“You make the case very well,” Jake admitted grudgingly. “Where the heck did you find the Tattalias Queens? If they can completely overrun a world, killing all life on it within a decade, how the hell have they survived? I know as they run out of food or danger, the Queens automatically cut back on the number of drones; but still, they should be extinct by now on their home world.”
“They are native to my world,” Binky explained. “We found a region below the frozen tundra on my planet, nearly a hundred years ago, where thousands of the things had died instantly, and been frozen. Once we found the Queen’s chamber, we began experimenting with her DNA to create our own Queens. Because we could see the danger in them ever breaking free, we built underground labs in the frozen tundra for our first developmental stage. When we discovered how to control them to some extent, our experimental boundaries increased dramatically.”
“So, you raise them to do your dirty work for you,” Mercer observed wryly. “I guess once you can ignore moral right and wrong, the rest comes easy.”
“No matter what happens,” Jake said, “we’ll have to exterminate the Bugs. I don’t care if you can get them to sit up and bark like a dog, I want them gone.”
“Agreed,” Binky replied.
“Okay then,” Jake nodded, “but we still are not going to arm an alien force of five hundred with state of the art weapons, so.”
“Jake,” Dougherty interrupted. “I can rig up enough pulse rifles for them to use. With a tiny aiming adjustment, I can control who they shoot at until they get the job done.”
“Hey Bink,” Mercer put in. “You mentioned you could take this place over easy after we take out the defenses. What defenses? If your ruling enclave has so much unchallenged authority, what the heck do they need with defenses?”
“Good question, Charlie,” Jake said approvingly. “What about it Bink? I thought this ruling clan has been just running things without a single problem for thousands of years.”
The Alien hesitated a moment, as if struggling for a way to explain.
“Don’t start blowing smoke up our ass now, Bink,” Jake warned. “What’s with the reluctance to tell us why a worshipped royal clan needs defenses strong enough to require us to take a hand at the beginning in getting rid of them?”
“When we first expanded our experimental usage of the Tallalias species, we thought it safe to conduct the experiments closer to civilization, at least the ruling enclave did. They ordered a laboratory complex close to one of our other clans. There were some mild protests, but they were quickly soothed by the guarantees of complete safety. We.”
“The Bugs got out,” Mercer cut in.
The Alien nodded. “We lost thousands before the control signal could be brought on line again. Some rebel attacks were carried out against the ruling clan. Many were killed, but the rebels could not break through to the enclave. Since those attacks, the ruling clan has both antiaircraft batteries, and a small army around their living complex.”
“This clan you say lost thousands of their people,” Jake mused. “Any of them survive?”
“Yes,” Binky answered simply.
“You wouldn’t happen to be one of them, would you Bink?” Mercer
“My wife and son were torn apart before my eyes, as I carried my daughter,” Binky replied. “They broke through the wall, as we ran with the others. Our fighter aircraft arrived and covered our retreat, but they were late getting there. If the Queen had not been shut down quickly, she would have spawned enough drones to wipe us out.”
“Were you part of the rebel attack on the ruling clan?” Doughertyasked.
“I led it,” Binky said with a fierceness they had not seen. “I would have come back and finished the ruling enclave off if not for the defenses. I do not want to kill all of them; because as I explained, most have nothing to do with the orders given by the inner circle. We managed to escape without being identified. I rejoined my military unit after leaving my daughter in the care of my brother’s family. I bided my time to avenge my wife and son, until an attack would have some chance of success.”
“This puts things in a clearer perspective, Bink,” Jake said. “I believe we can do some business. I can see now why your actions seem so independent as compared to your brethren we have locked up. Are any more of your clan amongst our prisoners?”
“It is very possible,” Binky replied.
“What do you think of finding out, and then training them to lead the assault?” Jake asked. “I’d hate to lose you in the battle.”
