by Saxon Andrew
Danielle asked, “BC, what’s the status of the warships?”
“They’re all provisioned and the Coronado Field Ships are also fully powered. They’ll arrive before we launch the fleets to provide a safe-haven from the Dark Energy Creatures. The reactor facilities on the surface of Ross, to keep them powered, should be constructed first, before the Field Ship’s lose too much of their energy.”
“Have they all been assigned a planet?”
“They have, along with a major fleet of Primes and Glod Warships. We’ve sent scouts to let the planet’s leaders know we’re coming and all of them are extremely thankful.”
“Do we have any word on the situation in the Algean Galaxy?”
“It’s not looking good, Danielle.”
Danielle dropped her head with a heavy sigh and Tag quickly took over, “BC, get the fleets organized into formations going to each planet and we’ll all leave together.”
“The fleets have their assignments and will report to them in the morning; the crews are going to enjoy spending time with their families tonight,” BC announced.
“Good. Let us know if anything happens to change the schedule.”
“I will, Tag.”
Tag looked up, “By-the-way, are you and Grace ready to go?”
“We are. I’ve ordered the Grang to stay close to us,” Alex replied.
“Jimmy and Lola will be on board the Grang, won’t they?”
“They will.”
“As soon as we arrive, I want them to report to us.”
“I’ll let Grang know.”
“Tag, are you sure we’re doing the right thing?” Grace asked.
“As much as my talents allow. Going feels better than staying.”
“What about the Cats?” Danielle asked.
“One of the Coronado Field Ships is going with them to El Prado’s location, along with twenty-thousand Primes, after we move it back into our universe. There should be enough Primes to defend it against a Black Ship attack.”
Danielle shrugged, “I guess we’ve got everything covered.”
“Are you looking forward to going home?”
Danielle inhaled deeply and slowly exhaled before saying, “Home is here on the Kosiev with you and Grace. Ross no longer feels like home.”
Tag smiled, “We’ll see what we can do to change that.”
“Forget it, Tag. The citizens of Ross betrayed us.” Tag sighed and sat down in his chair beside her. He took her hand, while listening to the incoming reports on the Fleets getting ready to go to war. He knew the return to Ross could be a huge mistake; the citizens may blame Danielle for the attack. He held her hand and knew they’d find out tomorrow. The time seemed to drag very slowly and neither of them slept well that night.
• • •
“What’s bothering you, Rose?”
Rose looked up from her computer and closed it. Her bedroom grew dark instantly and she asked, “What do you mean?”
“You’ve not been acting normal for the last month. You’ve been avoiding talking with me and that’s not how you’ve acted in the past.”
“JP, I thought you understood we needed to avoid each other.”
“I do! But avoiding each other physically is not the same thing as avoiding each other completely. What’s going on!!”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Why not?”
Rose lost her temper, “I JUST CAN’T!!”
“FINE!” JP replied as he broke mental contact with her. Rose lowered her head and wished she didn’t have to keep him in the dark. Suddenly, a realization broke through her consciousness. He contacted her telepathically.
“JP! When did you develop telepathy?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t tell you,” JP answered with dripping sarcasm.
“Do you trust me?” Rose asked.
“What is that supposed to mean?!” he snapped at her.
“It’s a simple question; do…you…trust…me?”
Silence greeted her question and finally JP replied sullenly, “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.”
“Then you should understand that there are some things I’m not allowed to reveal, even if I wanted to.”
“You’re confusing me, Rose.”
“JP, when I attempt to reveal certain things, I find myself paralyzed with fear. Something inside me is stopping me from telling you. I has nothing to do with my feelings for you.”
“Do you have any idea why?”
“I think it has something to do with our readiness.”
JP hesitated and then asked, “Rose, do you trust me?” Rose didn’t respond and JP thought louder, “ROSE?!”
“JP, if I told you something that involved the survival of your family, and told you to keep it secret, would you?”
“Is that what this is about!?”
“No, it isn’t! But answer the question.”
“Would you?!” JP countered.
“I would, JP, without hesitation!”
JP was silent and, after a very long moment, he answered, “I honestly don’t know, if I would keep it from my family, Rose.”
“JP, you and I have a destiny and our want’s, wishes, hopes, and dreams come second to that destiny; nothing comes ahead of it! That includes our loved ones, our friends, and our own welfare. I trust you, JP, but you’re not ready to know everything…yet.”
“Rose, you’re starting to frighten me.”
“Reread the Realm’s history again; see if you can figure out what’s happening. I wish I could just tell you but I’m being blocked. Until I’m certain you understand, I will not be able to reveal what’s happening to us, even if I wanted to. I will be prevented by forces beyond my control.”
“Now, I almost wish I didn’t press this issue with you. The not knowing is worse than being unaware.”
“I know this much, JP; I need you.”
Rose felt his heart in his thoughts, “That’s enough to bring me peace with this. I won’t be pressing you in the future.”
“Thank you!” Rose broke the contact and knew that with JP’s telepathic talent developing, it wouldn’t be much longer before he was ready. Suddenly, she jerked her head up and looked at the ceiling in her bedroom, “I thought you decided not to assist me.”
