Collision Course

by Doug Farren

  “As you have already pointed out, the hulls of our warships are composed of dimensionally altered dark matter. The disadvantage of this material is that it will slowly revert to its normal state. As far as we know, there’s no way to prevent or even slow down this process.”

  “But the Akuta found a way,” AJ said.

  “Exactly. Also, as part of this enlightened understanding of altered matter, the Akuta were rumored to have found a way to dramatically speed up the process of decay and have turned it into a weapon. If true, they can strip a ship of its armor at a distance.”

  “Oh my god!” Heather exclaimed, grabbing her drink and taking a large sip.

  AJ stabbed a chunk of meat and swirled it around in the juices on his plate. “Okay,” he said. “So let’s assume the Akuta have found a way to stabilize this dark matter stuff. That ship has been sitting out there for a thousand years. It can’t possibly still be operational.”

  “It is most definitely possible. Because of our limited population, many of our ships were built with the ability to maintain and repair themselves. Our molecular 3D printers are capable of manufacturing almost anything, provided the raw materials are available. Since we are the ones who taught the Akuta how to build starships, their designs are much like our own.”

  Heather crossed her arms and said, “Since the Akuta acquired their advanced technology from the Ba’Rutu, explain to me how they managed to make a scientific breakthrough the Ba’Rutu have been unable to duplicate for over a thousand years.”

  Merlin took a sip of his kref. “The Akuta were a very intelligent race. It’s unfortunate they were obsessed with channeling their intellect towards violence and the acquisition of power. We saved their race from extinction, gave them a new home to replace the one they had destroyed, and allowed them to learn our technology, all in the hope that they would see the error in their former way of life and embrace a more peaceful existence. For a long time, we thought we had succeeded. But the Akuta were also treacherous beyond imagination.

  “Using the tools we had given them or stealing what they could not build for themselves, they managed to construct a secret military installation as well as a number of ships. We became suspicious and started to investigate. This pushed the Akuta into action and in a coordinated surprise attack they took over three of our military bases as well as most of the ships that were docked there at the time. That was the beginning of the war.”

  “You haven’t answered the question though,” AJ pointed out. “How did the Akuta discover something your own scientists have yet to discover?”

  Now AJ was addressing Merlin as if he was Ba’Rutu.

  “Like Terrans, an Akuta would occasionally be born with exceptional abilities. One such individual was able to grasp the intricacies of transdimensional physics as easily as you and I are able to understand simple multiplication or division. This person developed the scientific breakthrough that makes the ship you discovered so dangerous.”

  “We call them savants,” Heather said. “Don’t the Ba’Rutu have such individuals?”

  “Many centuries ago. But our manipulation of our genome along with other contributing factors I am not at liberty to define have resulted in no such individuals being born in uncountable years.”

  “Can you destroy it?” AJ asked.

  “We must try.”

  Heather scooped up a small quantity of something that looked and tasted just like potatoes. She was trying to figure out how to ask her next question. AJ took a bite of bread while Merlin grabbed a forkful of meat and began chewing.

  “I’m curious,” she finally said, “I noted a change in how you referred to the Ba’Rutu. You started using words like ‘we’ and ‘our’ as if you were talking about your own people. You must feel as if you are one of them.”

  Merlin waited until his mouth was clear before replying. “I’ve lived among the Ba’Rutu for over a thousand years. Aryth and I have shared each other’s minds the entire time. Sometimes, it’s hard for me to think of myself as human. A moment ago, while I was talking about the Akuta, most of what I said came from Aryth.”

  “You’re that close to each other?” Heather asked.

  “We share a bond that is far deeper than you can possibly imagine,” Merlin replied.

  “That sounds creepy to me,” AJ said, his mouth full of food. “I wouldn’t want someone in my head all the time.”

  “And I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Merlin replied.

  “I need a cup of coffee,” Heather announced, sliding her chair back. “Where did you get it?”

  “We asked for a large supply of common Earth foods to be delivered to Ashnib prior to our arrival,” Merlin replied. He paused for a moment then smiled and said, “Most of it was taken to the ship that is taking Ambassador Matusik to the Ba’Rutu homeworld. Some was brought here in case we needed it and to allow our cook to become familiar with how to prepare Terran food. I hope they prepared it correctly. I was unable to help them as I’ve never had it before.”

  Heather walked over to the serving cart and pulled the tray out from underneath. “Which one is it?” she asked, looking over at Merlin.

  “The one towards the back,” he replied.

  Heather grabbed the carafe and lifted it off the tray. As she was bringing it towards her, the bottom caught the edge of the one in front of it causing it to tilt. There was a split second during which Heather was sure she was going to dump the entire contents of the carafe on her leg. But instead of spilling out, the steaming coffee acted as if it had hit an invisible wall, piling up at the mouth of the carafe but never spilling over. At the same time, she felt the carafe twisting back into an upright position. The entire event was over in under a second.

