by Dean Sault
He unfolded a hand-drawn diagram for his Head Tasker.
Windows in a nearby tool shop lit up as the quarry master spoke into his communicator. Jix and his boss loaded their equipment into a field transporter and rumbled off into the dark quarry behind a quarry dray carrying the spotlights.
“Right on time,” Dr. Hadje noted as Kob swooped in low over the lights and skillfully landed the small military glider between the beams.
Small puffs of dust rose as the scout vehicle’s weight settled onto landing stilts that extended just before the craft touched down. Within seconds, the side door opened and a large Tanarac soldier in military flight uniform jumped to the ground, ignoring steps that the craft offered.
“Good ta see ya, Dr. Hadje. It’s been too long.”
Kob walked past Jix and engulfed his former mentor in a heartfelt embrace.
“Sure hope this works for ya, Doc. I kinda figured out where you’d be going, so I rigged the transponder to send false data. Nobody’ll know you’re flying over the Central Jungle as long as you stay low enough so local radar doesn’t spot you. Wish I could go with ya.”
“You’ve already done enough,” the doctor said. “My transport is waiting to take you back to the base before anyone notices you’re gone. Thank you again, my friend.”
“One more thing, sir, that SG’s got a new design side scanner. It uses P-logic. Should be easy for you science types to figure out. It’ll recon more ground at cruising speed. Good luck.”
The two scientists wasted no time setting up their instruments in the cramped passenger compartment of the scout craft. After a few attempts, they enabled links between the onboard sensor array and their scientific computers. The doctor opened his shirt pocket and removed the small data bar he took from the science lab.
“Here’s the genetic information on our humans. Download it into the referencing computer and the handheld scanners.”
Moving to the front of the scout glider, he was glad to see the controls were almost identical to his civilian flier. Antigravity engines hummed quietly, as he piloted the small craft up and over the jungle, heading due east. He flew just above the night fog while testing controls to get familiar with the craft. This military version of his own transport was remarkably agile and much faster than any civilian glider he had flown.
The first of Tanarac suns began to lighten the distant sky. Mount Vaal stood as a black giant, silhouetted against the gradually brightening horizon. It rose out of a sea of gray fog. Wispy clouds clung to its highest reaches and extended far out to one side on prevailing winds. Early morning rays of light rose from the horizon to illuminate the underside of the clouds, making them look like long strands of silk, floating against the blackness of space. It was majestic.
Dr. Hadje called Jix up front to share the spectacle.
“Doctor, fog is compromising infrared sensors. We can’t use them until it thins out, but the DNA scanners are registering full readings all the way to the ground. If you slow down, I can begin the scans.”
“Not yet. We’re not where I want to begin. There is a possibility, however remote, that one of our humans may still be alive. General Tragge’s trackers said the male human was moving very fast. We only have this scout-sled for a few days, so we’ll start at the farthest possible travel distance for the human male and work back toward the quarry. If both humans are dead, then we should find their remains during the return trip. If the male is still alive, I don’t want to miss him, because we didn’t start far enough out.”
Dr. Hadje adjusted the controls, and the scout glider dropped a little closer to the top of the fog, occasionally passing in and out of its topmost layer. Density of the fog thinned as they approached the transition zone between jungle and mountain.
“We’ll start our first scan at the edge of the jungle by those foothills. That is a natural barrier for the human. Then, we’ll scan in overlapping passes all the way back to the quarry. Can the infrared scanner penetrate the fog now? Did you figure out how to operate that side scanner?”
Jix adjusted his instruments.
“The infrared signal is still weak, but vertical DNA returns are strong. I can’t get the side-scanner to work in conjunction with the DNA signal generator. I don’t think the side-scan technology is compatible with our signal format.”
“Try sending the DNA output through the main sensor array, but pick up the return signal on the side-scan collector dish. You’ll have to synchronize the output and return pulses to prevent interference.”
“Where’d you learn that, Doc?”
“That’s the way the old prototype genetic scanners were designed. I helped to advance the technology in college. I almost went into weapons research instead of biological sciences.”
Jix expressed surprise at the senior scientist’s past while he changed a few cable connections and set up the doctor’s patch.
“Got it. Everything’s working now.”
As they reached the edge of the jungle, the doctor prepared to engage the autopilot. He included his young counterpart in his next decision.
“Should we go north or south?”
“I don’t know, sir. Didn’t those trackers say the male was heading due east? If he got this far, what direction do you think he’d go?”
“I haven’t a clue.”
The doctor pondered his own question for a moment and then realized the decision was simple. The side scanner is on the right side of the scout glider. Turning to the north would have them scanning up empty mountain slopes, but turning south would allow them to scan deep into the jungle where they expected Simon to be.
The scout craft banked south and lowered air speed to a scanning crawl. Dr. Hadje engaged the autopilot using a contour tracking protocol so the scout glider would follow the mountain’s footprint. He waited to see the ship following his program before taking a seat next to Jix to help monitor their many sensor screens.
