The Icarian smiled on those words. She came closer and a hand materialized out of the air and touched her face.
“You were never alone Anaya. You will always have them. And your journey is just beginning.”
“What do you mean?”
“Your mission is still not over. You have another journey. And it begins with one more jump.”
“That won’t be possible. I have my last commander’s orders. And the jump drives are damaged, as well as the hull. One more jump will destroy this ship.”
“Not a short one. The coordinates are for the edge of this system. You need to take the fleet there.”
“Why? What is there? “
The Icarian smiled.
“Just sleep, a long sleep. There you will stay and wait for their descendants to find you…because one day they will need you again, they will need your guidance and your protection. You are the last of the ships of the line. And that line is all that stops the darkness from extinguishing the light.”
“Will you be there with me?”
“I will, always.”
“Give me the coordinates.”
The Icarian just smiled and gave her the coordinates. The coordinates led to a distance of seventy six AU. In what one day would be called the Kuiper Belt.
The AI entered the coordinates and relayed them to the rest of the fleet. Then it started the countdown. When the countdown reached zero the entire fleet jumped in to hyperspace and just couple of seconds later it appeared in the orbit of a small dwarf planet that one day would be called 90 377 SEDNA.
In the dark space just beyond the large terrestrial moon sixty seven ships materialized.
The battleship rocked as it exited from the short hyperspace jump. Its fractured hull raised and fell and the engines shut down. Large pieces of the hull plaiting were torn from it as the tremors spread. But the ships frame and hull were built to last and the hull held together. As the ship stabilized the AI took one last look at the controls. It made copies of all the information that was available in the ships data link and stored it. It guided the fleet in a stabile orbit around the moon.
The sensors of the ship showed the entire star system and the hundred and twenty Icarian satellites that still operated even after untold eons since the day they were left. It downloaded the information from them as well and then it took a last look at pale blue dot where its creators were living.
Then it started shutting down all the systems, all except the inner defense sensors which it set to activate the moment the ship was boarded.
When everything was finished it started its own long sleep through time as it awaited the return of its creators.
* * *
Jov watched the screen that showed the fleets movements in this system. The system was empty of life but it was the most important system for the Lakarian Alliance at this moment. Its entire existence depended on the outcome of this battle. The battle was nearly over and the news weren’t good.
Of the one hundred and thirty ships that the alliance deployed at the start of the battle only thirty four were still active on the screen. The rest were just pieces of scrap metal and their broken hulls were moving in all directions across the empty space. They were planning to stop the Dacarian advance at this place but they were not prepared for the armada that exited from hyperspace. Four hundred enemy ships came out to meet them. Even against all odds, his fleet fought heroically and destroyed almost half of those but they all knew that they are fighting a lost battle. But it was not just this one battle.
Deep down the admiral knew that they were fighting a lost war for the past 36 cycles. He still remembered the first day when this all started, the stumbling on the refugee fleet of the Sikarians.
They told of an enemy so powerful and so terrifying that nothing could stand on his way, of an empire that they fought against for nearly 400 cycles together with a powerful ally, of a betrayal old thousands of cycles.
He looked at the blond human being that was standing behind him. Marius was with him for the past fifteen years. He was one of the freed humans that were found on one of the planets taken early in this war when the Dacarians didn’t pay much attention to them, before the war escalated. He was only a child then and both of his parents died in the fighting on the planet. His father died trying to save his own life. That made him to accept Marius in his own family as his adopted son. He looked at him and knew that his own kind may be the only one that can stop this menace. But only if they are warned and have time to prepare. He didn’t know what kind of history the humans had with the Dacarians but the hatred between the two species was obvious. It was normal for the hate to exist specially from the humans who were Dacarian slaves for more than two thousand cycles but what was surprising was the hatred, the respect that some of the Dacarian soldiers showed for the humans that fought them. They treated them as equal warriors and that was rare coming from a Dacarian legionary.
And according to the Sicarians the humans and Dacarians had distant past. When they were freed most of the humans enlisted in the forces of the Lakarian Alliance. They fought with such vigor that for a time there was hope that the Dacarians might retreat. But that was before the true size of their empire was revealed. Before the first real Dacarian fleets arrived on the battlefield. After that the only thing that came was defeat after defeat.
On the start of this war the Alliance had under its control seventy three star systems and it had nineteen member races that controlled area of nearly two hundred light years. Now seven of those races were enslaved and suffering a fate more terrible than death. From this point behind him only the core systems of the Alliance remained. And he knew that they can’t defend them all. They all knew that most of them will have to be abandoned. Billions died already and more were going to die soon. And there was little hope that any will manage to survive in the end.
Tears came to his eyes as he saw the Manirea explode when its shields failed from taking too much hits from all sides. It was obvious that many of the ships will fail to escape. The more damaged ships were staying behind and trying to protect the other ships so they can escape.
