Invasion

by Jerry Shepard

  "Don't you fucking dare, Kevin. That is not fair bringing her into this."

  "She's in this whether you like it or not, Noah," O'Malley said. He pointed his finger at Noah to emphasize the rest of his point. "And even if we don't go to war, let's say your actions cause violence and tensions to spread out to the colonies. Lily will have to answer for that in school because of what her infamous daddy did to start it all. Like it or not, Lily will have to pay the price for your actions."

  "When did you suddenly become the voice of reason?" Noah asked.

  "When you stopped using your damn brain," O'Malley said. "Trust me, I don't enjoy being the wise one in this relationship. It chafes my ass. So hurry the hell up and get your head out of yours."

  O'Malley stepped slowly closer to Noah's chair. His next sentence slower so that he could provide emphasis and get through Noah's thick skull.

  "So I ask you, again. What... are you fighting... for?"

  REVELATIONS

  What are you fighting for?

  Those words still echoed in him. At one time, Noah knew exactly what it was he was fighting for, and why.

  Now? He just wasn't sure anymore. But O'Malley was right about one thing. He needed to address the situation with Reggie.

  The door warning alerted Rig'nak.

  "Enter," Rig'nak said. The door slid open, and Noah walked into his quarters.

  "Greetings captain, please come in."

  "Evening Reggie. Don't mind if I do."

  "Would you like a beverage? Coffee? Tea? A Chai perhaps?" Rig'nak said walking toward the food service area.

  "No thanks, I don't expect to be here that long. I just wanted to follow up on your insubordination earlier on the bridge."

  Rig'nak stopped pouring his chai and brought the full cup with him to sit down opposite Noah. "With all respect due to you captain, I was not insubordinate. I properly addressed my concern to my commanding officer."

  "Look, Reggie," said Noah as his voice rose."I don't want to use any pug charts. Nor will I stand by and allow one to contradict me in on my own fucking bridge!"

  Rig'nak's eyes quickly turned red as he bared his teeth. "Captain. I will not allow your slurs to continue! I have put up with them long enough!" Rig'nak rose to tower over Noah. "As you are no doubt aware, it is a grave offense to call one of my people by a name other than their own. And yet, you have done that repeatedly. I have allowed it up to now as I had anticipated that you would grow weary of such childish foolishness. But you are slandering my people with this word...pug. And that I can not, will not, allow any longer."

  "And what will you do, Reggie?"

  "Captain," smiled Rig'nak, softening his tone slightly. "You do not know it yet, but I am most likely your one chance to remain in command after this mission. I am here to not only ensure that the introduction of our people together on the same ship is successful, but to issue a report on what type of commander you are now."

  "Bullshit!" said Noah. "Roskan would never allow such a thing!"

  "You would be wrong in that assumption Captain Jameson. Admiral Roskan is one of the people who have requested the report upon my return. I believe it will be used to evaluate whether your return to command is permanent...or not."

  "Like I said. Bullshit!" replied Noah. "Look, I don't know what game you're playing but...".

  Just then the voice of Ensign Torrance blared in the room. "Captain Jameson, you are requested on the bridge."

  "On my way," Noah responded. He turned to Reggie as he was leaving. "We will discuss this later. For now, report to the Science Lab to help Dr. Sarduun make preparations for the expedition. After you have finished, report to the bridge."

  "Certainly, captain."

  PREPARATIONS

  Rig'nak was pleased to see Dr. Sarduun was already working in the science lab. She was a welcome change from his recent, fiery, interaction with the captain.

  There were pictures and readouts of the anomaly that the Archon had acquired on the holoscreen of the lab. She turned to see him walking towards her and smiled at him.

  "Greetings Rig'nak. To what do I owe this honor?"

  "I have been sent by Captain Jameson to assist you with any preparations that you require to be performed prior to our arrival on planet," he said.

  "Wonderful!" she exclaimed. "Let's get started!" She led him toward a table in the back of the lab. They both stopped at the table and she turned to him.

  "Let me guess, you've gotten on Noah's bad side. So he sent you to keep out of his hair, right?"

  "Your perceptive nature is astounding, doctor," Rig'nak said, turning to the holoscreen above the table.

  He stopped and took a closer look at the pictures of the anomaly. He felt a strange familiarity to the layout of what looked like structures. They were in a typical Xen pattern relative to how his people liked to plan their communities.

  Liana came to stop next to him. "We believe it is an old Xen settlement. And the weird thing is, the Archon picked up an energy reading from the center of the area."

  "That is odd Dr. Sarduun. Because as far as I know, my people have never been in that sector of space."

  "Well, we'll just have to find out, won't we?"

  Rig'nak nodded his head, then stopped looking at the screen and turned his attention to the equipment that lay before him. For the next two hours, he and Dr. Sarduun checked and rechecked the supplies and gear that would be needed for the mission.

  As they were wrapping up their preparations, a Xen approached them both.

  "Lur'vot," said Liana, recognizing the Xen. "I would like for you to meet Rig'nak. He is our Executive Officer on this ship."

  "Greetings honorable Rig'nak," said Lur'vot as he performed a slight bow.

