by Karl Morgan
“That should be a last resort, Lina. The Hive is our only defense system for Tak-Makla. Until we can be certain we are not being breached in some way, The Hive must stay on,” he replied.
“Perhaps some agents should enter The Hive and check nearby space for intruders? If you think there might be a threat, it’s the logical thing to do,” Lina said.
“I’ve already summoned fifty thousand agents to do that. They should be here in the next few minutes. I’m stationing them at the top of The Hive in case there is more trouble down here,” Nit replied.
“That’s wise, Nit.” Lina noticed motion on one of the monitors. “I thought I saw something moving in the dark on this monitor,” she said.
“Probably just Arto or one of the mechanics,” Nit noted as he continued to watch the system monitors.
Arto used his lantern to light the area in front of him. The Hive was very quiet when the systems were in sleep mode, and that made the power fluctuations seems even stranger. He thought he sensed motion just out of the range of his light, but as he moved forward, he found only the machines. He was nearing the central core now and raced toward it. He quickly turned a corner and tripped, falling to the ground. He sat for a moment to catch his breath and rub his shoulder and hip that had taken the brunt of the fall. He turned to look where he had tripped and saw a maklan leg sticking out from beneath a computer rack. He crawled to it and pulled the dead body out into the corridor. He recognized the body as one of the engineers he had met earlier that day.
“We’ve got a big problem out here,” Arto said as he clicked on his com-link.
“What is it, Arto?” Lina asked.
“I just tripped over the body of one of Nit’s engineers. It looks like he was suffocated. Send some agents over here to investigate,” Arto replied.
“Just wait there, Arto, help will be there soon,” Nit said.
“I can’t wait. I just heard more noises just ahead. It sounded like a door closing. I’ll go investigate,” Arto said as he climbed to his feet. He held his lantern in front of him and ran toward the sound. After he turned another corner, a large metal door blocked his path. He knew this type of door should mark the edge of The Hive. Typically, these doors are heavily secured, but this one stood slightly ajar.
He tried to look through the open slit, but could see only darkness. He pulled the door open slowly and stepped through. He was in a small hallway about twenty feet long. A second door with several magnetic locks was at the other end of the hallway. He moved forward quickly. He raised his lantern to examine the locks. All of them were badly burned. He pulled slightly on the door which cracked open slightly. There was no alarm although this was the most sensitive part of The Hive. He heard movement on the other side of the door and closed it softly. He whispered into his com-link, “Lina, there’s been a breach on the exterior wall of The Hive. I can hear activity on the other side, but no voices. Whoever did this has already killed at least one maklan. I have to imagine that the Hive may be hit very soon. Please have Nit evacuate.”
“Understood, Arto. Nit insists that some agents review nearby space first in case there is an invasion fleet. This Hive is their only defense. Get back here quickly, Arto,” she pleaded.
“There’s too much at stake for that, Lina. I’ve got to check out what’s happening out there. The Hive could be full of explosives set to go any second,” Arto said. “I’d rather die out here trying to stop it rather than sitting helplessly there. Send as many guards as possible to my coordinates!”
Arto turned off his lantern and sat quietly until his eyes were more accustomed to the darkness. He set his com-link to send sounds from his side but not accept inbound sounds. He pulled the door open very slowly, trying to avoid making any noise whatsoever. Pale greenish light partially illuminated the exterior of The Hive. He stood with his back flat against the wall of The Hive and moved slowly in the direction of the light. After twenty feet or so, the wall was blocked by massive bundles that seemed to rise a hundred feet over his head.
He stood with his back against the bundles and moved forward. After another thirty feet, he could see a group of several hundred Beings standing in formation. When he saw them, his first instinct was to see spiders, but these creatures were bipedal and wearing military uniforms. The group of soldiers closest to him glowed brightly and disappeared. Suddenly, he could see his badge start to glow bright red. He turned his back to the soldiers to shield the badge. The red light was a signal that explosive material was nearby. He had to warn the others and started to move back to the door. He reached the door to open it when it flew open and Arto was face to face with one of the spiders. Before he could think, the spider pulled a blaster from his belt and shot Arto in the chest. He fell back onto the hard floor. Several other troops saw the shot and rushed to the scene.
