Jason nearly dropped his sandwich. “What?” Suddenly Clair’s recent actions all began to make sense. Jason felt his face flush as he thought over some of Clair’s antics. “Are you sure?”
Layla nodded. “Just think about how she looks at me anytime I get near you. If looks could kill I would be long dead.”
Jason stared down at his sandwich. “What am I going to do?”
“How do you feel about Clair? Are you in love with her?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never really thought about it. To me Clair has always just been Clair.”
Layla stood up. “Well, you’d better decide soon what you want. Clair is a beautiful woman and if you don’t want her there will be others who do.” Layla turned and left leaving Jason sitting at the table by himself.
-
Andrea came in and going over to a machine on the wall came over and sat down next to Jason with a big bowl of ice cream. “I’m glad they have an ice cream machine on this ship. It’s a luxury a lot of other ships don’t have.” Andrea looked at Jason seeing the perplexed look on his face. “Why are you so glum?”
Jason looked over at Andrea. She always wore her feelings pretty much out in the open. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Sure,” Andrea said as she took a big bite of her ice-cream.
“You can’t tell anyone.”
Andrea nodded. “Promise.”
Jason took a deep breath. “How does Clair feel about me?”
“Oh, no,” said Andrea, looking as if she wished she were someplace else. “I’m not going to answer that. You need to ask Clair.”
Letting out a deep sigh, he knew Andrea’s answer had confirmed what Layla had said.
“I didn’t say anything,” said Andrea, her eyes wide. “Please don’t tell Clair.”
“I won’t,” promised Jason. “I guess I’ve been paying too much attention to this mission and other things. All of us have been too busy for any type of relationships.”
“That will end soon,” pointed out Andrea. “After we rescue your parents and the others we’ll have time for lots of things. You can even go out with Clair on a real date.”
Jason didn’t answer. He had no idea what he was going to do. Why was his life so complicated?
-
In the Creevak universe, Jeremy was in his home with Kelsey. They were busy packing for the expected arrival of the rescue fleet.
“I wish the Avenger could come with us,” said Kelsey as she looked around the house which had been their home for the last four years. There were a lot of memories made here; unfortunately none of them involved any of the kids.
Jeremy nodded. “We can always build another when we get back to the hub.”
Kelsey was carefully wrapping several photos of Jason which had been hanging on the wall. She knew Katie was busy doing the same thing. Fortunately, there was room in their quarters on the New Horizon to store some of the items they considered important.
“Tomorrow we’ll start moving more people to the outer region of the station where we expect this juggernaut to dock. We’ve even widened several corridors so we can move more people to the docking hatches at a faster rate. It’s going to be a nightmare getting everyone on board before the energy shields protecting the battlestation fail.”
Kelsey looked out the large window of their bedroom. “At least we had a decent place to live. I’m glad we put this habitat in the battlestation.”
“It made life easier,” replied Jeremy as he closed up his suitcase. “I still need to go on board the Avenger and remove a few personal things from my quarters.”
“Where’s Ariel?”
Jason smiled. “In the Command Center of the station. She’s been there watching for another probe. Both her and Camlin are certain one will be sent just before the rescue fleet makes its transit.”
“I spoke to Kathryn earlier, she’s been staying on the New Horizon supervising the modifications. She says they’re back on schedule and everything should be finished the day after tomorrow.”
Jeremy nodded. “As soon as they are we’ll begin loading some of the people. It will make things go faster for when the actual rescue fleet arrives.”
“Let’s get all of this stuff into the aircar. I want to stop by Kevin and Katie’s and see how they’re doing with their packing.”
A little while later the aircar was loaded. Kelsey stopped and looked at the house which had been their home for the last four years. It had been a nice place to live and she would miss it. However, it was time to return to the hub and restart their lives with the children. She wondered if Jason and the other kids would still accept them as their parents. Katie and she had discussed this just the other day. Both were apprehensive about meeting their children after so long. After all it had been fourteen years in the home universe. A lot could have happened over that time period.
Chapter Nine
Fleet Admiral Race Tolsen had just finished reading the report submitted by Commander Zafron. He leaned back and looked over at Rear Admiral Hailey Mann and Councilor Trallis. “It’s not good. According to Commander Zafron the Eternals are refusing to stand up and fight. They withdraw every single time after a short engagement even if they hold the advantage in ships.”
“That’s good, isn’t it?” asked Councilor Trallis. “It holds our losses down to a minimum.”
Race shook his head. “Commander Zafron believes this is all part of an elaborate Eternal strategy. He thinks the Eternals might be gathering a large fleet to attack and destroy the Federation and the Altons once and for all.”
“Is that possible?” asked Hailey, her eyes showing concern. “Do they still have enough ships to accomplish that?”
“Unfortunately, they still do,” replied Race grimly. “If you add up all the ships they most likely have in all the galaxies they still control, they have nearly a three or four to one advantage in ships maybe more.”
Hailey closed her eyes and shook her head in disbelief. “So, what do we do?”
