“My Lady,” Tumaleka backed away from the blade, and then bowed to her, “You are my Empress. You can trust where my loyalties lie.”
Danielle withdrew her blade and held it up to the light and examined the edge of the blade, “Very good. Very good indeed. I would hate dulling my new blade by cutting through your neck bones.”
“My Lady,” Tumaleka said, wiping her brow, “you should come to the Council chambers. Meet the Council face to face. Show that you hold no fear of them.”
“I must accompany Darnash on the hunt for the beast of the field.”
“Darnash can capture the beast. It will go a long way for you to travel to the House of Delema.”
“Perhaps I shall. However, it must be after the hunt. I need to replenish my Blood Spirit soon.”
“Very well, my Lady. I shall return to the Council on Delema and let them know you will hold audience in their court soon.”
CHAPTER FOUR
________________________
Earth
John F. Kennedy Space Center
________________________
Jed smiled as Race rounded the corner to the shuttle, “Lite us up,” he instructed the pilot, and then turned back to the approaching Race, “Boy! For someone whose name means speed, you sure took your time in getting back!”
“Sorry, Admiral,” Race answered with a knapsack slung over his shoulder, “Had to take all the necessities, you know.”
“Well, time’s a ticking. We gotta get up to the Rock,” Jed said, glancing at his watch. “What’s in the bag, anyway?”
“You know...the usual items; toothbrush, toothpaste, my special shampoo and conditioner...”
“Oh please, mister ‘I’m so vain’.”
“Very funny, Admiral,” Race stepped up to the wing and entered the sleek ship.
The door to the ACE ship, or Area Combat Enhancement ship, lowered down and sealed with a whoosh of air.
Race stowed his knapsack in a locker over their heads before strapping in next to Jed and behind the two pilots.
The whine of the engines increased as the pilots brought the ship’s systems online.
Captain Rene Simon turned in her seat, and addressed Jed, “Ship’s ready, Admiral; just waiting for your orders, Sir.”
“Very well, Captain. Take us up to the Rock, on the double.”
“Yes, Sir, on the double!”
Race grabbed Jed’s arm, “Why’d you have to say it that way, huh Jed?”
Jed smiled and then leaned over to Race to whisper in his ear, “That’s because I enjoy seeing you squirm.”
Captain Simon pulled the control stick as she increased the ship’s thruster output. “Whooo hooooooo!” she shouted as the ship leapt into the air.
Race tightened his stomach and grimaced at the G-forces squishing him into his seat, “Oh, I hate this part...”
“Relax, Colonel,” Rene shouted to the rear, “I’ll go easy on ya, Sir.”
“Gee, thanks...”
“No problem Sir,” Rene grinned and then slammed her controls forward, shooting the ship high into the atmosphere.
“You call that easy?” Race exclaimed, fighting to hold back his stomach contents from emptying in the cabin.
Rene giggled at the controls, “Do you want a more aggressive acceleration, Sir?”
“No, thank you. We’re just fine the way we are now.”
“Admiral, orbital insertion in one minute,” Rene began “You’ll want to look out the port window. I’ll be making my final approach with the Orbital One space dock from the starboard side.”
“Thank you, Captain. I for one can’t wait to see what they’ve done with the ship.”
“Have you seen Orbital One, Sir?”
“No, I’ve not seen one yet, Captain,” Jed shouted over the whine of the ships engines.
“Okay, Admiral. I’ll contact Orbital One and request a fly by.”
“Very good, Captain. I’d very much appreciate that.”
“Yes, Sir, only happy to oblige,” Rene answered as she made adjustments to her flight controls, “I’m beginning my orbit insertion sequence now. We should be in visual range in less than five minutes.”
Jed nodded his satisfaction and turned to a very distressed Race, “You still sick, Colonel?”
“It’ll pass, soon as we’re in zero gravity,” Race said, then sighed as the G-Forces minimized on his body. “Ahhh, that’s better.”
