Space Chronicles: The Last Human War

by Dean Sault

  One group of a thousand prepared for captivity, willing to surrender their personal freedom so that the second group could remain safely hidden in secret mountain caves. He wished there were a way to demonstrate this selfless human spirit to his fellow Tanarac politicians.

  Surely, this would soften their stance, the doctor thought.

  “Dr. Hadje, the Council has approved your request to visit The Wall.” Benjamin’s voice startled the scientist out of his fascination with the events unfolding before him. “We leave shortly. Your assistant, Dr. Lillip, will remain here with my staff.”

  They stood near the entrance to the tunnel of The Wall and watched as some people cried, sharing last moments with friends or loved ones, while others donned heavy backpacks for the journey to secret new homes, known only to a few leaders. A steady stream of humans and hicays began departing on two different paths. One led to a life in hiding, the other to bondage.

  Chapter 25

  “Admiral Paad, we lost contact with two scout ships.”

  “Were they running proximal sectors?”

  “No, sir. They were in zones T-fourteen and T-four.” The executive officer anticipated his boss’s concern. “Sir, an enemy fleet would need more than four battle groups to span that much space. It’s gotta be an electronics failure or maybe a gravity feedback loop.”

  The admiral looked at a three-dimensional image of their planetary system suspended in the air at the front of his bridge. Binary suns and three major planets appeared in the center with five thick rings of asteroids, layered beyond them.

  Evenly—spaced grid lines started at the center of the image and extended outward into space as far as the image allowed. This grid divided local space into clearly marked sections. At the outermost edge of each sector, a single white dot marked the present location of the admiral’s scout ships. Two zones where the scout ships went missing were filled with a dim green warning light that flashed, and there were no white locator dots.

  The scan operator briefed his commander while they stood together, studying the grid.

  “Sir, we sent out thirty-six, deep-recon scout ships. All reached maximum range without incident, but when they activated return vectors, we lost contact with two scouts.” The technician pointed at the two flashing quadrants.

  Admiral Paad’s executive officer added, “Sir, we didn’t detect any weapon signatures on long-range scanners. Their nav-beacons just stopped sending. We scrambled rescue barges.”

  The admiral paced slowly back to his command station with his executive officer following obediently. He stopped abruptly, just short of his command seat, and turned to face his first officer.

  “Commander, what is the first rule if you were trying to conceal a fleet in deep space?”

  “Avoid contact, sir, at all costs.” The officer gave the textbook answer.

  “And, what would you do if a scout ship stumbled onto your group?”

  “I’d have no choice but to jam his signals and take him out, but if that happened, we would have picked up Heptari weapon signatures. Deep-scanning markers didn’t detect anything.”

  “Correct. But, what if you found a way to remove that recon ship without weapon fire? How would that be interpreted by the fleet that sent out the scout?”

  The admiral followed some line of reasoning, but his executive officer was puzzled by the direction of the questioning.

  “Obviously, sir, they would send out another scout ship or a rescue barge. I’ve already ordered the barges. Would you prefer I send out another scout ship, instead?”

  Admiral Paad looked out his command portal into the quiet blackness of deep space.

  “So far, Commander Kif, we have been completely predictable.”

  The admiral glanced at the bank of individual sector monitors. Nothing unusual appeared on their screens. Distant stars, returning scout ships and a few random gravity distortion bands were all common images in deep space. The admiral suddenly began giving a rapid sequence of commands.

  “Recall the barges from Sectors T-fourteen and T-four. Move all supply ships inside the asteroid belt. Contact our scouts in the contiguous sectors to those missing craft. Have them launch all their x-drones into the medial return points for those two quadrants. Link the x-drones with a narrow band, encrypted signal and launch a spread of twenty-four of those experimental Halyn Mines into each quadrant. Cross-connect the mines with the navigation programs in the x-drones and monitor those links.”

  The weapons operator smiled. “Building a little net, sir?”

  “Keep an eye on those links, Mundey. I want to know if any link fails, even a millisecond. Get me General Tragge.”