“I will take the blood of the ruling enclave myself,” the Alien retorted in anger. “No one will touch them but me for what they did. When I first saw you aboard my ship, my heart leapt in fear that I would not live to see them die by my hand.”
“I think I’m beginning to like you, Bink,” Mercer grinned, looking over at Jake. “I say let him have a shot, General.”
“He has my vote, if I get one,” Dougherty added. “I’ll clean up the defenses around there for him.”
“I don’t like taking this chance, but I can see I’d be pissing into the wind trying to get you to avoid going,” Jake said. “Why don’t you go down with Tim here, and get reacquainted with your people. Let me know later how you do at convincing them.”
“Thank you, General,” the Alien said, as Dougherty stood and gestured for him to follow.
“Tim,” Jake called out. “You take enough guys to make sure nothing happens to Binky. We don’t want to lose him.”
“Aye, aye, Sir,” Dougherty replied, as he and Binky passed through the hatch.
“I love having a motivated ally,” Jake told Mercer.
“You believe him then?”
“Tea, I do,” Jake replied. “So do you, or you would have said something.”
“It all fits, just like you said,” Mercer replied. “I was wondering, even with Mr. Snappy, why Bink was being so damn helpful. Now we know.”
“That will remain to be seen, but I agree with the way things fit better. God knows what I would have done if I had watched my wife and son slaughtered by those things right in front of me.”
“Did you see his face when you suggested he organize it rather than lead it?” Mercer asked, shaking his head at the memory. “He reminded me of someone else in this room, like back when I came around to find you with those Earth Command twits.”
“Bink did look dedicated, didn’t he? With the right safeguards in place to protect us, I would be willing to let him have a try at this. It would go a long way to obtaining some very interesting trade prospects, not to mention the knowledge of other Jump Gates and races.”
“What will you do if we run into that other race, and they want to know what happened to the colonies they owned, and who was responsible?” Mercer asked.
“We could try the truth,” Jake suggested. “If Bink wipes out the ruling enclave, all the ones actually responsible will be dead.”
“It probably has been a long time since it happened,” Mercer agreed. “That could work in our favor. You going to hang around long enough to see this through that far?”
“I don’t know, Charlie,” Jake admitted. “As you pointed out, I am a wimp when it comes to Adrian. If she says she wants to go back to Casserine, then I’m going back with her. Yuri is a fine organizational leader, and you make a hell of a field commander. If you need help, I won’t be dead, I’ll just be on Casserine.”
“We could conquer all the quadrants, with Nick’s breakthrough in shield technology. Why not hang around and be supreme commander of all the known galaxies?”
“No thanks, but if you’re really going to miss me that much, I can have you stationed with me. Why don’t you come back and live on Casserine with us?” Jake asked, smiling.
“You have me stationed on Casserine, and I’ll have you fragged.”
Chapter 32
Alien Engagement
Jake sat in front of his cabin monitor on board the Intrepid, waiting for the Commander of the Yorktow
n. Colonel Douglas Wilcox came into view a moment later, smiling at Jake. “Hello General, sorry to keep you waiting, I.”
“Don’t worry about it, Doug,” Jake smiled back. “I just wanted to know if everything is clear about what we’re doing tomorrow. You’ll be the only one, along with a few Command Wing Fighters, between the Alien Gate and Omaha. I have the Gallant between Omaha and Bougainville, just in case the Aliens have something I don’t know about.”
“I know you’re worried about being so thin on ships at your back,” Wilcox nodded, “but don’t be. If things turn upside down, we’ll have your escape covered.”
“I’m more worried about some of their ships wandering through the Gate while we’re gone. It could happen, because we’ll all be cloaked, and you can bet your ass there will be a force on the other side of the Gate. Their Gallant class ships carry thousands of crew, according to our Alien ally. I’ve promised him to try and disable the Alien fleet, protecting the Gate, without massacring them,” Jake told him for the first time.
“Shit, General,” Wilcox said, recovering from the shock. “I understand now why you’re sweating the details.”
