Changing of the Guard (A Galaxy Unknown - Book 11)

by Thomas DePrima

  "Very good, XO. Keep me apprised."

  "Yes, ma'am. I've just been told that the Denubbewa prisoner is getting agitated."

  "Agitated?"

  "He keeps mumbling something."

  "He's talking?"

  "Not Amer. It's just gibberish."

  "I'll go take a look."

  "Aye, Captain. Mollago out."

  "Carver out."

  ~

  As Christa entered the hold where the Denubbewa was chained to the table, she saw three engineers standing around the table, looking down at the cyborg.

  "I understand the prisoner is getting agitated," she said to one who turned and approached her.

  "He began to utter nonsense when the first vid teaching basic Amer ended, Captain."

  "What kind of nonsense?"

  "He's saying something like ma, ma."

  "Ma?"

  "That's what it sounds like."

  Christa walked past the engineer and approached the table. The Denubbewa looked up at her and said, "Ma, ma."

  "He seems to think you're his mother, Captain," one of the engineers said with a grin.

  "And this started when the vid ended?"

  "Yes, ma'am."

  "Could he be trying to say more?"

  "Uh— I suppose that's possible," the senior person said.

  "Let's put on the next vid in the series and see what he does."

  As the second vid started playing on the monitor, the Denubbewa stopped talking and calmed down.

  "It seems that's all he wanted," Christa said.

  "Do you think he understands it, Captain?"

  "I don't know, but it can't hurt. We have no other way of communicating with him. Just make sure he doesn't get access to any technical data."

  "Yes, ma'am."

  ~ ~ ~

  "The acid warhead doesn't contain any explosive capability," Lt. Burton, the chief engineer aboard the Koshi said to Christa during a status meeting in her office. "We've succeeded in moving some of the Denubbewa acid to a separate glass container that can be used in a weightless environment so we can attempt to remove that small piece of the Denubbewa ship for analysis."

  "Very good. Coordinate with the engineers aboard the Karl Linne. They've identified a place where a piece can be removed and still allow the ship to maintain its sensor invisibility. They deserve to be involved."

  "Aye, Captain. I'll contact them."

  "After the acid eats through the Dakinium, does it become inert or remain dangerous?"

  "According to the engineers who examined the Salado and Yenisei, the acid became inert. But we don't know if that's a property of the acid or because of the nuclear explosion that occurred immediately after the acid ate through the hull. The Space Command database paper that presented the findings of the scientists who analyzed the orb of acid retrieved from the undetonated weapon recovered in space never expounded on that aspect of the weapon."

  "That's too bad. I'm sure it was merely an oversight."

  "Of course."

  "When do you expect to attempt the hull material recovery?"

  "Tomorrow, if the Karl Linne engineers are agreeable. We'll use a very small sample of the acid and see how long it remains active. If a single drop shears off the entire piece and is still active, we'll know we've got a problem. We've rigged up a special glass container to hold the piece we cut off so it presents no danger to our ship once we've detached it from the Denubbewa ship."

  "And if the acid remains active after the single drop cuts the piece off?"

  "We have a second glass container for that contingency. We'll use a piece of cloth to capture the drop and immediately put the cloth into the glass container. Hopefully, that will prevent any other damage."

  "How long will it take to analyze the material and determine if it's Dakinium or some other material with similar properties? We need to know if it has any weaknesses."

  "We can only perform a very preliminary analysis— not the kind of in-depth analysis you want, or really need. We can confirm the general properties of near indestructibility, absorption of all energy so that no sensor data is ever reflected, and that it appears to have the other basic properties that we expect of Dakinium. As you know, it took years for the Space Command scientists to duplicate the material sample your sister discovered on Dakistee, and even then, they couldn't match it exactly. They continue to experiment— their goal being to offer the virtual indestructibility inherent in the original plus the properties they've managed to add, such as the latest feature of producing Dakinium in any color of the rainbow with all tints and shades. A full analysis can only be performed at Quesann, which now houses the laboratories that were formerly located on Earth."

  "Get me whatever you can. I need more information to make my decision regarding the ship we've found."

  "You'll know almost as soon as I do, Captain."

  "Thank you, Lieutenant. Dismissed."

  ~ ~

  Several hours later, Christa was still in her office and still staring up at the overhead as she examined her position and weighed all her options— repeatedly. Her squadron couldn't remain at this location forever, but they also couldn't leave an intact Denubbewa ship here. If they were forced to leave, she would have to destroy the ship and that represented the loss of a potentially invaluable intelligence resource. Space Command had never been able to capture an intact Denubbewa vessel before and certainly not one with live cyborg prisoners. She believed she couldn't simply destroy it unless it was ordered by the Second Fleet Commander at Quesann. Of course, there was always the danger that the entire crew of the ship would simultaneously awaken and pull weapons from— somewhere. In that case, she'd have no choice. And the only way to destroy the ship was to have one of the CP-16's drop an bomb inside. Since the hull appeared to be Dakinium, it would probably remain intact while the insides were reduced to scrap.

  Christa was brought up out of her deliberative state by a call on her CT.

