by Saxon Andrew
Teg said, “It’s because of the swords.”
“Huh?”
“The Cat said that it could see the power field from our swords extending into space above the planet. The swords must be a channel for the energy from our Father’s Creation to enter here.”
Dern said, “If that wild idea is true, then the power has expanded into multiple universes.”
Jon shook his head, “Slow down. The two of you are confusing me. How do you suppose it has expanded that much?”
Dern looked at Jon and said, “Where is the assignment computer? It’s not located in the universe we just fought in.”
Teg and Jon stared at Dern and finally Jon said, “All of this is purely hypothetical. It could have just been the computer running another program that was inserted.”
Dern shrugged and Teg said, “What feels correct, Jon.”
Jon stared at Teg and said, “We need to talk with a Cat.”
• • •
Molly stood in front of her platoon and said, “At ease.” The forty survivors stood at ease and stared at their new commander. Some of them wondered why she was promoted. What had she done to deserve it? Molly saw their reservations in their expressions. She didn’t really blame them. She said, “Activate your armor and make a diagnostic check on your systems.” The Warrior’s activated their armor and Molly immediately noticed several things as soon as their armor appeared. “Jackson, your auto-cannon is damaged. One of the power coils in the ejector is burned out. Trele, your secondary scanner is also damaged. You need to go and select another one.” She stared at the platoon again and said, “Begel, were you hit by an enemy blaster?”
“I was briefly hit by one, Sir.”
“What does your weapon check show?”
“It says everything checks out.”
“The third hornet in your magazine is activated and will explode as soon as it ejects. You also have several mini-penetrators on active. Set your armor on active and teleport it out of the station. Keep your connection to the helmet active.”
“Sir, the system says there’s nothing wrong.”
“Private, then just humor me for a moment. Teleport it out now.”
Begel stepped out of his armor and it closed up behind him. He said, “Det..”
The suit disappeared and the platoon went over to the viewport. Molly saw the armor a hundred yards outside the ship’s force field. “Private, fire three hornets from your armor.”
Begel entered the command into his wrist unit. The platoon watched as two hornets shot out of the armor and then they watched the armor explode into fragments. Molly said, “I was afraid of that. It didn’t clear your force field before it detonated.”
The platoon all turned and stared at Molly. She said, “I’m sorry about the destruction of your armor, Private Begel. Please leave and replace it and your weapons.”
Begel went to attention and saluted, “Yes Sir, I’ll be back as soon as I’m operational.”
Sargent Dvret said, “Lieutenant, if you have a moment, will you take a look at my systems. I also took a blaster hit.”
Molly’s platoon no longer had any doubts about their new commander. Molly for her part didn’t understand how she could see things the armor’s systems had missed. She looked at Dvret and said, “Your force field generator had been degraded. You need to go get a new one.”
Chapter Thirteen
Pride looked at the three brothers and smiled. Jon said, “We have some questions and hope you can help us find the answers.”
“You no longer need to speak; I can hear your thoughts.”
The three brothers were shocked. Jon said, “Does that mean we are now part of this Creation?”
Pride sat on his haunches and said, “No, it just means I can now hear the melody from your father and it allows me to hear your thoughts as well.”
Jon looked at Dern and said, “Does that mean the field you saw around us has expanded?”
“I’m surprised you see that. It is still expanding and in twenty years will fill all of this Creation.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means our mother has found a mate. Her melody is now filling your father’s creation as well. We are being united.”
“Is that a good thing?”
Pride smiled, “More than you know. However, you are not yet ready for the details. You still have to grow into your powers and that is not going to happen quickly.”
“Don’t you think we need to know who and what we are?”
“No, and your father agrees.”
Jon stared at the Cat and said, “It was our growing field that caused us to be dropped alone on the last planet wasn’t it?”
“It was.”
Teg said, “Can you tell us why our father chose to intervene in this creation?”
The Cat whipped its head around and stared at Teg, “Now you have shocked me. You are close to seeing the truth…but I’m not telling you anything else. You will discover what you need to know when the right time comes.”
Jon stared at the Cat and then looked at Teg. He turned back to the cat and said, “Our father needs our help as well.”
The cat slowly shook its head in wonderment and then disappeared.
Jon’s wrist unit buzzed and Jon saw Amet, “Yes, Captain.”
“Sir, I have a Lt. Molly Masters and one of her privates that requests a moment of your time.”
“What do they want?”
“They won’t say, Sir. Lt. Masters says it’s something that has her totally confused.”
Jon looked at his brothers and said, “Don’t leave yet. Let’s see what’s going on. I might need your insights. Send them in, Captain.”
A pretty brown haired woman and a Krptin entered Jon’s office. They came to attention and saluted. Jon returned their salute and said, “At ease. What’s on your mind?”
Molly looked at Jon and thought he was too young to be an Admiral. She banished the thought from her mind and said, “Private Begel has made a discovery and I didn’t believe him at first so I went and confirmed it for myself. I think it’s something you should be made aware of, Sir.”
“What is that?”