“How did this human get this far?” Captain Awl Porto said as he returned his blaster to his belt.
“I have no idea, Captain,” Lieutenant Oul Zeel replied. “Someone was supposed to guard those doors.”
“It doesn’t matter, Oul,” Awl said. “Almost everyone has jumped back to the ship and nothing can stop the countdown now. Let’s go.”
“Captain, I have an idea,” Oul said. “The human is only stunned. Why don’t we take it with us?”
“We don’t need any humans, Oul. Don’t be ridiculous,” Awl laughed.
“Captain, since our agents have been on Tak-Makla, we’ve learned that humans helped them build the device,” Oul reasoned. “Perhaps this human can be convinced to teach us the secrets of this machine. This is one technology where humanity is far ahead of us.”
“Well, you might be right, Oul. If we leave the human here, it will die in the explosion. If we take it and can convince it to help us, we could surpass all races in the galaxy. And if it doesn’t help us, we can kill it anyway,” Awl said.
“Exactly, sir,” Oul smiled. “I’ll have a couple of my men jump it to our brig.”
“On the double, Oul. The whole thing will blow in two minutes,” Awl said as he walked away. Two soldiers rushed forward and carried Arto with them to their formation. Immediately the last group of maklans disappeared, leaving the exterior of the Hive lifeless.
“Okay, Serena, you were right,” Bill thought as Serena’s light twisted about his. “We will support Lord Balak’s evidence that Maklakar attacked The Hive.”
“Thank you both,” Serena thought. “The idea that my grandfather would do such a horrible thing is ridiculous. Now, we should leave before the explosion since that will have a serious impact on Universal Power.” The three lights sped out of space-time and back to The Hive on Atar Pa.
A few seconds later, the wall of explosives detonated, vaporizing the outer layers of The Hive. The core was breached and a rocket of molten radioactive material shot through the control rooms and into the lower levels of The Hive, killing anyone in the area instantly.
When the blast reached the center of The Hive, it moved straight up toward the sky, destroying most of the chambers in the first two rings and damaging more. By the time the blast reached the surface, most of the energy had already been spent. The dome covering the opening was shattered and the pieces plunged downward into the toxic smoke and fires that now filled The Hive.
The areas within a hundred miles of The Hive felt violent earthquakes. Hundreds of buildings shook and groaned under the impact. The footings of several failed and entire blocks of businesses and residences crumbled and fell toward the center of the planet. Tsunamis surged across several oceans and rock and snow avalanches filled the mountains. Ten minutes after the initial explosion, an eerie calm descended on Tak-Makla, followed immediately by the sirens of first responders.
Chapter 22
Charlie Watson was flying across the room, tumbling head over feet. He landed on the stone floor and groaned in pain. Aria jumped onto him and slashed at his throat with her Ullu. She stood victorious and raised her arms over her head.
De-o-Nu laughed
, “Very good Aria! But you are supposed to use your Nak for slashing. The Ullu is for throwing and the Falon is for stabbing. You’ve got to remember the details if you want to be a Gallicean warrior.”
Charlie sat up where he was and added, “And try to throw me onto a mat next time, sweetheart. The stone floors here are hard on my old back.”
She bent over and kissed Charlie on the forehead. “I’m sorry Charlie. I guess I just got carried away by the excitement.” She helped him to his feet and they walked over to a bench against the wall of the gymnasium and sat down. “Okay, De-o-Nu, show us how to do it right!”
De-o-Nu and Dave Brewster circled each other in the middle of the mat. Both held their Nak and Falon blades in their hands, and made threatening gestures to each other. “Remember, brother, no flying,” Dave said.
“There are no rules in battle, brother,” De-o-Nu laughed. “But you remember how to tell if I am about to fly, don’t you?” The Gallicean stepped back slightly and stood very straight.
“You will step backward and stand up straight,” Dave replied, hunching over slightly more. “Then you will switch from the Falon to the Ullu.”
“Very good, brother,” De-o-Nu smiled. After a movement almost too quick to see, De-o-Nu now had his Ullu in his right hand. He jumped up and extended his wings and began to circle the room at fifteen feet off the ground. “Now what do you do, friend?”