  A palpable tension grew on the bridge despite there being no sign of the enemy. Soon, Admiral Paad and the general assessed the situation.

  “Yeah, me too, Byn. What little hair I have left on my head is telling me a lot more than those scanners are. I had my comm people link this command deck to your War Room in case things heat up out here. You should be able to see and hear everything that’s going on. I’ve got a hunch we’ll be too busy to be sending reports.”

  A wall of monitors in the War Room came to life with pictures transmitted from the 9th Battle Group. Some showed methodical drills of fighting ships practicing attack formations, while other screens illustrated tactical data from Battle Group satellites. Odd rows of white dots twisted in some kind of synchronized pattern inside the two flashing sectors. They moved rapidly and turned each time they reached an invisible barrier defined by the limits of the flashing areas.

  One of General Tragge’s aides in the home world command center was no stranger to space weaponry.

  “Sir, are those space mines? I thought mines stayed dormant until a proximity sensor tripped their engines.”

  The general tapped one finger on his armrest as he studied the screen.

  “I’m not sure what Admiral Paad has come up with, but I wouldn’t want to be the Heptari who discovers it first.”

  Everyone laughed while the general turned his attention back to the admiral.

  “Lorm, the rest of the fleet is assembling at Wallow Minor. I can’t send you any of their heavies, yet. I need them to protect the spaceport. As soon as few more Battle Groups arrive, I’ll send you reinforcements. Until then, you’re all we’ve got. Any word on those missing scouts?”

  “Nothing. We’re launching a fresh wave of scouts now but I’m not sending any more into sectors T-four or T-fourteen. Let the Heps think we’re confused, or better yet, timid. Byn, I’ve gotta go.”

  “Good luck, Admiral. Wish I could be there with you and your spacers.”

  General Tragge genuinely longed to be in space with his fleet, instead of watching from Tanarac. The general left the War Room while his staff monitored the 9th Fleet. He was not young anymore. Having been up most of the night with Dr. Hadje took its toll. The tired officer was soon deep asleep on the couch in his personal office.

  A young Tanarac woman sat gently on the bed next to the general. She unbuttoned his shirt and loosened his belt. His eyes still closed, the general could not remember the last time he smelled the intoxicating aroma of Tarndill perfume, the same fragrance his wife used to wear. How he missed her.

  He opened his eyes, curious about the sweet smell.

  “Ara-lyn!”

  She silenced him with a single finger across his lips.

  “Hello, Byn. I’ve missed you.”

  The stunned general threw his arms around his wife.

  “I miss you so much, Ara. I’m so sorry. I had no way of knowing about that—”

  “It was not your fault,” she said and returned his embrace, holding him tightly with her face pressed into his neck. Her warm breath felt good on his bare shoulder.

  General Tragge continued to blame himself, “I should never have let you go on that expedition. Supernovas are too unpredictable. I knew better. I should have—”

  “It was not your decision,” she interrupted him firmly, yet lovi
ngly. “We both knew the risks of my scientific studies.”

  Ara-lyn gently rubbed his back while in his arms.

  “You were a wonderful husband and father to our children. I love you for that.”

  Byn Tragge gently pushed her back so his eyes could take in her beauty. Her hair seemed longer than he remembered. Its light blue ringlets fell over her shoulders, cascading over her breasts, almost touching her waist sash. She seemed more beautiful, in this moment, than ever before.

  “General, General Tragge! Wake up, sir. The 9th made contact!” The general’s personal aide shook him out of his dream.

  “How long was I asleep?”

  The general stole a glance at the picture of his wife on his desk as he slipped into his boots.

  “Six hours, sir. Heptari ships just made contact with the 9th. We’re following it on Admiral Paad’s link.”

  The general hurried to the War Room. As he entered, radio communications from an excited pilot to the admiral’s battle group filled the room.

  “They were all around me. Hundreds of Hep Slegs, at least forty Goloy-class mediums, and I counted eleven heavies before they spotted me. Trying to outrun their perimeter fighters. Hold on, they got a lock on me!”