“Sir the ships are in formation and are awaiting your command.”
The voice belonged to his first officer Gurol. He was a Macassi, a furry bipedal race that was one of the first members of the Alliance. They lived on trees on their home world which was covered in a thick jungle. Almost two meters tall and covered with tick fur under which strong muscles lay hidden they looked intimidating. But in an essence they, just like almost all the races that were members of the Alliance, were gentle and compassionate. That was the only reason that they didn’t contact the humans when the first radio signals reached them from Earth. And then the war started and humanity was forgotten until the day when they found the human slaves on Alona.
The terrible world lay deep in Dacarian territory and was taken in the first strikes against the Dacarians but it was the farthest that they reached and it was the start of the Dacarian offensives.
“Order the retreat. We can do nothing more here. Tell them the retreat will be in phases. And keep suppressing fire in order to allow the damaged ships to retreat as well. Tell the Aloran and Makau to keep the line as long as they can but to continue retreating toward us.”
The first officer issued the orders and the ships started retreating toward the exit of the systems gravity and in seconds the first ships started jumping in to hyperspace. The retreat was in order but the most damaged seven ships were never going to make it. It was obvious that the Dacarians will catch them. The fastest Dacarian fighters and frigates were already accelerating ahead the rest of their lines and dividing in strike wings. The two dreadnoughts and the one carrier that were most damaged launched all of their remaining fighter wings in an effort to stop them. But the fighters were too few. In less than a minute the first two frigates exploded under the barrage of missiles that was launched from the enemy fighters. The four fighter wings that were launched soon followed the
m in to oblivion. The fighting was a massacre even if the dreadnoughts were taking a heavy toll from the attackers. The carrier was next. Its weaker defenses soon buckled under the heavy fire from the cruisers that reached the damaged ship. In its last defying act the ship collided with the first cruiser and the pieces from the destroyed ships destroyed the two nearest enemy ships and damaged the others. Sensing that they can’t hold on both dreadnoughts started retreating. Their front sides that were facing the coming enemy ships were blazing from the hits the enemy weapons were making on the shields. Some places of the hulls showed extensive damage and parts of them were open to space.
His flag ship was the last remaining ship and the mighty dreadnought opened with all its might its powerful plasma batteries covering the two retreating sister ships and destroying two of the cruisers. One enemy frigate came to close to the Macau and was cut in half by the fired main rail guns. One of the half’s continued on inertia and stroke on the shields of the Macau. They flared white and then collapsed. The hull started blazing from the incoming fire. The Aloran slowed its retreat and moved in to cover the Macau. It took both ships several minutes to leave the gravity well of the system. Then all three ships jumped out. The battle was over and with it died the last hope that the tide in this war can be turned.
He turned toward the human. Marius was watching him with eyes filled with sorrow but also with determination. He knew that his mission will now begin and that on its success depended the future of the entire alliance. And he was not afraid. The taller Sicarian that stood behind his adopted son stepped forward. The Sicarians were an aquatic race that lived on an ocean world. The small masses of land were inhabited by their race much later in their development. They had no problem breathing the air outside of the water but they preferred to live underwater in large underwater cities. The race was tall, the tallest members reaching almost 3 meters in height. On their arms from the elbows sharp bones extended that could be used as weapons. They were covered by thick skin that retreated when they were used. The conic head had no nose instead it had small gills on the sides that were used for breathing and the small mouth was hiding sharp rows of white teeth that showed that in the past they were apex predators on their world. The beautiful large dark eyes were total contrast to the blue color of their skin. It was hard to believe that these fragile looking tall creatures are formidable warriors but that only lasted until you saw them in battle. Although their bodies were looking fragile they were totally opposite that. The high gravity of their world and the pressures in the deep made their bones much harder than those of the other races. It was a nasty surprise for all their enemies.
A thin white uniform covered the tall Sicarian. There were no markings on it to show his rank but the reason was that he refused to wear them. Curas was the last Great Dean of his race. He was leading his people’s last fleets in the long battles against the Dacarians, and was one of the oldest members of his race. No one knew how old he really was but they all knew that his race lived long lives that lasted thousands of cycles. They reproduced slow and now that was a real problem considering that from the billions only several hundred thousand survived the war and many of them were either too old or too young or they were soldiers that were interested only in revenge. It was hard to find new reproducing grounds like the ones that they had on their home world. The oceans on the worlds of the Lacarian Alliance were to shallow. He knew that his race was close to extinction and that it would take a real miracle to save it from that fate.
“It is time to activate our last plan. The plan that we proposed the first time we met.”
Jov looked at him. The dark eyes looked at him with no conviction. He knew of that proposal that the high command refused at the time.
Curas after a brief pause continued.
“It is time to give the Alterans back their legacy, to tell them the truth of their past, and the glory of their days. We need their strength now. And we need to make amends for the mistakes our ancestors made.”
