A Faded Star

by Michael Freeport

  Drogue and Hanlon looked at each other for a long moment. Drogue said, “Would you excuse Captain Hanlon and myself for a few minutes while we confer?”

  “Of course, Admiral. We will reconvene in fifteen of your minutes.”

  The alliance commanders stood and walked from the room.

  “What do you make of that, captain?”

  “It's like the alliance uses morality instead of political capital to guide their internal political decisions. I wonder how such a system evolved.”

  “It's unclear at the moment,” Drogue said. The conversation was interrupted by the click of Watkins sliding a fresh data card into his tablet. Drogue and Hanlon looked at him, the unspoken question in their eyes Watkins glanced up, gave a slight nod and a wink before returning to his task.

  Hanlon said, “Maybe they realized early on that trading immorality was far too interesting and they couldn't handle it like we can.” Her lips curved into a slight smile.

  Drogue shook his head and said, “Perhaps. We'll have to get them back on track. If we're going to hit those systems per our plans, we have to convince the alliance to release us and the ships as soon as we can.”

  “Yes, sir. Maybe we can play this to our advantage. Since we're so inherently immoral, or perhaps even amoral to these people, perhaps we can convince them they can keep their hands clean while we go out and take the distasteful steps needed to protect their alliance.”

  “That may make an appealing argument for them. Personally, I'm having a tough time understanding these people.”

  “Me, too. All we can do now is make our proposal in terms that use their frame of reference as best we can.”

  Drogue nodded. The officers sat in silence for the remaining minutes until the alliance commanders returned to the briefing room.

  Ktenu spoke first. “Admiral Drogue, the time has come to discuss how our non-aggression pact will continue. You have taught us much over the last week both about how humans fight and how they think. The psychology of your race is distasteful to the members of the alliance. During the recess, the command committee has decided to disband our alliance and bring humans back to their system of origin. Do you accept this proposal?”

  Drogue shook his head. “I do not accept this proposal. Our pact was made by my civilian government, and I don't have the authority to dispose of it. For you to change the terms of our pact, you must go to the Lashmere system and renegotiate with my government. In the meantime, you must abide by the terms you have already agreed to. Despite your assumption of our moral inferiority, we are willing to continue the plan to raid the three previously identified crab systems. Your forces desperately need those materials.”

  “Your moral inferiority is not an assumption, admiral. We have clearly demonstrated it. The demonstration was confirmed by the command committee. Please do not try to recover from such a weak position. It is unseemly.”

  Drogue bowed his head slightly in acknowledgment of Ktenu's statement. “I did not mean to infer to the contrary, commander. What I meant to say is that we, being morally inferior, are in a position to help the alliance as we have previously proposed. We still need to use your ships and have one of your salvage and factory ships follow along behind us, but we believe we can still accomplish the originally proposed mission.”

  “Haven't we proved that is exactly what you cannot do over the last three days, Admiral?” Ktenu asked.

  “Perhaps if I put this another way, commander. Do the crabs have battleships or battlecruisers in any of their systems?”

  “Not that our sensors can detect, but-”

  “And do you believe the numerical advantage the offensive squadron has over all three systems is sufficient to virtually guarantee success?”

  “That is not the point, Admiral. We cannot allow beings so lacking in character to-”

  “You aren't answering my question, commander. Yes or no, does the offensive force have an overwhelming advantage in all three systems?”

  “It does, but I must point out if I sanction your actions now, my command of the command committee will be brought into question. I may lose my position within the committee or perhaps even be removed from commander rank altogether.”

  “Then the question you must ask yourself is if your rank and position are sufficiently important to allow the destruction of your alliance. If so, then I expect you all to be some very morally upstanding corpses in the next six months.”

  “Six months?”

  “Ten at the outside, if everything goes well for you and the crabs have fewer ships than you actually think they do.”

  “And where, exactly, did you receive this analysis from, admiral?”

  “Lieutenant Kelper, my tactical officer is the one who initially projected the alliance's fall. Captain Hanlon and I then went through the same analysis and we agree with her.”

  “Your analysis is flawed, admiral. Our tactical experts have assured the command committee we have years before the crabs become a serious threat.”

  “I don't think so, Commander. Allow Miss Kelper to demonstrate her analysis for you.”

  “Proceed, Admiral, but be warned, our intelligence will examine this finding of yours as well.”

  “Of course,” Drogue said. His tone had a wry twist to it. He turned to Kelper and said, “Lieutenant, if you please?”

  “Certainly, Admiral. Commanders, if you will please direct your attention to the screen.” Kelper then tapped her tablet, bringing the screen back to life. The view was of the frontier between the alliance and crab regions of space. “As you can see here, the crabs have taken roughly twenty-seven percent of previously held alliance territory over the last two point one standard years.” The standard year was a division based on galactic rotation that loosely represented common orbits of planets in orbits that supported most carbon based life and had liquid water. The standard year was roughly one point two-five years on Lashmere. “The rate of capture is accelerating. The crabs have amassed a fleet here.” Kelper caused a point to display on the map just outside alliance held space. “The fleet is capable of destroying any base or planetary system the alliance has in a single stroke, including your two main bases. Your analysts have been aware of this situation for the last month or more. Unless you give the crabs a reason to disperse this force, you will be destroyed quite soon. They have sure knowledge your morality prevents you from any kind of counterattack. Are there any questions so far, sirs?”

