Evolution's Essence

by H. Lee Morgan, Jr

  “Right.” She swallowed as attention returned to her. Netul chuckled and shook his head, standing against the River Skipper. “After the first prototype failed catastrophically, my wife and I lobbed ideas back and forth and we realized to ease the strain on the second, inner shell we add a third and a fourth as a last line for safety. Oliver added his most valuable input and created an advanced subspace safety feature. So in event of another collapse of integrity it automatically is sent through subspace for as long as it’ll hold on its way to the center on the nearest galaxy.”

  “Where is the hyperdrive engine?” a scientist asked.

  “This square box here holds the engine aimed downward.” She supplied.

  The scientist scoffed “What trickery is this. A hyperdrive engine no larger than my suitcase is impossible.”

  Jessica looked to Oliver who also ate beside Renee and he helped out by saying “No need to supply dampeners since no one is inside. But the thrust of the thruster is as powerful as my Flare. And it too has a hyperdrive system you’re welcome to look at. It’s six thousand percent more efficient than anything you’ve seen. You can go back to Earth in the Milky Way in about two weeks and use less Booster Oil and energy while you’re at it.” Jaws hit the floor with few exception.

  Jessica resumed the lecture on the Gravity Forge’s principals and the sheathes made for Star-sabers. How color must be in metal because painting on a frictionless surface won’t work.

  By the time he and Renee finished eating breakfast and she took her pill that would feed for weeks Jessica completed her introduction. Oliver glanced at the covered object and said “Coleson, Jessica’s Gravity Forge idea may have only one use, to crush atoms to fuse together, but here is a military application.” A tiny burst blew the cover off. He mentally folded it and tucked it under an arm. “A standard Marine space fighter with my personal hyperdrive system that makes it deep space. In event of retreat, you can leave the fighters behind because they can get home without being put in suspended animation. Cryo.”

  Displayed was a shiny silver jet with standard issue cannons under wings. Four legs held it up as landing gear, but the interconnecting plates gave it a wicked snakeskin pattern. A clear sapphire cockpit lid glimmered as the morning light twinkled off the sheen. The group converged, especially military professionals with a keen eye for quality.

  Renee added. “By the way, Olly’s hyperdrive is the same as what he incorporated in that toy. And it is a whole heap of a lot heavier than it looks. Materials to make it could make thirty fighters. The gravimetric strips must work constantly or it’ll sink quick in gravity. Found that out the hard way.” Oliver and Netul laughed remembering the fiasco on entry when the ship in question tore through the crate it was transported in.

  Grand Admiral Nathan of Earth, the highly decorated military advisor asked “Has it been field tested? Has the weight been compensated for?”

  “Yes. I personally did it.” Oliver nodded. “It consumes ten times the power, but I set up relays to distribute weight with the gravimetric strips. Since most who have the Solarian therapy will become Class Twelve in time, it’ll take a week to fully charge if the power containment field is depleted. I’ve calibrated it to react near identically to the standard issue from holo-vids I’ve watched. You can use the shield systems if you want, but I doubt it’ll be needed unless there is a hull breach. There is minimal chance because you may not see it, but after I moved a few moons on IC-99-VCX I telekinetically threw it literally through an entire moon and as you can see, it came out the other end without a scratch.” The group was stunned again. “If you fight and want to preserve power it makes for an effective battering ram. The dampeners have been modified for collisions at extreme speeds. You could give a Goliath the world’s worst enema and likely feel little more than a shake.” This imagery made the group lighten up and chuckle. “I’ve quadruple checked it meets military specifications and merely incorporated a hyperdrive into the sublight engines for proof of concept. The hull may be paper thin, but it went through a frozen moon with an iron core.”

  “One way to find out about durability. Everyone step back.” The Emperor said and they did as he drew his katana. Both hands gripped the emerald sparkling blade, lifted overhead and he brought it down over the nose with all he could muster. No sparks flew, but metal clanged and the blade rebounded. Emperor Coleson was startled, as were everyone else. “That’s never happened to me before.” Rather than using the natural blade, he infused power till the edge turned blue and he swiped, unleashing a slicing wave that broke apart as soon as it met the fighter. “I want five billion fighters exactly like this.” He wasn’t joking. “Name your price, Mrs. Menann.” He was dead serious. “This tech will finally let us have a fighting chance and minimize loss of life.”

