Initiation Series: Series One Compilation (Terran Chronicles)

by James Jackson

  The crowd starts to break up, their entertainment is over. Cindy smiles at Peter, she can hardly wait for his explanation. Her expression turns to one of all seriousness as she gazes at Patrick in the Gamin bodysuit. “Okay, you can get out of that suit now. You need to talk to Olaf and George. They will instruct you on how to use it properly,” she looks at the ceiling adding, “and safely!”

  Cindy turns to leave, but has an idea. “Oh, by the way, congratulations, you’re now an officer. Join me on the bridge after you have put the suit away.”

  Patrick’s jaw drops, he turns to his friend who simply shrugs his shoulders while stuffing wads of money into his pockets.

  “You owe me half of that!” Patrick states bluntly.

  Jeremiah grins, but says nothing in return.

  The crowd of onlookers has dwindled to only a few people. They offer Patrick their encouragement and well wishes, but he senses that they are also pleased that they are not in his shoes.

  Cindy makes her way to the bridge with Peter in tow. He keeps insisting that the only way to get the crew to try the suit was to set up a betting pool. She says nothing but is quietly pleased at his ingenuity.

  Arriving at the bridge, Cindy is surprised to find George, in his suit, working hard at installing the new console. What an asset to the crew, we would have all been killed a few times over if it were not for that man. George mistakenly takes her staring as a sign of disappointment.

  “I will have this up and running in no time,” George says almost apologetically.

  Cindy smiles warmly as she replies, “Take your time. It will be ready when it’s ready.”

  Cindy sits in her raised command chair and watches the colorful display as they travel many times the speed of light. It does not take long for Patrick to arrive, along with Radclyf and Hayato. With John piloting, Joe and Andrew seated, the entire bridge crew is present and accounted for.

  “Gentlemen, meet our newest suit operator.” Cindy motions to Patrick. “George, I want you to train Patrick on the suit’s operations.”

  George grins as he replies, “Sure thing, Olaf will be very happy. He has been spending a lot of time in reactor control. We could use the extra pair of hands that’s for sure.”

  Cindy had almost forgotten about Olaf, and the many issues still plaguing their nuclear reactors. Must make the effort to visit him and thank him. The conscious thought is almost a guilty one.

  While mentally sifting through the huge list of things still to be properly fixed, George proudly speaks up, bringing her thoughts back to the here and now. “This little baby is ready!”

  Everyone on the bridge turns to look. George is standing over the newly installed unit, poised ready to activate it at Cindy’s order. She does not disappoint them. Walking over to watch the console first hand, she stands between Peter and Joe. The curiosity is just too much for them as well.

  “Okay. Let’s see what this console does.” Cindy states with mounting excitement.

  George touches the panel, bringing it to life instantly.

  Joe stares at the display for a moment, then walks to his own where he taps on a few symbols.

  “Hey! That’s a star map of our immediate area.” Joe exclaims.

  Joe walks back to the newly installed console and expertly expands the area, adding more stars to the map. In the middle of the screen, a small green dot is evident.

  Joe expands the field further as he explains, “If I have this right, this is a one hundred light year radius. Our current system can only do twenty. With this, we can probably plot a shorter route home.”

  Peter also paces between Joe’s console and the new one. “What are these other green dots?”

  Joe frowns at a couple of them as he checks his own console, then finally he turns to his laptop. After a full ten minutes, he is just as baffled. “Well they’re not stars, this one is moving really fast” He taps the panel over one of the green dots. The image zooms in, way in. The single green dot splits into twenty dots. A chill works its way up his spine.

  “I think these dots are spaceships, each one with a console just like this one.” Joe states with mounting concern.

  Cindy stares at the dots and suddenly has an epiphany. “The Gamin and their fleet!”

  Joe scrambles between the two consoles. Andrew grins as he recalls the day they discovered the asteroid shower. Joe is on another mission. Joe suddenly frowns, his expression turning dour.

