The Curanian Dominance: The Linda Eccles Series - Volume Three

by Robert Woodard

  The friendliness of the humans went beyond anything he could have ever imagined. Even more so than the help he received on Rapatine. The compound was well stocked by those he was told were the Governments, but those he learned were called neighbors would come by to provide their own favorite items for his people to try.

  Muni could not understand why the humans were so insistent on handing over food and supplies without expecting anything in return. It made him wary at first, but he eventually determined that it was the nature of these creatures. He soon came to learn the terms for things they were provided. The apples, oranges and bananas quickly became the small group’s favorite items. The cheeses took a little getting used to, but they quickly came to like that, too.

  The consumption of meat was a little too much for the Curanians to take. The thought of eating flesh didn’t sit well, and it was discarded when the humans were not around. He could adapt to many things, but eating flesh was not one of them.

  The shuttle that came to fetch him and Nock lifted out of the compound and took flight. It soon raced along toward another meeting with Admiral Ackerman and Admiral Litton. He didn’t have to be told what the meeting was for, as he already knew they would discuss more about the Curanian home planet. The two Admirals had been asking all kinds of questions about what the Supreme Complex looked like and the physical location of their home planet.

  When the shuttle landed, the two for them hopped out and followed the uniformed man who escorted them to the room where another round of questionings was sure to commence. Muni didn’t mind really. He found the building fascinating, and the ride in the rising square they called an elevator always made the trip worthwhile.

  “Someone should convince Kold to put one of these elevators into the Supreme Complex. It would almost make going to see a Supreme worthwhile—almost,” Muni said.

  “Almost,” Nock agreed. They both smiled at the personal joke.

  Finally entering the meeting room, Muni was shocked to see a miniature model of the Supreme Complex sitting on the table. The design was so accurate that it struck an immediate hatred of the evil that resided inside the real building. The model sat atop a perfect depiction of its surroundings that included the oversized lawn, flowering gardens and the tree line that surrounded the entire complex.

  He could see both Admirals were already in the room and had risen when they arrived. They came forward with their hands extended, and said, “Good morning, Muni, Nock.”

  Muni returned the handshake to each of them. They all settled into chairs except Admiral Ackerman who remained on his feet and had moved to stand in front of the model building.

  “My design team created this mockup of your Supreme Complex based on the information you provided. Does it capture the building’s design in detail?” Admiral Ackerman asked.

  Muni translated for Nock, and the two of them leaned forward to give the model a closer inspection. Everything looked exact right down to the color. Nodding in appreciation of whoever created the model, Muni responded, “It perfect.”

  The Admiral then lifted the roof off the building to expose the squares within. He looked at Muni and said, “We took a shot at how the internal sections might be walled off, but mostly, we are interested in whether the windows are positioned correctly where your Supreme would be standing most often.”

  Muni translated for Nock, and the two of them got up and came around the table. Looking down into the model, Muni could see that the Supreme Square where Kold received visitors had been walled off in an elongated fashion. Neither of them had ever had the displeasure of being called before a Supreme, but they had heard about it from those who had.

  Nock said to Muni, “The outer wall looks correct. I recall Nage saying it had a curvature to it, and they seemed to have captured that correctly. Did you notice the woman standing before the windows? She has her back to the room just like Nage said she would whenever he entered the square.”

  Staring down at the miniature figurine, Muni found it amusing. It was about as opposite a depiction of the Supreme as could be imagined. The hair was blond and curled inward as it came to the shoulders. It also wore a blue and white checkered dress that stopped just below the knees. The feet were covered in black shoes. Whenever Kold graced her subjects in person, she always wore a full-length dress. Her black hair had never been short, at least as far as he knew.

  “I think you capture correctly, Admiral. We never be inside the Supreme Complex. No in her personal square. We only know what told us,” Muni said.

  Admiral Litton got up and joined them in front of the model building. He pointed at the windows that the woman figurine stood before, and asked, “Muni, how far would you say it is from these windows to the tree line here?” The Admiral pointed to the line of miniature trees that resided directly across from the windows.

  Turning to Nock, Muni said, “The Admiral is asking how far it is from the windows to the edge of the trees.”

  Nock pushed his lips to one side and worked his hands into circles out in front of him. It was his classic gesture that he was about to return his best guess. “I would say about four thousand klots, or perhaps two klicks.”

  “That sounds about right to me, too.” Muni then looked at Admiral Litton and said, “Four thousand klots.”

  The Admiral gave him a frown, and asked, “What the hell is a klots?”

  “I think I have an idea how we can find out.” Admiral Ackerman walked over to the door, poked his head out, and said, “Lieutenant, would you see if you can dig up a laser-tape from somewhere and bring it into the conference room. Thanks.”

  As they waited, Admiral Litton pointed to the landing pad leading to the entry point to the complex, and asked, “How far would you say it is from this pad to the windows?”

  “Two hundred klots, be less perhaps,” Muni answered.

  “The angle would be wrong, though,” Admiral Ackerman said to Admiral Litton, who nodded his head in agreement.

  “Wrong what?” Muni asked, but before anyone could answer the uniformed man who escorted them from the shuttle came into the conference room carrying a small, square device.

