Cairl turned to James.
‘We assumed both the Aurora and Pulsora were lost trying to flee Qintaino,’ Cairl said. ‘The Aurora’s here, so there’s still hope that the Pulsora will turn up too.’
James was about to speak.
‘I have some news on that subject,’ Milonri said, looking over at James. ‘But it’s not good. James has already located it. I’m afraid it’s badly damaged.’
‘We must recover it,’ Cairl said.
‘If there are no objections I’d like to send the Landopila and Atenopila to salvage it,’ Milonri said, looking at the others in turn.
They all nodded.
‘And the sooner the better, Milonri,’ Amaunet said.
‘Let’s eat,’ Stuilo said.
He dished up a yellow vegetable, which looked like sweetcorn, onto his plate.
Suddenly, a message came over the room’s address system.
‘EATHOPILA NOW AT STATION. EATHOPILA NOW AT STATION. ALL KEY PERSONNEL REPORT TO THE COMMAND CENTRE.’
‘I’ll go,’ Julio said, rising from her seat. ‘I’ve eaten already.’
‘We’ll brief you later, Julio,’ Stuilo said, munching eagerly.
Julio moved towards the door.
‘I’ll organise those ships for you, Milonri,’ she said.
Milonri raised his hand in acknowledgement while he chewed on some food.
James tried the various types of food laid out in front of him. It was very similar to what he ate back on Earth, although everything… beef curry… duck… it all tasted sweeter. He asked what the duck-like meat was.
‘Oh that’s dirkon,’ Stuilo replied. ‘They’re everywhere on Brinoli.’
The drink he had was dark-blue in colour. It tasted like pineapple and blueberries.
‘You’ll be able to get an experienced pilot for the Aurora now,’ James said, slightly saddened by the thought of never hearing Kalrea’s voice again, but also resigned to the fact he had to give up the Aurora.
‘No, I’m afraid that’s not possible,’ Milonri replied. ‘Remember I said Kalrea needed someone to protect. Well until you die or become too old, that’s you. We can’t change it. Kalrea will only respond to you.’
‘But I thought that… I mean… I’m not sure I can,’ James replied, stunned.
Amaunet smiled at him.
‘Don’t worry. You’ve got more experience of the Aurora than anyone we know.’
‘That may be so, but I can’t… I mean… I would like to pilot the Aurora, but—’
‘I know. You feel you don’t know what you’ve got yourself into. We all thought that at some time. I know you’re scared, James.’ Milonri said softly. ‘We’re all scared, but sometimes you have to put your emotions to one side and sacrifice yourself for others. We need you to do this.’
‘Then why don’t you just kill me, then Kalrea would obey a new pilot,’ James said, bowing his head.
‘I’m not going to do that,’ Milonri said bluntly. ‘We are not like the Treitans. None of us would ever kill anyone for no good reason.’
He paused for a moment.
‘Anyway, I don’t think Kalrea would take kindly to that,’ he said more cheerfully. ‘She’d probably fly away and leave us.’
James raised his head and managed a slight smile.
‘Will you help us, James?’ Milonri said. ‘Please.’
‘Well, I did make a promise to two people very close to me.’
He paused.
‘And I suppose I didn’t come all this way for nothing. I just didn’t expect to keep the Aurora. Yes, I’ll do whatever you ask.’
Julio came back into the room once more.
‘I have news from the Eathopila. They managed to recover a gitrup, from the wreckage of a Treitan transport. We know their next targets,’ she said.
Julio approached the table and pressed a small keypad inlaid in its surface. A holographic chart of the entire galaxy appeared above the table. The image zoomed in on one section of it.
‘And what’s more important is this time we know their attack window from the information Kalrea has provided,’ Julio added.
The image showed a mass of stars and planets. To the left-hand side of the galaxy the dominant colour of the planets was blue, whereas, moving toward the centre, there were increasingly more whiter planets. James counted at least thirty blue planets, one of which was Qintaino. Close to them there was Brinoli, highlighted in red. Near to the centre of the galaxy were also two planets highlighted in green.
