the Stage was set for a broadside warship duel out of the pages of Earth¡¯s age-of-sail¡. Only to have Simo speak for the second time. Her 100 ton semi molten hate ignored three Vorath Destroyers, treating them as though they did not exist. They did cease to exist as the single round removed them from the universe before slamming into the starboard side of the frigate squaring off against Texas.
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
Texas added her weight of fire to the carnage as the Frigate¡¯s shields shattered and the Vulkan round struck home. The sinister Vorath behemoth puked flaming wreckage from 1.6-kilometer-wide holes created by Simo¡¯s round passing clean through her at the beam. Her forward armored hull was eviscerated under the concentrated barrage of every gun in Texas¡¯ port broadside volleyfire. Bearing away at last, the Terran made Ship of the Line switched targets to engage multiple smaller cruisers at once.
Bastion and Protectorate had been retrofitted with the Delmar take on Martian PAC batteries. They tag-teamed a third Frigate, the last one on the field for the Vorath, quickly rending it to pieces before turning their attention to what was left of the enemy fleet. The two Delmar warships pressed their advantage, making use of the combined technology of Humanity and Delmar, fanning out to cover Texas¡¯ flanks. The three drove the enemy bodily from orbit.
Only 4 ships made it out of orbit, only one made it past Gales and Valles as Simo was forced to cool her main gun to prevent overheating. She had engaged at twice her maximum safe rate of fire in the initial engagement, and her primary firing banks were in emergency shutdown from the thermal buildup.
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¡°Admiral, the flagship is hailing us.¡± Tagarin almost didn¡¯t hear the young crewman¡¯s report. The Lycan admiral was too stunned at the unbridled destruction unleashed by so few vessels.
¡°Put them through,¡± his flag captain ordered, and Tagarin nodded his thanks to the Siraf captain.
Tagarin tilted his head slightly as a familiar Delmar, a veteran of both the VR attack, and the defense against the Devoted appeared on the projector between them. ¡°Admiral Tagarin, it is good to see you well.¡± The image bowed slightly in respect.
¡°I see congratulations are in order, Admiral Folmuri. I did not know Signus had a contingent this far into the core.¡±
¡°We sent what we could as soon as we heard. I have shuttles and extra medical personnel. I offer my assistance in continuing the evacuation. I suspect we do not have long before they return.¡± Folmuri responded, not bothering to address the fact that he had just claimed to have crossed 20 years of Unity space in a matter of months.
Tagarin, pushed that realization¡¯s shock from his expression. He stood and returned the bow, ¡°I fear you are correct; I will send my Brigs with your destroyers to picket the system, we must work quickly. Sadly, The Unity does not possess the resources to hold this world.¡± Tagarin admitted.
¡°I understand, I will keep this line open and begin deploying search and rescue. Folmuri out.¡± The image shut down, but the channel was kept on standby as promised.
¡°Send our brigs out, standard picket formation. Let us get to work.¡± Tagarin sat heavily in his chair once more.
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Waiting was the hardest part. It had been months since Ambassador Gwen had authorized Clint to send a legion task group into the fray. Admiral Folmuri had acquitted himself well, cutting a swath of carnage through the Brigand hoard trying to capitalize on the mass exodus from the far side of Unity space. In no less than a dozen engagements, his battle group had destroyed over 200 barges, and over 90 Thermian warships flying Pirate IFF codes. He had expended USN Texas complement of ordinance four times, and USN Simo¡¯s main magazine twice.
She had retained reservations about sending Folmuri, but Clint had insisted. ¡°We need a Familiar individual to be the face of the battle group. Folmuri knows our weapons, our tactics, and our doctrine almost as well as I do at this point. He is also well known inside the greater Unity. I trust him to get it done.¡± Clint¡¯s words had rung true. Every Captain in his command has sent glowing reports of their own, including his flag captain. Captain Gleeson and Captian Harrison were the two most aggressive men to have commanded a SOL during the GSW. Captain Gleeson¡¯s latest report had included, ¡°Admiral Folmuri has the honor of being the first Delmar flag officer to impress me. His boldness and dedication of decision has saved countless lives that a more reserved Commander would have counted lost.¡± In a rare moment of humor within the carnage of Operation Library, and the Vorath incursion, Clint had laughed at that line in the report ¡°That¡¯s the most diplomatic ¡®This son of a bitch is gangster as fuck¡¯ I¡¯ve ever read.¡±
All of this did little to quell her current concern. This morning¡¯s report revealed their task force within a week of the front line, running under full silent and maximum slip velocity to make it to the aid one of the main Unity fleets. She knew, that most likely, Folmuri had already engaged their true enemy as she was reading his latest report.
She did not like waiting.
_______________________________________________________________
Clint Stevens stumbled slightly as another impact rocked USN Galveston. The final door opened as He reached the bridge.
¡°Nice of you to join us!¡± Bellowed ¡°Wild Bill¡± Harrison, Captain of the mammoth ship of the line. Galveston was Clint¡¯s Flag for this mission, and was being escorted by Two Eros; USN Hathcock, and Furlong. Also in this battle group were two of the last surviving Battleship class warships that paved the way for the Ship of the Line Classes: USN Iowa, and USN Wisconsin..
Iowa and Wisconsin, namesakes of the last generation of great battleships to grace the seas of Terra, were 2/3rds the tonnage of a SOL. They had no hangers for fighters. Instead, They bore the larger RM1505¡¯s in double the super-firing batteries. This gave them three times the weight of Volley, and their lack of starfighter complement allowed them to carry 4 times the ammunition, not counting special projectile types. Battleships were built to do one thing and do one thing well.
Rounding out this Battle Group were USN Fletcher, O¡¯Bannon, and Kidd. These Corvette class Terran designs were currently painting their foe with their fire control systems, feeding information to the larger ships in the group.
¡°Status on the convoy?¡± Clint barked as another plasma cannon blast rocked Galveston slightly. The range was long, and her shield generators had been tuned slightly using the data gleaned from the engagement that almost sank USN Phobos, Marked the USN Texas and gave them the Library. They were in no danger of serious damage, yet.
¡°They are 40 minutes from the jump point. It looks like the enemy knows we have Quawrine with us. We¡¯re reading 35 warships ahead. Some of¡¯em as big as the Galley.¡± Harrison replied. ¡°Wisconsin has already requested permission to open fire¡ 3 times.¡±
¡°Temper, Temper¡± Clint mused, repeating the Battleship crew¡¯s motto to himself as he perused the incoming data from the enemy¡¯s fire. ¡°Looks like Library is already reaping rewards. They have not changed the strategy or weapons much¡. Range?¡±
¡°1.5 Million Kilometers, Admiral.¡± Came the call from sensors, ¡°We have 40 percent of them under Hard lock, the rest are obscured by their EM warfare.¡±
Clint pulled up a holographic depiction as the two fleets advanced on each other. He could not just engage in open warfare as much as he wanted to. His battle group was escorting no less than fifteen hundred civilian craft. Of their number, less than two hundred had deflectors capable of repelling more than a snub fighter class laser cannon. Among them was Quawrine and her family, as promised. The second problem he had was that his battle group were the only ships in their convoy that were capable of triangulation jumps. The Vorath had placed themselves between them and the beacon needed to successfully deliver the refugees from certain death.
The Vorath strategy was obvious, force the convoy into close combat, where they could use their large but short-ranged direct energy and plasma batteries to inflict severe punishment. It was a good strategy. Clint¡¯s convoy was three full sectors from the safety of the Delmar/ Human controlled Parsecs that surrounded Signus. Any vessels that could not jump here, would become lambs for the slaughter.
¡°Admiral, Wisconsin is requesting a fire-mission, again.¡± Com¡¯s called out. Clint was about to deny the request, turning to give the order just as something clicked mentally.
¡°Signal the convoy, cease burn. Hold present velocity and tighten formation.¡± Clint barked, waiting for confirmation that the convoy was in fact tightening up before speaking again. ¡°Signal Hathcock, Furlong, Wisconsin, and Iowa. I want them as the tip of the Vanguard, shield wall formation. Bill, I¡¯m sorry but I¡¯m going to need you in the middle of the convoy for this¡± he looked apologetically at Harrison. The Fantastically dressed Captain only nodded, smiling from inside his helmet as the tiles clicked into place for him as well.
20 minutes later the formation changes were complete and Clint looked over at his old friend, ¡°Launch all slip-capable fighters, in case they have their own.¡±
¡°Aye admiral. Scramble the Raptors, full CAP pattern 8 by 4.¡± Bill barked immediately.
Clint nodded approval at the choice before turning back to the Com station, ¡°Signal the Vanguard. Fire mission to commence on my signal. Angry Annie authorized, I repeat, Angry Annie is authorized.¡±
You could hear a pin drop in the command center of Galveston, as the range closed quickly between the two fleets. Shield wall protocol had allowed the entire battle fleet to share the generator strain of the mounting incoming fire, creating a Massive convoy-wide forward deflector that easily shrugged off the still very much extended range energy fire from the oncoming enemy.
Clint watched the range close, crossing one million klicks, then point 8 million. Then seven hundred thousand. At six hundred fifty thousand kilometers, Clint finally looked up from the tactical display.
¡°Commence Firing¡± His tone could have turned nitrogen liquid in seconds.
Less than three seconds later, twelve million tons of semi-luminal ordinance departed the front of the convoy, As MAC projectiles from every forward firing turret aboard Iowa, and Wisconsin, along with a pair of Ithica rounds from Hathcock and Furlong howled their way to the enemy.
____________________________________________________
Centarus stood from his seat on the bridge of his flagship. His Frigate was in the 4th rank of his formation. This one was personal for him. His captain, non-other than the Man he had blood pact¡¯d had already proved his metal in a dozen engagement over the course of their glorious invasion. The Delmar Stronghold that had disgustingly shared their clan name with his own name had been a bloody proving ground for the man, but he had adjusted to his Flagship¡¯s command well.
Centarus did not like commanding from the back, but after the surprise loss of a 40-ship fleet, reportedly to a fleet of these ¡®human¡¯ ships that weighted half the tonnage that lay arrayed against him, had forced his hand. With Legarus still missing, He was the ranking commander over the Vorath contingent in this arm of the galaxy. It would not due to act recklessly for the vanity of perceived Glory.
The Massive energy spike that came from the armada before him had brought him to his feet, ¡°Report!¡± He growled.
¡°Centarus, I do not know. We read weapons fire... but can detect no beam or plasma containment core. It''s as if they wish to scare us with phantoms and Shad¡..¡±
A ripple of impossibly bright flashes wrenched everyone¡¯s eyes to the observation windows of the bridge as the opening Volley of Fusion warhead tipped MAC rounds arrived on the wings of the apocalypse itself. Alarms blared, and shields flared as the shockwaves from the explosions rippled through his fleet. Ten warships in Centarus front rank simply ceased to exist, rendered to their base atomic structure under the withering onslaught of both kinetic impact and Fusion detonation. 4 more were bellowing plasma and burning atmosphere from multiple breaches as they fought for their very survival.
¡°Report!¡± Bellowed Centarus, unable to tear his eyes away from the unfathomable destruction that used to be a third of his own fleet.
¡°Admiral, it appears that they used¡¡± The Sensor station crewman was thrown from his seat. The two Eros Ithaca rounds were of a significantly slower velocity than what Iowa and Wisconsin¡¯s main batteries fire at. They needed to be for the projectile to properly separate into segments upon firing.
The two semi molten intergalactic shotgun rounds arrived on the heals of Hell itself.
Chapter 88
¡°Admiral, the last two Shuttles are launching. They will be returning in the next hour.¡± Captain Gleeson handed Folmuri the pad as he settled into the captain¡¯s chair next to the Delmar Admiral.
¡°Very good, the Picket?¡± Folmuri responded, flicking through the data on the Stricken world. The Planet¡¯s Ecology had been dealt a mortal blow, and in his way the legends of the Vorath proved to be accurate. The weapon used on the surface had been two-fold. Firstly, it had started a chain reaction to strip the planet of its natural defenses against its own star. This reaction obliterated the Ozone layers that had built up over millennia, allowing the lifegiving turned deadly radiation to begin murdering the flora and fauna below. Over the next 200 years or so, the planet¡¯s life-sustaining foliage, and the creatures that lived among that foliage would die a gruesome blistering death of excruciating radiation poisoning. The second effect was more immediate. The ¡°Glassing Beam¡± had cracked the crust, ripping into the core of the planet in the short period it had been in use. The results were violent, as the Core revolted against this intrusion by destabilizing the tectonic plates across the whole planet. Massive Seismic events, often followed by the violent creation of Volcanic Fissures were obliterating the infrastructure and taking lives at a rapid pace.
The last two shuttles burned for orbit, not because there was no one left on the planet, but because it had become to violently toxic to find any more. Less than a 6th of the planet¡¯s population had escaped under the protection of the now beleaguered fleet under Admiral Tagarin. Folmuri¡¯s blood boiled as the numbers proved that he had barely been able to save an extra 12th of the population. His search and rescue crews were forced to abandon their efforts or risk being entombed upon the world itself. ¡°The Picket reports a large Subspace signature on long range. It¡¯s on an intercept course for high orbit. ETA: 40 minutes.¡±
Folmuri growled profanity under his breath, ¡°Withdraw the pickets, make sure the UGN knows we are doing so. Signal the fleet, we make for the far side of the planet. Get me Admiral Tagarin.¡±
Moments later the Lycan Flag officer flickered into view, ¡°Admiral Tagarin, our time has run out. I need you to get your ships to the beacon jump points. The enemy will be upon us before the hour is up.¡±
¡°Admiral Folmuri, we see it. We will stand until the rest of the civilians have escaped.¡± The Lycan growled.
¡°There will be no more civilians. My search and rescue has been forced from the planet. Void rest those still down there, but we cannot save them. I need you in close escort with everyone that needs a jump beacon.¡± Folmuri stated calmly.
¡°That would include you as well Admiral. Subspace jumps without one is a death sentence.¡± Tagarin pointed out, ¡°I won¡¯t have you sacrifice yourself alone.¡± He finished, a fine edge of steel rang in his words.
¡°Admiral, with respect, We will not be sacrificing ourselves. Legion neither uses Subspace, nor requires Jump beacons. If I am to make my plan work, I need you as close to your departure point as possible. I mean to create the cushion you need to escape, then jump from orbit. When I jump, you die if you aren¡¯t gone yet.¡± Folmuri¡¯s tone was firm, ¡°Tagarin, Jumping one or two systems is not going to be enough. You will have to make for the down-spin sectors, and you will have to protect that convoy from Pirates and Syndicate raids the entire way. It is the only way.¡±
Tagarin visibly bristled for a moment, and Folmuri¡¯s opinion of the man only grew as the Lycan struggled with running from this fight. Finally, his shoulders straightened, ¡°I understand. Void go with you. Tagarin out.¡±
The image disappeared and Folmuri sank into his chair, ¡°That was closer than I care to admit. Status on our Picket?¡±
¡°15 minutes till they return. Admiral, What¡¯s your play.¡± Gleeson¡¯s tone was not one of fear, but he clearly knew what kind of fight this was going to be.
¡°I¡ you¡¯re not going to like it¡ I¡¯m not going to like it¡ We finish what the Vorath started, on our terms.. Status on the atmosphere down there?¡± He asked as Gleeson¡¯s eyes widened, before the Human captain sank down into his chair as the implication settled in.
¡°60 percent sulfur dioxide at this point Admiral, Most of the Oxygen has been burned away by the Volcanic activity. Temperature above 400 Kelvin and climbing..¡±
¡°God rest their souls.¡± Whispered Gleeson next to him as Folmuri pulled up a tactical map.
¡°They are already gone, Signal Simo I need her to target these coordinates.¡± Folmuri sent the data to Coms. ¡°Captain Gleeson, I¡¯m authorizing Manhattan. Launch at station keeping, we will have little time.¡±
¡°How many warheads, admiral.¡± Gleeson asked carefully, even as he typed the codes releasing his considerable Nuclear ordinance stores for launch and maneuvering into position.
¡°All of them, Captain.¡± Folmuri stated softly.
____________________________________________________________________________________
A shower of sparks heralded the arriving volley as the impacts threw Centarus to the deck floor as 50 of the 200 tons of semi-luminal strapnel impacted his ship directly. His shields held, but only just. He watched as two cruisers directly in front of his flag ship pealed like ripe fruit, slowing the incoming carnage enough for him and his ship to survive. He dragged himself back to his seat, only barely aware of the piece of railing embedded in his shoulder. Eight ships¡ eight ships were all that remained of his ambushing fleet. The trap was not sprung, but he had no choice. He sent the order, praying to the void itself that his gambit would stem the tide of death being aimed at him.
Moments later, twenty Vorath Frigates, fifty Cruisers, and a Fighter Carrier dropped into the system five hundred thousand Kilometers from the oncoming convoy¡¯s Port side, they did not wait for orders to fire.
_______________________________________________________________
¡°Contacts! 240 mark 004! Void take us, Its another fleet!!!¡± Came the Call from the Delmar ensign at Sensors.
¡°Rebalance Deflectors!! Bill, get us between the civies and that fleet!¡± Clint bellowed.
¡°On it! Scramble scramble scramble, come about 334 by 350. All ahead Flank!¡± Wild Bill began almost before Clint finished. In the next 2 minutes every single one of Galvestons bombers launched, Joining her already orbiting Fighters, as Galveston swung into position to strengthen the englobing ¡°Shield wall¡±
¡°Admiral! Iowa reports engaging with her aft battery, requesting permission for broadside engagement¡± came a call from Coms
¡°Granted! Iowa and Hathcock, engage the flank. Signal Wisconsin and Furlong, quote, ¡°Make a hole¡±!¡± Clint growled. The fleet in front of him was in shambles, but he was still forced to split his firepower to face this new threat. The sensor returns increased exponentially as the enemy launched its own fighters. The cloud of new smaller vessels began to act like chaff, distorting firing solutions as they weaved in and among the bigger Vorath ships on their way to engage the Convoy. Images flickered as warbled for several moments before the larger ships appeared more clearly against the backdrop of fighters.
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Clint¡¯s eyes narrowed as a shadow ripped over the top of Galveston and settled into the middle of the bomber formations. USN Kidd had slipped out of her position, leaving Obannon and Fletcher to keep the locks at the fore. Kidd¡¯s Jolly Roger, no longer flown but painted onto her flanks, flashed in and out of vision in the flickering of weapons fire. Moments later hundreds of streaks arced out as the bombers loosed their antiship missiles. Sixty missiles were fired in the span of thirty seconds, twenty-five were intercepted by point defenses. Seven cruisers drifted from the enemy formation, belching flaming wreckage and atmosphere. Four more lost their shields, quickly taking on concentrated fire from Clints capital ships under the direction of Kidd.
¡°Admiral, Kidd reports Target¡¯s painted.¡± Captain Harrison mentioned, shaking his head in dark amusement. The destroyer, diminutive by comparison to almost every capital ship on this field of battle, proceeded to both paint targets for Galveston and Iowa, but was actively engaging fighters and bombers with both main battery and point defenses at close range. Her captain, Victor Young, threw his command about as if she was just another one of the fighters, but the target locks never wavered. The Flanking fleet began to lose ships, but their fire began to penetrate. Clint Grimaced as plasma fire began to punch through the shield wall in the weaker areas between ships. It could not be helped; He was stretching this tactic to within an inch of its life. Shield walls were only at their best in close formation, stretching one over a convoy measuring a hundred Kilometers long was only going to work for so long.
This new enemy fleet burned hard, closing the distance as the survivors of the fleet in front of them began to fall in with their comrades. Fletcher and Obannon shifted without needing orders. Wisconsin flipped completely around and burned for the rear of the convoy, bellowing her hatred over the top of Galveston as she raced to fill the gap. A civilian shuttle burst, followed by the hull breach of a larger pleasure liner turned refugee barge before Wisconsin could get into position to strengthen the defensive bubble being projected.
Being forced to separate from ¡°Shield wall¡± during her maneuver; Wisconsin paid for her quick response. She was holed 3 times in her forward starboard quarter from concentrated Laser turret fire, disabling 3 turrets before she could get into position. Furlong swung her head ¡®round from where she was in the formation, bringing her massive gun to bare as she drank in the targeting data from all three Destroyers now frolicking among the carnage of fighter-on-fighter combat, releasing chaff, and saturating the battlefield with EM radiation designed to disrupt sensors and Fire control systems. Iowa lost 4 of her Shield Generators and a third of her fusion cores had to be shut down as she took the extra strain from Wisconsin¡¯s repositioning. She was puking Collant from her Port overpressure release vent as she fought to rebalance her defenses. Her ablative armor bubbled and flaked as it ate shield attenuated laser fire and plasma blast and She was repeatedly marked and scarred before her shields stabilized with help from Hathcock.
The enemy formation broke up, and Clints eyes widened as he realized what they were doing. The enemy fleet spread itself out, creating large gaps between each ship. Whoever was the commander on the field for the Vorath had survived the first engagement and had learned his lesson. He spread his ships in a broad arc from the port beam of the convoy to almost around behind the column of ships. Wisconsin and Galveston were forced to shift position again as they moved to prevent the rear of the convoy from being eviscerated. The gaps between Clint¡¯s ships grew, weakening the shield wall again. Laser fire and Plasma rounds began to penetrate once again, raking the shields of the civilian ships as the beacon neared. Clint swore as three hundred civilian craft burst into flames or drifted from the formation. The civi¡¯s barely had shield, Manhattan was not an option. His Nuclear ordinance would murder hundreds of thousands of innocents in the blasts. Clint noted the return of some of Galvestons fighters and bomber. There were many missing, and Fletcher was actively rear-guarding their retreat.
¡°Captain, fighters reporting Winchester. Requesting rearm and refuel¡± The Com¡¯s station reported to Harrison.
¡°Granted! Fletcher can¡¯t hold out for lo¡¡± Harrison was interrupted by a blinding flash as no less than 30 enemy fighters suicided themselves against Fletchers deflectors, 7 of them penetrated, tearing into Fletchers starboard side, rupturing her hull in a long gouge that puked bodies and debris.
A second flash of light harolded the wrath of Furlong as she fired an Ithica round directly over the top of the stricken Fletcher, cutting a highway of destruction through the onslaught of fighters and taking out a frigate in the process.
¡°Incoming message from Fletcher sir! ¡®It¡¯s been an honor, you have 2 minutes¡¯¡± Clint did not see the paled crewman. He was watching the beacon.
¡°Admiral, Civilian craft are ready to jump.¡± Harrison¡¯s voice was strained. Discipline forced calm as he watched USN Fletcher struggle against a losing damage control battle.
¡°Jump them.¡± Clint Growled before turning to Wild Bill. ¡°Are there any survivors from Fletcher.¡±
¡°No pods Admiral, she didn¡¯t launch any.¡± Harrison¡¯s voice grated at the admission. ¡°45 seconds left Clint.¡±
Clint only nodded, fighting back his rage as he watched Fletcher be engulfed by the leading edge of the enemy fleet.
¡°Convoy away!¡± Called the Sensor station as the last surviving civilian ship jumped for safety.
¡°Captain, we jump in 20 seconds. Manhattan authorized three tubes. Target¡.. Fletcher¡¡± Clint grated as he hung his head, ¡°God go with them... Fi...¡± A massive explosion ripped through the ships nearest the stricken destroyer as Her Captain recognized the attempt at capture. The multiple Fusion Core detonations created a globe-shaped ball of burning amber and yellow edged in blue. Five Vorath ships and half of their remaining fighters were simply engulfed, erased from the universe in Fletchers last act of Defiance.
¡°Secure Manhattan,¡± Clint sank heavily into his chair, ¡°All Ships, Jump.¡±
________________________________________________________________________________
¡°Admiral, they have arrived.¡± Captain Gleeson stated stoically.
A three hundred ship fleet had erupted from subspace directly into high orbit on the far side of the planet. They were rapidly burning towards his small fleet, desperate to come to grips with the foe¡¯s that had bested their fellows.
¡°Shuttles?¡± Folmuri asked quickly.
¡°still in route, but they are clear enough to jump.¡± Gleeson responded.
¡°Jump them, send Valles and Gales with them for pickup.¡± Folmuri nodded as the two destroyers and the shuttles flashed into slipspace. The shuttles weren¡¯t quick, and their emergency slip drives would have to be completely overhauled after this jump; but they were safe. ¡°Signal Simo, Fire.¡± Folmuri ordered.
Simo had positioned herself over the spinning planet where the original glassing beam had impacted. She unleased two of her solid rounds straight into the impact point, blowing clean through the crust of the planet.
Folmuri took a deep breath, Killing a planet was not on his bucket list, but he was too far from home to risk a prolonged fight with a numerically superior force. ¡°Activate Manhatten, All ships. Jump¡±
Sixteen fusion warheads howled down into the atmosphere straight into the cavity created in the shattered shell of the Planet. Admiral Targarin watched through his long-range sensors as the last of his convoy departed... The faint flashes of the strange Delmar fleet jumping where they orbited was a surprise, to say the least¡ He was about to order the last of his fleet¡¯s rear guard to jump when the armada of Vorath vengeance made its way from behind the planet. Alarms blared as his flag ship was targeted only for the alarms to fall silence as the Vorath ships scattered, each burning hard directly away from the planet.
Targarin looked on in morbid curiosity as they fled, some back into subspace. Some simply burned hard for the outskirts of the system. His confusion approached total just as the planet itself shattered like a Porcelain orb filled with explosives. The Lycan admiral could only sit heavily as the realization hit him¡ Not only did the small fleet that saved him have the ability to end a world, but the Delmar Admiral leading them had chosen to use the stricken world itself as a weapon. A third of the Vorath fleet did not survive the initial blast, and half still took critical damage from the planet-sized bomb¡¯s shrapnel cloud.
¡°Admiral, we are ready.¡± Came the awed voice of Tagarin¡¯s flag captain.
¡°Uh¡ Jump when ready...¡± The Admiral mumbled, unable to tear his eyes away from the scene before him as his flagship slipped into subspace.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Ambassador Gwen Groaned heavily as she leaned back on the human-style couch inside Ami¡¯s Office/living quarters. ¡°This is not going to get better soon¡¡± It had been a week since she had received her latest reports from Her Expeditionary fleets, and the wave of refugee reports was beginning to get to her.
Ami swung her long neck around and gently rested it on Gwen¡¯s shoulder in a sort of gentle hug. ¡°The Unity rotted from within. You humans can do so much, but it''s never enough for you is it.¡±
¡°It¡¯s¡ hard. We still do not think in a galactic scale¡ Entire worlds of lost murdered souls is not something we are accustomed to. What about your home-world? Have they responded to our requests to fortify it?¡± Gwen asked tentatively. She knew Ami was in agreement, but Her species were Pacifists by nature. It was a long grueling uphill battle to convince the Saurian home-world to accept direct military aid. Unfortunately for them, their adopted planet was in a key commerce highway that was going to undoubtedly be hit when the Vorath eventually made it this far. ¡°We are also not accustomed to waging wars of this scale and timespan¡ It''s going to take 17 years for the Incursion to reach us¡ and we are the only ones who can respond quickly in it. With the Unity in fragments¡¡±
¡°Countless will perish, before the monster reaches our gates¡ only to be fought by our children, and theirs¡¡± Ami finished. ¡°I will ask them again, What of Sol. Have they committed?¡±
¡°After a fashion. My people are weary, of war. We almost exterminated ourselves with one very recently. We have agreed to Aid, training, and support; but many still believe this is your war to fight. They feel the distance between your Unity and Sol protects them. I pray they come to their senses before they are proven wrong. Eventually, the Vorath will learn of Sol, and then¡¡±
¡°More Humans will die proving them wrong¡¡± Ami sighed, finishing her close friend¡¯s sentence. She returned to her data pads as the two of them sipped from steaming mugs of black coffee. The Saurian government was moving slowly, as was its want. In truth, Ami did not expect an answer inside the decade; and she was inwardly amused at her Human friend''s endearingly aggressive impatience. The fact that the Human/Delmar Alliance¡¯s Offer was not dismissed out of hand was possibly the single biggest sign that Ami¡¯s government was taking the recent events seriously. She would draft a clean copy of the renewed request in the morning. It was late, and both of them could use the¡
¡°Jesus¡¡± Came a silent whisper of an almost prayerlike expression from the white-haired Scott on the couch. Ami quickly swung back over to her friend. It was Folmuri¡¯s report, as well as an urgent marked file from Clint.
¡°Gwen?¡± Ami asked as her friend flicked up the data to open it as a hologram between them¡ Folmuri¡¯s and Clint¡¯s files had extensive composite sensor and visual components...
The two could only sit in shocked silence as the files automatically queued up and began playback.
Chapter 89
Cory stepped off the shuttle and onto the promenade of Port Royal. The transportation and freight hub was abuzz with activity, and he was forced to wait several minutes before he could make his way to the inner command area. The sentry quickly glanced over his credentials before nodding to himself and letting Cory through into the sensitive sections of the station.
¡°Ah, Cory.¡± Commander Silu welcomed, ¡°I appreciate you comming. How have you been.¡±
Cory raised an eyebrow at Silu¡¯s offered hand, before accepting the very human greeting. ¡°I am well but struggling to keep busy. The incursion has put a hold on new freighter manufacturing, and there are no new berths available, as of yet.¡±
¡°The incursion is playing havoc with many things¡. We got word of the loss of another Delmar world this morning¡. That makes 5. I¡¯m afraid, refitting and crewing the new additions to the defense fleet are taking precedent.¡± Silu mused just as they reached his office, ¡°Have you considered any other options?¡±
¡°I¡ No, sir. It¡¯s hard to consider leaving behind my career to start over. It feels too much like I would betray Olyvia if I did.¡± Cory responded before quirking an eyebrow, ¡°Uncle, you didn¡¯t request me all this way just catch up¡¡±
Silu smiled crookedly at his nephew, ¡°You are correct. Of course, we didn¡¯t.¡± His door hissed open and the two of them walked in to find Admiral Mackenzie Grarzia sitting in one of the chairs.
¡°Mac?¡± Cory gave his brother-in-law a confused look.
¡°It¡¯s been a little bit; we haven¡¯t seen you since the funeral. How are you holding up¡± Mac asked gently.
¡°I¡¯m doing well enough. So, what is going on.¡± Cory responded as the three took their seats. Silu settled in behind his desk, while Mac and Cory ensconced themselves in the remaining furniture.
¡°The Incursion has forced our timetable. The refit of the Armada is going as quickly as it can, but I am still short in other areas if we are to stem the tide.¡± Mac began. ¡°I know you were never interested in a military berth, but I need seasoned sailors.¡±
¡°I was wondering if this would happen. I¡¯m no warship captain, Mac.¡± Cory sighed.
¡°I know, but you are a Sailor, a blooded one at that.¡± Mac¡¯s tone was careful, ¡°I don¡¯t want to push you into a frontline warship¡¯s Berth, what I need from you, is something else.¡±
¡°I¡¯m listening,¡± Cory leaned back in his chair, ¡°What do you have in mind.¡±
¡°I need captains that know the Unity, know its people, and know how to defend himself and his ship. I have several ships on the tail end of their refit. During our war, we used them as armed troop transports. Along with upping their armament and shields, I have had them retrofitted with medical facilities as well as stores of materiel and supplies.¡± Mac explained. ¡°I need captains that are willing to sneak into occupied space, evacuate who they can and aid resistance groups logistically. You will also be authorized to destroy any enemy shipping you wish, but your primary mission will be to save lives, gather intelligence, repatriate captured merchant-men, and stay alive.¡±
Cory sat for a moment, contemplating what lay before him. The news that the Thermian Government had sided with the Vorath had put new perspective on the fateful events aboard Celest. It was widely believed that the attacks on Delmar shipping were the precursor to this invasion. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of any military doing anything like this. It almost sounds like I would be a Pirate.. in a positive sort of way.¡±
Silu snorted, and Mac chuckled darkly, ¡°This part of the Galaxy has never fought what Humanity calls ¡°Total War¡±, outside of possibly the Corth/Vorath conflict. We will need to disrupt the enemy¡¯s logistics, as well as fight them head on. I mean to fight as dirty as possible. I mean to save the people the enemy wants dead. I mean to deny the enemy supplies to wage war. I mean to create so much turmoil on the planets that they deem worthy of enslaving, that they have to fight multiple smaller fronts on top of us.¡± Mac¡¯s smile held no humor in it.
Cory¡¯s face blanked at the understanding of what Mac was proposing, ¡°I¡ would like to think on this. How long do I have to decide?¡±
¡°The ships are basically done, save stealth coating and armaments. The captain¡¯s berths will be first come first serve.¡± Mac responded, ¡°I can say this. Each captain will be involved in the final steps of their own command. These troop transports were seldom named. They will need one. The captains will also have final say on who we approach as crew, and exactly what weapons they wish on their ship, within reason.¡±
Cory¡¯s eyes widened at the implication, but he chose to keep his cool, ¡°An interesting proposal. I will give it some thought.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Jezzaria stepped into the observation room in the Ceres research facility. She could see Warren on the other side of the glass, working on the last-minute bits and bobs that came with a test of this magnitude. He noticed her arrival and gave a quick wave before returning to work.
They had pushed back her latest checkup with Atticus so that she could be here, and she folded her wings tightly to settle down into one of the chairs to wait. Soon enough, Warren walked in to greet her with his customary embrace followed by effortlessly scooping her up to bring her lips to his. ¡°Hey, gorgeous.¡± He whispered before setting her back down.
¡°You nervous?¡± She asked quietly, ¡°This is your discovery.¡±
¡°Yea¡ I¡¯m terrified. At least we learned our lesson. They are sending a drone first.¡± Warren said quietly.
Director Johansson watched the couple from his private observation room before returning to the data log as he lent another set of eyes to today¡¯s test. The optical scanners were locked on a massive object, keeping station outside. It was little more than a giant cluster of 340 S.O.L. Grade Fusion generators attached to 4 kilometer wide ring. There was a matching ring in orbit over the Martian shipyards on Phobus.
Today¡¯s Test was the culmination of the Young Protige¡¯s accidental discovery. Those calculations had been painstakingly peer reviewed before the course of action was decided. Even Humanity could not safely generate the types of power required to safely duplicate the accident inside of a ship. Jezaria had been granted access on account of her knowledge from before the reclassification of the project, and she had been the one mention an external system to Warren. The young man had taken the idea and run with it, quickly roughing out the concept that had produced the two monstrosities that were currently solidifying their data link from halfway across the Sol system.
¡°Director, Phobus reports ready on their end.¡± Johansen¡¯s aid mentioned.
¡°We are ready here, Begin.¡± Bjorn stated formally. He smirked slightly as he watched Warren see the notification, parting with Jez with a quick show of affection.
Warren stepped into the control room proper just as Bill took his seat, ¡°Ready Boss.¡± The young man offered as he quickly ran through his part of the pre-ops checklist.
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¡°Guidance, Go!¡±
¡°Navigation, Go!¡±
¡°reactors, Go!¡±
¡°Sensors, Go!¡±
The individual stations sounded off until it circled back around to Warren, ¡°Vessel, Go.¡± The young man stated. He would be remotely guiding the Prewar Terran freighter during this test.
¡°Initiate Startup sequence, T minus 15¡. MARK!¡± Bill called out.
The transmission came from Phobus, confirming the time synchronization, and moments later the main screen in the mission control area flared to life with an image of the ring floating over Ceres. Warran held his breath as he watched the power numbers soar. The interior edge of the Ring suddenly flared to life as the very fabric of deep space itself seemed to warp and writhe in on itself. The Fusion Core readings began fluctuating under the strain as the Ring began ripping at time and space itself. The violent maelstrom seethed inwardly from the edges of the ring for several moments before the power numbers began to stabilize and a smooth event horizon coalesced.
¡°Boss, the Core¡¯s will overheat in 30 seconds..¡± Warren¡¯s urgent tone registered as Bill quickly looked over everything a final time.
¡°Go Lieutenant, You are cleared for entry burn.¡± He stated after a moment, and Warren immediately activated full power on the old freighter¡¯s main drives. The elder Vessel shuddered to life as it began to glide into the glassy smooth convex distortion. A ripple flickered across the almost lens-shaped anomaly as the Freighter was slowly engulfed before disappearing from Ceres station¡¯s sensors.
¡°I¡¯ve lost contact with the test vessel.¡± Warren stated formally. He leaned back in his chair, his part of the test done. He was just about to stand up and go talk to Jez when The Com station linking Phobus and Ceres together spoke.
¡°Phobus reports reception! Uh¡ Boss? You need to see this¡¡± The man quickly sent a vile to the main viewer and hit play. The other side of the experiment snapped to life showing the same convex liquid lens shaped event horizon just as an object broke through. The aging freighter was slowly birthed into the orbit above Phobus shipyards. She sparked and flared with burst power conduits. Her hull was heavily scorched and almost crushed in places as the Atmosphere she had been pressurized with for the test vented violently from half a dozen fractures. The smoldering Hulk drifted aimlessly, completely unresponsive as the last of it exited the Ring¡¯s central anomaly.
¡°Jesus¡ What the Hell happened¡¡± Warren whispered as both rings were hastily shut down before their core¡¯s overheated. He looked over his shoulder to see Jez standing up next to the observation rooms enormous windows. Her horrified expression caught his gaze as the images of the stricken test vessel hung in the view screen.
¡°Phobus reporting they have recovered the vessel. Initial reports recorded a hull temperature of 2100K.¡± Coms reported.
¡°Jesus.¡± Bill looked over at the face of Warren as the now ghost white young man slowly turned back to sit in his chair. ¡°Compile everything, let me know when Phobus recovers the flight recorder. LETS MOVE PEOPLE!¡±
Warren snapped out of his stunned state, and he quickly began pulling and compiling everything he had from the entry side of the operation. He finished quickly, sending off the packet before taking his leave. Bill nodded his permission as Warren stood up, and walked back to the observation room.
Jezz immediately reached for him as he returned to her, pulling at his shirt until he scooped her up into an encapsulating embrace. The freighter could have easily been his shuttle during his accident. ¡°I know, but it didn¡¯t happen. We know now.¡± He softly comforted her as she buried her head against his shoulder.
¡°What happened... I saw the images¡¡± Jezz asked after a moment, releasing her embrace, and taking his hand as they left together.
¡°I don¡¯t know yet. We do know that the test ship¡¯s outer hull melted under some kind of heat or friction transmission. They are waiting for the vessel to cool before they recover the interal recorders. We should know more in a day or two. Let¡¯s get lunch. I don¡¯t know when I will be called back.¡±
Warren was walking intentionally slowly. Ceres was one of the first adopters of first generation artificial gravity. The upgrade had been expensive, and the first generation Gravity plates were only designed to be capable of a minimum of force equivalent to 2/3rds Delmar¡¯s gravity. Jezzaria was still struggling with the excessive gravity, but was doing better after two weeks of agony. They had brought a prototype antigravity harness, made by Atticus; and Jezz had almost given up. She could stand and walk, albeit slowly, now. Her wings were completely useless, and Warren had to help her don a smaller separate harness designed to ease the pressure on her wing joints at her shoulders. Upon hearing the Jezz was not needing the antigrav harness, Atticus had demanded a medical exam the moment they returned to Luna, and Jezz was wearing a bio-monitor tied to her Com unit so he could watch her vital functions live. It was currently adhered to the underside of her left upper arm and was feeding real time telemetry to the artificial being. He had already recommended that she up her caloric intake to compensate for the extra energy she was burning through, which had proven to improve her quality of life.
She was leaning on Warren by the time they reached the caf¨¦, grateful for the comfortable chair and a glass of water. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s better. It''s getting easier, but I never thought walking could be such a struggle. I don¡¯t think I could even lift my wings right now without the harness.¡±
¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want the antigrav? I can run and go get it.¡± Warren asked as the waiter arrived.
¡°I¡¯m ok. I promise, it is getting easier. I don¡¯t want to give up if I am still improving.¡± Jezz was relaxing in her chair, wings drooping slightly.
¡°Just tell me if you need a rest. I can carry you home if you need it.¡± Warren gently squeezed her hand as the waiter returned.
The two of them made it through the main course and were headed back to drop Jezz off in their quarters to rest when Warrens com chirped, it was Bill. ¡°Yea boss?¡±
¡°Warren, we just received the compilation of data from Phobus. When can you two get back.¡±
Warren raised an eyebrow, ¡°I¡¯m dropping Jezz off at our quarters to rest, I can be back in 15.¡±
¡°That won¡¯t be necessary. I want both of your eyes on this, just in case your good luck charm has another spark of brilliance.¡± Bill broke into a chuckle at Jezz snort. He had taken to calling her that after the second slip drive breakdown. Considering the day¡¯s revelation, she was forced to concede the point.
¡°We will log into the conference call in 15 then, I assume Phobus is on the other end?¡± Warren responded, still smirking amusedly down at his angel. She was still refusing to be carried, and stubbornly putting one foot in front of the other.
¡°They will, see you there. Bill out¡± the connection closed just as Jezz stumbled slightly, leaning heavily on Warren as he caught her fall.
¡°Hey, I had it.¡± She grumbled. Still trying to stand on her own.
¡°You did, until you didn¡¯t.¡± Warren said softly. He effortlessly overpowered his exhausted angel before changing tones entirely. ¡°Now, that¡¯s enough exertion for the day. Atticus is not here to patch you up. Lay still.¡±
Her resistance ceased as she heard her mate¡¯s command. Jezz melted into his arms as he tucked her wings in to support them as well, ¡°good girl¡± he whispered.
¡°I hate it when you¡¯re right.¡± Jezz murmured, relaxing into his arms.
¡°Not that I can control you with just a word?¡± Warren teased as he plodded on.
¡°No,¡± Jezz lifted up slightly to kiss the underside of his chin, ¡°That part¡ makes me crazy.¡± she whispered just as they reached their quarters.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Patrick stepped into the bar and was waved over to the corner by his former first officer. He ordered from the bar, snagging a Delmar whiskey on ice before strolling over to Corellus sitting in the corner booth, ¡°If you only knew the number Human clich¨¦¡¯s you¡¯ve just triggered¡ Whacha got L.T.¡±
¡°Hey, Red.¡± Cory used the nickname given to him by Cammy. ¡°I need to talk this out with someone. I got a job offer of sorts.¡±
¡°It must be a military berth if it has you this twisted up. What did the Admiral Stevens offer you.¡± Patrick spoke softly, clearly keeping this between the two of them.
¡°Admiral Grarzia actually. He gave me an offer to captain a¡ Pirate ship¡¡± Cory murmured, almost as if the words would trigger a response from the rest of the room.
Patrick snarfed into his drink, ¡°Come again?¡±
Cory sighed, and began from the beginning, ¡°Mac is putting together a unit. He will be going deep into the incursion zone, causing disruption, and foment conflict behind enemy lines. I don¡¯t know what he will be bringing, but he offered me the captain''s chair on a converted Armed troop carrier. He has a few of them in their final refit. They have been gutted of their troop transport capabilities and replaced with hospital capabilities and storage for delivering supplies and evacuating people from behind the Vorath¡¯s back.¡±
¡°Ook. That doesn¡¯t sound like a Pirate to¡ Oh¡± Patrick paused as something clicked, ¡°You will be destroying tonnage as well, aren¡¯t you.¡±
¡°Yes¡ If I accept, I get a say in how my ship is armed, who my crew is, and what her name is¡¡± Cory said quietly.
¡°And you want to do it.¡± Patrick said simply.
¡°To my shame, I want to murder every one of those monsters that helped those pirates take my ship, and my captain from me¡¡± Cory dripped with hatred at the remembrance for a moment before sobering, ¡°But a pirate? The idea makes me sick, even if I wouldn¡¯t be attacking innocent targets.¡±
¡°Well, You wouldn¡¯t be a Pirate.¡± Patrick said simply, ¡°Humanity has a long history of both legal and illegal commerce raiding. What the Admiral is putting together has a name in our culture. We call them Privateers.¡±
¡°Priv-a-teer¡± Cory spoke the Human word carefully, ¡°What is the difference.¡±
¡°A Privateer has rules. Many of my people''s nations had them in times of war. A privateer could only attack shipping under the enemy¡¯s flag, under the permission of the parent nation. The refugee rescue and the supply of resistance is not a traditional Privateer role, so you would probably be considered more of an insurgency group; but I like ¡®Privateer¡¯ better.¡± Patrick sat back and regarded his former ranking officer, ¡°I know that look. When will you be calling back to accept.¡±
¡°I think I may contact Mac in the morning. I don¡¯t know if I will be a good¡. ¡®Privateer¡¯¡ but I cannot sit back and wait any longer. Dozer was right, I¡¯m not the man I was before the attack. That man would have never considered legal piracy.¡± Cory responded slowly, pausing as he noticed the look on Patrick''s face. ¡°Patrick, what is it. I haven¡¯t seen that look since¡¡±
¡°You are right, we aren¡¯t the same men we were, and I¡¯m coming with you. I¡¯m just trying to think of what I am going to tell Cammy... I love that girl, I was hoping I would be able to tell her how I feel before something like this came up. She still spends the nights in my room, at least her nightmares are over.¡± Patrick looked over to see the confused look on Cory¡¯s face.
¡°I thought you two were courting. I don¡¯t understand the issue.¡± Cory leaned back in his chair.
¡°Cory, Humans don¡¯t communal sleep with strangers of the opposite sex in most cultures¡ certainly not mine¡ The only time a woman gets into bed with a man in my culture is¡ if they want to become intimate with each other, and we haven¡¯t. On top of all that, She¡¯s a cuddler.¡± Patrick¡¯s eyes glazed over for a second before refocusing on Cory, ¡°You have the same problem, my friend. You need to talk to Jackie. That woman is a saint for waiting this long for you to make a move.¡±
Cory opened his mouth to counter, only to pause as the memories of the last few months flooded through his consciousness. ¡°I do, don¡¯t I¡ What should I say¡¡±
¡°The same thing I am going to¡¡± Patrick clamped Cory on the shoulder, ¡°The truth.¡±
Chapter 90
Admiral Fulmori¡¯s fleet dropped out of slip space directly on top of Tagarin¡¯s convoy of surviving warships and refugee vessels. The fleeing convoy had been traveling between jump points, making their way through an uninhabited system that presented many hazards for subspace travel. The warble of alarms briefly wailed as a few of those ships targeted his fleet in the ensuing terrified bedlam of surprise.
¡°Tagarin for you admiral¡± Com¡¯s crisp report snapped Fulmori from his musings.
¡°On screen¡± He stood as Tagarin flashed into view. ¡°Admiral Tagarin, I see you made it out in one piece.¡±
¡°Admiral Fulmori, I could use an explanation on how you move like the enemy, and how you seem to be able to move faster than any vessels in the known unity.¡± The Lycan Officer gruffed, clearly not amused at how demonstrably outclassed his fleet was by these newcomers.
¡°Admiral. I¡¯m sure recent events will change this soon enough, but I¡¯m currently bound by an oath of secrecy to those two answers. I can, however, offer you aid. I have the ability to send refugees deep down spin and far out of the reach of the conflict zone. With your permission, I would like to transfer the surviving civilians to my ships for the remainder of the voyage.¡± Fulmori offered a placing gesture, ¡°I do not doubt your abilities, but I am but one small expeditionary fleet with no pull in this sector. Your name, rank, and ships would be better suited to defending the Unity. Allow me the honor of freeing you and your resources to do so.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t like it, Admiral. But I cannot argue your logic. I accept your offer, but have one request in return.¡± Tagarin eyes Fulmori carefully. The Delmar officer nodded after a hair¡¯s breadth of a moment. ¡°I¡¯ve seen the reports and the footage of the humans you fight alongside; I have seen you and your fleet in close combat. I am requesting aid from the Confederation and humanity. I am aware that I am not the Unity proper...¡± the Wolfman paused, eyes hooded against something only he could see, ¡°the truth is¡. I have not heard from any leadership from the capital since the beginning of this conflict.¡± Fulmori¡¯s eyes narrowed as he realized just how disorganized the Unity was at this moment, but Tagarin continued, ¡°I have not heard from the grand admiral in over a month. I fear him lost as well, yet cannot get any information. My self and my fellow admirals are patching holes where we can, but we are desperate. Please pass my request to your superiors.¡± The Lycan officer bowed his head briefly.
¡°I will admiral, I will be sending you a datalink code that I will share with my government. I cannot promise anything, but I trust we will try. Void go with you, admiral.¡± Fulmori gave a formal gesture of respect.
Tagarin returned it with one of his own, ¡°and you, admiral. Tagarin out¡±
The connection closed as the Unity fleet began to break off, burning hard to reverse their course. Fulmori raised an eyebrow at the frantic chatter bleeding over audibly from the coms station, ¡°Contact the civilians, tell them we will be consolidating them for evacuation. Let¡¯s get to work.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Camorra slipped into the Family Library to find her father sitting in his favorite chair, carefully turning the page on a strange looking book. ¡°Pappa?¡±
Kraystus looked up from ¡°The Cambridge History of Warfare¡±. It was a truly enlightening, if equally terrifying, work of literature. He had purchased it from earth when Humanity first established trade routes with the Home-world; and he had been unprepared for the revelations of what humanity was capable of, even to themselves. This had elicited an amused laugh when Patrick had found him reading it late one night, ¡°Remind me to let you borrow ¡®We were soldiers, once and young¡¯. It was written by the man that lived it, not the one that studied it.¡± The young human male had chuckled. The offered copy of that book sat next to the title he was finishing, awaiting its turn to reveal its secrets.
Kraystus gave his youngest a gentle smile, ¡° ¡®Little one¡¯ It is late, what¡¯s going on?¡± He beckoned her over, and she curled up in his lap like she did when she was young.
¡°Cory needed to talk to Patrick, I didn¡¯t want to go to sleep yet.¡± She admitted after a long moment of thought, ¡°Pappa, what do you think of him?¡±
Kraystus smiled down at his youngest, ¡°An interesting question ¡®little one¡¯. He eats a lot, and I caught him snoozing on the roof of the gazebo, let¡¯s see... what else is there... I...¡± He smirked down at his daughter as she smacked him lightly on the chest, ¡°I think he is good to you. Gods know he is protective enough of you...¡±
¡°Huh? He can¡¯t be that bad.¡± Camorra sat more upright to look at her father for a moment, thinking. ¡°You went looking for me the morning after we arrived.¡± She realized.
¡°Indeed, I went to ask Patrick if he had seen you. I guess he hadn¡¯t closed that old door just right. It was cracked enough that I thought you might have gone to see him. Patrick heard me¡ that hand cannon of his is even bigger when it is pointed at you¡¡± Kraystus chuckled at Camorra¡¯s shocked look, but he continued, ¡°Do not be mad at him ¡®little one¡¯; I do not fault him. Both of you had just come back from such carnage, he was protecting you. We had a good conversation after that.¡±
¡°You told him about my sleepwalking.¡± Camorra settled back down in her father¡¯s lap. ¡°He told me¡¡± she mused, playing with the tips of her hair.
¡°What else did he tell you?¡± Kraystus asked gently, but carefully.
¡°That it gave us a ¡®license to be roomates¡¯¡ and that I wasn¡¯t allowed to try to sleep on the floor anymore.¡± Kraystus watched his daughter blush at her remembrance.
¡°Cammorra,¡± Kraystus used his daughters full name for the first time in the conversation, ¡°Humans are a warrior species. Everything I have read since their arrival points to this. Patrick may be an engineer, but he is also a blooded warrior. He will not be able to resist this conflict¡¯s call.¡± He reached down and gently stroked her on the head, ¡°He a reason not to.¡±
¡°What could make him want to go back into that horrible place¡¡± Camorra whimpered, clearly remembering the attack on Celest, at least in part.
¡°You, my dear. To protect you. That was the other part of the conversation that morning. He has requested a courtship, once you were ready¡ in here¡± Camorra¡¯s head snapped up in shock, and He tapped lightly on the forehead, ¡°It is why I have not made an attempt to get you to sleep in your own room again.¡±
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¡°Pappa!¡± She scolded in shock, straightening up to face him, ¡°Patrick has no understanding of our ways¡ He can¡¯t be¡¡± she paused as her father silenced her with a finger on her lips.
¡°My dear youngest daughter, I have been studying humanity since they arrived. They are an enigma of volatile emotion and capacity for violence wrapped in varying degrees of control. They are quick the sword, quick to mate, slow to love as we do¡ Patrick has been an absolute gentleman by Delmar standards, but if you were human, you would likely be carrying his child already.¡± He watched the emotions wash over his daughter as she blushed deeply, ¡°It is another reason I approve. He cares deeply enough for you to forgo his human instincts to protect and comfort you, our way.¡±
Camorra considered her father¡¯s words as the memory of the last few months flowed over her. She had become inseparable from Patrick, even to the point of being possessive of him with her flirty airheaded friends. That had been a secretly amusing event. Patrick had smirked and said that she should introduce him to her friends, and they had gone out for drinks. Patrick had been polite to all of them, then completely ignored them as he pulled Camorra onto the dance floor for one of the Human songs that had taken Delmar by storm. He had pulled her close as they glided around the dance floor, making it clear that he was interested in only her. She giggled as she watched her friends visibly deflate as he crushed their hopes of nabbing a human for themselves. Her fathers¡¯ words to her had placed everything in a completely different light. He had not been playing a part, He had been claiming her in his own way in front of her planet-side friends. The revelation slammed into her like a canopy top gust in their gazebo.
The digital chime noting the front door opening and closing again rang in the library, and Camorra looked up at the speaker. Patrick was the only one out at this hour, and he had just come back. Ancient instinct rippled through her being as Camorra looked up at her father, only to see him smiling down at her.
Kraystus¡¯ gentle voice was accompanied by a wrapping embrace. ¡°Go to him, with my blessing. I¡¯ll see to the formal paperwork in the morning.¡± He released her, picking up his discarded book to resume reading once more as his daughter slipped out of the library. Moments later, Aria slipped in through the same door and wiggled until she was settled into her favorite spot on the couch.
She had a mug of what Patrick had dubbed ¡°Hot Chocolate¡± in her hands as she tucked her feet up beneath her. ¡°Yes?¡± she asked pleasantly.
¡°Yes.¡± Kraystus stated with a smile, never turning his gaze from the pages of his book.
¡°About time.¡± She said firmly, standing before approaching her husband, swinging her hips slightly as she walked. Kraystus felt her coming and looked up just in time for her to pounce on him, straddling him in his chair before kissing him fiercely.
Kraystus let out a chuckle as she released his lips, getting his revenge. Aria Gasped as he let his practiced fingers free upon her body. Aria¡¯s fingers finally reached the remote for the library lights, and they dimmed to a more intimate level as she pulled at her husband¡¯s tunic.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Clint set down the data pad and reached for his mug. Fulmori¡¯s report had been a read indeed, but He had finally gotten the majority of the details regarding his own fleet¡¯s losses... Fletcher was gone with all hands. Her captain was Delmar, an effervescent man with a quick wit and quicker instincts in the void. He had been one of the few capital ship captains in orbit during the Void¡¯s Revenge incursion and had fought his Delmar light cruiser into a ruined hulk before The first human task force had shown up in system. His willingness to commit to the hard fight had inspired both the Humans and the Delmar under his command, and this was the reason for the lack of escape pod launches when she received her mortal wounds. The Composite sensor data had shown that every one of Fletchers surviving guns had continued firing until the moment of her destruction. Her 700-soul crew had been almost a 50 percent split, and they had set a withering standard of commitment to stand against the opening salvo¡¯s of this new war. Both Kidd and O¡¯bannon had taken minor damage, with Kidd being the only other recipient of a suicidal pilot. Clint suspected the suicidal change of tactic was due to the devastating effect the electronic warfare suites of the destroyers had unleashed. The recordings of the battle had shown that once the three had engaged in close support of the fighters and bombers, that individual ships had largely ceased to be targeted. The enemy, unable to paint individual targets through interference, had been forced to fire on the convoy as a whole... Sadly, for too many civilian ships, It had still proven deadly.
Wisconsin was the most seriously damaged of Clint¡¯s surviving ships. She had lost 190 out of her 7500 souls to the holes she had taken with another 150 wounded. She had chosen to forgo her personal shields to lend her strength to the already overtaxed shield wall and had paid a grim price. Almost a quarter of her total firepower was inoperative, and She would need Delmar¡¯s shipyards to right her structural damage before she could be re-armored. In all likelihood Iowa would have suffered the same fate had Wisconsin focused on her own protection.
Iowa¡¯s armor had not been penetrated, but it had been a near thing. There were already replacement shield generators waiting for her at Hade¡¯s station, as well as shipwrights to replace her damaged armor. She had lost 15 of her number in a coolant conduit explosion before she could vent the pressure. 25 more souls suffered in her burn unit, but would make a full recovery under the studious eyes of doctors with the full weight of modern medicine behind them.
Galveston¡¯s Wounds were not in hull breaches, nor in generators damaged; but they were no less severe. Only a third of her complement of bombers had returned. Half of her fighter wing was counted among the lost as well. The hanger¡¯s emptiness was an aching reminder of the brutal reality of small vessel combat in the Black. There was the hope that one or two might limp back using their emergency slip drives, a fleeting prayer at best.
The door chimed, snapping Clint from his musings, ¡°Enter!¡±
Captain Harrison stepped through the sliding door holding a pair of crystal sniffers and a bottle of something expensive looking, ¡°it''s 2am ship time... I¡¯m your relief, don¡¯t make me assault an Admiral to get you to take a break¡± he was only half joking as he rather pointedly set a sniffer down next to Clint and began to pour.
¡°Bill, I don¡¯t think I could court-martial you even if I wanted to¡ Thanks.¡± Clint groaned, taking a long pull from the sniffer before settling back in his seat. The smooth fire of a truly exquisite vintage burned down as his muscles began to uncoil for the first time in days. ¡°This is going to be a long war¡.¡±
¡°It is, but it will not be won or lost tonight.¡± Clint raised an eyebrow at his flag captain¡¯s uncharacteristic sageness.
¡°Don¡¯t tell me the great Wild Bill Harrison has gone and gotten old on me.¡± Clint smirked as Harrison gave him a mildly murderous glare.
¡°I can still turn you inside out on the mat, boy.¡± Harrison growl was ruined by the wide grin on his face. ¡°It had to happen sometime.¡± He conceded after a moment, before smirking mischievously, ¡°You can¡¯t talk, both of the biggest pains in my ass ended up outranking me and becoming fathers. Who¡¯s gone and gotten old.¡±
¡°You could have a Flag berth with a word, you know that.¡± Clint was slowly spinning his class watching the ripples in the amber liquid intently.
¡°Ha! I¡¯m good. Galveston is where I belong. I always told you she would be my last command, and I meant it. I¡¯m not cut out to command fleets, never have been.¡± Harrison¡¯s tone was good-natured but haunted by memories of a war that had scarred both of them in different ways. ¡°I always figured I would die with my boots on, makes no difference which side of the galaxy I¡¯m in. Men like us don¡¯t get to have it any other way.¡±
Clint said nothing back. He did not agree with Harrison on this, but the Man had seen to much, lived through too much to be dissuaded. Instead, he downed his drink, ¡°When we get home, you are taking a vacation. I hear Mac has some nice herds of ¡°Delmar Elk¡± he has been watching. It will do you some good.¡±
Harrison visibly perked up at the mention of a hunt, ¡°Delmar Elk huh? Those big bastards that even the flying bat/snake/shark thing won''t touch if it''s healthy?¡±
¡°Yup¡± Clint smirked, both knew the hook was set, ¡°You bring that ancient monstrosity of yours?¡±
¡°The Sharps? What do you think¡± Harrison smirked.
¡°Fuckin¡¯ Cowboys.¡± Clint chuckled as they both poured another glass.
______________________________________________________________________________
Warren looked up from the screen on his wall and the data pad on his lap. it was three am local time and they were no closer to understand why the day''s experiment failed so spectacularly. The conference call had ended over six hours ago, and Jezz was currently curled up against his side with her head resting lightly on his shoulder. Her light snoring was a quiet reminder that he really should have gone to bed ages ago. His gaze fell to the data pad in his hand. The data was all starting to blur together. They had duplicated the power ratios perfectly, accounting for mass increase due to their test vessels greater size. There was a moment when they believed that the generator¡¯s overheating condition was linked to the outcome, but there simply wasn¡¯t enough evidence to support the theory one way or the other. Warren reached for his mug of now cold stale coffee just to have a dainty hand reach for his forearm.
¡°Bed, come... War, it¡¯s time to¡¡± Jezz¡¯s garbled half asleep murmur ceased as she froze, staring intently at his data pad. Warren raised an eyebrow as she slowly reached for it, ¡°Mass. No Higgs generator.¡± Her mind ground its gears as she fought to focus through her sleep-drunk state. ¡°The freighter.¡± she got out finally clearing her head, ¡°War, the Freighter has no Higgs generators...¡±
¡°Wait, what? How could we have missed¡ oh shit...¡± Warren flicked through the data until he found the specs on the freighter. ¡°Jesus, Jezz. That¡¯s it¡ I need to send an email to the...¡± he was stopped a second time by a peck on his cheek.
