Chapter 8

Alexander Tomisic could do nothing but gape at the sheer volume of ships that lay entombed within the ice. Craft of various designs from many species stuck out of the landscape, like the icy fingers of corpses. There had to be dozens of vessels, possibly even hundreds. Alex could only imagine what sort of fate that the crews had met, if any had survived the crash.

“Are you ladies seeing this?” he called out over the comm line.

“Affirmative sir! I guess that the Dead Snows is a fitting name for this place,” Kasumi responded, her voice barely above a whisper. Alex couldn’t fault her for the sense of awe and dread she was likely feeling. He felt it himself and he was beyond terrified of the implications, if they hadn’t been found by the Darkstrider. Clearing his head of the dark thoughts, he focused back on the task at hand.

“Have you spotted our landing zone yet?” he queried Inari, who was busy keeping the ship clear of anything that might hit it.

“Yes sir, it’s right there,” she pointed as she navigated her way over to the semi open area. “Might want to get everyone ready. Looks like we have guests.”

Alex squinted through the viewport to see what exactly she was talking about. Sure enough, he spotted what exactly it was that she was talking about. Lounging about in the clearing, was a small pack of what seemed to be wolf-like creatures. At this distance, he couldn’t make out any discernable features. But he could tell that they had spotted the Hermes and were glaring at it hungrily.

“Luminia, I need you up here in the cockpit for a moment,” he ordered. Seconds later, Lumi appeared at his shoulder with a questioning look on her face.

“What are those things?”

Lumi looked in the direction he pointed and looked carefully. In a few moments, the dawn of recognition lit up her face, and she spoke her reply.

“Sahr’coun hounds. They are vicious pack hunters that will hunt down and eat anything they come across. Hard to shake when they have your scent and their bite is strong enough to break an arm.”

“Any weaknesses?” Alex wondered.

“They startle easy and if you prove to be ... mightier, they often run. They are brave against small prey, but cower against larger beasts, even when they have the numbers. If you were to bring your weapons to bear, they would be frightened off easily,” she stated.

“If they scare easily, why aren’t they scattering right now?” he asked.

“They have seen us coming and are more curious than afraid,” Lumi told the captain simply. “When they see us coming out, they will probably attack us, thinking us an easy meal for them.”

“Well then, let’s make them think otherwise, shall we?” Alex chuckled as he headed back into the hold. Lumi giggled softly as she followed him, picking up her father’s sword as she went. She saw that the ladies had wasted no time in getting themselves ready for battle. Each woman was back in her combat armor, each one of them looking both fearsome and ... attractive.

She found it strange that something so dangerous could also rouse her like that. Luminia breathed in careful and measured breaths, calming herself for the battle ahead. She turned and saw Alex walk over to the hulking mass of steel and titanium that was his battle suit. Lumi wondered what it was like to fight in such a machine. It must have been wondrous, to have such power at their fingertips.

Though she supposed that such a machine was useless, unless its wielder had a good measure of skill. She’d seen young men and women of her clan cut down, but not because of the weapons they bore. It was because they lacked the skill needed to use them correctly. That was a lesson she’d learned the hard way and why both her parents had been adamant she learn how to defend herself properly.

It had been sheer luck that the Yahk’shurt had overtaken her all those weeks ago. She was hunting a lone Tashkuun beast that was barely a yearling when she’d accidentally stepped over into their lands. They closed in around her in secret and she didn’t know they surrounded her until it was too late. They walked up to her, thinking she’d surrender, but that’s when she unleashed her combat skills upon them.

Luminia had brought down at least five of their warriors in the ensuing melee. She had sent at least three to the Darklands before they overpowered her. She half expected them to kill her as they made her kneel in front of them. They might have done more to her, and she was mentally preparing herself for it, until Chief Dahr’khash had shown up, ordering them to restrain themselves. She knew then he intended to be the one to take her himself or let one of his sadistic sons have their way with her.

Still, the fact they had listened to their chief was surprising, something which she was very thankful for. Shaking herself loose of the memory, she looked around herself and smiled. She was among friends now, powerful ones, which would hopefully help her and her people in bringing peace back to their world.

