Author: Saxon Andrew
Date: 2012-08-18T18:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Science Fiction
Description: From the International bestselling author Saxon Andrew comes the third book in the Lens of Time series, Pray for the Prey. Humanity has managed to avoid detection by the Violet Civilization and has only lost nine planets in the Milky Way to their war fleet. Now they were faced with a decision; do they keep a low profile and hide or join the war against the civilization killing Violet Ships. To attack the 300,000 ships going to attack Andromeda with only twelve hundred main battleships was suicidal. But to wait was just as dangerous. Whichever path they chose, everyone needed to take time to pr
Publisher: Saxon Andrew Publishing, LLC

Pray for the Prey

Lens of Time – Book Three

Contents

Introduction

Chapter One • Chapter Two • Chapter Three • Chapter Four • Chapter Five • Chapter Six • Chapter Seven • Chapter Eight • Chapter Nine • Chapter Ten • Chapter Eleven • Chapter Twelve • Chapter Thirteen • Chapter Fourteen • Chapter Fifteen • Chapter Sixteen • Chapter Seventeen • Chapter Eighteen • Chapter Nineteen • Chapter Twenty • Chapter Twenty-One • Chapter Twenty-Two • Chapter Twenty-Three • Chapter Twenty-Four

Excerpt from The End of Time

Books by Saxon Andrew

About Saxon Andrew

Introduction

Zack and Isadore made a fast run by M87, recording two weeks of reflected light, before jumping away to look at the results of their recording. The crew of the Ninja watched their monitors to make sure they weren’t followed and kept their weapons scanners active. After an hour, Zack ended battle stations and the crew started to relax. However, none of them moved very far from their combat stations and most left their weapons on standby for immediate activation. The twenty crewmembers chosen to serve on the Ninja were the best the Navy had.

The Ninja had grown in size and was no longer just a two man ship. With the increased power of the new reactors, it had to grow just to move a reactor inside its hull. It was a powerful weapon now but Zack was not willing to risk it in an engagement, he chose to run first. He finally jumped to Izzy’s favorite location to capture Earth’s light while he viewed the data collected.

Isadore stared at the display showing Earth thousands of years in the past and she was amazed at the beauty of the green and blue planet. Zack began running the recordings and brought the view in closer, “What are they doing?”

Izzy turned around from watching the scanners and saw two ships moving toward each other, “I don’t know.”

They watched as a Violet Ship and a Yellow Battleship moved toward each other in the center of the neutral zone between their vast fleets.

“Izzy, run this back.”

“Why?”

“I want to see who initiated this meeting.”

“You think they’re going to communicate?”

“I think that’s obvious. We need to know who wanted this meeting to happen.”

Izzy backed the recording up and they watched as a Violet Battleship moved out of their lines toward the center of the space between the two giant fleets. The Violet Ship did not have a force field raised and it was flashing a bright white light on top of it.

“I was afraid of that.”

“What?”

“I think the Violet Ships are going to ask their enemy for help.” Izzy looked at Zack and he was slowly shaking his head, “This is not good.”

“Why would the Yellow Ships agree to help them? They’ve been killing each other for thousands of years.” Izzy watched the recording as the two ships moved closer and stopped. She waited for one of them to fire on the other but nothing happened. Two hours later the ships turned and went back to their lines.

“Get this information out to Dundee, Izzy!” Zack hit the intercom and said, “Jump alert, we’ll be jumping in sixty seconds.”

Izzy set the drive and looked back at the recording. The Violet Ship that had gone out to meet the Yellow Battleship, jumped away. Just before she jumped the Ninja, she moved the view on her display to the Yellow ship and watched it jump away as well. She shook her head and hoped this wasn’t what she thought it was. She was about to hit the jump button when the Ninja was rocked.

Chapter One

Chris looked over at Dolly as they watched their displays showing the Shuttles flying around one of the destroyed Jenze Planets. So far no life had been found at the other seven, but this last planet was not hit as hard as the others. The savage defense by the Jenze Ships had slowed the Violet ships from their attack and they were behind schedule in meeting their fleet at the edge of the Galaxy. They had hit the planet, but had rushed the effort and left quickly so as not to slow the fleet down.

There were thousands of beam and nuclear missiles fired on the planet, but nothing close to the hundreds of thousands used on the other seven. “Dolly, how many survivors have we found?”

“Remarkably enough, more than seventy thousand so far; most of them were not close to the major metropolitan areas. We will continue the search until the radioactive clouds expand over the planet’s surface.”

Arnold Gordon shook his head, “We’re lucky we weren’t hit as well.”

“You’re right, father. Our subterfuge worked.”

Dolly looked over at Jeff and saw he was troubled, “What’s bothering you?”

Jeff Shook his head and said, “I’m not sure we should go after that fleet.”

“Why not?”

Jeff stood up and began pacing in front of the wall display. “What happens if we manage to kill that fleet of Violet Ships?”

Jillian said, “I suspect the Blue Giants will see that we’re being honest with them and they may be willing to work with us against those aggressive civilizations in M-87.”

Jeff looked at Jillian, “What would you do if one of our fleets was destroyed going out to defend us?”

Jillian started to respond but then sat back in her chair. Chris said, “I would send out scouts to find the ones that did it and come after them with all I had.”

Jeff nodded, “So would I.”

Dolly furrowed her brow and said, “Are you saying we shouldn’t go to the aid of the Giants?”

“I guess I am, Dolly. You’ve seen how many ships they have in their fleets. I really hope they don’t see us as a bigger threat than the Yellow Ships they’re fighting.”

Hemon said, “I think this is like when the Hyksos attacked the Pharaoh’s armies and made it appear the Nubians were responsible. How will we be targeted by the Violet Civilization if we are able to destroy their fleet? We’ll be attacking them in the Andromeda Galaxy.”

Jeff shook his head, “And why would the sensor buoy they left between galaxies be destroyed if it was only in Andromeda that the battle took place? Do you think that might make them come and take a closer look at us?”

George came on the display, “I’ve been listening to your discussion and we still need to hit that fleet with everything we have.”

Arnold said, “Why?”

“Because we must learn where we stand against them technologically; we know that all their surplus ships were put into this attack and if their enemy in M-87 has built their fleets up, the Violet Ships will not be able to come back for a long period of time. We need to know where we stand. However, I would recommend a hasty exit from that battle if we are successful.”

Dolly nodded, “I agree. We can’t delay.”

Chris said, “Why do you say that?”

“We are in constant contact with our ships, Chris. What would we do if one of our fleets suddenly stopped communicating and the sensor buoy we had to watch events also stopped broadcasting?”

“I would immediately send a ship to investigate.”

“Exactly, and we don’t want to be anywhere around the site of that battle if that happens.”

Jeff sat back down, “It may be a moot point if we can’t penetrate their force fields.”

George said, “And that’s exactly the reason we should go. We’re going to be producing more than a thousand ships a month shortly and if they aren’t effective against the Violet Ships, we need to stop and look at taking another direction. We also need to know which weapon system we should concentrate on producing; the strikers or the main guns. We can still make the changes we need if we know what will work against their ships.”

Chris looked around the table, “Before we go any further with this, I need to let you know about a change.”

Everyone looked at him and Dolly asked, “What Change?’

“This conversation has only convinced me that I’m making the right decision.” Chris looked over at Jillian and she nodded. “Jillian and I have been discussing my having the overall command of our military forces. I am woefully out of my league when it comes to planning and executing naval strategy. I’m just a college professor who happens to have invented a remarkable device. I have no experience in military tactics. I am resigning my position in the military immediately and Jillian and I are going to take our ship and start doing a time study of M-87. It’s important that we learn how that giant galaxy developed and where any possible danger exists. Civilizations from there have been invading and destroying our galaxy for millions of years. We need to see if there is any weakness we can uncover and exploit. We can help our efforts best by doing that.”

Jillian said, “And don’t try to stroke our ego; all of you know Arvolo is head and shoulders ahead of both of us in using our ships effectively. I think we actually get in his way most of the time.”

The room was silent and finally Dolly said, “You’re right; your talents lie elsewhere.” She looked at Jeff, “Who should be in overall command?”

“You know the answer to that. Why are you reluctant to say it?”

Dolly shook her head, “You amaze me with your ability to read my mind. How long did it take you to see it?”

“As soon as he opened his mouth.”

Dolly laughed out loud as George said, “Now wait a minute. Where are you going with this?”

Jeff said, “We were sitting here struggling with what we should do and you jumped right in and told us what must be done and the reason why.” George started shaking his head but Jeff continued, “And don’t try to say you don’t know military tactics. I know you consumed the entire library at our Fleet Academy in order to build the best ships for our Fleets. You understand tactics.”

Dolly chimed in, “And I happen to know that your staff is now able to handle the construction of our ships. You know I’m right, George.”

George looked off the screen, put his hand over the microphone, and appeared to be listening. He kept the microphone pick up covered and said something. They watched as he listened for a moment and then he turned back to the display, “Ok, I’ll do it.”

Chris said, “Just like that; that was a quick decision.”

“Meisa just told me that she misses the adrenaline rush from a space battle. I must say that I happen to agree with her; however, Admiral Arvolo will remain in overall command of our Fleets and will be responsible for carrying out our directives.”

Dolly looked around the room and everyone nodded, “Done!”

“One more thing; Dolly; get some scouts out into a galaxy directly away from M-87 and find some planets for us to colonize. Get on that immediately as it is the most important task the command team needs to work on as quickly as possible.”

“You think they might come back here?”

“I do and we need to plan accordingly. We’ve got the colonization process down to a science and we need to move our ship building facilities out of the Milky Way as quickly as possible. You know we couldn’t escape a detailed scan if the Violet Ships really had time to take a good look.”

Dolly looked at Arnold and he said, “We’ve set up six more ships for colonization. We’ll slate those for another galaxy.”

George looked at Dolly, “Do you have an idea as to which one we need to move?”

“I’ll leave that up to Chris and Jillian. They can take a good look at any we select and see if we’re jumping from the skillet into a frying pan.”

Chris looked at Jillian and shrugged, “We’ll get on that before we start the scan of M-87. You’re right; we need to make sure all of us aren’t in the same elevator. I’ll let you know what we find.”

Arnold said, “I would start that search in the opposite direction of M-87. I think distance is a great way to hide.” Chris tilted his head left and right and then nodded.

George looked at Hemon and said, “You need to contact the Alliance and see if they’re interested in moving as well. I suspect things might get hot here.”

Hemon looked at Sasha and then nodded, “I’ll contact them and make the inquiry.”

Dolly smiled, “Well, now we need to see how we do against that Violet Fleet.”

Jeff said, “We’ll know shortly.”

Chapter Two

The Earth Fleet arrived just inside the outer edge of the Milky Way after assembling at Earth. Arvolo looked at his board and turned to Cyanna, “Before we begin our practice exercise and jump in on Andromeda, have you planned to dispose of the Violet Probe?”

“Yes Sir, one of our Needles was sent ahead to locate it and target it for destruction.”

Arvolo heard his board beep and he said, “Hold on a minute.” He began reading his display and after five minutes he looked up.

“Has that task been completed?”

“Not yet, Gretchen Logan is waiting for the order to launch a mini-striker on it.

“We’ve had a change in plans. We will be jumping the fleet to the other side of our galaxy to conduct our practice exercise. The destruction of the probe will be delayed until we’re ready to jump to Andromeda. At the completion of our exercise we will then jump directly from there to the location of the Violet Fleet to begin our attack. Order Captain Logan to take out the buoy the moment we jump to Andromeda and to join her wing afterwards.”

Cyanna said, “Yes Sir.” She began issuing orders to the fleet and wondered what was happening to make RV change the plans at the last minute. The Fleet jumped across the Milky Way and formed into three, four hundred ship formations.

Arvolo looked out at the twelve hundred Battleships and said over the fleet frequency, “We will only have a short time to practice for this exercise, so make it count. Each fleet will be assigned a line of Violet Ships and our timing must be exact. Make sure your needles have their weapons set for the correct timing, distance, and are assigned the appropriate place in their attack waves. Are there any questions?”

The channel remained silent and Arvolo took a deep breath and said, “Begin the exercise.”

The twelve hundred Earth Battleships jumped into position and launched their needles. Arvolo watched the fleet move into their assigned formations and go through their practice attack. He turned to Cyanna, “That’s not going to work.”

“I see that. Let me make a change.”

“You can make all the changes you want but our practice time is over. Form the fleet up and get ready to jump.”

Cyanna issued the commands and jump coordinates for the fleet as she simultaneously issued instructions to the Needle’s Wing Commanders. They received the new instructions and scrambled to make the changes before the Fleet arrived at Andromeda. It was going to be close. Cyanna delayed as long as possible but saw RV starting to get impatient. She announced, “We will jump into Sierra Space in fifty seconds.” She put her hand on the fleet jump control but watched the communication panel out of the corner of her eye. As she turned to Arvolo for the order to jump, she saw a green light go on in the upper corner of her board. She smiled, “Let’s hope they can do it.” She looked at RV for the command to jump.

• • •

Earth’s Command Team was watching the feed from the fleet and Chris said, “There is no way they can pull off that maneuver with the Needles. They need to change that plan before they jump in on the Violet Fleet.”

Jeff sighed, “I’ve listened to their fleet frequency and they have issued commands to change the attack pattern. I don’t know if they have enough time to make it work.”

Chris looked at Dolly and she could tell he was worried. She looked at her display and said, “If Arvolo takes the time to practice a new exercise, I suspect they will lose their opportunity to catch the Violet Fleet in open space outside Andromeda and then the entire plan will be for naught. Once they enter the galaxy, there’s no possibility of attacking them in their formations. I think it’s too late to stop this from happening. Even if the Needles aren’t totally successful, they should be able to destroy some of those ships if the initial phase is successful. We still need to know how our ships match up to theirs.”

Chris stood up and began pacing in front of the main wall display. Jillian got up and joined him. She whispered, “Either we trust Arvolo to make this work or George will have to assume command of the Fleet. If we override Arvolo’s decisions now, he will lose his ability to command those ships.” Chris stopped pacing and Jillian said, “Until our Crazy Cuban messes up, he should be supported.”

Chris sighed and watched as the twelve hundred battleships moved into their formations prior to jumping. “Well, it’s too late now. Let’s pray he’s got this under control.”

“Have you ever seen him out of control?”

“I did see him cry at his medal presentation.”

Jillian punched him on the arm, “What do you mean? You were crying like a baby as well.”

“I made the mistake of looking in a mirror and saw my full beauty in my dress uniform. That would bring tears to anyone.”

Jillian shook her head, “Now who has the oversized ego?”

“I’ll be close to you eventually.”

Jillian went to punch him on the arm again but he ran and hid behind Dolly’s Chair.

Dolly didn’t even look up as Jillian chased Chris, but looked at her fingernails as she picked up a file to work on them. Chris watched her from behind her chair and raised his eyebrows. Jeff said, “She does this when she’s not able to do anything but wait. If she keeps this up she won’t have any fingernails.”

Dolly said, “Sure I will; this file is smooth.”

Jeff flinched and came over and took the file from her hand and rubbed his finger on it. Chris and Jillian delayed their chase as he checked the file. He shook his head and said, “Just when I think I’ve got you all figured out I discover I’m not even close.”

“Oh you’re close; just not quite there yet.”

Jillian rushed around the chair and Chris spun the chair, keeping Dolly between them. Dolly laughed as Jillian came quickly around the other side of the chair and Chris jumped over Dolly’s desk. Hemon smiled as he watched them chase each other around the room. He turned to the main display and knew that things were going to start happening rather quickly.

• • •

The Seven Leaders of the Blue Giants were intensely focused on the large table in front of them. They watched as thousands of their huge battleships attacked the three lines of incoming Violet Ships. They had managed to kill a thousand of the invader’s ships during the initial contact, but then the three massive lines of ships began firing white energy pulses that destroyed the Blue Giants, before they could get close enough to get the maximum punch out of their beams. More than a hundred thousand Blue Giant Battleships were left burning behind the advancing Violet Fleet.

The First Leader looked at the others, “I think it would be a waste to send our entire fleet at those ships. It’s clear they can launch those energy pulses faster than we could get ships close enough to kill them. What should we do?”

The Third Leader said, “It appears we can do nothing but run. Unfortunately, most of our populations have not been moved and will die if we don’t slow them down.”

The Seventh said, “I was wondering if we should contact those ships from the other galaxy.”

The First was silent for a long moment and then said, “I don’t think they’ll assist us. I know we would not help them.”

“What if they meant what they said?”

“Other civilizations always tell falsehoods hoping to be spared. Do you honestly thing they would come to help us against this enemy or celebrate our destruction.”

“I don’t know. They have not matched up to any pattern I’ve ever seen.”

The First looked around the table and said, “Contact them and see what they say.”

• • •

Arvolo was about to issue the order to jump, when his communications officer said, “Communication coming in from the Blue Giants.”

Arvolo said, “Hold the count down. Let’s see what they have to say.” Cyanna breathed a sigh of relief; this delay will give the Needles more time to make the changes. Arvolo took the communication on his board and listened in as Christopher Connor answered. Arvolo wondered why Chris sounded like he was out of breath.

• • •

Chris said, “I understand you’re being attacked by the Violet Ships.”

“That is the reason for my communication. I was wondering if your statement about assisting us if we were attacked was still valid.”

“As a matter of fact it is.”

“Will you come and help us? Our fleet cannot standup to their ships.”

“Our fleet is already in position to attack their fleet. Admiral, do you need the Blue Giants to do anything to assist you in your plans?”

Arvolo punched his board, “Yes, I need you to send a line of ships at their fleet and make it appear you are making a massive attack along the entire front of their lines. When your ships arrive within range of their weapons, have your ships jump away.”

The Seven Leaders looked at each other and the Seventh said to them privately, “They were coming to help before we asked. This is something we must consider if we survive this.”

The First acknowledged the thought and said, “Send the orders and inform the White Ships that we will be moving in on the invaders momentarily.” Arvolo received the response and watched a feed from the Blue Giant Ships as they formed a long line and start accelerating at the three long lines of Violet Ships.

• • •

The Fleet Controller watched as a million of the giant blue battleships formed a line and started accelerating toward his fleet. “Stop forward motion and prepare to fire when the enemy moves in range.”

The Controller watched the line of giant ships move closer and heard his Weapons Controller say, “Fire all pulse cannons,” just as the line of Giant Ships disappeared.”

“What’s going on?”

“We have a thousand small ships in the rear of our lines.”

“How many?”

“Actually there are twelve hundred ships that are launching thousands of tiny craft.”

The Controller’s last command was for the center of his three lines to turn and fire on the ships behind his fleet. His ship blew up so fast after the command, that he never saw what was happening to the center of his three lines. The Communication Controller was unable to send a picture of the ships attacking the fleet from the rear back to their home galaxy, as he was disintegrated along with everyone else on the bridge before the scanners could be activated.

• • •

Each of the three lines of Violet Ships had four hundred Earth Battleships appear directly behind the center of their line. The four hundred ships lined up behind each of the three Violet ship lines had six miles of spacing between them and fired a massive broadside of strikers and main beams into the center of the three long lines. The strikers and beams blew away twenty thousand ships from each line and the explosions were massive. The lines remaining on each side of the massive explosions no longer had a force field on the ends where the ships in the middle were destroyed. Arvolo watched his display and said, “Admiral, what’s penetrating their force fields?”

Cyanna looked at her board and said, “It’s the strikers, Sir. They’re knocking a big enough hole through the force fields for our main beams to get through. The main beams only weaken the field. It’s the strikers that are doing the damage.”

Arvolo turned back to his display and saw the Violet Ships in the six lines that had been separated by the destruction of the ships in the middle start to turn to bring their weapons to bear on the small ships at their rear. He watched as three long lines of Needles moved over the top and three more long lines moved below the bottom of the massive destruction. Each of the six lines of Needles were accelerating at one of the Violet Ships lines.

• • •

Wes Maddit watched as his three lines of Needles moved over the top of the exploding center of the Violet fleet at high acceleration and bore down on the three lines to the left of the formation. Three more lines of Needles moved under the center toward the three lines to the right of the formation. The force fields on the ends of those six lines were blown away with the destruction of the Violet Ships in the center and were left open to attack.

Gretchen Logan led eight thousand Needles toward the top line of Violet Ships. The line of Needles was moving at one quarter light speed and as she arrived at the open end of the Violet Ships force fields, she fired two fusion missiles into the open end and then jumped into Sierra Space. Each of the eight thousand Needles following her launched their two missiles into the opening and disappeared with her. All six lines of the Violet Ships had more than sixteen thousand fusion missiles flying inside their force field in less than thirty seconds.

The first missiles launched were set to explode at the far end of the forty thousand ships in the line. The missiles following the first were set to explode three thousand miles from the ones launched in front of them. The fusion missiles had been set to fly the length of the line and they were all set to go off simultaneously. As the last two missiles were launched into the open end of the Violet Ship’s force fields, the sixteen thousand missiles accelerating down the six lines blew up into massive explosions that filled the force fields from one end to the other, blowing out of the open ends.

The Violet Ships saw the small fusion missiles fly by their line but were unable to fire their weapons inside their force field. The energy pulses would pass through the force field, but would not activate until they were clear. The Violet Ships were trapped inside a hollow tube that reflected the shock wave from the thousands of missiles back into the ships at the center.

The Blue Giant Fleet watched as the three lines of Violet Ships were blown into debris and vapor in a blast so massive that the light would one day in the far future be seen by telescopes in the Milky Way. The entire battle lasted less than two minutes. They were stunned and shocked at the efficiency of the small White Ships.

Arvolo looked at Cyanna and said, Jump the Fleet out of here to the other side of the Milky Way. We’ll retrieve the Needles there.”

Cyanna said over the general frequency, “All ships, all ships, jump to our starting location immediately. Jump Immediately.”

The Earth Fleet disappeared and Arvolo watched his display as all of the Fleet’s Ships arrived. He turned to Cyanna, “Excellent work in making the change to the Needle’s attack routes.”

“You were right, there was no way we could have had them all come over the top. They would have run into each other if we had done it that way.”

Arvolo’s communicator beeped and he listened as George contacted the Blue Giant Leaders.

• • •

“I’m sure you’re wondering why we jumped our fleet away so quickly.”

The Seventh said, “Not really; you’re anticipating the enemy will send a follow up ship to determine what happened here.”

George smiled, “You’re right. I suspect that if you can move populations you might want to do so as quickly as possible. I don’t think they will allow this to go without some sort of response.”

“We agree but they can’t do it quickly. You have given us time to save the bulk of our populations. We thank you for your help.”

“It was the right thing to do. We wish you success in survival.”

“Before we end this communication, we want to know why you chose to assist us.”

“We have tried to convince you that we are not your enemy nor do we ever want to be. We would hope that one day when you’re able to overcome your suspicions, you may choose to be a friend.”

The Seventh looked at the First and he linked with the others. After a moment, he linked with the Seventh and thought, “I’ll take it from here.” He thought, “We will not invade your galaxy again. You have earned that as payment for your actions today. This is not an easy decision for us to make and I know we will continue to second guess ourselves about it, but you have allowed us to survive and you deserve the consideration.”

George paused, “You know they’ll be looking for you?”

“Yes, we do; however, we have today and who knows how many more thanks to your kindness.”

“If you need us again, we will come.”

The First paused and then said, “You mean that, don’t you?”

“Yes, I do. We do not choose to conquer anyone, but to defend ourselves against those that would come and destroy us. It is only appropriate to assist others that are being attacked as well.”

The First looked around the table and said, “If you need our help, we will come to your defense as well. Good luck.”

• • •

George looked at the Command Team on his display and said, “It appears they are taking a radical step in choosing to defend us.”

Dolly nodded, “Which brings up another question.”

George tilted his head and slowly shook it, “I’m not sure we should do that, Dolly.”

Chris said, “What are you two mind readers talking about? Do what?”

“Give them our reactor technology.”

Chris was stunned silent.

Dolly said, “If they will no longer attack us, we should help them be as strong as possible in the event they do have to come to our defense.”

Arnold said, “How do you know they’re being honest?”

“Think about it; they have said all along that they would have to come and destroy us for the danger we represent. If they were capable of not telling the truth, they would have never said that to us. They have been honest to a fault.”

George said, “But they have not been tempted to attack because they know we could destroy their ships. If we gave them our technology, they might give in to that temptation.”

“George, do you think the Violet Civilization will be searching for them now that we destroyed their fleet?”

George took a deep breath and nodded.

“That is part of our responsibility and I suspect our galaxy will be searched again as well. We may not be able to deceive them again.”

Jillian said, “Ask them.” Everyone looked at her and she said, “If they are completely honest, see what they say if we offer them our technology.”

Dolly looked at George and he shrugged. She looked at Arnold and he shrugged as well. She reached over and punched her communication panel.

• • •

The First looked at the other leaders and said, “Perhaps these beings in the White Ships are different.”

“They will only grow stronger. How do we know they will always stay that way? Time has a way of changing things.”

The Seventh said, “I find myself agreeing with the Third but I do think they have won the courtesy of us not initiating the conflict. The First looked over the table and said, “They are contacting us.” He touched the light and said, “We are here.”

Dolly said, “We were wondering something and wanted to see what your thoughts are on the issue.”

“What is the issue?”

“If you developed technology that was stronger than what we currently possess, would you then choose to attack us?”

The First said, “It would really be tempting. We know that you can destroy us at this moment and that does cause us some trepidation. Give us a moment.”

“I’ll be waiting for your response.”

The First said, “Link and then link with our populations and see how they would answer this question.” The Seven linked minds and then linked through the communicators with all of the members of their civilization. After an hour, the First thought, “Thank you for your thoughts. We do owe these beings for saving us.”

The Seven Leaders broke the link and the Seventh said, “I’m genuinely surprised that our warriors are almost unanimous in their position.”

The First said, “They were saved. They, more than any of the others, know what destruction looks like.” The First touched the table and said, “I have your answer.”

Dolly was startled and said, “Go ahead.”

“We have linked with all of our populations and more than eighty percent agree that we are right in our agreement to never attack you again. So even if we were technologically stronger, you have earned the right to exist. Why do you ask this question?”

“We are considering giving you our technology.”

The seven leaders were stunned by the statement. The First finally said, “Why would you do that? You know the danger we represent.”

“You just said that you are no longer a danger to us.”

“Yes, but how could you trust us; words are not always spoken in truth. We’ve seen that agreements mean nothing when survival is at stake.”

“Have you ever used words that were not true?”

“No, but you have no way of proving that.”

“I think you have been nothing but honest with us. However, here is the bargain we will make with you. If you will agree to stop attacking other civilizations, we will share our technology with you.”

Dolly waited for several minutes for an answer and then George said to the Blue Giant Leaders, “You will not be restrained by this agreement if you are going to be attacked or being scouted for attack. We will only use our technology to defend ourselves against an aggressor. We would only ask that you do the same.”

“That makes a large difference in our consideration of your proposal. We need some time to see what the consensus of our populations would be on this matter.”

“Take all the time you need. We worry that the Violet Civilization will come searching for you and we have a responsibility for making that happen.”

“That may be true but if you had not intervened, we wouldn’t survive to use what you offer. The very fact that you are making this offer has convinced us that our civilizations will one day be linked. I’ll contact you once this has been resolved.”

George said, “The issue you must resolve is whether or not your civilization is a predator or a very dangerous prey.”

The First paused and said, “That says it in very simplistic terms, but I can see your analogy.”

Dolly looked at her board and the connection ended. “Does anyone doubt they’ll keep their word?”

Arnold shook his head, “It appears you were right. They are honest to a fault.”

George said, “I trust them more than I do the Moet or the Alliance. I still believe they would attack if they could.”

Hemon said, “I’m not sure about that, George. I’ve been keeping an eye on them and they’ve started trading with each other. Their economies are starting to boom. I genuinely think the Moets are not looking forward to the Crown returning. They may not be the issue you think.”

George shook his head, “I wonder what would happen if we removed our threat to destroy the first one to attack the other.”

Hemon shrugged, “Then remove it and see what happens.”

“Do what?”

“Remove the threat and see if they’ve learned anything.”

George looked at Dolly and she said, “Some things must be accepted and can’t be forced.” Dolly looked at Jeff and said, “Notify the ships to inform the Alliance and Moet that we will no longer stand between them.”

Jeff frowned, “Are you sure about this?”

“Yes, I am. Just have a fleet ready to jump in if needed.”

Jeff smiled and turned to his board. Now this should be something to observe.

Chapter Three

Tenah looked at the Baron on his display and saw that he was one unhappy Moet. The Drooping eyestalks said more than anything he could say about his disposition. “I assume you have been notified about our restraints being removed.”

The Baron moved his front eye stalks forward, “I was told at the exact moment they told you so that neither of us would have an advantage if we chose to attack.”

“That’s exactly how they phrased it with me as well. I guess we now must decide what to do about this situation.”

The Moet was silent and Tenah said, “We should be open in this discussion. I need to know what your plans are.”

“I’m not the danger here. You still outnumber my ships ten to one and I only have the old models in my fleet.”

“That may be true but, you know your Royal Family will be returning and we are no match for the Dreadnaughts they have to use.”

The two remained quiet until the Moet said, “I almost wish they would stay where they are.”

Tenah said, “Why?”

“Since we’ve begun trading with your planets, my populations have enjoyed the highest standard of living ever; I know I’m being selfish, but my member planets are not happy with this new development.”

Tenah said, “I’ll be honest with you. I couldn’t get the members of the Alliance to attack you if I ordered it. The members are also enjoying the benefits of a booming economy and most of them have seen that you are trading fairly with them. They no longer hate you and they are not willing to go back to the old ways between our species.”

“What are you saying?”

“I think that we should formally agree to a joint peace agreement and become allies. My concern is that when the ruling family comes back, we will be immediately attacked.”

The Baron stared at the display and said, “What you are suggesting is treason.”

“I know, but you were written off any way. What do you have to lose? You should have been killed by the Blue Giants before now.”

The Baron looked over at the Watcher and said, “What do you have to say about this.”

“I say let the Royal Family find a new place to live. Enlist the help of the White Ships to make sure they don’t come back stirring up trouble. I think they might help us.”

The Baron stared at the Watcher and said, “You’ve been watching everything taking place in the Realm; what is the mood of the population?”

“They all hope the evacuees never return and we build our society into something it should have become long ago.”

The Moet looked at Tenah and watched him smile as he pushed a button. Dolly appeared on their display and Tenah said, “The Moet and the Alliance want to agree to become partners in a trading alliance between our species. Our mutual fear is that when the Moet Royal Family returns, they will attack both of us; the Moet because of his treasonous behavior and us because that is what they do. Before we can make this work, we were hoping you would prevent them from attacking us.”

Dolly looked at the Moet and said, “Are you in agreement with this?”

The Moet Baron knew that it was now or never to make a decision that could not be unmade. He thought about what life was before and then said, “I agree with President Tenah.”

“Can you make an agreement and keep it?”

Tenah and the Moet said together, “Yes.” Tenah smiled, “We are both benefiting from our trade and want to continue it.”

“Then how do you want to handle letting the Royal Family know they are no longer welcome.”

The Baron looked at the Watcher as he said, “I will send a messenger to tell them the new situation here, if you will agree to help us fight them off if they attack.”

The Watcher nodded and prepared the message.

Dolly smiled, “We will not allow them to harm your civilizations. However, you should know that we have destroyed the Violet Fleet that came here in the Blue Giant galaxy and we fear we will be visited again.”

Tenah frowned and said, “What about the Blue Giants coming back?”

“They have agreed to come to our defense if we need them.”

The Moet and Tenah were stunned and looked at each other on the display. Finally the Moet said, “Is there anything my people can do to assist you?”

Tenah said, “Count us in on that as well. I’m beginning to see that we are all in the same ship and what affects one, affects us all.”

Dolly raised her eyebrows and said, “I’m not sure. However, we may need to pull off another masquerade in the future so you should make plans to hide your populations underground if it comes to that.”

“What do you mean?”

“We may want you to disguise your planets as one that has been hit by a plague. You’ll need the capability to turn off the power plants and only have very few citizens roaming the streets. It may not come to that, but you should start planning for that if we’re scouted again.”

“Will we also need to remove our ships as well?”

“Yes and we’ll need you to take different routes to each other’s planets so the trails in Green Space can dissipate in a short time.”

Tenah nodded, “We will make the changes immediately.” He looked at the Moet and said, “Do you want to come to us to sign our agreement or should we come to you?”

The Baron raised his back eyestalks and said, “No species has ever set foot on our capital except us. I think it would be a good start for our association for you to be the first.”

Tenah nodded and said, “I’ll notify my planets about the new situation.”

“I will do the same.”

Dolly ended the call and looked at Hemon, “You were right. They have come a long way.”

“Sometimes growth has to be forced. I suspect we will need to keep some ships near the Moet Capital.”

“I think one battleship with a full complement of Needles should be enough.”

Hemon nodded and said, “Just make sure more are ready if we need them.”

“Oh, I will.”

• • •

The messenger pushed the button and waited for the Hive Controller to open the entry. He hoped the Controller would just ignore him but he knew there wasn’t much hope of that happening. No one ever went to the Hive Controller’s door and if they did, it had better be for a good reason. The messenger nervously moved the small vestigial wings on his back and wished he could fly away. The entry opened and he entered. He walked forward to the chair at the end of the cell and the Controller stared at him, “We have lost contact with our fleet in the second galaxy.”

“What do you mean lost contact?”

“The Fleet Controller was sending a feed of the battle he was conducting against the large Blue Ships when he reported that a thousand small ships had appeared behind his lines. That’s when the feed was interrupted.”

“What about the sensor?”

“It ceased operating moments before the Fleet Controller reported the ships.”

The Controller stared at the messenger and the messenger quickly added, “We’ve attempted to contact every ship in the fleet and none of them are answering.”

“What has been done about this?”

“I was sent to notify you of the developments and to seek your wisdom on our next course of action.”

The Controller’s stinger shot out faster than the messenger could see and impaled him in the chest. The injected poison killed the messenger instantly and he collapsed to the floor.

The Hive Controller pushed his console and said, “Send ten battleships to determine what has happened to our fleet.” He turned the console off and stared at the dead messenger. Can’t anyone make a decision? He stood and began consuming the messenger’s remains. He’d check on the findings after he completed his meal.

• • •

The ten Violet Colored Ships jumped out of M-87 and entered the last known coordinates of the attack fleet. The Wing Controller looked at the location and said, “Do not jump us to the exact location. If something happened to our fleet, I don’t want to become another victim. Change the coordinates to ten thousand base units from that last location.”

The Jump Controller entered the new location and the other nine ships matched it in their systems. The Wing Controller looked around the bridge and said, “Make the jump.”

• • •

Two million Blue Giant Battle ships were organized into a giant semi-circle extending out from the destroyed Violet Fleet. The half circle began a thousand miles from the site of the battle and extended more than twenty thousand miles out. The giant Blue Ships looked like giant spokes in a wheel with a hundred mile separation between the individual ships. The Commander of the vast fleet had issued orders that if anything broke into normal space every ship within a thousand miles would immediately initiate an attack on the intruder. The fleet waited and knew that the destroyed fleet would be investigated. He also had ships in No-Space watching for any trails that appeared from the direction of the Giant Galaxy. It was one of those scouts that issued the first warning.

“I have trails appearing at the following coordinates.”

The Fleet Commander fed the location into the fleet’s system and thousands of ships began moving into the area of the expected break out. The ten Violet Battleships appeared in normal space and were immediately barraged by the incoming Blue Giants.

Eight of the ten were blown apart but two of the Violet Ships jumped back into No-Space to escape. One of them was hit by a scout and pushed back into normal space where three hundred ships blasted it into rubble. The other Violet Ship barely missed being nudged by a scout and managed to escape. The Fleet Commander knew that getting every ship was next to impossible, but felt his consternation at missing the last one. “Return to your places and stay alert; there may be more coming.”

The giant fleet moved back into formation and waited as the Blue Giants began a massive evacuation of Andromeda.

• • •

The Wing Controller felt his two hearts beating rapidly. That was close! He had managed to make a quick scan before he jumped away but knew he had been lucky to have survived. His drive Controller’s quick acceleration away in normal space had allowed his ship to be missed by the scouts waiting for his entry into Green Space. He looked at his Sensor Controller, “What did you manage to see?”

“There is a vast debris field at the last location of our Attack Fleet. There is enough mass there to account for the entire fleet. It appears every ship in the fleet has been destroyed.”

“What did you learn about those ships that attacked us?”

“If we could have linked our force fields, I doubt they could have killed us. Their beams are strong, but not strong enough to have broken through before we started firing our pulses. They were waiting for our appearance and moved in too quickly for us to link ships.”

“If those ships aren’t strong enough to destroy us with linked fields, how was our fleet, that we know was linked, destroyed?”

The Sensor Controller raised his wings and said, “I have no idea, but before I go back to take a closer look, I would suggest we have more ships with us.”

“How many more?”

“At least a thousand.”

The Wing Controller thought a moment and said, “Is it possible they didn’t use their most powerful weapons to bait a trap for us to fall into?”

“If that’s the case, then that must be what happened to our Attack Fleet. I suggest we allow our Fleet Controllers to make the call on our next attempt to scan this galaxy.”

The Wing Controller thought about what had just happened and said, “Send the scan to the Hive Control. Let them decide what to do.”

• • •

The Seven Leaders watched the attack on the Violet Ships and the First said, “If they’re coming back they will be coming in force.”

The Seventh said, “I don’t think they will be coming quickly.”

“Why not?”

“Remember, the ships they sent here were surplus ships available because of their victory over the Yellow Ships they’re fighting. Those surplus ships have been destroyed and in order to send a force large enough, they will have to weaken their lines facing their enemy. I don’t think they will do that.”

“I hope you’re right. Continue the evacuation.”

“I will do so; however, may I send a copy of what happened to the White Ship Leaders.”

The First looked at the others and saw their agreement, “You may do so.”

• • •

George and Meisa were greeted at the Command Center and everyone was happy to see them again. Dolly was hugging George when Jeff said, “I have a transmission coming in from the Blue Giants.”

George said, “Put it on the wall display.”

The people watched as the Blue Giants destroyed nine of the ten Violet Ships. Dolly said, “What do you think they’ll do now?”

George shrugged and said, “They won’t be sending a small number of ships to follow up on that excursion. It also seems unlikely that they will weaken their main lines facing off against the Yellow Ships. I’m really not certain about what they might do.”

Chris said, “We need to get Zack and Isadore to start making recordings of what’s happening in M-87.”

George looked at Dolly and Jeff and they nodded. “Jeff, issue the orders and start making the runs immediately. Tell them to focus on the main battle lines and see if any ships are taken out of the Violet Civilization’s lines. I also need you to get that Crazy Cuban here to discuss the best path to follow in our ship construction.”

Jeff went to his board and started issuing the orders.

• • •

Arvolo looked at his board and said, “Admiral Hardy, you and I need to take a trip to Command Center.” He pushed a button and said, “Kenny, I need you to take command of the fleet. My presence has been requested back on Earth.”

“We’ve almost completed the rearming of the fleet. Where do you want us to go once that’s completed?”

“Hold station outside the galaxy. We’ll determine our next move after I speak with the Command Team.”

“Tell George I said hello.”

“I will. What do you know about him?”

“He’s the only one I know that’s smarter than you, RV. I think the two of you will make a great team.”

“Will I have to wear a uniform?”

“He doesn’t.”

“I like him already. Thanks, Kenny.”

Cyanna looked at RV, “Why am I going?”

“I need your insight. You may see things I miss.”

Cyanna raised her eyebrows, “Get real! What’s the real reason?”

“I like having you around.”

Cyanna stood from her chair and said, “Now that’s a reason I can believe. Let’s go.”

Arvolo smiled but knew he wasn’t kidding. She was becoming smarter with every experience she had. No one else could have made the changes in the Needles attack plan as quickly. He knew he did need her for the meeting. Especially if this George was as smart as he was given credit for. They boarded the new attack craft and Arvolo took his seat in the pilot’s chair. Cyanna leaned over and kissed him on the cheek as she took her sensor chair and he smiled. Well, he did like having her around. She took his board to hers and set the guidance on auto as she came around and jumped into his lap. Just before he kissed her he decided that the real reason was the second.

• • •

The Command Team waited for RV to arrive and were discussing all that had happened when the speaker come on, “Is this a formal meeting or informal?”

Jeff went to his board and said, “Why do you ask?”

“I need to dress appropriately.”

Jeff looked at George wearing a tank top and flip-flops and said, “Informal.”

George looked at Jeff with raised eyebrows and Jeff said, “The Admiral also doesn’t like to wear uniforms.”

George smiled and said, “Imagine that.”

Dolly put her head in her hand and shook it. George saw her and shrugged, “There’s a time and place for everything.”

Dolly continued shaking her head and said, “Will you please tell me when the time for you to wear your uniform arrives because I’ve not seen it yet.”

“I wore a tux at your wedding.”

“With Flip-flops.”

“But they were shined.”

“George, no flip-flops have ever been made that can be shined.”

“I have a patent leather set, sis.”

Dolly looked at him with disbelief and Meisa said, “He’s telling the truth. They’re patent leather so he won’t have to shine them. He just dusted them off.”

Dolly fell back in her chair and Jillian said, “He has his flip-flops; you have your smooth file.”

Jeff laughed and Dolly said, “Don’t get started.”

Jeff raised both hands and smiled.

Chris reached under the table and took out a set of flip-flops and took off his shoes. Dolly jerked her head at him and he said, “Hey, I’m a civilian now. Besides, did you take a good look at that piece of cloth you wore to our last dance?”

Dolly looked at Arnold as he loosened his tie and put his feet on the table. She started laughing when he saw he was wearing a pair of satin slippers. “Not you, too?”

“I suspect it’s going to be a long meeting. I might as well get comfortable.”

Arvolo and Cyanna entered the room and they saw he was wearing a Cuban shirt and a pair of baggy pants. The pretty blonde woman with him was in her Naval Uniform. She looked around the table and said, “I feel overdressed.”

RV said, “I told you.”

Dolly said, “Take your jacket off and make yourself at home. You’ll know better next time.”

Cyanna shook her head, “I still don’t know if I can bring myself to dress informally.”

RV said, “I’ll order it. You won’t have a choice.”

George watched the Cuban closely and decided that he liked the Admiral. He had a quick smile and his eyes were bright. He and the blonde were an item. He leaned back and let Dolly run the meeting. He needed to get a feel for this Fleet Admiral. Could he make the hard decisions that were going to be required? Well, let’s wait and see.

The Command Team listened as RV and Cyanna went over the recording of the recent fleet action against the Violet Fleet. George noticed that RV deferred to the blonde when questions arose about the tactics used. Hemon asked a direct question of Arvolo, “What if your Needles had not been able to change their initial attack plan in time? Wouldn’t you have lost a lot of them?”

Arvolo said, “Yes.”

Hemon said, “And you were willing to take those losses?”

“Yes, I was.”

“Why?”

Arvolo leaned back in his chair and said, “If we had delayed then the Blue Giants would have lost most of their fleet against the advancing fleet. That Fleet would have also split up and gone to attack planets with large populations. We had a limited window of opportunity and we had to use it or lose it.” Arvolo paused and said, “I suspect some of you were of the opinion that we should have called off the attack because of the possible losses we would suffer.”

George said, “And you think that would have been a mistake?”

Arvolo noticed that George had remained silent and that this was his first question. He smiled and said, “You are not one of the faint of heart, Sir. You knew that we had to have an idea of how effective our ships would be against their technology. That was the main reason for the attack. Saving the Blue Giants was just a byproduct of what happened.”

Jeff said, “We are considering giving the Blue Giants our technology.”

Arvolo looked at Jeff and shrugged, “The Violet Civilization will be coming for them. It would help us in the long run if they could take out as many as possible before we have to face them.”

Hemon said, “So, you’re in favor of giving it to them.”

“Only if they agree not to use it against us.”

“How could you trust they wouldn’t?”

“If they say they won’t; they won’t.”

The statement brought the room to silence. George smiled, “How can you make that assertion, Admiral.”

Arvolo said, “I spent days listening to their transmissions while I learned their language. I don’t know if you realize this but they’re telepathic. It’s difficult, if not downright impossible, to lie when the one you’re communicating with can hear your thoughts. Their entire culture is built around direct and brutal honesty. If they agree to use our technology only for defense, that’s exactly what they’ll do. If they can’t, they’ll refuse to take it.”

George looked around the room before he asked, “What do you think the Violet Civilization will do next?”

“They’ll be coming back looking for trouble.”

“Do you think their war with the Yellow Ships might delay them?”

“Would it delay you if the same thing happened to us?”

George shrugged.

Jillian said, “The only way they were able to attack was by winning a major battle and having additional ships available. Now those ships are gone. They are in a much weaker position than before they came here.”

Arvolo shrugged as well.

Chris said, “You still think they’ll come?”

“Who’s the bigger threat?”

George laughed out loud and said, “Bravo, Admiral.”

Chris looked at George and then RV, “Please explain what I’m missing.”

“If four of us are fighting three of you with big sticks and we’re pretty much holding our own, I might send the extra stick to take care of someone that might join the attack against us. However, I learn that the one I sent to eliminate the possible attacker was killed instantly by something that sent a metal projectile through him; I might view the one holding that weapon as a bigger threat than the ones with the sticks. I suspect my fear might drive me to take chances I wouldn’t normally take.”

Dolly said, “We killed their entire fleet in less than two minutes. Do you think they might know it happened that fast?”

George said, “Dolly, if the Admiral’s ship suddenly stopped communicating during a battle, what would you do?”

“I would contact another ship.”

“And if that ship didn’t answer as well?”

“I’d have our communications section attempt to contact any ship that was with him.”

“And if after two minutes you discover that none of your ships are answering?”

Dolly sighed and said, “They’re coming back. They have no choice.”

Arnold said, “Why don’t they have a choice?”

“What if this unknown enemy decides to attack while they’re in the middle of a huge battle with the Yellow Ships and blows a hold in their line.” George looked at Arvolo and said, “If the Blue Giants aren’t in their galaxy, where do you think they’ll look first?”

Arvolo said, “That’s how I see it. They’ll be coming here and we are going to be rushed to change our ships before they arrive.”

George furrowed his brow, “What do you mean change our ships?”

“They are going to have to be modified to fight differently. We need to remove the Needles from them and change the Needle launch tubes to striker tubes. We also need to change our attack craft to a larger model that can carry a much larger payload than the Needles.”

Jeff said, “What role will the Needles play in the future?”

“They will be strictly used for ship defense.”

George said, “Tell me what you see, Admiral?”

Arvolo restarted the video of the attack on the Violet Fleet and stopped it at the moment the main guns and strikers hit the force field. “I want you to look at this impact by one of our main gun’s pulses on the force field right here.” The group watched as the beam hit and the force field flashed, but didn’t fail. Arvolo moved the pointer to the left and backed the video up slightly, “Now watch what happens here when a striker hits the force field.” The group watched the slow motion view of the striker hitting the force field and saw a massive blast punch a huge hole through it.

Dolly said, “Our beams won’t penetrate.”

Arvolo nodded, “They come close, but when those Violet Ships have their force fields overlapping, only the striker will penetrate.”

George said, “The beams still killed a lot of their ships.”

