Carinae Sector: 02 - Admiral's Fury - Part 1 - Purple Blood

by David Buck

  Omerio still had not found a life mate due to a hectic naval career once he had resumed his commission. In addition, he was no longer flying a small ship by himself around a hostile galaxy. Omerio then moved on to the reason for his visit.

  ‘The Cephrit Tilmud war, even if it has now nearly finished, has resulted in a change in the balance of power. The Jerecab now are the strongest race in the vicinity of Earth and they have already driven Tilmud ships from the Posient bulge further isolating the Tilmud. Our naval intelligence tells of a huge increase in the size of their fleet over the last few decades.’

  Gindane’s happy mood evaporated as her naval training came to the fore and she evaluated the locations of the star systems in her analytical mind. She also remembered that thirty years previously, a visiting Jerecab delegation had been interested in her reports of Earth and she now relayed this information to Omerio.

  ‘Omerio, the Jerecab who came here were most interesting in the human world as they are an aquatic species as we both know. The seventy percent seawater statistic had them enthralled, as did the pictures of the beautiful planet. The Jerecab also wanted estimates we had on their military abilities as well.’

  Omerio gave a start of concern as he replied.

  ‘Now it is all starting to make sense as the Jerecab also appear to be moving into the former Dradfer colonies not far from Earth in real haste. I also think they are taking advantage of the recent war to grab whole sections of the sector.’

  Omerio now quietly waited for Gindane to speak, and she looked around the filling restaurant as she replied.

  ‘Omerio, the human world has not been surveyed for nearly one hundred years. The senior administrators at the institute decommissioned our ships and curtailed all our research over fears of what the Dradfer findings would mean. The Demon Eye supernova is not helping things as fleet command is scouting for new worlds. The recent war does not help with access to the humans either as you say. We need to speak with Professor Elysius immediately about our concerns. I do hope the institute does not continue to block our efforts.’

  Gindane decided that their meal together could now wait, and stood and asked Omerio to follow her as they left to find the professor.

  ***

  Chapter 1

  2200 AD Earth

  Seliandre raced at high speed deep underwater with two of her sisters, as they streaked over to the mid-ocean ridge and onward towards one of their underwater production facilities. The ancient females had awoken for the third time since the Maveen and Traders had left their world one hundred and fifty years earlier. Seliandre flexed her silicon based body and so formed a slimmer shape that allowed her to pull ahead of her two youngest sisters, Cliade and Armuen. Seliandre rejoiced in the freedom of the ocean depths, and her sisters gave muted subsonic calls of protest as she powered away from them.

  Queen Angwene suppressed any irritation at the actions of three of her daughters, for other events had come to her attention and the daughters had been asleep for a long time. Her oldest daughters, Seliandre and Gementer, were previously the only ones ready for space flight, but this was before the latest problem with Gementer had been discovered.

  The queen also knew that Cliade and definitely Armuen would benefit from further years of training, especially in warfare and space operations. The youngest two of her daughters were nearly a thousand years younger in turn than the next youngest pair of daughters, Helisphan and Isphara. The middle two daughters rested nearby quietly studying the spy link leading into the human internet system.

  Fortunately her two oldest daughters were separated by nearly one thousand years in age themselves. Her eldest daughter, Gementer still lay sleeping, and the queen made two questions and a lament towards Maveen probe three.

  ‘So these new hull fissures only occurred in the last few years of our sleep? And Gementer did not wake at any stage? Surely after she has been ready for space so long this is a tragedy…’

  The black hulled probe replied as he shone his powerful lights along the large flank of the sleeping ancient they were all now worried about. The metallic voice of the probe was distinct to Angwene’s softer tones as the Maveen interpreted the questions and answered tersely.

  ‘No majesty, your daughter gave no warning that this latest transition would occur. We know so little of your race now and I suspect the extended periods of dormancy at these depths may have contributed to Gementer’s condition.’

  The ancient queen suppressed both her concern for her daughter and any outrage for the probe’s direct comments. She now considered the combined inventory she had available to her and made further alterations by switching a nearby and dormant shields facility across to now producing large hull reinforcements. The queen knew that the changes in her eldest daughter’s body were a surprise, but still consistent with acceptable permutations of the genotype of her race.

  However the queen also knew that these changes in her eldest daughter put a finite time limit on how long the ancients could stay on the planet. Despite her new fears, she considered this limit was probably a blessing, as the humans had continued to make further impressive technological strides according to the Maveen probe’s latest reports. Angwene also was well aware that her daughters would need to find mates before too long or their lives would be tragically short.

  Seliandre, Armuen and Cliade had since returned, and picking up their mother’s mood they now remained silent at the edge of the facility. The queen knew that her younger daughters all viewed their older sister’s new condition with both love and concern, and this touched her deeply. She moved slowly across to them to speak softly and reassure them that everything would be fine. Seliandre kept still and said nothing, even as her two youngest sisters silently crowded close to their mother for several minutes for reassurance.