Luminia heard the engine’s pitch decrease, and she felt her stomach lurch upwards for a moment. She could tell that they were descending by this motion as it had the last couple of times she’d been aboard the Hermes. As the drop continued, Lumi noted that everyone present had geared up, making themselves ready for battle.

Alex was locking the final plates of his suit into place before donning his helmet once again. He moved to the rear of the dropship, cocking his heavy machine gun, Stormbreaker. The rest of the crew had followed suit with their own weapons as did the four Artucian who her mother had sent. She eased her father’s sword in its sheath, waiting for the ship to land.

Moments later, she felt the rough vibration and shift of gravity as the Hermes touched down. The ship rattled for a few moments before finally settling down as the engines whined down to a loud drone. After a few more seconds, the noise cut completely as rear ramp cracked open and crunched into the snow and ice.

Alex was the first one outside, hefting his weapon and pointing it outwards. Kasumi and Priya stepped out to his right while Natalya and Taal’ani fanned out to his left. Korsa brought up the rear, her blade broken down into four, with one in each hand. Lumi was right behind her, with her own people following along.

The immediate area was deserted, the hounds having scattered when they realized that they’d likely be crushed by the landing ship. She saw that several of them were peeking out from some icy outcroppings nearby. A rather large hound, the Alpha by her guess, ventured forward, snarling the whole while. It barked in challenge as though trying to goad someone from the group into attacking.

Everyone held their ground though, waiting for the dogs to make the first move. One of the other hounds further back shot out, barking and baring its teeth in challenge. It charged straight for Alex, thinking it could bring the massive armored man down by charging and lunging for his head. Almost lazily, Alex aimed his weapon and fired, ice and snow flying through the air, as the bullets peppered the rushing beast.

Its howl of rage turned into whimpers and yelps of pain as each round hit home. The force of each shot punched through its hide as though it was made of paper. Purple blood stained the snow in wide splatter patterns with the passing of each bullet. The shots were enough to stop the hound as it tripped and fell to the snow, severely wounded.

The whole thing took mere seconds to happen, but the result was enough to cow the rest of the hounds. The Alpha, seeing one of its pack mates humbled and dying, glared hatefully at Alex and the rest of the interlopers that had dared to tread on its turf. When everyone levelled their weapons at it though, it turned tail and fled, running as fast as it could. The rest of the pack followed suit, not wanting to be around to deal with beings of such strength.

The Captain walked forward to the fallen hound, putting up his weapon as he approached. Its legs kicked out, as though it was trying to run, but lacked the ability to pick itself up. With its lifeblood spilling out onto the ground, it was clear that it was dying and in a great deal of pain. Alex knelt next to it and opened his helmet so that his face was visible.

“You had to try to prove yourself, didn’t you?” he said to the dog as it lay there whimpering. Reaching to the compartment where he kept his knife, Captain Tomisic drew it out and holding the beast steady, drove the blade into its heart. It died instantly, its pain ended and struggle over. Alex then used his mechanized hand to close its eyes, in a gesture of respect. He cleaned his weapon before sheathing it and standing, turning to face the rest of his companions.

“Well, now that that business is settled, where exactly is this ship you wanted to show to us Luminia?” he asked. Lumi took a few moments to get her bearings before turning and pointing to the massive wreck right behind him.

“There! That’s the ship I wanted to show you!”

Everyone turned to face the wreck that Lumi was pointing to and it was massive. Nowhere near the size of the Perseus, but still a considerable vessel, easily a dreadnought class. The design was of human origin as everything looked familiar to the humans who were standing there. Inari had come out of the cockpit to get a better look at the ship.

“Mystery after mystery keeps popping up,” Inari said aloud, staring.

“What was that Commander?”

“This whole jump has been one big mystery after another sir. This was a Magellan class ship, modeled after the Prometheus vessels, but what is it doing here?” she wondered.

“Magellan class?” Kasumi asked in puzzlement.