Molly nodded to Begel and he said, “My armor was damaged in the last battle and it was necessary for me to go to the main armory to activate a replacement. I took a shuttle and the replacement went well.”
Jon said, “Go on.”
“Sir, you know they have a storage facility not far from the main armory that has all of the old equipment and weapons used by the Realm in the past?” Begel stared at Jon.
“I’m aware of that facility.”
“Sir, I can always hear my armor’s melody. However, when I left the armory, I passed close by that facility and the melody of my armor was drowned out by music I head coming from that facility.”
Jon’s eyes immediately narrowed. Teg looked at Dern and they sat down. Molly said, “Private Begel told me about what he heard and I took a shuttle back to the facility.” Molly paused and then said, “Sir, I could hear the melody as soon as I entered the Armory’s system. Something in that facility was calling out to me so loud that it was almost deafening.”
Teg said, “Private, you couldn’t have your armor repaired?”
Jon looked over at Teg and wondered where he was going with that question. Begel said, “I didn’t know the armor was damaged. My system diagnostic check said everything was working properly but Lt. Masters saw that one of the hornets in my inventory was damaged and was already activated to explode.”
Teg looked at Molly and said, “And what did you do?”
“I saw the third hornet in his armor was defective. I had him teleport the armor outside the ships force field and manually fire three hornets. The third one exploded his armor.”
Jon said, “How were you able to see weapons inside the skin of his armor?”
Molly shook her head, “I have no idea, Sir.”
Jon pulled up Molly’s data on his display an
d said, “I’m sorry for your loss, Lieutenant.”
Molly’s expression darkened and she said, “We never should have planned a wedding, Sir.”
Jon nodded at her and said, “How long have you been able to do this?”
Molly stood a bit straighter and said, “It started right after Jeremy died, Sir.”
Dern said, “Did I hear you correctly that the music was deafening?”
“Yes Sir.”
“Private, was it deafening to you?”
Belgen looked at Molly and then turned to Dern, “No sir, it was just louder than the normal music I hear.”
Jon looked at Molly and saw her sorrow. He knew how she felt. Molly saw his expression and said, “You have lost many more than me that you cared about, Sir. There is sorrow enough for all of us.”
The corner of Jon’s lips turned up slightly and he said, “Lieutenant, I am going to take a look at that facility and I’ll want you to go with me. I’ll notify you when I’m leaving. The two of you are dismissed.”
Molly and Belgen came to attention, saluted, did an about face, and left Jon’s office.
Jon looked at his brothers and said, “Teg, why did you ask that question?”
“There are forces operating that we can’t see. I just wanted to see what caused that private to have to go to the armory.”
Dern said, “The Lieutenant appears to have a strong connection to the trace.”
Jon tilted his head, “Yes she does. Do you think this has something to do with what we’ve been thinking about?”
Teg said, “It must; I believe that’s why they came at this particular moment.”
Jon started tapping his foot on the floor and the two brothers smiled. Jon did his best thinking when he tapped his foot. “I’ll go and check this out once our replacements are up to speed.”
“Why are you waiting?”
“I just sense I should.”
Dern and Teg nodded and teleported out.
Jon couldn’t get the image out of his mind of the broken hearted Lieutenant. He wondered if he showed his sorrow as much as she did.
Molly and Belgen went took the shuttle back to their platoon and Molly thought about the young admiral. She saw that his loss paled hers in comparison. He grieved for the hundreds killed and Molly had only lost Jeremy. She decided that if he could go on with his life in the mist of all the death around him that she could do the same. She took a deep breath and said a final goodbye to Jeremy. She suddenly noticed the shuttle needed a new reactor coil. The music around her rose in volume.
Jon sat at his desk with his head in his hands when he suddenly heard the music get louder. He jerked his head up and wondered what had happened. He stood and went to the bridge to check on what fleet was planning for the coming week.
• • •
Dern thought, “Tegen, do you think we’re ready for what Jon wants to do?”
“How can I know? We don’t know what we’ll be facing and it’s that lack of knowledge that frightens me.”
“What! You’re frightened?”
“You know how we got here. I’m just not certain we should do this; at least not yet.”
Dern was silent for a moment and said, “If not now; when?”
“I know; it’s just we may find something that could make a difference if we wait.”
“Perhaps that’s what the new music is?”
“We’ll see. I’m still worried.” Teg paused and said, “There is another development.”
“Oh, what is that?”
“I contacted that Lieutenant about taking a look at some of my Warrior’s armor and she said she’s starting to hear the music here.” Dern was silent. “Did you hear me?”
“I did. I’m just speechless. What does that mean?”
“Either the power of the music is increasing or she is becoming much more attuned to it.”
“Can you hear it?”
“I’m afraid to try.”
“I understand why.” There was a moment of silence and Dern said, “What do we do if we start hearing it?”
“We won’t have to worry about that.”
“Why not?”
“I believe Jon will hear it as well and he’ll go and see what’s going on. I’m not telling him about the Lieutenant. I’m yielding to his sense of delay and staying out of the issue.”
