Expedition (Galactic Neighborhood Book 1)

by Alexander Elliott

  “As we have never faced the same situation, I can only admire what the Vingah have accomplished. Our home world was alive and thriving when Expedition was launched, at great cost and effort, yet both of our peoples have been reduced to a small microcosm of our civilizations. The major difference here is only that we possess a functioning vessel to sustain and carry us to our new home, while they do not.”

  He turned to Arlington with a small smile.

  “You were right to pose the question, Theresa, and I would be astonished if it does not come up when we meet with the senior staff. Perhaps Mosis will include what we just heard in the general presentation and thereby answer the question before it is asked.”

  It appeared Mosis was not yet finished, and with a small hand gesture, Perry encouraged him to continue.

  “There is one more thing, Captain. Governor Thriss requested I deliver this personal message to you when I returned to the ship.”

  Perry nodded, and the datascreen filled with the Vingah leader’s image.

  Greetings, Captain. I am Governor Thriss. On behalf of the Vingah people, I thank you for allowing Mosis to establish communication with us. I apologize for his abrupt removal from your ship, but our buoys lack the sophistication of your impressive shipmate. We did not intend to cause you alarm or distress. As I am sure Mosis has already told you, we have a great deal to discuss.

  We are willing to meet with you personally, and will transport your vessel to Khrusos as soon as you are prepared. As a token of our sincerity, we have given Mosis the specifications for some improvements to your ship’s systems. By the time you arrive, our entire leadership council will have been removed from stasis so we may speak to you directly. Until then, gentle winds, Captain.

  Perry quietly considered the Governor’s message, mind swirling with possibilities.

  “I must tell you I am very pleased with your performance, Mosis, and this will be reflected in your service file. I am inclined to take everything you have told us at face value, but I want the input of our senior staff before we agree on a plan of action. Theresa, invite them to a working breakfast at 8 a.m. in my private dining room. If there are no other issues which need immediate attention, I would like to get a few more hours sleep. We have a busy day ahead of us.”

  ####

  …Grazill, three romms in the past…

  The honors ceremony was taking too much time, and Overlord Gotogg was anxious to return to his duties. If his presence were not required by Premier Gornott, he would never have attended at all. Goboss may have been his Sire, but he was a worthless fool who would not be missed. As was custom, the body was laid inside the den and the dry dams removed, allowing the sea to reclaim the space once more.

  The recitations were finished, leaving only the final part of the ceremony. As the progeny with greatest honor, the duty fell to Gotogg. He quickly strutted forward to the small sandbar which formed the above ground cap of the den, lifted his loincloth, and saturated the area with a powerful stream of urine. With a final grunt, he gave a gesture of respect to the Premier, and walked away.

  Glad to be alone with his thoughts, Gotogg headed for the research facility where he spent so much of his time. He had greater resources here than aboard his ship, and there was an inkling of an idea which he wished to explore. It was true his Sire, Goboss, managed to translate the damaged recording left by the winged ones before Gotogg was even born. This information ultimately proved to be useless in his quest for the technological advances the aliens enjoyed.

  The unit was so badly damaged nothing could be discovered of its propulsion system, nor could any sense be made of its unique data banks. The metallurgical analysis, however, yielded advanced alloys which were now used in every modern ship and orbital device. In addition, they succeeded in reverse engineering its unique power plant, and utilized the technology both in space and on the planet.

  His plan was simple – locate another of those devices and capture it undamaged. Only then could they unravel its secrets and find the winged one’s planet. His special tutors instructed him from the time he could walk, and one of their primary lessons was to be thorough. The device had been studied down to the molecular level, and still would not give up its most important secrets. The only path left to study was the original encounter itself, and Gotogg was determined to uncover every last scrap of information in the archives. If there was anything of value, he would find it, and the Lydokk people would finally have their prize.

  The story of Overlord Gozorr’s capture of the device was a familiar one, but Gotogg was an Overlord himself now, and had good reason to believe crucial information was missing. The older records were not as complete as they are now, which was only part of the problem. None of Gozorr’s generation still breathed, so the archives held the only available information. He entered the archive facility, and the thrall on duty stood out of respect.

  You have five tolls to bring the Historian here to me, or I will rip out your throat. Go!

  The breathless thrall returned just in time with a wizened old one, shaking in fear in the presence of an Overlord. Gotogg barked out the information he was looking for, and the historian led him to the very back of a crowded room. Once he was shown how to search the archives, Gotogg dismissed the Historian with a low growl and set about his research. After some digging, he uncovered the visual records from the bridge of Gozorr’s ship. It soon became apparent, as he suspected, it was not Gozorr who fired the lucky shot, but an unnamed weapons thrall. The old fang was eager to claim the glory for himself in the official reports, not that Gotogg would have done any differently.

