Dawn of Chrysalis (The Origin of F.O.R.C.E. Book 2)
Page 2
"Are you trying to give Doug and me an inferiority complex?" Becky chuckled. "I don't know about him, but you're making me feel bad."
Whatsit simply cocked his head and hummed the sad, small violin ditty as he turned to the control console and typed the entries necessary to begin deactivation of the stasis chambers holding the selected colonists.
Chapter 2 - Awakening
Dr. Jamins GooYee could tell from the mild pins and needles feeling in his arms and legs that he was coming out from under of the influence of the stasis field. Based upon his research about the new colonization planet HG-281, his stasis had lasted around 31 years.
"Yes," he thought as his body awakened from the effects of long-term sleep.
"The one-way trip of 30 light years to travel from Chrysalis to HG-281 and a generous 1 year for the thuggish military to kill or capture the animalistic Humans reported to infest the planet."
The hinged top of his stasis pod lifted up and away revealing a male Chrysallaman wearing a dark green, high collared coat and a broad brimmed colorful hat hanging off his shoulders by a draw cord tied under his chin. The most startling sight as GooYee's eyes focused on the figure levering up the pod cover was a jeweled Chrysallaman skull tie clasp holding a thin black tie around the male's neck.
"The coat and hat must be some kind of new defensive armor," he thought as he levered himself out of his pod and peered around the awakening chamber.
Two other Chrysallaman soldiers were helping other colonists from stasis pods and guiding them toward the adjoining cafeteria. Feeling a little dizzy and in need of something to raise his glucose level, GooYee allowed the Chrysallaman to take hold of his arm and lead him toward the cafeteria doorway.
"Dr. GooYee, let's get some food and liquid in your stomach so you'll begin to feel normal. There will be a debrief shortly."
A half hour later, the Chrysallaman wearing the green coat and broad brimmed hat walked to the presentation dais in the forward area of the cafeteria and gazed at his audience. The fellow had donned a broad leather bandoleer over his shoulder which held a cutter ray pistol holstered in its center with extra loops for three spare power modules. The two other Chrysallaman soldiers took seats in a far corner of the room.
GooYee noticed none of the soldiers were wearing the standard issue combat vests he had invented. Combat vests radiated an electrical field which deflected enemy projectiles such as sub-sonic metal slugs and arrows and boosted the normal muscular strength of soldiers by approximately five times. Even more curious were jeweled pendants hanging around the necks of the two soldiers lounging in the far corner.
GooYee had never seen such ornamentation before. Necklaces weren't standard issue for military grunts. Each pendant appeared to be a silvery porcelain rectangle surrounding a broad blue stone shot through with dark speckles and white flecks. The odd jewelry hung around their necks on a medium weight chain made from the same silvery porcelain substance. Jamins felt like his eyes were playing tricks on him because the black speckles and white flecks in the blue stone seemed to be in constant swirling motion. The visual effect was hypnotic.
"Must still be suffering from lingering effects of stasis."
The weapons holstered in the soldiers’ utility belts were also not standard issue cutter ray pistols. Instead of the red pistol with a raised cream colored star pattern logo and two dark green discs surrounding the barrel end, the soldiers' pistols were completely dark black; smaller and thinner than standard pistols. No discs surrounded the barrels. What appeared to be a short silvery antenna jutted from the top of the barrel near the rear sight. There was a selector knob on the top of the pistol just above the trigger housing. All in all the black pistols looked small and delicate.
"Curious," GooYee thought with smug confidence. "I need to examine one of those new pistols and see how it functions. No doubt I can improve on the design."
GooYee had seated himself on purpose in the center of the long cafeteria table in front of the presentation area. The nourishment he consumed had wiped away most of the aftereffects from stasis. He felt mentally and physically sharp. As the smartest person in the room (just ask him), he was impatient to set foot on the new planet and review the primitive technological garbage the Human animals had managed to develop prior to their rescue from meaningless obscurity by the benevolent conquering horde of Chrysallamans.
