by Marc Stevens
The Deadliest of Intentions
By
Marc Stevens
Text copyrighted 2019© Marc Stevens
All rights reserved.
This book is a work of fiction. All material published in this book are a product of the author’s imagination. Any similarities to persons (living or dead), places, or events is purely coincidental and should not be interpreted as anything else.
This book is dedicated to all those who protect this country and all we hold dear. You shall forever be my heroes.
Table of Contents
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1
Any thoughts I might have had on taking a little personal time were kicked out the air lock. The blood-chilling call from the Chaalt people’s Principal Investigator and Senior Operative, Sael Nalen, filled me with dread.
We had recently discovered and captured a Prule Hivemind. The information we had on the Prule suggested they were galaxy destroyers. We had no desire to try to secure such a threat, so we turned it over to the Chaalt. They have a secret research facility set up to specifically contain and study the Prule. Sael Nalen contacted Justice, the AI of my ship, the Legacy, and alerted us the facility went dark.
“Justice, put me through to Sael.”
“Channel open, Commander.”
Sael came on immediately and cut me off before I could jump to any conclusions. “Nathan, before you assume incompetence is the reason I am calling, I must tell you we have been caught off guard by treasonous treachery.”
Justice was broadcasting my comms so my mixed-race crew could hear all that was being said. My first officer, Tria, who was a Chaalt as well, gave Sael Nalen no time to explain herself before yelling out, “You speak madness! Who would betray our people to the Prule?”
I gave my Tibor Troop Master, Klutch, and my two Grawl crew members, Coonts and Xul, looks of apprehension. The silence that followed Tria’s outburst showed Sael’s displeasure with the interruption. Sael finally found her tongue and said, “All indications point to the ex–council member, Commander Gredda Porsha.”
Tria looked surprised. “You told us she was relieved of command.”
“Yes, she was cast out for her handling of our botched negotiations with Nathan and your followers. She was the council member responsible for ordering the use of the spyware you found on the data cubes we gave you.”
Tria had a scowl on her pretty face that had no right to be there. “Are you sure? I know she was not well-liked, but I find it hard to believe she would betray her own people to the Prule.”
“No, at this point, we are not completely sure of anything. What we do know is the facility’s day-to-day communications have ceased, and all of the defensive measures we installed to prevent the possibility of the base’s capture have been activated.”
I threw my two cents worth into the ring. “How can you say Commander Porsha had something to do with what is happening if you are not sure of the facts?”
Sael exhaled loudly. “Everything I have told you and are about to reveal are secret communications to select military commanders. Charleze Krimov, the shuttle pilot for the elder council, was found dead in Gredda’s residence. She was mutilated, and all of her military ID chips cut from her body. It is normally impossible to keep the chips from dissolving upon death of the host, but Charleze was connected to some very sophisticated life-support systems that kept her alive while she was being butchered. This also implies that Gredda had help from a senior AI chip specialist to maintain the harvested chips’ functionality. I suspect that part of my briefing has yet to come.”
Coonts and Xul were having a quiet discussion. Coonts finally asked the question that was forming on all our lips.
“Principal Investigator, what does the pilot for the council have to do with the research facility going dark?”
“Because the shuttle she normally piloted and twenty-one members of the senior council were at the facility when it went dark!”
We were shocked. Klutch put his thoughts to words as only a plainspoken Troop Master can. “What does this steaming pile of scat you are serving up have to do with us? You have had the Hivemind for seventeen rotations and still have yet to allow our science team to step foot on that base. Now I am glad they are not there, because your next step better be to destroy that place before the Hivemind starts making use of your precious tech.”
I was surprised by Sael’s next curt comment. “That was my assessment as well, Troop Master. The remaining members of the council are willing to do whatever it takes to rescue the missing senior leadership.”
Tria turned and embraced me crazy hard and whispered in my ear, “We must help if we are able.”
“Sael, are the members of the council asking for our help?”
“No, Nathan, I am the only one asking for your help. The remaining elders have turned over all aspects of the rescue operation to the military council, many of which are the newly elected replacements for those who were dismissed. They are young and brash and have already squandered the lives of several thousand troops and two warships trying to make a direct assault on the base. The systems protecting the facility are the very best we have.”
“Why would so many of your leadership council want to go to the research center at the same time? Surely, they could have received intelligence reports that would have avoided any unnecessary travel to the facility.”