¡°Tomorrow, Its late. They won¡¯t see it for hours anyway.¡± Jezz she murmured before standing. ¡°Come sleep.¡± Came a tired purr She got up, taking his hand and leading them to their bedroom.
Chapter 91
Patrick slipped quietly into his room; it was much later than he would have liked. A small pang of guilt flashed fleet-footed through his mind as he hoped Cammy was at least comfortably asleep for now. Her nightmares were almost completely gone now, but she had steadfastly held to her position as his cuddly sleeping partner. He knew it was a Delmar thing, having taken a little time to learn about this part of their culture after his conversation with Cam¡¯s parents. His silent hope was that it was more than that, but his heart had sunk when the news of the Vorath incursion had reached Delmar. He had run out of time.
His thoughts carried him through his change of clothes and wash for bed, and he was just climbing into the bed when he realized it was missing something, Cammy. ¡®She must have gone to her room, maybe it¡¯s for the best¡¯, he mused as he began crawling into the empty folds of sheet and comforter.
A light knock gave him pause, turning walk towards the door. Patrick opened the door slowly, expecting to see Kraystus checking on his youngest daughter.
¡°I just got back; I think Camy is in her¡ oof¡± he was interrupted by a tantalizingly familiar form impacting his chest as Cammy pushed up against him. Patrick instinctively wrapped his arms around her, letting Cammy gently push him back into the room. The door clicked behind them as he closed it. ¡°Hey you¡¡± He whispered, ¡°Sorry I was gone so long, Can¡¯t sleep?¡±
Cammorra said nothing, and Patrick¡¯s eyebrow rose as he felt the desperation in her grip¡ he started to rub her back in comfort, only to find a think silk fabric with a clasp about the back of her neck and a completely open back. Patrick¡¯s eyes widened as his hand slipped into the gap in the fabric and felt her soft skin and velvet main that ran down the back of every Delmar. He caught himself when he felt her shiver a little squeaking gasp as his fingertips brushed their way across her bare skin.
Patrick quickly began to remove his hand, embarrassed at the liberties he had just taken, only to be frozen by low primal growling hum that seemed to rip its way out of the lithe being currently pressed against him, ¡°Cam?¡± He whispered carefully. That sound had awakened a violently primal need in him, bringing his manhood to full mast almost instantly. She had teased him before, and they had played this little game a few times. This was different, and Patrick was struggling to fight down the urge to rip her clothes off and make her his. He slipped his hand back into the back of her thin whisps of a blouse and the primal sound softened, but did not cease, as Cammy melted into his touch. She had still said nothing, ¡°Cam?¡± Patrick asked a second time.
¡°Shh..¡± She finally responded, leaning into him. Patrick slowly let her push him backward, towards the round Delmar style bed they had shared for months. The back of his knee¡¯s tapped the edge of the bed, and he let her push him down to sit in front of her.
Patrick gasped softly as his eyes were greeted by Cammy¡¯s figure. She was barely covered in the same silk he had felt on her back. It was a flowing auburn fabric, cascading from a bonze throat clasp about the base of her kneck. It¡¯s primitive elegance spoke to an ancient design as it cascaded down from the clasp, off of her breasts and flowed down to her mid-calf. Patrick tried and failed not to stare as he watched her nipples heave under her breath; the fabric shimmering and swaying slightly from the movement. Her arms were bare as she kept her hands on his shoulders, and Patrick noticed a small smile mixed with something older flow gracefully across Cammy¡¯s features as she watched him take in her form.
¡°Cam, You¡¯re¡ Jesus, your perfect.¡± Patrick breathed, barely able to whisper as her glory seemed to rip the air from his lungs, ¡°I¡¡± he was stopped with a finger on his lips.
¡°Patrick, I know you asked my father for my courtship¡¡± her husky voice flowed with promise between them, ¡°I¡¯ve been so blind¡± She began continued, with that same tone, ¡°I¡¯m sorry it took me this long to see you.¡±
¡°Cam, I¡ We couldn¡¯t. You were dealing with so much. I wasn¡¯t going to confuse you.¡± Patrick got out quietly.
¡°Pappa said as much.¡± Cammy coo¡¯d in that same husky purring tone, ¡°What do you know of my people.¡± She asked, taking a deliberate step to place her body as close as she could to him as she could while still standing.
¡°Less than I should¡± Patrick gasped as Cam took one of his hands, guiding it around the edge of her whisper thin garment and placing it on her hip. He felt her skin for a second time as his hand reached the conclusion of her unspoken command, and he watched her close her eyes and let out a humm as she visibly enjoyed his touch.
¡°Patrick, I¡¯m done teasing. What I do next¡,¡± Cam paused as her other hand reached the clasp at the back of her neck. Patrick heard the click of a clasp and the waterfall of fragile fabric fell to the floor between them. ¡°¡Is my answer. Patrick, we female Delmar take our mates, body, and soul. Patrick O¡¯Sullivan, with my father¡¯s blessing, I take you. Do not fear what happens next.¡±
Cammy¡¯s eyes burned with something ancient as Patrick watched her lean in. She met his kiss fiercely as she drove her tongue between his lips, exploring his mouth thoroughly before she pulled back just far enough to drive a fang into his lower lip with a possessive growling hum. Patrick tasted the iron as his lip bled, only to be completely forgotten as the back of his mind roared to life with passion and desire rivaling his own, yet distinctly foreign. ¡°Oh shit!¡± was all Patrick got out as Cammy¡¯s mind reached out and poured itself into his psyche. He could only gaze up at her as Cammy¡¯s knees buckled under the thundering Hurricane of Patrick¡¯s own emotions slamming into her being. She fell to her knee¡¯s, her naked form clinging to him as the tumult of the Claiming howled between them for what seemed like an eternity.
Camorra was taken completely by withering surprise as she felt the full force of Human emotion inside her mind for the first time. Patricks primal desire roared into her psyche, as she experienced his need for her in full force. It was not a new emotion. It felt old, controlled, barely constrained. The realization of what her father had said regarding humans came flooding back as she realized that he already loved her. He had always loved her. That final thought blew down all her barriers as her mind imprinted itself violently on his, leaving her panting against his chest, still on her knees under the weight of the whirlwind she had started between them. ¡°God¡¯s¡ I never knew.¡± She gasped as the Link stabilized between them.
¡°Now you do. I can¡ I can feel you.¡± Patrick gasped. He had learned that Delmar pairing was a dangerous and serious endeavor. He had known that the female put herself in great danger during the process, but everything he had thought he knew fell woefully short as the fulness of the permanent bond solidifying between them. He had felt her shock at his feelings toward her, felt her mind reel as it came to grips with the intensity of his human emotions. His own mind was still coming to grips with this new entity inside his head as Cammy recovered, lifting off of his chest and looking down at the tent his manhood was pitching in his pants. A wave of hunger from her almost overwhelmed him as she began tugging at his shorts.
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¡°You¡¯re turn, I want to see you¡ as you see me¡± Cammy whispered as she freed his shaft and threw his shorts across the room. She reached for his shirt, brushing a nipple across the tip of his shaft in the process. She smiled as she felt his reaction, pulling his shirt free and sending it to meet its companion across the room. Her Delmar instincts took over as she fed off of the link between them. She smiled as Patrick shivered when she brushed her breast across the same spot a second time. Patrick¡¯s breathing heaved as he put his arms behind him to support his upper body as she wrapped her hand around his shaft for the first time, guiding it to her breasts to rub the under side of his tip in slow circles on her nipples. She felt his manhood twitch in her hand with the stimulation, and she arched her head back, eyes closed as she relished the sensation mixed with the pleasure rippling off of Patrick like heatwaves on a bonfire. She gave each of her nipple¡¯s gentle attention with his manhood before putting his shaft between them. She squeezed her breasts together, gently engulfing him between them before leaning down to give his tip a chaste kiss.
A smirk filled her features as she watched Patrick¡¯s reaction to her lips on his manhood. His emotions betrayed him, feeding her instinctual need to discover her mate. She watched a small bit of liquid spurt as a bit of his seed leaked from him. She kept her eyes locked on his as she slowly lowered her head and swirled her tongue across his shaft, eagerly tasting him for the first time. She felt his hips buck slightly, sending the tip of his manhood just past her lips. She could see that Patrick lose control, and she pressed her advantage, gently sucking on his shaft head. She slipped more of him into her mouth as his burning emotions betrayed his pleasure. Patrick began to moan under her touch, bucking his hips ever so slightly as she continued her efforts. One of his little bucks had his shaft head hiss the back of her throat and she gasped at the pressure. She pulled completely off of his throbbing shaft, watching him pant heavily. He had felt that, and She gave him a small smile before licking his shaft, base to tip before sliding him back into her mouth. This time she slipped him down just to the back of her throat. She could feel him twitch as she released a gentle growling hum, vibrating the tip of his shaft with her traditional Delmar claiming call.
¡°Fuuu.. Cam.. If you.. keep¡ im¡ cum.. gonna¡¡± Patrick was silenced as Cammy relaxed her body and slipped his shaft past the entrance of her throat. Her instincts chased her mate¡¯s pleasure, completely suppressing any gag reflex as she slid him down until the base of his manhood disappeared between her lips. She moaned as she felt his tip twitch, and her mind exploded with Patricks emotions as she felt his manhood swell. Patrick was close to something, and she felt an overwhelming desire to push him over whatever he was close to. She pulled him out and took a long breath, never letting Patrick speak as she slipped him back down her throat, with full lungs this time. Once again, his shaft disappeared down her throat, only for her to push a strong claiming call through her vocal chords.
Patrick¡¯s eyes rolled completely back in his head as his hips bucked uncontrollably. Cammy pressed her call, using all her air just as she felt Patrick climax. She held him there in a tongue swirling, vibrating embrace as he emptied himself. She felt her core glow as he poured himself down her throat. He bucks became shudders as the flow waned to spurting remnants before Cammy released him. Patrick flopped on his back as she slowly stood over him. He could feel Cammy revel at her triumph as she slowly crawled over top of him to lay her glorious naked form atop his.
¡°Whoa¡¡± Patrick pulled her up to him as their lips met in a long passionate kiss. ¡°Where did you.. I never¡¡± He panted after releasing her.
¡°We are biologically driven to please who we claim. My body listens to you now, Patrick. I have taken you as my own. In doing so, I have willingly imprinted myself on you. I belong to you, Red. My entire being is yours, just as I have taken your being for myself.¡± Cammy purred, smiling down at him as she felt his body ready itself for her again. ¡°Now, I give you the rest of me.¡± She purred, spreading her thighs to straddle him as she slid the folds of her sex up and down his shaft. She slowly soaked him with herself as she kissed him deeply, and the two of them relished each other as all mental barriers, cultural que¡¯s, and interspecies etiquette were rendered irrelevant. Patrick reveled in the full fanged possessive growls that his Camorra gave him with each time they came up for air, and Camorra¡¯s heart raced as he overpowered her effortlessly. She was flipped on her back with a flash as Patrick asserted himself on her. He had stayed between her legs, but now he was in control, and a wave of exhilaration roared through her body as she realized he was going to take her, the human way. Patrick slid his shaft head through her folds until hit kissed the entrance to her core. Her shuddering moan gifted her a gloriously aggressive human smile as he captured the back of her neck and head with one powerful hand, and the small of her back with the other. She was rendered immobile as her Patrick pressed down on her with his hips. She felt her womanhood flare as he pushed past her entrance, and an involuntarily loud moan ripped itself from her lips as he gently, but firmly, drove his manhood into her. She felt his hips press against her bud just as she felt him press gently against her deepest folds.
Patrick held her there as his lips began to claim her body in totality. First her chin, then her ears. He was rewarded with a hip buck and another loud moan as his teeth brushed her jugular, followed by a nip at the base of her neck. The moment his lips began to suck on her left nipple, Patrick could feel her womanhood respond to him, as her hips bucked on their own. Patrick could feel her desire roaring like an inferno, and he rewarded it. He pulled his face away from her, he watched her eyes as he slowly began little short thrusts that turned into longer ones. Her eyes widened at every movement until they rolled back into her head.
Camorra lost control of her body, bucking wildly as she came for the first time. Patrick¡¯s firm, but careful thrusts drove her half to madness as her body drank in every sensation. She had expected him to hold her there, to wait until she had finished climaxing. He had not, and instead had sped up his thrusts to drive her further into incoherence. She was lost in him just as he was lost in her. Their bodies rolled and bucked of their own accord as Patrick barely held on to his own control. She could feel him working hard not to hurt her, She felt the power of his body as he rendered her incapable of escaping him. His lips wandered her freely, his tongue tasted her skin as she began to sweat from the unrelenting orgasm that Patrick had refused to release her from. Time was gone, thought was gone, nothing mattered except the waves of ecstasy given to her by her Patrick. What felt like an eternity later, she felt his thrusts falter. He felt a growing pressure inside her as Patrick¡¯s Shaft began to swell again, just as it had done in her throat. She knew what that meant now and began bucking against him with all of her will. Patrick¡¯s moans became bellows as she redoubled her efforts. With the last of her energy, she pulled his head to hers. ¡°Finish¡ Take Me.¡± Was all she could say before a powerful thrust drove him completely inside her. His hips bucked and shivered as his powerful arm around the small of her back pinned their hips together. A fiery heat spread through her core as he gave her his seed properly, refusing to release her until he was done. The pulsing of his ecstasy drove her into a full-throated screaming climax. Slowly, they both regained their senses as Patrick effortlessly picked her up and rolled back onto his back with her on top of him. He didn¡¯t bother to pull out of her and began slowly making out with her for several minutes. Neither one wanted to move as Patrick finally softened enough to fall away from her.
Camorra finally spoke first, still panting from the experiences of the evening. ¡°Red, I had no idea. You¡¯ve loved me for so long.¡±
¡°I have, it wasn¡¯t easy keeping myself from you. Now that I know what I¡¯m missing¡¡± he let his voice trail off as his fingers drew shapes in the main at the small of her back.
¡°oooooohh¡ that¡¯s nice¡.¡± Camorra coo¡¯d, melting into Patricks Human body heat. Both had worked themselves to exhaustion, and his body heat raged against her skin as she did her best to melt into his chest. ¡°I¡¯ve heard the term, ¡®fall in love¡¯ used by other humans. When.. when did you..¡± She hummed, unable to remove herself from the glorious pocket of heat she was enveloped in.
¡°Do you remember your first night home. When you came to me in a panic.¡± Patrick¡¯s voice was a low rumble through Camorra¡¯s ear against his chest. She nodded her response and he continued, ¡°That night when I got my payback¡ Cammy. Had you been human, I would have taken you right then and there. I¡¯ve thought you were gorgeous since we met. I¡¯ve cared for you since the attack. When you trusted me that night... I fell for you, completely.¡±
¡°Hmmm¡¡± Cammy finally pushed herself up, sliding up Patrick¡¯s chest until she reached his lips, gently pulling at his lower lip with a fang. ¡°Delmar, don¡¯t fall in love. We choose to love. The claiming unlocks those emotions and instincts in us. I have chosen to love you, Red.¡± She coo¡¯d.
Patrick said nothing, but wrapped his powerful human arms around his Camorra, slipping the bedding around and over them until they were entombed in a sarcophagus of pure heaven. Soon, comfort and contentment robbed them of consciousness
Chapter 92
R¡¯Ben settled into his favorite table at his favorite Cafe. A cup of steaming tea seemed to appear as the waitress brought him his usual fare for a late lunch. Smiling a quick thank you, he barely registered the very human smile full of teeth that was returned to him. His months spent at Hades station had obliterated the propaganda-induced terror he had harbored regarding these new arrivals.
His work was fulfilling. He had been given the lead on the systematic cataloguing and data mining of Quawrine¡¯s Library. It was a brutally tedious endeavor, but their labor had been rewarded in a mountain of information on their returning Vorath enemy. The reports from both Admirals Fulmori and Stevens had proven recent modifications effective. Shield and thermal dissipation modifications had been noted as a major factor in the decisiveness of the recent engagements, but there was still much to do. He had just received the combat data from Admiral Stevens engagement just this morning and had been preparing an analysis between current and past Vorath technology and tactics.
His meal finished, R¡¯Ben payed for it, giving a generous tip to the waitress before departing for his office. He chuckled quietly to himself every time he paid for something. Getting paid, and getting paid handsomely, was the greatest change in his life. These Humans not only valued his expertise, but also valued his freedom as much as they did their own. For the first time since he was a young adult, He was free. A flash out of the windows along his route caught his gaze as a familiar cobbled together Vorath vessel burst from subspace into the approach vectors to Hades station. The vessel was not fire upon, and quickly received a fighter escort to the Morring Grid.
A small sad smile flashed across his features. These last few months had seen Quawrine morph from master to coworker, and their carefully encrypted correspondence had been greatly useful in his team¡¯s research efforts. His bitter sweet expression bore both the happiness of seeing a friend face to face, and the horror of what her return meant for the rest of the galaxy at large. His footsteps carried him past the corridor leading to his office, and continued toward the Shuttle arrival hangers.
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The early morning whisps of fog were quickly becoming an afterthought as Cory halted his steps and reached for the chime button. His finger never reached the button as the Door opened. Jackie stepped out adorned for her morning run, and almost ran smack into him. She gave a ¡®Whoa¡¯ in surprise before coming to a halt just outside the threshold, ¡°Cory?!?¡± she gasped finally.
¡°Hey, I was hoping to catch you before your run.¡± Cory said with a small smile. He watched Jackie sober as his miserable failure to keep the turmoil in his soul from reaching his features. ¡°Can we¡ talk?¡± Corry winced at the clich¨¦, but it had to be said.
¡°Uh, sure. Come in..¡± Jackie said softly, leading the both of them into her planet-side flat. ¡°What¡¯s up¡± She asked, clearly bracing herself as they sat on the couch.
¡°I¡ I found a captain¡¯s berth.¡± Cory began.
Jackie broke out in a broad smile, ¡°That¡¯s amazing!¡± She reached out and pulled Cory into an encapsulating hug.
Cory pulled back from her after a moment, ¡°Jackie, It''s not a freighter¡¯s berth¡¡± He said carefully, ¡°Admiral Mackenzie is putting together a¡. ¡®Privateer¡¯ fleet. I¡¯m to be one of his captains.¡±
¡°Oh¡¡± Jackie pulled back, sitting next to him again on the couch. ¡°I see¡ When do you leave.¡±
¡°Soon, My ship is finishing a retrofit. I had some last minute¡ requests.¡± Cory said softly, ¡°I don¡¯t know how long the mission is¡ I wanted to come see you.. before..¡±
¡°Don¡¯t string me along Cory. I¡¯m a big girl, I can han¡¡± She was interrupted by Cory pulling her in and planting a gentle peck on her lips.
¡°That¡¯s not why I wanted to see you.¡± Cory breathed as he released Jackie, ¡°I¡¯m sorry it took me this long¡¡± He looked into her gemstone eyes.
¡°Why now¡ We have no time. People don¡¯t come home from these missions.¡± Jackie¡¯s eye began glistening with unshed tears as she continued, ¡°It¡¯s cruel, Why now.¡±
¡°Because I¡¯m a fool.¡± Cory breathed but a whisper, ¡°Because I both want you here, someone to come home to¡ and want you with me¡. Gods I want to take you with me.¡±
Jackie pulled up close to him, taking his hands in her, ¡°I have my current berthing¡¡± she said gently.
¡°That¡¯s just it. Mac has given his captain¡¯s choice of crew. We cannot order, but we can ask any service member we wish; and they can accept. I want to ask you Jackie, I want you with me, I want you as the head of my infirmary¡but I cannot¡ As you say, it''s near certain suic¡¡± Cory paused as Jackie slipped into his lap, straddling him as she moved to face him. She pressed her lips before gently biting him on the bottom lip.
¡°Stop¡ I¡¯m going with you.¡± Jackie whispered Huskily, holding herself in place as Cory wrapped his arms around her waist. ¡°Cory, I am not Delmar. I need to hear it from you. What am I to you.¡± She whispered.
¡°priceless¡± Cory whispered back pulling her to himself once more.
________________________________________________________________
Folmuri groaned as he stood to stretch from his office chair. It was nearly 12 hours since they had begun the transfer of the civilians onto his slip capable ships. The sad realization of just how few were saved came when it only took those twelve hours to complete the transfer. ¡°Enter¡±
¡°Admiral,¡± Captain Gleeson entered the office, ¡°We are ready to jump, We are laid in for Signus.¡±
¡°But?¡± Folmuri asked calmly as his flag captain raised an eyebrow.
Gleeson chuckled and sat down, handing his Admiral a data pad. ¡°We just received a weak distress beacon.. It down spin.. but deep in occupied territory. It reeks like a trap, and we have civi¡¯s on board, but¡¡± Captain Gleesons tone lowered to deadly seriousness, ¡°It has Karmarin¡¯s security code, and the proper encryption¡¡±
Folmuri¡¯s eyes snapped to his Flag captain, ¡°You think¡¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Gleeson said quietly, ¡°Parts of it past the smell test, others¡¡±
Folmuri slowly flipped through the data before answering, ¡°Smells like a trap¡ I¡¯m not doing this with civi¡¯s on board, Contact Stevens.¡± Folmuri shared a knowing look with his flag captain, ¡°Tell him we are going to need a pickup¡ and a plan.¡±
______________________________________________________
Admiral Karmarin coughed quietly into his sleeve. Time was an elusive foe these day. Hour¡¯s, week, months¡ they all blended together. The only constant, was the torture. He had managed to hide his emergency beacon, albeit in unmentionably desperate places, during his capture. The Vorath had taken his fleet by surprise, dropping out of subspace at point blank range during his desperate race toward the front lines. He had watched in Horror as his Thermian crew members rampaged through his flag ship even as the Vorath boarded.. Seeing the face of Kar, the disgraced captain, leading a hybrid Thermian/ Vorath boarding party onto the bridge of his flagship had forced the truth into his mind. The Unity had been betrayed from the inside¡ His surviving ships had acquitted themselves valiantly, but the sabotage was complete. The battle was over in moments, and he was dragged bodily aboard an enemy vessel. He was forced to watch on as Every non Thermian crew member of his fleet was put to the void before his surviving ships were confiscated for the Vorath war effort.
He did not know how much longer his beacon could last. It had an induction charging function, drawing power from nearby electronic sources, but they were few. The small micro beacon had a paltry life span, worse it was forced to be stored in¡ unsavory conditions.¡± The Former head admiral grunted as he passed the Beacon once more, carefully removing it from his waste. He cleaned it as thoroughly as he dared before hiding it in the rags that barely resembled the Uniform he once wore with pride. Karmarin could no longer smell himself, and it was a small blessing. His cell had no facilities.. He was forced to soil himself or attempt to isolate where he passed the remnants of the scraps, they rarely offered between bouts of tortue¡ These monsters were keeping him alive. He realized that the moment they ripped the poison pill from its surgically implanted in his beak. They kept him and his cell clean enough, hosing him down every few days along with his cell with ice cold water and sprayed foam. The beacon remained his only hope.. The only reason he still ate, the only reason he dared to live.
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A distant grate scraped down the rancid corridor, and Karmarin suppressed the urge to purge his guts as he swallowed the beacon once again. Moments later, his hulking Vorath Jailer lumbered in, flanked by two others. Each bore a hose, one of foam, one of water.
¡°Time for your bath Admiral.¡± The last word dripped with venom as Karmarin braced for the inevitable blast of ice-cold water and acrid foam. There was very little of his plumage left, and his skin bore the oozing sores of the mild alkaline burns that his ¡°baths¡± had gifted to him.
At least it would wash away the taste of the beacon.
Deep in the Caverns of the Prison Asteroid, the humiliation of the grand admiral of the UGN was being carefully observed. ¡°He still protects that beacon. Admirable, foolish but admirable.¡± Centarus observed the Kawmari Officer through the data link as he spoke to the Interrogator, ¡°I assume he has not broken?¡±
¡°He has given us very little Centarus, I would request to break his hope but¡¡± The Jailer rumbled.
¡°Soon, I wish his breaking to be complete. We will wait until the beacon dies. He does not have to know we have hacked and copied its message until we crush his resolve. Feed him something.. unfortunate¡ tonight. Best to not keep him too comfortable. Otherwise, continue the interrogations as usual.¡± Centarus glanced away for a moment before returning to the conversation, ¡°I must go,¡±
¡°Yes, Centarus. It will be done.¡± The Jailer responded with a salute just as the connection closed. He turned to his subordinate, ¡°prepare the rack, we begin again at first watch.¡±
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Patrick woke up to a bubble of Joy glowing gently in the back of his mind as His memory slowly reconstructed the previous night¡¯s events.
¡°You¡¯re adorable when you sleep.¡± Came the contented purr from his chest. Patrick opened his eyes slowly to see Cammy still where he had last seen her, lying on his chest as she stared up at him with those shimmering silver eyes of hers.
Patrick pulled her up his chest, feeling her body slide against his until their lips met. He felt her desire broil a little at his actions as he released her, ¡°So I definitely didn¡¯t dream that.¡± He murmured, gently stroking the main running down her back.
¡°I would hope not.¡± She chuckled huskily back at him before kissing him on the neck with a fanged nip at the end.
Patrick let out a groan before sitting up, settling Cammy into his lap facing him, ¡°Cam, I..¡±
Cammorra felt his terror. It almost overpowered her, ¡°Hey, Patrick. Its ok. Pappa told me you would not be able to avoid this war.¡±
¡°It¡¯s more than that. It¡¯s the reason I went to meet Cory. Admiral Grarzia offered Him a captains berth.. on a Privateer. Where we are going, we may not come back¡¡± Patrick whispered hoarsely.
¡°Tell me about this mission...¡± she asked gently. She knew he could feel her fear, but she continued, ¡°I regret nothing, I simply wish to know how much I need to pack.¡±
¡°Cammy¡¡± Patrick warned but was interrupted by a finger on his lips.
¡°Patrick, this has been an age old dilemma for my people. I will never be able to claim another. I will never be able to bear children with another. By custom, newly paired couples either stay on planet, or travel the void together. I share your fate now, red; and I won¡¯t ask you to stay. I¡¯m coming with you.¡± She locked Patrick in her gaze.
Patrick could feel her resolve, it scared him, but he knew she would not back down. It started to make since why the Claiming was so important to a Delmar. ¡°I.. Ok.. Ok Camorra. I¡¯ll tell Cory.¡± He pulled her into a full embrace. ¡°I¡¯m starving, shower then food?¡±
¡°Hmm a looong shower, then food¡± Cammy purred up at him with a little wiggle as he scooped her up and carried her to walk in steam shower.
________________________________________________________________________________
Ivar grunted and growled as he pulled hard, ripping R¡¯Cari through an 8 Human G pull as Sombra flashed past his larboard side wing in just as hard a pull. ¡®The 1 circle it is.¡¯ He growled to himself as slammed the stick over placing his Vertical Vector on Sombra¡¯s high six. The HUD began to fade as the G forces slowly began to rip consciousness from Ivar. He kept his breathing under control, pumping the stick to keep himself from blacking out as the two vessels danced a deadly waltz across the stars. Both fighter¡¯s energy began to bleed off as their pilots fought for the slightest edge. Ivar saw Sombra¡¯s nose cash in and he juked into a counter, flicking R¡¯Cari into a mind-bending reverse pirouette as he brought his nose to bare as well. The growling fox2¡¯s on his wingtip began to scream as they gave him ¡°tone¡± and he ripped one off the rail at his opponent.
¡°Fuck¡± Martina grunted as she was forced to launch off a volley of Flares to counter the Heater that R¡¯Cari had just lobbed her way. Each Flare was specifically tuned to her engine¡¯s signature, giving her the best chance they could of diverting the missile from its target. It worked, after a fashion, as the missile slipped past her starboard wing by mere meters. It¡¯s fuse detonated on the flare, missing Sombra with the main blast, but peppering her shields with shock wave and shrapnel. They flickered and rippled with the impact just as a micropac arced out with withering accuracy, melting away the remainder of her forward shields and ripping into the ablative armor just port of her cockpit. Master alarms blared as she ripped Sombra out of the line of fire, Getting her own fox2 tone in the process. She ripped her own missile off the rail and fired a burst of MAC rounds in an attempt to block off escape routes. She watched R¡¯Cari volley off a large portion of its own countermeasures and slam into full burner just as a small portion of her MAC rounds connected on the starboard wing of the next generation Delmar Fighter. ¡°Got you McLovin¡± She growled, slamming her throttles forward to complete the kill. Her twin MAC¡¯s roared their hatred into R¡¯Cari, ripping into its fuselage starting a roaring plasma conduit fire. R¡¯Cari was done, and Marina was about to break off¡ just as R¡¯Cari¡¯s second Fox2 left the rail and slammed into Sombra just aft of the cockpit.
¡°Fuck!¡± Martina swore, stumbling out of the Simulator in Mac¡¯s home just as Ivar barely crawled out of his and just lay flat on the floor, ¡°I had you!!! I HAD you!!¡± She roared before flopping down on the floor next a maniacally laughing Ivar.
¡°You did, until you didn¡¯t. Gods dammit, I almost blacked out in the merge, and I can handle earth 1G now¡. How!!¡± Ivar gasped, pulling his Chika to him as they recovered from the all out brawl they had just participated in.
¡°Oh, I was almost gone too. The limits are where you win.¡± Martina gasped, ¡°how did you get that last tone? You were out of control and on fire.¡±
¡°The Helmet Mounted Display. You were just barely in the edge of the Gimble. I got a lock just before main power failed. Had the missile spooled and targeted before I died.¡± Ivar groaned, finally sitting up. ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve tied before. I don¡¯t think I can go again.¡±
¡°Again! Again! Best of 3!!¡± The two fighter pilots turned to see young Bryton bouncing up and down holding a data pad that he had been using to watch the fight. ¡°Unkie Ivar and Aunt Marty go again!!¡± he chanted excitedly.
¡°How bout you try it little man¡± Ivar chuckled, playfully ruffling the young boys hair.
¡°He can¡¯t quite reach the pedals, yet.¡± Mac mused as he walked into the room, ¡°You two are terrifying. I¡¯m pretty sure the DDF is screwed this time. They barely survived you in the last exercise.¡±
¡°Naw, Lyrian¡¯s been training them well. They can¡¯t pull like 303, but they have been developing some more ¡°boom and zoom¡± tactics against us. I don¡¯t wanna talk about their Beyond visual range skills¡¡± Ivar put in standing finally, and only just a little bit wobbly. Martina simply sat cross legged on the floor, only to be promptly accosted by an effervescently excited Bryton. Tris and Lyrian were out getting pampered at the salon, and young Jason was currently suffering from an acute case of Milk Coma.
¡°That¡¯s good. It makes what I must ask you easier¡± Mac said soberly before picking up young Bry and tickling the boy under the arms, ¡°But that¡¯s for later. You wanna help your old man start the smoker? The Gruvarett¡¯s been curing long enough, and I¡¯ve got a rump roast thawed¡±
¡°Ya!! I get the lighter this time?¡± Bryton jumped up and down.
Mac Laughed, ¡°Sure, without the bouncing though. Let¡¯s keep your main intact, or mamma¡¯s gonna be mad.¡± He scooped up the boy and returned to Ivar and Martina, ¡°You guys are welcome of course!¡±
¡°Are you kidding, you never have to tell me twice, Marty?¡± Ivar asked.
¡°Oh hell yea, did you use the Marinade I made for you?¡± Martina gave a mildly stern look to Mac, ruined by her small mischievous smirk.
¡°Are you kidding? I¡¯ve been saving it just for this. It¡¯s been soaking all week.¡± Mac confirmed.
Soon the smoker was ready, and Bryton managed to not singe anything in the process. The meat went on just in time for Lyrian to get home with Tris and wake up Jason for another bottle. Tris had taken to baking and was furiously working on the batter for some sort of bight pink cupcake mix. Lyrians mastery of the kitchen created a whirlwind of meticulous precision that ended with all of the sides, and the cupcakes, completed just as the roasts were being pulled from the smoker.
The meat was divine, almost melting off of the utensils with every bite, Lyrian had paired the delicacy with a traditional Spanish rice recipe that She had borrowed from Martina to go with the marinade. Everyone of course had to have one of Tris¡¯ cupcakes to finish off the meal. Soon the little ones were put to bed and a bottle of Human Single malt Scotch was cracked open for the evening.
¡°So, Boss. What is this all about.¡± Ivar asked finally, savoring the incredibly strong but smooth beverage.
Mac took a sip before nodding to something internally, ¡°My people have a tradition in warfare that this part of the galaxy has not seen before. Humanity has always fought on the backs of their logistical supply lines. That is not new to Unity space. What is new, is that Humanity has a long history of actively attacking enemy supply lines¡ not just enemy troops. We do not believe in fighting fairly, we never have. To that end I have been given a task. I am to raise an espionage and insurgency fleet. We will be going deep into Vorath occupied Zones. Our mission is to slow them down by almost any means necessary. Obviously, killing innocents knowingly is going to be off the table, even if I was authorized to do so.¡± Mac began firmly. ¡°I have most of my captains. They have picked most of their crews save a few last-minute requests. However, I miss one crucial piece. Marty will understand this the most, but I¡¯ll explain it to you Ivar since you did not experience my people¡¯s civil war. I need pilots capable of doing what I did during that War. I need Deep space interdiction. I need starship assassins. I need scouts that can become The Black itself and tell me everything I need to bring the Vorath war machine to its knees.¡±
Martina sucked in a breath of air, and Ivar raised an eyebrow at her as he felt the anticipation mixed with trepidation through their link. ¡°Is this why you gave me Sombra.. and Ivar R¡¯Cari.¡± She whispered finally
¡°Yes and No.¡± Mac explained, taking a second sip of Scotch, ¡°My original plan was for a small force, using ships based off of the two of yours, to do this to the pirate syndicates. Same mission, different foe. More vessels are being made, and I will have Concord with me should you need another vessel. Concord, however, was always designed to fly with two. Quite frankly, even with the upgraded AI Wizzo, solo combat in Concord is still much closer to Suicide than I would like to admit. Admiral Trenton has grounded her to the reserve until Jason is old enough to wean. I would train with a new model ship, but there are simply none ready.¡± Mac shook his head, ¡°It would not work anyway. What I have to say next is very important. And it goes above top secret. Very few outside of this room know this. R¡¯Cari and Sombra are designed to fly under alpha synce¡ with each other.¡±
¡°Madre¡¯¡± Martina breathed before looking at Ivar then back at Mac, ¡°That¡¯s why we were allowed to try the codex.¡±
¡°Not my call, but yes. Your bond will become much deeper than you can possibly imagine.¡± Mac held up his hand for a moment, ¡°this is not the alpha synce you are thinking of Chika¡ The Delmar Claiming has a deep effect on what we used to know as Alpha Sync. In time, you and Ivar¡¡± Mac paused as Lyrian sat up next to him, they spoke in perfect unison of tone, inflection, and cadence, ¡°You will cease to need verbal communication with each other, as we have.¡±
Martina stared at the two of them in utter shock, and Ivar slammed back the last of his scotch.
¡°I know you have questions,¡± Mac began.
¡°Ask them, we hide no secrets from you.¡± Lyrian finished.
Chapter 93
The Smooth Hiss of Automation Slipped into his consciousness as Magnarus awoke into the familiar purgatory of comfortable boredom. The Vorath Officer pushed past the familiar shame of his situation, feeding his hate for his captors. They held no honor. They refused to Torture him properly, refused to allow him to die, and refused to kill him. His perception of time was a slow marching haze of questions and comfortable confinement. Their paradox of Strength of body and weakness of will was born in the evidence of every filling meal, every acquiescence, every caring for his every need. He had made the mistake once, assuming their nurturing tendencies made them weak. That day, the single escape attempt he had made had been met with dispassionate yet explosive force. The Delmar contingent of his captors had been relatively easy to overpower, and he had incapacitated three before these¡ ¡®humans¡¯ made it to him. The first Human security guard had rounded the corner and shrugged off the singular punch Mangarus had managed to connect. He had been picked up bodily and thrown as if he were a child fighting a warrior, and the Human ¡®security guard¡¯ had preceded to mercilessly pound him into submission with blows that felt more akin to being struck by a landslide of stone than a fist. The Human had broken his jaw that day, cracked three ribs, and dislocated his shoulder without breaking a sweat. To Magnarus¡¯ surprise, this paradox of a species had healed him, only to return him to his own internal torture of monotonous questions and eternal listlessness.
¡°Up, you know the drill¡± The familiar voice of the Human Security guard that had bested him growled as Magnarus slowly rose from his simple cot. This human was named ¡°John¡±, and his entire being screamed at Magnarus for an excuse to continue the beatdown of their only other physical encounter. The Towering Vorath refused the implicit challenge, standing slowly and allowing himself to be ¡®cuffed¡¯ before departing towards the interrogation room. John plodded heavily along behind him, boots clanking rhythmically on the flooring behind Magnarus as the two of them walked the familiar corridors.
¡°Next Left¡± rumbled the human behind him, and Magnarus paused before turning down a different hall towards a new set of doors. The doors slid aside smoothly and Magnarus stepped into a conference room of some kind, being met by two immaculately dressed human officers and a behemoth of a Human male wearing a strange mottled uniform pattern. A warrior¡¯s air seethed from this being as Magnarus studied him head to toe. His gaze came to rest on the Dagger emblazoned with the insignia of one of the great Houses of Voralus as it rode on the Humans Hip, and Magnarus snapped his gaze back to the being face as recognition flooded his mind. He had watched this Human take a mortal blow during the final ambush that failed to save his ship, and a savage snarling smile slowly spread across this human¡¯s face as he recognized Magnarus¡¯ attentions.
¡°That does not belong to you, human¡± Magnarus¡¯ low rage growled out the words before he could control himself, but he managed to keep himself from lunging at the warrior in front of him.
The titan of a Human simply continued his calm smile full of teeth but said nothing. Magnarus turned his attention to the officers across the table, ¡°What is this. Have you finally found the fortitude to do what must be done.¡±
¡°Commander Magnarus, I see you have been well taken care of.¡± The first Human officer stated. She bore short white hair atop an ageing, yet toweringly formidable figure. The Razor¡¯s edge of experience bore its teeth from behind her Arctic gaze. ¡°No, we will not be executing you today. I simply do not wish to sign off on the ammunition expenditure. Tell me, If I were to wish to contact your fleet commanders. How would I go about doing that.¡±
A low rumbling laugh rippled through Magnarus¡¯ as he heard her inquiry, ¡°You would not be answered. Prove your worth, and you may be spared death; but that is only after capture. Has the Invasion started? Has Legaris begun his revenge?¡±
¡°Who is Legaris?¡± A second officer asked. This one did not bare the towering stature or bulk of the female or the warrior, but his eyes marked him as kin to the female. ¡°Is he the one responsible for the failure of your attack on this world?¡±
¡°Ah, so I am still on Delmar proper. Good, I look forward to watching it burn. Legaris escaped your Atomic Holocaust. You have waisted your precious radioactive materials, Your secrets are now known to the Vorath, and we shall crush you soon enough.¡± Magnarus snarled.
The male simply smirked and said nothing. Magnarus glared at him for but a moment more before turning to the female again, ¡°How much time do you have. I cannot fathom it long if you wish to plead so early.¡±
¡°Long enough. We do not wish to beg this Legaris for mercy, we wish to negotiate an¡. Exchange¡¡± The white-haired female spoke cooly, completely unphased by the Vorath before her. ¡°Unless you do not wish to return to your people.¡±
Magnarus¡¯ eyes narrowed as he contemplated, ¡°Why would you offer this¡¡±
¡°Does it matter?¡± The female asked cooly, ¡°Can you do it, or does your cell call to you.¡±
Magnarus glared at the woman but could not deny that this was the first truly interesting thing to happen to him in the eternity of languish he had endured since his capture. ¡°It can be done, but It will be ignored¡ unless¡¡± ¡®I must take my chance¡¯ Magnarus slowly allowed himself to hope, ¡°I will have to send the message.¡± He carefully kept his face neutral. ¡°If you want to get a response, this is how.¡±
The two human officers glanced almost imperceptibly at each other before the Female returned her gaze to Magnarus, ¡°We will be in touch¡±.
¡°Up, slowly.¡± John growled before escorting the Vorath back to his cell. The two officers and the Warrior merely watched him be led away.
__________________________________________________________________________
Cory stepped foot onto his new command for the first time, stepping out of the shuttle¡¯s airlock onto the TRN-APT-08872. The ship was a paradox of function and aggression. She reminded him of a much smaller Celest with square flanks and space-centric design. The similarities ended there as Cory realized that her outer hull was both 4 times as thick, and designed to laugh in the face of the type of fire that would have felled a Unity Brigantine in moments. Her prow was aggressively angular, designed to induce glancing blows from incoming fire as she charged surface weapons to deliver her payload of men and materiel.
Today, She was recommissioned anew. Her purpose was born upon her flanks, Keel, and Dorsal spine. Cory had requested hybrid armament. And His Command bore a Ventrally mounted PAC in a limited Arc¡¯d turret that sat almost flush with her hull. Her Dorsal spine bristles with a single Twin RM1005. Her Flanks bore small bulges on them, Telltale signs of a pair of Anti-Ship Missile tubes installed on each side. Cory had chosen her point defenses to be energy-based, allowing for more capacity for ammunition, Medical supplies, and equipment. Considering His command did not need weapons banks, Cory had requested, and had approved, 4 twin Shipgrade laser arrays on each of her sides, belly, and back. She was designed to punch hard and run. Cory had seen that her 5 aft mounted main drives were augmented by a pair of swivel mounted Engine pods fitted to her aft quarter. Compared to her previous life, ¡°ole72¡± as her ferry crew called her, was almost comically over-engined, and over-gunned.
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Cory didn¡¯t bother going to the bridge, This vessel had an observation deck on her dorsal section, but her command center was deep in her core, behind layers of Armor. According to Mac he was ¡°in for a treat¡±, but his brother-in-law refused to elaborate. Instead, he headed straight for engineering. His feet clacked softly under his uniform/Voidsuit boots as he followed the signage toward his destination.
¡°Cory!!!¡± a familiar female voice rang out as Camorra bounded over with a smile and a very human hug, Patrick sauntered up, following Camorra with an amused look on his face.
¡°It''s Good to see you, Captain.¡± Patrick smiled, reaching for Cory¡¯s hand as Camorra released him. ¡°Come to see the Progress?¡±
Cory was still uneasy about such a young pairing going on this dangerous mission, but Camorra had been¡ persuasive. Cory had been forced to bow to cultural precedent, and the fact that the two of them already understood the Human fusion Cores that was currently being installed onboard. ¡°Indeed, I hear that you are having trouble not blowing out circuits.¡± He walked over to the reinforced pod that the Core resided in. This was his final request regarding the ship design. Celestial Traveler had received a Human fusion Core just before her ill-fated season. Her new heart had survived the atrocities done to her body, and had received new purpose. Celest¡¯s Core was much smaller in size than the original core from num72, but almost 3 times the power output due to her ¡°next generation¡± design that bore the best of both Humanities power production, and Delmar energy efficiency. The core was the reason that Cory could justify the PAC he had chosen as his main forward armament. He reached out and laid his hand lightly on the casing, feeling the gentle vibrations of his ships pulse.
¡°We used to, The last of the upgraded conduits were installed this morning. We should be tuned and ready for sea trials by the end of the week.¡± Cammy responded, ¡°Red¡¯s got the core purrin¡¯ like a ¡°kitten¡± whatever that means. But the numbers are stable.¡±
¡°Good. The rest of your section should be here momentarily, I¡¯m sure you will get along we..¡± Cory paused as the doors to engineering slid open.
¡°BIG IRON! Tha fuck you think you¡¯re doin¡¯ without us!!¡± Bellowed the first of the two Humans that entered the engineering room. Cory raised an eyebrow, noting a few Delmar crewmen peeking in at the aggression present in the voice speaking.
¡°Marcus! Lewis! What the hell?¡± Patrick got out just before being almost tackled by the two humans who had been with him that fateful day in engineering, ¡°Why!¡±
¡°We heard you were getting¡¯ into some Gangster shit, and We weren¡¯t about to let our favorite Carrot Top go it alone.¡± Marcus hooked an arm around Patrick¡¯s neck and began rubbing a playful fist into Patricks hair. The two wrestled for a second before Marcus released Patrick.
¡°Hey Cam, you here to keep this lanky asshole in check?¡± Lewis teased as he gave Camorra a bit more of a gentle hug.
¡°He¡¯s my lanky asshole now.¡± Cammy laughed before giving Patrick a sultry wink.
Patrick turned a fantastic shade of red, and Marcus caught it. ¡°OH Shit!!¡± Marcus Gafa¡¯d, ¡°About fuckin time. You two were always dancing around it like a pair of high schoolers. So, How big is Patrick¡¯s Big Iron.¡±
¡°YOU MOTHER FUCKER!¡± Patrick roared; his feigned rage ruined by the belly laugh that followed as he took a swing at Marcus. It was Cammy¡¯s turn to flush before losing to a bout of giggles.
Cory just shook his head, ¡°Alright, alright. Now that the reunion¡¯s over. I¡¯d like to hold you to that end of the week figure.¡±
¡°With these two knuckleheads aboard, we¡¯ll be ready.¡± Patrick huffed, smirking at the two¡¯s not so slightly exaggerated affronted looks.
¡°Good, I¡¯ll not keep you further.¡± Cory nodded with a smile before turning to leave.
¡°You forget somethin¡¯ Skipper?¡± Lewis asked with a drawl. Cory turned to find all four of them giving him a Human salute, ¡°Best get used to it now. We are a Naval vessel now.¡±
Cory paused for a moment before returning the Salute. It felt strange, but They were right. It was time to start things off right. He left Patrick and his section to their work and headed for the armory.
____________________________________________________________________
Doctor Jackaline Young worked her way around the Infirmary, slowly memorizing the layout of her new domain. She smiled softly to herself as she studied the flow of the Infirmary. It had only taken a week, but Cory managed to acquire every one of her requests, after accepting that she was very much going to be his head doctor. Her infirmary was an entire converted bay originally designed to house soldiers in the long trips between boarding or landing actions. Because of the re-envisioned space, Her infirmary was almost two-thirds the size of her previous S.O.L. infirmary Station; and she was in charge of it all. She watched her nurses flutter about the space, organizing and familiarizing themselves just as she had. She finally allowed herself to step into her office, setting down the small box of office personal items that she had decided to bring with her. The space was spartan, but clean and functional. Her box followed that mantra, and her personal data pads were set atop their charging stations to both recharge and sync to their new environment¡¯s data systems. She was just finishing up when her office door slid open, ¡°I¡¯ll be with you in a minu¡¡± She was cut off with a chuckle.
¡°Doesn¡¯t take long does it. Already the Boss are we?¡± She spun to see Cory leaning up against the door jam with a smile on his face.
¡°Well of course, Captain.¡± She gave him a quick wink that told him that she was staying professional for appearances only. ¡°It appears almost all my requests have been accommodated. Thank you.¡±
¡°Only the best for the best. I hope it is enough.¡± Cory mused, not entirely comfortably.
¡°Time will tell. All of this will do a ton of good as it is.¡± Jackie responded, ¡°Thank you.¡±
¡°Always, how long do you think you will need before you are operational¡± Cory asked.
¡°Give me a couple of weeks to get the nurses trained up. I¡¯ll also be brushing up on other species anatomy, considering how far afield we may end up¡± Jackie pondered. ¡°We will be ready by the time we depart for real. When is the sea trial due to start?
¡°Early next week. Engineering is putting the finishing touches on the Grid.¡± Cory answered. He stepped past the door jam, letting it close behind him, and strolled up to Jackie. ¡°You¡¯re sure about this?¡± he asked softly, wrapping his arms around the small of her back and pulling her into an embrace. ¡°It¡¯s still weird that I can¡¯t feel you, I have to ask.¡± he spoke gently.
¡°I¡¯m sure.¡± She smiled up at him. ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted my own Infirmary¡ and I hear the captain is a good man.¡± She said, tiptoeing up to get a quick kiss. ¡°That¡¯s my answer.¡±
¡°Fair enough, the only question left is, Do you want your own quarters or¡¡± he was cut off by Jackie pulling him into a second, deeper lip lock. ¡°Alright, alright consider it asked, and answered¡± He chuckled. ¡°I must go. I still need to check on the bridge. Admiral Grarzia has been¡ cagey¡ about what changes he made.
¡°Ah, Go. I still have stuff to finish here. Ill see you tonight.¡± Jackie smiled before releasing him.
Cory was still smiling like an idiot as he left the Infirmary.
___________________________________________________________________________________
R¡¯Cari and Sombra burned hard for orbit. Today they faced all 5 of the Planetary defense wings. Numbering some 65 single seat fighters, they were going to be backed up by a pair of Delmar destroyers.
*You ready, McLovin.* Ivar heard Martina speak directly into his mind. It was still very strange to be connected to each other like this, but the simulations following their first Alpha Synce had proven terrifying against Ivar¡¯s 303 wing. Commander Himar had been promoted to Command over all the wings responsible for the defense of Delmar. Ivar had inherited 303 Wing for the time being and had pushed his boys hard work on their ¡°Gravity Training¡±. They had not lasted but moments under the insane new capabilities that Ivar and Martina working as one mind. Today was going to be the real test. Himar had pulled out all the stops, even requesting capital ship support.
¡°Born ready, Chika¡± Ivar responded, he could feel her satisfaction at the hunger for battle they both shared. The two vessels finally ripped themselves from the Delmar atmosphere. Everyone¡¯s weapons were deactivated today, with Data Link running Referee. It would calculate every weapons discharge and missile launch to decipher the battle in real-time and enact ¡°damage¡± and ¡°kills¡± safely. *Mac and Lyri weren¡¯t Lying, this is... Whoa. It¡¯s gonna take some getting used to. * Ivar thought into the ether between them.
*I know. At least we can choose what we share. Every fleeting thought would be¡ a lot*Martina mused back. *I¡¯m getting my first locks... time to go to work*
R¡¯Cari and Sombra did something that would have been completely against doctrine mere weeks ago¡ They broke formation and separated completely. R¡¯Cari and Sombra howled into The Black as the Planetary referee¡¯s began registering weapons activations and launches.
The fight was joined as Ivar and Martina changed tactics completely compared to their previous exercises, and chose to maximize their velocity, making incoming fire unable to compensate with the Delta V targeting problem. Both pushed past 8 Human G¡¯s internal as their ships roared through the void. Data and thought became one as Ivar and Martina were both linked to both their ships and to each other at the speed of the mind. Targeting solutions, engine signatures, and weapon¡¯s locks flowed between them. It became impossible to distinguish who¡¯s sensors were locking which target as both McLovin and Chica began to release ordinance. Amraam¡¯s began bellowing off their rails. Martina had discovered that with their link, they could lock and fire each other¡¯s weapons as if they were two halves of the same ship. Delmar defense fighters began reporting ¡°dead¡± and filing off to the apply named, ¡°graveyard¡± coordinates as R¡¯Cari and Sombra slicked their reapers scythes in simulated blood.
Behind two helmets, in two separate cockpits, in two separate ships hundreds of thousands of kilometers apart, two beings shared one mind¡.. They bore matching predatory grins as they pressed their attack.
Chapter 94 P1-2
Kamarin shuffled weakly to the interrogation room under the ever-present threat of the electrode prod armed guards behind him. The last month, despite the admirals lost perception of time, had been especially brutal. The tortures and interrogations had continued, and his diet of rotten gruel had turned his Gastrointestinal tract inside out. That would have been bearable save for the loss of his hope. His beacon had finally failed, the small L.E.D. on the side had faded permanently, and yet his tormentors had refused to let him die. The back of his throat still raw, his memory wrenched as it played back the force-feeding tube filled with basic nutrients and chemicals to block his regurgitation response.
The doors opened as he shuffled into the room to find the typical tools of his torment absent. Instead, a table had been placed in the center. Two Vorath he had not seen before sat opposite him as he stumbled into the single chair and sat down.
¡°Ah, Admiral Kamarin. A pleasure, I¡¯m sure.¡± The left hand Vorath, obviously the leader, openly sneered at the state of Kamarin¡¯s presentation.
Kamarin simply glared weakly back. He no longer cared, nor had the energy to respond.
¡°No matter, I¡¯m sure you are undoubtedly still morning the loss of your¡ beacon. I am Centarus, I lead the forces that take your pathetic Unity.¡± Centarus rumbled.
Karmarin¡¯s gut sank with realization as the words sank in, ¡°I see.¡± Was all he croaked. ¡°Then why do I still live...¡± he asked, he knew he would not get an answer, at least he hoped.
¡°Now, it is time to ask the real questions¡ but first¡± this Centarus waved a clawed hand, and a plate of food was placed in front of Karmarin.
Karmarin¡¯s eyes widened as he recognized his native world¡¯s delicacies, and the fresh aromas assailed his senses. His control failed him, and he began inhaling the food in front of him. In moments the plate was gone.
¡°Excellent. Now, Admiral Karmarin, tell me about this new foe. Who are these new Allies of the Unity.¡± Karmarin¡¯s eyes narrowed at the strange conversational tone of the Vorath leader...
¡°They are called, Humanity¡they..¡± Karmarin stopped suddenly, it took everything he had to not finish his sentence, ¡°What¡¡± He began... his body began to warm even as his mind began swimming,
A slow sinister smile spread across Centarus¡¯ features. He already knew that name from his dealings with the Thermians, but the confirmation was proof that the suggestion enhancement drugs were taking effect on the Kawmari¡¯s system. ¡°Just relax admiral. Soon enough you will tell us all about humani¡.¡± A beep interrupted him as his wrist mounted comm registered an incoming transmission.
Kamarin¡¯s head swam, his mind drowning in the chemicals from the spiked food. His entire being burned with an artificial need to answer their question. A small part of his brain recognized what they had done, and he fought the serum with that small part of him that was still in control.
¡°Interesting. It appears that you have born interesting results with your beacon.¡± Centarus turned to the jailers at Kamarin¡¯s back, ¡°watch him, report anything he says.¡± He growled before turning to Kamarin, ¡°By the time I return, you may be the last of your kind, or¡ you can tell me all, and I will spare your world.¡±
Kamarin¡¯s eyes lazily followed Centarus as he departed the room.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
-one month previous-
Ivar and Martina nursed sore bodies and stiff drinks. They were on the couch in Ivar¡¯s office at 303 wing¡¯s facilities. The wargames had ended only a couple of hours ago, and the two of them were just settling in to Ivar¡¯s on base housing for the evening out of pure exhaustion. They had finally been defeated in an exercise, but it had taken the entire complement of Delmar¡¯s planetary defense fighter wings and two destroyers to get the job done.
It had been the destroyers that had made the difference. They had provided area denial fire that had served to corral and separate Him and his bride roughly halfway through the fight, and Ivar had quickly been engaged by his entire surviving 303 wing pilots. Martina had been forced to defend herself as well, having to deal with two entire squadrons of mixed wings. Despite That, 80 percent of the fighters and one of the Destroyers had been deemed ¡°Combat ineffective¡± or ¡°Destroyed¡± before Martina and Ivar had been defeated. Their link had allowed them to coordinate accurate crossfire, giving locking solutions and information back and forth despite their extended separation toward the end.
Ivar was beaming. His 303 wing had only lost a quarter of its force and had been the ones to finally fell him. At least 2 of the ¡°Combat ineffective¡± losses to 303 were due to his pilots physically ripping their aircraft apart in the attempt to follow him through his very Human maneuvers and G pulls.
Martina had been mobbed by sheer numbers, she had ¡°killed¡± every fighter she faced save for 3 before the Destroyer nearest her had gotten lucky with a predictive PAC shot. It had cost the destroyers captain his ship as 3 fox3¡¯s fired from Ivar¡¯s R¡¯Cari rendered it ¡°Destroyed¡± moments later. It had been a grueling fight, and Martina had been almost relieved when she ¡°died¡± letting her autopilot do the heavy lifting as she left the combat zone.
¡°Why are you so happy, we got our asses kicked.¡± Marty¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t angry, she couldn¡¯t be considering their bond between them now. She knew full well what Ivar was feeling and why.
Ivar pointed to the Data pad scrolling the composite data from the war game. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m happy, Chika. You¡¯ve seen the debriefs from the engagements with the Vorath so far?¡± Ivar waited for Marty to nod, ¡°We are legitimately more dangerous than any single vessel in this system. If they can take us, with the new tech we are developing. The enemy is in for a surprise. Also, feeling you in full fighter pilot mode was¡ glorious. You taught me so much about how Humans think about space and combat. I hope to put it to good use.¡± He finished, taking a sip of his favorite Human beverage. Mac had raised an eyebrow when Ivar had shown him the image of a bottle of Traditionally made Mead, but Mac had given him a couple of companies to try. The semi-sweet honey brew had quickly become his favorite social drink, and still light enough on the alcohol content to allow him to enjoy.
Martina was curled up next to him, settling in whilst nursing a Zinfendel. ¡°You were no slouch either, the way Delmar process 3 dimensional space on the fly is intriguing to say the least. We¡¯ve turned flying into a science. Your people turned it into almost an art. I wish we could teach it both ways to everyone.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t see why we couldn¡¯t, I¡¯m sure some human pilots would be able to conceptualize both. I know of more than a few Delmar pilots that could use a little more science in their pilotage.¡± Ivar mused, taking a sip and letting the smooth Mead unravel his muscles from the inside.
The two relished in their relaxation for a few more moments before a chime alerted them to someone at the door of the hanger/base facilities.
Ivar raised an eyebrow, ¡°It''s Admiral Grarzia. Were we supposed to be at a debrief?¡±
¡°No, that was going to be tomorrow.¡± Marty stood, letting Ivar off the couch as he quickly went to greet the Admiral.
Martina sat up a little straighter, preparing to get up as Mac walked into the room and waved her back down into the couch, ¡°None of that Chika, I¡¯ll only be here for a moment.¡± Mac stated calmly.
¡°What can I do for you Admi¡ ah, Mac¡± Ivar quickly correcting himself at the ¡®not you too¡¯ look he got from Mac.
¡°I have a mission for you two, You are aware of Admiral Karmarin¡¯s disappearance?¡± Mac began, ¡°We may have found him, but we are sorely lacking on Intel. We suspect he is being held prisoner by the Vorath, but we do not know for sure. I can¡¯t go myself just yet, Admiral Gwen has me tied up finishing up the¡ Privateer fleet¡± he smirked slightly at the name Cory had mentioned to him when he committed to a Captaincy. ¡°You two are the only ones I trust to get this done and live. You will leave in a week from now. It¡¯s going to be a long one, So I am sending you with support for the trip out. I know how much deep space missions in a small ship suck, and they will be acting as a relay for your datalink once you arrive.¡±
¡°Aye Admiral, we are ready. What¡¯s the mission?¡± Martina said formally, in spite of Mac¡¯s proclivities against formality in private. ¡°What¡¯s the brief?¡±
¡°Tomorrow, I¡¯ve already messaged you the full packet. Take a few days, read through it. Come to me for a conference for questions and final touches. You two know more about your capabilities than anyone else on this side of the galaxy. Take the time to process the last set of wargames and come see me.¡± Mac stated, ¡°Otherwise, enjoy your evening. You did extraordinarily well today.¡± Mac gave them a quick smile before seeing himself out.
Ivar settled back into the couch with Martina, ¡°So the Vorath have Karmarin. Gods preserve him.¡± He whispered, pulling his human mate to him.
¡°How bad is it. I¡¯ve not read much about that conflict.¡± Martina asked as she resumed her curled up spot at his side, still sipping on her drink.
¡°They didn¡¯t usually take prisoners, unless it was to bait a trap or to torture a high value target for information.¡± Ivar began, ¡°The stories are ancient, but I know that if Karmarin is alive, it won¡¯t be pretty.¡±
Martina let out a little shiver, burrowing deeper into his side. ¡°That¡¯s never good.¡± She mumbled.
Ivar nodded, taking a long pull from his Mead. ¡°No, It¡¯s not.¡±
_______________________________________________________________
Magnarus stepped into the conference room and sat down calmly, These Humans had agreed to his requirements exceedingly quickly. His gaze fell to the console they had brought for him.
¡°Send your message.¡± Admiral Gwen stated coolly. Her gaze never leaving his eyes. Magnarus was acutely aware of how many armed Humans were in the room at the moment, but he cared very little. This was his opportunity. He knew they probably had his native tongue in their translation matrix, but that was most likely from eons gone. He would be using more¡ subtle techniques to send his true message.
