Planet Predators

by Saxon Andrew

  Kenny said, “I don’t think so, Sir.”

  “Why do you say that, Admiral?”

  “I just looked at the recording of the Scout’s destruction and I think I know why the Giant didn’t come.” Kenny commed Aman Forester and played the call over the intership system, “Captain Forester, have you seen any change in the Blue Battleship.”

  “Yes Sir, about an hour ago its color changed to a brighter hue and stayed that way for fifteen minutes. It has now returned to its normal level.”

  “Thank you, Captain. Carry on.”

  “So what happened?”

  Kenny chuckled, “It appears our overachiever here killed the Scout before it could transmit its location.”

  “Hey, hey, you told me to do it quickly.”

  Jillian shook her head, “He’s right.”

  Chris sighed, “We’ll try this again and this time you will allow the Scout the time to call for help.”

  Arvolo tried to swallow but couldn’t. He had just ticked off the Commander of the Fleet.

  Kenny commed, “Hey don’t feel bad, RV. You just made history.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You are humanity’s first Space Ace. That’s your eleventh kill. No one else can ever take that title from you.”

  Arvolo thought a moment and said, “You’re right!”

  “Congratulations, Captain, however, give them a moment next time to appreciate your achievement.”

  “I will Admiral.”

  Chris looked at his display, “We have another Scout in a system two hundred light years from here. That will be our next target. I’ve sent you the coordinates. I’ll meet you there.”

  The Blue Giant Battleship’s Commander wanted to scream. A Scout was being attacked but had only been able to get out half of its coordinates. There was no way to find it. He waited and nothing else was received. He seethed with anger and waited. If the enemy followed their usual pattern another ship would be attacked shortly. He called the entire crew to Action Stations and waited.

  * * *

  Arvolo looked at the destroyed Scout and watched his scanner. He had given the Scout twenty seconds before he destroyed it five seconds later. He waited for the other two ships and he saw a disruption indicating a ship emerging into normal space. The disruption was huge and he looked at the energy readings and said, “Holy Mother of Jesus!!!”

  He hit the override on his panel, fired his main beam powered by both reactors at the disruption, launched a fusion missile and prayed that it was enough. The Giant Blue Ship appeared and the beam struck its force field and caused a huge display of sparks. After a second it opened a small hole and the fusion missile flew through just as the force field closed and a huge white beam erupted from the Giant barely missing the Havana as Arvolo darted away.

  The Jukebox and Tampa appeared and the Giant Ship fired a beam that barely missed the two ships. Jillian screamed, “Get us out of here; that ship is at full power, Chris!”

  Another beam flashed by as the two ships dodged in different directions and then the Giant exploded in a blast that ripped out and hit the force fields around the two Earth Ships. They were pushed more than a thousand miles away by the shock wave. The Havana was the closest ship to the blast and was shoved at tremendous force. Arvolo was stunned and shook his head to gather his senses. He heard Admiral Connor on his speaker, “What just happened?”

  “I’m sorry, Sir. I overrode my system and fired on the ship.”

  Arvolo waited and thought, “I’ve done it again. I didn’t wait on the others.”

  Then he heard, “Admiral Anders, you will jump with us to Fleet Headquarters in New York and hold Captain Arvolo to await our decision on his actions.”

  “Sir, he only….”

  “Admiral, you will follow you orders. Is that clear!?!”

  “Yes Sir.”

  Arvolo moved the Havana into Sierra Space and followed Kenny to the Space Port in New York and surrendered to him. Kenny took out his handcuffs and said, “I’m so sorry.”

  Arvolo put his hands behind his back and shook his head, “It’s not your fault, my friend. It’s not your fault.”

  Kenny took Arvolo to a cell and removed the handcuffs. “Tell me why you fired before we arrived?”

  Arvolo shook his head, “It was almost instinctive; I did it without thinking. The energy readings on that monster were more than twenty times higher than the ship that Admiral Connor destroyed. I knew it was only going to get stronger and I reacted. I’m sorry I didn’t follow orders.”