Jake nodded his acknowledgement. “You have it right, Doug. I know it seems stupid, but as Binky pointed out, many of those crew members on the Alien Ship are related to the rebel party we’re backing in this planet take over. Any Alien ship running through the Gate must be destroyed when it reaches you. You have no constraints. We have the defenses built up on Omaha and Bougainville, but I don’t want them tested.”
“Permission to speak freely, Sir?”
“Go ahead, Doug.”
“I think you’re nuts to risk our ships to save these Alien crews,” Wilcox replied, “and I won’t have any trouble blowing the crap out of them if they come through the Gate.”
“That’s all I ask, Doug,” Jake agreed. “Don’t worry too much about it. At the first sign of a problem, I will wipe out the entire Alien race without hesitation, including vacuuming out the Alien force on our own ship into space.”
Wilcox laughed. “I feel better already, General. Good luck, Sir.”
“Thanks Doug, Colonel Peters and Major Corey will be in communication with you the whole way. Your Command Wing Fighters will be under your direct control as well as the Yorktown. Use them as your shock troops. I’m sorry we ran out of time to get your cloaking shield in, but General Richardson guarantees me your shielding will handle anything they have for weapons. Your Fighters will take them out long before they get to you anyway. I’m glad we have you out here with us, Doug.”
“See you later, General, Wilcox out.”
Mercer walked over, and handed Jake a mug, as he sat down next to him with his own. “Nice to have a guy like Colonel Wilcox on this side of the Gate. Don’t think I don’t know why you have him there either.”
“I trust Anton, and his actions helped us recruit our Alien landing force. I would be just as confident having the Gallant at the Gate,” Jake said, sipping his tea.
“You can try spinning that stuff on Jas or Sara, but don’t waste your time with it on me, partner,” Mercer retorted. “Colonel Stavros was under direct orders to obliterate any ship coming through the Gate. If they had been able to fire off a few bursts, they could have blown the Gallant’s fire control systems, leaving them helpless. We were testing the systems on the other side. He was to take no chances. You should have busted him down to Lieutenant for a bone head play like that.”
“Anton’s a good commander, Charlie,” Jake said quietly. “I talked to him in private. No one feels worse about it than he does. After reading our reports, he knew exactly what could have happened. Luckily, I found out a couple of things, without paying too high a price. One, Stavros acts a little too much on instinct in situations where he should follow orders without question. Two, Sara knew he screwed up the moment he did it. She would have hit the Aliens with everything she had when they came through. It worked out in the end, and did you see Doug’s face when he heard what I had planned?”
Mercer nodded, laughing and pointing his finger at Jake. “He was about to tell you what an idiot he thought you were.”
“He sure was,” Jake smiled. “He may be right too.”
“Hey, this is not the same as sitting on this side of the Gate with untested equipment, and taking chances with thousands of lives. I’m with you on this. Nick has us outfitted so we can do pretty much anything we want to do. Like you said, anything goes wrong, and we’ll pulverize the whole bunch. We’ll just go on like we planned at first, and Drop Ship down for our hostages.”
“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that, Charlie.”
“Uh oh.”
“I think you and I will take some of the boys down, and protect our people, while Binky takes care of business with the ruling enclave,” Jake outlined. “No use in putting all our bets on one horse.”
Mercer nodded. “And no use in worrying Binky’s little head about it either, right?”
“Exactly,” Jake acknowledged. “Jas and Sara can look out for Alien defenses, both in orbit and on the ground, with the other Drop Ships and Command Wings. You, Tim, and I can fly on over to the prisoners’ compound. We’ll hedge our bets with Alpha Drop Ship and a company of Marines. You haven’t jumped on me about my Earth colloquialisms, Charlie. What’s wrong, you give up?”
“I’m ignoring you,” Mercer replied, with a dismissing wave of his hand. “Sara said that would be more practical with a wussy boy like you.”
“She did not.”
“Maybe not in those exact words, but close enough,” Mercerinsisted.
