by Ben Winston
It might have been the plan of the Russian commander to say he was going to surrender and wait to see if they took him into the base. However, after they had been set gently on the surface of the moon, at least a kilometer across an open plain with no cover, any hopes he might have had where dashed.
While the troops exited the ship through an emergency hatch in the cargo area, the pilots shut the shuttle down and followed their comrades. Each soldier placed his weapons on the wing of the shuttle and moved several meters away and assumed a formation. The pilots who had also been carrying side arms, placed them beside the rest and moved over near the assembled troops.
Greg asked for a shuttle from the base to come and collect the Russian troops for their return to the planet. Greg let Carl work out their destination since he hadn't said exactly where on the planet he would have them taken. However, the equipment they had brought, everything from the shuttle all the way to the suits the troops had worn would be staying with the Terran Defense Initiative. Not that Greg had any use for the equipment, but he couldn't see just giving it back either.
Greg left the Chinese shuttle alone, in orbit until they were almost out of air. Then he pulled them down to the surface as well. When the troops poured out of the shuttle to attack, they found their target a far distant light on the horizon, and three very deadly looking ships hovering just out of their weapons' range.
The commander ordered his troops to open their suits rather than surrender. Two of his troops shot him while the rest began dropping their equipment to the surface of the moon. They moved away knelt to their knees and raised their arms. The suits they wore would not allow them to put their hands behind their head.
Again, another shuttle retrieved the troops and they were stripped of the remainder of their gear. They were given coveralls to wear, and sent back to Earth. Carl even made sure they were fed on the flight back.
Three Russian and six Chinese troops asked for asylum but only two were actually accepted. The others were spies sent along for just such an eventuality as this, so they were also transported back to the planet. One of the former Chinese soldiers asked for and received permission to open another restaurant featuring Cantonese cuisine. The former Russian soldier had mining experience and asked to be allowed to do that. He turned out to be a real boon. Yuri Petrov came from a long line of miners in the Ukraine. He grew up in mines and was taught how to speak with tales of miners and mining. Granted, when applied to mining in space, there were major and massive differences, but the principles were the same. After a single week on the job, he began making suggestions that improved the efficiency of the operations by an order of magnitude. Even the Greynus mining engineers were impressed with his knowledge and ability.
After dropping off the troops at a UN base on Earth, the UN basically sent them home without a word. Nothing further was said, and the whole episode was swept nicely under the rug by the world leaders.
The people, however, didn't ignore it. A formal petition was written up requesting that when TDI began releasing new technologies on Earth, China and the Russian Federation should be boycotted. It had an amazing number of signatures from all over the planet. So much so, that Greg decided to address the issue.
"Peoples of Earth, although the final decision on the disposition of the technology we will be releasing will not be up to me, I felt the need to speak to you about the petition that has been posted.
"The technologies we will be releasing will be for the people, not the governments, although I am certain they will find a way to make money off it, the whole point is to give the people the technology that will improve their lives. Hell, some of the stuff we'll be releasing has been available on planet for years, but only suppressed by this government or by some corporation. All we will be doing is making the information available and in as easy to understand format as we can. We are not releasing it to benefit the governments, it's all for you.
"So if we agreed to your request to withhold this stuff from the people of China as well as the Russian Federation, we will only be hurting them; the people - the same ones we are trying to protect and assist. Just like there is little to nothing the governments can do to stop us, there is little we can do to them even if we actually wanted to. As much as I hate to say it guys, they are your governments. It has to be up to you to fix them, or it would undermine the whole reason you have them. If we tried to do it for you, we would only end up hurting you in the long run. If you feel there is something wrong with your government, no one but you can fix it. We can't do it for you."
"Now, there is one other thing I want to talk to all of you about: aliens. We've been telling you all along that eventually there would be aliens coming here to live and work with us. Well, there are some here now, and more are on their way. A Greynus hive cluster arrived yesterday. Yes, I said hive. The Greynus are an insectoid race structured around a hive type societal structure. That might make some of you nervous, but let me reassure you, while they are quite large beings, they are as gentle as they are strong. They revere life to the point of mourning any death they learn of, regardless if it was one of their race or not. When their Ranger team has to fight, the entire society will take a day of mourning for each of the lives of the enemy they were forced to destroy. Now, I ask you, does that sound like an evil race to you?
"We also have Harclen here now. So far, they are the most human-like race we have met, although I am told there are closer races. Basically, the Harclen are cats. I mean that literally. We evolved from chimps, these folks evolved from felines. While they do share some of the traits we attribute to felines, the Harclen are a far more caring species. They are very intelligent and cunning, they are curious to a fault, but they are fiercely loyal to those they chose to ally themselves with or deem a friend. We are allied with them, and their Ranger Fighter is one of my closest friends.
