Conflict!

by Dale Moorhouse

  As he was starting to elaborate, Jacky, Johnny and Silent came in and quietly sat. He continued, “On the outward trip, I saw no sign of Plague activity. I ran a corkscrew pattern as before but expanded it to cover the territory Blue had covered on the last expedition.

  When I came to the first populated star system we knew about I was saddened to see they had been attacked from space and were now occupied by members of the second system, the ones we thought set out the warning beacon. When I tried to contact them, they sent a couple of their ships to intercept me. When they opened fire, I had to destroy one but was able to hit the other with an EMP burst that stopped them cold. Their ships are much like our Swift Fangs but much larger and very crude in comparison.

  “I was able to tractor the neutralized vessel into our Swift Fang hangar. One of my Centuries sent a boarding party aboard where they had to kill a few of the crew before they could stun the others and take control. I have an appendix with the details of their technology concerning this action attached to the end of my report.

  “They are a bipedal, warm-blooded species about the size of average Terrans but have coarse hair covering their bodies and appear to us to be identical to the species they had subjugated although the few we could get to talk insisted they are not related. We necropsied dead from both species, and as far as we can tell, they are physically identical. We are assuming the differences to be more ideological or mental.

  “I spent some time with one of their officers who answered all of my questions with questions of his own, most concerning the location of our systems, our technology and became most offended when he heard that all five species aboard were considered equal in our society. He launched a criticism diatribe of which even our AIs could only understand a bit of. When he found out we had AIs aboard, and they were flying many of our ships, he went totally ape-shit. We had to tranquillize him to settle him down; his culture has a phobia about artificial intelligence.

  “He was still aboard, in the brig with his crew, when we proceeded to the location of the F and G stars we wanted a second look at. They are now surrounded with beacons warning off passers-by when I asked our prisoners about them, they got belligerent and defensive. When we closed to one of the planets, we were again fired upon and, rather than firing back, we left.

  “We finally got to their home system where we used a couple of AI Swift Fangs to tractor his crippled ship to a farming area a hundred kilometres from a large city with a military presence. We used stealth and weren’t detected, so we moved out to take a geostationary orbit above the drop site and observed. A ship of almost identical configuration flew over the grounded ship, and after a half deca, they were joined by two more larger vessels. They used a short-range beam weapon and destroyed the grounded ship along with its crew then razed the area around it for five kilometres burning the land, crops, houses and anything else living in that area.

  “My communications officer began receiving a general broadcast aimed at us and ordering us to go away and stay away or suffer the same fate as the ship and crew we had sullied. We left and continued our flight outbound and found several more stars of the right class but none had planets on the Goldilocks Zone. We also checked other class stars, and while we found some rocky planets and gas giants, nothing was orbiting close enough to be habitable.”

  After a half deca of deliberation, we decided to give this bunch a wide berth and simply go around them.

  ◆◆◆

  When we had pulled all of the boffins off of Saturn Station, I asked them to put together a feasibility study to look into the possibility of moving to another galactic arm using our FTL technology. They came back to me fifty cycles before we were planning to depart the solar system and had several proposals. The one towards the core of the galaxy I immediately ruled out. There were a lot more singularities in that direction, the last thing I wanted was to get close to any of them.

  Our solar system is in a band of stars called the Orion Spur, which leads in the direction of the Perseus Arm. If we proceed a little farther out the Spur, there are massive, dense clusters of stars across from us in the Perseus Arm and many fall in the F and G classes which have the characteristics we need if we want to find planets like Terra. The gulf between also contains many smaller clusters and single stars at which we are likely to find fuel and other resources we need to complete the long journey of almost five-thousand light-cycles.

  The scientists estimate it will take as long as five kilocycles and as little as two-point eight to make the passage. We have enough fuel in storage now to make it two/thirds of the way across the gulf and several stars have been identified as having planets that can provide the H2 and H3 we need for Sunrise. We only need the HE3 for our fighters and Swift Fangs. Our breaker/sorters, harvesters and shuttles also use H2 and H3, but we don’t need them for propulsion, only for gathering fuel and materials at our stops.

  I ran this by the new Sunrise Council which took the place of the Mmrrreeowwn councils of the Ark and Mother of Glory. The Sunrise Council is made up of two members from each of the five species and me. When I resigned as Warlord, it was accepted with a proviso. I would be a member of the new Council until we had found a world to settle. The Council also reserved the right to call me back as Warlord if we should encounter enemies of the kind we had faced with the Plague. My official title is Guide to the Exodus, most often I’m referred to as The Shepherd.

  The Sunrise Council accepted the recommendation setting the date of departure as 01/01/2033

  Epilogue

  Elder One

  MY DAUGHTER, SWEET PIQUANT SPICE, called Ginger by her Terran companions, has flown me down to the surface of this now beleaguered planet so I can see first hand the tragedy that has transpired and I now fully understand what Terrans mean when they say, ‘The Road to Hell is Paved With Good Intentions’. Despite our best intentions this world that was such a beautiful, lush blue and green ball hanging in the heavens when we arrived, it is now a dark grey and white frozen hell-hole of a planet.

