The Forgotten Empire: Earth Ascendant: Book Two

by Raymond L. Weil

  The internal hatch to the cargo hold opened, and four of the sluglike Lamothians entered. Instantly the Humans nearest the hatch tried to move away. But the cargo hold was so crowded there was nowhere to go. The Lamothians were easily double the size of a full-grown Human and very powerful. They stood upright on four legs and had six appendages that served as arms with three protuberances on their hands that allowed them to manipulate equipment. Their skin was pale and glistened with an oily sheen. One of them grabbed the nearest Human, and then all four of them left through the hatch, shutting it behind them.

  “They took another one,” uttered Anna, tears in her eyes. “What are they doing to them? They never bring them back.”

  “Maybe they’re taking them to another cargo hold,” suggested Kalar. At least Kalar hoped so. Some of the other possibilities were too frightening to even think about.

  Twice a day they were fed a tasteless gruel and given water. They didn’t have any extra clothes and no way to clean up. Kalar knew, if this voyage lasted much longer, people would begin to sicken and die. He bowed his head and shook it. Never had he been in such a hopeless situation.

  -

  For two days the Destiny followed the slow-moving cargo vessel. Finally the ship dropped out of hyperspace into a white-dwarf star system.

  “What do the long-range scans show?” asked Derrick. Maybe now they could get some answers.

  “Twelve planets in the star system. It looks as if planets four and five are inhabited.”

  “Lieutenant Viktor, drop us out of hyperspace twenty million kilometers from planet five. Lieutenant Nower, can you tell which planet the cargo ship is heading toward?”

  Nower nodded. “Yes, Captain, toward planet five. I’m also detecting other cargo ships in the system. I’m detecting Humans on some of them as well.”

  “Keep scanning and let me know what else you find.”

  Derrick had an unnerving feeling that something was amiss in this star system. He felt a cold chill run down his back. Maybe in a few more hours they would know what was happening to the Humans who were being brought to the Confederation.

  The Destiny dropped out of hyperspace and immediately scanned the planet. The cargo ship dropped out of hyperspace closer to the planet and headed toward a large space station. Several other similar cargo ships were already docked.

  -

  Kalar felt the cargo ship dock and wondered where they were. It took only a few minutes for the hatch to open, and several heavily armed Lamothians entered.

  “Humans, you will proceed down the corridor and enter the space station. Once there you will be cleaned up, fed, and sorted.”

  “Sorted?” said Anna, looking worriedly at Kalar. “Are they going to separate us?” She held her infant daughter tightly to her bosom.

  Kalar shook his head. “Don’t worry. I won’t let them.”

  Putting his hand on Anna’s arm to comfort her, he said, “We better go along with the rest. Those Lamothians are armed with energy rifles.”

  They followed the rest of the Humans through the hatch and down a long corridor, which led to an airlock connected to the space station. Other Humans from other cargo holds joined them.

  When they entered the station, they found themselves in a large staging area, filling with other Humans. Kalar realized other ships had docked that held more Humans. As he looked around, he spotted someone he knew, Razam, his supervisor on Falton Two. Razam spotted Kalar and quickly made his way over to him.

  “Do you know what’s going on?” asked Kalar. Razam had connections and was very knowledgeable about things that went on in the Confederation.

  Razam looked extremely pale. “Yes, let’s move over next to the wall.”

  They moved to the wall and then Razam indicated for Kalar to leave Anna for a few moments so they could hold a private conversation. “Don’t worry,” Razam reassured Anna. “We’ll be close by, so we can keep an eye on you and the baby.”

  They moved off a few meters and then stopped.

  “So, what’s going on?” asked Kalar.

  “It’s bad,” answered Razam. “I have heard rumors for years. I managed to call in a few favors, and what I found out is frightening. Have you ever wondered why we never see older Humans on any of the Confederation worlds we’ve worked on?”

  “Sometimes,” admitted Kalar. “I always assumed they were on other planets.”

