Collision Course

by Doug Farren

  “Why didn’t I hear this thing when it came through the airlock?” she asked.

  “I had the same question,” the ship replied. “The drone is very quiet as is the airlock mechanism. But when you did not wake, I thought you might have died. The drone’s sensors confirmed you were still functioning. I decided to leave the drone in the monitoring room.”

  The drone’s cameras tracked her as she walked over to the box. The lid was secured by two spring-clips. Inside, she found a large plastic jug holding about five liters of clear liquid and three large plastic bags. Using both arms, she pulled the jug out of the box and set it on the floor. She unscrewed the over-sized cap, gave the contents a sniff, then, using both hands, took a sip. It was water and it tasted delicious. She took a few large gulps then set the still open container down on the deck.

  Returning to the box, she knelt down beside it so she could examine the rest of the contents. That was when it occurred to her that her left shoulder wasn’t hurting as bad as it had before she’d gone to sleep. Rolling her arm around, she was pleased to find that the pain was significantly less. Reaching into the box, she pulled out one of the clear plastic bags and set it on the floor.

  The bag was about the size of a pillowcase and filled with some type of yellow rods that reminded her of odd-colored carrots. “Any idea what this is?” she asked, struggling to tear a hole in the bag.

  “The Ba’Rutu call it nishnab. It is identified as a plant that can be consumed raw or cooked.”

  Using her teeth, Melissa finally managed to tear a hole in the bag large enough for her to pull out one of the yellow carrots. When she bit into it, she discovered that the nishnab had a thick skin that was not quite as hard as a carrot. The inside was the consistency of a green banana and it had a sweet taste reminiscent of a pear.

  “What’s in the other bags?”

  “Another plant food called arib and a baked food called chaknath that is eaten between meals.”

  “I take it you have gained access to the Ba’Rutu information network?” she asked, sitting down on the deck and pulling several more nishnabs out of the bag.

  “I have. Their systems are remarkably similar to my own.”

  “They should be, since you’re based on Ba’Rutu technology.”

  “One could also argue the point that the Ba’Rutu used Akuta technology. After acquiring their technology, the Ba’Rutu exterminated my builders because of greed and a desire for power. This would explain why I possess a technology the Ba’Rutu do not. It is obvious that the Akuta were the more technologically advanced civilization.”

  “Then explain to me why the Keldans clearly recall being brutalized by the Akuta? If your builders were so kind as to provide the Ba’Rutu with advanced technology, why would they not have done the same with the Keldans?”

  “My builders may have tried to give them advanced technology. The Keldans may have reacted in the same way as the Ba’Rutu, forcing the Akuta to quell a Keldan revolt.”

  “You seem to have come up with an answer to everything, haven’t you?”

  “Can you prove me wrong?”

  Melissa grabbed the jug of water and took a big gulp. As she was setting it down, she noted that the jug had indentations as if it was designed to be held in a single hand—a hand much larger than her own.

  “Can you send a picture to my tablet?” she asked, ignoring the warship’s previous question.

  “Yes. I stated earlier that I have analyzed your communication protocols.”

  Grabbing a handful of nishnabs, she got up and walked over to the chair. “I need to know what the Ba’Rutu look like. Since you have access to their systems, send me a picture.”

  “Transmitting.”

  As soon as the tablet was active, it informed her that it had received a transmission. Clicking on the icon, Melissa called up the picture. “Oh my god!” she said, staring at the dragon that had appeared on her screen.

  “What is wrong?” the ship asked.

  “The Ba’Rutu,” Melissa replied. “They’re dragons!”

  “I do not understand. Your language file indicates that dragons are mythical creatures. The fact that the Ba’Rutu resemble them is merely a coincidence.”

  “No,” Melissa said, shaking her head. “It’s too much of a coincidence. It means they’ve been to Earth before. Dragons are horribly vicious. They eat people! And, they like to hoard gold. If our myths are true, then the Ba’Rutu are not who they claim to be.”