  "Captain, this Lt. Burton. The prisoner is demanding to speak with you."

  "The cyborg is demanding something?" she queried after touching the face of her Space Command ring. "In Amer?"

  "Yes, ma'am."

  "Is he speaking in gibberish like before?"

  "No, ma'am. This time he's talking whole sentences."

  "I'll be right down."

  ~

  As Christa walked into the hold where the prisoner was being held, she noticed that the Marine guards had their weapons at the ready.

  "Has the prisoner tried to escape his bonds?" Christa asked Lt. Burton.

  "No, ma'am. He's just been very— insistent— that he be allowed to see you immediately."

  Turning towards the Marine sergeant she said, "Lower your weapon unless the prisoner actually presents a threat."

  "Yes, ma'am," the sergeant said.

  The two other guards lowered their weapons without being directly ordered to do so.

  Christa walked closer to the table and looked down at the cyborg. "Have you been asking to see me? I'm the Captain of this ship."

  "Captain," the cyborg responded in almost perfect Amer but with a slightly raspy voice, "you must release me and allow us continue our journey unimpeded."

  "And why must I do that?"

  "Because we are not Denubbewa, and the safety of the G.A. depends on you releasing us."

  * * *

  Chapter Ten

  ~ December 4th, 2290 ~

  "Not Denubbewa? You certainly look like a Denubbewa."

  "The Denubbewa conquered my planet and enslaved our entire race a millennium ago. Then they began to slowly take my people away. We never knew where they were being taken until we were taken. Once they had us aboard one of their ships, they extracted our brains from our bodies and put them into these mechanical bodies. Then they cleared our minds of all memories and implanted Denubbewa memories so we would become part of their collective. Fortunately, the Denubbewa didn't know how our minds worked. We have the ability to retreat
into an unconscious state where their memory erasure procedure couldn't reach us. But we did absorb the new Denubbewa memories, and that enabled us to fool the collective. Once we had been accepted as faithful Denubbewa slaves, the Denubbewa stopped watching us so closely and we could allow our previous memories to flood back into our consciousness. We have the memories of two lives, but we know which is real and which is fake.

  "We've waited and planned for many annuals, and we finally had an opportunity to take over a Denubbewa ship and escape the collective. We made it to where you found us, but we had been awake for weeks and our minds desperately needed rest, even though the Denubbewa bodies could continue on without rest.

  "That's why you must release us. We are not your enemies. We are only attempting to escape the Denubbewa and find a planet where we can again establish our own civilization, just as you would do in our place."

  "You want to establish a new civilization in this sector of space?"

  "No, no, no. It must be as far from this place as possible. The Denubbewa intend to colonize this part of space for many thousands of light-years in every direction. And when they control that, they will move on and conquer another enormous sector of space. And then another until they eventually control the entire galaxy. Their goal is to one day control the entire universe."

  "That's a pretty ambitious plan."

  "It won't happen tomorrow. They know that. But they are infinitely patient and know it will happen one day. We need to find a place where we can rebuild our society and prepare for the day when we must again confront the Denubbewa. The first time we met, we welcomed them as travelers with whom we could trade. Before we knew what was happening, they had become our masters."

  "Your Amer is very good. I didn't think you could speak it at all."

  "Your instructional vids allowed me to correlate my own language with yours. The Denubbewa don't normally use verbal speech as you do and as we once did. I'm finding that the more I use the voice box built into this body, the more comfortable I am with it. Cyborg communication with other cyborgs is limited to electronic signals."

  "If Denubbewa only use electronic communications, why do they install voice boxes in the body?"

  "Because almost all cyborg bodies are constructed from a single design, and some cyborgs need to communicate with species being assimilated until the individual has had their brain extracted and inserted into a cyborg body."

  "I see. We employ personal electronic communications as well, but we prefer verbal speech whenever possible."

  "I know. I've been receiving your electronic communications ever since I awoke. But I didn't understand the language so I simply stored all communications until you gave me a reference for the many words I was hearing. Now that I understand the meaning of the words, I've been reviewing all the communications I've stored."

  "You're able to intercept our electronic communications?"

  "Yes. And it's a relief to be away from the Denubbewa. We were constantly besieged with communication messages there. You never have a moment, a single moment, where you can enjoy some peace and quiet. Since only your officers here seem to use electronic communications, there are long periods where I hear nothing."

  "How many of the Denubbewa cyborg bodies we found in your ship are occupied by your people?"

  "All of the cyborg bodies on the tables and most of the bodies in the shipping containers. Those in the shipping containers are on minimal life support. They can remain that way indefinitely if we recharge them once every annual."

  "Is that the meaning of the red light on your forehead? If it's lit, you're conscious?"

  "No, when lit it means I'm not on reduced life support. I can be either awake or asleep."

  "And the others? You said most are your people."

  "There are a few Denubbewa puppets there. We kept them only for spare parts until we can produce biological bodies for our brains."

  "You'd return to biological bodies after being in mechanical bodies?"