Race looked down at Commander Zafron’s report. “Commander Zafron wants to accelerate the attacks on Eternal space. If they’re going to concede their galaxies with little resistance then we should take advantage of it. He wants four or five more fleets committed to attacking the Eternals. Each fleet needs to have two juggernauts, four hundred dreadnaughts, and two thousand battlecruisers.”
“Can we do that and still protect the Federation?” asked Hailey.
Race nodded. “Fortunately, we still have most of the ships we used to attack the Eternals’ galaxy. We’ll send part of those ships to assist Commander Zafron and another major portion to New Tellus and Albania. Fifty thousand ships each should be sufficient with what we already have committed there to hold off the Eternals. That way we can respond quickly if the Eternals do attack the Federation or the Altons.”
“What about the rest of the fleet?” asked Hailey, she knew there were still several hundred thousand ships left over which hadn’t been committed to anything.
“They’ll stay here for now,” replied Race. “I want you and Rear Admiral Cross to command those ships. Divide them into two sections. That way we can respond quickly if the Eternals attack a Dyson sphere. I’m also promoting you to the full rank of Admiral effective immediately.”
Hailey blinked her eyes and then asked her next question. “Are we certain the Eternals are going to attack?”
“We have numerous reports of Eternal stealthed battlecruisers being detected in dozens of different galaxies. They may be scouting those galaxies to determine which Dyson sphere will make the best target. There’s also the possibility they may attack more than one.”
“This is terrible,” said Councilor Trallis, his face turning slightly pale. “I had hoped the war was on its way to ending. Commander Zafron’s reports seemed so promising.”
“Because that’s what the Eternals want us to think.”
Hailey looked at Race. “How soon is this attack expected?”
�
��Unknown,” answered Race. “We have no idea how large a fleet the Eternals are gathering.” There were a lot of unknowns. Race hoped they weren’t overlooking anything.
Councilor Trallis stood up and walked over to the large window that provided a view of the city and the distant countryside. “Should we warn our bases and the other Shrieels in all of our galaxies?”
Race thought about it for a few moments. “I don’t think so. At least we shouldn’t make it general knowledge. In the Shrieels we can inform military personnel in the Command Centers. The same for our bases. The fewer people who know the less likely the Eternals will intercept a stray communication mentioning we’re aware they plan an attack.”
Hailey looked thoughtful. “By keeping the Eternals in the dark perhaps we can set our own trap for them.”
“That’s the idea. We just need to figure out for certain what the target is.”
Councilor Trallis turned back toward Race and Hailey. “I trust the two of you to handle this. For the time being we will not mention this to the council. They will eventually have to be told, though.”
“When we know more,” replied Race.
“I would suggest we meet regularly to discuss any new developments.”
Race agreed. “We also need to keep in mind Admiral Grayseth will be leaving tomorrow.”
“It will be good to see Fleet Admiral Strong again.”
“Yes, it will. I’m curious to hear what happened in the Creevak universe that stranded them there. I’m sure Fleet Admiral Strong and the others will have a number of stories to tell us.”
“We all want to hear,” replied Councilor Trallis. “I’m sure many of our scientists will want to talk to them about their experiences in the Creevak universe; particularly with the time difference.”
“Let’s just hope Admiral Grayseth is successful with his mission,” said Hailey. “He may be facing a large number of Creevak warships he’ll have to fight through to get to the battlestation. Also, thank you for the promotion.”
“You deserved it.” Hailey was probably his most talented admiral. He knew he should have promoted her earlier.
Race was anxious to hear back from Grayseth once he returned. He knew there was no guarantee the rescue mission would be a success. There were a number of things which could go wrong. For the sake of the children, he hoped everything went as planned. However, he was well aware very few plans survived more than the first few seconds in battle. He suspected this one would be no different.
-
The Liberator dropped out of intergalactic hyperspace just short of the Makuul Galaxy. Jason gazed at the viewscreen displaying the small swirl of stars. “Mitch, set a course for the system where the super battlestation is located.”
“At last,” said Mathew as his eyes lingering on the viewscreen. “I can’t believe we’re finally here.”
Jason had to agree. “We still have to transit to the Creevak universe.”
“Do you think our parents will remember us?” asked Elizabeth softly.
Clair smiled. “I promise you, they’ll be just as excited about seeing you as you will be about seeing them.”
“Two hours in hyperspace to the battlestation,” reported Mitch as the numbers came up on his computer screen.
Jason looked around at his expectant crew. “Activate the drive and let’s go.” Jason could feel butterflies in his stomach. They were one step closer to making the transit to the Creevak universe and to their parents.
-
The Liberator accelerated and entered hyperspace, setting a course for the star system where the Creevak anomaly once existed. The ship flew past stars, planets, and nebula. All communication frequencies were silent as the Creevak had long since eliminated all the star faring races in this galaxy. A galaxy once teeming with intelligent life was now nearly void of intelligent species.
After two hours of travel, the Liberator dropped out of hyperspace in the vicinity of the super battlestation. It was just one of a number of battlestations and fleets stationed in the system in case of another Creevak incursion.