  “If we can see them, then I am sure they can see us!” Joe states warily.

  Cindy considers the ramifications of this before answering. “They didn’t harm us before, but let’s shut it down when we’re done and only use it to update our flight plan.”

  Joe thinks about this for a few minutes while he continues to compare the two consoles. “Oh heck YES.” He exclaims. “We can zoom the map way out to show us Earth, then transfer the data to another console. We would hardly need this at all after that.”

  Cindy considers his idea, and then replies. “Sounds like a good plan.”

  Joe steps back to the unit showing the green dots. One tap resets the display centering the field of view over the dot that represents the Terran. He zooms the map out, once again revealing the green dot that is in reality twenty individual objects. Expanding the field even more reveals another surprise. More green dots. Joe looks at Cindy questioningly.

  Cindy asks curiously, “If that dot represents the fleet that came to Earth, what are these others?”

  Without waiting for an answer, Joe expands the map to reveal a radius of almost one thousand light years. The screen is now ablaze with green dots, hundreds of them, if not thousands. Staggered by the sheer number of dots, he taps a distant one, as the map zooms in it splits into hundreds of others.

  Cindy’s mouth drops open in shock. She nervously looks at Joe, then George, and then orders. “Disengage the main engines and set a new heading. Make it happen fast people. If each dot is a fleet, then we’re looking at tens of thousands of ships. And we thought the twenty or so ships that visited Earth were the Gamin race.”

  Andrew complies while Joe looks at her curiously. “Okay. So, the Gamin have a lot of ships. Why the panic?”

  Cindy turns to him and says, with a chill running up and down her spine, “They are at war with someone, some race that hunts down ships just like this one. And with all those ships out there, they still seem to be losing.”

  Cindy can see that no one is following her reasoning. “The video we saw of the Prime showed a lot of crew, and yet we never saw more than a few dozen on Earth.” She looks at the console one more time as a fearful thought comes to mind. “Shut it down, now!”

  George feels a chill; even on Regent Voknor’s command ship there were not as many crew. Thinking about the Gamin, and Sharz in particular, he feels sorry for them. Just before he shuts the console down, a single symbol flashes for the briefest of moments. It goes unnoticed by all.

  Location:

  Gamin Flagship

  Forty Light years from the Terran

  Sharz is most surprised when he receives a message summoning him to Regent Voknor’s command ship. The fleet hovers in open space between distant suns, another rare event. Presenting himself before the seated Regent, he is further surprised to see two other Primes on the expansive bridge.

  Regent Voknor points at the three of them, his tone and actions quite tense. “I received a rather interesting message, as did you Sharz. It seems that George feels sorry for us and wishes he could help!” He stares at the three Primes, his intense gaze quite piercing.

  Sharz is baffled by the Regent’s statement, but dares not interrupt. George!

  The Regent continues, his tone a mocking mimicry. “The human race is incapable of space flight. The satellite grid will keep them captive.” His voice gets louder, building into an angry crescendo. “And as for the incomplete spacecraft, it should be in a million pieces by now.”

  The Regent shakes his fist at the abashed Primes. “All these ar
e your assessments. So why is there a stray ship with a navicon matching one that was destroyed, sending us messages?” He demands.

  Regent Voknor stares intently at the three Primes before him, practically daring them to speak. He continues when they do not. “My crew has performed a system check on the stray ship. Do you know what we found? The atmosphere is a match for the distant planet where we went to repair!”

  The Regent waves an arm in disgust. “You can talk!”

  Sharz stares at his colleagues, but they remain quiet so he speaks for them all. “The ship has a ‘navicon’ installed? We don’t install those on planets. Where did they get one?”

  Regent Voknor replies, his tone a little calmer. “Its core matches an old ship. It looks like they found a derelict and installed it.”

  Sharz is mortified at the revelation, and asks “They left their planet without a navicon. What else are they missing?”

  “A lot of gravity plates, both internal and external.” Regent Voknor replies.