  “The fighter is a gift, Emperor. Have your engineers take a look. I plan to loan my Gravity Forge for a million credits a month though.”

  “Done. What is the turnaround for one Gravity Forge to produce a fighter?”

  “Two days roughly. Each piece is compressed separately and must be done in vacuum mainly for heat dispersal.” She said.

  “Send me the schematics and I’ll pay you your proposed million a month for each loaned forge. You will hold all patients and royalties.”

  “Sir, we’ve yet to have our pilot test it.” The Grand Admiral reminded.

  “This Gravity Forge can be applied to put up an outer hull for our ships, Admiral. I’ve never had anything block my blade. Never. By a defensive standpoint alone we can save shield power and let them hammer us. We can also make blades to shred an enemy. All the mass of sheets of steel thrown like a Frisbee will cut any surface almost as well as my own sword. Even if we can’t create a fighter with a better power to weight ratio, this could save many more lives.” He turned to meet Jessica’s hazel-green eyes. “Mrs. Menann, I take it you also planned to lease us that prototype.”

  “You beat me to the punch.” She smiled.

  “Good, I want to test it as soon as the pilot gives a report. Corporal, you’re up.”

  The Marine saluted and raised the hatch to climb in. He adjusted the seat forward since Oliver and Stone was so much taller. He looked around to say “Near similar configuration I fly with, Sir!”

  “Take her for a spin, Son.”

  The hatch closed, sealed and the man started the near silent engines. Everyone backed away moments before landing gear lifted and slowly put the fighter through its paces. The Admiral tapped his ear. “What is it like, Soldier?” there was a pause. “Good. Push it to the extremes.” A blast of plasma shot from the rear, sending it forward fast. The pilot was certainly one of the best and a challenge burned in Oliver. “Er, Sir, what are you doing?”

  “Going to harass him and start a dog fight. He won’t be able to keep up with my Flare, but it’ll be practical as a test. I’ll send images so you can follow along.” Oliver didn’t wait for permission as he disengaged the ring of Sun Spots and Nova climbed in as always. In moments he overtook the pilot, careful to avoid the fliers circling, to say “Let’s reach space and do a simulation.”

  “What’s the objective, Elder Void?”

  “Try to keep up. I’m going to push your limits so aside from simulated fire you need to take me down and I’m going to do the same.”

  “Roger. I’m on your six.” Together they left the atmosphere. Below, the rest of the Pride surrounded Renee while he was so far away.

  Leaving the atmosphere was a simple matter, but then the full impact of the imperial ship Gaia was revealed. Seemingly taking a slow orbit was the great ship pattered much like the one on the ground, but it had six massive wings with thousands of rotatable cannons to deal damage no matter the angle. It made the Dorgenox seem diminutive. It could hold hundreds of thousands of personnel and their families. Great docking platforms had a thin blue film from photon shields keeping air from being sucked into the airless void of space. All around it was spiraling fighters and cutter class spaceships
forming a perimeter in the event plans go awry and the enemy comes unexpectedly. The only thing is that the great ship wasn’t painted like the miniature version on the ground. It was far too large to coat the wooden ship.

  Outside the perimeter were warships who came to the call he commanded. More were still on the way to fight. These warships were easy to distinguish. No two were alike and were made more robust and tough. Made of metal and belonged to Marines and privateers with jobs more hazardous than most.

  Connected as he was with Nova, after establishing a link he saw through the eyes of the one Renee called Snowball, the biggest female, that Jessica’s tablet threw up a holo-vid and expanded it and everyone who was solely focused on the test.

  “Engaging in Three. Two. One. Start.” Oliver forewarned.

