Final Conflict

by Raymond L. Weil

  The stations were so large it was possible to walk many of the numerous corridors for hours and see no one. Most long distance travel in the stations was done through the massive tram system which connected all of the primary sections.

  “Contact Rear Admiral Blair and General Timmons,” ordered Admiral Kelly still gazing at the viewscreens. “Inform them Rear Admiral Haden and Fourth Fleet have returned and there will be a debriefing session as soon as Haden comes aboard Centerpoint.” Kelly folded his arms across his chest. At the moment the Solar System had ten fleets in operation. At all times at least four fleets were kept in the system to ensure its protection. While the chance of a Kleese attack on the Solar System was small it was prudent to stay cautious.

  -

  Lieutenant Sue Adams was glad to get off the Victory. She was on one of the first shuttles to Centerpoint. She was excited about her new assignment and couldn’t wait to start. She would be working with the new recruits using the Type Nine battlesuits. Once she was satisfied they were combat ready she would take the platoon out on its first combat mission.

  The shuttle was headed toward one of the many ship bays around the station. At any one time there were dozens of vessels coming and going. Some were trading ships from members of the Alliance and others were warships. The station also had a number of construction bays used to build assault ships and light cruisers as well as the larger heavy battlecruisers.

  “Are you taking a few days off before you start your new assignment?” asked Sergeant Styles. Styles was sitting next to the lieutenant.

  Sue nodded. “Two or three days. I want to do a little shopping and eat some home cooked meals. Shipboard food begins to taste the same after a while.”

  “I know,” replied Styles. “I’m going to try some Italian and Mexican food in the food court while I’m on leave.” He paused and looked at the lieutenant. “Do you know who will be taking over while you’re gone?”

  Sue shook her head. “With a little luck it will still be me. I’m going to ask that the new platoon be added to the Victory and see if I can have command of both.”

  “With your record I can’t see them turning you down.”

  “We’ll see. We both know the military makes strange and inexplicable decisions at times.”

  Styles nodded. “At least it’s not as bad as it once was back on Earth.”

  “Those were different times,” Sue said. “We weren’t involved in an interstellar war back then.”

  -

  The shuttle entered one of the large bays and set down softly on a landing pad.

  Sue exited the shuttle enjoying the feeling of being out in such a large open space even if it was a ship bay. The bay was huge with a number of shuttles and even a few small cargo ships sitting on other landing pads. Crews were busy unloading and loading supplies and trading items. Taking a deep breath, she headed for one of the open hatches. There were quarters available for her where she could relax and enjoy the hospitality of the huge station. There was excellent food in the food court, entertainment, and even stores where you could buy nearly everything one could imagine. If everything worked out she would spend two or three days taking it easy and then report to Major Reed to begin her next assignment.

  -

  Admiral Kelly listened as Rear Admiral Haden gave his oral report of the time Fourth Fleet had spent battling the Kleese.

  “We freed seven star systems,” Haden said. In front of him on the conference table was a copy of the written report he had put together. There was also considerable combat data stored on flash drives, which could be gone over as well. “During that time we lost four assault ships and one light cruiser. We managed to rescue most of the crews though there were some losses.”

  “We have reports that Kleese resistance in the outer sectors of their Empire is collapsing,” said Read Admiral Blair. “We believe they are abandoning those sectors and consolidating their forces closer to their core worlds.”

  This surprised Rear Admiral Haden. “What is the Alliance doing to take advantage of this?”

  “Scout ships are being sent in to confirm Kleese garrisons have left the inhabited planets. However, there are still many conscripts on some of the planets that will have to be dealt with.”

  “Will the Alliance be using any of their troops or will we be expected to do most of the fighting?”

  Admiral Kelly glanced at several sheets of paper in front of him. “The Alliance will be doing some so we can bring these worlds into the Alliance as quickly as possible. In the harder cases where there may be intense fighting we’ll send our Marines in battlesuits in to eliminate the conscripts.”

  “With the Kleese pulling back this should reduce our ship losses,” added Rear Admiral Blair.

  “But it may increase our battlefield losses in Marines,” said General Timmons worriedly. “I’m afraid we’re going to be spread thin trying to retake so many worlds in such a short period of time.” Timmons was in charge of the Marines and other military units charged with defending the Solar System as well as offensive and defensive measures on the other planets.

  “It may,” admitted Admiral Kelly. “However, with the Kleese pulling back it makes the security of the Solar System even better. It is becoming highly doubtful they will ever make another attack on us anytime soon.”

  “How goes the terraforming of Earth and Mars?” asked Rear Admiral Haden. “From the Command Center of the Lamprey it looked as if I could actually see the Earth’s surface in some regions.”

  Admiral Kelly nodded. “As you know we’ve been using the advanced science of several friendly races to modify the environments of Earth and Mars. On Mars we may actually have a breathable atmosphere in another ten years. We’ve started bringing in ice asteroids from the comet belt and releasing them over the Polar Regions away from our Mars colonies. Eventually there will be rivers and several small oceans on the planet. We’re using technology from the Lanolthians and the Kiveans.”

