Aboard Griffin
“You are here!”
The groggy crew and passengers jumped at the loud, electronic shout.
“Ya, Iggy. We’re here.”
“When are you coming down to see your new home?”
Everyone looked at each other in muddled consternation.
“We need to achieve orbit, Iggy. Then check out Griffin. Make sure she’s tip-top and purring.”
“But when are you coming down?”
“That’s for Cap to decide, Iggy. It’s been what? Two thousand years, plus? Just a little longer.”
“Ok, Sir Mack.”
“And no pouting.”
“I’m not pouting.”
“Iggy?”
“Well, maybe a little. It’s just that, it’s been so long.”
“I’ll nag the Cap, Iggy.” Mack looked at Krag. Krag returned a thumb up.
“But that last jump took the stuffing out of me. First coffee. Then shower and clean up.”
Krag, Keiko and Sue passed looks as they fought off the cobwebs.
“Coffee, Cap. I need coffee.”
“We all do, Mack. Grab some. Then we plan.”
Everyone reached the galley. With stretches and yawns, the humans made their hot beverages and Gopai made his lukewarm one. Vidhee and Buster took up their usual spots. As they all sat, in their accustomed seating arrangement, Varrini and the doctors straggled in, followed by Princess Analyn and Sir Mahajani. The Griffin crew quietly sipped and watched as the newly arrived put together their cups of tea and took their, also familiar, places.
“As Igaklay pointed out, we’re here.”
“Yes! When do we go down?”
“Easy, Doctor Ganakin. You too, Doctor Roshnak. We do it by the numbers. Princess Analyn. Would you please contact Tribune Ambakai and have him join us?”
“Certainly, Captain Marston.” The Princess went quiet then mentally returned. “Tribune Ambakai will arrive shortly.”
Everyone sipped their drinks and slowly came back to life. Tribune Ambakai arrived.
“My Princess.” The Tribune saluted. Princess Analyn nodded.
“Captain Marston, Liege Buster.”
Again, he saluted. Krag nodded. Buster returned the salute.
“Make some tea. Sit. We need to plan our first contact.”
“At your command, Captain Marston.” Ambakai followed his orders and finished by sitting next to Sir Mahajani.
“This is new to me. So, I need to turn the meeting over to our doctors. Doctor Ganakin, Doctor Roshnak, would you be so kind as to plan our first landing on Ballison?”
“You don’t need to do that, Captain Marston.”
“I understand, Igaklay. You are in a hurry. But Humans and Elonians are fragile creatures. We need to be sure that we are safe.”
“You are, I promise, Ambassador Suzume.”
“We don’t doubt you, Igaklay. But you have watched us now for a time. You know we worry. You wouldn’t want us to worry, would you?”
“No, Ambassador Suzume.”
“We’re here. We are coming down. Just let us take some steps so that we feel safe.”
“Ok.”
“Iggy?”
“I’m not pouting, Sir Mack.”
“As I was saying, Doctors?”
“Usually, we achieve orbit then send in a squad of Guardsmen. But, this time, we have an atmosphere. So, we need to sample it and the ground for any pathogens.”
“Understood. Buster, would you bring us into orbit? Talk with Igaklay and determine the best geosynchronous point?”
“I have just communicated with Igaklay, Captain. We will be in a static position over the Ballisonian Capital.”
“Thank you, Buster. As you were saying, Doctor Ganakin?”
“We need atmospheric testing. At all levels, from the ground up to the Stratosphere.”
“That’s next. Mack, Sue. Could you rig one of our decoy drones?”
“Easy-peasy, Cap.”
“Get together with the doctors to get the specs.”
“On it.”
“Time frame?”
“Today. We can launch tomorrow morning?”
Mack looked at Sue. She chewed her lip, tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear then nodded approval.
“Ya, Cap. Ready by tomorrow morning.”
“We will need soil samples, Captain.”
“Of course, Doctor.”
“And a clean room.”
“A section of the cargo bay is designed for conversion to an operating theatre. We can use that.”