  "Biological bodies can repair themselves if an injury isn't too serious, or they can usually be repaired by doctors if the injury is serious. These mechanical bodies are easy to repair, but they have no sense of touch or feel, at least not the way biological bodies do. We hate these bodies and want to be Elobians again."

  "That was the name of your race? Elobian?"

  "Yes. We were a civilization of peaceful citizens long before we even dreamed of space travel. We know now how foolish we were to be so trusting of the Denubbewa when they arrived. We assumed that because they were so advanced, they must be benign. We accredited our own values to the Denubbewa, and we learned the hard way that intelligence and beneficence do not go hand in hand."

  "The two are not mutually inclusive but neither are they mutually exclusive. Every civilization must be based on its own merits without preconceptions based on the merits or misconducts of other civilizations."

  "True."

  "What is your name? How should I refer to you?"

  "The Denubbewa named me R398QBE4391AX843L. My name before the Denubbewa enslaved me was Sywasock Devollneost."

  "Then I shall call you Sywasock. I'm Captain Carver."

  "I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Captain Carver."

  "And I yours. Do you need anything, such as food, water, lubricant?"

  "I would like to be unchained."

  "I'm afraid I can't do that— yet. Trust is not given, it's earned."

  "I understand. My appearance is that of a Denubbewa and your history with the Denubbewa is like that of my own race."

  "Exactly. You've made a good start here today towards establishing trust, but we have a ways to go."

  "Then could I have one of the guards plug me into the power supply each night? Once fully recharged, we can unplug ourselves, but we cannot plug ourselves in."

  "I'll take care of it. You said before that the safety of the G.A. depends on us releasing you. What did you mean by that?"

  "I apologize, Captain. I was just trying to get you to listen to me. I got a little carried away."

  Christa just nodded and said, "Goodnight, Sywasock."

  "Goodnight, Captain Carver."

  Christa's first stop after leaving the cyborg was the bridge. She walked directly to the com console.

  "Chief, I want all CT transmissions blocked immediately until further notice."

  "Yes, ma'am. I'll shut down the system. Uh, is there something I should be aware of?"

  "Our guest under guard just told me that he hears and automatically records all electronic messages transmitted within the ship. Until we know we can trust him, there are to be no CT transmissions."

  "Yes, ma'am. What about communications between ships?"

  "We have no choice, but we have to be careful with what we say for the present."

  "Yes, ma'am."

  Christa left the bridge and walked through the corridors to think. She was glad she was aboard a Scout-Destroyer and not a CPS-16 or she would have quickly run out of corridor and wound up retracing her steps.

  She suddenly realized what she had to do and stopped the first person she passed. He happened to be a cook's assistant.

  "Find the XO and tell him to come to my office—immediately. Then find Lt. Burton and give him the same message."

  "I can use a com to have them paged, Captain. Will that do?"

  "No. I want you to tell them in person."

  "Aye, Captain."

  Christa returned to her office to wait for her officers and think about her discussion with the cyborg.

  Lt. Mollago arrived first. His sweats were soaked with perspiration.

  "I'm sorry, Captain, but I was told you wanted to see me immediately."

  "Come in, XO. I also sent for Lt. Burton. We'll wait for him before I start. Need a towel?"

  "Uh, if you have one handy, ma'am. I was in such a hurry to report that I forgot to grab one."

  Christa opened a drawer of her desk and produced a clean towel. Mollago hadn't even fini
shed wiping his head before Lt. Burton showed up. He was wearing a robe.

  "Sorry, Captain. I was in the hot tub. The messenger reported that you said immediately."

  "Yes, have a seat. We have a serious problem. I spoke to the cyborg prisoner a short time ago. He's learned to speak our language. But what's even more remarkable is what he told me."

  Christa then related everything the cyborg had told her about being able to intercept all electronic messages.

  "Do you believe him, Captain?" Mollago asked when she was finished.

  "We can't afford not to believe him. I've had the CT system shut down until we can secure it."

  "Secure it, Captain?"

  "I'm hoping Lt. Burton can arrange that. There must be some place on this ship where we can place the cyborg where he can't intercept communications messages—say next to a power supply junction room or something. There must be someplace where an officer can't make or receive CT communications."

  "The ship designers have gone to a great deal of trouble to prevent that from happening. But I might be able to rig some kind of a low voltage power barrier around a storage locker that will prevent signals from penetrating into the locker."

  "Good. Do it. As quickly as possible. The entire routine of the ship is going to be turned upside down if we can't use our CTs."

  "Captain," Mollago said, "do you think he's been communicating with the other cyborgs on the Denubbewa ship?"

  "No, I considered that but then dismissed it. Our hull is sheathed in Dakinium, so no radio signal can get through. Also, the Denubbewa ship is sheathed in something like Dakinium that absorbs all electrical and electronic signals. And I seriously doubt he'd be able to send and receive signals using our temporary transceiver setup."

  "So we only have one possible breach of security so far?"

  "I believe so. Lt. Burton?"

  "I agree, Captain. The cyborg may have been able to receive transmissions within the ship but not send or receive messages with anyone or anything outside the ship."

  "Good. Why don't you get going on that project? XO, I want to talk to you about a different matter."