The Originator Wars: Search for the Lost: A Lost Fleet Novel

by Raymond L. Weil

  “Those of us at the hub feel the same,” said Bartoll. “However, we did not realize the extent the Anti-Life have spread across the galaxies. It is our responsibility to bring balance back to the universe.”

  Commander Belson closed his eyes, took a long deep breath and then opened them. “There are only a few Originators in stasis who would make good military leaders.” Belson looked over at Fleet Admiral Strong. “It is my opinion that once all of my people have awakened they will agree the Anti-Life, or Eternals as they now call themselves, must be stopped. This bloodshed cannot be allowed to continue. If our people are willing to do the research and build the ships will yours be willing to fight this war?”

  “Are you suggesting we bring more Humans, Altons, and Carethians to the Communications and Transport Hub?” asked Jeremy, hoping that was where this conversation was going.

  “Yes,” Commander Belson said. “I believe the two Councilors recovering from the pathogen will agree to that as well.”

  “Is that what you want?” asked Jeremy, looking over at Councilor Bartoll.

  “I fear it is our only choice,” replied Bartoll. “There will be some restrictions on certain technologies and perhaps on the number of individuals who can come to the Communications and Transport Hub, but I see no reason not to increase the numbers substantially. I will speak to Governor Barnes in more detail when we return.”

  Jeremy turned back to Ariel and Aaliss. “Is there anything else?”

  “We have some information on weapons technology which might be useful,” Aaliss replied.

  “We also have information on the Eternals’ culture,” added Ariel.

  “Let’s hear it,” said Jeremy, leaning back in his chair. He was sure all of them had numerous questions for the two AIs.

  -

  For over three hours the two AIs spoke of what they had discovered in the stolen computer files. Some of it was devastating to the two Originators as they realized how cruel and heartless the Anti-Life had become. They were worse now than before.

  When Ariel and Aaliss finished speaking, the group decided to take a day or two to think about what they had learned. By then the other two Originator Councilors should be well enough to hear as well. Bartoll wanted to speak to them before making any decisions.

  -

  Sometime later Jeremy and Kevin were in the Avenger’s cafeteria eating a light snack and discussing the recent turn of events.

  “How do we defeat ten million warships?” asked Kevin as he took a bite of the apple pie on his plate. “I’m not certain even the Dyson Spheres would be safe from that many. I had thought the Communications and Transport Hub was safe from attack; now I’m not so sure.”

  “We don’t need to defeat that many,” replied Jeremy. “Most of those ships are tied down in their respective galaxies keeping them under the control of the Eternals. The number they have available to attack us with is much smaller. I do know once we return to the Communications and Transport Hub we’re going to have to ramp up ship production. There’s room at the hub as well as on all the Dyson Spheres for more shipyards. We’ll also increase the defensive and offensive weapons at the hub. It’s going to be the heart of our strategy to deal with the Eternals. We’ll make it into a fortress the Eternal cannot penetrate.”

  Kevin laid down his fork. “Do you think the Federation will help?”

  Jeremy nodded. “For a price. If we offer the right incentives I’m sure the council will allow us to ask for volunteers to come to the Communications and Transport Hub.”

  “How many?”

  “I don’t know,” Jeremy replied. “I’ll have to speak to Governor Barnes and Admiral Kalen about that. It will probably be those two who will have to go back to the Federation and speak to the Federation Council.”

  “Are we ever going back home?” asked Kevin. “I know Katie’s mentioned it a few times.”

  Jeremy took a deep breath. He had thought numerous times about what it would be like to return to the Federation and visit its worlds. “I don’t think so. Our new home is on the Dyson Sphere and the city the Originators have built for us. It’s safe and where we’ll be raising our families. In time to many of us, the Federation will be nothing more than a memory.”

  Kevin nodded, picking up his fork. “I think you’re right. The Federation is our past and the Dyson Sphere and the Originators are the future.”