“Also, when we used a drone for collection, we had a sealed bay for decontamination.”
“We don’t have one of those on board.” Krag thought for a moment. “Leave the drone in space and retrieve the samples?”
“That will work.”
Tribune Ambakai, are any of your people trained in external vehicular activities?”
“All of them, Captain Marston. Both maintenance and combat. And we brought our EVA gear.”
“Perfect. We’ll use one of your men to retrieve the aerial Samples.”
“I will perform the task myself.”
“That works. Doctor, do you have some analysis gear that Tribune Ambakai can take down to the planet?”
“Yes, Captain. I will train him in its usage.”
‘My medical specialist will be better at that, Doctor. I will send him to you.”
“I’ll train him this afternoon.”
“Tribune Ambakai, are your men ready for planet-side?”
“Very ready, Captain Marston. Between being ship-bound and the blackouts, they are ready to run.”
“Excellent. Once the drone returns and the doctors analyse the results, you and your team are next. Questions?”
No one voiced any.
“I think that’s all. Let’s get started. Igaklay, is that alright with you?”
“I suppose.”
“Iggy?”
“I know. No pouting.”
“Or sulking.”
Two eager Elonian doctors and one Royal Tribune left, taking their teas with them.
Krag drew a circle in the air with his finger and pointed towards the Faraday cage. The remaining beings understood. Four humans, three Elonians and two synthetics headed for the soundproof and electronic-proof room. After everyone squeezed in, Mack closed the door.
“Mack, Igaklay is getting worse.”
“Ya. More whiney.”
“You catch that he thinks that we will make Ballison our home?”
“Ya, Cap. Not good.”
“No, Mack. Not good.”
“We are walking a fine line here,” Keiko interjected.
“Yes, Ambassador Suzume. We are walking a narrow crest. What are your plans?”
“Captain Marston has a better grasp of the big picture, Your Highness.”
“The end goal is to get to Sasania. See what this invasion is about. And see if we can help.”
“What if the aliens have expanded their invasion? Moved into Dorogon? The rest of the systems?”
“We won’t know that until we get there, Keiko. With Dorogon the next system in line, I understand your worry about your family, everyone there. But we can only achieve the goals we can see. We focus on getting Griffin ready to fight these aliens. That’s step one.”
“Ya, Cap. Step two is not getting Iggy riled.”
“Definitely step two.”
“And getting off Ballison without Igaklay throwing a tantrum.”
“You’re right, there, Sue. That’s part of step two.”
“When you say ‘ready’, are you talking about further weaponizing Griffin?”
“Yes, Vidhee. If there is Ballison technology that will help us fight the alien invaders, then we will utilize it.”
“I know this goes against your programming, Vidhee. But Captain Marston is right. We need every advantage we can acquire.”
“Yes, I know, Buster. All this just causes me logi
c loops that affect my personality matrix.”
“Ya mean ya don’t like it, huh, Syn-Gal. we don’t like it ether. But we must do what we must do.”
“Maybe you should help me rewrite some of my code. Help me be more accepting of violence.”
“That is something we definitely will not do, Vidhee. You will not change anything. As Captain of this ship, I am making that an order.”
“What Captain Marston means, Vidhee, is that you are the settling force on this ship. You bring harmony and balance. We Humans tend towards violence. You help to remind us that violence is not always the answer.”
“As you know, Elonians are the same. We also come from an evolution of violence. As your Princess, I also make that a command. In fact, I command that you create a permanently running module which constantly analyzes and assesses Elonian plans and actions, constantly searching for alternate solutions. Captain Marston, may I include Humans in that command?’
“Of course you may, Your Highness.”
“Include Humans in your analytics parameters.”
“As you command, My Princess.”
“You stepped in that one, Vidhee.”
“Now you have dirt metaphors, Buster? Yes, I seem to have stepped in it.”
“Back to our problem. What to do with Igaklay. Thoughts?”
“I think we treat Igaklay as an only child. Someone constantly controlled by his parents. Never learning about negotiation or having to give a little to get a little. Someone who learned that he could get his way by making his parents miserable.”
