AmerIndian 2192

by J. Scott Garibay

CHAPTER 26

  The chunnel was going up fast and would be completed three hours ahead of schedule. Wovoka earned many new friends and the tribes were quickly warming to him. It was necessary. Soon the UDA fleets would arrive at Naanac. Wovoka took a break and called together his pack on lodge ship Iron Bow.

  It was decided that Wolf Plume would continue to serve Wovoka, with expanded duties.

  Keokuk told the group about Elder John's offer and his decision to accept. Wovoka then appointed Cavaho as his personal bodyguard. They all agreed that Slow Turtle would settle. They would honor his death in the old ways on Windhome.

  Wovoka reported to the battle circle. All of the Elders were there save Kugan who was busy arranging the transport of two hundred thousand tribals off the lodge ships and onto Naanac’s surface. Morgan Weaver finger tapped as he sat next to a hard light display. While the Apache and Brule had been building the new chunnel, Zuni and Haida packs were searching and scanning around the planet to find where the Rowan inhabitants were now building an exit chunnel. They had found it four hours ago with the help of Celetain's Acolytes and were now working with Stormseeker to set up an effective ambush.

  Stormseeker briefed the rest of the Elders. “The Rowan construction crews are 120 meters from the end of the Free Mantle. They will break through to outer space in about another two hours if we let them. I have Apache construction packs working in toward them now. The Apache construction packs will be pulled out when they get close enough that combat might occur. Wovoka will lead an Apache/Brule assault force to accept the Rowan construction crew’s surrender.”

  Keokuk sat next to John watching events through his comp set. Wovoka's legendary body tank had a shoulder cam mounted and the comp set view showed dozens of other body tank warriors standing around him. Each had a rail gun menacingly leveled. Keokuk changed his camera feed to the forward camera of the beta class outrider ship, Forgiveness, now shooting along the outer edge of the Free Mantle. Wovoka and the body tank warriors were waiting in the nose of the outrider ship.

  Millions of rocks whipped by as Forgiveness arced toward the Rowan chunnel point. Long distance probes showed the Rowan construction packs pushing the last few boulders out of the chunnel's maw. The outrider ship slowed and the pilot nosed the ship in, directly above the chunnel opening at a penetrating angle.

  The Rowan construction workers stared up in shock. They remained motionless as the outrider ship edged forward slowly and the doors on the nose rolled open. Body tank warriors boosted out and rounded up each of three-dozen Rowan construction crew in seconds.

  The Rowan construction crew was whisked into the ship. They were spared the sight and sounds of the mini-rockets being launched from the outrider ship to destroy the chunnel they had built.

  Forgiveness reversed and headed back to the new chunnel. Eight other outrider ships fell in line behind it. The line of outrider ships approached the new AmerIndian Confederacy chunnel at speed. The ships burst out of the inner edge of the Free Mantle and headed down to the Rowan Cartel Naanac base courtyard.

  The courtyard was a wide-open area used by Rowan researchers for when all personnel needed to gather in one location. The other outrider ships landed close to Forgiveness, all nine ships cramming into the courtyard. As soon as the outrider ships locked landing gear, body tank warriors poured out. The courtyard was a sea of armored warriors. A team of body tank warriors carrying a ram raced up to the huge blast doors of the cartel base. Before their impact the doors rolled open and three men came out, their hands held high. “We surrender the Rowan Cartel’s Naanac base and request safe return to Earth.”

  Wovoka made a quick gesture with his right hand. Eight body tank warrior packs pushed past the surrendering group to begin ferreting out all of the base's personnel and to determine if any traps had been laid. Wovoka was not worried. It appeared there would be a bloodless invasion of Naanac as Celetain had predicted.

  Wovoka pulled off his helmet and walked forward. “An intelligent executive decision. We will honor your request and transport your personnel back to Earth. Which of you is in charge?”

  A woman stepped forward. She was a thin, tall oriental and wore the attractive chic dress of a rising business executive.