“I was tied up longer than I anticipated. I came back to update the Gardners; do you know where they are?” Atlas asked.
“They left to go to Ross with the Bristone Fleets two-weeks ago.”
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“You must have found something significant, Atlas.”
“What I found has persuaded me to grant your request.”
“That bad?”
“Worse!” Atlas hesitated before asking, “Did you know what I was going to find?”
“I’ve had some visions that were nightmarish. I’m not sure if they’re a real vision or just a nightmare.”
“They’re probably real; I’m going to leave to deliver my findings to Tag and Danielle. Are you ready?”
“I am.”
“What about the other?”
“I need you to not reveal what you’re doing.”
“That’s not really ethical.”
“You did it to Jixie’s husband.”
Atlas chuckled, “I guess I did.” There was a moment of silence and then Atlas said, “It’s done.”
Rose’s eyes narrowed, “I didn’t feel anything.”
“Neither did the other one. I used to cause a shock when I did this but I’ve gotten better over time. You should be aware that part of the process gives you radical healing powers. If you’re injured, your wounds will heal quickly. However, you can be killed if you’re hit by a blaster or if the ship you’re in explodes. Major injuries can kill you.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“I really hope I’m making a good decision doing this.”
“So, do I.”
“You don’t know?!”
“No, Atlas, I don’t.
I just know I had to contact you and request it.”
“Good-luck and I’ll keep your secret, Rose.”
“Thank you, Atlas.”
“I suspect I’ll be back before this is over. If you change your mind about this, let me know then.”
“I will.” Rose broke the telepathic contact with a sigh. Atlas extended her lifespan and now she would live for more than a million years. She hoped JP would understand, when he found out Atlas extend his lifespan as well. She needed him and couldn’t envision living without him. She could not bear the thought of him dying of old age. She put her head down on her pillow and hoped the visions wouldn’t come tonight. She closed her eyes and slept soundly for the first time, since Atlas left more than a month earlier.
Chapter Five
The giant Coronado Field Ship teleported in above Ross and took position directly above the North Pole. It activated the Coronado Power Field, it leapt out, as it followed the magnetic field surrounding Ross, and enclosed the planet in a brilliant white field. Twenty-thousand Primes instantly arrived inside their masking fields, with the activation of the Coronado Field and spread out around the planet. The Dark Energy Creatures couldn’t penetrate the power cell field but the Black Warships could.
A hundred-Black-Warships were holding position outside the closest moon to Ross’s orbit and detected the field as it suddenly appeared around the planet. They originally attacked Ross but were forced to back off by the DECs staking them out.
The Commander of the Black Ships saw the arrival of the huge ship above the planet’s North Pole, just after the field activated, and decided it had to be investigated. The DEC’s staking them out wouldn’t move inside their blaster range and he decided that the DECs attacking his ships wasn’t really a problem. The only reason he had not continued the attack on the planet was his transports couldn’t move in without being immediately attacked by the DECs. The transports didn’t possess defenses to hold them off and the Commander wasn’t going to waste energy on the planet, if it couldn’t be harvested; it might be needed against the creatures. The hundred-Black-Warships powered up their blasters and began moving in on Ross.
Junior Admiral Mongovie activated her electronic communicator, using telepathy would only ensure the DECs wouldn’t leave, if the Black Warships were removed, “Habib, take your squadron out and attack the incoming Black Warships.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Kellie watched a hundred-Primes fly out from the Coronado Field and teleport in on the hundred-Black-Warships. The Primes kept their normal force fields active inside the power cell fields surrounding their Primes and opened fire as they arrived at the approaching enemy vessels. They also took the opportunity to take blaster shots at the DECs that staked out the Black Warships. The Primes’ blasters had double the range of the Black Ship blasters and fifty of the DECs were killed before the others managed to move outside their range. The Black Ships weren’t as fortunate; every one of them went up in massive explosions. Kellie studied them closely and saw none of them managed to get a message out before they died. “Move back inside the Field Habib.”
The hundred Primes turned and rushed back inside the Coronado Field surrounding Ross as the surviving fifty-DECs moved to within four-hundred miles of the planet. Kellie pressed her communicator, “Captain Lafleur, target those creatures and hold your fire until you’ve got them all covered.”
“Oui, Admiral. Activating the field to fire now.”
Kelly watched the long-range monitor and saw she was right, a large white cloud of DECs was detected approaching Ross. They had to be responding to the screams of the DECs killed by the Primes. Suddenly, fifty-giant beams flashed out from the Coronado Field surrounding the planet and the surviving fifty-DECs screamed, as the powerful beams hit them. The approaching white cloud instantly stopped its approach. The cloud appeared to billow and swarm ten-thousand miles away but moved no closer.