  “That’s just insane, their casualties must be high. I am surprised the ship is still intact.” Sharz replies, and is not alone in being truly amazed.

  “Also, they have no main power, just barely enough to charge the grid. Along with no main shields or weapons systems.” The Regent continues.

  One of the other Primes interjects, “Are they suicidal, or just plain stupid? How did they even get that ship off the ground? It was set to detonate if a power source was connected.”

  Regent Voknor is just as baffled, and shakes his head in disbelief. “The ship does not have the energy reserves to achieve orbit; they must have augmented it somehow.”

  “They are crazy.” States the last of the Primes. “We need to destroy that ship before they cause unwanted attention!”

  The Regent’s gaze turns to the last Prime to speak. His words have a ring of truth to them. While staring at his primes, he adds yet another revelation. “These simple creatures also installed their own computer system, it is slow and seems damaged. We are reviewing its data.”

  None of the Primes speak up, they are shocked. In all of recorded history, no servitor race has ever done this with one of their ships. Regent Voknor stares at his bridge crew while he contemplates his next course of action.

  With a hint of respect, he states, “These Humans, that’s what they call themselves, are quite industrious.”

  With a wave of his hand he dismisses two of the Primes, leaving Sharz behind. The pair hastily leave the bridge, sending Sharz nervous glances as they depart. Once they are gone the Regent stares long and hard at his newest Prime.

  “What is your recommendation?” The Regent states as he stares intently at Sharz.

  “We should contact them. The human called George is aboard.” Sharz replies.

  Regent Voknor continues to stare at Sharz, his anger diminishing further. “I like him too, for a sub species he has some endearing qualities.”

  Sharz feels a chill as he considers something else that is on his mind. Something the Regent should know before contacting them. “I gave George a translator.” He hesitantly states.

  One of the bridge crew gasps. The Regent leans forward, his eye slits narrow.

  “You did what?” The Regent growls.

  “I wanted George to learn about us. His race is not like any other we have met in a long time. They are so full of potential, yet their citizens are so fragmented.” Sharz explains.

  Regent Voknor sighs, “Well, that settles it then.”

  Sharz bravely meets the Regents stare for a moment, puzzled by what that means. He slowly replies, “So, you wish to destroy them? I would suggest, ah, other alternatives.”

  The Regent strides to his forward view, past a stunned bridge crew. No one dares suggest anything to the Regent. He gazes out at his fleet for a moment, then turns to Sharz and states. “I was right to promote you. None of the others have the courage to offer their own views. Many just tell me what they think I want to hear. Some of them actually disgust me with their drivel.”

  Regent Voknor walks to Sharz and then places a hand on his shoulder. “You shall be responsible for George and any of his actions. Understood?” As Sharz nods, He turns to his bridge crew. “Contact that ship.”

  The crew is so stunned by the unexpected request, the orders take a few extra seconds before they are followed. Regent Voknor stands before Sharz, a supportive hand still on his shoulder.

  “I wonder what the council will think of our clan now?” The Regent states with amusement.

  The Regent grins as he asks the question, and does not expect an answer. The pair spends the next ten minutes discussing the fate of the stray ship. The bridge crew remains quiet as this historic event plays out before them. Never before have they known a Regent to allow such an open dialogue, especially over a ship that would normally be destroyed without a second’s hesitation. However, they have seen George on this very bridge before, and he is a creature with an uncanny charisma.

  Location:

  Starship Terran

  Twenty One Thousand Light Years from Earth

  The bridge of the Terran is a tense place as the realization sinks in that the Gamin who visited Earth were only a small fraction of their total numbers. The Gamin not only exist in vast numbers, they are also at war, but with whom?

  The bridge speakers crackle to life, interrupting all their thoughts. “Computer control here. You guys doing anything with GUS? It just ran flat out for almost five minutes, then stopped.”

  Cindy glances at her bridge crew before answering. “We just installed that new console, but have since shut it down. Perhaps that was it?”

