“Why does that make him a radical?” Lilpax asks, her inexperience showing.
Skylow grins widely, revealing his sharp teeth as he responds, “Our previous Regent would eliminate much of the population before demanding resources. The remaining survivors became quite agreeable.”
Before they can continue the discussion, a shuttle returns from the planet. The survey team strides out, and upon seeing Skylow and Lilpax, head their way.
Skylow glances to Lilpax, then says, “That was quick! Problems?”
“None,” one of the team replies, “In fact, we have two possible settlement sites, and with your approval, we can let them choose where they settle.”
“Lilpax will coordinate the resettlement!” Skylow states, then leaves, to make his way to the bridge.
Regent Voknor watches from the bridge as shuttles transport the survivors to the planet. He adjusts the main viewer, and continues to observe as an area is cleared, and temporary structures are erected.
Lilpax is not sure exactly what she is to do, and decides to send a construction team to begin fabricating permanent structures, and the necessary industry to sustain their culture.
Voknor stands, stretches, then unexpectedly says, “Skylow, watch the fleet, I am going to the planet.”
The hangar deck is a hive of activity. Construction crews are busy loading prefabricated sections onto shuttles, other teams are loading mining craft. Upon seeing their Regent, they stop, and await any instructions he may have.
Voknor feels energized by the activity he witnesses, and says, “Carry on!”
The crew energetically returns to their duties, many putting in extra effort, especially with the Regent in their midst.
Voknor meanders around, then stops when he spots a mining craft sitting off to one side. He recalls his early years, when he was relegated to the laborious task of strip mining for resources, and grins. No one realized that he actually enjoyed that task. He climbs inside, then using his personal crafting tool, performs a few comfort modifications.
A shuttle pilot takes the initiative and boldly walks up to Voknor and says, “Regent, I am about to make a trip to the planet, and I have room for that miner if you wish it!”
Voknor grins as he replies, “There is no task that I would not ask of any of you, that I would not do myself. Yes, I will take this mining craft and assist.”
The bridge crew is stunned when they learn that Voknor is on the planet, clearing land, and mining. Prytec hurriedly assigns an overwatch, but soon relaxes when reports come in that he is not mingling with the survivors, but simply mining.
The days pass quickly, and the settlement expands fast. A huge wall is erected around the entire area, leaving vast swathes of land inside for future growth. The one thing not being given to the survivors, is weapons. They will have to fashion their own sometime in the future. Thus, the wall is a protective measure against the various predators identified on this lush world.
Voknor enjoys operating the mining craft so much, he is disappointed when he finally unloads it from a shuttle and parks the craft on the hangar deck.
The shuttle pilot grins as Voknor steps out, and says, “I will make sure no one uses your craft Regent!”
“Gratitude,” Voknor replies, then returns to the bridge.
Skylow nods respectfully as Voknor sits in his chair. The morale boost to the clan over the Regent working alongside them is huge.
Lilpax happily relays, “Tarkol sends his appreciation, and reports that due to our assistance, he feels that they now have a fighting chance at survival.”
Voknor nods, then surprises them once more when he orders, “Send down a shipment of projectile weapons. They may need them for self-defense.”
Skylow pauses for a moment, thinking that perhaps Voknor is joking. Realizing that he is serious, Skylow relays the instructions.
Regent Voknor leans back and orders, “Cushkull, inform the fleet we are departing soon. As soon as Frazik has somewhere for us to go, that is!”
Frazik has difficulty not laughing when he replies, “Oh I know where we can go!”
Lilpax is perplexed when the bridge crew breaks out into raucous laughter.
Voknor catches her expression, then says, “I never got it at first either, then I realized that we really never go anywhere. All we do is travel back and forth within our assigned region of space, well we are supposed to anyway!”
Cushkull turns and reports, “The fleet is ready Regent.”
Frazik taps on his console, then says, “I have located a planet; one we should see if it meets our needs as a ship building site!”
Voknor leans forward, then says, “Let’s go!”