  “Show me everything.” Wovoka said plainly.

  The woman looked around at the men standing beside her.

  Wovoka frowned. “If I cannot understand exactly what is being done here then I will raze this base. Not one wall will connect to another.”

  “I have full authority granted by Rowan Cartel to evacuate every person off of this planet within the hour without any resistance to the AmerIndian Confederacy if, and only if, we are allowed to remove all of our equipment and data as well without any interference.” The woman stood tall and waited for Wovoka's reply.

  Wovoka handed his rail gun and helmet to Cavaho. “You are saying that Rowan will evacuate everyone from Naanac without struggle if we simply allow you to take your equipment and your research without any interference?”

  “That is correct.” The oriental woman did not smile.

  “This planet is in the Periphery. Rowan does not have a right under UDA law to lay claim to Naanac. Are you authorized by Rowan to waive any and all Rowan claims to this planet; past, present and future if we allow you to remove your equipment and research?”

  “Yes.”

  Wovoka smiled as the AmerIndian Confederacy gained a planet without shedding a single drop of blood.

  Keokuk pulled himself along the rails after Sliver. The two were deep in the belly of the AmerIndian Confederacy's mother comp on board Tsimshian lodge ship Grizzly King. Mother Comp was the most advanced comp the AmerIndian Confederacy possessed. Four Tsimshian packs were now working on code changes and hardware upgrades.

  The task at hand, a perfectly orchestrated control grab of thirty UDA television server gates, was daunting. Tsimshian packs would attempt to pirate all of the transmissions sent to all UDA colonies and outposts by controlling the television server gates in Earth’s orbit. Once controlled, pirated feeds would send a special message from the Elders directly to all eight UDA colonies as well as all eight hundred outposts.

  Billions of viewers would witness the message. The Elders were now carefully crafting the message. Sliver handed Keokuk new memory bases. Keokuk snapped out old bases and clicked in new ones without tools.

  “What do you think it will be like, Keokuk. The Homeland, returning to the ways of the true fathers?”

  Keokuk slid a little farther and popped a few more bases. “I think it will be paradise, Sliver. To see the buffalo run again. To hunt them and accept their gift the way the true fathers did. I think it will be an incredible opportunity. I think more than anything it will be an opportunity to relearn what our people once knew.”

  “Do you really think there will be a place on that world for tech-jacks like you and me?”

  “Honestly, I don't know what that place is now. It will take time to find our place, to find where we belong.”

  Sliver handed another module to Keokuk. “I will admit, when Celetain told me that we would need your help in this whole process, I was not happy. Most Christians I have known are Bible-thumping moralists. I appreciate the sacrifices you are making to help the AmerIndian people. I know you are supporting Wovoka in something you do not fully believe in. But why have you turned your back on the religion of your people?”

  “First, I do believe in the prophecies. I believe that Celetain routinely speaks with demons and they have indeed told her the future. In the end, if Celetain does not accept Jesus Christ as her savior, she will be apart from the one true God and she will see what the spirits she has dealt with truly are. I pray that will never happen. I am fully a Christian and fully a Native American. I believe in Christianity because its three basic truths are clearer and clearer to me as I grow. One. We separate ourselves from God by sinning. Two. Jesus Christ was sent as the only acceptable sacrifice to reconcile us w
ith God. Three. God calls each and every man to accept his Son’s sacrifice to pay for our sin so that he can make this one hundred years of life we are given only the small starting dot on an endless line of joyful existence with him.”

  Sliver shook his head. “Well, I cannot reconcile worshiping a god that lets this much suffering occur in the world. Oh, I have not forgotten what we spoke about concerning Okala’s prophecy. I have asked Celetain to speak to you personally about the White Buffalo banishment section, to explain the section you are concerned about. Soon. Thanks for not upsetting Wovoka with a non-issue.”