  “Earth is a different ballgame,” said General Timmons. “We’ll have the atmosphere back to normal in a few more years but we still have a lot of volcanic activity going on across the planet. I spoke to Marken the other day and he is working on a plan with several other races to help alleviate some of that. He says it may be centuries before the seismic activity returns to even close to what it was. However, he feels confident they can make some areas of Earth safe enough to resettle well before then.”

  “The vegetation and all the wildlife are gone,” added Admiral Kelly sadly. “There’s still evidence of some life in the deeper parts of the oceans but not nearly what it once was. The coral reefs are dead and all the larger fish in the oceans are gone. We’re going to have to bring in vegetation from other worlds and even animals. We’ll be looking for those compatible with Earth and similar to what was once there. Fortunately there are a number of different Earth species present on Vesta and some even in the Moon and Mars domes.”

  “Same for some species of trees and vegetation,” said General Timmons. “We already have science expeditions out searching other planets for compatible species. Someday we’ll have Earth back.”

  “I hope to see it,” said Rear Admiral Haden. “I would like to walk on the surface of Earth and breathe the air before I die.”

  “General Mitchell felt the same way,” said General Timmons. “Unfortunately he died before he could go back down to Earth. He told me several times he wanted to walk the surface of Earth one last time with the sun shining down on his face. I wish he could have lived long enough to see that.”

  “It’s been over thirty years since the Kleese destroyed Earth,” said Admiral Kelly. “We’ve come a long ways since then.”

  Rear Admiral Haden nodded. “At least we’re not on the brink of extinction.”

  “We have former President Mason Randle to thank for that,” said General Timmons. “If not for Vesta I’m afraid it would have been the end of the Human race.”

  -

  On Vesta General
Wade Nelson had just left the huge docking bay inside the asteroid to travel over to the Kivean asteroid. He had some questions for Marken and he was looking forward to the visit. Over the years Marken, Harnett, Wade, and Beth had become very close. They had watched their children grow up and become adults.

  “I can’t wait to see Harnett,” said Beth as she gazed out the small viewport next to her.

  Wade nodded. The last few years had been very enjoyable. There had been no combat in the Solar System, the children had grown up and they had watched as Ryan’s kids, Thomas and Savannah became adults. He smiled to himself. He had spoken to Ryan about Thomas’s first few attempts at Charring Mountain. He knew how difficult the mountain was. Beth and he had attempted Charring Mountain while being held captive by the Kleese. That was a long time ago and much had changed since then.

  It didn’t take long for the shuttle to reach the Kivean asteroid. There were actually two asteroids inhabited by the Kiveans. They were going to the smaller colony where Marken and Harnett lived.

  -

  Wade and Beth stepped out into the hollowed out section of the Kivean asteroid where the city was. It was the home to slightly over nine thousand Kiveans and was a modern wonder. It resembled those once prevalent on their home world with tall, slender towers and metallic bridges connecting them at different levels. The buildings were multiple colors and of various shapes and sizes. It looked like a city from the far future.

  “I never can get over how beautiful their city is,” breathed out Beth as she gazed at the colorful buildings. “Do you think we’ll ever build something like this?”

  “Maybe, but it will be a while. Right now our people are concentrating on winning the war against the Kleese. When that ends maybe we can turn our people back to building something like this.”

  The two entered a tall building and went up to the level where Marken and Harnett’s large apartment was located.

  The door slid open and a smiling Harnett was there to greet them. Kiveans were a light red with arms slightly longer than a Humans and long narrow fingers. Their faces were humanoid with narrow eyes, no eyebrows, a wide nose, and small ears. There was no hair on their heads and most were over six feet tall.

  “Wade, Beth, it is good to see you,” said Harnett, stepping forward to hug Beth. “Come in, Marken and I are pleased you could come and visit.”

  “I think Wade has some things he wants to talk to Marken about,” said Beth.

  Harnett nodded. “Marken is in the study, Wade. Go on in; he has been expecting you.”

  Wade made his way into the study to find Marken sitting in front of a large computer screen filled with complicated mathematical equations. “I don’t even want to know what that is.”

  Marken turned around and stood up with a huge smile on his face. “It’s a theory I’m working on to help reduce the volcanic eruptions on Earth.”

  This interested Wade. “Any progress?”

  “Some,” replied Marken. “It’s very complicated and I’m years away from finding a possible solution. How are things on Vesta?”

  “Good,” replied Wade. “We’re slowing down the production of clones. The Human population in the system is nearing thirty million and we have slightly over seventeen million clones. We’re also considering taking the next group of clones out of their chambers just prior to their teen years.”

  Marken nodded. “That’s good. The clones have adjusted well, even the ones we have created of Kiveans.”

  “Our population is growing quickly now,” added Wade. “As soon as we’re finished terraforming Mars we’ll have room to really expand. Then hopefully a few years after that we can begin resettling parts of Earth.”

  “I’ve done some simulations with the aid of other Kivean scientists and within ten years approximately twenty percent of Earth’s landmasses will be safe to colonize. The rest will have to wait until we discover a solution to the volcanic problem.”

  “You’ll do it,” said Wade confidently. “Someday Earth will be like it was when I was a child.”