• • •
The Alexander Kosiev arrived after the Primes attacked the incoming Black Warships and Danielle used her telepathy module to focus a thought she sent down to Ross, “ATTENTION ALL INHABITANTS ON ROSS!! THIS IS QUEEN DANIELLE AND IF ANY OF YOU POSSESS TELEPATHIC TALENTS YOU MUST NOT USE THEM!!! WE’RE GOING TO REMOVE THE FORCES ATTACKING ROSS AND IF YOU USE YOUR TELEPATHY YOU WILL CAUSE MILLIONS OF THE DANGEROUS CREATURES TO COME HERE!! I’LL LET YOU KNOW WHAT’S GOING ON ONCE THIS PRESENT DANGER IS REMOVED!!”
Tag looked at Danielle, “Do you think those DECs heard you?”
“I kept the DECs outside the line of my communication. Sprigly says that if I focus the thoughts tightly enough, they shouldn’t be able to detect it.” They then turned and stared at their scanner monitor on the wall and watched the DECs closely.
Once the cloud stopped moving toward Ross, she glanced at Tag, “Do you think they detected my message?”
“I don’t know. We know that all of them are connected mentally and, if one of them detected it, every DEC in that cloud would sense it.”
“They appear to have stopped their approach,” Danielle observed on the monitor.
“That would support you weren’t detected.”
“Why is that, Tag”
“They’re addicted to telepathic species. I suspect they would have continued moving toward Ross, if they heard your thoughts.”
They continued studying the monitor for four-hours, when they noticed a single DEC leave the cloud and move toward Ross. Tag pressed his communicator, “Captain Lafleur.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Take that creature out when it moves inside the range of your blaster beam.”
“Do you want to show them our maximum range, Sire?”
Tag glanced at Danielle and she shook her head. “No. Fire at it when it moves to half of your maximum range.”
The solitary DEC moved to within four-thousand miles of Ross and it was hit by a condensed, massive, blaster bolt. It screamed and, six-hours later, the white cloud disappeared. Tag chuckled, “I guess they figure there are easier fish to fry.”
Danielle laughed, “You think! Alex launch a sliver and notify the transports to launch from the Dark Dimension and move down to the surface of Ross. And, Grace, I want you to contact the thousand-planets we’re chosen to defend and find out if any DECs are near them.”
“I’ll let you know, Danielle.
Alex announced, “The sliver has been dispatched to the Control Room.”
Tag looked at Danielle, “You should let the survivors know what’s going on.”
Danielle nodded and ordered, “Alex, open a frequency to all electronic devices on Ross. Announce that I will be addressing the planet in three-hours.”
“Scanning the planet for the current frequencies being used. They are filled with communication traffic now.”
“Use enough power to break through.”
“I’ve already started that process, Danielle.”
“Good.”
“Do you know what you’re going to say?” Danielle looked at Tag and lowered her head into her shoulders slightly. Tag smiled, “You need to try and keep your temper under control.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, and you need to embrace peace.” Tag laughed aloud and, a moment later, Danielle began laughing with him. She stopped laughing a minute later and stared at Tag.
Tag looked around and turned back to her, “What are you glaring at?” Danielle raised her left shoulder and shook her head. “Don’t play coy with me, Danielle. What are you thinking?”
“I was just thinking I should change into something more Royal.” She hesitated and sighed, “Tag, you never wear a uniform or a space suit while you’re on board. You’re always wearing those old jeans and hiking boots. I just can’t figure out how they’ve lasted this long.”
Tag tilted his head and mumbled, “Well you stopped wearing royal outfits centuries ago and what about your black boots?”
“These boots are the most comfortable footwear I have!” Danielle snorted.
“The same
is true for my hiking boots and jeans,” Tag responded. Tag sat back, “I guess we stopped dressing formally a long time ago.” He looked at her, “Why do you think that is?”
Danielle’s eyes narrowed slightly, as she heard Alex say, “Both of you have been using the replicators to keep you in stock of your favorite clothing. I think it makes good sense to dress comfortably, while we been out fighting aggressive civilizations. Besides, neither of you are Royalty away from the Realm.”
Danielle started and looked at Tag. He replied, “I guess Alex is right. I keep the original jeans and hiking boots in a vacuum container to replicate them when the ones I’m wearing are worn out. I’ve not really thought about what I’m wearing in a very long time.”
Danielle smiled, “I do the same with my boots and black jacket.”
“I think it’s a good idea to change into a Royal Uniform before you address the people on Ross,” Tag suggested.
Danielle exhaled slowly, “I’ll change before I address them.”
Tag smiled and chuckled, “No one can ever accuse us of being fashionistas.”
Grace interrupted them, “It might interest you to know that Sprigly has introduced a fashion line on Bristone based on your jeans and Danielle’s boots.”
“Were did he get copies?” Tag asked.
“He asked me if any of your clothes were where he could get a copy of them.”
“And you gave them to him, Alex?”
“Danielle, I thought it’d be a scream to see a plant in Tag’s jeans and your boots. I didn’t know he was using them to start a clothing line.”
Danielle burst out into laughter and Tag joined her. “That is an image for the ages, Alex. Sprigly has started numerous businesses on the planets where we’ve fought to make money to buy the electronics to develop weapons. How’s he doing with the business here?”