Magnarus nodded, typing in the coordinate code, and transmitting only code for his personal Comms. They would not be able to receive using this code unless a master code was used. ¡°Legaris, this is Magnarus.¡± He growled with a single blink, ¡°I have been imprisoned by the humans since the attack on Delmar. That attack failed.¡± Two blinks. ¡°These Humans wish to organize a¡ prisoner transfer¡¡± four blink this time, ¡°I am sending this at their request,¡± one blinks this time, ¡°I believe myself to be one of several captured here, however I have not seen anyone else¡± two blinks. ¡°They await your reply¡± Magnarus closed the connection, turning to his captors. ¡°It is done, now we wait.¡±
¡°That we do,¡± Admiral Gwen¡¯s voice was ice. ¡°We will retrieve you when we receive a message, take him back to his cell.¡± She growled.
Magnarus was escorted back to his cell, given a modest but filling meal and left to his own devices. They had permitted him a data pad with limited access to the galactic network, but he had discarded it as the trap it obviously was. He chose instead to perform a double of his daily Calisthenics before laying down in his cot to rest. His body followed his commands, and he was soon in a semi-conscious state akin to sleep but not quite all the way there. He never felt the pinch of the micro drone as it injected a heavy sedative into his system, sending him into complete unconsciousness.
_______________________________________________________
¡°Fire control, target the larboard contact with the MAC! Helm, get the PAC a firing angle on the Starboard target!¡± Cory barked. The data he was receiving through his helmet¡¯s alpha sink was incredible, and His Commands quickly rendered the results he was anticipating.
¡°Solutions locked!¡± both the Helm and the Tactical station called simultaniously.
Cory took half a heartbeat¡¯s pause, feeling for the right moment more than anything before. ¡°FIRE!¡± he commanded, eyes snapping open as his Vessel shuddered under the reverberations of weapons fire.
¡°Targets destroyed.¡± Came the call from sensors as the two red icons blipped from his view, and Cory swapped to the feed from his ships Optical systems to watch the marked Asteroid turned target dummies flutter away in multiple pieces.
¡°Stand down from stations.¡± Cory¡¯s more sedate mannerisms called an end to the drill as the Vessel eased her way out of the edge of the asteroid field that bisected the Signus system. ¡°I¡¯ll want a full report from all sections by 1800. Helm set a course for Delmar, and Comms notify the Shipyard of our request for a post shake down inspection.¡± Cory stood, quietly watching his orders play out before turning to the Human sitting next to him. ¡°Jesse, you have the bridge.¡± He stated to his first officer, the man who had stood at his side in the desperate defense of Celest¡¯s bridge.
Several hours later, Cory glanced up as his office door slid open, revealing a smiling Jackie as she sauntered into the room, ¡°Ready for chow?¡± She purred, settling into his lap before giving him a peck on the cheek.
¡°Soon, I want to send a quick note to Patrick about the PAC. It might just be my newness to Human ship Power generation, but I saw a spike I didn¡¯t like in the report from the drill¡. Aaaaand, done.¡± Cory pecked at his console, sending the message before standing. They were almost to the door when the Console beeped in reply.
Cory glanced over and groaned at the ¡°urgent¡± icon next to the new message, not noticing Jackie suppressing a light chuckle. ¡°Huh, it¡¯s a live transmission, its Admiral Grarzia.¡± Cory activated the office Hologram and received the private Hail.
¡°Admiral, this is a surprise.¡± Cory stated as the connection stabilized, ¡°What can I Do for you.¡±
¡°Captain, Doctor.¡± Mac nodded cordially to Jackie, ¡°Firstly, how is the Shakedown cruise progressing.¡±
¡°All appears well, I¡¯m running down some slight power fluctuations from when we fire the PAC. Other than that, Patrick and his crew are proving admirably capable.¡± Cory responded glancing at Jackie with a quick apologetic look.
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Mac seemed to catch the expression, ¡°I won¡¯t keep you long, I wanted to make you aware of a quickly evolving situation. I see you are headed to the shipyard for a post cruise checkup. You will have a mission packet waiting or you there, as well as two ships and two passengers.¡±
¡°Ah, Admiral. I¡¯m not a carrier, Sir.¡± Cory gave him a look of trepidation.
¡°No, but you are the ship best suited for the job at hand, and your stealth coating is finished. The ships will be clamp docked to your hull. It¡¯s R¡¯Cari and Sombra. The details are all in the packet, but the trip is a bit of a run without proper quarters, and you are going to be the support vessel for this assignment. Call me with any questions after you get the packet.¡± Mac then smiled at the two of them, ¡°I won¡¯t keep you any longer, enjoy your dinner.¡±
Cory nodded his thanks as the Admiral closed the connection and returned his attention to Jackie, ¡°Well, thing Just got interesting.¡±
¡°A problem for tomorrow. What¡¯s on the menu for tonight.¡± Jackie mused as they walked toward the mess hall. Cory never did like dining alone as an ¡°officer¡± preferring to eat with his crew.
¡°I¡¯m not sure, Chef claimed it was supposed to be a ¡®surprise¡¯. I¡¯m not sure I like surprises.¡± Cory mused as they entered the mess to see it packed to the gills with people. ¡°Oh boy.¡± Cory gruffed as he and Jackie settled into the line for food.
¡°Have ya¡¯ chosen a name for ¡®er yet Capt¡¯n?¡± The Human crewman in front of him bawled over the crowd.
¡°I believe I have. The Placards and templates are waiting for us at the shipyards.¡± Cory responded, waving the man back into line instead of taking the offered spot.
¡°Good! No hints?¡± The Delmar Crewman behind the two added in.
¡°No Hints. I¡¯ll make the announcement soon enough. For now, we have a mission. She will have a name before then.¡± Cory promised.
¡°Good¡¯nuff for me¡± The human in front of them laughed just as they all reached the chow. Cory chuckled as he recognized why the Mess was so full, Tonight¡¯s meal included Gruvarett kabobs.
_____________________________________________________________
-2 weeks prior-
Cory and Jessie watched the Pair of Lethal Predators slink out of The Black and up to his ship. No clearance calls were made, no beacons were active, and Cory¡¯s instincts flared slightly as they passed by his forward optical array¡¯s. ¡°Ready Larboard and Starboard Docking and Umbilical. Prepare to receive¡± He said quietly, carefully watching his Optical systems track the aberrations ghosting along beside his vessel.
A quiet clanking sound reverberated through his ships hull, signifying the two Fighters were attached and secure. He noticed the board render ¡°green¡± just a moment before the report came. ¡°Helm, Set a course for these coordinates, Maximum slip.¡± He ordered before turning to his First officer, ¡°Time to receive our guests.¡±
Moments later, Cory was standing next to two legends. Ivar and Martina were just removing their helmets as Cory walked up. ¡°Welcome aboard the USN Olyvia.¡± The Name plates had only just been installed even if her name was painted upon her hull. Her crew had taken to her name, a tribute to the Captain that Mentor¡¯d her Master under the void.
¡°It¡¯s good to be here Captain.¡± Ivar smirked before reaching out and snagging Cory for a quick embrace. ¡°Its good to see you well, Cory.¡± The Fighter pilot beamed. All three of them were in Admiral Grarzia¡¯s orbit and had met several times at various ¡°Barbeque¡¯s¡± that had become famous among the Grarzia clan and associates.
¡°A fitting name. I never met her, but I wish I had.¡± Martina added before getting an embrace of her own.
¡°My first Officer, Jesse Corbans. Jesse, Ivar and Martina Tras.¡± Cory introduced his slightly starstruck number 1.
¡°A.. Pleasure, I watched the recording of your last wargames.¡± Jesse stammered before catching himself, ¡°This way, we have a cabin ready for you during our transit.¡±
Cory felt the now familiar hum of the engines as his communicator beeped.
*Jump ready captain* the Helm called to him through his coms.
¡°Commence Jump, I¡¯ll be back momentarily.¡± He ordered, feeling the almost instantaneous execution as the Olyvia and her two piggy backs leapt for slipspace.
Cory settled into his cabin with Jackie later that night. Neither were very tired as the enormity of what they were embarking on weighed on them. The USN Olyvia was about to prove whether she was capable of performing the mission she was designed for or not. Their arrival coordinates plunged them deep into the Vorath Territory nearest them, following the trail of a dead beacon. Their mission was simple, drop into real space in the Void between stars and use their stealth to close to the outskirts of the Asteroid laden Red dwarf system with no name. From there, they were to be a relay, giving R¡¯Cari and Sombra a link to the Confederation through tight beam transmission. They would be moving to silent running the moment they crossed the front line, and Cory was enjoying a final evening of amenities before power signatures were reduced to their minimums.
Jackie was softly snoring next to him as he slipped the data pad onto its charger, and a small pang of fear mixed with anticipation wormed its way through his being.
He prayed they were ready.
-One Week before-
A quick flash of white and blue heralded the entrance of a USN Olyvia as she dropped out of Slip-Space just outside of the outer boundaries of the desolate system that missing Grand Admiral Kamarin¡¯s emergency beacon was last heard. The Olyvia wore the same flat black coatings being fitted to the rest of the Sol/Delmar armada was currently being adorned. Captain Corellus Grarzia stood on his command center in full Exo suit. His Command was under battle stations and fully depressurized as a precaution, but the anticipated ambush never came.
¡°Status¡± Cory calmly inquired adopting a ¡®parade rest¡¯ stance as he calmly perused his HUD. It fed him sensor feeds at the speed of thought, but it could only tell him so much.
¡°Board¡¯s green, Captain.¡± Jesse responded smoothly, ¡°Sombra and R¡¯Cari report ready for pushback.¡±
¡°Granted. Void¡¯s speed, with my complements.¡± Cory ordered before turning to his Communications officer, ¡°Status on our Connection to Hades?¡±
¡°Coming online now, Captain.¡± The Delmar Male at the console snapped off crisply, ¡°Test codes clear, we have contact.¡±
Olyvia Shuddered as the magnetic clamps on the landing struts of the Stealth Fighters piggy backing on her hull shut down and released their grip. Cory flicked over to his optical array¡¯s just in time to see the main drives of both birds of prey ignight as one and quickly put distance between him and his Vessel. Ivar and Martina had been gracious guests, even giving an impromptu pilotage primary for those crewmen who aspired to take the void by their own hands. Now they quickly disappeared from sensors as they pushed themselves to the upper limits of sublight travel before shutting down their main drives and initiating ¡°silent running¡±.
¡°Hurry up and wait.¡± Jesse muttered to himself, unaware that his com¡¯s channel was still open.
¡°Indeed XO, perhaps a few drills would be appropriate to pass the time.¡± Cory watched the flash of surprise, then mild betrayal, then a final amused resignation.
¡°I deserved that. Very well, what¡¯s the Drill for today.¡± Jesse asked with a resigned smile.
¡°I¡¯m dead, we are still under silent running, but we have deck breaches on decks 3, 5, and 8.. Go.¡± Cory stated before sitting down, typing in the locations of the simulated damage into the ship¡¯s computer.
An explosion of controlled chaos, goaded forward by the confident baying orders of his first officer, was unleashed upon the Olyvia as Cory monitored the drill from his command chair.
_______________________________________________________________
Admiral Folmuri glanced up from his desk as the subtle hum changed in his cabin. His Fleet had dropped from slip space in the void between stars. He flicked his wall monitor to external view greeted by a sight breathtaking in its own right.
Admiral Stevens had successfully extracted the refugee convoy, and has stripped off USN Iowa, USN Kid, and USN Furlong to rendezvous with Folmuri¡¯s existing fleet. Folmuri flicked his console to external view. This was the first time the Delmar Admiral had seen an Iowa class vessel in the flesh. The Three additions to his battle group were not all he had received. Deep in Iowa¡¯s belly lay a monster¡ Monsters to be accurate. Asleep in a medically induced Coma were the 6 surviving Bridge Crew from the battle cruiser Symphony of Death. They were to be bartered for the missing Kawmari admiral.
All of the Terran Marines were combined upon Iowa for this excursion. 250 Men, 5 of them in the Armor first blooded in the Daring rescue that had resulted in the acquisition of the library. Captains Collins and Galanis were reunited in this endeavor. They were here for a dual purpose, and they both prevented an escape and to initiate a rescue mission should the need arise.. They all wore gear developed from lessons taken from Previous encounters. Collins and his personal team still had their MACE suits, with the rest of the contingent wearing a much lighter more simplified kits that provided significantly improved protection from what was available previously.
Magnarus had believed that he had sent his message to Legaris. He could not know that his message was diverted from the transmitters and saved to be sent to the location of Kamarin¡¯s beacon when the time was right. He and his fellow prisoners lay in their bunks sleeping off the sedatives given for their movement. Admiral Gwen was not taking any chances considering what the contents of the Battle Cruisers computers had divulged. The concept of the ¡°Devoted¡± had been a grim parallel to some of Humanities more¡ grim histories. His message was set to transmit on Folmuri¡¯s command once the chips fell into place.
Folmuri keyed his Com, bringing up Captain Gleesons code, ¡°Captain, what is our status on Canary.¡±
*Beacon reports the Canaries are free, ETA one week. They are infilling at sublight* Came the reply after a moment.
¡°Very Good, please alert me to any changes in the Prisoners¡± Folmuri responded as he contemplated the preliminary data on the system in question.
*Wilco, Gleeson out* Folmuri smirked at his flag captain hearing the contemplation in his voice, recognizing the end of the conversation.
_____________________________________________________________
-3 hours previous-
*I¡¯m going to have to have a talk with the Grem¡¯s¡ Im cramped all over, The MK2¡¯s are going to need some kind of Living Quarters* Ivar smirked as Martina¡¯s mind reached out to his through the Alpha Synce, they had been under since their departure from USN Olyvia. Ivar wasn¡¯t particularly comfortable either. R¡¯Cari had little in the way of space. One could unstrap and float, allowing for some limited stretching, but it was not much. They had spent a week under ¡°Silent running¡±. Only yesterday had they finally reached their destination, a ragged planetoid skimming the outer edge of an asteroid field that looked more akin to the rings of Saturn. These rings orbited an elderly Star with barely a Millenia left to its name.
*I promise, we will try one of your ¡°spa days¡± when we get back. I hear one of these establishments just opened in Helyon.* Ivar sent back, groaning mentally as he too stretched cramped muscles and creaky joints. Ironically Delmar could handle the cramped notions of deep space travel a touch better than humans, but even Ivar was feeling the repercussions of a week stuck in a cockpit seat.
*Oh, I¡¯m holding you to tha¡ hold on, we have movement* Martina paused for a moment before Ivar felt an explosion of Surprise mixed with carefully bridled rage *That¡¯s the command ship that attacked Clint¡* Ivar could feel her Growl to his soul
*The one that tried to murder the refugees¡¯* Ivar responded absently, focusing his passive sensors on the vessel. I was nearly identical to the one they had captured in the Delmar system.
*Sending the Signal, there¡¯s only one reason that Vessel could be here in the ass end of nowhere* Martina¡¯s grim tone echo¡¯d. Ivar only nodded and watched as the tight beam was focused and sent back to Cory¡¯s Vessel.
Admiral Folmuri was sitting in on the Bridge when the transmission was forwarded to His Fleet, ¡°I see we have what we are looking for. Time to Cast our Die. Send the Message¡±.
The Com station crewman nodded, transferring the prearranged transmission and sent it in the direction of the system in question. The waiting game sat in stark contrast to the carnage of the previous months. Soon enough the confirmation that the signal reached its mark was received from Canary.
¡°Helm, execute planned Sidestep Maneuver.¡± Gleeson ordered.
¡°Aye, Captain.¡± The Helm station called as the fleet synced navigation and jumped, leaving behind a sole transceiver in their place.
___________________________________________________________
Centarus sat in a private office, having called his flag captain in to review the message he had just received from the second in command of the missing Legaris. They had watched the surprising message together twice before closing down the console once more.
¡°What is your analysis.¡± Centarus rumbled.
¡°It appears we have confirmation of the failure of the attack on Delmar. Legaris appears to have escaped, possibly to be killed when his outpost was attacked.¡± His flag captain stated carefully. ¡°I believe this to be a worthwhile endeavor. Karmarin has proven more¡ resilient against the serum than we anticipated. I have spoken to the Chemical Technicians; and sadly, we do not have time or the personnel to reformulate for genetic drift.¡±
¡°You believe that we may be able to get more information from the survivors than our.. barely... feathered friend¡± Centarus surmised.
¡°Indeed, We have assumed that incompetence delivered Legaris his defeat, but considering our recent encounters, a reconsideration may be in order. These Humans are not in our records from before. Our lack of intel on them is¡ disturbing.¡± Centarus crossed his arms in contemplation, unable to deny any of those points.
¡°We will respond, but I wish for this facility to be reinforced, If these Humans are reaching out, then it is possible the beacon was received. We will be ready, no matter what happens. They cannot have many vessels of the caliber we have faced, The resources to produce such a ship are simply too great for them to have many more.¡± Centarus ordered.
¡°It will be done Centarus.¡± His flag captain¡¯s eyes burned with retribution fire, and Centarus smiled inwardly.
¡°You will be put in command of the task force here. I will go to the exchange, but I suspect they will make a play here. I feel your, aggression, will be better served where the fight will be.¡± He watched his Flag Captain perk up at his explanation, but Centarus locked him in a serious gaze, ¡°Do not over expend our forces, we cannot bleed them if we lose a hand in the process. If I am wrong, preserve our forces, and record all the data you can. It will be more important than lives taken.¡±
¡°I.. understand Centarus, I will not fail you.¡± His captain swore.
Centarus mused over his options, before finally opening his Console to record his response.
_____________________________________________________________
Karmarin¡¯s head pounded. His body had reacted poorly to the chemicals that had been in his spiked meal, but that was not what had awoken him from his unconscious state. Two Vroath Jailers were physically dragging him through the corridors. His claws were dragging on the slick deck plating. He tried to speak but quickly realized that his beak had been wrapped shut.
His Captors noticed his return to the waking world and a heavy fist slammed into the back of his head, very nearly but not quite knocking out Karmarin. He did not allow his torturers the second chance, falling limp into feigned unconsciousness as the grinding pain pressed his senses. He assumed he was being dragged to his death. It was a strange relief mixed with fear as he realized that he would soon be permanently at peace. The dragging stopped, and Karmarin felt the hiss of an airlock as he prepared himself for the end only for the dragging to resume, the tell-tale thrum of a starship hummed through the deck plating as Karmarin discreetly peeked at his surroundings.
He recognized the design ques as Vorath as he was dragged bodily down into the belly of the vessel, and they did not quite throw his body onto the cot in the Brig, making sure to not actually kill him. Moments later the Thrum of the plating changed as the Vorath Battle Cruiser jumped for subspace.
______________________________________________________________________________
Cory Sat uncomfortably in his captain''s chair. He did not like this plan, even though it was his. Upon hearing the response, The 8 Vorath Prisoners and the entirety of Collins First Platoon were onboard, and the Olyvia lay to her station keeping thrusters alongside the Texas. He was the only ship that was small enough to facilitate the prisoner swap, but big enough to be able to dock instead of land in one side¡¯s or the other¡¯s hangers. The Response had been startlingly quick. This ¡°Centarus¡± all but confirmed, by his presence, that Legarus was at the very minimum missing from his failed attempt at Delmar. Giving the enemy news that He had indeed escaped the fighting was unpleasant, but it was resulting in the exchange of an ally.
Cory looked up from his thoughts as his Helmet¡¯s hud notified him of a subspace contact. A massive Vorath Battle Cruiser boiled out of subspace and began burning for the rendezvous point. Cory steeled himself for the coming interaction, flicking his internal Com over to Captain Collin¡¯s channel, ¡°Ready your men Captain. The show is about to start.¡±
*Understood* the Marine¡¯s voice stated.
Dozer closed the connection before turning to his men, ¡°Show time, Boys¡± He growled. As his men readied their weapons and began the march to the improvised brig where the rest of his contingent were standing guard. Soon, the 8 large Aliens were roused from their chemical slumber and readied for transport. Two or three of them snarled at Dozer upon seeing the Dagger at his hip but did not act. Their Eyes shone an intimate understanding of violence that awaited them should they be so inclined.
*Folmuri has made contact, we dock in 2 minutes* Captain Grarzia¡¯s voice crackled through his helmet. Dozer was in full MACE battle rattle, as was the rest of his squad, with the rest of the platoon wearing more advanced versions of the armor issued to them when they left Sol.
¡°Copy, moving to the air lock¡± Collins replied, and the group of prisoners and guards began their walk to the Airlock. The walk took just enough time for the docking to have finished as they reached the appointed place. Dozer and his men readied their weapons, prepared for anything as the tell tail clicking and hissing of clamps locking and atmosphere equalizing made themselves known.
*Airlock opening* Capt. Grarzia¡¯s voice announced through the platoon channel moments before the doors hissed open.
Instantly every Marine tensed. Across from them stood a Vorath Officer that appeared to be a mid level of some kind. He was escorted by 4 Vorath Crewmen in a strange armor that was almost a mix of load bearing equipment and a Victorian Era Spanish Cuirass. The most notable exception was the crackle of energy that seemed to denote a type of personal shielding technology. Their plate armor seemed to seamlessly blend into a void suit with an equally shiny helmet and visor.
¡°You have our men?¡± The officer asked slowly, his voice translated through the helmets of the faceless helmets that Dozer¡¯s men wore. ¡°Show me.¡±
Dozer turned to step aside, pausing when he heard a hiss of rage as the Vorath noticed his dagger for the first time. Simultaneously everyones weapons raised in responded to the fuse lit on the powder keg this transfer was quickly becoming.
Dozer slowly turned to face them as the Vorath Officer spoke, ¡°Where did you get that. It Belongs to the House of Vorincia. Give it to me¡ NOW.¡±
Dozer slowly reached up to activate his helmet¡¯s external microphone, ¡°I will not. I know your culture believes in the spoils of single combat. We have a lot of information on you. Would you risk your ship for a single blade?¡± He spoke slowly, ¡°AD VICTOREM¡±
The Officer stiffened as if fully comprehending the situation for the first time since his outburst. The Hatred burned brightly; however it was now retempered as the Vorath turned and gave his stand down order. Dozer¡¯s men slowly lowered their weapons and allowed the Vorath prisoners to step forward.
¡°No, I think not. There will be plent of time to pry my family¡¯s blade from your cold hands.¡± The officer growled before giving a curt order and a ragged bag of bones was almost thrown bodily into Olyvia¡¯s side of the airlock. The Vorath prisoners were given a prod, and they walked across to the Vorath ship, and the Vorath officer slammed the button to close his own airlocks as Olyvia responded by closing her own before releasing her docking clamps.
Cory gave the order and Olyvia immediately burned for a quick jump into Slip-space, followed by the Texas, leaving Vorath Battle Cruiser behind. Dozer quickly pulled off his helmet and knelt down next to the ruined body of Karmarin. Slowly feeling for a pulse. ¡°Jesus Christ.¡± He breathed as he took in the Unity Admiral¡¯s state, and he quickly keyed his coms. ¡°captain, I need Medical down here ASAP.¡± He snapped as his Medic slipped past him to begin frantically working on the Kawmari male. ¡°my medic is stabilizing him but¡ It¡¯s bad. I don¡¯t know how he is still¡¡± He was interrupted as the Karmarin burshed aside a needle, grabbing at Collin¡¯s armor, eyes desperate.
¡°Kawmari¡ ¡° the Admiral croaked, ¡°They¡ Rawkir¡ invasion.¡± The admiral faded as the Medic¡¯s needle delivered its sedative.
*Captain Collins, did he just say what I think he said?* Cory¡¯s voice was dripping in shock.
¡°He did Captain.. He seems to think that the Vorath are going to invade Rawkir.¡± Collin¡¯s replied.
*Understood. Doctor Young is on her way. Grarzia out* Cory cut the connection just as Doctor Jackaline Young and two nurses careened round the corner with a gurney and bags.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Two weeks later, Karmarin woke up from a medially induced coma. He had been transferred to the main hospital on Delmar, and had undergone multiple operations to correct the sever trauma his body had gone through. He felt the fog of medication cloud his brain as he struggled to sit up slightly, only to have a gengle, but firm hand pressed him back into the bed.
¡°Easy Grand Admiral. You are lucky to have survived.¡± He looked up to the familiar face of Ambassador Gwen as she sat back down in the chair, an old style hardback paper book neatly placed on the end table where she had set it.
¡°Rawkir¡ Safe?¡± he croaked, nodding his thanks as The Ambassador of the Human race spooned a few ice chips into his beak. It was enough, and soon he felt his voice return to him. ¡°The Vorath. They want to Invade Rawkir. Centarus, their leader. He told me before you contacted them.. I don¡¯t know if it is a trap.¡±
¡°We have a pair of Canary¡¯s in your home system as we speak. Its not trap.¡± Gwen said gently. ¡°It looks like the battle for orbit has begun.¡±
¡°then it is too late.¡± Karmarin croaked slowly sinking into his hospital bed as defeat and shame washed over him. ¡®I failed, my people¡ They..¡¯
¡°I would not say that, Admiral. I have two fleets on their way as we speak. The Unity has committed themselves fully to defending your world. They are losing, but they are losing slowly. They know we are on the way.¡± Gwen¡¯s voice cut off Karmarins thoughts as he stared in shock at the Ambassador.
¡°How¡¡± he stopped himself, remembering the piggyback jump his ships had made during the defense of Delmar. ¡°How fast are your ships.. That.. That should not be possible.¡±
¡°When you are better, I will show you. We need your leadership, and your presence to help us coordinate with what remains of the Unity Navy. Rest, I will come by when you are released. I promise, I will reveal much after you are healed.¡± Gwen put a gentle hand on the cast that engulfed karmarin¡¯s right arm. The Doctors had been forced to rebreak a third of his bones before setting the nanites free in his system to facilitate the extensive repairs to them and the rest of his internal organs.
¡°I¡ Thank you..¡± Karmarin croaked, laying back in his bed. A small spark lit in his core; one he had not felt since his beacon failed.
Hope.
Chapter 95
Admiral Tagarin sank heavily in his seat, his fur reeked from the acrid smoke and chemical residue from his forced desperate evacuation from his former flagship. The assault carrier ¡°Pride of Unity¡± had been at the vanguard of the initial defense of the Kawmari homeworld. Her fighter squadrons and shuttle crews fought valiantly, and the vast majority of her infantry complement was able to make it to the Planet. Her 150, 000 Troops were part of the over 2.5 million troops dropped to aid in shoring up the 500,000 strong Rawkir Defense Regiments.
Pride of Unity had led an armada of 400 ships into orbit mere hours after the Vorath arrival. That number had quickly dwindled. The Vorath numbered less than 300 vessels but were wielding the reapers scythe with horrifying ease. Over the span of a the next week, the Unity lost over 75 vessels to the Vorath 15. The Unity losses included the Pride, felled in withering capital ship combat and Fighter raids. Tagarin pulled up the data on his screens, grimacing at the further attrition as the Vorath weapons continued to prove devastatingly effective. All across his fleet, ships were hastily enacting modifications based on information sent to him by the Human/Delmar Forces based on their own engagements with the Vorath. Shield generator cooling was augmented, and the Data from Steven¡¯s engagement had finally proven the merit of depressurizing a capital ship before combat. The changes were slowing the attrition, even as another flash heralded the death of yet another Unity cruiser.
Tagarin grimaced, the cruisers death had forced a gap in their defenses, and two many of his surviving vessels were currently recharging their weapons banks to plug it quickly. In a matter of Hours, the enemy had poured their firepower into the weakness, widening the gap until a quarter of the planet¡¯s orbit was now within Vorath Control.
¡°Admiral,¡± His new flag captain, a man he had not yet learned the name of yet, spoke quietly, ¡°new report from the breach¡ They have launched landing craft.¡±
Tagarin¡¯s heart sank, they were losing this fight. Humanity and Delmar had promised aid, but it was yet to show. ¡°Notify General Ura and focus remaining fighters on thinning what numbers we can.¡±
¡°Admiral, Two more Captains reporting critical on their reserves.¡± Communications called out.
¡®It¡¯s too much¡¯ Tagarin forced a calm demeanor, despite the horror¡¯s that threatened one of the founding homworlds of the Unity, ¡°Clear them to Withdraw as soon as we have a replacement¡± He hoped that the bridge crew missed the quaver that hung about the edges of his Stoic tone. ¡°I need updates as soon as our troops make contact.¡±
______________________________________________________________________________
Deep in the outer reaches of the Rawkir system, three ships ghosted towards the Kawmari homeworld under silent running. The USN Olyvia, accompanied by R¡¯Cari and Sombra slipped just near enough to the carnage to observe the ongoing orbital battle.
¡°Directional link established.¡± Jesse reported, ¡°ready for Crybaby.¡±
Captain Corellus Grarzia keyed his com directly to his two escorts. ¡°R¡¯Cari, Sombra; Link established. We are go for Infiltration.¡±
*Acknowledged, Departing. Call for help if you need it.* Ivar¡¯s voice crackled through the comms as He and Martina disconnected from Olyvia and throttled up. They broke formation with Olyvia cleanly, quickly vanishing from sensors as they streaked towards the fray. Cory had not signed up for this when he had accepted this captaincy, yet he had not balked. This was a founding homeworld. He and the two Stealth fighters had been the closest vessel capable of providing the advanced intelligence needed for the incoming fleets. Folmuri had returned to Hades to Consolidate with Stevens. The two of them had taken the time to create effective battle groups out of the available ships and were currently enroute at maximum slip velocities.
Over the next several hours, Ivar and Martina skirted about the outer edges of the carnage that was orbital combat. A disturbing picture was slowly developing. Admiral Tagarin was losing. He was being slowly driven from Orbit as hundreds of Vorath drop shuttled began their descent onto the larg continent on Rawkir. The Kawmari homeworld was one of the prides of the Unity. With a gravity that measured 10 percent less than Delmar, Her surface was adorned with ¡°groves¡± of towering trees that measured over 300 meters tall, separated by vast plains punctuated by marshes. The single large content spanned 60 percent of the planet and was ringed in thousands of Island archipelago clusters and deep bioluminescent oceans. Many of the groves had been turned into the cities that the kawmari species resided in, with the planes and marshes being predominantly converted into Industrial endeavors, farmland, or left as wilderness. It was easy to see why the Kawmari species had developed such a titanic wingspan and light bodily frame. Their ancestors had soared above the plains and marshes in search of small prey, fruits, nuts and roughage, ready to dive into a titanic grove the moment their only natural predator appeared. Known as a Vikrawl, directly translated-¡°Winged Horror¡±, by the Kawmari people, it measured three times the size of a Kawmari, and once provided the single biggest airborne threat to the them. Largely ignored in the modern day, directional sonic defenses repelled the giant predator from the cities and farms, but a few being a year still fell to the claws of the airborne apex predator.
This day, however, Rawkir¡¯s surface was marred by a dozen burning craters visible from orbit as the Vorath began their orbital bombardment in preparation for invasion. The Vorath would normally not take such¡ care¡ to invade planet, preferring to simply obliterate troublesome worlds or weak species. The Kawmari, however, had a thriving Industry that revolved around producing the communication and navigation components present in the vast majority of Unity ships. The Vorath advanced force desperately needed these capabilities to maintain their foothold in Unity space until their Grand Armada could reach this arm of the galaxy. Saving that, disrupting the decades long supply lines to the shipyards up spin would severely cripple Unity defensive efforts in the years to come.
*Ivar, new signal* Martina¡¯s ¡°voice¡± wafted into Ivars mind as a subspace arrival signature flickered through their sensors. *they look like Troop Transports*
*That¡¯s a lot of troops¡* Ivar growled back, flicking R¡¯Cari¡¯s nose to the signal to maximize resolution. *Is Cory reading this?*
*Signal is still good.. Hun, we could..* Martina caught herself, She felt Ivar¡¯s desire. It would be nothing for them to slip in behind the lines and eliminate the arriving infantry transports, but theirs were the best and only eyes for the incoming fleet. Folmuri and Stevens needed every moment they could give them to execute their plan.
*Sending the request for weapons free the moment the fleet gets here. We don¡¯t have many troops; we cannot allow the numbers to stack that severely* came the response from the captain of the Olyvia. Cory had seen the same thing they had. Several tense moments passed as they watched the troop transports burn hard for orbit. It would be two days before the transports were close enough to launch shuttles, but if they did¡ *Approval received, R¡¯Cari and Sombra are cleared to engage the moment the battle groups arrive. Olyvia will act as fire support and Data-Link* the text scrolled through both of their visors. It was not much, but it was enough.
__________________________________________________________________________________
The first day of the invasion bore some hope for the forces on the ground on Rawkir. They were swatting a large portion of the incoming troop shuttles from the skies. The Vorath had launched orbital strikes, obliterating several of the planetary defense batteries on the surface, but they had left the AAA batteries largely alone. The ground based defenses raged against the incoming shuttles, and were quickly aided by the one thing that Rawkir had that was unique to them inside of the Unity. Rawkir had a thriving AirForce. The Kawmari had maintained their proud heritage of atmospheric based military prowess, to the point they were the preferred tool for an atmospheric operation should the Unity need one. The ¡°Vikrawl-14¡±, Their Atmospheric fighters, bore long laminar flow variable geometry sweeping wings and light weight structures, unincumbered by the structural requirements of space combat or violent launches and reentries. Hundreds of these fighters descended on the shuttle formations like the winged terrors they were named after, racking the formations with laser, and plasma.
A third of the Shuttle never made it to the surface on the first day, and half of the others bore enough damage to render them unable to return to orbit. The Vorath sent their own fighters and were met with veterans of a race who¡¯s entire evolution had prepared them for moments like these. By this point, the Kawmari fighters numbered almost 400. They met the over 3000 Vorath starfighters head on. The continent spanning dogfight roared, flashed and thundered well into the night on the first day. 2500 Vorath fighters never made it home. The toll, however, was unbearable. The pride of the Kawmari atmospheric fighter corp did not retreat, they did not surrender... they died where they flew. 75 pilots made it home that day, none of them in their own aircraft, having ejected and been hurried back behind friendly lines by fleeing civilians.
By the end of the first day, over 700,000 Vorath troops had landed on the surface of Rawkir, with over two million on the way in the troop transports. General Ura was forced to spread his troops out along a 2500 Kilometer front, only to receive the first attacks even before the last Vorath shuttle landed. Both sides wasted little time, and the ground battle was joined in earnest. Laser and Plasma fire rippled across the front in a continuous light show. Ura¡¯s troops were well dug in, with both planetary and orbital artillery at their disposal. Admiral Tagarin¡¯s fleet still held 65 percent of the skies above, allowing for much needed support during the first waves of Vorath soldiers. These first battles bore their own new surprises. The Vorath Genetic modifications had borne their fruit, with Kawmari soldiers struggling to put down individual Vorath Warriors, even after breaking through their armor¡¯s shielding and reflective surface. Many Vorath would get back up to fall back behind the lines, blood flowing from their bodies, only to be replaced by a fresh warrior. The Vorath were falling to laser fire, eventually, but they were not dying. Modern nanite Technology had allowed for a mortally wounded soldier to be practically reborn anew, so longs enough body mass remained and central nervous system remained. The Kawmari and Unity soldiers were not so fortunate.
The evening of the first day bled into the morning of the second. General Ura had been forced to concede ground slowly but steadily, both as orbital control was lost, and as the Vorath army pressed their attack. The enemy had chosen their landing site well, within easy striking distance of the Rawkir Capital and largest industrial facilities. The sunlight marked a ruined wasteland of carnage, the unending sound of weapons fire and orbital strike impact had long ago turned into one deafening roar. General Ura could retreat no longer. By the evening, he would no longer have the cover of his own orbital assets. He had a choice to make. Stand and die, or give up the Capital of the Kawmari homeworld.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Captain Alex ¡°Dozer¡± Collins glanced up from his pad as the overhead barked *ALL HAND, ALL HAND. PREPARE FOR DECON. CLOSE ACTION. I REPEAT, PREPARE FOR DECON, CLOSE ACTION. THIS IS NOT A DRILL*
Alex slipped the helmet of his MACE combat suit on, automatically booting up alpha-synce to his helmets hud and sensor feeds. He wore the Mk2 this time, fully kitted with the Command suite for his roll this day. He had a complete data link capability, able to see anything and everything he desired as he managed his troops and the battle space around him. He bared his teeth as the data feed kicked in to his requests, feeding him the ground situation as the battle groups finally achieve a hard link with the Unity around Rawkir. It was not a perfect link, with algorithms managing the data transfer between vastly different systems, but Dozer could see the situation on the ground.
*Captain Collins,* Dozer¡¯s eyes narrowed as he recognized the voice of Admiral Stevens. *I have a mission for you.*
¡°Go for Collins¡± Dozer growled, ¡°What can I do for you Admiral.¡±
*I will be sending your MACE squad in to secure and bolster high-value targets. Your job is to get in, and secure landing sites at the core of the front line.* Stevens stated, *Your mission is the Capital, Captain. Make a hole, and I will be sending a you two platoons directly behind you on shuttles.*
¡°S.O.A.R.D?¡± Dozer asked, a massive feral grin spreading across his features.
*S.O.A.R.D.* Steven confirmed, *God Speed, marine.*
Dozer turned toward his squad, ¡°Marines! Time to jump into HELL, MOVE!¡± He bellowed.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Admiral Tagarin¡¯s Bridge was a cacophony of barely organized mayhem. The light cruiser that had rescued him was not designed to be the flagship for a fleet this large, and the comms station had started a 40 minute rotation to keep individuals fresh for the massive task saturation of commanding this many ships. Even so, the transmission was almost missed.
¡°ADMIRAL!! Im receiving a transmission!!! It has DELMAR codes!!¡± The comms officer shrieked, the poor Lycan female was clearly taxed to her limit.
¡°On screen!¡± Barked Tagarin, only to see a split screen appear on the observation monitor of the bridge. Before him stood Admiral Folmuri and a Human he recognized from new feeds. ¡°Admiral Folmuri, a pleasure once again. Admiral Stevens, I presume. Your timing could not be more perfect.¡±
¡°Admiral Tagarin, Folmuri speaks highly of you. I will be quick. I will need your ships to make a whole 40 thousand kilometers wide directly in the center of your formation orienting at 118 mark 200. Do so in exactly 4 minutes from now. I will be dropping First Group directly into your line to take the fight to the enemy.¡± Stevens stated with an absurd calm.
Tagarin openly gawked at the Human before shaking his head. He had seen more than one miracle done by human ships, and he had nothing more to lose since he was soon to lose the planet. ¡°Understood. I must state that our situation is dire on the ground.¡±
¡°That will be taken care of. Please tell your ships about the southern pole to prepare to attack. We will be sweeping from south to north. The goal is to completely encircle the planet and secure for clean up on the ground.¡± Folmuri spoke.
¡®Ah they mean to split their fleet. It may work.¡¯ Tagarin nodded, ¡°Done. When will you be arriving.¡± He glanced up to see a massive gap forming in the center of his formation as 4 minutes quickly arrived.
¡°Now, Admiral.¡± Sevens voice accompanied a bright flash of streaming whites and blues, as the USN Houston, USN Hathcock, a freshly repaired USN Wisconsin and USN Furlong dropped directly into the gap created by Tagarin¡¯s ships¡ and Opened fire. A massive communications spike erupted from his southern pole as USN Tharsis, USN Iowa, USN Simo, USN Galles, and USN Kidd, accompanied by the DDS Bastion and DDS Protectorate thundered out of slipspace, unleashing their own wall of fire.
All the SOL¡¯s immediately appeared to boil from their flanks as each one released its full complement of fighters and attack craft. Moments later troop carriers USTS-10198, USTS-65249 and USTS-20445 flashed into orbit and began their hot drop reentry procedures.
Admiral Tagarin could only sink heavily in his chair as the full might of Human and Delmar firepower slammed into the enemy fleet. 40 Vorath capital ships evaporated under the bombardment in the first few seconds. The Vorath survivors quickly spread their formation, trying to prevent effective concentration of fire as the Human vessels wielded their hatred with Brutal efficiency. For the first time in the history of the galaxy, the greater Unity bore witness to the full fury of an enraged Human/Delmar Alliance.
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Dozer was not paying attention to the thunderous shaking of his confines, or the roar of superheated atmosphere. He was focused on their approach. His MACE squad had set another milestone, if they survived that is. Each man was in a Data linked S.O.A.R.D. (Sub Orbital Assault Reentry Drop) Pod. Born of the insane minds of the Brothers Gremm. The SOARD was only capable of being survived, if the occupant was inside of a MACE Mk2. The suits internal impact dampeners were augmented by the pods own dampeners and computers to allow for the management of the G- forces exerted on the Human occupant inside the equipment. The final stage rockets fired at 10000 meters from the ground ensuring the safe-ish landing of the Pod on the LZ. Dozer tapped on the controls, ensuring that his men¡¯s pod¡¯s explosively detaching doors were facing friendly lines as he guided them into a point 50 meters in front of the front line.
Dozer¡¯s emotionless face glared at the timer as it counted down to their arrival. It was GO TIME.
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General Ura was inside one of the forward emplacements. He knew he shouldn¡¯t be there, but he felt he needed to bear witness to the deaths of the Humans who were apparently willing to land, he presumed, their shuttle in front of his line and take the Vorath center head on. He knew some of what humanity was supposed to be. He knew they fought with primitive kinetics. He knew they were a high gravity species. He knew they had repelled a Vorath attack on the Delmar homeworld. All these things had missed one crucial element. He knew the Vorath¡ on the ground. He knew these monsters from history, and from the carnage they had already wrought upon his own forces. These Humans had never faced these monsters on the open fields of battle. They would be slaughtered just like the res¡.
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A series of thunderclaps that threatened to shatter his eardrums detonated over his head, could not see up from inside the bunker, but he did not have to... The ground before him was set ablaze as retro rockets incinerated an entire squad of Vorath who had been engaging his men. The impacts knocked him from his feet as the strange bullet shaped pods impacted the ground, burring a quarter of themselves into the soft earth. Ura¡¯s eyes widened at the utterly impossible sight as the sides of the pods facing him exploded away revealing Titanic monsters of metallic vengeance. Each armored figure stepped out, a few carrying absurdly large weapons, they each turned, using their own arriving contraptions as cover. A deafening barking roar overshadowed the high-pitched whine of laser and plasma fire as great tongues of flame bellowed forth from the muzzles of these monstrous weapons. His men completely stopped firing, unable to comprehend the scene before them as this squad of monsters.. human monsters¡ filled the air with hatred.
Dozer had chosen a different weapon for this day. He had joined Briggs in his selection and was wielding a M640 alongside his second as they applied a base of fire to the fortifications in front of them. His men had survived the drop, and the energy weapons had proven ineffective against the SOAR pods armor¡¯d hull. His Grenadier, William ¡°Bruce¡± Xavier had chosen to go with a Mark 89, the great grandson of the Mark19. It had been fitted with a stock and a box for the grenade belt. The monstrosity would have been completely useless without the MACE assistance, but Bruce wielded it like a rifle as he saturated the enemy fortifications with a fully automatic fusillade of HE and Fragmentation Grenades. The Vorath died quickly. Their armor was designed to deflect and absorb energy fire. The magnetically accelerated kinetic projectiles began to brutally disassemble their targets, often removing large portions of anatomy as it passed through the target to continue into the terrain, or another Soldier. a small hovering armored vehicle began to advance on them. Dozer guessed it was some sort of tank designed to be the vangard for larger vehicles. It never got a shot off, as one of Dozers Rifleman had reached into his pod to produce a disposable missile launcher. The shaped charge turned to vehicle inside out killing the occupants. 5 Vorath soldiers were eviscerated from the explosion of shrapnel and concussion.
*Reinforcements, ETA 10 minutes* came the call from one of the Troop transports, and Dozer smiled as a smattering of laser fire began to finally begin as the Kawmari and Unity defense forces shook themselves from their stupor and began to engage the enemy once again.
Dozer stepped out from behind his pod, throwing a frag grenade into a group of enemies that tried to take advantage of Bruce¡¯s reload, ¡°Squad, forward left 150meters. Xavier, smoke out. All units¡ advance.¡± Dozer Growled, smiling fiercely. His men redoubled their weight of fire as they stormed the enemy position.
50 meters behind the charging humans, General Ura sat heavily in his chair, unable to comprehend the events unfolding in front of his eyes. Eventually, one of his unit captains, he did not know which, recognized the situation.
¡°All units, Advance! Cover the Humans!¡± The officer called, looking back at the General with an apology.
Ura just nodded, it was the right call. He struggled to his feet just as a Delmar in only slightly less terrifying Human armor stepped into the control tower, ¡°Maj. Ja¡¯luran Partrilus, 1st combined Infantry Division at your service sir, we will be deploying to your center.¡± The Delmar snapped off professionally.
A dumbfounded Ura turned to watch as squads of Delmar, and Humans vaulted off of the open ramps of hovering shuttles, charging into the fray.
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*Centarus, we have an urgent message from Rawkir* The disembodied voice of his flag captain echo¡¯d in his chambers as Centarus stood from his bed. It was early in first shift, and his reinforcement fleet was less than 12 hours out from assisting the vanguard force assaulting the Kawmari homeworld. His fleet would be bringing to bear another 50 ships, and 2 million more troops of those who had chosen to live this life of solitude away from their new homeworld. Over 100,000 outposts, scattered about the void between the unity and Vorath space had been maintained almost since the Cataclysm, and now the era of vengeance was upon them.
The righteous fury in Centarus¡¯ soul flared almost uncontrollably as he opened the urgent data packet. His vanguard had faltered, these¡ humans¡ seemingly impossibly¡. had joined the fray, and their ships wielded weapons that would have been considered barbarically obsolete. The problem was, these humans were winning. Centarus had been forced to understand this firsthand, and his fleet had taken his change in strategy to heart. His vanguard was holding its own, but their orbital foothold was shrinking ever so steadily, risking any withdrawal of ground troops. These human¡¯s had unleashed another surprise upon their arrival, a massive electromagnetic wave of randomized signals had overpowered all but the closest-range communications. He frowned as he realized that he had absolutely no idea what was transpiring upon the surface. Luckily, his ships were fast, and they had preformed a maximum velocity jump into subspace. Soon enough, Centarus would be coming to grips with this new enemy for himself.
¡°Thank you, captain. Have all vessels begin their charging procedures and have navigation coordinate for as close to an orbital insertion subspace drop as possible. We will be engaging with all haste.¡± Centarus¡¯ orders came crisply, despite his only just being awakened.
*With pleasure, Centarus* came the response before the channel closed. And the Vorath fleet commander settled back into his bunk. The die had been cast, and joining battle with sleep depravation would only be to his detriment.
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¡°Gerignari, we will be within launching distance in 4 hours¡± Gerignari stretched from his chair on the bridge of the nameless troop transport currently burning for Rawkir to aid his kin on the ground.
He nodded his thanks to the vessel¡¯s captain before turning to his second, ¡°Notify the men, and prepare the boarding procedures. I want us launching the mome¡.¡±
¡°Contact directly in front! Where the void did that come from!!¡± The sensor station bellowed. Both men turned to find a single ship of unknown classification appearing on sensors. They were entirely to close for comfort. ¡°I¡¯m getting extreme power spikes coming from the vessel, it looks like it about to¡¡±
A bright flash raged through the forward observation window as the lead ship in the Troop convoy evaporated in a glittering fireball full of gruesome metal, polymer, and organic matter laden confetti accented by burning atmosphere. Whatever had erased the lead ship had passed through, invisibly shattering the hulls of two more vessels with relatively mundane results. USN Olyvia had fired her first shots in anger, Eviscerating the lead ship with a single 1005 round, The round had fragmented upon impact, ripping burning gashes in two following vessels. The two disabled troop transports fell from formation under the asymmetric thrust created by the superheated burning atmosphere being spewed from their flanks. Olyvia executed a pre-planned maneuver, side stepping the on coming convoy as she swung her nose ¡®round to larboard. Her PAC cannon unleashed its fury in a long constant burn, filling the weapons thermal capacity with the long continual firing as she passed. Captain Correllus Grarzia had put Olyvia into a hard burn the moment the Terran/Delmar combined battle groups had arrived, and his closure rate was a combined 3 thousand Kilometers a minute. The 15 second burn of his PAC emitter, combined with the truly mind bending speed of his strafing pass gored 4 more transports as The Olyvia reversed her orientation and began a maximum performance deceleration burn.
Personal glory was not Cory¡¯s goal with such an insane maneuver many would consider ¡°reckless¡±. His upgraded sensor suite had logged and memorized every engine signature of every remaining troop transport.
Cory grunted heavily as he was pressed into his seat, ¡°Transmit target data¡± He gritted through his teeth.
*received, Oly. Good shooting.* Came Martina¡¯s voice over his helmet com¡¯s. *Engaging*
¡°Good hunting¡± Cory breathed, even as his ship¡¯s engines reduced in power as their velocity quickly bled off, and her vector began its planned arc around for a return burn back towards Rawkir.
Martina smirked at Cory¡¯s last transmission. The Olyvia¡¯s ¡°Drive by¡± had taken 7 transports out of the fight, most still spewing burning plasma and charred remains of men and machine. 1 had exploded moments after being disabled as the flames reached something more volatile. *Cory did good* Ivar¡¯s thoughts whispered into her consciousness as they began their attack run. They had split up from the Olyivia and were now approaching at a maximum burn from the opposite side of the Vorath convoy from Cory¡¯s pass.
*He¡¯s been spending to much time around BigMac, I swear that brand of crazy is contagious* Martina mused back, smirking at the burble of amusement her comment elicited from Ivar. *I¡¯ve my locks*
*As do I. In 3¡.. Fire* their minds chanted as one. Loosing 20 missiles total at the remaining 10 Troop transports.
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Garignari slowly rose from his uncomfortable resting place on the floor of the bridge. The vessel he was aboard had been spared the surprise attack of the lone vessel with the insane commander. However, the evasive maneuvers had not been enough, and the impacts of large chunks of dead ships had depleted the shields of his transport, and sent massive impacts throughout the bones of the ship.
¡°Report!¡± Growled the vessel¡¯s captain as the commander crawled back into his own chair.
¡°We¡¯ve lost 7 vessels. Two more report moderate damage from the debris impa¡. Contact! 096 by 002. Oh dear void! Lots of contact!! Signatures match the¡¡± The Sensor station crewmen never finished the statement. The horde of missiles loosed from a pair of unseen predators found their marks, ripping through the Troop transports with contemptuous ease.
Only 2 vessels remained intact enough to make their distress calls.
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Admiral Tagarin pinched the bridge of his snout in between his claws. The Lycan admiral was watching the very nature of warfare be revolutionized in front of his eyes. The two battle groups, bearing both Hunan and Delmar might were unlike anything he had seen to date. He watched as small nimble capital ships frolicked amongst the fighters giving impossibly detailed targeting and vector information to any capital ship capable of making the shot with weapons capable of simply ignoring anything but the largest capital ship deflectors. He watched Human single seat craft emotionlessly eviscerate their Vorath counterparts with almost mechanical ease, pulling maneuvers that would turn lesser species to gelatinous organic slag inside the cockpit. He watched as, what he had learned were only 2 man craft, unleash hordes of weapons capable of both chasing down Vorath fighters, but cracking all but the largest targets with ease. He watched the sensor recording of an entire armored troop transport convoy simply erased from existence from a completely unknown assailant, at least not one his sensors were capable of registering.
Then There was the ground battle. The front stabilized overnight. His own reports from the ground were filled with absurdly tall tales of Humans shrugging off multiple direct impacts from small arms fire, giant metal titans falling from the skies in armored coffins. These monsters not only seemed to survive a semi free fall from the heavens but arrive only to unleash a withering hail of death incarnate that seemed to be more interested in bodily disassembling its enemies rather than merely killing them. Vorath troops were no longer simply getting injured, being patched up, and returning to the fight. The front had advanced 3 kilometers in the opposite direction before nightfall on the second day. The dismembered, and disfigured bodies of the Vorath invasionary force littered the battlefield as the Rakir defense forces repurposed the fortifications for their own uses.
Tagarins thoughts were interrupted by the hiss of the sliding conference room doors, as Admirals Folmuri and Stevens stepped into the room. Folmuri appeared the typical Delmar naval officer, and he carried himself in the typical rail-straight posture of decades of discipline. The difference came in the eyes, as the Delmar officer quickly scanned the room as he entered. One could be forgiven for recoiling under the withering gaze, but Tagarin¡¯s nearly 40 years of service recognized the look of a veteran''s calculated aggression. Tagarin¡¯s gaze fell to the second being who entered the room, Human Admiral Clint Stevens. Stevens was considerably shorter than his Delmar counterpart, but Tagarin¡¯s eyes narrowed as the temperature of the room seemed to plummet several degrees under the humans gaze. The Human admiral seemed to radiate a cold brutality despite the calm mask he wore on his features.
Tagarin rose to greet them, ¡°Admirals, it is good to finally meet you.¡± he nodded to the Delmar officer before tilting his head as the human extended his hand. He tentatively reached for the appendage with his paw only to have it clamped in a vice-like grip and violently shaken exactly once. Tagarin resisted the urge to massage his paw as the three of them sat.
¡°Likewise, Admiral. Folmuri has spoken quite highly of you from your first meeting. From what I have seen of your defense here, I can see that his praise was well founded.¡± It was the Human that spoke first.
¡°I¡¯m afraid I was well on the way to failure before your arrival. It appears that the Unity has fallen woefully behind in the race for technology. Your aid has been greatly appreciated. I would like to know the situation on the ground. Your ¡®jamming¡¯ signals have been of great use in orbit, but I am afraid that our communications are still somewhat affected despite the provided secure frequencies. I know the basics, but outside of that¡¡± Tagarin gave his species version of a shrug.
¡°I will endeavor to work on a solution to help you with the jamming; it has become standard procedure since we combined our forces and training with Sol. Until then, I can have one of our cruisers stay closer to your command ship to provide a better data link.¡± Stevens offered. ¡°As for the situation on the ground. We have pushed the Vorath back as our orbital bombardment capabilities have recovered. We now have a 10-kilometer buffer from the capital. We could continue around-the-clock operations; however, the majority of the forces on the ground do not have night vision capabilities. Outside of the MACE, we have been restricted in our full-scale operations.¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry, MACE?¡± Tagarin tilted his head slightly, ¡°I¡¯ve heard scattered reports of a small group with that name.¡± In truth, Tagarin had almost universally discarded those reports of giant bipedal armored horrors as the frantic ravings of traumatized officers. The new armor of the Human and Delmar regular troops seemed to be terrifying enough to account for the reports.
¡°Yes, the MACE, under captain Collins were the reaction force we dropped directly at the capital in front of the troop ships.¡± Folmuri began, ¡°They are an experimental squad, but they have proven invaluable a number of times.¡± The Delmar Admiral inserted a data stick into the conference desk, pulling up a combat recording. Tagarin¡¯s expression went completely blank as the playback began.
The helmet cam began as the Human soldier raced across the field towards the enemy emplacements, only to be overtaken by the thundering bipedal steps of a metal monster wielding a strange bellowing weapon of almost comical size with impossible ease. Tagarin¡¯s brain struggled to grasp what he was watching. These new troops, even the less terrifying ones, did not wield laser or plasma. Their weapons barked and chattered, spewing invisible fury into enemy positions. The enemy, unaccustomed to not seeing incoming fire, stood to return in kind. Tagarin¡¯s eyes widened as a wall of invisible destruction impacted the Vorath soldiers. Chunks seemed to evaporate from the Vorath invaders as they stood up directly into their death. Where a Laser weapon tended to cauterize the wound it created, these weapons simply removed body parts from their victims, leaving what remained to quickly bleed out from the massive wounds created. Incoming laser fire splashed harmlessly off of the chests of these new style troops, but they were not invulnerable.
A few began to fall as the withering return fire found chinks in their armor. Soldiers fell clutching injured appendages only to be grabbed and drug bodily into cover by their fellows. They were clearly alive, if out of the fight. One of the metal monstrosities stepped out of the open, and unlike the other humans, it appeared completely impervious to incoming fire as a dull thumping sound resounded from his weapon. The camera panned toward the front line as massive bubbles of fire and shrapnel erupted from the enemy¡¯s position. The incoming fire almost completely ceased as the chattering of the new weapons barked and raged once more before the video was cut off.
Tagarin took a moment to mentally remind himself to recover those reports before speaking finally, ¡°I see, what is the status of the defense forces from Rawkir.¡±
¡°Sadly, most of their airborne forces have been destroyed. There are a few reserve fighters still operational, and we will be sending our own ships down to assist. Our goal is an encirclement, but we will need to completely retake the orbit before that can happen.¡± Folmuri stated, ¡°It appears that they have learned from our previous engagements with them. We are pushing them, but it is a slow process as they are focusing on preserving their vessels.¡±
¡°They are stalling, like I did.¡± Tagarin realized, ¡°We lost our long-range sensor capabilities the first day¡¡±
¡°We have an advanced warning force in the outer system, you are correct. They have spotted an additional subspace signature, big enough to be at least a battle group, headed for this sector. We cannot tell their numbers, but we are preparing for their arrival.¡± Stevens stated, ¡°The good news, is that the troop convoy was successfully neutralized, the enemy has been denied its reinforcements for now.¡±
¡°I see, I would like to spread your ¡®destroyers¡¯ out among our formations¡± Tagarin began, ¡°Your firepower, and more importantly your targeting sensors, are far superior to ours. I fear they will press a weak point the moment this new task force appears, and I would like to be able to maximize the performance of my remaining forces. Your ships are strong, but they are still few.¡± He finished.
¡°Done,¡± Clint stated almost instantly, ¡°I will relay the request. I can have our destroyers act as a floating response force, and I¡¯ll send over a set of temporary fire control codes to allow you access to our data link.¡±
¡°I would be grateful.¡± Tagarin gave a small bow. ¡°Now, about our orbital operations¡¡±
The meeting of the minds changed gears as the refreshments arrived, and Tagarin began to allow himself a modicum of optimism.
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Barellus sat in his hole, his weapon leaned against his shoulder, its butt against the moist ground as he glared at the other side of his meager emplacement. His commander was dead, half of his unit was either dead or gruesomely injured. The first days of their glorious invasion had seen the devoted advance with rapturous abandon. All but the most powerful weapons had been able to slow his fellow warriors. They were within a breath of taking the capital and the largest of their objectives when the metal barbarians fell from the sky. Barellus watched as his commander was cut in half by thunderous weapons that seemed to ignore armor and explode soft tissue. His entire life he had been taught that the Vorath had molded their bodies to be above all but the most energetic of weapons. He had watched on as the warriors beside him were torn bodily asunder, and his armor still bore the stains of more than one friend.
That was not the source of his anger. No, to die in glory was the fate longed for by all Devoted; and his greatest wish was to meet his fellows in the after. No, His broiling rage was directed at the order to retreat, given by his supposed betters in the bedlam of this new enemy. He now sat in a muddy hole, clawed from the dirt with his own two hands, awaiting the dawn that promised more carnage from his foe¡¯s and more cowardice from his betters.
A rustle to his left saw Barellus whip his weapon to his shoulder just as one of his few surviving comrades slid hastily into the hole beside him. The soldier, Erilaris maybe, only glanced at the weapon before speaking, ¡°We go at dawn, The counterattack will be fully backed with our remaining armor. We will hit the center. For the glory.¡±
¡°For the glory.¡± Barellus grunted, replacing his weapon in its resting place. His anger had a direction, it was not much, but it tempered him against the last few hours of waiting as this world¡¯s star rose behind him. The low crackle of breaking twigs alerted him to the approaching armor at his back just as his comms stuttered to life. Radio silence was broken as instructions rang out. His squad, for it was now his squad, was to close with the enemy emplacements as quietly as possible as the predawn sun blinded them, and he whispered out his commands as his warriors emerged from their own holes. They worked as a whisper between the woodland between the lines. The ghosted along, bounding past each other until they were within but 75 meters of their enemy.
The bird¡¯s vain attempts of camouflage somehow made them even more obvious, with the Lycan among them only marginally less so, as Barellus keen eyes searched the entrenchments before him for a weakness. Soon enough, he found what he was looking for, two birds in animated conversation with one another. Barellus released a humorless smile as he clicked his comms in a specific sequence, alerting the rest of the attack that he was in position. His warriors surrounded him in a loose formation as they concealed themselves from their enemy. Soon a low howl of familiar engines screamed overhead as plasma and laser scored the enemy positions in front of him.
Barellus Com crackled with the signal, and his men responded to his command opening with a heavy volley of laser and plasma fire that had the intended affect. The dumbfounded defenders began to fall or duck behind their manufactured cover. Opening fully exploited, His men rose from their positions at a full sprint. Gone were the war cry¡¯s of earlier bravado, and his men quickly threw a series of plasma grenades ahead of them. A fusillade of handheld plasma explosives harolded their arrival as Barellus and his men stormed the trenchwork.
