By Earth standards, the Legacy was an antique. It was inconceivable how far advanced the technology must have been to build a ship like the Legacy. I wondered about the Legacy’s capabilities when it had functioning weapons. It was bothering me why the Grawl would attempt to dismantle the Legacy. Why not make use of the Legacy in the condition it was discovered? Justice answered the question for me.
“Nathan, when the sequence to wake my awareness was discovered and activated, it took little time for me to determine the corrupt nature of the Grawl in charge of this facility. The Grawl knew an A.I. was present aboard this vessel but never knew the true nature of my sentience. I chose to remain silent and refused to interact with the scientist and engineers studying my systems. I became aware of their intended use for the Legacy and resisted most all of the system penetrations they were attempting. As time passed the failures of the scientist to learn anything significant led to outrage among investors. This resulted in a new Overmaster being put in charge of the project. He immediately started the engineers down the path of commandeering the ships existing operational systems. It took a number of years to do so but they finally succeeded. The beings making it possible to secret the Legacy at this location demanded their expenditure of credits be reimbursed. Because it took more than twenty Earth years to make the ship operational, a considerable amount of interest accrued. The Legacy was operated on a for profit basis right up to Sora’s failed mission on your home world.”
Now that Justice had filled the spaces in for me with the ugly truth, I was discouraged. Greed and the lust for power was the motivating factor influencing the Grawl that were in charge of this facility. I shook my head trying to clear my thoughts. Nothing I could say or do at the moment could change what has come to pass. The newest revelation occurring to me was that Coonts fate and mine were tied together by an unlikely chain of events. If the Overmaster had chosen someone other than Sora to command the Legacy, the ship might never have gone to Earth. I would have died in the Alaskan wilderness and Coonts would still be exiled at Outpost 3. Was this indeed some form of divine manipulation as Tria had inferred? The implications had me wondering how Tria and Klutch fit into the puzzle. I was giving myself a headache and getting back on mission was the only logical course of action.
“Justice, do you have a way to locate or track the core if it has been moved?”
“Only if we are in close proximity to the cores location and it is not being shielded against military level scanning. I have completed my interior scans of this facility and have located a shielded area in the hangar. The size of the area suggests a covert cargo cache. Due to its location and the large area involved it has a very low probability of harboring the DEHD core.”
“Alright Justice we’ll take a look and find out what they were hiding and then we’ll talk to the Grawl scientist. If you find something else, let me know.”
I walked outside of the office and saw Tria inspecting Coonts new battle suit. I had the feeling she has seen one before. Klutch looked like he was trying to ignore the little showoff but I could tell he was envious of the tech.
Since I had accumulated a considerable fortune in credits and artifacts, I decided I could afford new armor for all of us. It was time to take the swell out of Coonts head.
“Coonts has brought it to my attention there are better armor systems available. I won’t let it be said one crew member is better equipped than the rest. I will buy new armor for us all if someone knows where we can get it. We will add that to our list of priority acquisitions along with the equipment missing from the Legacy. Justice has located a probable hidden cache in the hangar so let’s go find out what else they are hiding.”
“Coonts, your new armor came with a price tag.” My comment caught the Grawl off guard and he gave me what I was pretty sure was a scowl. “The price will be the time it takes to pull the junk hooked up on the bridge out and start getting the Legacy back to its original condition.” The Grawl lost his frown and gave me a quick nod and maybe a small smile.
“Tria I know you’re a salvage expert. With your help Coonts can get the ship back in working order a lot faster than if he was working alone.” Tria acknowledged my order with a smile of her own.
“Coonts if you know the scientist and think you can trust them, set them to work helping you. Offer credits for competent work. I’ll start you off with two million credits working capital. Let me know if you need more to obtain quality help. Justice will be monitoring everything so you can concentrate on the bridge systems.
“Tria, I am sure you will have no problem finding things to repair. If you need something, tell Coonts and he’ll make sure you get it if it is available. The faster we get the ship repaired the faster we will get out of here. Klutch, if your leg wound won’t slow you down, let’s go find out what’s hidden in the hangar.”
The Tibor straightened his posture even though it probably caused him pain to do so. “The nanites I have introduced into my system are already working to repair the damage. It will not interfere with my duties.”
I clapped the Tibor lightly on the shoulder. “At ease Troop Master.”
Coonts and Tria left to start work on the Legacy. Klutch followed me to the hangar. It was time to get the scientist off the floor and back inside.
“I want everyone to get off the floor and listen to me. The criminals running the illegal activities on this station have been dealt with. I know many of you knew what was happening. From this time forward there will be no more crimes committed by the scientist on this station. Some of you are familiar with the Legacy Project. Those who knew about it have a chance to help undo the damage done to the project. I’m sure several of you know Coonts, he is now in charge of the project and will be hiring competent scientist to work on the Legacy. Those who help will be paid well. Those that do not wish to help will be confined to their quarters and all outside communications are forbidden until we leave this location. Anyone in possession of a weapon of any kind will answer to Troop Master Klutch. I wish to speak to the two Grawl that turned Tril over to me. No one has to fear further violence unless you choose to break my rules.”