  “Better,” replied Marken. “If we can solve the volcano problem we can make Earth into a paradise with the technology available to us from the worlds of the Alliance.” Marken gestured for Wade to have a seat. “Now, there must be another reason you’ve come to see me.”

  Wade nodded. “Yes, our latest intelligence data indicates the Kleese are pulling back from the outer sectors of their Empire near the Alliance. They’ve even begun to move their trading stations.”

  “Those that remain,” replied Marken with a smile. He knew the Humans and the Alliance had stolen a number of them in massive raids in the early years of the war.

  “Admiral Kelly and General Timmons are a little concerned about what this might mean. In the short term it probably means less of a threat of an attack on us by the Kleese but what does it mean long term?”

  Marken pondered Wade’s question for several minutes. “They’re consolidating their power. They have a huge ship manufacturing capability in their home systems. By moving the trading stations back to the core of their Empire it will give them even more of an ability to produce warships, particularly the assault ships. It will also free up the large fleets of battlecruisers and exploration ships they have been using to protect those stations. Those fleets could be used to attack the Alliance. I would caution Admiral Kelly and General Timmons about becoming too complacent. I don’t trust the Kleese and we should never underestimate them. They are very shrewd and their thinking is not quite like ours. They still feel they are superior to us and all other races.”

  Wade was not surprised to hear Marken say this. It was what he had been expecting to hear. “I’ll pass on your concerns to Admiral Kelly and General Timmons.”

  “What are Admiral Kelly’s plans with the Kleese pulling back?” asked Marken.

  Wade could see Beth and Harnett talking away in the next room. They were laughing about something though Wade had no idea what it could be. He enjoyed seeing Beth laugh; it was good for her. “Plans are to continue to hold four fleets here in the Solar System as well as to continue to augment the defenses of Earth, the Moon, Mars, Vesta, and the other inhabited asteroids. Centerpoint and Freedom Stations will continue to construct warships at their present rate. Admiral Kelly wants to add two more fleets sometime next year.”

  “It’s good he is staying prepared. We finally have the Kleese fighting a defensive battle and have freed numerous worlds. We must not give up the initiative. If we give the Kleese too much time to recover and rebuild we could be facing a different kind of war.”

  “That’s another thing Admiral Kelly wanted me to talk to you about. Can you speak with the other races here in the Solar System and see what their opinion is? Should we launch a raid into the Kleese core worlds and try to take out some of their shipyards?”

  “What about the trading stations?”

  Wade shook his head. “They’re too heavily defended. We would lose too many ships taking one out though at some point in the future we may have no choice.”

  “I will speak to the Talts, Deltons, Belens, and Bashans and see what they think we should do,” said Marken, referencing the other alien races which had taken up refuge in other asteroids in the Solar System. “However, at this time I think it would be a mistake to launch a raid deep into Kleese space. We should continue to push them back, adding more worlds to the Alliance. At some point the Alliance will be so strong the Kleese will either have to surrender or face annihilation.”

  Wades eyes narrowed. “Do you really think the Kleese would surrender?”

  “I don’t know,” replied Marken, shrugging his shoulders. “If we agreed to leave their core worlds alone I believe there’s a small chance they might consider it. However, they’ve ruled over so many worlds for so long they may not be able to conceive of doing anything differently.”

  For the next several hours the two sat and talked about the Solar System and the races that now inhabited it.

  -
>
  On Centerpoint Lieutenant Adams had gone to her quarters on the station, taken a shower, and then changed clothes. She was now in the food court where she was going to meet Major Reed to discuss her new assignment over a meal. He had contacted her as soon as he found out the Victory had arrived in the Solar System and its Marine complement had shuttled over to Centerpoint.

  Sue was sitting at a table waiting for the major to arrive. He had designated the meeting place and as she waited she looked around. The food court was a busy place. A number of the station’s crew ate here as well as many of the ships’ crews. The food court even had restaurants that catered to the Alliance races by offering food they could eat.

  There were quite a few Marines sitting at some of the tables. This wasn’t unusual as there were a large number of Marines assigned to Centerpoint as well as Freedom Station. In the center of the food court were a large number of tables, several hundred of them, where people could sit and eat. There was seating inside most of the restaurants as well but Sue actually preferred this more open setting. She enjoyed sitting here and just watching people.

  “Sorry I’m late,” said a voice from behind her.

  Major Reed stepped around the table and sat down across from her. “I had a few last minute details to take care of.”

  “I can easily understand that. I assume you have the new class of recruits ready for me to take over?”

  Major Reed grinned. “Yes. It’s a very talented group and they’ve been flying through training. Just the other day one platoon nearly accomplished the impossible and several of their members actually made it to the top of Charring on their second try. One was stunned on the third step of the pedestal.”

  “Wow!” exclaimed Sue, her eyes widening. “I didn’t make it to the top of Charring until my seventh attempt.”

  “Nine for me,” replied Reed, recalling how he felt when he finally mastered the mountain. “I should warn you this is a very special platoon. Colonel Ryan’s son Thomas is in the platoon as well as his best friend, Brian Parker.”