  Keokuk snapped the last base in and the two rolled out again. Billy the Kid and 8088 pulled the two to their feet. A group of tech-jacks sat to watch the message over their comp sets. Keokuk finger tapped and took over remote command of their jury-rigged Kellion Cannon system, watching data bubbles pop onto his view. Each Kellion Cannon in the system was aimed to fire a tight arc-light beam at each television server gate in Earth's orbit.

  Sliver started the countdown. “Tee minus five, four, three, two, one.”

  Comp set views filled with the image of Elder John being beamed to billion of UDA viewers. “Citizens, subjects of the UDA, I am John, Elder Wisdom of the AmerIndian Confederacy. Today I announce a new era and a time of celebration. The AmerIndian Confederacy today lays claim to the ninth habitable planet, Naanac. At this moment,” the view split to show camera feed of the sprawling campus on Windhome where over a hundred thousand tribals were building homes on Naanac, “we lay claim to this land as retribution and remuneration for the continents of North and South America that were stolen from us seven hundred years ago. However, unlike the inhuman slaughtering that wrested those continents on Earth from us, this has been a bloodless invasion. Not a single man, woman, or child has been harmed in any way and not one of the people displaced claim Naanac as a home. The Rowan Cartel has only used the planet as a research facility and has agreed to find another location for their continued research.

  “Again, I repeat, not a single drop of blood had been shed in this invasion. Not a single drop needs to be shed. The AmerIndian Confederacy wants no more at this point than to live in peace on this planet. I warn the UDA, however, that if our peaceful settlement of this planet is challenged with military force, then blood will be shed. Obviously, our military strength is weak compared to the military juggernaut the UDA has at its command. However, our spiritual strength is unmatched throughout occupied space. If we are challenged by military force we will invoke the Ghost Dance and spiritual warfare will be waged on every UDA colony and outpost, the likes of which has not been seen in six millennia.

  “Every man, woman and child will suffer untold anguish. I urge you; I beg you as a people, reign in your bloodthirsty UDA masters. Cry out to them to not allow the spiritual holocaust that will be wrought if the sword is raised against us. Do not allow them to gamble with your lives over one small planet. A single floating rock in a cosmos that has an infinite number of planets.”

  Along the edges of the view, cryptic symbols scrolled. “As I speak to you I also speak,” John pointed at the symbols, “to millions of AmerIndian Confederacy sympathizers. Plans laid as far back as two decades ago are now being executed. Our populace brothers will have many tasks to complete. I urge you not to disturb their work, for the colony or outpost that deters their efforts will be held specifically responsible and vengeance will be visited upon it. In closing, I simply invite you to celebrate this event with us. Let there be no anger between us. Peace to you all.”

  The signal terminated. A cry of joy rose from the tech-jacks. Keokuk found himself being backslapped and praised. He hugged Sliver as the results column showed they had hit twenty-six of the thirty television server gates. The rejoicing continued for a few minutes.

  Celetain's face appeared on all tribals comp sets, “You have reason to rejoice, my children, for this is a momentous day. You also have reason to weep for we have opened the floodgates and a river of blood flows toward us.”

  “I am telling you clearly, you cannot simply send the fleet. It is a trap.” Lige sat back in his leather chair, fingers steepled.

  Admiral Lathe rose. “Do not sit there smug, Lige. This shows you really have never understood the AmerIndian Confederacy any better than the rest of us. If you could defeat them we would not be dealing with an invasion situation, would we? This is textbook simple. They have 30 lodge ships and 620 outrider ships. We have 7,000 prime ships. We send in 1,500 to destroy all of the lodge ships. Once that is done, we build a chunnel, send down body tank troops and imprison every one of those traitors. They have no way to fight us successfully.”

  Lige leaned forward, “The AmerIndian Confederacy does not make idle threats.”

  “So, Admiral Lige, you are saying we should delay routing these dogs so they won’t shake a few shaman's rattles.”

  “I believe we should give them seven days. It will give them a false sense of security and allow time for us to gather intelligence on what ability the AC has to execute the threats they made.”