  Jeremy agreed with Kevin. It was nice to reminisce about the Federation but that was just one galaxy. They were now responsible for protecting all of Originator space, which contained over six hundred galaxies. Jeremy was coming to believe that while there might be occasional periods of peace he would not see the end of this war with the Eternals in his lifetime. With a feeling of sadness he knew war was always going to be a major part of his life and most likely his children’s.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Major Wilde was on duty in the fake stasis facility they had constructed on one of the Dyson Spheres at the hub. There were four of the huge megastructures and Major Wilde was in one that was inhabited only by Originator AIs. The stasis facility was just outside one of the huge cities of the Originators the AIs and their repair robots maintained. She had just stepped outside to take a break and was looking out over the countryside. There were a few trees, tall grass, and a small lake in the distance. Beyond that was the city with its tall towers and futuristic architecture.

  “Getting sort of boring, isn’t it?” remarked Sergeant Metz who had followed her out. “How much longer are we going to wait?”

  Brenda sat down on a tree stump and looked over at the sergeant. “We let out a rumor yesterday that we were going to begin awakening these Originators tomorrow. That’s why I ordered the increased security.”

  “It’s spooky inside that facility with those cloned Originator bodies in the stasis chambers. I get cold chills just from looking at them.”

  “They can’t come to life,” Brenda reminded the sergeant. “However, they make me uneasy too.” Brenda knew in the remote past the Originators had used this technology to harvest body parts. It sounded ghoulish to her and she was glad it was a practice they had long since abandoned.

  Sergeant Metz looked out over the countryside. “This reminds me a lot of when we first reached the inner surface of the Dyson Sphere back in our own galaxy, only then we were sort of hemmed in until Reesa managed to get us out.”

  “She does have a way of getting out of sticky situations, though she always seems to drag everyone else in with her.”

  Before Sergeant Metz could reply the ground suddenly shook and a billowing cloud of smoke and fire erupted from the entrance to the stasis facility.

  “What the hell?” said Metz, staring in shock at the smoke rising up into the air. “That was an explosion!”

  Brenda turned and ran toward the entrance followed closely by Sergeant Metz who was holding his assault rifle at the ready. As they neared the entrance Leeda, four other Marines, and several Originator AIs stumbled out. Two of the Marines were injured and being helped to stand by two of the AIs.

  “What happened?” Brenda looked toward the entrance but no one else had appeared.

  “There was an explosion,” answered Leeda, her eyes focusing on Major Wilde.

  “Anyone else alive in there?” Brenda felt a cold chill sweep over her. There had been twenty handpicked Marines and fourteen Originator AIs inside the facility. Surely this wasn’t all the survivors.

  “I don’t think so,” replied Leeda, her eyes showing anxiety. Her red hair was singed, and she had several bad looking burn marks on her arms. “We were the farthest from the explosion.”

  “What happened?” demanded Sergeant Metz. Some of those Marines still inside had been with him for years.

  “It was one of the AIs near the door. She suddenly turned, ran to the center of the facility near the stasis chambers, and blew up.”

  “A suicide bomber,” said Major Wilde in disbelief. This was something she had never believed possible or
even considered.

  Sergeant Metz shook his head. “The bomb had to have been inside her, possibly keyed to her power source. We run scans on everyone entering and leaving the facility. That’s the only way it wouldn’t have been detected.”

  Brenda moved closer to the still smoking entrance; she could feel the incredible heat coming from inside. With a sinking feeling, she knew no one could still be alive. She was just thankful Reesa had gone into the city to speak to Faboll. At least she had been spared witnessing this catastrophe or possibly being killed.

  “Once the heat dies down we need to get the dead out and check the cameras. I want to see who this AI was and see if we can trace her movements. Maybe she left some clues as to who some of her other contacts are.” Brenda was trying to remain calm and not overreact. She had lost Marines before, but not quite like this.

  “If we do find out, I want first crack at them,” muttered Sergeant Metz, gripping his rifle tightly. “I just lost some good friends and Marines. Corporal Carton and Private Malone were inside.”

  This shook Brenda as it hit her who they had lost. Corporal Sandra Carton had been with her for a very long time. It was hard to believe she was gone.