  We originally planned to leave Terra right after we defeated the Plague, that was before the Squids bombarded Terra. We delayed our journey for almost two of their years, spending that time moving people from the surface to the Ark, training Terrans to operate and repair Ark systems.

  The most intense training was for their medical professionals and took the most time. We were gifting the Terrans with our genetic research and medical expertise, including our nanite technology.

  We used teachers for training at first, but it wasn’t long before a few more adventurous Terrans asked for our implant technology. Accepting implants began in the medical community, and within the first Terran year close to 60 per cent of the Terrans population had implants.

  Our most significant gift was a copy of our combined histories dating back to our beginnings and our library containing all of the knowledge gleaned over the ages by the Alliance and Confederation except for the body of research on FTL travel. That we held back. We placed a twenty Terran year time-lock on the FTL technology in the library. It was disabled on the ships we were leaving behind with the warning it would self-destruct if any attempt were made to circumvent it.

  Early on, many groups within Terra’s population swore vengeance on us, blaming us for the coming of the Plague and the near destruction of their home-world. This had moderated to a large degree once our library became accessible by any Terran with a teacher or an implant but still persisted to a lesser degree amongst the less educated or tolerant.

  Now it is time to leave. We have done as much as we could to ensure Terrans would survive, whether they would come to appreciate all we tried to do for them is a question only answerable by time. In my own thoughts, I believe the answer is “No.”

  We plan to leave orbit on Terra’s New Year’s Day, tomorrow. Most of our people are eager to be going, and many of the Terrans on the Ark will be glad to see the backs of us as we leave. There is no outright animosity, but it is clear that most want u
s gone. Righteous Claws will be docking at the Ark before returning to Sunrise, we will be leaving a parting gift for the Terrans.

  Terra is mostly abandoned now, only a few researchers and die-hards remain. The rest who have chosen to stay have taken refuge on our old Ark which has replaced their shattered moon and that in turn has been swept from the heavens to prevent any more large objects from striking the surface and lengthening the recovery time. The Chinese, Russians, Northern Europeans and Canadians were the first to realize it was pointless to fight the encroaching freeze and embarked for the Ark when their crops only yielded a third of what they needed to survive until the next growing season’s yield. This, despite throwing all of their resources into building huge greenhouses and lidding over their cities with force domes to try to retain heat.

  They had tried cold-frames, huge, shallow pits dug in the ground and covered with large bubbles of clear plastic. The cold frames worked well for a while but could only be built where there was no permafrost, and too much of the available land was too far away for them to manage and protect. Towards the last of the current growing cycle the yield had dropped below the bare necessities, they halted the activity and lifted their remaining population from the farming region, leaving a just few researchers.

  We’d had small scientific observatories all over the planet and shared the yield with everyone who had an interest. The data gathered in one and a half Terran years bore out the predictions—it was going to get far colder before it got warmer. Terrans could already drive North on the frozen Pacific Ocean from Vancouver Island on ice that is sixteen metres and thicker. It wouldn’t be much longer before they would be able to drive from Valparaiso, Chile to the Antarctic continent. Still, there were some holdouts.

  Getting rid of excess carbon had always been a problem on our motherships and Arks. The surplus we compacted and fired into stars we passed would find a new use by Terrans. In two more of their years, when more dust has settled out of Terra’s atmosphere, their Ark would begin firing blocks of compressed carbon-containing small dispersal charges at any landmass between the Arctic and Antarctic circles to reduce the high albedo caused by all the ice and snow. By cutting down on the reflectivity on the planet’s surface, they hoped to start the warming process and end the new ice-age in thirty-five to a hundred of their years instead of the hundreds our current model predicted it might take.

  The reception at the Ark was lukewarm at best, but no one in our party expected anything better. Jase’s mate, Elaine, came with us to see her mother for the final time and say goodbye. We had hoped Jase would accompany us, but he steadfastly refused even to consider it. He wanted no more to do with Terrans or the Ark, having survived some assassination attempts in the last couple of trips he’d made. We understood and didn’t press.

  Our visit was trouble free, and we left a copy of all of our anti-matter technology and manufacturing instructions for all of our machines and implements with them. Those had been purged from the library until the time of our departure. Jase had insisted on it. We also gave them access to one of the remaining shipyard where we had parked a few hundred breaker/sorters, harvesters and Swift Fangs. The other we had packed on one of the Leviathans we were taking with us.

  When asked why we had initially held back the knowledge and access to the shipyard, Elaine chose to answer with just two words, “Helen Wheeler.”

  The Terran Council members just nodded.

  New Year’s Eve came. Many Terrans celebrated knowing it had a double meaning; Another year had passed for Terra. It was the start of a new life for all of us. The next cycle, we left Saturn’s orbit taking two other globe ships with us carrying extra fuel and materials to create a space elevator when we got to a new planet.