  “Ah, thanks Lieutenant. This will be perfect,” Admiral Ackerman said. Placing the laser-tape on the table, he pressed a button on the side, and a red beam shot all the way to the wall. He then slid the tape along the table to shorten the laser line. “This is three meters. How many Klots is that?”

  “They say this is called three meters in their way of measuring between the device and the wall,” Muni said to Nock. “They want to know how many Klots that is.”

  “Looks like around ten to me,” Nock said.

  “I agree.” Muni then looked at Admiral Ackerman, and said, “Ten Klots.”

  Philip whistled, and then said, “That is a hell of a long shot from the tree line to the windows, Ron. And that doesn’t account for their gravity and spin rotation that will be different than Earth’s. Hell, there isn’t even a way for us to replicate it to give a sniper a chance.”

  “What be sniper?” Muni asked.

  “A sniper is a person that can make an accurate shot from long distances. We were hoping to put a sniper on your planet, get them into the woods across from the windows, and then take your Supreme out with a single shot,” Philip responded.

  “No work,” Muni said, shaking his head at the idea.

  “Why not,” Ron asked.

  “Windows hard. No can penetrate.” Muni then took the time to bring Nock up to speed on the conversation.

  “You’re right. The chances of getting something through that window and still remain on target would be little to none,” Nock agreed.

  Muni turned his focus back onto both Admirals. “Only way get Kold is inside. Supreme Kold has secret powers. No can sneak up on her. This been told lots.”

  “Doesn’t she ever go outside?” Ron asked.

  “They want to know if Supreme Kold ever goes outside,” Muni said to Nock.

  “Only during the Sup
reme Blossom Celebration,” Nock said.

  “Do you think that has happened yet?”

  “I don’t know. We have been away a while now.”

  “This entire idea of killing Kold is making me nervous,” Muni said with a frown. “Never in Curanian history has a Supreme died of anything other than natural causes. Never has a Supreme died without a successor in place to take over. We are talking about killing Kold and throwing our people into disarray. Is it worth it, Nock?”

  Nock stared at the model of the Supreme Complex for several ticks. He finally looked back at Muni, and answered, “I don’t know, Muni. As much as I hate Kold and her evil ways, I’m conflicted like you. It’s a crime against Curanian law to threaten a Supreme, let alone actual harming one. We are looking at something that has never even been contemplated before. Who really knows how it would play out with Kold suddenly gone?”

  “Could we really be any worse off?” Muni asked.

  “Probably not, but it’s not my place to determine such things. I’m just a ship commander. Politics such as this has never been a part of me before. This scares the klidspit out of me, but if it leads to something like these humans have here than I’m all for it.”

  “I wish Nage was here. He’d know much better than I would what we should do. Since he isn’t, I guess I’ll just have to hope for the best. Unless you have any objections, I’m going to help them as best I can,” Muni said.

  “No, I don’t have any objections, just reservations. Go for it, Muni.”

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  “Brontum has entered Kuracks Control boundaries. Do you wish me to request landing instructions?” TR17 reported.

  Linda opened her eyes to see the huge planet that had been steadily growing larger with each passing day suddenly sitting directly before them in all its glory. The planet looked far different than Earth and Rapatine. The planet seemed to be a swirl of green, white and black. It also looked to be no more than a couple hundred kilometers away.

  She and Peggy slept through the final approach as day forty-two arrived in what would be around 2AM earth time. The excitement at having reached their destination and the unknown that would finally be answered began to hit home. Looking over at Peggy, she could see her eyes were open and staring out at the planet.

  “I’m not much of a diplomat. I would think a Captain like you would be better suited,” Peggy said.

  “Me? I barely got out of Kracks with my skin still attached,” Linda responded, but she knew that she was probably better trained for this kind of situation than the sheltered Peggy. As much as she hated being responsible for whatever happened here, she would tackle it as best she could. “TR17, go ahead and request landing instructions. Also, let them know that you are carrying two aliens that request a meeting with them.”

  “TR17 will comply.”

  “I think my stomach just climbed into my throat and latched onto my spinal cord,” Peggy said.

  “Yeah, tell me about it. I’m so scared I think I might pee my pants.”

  “Well, at least the Brontum will clean it up for you.” Peggy rolled her head over to look at Linda and smiled. Linda laughed.

  “I am unable to get landing instructions. Kuracks Control has not answered my request.”

  “TR17, is this typical to be kept waiting?” Linda asked.

  “No.”

  “Do you have any idea why you would not receive a response?”

  “No.’

  “I don’t like this, Peggy. We may have scared them by dropping in without them knowing we were coming. Maybe they don’t know how to respond.”

  “I don’t know what to tell you. I guess we can either land anyway or sit here until they respond.”

  “TR17, are you detecting any other ships in the area?” Linda asked. She was curious if the Kuracks were sending any military ships to cut them off or perhaps escort them down.

  “No other ship activity detected.”

  “This is damn odd. You think they would at least recognize our presence and give us some kind of instructions, even if it was to sit here and wait further orders. I don’t like this at all,” Linda said.

