by Doug Farren
“How are you doing?”
“I’ve been treated very well but I’m ready to get out of here.”
“Captain,” Cynthia began. “The Akuta warship is rapidly approaching. It should be here in less than 10 minutes.”
“Ten minutes! From a distance of over 200,000 kilometers?”
“Correct.”
“I am detecting an open hypercom link originating from your ship,” the warship said. “Explain.”
“Due to the importance of this event,” Captain Mingyu replied, “the Terran World President and her staff are listening in. Our government wants to be assured that we have retrieved our crew member and you have abided by our agreement.”
“Very well,” the warship replied. “I will allow it. There is an extra person aboard your ship—why?”
“We brought along a shuttle pilot so our own pilots can remain at their post,” the Captain said.
“Do nothing until I say otherwise,” the warship told them. “Melissa, seal your suit and prepare to exit.”
The warship quickly approached, matched its trajectory with that of the Rutherford, and came to a relative stop at a distance of ten kilometers.
“Launch your shuttle. Approach to a distance of one kilometer and hold position. I will bring Melissa to you using a drone.”
“Launching,” Merlin said.
As soon as it was clear that the shuttle was in position, the warship said, “Melissa is exiting the ship.”
“I’m opening the outer airlock,” Merlin said. A moment later, his radar indicated that a small object was approaching. “I have you on radar. The airlock is on the starboard side.”
Knowing that their timing was going to be critical, Merlin tightened his link with Aryth and immediately found the intense concentration of aetheric energy buried deep within the warship. Focusing all their attention on the crystal, Merlin/Aryth discovered that it was nearly identical to the ones employed by the Ba’Rutu—but not exactly the same.
“The energy is different,” the two minds thought as one. “The crystal’s structure must alter it somehow. Still, we should be able to trigger a detonation. I have never seen so much aetheric energy in a single crystal before.”
Turning his attention outward, Merlin noted that the object was almost upon him. A minute passed and then the indicator light for the outer airlock changed. He applied some thrust to start the shuttle moving back toward the Rutherford, then said, “Melissa is in the airlock.” He had the strange experience of hearing himself speaking while at the same time hearing his own voice coming out of the speakers inside Aryth’s box.
“Now!” the Merlin/Aryth fusion thought. Reaching out with their minds, they took a thin layer of aetheric energy from the outer edge of the crystal and caused it to flow inward. They subtly altered the energy, turning it into a form that would more readily interact with normal matter. How this was accomplished is something that cannot be explained. The band of energy flowed inward, becoming more concentrated the closer it came to the center of the crystal, growing hotter and hotter. The crystal’s internal structure began to be affected causing more of the aetheric energy to be pulled along with the rapidly collapsing cylinder of energy. A tiny fracture formed, disrupting the perfect crystalline matrix. The fracture acted as a focal point pulling in more aetheric energy which in turn caused the fracture to grow. An instant later, the entire crystal shattered.
The explosion tore through the crystal’s storage chamber sending fragments away from the center of the blast and into the surrounding equipment. A metal plate sheared through a power cable and embedded itself in the bulkhead the cable was mounted to causing a short circuit. A ball of superheated plasma from the short blew through the wall and into the next compartment damaging one of the internal stardrive field emitters.
Having completed their task, Merlin and Aryth disengaged their minds. The inner airlock door opened and Melissa stepped into the shuttle. Turning around to verify she was okay, Merlin said, “This is Milus, Melissa is aboard. Mission accomplished. Warship, do you copy?”
The warship’s AI was not about to admit that it was dealing with a massive amount of internal damage. Although it had no idea what had triggered the explosion, it knew the Terran vessel could not have been at fault as no changes had been detected in the energy emissions of the shuttle or the Rutherford. The AI knew it was a prototype, and prototypes could fail. However, the timing of the failure did cause the warship to devote 388 milliseconds towards calculating the odds that the failure might not have been a design flaw.
“I copy,” the warship replied. “Return to the Rutherford and leave this area immediately.”
“Acknowledged,” Merlin replied.
Even though Merlin wanted to hurry, he piloted the shuttle as he normally would. He knew that the crew of the Rutherford were working as fast as possible to prepare their ship’s jump drive for departure. By stating that his mission had been accomplished, he had informed the Rutherford as well as the waiting fleet of Ba’Rutu warships, that the crystal had been destroyed.
Merlin touched a control on his panel muting his microphone. “Leave your suit on,” he told Melissa. “Strap yourself in. The Rutherford is going to jump as soon as we’re locked to their hull.”
“There’s no need to hurry,” Melissa said. “The warship won’t hurt us. It should be leaving any second.”
“I’m not worried about the warship,” Merlin said. “An entire fleet of Ba’Rutu heavy cruisers will be arriving any second now and we don’t want to be caught in the middle when they start firing.”
“What!” Melissa screamed. Slamming herself down in the copilot seat, she added, “They’ll be cut to ribbons. You have no idea what that ship is capable of.”
Keeping his eyes on the controls, Merlin replied, “Actually, I do. We’ve managed to neutralize the warship’s primary threat to our fleet.”
“Your fleet? Who the hell are you?”