"Very soon, there will also be Onarians here. I'm not sure how to describe what they look like, but they have blueish skin and are very logical. I would say they are much like the Vulcan race from Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek, but I feel they can be much more annoying. That being said, they are as committed to our defense as the rest of us. They excel at computers and computer control systems and will be designing and building many of the systems in the facilities we will be building up here and elsewhere in the sector.
"As I said, there are others, but for now, those are the ones that will be arriving in the near future. I will ask Abraxis to compile a racial bio for each of them and request each race's histories for those of you that are interested. Thank you for listening to me. I hope each and every one of you has a great day. Please remember, it is our duty to each other to watch over and protect each other. If we don't, who will?"
Command and Control
Dome Level 5
Grimaldi Ridge Base
Ocean of Storms
Selene, Earth's Moon
While Greg and the girls had been on patrol, the tests on the effects of hypersled jumps on humans began. Greg's mother, Sharon had been the focus of the original test, but it had been expanded to include a normal human pilot as well.
As expected, the normal human not only couldn't handle the sled in routine maneuvers, the simulation of a hyperjump in a sled proved almost fatal to him. He was removed from the simulator before the stress could do permanent harm, but as it was he had to spend two days in the medical center recovering from the experience.
Sharon, however, had no issues at all either in sled handling or during a jump. That data proved Abraxis’ recorded data to be inaccurate with regards to the humans of Earth, at least the ones that had the 'Ranger Gene'. When Greg and the girls returned, Sharon rode with Bella and the team jumped out to Saturn and back. The event did not affect Sharon at all and she asked when they could go back and get a better look at the ringed planet.
In addition to their original duties, both Jarad and Sharon began Ranger training with the partial team from Australia.
Construction had
not only begun on the military base, but also on a facility that would serve as the main Alliance Government facility for the Alliance and their ambassadors. After Carl had met with and discussed the issue with the other leaders, it was decided that, because of its location, Earth would be the best place to build the Alliance Government. Instead of a station, they opted for a lunar facility.
The Greynus took over the building of the military base, but Abraxis' drones were left to build the Alliance facility. The Greynus claimed that they didn't want to make a mistake when constructing the living quarters for the different races, but Greg secretly thought that they didn't want to deal with the multiple and continuous alterations requested by the races, and he couldn't blame them.
As he headed for the Command and Control center, he was amazed by the number of people he encountered. He knew that recruitment had been going full out since they opened the base, and there sure seemed to be a lot of folks up here now. Not just scientists and researchers, either, these were regular people doing normal, regular things. For a moment, Greg felt like he'd been transported hundreds of years into the future to a time when humanity had finally reached out for the stars.
"Abraxis, I know it's only been a little over a week, but how many folks are up here now? It sure seems like there are a lot more than when we left," Greg asked.
"Current population of the base is seventeen-thousand, four-hundred and eighty-five humans, thirty-seven-thousand, nine-hundred and fifty-two Greynus and twenty Harclen. We are growing rather quickly are we not?" the old AI asked him.
"Yeah, we sure are. I can't help but wonder if it's too quickly. Fifty-five-thousand beings? But, we do need the people to help with everything that needs to get done, so more has to be a good thing, right?" Greg replied as he pushed the button to summon the lift up to the dome.
"Well, we don't have an unemployment issue yet, so I would say we are doing remarkably well so far. Now that the Greynus are here, it is possible that our capacity will outstrip our need rather quickly."
"What do you mean? In what way?" Greg asked.
"The Greynus have taken over the building of residential areas as well as the military base. Two more hive clusters will be arriving in two weeks but they are assigned to different projects; the mining and ore processing project as well as the first of the assembly gantries, respectively. Before they arrive, the Greynus will have habitat modules built for them. The first habitat will be near the location of the future ore processing and foundry facilities and the star port group will be built in lunar orbit and simply moved to different locations as needed. Basically, that will be a large ship capable of housing the hive and their equipment. Until the ore processing and foundries get built, the star port group will be assisting the processing group," Abraxis explained.
"Well, I for one will be glad when the base gets finished. This is a long way to go if there was an alert and I needed to get to the dome quickly," Greg replied.
"That is why the Ranger areas as well as the command areas are getting built first," Abraxis replied. "Once those are built, you will be able to launch much quicker, as well as attend briefings and anything else you will need to do."
"Just because I'm curious, since the Greynus are so fast, do you know how long before they're finished?" Greg asked.
"About a week, considering what they are projecting, they will actually be faster than I could have done it with the drones," Abraxis said. "Once the raw materials are more readily available, I think you will truly begin seeing the wonders the Greynus are capable of."
"The wonders are yet to come, Abraxis. You've seen the construction forecasts for the ships we've designed. Unless something major changes, we're going to be at least a year short on the time we'll need," Greg said as the lift opened on the command level.
"The group is waiting for you in the main conference area, Greg," Abraxis said. "Second to the last door on the left."
Greg walked down to the indicated door and it slid open for him. He was surprised by the number of people included in this meeting. "I'm sorry, am I the last to arrive?"