  Razam shook his head. “No, they’re not. They’re all dead.”

  Kalar’s eyes widened in shock. “What do you mean, they’re all dead? What happened to them?”

  Razam blinked his eyes and then answered. “When Humans reach a certain age, they are gathered up and sent to a world of the Lamothians.”

  “So, you’re saying they are all on the Lamothian planets?”

  “No, we’ll be taken down to the surface to the food auctions and auctioned off to the highest bidder.”

  Kalar could barely speak. “What do you mean, food auctions?”

  Taking a deep breath, Razam explained. “To the Lamothians, we are an exotic food animal. They will buy us and then eat us alive in a massive feast.”

  Kalar shook his head in disbelief. “I don’t believe that. That would be barbaric.”

  “Not to the Lamothians. On your ship, were some Humans taken from your cargo hold?”

  Kalar nodded. “Yes, several.”

  “Did they ever return?”

  “No, we just assumed they were taken to another cargo hold.”

  “Why would they do that? No, the cargo crews are allowed to eat their fill of Humans. It’s a reward for operating the ships that bring the Humans to the Lamothian worlds.”

  Kalar felt his heart pounding in his chest. He looked at his wife and infant daughter. “Is there anything we can do?”

  “Maybe,” replied Razam. “I’ve spoken to a few others. Once we’ve cleaned up and eaten, we need to make a break for it.”

  “Where too? Where can we possibly go?”

  “We take one of the cargo ships and leave. I have some experience flying spacecraft, and several of the others I’ve spoken to have as well.”

  Kalar took a deep breath. “How do we do this?”

  “We cause a big-enough commotion so that we can sneak back on board a ship and leave.”

  “How many will be going with us?”

  “Probably not many. We have to get onboard, undock, and get away from the station before the Lamothians realize what we’re doing. I don’t believe they’ll even consider that we might steal one of their cargo ships.”

  “Which cargo ship?”

  “The one you arrived on. Just be ready for my signal. When you see it, head for the cargo ship with your wife and child. I’ll take care of the rest.”

  -

  On board the Destiny, the first short-range scans were being analyzed. Some of the data was confusing.

  “I was expecting to find a large number of Humans on the planet,” said Lieutenant Commander Banora. “Instead, if I’m reading these scans correctly, only a few thousand are here.”

  “How many on the space station?” asked Derrick. The space station was centered on the main viewscreen, and it was massive.

  “Four thousand. They seem to be in four large holding areas.”

  “Andrew, are you picking up any communications from the planet?”

  “Some, I do have several visuals if you want to see them.”

  Derrick nodded. “Put one up on the screen.”

  Instantly the screen showed a naked Human male with a chain tied around his ankle, standing on a small upraised dais that was slowly rotating.

  “That man looks scared to death,” commented Kala, as she used her console to analyze better what they were looking at.

  “Is it a slave market of some kind?” asked Lieutenant Nower.

  Derrick slowly nodded his head. “I would guess that’s what we’re looking at.”

  They watched for a few more minutes, until they heard a gasp from Kala. Eve
ryone looked at her to see what was going on.

  “It’s not a slave auction,” she said in a strained voice. “It’s a food auction. Those Humans are being auctioned off to the highest bidder to be eaten.”

  There was shocked silence in the Command Center. On the viewscreen, a woman was now on the dais. She looked as if she were about to faint.

  “Is this what has happened to all the young Humans the Druins have taken for over a thousand years?” asked Audrey, her eyes narrowing sharply.

  “We don’t know,” replied Derrick, fearing the worst. “We need to gather more information.” If what they now suspected was true, over the years, billions of Humans had been eaten by the Lamothians. It was all Derrick could do to contain his growing disgust and rage.

  “How?”

  Derrick gestured toward the space station, now on another viewscreen. “We need to take some Humans off that space station.”

  Audrey looked stunned. “That’ll be difficult. They’re bound to be heavily guarded, and a number of warships are in orbit.”

