McElligott asked us to sit, and after everyone had done so, he was the only one who remained standing. He gestured to Cherubim first and said, “First, I’d like to introduce my companions to you. This is Cherubim, Director of the Union News Bureau. Next to her is General Lichfangh, head of the PSI Corps and to my left, next to Admiral Stahl, sits Admiral Lydaa, Commandant of NAVINT.
“We are here to officially begin with Operation Fish, a project Cherubim and I conceived right after the signing of the first Free Space treaty fifteen hundred years ago.
“You see the moment the Blue and the Kermac came up with this idea of a demilitarized zone between the Big Four, I knew it would be a safe haven for crooks and pirates and the like; not to mention a number of civilizations who keep pulling the tiger’s tale, knowing they can retreat anytime they wanted where no warship could go.”
McElligott looked directly at me and said, “Do you think we would allow those Togar to buy human slaves for food? If we could reach them?” Then he pointed at Stahl and said, “There are those who think we should simply disregard the treaty and clean up once and for all. If the Nul, the Shiss, and the Galactic Council wanted to fight, even better. After the smoke settled, the galaxy would be one big happy place.”
He leaned forward and made a serious face. “I saw war too many times. Yes, I will fight, and yes, I will send beings to their death if I have to. I have done it before and will have to do it again, but I am not like the military heroes of old. I do remember those I sent into battle, and I’ll be darned if I call for war and rattle the sabers if I can help it. I don’t mean we should idly stand by when evil men do their thing, but war should really always be the very last option, not the first. Not even you, Richard, can tell me that it wouldn’t be a costly undertaking fighting them all. A war that easily could last millennia and cost countless lives and no victory is assured until the last shell has been fired. Ever since the Free Space Treaty, there were no open hostilities on a galactic scale, and while there are always tensions and little incidents, there are no battles and wars since the second conference and the second ratification of that treaty. We now have five hundred years of peace, and I’d like to keep it that way as long as possible.
“We know the Y’All are stirring, and there is still much unexplored space in our own Galaxy. Who knows if the universe has more surprises like the Y’All, and we all fear that the Dark Ones might return one day.” He sighed and continued, “Every day our citizens live in peace and every day I do not have to sign orders that send millions into battle is a good day.”
He paused and patted his pockets then looked at me. “May I light a pipe, Captain? I talk easier that way, and perhaps a nice cup of tea would be good.”
I nodded. “Please do, sir.”
I wanted to get up to get the tea, but Krabbel was faster and said, “I’ll get it, Captain.”
Krabbel served tea, coffee, and water while McElligott got his pipe going.
After a sip of tea, he declined his head in a pleased manner and went on, “As I said, Free Space is a nuisance, but it is necessary, and one has to be very subtle and do things slowly and without anyone really noticing.” He pointed with his pipe outside the window. “Spies of the Kermac and all the others know Richter is here and have long lost interest in it, as it is out of the way and far from any real points of interest. The Worm and a few pirates used it as a convenient stopover and place to get Union gear, but there isn’t a fleet based here and marginal space traffic for light years around.
“My friends in the spook services here made sure the plans to this base were stolen. They had years to pour over genuine Union blueprints and think they know every nook and cranny of this one. Yet they don’t know that Richter Base is now the base for a special NAVINT task force and jointly operated by UNB and GC, the Saresii Intelligence. The base will be under the command of Director Cherubim and the task force’s sole purpose is to monitor Free Space from within through a network of sources and hunt those who use Free Space to hide and escape from Union justice.” He puffed once again on his pipe and then nodded to Cherubim.
The blonde looked us over and said, “Not even I have seen a more diverse group than yours. Ever since Richard became aware of you and put you together, we have been watching your development, and frankly, you excelled and exceeded beyond what we hoped for. That is the reason why you are here. This base was secretly conceived and planned for a very long time to be an Intel base for Taskforce Fish, which is, by the way, a neat acronym for Free Space Intelligence Secret Hunters. Like the base, this ship has been in the works quite some time now.”