  What he needed, then, was the download of the weapons panel itself. If anything useful was to be learned it would be in the raw data – he was certain of it. Gotogg growled and cursed as he spent the next sonn scanning through the bridge records of all six ships. There was no apparent order to the jumbled mess, as no one thought to organize or label them properly. It was the very last one which turned out to be what he was seeking. With a satisfied snarl, he scooped up the data chip and stormed out of the archive, tail thrashing and grumbling threats at anyone who dared look in his direction.

  Entering his private workspace, he fed the records into the system for analysis. Watching carefully, the scene replayed itself over and over, revealing nothing new. The same question repeated itself in his mind: Why did the thrall fire? It was plain whatever occurred did so very quickly and without warning. He instructed the system to slow the playback to a crawl and enhance the view of the weapons data screen.

  With painstaking precision, Gotogg isolated the moments just prior to the event. There! The thrall picked up a muted signal shortly before he fired. With further enhancement, the system was able to reproduce the signal exactly as it has occurred. Almost simultaneously, the record showed an explosion, as the weapon obviously hit something which wasn’t there a moment before.

  Using the same process, Gotogg succeeded in isolating the exact moment the alien object made its appearance. First, however, a wavering gold light burst through empty space, as though gashed open with a blade. Only then did the leading edge of the device appear, clearly coming through the gash in space. Amazing! He could easily see why the reports stated the object appeared out of nowhere – because it actually did. Somehow the winged ones created a way to move instantly from one point in space to another without the use of traditional propulsion methods.

  This changed everything. If they could acquire this technology, the universe would belong to the Lydokk, and Gotogg would be the most powerful of them all. It was logical to assume the winged ones sent out more than one device. His mission, then, was to locate another one and capture it intact. Only then would they be able to discover how the technology worked. The key, he believed, would be found in the weak signal emitted just prior to the appearance of the object in Grazill space. He had an idea, but this was not his area of expertise. He would need the permission and cooperation of the science teams, and to get it he would
have to convince Premier Gornott.

  As he hoped, the Premier was very pleased at Gotogg’s discoveries, and quickly ordered the research team to focus on the problem. Once they viewed the enhanced records, they were just as enthusiastic as the Overlord himself. Finally, there were some solid clues on how to proceed after romms of no progress at all. When Gotogg proposed his idea to use the signal as a lure, the team hammered out the details of a plan which required a two-pronged approach. The first was to attract one of the devices to a time and place of their choosing. The second was to neutralize it intact before it could retreat the way it came.

  Much to Gotogg’s frustration, the process took many cycles, despite his repeated threats and blustering to hurry things along. Taking a set of ideas and turning them into reality was a long arduous process, and he had never been known for his patience. There were three pieces of hardware needed to put their plan into place. The first was to create an amplifier which would broadcast the alien signal out into space. It must be both powerful and far reaching, since they had no way to confirm the home planet of the winged ones, though it was believed to be in a far distant system.

  The second thing they needed was an extremely sensitive receiver which could detect an arriving alien object. Now that they knew what to look for, they should be able to reveal the presence and exact location of an incoming device with a great degree of accuracy. This was crucial if they were to have the advance warning needed to spring the trap, and to be certain it would appear within the parameters of the planned ambush.

  They would have only moments to engage the third piece of hardware being developed, which was a powerful field dampener. Once they attracted one of the devices, it was imperative to shut it down immediately before it could escape or use its weapons. By bombarding the device when it appeared in their space, the power plant would be temporarily drained, thereby allowing Gotogg’s team a chance to disconnect it from the onboard systems. The plan was full of assumptions, guesses, and unproven tools, and was extremely risky. There was no guarantee of success, of course, but Gotogg refused to entertain the idea it might not work. Nothing would deter him from his mission, and his name would be honored on Grazill for generations to come.

  Chapter 4

  The breakfast staff meeting ran the gamut of emotions among the participants. Relief and gratitude over Mosis’ safe return, shock and incredulity over the still-living Vingah people, and hopeful wonder over the possible benefits of cooperation with the alien race. Mosis was thoroughly grilled by the staff, who, rightly, asked serious questions about the Vingah and the proposed alliance. All the records were carefully picked apart and studied, as was the Governor’s message. While the presence of the sentinels and Mosis’ dramatic return legitimized the entire proposal, it was Governor Thriss’ gift of technology which helped seal the deal.

  Dana McClure and his team received the plans with some measure of skepticism, but ended in awe after realizing what were given. The improvements to their power supply alone were astonishing, but the ability to strengthen their shields by a hundred and fifty percent wiped away the last of their doubts. By the time they reconvened after lunch, Perry was prepared to announce his decision. No one present was surprised by it.