At first, the two scientists jumped excitedly every time the infrared alarm announced a warm-blooded target below. A steady stream of animal images soon tempered their enthusiasm as DNA sensors remained silent. Many tedious hours passed, checking false alarms.
“Do you really think he could have traveled this far?” Jix asked.
The senior scientist was wondering the same thing. He stood up and looked out the window.
“There’s a small hill up ahead with a large tree on it. We’ll move deeper into the jungle after we pass that point. I doubt even our best military trackers could have made it this far, much less an untrained human.”
Dr. Hadje returned to the controls of the scout glider and disengaged the autopilot. He had not touched the controls for several hours, and as he attempted to make a simple right turn, the sensitive craft swung abruptly one hundred eighty degrees to the right under his clumsy touch.
Equipment tumbled across the cabin floor and the doctor’s passenger ducked cables flying around wildly. Hadje corrected his mistake and returned the scout glider back to the intended course leading deeper into the jungle.
“Sorry,” the doctor called over his shoulder. “Are you okay?”
There was no answer.
“Jix, are you okay?”
“Go back,” Jix shouted. “We got a positive DNA reading on the side scanner. It came just as you turned into the jungle.”
The doctor immediately circled back, bringing them to the jungle edge near where he made his unplanned wide turn.
“Did you get a location on the signal?”
“No, I was too busy trying to get my balance. It only flashed on the screen for a second. I’m running the recording now. There, there it is! We definitely had a positive DNA match for the male human. It’s only a trace, but it’s a perfect match.”
Dr. Hadje mirrored the prior course along the edge of the jungle. As the hill with the large tree passed under them, he carefully turned the little craft west for the second time, only this time, he was careful to keep the craft under control for a proper ni
nety-degree turn.
Jix watched the side-scan screen, anticipating a hit at any second. Nothing happened. They flew deep into the jungle expecting a DNA hit that never came.
“Did you check the cable connections? Could we have had a false positive from a bad coupling?”
“No, sir. It was a full spectrum DNA pattern. A bad connection would only produce a scattered data spike. Contact was weak. Maybe it was at the farthest scanning limit. Let me raise the scanning angle a little more on the horizon and see if I can get greater distance on the array pulse.”
The junior scientist performed the adjustment. Still nothing.
“Hang on. We’re going back for another pass.” Frustrated, pilot-doctor Hadje banked hard to return to the jungle edge.
“There . . . there it is,” Jix shouted. “It’s gone! It was only on screen for a second.”
Dr. Hadje cocked his head to one side perplexed by the situation. He spoke to himself as the younger scientist listened.
“We detected target genetic code twice. Each time came during a turn. Yet, when we scan the area thoroughly, there is no signal. Can you tell me the range of that side scanner?”
After Jix’s reply, the doctor smiled and altered course. He pushed the throttle forward until they approached the edge of the jungle near the tree on the hill. Only this time, he positioned the scout glider inside the edge of the jungle and turned north.
“What’s the first rule of scientific investigation?” he asked.
The old scientist did not wait for a response to his rhetorical question.
“Data does not lie. Information must be examined free from personal bias. We have two hits on the side scanner. Both came during a hard turn. How did we interpret the data?”
Jix replied, “We scanned the jungle looking for the source.”
The antigrav glider slowed to scanning speed. Dr. Hadje engaged the autopilot and joined his subordinate in front of the instrument screens.
Almost immediately, the DNA side-scanner sounded an alarm. Dr. Hadje triangulated the exact location of the source on his instruments and fed the coordinates into the ship’s navigation computer. Autopilot made a gentle course adjustment while the doctor returned to the pilot’s seat. He nodded in approval as the scout glider flew slowly away from the jungle, up onto the sparsely vegetated transition zone between jungle and mountain.
“How did you figure that out?” Jix asked, equally perplexed and impressed.
“The data told me, Doctor Lillip. I listened to the data. When I over-controlled on that first turn, our glider came around one hundred and eighty degrees. The side scanner looked up out of the jungle for an instant. You and I assumed, incorrectly, that the positive scan came from somewhere within the jungle below. That was our personal bias. We believed the human could only be within the jungle. Naturally, we considered only that possibility.”
He disengaged the autopilot while educating his young understudy.
“After our second negative pass, you adjusted the scanner by raising the projection angle on the horizon. Again, during a turn, the scan no longer looked within the jungle. You see, the data did not lie. I only had to eliminate our personal bias and trust the data. It looks like our human friend may have left the jungle. Or . . .” Dr. Hadje frowned as his thoughts reached another logical conclusion, “perhaps his remains left the jungle.”
Chapter 14
General Tragge burst out of the Council chambers with assistants scampering behind him, taking careful notes of his orders.
“Recall the outer fleet to Wallow Minor. Order capital ships of the 9th Battle Group to return to Tanarac . . . flank speed. Support ships can catch up later. We need the firepower of those deep space heavies.”
A junior officer stepped away from the fast walking group and began relaying the general’s instructions on his communicator.
The general’s antigrav sled lifted off for the short flight to the Empire’s Central Defense Center while he continued a steady stream of commands.