She gestured to the walls and the ship. “This vessel is as unique as you are. It was built from the start to have the very finest technology of all our member species. It incorporates Ancient Saresii, not used or seen technology from over a million years ago. Technology that made the Saresii almost equal to the Seenians and it is also the very first ship equipped with Narth technology. In other words, this ship exceeds Tech level nine in many ways.”
McElligott touched a few symbols of the media controls before him, and a three-dimensional wireframe model of the Tigershark appeared, hovering over the center of the table surface. “The frame is made of quad-matrix molecule arranged Ultronit, woven in thousands of layers over a carbon-fiber, bucky-ball lattice.”
The wireframe became solid, and he said, “The armor is made by the most complex and expensive production process and made of Tetra Compacted Ultronit with a layer of neutron degenerated matter, nano-structured. In other words, there isn’t much out there that could even scratch the hull. It also makes it impenetrable to any known Tech Stop, paralysator, or scanner beam. The shields are quadruple-layered TransDim shields, and all the shield generators are energy independent from the main power system by having their own Zero Point energy generators.”
McElligott motioned to Cirruit. “Lieutenant, why don’t you tell us about the ship’s engines?”
X101s had no way express their emotions in their faces and yet I knew my friend was as proud as a Tyranno Fin Hunter killing his first Tri-Halfer, as he got up and manipulated the projection and made the aft section transparent. “The Tigershark has a TransDim Tap Energy siphon channeling Trans-dimensional energies into six focused graviton thrusters. We are completely fuel independent, as we don’t need any. But if we need to, we can extend two retractable Attikan ISAH pods with fuel tanks and there is an onboard fuel refinery.”
Stahl whistled, “With that technology, our method of bridge building to other galaxies would become obsolete, as ships could make the entire trip to Andromeda on their own. I bet the entire refinery industry would be very unhappy.”
McElligott thanked Cirruit and said, “To list all the other features would take hours, so let me come to the most important feature of your ship, the Janus Device, developed in extensive cooperation with the Narth.
“The system allows you to appear as something else. An asteroid or another ship of approximately the same size. The Janus Device manipulates matter and energies around your ship and is able to fool eyes and any known sensor, and I like to say any known sensor to the Narth.”
My chin had dropped to my chest as they talked about the armor and now I almost fell off my chair.
Cherubim got up and replaced the projection of the ship with a map of Free Space and said, “This is your mission. We want you to go undercover and into Free Space and there you will hunt pirates and slave traders and eliminate spies and Union tech caches. You will free and rescue slaves when possible and destroy pirate bases and hideouts, and you will hunt the Worm.”
I sat straight up. Never in my life had I listened to anything with more focus and attention. My heart was beating faster and without realizing it, I had clenched my fists.
The blonde UNB Director was not done and continued, “As you know, Union ships are prohibited from entering Free Space, therefore you will assume the identity and role of freelancing pirates yourself. Despite this advanced ship,
it will be a dangerous mission, as you will operate alone and without any chance to call for backup. Resupplying will not always be possible. Raids and clandestine missions into Shiss, Kermac, and Nul space will also be likely.”
Deepa spoke for the first time. “The new Fleet Omnitronic NELSON will go online this week. It was developed in cooperation with the Mothermachine of the X101. The purpose of NELSON is to upgrade Fleet Administration’s capability to shift through the trillions of reports faster and more efficiently than ever before. It will give the Criminal Investigations Department and NAVINT a better chance to react fast to Intel reports, activities of the worm, and other irregularities.
“This and the addition of Narth Agents to the PSI Corps caused and causes a migration of Fleet members and officers who know their days are numbered into Free Space.
“This is of grave concern to us, as foreign forces scramble to gather Mil-Tech information and military secrets that way. An important part of your mission is to arrest or eliminate any deserters and follow trails of Mil-Tech trade. You are authorized to use deadly force against anyone dealing with Union Mil-Tech, or identify the individuals and organizations wherever encountered.”