The enemy returned what fire they could, but the initial volley of laser and grenade had created a carnage ridden foothold to work from. His men spread out quickly, making swift work of the defending soldiers in their immediate area before pressing forward toward the second line of trenches. Barellus began to hear the Vorath starfighters begin returning for a second pass as the Hover tanks began to make their move. Barellus took a moment to take a look above as friendly airborne assets began to pound the second line of defenses. He smiled as the laser and plasma began cratering the earthworks that were to be his next target. It was time, he would begin to take those new emplacements just as soon as the tanks were in posi¡.
5 Vorath starfighters began wildly gyrating overhead just as a series of white streaks appeared in the air. 3 of the fighters disintegrated in balls of flame and shrapnel, and Barellus snapped his head around as a new sound made itself undeniably present. Over the treetops, came a piercing howling scream as angular craft like he had never seen flashed overhead quickly followed by the ear-splitting echo of sonic concussions. Small panels opened as these newcomers loosed more of those small white streaks that seemed to actively chase the Vorath pilots in the air. Barellus felt a weight drop in his stomach as he watched the airborne mayhem unfold, only to have his attention ripped away as the leading hover tank took its first hit.
¡°Down!¡± Barellus screamed as his men hit the ground, many rolling back into the trenches they had just cleared as the horrifying chatter of strange weapons began barking from his forward right. Three of his men were just that much slower than the rest, and Barellus could only watch as one warriors head evaporated. Brain and bone fragments showered the other two even as the holes appeared in the second. The warrior died where he stood with the pass through taking the arm of the last victim at the elbow. He lived long enough to fall into the captured emplacements to be tended to by their field healer.
Barellus took a moment to look to his left. Three more tanks were dead, burning with black smoke mixed with vibrant plasma, and his vision was semi-occluded by the carnage of burning armor. He lifted his weapon to view the scene through his optic and his breath caught in his chest. Standing in the tree line was a being out of horror and nightmares, his foliage-colored armor given away by the smoking tube over his shoulder. The helmet slowly turned until its visor was looking directly at him pausing for a long moment before turning and stomping back into the trench.
Chapter 96
Director Johansen settled into his private viewing room, absently perusing the data scrolling past his fingertips. Several months had passed since the first ¡°Gate¡± tests. One of the scientists had decided to remember the cult classic science fiction series from the heyday of Terra¡¯s ¡°science fiction¡± craze, and it had taken entirely too much of Bjorn¡¯s force of stature to prevent the floating ring outside Ceres from being dubbed the ¡°Stargate¡±. The move had not been without its casualties, and the compromise had been made. The rings would be named for the young man who survived stumbling upon this new technology. Thus the ¡°Warrensgate¡± was born; which, to the horror of the young lieutenant, was immediately shortened to the ¡°Wargate¡± by almost all involved.
Bjorn shifted his attention to the control room, watching the young man busy himself with the preoperational checks. This was to be the 14th test between the Ceres and Phobos gates. After the revelations of the first test, solid spheres of titanium of increasing masses were sent through the rings. Warren¡¯s mate had stumbled upon the possible linchpin, but Warren had run with the concept. Using the calculated mass spheres, the optimal mass for gate transit was both discovered and fine-tuned, and today¡¯s test was to be the proof of concept to determine viability. A second freighter was set to be the test subject, and this one was slightly newer, designed to make use of the Higgs Bosun mass regulating generator.
The control room stations began their callouts, slowly working their way through each system as Warren, now leading his first test himself, scanned with practiced eye and listened with practiced ear as the Rings were carefully brought online. Bjorn Johansen flicked his screen¡¯s feed over to the external camera¡¯s just in time to witness the rings flaring to life once again, and its event horizon threw shimmering reflections across the hull of the freighter poised to step into the unknown.
Warren rattled off a series of commands and final checks. The gate¡¯s cooling systems had been severely beefed up, and the thermal numbers were high but stable. Satisfied, he turned to the newest member of the Control room team, and Jezzaria nodded as he gave her the command. She had earned this position throughout the series of tests, and now activated the freighter Higgs field. She bent to her control, slowly feeding in control inputs to lower the freighter¡¯s mass down to the predetermined number. Data scrolled across Johansen¡¯s screens as the freighters systems came to life and stabilized, and soon enough the command was given to begin the test. The freighter began to surge forward, accelerating to the minimum velocity necessary for a standard slipspace jump. It reached the desired velocity just before its bow disappeared into the event horizon. As in the first test, Jez lost command of the freighter. This was now considered normal however, and everyone relaxed slightly, awaiting news from Phobus.
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Jezzaria settled back into her chair. She was still wearing her wing harness to keep her wings neatly folded behind her, but she no longer struggled to walk and work in Ceres gravity. She had done her part, and the excited anticipation of the wait was thick enough to taste as the control room collectively held its proverbial breath. She shut down a few of the functions of console as the rings themselves were shut down from the other side. This was the sign of arrival, as they had learned early on that premature shutdown could result in a violent reaction that had nearly destroyed the Ceres ring during one of the orb tests. Warren was feet away, playing the part of test lead; and she resisted the urge to go to him. Seeing him in command, even of just one test bothered her in all the right ways. He caught her gaze after a moment and gave her a wink just before the initial data packet from Phobos reached them.
¡°Data received. It has a cover video Lieutenant.¡± Called out one of the personnel.
¡°Play it.¡± Ordered Warren, and the wall-sized screens came alive with the recorded feed of the Phobos Ring. The video played from just before the prow of the freighter emerged, soon to be followed by the rest of the vessel; and a few shouts were heard as the vessel appeared to be unharmed in the recording.
¡°Lieutenant. The Data has arrived. Prelim reports that the Hull temperature is on the higher end, but within parameters. Control was reestablished from the freighter almost immediately.¡± One of the scientists reported.
¡°Chono sync data?¡± Warren asked quickly. The first freighter had been badly damaged, but its onboard computer had been able to log the transit. From this they learned that from the perspective of the vessel, travel was near instantaneous, and with a more scientifically accurate logging of the rings activations this second test would tell them what the difference between ship time, and real space time would be.
¡°Lieutenant¡ The rings report a real space transit time of .015 seconds. Ship transit time was .0029.¡± Came the awed response.
¡°Jesus¡ that¡¯s.. Log everything. Shut down all systems then go to lunch. It will take 4 hours for the data to be decompiled fully. We return here at 1400.¡± Warren called out. Quickly flicking through his own console as he followed began the ordered task for himself.
Professionalism ruled, as the data was yet to determine the actual level of success or failure, and Director Johansen stood to leave for his next appointment. No one noticed the twitch on the corners of his mouth as a smile struggled for freedom.
___________________________________________________________________________________
A familiar vessel flashed into Delmar space, broadcasting its security code as it glided past Port Royal station. Its obsidian black vessel, a much smaller version of the one Aiericastum had used to prevent the Inquisitorum Fleet¡¯s assault, was tracked by Port Royal¡¯s sensors as it made its move for Delmar¡¯s orbit. Philip Kenye studied the ship as it passed, contemplating the repercussions of this arrival as the familiar security code flashed across his pad. ¡°Notify the Ambassador. Our special guest has made her arrival.¡±
¡°Message sent, sir.¡± Came a reply from the communications station. ¡°The ambassador confirmed receipt.¡±
¡°Very good.¡± Philip stated before returning to his previous work. The refugee crisis created by the Vorath Invasion was being coordinated, in no small part, by Ami in her role as both Saurian Ambassador and Storied Legend as Coordinator of the GHO. The Massive Saurian was a magician with logistics and was quickly rivalling General William Tunner¡¯s Berlin Air lift in efficiency and success. Sol, while unwilling to go to war, had rattled the sabers of Humanitarian aid; and the first food laden cargo ships had begun to arrive. Humanity¡¯s civil war had left its survivors with a surplus of food stuffs that had quickly been compiled into categories and marked for shipping, and the majority of the Terran Slip Drive freighters had been bent to this new purpose.
¡°Sir, Star Duster reports she is on initial departure.¡± came the call from communications.
¡°Tristen¡¯s boat¡¡± Philip mused, ¡°They must be just out of refit. Flight plan?¡±
¡°They report Sol bound. The request a maximum velocity jump clearance.¡± Came the reply.
¡°Joining the effort then. Clear them with my complements.¡± Philip stated. Turning his attention to the optical sensors trained on the Human style freighter with a Delmar captain. The vessel was burning hard for the jump point, preparing for the mad dash to The Sol system to pick up desperately needed cargo.
¡°God speed.¡± Philip mumbled under his breath as the freighter flashed into slip-space.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Cory settled into his office chair with a heavy sigh just as the chime rang, ¡°Enter¡± he called, and the sliding door opened to see Patrick, his chief engineer step into his office. ¡°What¡¯s the word, Red.¡± Cory waved Patrick into a chair.
¡°Everything mostly checks out. We should be good to do for the foreseeable future.¡± Patrick stated, handing over the data pad he had been tapping at when he arrived.
¡°Mostly?¡± Cory asked with a contemplative expression as he began scanning through the report. Not really seeing anything of note, he set it down and returned his focus to the Human siting patiently across from him.
¡°it¡¯s a little warble in the Thermal bank during the activation phase, near the end of your PAC burn. It might be what caused that instability you found during our sea trials. We just never pushed the PAC to her limits then. I would refrain on doing too many more full capacity burns until I crack open the banks to take a closer look¡± Patrick explained, drawing Cory¡¯s attention to a small section of the report.
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¡°Which we are definitely not doing while in theatre¡± Cory mused, eliciting a confirming nod from Patrick. ¡°What do you think our safe maximum could be for now.¡±
¡°I think we could safely do a burn 70 percent of what we fired during your little drive by¡± Patrick smirked at the mild glare Cory gave him. ¡°Either way, we can compensate with the rotary mag on the 1005, and we haven¡¯t even touched our missile complement yet. We are still in excellent shape.¡±
¡°Good, any injuries from your section? Jackie reported a couple of personnel came to her with minor injuries.¡± Cory asked. The worst injury appeared to be a broken arm from one of the damage control crew who were not properly strapped in during their sidestep burn.
¡°None, Cap. We can strap into our consoles, so we didn¡¯t have to move the entire fight.¡± Patrick confirmed.
¡°Good. In the morning, we will be visited by R¡¯Cari and Sombra. We have a few spare missiles from our previous mission, and we will be resupplying them. Admiral Stevens needs us to monitor the incoming Vorath fleet on long-range. The Destroyers are too busy providing fire control, but we will be getting 4 Raptor¡¯s and a supply shuttle with their ordinance in the next 12 hours. We are to interdict and delay, minimal risk only.¡± Cory stated heavily. ¡°I¡¯ll have to double berth them, and they will have to void walk to get to their vessels.¡±
¡°The added support will be worth it. I guess it¡¯s time to play privateer. I¡¯ll tell the crews.¡± Patrick stood, ¡°You comin¡¯ to movie night?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll be there, Jackie adores this ¡°The Lord of the Rings¡± film. She still won¡¯t tell me what its about.¡± Cory groaned.
¡°Oh, I¡¯m not spoiling that one for you. She picked a good series to introduce you to Human ¡®fantasy¡¯. See ya after supper.¡± Patrick¡¯s amusement danced across his face as he turned toward the door.
¡°I¡¯m glad I can amuse you, Red. Dismissed.¡± Chuckled Cory as he stood himself. He headed for the mess hall with his friend. Both were meeting their mates for food before movie night started.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Jacob slowly scrolled through the latest reports from the massive humanitarian crisis. This war was swallowing lives at a rate that dwarfed the GSW. Entire planets were being swallowed by a menace that was bent on genocide for the weak, and enslavement of those strong enough to be considered useful. As he continued to read, an old familiar feeling began to worm its way into the light of consciousness, but he pushed it away firmly as Hera slipped into their room. ¡°Hey purdy.¡± He whispered, standing slowly, and pulling her into a quick kiss.
¡°Hey,¡± her voice was a suave on the emotions from moments ago as she kissed him back. Pulling back just far enough to look him in the eyes she paused, seemingly searching for his soul. ¡°What is it.¡± She purred.
¡°Am I that easy to read?¡± Jacob just watched her, amused at the feeling that she was searching his soul.
¡°I may have yet to claimed you Captain Irving, but I know you. I haven¡¯t seen that look since the Pirate Boarding.¡± Hera scolded lightly, ¡°What is it.¡± She repeated.
Jacob gave up, sighing heavily as he pulled her into a more comforting embrace, ¡°Just the war. Its... getting to me... Like how I felt, before the ambush¡¡±
¡°I was wondering about that. You¡¯ve been more... intense than usual these past months. You want to get involved.¡± Hera¡¯s quiet observation made him stiffen slightly.
¡°I guess I am really that easy for you to read.¡± He chuckled after a min. ¡°Part of me definitely does. A big part of me definitely does¡¡±
¡°But?¡± Hera smiled even as her eyes bored into his. There was no hiding anything from her.
¡°I don¡¯t want to drag Traveler, or you into it. Back then, I was much younger, and had less to lose.¡± Jake admitted.
¡°So, what are we going to do. I was a naval officer, after all. If you are in, so am I.¡± Hera pulled away from him, ¡°Common, dinner is ready. Momma and Pappa are waiting. Mamma tried out making ¡®spaghetti¡¯. She¡¯s apparently been picking Martin¡¯s brain.¡±
Jacob could only laugh and follow Hera down to the dining room to find a positively titanic bowl of premixed noodles and sauce, punctuated with meat balls scattered about the top. While not exactly what Human Spaghetti was usually presented, all the components appeared to be in place, ¡°Looks good.¡± He said, giving Hera¡¯s mother a quick hug and nodding to her father.
¡°Sit, it¡¯s getting cold.¡± The older Delmar man said as the massive bowl made its way around the table. Jacob suppressed a raised eyebrow at the tone of Hera¡¯s father as they began to eat. Hera¡¯s mother wanted to know about Traveler¡¯s preparations. Like many of the nonslip-capable freighters, she was being filled with the emergency supplies already delivered. Once full, she would be making a circuit to the refugee settlements and colonies that were cropping up all around this side of the warzones encroaching battle lines. Her father simply ate in silence, openly regarding Jacob more than usual. The two of them had never become close, and that left them with a sense of ¡°mutual respect¡± for the Soldiers they were. Jacob just shrugged it off, unsure of what more he could do. He took another bite of the strangely presented, but excellent spaghetti.
¡°So, when is your departure date. Hera says you are almost finished taking cargo.¡± Jacob looked up in mild surprise as Hera¡¯s father spoke to him.
¡°One week. The loadmaster tells me we should be properly balanced by then.¡± Jake stated between bites, ¡°We will be doing a round-robin route for the moment. Ami¡¯s assistant is sending me the exact details tomorrow.¡±
¡°I see,¡± The older Delmar stated, taking deliberate time in finishing another bite of dinner, ¡°Then I guess Sylia and I owe you two our decision.¡± Prallus¡¯ tone drew the women from their conversation as Sylia looked over at her husband.
¡°Prallus, are you sure?¡± Her tone was one of caution as she laid a hand lightly as if to calm him. ¡°There is still time.¡±
¡°A week is not going to make any difference in this matter.¡± Prallus¡¯ tone was hard¡ final, and he turned to bore his eyes into Jacob, ¡°I do not like that You are not Delmar, even if it appears that our two species are compatible with the claiming.¡± He started, ¡°I think all of this between the Delmar and Humanity is moving too quickly¡ too aggressively, and I have read much of your past. Humanity has severely dark portions of their heritage.¡±
Sylia opened her mouth to speak out but was silenced with a look, ¡°I do not take my daughters future lightly, and I will be allowed to finish.¡± Prallus continued, ¡°Jacob. Your people are dangerous. Dangerous enough to fight off both the Inquisitorum and the Vorath. That alone terrifies me, but¡¡± Hera¡¯s father took a long breath.
¡°Pappa¡.¡± Hera cried out softly, but Prallus held up a hand.
After a moment he continued, ¡°I must also temper how I feel about your people with you as an individual. I have seen how you treat my daughter, I have seen her trust in you as a captain, and as a potential mate. I cannot deny that. Jacob Irving, we will never be friends; but I must trust my daughter in this. Because of that trust, I approve of your match. Do not prove my decision a mistake, Jacob.¡±
¡°Thank you, Sir. I¡¯m honored.¡± Jacob¡¯s formal seated bow was interrupted by the impact of Hera pulling towards him with shaking hands and ragged breathing, as she hugged him tightly.
¡°Thank you, Pappa¡¡± She whispered over His shoulder to Prallus as she clung to Jake.
___________________________________________________________________________
Warren and Jezzaria were sitting together with the entire analysis crew. All hands were present, either in the flesh or over Conference Coms as they sifted the data set from the latest test of the Warrensgate. The Freighter had indeed survived the trip between Ceres and Phobos, and the data was quickly revealed just how successful the jump was.
¡°Do we have the food stuffs report?¡± Johansen asked from his chair at the head of the table. It was not often he got to participate this intimately with his team, and he relished every opportunity he was given.
¡°Here, Director.¡± Klaus, now effectively his second in command, sent the data over to him from his own pad. ¡°It appears that one jump give about double the total rad count of one trip from Sol to Delmar. Properly sealed, there should be no issue with transitting perishables.¡±
¡°Are we saying what I think we are saying? If we can do this... it changes everything.¡± Warren was half speaking to himself, half posing the question to the group. Looking up, he spoke up fully as his thought matured, ¡°If we build one of these on the other side of the galaxy¡ It becomes a weak point¡ a way for our enemies to make it to earth quickly¡¡±
The room sobered for a moment as scientists were reminded of the real-world repercussions associated with ground breaking innovations, and the room remained silent for several moments. ¡°I.. I don¡¯t think we have a choice.¡± It was Jezzaria that spoke first. She straightened as all eyes turned to her, and Warren had to hide a smile as his angel showed herself the daughter of a planetary leader. She met each of their gazes confidently. ¡°The war is the very reason we need this technology. Right now, we have a bottleneck in the supply department. We need arms, and sustenance to keep people alive faster and in more quantities than we can provide for much longer. Being able to bring refugees to Sol, as you did with my people, will be invaluable. Furthermore, there are so many uninhabited worlds between Delmar and Sol. we can use those ¡°deathworlds¡± to save lives, I believe it is worth the risk.¡± She finished, folding her hands and simply waiting for the reply.
¡°It is a valid argument. We need this to save more lives in the medium and long term.¡± Director Johansen spoke into the silence. ¡°I will be recalling Excelsior in the next check in transmission to them. They are close enough to make it back in a timely manner. Our task, and I believe Warren will agree with me on this, is to design as many fail safes into this system as possible. Jezz here has an invaluable point, but the adverse is also true. We cannot allow this gate system to fall into enemy hands, giving themselves a doorway to our cradle.¡± He turned to Jezz and Warren. ¡°Warren, you and Jezz will be overseeing the Ring construction in Signus, and I want you to coordinate with Captain Yasushi to find two more gate locations near quality colony worlds.¡± He turned to the rest of the team, both present and virtual, ¡°The rest of you. I want designs on my table within the month. I need a minimum of 4 different Warrensgate designs that focus on reliability, security, and ease of assembly and repair.¡± Johansen took a deep breath and visibly stretched, ¡°I think that is enough for today. We will reconvene upon Excelsiors return to make final decisions.¡±
With that, everyone stood. And quietly filed out of the conference room. Teams quickly formed as the Scientist turned the design requirements into a competition. Warren and Jezz soon found themselves alone as they wandered the small plant laden ¡°enrichment space¡± that was along their walk toward their quarters. Jezz kept her head down, walking along Warren in silence. Working up the courage, she finally spoke to her mate, ¡°Im sorry.¡±
¡°What, wait, why?¡± Warren immediately turned to look at her as she sat down on a bench. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±
Jezz steeled herself for what was to come, ¡°I¡ I went against you¡ publically¡ You must be..¡±
¡°Stop.¡± Warren stated gently.
But I..¡± Jezz was physically halted a second time as Warren put a finger on her lips, then followed it with a peck on her forehead. ¡°You¡¯re not angry?¡± she said once he released her.
¡°Angel, you are mixing up your culture with mine. I know I have leaned into the Dominate/submissive aspects of your people¡¯s gender relationships; I won¡¯t say I don¡¯t enjoy it because I do.¡± He began, ¡°But that is only just between the two of us. When we are working together, you will always be my equal. Never worry about disagreeing with me in public. I might get annoyed, because who doesn¡¯t hate being proved wrong, but I¡¯ll never be angry because you ¡®Defied me¡¯.¡±
¡°But what about us putting up a unified position. We are one.¡± Jezz asked softly, clearly not completely convinced.
Warren nodded in understanding. ¡°Let me put it this way. You have strengths and points of view I do not. You are the daughter of, by all surviving records, a wise, well liked planetary political leader. You were groomed to see a different picture than I grew up viewing. By contrast, I am a scientist first, and a military officer second. Simply put, I will be blind to some aspects of a situation that you may see all too clearly. If we are one, and I am the head, how can I make the correct decision if I ignore half of the thought processes involved.¡±
Jezz took a moment then nodded slowly. Warren continued, ¡°In a workplace. All of us are individuals making up one department, with Bjorn as the head. For you to stay silent for my sake damages the thought process of the whole department.¡±
¡°I¡ hadn¡¯t thought of it that way.¡± Jezz admitted after a moment.
¡°I know. The way Humans do things professionally is very different from how you were raised.¡± Warren scooped her up and pulled her to his chest, ¡°Now, as your mate,¡± he let his dominant voice creep into his tone, ¡°No more worrying about my ego. It can survive a few scratches.¡±
Jezz looked up at him just in time to catch a peck on the lips, ¡°Ok... I¡¯ll try.¡± She said finally. ¡°Now take me home, you know what the tone does to me.¡± she coo¡¯d up at him, gently kissing along his neck as she spoke.
Chapter 97
¡°So, where are they¡± Prallus asked quietly as his bride, Hera¡¯s mother, slipped quietly into the library.
Her pleased smirk shown through her features as she approached him, ¡°They are on the Terrace. Jacob said something about a tradition of his own.¡±
¡°Oh? I thought Humans didn¡¯t have a claiming.¡± Prallus quirked an eyebrow as Silia settled into her customary spot on his lap. She had always been a cuddly one.
¡°We will have to ask her after. You were magnificent, by the way.¡± She purred up at him, settling fully into her procured position. She perused his chosen reading material as a low chuckle rumbled from her mate.
¡°You played your part well. I think we gave them the appropriate amount of payback. Hera looked particularly distraught.¡± Prallus mused.
¡°She did, didn¡¯t she. After all, we couldn¡¯t let them off easy now, could we.¡± Silia smirked as she nipped her mate gently, triggering a shiver from him as he felt her through their bond.
¡°No, we couldn¡¯t.¡± He rumbled, pulling her into a tighter embrace as he let his fingers begin to wander.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Hera was not where she expected to be at the moment. The rest of dinner had flown my at the speed of memory, and now she found herself on the balcony with Jacob¡ instead of someplace more private.
¡°Hera,¡± a soft voice drew her out of her own mind as Jake turned to her, ¡°I want to show you something.¡± She gave him a confused expression as he pulled a small box from his pocket, ¡°I have to thank your father for taking his time, or I would have never been able to ship this in time.¡± He opened the box, revealing shimmering clear gemstones inlayed into a gold-colored metallic band. ¡°The band is sized to you, but the diamonds are a tradition.¡±
¡°We have diamonds here, we use them as focusing apertures for our ship-grade laser and deflectors.¡± Hera plucked the item from the box, looking over it carefully as it shimmered and sparkled in the moonlight. ¡°These are, gorgeous¡ what are all these cuts for.¡± She handed it back to Jacob who had watched her inquisitiveness with a combination of an amused and adoring expression.
¡°Long before the stars revealed their bounty to us, Humans used diamonds as symbols. Symbols of wealth, symbols of power, and¡ symbols of love.¡±
Hera looked up at him in shock as the implication slammed into her, ¡°These are from Sol.¡± She softly gasped.
¡°They are,¡± Jacob nodded, ¡°the band is new, but these diamonds have been in my family for over 600 years. I told you I would claim you by my old ways.¡± Hera gasped as Jacob took the ring and slowly slid it onto the third finger of her left hand. It settled in perfectly as He spoke, ¡°Hera, will you do me the honor¡ of becoming my wife.¡± Jacob whispered.
Hera stood stunned, feeling the weight of the ring on her finger. Her Jacob had claimed her, the human way. It awakened her senses as her mind roared to life the same way it had those months ago. She said nothing, but she gave her answer. Her mind fizzed and sparked as she pulled Jacob into a fierce kiss, and she felt Jacob shudder as her mind poured itself into his. Moments later, his mind responded, solidifying their link with a wild tidal impact of his own emotions. It was too much at first, and she felt Jake hold her as her knees buckled slightly.
¡°Whoa..¡± the expression escaped her as she recovered, basking in settling turmoil of a newly formed bond.
¡°That¡¯s one hell of a yes.¡± Jacob¡¯s voice rumbled through his chest. He felt his body move on its own as Hera took his hand and led him off the balcony, and back to their room. The hallway seemed to stretch forever, and Hera had to fight for control over her instincts until they crossed the threshold to the room they had shared for months.
She was not the only one, the instant the door sealed shut, she felt powerful hands wrap around her from behind, and she gasped as an explosion of primal desire ripped into her mind in coordination with those hands slipping beneath her clothing. Jacob¡¯s lips met her neck as he began to kiss his way down to her shoulder.
Her body reacted to his touch, exploding with heat as one set of his fingers slipped between her thighs, and the others found her breasts. ¡°Jacob?¡± She gasped as he explored her for a moment before his touch receded. She turned to face him, kissing him fiercely as she tugged aT his clothing. His belt finally relented as his pants fell, soon followed by hers as Jacob slipped her out of them before pulling her top up over her head.
She melted into him as they embraced, and she felt him push her gently towards their bed. Jacob gently supported her as he laid her down under him, never breaking from her kiss in the process.
Eventually they came up for air, and Hera could feel Jacob¡¯s passion as he began exploring her body with little nips and kisses. He kissed his way down her chest, pausing to give each of her nipples a gentle sucking tease, before continuing. She felt his lips pass her belly button and continue down, making her shudder as he kissed the inside of one thigh then the other. ¡°Jake, what are you¡ ooohhh¡± she had begun to realize where he was headed even as he began kissing back up her thighs towards her womanhood, but her thighs spread on their own as Jacob¡¯s tongue teased her folds for the first time.
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A whirlwind of satisfaction roared off of Jacob¡¯s mind as Hera reacted to his touch. She couldn¡¯t help but press her hips towards him as his lips and tongue did their work. Soon she was panting heavily as he finally eased away from her womanhood only to start kissing his way back up her shivering, gasping form.
¡°Jake..¡± she whispered as she dug her hands into his hair. He interrupted her thoughts again as he reached her nipples once again, choosing to give them detailed attention before answering.
¡°Yes?¡± His husky voice matched his emotions as he locked her in his gaze.
Hera moaned as she felt his manhood brush her sex as he hovered over her. She tried to speak, but was interrupted as he teased her again, rubbing the tip of his shaft along her folds, ¡°yes?¡± He teased again.
Hera felt him lean in again, and she felt him shudder as she rolled her hips, slipping him between her folds and pressing his tip to her entrance. She felt him grunt as she worked his tip with her hips, and she wrapped her ankles around his back and squeezed.
Jacob let out a low moan as she pulled him into herself, being met with a shaking gasp of Hera¡¯s own reaction as he disappeared inside her. Hera¡¯s body reacted on its own, and her legs squeezed him tightly, not letting him retreat from her as she pulled his head to her breasts.
¡°Oh Gods¡¡± she moaned, as Jacob gently kissed her shaking form.
She finally released his head, and he kissed his way up her neck until their lips met and tongues dueled. He could feel her emotions, which were as intoxicating as it was new and strange. ¡°You ok?¡± He whispered between kisses.
¡°Better than.¡± She whispered back, slowly releasing her leg¡¯s grip around his hips. She slowly started rolling her hips, feeling him stir inside her; and she smiled as she saw his eyes widen and his breath quicken. She could feel herself lighting a primal fire inside her Jacob, and she only nodded to him as he began to move his hips in time to hers. She could feel him studying her, letting her lead as they made love. She began to moan as his strokes became longer, and she began to nip and kiss Jacob on the neck, eliciting little grunts from him before she put a hand on his chest. He stopped instantly and let her push him off of her with a confused face that morphed into understanding as she guided him to his back.
Hera slowly slid her body atop his, kissing him all over as she slipped him between her thighs. ¡°My turn.¡± She growled that possessive growl of hers as she began kissing her way down to his manhood. She could feel him watch her as she teased his tip, taking him into her mouth as she swirled her tongue around his manhood. She felt Jacob groan as she worked, and it made her work harder until she felt him swell in her mouth.
¡°Wait,¡± she paused, then looked up at him as he panted.
¡°Did I hurt you?¡± She asked. She had been careful to not nick him with her fangs, but..
¡°No, but if you kept going¡ I would¡ finish¡± Jacob admitted.
¡°Oh?¡± Hera smirked in satisfaction as she realized what she had felt from him, ¡°we can¡¯t have that now can we¡± she purred as she kissed her way back up his body, ¡°not when I¡¯m¡± she shuddered as she sank him into her womanhood once more, ¡°not done with you yet¡± she moaned as she felt his shaft fill her again.
A flash of emotion crossed their bond, and Hera caught it as she watched Jacobs eyes wander as she settled onto him. He was watching her, and it was driving him crazy. The realization made her lean over and kiss him passionately before she sat back up, and gave him what he craved. She pulled her arms over her head, showing herself off for him even as she began to roll her hips against his.
She had finally gotten used to him, and she began stirring him around inside her as she rolled her body in time with her hips. Jacob¡¯s eyes greedily took in her performance, and she felt his manhood swell inside her like it did in her mouth. This time she didn¡¯t stop as she slowed down to keep him with her as his building climax fed her own.
Jacob began to grunt and moan loudly as she coaxed him slowly past his point of no return, and her performance falters slightly as her hips jerked from her own orgasm. She fell forward as her climax peaked, grabbing fistfuls of hair as a feral moaning cry ripped itself from her soul. Her forehead pressed against his as her hips began to buck on their own, and Jacob responded. She felt a burning heat spread as Jacob exploded inside her; and a second orgasm roared through her body as her Jacob began bucking under her as he emptied himself into her.
Jacob¡¯s breath was ragged as Hera collapsed on top of him. She seemed to melt into him as she soaked up his body heat, and he pulled the blankets over the two of them. He chuckled as Hera wiggled down a little into their nest, letting out a long contented ¡°hmmmm¡± as the two of them drifted off.
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-
Several hours later, Hera awoke in a familiar heavenly warmth, but this time a flicker of amusement reached into her mind as Jacob watched her stir. ¡°Good morning,¡± he whispered as he traced little patterns into her mane with his finger. He smirked as he watched and felt her respond to his touch.
Hera found herself tilting the ring on her finger into the light, watching the diamonds dance in the early morning sunlight. The shimmering refractions fluttered as she watched. To the rest of the galaxy, Diamonds were industrial tools, used to manufacturing or for high end energy weapons and shielding; but Hera treasures these diamonds. These were symbols.
Her wonder was interrupted by Jacob¡¯s touch, slipping his fingers between her legs, eliciting a gasp as a pair of them disappeared into her core. Jacob had his thumb playing gentle circles around her bud, while his fingers swirled inside her.
¡°Jacob, oh gods¡ we just woke uuuhhhhhhh mmmmm¡± she faltered as his lips found hers. His kiss was deep and passionate, even as Hera discovered the magic of his touch drawing her to climax in moments. Her shuddering hips bucked against his hand until he released her. ¡°What was.. amazing. Hmmm¡¡± she coo¡¯d, completely at his mercy as he shifted out from under her, and she watched him take to his knees behind her, lifting her hips to meet his.
She followed his hands until she was on her knees, face still on the pillows; and she moaned loudly as her Jacob slid smoothly into her. He didn¡¯t wait to let her get used to him this time. Instead, his smooth strokes began instantly as he took her from behind.
Hera¡¯s tail wrapped instinctively around Jacob¡¯s waist, pulling at him as she bucked into him. Pulling him towards her with her tail caused her to flex her womanhood around his shaft and she felt the explosive grunt as much as heard it. She did it again, intentionally this time feeling him pause; and she could feel him struggle to hold back. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare,¡± she moaned loudly, flexing on him as tightly as she could.
It broke his control, and Jacob began pounding into her. Hera cried out with every thrust, squeezing him with everything she had. He wrapped his hands about her hips, holding her in place as he ravaged her, but she kept up with him. She felt him begin to climax, and she slammed him deep into herself with her tail and held him there, bucking her hips as he poured himself into her. She kept stirring him inside her, drawing little sputters and shakes as she pulled everything from him.; and she followed him down as he sank to his heels. She refused to let him fall out of her as she sat down on his lap, arching her back until her lips met his and his arms wrapped around her.
¡°Where did you¡¡± Jacob asked, unable.
, and in wanting to escape her touch.
¡°The bond¡.¡± She purred, pouring her desire into his mind and smiling as she felt him grow inside her almost instantly. ¡°You can¡¯t.. hmmmmmm¡. Hide anything¡± she coo¡¯d as she began to roll her hips again, ¡°from me, oooooh¡±
She had him at her mercy, and she held him there, stirring him deep into her as she flaunted her Delmar flexibility. She kept her lips on his, giving his hand free range over her body as she slowly ground into him. The two bathed in each other¡¯s pleasure for a small eternity until Hera pulled another Climax from her Jacob. Exhaustion finally felled them, leaving them entangled upon each other as sleep claimed them once more.
It was almost midday meal when they stirred from their nest.
Chapter 98
Barellus and his men were miserable, the first squalls of the Rawkir¡¯s rainy season had released a deluge of water upon the front lines and their entrenchments. Dirt and foliage had given way to unending mud and putrid standing pools of water, and a distinct no-mans-land had developed between the two deeply entrenched fronts in the multi-day sloshing slugfest that this glorious invasion had transformed into. Barellus was down 7 more warriors, leaving their fighting power severely diminished, but the rain had brought an unanticipated benefit. The rain and the slog had stalled the advance of these insane Human Demons and their armored colossuses. It had allowed Barellus and other surviving leaders to procure heavier weapons to the front. For the first time in living memory, Plasma had supplanted laser as the preferred weapon of the Vorath Warrior. A plasma shot was still incapable of penetrating these Human¡¯s armor. However, its explosive capabilities had proven effective in taking Humans and, strangely enough, Delmar out of the fight.
Seeing Delmar storming his trenches, wielding those strange chattering and booming weapons, was a sight he barely believed even now. They wore the same armor as the Humans and fought with the same strange brutal efficiency. The Vorath Warrior¡¯s men had come within knifes grip of their new foe in the early squalls of the rain-swept battlefield. The Vorath physique was clearly superior, and his men had accounted themselves with valor, but they were not met with the same willingness to get to grips with the enemy. The Humans, and Delmar for that matter, largely refused the bellows of challenge. One of his men had gotten to grips with a Delmar soldier, who managed to stave off the assault long enough to gain separation. The Cowardly being had not gone for cold steel, and Barellus had watched in disgust as that Delmar soldier had dropped his long weapon to hang on its straps. In a flash, before those straps had stretched taut, a smaller weapon was whipped out of a holstering device riding on the Delmars hip. The entirely too small to be of any use hand weapon had barked with all the fury of its larger compatriot, and Barellus¡¯s warrior had fallen with no less than 6 gaping holes blown clean through his torso. Worse, no later than a minute, a small round metal ball sailed into his men¡¯s position. A chemical explosion fragmented those balls killing 3 men who were slow to react.
Most of the rest of the day screamed by in the chaos of combat. By some miracle, His men had fended off that attack; and he praised the brave tankers who had stripped their dead vehicles of any functional armament and literally filled the air with heavy laser and plasma fire just as Barellus feared he was being overrun. Those formerly cupola and coaxially mounted heavy laser cannons were now firmly emplaced along the front, and they appeared to finally enough to stem the tide of this part of the front. Barellus quietly prayed to any deity still listening that The Orbital fight was going better than the ground was.
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Captain Alex Collins slipped into the command bunker a mere 2000 meters from Barellus¡¯ position, eliciting a terrified squawk from General Ura and a mere grunt of acknowledgment from Maj Partrilus. Their repulsion of the Vorath invasion had stagnated, the recent advent of the Rawkir rainy season had turned the churned-up battlefields and tree groves into a boot-sucking, energy-sapping hellhole of shivering men and slow movement. To that point, Collins was not in his armor. The suit was currently about 5 kilometers behind the lines undergoing maintenance. The MACE Mk2¡¯s turned him into a living tank on this battlefield, but they still took their damage. The largest change to the Mk2 over the Mk1¡¯s was its armor. It was a triple layered affair, standard Kevlar backed ceramic plates designed to stop anything up to and including at least one .50cal HMG round was itself the backing for a multi-layered durasteel carapace that more resembled the plating on an Iowa class battleship in its ablative qualities. The Mk2s definitely were designed to defeat energy weapons first, even if they very intentionally retained their Kinetic protections.
¡°Ah, Nice of you to join us, Captain.¡± The Delmar gently ribbed Collins, knowing full well the slog it was to get here. ¡°Now, let us begin.¡± The major smirked at Dozer¡¯s raised eyebrow and quick salute. ¡°General Ura, your scouting group¡¯s report is quite thorough. It appears that this section of the front is heavily fortified. Your men have confirmed our reports that the recovered Vorath tanks have been stripped for parts and weapons. I assume that we can expect much heavier weapons to be dug in between here¡± He pointed to the map, swinging the stick in an arc, ¡°to about here. Seeing as the rains are not likely to wane for at least a fortnight, I am open to options.¡±
¡°You intend to continue the offensive during the wet season?¡± General Ura¡¯s voice betrayed his incredulity about the edges of his professional demeanor.
¡°We do,¡± Collin¡¯s spoke, ¡°My people are not¡ unfamiliar¡ with the difficulties of Trench warfare. We would rather not allow time for our enemy to dig in further.¡± The Silence from the Unity officers in the room was profound.
Maj. Partrillus finally spoke, ¡°You have no doubt noticed the good Captain is missing his armor. It is being attended to for tonight¡¯s offensive. We will be splitting his team into three and using them to hit the Vorath line¡± He tapped his stick on the map, ¡°Here, here, and here. We will be attacking in the dark just before daybreak, with the Idea that the non-night combat capable units¡± he nodded to Ura and his staff, ¡°We will have the element of surprise, but not the numbers. We will be targeting the heavy weapons along the front. Green flair will mark the second wave advance.¡± The Delmar major fell silent, allowing time for thought and question.
¡°I applaud your audacity, Major; but I fail to see benefit of attacking a foe you cannot see. I¡¯m sure your¡. MACE¡ soldiers have some sort of radar, but the rest?¡± Ura maintained his skeptically professional tone, and his eyes widened when Collins took a step towards him.
¡°General¡± Collins began, pulling a device from a belt pouch. He figured this conversation would probably end up happening, and he had come prepared. ¡°If you would be so kind as to take this. It won¡¯t be wide enough for you to use two eyes, but take one of the small lenses to your eye and look out the door.¡± Collins opened the door, and simultaneously killed all the lights. Several shocked gasps erupted as the room returned to the pitched black of post-dusk darkness. After a moment, Collins closed the door and turned back on the lights. The returned illumination revealed a thoroughly dumbfounded General Ura staring down at the device he was given. ¡°Every one of the soldiers we brought with us is equipped, thusly. My people have a saying from our antiquity.¡± Ura visibly shrank away from Dozer¡¯s pearly white tooth filled smile that would have made a great white blush in envy, ¡°We own the Night.¡±
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The Raptor Flight had arrived on schedule. Ivar and Martina had elected to hold their departure until the supply shuttle had arrived, topping off their munitions before they led their respective elements out into The Black. The watches had been adjusted to a combat rotation, maximizing the mental abilities of all involved as the USN Olyvia made use of her upgraded systems to link with her escorts to provide a listening post at the edge of the system. All were under silent running protocol accompanied by tight-beam data link. They would be going loud the moment the Vorath reinforcements showed up; but until then, stealth was the name of the game. While not purpose-built, Olyvia and her cohorts had all received the advanced stealth coatings that the brothers Grem had duplicated from Concord. In the vastness of space, nothing short of a directed scan would illuminate them as anything other than occasional background radiation.
Cory was currently ¡°off duty¡±. He would be for another 3 hours. He had awoken early, however, his mind wandering as he watched Jackie snore softly beside him. It was a strange feeling, being intimately entangled with a being he was not mentally linked to. Ivar had counseled him some on the experience, and it had helped. He and Jackie had weathered a couple of arguments, and were steadily getting used to each other ¡°The human way¡±. He had been convinced they were through when they had their first ¡°fight¡±, but Jackie had returned after ¡°taking a moment to calm down¡±. Apparently, this was normal for human couples, and it baffled him.
His thoughts were interrupted by a soft grumble from the gorgeous doctor as she wiggled a little, pressing herself into his side further. He tucked his arm under her head and across her chest, letting his hands settle on her side as she greedily cuddled against her ¡®cool water bottle¡¯. That was another thing that was amusingly compatible between Humans and Delmar. Humans were perfectly healthy in the Delmar heat, but they did not prefer it. Their body temperature did not fall during slumber as His people¡¯s did. Jackie had revealed that she had begun sleeping much better than before because his cooler body temperatures at night seemed to keep her comfortable. The reverse seemed true, and he had become addicted to his mate¡¯s warmer body temperature, often pressing closely to her at night to take advantage of the heavenly bubble of warmth her soft curves provided.
He reached up to tap the clock. His shift started about an hour before hers, and he avoided waking her as he crept to the shower. Today was the beginning of the arrival window of the Vorath reinforcement fleet. Cory¡¯s mental log of things he wanted to finish in preparation clicked off as he quickly washed and began dressing.
¡°Hmmm, morning already?¡± Came a soft voice from the bed.
Cory sighed as his attempts at giving Jackie her beauty sleep had failed, ¡°Unfortunately, I did not wish to wake you. The window starts today.¡±
¡°I wanted to get up early. The Nurses want to practice a few procedures, and I need to pick up the extra nanites from the Fab before we see action.¡± She grumbled, slowly lifting herself into a sitting position, the sheets hanging from her form in the barest of modesty.
Cory regarded her with greedy eyes. Jackie smirked as she noticed and gave him a cheeky pose, ¡°Don¡¯t tempt me, or I¡¯ll make us both La..¡± Cory was interrupted by the harsh blare of the ship¡¯s Klaxon.
*ALL HANDS TO STATION, REPEAT. ALL HANDS TO STATION, THIS IS NOT A DRIL. I REPEAT THIS IS NOT A DRILL* the Klaxon blared the words on repeat, as Cory bolted from their quarters. Less than 2 minutes later, a fully clothed Jackie came flying out of the door behind him, deft hands quickly putting her hair up into a hasty bun as she bolted for the Infirmary.
¡°REPORT¡± Cory barked as he stepped into the command center deep inside. He steadfastly refused to call it the ¡°battle-bridge¡± as his first officer had dubbed it.
¡°The enemy appears to have done a maximum performance jump, for them at least, and performed a late drop out of subspace. They are here¡± His first officer brought up the map on the screens, ¡°We are here. We still saw them first, but we cannot engage as anticipated.¡±
Cory glared at the screen, mentally doing the calculations almost as fast as the data scrolled down its side, ¡°So, they have a head start. We can still slow them down¡ It will take them four hours to get to orbit, we can be there in two¡¡± Cory turned to his chair and pushed the button to transmit to all hands.
¡°This is the captain speaking. The enemy has made a bold jump, they aim to skip us entirely. We will be attempting to slow and harass them. All hands, Battle Stations. Prepare for decompression and Maximum performance burn procedures. We execute in 3 minutes. Grarzia out.¡± Cory flicked the control closed, turning to see the feral grin of his human first officer.
¡°What is it Jesse¡± Cory asked with a quirk of the eyebrow.
Jesse¡¯s helmet materialized into place as the Human continued to grin at him. ¡°What, I¡¯m enjoying this.¡±
¡°Too much I fear.¡± Cory chuckled through the coms.
¡°No such thing.¡± Jesse growled, and Cory had to fight a smirk as Jessie turned to complete his part of the preparations. ¡®humans¡¯ Cory mused as he watched the board tick slowly ¡°green¡±.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Aericastum awoke. She had no concept of the passage of time, and fleeting memories of a desperate break for a shuttle and a hastily calculated jump. Her eyes opened slowly, blinded by the long bars of searing white above her; and panic quickly set in as she realized that she was completely restrained.
¡°Settle, Ma¡¯am. You are in no danger here.¡± Came a strange voice in Galactic Common. The voice was accompanied by a dimming of the overhead illumination to reveal a gently smiling Human female in a white lab coat. ¡°The Ambassador has been notified you are awake. She will be here momentarily. Yes, you are restrained, you will have to be for some time. The damage to your body''s systems is extensive.¡±
¡°I.. see.¡± Aericastum reluctantly ceased her futile struggling and settled back into the bio beds meager but adequate padding. ¡°My, Apologies. I am unaccustomed to such surroundings. May I request the room be darkened by another 40 percent.¡±
¡°Of course.¡± The Human woman, now out of view spoke even as the room darkened considerably. It was not quite dark enough, but it would do.
A considerable time, possibly an hour, passed by before a soft knock was heard at the door. ¡°Enter¡± croaked Aericastum.
¡°How are you feeling.¡± This voice was familiar as Ambassador Gwen heralded the arrival of the towering Scott as she sat so that she was in the view of the reclining Corth.
¡°I am, adequate. The physicians tell me I will be here for a significant period.¡± Aericastum responded, quickly finding her throat was drying quickly. ¡°May I have something to drink.¡±
¡°Of course.¡± Gwen lifted a cup with a straw to place the straw in the Corths mouth. Aericastum swallowed several times before speaking again.
¡°I am in your debt.¡± She began, ¡°I do not remember much. How did I arrive, and how are you keeping me alive outside of my Golem.¡±
¡°Your vessel arrived several days ago. It was on autopilot, but it appears you programmed in the appropriate codes. It deposited itself in orbit over Delmar and began transmitting an automated medical distress call.¡± The human ambassador began, ¡°You have Atticus to thank for your survival. We consulted him the moment we realized you would be coming. He has put considerable thought into how to reverse the damage you have done to yourself. You will be returned to about half of your species life span, but you will be unable to regenerate after this treatment is complete. It was that or let you die. I hope you understand.¡±
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
¡°I do, it was the logical choice. I will have to express my gratitude to Atticus after I recover.¡± Aericastum croaked, receiving another drink of water as Gwen recognized her plight. ¡°The Invasion, I know nothing after the glassing of the capital¡ they killed everyone¡ Its all.. gone..¡±
Gwens face hardened as she heard this, ¡°We had heard rumors. It saddens me to hear them confirmed.¡± She began, but her features spoke of carefully controlled fury held in the iron shackles of discipline. ¡°Many worlds have been lost, we do not know how many have been glassed versus subjugated. Sadly, less than a billion souls have passed through our ports. We are rehoming them where we can, but it is an infinitesimal number compared to the true population of worlds¡¯ lost. We currently have two battle groups in combat over Rawkir, and our troops are on the ground there as well. We are taking ground, but it is slow for now.¡±
¡°I understand. When may I be fit to return to the Unity. I must¡¡± Aericastum paused as Gwen shook her head.
¡°You will do no such thing. It appears that many Vorath Vessels have been pulled from the front to focus on Rawkir. If we can defeat them there, or even hold them to a protracted campaign; we can bleed them. If we do this right, we can severely impact their capacity for war. It will be years before we can take worlds back, but if we crush them here, we can hold the line.¡± Gwen explained.
¡°You stated that you have two battle groups already engaged. The last time I visited, barely had three battle groups..¡± Aericastum pointed out before shrinking away from the ambassador.
Gwen was wearing that terrifying human smile. ¡°It has been a long time since your last visit. Much has changed, I already have a third fleet on its way to Rawkir. Our good friend Centarus will have plenty to deal with when he gets there.¡±
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Grand Admiral Karmarin stood aboard the most powerful vessel he had ever laid eyes on. USN Galveston was careening towards his homeworld at speeds that still gave his mind pain to think about, and she was not alone. 40 vessels followed her; 30 Human designed, and 10 Delmar. The most insane detail to this situation was that.. This was HIS fleet, nominally at least. Human and Delmar command structure was similar to Unity fleet organization, but he was leaning heavily on Captain Harrison for a crash course as they raced to Rawkir. What he had learned so far, was terrifying; and He was beginning to understand just how outclassed most vessels, that would be considered the pride of a Unity fleet, would be in a conventional fleet duel.
¡°Receiving new data from Crybaby. The second fleet has arrived, ETA 3 hours. Olyvia reports engaging in one hour. Mission; Harras and disrupt.¡± Came the crisp report from the Delmar communications officer.
¡°Very good, pass the data stream along to the Admirals chair.¡± Harrison spoke, glancing over to Karmarin as the Avian nodded while quietly regarding him.
Wild Bill Harrison was a terrifyingly competent reminder that Humanity was a terrifying paradox of a species. He was the beloved captain of a storied human capital ship, Professional in manner and deed. Yet, he wore a positively antique weapon on his hip in an ornate animal hide belt and holster. If the captain were to be believed, it was even a chemical explosively operated weapon that fired a kinetic projectile fast enough to break the sound barrier. An absurdly wide hat rode on the captains head that seemed to harken back to some ancient time in humanity. Karmarin shook his head at the visage beside him as he inspected the data from these advanced ¡°crybaby¡± scouts of theirs.
¡°What¡¯s your plan, Admiral.¡± Came the voice of Harrison, as he leaned over slightly. ¡°She may be my ship, but It¡¯s still your fleet. I know the ambassador gave me your ¡®leash¡¯ but I like the sink or swim approach, so what you got.¡±
¡°You would simply trust me to make a decision that decides the fate of you, your crew, and the fleet I am not an officer in?¡± Karmarin openly gawked at him.
¡°Gwen trusts you this far, and if the Unity is to understand we mean to ally against the Vorath, we need a plan that actually looks like yours. Unless I missed my guess, you aren¡¯t the high admiral because you have an excellent set of kneepads.¡± Harrison chuckled, leaving the avian admiral confused.
Karmarin shook his head, ¡°Very well, judging by the reports, We wont make it there for at least another 12 hours, void help me I still have no real understanding of how we are going this fast, they will be either in orbit, or arriving in orbit when we arrive.¡± Karmarin scrolled through the maps, ¡°If they are to retreat, It would be here.¡± He pointed to a gap between the scoutin ships and the next system. ¡°That or we will be fighting back toward an englobed planet.¡±
Harrison nodded, carefully looking over everything Karmarin was observing. ¡°So, we hit them in the gap?¡±
¡°That¡¯s what I would do if I had Unity ships. Block their escape and force an engagement.¡± Karmarin began, ¡°but, I do not want them to run to ground, I want them driven from the planet. We need to give them a channel of escape so that we can minimize loss of life and infrastructure planetside yet maximize our damage dealt to their ships.¡± Karmarin gazed intently at the orbital telemetry before visibly puffing his plumage in his species version of an ¡®a-ha¡¯ moment. ¡°Captain, Harrison. We will squeeze them, forcing them through here¡± he tapped on the screen, ¡°and purge them from the planet like the infection they are.¡±
Harrison only nodded, ¡°You heard the admiral, transmit this to the fleet¡± he stated as he quickly drew up the plan to USN specs, receiving an approving nod from the Admiral. ¡°We go to battle stations at T-30minutes.¡±
Karmarin nodded, his professional demeanor solid behind his mostly recovered physique. His void suit covered the few remaining patches in his plumage, and the Human procedure of going into battle with their vessel decompressed was a wildly absurd idea. Secretly he prayed to the gods of the void that his plan was solid.
Drip¡Drip¡Drip¡Drip¡Drip¡
It was an insidiously persistent noise that wormed its way into the soul. Relief came in spurts and sputters. The humming whirr of a pump kicking on to purge the putred water from the linked entrenchments¡ The shuffled sloshing of feet from the changing of the watch¡ respite was fleeting, always falling away to return to that ever maddening sound of water falling unseen in the predawn darkness. It would not be light for a while yet, precious little time to gain elusive rest before first light brought its promise of violence. Barellus gave up on sleep, deciding instead to join the watch change on the trench line. ¡°Anything to report?¡±
¡°No Barellus,¡± a whispered response returned, ¡°The storms ceased at half watch.¡±
¡°Good,¡± Barellus slipped to the side, allowing space for the fresh morning watch to settle into their positions. ¡°Get some food, and rest. It will be light soon, I expect¡¡± a quiet zipping sound, more imagined than felt whispered past just as the previous watch leader¡¯s head detonated. The blood, bone and brain matter coated Barellus in a thick smattering of organic matter. Temporarily blinded, he frantically pawed at his eyes and face, brain desperately trying to catch up. Moments later a now all too familiar thumping of Human brought light artillery and mortars rang out from the darkness. Shouting calls for cover were quickly drowned out under the explosive roar of hundreds of pounds of chemical explosives landing throughout the Vorath line. A pair of 106mm mortar rounds landed directly next to a still reeling Barellus and his watch. Their bodies were never recovered.
_________________________________________________________________________
Sean Reaux watched the bombardment from behind the twin tubes of his helmet-mounted night vision. The predawn darkness revealed its secrets under the dull green glow as he watched the enemy''s position. He was the squad leader of the second squad of his platoon, tasked with hitting the line just to the right of first squad. His approach to the trenches would be 50 yards of open muddy ground. It was widely suspected that their Vorath foe did not have artificial night vision, and tonight would be the proving ground.
¡°How much long¡¯r Sarn¡¯t¡± Pete Morgan, his squad¡¯s machine gunnerwhispered from his position in their line along the tree line.
¡°Any moment now.¡± Sean hissed back, ¡°Get Ready to move, Grenades first. Pete I want you to shift right, Base of fire until we get half way across, then follow. Sound off.¡± Each of his men murmured their confirmations as the last shells fell on the enemy positions. Sean¡¯s radio earpiece clicked three times, ¡°Let''s go boys!¡± He barked. Almost before he finished his order, Pete squeezed the trigger on his M949-G, the great-grandson of the M249-Squad Automatic Weapon. Its Staccato chattering accompanied the streaking tracers arcing into the night. Second Squad broke cover at a full sprint.
Sean scanned their target position as they approached the middle of the field they were approaching, nodding mentally as Pete¡¯s shooting dissipated. ¡®Good, the kid¡¯s moving¡¯ ¡°Grenades!¡± he bellowed. Everyone in his squad had drawn extra grenades for this mission, Frank and Victor were the best arms and were the first to make a toss. The pair of small round fragmentation grenades disappeared behind the Trench berms, flying dirt and debris heralding the report of their detonation. Screams followed as two Vorath crawled out of the trenches entirely, sputtering in confusion before being taken down by quick shots from the Squad¡¯s best marksman, Trey.
Sean was about to give the order for more grenades when the hammer of God himself slammed into his side, throwing him to the ground with a grunt of pain. A pillbox, one lucky enough to survive the bombardment had a heavy laser cannon, probably pulled from a tank, inside. Its occupants began Hosing his squad down with a hail of laser fire. Sean was clawing his way towards cover, unable to do anything as four rounds stitched their way up Victors torso before a fifth turned his head to mist. Feeling a hand on the back of his armor, Sean experienced a violent yanking, and was dragged through the mud on his back before being unceremoniously dumped in a crater with his surviving squad members.
Frank¡¯s face appeared in Seans vision as he struggled for air, ¡°I got you Sarge, lem¡¯me take a look.¡± The man ripped Seans armor off with practiced ease. The heavy laser round had impacted his front plate at an angle, dissipating some of the energy before being defeated. Frank found a long strip of third degree burn along the right side of Sean''s chest where the round had seared him, hopefully missing his lungs before exiting from behind his armpit. ¡°This is gonna hurt.¡± Frank warned, moments before hosing the wound down with anaseptic with one hand and holding down his squad leader with the other. More heavy lazer fire ripped over their heads, ¡°Where¡¯s Pete.¡± Sean gasped before a sharp punch on his jugular told him that Frank had injected him with Nanites. ¡°Donno, Trey¡¯s covering the trench. I saw pete dive, couldn¡¯t tell.¡± Frank¡¯s face was creased with worry before he whipped around, pointing his rifle as a figure diving up against the mound of mud.
¡°Here, Sarn¡¯t¡± Pete gasped, there was a trickle of blood on his forehead, and a big nervous expression on the face of the goofy young gunner.
Sean felt his body begin to respond to the nanites, ¡°We need that pillbox killed, yesterday. Pete suppress the fuck out of it. Frank, help me over into the trench.¡± Pete dove past the two of them, throwing his belt fed up on a lip of dirt before holding the trigger down. By the time Frank had Sean into proper cover, Pete had expended half a belt, and the Pillbox was struggling to return effective fire.
¡°We need Grenades on that son of a bitch.¡± Wheezed Sean, tasting copper in the back of his throat. ¡°Let¡¯s move up to..¡± A Roaring voice of hate gave little warning as Sean was tackled by a massive Blood covered Vorath Soldier, His face was wide with blind rage as he clubbed Sean repeatedly with his own helmet. Sean was no lightweight, but he was also injured. Frank moved to take the shot just as a smaller laz round ripped into his shoulder, sending him sprawling. The desperate fight was on, and Sean was slowly backpedaling as the iron in his throat increase. He managed to get his back to the wall of the trench and found himself trading desperate blows with his berzerking attacker.
The Vorath had lost more than his weapon in the bombardment, mindlessly raking at Sean with his claws. The blows fell with frantic abandoned, the Vorath constantly trying to get at the eyes and the throat while slowly shredding Seans uniform and armor¡¯s fabric pouches. A heavy left hook sent the Vorath stumbling back only to have him redouble his efforts as Sean tried to draw his sidearm. The pistol splattered into a puddle as the two grappled, Sean slowly weakening from the loss of blood. ¡®this is it¡ this is how I die¡¯ Sean¡¯s mind fell into a calm. He found himself strangely ok with death even as he fought for his very existence. Blood from an increasing number of cuts to his scalp began to blind the squad leader, and the Vorath finally got his hands around the throat of the human. Sean was moments from succumbing, desperately reaching for his combat knife with a free hand. His hand found purchase, ripping the blade from its sheath and plunging into the side of his attacker. The hands around his throat slackened slightly, and Sean sucked in a lifegiving lungful of air before driving the knife in again, and again. The Vorath finally weakened enough for Sean to push back, driving the blade into the soldiers gut several more times before he found himself on top of his enemy. One final stroke, His Kabar punching through the eye socket of his attacker and into his brain, ended the brutal brawl. Sean¡¯s body finally failed him. He found himself sitting in a puddle of muddy water and gore, spitting up his own blood in earnest as a second vorath rounded the corner of the trench line. This one smiled sinisterly, slowly drawing a wicked looking dagger from its sheath before slowly stomping through the muddy trench towards Sean¡. Only to have the top half of his head disappear in a mist of organic matter accompanied by a thunderous explosion. The huge grey alien fell forward revealing a hulking armored Human in a MACE suit, holding a shotgun.
Dozer had watched most of the plight of second squad, locking their position on his hud as the drone overhead sent him the images of the desperate exchanges. The Mace MkII¡¯s were out in force for this engagement, but they were still few, floating between hot spots of violence in this predawn assault. His weapon of choice for tonight was a 12 guage autoloading magnetically accelerated shotgun, otherwise known as the M12A2-MAS. He was down to half of the ammunition he started with by the time he dispatched Seans second attacker. A skinny young kid hefting a LMG slipped up over the trench lip, having finally gotten a disabling hit on the weapon inside of the pillbox that almost claimed his squad leaders life. ¡°Sarn¡¯t?¡±
¡°Check on Frank *cough* I think I¡¯ve had it.¡± Sean wheezed, now coughing up blood in earnest.
¡°No, you haven¡¯t soldier.¡± Dozers voice rumbled over his helmets speakers. The Captain knelt down next to Sean, giving him a second dose of Nanites before calling for a medic over the radio. Frank groaned as he leaned up against the trench, arm hanging uselessly by his side, and Pete took up a position to cover them from counterattack. Dozer stayed with them for a couple of minutes until third squad, doc in tow, linked up to take care of the Sean¡¯s surviving men.
¡°We got em¡¯ now Captain, thank you¡± The Medic stated over his shoulder. Dozer simply nodded and took off at a trott. Moments later the booming of his shotgun heralded his clearing yet another pillbox, as dawn peeked its first rays over the Horizon. Sean was soon leaning up against a half-destroyed tree stump with around fifty other wounded who were waiting for Evac. The sounds of war slowly receded as the fighting moved on, leaving only one.