  After a series of soft sub sonic calls had reassured Cliade and Armuen, Seliandre found another activity to interest them as her mother turned her attention back to Gementer. The queen quickly evaluated and abandoned the option to flee the planet as soon as Gementer awoke, for Armuen was still too young especially to be taken off world and involved in any battles that could occur. She continued to watch her sleeping eldest daughter with barely suppressed panic, and began working through and abandoning possible solutions to this new scenario.

  ***

  The frigate sized airship powered into the upper atmosphere of Neptune and the pilot, a young Sspol named Greppun, carefully scanned the controls and monitor screens in front of him. He was enjoying the exhilaration of the flight and being freed from further menial work at the colony. The pilot had been chosen because he was small for an adolescent Sspol male and also as he had particularly well developed manual skills. The Sspol were inveterate bargainers amongst themselves, and Greppun had cajoled the colony leader into assigning him a cadetship aboard one of their heavy cruisers in return for his piloting the airship.

  The colony had monitored the progress of the humans for hundreds of years even as they sought to preserve the old secrets of the solar system. The senior captain had sent Greppun on his mission with specific tasks to complete, as the hydrogen breathing Sspol was particular about their presence in the home system of the human race. Greppun looked at his short range sensors and noting the dense pocket of atmosphere in front of him, the young Sspol instructed the small onboard fusion reactor to release a fraction more heat into the hydrogen gas envelope surrounding his airship.

  The airship continued to rise and Greppun then checked that the cloaking mechanism was still functioning, as he cautiously shifted his multi tonne body in the centre of the cramped pressure vessel of the airship to try and get more comfortable. He then opened the sensor bay, filled with an impressive array of sensors and telescopes onboard, the array targeted the third planet in the solar system for several hours as the airship flew around Neptune at high altitude.

  Greppun formed a question to himself as he looked over the initial sensor reports with mixed feeling. For the technological
and space faring abilities of the humans had improved markedly over the last one hundred and fifty years.

  ‘So why did the Traders have to arrive on Earth and force us to leave here prematurely? Undoubtedly it was for the best interests of the humans themselves, and no doubt those that are still hidden on that world…’

  He also thought as he used his thrusters to avoid a thermal that could take him into the destructive winds higher in the stratosphere. Greppun tried to relax even as he kept careful watch, as the dangerous upper atmosphere of Neptune was something he respected utterly. Fortunately their powerful heavy cruisers were built to survive such winds and would merely ride with them when they launched for space.

  ‘Providing father can get to the bottom of the main power conduit problem on the fifth cruiser….’

  Greppun considered as he verified the telescope tracking systems he had placed in the sensor bay was still working correctly.

  A navigation buzzer came on and he immediately shut down the remote observations even as the airship angled down back into the lower atmosphere. After several more hours he was overhead from the floating main landing platform with the massive hot hydrogen envelopes holding the entire colony well below the lowest of the overhead cloud layers. He knew that the inversion layers in the clouds would stop detection of the colony, even if the colony platform was several kilometres across, unless a vassal race painted the solar system with an active scan. He also hoped, perhaps foolishly, that when the cruisers left Neptune that the automated sentinels would be able to keep the platform intact for a later return by the colonists.

  Greppun now made careful preparations to land well to one side of the massive frames holding the nearly complete hulls of five Sspol heavy cruisers. After he landed and exited the pressure vessel, the engineers moved in with quiet precision and began stripping down the airship’s envelope, sensor pod and jury rigged thrusters for stowage in one of the cruisers. He carefully removed the specialised controls he had crafted for the telescopes, so that he could store those items in a special location for later use in another project he had in mind.

  A young female astronomer, Brinnep, slowly floated towards him and signified her satisfaction with his efforts.

  ‘Well pleased with your efforts the race is; Greppun the observations show the humans now dominate the inner parts of this star system. Well advised we are to leave when we are able; as the secrets we keep must remain hidden.’

  Greppun carefully acknowledged the gratitude of Brinnep, making sure to compliment the presence of one he sought as a mate.

  ‘The morning has risen again and it is beautiful as any Brinnep; the day however is clearly now that of the humans here in this system. Flight we must soon for a new home and new families; safe from the prying eyes of evil vassals.’

  Brinnep did not flush her skin colours, or by any other convention show she understood the flirting and Greppun’s allusions to the morning. This was a social standard for the Sspol and it indicated her continued acceptance of his presence. He knew that he would have been in serious trouble if she rebuked him in prose, or even worse signalled either mocking desire or testy irritation via a skin colour change. He was considering further witticisms just as the colony leader now floated over to speak tersely with them both.

  ‘Less of the talk is needed; there is more of the work than our deadlines allow.

  The talk of new homes and starting new lives will wait; first our departure and then a long search. Astronomers are reviewing the new findings and more are sought; a new cadet should not tarry on his first watch or a reward is revoked.’

  Without even glancing at one another, the two younger Sspol went in different directions at an acceptable rate of flow through the atmosphere. The colony leader, Hireldop, calmly looked around the landing platform as over head the increasing cloud covered the colony. The world the humans called Neptune was idyllic by Sspol standards and the world would be a main Sspol planet if it was located elsewhere.

