The Phoenix Project

by Kris Powers

  Nadine was surprised when the eyesight of Elliot became unfocused for a moment as the ship seemed to experience a jolt. Alarm klaxons went off and the crew jumped to their duties.

  “We’re under attack by two enemy destroyers,” one of Elliot’s officers reported.

  An attack? Nadine wondered before the knowledge of the event was reconciled with her memory.

  The Norfolk Incident!

  She was amazed to realize that he was the Captain that had commanded the Alliance vessel through that crisis. Nadine felt excitement at the knowledge that she was about to witness the events of the historic incident that had marred nearly a century of cold war.

  The Coalition had recounted a series of events that had ended with a direct confrontation between the enemy destroyer Norfolk and two Coalition destroyers. The battle ended with the loss of the Potemkin but the Warsaw was victorious. That version of the story seemed to fall into the category of erroneous events as Nadine realized that the Warsaw and the Potemkin had, in fact, fired first.

  “Battle stations!” Elliot barked to his crew. Shields went up and the ship powered its weapons. Nadine carefully paid attention to everything Elliot heard and saw in the next few minutes while she witnessed the real events of the incident.

  “I need a damage report,” Elliot said. He got up from his command chair and advanced on the Damage Control station for answers.

  “They’ve hit two of our shield generators,” the officer responded. “We’re operating on one quarter shields.”

  “Send out a call for any Alliance ships in the area and request assistance. Why the hell did they fire?” Elliot asked aloud in frustration. Her attention to detail was disrupted when he hit the floor as a result of a massive detonation below decks.

  “Secondary explosion at the superluminal engines,” the damage control officer said. “They’re offline.”

  “Fire fore and aft cannons: all batteries,” Elliot said, getting back to his feet. He turned from the weapons station and watched the results on the main monitor. The olive painted Coalition warship absorbed several hits and responded with more rounds of torpedoes and PBCs. Green and orange fire glowed across the screen as it hit the Norfolk’s shields. The smaller monitor above it showed the results of the ship directly behind them absorbing fire from the aft batteries.

  “Are the Primary Cannons charged?” Elliot asked.

  “Both are ready,” his weapons officer replied.

  “Even the odds Commander.”

  Nadine watched as two wing mounted cannons spewed starlight at the enemy ship. Its shields collapsed from a massive overload. The plasma beams continued on to hole the ship through in two places before it was vaporized.

  “The first Coalition ship has been destroyed,” the officer reported.

  “And the second?”

  “They’ve sustained some damage, but our shields will fail before theirs do.”

  “Ready torpedoes and detonate them fifty miles from their hull. Set a course for that ship.”

  Nadine looked on while the past replayed itself as a volley of torpedoes flew out from the ship and detonated in the space between the warring ships creating a firestorm.

  “Go. Stop two hundred feet from that ship.”

  The ship flew through the cloud of flame. The maneuver was risky and could result in both vessels being destroyed if the Coalition ship advanced. The flame disappeared from the screen only to have the boxy olive colored destroyer dozens of feet from the ship.

  “Fire at will!” Elliot barked. Weapons fire ripped through the Coalition ship’s shields and impacted against its hull. More weapons fire erupted from both ships now as the Coalition destroyer had recovered sufficiently to return fire. She could almost feel the shock wave from the enemy ship as it exploded in a spectacular display only a short distance away. It was a moment later that Elliot fell from his command chair. She saw Elliot’s eyes close from a deafening roar.

  The wreckage!

  His body felt the secondary ruptures of the hull sending shivers through the deck. The massive pieces of debris had flown from the Coalition destroyer and impacted against the Norfolk’s hull. She heard it was decommissioned a month or so later.

  Eyelids moved out of the way again as Elliot regained consciousness. He got to his feet with a rush to his head. She realized he must have had a concussion. Elliot demanded a damage report and was given a list that included the entire port wing being nearly sheared off by a piece of wreckage from the enemy warship.

  She noticed the same thing that he had so many years ago. Much of the left side of the room had crumpled from an internal explosion.

  And there at the Science Station was Lily’s limp body still seated at the console that had exploded from an overload.

  Elliot rushed to her the moment he saw her there.

  “Half of our systems are offline,” his weapons officer reported after having regained his footing.

  “Activate all damage control parties. Take care of it Commander,” he ordered. He strode in haste for her chair.

  The officer briefly looked between the two in compassion before taking over command and issuing the appropriate directives.

  Elliot gently turned the chair towards him. Nadine felt the same overwhelming fear he had. Lily was unconscious with small lacerations to her face and body. At first, Nadine realized that she may be alright and may only need minor medical attention.

  Then, just as Elliot had, she saw the first trickle of blood from the top of Lily’s forehead. A deep gash made itself evident just above her hairline. In a panic that Nadine shared, Elliot looked for a pulse at her wrist and found none. Elliot grabbed her body in his arms and collapsed to the floor. Her lifeless head lolled back unto his arm.

  His weapons master and first officer allowed for a time of mourning. Elliot whispered things to Lillian that he had shared only with her until now. Nadine could hear them in the stillness of the moment.