Peering about the room, he counted 24 fellows in various stages of boredom or eagerness depending upon each person's past experience with a new colonization planet. Experienced people were bored. They only wanted to know the salient facts needed to perform their duties. Otherwise they simply wished to be transported to the planet and left alone. People on their first mission looked like eager pupplens, wide eyed, bushy tailed and generally excited to begin any kind of work on a brand new planet.
GooYee was a member of the experienced group. He'd been on three previous colonization planets and knew the drill. The Chrysallaman Empire had never and would never encounter a race of beings capable of challenging their technology, let alone their physical and mental superiority. At the moment, the biggest question in his mind was when the next transport was scheduled to leave for HG-281 with his specialized laboratory equipment. He was completely unprepared mentally, emotionally and psychologically for the facts announced about the colonization efforts on HG-281.
Rapping a metal telescoping pointer against the large view screen mounted on the bulkhead for attention, the green coated Chrysallaman said, "May I please have your attention."
"I am obliged to inform you the colonization of Planet HG-281 has utterly failed. The only mother ship to survive the counterattack by the inhabitants of the planet is the command vessel VrrSilliac Xur."
A moment of shocked silence was followed by wild shouts of disbelief thundering from the assembled group. Several balled fists slammed down on the metal tables with resounding bangs, and some of the scientists rose from their seats, the more timid ones looking about for an exit door.
The shouts included, "What?!" "Impossible!" "Lies!" and one, "There's no damn way!"
"Ladies and Gentlemen, please calm yourselves. I will explain," the hat wearing Chrysallaman announced.
"My name is Whatsit. I was aboard the scout ship, UurBereck, one of the original planetary survey ships dispatched to planet HG-281 over 67 years ago. The UurBereck was shot from the sky by the HG-281 natives, its crew killed and I was captured."
Studying the array of facial expressions and the random thoughts flashing through the minds of the assembled crowd, there was little doubt the ingrained perception of Chrysallaman superiority over all other lower lifeforms was going to be difficult to crack. The pompous response from Dr. GooYee said it all.
"Your story is patently impossible and therefore false," he declared to the nods of his fellow scientists.
"Without even mentioning the overwhelming telepathic control all Chrysallamans have upon all lower species, the technological prowess of Chrysallaman scientific achievements like the cutter and heat rays as well as the complete protection of the gravity drive shield and light speed capability of our warcraft are demonstrable evidence of your lies."
Peering around the room and seeing agreement etched across the faces of his colleagues emboldened him to growl, "I demand to see your superior officer. Your story is traitorous on its face!"
Shrugging his shoulders and cocking his head to the side, Whatsit looked at GooYee and nodded, "Of course, Doctor."
With his eyes still locked on GooYee, Whatsit requested, "Colonel, would you mind helping me out?"
The larger of the two Chrysallaman soldiers stood and walked over, motioning Whatsit to step back. Turning to the remaining soldier, he ordered, "Major, please fetch the human female and bring her before this august group."
Nodding, the soldier left the room. A moment later, a bipedal animal everyone in the room recognized as one of the semi-intelligent humans infesting planet HG-281 opened the door and walked over to stand besid
e the Chrysallaman Colonel. The human animal showed no fear as she stood next to the towering Chrysallaman. GooYee's eyes narrowed when he noticed one of the blue stone necklaces hanging around the Human’s neck and the very obvious black pistol holstered at her waist.
The Colonel said, "Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me introduce you to Major Rebecca Mae Chang, one of the leaders of the military defenders of Earth, the real name of planet HG-281."
Watching the small female Human cross her arms in an insolent manner inappropriate for a subservient lower lifeform, a concerted gasp escaped from all the Chrysallaman scientists as a strong, crisp telepathic message entered their minds like a hot stiletto blade, "I've never seen so many live Chriks in one place in my life. You're lucky you were in stasis in a mega-liner and not on board the mother ships we blew out of the sky!"