  "Greetings Lur'vot. How does your family fare?" responded Rig'nak.

  "The tree of my family is long lived and I am but a branch," he replied.

  "Lur'vot is our Team Lead" explained Liana. "He's been with us a relatively short time but he came highly recommended by your people."

  Liana looked at Lur'vot. "I thought you would still be resting in your quarters. What's gotten you out of bed?"

  "Ah, Dr. Sarduun, I wanted to look at the data we had on the anomaly again. I'm still curious as to the origin of the structures and want to ensure that we are as prepared as possible before landing on the planet."

  "Please, feel free. Rig'nak and I were just finishing up here. Just log out when you're done," Liana said as she and Rig'nak finished packing up the gear and left the lab.

  WE HAVE FOUND IT

  Lur'vot continued to tab through the holographic pictures in front of him. He carefully moved through each one while studying them in great detail. His eyes were drawn to a small corner of the last one.

  He touched both of his hands to the picture and moved them away in order to zoom in to the corner. When he stopped, he looked at the area again and his eyes grew wide and colored green. Lur'vot pulled out a portable communications device. A few quick punches on the buttons and the communication was connected.

  "Do you have good news for us?" grumbled the voice on the other end.

  Lur'vot's excitement fought with his need to maintain formality.

  "I have great news for you. Tell the others what I'm going to tell you now," said Lur'vot. The next sentence he paused for effect after each word.

  "We...have...found...it!"

  DARKNESS COVERS ALL

  Year: 2564 (Alliance Year: 7), Location: Earth

  The figure in the darkened room turned from the screen as the communication feed terminated. He stood up and paced the floor as he gleefully processed the information he had just received. If what he'd just heard was true, this was a happy day indeed. That which he and his family had spent a lifetime searching for, was almost in their grasp. That is, if Lur'vot was to be believed. And that little worm had been wrong before.

  In fact, his entire family were known liars. For as long as he could remember, they were guilty of fabricating anything t
hey could to gain more power. Though he had to admire how they used the political system to gain key positions in the different areas of the government. And Lur'vot was the worst of the bunch.

  He knew just how to game the system into becoming the head of the Science Division. That he was on a mission to the Ankarii system was well known in his people's government. But what many didn't know was what he was really doing on that mission. He was still searching for it. And hopefully, he was right this time. If they found it, then their long nightmare would finally be over and maybe they could finally go home.

  The figure poured himself a glass of brandy. The one human creation he did not mind so much. He sat down to contemplate what he would do once returning home. His reverie was interrupted by the door to the room opening up as a figure walked in.

  "Lights," said the new entrant to the room. The room lit up so bright that the man in the chair squinted to see who it was.

  "There you are," said the figure at the door. "What are you doing in my room?"

  "Ah, Ambassador Pon'mot," said the male in the chair, hiding his eyes while trying to come up with a plausible excuse. "Forgive me, but your collection of human beverages was too tempting. I simply had to partake in this delicious brandy, I think is what they call it."

  "Yes," Pon'mot said not bothering to hide his annoyance. "Now get out of my room."

  As his assistant quickly exited the room, the ambassador yelled at the retreating male. "And make sure I'm not disturbed!"

  "It will be done ambassador."

  RESPECT

  "Year: 2564 (Alliance Year: 7), Location: Hyperspace

  "Hey, fancy meeting you here," Liana heard Noah call to her as she walked into the Officer's mess.

  "I'm starving," she moaned, as she queued up to the serving line to eat whatever the ship's chefs had cooked up. With three hours to go until the arrival in the Ankarii system, Liana had decided to grab a bite to eat. She had anticipated the mess hall to be empty with most of the crew at their stations. So she had been looking forward to a nice leisurely meal with only her thoughts to keep her company. She had forgotten about the captain. And now she was trapped in here with him.

  "Try the pasta, it's always a good choice," he said.

  "Thanks."

  "Look," Noah said. "I'd like to apologize for earlier. Some things die hard with me and serving on the same ship as my former enemy is a bit tough to get used to."

  "I can imagine," said Liana as she weaved through the line, grabbing utensils and making her way to a table.

  "To make it up to you, I'd like to give you a tour of the ship. Would you have time? I need to check on the different areas to ensure that the crew is ready and I believe you'd really love to see the engineering and engine rooms. Correct?"

  Well if he wanted me to like him better, leaving me alone in the morning is a good start.

  "That would be fantastic, thank you captain," Liana said.

  Noah stood up and smoothed his uniform and looked down at Liana.

  "Ok, well, I'm finished eating. When you're finished, why don't you meet me on the bridge when you're ready for the tour?"

  Oh, he's leaving. I like him better already.

  "Will do. I'll see you there."

  ***

  An hour later, Liana entered the bridge and sat down in a chair not far from Noah's. He turned to her and nodded. She smiled at him and turned her chair to look at the bustling activity of the bridge of a warship. Noah was busy checking reports from different sections of the ship. The Navigation team was calculating their current location and path. The Electronic Warfare group was using the long term scanners to scan ahead of the ship. This was something that the human ships could now do during warp that they could not before. And, she noted, it was one of the last upgrades that the Titan received prior to embarking on this mission. The Weapons team was busy checking and rechecking the weapons systems for any faults in the software. And the Pilot team was busy at the controls of the ship. They didn't need to do much when the ship was in warp, since the warp computer took care of the piloting during the jump from one system to another. But the team stood ready in case something caused the ship to drop out of warp. The other members of the bridge crew were monitoring and maintaining the other systems necessary for the ship to function.