Dave tumbled across the floor to gain some separation from De-o-Nu, while switching the Nak in his hand for his Ullu. He crouched down and then launched himself toward De-o-Nu and threw the Ullu. The Ullu hit De-o-Nu in his forehead and he tumbled to the ground. Dave jumped onto the Gallicean’s chest and stabbed him in the chest with the Falon.
“Ah, you got me, Dave,” De-o-Nu laughed. “That was really excellent! Unfortunately, the hilt of the Ullu hit me in the forehead. If I had been wearing battle armor, it would have bounced off. You are supposed to have the blade strike my wings to knock me out of the sky. But for three days of practice, I must say you are all doing wonderfully.”
Dave helped De-o-Nu to his feet. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, brother. Of course, on any other planet, you’d be more than three times this size, so I doubt I could have done that well,” Dave replied.
“That’s true, Dave, but you will never face a Gallicean in combat anyway,” De-o-Nu said. “We are your most loyal allies. The tools you are learning will help you if other species try to attack. I imagine you could have defeated the three humans who attacked your family on Aranar Zu with these blades, if they were sharpened, of course.”
“Well, I don’t know if I could have beaten them all, but I wouldn’t have been taken by surprise so easily,” Dave replied. “This has been a wonderful distraction from that event, old friend. Thank you for that.”
De-o-Nu patted Dave on the back, “You are quite welcome, brother.” He walked to another bench and picked up a golden tray with four glasses, a large gold basin and a bottle of Gallicean whisky and returned to the group. He set the tray on the bench next to Charlie and Aria. “Glory to Greater Gallia.” He set the four glasses in the basin. “Glory to Earth and her colonies.” He opened the bottle and poured into each glass until it overflowed into the basin. “May God bless our friendship.” He took a glass and raised it. The others took a glass and raised them to touch De-o-Nu’s. “And may God bring Dave’s family back to him soon.” They drank as much of the whisky as they could and poured any remnants into the basin. “Though we pray we will never need them again, may God bless our weapons?” Each of them placed their daggers into the pool of whisky, with the Nak first, the Falon second, and the Ullu last. De-o-Nu held the basin over his head and moved it around in a circle. Then he placed it back on the bench. Each took a towel from the tray and wiped the weapons of the others. Tonight, Dave cleaned Aria’s daggers; Charlie cleaned De-o-Nu’s; De-o-Nu cleaned Dave’s; and Aria cleaned Charlie’s.
After the blessing ceremony, the group returned to their rooms to clean up and then joined Consul Zee at his residence next door for dinner. Each of the last three days, large memorial services had been held around the planet for those who died in the attack on The Hive. Zee was traveling around the planet continually and consoling his people. He had not returned until late this evening. Since there had been no notification, Dave believed tonight would be a quiet dinner. As he approached the Consul’s residence, he could see several hundred humans and tekkans mingling by the beach.
As he saw them approaching, Zee left the crowd and rushed toward Dave’s group. When he reached them, he threw his arms around Dave and hugged him. “Dave, the most wonderful things have happened. Come on all of you and join our dinner celebration.” As they joined the crowd, they saw a long table with dozens of whisky bottles near the beach. Behind the table, Minister of State Fak Mondoka was pouring drinks for the guests. De-o-Nu left Dave and went to greet Fak. She smiled broadly when she saw the Gallicean approach. Dave thought about joining them, but Zee pulled him in a different direction.
As Zee and Dave approached, two Zu turned to face them. “Dave, it’s good to see you again,” said President Jo Bango of Aranar Zu. “I’m certain you remember Governor Alin Lonk of Hive 1008?”
“I must say you look much better than the last time I saw you, Admiral Brewster,” Alin smiled as he shook Dave’s hand.
“This is quite a surprise to see you two on Tak-Makla,” Dave said. “What is the occasion?”