"No, but even if you were, you’re still a few minutes early," Jared said by way of greeting.
Greg knew Carl and Jarad. He was surprised to see Joyce here as well, but there were a couple of others he didn't recognize. Carl took care of that. "Commander Albright, let me introduce you to Mining Master Amos Greeley, head of mining operations and Miss Teriska Oni, head of recruiting and placement," He turned to the two new people. "Amos; Teri; this is Commander Greg Albright, chief of military operations and the leader of our Alpha Ranger team."
"Commander, it is an honor to meet you," Amos said when he shook Greg's hand.
Greg smiled at him. "The honor is mine, Master Greeley."
"It is a true pleasure to meet you, Commander," Teriska said taking Greg's hand.
"For me as well, Ms. Oni," Greg replied and shook her hand. He looked at Carl, "Who else are we waiting for?"
Before Carl could reply, Jarad did. "Your wonderful mother, Greg. I think Joyce and the younger Rangers have been running her a little ragged."
Joyce snorted. "Not bloody likely! She might be older than us, but that woman never gets tired!"
"Like hell I don't!" Sharon said from the door. "I just won't let you kids know it!"
"Before I get distracted again and forget: Jarad, how's Paul doing?" Greg asked.
"Recovering, and well on his way to getting released from the medical center. You should stop in and see him," Jarad replied, smiling at his son.
Greg nodded. "I will after the meeting. So, what's up?"
"First off, we have had a number of urgent requests to build a few long range capable passenger ships, as well as increasing the size of the existing recruitment fleet.
“However, we only have one assembly facility at the moment and it's involved in building mining ships. We need both urgently and I'd like your opinions before I make a decision," Carl replied.
"Carl, we need those mining ships! We won't be able to build anything without the ores for them!" Amos said. It seemed like he was rehashing an old argument.
"Master Greeley, do you currently have the pilots and personnel those ships will need?" Joyce asked.
"We have a few, but by the time more people come in and get trained, we'll need them!" Amos replied.
"Carl, you said urgent requests in addition to the expansion of the recruiter’s fleet. May I ask who the other ships are for?" Greg asked.
"Several other races that do not yet have FTL transportation of their own would like to join in the effort. Their governments have already agreed to this provided transportation could be arranged. I would mention that not all of them would be coming here, and the Harclen are doing their best to get all the requests handled but they simply don't have the ships, nor can they get them built fast enough.
“They are the ones that have actually made the request to us, they have asked for an additional six ships to help offset the travel needs until a larger ship facility can be built thus building larger ships.
“Another request is from the High Queen of the Greynus; it’s very formally worded and flowery in prose, but basically they are asking for four of the largest ships we can build in order to more effectively get the hive clusters to where they are needed," Carl explained.
"On top of all of that, the current fleet we're using to pick up folks is running full out and around the clock," Sharon said. "I've had to grab as many pilots as I could and I've even trained a few. We have three times as many pilots as we do ships because I have to rotate out crews. I feel it’s getting dangerous because I can't stop the ships we have long enough for some of the maintenance they need."
Greg nodded. "Abraxis, I know that you are currently handling the ore processing for the base. How much of your capacity are the current miners using?"
"Commander, I am currently at a consistent eighty percent of my maximum capacity. The miners are doing a remarkable job getting raw materials delivere
d," Abraxis replied.
"Yes they are." Greg looked at the big miner. "You should be very proud of your people, Master Greeley."
"I am Commander, thank you."
Greg turned to Joyce. "Since you're in training, what do you think about this situation, Joyce?"
"A bit dodgy, but perhaps not as much as it would first appear to be." Joyce replied. "While Master Greeley has a valid concern, at the end of the day even he will still need the people to run the craft he wants built. So for that, I think that after the current batch is finished, we should change over to the passenger ships for Miss Oni. However, we cannot ignore the request from our allies either. So I need to ask, do we have designs available for the new ships?"
"There is a design for an improved passenger shuttle that is almost finished," Carl replied. "The Harclen offered their current design for us to use but it would have to be modified somewhat as it is too large for our current facility."
Joyce nodded. "Then I would suggest this; while the remaining miners are being finished up, we use the time to complete our shuttle design as well as to modify the Harclen design for our own use. Ideally, we should then split the building so one new liner and one or two new shuttles are getting built at a time. Failing that, I'd build at least one liner first, and then do a couple of the shuttles before doing another liner. We might need the shuttles more urgently, but we also need to show our allies that we can be relied on as well."
Greg nodded and smiled at the woman. "Right on all counts, however, will the change-over have any impact on the other projects currently being built by the Greynus?"
"Negative, Commander. The ore I am currently processing is sufficient for both projects. While there is a significant increase in demand forecast for the near future, it should not arrive until after the new processing facilities have been completed," Abraxis replied.
"Might I have a word on that, Abraxis?" Joyce asked.
"Do you have a suggestion, Fighter Joyce?" Abraxis replied.
