The Decade Worlds

by Patrick McClafferty

  “The saucer is from an unknown species, Gareth. One moment.” The image of Shyrrik flickered out, and the Captain of the USS Maine frowned, tapping his fingertips irritably on the arms of his chair. Shyrrik flickered back. “Sorry, I had to devote my entire concentration on this. The alien fleet contained upward of one hundred ships. The defensive systems that fought them were of the same era as the systems of Ceorean, but obviously more robust. It looks as though both sides fought themselves to a dra… one moment.” She broke off. “There are four alien vessels approaching from the far side of the planet. It is obvious that the aliens won this round.”

  Gareth glared at the screen. “Not for long. Charge weapons systems and sound General Quarters. Can they detect us?”

  “From their movement and flight paths, I would say no.”

  “Can we take them with one strike? I don’t want them to phone home.”

  “We can, but in that case, I would recommend moving us closer.”

  “Make it so, and then cut our drive and let us drift. They will fly right past us and then we will fire.” He turned in his seat. “Mei, get the FTL missiles ready, although at this range it won’t matter if we use missiles, or the slightly slower lasers.” He shot a grin at Shyrrik. “See, I remembered that the energy weapons are limited by lightspeed, while the missiles are not.”

  Mei’s fingers were flying over the weapon controls, as her eyes remained glued to her screen. “Weapons ready Captain, and programmed for a simultaneous strike.”

  “Run program.” Gareth said softly. It was now all up to Shyrrik.

  “Sixty seconds to engagement.” The AI murmured. “Gareth, you should know that there are four more alien vessels coming from the other side of the planet.”

  “Verdammt!” Gareth cursed. “Can you nudge us, so that we are actually among the first group of alien ships when we fire?”

  “Why?”

  “It will take the second group a few moments to figure out where we are, and all we need is seconds to lock our lasers and fire.”

  “You’ll be using the first group of alien ships as cover??”

  “Yup.”

  “Is this what they taught you back in the twenty first century?”

  “They taught us to improvise,” Gareth growled, “and overcome. That’s what I’m doing.”

  “I don’t think I particularly like your brand of war fighting, Gareth.” Shyrrik said slowly.

  “If you think war is supposed to be pleasant, then you’re in the wrong business. Lock the lasers, Mei.”

  “Ten seconds to missile launch.” Shyrrik whispered. Gareth watched in fascination as two smaller saucers passed above and below them, escorted by two greenish vessels that could only be described as seed pods. Their shape and color made Gareth’s skin crawl. “Launch!”

  The USS Maine lurched, and the view screen went white and then black as the system shut down to prevent overload, and reset. “Fire lasers!” Mei barked. Gareth thanked the ancient designers that the targeting systems didn’t rely on visible images.

  “Fire mission completed.” Mei murmured, studying her displays. “Of the eight targets, seven have been destroyed, and one is falling into the atmosphere.”

  At his side Shaw touched his arm. “Can we use our tractors or the shuttle to…?” The view screen flickered back to life, and the First Officer stared in horror as the hundred-meter saucer touched the atmosphere, leaving red trails as it began to burn.

  “We have nothing that can stop their fall.” Gareth said gently. At twenty-five thousand meters above the ground the falling warship vanished in a brilliant flash that wept streamers of fire. The bridge crew didn’t cheer, although they had every right to in an eight to one battle. “Science Officer, what do we have down there?”

  Mairi looked up at him with a thoughtful expression. “There are many lifesigns, but no signs of current civilization. There are cities, but they appear uninhabited. The powerplants are inactive. There are no lights, and no communication on any band. There are no signs of transportation of any sort.”

  “People?” Gareth asked, frowning.

  “Unknown. The scanner readings are… inconclusive. It will take a shore party to get the answers.”

  He nodded. “Fine. We can get the shuttle set up…”

  “Ahem!” Shaw Sai-Bo cleared her throat loudly. “The Captain will remain aboard on this shore reconnaissance, with the Primary Science Officer. Kiang and I will take the marines to the surface.” She gave Gareth a knowing smile. “Kiang and I have been practicing in the marine rifle range, and we’re actually pretty good with those Ecothiax rifles.” She said gently. “You can’t protect us all the time, Gareth.”