  Admiral Crane smiled. “Lige, we are all aware you took a hard defeat at the Steel Circle location. It stands to reason you would be hesitant to face battle again so soon.”The other admirals smirked at Crane's insult. “However, we would be fools not to seize this moment; crush these pests once and for all. We have failed to defeat them in the past because they are nomadic. Like cockroaches they skitter to the far corners when the light is turned on. Now, for only the second time in three decades, they are locked down. They have people on Naanac. A large percentage of their ships will have to stay to defend the planet. This time we can battle them to the last, and that is exactly what we will do.”

  Grand Admiral Ramus nodded in agreement. “A threat of spiritual retaliation? We are men of science. We cannot allow the superstition-based cries of the UDA people to sway us from what we know to be the wisest course. I agree with Crane. We must strike now, hard and fast. I am dispatching ten prime ships to each colony and one to each outpost to quell any civil unrest. The remaining prime ships will be sent to Naanac. There will be no chance of escape for even one lodge ship.”

  Lige smiled again. “Grand Admiral, permission to speak freely.”

  “Speak your mind, Lige, if it is not something you have already said.”

  “This is not the wisest course of action. It is the simplest, most predictable response. The AmerIndian Confederacy would not have settled that planet if they were not ready to withstand this exact response. I have learned from my recent defeat that we cannot beat them by sheer number. We must out maneuver and out think them. If you insist on this course of action then I respectfully request that my fleet be assigned to garrison duty.”

  “Answer me this, Lige. How? How will they defeat us outnumbered twenty to one in ships without the ability to run?”

  “I do not know, Grand Admiral.”

  “Then you are pandering to your own fears, Lige. Afraid of a specter of an enemy. I refuse your request. Your fleet will assist in the annihilation at Naanac. You will be there because you need to be there. You are a military leader and whatever has frightened you will go away once you have some AmerIndian blood on your hands. Face your fears, Lige. You will see they are unfounded.”

  Lige bowed his head in acquiescence. The group broke and Lige lost no time in shuttling back to Black Mariah. Even once he reached his ship, Lige could feel the other admiral's eyes on his back. They were enjoying this event. For once, Lige was on the outside. Grand Admiral Ramus and Admiral Crane had mocked him without reservation. Lige did not waste his time considering non-productive acts of revenge. He was sure the consequences of the Grand Admiral's decision would be punishment enough.

  Lige went to the bridge and took his position on the command dais. The gator approached. “We have received the command to start navcomp calculations for destination Naanac. All colony ships are running the numbers now, Admiral.”

  “Dump the
calculations and begin calculating a course for Therhasa A7.”

  The gator nodded and headed off to carry out the command. Lige slumped in his chair and thought. He would be in direct violation of the Grand Admiral’s orders. Not an easy thing to side step later. He also knew he could not afford to be at Naanac. The AmerIndian Confederacy's warning was clear. His intelligence had already told him that Haida Cybershamans were capable of incredible acts. Miraculous healing was not uncommon and there were instances of clear prophecy. But the Haida had never produced an overt magical act that amounted to direct military application. No one, according to his intelligence, had ever been even harmed directly by Cybershamanism.

  Lige pondered. He could not figure out how the AmerIndian Confederacy planned to survive this situation. But he knew someone who did know.

  Wovoka walked out of the Rowan Cartel base and his eyes went to the grey skies of Naanac. At a great distance in the sky Wovoka could see a bright point of green. Like bees swarming from a nest, dozens of outrider ships filled his view, firing retro-boosters to come to a smooth landing on Naanac’s surface. Thousands of tribals were now in the courtyard and the celebration was continuing; shouting, dancing, singing, pyrotechnics. Wovoka smiled as dozens of children crowded around him howling like wolves. He laughed and howled along with them. It was a special moment and he felt a strong desire to remember it. It was a beginning and an ending he knew. Through his laughter he could feel tears forming in his eyes. What indeed was he taking his people into?