  “I believe it is in our best interests to meet with Governor Thriss and her council to discuss an alliance. If both parties are satisfied with the details of the agreement, I see no reason for further delay. We have an opportunity here which may never be repeated, and I would be remiss in my duty if I did not pursue it. I find it gratifying our first encounter with an alien life form should be with an intelligent and peaceful species who share the same goal. Therefore, in one hour we will proceed to Khrusos and arrange to meet with them. Make certain your departments are fully staffed and ready prior to departure. All sensors and recorders are to be in continuous operation until further notice. If there are no additional concerns, you are dismissed.”

  Mosis joined Perry and Arlington on the bridge to announce the Captain’s orders to the crew. With alacrity, all stations were manned and the departments signaled their readiness. The bridge personnel spread a barely contained excitement which affected even the Captain’s normally staid demeanor. He smiled freely, moving from station to station, encouraging each crewman by name and asking salient questions. When the time arrived, Perry reclaimed his command chair, and a quiet professionalism settled over the bridge.

  “Lynn, signal all personnel to stand by. Mosis, you may proceed.”

  Mosis paused for a moment of concentration, sending the request to the sentinels. With nothing more than a simple acknowledgement, the huge columns altered their positions to flank Expedition like a giant pair of bookends. The space ahead of them was pierced by a gash of golden energy, and then the ship and its escorts were drawn inside.

  In the blink of an eye it was over. There were no strange physical effects, flashing lights or stellar phenomena - simply a change in the star patterns on the view screen behind the dusty brown orb of Khrusos. The sentinels escorted the ship into a geosynchronous orbit above the mountain range previously visited by Mosis, and then held position. Seconds later, a small green light blinked to life on Lynn’s panel.

  “We are being hailed by Governor Thriss, Captain.”

  “Open the channel, Lynn.”

  The startling image of the Vingah leader made some of the crew uneasy, but Perry showed no outward discomfort at the alien visage.

  Welcome to Khrusos, Captain. My council is most eager to meet with you and your officers. Do you require transportation?

  “Thank you, Governor. The information brought to us by Mosis is most intriguing. As we would like him to be a part of the deliberations, we were hoping you would be willing to join us here on Expedition.”

  Personally, I would like nothing better, but some council members strongly prefer a less alien setting for our first discussion. We would be honored if you would meet with us here. In any case, we have constructed a self-contained device which will allow Mosis complete freedom of movement. With your permission, I will have a buoy deliver it to your vessel.

  “As you wish, Governor. Your generosity towards my crewman is most appreciated. There will be eight persons in our delegation. Are there any environmental considerations we should be aware of?

  We will adjust the conditions here to make you more comfortable, though be prepared for a lighter gravity and higher temperature. The atmosphere is breathable if you do not expend a great deal of energy. We will send this information along with guidance instructions to our meeting location. We await your arrival, Captain.

  Perry relaxed slightly as Thriss terminated the signal. Within seconds, the information spoken of was received and a buoy approached quickly from the surface. When it reached the ship, a familiar golden beam reached into the ship and delivered a compact case directly to the bridge, startling the crew. The buoy then waited outside the ship to escort the delegation to the planet. Perry, unflappable as ever, merely turned to his communications officer.

  “Lynn, send the packet of information to the rest of the team, and ask Commander McClure to report to the bridge.”

  The Chief Engineer arrived, and was tasked with examining the mysterious Vingah gift. With Mosis watching raptly, a flat rectangular object was lifted from the case and placed on the deck. Attached were two adjustable straps whose meaning were not entirely clear. There was nothing else in the case, and no obvious instructions. Mosis reached out with his senses to examine the device and drew back with an audible gasp. Perry sent him a quizzical look, and noted the sense of awe on his face.

  “Captain, I believe the straps will enable me to carry the device like a backpack.”

  McClure’s jaw dropped at the implications, while Perry crossed his arms and allowed a small smile to appear. Instructing McClure to pick up the device, the three of them slipped into the Captains’ ready room. With a nod to his engineer, McClure explained.

  “Up until now, Mosis was never physically presen
t anywhere except in the cradle. What we saw walking around the ship was merely a projection with no actual substance. If I am correct in my assumptions, this device will provide Mosis with all the tactile sensations and physicality of a real body. We always hoped to reach this point someday, but were nowhere close in our research. Thriss claimed it was self-contained, which means they must have duplicated his organo-synthetic brain and power supply, and added holographic projectors as well as powerful force fields. There may be other goodies wrapped up in there, but we will have to activate the unit to find out.”

  Perry looked thoughtful for a moment and turned to face his friend.

  “What happens to the original “you” down in the cradle, Mosis? Is this something you even want?”

  Mosis looked down at the device and then up to meet Perry’s gaze.

  “I want it very much, Captain. The Vingah examined me quite thoroughly, and knew this was my desire - though I would never have thought to ask for it. I believe the shipboard and portable version of me will be something like two sides of the same coin. Anything learned or experienced while I am off the ship would simply be uploaded to my memory database upon my return.”