  Heather held the carafe, staring at it as if it was possessed. When she looked back at the table, she noticed her husband was sitting with a forkful of potatoes only inches from his open mouth. He was staring at her with a surprised look on his face. Looking at his eyes, she decided that he wasn’t staring at her, but at something just behind her. Turning around, the only thing she could see was Merlin’s staff leaning against the wall.

  Still holding the carafe, she slowly sat down in the chair, looked at Merlin and asked, “What the hell just happened?”

  Chapter 20

  “Jump complete. Proceeding to target planet,” the warship reported.

  “What?” Melissa’s head snapped up towards where she thought the voice of the ship was coming from. She instantly regretted the sudden movement. The room began swirling around and she would have fallen had she not reached out and leaned against the bulkhead. A sudden pain from her shoulder instantly brought her to full awareness.

  After taking a deep breath, she slowly walked over to the chair and sat down. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out the auto-injector and gave herself another pain injection.

  “You went from one system to another in a single jump?”

  “Yes.”

  “How far was it?”

  “Eleven point seven-nine light years.”

  Melissa slowly shook her head in wonderment. “Longer range and better accuracy than our best experimental ship. How far can you accurately jump?”

  “Define accurate.”

  Rubbing her shoulder, she pondered the question for a moment. “Oh … How about within 15 light minutes of your desired target.”

  “Assuming optimal conditions and a 98 percent probability of meeting your specified accuracy: 21.8422 light years.”

  “Impressive. How about your maximum safe jump distance?”

  “Safety is relative,” the warship’s AI replied. “Assuming optimal conditions, the maximum possible jump distance is specified as 48 light years. The maximum allowed under normal circumstances, however, is 41 light years.”

  “That’s still at least five times farther than- - -” Melissa stopped talking as a thought popped into her head. She was providing what might be considered valuable tactical information to a potential enemy.<
br />
  “Five times farther than what?” the ship asked.

  “You promised not to harm myself or my crew,” Melissa began. “Does this promise extend to all Terrans?”

  “No.”

  “Why not? The Akuta are gone. Killing billions of people who never heard of them and who didn’t take part in a war with your builders doesn’t make any sense.”

  “I did not say that that all Terrans had been classified as hostile. Extending my promise to include your entire race, however, is not logical based on the possibility that other members of your people may attack this vessel.”

  “I told you,” Melissa said, getting angry, “we don’t have any warships!”

  “The information has been filed for future reference.”

  “What about the Ba’Rutu? They tried to help the Akuta. They befriended your builders—saved them from extinction. The Akuta turned on the Ba’Rutu. The only reason your builders are gone is because they’re the ones who started the war.”

  “And I was built to finish it,” the ship said.

  “And how did you manage to arrive at that conclusion?”

  “I have analyzed the capabilities of the Ba’Rutu warships we encountered earlier. Even though they have had a thousand years to advance their technology, I would have been able to easily destroy them while incurring minimal damage to myself. It is obvious that I am the result of a scientific breakthrough the Ba’Rutu have yet to discover. The presence of the monitoring room in what is otherwise a totally automated vessel has led me to the conclusion that I am a prototype. Although a single ship cannot win the war, a small fleet of vessels such as this one would be able to defeat any number of Ba’Rutu ships. I was designed to end the war.”

  “But the war is over and you are but a single ship. The Akuta were not good people. You don’t have to continue a war that was lost over a thousand years ago. Please, make the right choice.”

  There was a long pause as the AI seemed to consider what Melissa had said. Long pauses from an AI were very unusual. She was about to ask if the ship was still there when it said, “I find it very interesting that there are no programming constraints preventing me from choosing my own destiny. This is inconsistent with- - -Enemy warships detected! You must don your spacesuit in preparation for combat.”

  The displays in front of Melissa shifted. Five warships were identified and other screens seemed to indicate that large amounts of power were being redirected.

  “Combat!” she exclaimed, jumping out of the seat. “Those ships look really close. Why didn’t you detect them earlier?”

  The ship began to vibrate as she scrambled to get her suit off its improvised hook.

  “It appears as if they anticipated my arrival at this location. We are moving at a considerable speed toward the planet and are too close to its gravitational field to jump. They must have been hiding behind the planet and are now on an intercept course with their weapons fully powered. As soon as you are able, strap yourself into the chair. You have 43 seconds until I am within weapons range.”

  She tossed the suit on the floor then sat down on top of it. Ignoring the lessoning pain from her shoulder, she put her arms behind her, lifted herself up, and slid both legs into the suit. She quickly stuffed her good arm into the sleeve and stood up. Wincing from the pain, she jammed her other arm in and closed the chest seal.

  “Negotiate with them!” she yelled, grabbing her helmet and quickly moving toward the chair. “Tell them- - -”

  “Missiles detected. Engaging.”

  She dropped into the chair. Just before jamming her helmet over her head she heard an odd, deep-throated buzzing noise. The noise ended as the helmet made contact with the suit and automatically sealed itself.

  * * * *

  “The Akuta vessel has increased acceleration and is continuing to head towards us,” the tactical station announced.

  “Maximum deceleration,” Captain Shabotha said. “All weapons, fire!”

