ARMS Jebwa Atrocity

by Arseneault, Stephen

  Tawn looked over at Trish.

  “Go ahead. Gandy and I have this. Sharvie, unless you’re hungry, you can keep us company. We’re gonna be here for a while.”

  Harris sat in the hut with a packaged meal in front of him. “Should have done this beforehand.”

  “Never go to war on an empty stomach?” Tawn quipped.

  Harris took a large bite from a log of compressed food. “Exactly.”

  A scowl came across his face. “What is this?”

  Tawn replied, “It’s a vegetable medley. Sun-dried, hydrated and then compressed into that log.”

  Harris shook his head before taking another bite. “Hideous.”

  Tawn laughed. “And yet you continue to eat it.”

  “Not gonna waste good food. That’s a crime.”

  Tawn snickered. “OK. That’s not really food. It’s meant to absorb moisture from that package so the rest of it stays fresh.”

  Harris stopped mid-chew. “Like a desiccant?”

  Tawn nodded. “Exactly.”

  Harris turned with a scowl to throw it away.

  Tawn laughed. “Wait!”

  “What?”

  “I might have just made that up.”

  “So it’s food?”

  “It’s food. Weird pacifist food… but food.”

  Harris sniffed the log still in his hand before taking another bite.

  “Wait! It’s a desiccant.”

  Harris let out a long sigh. “Keep it up and I’m gonna make you take the next test shot.”

  Tawn shrugged. “I’d do that. Looked like you shook for a moment before the comm went dead.”

  “Shook is not the right word. I actually flipped forward so hard I banged my head on the console. I think that plate has a slight depression in it now. It went from there to a violent backlash. Pitch black by then.”

  “You hit the target?”

  “You didn’t look?”

  “We were kind of busy saving your ass.”

  “Saving me? Didn’t need saving, just a ride. So you didn’t check the moon surface for damage?”

  Tawn shook her head. “Didn’t know if it actually fired.”

  Harris chuckled as he stood with the veggie log still in his hand. “Oh it fired.”

  “Where you going?”

  “Up to look.”

  Tawn sighed. “Hold on. I want to see this too.”

  A quick run in the shuttle had the Biomarines hovering five kilometers above a newly developed crater on the moon.

  Tawn said, “You did that?”

  “That is where I was aiming. What’s that… five times the size of what we used to get?”

  “At least ten.”

  Harris rubbed the back of his neck. “Did we just create a monster?”

  “How so?”

  “As Mr. Morgan said, what if this fell into the Earthers’ hands? Our ships couldn’t defend against something like that.”

  Tawn nodded. “First shot would rule in that scenario. We’ll just have to be extra cautious if we get near any Earther ships.”

  Harris said, “I’m kind of eager to get near an Earther ship. If we get these hiccups worked out, it might be time for us to pay Eden a visit and clean house. With that kind of firepower we could shoot them before they had a chance to do any damage to us. And one shot would devastate a destroyer.”

  The shuttle landed. The two Biomarines walked into the shop.

  Harris took another bite of his veggie log. Tawn looked down at it in disgust.

  “What?”

  “You’ve had that in your hand for something like forty-five minutes,” Tawn said.

  Harris chuckled. “So? Not like it’s gonna go bad that quick.”

  Harris turned. “Trish, what’s our prognosis?”

  “We need a bunch of new parts.”

  “Like?”

  “Like power feeds. Reducers. Limiters. Transformers. Filters. That power surge fried parts all up and down the power line. We’re gonna have to make a run to Domicile.”

  Harris shook his head. “Can’t do it. Make a list of what you need and we’ll order it through the pacies. We can have Mr. Morgan expedite it for us.”

  Trish shrugged. “Whatever. Just know that it’s gonna be a lot.”

  The list was drawn up and a run made to the Haven colony in the shuttle. Tawn followed Harris and Farker as they walked into the government building. A meeting with the trade minister ended with the parts order being placed.

  They next took a short walk to the meeting hall. A dozen pacies were camped around the center stage, listening to a fellow citizen happily blather on about what a wonderful crop year he was having.

  Tawn said, “Quite the difference from that stage as compared to last time.”

  Harris nodded. “They’re back to being happy people. While I wholly disagree with their lack of defending themselves, I do admire their accomplishments.”

  Tawn chuckled. “More like our accomplishments.”

  “We set it up but they’re running it. Trade minister said they just started exporting food to Domicile. Sounds like they’re accomplishing something on their own. And they’re happy.”

  Tawn shook her head. “Never would have taken you for a pacifist.”

  Harris chuckled. “I’m not. I just admire their ability to achieve happiness. How many smiling faces did you see on Domicile last time we were there?”

  Tawn patted him on the shoulder. “Come on, let’s get you out of here before there’s a full conversion. We can’t afford to lose you at the moment.”

  Harris turned with his partner and began to walk toward the door. “At the moment? So you can afford to lose me later?”

  “Let’s hope.”

  A jump was made back to Midelon. As Trish and Gandy enlisted the help of Sharvie, Tawn and Harris walked back into the bunker and into their respective education rooms.

