Conflict Unending

by Raymond L. Weil

  “Who will be the ship’s commander?” asked Governor Barnes.

  Jeremy grinned. “I can think of only one person I would want in charge of a ship with my family and friends on board.”

  “My daughter,” replied Governor Barnes, nodding his approval. “Have you asked her yet?”

  “No, I was going to wait until the ship was finished so she could see what she was getting to command.”

  “You might as well tell her,” Governor Barns said. “The rumors have been flying around for weeks that she is going to get the command.”

  “Can’t keep nothing secret around here,” said Jeremy frowning. He had hoped to make this a surprise. “She should be back tomorrow so I’ll go ahead and ask her then.”

  “The new defense stations are coming along nicely,” added Admiral Kalen. “I still can’t believe how rapidly the Originators can build. In two more weeks we will have twelve hundred of the stations finished. All are equipped with our normal weapons as well as the blue energy spheres and dark energy cannons. I’m pretty confident the Communications and Transport Hub could handle any attack the Eternals might launch against us.”

  Jeremy was pleased to hear this. “Our biggest advantage at the moment is that the Eternals don’t know about the Hub. I want to keep it that way.”

  The other two men nodded. The Hub was the Originator’s biggest secret. The four Dyson Spheres, the massive ship construction yards, the research facilities, and the other structures could carry on the Originators’ civilization even if all the others were lost.

  -

  The next day Jeremy had just returned from the memorial services honoring those who had died in the battles taking the vortex Control Centers away from the Simulins. He was sitting in his office with Rear Admiral Barnes and Grayseth. Both had attended the memorial.

  “I will miss Commander Malen,” said Grayseth in his loud booming voice. “She was a great warrior and has now gone on to the Great Hunt. We will talk of her around the fire pits in our dens.”

  “She would be honored to know that,” replied Jeremy.

  Kathryn stood and walked over to the large open window looking out over the city. A light breeze was blowing. “We have lost so many over the years. Now we’re facing the Eternals and those losses may never end.”

  “It could for us,” said Jeremy, coming over to the window to stand beside her. “Kelsey and the others want you to command their new super exploration dreadnaught as well as the exploration fleet that will be going with it.”

  Kathryn grinned. “I heard that rumor. Of course I would like to command the ship. A large number of my crew have already signed up to serve on the vessel.”

  “Kelsey says construction will be finished in another few weeks.” Jeremy paused, gazing out at the clouds overhead. It was supposed to rain later in the day. “It will be the most powerful ship the Originators have ever built. Even more powerful than the Dominator.”

  Kathryn laughed. “I bet Kazak won’t like hearing that.”

  “No doubt he’ll request the Dominator to be upgraded with more weapons,” answered Jeremy.

  They were interrupted by the sudden appearance of Ariel. She was using one of her holographic figures. “Sorry to interrupt, but we may have a serious problem. I just came from the Communications Center. We’ve received a message from the Eternals.”

  “What! How!” asked Jeremy, his eyes narrowing sharply. The Eternals had never tried to contact them before.

  “One of their ships appeared in the outer region of the star system containing the Dyson Sphere in Galaxy X-938. They’re requesting a meeting with the Originators and a Human representative to discuss ending the war. If we agree they will pull all of their fleets out of Originator space.”

  “What’s the catch?” asked Jeremy, feeling suspicious.

  “All of those fleets will be at the meeting.”

  Kathryn looked over at Jeremy. “That’s over one hundred thousand warships. What are we going to do?”

  Jeremy was silent for a long moment and then spoke. “I better speak with Councilor Bartoll and the other council members. Somehow, I don’t trust the Eternals to be faithful at this meeting. It may be some type of trick. Why don’t you come with me?” Jeremy then turned back toward Ariel. “Contact Admiral Kalen and Governor Barnes, they need to be at this meeting as well.”

  -

  An hour later they were all assembled in the Originators’ council chamber.

  “What do you make of this?” asked Governor Barnes, looking over at Councilor Bartoll.