  “Fine.” Gareth gave in grudgingly. “But be careful. I don’t want to have to explain to Chiu how I managed to get her parents killed. I’m in enough hot water with her as it is.”

  Shaw laughed as she stood. “Kiang and I have been getting into trouble long before Chiu was ever born.”

  Gareth snorted a laugh. “Be careful you two.”

  Shaw bent over and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “Always.” She turned to follow her husband off the bridge.

  Gareth glanced at the sparkling form of Shyrrik. “Shyrrik, would you please go with them?”

  The sparkling blue hologram smiled. “Of course, Captain.” She disappeared as the silver globe rose to follow Kiang and Shaw. It was the best he could do, under the circumstances.

  After Kiang and Shaw had departed Mairi slipped into the empty seat beside Gareth. She bit her lip for a moment before she blurted it out. “Do you want me to, ahhh, slip down there and keep an eye on things?” Her cheeks turned red.

  Gareth actually thought about it, for a single fleeting moment. “No. That stepping thing scares me silly, and I don’t want either one of us to use it unless it’s an emergency. Under this fancy uniform I’m just a simple Jarhead marine. I wasn’t meant to have godlike abilities, and hell, I was never meant to command a starship, of all things. I don’t want to be a god.” He gave Mairi a crooked smile. “I just want a daughter that loves me and a place to call home.” He looked around the bridge for a heartbeat. “Not this mobile weapons platform. It would be nice if I had a wife, but…” he shrugged his shoulders, “I’ve been alone before.”

  The scene on the view screen shifted abruptly to clouds as seen from the shuttle. “AI, please position the ship in a geosynchronous orbit over the shuttle landing site.” Gareth asked in a soft voice.

  “As you wish.” A pleasant male baritone replied from the air. “I was programmed to respond to the name Stefan, after the lead programmer’s son.”

  “Hello Stephan.” Gareth replied.

  “We are reaching optimum geosynchronous orbit now.”

  “Thank you. Please maintain full sensor sweeps and full stealth while we are in-system. I have no intention of being caught flat-footed.”

  “As you wish. I will flash a landing beacon when the shuttle returns.”

  “Thank you.” Gareth replied with only part of his attention as he watched the shuttle break out of the high thin clouds and begin to slow its descent.

  “Scanners indicate that this is a pristine atmosphere.” Shyrrik’s voice said out of the air. “There are no signs of greenhouse gasses, and the only carbon dioxide emissions I’ve detected appear natural in origin.”

  “Take us down next to one of those empty cities.” Shaw murmured out of the camera’s view. The shuttle banked obediently.

  “Shyrrik.” Gareth said softly. “In my courses I learned that combat shuttles come equipped with a dozen small surveillance drones. I recommend that you use them. You are a valuable member of our crew, and I wouldn’t want you to get killed.”

  There was silence for several long moments. “Thank you. That was a good catch, Gareth.” The shuttle banked again and began its descent to a small grassy field at the outskirts of what had once been a major city. “You realize that you are doing exactly what my original programmers were ter
rified of?”

  “What’s that?”

  “Anthropomorphizing a created object; me in this case.”

  Gareth chuckled at the theological argument. “Shyrrik, we were all created, in one way or another. The lab you were created in was somewhat different than the lab I was created in, just as your materials are different than my materials. We both think and we both feel.”

  “Gareth, I’m a computer. I can’t feel.”

  “You wouldn’t feel bad if Mairi and I were killed?”

  “I… Your loss would be a great blow to the mission.” Shyrrik replied coldly.

  “You used to be a better liar, Shyrrik.”

  There was a sigh from the air. “I’ll work on it. I would miss you Gareth, and Mairi also. I would miss all the people I interact with on a regular basis, but the two of you the most.”

  “Now you know why I suggested the surveillance probes.”

  There was silence as the shuttle settled gently to the ground. “You have given me a lot to think about.”

  “Good. Now pay attention to the job at hand.”

