Chapter 22: Aftermath

The banquet was almost as bad as I feared it would be, but at least the salad like dish called Carax wasn’t too bad and I warned Ninio not to tell me what the little dark brown things were that nested between the dark red leaves and tasted a bit like raw fish, old raw fish that is. I was hoping it was only the bad lighting that made me think one of those dark brown bits had moved.

The Yokuta then announced that most of the votes had been counted and the result was an overwhelming approval to go ahead with a Union Membership application.

Much to my disappointment, we would not return to Arsenal aboard the Shetland, but a destroyer that was to arrive for that purpose shortly. Admiral McElligoot had offered to take the Yokuta delegation with the flagship to Pluribus. The entire city was celebrating and I overheard the business men and civilians that also belonged to our civilization already making plans and talking to local business and finance people. They drove us back to the space port where we were supposed to await the arrival of the USS Kilroy.

We waited in a sparsely decorated Space Port lobby, the place seemed deserted as most, if not all the locals celebrated or partied somewhere. According to our Instructors the Kilroy would be here in six to ten hours and all we had to do was sit tight and wait.

I had to tell Two-Three and the others what happened at least ten times. Then Ninio asked if he could find an open store in the space port to buy some souvenirs. The instructor shrugged and said.”I doubt they take credits and this Yokuta space ports weren’t like Union portd with stores and restaurants. This one had been used mostly by the Nogoll. I would assume whatever shops here are amost likely closed but I see no harm for you to check out the space port. Just do not leave the building and be back here in an hour, take someone with you.”

Ninio, the Garbini and the human Cadet went.

The tall Elly, Deadan said to me as if he knew what I was thinking.”Ninio is determined to find some Yokuta Recordings. Tescor, the other human for some unexplained reason likes it too!”

“You are kidding!”

“No I swear to you. He thinks it could be mixed into Psycho Plank Punk whatever that is.”

“I don’t know either.”

A while later four high ranking officers came into the lobby and someone yelled.” Commander on deck!”

By now we knew we had to stand in attention when this command was given. I recognized one of them as the Commander who was with the Admiral while he talked to me and the other was the PSI Corps officer I had seen briefly on the podium.

We were told to stand in a row and then the Commander said. “In recognition of your first mission, you all are herby decorated with the Diplomatic Mission Ribbon 1st Class. The Yokuta Government wanted you all to be called Friends of the Yokuta and a special ribbon has been created for that, which you will also receive. Before I have the honor to decorate you with your first ribbons and awards, let me tell you that I am very proud of your conduct, especially due to the fact you are barely a week in Union Service and at the very beginning of Academy training. I see six very promising individuals before me and I am certain you all will be fine officers one day.”

He came down the line and activated medals on the ribbon display of each cadet. As he reached me, he said. “Mr. Olafson. In view of your heroic actions and service to the Fleet and the Union, I have the privilege to decorate you with the Iron Star. Your quick action prevented much tragedy congratulations Cadet Olafson. Well done.”

All of them then saluted us and we were allowed to stand at ease. The PSI Corps officer also shook my hand. “I am the face behind the voice you had in your head earlier on. You are incredibly quick, your thought to action threshold is remarkable, and it is usually the hall mark of species and individuals raised in a martially oriented society.”

“I am from Nilfeheim, Sir.”

“I heard you say that before. I never heard of Nilfeheim, is it a Union planet?”

“Yes it is, Sir. It is in the old Xunx Region. Long ago they called us Neo Vikings and...”

“Ah of course, I think I have heard that term before. Well my colleague was actually already onto Wade. He was called away to help with the interrogation of the captured Nogoll. It was my fault not to act on his report and do something about it. I suggested to the Elder that it was a planned demonstration and he thankfully announced it that way as well. I personally owe you one and this is why I wanted you to know what happened.”

He shook my hand, congratulated me and returned to the others. The Commander said before he left.” The Kilroy will be here in four hours and the Destroyer Mess sergeant was informed to serve you a special dinner as a little thank you from us.”

They left and I sat back down, remembering I was quite hungry, especially after only sampling that weird fishy salad. Two-Three kept looking down on his chest.” I got three now! My life deciding family will be so proud.”

“I am still fascinated about the things you told about your home star. I really would like to take that Virtu experience one day, and hopefully with you so you can explain it all to me!”

He leaned forward in his chair.” This would make me very proud Eric. If we find time and the opportunity and perhaps you can visit me and my parent unit as well on Bright Station.”

“I would love to do that.”

“I bet Ninio and the other two will be disappointed missing getting their medals.”

“I am sure they will get them, but should they not be back by now?”

“I don’t think it is an hour yet. They might have found a Yokuta restaurant or something.” Then he said. “You know the Iron Star is the sixteenth highest award the Fleet gives! I am glad you got it for smacking Wade.”

“I should have reported him right away you know.”

“It turned out well and four hours wait time means this energy being is going for some shut eye.”

“You don’t have any eyes.”

“I like the expression never the less and I can see you, but you are right not with eyes. Besides if I would say I disengage my ability to receive and interpret reflected photons into visual data would not make much sense to you.”

“I might just do the same and disengage mine for a while.”