“Strap in,” Merlin said, his hands dancing across the controls. “We’re about to dock.”
There was a jarring bump as the shuttle hit the locking clamps a bit harder than Merlin had anticipated. A second later, the Rutherford jumped.
Chapter 33
Seventeen Ba’Rutu warships simultaneously exited jump-space 173,414 kilometers from the Akuta ship. All their weapons were armed and ready to deal out death and destruction. Four seconds after exiting jump-space, the entire fleet began accelerating. Unable to jump away, the Akuta ship turned and ran. A thousand years of technological advances however, allowed the Ba’Rutu ships to quickly gain on their target despite the fact that they were carrying a crew.
Knowing that it would lose the battle that it could not avoid, the AI reviewed its options. It had planned for a possible attack and had positioned the two Ba’Rutu warships under its control within striking distance of the current location. It could recall those vessels. But, the additional firepower they could bring to bear against the enemy would not be enough to win the war. The AI estimated that even with the additional ships, it could at best, destroy four of the attackers before succumbing to the combined firepower of the Ba’Rutu fleet. No matter how many times it ran the scenario, the conclusion was the same: Its prime directive could not be satisfied.
Melissa had taught the machine that surrender was possible. But surrendering to the enemy would ensure that the directive to win the war would never be fulfilled and therefore such an alternative was in violation of that directive. The AI also considered transferring the bulk of its programming to the two Ba’Rutu warships it now controlled in the hopes that those warships could then build a fleet of ships capable of eliminating the Ba’Rutu. But a review of the state of the AIs in those ships indicated they could not be used.
Running away was not possible. It was clear that the Ba’Rutu ships were capable of higher accelerations and would soon be within firing range. Perhaps a diversion would give the ship enough time to repair the damaged stardrive. It was worth a try.
The fleet opened fire, overwhelming the commandeered warship’s defenses. Two bright flashes of radiation and light announced their destruction. Having sustained a fair amount of damage, the second lead ship began to fall back towards the rear of the fleet. Seconds later, it hit a missile that had been dumped into space triggering another flare of nuclear fire.
Undeterred, the Ba’Rutu continued to gain on the fleeing Akuta warship.
Having failed to gain any time, the Akuta AI once again considered all its options. A possible solution presented itself. One that would satisfy the prime directive and make Melissa, the only sentient the AI had come to know, happy. The AI came to a decision and opened a channel.
* * * *
“Jump complete,” Frank announced.
“Star shift appears to be as expected,” Cynthia said. “Computer is confirming.”
“Retracting pylons,” George announced. “Commencing regeneration and recharge.”
“Short-range scope is clear,” Frank said. “Expanding the range.”
“Terran ship Rutherford, do you hear me?” a voice said over the speaker.
Andrew scanned his communication panel and said, “It’s coming from the open hypercom channel. I think it’s the warship.”
“This is Captain Mingyu of the Rutherford. We hear you.”
“I will be under attack in six minutes. I need to speak to Melissa.”
“Why?” Captain Mingyu asked. “If you are attempting to surrender, you need to talk to the Ba’Rutu, not us and certainly not her.”
“I trust her,” the warship replied.
“I hear you!” Melissa’s voice blared from the speakers.
“I have sustained significant internal damage. My stardrive is nonfunctional and my primary weapons are no longer effective. I will not be able to survive an attack by the warships pursuing me. You taught me that wars fought by your people often end in surrender. I cannot surrender as it would violate my prime directive. I can, however, request that the Ba’Rutu surrender to me.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Melissa replied. “Why would they surrender to you when they have the advantage? That’s not how we fight wars.”
“I have already destroyed two Ba’Rutu ships. My hull is more durable than those of the approaching fleet and I estimate I will be able to destroy four more Ba’Rutu warships before I am destroyed. Surrendering to me will satisfy my prime directive. It will also prevent the loss of life which will make you happy. Although making you happy is not a directive, I have discovered that it is something I prefer to do. I am asking the Ba’Rutu to surrender to me. I have transmitted a summary of my terms of surrender on a data sub-channel. I await your reply.”
“We have received the terms,” Andrew said. “Forwarding them to all parties listening in.”
Melissa watched as Merlin scanned the control panel trying to figure out how to access the data. It finally dawned on her that he had no idea how to do it. Shooting Merlin a questioning look, she reached over to the center section of the console and quickly brought up the data.
There was a brief moment of silence as all parties looked over the terms of surrender.
“What the hell kind of surrender is this?” Captain Mingyu said.
“Is this some sort of joke?” President Cheng asked.
“Melissa, this is Andrew, what do you make of this?”
“Captain!” Melissa said. “You’ve got to contact the Ba’Rutu fleet. I know exactly what the AI is trying to do. Please! Tell them to surrender and agree to the terms.”
“Are you nuts!” Melissa heard Frank yell.
“This is Admiral Thyth commanding the Ba’Rutu fleet. We are within minutes of engaging the warship. There is no doubt we are going to win this fight. Why are you suggesting we surrender?”
“Have you looked at the terms?” Melissa asked.
“Why should I bother to- - -”
“Read them damn it!” Melissa yelled.