  “Must be.” Replies the computer technician hesitantly.

  As Cindy waits for her crew to get on track, they all relax a little. The newly installed console has been shut down, and with a new heading being plotted, any would be pursuers will have little chance of finding them.

  Cindy stares out at the distant stars, a smug expression on her face. We gained a lot more data in ten minutes than we could ever hope to glean from the small hops we had been doing. Her expression becomes one of horror as the forward view changes. Everyone’s stops at the sight of the Gamin before them. Its yellow eyes darting about, almost as though it can see them.

  The alien’s mouth opens, and the speakers crackle again, “I am Regent Voknor. I will speak with George.”

  George bolts upright at the sound of his name. He turns to the view screen and gulps.

  Cindy raises an eyebrow as she replies with authority, “I am Admiral Cindy. I am in charge of the Terran.”

  George closes his eyes and shakes his head from side to side. He has heard this speech before, and is not all surprised by the Regent’s reply.

  “I will say who is to be your representative.” Voknor demands.

  George steps forward, raises his visor, and then whispers to Cindy, “I think I should reply.”

  Cindy sighs in exasperation, then waves a hand for George to do so.

  George steps out from his suit, stands to Cindy’s left and bows. “Regent Voknor, it is my pleasure to greet you. Once again I am honored by your presence.”

  The alien face on the view screen seems to smile, “Is it true that this female is your superior?”

  George stands straight and meets the Regents gaze respectfully, “She is, though she is allowing me to speak on her behalf at this time.”

  “She bested you in combat?” The Regent questions.

  George is quite perplexed at this new insight into the Gamin. “Uh no, Regent. Cindy requested my presence on this mission.” He pauses briefly as he recalls the way Sharz described his own promotion. “I accepted the honor.”

  Regent Voknor relaxes as he replies, “Ah, I understand now.”

  The Regent stares at them, his face an unreadable mask as it fills the screen. Finally, he continues. “Some of my Primes would have me destroy your ship, indeed I am sure even the council would object to what I am about to do.”r />
  Regent Voknor recalls his crews stunned expressions at his decision, and then muses over the council’s possible reaction. He grabs his sides with his arms, the bony ridges in his forearms stick out as he opens his mouth wide and roars, revealing a lot of teeth in the process.

  George grins as he recognizes the alien’s laughter; the others on the bridge can only stare at the spectacle in surprise. His grin turns into a frown as he wonders what it is exactly that the Regent is finding funny.

  As the Regent regains his composure, his yellow eyes stare at them all intently. He continues, “Prime Sharz has suggested that I not only let you live, but that we should assist you.”

  George glances to Cindy who nods back almost imperceptibly. Seizing the moment, he takes a small step forward and says cautiously. “Your assistance in getting us home would be greatly appreciated. We would be in your debt.”

  “Speak freely, as you have done in the past.” The Regent lifts his clawed hand suggestively.

  With a renewed confidence, George takes a deep breath and states their immediate needs. “We’re experiencing constant problems with the plating we installed to compliment the ship’s gravity plates. We’re also suffering from a chronic shortage of power.”

  Regent Voknor replies almost instantly. “You have sufficient power to get you to your planet. Specifications on how to fabricate your own gravity plating will be transmitted along with the formula to adjust the gravity to your own.”

  Cindy gulps as she realizes the bounty they are being given. She almost speaks, but catches George’s sideways glance.

  George bows slightly. “Today you have made a friend Regent Voknor, and in doing so, have earned our gratitude. May we one day be able to repay your kindness.”

  Joe is stunned as a bunch of new symbols appear on his console. In an instant, the gravity aboard the ship drops. He stares at the information before him, then gulps as it translates into English right before his eyes. He glances at George, then continues to stare in an almost reverent fashion. What dealings has this man had with them before? He most certainly has gained their favor. In an instant, the original Gamin symbols return. Joe touches one, and smiles when the information displayed translates into English.