  “It worries me,” Bartoll admitted. “The Eternals are not known for allowing their rivals to coexist.”

  “This may be some type of ultimatum they are going to deliver,” said Councilor Metrics. “I worry since they are bringing so many ships.”

  “We must hear what they have to say,” said Councilor Castille. “If there is the slightest possibility they are earnest about ending the war, we must listen.”

  -

  For quite some time the group discussed and argued about what needed to be done. Finally Jeremy stood up and looked intently at Councilor Bartoll. “In the end, this is your decision. I will follow whatever you recommend.”

  Councilor Bartoll drew in a deep breath. “I think we have to attend the meeting. However, it will not be in the system where the Shrieel resides. We will choose a system a few light years distant to hold the meeting. I want sufficient ships with us so the Eternals cannot attempt to intimidate us with their numbers. We should also make certain the Shrieel is adequately defended.”

  Jeremy nodded. “I will make the necessary arrangements. We can recall the fleets we currently have attacking Eternal space as well as those we’ve sent to destroy those Eternal fleets in our space. Rear Admiral Cross will remain at the Dyson Sphere with his fleet to aid in its defense in case this is a trick by the Eternals.”

  Councilor Bartoll looked around the conference table at the others. “Then we are agreed. In four weeks we will meet the Eternals in Galaxy X-938 to discuss ending this war.”

  -

  Later Jeremy and Rear Admiral Barnes were back in his office.

  “What do you think?” she asked. “I feel very uneasy about this meeting?”

  “So do I,” replied Jeremy. “But I don’t see where we have a choice.” There was one thing Jeremy intended to do. He was going to speak to Councilor Roan to push Reull Alistar into finishing his research on shutting down the Eternals’ mechanical nanites. He had briefed Kathryn about this earlier. “We may need that mechanical nanite shutdown procedure if this is indeed a trick or a trap of some kind. If it works we just might be able to turn the tables on them.”

  “We have four weeks to get ready,” said Kathryn, folding her arms over her chest. “A lot can happen in that time.”

  Jeremy nodded. He had a feeling this meeting with the Eternals was not going to go well.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  At the secret stasis facility of the Defenders of Zorn, Commander Alvord had just finished informing Councilor Zorn of the planned peace meeting between the Eternals and the Originators.

  Zorn stood up and began pacing back in forth deep in thought. He stopped and looked directly at Commander Alvord. “We can’t allow this peace conference to occur. This war against the Eternals must continue.”

  Commander Alvord shook his head. “I don’t see how we can stop it. From one of our AIs at the Communications and Transport Hub, there will be over one hundred thousand Eternal vessels there and between thirty to fifty thousand Originator warships. The Originator warships will be commanded by the Humans.”

  Councilor Zorn sat back down behind his desk. The stasis facility had a number of well equipped offices as well as private living quarters. They weren’t luxurious by any means but they were quite comfortable. “These Humans I can live with. They keep defeating the Eternals and inflicting heavy losses on their fleets. We just need to keep them confined to the Communications and Transport Hub. In ti
me, we can provide our own people to defend the other Shrieels.”

  “What do you recommend?” asked Commander Alvord.

  Councilor Zorn’s face suddenly lit up as a plan came to mind. “How many warships can we get our hands on?”

  “Some,” replied Alvord. “We have a number of our AIs working in the shipyards on this Shrieel. We’ve also embedded some of the people we’ve sent out into advisory positions at two shipyards. The AIs have no reason to doubt an Originator and have so far followed our orders without question.”

  “That should work. I have a way to disrupt this peace conference and ensure the war with the Eternals continues until they are defeated. The Eternals are an abomination and must be wiped from this universe.”

  Commander Alvord waited to hear what Councilor Zorn had decided.

  “This is what I want done. We don’t have a lot of time so we need to move quickly on this. We must also take care not to be detected.” Zorn explained to Commander Alvord what he wanted.

  Alvord frowned and then nodded. “It might work. It will be risky but if we succeed, the war will go on.”