  “I’ll make sure you’re buried next to your mother. I always knew you wanted to be there in the end.”

  “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be okay.”

  “We would’ve stayed in tonight. Josh and Madi wouldn’t have minded.”

  “You always said that Lieutenant Phillips was a good man. He’d be honored to fill in for you.”

  Everything he said was in a low whisper between tears that streaked his face and wet his duty uniform. The last thing he said before he clutched her closely was: “You’re my wife and you always will be.”

  He let go of her body and gently placed her on the floor. Nadine watched as he carefully placed both of her hands across her chest. He stood up from Lily and walked back to his command chair.

  “Commander, I’m relieving you.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “Please remove the fatalities to the morgue.”

  “Yes Sir,” his first officer replied and moved to take Lily’s body from the bridge.

  “Commander?”

  “Yes, Sir?”

  “Treat her with the respect she’s due,” Elliot said without taking his gaze from the main screen.

  Nadine was ripped from the memory when both of their bodies climaxed. She felt his ecstasy for a moment and both of them felt the release. Nadine lowered her head in sorrow for what she had just witnessed. Elliot looked up to her sagging head and put a forefinger under her chin. He lifted her head to find tears flowing down her face mirroring his own.

  “No,” he said with a smile, “it was a long time ago. I’ve let it go.”

  “How?”

  “Just now, with you.”

  She embraced him as tightly as he had Lily all those years ago feeling as though she had just lost a loved one. Elliot felt her guilt at what had happened with her father.

  “I’m so sorry for what happened.”

  “It’s like you said, it was a long time ago and I’ve let it go now,” Nadine said.

  Elliot got up for a minute to bring the light on at a dimmed setting reminiscent
of candlelight. They relaxed in the afterglow of their shared experiences in each other’s arms.

  “What do we do now?” Nadine asked after a long and exquisite silence.

  “We can decide on that later. Want some Ruby Brandy in bed?”

  “Warmth in warmth,” Nadine replied. “Absolutely.”

  Many have asked what contributed to the Norfolk incident. Both the Norfolk and the Coalition warships were involved in standard patrols of the established border between Alliance and Coalition space when the event occurred. Both sides diverge when it comes to recounting actual events. The Coalition describes the unsolicited invasion of their space by the Norfolk, while the Alliance recounts an unwarranted attack on their ship.

  The only evidence we have indicates that the CWS Warsaw may have fired first. What is certain is that the Coalition lost seven hundred and eighty soldiers that day and the Alliance lost four hundred and fifty—four.

  The Potemkin and the Warsaw were destroyed. The Norfolk would never see service again.

  What is the truth?

  Does it matter?

  The Second Cold War

  by Trey Parks

  Chapter XVII

  “You were supposed to ensure the Ferine never left your station,” Catherine said to Colonel Daniels.

  “I apologize, Prime Counsel.”

  “Do you have anything more to offer than apologies?”

  “We followed your instructions to the letter, Prime Counsel. I don’t understand how the Alliance could have found the Ferine,” Daniels replied.

  “But they did and don’t try to blame this failure on others.”

  “Yes, Prime Counsel.”

  “The better question is how they knew to go to the correct deck after going to the wrong one,” Catherine said.

  “The information must have been leaked, but I don’t know who the leak is.”

  “I wasn’t asking you. You are demoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Leave before I change my mind on your punishment.”

  “Yes, Prime Counsel,” Daniels said before he fled from the room.

  “Alexander, have him commanding a listening post in Antarctica by tomorrow.”

  “He would be on Earth when the warhead is used.”

  “I’m aware of that.”

  “Yes, Catherine. Is there any way of discovering who told the Alliance where the Ferine were being held?” Alexander asked.

  “I asked Nadine,” Catherine replied, “and no. She had no idea who leaked the information and there are too many people on that station who knew where they were being held.”

  “Surely MERA could conduct some mind scans.”

  “I already have some of our people doing them, but I doubt it will result in anything. Whoever this was, they knew how to cover their tracks.”

  “It’s a pity that Nadine didn’t get anything out of them,” Napoleon said.

  “That’s true, but I knew there was a possibility that there wouldn’t be time.”

  “And Nadine suffers no further penalties?” Alexander asked.

  “She knew what was being asked of her. The emotional turmoil was the most important part of her punishment. I’m sure she has already suffered enough.”

  “But,” Alexander began.

  “That’s enough. We have more important matters to attend to.”

  “Yes, can we go to war while the Ferine are still here?” Victoria asked.

  “Two of their ships are gone. We may not have accomplished our full goal, but we did accomplish part of it.”

  “Is it enough, though?”

  “The UN has acknowledged our complaint, and I’m ensuring that the entire Colonized Sphere has in—depth knowledge of our complaint. The Ferine application is being held in review,” Catherine replied.

  “We still have Ferine in the solar system,” Alexander said.

  “We have an illegal seizure of the Ferine under our control. We may not have gotten rid of all of them, but we now have cause to go to war. It’s time to make use of this.