“It was a new initiative, started and largely funded by the Farmer’s Consortium. They constructed three ships and sent them out into unknown space over one hundred years ago. The aim was to find viable, life bearing worlds, hoping to establish new human colonies and possibly, our own corner of the galaxy. That was the idea and hope anyways,” Nats explained to her lovers.

“You said there were three of these ships made?” Alex asked, curious.

“Yes sir. The Polo, the Columbus and the DeChamplain. They sent all three into space that hadn’t been explored, opposite from Xuul’khani territory. Communications failed not long after their launch and we have no idea what happened to them. At least now, we know the fate of one,” Natalya said.

“Indeed. Luminia, is there anything inside the ship we should be wary of?” Alex asked her.

“I would have said spirits, but after speaking with ... Jaesa ... I know what they are. They are ... intelligences like her,” Lumi said, searching for the correct words.

“Like her?”

“Yes. Some of them I can speak to and they will speak back, but others will not respond when I speak to them. Though, they do not interact with me as Jaesa does.”

“Sounds like badly damaged VI’s. Virtual Intelligences, almost like a simple form of what Jaesa is,” Alex explained to the perplexed woman. Face clearing in understanding, Lumi nodded.

“If you are wondering about creatures though, there are none inside. It is far too small and messy for them to navigate it,” Luminia stated.

“All right then. Korsa, Priya, Inari and Kasumi, you stay here and keep guard over our ride and the landing zone. I don’t want some beast showing up and tearing the ship apart while we’re busy exploring,” the captain ordered.

“Yes, sir!” all four women chorused.

“Luminia, pick two of your own people to stay behind and guard the ship as well. I know that they have orders to keep you safe, but I don’t want anyone getting lost in there. On top of which, I don’t want to stay here long,” Alex shivered.

Nodding, Lumi turned to her bodyguards and spoke quickly, telling them the Captain’s orders. She noted that Alex’s shiver wasn’t from the cold and she couldn’t blame him for it. This place frightened her, as there was much pain, sorrow and death from what happened here. After relaying the orders, she directed the two who volunteered to stay to wait by the entry ramp, giving explicit directions to not wander off.

Both warriors nodded as they knew that the Dead Snows was a dangerous place. They would follow the orders that the captain gave them, mainly because they made sound tactical sense. Marching over to the Hermes, they took up sentry positions, looking outwards for any discernable threat. The other two stayed on her heels, determined to ensure her safety.

“Luminia, if you will lead us inside please?” Alex asked the Artucian woman. Lumi stepped up and lead the group to a large rent in the ship’s hull. Taal’ani and Natalya followed along behind Alex, keeping their eyes open but also excited beyond belief. Mysteries such as this excited both women and they were eager to see what lay inside the ship.

The breach in the ship’s hull was somewhere in the cargo area from what the humans could tell by the vaulted ceilings and lack of walls. There were large crates of what seemed to be foodstuffs, medical supplies and other things that would be needed aboard a ship this size. All of it was strewn around as though it was puked up by a tornado passing through. Luminia navigated her way through the mess towards a set of stairs on the far side of the room.

Luminia pulled out some sort of twig and attempted to strike up a flame. Seeing what she was up to, Alex gave the order to activate suit and gun lights, which illuminated the room. The action slightly startled Lumi and her guards, but they then smiled as they could now see clearly.

Nats walked over to the Artucian and showed them how to activate their own lights on the loaned firearms. Much would have been lost on them, but since Jaesa had deciphered the Artucian language, it was merely a matter of giving the instructions and letting the translator unit do the work.

Now that they could see where they were going, Luminia led the way upwards. Traversing up the stairs was an easy endeavor, but all five of them had to be careful. They did not wish to step on the frozen corpses of the human crew that had died in the crash. Alex, Talon and Nats were a little shaken at the sight of it but steeled themselves as they continued to follow their guide deeper into the ship.

They kept ascending the staircase, heading to the upper levels of the craft. As they passed along the areas, several consoles lit up as they passed with an eerie bluish glow. Sometimes the glow was just running lights, other times, holographic recordings of certain crew members would play. They stopped briefly to watch these and found some interactions displayed both endearing and humorous.