“You gonna live?”
“Always the comedian...yes, I’ll live. Thank you very much.”
Race leaned closer to Jed, “The central superstructure was assembled in less than four days. Operations began two days after that.”
“Pretty amazing, Race. Is this technology from the Eridonians?”
“Actually, your friend Skati had the designs.”
“So that’s where she’s been keeping herself.”
“We drew up the plans, and the Eridonians transmitted the required skills to the men doing the work. We’ve come a very long way since we made first contact.”
“It appears so. I’m impressed.”
“Thank you, Sir.”
“So, how is it that I’m the Admiral and am only now seeing these? My friends got to see it first?”
“Sorry, Sir. I was under strict orders from my command. Since you’re the Admiral in charge of the fleet, and not orbital structures, they didn’t want you given clearance until now.”
Jed nodded, “No worries, Colonel. I understand the convoluted logic of military protocols. The fewer people that know about a certain thing, the easier it is to keep secret.”
“That’s it Admiral.”
“Like I said, you don’t have to worry...”
“No, I mean, that’s it!” Race pointed out his port window.
Jed unbuckled his harness and floated over to the viewport. The orbital station hung majestically in space.
Race pressed his lips together and let out a long whistle, “Man, that’s some structure!”
“Sure is!” Jed smiled. “You say there are two of these out here?”
“Yep, One is here. Orbital Two is on the opposite side of the planet. The Jannali is currently being refitted there.”
The two admired the massive structure. It had four arms stretching out from the hub-like superstructure. Two of the arms were completed. They could see the Rocinante moored to one of them. Two additional arms were still under construction.
“So, Admiral,” Race explained, “Once the last two arms are completed, we can dock eight ships at each station. Right now, we can only accommodate two.”
“That’s sixteen ships in total? We don’t have that many ships yet. When do you expect we’ll be able to have these stations ready?”
“That’s just it, Sir. Once the arms are completed, we can begin construction on the ships right in space.”
“Fascinating.”
“Yes, Sir, and we expect that we’ll have the arms completed in another week.”
“How long will it take to build a ship?”
“Six weeks, tops, Sir. We can begin churning out sixteen ships every six weeks.”
“That’s fantastic.”
“Yes, Sir. Building in space has limitations, but it sure has its advantages as well.”
“Sounds like it, Colonel.”
“Orbital Three will begin construction in two weeks. That station will specialize in refits and repairs.”
“You sure about this timeframe, Colonel? Sixteen ships every six weeks works out to almost a hundred and fifty a year.”
“Yes, Sir. That’s what we’re forecasting. Fifty six weeks and two days is the one hundred and fifty mark.”
“Seems pretty ambitious to me.”
“If all goes well, the first year will be the benchmark. The long range plans are to build two more hubs, doubling our yearly production.”
“You’re saying by this time next year, our production will be just about three hundred a year?”
“Yes, Sir
.”
“Well, we are vulnerable to attacks by the Warlords during that construction time,” Jed once again nodded as he returned to his seat for landing.
“Didn’t Malcom say that’s why we were taking him back to Epsilon, to show us something great?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact he did...”
“...But he never got around to telling us what it was.”
“I have a feeling, we’re going to be wowed,” Jed smiled.
“I sure hope so,” Race smiled, “We sure could use all the help we can get.”
“In defending us from these Warlords, yes.”
“Defending?” Race exclaimed, “Defending is good, but we need to be on the offensive. We’re going back for Danielle, right?”
“Race, I know you blame yourself for leaving her behind. The sooner you come to grips that she’s lost to them, the better off we’ll be.”
“No way, Sir. She’s not lost...and it’s my fault for taking her there in the first place. We need to see if we can get her back.”
Rene turned from her pilot seat, “I’m on final approach to the Rock, Sir.”
Jed looked into Race’s eyes, “I’m sorry, Race. You have to understand, I have to take my orders from the President. He’s the one that has final say on any missions.”