  “Then perhaps you are beginning to believe that I am right? The Akuta are not the people you believe them to be. It is the Ba’Rutu you should fear.”

  “I … I don’t know,” Melissa replied, still staring at the tablet.

  Reaching over, she flipped the switches that activated the monitors. “I don’t know who to believe anymore. Right now, I’m going to eat a bunch of these carrot things and think about all this. I’m also curious to see what you’ve been doing with the Ba’Rutu ships.”

  She walked over to the monitor that controlled the cameras and quickly located the one providing her with a view of the Ba’Rutu ship. Instead of a single vessel, all four damaged Ba’Rutu warships were now visible. Two of them were missing a significant amount of their hull plating. The hulls of the other two appeared to be mostly intact. She increased the magnification until a single ship filled the monitor. A swarm of tiny objects could be seen moving to and from the warship.

  “You’re cannibalizing two of the ships so you can repair the others,” she said.

  “Correct. The ships’ main reactors have been restarted and we will be leaving this area soon.”

  “Leaving? Where are we going?”

  “The Ba’Rutu have no doubt noted that I have taken control of two of their warships and will most likely make an attempt to destroy them to prevent me from using them. Even though the repairs are not complete, they are enough to allow the ships to be moved to a different location where the repairs can be completed.”

  “You managed to do all this while I was sleeping? I would have thought the Ba’Rutu would have security protocols in place to prevent such a thing.”

  “All of the tactical systems are heavily encrypted and I have not yet managed to gain access to them. The propulsion systems are not secured and I have complete control of the ship’s automatic navigation computers. Loading of supplies is almost complete. We will be leaving the system in 15 minutes.”

  “What about the Ba’Rutu AIs? I can’t imagine they would allow you to take control of those ships.”

  “The Ba’Rutu AIs have been deactivated.”

  Melissa walked back over to the box of food and pulled out the bag of baked snacks. They looked like small loaves of bread but much denser. The brownish loafs had a very hard exterior that resisted her every effort to pull off a smaller chunk. Looking over at the drone, she said, “I can’t break this apart. Can you use the drone to break it into smaller pieces?”

  One of the drone’s arms reached into the tool storage and emerged with a large, three-fingered manipulator attached to the end. Melissa placed the loaf in the open pincers and stood back. The pincers closed and the loaf crumbled, splitting into three smaller pieces. Picking one of them up, she put an end into her mouth and bit down. It was like biting into a hard candy. She eventually managed to bite off a small piece. She chewed a couple times then quickly spit it out.

  “That tastes horrible!” she said. “I guess I’ll be saving that stuff for when I’m starving.”

  Going back to the box, she pulled out the last bag. This one held a large number of objects that looked like red oranges. They had a thin outer rind which easily peeled away revealing a bright red inner part that tasted almost exactly like a mango. Taking her mango-thing with her, she went back over to the monitor to watch the action.

  Over the next few minutes, the number of drones flitting around dropped until none were visible.

  “Commencing departure,” the warship announced. “We will be jumping in less than a
n hour.”

  “Where to?” Melissa asked.

  “A location in deep space as far from any system as possible. The Ba’Rutu can identify the jump destination. A second jump will be required to prevent them from engaging us. The repairs I have performed so far on the Ba’Rutu ships have not fully restored their ability to cool themselves. I will be forced to shutdown their reactors and allow the systems to cool for almost a full day. During this time, I plan on completing the repairs.”

  Melissa used a small amount of water to clean her hands then walked over to the incinerating toilet. Turning around, she noted that the cameras on the drone were staring at her.

  “Do you mind not watching me while I take a crap?” she asked.

  The cameras obediently turned away. “Please explain the reasoning behind your request,” the ship said.

  “It’s considered very rude to watch someone while they’re going to the bathroom,” she replied.

  “Why? Waste removal is a common activity shared by all biological life.”