-
“Contacts!” called out Mathew. “We’re twenty thousand kilometers from the super battlestation.”
“Contact the station and inform them of our arrival,” ordered Jason as the huge station appeared on the viewscreen.
The super battlestation was two hundred and sixty kilometers in diameter and armed with the most powerful weapons known to Originator science. It was sitting two million kilometers from the site of where the anomaly once existed.
Positioned around the super battlestation were other stations and ships. There was one forty-kilometer research station as well as three regular forty-kilometer battlestations. In addition, there were forty Indomitable class battlestations and a permanent force of one hundred dreadnaughts and five hundred battlecruisers. There was also a fleet of three hundred ships from the Galactic Union.
“We have permission to dock with the station,” reported Elizabeth. “We’re to use bay four.”
Jason nodded. The station nearly filled the entire viewscreen. “Mitch, take us in to the dock. Once we’re in the bay and the Liberator is secure we’ll do a full systems check.”
“When will we attempt our transit into the Creevak universe?” asked Andrea.
“Tomorrow,” replied Jason. “I don’t see any point in delaying. Besides, the sooner we can reach the battlestation the quicker they can get ready for the evacuation.”
Angela looked over at Elizabeth. “Contact the station and ask Rear Admiral Lance to meet us as soon as possible.”
Elizabeth looked surprised. Only Angela could order a rear admiral around and expect to see results. After all, she was the only member of the Special Five still in this universe, and people tended to obey what any of that group ever asked.
-
Rear Admiral Anastasia Lance quickly made her way down to docking bay four. The battlestation was a beehive of activity as the Liberator had arrived and Admiral Grayseth’s fleet was expected to show up in another seven or eight days. She wasn’t surprised by Angela’s request to see her. She wondered sometimes why Fleet Admiral Strong hadn’t promoted all of the Special Five to higher ranks, even though their requests would be treated as orders by a superior officer by anyone who was in the fleet.
Arriving at the docking bay, she saw the ship was already nestled in its docking slip and part of the crew was disembarking. She recognized Angela, Clarissa, and the rest of the children including two of Admiral Grayseth’s cubs. She shuddered thinking about the ramifications if anything happened to the Liberator.
“Hello, Admiral Lance,” greeted Angela, walking up to the rear admiral.
“Angela,” replied Anastasia respectfully. “What can I do for you and the Liberator?”
“The crew’s going to perform a complete systems check. I’ll have them contact you if they need anything. What I really wanted to talk to you about is whether the new probe is ready.”
Anastasia nodded. “Yes, we can deploy it at any time. Allarr Grall finished his last inspections of the probe the day before yesterday.”
“What probe?” asked Jason, feeling confused. He wondered what Angela was up too. He hadn’t heard anything about a probe.
“We’re going to send a probe through first to determine the exact location of the battlestation and any Creevak ships which might be present,” explained Angela. “Once the probe returns with that data we’ll take the Liberator through and head for the station.”
“What if the probe is detected?” Jason was concerned if the Creevak detected the probe it could derail the entire mission.
“It’s a stealth probe,” clarified Anastasia. “Allarr Grall is convinced the Creevak will not be able to detect it. We’re also taking the precaution of making sure the probe does not appear at the location of the former anomaly.”
Angela looked at Jason. “It’s a safety precaution. We want to make sure the battlestation is where we think it’s going to be
. We also don’t want to make our transition into the safe zone if a missile attack is underway.”
“I believe the Creevak are probably continuously modifying their missiles in an attempt to reach the station,” added Clarissa. “There is a chance the safe zone might not be quite as large as it once was.”
“So, all the probe’s going to do is take scans?”
Anastasia nodded. “Yes, there will be no messages and it won’t move from its location. The probe will take its scans and then jump back. We’ll download the scans and then send the information to the Liberator. The results of the scans will tell us exactly where the Liberator needs to make its entry into the Creevak universe.”
Jason understood why Angela wanted this done. It actually made a lot of sense strategically. “When do we launch the probe?”
“How soon before your crew is finished doing their system checks?”
“About six hours,” replied Jason.
Anastasia studied her timepiece for a moment. “We’ll launch the probe at 10 a.m. in the morning. If everything goes as planned it should return in about twenty minutes. I would say the Liberator should depart about thirty minutes after the probe’s return so the data will be as up to date as possible.”
Jason felt a chill run up his back. That was less than twenty-four hours. “We’ll be ready.”
Angela turned toward Jason. “I want all of the crew to get a good night’s rest even if they have to take sleep meds. Everyone needs to be as sharp as possible for what we’re going to do tomorrow. The AIs can take care of the ship overnight.”
“There’s a cafeteria near bay four if you want the crew to eat there,” said Anastasia. “It has nearly every food choice your crew could possibly want.”
“We’ll eat there,” replied Angela, nodding her head. “It will be good for the entire crew to get off the ship for a few hours.”
“I would like to speak to Allarr Grall about his probe,” requested Clarissa.
Anastasia nodded. “He should be in his research lab. That’s where he spends nearly all of his time. I’ve never seen anyone as dedicated to his work as he is.”
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