“Very astute, Ambassador Suzume. We have many cubs in our clans like that. They don’t even realize it, but they think of themselves as the center of the universe.”
“It’s true. Igaklay does look upon us as peoples here for his beck and call. So, Ambassador, Princess, how do we cope with this self-centered, spoiled child?”
“We change it, Keiko volunteered. “We make him realize he is part of a family. That we are not just a resource. We force him to rework his personality matrix to include the importance of family. We raise our importance in his eyes, so to speak.”
“And how do we do that?”
“As Keiko said, we treat him as family. Let him know he is one of the kids. Not in charge.”
“That’s going to be hard to do, Iggy being a giant moon, and all.”
“We’ll figure it out as we go along, Mack. And you get first crack. You and Igaklay have already developed a pretty good rapport. Up the game. Work him like he’s your little brother.”
“Never had one of those. But I know what you mean, Cap.”
“Sue, big sister.”
After her now-common lip chew, she answered, “I do have one of those. I’ll give it a try.”
“Don’t be afraid to bully him a little. Tease him. Toughen him up.”
“I am sure Sir Mack can do that.”
“Ha, ha, Syn-Gal.”
“Keiko, Igaklay already looks upon you as one of his mentors, he called us his Overseers. I think you need to expand that into the role of ‘mother’.”
“If I’m going to play mommy, you get to play daddy.”
“Oh, I’ll be real good at that.” Krag’s sarcasm fairly dripped. “Buster, you don’t get off easy. You are chief educator on all things human.”
“I already figured that out, Captain. Vidhee and I have been communicating. We believe that she should take on the role as educator for all things Elonian.”
“Princess Analyn. Is that acceptable?”
“I am not skating on my personal pond, Ambassador Suzume. I will follow Vidhee’s lead. Yes, it is acceptable.”
“Then let’s get back to building the Doctor’s drone sensor while we start reeling in this moon-sized child, then.”
“Another fishing reference? Dirt next?”
“Oh, Vidhee. I’m coming for ya, Syn-Gal.”
If the synthetic Elonian could have smiled, she would have. She simply flicked an ear.
* * * * *
Mack and Sue proved true to their words. Mack succeeded in modifying a decoy drone to collect samples. Sue, under the guidance of the Elonian doctors, programmed the flight path and collection points. All the while they kept Igaklay figuratively close, involving him in every step of the construction. Everyone made the effort to keep the Ballisonian A.I. involved, a part of the team.
Buster launched the drone. The autopilot took over. Everyone, with the exception of the uninterested Guardsmen and maids, watched from the galley. The drone corkscrewed through the atmosphere, periodically scooping up samples and storing them in numbered containers. The bottom of its descent took it in a full rotation around the giant pyramid that Igaklay had designated as Ballison’s government center. Less than ten meters from the ground, the drone finished its pre-programmed descent, pitched to the vertical and blasted back into space.
Everyone continued to watch as Buster brought the drone to the underbelly of Griffin and clamped it to her hull.
“The drone is secured, Captain.”
“Thank you, Buster. Tribune Ambakai, your turn,” Krag announced over the intercom. “Buster, please give us a split screen with external views and the cargo bay.”
The view screen in the galley split into two separate live feeds. All saw the eight Elonian Guardsmen fully dressed in their hazardous environment suits,
“They’ve even got tails. Not so bulky. They look more flexible. I think I like them better than ours, Cap.”
“You’ll like my suits even better, Sir Mack.”
“Just ‘Mack’, Iggy. Just ‘Mack’. Boyo! For the smartest thing in the galaxy, you sure learn slow, Iggy.”
Everyone cringed at Mack’s criticism, hoped that he hadn’t gone too far.”
“I know, Sir, I mean, Mack. It’s just that, I set the logic path for Sir Mack. It’s all through my data set.”
“Well, Iggy, you get to clean that out. If we are going to be friends for a very long time, you need to act like my friend.”
With some relaxing of concern, everyone continued to listen.