Soon enough, they reached the top level, which seemed to be the officer’s deck. They made their way down the hall and walked to a partially open door. Beyond it seemed to be the bridge, judging by the various consoles and display readouts that were spaced about the area.

The gap in the door was large enough to admit Lumi and the two warriors she brought with her. Nats and Talon could get through, but they had to shift sideways in order to accommodate the armor they both wore. Alex however seemed to be stuck where he was, unless he wanted to step out of his armor again.

“Looks like you’ll have to step out of the Phalanx to get in here sir,” Taal’ani stated.

“Not necessarily.”

Before she could ask what he meant, Captain Tomisic stepped up to the doors and pushed both of his gauntleted fists through. Gripping the edges of each door, he positioned himself to pull them apart from each other. At first, nothing happened as the servos and hydraulics of his suit whined in protest. Seconds later, they all heard a solid cracking sound around the door and saw large chunks of ice fall away from it.

Alex continued to push hard with his suit and slowly pried the door apart. Ever so slowly, the doors separated and slid back into their hidden compartments in the walls. Once it was large enough to walk through, Alex halted his efforts and waited to see if the doors would snap back into place. After a few minutes, the doors didn’t move, so he walked on through and joined the rest of them on the bridge.

“Why didn’t you do that before we walked through buster?” Nats huffed in irritation.

“You walked on through before I could do anything,” Alex teased. Natalya narrowed her eyes and Alex would have taken her more seriously, had a smile not found its way on her face. Chuckling, Alex ambled forwards to where Luminia was standing with the rest of them.

The console they had gathered around was cylindrical in shape and came to about waist height. It seemed to be flickering on and off as though the power was fluctuating on it. Lumi entered a few sequences on it and the console flared to life, the bluish-white light solidifying into a humanoid form. The image wasn’t as clear as Jaesa would be, but it was still defined enough where you could tell that it was male.

“Greetings Luminia. It has been forty-seven days, two hours and six minutes since your last visit. I trust that you have been well in that time?” a warm male voice spoke from the hologram.

“I have had some rough days, but I am much better now Stanley. I have brought guests with me this time,” Luminia said back to the machine.

“Wonderful! They are Artucian I would assume?”

“See for yourself,” she gestured to the crew of the Perseus. With that, all three of them removed their helmets and faced the VI. Despite being a program, it did a relatively convincing motion of being surprised and startled. Then it smiled almost joyously and brought its hands together happily.

“At last! Humankind has found us! Welcome aboard the Columbus! I am Stanley, the shipboard Virtual Intelligence! From which planet and affiliation are you?” it queried. The ladies hesitated a few minutes before Alex stepped up to speak.

“I am Captain Alexander Tomisic, Captain of the Prometheus class vessel, Perseus,” he replied.

“Perseus?!?” the machine seemed confused. “That is highly improbable and nigh impossible. The Perseus, along with six other Prometheus class vessels were lost to humanity, and it is unlikely that you are who you say you are.”

“Stanley, can you perform a full body scan of the people here?” Alex asked out loud.

“I can.”

“Then scan me and analyze my DNA profile, to determine if I am telling the truth on this matter,” Alex ordered. Stan seemed to consider this a moment before initiating the scanning protocols. Various holographic feeds and readouts popped up in front of it as it went to work. After what seemed to be a minute, the scans ceased, and Stan was apparently shocked at the result.

“The results do not lie and if I am reading this correctly, which I am, you are six hundred and thirty-two years old! Your genetic markers show signs of terrestrial influence on them that is not in my databanks. Please reiterate where you are from!”

“Earth, about six hundred years ago. As I have stated, I am the Captain of the Perseus, which hangs in orbit around this planet. I could try to explain all of this to you, but I think I’ll let Jaesa fill you in,” he stated.

“Who’s Jaesa?”

In response, Taal’ani stepped up and activated her arm computer. She typed in the sequence she needed to establish a link with the Perseus and the console lit up with a yellowish green color. Frowning at the display, Talon typed in a few more sequences and the display got slightly greener, showing a stronger connection.