“Energize all three planetary shields to 50%. Load primaries so we can jump to 100%, if needed. Extend the top shield beyond the local defense fleet. Call up Air Reserves and assign them to low-atmospheric patrols. I want our experienced pilots transferred to Tang and Obol trans-atmospheric fighters. Put our Extended-Reserves on a six-hour recall clock.”
Minutes after the general’s transport landed, he and his staff entered the War Room.
“Captain Ludic, have we blocked those scans yet?” The general’s voice boomed over the noise in the bustling room.
A young officer sitting in front of a dozen monitors replied without taking his eyes off his screens.
“No, sir. Can’t block their scans, so I’ve been hitting them with false feedback. It’ll take months to sort out all that electronic crap. They’re bracketing the planet with twenty-three picket ships, but all scans are coming from their command cruiser. General, I got a lock on that mother ship’s scanning array. You want me to give em a Vaal-al surprise?”
The old general smiled. He liked soldiers who spoiled for a fight.
“What do you mean by Vaal-al surprise, Captain?”
“I can match their scanning frequency and focus the entire power of our upper planetary shield onto their primary sensor array. It ought to fry the whole thing. Should take em at least two days to repair that much damage. How bout it, General? Can I fry some lizard arrays?”
In considering Ludic’s offer, the general turned to his radio operator. “Are they responding to our hails?”
“Negative, sir. We’ve been sending the standard request for a comm link since they entered orbit. No reply.”
The radio operator’s report made the general’s decision easy.
“Well, maybe this will get their attention.” General Tragge nodded to his electronics officer as he spoke. “Go ahead.”
The bustling room became quiet as all eyes turned to the monitors above the electronic warfare wizard. A large monitor displayed an image of Tanarac with three layers of shields, each represented as a different color band, in concentric spheres, surrounding the planet.
Outside the last shield, white dots showed the location and size of every vessel in the aggressor fleet where they hovered in geo-synchronous orbit. One dot was noticeably larger than the rest.
As the EW officer worked rapidly at his console, data displays on several screens changed with each keystroke. The outermost shield on the big planetary display began to flicker, and then, without warning, it dissolved.
Loud buzzing of a shield failure alarm filled the War Room. Captain Ludic began talking.
“Okay lizards, I got your frequency. Yeah, that’s right . . . you’re still wondering what happened to my top shield, aren’t you?” Ludic laughed, a wicked satisfaction in his tone. He narrated as he sprung his trap.
“Shield projectors switched to asynchronous control. Phase frequency singularized. Redirecting surplus power to grid one. Capacitance at maximum.”
Ludic sat back in his chair and poised his index finger above the enter key.
“Here ya go, sir. Three . . . two . . . one. GOTCHA!”
All the display screens blinked, as a bright white line on the big screen marked an instantaneous burst of energy between the second planetary shield and the large ship orbiting above. The missing third shield then re-materialized on the main planetary display and shield failure alarms turned off.
The jubilant weapons officer directed the general’s attention to one of his monitors that had previously shown a steady stream of data. Those graphs were now almost flat, with only a few random spikes rising and falling in irregular sequence.
“I killed their array, sir. That ought to get their attention.”
“Good work, Ludic.”
General Tragge positioned himself in front of the War Room’s holographic transmitter and spoke to the comm system operator.
“Hail the Heptari flag ship. See if they’ll talk to us now.”
Aft
er a few tense moments, the reptilian head of the Heptari commander formed into a three dimensional image. The electronic translator crackled for a second before deciphering and translating the alien language.
“I am First Skah, commander of the Heptari battle cruiser, Dehseku. Identify yourself.”
“I am General Tragge, commander of the Military Council of the Tanarac Empire. You are not authorized to scan our planet. You will cease your actions and withdraw your warships beyond the outer Syntic region of our quadrant.”
The Heptari officer disregarded the general’s instructions.
“You attacked a command vessel of the Heptari Empire. Your aggression is an act of war. Until I receive instructions from my Central Directorate, Tanarac is under blockade. We will destroy any ship attempting to enter or leave.”
“I repeat.” General Tragge purposely ignored the Heptari threat. “You will leave our system immediately, or your fleet will be destroyed.”
He knew Heptari leaders only respect strength.
The reptilian image suddenly vanished, the comm link severed by the space ship. Seconds later, it reconnected. This time, the Heptari officer sounded almost conciliatory.
“General, we came in peace. I am willing to overlook your aggression, if you cooperate. Our mission is simply to scan your planet for surviving humans. We have information that they are living in secret colonies on your home world. If you voluntarily surrender them, your planet will be spared. We have no quarrel with the Tanarac people.”
The general replied without hesitation. “There are no humans on our planet. Even if there were, it would not give the Heptari’s military the right to enter our sovereign space without our permission. You will leave our space immediately, or we will destroy your fleet.”
He made a throat-cutting gesture to his radioman as the Heptari commander began a heated response.
The radioman followed the general’s instruction but questioned it.
“Sir, he was not done responding.”