“Yes they did but only after a striker cleared the way for them to get through.”

George leaned back and said, “Tell us what you want done to our ships.”

“First, I want the Needle Tubes set up to fire a striker as big as a Needle.”

George got out his calculator and ran some quick calculations. “Is the nose of the new striker going to be hardened?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want the same attack speed?”

“If it’s possible, I do.”

“May I assume you ran these calculations?”

“I didn’t but Cyanna did.”

Dolly looked at George and said, “What?”

“According to the data, just one striker the size of a Needle traveling at two thirds light speed will generate an explosion larger than four hundred of the previous strikers. It still boils down to mass times velocity and that twenty ton striker should knock a huge hole in any force field big enough to fly a ship through.” George looked at Arvolo, “How many of these strikers will the main battleship carry?”

“The same number as Needles.”

“That’s a hundred and sixty of those monsters.”

Arvolo said, “I was really limited in how to attack that Violet Fleet. There were close to three hundred thousand ships and we didn’t have but fifty thousand strikers. I was forced to find a way to use our fusion missiles to carry out the destruction. Now if we will just modify our ships, we should be able to knock out a fleet that size rather quickly, especially if you’ll get the new attack craft into production.”

George said, “How do you know about that?”

“We flew one here. Admiral Anders was able to take one for analysis.”

“What do you think about it?”

“They will become our attack fighters.”

George leaned back and said, “Go on.”

Arvolo said, “Our main battleships are becoming like the Violet Ships. We had to line them up and fire a barrage at the center of their lines to break through their force fields. We give away all the advantages our battleships have over the enemy by forcing them to fly in fleet formations instead of being able to attack targets of opportunity. Our ships are faster, more maneuverable, and possess more firepower but we use them like old fleet formations restricting their movements. They also are an easy target to attack. The Battleships will be used to attack groups of ships and then escape. The Needles will keep any ships pursuing our battleships away.”

“How will the Needles be armed?”

“They will carry mini-strikers that weigh about a thousand pounds each as well as a main beam strong enough to punch a hole through any ship they hit. The striker will knock down the force field and the Needle can use a beam or another striker to knock out an enemy ship.”

Jeff said, “Just how are you going to transport the Needles and attack craft to the battle site. Will the pilots be forced to stay in their ships throughout the exercise?”

Arvolo looked at Cyanna and she inserted a disc into her console. She stood and walked over to the wall display as a huge, round ship appeared. George said, “Isn’t that a colony ship?”

“It is, but we’ve added some changes to its structure.” Cyanna looked at the attendees and asked, “How many launch tubes can be installed on this ship?” She waited as the room remained silent. She looked over and saw George punching his calculator and then he looked up and smiled, “More than three thousand Needle tubes with twenty in each.”

Cyanna smiled, “You’re dead on the number but we cut back to two thousand Needle tubes to add more attack craft.”

George whistled, “You’re planning to carry twenty thousand on that ship?”

Cyanna tilted her head and smiled, “Yes we are. The total number of pilots and crew manning the ship will be ninety five thousand.”

Dolly said, “There won’t be much space in the ship for living quarters.”

Arvolo said, “Actually there will. The attack craft will be anchored to the outer hull with the pilot’s room directly under their ship. “They’ll enter their attack craft by going up through the ceiling. The launch tubes for the needles will be scattered around the ship among the attack craft.”

“Won’t that ship make a huge target before we could launch?”

Cyanna said, “We’ve run some trials and if the ship is jumping into a situation where all hands are at battle stations, every ship and Needle could be launched in less than twenty seconds with all of the attack craft launching in less than five seconds. The main ship would then jump away and return to pick up their pilots later or have a coordinate where the ships could jump to them for retrieval. These transports will have force fields powered by ten of our new reactors. I suspect there won’t be many weapons that will be able to penetrate it.”

George looked at the display and said, “What will be the ratio of battleships to those transports?”

“Three thousand battleships for each transport.”

“That means you will have forty needles protecting each battle ship.”

Cyanna said, “Thirty will defend against all incoming enemy ships and ten will engage ships that are close but not attacking.”

Hemon said, “What happens if the Battleship has to jump away?”

“The Needles will have a warning light on their panels notifying them of the impending jump and they will move inside the ship’s force field prior to the jump. Their panel will also give them the coordinates of the jump so that if they aren’t taken with the battleships, they can immediately jump to follow it.”

Jeff said, “You know how spread out a space battle can get. How can those Needles possibly get back inside the force field quickly enough?”

“They’ll go weightless and fly directly into the hull of the ship. With no mass they will simply stop at the hull, causing no damage. We’re also incorporating an emergency control that will automatically send their ship back, no matter what they are doing.”

George smiled, “You think you can create that kind of circuit?”

Cyanna smiled, “No Sir, I can’t, but Kenny Anders already has a working model we are using with our Needles to speed up retrieval.”

Dolly looked at George, “This would require a massive building campaign. Are we able to make these changes quickly?”

“Remember I asked you about how our new battleships should be configured. We have two thousand waiting for their weapon installation. We can have them ready to go in six months. The new attack craft can be built here on Earth along with the modification of the Colony Ship. We have four more colony ships that have had their hulls completed so we should be able to modify three of them to make them transports within nine months.”

Arnold said, “What about the new Strikers and Mini-Strikers?”

“Actually, that’s the easy part. We have a factory already building them on Dundee. We’ve decided to add something to their guidance systems. We’re taking a page from the Violet Ships and they will lock on whatever target the pilot designates and will chase it wherever it goes. It will go to full speed in the last twenty miles. If it went too fast it could fail to make turns fast enough to home in on its target.”

Arvolo said, “Will both Strikers have that capability?”

“Absolutely.”

Jeff said, “You have something in mind?”

“If we happen to be severely outnumbered, we’ll jump in and fire a spread of strikers and jump away.”

Chris asked, “Do you think the large strikers will be able to damage ships inside their force fields?”

Arvolo looked at George and said, “You did your calculations earlier with the striker traveling at two thirds the speed of light. What if they were traveling at ninety percent?”

George ran the numbers on his calculator and fell back in his chair.

Dolly said, “What?”

“I used the readings the fleet took on the Violet Ship’s force fields during the battle. If the Striker is moving at that speed the resulting explosion after the strike should blow completely through the force field and out the other side. The blast would cover a fifty mile area. It wouldn’t be a good idea to use it at that speed if we have ships in the vicinity.”

Arvolo nodded, “It would only be used as a hit and run strategy. Obviously, we’ll need a control that sets the attack speed.”

George stared at Arvolo and said, “You’re anticipating an attack of more than a million ships.”

Arvolo slowly shook his head, “Boy, you are just as smart as you’ve been advertised.”

“So you think we will be the primary target?”

“No, the Blue Giants will be the target; however, we may get caught up in the process of their search.”

“You don’t think they will be forced to stay home by the Yellow Ships?”

“Would the Alliance force us to stay home if we were going to attack the Moet?”

“No, they would watch and see what the outcome was going to be.”

Arvolo said, “Or they might join the attack.”

The people in the room felt a chill at that statement and after a moment George started nodding his head.

Chapter Four

The prince waited in the Royal Chamber for the First Master to enter. He had sent the communication to her before he arrived and he knew she was not going to be happy. Something was happening at the home worlds and he had no idea about what should be done. He lowered his eye stalks as the First Master entered. “What is this ridiculous communication!?!”

“It appears that the populations we left behind have declared their independence from your Rule, Mother.”

“They haven’t been destroyed yet?”

The prince hesitated but said, “It appears the beings that were in the White Ships that attacked my ships have brokered a peace with them. The Blue Ships have agreed not to attack our galaxy.” The First Master sat down and her middle two eye stalks moved behind her head showing her shock. The prince continued, “It also appears that the populations we left behind have entered a trade and mutual defense agreement with the Alliance as well. They report that our home worlds’ standard of living have grown tremendously.”

The First Master stared at the Prince and said, “Is there anything else?”

The Prince hesitated but finally said, “They have also been given protection by the White Ships should we attempt to attack.”

“I knew I should have destroyed them before I left.” She paused and said, “Let this be a lesson to you; never leave anyone behind that is not under your control, especially if they might survive.”

“I will remember that, Mother. What are we going to do?”

“We’ll let them see the business end of our dreadnaughts. How many do we have in our fleet?”

“More than two hundred thousand.”

“Send fifty thousand and go teach those treasonous worlds what it means to be disloyal.”

The prince hesitated and the High Master said, “Why are you still here?”

“Mother, what would have forced the Blue Ships to agree not to attack?”

She thought about the question and said, “Take half our ships.”

The prince backed out of the room remembering his first encounter with the White Ships and he suspected that the only thing that would have stopped the Blue Giants was fear. He worried that a hundred thousand dreadnaughts wouldn’t be enough. This time he would not be so stupid as to move into harm’s way.

• • •

Tenah and the Moet Baron looked at each other on their display. Tenah said, “You really sent a communication to the High Ruler?”

“Yes, we might as well go ahead and find out if we’ll survive her attention. I’m surprised our fleet hasn’t made an appearance yet.”

“I understand you moved all your ships from every planet to your Capital.”

The Moet dropped his eye stalks and said, “I guess this is where I see if you really are going to keep your word about attacking us.”

Tenah smiled, “Oh I’m sending the fleet out as we speak.” The Moet and Watcher turned light Grey in shock. “I’m sending them to join your ships at your planet. I don’t know if the White Ships will show up, but our destiny is now tied to yours. All of the Leaders of our Member Planets insisted that we help you.”

The Moet Baron stared at the display and said, “You have earned our loyalty and trust this day. We will also come to your defense if you ever need us.” He paused, “If we survive the fleet that I know is coming.”

The Watcher shouted, “Thousands of ships are breaking into normal space outside the moon’s orbit.”

The Baron looked in the display, “Recall your ships. There are more than a hundred thousand dreadnaughts that just arrived. Your fleet would not stand a chance against just eight of them.”

Tenah heard the warning but struggled with what to do. The Moet pushed his eye stalks forward and said, “You cannot help us. Save your ships and try to free us if they allow us to live.”

Tenah nodded and issued the commands. He turned back to the Moet and said, “Please keep me in on your feed. I want to see what they are going to do.”

The Baron nodded and took the incoming call.

“You will ground your ships and surrender yourselves to the warriors that will be landing momentarily. Failure to follow our orders will lead to your deaths. Do you understand?”

The Baron took a deep breath and started to answer when he saw the Watcher lift one of his pods. He looked back at his screen and saw twenty white ships that had appeared between the huge Moet Fleet and the Planet.

Chris said, “Well if it isn’t the prince. I would have thought you learned your lesson last time you were leading warships against us. I’m going to just tell you this one time and I hope you listen. I am really going to hate destroying all those perfectly good ships, but I will do it if you don’t turn around and leave this galaxy.”

The prince recognized the being on his display and felt a surge of fear. But there were only twenty ships. He looked closer at his panel and saw that these ships were three times larger than the one that attacked his squadron. He pushed his communicator and said, “This does not concern you. This is an internal affair between those on the planet and our Sovereign.”

“Ordinarily, I would agree and step aside but these are not ordinary times. You left the populations on your worlds to be slaughtered by the Blue Giant Ships. You pretty much lost authority over them with that action. You are also aware that if the Blue Giants attacked, all of your planets would have been pretty much destroyed and wouldn’t have been available for you to use on your return. I would suggest that you do what you planned to do and find some new worlds to settle and just write the ones you left behind as a total loss.”

The Moet Fleet Master listened to the conversation and had to admit that the being in the White Ship was probably right. However, he knew being right really didn’t matter. He looked at the prince and saw his fear. He had been informed that the White Ships had attacked his squadron and destroyed some of his ships but he needed to grow a courage pod. Twenty ships against a hundred thousand; they should be attacking instead of talking.

The prince said, “Do you honestly think your ships can take on this fleet?”

Chris smiled, “Actually, we could probably do it with two, but some of you may try to slip by and bomb the planet. I brought enough to make sure that doesn’t happen.” Chris paused and said, “I’ll tell you what; I’ll just destroy half your fleet and allow you the opportunity to run away with the others. However, we are not going to wait for you to attack. You have a slow count to ten and them we will remove your ships from this system.”

Chris looked over at Cyanna and she nodded. “Needle launch is six seconds.”

The Fleet Master was amazed at the tone of the being in the White Ship. He was even more amazed seven seconds later when the first nine rows of ships in his fleet were blown into gas.

A hundred and sixty Needles launched from the hulls of the twenty battle ships, spread out across the front of the Moet Fleet, and launched the first salvo of mini-strikers. They aimed for every other ship and the blast from the one hit took out the ships next to it. The twenty large battleships spread out across the Moet formation and began firing their main guns. Any ships missed by the Needles became targets of the ships that were now moving into the ranks of the huge fleet and were hit and destroyed by the heavy beam pulses. Cyanna watched the ships being killed and shook her head. They had no chance. These Moet Dreadnaughts didn’t have a force field that would stop their regular beams much less the main guns.

The Fleet Master watched as the wave of destruction rolled inexorably through his fleet. He looked at the Prince and yelled, “Order us out of here!!!” The Prince was frozen at the horror of exploding ships but he hit the recall panel. The remaining Moet Dreadnaughts jumped into Green Space and disappeared.

Cyanna ordered, “Cease fire and return to your ships. Battleships remain at the front of the damaged ships while the Moet look for survivors.”

Chris appeared on the Baron’s display and said, “You should go and see if any of those crews survived. They had no choice but to follow their orders.”

The Baron and Tenah were shocked silent by the massive amount of destruction that had only taken a few moments. The Baron issued orders to his ships and they left orbit and moved out into the massive destruction visited on more than twenty thousand dreadnaughts. The Baron said, “Thank you for coming to our defense. We owe you for your assistance.”

Chris looked at the Baron and said, “Do you really mean that?”

“Yes, I do. If there is anything we can do to repay you, we will gladly do it.”

“There is something you can do.”

Tenah broke in on the conversation, “You saved us as well. We will also gladly assist you.”

Chris smiled and said, “We expect to be attacked by ships from the giant galaxy again and we are going to need a massive number of weapons to try and hold them off. Would you consider building them for us? If you agree, we will allow you to arm your ships with them to protect yourselves, provided you agree to never use them as an aggressor but only to defend yourself.”

Tenah said, “You’re not worried about us ever using them against you?”

“We heard your conversation with the Baron and know you were coming to fight with him against the Dreadnaughts. I think your civilizations have learned the lesson of what value peace holds for all of us. This struggle boils down to our galaxy against the massive forces in the other one. Besides, you may have our weapons but you don’t have ships that can penetrate our force fields. You will, however, not ever have to worry about the High Master threatening you again.”

Tenah said, “We are willing to sign an agreement to never be an enemy of yours and will come to your defense if you need us.”

Chris smiled, “You don’t need to sign anything. We’ll take your word as your bond. Are you willing to start building our missiles?”

“If you’ll send the plans, we’ll start immediately.”

“The ships with what you need to get started will arrive later today. Thank you for helping us.”

• • •

Chris turned off the display and Jillian said, “You know they will have access to gravity technology if they start building the Strikers.”

“Yes, I do. But the Alliance was going to send their fleet here to protect the ones they had made a treaty with. Those thousands of planets that were living in substandard conditions now know the benefit of a good standard of living. They will do all they can to defend that against all that would change it. They are going to need everything they can get to survive another invasion from M-87. The Alliance planets are heavily industrialized for ship building and they can make a difference immediately in our store of Strikers. Besides, where did we get the original gravity gun?”

Chris had a shocked expression, “I completely forgot about that.”

“What about the Moet?”

“They can be trusted even more than the Alliance. The Moet populations share a common bond of knowing they were to be thrown away by their Masters. They are united in their determination to make their planets better. Even the Masters left behind are allowing the populations to direct their actions. If we survive, this galaxy is going to prosper beyond our wildest belief.”

Cyanna listened and determined that she needed Arvolo’s take on what was being done. This was beyond her experience. She missed him. She sighed and continued to scan the thousands of destroyed ships for any that might pose a threat. Two days later the twenty ships left and she went back to the man she missed so much.

• • •

The Hive Controller was surrounded by his top Controllers. They had completed watching the scans and communications from the failed invasion attempt of the second galaxy. The Controller asked, “What can we say about this event?”

The Fleet Controller said, “That species in the Blue Ships have a weapon that can defeat our force fields.”

“And you arrived at that conclusion by…”

“We know the large Blue Ships would not be able to penetrate our linked force Fields.” The Fleet controller saw the Hive Controller start to get angry and he quickly said, “They were unable to penetrate them during the initial phase of the attack and our ships killed thousands of them with our pulses. The ones that attacked our wing defeated them before they could link their fields. It couldn’t have been those ships that destroyed our fleet. Something else had to do it.”

The Hive Controller moved back in his chair and motioned for him to continue.

“We heard our Fleet Sensor Controller say that twelve hundred small ships had appeared directly behind their lines and our communications ceased a moment later. Something on those ships was able to defeat our force fields, allowing the larger Blue Ships to attack our fleet and overwhelm them.”

The Science Controller said, “You are partially right.”

“What have I missed?”

“We immediately tried to contact the other ships in the fleet and none of them were able to respond within two mebs after the Controller stopped responding. That was too fast for the Blue Ships to arrive and kill all of our ships. Whatever defeated our force fields also destroyed our ships.”

“I really find that hard to believe.”

“I don’t see any other answer. If the force fields were defeated, our ships would have scattered and at least one or two of them could have escaped. There is less possibility of our ships being killed after the failure of the force field than as a product of the same event. The time frame just doesn’t allow it. We should also consider one other possibility.”

“What is that?”

“Every Blue Ship we’ve observed has been huge. Our Fleet Controller said that twelve hundred small ships had appeared behind his lines. Could it possibly have been another species that caused the destruction?”

The Feet Controller thought about Science’s statement and finally nodded, “You’re right. This is more serious than I thought.”

The Hive said, “What do you mean?”

“If a weapon exists that could destroy our entire fleet in that short a time, they could represent a far larger danger to our hive than the Yellow Horde.”

“I still don’t know why you say that.”

“What if those Blue Ships, or this other species we suspect, show up when we’re in the middle of a major battle with the Horde and destroy the ships in the middle of our line of attack. We could be overwhelmed by the ancient enemy. They could sweep us all the way back to our Hive.”

The Hive Controller suddenly understood. “Those Blue Ships must be eliminated. And if another species shows up, we must also eliminate them as well. Do we have enough ships in reserve to attack?”

The Industry Controller said, “It was our reserves that were destroyed. We will not be able to replace them for at least five seasons.”

“Could we take the ships needed out of our lines?”

“Only if we’re willing to risk being overrun by the Horde; we’re in a state of equilibrium at the moment, but removing ships could alter the balance. They have a head start on replacing the attack fleet we destroyed four seasons ago. We would have to be able to double our production in half the time they have been building just to match the number they’ve built. Also consider, are we willing to send the same number of ships that were destroyed? I suspect we will need at least double or triple that number if we go back to that galaxy.”

The Hive Controller looked around at his staff and said, “Start the building of new ships immediately. We will not initiate an attack on the Horde and force them to come to our lines while we are rebuilding our fleet. Make good use of the time available. If any of you have another idea, make it known. Those Blue Creatures must be destroyed.”

• • •

Jeff looked at his console and saw his communication light illuminate, “Dolly, we have a message coming in from the Blue Giants.”

Dolly yelled, “George, get in here and bring Hemon with you.”

Dolly took a deep breath and activated the circuit just as George and Hemon arrived, “It’s good to hear from you. Have you reached a decision?”

“It was not an easy decision to make. Our populations really were divided on this issue, but one of our Leaders pointed out that the only civilization to ever attack us came from that Giant Galaxy. We will accept your offer, provided that we can be preemptive against the aggressive civilizations located there.”

Dolly looked at George and he shrugged. Hemon nodded. Dolly said, “What are you planning to do?”

“We suspect that there are many civilizations in that galaxy that are in a constant state of war. We will attempt to reduce their ability to leave their galaxy.”

“What about those that aren’t aggressive?”

“If there is doubt about their status we will discuss it with you before we take action.”

Dolly looked at Jeff and saw him tilt his head and look at her. It was going to be her decision. “Before I agree, will you be able to keep this agreement?”

There was a pause and then she heard, “You worry that after millions of years we may change our mind?”

“I was more worried about a shorter time than that.”

“This is something that all of us have come to agreement on. We will keep this agreement as long as our two species exist.”

“What will happen if we are destroyed?”

“Then it will be our task to eliminate the one that killed you.”

Dolly smiled, “I am going to send you one of our battleships with all of our technology contained in its computer’s database. You may use that ship and its small ships to duplicate what we’ve developed. I will also be sending a new attack craft that we’ve just developed with it. If you’ll send me the coordinates you would like to have it delivered, I’ll have it there today. We will also continue to send you any new technology we develop.”

“We thank you for your trust. The coordinates have just been sent.”

“If you will bring some of your people to meet us there, we’ll show them how the ship operates and teach them how to fly it.”

“If you need our aid, you know how to contact us. I believe you were right in your earlier comments when we first communicated. I know that you are now a friend.”

The link was broken and Hemon said, “I wonder what is going to grow from this seed you just planted.”

Dolly smiled, “I never thought of myself as a farmer, but I do believe that this crop will bear a lot of fruit.” She looked over at Jeff, “Will you handle the transfer?”

Jeff nodded and sent a message to the fleet.

Chapter Five

Chris and Jillian stood on the bridge of the newly christened Jukebox. The ship was one of the new battleships and it bristled with its main guns and launch tubes. Eight of the new Attack craft were anchored to the hull and the pilots chosen to fly them were the best in the fleet. Unlike the old model, the Jukebox had six of the new reactors and three of them were solely used for the force field. Two powered the beams and main guns and the other was used to power the ship’s massive systems.

Jillian looked at Meisa and said, “Are you sure you’re alright being away from George as long as this mission is going to take?”

“He can always come to us in an Attack Craft. I miss the action that happens on a warship. I’ll be fine. Where are we going first?”

“We’re going to M-49. It’s located more than a hundred million light years from M-87 and I don’t think the civilizations there are interested in anything that far away.” Chris looked at Jillian and said, “Take us out.”

Jillian worked the ships controls and the two thousand foot long ship slid smoothly out of space dock and turned slowly toward the direction of the distant Galaxy. They looked at their displays showing the six colony ships in orbit and Meisa said, “We need to find a place for them quickly. They will be loaded and ready to go within six weeks.”

“We should have some viable candidates in half that time.” Chris smiled as Jillian punched the jump pad.

• • •

The Jukebox broke into normal space just outside the edge of the huge galaxy and Chris extended the sensor fields in Sierra Space looking for planets that possessed a similar frequency to the one Earth emitted. After twenty minutes, thousands of coordinates began scrolling down the display. Meisa shook her head, “Wow, there are thousands of planets that are available.”

Chris shook his head, “Not so fast; some of them may be inhabited.”

Jillian said, “Pick ten that are the closest to Earth’s frequency and let’s go investigate.”

Meisa sent the conditions to her terminal and the list appeared at the top of the screen. “Try this one first.”

Jillian entered the coordinates and pushed the jump pad. The Jukebox emerged into normal space and they saw a beautiful blue and green planet below them. “Scan for intelligent life, Jillian.”

“Chris, there is nothing on the planet that has an electrical current. I also do not detect any buildings on the surface.”

“What about life forms?”

“There is a huge abundance and some of them are quite large. However, I don’t detect any that would represent a danger to us. There are some carnivores on the plains that are as big as the large cats on Earth. We would need to take a closer look to see if there is any other life form that might pose a hazard.”

Meisa shouted, “We have hundreds of ships entering normal space.” She hit the general quarters alarm and reached for the force field control.

Chris shouted, “Don’t go to full power on the force field.” Meisa pulled her hand back and showed her confusion. “George tells me that the field is always active and it will automatically adjust to anything fired at it. Is that true?”

Meisa nodded.

“Well, if they are scanning our ship, they now believe that we have a very weak force field. They didn’t come in firing at us, so I would rather see how they act if they perceive us as weaker than themselves. What is the strength of their force fields, Jillian?”

Jillian looked at her console and said, “About the strength of an Alliance Battleship. They pose not real threat if their beams are on the same technological level.”

Chris reached in his console, turned off the general quarters alarm, pulled out the Jenze translator device, and put it on his head. He turned to Meisa, “See if you can get the frequency they’re using to communicate.”

Meisa scanned the electromagnetic spectrum and finally found the one being used by the ships that had appeared. Chris listened as they discussed what to do among their officers.

After thirty minutes Chris opened his eyes and said, “Jillian, are the scanners still active in Sierra Space?”

“Yes.”

“I believe those ships are waiting for someone in a position of power to come here to decide what to do about us. See if you can track where they come from to get here.”

“Why do you want to know, Chris?”

“I’m starting to understand more and more of what they’re saying, but what I think they’re planning to do is kill everyone onboard and take our ship to use as a transport for taxes they’ve forced on other planets. Give me a little more time.”

Jillian looked at Meisa and saw her expression turn hard. Jillian smiled, “Relax, we knew there were probably intelligent civilizations here. We just hoped they weren’t so advanced that we would have to run.”

Meisa looked at her scanner’s display, “Do you honestly think those ships are the most advanced in this galaxy?”

Jillian shrugged, “I have no idea, but they must be stronger than most to force taxes on other planets.”

“Humph, we’ll see.”

Chris opened his eyes and said, “Turn the bow of the ship toward the edge of the galaxy.” Jillian maneuvered the Jukebox around and one of the grey ships fired a beam across the bow. “Did you get a reading on that?”

“Yes. It wasn’t much of a beam.”

“According to those discussing our fate it’s the strongest beam they have.”

“What else have you learned?”

“I don’t think this galaxy has ever been invaded by a force from outside it. If what they’re bragging about is true, most of the civilizations they’ve conquered are basically peaceful. There were about a hundred aggressive civilizations long ago, but it appears this one is the one that won out and now controls this galaxy.”

“Is that all?”

“No, they go to each planet every year and sacrifice a hundred of their citizens to their god. They really don’t do it for that reason but use the ceremony to determine which planets are becoming rebellious. If they resist the killings, then that planet will be invaded again and brought back in line.”

Meisa said, “Just how did you learn that?”

“That’s what these ships were doing out in this part of the galaxy. They were conducting the sacrifices when one of them detected our arrival. They were bragging about how they outdid each other in the cruel way they killed the ones selected for them.”

Jillian looked at her display as it beeped, “A ship is moving our way through Sierra Space. I have its point of origin locked in.”

Chris sat down and listened to the grey ships.

• • •

“Oh no! They sent the pig.”

“Well there goes our portion of this find. We’ll be lucky to get anything.”

“I hope you didn’t send a recording of this ship when you notified headquarters about it.”

“Are you crazy? Didn’t you get the last message requiring a video of anything discovered out of the ordinary?”

“What message?”

“I’m sending a copy to you.”

“He may not have received it but I did.”

“I think all of us did and I suspect it was the pig that sent it. I’ve never seen anyone as greedy.”

“That’s why the Crown chose him.”

“Hey, I didn’t get this message. But I see you had no choice. Better hold it down; he’s almost here.”

The channel grew silent as a large ship emerged into normal space. “What have you found here?”

“We’re not sure, Excellency. We detected its arrival and decided to come and confront it. The force field around it is rather weak. We thought about destroying it, but decided that it would make a good transport for our spoils.”

“You made a good decision. Just how do you intend to take control of it?”

The channel remained silent.

“I see you need some help. Send several shuttles toward it and fire a beam across its bow. They’ll understand to drop their force field. Then board the ship and take control.”

“What do we do with the crew?”

“Put them in the shuttles and open the airlocks on the way back. That should remove any problems with them.”

“That’s a great idea. Get the shuttles ready.”

Chris pushed his transmitter, “I really don’t think that will be necessary.” Silence slammed down on the frequency. “I’ve been listening to your conversations and it appears that none of you possess any redeeming qualities. So let me tell you what is about to happen, so you have a moment to prepare. There are three hundred and fifty six of your ships here and most of you have bragged about how the ones you murdered on the planets you controlled begged for mercy that none of you were willing to give. You are all going to die in just a moment and I want you to see what the ones you killed felt before you took their life.”

All the Grey Ships opened fire on the Jukebox just before the Jukebox’s hundred secondary beams fired into them. The Jukebox’s beams fired so fast that they looked like a strobe light. In less than ten seconds, every Grey Ship was blown apart. More than half of them tried to jump away, but were hit before their jump screens could activate.

Jillian looked out at the wreckage of the grey colored ships and said, “I didn’t know you had it in you to kill that many.”

Chris looked at her with an expression that was hard to fathom, “Contact the fleet and have them meet us here.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I’ve just seen what these beings are like. No one should be under their control and I intend to remove them from their current lofty status.”

Jillian looked at Meisa and then started speaking into her communicator.

• • •

The Havana arrived ahead of the fleet and George took a shuttle to the Jukebox with Arvolo and Cyanna. Chris told them everything he had learned from the crews of the Grey Ships and then told them what he intended.

Arvolo listened and saw something different in the Professor. He was not the naïve person that had attacked the Alliance at the Moet Capital. Everyone was silent until he said, “Dr. Connor, are you sure you want to carry out that plan?”

Chris looked at Arvolo and said, “I do unless you have another.” Arvolo didn’t say anything and Chris said, “Do you?”

Arvolo tiled his head and then looked at Chris, “We’ve not been in the business of killing planets.”

“Can you think of a better candidate than this one?”

Arvolo just sighed.

George said, “I thought you were the one that said we had to save the Alliance and Moet?”

“I was.”

“How is this one different?”

“They have systematically killed a hundred innocent beings on every planet every year and they enjoy doing it; neither the Alliance nor Moet were that sadistic. This civilization is not fighting to save itself. It exists solely to torment the ones they’ve conquered. They cannot be redeemed.” Chris paused and said, “Do you have another plan, George?”

George looked Chris in the eyes and took a deep breath, “No.”

Chris looked at Arvolo and said, “How do we make this happen?”

Arvolo shook his head and said, “There must be another way to do this?”

Jillian said, “RV, can you leave a small amount of cancer behind because you don’t want to kill all of it.”

“That’s different?”

“How?” RV struggled with a reply and Jillian said, “It would eventually grow and endanger the body again. We didn’t hear the sadistic joy of those ships at slowly killing helpless beings. Chris did. If your family was killed by them, what would you want done?”

RV lowered his head and said, “Revenge is not a meal one should taste. It changes you in ways that can never be repaired.”

George said, “This is not revenge.” RV looked up. “What do you think will happen to this planet if we destroy their ability to wage war?”

RV stood and said, “Every planet they’ve been terrorizing will come and burn every one of them in a fire.”

“Then they will have tasted the meal and they would be less for having done it. Sometimes one must be willing to make hard decisions.”

“I will be the one to do it.”

Jillian looked sharply at Chris and said, “Chris, I don’t want to lose the man I love to this.”

“I’ll be fine, Jilly. I have no doubt about this choice. I won’t find pleasure in it, but I won’t be scared by the experience.”

“You’re not telling us something.”

Chris just stared at her.

“What are you hiding?”

Chris sighed and said, “Every tenth year those beings collect a million hostages from the worlds they rule and transport them to their home world. Once they arrive, the hostages are divided up and sent to the cities for a festival where the populations are allowed to fire small capsules into them. The Capsule contains a local insect that begins eating the one it enters. The hostages are eaten alive by these pests that reproduce at a huge rate once they enter the hostage’s body. Those ships were excited about how the hostages took days to die in excruciating pain. Even the children fought among themselves to have the opportunity to shoot them. That festival ended a week ago when the last hostage died and was burned.”

Arvolo said, “I believe three of the heavy strikers should do the job nicely. I would like to assist you in this surgery.”

George said, “I will also take part.”

Chris nodded and said, “First we have to remove that civilization’s fleets from the captive planets, so they won’t be held hostage against us.”

The first elements of the Fleet began arriving and Arvolo got on the Jukebox’s communication circuits. He looked over at Chris, “Did you get a frequency on the ships you killed.”

Chris flinched at the verb but nodded. Jillian sent the information to Arvolo’s console and he continued giving orders. Jillian came over and hugged Chris, “Are you sure about this?”

“Please tell me another way. I don’t want to do this but I just see no way around it.”

“Perhaps they will provide an answer.”

“You think we should talk before we take action?”

“I believe it can’t hurt anything.”

Chris looked at Arvolo and he shrugged, “I was reluctant before, but this festival has convinced me. I’m one of those that are glad the Spanish Conquistadores wiped out the Aztecs and their human sacrifices. Once a society gets a blood lust, there’s no way to remove it.” Arvolo turned back to the communication console.

Chris said, “Thank you. I need that reassurance.”

Arvolo said over his shoulder, “No problem. I’ll be glad to take the burden on and leave you out of it.”

Cyanna looked at RV with a frown. He saw her and said, “I’ve seen up close what a repressive government can do to innocent civilians. I have no problem dealing with this one.”

Cyanna turned back to the display and remembered how his wife and brother were executed by the Communists. He did have a different perspective than hers. She didn’t doubt his strength and knew he meant what he said.

After three hours RV received a message from Admiral Owens. He listened and said, “There are about a hundred thousand plus planets where two or more of those ships are located. I’m ordering the transport here with fifty thousand Needles and ten thousand attack craft. We now have three thousand battleships in the fleet along with twenty four thousand attack craft assigned to them. The Needles will be assigned one planet each and the battleships will go to two. The attack craft will be assigned the others. Our intent in making this happen without loss of life is to go in shooting and hopefully prevent a message from getting out about what we’re doing. So don’t take long to complete your assignment.”

George said, “How are you going to assign the planets?”

“The battleships will be given planets with twenty or more ships in orbit. Attack Craft will take those with between eight and nineteen. The Needles will take the others. Does that meet with your approval?”

George nodded and said, “You’re saving the home world for last.”

Arvolo smiled, “That’s what you do with desert.”

Chris chuckled and said, “Make the assignments and let’s get this over with.”

Arvolo stood and motioned to Cyanna to follow him, “You’ll have them shortly. The Computer on the Melbourne is working on the task.”

An hour later Arvolo appeared on the Jukebox’s display, “You have your assignments. If you encounter any difficulty, notify your assigned partner and they will come to your aid. Otherwise, stay at your last assignment and await further instructions. We will jump to our targets in five minutes.”

Chris watched the chronometer start the countdown and looked at his board. Every ready light was illuminated and he knew the crew was ready. He looked at Jillian and she smiled, “This is worth doing, my love.”

He smiled and watched until the countdown hit zero and then jumped the Jukebox.

• • •

The forty ships in orbit above a highly industrialized world were bored. Most of them had attended the Festival and now the high of watching so many die had worn off. One ship’s Commander asked over the general frequency, “Do any of you ever get the urge to hit one of those cities on the planet with a good laser shot?”

“I get the urge all the time. I’ve been told that one Commander did exactly that in the Posev Quadrant.”

“What happened?”

“They fired fifteen capsules in him and let him die chained to a pole.”

“Well, there’s a good reason not to do it.”

There was a long moment of silence until it was broken by one of the Commanders saying, “It might be worth it just to watch them burn.”

They all laughed and wished they could fire on the planet.

Twenty seconds later, all forty ships were expanding clouds of vapor as the ship that killed them jumped away.

All over M-49 grey colored ships were being destroyed without warning. In less than an hour more than three quarters of a million ships had been blown apart. More than a hundred thousand planets saw the explosions taking place in high orbit above them and wondered what was happening. The Governors on the planet attempted to contact the ships that were there to impose their will on the population, but received no answer. After many attempts they contacted the Fleet Agency on the Home World to find out what was going on.

The Fleet Agency began receiving calls which started as a trickle and rapidly turned into a flood of inquires about what was happening to the ships that were scattered around the King’s Empire. The Agency began sending messages out to their far flung subject worlds and many of the ones they contacted were cut off in mid-sentence. The Head of the Agency sent an emergency communication to the Fleet Commander who was also unable to contact any of the Empire’s Ships. Something was happening and it didn’t appear to be good. He rushed to the King’s Quarters and told him that something was happening to the Ships of the Fleet. The King stood and yelled for the Head of the Agency to report to him immediately. They were still arguing about what was taking place when the communication system illuminated and they heard a voice.

“If you’re trying to reach your ships you’re wasting your time. We’ve just destroyed every one of them.”

The King looked at the Fleet Commander who went to the panel and pushed the talk button, “And just who are you?”

“That’s really not important. You should know that we are sending this conversation to every electronic device on your planet. We think your population should be aware of what’s about to happen to them. We are also sending it to all of the worlds you’ve be terrorizing over the centuries, so they will also know what is taking place.”

“I’m afraid you have me at a loss. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I have sent my fleet to every planet you control and have destroyed every ship you had stationed there. None of them survived and those worlds are now free of your control. As far as the ones you have on the planet’s surfaces, we’ll allow the local populations to determine how they want to handle them. However, we are here to complete the task of removing you from this galaxy. In exactly ten minutes, we are going to destroy your planet. We feel it’s appropriate to give you that much time to say whatever you choose to whatever deity you might worship.”

The King shouted at the Commander, “Attack them with our ships!”

“I hope you don’t mean the six thousand you had in this system. They are no longer available for you to use. We removed them on our way in to your world.”

“You can’t do this!”

“We really don’t want to, but we have seen what you are and the universe will be a better place without your world in it.”

An officer ran in to the room yelling, “Our fleet has been destroyed by three ships. They are now taking station around our planet.”

“Is there nothing we can do to save ourselves?”

“I think the hostages you tied to poles and shot capsules into asked you the same question. What was your response?”

The Earth ships that had destroyed the Grey Ships remained at the planets they had freed and relayed the conversation into every electronic device on every planet. Since most of the planets had been forced to use the language of the King, they understood what Chris was saying. Soon large crowds began moving toward the buildings where the Governor and the governor’s lackeys were located on each planet.

“What have we done to you? You have no right to do this.”

“I could ask you the same thing about all those you murdered during your festival, but that really isn’t the issue. Incidentally, you have three minutes remaining. The issue is that your soul is black and you are past redemption. Make the best of what time you have remaining. You have murdered your last hostage.”

Chris watched the clock and then it reached all zeros, he pushed the button on the weapons panel and felt the vibration of the launch. A Heavy Striker shot out of its launch tube and it blew into the atmosphere at nine tenths light speed. The gravity device returned its full twenty thousand pound of mass just before it entered the planet’s atmosphere and it blew the atmosphere away from it at twenty thousand miles per hour. The Striker hit the surface and blew a ten thousand mile wide crater more than two hundred miles deep into the planets crust. Two other strikers hit the planet simultaneously on two other sides of the doomed world. The planet blew outward and broke apart into giant chunks of land that flew away from the surface faster than the speed of sound. The video of the planets destruction was sent to all the captive worlds and the celebrations immediately began and continued for weeks.

Arvolo said, “I think just one heavy striker would have done the trick. Three was massive overkill.”

Chris watched the planet’s destruction and said, “Are you sure just one would be enough?”

George said, “Chris, the wind blowing away from the impact would have scoured the planet’s surface clean. My analysis shows that the winds would have gone completely to the other side of the planet at eight hundred miles an hour. The following earthquakes would have finished everything else. Arvolo’s right, one would do it.”

“Perhaps the two of you could assist me in completing a task I am behind on.”

“What is that?”

“I need you and Admiral Arvolo to scan for uninhabited planets for our colonists. I’ve found one planet but I need five more rather quickly.”

“We’ll be glad to help; just give me a few minutes to send the fleet back to the Space Docks.”

“You’re not sending them to Earth?”

“No, we’re going to continue to operate outside our galaxy as a precaution. We’re pretty much accustomed to it now.”

“I’ll go ahead and start searching for viable planets.”

“Thanks Admiral. I’ll have Jillian send you the coordinates of the planets we’ve determined are close to Earth in frequency.”

George said, “I’ll notify the first colony ship to come to the first planet you found and Meisa and I will assist them in getting established. Admiral, please contact me if anything happens while I’m here.”

“Yes Sir, you’ll be the first to know.”

Jillian sent the information and came over and hugged Chris, “Are you alright?”

“Yes, I can still see the posts in the center of every major city. I’m glad I looked; now my conscience doesn’t bother me.”

“Good.”

“Let’s go find another planet.”

“Are we going to wait on Meisa?”

“No, I think she’ll be staying with George at the first planet. If she wants to come back she can catch up to us later in a shuttle.”

Jillian went and selected a planet from the list and announced, “Jump in thirty seconds. Stand down from General Quarters. Jump in twenty five seconds.”

The Jukebox hung in orbit above a shattered, burning world for a few moments and then it disappeared.

Chapter Six

The First Master was waiting for the prince and Fleet Master when they arrived at her quarters. They both saw her dark grey color and raised eye stalks and knew she was past anger and approaching rage, “What happened to our ships!?!”

The Fleet Master kept his eye stalks down and said, “The White Ships blew through our ships like they were trees in a hurricane. We were defenseless against even their smallest ship. Twenty of their ships destroyed more than twenty five percent of our fleet in less than four small measures.”

The High Master already knew about the attack; she had seen the recording of what happened. “What are we going to do about it!?!”

The prince also kept his eye stalks pointed toward the floor and said, “I see nothing we can do. We are no match for their ships. Even if we sent every ship we possess, they would all be destroyed faster than can be imagined.”

The Fleet Master saw her getting angrier and said, “One of my Ship Masters contacted one of his relatives on the Capital and was told that the White Ships destroyed a Violet Ship fleet that was attacking the Blue Ships and that’s why they have agreed to no longer invade our galaxy.”

The First Master’s color started growing lighter in color, “Do you know if the Violet Ships know they did it?”

“According to what my Ship Master was told, they think it was the Blue Ships that did it.”

The First Master’s eye stalks went straight up and she said, “We might be able to use this information to help us.”

The prince glanced at the Fleet Master and saw he was also wondering what she was suggesting. The prince said, “I’m sorry, Mother, how can we use this?”

“Do we have a Watcher that knows the Violet Creature’s language?”

“We have more than a hundred that have learned it over the cycles we’ve been coming here.”

“What if we go to the Violet Creatures and tell them where the ships that destroyed their fleet are located? We know where their home world is located.”

The prince felt shock at this revelation and didn’t like the idea of giving those merciless killers information about his home galaxy. The Fleet Master asked, “How do you think they will respond? Will they not then kill every planet in our galaxy?”

“We’ll negotiate with them to see if they’ll agree not to do so.”

The prince and Fleet Master thought about the idea and the prince said, “The White Beings are located on just one planet.”

She said, “And they must have limited numbers of ships at this moment. If they are given time they will expand into the galaxy and will never be stopped.”

“How should we handle this detail?”

“Jump a ship outside their territory and broadcast a message that we wish to help them find the ones that destroyed their fleet. Have the message continuously repeated.”

“What if they come and destroy that ship?”

The High Master looked at them and said, “That is something you don’t want to happen, since the two of you will be on that ship doing the negotiation.”

The prince and Fleet Master felt their fear and the High Master saw their color get lighter. She smiled knowing that these two must prove themselves before she would trust them with another assignment. If they were killed it would serve them right for their failure in the attack. “Take a Watcher and go make this happen.”

The two Moets backed out of the room and their color continued to lighten. The High Master laughed after they had exited her quarters.

• • •

The prince sat in his chair on the Dreadnaught as he listened to the Fleet Commander say to the watcher, “Is the recording being broadcast?”

“Yes, it is, Fleet Master.”

The Fleet Master looked at the Drive Master and nodded. The Drive Master said, “We will jump in two mico-measures.”

The prince and Fleet Master watched their display as the giant galaxy appeared on their displays. The prince said, “This shouldn’t take long.”

“I’m afraid you’re right.”

“Scanner Controller, we have a small ship that just appeared just outside our border broadcasting a message in our language.”

“What are they saying?”

The Scanner listened and said, “They are offering to help up find the ones that destroyed our fleet.”

“Send ten ships out but don’t destroy that ship.”

The Scanner nodded and issued the orders.

• • •

The prince and Fleet Master suddenly saw ten ships emerge into normal space surrounding their ship. The Fleet Master said, “If we’re going to be killed it will happen now.” They waited and the ten ships remained around them not doing anything. “Maybe this might work.” The prince just sat there turning bright white in his fear.

• • •

The Fleet Controller said, “What are they broadcasting?”

“They are saying that they can help us find the ones that destroyed our fleet.”

The Fleet Controller looked at his Communication Controller and said, “Contact the Hive Controller and inform him of what’s happening.”

The Hive Master had just finished a meal and saw his console illuminate. He went over and read what was on the screen and immediately punched a button, “What is this?”

“A ship has appeared outside our border, broadcasting a message in our language saying they know who destroyed our fleet in the other galaxy.”

“Contact them and keep me in the circuit.”

The Fleet Master linked to one of the ships at the strange ships’ location and said, “What are you trying to say to us?”

The Fleet Master looked at the Watcher and said, “Stop the broadcast and tell them the following…”

“We have received information that one of your fleets was destroyed at the Blue Ships’ Galaxy. We know that it was not the Blue Ships that destroyed your fleet but another species that assisted them.”

The Hive Controller said, “This information matches up with what our Science Controller suggested.”

The Fleet Controller said, “Why have you come here to tell us this?”

“The species that destroyed your fleet is also a danger to us. We were hoping you would remove them.”

“I think you want more than just removing them.”

“We would also like you to agree to only remove them and leave the rest of our galaxy alone. If you agree to this, we will inform you of any other civilization in our galaxy that might become a threat to your civilization.”

The Hive Controller said, “We could agree and still destroy them.”

The Fleet Controller said, “You know that we couldn’t do that for a very long time. If these creatures are willing to assist us, we should allow them to do that until we can take action. It will save us time if they become our eyes in their galaxy.”

“Have you scanned their ship?”

“We have and even our smallest commercial ships could destroy it. They are millions of years away from becoming a threat.”

“What would you do if the decision were yours?”

“I need more information before I can answer that question.”

“Well, get what information you need.”

“How many planets does this species currently inhabit?”

“At this moment, they are only located on one planet and their ship numbers are small. However, if they are not dealt with, they will expand and their numbers will grow quickly.”

The Fleet Controller said, “If what this creature is saying is true, I would agree to their terms.”

“Why?”

“We won’t have to remove a million ships to rid ourselves of the ones that are the real threat. The Blue Ships could not defeat our fleet and really don’t represent a threat to us at this time. We won’t have to run the risk of removing massive numbers from our lines of defense to handle this problem.”

“You don’t think the galaxy this creature is referring to poses a problem?”

“I suspect that this creature’s ship is the strongest one remaining in that galaxy; otherwise they would be offering more locations for us to attack.”

The Hive Controller thought about it and said, “If that is truly the case, it would be a waste of time to attack there.”

“And if these creatures continue to inform us of any new threat to them…”

“Our task becomes much easier.”

“That’s how I interpret this, Hive Controller.”

“Tell them we agree.”

“Our Ruler has agreed to your terms. However, if we discover any future problems originating from your galaxy, we will come and destroy every civilization in it. Do you understand?”

“We will make sure you are informed of any threat as soon as we uncover it.”

“Are you absolutely certain they are only located on one planet?”