  “I’ve summoned help from the city,” said Leeda with a pained look in her eyes. Leeda sat down with her back against a tree, softly moaning.

  Brenda stepped over, examining Leeda more closely. It had never occurred to her the AIs could feel pain. “Do those burns hurt?” She knew if those burns were on a Human they would feel excruciatingly painful.

  Leeda nodded and forced a smile. “Fortunately being an AI I’m easily repairable. It’s just going to hurt like hell until I get it done.” Hell was a swear word she had learned from her Human friends.

  With a deep sigh of frustration, Brenda knew she needed to begin preparing a report for General Wesley and Governor Barnes. Their plan to trap one of the AIs who might know the locations of the secret stasis facilities on the Dyson Spheres had just blown up in their faces, taking a lot of good people with it. Brenda gritted her teeth thinking of those who had just died. The AIs who were responsible for this had made a serious mistake. They had just made this personal and Brenda would not stop searching for them until she found them, no matter how long it took. In the end, she was going to make them pay!

  -

  Early the next day Governor Barnes was meeting with General Wesley, Admiral Kalen, Major Wilde, Reesa, and Dazon Fells at the Tower.

  “All of you have seen the reports from Major Wilde and Leeda?”

  They all nodded. The brazen attack on the stasis facility had stunned all of them.

  “I can’t believe they’re all dead,” said Reesa with tears in her eyes. Several of the Marines had been close friends of hers. “How can the Defenders of Zorn be so callous?”

  Dazon Fells spent a moment gathering his thoughts before he replied. “The Defenders of Zorn, for the most part, were the more militant members of the Originator race. They wanted us to build up our forces and destroy the Anti-Life before they could escape their galaxy. However, our people were tired of war and the hyperspace interference field had already held back the Anti-Life for thousands of years. Long-range reports from the automated stations around their galaxy generating the interference field indicated the Anti-Life were at war with each other. It was a belief among many that they would eventually destroy each other or send themselves back to such a state of barbarism they would never recover.”

  “It seems your people were wrong on that point,’ said General Wesley. “The continuous state of warfare probably helped to develop the technology to defeat your interference field. It also most likely led to a more powerful and dangerous form of the Anti-Life which became the Eternals we’re up against now.”

  “Zorn would have led us to disaster,” said Dazon, trying to defend the decision the Originators had made back then. “He wanted us to spread out and take a more active role in what was going on in the galaxies we controlled. He wanted us to set up a military force to see that no space faring civilization developed weapons, which could be dangerous to us or anyone else. Many believed he wanted to set up his own personal empire.”

  “Six hundred galaxies is some empire,” said Governor Barnes, beginning to understand why the Originators disapproved of Zorn.

  “Actually it’s six hundred and fourteen,” corrected Dazon.

  General Wesley looked over at Dazon and Governor Barns. “So, what’s our next move? How do we find one of these damn AIs Zorn controls?”

  “Is it possible there’s a military AI that’s been programmed to carry out actions like the destruction of the stasis facility?” asked Admiral Kalen.

  “Maybe,” replied Dazon. “It would have to be one we don’t know about.”

  “If so, that’s the AI we need to find,” stated General Wesley.

  “I’m more concerned about something else,” Dazon said. “Commander Alvord is still demanding that he and his four loyal crewmembers be given a small ship and allowed to leave the Communications and Transport Hub. He knows the dark matter Shrieel has been destroyed but it doesn’t seem to have fazed him.”

  General Wesley’s eyes narrowed. “There must be another hidden stasis location on another one of the Dyson Spheres. That facility must contain more members of the Defenders of Zorn. If Zorn is as dangerous as you have indicated, he wouldn’t have put all of his eggs into one basket. It would make sense for there to be a secondary facility in case something happened to the primary one.”

  “My thoughts exactly,” said Dazon. “It’s one of the reasons I requested extra security be placed on the living quarters where Alvord and his people are living. In addition to our combat robots there is now a military AI supervising the security. Alvord’s not going anywhere.”

  Admiral Kalen didn’t seem satisfied with what Dazon had just said as a deep frown covered his face. “What if some of these AIs dedicated to Zorn try to break him out?”