  Harris sat in his chair and an image a Alex popped into view.

  “Greetings, Harris.”

  “Hello, Alex. Let’s see if we can make some good headway today. Where’d we leave off?”

  “You were just entering what was called the First World War. Six of the major European powers of the day had divided into two camps. Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy comprised the Triple Alliance, while Britain, France, and Russia joined into the Triple Entente. The war itself is said to have been triggered by a single event.

  “A Serbian national, rumored to have been a member of a militant organization known as the ‘Black Hand,’ assassinated Franz Ferdinand, the archduke of Austria-Hungary. This led to a further alliance between the Triple Alliance and the Ottoman empire, followed by Germany declaring war on France.”

  Harris nodded. “Go Germany. My ancestors were from there.”

  “Yes, well, the Germans would fall on difficult times when an armistice was signed, as it soon became apparent that their economy was in shambles. It was a redefining time for many of the old-world empires…”

  The historical accounts continued through the day. Harris emerged after another eight hours in the chair. Having advanced into the late twentieth century. He joined Tawn and the others in the supply hut for a meal.

  “How far did you get?” Tawn asked.

  “Late twentieth century. Cold War has just ended.”

  Sharvie said, “There’s a lot to come, but you’re nearing the end.”

  Harris rubbed his lower back. “Good. I’ve had about enough of those chairs.”

  “What have you learned?”

  “I learned ancient Humans weren’t much different than modern Humans. We’ll all fight at the drop of a hat. Empires boom, become gluttonous, then weaken… and then collapse. Happened over and over. And why? Because each new generation seems to have to relearn many of the lessons of the old.”

  Sharvie nodded. “I find it interesting how quickly the political pendulum can swing. Seems to go hard right immediately following a war and then trend left as prosperity takes hold. That leads to
the gluttony and eventually another war.”

  Tawn said, “I’m in the early twenty-first. The spread of Islam has the world divided into three camps: the Islamists, the democracies, and the communist-leaning party dictatorships. World seems headed for the Third World War.”

  Sharvie replied, “I won’t comment so I won’t give away any spoilers.”

  Harris asked, “How are the repairs coming?”

  Trish answered: “I think we have most of the damaged parts pulled. Probably another half day. Will take another day or so to replace them, and probably another couple after that to do any needed calibrations. And that just brings us back to where we started. If we fire either of those railguns again, we’ll be right back to where we are today.”

  “So what do we do?”

  Trish shrugged. “Too much power going into those rails. Something will have to be redesigned.”

  “Do we still have that limiter we took out when we put that gauge in?”

  Trish thought for a moment. “We should.”

  “Would it be worth trying that out?”

  “Actually, it would. That’s an excellent idea, Mr. Gruberg.”

  “He gets lucky every once in a while,” said Tawn. “The cage door up there will open up and an idea will roll out. Usually, though, you have to take care that you don’t step in it.”

  Trish half smiled. “This one was actually a good one.”

  Harris grinned. “Thank you, Miss Boleman, for recognizing genius when you see it.”

  Tawn leaned back quickly, startling Gandy. “Watch out!”

  Gandy replied, “Why? What’s happening?”

  Tawn pointed. “His head. It’s growing bigger. Could explode all over us at any moment.”

  Gandy pushed a chuckling Tawn back upright. “Don’t scare me like that.”

  Trish said, “Seriously, it was a good idea.”

  The back and forth between Tawn and Harris continued for much of the break, each getting in a number of digs. When the break had come to an end, the partners returned to the bunker as Trish, Gandy, and Sharvie worked to complete the pulling of damaged parts.

  On the history front, wars in the Middle East gave way to a spread of Islam through much of Africa, with early indications of it beginning to take hold on the South American continent and in Europe. Those pushing its spread were militant, opting too often to use force instead of persuasion.

  Harris said, “So there were three camps. These Islamists, the Russians and Chinese with their satellites, and the democracies. All appear to be heading toward conflict.”

  Alex replied, “Correct. This will all change rapidly as a new battery technology ushers in the viability of the electric car, rapidly replacing the internal combustion engine and roiling the oil for energy markets. The Western countries were no longer reliant on the east and the Islamists for their energy needs.

  “This brought about a new alliance between the east and the Islamists. The march toward a global war was taking shape.

  “War is what we do.”

  “That all changed when two wormholes between Earth and this region were discovered. Those discoveries coincided with the additional discovery of an imminent supernova explosion.

  At first the alliances rushed to send probes through the wormholes, which had opened at only a month’s traveling distance from the Earth. The eastern alliance focused on one while the West placed their interest on the other. Those interests exploded when each of the probes returned data that a habitable planet was just on the other side of each. Efforts quickly turned to focus on manned exploratory missions.

  “That would again change as it was determined the supernova explosion was sending a tremendous gamma-ray burst toward Earth. It was declared an Earth-killer event by the scientific communities of both factions. Plans were quickly drawn up for colony ships.

  Harris asked, “How much time did they have?”