  No one spoke for a moment. Ktenu finally said, “Lieutenant, while I'm sure the data used in this analysis is correct, I'm not as convinced your interpretation of it is correct.”

  “Excuse me, Commander Ktenu,” Kelper said, “I am merely presenting my conclusions. The belief or disbelief you may have in our ability to project likely tactical developments is a non-issue at this time. I meant to ask if anyone does not understand any aspect of what I am presenting at this time.”

  Hanlon stared at Kelper in shock. The petite, dusky woman certainly didn't lack self-confidence. She gave Drogue a questioning look, and he nodded for her to continue.

  “Sirs, the projection of force is as follows. Initially, under optimal conditions, the crabs will divide their force into three and hit the following systems.” She tapped her tablet again, showing three lines moving from where the fleet currently resided and striking the flank of the alliance. “From there, they will concentrate and hit your secondary base, this base.” The lines merged and a red dot appeared where the alliance base was located. “Again, knowing you will not engage in any kind of counterattack, playing a purely defensive strategy and also assuming the crabs have a reasonably accurate picture of your fleet deployments, they'll move from this base to your home system.” A long line moved from the base to the Xalcek system, where the alliance was headquartered. “The fleet then divides again into four units to take out the remaining home systems of all the alliance races.” More lines and dots crossed the map. “Once that's done, more than ninety percent of your shipyard, m
anufacturing and fleet units will be destroyed. The mop up will take another two or three months, but no remaining obstacles will remain in their path.”

  “What you've done is simply demonstrate the worst possible scenario for us, Lieutenant,” Ktenu said. “Our own tactical experts have made the same suppositions, and we have increased our system security in response to the potential threat. If the crabs are foolish enough to come charging into this system, their fleet will not survive. I applaud your ability to project an aura of fear and desperation, but the alliance has been aware of this threat for several weeks. Our primary and secondary bases have defenses of which you are unaware. They are not common knowledge and are not a topic available for discussion with non-member beings. Be assured we are prepared for any such fleet to enter our system.”

  Kelper looked at Admiral Drogue. He motioned her to sit down and then said, “We are pleased to hear of your preparations, Commander. Since you are clearly ready for anything the crab fleet can bring to bear on your systems, it will be no trouble to send the offensive force out on the raiding missions.”

  Ktenu turned and spoke in a hissing, clicking and popping language with the other commanders for a moment. The other commanders all began rapping the conference table again with the backs of their hands.

  “It is decided, admiral. Your people have demonstrated a single minded desire to destroy. Your force will be allowed to complete these raids. I must emphasize to you that the moral implications of your actions cannot be blamed on the command committee. The reason we allow your actions is that we do need the resources those systems contain. Further preparation and enhanced ship building are opportunities we would prefer to avail ourselves of.”

  Drogue said, “Excellent. We'll resupply and refit tomorrow and depart for our mission on the following day.”

  “As you like, Admiral. Forward your detachment's timetable to the base comm node prior to departure. A salvage ship will follow behind you at a safe distance. Should you succeed, it will come into the system and retrieve any resources of value while you protect it prior to moving on to the next system you've targeted.”

  Drogue, Hanlon, and the alliance commanders all stood. The commanders left the room first, followed by the humans. As they walked along the base passageway back to the Broadsword, Hanlon began to speak, but Drogue silenced her with an upraised hand. “Wait until we are back on the Broadsword, Captain.”

  Back aboard the Broadsword, Drogue led the other three officers to his cabin. Once everyone was seated, Drogue said, “Captain, what's your impression of why the alliance allowed us to continue with our mission?”

  “I think the temptation of gaining those resources is greater than they want to let on, sir. Despite all their protestations of moral superiority, they may still be vulnerable to vices like greed. Perhaps they need them more than we think. If they've been building defensive platforms in all these systems at a rate sufficient to meet the crab fleet, they may be so tapped out that they're willing to allow their hands to get a little dirty by sanctioning our mission. I expect they plan to use the resources to build even more defensive forces.”

  Drogue said, “I agree. Mister Watkins, I know you were able to get into their computer. Would you please provide a full report on your activities?”

  “Yes, sir. I don't know what the alliance considers as far as computer security, but they have a remarkably simple protection protocol. I was able to download most of the alliance historical database. I haven't been able to peruse any of their information so far, but I expect we have much more than the data we need. The data was pretty easy to convert to our computer language. We should be able to run inquiries directly to the database. I don't think I have much from the period between two and four thousand years ago, but I definitely got everything from the founding of the alliance and the most recent thousand years as well.”