  She was impressed by his willingness to get down with this crew into their jobs and take over anything that needed to be done. Most officers she knew, wouldn't be caught dead doing any work they considered beneath them. But Noah looked like he enjoyed doing those jobs. And he seemed to thrive on solving problems that were brought to his attention. Usually the problem was resolved immediately, but there were a few moments, like when an Ensign had encountered a scanning issue, where Noah proceeded to sit down at their station and resolved it himself.

  He was smiling the whole time.

  "Hey!" a voice said. "I said, are you ready to go?"

  Liana turned her chair to see Noah standing in front of her with his hand outstretched. She took it and stood up.

  "Certainly, Captain Jameson. I'm sorry, I was lost in my own thoughts."

  "No problem. We'll try not to get lost on our tour," he joked.

  The pair left the bridge and entered the elevator. "Where to first?" asked Noah.

  "Up to you. But let's save Engineering for last, okay?"

  "Not a problem. Let's check out the weapons systems, first. I want to make sure that we are prepared in case there is any issue when we arrive in the system."

  "You captains all think alike don't you? You automatically assume that everything out there is trying to kill you."

  "It has kept me alive so far."

  Half an hour later, Noah and Liana were completing their tour of the weapons systems. She noted that the crew were a mixture of some of his old crew from his previous ship, and new recruits. She noticed the interaction between the crew and Noah. He made sure to keep their spirits up with a few jokes while asking the correct questions about the systems he was reviewing. His old crew knew exactly what to expect from their captain and had anticipated what he would be concerned with in terms of readiness while the new recruits looked at him with a mixture of fear and hero worship.

  "I remembered your orders from our last cruise together, sir," the chief said. "I've made sure that we set the detonators on the missiles to one hundred feet."

  "Excellent work, Chief Bortano," Noah replied.

  "You there," pointed Noah at the raw recruit standing by the chief. "Did you assist the chief with these calculations?"

  "I…I…did, sir."

  "Outstanding work, son. Keep it up," he said.

  As they went from station to station, Noah would interact with each cohort the same. He would talk with the leader, and give advice and support to the new recruits.

  For an asshole, he certainly is a people person.

  But what surprised Liana the most, was the captain's interaction with the Xen. In each weapon emplacement they reviewed, there was at least one Xen crew member. She noticed that Noah treated every one like he treated their human counterparts. Same questions, concerns and even jokes. The cognitive dissonance between his treatment of Rig'nak and the crew was baffling to her.

  They moved on to each of the sections of the ship. At each stop they examined the preparations the crew was making. And in each case, Noah treated both the human and Xen crew the same. And as he did so, she grew more and more confused as to the measure of the man. Was he or wasn't he a washed up bigot?

  To her delight, they finally arrived in Engineering. She had wanted to see how the fuel system was performing since it was installed in the weeks leading up to the mission. The Titan had originally been scheduled to go on a training cruise with an experienced crew in order to test out the system. But since the anomaly was discovered, the Alliance leadership switched the mission for the ship and her team was naturally the best fit for it given her research background and availability. So that meant that the test run for the new system would neces
sarily coincide with the exploration mission.

  "Jay, how are things here?" asked Noah as he approached the Chief Engineer.

  "Captain, all systems are operating within established parameters," responded the chief.

  Liana cleared her throat and shifted her weight expectantly. Noah caught her out of the corner of his eye.

  "My apologies, this is Dr. Liana Sarduun. She's the brilliant scientist who is leading our research team on this mission. Dr. Sarduun, this is Chief, Jay Gardozo".

  "Ah, Dr. Sarduun, so nice to meet you," said the chief as he shook her hand. "You're heading the team that is testing the new fuel system, right?"

  "That is correct. What do you think of it so far?"

  "Oh, it's a beauty. The collectors on the outside of the ship essentially catch the radiation from the solar winds. They then funnel part of the radiation to storage tanks, but most of it directly to the engines. It's not unlike the first solar panels catching the energy from the sun's rays. Same concept, except this catches radiation that is carried on the solar winds. And the beauty of this is that we can store the radiation we don't use in a smaller area of the ship than if we had relied on our conventional fuel that we've been using for hundreds of years. It's genius. I wonder who thought this one up."

  "I did," laughed Liana. "This was my brainchild while collaborating with the top propulsion scientists on Earth. They had complained about fuel taking up too much space and wanted a way to replace that space with larger engines and more space for other things like ammunition and provisions. A year of intense collaboration later, and voila!"

  "Well, I'm certainly impressed! Would you like to take a closer look at the readings?"

  "Certainly! Do you mind, captain?"

  "Not at all", said Noah. "I've got more rounds to do before we arrive in the system. We should be approaching the outer edge of the system in little under two hours."