The mission was over, and it did not end me being in a situation I didn’t want to be in. The bad guys were caught, the bigot was in the brig and we were all soon on our way back to the academy and basic training. Just before I closed my eyes to take a nap, I wondered why Ninio and the others weren’t back, unlike Two Three I was certain over an hour had passed.

Interlude 24:Distant Events, Several weeks ago

Deep space, minus 270 degrees Celsius, the stars were sparsely seeded in this region of space and these suns were generally very old stars. This near vacuum had not been disturbed, since this universe began. An observer would have seen the sudden glimmering disturbance and then it was there!

Out here was no light to reflect of an object but this shimmering gray thing with bright light behind tiny space ports brought its own light.

It was shaped like a wedge and on its wide end it had four big box like extensions. If that observer could read it would see the bold lettering on its side: USS Ivanhoe. Right next to the name a blue field with red and white horizontal stripes forming the logo of the United Stars of the galaxy. The beautiful sleek looking visitor to this place in time and space paused for a moment. Sensor beams whispered and reached out from the object, tasting, sensing and probing. Collecting vast amounts of data, then it accelerated again, stretching as if elastic for the fraction of an eyeblink and then it was gone again.

--””--

Captain Flowar Saxa brushed over his dull bluish bald head as he always did when everything seemed alright and nothing was out of the ordinary and yet, somewhere deep inside he had the feeling there was something the sensors had not picked up or somehow over looked. Something that might pose a potential danger to his crew and ship.

Saxa was a Plato, and one of a handful of this species living as free beings within the Union. He was so far the first andonly Plato Union captain. To the Kermac, the Plato were the lowest class of slaves, only good for the most primitive labor. No Plato from where they originated. The Kermac reproduced them in factory like breeding facilities, there where billions of Plato serving on virtually every Galactic Council planet, ship and installation. The Kermac sold them like a commodity to other species as laborers and cheap workers. Plato Nan taakte meant lowest useful life form in Kermac.

Plato were strong and tough and had legendary endurance, needed little sleep and could tolerate temperatures on both ends of the scale most other humanoid life forms could not.

He had been sold as Slave merchandise when he was still young, but the slave trader made a mistake. He tried a short cut through union space and was caught. He became a Union citizen and ever since had only one goal in life, repay this glorious nation with his unwavering dedicated service. He knew that the Kermac reign was steadily declining and the day of freedom for his brethren and educate them how wonderful freedom and liberty was no longer a distant fantasy. H ehoped it would happen in his life time.

His ship was based on the same hull as the Galantor Class Super Cruiser. 1400 meters long, 400 meters wide and 600 meters deep at its base tapering to a chisel bow of only 20 meters. It was not as heavily armed as a Galantor Class, but had the same armor and shielding and his ship had much greater range. It also was equipped with a wider array of sensors and had a much larger science department. His mission was deep space exploration.

The Ivanhoe and other ships like her were seeking to expand the Unions knowledge about the this mostly unexplored sector of the M-0 galaxy.

And the Ivanhoe would be the first ship to reach the Palomar 12 globular cluster 64,000 light years away from the Galactic rim, no Union ship had ever ventured this far into unknown space of the Coreward sector.

He got up from his command chair and walked over to the OPS station and asked the Klack Lieutenant.” Nn’tik anything on the boards?” The Klack was a reliable, dependable officer and he would of course report anything anyway, but Saxa could not shake this feeling.

“No Sir, all boards show green and I have nothing on the scanners. We are almost done with the deployment of Sensor Relay buoy 27.”

The Ivanhoe had placed 26 SRB’s since they left Union space. Each of these sophisticated robotic devices would not only allow them to be in zero delay communication with Fleet Command, but monitored space with automated sensors, allowing both his crew and analysts back home to monitor the space they had already passed through. Officially their mission was the same as all the thousands of explorer ship, to expand the knowledge horizon and to make contact with other civilizations and was part of the Galactic Survey project. The goal of this project was to completely survey the M-0 galaxy. The projected completion of this project was in 13,200.

His XO, a Pan Saran complete with polished brass chest armor, knew his Captain well and said. “Maybe we should take a longer break here and send out two P5-Specters to recon the space ahead. It is the last star system on our course and from what it looks like it has planets and two are in the green zone.”

“Yes Marcus, good idea and while you at it sound alert condition yellow.”

No one on the bridge questioned his decision to raise alert conditions to elevated status despite the fact nothing seemed to warrant it. Many of them served with Captain Saxa for more than five years and more than regular combat units, explorers were often long ways from known space and regular base visits and that usually bonded crews like tight knit families. The Crew was not nervous or concerned but they knew if Saxa’s guts acted up, there usually was a reason and they trusted their captains feelings more than the best sensors.

His Chief Science officer, a Wurgus and one of the few not being a solar or planet engineer, waved his captain over. “Sir, I went over the sensor recordings with a Terran fine tooth comb and I did find faint traces of exotic Hadron particles, all in a linear pattern towards that Star system ahead. Now these patterns are decaying and they are at least a month or so old, but Hadron particle spurs are often associated with Kermac T- engines, their equivalent to our Isah Drive.”

“I was just thinking about these bald headed bastards. Hail the Specters and tell them to be extra careful and high tail out of there as fast possible if they think there is danger.”