  “Alexander, make sure that Peter is standing by. It’s time to make preparations for what is coming. Our first move is to recall all of our ambassadors. Napoleon, when will the new fleet be ready?”

  “Sixty hours.”

  “And what is the status of the Alliance fleet?”

  “Forty—eight hours until it is space worthy.”

  “In spite of our attempts, they’re still just hours ahead of us,” Catherine said.

  “There may be a way,” Henry said.

  “Yes?”

  “Many of the last hours of work involve the superluminal drives being brought online,” Henry replied.

  “As is the case with the Alliance ships.”

  “Yes, but there is no reason why it’s absolutely necessary for our fleet to launch with them operational,” Henry said.

  “A new fleet of ships without FTL to transfer between systems?”

  “But they would still have sub—light speeds,” Henry replied. “There would be a sub—light fleet in ten systems.”

  “Freeing up resources. Have the old battle groups concentrate their numbers in the other systems,” Catherine said.

  “Yes, Catherine.”

  “We have a great deal of work to do over the next forty—eight hours,” Catherine said, while she typed orders into a link. “All of you now have assigned work. Ensure it gets done.”

  The rest of the Council obediently left the room. As Catherine rose to leave, Alexander towered over her.

  “Is there a problem with your assigned duties?”

  “No one else who sits in these chairs makes any pretense as to my standing in comparison to Aristotle, and neither will I. I don’t claim to be the type of man he was,” Alexander began.

  “Go on,” Catherine allowed.

  “He was what I have tried to be and cannot. I know you treasured him in spite of all the arguments and disagreements you had. I know of the priceless value you placed on him because, after the two of you were finished arguing, he always maintained his unwavering loyalty to you and the Council.”

  “He was a good man,” Catherine said, nearly lost in reverie.

  “I am not as wise or even as loyal as he was, that you know. Also know that it is in his spirit that I speak now,” Alexander said.

  “For the sake of his memory, you can speak freely.”

  “I knew him well enough to know that he would have raised a hellfire fight with you over this,” Alexander said.

  “Yes, he would have. He would have shouted at me over this until the windows rattled from his anger. I miss those arguments,” Catherine reflected for a moment before regaining her composure. “What is your point?”

  “Listen to his ghost if not to his student. You know how much of a moral sacrifice this is. Aristotle would have had no problem telling you that and would have taken the next hour to prove his point.”

  “The difference between you and he is that he would accept my ruling in the end. I always found his advice valuable and he did sway my opinion from time to time, but the argument is over,” Catherine said, with rising anger at the deliberate invocation of a treasured friend. “I have made my decision and like your predecessor, you will follow my orders.”

  Alexander knew he had made a mistake, which again, his teacher wouldn’t have. Giving up the fight, he merely nodded and walked out of the room at a brisk pace.

  Elliot woke up in bed before the sun rose. He turned in bed to put his arm around Nadine only to find an empty space next to him.

  “Nadine?” he asked aloud in the dark room. He heard a rustling in the corner and pressed a button on the nearby nightstand. The bright illumination of the small bedroom made Elliot wince for a moment before he saw Nadine in the corner of the room pulling on her duty tunic.

  “Hi.”

  “Yeah,” Elliot said in surprise, “early riser?”

  “Usually, no, but I’ve got to get back to my quarters,” Nadine replied.

  “That’s t
oo bad. I wanted you to stay for breakfast.”

  “And what would breakfast involve?”

  “Well, I figured eggs, strawberries, and coffee.”

  “That’d be great, but I do have my duties.”

  “Duties? Oh, you have to report back to your owners?” Elliot joked.

  “Like you don’t have to report to your own? Catherine expected me to check in half an hour ago.”

  “Are you going to tell Mommy what happened?”

  “I report everything to her,” Nadine began, and noticed Elliot’s genuine surprise. “I do leave certain details out from time to time.”

  “I sure as hell hope so. Are you going to mention our night?”

  “No,” Nadine lied.

  “You’re not being honest.”

  “Elliot, don’t scan me.”

  “Your people scan, we pick up on emanations.”

  “Tomato, tomato.”

  “You know what I mean,” he said.

  “Nonetheless, you shouldn’t be doing that with me.”

  “It isn’t something either of us can block now. You should have noticed that by now.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Nadine said.

  “It doesn’t matter that I have a new connection with you, and know when you’re lying?”

  “Are you saying that I’m your first?”

  “No, I just know when you’re lying. You did it just now. You are going to tell your mother about us.”

  “No,” Nadine replied.

  “Now you’re being honest, but that doesn’t change what you said before.”

  “What are you talking about?” Nadine demanded in frustration.

  “You were lying when you said you wouldn’t say anything about our night together, but you were honest in saying you wouldn’t say anything about us,” Elliot replied and sat up in bed.

  “I won’t tell them about us.”

  “What will you tell them?”

  “About the completion of my orders,” Nadine replied, looking at the floor.

  “What orders?”

  “I was ordered to sleep with you. The Twelve want a baby of Defensive and Aggressive descent.”