‘Those blue planets. They’re the ones the Treitans have defeated, aren’t they?’ James said, his head moving from side to side, to look over the image.
Julio replied,
‘Yes, and they’re about to add two more.’
She picked up a long black rod to indicate the two planets. Once she pointed the rod to the first planet, its name, ‘MOULO’, was displayed. She then pointed to the other.
James stopped eating.
‘That’s Earth!’ he said aloud, almost spitting out his food.
He suddenly felt the need to do something, because Earth was in danger, but some of the Telqintre were now looking at him, making him feel totally helpless and frustrated.
‘We must warn them,’ Cairl said with concern. ‘Evacuate as many of the population as we can.’
Amaunet shook her head and said,
‘Both Moulo and Earth inhabitants have only just ventured into space and they’ve never met aliens before. We can’t just arrive and expect them to accept that all life on their planet will be extinct in less than sixty days.’
‘Amaunet is right,’ Julio said. ‘It would take too long to convince them. They may even attack us.’
Milonri stood up.
‘If we are to help those people, then we must stop the Treitan assault.’
‘And how do you intend to do that?’ Amaunet said. ‘Once they’ve selected a planet to attack, that’s it. We’ve seen it so many times before. The only way to stop them is to destroy them.’
‘Wait,’ Julio said. ‘We don’t need to attack their main forces. Why don’t we try to hit one of their key supply bases again?’
‘But that would only be an annoyance to them. We’d have to do more than that,’ Amaunet said.
Julio replied,
‘Even if you are right, it’s worth the risk. At least we would delay them and this would give us more time to make contact with the people of Moulo and Earth. We must get as many people away from those planets as we can before their attack.’
‘Do we know when and where their ships will be massing?’ Milonri asked Julio.
‘Yes.’
She pointed towards the top left of the image.
‘Here in the Drej belt, in eight days.’
Milonri moved around the table and took the pointer from Julio.
‘That’s only one day from Earth. What would happen if we attack the supply centre here at Jomi?’ he asked.
‘It could be destroyed if we use our entire fleet, but it would have to be a fast and accurate attack, because their home planet, Dagnamk, is only one hour away. An easier target would be the supply bases at Frenc or Slom,’ Amaunet said.
‘I know, but I’m not thinking of committing the whole fleet, just two or three destroyers,’ Milonri said.
‘But those would be no match for the cruisers they’d send from Dagnamk,’ Cairl said.
‘I think I see what Milonri has got in mind,’ Stuilo said. ‘They’ll have to send at least four cruisers to defend themselves from our attack, and with their main fleet away from Dagnamk massing for the Moulo and Earth’s assault, their base on Dagnamk will be left extremely vulnerable.’
‘The destroyers at Jomi would act as a decoy,’ Milonri added. ‘Once attacked by the Treitans, they’ll withdraw.’
‘Even assuming the Treitans send that many ships, Dagnamk will still be very well protected,’ Cairl said. ‘I forecast that our ships would be going up against five or six cruisers and at lea
st four destroyers.’
‘I know,’ Milonri said. ‘That’s my guess too, but we may not get another opportunity like this again. We know their schedule and we now have a war-ship capable of entering a planet’s atmosphere: the Aurora.’
He paused.
‘With Kalrea’s capabilities, we can discover their weaknesses and use them to our advantage. We may even find a way of defeating them.’
‘Of course,’ Julio said, sounding excited. ‘If the Aurora could get past the defences around Dagnamk, then their command centre would be there for the taking.’
‘None of their defence ships can go through atmosphere, so the Aurora would be unchallenged once it reached Dagnamk,’ Milonri said. ‘But I’m afraid we don’t know exactly where the command centre is located or how strong their ground defences are.’
He looked at James.
‘You’ll be on your own. Kalrea must at the very least access their computer systems. We’ll use our other ships to draw their forces away from the planet. That will give you the best possible chance of making it through.’