“Yes we are. They destroyed the ships we sent to attack them and they told us that they had only recently developed a star drive. We were skeptical, but we have confirmed that information with several other sources.”

“Send us that planet’s location and you are free to go.”

The Fleet Controller said, “Watcher, send the coordinates.”

The Watcher was horrified at the agreement but had no choice. He entered Earth’s location and pressed the send button.

“You may leave in peace.”

The Moet Dreadnaught disappeared and the Fleet Controller was surprised at the location. It was in the outer arm of the first galaxy and was missed when it was scouted earlier. He turned to his Communication Controller and said, “Pull ten thousand ships from the back of our inner line and have them go and destroy this planet.”

The Controller raised his vestigial wings slightly in anticipation of killing those that had destroyed their fleet. He began issuing the orders. This had to be done without alerting the Horde, so the ships would have to be moved in small numbers. The Fleet Controller watched his plan and nodded. It would take some time, but it was the safest way to make this attack. He contacted the Hive Controller to explain what was being done and he agreed to the strategy. It was always good to keep the Hive Controller informed. The last Fleet Controller ended up as a meal.

• • •

George and Meisa watched as the sixth colony ship arrived with the support vessels containing the materials and construction equipment to start building the housing and manufacturing facilities needed to support the new colony. Meisa said, “We’ve really got this down to a science.”

“This planet will be up and running within six months. The first one took almost a year to just get the agriculture performing at a high enough level to feed the colonists.”

Meisa looked at the wall display and said, “I’m a little worried about Earth. More than two thirds of the population has immigrated to the new planets.”

“I know. And most of them are the ones that are highly trained in making an economy work. Many of those left behind are the former rebels that fought against the world government. Dolly tells me that they are biding their time to attempt a coup.”

“She has enough Alphas to keep them in check.”

“Actually, most of the Alphas have become pilots of our new attack craft. There are plenty of soldiers to maintain peace, but some of those rebels are armed with modern weapons. You would think that with all of the vacant space to settle, there wouldn’t be a need for insurrection. Sometimes I think we are our own worst enemy.”

“Earth still has the largest manufacturing capability.”

George tilted his head, “I’m not so sure about that. Dundee passed them in ship production. However, Earth still has a decided edge in building the new attack craft. We have more than a thousand at New York’s space port waiting for pilots trained to fly them.”

Meisa sighed and said, “I’m sure Dolly and Jeff will keep things under control. By the way, when are we going back?”

“I suspect that we can wrap things up here in about three months. We’ll just need to check on the other five colonies and then we can leave.”

“Where have Chris and Jillian taken off to?”

He’s left to start capturing the light from M-87 and getting a history of what’s happening there. I suspect that is going to take a while.”

“Why?”

“That galaxy is more than five hundred thousand light years across and is a ball galaxy. There is ten times the number of stars in M-87 compared to the Milky Way. He has determined that most of the ancient civilizations are located on the planes that are perpendicular to the black hole in the center.”

“Why is that?”

“That black hole erupts with a massive gamma ray blast periodically and the radiation would kill any life near the eruption. It appears the eruptions come out of the top and the bottom of that monster.”

“That black hole is gigantic.”

“Most of our specialists believe it might be the largest in our universe. The safest place to be is as far away as you can get from it. That’s why most of the ancient civilizations are in the core beside it and not in line of the blasts that erupt from it.”

“Let’s hope those Violet Creatures are kept there by the ones attacking them.”

George smiled, “We can only hope, my love.”

• • •

The Fleet Controller had the Controller of the task force on his communication panel, “You will be jumping directly from the Hive to that planet. We will not allow them to have a warning of your attack.”

“I understand, Fleet Controller.”

“I have also looked at the scout’s report on that planet and there were no star drives detected on his pass. That means that they keep their ships away or they have them on the planet with all their power shut off. If they are truly just one planet, I expect them to be on the surface. When you arrive, scan for those ships first and hit them immediately. You don’t want any of them getting off the surface.”

“I have informed all of my ships.”

“Once you remove that threat, I want the planet destroyed. We will make an example of that world. Do you understand?”

“I do. We will hit all population concentrations and the residual radiation will kill anything left.”

The Fleet Controller wanted the entire planet hit with nuclear pulses but knew that the small numbers weren’t enough to make that happen. He was forced to agree that the Task Force Controller was right in his planning. “How much longer before you leave?”

“My last thousand ships are due to arrive shortly. We will give them their orders and leave immediately.”

“Our fleet said there were twelve hundred small ships that appeared behind their lines. That’s what you’re looking for on the surface.”

The Task Force Commander looked at his Sensor Controller as he locked the number into his scanner, “We have that number locked in.”

“Don’t waste time there. I worry that the Horde will see your ships are no longer in our lines and try to exploit the situation. Destroy that planet and have your ships jump back to their original locations in our line of defense.”

“It will be done as you order, Fleet Controller.”

“Good! Record your attack and send a copy to me and the Hive Controller on your return.” The Fleet Controller terminated the contact and wondered if the Hive Controller was listening in on their communications. This had better work or the day of the attack might be his last. He turned to his console and looked at the defense lines at the inner border. So far the Horde had not attacked.

They must not know the Fleet was destroyed in the other galaxy. If they knew that piece of information, they could really make things difficult. However, they didn’t know. He just hoped this attack wouldn’t take long. Their scanners were as good as the Hive and trying to hide one line behind the other to prevent them from seeing the missing ships might not work. He lowered his wings and sighed. What is life but a gamble? He nervously continued to stare at the Yellow Horde’s line of ships. Every time he saw movement he flinched. This was going to be a long wait.

Chapter Seven

Jeff, Dolly, Hemon, and Arnold were discussing the new colonies in the Command Center when Jeff suddenly said, “Oh my God!!”

Dolly looked at him, “What’s wrong!”

“Ten thousand Violet Ships have just jumped into low orbit above Earth and are blasting New York. The entire eastern seaboard of the United States is gone.”

Dolly hit the emergency pad on her panel and George and Arvolo appeared on her screen. Before they could say anything Dolly said, “Ten thousand Violet Ships have arrived in orbit above Earth and are blasting the planet. They started with New York but are now starting to spread out and hit all our cities.”

George jumped out of his chair and yelled, “Arvolo, get the fleet there.”

Dolly yelled, “You will disregard that order. You’ll never arrive in time and if you do you’ll endanger all of our colonies.”

George stared at her not able to speak. Dolly said, “None of our colonies report being attacked. They must believe that this is our only planet. I’m sure they thought the attack craft awaiting transport at New York were the ships that attacked their fleet because the numbers match up with those we used. If you come here with the fleet they’ll know this is not our only planet and they’ll plan to destroy every civilization in this galaxy. You must not come.”

George stared at Dolly on his display and said, “I can’t let you die. I just can’t.”

Jeff came over and wrapped Dolly in his arms. Hemon watched the display and was thankful Sasha and his son were at the Alliance Capital, talking with them about the treaty. George said, “Arvolo, get the fleets moving!”

Dolly yelled, “You will ignore that order and stay where you are. Do you understand!?!”

Cyanna looked at RV and saw an expression that was a barely restrained mask of rage. She knew that the Violet Ships were going to pay for this act in a major way. RV gritted his teeth and said, “I understand.”

Dolly looked at George in her display and said, “I love you so much, George.”

“I love you, Sissy.” George watched Dolly lean back as Jeff kissed her just before his display turned to static.

George dropped his head in his hands as Meisa rushed forward and took him in her arms.

• • •

The Task Force Controller watched the planet appear below him as his ships emerged into normal space. He activated the general ship frequency and shouted, “Find those ships.”

After what seemed like an eternity but was only thirty seconds he heard, “I’ve scanned twelve hundred and eighty six ships on the ground at a space port next to a large city.”

“Send the coordinates and hit them with everything you’ve got.”

Nine hundred and sixty seven Violet Ships darted above New York and fired energy pulses at the parked ships. The resulting nuclear explosions vaporized all of New York City, blasting a crater fifty miles wide. Thirty miles of seawater next to the coast was also vaporized and the tsunami that came rushing in on the coast evaporated before it could arrive at the former city but inundated all of New Jersey, Maryland, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Violet ships that rushed toward the ships in New York moved up the eastern seaboard, hitting every city with a nuclear energy pulse.

Miami to West Palm was vaporized and the three hundred mile an hour shock wave moved out into Florida, killing everything across the state. Orlando, Jacksonville, Savannah, Charleston, Charlotte were hit at the same moment as Miami. The mushroom clouds sprung up faster than could be imagined. Washington, Pittsburg, Chicago, Quebec, Toronto, and Ontario were all hit by one ship that still continued firing at New York. The entire east coast of North America was a massive wave front of four thousand degree winds blowing inland.

The Controller saw the grounded ships vaporized and hit his communicator, “Let’s do this quickly. Fan out and hit every major population center. You must complete your tasks within fifty micro-measures.”

Half the fleet turned west and in less than two minutes every city and community with more than two thousand inhabitants was hit with a nuke. The west coast was a twin of the east as thousands of mushroom clouds rushed up into the upper atmosphere spreading the radioactive debris into the upper level winds. The other half of the Violet Ships turned east and the destruction continued in Europe and Asia. It only took ten ships to obliterate all of the cities in South America in less than four minutes. One of the pulses hit in the center of Rio de Janeiro and obliterated the most beautiful harbor in the world.

The Violet Ships flew quickly around the planet, launching their pulses as they moved quickly overhead. All over Earth, a hundred thousand mushroom clouds rushed into the upper atmosphere, carrying huge loads of debris that was now radioactive. Ten minutes after New York was vaporized, Sydney, Australia was hit with two nukes and the Command Center was destroyed in a nuclear flash. An hour after the Violet Ships arrived they jumped away. The Probe that was out in the asteroid belt recorded their exit as well as the probe the Violet Ships left behind. Earth was awash with radiation in its death throes and soon animals and plants began dying from the intense radiation.

Cyanna said, “They left a probe behind to see if anyone comes to the planet.”

Arvolo stared at his display as Jillian appeared, “What’s going on!?!”

Arvolo looked at Cyanna and she took the communication on her board, “Ten thousand Violet Ships jumped into Earth orbit and have destroyed the planet. They launched more than half a million nuclear pulses at all of the population centers. The entire planet is now covered with a radioactive cloud.”

“Why didn’t we send the fleet in!?!”

Cyanna played Dolly’s last words. Jillian fell back in her chair as Chris joined her on the display. Cyanna said, “There was no way for us to get the fleet there in time. For all intents and purposes, the planet was dead in less than two minutes after their first nuclear launch. Dolly was right. It would have done no good and it would have endangered our colonies as well as the Moet and Alliance planets.”

George appeared on the display and Cyanna and RV were shocked at the transformation. He was not emotional but said in a steely voice, “Chris, are you still at M-87.”

“Yes.”

“I want you to record the last three months of activity around the Violet Civilizations borders. Can you do that quickly?”

“Yes but why do you want it done?”

“Those ships jumped directly to Earth. They had to have our coordinates to be able to do that. Where do you think they would get them?”

Chris looked at Jillian and said, “Surely even they wouldn’t have done this.”

“Before I take action I need to make sure. Please carry out that task before you do anything else.”

Chris looked at Jillian and said, “We’re jumping now. I’ll send you the recording as soon as it’s completed.”

George’s display went dark.

Cyanna looked at RV, “What do you think he suspects.”

“Who would want us removed from this galaxy?”

Cyanna thought a moment, “The Violet Ships?”

Arvolo shook his head, “You can rule out the Blue Giants. They and the Alliance don’t know the location of Earth. Only the Moet know where Earth is located. There is a minute possibility that the Violet Civilization saw something in their scan when they scouted our Galaxy that caused this; but that is a remote possibility. They would have come sooner if that were the case. I’m sure George wants to make sure before he decides what to do.”

Cyanna took a deep breath, “Who is our leader now that Earth has been destroyed?”

“I’m sure that it will be Chris or George. The Colonies will not accept anyone else.”

“They might consider you.”

“They would be extremely stupid if they did.”

“Why do you say that?”

“It’s never wise to make a loaded weapon your leader. It might choose to be used at an inappropriate time. I am not suited for that role and you know it.”

“I do; I was just wondering if you know it.”

RV nodded and replayed the recording of Earth’s destruction. He tried to think about how to make the Violet Ships pay. It would have to be done carefully.

• • •

Chris set the scanners and collectors and looked at Jillian, “Do you have the location where we can emerge into normal space at the highest reception of light from M-87?”

“I had one location, but Zack and Izzy found another that will instantly appear.”

Chris stopped what he was doing and said, “I think I prefer to use our old one.”

Jillian paused before she entered the coordinates and looked at him, “Why?”

“I’m somewhat antsy about using a coordinate that they used multiple times. Doesn’t our old location load within two seconds?”

“Actually, if we go ahead and expand the fields before we emerge into normal space, it should be less than a second. Do you think they might have seen one of our ships?”

“They are millions of years ahead of us in technology. We may have caught up in weapons, but I worry about their other devices.”

“You’re probably right. I’ll use the old line into the galaxy. How far out do you want to start?”

“Start the week of the Moet attack and let’s move forward to two weeks ago.”

“Any reason why you chose that timeline?”

“I suspect it took the Violet Civilization at least two weeks to organize and plan that attack. If anything happened it should have occurred during that window. If we don’t see anything, we’ll move further out and go to one week.”

“You’re the boss. Why don’t you sound general quarters and I’ll get the drive ready. Is your board ready to record?”

“It is.” Chris hit the blue button and the alarms started blaring, “Battle stations; all hands to battle stations.” After a minute Chris turned off the loud speaker, but the red lights continued to flash until all units had reported in ready. Jillian announced, “Jump alert; we’ll be jumping in thirty seconds.”

Chris waited and felt the ship jump into Sierra Space and then break back into normal space with the gigantic galaxy directly in front of them. “I’ve got it; start the run.”

The Jukebox accelerated into the light from M-87 at high speed recording what was being received into their computer. Jillian said, “We’ll be arriving at two weeks in five seconds; 4,3,2, and 1…” The Jukebox reentered Sierra Space and jumped toward M-83. Two minutes later, twenty Violet Ships appeared at the place they had left normal space.

Chris rewound the recording and started it running at ten time’s normal speed. Jillian watched the recording on her panel and after ten hours she said, “Wait a minute!”

“I saw it; hold on.” Chris rewound the video and started it at normal speed. After ten minutes they saw a Moet Dreadnaught emerge into normal space and was immediately surrounded by ten Violet Ships. They continued to watch and after forty five minutes the Moet Ship jumped away unharmed.

Chris felt his anger and Jillian said, “It looks like they made a deal with the Devil.”

Chris activated his panel and saw George and Arvolo on his screen, “I’m sending you a recording we just found in the material we collected. Stand by.”

Chris watched as George and Arvolo looked at their wall displays and after the video finished Chris said, “What are you going to do about this?”

George looked at Arvolo on his screen and said, “Do you need any suggestions?”

“No Sir. I’ll handle it.”

“When you’re ready, I do want to go with you; however, you will have complete command of the exercise.”

Chris watched Arvolo’s expression and knew that the Cuban could see that George didn’t trust himself to act rationally. Chris looked at Jillian and she shook her head. This was George’s show. Chris said, “Will you send us a feed of what you do?”

Arvolo shook his head, “I’m sure our transmissions can’t be tracked or deciphered but they can be heard being made. If we start communicating, the Violet Ships might suspect something. This exercise will be done under communication silence. I will send you a recording after it’s over.”

Chris nodded, “That’s fine. Good luck.” Arvolo and George cut the connection. “This could get ugly.”

“Why do you say that?”

“How do you think the Cuban is going to find out where the Moets are located?”

Jillian thought a moment and sat back in her chair. Chris was right; this could get very ugly.

• • •

Cyanna was mad and she was letting RV know about it. “I will not stay behind on this exercise.”

RV took her hands in his and said, “Jeff Garcia was killed with Dolly. Jeff was Bob Owen’s mentor and Kenny Anders’ former Commander and close friend. I refuse to take all of our Admirals on this mission. Now, if you refuse to follow my orders, leave and tell either Kenny or Bob that they will stay so you can go.” Cyanna stared at RV in silence. RV said, “I’m serious; go and tell one of them they can’t go.”

Cyanna sat down and started crying. “You know I can’t do that.”

“I would have probably taken you anyway, but George has forbidden me to take all of our Admirals. I respect his decision and know it’s a good one. If you think about it so will you. Do you want to take my place?”

Cyanna looked up sharply and said, “That would defeat the reason I want to go.”

“I know.”

Cyanna came into RV’s arms and said, “If you go off and get yourself killed without me with you, I’ll kill you myself.” RV laughed. “I’m serious. We do have time travel you know.” Cyanna paused and jumped up straight, “Hey, can’t we go back in time and hit that fleet before it attacked Earth?”

RV slowly shook his head, “We could, but it would do no good.”

“Why not?”

“Because it would make a massive change in the events in this universe and a new universe would branch off from this one still leaving Earth dead in this one. If our fleet remained in the old universe, there would be severe repercussions with duplicate ships and people co-existing. “

“Then what good is it if you can’t change the past?”

“There are special circumstances where the past can be changed, but that change cannot have any impact on the following events. Saving Zack was an example of it. You can use it to determine what the best next step might be. Just as we now know who gave the Violet Ships our location.”

“Just be careful and come back to me.”

“I’ll do my best.”

Cyanna closed her eyes and lay on his chest. She prayed she wouldn’t lose another love in her life. Then she heard him say, “We won’t be leaving right away. We’re going to give them one more opportunity to see if they really did what we suspect.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Moet Royal Family won’t attack their former planets unless they are certain Earth has been destroyed. If they send a ship to check, then they are guilty. They shouldn’t wait much longer to make that determination.”

Arvolo’s panel alarmed and he rushed over and activated his display. He immediately saw George on his communication panel. He watched the panel and saw a Moet Dreadnaught enter Earth orbit. George’s expression turned hard and said, “I’ll meet you at Space Port.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

• • •

The prince and Fleet Master had jumped into Earth’s Solar System at the orbit of Jupiter and scanned the third planet. The Fleet Master said, “It looks like they’ve done it.”

“Move in closer and make sure.”

The Dreadnaught orbited Earth and scanned the planet. The Prince looked at the results of the scan and said, “Nothing can live in that high level of radiation.”

“You’re right.” The Fleet Master turned to his Drive Master and said, “Jump us back.”

• • •

The Violet Scan Controller sent a message to the Fleet Controller, “That ship that brought us the information has just jumped to the planet we destroyed.”

The Fleet Controller watched his screen as the ship went to the planet and then jumped away. “They waited long enough.” He expected them before but he suspected they didn’t want to take any chances of arriving before the planet’s destruction. He started to turn off his display but saw another ship at the planet. “What is that?”

The Scanner Controller brought the view in closer and they saw a single small white ship appear above the planet. “Is that what I think it is?”

“I believe it is, Fleet Controller. It appears one of their ships survived. It must have been away when we attacked.”

“Where could it have been?”

“I have no idea. It might have been with the Blue Ships and is just now returning home. No other ships have come so I suspect this is the only surviving ship.”

“You’re probably right. Keep a record of what it does.”

“I will, but I’m bothered by its size.”

“What do you mean?”

“I just find it hard to believe that a thousand ships like that could have destroyed our Fleet.”

The Fleet Controller thought about the comment and said, “I’ll bring this up in my next meeting with the Main Controllers. It does seem impractical.”

• • •

Aman Forester and Gretchen Logan sat on board the Attack Craft Earth’s Fury and looked down on their destroyed home. Gretchen sighed, “My husband and daughter were in New York.”

Aman took a deep breath, “All of my family was around London. They’re all gone now.”

Gretchen continued to stare at the burned planet below them. After an hour she said, “Are you ready for this?”

“I am.”

“I’m actually looking forward to it.”

Aman just smiled at her. She knew he felt it as well.

They continued to watch the planet below them, waiting for their orders.

• • •

Aman and Gretchen had approached Arvolo several weeks earlier and requested a meeting. Arvolo invited them to the Havana and sat with them and Cyanna in the briefing room. Arvolo said, “What’s on your minds?”

“We’ve heard that you’re going to send one of our Attack Ships to hit the Violet Ship’s home world.”

Arvolo stared at them and Cyanna asked, “Where did you hear that?”

Aman looked at Arvolo and said, “That’s not important; what is important is whether or not it’s true.”

Arvolo sighed and said, “I am considering an attack on them by just one ship.”

Cyanna jerked her hear around and said, “You’re what?”

Arvolo tilted his head and brought it quickly back and said, “Do you really expect the Violet Ships to believe that the Attack Craft they hit on Earth were the ones that destroyed their fleets? We need to hit them with a specially prepared Attack Craft to convince them they really did destroy us and our ships.”

“Who are you planning to use to pilot that ship?”

“I was planning to do it myself.” Arvolo saw Cyanna’s expression and held up his hand motioning her to remain silent.

Aman said, “With all due respect to your piloting skills, you are far too important to take that kind of risk. Attacking their home world with just one ship is tantamount to suicide.”

“I realize that Captain, but I can’t order someone to take a mission that is suicidal.”

“You won’t have to do that, Sir; Captain Logan and I respectfully ask to be allowed to fly that mission.”

Arvolo remained silent just staring at them. They said nothing as well. Finally RV said, “You are two of our best ship commanders.”

Gretchen said, “And that is why we should be allowed to fly the mission. If it can be done, we have the skills to make it happen.”

Cyanna asked, “Why are you volunteering for this?”

Aman looked and Gretchen and she nodded, “Our families were killed when Earth was destroyed. Everyone tells us that we’ll eventually get over it and can start over again. Quite frankly, Sir, I don’t want to start over again. What I want is an opportunity to kick the ever living crap out of the beings that killed my family.”

Arvolo slowly shook his head, “Captain, I need someone with a cool head flying this mission. The ship we’ve built to go does not have any beams but has three reactors powering only the force field.”

Aman looked at Gretchen and she was also confused. “Why wouldn’t you want weapons on the ship?”

“Oh there will be weapons; it will be carrying four heavy strikers to fire at their home world, but the ship will have to make it through tens of thousands of defenders to be able to fire the strikers at the planet.”

Aman looked at Gretchen and saw her smile for the first time since Earth’s destruction, “Then we are the ones to make that happen. May I assume that the reason for the additional power to the force field is to allow the ship to be able to fly through one of those energy pulses they use?”

Arvolo looked surprised, “As a matter of fact it is.”

“Sir, the top speed of those pulses is less than half light speed. The Attack Craft will be faster and more maneuverable.”

“That’s true, but those energy pulses home in on their target. What happens when you have a million of them coming at you from all directions?”

Aman said, “You pick the shortest route through them and fly the ship into the pulses.”

“We aren’t really certain it will be able to survive if it’s forced to do that?”

Gretchen said, “Then we need to find out. I’ll fly through a thousand of them for an opportunity to make those creatures pay for what they did. “ She stood, walked over to the table, and leaned over it looking into Arvolo’s eyes, “Sir, please let us do this.”

Arvolo stared into her unflinching eyes and then looked at Aman, “You know you will probably not survive?”

Aman smiled, “Who wants to live forever? This is something worth doing.”

Arvolo took a deep breath and said, “Report to Wes and have him familiarize you with the ship. I’ll need you to make it look like your ship was the only survivor of the attack on Earth.”

“Just tell us what to do.”

Arvolo stood and said, “Report to your ship and good luck.”

Aman and Gretchen stood, saluted, and rushed out the door.

After they closed the door Cyanna said, “What do you mean you were going to fly that mission?”

Arvolo sat down and slowly shook his head as he took a deep breath. Cyanna watched him and said, “What’s wrong?”

Arvolo lowered his head and said, “Those two Captains have been instrumental in our success so far against those that would kill us. They are right about being the finest pilots in the fleet. However, neither of them has been able to deal with their grief and their commanders worry about their capability to be trusted in a fire fight. They were going to be grounded.”

Cyanna said, “That would hurt them even more.”

“I know. I put the word out in their wings about this mission. I knew they would demand to fly it.”

Cyanna saw RV’s sorrow and said, “You cannot blame yourself for this. If I were in their place, I would demand the same thing.”

“I don’t feel remorse for what I’m doing. I just know what they’re going through and I honestly wish I had been given an opportunity to strike out at the ones that murdered my family. I just hate they have to endure their suffering.”

“When are they going to make the attempt?”

“When we go after the Moet Royal Family; we hope they will be a distraction to the Violet Civilization.”

Cyanna stared at RV and said, “You never cease to amaze me at how you put all these pieces together.”

RV sighed and slowly stood, “Tell that to those fine sailors that are going on a suicide mission. Sometimes the pieces aren’t much fun to put together.” Arvolo left the briefing room and Cyanna felt his pain. War has a way of making people suffer. Aman and Gretchen’s suffering should be ending soon.”

Chapter Eight

The Melbourne, Sydney, and Havana arrived in orbit above the Moet’s former Capital. The Baron appeared on Arvolo’s display and said, “Welcome to our world. What has prompted your visit?”

Arvolo pushed a button and Tenah also appeared on the display. The Moet looked at him and wondered what was going on. Tenah said, “Don’t look at me; I was told to stand by for this call.”

George appeared on the Moet’s display and said, “I am going to ask you for some information and you will give it to me.”

“What information is that?”

“I want the current coordinates of the Royal Family’s location.”

The Moet immediately started turning lighter in color, “Why do you need that?”

“I’m going to play you a recording. It was taken at our home world.”

Tenah and the Moet watched the destruction of Earth by the Violet Ships. After it was over, they remained silent. George said nothing and waited. The Moet finally said, “You suspect the Royal Family of causing this?”

George said, “You don’t believe they did it.”

“I don’t.”

George immediately sent the two recordings of the meeting with the Violet Ships and the dreadnaught going to check on Earth. He said nothing.

The Moet felt his rage; how stupid could they be? Did they not know these beings had more than one planet? He paused and then he pulled up the original attack by the prince and saw that at that time there was only one planet. Then he knew that they were right. The High Master had made this happen. The beings in the White Ship continued to remain silent. Tenah said, “Baron, why do you think they did this?”

“I really don’t understand why they would do it.”

“If the White Ships were removed, what do you think would be the first thing the High Master would do?”

Then the Moet understood. They wanted to come and teach the traitors a lesson. Now they could come with the Dreadnaughts and kill everyone they had left behind and the longer he delayed giving the information… He punched his board and said, “I’ve sent you the coordinates.”

George said, “You will continue under our protection. If you had not agreed to help us we would have watched them destroy your worlds and then followed their fleet back to where it came from.”

The Baron said, “What about all the other worlds our colonists were moved to?”

“We know who did this. Unfortunately for them, they keep all the High Masters on one planet, with the lower ranking subordinates on all the others. I suspect the ones remaining may want to later open a dialogue with you. Make sure they understand who is in charge here on your worlds. We will not tolerate a new leader from one of those worlds.”

“I don’t expect we will be accepting them into our family.”

George said, “That’s the smartest thing I’ve heard you say.”

Arvolo looked at his board and said, “A fleet shuttle has left the Moet’s planet and is moving toward us.”

George looked puzzled and then he heard, “I request permission to come aboard.”

Arvolo looked at George and said, “It’s Sasha.”

George took a deep breath and said, “We are going into a very dangerous situation, Sasha. I assume your son is with you?”

“He is and we want to go with you.”

“Sasha, this is going to be a dangerous place for you to be.”

“Why are you here then?”

George took a deep breath, exhaled it slowly, and nodded at Arvolo. Arvolo said, “Open the landing bay and tie down the shuttle upon arrival. Assign the crew quarters and take Sasha and her son to my quarters where they will stay during our mission.”

Kenny said, “Where are you going to stay?”

“You know how easy it is for me to sleep in my chair. By the way, I meant to ask you; do I snore?”

Even George burst out laughing. Kenny said, “Only after you’ve had more than ten beers.”

Arvolo sighed in relief, “Good, that shouldn’t be a problem until after the mission.”

Arvolo pushed his panel and said, “You have been cleared for landing in the port landing bay. Welcome aboard Sasha.”

“Thank you, RV.”

• • •

The three huge ships disappeared and Tenah said, “I don’t think I would want to be where they’re going.”

“The Royal Family was insane to do what they did.”

“Have they ever acted sane?”

The Baron thought about the question and said, “No, they have not.”

“You’ll need to announce that you have accepted the position of High Master and see if anyone challenges you.”

“I know. I’ve just been reluctant to take that step.”

“Your reason not to will soon be gone. It’s time for you to move your Realm into a better future.”

“I think you and I have already started that process and I thank you for your assistance. You have my loyalty and support.”

Tenah smiled and knew that at least for the short term, great things were starting to happen.

• • •

George looked at Arvolo, Kenny and Bob in the briefing room of the Havana and said, “Are you ready?”

Arvolo nodded and Kenny said, “We should destroy their fleet first.”

George nodded, “I agree; however, I want one thing done while that is happening.”

“What is that?”

George told them and Arvolo smiled and nodded. He was starting to be amazed at the details that George was able to see that he missed. He decided at that moment to go over any future plans with Dolly’s brother.

George said, “Notify the other ship.”

Arvolo pushed a button on the communication panel and said, “Cyanna, send the go signal.”

• • •

Gretchen and Aman sat in their command chairs looking down at Earth through the view port and felt their grief. The thick layer of clouds still obscured most of the planet and the close ups they saw on their displays when land was occasionally seen were grotesque. Everything was burned in atomic fire and even the birds had died from the lethal radiation. Aman reached over and held her hand and she squeezed his. Aman’s panel chimed and he looked at his screen, “It’s show time.”

Gretchen said, “I’m taking us out to the probe.”

“How are you going to take us in?”

“I’m coming in from above the planet.”

Aman nodded, “I think that’s a good idea. Their fleet looks like most of it is concentrated in the southern hemisphere over their major space port.”

“That’s where we’ll try to break through.”

“Are you serious?”

“After our little visit to the probe, what do you think they’ll do?”

Aman smiled, “I suspect they’ll send out invitations to attend our little soiree.”

“The more the better.”

“I wish you hadn’t said that.”

Gretchen smiled and turned Earth’s Fury toward the Violet Probe.

• • •

The Scanner Controller looked around his multiple panels and saw the small White Ship power up its force field. He sent the feed to the Fleet Controller and said, “That ship is preparing to move.”

The Fleet Controller appeared on his panel and they watched the ship turn and move away from the destroyed planet, “Where is it going?”

The Scanner said, “It is getting bigger so it must be moving toward our probe.”

“Do you think they can see it?”

They both watched the small ship getting larger on their screen as it accelerated toward the probe until it arrived a hundred yards away and stopped. “It appears they can, Fleet Controller. What is it doing?”

The Fleet Controller said, “What if the roles were reversed and you came back to your home and found it destroyed and you were the only survivor. What would you do?”

The Scanner thought about it and said, “I don’t know. That ship has remained in orbit for more than two measures.”

“And what do you think the creatures on that ship have been feeling as they look down on their world?”

“I would be getting angry. But why would they come to our probe?” The Fleet Controller remained silent and then the Scanner said, “They’re telling us that they’re coming here to make us pay.”

“Order the Defense Fleets to action status. They’re telling us they’re coming and daring us to stop them. Do you still wonder if those ships killed our Fleet?”

“It appears the beings on that small ship aren’t worried about us.”

“Call in two more Squadrons. Do it now!”

The Scanner started issuing instructions as he saw the small white ship disappear.

The Fleet Controller ran to the bridge of his ship and yelled for the Scanner Controller to bring in a view of the area around the Home Hive. He sat down and watched his display until he heard the alarms go off, as the small White Ship appeared directly above the Home Hive about ten units out. He ordered the ships on that side of the Hive to jump between the incoming White Ship and the planet.

The White Ship accelerated and he was stunned at the approach speed. He ordered more ships to take station above the planet between the defense lines and the Hive. He sent an attack warning to the Hive Controller and continued to watch his display. The Hive Controller appeared on his panel, “What are you doing?”

“It appears a single small ship survived our attack on that planet we destroyed. It has been orbiting the planet for two measures but had just moved directly to our probe and stopped. Its force field was powered and then it jumped. I believe it is coming here to attempt to take retribution on our world.”

“Why the massive call up? It’s just one small ship.”

“That we know nothing about, Hive Controller. I’d rather overreact than make a mistake.”

The Hive Controller looked back at his panel showing the small white ship and snorted, “Let me know when it’s been destroyed.”

The Fleet Controller looked at the dark display and decided that he was glad he was on a ship and not on the planet. That small ship had deliberately communicated its intentions and that more than anything else made him worry. It could have just jumped away and attacked without warning but it had chosen to challenge them. Something just didn’t seem right.

• • •

Aman saw thousands of ships jumping in front of their ship and said, “Pulses are being launched.”

“I see them.”

“More ships are arriving to the side of our approach and are launching pulses.”

“How many are following us?”

“About twenty thousand at the moment, but the number is growing rather rapidly. We’ll be running into a veritable wall of them in less than twenty seconds.”

Gretchen grimly smiled and said, “Were you ever into rock climbing?”

“No, I’m afraid of heights.”

Gretchen did a double take without taking her eyes of the scanner, “You have got to be kidding me!”

“Nope; flying around space is not the same thing as looking down from a high place.”

“Well, you’re about to get your first lesson. Keep your hands on the weapons board. We might have to use it.”

Earth’s Fury approached the wall of energy pulses and Gretchen went to three quarter speed. She turned the ship vertically and flew over the top of the incoming pulses before they could change direction. She flew over the line of Violet Ships that had launched the barrage was by them before they could respond. The small ship left the pursuing energy pulsed behind.

“What are those pulses doing that we passed?”

“They’ve turned and are now pursuing us.” Aman looked at his board, “They are losing ground on us.” Aman looked up from his panel and said, “More ships are jumping in.”

“Where are they coming from?”

“It’s like you suspected. They’re being moved from above the space port.” Aman paused, “Why are you so intent on hitting the space port?”

“That’s where they’re building their new ships. The view taken by the Jukebox shows thousands of them on the ground. I want hit them where it hurts. It also appears the port is their largest city as well.”

“The next line is firing more energy pulses at us and they have now added three more lines above and below their original ships. I suspect rock climbing just got a tad more difficult.”

“Did you ever go caving, Aman?”

“Nope, I’m claustrophobic as well.”

“Get out of here! How did you ever make it into the service?”

“Must be my charming personality and outstanding good looks. How do you intend to make it through that barrage moving at us?”

“I’m going to use a striker.”

“That will only leave us three to hit the planet.”

“Actually it will leave us four.”

Aman looked at Gretchen with a furrowed brow and then realized what she was saying. He smiled and said, “You’re right. I miscounted.” Gretchen slowed the ship slightly to allow the eighty thousand energy pulses chasing them to move closer. She matched their speed and launched a heavy striker at the middle of the incoming mass of energy pulses. Aman said, “I hope they’re right about the force field.”

“We have to give it a moment to hit and expand before we hit it. If we arrive too early it’s all over.” Gretchen increased speed and followed the striker. She dimmed their panels as the striker hit.

The Fleet Controller watched the small ship go over the first wave of energy pulses and ordered more ships to confront the speeding white ship. It was faster than any ship in his fleet and it changed direction as if it had no mass. That scared him and he watched as four lines of ships launched a massive cone of energy pulses. That ship was already inside the upper and lower walls of the cone, so it wouldn’t be able to go over or below it. This should end this threat. Then his display turned white from a gigantic blast.

• • •

The energy pulse the striker hit exploded in a ball twenty times larger than it would normally make and started a chain reaction of explosions in the energy pulses, forming the giant cone. The blast built on itself as the pulses chasing the small ship ran into the growing explosion and sent a massive shock wave out.

The explosion was big enough to eventually be seen a hundred light years away and most planets that saw it thought a star had gone nova. The small white ship punched through the place where the striker hit and raced away faster than the shock wave behind it. The white ship blew by the four lines of ships which activated their drives to jump in front of it again, but before they could move, the shock wave hit their lines and blew them away like leaves in a hurricane. The ships weren’t damaged inside their force fields, but the entire line was rocked end-to-end as the shock wave passed.

The Scanner Controller watched the massive explosion and saw that the four lines were not going to be able to jump in front of the ship and ordered every ship in the fleet to move in front of the intruder. He no longer doubted that the small ship was fully capable of destroying his ships. If just one could do this much he knew that more than a thousand would be devastating. He ordered the four lines to replace the ships he had moved from the southern side of the planet, but then he saw his worst nightmare take place. Before they could jump, the White Ship jumped to the southern side of the planet and accelerated at a speed that was impossible. It would arrive in less than sixty micro-measures and he immediately ordered the ships back to defend the Hive City.

The Fleet Controller watched the White Ship jump to the southern side of the planet and knew that it was going to be a very close thing to cut it off before it arrived. He stood and stared at the display, unable to take his eyes off what was happening. Just before the White Ship arrived, the huge fleet appeared in front of them. He sat back down and took a deep breath.

• • •

“Gretchen, they’ve managed to get the fleet back to the space port.”

“I see them.”

Aman watched as the fleet grew larger in his display and saw thousands of energy pulses moving toward them. “You’ve got to clear the way.”

Gretchen took her eyes off her panel for a moment and looked at Aman, “Thank you for helping me do this. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. We knew the risk and now we need to do what must be done.”

Gretchen turned back to her panel as Aman launched the three remaining strikers with eight second separation between them. Gretchen watched the first one hit and blow away the energy pulses. She followed the two remaining strikers through the blast and saw the lines of Violet Ships approaching. The strikers hit the middle line and blew a massive section into a huge explosion and then expanded up the open ends of the line’s force fields blowing every ship into dust. As the blast expanded, Gretchen raised the force field to maximum and went to full speed and blew through the last line of ships. Her last act was to return the ships mass back to normal and the hundred ton ship hit the Home Hive at ninety percent light speed. The two million energy pulses that were stored at the main ship building facility added to the ensuing explosion, but were hard to distinguish from the total blast. One third of the planet blew away as the rest of it melted from the core that covered everything that remained.

The Fleet Controller didn’t stand back up as he watched his planet blown apart. He was speechless and all the ships in the fleet that survived the blast which destroyed three of the lines above the site of the explosion were shocked beyond measure. The Hive had been hurt in ways that would soon be felt, but no one thought about that. That one ship had defeated everything they did to stop it and now their civilization saw what they had visited on so many others and they were stunned into immobility.

The Fleet Controller watched and knew that the Hive Controller and all of the chosen successors died with the planet. There was no structure to choose another and he knew there was a leadership void that could lead to their destruction, if something wasn’t done. He looked at his Drive Controller and said, “Take us to our defensive lines. We must make sure the horde doesn’t exploit this.” The ship jumped away and soon, the other surviving ships joined him at the defensive line to fight off a new attack by the Yellow Ships. There was no longer a need to make sure if the small ships were the ones that destroyed their fleet. Now there was no doubt. The detection system that was used to see outside their galaxy was destroyed in the blast. For the foreseeable future, the Violet Civilization was blind to ships that came from open space.

• • •

Arvolo watched the feed being sent from Earth’s Fury and took a deep breath when the display went to static. He knew that Aman and Gretchen would probably be forced to use their ship to hit the planet and he hated himself for sending them to die. George looked over at him and knew what was going to happen. “We have been given time to build, RV. Those two wouldn’t have wanted this any other way.” George looked at the planet and said, “Do you have the present?”

“We do.”

“Would you be so kind and deliver it?”

Cyanna spoke into her com.

• • •

RV looked at George and nodded but remained silent. George and the rest of the bridge crew honored his silence and waited for him to act. After ten minutes he looked at Cyanna and said, “Jump the ships.”

Cyanna saw his anguish and wished she could do something to comfort him, but knew that now wasn’t the time. She turned to her board and said, “Jump alert; we’ll be jumping to the Moet planet in three minutes. All hands to battle stations and pilots man your ships. You will be weapons free on arrival.”

Kenny and Bob had also watched the sacrifice of the two brave sailors and they felt a steely resolve to deal with the ones that had caused their death. The Moet were going to learn what their treachery brought home to them in just a few short moments. The three main battleships powered their weapons and the attack craft prepared to do battle with the ones that caused Earth’s destruction. No one had to be told that there would be no prisoners taken in the coming battle.

• • •

Tenah and the Baron had also been sent a feed of what happened at the Home Hive and now they saw the three ships were preparing to go to the Royal Family’s location. Tenah said, “Do you want to watch this?”

“I owe it to them to see it to the end.”

“What will your planets say about this?”

“I’ve already shared what the Royal Family did to the White Ship’s planet. They were shocked at the revelation and they know there will be a response to their betrayal.”

“How do you feel about this?”

The Baron remained silent for a long moment and then said, “I’m disappointed that the only way we could have discovered the benefit of working with other species was to have it forced on us. Now I see what we’ve been and I feel so much remorse at what we’ve done over our long history.” The Baron turned two of his eyestalks toward the display with Tenah on it and said, “If the White Ships don’t remove the ones responsible for making us what we’ve been then we would have to do it ourselves.” The Moet looked back at the display with the three ships on it and said, “They deserve what they’re getting and you and I both know it.”

“Have you thought about asking our friends to allow us to enter the fight with them?”

“I have, but you know that before they would ever allow us to do that we will have to earn their trust and that is going to take time.”

Tenah nodded and turned to his display showing the feed from the three ships that just jumped to the Moet’s Royal Family.

Chapter Nine

The High Master sat in her quarters having a meal while she questioned the Fleet Master and prince about their preparations to go back to their home worlds. “Is the fleet ready for departure?”

The Fleet Master pushed his two pods forward and said, “They are and out transports are ready with the warriors to land and punish the traitors.”

“Excellent! I want that Baron brought here for my personal attention.” She turned to the Prince and said, “What’s bothering you, son? You don’t appear to be happy with our success.”

The Prince said, “I don’t feel good about this deal we made with the Violet Civilization. You know their word is meaningless.”

“We’ll see about that. I’m sure they will like having an agent working for them in our galaxy. We just have to prove our value. If the Alliance gives us trouble, we’ll just notify them and the problem will be solved.” She continued to watch her son and saw that his mood didn’t change. “Say what you have to say. I won’t punish you for your thoughts on this glorious day.”

The prince paused and said, “What if we didn’t get all of those White Ships? We don’t know if they had ships at another location. We also don’t know if the Blue Ships will now honor their agreement and not invade.”

The High Master threw her eye stalks back and laughed, “The Violet Civilization would love to have the Blue Ships show up. That would prove our value to them and any remaining White Ships will never tie us to their planet’s destruction.”

The prince said, “How did they know we were evacuating? How did they know about our ancient history with the Jenze? They seem to know things and we don’t have a clue as to how they uncovered that information. I’m just not certain about what will come from this act we’ve done.”

The High Master’s display illuminated and she saw the Highest Watcher say, “Three of the White Battle Ships have appeared and are launching small ships. They are attacking our fleet.”

The High Master turned white so fast the prince and Fleet Master never saw her color change. The three looked at the display, watching the video being sent by the Watcher. The Prince knew that there would be no further lessons being taught to him by his mother. He glanced at her and saw she realized it as well.

• • •

The three Earth ships appeared above the Moet planet and moved in on the huge fleet of dreadnaughts and medium battleships. Right behind them a huge round ship arrived and more than ten thousand tiny vessels launched along with four thousand small ships. The three large battle ships moved into the Moet formations and hundreds of dreadnaughts began exploding. Right behind their advance, the tiny ships arrived and the destruction was beyond belief. Hundreds of Ship Masters contacted the Master and asked permission to escape, but were denied. “The Royal Family is on the planet; we cannot leave them.” The Moet ships were forced to stay and face what was happening. Their bravery was monumental, but also futile.

• • •

Arvolo watched Cyanna fight the Havana and decided that he was not needed in this attack. The Moet Ships were no match for the ships killing them. He watched as some of the dreadnaughts that were damaged but still flying were hit again. Beams and mini-strikers were as thick as drops in a heavy shower.

• • •

Kate Diamond banked her Needle around toward six dreadnaughts that were lining up to hit an attack craft will all of their beams. She hit the first three with a min-striker each and used her beam to cut the remaining three in half. She reversed course to finish off the ships that were hit with her beam but saw four other Needles finish the job. She blew past the dead ships and lined up two more dreadnaughts. She didn’t realize she had an expression of rage but she felt joy at killing the beings that had caused her brother’s death on Earth.

She exhausted her inventory of weapons and discovered something by accident. Her power for her main beam was down to three percent as the dreadnaught was powering up its drive field to escape. She felt her rage and stopping that ship from escaping consumed her. She screamed and flew her Needle directly at the dreadnaught, hitting it amidships. She had closed her eyes anticipating her death and was startled to discover she had flown her Needle through the huge ship and had emerged on the other side undamaged. Her force field was at full strength and prevented her small ship from being damaged. Six of her wing watched her hit the dreadnaught and they turned off their weapons and began ramming every ship they could find.

The tactic spread through the fleet and Arvolo watched the carnage taking place and said, “I want the pilot that started this ramming process brought to me when we arrive back at Dundee.”

Cyanna nodded and shook her head at the damage being done when the Needles blew through a dreadnaught. The passage of the small ship through the dreadnaught’s hulls set off all of their munitions and the resulting explosion left very little behind. After an hour there were no ships left to kill.

Arvolo looked at his display and saw the ships involved in the attack were hanging in space above the Moet planet waiting for orders. The transport arrived and signaled retrieval but none of the ships moved from orbit above the planet. The Transport Commander began issuing commands for his ships to return and Arvolo cut him off, “They will stay where they are. They will be allowed to witness what happens and I’ll not deny them that right.”

Commander Calhoun said, “You will wait until the mission is complete before you are retrieved.” He leaned back in his chair and waited with the thousands of ships above the Moet Planet.

Arvolo looked at George and said, “I believe you should take it from here, Sir. I know that’s how Dolly and Jeff would want it.”

George looked at Arvolo and then activated his communication panel.

• • •

The High Master, Fleet Master, and prince were all bright white in color. The main display in the High Master’s quarters illuminated as the Watcher fed the incoming transmission to her console. They saw a strange looking creature looking at them. It said in the language used by the Alliance, “I’m really tempted to just finish, this but I can’t resist the urge to show you what you’ve done.”

The Watcher sent a feed of the conversation to the other planets of Moet Colonists. They should hear what was being said.

“Before I do that, I’m going to share a few videos with you.”

The three Moet watched recordings of their conversation with the Violet Civilization, the scouting of Earth to see if it was destroyed, and finally the destruction of the Violet Civilization’s home planet. The High Master looked at the prince and he showed his disgust by looking at her without lowering a single eye stalk.

The High Master looked at the display and said, “Wait, can we discuss this?”

The creature on her video sneered at her, “You can talk all you want. I just wanted you to know this one thing; your attack has sealed your fate. Enjoy the next few moments; they will be your last.”

The three main battleships moved around the planet so they were equally spaced around the planet’s equator. George lifted a clear cover from a button on his console and nodded to RV. RV said over the fleet frequency, “Attention all ships, jump a hundred thousand miles away from the planet. We will be launching strikers momentarily.

George watched the Needles and attack craft disappear from above the planet and said, “Bob, Kenny, on three; one, two, three.”