  Kenny shook his head and said, “I’ll do what I can.”

  Arvolo lowered his head and said, “I appreciate it.”

  * * *

  The two Alpha Agents standing guard outside the conference room saw an Alpha Colonel approaching. He was if full dress blues and his medals were on his chest. They moved forward to bar his entry and saw his expression. Then they recognized who he was. They looked at each other, saluted, and stepped aside. Kenny opened the door and entered the room. The people gathered around the table stopped what they were doing and watched him come forward. Jeff stood and said, “Is something wrong, Admiral?”

  “Yes Sir, there is. I insist that you immediately release Captain Arvolo from confinement.”

  Jeff looked at Dolly and turned back, “And if we don’t?”

  Kenny stepped forward and put his stars on the table, “Then I hereby resign from the Navy.”

  Dolly said, “Why are you doing this?”

  “He saved our lives and I think all of you should know it by now. He doesn’t deserve this after all he’s been through.”

  Chris looked at Kenny, “What do you mean?”

  “I learned from one of his old neighbors that when he was ten years old he watched his older brother shot and beheaded by the Communists. When we landed to free the Island, the Regime took his wife as one of the hostages and killed her when we charged the building. He’s suffered enough for one lifetime.”

  “How do you know this?”

  “My family and I went to Cuba recently and I went to his old neighborhood and inquired about his wife. Arvolo insists that he’s afraid she will call him one day. A neighbor that knew them took me to a cemetery and showed me Maria Arvolo’s grave. He told me about what had happened. He said they tried to tell Arvolo she was dead but he refused to listen and insisted she would call him when she needed him. That is where he first acquired the Crazy Cuban tag. He doesn’t deserve this.”

  Dolly stared at Kenny and saw the deep feelings he had for his friend, “There are some things you don’t know about Captain Arvolo that you should know before you have us honor your request.”

  Kenny stared at Dolly and said, “What things?”

  She told him.

  * * *

  Arvolo waited in his cell and saw an orderly open the cell door and hand him a full dress Naval Uniform. “Please put this on.”

  Arvolo sighed, “And so it begins. The court-martial must be today. He dressed and waited. He heard the key in the cell door and looked up and saw Kenny in a full dress Alpha Uniform, “It’s time to go, RV.”

  Arvolo stood and smiled, “I’m glad you’re here with me.”

  “I wouldn’t be anywhere else.” Arvolo stood and put his hands behind his back. “I will not put you in cuffs.” Arvolo smiled and nodded his thanks.

  Arvolo followed Kenny out into the hall of the huge building and walked beside him. He looked over at Kenny’s medals and said, “You were in Saudi Arabia?”

  Kenny nodded, “We were only able to save the Royal Family and embassy staff before the nuke hit.”

  Arvolo looked closer, “Tehran, Egypt, and Moscow as well.”

  “I was busy as a youth.”

  Arvolo glanced at Kenny as they continued to walk and knew those medals were the highest award given after those conflicts. Kenny was even more impressive that he thought. He stood straighter and raised his chin. It was time for him to be brave. They approached a huge door a
nd two Alpha Agents opened the door and saluted. Kenny walked through followed by Arvolo, “You didn’t return their salute.”

  “It wasn’t for me.”

  Arvolo looked around and didn’t see anyone else. They moved into a massive auditorium and thousands of people stood and started clapping. Arvolo smiled and knew Kenny deserved their applause. He was a real hero. He looked ahead and saw all of the Fleet’s Admirals were lined up on the stage. He also saw Admiral Garcia’s blonde-haired wife beside him. There was Admiral Connor and his wife. He wondered why they needed such high ranking officers at a lowly Captain’s court-marshal. The crowd continued to clap and eight Marines fell in behind them. Arvolo immediately recognized them as the ones he had fought in the bar. Oh, no, witnesses. Kenny looked over and whispered, “Shoulders back.”