“Obviously, only the leadership council can answer those questions. I am giving you the limited amount of intelligence I have received.”
“Sael, what could we possibly do that your military has not already tried?”
“I don’t know, Nathan. I have seen you and your people do many things others would have thought impossible. I am hoping you can come up with a plan that will spare the lives of thousands if the council continues to throw our people against those defenses.”
Xul had a look of dismay on his face, and it was not a sight most normal people could handle. “Principal Investigator, surely your scientists would have had several fail-safe devices to destroy the facility as a contingency in such a scenario.”
“You are correct, Xul, the devices you speak of are present throughout the facility. They are yet another piece of evidence that points to Gredda being the person responsible for this criminal act. She was on the team of designers that developed the emergency destruct systems.”
Tria could not keep silent and again cut Sael off. “If all this evidence points to Gredda, why do you say that the military is still unsure?”
“Because, Captain Burlor, several of Gredda’s closest allies have been found slain! The times of death do not fit the timeline established for the Prule facility takeover or the departure of the council’s shuttle. They were killed after the facility went dark. This points to a much broader conspiracy that might involve several accomplices. For all we know, the deaths may have nothing to do with the research lab, or they may have everything to do with it. What we don’t have is rock solid data, so I came to you hoping that you could in some way help unravel what has been happening.”
The twist and turns of this were making me dizzy. Sael using Tria
’s former military rank in her retort was an eye-opener. I wondered if it was to put Tria in her place or to alert us she was being recalled to duty. Then my thoughts went in a new direction, and it was my turn to interrupt.
“Senior Operative, where were you when all of this was going on? Surely you would have been updated from the second these events started taking place.”
“Since I have already violated security protocols by revealing what has taken place, there is no point in stopping now. I was sent to verify the intelligence that you had gathered on Eiger’s whereabouts.”
“And?”
“I had to pull the insertion team off Jurlaw before they entered the Crisbarry Mountains due to the current emergency response orders.”
Tria was scowling and blurted out what was on her mind. “Principal Investigator, am I being recalled to duty?”
“Your rank is reinstated, and you will serve at your current location until I receive orders stating otherwise. All military personnel have been recalled during this crisis.”
I was still digesting the Eiger intel and couldn’t decide which was the bigger irritation, Tria being back under the command of the Chaalt or Sael going after Eiger without giving me a heads-up. In the past, intel of that nature was a two-way street. I suspected it was somehow the senior council’s wishes to rid me of that distraction. It wasn’t hard guessing their end game. They wanted me to concentrate on discovering new technology so they could bargain with me to get their hands on it. They obviously were still choking on the bitter pill they had to swallow when I stripped the Prule salvage ship of its most valuable secrets and then pawned the scrap off on them. I was now wondering if reinstating Tria was some sort of stab at me for not giving them a larger share in the tech I recovered.
Before I could pop my cork at the surmised subterfuge, Justice pinged my implants with a private message. “Commander, I am aware of your concerns for Tria being used by her superiors to control your actions. I have formulated contingencies to prevent such manipulations in the future. I also believe I can secure Tria’s permanent posting with the Legacy without further interference from the Chaalt council. I suggest you inform the Principal Investigator we will get back with her with a plan to retake the research facility.”
I frowned and shook my head, wondering what the hell we could do that the Chaalt hadn’t already attempted.
“Sael, we will get back with you once we have a plan of action.”
I heard a partial comment that sounded like a less than friendly epithet, but Justice killed the connection. My crew members were looking at me with dismay on their faces.
“Justice, please enlighten the rest of the crew on your plans before they have me committed to a thought reprocessing institute.”
My crew looked relieved that it was Justice behind my comments to Sael and not one of my half-baked, seat-of-my-pants, almost-get-us-all-fragged schemes.
“Commander, we have the means to breach the Chaalt shield dome and enter the facility.”
Now we all had skepticism stamped on our faces. We have yet to get a rundown from Sael on the exact nature of the defenses.
“Okay Justice, just how are we going to do that without getting shot to pieces? I know you heard Sael say that they have lost two warships already.”
“The Daggers are capable of phase shifting through the shield dome.”
That statement had more than a few mouths gaping open, including mine. Justice sounded a little off when he made his declaration. I also noted that he did not say safely phase shift through the shield.
“I take it there are some hazards to this exploit that you have yet to mention.”