‘We would have to hide the Aurora,’ Julio said. ‘The Treitans now have data and images of the ship and they’re bound to wonder what happened at Qintaino.’
‘They’ll know it’s a major threat to them, and if detected they will concentrate their forces to destroy it,’ Stuilo added. ‘Remember what they did to the Brenostar.’
‘The Aurora will have to be shipped inside the Lonori,’ Milonri explained. ‘We have to divert their ships with an initial attack; that way the Aurora can be launched close to Dagnamk before the Treitans have time to react.’
‘I think it could work, but we can’t afford to lose either the Lonori or the Aurora,’ Julio said.
‘If their defences are too strong when we arrive, then we’ll abort the mission,’ Milonri said.
Stuilo and Cairl nodded in support.
‘Are there any questions or objections to Milonri’s proposal,’ Julio asked, looking at the others in turn. ‘Excellent!’
‘Now the end begins,’ Milonri said, his voice lowered.
James didn’t understand and there was also an uneasy moment of silence. He looked expectantly around the table.
Kalrea, what did he mean?
Sorry. No idea, Kalrea replied. The others seemed to know, though.
Milonri gestured to Julio.
‘Julio and I will plan our strategy. We’ll then brief Isistia. No one else is to know the objective,’ he said sternly. ‘We can’t afford the Treitans to learn of this.’
‘It’s just over six days to Dagnamk at Q3, so we’ll need to leave tomorrow,’ Julio said.
She paused for a moment.
‘So who’s going to tell Isistia that she’s only got fourteen hours to get the Lonori back together?’ she said, and then smiled, breaking the tension.
‘I’ve just remembered that I’m needed in the operation centre,’ Cairl said, jumping up from his chair.
‘I’ll join you,’ Amaunet said, catching him up just before he left the room.
There was the sound of laughter disappearing up the corridor.
‘Well, it’s your plan, Milonri. You’ll have to tell Isistia. It’s your turn to take all the stick,’ Stuilo said, with a cheeky smile.
‘Thanks, Stuilo,’ Milonri said.
‘Never mind, Milonri,’ Julio said, leaning over and patting him on the back. ‘The way I look at it, is that it might have been my idea. Then, I would have had to tell her. At least I’m off the hook!’
Milonri pointed his finger at her.
‘Next time... You’re telling her next time!’
While Julio and Milonri were talking, James was studying the holographic image of Moulo and Earth above the table. He was puzzled by the Treitans’ need to attack Earth, so when they finished, he asked,
‘Milonri, I don’t understand why they would want to attack Earth. The humans are no threat to them; their space travel is in its infancy.’
‘No planet’s a threat to them anymore, James, but they need the water,’ he replied. ‘They stay fifty to sixty days, sucking the planet dry, and then they just pack up everything and go. The only other thing they’ve ever taken is technology and that’s only if it’s of any benefit to them.’
‘What do they take the water for?’ James questioned.
‘As far as we can tell, it’s what they live on. We eat food; they drink water, just water.’
‘So that’s why Qintaino is now a dessert?’
‘I’m sorry say it is, James. It was once a very beautiful planet. And I’m afraid Earth’s next.’
‘If only we had known they were going to attack us in the first place,’ Stuilo said, looking frustrated.
‘You see, James,’ Milonri said. ‘When they arrived in our galaxy, there was no indication of their intentions. The Qinant leaders tried to make contact with them to offer help, but they weren’t interested.’
‘Some races are like that,’ Julio said. ‘It’s not uncommon in this galaxy, so we assumed they just wanted to be left alone. They settled on an uninhabited planet called Dagnamk.’
‘All was quiet for four sykals, but once they completed their command centre, other ships started to arrive in great numbers,’ Milonri said. ‘Then they started their offensive.’
‘We were one of the first races to be attacked,’ Julio said, ‘along with the Holriods, Yoins and Montrons.’
‘Why?’ James asked.