Payback
Frazik stares at his console in disbelief, then relays his findings, “We’re receiving a distress call; it seems to be coming from a fleet of Kord spacecraft.”
“Kord?” Voknor queries, “Why does that race sound familiar?”
Lilpax glances around, then, when no one else responds, says, “The Emperor has advised that we avoid all contact with the Kord; their technology is on par, or ahead, of our own, and their relations with the Atlans have yet to be determined.”
“Okay, so who is attacking them?” Voknor queries.
Frazik reviews more data, then replies with a grin, “They claim they are being attacked by Effen Raiders!”
Lilpax adds her findings, “Regent, the battle is beyond our assigned area, or in fact, any clan’s area of operations.”
Voknor seems to ignore her comment as his eyes narrow. He replies aggressively, “Oh, but we owe them! Tell the Kord we’re coming to assist!”
While Frazik relays the news to the Kord, Voknor activates the fleet-wide communications and states, “We have an opportunity to engage an Effen Raider force. Primes, Plot Four! Do not engage any craft not identified as a Raider, we’re about to assist a little-known race called, Kord.”
Lilpax frowns, she has just informed Voknor that the Emperor himself has ordered the Gamin to have no contact, and yet here he is, breaking yet another edict. She has heard stories that he is a radical, and is beginning to believe them.
Cushkull reviews his data, then says, “The battle is merely three hundred, twenty-seven light years away. At maximum speed, we can be there in almost no time at all!”
“All forces are to engage the Effen Raiders the second they arrive at the target coordinates!” Voknor orders as he relishes the idea of surprising the Raiders.
The ship shudders slightly as Cushkull pushes their engines hard, overriding safeties, in an attempt to keep up with the rest of the fleet. The kaleidoscope of colors that bombard the main viewer is striking.
Travel time at their phenomenal speed, is short.
“Arrival in four… three… two… one!” Cushkull announces, then reduces their speed. He engages the sub-light engines, and pushes them to full power.
The scene before them is chaotic. An expansive space station is under attack, presumably by the Effen Raiders, with fifteen vessels attempting to defend the target. The attackers are inflicting considerable damage, with gas venting from numerous areas of the station. Three space-docks are connected to a central core by a series of support struts. Though these docks are large in comparison to the station, they would not be sizable enough to house any of the Gamin craft.
Machkno targets the nearest aggressor with all weapons, and says, “Target locked!”
Regent Voknor sneers, “Let them have it!”
Frazik reviews his data and reports, “If I have identified the forces properly, there are eight small Raiders, and two larger craft engaging the Kord forces.” He hesitantly adds, “Based on the lack of damage to the Raiders, the Kord would seem to be poorly armed.”
Machkno exclaims loudly, “The Raiders just vanished off my sensors!”
“Confirmed!” Frazik replies, “There is no sign of the attackers on our sensors!”
Cushkull cringes as he reviews his console, then states disparagingly,
“We’re taking hits, but have nothing to shoot at!”
Voknor leans forward, alarmed, then orders, “Lilpax, contact the Kord; ask them if they have any idea how to target those ships.”
Lilpax nervously replies, “Yes Regent!”
Skylow turns and says, “The entire fleet is taking evasive action, but still reports energy weapon style impacts from unknown sources.”
“Understood!” Voknor replies irritably, then questions with a sense of urgency, “Lilpax?”
The main viewer changes, to reveal a stubby-looking, hair covered alien. Its small black beady eyes are recessed into its skull. The creature grins, revealing small blocky teeth, and says, “We have tagged their ships with transponders. I am sending you the frequency. I warn you, their ships are tough; they have adaptive modulation shields, bioduropoly hull, and pack a powerful arsenal of Photonic Weaponry.”
Voknor’s face twitches as he replies, “Understood. If your transponders work, we will be able to eliminate them.”
The Kord grins, “Yes they work, and good luck with destroying them.”
Machkno gleefully says, “I can target them now, firing all weapons at the nearest.”