  “Yes Captain.”

  Through a clearing in the nearby woods Gareth saw a pack of creatures, perhaps a dozen in number, burst out of the woods, lope quickly to the other side of the clearing and disappear among the far trees. The size of large baboons, the creatures were dead white and seemed to be covered with a fine whitish fur. If it hadn’t been for the exceptionally long forearms, somewhat like a gibbon, Gareth would have thought they were human descendants. “What the hell?” He muttered. “Shyrrik, we need a blood sample from one of those things.”

  “At once Captain.” The rear ramp dropped open with a thud, and several small baseball sized drones shot out in chase of the pack. Other drones spread out around the shuttle, hovering at chest height. The marines came next, weapons up and cautious. Finally, a pale Shaw and Kiang exited the craft, their faces showing that they might be regretting volunteering for this particular mission. “Sensors show that there are several hundred of these creatures close by. The city actually appears to be the safest course for us to take.” There was a sharp animal cry from the woods, and the drones that had been following the pack drifted back into sight. “I have my blood sample, Captain.”

  “Recover your drones and personnel and take the shuttle into the city. Find a central park to land in, if you can. If you can’t, then pick a rooftop.”

  Shaw stepped in front of Shyrrik, a slightly disgusted look on her face. “This is our reconnaissance, Gareth. Don’t backseat drive.” Beside him Mairi snickered.

  He nodded slowly. “Sorry. Athena’s tendency to meddle is rubbing off on me. I’ll shut the monitor off on my end, and see you when you get back.” He glanced up. “View ahead.” The view screen flickered to show the cold reality of space. “I’ll be in my office if you need me.”

  Are you really going to turn the monitor off? Mairi whispered in his mind as he turned for the door. Although they had acquired the ability to speak mind-to-mind some time back, Gareth and Mairi seldom used the gift, in order to ensure each other’s privacy.

  Of course not. Gareth chuckled. I’ll just switch to my office screen.

  You lied!

  I shut off the view screen as I said.

  That’s pure sophistry, and you know it.

  It’s what our civilization is built on, my dear.

  I’ve been adopted by a pirate! Gareth chuckled as he entered his office.

  “How did the rest of the mission go?” Gareth asked Shaw blandly as she exited the shuttle. She gave him a flat look. She was enough of a diplomat to guess just what he’d done.

  “Fine. Shyrrik’s drones were able to recover several data crystals from what must have been the central computer.”

  He nodded. “Excellent. We should all probably get together and talk this over. Meet me in the conference room in fifteen minutes. Shyrrik, would you please invite the Sergeant Major, Mairi and Ensign Yong?”

  “I would be happy to.”

  Twenty minutes later Gareth sat back in his seat. “What do you have on the blood work, Shyrrik? What are we dealing with here?”

  “Humans, Captain.”

  “What?”

  “The creatures we saw are, or were humans. Something strange has happened to their DNA, but they are human. Their physical characteristics suggest that they have experienced massive retrograde evolution.”

  “Is it a result of a weapon, of is a natural thing springing from terrestrial or solar radiation?” Gareth asked, a note of horror in his voice as he thought of an entire planet-full of people, an entire civilization devolving into animals.

  “There is no indication of a weapon, however the release could have occurred several thousands of years ago. I should know more by tomorrow.”

  Gareth shuddered. “Fine. Would you please bring the USS Maine up to a high orbit?”

  “As you wish. I think you’re overreacting, but you are the Captain.”

  “Thank you.” Gareth replied tartly. “Did anyone else see anything of note?”

  The Sergeant Major chewed his cheek for a moment. “There were some signs of an old firefight, Captain. Blast marks and bullet holes, but real old.”

  Kiang nodded. “The corrosion I noted on exposed metal was quite old, possibly several thousand years.”

  Gareth scratched his head. “What the hell happened here?” He muttered. “I was going to make the idiots who slaughtered Slaxoles pay for their crime, but I see that they already have. They abandoned the Earth, only to have their karma catch up with them on the other side of the galaxy.” He rubbed his temples. “How long will it take to get back to Eldenworld, Shyrrik?”