The Grawl scientist slowly stood up and a growing murmur came from the crowd of scientist and engineers.
I held my hands up and the hangar quickly went silent. “All personnel wanting to help, line up in front of the ship one work cycle from now. Those who do not must remain in your quarters after the work cycle has passed. You are dismissed!”
The Grawl all rapidly disappeared out of the hangar leaving two very nervous looking scientists standing in front of me.
“You do not have to fear me. My name is Mr. Myers and you will address me as such. Tril was given a chance to live, but he chose to attack me. The Troop Master ended his life for his actions. I am impressed you were concerned for the scientist’s lives when there was a possibility you could have been killed for hiding with Tril. What are your names and titles, only the senior ranking scientist need answer me?”
“I am Xul and my fellow scientist is Graf. We are artifact research scholars. I can assure you most all the science personnel on this station were not involved with Rak’s activities.”
“I will make this easy for you. I’ve changed my mind about destroying this station so you don’t have to worry about your fellow scientist any longer. What you do have to worry about is what will happen if you decide to give me less than truthful answers to the questions I am going to ask you. If I feel you have given me correct answers, I will see to it that you have enough credits to leave here and take up lawful research elsewhere. My first question is where do I find the dark matter drive core from the Legacy Project?”
Xul answered without hesitation. “When it was determined by Tril we could not get it to function without A.I. interaction he had the core removed. There were many attempts to gain access to the core’s containment field, but all failed. Rather than damage the core or possibly destroy it, Rak decided to trade it. Tril had his underling Arn co
ntact members of a criminal black market trading post to find an acceptable trade for the device. A deal was brokered, and the device was traded for the Zaen battle suit the engineer Coonts is wearing. The module left this station on a former Union warship a half work cycle before you entered this station.”
“What do you mean by former Union Warship? Does the Union sell its warships?”
“I am not aware of the nature of the transaction Mr. Myers, but no, the Galactic Union is not known for selling their warships, especially to pirates. The ship in question is now commanded by a Murlak pirate that goes by the name of Eiger. He also happens to run the black market outpost with other unknown associates. He is said to be very dangerous.”
Xul had confirmed a suspicion I was sure Justice had already confirmed by some equation yielding a percentage of probability. I rolled my eyes and moved on when he failed to enlighten me. “What is hidden below the hangar floor?”
Again Xul answered without hesitation. “Galactic weapon systems purchased with artifacts on Rak’s orders. This was another transaction arranged by Arn and involving Eiger. Tril was trying to gain access to the cache when we brought him to you.”
The Grawl did not know it yet, but he just earned a crap load of brownie points for his admission he intervened when Tril attempted to arm himself. It may or may not have been a self-preservation tactic, but at this point, I did not care. “Do you know who was giving Rak his orders?”
Xul was looking me right in the eyes and I believed him when he told me; “No Mr. Myers, there was a small probability that Tril might have known. I believe with Arn’s criminal connections he would have been more likely to have an idea of who was giving Rak the sanction to break galactic law.”
It was disappointing to know all the Grawl that could answer my questions, were now deceased. “Do you know where Eiger might have taken the core?”
“While I can only speculate Mr. Myers, I would say back to his trading post. The post’s coordinates should not be difficult to obtain.”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Things were going to get infinitely more difficult. I clasped my hands behind my back and stepped away from the two Grawl. “Did you get all of that Justice?”
“Yes Nathan, It is apparent the DEHD core has been moved to another location and the ship we witnessed leaving this star system was the former Galactic vessel that Xul was referring to. I have obtained the location of the outpost from the research stations data logs. The location of the outpost exactly matches the coordinates Tria has given me for a probable site for selling your surplus artifacts.”
I turned back to the two Grawl. “Xul, Graf, I believe you have answered my questions truthfully. You both earned fifty thousand credits for bringing Tril to me and ending any more violent confrontations between my crew and the personnel on this station. You have earned an additional fifty thousand credits for your honesty. I am now placing you in charge of this facility and expect you to maintain order at all times. No conflicts or interference with my crew will be tolerated, or you will answer to the Tibor Troop Master. Coonts is hiring scientist to help repair the Legacy so we may depart from this location. When we determine who is trustworthy enough to help us in our endeavors, we will pay the sum of twenty five thousand credits in addition to the salary Coonts determines is suitable for the job requirements.”
The two Grawl looked at each other and then back at me. They were in a state of shock. Graf was the first to find his voice. “Mr. Myers in the interest of cooperation, I would like to suggest certain scientific personnel that are members of Arn’s and Tril’s clan’s be confined to their quarters. There is a probability they may volunteer to help you repair the ship, but I am unwilling to face the consequences if they have ulterior motives.” Xul was shaking his head in agreement and said; “Might I suggest they be paid for their services, but those services should be the removal of the deceased from this station.”