“I suppose that it’ll have to do. Jaesa, you there?”

“Yes, I am,” the AI responded. “I have a decent connection with your computer and I can manage a link to the Columbus, but it will take a few moments. Standby.”

Nodding, the cat girl stood back and waited as a progress bar was displayed on the screen. Normally, such a screen was unnecessary, as such transfers were instantaneous, but given the state of the Columbus, it would take a few minutes. They didn’t even have to wait two before Jaesa suddenly materialized next to Stanley. The VI looked shocked that he was sharing his space with another program.

“You would be Jaesa?” it asked tentatively.

“I am. Now, as I understand it, you are in need of an update,” she said to him. With that, she placed a hand on his shoulder and suddenly, both programs were still. The only thing moving were their eyelids, blinking in such rapid succession that they appeared to be jittering. The processing and sharing of information was done, over in less than sixty seconds. With that, Stanley straightened up and finally became much clearer to everyone there.

He was dressed in a formal uniform, a dated variation of a Federation Naval uniform. It was azure blue in color, with bronze trim and black combat boots. The face of the VI was handsome, with blue eyes and a bare face. It went with the Grecian features that mimicked those of the ancient king Leonidas. It looked at all of them with a new understanding in its face.

“Thank you for that update Jaesa. Now that I know of the story and events that have transpired over the course of the last few centuries, I can address whatever concerns that come up,” Stan said formally, saluting all those present.

“At ease Stanley. Judging by the fact that Lumina can speak English with a good sense of clarity, I would assume that you were the one who taught her to do so?”

“That is correct Captain. Miss Luminia here came to me about four standard years ago, by accident. Looking for her father I suppose, hoping that he’d taken refuge in one of the wrecks here. Sadly, I confirmed for her what exactly had happened to her father,” the VI went on, but quickly steered the topic back.

“Luminia was a ... difficult student at first, but soon enough, she grasped how to communicate properly, if somewhat brokenly.”

“I noticed that, when we first met,” Nats said. “Though from what mama told me, it was worse when they first encountered her in that fortress.”

“Likely because I hadn’t spoken this language in some time,” Lumi put in. “When speaking a different tongue, you have to be able to speak it regularly, or you forget it.”

“That makes sense,” Alex interjected. “I speak at least four other Earth languages but am likely rusty with them. I have no doubts that if I were to try to speak them again, I’d likely sound like I was butchering them.”

“Precisely. Now, is there anything else I can help you with Captain?”

“Yes. I’d like to know how is it you’re still active after all these years, how the ship ended up here and what the exact mission of the Columbus was,” he stated.

“In regard to your first query sir, that is simple. My power supply is a separate source from the main reactor. It was designed so that in the event of a catastrophic failure that I could still be online and provide the crew with updates on the ship and render assistance wherever necessary. My source is intact and provides me with enough power to run for at least another four hundred years,” Stan answered.

“That’s actually one hell of an idea!” Nats said thoughtfully. “Jaesa, do you have your own separate power supply?”

“Oddly enough, I do not. My power supply is tied to that of the Solaris reactors that power the Perseus. That is something that could be of use!”

“I’m inclined to agree. We’ll look into it once we get back aboard the Perseus,” Alex said.

“Allow me to assist you with that,” Stan said as he turned to Jaesa. He placed his right palm on Jaesa’s forehead and laced his fingers through her hair. Both intelligence’s eyes fluttered for about two seconds before he lowered his hand. Jaesa blinked, almost like she was waking up, then smiled beatifically.

“Thank you, Stanley! I now have the full schematics of the Columbus! Its technical readouts, drives, systems, everything! There are some interesting new improvements that could be applied to the Perseus and every other ship design in our databanks sir!” Jaesa enthused.

“I’m sure you and Chief Vostrikov will have a lot of long and sleepless nights ahead of you,” the young captain chuckled. “Anyways, Stanley, please continue.”