  ◆◆◆

  Jase

  A final plebiscite dealt with changing the name of the Confederation of Species to the Concordium of Species or The Concord for short. The name came from the Latin root Concordia meaning, “Of one heart” or harmony. It seemed more fitting especially to those who had immigrated earlier and were now used to working side by side with all species members. The most ardent supporters were the veterans of the battles with the Plague and those whose labour supported the victory. By the time the proposal made it to the plebiscite, there were very few who opposed the change, and it carried with a nearly 90 per cent yes vote.

  We are now the Concordium of Species, and we celebrated that New Year’s Eve. We would begin the hunt for our new home in the next cycle.

  Glossary

  AH-64

  Boeing Apache, an attack helicopter used by some US military Forces

  AI

  Artificial Intelligence: No complete definition exists yet since no one had been able to develop a test to honestly determine if a machine is intelligent. Often confused with Advanced or Augmented Intelligence. As used in this book Advanced Intelligence would be more accurate.

  AU

  Astronomical Unit: 149597870700 metres or 149597870.7 Kilometres

  bird

  Slang for satellite.

  boffin

  Slang for scientist.

  C

  The speed of light, approximately 300,000 km/s (186,000 mi/s)

  Cassegrain

  A type of telescope using a secondary mirror that is hyperbolic and shines the light through a hole in the parabolic primary mirror allowing the eyepiece to be mounted on the back of the telescope instead of towards the top of the barrel.

  centa

  A Mmrrreeowwn unit of time that is one-one-hundredth of a deca and equals 90 seconds.

  Centurion

  Leader of a Century, the rank equivalent of Master Gunnery Sergeant.

  Centurion Primus

  Leader of a Cohort, rank equivalent falls between First Lieutenant and Captain (Mmrrreeowwn have neither rank — the next step is Commander).

  Century

  A Mmrrreeowwn military unit consisting of between 106 and 115 Warriors.

  Cohort

  a Mmrrreeowwn military unit normally consisting of ten centuries.

  comm, commed, comms

  The act of calling an individual or group of individuals using a Mmrrreeowwn implant.

  Commander

  Leader of multiple Cohorts. Also commands ships in the fleet naval arm. Rank equivalent of Colonel.

  CSV

  Confederation of Species Vessel

  cycle

  A Mmrrreeowwn day equal to 25 hours and divided into 10 decas.

  deca

  A Mmrrreeowwn unit of time consisting of one tenth of a cycle. Equal to 150 minutes.

  diddyhoeing

  Bumbling around aimlessly, moving without purpose or just standing there blocking others.

  disruptor

  A Mmrrreeowwn short range beam weapon that works by disrupting molecular bonds. Usually in a handgun format and usually must be linked to an implant to fire.

  EMP

  Electromagnetic Pulse

  ESA

  European Space Agency

  EU

  European Union

  FoF

  Friend or Foe identification system, momentarily locks out a ships weapons if an attempt is made to fire on a friendly ship.

  FTL

  Faster Than Light.

  H2, H3

  Deuterium and Tritium, isotopes of Hydrogen and a key component in the nuclear fusion process.

  HE3

  An isotope of Helium used in certain fusion reactors, where radioactivity can be an issue.

  helo

  Slang for helicopter.

  ID

  Intelligence Directive, The cross-species intelligence organization originally put together for Jase by Johnny Townsend.

  KEW

  Kinetic Energy Weapon, these an be anything thrown at a target at high speed and rely on their mass multiplied by their velocity squared (E = mv2) to do their damage. Think planetary killer asteroids.

  kilocycle

  A Mmrrreeowwn unit of time equa
l to 1000 cycles. Equivalent to 2.85 Terran years.

  L-3, L-4,L-5

  Lagrange Points: Positions in space where the gravitational forces of a two body system like the Sun and the Earth produce enhanced regions of attraction and repulsion. These can be used by spacecraft to reduce fuel consumption needed to remain in position

  LC or Elsie

  A small space capable landing craft used to carry a full combat platoon of Mmrrreeowwn warriors, usually around twenty-five individuals. Heavily armed and armoured and highly manoeuvrable. Uses gravitic lift and small reaction motors. The operational equivalent of a medium helicopter.

  Leopard

  A class of ship derived from the original Talon-Class. It is basically a stretch model 1.5 kilometres long and includes hangar space for one-hundred and fifty-six bombers or five-hundred and thirty-two AI fighters.

  Leviathan

  The first of a repurposed Plague globe-ship called the Leviathan-Class. Sunrise was the last one converted and is now a colony ship with FTL capability.

  medbay

  A Mmrrreeowwn hospital, clinic or medical research facility.

  med-tech

  A Mmrrreeowwn doctor. These are graded based on skill and procedures they are allowed to perform. Med-Tech I is the highest rating and usually also qualifies as a mental healer.