Xul was one sharp character. I was dreading having to order the scientist to clean up the mess we had made on the station. The Grawl was raking in another load of brownie points that at some point would turn into cold hard credits.
“That is an excellent idea Xul I compliment you on your wisdom and insight into the many problems we are all confronted with. Further cooperation on your part as the new Overmaster of this facility will net you additional bonuses.”
I could tell by now when a Grawl smiles and Xul was definitely smiling. “I would like Graf to accompany me to investigate the weapons cache so I might decide what I will do with it. You are free to take care of any duties that are required to run this station.” He gave me a small bow and said; “The personnel on this station are at your disposal Mr. Myers please contact me if you have any problems I can help you solve.”
I went to Klutch and asked if it would be an issue to send the fallen Tibor out the airlock. I did not want to deal with decaying bodies on the station. He said it was customary to speak of their honor and to send them into the void. He volunteered to oversee the removal the dead. It was a relief to know I would not dishonor any Tibor clans with my ignorance of their customs.
I asked Graf what it would take to access the cache. He told me Rak and Tril where the only ones with encryption keys to the secret storage area. I reached into my pocket and removed the encryption keys I found in the security locker and we headed to the back of the hangar. Graf pointed to the small indentation in the floor and on my second choice of keys the hangar floor slid back to reveal a large ramp that disappeared in darkness. I commed Tria through Justice and she showed up a few minutes later.
The Chaalt’s presence made me smile. It must have been contagious because she returned mine with one of her own. My cheeks felt slightly warm as I stepped away from Graf. She put one of her hands on my arm and the temperature seemed to rise another twenty degrees. “Yes Nathan Myers, It looks like you have more secrets to uncover.”
We walked together a short distance from where Graf stood. “Tria, it is acceptable for you to just address me as Nathan.”
She gave me an alarmingly beautiful smile. I felt like she was looking into my soul when she fixed me with those big green almond shaped eyes. “While your customs and titles of familiarity may seem acceptable, I would much rather acknowledge you as my Commander. I now believe it is your rightful title. This would more accurately relay the proper amount of respect a ship’s master deserves. It might also help to disguise the identity of your race in less suitable situations.”
Tria was right, and I decided I would have a private talk with her about her past as soon as we left the station. Any military wisdom she could impart would be to our advantage. There was a very good chance it could save our lives on future operations.
Graf led us down the ramp and as we reached the bottom. The storage room lit itself and exposed the extent of Rak’s purchases. If I was to guess I would say Rak was preparing for a small war. There was everything from hand held weapons up to some huge tubes I assumed were mounted to spacecraft.
I knew I was looking at weapons but didn’t have a clue beyond that. “Tria, what do you make of the big tubes?”
“They are not the latest technology but they are still powerful weapons. These are directed energy weapons found on older ships in the Galactic arsenal. It would take some extra effort but they could be mounted to the Legacy. Mounting them in the existing weapons ports and shunting power to them will be of moderate difficulty. With the AI’s interaction and help from the stations scientist, I see no reason why it should not be feasible.
I picked up one of the hand held weapons and gave it the once over. It looked like a sawzall right out of Bill’s power tool collection back on Earth. Instead of having a cutting blade coming out of the end, it had a four pronged barrel like device that could rotate in a circle and right angles to roughly forty five degrees.
Tria saw I was curious about the weapon and stepped close to me. She had a way of making me nervous for no reason. “That is a Galactic infantry
rail gun Commander. It is meant to be slaved to their body armor and helmet targeting system. It doesn’t have to be pointed at its intended target, just in the general direction. The helmet sight targets the adversary if it is within the weapons firing arc. The weapon can identify and fire automatically or manually with the paddle trigger. The hypervelocity of the small projectiles make it devastating even to armored hostiles. It would not penetrate high quality armor such as the suit Coonts is wearing. The recovery from such a strike would momentarily make the recipient, combat ineffective.”
“Can we make use of them with our current armor and targeting systems?”
“No Commander, it takes the AI integration cable on Galactic infantry armor or in the case of the Zaen armor, the simple act of gripping the weapon will initiate a compatibility mode that will attempt to override the weapons encryption and interface protocols.”
I do not believe I had ever asked a question that Tria could not answer. I commented on my thoughts. “Our list of things to do and things needed is getting longer by the minute. Those big turrets in the back look like they have projectors similar to the hand held rail guns. I take it those are a much larger rail gun system.”
“Yes Commander, they are automated self-powered systems that can be mounted to most any vessel and fire a wide array of munitions. They have simple friend or foe targeting and will lock on and engage targets till they are destroyed. It would be child’s play for Justice to make use of those systems.”
First of my Kind Page 23