  “Excellent work, Mister Watkins,” Drogue said. “Upload the database to our computer and let's start running some inquiries.” Drogue waited in silence along with Hanlon and Kelper while Watkins made a hard connection with the human built computer sitting on Drogue's desk. Once the information had been transferred, Drogue addressed the computer, “Prepare a summary of the founding of the alliance.”

  The computer considered the request for a few seconds before displaying a large block of text. The formatting made it difficult to read and some breaks in the data were apparent. All four officers huddled close together as they read the displayed data.

  Hanlon said, “So that's confirmation. The alliance was formed in response to humanity's intrusion into their space. At least that's how it's written here. I wonder how human history reads.”

  “If they did wipe us out with a biological weapon, it might explain their obsession with defensive strategies and morality,” Kelper said, “The members of the alliance may have felt humanity's destruction was wrong somehow.”

  “Good thinking, Lieutenant,” Hanlon said.

  Drogue said, “Look here, there's another reference to some super-weapon the humans had before being destroyed.” Drogue inputted another inquiry and waited for the data to be displayed. “The alliance didn't know exactly what it was but, they were terrified of the destructive potential. It looks like it was some kind of ship that made humans nearly impossible to defeat. I wish there was more detail here.”

  “Sorry, sir,” Watkins said.

  “Don't apologize, Lieutenant. You did a top notch job. No one can complain about your efforts.” Drogue suddenly let out a bark of a laugh. The first laughter anyone had heard from the admiral. “Can you imagine if the alliance commanders realized you were hacking into their database while they were in the same room with you?”

  Watkins broke into a grin and then laughed, too. “I bet they would be furious about our 'immoral and insidious attack on their morally superior data network'.”

  Everyone at the desk chuckled before turning their attention back to the computer screen. “Anyone else have any ideas on what kind of inquiries we should make?” Drogue asked.

  “Does the alliance have a founding charter or constitution?” Hanlon asked.

  Drogue pulled up the data and said, “It looks like it. They have a series of founding principles and agreements of support. Their government is founded here as well. This would take days to read. It's over a thousand pages long.”

  “Well, at least we should be able to use it to gain some understanding of how their culture works,” Hanlon said.

  Drogue pulled up his clock. “It's time we all turned in. Good work, everyone.”

  Watkins said, “Before we go to bed, there is one more thing I should tell you.”

  “What is it, Lieutenant?”

  “Well, while I was in their computer system, I input a secure access path so I can get back into their computers without anyone knowing about it. The access also allows us to listen in on any secure communications being transmitted to any alliance ship in the area. The more information we can keep flowing in, the better our chances, sir.”

  “Excellent. Truly excellent, Lieutenant. Thank you,” Drogue said. “Now, let's all turn in. We have a very busy day tomorrow preparing to ship out.”

  Chapter 9

  Supplying the ships was a relatively straightforward task. Hanlon reviewed the dietary requirements of the crews, and added them to the requisition. She then used the remaining storage area to request spare parts and additional damage control materials. She sent the request to the alliance comm node the night of the meeting she'd attended with the alliance commanders. A confirmation message came back immediately, but that was an automated response. Hanlon wondered if the alliance would approve their requests. Some of the items they wanted were repair and manufacturing facilities usually carried only on the largest ships. Hanlon believed they were unlikely to get much more support from the alliance, and she wanted to have the opportunity to carry some of the most advanced alliance technology back to Lashmere if they had the chance as well.

  Hanlo
n changed and lay down in her bunk. She hadn't realized until just that moment how tired she was. All her joints felt like they were relaxing at once. As the oblivion of sleep overtook her, she thought how much she needed a vacation. Perhaps after the raids she would take a few days off.

  She was awakened what seemed like five minutes later by an insistent beeping coming from her computer. Sighing, she rolled out of bed and tapped the accept key. Drogue's face appeared on the monitor. His hair was tousled, and his eyes were weary. “Captain. Why did you requisition so much from the alliance? Ktenu woke me up about twenty minutes ago to complain about your materials requisition. The alliance doesn't pass those repair systems without good reason. I need one to give Ktenu so he will send us the machines you want.” Drogue stopped and waited for her reply.

  Hanlon rubbed the sleep from her eyes before responding. “Sir, we are going to be operating well away from alliance borders without the benefit of material support. The salvage and factory ship won't come in to help us unless we can guarantee the area is safe. If we have to make repairs as we go, we need those machines.”

  “Good enough, Captain. I'll reason it out with Ktenu.” Drogue looked up at his clock and then said, “Get back to sleep. See you in the morning.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  Hanlon awoke to her alarm several hours later. After dressing, she went out to the boarding concourse where the offensive squadron was docked. To her surprise, everything she had ordered was sitting there, waiting to be loaded. She passed among the stacks of supplies and equipment mentally checking off everything she'd requested.

  “Does it meet with your approval, Captain?”

  Hanlon yelped and whirled to see Admiral Drogue standing a few feet from her. “Sir, I apologize. You startled me.”

  “You were engrossed in your inspection. Muster is in five minutes. We can organize a working party to load everything.”