  A loud crackling noise rang across the War Room.

  “That was close. Shields holding. I’m coming in hot on a close bypass vector. You guys got any bored fighters around there? I need help.”

  “Roger, Scout T-four,” the reassuring calm of a military space coordinator responded. “I’ve got fighters on an intercept course. Maintain present vector. Drop out of grav inversion on my mark. Three, two, one . . . now.”

  A small spacecraft suddenly appeared on one of the monitors. As quickly as it appeared, three slightly larger alien craft emerged from a gravity fold right behind it. Trailing enemy ships fired particle beams at the scout vessel. Its shields glowed brightly with each pulse from the Heptari cannons.

  “Scout T-four, this is Interceptor, Talon One. Got you covered, little buddy. Come to vector sequence five, five, eight.”

  The nimble scout craft made a hard turn to the right, catching the Heptari fighters by surprise. As the heavier enemy ships powered to regain firing solutions, two Tanarac fleet fighters of the Talon One Group dropped in behind them.

  “Talon One to Heptari vessels. Break off your attack, or you will be destroyed.”

  There was no answer. The lead Heptari ship began firing on the scout ship as soon as it regained firing solutions.

  “Heptari vessel, this is Talon One. Cease fire, immediately!”

  Again, no answer.

  “On my mark.” The lead fighter pilot maneuvered close behind one of the Heptari ships while his wingman lined up on the second ship. “Fire!”

  Both Tanarac fighters unleashed their weapons directly into engine portals of the two Heptari aggressors. For a brief second, energy pulses deflected off rear shields of the enemy vessels, but weak Heptari aft-shields quickly failed and both invader ships exploded.

  The remaining Heptari fighter ignored the danger and continued its relentless pursuit of the small scout ship. Tanarac fleet fighters avoided the wreckage of the two destroyed ships, and closed on the last aggressor. Their weapons fired simultaneously, and it burst into thousands of pieces.

  “There you go, Scout T-four. That a little better?”

  “Thanks, Talon One. Scout T-four to Command, downloading scanner data immediately. You guys have one hell of a big enemy fleet out there, and they’re coming this way fast.”

  Chapter 26

  A small group of men waited at the entrance to the Cave of The Wall. Two people and a large hicay approached.

  “Thank you for your hospitality, Ammul.” Benjamin greeted the junior scout with the traditional grasp.

  He introduced the young scout and a startled Kelly to Dr. Hadje. She trusted Benjamin, but was frightened to be so close to a Tanarac. Ignoring the blue-skinned scientist’s greeting, she slipped defensively behind Ammul.

  “How are you old girl?” Benjamin grabbed the hicay by its ears and affectionately pressed his forehead between its eyes. Kerl-Ga let out a friendly rumble from deep in her chest.

  “She was my companion when I was young,” he said to Kelly and Dr. Hadje. “I entrusted her to Shilgar and Ammul when this old body could no longer handle the rigors of the jungle. She’s accounted for more runners than any other hicay in our scout corps. It was Kerl-Ga and her cubs that saved Kelly from the wild hicay.”

  There was great pride in Benjamin’s voice. Everyone could tell he missed the exciting days of his youth.

  “Ammul, would you and your companion like to join us?”

  The young man eagerly accepted Benjamin’s invitation, and without further delay, the group entered the dark tunnel. Kerl-Ga hesitated at the entrance.

  “She never did like the smell of kip dung.” Benjamin laughed and stepped back to the cave entrance where he made several hand gestures to her.

  The old hicay snorted harshly and brushed past him with a noticeable attitude in her stride.

  “I guess she’s going to grace us with her company.” Benjamin slapped her on the rump as she passed, and the old beast snarled in mock anger.

  The trek down the sloping tunnel went fast this time. About half way into the trip, Kelly sensed danger. This was not like any sensory perception she ever had before. With Simon, she could hear his thoughts, but this was different, emotion in its purest form.

  The travelers rounded a familiar bend in the tunnel when Kerl-Ga stopped abruptly. Kelly’s sensation of danger heightened.