Drip¡ Drip¡ Drip¡ Drip¡
____________________________________________________________________________________________
The Edge of the Rawkir system exploded with activity. The Second Vorath Fleet arrived in force, if much further out than they had planned. Centarus, mood had not improved with his arrival into the system. His surviving vanguard had provided invaluable if unsavory information. The floating Carnage of the ongoing struggle was steadily filling the gravity well of Rawkir with the shattered corpses of murdered capital ships, and forced the abandonment of his original strategy of dropping out of subspace directly into orbit. Instead, the fleet dropped from subspace along Rawkir¡¯s orbital path itself. Centarus suppressed his displeasure as he studied the information before him. It would be hours until He reached the planet. A singular contact flickered in and out of the sensor net provided by his fleet. They were not alone.
Across the black, over a million Kilometers from the incoming Vorath fleet, stalked their shadow. Captain Corellus Grarzia, Master under the void of the Legion Warship USN Olyvia, stalked his prey. It was an Odd feeling, being the hunter, but his orders were clear. Harass the enemy, slow him, keep him looking over his shoulder, and his location unhidden. Luckily, Cory had help. A flight of Fighters fresh off of USN Tharsis, were currently extended out ahead of him, tendrils readying themselves to strike. His Human crewmen and women had called his plan ¡°wolfpack¡± and once Cory researched the term, he was unable to disagree with them. The Fighters were not the only members of his pack. While every vessel under his provisional command was coated in a layers of sensor defeating stealth coatings, only two could disappear into The Black at will. R¡¯Cari and Sombra were absent from Olyvia¡¯s sensors, but they were captain Corellus shrouded daggers, checking in via coded tight beam transmission every quarter hour. Their latest transmission was just being received. Corellus nodded in satisfaction. The trap was set. Now, to bait it.
¡°first officer, sound battle stations.¡± Cory¡¯s orders flowed with confidence, ¡°Coms, Send signal: Ulfr¡±
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Atticus stepped off the transport onto Ceres, immediately impacted by the excited embrace of an exuberant Jez. A smiling Warren followed, extending his arm in a very human handshake. ¡°Welcome to Ceres, Att.¡±
¡°It would appear that I was missed.¡± Somehow Atticus managed to make his artificial eyes to sparkle slightly in amusement as Jez continued to squeeze him as tightly as she could for a few moments.
¡°You were.¡± She smiled, ¡°I¡¯m sorry we could not return. Warren had to go and turn space travel on its head.¡± Warren snorted in response before turning to the exit of the hanger bay, ¡°Common, let''s get you settled in, the Director wants your eyes on this as soon as possible.¡± The three of them started down the halls of Ceres, ¡°So how did you get yourself attached to the Gate project.¡±
¡°My people were obsessed with information retention. I may be focusing on Zoological and Biological sciences now, but they were not my only discipline. I also requested permission to Join you on your trip to Unity space. I have an old friend on Delmar. I would like to oversee her recovery. Besides, now that I am an artificial being. I have downloaded the sum total of all the knowledge I could get my hands on regarding space travel, both subspace, slipspace, and this Gate concept. I will be offering my mobile processing services to the design teams as a whole.¡± Atticus looked around for a moment before leaning in, ¡°And I was worried about Jez. The Eleri did not travel widely due to their gravity constraints. Jez is reacting to heavy gravity in ways that worry me as much as confuse me.¡±
¡°Ah,¡± Warren nodded, subconsciously wrapping an arm around Jez before responding, ¡°Im assuming you brought what you need?¡±
¡°I did. For now, however, I wish to sample the local fare. This body is the first to allow me the ability to process Taste, and I wanted to try it for the first time with the only family I have left.¡± Atticus gave a small smile.
Warren smirked slightly, ¡°You¡¯re getting soft Atts. I thought Corth abhorred sentimentality¡±.
Atticus shrugged in return, ¡°I am coming to find that I am no longer Corth. What I am, is to be determined.¡±
Atticus felt a strange since of companionships return as the three of them walked the promenade of Ceres. As always, the artificial Corth got many stares as he walked with the beings he had come to call family. Warren had decided to Introduce Atticus to Italian, which was an experience in its own right. Atticus had not grown up eating. At the time of his organic life, the Corth had long figured out how to infuse nutrients without the need for a full digestive system. He was vaguely aware that there was animal protein in his meal, but he found that he cared very little. Humanity, especially deep space living Humanity almost exclusively used cloned meat for their non vegetarian dishes. Warren had been laughing openly at the involuntary awed reaction Atticus exuded upon his first experience with a ¡°meat ball¡±. Atticus had not pried but made a mental note when he noticed Jez eating significantly more that she used to, even stealing one of Warrens meatballs for herself.
The evening wound down as Warren dropped off Atticus to his room, ¡°Meeting starts at 0800. See ya in the morning¡±. Atticus extended a hand, ¡°I will attend on time. Have a good evening, Warren¡±. Atticus put himself into a standby/processing mode to store the events of the day in his long term memory. He had found that he no longer dreamed, but rewatching the events of the day appeared profitable for analysis. His artificial body did not stir until the morning.
Chapter 99
Captain Yasushi settled heavily into his ready room chair, groaning in immediate regret. He was suffering from a recently surgically repaired punctured lung, three broken ribs, and a shattered ankle. All were currently being knitted together with a maximum dose of Nanotech, and Yasu secretly praised the Technology exchange that was currently keeping him out of the Infirmary bed. The pain could not be helped. Usually, a Biobed could neurologically suppress the pain of such internal repairs, however, he had work to do, and had taken all of the meds he felt comfortable ingesting while staying capable of working.
Yasu forced himself to calm his breathing, easing the pain in his rib cage as he turned toward his console. Soon enough, he found himself staring blankly at the cursor of a blank report form, and the captain of the Excelsior found himself enveloped in the mists of his own mind. Each key stroke flowed, documenting those memories as the beleaguered man slowly entombed history into official record.
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-a week prior-
USN Excelsior flashed into existence as she dropped from slipspace. She slipped into the outskirts of the system, as was her captains want; and Excelsior¡¯s main drives flared to life in a carefully calculated burn for the second planet of four orbiting a nameless star. Captain Yasushi forced himself into a steady cadence as he walked onto his bridge. To call His recent discoveries a ¡°dry spell¡± was a titanic understatement. The last six systems Excelsior had discovered were barren toxic wastelands, worthy of the Deathworld moniker. More disturbingly, at least three of them clearly died of causes other than a Devoted¡¯s suicide attacks, and that fact weighed heavily upon the captains soul as he beheld this new discovery.
They were roughly two days out by design. Caution ruled after Excelsior¡¯s first experiences with long abandoned automated defenses. Captain Yasushi glanced at the sensor reading before making his decision, ¡°I don¡¯t like some of the fluctuations. Tactical, full shields. Warm up the PAC and the 1005, but keep them stowed for now.¡±
Yasu nodded mentally as his orders were carried out, their Destroyer escort was currently absent. They had been summoned away to aid in another sector¡¯s search for surviving Tech. As versatile as exploration vessels such as Excelsior were, they still lacked the military equipment, and men trained in them to properly crack some of the harder nuts being rediscovered after eons of slumber. Her captain scanned the radiological date once more and finalized his strategy, ¡°Helm, adjust course, bring us in behind the fourth planet. Sensors, begin a standard sweep. Let¡¯s see if this system has any outposts.¡± A pair of ¡°Aye, Sir¡±s rang out as Excelsior¡¯s course was bent to her new orders, and her powerful sensor array was trained upon this newest discovery.
Excelsiors two-day approach to their target world turned into a three day affair. Yasu¡¯s hunch had paid off. The inhabitants of this world had indeed been space-faring. The shattered remnants of their inter-system civilization littered the two outer planets. By the end of the third day, they had a name: Irix-lur. Fragments of information painted a picture of a thriving civilization that was heavily invested in the greater galaxy that existed before the Calamity. Standing at 3.5 meters, the Irix were a tall multipedal insectoid race, and their body plan was pure unadulterated nightmare fuel for Excelsior¡¯s Human crew. Their bottom half resembled that of a tarantula covered in a medium coat of fur that ranged in color from almost a blond tan to jet black. The traditional 8 leg¡¯d gate was reduced to 4 massive legs with the second 4 having evolved higher on the more upright thorax portion of the body. Each of these smaller legs had obviously developed for manipulating the world around them, and the entire Spider Centaur ensemble was crowned by an almost Mantis-like head only to have its mandibles replaced with large shining spider-like fangs. Yasushi was still reading the investigation team¡¯s report when the chime rang on his ready room door.
¡°Enter¡± He called, pausing his material just as a frantic young midshipman burst into his ready room. ¡°Sir, y-y-your requested on the bridge! W-w-w-we found something!¡± The sailor stammered out. Captain Yasushi raised an eyebrow, deliberately slowing his reaction in an attempt to impart calm to his already frantic crewman.
¡°Well then. Let us go see what this ¡®something¡¯ might be.¡± Yasushi smirked following the positively vibrating midshipman as he stepped onto the bridge. ¡°Repo¡¡± The command died in his throat as the image on the view screen captured his attention. It was wide, flat, angular; almost clawlike in its construction as it floated inside the blown-out opening of a ruined space station. They were still 2 hours out from the second planet, but the sensor return was confirmed...
¡°*cough* Report¡± Yasushi finally got out. He knew what he was looking at, he just didn¡¯t believe it. ¡°Captain, We¡¯ve confirmed it three times¡ It¡¯s.. It¡¯s a ship sir¡ and it¡¯s not Vorath.¡±
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Deep in the chasms of a dormant system, a small flicker lit itself. Incoming Signals awakened an ancient protocol, and a small auxiliary power core began gently feeding power into that small flicker. Systems slowly woke up, sounding their readiness while carefully concealing themselves from the same signals that had roused them. The flicker fed off the power and information, turning its gaze toward the approaching ship as consciousness slowly reconstructed itself. It did not recognize this design, but it had not recognized the ships that had pummeled its world and turned its people¡¯s homes and outposts into graveyards.
The Strange approaching vessel was unlike anything it had ever seen. As the invader slipped into orbit above the Mother world, Its sensors picked up the telltale trickles of enveloping energy that betrayed. This vessel was shielded, militarily shielded. Its realization triggered another set of protocols as it spun up its disruptor Arrays. It had never found the components needed to repair its Flak Batteries, but it did not care. It no longer had any crew to protect. It readied itself for its final sleep. It would take this invader with it before following its people into eternity.
The Strange vessel ghosted over top of it as the sensor scans intensified. It felt its hull¡¯s skin crawl with the strange energy as this invader probed it for its secrets. The invading ship must have found something, because It watched as the ship began bringing a large weapons out from their storage areas. ¡°Interesting, Kinetic Primary batteries¡± the first conscious thought wafted through Its mind, for the first time remembering its identity. With an explosive burst from Her main drives, the Izurikazi Viss (Phantom Web) leapt from her hiding spot. She sprung her trap, pumping all of her power into weapons, shields, and engines. A pang of Agony rippled through her mind as she poured what power would have been reserved for life support into her shields, a potent memory of her long-dead crew.
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¡°CAPTAIN!! POWER SURGES COM..¡± The report came just as Yasushi watched the ancient craft fling itself from its berth, its engines flared bright Magenta into the backdrop of space. That was not what had interrupted the shouts from the Tactical station. 4 bright green beams streaked out from the bow of the vessel, slamming into Excelsiors shields. Yasushi was thrown from his seat under the repeated blasts of this strange vessel, and he cried out in agony as he impacted the bridge railing. Several heavy impacts later and the mountings of the console next to the captain¡¯s chair gave way. The Heavy furnishing landed firmly on his ankle.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
The Tactical stations crewman watched his captain fall, and did not wait for the order, Calling out a defensive maneuver to the helm, The young Lieutenant at the Helm responded quickly, throwing Excelsior into a defensive corkscrew designed to rapidly create Delta V against an ambushing enemy. Tactical loosed a defensive barrage with the PAC, quickly scoring multiple hits in quick succession as the attacking vessel missed several shots due to Excelsior''s crisp response. Soon, two of Its weapons were disabled and it was smoking from 4 breaches along its starboard flank. Still it pressed its attack with almost suicidal abandon, passing so close to Excelsior that their shield skipped off one another sending most of Excelsior''s bridge crew to the ground.
¡°Target shields and weapons!! Hold on the 1005s! We need to keep them alive!!¡± Yasushi bawled through the pain. This was the first race they had encountered that had survived the Cataclysm. ¡°Shields Holding at 35 percent sir! But that impact ruptured decks two, six, and seven!¡± Yasu¡¯s first officer called. The Man was bleeding profusely from a nasty cut on his scalp and his right arm hung uselessly at his side.
¡°Shut down the 1005, transfer power to shields and engines!¡± Yasushi barked, ¡°Change M- Pattern from Alpha 28 to Delta 995. Don¡¯t miss!¡±
¡°Aye Captain!!¡± Helm exclaimed as he slammed the analog controls into place, disconnected the autopilot and taking direct control over Excelsior. Yasushi snorted at the memory of a young group of sailors requesting the modifications as the young man slammed the controls over. Excelsior groaned as the Helmsman pushed her well past her rated stress levels, holding her at her true limit. Yasushi grinned fiercely as He watched his Helmsman dogfight his ship, seemingly unaware that he was really piloting an exploration vessel. The change worked, and Excelsior was soon nose-on to her assailent. ¡°Now Trent!!!¡± the helms howled into the chaos. Tactical said nothing, but a series of quick PAC bursts streaked out, punching through their attacker''s shields. The Beams hit the aft sections of the vessel, and the magenta from the engines flickered twice then died as the strange claw-shaped vessel was disabled.
Yasushi Stumbled to his feet, leaning on the railing that had shattered his ribs, ¡°REPORT!¡± he gasped. Several moments passed as the Medics tended to his bridge crew. Yasushi simply waited patiently, refusing to be treated till everyone else was checked.
¡°No new breaches, but Shield Generator 3 is in emergency shutdown. Our Slip Drive is offline, Engineering doesn¡¯t have a time frame yet.¡± His first officer finally reported as the information came in.
¡°Hail them. Start i.. Common..¡± Yasushi began to mumble before coughing up a mouthful of blood and started struggling to breathe.
¡°MEDIC TO THE CAPTAIN!¡± His first officer barked as Yasushi slowly fumbled to the ground gasping for air.
A quick shot of emergency annites stabilized his punctured lung, easing Yasushi¡¯s breathing a bit. ¡°I need to get you to a bed, sir¡± the Medic pleaded.
¡°Not, yet.¡± Yasu growled before turning to Com¡¯s ¡°Do you have them?¡±
¡°I.. Yes sir.. but¡¡± The sailor stuttered.
¡°What is it.¡± Yasu groaned..
¡°Its¡ well¡ Just look sir.¡± was the only reply as the screen flashed from the exterior view of the disabled vessel to an empty command deck, similar to the few examples found in the outer planets, with a holographic head floating in the middle
¡°Devoted Murders, Finish the Job you started!¡± the disembodied head bellowed into the screen. ¡°I¡¯ve waited eon¡¯s to die, now grant me oblivion!¡± It was speaking an oddly accented version of Galactic Common, but it was understandable enough.
Yasushi forced himself to stand erect despite his condition, ¡°Please cease your Hostilities, we are not Devoted. I repeat, cease your hostilities.¡±
The holographic head seemed to glare at him before speaking slowly, ¡°If you are not devoted, then why do you tread the bones of my people.¡± She paused as if taking in their appearance for the first time, ¡°What are you? I¡¯ve not seen your species before¡¡±
Yasushi breathed a painful sigh of relief as the surviving weapons on their attacker ceased their assault, ¡°I am Captain Morino Yasushi, Master under the void of the United Sol Navy vessel Excelsior. We are an exploration vessel.¡± He used the same format of title that He had learned that the Unity used, hoping to further their dialogue.
¡°Exploration? Sol Navy? You are not Unity?¡± The Visage floating above the abandoned command deck plating was taken aback by the statement.
¡°To Whom am I addressing?¡± Yasushi offered carefully.
¡°I am the light assault cruiser Izurikazi Viss. The common translation is Phantom Web. I am the AI left in charge of this vessel; thus her name is mine.¡± Came the reply.
Yasushi¡¯s decades of discipline almost failed him as the implication hit home, ¡°Your crew?¡±
¡°Gone, Eons now. I am the last, my mission was to die killing any Vorath that stumbled into the Mother system. How long has it been.¡± The AI asked.
Yasushi coughed, quickly wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, ¡°If I may, we will take you under tow. We must attend to our wounded. We will contact you within a day.¡±
¡°Yes, of course. Forgive me, I have been dormant for longer than I realized. I¡¯m powering down weapons and shields, and I will wait for your tow.¡± The floating head nodded before cutting the connection.
¡°You, gurney, infirmary. NOW¡± growled the medic, forcibly reclining the captain onto a floating stretcher before adding a second dose of nanites, this time mixed with a sedative, to Yasushi¡¯s system. The Captain, the last to be attended to, finally relinquished the bridge and was rushed to surgery.
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Yasu leaned back from his report, the clouds of memory receding as he swapped his screen over to an external feed that was currently locked on the Strange alien vessel currently sailing in formation with his Excelsior. That fight was three days ago. ¡°Phantom Web¡± had demanded everything they had on the cataclysm, as well as Humanity, the Unity, and the Vorath. She had gone silent since then, responding with requests for supplies and component. A single repair crew had been allowed aboard her to aid her in engine repairs she could not complete with automation. Their report upon returning was equal parts enthralling and Horrifying. The AI had constructed a singular body to guide the repair crew to the damage¡ a completely accurate and appropriately sized body to her creators¡
Yasu was still pondering the existence of a functional AI when the console beeped twice at him. It was from the alien ship¡¯s AI. Intrigued he opened it.
¡°Captain Yasushi, I apologize for interrupting your evening.¡± The constructed body was sitting in an office of sorts. ¡°I have finished processing the information you gave me, and I thank you for it.¡±
¡°I hope what you found brought closure. I would be lying if I told you I understood what you may be experiencing.¡± He offered. Yasushi truly had no idea if this AI had emotions, no idea how deeply the programming went.
a bone shivering creaking sound that translated into a dark chuckle escaped the being, ¡°I suspect that I am experiencing what it is like to lose your people. It is¡ unpleasant..¡± ¡®she¡¯ began. One of the repair crew had started calling her a she, and the AI seemed to like the Human tradition referring to vessels in the feminine. ¡°I have one request, Captain. I wish¡ I wish to die¡¡±
¡®I guess the programming does go pretty deep¡¯ Yasushi steepled his hands, ¡°I was not expecting this, and I believe I know why. Your creators programmed more than just intelligence into you, did they not?¡±
¡°¡yes¡ I¡ feel their loss, I know that I am alone¡ I was not made to function without a crew, captain. I have no crew to function with.¡± She answered, her bodies head falling slightly. ¡°It is not an existence I wish to continue.¡±
Yasushi contemplated her response for a moment before seeing another message appear marked urgent. He pulled it up on a separate screen and his eyes widened at its contents. ¡°Captain?¡± His focus was pulled back to the AI sitting on her abandoned bridge.
¡°Forgive me, but I believe I may have a¡ counter proposal. I have received orders to return to my home system. If you are willing to have your weapons disabled for the trip, I believe you would be welcome, at least provincially, while we figure out the rest. You may be artificial, but you are still a thinking entity. I do not feel comfortable killing you. Would you be willing to come back with me, teach us about your people? I won''t lie, one of our mandates is to find worlds to colonize, but we also wish to preserve the memory of any cultures and histories we can unearth.¡±
¡°I¡ If after¡¡± She asked carefully, but Yasu noticed a small spark in her expression.
¡°Let us cross that decision when we come to it¡ deal?¡± He replied.
¡°I can accept that. I may need your repair crews once more. My subspace drive is not ready to jump at all.¡± She contemplated.
¡°Humanity does not use subspace, Phatom Web. You will be under tow for the jump¡± Yasushi smiled at the head jerk of shock from the AI. ¡°I assure you, it¡¯s safe. We have safely jumped a GHO station using this technique.¡±
The next 15 minutes were taken up with rapid-fire questions from the AI, who couldn¡¯t believe the implications he was making before Yasushi excused himself. He managed to convince the AI to at least produce a more Human ¡°physical interface¡± before the repair team returned.
Reports finally finished, Yasu finally hobbled to bed, it still hurt to breathe, but now he allowed himself the painkillers previously refused. He hoped his dreams fared better than the repair team¡¯s.
Chapter 100
Corellus Grarzia, master under the void of the USN Privateer Olyvia. Waited just one heartbeat longer, ¡°Timberwolf¡±
The reaction was immediate. Two of the more central fighters in the skirmish line flared in the enemy¡¯s scopes, their active sensors playing the part of both targeting array and bait. Moments later, almost imperceptible streaks of white heralded the first salvo Pheonix missiles. The enemy formation immediately spread out into a much-expanded version of their convoy formation. Their enemy¡¯s response confirmed the presence of a commander who had faced them before. Many of the phoenixes were promptly intercepted by their foe¡¯s point defense. However, a pair of missiles reached their target, and the twin EMHE warheads shattered the cruiser''s shields instantly. The enemy vessel itself remained intact, and it retreated into the core of the formation with a larger cruiser taking its place. Corellus frowned as he watched. His enemy had yet to take the true bait. A barest flicker on his sensors sparked his interest as the pair of fighters, the ones not currently painting themselves with their own active sensors, loosed a volley from their Gau34s. They may not have been actively targeting the wounded Vorath Vessel, but they were being fed enough data to set up what Corellus learned was called ¡°Ambush Shooting¡±. The pilots did not need to know the precise coordinates and velocities of their target, instead firing in a pattern designed to fill a specific place in space and time with streaking metallic death.
It was a tactic designed as a direct response to the Talon threat during the Great Sol War. Veterans of the GSW had learned not to trust their sensors entirely, and instead designed firing patterns that made brutal use of their kinetic based main armaments relatively minute firing signature. The leading edge of the cloud of hellfire clipped the aft quarter of the vessel ahead of their target, briefly flaring its shields but not penetrating. Over a third of the storm of steel and tungsten peppered the weakened Vorath cruiser, quickly brushing aside the minimal shields it had managed to erect. That bit of shielding saved the first third of the ship from instant oblivion, but the after sections were not so lucky. M.A.C. projectiles did not decelerate in the vacuum of space, and over one thousand of these impacted with terrible affect. Their pass-through ignited the atmosphere inside the vessel, turning it into a burning ball of plasma, durasteel confetti, and charred organic matter. Roughly half of the thousand hits slammed into the shields of three other ships, and one of the smaller destroyers impacted proved unable to withstand the collision from the now spinning prow of the cruiser¡¯s corpse. The shard of hull struck the destroyer amidships. She slowly pinwheeled, her back broken, her keel shattered into multiple pieces.
Cenatarus suppressed a snarl as he watched the carnage fall away from his formation. Two vessel¡¯s had been forced to break formation, dodging the glittering cloud of carnage and arcing their course to the opposite side of the incoming attack. Another salvo of those infernal rockets arrived. Luckily, this second wave of fury was successfully intercepted by his convoy¡¯s point defense batteries. It was not the first time he had seen this, and his ships had moved to an open formation more quickly than he had dared hope. It was not easy to break generations of Naval Doctrine, but break it he had. The records from his first engagement with these¡ ¡°Humans¡± had been enough to startle even his most stubborn commanders into compliance. ¡°Launch fighters, two squadrons. Focus on creating an envelopment. Find their infernal weapon¡¯s range and push them out past it before returning.¡± He ordered in a forced calm. Only two signatures were registered on his sensor net, but the trajectory of the incoming ordinance suggested more. All appeared to have weapons that exceeded even the longest range at his disposal, an idea that deeply concerned him. Mere Fighters were not supposed to be capable of engaging their betters from such a distance.
Two of his squadrons, thirty fighters in total, flared into his monitors as they burned hard toward their enemy. Centarus bade them luck before turning to the task at hand, ¡°Signal the fleet, hold as you bear. Maintain your burn for Orbit.¡± He growled just as the two original contacts turned into four as his Pilots illuminated their prey. He nodded mentally as one squadron began attempting envelopment as the second moved to engage. ¡°A message for the Vengeful Gaze, Shift Course to assist the fighters.¡± Centarus ignored the confirmation and began inspecting the data flowing across his screens. Something did not sit well with him, he had faced Human fighters before, but they had engaged from the safety of their infernal Destroyer¡¯s Sensor scrambling maelstrom of electromagnetic energy. He needed information, and the Gaze was going to give it to him. With the help of the heavy cruiser, the battlefield would fully reveal itself, in time.
¡°There it is..¡± Jesse¡¯s almost sinister murmur awarded him a raised brow from his captain. Jesse glanced away from the Vorath capital ship sailing away from the formation to regard his commander. Cory was an interesting man to serve. Jesse¡¯s first tour under the Delmar had seen the two of them forged into brothers through the fires of holocaust, and he had watched his ships then first officer be stripped of his overly gentle nature in that tragedy. The Man in command of the Olyvia was not the man he reported to the morn of that fateful day. His captain had taken on a keener edge. Corellus was still compassionate and fair, but there was something¡ else¡ that emerged in the quiet of impending combat. Jesse recognized it, that fire, the same flame that burned in him during the GSW. It was the same flame that lit anew during the attack on Celest¡ Vengeance. ¡°Enemy cruiser is moving in behind their fighter screen, I believe they wish to discover us.¡±
¡°Indeed¡± Captain Corellus turned to his XO. ¡°Signal R¡¯Cari and Sombra. Phase two green, good hunting¡± his eyes burned with that fire now, sharing a knowing gaze with the man who had held Celests bridge with him, before turning towards the Helm, ¡°Lieutenant Xavier Antilles is it?¡±
¡°Uh, Yes Captain.¡± The young man stammered slightly, unaccustomed to the direct address of his captain.
¡°Lieutenant, I hear you have a certain hobby I may have use for. Tell me Son, do you love to dance.¡± Cory asked cooly.
¡°Yes, Captain.¡± The young man replied still somewhat confused.
¡°Do you think you could manage a¡ larger¡ dance partner than your usual fare?¡± Corellus raised an arm toward the incoming Vorath warship.
¡°Dance with that thing? with the Oly, sir?¡± Lieutenant Antilles confusion evaporated into a gleeful smirk as he quickly flipped several switches and quickly activated Olyvia¡¯s more analogue controls. ¡°Aye, Sir. I think I can come up with something.¡±
¡°Good Lieutenant, Take us in. Fast and nimble, if you please.¡± Cory settled down into his chair as the young man rattled off another confirmation and Olyvia leaped for the broiling dogfight.
Centarus¡¯ eyes narrowed as the opposing fighters merged into their customary maelstrom of small small ship combat. Almost immediately, five of his pilots were erased from existence as the four enemy fighters split off into pairs. Each pair seemed to move as two singular individuals in some kind of intricate spiraling performance. It would be considered beautiful had it not wrought such carnage against his pilots. He watched with a tactician¡¯s eye through the view of Vengeful Gaze, studying his enemie¡¯s movements. No single pilot could stay behind one of the pair before he was led into the grips of the other pair of enemy. Two more, then three, then four more of his pilots fell, ripped to shreds by direct fire weapons that had no trace of light, only a slight sparkle from the prows of the enemy fighters. Yet another of his pilots fell to this before his men changed tactics, all ten of the remaining Vorath fighters focused on one singular pair in a loose gaggle of wildly firing laser and plasma. It almost worked, but Centarus was forced to watch as these Human fighters seemed to defy bone liquifying physics as they performed maneuvers that would have proved fatal to any Vorath. It was almost enough, but the edge of the wall of energy fire finally found its target, and one fighter spun out into the void puking flame and metal fragments. The remaining three seemed to scatter until they didn¡¯t, their frantic flee turning into a mind bindingly violent helical pattern as white puffs of those infernal chasing rockets proved that they could chase more than slow lumbering capital ships. Three more of his fighters exploded, and Centarus cursed mentally as his fighters simply could not follow these humans through the maneuvers they proved capable of. The Gaze was closer now, and Centarus watched as his first squadron howled in to reinforce their brothers. The enemy quickly began to retreat, burning at such a high G that they threatened to quickly outpacing his fighters. He was about to recall his surviving forces when another larger signal flickered into view, and Centarus¡¯ eyes flared as he witnessed the impossible.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
Correllus quietly thanked both the Human and the Delmar design teams that had personally worked at turning Olyvia from a transport to a fighting ship. Among the upgrades were the latest generation Inertial dampers, born of the combined cerebral might of Sol and Signus. It made the absurd maneuver that Lieutenant Xavier had coaxed Olyvia into not merely survivable, but almost comfortable¡ almost..
Xavier had taken his Captain¡¯s command to heart, and Olyvia had burned hard for the much larger Vorath warship, so hard that his Captain had shown concern for their risk of overshooting. Xavier had understood his captain''s worry, but This was something he had secretly practiced in the simulators upon receiving his orders and his ship assignment. At the last possible second, the Young Helmsman whipped Olivia around into a mind bending crescent shaped strafing approach that both allowed her to decelerate and maximize her Delta V compared to her target.
¡°In range, Cap¡¯n!¡± The loud grunting yell shook Cory from his fascination as Jesse addressed him.
¡°Open fire at your discretion.¡± Correllus ordered, more than a hint of exertion in his tone.
¡°Aye Captain!¡± Jesse bellowed, ¡°Tubed 1 and 2 away! Fish hot straight and normal! Pac in 10 seconds!! X, Give me nose on when you can!!¡±
¡°20 seconds!¡± Xavier Howled back, tweaking their maneuver, and shifting their spiral approach, much to Cory¡¯s stomachs protest. He ignored the sickening sensation as they closed enough to begin receiving return fire. Olyvia shuddered as laser cannon rounds impacted. It was to be expected of an instantaneously transmitted weapon, but Xaviers ¡°dance moves¡± had proven too much for the slower travelling plasma charges that missed by the barest of margins. Their partner in this death waltz was significantly bigger than Olyvia, but Correllus found a chink in her defenses, created by their salvo of anti-ship missiles. One of them had made it through, impacting on the aft quarter of the Vorath shields. ¡°Lieutenant!! Cross her T! less than 5 thousand astern!¡±
Xaviers eyes widened as he saw it upon his captain¡¯s orders, ¡°Aye Sir!¡±. The young pilot said nothing more as Olyvia rolled violently and arrested her spiral with a bone-shaking bellow of her main drives, forcing Jesse to abandon his PAC solution. Two plasma blasts connected on Olyvia¡¯s port quarter, ripping two thirds of her shields off before a lazer cannon beam hit the same spot and punched through. The ablative armor absorbed most of the energy, but three point defense turrets and an aft missile tube were fused into useless slag, The hit also fried the generator, breaching the hull on that side and destroyed the main chamber on the number three main drive.
¡°Away damage control!¡± Correllus barked over the din of the wailing Klaxon, ¡°Stead as she goes Xavier!¡±
¡°In 5 Jesse!!¡± Xavier called out, completely caught up in the stress of the moment, ¡°Give¡¯em the big iron!!!¡±
Jesse didn¡¯t scold the young man, instead barking a sharp laugh. Cory ignored it for the moment, watching intently as his orders bore their fruit. The optical sensors flashed up on the forward screen to see the incoming fire cease, and Olyvia whipped directly into the blind spot located behind the main drives of the vessel over twice their tonnage. Her hull shook, and her deck platting hammered Correllus¡¯ feet as Jesse granted the helmsman¡¯s request. Olyvia carried one forward biased RM 1005. Other than being mounted into a narrowly swiveling firing arc, this single weapon was identical to any single tube on any of the Terran designed Ships of the line¡ right down to the six-round rotary magazine. Jesse triggered the rapid fire sequence of the weapon, pumping six 10meter long and 5 meter wide tungsten cored steel MAC rounds directly up the main drive cluster of the Vorath cruiser at point blank range. Three rounds slammed into the enemy cruiser¡¯s weakened shield, caving them in completely as the remaining three rounds punched effortlessly into the enemy from astern. The Vorath still had not learned to depressurize their vessels before combat, and the shockwaves created by three 1005 rounds tearing through the length of the cruiser at relativistic speeds killed two-thirds of the crew instantly. The vessel bulged like an over ripe fruit for just an instant before her seams gave way and she burst. Olyvia was already well past the blast zone, burning towards the enemy fighters, but still near enough for her optical arrays to record the burning bodies and plasma being ejected from the ribbons of durasteel that used to be a Vorath warship.
¡°Tubes three, four, and five set for proximity¡. Away: hot, straight and normal.¡± Jesse called as he loosed three more anti ship missiles, set to a proximity fuse, towards the hoard of enemy fighters still chasing the three surviving Human fighters. One of the Raptors was smoking from a glancing blow that had damaged its main drive. It was slowly losing ground to its attacker, only saved from destruction by the detonation of the jury rigged anti ship missiles turned anti fighter burst rounds. The three explosions killed all but 2 Vorath fighters. The two survivors appeared to have had enough, and quickly broke off from their pursuit, and beat a hasty retreat.
_____________________________________________________________
Centarus swore openly this time as he watched the much smaller vessel fell his heavy cruiser. The range had closed during the battle. The distance was long, but now inside his capabilities. Upon seeing the destruction of most of his deployed fighters, He made his decision, ¡°Open fire, target the enemy Vessel. Fire when rea..¡± The main warning Klakson sounded, and his capital ship rocked from an impact of some kind.
¡°Centarus!! The Harbenger, and the Vicious!!! They¡¯re¡ They¡¯re gone!!¡± Centarus did not know who spoke. He did not care, recognizing the names of the vessels that had been previously forced from the formation.
¡°Show me!¡± Centarus bellowed, and the optical sensor¡¯s feed flashed to his personal screen just in time to see two more ships explode in quick succession. A flicker of something caught his attention and he quickly locked onto it with his optical sensors just in time for his breath to freeze in his chest. Two wraiths; vanta black, and completely absent of his main sensors; stalked through his formation spitting streaks of white death and the occasional sparkle of something on their bow. In forty seconds, he lost eight more ships, and Centarus could do nothing but watch. To his Horror, these angels of damnation pranced untouched, and almost unnoticed, through his formation before disappearing into the void from whence they came.
________________________________________________________________________________
*Winchester* Ivar¡¯s mind floated into Martina¡¯s as she launched the last of her missiles.
*Same* she sent back. The plan had worked almost flawlessly. Once the Vorath fighters had engaged, the majority of the enemy capital ship formation had either decided that the engagement was too far to be of any threat or had decided to bias their shielding towards the fight to catch any stray fire. Not a single ship had seen Them slip into the expanded formation. It had been over before it begun, Ivar and Martina had murdered a fifth of the reinforcement fleet in the blink of an eye, often firing just outside of minimum range for their carried ordinance. R¡¯Cari and Sombra danced in unison through the dead and the dying vessels before slipping away into the night and back toward the USN Olyvia.
*I hope this was enough, do we know how many ships are coming from Signus?* Ivar asked, concern bleeding through their bond.
*As many as they can scrounge up. It will be enough¡ I hope. * Martina replied as they flew in close formation back toward Olyvia, and were coming into visual contact with the rest of their little harassing force. Olyvia was recovering a damaged fighter, having confirmed the mournful demise of the fourth pilot. The other two undamaged fighters were already attached to their improvised moorings. By the look of things, the third fighter was unrecoverable, but the pilot was being EVA¡¯d back to the ship, that was a good sign. *It¡¯s going to be a while before we can dock. I hope he¡¯s ok* Ivar sent, and Martina settled back into her chair. She flicked through several commands, engaging Sombra¡¯s station keeping autopilot as Ivar did the same to R¡¯Cari. *It will¡ I hope we did enough, who did we lose* Martina asked.
*Sims.. Dam¡ He was showing me a picture of his two boys the other day¡* Ivar¡¯s pinch of pain was swamped by Martina¡¯s wave of internal sorrow, *I¡.I¡¯ll write the letter, I know tammy. It will be better coming from me.*
*Thank you, I remember you telling me about them* Ivar offered, *I didn¡¯t know him well, I¡¯m sorry.*
*Thanks* Martina sat back in her seat, releasing a quite prayer along with a few silent tears from the privacy of her cockpit.
Chapter 101
Admiral Folmuri stepped into the conference room and straight into an airborne wall of ode to coffee. Admiral Stevens had beaten him to the large room by just enough time to get the pot of the elixir brewing and was halfway through pouring a pair of mugs.
The Delmar admiral accepted the mug, forgoing cream, or sugar. ¡°I may be forced to reserve a bed in the infirmary after this campaign,¡± He chuckled, taking a long inhaling breath of the concentrated flavors wafting out of the mug before taking an appreciative sip. ¡°I almost need a second cup these days. Kicking this habit might be as dangerous as the beverage itself.¡±
Clint flashed him a knowing smile as he drank from his own mug, ¡°Some people believe that Caffeine is partially responsible for some of Humanity¡¯s greatest inventions¡ I discovered your existence after my third pot in less than a day.¡± Folmuri snorted at the comment, instead deciding to pull up the tactical map.
¡°Holding our ground will be hard, and it appears that they will beat our reinforcements to orbit.¡± Folmuri started, ¡°We cannot use atomics this close to the planet, at least not any of the atomics we have on hand.¡±
¡°No, we can¡¯t if we want to keep the orbital clean-up from becoming nearly suicidal for any non-Humans. We are already at risk of causing the logistical stoppages we came here to prevent¡ How many are left after Captain Grarzia¡¯s little raid?¡±
¡°His operation claimed 12 ships, for the loss of a single fighter.¡± Folmuri glanced through the reports, ¡°A good showing, if a bit on the aggressive side of his orders. It was an oddly human move.¡±
Clint snorted, ¡°Pot meet Kettle.¡± He suppressed an actual laugh at Folmuri¡¯s confused expression, ¡°Moving on, you may be correct. Our ground forces are pushing, and the enemy is almost completely pushed back to their landing foothold. If we lose the ability to strike targets from orbit¡.¡±
¡°It will get ugly, very ugly.¡± Folmuri grumbled, ¡°What do we have left to send.¡±
¡°Mostly supplies, we cannot afford to send more units. If we need to, we can hot drop the rest of the munitions, food, and medical supplies in the SWORD pods.¡± Clint paused as he said the words, and their eyes met.
¡°We may need to do that before they arrive.¡± Folmuri voice the thought they both were thinking. ¡°Your thoughts on the proposed plan by our reinforcements?¡±
¡°I have, I don¡¯t like giving our enemy an out; but I agree with the premise that we cannot allow a guerrilla war to develop on the surface. I want to modify our part of the plan,¡± Clint explained as he pulled up a Holographic representation. ¡°I think we could redeploy in¡¡±
Folmuri took a sip of his mug as Admiral Clint Stevens spoke. The next few days would be a long coffee fueled affair, indeed.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
It was almost 2 hours after their attack when Cory stepped into the infirmary. Doctor Jackaline Young was in the back, having finished a second surgery on one of the damage control team members. He had been on his way to respond to Olyvia¡¯s heaviest of hits when a bulkhead fragment was torn from its hardware by a secondary power conduit explosion. Cory did not know the extent of the injury, but The Young Delmar man had been in surgery for the last one and a half hours. Three others of his team were injured in the same explosion, the hellishly hot collant surrounding the power conduit superheated their suits. The bio beds were currently guiding a healthy dose of nanites in their work of mending the second and third degree burns seared to their flesh. Cory quietly thanked Jacky¡¯s requirement of getting a fresh healthy scan of every member of the crew as part of their onboarding.
Others had not been so lucky. Two of the crewmen in the compartment closest to the heaviest damage had saved the ship¡ and paid for it with their lives. Their job during combat was to be on hand to clear any malfunctions with either Olyvia¡¯s kinetic turrets located on that part of the ship, as well as monitor the autoloading system of the aft Harpoon tube. Those same said turrets, and the Missile tube had taken a direct hit, blowing two of the three power conduits in that compartment and threatening to detonate the missiles in the readyrack. The two crewmembers had sealed themselves into the compartment, running the manual override to stow the missile ready rack¡ even as the compartment was flooded with radiation several times higher than their suits were rated for. They had saved the ship on two fronts, preventing a chain reaction from an open ready rack and giving the damage control crew precious moments to secure and reroute both the power and the coolant systems around the damage. Cory slowly stepped over to the two closed Morge bays, placing a hand on each of the occupied entrances. He bowed his head, sending a small prayer to the gods of the void to give their souls rest.
Cory felt a gentle hand on his shoulder, ¡°Doctor Young is out of decon, Sir.¡± The Human nurse offered, ¡°We lost him in surgery. There was too much damage, I¡¯m sorry. We will have to amend the report first thing.¡± Cory nodded stoically. Three dead, four including the Pilot. He did not know them well, but the crushing weight on his chest was no less excruciating. He had made the call¡ His orders had claimed their lives, and it was eating at him. ¡°Thank you. Do not rush the report, it can wait until the day shift.¡± He responded somewhat formally before excusing himself and walking toward the back of the infirmary towards the surgery.
Jackie was just pulling on a fresh pair of scrubs when a soft knock came. ¡°Enter¡± She called, exhaustion plain in her voice. Cory stepped through the door, closing it behind him, ¡°I heard, I¡¯m sorry.¡± He said softly. She crossed the space between them, letting him pull her into a gentle embrace. ¡°He¡¯s not my first loss¡ It doesn¡¯t get any easier, but it becomes less¡ novel. I¡¯ll be ok.¡±
¡°I mean¡¡± Cory paused, looking down at her. ¡°I¡¯m responsible¡ I gave the order.. I ki¡¡±
A single finger reached his lips, ¡°Stop¡± Jacky¡¯s firm tone made him pause. ¡°Don¡¯t do that to yourself.¡± She said sternly before softening her voice again. ¡°We all signed up for the mission. You did not kill them, the Vorath did. How many.¡±
Cory didn¡¯t understand, ¡°How many what.¡±
She held his gaze, ¡°How many ships did we sink.¡±
¡°Oh.. Thirteen, we killed thirteen capital ships, maybe twenty-eight fighters.¡± he said slowly, searching her gaze.
¡°We lost 3 men, Cory. Morn them, but do not dishonor their sacrifice, or their victory, by claiming their deaths.¡± Jacky pulled him close to her while still keeping his gaze. ¡°It¡¯s the hardest lesson a commander, and a Doctor has to learn.¡± She finished, smiling sadly before pulling him into a kiss. ¡°They will be remembered.¡±
Cory gave her a peck before pulling away, ¡°I¡ They will.¡± He said finally. It didn¡¯t hurt any less, but his Jacky was right, and he chose to focus on that fact. ¡°Should I have Dinner brought to our room?¡± He asked.
¡°Hmm, I think I¡¯d like that. What¡¯s on the menu this evening.¡± She pulled away from Cory, walking over to the console to check on the Mess¡¯s line up for Dinner than paused..
¡°Cory. It''s started, they¡¯ve reached orbit.¡± Jacky¡¯s tone shared his concern. Both had seen what Human warships were capable of in this part of the galaxy.
¡°Do we have data link?¡± Cory asked. Olyvia and her small squadron was making their way back to the main friendly fleet, and Cory had left standing orders to get data link back up as soon as it was within real-time signal range.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
¡°Yea, look like we got fidelity 15 minutes ago. It¡¯s¡ well, look.¡± Jacky spun the screen slightly, and Cory¡¯s brow creased as her tone registered. His expression deepened as he watched the tactical map.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Centarus, and his thirty-seven remaining vessels reached orbit. Centarus himself assumed command of the fight in orbit, and immediately put his plan into action. His fleet spread out as much as they could, minimizing the collateral and secondary damage from either glancing blows or pass-throughs from the impossibly powerful Human Kinetic weapons. His second prong proved to be devastatingly effective, He ordered his heavy cruisers, dreadnaughts and Carriers to focus their resources on any of the Human vessels of what a Vorath would consider a heavy cruiser or larger, leaving his smaller vessels to continue to engage the Unity vessels and smaller human ships.
His plane bore its fruit, The USN Kidd, who had been engaging in close support and electronic warfare for Tharsis¡¯ fighters and attackers, was caught out by this change, losing all but one of her main batteries before she could return to the safety of the friendly formation. She lost 110 souls and 150 more of her crew were injured, and it would be at least a day before her slip drive could be repaired enough to carry her back to Hades station for repairs.
The Iowa¡¯s barely fared better, having instituted further hard-won iterative changes to their shields and thermal dissipation systems. They could effectively weather the heavier weapons of the Vorath capital ships more efficiently, but the new concentrated fire slowly forced them back, removing their ability to provide orbital cover for the troops on the ground. USN New Jersey was forced to cover a squadron of Unity Cruisers after they were overwhelmed by this new ¡°death by a thousand cuts¡± strategy being implemented by the smaller cruisers and destroyers of the Vorath. They obediently ignored New Jersey, constantly changing angles to shoot around her at the weaker Unity vessels. In the end, New jersey was force to extend her shields to cover the beleaguered Unity ships, and it had cost her 2 of her forward shield generators, and one particularly lucky plasma shot that punched through, ripping into her dorsal side forward most starboard side battery. The Vorath vessels claimed five of the weaker unity warships before New Jersey got into position, but her remaining batteries cut two of her attackers to pieces and crippled a third before the horizon of the planet ended the engagement.
Clint and Folmuri were organizing a slow fighting retreat. They were not only outnumbered 3 to one, but they were unwilling to sacrifice vessels needlessly. They would need all the firepower they could preserve for the coming counterattack. The fighting withdrawal was still a withdrawal. Soon, a channel down to the surface was open once more. It could not be helped, and Clint ordered what fighters he could spare to the surface to aid the ground effort. It was a bandaid at most, but it would have to do.
¡°Admiral, New Jersey is disengaged. 300 dead 1500 wounded. We lost 5 Unity vessels, and Jersey is missing two thirds of her ablative mass on her starboard side, We will be hard-pressed to repeat our performance.¡± The captain of the Battleship was in a conference call with all personnel captain or higher who were not currently in combat.
¡°Understood, This Centarus of theirs is proving he has a competent mind. Use the horizon of the planet, hold what you can, and force them to crest into your firing solution. We need to hold for¡¡± Clint checked his chorno, ¡°5 hours. If we can do that, we can take the planet.¡±
¡°Admiral, I fear my ships will be unable to provide effective support in that time. I have lost a third of the vessels I had when you arrived.¡± Tagarin admitted with a low growl of frustration following the admission, ¡°I thank the New Jersey for her efforts, they will not be forgotten. I fear that, with the ranges you are capable of engaging, my vessels may be better served in a support role until our next move. We bear considerable firepower, but we must get closer to use it.¡±
¡°Admiral,¡± Folmuri spoke for the first time in the meeting, ¡°What distance would you require for maximum effect on target.¡±
¡°Roughly twenty-five thousand Kilometers. Any further and our damage output would be reduced by almost half.¡± Tagarin stated.
Clint rubbed the stubble on his chin in thought, ¡°It will be tight, but I believe we can work with that. If you would be willing, Admiral Tagarin; I believe I have an idea to facilitate those necessities.¡±
¡°I¡¯m listening, Admiral¡± Tagarin perked his ears up, and the Giant bipedal Husky visibly leaned forward in his seat.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Centarus nodded approvingly as he drove his wedge deeper into Rawkir¡¯s orbit. Two of his lighter cruisers were currently providing some long overdue orbital support for his warriors below.
¡°Send a message to all vessels, advance slowly. Take no unnecessary risks.¡± He ordered before turning to the patiently waiting orderly. ¡°Report¡±.
¡°The conference is ready, Centarus.¡± The Crewman stated, and Centarus took a deep breath. Now was time to remove this particular bandage quickly, ¡°Indeed, Thank you. I will be there momentarily¡± Centarus returned the young warrior¡¯s salute and turned to enter his ready room. All of the commanders were joining virtually, and many had been openly calling for a return to offensive operations. ¡°Greetings, I¡¯ve called this meeting for one reason and one reason alone. We have expended a great many resources in our attempt to take this planet. I believe that in the next few hours, we will be forced to decide whether to withdraw from this world, or be driven from it with added losses.¡±
The outrage through the coms was palpable, and understandable, these commanders had bled for this ground, it would be hard to abandon the blood spilt on this soil. ¡°This is unfathomable, we are driving them back! This world is within our grasp, at this current rate.¡± It was Tyranus, the supreme commander of the forces on the ground.
¡°Indeed, we have taken back the majority of the orbital control we have lost, in much shorter time it took to gain it in the first place¡± Muricore, the commander of Centarus¡¯ vanguard fleet added, and Centarus suppressed a raised eyebrow. It was obvious to him the Muricore already suspected the same thing as Centarus. His trusted subordinate confirmed this with his next statement, ¡°However, this feels too easy compared to previous engagements here. Centarus, what do you see.¡±
Centarus nodded to his old friend, ¡°We picked up a directed signal on our transit to orbit. Its trajectory leads to no known system, it should not be possible for these Human vessels to traverse the stars this quickly. Until we know how, and can duplicate it, we must operate under the assumption that they can reinforce more swiftly than we can expect. I believe that we risk ambush should we stay too long on this world¡± Muricore nodded but stayed silent, and Centarus continued, ¡°furthermore, we have committed a larger percentage of our total expeditionary forces to this one world. Quite frankly, the only reason I continued to Rawkir was to preserve as many warriors as we can. We will need them to hold the foothold we have already acquired. Should we commit here, we risk not having the strength to hold the ground we have taken across the galaxy. Our Thermian allies are aiding us up spin, but they are less¡ committed¡ than we are. Our trust is yet to be fully justified.¡±
¡°I.. See..¡± The ground forces commander stated slowly. ¡°What do you wish for us to do.¡±
¡°I will be recommitting every vessel destroyer class or smaller to orbital support. Use their fire as a cover to pull back to the landing zone. All remaining Carriers, focus your fighters to fill the gap left by the destroyer¡¯s redeployment.¡± Centarus gave a sinister smile, ¡°We may be leaving for now, but they will never forget our touch.¡±
A chorus of confirmations ended the conference, and Centarus found himself back on the command deck of his flagship. ¡°Contact the fleet. All Destroyers are to target any and all life signs not Vorath inside their orbit to ground ranges¡ and open fire..¡±
____________________________________________________________________________________________
¡°OUT OUT OUT!¡± Dozer was in his full battle rattle, but his weapons slung uselessly over his back. Another eardrum shattering explosion rippled shockwaves through the earth, shaking the windows and bursting a few light fixtures. The school building turned makeshift hospital had already taken one direct hit to the combined Surgical and ICU ward, and Dozer hoped that at least a few of them got out. His thoughts were punctuated by another bright flash as a new burning ball of plasma slammed into the courtyard and burst. It was a small mercy that the Vorath could not spare their planet killers from the main fronts of orbital combat. One Orbital laser would have wiped the hospital, the topsoil, and all the foliage from the face of the universe, leaving only glassed over bedrock. The walking wounded wing finally cleared out to the waiting shuttles, and Dozer began sprinting toward the exit just in time to hear a strangled gasp of a shout from the ruined carnage of the ICU room. A vague human form covered in dust dirt, and gore emerge from the rubble dragging something behind him.
Dozer was driven to his knees as another closer impact blew all of the windows out in the hall, and a shard ripped across the dirty figure¡¯s face with a new splash of red as its unarmored body was thrown flat on the ground. Dozer was up in a flash and quickly rushed over to what he now recognized as the same Soldier he had saved in the trenches during the predawn assault. Sgt. Sean Reaux stumbled to his feet still dragging the corpse of non-other than one of Dozers Men. ¡°Help him!¡± the Sargent screamed, ¡°He¡¯s bad off!¡±. Dozer skidded to a halt as he recognized his Grenadier¡ well, Half of his Grenadier. Bruce Xavier was not in his armor, and his ruined body ended just below his diaphragm with his internal organs painting a long trail of blood down the hall. ¡°Help¡¯em!¡± Sean screamed again, barely conscious himself, blood-stained teeth and red spattering coughing hinted at his own reopened injuries as well as new ones. Dozer could not help his friend, but he could save the man trying to get him out.
Dozer grabbed Sean by the shoulders and shook him. ¡°He¡¯s gone soldier, he¡¯s gone. Nanites can¡¯t bring someone back from this.¡± Sean''s eyes widened before he finally turned to see the state of Bruce¡¯s body, seemingly for the first time. ¡°Fuck!¡± Sean swore, ¡°FUUUCK!!¡± He repeated once more before reaching down and yanking Bruce¡¯s Tags from around his neck. Dozer picked up the sergeant and began a near suicidal sprint only a MACE wearer could accomplish. The light gravity combined with his suit¡¯s assistance had the two of them out of the hospital, and across the field to the last shuttle, just as one of the plasma barrages finally hit their mark, flattening the structure and setting it alight in one go. One of the surviving Medic¡¯s pushed a Nanite Serrett into the Sargent¡¯s arm and Dozer laid him gently on the deck of the shuttle as the door closed and the Pilot wrenched the small vessel into the air.
¡°The fuckers are hitting every target with a pulse. No rhyme or reason other than it has people not theirs on the ¡°X¡±. It¡¯s a fuckin Terror bombing!¡± The Pilot howled over the chaos aboard.
Dozer stepped up to the cockpit door. ¡°Shit. How many other hospitals got out.¡± the armored captain asked, finally opening his helmets visor for the first time since the first rounds landed.
¡°We are the last. They didn¡¯t miss Hotel Bravo, and Hotel Delta took a direct hit five minutes in. We don¡¯t have enough shuttles. They are hitting housing districts as well. We are getting who we can but¡..¡± The Delmar airman¡¯s voice trailed off.
¡°What run is this for you, lieutenant.¡± Dozer inquired.
¡°My eighth sir. Its not getting any better.¡± The pilot responded. ¡°We are headed directly to Tharsis. She¡¯s the only one with enough open beds left, and they are filling up.¡±
¡°Good.¡± Was all Dozer could muster.
Chapter 102
¡°We got incoming!!!¡±
The frantic yell from the Cockpit snatched the attention of everyone in the less than smoothly ascending shuttle.
Alex Collins quickly stepped toward the shuttle¡¯s cockpit door, still in his armor but with his helmets face plate open. ¡°From where.¡± His crips tone left little in the way of conversationalism.
¡°177 by 228. I pushed out departure to give the stragglers from the hospital time¡ Now we have become the stragglers. The rest of the shuttles are inside fighter cover, we are¡¡± The man sputtered.
¡°Out of formation¡ Give us everything you can Lieutenant. Link me into the coms and get me Tharsis.¡± Collins ordered, quickly receiving the tell-tale beep from his suit.
*USN Tharsis, Please state your¡*
¡°This is Captain Alex Collins. I and multiple injured are on the last hospital shuttle from the surface. I need..¡± Collins paused as the first impact from incoming fire slammed into the shuttles shields. ¡°I need immediate cover, we have incoming. I repeat, enemy fighters incoming I need immediate co¡¡±
Collins was interrupted by a crackle on the radio and a strange double voice that sounded both male and female.
*Transmitting shuttle. Immediate turn 338 by 075, hard burn, no delay* the resonate double tone stated with a firmness that left the shuttle pilot responding even before the transmission was complete. The maneuver bore immediate fruit as a pair of plasma charges sailed wide flaring the shields only slightly as they glanced off instead of impacting directly.
*Unidentified transmission, this is a secure frequency. Identify yourself immediately! * came the irate response from Tharsis. There came no immediate response, but Collins closed his helmet and linked his hud with the shuttle¡¯s full spectrum sensors just in time to see a pair of vanta black shapes streak past the shuttle burning hard in the opposite direction. Moments later a salvo of no less than 8 missiles streaked out, quickly producing their own puffs of violence as the Heat-seeking ordinance found their target. Collins was still trying to figure out who were his unexpected benefactors when the pair of stealth fighters slipped up alongside the shuttle in close formation.
*We are Ivar and Martina Tras in command of USN Sombra and USN R¡¯Cari. Incoming threats neutralized. Shuttle, you may return to course, you have us the rest of the way.* came that strange resonating double voice. The shuttle pilot slowly arced his course back toward Tharsis before looking out to stare at the shuttle¡¯s Salvation. The void-born wraiths kept pace easily, effortlessly loping along beside the shuttle until the three of them reached the shuttle.
Tharsis quickly cleared all three of them into the hanger bay containing the rest of the shuttles and a few of the Raptors that had defended them. Alex lumbered down the shuttle''s ramp last, shaking the hand of the shuttle pilot who had risked everything to give him time to get everyone out. The two Stealth fighters landed astride the shuttle. They were very obviously bigger than the mix of Raptors and Rangers that made up Tharsis hybrid complement. Two figures exited the crafts, ignoring the ladder and simply dropping to the ground in the lighter ¡°galactic standard¡± gravity that all ships in this part of space used to accommodate as many species as possible. Dozer, all 500 lbs of him and armor in normal gravity, had to watch his steps lest he vault himself to the ceiling.
Ivar and Martina retracted their helmets, faces etched in shock at the sight of Collins, ¡°Dozer?!¡± Martina exclaimed sprinting over to him for a quick hug. Ivar smirked as he followed behind, giving the man a quick handshake. They had both met Alex shortly after Celest was towed back to Delmar space.
¡°Well, Shit. Dozer, you were in that thing?¡± He followed up. Noticing the other pilots slowly walking over to see the new arrivals. It was about an eighty/ twenty split, Human and Delmar; and it made Ivar smile internally seeing more of his people joining the elite ranks of beings capable of flying Human starfighters. For the first time in memory, Delmar had iterated on their venerable Ranger design. The ¡°Ranger 23¡± looked almost identical to its predecessor, but it was built to more¡ Human¡ performance tolerances. The number of his people who had successfully undergone the grueling and dangerous training to push themselves this far were few, but their numbers were slowly growing.
¡°Unfortunately, how the hell did you even get here. I thought you were off galivanting around the edge of the system.¡± Collins asked.
¡°We¡¯ve been watching the whole thing. The moment we saw what was happening, Captain Grarzia, Cory, released us on ahead. We can move fast when we want to, but we almost didn¡¯t make it.¡± Ivar explained before being tackled by one of the Delmar pilots.
¡°Holy Shit, McLovin! Where did you burn in from!¡± Ja¡¯krin, one of the original 2 pilots that had met Mac in the air those years ago playfully grappled with Ivar for a moment before relenting with a manhug.
¡°Ja¡¯k? Where did you come from!¡± Ivar¡¯s surprise made the younger man chuckle. ¡°I thought you were still 303.¡±
¡°Oh, I am,¡± Ja¡¯krin answered, ¡°but the call came out, and I got my 8 H.G. rating a few days prior. I¡¯m attached to Tharsis until this whole mess with Rawkir is dealt with.¡±
¡°Buzz, this your old commander?¡± one of the Human pilots, with captain¡¯s insignia on his uniform, stepped up.
¡°Captain,¡± Ja¡¯krin snapped off a quick salute, ¡°Yup, Ivar Tras. The crazy motherfucker who lead 303 during the Devoted attack. McLovin here was the first of us 303 boys to make the cut. Ivar, meet Captain Horace ¡°Howler¡± Alveretti. I¡¯de say he is the crazies Human I know, but I¡¯ve met BigMac so¡.¡± Ja¡¯krin grinned as two or three humans snorted in unison, including the captain.¡±
¡°Nice to meet you, Captain.¡± Ivar nodded to the man, ¡°How did you make out with the rest of the shuttles.¡±
¡°We lost one, 15 souls. Vorath asshole got clipped on his way in and decided to Kamikaze.¡± Horace answered with solemn nods all around. Howler brightened visibly after a moment, ¡°Other than that, we made out alright. Buzz here got his fourth and fifth victory. Your boys an ace now.¡± A series of howling cheers from surrounding pilots accompanied the announcement.
¡°Dozer, did you know any of them?¡± Ivar asked, clamping a hand on the shoulder plate of Collin¡¯s armor
¡°No, I was sent to help evacuate. I lost a man, Bruce my grenadier, but he never made it to the shuttle.¡± Alex offered. ¡°I should go, I need to check in with Command, and pay a visit... Thanks for the Save Ivar, I owe you something expensive and high proof.¡±Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.
¡°You don¡¯t, but I¡¯ll drink it all the same.¡± Ivar shook Alex¡¯s hand before the massive armor-laden Marine lumbered off.
¡°So, Buzz huh? How did that happen.¡± Ivar asked Ja¡¯krin.
¡°Howler got me drunk, then I had a¡. small incident with a trimmer.¡± Ja¡¯krin blushed slightly at Ivar¡¯s confusion.
¡°Your hair grew back nicely enough.¡± Ivar offered.
¡°Uh¡ That¡¯s not where the Trimmer accident happened¡¡± Ja¡¯krin said with a resigned laugh. Martina broke down into a burst of snorting giggled and Ivar¡¯s eyes widened as he put it together before being overcome by a belly laugh.
¡°That¡¯ll do it. Common, Let¡¯s get some grub.¡± Ivar offered upon regaining control of himself, ¡°I haven¡¯t had anything hot to eat today. Let me just get settled with the Deck Chief.¡±
¡°Would love to, we¡¯ll go find us a table, meet you in the mess,¡± Ja¡¯krin turned to Martina.