  Arvolo stood straighter and Kenny stopped directly in front of the huge stage and went to attention. Arvolo joined him and then wondered why so many people were present. Then he looked up at the stage and saw President Suh step up to the podium. “What the…”

  The huge crowd became silent and President Suh looked down at the two standing in front of the stage. “We don’t do this very often and it’s not because we don’t have those that are deserving of this moment. It’s just that the requirements for it to happen are so hard to achieve. Bravery is not enough; it’s the results of that bravery that makes one qualified.” Suh looked at Arvolo, “Captain Arvolo, it with a profoundly grateful heart that I award you the Solar Star for your actions in combat that have given Humanity more time to fight for survival. You have performed above and beyond the call of duty and a grateful planet thanks you for your actions.”

  Arvolo looked over and Kenny and saw him smiling. This couldn’t be happening. He’d never been given a medal for anything except winning a spelling bee in fifth grade and now he was receiving the highest award possible. He watched as Suh walked forward and placed the ribbon around his neck. Suh went back to the podium and looked out at the crowd, “We are going to show you some of Captain Arvolo’s deeds.”

  A recording of the first battle with the Blue Giant Scouts started playing and Suh said, “Captain Arvolo destroyed five of their ships and had more than six thousand of their ships attempting to capture him.”

  Arvolo picked up the medal on his chest and stared at it. Kenny watched him and said “What?”

  Arvolo sighed and said, “I gladly trade this medal for one of those given after the liberation of my home.”

  Kenny smiled, reached into his pocket, and handed him a medal with a yellow and green ribbon, “You can have mine.”

  Arvolo’s eyes grew wide and he stared at Kenny. Kenny saw the tears start and he quickly looked away so as not to embarrass his friend. Arvolo took a deep breath, held the medal tightly, and blew his breath out slowly. He straightened and saw the end of the recording where the Blue Giant Battleship exploded.

  Admiral Connor came to the podium and said, “Captain Arvolo disregarded my direct orders and fired on this ship before we arrived. If he had not done so, all three of our ships would have been destroyed. He determined that the giant ship’s energy was too high to wait and took immediate action. By killing that ship so quickly, it did not have time to reveal the weakness in its power system to its Fleet. He has given us more time to prepare.” Chris looked down at Arvolo, “I thank you for saving our lives with your fast action. On behalf of all our Military Forces, we hope we can all perform as well.”

  Chris looked up at the gathering and said, “Captain Arvolo now has twelve confirmed kills of Blue Giant Scouts and one Main Battleship. He is the Military’s first Space Ace and his name will honor our Fleet Headquarters. He will receive a salute from any member of the Services from this day forward regardless of rank. Chris saluted along with every other member of the Military present and Arvolo returned it. Chris smiled, “Thank you, Captain.”

  The huge crowd erupted in cheers and Kenny saw RV lift his com to his ear. He said something and put his arm down. Kenny leaned in, “Who was that?”

  RV looked at him, smiled, and said, “It was Maria. She said she’ll be waiting for me to come home.”

  The eight Marines rushed forward and carried Arvolo away just before Kenny felt his tears. He blew out a breath and saw Dolly standing next to him, “What’s wrong?”

  Kenny told her about the call. “He’s finally at peace.”

  Dolly looked at Arvolo and decided something had to be done. Jeff walked up and said, “Admiral Anders, you and Captain Arvolo are being reassigned.”

  “Where to, Sir?”

  “You will take Captain Arvolo and report to George Sierra on Dundee to assist them in the construction of our new battleships. Captain Arvolo will command the first one completed and you will assume the overall command of the Fleet that’s being built there. Do you think the Captain should be promoted?”

  Kenny looked at Arvolo smiling as he was being carried and shook his head, “He belongs on the bridge of a warship, Sir. He’s found his place in this universe.”

  Jeff smiled, “I think you’re right.”

  Dolly stared at the big Cuban and Jeff saw her, “What are you up to?”