The Fleet Admiral leaned back. “I know it is a tall order, but we need to get a handle on these problems both internally as well as externally. With NELSON and a beefed-up PSI Corps, we are certain to make progress in cleaning our own house, but we need operational units in areas we can’t operate. You will be the first of these units.
“You are resourceful, as you have proven to us on many occasions, and you have this fine ship as a tool to hunt and eliminate that scum.
“You have three months time to get to know this ship and train your crew.”
Cherubim seamlessly continued, “Finding the right individuals for your crew is another challenge. This ship needs a crew of at least 300 to operate. It would be even better if we can get you the full 800 this ship is designed for. However, as we are handpicking each individual, it will take time to get them here.”
After she was done, Stahl said, “Richter Base will be your base of operations and currently the only Union Port for you.”
After all this information was a moment of silence, and they looked at us. Har-Hi glanced at me from the side, and I nodded. So, he said, “We are going to be pirates to the world?”
McElligott nodded. “Yes.”
Har-Hi said, “While I must say this idea appeals to me, as I can’t deny my heritage, I have one great concern. What if anything happens to you or if you decide to cut the losses for politic’s sake? Are we then outlaws for real?”
Stahl answered, “You bring up a valid point, but if we for some reason all die, there is one individual who knows every detail of this operation outside of us, and that is the Narth Supreme, and there is nothing we know of in this Universe that could corrupt or buy the Narth Supreme.”
I knew beyond a doubt that this was true.
McElligott sighed, “This project is above Top Secret, and I hope you do understand that we can’t give you that leave of absence you deserve after completing your third year, but you may use GalNet, and if everything goes as planned, we can promise you extended shore leave time after the crew is trained and you feel comfortable operating this ship.”
Har-Hi said, “You just handed us a dream mission, sir. I doubt anyone wants to go on vacation right now anyway.”
The old admiral got up and said, “Splendid, all splendid indeed. Director Cherubim will be your Commanding Officer and point of contact, and you have a direct line to my office as always, Captain Olafson. I am going back to the Shetland, as I am not even supposed to be here officially.”
He personally shook the hand of each of us and wished us luck then he left.
Deepa and the PSI Corps General also took their leave. Deepa gave me an almost unnoticeable wink as she shook my hand and a fine smile.
Cherubim waited until the door was closed behind them and said, “Now we are going to discuss your mission in more detail.” With those words, she changed the holo projection and a Kartanian destroyer merchant appeared, 390 meters long, shaped like an old-fashioned coffin, still popular with the Foundation Christians all over the Union.
Normally those ships had two Drive Pods; this one had four. Two of them, however, looked as if they had been added by first-year engineering school cadets with only crowbars and sledgehammers for tools. The hull was patched many times with armor plating welded in place, but not always aligned correctly. Some of the patches were of different materials; there actually were steel plates showing signs of rust. The bow section was scarred with micro meteor holes, and I could clearly see several scorch marks from weapons’ fire. The ship had eight non-retractable gun turrets of various origins and types including Nul-Froth Casters and one modern-looking dual FTL Projector. To each side were six pods with Nul-Nul Gravitation Torpedo tubes. It looked old but still quite dangerous, especially with the Nul weaponry. The ship was painted black, except where armor plate patches had been welded over the paint job. Its turrets, some trim details, the weapons and drive pods were of a silvery color.
Cherubim gave us a little time to check it out then she said, “This is the Silver Streak, notorious pirate ship of Pirate Captain Black Velvet, a legendary pirate assumed to be of Saran origin. She was very active about five hundred years ago. A legend tells that she tried to outrun a Union taskforce on her heels and flew inside the micro-matter soup of the Igras Expanse and was never seen or heard from again and assumed dead.”