  “Because it’s rude, creepy, and socially unacceptable.”

  “I do not understand. Can you elaborate?”

  “No! Now leave me alone.”

  The undershirt she had been using to clean up afterward was becoming very soiled. When she was finished, she washed her hands again.

  “Any chance you can bring me some towels or some other type of absorbent material the next time you have a chance?”

  “Yes.”

  “Thanks. That undershirt is getting really gross.”

  “Are all biological lifeforms so needy?”

  “Yes. Are you ready to get rid of me yet?”

  “No.”

  “I am receiving a request from the Ba’Rutu to negotiate,” the ship interrupted. “Would you like to listen in on the conversation?”

  “Hell yes!”

  Chapter 25

  “This is the engineering deck,” Merlin explained as they exited the elevator.

  “Do you mind if I ask a potentially sensitive question?” Heather asked. She’d been relatively quiet during their tour of the ship and AJ had been wondering if she wasn’t feeling well.

  “Go ahead,” Merlin replied. “The worst that can happen is I tell you it’s none of your business.”

  “Why do the Ba’Rutu have warships? We don’t. Neither do the other races we’ve been in contact with. You said the Akuta attacked several of your military bases back when the war first began. That means you’ve had warships for a very long time. What I don’t understand is why.”

  They were approaching a large set of doors at the end of the corridor. “It’s complicated,” Merlin said, entering a code into the keypad.

  There was an ominous-sounding thunk followed by the opening of the thick doors.

  Merlin waited until the doors were fully closed and locked before continuing with his explanation. “Like all other sentient species, the Ba’Rutu have a violent past. After centuries of war, the population separated itself into two groups; the Ba’Rutu and the Ba’Shura. They hated each other with a fury you would not believe. The threat of mutually assured destruction prevented any large-scale conflicts, but smaller ones continued to erupt.”

  They entered a small control room occupied by two Ba’Rutu engineers. Banks of gently glowing monitors filled most of the available wall space above the angled control panels.

  “This is our engineering control room,” Merlin said.

  “So what happened?” Heather prompted.

  “Both nations were in a race to achieve technological superiority. This drove the development of science. The conflict continued into space when that frontier became open. Satellites and anti-satellites morphed into warships of ever-increasing power. Shortly after the development of the first FTL drive, full-scale war erupted. The destruction was terrible. Millions died and entire cities were laid to waste. The Ba’Rutu eventually won, driving the surviving Ba’Shura off their homeworld. As far as the Ba’rutu know, they’re still out there.”

  Merlin gave AJ and Heather a moment to look around the control room, then said, “Please follow me.”

  “Don’t you know what happened to the Ba’Shura?” Heather asked, following Merlin through another door into the main engineering section.

  “They vanished into deep space,” Merlin said. “But the Ba’Rutu have always maintained a fleet of warships in case they ever return.”

  Merlin led them through the engineering space pointing out some of the larger pieces of equipment. Near the center of the room, they found themselves standing next to a large spherical device.

  “This is our stardrive emitter,” Merlin said.

  “A single field emitter?” AJ said, staring at the giant device. “No delicate pylons to worry about. What I wouldn’t give to have one of these to take apart and examine!”

  “The technology is not much more advanced than your own method of generating a jump field,” Merlin explained.

  “Then I hope the Ba’Rutu are willing to help us out by showing us how it’s done,” AJ replied, laying a hand on the smooth metal casing. “It’s funny when you think about it though. If the Star Pulse had a drive like this, we would never have been forced to make contact with the Keldans.”

  “Funny?” Heather said, giving AJ a look of disapproval. “I don’t find the death of billions of sentient beings as funny. I would rather call it fate or karma.”

  “You’re right,” AJ admitted, putting a hand on her arm. “Bad choice of words.”

  Turning to Merlin, Heather said, “It was the Ba’Rutu’s advanced state of technological development that caused them to ignore the Keldans. I think there’s a lesson to be learned here.”