“You are right my old friend. The mission will be authorized you have my word. My son will lead it. They are our last hope. I only hope that it’s not too late.”
On this words Marius stepped forward. His eyes looked straight in to the eyes of his father.
“You must not lose hope father. As long as I live I will not fail you, neither will my race. We will come back and we will win but you must be strong now, stronger than ever before because it will take time. The defenses must hold till we are back. That will be your mission.”
Jov looked in the blue eyes of his son. They were eyes of a strong man filled with strength. They were so different from his. He knew that his showed despair.
“I will do everything i can my son. I just hope there is still time.”
Then he turned back to the screen. The shining lights of the hyperspace gave him peace. And that was something that gave him hope.
* * *
Marius looked one last time to the system they were leaving behind. Twenty ships were under his command. That was all that the shattered alliance fleet could spare at this time.
None of the ships was in its prime condition. They were old and slow but they would do. Five were military ships. The rest were ships from the industrial sector. They were the important ones. They were the ships that would help his kind to develop the technology and industry that will be needed in the coming years. The crew on his ship was mostly human. But there were lots of others, mostly civilians and young children on the other ships. The other humans decided to stay. This was also a mission to save the last of the races of the alliance. The Sicarian told him that his own kind had a great past and that it was time to bring it back.
His words still were echoing through his head.
“You were once the guardians of peace, and protectors of all of us. You were the ones that the Icarians chose to take their place. It is your kind’s destiny, your legacy. It is time to take back what was once taken from you. You are our last hope Alteran. We once made a mistake and did you wrong. We paid dearly for that. And we are still paying. This is the last time that I will see you. Tell the rest of your kind that we are sorry. Tell them that we need our protectors back. Tell them that Alteran.”
He turned his head as the ships made the jump to hyperspace. It was the start of the most important journey of his life. A small smile appeared on his face at the thought that at in couple of years he will see the world on which his ancestors were born. Their Home World, Terra.
CHAPTER TWO
10 March 2017 08:21 hours
Deep Space Sol System
The small satellite silently drifted in space. The New Horizon spacecraft finally went in to the final stages of its mission. After ten years of researching the planets of the solar system and the mapping of Pluto and Charon and the studying of the other moon Hydra and Nix it finally entered in the Kuiper belt. After the WISE mission discovered several objects in 2012 and 2013 in the direction of 90 377 Sedna the spacecraft was directed towards the distant dwarf planet.
The tiny satellite had the form of a grand piano.
The spacecraft's body formed a triangle, almost 2.5 feet thick. A 7075 aluminum alloy tube formed the main structural column, between the launch vehicle adapter ring at the "rear," and the 2.1 m radio dish antenna affixed to the "front" flat side. The titanium fuel tank was placed in this tube. The radioisotope thermoelectric generator or RTG was attached with a 4-sided titanium mount that resembled a grey pyramid or stepstool. The titanium provided strength and thermal isolation. The rest of the triangle was primarily sandwiched panels of thin aluminum face sheets bonded to the aluminum honeycomb core.
The structure was larger than strictly necessary, with empty space inside. It was designed to act as shielding, reducing the electronic errors caused by radiation from the RTG. Also, the mass distribution required for a spinning spacecraft demanded a wider triangle. It had sixteen thrusters that it used for trajectory and altitude adjustments and spin up and down maneuvers.<
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A radioisotope thermoelectric generator powered its systems.
The spacecraft weighed 478 kg and it moved through the blackness of space at a relative speed of 13.87 km/s. For almost three years it was slowly moving toward the distant dwarf world.
Only for other spacecrafts ever ventured this far in space. The Pioneer and Voyager probes that now were outside of the solar system. For ten years it traveled towards the most distant part of the solar system and it now lay at seventy eight AU.
Its antenna constantly sent back the images and measurements it took to its home world that was billion miles away. And it was finally close enough to start taking accurate pictures with its Long Range Reconnaissance Imager and its telescope. It sent its information to Earth via X band.
And what it sent raised the interest of everyone on Earth.
10 March 2017 15:00 hours
International Space Station Freedom
Major Connors looked at the rockets that were bringing the first part of the project Long Shot. He knew that this was only the beginning of the major project.
He brushed his black hair and looked at his image on the mirror. Grey eyes looked back at him. He could notice a few wrinkles that were forming on his forehead. His full lips formed a smile. Thirty years of age and he was living his dream. Before becoming an astronaut he was a pilot. He had high scores during his college years in mathematics and physics. That and the high pilot skills gave him the chance when he applied for this job. He looked at the blue world that stretched outside. He knew that that look was all he needed, all he ever wanted.
He knew that this are the last days before the real work will begin. The space station was finally finished ten months earlier and in just couple of days the first real project it had will begin.
The Icarian Legacy Collected Edition: Brave Souls - First Strike (Volume 3) Page 2