  “That was the big unknown. Estimates ranged from days to decades. In a strange turn of events, both sides came together to assist one another, believing that it was better if some of both lived than if everyone died. A huge space dock was created and the assembly of two massive colony ships was begun.

  “The ships were originally designed to hold fifty thousand passengers each, with a sustainable bio-section where food could be grown and used materials recycled. The journeys through the wormholes and to the respective planets would take five years.”

  “So how did we come to have our wormhole drives?”

  “The ship projects were scaled up to accommodate five million citizens each. To quell the anxiety of the populations, additional hull structures were being assembled. Leaders on each side promised that all citizens would be taken through—a near impossibility given the circumstances. Materials had been stripped from existing facilities to construct the ships in as rapid a timeframe as possible.

  “As those efforts were ongoing, my team discovered several secrets about the wormhole and how one could be replicated. This was the discovery of the boson field and of how it could be manipulated. Those efforts eventually led to the creation of this complex.”

  Harris sat back in his chair. “Wait, I thought you were in here after the first few hundred years. How is that possible?”

  The image of Alex smiled. “Upon arrival at Domicile, twenty-four members of our science team were selected to be future guardians. Our bodies were flash frozen, with one new member thawed and put into service every twenty years. I was the last of the guardians.”

  Harris returned a skeptical expression. Our early history here is sketchy. Why wasn’t any of this preserved for us to know?”

  Alex shrugged. “I cannot speak for the early leaders and their decisions of what should be preserved. Our archives here contain a minimum of information about that period as well. What I do know is we had a tremendous population explosion following our arrival. Domicile was a planet that was ready to be colonized, and we had the right people along to do just that.

  “Upon arrival, the ships were dismantled—as designed—and used to build our first city. For reasons not afforded to me, our scientific discoveries accelerated in those early years. A boson generator was constructed and travel throughout the Domicile System became instantaneous.

  “That generator was scaled up, with the result being travel to the nearby star systems. A third such enhancement brought travel to New Earth and a rekindling of our relationship with our fellow Humans. Shortly after that accomplishment, it was decided that the boson field should not be controlled by either party, but instead reliant on each.

  “The two bosom complexes were constructed and manned by a science team from each colony. Travel and exploration of the outer colonies commenced, with each colony experiencing nearly unbelievable growth. Families of a dozen children or more were not uncommon.

  “For security reasons, the systems were put in place at each complex that would preclude travel to and from them without authorization. The general population, including the politicians, governors, and such, were kept in the dark about the existence of the complexes. They were controlled and run by the scientific community. Probably the only reason they exist today.”

  “How is it they continue to function after nearly two thousand years?”

  Alex smiled. “Automation and artificial intelligence. I was constructed to maintain this facility, and to train any future scientists who might somehow make their way here.”

  Harris chuckled. “From what I was told, Cletus Dodger was no scientist. How is it he made it here?”

  “Cletus was allowed to visit because the complex was in dire need of items we could not reproduce. He was fed. Enhancements were made to his ship, and he was educated in our history. In return for his assistance with the trade, he was given Farker as a companion. Cletus Dodger’s kindness, and his willingness to assist, have given this complex another thousand years of sustainability.”

  “That’s a fascinating story. It also explains a lot. We came here, we prosper
ed, we expanded, and of course we fell back into our normal Human habit of fighting.”

  Harris tapped his fingers on the table. “A few things I don’t get. Where did those original wormholes come from? And how was it our early settlers were so wildly successful? I mean, going from five million to close to a billion in a handful of generations. I would think they would have required help.”

  “Domicile is a fertile planet, Harris. As is New Earth. As to the origins of the wormholes… those indeed remain a mystery.”

  Harris pursed his lips. “So what’s next?”

  “You have completed this level and will be given access to the next once the others have finished.”

  Harris stood. “Guess that means I go back and wait. Getting hungry anyway.”

  The image of Alex remained in view.

  “Wait. Why are you still here? You usually disappear when I get up from the chair.”

  “That action is no longer deemed necessary. Welcome to the always-on me.”

  The holographic image grinned.

  Chapter 19

  _______________________

  Harris walked out to join the others. Tawn was sitting on a bench with her arm up across the back. “Finally.”

  “I have to say that was interesting. Where are the others?”

  “Trish and Gandy are finishing up their educations. Sharvie is just in talking with Alex.”

  “You think the pacies have our parts yet?”

  “I talked to Mr. Morgan this morning while you were in there. He said he expected them to ship within the hour. That was three hours ago. So yeah, they might be in.”

  “I think I’ll head over to pick them up.”

  Sharvie walked into the room. “Can I come?”

  “Sure.”

  Tawn nodded. “I’ll wait here for the Boleman kids.”

  Harris made his way aboard the shuttle, with Sharvie following and Farker at his heel. Ninety-five minutes later they were settling on the tarmac at Haven.

  Sharvie said, “Why no controller today? Don’t they normally request identification or something?”

  “They do.” Harris shrugged. “Not like them to not have someone here to greet us.”

  The hatch opened. A quick inspection of the tarmac building showed no one to be there. A vehicle was commandeered for the ride into town.