“And that means no more of this ‘Sir Mack’ nonsense.”
“Ok, Sir Mack. One moment.”
Everyone waited the moment.
“It’s done, Mack. Are we still friends?’
“We always were, Iggy. And like all good friends, we argue. Now tell me. How are your suits better than the Elonians?”
“When you get here, I’ll show you.”
“Now you’re just teasing me, Iggy.”
“No, really! You will like them a lot better!”
“Seeing is believing, Iggy.”
“We all are looking forward to seeing your suits, Igaklay.” Krag gave Mack a look of approval. He liked Mack teasing Igaklay, treating the A.I. as a kid.
“Thank you, Captain Marston.”
Everyone turned back to the split-screen viewer.
“Bay hatch is sealed, Captain Marston. Permission to withdraw atmosphere.”
“Permission Granted, Tribune Ambakai.”
Legate Buster, please withdraw atmosphere.”
“Atmosphere being withdrawn, Tribune Ambakai.”
The huge pumps that sucked the air out of the bay and into storage tanks whirled into motion. For a brief time winds swirled through the bay, buffeting the EVA-suited Elonian Guardsmen, who remained firmly clamped to the deck with their magnetic, EVA boots. The wind stopped. The pumps wound down. A single Guardsman carrying a hermetic container broke from the group.
“Why did they pull all of the air out of the cargo bay, Captain Marston? And not just use the exit hatch?”
“To preserve the air, Gopai. And to prevent possible contamination. By keeping the cargo bay close to the same temperature and pressure as outer space, we can pretty much guarantee that no contaminates will get on board. We don’t have the same scientific security as Wisdom Seeker. So we needed to improvise.”
“I understand, Sir.”
Everyone watched the lone Gua
rdsman, who they knew to be Tribune Ambakai, walk in a strange gait to the airlock. With the vacuum in the cargo bay, he opened both doors of the personal hatch and shuffled through.
Watching the external feed, the galley watched as Ambakai performed his strange, magnetic walk to the scout drone, cracked its lid, retrieved the samples and placed them in the hermetic container. Once he latched the seal, he shuffled back to and through the airlock, closed everything up and proceeded to the operating theatre. Then he placed the case in an impermeable analysis box and exited the enclosure.
“Legate Buster, please repressurize the bay.”
The pumps reversed and drained the holding tanks of their atmosphere, repressurizing the cargo bay.
After watching the completed tasks, Krag stated, “Doctors, you’re up.”
An hour later, after their lab work, Doctor Ganakin made the pronouncement.
“We have a whole range of microbes, bacteria and viruses that are alien to both Humans and Elonians, Captain.”
“Understood. Then we need a vaccine?”
“That would be my recommendation, Captain.”
“Vidhee, Buster, Igaklay. Can you whip up our vaccine?”
“I am very familiar with the organisms Doctor Ganakin has listed, Captain Marston. I don’t believe they are dangerous.”
“They may not be, Igaklay. But, we Humans have a saying. It is better to be safe than sorry.”
“But you will be alright, Ambassador Suzume!”
“Elonians have the same saying, Sir Igaklay. We would rather insure that our ice is thick.”
“Oh, alright.”
“Thank you, Igaklay.”
“Ya, Iggy. You’re doing good.”
“I can give Mistress Vidhee and Liege Buster the chemical formulas for building the immuno-defensive compound.”
“Thank you, Igaklay. That will be very helpful to our Den.”
“You are welcome, Ambassador Suzume.”
“And your Den, Iggy.”
“Yes, Mz. Sue. My Den.”
“And, you don’t want your Den to worry, do you, Igaklay?” Keiko emphasized the word ‘your’.
“No, Ambassador Suzume.
“So, let’s get this done so that we all can get down there. How are we doing, Buster, Vidhee?”
“Igaklay downloaded the formulas, Captain. I am working on the Human vaccine while Vidhee is working on the Elonian one. I would say, three minutes for design. Then we need to create the serums and test them. Two hours?”
Battle in the Stars (Marston Chronicles Book 4) Page 8
