Captain Zee knew the enemy was just testing his firepower, but those pesky little ships had to go and as each approached him, he simply evaporated them!
His fleet continued to circle Earth II in the protection of its shields and the Ark Royal waited for a direct confrontation with the main ship of the Xnaetheans.
The enemy remained in hiding and the captain and general were willing to wait as long as necessary for the enemy to come out of hiding.
Then a message came in from the enemy’s ship.
This is Arzaitus of Xnaethea’s war fleet. We demand you hand over Zerk which we know you have held in quarantine. He belongs to us. He belongs to my people. We have searched for him for an exceedingly long time. If you do not hand him over now, we will be forced to use everything we have against your world and will destroy you.
With a maneuver neither the general nor the captain had ever seen, the main ship fired one long beam of light that pierced the shields of Earth II in one small space the size of the captain's fist.
The beam had hit the Central Command Center and in the exact location the old Zerk had been housed and had been turned off; he was no longer active.
The general cautioned the captain that they only wanted Zerk dead, and they had hoped to get their hands on him first and do whatever they wished to him, and then to kill him or reprogram him.
There had been no communications from the Central Command Center, but then again, the captain did not expect it as the Command Center was shut down due to the incoming threat.
The captain sent a return message.
This is Captain Zee of Earth II’s military force aboard the Ark Royal.
You now have the same warning, one rotation of our planet around our sun to leave our space. If you do not, we will show you the arsenal you have not seen yet, as we have not displayed our true firepower.
You must take back with you this warning, that we are far advanced than you and have held back our strongest force. We have seen and analyzed your weapons and now know you are bluffing.
When the time is up, we will give you a demonstration as a warning to take back with you.
We do not wish to destroy you, we wish to make you our messenger as a future warning to anyone attempting to visit Earth II’s space.
This is Captain Zee signing out. There will be no further communications.
Every smaller ship Arzaitus had in his fleet he had sent out and they were blown to bits and pieces until his entire fleet was gone.
Their shields were much weaker than the captain had first predicted, and it became clear the captain had the advantage over Arzaitus. But Arzaitus had to gloat one last time.
We have taken out your Zerk you held hostage, and he is no longer useful for you. We know he is no longer in existence because there is no sign of him.
That is when the captain sent the command to the strategic combat systems to have Zerk send his special message before firing one last volley at the enemies’ ship.
Arzaitus, this is Zerk. I was not going to make myself known, but it is time to inform you, I oversee the strategic battle.
I am not the Zerk you remember, and I have been fixed and no longer carry your corrupt programming! We know all your strategies and they are flawed.
We have technologies far beyond what you could imagine, and we are giving you one final warning to leave before we must take unwanted action against you.
The Zhianites are a peaceful people and will remain that way, but when provoked, they can and will destroy any enemy that approaches their space.
This is your last and final warning.
When Arzaitus heard the voice of the new and improved Zerk, he knew it was him and that the Zhianites had had a doppelganger!
But Arzaitus had waited a little longer than Zerk or the captain cared for and the command was given. Arzaitus’ ship sustained a lot of damage to one entire section with one single shot, which meant their shields could in no way stand up to the full power of the Ark Royal’s arsenal and was basically sitting in space and made a perfect target.
Within a short time, all 200 in the Ark Royal’s fleet surrounded the only ship Arzaitus had left, and it was the one he was in and commanded.
It was obvious Arzaitus had sent a message back to his planet because the message was intercepted and sent back to Arzaitus as an example of what the Ark Royal could do.
Half of the captain’s fleet placed a track hold on Arzaitus’ ship and led it out of Earth II’s space. They would now escort a broken ship back to its destination as a warning to anyone in the future who thinks they can invade Earth II.
Arzaitus knew that the captain could have blown him and his ship to small particles in space, but he chose instead to spare him and send him packing.
But the hardest thing for Arzaitus must have been knowing Zerk was not only still alive, he no longer carried the corrupt programming Arzaitus had installed in him. Zerk would and could now be the worst enemy Arzaitus and his world had ever known.
Zerk knew all their secrets and was able to predict any new technologies they may have discovered based on his knowledge of their planet and its development over thousands of years.
Meanwhile, the general called the Ark Royal back to Earth II, but the news that reached Captain Zee that the strike had hit the Central Command Center and Syra may have been inside was devastating to him.
Captain Zee had been so busy fighting this battle for days and days that he had placed all his concentration on destroying the enemy.
Even though he knew that beam had hit a small portion of the Central Command Center, he had no idea anyone was in it until the message came in that they were now on a rescue mission to pick through the rubble to find victims.
But Captain Zee had to put all those emotions aside. He was captain now. He understood he was mostly a bot, and that there were good reasons for him to have emotions, this was one time those emotions nearly got the best of him.
But Captain Zee continued to command the Ark Royal. He would now return to Earth II to the Crawford Military Base with 100 of his fleet.