The three ships fired three main strikers each into the planet. One would have destroyed all life; nine broke it into pieces that flew out into space from the explosion of the planet’s core. The Earth Fleet watched as the strikers were fired and saw the massive explosions from a hundred thousand miles away as the planet ceased to exist.

George put the cover back down on the button and stared at the destruction he had caused. He looked at Arvolo and RV said, “It doesn’t remove the pain.” George nodded and lowered his head. RV then said, “But it does leave you with a sense of satisfaction.”

George looked up and said, “You’re damned right. Is the present ready for delivery?”

“It is.”

“Would you be so kind as to deliver it?”

RV looked at Cyanna and she spoke into her com.

• • •

The Scanner Controller was staring at the blasted home hive and was still in shock. He finally looked at his panels and saw something on the bottom right display. He brought the view in closer and fell back in his chair. The derelict hull of a grey ship was hanging in space just outside the border of the Violet Civilization. He brought the view in closer and saw that it was the blasted hull of the ship that had come and given the coordinates of the planet they had destroyed. He scanned it closely and saw that every being on board was dead. Explosive decompression had killed them when the hull had been punctured in multiple places. He sent the view to the Fleet Controller and he said, “I guess we know where that White Ship was before it went to its planet.”

The Scanner Controller nodded and hoped there weren’t any more of them. One was far too many.

• • •

RV looked at Cyanna and said, “Sound retrieval.”

Cyanna issued the orders and wondered how RV was affected by what had happened. She knew she would soon know.

• • •

Captain Tom Browne sat in his command chair on the battleship Hong Kong as he fulfilled his duty of protective cover of the colonist’s landing on the planet’s surface. The huge ship was parked in orbit over the new colony named Europe and suddenly he heard alarms go off. He looked quickly at his Sensor Officer, “Sir, I have ten ships emerging into normal space just beyond the moon’s orbit.”

“Sound General Quarters.” The alarm klaxons began blaring and he reached over and turned the sound off in the bridge, “What can you determine about them?”

The Sensor Officer ran three scans and said, “They’re not warships, Sir. They appear to be commercial vessels.”

Tom reached over and silenced the alarm throughout the ship and noticed that the red lights had gone solid. He was impressed with the crew’s fast response and reminded himself to compliment them. He put on the translator and said, “Communications, have you picked up a frequency from them?”

“I have, Sir and they’re speaking in the language of the species we destroyed in this galaxy.”

“Put it on the speakers.”

“...are here to speak with you. We come in peace and only wish to communicate.” The message repeated itself over and over.

Tom said, “Open a channel.”

“Go ahead, Sir.”

“What is it you wish to talk about?”

“Thank goodness you didn’t attack us.”

“We don’t do that unless we’re threatened. We are at heart a peace loving civilization.”

“We are representatives of those worlds you saved from the Fatal Empire. You didn’t stay and allow us to thank you for freeing us and we’ve recently learned that you have settled planets in this part of our galaxy. We are concerned about your level of technology and wonder what your intentions are.”

Tom wished he had someone higher up to handle this but he decided to answer their questions, “We’re looking for uninhabited planets to colonize in a different galaxy than our own. Our civilization is under attack from another galaxy and we’re concerned about our species’ survival. The attackers recently destroyed our home world and we feel that we should not just be in one galaxy. We have no intentions of attacking other civilizations and will only use our ships against aggressive civilizations. We determined rather quickly that the Empire you’re referring to represented a danger to anyone they encountered. They attacked the first ship we sent here. We investigated and discovered that they have enslaved thousands of planets and were murdering innocent civilians. We made a decision that they had to be eliminated. We tried to do it such that no other civilization would be harmed in the process. After that, we left you to determine your own destiny. Does our settling here pose a problem for you?”

“No, it does not.”

“Then go in peace and we wish you success and good fortune.”

“Thank you. If we can do anything to repay you for you kindness, please let us know.”

“You owe us nothing. It was the right thing to do.”

Tom watched the ten ships jump away and smiled. The tone used by the being communicating was soothing and he sensed that it was a good creature.

He was forced to call for help when they showed up again a month later.

• • •

George looked at Captain Tom Browne on his display and said, “They want what?”

“They want us to agree to defend them if they are attacked by an invader from another galaxy and they will assist us in building the ships needed to make that happen.”

George looked at Meisa and Arvolo and raised his hands, “What do we do about this?”

RV said, “I want you to notice that they did not ask for the ships to use themselves.”

George dropped his hands into his lap like they had hundred pound weights on them. He looked at Tom on the display and said, “Is that true?”

Tom shrugged and said, “They don’t want ships for themselves. I determined that before I could take that conversation any further. I told them that one of you would have to come and determine what’s going on. They are currently holding station at the moons obit.”

George looked at RV and he said, “Actually, Chris and Jillian should make this trip before they leave to look at M-87’s history again.”

“Why is that?”

“Chris was the one that insisted their former masters be removed and that all the planets be freed before we destroyed the Fatal’s home world.”

George thought about the suggestion and said, “Captain Browne, I’ll get back to you in a moment.” Tom nodded and disappeared from George’s display. He pressed a button and Jillian appeared on his screen, “Jillian, I need to speak with you and Chris about an issue.”

“Give me a moment.”

Jillian moved out of the display and George looked over at RV, “What is your inclination on this?”

“There are more than a hundred thousand planets that we freed from that abusive species. I know from looking at the fleet reports that most of them are highly industrialized and forced to produce for their masters. Quite frankly, I’m not certain what to do; however, I do know that those planets could build huge number of ships very quickly.”

“You sound like you have a problem with it.”

“Who is going to fly them?”

Chris and Jillian appeared on the display and listened in on George and RV’s conversation. George said, “What are you saying?”

“What if each of those planets built just ten ships for us?”

George said, “We’d have a million ships.”

“Right; now where do we get the crews?”

George saw it. “Each ship has 400 crewmembers. We’d need four hundred million sailors to man them and that doesn’t include the Needles and Attack Craft.”

Jillian said, “I don’t know where you’re going to get a million ships but I know where you can find the crews.”

George and RV jerked their heads toward the display and RV said, “Where?”

“The Alliance and Moet have contacted Chris and have asked if they can assist us in defending our galaxy against invaders. Their leaders know we don’t trust them, but they want us to know that they’ll be working hard to earn our trust and are willing to assist us any way they can. There are more than eight thousand planets in the Moet Realm and the Alliance. The Alliance planets have huge populations. Where are you going to get a million ships?”

“The planets we freed in M-49 have offered to build ships for us if we will agree to defend them against any invaders from another galaxy.”

“Do we want to give them our technology?”

George shrugged, “They say they don’t want it. It appears they will build the ships and hand them over to us.” George paused and said, “I don’t know, Chris. RV seems to think that you and Jillian should meet with their leaders and determine our best course of action. I think that’s a good plan because you learned their language. Can you do that before you leave for M-87?”

“We’ve been delayed several times, so I guess one more delay won’t make a difference. We only started the initial investigation, so we’ll need to start over anyway. If you’ll send me the coordinates, we’ll go and see what they have to say.”

George pushed a button and said, “You have them on your panel. Let me know what you determine.”

“Will do.”

George looked at RV and said, “What do you think about Jillian’s remark about the Moet and Alliance?”

“You need to call Sasha and ask her.”

“Why?”

“She’s been on many of their planets setting up the treaties and trade agreements. She knows more about them than you or me.”

George looked over at Meisa and said, “Would you ask her to come and meet with us?”

Meisa turned to her panel and George said, “This puts a whole new spin on things.”

RV shrugged.

“Don’t want to say what you’re thinking?”

“It’s not that; all of this is conjecture at this point. However, the use of Alliance and Moet sailors has me intrigued.”

“You’re leaning toward using them?”

“Think about it, George; the only planets in both of their societies that had anywhere near a good life were the ruling planets. All the others were pretty much living at poverty level, building the ships and weapons they needed to war on each other. Now that they’ve been freed of that burden, their economies are booming and the planets are now learning what a good lifestyle really is. The vast majority of the populations do not think like their leaders.”

George thought about that and looked up recent messages sent from the two former enemies. He continued to read them until Sasha arrived.

“Good morning, it’s good to see you again.”

Meisa got up and hugged Sasha and George invited her to sit down at the conference table. “Sasha, Jillian just told us that the Moet and Alliance want to assist us in defending our galaxy. You’ve been on a large number of their worlds; what do you think about the suggestion?”

“You worry that they can’t be trusted.”

“Yes, I do.”

“I’ve been meaning to come and talk with you about this very issue, but have been tied up with the death of my husband.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss, Sasha. He is the one that has truly allowed us to survive. We all miss him.”

“Thank you George but Dolly is the one we’ll all miss the most. She is what held us together. Are you going to accept the leadership position for our planets?”

George sighed, “I’ve been asked by the colonies to accept but I’m just not sure I’m the right one.”

Sasha stared at George for a long moment and finally said, “You’re asking the wrong question, George.” George looked at her and she continued, “You should ask what Dolly would tell you to do.” George looked at Sasha and said nothing.

RV said, “You owe it to her to continue her efforts to protect us.”

George looked at RV and sighed. He looked over at Meisa and she was nodding, “You do understand the burden this will put on us?”

Meisa smiled, “I do. If we didn’t have someone as capable as our Admiral here to handle the Fleets, I might feel differently; however, our colonies need to be united and there is no one that can do that better than you.”

George looked at her and after a moment said, “Send them an answer.” Meisa turned and started composing a message on her board. George looked at Sasha and said, “What do you mean by you were going to discuss this issue with us?”

“The planets of the Alliance and the Moet are now enjoying the best time of their existence. Their leaders couldn’t force them to fight each other again if they tried; their economies are now bound inextricably together. However, they will eventually become a very powerful independent force if left alone. We need to include them in our quest and see that all of us are tied together in defending our galaxy against possible invaders. By bringing them into our fight, they become more united with us.”

“I’m concerned that they will take control of our efforts.”

“That won’t happen.”

“Why not?”

“Because they’ve seen that it was us that forced them to stop warring against each other and enforced that peace. The Alliance and the Moet planets will not trust their leaders to lead them forward. They’ve seen where that led. They need us and will insist that we direct their future direction. The populations would never allow their leaders to have power again, except for day to day planetary issues.”

RV leaned forward, “Are you sure about that?”

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked by the people on the planets I’ve visited; what are we waiting on to start the process of bringing us together?”

“Hemon hated the Alliance.”

“Yes, but that hate was misplaced. He learned that the death of his family was due to his theft of the gravity guns. He told me that he would have done the same thing if he had been in their place. He told me before I left to work on the trade agreements that he hoped we could all come together eventually.”

RV looked at George, “Tenah was preparing his fleet to defend the Moets against their Royal Family’s attack. Those two civilizations are growing closer.”

George looked at the two of them and then turned to his panel and scrolled to a frequency. He pushed the activate button and Tenah and the Moet Baron appeared on his display. They looked at each other and George could tell they were nervous. The Moet’s lighter shade confirmed it. George said, “I hope in the future that any time I contact you that you will not be worried about why.”

Tenah said, “That’s a good idea. I hope you understand our reasons for being nervous.”

“I do, but I want to see if we can change that. I’m considering bringing your two civilizations into our efforts to defend our galaxy. That would require the three of us to be able to work together and be able to trust each other to hold up their end of whatever agreement we reach. Are you interested in the idea?”

The Moet quickly said, “Yes, we are!”

Tenah followed with, “We are as well.”

“Then here’s what I want you to do; discuss this idea with your planet’s leaders and tell me what that entity would look like. How would the three of us function and what would be the necessary requirements for us have in place to make it work? Can you do that?”

“We will start immediately and contact you when we have a suggestion.”

“Thank you; I do hope we can come together on this common cause we share.”

George ended the connection and said, “Well, let’s see what they come up with.”

RV smiled, “Why didn’t you tell them what they had to do?”

George chuckled, “You know the reason and are baiting me.”

RV laughed out loud and Sasha asked, “Tell me why. I’m not sure I see it.”

George nodded at RV and he said, “Whatever plan they come up with will be very similar to whatever we would propose. However, they are more likely to follow something they developed than something we forced on them.”

Sasha smiled, “You’re exactly right. They will also get input from their planets and learn rather quickly that the current leadership of their civilizations will not be allowed to be in a leadership position over this new alliance.”

RV doffed an imaginary hat and sat back in his chair. He looked around and said, “I wonder how things are going with Chris and Jillian.”

Sasha looked at him, “What’s going on with them?”

RV smiled, “Ask our new President here.”

Sasha looked at George and he nodded. Then he told her.

Chapter Ten

The Jukebox entered normal space next to the Hong Kong and Captain Browne sent a recording of the conversations that had taken place. While Chris was listening to them, Jillian looked down at the planet below and was struck by its beauty. The six new colonies had named their new worlds after the continents on Earth. The first was Europe and the others were named Asia, South America, North America, and Australia. The sixth refused to adopt the name Antarctica because of its cold desolate environment. The debate over a new name continued until after Earth was destroyed. The planet voted a hundred percent to name their new word Sierra-Garcia to honor Dolly and Jeff.

Though it was the last planet settled, it would became the Capital of the six colonies and the other five felt that it was appropriate for it to assume that role. The legend had begun and Dolly and Jeff became mythic beings in the history that was being written. They all knew that she had not allowed the fleet to defend Earth in order to protect the newly settled worlds. Jillian smiled and then heard Chris activate his communicator. She moved to the frequency and listened in on the conversation.

“I understand that you have come here with a request. I’ve been sent to discuss what you are asking us to do.”

“I am Boden and I’ve been selected by the worlds that your fleet freed from the Fatal Empire to make a proposal. We learned on our last visit that you are currently being attacked by another civilization from a different galaxy and that is why you moved here. We have also been attacked in the past and it was the Fatal that prevented those forces from destroying us.”

Chris was shocked at the revelation. “When did that happen?”

“The last invasion was over six thousand years ago. The invader retreated and the Fatal did not chase them and remove them as a threat. We know they are still out there and without the Fatal, we would be helpless against them.”

“You could build your own ships and defend yourselves if you choose.”

“I wish that were possible, but there isn’t much hope that we could ever do that.”

“Why not?”

“We have been under the crushing rule of the Fatal for more than four hundred thousand years. The ones they picked to sacrifice on their planets were anyone that showed even the slightest aggressive tendency. They have systematically forced us into populations that have no ability or will to fight. The idea of attacking anyone is abhorrent to us and though we know it has to be done, we just can’t bring ourselves to do it. Perhaps over time our worlds will eventually overcome this inbred quality, but that will be far in the future. For the moment, we are quite helpless against any one that attacks us.”

“Don’t you worry about telling us this?”

“Of course, but you would discover our weakness as soon as you made any contact with us. The initial contact with your ship’s commander caused us to wonder if you were possibly someone we could trust with our welfare. The truth of this situation is that we need you more than you need us. It’s just a matter of time until we are invaded again.”

Chris looked at Jillian and then said, “You should know that we would come to your defense whether you assisted us or not. We do not allow aggressive civilizations to attack innocent planets without responding. The invaders would also be a threat to our colonies.”

“You don’t know how happy I am to hear you say that. We hoped that you thought like this but we still insist on building the ships for you.”

“Why? Won’t it take away from your economies to do that?”

“We are, if nothing else, manufacturers and engineers of the highest order. It’s what we have been forced to become. We built the ships for the Fatal, even though we knew they would be used against us. We chose not to build them as powerful as we could have made them.” The being paused and then said, “By building the tools you need to defend us, we are safer than having you face any invader alone. I’m sure you could use them to help you survive your current war as well.”

“How do I know we can trust you?”

The being laughed, “That could very easily be verified by a visit to any of our worlds.”

“What are your plans now that you’re free?”

“We will all work together to make this galaxy the most peaceful place in our universe. However, we know that if we are unable to defend ourselves, our new community will fall with the first threat.”

Chris thought a moment and said, “Take me to your world now. I want to see your society.”

“I’ve just sent you the coordinates. Please join me there.”

The ten ships jumped away and a few moments later the Jukebox joined them.

• • •

George, Chris, Jillian, and Arvolo sat in the new Command Center on Dundee and watched the two engineers set up their materials to make a presentation. “Why did you need us here?”

“I know you’re anxious to make your study of M-87, but Dr. Levin requested this meeting and said that our leadership should be in attendance. He’s never been as excited as he is now. Something is up, Chris.”

“He’s been working with the planets in M-49, hasn’t he?”

“Yes, and I believe this has something to do with what he’s discovered there. I just think we should all be here for this.”

“Dr. Morrison also looks quite animated.”

George smiled, “You’re right RV. I asked what this had to do with and didn’t get an answer. They just said it was important.”

Chris looked at RV and said, “I understand that we are moving all of our shipbuilding facilities to M-49.”

RV shrugged and said, “None of our colonies can match the industry on those planets and it will take decades to duplicate their ability to manufacture. We are going to build the weapons used on our ships in the colonies. We’re also moving the fleet academy to a planet in that galaxy. The ship we’ve had it on is too small to handle the massive numbers of new trainees.”

Jillian said, “I’ve been meaning to ask you about that. How are the Moet and Alliance volunteers panning out?”

RV smiled, “They are quite motivated. I don’t think Tenah and the Baron expected what happened when they suggested their civilizations join us in our efforts to defend the galaxy.”

George said, “I understand that they were immediately replaced by elected bodies of citizens that chose other leaders. They still direct their planets, but have lost the power they once enjoyed.”

RV said, “They didn’t mind the change. They both recognized that they represented a time in their civilization’s history that their citizens now abhor. They have a voting seat in the new body and are content with the direction things are moving.”

RV looked at George and said, “I suspect you are being kept busy by all the events taking place?”

George took a deep breath, “Their new constitution requires the chosen leader of our species to have veto power over any of their actions and will handle any issue that may crop up between our cultures. It appears my decision will be binding with no possibility of appeal.”

Jillian smiled, “What are we going to call our little organization?”

“I have no idea and I’m open to any suggestions.”

RV said, “Ask the new members of our little group to gather suggestions and allow the new legislature to select the best one. You can always veto it if you don’t like it.”

George stared at RV and then nodded. He looked over at Meisa and she left to send the request to the new leaders of the Alliance and Moet.

Jillian said, “You didn’t answer my question about how the Moet and Alliance trainees are doing?”

RV sighed and said, “I hate to say it, but they are better than us in many areas.”

“Why is that?”

“The Moet are perfect for the Needles and Attack Craft. I’ve often said that it takes three arms to really fly those ships and the Moet can grow four or more if they want. They also have two brains that can each handle either weapons or defenses. They took to the small craft like they were made for each other.” RV paused and then said, “The warriors coming from the Moet and Alliance have been at war with each other, and God only know how many invaders, for millions of years. We’ve only been at it for less than a decade. I know we’ve been fighting among ourselves for thousands of years but that has been land battles. Those two have been fighting space battles before humans walked erect. They have a natural predisposition for it.”

The room was silent as the attendees looked at each other and Chris finally asked, “Are we going to give them command of a main battleship?”

“They don’t want it. They prefer having humans in command positions. It seems they don’t trust their instincts when given too much power.” RV saw them relax and he said, “However, I am going to place quite a few of them in command of our battleships.”

Chris said, “I’m nervous about that.”

“Don’t be. We don’t have enough seasoned sailors to take command of our new ships. I’ve seen too many commanders show reluctance to take action when the situation required it. These new recruits won’t have that weakness. I’ll screen the ones selected and make sure they are trustworthy. We need to make sure that we don’t allow the Moet and Alliance citizens to get the feeling that they are second class citizens in this new venture. Allowing them to occupy roles of leadership will help us in the long run.”

Chris looked at George, “Do you agree with this?”

“I suggested that RV take a look and see if it was possible. The Moet and Alliance have a huge respect for us and what we’ve done for them right now. That can erode quickly if we treat them as second class citizens. It’s the right thing to do. We’re also going to allow free movement between all of our member planets.”

Chris slowly shook his head, “I guess the confrontation with the Moets and Alliance has jaded me. I’m just not comfortable trusting them.”

“Keep in mind that the former leadership of those civilizations pretty much kept their populations in bondage, closely resembling slavery. It is those other planets that I trust, Chris. They will not return to the bindings that held them in poverty and submission for so long.”

Meisa had returned and was listening in to the conversation. She said, “You need to visit one of their planets that was not a capital and you’ll see that they are very different from what you’ve seen.”

Dr. Levin walked up to the table and said, “We’re ready if you’ll just move your chairs over to the main wall display.” The four moved across the room and Dr. Levin said, “We’ve discovered something quite remarkable about our new friends in M-49. They told us they were great engineers and manufacturers, but we discovered when we went to set up their factories to build our ships that they made an understatement.”

George said, “What do you mean?”

“Their factories are the finest work of robotics I have ever seen. They fed our plans for a main battleship into their computer and it came back with a list of eight thousand improvements in our design.” He paused and saw the amazement of the group. “Most of them were small things but two of them were significant.”

“What were those Dr.?”

“The first was a lens that can now focus and direct the beams from our main guns.”

RV said, “Are you serious!?!”

“Yes I am; and they can be fired continuously without melting.”

RV looked at George and said, “That beam can penetrate a Violet force field if we can fire it longer than three seconds. This makes a huge difference.”

“Actually, the second discovery reduces the time you need to fire it.”

RV stared at Levin and looked at George before he said, “And that discovery was?”

Levin turned to George and said, “You gave us the first combination of materials to strengthen our reactors. We then collected information from an Alliance and Jenze battleship which increased our reactor’s power to what it is today. We’ve discovered that the ships that were used by the Fatal used a power source that used elements which only included the first two of our current chain. However, there are six others below those two we are not currently using.”

George stared at Levin in shock. RV saw George’s expression and said, “What are you thinking?

George looked at RV and then said to Dr. Levin, “Have you tested it?”

“Yes.”

“And?”

“We’re going to need to increase the size of the containment area in our reactors.”

Meisa sat up and said, “Are you serious?”

“Very.”

“How much larger?”

“Double.”

Meisa said, “Oh my God!”

Chris said, “What?”

George said, “That containment vessel was designed to handle ten times its current power. Dr. Levin is telling us that our power is being increased a hundred times what it is now.”

“Actually, it’s seventy five times. We’re building in some space for safety reasons.”

RV said, “Our ships aren’t big enough to carry a reactor that’s twice as large as our current ones.”

Dr. Levin shrugged and then turned to Dr. Morrison who said, “You’re right; they’re too small. We are going to have to build a different ship than the one currently being used by the fleet.”

RV looked at Dr. Morrison and asked, “How will it be different?”

“Our current main battleships are 1,800 feet long. The new one will be close to a mile.”

“Five thousand feet!!!”

“Yes, but that won’t be a problem. Our new friends can and will build ships that big for us rather quickly.”

“And how many sailors will be needed to crew these ships?”

“Actually, not many more than you’re currently using.”

RV shook his head, “How is that possible?”

“Our current design has almost two thirds of the crew manning the beams and main guns on the ship. With this new design, there will be no need for the standard beams. Every beam will become a main gun. They will be scanner guided and the power used will be selected by the one firing the weapon. They also have a computer that will direct all of the weapons on the ship. That computer is absolutely amazing and if I didn’t know better, I’d have thought it was alive.”

“Does it fly the ship as well?”

“Under normal conditions it does; however, in combat a pilot will have to fly the ship.”

George said, “What are you going to do with all the space not used by the crew?”

“Make no mistake; the numbers of sailors on the ship will go up. We’ve never liked the idea of our main battleships not having Needles for their protection. We’re building two hundred and fifty launch tubes that will hold three Needles.”

“What about the attack craft?”

“There will be more than a hundred places on the hull where they will be docked. The main reason the ship has to be so long is the reactors will have to be located along the middle of the ship with a three hundred yards spacing between them. The living space for the crew will be built around them.”

RV said, “Just how maneuverable will this new ship be? I don’t want to give up our ability to change course quickly.”

Morrison smiled, “With the additional power, the thrusters will be able to generate more thrust. Our new ship will also be weightless. The new ship will run circles around the old one. At least our computer models indicate that it will. The additional crew members are needed to support the small ships. Maintenance and flight operations will need at least three hundred crewmembers.”

Chris asked, “Can we use this new power in our smaller ships?”

“No, we can’t. The reactor needed to make that possible would be bigger than the ship.”

George smiled, “Not if we just added a couple of the new elements to their reactors. The increase in power would be enough to make them stronger.”

Morrison looked at Levin and he shrugged. Morrison turned back to the group and said, “We’ll have to experiment with that possibility. We’ll let you know what we determine.”

Meisa said, “It will work. The current reactors are able to handle ten times more energy. We don’t need that much more power to make those ships deadly to a Violet Ship. The Jenze used different reactor material for their large and small ships.”

“Like I said; that’s something we will have to experiment with to make that determination. However, I do suspect you’re right.”

George said, “This is great news. When will the first ship be available for testing, if they can actually build one?”

“Ten weeks.”

“That soon?”

“That’s what they tell me. They’re waiting on approval to start.”

George looked at Chris and Jillian and said, “Your trip to M-87 will be delayed until after that ship is ready.” Chris started to protest and George said, “I will not send you to that galaxy unless you are in our most powerful ship. You also need to be there is make sure your scanners and time fields are installed properly. It will also give your crew the time to learn how to fight the new ship.”

Chris shut his mouth and then said, “Why are you worried about taking our current ship?”

“How many aggressive civilizations exist in that galaxy? And you also have to ask why the two we’ve run into so far are forced to exist out on the outer edge of that galaxy? We don’t know what kind of technology exists in the rest of that giant and I’m not going to take a risk if we can avoid it. This is not optional.”

Chris looked at Jillian and she looked at George and said, “Yes, Sir. We will follow your orders.”

George said, “Get off that formal tone with me, Jillian. What if I were going?”

Jillian was surprised by George’s forceful response and Chris sighed and said, “Ok, we’ll do it your way.”

Jillian smiled and said, “I guess we’ll have to hone up on our dancing skills.”

Dr. Morrison shook his head, “I suspect you will need every moment available to learn how to use this new ship. Make sure your crew is prepared to come back and assume command of one of them.”

George looked at Meisa, “You should go with Dr. Morrison and see if you can assist with this new reactor. I’ll join you when I catch up on my to-do list.”

Meisa smiled, “I’ll see you when I’m finished. You won’t get that done for quite a long time.”

“You’re probably right. However, you are the reactor expert. This could be a difference maker if we can make it happen.”

“I’ll go with Chris and Jillian to the construction site.”

Jillian said, “Great; that will be fun.”

RV said, “I would like to go take a look at this new ship as well.”

“Leave someone in charge in your absence.”

“Bob or Kenny can handle it. Admiral Hardy will need to go with me to take part in our smaller ship’s development. I’ll make sure I stay in contact.”

George nodded and looked at the picture of the new ship on his display and thought, “Dolly, I’ll send your killers a message soon.”

• • •

Admirals Arvolo and Hardy were in the conference room on the Havana prior to jumping to the industrial planets. Standing at rigid attention in front of them was a young Needle Pilot. Lt. Kate Diamond was scared stiff. She thought that her little flight through the middle of a Moet Dreadnaught had gone unnoticed. She should have known better; this Admiral didn’t miss much. The explosion following her flight was hard to ignore. She remained at attention expecting the worst as the Admiral finished a communication. He looked up at Kate and said, “I’m curious about your use of a Needle as a missile. I haven’t found that particular tactic in our fleet protocols.”

“No Sir, it’s not listed.”

“Then tell me where you found the authorization to deliberately jeopardize a hundred million dollar starship in reckless behavior? Crashing it through the middle of a Moet Dreadnaught is not something we teach at the academy.”

“I performed that maneuver without permission, Sir.”

“Did you know your ship would survive that maneuver?”

No Sir, I did not.”

“Then why did you decide to do that?”

“A dreadnaught was powering up its jump screen to escape. It was a coward and chose to run when all the others fought like warriors and died. I just couldn’t bear leaving without a perfect score, Sir.”

“Perfect score?”

“You know, 100% met; 100% killed. The memory of those that died on Earth at the hands of these cowards screamed for me to stop it.”

“Why didn’t you just use your weapons?”

“I was out of strikers and my beams were too low to penetrate its force field. It was worth my life for our future generations to point to this moment in time and know that we killed them all. If just one ship escaped, it would be a partial victory.”

“So you were willing to die to prevent that happening?”

“Yes sir.”

“And you were also willing to destroy a hundred million dollar ship in the process?”

“I would have taken out a billion dollar ship. That’s a fair trade off.”

Cyanna snickered although she was trying her best not to show any expression. RV looked at her with a stern expression, “You find this funny, Admiral?”

“Sir, no Sir.”

RV continued to stare at Cyanna and then turned to Kate, “You will receive the appropriate action for your behavior, Captain.”

Kate knew she was going to be court-martialed out of the service, “Yes Sir.” Then she thought, “Captain?”

RV looked at Cyanna and said, “Have her sign it!”

Cyanna pushed a document forward and indicated toward the bottom, “Please sign here, Captain.”

Kate said, “Sir, my rank is Lieutenant,” as she stepped forward, took the pen, and signed. Cyanna pulled a copy and handed it to the young pilot and said, “Please report to the location on this document.”

Kate saluted and said, “Sir, yes Sir.” She lifted the document and saw that she was promoted to Senior Captain and given the command of a brand new main battleship. Her mouth fell open and she stared at RV speechless, “If you’re going to crash through enemy ships, you need a bigger ship.” Kate continued to stare dumbfounded, “You can name her when you go pick her up.”

Kate smiled and said, “She’ll be named the Scotland, Sir.”

RV smiled, “That’s a mighty fine name there, Lassie. Let’s hope she can live up to it.”

Kate beamed and said, “Oh, she will, Sir,” as she turned and ran out of the room.

Cyanna looked at RV, “Why did you put her through that?”

“I had to see if what she did was the result of an intelligent decision or stupidity.”

“What if it was stupidity?”

“That’s what the other document was for; but we didn’t have to use it, did we?”

“No, thank God. Where is her ship going to be sent?”

“She will be one of the ships in the Havana’s guard squadron. I feel safer with a Captain that is willing to use their ship to carry out their mission.”

“You have a lot of those in the squadron.”

“You never know when we might need them.”

“Are you expecting something?”

“I’m always expecting something. My first name is expecting.”

“I thought it was enigma?”

“That’s my suffix.”

Cyanna sighed and said, “I’ll get your real first name one day.”

“I just gave it to you.”

Cyanna laughed and they left for the bridge.

Chapter Eleven

The new Hive Controller tuned to his bank of displays and checked on the progress of reconstruction. His former Scanner Controller was now the Fleet Controller and the former council had made a great meal over the last eight rotations. They should have backed him in his new position. At least the others had wisely chosen to remain silent and leave the new capital.

He glanced at the display in the upper right corner of his display bank and saw the destroyed planet had started to heal from the nuclear weapons rained on it. The clouds had diminished and the ocean was shining bright blue. Most of the land masses were still barren, but there were large pockets of green starting to show through.

He continued to stare at the display and wondered why he had kept it. He still had nightmares of that small white ship hitting the former Hive. It had been five months and nothing had appeared, but he couldn’t bring himself to change the view. He took a deep breath and called in his top aide, “What are the Yellow Ships doing?”

“They have pulled a large number of their ships from the neutral zone to fight off an attack at their inner border.”

“Do we know if they were successful?”

“Not yet. We can only hope they are.”

“I know. Better the enemy I know than one I don’t. Have we heard anything about the core expanding again?”

“No and we are unable to send a ship to investigate. It would never make it through the civilizations to see. I suspect that if the Horde is being pressured by the forces at its inner border, something is happening.”

“If war has broken out among the Majors again, there will be a rush to escape the core.”

“Send a ship anyway; we might get lucky.”

The aide bowed and backed out of the Hive Controller’s cell. He thought about the possibility of leaving this galaxy but knew that would only be a last resort. Finding a planet with the right climate for nesting was next to impossible. Finding ten thousand would be impossible. He glanced at that display again and felt his fear.

• • •

Izzy watched Zack go through the new recordings of the Violet Civilization. There wasn’t much new so she turned to the scanners and extended the fields. She had found a place just outside the Milky Way where the light from Earth’s ancient past arrived uninterrupted by objects passing in its outward past. She pulled up the picture of Earth at a time when it was cool and the planet had vast grasslands with large land animals. She had tried to find man’s earliest ancestors in close scans but had been unsuccessful so far.

Zack glanced over and said, “Planet gazing again, I see.”

“Yes, I am. Thank you for finding this place. You have to admit our planet was beautiful in the past.”

Zack looked at her display and smiled, “Yes, it was.”

Izzy sighed, “I miss it so much.”

Zack slowly shook his head, “I know that feeling, Izzy. I know it well.” He went back to work as Izzy continued viewing the display. The eighteen crew members sat at their weapons and scanned for possible attackers. One could never be too cautious.

• • •

The large creature sat in his deep dwelling and watched his console. A small tech crawled in and remained at the entrance waiting for instructions. “What do you know about that planet that was destroyed out on the periphery?”

“Nothing; we recorded the explosion but don’t know what caused it.”

“Are those two civilizations starting to destroy planets?”

“I have no information about that. My analysis of the explosion indicates that the yellow enemy did not cause it.”

The large creature said, “Different form of energy?”

“Yes, it was and it appears that most of the damage was not done by an explosive device.”

“It wasn’t?”

“No; it appears that several objects moving very close to light speed hit that planet and caused the destruction.”

“Have you planned a response to the violation?”

“I was waiting for your direction. At this point I have no idea as to who I would report the violation to; if the enemy facing them didn’t do it, I have no idea who did.”

The large creature remained silent as it replayed the explosion. It ran an analysis and said, “There’s no energy to track this violation back to; perhaps we should go and ask those that were attacked about this?”

“Is that what you want done?”

“Have you checked with the other Majors?”

“I have and none of them know anything more than us.”

“Ummmmm…send a ship.”

The tech turned and slid out of the cave. He sent the message to the surface and a ship was dispatched. It had been millions of years since the injunction against destroying planets had been violated. It really believed that the attacked civilization was not responsible. It did make one wonder who was. Well, whoever did it would not be around much longer.

• • •

The Hive Controller heard all of his alarms going off at high volume. He turned the sound off and looked at his main display and felt paralyzing fear; a Major Battleship was in orbit above the new home hive. He saw a message coming in and activated his board. “We are here to investigate the destruction of a planet in your area of responsibility. This is a violation of the Major Conventions and you will comply with this investigation.”

The Hive Controller said, “Our planet was destroyed by a civilization from another galaxy.”

“Why did they destroy your planet?”

“Because we destroyed theirs; they represented a threat to our galaxy, so we attacked and killed the planet of a dangerous species.”

“Why did you not kill them all?”

“We thought we did, but found one ship survived the destruction of their home world. It was that ship that crashed into our planet and destroyed it.”

“You were unable to prevent the destruction?”

“I’m sending you the recording of all events associated with that civilization.”

The Ship Tech received the transmission and went through them at maximum speed. “Have you not gone back to that galaxy?”

“No, we are in a critical phase of our defense against the Horde. However, our probe has shown no further activity at that destroyed planet.”

The Major Battleship disappeared and the Hive Controller fell back in his chair. This was a close brush with certain death. The Major Civilizations at the galaxy’s core remained in their deadlock, but they did not tolerate any violation of their laws. Any civilization that violated a law was targeted for destruction. That’s why this unending war with the Horde never ended; planet destruction was forbidden. The Hive Controller was thankful that those laws only applied to their galaxy and no others. He hoped his explanation satisfied the Majors. He waited for a return visit but after fifteen rotations decided that he was safe.

• • •

The large creature watched the recordings and was amazed at the ability of the small white ship to evade everything the bugs had used to stop it. It had replayed the conversation with the species from that galaxy that insisted that there was only one planet of the white ship builders. It also went through the other video and saw that only the ship that attacked had appeared at the destroyed planet. The creature thought for a long time about whether or not further action should be taken, but it didn’t make sense to send a ship that far for just one planet’s destruction.

There was no prohibition against destruction of planets in other galaxies so the bugs didn’t violate a convention. Obviously, other galaxies did not fall under the conventions and punishing the planet that caused the destruction after it had been destroyed first didn’t make much sense either. Perhaps the bugs learned a lesson about killing planets? It paused and decided that they were too stupid to learn anything. Someday they were going to have to be removed but not until this forced equilibrium was broken.

It entered a summary and sent the recordings to the other Majors. His duty as law enforcement required him to inform all other Majors of any violation, either real or perceived. His term would soon be over and he would not be bothered by this nonsense much longer. He turned back to his board and looked at recent weapon developments that would give his species an advantage against his enemies. It studied the new devices and snorted. There was great improvement, but nothing that offered the possibility of overwhelming the other four hundred Majors without being destroyed by them combining against him. The creature slithered further into his dwelling and longed to be able to go on the attack again. It had been too long and he felt his frustration.

• • •

A year had passed and Chris sat on the Jukebox getting ready for the jump to M-87. He had no idea that the development of his new ship would take so long. He looked at Jillian and she saw what he was thinking in his expression, “It was worth the wait.”

“I know; I just wish we had been able to start earlier.”

“This ship was worth waiting on and it’ll probably save us all the time we’ve lost.”

“I’m sure you’re right, but I hate being delayed this long.”

“You weren’t this impatient trying to get me to love you.”

“I knew you were in the bag. I could afford to be patient.”

“Oh, I was, was I?”

“You know you couldn’t resist my great looks and personality.”

Chris watched Jillian stand up and quickly added, “Besides, the scar on my head was irresistible.”

Jillian stopped moving toward Chris and smiled, “Using the ole scar against me again?”

Chris smiled, “Maybe it knocked some sense into me.”

Jillian sighed and said, “I thought I had lost you. Reminding me only makes me think about how lonely I would be without you.”

Chris said, “Come over here.”

Jillian ran and jumped in his lap and hugged him. “Do you think we’re ready for this?”

“I don’t know. However, it’s important we see what we’re up against.”

“How far back are we going to start?”

“I think forty million years would be a good time. With the new scanners we’ll be using, we should be able to process the information fast enough to do this in a reasonable time.”

Wing Commander Jason Gilstrap entered the bridge and said, “The ship has completed loading the provisions and is ready for launch.”

Chris said, “Dolly, what’s our status?”

A female computer voice said, “Commander Gilstrap is correct; however, I have one attack craft that needs the tie downs checked. I’m getting an error message.”

Jason said, “Which one.”

“Number ninety eight. I don’t think there’s a problem with the connection, but a fuse may have blown on the release board.”

Jason spoke into his transmitter and waited for a response. Jillian said, “What about our power reserves?”

“They are at maximum and the fifth reactor is at standby.”

Jason said, “It was a blown fuse. It has been replaced and the board is now green.”

“Dolly?”

“He is correct. We are ready for jump.”

Chris said, “Please contact the Command Team.”

George, RV, Cyanna, and the Moet Admiral appeared on their screen. Chris said, “Where’s Bender?”

George said, “He’s on his way up. Are you ready for launch?”

“We are. How much longer will it take for the colonies to be moved?”

“The bulk of the work has been done. The Alliance and Moet have also started colonizing planets in M-49 and will be well on the way within six months.”

Jillian said, “I’m still not sure about moving all of our populations to M-49.”

“It wasn’t an easy decision. However, if we destroyed a planet in another galaxy and were attacked in turn; do you think they won’t come and take a closer look to make sure of our destruction? I’m surprised they haven’t come before now. I may be wrong but I’d rather make a mistake being safe than sorry. Besides, most of our real activity is taking place over there.”

“I just hate to leave Dundee and the Milky Way.”

“Our new world will have the same name. We should be completely done by the time you return. The Capital for our union will be located on Sierra-Garcia.”

Jillian smiled, “That is exactly where it should be.”

Chris said, “If the Violet Ships come and scout the Milky Way again, they will only see the old Alliance and Moet planets without any of our new ships. That should throw them off our trail.”

George smiled, “That’s the plan.”

Chris looked at RV, “How are your new ships performing?”

“Our crew size has only grown to twelve hundred and fifty sailors. Our main battleships can now fire the beams and strikers without a crew. All of the sailors are now used to service and fly the Needles and Attack Craft. Being able to link our computers will make the fleet able to handle its own defense. At the rate of new ships being added, we’ll be ready to take on the Violet Civilization in a few more years.”

Jillian looked worried, “You don’t think we should just leave them alone and wait for them to make the first move?”

RV smiled, “What is the name you gave your Computer?”

Jillian sighed and RV said, “She asked us to make them pay. I, for one, want to honor her last request.”

George said, “We’ll make a decision about that after we hear what you discover during your scans of that galaxy. We don’t want to bite off more than we can chew.”

Jillian nodded, “We’re jumping momentarily and we’ll keep the communication channel open. Good luck on the move.”

The Moet raised his eyestalks and said, “Safe travel my friends.”

George said, “Will you fill in Bender?” The Moet moved his eye stalks forward and left the room. George watched him leave and said, “Be careful.”

Chris nodded and ended the transmission. “Dolly, make the jump.”

“Attention all hands; jump warning in thirty seconds. Remain in your ships until all clear is sounded.”

• • •

Eight hundred and fifty pilots activated their Needles and Attack Craft and waited. The first steps toward vengeance were being taken and they were honored to be present. They waited and double checked their systems.

The mile long Jukebox hung in space over Sierra-Garcia and then instantly disappeared. The new jump drives no longer had a delay in operating. This new ship was something that would be feared by many predators but for the moment, it was on a voyage to learn what it was capable of doing.

• • •

The large creature sat in its dwelling and read the message. This was ridiculous. It slowly raised its twenty appendages and said, “Come.” The tech moved into the creature’s quarters and waited at the entrance. “I’ve had eight Majors say that we should investigate that other galaxy to see if the builders of the small ship were destroyed. They think they may be a danger to us, which is ridiculous. I refuse to send any of my ships to do it, so go to the bugs and have them make the determination. I would have thought that after a full revolution this issue would be dismissed. Tell them I want the information quickly.”

• • •

The Hive Controller watched the Major Battleship disappear and leaned back in his chair. He pushed his console and the Fleet Controller appeared on his display, “We are required to scout that galaxy and determine if any of the white ship’s builders are still present. The Horde has been warned against an attack during our search and we’ve been given less than four measures to complete the search. Get the scouts and our defense line ships out and do it now! Do not waste any time and you don’t have much time to make this happen! If any of your ships stop to attack I will hold you responsible for the delay.”

• • •

The probe at the edge of the Milky Way detected the fifty million ships and sent a warning to the Command Center and every planet still in the Milky Way. George ran into the Command Center and stared at the incoming video stream. He saw Bender looking at the huge wall display showing the millions of ships forming up around the galaxy’s edge. As Meisa and the Moet Admiral ran in he said, “What are they doing?”

George looked at the display and said, “They’re coming to see if we survived.”

Meisa said, “How do you know that?”

“There are just as many scouts as Battleships. If this were an attack, the scouts wouldn’t be here. Notify all the planets to act normal and just ignore their presence. Tell them to keep all of their ships out of Sierra Space until this fleet departs.”

Meisa stared at the display and said, “It appears you were right about moving the colonies.”

“We aren’t ready to take these ships head on yet, so I hope I’m right about them just coming to scout. I think that’s what they’re doing, but it’s just a guess.”

“What are they doing?”

George looked at the display and saw half of the giant fleet disappear. Suddenly an alarm from a probe on the opposite side of the Milky Way started alarming. George watched and saw half of the giant fleet appear. “They have ten times as many ships scouting this time as the first. It appears they are going to start on opposite sides and meet in the middle. I think they are trying to do this as quickly as possible. It appears they aren’t wasting any time to do it.”

They watched the split display and saw the giant fleets of ships disappear. They waited in the Command Center for three weeks and hoped that none of the member planets were attacked. Finally, the probe at the core alarmed and they saw the two fleets arrive opposite each other. There was a twenty minute delay before all the ships disappeared.

George said, “Notify Zack and Izzy to prepare to make a trip in four weeks to gather information from a month ago forward. We need to see what’s going on in M-87.”

“What has you concerned?”

“How could the Violet Civilization take this many ships out of their lines to do this? Something is happening and I have no idea what it is.” Meisa replayed the recording and saw that George was right. What was going on? George looked at her and said, “Contact Chris and send him the recordings. See if he can get a big picture of that area of the galaxy without getting too close.”

Meisa turned to her board and downloaded the recordings.

Chapter Twelve

The Hive Controller consolidated the data from the fleets and condensed it into a video that reported anything of interest. He noted that the species that had come and warned him of the White Ship builders was scattered around the galaxy but he didn’t see any models of the ship that had come to his border. His staff went over the entire file and returned to his cell. “There is no evidence of any of the White Ships in that galaxy.”

“Are you absolutely sure?”

“We took a detailed scan of that ship’s hull and our scanners were set to alarm if that material was scanned. Even if the ships were on the ground and unpowered, we would have detected them. There are none of them in that galaxy.”

“Could they be in another galaxy?”

The most senior Controller said, “Which one? There are more than five thousand galaxies in this cluster and more than a million a long jump away. Which one would you suggest we examine?”

The Hive Controller knew there was no way to start a search without some clue as to where to go look. He checked his board and saw the clock go to zero. The Major Battleship appeared on his panel, “Well, they are predictably punctual.”

“Did you do as we ordered?”

“I did and there is no White Ships remaining in that galaxy. I’m sending you the condensed file along with the entire record for you to examine. It does appear that civilization was destroyed.”

“If we need any further action, we will contact you. You may resume your conflict with the Yellow Ships in one rotation of your planet.” The giant ship disappeared.

“Are our ships back in the line?”

“They are returning to their assigned positions as we speak. They will be ready before the time frame given by the Majors.”

“Good.” The Hive Controller put his hand on the display control to turn off the probe’s signal from the destroyed planet, but just couldn’t force himself to do it. He stared at the planet in the top right corner of his bank of display panels and slowly pulled his hand back. The staff watched him and wondered what was going on. The Hive Controller dismissed them and continued to stare at the planet. Fear can make one do irrational things.

• • •

A month later George contacted the Jukebox, “Chris, have you got a moment?”

“I do. The computer is currently analyzing our recent recordings and we’re waiting on the results.”

“Have you seen anything of interest?”

“We had to back out to sixty million years to get a full view of what’s happening in this galaxy. There has been constant war from that time forward so far. The civilizations in this galaxy are vicious and I’ve lost count of how many civilizations have rose and fell. Most of the heavy action has taken place around the core of the galaxy and has extended out toward the outer edges.”

“We’ve discovered something of interest.”

“What is that?”

“Zack and Izzy did an emergency jump and recorded the time before and after the violet ships came and scouted.”

“And?”

“A huge purple ship that flashed green appeared and communicated to the Violet Civilization. It was only there for about an hour but after it jumped away the violet ships pulled all of their ships from the front lines and sent them to scout our galaxy.”

“What did the Yellow Ships do?”

“They remained in their lines and did not take any action until after the Violet Ships had returned and assumed their positions again.”

Jillian said, “It appears that there is a species that commands obedience from those civilizations.”

“That’s how I see it. That ship returned soon after the Violet Ships returned to their territory and remained for less than an hour. I need you to see if you can determine the relationship between those ships.”

Chris nodded, “I’ll make it a point to look for them and see what I come up with. We’re still a while from getting close to the current time.”