  “Five months, Captain.” Shyrrik said softly.

  “Fine. We’re sitting in the middle of a really big scrapyard. Do we need any raw material for our mass converter?”

  “I’ve already dispatched drones to begin harvesting, Captain. It should take them approximately fifty hours.”

  “I wish we could get that saucer home, somehow. I can’t begin to imagine the secrets we could unlock from it, and besides it looks cool.” Gareth grinned around the table.

  “Well…” Shyrrik began. “We still have two first class drones available. If we programmed one for repair it could study the saucer, and make the necessary repairs to get it on its way back to Eldenworld. It wouldn’t even need life support; just a functioning drive of some sort, navigation and a beacon to let us know when it gets close. That will still leave me with one drone for emergencies.”

  “What do you think Shaw?” Gareth asked his First Officer.

  She rolled her eyes melodramatically. “Boys with toys. Whatever you wish Captain.”

  “Science Officer?” He really didn’t need to ask his daughter. The shine in her eyes said it all, and she just nodded to his question.

  “Just make sure they don’t have a tracer aboard, Captain.” Mei inserted. “We wouldn’t want the owners to find Eldenworld, or the gateways.”

  “That is a very good idea.” Gareth nodded to the young woman, but thought in the back of his mind that when they were done the gateways would no longer be a liability.

  “Do you have any idea what those data crystals contained?” He asked, leaning back in his chair.

  “Not yet Gareth. I’m in the process of fabricating a reader for the crystals.”

  “They’re not like the crystals Gareth found on Eldenworld, and gave to the University of Oseothan?” Kiang asked, frowning.

  “These data crystals are several generations more advanced. The three crystals I recovered were indexed to contain the entire history of Trilan, plus what would be the equivalent of an encyclopedia of information from Eldenworld.”

  Gareth crossed his arms. “It looks as though we’ll have to wait on Shyrrik’s findings before we know anything definite. We’ll meet here tomorrow morning. Should that give you enough time to finish you analyses?”

  “That should give me more than sufficient time, Cap
tain.”

  “Thank you. If anyone needs me, I’ll be in my office.” He turned and led the group from the room.

  Gareth sipped at his hot coffee, and looked about the small room. Located on the second deck amidships, the soothing blue-walled meeting room looked out over the port ‘wing’ of the USS Maine to the sparkling stars beyond. “Good morning, everyone.” He murmured. “Shyrrik, what do you have for us?”

  “The force that devolved the population of Trilan was natural, Gareth.” The voice of the AI said out of the air. “There is an unusual intensity to the solar radiation from the system primary, which in itself is of no concern. There is another source of radiation, much like radon on Eldenworld that interacts with the solar radiation. Either alone is harmless, but both taken together are deadly to a highly evolved species. Initial probes probably caught the solar radiation, but missed the radon because it is usually locked in the soil. Construction of the cities released the trapped radon, which when combined with the solar radiation began to change the new residents of Trilan. Within as little as three local years after the radon was released, the changes would have been irreversible. The interacting energies are so subtle that I only found them because I knew the DNA of the original colonists, the end result, and was able to work backward to the cause.”

  “So, the world is a trap?”

  “Just so.” Shyrrik admitted.

  “Damn!” Gareth muttered, thinking rapidly. “We’re it then. There is no race of super-intelligent humans out here in the galaxy to come to our assistance.” He rubbed his jaw. “And the races we found on Ceorean and Trilan are too far gone for anything we do to be of help.” He paused for a moment. “Could you get a couple of the defense stations in this system working again?”

  “Perhaps, but why?” Shyrrik asked in a suspicious voice.

  Gareth leaned forward in his seat, his eyes bright. “I assume that the people who sent that hostile fleet we found when we arrived will send another, if only to check on what became of the first fleet. If they want this world, let’s make them work for it, and convince themselves that they really want this world, and are willing to fight for it. Then we let them have it.” The grin he shared with the others at the table was savage. “Set a beacon up on the planet, as if the residents are waiting for relief to come, and make sure that there are no operational data crystals hanging around.”