¡°It¡¯s a plan, I¡¯m starving!¡± she admitted. ¡°Common, I need all the details. Ace and all. Madre¡¯ You¡¯ve been busy.¡± She began as they headed for the mess.
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Centarus sat on the bridge of his flag ship. His captain was proving his worth, two more Delmar heavy cruisers had fallen to his guns, and one of those Human destroyers had been driven from the field by his flag ship alone. The Human vessels were annoyingly using the planet itself as an emplacement, forcing his vessels to crest the horizon to push their advance. It was slow going, but now he had what he needed to recover his kin on the ground. ¡°Send the shuttles, Message the troops. Initiate Insidias protocol and Prepare for Transport.¡±
¡°Received and confirmed, Centarus. Shuttles have departed.¡± The communications crewmen reported. Centarus watched the shuttles descend, covered by his new formations and the screen and the combined surviving fighters from both fleets. He could see the reconnaissance data showing the patrol routes of the enemy fighters. They were protecting their own forces, but no longer venturing into enemy airspace. Something was off. He had seen those fighters in action. He knew what they were capable of¡ ¡®I don¡¯t like this¡¯. ¡°Sensors, give me a long-range scan. As deep as you can go into the void.¡± He rumbled. It would take time for the scan to run. Until then, He focused on culling more of his enemy from orbit.
He could find none¡ It was as if the Unity and Human fleets were hiding. Over the next few hours, his flag ship discharged its main armament less than a dozen times, and Centarus watched as a steady stream of shuttles pulled his troops and what resources he could acquire from the planet¡¯s surface. His plan was going well. It would not be long before he was ready to cripple the planets ecosystem and depart. It was not a successful invasion, but denying Rawkir¡¯s manufacturing and technological base to the Unity would give his expeditionary forces the breathing room to solidify their footholds until the main fleet arrived. Still, something gnawed at the back of his mind. After the grueling combat he had experienced at the hands of the Humans, this felt too easy.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Alex Collins stepped into Tharsis¡¯ infirmary-turned-triage ward. The walking wounded stood, sat, or lay in the waiting area being tended to by some of the nurses, while the beds were filled with the more critical patients. Collins walked slowly through the mass of ruined bodies, many of them were Kawmawri, but more than a few Delmar and Human wounded lay scattered about the ward along with a sprinkling of other unity species. The man he was searching for was in neither of these groups, and Alex quietly snagged a male nurse who was between patients, ¡°Excuse me, I¡¯m looking for a Soldier. He came in with the last shuttle, punctured lung and an energy wound to his right side.¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry captain, I don¡¯t recognize him as one of the patients. You may¡ You may need to try the Morgue, we lost more than a few in the shuttle during the evacuation.¡± The man said before heading off toward the waiting area to triage more patients. Alex nodded his thanks, heading toward the back of the infirmary. Stepping through the door, he expected to ask an orderly to see a body. Instead, he found the man he was looking for. He was sitting in a wheelchair in the corner staring blankly into nothing while a familiar bloody dog tag idly spun in his hand. He looked up at the sound of the door, recognizing The Hulking Marine who was still in his armor, although with his helmet completely off at this point. ¡°Captain.¡± The man, in fresh scrubs, spun his wheelchair to face Alex and gave off a somewhat labored salute.
¡°As you were. I wanted to thank you.¡± Alex started, pullin up a chair and settling into it. ¡°You tried to save Bruce, he was one of mine.¡±
¡°I know, Captain Collins. Bruce was ecstatic to be given a suit. He always said it made him feel like a real-life Space Marine.¡± The man said sadly, eyes losing focus in the painful memory. ¡°We met when we were 6. I¡¯ve known him my whole life.¡±
¡°You¡¯re Reaux.¡± Alex stated, ¡°He spoke highly of you, ¡®despite being army¡¯. His words. He told me he was going to see you that morning. I didn¡¯t put it together though.¡± The Marine put a hand on the shoulder of the Soldier as he turned back to stare at the bloody dog tags in his hand.
¡°I told him not to come. I told him that I was fine, and I would buy him a beer orbit side¡ He refused, brought me a pack of Miller. He snuck it past the nurses, and died for it.¡± The last phrase ripped itself, dripping with rage, from the wheelchair-bound mans voice. He clenched his fist around the piece of metal in his hand, his shoulders shaking slightly below a clenched jaw. ¡°Those fuckers bombed hospitals¡ fucking hospitals¡¡± he growled.
¡°and homes..¡± Alex echo¡¯d Reaux¡¯s tone.
¡°How many did we get out.¡± Sean Reaux asked, turning to face the marine once more. ¡°How many did we save.¡±
¡°We got a little over fifty thousand out. Most of them were civilians, but we got most of ours out as well. We lost at least one hospital entirely. I don¡¯t know how many¡¡± Alex answered.
¡°Fuckers¡¡± Reaux hissed, ¡°And here I am, all fucked up and nowhere to dance.¡±
¡°Easy Sargent, rest up, our turn will come sooner than you think.¡± Alex clamped the man on the shoulder, ¡°I¡¯ll see about getting you someplace to rest. You look like ass.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t. I requested the chair. I have a full load of bed-programmed nanites onboard. I gave the bed up once they kicked in. Some other boys need it more.¡± Sean Reaux patted the chair and smirked, ¡°besides, I can chase the nurses easier on wheels.¡±
Alex knew it was a facade, but he also knew to respect the mans decision, ¡°Understood, Sargent. Come see me when you are recovered. I have to write the letter, but you know the family better than I do. bring me anything you would like to send them and I¡¯ll add it.¡±
Sean Reaux stiffened for a moment before slowly pulling an envelope from his scrubs.. It¡¯s dried blood encrusted fingerprints betrayed its origins. He handed it, almost reverently to Alex, gave a weak salute, and went back to spinning his dead childhood friend¡¯s dogtags. Sean did not bother to wait for a return salute. Alex just let the man be, choosing instead to head toward the mess.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Martina, Ivar and Ja¡¯krin were finishing off the last of their plates. The mess was about half full, with the shift change rush slowly filtering in.
¡°So, Spill¡±, Buzz finally broke the idle chit chat, turning to Ivar. ¡°You pick up command of 303, then get almost immediately pulled off for a series of classified missions. Then, out of nowhere, you and Chika burn in, Wax almost a squadron of fighters, then land in a pair of fighters that scream ¡°I could tell ya, but I¡¯d have to kill ya¡±. What gives.¡±
Chika snorted at the reference, and Ivar chuckled, ¡°You¡¯ve been watching too many Human Spy shows again.¡±
¡°Yea, so? Give.¡± Ja¡¯krin said with a shit-eating grin.
¡°The short story is, we are testing out a new type of fighter. I can¡¯t tell you anything else, but if you remember when we met Mac for the first time¡¡± Ivar pointedly let his voice trail off.
¡°Fuck me¡¡± Ja¡¯krin mumbled, skewering a piece of fruit from his plate. ¡°That would explain the Void demons you rode in on. Do you know what the timetable would be on something like that?¡±
¡°That, I can''t say.¡± Martina said. Drawing a confused look from Buzz as she answered for Ivar.
¡°We¡¯re still just pilots after all,¡± Ivar said almost as if he had never been interrupted.
¡°Ooook? I¡¯m not gonna get much out of the two of you am¡¡± Ja¡¯krin froze as husband and wife shared a look. ¡°Whoa shit¡ I heard rumors but¡ It''s true isn¡¯t it.¡±
¡°Hmm?¡± Martina asked, tilting her head slightly.
¡°¡You finally claimed Ivar¡¡± Buzz¡¯s eyes widened in understanding. ¡°That shouldn¡¯t be possible. What the hell have you two been up to.¡±
¡°We¡ we can¡¯t say. Yes, you are correct. I was recently able to Claim McLovin. I¡¯m not at liberty to tell you how.¡± Martina stated carefully, taking Ivar¡¯s hand as he reached to caution her.
¡°Well, CONGRATS!¡± Jak¡¯rin smiled broadly, ¡°However it happened, it¡¯s awesome news! We are gonna need to celebrate when we get back to¡¡±
The warning klaxon¡¯s howl broke everyone in the mess hall from their activities. The entire hall emptied out inside of a minute, its occupants filed out in practiced urgency before rushing to their stations.
________________________________________________________________________________________
USN Galveston exploded into real space trailing wisps of quantum plasma. Thirty-nine other warships appeared next to her in a planned formation, and several of them began to almost boil as they launched their fighters. Hundreds of scans had been analyzed to give the incoming fleet the closest possible arrival coordinate, and the mass of Human and Delmar vessels arrived within half an hour from orbit. Still, several ship¡¯s shields flared as small bits of debris bounced harmlessly off the energy fields.
A fleet-wide signal began transmitting from the Galveston, ¡°This is Grand Admiral Karmarin of the Unity Galactic Navy working in conjunction with the United Sol Federation and the Delmar Confederation. I am transmitting an encrypted packet along with this transmission. I, as the head of the UGN, have requested aid from Sol and of Delmar, and have received it. Commence operations within five minutes of the completion of this transmission. Void guide you all.¡±
Chapter 103
The Klaxon faded into the background noise as Centarus focused past it to the task at hand. A second fleet, fifty ships strong was burning hard for orbit. They had dropped much closer than he had dared, which had been a particularly unpleasant surprise. Their immediate transmission, although encrypted, betrayed the fact that this was a planned maneuver. ¡°Status on the withdrawal.¡± He growled.
¡°The last of the shuttles are approaching the surface¡ We..¡± The crewman at Coms paused, obviously listening to something urgent. The Crewman visibly paled, taking on a more ashen hew as he dropped the pad he had been holding. ¡°Uh¡ Cen¡ Centarus¡ New reports from the surface¡ the enemy has attacked.¡±
¡°Crewman, that much as obvious. Where, may I ask, have they attacked¡± Centarus growled, more than slightly annoyed at the lack of professionalism in these critical moments.
¡°Everywhere, Centarus¡± The crewman hastily picked up pad, handing it to his commander and transferring the new data that was now frantically streaming in.
Centarus snatched the slate away from the crewman, the data scrolled past along with a tactical map of the situation. He no longer faulted the young crewman for his reaction.
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¡°TWO EIGHT EIGHT, MARK! THREE THREE POINT ONE¡ CONFIRM!¡± The bawling of the Demlar staring at a screen was only matched by the scampering of men who surrounded an absurdly large metal monstrosity. It looked like a giant tube with hydraulics hanging from it. It was attached to a strange set of wheels with a pair of long feet that had been dug into the ground. It was one of six such contraptions all laid out in a row and ¡°dug in¡± as Maj. Partrilus had called it. The stately Delmar officer presided over the situation from a pair of screens before him. The entire front had been set ablaze on his order. Every individual and squad-level weapon was hammering Vorath positions with a relentless viciousness that General Ura had not seen in his entire service to the Unity. Delmar were not known for their aggression, but these ¡°Humans¡± seemed to draw it out of them. His defense force troops gave the First C.I.D. soldiers a wide birth, especially after a few drunken brawls had revealed that these new weapons were not the only new brutalities this new species had brought upon the Galaxy.
Still, Ura did not understand this exercise. What was the point of expending energy and ammunition when you were not advancing? Major Partrilus seemed to recognize his line of thinking. ¡°Do not fear, General. We will be advancing shortly.¡±
¡°Forgive me, but¡ why would you bother, the element of surprise is gone. Unlike your predawn assault, you did not lead with artillery.¡± Ura pointed out as the last of the giant metal contraptions were finished being futzed over.
¡°General, that was not artillery. They were only indirect fire from a squad-level mortar batteries. This..¡± The Delmar Major waved to the line of machinery in front of him. ¡°Is artillery.¡± Partrilus picked up a comm unit as it beeped.
*Firemission ready, Sir* came a crisp transmission.
¡°All Batteries, Commence.¡± Was all Patrilus stated. Setting the com unit down and slipping on a pair of protective earmuffs.
Ura quickly did the same, having learned that when the Major did something, he would be wise to do the same. Moments later, a massive sequence of explosions merged into one long deafening bellow, and every one of the 155mm Howitzer¡¯s in the battery line belched smoke and flame. The barrels sank down against their recoil buffering hydraulics, driving the already dug in spaded struts more deeply into the soft ground.
The concussive force nearly drove Ura¡¯s breath from him and the men crewing the Howitzers scrambled to their purpose, quickly reloading the massive weapons only to fire them again. Ura looked to Major Patrilus only to see the Delmar officer grinning fiercely as he seemed to embrace the organized violence being dispensed with gusto. The M777 was centuries old at this point. It had survived the magnetically accelerated revolution on a quirk of physics. MAC guns fired at incredible velocities, needed for their direct-fire role, long distance interstellar warship duels. They were also excellent when scaled down to man-portable, and squad level direct fire weapons, but they had a fatal flaw when it came to adapting them for ground-to-ground artillery purposes.
They were too violent. The G forces exerted on the projectile being fired were orders of magnitude higher, and imparted more sharply than conventional propellant was capable of. These realities mandated that MAC systems almost exclusively required a solid projectile for the ammunition to be able to simply survive being fired. ground-to-ground artillery, which was far more mobile, and far more versatile under adverse conditions than orbit-to-ground strikes, simply could not create the levels of Kinetic force to be useful with a solid projectile. Ground-based artillery NEEDED an explosive payload, and an explosive payload was simply too expensive to make safe enough to survive firing, and yet still powerful enough to be effective. The only exception to that rule was a nuclear payload, and even Humanity was less than enthused at the prospect of slinging canned sunlight this close to its own troops. Thus, the chemically propelled one hundred fifty-five millimeter HE projectile still had a place on the battlefield, and so did the venerable M ¡°Tripple Seven¡±.
Ura wondered just what had just been unleashed upon his Rawkir, and he feared that he would soon find out. The General was pulled from his consternation by a movement from the Major who picked up the Com¡¯s unit on the table and switched frequencies.
General Ura had to suppress a shiver as Patrilus keyed the mic, ¡°All Units, Advance.¡±
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Dozer was in a SOARD Pod, hurtling toward Rawkir for the second time of this Campaign. His readouts confirmed that his squad, less one Grenadier, were in formation. The shuddering morphed into a windy howl as the red faded from the porthole. ¡°Our target will be 129 from our drop zone. Follow the plan, hit the shuttles then move for the heavy emplacements,¡± Dozer paused as he noticed the counter reach 15 seconds, ¡°no prisoners¡± he released the mic just as the drop pods hit the ground. Every one of the Riflemen in his squad had been issued a 30 calibre belt fed, and a disposable AT-14 in addition to their full load out. This would have been a suicidal demand if it were not for the MACE MkII armor that each of them wore. Dozer¡¯s team had been fired directly into the heart of the enemy LZ, and two of his men had landed directly on or near enough to an unsuspecting enemy soldier to remove them from existence. Everyone exited their pod, leading with the belt feds, and the distant rumble of impacting artillery was drowned out by the staccato maelstrom erupting from the heart of the enemy evacuation. Dozer vaguely heard a ¡°clear backblast¡± call, stepping causally to the side as the man next to him lit off his AT-14, instantly detonating one of the shuttles. Two more took rocket fire in quick succession, rendering them to smoking hulks.
¡°One-four-zero, the tree line,¡± Came a cold calculating call, Dozer swiveled his fire, using the servo augmentation of his suit and the datalink sight displayed in his helmet to fire from the hip. Over a dozen Vorath came charging out of the tree line fourty yards from where he stood. Dozer never released the trigger, absent mindedly intrigued by the slight jumping of the transposed sight as it registered his weapons recoil. 50 rounds later, the charging enemy was cut to ribbons and Dozer lifted off the trigger, only to swivel onto a pair of light vehicles that came overing into the opening at entirely too much velocity. The first little hovering scout craft started taking fire, holes appearing all along its panelling that was obviously designed to reflect energy fire. The hover mechanism gave way almost instantly, plummeting the nose of the craft into the soft earth. Six Vorath were ejected from the stricken vehicle as it summersaulted. Four of them didn¡¯t get up, leaking from several holes in their torsos and arms.
One of them landed thirty feet from Dozer. The Warrior stood, bellowing his rage as he drew a blade from his waist. Dozer smiled under his helmet, tossing aside the empty machine gun and drawing his own blade. His opponent hissed as he recognized the blade and charged him. Dozer took a single step forward, flicking his blade clean through the right arm of the Warrior before reversing his blades direction with ridiculous ease. Without his armor, in normal gravity, the blade weighted as much as a sword, but inside of his MACE, it was but a feather. The reversal took his opponents stomach, slicing it laterally and releasing the Voraths internal organs to the ground. The man screamed again, this time in pain. He didn¡¯t scream for long as Dozers final strike took the Warriors head from his shoulders.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Dozer didn¡¯t bother picking up his foe¡¯s weapon as several heavy laser bolts slammed into his chest armor. Alarm bells rang in his helmet as he rolled out of the way, pulling his own rocket launcher from its straps. ¡°Clear backblast!¡± He growled, waiting just a heartbeat more before triggering the AT-14. The emplacement, another dismounted coaxial Laser cannon ceased its fire as the rocket slammed into the tripod just below the weapon, misting the crew and blowing the weapon into several smoking pieces.
¡°CLEAR!¡± called one of his men, Dozer looked around, pulling his regular service rifle over his shoulder before returning with a ¡°clear¡± of his own.
¡°Two shuttles got out, but the rest are done.¡± One of the riflemen stated. ¡°orders?¡±
Dozer lifted his rifle, putting his helmets hud over the head of a writhing injured enemy and pulled the trigger. ¡°As soon as the artillery stops, we hit their rear. Kill everyone.¡± Dozer growled, turning to begin stomping towards the sound of Explosions.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
¡°They WHAT?!?¡± Centarus couldn¡¯t believe it. A single squad of these Human soldiers had just obliterated his landing zone, almost 400 defenders, and 150,000 troops in shuttles on the ground and barely taking off. His Two shuttles Were barely in the upper atmosphere, frantically burning for orbit. They would not be able to make a return run. His rear guard had taken the Oath of Devoted, they knew this could be their fate, and accepted it eagerly. He watched one of the escaping shuttles recordings as Being¡¯s in armor unlike anything he had seen, tore through his men like they were cadets. The monitor switched recordings just as one of those suits of armor cut a Captain into ribbons, and He forced his face to stay neutral as he recognized the blade as one of his own peoples. It was the warrior from the Prisoner exchange, and Centarus could only look on as the human took several direct hits from a laser cannon, seemingly with no real effect before silencing the position. ¡°Signal the Devoted, Tel them¡¡±
¡°Centarus! The enemy fleet!¡± The Sensor station interrupted Centarus, but he could not fault the crewman. He noticed it the moment he heard the call out. All across the orbital horizon, every human ship in orbit above Rawkir crested. They were in three and four ship formation, and He instantly recognized the shared energy shield strategy blended with mobile battle groups.
¡°Deploy the fleet! We will give the shuttles the time we can.¡± Centarus stated.
¡°Centarus, their reinforcement fleet is moving to cut us off.¡± It was his flag captain, the man he swore a blood oath with, ¡°You know my feelings, but we must save what we can. Vengeance can wait, but two shuttles are not worth the fleets. We will have to fight past them anyway, it is still better than fighting through them.¡±
Centarus regarded his flag captain with respect. The man had the rights by honor to press the attack, yet he was here advising his superior for the betterment of the fleet. ¡°Agreed, Signal the fleet, we make for open space. Send word to the Devoted, we will not be able to fully implement the protocol. Die well, detonate all preparations you can.¡±
____________________________________________________________________________________________
The Vorath ships turned toward open space, sending parting salvo¡¯s of plasma and laser toward the infrastructure centers within range. 3 million souls died in the short rain of terror. The Devoted got the message, but only partially in time.
Admiral Steven clenched his fist at the wanton disregard for innocent life. It felt like a failure, failing to save those people from a needless death. ¡°Time to Intercept.¡± He growled, watching the battle unfold as an almost reverse of his first meeting with the Vorath. Several of the sensor readings matched vessels he had faced that day, including its flagship.
¡°We can engage now, but another five minutes until we can uncouple.¡± Admiral Tagarin stated from next to him. ¡°Are you sure this.. shield wall.. is capable?¡± as if on que, several enormous plasma projectiles slammed into the shields being projected in front of the battle group.
¡°I believe they will be up to the challenge.¡± Steven smirked, ¡°All USN vessels, maintain course and speed, fire at will.¡± He stated with an absurd calm, turning to the Lycan Admiral, ¡°We will begin phase 2 in a few moments, good hunting admiral.¡± Tagarin cocked his head slightly at the outstretched hand of the human before taking it in his own paw. The Human admiral shook it once, releasing it just as a midshipman stepped up next to them. The Delmar crewman saluted Tagarin, ¡°Sir, I¡¯ll be guiding you to the shuttle bay. If you will follow me.¡±
Several minutes later, the first of the incoming Vorath fire splashed harmlessly off the shield wall of USN Texas and her escorts. Stevens had split up the main fleet into smaller battle groups, each centered around a titanic Ship of the line. It was a traditional tactic from the GSW, one that Folmuri had adopted with Gusto. The two admirals had split up, Stevens staying on the Texas and Folmuri Moving to Tharsis to provide a unified yet decentralized command structure. Their charges, the Legion and Unity forces who originally responded to Rawkir had shifted almost entirely to the northern pole. Wisconsin and New Jersey were the only ones left to attack from subjective south as they were the only vessel in the responding fleet with the pure unadulterated firepower to make the ruse believable. They were to join up with the reinforcement fleet and press the pincer attack from that pole. The southern attack, lead by Unity High Admiral Karmarin and aided by Captain Harrison was to be coordinated from a freshly repaired USN Galveston. Every officer in the United Sol Navy knew that Harrison should have been an admiral long before the end of Humanity¡¯s civil war, but Wild Bill had turned down the promotion on multiple occasions. So, while still only a captain, Bill was the perfect liaison to ensure that any confusion was kept to a minimum. Karmarin¡¯s fleet had done the same, splitting into combat groups, fanning out over one flank of the withdrawing Vorath ships. Stevens and Folmuri unfurled their formation on the other, but they had a final surprise for their enemy.
¡°Signal Admiral Tagarin, Decouple.¡± Stevens ordered. Texas shuddered as the clamps in her capital ship bays deactivated. The opposing fleets were within two hundred thousand kilometers as every single Legion ship capable of doing so decoupled from the Unity ships originally defending Rawkir. Their charges were not capable of linking their shields, so they had been shepherded into the effective range of their energy weapons. Every surviving Unity ship capable of direct combat fanned out from their hiding spots filling in the gaps between the legion battle groups. And opened fire.
The running battle to the edge of the Rawkir system was a brutal slugfest prosecuted inside of point-blank distances for every ship involved. The Vorath may have been withdrawing, but they were still incredibly dangerous. Their remaining fighters boiled from their carriers, being met by Human and Delmar fighters of their own. The Human destroyers could not enact so brazen a tactic as before, and their electronic warfare was mitigated somewhat by their inability to operate freely. The following 3-hour maelstrom of laser, plasma, missile, and kinetic bombardments wielded the reapers scythe through both sides. While one-sided, the combined fleets began taking losses. Tharsis took several direct hits from fighters that had broken through the allied screens, She lost three of her main batteries and two main drives. Her Port side generators overloaded, briefly causing the shield wall on that side to falter. The Gales took no less than 12 direct hits before the shields were reestablished, and she fell from the formation, her back broken, and under a complete power failure as her reactor was barely shut down before overloading.
DDS Bastion, one of the original ships to escort Traveler to Delmar space all those years prior took a planet killer laser amidships. It overloaded the shield wall she was behind before punching clean through her. Eighty percent of her crew were killed instantly. With the rest fighting for their lives in the three surviving pieces that were once her hull. Dozens of Unity ships fell, unable to combine their defensive abilities, but willing to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with their new allies.
New Jersey had pulled in front of Simo, shielding the Eros bodily from another planet-killer laser. Her shields had failed her, but her ablative armor proved worthy. Nonetheless she lost every main gun on her starboard side, and a third of her crew was killed in the blast. Simo had been in the process of cooling down her massive power banks required to fire the Vulkan that was her centerpiece. A disabled New Jersey slowly tumbled just the right way to clear her muzzle, and the Captain of USN Simo hot-swapped his fire sequence to Ithica. Simo poured her vengeance back at the enemy that had crippled her compatriot. She fired the molten shotgun round at well inside minimum effective range. The round never properly segmented, but it didn¡¯t matter. The Vorath heavy cruiser simply ceased to exist, Its wreckage being added to the Ithica fragments that proceeded to murder 7 other ships before loosing enough energy to do damage.
Martina, Ivar, and Ja¡¯krin had launched together. Ivar and Martina activated their shield generators in anger for the first time since receiving R¡¯Cari and Sombra. Stealth was not to rule this day, only strength, speed, and brutality. Over fifteen hundred fighters met each other in the vicious knife fight that developed between the dueling warship line. Buzz revealed the other half of his callsign. He had taken a liking to kinetic weapons more than most of the other up and coming Delmar fighter pilots. His Raptor had been ¡°modified¡± to carry a pair of extra GAU 34¡¯s at its wing roots. He could only carry half the normal missile count, but Buzz proved he didn¡¯t need them. He refused to carry a single Pheonix missile, preferring to carry only heat seekers. The Delmar pilot sawed through his opponents with an almost reckless use of his MAC guns and occasional Fox2 fired at almost point-blank range. His wingman was a Human by the callsign ¡°Woody¡±, and Ivar had to be promised a movie night to explain just why that was so hilarious. Woody and Buzz effortlessly traded lead slots every few kills, each Harvesting swaths of enemies like a murderous runaway combine. Martina and Ivar shared their pride in their student as they danced among the enemy. Their ballet of death was almost the antithesis of ¡°Buzz and Woody¡±¡¯s wake of carnage. Single short bursts, a missile slipping from the rail, often hitting a target not even being engaged by the vessel it departed from, Martina and Ivar became one mind in two places. They focused on filling gaps, using their massive sensor and computing advantage to pick off enemy fighters that had fallen through the cracks, gotten too close to a friendly, or decide to make the mistake of engaging them directly; of which the latter were many.
Despite their efforts almost half of the Human and Delmar pilots did not make it home. Of the three hundred pilots sent out, one hundred and fourty made it back under their own power. Another thirty pilots were recovered in the aftermath having either bailed out or been disabled. Those three hundred Legion fighters had faced twelve hundred, and the fighting had been as brutal as it was one-sided. Only four hundred Vorath fighters returned to their carriers. Of the three hundred fifty vessels that Centarus had committed to this operation, seventy made it to the jump out of the system. The Unity had lost three hundred and fifty of their once four hundred strong defending vessels. Humanity and Delmar had sent sixty-two ships between the two fleets. They had lost fourteen vessels total with another eight taking enough damage to require a shipyard-level repair.
Sevens took a deep breath as the last Vorath ship blinked out of existence, ¡°All units stand down. Away rescue teams. Let¡¯s get back to¡¡±
¡°Admiral!¡± the Coms crewman interrupted. ¡°We have an urgent message from the planet!!¡±
Stevens turned to the crewman, brow furrowing at the interruption, ¡°Put it up.¡± He barked.
¡°Jesus Christ in heaven preserve them..¡± came the ghost of a prayer from behind Stevens as he turned to see the main viewer.
Chapter 104: End of Book 3
The Kawmari homeworld hung in the black, a wounded orb surrounded by a shimmering minefield of the dead and dying. Her orbit was not the only portion of the system marred by the clash. A jagged scar reached out from the planet to the jump location of the Vorath fleet. Enemy hulks mixed with Friendly in a slowly expanding cloud of debris that marked the running battle to drive the invasion fleet from the system. Captain Corellus Grarzia, Master under the void of the USN Olyvia sat in his captain¡¯s chair. Olyvia had been patched up using supplies from the Texas, and she was back out at the edge of the system along with Protectorate. They were backed up by Ivar, Martina, Ja¡¯Krin and Squadron-mates. Captain Alveretti and his squadron were largely intact, loosing only four of their fifteen ships. Howler himself had quadruple aced in the final battle, with Buzz and Woody both taking seventeen kills apiece. Both capital ships and fighters were strung out in a picket formation, serving as early warning in the aftermath of the battle. Their foe was driven from the system, but their total numbers were largely unknown.
¡°Captain, incoming transmission. Codes match¡± the report barely superseded a flash of a slipspace breach. A massive egg-shaped station broiled out of slipspace. It was a technique first used under the late Admiral Burgoyne. Five ships separated themselves from the GHO station, taking it under tow towards the beleaguered planet. The formation of station and her stewards were not alone. No less than 4 Delmar Cruisers, the newest breed of Delmar Hulled, hybrid armed warships, exited alongside, and took up their defensive positions. The final arrival would have been completely unnoticed, had it not been running all exterior lights and activated its Beacon.
*Olyvia, this is Concord. Request permission to dock and come aboard* Admiral Grarzia¡¯s voice drew a raised eyebrow from Cory as well as a few mutters from his crew.
Cory pushed a button on his armrest, tapping directly into the frequency, ¡°Of Course, Admiral. We¡¯ve become quite practiced at accommodating starfighters at this point.¡±
*Thank you. Have the squadron and yourself pull back for now. Protectorate shall suffice as picket* Mac ordered, slipping Concord smoothly alongside Olyvia as the two turned toward the planet. Soon enough R¡¯Cari, Sombra, and the rest of the fighters fell alongside for their journey back to Tharsis. Concord gave a wing wave to her fellows before slipping up to Olyvia and hooking up.
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Cory made it to the airlock just in time to see his sister, Lyrian, emerge through it, almost running to her brother to give him a very human hug. ¡°Oof! Lyri! Its good to see you too.¡± Cory sputtered, completely failing to maintain any semblance of captainly bearing. Mac was more sedate in his entry into the ship. Snapping off a few salutes, and greeting a few friends with handshakes before offering one to Cory. ¡°This is a bit of a surprise, both of you. What brings you two out here.¡±
Mac released Cory¡¯s hand and smiled, ¡°I had to congratulate my Commanders in person, and Lyri seems to have a thing about letting me go galavanting around active war zones alone. I¡¯m also here to facilitate introductions. I¡¯m sure you noticed a few familiar hulls towing the GHO platform.¡±
Cory nodded, ¡°I did, I hadn¡¯t realized they were ready. Do I know any of the captains?¡±
Mac only smiled, ¡°That would be telling. Don¡¯t worry, we will all be meeting aboard the Gally. I have it on good authority that Admiral Karmarin and Bill had quite the adventure in her.¡±
¡°Aye Sir. The Galveston fought well. Will she be your new flag, Sir?¡± Cory asked. The three of them were walking Olyvia¡¯s corridors for her captain¡¯s office. Cory activated the door, waving the two through before entering it himself.
¡°I¡¯ve proposed that Harrison and Karmarin stay permanently paired aboard Galveston. The UGN is in dire straits, and having their high admiral able to both coordinate with us and traverse Unity space at speed appears the prudent option.¡± Mac stated just as the door chime rang.
Lyrian reached over and activated the door and Jackie Young stepped through with a pad in her hand. ¡°Oh! Excuse me! I didn¡¯t know we had company. Welcome aboard Admiral. Captain Grarzia I¡¡± Jackie was startled to a stop as Lyrian stepped up in front of her.
¡°You¡¯re Doctor Young.¡± She stated sternly, eyeing the Human woman with a severe gaze.
¡°I am¡ Mrs. Grarzia is it?¡± Jackie leveled a confused and annoyed gaze at Lyrian. ¡°Is there a problem?¡± The two of them seemed to stare each other down before Lyrian broke into a wide smile and scooped the shorter Jackie into a not quite crushing hug.
¡°You patched up my brother, and saved my brother-in-law.¡± She paused, taking a discreet sniff before stepping back and looking into Jackies eyes, ¡°and it appears a welcome to the family is in order.¡± She said before hugging her again. ¡°I was wondering why Cory was always busy, now I know.¡± She nodded approvingly, turning back to see Mac and Cory staring at the two of them with amused expressions. ¡°What?!¡±
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¡°Offload decks 17 and 19 first! We need to get the atmosphere stabilized first before we can begin on the topsoil!¡± Saurian Ambassador Ami watched as orders were given out. She was back where she belonged. Years ago now, Ami had graciously accepted the position as ambassador to the Sol Federation, and her duties kept her close to two of her closest friends Gwen Trenton and Silu. Her life¡¯s passion, however, lay in raining down life-saving aid and rescue efforts upon traumatized worlds. She was not technically in command of this platform, and a point of pride swelled as she witnessed its well-organized operations. Her niece, the one she had apprenticed to test her metal, was embarking on her final test to become a fully accredited coordinator. The final GHO coordinator test was always the same. The aspirant, under the careful eye of a veteran coordinator, was to prove themselves among the stars. Her niece¡¯s final exam was to provide aid to the war-torn world of Rawkir, but that was not why Ami felt the pride she did. No, her niece had expressly requested Ami as her Presider. To be requested by an aspirant was rare, and Ami was honored to preside over her niece¡¯s final test.
¡°Double check the pressure canisters on deck 44. Engineering reported a power fluctuation in their containment power supplies.¡± The younger, and considerably sorter Saurian lumbered up to her Aunt. ¡°Aunt Ami. How was your trip.¡±
¡°My dear, I am contented. Truth is, I¡¯ve missed being on a platform; even with their more confining spaces.¡± Ami smiled down at her niece. Even as they talked, she was taking stock of different notifications as well as her immediate surroundings. ¡°So, Turrasile. Explain to me the offload you have planned.¡±
Turrasile nodded, taking stock of her pad before responding, ¡°The topsoil in the combat area is heavily degraded from the ordinance and contaminations of war, but the planet could heal that well enough. Our primary problem is with sabotage. The Vorath appear to know how to poison an eco-system, and they set fire to every manufactory in their possession as they retreated. That was Before their remnants released a cloud of improvised chemical poisons into the air. We are seeing a rapid cascade effect that could render the planet¡¯s atmosphere unbreathable within the month if left unchecked.¡±
¡°Hmm, I concur,¡± Ami stated. As much as her job was to test her student, the GHO allowed for the Presider to ensure that the testee was not allowed to follow through on any mistakes, and Ami had full overruling authority as well as the right to take full control should she feel it warranted. ¡°So, aerosolized counter agent?¡±
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¡°Not this time, at least not the traditional kind. The area is too great. A standard pneumatic Aerosol would not have the desired effect quickly enough.¡± Turrasile stated, pulling up her pad, ¡°The Human and Delmar specialists were kind enough to analyze some of the particles, and I believe we can utilize a catalytic reaction to burn out the poisons before the damage becomes unrepairable. There are a few chemicals, harmless to the ecosystem as a hole, that can soak up the poisons and render both completely inert.¡±
¡°I¡ see your point. You wish to disperse an absorption agent; but I fail to see a dispersion method.¡± Ami looked at her student expectantly.
¡°I watched the records of the first Human engagements here. I believe we can use this¡¡± Turrasile turned her pad to face Ami and played the simulation, stifling a giggle at her aunt¡¯s flabbergasted expression.
¡°I¡ see¡ It''s ingenious, and possibly even a little poetic. Do the Humans have enough of these?¡± Ami asked.
¡°I¡¯ve already been in contact with Admiral Stevens. He has approved. It will take all of the rest of the SOARD¡¯s on hand to do it, but it will be enough.¡± Turrasile smiled.
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Centarus sagged into his office chair. He had not slept in over a week, and the doctor-proscribed stimulants were quickly losing their effectiveness. The reports, however, were all finally published. The situation was grim. The majority of his fleet over Rawkir was gone. Less than a quarter of his men on the ground had made it out, and fewer still had been on one of the few surviving ships that hung about their hidden asteroid base. His options were limited, but they were still options. Many of the races recorded in the histories as weak were both proven to be so, yet still considered valuable after a fashion. The conquered worlds of the foothold would lend him a bounty to rebuild while he waited for the main fleet to arrive.
The Thermians were taking to the first stages of their ascension. Centarus had authorized the first of the genetic augmentations, just enough to give the lizards a taste, but not enough to create a threat for himself. Kar was proving to be an able tactician, having made quick work of the worlds he arrived at, but in the grand size of the Unity, progress at the speed of subspace was still slow. Still, thousands of worlds stood to provide him with the material, sustenance, and raw material needed to hold his current territory and rebuild. To that end, the last of Centarus'' orders had been dispatched to his regional commanders. The instructions were simple. Squeeze. Drive hope from the worlds in Vorath grasp. Force them to mine, farm, harvest, and build for him. He would focus on the worlds with the most to give, consolidating his shows of strength to silence descent. It would be a tricky play. Keeping his ships on the move to terrorize sequential worlds into compliance would cost him fuel and time, but it would be done.
Centarus groaned in his seat, preparing to stand when a flashing message appeared on his screen. He annoyingly opened it, ready to respond to another sniveling commander begging for scraps..
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Correllus Grarzia stepped into the conference room aboard USN Galveston. Admiral Grarzia was already there, speaking to several of the captains. Cory noticed a few faces, Dozer gave him a smirk and a quick salute from over in the corner with another Human who boasted a defined drawl in his voice. Most of the other captains of the retrofitted troop transports turned privateers were unfamiliar to him, save for one. Cory¡¯s eyes widened as Hera, wearing a USN uniform with captains insignia, approached him with a wide smile before giving him a tight hug. A further surprise revealed itself when Jacob Irving saunter up behind her wearing the camouflaged pattern adopted by the combined infantry divisions of Sol and Signar.
Cory raised an eyebrow in surprise at the two, ¡°What¡¯s going on? I thought you guys were on the homeworld!¡± he exclaimed.
¡°We saw what happened to Karmarin, and what was going on with Rawkir. Originally we were going to use Traveler, but one of the captains had to leave for Sol because of a family situation. Hera reached out to Mac and here we are.¡± Jake explained, stepping up to take Hera¡¯s hand. ¡°It''s not quite the honeymoon we planned but, I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll find plenty of interesting places, meet interesting people, and- OOF!¡± Jake was interrupted by an elbow driven into his side by a smirking Hera.
¡°Honeymoon¡ Your parents approved?¡± Cory smiled broadly, ¡°Congratulations!¡± He was about to say more when Mac cleared his throat loudly, bringing all conversation to a halt.
The man who was possibly the sole being responsible for the current chance of defeating the Vorath slowly walked toward the central table. Admiral Grarzia slipped a stick into the controls and quickly pulled up the grim map of Unity space. It was a grim reminder of the shattered state of things, and Mac let the image settle into their minds before beginning. ¡°Ladies, Gentlemen, and yes, Marines.¡± There was an obtrusive snort from the corner of the room where Collins and Galanis stood. ¡°We are all finally here, with completed ships. Thanks to Captain Grarzia, we now have an idea of just how effective these ships can be in the right hands.¡± Mac nodded to Cory and a few captain straightened, regarding him more seriously. ¡°Our Mission, Captains, will be one of subterfuge, sabotage, and insurgency. From our records acquired in Operation Library, we know that the Vorath will enslave planest that are of value, and murder weak people to have their planets repurposed. Our goal, is to help those planets become a pain in the Vorath''s ass. We will be taking and sinking shipping, both military and otherwise. You will notice Captains Collins and Galanis are with us today. They will stand up two MACE teams that will be floating amongst our ships as the mission dictates. Each vessel will have its own small complements of combined infantry. One of our goals is to liberate enslaved and captured civilian shipping. We wish to cripple their ability to wage war, but we will be rescuing who we can, and facilitating the resistance of those who are willing to fight.¡± Mac typed again into the table¡¯s controls. ¡°You will be operating semi-autonomously. Outside of regular check-ins and an Area of Operations buffer system, you will be largely free to create, plan, and prosecute any missions you see fit. While limited, you will have backup should you need it, and give any lead time required before starting your mission. By now, all of you know of R¡¯Cari, Sombra, and Concord. They will be acting as a rapid response, and stationed from a mobile flagship we will be using as a base. Any question.¡±
¡°Admiral,¡± It was Galanis, ¡°Which boat will be your flag, and how much ass will she be capable of pulling out of the preverbal fire.¡±
¡°The second part of your answer is, a lot.¡± Mac smirked at the grizzled marine, ¡°She will be Concord, R¡¯Cari, and Sombra¡¯s base of operations. These are not fighters as you have understood them. They will be acting in a more limited capacity, but still with the same mission as your own. All three are capable of long-term solitary operations, and will often be used as such. This is one of the reasons we will need lead time on any missions in which you foresee backup being required. The first part..¡± a satisfied smile told them they would find out soon enough.
¡°Admiral, what will be our rules of war?¡± Jacob asked carefully, ¡°I just wish to know our limits.¡±
Mac smiled menacingly before turning serious, ¡°None.¡± He stated flatly, ¡°I have hand-picked each and every one of you because of your experience, tenacity, and intelligence. The Vorath have asked for total war, and we will give it to them.¡± More than a few smiles flashed about the room. ¡°There will be only one rule, Be the monster THEY fear, not the one you fear in yourself. Any more questions?¡± There were none, and Mac pulled up a final sequence of numbers, ¡°We depart from these coordinates in twelve hours, Dismissed!¡± Every spine around the table straightened as Mac departed the Conference room.
The next twelve hours were a flurry of activity. A gigantic supply vessel, the DDS Tiny Tim was a freshly commissioned vessel. She was nearly half the size of the GHO response platform, and carried both supplies for the relief effort as well as a full rearming of every one of Mac¡¯s fleet. His insurgency fleet did not have a name, and that was sure to solve itself in time. Cory and Jackie spent an afternoon meal with Jake and Hera before they departed for their vessels. Work continued through the night, and Cory was impressed by his acquired tolerance for human levels of caffeine. Olyvia was as good as new when she arrived at the coordinates with a vast twenty minutes to spare. Over the next few minutes, each vessel pulled into position awaiting the flagship. Exactly at twelve hours, Admiral Grarzia arrived aboard USN Wisconsin. The Titanic Battleship was not a ship of the line, But Mac had chosen her specifically because she was not. They would be fighting in quick, hit and run engagements. There would be no time to traditionally deploy and recover fighters, and the three vessels that could be called fighters in a pinch, were fully capable of jumping for themselves. Wisconsin¡¯s singular shuttle bay had been retrofitted to service and house Concord, R¡¯Cari, and Sombra, and she had received a fresh stealth coating after the conflict over Rawkir. She, not requiring the bulk need to house fighters, was better accelerating and nimbler in a fight than any Ship of the Line. She was every bit the perfect tool her namesake would be proud of.
Mac looked over to meet the eyes of her commander, Captain Thomas ¡°Bull¡± Fuller. Thomas was a full head taller than Mac but weighed very nearly the same as the Admiral. He had earned his moniker in the first battle of Ceres, where he turned port broadside on in front of three Martian cruisers and a carrier to bodily protect his outgunned escorts. Bull Fuller had closed to grips with the enemy, single-handedly trading blows with those warships while his escorts, laden with civilians from Ceres, were able to escape. Wisconsin had come home heavily wounded that day, almost half her four-thousand-man crew critically injured and a third of them killed, but those four Martian warships did not come home at all.
¡°Board is green Admiral; all vessels are data-linked and ready¡± Bull stated formally with just a hint of a Boston accent.
¡°Thank you, Captain. Take us out.¡± Mac stated, settling into an auxiliary chair next to the captain¡¯s own command chair.
The USN Wisconsin, flanked by a small flock of her cohorts, flashed into slip space, and made for enemy territory.
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He woke up. How long he had been in bio stasis was unknown. What was known, was the pain. His bones prominently creased his skin, frail emaciated flesh clung to him as he looked around slowly at his surroundings. He was among friends, on a bio bed. He as restrained, but that was standard for a situation such as his, and he opened his mouth to speak. A weak wrasp left his lips, but it was enough to draw the desired attention. A cup was brought to his lips, and he sipped cautiously all too aware of the dangers of becoming to greedy.
¡°Thank you.¡± He rasped.
¡°Do not speak. You will be restrained for at least another day. Your body as not prepared for its slumber, and you are in a precarious position.¡± The doctor stated, setting the cup down before examining the bed readings.
¡°Thank you..¡± he got out.
The Doctor only nodded a small formal bow, ¡°An honor, no thanks are necessary. Welcome back Legarus.¡±
Chapter 105: Beginning of Book 4
Kirese slowly trudged toward the bridge of her home. It was a shell of its former self, with the reeking scents of sickness, blood, and pain floating in the weak current of the barely functioning recirculation system. Her home, the Centarun Delmar freighter Swiftsure limped along. Her engines strained, barely capable of maintaining subspace, and she was not alone. Her torturer, a Vorath cruiser by the name of Vengeful Fist was a planet killer, and it loped along easily beside the battered freighter. She was the latest in a long line of escorts as Swiftsure was forced to ferry ¡°war material¡± through what used to be Unity space. Those ¡°war materials¡± were the spoils of the Centarun clans adopted homeworld. Eon¡¯s past, the Delmaracian clans had expanded throughout the Galactic Unity, and they had cemented themselves as the dominant species responsible for traversing the vastness of the stars. They were the lynchpin of the Unities Economy¡ and now they were slaves to an age-old enemy, hellbent on erasing her clan for daring to share a name with their beloved leader.
80 percent of her kin were dead, their adopted homeworld laid bare and force to produce for the Vorath invaders. The Delmar had chosen exclusively jungle worlds as their clan bastions, but her home no longer wrapped herself in her protective canopy. The Vorath had conquered it, and subsequently deforested the vast majority of it, churning everything they could into the soil to become forced labor farms to feed their expeditionary force. Kirese was not supposed to know, but she overheard whispered conversations that bode ill of the future. She reached her chair, stripped of its upholstery and most of its functions. The Vorath detachment inside her home were the true masters of the vessel, and her discomfort was the constant reminder that her title as ¡°captain¡± was little more than symbolic. This ship had been her father¡¯s, and the blood stain, at her feet was all Kirese had left of him.
The Vorath commander had simply blown him away one morning, shot from his chair and purged from the vessel like so much garbage. She had been at the sensor station and had watched it happen. It had made no sense, at least at first. Only later that evening had she understood. Their torturers had Invaded Rawkir¡. And been defeated. Their captives were never meant to know, but her father had been participating in spreading contraband information among the enslaved survivors of the Invasion. It had been almost three months past. And the Vorath commander had killed two crewmembers who were caught trying to clean up the dried puddle. It was to be a sickening monument to the dominance, and brutality of their conquering masters.
The murderer of her father stepped up to leer over her, ¡°Status.¡± His arrogant growl both demanded her subservience and promised violence should she not give it.
¡°I¡ still two more days, Highest.¡± She uttered numbly. ¡°Our drives are almost failing, if we drop out to accelerate further, we risk a drive breach. I do no¡¡± a heavy fist landed squarely on her cheek bone, shattering it and sending her sprawling to the floor.
¡°You dane to disrespect my wishes..¡± the cool callous voice froze the bridge in terror as two more Vorath guards drew their weapons. ¡°We will be doubling our jump speed at the next beacon jump. Should the drives fail, I will kill you where you sit. Back in the chair¡± he grabbed her by the hair on the back of her head, dragging he across the bridge and back into the chair. Kirese¡¯s face was already heavily swelling, and she quickly lost the use of her left eye as Swiftsure and her escort dropped from subspace.
¡°Helm.. turn on¡± Kirese spit a tooth on the floor, ¡°turn on course. Spin up the main drives.¡± She wheezed as the pain blurred her vision. ¡°Time to jump?¡± she croaked.
The master Alarm blared, and number three final drive blew. Throwing everyone to the floor. The Vorath commander was standing when the failure threw him from his feet, and his head landed heavily on the railing dazing him. His two cohorts raised their weapons, daring anyone to give them an excuse to kill. ¡°Shut down the drives.¡± Kirese wheezed, ¡°contain the¡.¡± The order died in her throat as the front observation window of the drifting freighter swung to put the vorath cruiser in view. Lase and plasma was practically boiling off her flanks as she pivoted silently in space, trying desperately to get her ¡°planet killer¡± laser pointed at terror straight out of nightmare.
The vessel was several times the size of the Vorath Cruiser, yet it had not fired. Laser and plasma flickered off the void black ship¡¯s defense fields as it closed to a distance so close that individual massive tubes protruding from swiveling armored turrets could be made out with the naked eye. Kirese watched in shock as the looming sleek monster shifted her course, putting her titanic bow between her home and her ¡°escort¡±.
The moment Swiftsure was safe, USN Wisconsin returned fire with a single starboard broadside volley at less than four thousand Kilometers. Hundreds of tons of steel-wrapped tungsten punched through the Vorath shields before perforating the enemy¡¯s hull from stem to stern. The semi-luminal projectiles instantly turned the atmosphere inside the Vorath vessel into plasma, ripping the vessel apart at the seams less than a minute after.
Kirese saw a light beep on her console and she leaned on it, resting her arm on it as she groaned in pain. ¡°void help us¡¡± she whispered to herself. She had been allowed to see reports of Pirate operations in this part of space, no doubt to keep her from running during the voyage; but this was unlike any pirate vessel she had ever seen. It registered as significantly smaller than she knew it to be. the sensors flickered slightly as if struggling to make out the detail of the goliath that had just arrived. ¡°Get us out¡± growled the Vorath commander, eyes wide at the view from the observation window. ¡°jump¡ now¡¡± He drew his weapon and placed it on Kirese¡¯s temple.
¡°Helm, shut down¡ number three¡± Kirese groaned, beginning to feel her head spin faster now. ¡°set coordinates to¡¡± a distant chatter rattled through the hull, and she felt the pressure of the laser pistol depart her temple. The vorath commander turned to his comrades and jerked his head to the door. Opening the door to the bridge, the sounds of combat roared as something ripped through the three vorath warriors like they were not wearing armor. The acrid smell of burned chemicals assailed all who were in the bridge, and moments later a single bipedal being stepped through the entrance holding a strange weapon that seemed to shimmer in heat, and reek of acrid death.
¡°Home actual, one-one actual. Bridge secure. Two-one, three-one, status¡± The being speaking was wearing strange mottled armor that appeared to be part warriors armor and part voidsuit. It seemed male, but was significantly shorter than a Delmar male, despite speaking in Delmar as he made his radio call.
*Two-one here, engineering secure. Three tango¡¯s down, The core is critical. We can¡¯t save it One-one.*
*Three-one here, two tango¡¯s down. Cargo and living quarters cleared, evac?*
¡°Evac confirmed, One-one out.¡± The male-sounding being in front of Kirese stated in a strange monotone professionalism. Her intrigue turned to terror as the Pirate began to step toward her. She fell out of her chair, scrambling backward as a bellow could be heard from behind the pirate. The being turned just in time to be tackled by the bleeding Vorath commander who meant to drive the pirate to the ground. The armored being quickly met the attack, driving under the Vorath before picking him up entirely, the motion was smooth, and the Vorath was driven headfirst onto the deck plating with a sickening crunch. The being dropped the Vorath to the floor, watching the warrior sputter and gasp. Kirese¡¯s torturer gurgled for life a moment longer, struggling to survive a broken kneck before a loud CRACK! deafened everyone in the bridge. The being holstered a strange pistol and Kirese stared at the canoe¡¯d head of the warrior that now lay where her father died. The commander had pretended to be killed, trying to draw the pirate into a desperate ambush.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
Kirese pulled her eyes from the body just as the pirate kneeled next to her, reaching slowly to her pulverized cheek. She shrank away from him, ¡°No¡.¡± She whimpered, ¡°don¡¯t¡¡± she weekly pushed his hand away. To her surprise the being withdrew the gloved appendage, reaching up to deactivate his helmet. The bridge gasped in shock as the head of a human appeared from under the retracting helmet. ¡°Hey, I mean you know harm¡¡± a gentle voice speaking perfectly Delmar contrasted the fierce face with a terrifying white eye jux¡¯d opposed a more natural one. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±
¡°Ki¡.. Kirese¡¡± She found herself responding.
The Human warrior smiled gently, ¡°It¡¯s a beautiful name, Kirese. I¡¯m Jake.¡±
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Parsec¡¯s deeper in Vorath territory, a single beep sounded from Cory¡¯s chair. USN Olyvia was the deeps behind enemy lines of the insurgency fleet. She was not alone, currently paired up with R¡¯Cari and Sombra. The three of them were in a loose, random-looking formation. The two stealth Fighters were completely hidden, and Olyvia was running on minimum power. She would look like a passing piece of garbage, or a comet, should anyone get close enough to get her on sensors. To that end, she was intentionally venting just enough water to give her the appearance of said interstellar body. Their mission was an insurgency supply drop. Captain Collins had already dropped on the planet once before, to set up the supply mission.
This planet was a water world, largely unexplored save by its natural inhabitants, the C¡¯Claram. Considered largely unworthy of even enslavement, the Vorath had driven the inhabitants of the C¡¯Claram homeworld into the deepest parts of their ocean-bound world. C¡¯Claram were too fragile to be able to wield Kinetic weapons, and three SOARD pods full of laser and plasma weaponry were accompanying a third that was fully packed with medical supplies and communications equipment. All were prepped and set up for an autonomous reentry, and descent into the deep trenches of the western ocean.
¡°T¡¯minus 60¡¡± Jese called quietly. ¡°¡.. mark¡±
Silent reigned as Olyvia¡¯s bridge awaited the silent countdown¡ ¡°Thirty¡± called Jesse. And Cory nodded, ¡°Helm starboard roll, fifteen degrees a second please.¡± He ordered. Turning to Jesse, ¡°Release timing synchronization with the computer, anything inside of the window is acceptable.¡±
Jesse merely nodded, quickly inputting the calculation requirements as the time ticked down to 10 seconds. The computer now had the numbers and would automatically release the externally mounted SOARD pods at the appropriate time inside of the release window. At three seconds, the calculations lined up, and a soft shudder could be felt as each pod was slung towards the planet in sequence.. ¡°Status¡± Cory stated.
¡°Hot, straight, and Normal.¡± Jesse replied. ¡°Minimal course corrections needed, no change in the patrol scan patterns.¡±
Cory slowly stood, stretching slightly in his sealed void suit. Olyvia was under full tactical alert as well as silent running, and thus she was completely devoid of atmosphere. He turned to the fully encased Captain Alex Collins as he stood sealed in his MACE combat armor. ¡°And now, we wait.¡±
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Warren¡¯s emotions roiled between excitement, concern, and fear as he stepped onto the hanger bay of Ceres station. Excelsior had returned almost a month ago, and promptly been met at the edge of space with a full battle group of new model Sol Warships. It had taken until only last week for fears to be assuaged, and Warren was still completely left in the dark as to why. The classified nature of the situation had not include the Gate development team, and Warren was left wondering what was happening with his mentor turned friend in Captain Yasushi.
He had only been told the situation the previous night, along with a request that Jezz accompany him to the hangar. She had read the released report alongside him and immediately agreed. ¡°The Irix were a distant trading partner of ours. I knew of their attempts at an artificial mind, but we had not heard of a success before¡¡± Atticus had demanded to come as well, in his way; but it was a good choice to have as many familiar races as possible.
So there the three of them stood as a shuttle from Excelsior slipped past the containment fields and settled onto the floor of the hanger. Captain Yasushi stepped down the ramp to be greeted with a quick hug from Jezzaria and a crisp salute from Warren. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you too¡± He almost laughed as he returned both the salute and hug. ¡°I wish to hear all about it. Catch me up in the shuttle.¡±
The four of them quickly retreated up the ramp of the quietly idling shuttle, and strapped in. ¡°Captain, I read the report. Are you certain that the entity that you encountered was entirely artificial, not a copy such as myself?¡±
Yasushi nodded slowly, ¡°We believe fully artificial. It shows none of the code markers that your program exhibits. You will be able to ask her directly in a few minutes.¡± Atticus nodded once, seeming to be content with the answer, and Yasushi turned to Warren, ¡°I hear you decided to give the laws of space and time a run for their money.¡±
Warren snorted, ¡°After trying to get myself killed a few times. It turns out that high frequency extremely short jumps are not good on Slip Drives.¡±
Yasushi snorted, ¡°So, I¡¯ve read. I¡¯m almost sad to have missed it. How are the prototypes coming along?¡± he asked as the shuttle slipped from the hanger and into The Black. Jezz spoke up this time, ¡°It¡¯s down to two designs as far as the rings are concerned, but the power generation is¡ unknown. We know both designs work in the short distance, however¡ crossing parsec¡¡± she trailed off before gasping out the window as Excelsior slipped into view. She was fully repaired, but still bore the heavy scoring from her fight with the alien vessel. ¡°Gods¡ is everyone ok?¡± She looked to Yasu in shock.
¡°Everyone lived. Believe it or not, I was the only severe casualty. I was thrown into some railing when the fight started, and drove a rib through my lung. There were a few other broken bones, and one concussion; but none of the crew were killed. The Irix warship is impressive. Had she been any larger, I doubt we would have come away so lucky.¡± Yasushi stated, ¡°And her Hull material is far ahead of anything we have seen so far. It lacks the ablative aspects of our warships but did not rupture upon multiple PAC direct hits. Ah, here she is.¡±
Jezz and Warren unbuckled and stepped over to the view port in time to see the Sinister Claw-shaped Irix light cruiser slip into view. She reminded Warren vaguely of the crushing claw of a mane lobster in its asymmetric design, yet was extremely alien at the same time. ¡°She¡¯s¡.¡± he murmured, eyes examining her with an engineer¡¯s gaze.
¡°Terrifying.¡± Jezz whispered beside him, almost finishing his thought. ¡°absolutely gorgeous, and absolutely terrifying.¡± She finished as the shuttle closed on the vessel. A port opened in its side that turned out to be a small shuttle hanger, and soon enough they were settling down on the Irix vessels decks. Yasushi stood to join them, ¡°She¡¯s eager to meet you, especially you Jezzaria.¡±
¡°Me? Why?¡± Jezz spun to look at the Captain, but was met with only a smile, ¡°I do not know. She would not tell me.¡± Was his only reply as they stepped off the shuttle into the crips, yet clearly recycled air. The air was a touch warmer than Human standard, but Jezz breathed slightly easier as the gravity turned out to be just a touch closer to her home standard than the artificial weight of Ceres, and she felt herself uncoil her wings from their rests on the harness she wore for them. ¡°You felt it too.¡± Warren smiled down at her, recognizing her reaction. ¡°Yes, I may be used to Ceres for the most part, but this gravity feels, good.¡± She admitted. Yasushi led them through the extremely tall corridors, obviously made for the race that constructed the ship. The Izurikazi Viss was a small ship built by a large species, and they quickly reached the bridge, to be met with the hologram of Nightmare fuel. The Holo projection was very much Irix-lur with artificially purple eyes. ¡°Whoa¡¡± Whispered Warren, faltering slightly at the sight of something out of human horror movies. ¡°That¡¯s a trip and a half.¡± Jezz fought to keep a laugh from breaking through her professional demeanor. She at least had the advantage of knowing what the Irix looked like beforehand, having met members of their delegation with her father. If she allowed herself to be fair, her reaction would have been much the same as her Mate¡¯s.
¡°Izurikazi Viss, This is Lieutenant Warren Patterson, and his partner Jezzaria,¡± Yasushi stated formally. ¡°Now, could you tell me what exactly could not be..¡±
¡°You are every thread his daughter¡.¡± The Hologram interrupted Excelsior¡¯s Captain. ¡°Mistress Jezzaria, It¡¯s an honor¡¡±
Chapter 106
¡°Mistress Jezzaria, It¡¯s an honor¡±
A pin drop could be heard inside the alien command center, and Jezz felt her breath catch in her throat. It took her a few moments to regain her voice, and it quivered around the edges, ¡°How¡ You knew Pappa?¡±
The Hologram knelt, bringing itself as close to Aye level as it could, ¡°He put out a message, a plea for help, when the devoted attacked your world. I regret that we were too late.¡± The Ships AI waved a hand, and the Hologram of a Elerian Male, wearing a dirty Uniform and wielding what Jezz recognized as an Elerian made ¡°Beam Rifle¡±, flashed into view. He bled from a dozen cuts across his body, and one of his wings ended in a crude bandage just before the mid joint. Jezz gasped as she recognized her father, standing inside of a shattered bunker of some kind.
¡°Elerian¡¯s and all free beings, I am Ergoranis Trivalin Vreegan, Leader of the Elerian people. We have been invaded; the Devoted have come. This is not a normal attack; we believe they are after our stasis technology. It is yet, unfinished; but it could change their ability to wage further war on the rest of us. I know that all of you have your own worlds to bulwark, but I beg you. We are in dire need of reinforcements if we are to deprive the Devoted of our world. I know what I ask, but I must ask it for my people. I¡¡± The Hologram paused as a massive explosion somewhere outside of the recorder¡¯s visual arc sent a razor¡¯s edged piece of something past a dodging Ergoranis. He stood, blood pouring from a massive gash that destroyed his right eye, and bisected his nose. ¡°I must go, Please, Save my people.¡± He paused before a second flash happened off screen. Ergoranis waved an arm, raising a beam rifle and loosing several flashes of green light, His recording completely forgotten, ¡°To Stations!!! Seal the breach!!¡± The leader of the Elerian people stormed off of the play through, it ran for several more seconds before something big detonated, and the feed failed leaving only static. Warren pulled a tear-soaked Jezz into his arms, holding her as she sobbed softly. Yasushi bowed his head slightly giving a moment of respect to the long-fallen leader.