  He remembered when the cruisers had arrived several thousands of years ago and the remoteness of the system, the haven status of the third planet, and the allure of Neptune’s atmosphere had proven too much. The Sspol colonists had later reaped a rich reward from the planet with their now dismantled mining operation, and many visiting Sspol cruisers had left with both new equipment and new crew members from the colony.

  Hireldop thought for a few moments of his eldest son, now the Sspol envoy who had been tasked with resolving a long standing war with another galactic race. He wished Drannep well in his efforts, and knew that if any of them could convince the Maveen of their now benign intentions it would be his son. The elder Sspol also knew that long term peace would improve Sspol lives across the galaxy and they then would not have to live in constant fear of attack.

  Hireldop also knew that this change would impact the significance of the third planet called Earth from so many different levels, for he knew that the solar system held secrets that must remain hidden for many more years. The leader and the other elders of the colony had recently agreed that the Zronte and the Vorinne must be kept distant from Earth for as long as possible well after the Sspol had left. Quietly Hireldop looked over the nearby massive cruisers, as he reviewed in his mind the sequence of events they would adopt after fleeing this world.

  ***

  Sanctuary colony, Tau Ceti system 12 light years from Earth

  Rear Admiral Mary Neilson strode into the Sanctuary colony committee meeting room and sketched a text book salute as she reached the head of the table. A colonist who was reporting the ongoing efforts to turn a deep mine into a point of refuge stopped his report and gave her a friendly grin. She kept her eyes forward, but no one in the room doubted she took in all who were present in an instant accounting.

  ‘Admiral Stanford, Rear Admiral Neilson reporting as ordered.’

  The fleet admiral, Admiral Thomas Stanford, fixed her with a cool smile and returned the salute as he in turn then removed his cap. Stanford regarded the tall and slender rear Admiral with polite interest, as he could detect her tiredness before he replied with an instruction.

  ‘At ease, we are keeping this meeting as low key as possible for the comfort of the civilian’s present. You know everyone else here already of course. So how have you been going here at the colony Mary?’

  Mary Neilson carefully doffed her cap to preserve her hair and just as casually took the proffered seat as she replied.

  ‘It is good to see you again too Thomas. Our colony defences will be ready in several weeks by my best estimations. The structure and basic training is in place, though the delivery of several key pieces of equipment is delayed of course…’

  Mary continued her report and knew that it was concise even if understated. In her opinion the colony could amount a credible short term defence before they would be destroyed wholesale. Sanctuary was the cold and only moon of Tyr, or Tau Ceti f, an ice giant just outside Tau Ceti’s habitable zone. The Tau Ceti colony was Earth like - but the biosphere did not hold much oxygen yet. So once the human defences were destroyed the colonist domes would soon follow with a total loss of the colonists. The admiral picked up on her report and he already understood the shortfall as his next comment illustrated.

  ‘Well Mary, we need to keep other races well away from Earth and our new colonies, so we are heading further out into space to obtain up to date intelligence, and build up the human sphere of influence. If we can get ourselves up and running on enough worlds then possibly we can survive an encounter with another galactic race. Indeed you are in this meeting because of the submission you made eight years ago now.’

  Mary, like all senior space fleet officers knew that safety was only an ephemeral possibility as the old Trader briefings painted a daunting picture of both the abilities and the aggression of various galactic races. Now she only dared hope as she took in reference to her colony founding submission, and made a dry enquiry.

  ‘I was previously debunked for being too forwar
d in my estimations, so are we reconsidering our colonisation efforts?’

  The French colony leader, Pierre Monterrey, now interjected amiably.

  ‘Mary, Môn Cheri, you take the criticisms of your peers and the greater community too literally. We understand your views even if many thought we were getting ahead of ourselves. Indeed you have done great work here and we will be sorry to see you leave the colony.’

  Thomas picked up the conversation again at that stage as he shot a look of reproof at Pierre. He ignored Mary’s momentary puzzlement as he smiled again at her and also spoke amiably.

  ‘Mary, what we are saying is that your point of meeting alien races in a distant colony is preferable to a similar meeting in the home system has been recognised. We are leaving soon after the other ships arrive in four weeks with Admiral John Beresford. You will be coming with the fleet as senior fleet tactical officer and third in command overall. Congratulations Admiral.’

  The colonists clapped their hands in approval as Thomas reached into his fleet jacket and removed a letter of commission that he then politely placed in her hand. Pierre took up the pause in conversation as Mary unfolded the official letter and quickly scanned the several relevant sentences. The scale of the policy change took her breath away for several moments as she read away.

  ‘Mary, you will of course leave instructions for your replacement. I understand that key pieces of equipment for the fleet have yet to arrive from Earth. Finally we need to accelerate our defensive planning from what I can understand.’

  Mary brought her full focus back to the room and the polite interest of the colonists, and diplomatically replied as she pocketed the letter.

  ‘Pierre, we still need to properly organise the colonists themselves as a militia, as some of their larger mining ships are scattered around Tau Ceti and they still need to be brought in for arming and crew training. Yes, I understand they will gripe about not making money but it must be done.’