The sheer power of the telepathic statement flowed across GooYee’s brain like a sharp, hot breeze, and he instinctively took a step back in a fear response. Even The Glorious Emperor, His Majesty Terr Horcunt, who Jamins had consulted several times in his life, had never displayed such raw mental power.
Gathering his dignity about him as best he could, GooYee blustered, "What is the meaning of this? You dare to sully the importance of this meeting with an insolent animal? This thing should be kneeling before us, begging for the mercy of a swift death!"
Instead of cowering in fear, the Human called Major Rebecca Mae Chang turned to Whatsit and asked, "Is a superiority complex just a natural part of the Chrysallaman psyche or is there a required elementary school indoctrination involved?"
Shrugging and smiling, Whatsit replied, "Until the last couple of weeks, the Chrysallaman race had never suffered a defeat. I'm afraid the superiority complex is quite ingrained."
Their exchange was interrupted by the incredulous Jamins GooYee, "I demand you cease conversing with this animal as if it was your equal! Your conduct is embarrassing. And further more. . ."
His mental tirade was cut off as if a he had been face slapped by his angry former wife who'd divorced him many years earlier for the wanton indignities she had suffered as his spouse.
"Oh, stick a sock in it, Gooey!" Chang admonished as she turned to face him.
Still upset at the odd proceedings and jolted again by the power of the Earth being's thoughts, Jamins stammered, "The name is GooYee, Dr. Jamins GooYee, not Gooey. Furthermore, I will not subject myself to some kind of ignorant, animalistic ritual involving a stick and a sock!"
"Yeah yeah, whatever," Chang replied with narrowed eyes.
"I think a demonstration is in order," announced the Colonel, who'd been silently watching the exchange between GooYee and Chang.
Pointing to a slab of metal in the corner of the room held upright by a heavy stand, he continued, "Would a couple of you who are metallurgists please examine the metal and advise everyone what it is."
Two Chrysallamans came forward and took several moments to examine the object. Overall, the material was dark gray in color. The slab was 2 feet wide, 4 feet high and six inches thick. The edges of it appeared to be black glassine, as if the metal had been heated to some tremendous temperature causing it to melt and change its fundamental molecular properties. Using a set of calipers and what appeared to be a portable device for spectrographic analysis, it was only a matter of moments before the Chrysallamans nodded to each other.
Turning to the crowded room, one of them said, "My name is Dr. Davidd Mkkell and prior to being assigned to this colonization mission, I was the Department Head of Metallurgical Sciences at the University of Trissalic. My colleague here is Dr. Thann HannBrr, professor of the Department of Hybrid Plasticized Elements."
Noting the approving murmurs from the others in the room, Dr. Mkkell continued, "Our analysis confirms this metal is a part of the armor plate from the outer hull of a mother ship. The substance is known as Armorium. It is a dense amalgam of polyatomic alloys with a tensile strength of 10,000 megapascals. In other words, this substance is extremely durable and capable of deflecting all known forms of radiation and energy weaponry. In fact, this hybrid metal is manufactured by combining 3 different alloys together while all are in molten form. Once the 3 alloys are mixed, there is no known method for machining the substance since it is so physically hard. As a result, the hulls of mother ships are poured into standard plate forms and held in place by a framework constructed of Armorium."
Turning his head toward the Colonel and Whatsit, Mkkell said in a curiously awed tone, "This plate of Armorium appears to have been removed from a larger section. I can tell from the glassine appearance of the edges that some kind of high energy plasma was used to remove it. I know of nothing powerful enough to penetrate the outer surface of Armorium much less cut out a slab such as stands before us."
Pausing a moment and shaking his head with a wide-eyed expression, Dr. Mkkell asked, "What in the world cut through this material?"
Instead of answering the question, Whatsit pulled his cutter ray pistol from its holster on his bandoleer and handed it to Dr. HannBrr.