Dern chuckled, “If you’re scared, say you’re scared.”
“I’m scared; is that good enough for ya?”
“See you, Teg.”
“I’m sure you will.”
• • •
Jon watched the new Life Warriors go through their training at the electronic screen. Most of them were nearing the completion of their training and they were really making progress in using their armor. Suddenly he stopped and raised his head. He turned around and listened carefully. He looked up at the sky and the music grew louder. He didn’t recognize the melody. He pushed his com and said, “Amet, please call Lt. Masters and have her report to my office.”
“Yes Sir.”
Jon entered the coordinates of his office and teleported to Creator’s Song. Thirty minutes later Lt Master’s knocked on his door. “Enter.” Molly walked in and saluted. Jon returned her salute and said, “Are you ready to make our trip?”
“I’ve been wondering when you were going to go.”
“Why is that?”
“I’ve been hearing the music pretty much twenty four hours a day and it’s getting louder.”
“What!”
“I told your brother about it three weeks ago.”
Jon thought, “Which one of you knew about the music getting louder?”
Teg said, “That would be me.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You said you sensed you should wait. I decided to allow your senses to guide you without stepping in.”
Jon was silent for a moment and said, “Teg, you know you should have told me.”
Teg sighed and said, “I guess; I’m worried about our next mission.”
“You still should have told me.”
“I won’t let it happen again, Jon.”
Jon looked at Molly and said, “We need to go now. Please follow me.”
Jon left his office and boarded an attack shuttle in the landing bay. He punched the console and said, “Admiral Kim, I need you to open the storage facility. I’m going to arrive momentarily.”
Steve looked at Jon on his display and said, “I’m sending you the code sequence that will open the doors and allow the weapons to recognize your craft.”
“Thank you, Admiral.”
Steve wondered what the Admiral wanted out of the old facility. He pulled up a visual of the giant structure and watched to see when Jon arrived. He thought a moment and sent a message to Admiral Mandel.
Jon flew the shuttle out of the landing bay and Molly said, “I’m concerned that I might not be much use on this trip.”
“Why not?”
“The last time I went there the melody was deafening. If I’m hearing it this far from the source, it might be more than I can tolerate.”
“You need to let me know if it’s too much.”
Molly nodded and said, “I do want to see what’s causing this. So I’ll try to get through it.”
Jon shook his head, “Don’t wait until it’s too late.”
Molly said, “Yes Sir.”
Jon adjusted the coordinates and said, “I’m going to teleport into the outer planets first to see how you bear up.”
“Thank you, Admiral.”
Jon hit the teleport button and the shuttle appeared in the outer system. Molly grabbed her ears and fell out of her chair. Jon rushed over and lifted her and she was screaming, “Turn it off! Turn it off!” Her eyes were closed and she was rolling from side to side. Jon jumped up to teleport away but then he felt something. He reached over his shoulder and felt the handle of his sword. He pulled it and the glow burst out in the small bridge of the shuttle. Molly immediately s
topped screaming. Jon leaned down and helped her off the floor to her chair. Molly opened her eyes and said, “What kind of sword is that?”
Jon was shocked. No one but his brothers had been able to see the swords they had found. Jon said, “You can see it?”
“Of course I can see it. It’s actually quite beautiful. What is it?”
Jon put it back on his shoulder and tentatively released the grip. Molly didn’t fall to the floor so he knew the volume was not going to disable her.
Molly watched the sword disappear and she said, “That sword came from where the music originates.”
Jon smiled, “It did.”
“You’re not going to tell me.”
“Not at this moment. Let’s go see what’s causing your discomfort.” Molly nodded and settled back in her chair and watched the display. Jon teleported in to the inner planets and sent the code to the storage facility. A green light illuminated on his display and he accelerated toward the giant structure. Molly stared at Jon as he flew the ship and wondered about the violet colored sword. She had heard its melody and it was different from any she had heard. The Admiral was different. She wondered what that difference was.
• • •
Jon landed the ship in the facility’s giant landing bay and waited as the bay pressurized. He stepped out and Molly followed him. He looked around and Molly started walking to the left, “It’s this way, Sir.”
Jon stared at her and was amazed that she heard the trace better than he did. There was something different about Molly and he wondered what it was. He fell in behind her as she went through doors and used elevators to move to higher levels. Jon looked at his wrist unit and saw that the oldest weapons were on the highest levels. He followed Molly and she continued to enter elevators and move ever upward. They finally reached the top floor of the facility. The door opened and Molly walked forward as if she was in a trance. Jon followed and watched until she reached the end of a giant wall rack that had ancient blasters on it. She turned the corner and walked straight ahead and stopped at the back wall of the facility. There hanging in long rows was the ancient armor used by the Naval Marines under Richard Wiseman’s command. Molly pointed and said, “These are calling us.”
Jon stared at the ancient armor. It was armor that the warrior had to open and step in. He knew the armor had camouflage capability but it was nowhere close to the power of modern armor. Why was this ancient armor calling?