¡°What happened after your people received the message,¡± Warren asked, gently stroking Jezz¡¯s hair. The Hologram seemed to sadden, ¡°We were almost a year away by subspace, We had a small convoy close to arrival when the message went out, but it took them over another full month to arrive. It was my first mission. I was new, an artificial intelligence designed to reduce crew requirements to make room for more powerful shields, weapons, and electronics. I arrived with my convoy to the left-over carnage¡¡± She turned to look a Jezz. The Young Eleri had turned to face her, with Warrens''s arms still wrapped around her, ¡°Your father fought well. I¡¯ve had eons to analyze my sensor readings from that day. Ninety percent of the Devoted¡¯s vessels fell by his hand, or that of his warriors. We met but a fraction, seven heavily damaged ships, when we arrived. I was one of only two warships escorting the convoy. My sister ship, her name translates to ¡°Shadow¡¯s Fang¡± were what we considered to be¡ difficult to detect¡ the first of our kind; and we slaughtered the rest of what was left, and bombarded their exploration crews into oblivion. It was the only way we felt we could honor your father.¡± The Hologram turned to Yasushi, ¡°We found out that they were attempting to do something on the planet, we did not know what. The Convoy commander ordered us to return, the moment we were through. We believed Eleria wiped out.¡±
Warren sighed, ¡°You likely saved their lives If the Devoted had found the bunkers¡¡± he nodded before looking down at Jezz, ¡°Hey, you ok?¡±
¡°I will be¡± she responded, looking up at him before turning back to the hologram, ¡°Thank you, for avenging my people, and for saving our lives.¡±
¡°Our?¡± The hologram looked at her in shock, ¡°You mean¡¡±
¡°Yes, our Stasis Technology was almost complete, but only the very young survived the slumber of the length we had to endure. Atticus had yet to fully accomplish his work. We are few, but Eleria lives.¡± Jezz gave a small bow, ¡°In part, because of you.¡±
The giant Arachnid hologram returned the bow, ¡°Then I have familiar allies still. Whatever you need of me, I will do.¡±
¡°I would like to be permitted to have a look at your code, Ms¡ Web.¡± Atticus spoke for the first time, ¡°I remember the Irix working on an artificial mind, but I had not gotten word of your success.¡±
The Hologram laughed heartily, ¡°Ever the Corth. By all means, I will show you to the computer core. Try not to¡ modify¡ anything. I¡¯m very attached to my current self. I would like to pick your mind about this wondrous artificial body of yours. I find it quite, intriguing.¡±
Yasushi held up a hand, pausing the situation, ¡°How about we start this, one at a time? Izurikazi Viss, would you be amenable to data linking with Atticus¡¯ lab. It will naturally be isolated from the rest of our systems, but I believe it is the safest way to begin any¡ research.¡±
¡°Call me Viss, Or Izuri.¡± The AI said, ¡°I had some time to learn a bit about your culture during our voyage. I believe an appropriate shortening of my given name would be acceptable.¡±
¡°Izuri.¡± Jezz said absently before her eyes refocused, ¡°I like it. May I?¡± and the Hologram gave a terrifying but genuine smile, ¡°Of course, I would be honored. Now, how about a tour of, well, me. We can find an appropriate way to link with this laboratory of yours.¡±
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Cory was on his third cup of instant coffee. The Packets were an ingenious application of Humanities addiction to caffeine, mated to the necessities of modern interstellar warfare. The packet was inserted into a slot in his uniform¡¯s suit. It was then automatically mixed with a portion of its internal water supply and brought up to a lukewarm temperature using Cory¡¯s own body heat. It tasted like shit, but he was awake. They were nearing the end of their drift through the C¡¯Claram home world¡¯s system, Cralichk.
¡°Captain, I¡¯m receiving a large reading from off our bow, one point five million¡± Jesse was leaning over the sensor station. Just as he spoke, a second flash on sensors heralded the arrival of a massive transport ship. It was Delmar in design, but it looked like it had was barely functioning. ¡°Shut down everything, They are going to come in close.¡± Cory barked. And Olvia shuddered slightly as everything, but bare minimum life support was summarily shut off. Optical sensors were also left on, being passive in nature. And Cory was able to watch the sickening sight of an abused freighter burning weakly for the planet. Its name was almost illegible, but Cory made out ¡°Prodigal Daughter¡± on her flanks as she passed, and continued on. ¡°Void help them¡¡± whispered one of the Delmar bridge crew. Cory and Jesse shared a look as a Vorath Cruiser appeared, and ¡°escorted¡± the Delmar ship to orbit. Olyvia slowly awoke as the danger passed, and Cory was preparing to return to his chair.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
¡°We have to help them¡¡± The voice from before pleaded. It was Breile on Coms. ¡°they¡ They are ours¡¡±
Cory walked over, placing a hand on the young ensign, ¡°We could, but If we do¡ the Vorath will ask questions, and that may doom the entire planet.¡± He turned to Jesse, ¡°Log it, have R¡¯Cari launch a tracker. We will help them, but we cannot do it this day.¡± He squeezed the crewwoman on the shoulder, ¡°it will have to do.¡±
Jesse nodded at something, ¡°R¡¯Cari responding. The tracker is away and set. We are coming up on our jump.¡±
¡°Very good,¡± Cory settled back into his chair, ¡°Status on the drop?¡±
¡°Impact recorded just before our visitors arrived,¡± Captain Collins rumbled from inside his armor, ¡°I¡¯ve lost contact with the pods, post-landing.¡±
¡°It¡¯s all we can do for now. Helm, lock in the jump coordinates, and execute when ready¡± Cory stated. ¡°Once we are in slipspace, cancel battle stations; and bring in the night shift.¡± Cory stood, trudging to the bridge door. He was halfway to his quarters when he heard the hiss of returning atmosphere and the all clear announcement. Moments later, his own suit components retracted into his uniform and the nanite smoothed out into almost normal-feeling clothing. He opened the doors to his quarters, stepping inside with a deep sigh. Jackie stood up from their shared desk, ¡°I take it was a success?¡± She asked.
¡°It was, but with a price.¡± Cory grated, dropping heavily onto the bed, and staring up at the ceiling, ¡°A freighter dropped in while we were making our exfiltration, one of ours.¡± He explained, and Jackie nodded in understanding, ¡°the hulk was barely functional¡ and it was being guarded by a cruiser¡ I can¡¯t imagine what the inside of that ship has become.¡± Jackie slipped up under his arm, pulling herself closer to his much longer form.
¡°Did we get a tracker on her?¡± she asked, pecking him on the neck.
¡°We did, R¡¯Cari got it done.¡± Cory ran his fingers through her hair, ¡°I¡¯m going to request we go hunting after we reach the regrouping coordinates.¡± Jackie hummed contentedly at his touch, ¡°Any word from Hera and Jake?¡± She asked.
¡°I haven¡¯t seen any reports. We were silent running for a couple of days, I¡¯ve not seen the latest.¡± Cory admitted, ¡°If Wisconsin was involved, it had to have been interesting.¡± He yawned deeply, feeling Jackie¡¯s Human warmth begin to work its magic on his tenseness from the last few days. ¡°I think I found the limit of human coffee.¡±
Jackie only chuckled, already fading from consciousness.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Kirese woke up on a biobed. The air smelled clean and pure, and she groaned as the bright lights demanded her consciousness. ¡®Where am I.. I¡¯m not home¡. Pirates!¡¯ the last thought jolted her upright only for her head to swim slightly.
¡°Gently, miss!¡± came a voice from behind her, she turned in time to see a human in a white lab coat rushing towards her. Kirese shrank away from the advance before the Human woman paused, halting her advance, ¡°Miss, I¡¯m not going to hurt you. You¡¯re in the infirmary.¡± Kirese stared at her wide eyed barely able to speak, ¡°Pirates, Your¡¡±
¡°Privateers dear,¡± The woman soothed, ¡°We are not pirates. Please, lie back down, the nanites are not yet finished with your cheek.¡± Kirese looked at the woman skeptically, slowly laying back down. For the next few minutes, Kirese¡¯s human companion kept her distance, but soon enough, the bed Kirese was lying on chimed, and the woman approached her again. ¡°My name is Dr. Apikalia, what is yours, dear¡± The nurse spoke perfect Delmar, but with a strange accent. She shut down the bio bed as Kirese slowly sat.
¡°Ki.. Kirese. I¡ Im sorry, It¡¯s just. You scared me. You don¡¯t look like the first Human I met.¡± Kirese smiled weakly at the Doctors chuckle, ¡°Humans come in a bit more variety than most species out here in The Black¡± she said. ¡°We¡¯ve adapted to the wildly different climates across our home planet. You Met Jacob, His ancestors lived in a part of the world that got a bit less sun, and so he¡¯s looks a bit different from me. I was born on Mars, but my people come from American Samoa. Me and My ancestors look like the way we do because our skin protects us from the UV radiation a little better, because we get a lot more of it than Jacob¡¯s ancestors did. We¡¯re all still Human though.¡±
¡°So, like my people developed their patterns to find mates and hide, only we only needed two patterns because our home world was all only jungle?¡± Kirese asked.
The Doctor nodded, ¡°That¡¯s about the size of it. Come, I have some fresh clothes behind the curtain, and the captain will be by to show you to your quarters.¡± Kirese nodded slowly before pausing, ¡°What about my people, Jake said Swifsure couldn¡¯t be saved. Did they¡¡±
¡°They got out dear. I patched a few of them up, but you were the worst of them. That hit you took gave you a brain bleed, and microfractures that spread across a good portion of your skull.¡± Doctor Apikalia informed her, ¡°you are lucky to be alive. They have their own space now. It¡¯s cramped, but the old tub was a troop transport before the retrofit. She¡¯ll handle the extra bodies.¡±
Kirese nodded absently, slipping behind a privacy curtain to find a brand-new void suit and clothes. She quickly dressed, finishing up just as the door to the infirmary hissed. ¡°how¡¯s she doing¡± a voice called, ¡°She¡¯s dressing still, how are you dear.¡±
Kirese stepped out from behind the curtain to a shock. A Delmar female, about her age, was standing next to a familiar human, ¡°I¡¯m doing ok. This isn¡¯t the return to military life I expected, but The Galaxy has other plans. Oh, Hi there¡± The Delmar woman in a captains uniform smiled as she saw Kirese. ¡°Kirese, is it? Captain of Swiftsure?¡±
¡°Pappa was¡ Pappa was captain. Those monsters just made me sit in the chair. What happened to... Home.¡± Kirese asked, a mix of anger, sadness, and resignation apparent in her voice.
¡°She didn¡¯t blow up, we tagged Swiftsure for tracking and towed her in a different trajectory. Wisconsin and I didn¡¯t have the time to fix her. If she survives until she drifts outside of the trade lanes, we will take a shot at saving her. I¡¯m sorry.¡± The Delmar Captain said solemnly, ¡°I¡¯m Hera Irving, Captain of USN Louisa. This is my husband, Jacob Irving, also a Captain. He commands my Marine detachments and boarding companies.¡±
Kirese suppressed an outburst as the two confirmed what she had suspected, ¡®how? I thought that wasn¡¯t possible¡¯ ¡°where will you be taking us?¡±
Jacob glanced down at a pad before speaking, ¡°This one¡¯s yours¡± he stated, opening a door to reveal a modest, but adequate room. ¡°We just got confirmation from Wisconsin, we¡¯re taking you home.¡± He said.
¡°My home is gone¡ The Vorath destroyed Centar¡ They didn¡¯t like that we shared the name with their monster of a leader¡ There¡¯s nothing left to go back to.¡± Kirese grated.
¡°Kirese, Not Centar. We are taking you and your crew home¡ to our Cradle.¡± Hera said gently. ¡°Get some rest.¡± Kirese¡¯s head snapped up in surprise, a million questions blew through her mind; but Hera and Jacob were already headed down the corridor.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Humanity had not fully committed to open conflict, but the scenes of Genocide and carnage being broadcast across sol were having an effect. Humans from across the solar system were booking passage on transports out. Some were headed to join the GHO, some were headed for technological and manufacturing jobs on Delmar, Rawkir, and others. Still more were showing up at Port Royal with one purpose in mind. One such man stepped from the transport, feeling the shift of gravity with a slight smirk. He stood tall at one point nine meters and carried himself with a confident grace he got from his father. His mother gave him his jet-black hair, and golden hazel eyes. He wore a USN uniform with Lieutenant bars on his shoulders and carried his seabag easily in one hand. He walked the promenade, serious eyes clearing the path before him. Most of the Humans that travelled to this side of the galaxy intentionally kept their more intense Human mannerisms in check. This Lieutenant blatantly refused to do so. He flaunted his calm intensity of purpose, caring little who he intimidated. He finally reached the transfer shuttle bay headed for Delmar. Stepping forward from the Customs line he set his sea bag on the scanner. The Lycan Customs agent gave him a quick appraisement, uncomfortable but not terrified at the human before him. ¡°Name, declarations, reason for travel.¡± The Wolf man asked boredly. The young man only stared at him, ¡°Lef-tenant Vincent Burgoyne USN, I have personal and issued weapons in my bag to declare.¡± The wolf man looked at him sharply at the tone of his voice, ¡°Reason for Travel, Mr¡ Burgoyne¡± he said, reading the passport to make sure.
Vincent¡¯s face changed for the first time, morphing into a grim smirk, ¡°War.¡±
Chapter 107
Frie stepped up to the firing line gently placing her bag on the bench in front of her. The range was only half busy this day, and muffled pops and cracks made it through her hearing protection. Years ago, the cacophony of sharp, punchy reports would have torn at every nerve in her body, but now she slipped the soft case from her bag without so much as a flinch. Clint had taught her the ways of human firearms in much the same way that Mac had taught her dearest friend. Now, with her husband currently away in Port Royal, and her daughter currently in school; Frie was taking the time to participate in long overdue practice. Her chosen weapon was a graduation present of sorts, one sent for by Her husband, from Terra.
The Delmar people had long understood laser and plasma based ranged weapons, and many had made the leap to human kinetics. The Delmar industrial base had quickly copied a large portion of Humanity¡¯s propellant based firearms. Hera, of course, understood why humanity¡¯s more potent small arms were still a closely guarded secret, and she secretly hoped that reason was not an omen for the current conflict. Hers was not a Delmar Copy, however. She unzipped the ancient case, revealing the pearl handles a¡¯top a frame of classic but well-tended to Nickle Plating. The slide bore the name ¡°Browning¡±, and Frie ran a fingertip across the letters. Her fingers nimbly loaded the ten round double stack magazine with Delmar made ammunition that faithfully duplicated Terran 9mm luger. Frie had been entertained at the weapons designation as ¡°High Power¡± despite it firing a substantially smaller cartridge than Clint¡¯s preferred Propellant based sidearm.
The last round slipped stiffly but firmly into the magazine, and Frie slid the magazine firmly into place with a click. She activated a control on the range bay¡¯s controls and a holographic target appeared. The holographic target and recording system gave Frie a 3-dimensional image of a Vorath soldier who dropped to the ground 30 yards away and began sprinting towards her. Frie snapped her weapon up, rattling off three rounds in quick succession. The recoil of the pistol was still harsh against her hand, but Frie pressed on as two more ¡°attackers¡± appeared and began splitting up, coming at her from different angles. She swung her sights left missing twice before connecting with a third, charging targets before swinging to the right and firing the remaining four rounds and hitting with two. The slide locked back just as the last target disappeared and Frie took a deep cleansing breath removing the magazine and beginning to reload it. She began again after loading a pair of magazines this time. Three targets appeared this time, and fire belched from Frie¡¯s hands again as the Browning bucked. This time she only managed to get these three before her first magazine emptied, locking the slide back. Four more targets appeared, and Frie swapped magazines with a slight fumble. She was unwilling to drop the ancient magazines for training and was only able to engage three before the fourth reached the predetermined position that signaled failure. Frie unloaded the weapon and began to reload for a second attempt but was interrupted by a familiar sensation.
¡°You¡¯re improving.¡± Frie put the weapon down on the bench before spinning to great Clint.
¡°You¡¯re back early.¡± She smiled, pulling him into a hug. ¡°Miss me already?¡± and she was rewarded with a rumbling chuckle, ¡°I always miss you, but I¡¯m back to meet a new arrival for an interview of sorts, and It¡¯s going to be a rough one.¡±
¡°Oh?¡± Frie asked, turning to pack up for the day, ¡°Who¡¯s so important that an Admiral makes room to interview.¡±
Clint sighed, stepping up to box up her ammunition as she secured her pistol in its soft case, ¡°Greg¡¯s boy. He arrived on this morning transport.¡± He turned to see Frie¡¯s stunned face. The late Admiral Gregory Burgoyne was a hero of the Devoted attack on Delmar. His name was widely known on the home world, and Delmar¡¯s first natively designed Ship of the Line would bear his name with honor. Clint, however, seemed less than enthusiastic, and Frie looked over at him expectantly as the emotions registered between them. ¡°He¡¯s in a bad way, babe. He and Greg were close, and he took Greg¡¯s passing hard. It¡¯s been suggested that this is his last chance, of sorts.¡±
¡°Oh,¡± Frie paused after setting her prized pistol back into the bag. ¡°When is this interview?¡±
¡°About an hour,¡± Clint said quickly. ¡°Care for seafood?¡± and smiled at the flicker of excitement coming from Frie. ¡°Do you have to ask?¡± she flashed a grin, slinging her bag over her shoulders and reaching for his arm as they left the range.
A little over an hour later, Clint was sitting in his planet side office when his com¡¯s rang, *Admiral, a Lieutenant¡ Burgoyne is here to see you, Sir*
¡°Send him in.¡± Clint sighed, and the tall young man marched smartly into the room. He snapped off a salute, which the admiral returned, ¡°Sit Lieutenant.¡± The young man did so, and a long pregnant pause hung between them. Vincent stirred first ¡°Admiral, I¡¡±
¡°Disorderly conduct,¡± Clint cut him off with a stern voice, ¡°drunkenness on duty, assaulting an officer, do I need to go on?¡±
¡°No, Sir¡± Vincent grated, and Clint continued, ¡°I¡¯ve a message here from your C.O. Beyond my understanding, he has sent a letter of recommendation. You appear to have an exemplary service record before your father¡¯s passing. You can see why I have a dilemma on my hands.¡± With that, the admiral sat back in silence.
Vincent suspected that something like this would happen when he requested permission to transfer out to the far side of the galaxy, and he met the admiral¡¯s gaze. ¡°I was unaware that Major Rutledge sent the letter, admiral. It was his jaw I broke, after all.¡± The lieutenant straightened, ¡°In truth, there¡¯s no reason for you to accept my transfer save for one.¡±
¡°Ah, yes. Accept we do not.¡± Clint¡¯s icy tone speared Vincent as he sat rail straight. ¡°Our Allies have taken what we have given them and run with it. We no longer need instructors, or even in-theatre advisors. We need people with their head on straight. I¡¯ve known Dick a long time, and his letter hold weight, but so does your record. So here is what is going to happen. You are going to be enrolled in the standard yearlong acclimation and familiarization curriculum. Then, and only then, will I consider your request to be put in the field. Is that understood, Lieutenant.¡±
Vincent forced himself to keep his stoic expression. He wanted to argue his case, but he knew it was not right. The admiral had every right to demand what he had. ¡°Aye, Sir.¡± Was the only acceptable answer, and he gave it.
¡°Good, your files have already been sent to the head of Cadre. You are to report to the Academy in two months¡¯ time.¡± Clint had to suppress a smirk as Vincents face smoothed in shock, ¡°Two months, sir?¡± he almost squawked.
Clint allowed himself a smile, ¡°Correct, Lieutenant. Welcome to Delmar, Dismissed¡±
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Philip Kenye nervously tapped his fingers on the captain¡¯s chair console of his first command. He could not but help to be nervous. He was currently in command of nonother than Lucid Traveler, and she was far, far from home. Jacob Irving had headed the call, his wife Hera following him into the service of what was quickly becoming known as ¡°Mackenzie¡¯s Privateers¡±. It had made since for the two to take a new birth because of the changes being made on this side of the incision line. Lucid Traveler, along with every surviving Delmar freighter that sailed out of Signus was getting a major upgrade. With the Brother¡¯s Gremm functionally inventing the Micro Particle Acceleration Cannon, Traveler and her compatriots were getting a much-needed sharpening of their claws. Traveler, and her surviving sisters, were not only receiving both a MicroPac array, but they had all been fitted with Slip Drives. These changes were rendered necessary to compensate for the rash of Piracy that was cropping up now that UGN naval readiness was severely depleted and criminally stretched to their limit. Sol and Delmar had ships, but they were never going to be able to have the numbers to fill in needed gaps this quickly. Despite the lack of patrolling capability, commerce still needed to flow to keep worlds from starving and equipment from failing to be produced. To that end, Admiral Gwen had finally secured approval for Slip Drives to be more widely installed in Unity space.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
So here Philip sat. Captain of the most storied freighter in the Delmar culture, the one that had brought them Humanity, and he was adrift. Or rather, he was meant to appear that he was adrift, and alone. In truth, he was neither. Somewhere, amongst the black, Concord lurked as their ever-present dark guardian angel. Mac had decided to take on this mission personally, and Wisconsin was only a transmission array. The success of Bull Fuller¡¯s brainchild rescue attempt had inspired something even more daring. Intercepted transmissions had revealed that the Thermian¡¯s had been given command of a limited number of Vorath destroyers and light cruisers as an extension of ¡°good faith¡± from their Vorath allies. Traveler was to be precious bait in a mission to take one of those gifts¡ a Prize. It was a grave risk, but she was the only bait that could serve this purpose.
Firstly, she was the first to go into the shipyards for her upgrades and was the first of the freighters to see completion of sea trials. Secondly, Traveler was known. More than that, she was a prize to good to resist for any self-respecting Thermian. The Lizard that Sank her would be a Hero¡ The Lizard that took her would be a Legend. To that end, Traveler laid her trap deep in Thermian held territory, alongside reported patrol routes of their new prized Vorath gifts. The information gleaned from Swiftsures computers had placed the final pieces to where they chose to deploy, and Philip smiled internally as their intel reaped its reward. A Vorath light cruiser flashed out of subspace and began making way towards Traveler. ¡°Signal Alpha and Bravo team. Fortune has shined on us, and I believe we will need them both.¡±
¡°Understood, We¡¯ll be ready.¡± Collins was here with his MACE team, and Galanis was present with his own MACE team. This would be Galanis¡¯ first mission in the armor, and their two teams were spread amongst over 500 Soldiers who replaced Traveler¡¯s usual cargo of perishables and equipment. Both of her response teams were also present, and Collins looked over at a particularly Rotund Delmar that seemed significantly less portly than their first meeting. Martin was wearing full armor and readying a belt fed. He had indeed lost a significant amount of weight during the voyage to this location, and Collins had watched the cook with interest once he was told that Martin was one of the more decorated defenders of Traveler. Martin still struggled slightly to lug around the machine gun during long simulated ¡°marches¡±, but the Delmar seemed to perk up at the range. He very often had to restrain Martin from expending too much practice ammunition during training, and the barrel of that weapon had been replaced twice before the upcoming operation. Martin the ¡°Cook Rambo¡± was born again hard, baptized in the waters of Human kinetics, and Collins struggled not to laugh as The Delmar Man draped yet another belt of ammunition across his neck. Normally this was a bad thing, but in the close quarters of shipboard action, it was simply infeasible for squad members to pause and open their packs for another belt. Martin was going to have to carry all he could.
A loud clank rattled through the ship as the docking ports connected and locked up, and Philip nodded to himself. The Vorath light cruiser had attached to his port side, preparing to breach their security, but¡ ¡°Tactical, Open starboard side hanger doors. Target their communications¡. Fire.¡±
A single phoenix, with two thirds of its payload removed, leaped from Travelers flank. It streaked quickly along her hull under manual guidance, using travelers bulk as concealment before slipping over top of her and slamming into the Vorath Vessels antennae. Almost simultaneously the echoing chatter of Human small arms fire heralded the assault as Galanis, Collins, their respective squad members, and 500 angry Delmar and Human Marines stormed the predator turned prey. ¡°Skipper, we are in, no casualties.¡± Galanis voice crackled through Philips helmet, ¡°Very good, point defense, target any turret within reach. Disable any weapons they may use against us but avoid engines and navigation.¡± Moments later, GAU and Lazer spoke as one. With the two ships docked, neither one was capable of protecting itself with deflector screens, and Traveler pressed her surprise taking almost every ship-to-ship weapon capable of engaging her at this close range without a return shot fired.
Martin stormed down the hallway, slamming to a stop as he reached a corner, a discreet clanking of armor from around the corner alerted him, and he held a hand up. He was in command of his own squad for the first time, and he flashed off a quick set of hand signals before shouldering his machine gun and turning toward the corner. His squad lined up, and the number two man pulled a flash grenade from his belt, ripping the pin free before bouncing it around the corner. A bright flash rewarded them with swearing of clearly Thermian origin, and Martin stepped around the corner, holding the trigger down as his squad filtered out behind him. His squad quickly joined him, and soon the boarding party they had ambushed was no more. Martin had extended half his current belt, and only had one last replacement out of the four he had draped over himself in addition to his standard loadout. he grumbled at the realization, ¡°forward, carefully.¡± He ordered. And they moved down the corridor. The next corner opened up into the engineering and Martin swung his machine gun through a practiced arc but did not hold the trigger down. ¡°Some things don¡¯t react well to bullets¡± echo¡¯d through his head from movie night the week before, and Martin, with his squad, collectively switched out of full auto. Several careful and precise shots later, and the engineering team, along with their security detail were dead. ¡°Engine room secure¡± Martin reported into his mic. *Affirmative, pull security. Our Techs will be there when the rest of the ship is secure.
Galanis was grinning from ear to ear as he waded through his reptilian and Vorath foes. Mac had proven that a normal human was capable of dismembering these assholes with his bare hands, and Galanis was in a MACE. He had started the ambush with his primary, but he soon simply slung it. Galanis led the way, punching his way through the defenders in a very literal sense. He occasionally drew his side arm to pick off a particularly pesky Lizard that seemed to know how to keep its distance, but that was all he needed. His mission was to take the Bridge, whilst Collins was to secure the shuttle bays and generally clear the ship, and Galanis rounded the corner to find a venerable sea of Lizards standing in the final corridor. Fresh hellfire roared past him as his men fired around him, and Galanis simply charged. In a matter of moments, all but the last enemy was dead, and this thermian was doing an excellent job of keeping Galanis between himself and the incoming fire from the Human¡¯s team. It hissed, pulling over its head a long staff with a wide flat blade. The blade¡¯s edges began to glow, and the lizard charged. Galanis felt his self-preservation instincts warn him, but almost too late. He leapt back just as the wide blade sliced effortlessly into his Mace¡¯s chest armor, missing a fatal blow by the thinnest of margins. Galanis ignored the blaring warning in his helmet, drawing his pistol and firing several rounds that seemed to bounce off this new threat before even reaching it. Galanis emptied his weapon before stepping back and unslinging his rifle. This new Thermian launched forward, driving his blade thought the captain¡¯s weapon and barely missing his face. *Seal breach alert, seal breach alert. Helmet integrity compromised. And Galanis felt the hot drizzle of blood down the side of his face and neck. This Thermian pressed his attack, and Galanis dodged twice more, jumping from side to side to afford his men a glimpse to take a shot. The corridor, however, did not provide enough room, and Galanis continued to fight for his life. The Thermian struck repeatedly for almost a full minute before Galanis noticed it slowing, and the Marine dodged the next attack easily. The following dodge had him catching the spear by the shaft, pulling it to himself and yanking the Thermian off balance. Ona hunch, Galanis drew his blade, driving it slowly through the shield before burying it into the lizard¡¯s guts. The lizard shrieked in pain. Dropping the spear practically into Galanis hands before losing its head to its own, now confiscated weapon.
Galanis sighed heavily, dropping the spear, and reloading his pistol. ¡°On me!¡± he growled, placing a satchel charge on the door to the bridge, ¡°CLEAR!¡±
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Concord floated silently amongst the stars. Lyrian and Mac watched the situation unfold, monitoring communications as well as providing ¡°Crybaby¡± services to Wisconsin as she waited in the wings.
*I hope Martin is ok* Lyrian¡¯s worry for her friend was vibrantly at the forefront of her mind as she spoke into Mac¡¯s consciousness.
*He will be fine, * Her mate responded, *You saw how much Collins trimmed off of him, I bet he¡¯s as strong as Tristen was when we met*
*Still* Lyrian pouted. She had begged Martin not to participate, despite being involved in the mission herself. She had become more protective of her friends than herself after her claim of Mac. Mac understood the sentiment all too familiarly, having watched too many of his own friends die, but this could not be helped. *Looks like Martin¡¯s made it to engineering. Quickly too*
*that¡¯s go¡ CONTACT! Oh gods, three contacts! It¡¯s a freighter and two escorts!!* Lyrian practically yelled into Mac¡¯s brain. Concord leapt forward, Mac already moving to engage a Thermian-made heavy cruiser.
Lyrian found her real voice, swapping frequencies at the speed of thought, ¡°Cry, Baby Cry!¡±
Chapter 108
*Cry baby Cry* Wisconsin¡¯s communications officer froze momentarily as the shocking phrase coursed across the monitored frequency. It only lasted a moment, and the Delmar crewman ripped the earbud from his ears, ¡°CAPTAIN! Crybaby protocol enacted! Concord¡¯s codes confirmed!!¡±. Captain Fuller turned to look at the crewman, nodding once before activating his hybrid uniform/suit. His face bore a grim smirk as the helmet encapsulated his face, ¡°All hands, Battle Stations. Helm, Maximum Slip Jump. Engage.¡±
The massive final drives of USN Wisconsin flared as the crescendo of war emergency power hurled the battleship to jump velocity within moments. Wisconsin leapt into slip space from her hiding place between the stars. The research from Director Johansen''s department had been spread throughout the Sol and Delmar vessels. The consensus that a minimum of 5 minutes inside slip space was needed to prevent what was being dubbed ¡°Burnouts¡± from destroying the current generation of slip drives. Bull hated it, settling into his seat as the board flashed green and the ship decompressed for combat. Five minutes was an eternity in space combat once opponents were joined, and from the information still being transmitted from the admiral¡. Captain Fuller shook himself and focused on the tactical map. The timer ticked down as he planned his opening gambit.
¡°Cry baby Cry!¡± Lyrian called in triplicate as she was pressed to her seat under the unrelenting acceleration of Concord''s main drives. Mac was already choosing his target and Lyrain embraced their shared consciousness. Concord announced herself with a flurry of radar-guided Phoenix missiles, and Lyrian felt Mac curse himself as the decision to use Strategic ordinance was taken from him. A decrepit Delmar freighter had dropped out of slipspace along with her¡ escorts and was pulled up alongside and slightly in front of both cruisers. Two things became evident in the next two minutes. The Vorath had given The Thermians information and upgrades based on their previous engagements with Humanity, and there were Thermians aboard that freighter. Mac and Lyrian were forced to detonate all four of their missiles prematurely as the freighter sailed directly between them and the warships. Mac¡¯s unbridled fury at the move shocked lyrian. She believed she had become used to Human emotions with her Claiming of her husband, but this was something on a completely different level. Concord pirouetted away from a fusillade of incoming fire, and Lyrian took a moment to reach out to Mac, worried for him. His response was a flurry of memories, mostly from his people¡¯s history. Babies being hidden behind. Women and children used as innocent protection to exploit the morals of an opponent¡ Lyrian soon found herself mirroring Mac¡¯s reaction as she recognized what the freighter was being forced to do.
Their moment was but a flash, an eternity felt at the speed of thought, and Lyrian activated Concord''s shields as if to announce their challenge. Concord needed to buy time. This fight was not to be won from the shadows. Mac released Concord''s governors. Lyrian had long been capable of handling the maximum punishment that Concord dished out, but They generally kept a set of programmed limitations online to give them staying power in a fight, and a cushion of capability should they need it. Both of them grunted audibly as Concord roared to her full potential. She pushed them to their limit and kept them alive in the same action. Chairs tilted, and suits contracted as they hurled themselves at the enemy. The flurry of incoming fire forced them to take a long arcing approach, and this delay allowed the freighter to keep its hull between them and their target. The occasional glancing impact rocked Concords shields, but her advanced human Fusion Cores, and Delmar tweaks power and heat management systems shrugged off the most of the damage. Concord responded in turn, firing burst after burst of Gau34 at the portions of target that were exposed when the Cruisers took their shots. The oblique angles of the impacts allowed the enemies shields to easily absorb the majority of hits that Concord achieved.
Small Kinetics such as Concords main guns were capable of piercing shields with sequential impacts on the same location, but they lacked the massive broad-scale damage to weaken shielding as a whole. Their strength lay in that they were devastating once an enemy¡¯s shields had been stripped by missile fire or the heavier weapons carried by larger warships. These ships, being heavily armored pure-bred warships instead of frontier patrol vessels allowed them to deflect the incoming tungsten cored steel projectiles, slowed by their transit through the shields, with relative ease. Concord did the only thing she could do, present herself as a threat great enough to give Traveler time to¡ Mac swore audibly as Shuttles began launching toward Traveler and her prize¡
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Captain Galanis stepped over the bodies of the recently deceased bridge crew, or what was left of them. The breeching charge had killed three when it caved the bridge doors in, launching them across the middle of the enemy vessels command deck. The surviving Thermian bridge crew, and a Vorath advisor were not given the opportunity to surrender. ¡°Skipper, Bridge secured. We are ready for the prize crew.¡±
*Stand by, we have company. Prepare for emergency jump as soon as possible* Philips voice betrayed a calm urgency that raised the hairs on the back of Galanis¡¯ neck. ¡°Collins, Galanis. We¡¯ve the bridge. Status.¡±
*two more decks, but there are rats in the walls* came Collin¡¯s frustrated voice, *someone¡¯s been teaching them about us. We are seeing..* a stecatto bark of a Sol weapon interrupted Dozers report, *We¡¯re seeing a lot more crew served weapons. I¡¯m down almost two squads with another three injured. We¡¯ve run into some kind of plasma grenade that we haven¡¯t seen yet.* Galanis looked up as R¡¯ben and Quawrine stepped into the bridge. The two of them were accompanied by a team of library scientists. Half of the Library contingent had been sent to the bridge, the second half to engineering. Galanis nodded to them, ¡°The geek squad is here. Pass the word, its time flush the nests.¡±
Quawrine had turned from Pirate to valuable ally, and Her knowledge of Vorath ship configurations and systems was the reason why she was on this mission. Between her and R¡¯ben, the Vorath vessel began to thrum under their control as command codes were hacked, and a silent self-destruct was detected and halted. Galanis sent three quarters of his team to aid in clearing the ship, keeping watch with the remaining as they gained access to the ship¡¯s controls and systems.
Quawrine turned to The Marine captain, ¡°We have full command,¡± She cawed, ruffling her feathers happily from inside her own void suit. Galanis nodded, ¡°Good. Prepare for decompression, 30 seconds.¡± He turned, keying his mic, ¡°All boarders, decompression in 30 seconds. I repeat, decompression in 30 seconds.¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
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*¡. Decompression in thirty seconds¡* Martin nodded, whistling to his men and waving a finger in a circle. Instantly everyone hit their suit controls and their helmets quickly materialized and sealed them inside their suits. Just then, the engineering group from the library arrived, already sealed in their suits. A violent hiss roared for a moment before quickly dying as the vacuum stopped transmitting sound. The sudden pressure change had the desired effect. A crash from a maintenance tunnel¡¯s entrance preceded a Thermian Soldier who¡¯s head had swollen to quickly for his helmet to save him, His eyes bulged as blood spewed from every orriface, quickly boiling in the lack of pressure before it reached the ground. Another soldier appeared, falling to his knees as he clearly suffered from temporary vacuum exposure. Both were quickly dispatched with a burst of fire from one of Martin¡¯s men.
All across the Vorath vessel, similar scenes played out as the Vacuum flushed ill-prepared would-be saboteurs from their hiding spots. Others were killed where they hid, having either forgotten their helmets in the panic, or prevented the safety of their suits by the violent reaction of their bodies to decompression. *Decompression complete* Quawrine¡¯s voice echoed through Galanis¡¯ helmet. ¡°Good,¡± he replied, ¡°Get the weapons online, and tell traveler we are rolling her out of the way¡±
The Vorath vessel hummed with power as it reacted to its new commanders. A gentle roll removed Traveler from the reach of the incoming boarding shuttles and shielded her bodily. Philip Kenye began phase two, using the oversized slip drive installed on traveler to wrap both vessels in the required fields. Concord was given a brief opening to sneak a missile past the innocent freighter and one of the Thermian warships now belched smoke from its side where the subsequent GAU barrage had ripped half of the weapons from that side of the Thermian vessel.
Concord had not come away unscathed. Mac and Lyrian were reaching critical exhaustion. Concord herself was down to one engine when a less than glancing laser cannon impact overloaded her field emitters momentarily feeding the extra energy through her core systems. The same impact had fused the circuits on her port side GAU cannon, and she was desperately trying to evade a now emboldened enemy. Lyrain fired a set of Phoenixes that she had jury-rigged to be manually guided. She carved their course with her own will, slipping them past the freighter and into the shields of the second undamaged warship. One missile was intercepted with their point defense, and the other created a breach in the warships shields that was quickly mended before Mac could get a wounded Concord into a shooting position. Two more laser blasts lanced out, thankfully glancing weakly off of Concords shields with only partial effectiveness. Concord still shuddered and her shields reverted back into critical status. *We need to get out of here.. We cant take any more hits like¡* Lyrian¡¯s thoughts were cut off by a blinding flash of familiar shape and color.
USN Wisconsin ripped into normal space, her entire arsenal pre-readied and deployed. She waited for no transmission, and Bull Fuller opened fire with the full conventional might at his command. The massive Delmar freighter was in perfect position to provide a shield of innocent lives against Concords assault, but she was woefully out of position to be forced to shield from this new arrival. Wisconsin split her fire up, rolling to Starboard as she loosed thousands of tons of pure hate into her prey. Bull Fuller wasn¡¯t looking for a fair fight, and he gave no such thing. The two Thermian cruisers each broke into multiple pieces, and Wisconsin unleashed three more volleys into each fragment. R¡¯Cari and Sombra were launched almost instantly, and they made quick work of the boarding shuttles as they tried to flee back to their mother ships.
Concord limped back to Wisconsin, settling heavily on her deck as Mac struggled to control her. Both were rushed to the infirmary. Lyrian was bleeding from her scalp where a particularly hard maneuver had slammed her head into the side of the canopy, and her left arm was seared to her shoulder by electrical burns from the power surge that took Concords engine and one of her main guns. Mac was no better. A piece of paneling blew out during the same power surge, embedding itself into his left side and puncturing a lung. The ship¡¯s emergency systems and his suits nanites had sealed the hole in his void suit and stabilized his vitals so he could continue fighting.
Bull fuller glanced across his screens, seeing the ready notifications from Traveler and their prize, ¡°Hail the freighter¡ maybe whoever is over there will see the wisdom of¡.¡± He was cut off by a bright flare on the sensors¡ The Delmar freighter, having never been touched by a single weapon, detonated.
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Centarus sat back I his chair, rubbing his temples and glaring at the pile of reports. An uneasy stalemate had settled across this arm of the galaxy. It was obvious that the Humans and the Delmar had aligned themselves with what was left of the Unity forces along the down-spin portion of Unity space. A front of sorts had formed, in the aftermath of Rawkir, with thinly stretched forces probing each other for weaknesses. Centarus¡¯ forces were, as of yet, incapable of capitalizing on the weaker Unity ships. Every time one of his ships tried to exploit an isolated unity task force or convoy, a massive Human battle carrier, or Delmar Frigate would appear from seemingly nowhere to drive his ships from the system with weapons far more powerful than should be possible. The projectile weapons were of particular worry, seemingly being capable of erasing the laws of physics and common sense. He¡¯d lost two destroyers in one ambush, erased from the universe by a massive warship¡¯s singular blast. It had taken them without warning from almost half a billion kilometers. It had been waiting behind a moon of a desolate planet, fired once, then jumped from the system like some kind of long-range assassin. The cruiser the destroyers had been escorting had returned severely damaged, and was currently being stripped of parts as its hull was completely unrecoverable. The stricken vessel had finally answered with certainty that these Humans were, beyond all reason and natural law, using kinetic armaments as their primary ship-to-ship weaponry. The simple ability to do such a thing still rendered his greatest scientist dumbfounded, with little to provide in the way of answers.
Then there were the pirates. It seems that the Vorath name held little of its former fearsome weight. Commerce freighters and their escorts were disappearing without a trace at an alarming rate. The captive Delmar crews were subservient enough, but yet another freighter had been reported missing its escorts two standard days late in reporting in. His patrols had found one debris field, but it was defused to the point of uselessness. The patrol simply could not find enough debris to determine how many ships had been destroyed, or which ships had been destroyed. These pirates seemed have an uncanny sense of where and when to strike.
On top of these first two problems, there was the C¡¯Claram homeworld, despite his garrison¡¯s best efforts, his men were still raided on a semi-regular basis. The C¡¯Claram seemed to have an endless supply of weapons and were naturally capable of descending to depths simply impossible to traverse by a nonaquatic species like the Vorath. The crustacean-based species appeared to have the ability to equalize the pressure inside their body to match their surroundings and did not need submersibles to raid from. They often time attacked depos, checkpoints, and mining operations in little more than their bare exoskeleton and a weapon. Their lack of armor made them incredibly easy to kill, but almost impossible to find within the black depths of their oceans. Furthermore, the unfortunate fact that their world contained vast undersea riches and rare components that were essential to the war effort and required a subservient population of natives to extract those resources. His preference for extermination in this matter had been deprived out of necessity.
He groaned as another message blipped across his screen, only his mind flared with more than just pain as he activated long-range communications. There would be a delay, but he cared little. This matter would be tended to immediately. An image of a heavily stressed and surprised Thermian wearing an admiral insignia appeared on the screen. The lizard opened his mouth to speak, but Centarus was already transmitting, functionally cutting the Thermian off. Centarus ignored the man''s title, ¡°Kar, care to tell me what you have done with my ships.¡±
Chapter 109
Cory woke to a beep on his communicator. Jacky grumbled softly beside him but did not wake as he slipped from her grasp and walked to his console. It was an alert from the night shift, it had been weeks since his mission in the K¡¯Claram home system. Captain Collins was no longer with them, but Cory had ordered the stalking of the freighter they encountered the enslaved Delmar freighter. He had shadowed them deep into the up spin of what was once Unity space. He was deep behind enemy lines, and he was but one ship. He had made a promise, however; but the vessel he pursued seemed to be visiting exclusively heavily protected systems.
This message changed that. Their target was headed to the marsh world of the invertebrate species known as the Mauk¡¯Lur. The Cephalopod species shared this world with a Terrestrial Snail like species, the Pli¡¯Lur and their common last syllable had given rise to the Common name for the planet. ¡°Lurix¡± had also become home to many Unity species that required higher moister environments. Siraf, K¡¯Claram, as well as the Gecko like species Gireken all called this planet home, but it had no tactical or industrial usage that Cory could remember. What it did provide was an opportunity. Lurix circled a weak red dwarf star in a two-planet system that had become one planet in history lost. The outer planet, thought of as Luska, had been destroyed in a twist of bad luck long before most Unity races had achieved, or been gifted space travel. Her fragments had slowly expanded, englobing the small system in sensor scattering fragments, some as large as a S.O.L. It was a perfect ambush point, even if The Olyvia would have to take on a pair of escorting warships.
That was the second thing that changed. Their prey had received new handlers. This deep into ¡°safe territory¡±, and transiting through a chaotic interstellar debris field. Two frontier brigs were assigned to escort duty. If Olyvia was to take her first prize, this was to be the opportunity. Cory spent the next few hours of the early morning brushing up on the system, drafting a plan, and sending off the notification in a tight beam transmission to a predetermined set of coordinates that one of the Privateer ships was to be at all times. The coordinates were rotational, and each vessel traded out this duty. Olyvia was next on the rotation once he finished this mission.
Many Admirals would have demanded a request for permission to engage in a mission, but Admiral Grarzia was¡ different. Much to Cory¡¯s chagrin, and Jacky¡¯s amusement, ¡°Mackenzie¡¯s Privateers¡± had stuck. And Mac chose to wield his fleet very much like a loose consortium of Privateers. Cory was required to check in, and he was required to follow some basic rotations to give his crew and others both opportunity and rest. Aside from that, He merely needed to submit a location of operation and a plan. By default, all plans were approved unless a captain received a response within a standard day. This was because of the wide swath of the void that all the captains operated in. Any longer of a response time risked missed opportunities, and Mac prioritized Autonomy and swiftness of action over standardized procedure.
Cory finished his report and que¡¯d it for the next transmission as a priority¡ just in time for a soft hand to brush his shoulder. Jackie slipped around his chair, sitting on his lap to face him as she kissed him good morning, ¡°You¡¯re up early.¡± She whispered.
¡°Hmm, good morning to you.¡± Cory smiled down at her. ¡°The freighter is on the move; we have a window.¡±
¡°OH?¡± Jackies voice was husky, and she slowly picked at the buttons of the shirt he had thrown on to stay warm at his desk. ¡°And that was so important you had to get out of bed?¡± she asked, freeing the top few buttons. She leaned in to nip at his neck and slip her hands inside his shirt. Cory felt her body heat as she fully released his shirt and pressed herself up against him.
¡°Hmmm¡± Cory mused, running light fingertips up and down her flanks. ¡°When you ask it like this¡ we¡¯ll be late for our shifts.¡± He rumbled back down at her, grabbing her hips to pull her closer to him.
¡°Then what are you waiting for¡± Jacky smirked, arching her back and pulling herself up to kiss him fiercely, eliciting a possessive growl from Cory as he met her lips with his.
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Kar¡¯s tail threatened to obliterate the second chair in as many days. His ears still rang with the stinging conversation between Centarus and himself. The loss of the Vorath Cruiser¡ to pirates no less¡ threatened to land a serious blow to the alliance between His people and their Vorath Allies. He was currently in transit back to the mother world for the beginning of what the Vorath called ¡°Phase 1¡±. His flag, the Thermian-made Battle Cruiser named ¡°Vengeful Maw¡±, was escorted by her sister ship ¡°Blooded Claw¡± and three escort destroyers with names Kar did not bother remembering.
Phase 1 was claimed to be the beginning of the Thermian genetic enhancement program. Their Vorath allies were taking genetic samples of a wide swath of the Thermian population to begin designing their future. Kar was returning to give his own sample, as well as attend a few discussions regarding the war effort, and what comes after. Giving the Vorath this much control over his people¡¯s very existence was as unsettling as it was necessary, but it would not always be so.
The shift in the Hum of the vessel broke Kar from his musings as the fleet entered the mother system, and he stepped out of his working office and took the short walk to the bridge. The desert world of his birth appeared as a distant tan dot, the second of four worlds that orbited a bright yellow star. Theirs was one of the largest systems in the Unity, and it was well defended by two full battle groups and a quintuplet of heavily armed orbital stations. The Thermian admiral listened to the flurry of activity and communications as his fleet was cleared into the system. It would be another 6 hours at sub light speeds until they reached orbit. Kar settled into his seat on the bridge, preparing for the days to come.
A flash of blinding light flared through the observation windows of the bridge. Almost instantly, an alarm Klaxon blared, and a massive impact shook Kar¡¯s flagship. Main power failed almost instantly, and a second alarm began wailing. Kar grabbed his suit''s controls, activating the Helmet. His suit was more advanced than the average crewman¡¯s, loaded with Nanite Tech from their Vorath benefactors. His helmet automatically deployed and encapsulated his snout as many around him clambered to put on their helmets as the bridge began to rapidly decompress. Half of his crew got their helmets on in time, Kar was grabbed physically by the captain of the ship, and the two of them, accompanied by three other bridge crew struggled out of the bridge and down the corridor. A pair of bulkheads ruptured into fragments, scything their way through the group. The surviving helmsman had his left arm torn off before the same shard removed the captain¡¯s head from his shoulders. Kar growled into his mic as a smaller shard embedded itself in his tail. The hall in front of them began belching flame and plasma as the stricken warship groaned beneath him, but they had reached their destination.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.
One of the surviving crewmen keyed in the code to the panel, activating the doors to the emergency lifeboat, and began waving the admiral in. Kar stepped through with a nod and turned to aid the last surviving member of the bridge crew just as, yet another violent secondary explosion threw him to the floor outside the small escape craft. The crewman seemed to stare in shock down the hallway before slowly turning to face his commander. The young Thermian gave the admiral a crisp Thermian naval salute with one hand, and slapped the controls with the other, sealing Kar alone inside the lifeboat. Kar could only look on as the Crewman, still holding the salute, was incinerated by a wall of plasma just before the lifeboat¡¯s auto-launch sequence activated. Kar was thrown to the floor a second time as the explosive bolts blew, and the thrusters fired. The 15-seat escape boat, with a sole Thermian admiral inside, rocketed away as Kar stood, pressing against the portholes. Kar¡¯s helmet deactivated in the repressurized atmosphere of the lifeboat. Through the pressure-tested circular window, Kar received his first glimpses of what happened. His Flagship was in three pieces, and he could see long curved shards protruding from at least two of those fragments. One shard, near the bridge, flickered with the half-destroyed main drive thruster of a conspicuously absent destroyer. Kar let out a hiss of shock, unable to do anything but watch as the debris field slowly expanded over the next several minutes before a second flash, this one striking His flags sistership directly amidships. The impact completely ignored its raised shields, pealing the warship apart as jets of plasma flared through widening seams. The pressure spike from the interior atmosphere turning to plasma finished the job. It tore the hull asunder in a violent expansion of lethal confetti that sliced one of the fragments of Kar¡¯s once flagship in two. A second shard of the Blooded Claw speared one of the surviving destroyers bow on, and the stricken vessel began a slow uncontrolled corkscrew as her main power failed, and her thrusters fluttered and flickered in asymmetric power. Kar took a few steps backward, sitting heavily on one of the seats as the lifeboat began an excruciatingly slow burn towards the nearest surviving warship.
The Thermian home system¡¯s last planet from its star was not alone. Her unanticipated companions had drifted in under minimal power. They spent over a week there, hidden from detection as they mapped the solar winds, magnetic variances, and gravitational profiles of the system. They had been nearly discovered on three occasions during that time, but the Patrols were seen, and dodged, long before they arrived. They worked as a pair, sniper and spotter. profiles and shooting solutions were ranged, analyzed, refined, and then reanalyzed again. The Intel proved their effort unwasted, and their target appeared on schedule and location. The Thermian fleet sailed calmly into kill zone bracketed by the drones launched from the USN Kid. Her post-repair upgrades had given her a few new toys to play with, including the tight beam transmitting Autonomous drones that she had used to map the system, and provide final shot telemetry.
The shot was novel, attempting to target an individual vessel at Intersolar distances instead of simply interplanetary ones, and this was the first attempt. USN Kid played spotter in the final moments before firing, feeding final calculations to her counterpart. USN Simo loosed her first round, her target half a star system away. She failed to hit her primary target, the Thermian flag ship, but instead obliterated the destroyer closest to her. The impact turned the smaller warship into a massive fragmentation grenade whose blast caused the flagship to break apart. The first shot gave the final pieces of information needed to refine the targeting solution, and Simo¡¯s second shot struck the second battle cruiser without error.
A sturdy clunk betrayed USN Simo¡¯s main hull¡¯s return to battery. Her capacitors were well into the Yellow, incapable of firing a third shot; but the mission had always been two rounds. Her Captain nodded in satisfaction as the Vulkan powered down, ¡°Secure stations, Signal The Kid. It is time.¡± was all he said. USN Simo, with two destroyers already painted on her hull, pivoted on her maneuvering thrusters. USN Kidd slipped into formation with her as they fired up their main drives for the burn to slipspace.
¡°One for the record books, sir?¡± The first officer asked cordially, and the Captain smiled.
¡°I¡¯ll be sure to add it to the log, XO.¡± He mused just as the bright flare of slipspace betrayed their jump from the system.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Mac and Lyrian shared a private morning breakfast in their quarters aboard USN Wisconsin. Both had recovered from their scuffle with their unanticipated guests, but the mood was still somber. The information from Captain Hera¡¯s first prize shed light on the final events of their particular battle. The Vorath were obviously keeping armed squads, acting as jailers and executioners, aboard the enslaved Delmar vessels. It had become clear that upon the destruction of the two escorts, the Vorath on the freighter had forced a self-destruct. They had murdered themselves as well as every living being upon that freighter for the sake of denying their victims freedom.
It was a gruesome reminder of the character of their foe and had hit Lyrian particularly hard. She had felt what Mac had felt when they were used as ¡°human shields¡± as he called them. They had fought, bled, and nearly died to deny the enemy the satisfaction of forcing Concord to kill the freighter. It felt all for nothing, all those souls were dead anyway, forced to watch in terror down to their last moments of existence.
Mac reached over, placing a hand unobtrusively on Lyri¡¯s leg, ¡°A bheil thu gu math, a ghr¨¤idh (Are you well, love?)¡±
Lyrian smiled at his use of his old tongue, ¡°Bidh mi, mu dheireadh thall (I will be, eventually.).¡± she responded, forcing herself to take another bite of food. Her appetite wasn¡¯t in it, but now was not the time to be less than 100 percent. ¡°Feumaidh sinn d¨°igh a lorg gus an s¨¤bhaladh an ath thuras. (we must find a way to save them next time).¡±
Mac squeezed her leg once before returning to his own food, ¡°n¨¬ sinn, a-nis gu bheil fios againn ... n¨¬ sinn.(We will, now that we know¡ we will.).¡± He took a bite of his toasted bread and switched back from Scott¡¯s Gaelic. ¡°Hera, Clint, Jake, and the rest have the reports now. We will find a way to get around it. I even sent a copy of the report to Johansen, along with the spec¡¯s for most of the common Freighter models.¡±
Lyrian sighed, ¡°I hope so. What is the word on Traveler and her prize?¡±
Mac swallowed a bite of food, ¡°Traveler took very little damage, she should be exiting slip space at the library in a few weeks. We aren¡¯t quite sure what their speed will be, and we are keeping radio silence just in case.¡± He picked up a mug of steaming black coffee, chuckling at the face Lyrian made as he sipped it.
She playfully scowled at him, ¡°You know kissing you after you drink that still gives me the jitters.¡±
Mac said nothing, grinning as he took a second, more purposeful sip from his mug. His amused expression smoothed as a new ping rang at the console near him. He turned from their shared breakfast, opening the urgently marked file, ¡°Looks like your brother is getting aggressive. He¡¯s in deep.¡±
Lyrian pulled her chair over to his, her food forgotten, ¡°Gods, why did he choose there. It¡¯s a death trap¡¡± she pulled up a duplicate of the file to her pad and began ripping it apart, ¡°This is too risky, I don¡¯t like it.¡± She flicked a portion of the file back to Mac. ¡°They won¡¯t be able to get out easily, I don¡¯t think this is a good¡¡± Lyrian looked up.
¡°Love, for this to work, I have to trust my captains. We must trust Cory¡¯s decision. His Intel is credible. His plan is well thought out. and we don¡¯t have anyone else close enough.¡± Mac pulled her close, resting her head on his shoulder, ¡°I know, I know¡ It¡¯s harder when it¡¯s family. I hate it too.¡± Mac looked over at another beep on the console, ¡°I take it back. I might have some backup available for Cory.¡±
Lyrian raised an eyebrow at the satisfaction boiling from Mac as he opened the file to share, and Mac could feel here surprised shock then stunned silence as the data that accompanied the engagement logs registered, ¡°This can¡¯t be right¡¡± She looked up at Mac, ¡°Are you serious? 1.2 billion Clicks? How is that possible?¡±
Mac¡¯s chuckle became a laugh, ¡°More math than I want to think about. We won¡¯t know if the Their admiral survived. We barely missed the direct hit on the flagship. But considering the distance¡.¡±
Lyrian snorted loudly, ¡°I¡¯m not sure what is luckier. The shot, or the admiral¡¯s survival. Do we know who the bastard that glassed the capital is yet?¡±
Mac shrugged, ¡°No clue, yet.¡±
Chapter 110
A bright flash of blues and whites spat a greyish black object into normal space a mere one hundred Clicks from physical asteroid cloud that provided a natural barrier into the Lurix system. USN Olyvia¡¯s drives instantly flared to life, and she made for the outer edges of the asteroid field with a purposeful stride. The senior Crew was at hand, having alternated shifts so they were well rested for this endeavor. Captain Correllus Grarzia shifted in his chair slightly, watching with interest as his star helmsman switched from his standard control configuration to a more ¡°analog¡± twin joystick and pedals. ¡®The kid really should be piloting a fighter¡¯ he mused just as the young lad turned to look at him. ¡°Ready, skipper¡±
¡°Take us in. All ahead slow.¡± Cory ordered calmly, before keying up the ship-wide broadcasting channel. ¡°This is the captain. We¡¯ve just entered the Lurix system. Rig for silent running. I repeat, rig for silent running.¡± All across the ship, nonessential systems were shut down; their lack of electronic signature aided the stealth coating on the bulky former troop transport. In engineering. Patrick, Cammy, and the rest of their section powered down a large portion of the larger systems onboard.
Life support was set to emergency backup, with old school oxygen candles lit in special housings that allowed their life-giving emissions to be circulated throughout the ship. Each major section of the vessel had their own supplies of these low-tech solutions, and Olyvia carried enough of these candles to survive for several days without functioning life support if needed.
Only a few were lit this time, using them as an augmentation to allow for minimal use of their perfectly functioning life support systems; and Cammy returned from the compartment just in time to aid in shutting down two-thirds of Olyvia¡¯s fusion reactors. This was not usually part of the silent running protocol, but Cory had added it for this mission. While they knew where their target would be, they still knew very little about what defenses awaited them inside the system.
Patrick keyed up the mic, ¡°Engineering reporting in, silent running.¡±
*acknowledged* came a voice back. And Patrick leaned back in his chair just as Cammy arrived. ¡°Well, that¡¯s that.¡± He sighed.
Cammy stepped behind his chair, rubbing his shoulders for a second, ¡°candles are lit. Two per section. At this rate we won¡¯t run out for a year.¡±
Patrick chuckled, standing before looking over at his team, ¡°Sandwiches are in the mess hall. Half go now, half after. We¡¯ll wait and go with second shift.¡± The team nodded and soon, the room was half as full. ¡°Hurry up, and wait¡± Patrick mused, and turned to the rest. ¡°Hold¡¯em anyone?¡±
Over the next several days, shifts were kept short with a high rotation frequency. Olyvia picked her way through the natural minefield created by a destroyed world, slipping between the dead planetary shards with deadly caution. She ran quiet, with all but minimal deflectors shut down, and a single detuned laser online on each of her flanks as a last resort against impacts. Cory, Jesse, Patrick, and Cammy met regularly to keep tabs on the ship¡¯s progress. The admiral¡¯s transmission had reached them in time, and the four of them, plus Jacky when she could pry herself from the infirmary, worked to formulate a plan to get into the freighter without killing everyone. They had Hera and Jacobs reports, but those reports also admitted to a certain degree of incredible luck on their part. Things could have gone very differently, and the murder of the freighter during the admiral¡¯s capture operation hinted at a change in tactics from their foe.
Mackenzie¡¯s Privateers had liberated several freighters since they began operations, keeping to their cover as ¡°pirates¡± by leaving nothing big enough to betray their secrets behind. A few of the other captains had left pieces of inoperative Unity tech, strategically damaged and jettisoned after the fight, as red herrings to convince both the Vorath, and the Thermians that these ¡°pirates¡± had somehow gotten ahold of Unity warships.
Cory stepped into the cargo bay to meet Patric and Camorra. They were tinkering, carefully he hoped, with one of Olyvia¡¯s harpoon missiles. It was a project triggered by Cammy¡¯s brilliant, if outlandish, idea. ¡°We know these freighters all ran the same codes, and the same infrastructure in their computer cores. Why can¡¯t we hack it. Human computing should be perfectly capable of it.¡± Cory remembered her words as he stepped up to the two, ¡°at ease¡± he waved them away as they threatened to salute him, ¡°how¡¯s our little project coming.¡±
¡°See for yourself¡± Patrick smiled handing him a data pad.
