AL:ICE-9

by Charles Lamb

  The blush evident on her face, Sandy replied, “Oh you remembered that huh? Well Jessie had mentioned to me a while back that before the fall, people used to watch nightly programs called news shows.”

  “I am familiar with them,” Jake replied slowly.

  “Well,” she continued after a pause, “I just thought, as the community relationship manager, it might be helpful for people to know what we are up to. I give them information on our progress against the gangs, even progress reports on the patrol. I think it was called community service reports.”

  “So who helps you pick your stories and reviews the content for security concerns?” Jake asked, suspecting he knew the answer before he asked.

  The clear look of confusion on Sandy’s face confirmed his suspicions.

  “Sandy, I applaud your initiative, but whenever you start publishing our internal communications, we need to agree what is public and what we need to keep to ourselves. I had a little talk with Burt in Prosperity after LA, just to bring him up to speed and let him know no harm, no foul on the supply theft. We talked about some of your reports and quite honestly, about 20% of it should never have been transmitted.”

  Jake could see her deflate before his eyes, so he jumped in, “I don’t want you to stop, I just need you to set up a review board, with either myself, Patti, Sara and particularly ALICE. You need someone reviewing your planned program prior to release, OK?”

  That seemed to brighten her spirits while acknowledging the chastising. Jake had a feeling he needed to insert himself more into their community relations programs.

  As if on cue, ALICE interrupted, “Jake, we have an incoming call from the Wawobash. They say it’s urgent.”

  “What’s a Wawobash?” Jake asked, completely confused.

  “Oh I know,” Sandy offered, happy to be contributing, “It’s the six legged canine race.”

  Jake thought about it for just a second, then asked the room in general, “Is it proper to take this informally or do we need to dress up?”

  “No, the Wawobash are a technical people and have quite a casual tradition in inter race relations, shall I put them on Holographic communication for you?” ALICE asked.

  “Just me, not the entire room, I presume I’ll get full translation?” he finished.

  “Yes,” ALICE responded before the image appeared in the center of the room.

  The image was that of a head and shoulders, the head, canine like, positioned on a neck more representative of a human. It made Jake think of the Egyptian God Anubis. It was wearing a vest that was open in the front and showing a full coat of hair on all exposed body parts. Jake was aware it actually had a second set of arms/legs allowing for either a full upright stance with four hands or a down position more like a centaur.

  “President Thomas, thank you for taking my call. I hate to be so direct but we have an urgent matter here that we believe you may be required to address.”

  “What can I do for you?” Jake replied, assuming there would be some delay while they waited for the closest relay to transfer the communications.

  Instead, he got an immediate reply, “We were just alerted to two NeHaw destroyers dropping from faster than light at the edge of our solar system. They have not yet communicated their intentions, but as we have declared our intentions to ally with you, I suspect this is not a peaceful visit.”

  Pausing to consider his options, Jake looked down and picked up the display tablet he had been using during the earlier meeting, typing a quick message to ALICE. With her reply, he looked up again and said, “We actually have a ship in the area, we will dispatch them to your location directly.”

  “Thank you sir, we look forward to their arrival.”

  With that, the connection dropped and everyone sat quietly, waiting for Jake to make the first comment. He sat there for a few seconds not looking at anyone directly, mostly at the ceiling.

  He finally asked, “Can anyone explain to me why that communication was so interactive?”

  “I think I can start,” ALICE began, “It is my understanding that the race described as resembling a humanoid lobster, the Crustacea, placed a NeHaw communications unit in Alaska. I am in fact amazed that it has so quickly established a link to the NeHaw network though.”

  “Are you telling me these people are really named after earthly crustaceans?” Jake asked in amazement.

  “No,” Sandy offered, “They had no pronounceable name, as they use clicks and visual antenna movement to communicate. They permitted us to assign a name we found suitable.”

  Jake paused again, hoping the Crustacea knew of this selection, and then said, “Ok, so we have a tower, what’s it connected to?”

  “Oh I think I know,” Sandy offered again, “I seem to remember them asking if it was a problem to connect to the one on Mars. I said that should be ok, we don’t use anything there anyway,” she finished with a big smile.

  Sara jumped in at this point, “Sandy, they found a NeHaw communications unit on Mars and you didn’t think to tell anyone?”

  “I didn’t think it mattered, we were getting one here of our own,” she said with a frown, “they said it’s logs indicated the NeHaw left it there after the very first bombing here. Apparently that’s why they came here in the first place, but since that crew died trying to put one here they used Mars instead.”

  “ALICE, were you aware of this,” Jake asked, trying not to sound upset.

  “I was aware of the station in Alaska but not the one on Mars. That does explain the connection speed as it had 80 years to connect with the next closest transfer point. The Alaska unit would have linked up within minutes.”

  “Setting this aside for the moment, and adding the need to completely debrief Sandy to the top of our “to do” list, please try and get Revenge on the line. Phase 3 of the testing plan just got trumped.”