Confirming he had the attention of everyone in the room, Whatsit said, "Sir, will you please confirm the Armorium is proof against a military cutter ray pistol by firing the pistol at the slab."
Looking for approval from Dr. Mkkell and getting a nod, HannBrr directed the cutter ray beam at the slab, holding it steady on one spot near the center of the plate. A cutter ray pistol could melt through 4 inch armor steel plate like a hot knife through butter. After directing the ray beam at the same spot on the Armorium for 30 seconds, HannBrr turned it off. Other than a barely glowing yellow spot on the surface of the Armorium which faded back to the original dark gray color, there was no change to the metallic surface.
To emphasize the fact there was no effect on the Armorium from the destructive beam of the cutter ray, Dr. Mkkell rubbed his bare fingers over the spot to confirm the Armorium had cooled to room temperature virtually instantaneously.
Handing the pistol back to Whatsit, HannBrr shrugged his shoulders, spread his palms in an 'I told you so' pose, and asked, "Now what?"
"Now it's my turn," the female human announced and pulled the small, black pistol from its holster at her waist.
Seeing she had everyone's rapt attention, Becky explained, "This device is known as a McPherson Atomizer or MA pistol. It's designed to project a cutter ray, a heat ray or a MA ray. I have it set to emit a MA ray. We have larger weapons equipped with MA rays, but they are not safe to fire within the confines of any vessel."
Motioning for Dr. Mkkell and Dr. HannBrr to move away from the slab of Armorium, Becky pointed her MA pistol at the slab.
GooYee smirked, "Really? You actually expect me to believe your toy gun can. . ." The rest of his comment was drowned out by the growling hum of the MA ray.
A one inch wide beam of white light filled with sparkles that winked on and off and flowed in dazzling swirls leaped from the black crystal at the end of the barrel of the MA pistol. Becky swept the beam across the middle of the slab, neatly and instantly cutting it in two. The bell-like clang as the top half of the 6 inch thick Armorium slab landed on the deck was deafening.
Silence filled the room. As if to convince himself that what he had witnessed was real, Dr. Mkkell bent down to the piece of Armorium and tried to pick it up; perhaps in the belief his analysis had been wrong and the slab was just a piece of lightweight plastic. Lifting with all his might, his eyes bulging from the physical effort, the Chrysallaman professor couldn't even rock the 400 pound block of metal.
Hearing a scruff on the deck behind him, Mkkell heard the female Human say, "Here, let me help you with that."
Rising to his full height from where he had bent over the slab trying to lift it, Mkkell towered over Becky by at least 2 feet and outweighed her by 150 lbs. With no hesitation, the Human picked up the 400 lb Armorium block, carried it over to the table in front of GooYee and dropped it on top of his dinner plate, smashing what food he had left and the plate into a thousand pieces
and putting a 2 inch dent in the top of the table.
Smiling and turning with a whip of her ponytail, Becky walked back to the dais and stood beside the Chrysallaman Colonel and Whatsit. No single sound came from the assembled group for a good 15 seconds.
Trying to break the awed, ponderous silence, Whatsit mentally cleared his throat and said, "Perhaps you now understand that my previous statement was in fact the truth. The attempt at colonization of Planet HG-281 utterly failed. The only mother ship to survive the counterattack by the inhabitants of the planet is the command vessel VrrSilliac Xur."
Dr. GooYee was rendered speechless. He fell back into his seat completely cowed for the first time in his entire life. Peering over the top of the Armorium block, the only comment he could muster was "Would it be possible for me to meet the person who invented this MA power source?"
At least one Chrysallaman in the room didn't like the defeatist attitude the rest of his fellows were exhibiting. All around the room, eyes were becoming downcast and body language indicated pessimism. The aura of the room had changed from one of confidence and bravado to that of a deflated, withered balloon. Knowing psychological defeat can overcome physical prowess and lead to needless failure, MerrCrr Z. JnnWall decided he needed to intervene before the situation became worse.