“Yes sir. As to how we got here, the Columbus, the Polo, and the DeChamplain were using an experimental type of hyperdrive to search the stars. It allowed the ships to tunnel through real space and using the hyperdrive to go from one place to another, almost instantaneously. It was dubbed the ‘Wraith drive’.”

“Wait a second! You’re saying that you had a fully functioning Wraith drive on this ship?!? And that it was working properly??” Nats asked, her face one of complete and absolute shock and wonder.

“Yes, we did. Though the last time we enacted its use, we were in the middle of an intense fight with a Confederate battle group. Several of the containment modules of the drive ruptured before we could make our escape. While in transit though a kind of sub space reality, we were forced to jump out in order to effect repairs. Sadly, the damage was too extensive to repair or contain.”

“We came out just out of orbit of the world, which the Artucian call Talemkha. The explosions that followed, by damage wrought by the Confederate vessels, sent the Columbus into a downwards spiral to this planet. There were few survivors of the crash and since the hull had been compromised, they did not last long against the cold climate of this planet. Those that had, succumbed to their lungs freezing over via the microscopic ice crystals in the air,” the intelligence iterated.

“May they all rest in peace,” Alex intoned solemnly.

“Addressing your final question sir, we were sent out to search for life-sustaining worlds in which humankind could expand its influence. That and have a sector of the galaxy that we would be able to govern ourselves with no outside influences. Although, that was not the only objective,” the VI said.

“What do you mean? Was there a secret objective outside what was told to the public?” Alex asked, his curiosity piqued.

“Yes sir, there was. Normally, I wouldn’t answer such a question, as it was classified beyond Top Secret. Though, since you are the secret, logically, there is no point in keeping it as so,” Stan finished.

“I’m the secret?!?” Alex asked his face lighting up in surprise.

“Yes sir. The other objective, which was also deemed vital was to search for and recover the Prometheus class vessels that had been lost. The Federation had been stretched too thin in those days and needed an edge that would put them on even terms with the Confederacy. Possibly even hope to beat them and put them in their place,” Stan explained.

“Wait a minute,” Taal’ani broke in. “You went searching for the lost ships of Project Prometheus? But why now after hundreds of years had passed? How would you be able to find them? They were lost to where no one knew where they were and what their projected routes were.”

“That is where you are incorrect Specialist Taal’ani. You see, when the survivors of Earth began their exodus, there were some among them who had worked at Earth High Command. They were privy to the routes and directions in which each vessel was headed when all contact was lost. As they drifted through space, they kept this knowledge amongst themselves. They could see that there were factions of people among the survivors who blamed High Command for bringing the Xuul’khani down upon Humanity,” the VI continued.

“They kept this knowledge of the ships last known locations and routes secret, to ensure that one day, they could be found. It wasn’t until the year twenty-six sixty-eight that this secret group felt they could share this information without fear of persecution. They went to Federation High Command with this knowledge, hoping that they’d listen.”

“Though skeptical at first, High Command was ecstatic about the information brought forward. Finding such marvels would help them achieve a level of supremacy over the Confederacy which was sorely lacking. The only problem was that they had no way to fund it. They disguised the truth of their search behind the veil of finding new worlds in places that were yet unexplored,” Stan told his audience.

“After several failed attempts from various wealthy backers, they turned to the Farmer’s Consortium. They hoped that they’d get the funds they needed to craft at least one ship to go searching. The Consortium gave them enough resources to craft three, along with a detailed contract that cited that any world that had viable farmland above a certain percentage was the Consortium’s to claim, as a farming world.”

“Since the Consortium was unaware of the secret initiative behind the project, the Federation agreed to the deal. When the ships were nearing the final test phases before being launched is when a recent border skirmish broke out into a fully fledged war. Seeing they had little choice, the Federation sent orders for the ships to begin their voyages ahead of schedule. That was when we were ambushed by that Confederate battle group,” Stanley finished for them.

“The start of the Thousand Day War,” Natalya groused, earning a look of surprise from both Alex and Talon. “What? I like to study up on history.”

“I only read the basic footnotes about that conflict,” Alex said. “You’ll have to fill me in on the details of that later.”