“I think I need you to make that discovery a priority. We’re planning a visit to our friends in the Violet Ships, but need to know what might fall out of that contact.”

“How long will it be before you’re ready to do that?”

“Probably three years.”

“Then I will have that information in two. There’s so much more than I thought and this is going to take much longer than I anticipated. I’ll get it to you.”

“Thanks, Chris. Be careful. You don’t know what their scanners can see.”

“I will. Let me know if anything changes.”

George nodded and ended the call.

• • •

Kenny and RV sat in a booth in the restaurant on the Transport Shang-hai and enjoyed their lunch. Kenny took a bite of a salad and said, “I’m surprised Cyanna didn’t come with you.”

RV watched Kenny eat his salad and made a face, “No wonder you’re skinny; you only eat rabbit food.”

“I weigh a hundred and ninety pounds, RV. I’m far from skinny.”

“Trust me on this one; you’re almost anorexic.”

Kenny almost spit his salad out laughing and after a moment RV joined him. “I miss our time on the old Havana chasing Blue Giant ships. Now that was fun.”

RV sighed, “Yes it was. I guess I’m getting used to this position, but it’s not something I would want to do if given a choice.”

“We need you right where you are. By the way, you should try this salad.”

“No way; I’d be accused of being bulimic after it shot across the room and hit the back wall.” RV paused and said, “Why did you want to see me?”

“You’re up to something and I wanted to know what it is.”

RV mustered up an innocent expression and said, “Me…up to something…clutch the pearls, you must be mistaken.”

Kenny laughed again and said, “I know you and I know your expressions; you’re expecting something and I just want you to tell your old pal what you’re up to.”

RV sat there with a blank expression. Kenny watched him and said, “Now what are you doing?”

“I’m being enigmatic.”

“What?”

“Hey, haven’t you heard; I’m an enigma.”

Replace the en with a st and you’d be right.”

“Oh that’s just too cute.”

“Come on, RV; what’s going on?”

RV sighed and said, “I honestly can’t tell you and before you get upset, you should know I’ve not told anyone including Cyanna.”

Kenny stared at RV and narrowed his eyes, “But something is going on?”

“Yes, but if I reveal it, there could be catastrophic danger to all of us; just know that it is not something we can do anything about until it happens.”

“You’ve got it under control?”

“I do that by not doing anything about it.”

“OK, I’m going to have to trust you on this one. Will you tell me after it happens?”

“I will.”

“Good; now what are you having to eat?”

“I have to wait until your main course arrives so I won’t finish too quickly. I’ve been forced to cut back from six burgers to two.” Kenny started laughing and after a moment couldn’t catch his breath. “Hey, it was that or eat that rabbit food.”

Kenny continued to laugh and RV said, “She’ll know if I try to lie.” Kenny doubled over and tried to catch his breath. “I’m glad somebody finds this humorous.”

Kenny was finally able to get out, “You should eat…enigma greens.” He held his ribs his laughing hurt so much.

“Very funny; you’ll find some of them on the back wall.”

Kenny stuttered, “Stop…stop…you’re killing me.”

RV sighed and looked up at the waiter who brought out two one pound burgers with a huge pile of fries. “I’m going to starve to death.”

Kenny fell out of his chair and RV just let him lay there.

• • •

Cyanna sat in her command chair on the Havana and saw her panel illuminate a green LED. “Yes.”

“He only ate two.”

“Thanks, I owe you.”

“I also cut back on the fries.”

“Do you think he noticed?”

“Of course he noticed. He picked up the plate and felt its weight. He gave me a dirty look.”

“I really do owe you for this. He’s lost thirty pounds.”

“No you don’t. We all want the Admiral to be healthy.”

Cyanna ended the communication and smiled, “He’s actually lost fifty pounds. I just hope he’ll keep his promise.” She looked at the fleet outside her view port and marveled at how big it had grown. The entire galaxy was on a war footing and production was enormous. The volunteers were being trained on Dundee and there were twice as many crews as ships. That ratio was going to remain constant to allow the sailors leave time to visit their families. Entire crews would go on leave and be replaced by another crew. This allowed the fleet to conduct continuous fleet exercises and drills to keep them trained to a higher level of proficiency. Another good idea from RV.

She paused and wondered what he was up to. Something was going on and he wasn’t talking about it. She decided to wait for him to tell her. He had a reason for his secrecy and she was going to honor it. Still, she wondered what it was.

• • •

“Jillian, release the crew from general quarters.”

“Done.”

Chris extended the fields and watched as they collected light from M-87. An alarm sounded, “You hit the spot perfectly.”

“I saved these coordinates from the first visit. How do you want to do this from this point?”

“Dolly, are you able to see any star drives in this scan?”

“Yes, there are more than sixty million in the total scan.”

Chris and Jillian looked at each other shocked at the number. Chris said, “Are there any concentrations larger than the others?”

“Actually, fifty million are located in the area next to the left side of the core.”

“Focus our recorder on that area and see if you can get a close up.”

Jillian said, “The new computer makes this study so much easier that what we had to do before. The delay will ultimately save us a huge amount of time.”

“I know; let’s see what Dolly has found for us to see.”

Jillian leaned back in her chair and stared at the main wall display and a view of a planet appeared with a space battle of epic proportions taking place around it, “Oh my God!”

Chris stared at the tens of thousands of ships swarming around the planet and saw there were more than a hundred different types of starships engaged in the battle. The view moved further out and the display panel showed the number of ship types growing quickly. Chris said, “Dolly, how many fleets are involved in this?”

“My initial scan shows more than two hundred different fleets taking part in this scan.”

“How many ships?”

“Millions; it will take a while to complete the analysis.”

Chris stared at the display and then asked, “Have you been able to determine which ships are defending that planet?”

“I’ve made that determination by scanning the planet’s surface. However, the planet’s ships that are involved in that battle are not staying at the planet to defend it. They are fighting in the fleet action throughout that part of space. It appears that none of them are firing on the planet’s surface.”

“Just a moment; I’ve just recorded a planet being hit with a nuclear missile.”

The wall display changed and they saw a long grey ship fire a missile at a planet’s surface. The explosion was massive and a large city on the surface was vaporized. Suddenly, every ship in the massive battle turned on the long grey ships and attacked them wherever they were located. After an hour, no grey ship remained. At that point, the fleet continued the battle among themselves. However, the ships that were from the nuked planet moved out of the battle and returned to orbit their world. They were ignored by all the other ships as they jumped away as the warring ships continued the fighting.

“We need to see what happens with those ships at the planet that was attacked. Dolly, move us forward and keep that planet on the display.”

The view fast forwarded and after two days, the ships began leaving orbit and jumped away. “Dolly, see if you can determine where those ships went.”

“They’ve jumped to another planet closer to the core of the galaxy.”

The view changed and they watched as the fleet arrived at a planet with a thousand long grey ships in orbit. The grey ships moved out but were outnumbered a thousand to one. They were quickly dispatched and the invading fleet rained nuclear destruction down on the planet and destroyed it.

Dolly said, “It appears that attacking a planet is not allowed.”

Chris looked at Jillian and said, “It makes sense, in a way. We had the Geneva Conventions which outlawed the use of poison gas on Earth and after the war ended, the ones that violated that convention were punished. It appears that similar rules are in effect here.”

“But they leave here and destroy millions of worlds in other galaxies.”

“They aren’t covered by these conventions. That ship going to the Violet Civilization was probably investigating the destruction of their main planet. They made sure that no civilization in their galaxy did it. If they had found any survivors of Earth in our galaxy, they may have sent every civilization to kill the offender.”

Dolly said, “I suspect they wanted to know if the survivors represented a threat to them. Like you said, their conventions don’t apply to other galaxies. It’s a possible threat to all of them that they were looking for in the Milky Way.”

Chris thought a minute and said, “We really don’t know for sure what their reasons were, but this discovery must be used to determine our future actions against the Violet Civilization.” Chris looked at the display with the burning planet and turned to Jillian, “How far back are we from our current time?”

“Forty million years.”

Chris fell back in his command chair, “They’ve been fighting that long?”

“Chris, this battle with more than two hundred civilizations taking part must have begun much further back than this. This is the product of what we saw at sixty million years.”

“You’re right. This entire galaxy is dangerous.” Chris said, “We need to see how this fight ended. Let’s start jumping a million years forward with each jump and see what fell out of this conflict.”

“We should keep the crew at general quarters until we make sure we’re not seen.”

“I agree. Let’s study what we’ve collected and give the crew a break.”

“I prefer to do that study in Sierra Space so we can see if anything is approaching us. The crew will remain at battle stations in normal space.”

“Notify the Wing Commanders.”

Dolly sent the message and the pilots left their ships to take a deserved break.

• • •

Admiral Tom Browne heard the alarm go off on his board and received a feed from a probe located at the edge of M-49. More than two hundred thousand starships had appeared and were forming up just outside the galaxy. He hit the general quarter’s button and said, “Notify our fleet that we’ll be jumping in thirty seconds. Weapons are free if we are attacked, but hold formation until that happens.” The Communications officer nodded and issued the orders.

“Tom, what’s going on?”

“We have a large fleet that just jumped in to the edge of the galaxy, Sir. I’ve ordered the fleet out to confront them.”

RV looked at the Probe’s feed and said, “We will be joining you momentarily.”

“Yes Sir, I’m going in weapons free.”

“Do what you have to do.”

• • •

The thirty thousand main battleships jumped and emerged less than fifty miles from the alien ships that were finishing moving into attack formations. The two hundred thousand ships remained in place and stared at the huge white ships in front of them. Thirty seconds later, another thirty thousand White Ships joined the first group and they launched a giant wave of small attack ships that surrounded the invading fleet before they could move. One of the invading ships at the back of the formation fired on one of the small craft and was hit with a mini-striker that blew the ship into rubble. The two fleets remained in position neither making another move.

• • •

“Gloria, are you hearing their transmissions?”

“I am and should have enough to start communicating shortly.”

Cyanna listened to the computer and was thankful that the Jenze learning device had been incorporated into their central processors. The computer would send and receive any communications such that both parties would be able to understand each other.

“I’ve got enough, Sir.”

• • •

The Fleet Leader was ready to launch his invasion when suddenly thousands of giant White Ships appeared directly in front of his fleet. Before he could issue any orders a cloud of small craft erupted from the ships in front of him and thousands of more ships joined the first to arrive also sending out a swarm of those small ships. In less than a minute his fleet was surrounded. He watched one of his ships destroyed by one shot from one of the small craft and knew that he was in deep trouble. His communicator was overwhelmed with traffic asking what to do but he knew that all of his ships would be killed before they could escape. Then his assistant said, “Incoming communication from those ships.” Every ship in the invading fleet heard the incoming message and they grew silent.

“Welcome to our galaxy. Are you here to vacation or is there another reason for your arrival?”

The Fleet Leader heard the message and did a double take. What was going on? His assistant said, “They may be offering us a way to leave peacefully. We should take them up on it.”

“Uhh...we were coming to visit.”

“Oh, well you must not have received the rules for visitation.”

“What rules are those?”

“We welcome visitors but you cannot come here in a warship. Our citizens are justifiably nervous about armed starships entering their living space. We’ve been asked to find those that once invaded our galaxy and remove them from creation. You aren’t the one that did that, are you?”

“No, we would never do that.”

“That’s a good thing. I regret that I must send you home but if you’ll come back in unarmed ships, we’ll be glad for you to visit. I’m also sure you won’t mind if we follow you home to ensure your safe arrival. We couldn’t sleep if something happened to you on your return.”

The Fleet Leader understood the veiled message. If they ever returned, his home would see this fleet again. He looked at his assistant and he said, “There are thirty millions of those small craft surrounding us.”

The Fleet Leader was shocked at the number and he said, “You are welcome to come and insure our safety. I thank you for your consideration. I’ll send you our coordinates.”

“You don’t need to do that. We’ll be able to make that determination ourselves.”

The Fleet Leader’s fear doubled and he issued the orders to jump home. His fleet disappeared and found the huge fleet of White Ships waiting for his arrival. He heard, “Be safe and I do hope you will follow our rules.”

“We will.”

“That’s good. We really hate making anyone an example.”

The giant fleet disappeared and the Fleet Leader answered the incoming communications demanding to know what happened. It didn’t take long before the large ball galaxy was put under quarantine. It would not be visited again. The leaders just hoped they would not be visited as well.

• • •

RV looked at the leader of the Harmony Federation and asked, “Was that the last civilization that invaded?”

“It was.”

“I suspect they won’t be coming again.”

“I have to agree and it appears our initial concerns were justified.”

“We put a probe to keep an eye on them. Don’t worry; we’ll make sure they don’t pose a problem.”

“We are impressed that you allowed them to survive. I think that will scare them more than destroying their fleet.”

“We don’t like to kill needlessly. That fleet represented no danger. It would be wrong to kill them if it could be avoided.”

“We agree and we’re thankful for you being here. All of our worlds thank you.”

“You’re very welcome.”

• • •

RV looked at Tom on his display, “I’m impressed with your quick response, Admiral.”

“We’ve trained enough to do it in our sleep, Sir. Do you want us to remain here?”

“No, return to your station. Tell your fleet that we are proud of them. Your unit will receive the first unit citation from our new alliance. Congratulations.”

“Thank you, Sir. I know they’ll be honored.”

• • •

Cyanna looked up from her display and raised her eyebrows. “Order the fleet back to port.” Cyanna nodded and issued the orders. RV looked at the galaxy and wondered if a return visit was necessary. This was another place Chris and Jillian needed to scout. But first, M-87 needed to be completed.

Chapter Thirteen

Cyanna came on the bridge and saw RV sitting in his command chair with his eyes closed. She looked around at the night crew and went over and lightly kissed RV on the cheek. His eyes remained closed but he said, “I heard you coming.”

“I know; what are you doing?”

“I’m listening to Chris and Jillian’s reports on their findings.”

“I didn’t think they had done any recently.”

“They haven’t.”

“Then where did you get them?”

“I’m listening in on their live feed to Command. Everything we say is recorded and sent to the main frame on Sierra-Garcia. That way if a ship is destroyed we have a way of seeing what happened just before its destruction.”

“You mean everything we’ve said is recorded somewhere?”

“Everything said on the bridge.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Have you ever said anything you didn’t want recorded?”

Cyanna just stared at him.

“I know about my lunch reports.”

Cyanna walked quickly over to her chair, sat down, and crossed her arms.

“I understand your reasons for wanting me to eat healthier and I also know the waiters want me to live forever. That’s why I’ve worked hard to watch my consumption.”

“You have an unfair advantage.”

“No I don’t. You could do the same thing if you were interested in seeing what is entering the main frame. If you had looked you would have seen the active input and discovered you can look at anything being input. After the information is in the computer, it is assigned a rating and top secret recordings must be requested and approved before you can review them.”

“Chris and Jillian’s reports are not top secret?”

“Yes, but I can see them as they go into the computer on the active feed. I can’t record them but I get to see and hear them.”

“That means you have to be on the channel at the moment they’re speaking.”

“That’s right.”

“How do you do that?”

“Their departure was delayed six hours for a quick inspection of their pilot’s rankings. We would only allow our best to go with them.”

“Yeah, I remember that.”

“Well, Chris is a creature of habit. He always sets the ships time to his departure time. He also always does his day end reports at nine p.m. ship time where he discusses them with Jillian.” RV looked at the ship’s clock and said, “They should be starting in the next ten minutes.”

Cyanna slowly shook her head, “You are the sneakiest person I have ever met.”

RV shrugged and said, “I fear most underestimate my sneakiness.”

“This is how you manage to know so much more than us mere mortals.”

“That’s partially true. However, I’m not real happy that Chris and Jillian have not sent timely reports on their findings. I don’t think they do it intentionally; they just get busy and forget. I decided on this trip that there was too much at stake to not stay on top of their findings. I delayed their departure so that their discussions would take place during the night watch.”

“Why don’t you just get them from the main frame?”

“Have you ever tried to get information from the team that handles the main frame? I’d rather eat a salad than fight with them.”

Cyanna uncrossed her arms and said, “Do you mind if I listen in?”

“Not at all; I’ll patch the feed to your panel.”

Cyanna closed her eyes and listened to the background noise on the Jukebox’s bridge. Then she heard Chris say…

• • •

“Jillian, I’m somewhat concerned about our last scan.”

“I am as well. I don’t see any way we can get a look at the last hundred years without being seen.”

“Dolly, do you have any ideas about how to pull the last one off without discovery?”

“You have seen that there are more than three hundred different probes outside the galaxy’s edge. It appears all of the strongest civilizations don’t depend on each other to share their information.”

Chris slowly shook his head, “We’ve seen that the range is more than a hundred light years into deep space. I just don’t see how we can make that scan.”

Jillian thought about the problem, “I also believe those probes see in Sierra Space as well as normal space. If we intend to take a look we’ll have to jump from a long way out to the place in the light stream we want to record. If we make a jump closer than ten thousand light years, we’ll probably be seen moving toward them.” She paused and said, “Don’t you think we have enough? Do we have to make that last scan?”

“I think we know enough about the civilizations on the side of the galaxy toward the Violet and Yellow Civilizations. This side has not had any hostilities for more than eight million years. Something is going on there and the vast array of probes indicates that all is not at peace in that section of M-87. There are millions of warships but they are not being used.” Chris paused, “You’ve seen the changes in their ships over the last twenty million years. They are more advanced technologically than the other side of the galaxy. Why haven’t they conquered the other violent civilizations?”

Jillian shook her head, “I don’t know. They may be in a state of equilibrium and unwilling to work together. If one of them tried, the others might attack if they send ships away.”

“The point is; we don’t know. This could be a piece of the puzzle that could get us killed if we don’t know what’s going on. We at the very least need a recent snap shot of their planets.”

“That would mean a jump to within a light year, Chris.”

“I know.” Chris paused and sighed, “I know.”

Dolly said, “You could come in from over the top.”

Chris and Jillian were both shocked by the suggestion. Jillian gathered her wits and said, “Dolly, there is a radiation stream blasting out of that giant black hole in the center of that galaxy that extends more than a hundred and twenty thousand light years. Our force fields may not handle that level of radiation. None of the civilizations in that galaxy go anywhere near that jet.”

Dolly said, “The important thing you just said is ‘anywhere near’. We can possibly come in just outside the jet where the radiation is not so strong and make a scan. We might be hidden by the jet behind us. There is a large area between the edge of that stream and the closest civilization. We might be able to jump in close to the center of that galaxy and make a quick scan and then jump away.”

Chris looked at Jillian and then said, “Why didn’t you suggest this initially?”

“There is a high degree of risk. We’ll be jumping in not knowing just how wide the stream is at that point in time. It may just be that the nowhere close description is not really accurate. That stream could have experienced a massive eruption during the time we’ll be jumping in to.”

Chris said, “Dolly, how long would we survive if we jumped into that stream?”

“If we used every reactor to power our force field, I think we could last about thirty seconds. You would lose every attack craft on the hull. Their systems would be damaged within ten seconds.”

Jillian sat back in her chair, “And if we flew out of the stream toward those civilizations immediately upon arrival?”

“I suspect there would be some damage to the attack craft even then. However, you would be less than a thousand light years from the furthest civilization you want to scan. Most of them would be closer than twenty light years.”

“Is there anything else we should be aware of if we choose to do this?”

“You could not extend the fields until you were further than a light year from the stream.”

“How close would that put us to the closest civilization?”

“Five light years.”

Chris thought a moment and said, “I thought the reactors were structured such that only four could be used for either weapons or defense at any given time?”

“The fifth can be used to reinforce the inner force field that is just outside the hull. It doesn’t cover the attack craft but should offer additional protection to the systems and crew inside the ship for a short period of time.”

“Five light years is not very far; even we could respond to that in less than a minute.”

“That is true.”

“Perhaps the ones that detect us would be reluctant to come that close to the stream?”

“That is an unknown.”

Jillian looked at Chris and he said, “Dolly, what would you do?”

“I wouldn’t take the risk.”

“Why not?”

“Those civilizations have not changed very much over the last six million years. I’m predisposed to protect those of you on board.” Dolly paused and added, “There are two other things that you should factor into this decision.”

“And they are?”

“We will not have our weapons available and you will have to fly the ship in.”

“WHAT!”

“I’ll have to power off my systems to avoid damage from the radiation. We will be defenseless and you will have to pilot us during this exercise.” Dolly paused and then added, “There is also a possibility that during the time we have not seen that there may be a planet closer to the stream than the ones we’ve scanned. We could be jumping in right on top of one of them and not know it until we arrive. If that happens, we’ll be immediately attacked and have no weapons to defend ourselves.”

Jillian chuckled, “So there are three considerations, not just two.”

“Sorry, I’m swimming upstream and looking at thousands of possibilities and that last one just occurred to me.”

“Chris, how long does it take for the fields to expand with the new systems?”

“Less than three seconds. We could take a quick scan and jump out in about five to six seconds.”

“That’s five or six seconds after we jump away from the stream if we land in it?”

“That’s right.”

Jillian thought about it and said, “We need to send everything we’ve gathered to George now and we can decide what to do in the morning after we sleep on it.”

“I would offer one other suggestion.”

“What is that Dolly?”

“Since we won’t be able to use our attack craft and Needles, I would launch them and send them home if you decide to do this. You couldn’t use them anyway.”

“And since the beams are tied to your systems, they would also be unavailable.”

“That is also correct, Jillian.”

Jillian looked at Chris and he shrugged. She said, “We’ll discuss this in the morning.”

“I have a communication coming in from Admiral Arvolo.”

“Put it on the speaker.”

“Hello, I was just thinking about you and thought I’d check in on your progress.”

Chris looked at Jillian and wondered how the Admiral always seemed to call at the most stressful moments. He said, “Good evening, RV. We’re discussing a situation that you might offer some input on what we should do.”

Cyanna looked at RV and slowly shook her head. He was one of a kind.

“What’s going on?”

Chris and Jillian filled him in and he asked questions that made them focus on the risk-reward of the situation. After an hour Chris said, “I’m inclined to make the effort.”

RV paused and said, “Are you sure about that?”

“I am at this moment.”

“May I make a recommendation?”

“Go ahead.”

“Before you decide, you should send the crew out on the hull and change all the ships lights to red.”

Chris furrowed his brow and looked at Jillian who shrugged, “Why should we do that?”

“Well, we know that there are civilizations in that galaxy that have seen one of our attack ships. Now I know that the Jukebox doesn’t look anything like an attack craft, but they are the identical color. The red lights will make the ship look red instead of white. It might make a difference.”

Jillian tilted her head and nodded. Chris said, “We’ll have them make the change. Is there anything else you think we should do?”

“I personally wouldn’t take that risk, but I haven’t seen all the information you’ve collected. I’m not operating with full knowledge and I might feel differently if I knew what the two of you have seen. However, there are huge risks with what you’re considering.”

“We’ll let you know in the morning. We haven’t made a decision yet.”

“Ok, I’ll talk to you then.”

Jillian said, “Thanks for the suggestion on the lights.”

“Glad to offer it. See you in the morning.”

• • •

Cyanna looked at RV and he said, “They’re going to do it?”

“They just told you they haven’t decided.”

“If there was real doubt about it they wouldn’t change the lights until they decided. They’re having them changed tonight. Neither one of them suggested making the change after they decided; both of them are leaning toward doing it and they will push the other to make it happen.”

“Are they making the right decision?”

“I have no idea; I meant what I said about not having enough information. There is something in that galaxy that has them worried. I just hope luck is with them.”

“Would you do it?”

“Absolutely.”

“But you told them you wouldn’t.”

“I wouldn’t if I were them but I’m better qualified to do it.”

“Oh?”

“I’d do it for the fun of it.”

“It’s a shame neither one of them is a combat trained pilot. You’re better at it than either one of them.”

“You are a genius.”

Cyanna suddenly looked up from RV’s display and saw his expression. “Oh, no you aren’t!”

RV pushed the general quarters button and said, “Jump warning; we will be jumping in one minute.” He silenced the speakers blaring, “Battle stations, all hands to battle stations.” RV leaned back as Cyanna continued to yell at him, “You will not do this. You are too important for these theatrics.”

RV noticed the red lights went solid in fifty seconds and with Cyanna continuing to shout as he entered the coordinates and then he looked at her, “You are either going to be part of the solution or part of the problem; what’s it going to be?”

Cyanna stalked over to her command chair and belted in. She pushed a button on her panel and just before RV jumped the Havana, George appeared on the display, “What’ going on?”

“You need to talk to Admiral Arvolo.”

The Havana disappeared from Sierra-Garcia and broke back into normal space twenty miles from the Jukebox, who immediately sounded general quarters. Chris and Jillian appeared on the Havana’s wall display along with George. Chris said, “What are you doing here?”

George saw Chris and Jillian and said, “What are you doing, Admiral?”

RV looked at Cyanna and held up his index finger and waved it at her, “Will you think about this while I try to bring reason to the others. You’re reacting emotionally and not using your head.” RV turned to his display and Cyanna thought about what he said.

“I’ll answer that question in a moment, but before I do, I want you and Jillian to explain to George what you’re planning to do in the morning.” RV paused and then said, “I want you to include any deviations from standard tactics you’re going to have to use to make it happen.”

Chris looked at Jillian and then said, “Dolly, did you record our earlier conversation?”

“I did.”

“Will you please play it for the Admiral and President Sierra?”

George sat back and listened while Arvolo muted his panel. He looked at Cyanna and stared at her with a stern expression. She took a deep breath and said, “You’re right. I was being selfish.”

RV said, “Admiral, you occupy the position you’re in because of your outstanding mental capacities. I understand your response, but I will not accept it in the future. Is that clear?”

Cyanna said, “Yes Sir; it won’t happen again.” RV unmuted his panel and turned back to the video. Cyanna was forced to agree that Chris and Jillian were ultimately more important than RV and she had refused to consider it. The only way to possibly prevent their death was to remove the choice of when to flee from them. They would make that scan, even if they died in the process. RV wouldn’t allow that to happen. She looked at her emotions and realized that her fear of losing him was going to drive him away. He was first a warrior. She promised herself not to forget that again. RV glanced at her and she mouthed, “I’m so sorry.”

He glared at her and then smiled. Cyanna blew out the breath she had been holding and felt relief. She was given a reprieve…this time. She vowed not to allow it to happen again. She was going to have to allow him to be what he was born to be.

George finished the video and said, “Are the two of you out of your minds?”

“No, George. Something is going on in that sector of M-87 and it’s been developing for more than six million years. Millions of warships being built and replaced by bigger and stronger ships; but none of them are ever used. They’re doing something and we must know if we intend to take any future actions in that galaxy. The only way to do that is to go take a scan of it in the present.”

“Chris, the risk is too great.”

“Can you agree to never return to that galaxy?”

George stared at Chris on his display and said, “You know I can’t do that.”

“Well, what if those ships are waiting for an outside invader to come to their galaxy. Do you know what we’d have to face?”

George shook his head, “Are you absolutely certain we need to do this?”

Chris looked at Jillian who nodded, “We’ve been discussing it and we feel it’s important to our safety.”

• • •

Arvolo sat in his command chair and lowered the armored plate from the view port. The two ships were in deep space between galaxies and Arvolo stared at the small galaxy that was barely visible. The beauty of the universe was all around and the countless galaxies scattered across the heavens brought peace to his soul. So infinite but so beautiful; he thanked God for allowing him to see his work.”

“Arvolo, why are you here?”

“Are you going to allow them to go?”

George shook his head but said, “I don’t want to do this but I’m going to authorize it.”

“Good, I’m going to pilot the Jukebox on this trip.”

Arvolo winced at the sound that poured out of his display. George, Chris, and Jillian all protested at the top of their voices. RV put his fingers in his ears and they finally got the message. They stopped shouting and George said, “I am not going to risk all three of you.”

“The bigger risk is not allowing me to go.”

Chris had his mouth open to agree with George but closed it. George said, “Tell me why?”

RV held up his hand and pointed at his index finger, “One; neither Chris or Jillian is a trained combat pilot.”

George, Chris, and Jillian nodded as he waited.

“Two; for them to make a good scan of that galaxy, it is going to take two people to operate the collectors and recorders to make it happen as quickly as possible. If one has to fly the ship, the scan will take longer.” Arvolo stared at Chris and Jillian as they looked at each other and didn’t say anything. “Remember, I’m also trained on using your devices.”

Jillian said, “Ok, you’re right. Does that make you happy?”

RV held up his third finger, “Three; they will get that scan or die trying.” He looked at the couple and they finally nodded. “I’m not passing judgment here. You know the importance and have determined it’s worth dying to get that record.”

RV raised his fourth Finger, “Because of number three, I will flee if the situation calls for it scan or no scan. I won’t delay; I won’t hesitate asking if the scan is complete; I’ll get them out of there. And I don’t think there is another pilot in the fleet that can catch me if I’m determined to escape.”

Chris looked at RV and said, “Is there any other reason?”

“Yes, five, you’re too close to the event to think things through clearly.”

George said, “Why is that?”

“Because they forget the simple things that I won’t.”

Jillian said, “Such as?”

RV tilted his head and said, “You don’t have to use your fields to gather light for the scan. You’re in the present; just jump in and used your standard scanners. They operate instantly.”

George, Chris, and Jillian looked at each other with a shocked expression. Finally George said, “Then why do Chris and Jillian need to go?”

“Because no one else knows the regions of that galaxy that need to be scanned; they’ll have to do it.”

“There is one other issue, RV.”

“What is that?”

“The radiation from the stream could affect the normal scanners and we would be forced to use our light collectors.”

RV stared at them and hit his forehead with his palm, “I am so dumb. We’ll have to do both, if we’re given enough time.”

Cyanna smiled and knew that he already knew about the radiation but this allowed Chris and Jillian to save face and hide the fact that he was spying on them. She remembered again why she loved him so much.

George looked at Chris and Jillian and said, “I’m forced to agree with him.”

Jillian said, “We are as well. He’s right about fleeing if it’s called for and we may hesitate.”

“What do we need to do?”

RV looked at Cyanna as he said, “I want you to launch all of your attack craft and Needles at this location. The Havana will do the same and if we’re pursued, this is where we will run.”

George nodded and said, “Come back! We can’t afford to lose you.”

RV said, “I’m coming over in a moment. When do you want to do this?”

“I think we need to have a good night’s sleep.”

RV said, “Do you think you’ll be able to sleep?”

Jillian smiled, “I hope not.”

Chris turned red and RV realized that there were more things to do than just sleep. He laughed and said, “Call me when you’re ready to go.”

Jillian smiled and cut the connection.

RV turned to Cyanna and said, “Do you have a moment?”

“I have more than a moment for you; how about the rest of my life.”

RV smiled, took her hand, and left the bridge.

Chapter Fourteen

“Are you ready for the arrival?”

“I am.”

“Do you have the location locked in?”

“All participants have their places locked in their drives.”

“This is important. You must not fail.”

“I know the consequences.”

“We’re depending on you.”

“I’ve been preparing for my entire life.”

“How long before you go?”

“Two parts six counts.”

• • •

RV looked at Jillian on his display, “How long before you want to leave?”

“Two hours and six minutes.”

“I’ll be over in a minute.”

“Take your time; we’ll be launching ships momentarily.”

RV stood and Cyanna followed him out to the landing bay where he boarded a small shuttle. She took the command chair and said, “You could have left the shuttle on the Jukebox.”

“You just have to make me say it.”

Cyanna smiled and powered up the engines. RV sighed and said, “I wanted you to be there before I left.”

Cyanna smiled and reached over and held his hand. “You are cleared for departure, Admiral.”

Cyanna lifted the shuttle and exited the landing bay. She flew over to the Jukebox and saw the massive launch of attack craft and Needles. The small ships turned and flew over to the Havana and began a rotation of landing in the landing bay and launch tubes as the Havana’s craft moved out to replace those given a break. Cyanna waited until the last small ships were launched and then flew into the Jukebox’s landing bay. RV stood and she came over and kissed him. “This is the reason you wanted me to come.”

“I know. Just be here when I come back.”

“You know you can count on that.”

RV left the small ship and went into the ship’s pressurized corridor. The shuttle broke the seal, turned, and left the landing bay. RV turned and took the express tube to the bridge and arrived as Jillian and Chris were setting up the scanning field devices and recorders. Chris smiled, “It’s good to see you, RV. It’s just like old times.”

RV smiled, “I don’t believe I’ve ever seen any times similar to what we’re about to do.”

“True, but tell me you don’t want to be here.”

RV laughed, “Ahhh, you know me too well. Don’t let me interrupt your preparations. I need to check the flight controls. Hello, Jillian, long time no see.”

“Hi, RV, it’s good to have you here.”

“And hello to you as well, Dolly.”

“Good morning, Admiral.”

“Call me RV; we’re among friends here.”

“Sorry, my programming requires I address you by your title.”

“My title is RV.”

“Very good, RV.”

“See, that wasn’t so hard. When are you going to take a nap?”

“I’ll make the first jump into the stream and power off as soon as we enter Sierra Space. Everything will them be routed to your board.”

“Jillian, I understand you want to jump a light year out of the stream to make your scan.”

“How did you know that?”

“Lucky guess.”

“Yes, you’re right.”

Arvolo waited for them to question him further but they were too occupied with their tasks. He had almost given away that he had been spying on their conversations. He logged in to the board and watched the Havana with the halo of small ships around it. It was beautiful. He switched the screen to the drives and preprogrammed in a one light year jump. It wouldn’t take much longer before they jumped. He wondered what Cyanna was doing.

• • •

Cyanna looked at Kenny on her display and he said, “He’s doing what!?!”

“Watch this and let me know what you think.”

Kenny started the conversation from the previous night. After thirty minutes he appeared on her display, “Give me your coordinates.”

Cyanna pushed a button and Kenny disappeared from her screen. She sighed, “Everyone knew it takes more than two to have a party. It would be easier to ask forgiveness than permission.” She hummed and watched the small craft taking station around the Havana. Then she moved the view to the Jukebox and waited for it to leave. “Come back to me.”

• • •

“Dolly, we’re ready to go.”

“I’ve just notified the Havana and they have gone to general quarters. We’ll be jumping in twenty seconds. RV, punch the activate button as soon as you jump away from M-87 and it will bring me and our weapons back on line.”

“Will do, Dolly; have a good nap.”

“Jumping now!”

The Jukebox jumped and the display was dimmed as it emerged inside of a superheated stream of gamma and x-rays. Arvolo pushed the jump pad and the Jukebox emerged into normal space. RV looked at his console and said, “What the…!”

Jillian and Chris looked at the main display and saw a huge globe of giant White Ships surrounding them. RV hit the jump pad again but nothing happened. Chris yelled, “Get us out of here!”

RV sat back and said, “We’re not going anywhere. Those ships around us are emitting a field that prevents our stardrive from producing a field. There is not enough room for us to escape between those closely packed ships.”

Jillian shouted, “More ships are arriving.”

RV looked at his display and saw thousands of starships jumping in to their location. The all stopped more than two hundred miles from the globe of White Ships. RV said, “You might as well run your scans. At least those can go out.”

Chris looked at Jillian and extended the fields. She started the recording as RV ran normal scans from the ship’s scanners. Chris looked at RV and said, “What are they doing?”

“I don’t know. They’re not attacking and there are more than four hundred different types of warships surrounding us.”

After thirty minutes Jillian announced, “I’ve got it all.”

RV looked at his board and saw that the field that was preventing them from jumping had disappeared as the huge globe of ships surrounding them expanded. He looked at Chris and Jillian and said, “Strap in. The ships in the globe around us are allowing us to leave.”

Chris looked stunned and Jillian jerked her head around to look at the giant ships surrounding them just as RV jumped away. RV looked at his board and hit Dolly’s activating switch, “We have chasers, Dolly. You handle weapons and I’ll fly the ship.”

The Jukebox jumped six times and every time it emerged into normal space there were thousands of ships right behind them. RV had the Jukebox weightless but the ships chasing them were very close in speed. RV shouted, “How many are still chasing us?”

Dolly said, “There were a hundred thousand initially but the number is now down to eighteen thousand.”

“How many different ship types?”

“Ten.”

After four more jumps the chasing ships had moved closer. “It appears these ships have technology that we are not going to defeat by running. Cyanna, are you listening in.”

“I am, Sir.”

RV thought she sounded calm and was impressed with her professional tone. “I’m going to jump to your location in two more jumps. There are ten thousand ships chasing us and we can’t shake them. They have fired missiles and beams at us, but we have managed to avoid being hit so far. Make sure the Havana is ready for our arrival.”

“Already on it, Admiral, bring them to us.”

“Here we go.” RV jumped and the chasers appeared right behind him. He jumped again and shot forward through the ranks of sixty thousand main battleships. RV smiled and knew Cyanna had been busy. The ten thousand chasers emerged into normal space and were hit with more than a hundred main strikers and main guns. Some of the ships had to be hit a hundred more times but all ten thousand were destroyed. One of the chasers activated its star drive but a main battleship crashed into it amid ships and broke it in half. RV shook his head; Kate really liked to hit things. The bow of the Scotland was damaged but not penetrated. Kate jumped her ship back to Sierra-Garcia and began evacuating the crew. All crew members were wearing space suits so very few hands were lost in the collision.

RV yelled, “Get the fleet out of here now.”

The mass of small ships and battleships disappeared leaving nothing but burning and dead starships.

• • •

“I see you were successful.”

“It was a close thing.”

“All we could do was give them a chance.”

“We and they were fortunate. It was really too close to going all wrong.”

“But it didn’t.”

“No, it did not. What do we do now?”

“We wait for the next event.”

“Will they continue to avoid us?”

“Only if they’re smart; I think they know better.”

“They didn’t before.”

“That was then; this is a new now.”

“We’ll see.”

• • •

The Command Center was crowded. All of the Fleet Admirals were in chairs facing the front table where the Command Team waited for George to arrive. Cyanna sat in the front row with Kenny and Bob and waited for the proceedings to start. She looked at the Moet Admiral sitting next to Bob and decided she was going to have to learn to pronounce his name.

Everyone just called him Admiral and he appeared fine with it, but it just didn’t seem right to not be able to say his name. Of course, last time she attempted she almost had a lip spasm. She looked at RV on the front stage and saw something was bothering him. He hadn’t been himself since his run in with that fleet in M-87. Something was on his mind and he wasn’t saying what it was. Everyone stood when George walked in and she saw that George’s expression was also different. Something was bothering him as well. He called this conference for a reason. Maybe he would tell them what was on his mind.

“Please be seated. I know most of you Admirals are wondering why I have you here at this conference. You are here as observers and we will answer any of your questions at the conclusion of our discussion. I think it is important that you know what our future plans look like so you can prepare your fleets.”

George turned to the slim light green colored being at the end of the table and said, “I’ve also invited Boden from the Harmony Federation to participate in this discussion. I thank you for coming and we all thank you for the construction of our fleet.”

Boden lowered his head and nodded.

George looked at Bender and Admiral and asked, “Have you viewed the recording of our trip?”

They both nodded and George sat down. He turned to Chris and said, “I initially thought you were over dramatizing the need of a scan of that region in M-87 but in hindsight, it appears you were right.” George paused and said, “What conclusions can you draw from what happened?”

“I’ve discussed this with Jillian at great length and we keep coming back to the same answer; they knew in advance that we were coming.”

“Now that you’ve had time to study the scans you made, what have you learned?”

“There is a stalemate taking place in that sector. It appears that all the civilizations located close to the core on that side of the galaxy have reached equilibrium and are locked into peace.”

“Tell our Admirals what you mean.”

Chris looked out at the hundred officers and said, “No single civilization is strong enough to defeat the others in their sector of that galaxy. After looking at millions of years of history, it appears that if one of them attacked another, the winner will then be attacked by other civilizations. The initial conflict will weaken them enough such that they could not stand up to several others teaming up on them. I counted more than two thousand instances where one civilization attacked another and was then destroyed in turn by a third civilization that pounced on the victor. What then followed was another would attack the third and then a fifth would attack, and so on. Millions of years ago a single attack would lead to a galaxy wide war that was a chain-reaction from the first attack. Now the civilizations have learned that to attack another is suicide.”

Chris looked around the room and said, “However, things are changing. It appears that one civilization is more advanced than the others and some of them are beginning to combine against it. They are not attacking yet because, I am sure, they are fearful of the others that would pounce on them if they were weakened.”

Jillian stood and said, “All of those civilizations are continuing to develop their fleets in the hope of discovering technology that would allow them to destroy the others. This is the way it has been for eight million years.”

George said, “Without exception?”

Jillian shook her head, “No; ten years ago seventy civilizations teamed up against the advanced civilization and were defeated. The advanced civilization lost two hundred thousand ships but still had a million in their reserve. The civilizations that didn’t participate in the attack decided it was still too strong to take on. Instead they attacked the seventy that attacked and destroyed them.”

George asked, “How many civilizations remain in the sector?”

“Between six and seven hundred.”

George said, “We’ve also learned something about how they conduct war in that galaxy. No civilization may attack a planet without retribution. The only way a planet may be attacked is if all of that planet’s warships are destroyed. If that happens, a civilization may announce that they will destroy the planet and accept any consequences from the one being destroyed. If that planet’s ships are all destroyed, there will be no consequences. There won’t be any ships to do it. However, if they miss some, their planet is open for attack from the survivors.”

Boden asked, “What happens if a planet is attacked without making a prior announcement?”

“Then all their ships are immediately attacked by all the other civilizations and the ships from the attacked planet are allowed to go home peacefully and plan their retribution.”

Boden said, “It appears that to attack a planet is not something to be done without careful planning.”

George smiled, “You are right about that.”

Bender said, “You destroyed a planet in their galaxy without prior approval.”

George nodded, “Yes, we did; however, only the planets in that galaxy fall under their rules. They can attack as many as they desire in other galaxies.”

“But can we do the same thing in theirs?”

“That is the question we don’t have an answer to, yet.”

“Are we going to attack them?”

“Absolutely.”

Bender stared at George and remained silent. The entire room became very still. RV said, “We’re going to give you enough time to move your populations before we do but we will not wait for them to come after us again. If we ignore them, they will come back in our future. Right now they don’t know where we are.”

Boden asked, “How long do you think it would take them to find us if they decided to make us pay for our actions?”

“Longer than you think. We know they’ll be looking for our ships. We’ll know when they start the search and we’ll remove every trace of our ships from this galaxy. You will stop manufacturing and remove any material from your worlds that was used to build them. This galaxy is a long way from them and they will have thousands to search before they ever come this far out.”

“And if they decided to kill all intelligent life in the ones they are searching, what will we do?”

“We will continue to develop our ships. If they attempted to do that, they may not arrive here for a million years. I’m sure they also know that taking the time to attack would not be worth the time spent doing it. They will not want to be away from their civilizations long. They don’t trust each other.”

“You’re placing a lot of lives at risk by attacking them.”

“Do you not think those lives are at risk anyway? That galaxy attacks others as a normal doctrine. We are not just going after revenge against the Violet Civilization. We intend to stop that galaxy from its predatory behavior.”

Everyone looked at each other and finally Chris said, “Do you think we can do it? It took two hundred beams and strikers to kill some of those ships chasing us.”

“But did you notice that half of them were destroyed with one. We have to also suppose that those ships that were able to keep contact with us are their most advanced civilizations. We just have to develop a better weapon to use against the strongest ships. It may boil down to avoiding the strongest until the end and eliminate the others first. We’ll feel our way around this and find the methods we’ll have to follow. I will not wait for them to come to me again.”

“You might want to rethink that, Sir.”

George looked at RV and said, “Why would I do that?”

“That strategy should be used after the initial fight. After that we will go to them.”

George thought a moment and said, “So you think we should make them come to us first?”

RV tilted his head to the right and George thought a moment. He smiled and said, “You set it up for it to happen that way.”

RV stood and bowed, “I did.”

George said, “Clever; we’ll discuss this later.” George paused and said, “Admiral Arvolo, what do you think about the ships that were waiting on your arrival?”

Cyanna saw RV flinch and knew he didn’t want to respond. This is what had him bothered.

RV said, “You know what I think about that. Do we need to discuss it here?”

“You and I haven’t discussed this?”

“No, Sir, we haven’t; but you know.”

“So you see it as well?”

“I do.”

“Without going into detail, what do you think happened?”

“We lost big time.”

George sighed and said, “See me in my office after this meeting.”

RV nodded and Cyanna and everyone else wondered what was going on. Something wasn’t being said and it was frightening. She looked at Chris and caught him nodding to Jillian who also nodded. They knew. She felt a touch on her shoulder and she heard Kenny say, “I’ve seen the scan and the civilizations with those hard to kill ships have millions of them.” Cyanna looked at Kenny and he continued, “It appears there’s something about those White Ships that has our two geniuses worried.”

Cyanna looked back up at the stage and saw RV lost in thought. This was not good.

Chapter Fifteen

George, Chris, Jillian, Kenny, Bob, Cyanna, and RV remained in the Command Center after everyone had left and were having a drink and snacks that had been delivered from the commissary. George bit a pretzel and said, “I assume you and Jillian know what we were talking around in the meeting.”

Chris said, “Someone else has time travel capability.”

George tilted his head and said, “Score one for Chris.”

George looked at RV, “How long did it take you to make that determination?”

“As soon as we appeared in normal space, I knew it was a possibility.”

George saw the confusion on the Vice Admiral’s faces and he said, “Why don’t you explain it to them.”

RV looked at the three Fleet Admirals and said, “All of you saw the recording of that huge globe of White Ships, right?” They all nodded. RV asked, “If you had to form a globe of ships to contain a main battleship so it couldn’t escape in the spaces between the ships, how long would it take you to set that up and make sure every ship was in the proper place when your fleet jumped into that globe pattern?”

They thought about the question and Kenny said, “I don’t know that we could make that happen. There are too many variances in emergence into normal space. To even get close would take months of practice.”

RV smiled, “The real time is likely years. There is one thing that would make it easier.”

“What is that?”

“What if you knew the exact place you were going to be jumping to?”

Kenny thought a moment and looked at Cyanna and Bob before he said, “Then I would assign the jump coordinates in advance and jump the entire formation together. They could then adjust their ranks on arrival.”

“That is exactly what happened and they arrived less than one second before we did.”

Cyanna said, “How do you know that?”

“Those ships that were jumping out to that globe were not coming after us. They wouldn’t have been able to detect us inside that formation. They were jumping out to determine what those White Ships were doing.”

Jillian added, “We saw them start jumping right after our arrival. If that globe had already been there waiting, they would have been there waiting as well.”

Bob said, “That implies that they knew your exact arrival location and your exact moment of entry into normal space.”

“It implies more than that. If I set the drive to jump one light year, how close would I be to that distance?”

‘You could be off as much as a million miles on either side of it.”

“So even if they knew in advance that I was going to be jumping away one light year from that radiation stream, they would not know exactly where I would emerge into normal space.”

The Admirals looked at each other and Kenny said, “You make a valid point. Our drives are not that precise.”

George said, “So they knew the exact place and time of the Jukebox’s arrival.”

Cyanna said, “They must have seen it happen before.”

Chris said, “That’s the only way they could have done what they did.”

Silence ruled the moment and after a minute Bob asked, “Why were they there?”

RV said, “To make sure we made our scans.”

Kenny slowly shook his head, “Are you sure about that?”

“The field that prevented our stardrive from working disappeared the moment Jillian announced she had completed the scan. If they were there for another reason, we would not have been released at that moment.”