  Owning up to the namesake, the Flare’s engines shot in a circle, creating a disc of brilliant plasma, flipping around and using his thumb to press down on the bright red trigger, firing a simulated cannon blast. Oliver was glad for his technical prowess because although his ship was larger to accommodate Nova’s bulk and have added accommodations, it still handled exactly the same at a price for power he easily could sacrifice. The pilot shot aside, barely missing being hit and proved his skills by returning fire at a difficult angle. The Flare rotated in a loop, outmaneuvering all known ships to humanity, never passing past prototype phase due to pilot sickness because of speed the human mind couldn’t keep up with without disorientation. He slammed a foot on the accelerator petal and came up from behind.

  Targeting systems warned the Marine ace pilot was hit, but suffered no damage though the engines were hit and he pulled on the stick between his legs, the nose thrusters flipped him backwards and the rear ports on top flipped him a hundred and eighty degrees to fire blindly, expecting the golden ship to continue aiming for his sublight engines. Oliver wasn’t there. He was already firing for the cockpit right above, somehow knowing what the Corporal planned. A powerful blue shield covered the cockpit, taking the blow that didn’t happen from large cannons. Changing tactics the Marine hit the accelerator and flew directly in sunlight, trying to blind the pursuer using stellar light, but Oliver beat him to the punch and hit him a dozen more times in different areas by using more powerful engines. Anticipating the Solarian was impossible because he was too damn fast and smart to get caught in a trap. Amazingly though the ship’s hull readings falsely showed mild shocks from each blast, but not a scratch would have been made.

  Twenty minutes passed before the pilot came out from behind the moon saying. “I’m finished testing its limits.”

  Back on the ground thirty minutes later Grand Admiral Nathan waited for the man to exit the cockpit and ordered “Report.”

  The Corporal touched the collar of his flight suit to make the helmet plates retract and show his face. Everyone looked at him to hear his expert opinion. “Sir, had I not tested this personally, I will swear on my own life I could feel no difference in a standard fighter that’s been in use for the past decade. The power consumption is a drawback and so is the clear cockpit lid. The lid is the only exploitable weakness that can be remedied if it too was made like the hull. After we finished simulation fire. As I’m sure you witnessed, when I exited the fighter in space and used Elder Void’s wing to be stable, it withstood a pinpoint cannon blast that would have ripped standard shields apart and shredded the ship thereafter. I recommend this be the new replacement for our men. The significant output needs to be watched closely, but I’ve never felt safer in my whole life except strapped in. Even momentum dampeners were working properly. I didn’t feel any weight shifts.”

  “I want a full report on my desk by this time tomorrow. Dismissed.” The Admiral got a salute and the man made a direct path to the imperial yacht to get started. “Emperor, the only issue I may have is it’s near indestructibility. If a pilot goes rogue or someone steals one and tries duplicating, how can we stop them?”

  “Good question. Well?”

  Oliver hopped out after landing and leaned over on his ship to say “Figure that out yourselves, but remember that the ship isn’t held together by welding or some adhesive. It’s held together by its own pressure of each plate building on each other.”

  To prove it his hair began to float up rather than sway in the heated breeze. It didn’t turn color though. Before their eyes the polished silver fighter exploded into thousands of individual pieces. Only the engine was spared disassembly. Jaws dropped for none had ever seen someone so effortlessly and so fast do the like. And as fast as it was dissembled, it was put back all in under a minute. Good as new. “See? It’s a completed puzzle. Tear it down because blasting will do no good if someone uses it for ill.”

  Amanda Lockwell caught it all on camera and it would later become one of the most viewed clips of all time and become part of telekinetic curriculum.

  “That was pretty interesting, Brother.” Elder Scythe slapped his back, hitting the hidden shield under the cape.

  The Emperor approached Jessica, speaking over his shoulder. “Admiral, put both the fighter and the Gravity Forge in the cargo hold of my ship and let the analysts’ get started… and make sure they first look at the compact hyperdrive’s FTL function. That will be their topmost priority. We need that speed advancement for faster response and Booster Oil efficiency.” There followed a ‘Yes, Sir!’ and movement to pursue the command. “Mrs. Menann, look forward to the credits. Your idea will save our people many lives in deep space and at home.”