  In the distance, a faint sound like dry leaves rustling in the wind grew louder. Hair stood out on the hicay’s neck. Suddenly, a great swarm of kips engulfed the travelers. Kerl-Ga reared up and swatted at the frenetic little beasts that vanished as quickly as they arrived.

  Kelly’s perception of danger subsided with the departure of the kip flock.

  “Thank goodness we didn’t lose anyone!” Benjamin spoke with exaggerated concern, while everyone laughed at the amusing notion of a bunch of slug eaters being dangerous.

  The travelers resumed their journey and soon arrived at The Wall. It was dark and did not respond to their presence as it usually did. Benjamin went so far as to touch the wall for the first time in his life. It felt strange. He always thought it would be cold to the touch but it was quite warm and felt moist, although there was no dampness on his hand when he removed it.

  “We’re an hour early. I guess we’ll have to wait.”

  The human leader set his lantern on the floor of the cave and found a small indentation in the side wall on which to sit.

  Kelly paced while attempting to open a psychic link with her lifelong friend. Exhaustion finally forced her to settle down on a chair-sized stalagmite near the back of the cave.

  Minutes seemed like hours as Benjamin told Dr. Hadje the story of The Wall and its real contribution to their free human colony. Shilgar added tales about rescuing runners after The Wall alerted them. Not all runners were fortunate enough to be found alive. During one such story, both senior scouts remarked about how close Kelly’s own rescue had come to being another dead-runner statistic.

  Kerl-Ga raised her head in alarm and stared at the dark surface across from her. Kelly felt a surge of extreme fear as The Wall began to glow.

  Elders stood and waited for the familiar voice.

  “Benjamin, Kelly, I can see you.” It was Simon’s voice. “I’ll be right out.”

  Kelly’s alarm sensation grew almost to panic, such that she could barely catch her breath.

  The big hicay leaped away from the talking wall and postured aggressively in the exit to the cavern. In that instant, Kelly realized it was hicay emotions she sensed.

  The powerful surge of telepathic panic from the frightened hicay made Kelly dizzy. She stumbled against the nearby cave wall, trying to steady herself. Despite closing her eyes in an attempt to stop the vertigo, she clearly saw Simon in her m
ind as he emerged from The Wall.

  The vision followed him as he stepped on the ground in front of The Wall and strode across to Kelly. She felt his strength as he took her in his arms and lifted her into an embrace, yet she saw this scene from some other place in the cave.

  Kelly forced her eyes open and the mind-image of her and Simon vanished. She glanced over his shoulder at Kerl-Ga. The glowing eyes of the old hicay stared back. Her visions had been seen through the eyes of a hicay.

  Kerl-Ga’s fear changed into a plea. Was the hicay trying to communicate with her?

  She attempted to calm Kerl-Ga by projecting thoughts of reassurance directly at the creature. The sense of danger in Kelly’s mind subsided, but the big animal continued staring into her eyes.

  “I have so much to tell you . . . all of you.” Simon could barely contain his excitement.

  Kelly studied his face. Something was different. Her lifelong companion possessed a new strength. She always suspected a dormant force, a powerful energy, lurking in some obscure part of his mind, but now that power raged on the surface, barely under his control.

  “Benjamin, I have instructions for you from Dr. Boroski. Heptari ships are coming, and he has a plan to escape. The doctor has been monitoring Tanarac, and I’m being trained to—”

  “Simon, slow down,” Benjamin said, feeling the urgency but unable to make sense of the young man’s excited ramblings. “Who is Dr. Boroski?”

  “He’s the voice of The Wall. He’s been talking with you all these years. He started the first human community, well actually, it was him and Johan Frumm.”

  “I’d like to meet this Dr. Boroski. Can you arrange it?”

  “He’s a hologram. The real man died a long time ago. He was the last of all the scientists. He sent me back here with instructions for the Elders.”

  Simon suddenly stepped back when he spotted the alien standing partially obscured behind the human leader.