The fleet escorting Arzaitus sped through space at speeds unheard of in Arzaitus’ world. Captain Zee suspected that the shock of being transported or towed back to Xnaethea would be embarrassing enough, but to be towed by such highly advanced technology and by the Zhians would be really bad for Arzaitus when he must speak with his people.
Captain Zee was now approaching Earth II and lowered the shield in the space in which he and his fleet would pierce through and soon landed at the base.
He needed to meet with Crawford right away and they had much to discuss. At the meeting, the general suggested that even though the shield was self-correcting once it was penetrated, they would need to reassign the Zhian Sphere and he would be a new space station rotating Earth II’s space.
There was no time to try to reach Syra or anyone at the Central Command Center with all that was going on there.
The general knew they needed to act right away. With Captain Zee’s help, they began working on the Zhian Sphere and within no time at all, it was now ready for liftoff and to orbit Earth II’s.
The captain left his Ark Royal and would now once again board the Zhian Sphere and report to its command center.
He and a small crew raised the Sphere far above the mountaintop; the extended props the Sphere had rested upon were now retracted.
The Zhian Sphere pierced through the opening in the shields which closed immediately afterward, and it was now in Earth II’s orbit within a very short time.
Ellead was would soon land in the Sphere’s cargo bay and await the captain to board him. Once that was done, he then returned him to the Crawford Military Base.
Once Ellead landed, Captain Zee looked up as it was now evening, and the sky was now darkened. You could see the Zhian Sphere circling Earth II as a permanent watchful eye, and it glowed like a lit up super-moon.
With the new Zhian Sphere Space Station now in orbit, the next plan
of Crawford was to set up a new base inside the station and already he was getting hundreds of requests to serve on the space station.
Meanwhile, back at the Central Command Center, every man or woman available, and every piece of equipment was working to remove the debris and serve as the greatest rescue on Earth II.
Even with just one side of it collapsed, it was such a large spherical building it would take some time to clear it.
By the time the captain arrived, some of the first victims were now being rescued and were taken to the Trexien Medical Center which was close by.
When the captain found Zach and his sister Zoey among the crowd waiting for word on who was inside, he knew immediately it had to be Syra and James!
The captain had never felt so anxious in his entire existence and it was that moment he realized he had no idea exactly how long since he had been created.
One thing for certain, the turning point in his existence was the day he was freed from his bot name, Zee10!
So many things began running through the captain’s mind as he waited for word on Syra. He could remember as far back as when she was conceived by her parents, and he was told he would one day watch over her.
He had waited more than 2,000 years for Syra’s birth to be authorized and he watched her first day of life take place. He had been there for her every moment of her life and would be there for her now if it was the last thing he ever did.
For the first time in Zee’s existence, he understood his love for Syra. He was her guardian angel, and now he had not been there for her. He had been off performing the duties of a true captain.
But the captain Zee would make up for that. He had always been there for her and wondered why on Earth II she went inside the Central Command Center. Either way, the captain rushed over to help them dig through the rubble.
When they finally found the small crew that was in the side of the building that collapsed, Syra and James were found and were barely clinging to life along with others.
Zee helped Trexien bring the restore pod to Syra and they placed her inside it. Trexien looked over at the captain and said, “Turn it on, you know what to do.”
Zach and Zoey looked over at each other and were both baffled. “Why would Dr. Trexien tell Captain Zee he knew what to do?” Zoey asked her brother.
“I have no idea, that does not make sense. Why would Dr. Trexien tell Zee to turn the restore pod on? he knows how to do that himself!” Zach said.
BOOK THREE
chapter seven
All of Earth II waited anxiously to find out how Syra and James were doing. They were both so severely injured during the attack on Earth II, everyone was now unsure if either would survive.
The Xnaetheans had managed to break through one small point of the shields around Earth II and had hit the Central Command Center, which caused a small collapse in the building.
Trexien would do whatever it took to save them. Zach and Zoey, their adult children, waited outside Trexien’s medical center emergency room. The restore and healing pods held Syra, James, and a few of the crew that worked in that side of the center.
Zach and Zoey paced the floor because both knew that the restore pods were meant for those who were of Zhian descent and were only used as a lifesaving device.
The healing pods were separate, but one pod could be used for both purposes. The pods had only been programmed for the human’s once Syra landed on Earth some 70 years earlier.
Those pods had been healing the Zhianites for thousands of years and prolonging their lives.
James was dying, and something had to be done immediately, so Trexien suggested adding Syra’s DNA to James’ to increase the chances of his survival and that, that would either heal him or kill him; either way, he was dying.
Far more than normal repair needed to be done to have any kind of chance in saving James and so Zach and Zoey had to decide what the best thing to do was and do it now.