  “I already appreciate the advance.” Jessica glowed, already foaming at the mouth after the bargain was struck before Oliver and the test pilot even landed. The Emperor’s aid already allocated a million credits to her account for taking charge of the Forge. The ship being flown around to land in the cruiser/yacht was a gift as promised.

  They shook hands to seal the bargain and future promise.

  “Well now that that is over I can give you all some news.” All eyes were on the leader of a people. “When I returned to my ship I summoned my advisors to explain what occurred yesterday with Archiver Tammat. I expected a fervent denial for change, but aside from minor disagreements on how we’ll deal with our foremost citizens being sacrificed if they come to a similar conclusion we aren’t ready to know certain secrets, the five monarch system, three hundred laws were unanimously deemed an adequate tradeoff for a chance we never were offered before yesterday. It will take some time to iron out the details and how to effectively spin the changes in favor. Likely a year to get it all ironed out. Many won’t like the change, but I must admit that my lawyers have studied the three hundred laws up and down and cannot find many loopholes. The translations you helped us make were invaluable.” This part was to Oliver scratching a furry chin of the male Renee dubbed Flurry. “But we’ve got to come up with a plan of action on the assault. We’ve got ten days to come up with contingencies. Oliver, your tactical mind would greatly be of aid. You seem to be able to predict future outcomes. As was proven in the half hour you two fought recently.”

  “Nope. I’ve got more important matters to deal with. This is your show. If you want to know what I’d do I’d teleport over right now and vaporize the entire dreadnaught. It would be a simple matter for me and I’d be back in a few minutes. Is that what you want?” it was rhetorical and smug.

  Eyes all around narrowed except by Renee and Sparky laughing softly. The Emperor calmly said “Much as I would love to see you in action, sadly I must request you withhold that option unless we get in a dire situation. Since you seem rather preoccupied I’ll let you be dismissed, but later this evening may I request you and I sit together and swap stories over a drink?”

  “Why not. It’ll give me a chance to get to know you.”

  “Then till we meet again.”

  “My love, you forget something.” The Empress tugged his sleeve and made a quick glance.

  He understood and smiled. “What would I do without you?”

  “Crash and burn.” His wife’s ey
es twinkled with mirth and he loudly laughed.

  “Quite right.” He turned. “Renee Void, congratulations, my advisors had no objection to naming you the new Queen of Fire. Oliver, you are now a King as well. Now you can contact me directly if you need anything, bypassing all usual channels. And the city of Fire will be yours to do with as you please.”

  “Hot damn! I’m a queen now. Better make a crown.” She closed her eyes and her armor formed a gold circlet with seemingly rubies set inside. “How do I look?”

  “Great, you just had to give my niece a boost to her already overinflated ego.” Jessica threw her hands up.

  “Screw you, Slut.”

  “Bite me, Queen Bitch.” Her aunt fired back.

  Renee lifted her pert node. “It’s Royal Bitch now thank you very much!”

  “Oh, I love the banter. Husband, you go on ahead, I’m going to get to know my new social peer for awhile.” The Empress kissed his cheek as he chuckled. A contingent remained for her protection, but soon all the other Elder Hunters and the Emperor left to fly back up to the main ship.

  Days passed. Oliver completed the small sphere and left with Netul who commissioned his people to design a replica of the enemy teleportation ability. They teleported to Netul’s world called Jaffablin for the test, not to sightsee the reconstruction efforts after the Keptl invasion. As expected and calculated, the field generated from the device prevented any openings though hyperspace. And the generated field lasted fifty hours without fluctuation and as soon as it began losing power it exploded in all directions. Never to be put whole again. Renee enjoyed time with Callier and they let their children sleep in the same crib while they went for a walk and catch up. Afterwards though they returned to Zerika to enjoy the Emperor and Empress and sit through hours of interviews when Amanda Lockwell got used to the fact they were relatively normal people who were extraordinary, dangerous and easy to befriend.