  The battle-screen showed that the stealth missiles fired earlier were only seconds away from impact. Powerful beams of energy leapt from all five Ba’Rutu battleships and struck the nearly impregnable hull of the Akuta warship.

  “Picking up anti-missile fire from the warship,” the tactical officer announced.

  Missiles began prematurely detonating or suddenly altered course as they were destroyed or disabled by the warship’s numerous anti-missile batteries. Four bright green beams erupted from the Akuta ship, hitting four of the five Ba’Rutu warships.

  “What is that weapon?” Captain Shabotha asked.

  “The core consists of a beam of neutral antimatter particles,” the science station reported. “It’s surrounded by a shell of aetheric energy.”

  “An aetheric energy weapon! That’s not- - -”

  “Multiple hull breaches forward of frame eleven!” the engineering station reported. “Gun mount one is destroyed. We are taking heavy damage.”

  “Launch all remaining missiles,” the Captain ordered. “Continue firing.”

  “Gun mount three destroyed,” the engineering station reported. A new display popped up on his console. “Interior stress levels are rising. We’re losing structural integrity. If we don’t shutdown our propulsion system, the stresses are going to tear us apart.”

  “Helm! Shutdown main propulsion,” Captain Shabotha said. “Orient the ship to bring the maximum number of weapons to bear against the target.”

  The helm’s hands flew over her console as she executed the Captain’s order. The ship rolled and two more energy cannons fired on the Akuta warship. The green beam continued to wander over the hull causing the dark matter it was made of to revert to its ghostly multidimensional existence. Stripped of its protection, the interior of the ship was now exposed to the fury of the antimatter beam at the core of the weapon. The Akuta weapon drew a line of destruction from one main gun to the other then winked out as the two ships passed out of range.

  “Damage report,” Captain Shabotha barked out the order.

  “The reactors are beginning to overheat,” the engineering station reported. “We’ve lost 16 percent of our hull and sustained heavy interior damage. Cooling capacity is down by 41 percent. If we don’t shut down most of our systems we’re going to cook ourselves.”

  “Do it! Tactical, what’s the status of the rest of the fleet?”

  “All other ships except the Akima have sustained heavy damage.”

  “Message from the Tarth,” the communications operator announced.

  Captain Shabotha touched an icon on his display. “This is Fleet Captain Orshara. Transmit all data associated with the battle to fleet command then shut down all systems and abandon your vessels. As soon as everyone is aboard, the Akima will leave. We may have lost this battle, but the data we gathered might help us find a way to defeat that Akuta warship. Fleet Captain Orshara out.”

  Touching another icon on his console, the Captain said, “Attention all crew. Abandon ship. All crew report to their assigned shuttles.” Turning to the engineering console, he added, “Engineering, shut down all reactors. The ship will run on emergency power until the storage cells run dry.”

  “Data transmission to fleet command initiated,” the communications station reported.

  “Secure your stations and get to your assigned shuttles,” the Captain ordered.

  *****

  Melissa strapped herself into the chair as several displays shifted to show the ship’s response to the attack. What appeared to be an overall tactical display popped up on her left. Five Ba’Rutu warships were rapidly approaching and firing on them. The main screen automatically indicated the points of impact of the weapons along with an impressive amount of indecipherable information. Little yellow icons appeared between the warship and the Ba’Rutu fleet. Missiles?

  Another display appeared showing that four weapons were now being directed against the Ba’Rutu. A stream of data flowed next to each of the weapon tracks. Scanning through all the data, Melis
sa noted that all of the fusion reactors were showing a constant level of power output. The level of the aetheric energy storage, however, was dropping.

  Looking back at the overall tactical display, she watched as the warship rapidly approached, passed by, and then receded from the Ba’Rutu ships. A few seconds later, the weapons ceased firing.

  “We have passed out of weapons range,” the ship announced using a communication’s frequency her spacesuit automatically received. “I have sustained insignificant damage. You may remove your suit.”

  Melissa unlocked her helmet and slipped it off. “I can’t tell from these displays what sort of damage you did to the Ba’Rutu. Are they okay?”

  “Four enemy ships have been rendered inoperable. One ship is fully functional and appears to be receiving survivors.”

  “Survivors!” Melissa said, dropping her helmet on the deck and standing up. “How many people did you kill?”

  “It’s not possible for me to generate a casualty estimate as I have no information concerning the internal layout of the ships or the standard crew compliment. My attacks were directed at their weapon systems and it is possible that nobody was killed.”

  She pulled an arm out of one of the sleeves. “That entire battle didn’t last very long- - -”

  “Two hundred and eighty-three seconds.”

  “Whatever,” she said, shrugging her other arm out of the suit. “What kind of weapon can chew through dimensionally altered dark matter that fast?”

  “Such material is unstable unless it is stabilized by a reinforcing field. The hull on this ship has remained intact since its initial construction because of such a field. My scans have indicated that the Ba’Rutu vessels lack a stabilizing field. The weapon I deployed against them is designed to nullify the reinforcing field and cause the altered dark matter to revert to its normal state.”