Jillian looked at RV and said, “How did you know we were only going to jump one light year from the stream? I asked Chris and he said he didn’t tell you.”

RV signed and said, “I’ve been listening to the live feed from your ship every night at nine p.m. your ship’s time.”

“What!?!”

“I’ve been spying on you.”

Chris started complaining but Jillian put her hand on his arm, “You should be thankful he did.” She turned to RV and said, “That’s what made you suggest we use you as a pilot, right.” RV nodded. “We would not have been able to escape those ships chasing us. Your intervention probably saved our lives.”

Chris looked at Jillian and then slowly nodded, “She’s right. Let us know in the future if you’re listening in; we could use someone else’s opinion on many of the issues we struggled with.”

“I will but I think you have done an excellent job so far. I might get you off track and hurt your processing.”

“Even so.”

“I’ll tell you.”

RV looked at George and said, “I respect your intelligence. You need to help me process this event.”

George shrugged and said, “I think you’ve got it right. This happened before and the Jukebox and all hands were destroyed. As a result of that, the civilization of the White Ships was destroyed. The scan you took of that galaxy was a critical point in that civilization’s timeline.”

RV nodded, “But you’ve determined more than that?”

George looked at RV and said, “Saving you this time around did not bring that civilization back to life. The universe we’re currently in is a branch off the one where the Jukebox was destroyed. Someone in that first universe came back and warned the White Ship civilization of the importance of your visit.”

“That’s not all they did, George.”

George looked at Chris and said, “What else did they do?”

“They gave the White Ships advanced technology from the future to assist them in making sure we made our scan.”

“Do you have evidence of that?”

“We’ve looked at all the scans we’ve made and the White Ships were not any stronger than the other civilizations. That was true up to six million years ago, but in the present that has changed.”

“A lot of advancements can happen in six million years. You need look no further than our own development.”

“That’s true, but most of our advancements came from civilizations more advanced than our own. The first gravity gun is a good example. Where would we be now without the technology we stole from the Alliance, Jenze, and Moet?”

George thought a moment, “You need to go back and see if you can determine when the White Civilization advanced technologically beyond the others.”

“We’ll leave at the end of this meeting.”

Bob said, “My fleet will be going with you.”

Jillian said, “Why?”

“For you to have a place to jump to escape; we will not follow you in because we would be a large blip on anyone’s scanners.”

George smiled, “Take the help, Jillian. Be thankful that Admiral Hardy called in help. The Havana and Jukebox could not have handled those ships chasing you.”

Chris smiled, “We appreciate your help Admiral Owens.”

RV said, “I took a frequency reading of one of their ships. Focus in on the time when that frequency appears and look for a ship going to their planets.”

RV paused and said, “If that ship from the future does appear, it changed the future of this universe and made it branch off from the old. We don’t know what our scan will lead to now and neither does the White Ship civilization. The future has been changed radically.”

George said, “That’s not necessarily true.” RV nodded for him to continue. “You’re making an assumption that that was the only place in time they interfered.”

RV nodded, “You’re right; I didn’t consider any other possibility.” He paused and said, “Is that why you’re determined to go to M-87?”

“Do you see any way around it?”

“No, if you’re right about that possibility, we’ll have to go.”

Cyanna said, “You’ve lost me.”

RV said, “The civilization that protected us is tied to us. Our future survival is linked to them and they know it. Right now they are holding on against the others. Their actions in saving the Jukebox from destruction may cause the others to combine against them. We can’t allow them to face that alone.”

Bob said, “So there is another time traveling species in our future?”

George looked at RV and nodded. He sighed, “No, there isn’t.”

“Then who came back to that civilization?”

“We did.”

Jillian said, “What?”

“They speak our language, Jillian. They expanded the globe the moment you announced you had completed the scan. We had to be the ones that warned them. Do you see any other possibility?”

“Nooooo...you must be right.”

Kenny said, “At least their ships are far more advanced than ours.”

RV shook his head, “I don’t think so.”

“They prevented you from jumping away.”

“Their force fields are what prevented me from jumping. The globe of ships surrounding us had the inside of their force fields right up against the hull of the Jukebox. Our drive field couldn’t expand against them and we were prevented from jumping. That’s what made me start thinking about interference from a time traveler. That globe had to be the perfect size for that to occur.”

“Well, they appear to be more advanced than the others.”

“Kenny, we killed ten thousand ships from their most advanced civilizations. Of course we outnumbered them about a thousand to one and that’s why we were able to do it. We could hold our own against most of those ships. We might be overwhelmed in the end, but the victors know they would then be so weakened they would be destroyed by the other predators. I suspect if we were in that galaxy, we would be given a wide berth as well.”

Cyanna shrugged and said, “One of those ships required two hundred beams and mini-strikers to kill it.”

“Hey, you’re singing to the choir. Building more ships is not the answer to this problem. We need a weapon that would be effective against millions of those ships.”

George leaned forward, “I’ll get Dr. Morrison working on it with Boden. It will probably have to be a development in the strikers. Our beams can’t be made any stronger.”

Jillian smiled, “Right now a striker uses speed and mass. Perhaps adding energy to the package might make a difference.”

Cyanna slowly shook her head, “It’s hard to believe that a weapon strong enough to destroy a planet can’t destroy a ship.”

George said, “It can obliterate a ship. It’s the force field that destroys the striker before it can hit the ship. A planet has nothing between it and the striker.”

Kenny sighed, “A planet is nothing but a giant ship circling a star. Even the Jenze knew that and developed a force field for their planets.”

Cyanna saw RV’s and George’s expressions immediately change. “What are you two thinking?”

George said, “And the Jenze didn’t have reactors as powerful as ours.” George turned to Meisa, “Get Dr.’s Levin and Morrison here now!”

Kenny looked at RV, “What did I say?”

“You reminded us that a planet is just a large ship. Why can’t it have a force field?”

Kenny smiled, “I see no reason why it couldn’t if you have enough power to make it large enough.”

“We have power in spades.”

“We also have those old force field generators on the Alliance planets.”

George said, “That’s where we’ll start exploring this concept.

RV smiled and said, “But first we have to welcome some visitors.”

George said, “Not before Chris and Jillian take a look at the six million years before we took our last scan.”

“Always spoiling my fun.”

“Don’t worry; it just gives us more time to plan a bigger party.”

“I know who will provide the piñatas.”

George laughed out loud.

• • •

Two weeks later Chris appeared on George’s display. George smiled, “Did you find what you were searching for?”

“Yes, we did.”

“That didn’t take long.”

“We skipped the entire eight million years and started at five thousand years ago. At that point in time the White Civilization was no stronger than the others.”

“And?”

“There was a remarkable change when we reached two hundred years ago. We backed out to two hundred and fifty years and scanned to two hundred. You were right.”

“What did you see?”

“A small ship similar to our current attack craft appeared above the planet and was allowed to land. It remained there for three weeks and then launched and disappeared.”

“Did you see anything else?”

“We saw the ones that exited the ship when it landed.”

“Who was it?”

“RV and Cyanna, but they were older.”

“How much older?”

“They looked to be in their fifties.”

George thought a moment and said, “You will not tell anyone about who was on that ship. You will only confirm that it was one of our ships.”

“I understand and will do just that. Jillian will also follow these instructions.”

“No one should know their future. They might change it just to see what happens.”

“We are both thinking the same thing, George.”

“Thanks, Chris. Bring the Jukebox home and start seeing if you can give us a story of what’s happening in that galaxy.”

“We’ve joined Admiral Owen’s fleet and will be jumping shortly. What do you want to do with this record?”

“Bring it to me personally. I’ll hold on to it.”

George leaned back in his chair and furrowed his brow. He had expected Zack and Izzy to be the ones that went to that civilization. He shook his head and turned back to the report on the Alliance pyramids.

• • •

The Aide approached the entrance and pushed a button. “Enter.” The door slid up and he stepped into the entrance and waited. “Why are you here?”

“One of our spies in the other quadrant notified us that one of the civilizations prevented a red ship from outside the galaxy from being destroyed.”

“So?”

“More than a million ships pursued the ship when it jumped away but only ten thousand of the most advanced ships were able to continue the pursuit.”

“And?”

“Those ten thousand ships have not reported back to their civilizations and there is no clue as to their location.”

“Now that is interesting. Did any of them scan the Red Ship?”

“If they did, they are not sharing what they saw. Our spy’s ships were not one of those that continued the pursuit.”

“Are the others planning any action?”

“There’s a lot of talk, but no one trusts the others to do anything.”

“Someday we are going to break this jam.” The Aide waited and heard, “But not today. Keep me informed about this. Have you passed this on to the other Majors?”

“I have waited for your approval.”

The large creature thought about it and decided the risk wasn’t worth it. If that spy was double dealing and told another Major that he knew…it would cause unnecessary problems. “Send the information.”

The Aide bowed and backed out of the entrance as the door closed in front of him.

• • •

RV looked at Cyanna and said, “I notice that there is a disproportionate share of Jenze in the fleet.”

“They are motivated to even the scales. Their populations have been assimilated into the colonies and they have had an impact on the colonists from Earth.”

“In what way?”

“They’ve shared their history with them. They’ve been fighting for millions of years to survive. They believe in everyone working together to make that happen. They come from a military culture and understand discipline and honor. They insist on doing their share of fighting our enemies.”

“Where are Zack and Izzy?”

“They’re on Dundee. There is a large Jenze settlement there that they’ve made their home.”

“Do they have any assignments?”

“Not at the moment; why do you ask?”

“No reason, I was just curious.”

Cyanna looked back at her panel. RV never asked a question without a reason. Why was he asking about the crew of the Ninja? She shook her head, looked back at him, and saw him smiling. “Is your first name still Enigma?”

RV started chuckling, “It is.” He continued to laugh as she turned back to her board to watch the new ships go through their maneuvers.

• • •

Kate stood in space dock watching the Scotland undergoing repairs. Her executive officer, Commander Jayne Whitlock sighed as she stared at the massive damage done to the bow. Kate shook her head and Jayne said, “We’ve got to stop meeting at this location.”

“I know. I just can’t understand why I’m always in the place where a collision is needed.”

Jayne looked at Kate, “Was one really needed?”

Kate blew out a deep breath, “That ship had been hit with fifty strikers and was still able to extend a jump field. We couldn’t risk that ship escaping with the scans I know it took of our fleets.”

Jayne looked back at the Scotland, “At least we only lost three members of the crew and the Scotland is repairable.”

“President Sierra has awarded the ship a distinguished citation from the New Commonwealth Union. It will be the Union’s first. I’m to receive a medal as well.”

“I didn’t know that.”

“I honestly don’t want it; I’d rather have my three sailors alive.”

“Captain, we all chose to go into harm’s way when we enlisted. You put yourself in the most danger by being closest to the impact. The crew knows you could have flipped the ship and backed into it. They respect you for taking that risk. If I might make a suggestion?” Kate turned to Jayne, “Next time launch a few strikers in front of us to soften our impact.”

Kate smiled, “Do you think that would soften things up?”

“Not really, but it would give you time to turn away if they work.”

Kate turned and stared at the Scotland and noticed something different. She looked closely at the bow, “Is that what I think they are?”

Jayne smiled, “Yes, they are. The engineers are installing eight striker tubes on the bow. They’ve named them Kate’s Diamond. They’ve asked that you use them before your next trip in for repairs.”

“I guess I’m developing a reputation.”

“Your Needle Pilots have named their wings the Hard Hitters.”

“And the Attack Craft?”

Jayne tried to answer but started laughing as Kate waited for a response. Jayne tried to tell her but her laughter took her before she could say it. Kate waited and Jayne finally managed to say, “The Ka-pow Wing.” She then laughed so hard she dropped to the floor.

Kate thought a moment and said, “I like it.” She looked down and thought she was going to have to call for a medic Jayne was laughing so hard.

Four months later. Kate was promoted to Rear Admiral and took command of six thousand ships. Jayne was promoted to Captain of the Scotland, which became the fleet’s flag ship. Every ship in Kate’s fleet was known for the striker tubes on their bows. Soon, all ships were built with Kate’s Diamond.

Chapter Sixteen

“Are you sure you can’t persuade them to leave?”

“George, they insist on staying. They feel like abandoning their planets would give the Violet Civilization a victory they don’t deserve.”

George stared at Bender on his display, “What do you think about that?”

“I’m staying with them. I happen to share their sentiments.”

“You’re placing a lot of trust in the force fields.”

“I know, but we can also call for help if we’re attacked.”

“What if they can penetrate the force field?”

“That’s a risk we’re willing to take. Our ships can’t penetrate it.”

“Where are we with synchronizing them with the probes?”

“They are fully operational. If a ship enters normal space and doesn’t have a fleet transponder, the force field will automatically deploy before it gets into firing range.”

“Darn it, Bender, we’re going to invite an invasion. You could always come back afterwards.”

“If Earth was still here, would you leave?” George didn’t respond and Bender said, “I thought so; well, we aren’t either. These are our home worlds and we will not abandon them.”

“I can assign some ships at each planet.”

“They are better used to confront the invasion. There are many planets that will not be attacked and those ships would be wasted. Use them to make them pay for their actions.”

George nodded and turned off his display. The Fleet had grown to more than two million ships over the last five years and now it was time for them to be used. He thought about it and then pushed a button. Admiral, are you ready?”

“Are they going to leave?”

“No, they aren’t RV. I can’t say I blame them.”

“They are warriors at heart. We have the assignments made and the initial ships are ready to jump.”

George stared at RV and said nothing. RV finally said, “This is for Dolly, Jeff, Arnold, and Hemon.”

“Start the mission.”

RV looked at Cyanna and she punched the code. Fifty thousand main battleships jumped into Earth’s orbit.

• • •

The Fleet Controller saw an alarm go off on his panel and pushed the button. What he saw shocked him. He immediately pushed a button to contact the Hive Controller. “There are thousands of large White Ships…”

“I know; I see them!”

“What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know; do you have a suggestion?”

“I’ll get back to you.”

The Hive Controller looked at the display in the top right corner of his wall and saw his greatest nightmare coming to life. There were fifty thousand ships that dwarfed the small ship that had destroyed the Home Hive. He brought the view in closer and saw a hundred of those small craft attached to the hull of every one of those ships. He was frozen with fear. There was no possible way to send a large enough fleet to that galaxy. He stayed in his cell staring at the ships until one of them moved out to the probe and the display went dark.

• • •

Kate punched her board, “I’ve destroyed the probe.”

RV smiled and said, “Move to your assigned position.”

“Yes Sir.” Kate looked at Jayne and nodded; she sent the orders. The fifty thousand ships of the Diamond Fleet jumped away to join the other forty fleets.

• • •

The Fleet Controller appeared on the Hive Controller’s display and he said, “Do you have a plan?”

“I’ve tried to think of every possible way we could send an attack fleet to that galaxy and there’s no way we can do that without allowing the Horde to overrun us.”

“Will you please tell me something I don’t know?”

“Send a message to the Majors that the White Ships are back.”

The Hive controller just shook his triangular shaped head in disgust, “You know the conventions. They speak to us; we are not allowed to speak to them. If we put ourselves into a problem, we have to resolve it. They are not a resource we can use.”

“But they insisted we scout that galaxy.”

“And they said they would contact us if they needed anything else. They didn’t say contact them if we uncovered anything new. You don’t want to violate a convention. That would lead to an even worse problem.”

“It can’t be much worse than this. We can’t do this alone.”

The Hive Controller thought a moment about what the Fleet Controller said, “Maybe we don’t have to do it alone.”

“Who is going to help us?”

“Perhaps we can follow the example of that grey ship that visited us.”

“I’m not sure what you mean?”

“Remember that the Horde was not allowed to attack while we scouted that galaxy. Maybe we can convince them that those White Ships are just as big a danger to them as they are to us.”

The Fleet Controller thought about the idea and slowly nodded, “How do we get their agreement to join us?”

“You will go and ask them. Take a recording of the Home Hive’s destruction by the small ship and a recording of the ships at that planet. We’ll agree to not attack while we deal with this problem and will withdraw our front lines two light years when it’s resolved.”

“That’s giving up a lot.”

“Don’t offer it unless you have no choice.”

“May I send one of my subordinates?”

“You may not. They know your ship is marked as the Fleet Controller. They will probably respond with someone in a similar position. Now go make the contact.”

“How do I do that?”

“Figure it out. That’s your responsibility and if I need to replace you I will.”

The Fleet Controller lowered his head and ended the communication.

The Hive Controller ordered his personal ship down to the planet and boarded. He was not going to be on the surface anytime soon. Unlike his predecessor, he wasn’t stupid and arrogant.

• • •

RV had George on his display and they were discussing the inactivity of the Violet Civilization. “They should have made some sort of response by now.”

“George, it’s only been two weeks. I’m sure they’re stuck with how to pull ships off their lines and send them here. That is going to take some time.”

“We need to know what’s going on.”

“It would help to know.”

George looked off the screen and said, “Meisa, send the Ninja to collect the light from M-87 for the last two weeks.”

RV heard George and took a deep breath. Cyanna was listening in and wondered what RV was thinking. Something was going on with sending the Ninja. What could it have been? RV was bothered but didn’t say anything.

• • •

Zack and Isadore made a fast run by M87 recording two weeks of reflected light and jumped away to look at the results of their recording. The crew of the Ninja watched their monitors to make sure they weren’t followed and kept their weapons scanners active. After an hour, Zack ended battle stations and the crew started to relax. However, none of them moved very far from their combat stations and most left their weapons on standby for immediate activation. The twenty crewmembers chosen to serve on the Ninja were the best the Navy had.

The Ninja had grown in size and was no longer just a two man ship. With the increased power of the new reactors, it had to grow just to move a reactor inside its hull. It was a powerful weapon now but Zack was not willing to risk it in an engagement, he chose to run first. He finally jumped to Izzy’s favorite location to capture Earth’s light while he viewed the data collected.

Isadore stared at the display showing Earth thousands of years in the past and she was amazed at the beauty of the green and blue planet. Zack began running the recordings and brought the view in closer, “What are they doing?”

Izzy turned around from watching the scanners and saw two ships moving toward each other, “I don’t know.”

They watched as a Violet Ship and a Yellow Battleship moved toward each other in the center of the neutral zone between their vast fleets.

“Izzy, run this back.”

“Why?”

“I want to see who initiated this meeting.”

“You think they’re going to communicate?”

“I think that’s obvious. We need to know who wanted this meeting to happen.”

Izzy backed the recording up and they watched as a Violet Battleship moved out of their lines toward the center of the space between the two giant fleets. The Violet Ship did not have a force field raised and it was flashing a bright white light on top of it.

“I was afraid of that.”

“What?”

“I think the Violet Ships are going to ask their enemy for help.” Izzy looked at Zack and he was slowly shaking his head, “This is not good.”

“Why would the Yellow Ships agree to help them? They’ve been killing each other for thousands of years.” Izzy watched the recording as the two ships moved closer and stopped. She waited for one of them to fire on the other but nothing happened. Two hours later the ships turned and went back to their lines.

“Get this information out to Dundee, Izzy!” Zack hit the intercom and said, “Jump alert, we’ll be jumping in sixty seconds.”

Izzy set the drive and looked back at the recording. The Violet Ship that had gone out to meet the Yellow Battleship, jumped away. Just before she jumped the Ninja she moved the view on her display to the Yellow Ship and watched it jump away as well. She shook her head and hoped this wasn’t what she thought it was. She was about to hit the jump button when the Ninja was rocked.

Zack yelled into his communicator, “We have ten Violet ships that just jumped in on us and fired together. Or force field was breached and the star drive is inoperative. We are running in normal space but cannot reach top speed. They are gaining on us.”

George said, “Send us your coordinates.”

“Can’t do it without the drive computer and it’s burned out.”

Izzy looked up at Earth as it appeared hundreds of thousands of years ago and marveled at its beauty. She smiled.

Zack was flying the Ninja as fast as it would go, but the Violet ships were gaining and would be in beam range in seconds. He looked over at Izzy and saw her staring at the light being collected from Earth’s ancient past. He looked at her and felt his love. He hit another pad and the time field began to form in front of the fleeing ship, “George, the only thing that works is the collectors and time field. I’m activating the time field, going through it, and then I’ll shut it down.”

George stood and yelled, “Don’t do it. You can’t come back if you shut it down.”

“Good-bye, George.”

The light went out on the communication board and George sat down in his chair. Meisa came over and hugged him. “They send the data they collected. We need to look at it.”

George took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He nodded and said, “RV, do we have any way of locating them?”

RV stared at the display and said nothing. George sighed and said, “I didn’t think so. We’ll have a ceremony to honor them after this is over.”

RV nodded and Cyanna knew that if RV didn’t have an answer, he would have told George he didn’t. He had not responded. How did he know Zack and Izzy were going to be attacked? He had to know. All the evidence pointed to him knowing. He saw her looking at him and he said softly, “Later.” Cyanna nodded and turned back to her board.

• • •

Two hours later RV’s board alarmed, “George, what’s wrong?”

“Look at this.”

Arvolo watched the two ships meet in the neutral zone. “It looks like we are going to possibly have some uninvited guests.”

“This doesn’t worry you?”

RV shrugged and said, “We know we can handle the Violet Ships. The Yellow Ships are not more advanced than them.”

“But there could be millions of them coming.”

“If we can’t handle that many, we’ll kill as many as possible and jump away.”

“What about our planets still in the Milky Way?”

“I doubt they will waste time here on them. If we jump away they’ll think we’re going after their home worlds. They’ll leave so fast it will spin your head.”

George thought a moment and started nodding, “That’s exactly what I would do. Do you think we can take on that many ships?”

“We’ll lose some vessels when they’re ganged up on but we should give as much or more than we get.” RV paused and said, “You know there are hundreds of aggressive civilizations in that galaxy with millions of ships. We might as well start learning how to fight in a major fleet action. This will tell us where we are in our capabilities.”

George ran his hand through his hair and said, “I want to come join the fleet.”

“I know but you also know why you can’t?”

“I know. It would cause a political vacuum if something happened to me. If we lose this, I need to be here to pick up the pieces.”

“Exactly right; and three years from now all of our ships will be replaced if we lose them.”

“The new leaders won’t be as good.”

“Don’t sell them short; they might surprise you.”

“Good-luck, RV; make us proud.”

“You know we will.”

RV hit a button and Jillian appeared on the wall display, “Jillian, where is the second Ninja?”

“It and its crew are on board the Jukebox.”

“Get them moving and plan to have them make a scan of M-87 focusing on the battle lines of the Violet Civilization in three days. I want the time from now to the present collected.”

“They’ll have to get extremely close to make that happen.”

“I’ll send twenty ships as an escort. Plan to finish the scan in less than two minutes. Is that possible?”

“If they make a high speed run from six light days out, they should do in in less than one minute.”

““Good, let me know when they’re ready.”

RV pushed another button, “Admiral Diamond, I need twenty of your best ships to make a quick trip to M-87.”

“I’ve got just the squadron, Sir. Where do you want them to report?”

“Contact the Jukebox and send them to its location immediately.”

“They’ll be there momentarily, Sir.”

RV leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. Cyanna looked at him, “Is there anything you need me to do?”

“Order all ships from general quarters and have them rest. This is not optional. Once this conflict starts there won’t be much time to take a break.”

“Does that mean you and I are included in that order?”

RV looked at her and smiled, “Absolutely.”

Cyanna issued the orders and stood up from her chair, “Captain Gonzalez, the ship is yours.” She looked at RV and smiled, “Come on, Enigma.” RV stood and followed her off the bridge.

• • •

The Hive Controller sat in his cell and looked at the center display. It appeared the Horde was going to keep their agreement. He thought about the conversation with the Leader of his ancient enemy.

“It appears you have jumped into something that will be your undoing.”

“I won’t argue that point, but you should be asking yourself what will happen if we lose.”

“Why would we worry about that? This is your issue, not ours.”

“Do you honestly think they will stop with us? Have you ever seen an invasion that just ends with one victory? No, they will be coming after you if they manage to get through us.”

“Yes, that is possibly true. However, you could force them to withdraw and then we will have our victory.”

“I’m going to send you a recording of what happened to us with just one of their small ships. Contact me after you’ve viewed it.”

An hour later the display illuminated, “It appears their ships are quite fast.”

“There are fifty thousand battleships with a hundred of those small ships attached to their hulls. Those battleships are more than a hundred times larger than the ship that destroyed our home hive. If they manage to get their ships into our territory, no planet will be safe and that includes yours. We must hit them in their galaxy.”

“We can agree to another armistice while you go and handle the issue.”

“We are not sure we can do it alone. I would think that you would also want to make sure this enemy of our galaxy is eliminated. There is also the issue of trust.”

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s say our roles were reversed. Would you send all your ships away and leave our ships behind just on the promise we would not attack? You know that one day the ones pressing you on your other border may require you take ships out of your line to hold them off. We could help you if that problem arises.”

“How would you do that?”

“We will send an equal number of our ships with yours to defend that border. We will repay you for assisting us.” The Hive Controller had heard that the Horde was being pressed, but had no concrete evidence to prove it. If the rumors were true, this offer may make the difference. He remained silent and waited for a response.

“Just how would you go about doing this?

The Hive Controller tried not to show his relief, “We will send one of our fleets into the middle of the neutral zone between us and you will send one of your lines to meet them. The two lines will then jump out to the edge of galaxy and form up. We will continue to do that until there is only one line left for each of us.”

“You’re talking about using more than twenty million ships!”

“I don’t want to take any chances. Have all your ships locked in their starting coordinates and they will jump back on the conclusion of the battle. We will honor a six rotation armistice while each of us reorganizes our defenses.”

“Who will command the attack?”

“I honestly don’t care. This is not an ego issue for us. We will gladly follow your commander’s orders or you can follow ours. If you choose to use yours, make sure he understands that our ships are at their strongest when they are linked by their force fields.”

“We are all aware of that.” The Horde Leader paused and said, “Organizing your ships so they can be used most effectively is not something we would be able to do. Our ships fight independently and that is easier to direct than large formations. I will agree to use your commander, but insist that we be kept informed of what’s going on.”

“I will certainly ensure that happens.”

“When do you want to start this?”

“To wait will allow time for them to invade. We should begin immediately.”

“I’ll notify my ships. It will take one rotation to insure their compliance with this agreement. You will move your first line tomorrow at this time.”

“We will do as you suggest. Might I make an offer while you are doing this?”

“What is that?”

“The ships we are leaving behind will go with your line to your other front and take part in the hostilities. Our ships might be able to break through your enemies lines and help you while this is happening.”

The Horde leader looked at the Hive Controller for a long moment and knew that revealing the struggle taking place was not a good thing but knew the possible difference maker those linked ships could be in the current attacks. “We will accept your offer.” The display went blank.

• • •

Captain Phillips looked at his board and saw that all systems were active. He looked over at Commander Taylor, “Check the stealth probe and make sure the launch tube is ready.”

Liz smiled, “Already done, Captain.”

“Notify our escort.”

“Captain Gibbons, we are ready for launch. We will be jumping to the entry coordinate in five minutes. The breakoff code is Dolly.”

“Launch confirmed Commander. We have our boards synchronized and will be in formation on your arrival. All ships report confirmation on the breakoff code.”

Liz pushed the blue button on her panel, “All hands to battle stations.” She turned off the klaxon and watched the red lights. They went out in eight seconds. “That was quick.”

Phil smiled, “It’s a small ship.”

“Even so, that was quick.”

“Did they see you check the probe’s launch tube?” Liz thought about it and smiled. “They knew we were launching.”

Liz tilted her head and set the light fields to maximum. She restarted the computer to remove all previous tests and said, “Three minutes to launch.”

Captain Gibbons leaned back in his command chair and waited for the countdown to complete. His executive officer looked over at him and Gibbons asked, “What’s on your mind?”

“This will be our first real fight together and I was wondering what your first name is? Gibbons is all I’ve ever heard.”

“And I’ll never tell you. Just call me Gibbs.”

“Now you do have my curiosity up.”

“Worry about naming our strikers. Children’s names would be nice. You might have to name some new ones after this is over. Some of them might be ready to leave the nest.”

“You make a good point.”

Gibbs hit his panel, “Alright Lads, we’ll be weapons free on break out. We will only launch our small craft if absolutely necessary. Your computers will make that call. Be ready.” Gibbs flipped the communication panel to standby and said, “Faldo, are you ready?”

The computer responded, “All weapons active. Scanners are at 100%.”

“I do not want to use small craft in this mission. All ships are aware of this but I am not going to jeopardize the safety of our ships by being foolish. Keep me informed.”

“I will Captain. One minute.”

One moment, twenty one ships hung in space ten miles from the Jukebox. The next moment they all vanished and reappeared accelerating at 90% of light speed toward a gigantic galaxy.

The twenty ships flashed through space and Phil had recorded the first three days. As the fourth days recording started he yelled, “Jettison the probe now!” Liz hit the button. “Dolly, Dolly, Dolly.”

The twenty one ships vanished as eighty thousand ships roared out on them from the millions of ships gathered just outside the galaxy.

Gibbs punched in to the Ninja’s com, “What was that about?”

Phil sent a picture of the giant galaxy to Gibbs just before he sent a copy of the recording back to the Command Center. Gibbs looked at the picture on his main wall display and whistled, “How many ships do you see?”

Eric was slowly shaking his head, “Millions, Sir; millions.”

Gibbs smiled, “We should have a lot of fun in the play pen shortly.”

“We better bring some more children on board.”

Gibbs looked at his Exec and smiled, “Octuplets would be nice.”

“How do you name that many?”

“Well, boom, bang, bong, bash, batter, bump, bend, broke, and Betty.”

“Betty?”

“I like the name.”

Eric laughed and the bridge crew joined in.

• • •

George and Meisa watched the recording and Meisa said, “Can we handle that many?”

George shrugged, “We have more ships this time.”

Meisa looked at him with a shocked expression, “We only have three million. According to this scan there are more than fifteen million forming up.”

“You’re only talking about main battleships. There are a hundred and fifty million Needles and two hundred million Attack Craft.”

“Will a Needle be effective against those ships?”

“We really don’t know until we meet them head on but we’re pretty sure they can handle those Yellow Ships.” George looked over at his second display, “Have you started receiving the probe’s signal?”

Meisa punched a pad and a view appeared. They looked and saw the millions of ships. “Do you think they’ll see it?”

“I know we couldn’t. That probe is one of the most remarkable creations we’ve ever made; the only part of it that is in normal space is smaller than a wall nut.”

“How much is in Sierra Space?”

“It’s about the size of a large hauler.”

“Won’t it be seen by someone traveling through Sierra Space?”

“Remember that all things in Sierra Space are greatly reduced in size. In Sierra Space it will be the size of a hydrogen atom.” George looked at the display and turned up the volume. “Meisa, get one of the Moet Watchers up here to listen in on this while our computer learns their language. We can also receive their electromagnetic transmissions with this. We should be able to listen in on their communications.” George pushed his board and RV appeared. “I’ve got something to show you.”

“Do tell.”

George sent RV the probe’s frequency and he looked at the video. “Well, I guess our Violet colored friends subscribe to my philosophy.”

George said, “And that is?”

“Anything worth doing is worth overdoing.”

“It appears you’re right. Link Dolly to the frequency. We’re also receiving their communications. We should be able to listen in on their plans.”

“Do you have it, Dolly?”

“I’ve narrowed it down to their command frequency. I’ll relay it to your board as soon as I learn the language.”

RV looked at the millions of gathering ships and smiled.

Chapter Seventeen

The Hive Controller watched the center display and saw the largest fleet he had ever witnessed. This was a monumental undertaking and the Horde was actually giving their total support to the undertaking. His Fleet Controller told him that his offer to send a fleet to help defend them made a huge impact on their warriors. Truth be told, his own warriors seemed to be developing a liking of their enemies as well. He tried to remember why they were fighting each other and just couldn’t do it. They had been at war for millions of years and the reason was lost in history.

The Leader of the Horde appeared on his display and said, “That’s the last line to leave. I wish you success on your mission.”

Suddenly every display in the panel changed and the messenger from the Majors appeared on all of them. “You will disband this gathering of ships and move back to your former positions. You will comply with this immediately.”

The Hive Controller said, “We have discovered more than fifty thousand of those White Ships in the other galaxy. We’re going to go and remove them as a threat.

You may do that upon the time of your choosing; however, you will not be allowed to combine your forces with any other.”

“We can’t remove enough ships to do that without being destroyed by the Horde. This is the only way to make this happen.”

“Then send them in your place. You are forbidden from combining your forces. Move back to your lines immediately or face reprisals for your refusal to follow our directives.”

“But we followed the Major’s orders to go out and attack other galaxies before they could become a threat. This enemy is a result of following your directives.”

“And you will continue to do that until another takes your place at the edge. You have three of your rotations to comply.”

The display panels returned to their original views and the Hive Controller took a deep breath. He looked at the Leader of the Horde and said, “I will jump my ships back to their original location in exactly ten minutes. I’ll start with the first line and then wait for your first line to arrive. I’ll then move each one back in the order they were moved. I will also give you three rotations to form up before we begin our hostilities again.”

The Leader of the Horde stared at the Hive Controller, “I am truly sorry about this.”

The Hive Controller nodded and said, “Fleet Controller, move the ships back in line as I’ve agreed with the Leader of the Horde.”

The Fleet Controller looked at the Giant Purple Ship flashing green on his display and felt immense anger. He forced it aside and issued the orders.

The Horde Leader thought about what his civilization was fighting to achieve. If he was successful against the Bugs, then he would be forced to attack other galaxies when he occupied the edge of the galaxy. Victory could actually be a defeat. He would then have to face those White Ships. The Majors actually wanted them killing each other. His anger slowly grew until his rage almost took him.

• • •

Three days later after the light leaving M-87 reached the probe, RV sat straight up in his chair and hit his board, “George, are you watching this?”

“I am.”

“I’m shocked at what I’ve just heard.”

“It appears our friends out there are as well.”

“They were forced to attack other galaxies.”

“It appears that way.”

“There’s no appears to it. They were forced.”

“I don’t care, RV; they killed Dolly.”

RV stared at George on his display and said, “I’ll discuss this with you in the morning.”

George looked at RV and wanted to scream. However, he nodded and ended the contact. Meisa came in and said, “What’s going on?” George told her.

• • •

Cyanna looked at RV, “What are you thinking?”

“I’m resigning my commission in the morning.”

“Why!!”

“You heard the same thing I did. They can’t be held responsible.”

“Yes they can. You’re always responsible for your actions.”

RV stared at Cyanna, “If you had a gun pointed at your parents and sister and you were told they were going to be executed if you didn’t fire on a stranger, what would you do?” Cyanna struggled but couldn’t answer. RV stared at her, “The ones responsible are the ones holding your family hostage. Any other answer is hogwash.”

Cyanna continued to look at RV and finally nodded. “I’ll be joining you.”

“That’s why I love you, Cyanna.”

Cyanna’s heart exploded. Now she knew for sure.

• • •

George sent a message in the morning for all Fleet Admirals to report to the command Center by two in the afternoon. RV looked at Cyanna and said, “I was hoping to keep this private.”

“It is what it is.”

“I guess you’re right. Let’s take an Attack Craft.”

Cyanna said, “Captain Gonzalez, the ship and the Fleet are yours. Contact us if something arises.”

“Yes Sir.”

• • •

Jayne looked at Kate as she looked around the room at all the assembled Admirals, “Why was I told to be here for this meeting?”

“I have no idea. Just be patient and we’ll find out.”

RV and the three Vice-Admirals were on the front stage seated at a conference table with Boden again. Bender and the Moet Admiral were also at the front table. Kenny looked at RV and then asked Cyanna, “What’s going on with RV?”

Cyanna slowly shook her head and said, “We’re resigning our commissions today.”

“What!”

“Keep your voice down. I’ll explain after the meeting.”

“You can’t do that.”

“We have no choice, Kenny.”

Cyanna looked straight ahead and Kenny began to feel a sense of panic.

George entered the room and everyone stood. He said, “Please be seated. Some events have happened that all of you should be made aware of. Meisa?”

The giant wall display over the front stage came on and the recording of the confrontation between the Purple Ship and the two species planning to attack the Milky Way was played in its entirety. George sat and watched the recording with a stoic expression and at its conclusion he stood up.

“It appears that the ones that destroyed Earth will not be coming to our Galaxy. That means we will have to go to theirs.”

RV stood and said, “Mr. President, may I speak for a moment?”

“You may not. Sit down and you’ll be given a chance later.”

RV stared at George and George returned his stare. Cyanna pulled RV’s pants’ leg and he looked at her and saw her shaking her head. He slowly returned to his chair.

George said, “That civilization of the Violet Ships killed my family. Both my sister and mother died with Earth. They must be given a message by our fleet!” The room was stone silent. George stared at the assembled admirals and said, “But we are not going to kill them.”

RV was stunned at the statement and Cyanna fell back in her chair.

“I want to destroy them so much that it hurts. But they aren’t the ones that made it happen. The civilizations behind that Purple Ship are to blame and the Violet Civilization was just a tool they used to do it. A gun doesn’t have a choice about who it’s used against. It’s the finger on the trigger that’s responsible. Meisa finally got me to see that my need for vengeance was wrong and misplaced. I didn’t want to see it but she prevailed. I am ordering our Fleet to go to that galaxy and tell the Violet Civilization that if they come near us again we are going to kill every one of them down to the last being. We will burn their worlds and have no sorrow over our actions. If they require a small demonstration to prove it, we will provide it.” George paused and softly said, “Even if they attack us on arrival, we will not destroy their worlds but will only defend ourselves. I want that clearly understood before you leave. I am going to hold all of you responsible for carrying out this order.”

George turned to RV and said, “If you have something to say, now is the time to say it.”

RV stood and said, “Humans have often made mistakes in our history.” He paused and looked at George, “However, choosing you to lead us is one of the best decisions we have ever made. I’m proud to serve you, Sir.”

George took a deep breath and said, “Thank you.” He turned back to the audience and said, “I am ordering a change in our organization. Currently there are three Vice-Admirals commanding our ships. We need more flexibility so I am promoting Admiral Kate Diamond to Vice-Admiral. The Captain of the Scotland will assume her responsibilities and rank. Congratulations Admiral Diamond; your fleet is rated the best in our navy. And congratulations to you Admiral Whitlock; I expect you to hold on to that rating.”

George turned to RV, “Will you be able to reorganize before we go to M-87?”

“We will move ships from the three fleets to fill in her ranks, Sir. We can do that in less than two days.”

“You will need to promote four new Rear Admirals for the newly constituted fourth fleet. I will leave that decision to you and your staff Admiral Arvolo.”

RV nodded and looked at the ones at the table. The three Vice-Admirals all nodded.

George looked out at the gathering and the room grew silent. “We are going to war, gentlemen. First we deliver our message and then we plan how to take on those predators in that galaxy. They have trespassed on our territory and we’re going to teach them the error of doing that. I expect all of you to give us your best.” George turned and walked off to a thunderous applause from the audience.

RV watched him go and heard Cyanna say, “He surprised you.”

RV smiled, “They don’t say sleep on it for no reason.”

“We didn’t need much sleep.”

“Speak for yourself; I’m dragging.”

Kenny took a deep breath and felt his heart slow down.

“Congratulations, Kate.”

“Thanks, Admiral.” Jayne smiled and Kate said, “You are going to have to move to another ship.” Jayne’s expression dropped faster than a bad habit. “I’m going to be forced to move among the five fleets under my command to get them organized and up to speed. Are you willing to leave your fleet to go with me to those others and leave yours?”

Jayne thought about it and said, “No, I’m not. We’re number one and I intend to keep that rating. I’m just worried that I won’t be as good as you. I depend on you.”

“You have it wrong, Jayne. It is I that has been made better by your council. You are better than you think and I know I won’t have to worry about your command.”

“You better get Gonzalez.”

“I’m ahead of you. I sent in proposals for you and him to be promoted when an opportunity presented itself. The Old Man has notified me that he agrees with my assessment.”

“Do you think the Old Man will give you Gonzalez back?”

“He will if I accuse him of just trying to stack the deck in the fleet completion. He loves a challenge.”

“I hope you’re right. We need three more.”

“No, just two.”

“Who is the third?”

“Captain Gibbons.”

Jayne started laughing and Kate furrowed her brow, “What’s so funny?”

“His crew has started naming their strikers. Some of the names are hilarious.”

“I can imagine.”

“Get him to introduce you when you tell him.”

“I’ll be sure to do that.”

• • •

Cyanna said, “I’m going to hate to lose those ships.”

“You need to get out more and get the others trained.”

“You’re right. Our fleet will not lose the number one rating to another.”

“I’m counting on you to make that happen.”

• • •

Captain Gibbons and the entire crew were gathered in the landing bay of the Nebraska. “Crew, Atennnshun!”

Kate exited the shuttle and returned Gibbs salute. She said, “Stand at ease.” The entire crew moved simultaneously. Kate was impressed. This was a disciplined crew. “I’ve visited today because it is my understanding that you have named your strikers. I’d like to meet some of them after I handle a formality.”

Gibbs smiled and said, “It will be my pleasure, Admiral.”

Kate looked around the landing by and said, “Retroactive to yesterday, Captain Gibbons is promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral and will take command of the third fleet under my command.”

Gibbs looked stunned and his crew cheered at the top of their voices. Kate waited for them to become silent and said, “Your Executive Officer, Eric Kim has also been promoted to Captain and will assume the command of the Nebraska.” The roar that followed told Kate all she needed to know about her choices. She looked at Gibbs and saw that him nod. She decided that Eric needed to be watched to see if he was also fleet material. Kate looked around and said, “You are dismissed. Now if you’ll introduce me to your children, Admiral.”

Gibbs smiled and said, “If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you the crib.”

“The crib?”

“Some call it the armory. We like to baby our weapons. They work better that way.” Kate smiled and followed Gibbs out of the landing bay.

• • •

“You did what!”

“She said she deserved to get him back. She made a good case.”

“RV, he’s the best we have.”

RV shrugged and said, “Certainly you have someone in mind other than Gonzalez?”

“I know a great candidate, but don’t they have to be a captain before we can promote him?”

“Well, yes; who do you have in mind?”

“There is an executive officer on the Nebraska that has aced every test we’ve thrown at him in advance tactical training. His understanding of tactics is incredible.”

“Wasn’t he just promoted to Captain?”

“Yes, but he has not flown his ship on a mission. That is also a requirement for promotion.”

RV started laughing and Cyanna said, “What?”

“If you are willing to temporally command the fourth fleet, after the visit to M-87 he will have fulfilled that requirement and will then be eligible for promotion.”

Cyanna started laughing, “Oh, this is too good. Kate will have a duck.”

“Turnabout is fair play.”

“Let’s do it.”

• • •

The Hive Controller sat in his cell and waited for the White Ships to attack. There was nothing he could do about it and knew his people were probably going to lose their long conflict with the Horde if they attacked with the arrival of the White Ships. He saw no way to escape his coming destiny. He looked up and saw the Leader of the Horde on his display.

“The armistice will be over shortly.”

“I know.”

“I have been meeting with my staff and we have all come to agreement on a few things. I want to see if you can help us see if we’re wrong in our assumptions.”

“Why would you ever ask me for guidance?”

“Well, one of the things we’ve agreed on is that the Majors are forcing us to fight each other.”

“That’s obvious. You don’t need me to verify that.”

“The second thing is that we don’t why we are fighting each other. Do you know?”

“As a matter of fact, I don’t. I’ve looked through our history data and nothing exists that tells me why.”

“Third, we are outraged that we do not control our actions but are forced to follow the will of beings that want us destroyed.”

The Hive Controller sat up and said, “I’ve never felt as much anger as when they forced us back into our lines. I’ve had a lot of grumbling in the fleet that they don’t want to attack your ships.”

“We have as well.”

“Unfortunately, we won’t be given a choice.”

“We won’t have a choice about attacking but we can choose not to kill.”

“What are you saying?”

“You know we can’t defeat your force fields without hitting them with six shots in the same spot. We could attack you all along your line and if we don’t fire multiple beams at one place, your ships will not be damaged.”

“We can reduce the speed and power of our energy pulses but if ships aren’t damaged the Majors will know it’s a fake.”

“Here’s what we’ll do. We have many ships that are no longer battle worthy. We will broadcast a frequency from those ships and you need to hit them with a full power pulse. They will be flown by remote control by the ship next to them. Can your gunners do that?”

“We can. We also have ships that are not in condition to fight. We’ll place them at the ends of our lines and weaken the force field over them. You should be able to penetrate to them with one ship.”

“Strengthen it so that two ships are needed and make sure they are on the end of the lines. If we fire at a ship on the end of the line and our beams don’t penetrate, we’ll assume it is not one of the targets and move on.”

“What happens after that battle?”

“What we always do. We’ll retreat back across the neutral zone and confront each other for long periods before we attack again.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“It has finally dawned on us that we should not be enemies. The enemy is in that Purple Ship.”

“Will you agree to stop this war with our Hive?”

“I will.”

“Then I am sending you the engineering plans for our energy pulses and force fields. You need them against your other enemy.”

“Why are you doing that?”

“I suspect we will be destroyed if the White Ships attack us. Before you say anything; if we pull our ships out to confront them and you don’t overrun us and take possession of our territory, the Majors will know we have been deceiving them and will come and destroy us all. I see no way out of our dilemma and I don’t want to see you destroyed as well.”

“What are you going to do if they come?”

“We are going to leave our ships here in the line and meet them with the thousand ships on guard duty. Once they destroy our worlds, I’ll order my ships to flee to your territory and surrender to your fleet. I hope you use them wisely.”

The Horde Leader stared at the Hive Controller and said, “After all the millions of years of hatred, it’s such a great shame that we are just now learning that you are not what we thought. So much wasted time and lives.”

“I know; try to make the Majors pay for our death.”

“I will. Are you ready to start the attack?”

“I’ll need all the time to the deadline to get the faulty ships in our lines and issue orders to the fleets. We’ll begin it by moving toward your ships.”

“Let us hope this works.”

Chapter Eighteen

RV raised his hand and pointed at the communications officer who opened the general frequency, “We will be jumping momentarily and I want to repeat that we are not there to conquer. Defend yourselves but do not break ranks without my approval. Radio silence will be observed until we are forced into fleet action.”

Cyanna said, “Ten minutes to general quarters and fifteen minutes to jump.”

RV sat and stared out the view port at the billions of unblinking stars. Cyanna looked at him and he said, “After I left Cuba, I thought my life was over. To be honest, I joined the navy to see if I could end my life.”

“That’s what all the fights were about?”

“Yes, Cyanna; I was angry at a world that took my life away.”

“And now?”

“You have made the largest impact on bringing me back; you and Kenny. He started the process.” RV looked out the view port again and heard, “Five minutes to general quarters.” He smiled, “I would have never expected to be sitting in this chair at this moment. I often feel like I’m not really qualified to do this.”

“No one is, RV. If anyone sits in that chair and doesn’t worry about what they’re doing, they don’t deserve to be there. It’s a moot point now.”

RV looked back at her, “Why is that?”

“You’ve proven yourself to the sailors in this fleet. They will follow wherever you lead. I’m not so sure they would accept anyone else.”

“They would accept you.”

“Not right away.”