  Merlin nodded his head. “The possession of advanced technology must also come with a greater responsibility to use that technology for the good of all.”

  “Like maybe sharing a means to extend one’s life?” Heather suggested.

  Merlin turned and began leading his guests out of the ship’s engineering space. “The Ba’Rutu’s current lifespan took centuries to achieve,” he explained. “This allowed their society to adjust to the fact that people were living longer. Can you imagine the chaos that would be caused if every human was suddenly granted an extension of their lives?”

  “He’s right,” AJ said. “A conglomerate of companies tried to stop the release of the first human life-extension drug arguing that their pension plans were never designed to support people for longer than their normal expected lifetimes. Governments with huge social security programs joined them. But the company that produced the drug was focused on the money it would make and began marketing it in parts of the world where they could.”

  “I remember,” Heather chimed in. “Instead of pricing it so high that only the rich could afford it, they sold it for only a few dollars more than it cost them to make. Instead of a market of a few thousand people, the pricing opened them up to hundreds of millions. It was so cheap that the airlines had to add additional overseas flights to accommodate the increase in traffic. Lazareth Bio made over a billion in profits in the first year alone.”

  “Some people say it was that drug that triggered the culture wars,” AJ added. “I’m inclined to agree with the Ba’Rutu. If extending our life by 50 years caused so many problems, what’s going to happen if people find they can live for more than a thousand years? We’re not ready for this.”

  “Where are we going now?” Heather asked.

  “I thought you might like to see where Aryth and I live,” Merlin replied. “After that, we’ll go up to the bridge.”

  Heather turned and flashed AJ a smile. She had spent a great deal of time last night speculating on what a Ba’Rutu bathroom looked like. They had just stepped off the elevator when Merlin suddenly stopped.

  “Change of plans,” he announced, turning around and heading back into the elevator. “The Akuta warship has responded to our request to negotiate. Aryth thought you might like to listen in on the conversation.
”

  “You bet I do!” AJ said.

  Merlin held his arm out, preventing the elevator doors from closing. A moment later, Aryth appeared and joined them.

  “Thank you for allowing us to listen in,” AJ told her.

  “You have been a part of this since it began,” Merlin replied for Aryth. “It’s only fitting you should be allowed to listen in on the negotiations.”

  AJ was amazed at the size of the bridge. The semicircular room was at least ten meters wide and fifteen meters long. Three Ba’Rutu stood in front of their assigned consoles which, despite their being of alien design, AJ recognized as helm and navigation, engineering, and communications. Captain Hanept was standing in front of a large bank of displays near the focal point of the room.

  “The AI expert has been informed,” Hanept told Aryth. “He should be arriving shortly.” Turning his attention to AJ and Heather, he added, “I am Captain Hanept. Please feel free to look around.”

  AJ began a slow walk around the perimeter of the bridge. After a moment, he said, “You have a fine ship Captain.”

  “Thank you. It is considerably smaller than the other ship I command.”

  Heather decided to stand near the captain’s podium. “You were stranded on Earth with Aryth, weren’t you?” she asked. “Is that why you were given this assignment?”

  Hanept looked at Aryth and for a moment Heather thought she had asked an inappropriate question. “Aryth and I have a long history together and I was honored when she asked that I be given the opportunity to return to Earth with her.”

  “May I ask what type of ship you commanded prior to this one?” AJ asked.

  “A Vorach-class battlecruiser which is about a hundred times larger than this vessel. It was the flagship of our latest fleet.”

  “He’s still its captain,” Aryth said. “I quit the military when I returned from Earth. A couple hundred years ago, I became a member of our defense council. Even though there has never been another war since we defeated the Akuta, we will never forget how devastating the war was on our people. Our defenses are constantly being upgraded and strengthened. Since I am also the ambassador to Earth, I asked that the Vorach be assigned to protect me and to be available at any time should I need its advanced command and control facilities. It’s never more than a single jump from this ship.”