  ----*----

  Brian had ordered the retrieval of all external test participants and a verification of course, destination and ETA. This was not a drill. Jake explained the circumstances to him quite clearly and he was depending on him to handle this. This ship and crew were on the cusp of a historic event for earth. It was up to them to determine if that was for the positive.

  ----*----

  After talking with Brian, again in almost real time, Jake called a war council to discuss the implications. Dismissing Sandy and Karen, he had Linda pull in a couple of her analysts for assistance. The two women that arrived were completely unfamiliar to Jake, and they both had the deer in the headlights look upon entering his quarters. Apparently, neither had realized their destination and Jake had been more myth than man to them up to that point.

  Attempting to put them at ease, he offered non-alcoholic drinks and a seat. Once everyone was in place, he began.

  “Ok gang, we need to pull up everything we have on the NeHaw Destroyers, also try to pull visual Intel from the Wawobash if possible. In fact, see if they have any information themselves, beyond what they shared already. This is a motivating moment for them.”

  Jake paused to let the two newbies catch up, as they were both taking notes furiously. He thought about making the brainstorming speech, but passed on it, saving it for later.

  “Jake,” Patti jumped in, “what’s this all about, I thought we all agreed the NeHaw would be too busy elsewhere to start trouble here so soon?”

  “Two destroyers sent to an unarmed planet sounds like intimidation to me, the bigger question is why this planet? If they sent them here, where we have three cruisers we would fry them, or better yet add them to our fleet. This has the smell of recon work, testing the resolve of the people.”

  “What is this race to the NeHaw anyway?” Sara asked.

  Jake pulled up the notes on his pad and then rolling his eyes started reading, “According to Sandy’s notes, they build stuff. She does say they are really good at building boats, but concludes we don’t need boats here.”

  “Boats?” Linda asked.

  “That’s wha
t is says. They build boats. ALICE, how did all this get into the official record for the negotiations?”

  It was very quiet for a good two minutes before ALICE finally replied, “Jake we don’t actually record all human interactions. In fact, we usually only monitor as requested for necessary participation. Sandy held continuous conversations with each of the species participating and we used her notes as the record for that interaction. I now see we may have made an egregious error in taking that approach with her.”

  Jake gave a huge sigh and then said, “OK, Linda, we need you to get together with the other facility commanders. Get a separate analytical team together with Sandy and peel apart these notes. It’s my fault for assuming far too much, but I need you guys to save my bacon. ALICE, how much time do we have?”

  “The Wawobash solar system is only four planets and their planet is the third from the sun. The NeHaw should be in orbit in about six hours. Revenge will arrive on site in two hours, two hours behind the NeHaw.”

  ----*----

  Revenge came out of faster than light, right at the edge of the Wawobash solar system, or at least that’s what his tactical display said. He had no idea what a Wawobash was, but he knew what the two flashing threat indicators were. They marked the two NeHaw destroyers headed straight for the third planet.

  He didn’t call battle stations yet, although he had his best shift on duty. Everyone swapped out as Revenge entered Wawobash space. He claimed he wanted a fresh crew in place, but everyone knew this group outscored every shift in testing.

  As no one was taking down time, let alone sleeping, he had assigned secondary tasks to the available crew in analyzing the scene before them. He wanted full analysis of both the destroyers and a complete breakdown of the Wawobash home world. In particular, he wanted to know what all the junk was in orbit around their planet.

  ----*----

  KoHac was under very strict orders from the head of the High Council, handed to him personally. He was to take his, and a second specifically assigned Destroyer, and verify the rumors of unrest on this planet. Until this mission, he had been under the impression that he was in poor standing with council, his ship previously only receiving the most minor of assignments. He had in fact been on an assignment to collect fertilizer off planet for the council gardens when reassigned for this mission.

  He was also unfamiliar with the captain of the second ship as their standing was even less notable. Apparently, they were an early release from the training academy, the word was they were at the bottom of the class. While their ship was technically fully functional, it was significantly older. KoHac noted they were also at two-thirds crew for this mission.

  It was of no matter to him as he was in charge and it was his chance to gain favor with the council. The mission outline was quite simple, investigate the situation, intimidate as necessary, and keep the damage to NeHaw assets to a minimal. Should he destroy any other races property, well that was all up to them to work out later. If the Wawobash weren’t in trouble, it wouldn’t have been damaged.

  There was one troubling entry in the outline though, should he encounter any rouge NeHaw craft, he was to destroy it at all costs. Rouge NeHaw? Who had ever heard of such a thing?

  ----*----

  Brian knew he was two hours behind his targets and there was no way to make up the difference. As faster than light drives wouldn’t work in the gravity fields of planetary solar systems, they were all reduced to maximum repulser drive speeds.

  The initial threat reports he received from his analysts indicated the smaller destroyers displayed a significant number of guns for so small a craft. The images provided supported the opinion that these ships were armed to the teeth.

  As they were behind both, the analysts had somehow managed to get imagery from the planetary feeds. He suspected that they were getting the same feed as Jake was back home. The good news was most of those guns were pointed forward, the bad news was they had plenty of time to turn before a preemptive strike could be launched.