Voknor grins as the weapons strike the Raider, then freezes as the enemy craft turns toward them and fires back, seemingly unaffected.
Skylow reluctantly reports, “If this is correct, we barely reduced their shield strength!”
Voknor stands and orders, “Tell the fleet to all fire at that one craft!”
“Hull breach!” Lilpax shouts, “and another, and another!”
The enemy craft strafes the flagship as though its shields were not even operating, then turns for another pass. A dozen ships of the Gamin fleet fire at once. The target’s shields sparkle with each impact, but appear to hold. Inexplicably, the craft spins away, then detonates, sending a powerful shockwave in all directions.
“The others are leaving.” Frazik reports, dejectedly.
Voknor is perplexed by the battle, and orders, “Ship status?”
Skylow reviews his console, then reports, “Zero deaths, but many are injured, some seriously. We took some impressive impacts, some of which penetrated two levels.”
“Understood,” Voknor replies, then orders, “Contact the Kord.”
The furry alien reappears on the main viewer, and immediately says, “You did it! You beat them! How can we ever repay you?”
Voknor frowns, then says, “We drove them off, but I am sure that once we leave, they will return!”
“Then you shall stay as our guests, while we conduct repairs!” The Kord replies gleefully.
Voknor nods in agreement, then says, “I believe that proper introductions are in order. I am Regent Voknor of the Gamin, and this is my fleet.”
The furry alien replies, “We are Kord. I am known as Research Leader Bandor. We have been studying your race for some time.” He adds excitedly.
“Oh,” Voknor replies, then cautiously asks, “and have you learned anything interesting?”
“Yes, yes,” Bandor stammers, “The long war between your kind and the Atlans, along with Effen Raider pilfering, is causing numerous cultures to regress technologically, or in some cases, to be completely wiped out.”
“I can see that,” Voknor agrees.
Bandor hesitates, then surprises all when he suggests, “I would like to offer you a tour of this facility, Research Station Aqua.”
The bridge crew turns to look at Voknor, who pauses for a moment, thinking. He stands and says, “I accept!”
Lilpax feels her heart beat hard in her chest as she thinks. My Regent IS a radical. None other would dare defy an imperial edict! No contact, indeed! She stands defiantly, tall and proud.
As soon as Bandor’s image is gone from the main viewer, and replaced with the alien space-station, Voknor addresses his bridge crew, “Tell me all there is to know about this Kord. I particularly want to know why we have not come across them before.”
Though Skylow is the eldest, it is Lilpax, the youngest, who responds, “It is not known where the Kord home-world is, but Empirical records show their recent and rapid expansion from this area of space.” She adjusts the main viewer to display a vast section of the Galaxy, within which is a shaded region indicating the area of interest.
She taps on her console, adding more information to the screen, and says, “The area in green encompasses all of our clans, the blue is known Atlan positions, while the grey indicates possible locations of the Kord.
Skylow taps his claws on the side of his console, deep in thought, then in a frantic flurry of activity, adjusts the view as he excitedly shares his thoughts. “Lilpax, I have adjusted your data. The dark green is the current location of our clans, the light green shows our travels since the exodus. I have done the same for the Atlans showing their expansion.”
Voknor stares at the screen is disbelief, then states, “The Emperor has known of the Kord for some time then; our clans have been directed slightly away from their known region of space, but in doing so, we aren’t getting any farther away from the Atlans.”
Lilpax glances around as she considers saying anything else, then she decides that as her Regent is going to visit the Kord, she should. “My Regent.”
“Yes, Lilpax.” Voknor replies as he turns to her.
“The Kord are defined as a peaceful race, and yet have a technological level that may surpass our own, or the Atlans, for that matter.”
“You already mentioned this. What are you getting at?” Voknor asks curiously.
She swallows hard, then boldly suggests, “Our scientists have invented few things since our exodus, and yet these Kord, in the same time, have gone from being an unknown civilization, to one with space-stations.”