  “Which is what we want,” Councilor Zorn replied. “Begin making the arrangements and keep me informed of your progress. I believe Albate will be quite useful in ensuring this plan succeeds.”

  “He waits to serve,” replied Commander Alvord. “As we all do.”

  -

  Two weeks had gone by and Jeremy was at the facility where Reull Alistar was working with the Eternals. Aaliss and Ariel had accompanied him as well as Rear Admiral Barnes.

  “What progress have you made?” asked Jeremy. They were standing in a lab where several Eternals were laying upon metal tables unmoving.

  “Observe,” said Alistar, pointing toward a large viewscreen. On the screen, two Eternals were visible. They were speaking to each other while eating a meal the Originators had provided. Suddenly a glazed look passed over the eyes of both which quickly turned into looks of fear. Both tried to stand only to fall and lay on the floor twitching uncontrollably. After several minutes they managed to stand with a look of confusion on their faces. They tried speaking but only gibberish came out of their mouths. “That’s what happens when we shutdown their mechanical nanites.”

  Rear Admiral Barnes shifted her eyes from the viewscreen to Alistar. “Can we make this into a weapon? Something we can use against their ships?”

  “Possibly,” answered Alistar. “However to penetrate the energy screens the Eternals use on their battlecruisers will require a tremendous power source. We need to project a signal on an obscure frequency that will order the nanites to shutdown.”

  “How long were the Eternals you tried this out on affected?” asked Jeremy still looking at the viewscreen. The Eternals seemed to be recovering but were moving very slow, almost sluggishly.

  “The confusion wears off in about ten to twelve minutes,” replied Alistar. “However, their nanites will stay shutdown permanently. They will require new injections to allow them to operate at their normal level. The Eternals we have experimented on took thirty to thirty-five minutes to realize their nanites were nonfunctional. It took that long for them to be able to control their bodies without depending on the nanites. After several hours they were back to normal but without their nanite enhanced strength. Keep in mind the nanites aid the Eternals to be able to think quicker as well. To them their minds will seem dull, and it will take them longer to resolve problems.”

  “That could be detrimental to them in a battle,” said Rear Admiral Barnes, looking over at Jeremy. “It could give us a decisive advantage.”

  “How long before they can figure out a countermeasure?” Jeremy could see how disabling the Eternals’ mechanical nanites before a battle could seriously hamper how they handled their ships.

  Alistar shook his head. “I don’t know if they can. We’re exploiting a basic weakness in the way the Eternals use the mechanical nanites. The nanites are programmable. Only by reverting to nonprogrammable nanites would they be immune to this weapon.”

  “The Eternals depend on the nanites to be programmable,” explained Aaliss. “It allows them to make changes as they are warranted. Sometimes several times a day. An Eternal has only to think about what he wants changed and the mechanical nanites will make the change if it is in the realm of their programming.”

  Kathryn shook her head. “These Eternals sound scarier all the time.”

  “They were an unfortunate error on our part,” confessed Alistar. “We should never have allowed the experimentation that was done with the mechanical nanites. At first the nanites were safe and showed great promise but then some of our people took advantage of their programmability to begin changing their bodies and became what we called then, the first Anti-Life.”

  “How soon can we make this into a weapon?”

  “It’s ready now,” answered Alistar. “I can transfer the information over to Aaliss, and she can take it back with you. My research staff and I would like to continue our work here for the time being. We may never have the opportunity to study Eternals like this again.”

  “Very well,” replied Jeremy. “We need to get back to the Communications and Transport Hub and see if we can find a power source that will allow us to penetrate Eternal energy screens.”

  Alistar nodded and quickly transferred the information to Aaliss. He also handed over a small computer drive that held a second copy.

  -

  Later back on the recently repaired Avenger, Jeremy looked over at Kathryn who was standing next to him. “What do you think?”

  “If this works as Alistar says it will, we may be able to turn the tables on the Eternals if they are planning something at the peace conference. If we can confuse the Eternals for twenty or thirty minutes, we just might be able to destroy most of their ships if it comes to a battle.”