RV shrugged and looked back out of the view port. “One minute to general quarters.”

RV stared at the stars until the klaxons began wailing, the red lights began flashing, and the armor covering slid down and covered the view port as RV said, “I do love the stars.”

He took a deep breath and said, “Change of plans.”

“WHAT?”

“Put me on the general frequency.”

The communications officer nodded and RV said, “There is a change in plans. We will jump in and remain in our ranks with our force fields turned off. I repeat, our force fields will be turned off. You may activate them if any ships approach our formation.”

Kenny looked up at his speaker and said, “What is he up to now?”

Bob came in on Kenny’s display and Kenny said, “I don’t know what he’s doing.” Bob shrugged and disappeared.

Cyanna said, “What are you doing?”

“Seeing if they are intelligent or stupid.”

“Not that again?’

RV smiled, “It worked last time. Let’s try it again. Count it down, Admiral.”

Cyanna said, “Two minutes to jump.” She knew she should be worried but she just knew that whatever reason he was doing this was right. She was glad he sat in that chair.

The two million main battleships disappeared.

• • •

The Hive Controller’s alarms went off at full volume and he heard, “Millions of White Ships have just jumped to our border.”

He looked at his display and saw that they were just hanging in space and not moving. The Fleet Controller came in on his board and said, “Their force fields are not activated.”

“Hold the guard ships.” The thousand ships assigned to guard the outer border stopped just outside the edge of their galaxy. The Leader of the Horde appeared on his display and said, “What’s happening?”

“I don’t know. They’re just holding a position just outside our galaxy.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m not really sure.”

He jerked when another creature appeared on one of his displays. The Creature said, “I believe you know who we are. You destroyed our home world not too long ago.”

The Leader of the Horde listened in on the conversation.

“And you returned the favor. Are you here to finish what we started?”

“I could take this time to frighten you, but I just don’t like doing that. We’re not here to kill you, we’re here to deliver a message that you understand.”

The Hive Controller let out the deep breath he had been holding. “What message is that?”

“We know you have been forced to go out and attack other galaxies by the civilizations that sent that Purple Ship.” The Hive Controller and Leader of the Horde were shocked that this being knew about the Majors.

“We call them the Majors.”

“I know. As I was saying, we were planning to destroy all of the ships you were planning to send to our galaxy but that plan was busted by your Majors. It was their intervention that allowed us to learn that you have been forced to go out and kill. It is that knowledge that prevents us from killing every living thing on every planet you inhabit.” RV paused and then said, “However, we do not like you and do hold you in contempt for all the innocent civilizations that you have destroyed over the millennia. You and that other species you’re fighting are nothing but predators and though we feel justified in removing both of you from existence, we would be no better than you if we did. So we’re going to allow you to live.”

“I’m not sure why you are doing that. In this universe, you attack or you will be killed.”

“That’s not the same universe I live in. In my universe, you live in peace with other civilizations and you only kill those that attack you. We are not predators.”

“Our history has shown things to be different.”

“You live in a tough neighborhood.”

“Is that your message?”

“No, it’s not. You will choose one of your ships and send it between our lines.”

“Why would I do that?”

“Because you need to learn something and just telling you won’t convince you. I need to show you.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I am going to send one of my ships to meet yours and they are going to fight it out.”

“Why?”

“I wish there was another way but there’s not. If we don’t do it this way, I’m going to have to kill all of those ships you have at your border to prove my point and I’d prefer to hold the casualty’s down to a minimum.” The Hive Controller hesitated and RV said, “I know you and that other species have got to be curious about how you match up to our ships.”

“You sound pretty confident.”

“I am and your doubt about it is what must be removed. Now decide; one ship or a thousand.”

The Hive Controller said to the Fleet Controller, “Send the ship.”

The Fleet Controller ordered one of their newest models to move out.

RV pushed his board, “Admiral Gibbons, will you do the honors?”

Gibbs was startled by the request and looked at Eric, “You heard the man. The ship is yours to fight.”

Eric said, “Raise the force field; Kelly, I don’t want you firing on that ship until I give the order.”

“Yes Sir.”

“Give the children a bath; they’re going out to play. All Needles and Attack Craft will remain at their stations.” Eric turned to Gibbs, “Their energy pulses will not penetrate our force field.”

“Are you so certain they don’t have weapons you’ve not seen?”

“Pretty much.”

Gibbs shrugged and said, “Carry on.”

“Kelly, take us out.”

RV said, “Both ships are now free to fire.”

The Fleet Controller said, “Destroy that ship.”

The Violet Ship flew forward and fired a solid wall of energy pulses at the Nebraska. Kelly danced out of the way of most of them. “What do you scan, Kelly?”

“They are no danger.”

“Then stop and let’s absorb a few.”

The Violet Ship was trying to stay close to the White Ship but was unable to do it. Suddenly the ship stopped and the Violet Ship fired energy pulses as fast as possible. They hit the White Ship’s force field and briefly flashed. Eventually the Violet Ship ran out of energy pulses and stopped. It began firing missiles at the White Ship that hung there, stopping all of them on its force field.

Eric looked at the ship and didn’t feel good about firing his main weapons at it. “Commander Yen.”

“Yes sir.”

“Launch one Needle and hit that ship with a striker.”

• • •

The Hive Controller, The Fleet Controller, and the Leader of the Horde watched a tiny ship launch from the White Ship and bear down on the giant Violet Battleship and fire one missile. They all jerked when the missile struck the force field with an explosion that pushed through the battleship’s force field and blew into the center of the ship blasting it into two pieces.

RV said, “You should send shuttles to save the warriors that survived.”

The Fleet Controller issued the orders and numerous small craft began approaching the burning ship.

RV said, “Nebraska, launch all your ships.”

The large White Ship looked like it exploded. In less than ten seconds more than eight hundred small ships surrounded it like a giant ball.

The Leader of the Horde said, “That ship holds more than eight hundred ships.”

The Hive Controller nodded, “And the smallest one can kill my best ship.”

RV said, “I do regret having to conduct this demonstration but unfortunately, predators only believe what they see.”

“Do all of your ships have those craft?”

“They do.”

“Then you were right about destroying all of our ships.”

“You and that other species.”

“Why did you do this?”

“Here is the message I’m here to deliver. If you ever send another ship to our galaxy, you will cease to exist. Now, is that simple enough for you to understand?”

“I may not be given a choice.”

RV stared at the creature on his display and said, “Why not?”

“You were right the first time. We have been directed to go to other galaxies and destroy all civilizations with advanced technology. Failure to comply with that directive can lead to our destruction by the Majors.”

“Then you’ll have a very difficult decision to make. Do you choose to be killed by them or us?”

“We will not attack your galaxy again. If it comes down to it, we will die fighting the Majors.”

“I sense you have a reason for that decision?”

“They have been forcing our two civilizations to fight each other for millions of years. We both believe that they are trying to get us to kill each other so they don’t have to take the time to do it. We’re tired of being manipulated by them.”

RV thought about the Hive Controllers words and said, “I hope that doesn’t happen, but we do mean what I’ve told you.”

“I know. I’m sorry for what we’ve done and I promise it will not happen again.”

RV watched the creature and knew that it had no hope. He said, “Get us home, Cyanna.”

The White Ship was surrounded by hundreds of ships and in less than a minute, all of them were back in the ship and the giant fleet disappeared. The Leader of the Horde said, “Maybe our fake battles will buy you time.”

“I can hope, but the end is inevitable.”

“We have this moment. We need to try and develop something that can be used to protect you.”

The Hive Controller looked back at the dark center display and said, “The universe is a dangerous place.”

The Leader of the Horde laughed, “Always has been; it always will be.”

• • •

Admiral Gibbs was hot. “What do they think they’re doing?”

Kate looked at the Angry Admiral and slowly shook her head, “I made a stupid mistake and now I pay for my stupidity. I didn’t even see it coming.”

Gibbs calmed down slightly and said, “What did you do?”

“I pushed Admiral Arvolo into sending Gonzalez back to fill one of my admiral slots. He was the Captain of the Havana and ran the fleet when the Admirals were away. I should have known that you don’t play chicken with the best mind in the fleet.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

“All the clues were right there in front of me and I missed them all.” Kate looked at Gibbs and said, “So did you.”

“What?”

“Why do you think your ship was chosen to go out and meet that Violet Ship?”

“I guess to give the Fleet’s newest Admiral an honor.”

“But you weren’t commanding the ship; Eric was.”

Gibbs thought a moment and then he got it when Kate said, “And Admiral Cyanna Hardy was commanding one of their sub fleets during the trip to M-87. I should have seen it and didn’t.”

“They used the skirmish to complete Eric’s promotion requirements.”

“That’s exactly what they did. By taking part in the fight with the Violet Ship, he completed his combat experience requirement. Oh, he got me and he knows it.”

“What are you going to do about it?”

Two things; one I’m not going to ever try to pull another one over on the Old Man. And two; I’m going to volunteer to assist in teaching the advanced tactical training at the Academy.”

Gibbs sighed, “Well, at least we won’t have to worry about Eric’s Fleet ever not holding up their end in a conflict.”

“I also suspect they will be the competition for number one this year. I should have left well enough alone but nooooo, I had to do something stupid. I can still see Cyanna’s face when she sent his promotion papers.”

“What happened?”

“I immediately contacted her and said that Eric had not fulfilled the requirements for promotion. Oh, she played me like a fish. She said, ‘Exactly what requirement has he not met?’ I said, ‘The combat…’ and stopped right there. She was smiling at me with a very smug expression. I told her I would announce the promotion and send her first fleet’s newest admiral over for orientation.”

Kate slowly shook her head, “Cyanna said, ‘I’m surprised you promoted him so quickly to Captain. I would have thought you would make him your Executive Officer. That way he would have been off limits.’”

“I checked into who her executive officer is and he was the number two graduate from the advanced tactical training.” Kate smiled, “She didn’t have to tell me that. It was her way of making peace and ending this. Those officers can only be promoted in the Admiral’s Fleet where they are assigned.”

“Who is replacing Eric?”

“You should select the one you want. You need to do it quick; with the rapid growth of the fleet, the good ones will go quick.”

“Did you know that Loree Barber has been selected for the advanced training?”

“She has?”

“Her pre-test scores were in the top one percent in the fleet.”

“How did you know that?”

“Oh, I have my ways.”

“You better jump on it.”

“Already ahead of you; I’ve sent you the promotion request.”

“Stand by.” Kate turned to her computer and pushed some keys. She started laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

“She has been selected to be Vice Admiral Kenny Anders Executive Officer effective yesterday. Evidently the news is out and good leaders are being protected. She’s promoted to Captain and will serve with the Admiral on board the Tampa.” Kate turned back to Gibbs and said, “You better go back to your source and find another.”

Gibbs shook his head, “There’s a lot more to being an Admiral than I thought.”

“You’ve got that right and the others have more experience. Get on it, Sailor.”

• • •

George and RV sat in the Command Center with Meisa manning the communications panel. “You handled it the right way, RV.”

“Thank you for that; I don’t feel good about killing a ship that had no chance.”

“What’s bothering you?”

“I keep seeing that creature’s face. He has no hope.”

“Serves him right.”

“George, please tell me you don’t believe that. Do you not remember back at the start when we were facing the Moet, Alliance, and the Blue Giants who were all out to destroy us? Have you forgotten your fear?”

George stared at RV and sighed, “No, I can remember.”

“They have no hope, George. They are forced to fight a way for millions of years and attack other galaxies. If they don’t; they die. They have no hope and I believe that the creature meant it when he said he was not going to go out and kill anymore. He’s weary of the killing and he has no hope of survival.”

“What do you want to do?”

“Just like Chris insisted on saving the Moet from the Alliance. We need to try and help that species against the ones truly responsible for Earth’s destruction.”

“You’re serious?”

“I am. I’ve lived under a regime that you did their bidding or you and your family died. I felt that hopelessness and it sucks the life out of you. You know it’s the right thing to do.”

George looked at Meisa and saw her love for him in her eyes. She didn’t make a move, but he knew what she was thinking. He said to her, “You are my heart, Meisa.” He turned to RV and said, “Call the Command Team in and let’s discuss this. I want consensus on this before we make a decision.” Meisa turned to her board and started making the contacts.

• • •

Ten hours later the group gathered around the table. George said, “You’ve heard RV’s idea on what we should do. How do you feel about this?”

Chris said, “I’m with RV.”

Jillian, “RV.”

Bender, “RV without question.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Most of my planets have been forced to fight a war for hundreds of thousands of years. I know what that creature is going through.”

Admiral, “RV, for the same reason as Bender.”

Boden, “We will always choose to defend those that are unable to do so. I choose RV.”

George said, “I choose RV’s plan as well. We are going to need more ships to take on the, what did he call them, Majors?”

Boden said, “I think it’s time I told you something.”

Everyone turned to him and he said, “We know how to increase the power of your beams.”

RV said, “Do tell.”

“We’ve been reluctant to release this technology because of the danger it represents, but I now feel it couldn’t be in better hands. If you are able to forgive your worst enemy and go to his defense, you are worthy keepers of the technology.”

RV said, “That’s why you didn’t need our ships.”

Boden smiled, “I’m surprised you made that intuitive leap; but yes you’re right. Our planets are defended by them.”

George stared at the small being and said, “It is so hard to trust.”

“It is, Mr. President, but you have earned our trust today.”

Chris said, “I find it remarkable that the most peaceful being in this room possesses the most powerful weapon.”

RV smiled, “You need look no further than the rhino.”

“He’s not very peaceful.”

“That’s true, but he is also not a carnivore.”

George said, “Go tell them, RV. Take them a communicator and tell them they can duplicate it for their own use to hide their communications.”

RV looked at Boden, “How much stronger is this beam?”

“It is much tighter than the current ones you’re using but it will blow through your force field like it wasn’t there.”

“I like it.”

“Calm down, RV. Go and tell them.”

• • •

“Hive Controller, one of the White Ships has returned and is parked just outside our territory.”

The Hive Controller saw the strange creature on his display and said, “I didn’t expect you to come back.”

“We’ve been having discussions and we’ve been struggling with your situation.”

“I’m not sure what you mean?”

“No one should live without hope. No one. I am here to let you know that if you are attacked by the Majors, we will come to your defense.”

“WHAT!”

“My leaders have agreed on this without dissent. I am going to leave a package here that has a subspace communicator. It will work anywhere in this universe and it is encrypted where your communications cannot be understood. It is also untraceable. You may duplicate it and use it as you choose. The first frequency will contact us directly and if you call, we will come.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“I felt that you meant what you said about not attacking others again. We can’t leave you to die without helping. We really feel this is the right thing to do.”

“I need to tell you that I will be sharing this with our former enemy.”

“The important word in you last sentence is former. I feel we are making a good decision. Don’t let us down.”

The Hive Controller stared at the strange looking being and said, “You have brought what we didn’t have.”

“What is that?”

“Hope. Thank you.”

RV smiled and nodded and the Havana disappeared.

The Hive Controller sat and thought about the kind of beings that would do what was just done and felt his fundamental view of the universe change. There was good out there. And it had found him. He presses a button and the Leader of the Horde appeared, “Do you need…what happened?”

“What do you mean?”

“Something has happened. I can see it in you.”

“There is another chance for us. Let me tell you what just took place.”

Chapter Nineteen

“Have you heard from the Hive Controller?”

George nodded, “He is of the opinion that our fleet was not seen by the Majors.”

“How could they miss it?”

“RV, do you still watch any of the entertainment channels.”

“I sometimes tune in to the travel channel.”

George laughed out loud, “What, you don’t get enough?”

“No…they just show reruns of places on Earth.”

George turned serious and said, “I didn’t know that. I’ll have to take a look at that myself.”

“Why do you ask about the entertainment channels?”

“The Hive Controller told me that they had planned the attack for weeks and the Majors never showed up. That would indicate that their communications are not tracked.”

“I can understand why. Just listening to all the chatter between the ships in our fleet is impossible. I suspect they are looking at hundreds of thousands of civilizations and it would be overwhelming.”

“The Majors appeared the moment they began moving their ships away from their battle lines. That convinces me that is where they are being watched.”

RV thought a moment and said, “What channels would be entertaining to a predator?”

“That’s how I see it. The Majors watch the battles between the civilizations they are forcing to fight. It’s their entertainment.”

“How can they use this information?” George just stared at RV. “What’s going on? You’re up to something.”

“I sent Boden and Sasha to meet with the two leaders of those former enemies. I asked that they determine what they could about them.”

RV slowly nodded his head, “That’s not a bad idea. What did they see?”

“Those two are furious about the way they have been manipulated by the Majors. They have made contact with the other civilization that was attacking the Horde and shared what they had learned. They are still having mock battles at their battle lines and thousands of ships are being destroyed in every attack. They are old ships that have been in their mothballed fleets and they still have a good supply to use. But they are not infinite.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because they will have to start destroying their good ships before too much longer. Boden and Sasha met with the three leaders of those civilizations and discussed where they’re going from this point forward. They all agreed that their warring days against other civilizations are over. They are working to develop ships that can take on the Majors.”

“Do you take them at their word?”

“They all three suggested that if they are eventually attacked, we should not come to their defense. They felt that we would one day be able to take them on and they did not want to see us dragged into their problem.”

RV looked over George’s shoulder on his display and didn’t see Meisa at her communications board, “Where’s Meisa?”

George smiled, “It is so good to have someone as smart as you to bounce things off.”

“You’re giving them our reactors and force fields?”

“As well as our main guns.”

“I notice you didn’t mention the strikers.”

“We will not share our gravity technology.”

“Our ships are still incredibly fast without it.”

George nodded, “They have started building new ships and the three of them are incredible in the numbers they are producing.”

“That means the mock battles can continue for quite some time.”

“You’ve seen it again; you’re right, RV. They know their current battleships cannot stand up to the Majors, so they serve no use in the coming fight. They are going to start having some massive battles that will hopefully convince the Majors that they are unable to leave to attack other galaxies.”

“Won’t the Majors have questions about the White Ships they were leaving to destroy?”

“They told the Majors that their probe showed the White Ships were attacked and destroyed by a combined force from their own galaxy. The Majors asked for a copy of the recording but were told the probe’s video was transmitted in static. They asked the Majors if they would like to have the frequency of the probe to view the planet and they declined. I’m sure they would rather view ships dying than a dead planet.”

“I’m also sure you brought in some of the destroyed ships from the Moet attack and put them around the planet.”

George laughed and said, “We used some of our old eighteen hundred foot ships for target practice with the Federation’s new beam.”

“That’s an even better idea.” RV paused, “You really haven’t weakened us. Our new beams will still kill the new ships they’re building. This should be a win-win for both of us.”

“How’s the ship count?”

“Within a year it should be doubled. We’ve got the training down to a science and our ten thousand planets are providing more sailors than we need. Why are you telling me this?”

“I need the Fleet to be able to go to a war footing on a moment’s notice. If the Majors show up, we can’t delay getting there. We must be able to respond instantly.”

RV thought a moment and said, “I’ll designate half the fleet as a Ready Force that will be on alert status. We’ll rotate the two halves every five days and have the other half involved in training exercises. I’ll rotate the crew out for shore leave while they’re on training status.”

“That sounds good; however, I need you to do one more thing.”

“What is that?”

“I need you to make a trip to those civilizations and scout out where you think the Majors will show up if they attack. Use that information to set the jump coordinates for our fleets to arrive.”

RV chuckled, “I’m still not up to your level. I should have thought of that.”

“You don’t need to stroke my ego, RV. You thought of that as soon as I told you about giving them our technology.”

George disappeared from the display and RV was left wondering how he could have possibly known that. He decided that his statement was true. George was smarter.

• • •

The Hive Controller looked at the Leader of the Horde on his display panel, “Ok, this has got to be done without giving ourselves away.”

“We have your top and bottom lines targeted with live ships. We’re going to send a wave of automated ships at your center line.”

“How many?”

“Fifty thousand.”

“That’s a lot.”

Can you fire at that many?”

“We can launch enough pulses to cover that many. However, your automated ships won’t be seen evading. They can’t move like a crewed ship.”

“That’s why your top and bottom defense lines should be in front of the middle one. If we time this right, your two lines will be destroyed just as my ships are being hit.”

“This attack won’t take long?”

“No, but your other lines will advance and we’ll fall back two light years. We’ll maintain that status for a while. I suspect they will recognize that both of us will be hard hit by this attack and lose interest waiting for our next battle.”

“I hate to destroy these ships, but they’re really no good to us anymore.”

“I’ve got to say that the civilization from the other Galaxy is nothing like I’ve ever seen. We owe them a lot.”

“Yes we do. Now let’s get this started.”

• • •

The aide pressed the button and the door slid up, “Why are you here?”

“The two civilizations that tried to combine are about to have a major battle. You said you wanted to be notified if that happened.”

“Has it been announced on the network?”

“Yes, and the numbers tuning in are quite large.”

“You may leave.”

The aide backed away and the huge dark creature turned on his display and pressed a frequency into his monitor. Ummmm…that is a major battle shaping up. This should be interesting.

• • •

The three lines of Violet Ships began advanced toward the waiting Yellow Fleets. The Yellow Ships formed three large groups with the largest zooming in at the center line of the advancing Violet Ships. The two lines above the center line move forward to trap the incoming ships in crossfire.

The Yellow Ships coming at the top and bottom lines started changing direction as they tried to move through the pulses being fired at them. The beams and pulses numbered in the millions as the hundred thousand long lines advanced. Suddenly, three suicide ships crashed into the top and bottom line of the upper and lower lines coming at them and the linked force fields were shattered. At the same time, the huge number of yellow ships arrived at the center line and were met with a massive barrage of energy pulses that hit them at point blank range. The explosions were massive across the entire length of the three lines. The Yellow Ships poured their fire into the top and bottom lines and soon the ships that were massed so close together started exploding like a string of firecrackers.

Two more lines of Violet Ships quickly advanced and pushed the Yellow ships away from the struggling center line. The Yellow Ships retreated before the oncoming lines and the three joined and pushed the Yellow Ships all the way back to their main defensive line. The three lines stopped there and went no closer.

• • •

The dark creature watched the battle and was disappointed it was over so quickly. However, it was like the finale in a fireworks display; it doesn’t last long but leaves a great impression. These two species had provided some of the best entertainment ever. It was glad that they had not been contaminated by their brief contact. They certainly showed their rage in this battle. Now there would be a long wait until they rebuilt their lost ships. It would be worth it.

The dark creature along with trillions of others changed the channel.

• • •

“Our ships did an excellent job.”

The Hive Controller nodded, “I knew what was happening and it still looked real.”

“How much time do you think this will buy us?”

“At least a revolution and a half; we shouldn’t delay longer than that.”

“We’re close to getting our automated ships to fly real trajectories. We might be able to use them to destroy all your ships next time and push you all the way back to your main lines.”

“That’s excellent. Our ships are easy. They just stay in place and fire pulses. Are you planning to use the pulses you stole from us in that battle?”

“We made sure the ships pulling one of your battleships away from the battle were in clear view. That should explain how we acquired them.”

“Let me know when you’re ready. I’ve heard you’re running low on some of the new elements for the reactors.”

“They are hard to find.”

The Hive Controller leaned forward and pushed some controls, “I’m sending you the location of six planets we’ve discovered that have an abundance of them. Jump some ships over and take as much as you need.”

The Horde Leader stared at the Hive Controller and said, “We’ve been at war for millions of years. How do you explain our not feeling any hatred toward each other?”

“Because we are not species that would normally hate others. I believe that we were not always predatory. This was forced on us and now we are finding who we should have been from the start.”

• • •

Two years later the second battle took place. The savagery was incredible.

• • •

“Are you sure about this?”

“They are pulling a huge scam on us. They are not really fighting each other and though I’ve told the leaders they have laughed it off.”

“Jumping into one of their battles doesn’t sound like a good idea to me.”

“They couldn’t hurt us. We need to expose this. Now carry out your orders.”

The battle was at a fever pitch when suddenly a giant Purple Ship appeared. The Hive Controller felt his fear and yelled, “Fire every weapon on every ship at that Major.”

The Remote Controller’s heard the order and turned all six million ships and fired on the giant Purple Ship. The ship shrugged off the initial five million hits, but then twenty million energy pulses and beams hit it and it exploded in a huge blast.

The Hive Controller yelled, “Continue the battle. Don’t stop.”

The ships were down to a million and a half survivors when ten giant Purple Ships arrived and blew the ships into dust. The Commander of the Majors was angry at the destruction of one of his ships. The Hive Controller said, “We didn’t mean for it to happen. When our warriors attack they go into battle rage and attack any ships that are not like ours. They weren’t able to control themselves.”

The Commander didn’t care and said, “Target that planet.”

Before he could order it killed his communicator came on and he heard, “Bravo; Bravo, that was extraordinary.”

The Commander looked at the speaker and said, “What?”

“That battle has been given the highest ratings of any in history. Now get out of there and don’t mess up a good thing. Gigl was an idiot. How stupid can he have possibly been to jump into the middle of a space battle with millions of ships? Don’t force us to discipline you.”

The Commander fought back his rage and started to feel nervous. “But they destroyed one of our ships.”

“We might send you into the middle of the next battle for entertainment.”

The Commander said, “Return to port.”

• • •

The Hive Controller heard the exchange and released a breath. He looked at the Horde Leader and said, “Now is when you should rush forward and take back the space you lost.” The mass of Yellow Ships moved forward and the Violet Ships fell back to their main lines. “That was close.”

• • •

“George, I have a call coming in from the Hive Controller.”

“Send it to my board.” George saw the strange looking creature appear on his display. “I hope all is going well.”

“A Major ship interrupted our last battle and we attacked it with all our ships and destroyed it.”

“WHAT!?!”

“It seems the commander of that ship believed that we were pulling a scam but no one believed him. He came here to prove it and got himself killed when six million ships fired at him.”

“What was the outcome?”

“Ten ships arrived but were called back due to our outstanding destruction of each other. They don’t want our entertainment value diminished.”

“You were lucky.”

“Very; but that’s not the reason for my call. We’ve made a discovery and feel like it’s something you might want to take a look at.”

“What is that?”

“We found a reactor from the Major Ship that had been blasted away when it was destroyed. It appears to be undamaged and we know we can’t keep it here.”

“Why not?”

“They just might run a scan someday and it would immediately detect the material it was made from.”

“Where is it?”

“We put it in a container and jumped it to the coordinates I’ve just sent you about a thousand light years from our border. It is broadcasting a frequency listed below the coordinates. I hope it’s something you can use.”

“If it is, we will share it with you. Thank you.”

“We owe you much more than that reactor.”

Meisa looked at George and said, “Do you possibly think that...”

George punched a button and said, “RV, get a ship to the coordinates on your board and use the frequency with them. The Violets have sent us a Major reactor.”

“What do you want me to do with it once I retrieve it?”

“Take it straight to Boden and see if he can see anything in it we can use.”

“I’m on it.”

• • •

George and Meisa spent the next week trying to stay busy hoping for a contact from the Federation. On the eighth day Meisa said, “I guess I got my hopes up for nothing.”

“Well, there’s nothing wrong with wishing, love.”

Meisa looked down at her board and said, “I have a contact coming in from the Federation.”

George shrugged and saw Boden on his display, “Please tell me you have good news.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t have good news.” George’s face fell and then Boden said, “I have outstanding news. There are three new elements in the Major reactor we weren’t using. Our initial trial has determined that our reactors can handle the new power level, but only barely. We build these with a hundred times safety level.”

George and Meisa jumped up and yelled. Boden said loudly, “Converting our ships will be easy. We’ll just inject the new elements directly into their reactors. That’s all that’s needed.”

George ran back to the display and said, “How much stronger will our reactor be compared to the Major?”

“At least twenty times.”

“That means the Violet and Yellow Ships should be stronger than the Purple Ships .”

Boden nodded, “It does appear you are right.”

“How long before you are ready to start the change over?”

“We’re ready now. I’ve delayed contacting you until we were ready.”

“Meisa, notify RV and get them started.”

“Boden, will you contact the Hive Controller and see if they have the new elements and give him the information to make the change.”

“I’ll do that now.”

• • •

The Hive Controller looked at the Horde Leader and said, “The game has changed. Look at what I’ve just received from the White Ships.”

The Horde Leader read the document and smiled, “Do this quickly. We don’t want to be surprised again.”

“I’m already moving on it.”

Chapter Twenty

“Cyanna.”

“Yes.”

“Will you marry me?”

Cyanna jerked up and looked at RV, “Well, you certainly don’t have much of a buildup to this moment.”

“Ok; Cyanna, I love you. Will you marry me?”

“We have got to work on your ability to be romantic. Yes, I would love to marry you.”

RV opened a box and Cyanna saw a huge diamond, “Where did you get this?”

“When you never leave your ship, you never spend money. I’ve been saving for a while.”

“How long?”

“Too long; now that I paid for it, I feel good asking you.”

“RV, I’d marry your without a ring!”

“I just feel like you deserve one showing you how much you mean to me.”

Cyanna rushed forward and kissed, RV hard. “That’s the most romantic thing you’ve ever said.”

“I thought you just said I need to work on….”

“Oh be quiet and kiss me.”

“Where would you like the wedding to be?”

“Let me handle those details.”

“Ok, let me know if there’s anything I need to do.”

“Oh, I will. It’s going to be a small wedding and a huge reception.”

“Good, that sounds like a winner.”

• • •

“George, Admiral Arvolo has asked to see you.”

“He’s here?”

“Yes, he’s waiting outside.”

Do you know why he’s made the trip, Meisa?”

“No, he just showed up and asked to see you.”

“That’s not like him.”

“I know.”

“Send him in.”

RV walked in and George got up and met him, “It’s good to see you, RV. You could have just called.”

“No, I need to discuss several issues with you that need to stay between us.”

George looked at him and then looked at Meisa. She stood and walked out. “What’s going on?”

“I want to send one of our new battleships to the White Civilization in M-87.”

George indicated a chair and they sat down. “Am I to assume that you want to send one with our new beams and computer?”

“Yes, that’s exactly what I want to do.”

George stared at him and after a long moment he said, “Ok.”

RV did a double take and said, “Now you spoiled all the arguments I’ve worked on to try and persuade you.”

“I understand why. Our survival is tied to them. We need to make sure they have every benefit we can offer. However, they may not need it.”

“They need it, George. Our new ship is more advanced than theirs.”

“Are you sure?”

“I am. I’ve been studying the scans I made of them when they had us surrounded and their force field is strong, but no stronger than the one on the former ships. If beam development is at the appropriate level, they are behind us now.”

“The only reason our beams are so much stronger is because of the Federation.”

“That’s a fluke in development. I don’t believe they have the advantage of the Federation to help them.”

“You will not be the one to deliver it.”

RV sighed, “I know. I’ll choose some good pilots to do it.”

“How are those pilots going to escape?”

“We’ve designed an Attack Craft around the new reactor. I don’t even think we could catch it.”

“Are you going to have Needles and Attack Craft on the ship you deliver?”

“It will be fully armed and the computer will have the plans on how to build duplicates.”

“Better have red lights on it.”

“We’re going to paint the ship blue.”

“Ok, handle it. Was there something else?”

“Yes, uhhhhhh…Cyanna and I are going to be married and I don’t want her to have to move to another ship.”

“Congratulations, RV. That’s outstanding. Of course you’ll stay together. Chris and Jillian serve together on the Jukebox; I see no reason why the two of you can’t continue on the Havana.”

“Current regulations forbid it.”

George said, “Meisa.”

Meisa came in and said, “Congratulations, RV.”

RV looked back and forth between them and George said, “She left the room but I never exclude her from any of my conversations.” Meisa pointed to a small device in her ear.

RV slowly shook his head and George said, “Issue an addendum to fleet regulations that will allow married couples to serve on the same ship.”

“Is that a good idea?”

“It appears that thousands of sailors are finding their mates on the ships they serve on. They are refusing to marry and be forced apart. This is the right thing to do, especially with the lengthy tours of duty while on alert status.”

“They shouldn’t fly in the same wings.”

“That can be easily handled, RV. When’s the wedding?”

“I don’t know. Cyanna is handling the details and she’s not forth coming on what she’s planning. She says she wants to surprise me.”

“That will be extremely difficult to do. I don’t know anything that’s ever gotten by you.”

RV shook his head, “I know nothing. I’ve not been able to find out anything. All my sources have dried up.”

“Well, if I find out anything…”

“I know; you’ll keep it a secret.”

George laughed and said, “You know me too well.”

“I just wonder what she’s up to.” George just shrugged.

• • •

“Are you ready?”

“I am.”

“This is just as important as the first event.”

“Maybe more so.”

“Have you taken any other precautions?”

“The fleet will be used this time.”

“I hope it’s enough.”

“We’ll soon see.”

• • •

Two young pilots stood at attention in front of Arvolo and Cyanna. They had gone over fleet records and had determined that these two were the best pilots in the Navy. Their flight scores were so close that Reibe was only a thousandth of point ahead of Beth Hemer. RV looked up at the two pilots and said, “At ease. Take a chair.”

Riebbe looked at Beth and knew who she was just as she knew him by name. A good pilot always knew their competition. They both wondered what was going on.

“You two need to relax. You’re making my coffee nervous.” The two pilots chuckled and sat back in their chairs. “I’m sure the two of you know of each other even if you’ve never met. For all intents and purposes, the two of you are our best pilots. I have a voluntary mission I am ordering you to take.”

Beth said, “Did you say voluntary?”

“I did and I can always pull the next one on the list to do this.”

“Oh no, Sir; I was just trying to make sure I understood my orders.”

“You’ve been chosen to deliver a ship to a civilization in M-87.”

Riebbe looked at Beth then turned back to RV and said, “What kind of ship?”

“One of our newest main battleships; you will board a modified attack craft and attempt to escape after that delivery.”

“Would it be appropriate to ask why we’re doing this?”

“No, it would not; that information falls under state security. Are you willing to do as you’re ordered?”

Beth started laughing, “I certainly volunteer, Sir.”

Riebbe looked at her and said, “I do as well.”

“Can’t stand to let her get an advantage can you?”

Riebbe turned red and said, “I must maintain my ranking.”

“Your job is to deliver the ship. The attack craft located above the bridge has been modified to carry four fully powered ultrabeams and the force field matches a main battleship’s. Its speed is the fastest in the fleet. You will board that craft and leave immediately after your delivery.”

“When are we going to do this, Sir?”

“You’re going to the ship after this meeting and jump to the coordinates in the drive board.”

Riebbe smiled, “Good, I hate long waits.”

Cyanna pushed a button and an ensign came in the room, “Take them to the ship.”

“Yes Sir,” She turned to the two pilots, “If you will follow me.”

RV watched them go and said, “Who was that Ensign?”

“Graduated number one from the academy yesterday.”

RV laughed, “Kate is going to be furious.”

“You snooze; you lose.”

• • •

“Beth, what do you think about this assignment?”

Beth reached over and turned on the power switches to the manual controls, “I don’t know what to think. If there was ever an example of turning over top secret items, this is it. We have no defense against this ship and we’re giving it away. Whoever is getting this must be highly trusted by our leaders.”

“Giving away that new beam concerns me. It is a leap forward in weapon technology. I just hope our force field technology catches up soon.”

“By the way, it’s good to finally meet you. I’ve often wondered what you were like.”

Riebbe smiled, “The same for me; you’ve been a name I’ve been swapping places with in the standings. I know you must be talented.”

“Have you been offered a promotion?”

“I have but I’ve been able to avoid taking it. I just hate to give up flying the Attack Craft. I do love that bird.”

“Me, too. I suspect after this mission we may not be given a choice.”

Riebbe thought for a moment as he checked the reactor’s level and said, “I hope you’re wrong.”

“Do you want to fly the big bird?”

“No, you take the honors; I’ll fly the attack craft coming back.”

“I’ve heard that this ship is as maneuverable as an Attack Craft.”

“No way.”

“Way; we’ll check her out before we make the final jump.”

Beth looked at him and said, “Havana, we’re ready for initial jump.”

“Hurry home.”

Beth hit the jump pad and the huge White Ship disappeared.

• • •

After flying the giant ship through tight maneuvers for thirty minutes, Beth brought the giant ship to a stop. Riebbe said, “Wow! That was incredible flying. How in the world did I get to number one?”

Beth smiled, “You were lucky.” After a moment she said, “You could have done this too. This ship is remarkable. I want one.”

“The computer flies the ship. We wouldn’t be allowed to fight it.”

“Only if the fleet is linked, Riebbe. The pilots fly the ships until that happens.”

“I haven’t heard that. Why are they doing it that way?”

“Pilots are better at prioritizing targets. If a battle becomes a ship-to-ship fight, the pilots take the ships and the computer handles the weapons.”

“Are you ready to make the jump?”

“I am; you better strap in.”

“Onward and outward.”

The giant ship disappeared…and reappeared in orbit above a planet. It was surrounded by a globe of white ships. “What’s going on Riebbe?”

“It appears the locals were waiting on us. I’m lowering the ladder to the attack craft.” Riebbe pushed a button on his board and a ladder came down from the center of the bridge.

“Riebbe, look at this!”

Riebbe came back from the ladder and saw the scan that Beth had on her display. There were millions of large White Ships in formation out from the planet but millions of other ship began appearing in front of their lines. Suddenly the ships rushed forward attacking the White Ship formations. “It looks like we’ve touched off a war.”

“Millions more are arriving.” They watched and saw masses of ships jumping in to the system. The White Ships were holding the invaders off but thousands of them were being destroyed. “We’ve got to do something.”

The huge globe of ships surrounding the battleship left and joined the lines of defenders above the planet.

“Beth, our orders are to drop it and immediately leave.”

Beth looked at him and said, “I know this civilization is important to our leaders. We can’t just leave.” Riebbe stared at her and she said, “You can go without me.”

“I’m not going to take first by default. You take the big bird and I’ll take the sparrow.”

Beth hit a button, “Computer! Activate.”

“Waiting on a name.”

“Your name is Whitey.”

“Name acknowledged. Systems are now active.”

“Go to general quarters and power up all weapons. Scan the battle and offer suggestions on how to assist the White Ships.”

“The best path of support is through the middle of the attacking ships.”

“Show me the plot.” Beth saw the selected path and pressed her com, “Are you ready?”

“The ship is on line and active. Get me through the front line and let me do my thing.”

“Release when you’re ready. Launch in three seconds, two, one, go.”

The main battleship blew past the line of white defenders and into the mass of millions of attacking ships. Whitey began firing the eight hundred ultrabeams and a wide swath of destruction was blown into the ships on each side of it. Forty miles of ships were left burning on each side of the fast moving battleship. Riebbe released the modified attack craft and broke right. He took it through the right wing of the attackers and thousands of ships began exploding and burning. Thousands tried to target the small craft, but it was moving too fast and those that hit it were shrugged of its force field.

“Whitey, I’m going back to the front.”

“Acknowledged.”

Beth swung the ship left in a curve and continued to blow a path through the tightly packed ships. She arrived at the front line of the battle and turned. “Here goes nothing.” The ship leapt forward and roared down the length of ships being held off by the White Ships. The first ten miles of ships were blown apart by the ultrabeams. Some of them were cut in half as the beam was flashed across them as the battleship passed. The beams looked like strobe lights they were firing so fast. Bet reached the end of the long line of warring ships and turned for another pass and saw that there were no longer any attacking ships. The only things remaining were hundreds of thousands of burning ships.

“I’m locking down.”

“Come aboard when you’re locked.”

Riebbe joined her on the bridge and tilted his head, “You’ve got to admit this was worth a court marshal.”

Beth smiled, “Oh yes. Let’s go deliver this baby.” Beth turned the ship toward the White Ship’s front line and they parted to allow her to pass. She parked it in orbit over the planet and said, “Whitey, you will tell the beings from that planet what your name is.”

“Security code authorization.”

Beth said, “one, two, one, four, eight, alpha, alpha, zeta.”

“Code confirmed. Be careful going home.”

“Thanks. Whitey, you did a great job.” Beth opened the landing bay and joined Riebbe on the Attack Craft. She looked at Riebbe as he stood from the pilot’s chair.

“You’ve got to fly this ship. That battleship is awesome, but this…” Riebbe put his three fingers to his lips and kissed them... “Is the bomb.”

Beth took the chair and looked over at the young man sitting next to her. She was going to see him again. She needed to make sure but she felt something in her heart. They killed more than six thousand ships pursuing them before they eventually escaped. By the time they arrived back at Sierra-Garcia, she no longer had any doubts. Neither did he.

• • •

“It appears things have changed.”

“That cannot be argued. Did you expect this?”

“No, but I can see how it happened. We need to get the construction sites going.”

“They’ve been waiting for the ship.”

“I don’t know how much longer we’ll have before they decide.”

“We have some time.”

“How do you know that?”

“They are, if nothing else, consistent. There were more than eighty fleets severely weakened in the attack. They will be removed before they turn to us again.”

“And those that go after the eighty will be weakened and then attacked in turn.”

“Exactly; however, we’ve got to rush. The numbers we’ll need are staggering.”

“The process has already begun.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Beth and Riebbe were standing at attention in front of the two Admirals again. This time they knew they were in trouble. Unknown to them, their ships had sent a feed back to the Havana and Command Center of all their conversations and actions. Admiral Arvolo had played the recording on the wall display and watched it with Vice Admiral Hardy. Beth winced when she heard herself say she was going to violate direct orders. The recording stopped and Arvolo turned around and said, “I’ll start with you Lt. Hemer; by your own admission, you knew you were violating orders.”

“Yes Sir.”

“What defense can you offer?”

“None, Sir.”

Arvolo looked at Riebbe and said, “You’re dismissed, Lieutenant.”

“Sir, I agreed with her decision and am just as guilty.”

“You had to go along with her.”

“No, Sir; I outrank her.”

Beth glanced at Riebbe and Arvolo snapped, “Keep your eyes to the front!” Beth jerked her eyes to the front and Arvolo said, “Just how did you come up with that?”

“I was promoted one day before her, Sir. I have seniority. I could have ordered her not to do it.”

Arvolo stared at Riebbe for a long moment and then said, “Lt. Hemer, you are dismissed.”

“Sir, I am the one responsible. Not Lt. Riebbe.”

Arvolo looked at Cyanna, “Someone has to pay for this. Who should we select?”

Cyanna said, “Both of them.” Beth and Reibbe both knew they were going to be drummed out of the service or put in confinement. Arvolo looked at the two and then turned to Cyanna, “Where should they serve their punishment?”

Cyanna slid a document in front of RV and he read it. “I think you have chosen an appropriate punishment.” Arvolo turned to them and said, “The two of you are hereby promoted to wing commanders and will assume command of the two wings of attack craft on the Havana. You will remain at the duty until you have served your sentence or promoted to a higher rank. Dismissed.”

Riebbe looked at Beth and couldn’t believe his ears. They were going to be stationed on the same ship. Beth had a huge smile and she turned to RV, “Uhhh Sir, how long is our sentence.”

“It will end twenty years after the two of you receive the Solar Star. You will be going with me to that ceremony momentarily. Does that answer your question, Commander?”

Beth turned and wrapped her arms around Riebbe’s neck. He held her tight and felt his heart beating faster. He whispered in her ear, “I couldn’t live away from you, Beth.”

“Then don’t ever go anywhere, Rieb.”

Arvolo smiled and looked at Cyanna. Their Admirals had approved their transfers to the Havana when they were told by their wing commanders how depressed the pilots were upon their return. After viewing the record of their actions, they agreed that it was a justified reward to put them together. Even Kate knew that promotions came fast and furious from the ranks on the Havana. Cyanna said, “I’ll give you an hour to discuss how you’re going to train our wings in your tactics. Then you have a ceremony to attend.”

Cyanna and RV left the room but Beth and Riebbe never got around to tactics.

• • •

RV, Cyanna, and Kenny were sitting in the Stargazer Restaurant on the fleet support ship. RV and Cyanna had told Kenny about their plans to be married and he was excited for them. Kenny gave Cyanna a hug and shook RV’s hand. RV smiled and said, “That’s not why I asked you to meet us here, Kenny.”

Kenny tilted his head and stared into Arvolo’s eyes, “Whatever it was; it must have happened.”

RV shook his head and said, “I just don’t understand how you can see that in my expression. Even Cyanna doesn’t see it.”

“I saw it but you told me, ‘later’.”

RV stood up and went and looked in the mirror behind the booth. He stared at his reflection and made several funny faces and then came back and sat down. “How am I supposed to keep a secret if you know I’ve got a secret?”

“Well, you kept this one.”

“And it should really remain a secret but I promised to tell you. I’m going to need both of you to promise you will not discuss this with anyone and I mean anyone. This stays with us and only us.”

“I will not tell anyone else.”

Cyanna smiled, “You know I’ll keep it between us.”

“Not with your wife, either.”

Kenny jerked and frowned, “RV, she keeps secrets.”

“I don’t care; this must stay at this table.”

“I can’t agree to not share it with Jess.”

“Ok, I understand.”

RV picked up his fork and began eating his pasta. Kenny watched him and said, “You really aren’t going to tell me.”

“That’s right.”

“OK! I won’t tell anyone else.”

RV looked at them and said, “I know where Zack and Izzy went.”

Cyanna and Kenny were both shocked at the statement. RV took another bite and Kenny said, “Why didn’t you go get them?”

“If I had, our universe would have changed dramatically.”

Cyanna looked at him and said, “How do you know?”

“I’m going to start giving start asking questions and see if your answers tell you where they are.”

Kenny shrugged and Cyanna said, “Go ahead.”

“How many crewmen did the Ninja have on board?”

Kenny said, “Twenty total. That doesn’t tell me anything.”

“Be patient, grasshopper. How many of them were women?”

“Ten.”

“How old was the oldest crewmember?”

Cyanna said, “Uhhhhh, twenty eight.”

“And the youngest?”

“Twenty one.”

“Very good. What can you conclude so far?”

Kenny thought about it and said, “You had ten couples.”

“And what do couples do?” Cyanna took a quick intake of air. “Do you see it?”

“See what?”

“I’ll keep asking questions, Kenny; tell me when you see it.”

“OK”

“What happened to the Ninja?”

“It was forced into the past by a Violet Ship attack.”

“If they are never found, what will those ten couples do?”

Kenny stared at RV and said, “They’re on Earth.”

“That’s how I see it.” Cyanna and Kenny remained silent as they thought about what they had just learned. RV said, “When I discovered that humans and the Jenze have the same DNA, I knew something out of the ordinary had to happen for that to occur. So, I started a little investigation. Did you know that there are more than two hundred species in this galaxy that have similar DNA to humans?”

“No, how can that be?”

“My best guess, and it is only a guess, is that a species millions of years ago traveled among the stars seeding planets with it. Looking at those that have the DNA, I think the race that did this did not have a stardrive and traveled by accelerating close to light speed to use relativity for travel between planets. The Jenze planets were seeded first and Earth received it millions of years later. I’m sure the best candidates on planets were selected and given the DNA. In our case, they chose primates. I think the same is true on the Jenze planets.”

Cyanna said, “But the Jenze were identical to us.”

RV sighed, “The Jenze are us. And we are as well.”

Kenny shook his head, “You’ve lost me.”