  “Oh nothing, Dear.”

  Jeff shook his head and thought, It never is. He knew she was planning something.

  Chapter Five

  “We’re missing something Meisa.”

  “George, this reactor is ten times stronger than the ones on the Jukebox.”

  “Something is missing. It’s right outside my consciousness and I can’t get a grip on it.”

  “You don’t think this is strong enough to take on a Blue Ship?”

  “Possibly, but I don’t like the term possibly. There’s more to this fuel than we know.”

  Meisa hugged George and said, “Let’s work through this and see where it leads us.”

  “Ok, you start.”

  “Well, the first elements we used came from the Alliance. You figured out how they were supposed to come together.”

  “That’s true.”

  “The second group in the chain was taken from the Jenze shoulder blaster. They really increased the power.”

  George smiled, “That is also true. Where does the third group of elements come from?”

  “I’m not sure what you mean?”

  George thought about it and then saw it, “The elements in the chain are mixed and matched to give the right power for the device it powers.”

  Meisa shook her head, “I still don’t understand where you’re going with this?”

  George took her hand and pulled her up out of her chair, “Come with me.”

  He ran towards the communications room and Meisa ran with him. George rushed in and took a chair in front of the main computer and started pushing buttons. “What are you doing?”

  “Chris and Jillian sent me the recordings of the attacks that were made on the Moet planet. The first attack they viewed was done millions of years ago by the Jenze.” George pulled the recording up and they watched the Jenze Ships burn the Moet Fleet out of existence with bright blue beams.

  “Do you see it now?” Meisa shook her head. George split the screen and pulled the recording of the Jenze Ship on ancient Earth that was destroyed by the asteroid. George started the video and they watched the Jenze kill a Moet Scout Ship that had destroyed its sled with a bright red beam. The view changed and they saw the small Jenze ship fire a red beam and destroy two other small Moet craft.

  “The beams are different colors.”

  “Exactly.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “You remember me saying that the Jenze were nowhere near advanced enough to have been the dominant power they were described by to be by the Alliance. The beam in the shoulder weapon was strong but nowhere near all conquering.” George pointed to the blue beams being fired by a Jenze Battleship, “Now that beam is a different story. That one is different. It’s using a different chain of elements than the shoulder blaster.”

&
nbsp; “George, we added nine elements to the Jenze chain in the shoulder blaster.”

  “And the Jenze contribution gave us a hundred times the power of our reactors. Those blue beams have more elements powering them that we are not currently using. What if those elements increased our power a hundred times?”

  “Why didn’t that small ship have this power?”

  “It was too small to contain the reaction. They had to use a less powerful chain for the science vessel. We’ve got to see one of their main Battleships.”

  Meisa looked at the screen, “The Jenze aren’t around today. Perhaps we should try to see the power used by the species that destroyed them.”

  “Either option is fine with me but we have to find a working model of either ship.”

  “I’m sending this conversation to Dolly and will have her view it before we discuss it with her.”

  Meisa raised her eyebrows and tilted her head. George made a copy and sent it to Dolly.

  * * *

  Chris and Jillian arrived at the building where it all started and went through the security portals. They saw the huge stone tablet in the middle of the giant building and a group of people sitting around a table. As they came closer they saw Dolly, Jeff, Arnold, Hemon, Sasha, and that Crazy Cuban sitting and having a conversation. They walked up to the table and saw a display set up at the end of the table with George and Meisa on it. Dolly stood, “Here they are; we can get started.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “Jillian, George has come up with an issue that we feel must be explored. I’m going to need you and Chris to make another trip in the Jukebox to find some information in the past that we need.”

  Chris looked at the display, “What do you need exactly?”

  “We need you to find out what elements are used to power a Jenze Battleship.”

  Chris started laughing, “Oh, is that all George. I thought it was going to be something hard. Are you crazy? How are we going to do something like that?”

  George smiled, “I have no idea but we need you to do it.”