“Have you asked?”
“We have talked about it. He’s not totally convinced that it’s worth the military’s resources to save one life.”
“If nothing else, Sir. We should go back and make contact with Darnash. Any intelligence we can get from him may give us a military advantage.”
“Don’t forget, we’re already getting plenty of intelligence from Thelix.”
“He’s coming with us?”
“Yes. Thelix is already onboard and working with my advisers. He’s providing us with good information.”
“Can he be trusted?”
“According to Doctor Lambert, and Malcom, both say he no longer has the blood lust.”
Rene gracefully flew the ACE into the forward Captain’s landing bay, located just behind the CSC of the Rocinante.
“That is just plain weird!” Race gasped as they crossed into the artificial gravity of the Rocinante.
The ship settled down on its landing skids. Rene turned to Race, “What’s wrong, Colonel?” Rene asked, shutting down the engines, “Not used to this yet?”
“No, not at all. I mean, space is supposed to be weightless.”
“Again, all this is thanks to our Eridonian friends,” Jed added. He unbuckled his harness and moved to the hatch, “We pressurized yet, Captain?”
“Another few seconds, Sir,” Rene answered. She unsealed the hatch, “We are now, Sir.”
The hissing of pressures equalizing confirmed her statement.
The door of the ACE ship opened upward. Jed stepped out on the wing. Chief Kelly greeted them with a full salute, “Admiral on deck! Welcome aboard, Sir.”
Jed returned the salute, “At ease, Chief. Good to see you,” Jed said, offering his hand.
Chief Kelly firmly shook his hand, “The pleasure is all mine, Sir.”
Jed looked around the private landing bay, and then back to Chief Kelly, “I like what you’ve done with the place, Chief.”
“Thank you, Sir,” Chief Kelly smiled, “We decided the Admiral needed his own private launch bay.”
“Wonderful, Chief. How’s the rest of the ship?”
“All upgrades have been made, all fighters and ACE ships have been recalled from patrol. We’ve finished securing the launch bays, and we’re ready to disembark.”
“Excellent, Chief,” Jed smiled, leaned closer to Kelly and whispered, “Which way’s the CSC?”
“Right this way, Sir,” Kelly motioned with his hand, “We put the new landing bay on the same deck as the CSC. It makes for quick access and your quarters are right on the port side of the bay.”
Jed turned to Rene as she and her copilot exited the ship, “Thanks for the lift, Captain.”
“Anytime, Sir,” Rene saluted, “Now, if you will excuse me? I have to report to Major Phillips.”
“You’re dismissed, Captain...and tell the Major we’ll have a briefing as soon as we’re underway.”
“Yes, Sir,” Rene again saluted. The two pilots jumped down to the deck and took off toward the Major’s office.
Jed and Race followed Chief Kelly to the CSC. The marine guard opened the door for them.
Commander Jamison stood down in the CSC monitoring the crew. As the group entered, he gave a salute and announced, “Admiral on DECK!”
The marine guard closed the hatch. Jed stepped down into the CSC and joined his XO. He scanned each station of the command support center. His eyes made contact with a large Antarian sitting in the pit.
“Thelix! So glad you’re on our team.”
Thelix saluted Admiral Fitz, “I am glad to be with your people as well,” he growled through his snarled teeth. “Your crew has made me feel very welcome. They have even accommodated my height by fabricating a special seat.”
“Sir,” Jamison pointed a finger in Thelix’s direction, “He’s been very helpful, Sir; a real asset for our crew.”
Thelix bowed to the Commander, “Now that my blood sings no more, I can see that war is not the exclusive and inevitable path to honor.”
Malcom came from behind the giant Antarian, “Jedidiah, we should depart for Epsilon as quickly as we can. I must scan Race’s mind to see what happened to him on Serintin.”
“All stations, report!” Jameson barked.
“All systems are online. We’re ready to undock,” Lieutenant Henderson, the comm officer acknowledged.