  “Who can truly say what an alien thinks? To them, not answering may be their way of telling us to stay put. Like you said, we may have surprised them.”

  Linda licked her lips as she thought over what to do next. Since her track record with alien contact was not stellar, she decided to take this one nice and slow. The last thing she was going to do was jump to conclusions that would force these aliens to react when they weren’t ready. She would remain idle here, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t look around.

  “TR17, can you scan the planet?” Linda asked.

  “Clarify scan.”

  “Is it possible for you to verify life forms and energy readings on the planet?”

  “Yes.”

  “TR17, please do so.”

  “TR17 cannot comply.”

  “TR17, why is that?” Linda asked.

  “This unit is not authorized to perform such activity unless directed by Kuracks Control.”

  “I guess we now know under what conditions the TR17 will not follow orders,” Peggy said.

  “Perhaps, but I’m not ready to give up just yet. TR17, you said that no other ships were in the area. Is this correct?”

  “Yes.”

  “How did you know that without scanning for any?” Linda asked.

  For the first time since interacting with the alien device, it didn’t provide an immediate response. She looked over at Peggy, who said, “I think you broke it, Linda.”

  “I’ve broken many an officer, but never an alien device. This is a new one for me.” Linda looked at the planet in front of them and frowned at the thought of getting this close and not being able to reach the end.

  “TR17 will perform the scan.”

  “I’ll be damn. I think I humanized the TR17 by turning it into a radical,” Linda said while looking over at Peggy again.

  “The Brontum has failed to pick up life forms. Energy readings are normal.”

  “TR17, are you telling us that you can’t detect any Kurack life on the planet’s surface?” Peggy asked.

  “Yes.”

  “TR17, can you account for the lack of life form readings?” Peggy prompted.

  “No.”

  “If there is no one home I can’t see how they can object to our landing,” Peggy said as she rocked her eyebrows a few times while looking over at Linda.

  “Famous last words just before one gets shot for trespassing,” Linda responded. She then looked up at the ceiling, and asked, “TR17, since no one is within Kuracks Control to provide landing instructions, can you land without them?”

  “Yes.”

  “Will you, TR17?” Linda crossed her fingers for luck. Once again, the ship went quiet waiting for the device to respond. Several tense seconds ticked away before Linda received her answer.

  “TR17 will comply. Landing will commence.”

  In a routine quite familiar to Linda now, the spiraling path came to life before her from the ship to the landing pad upon the surface. The ship quickly closed the distance before swinging level with the pad and making a smooth landing.

  “TR17, is the planet suitable for supporting human life forms?” Peggy asked.

  “Good question,” Linda said.

  “No.”

  “Environmental suits, here we come,” Peggy said while getting out of her chair.

  Linda reached out and placed a hand on Peggy’s arm. “Hold it a second, Peggy. TR17, can you modify the conditions within the Kuracks’ buildings to sustain human life?”

  “No.”

  “It was worth a shot,” Linda said.

  They both got out of her chairs and moved into the middle section where their suits were located next to their other personal items. As she slipped hers on, Linda realized that even if the TR17 had been able to modify the buildings’ environmental units, they would be risking killing any Kuracks t
hat just happened to return to the building. That probably would have annoyed the hell out of them, and sure wouldn’t have set a positive tone to this visit. You need to think more clearly, Linda.

  It didn’t take long to slip on the bottom and top sections of the suit and clamp them together into an airtight seal. Linda helped Peggy rotate the ring to seal her suit, too. After slipping on her boots and locking them to the legs of her pants, she retrieved both helmets and handed one to Peggy. When she slipped her own over her head, Linda rotated the locking ring to seal it.

  “Check your oxygen mixture and validate your recycling pump is working,” Linda said while checking her own display.

  “Oxygen mixture is in the green. Recycling pump is on. Temperature control is set to 72-degrees,” Peggy answered.

  “TR17, let us out,” Linda ordered.

  “TR17 will comply.”

  Linda watched in fascination as the ship’s hull melted away to provide them an exit. While she had seen the hull create the openings several times now, the sight continued to amaze her.

  “After you, Captain,” Peggy said while sweeping her hand toward the opening.

  “You’ve got my back, right?” Linda said sarcastically as she stepped up to the opening.

  Hesitated at the sight before her, Linda now understood why the planet looked black and white with streaks of green from space. For as far as she could see, black buildings covered the land and tall white spears that looked like huge radio antennas pointed high into the sky. Whether it was for functional reasons or some artistic design, she couldn’t even venture a guess.

  It appeared they had arrived during the winter months on this side of the planet, as the ground was covered in a layer of snow. Weaving around the buildings, trees and shrubbery grew tall and thick. They offered her a mixture of greens and browns while also carrying a layer of white powdery snow. It was quite beautiful to see.

  Stepping out, Linda gingerly set foot into the foot-deep snow. While turning to watch Peggy exit behind her, Linda shifted her eyes to the display screen located on the left inner half of her helmet. The small image of a thermometer displayed the digital readings of the outside temperature above it. It read 12F/-11C. The sight of the reading made her shiver, even though the suit compensated to keep the internal temperature a comfortable 72-degrees Fahrenheit.