  They still didn’t have a good theory on what all that orbiting junk was, the current guess was abandoned trash, as it didn’t appear to have any pattern. There was quite a bit of movement amongst the larger pieces, creating a blurry image and making it hard to see.

  ----*----

  Jake sat in the command center of the ALICE-1 facility. He was not alone, as the entire room was filled, each open workstation occupied by some duty personnel performing a task. Patti had shuffled off Sandy with the help of a few others to the conference room Jake had been using for staff meetings. Her grilling preformed both in person and remotely from several locations.

  From the holographic feed they were getting from the Wawobash, Jake could make out both destroyers and Revenge on approach. His team had been in constant communications with Brian and his crew, so Jake felt no need to insert himself needlessly. It was the most frustrating thing he had ever done.

  The destroyers were less than one hour from orbit, and as far as Jake knew, they did not attempt to contact the Wawobash or Revenge. That did not really surprise Jake, as the NeHaw hadn’t proven themselves to be big talkers. The destroyers seem fixed on a specific target.

  On a whim Jake asked, “Hey can we get a visual from Revenge? I’d like to see what they are seeing.”

  After a few moments, the hologram changed and Jake could make out the sterns of both NeHaw ships. He had some trouble at first, as they were lost in the backscatter of clutter orbiting the Wawobash home world. As the image cleared Jake’s heart skipped a beat.

  At that moment, Patti burst from the conference room where she had been working with Sandy and they both announced in unison, “It’s a ship yard!”

  Chapter 14

  KoHac directed his ships to a particular area of the shipyard where he knew they perform civilian construction. As all military construction was exclusively NeHaw, he knew this was the safest place to start punishing the Wawobash for rebellion. If he inadvertently destroyed a NeHaw executive’s possession, well the Wawobash would have to make good on the inconvenience.

  He presumed the pursuing NeHaw cruiser was an inbound repair, as all of its passive identification systems were nonresponsive. It wasn’t unusual for military repairs to continue while commercial activities were in dispute. This shipyard was the largest in NeHaw space and handled all major builds and upgrades for 60% of the fleet. From his location, he could make out dozens of NeHaw combat vessels including cruisers and destroyers. All of these ships either were in repair or newly constructed. The latter held, awaiting final payment before delivery.

  Moreover, that payment, well, it was beyond understanding for a mere underling like himself. Only the High Council knew the exact amount paid for each vessel, but he believed a NeHaw could live very well in retirement for what they paid for a single cruiser. That was why most were still here, as they were ordered on credit. The NeHaw used this as a storage facility and only paid, as needed for each ship.

  Which was why he was over in the civilian section. He did not want to risk damaging or even delaying delivery of a single military ship. Once both destroyers were in position, he had both ships present broadsides to the planet surface allowing for the greatest number of guns to come to bear.

  KoHac then had his communications officer broadcast a planetary wide transmission.

  ----*----

  With the realization that they were seeing hundreds of ships under construction, Jake reeled under the implications. From this viewpoint alone, he identified over a dozen NeHaw cruisers and twenty-five destroyers. Why they were still parked there, in space dock, was something he definitely wanted to know. However, what was more important to him was how he could acquire some.

  While everyone around him was counting and cataloging, they all heard the NeHaw transmission.

  “This is Commander KoHac, renounce this revolt immediately or we shall begin destruction of these ships.”

  Jake got a little panicky as he thought of all those warshi
ps, demolished before his very eyes. He did a quick scan of the room, asking everyone for suggestions. When none were offered, he was about to speak to Brian, when there were several flashes on the display. Revenge had arrived on scene.

  ----*----

  Having heard the same transmission, Brian had his crew go to general quarters. Fortunately, the NeHaw seemed to consider him no threat, as they had completely ignored him to this point. The NeHaw had taken their time getting in position to harass the Wawobash, making a grand show of their weapons. With Revenge still at full ahead, he had closed the distance sufficiently to use the energy cannons to get their attention.

  As their shields were up, he didn’t expect to do much damage at this range, but he knew he needed to stop the destruction of those vessels. Up to this point, this NeHaw captain was doing things exactly by the book, as they all did, so they would turn to face him, ignoring the shipyard. He was just glad Jake had required all combat commanders read the NeHaw combat manuals. Everyone considered it recommended reading for the entire crew as well.

  Their initial volley hit both ships, though all it did was rock the destroyers. Hopefully, it might disable a few gun control systems, but nothing they wouldn’t quickly recover from.

  ----*----

  KoHac, knocked from his chair with the blasts, was taken completely by surprise. He had been unprepared for the Wawobash to respond in such a fashion. It was then his tactical officer announced.

  “Sir, we are being fired upon from the inbound cruiser. What are your orders?”

  The NeHaw cruiser had fired on them? It was then KoHac remembered the peculiar notes in the mission outline. He then commanded, “All guns, return fire!”

  It took several seconds for the weapons officers on both destroyers to reposition the guns 180 degrees. During that time, the cruiser fired several more volleys at both destroyers. As the cruiser came to a halt just outside their orbit, all three ships exchanged fire in rapid succession.