“Lieutenant Payne, I trust you know how to steer this ship?” Jed nodded to the helm.
“Yes, Sir, Admiral,” Erica smiled.
“Confirm all hatches are sealed. Retract the gangways.”
“Aye, Sir,” tactical officer Collins reported, “Confirmed. All hatches sealed. Gangways retracted. All umbilical’s disconnected. We’re on internal power now.”
Jameson activated his standing restraint system, “Release all moorings,” he ordered.
“Aye aye, Sir. All moorings released.”
“Helm, take us out,” Jed commanded.
Erica engaged the Rock’s thrusters. The sleek battleship inched away from her mooring to Orbital One. The helmswoman grinned as the ship turned, her bow heading for the end of the mooring arm.
“Uh, helm…”
“Don’t worry, Sir. I’ve never hit it yet.”
“Yet?” Jed asked with raised eyebrows.
“Well, in simulation.”
“Wonderful,” Race gulped.
Jed aimed a finger at Erica, “You better not scratch my ship...”
Erica grinned as the Rock pulled away from the station. As she engaged forward thrusters, she sat back, “Taking her away from the station.”
“Set course for Epsilon,” Jed laughed, and then turned to Malcom, “How long of a trip is this without the conduit?”
“With our propulsion enhancements, we can make Epsilon in three days.”
“All jumps are programmed,” Lieutenant Foster, the NAV officer reported, “We can begin the first jump prep when we’re thirty minutes out from the station.”
“Good work people. Engage.”
CHAPTER FIVE
________________________
Serintin
Empress’ Palace - Daybreak
________________________
Darnash, summoned by Danielle, entered the Empress’ chambers, “Darnash! I’m glad you’re here.”
“Yes, my Lady,” Darnash bowed before the Empress, “We have the hunting party assembled. We are ready to proceed.”
“We have an appropriate cage prepared?”
“Yes, my Lady. The appropriate size for one adolescent Boreshog.”
“An adolescent. Not a baby.”
“Yes, my Lady. The strongest blood spirit exists in the adolescent beast.
”
“The youngest of the adolescents is the strongest in the blood spirit.”
“Yes, ma’am. After they mature, the blood spirit diminishes. The blood lust is still present, but not as strong as in the adolescents.”
“It was enough for me to use.”
“Enough then, yes, my Lady.”
“How large should the adolescent be, Darnash?”
“The adolescent’s height can range from six to eight feet, my Lady.”
“So, that’s comparable to an Antarian adult?”
“A small to a mid-sized Antarian, yes, my Lady.”
“Excellent! What about flight?”
“Adolescent Boreshog do not have fully developed wings, my Lady. These only develop from one to two years after maturity.”
“Then it will be easier to capture.”
“Not necessarily. It will be tricky, my Lady. The mother beast will be close at hand to protect its offspring.”
“Then you must be strong and skillful, my first in command.”
“I will prevail, my Lady. The prophecies foretell this.”
“Nevertheless, Darnash,” Danielle smiled, taking her dagger from its sheath, “you must partake of my blood spirit.”
She held the dagger to the palm of her hand, but before she could score her hand, Darnash cupped his large hairy hands over hers, holding them still, “No, my Lady. You must not...”
“Darnash? Are you refusing to partake of my blood?” She frowned, “You need to renew your blood spirit before the hunt. I require this. You need to share in my strength.”
“I do not refuse, my Lady. However, you must conserve your blood spirit on this hunt for yourself. You are already weakening. You must not risk losing the blood lust. We must wait for the beast to be captured and then renew your blood spirit. Then we shall partake of its blood song together.”
“If I didn’t know better, my trusted first, I may think that you are trying to get out of renewing your blood spirit…”
“Not so, my Lady,” Darnash bowed low before Danielle, “I only have your wellbeing in mind. If you lose your control over the elite guard, they will turn on you, on us, and release Dumakas. They will execute us together.”
Warlords Saga Page 29