  “True, but we have two stealth shuttles on board. I propose that Sergeant Bright take both his squads of Marines, dock to the station, and seize some of those Humans and bring them back to the Destiny. Once they’re back on board, we leave.”

  “That’ll be dangerous,” repeated Audrey, frowning. “If those warships detect the shuttles or find out what’s going on, things could get rough around here.”

  Derrick nodded. “I know, but I think it’s a risk we must take. If we can get some of those Humans off that space station, the knowledge they have of the Confederation could be tremendous. If what we now suspect is true, we have to get that knowledge back to Earth.”

  “You’re right. However, the likelihood of us being discovered will increase substantially once we launch those shuttles and our Marines storm that station. The Lamothians will know almost instantly that something is going on and that a stealthed ship is in their system.”

  Derrick knew Audrey was right. “It’s a risk we need to take.”

  “I’ll get the Marines ready and the two shuttles prepped.”

  “We’ll launch the mission in one hour.” Derrick hoped he was doing the right thing. What he was doing could easily endanger the ship. However, they needed concrete evidence of what they now believed was happening to the Humans being brought to the Confederation.

  -

  Kalar watched as Razam moved around the room, talking to other Humans. A short time ago, they had been allowed to take a shower and to clean up. Even fresh clothes had been provided. After that they had been fed their first decent meal in days. Now they were back in the room used as a staging area for the Humans. A dozen heavily armed Lamothians stood guard, each with an energy rifle.

  Suddenly Razam shouted, “They’re going to kill us all! We’re here to become food for the Lamothians. Kill them!”

  Dozens of men that Razam had already spoken to rushed the Lamothian guards. A large number of other Humans followed suit as Razam’s words stirred them into action. Energy rifles discharged into the onrushing Humans, killing several. Alarms sounded, and all the hatches leading into the station slammed shut.

  Kalar and Anna eased themselves toward the still-open hatch that led to the cargo ship. Kalar noticed they were not the only ones. Other women with children were doing the same. They just reached the hatch when Razam appeared in front of them, holding an energy rifle. Several other men with rifles were with him.

  “We’ll go first and clear out any of the Lamothian crew that may still be on board. Once we have the ship secure, we’re leaving.”

  “What about everyone else?” asked Kalar, gesturing toward the other Humans in the staging room. Many of them cowered against the far wall, away from where the fighting had occurred.

  Razam turned and shouted. “We’re leaving. If anyone wants to come with us, you had better get on board this ship. No one will be coming back for you!” With that, Razam and two of the other men entered the hatch, heading into the ship. Three other men with energy rifles took up guard duty near the hatch.

  In the room, a scattering of people moved toward the ship. Others stood where they were, unsure of what to do.

  “Get on board!” shouted Kalar, as he led Anna and their infant child through the hatch. Looking behind him, he saw a few others move toward the hatch to the cargo ship.

  Kalar quickly led Anna through the ship. Occasionally they came upon a Lamothian who had been killed by energy rifle fire. It didn’t take Kalar long to make his way to the Control Center for the cargo ship. Upon entering the hatch, he saw three more dead Lamothians. Razam and another of the men with him sat at several consoles, flipping switches and pressing icons on the computer screens.

  “We’re getting ready to disconnect from the station,” said Razam upon seeing Kalar.

  “Closing the hatch,” replied the other man, sitting at the other console. “Hatch is closed and sealed.”

  Razam nodded. “Moving us away from the station.”

  -

  On board the Destiny, Lieutenant Nower had detected the weapons fire inside the station. She had quickly reported it to the captain. “It appears from my scans that some of the Humans have gone back on board the cargo ship. I’m also showing fewer Lamothian life signs on board. They must be killing them.”

  “They’re trying to escape,” gasped Audrey, her eyes growing wide. “We need to help them.”

  “Hold the launch of the shuttles,” ordered Derrick. “Lieutenant Breen, prepare to fire antimatter missiles. Target any of the Lamothian warships that come too close to us or that cargo ship.”