“Trade!” Voknor states. He stares at Lilpax and repeats, “You mean trade, with the Kord?”
Skylow grins cheekily, baring his teeth as he adds his thoughts, “Regent, why not? We have disobeyed Empirical directives before.” He waves his hand at the main viewer as he continues, “And right now we’re outside our assigned area, and have just defended a race we have been ordered to stay away from.”
Voknor snorts, “I doubt we have anything they would want, but,” He pauses as he looks at each of his officers, then with a devilish grin, says, “if we can gain any advantage over the Atlans, we should seize it!”
Lilpax watches fearfully as Voknor leaves the bridge, then as he passes by her station, she smiles when he whispers to her, “I shall return, my mate!”
Chapter Eleven – Kord
Regent Voknor steps from the shuttle with Prytec and takes a cautious breath. The air is cooler, thinner, and the gravity slightly lower, but none of the differences are enough to cause any distress, or concern. The shuttle appears minute inside the vast space-dock. Powerful shields at each end contain the atmosphere. Before them, stands a delegation of four Kord. They are almost half the size of the Gamin, and are covered head to toe in swirls of dark fur. Each of them wears a girdle, which appears to double as both clothing, and a utility belt. The Kord’s eyes are like black tar pits, recessed in their round skulls. Their noses are small, and almost completely hidden in the mass of fur.
One of the delegation steps forward, cranes his head upward, and says, “I am Bandor! Welcome to Kord Research Facility, Aqua.”
Both Gamin wear translators draped over their ears. The Kord seem to have something similar, as a wire of sorts pokes out from the fur near the side of their heads.
Voknor nods respectfully as he replies, “I am Regent Voknor, and this is Prytec.”
Bandor maintains eye contact with Voknor as he says, “There is no need to bring weapons, we carry none, and mean you no harm.”
Prytec adjusts his grip on his weapon, its barrel pointed downward, and replies, “I am here to see to that.”
Bandor glances to his colleagues, then says, “We scanned your vessel. You have many wounded; we offer our medical teams, to assist.”
“You know o
f our physiology?” Voknor queries doubtingly.
Bandor smiles, revealing his white, blocky, teeth, and replies, “as I said, we have been studying your kind for some time.”
Voknor considers the risks to his crew, then says, “You may proceed.”
Prytec quickly glances at Voknor, then upon receiving the barest of gestures, steps back into the shuttle. He informs his security teams, Skylow, and the Den Mothers who are tending the injured, of the impending visit by the Kord.
Bandor waits patiently, then as soon as Prytec rejoins them, says excitedly, “Come with me, we have much to show you.”
The odd-looking group of six makes their way down a lengthy corridor, then comes to a long, wide, platform, one with a dark tunnel at each end. The edge of the platform is blocked off by a curved, see-through wall, the floor continues along the same curve, as does the ceiling, forming a large circle.
A sphere, which fills the entire area, speedily rolls out from the tunnel on their right. It slows, then stops before them. The see-through wall slides away, and at the same time, a section of the sphere opens outward, revealing a square area inside.
Bandor steps inside with the other Kord, then says, “It’s safe! Just watch your head as you enter.”
The Gamin stoop in order to fit, then watch as the ball’s outer section closes. When nothing happens, Voknor asks, “Why aren’t we moving?”
Bandor giggles, then says, “We are rolling along the transit-way as we speak.”
Prytec glances around and says, “I don’t feel it.”
“Oh!” Bandor says, then explains, “We are standing on an artificial gravity plate, while the transit ball itself has inertial dampeners, just like any space faring vessel.”
“So, we’re actually spinning?” Prytec asks.
“Yes, and quite fast I might add.” Bandor states with pride.
Without warning, the side of the ball opens, revealing a platform not dissimilar to the one they left.
Voknor strides out, gazes around, then remarks, "I have got to get this installed on the flagship!”
Initiation Series: Series One Compilation (Terran Chronicles) Page 159