“Not now, Dave,” Zee interrupted. “We will explain everything in a minute after the crowd is seated. But I can tell you again that it is wonderful and shocking news! Please, my friends, let’s find our places at the table.” After Dave’s team had arrived, the waiters began directing the crowd to their seats. By the time Dave and Zee arrived at the head table, everyone else was seated. Zee motioned for Dave to sit next to him. Dave was surprised to see several empty chairs across the table. De-o-Nu hurried to sit between Dave and Loni Arrak. He brought three glasses full of ice and two bottles of Nanda whisky. He opened one and poured into their glasses. He placed the second on the floor.
“My fellow tekkans and human friends,” Zee began, “It is my distinct pleasure to welcome you all to my humble home. As we all know, this week began with a great tragedy for our planet and for our dear friends, Admiral Brewster and Chief Engineer Arrak. These attacks not only devastated this planet, but also threatened to break the Society of Humanity into pieces. I am happy to report tonight that the Society is safe and our relationship with mankind is as strong as ever.” The crowd erupted in applause.
Dave touched Zee on the arm and said, “I don’t understand Zee. What has changed?”
Zee whispered, “Please trust me, Dave. This speech has a very happy ending, but I must be on schedule.” Zee turned back to the crowd and continued, “Early this morning, the human planet Hive 1008 entered the Tak-Makla system. Based on a communication from the planet Atar Pa, several human and tekkan agents used Hive 1008 to visit our Hive in the hours and minutes before the explosions. We have conclusive evidence that humans did not cause the destruction on this planet. Humans also did not attempt to attack the Hives in the Nom-Kat-La system in Gallicean space.”
De-o-Nu grabbed Dave’s arm and said, “Dave, what is this all about? I haven’t been advised about any of this.”
“I don’t know either, brother,” Dave replied. “We better just listen and see what happens next.”
“Our agents have seen firsthand that a maklan species called the Maklakar were behind this heinous act. Many of you know the history of the Maklakar. They traded fairly with us for millions of solar cycles until the dreaded Paxran destroyed their civilization. Until today, we thought they had been eliminated from history. Now we know they have found other planets and still exist, although we do not know why they have chosen to attack us.” The crowd murmured about the change in events. Confusion was taking over the evening. “Quiet please! Quiet please!” Zee shouted. “I need to complete my remarks quickly now.
” Relative quiet returned. “I have also spoken to Lord Wendo Balak of the planet Atar Pa. His planet has one functional Hive and a second under construction. He has offered to give us as much of the equipment in their second Hive as we need to rebuild ours.” The crowd cheered. “He has also told me about the mistakes made by some of his people that led to the kidnapping of Admiral Brewster’s family and Chief Engineer Arrak’s parents. He has incarcerated General Zilma who shot Dave and took his family. He will turn the culprits over to Society authorities for punishment. He has also recommended that two High Councilors of the Society be terminated due to their actions in this matter.”
“What does this all mean?” Dave asked Zee again.
“Just a few more seconds, Dave,” Zee pleaded. He looked at his watch and waited. Time seemed to slow to a near stop. After ten more seconds, Zee said, “I give you our guests for the evening,” and pointed to the stairs to the beach. Without a sound or flash, Wendo Balak, Serena Vanatee, Antar and Zina Arrak, and Darlene, Bill and Cybil Brewster appeared on the beach. The crowd jumped to their feet cheering and applauding. Dave and Loni rushed to the stairs to greet their families, followed closely by De-o-Nu, Charlie and Aria.
“Thank God you’re safe,” Dave cried as he held his family. “Were you treated well? Did you hear about the Maklakar? I’ve missed you so much.”
“We’re fine now, honey,” Darlene replied. “I’m so glad you’re okay too. When I saw General Zilma shoot you, I thought you were lost to me forever.”
Chapter 23
High Consul Gongaleg’s office was crowded. He opened the wall to the shuttle ramp to let more fresh air into the room. Dave and Darlene Brewster sat holding hands next to Zee. Across the table sat Wendo Balak, Serena Vanatee, Governor Lonk and President Bango. Antar and Loni Arrak sat on the other side of Zee. Two of the Consul’s assistants roamed the room providing coffee and refreshments to the group. The door opened and High Commissioner Fa-a-Di and Ambassador De-o-Nu entered along with Mencius of Kalidus and Minister of State Fak Mondoka.