“I’ll have you both busted for insubordination.”
“We’ll just tell your wife on you,” Mercer replied. “She’ll set you straight. We’ll rat you out so fast it’ll make your head spin.”
“That’s cold, Charlie,” Jake said, shaking his head sadly. “I thought you and I were like brothers.”
“I’m more like your brother-in-law,” Charlie instructed.
Jake walked up the boarding hatch of the Drop Ship loaded with five hundred Aliens, armed with pulse weapons, without an escort. Binky, in full battle gear, met him just inside the hatch. The Alien rebel force sat strapped into their Drop Ship seats, quietly checking over their gear. Jake took the Alien Commander’s proffered hand in his own.
“You did not have to come here, General,” Binky said, “but I am honored you did.”
“I just wanted to make sure your communications setup here in the loading bay was sufficient, and see if you had any questions before we go through the Gate,” Jake replied.
“I have tested them out with Colonel Peters, on the Bridge of the Intrepid,” Binky confirmed. “All is in readiness. Once you have disabled the ships on the other side of the Gate, I will broadcast to them your message to surrender or be destroyed. They will be told to stand down, as any movement will lead to instant death. Your weapons officer, Lieutenant Dougherty, has the precise layout of both classes of our warships. He knows exactly how to disable both weapons and propulsion systems.”
“Good,” Jake nodded. “Are you sure the plan you have for blocking any signals back to the home world will work?”
“I do not believe I have overlooked anything,” Binky replied, “but I cannot say for certain they have not changed the frequency of their communications. If you destroy their communications, I will be unable to enlist their help to stay quiet during our planned mission. They would warn the home world, just by their silence, and other ships would be sent to the Gate.”
“You realize why you have been loaded in here, and why the hatch will be closed and locked by the Drop Ship pilot?”
“Yes, General,” Binky answered. “We will be killed if my plans fall through.”
“No, Bink,” Jake shook his head. “You all will be killed if you try to interfere. We may not be able to talk the reception committee, on the other side of the Gate, into going along with us quietly, and they may have something rigged we don�
��t know about. If so, no chances will be taken by my Commanders. If your comrades get excited, your Drop Ship pilot is under my direct orders to fly you on out of here, and open the hatch in space. The inside of the loading bay here has been shielded. You cannot get into the turret section or the cockpit area. My people know their jobs, and will carry out your plan to the letter, or they will execute you all. The choice will be yours.”
“You are a brave man to come in here,” the Alien observed. “We could take you hostage, or kill you.”
Jake grinned menacingly. “My weapons officer has those pulse beam weapons rigged to blow if pointed at a human. As to taking me hostage, anytime, anywhere you feel lucky Bink. You would find out quickly I did not come to this juncture in the road without skills. You gave me your word, and I accepted it; but know this, you lay a hand on me, and I’ll carve you up so fast in this bay, your soldiers will think you were dropped in a meat grinder.”
“I suspected as much, General,” the Alien replied, his face contorting into their grotesque facsimile of a human smile. “It explains why no one seemed concerned after we were armed.”
“You have kept your word, or all of you would have already died,” Jake told him. “If even one weapon had been pointed at a human, with the subsequent result, all of you would have been killed instantly. I ain’t playing games with you, Bink. I am just as deadly serious about this operation as you are. Any questions?”
“No, General. I hope this works out, so we may be friends some time in the future.”
“I do too, Bink. Good luck.” Jake turned, and walked back out of the Drop Ship.
Just out of sight of the Drop Ship bay, Mercer and Dougherty waited with particle beam rifles at the ready. Jake cleared the hatch, and it closed behind him, as he gave orders to the pilot. Jake joined his two friends, who were shouldering their weapons. Mercer shook his head in exasperation, and sighed hugely, having listened to the entire exchange between Jake and the Alien they called Binky.
“Tell me again why you couldn’t do that over the intercom,” Mercersaid.
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