‘We found out why when it was too late,’ Julio said. ‘They attacked all the strongest races first and in quick succession. This meant that the remaining less developed races would have not been a big threat, even if they rallied together. Their initial force must have been colossal, considering the losses they incurred.’
‘But still they carried on. And now they’re mopping up,’ Stuilo said.
‘Can’t we attack their homeworld?’ James questioned.
‘We know where they come from,’ Julio said.
She changed the image over the table to show the nearest galaxies. Julio pointed to one, before continuing,
‘It’s in the Lonilo galaxy—’
On Earth it’s called the Andromeda galaxy, Kalrea informed James.
‘Perhaps in time we can pay them back for what they’ve done,’ Milonri said, watching the image fade away. ‘James, I must ask you to do something. No questions…’
Milonri looked over at Julio and Stuilo. They nodded back. Julio moved over to the door.
‘Yes… of course,’ James replied. ‘What do you want me to do?’ he said, feeling very uneasy.
Milonri handed James a headset.
‘Please put this on.’
James wore the headset, which felt warm around his ears and on the top on his head.
‘I want you to get Kalrea to execute a program held in our main computer,’ Milonri added.
‘Kalrea, do as Milonri asks,’ James said and then thought, what are they up to, Kalrea?
I don’t know.
‘I’ve accessed the main network. What program am I looking for, Milonri?’ Kalrea replied, over the room’s address system.
‘Kalrea, upload the program M34S,’ Milonri said. ‘It’s self-executing.’
‘Loading…’
‘DISABLING TELEMENTOR DEFENCE SYSTEMS.’
Stuilo and Julio removed their hand pistols from their holders.
‘EXECUTING MIND-SCAN.’
James suddenly felt faint, his vision blurred and he slumped to the floor.
Chapter Thirteen
James opened his eyes.
He was laying in the open seatra onboard the Aurora. Except for a blue light flashing outside, the bridge was in total darkness. He sat up quickly and looked out. The blue band, which ringed the room, was flashing slowly and was softened by a haze of smoke descending from above. He looked up to see that the room had no ceiling. An orange and yellow mist was slowly drifting across.
Puzzled and bewildered, James got out of th
e seatra and looked around. He could now hear the sound of a beating heart echoing around the room. Suddenly, a sharp pain gripped him behind his eyes. He felt his forehead with his left hand.
‘Who are you?’ a voice shouted, from behind him.
James turned.
‘Who are you?’ the voice repeated.
‘What?’ James said, trying to see the person. ‘What do you—’
He was startled by a flash of bright white light from the mist above.
‘Who are you?’ another voice echoed from the left.
‘James Brandon,’ James replied, feeling confused.
Kalrea, he thought, but there was no reply.
‘No, that’s a lie.’
James could now just make out the outline of a figure standing in the corner of the room in front of him.
‘Who’s there?’ James questioned uneasily. ‘Where am I?’
‘Turn back… turn back,’ a voice said, from behind him.
The figure approached.
‘Dad! What… What are you doing here?’ James said, stunned, recognising it was Lex. He was holding a bright scarlet coloured aeroplane.
‘What are you doing here?’ Lex said.
‘Dad, it’s me.’
Lex looked straight through him.
James felt the sharp pain behind his eyes once more, and this time it was more intense. The sound of the heart quickened. He covered his eyes with his hands. When he opened them Lex had disappeared. He looked quickly around the room. An old woman was standing with her back to him.
As he approached her, she turned.
‘You should not have seen me,’ the old woman said.
‘I know you! You’re the old woman from the cottage. How did you get here?’ James replied.
The old woman had a tattoo of a small claw on the left side of her face.
‘I don’t understand… I recognise that tattoo… Is that you, Londuo?’
The old woman slowly faded into the darkness.
‘What are you doing here?’ a voice said, from above.
‘I don’t know,’ James said in a confused voice. ‘I think I’m on the Aurora. Kalrea!’
‘Why are you here?’ the voice said.
‘I don’t understand!’ James shouted.
‘Who are you working for?’
The Aurora (Aurora Saga, Book 1) Page 15