  On the main viewscreen, the cargo ship could be seen pulling away from the space station. It turned and accelerated away.

  “It’s not moving real fast,” reported Nower. “Whoever is flying that ship may not be quite sure of what they’re doing.”

  “Can we contact it?”

  “They may not know how to turn on the communications console,” answered Andrew. “I would also recommend we put some distance between us and those warships before we attempt contact. This close and the Lamothians might pick up our transmission.”

  “Two Lamothian battlecruisers are breaking orbit and are pursuing the cargo ship,” reported Nower. “If the cargo ship doesn’t increase speed, the battlecruisers will easily catch up to it.”

  “Locking on targets,” reported Lieutenant Breen. “Captain, my targeting systems indicate the Lamothians have not raised their energy shields.”

  Audrey looked at the captain. “Why should they? They’re in one of their own systems, and the cargo ship isn’t armed.”

  “They’re firing on the cargo ship!” called out Nower. “They’re targeting the engines.”

  Derrick drew in a deep breath. “Destroy those two warships. Launch missiles!”

  From the Destiny two sublight antimatter-armed missiles left the missile tubes. In just a few scant seconds they struck the unprepared Lamothian battlecruisers. Both battlecruisers vanished in deadly fireballs of antimatter energy.

  “Try to contact that cargo ship. Lieutenant Viktor, if the cargo ship goes into hyperspace, follow it. Lieutenant Breen, you are cleared to fire on any Lamothian warship.”

  A wolfish grin spread over Lieutenant Breen’s face as he launched a full spread of antimatter missiles. He had already targeted six more Lamothian vessels.

  “Captain, what about the space station?” asked Audrey.

  “It has Humans on it,” answered Derrick. “We can’t destroy it.”

  “I disagree, Captain. Those Humans will become food for the Lamothians. We can give them a pain-free death.”

  On the viewscreens, massive explosions rocked six more Lamothian battlecruisers. Two of them vanished in massive fireballs of energy. The other four survived as their energy screens snapped into place.

  Derrick’s gaze shifted to the space station. He took in a deep breath and gave his next order. “Target that station with two antimatter
missiles.”

  -

  On the cargo ship, several more of the consoles were now manned. There was tension in the air as they struggled to set a course and activate the hyperdrive.

  “Someone is targeting the Lamothian warships,” the woman in front of the sensor console reported. “They’ve managed to destroy four of them.”

  “Where are they?” asked Razam. He had never heard of anyone attacking an actual Confederation world.

  “They’re not showing up on the sensors,” the woman replied.

  “We have minor damage to the hyperdrive,” reported the man sitting in front of the helm and navigation console. “If we want to transition into hyperspace, we need to do it now.”

  The ship’s primary viewscreen was focused on the space station. In a sudden blast of light, the station exploded.

  “They destroyed the station,” gasped Anna. “All those people on board are dead. How could they do such a thing?” Tears welled up in her eyes at the terrible loss of Human life.

  “It was merciful,” replied Razam. “Those people were doomed to die anyway. I’d rather die in an explosion than be eaten in some perverted ceremony.”

  “Ready to activate hyperdrive.”

  “Do it,” ordered Razam. “Let’s get out of here.”

  -

  On the Destiny, they watched as the cargo ship vanished into hyperspace.

  “Follow them,” ordered Derrick.

  “We have seven more Lamothian battlecruisers breaking orbit,” reported Nower. “All of them have their energy shields up.”

  “Lieutenant Breen, drop a few mines, and let’s get out of here.”

  “Mines deployed.”

  “Activating hyperdrive,” added Lieutenant Viktor.

  “I have a firm track on the cargo ship,” reported Nower. It could be tracked in hyperspace if it was close enough to the Destiny.

  Derrick felt the hyperdrive activate, and then the ship was safely in hyperspace. Now he just needed to figure out a way to stop the cargo ship and transfer the Humans on board to the Destiny.