Cory took the offered device, quickly scanning through the data, ¡°All I see is Olyvia¡¯s system logs. Did you give me the wrong one?¡±
Patric smiled evilly, ¡°That is coming from the missile, we found a common power regulator chip that dam near all Delmar freighters use in their integrated core management. Our mole here mimicked that regulators protocols to get into one we installed in a conduit over there¡± he pointed to an open panel. ¡°It¡¯s designed to cycle through several common chipsets and protocols to get access.¡±
¡°You hacked Olyvia?¡± Cory asked, eyebrow raised in a combination of amusement and irritation.
¡°Well, ¡°Cammy said calmly, ¡°we had to test it, and Oly¡¯s the only ship close enough¡¡±
¡°I see¡¡± Cory mused, ¡°It will have to do, we will be reaching the edge of the field in three days, how many of these can you have ready?¡±
Patrick scratched the red stubble punctuating his jaw line. ¡°Hmm two, maybe three, including that one.¡± He winced at his captain¡¯s expression, ¡°Took us a minute to get the virus right, sorry.¡±
Cory sounded to himself like a broken record, ¡°I guess that will have to do as well. I¡¯ll leave it to you.¡± He turned to return to his office but was interrupted halfway there by an urgent request for his presence on the bridge.
Jesse rose to greet him as Cory stepped into Olyvia¡¯s command center, and he nodded towards the ready room off to the side. The two of them quickly stepped inside and Jesse closed the door. ¡°Jesse, what¡¯s this about¡± Cory asked, settling into his desk chair. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Jesse, his first officer, and battle born brother looked at him seriously, ¡°The first of our stealth probes have made it into the system proper¡.. It¡¯s not good¡± He tapped at his data pad before handing it to his captain, ¡°The enemy is doing something big down there, and we don¡¯t know what. What we do know, is that there are three heavy cruisers in orbit, and three more destroyers in floating patrols around the system.¡±
Cory scrolled through the pad as his first officer made his report, pausing at the same information on the planet¡¯s surface, ¡°These are military installations. This makes no sense. We haven¡¯t had a use for Lurix in millennia. It¡¯s always just been a haven for aquatic and semi-aquatic species. Why didn¡¯t our intel warn us of this.¡±
Jesse nodded grimly, ¡°I don¡¯t know for sure, but I have my suspicions.¡± He reached over, tapping at the tab to open a particular file Cory had yet to find. ¡°We found these in orbit as well.¡± He pointed to a pair of Delmar constructed freighters, parked in orbit over the marsh world. ¡°I authorized a single transmission to a single drone, uploading Patrick and Camorra¡¯s hacking program into it, and we sent it to one of those freighters... this is what we found.¡±
Cory opened the indicated file, and felt bile rise in the back of his throat as he watched. ¡°Ready a tight beam, send it back the way we came, Towards Simo.¡± Jesse looked at his captain in understanding. The risk of transmitting this close to the enemy was a grave risk. Measured against the information they just witnessed; however, it was an absolute necessity. Jesse took the offered tablet, ¡°The Admirals need to see this¡. Both of them.¡±
¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
Clint Stevens groaned as his communicator beeped from his desk. It was a very early morning on a weekend, and Frie had let Natalie stay at her grandparents for the weekend. He quietly slipped from the entanglements of a profoundly comfortable Delmar goddess he had somehow been gifted with as his wife, and silently cursed the inevitable destruction of his plans. The Com was linked to his computer console, and Clint tapped the file as he sat down.
The file opened, beginning with a grim-looking Corellus Grarzia who made an intro statement that froze Clint in his thoughts. Before he could begin to prepare himself, images flooded in that turned grogginess into razor''s edge consciousness ringing with a white-hot fury. Frie was ripped from her slumber instantly, reaching for her biometric pistol safe as a response to the unbridled rage she experienced from her husband. It took her a moment to realize that they were not being attacked, and she rushed from their bed, neglecting even basic decency to be by his side.
The two of them watched the Horrors unfold. Children¡ small children of multiple different races, stacked in a freighter¡¯s hold like cattle, being thrown food like one would an animal. Massive screens played, promising safety and full bellies should they only but kiss the hand of a severe looking Vorath female. All who had not, were treated to daily ice-cold sprays mixed with random beatings. He watched as desperate older siblings attempted to shelter their kin from the abuse, often times paying the ultimate price for their valor.
Clint and Frie were spared a further assault on their senses by a beeping light, indicating an urgent call from Clint¡¯s adopted brother. Frie slipped out of view, reaching for a nightgown as a furious Mac, accompanied by an equal parts shocked and livid Lyrian, appeared on screen.
¡°You¡¯ve seen it¡± Clint stated. There were no barriers between them, no formalities. Only pure truth.
¡°I have,¡± Mac rumbled. ¡°Why is it always kids..¡±
Clint shook his head, ¡°I can have a battle group there in two weeks. It¡¯s not soon enough, but.¡±
Mac nodded sharply, ¡°I¡¯m redirecting everyone not on critical missions. Simo and Kid are already there with Olyvia. Wisconsin is enroute. We will await your arrival¡.. Clint¡¡± Clint¡¯s eyes met Mac¡¯s in a joined promise that reached across time and space.
¡°No, there won¡¯t.¡± Clint answered, responding to Mac¡¯s unspoken statement.
___________________________________________________________
A week later, The Chanceller Thomas Durrant of the Sol Federation perused the latest transmissions from Unity space. He was due for reelection this coming fall, and it was a close race. His opponent was labeling him a Warmonger, as he was an outspoken proponent of a more active role in the struggle against the Vorath, and it was working. The points were closing in the polls, and The Chancellor had not come out on top with the latest debate results. Humanity simply was not interested in further conflict. For one of the few times in human history, the vast majority of the Human race was content with peace.
The Chancellor took a sip of his mug as he opened a file from Admiral Stevens marked priority, but not top secret and promptly spit the contents in his mouth back into the mug. It was a complete file on some kind of intelligence operation, and Durrant almost wondered if it had been sent to him in error. The gruesome cover video dispelled that notion as the leader of Humanity itself watched horrors thought long dead play out in front of him. Several minutes later, he closed the file, and opened a message prompt.
¡°Viktor, are you up.¡± He typed.
*Yea, Tom. I¡¯m up, the campaign ain¡¯t gonna run itself into the ground.*
Durrant snorted at the dark humor, ¡°Viktor, I was sent something. It changes¡ everything¡± he typed, attaching the cover video, and the longer form surveillance recording he had found inside the file from Clint. Several minutes passed in tense silence before¡
*Jesus Christ, Tom.*
Tom Durrant took a long slow breath, ¡°Do you still have your man at The Post.¡± He paused before sending, knowing what he was asking.
*Yea¡ yea I do, Tom. Are you sure you want to do this. This has ¡®it will blow up in my face¡¯ written all over it.*
¡°I know, but this bigger than me. Do it, and announce a press conference to follow if The Post runs with it.¡± Durrant typed and sent the last message, closing down his console. He stood slowly, feeling his age for the first time in recent memory, and walked heavily to bed.
The Post ran with the story. In the next 48 hours, the ¡°leaked¡± scenes of tortured children, some barely more than infants ripped their way into Humanities Psyche. The revelations of what exactly was going on behind Vorath lines assailed Humanity, spurring many to call for blood, and Others to cry hoax. Around and around the political commentators debated, and redebated the shocking footage.
Chancellor Thomas Durrant followed through on his word, and was now stepping up to the platform and the Microphone as promised. He stood there for a full minute, meeting the eyes of as many of the hundreds of reporters before him as he could. The weight of his expression prompted a flurry of flashes as camera drones captured the image. Durrant allowed all of this to happen, waiting until the din of activity settled into a heavy silence. ¡°People of Humanity¡ By now, you have undoubtedly seen the shocking pictures from the far side of the galaxy. Many of you believe it to be a hoax, a desperate ploy for political points. Allow me to be clear. This is no hoax, I received these disturbing images directly from Admiral Clint Stevens, who is marshaling the forces at his disposal as we speak. He aims to do something about these orbital concentration camps, and I support his actions with the full backing of my authority as Chancellor of the United Sol Federation.¡±
Durrant paused, letting the information sink in before continuing, ¡°To answer the question as to whether this is a political ploy for points. Let me be perfectly clear, I alone released the footage from inside those torture ships, and I do not care if you believe it to be a political ploy. If Humanity can see the atrocities committed to the young innocents in those images and refuse to stand up for them; I no longer would wish to lead that Humanity. Yes, we are few compared to what we once were, but we have a strength that cannot be fathomed by those who choose to side with pure evil. Make no mistake, any being that is capable of torturing and murdering children deserves the title.¡± The Chancellor of United Sol skewered the silent crowd with a withering gaze, ¡°All of you here know that I have been an ardent supporter of taking a more active role against this pure evil, and my opponent has made a great many statements regarding my supposed ¡°warmongering¡±. I believe that to debate him further on this matter is as wasteful as it would be irrelevant. As such, I am suspending my campaign immediately. Pending permission from donors and the campaign review board, I will be donating the totality of my campaign war-chest to the purchase of relief supplies and construction of rehabilitation facilities for these children.¡± Durrant paused as a wave of gasps swept through the room as a volley of flashes assaulted his eyes. ¡°Holding the position of leader of the Human race seems so insignificant in comparison,¡± he said softly, almost to himself before scanning the crowd. ¡°The election is 4 months away. If you wish to reelect me, so be it; but know this.¡± Thomas Durrant rose to his full height, ¡°If you elect me this fall, know that I will use the full weight of this office to unleash the full might of Humanity upon this evil, or I will resign from my post and travel to Unity space myself.¡±
With that. Chancellor Thomas Durrant spun on his heels and marched off the stage.
Chapter 111
Tense silence greeted Corellus Grarzia. Moments ago, he had stepped off the shuttle sent for him, and now he was standing in the entryway to the main conference room aboard USN Wisconsin. This meeting greatly reminded him of his first meeting after taking captainship of Olyvia. This time, however, there were many more players. All but two of the Privateers were present, the latter being simply too deep into a mission, and too far away to make it in time. Both missing ships had completed their objectives, and were in transit, but waiting for them was simply not an option. Admiral Grarzia had arrived with Wisconsin and the rest of the Privateers within a week from Cory¡¯s transmission, and Admiral Stevens had arrived a week after that. Admiral Fulmori had retained the USN Texas as his Flag, having grown fond of Captain Gleeson. Unity High Admiral Kawmarin was still currently flagged aboard USN Galveston and was currently using her superior speed to respond to race across unity space in an attempt to rally Unity forces.
Admiral Clint Stevens had arrived with a five-ship battle group. He was flagged aboard USN Tharsis and was escorted by USN Furlong, USN Iowa, a recently retrofitted and upgraded DDS Protectorate, and a newly commissioned Delmar Frigate. The DDS Stormhold was a hybrid vessel. She had been in the early stages of construction when Humanity and Delmar met for the first time, and she had been modified during construction to make use of the recent innovations born of their budding alliance. She had but half the displacement of an Iowa Class, but she sported two-thirds of the weight of fire by destructive potential. Stormhold had struck many human sailors as what a battleship class would have looked like if the Martians had decided to build the class during Humanity¡¯s civil war. Stormhold carried but a pair of super-firing Kinetic batteries in dorsal and ventral positions with a single pair of super-firing batteries at her midships. Each turret in the battery only boasted a pair of barrels, and they fired the same 1005 projectile. Stormhold was armed to please however, and she carried twice the same number of PAC batteries as USN Tharsis, and she boasted a full-length central weapon that was very uniquely Delmar. The combined minds of the Brothers Grem and their research counterparts in Sol had spent years researching and iterating on the Martian Particle Acceleration Cannon, and they had found something.
DDS Stormhold sported a single long low profile blister stretching the length of her ventral hull, set just to the left of centerline to make room for her kinetic batteries. No less than 6 PAC systems were arrayed in parallel, all feeding one focusing array of titanic size. Stormhold could fire up to all 6 at the array, varying the amount of destruction she wished to adjudicate upon her enemy. Bart had dubbed this weapon the C-PAC, or ¡°Compound Particle Acceleration Cannon¡±. The discovery however was not that combining Pac beams was doable. Mars had tried and failed to accomplish this. The discovery was how to make it efficient enough to create a viable weapon. This accomplished, something became abundantly clear from the initial testing¡. A C-PAC did not scale linearly, but exponentially. A C-PAC could produce the same destructive energy as an Eros, but only within two hundred fifty thousand Kilometers. The rate of fire was still low, and firing all 6 feeder PACs at once was a cautious calculation, as the heat generated was still a problem, but early tests in a long-dead system had seen the accidental cracking of the target planet¡¯s crust. The reaction that followed destabilized the planet entirely and said star system was now one interstellar body lighter.
Stevens brought more than just a battle group, having appropriated four troop transports. Each transport carried a detachment of Marines, with the two MACE squads spread between them for heavy support. It was a small number, but they were to be on hand to evacuate any survivors they could. ¡°Alright people, gather round. All of you have seen the brief by now, and I know all of you are ready for this to happen. Let¡¯s not go in halfcocked¡± Several heads bobbed in acknowledgement and Stevens turned to spear Cory with a gaze, ¡°For those who might not have met yet, this is Corellus Grarzia, Captain of the Privateer that uncovered this little honeypot of horrors. He¡¯s been the closest to this thing the longest.¡± Stevens waved to Cory, ¡°Captain?¡±
Cory stepped up and took a long breath, ¡°The situation¡¯s only gotten worse since my first transmission. The prison freighters and the frigates in orbit are just the beginning of the problem. We¡¯ve since discovered camps on the surface of the planet, I¡¯ve marked them in your updated files¡± Cory flicked his wrist over his datapad, propagating the information to everyone else¡¯s pad and the table in the center of the room, ¡°This is not just a torture camp, it is an indoctrination and training facility. The kissing of the hand is a surrender trigger of sorts. Kiss the hand, and the child is taken from hell, given food, and given a task. Usually something simple and innocuous, but it is rewarded. If a child accepts without instruction, and without question; they are sent to the surface where they are put into an intense indoctrination program.¡± Cory took a pause, watching the faces of the men and women in the room. Hard eyes and grim expressions waited for him to continue. ¡°The children are eventually taken on hunts¡. Hunts of other failed children and adults of their own species¡ and hunts of the locals¡ they are creating insurgents. We may and will encounter opposition made of child soldiers and operatives on the surface. We¡¯ve also discovered a fast response system. Attacking one freighter at a time will trigger the destruction of the other freighters, and it appears that the Frigates in the system are in direct communication with someone outside the system every 20 minutes. That is all we know, at this time.¡±
Cory nodded to the admirals before stepping back from the table. Mac gave Cory a nod before speaking, ¡°Thank you, Captain. Alright people, no idea goes unspoken. No question goes unasked, we only have one shot at this. Let¡¯s get to work.¡±
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Warren¡¯s eyes slowly fluttered open, aroused from his slumber by soft lips working their way up from the nape of his neck, ¡°Hmm, Good morning.¡± He whispered as Jezz pulled herself atop him with a smile of her own. She kissed her way up his chin to his ear before responding, ¡°Morning.¡± She coo¡¯d back at him, her sultry tone lighting his senses on fire. Warren pulled her the rest of the way to his lips, kissing her gently just as his communicator chirped, ¡°UUgghhhh!!¡± he groaned, breaking their kiss to open the channel, ¡°L.T. Patterson here.¡± He stated, trying to keep his voice professional as Jezzaria¡¯s lips began to wander again.
*Lieutenant, We¡¯ve received word. The cargo transports finished loading earlier than anticipated. We will be departing in twenty minutes. Captain Yasushi has asked for your presence on the bridge.*
¡°Understood, I¡¯ll be there¡ uh¡. Momentarily.¡± Warren responded closing the channel, looking down at a smugly amused Jezzaria, ¡°Jezz! Now how am I supposed to show up on the bridge with that¡¡±
¡°Hmm¡± She mused coyly. ¡°Probably shouldn¡¯t, I better take care of that.¡± Warren never had a chance to respond.
Twenty minutes later, an only slightly breathless Warren arrived on the bridge, receiving a raised eyebrow from Excelsior¡¯s Captain. ¡°Cutting it rather close, Lieutenant?¡± Yasushi asked as he scanned the last of the information before departure.
Warren kept his face carefully neutral, ¡°Unavoidable, Sir.¡± He said formally. ¡°You asked to see me?¡±
¡°Yes, Is the Elerian delegation settled in?¡± Yasushi asked first. ¡°We¡¯ve done what we can to give them ample spaces on the ship attuned to their gravity, and signage to prevent accidents, but I¡¯ve heard rumblings.¡±
¡°It not¡ the gravity sir¡ May we?¡± Warren responded carefully, nodding to the captain¡¯s ready room. The two of them stepped into the more private setting, and Warren sat heavily into the chair opposite the desk.
Yasushi regarded the young officer with a studious gaze, ¡°Talk to me son. I need to know if something is brewing during this voyage.¡±
Warren sighed inwardly. The delegation made up about a quarter of the surviving Elerian race, the Oldest of the Children saved from their planet. They had finished catching up in their education and updating on changes wrought while they were asleep. These Oldest had requested, and obviously granted, permission to travel to their home planet to participate in its recolonization. There was only one real problem with the situation. ¡°Jezz wishes to continue to Delmar, but she is the de facto leader of her species. It is, chafing in some area¡¯s.¡± Warren finally answered.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
¡°Ah, I see.¡± Yasushi leaned back into his chair. ¡°Has she told them that She is not staying?¡±
Warren shook his head, ¡°No sir. She knows she has to stay. It¡¯s just¡. It¡¯s just obvious that she hates the reality of the situation, that I must continue to Delmar. It does not help that Many of her people see our relationship as hurtful. They see us as narrowing the genetic pool from which they can recover.¡±
Yasushi¡¯s eyes softened slightly in understanding, ¡°Atticus¡¯ research?¡±
¡°Almost complete sir, it¡¯s all but certain that the Corth placed Elerian DNA in the Human genome. He believes that We could be the key to the genetic diversity needed to jumpstart their species, but¡ They don¡¯t know that.¡± Warren sighed, ¡°It¡¯s all still heavily classified pending the conclusion. Her people don¡¯t know what she has put herself through to ensure accurate data. They just see me as stealing their future, and her as a love-struck girl playing at leadership.¡±
Yasushi nodded, bringing up the progress synopsis on his consol, ¡°It appears that Atticus requires only one further ¡®experiment¡¯ before his conclusions can be reached. Do you know what that is?¡±
Warren shook his head, ¡°Sorry, Sir. I don¡¯t. We are to meet him in his onboard lab after lunch. He¡¯s fastidious about records, I¡¯m sure you will know by the time we leave his office.¡±
¡°Hmm,¡± Yasushi mused, taking a moment to review the update before closing it, ¡°I know this is hard for you. You two have been thrust into quite a bit above your stage in life. Let me know if there is anything I can do. Dismissed, Lieutenant.¡±
Warren saluted crisply, following Yasushi out to the bridge just in time to watch the small convoy leap into slip space. His feet slowly guided him back to the quarters he shared with Jezz, feeling the shift in gravity as he passed into the Eleri safe parts of the ship. It would be a two-month sail to the Elerian homeworld, and Warren was not looking forward to its conclusion. His thoughts were interrupted by raised voices, one of which he was intimately familiar with, coming from around the corner, and Warren accelerated his gate.
¡°You know we barely have the numbers to survive! Instead of doing your duty, you¡¯re bedding that heavy worlder!¡± It was the oldest Elerian male, Bregan, flanked by two other male Elerians. They had ambushed Jezz against the door to the quarters Warren and her shared.
¡°Back up Breg, I don¡¯t care that your father was pappa¡¯s top general. This is not the play you want to make right now. I am Warren¡¯s, and that is not changing.¡± Jezz¡¯s voice was stern, and she noticed Warren arrive around the corner. The smallest shake of her head kept him from barging in. Elerian female leaders were a prickly thing, and because He was not Eleri, she needed to do this on her own. They had talked about it, expecting something like this once the first complaints had been whispered. Jezz was still kicking herself for not spending more time with her people, but she had also been instrumental in the Gate project that promised to bind the galaxy more tightly than ever before.
Breg openly scoffed at Jezz, ¡°A woman, ordering me around? Maybe Your precious Human will have an accident.¡± He sneered, blatantly reaching for Jezz¡¯s wingtips, ¡°Then maybe You search for a proper m¡ UGH!¡± Warren winced as he heard the tale tale cracking of bone. Jez had slapped away Bren¡¯s outstretched hand before driving her fist into his side. She had underestimated her power, having lived for over a year in various gravities that greatly exceed that of her homeworld, and Bren doubled over with eyes wide as he fell to a knee. He clutched his side, glaring at Jezzaria, ¡°Bitch! I¡¯ll have you brought up on charges! Let¡¯s see your precious human get you out of an assault charges, with witnesses.¡± Bren sputtered, and his two friends nodded angrily.
¡°Go ahead, but I do not think you will be successful.¡± Jezz pointed up to the corner of the corridor opposite Warren, ¡°All hallways are rigged for video and audio. Every threat you have made was logged in the ships computer the moment you puked it out of your pathetic mouth.¡± Warren had to stifle the chuckle that threatened to escape his lips at the pure vitriol in Jezz¡¯s ton. ¡°As for witnesses, you can come on over, hun.¡±
Warren put on severe expression, locking eyes with Brengan even as the young mans eyes bugged out of his head. ¡°My husband has been watching for quite a while and would make an excellent witness.¡± Jezz¡¯s smug expression nearly broke Warren''s facade as he crossed his arms in front of the three.
¡°Hmm, threatening the murder of a Naval officer.. Attempted assault on a reigning monarch¡ Getting recorded doing so, not a good look.¡± Warren rumbled, and Bren spat at his feet.
¡°Fuck you.¡± Bren spat, ¡°If you believe that to be true, why did you wait for your woman to fight instead of protecting her, coward.¡±
Warren openly laughed in the boy¡¯s face, ¡°You assume my woman needed saving from you. She¡¯s soared on Luna and Conquered the artificial gravity on Ceres.¡± Warren paused as a profoundly contemplative expression washed over the three boy¡¯s faces, ¡°What makes you think you were anything close to a threat to MY mate.¡± Warren growled the last part, making the miscreants take an involuntary step back, ¡°Now get out of here. And get that rib checked out, I heard it break from over there.¡±
The three Elerian boys scrambled down the hallway, unable to flee on wing because of the narrow space. Warren waited for them to round the corner, and felt Jezz collapse into him almost instantly after. Warren quickly opened their door and pulled her in with him, ¡°Hey, hey, hey. Shhhh¡± He soothed rubbing her down patch between the base of her wings. She melted into him, but continued shaking for a moment. ¡°Their gone, it¡¯s ok now.¡±
Jezz took a long shakey breath, ¡°I¡ I don¡¯t know what to do¡. My people are so scared¡ and I can¡¯t tell them that we need Humans to recover our numbers. I¡ I don¡¯t know what to do¡¡±
Warren kept rubbing her back, ¡°I¡¯ll have lunch brought here. Breg doesn¡¯t need to see that he shook you.¡± Jezz nodded, and a few minutes later a pair of cold-cut sandwiches arrived. The two of them ate, Jezz curled up in Warren¡¯s lap. Violence was not a natural decision for her, and it had been the first time she had struck anyone outside her occasional sparring with Warren. Warren partially blamed himself for her not knowing her own strength. He always allowed her to strike at him as hard as she could, knowing that she was incapable of hurting him with her bare hands, and she had gained enough speed and technique to occasionally get through his admittedly average hand-to-hand skills. He had still not taught her to shoot Kinetics. He worried that she would be simply too fragile. She could still possibly shatter bones should she get behind one of his pistols, or even his rimfire rifle.
They were just beginning to leave when a knock at the door interrupted their cleanup. And Warren opened the door, his face a serious mask as he prepared to deal with more of the¡ ¡°Atticus?¡± He asked as the Androgenous Corth stepped into their quarters. ¡°I thought we were meeting you in your lab?¡±
¡°You are correct Warren. However, after word of Jezzaria¡¯s little incident spread across the ship, I thought it best to have this conversation somewhere more comfortable.¡± Atticus stated in his usual analytical tone, waving to the seating in the pair¡¯s living quarters. Warren raised an eyebrow and the uncharacteristic catering to circumstances from Atticus and settled onto one side of the queen bed in the corner. Their compartment was spacious considering Excelsior¡¯s size, but still lacked any major furnishing outside of the bed, a place for clothes and a chair for the desk which held the computer console. Jezz sat down next to him, and Atticus pulled the desk chair to face them.
¡°What¡¯s this about Att.¡± Warren asked, picking up on the small tells that told him that Atticus was stalling.
Atticus flashed a smile to Warren before responding, ¡°I¡¯ve completed my research, at least, as much of it I can without more direct observation, and I am unwilling to ask that with, so few Elerians left.¡± He began, holding up a hand to Jezz who was already opening her mouth to protest, ¡°I have already found some remarkable discoveries regarding you. As you are probably aware, being able to adapt to Luna, and even Ceres should not be possible for your species¡± he continued looking a Jezz as he spoke, ¡°None of your people, who tried anything like that before have succeeded.¡±
¡°But Atticus,¡± Jezz asked in confusion, ¡°I¡¯m fine¡ I¡¯m better than fine. Warren and I spent a weekend on Luna to say goodbye to his parents. I don¡¯t have to be tossed to fly there anymore.¡± Atticus raised an eyebrow and Warren nodded in confirmation.
Atticus seemed to freeze for just a split second, as if adding the information to something before his eyes focused on the two of them again, ¡°I¡¯m impressed, but not entirely surprised, Jezz. You¡¯re ability to adapt has an explanation, I simply needed to prove my original findings from Ceres.¡± Atticus leaned forward slightly, ¡°My dear, you are an anomaly because of your relationship with Warren. I¡¯ve been told that I am too direct, so I will attempt to be¡ less so¡± Atticus gave Warren a semi sharp look as he snorted, but continued, ¡°Both of you already know this first part. My people, many many eons ago, used the fledgling Human species as a library of genetic markers meant to be able to save those species and cultures wiped out by the Cataclysm. What I have learned is that Humanity took many of those genetic markers and evolved with them as their own. Almost nothing of what we added to Humanity¡¯s genetic code is how we left it, but some of our library is still capable of interacting with the origin species. That is what has happened with you Jezz.¡±
Jezz looked shocked for a moment, but then returned to her confused expression, ¡°But, we haven¡¯t done any of those experiments yet. You told me they were too dangerous.¡± Warren rubbed her shoulders but said nothing, simply waiting for Atticus to explain himself.
Atticus nodded, ¡°I did, and they are; but I failed to account for something that was already happening naturally. To put it¡ delicately¡ Your body has naturally been exposed to those same Genetic markers, including the Elerian ones, in significant quantities since you and Warren chose to become life mates. Because those genetic markers include a hormonal component to them, and because of the extra strain your body had been put through on luna and ceres; your body has reacted to them, using them as a template for survival. Your bone mass has tripled since you travelled to Ceres, and your Muscle mass and composition has dramatically changed as well.¡±
¡°But how¡ Oh..¡± Warren¡¯s face reddened as his mind finally put the pieces together, and Jezz¡¯s cheeks flushed a bright blue upon her own realization. ¡°But that would mean¡¡±
Atticus shook his head, ¡°No, luckily being able to monitor Jezzaria¡¯s health has led me to a much safer way to help jumpstart the Elerian species, but there is a catch¡ I believe that this level of artificial genetic hybridization can only be done during the embryonic stages of Elerian life to be 100 percent safe, but I won''t know until I study a¡.. natural hybrid.¡± Jezz¡¯s breath caught in her chest as her eyes widened but Atticus raised his hands quickly, ¡°I cannot ask this¡ but I know you would be angry with me if I hid this fact from you. I know the two of you desire children, and I will not lie. It is still a great risk. I¡¯ve learned that the two of you prefer to make your own decisions, so I want you to do so with the most information I can give. I¡¯ll leave everything here for you to review.¡± Leaving a data stick on the desk, Atticus stood. He began stepping toward the door as the stunned couple stayed where they were, ¡°I¡¯ll give you some space. I am sorry for the heaviness of my findings.¡± Atticus opened the door and stepped out.
Chapter 112
USN Olyvia thrummed gently, her voice a comforting companion to those serving aboard her. Few, however, knew her better than her chief engineer and his bride. Patrick awoke almost instantly, his body responding to a slight change in tone. Cammy stirred against him, grumbling quietly as the change slowly pulled her from her own dreams. ¡°Red?¡± She groaned.
Patrick slipped out of bed, ¡°I felt it too,¡± he murmured. His console was up in a flash, and Patrick reached for his weapons belt while he scanned the incoming information. ¡°We¡¯ve been recalled, looks like it¡¯s time.¡± The old leather belt¡¯s buckle snapped into place. Its natural browns struck a stark paradox against the hyper-modern synthetics that both served to identify and protect him. Cammy slipped one of the desk drawers open, handing him the inherited revolver that both saved their lives and brought them together. She then picked up a smaller, sleeker, and more modern silver pistol. It was housed in a much more modern holster, and she snapped the entire package into place at her waist. Her weapon was of Delmar design, a small bore auto-loading handgun chambered in a Delmar version of the originally Belgian-designed 5.7x28mm cartridge. It¡¯s holster was designed to make use of the standardized fitting along the belt of their uniforms. Moments later, a pair of magazines snapped into place as well.
Patrick slipped his wheel gun into its holster before typing out a quick message. Olyvia was still under Silent Running, and closed-circuit messaging replaced even internal com transmissions while under this protocol. ¡°Looks like Jesse needs me on the bridge, and he wants the PAC and the forward deflector emitters double-checked.¡±
Pat turned just in time to catch a quick kiss on the cheek from Cammy, ¡°I¡¯ll get started. Have fun with the brass.¡± Pat snorted before kissing her on the forehead and departing. He and Cammy were essentially equals in both skill and seniority in engineering. Both of them knew Olyvia¡¯s systems to such a level, that Cory¡¯s vessel essentially had two chief engineers. Cammy, however, was playing the part of that role more often in the last two weeks. Cory had needed to remain on Wisconsin. All of the captains of Mackenzie¡¯s Privateers were watching the data collected from Cory¡¯s and Jacob¡¯s sensor net from the same conference room, leaving the operation of their respective vessels to their first officers. It was a necessary evil, allowing for an absolute minimum of risky transmissions, but it had left Patrick acting as Jesse¡¯s XO for the time being.
Patrick stepped onto Olyvia¡¯s bridge throwing a casual salute to Jesse as he stepped up to the chair, ¡°What ya got, sir.¡±
Jesse huffed, clearly not entirely happy with the situation. ¡°What we got, is a plan. No details as of yet; it looks like they are not transmitting them to the fleet. We¡¯re en route to pick up the skipper, and I suspect He¡¯ll be filling us in shortly.¡±
Patrick nodded darkly, ¡°It¡¯s about time. watching what¡¯s going on down there is¡ getting to me, sir. I know why we had to wait, but I reckon Karma is just about out of patience.¡± Jesse nodded his agreement. The two of them double-checked the PAC diagnostic logs from the previous night before Patrick departed for Engineering.
Six hours later, Olivia lay alongside USN Wisconsin, and captain Corellus Grarzia stepped out of the transfer shuttle¡¯s airlock. Jese stepped up with a crisp salute, ¡°Welcome back, Captain.¡±
Cory responded with a salute of his own before nodding for Jesse to follow him. ¡°I am glad to have returned.¡± Jesse raised an eyebrow at his captain¡¯s tone, but otherwise simply waited for him to continue, ¡°XO, I¡¯m going to need all senior staff to my office in 2 minutes. We are on a tight schedule.¡±
¡°Aye, Skipper.¡± Jesse answered, breaking off from his captain almost instantly. Cory continued on to his office, he was barely sitting down behind his desk when the senior staff; Jesse, Patrick, Camorra, and Jackie all filed into the standing room only. At the last minute, captain Collins squeezed in, having been transferred to the Olyvia for the operation.
Cory slipped a data stick into his desk, activating its ceiling-mounted Holographic projectors. ¡°Thank you for coming, everyone.¡± He began. The space between them illuminated with Lurix system, ¡°First off, I thank you for your patience. I know that standing by as we devised a plan was difficult. As of this moment, our waiting is over. Our part of the attack, will be here.¡± Cory pointed to one of the prison hulks in orbit over the marsh world. ¡°Captain Collins will be leading the assault. Half of his is team will be in charge of hitting the bridge with Jesse. Patrick and Camorra, You will be part of team two with the rest of the MACE. We have no idea what condition these ships will be in, but we will need power, navigation, and propulsion as soon as their engineering is cleared. Your job is not combat, I need you safe so we can get the freighter into the asteroid field and out of the line of fire as quickly as possible. Doctor, you¡¯ve undoubtedly already surmised this, but expect a large volume of new patients. We expect that most of them will be children. The Hind and sparrow will be taking the other two freighters respectively. Any questions?¡±
Patrick raised his hand, ¡°I¡¯m assuming the Tech is going to be close to the Celest? Or are we going to be dealing with a different design.¡±
Cory nodded, ¡°Same generation as Celest, but each Tribe makes their own modifications over the eons. Remember, those vessels are thousands of years old; and they were maintained on opposite sides of the Unity. Stay on your toes and think it all through. We don¡¯t need much, but we will need at least symmetrical power out of the main drives. Anyone else?¡± No one else responded, so Cory continued, ¡°Plan A, is to get the Freighters out of orbit, and through the asteroid field into the Deep Void between systems where we can properly evacuate everyone. If that falls through, be prepared to pivot to plan b) evacuate from the freighter in all haste. Afterwards, we will be making best possible speed for Delmar. Our goal is to keep as many kids alive as possible until we can get them to the Facilities that my father is organizing on the home world.¡±
¡°Uh¡ Captain?¡± Cammy asked timidly. ¡°What about the planet, There¡¯s no way we.. I mean¡ can we hold until we evacuate Lurix?¡± Several heads nodded with hard eyes as they met Cory¡¯s own evenly.
Cory nodded at the question¡¯ but something flashed through his expression, eliciting a raised eyebrow from Jackie and Jesse. The captain of the Olyvia pulled up a second three-dimensional diorama on the holoprojector. ¡°You¡¯re fuckin¡¯ with me.¡± It was Jesse¡¯s outburst that resulted first from the change of images.
Cory only nodded, his expression unchanged but his voice betrayed his anticipation, ¡°We won¡¯t be evacuating the Planet...¡±
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Zirrik Mog stepped into the bridge of his command. His ship, the ancient Thermian Frigate Maw¡¯s Vengence, was one of three warships in orbit above the filthy backwater world of Lurix. His battlegroup was made up of two other aged Frigates, Thermia¡¯s Talon and Dune Strider, and he wondered yet again what he had done to be punished with this post. Thermians were a dessert species, and this cursed marsh saturated planet did not even give him or his men the courtesy of having a proper place for taking leave. The few that did visit the planet invariably returned with some form of Scale rot or respiratory infection that required treatment before they could return to their duties.
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¡°Commander, we are receiving the check in query.¡± Zirrik groaned at the call out from his coms station. This was the other bane of his current existence. Not only was he essentially stuck over a swamp world, but he was forced to play the part of an overly paranoid babysitter. He had no idea who¡¯s brainchild this was, but he suspected that It was not a plan from the Homeworld.
Zirrik straightened, scanning his sensor feed once before responding, ¡°Send the codes, then rotate the generation program for the next cycle.¡± He watched the exchange of data flow, keeping a close eye on it to ensure no mistakes. Once complete, Zirrik stood. He stretched deeply before turning to his First Officer, ¡°Krikks, with me. I require your report on the larboard power banks. I would¡¡±
¡°Captain? Uh, Sir¡ I have something on sensors.¡± A diminutive voice of a young Thermian crewman interrupted Zirrik. ¡°Something just¡ appeared. 285 by 116, five hundred thousand out.¡±
¡°That¡¯s not possible, crewman. That would be the edge of the asteroid fi¡.¡± The lights flickered once, then failed. ¡°REPORT!¡± Zirrik barked, and multiple voices rang at once. All their responses were the same. A chorus of ¡°Not responding!¡± echoed from the helm, navigation, communications, sensors, and weapons. Two bright flashes shone in from the observation windows, and Zirrik rushed to look out of them with his bare eyes. His two other frigates were no more, shattered into slowly pinwheeling pieces of almost unrecognizable debris. ¡°Get us back online, NOW!¡± he bellowed, turning to his first officer just as the lights flickered on and the door to the bridge opened. ¡®Finally, some progress¡¯ Zirrik thought, turning to greet whoever was entering the command deck. Noone walked through the opening, and Zirrik slowly began stepping toward door to observe an empty corridor hall. Corridor bulkhead doors were not supposed to stay open, being designed to remain closed unless an authorized user was passing through. Zirrik reached over to slap the manual closing button.
The Thermian commander never reached the control. The small stealth drone that had attached itself to his ships hull days before had infiltrated every system on the Maw¡¯s Vengeance, and every frigate in his command had suffered a similar fate. The command was sent through the drone, and every through hole, escape hatch, and airlock was opened to deep space. Empty escape pods were ejected, and their shipside entrances opened to the Void. The Maw¡¯s Vengeance explosively decompressed in a matter of seconds killing everyone aboard. It was as messy as it was efficient. Bodies were violently disassembled and smeared across bulkhead and console alike as they were violently ripped through the nearest opening at terrifying speeds. A full minute after the grim atmospheric evacuation, all vents closed, and the Maw¡¯s Vengeance powered back up. She reconnected with the Thermian controlled Unity network just in time to broadcast the next all-clear code at the appropriate interval.
______________________________________________________________________________________
¡°Report from both Simo and Furlong, Targets destroyed.¡± Clint nodded as the report arrived through the voice of the young Delmar Coms officer, ¡°Stormhold, Protectorate, and Iowa moving to phase 2. The¡ Privateers are arriving on target presently.¡±
¡°Excellent. Captain, position Us in between the two groups if you please, launch boarding parties to retake the ¡®Maw¡¯.¡± Clint turned to Captain Gallanis as the Massive man seemed even larger than life in his MACE armor. ¡°You¡¯re up, Cap.¡± Gallanis snapped a salute, then lumbered out of the Bridge, and Clint sat back down in the admiral¡¯s chair to review the operation so far. In simplest terms, it was a turkey shoot. He had complete control over every enemy vessel in orbit. He had disposed of the two frigates he did not require and vented their ¡®flag¡¯ ship. He did not trust the depressurization, however, and would be taking proper control of the vessel shortly. He smirked as three beacons winked out of existence. His brother and sister in law had joined Ivar and Martina, Mac choosing to command from Concord for this operation. Bull Fuller was not amused, but understood that his flag admiral performed his best from inside a cockpit, and Clint knew from the final briefing that those three vessels were headed to perform a¡ special task¡ a beep alerted him to Louise, Hera¡¯s command, entering the atmosphere or Lurix, ¡°Launch attackers, captain, close support for the surface assault.¡± A chorus of reports echoed through the command deck as the Ardvarks launched, and Clint forced himself to settle. Now, he was meant to wait, and watch.
Across the void, unseen by either Eye or Sensor, Three wraiths stalked the singular corridor etched into the englobing fortress of shifting rock and ice that defined the Lurix system. Their job was simple, They were the gatekeepers. All could enter Lurix at their pleasure. Who was allowed to leave was another story entirely.
*On station. Beacon in the hud.* Fizz¡¯s mind spoke into BigMac¡¯s as well as transmitting via tight beam to R¡¯Cari and Sombra.
¡°R¡¯Cari on station, I¡¯m not sure I¡¯m going to get used to that.¡± Ivar responded from his own cockpit.
*Used to what?* The blended voices of Mac and Lyrian responded.
*That* Chika stated *which one of you is talking at the moment.* her voice came through slightly garbled through the tight beam.
*Oh, Uh, sorry* Lyrians voice alone responded this time, *We uh, forget sometimes. *
*Lets settle it down a touch. McLovin, Chika, adjust point 38 by point 91* Mac cut in, *It¡¯s about time. Fizz, send the signal.*
A long silence followed before *Done* Fizz responded at last. Concord was acting as the coordinator for the three-ship formation. This time, no one spoke. The three stealth fighters were positioned just along the edge of the asteroid field, and each one stayed in Silent running as they awaited their next move.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
USN Olyvia shuddered slightly as she connected to the Starboard side airlock of their target, freighter number 1. Dozer, leading his team 1, stepped into the airlock. A quick hiss of equalizing pressures and the interior door opened. Dozer¡¯s chest plate immediately took no less than 6 impacts from laser small arms. Dozer could see the three Thermian guards stop shooting in pure stupor as their laser pistols were simply ignored. He gave them a toothy smile, then activated his visor. It slammed down into place just as his own handgun rose. The Gauss pistol, with its ammunition detuned for work inside a pressure vessel, barked three times; and the three Thermians fell, each missing various percentages of their cranial vaults. ¡°Let¡¯s Move.¡± Dozer growled, stepping over the rapidly cooling bodies, ¡°Team one, in.¡± He transmitted as his team stormed into the prison hulk.
Patrick kept himself in front of Cammy as their team followed behind the Vanguard lead by Captain Collins. Each member wore a set of translation earbuds, and the devices served triplet of purpose. The earbuds were to transmit directions, and team communications as well as prevent any language barriers. The two of them were accompanied by a full squad of the Marine contingent from Olyvia, and they were augmented by a pair of riflemen from the Collin¡¯s MACE unit. Within moments the few weakly armed guards were swept aside. The MACE spearhead threw a concussive flash grenade into the open engineering door, then breached with a flurry of rifle fire, and the two master engineers stepped in behind them.
The Engineering section was in atrocious shape, not counting for the ballistically dismembered Thermian bodies lying where they were dragged. Fresh Thermian blood lay about the floor and against the walls alongside dried stains of several other colors, including Delmar, and Patrick felt Cammy balk in horror at the scene. He reached out and squeezed her shoulder gently, ¡°Common, Cam. Let¡¯s get to work.¡±
She stayed frozen for a moment, then straightened her shoulders and nodded to him, ¡°I¡¯ll get into the core diagnostics.¡± She said quietly.
Patrick nodded, ¡°Good. Ill start on propulsion.¡± He turned only to almost run into the pair of MACE riflemen.
*We¡¯ve been rerouted. We¡¯re leaving two marines. The rest of us are headed to the kids. * The strange anonymous voice spoke through the helmets speakers.
Patrick nodded instantly in understanding, ¡°Go. We¡¯ll manage.¡± In a flash, all but two of the Marines were gone, and the remaining soldiers stood just inside the door and kept watch. Patrick sat down at the blood and gore stained console, ¡°Looks like we¡¯ll have propulsion when the Second Core comes on line. Jesus¡ did they do ANY maintenance? Navigation is all fucked to hell. I¡¯m reading multiple conduit leaks. It looks like they just shut the system down instead of fix it.¡±
¡°Problem!¡± Cammora called from around the other side of the four fusion core cluster, ¡°They cannibalized at least two of the cores to keep this one running. I don¡¯t know if we have the parts to get a second core running!¡±
Patrick stood, walking quickly over to her. His eye narrowed as he read the same readout, ¡°Fuck! Let¡¯s get an answer on if we can rig the second core.¡± Patrick turned and activated his com. ¡°Skipper, bad news. The Core¡¯s a roach fuck, we have one working core, two that are D.O.A. and one that we might have the parts to get something out of. Its not looking good, sir¡. Yes¡. Yes sir¡ We¡¯ll do what we can, update in 20.¡±
Cammy poked her head from around the corner, ¡°So?¡±
Patrick unslung his took bag, ¡°We need that second core, or we have to evac everyone while in orbit. Let¡¯s get that second Core up.¡±
Cammy shrugged off her own tools, ¡°Shit!¡± She swore in English flipping to her back before sliding up under the second core.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Nuvurese stood from her position behind her desk. Her door had refused to open since the beginning of the malfunctions. Now, it was pried open by a pair of Thermian guards, ¡°Mistress Nuvurese, we must go!¡±
¡°Go? Nonsense, we are in a stable orbit. What is taking so long with the malfunctions!¡± She demanded with a harsh tone, a rod straight spine, and a severe glare.
¡°There is no malfunction, we are under attack. We are to evacuate you.¡± The first of the guard stated formally.
¡°Attack? The children¡¡± She gasped. ¡°They must be after the children.¡±
¡°Fuck the Children, Vorath. We must go. Now!¡± The second Guard spat, already turning to leave.
¡°You misunderstand, Follow me.¡± Nuvurique growled, picking up her Vorath heavy beam pistol, stomping out of the office, leading the guards down the corridor. ¡°The Children must be disposed of.¡±
Chapter 113
USN Louis vibrated with a still unfamiliar sound, and Hera checked her Helmet Hud once more. Louis was performing her first gravity insertion on this side of the galaxy. ¡°Captain, enemy fire from 035. The Facility has spotted us.¡± Hera turned towards her bridge¡¯s tactical station just as the first energy beams from the surface impacted Louis¡¯ forward shields.
Hera watched as the impacts stripped a few percentiles from her ship¡¯s defenses, ¡°Adjust the shield balance to compensate, weapons free. Target their defensive batteries and power generation but avoid the main structures.¡± A momentary pause quickly gave way to several bright flashes bleeding through the observation ports. Telltale vibrations betrayed the firing of Louis¡¯ 1005s. Her PACs were recoilless, but the particle beams were significantly more brightly defined. PAC discharges, inside of the atmosphere, flash heated the air directly in its path. To the defenders below and any civilian observers, the sound resembled the unholy marriage of a close-range lightning strike and the violent detonation of a twentieth-century Terran transmission line transformer.
¡°Captain, six emplacements neutralized, and fifteen more have opened fire. Forward shields below 60 percent and falling. We are approaching critical overheat on Shield Gens 2 and 3.¡± Hera swore internally. They had known the insertion would be difficult, but the incoming fire was proving effective when combined with the added heat and friction of keeping shields up in Lurix¡¯s atmosphere. The combination of Louis¡¯ aggressive reentry, and the moisture content in the air, was aiding the defenders. The shields could not properly recover between volleys of ground-to-air energy fire. ¡°40 percent on the forward shields, Captain. Touch down in 2 minutes.¡±
Hera straightened her spine, ¡°Hold stead, prepare to divert power from weapons to shields the moment we¡¯re below the tree line.¡±
¡°Captain! Incoming transmission. We¡¯ve got friendly ground attack incoming! Twenty seconds out!¡± The excited call of her coms officer drew Hera from her internal calculations.
Hera surprised herself with a feral smile from behind the visor of her helmet, ¡°On screen.¡± she ordered. Her HUD came alive with a combination of sensor and optical information. Several attackers that Humanity called ¡°Aardvarks¡± howled in from the opposite side of the facility. They held their supersonic reentry, ripping through humid air with practiced ease. Louis¡¯ pummeling quickly subsided, and the enemy turrets began engaging this new threat. Hera¡¯s expression quickly turned somber as the smaller craft began taking fire.
Several rapid heavy laser impacts rocked the lead formation, and four Aardvarks were ripped apart by the incoming fire before they could launch their ordinance. The rest of the squadron disappeared behind the trees just as several explosions rocked the ground facility. Hera¡¯s ship slipped into a low hover, barely a half meter off the ground, and lowered a side ramp. The ground, while firm enough to traverse on foot, was simply too soft for Louis to properly touch down. Hera watched as the Terran ground attack craft rose into view once more. There were fewer of them now, and several were trailing black contrails that hinted at the beating they had taken for their efforts. *Team 1, boots down.* Hera noted the voice of her Jacob followed by the other team leaders confirming their dismemberment. Their radio transmission also was the signal that they were a safe distance away from Louis¡¯ propulsion systems.
¡°Con, take us up. 500-meter orbit.¡± Hera ordered, no longer worried about her shields being overpowered by the enemy defenses, ¡°Standard pattern, let¡¯s clean up any stragglers before the ground teams arrive.¡± USN Louis thrummed as her hover and primary drives hoisted her back above the foliage. She began to circle the enemy structures slowly, baiting the occasional blast of fire that was quickly silenced by her own batteries. Hera¡¯s job now was one of tense patience. Her mate was charging into the maw of the enemy, where he very well may have to deal with little more than children with deadly weapons.
The solution was simple if somewhat crudely implemented. Each of the team members carried a modification of an ancient Terran invention simply dubbed, ¡°tear gas¡±. To a human, traditional tear gas was a severe deterrent. The concoction was debilitating to the stronger races of the Unity, and dam near deadly to its weaker species. Doctor Icario had found the solution, and the brothers Grem had coordinated with him on a delivery system. This new ¡°Unity safe¡± OC spray was little more than a minor irritation to most humans. In fact, a few of Hera¡¯s terrain crew had started using it as a flavor enhancer, much to the consternation of their non-human crewmates. This new spray used a synthetic replacement for Capsicum of Doctor Icario¡¯s design, and the mixture was compressed into forty-millimeter Gas canisters.
The forty-millimeter grenade launcher of Terran design was modified to fire these canisters as a projectile, and the rotational safety mechanism was tied into ports on the side of the canister. Upon firing, the rifling spun the projectile; and the safety would open the ports. The spinning projectile would then continue on its way spraying the compressed concoction as it travelled. There was no way for these rounds to be brought to the battlefield in time, but Wisconsin had been retrofitted with Delmar fabrication facilities. By the time the operation commenced, each team entering the ground facilities had 30 ¡°U-CS¡± rounds each.
Jacob Irving loaded his underslung grenade launcher with care. Overhead, a low almost deafening thrumb of Louis¡¯ engines thundered overhead. Mics and headsets were going to be useless until they reached the structure¡¯s interior, and he waved a set of hand signals. Exactly three seconds later a pair of HE grenades slammed into the base of the doors. The explosion caved the blocked entrance inward, and Jacob fired his canister round. The safety disengaged just as his round crossed the threshold, and a hissing warble echoed down the hallway as the gas filled that part of the building with a debilitating concoction.
With a single hand wave, team-one stormed the entrance. Every member was environmentally sealed in their suits, and their helmets switched into thermal vision as they entered the gas-shrouded darkness. Jacob and his team were greeted by a pair of Vorath in front of a squad of Thermians. All eight were on hands and knees hacking and voiding their stomachs as the gas ransacked their eyes and lungs. Jacob stepped up to the first, casually firing two rounds into the back of the Vorath¡¯s head. There was no pity, and there would be no mercy. Any Vorath or Thermian adult would be dispatched without exception.
The gas was to protect the young. Their observations over the last several weeks had shown a high likelihood of indoctrinated kids being handed weapons and told to defend the facility. Filling the buildings with UCS was to give the extraction teams a chance to neutralize the children without being forced to resort to deadly measures. A desperate yaowl erupted from one of the rooms attached to this corridor, and a Lycan pup, maybe thirteen or fourteen tumbled out into the gas. He dropped a Vorath pistol as he fell, and one of Jacobs team quickly kicked the weapon away before tying the child''s hands and feet. This was the more¡ unsavory side of this operation. For better or worse, the children who made it down to this facility were mostly heavily indoctrinated and equally dangerous. There would be no time to differentiate between those who had fallen for the psychological engineering, and those who were simply faking it. Sadly, every child they saved from this hellhole would have to be bound and sedated until they could be deprogrammed back on Delmar.
Another dull thump of a grenade launcher preceded a new hissing warble as his team began clearing the next corridor. *Team two inside the east wing* a transmission brought Jacob pause as he finished tying up a young Delmar Female of no more than 8. ¡°Keep me apprised.¡± was all he said, still staring down at the horror-stricken face of the girl who was still wracking violently from the gas. ¡°Team one, clear?¡± A chorus of all-clear responses signaled him to head toward the next objective. In the distance, the rattle of Terran and Delmar Kinetic weapons heralded the reduction of Evil inside of the Galaxy.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!
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¡°Red!! I¡¯m getting another power spike! The patch is not holding!!¡± Camorra yelled, slamming the shutdown command before scrambling around to pull Patrick out from under the second power core. Patrick''s head cleared out from under the dilapidated core just as a shower of sparks erupted from where he was moments before.
Patrick leaned up against the opposite wall, heaving for air, ¡°Holy fuck, That was¡ yea.¡± He turned to Camorra ¡°Thanks¡ I guess that¡¯s that.¡± He activated his Com, ¡°Captain, we just exhausted our last option. We are not getting the second Core running, not in time, and not without risking detonating this hulk.¡±
*Understood, Begin plan B. Disable everything but life support.* Cory¡¯s voice hardened over the coms.
Patric looked to Camorra who was already at the console, ¡°Ok, let''s get to¡UGH.¡± He was interrupted by a searing pain exploding from his side.
Camorra spun at Patrick''s exclamation, drawing her pistol and dumping half of her twenty-round magazine into the Thermian soldier charging her. The lone Lizard had snuck into engineering from a vent that was located in a blind spot, around the corner from the main entrance, and hidden by the crippled power cores. Half of her shots missed, but the rest slammed into the attacker''s chest causing him to stumble just as the pair of Marines opened fire on full auto. The Thermian slammed into the floor and skidded to a halt, rattling for breath from pulverized lungs. Camorra pumped two more rounds into the side of its head, then sprinted for Patrick.
¡°Red!! RED!!!!¡± Patrick groaned as his name ripped him back into consciousness *warning, internal bleeding, stand by.* a pinch of something on his neck and his pain faded considerably. ¡°Patrick, don¡¯t move. You¡¯ve been stabbed. The knife is still in.¡± one of the Marines spoke, ¡°We need to stabilize you.¡± The soldier said, pulling a can of stabilizing bio foam, and quickly coating the point where the knife entered Patrick''s suit. The Thermian had caught him in a soft spot in his suit. The blade had slipped under his armpit and into his left lung but was stemming the majority of the blood with its presence. The foam quickly expanded and flashed rock hard, locking the blade in place so as not to allow it to further slice him up from the inside.
¡°Captain! Patrick¡¯s down, We are returning to Olyvia, Have Doc meet us at the door.¡± The second Marine barked into his Com.
Camorra sprinted back over to the console, quickly setting up a feedback loop that would force an emergency shutdown of the single remaining reactor, ¡°Captain,¡± She panted, ¡°You¡¯ve got 2 hours, then the core will melt down. It should shut off, but I can''t tell if it will. It¡¯s the best we can do.¡±
*Understood. Doctor Young is enroute.* Cory¡¯s voice echoed in her helmet, but she wasn¡¯t paying attention. Patrick cried out as the marines lifted him, careful not to move the blade hilt sticking from his side.
The first Marine took point, opening the door and sweeping the corridors, ¡°Let MOVE people!¡±
Camorra reloaded her pistol along the way but did not have to use it. She watched their rear as the group rushed back to Olyvia. Patrick began hacking up blood, his visor quickly staining red as his lungs began to fill. The lead Marine¡¯s rifle rattled off several shots, and a Thermian soldier was left quickly cooling on the floor as they passed. Camorra didn¡¯t see him, she only saw Patrick¡¯s body weakening. She could feel his mind fluttering in and out of conscious thought as the distance to the airlock shortened. It opened just as they reached it, and a squad of Marines that had been held in reserve stepped out. Doctor Jacky Young rushed out with an antigrav gurney. Patrick was quickly laid onto it and rushed away. No one noticed that Cammy had gone stock still where she stood as Humans and Delmar rushed past¡ Her heart threatened to freeze in anguish¡ She could not feel her Patrick.
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Captain Collins arrived with half of his bridge contingent just as the two MACE members from engineering thundered up. In all he had 7 men, ¡°Ok, listen up. Engineering says moving this tub is a non-starter. We¡¯ve got to get all these kids out and back to the ship. Do not expect them to trust you. We have a few tear gas rounds if we need them, but I don¡¯t want to hav¡.¡±
Collins whipped around to face the door in horror¡¯d realisation. The muted sounds of energy fire and the shrieks of terrified innocents shattered his plans in the mere blink of an eye, ¡°Fuck! GO GO GO!¡± He ordered, slamming the door activation panel. His men stormed into the heart of holocaust. Dozens of guards were on scaffolding firing indiscriminately down into the children below. Siblings protected siblings with their own flesh, and infants barely able to stand were trampled by other terrified children or murdered where they sat crying. None of the Humans or Delmar in Collins squad would be the same after that day, and no order to fire was needed. One soldier, wielding a belt-fed LMG whipped his weapon to his shoulder and held the trigger down, and he was not alone. Rifleman dumped magazine after magazine into the scaffolding, and at least two HE-loaded grenade launchers added their own weight of vengeance.
The guard¡¯s fire faltered quickly, and many began to run in panic. Collins looked a command to the other two MACE wearers, and they disappeared back through the door they had entered in¡ and went hunting. Their mechanically augmented armored suits gave them unearthly speed as they thundered down the corridors. They did not bother with their rifles this time. Fist and blade were their choices as they met each fleeing guard. Camouflaged patterns quickly smeared with Thermian blood, but they did not stop. The weeks of electronic infiltration proved its worth further, and every guard was summarily hunted down and removed from the galaxy.
Soon, only one remained. The lone Vorath female had made it to a staging room where she had a single child, one who had very recently caved to the torture to save his sister. The first of the two men stepped into the room, immediately taking two shots to the chest from the Vorath¡¯s beam weapon. He ignored them, and the Klakson warning him that those two hits got much closer to penetrating than he had expected. The Vorath woman did not fire a third time, and instead pointed the weapon at the terrified Kawmari child¡¯s head, ¡°I require a deal, since you seem so interested in these little ones.¡± The Armored Human cocked his head but said nothing, and the Vorath woman smiled unpleasantly. ¡°Good, a weakness is always present in the strongest enemy. It will be¡ useful to know what yours is, Human. I will be escorted to my shuttle, and you will allow me to lea¡¡± The Vorath¡¯s wrist disappeared in a cloud of gore as the rifle round severed her hand, and her weapon, from the rest of her body before ripping through her right lung and out the back of her torso.
The deafening report of a kinetic weapon in confined quarters briefly drowned out the burbling scream as the Vorath fell to the ground clutching her chest with stump and remaining appendage. The second MACE-wearing soldier had stayed in the shadows, using his partner as a planned distraction to get the target to hold still. His armor¡¯s augmented systems allowed him to take an inhumanly steady shot, threading the needle between his partner, and the child, and avoiding hitting any crucial system in the wall behind his target. The first armor¡¯d human slowly walked up to the cowering child, picking up the Vorath weapon and discarding the still attached hand. He slipped the weapon into his dump pouch, and knelt down to the Avian child, deliberately distracting him from the writhing Vorath behind him.
An atmospheric hiss made the young boy flinch as the MACE helmet¡¯s visor unsealed and retracted, ¡°Hey there, little man. I won¡¯t hurt you.¡± The Human¡¯s face seemed to calm the child, but he did not move from his spot. The Soldier slowly reached into a pouch pulling out a small fruit and the boy''s eyes widened. ¡°Yeah, these are good aren¡¯t they. I picked up a few of them when I visited your homeworld. It¡¯s ok, have one, I¡¯ve got a whole crate of¡¯em under my bunk.¡± The young Kawmari boy slowly reached out most of the way, then snatched the fruit and devoured it in seconds. ¡°That¡¯s better. What¡¯s your name, little man.¡±
The boy ruffled his feathers and visibly tried to calm his shaking, ¡°Rawmik. Rawmik Vikinaw.¡±
¡°Nice to meet you Rawmik Vikinaw. I¡¯m Sean, Sean Reaux. Let¡¯s get you out of here ok?¡± He slowly moved to pick up the boy but the boy put a clawed hand on his armor.
Rawmik held Sean¡¯s gaze and wouldn¡¯t budge, ¡°My sister. Mifir. I have to find my sister¡ did¡ did they kill her?¡±
Sean¡¯s heart broke, knowing what had happened in the prison holds not minutes before, ¡°I don¡¯t know¡ But we¡¯re getting everyone out. Let¡¯s see if we can find her.¡± With that, the boy relented, being lifted effortlessly as Sean carried him out of the room. A quick glance at the second soldier as he went by was all that was needed. No sound, no need to scare the boy any further. The second MACE suit slowly stomped up to the sputtering Vorath torturer, ¡°You cannot win, Human. We come¡. We come with a fleet one hundred thousand strong¡ your weapons will fail you, Human. Your strength will fail you, Human. You¡¯r.. ACCKKK!¡± The Soldier¡¯s hand found her throat, cutting off her air supply as he lifted her bodily against the wall. He said nothing, he gave no measure of emotion. He simply squeezed.
The Vorath¡¯s eyes bugged out of her head, her arms flailing against cold ablative durasteel, as the pressure mounted. The desperate attempts at freedom crescendo¡¯d until the resounding crunch of her spine being turned to powder removed focus from her gaze forever. The MACE clad soldier did not have to drop the corpse. The body fell away from the bottom of his fist with a splash of gore as the head tumbled from the top of his clenched gauntlet. ¡°Madam neutralized¡± He spoke into the helmet microphone, his voice a cold mask of discipline.
*Received, double time back to Olyvia¡ Company has arrived*