  Dazon’s face suddenly paled. “I didn’t consider that. I can add more combat robots.”

  “Let me assign some of my people to the security detail,” suggested Major Wilde. “We can make certain Alvord stays where he’s supposed to.”

  Dazon slowly nodded his head. “I believe you may be right. We cannot let Alvord escape from this Shrieel.”

  “I’ll have a squad of my people there later today,” said Brenda.

  “I’ll inform the military AI to expect the arrival of your people.”

  “What military AI is in charge of Alvord’s security?” asked Governor Barnes. He knew new ones were now being created daily.

  “We have a shortage of them at the moment so I assigned Albate to supervise the security.”

  “Albate?” said Major Wilde, turning pale. “Isn’t he the AI that was on the Seeker?”

  “Why yes,” replied Dazon, looking confused at the major’s question. “But he is loyal to us, not Alvord.”

  “We thought the same of Kazak and look what happened to him,” said Admiral Kalen. “When was the last time anyone other than Albate looked in on Alvord and his people?”

  Dazon hesitated. “It’s been several days. There has been no reason to suspect anything is amiss.”

  General Wesley looked over at Major Wilde and nodded. “Get a full platoon of your Marines as well as some combat robots. I think we need to pay a visit to Alvord.”

  “Do you seriously think there’s something wrong?” asked Dazon, his eyes widening.

  “We just had our stasis facility blown up and whoever was behind that might have also tried to free Alvord,” replied General Wesley, standing up.

  “Albate would have reported if there was something wrong,” protested Dazon.

  “If he’s loyal to us,” said Governor Barnes, his eyes narrowing sharply. “What if his loyalty is to the Defenders of Zorn instead? What if he’s the military AI we’re seeking?”

  Dazon leaned back in his chair, too stunned to reply.

  “Get your Marines,”
ordered General Wesley to Brenda. “I’ll meet you there.”

  -

  Two hours later their darkest fears were confirmed. The combat robots lay in the corridor outside Alvord’s living quarters deactivated. Of Alvord, his four crewmembers, and Albate there was no sign.

  General Wesley stood in the middle of Alvord’s quarters with a grim look on his face. “We need to find out if there are any ships missing.”

  “I wonder how long he’s been gone?” asked Brenda as she looked around. She let out a deep breath. Dazon had made a serious mistake. The Originators were too trusting of their AIs. Recent events with Kazak as well as the discovery of AIs controlled by the Defenders of Zorn should have set off some alarm signals.

  “I don’t think there’s any way to determine that with any degree of certainty. Albate could have doctored the cameras as well as the video logs. It could have been hours or even days.” General Wesley was aggravated that Alvord had slipped through their fingers.

  “The destruction of the fake stasis facility and the escape of Alvord are too big of a coincidence,” said Brenda, folding her arms across her chest. “They have to be linked. Albate has to be the military AI we’re seeking. He might still have the original programming from the Defenders of Zorn.”

  “I’m going back to the Tower and see if any unauthorized ship has left in the last few days,” said General Wesley, shaking his head. He couldn’t believe this had happened. “There’s been a lot of space traffic recently with Rear Admiral Mann’s fleet leaving. A single ship could easily have been missed leaving the hub.”

  Brenda knew General Wesley was right. However, she had an inner feeling that they hadn’t heard the last from Commander Alvord or Albate. She decided it might be time for her to do some research on the Defenders of Zorn.

  -

  Rear Admiral Mann was on board her flagship, the heavy dreadnought Ceres. The ship was well on its way to the star cluster where Rear Admiral Barnes had discovered the lost Originators. It was common knowledge now on her ship as well as the rest of the fleet that the lost Originators had been found. She had twelve thousand updated 2,200-meter Originator battlecruisers as well as fifteen hundred 3,200-meter heavy dreadnoughts. She had stripped the Dyson Spheres of nearly all of their updated battlecruisers and took a big chunk of the remaining heavy dreadnoughts to form her fleet. More were being built but for a month or so there would be a shortage of the heavier ships.