“On Earth between two hundred and three hundred thousand years ago, the Neanderthals were flourishing. They used tools, they had a language, they killed large animals and predators, and were the top of the evolutionary chair. However, over a very short time they disappeared and were replaced by homo-sapiens. The funny thing is, they were very close to each other DNA wise and homo-sapiens and Neanderthals could interbreed. It has been confirmed that one third of current human populations have Neanderthal DNA.”

“Are you saying over time the Neanderthals would have evolved into homo-sapiens?”

“Or something so close as to be indistinguishable.”

“So what happened?”

“The crew of the Ninja wiped them out.” Kenny and Cyanna stared at RV with shocked expressions. “I’m sure they didn’t intend to do it but they ultimately had no choice.”

“Why not?”

“Because there was going to be war between them; limited food supply drove them into conflict. The Neanderthals that weren’t killed were assimilated into the new species and their children had the traits of the new.”

Cyanna and Kenny thought about that prehistoric world where sabre tooth tigers and woolly mammoths ruled the plains.

RV said, “The Ninja was damaged and I know Izzy loved looking at the ancient light from Earth’s past. I’m sure she was doing that when Zack took them through the time field.” He paused, “I can picture it in my mind. The Ninja had enough power to land on Earth but not enough to lift. There were ten couples in their prime years for children. I asked Dr. Forrester at Harvard how many couples it would take to build a civilization from scratch. He laughed and accused me of tricking him into the Adam and Eve question.”

“What is that?”

“There are many scholars that say just two cannot make a viable civilization. There would be too much inbreeding.”

“Go on.”

“He said that you would have to have at least six couples for it to be viable. He also said it would stand a better chance if there were different races in the sample.”

Kenny said, “I wondered why you did that.”

Cyanna looked at Kenny and said, “What did he do?”

“There were three Asians, four Caucasians, five Hispanics, four Negroids, and four New Zeeland Indians assigned to the Ninja. You knew this was going to happen?”

“I did.”

“How?”

“I took a sample of Izzy’s DNA from her hair brush on the Ninja after we discovered Zack’s DNA was identical to ours. I later took it to John Hopkins University and gave it to Dr. Leopold Gretzen. He is the world’s foremost authority on primitive human DNA. I asked him to compare it to his samples and three months later he demanded to know where I got it.” RV paused and saw their expressions of disbelief. “Izzy’s DNA is in every human on earth. It appears that Zack’s and Izzy’s children were married to many of the others and their DNA was passed on.”

Silence ruled the moment. RV finally said, “The Ninja’s force field would still be operational and they had the ship’s beams and hand weapons. That kept them safe for two hundred years, maybe longer, if they didn’t use full power. That allowed them to have their children and grow their numbers. The Ninja’s medical supplies insured that most of the first children were born safely.

ChildChild mortality rate at first would have been very low. Finally, the reactors died and the Guns ran out of power. The Ninja was no longer a safe place to stay. But now their numbers were in the thousands and they were a force that could defend themselves. They divided into groups and left to find food to sustain them. Over hundreds of thousands of years, the memory of the Ninja was lost.” RV remained silent and after ten minutes said, “The Neanderthals never had a chance. They were faced with a species that had been at war for thousands of years and were much smarter. Scholars wondered how they were eradicated so quickly. Now I think we know.”

Kenny said, “If you went back and rescued them…”

“We would not exist today.”

Cyanna looked at RV, “So you let it happen.”

RV stared at Cyanna and said, “I didn’t want to lose you. I’ve lost too much for one life.”

“Is there any way to prove this?”

“Someday, if we really scan Earth for the reactor materials used in the Ninja, we’ll find what remains of that ship. That is the only way. We will not go back to that time and look.”

“Does George know?”

“I believe he does.”

“How do you know?”

“He said that they were lost and could not be found. He asked me if I agreed.”

“I remember that.”

“He knows. He also knows that they will not be found. He would never allow the search.”

“Do you think they knew after they landed?”

“I know they did and I believe they were happy. All of Zack’s questions had answers and the Jenze Warrior in him was glad to be a part of what was to come. I believe their lives were full and, in the end, they were content.”

Kenny had his head down and then looked up at RV, “Thank you, my friend. Their sacrifice gives me more strength to face the trial ahead of us. This is a wonderful story I will never be able to tell.”

Cyanna came into RV’s arms and snuggled close. RV could imagine the world that Zack and Izzy were now going to make their home. He would have loved the challenge. “Good Luck, my friends.”

• • •

“Do you think they will ever find us?”

Zack smiled and said, “No.”

“I guess there just isn’t any way for them to know where to start looking.”

Zack took his new son from Izzy and held him close. He looked out at the force field two miles away and saw another group of Neanderthals casting their spears at it. Initially they had just run into it, but the shock had killed those that made that error. He had turned the power down to a level where it would just knock them unconscious. He really didn’t want to harm them but he knew that one day this problem would have to be resolved. The animals on the plain had learned the lesson of avoidance that the primates just refused to learn. He looked at Izzy and said, “I think they know where we are.”

Izzy looked up sharply at Zack as she fed Arvy’s twin sister, “What?”

Zack smiled, “RV knows.”

“Then why hasn’t he come to get us?”

“Izzy, Izzy, you know why.”

“I just worry about our children.”

“Don’t be worried, my love. Our children are going to take on this dangerous planet and one day take on the universe. They are going to become the difference makers in our species future.” Zack looked over at the Neanderthals that has ceased their attack and were moving away. “They will tame this planet and one day reach for the stars. That future would cease to exist if they came and rescued us.” Zack looked down at his son sleeping in his arms and said, “This gives me more time to be with you, Izzy. I need that time to love you for what time remains in my life. We know how this story turns out and my pride is so great for what our descendants are going to do.” Zack looked up at the full moon overhead and smiled, “I wouldn’t change this for anything.”

Izzy finished with Arlene and came over and snuggled under Zack’s arm. She closed her eyes and softly said, “Neither would I.”

Chapter Twenty-Two

“They are starting to come together.”

“I see that. Is there any way to delay them?”

“We can’t do it, but our friends may be able to distract them.”

“How?”

“Get them to look in another direction.”

“Why would they do that?”

“Greed.”

• • •

Meisa rushed into the Command Center and said, “George, the beings in the White Civilization have sent a message.”

“What!?!”

“There’s no video, but the message was sent in our language.”

“Hold on.” George patched Arvolo, Kenny, Bob, Bender, Chris, Jillian, Boden, and Admiral to his board. “I have a message from the beings we sent the ship.” George looked at Meisa and nodded.

“We thank you for your gift and we are working hard to use it to defend our worlds. However, it appears all of the other civilizations are fearful of what they saw that ship accomplish and are starting to gather consensus on uniting to attack us. We are not going to survive that attack if they make it.” There was a pause and the message continued, “I know this will put you at risk, but if you could stir up trouble in the sector next to ours, it may distract them from being able to join forces. If any of the civilizations in the adjacent sector are weakened, many of the advanced predators here would not join in the attack. They would want to take advantage of any weakness in the other sector to pillage the weakened planets. None of the advanced civilizations here took part in the last attack so the next one will be much more devastating. Our numbers are just not large enough to hold them off. We know this is risky for you but we need your help again. Thank you for hearing our appeal.”

George looked at Meisa, “Get the Hive Controller and Horde Leader on this call.”

While they waited Chris said, “What are you going to do about this?”

George stared at Chris and said, “I’m not going to discuss how I know what I’m about to tell you but please understand that it is absolutely true. If that civilization is conquered, we will also be defeated and conquered. Our destinies are tied together.”

The display showed the Leaders from M-87 along with a new creature they had not seen before. The Hive Controller said, “This is the leader of the civilization that has been attacking the Horde on their inner border. His civilization has joined our subterfuge and is working with up to prepare for the Majors.”

George smiled and said, “We are glad to have you with us. However, the time to prepare has just been shortened. Are you ready to take on the Majors?”

The three creatures looked at each other and the Horde leader said, “Has something happened?”

“Another civilization fighting for survival in your galaxy is about to be attacked and needs us to create a diversion. If you aren’t ready, we will do this alone. We cannot delay starting that distraction.”

“How many ships do you have?”

“We are now at six million main battleships.”

“How do they compare to our ships?”

“They are much more deadly. However, they are identical in appearance to yours.”

“So anyone watching would be unable to see that your ships are from a different galaxy?”

George looked at RV and he nodded, “That is correct.”

The Hive Controller said, “We have four million ships each. We have been trying hard to restrain ourselves from attacking the Majors. All of our planets are outraged at how we are treated and what they force us to do to each other. If you will send your ships to assist us, we will make sure they are given a huge distraction.”

RV said, “How many major civilizations are there?”

Between four and five hundred and they dominate the area around the core of the galaxy. Once there were hundreds of thousands, but now they have been whittled down to the current numbers. Of course, these that remain are the survivors of millions of years of war. They have passed the survival of the fittest test and are quite dangerous.”

“Will they unite against you?”

“Not initially, they will fall on those that are weakened and take their territories. They won’t be able to stop themselves. Only when they realize just how dangerous we are will they unite against us.”

“How do you want to handle this?”

“We’ll start slow, but with a big bang.”

The new leader from M-87 said, “First we take on the Purple Ships. My ships will continue to attack the Horde so they are not aware of how many ships they are going to have to face. If you would provide a million of your ships that we will work into our lines, we should be able to do this with just three million ships initially. Half on the Horde’s side and half on the Bug’s side.”

“What are you going to do with the others?”

“We have jumped them out of the galaxy and have them organized into formations that we can call in when needed. Even if they scan our civilizations, they will not see our ships.”

George glanced at RV and smiled, “We are familiar with that tactic.”

The Hive Controller said, “We assumed that’s what you did when we first scouted your galaxy. We decided to emulate the tactic.”

“Who will command the fleets?”

RV spoke up, “George, one of them should command the effort.”

George looked at RV, “Why?”

“We are going to be mixed into their fleets to assist with our ships where needed. They have been fighting this kind of battle for millions of years. They are better qualified to do it. We will only use our weapons when absolutely necessary, so we need to fit in their ranks and keep a low profile.”

The three leaders listened to RV and the Horde Leader said, “We’ve been worried about this decision. We now know we shouldn’t worry about you. Does that meet with your approval?”

George thought about it and knew RV had a reason for wanting to do it this way, “That is what we’ll do. I’ll be sending the ships momentarily and need to know where you want them.”

“They will assemble where we have our ships outside our galaxy. They will jump in with the other ships after we put on a show.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Make sure that every planet in the Majors sees what’s coming. We’re going to have a final battle where we destroy the remainder of our old ships. They won’t miss that. Once that’s done we will jump our new ships in to take their place and form up into one fleet. That’s when we will announce our refusal to fight for their enjoyment ever again. It should draw a response.”

George smiled, “You have been at this a while. Tell us what you need. I am moving three more millions of ships to organize with your fleets.”

RV looked at the three leaders and hoped he didn’t have to say what needed to be said.

“Those fleets will organize into their own ranks and will fight independently of our ships. If it’s necessary to pull those ships into the conflict, they must work as a unit. You would be better to direct your ships.”

RV smiled. He looked over at Cyanna as he muted his board, “Those guys are good.”

Cyanna chuckled as RV turned his speaker back on. She had a thought and looked at RV. She drew her hand across her throat. He saw her and muted his board. “What are we going to do with the other two million ships?”

“One for the defense of this galaxy and one for the Milky Way.”

Cyanna tilted her head and nodded. RV unmuted his board.

George said, “We need to make this happen quickly.”

The Horde Leader looked at the Hive controller and said, “I will start moving all the ships from my main defensive lines to the neutral zone.”

“I will, of course respond to your aggressive action by doing the same.” The Hive Controller said, “We will start this process immediately after this communication ends.”

George looked at all the ones on his board, “Does anyone have any questions?” He waited and knew that there would be plenty once the call ended but no one said anything at that moment. “RV, get it done.” He looked at the three from M-87 and smiled, “If nothing else, this should provide your worlds with entertainment for a change.”

The Horde Leader said, “And they will be watching.”

George turned to Meisa, “Send a message that we will start the distraction momentarily. See if they can slip the message out to the ones uniting against them.”

• • •

“They are going to do it.”

“When?”

“Quickly. They ask that we see if we can notify those uniting against us.”

“The Mireem would do it for us. What are they going to do exactly?”

“I have no idea but tell the Mireem that one of the Majors is going to be attacked within two circles.”

“Will it happen that quickly?”

“I have no idea but it will cause them to check out the rumor. That will slow them down.”

• • •

“Just how sure are you about this?”

The Second said, “The source has always been completely accurate. I think there must be some truth in what they are saying.”

“Have you seen anything in our scans that would indicate there is truth in this?”

“You know the other sector uses the battles between the minors for entertainment. Their communication channels are all going at high volume talking about a huge battle about to take place at one of the Minor’s sites. It appears that the coming battle is going to occupy their full attention.”

“Does it indicate how many ships will be fighting?”

The Second paused and said, “Millions.”

“Get the word out to the others and see if you can steal the signal and deliver it to everyone. This may buy me some credit with the stronger ones.”

The Second bowed and turned on its ten legs and exited the large room. The Leader wondered if this was where the insurrection was going to happen. Well, he wasn’t going to miss it.

• • •

“The talks have been delayed.”

“It worked.”

“It appears it did. We are also going to receive a signal of an impending battle by two minors involving millions of ships.”

“That’s got to be them.”

“If they use their ships in the battle…”

“It will make everyone here immediately forget about us and worry about the other sector. They will think they are coming here trying to get us to join them in an attack.”

“This will give us needed time.”

“Don’t waste it.”

• • •

“RV, I can’t accept this!”

“Kenny, calm down and think this through.”

“I should be going there with you!”

RV sighed and said, “Who is the best tactician?”

“You know you are.”

“And who is the most aggressive?” Kenny remained silent. RV quickly added, “And who is the best at organizing large ship maneuvers?” Kenny still remained silent and RV said, “If things go to hell in a hand basket, who do you want jumping in to save you with a million ships? Kate or Bob? Or you?”

Kenny sighed and said, “Kate would storm in all guns blazing attacking everything in sight.”

“Exactly, and her ships would not work as well in organized units as yours and Bob’s fleets. That’s not to say she wouldn’t be effective but you are too smart not to see this. This initial battle is custom made for aggressive tactics. I’ve got to make the best decision, not an emotional one.”

“I just hate I’m missing out on the action.”

“Take a good look at Jess and Mary and think that through again.”

Kenny said, “Keep us in the loop. We’ll be ready.”

“You know I will.”

Cyanna smiled, “Bob’s on the channel.”

RV sighed and said, “Send it to my board.”

• • •

George had the Horde Leader on his display, “I’m worried about your planets. We’re starting this in your domain and I’m worried about your planets being in danger.”

“Don’t be; at least not yet.”

“Why not?”

“The Majors will not openly attack a planet without following the conventions. Our planets might be the safest place to be during this battle.”

“Are you sure about this?”

“I have millions of years of history to back it up. They will not attack a planet unless they know for certain that all the planet’s ships are destroyed. We’re safe for the near term.”

“What a strange way to fight a war. How would a war ever end?”

“They don’t. That’s why we’re in this situation. Some things are going to change this time around.”

“Are you going to attack the Major’s planets?”

“Not at the beginning, but if they don’t come to reason, we will if this conflict escalates. We’ll announce that we are going to destroy all the Major’s planets and that will give us the right to do exactly that. This ends now!”

“You run the risk of extinction.”

“That’s better than continuing to send our young out to die in starships. Too many have perished for no good reason or cause. Ending this madness is worthy of our efforts.”

“Thank you; we will not leave you in your quest.”

“We know that and you may count on us doing the same.”

The display went dark and George looked at Chris and Jillian, “What are you two going to do?”

“We’re picking up a new battleship and joining Kenny’s fleet.”

“Oh no you aren’t.”

“We have trained enough people to take our place. Now it’s our turn to do our part in this struggle. Don’t stop us, George. You know Dolly and Jeff would be doing the same.”

“I want to join you.”

“Have you trained a replacement?” George stared at Jillian and then slowly shook his head. “Then follow your own advice and make it happen.”

George looked at them and slowly nodded. Chris and Jillian left and George tuned his display to the gigantic gathering of ships around Sierra-Garcia. As he stared at them, huge masses began disappearing. He was always fascinated with the order of this particular chaos. Finally, only a million ships remained above the planet. He said, “Go with God.”

• • •

RV had half a million ships in the center line of the Bug’s formations. Kate had her half million with the Horde’s ships. RV looked at the Fleet Controller on his display and said, “I’m concerned that your ship controllers have not ever fought outside of your linked formations. Linking no longer serves a purpose with your new ships.”

“Have you linked any of your ships?”

“Well, I’ve got to say that we haven’t.”

“We did and the results were remarkable.”

RV leaned forward and said, “Really, what did you find out?”

“The linkage increased the power of the force fields two times their normal level. The reactors have to be set up to form the link and we are the best at making that happen. We were also able to link in the fifth standby reactor to the fields.”

“Really?”

“Really; and our lines will be used against the largest concentration of their ships. The energy pulses are also increased in power such that they are slightly stronger than the beams on the ships you gave us.”

“No kidding?”

The Fleet Controller leaned back and said, “We have sent the methods we used to the being you call Boden and he is looking at how to possibly use them.”

RV slowly shook his head, “We can only get stronger if we are given time to do it.”

“I think we will be given time.”

“Oh?”

“If we can destroy enough ships in this initial conflict, I believe massive civil wars between the Majors will happen. They will jump on any that are weakened and take vengeance for perceived past wrongs.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“It has been the pattern in the past; however, things are changing.”

“In what way?”

“Word has gotten out that we have been manipulated into attacking the Horde and forced to continue those attacks. Many of the minors at the edges of our galaxy are talking about this with their adversaries. There is a wind of change taking place and this coming conflict will determine which direction it will end up blowing.”

“How do you see my ships helping your lines?”

“We know that you have not given us all of your weaponry.” RV didn’t say anything but just stared at the Violet Commander. “We understand why you haven’t. What you’ve given us is light years ahead of our former ships, but we know that trusting us is something that we will have to earn. If I were in your place, I’d do the same thing. Am I right about the weapons?”

“You are.”

“Good! You will remain in our lines and only go out to attack those places in our lines that appear to be overwhelmed. You will then go back to your formations and continue to support our movements.”

“Are you going to remain in those lines throughout the battle?”

“No, we will issue a command to free our ships to break the linkage and attack other ships individually. We have done this many times in the past and our ships are familiar with the tactic.”

“How will I know when that is going to be ordered?”

“I will announce over the main frequency that linkage will be broken and the time it will occur.”

“The basic unit of time we use is called a second. Light will travel 32,774 times the length of my ship in that period. What unit will you be using?”

“The Fleet Controller turned away from his display and made some entries on his board. He looked back and said, “Our units are not that different. A micro measure is only one ship difference from your second.”

Arvolo did the calculations and said, “Basically, there is no difference. I’ll notify our ships and make sure they understand the unit.”

The Fleet Controller leaned forward and said, “The charade battle will begin shortly. Enjoy the show.”

RV smiled, “I will.” The display went dark and RV looked at Cyanna, “Send a copy of this conversation to Kate.”

Cyanna nodded and said, “Admiral Diamond, “I’m sending you a recorded conversation. You may want to include the plans in your tactics.”

“Thanks Fleet One; I’ll make use of them.”

Cyanna looked at RV, “I wish we had given the others the computers to control their beams. There wouldn’t have been so many crew members necessary on their ships. They could lose a lot of sailors.”

“They are accustomed to firing their beams and pulses with gunners. They replaced the launch tubes with energy pulse cannons so they would have still needed the additional crews. Perhaps we’ll give it to them in the future.” RV thought a moment and said, “They may not need it. If their force fields are two times stronger, they will be a tough nut to crack. Even for us.”

The main display illuminated on the front wall of the Havana and they saw millions of ships start moving into the neutral zone between the lines of the Bugs and Horde. Cyanna said, “It’s show time; pass out the popcorn.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

The Hive Controller looked at the Horde Leader on his display, “What happens with the ships that aren’t destroyed?”

“We know that there will be millions of energy pulses chasing our ships. Once your last ship is destroyed, they will slow down and allow the pulse to catch up.”

“I guess my Fleet Controller knows about this but I’ve not had time to ask him.”

“It was his suggestion. He’ll use the scan at the end and launch just enough pulses to eliminate the remaining ships.”

“I hope those watching enjoy the first part of the show.”

“As that White Being said, ‘Get otta here!’ I’ll enjoy this as well.”

“Act two may not be so entertaining for our watchers.”

“We can only hope.”

• • •

The dark creature heard an alarm on his display and he slithered forward and looked up at the screen that had activated. This was going to be big. Who should he wager on? Ummmm…the Violet Ships were more advanced but they were really outnumbered. It thought about it and decided that most of the time technology won out. He placed a big wager on the Bugs.

Among the Major Civilizations massive numbers of wagers were being placed and the planet responsible for taking them was barely able to keep up with the numbers. They knew the battle was going to be witnessed by every planet and they had brought in additional tellers to handle the expected traffic. It far exceeded what they expected and there were delays but they managed to handle them all just before the first ships fired. They sat back and waited for the outcome. Even those emotionless beings were excited about the size and scope of the coming battle. Everyone saw that this was going to be the end game for one of the combatants. Neither held back any reserves but committed all their ships. This was a very rare event and even those watching in the other sector that had stolen the signal were stunned at the numbers involved. The word spread and soon, most of the civilizations on the eastern side of M-87 were tuned in to the conflict.

• • •

“It appears our friends have created quite a distraction.”

“Yes, but what happens after this battle is concluded?”

“You think there is only going to be this battle?”

“What else can there be?”

“Something is going on and I suspect there will be more than this.”

“Really! Just how would our friends use this battle to cause further distraction?”

“I have no idea.”

• • •

Six million Yellow Ships moved forward from their positions toward the defensive lines of the Bug’s violet colored ships. The enormous numbers of the oncoming attackers was detected and the main lines of defenders moved forward to join the front three lines. Five million Violet Ships quickly formed up and began linking their force fields just as the Yellow Ships roared in and attacked. A huge number of Violet Ships weren’t able to link in time and they began exploding in huge numbers. The energy pulses leaving the ranks of the defenders looked like a white wave moving out into the oncoming mass of Yellow Ships which ignored them and continued the rush at the long lines. The ships exploding were too numerous to count and the magnitude of the destruction taking place was unimaginable.

• • •

The dark creature watched and saw that a huge number of the defenders were killed in the first contact and the outcome was now favoring the Yellow Ships. He quickly placed another wager on the Yellow Ships and sighed. This way he couldn’t lose. He turned back to the display and continued to be shocked at the savagery of the battle.

The onslaught of new wagers overwhelmed the system. Most of the new bets were not entered until after the battle was over. The ones taking the bets didn’t know just how big a problem that was going to be at that moment, but they would soon learn.

• • •

RV watched six thousand Violet Ships break ranks and roar out into an incoming mass of yellow ships. Four thousand Yellow Ships were destroyed but fifteen hundred Violet Ships were also destroyed. Twenty thousand Yellow Ships roared in and after a pitched fight, the remaining Violet Ships were burning hulks. Ten thousand of the Yellow Ships were killed and the remainder had more than one energy pulse chasing them. RV shook his head and said, “I know this is faked and it still looks real.” The bridge crew could only shake their head at what was taking place.

RV reached over and pushed his com. The Fleet Controller appeared and RV asked, “How are you able to make this look so realistic?”

“We programed all of our tactics that we’ve developed against the Horde into the remote control computers. We omitted any retreat or withdrawal programs so they will use all the possible tactics they have to attack. The Horde Fleet Director did the same. What you’re seeing is what we’ve been doing to each other for millions of years.”

RV shook his head, “I understand your anger now.”

“We only felt rage for the Horde until we found out that it was misplaced. Our society has become little more than a breeding mill to produce warriors for this conflict. The billions that have died in this forced conflict are what drive our rage. However, we now know where that rage belongs. That knowledge has bonded our two species like nothing else could have done.”

“Thank you for sharing that information. It shouldn’t take much longer to complete this.”

“It’ll take longer than you think. With fewer ships there’s more room to use advanced tactics. I’m sure our watchers will stay until the end.”

“Why?”

“We learned a long time ago that the Majors wager on our battles. Some of them have asked the Hive Controller for inside information on our attack plans to hedge their bets. I suspect there are quite a few of them that have done that on this battle.”

“Then they’ll remain to see if they’ve won or lost their bet.”

“They will; but they are going to be terribly disappointed.”

“Why is that?”

“In the event of a tie, you lose your wager. Since all the ships on both sides are going to be destroyed, none of them can win and the planet that takes the bets will keep all of it.”

“That might cause some resentment.”

“You think. They’ll wait 720 micro-measures to see if a ship shows up from either side. If none do, everyone loses.”

“When are we going to jump in?”

“Exactly 721 micro-measures after the last ship is destroyed.”

“That should cause some consternation.”

“There will be a countdown on every being’s display that placed a wager. We’ll appear after it hits zero.”

There are going to be some mighty ticked off Majors after this. I suspect it will cause a rather large response.”

“That’s the idea.”

RV tilted his head and wondered if it was a good idea to anger that many civilizations. He ended the call and looked at Cyanna, “Make sure the Wing Commanders know their orders.”

“They know, RV.”

“Then humor me and tell them again.”

• • •

Beth and Riebbe sat in front of the assembled pilots in the ready room. “I want to make sure you understand that you will not use a striker until you are given the authorization. Is everyone clear on that?”

A young pilot held up his hand, “What if our beams don’t penetrate?”

“Then gang up on single ships. The Old Man wants to hold out on using them until their major fleets arrive. We are not going to launch until ships are authorized to start attacks individually. I suspect there won’t be a long time from that moment until you’ll have weapons free.”

Riebbe looked at Beth and said, “Do you wish to add anything?”

Beth smiled, “No Sir, I think you’ve covered it.”

Riebbe looked at the assembled pilots and said, “Make us proud and work together. Remember, the protection of the Flag Ship is our main responsibility. Go to your ships and get ready for general quarters.”

The pilots stood and saluted. Riebbe returned their salute and said, “Dismissed.”

Beth looked at Riebbe, “Be careful.”

“I will; you do the same.”

Riebbe hugged her tightly and didn’t want to let her go. He kissed her and they left the ready room for their ships. Riebbe planned to give Beth the small box in his pocket after the battle. He said a quick prayer that both of them would be there.

• • •

“Gibbs, you understand about the small craft?”

“I do. I don’t know that I agree with it but we will follow the Admiral’s directives.”

Kate glared at her Rear Admiral and said, “I have sent you the initial attack strategy and I expect your ships to follow it.”

Gibbs blew out a breath, “Admiral, You’ve had us training on attacking aggressively from the founding of this fleet. It’s what we are best at doing. Why are you now going to have us fight in formations?”

“Because we’ve done that training while having our small craft available to defend our larger ships; we won’t have them initially and will have to depend on each other for mutual defense. Once the release is given, we’ll go to aggressive maneuvers. I do not intend to lose large numbers during the initial stage of this fight. Is that clear!?!”

“Yes Sir, it is and it makes sense. I’ll make sure my ship’s Captains understand the order.”

“Good, they need to learn restraint and this is a good time for that lesson. They need to understand that each ship we lose before the small craft are released will also destroy the eight hundred and fifty ships still inside. Get with Gonzalez and work out how the two of you will make this happen.”

Gibbs nodded and the display went dark. She was right. He should have seen it.

• • •

RV looked at the Monitor and pushed a button, “Eric, you’ve made it clear about launching small craft?”

“I have and we will hold position in ranks until the release is given.”

“You’re trained your ships well; don’t waste them early on in this conflict.”

“I won’t. My captains know what to do.”

“This battle has gone on for ten hours, but they’re down to less than a thousand ships now. After the last ships are destroyed, we will move into the neutral zone two hours later. Go to general quarters fifteen minutes before the jump.”

“Aye, aye, Sir.”

RV looked at Cyanna, “Pass the information on to our ships and make sure they know not to launch or use strikers.”

“Cyanna turned to her board and wondered why RV was so concerned about the small craft.

• • •

Forty minutes later trillions of beings in the Major civilizations watched as there were only two ships remaining; one Violet Ship and one Yellow Ship. The amount wagered on the battle was astronomical and everyone was on pins and needles wondering who was going to win. Suddenly the Yellow Ship turned and accelerated toward the Violet Ship.

• • •

The dark creature watched the Yellow Ship accelerate at the much larger Violet ship and started yelling, “Don’t do it, don’t do it. For brack’s sake, don’t you dare do it!”

All of the ones that had wagered huge bets felt their fear go up. This can’t be happening. They all watched as the Yellow Ship hit the Violet ship in the middle and both of them went up in a massive explosion. The Wage Takers were absolutely shocked. There had never been a tie before and now they were in position to win a sum that was too large to count.

Every planet in the Majors watched their displays hoping just one ship would show up. The majority of them hoped for a Violet Ship but billions hoped for a Yellow ship. The anxiety was high as they watched their displays and the countdown on their screens. The dark creature was going to lose double if a ship didn’t appear in the time remaining, “Come on, just one ship, come on!” As time ran out he felt his anger turn to rage.

• • •

The Fleet Controller said, “Jump in three hundred micro-measures. The two fleets will jump in facing each other with half the neutral zone between them.”

“Five minutes, Cyanna. Notify the fleets.”

• • •

The planets in the other sector were amazed at the scope of the battle and had enjoyed it immensely. They heard the ruling that if a ship did not show up within the countdown, all bets would be forfeited to the Wager Takers. Now that should prove interesting. No one turned off their screens. What was going to happen? Many of them started taking bets on whether a ship was going to appear or not.

• • •

“Whatever our friends are going to do will happen when that countdown ends.”

“There are going to be some angry bettors if they don’t show up before it ends.”

“What better way to distract them than to make them angry. Whatever they’re going to do, I don’t want to miss it.”

“Are you willing to bet they’re going to do something?”

“You still have your doubts?”

“How could they have persuaded those minors to assist them? This has nothing to do with them. I’ll bet a hundred on it.”

“Make it two hundred and you have a bet.”

“You’re on.”

“The countdown ended and the first bettor handed over two hundred.”

• • •

“Jump in five micro-measures, four, three, two, one, jump!”

The two huge fleets of White Ships jumped into the neutral zone facing each other. The two sectors had completely different reactions. The Majors watched the two huge fleets face off against each other and were shocked at the different ships that appeared. They wondered if this was a continuation of the first battle. They were all furious that they had lost their wagers. As they watched, the two huge fleets swung around and formed one fleet with three lines. The Majors saw the emblems of the Horde and Bugs on many of the ships and suddenly knew they had been had. The battle had been a sham and their lost wagers were the Minor’s way of mocking them. Those two had combined against conventions and were flaunting it at them.

The other sector saw the large White Ships appear and immediately recognized the ship that had destroyed thousands of ships at the White Civilization. That must be where they were coming from. They immediately forgot the White Civilization; they only had one of those ships. There were three million in that minor civilization. This was not something that could be tolerated. They immediately began making contact and waited to see what the Majors were going to do about the situation. Many hoped the Majors would be weakened before those white ships were dealt with.

• • •

The dark creature was venting his rage. The aide waited outside his dwelling as his roars could be heard through the armored door. He had been summoned but was not going to think about entering while the leader was this angry. He stood and waited for the leader to summon him inside.

Finally the door went up and he entered ready to run. The leader had turned purple and his nostrils were flared, “Order the Fleet and destroy every ship. Leave none alive. Then go to the other border and destroy every Yellow Ship.”

The aide thought about asking what to do about the ships the Yellow Ships were fighting on the other border but decided that the Fleet Director could do that for himself. He bowed and backed out as quickly as possible. The door slammed down and he ran as fast as he could to put some distance between himself and the enraged Leader.

• • •

The Fleet Controller appeared on the general frequency and said, “I suspect that the first ships to arrive will be the Purple Ships. Our territory falls under their supervision and I would think they are somewhat disturbed by our obvious disrespectful behavior. They are not one of the advanced Majors, but they are one of the most numerous. I’m hoping they will be overconfident and not send a matching number but be prepared for any eventuality. Our initial plan is to hold our lines intact and try to weather the first onslaught. After that we will play it by what happens. Please make sure you have designated the ships that will turn and defend our lines against any ships that attack from our rear, above, or below.”

Cyanna said, “Already done.”

RV nodded and said, “Send a message to Kate to hold her line next to us.”

“Done.”

The two fleets from the Milky Way were in the center of the three long lines. They were positioned slightly ahead of the upper and lower lines so their weapons could be targeted on any large force attacking the weaker ships. RV said over his fleet’s frequency, “We will use our ultrabeams at one third power in the first attack and slowly raise the power as different ships arrive or until we see we need a higher power to penetrate the attacker’s force fields. We will launch our small craft when the Commander releases us from the line.”

• • •

“Hey Eric.”

“What do you want, Gibbs. I’m busy at the moment.”

“The one that kills the most ships pays for the next meal.”

“You’re on.”

“You’re going down, clown.”

Eric laughed and knew Gibbs thought the aggressiveness of his ships would win the bet for him. Eric sent orders making sure his fleet understood the plan and the call word. Gibbs won’t know what happened until too late.

• • •

“They’re starting to bet, Sir.”

“Who?”

“Gibbs and Eric.”

“Who do you want?”

“I hate to bet against my own, but I have to take Gibbs.”

“Will you give me odds?”

“Absolutely not.”

“I’ll take Eric anyway.” RV looked at his display and tried his best to hide his thoughts. Cyanna stared at him for a moment and shrugged as she went back to her panel. RV looked at the opposite wall from Cyanna and smiled. Then he made a serious expression and turned back around. He mentally patted himself on the back. He was getting better at hiding his thoughts. He had worked on it in front of a mirror for weeks and it appeared to be working.

Cyanna sighed; she was going to lose again. He accepted that bet too quickly. He knew something she didn’t and it was going to cost her.

• • •

The Fleet Director received calls from six other Majors before he launched. They all volunteered to send ships to punish the minors and he welcomed their participation. He only had to take two million ships instead of four. Seven million should be able to handle this quickly enough. He looked around his bridge and said, “Launch in a ninety micro-measures.”

He smiled and looked forward to teaching the rebellious civilizations a lesson. He had lost more than a thousand on his wager. He owed them.

• • •

The dark creature watched his display waiting for the fleet to attack. His communication panel sounded and he pushed the switch, “I’m busy at the moment.”

“I think there is something you should know.”

“What is that?”

“Those new ships being used by the Minors are very dangerous.”

“Really? Where did you learn that?”

“From a source in the adjacent sector.”

The Dark Being watched and thought about the two million ships being sent there. “Are there wagers being taken on this?”

“There are and the odds are two thousand to one and going up.”

“Thanks, I’ll take your warning under advisement.” He ended the call and placed a bet on the Minors ten seconds before the fleets fired their first shots. The wager takers were amazed that one of the Purple Clan would bet that much against his own ships. However, they gladly took the bet.

The dark creature knew it was too late to stop the attack. He had been contacted by the Highest and he let him know that an attack had been ordered. Now, if his source was right…”

Chapter Twenty-Four

RV saw the millions of ships appear and accelerate toward their lines. The entire front on the charging ships were Purple followed by other types of ships chasing behind then. He nodded at Cyanna and she said, “Beams are free,”

The three lines of white ships fired a massive barrage at the incoming ships. The Bugs and Horde launched energy pulses and RV’s fleets fired their beams. He stared at the scanner display and calmly said, “Order beams increased twenty percent.”

The Purple Ships were being blasted. The energy pulses hit and blew through their force fields and blasted the ships. The Beams from RV’s fleets didn’t penetrate until they were twenty miles out. Suddenly the beams grew brighter with intensity and Purple Ships began exploding forty miles out. The space in front of the three lines was one giant explosion. More and more ships were jumping in and RV said, “Rotate the first section.”

Every third ship in the line turned and faced the ships that had jumped in behind the lines. The Bug and Horde also rotated one third of their forces and the space behind the lines looked like the front on a somewhat smaller scale. Soon ships were jumping in on all sides of the three lines and ships were dying faster than could be counted. Some of the Major Ships broke through the lines and killed ships in all three lines. RV winced every time one of his ships exploded but so far he had only lost a thousand. The upper and lower lines had lost ten times that number.

Other Major Civilizations called in and offered to send ships. There was huge anger at this uppidy Minor killing their master’s ships. The number jumping in swelled to twenty million. Many massed together to attack the line in a massive attack against a small section in an effort to penetrate the line and roll it up. RV watched the ships as they started to move forward and he heard, “Break ranks. Break ranks, pick a target and make it count.”

RV looked at Cyanna and said, “Launch all ships and strikers are now free.”

Kate received the command and yelled, “Allllriggghhhhtttt! All weapons free, all weapons free. Launch all ships and strikers are free.”

“The incoming mass of nine million ships thought the middle line in front of them had exploded. White seemed to puff out from the line and expand outward. Moments later they learned what those puffs were made of.

Wing Commander Jak turned and was followed by three hundred and forty Needles. He smiled at their flight discipline and knew no orders were needed. His pilots were well trained and prepared. They flew in single file to offer the smallest target possible to the oncoming ships. Eight miles, out they moved out into a line and bore in on the giant ships approaching them. They each targeted two ships and launched a main striker at each. They broke away as the strikers hit the front ships at ninety five percent of light speed. The front of the incoming ships exploded so fast that the ones following were forced to fly around them only to find more than a million lines of tiny ships moving toward them.

The neutral zone looked like a picture from hell. Millions of ships were fighting and dying. RV checked his display and saw that no more ships were jumping in. The strikers were making the difference and Kate’s fleet was racking up kills. Cyanna saw that her fleet was scattered throughout the war zone while Eric’s fleet all fought in one small area. The Bugs and Horde were also working together in groups and though they were losing large numbers of ships, they were giving more than they got.

• • •

Eric said calmly into his com, “Domino, domino, Domino.”

Cyanna watched Eric’s entire fleet jump to the edge of the combat zone and form a giant square with two hundred lines of two hundred ships. The formation looked like a game she played as a child. The giant square moved forward and she saw five thousand ships moving behind the formation to attack any ships that moved into its rear. The fleet moved into the combat zone and began killing any Major Ship in its path. The ships were spaced so any concentration of enemy ships would be caught in a cross fire by the ships closest to the area of danger.

The ships were equally spaced with twenty mile separation and the four thousand mile wide square moved through the giant battle killing everything in front of it. Kate saw the huge formation and started laughing. It looks like he’s teaching us something new. Gibbs saw the formation and checked his scanner. He fell back in his chair and slowly shook his head. Before that formation could make it across the war zone, every Major Ship disappeared.

“Return to formation, return to formation.”

The survivors jumped back to their lines and then moved the lines together. RV said, “How many?”

“Ten thousand battleships, seventy thousand plus small craft.”

“How many Majors?”

“Twelve million in our initial count.”

RV sighed but knew the price was worth it. Now he would have to wait and see what happened next.

• • •

Beth waited for Riebbe but he had not returned. After all ships were on board she waited and his slot was empty. “Oh Rieb!”

She went to his wing and pulled the second in command by the sleeve, “Where’s Reibe?”

The Captain lowered his head and said, “He crashed his ship into an oncoming major Battleship that was attempting to ram the Havana.”

Beth nearly broke down. Then she remembered, “Where did that happen?”

“I don’t know. This battle moved all over the neutral zone.”

“Pull up your record. Do it now!”

• • •

Riebbe floated in space and saw the three lines reform off in the distance. Looks like we won the first round. He kept his right arm still. He couldn’t move his fingers so he assumed he had broken it when he ejected from his ship just before it accelerated into the Major battleship. Thank the stars that the biggest part of the resulting explosion was contained by the ship’s force field before it died. He was still pushed away from the blast and was moving away from the fleet. He thought about Beth and hoped she was ok. He looked at the stars and found peace. He had a good life. He loved a good woman and she loved him in return. He sighed and closed his eyes and saw her face smiling at him. He moved his left arm and though it hurt like the blazes, he could still use it. He decided before he ran out of oxygen, he’d blow out his faceplate. That death would be much quicker. He closed his eyes and lost consciousness. He didn’t know his arm was bleeding from the compound fracture.

Beth flew the Attack Craft that had been modified into a medical craft and scanned the area suggested by the Havana’s computer. There was so much debris drifting and flying around that it was impossible to see anything as small as a person. She started to panic. Cyanna said, “Calm down and think about this. What can we use to locate him? Is there anything on his suit that we could track?”

Beth couldn’t think she was so scared. She forced herself to take deep breaths and she closed her eyes. She thought of her space suit and started at the floor and worked her way up in her mind. “The Blaster! We all carry a hand blaster.”

“Dolly!”

“Yes Cyanna.”

“Do you have the frequency that our hand blaster emits?”

“I do.”

“Send it to my board now!” The frequency appeared and Beth set the scanner. An alarm sounded and Cyanna said, “It’s behind us. Turn around.”

Beth flipped the medical craft and saw the blip. She rushed up to it and saw a space suit moving quickly away from the site of the battle. She opened the cargo door and eased the ship next to the body and prayed. One of the crew pulled the body in and closed the cargo door.

“Is it him!?”

Cyanna said, “Calm down, Beth.”

“That’s my life, Admiral!”

“Yes it is but he looks bad. He’s got a broken arm and has lost a lot of blood. We need to get him to the Havana.”

Beth punched in a coordinate and jumped the ship. Cyanna said, “Don’t…” But it was too late. The Havana appeared outside the ship and Beth quickly flew into the landing bay. Cyanna let out a deep breath and said, “That jump was entirely too short to be accurate. We could have ended up jumping into the ship.” Cyanna was talking to an empty chair. She sighed and decided that this was one action that Beth would not be disciplined for. She knew she would have done the same thing if it were RV.

• • •

Riebbe felt something and quickly determined that it was his arm. It hurt. I guess I passed out. He slowly opened his eyes and there was Beth leaning over staring into his face. He smiled and she leaned forward and kissed him tenderly. “You remembered.”

“I did.”

“I was trying to remember if I had ever told you about that maneuver but my mind wasn’t entirely clear.”

“I remember you saying ejecting out of a craft moving at those speeds was next to suicide.”

“It looks like I was wrong.” Beth leaned forward and kissed him again. Suddenly Riebbe broke the kiss, “Where is my uniform!?!”

“Relax, they had to cut it off you and I put it in the closet over there.”

“Look in the front right pocket. I left something in it.”

Beth went over and pulled the uniform out and saw the blood stains on the sleeve. She almost broke down but held herself together. She reached in the pocket and found a small silver box. She looked at Jeff and he said, “Will you marry me?”

She opened the box and the ring was beautiful. She ran over to the bed and saw him wince. She quickly slowed and slowly leaned down and kissed him again. “Is ten minutes from now too soon?”

Riebbe smiled, “It’s ten minutes too long.”

Beth went to the wall and said, “Admiral, will you come to the medical bay to perform a ceremony?”

“I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

Beth smiled and said, “You’ll just have to wait.” RV and Cyanna arrived along with the pilots from their two wings and found them kissing.

• • •

RV, Cyanna, Kate, Kenny, and Bob were in the conference room on the Havana. George and the rest of the Command Team looked at them on their wall monitor and George said, “You have done an excellent job. We’re proud of you.”

“It cost us.”

“I know but you have made them pay for those losses. What are you going to do now?”

“We are changing our tactics.”

George stared at the screen and said, “In what way?”

“We are not going to use the long lines in the future. We’re going to use Kim’s Domino in all future attacks.”

“You’re talking about Admiral Kim’s formation?”

“I am. It combines the strength of the linked force fields of the Bugs and allows us to put any attacker in crossfire. We will initially form the lines, but once the Majors arrive we will form our squares immediately. Our three Admirals here are working on it with their fleets at the moment.”

“How long do you think before they return?”

“It won’t be right away. There will be a number of civilizations that took part in the attack that will be attacked in turn due to their loss of ships. That will take a while to resolve.”

George thought a moment and his expression grew serious, “What if they all combine to attack you; how many ships will you have to face?”

“The two leaders here don’t know for sure but estimate more than four hundred million at the least.” RV saw George’s expression change and quickly said, “I don’t think that will happen and even if it does, it won’t last long.”

“Why not?”

“There’s that other sector that would jump on the Majors if they sent all their ships away from their planets. I think the Majors realize that and will be reluctant to use them all. However, they could put a formidable force together if they agreed to work together.”

“Well, at least we didn’t use our other ships in that battle. They don’t know about them.”

RV nodded, “Next time all of our ships will jump in at the first sign of trouble. The Majors will be coming loaded for bear.”

George smiled, Maybe we’ll be given some time. We’re building ships at a record pace. If they delay, we’ll only get stronger.”

“Time has always been the most important element in our success.”

George smiled, “Perhaps time is on our side.”

RV leaned back in his chair, “We can only hope. The next visit we have from the Majors will start the beginning of the end.”

“The end of whom?”

RV looked around the room and shrugged, “That has yet to be determined.”

The end

Excerpt from

Lens of Time Book Four

The End of Time

Arvolo looked up at his display and saw the gathering ships. There were millions and more were arriving every second. He hit the general frequency, “It appears that both sectors of M-87 have now combined and are coming to destroy our fleets. There is now possible way for us to fight in formation so once the battle is joined, all ships will be on their own to fight and survive as best they can. It is our intent to kill as many of the enemy as possible and lessen the possibility of them finding our new home. Small ships will fight until they run out of munitions and will then jump away. You will not waste your ships by ramming the enemy. We will need you in future combat operations. On my command, weapons are free and pick a group of those warships and introduce yourselves. Make sure they remember you; God speed and good luck.”

RV stood and moved to the pilot’s chair, “Dolly, can you handle the weapons?”

“I can.”

“Cyanna, take over control of the fleet and order retreat if we’re going to be overwhelmed.”

Cyanna moved to the command chair and watched the giant mass of warships as it continued to grow. She looked at RV, “If you don’t mind, I’ve never been the patient sort.”

RV smiled and said, “Go ahead.”

“Attention all ships; we will not wait for their attack. Launch all small ships immediately and prepare to hit those ships in five seconds, four, three, two, one, and go!”

The millions of White Ships roared forward, hit the giant mass of warships in the center at one quarter light speed, and ships began dying.

Books by Saxon Andrew

The Annihilation Series:

Love Conquers All

The Power of a Queen

A Rose Grows in Weeds

Tommy’s Tale

Searcher

Demon’s Sacrifice

Finding Keepers

Ashes of the Realm:

Juliette’s Dream

Greyson’s Revenge

Death of an Empire

The Return of the Realm

Lens of Time:

The Pyramid Builders

Planet Predators

Pray for the Prey

The End of Time (November 2012)

About Saxon Andrew

Saxon Andrew is the author of the number one bestselling Annihilation Series. All seven books of the series have been a number one bestseller on Amazon’s kindle Science Fiction Series. Ashes of the Realm is the second series created by him and continues the history of the Stars Realm after its destruction. A third series, The Lens of Time, will be published in early 2012.

His books are written so that anyone can enjoy them and not worry about their children picking them up. He lives in Tampa, Florida with his wife and looks forward to each day so he can write the stories that his fans enjoy.

Copyright © 2012 by Saxon Andrew. All rights reserved. Screen Writers Guild no. VQEA3E380432.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the author or publisher.

First Electronic Edition: August 2012