Neither wanted to make a decision that would cost him his life, but with no time to spare, both gave Trexian permission to run the restore pod at its full capacity once the Zhian DNA was injected into their father. They would then just have to wait and see.
Meanwhile, it was obvious through the window on the restore pod that Syra was going through some changes no one had ever expected.
James was also healing and showing signs of improvement as time went on, but his recovery would take some time and he would be in stasis until the entire ordeal was over and he was fully restored if even that was possible.
Each day, Zach and Zoey spent as much time as they could at the Trexien Medical Center. But there was much work to do to repair the Central Command Center.
Zach realized that the hit was directed at the very location the old Zerk was being held. He had been destroyed and there was nothing left of him.
Zach explained to Zoey that he believed their parents must have been trying to make sure there was no signature from the old Zerk that the Xnaethean’s could trace and had just not had enough time to exit the building completely.
The general and the captain both called a meeting with Zach and filled him in on why the Zhian Sphere was now circling Earth II.
It was believed that had they had that ship circling in Earth II’s orbit, they would have had more power to the shields protecting them.
A lot of focus was now placed on the Zhian Sphere for its new purpose and on the 100 ships of the Ark Royal’s fleet that were now traveling deep in space.
A new crew was now assigned to the Zhian Sphere Space Station and would be sent there to check their Earth II space and any activities to protect them even more than it already had.
The new space station would now be able to monitor Earth II’s activities from its oceans, mountains, beaches, lakes and any pertinent activity including weather and send the data back to the observatory, as well as the Central Command Center, once the repair was complete.
Zach was well pleased with what Crawford and Zee had carried out in such a short period of time. But in the backs of everyone’s minds, the healing of Syra and James weighed heavy.
Trexien called Syra’s children and grandchildren to see him immediately because he had some things to discuss with them and to show them.
He also called in Zee, because only he could explain some of the strange things that were happening to Syra.
Once everyone was present in Trexien’s office, he asked them to walk with him to Syra’s restore pod so he could show them and have Zee explain it as only he could.
Zach and Zoey both were stunned. Their mother had lost all the gray and silver in her hair and her long hair was now as black as it was before she met and married their father.
They could clearly see an age reversal and all they could do was look at Zee for an explanation!
Zee and Trexien asked them to please take a seat.
Zee explained that the orders to save Syra should she ever need it went back over 2,000 years ago. His orders were to save her at any cost, and he did. He was the only one programmed to access the restore pod and to reverse the damage in order to guarantee her restoration, transformation and her survival.
He explained that Earth had had some negative effects on her as it did with any Zhianite but was easily corrected with the healing pod.
But with Syra being so heavily injured, he needed to reverse her age in order to guarantee complete recovery, and so he did as he was instructed a very long time ago.
He said that Syra would need all of this explained to her when she awakens.
This was an old command given to Zee thousands of years ago and Syra was never informed of it. No one ever expected it to ever need to be executed in the first place.
But both Zach and Zoey agreed that it should not be until they know James’s chances of making it now that he had Syra’s DNA injected in him.
It would take some time for the DNA of Syra to work on a human, and no one expected a miracle of any sort.
At this point,
both Zach and Zoey would stay by their parents’ side. The pods were in the same room and they would take turns sleeping, and one would always be awake to call upon the other should anything change.
Zach and Zoey’s children and grandchildren constantly begged to give them a break and they would not accept it.
Each day, they saw their mother Syra slowly changing. Every few days, she appeared a year or so younger and this continued to the point, Zoey spoke up, “how far back in my mother’s years will this go?”
Trexien reminded Zoey that as he had said earlier until she reached a time before she landed on Earth. That would put her at 25 years of age.
“Oh, my goodness, my granddaughter is 25!” Zoey laughed and then started to cry for absolutely no reason at all.
Zach was so stunned, he was still having a problem understanding how the restore pod could change one’s age so drastically. In all his life, he had never seen nor heard of such an ability by the restore pod!
“Zach, this was only set into motion by her ancestors who saw to it that Syra would live until she chose not too!” Zee went on to explain, “I was not able to ask Syra if she wanted to end her life or go on. Therefore, I made the judgment call to save her the way I was commanded to do so a very long time ago!”
“So, are you saying that my mother could basically live forever if she chose too?” Zack asked.
“Yes,” Zee answered.
“Does she know this?” Zack asked.
“No, she does not, but she will now!” The captain replied.
That was when the news spread across Earth II, that the transformation of Syra was taking place!
“Can you do this for our father?” Zoey asked sounding most desperately.
“Unfortunately, I cannot. He is all human with only some of Syra’s DNA, however, I can extend his life at least another 100 or so years before the healing pod stops working for him,” The captain explained.
“We are half human, half Zhianite so what will happen to us?” Zoey asked.
“You will live for as many years as you choose as long as your bodies can accept the healing the pods give you,” The captain said.
The Chronicles of Syra Omnibus Page 47