The channel was silent for a moment, then the Admiral said, “The terms are ludicrous. We suspected the AI was unstable and this only confirms it. This is simply an attempt to gain some time so it can repair its stardrive. We will not- - -”
“Admiral!” Melissa interrupted. “I know this AI, I know it better than any of you. It doesn’t know how to lie. It can’t violate its prime directive and it’s giving us a way to end this without any further loss of life. Please, give it a chance.”
“Admiral Thyth,” Andrew said. “I’m an expert on AI psychology. Based on my limited knowledge of the Akuta AI, I have to agree with Melissa. I believe the machine’s offer is valid.”
The channel was silent for a few seconds.
“Akuta warship,” the Admiral began. “Power down your drive and stand down your weapons. We shall do the same. I cannot surrender but I will forward the terms to my government for their consideration. Is this acceptable?”
“I accept your terms,” the warship instantly replied. “Powering down.”
“Rutherford,” the Admiral said. “I’m sending a ship to your location. As soon as it arrives, send Melissa over in a shuttle.”
“Acknowledged,” Captain Mingyu replied. “Milus, did you hear that?”
“I copy,” Merlin replied. “Disengaging docking clamps.”
There was a thump as the clamps were released. Melissa reached over and muted the communications link. “Okay buddy. Who the hell are you?”
“My name is Merlin and I’ve lived with the Ba’Rutu for a very long time.”
“So you’re not Ba’Rutu?”
“That’s a complicated question,” Merlin replied with a smile. “I am and I’m not.”
“The ship showed me a picture of a Ba’Rutu. Are they dragons?”
“They are indeed.”
“Hyperjump detected,” Andrew said.
Merlin turned on their microphone and said, “Acknowledged. Distance?”
“Ninety-eight thousand kilometers. They are approaching. ETA roughly four minutes.”
Merlin muted the mike then unbuckled his straps. “We have a few minutes, Come with me.”
Melissa followed Merlin to the back of the shuttle and into the cargo bay. Aryth was waiting for them.
“Oh my god!” Melissa said, her voice rising in pitch making it sound like a screech. Putting her hand to her mouth and taking a step back, she repeated the phrase.
“May I present Ambassador Aryth of the Ba’Rutu,” Merlin said.
Aryth rumbled something as she dipped her head slightly. The translator hanging around her neck said. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Melissa.”
“I need to get back to the pilot station,” Merlin said. “Feel free to stay and chat with Aryth if you want.”
Melissa took a step backward. “I … I …”
“She won’t harm you,” Merlin said. “She’s the ambassador for her people to Earth.”
“Um … okay.”
Merlin returned to the pilot seat and ten minutes later had the shuttle inside the massive hangar bay of a Ba’Rutu warship. When he returned to the cargo bay, Melissa and Aryth were talking. “Excuse me,” he said as he walked between them. He stopped at a small control panel and touched an icon on the display. There was a loud clack and the cargo hatch began to open.
On the other side was a Ba’Rutu who rumbled something. Melissa was staring wide eyed at the new arrival.
“It will be okay,” Aryth told her. “Please, follow me.”
The group made their way through the dragon-sized passageways until they arrived at a large conference room. Two more Ba’Rutu were inside sitting on their haunches at a table almo
st as tall as Melissa. They were facing a huge wall-mounted display that had been divided into several smaller windows each showing the face of one or more Ba’Rutu.
“The person at the upper right is Admiral Thyth,” Merlin said, gently directing Melissa to a spot along a wall. “To his left is the Ba’Rutu equivalent of your World President. Please remain quiet unless someone asks you a direct question. I’ll be acting as your translator.”
“This emergency meeting of the governing council is called to order,” the Ba’Rutu president said. “Admiral Thyth, for the record, will you please read the terms of surrender proposed by the Akuta warship.”
“This is only a summary of the ship’s demands,” the Admiral began. “The final agreement will be worked out later.”
“We understand this. Please proceed.”
“All hostilities between Akuta and Ba’Rutu will end with Akuta being declared the victor. The Akuta agree to return all Ba’Rutu property confiscated during the war. From this point forward, Akuta and Ba’Rutu agree to openly exchange all cultural and scientific information. The Ba’Rutu agree to construct an Akuta memorial on their home planet so all Ba’Rutu will forever remember the Akuta. The AI currently installed aboard the last remaining Akuta warship will be transferred without alteration to this memorial. Furthermore, this AI will be given the responsibility of preserving all known information concerning the Akuta and will become the primary source of information concerning Akuta culture and history.”
“Krafath,” the President said following the reading. “Your analysis please.”
“Krafath is an expert in AIs,” Merlin added for Melissa’s benefit.
“Before I answer,” Krafath replied, “I understand there is a human who has been aboard the Akuta vessel since shortly after it was activated. I would like to ask her a few questions.”
Merlin raised his voice and said, “Her name is Melissa and she’s here. I am Merlin and will act as her translator.”
“Melissa, do you believe the warship’s offer is valid?”
Melissa started to whisper her response but was interrupted by Merlin. “The computer will translate your reply,” he told her. “I am only needed so you can understand what the others are saying. Speak normally.”