Elfi nodded. “I know this story well; it is often told on my world. It was never proven that she was indeed Saran.”
Har-Hi leaned forward to look at the details of the projection. “I think I have heard stories about her, too. She supposedly was quite successful as a pirate in her days, but even if she had survived the Igras Nebula—and that is highly unlikely—she’d be either very old or dead by now. Even Saresii don’t get much older than that.”
Cherubim nodded. “This is true, but it doesn’t matter. She has mysteriously returned and GalNet news channels are running stories about all the evil deeds she has done for the last month. UNB and NAVINT agents are planting stories, rumors, and tidbits of her cruel and successful raids for almost a year. There are genuine reports of witnesses who claim to have seen her, witnesses who have nothing to do with us. Last week, a group of concerned citizens addressed the Assembly and demanded that the Navy should do nothing else until Black Velvet is brought to justice.”
Hans grinned. “That always works. Rumors and stories of no substance travel faster than any factual news to the farthest corners of the galaxy. I assume we are going to mask this ship so it looks like the Silver Streak?”
Cherubim looked up to the giant Saturnian and said, “Sehr richtig, you are correct, my big Saturnian lieutenant. The Janus Device is programmed with hundreds of ship masks, including this one.”
Wetmouth also leaned closer and touched the Holo to magnify a few details. “Since we do not know the true Identity of that pirate, is it not possible that she still might be alive? There are a few species that do live longer than others, and there are cryo- and cell-restoring options. Could there also be relatives or crew members still remembering and blow our cover?”
Cherubim shook her head. “Highly unlikely, since Black Velvet was just like you today, a UNB operative, and her ship a NAVINT unit.”
I had listened to it all and had a bad feeling about this. I raised my hand and said, “Excuse me, but listening to this, I get the feeling that we are also taking on the identities of pirates, right?”
Admiral Stahl, who was still here, and the UNB director looked into my direction, and she said, “Of course. You will visit pirate bases and trade and deal with them, to find out as much as you can about other hideouts and individuals.”
I pointed at the Holo. “That is the Janus disguise the Tigershark will take on, the Silver Streak. I hear you talk about Black Velvet. That isn’t a fight name that a male w
ould choose and you keep saying she.”
Cherubim actually looked surprised. “So? I thought you would fit this role just fine. Your files state that you have no problems at all impersonating females. Every one of this ship’s crew who will potentially interact with others must get into character and pose as pirates. It is not just the ship that will be in disguise.”
To have my secret so openly revealed before my friends was something I truly wanted to avoid.
I was sure Wetmouth knew, since she’d caught me in that shoe store, and there was nothing I could or wanted to hide from Narth
I could feel the blood rush to my cheeks and ears.
Elfi smiled. “At least the team will be a little more balanced in terms of gender mix.”
I tried to see any reaction on my friends’ faces, but none of them reacted at all in any way. Was it all that obvious to them?”
Admiral Stahl said, “You need to be more accepting and open about this, you know. If you try to keep it a secret from even your best friends, it could turn out to be your Achilles’ heel. If I get the feeling you are becoming corruptible because of this, I will have you removed from any command post and this Navy. I have no problem with your dual sexual identity thing. The Navy has no problem, meaning there are no regulations prohibiting an individual to express his or her gender identity in whatever way. I don’t think your friends even waste a second thought on it.” His tone of voice became very serious as he looked at me sternly. “What I have a problem with is a commanding officer who can’t make a decision and hide things.”
His words hit me as hard as the steel whip of my father as they were true.
Har-Hi put his hand on my shoulder. “We all knew it for a while now. As I was preparing to write your eulogy, we got access to your personnel file and that fact about you is in it. You are my friend, Eric. What clothing you wear, or what gender you are makes no difference at all.”
I swallowed at that. “You all knew?” And now I felt guilty for not telling my best friends all about me. I knew Stahl was correct; it was my weakest point.
Eric Olafson: Space Pirate Page 29