“Yes, the Dagger must be phasing at close to maximum power, and I must cycle the shift at exactly point five milliseconds before the Dagger strikes the shield or it will disintegrate into a burst of atoms.”
The engineer in Coonts could no longer hold his tongue. “Justice, I was not aware the Daggers were now operational. If they are indeed ready, we must formulate tests to determine if what you say can be safely achieved.”
“Engineer Coonts, I have been using my subsystems at Alpha Base to test the performance of the Daggers. I have just completed the twenty-second test flight on four of the Daggers. I have yet to thoroughly test the weapons systems, but all are functioning.”
Coonts nodded and scratched his head, then asked the next logical question. “How much testing have you conducted on the Daggers’ shield penetrating capabilities?”
“One test.”
As a group we blurted out, “ONE!”
“Yes, further testing would have increased the possibility of damage to Alpha Base’s shield systems. The penetration caused an unexpected feedback spike to the shield generators. A luminous discharge was also recorded that could cause permanent retina damage to an observer without proper protection. The Grawl scientists were quite adamant that I discontinue testing until I cleared it with command personnel.”
I was just about speechless but had to know. “Is there anything else?”
“Yes, stopping the Dagger before it can pass through the target area taxes the inertial dampening systems beyond their design capabilities.”
I expected a little more, but when Justice did not elaborate, I again had to ask, “Justice, I would appreciate it if you were to explain ALL of the apparent dangers of phasing through a shield. When you say beyond the design capabilities, how far are we talking about?”
“The pilot might experience sixteen or more gravities for a short period of time, depending on the angle of penetration and the circumference of the shield.”
Coonts possessed the least sturdy skeletal system of my crew. He stood wide-eyed and staring at me. Xul was shaking his head negative then said, “Surely the inertial dampeners in the battle suits would offset the additional G load!”
Justice’s voice was deadpan. “The gravity measurements were taken from the second-generation Zaen battle armor. The Troop Master’s dense body structure will be the most resistant to high G trauma. The Commander’s and Tria’s enhanced muscle and skeletal systems have a resiliency that should offset the probability of incapacitating damage, but the experience will most certainly be unpleasant.”
I cringed because I had done “unpleasant” so many times it seemed to be part of my regular routine. As far as securing Tria’s permanent freedom from the long arm of the council, it was a no-brainer. If we do this and survive, we get what we want.
Coonts surprised me with a request.
“Commander, since my participation in the shield breach operation will most assuredly lead to permanent damage or death, I request permission to undergo the Oolaran weaponization procedure.”
That got the little Grawl looks from everyone. He was well-aware of the procedure and the painful recovery period. Coonts continued to surprise me with his drive and determination to become everything that his race, as a rule, was currently not. He was going to show the other members of his people that they should also strive to be something other than the corrupt manipulators they are known to be.
“Coonts, until we have an actual plan, I cannot preclude your participation. If it turns out that you will not have an active role in the operation, you will be free to make that decision.”
Coonts nodded. Xul just stood shaking his head at his fellow Grawl.
“Justice, what is the status of the energy matrix?”
“Commander, we will have sufficient energy to transition to Alpha Base in eleven minutes. I have alerted the scientists to our new mission profile and have them preparing a nanite missile loadout for the Daggers.”
Tria just about freaked at Justice’s weapon selection. “Justice, we cannot release weaponized nanites within my home world exclusion zone. It is forbidden!”
“Tria, using your DNA model, I can program the nanites to ignore your people’s biological traits. I will program a finite time code into the nanites that will be irreversible. Once they have performed their assigned missions, the
y will be consumed by a corrosive payload of molecular acid. My programming will cause the nanites to swarm onto any remains of the Prule or their infected systems before they self-terminate. Depending on what technology the Hivemind has assimilated, it may be necessary to inundate the facility with weaponized nanites to prevent any probability of escape.”
“We will destroy the entire facility if we do this!”
“Tria, I recommend that the asteroid the facility resides on be obliterated if you succeed in rescuing your senior council members. It is the only way to ensure the Prule machine infection cannot spread to your home worlds. If any of your senior scientists have somehow survived, they will confirm my evaluation.”
Tria’s anger boiled out in an unnatural display of emotion.
“How could the fools let this happen!”
I embraced her and said, “I am convinced that the Oolaran and Sentinel races are the only ones who truly know what the Prule are capable of. It would only take a small mistake for the Hivemind to have the advantage, especially if it had outside help.”