  “My thoughts exactly,” said Jeremy. “We’ll give the peace conference a chance first, but if it is a trick set up by the Eternals, we’ll use this new weapon against them.”

  “I have already sent a message to Clarissa at the Communications and Transport Hub about the need for a major power source for the transmission,” said Ariel. “She is going to speak to several of the Originators who have been helping design the power system for the super exploration dreadnaught.”

  Jeremy nodded. Kelsey had some of the smartest Originators working with her in designing her ship. “Excellent. It will only take us two days to get back. Perhaps by then they’ll have a solution.” Jeremy hoped so. They needed an ace up their sleeve and at the moment, turning off the Eternals’ nanites was the only one they had.

  -

  First Leader Clondax listened to the latest reports of the fleets that would be available in Galaxy X-938. There would be 114,000 ships from the fleets that were assigned to destroy the Originator fleet bases, and he was bringing another forty thousand from the forces stationed in the home galaxy. The forty thousand would stay just outside of Galaxy X-938 but could be summoned quickly if needed. He was not going to make the same mistake Fleet Commander Parnon made. If this came down to a battle, he intended to wipe out every ship the Originators brought and then proceed to the damaged Shrieel in the Simulins’ galaxy and take it over. With the massive hole in its hull, his fleet should be able to destroy the defending fleet and then proceed to conquer the Shrieel.

  The Originators had agreed to meet at a small red dwarf star system fourteen light years from the system containing the Shrieel. The two fleets would stay two hundred thousand kilometers apart with three ships from each side meeting in the center. Clondax was curious to see a living Originator to determine how progressed he was with the pathogen. Clondax was still convinced they were dealing with relatively few Originators. In all probability their AIs had awoken them upon learning his people had escaped the trap they had set around the home galaxy so long ago. The few thousand survivors, and Clondax was certain there were no more than that, would be offered to live out their lives in peace in
a Shrieel of their choosing. Doubtlessly the disease would make short work of them, and in a few hundred years even that Shrieel would be under Eternal control.

  Turning around, First Leader Clondax looked at a large viewscreen with the estimated ship production the Eternals could get from the Shrieels. In time, all of the Shrieels would be heavily populated by Eternals as they took over their rightful heritage. The Shrieels would be turned into massive shipyards building the fleets that would be needed to conquer this universe. The Eternal population would swell as they used the Shrieels as they should have been used long ago. It was only logical that the most advanced and most intelligent race in the universe should rule.

  -

  Jeremy was in the council chambers listening to Councilor Bartoll explain his plan for the meeting. “I will be going representing the Originators,” he said. “All of the other councilors will remain here in case this is a trap being set by the Eternals.”

  “I still think one more of us should go,” objected Councilor Roan. Alora turned pleading eyes toward Councilor Bartoll. “I would also ask that if you insist on only one of us going that someone else go besides you. You are too valuable to risk.”

  Councilor Bartoll grinned. “I’m old even by our standards. Besides, Admiral Kalen will be there representing the Humans. Our fleet will be close by. I don’t believe there is anything to fear. If it is a trap, my ship will quickly retreat to a position of safety.”

  “We won’t allow anything to happen to Councilor Bartoll’s ship,” promised Jeremy. “At the first signs of treachery, the fleet will advance to protect the councilor’s vessel.”

  “What of the new weapon?” asked Rear Admiral Barnes, who had been asked by Jeremy to attend the meeting.

  “It’s ready,” answered Councilor Trallis. “We’ve installed it on four modified heavy dreadnaughts. The dreadnaughts only have a few defensive weapons as we’ve added two additional antimatter chambers to power the device. There are five antimatter chambers on the ships and four of them will be dedicated to power the nanite shutdown broadcast system. Several of our scientists who are well versed in energy screens have assured us the transmission will go through the Eternals’ screens. Energy screens are not designed to stop such a transmission completely as the frequency is too similar to a communications frequency, which the screens are designed to ignore. It will be the Eternals undoing if they are lying to us.”