Chapter 20: MALAG

The other Farnok in the chamber shouted and sung different chants, apparently in an attempt to stop whatever was happening.

They were also quite upset at Lalaxi. From what Shea was able to understand, they blamed him for the sudden activity of these ancient controls.

It was also clear they had more or less forgotten about her.

When Lalaxi attempted to physically affect the controls by banging on it with his fists, he was rewarded for his efforts with a stinging bolt of bluish light. Much of his yellow robe was now in tatters and there was the distinct smell of burning fur in the air.

His current dance had nothing to do with any religious practice, Shea was quite certain. She suspected the smoldering was the reason.

Two of the other priests mocked Lalaxi, calling him all sorts of unholy things, while the third tried to affect the control board with a stick.

He too was hit by bluish energies, but instead of burning fur, he completely vanished. Shea’s science scanner confirmed the presence of super exotic particles and decided to leave the chamber fast.

She had no problem finding her way to the stone platform where they had arrived. She called Circuit and Krabbel and knew they had been a bit too careless being separated like that.

She also encountered other yellow-robed Farnok who were running in pretty much every direction.

She reached Circuit right away who said he had found the power source of the control center. He was, so he claimed in no danger and was making his way back to the same platform.

Krabbel also responded, but he was not as calm.

“I think I accidentally, sort of started some kind of process.”

“Never mind that, Krabbel. We need to get out of this place. I do not like the built up of all these multidimensional energies.”

Narth popped out of thin air just as she stormed down the flight of stairs taking her back to the empty reception chamber and the platform.

“I just took Circuit back. I can not teleport your sword.”

Tyron said.

“I can fly supersonic, you know.”

She sighed with a smile.

“Can you take Krabbel, I think our Navigator got lost.”

Narth vanished and she jumped into the air, Tyron accelerating her to many times the speed of sound.

SHIP reached me as I was about to enter our Den.

“Captain, my sensors just picked up very strong transdimensional energy pulses emanating 259 klicks from here. It is exactly where Shea, Tyron, Circuit, and Krabbel are.”

“Alert Hans and have him stand by with ten marines, raise our true shields and go to General Quarters.”

I rushed to the next I.S.T.

SHIP said.

“Narth went to retrieve them, he can not teleport through our TransDim shields.”

“Alright, keep them down for now. He is the next one I must talk to in earnest.

“He needs to inform me before he decides to do things.”

I was not very happy about that when I reached the bridge. Narth and Circuit appeared just as I did.

My hooded friend said.

“Can I get Krabbel too?”

“Go, but we do have to talk about this later.”

He lowered his shrouded head.

“I understand.”

It took him less than a minute to get Krabbel.

“Can you get Shea too?”

“Not with her sword, Captain. It has properties that do not allow me to transplace it. She is on her way, Tyron is flight capable.”

SHIP chimed in.

“I have them on scanners, ETA in three minutes.”

Narth wanted to say something, but I raised my hand while I sat down in my seat.

“We will speak about that later. Right now we need to figure out what is happening and if we are in danger.”

Elfi relieved Xon at the Communications console, as all my senior officers rushed to their stations. Brana, our Delicate remained at the science station until Shea was able to do so. My Saran Communications officer had raised her multitask bubble. SHIP and her department helped her sort through all the messages.

Shaka was preparing for an all power lift-off.

Elfi was truly excellent at her position, she already signaled me with a preliminary all signal report.

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed Shea running to her station.

I said with a loud firm voice.

“Tyron, stay where you are for now. We don’t need the distraction of Shea in the buff.”

Then I blinked Har-Hi’s icon active that was floating prominently before me among all the other station icons. While I was not in the Battledome and he was sitting right next to me, this was the correct and fastest way during General Quarters.

He responded right away.

“Preliminary situation report suggests that someone or something triggered an activation sequence that affected this or several Trans-Spatial-Gates. The ancient machinery and control devices located at or in a mountain like structure appears to be unstable and has transplanted or displaced a large portion of that mountain and many of the Farnok priests.

Local news and communication channels are centering on that subject. It is apparent that the Farnok do not know how to respond or handle the situation.”

“Are we in any danger?” I directed my question to Shea.

“I have too little data to say, the technology and physics behind this process are far beyond Union technology. The ancient system seems to be out of control, I doubt the displacement of so much matter was or is part of the intended process.”

Narth’s symbol blinked and I acknowledged.

“There is a 67 percent chance that this is an escalating event. The Shattered star system of the Bassett’s is the result of a potential similar event. The planet moves at great speed through space, the system might create spatial conditions that do not.”

“Shaka, get us out of here, I do not want to find out if that possibility becomes a fact.”

Elfi said.

“Captain, we are being hailed by the local officials.”

“Shaka keep going. Elfi put them on.”

A Farnok sans clothing appeared on the viewer.

“Visitors, please hear our plea. We do not know what is happening. Our leading scientists think that this world might be doomed. We do not have enough ships to evacuate even a small portion. You are of a civilization with more advanced technology, can you help? Or at least help us evacuate as many children as possible?”

I wanted to tell him that he should ask the Controllers maybe some expensive bribes will do the trick. I wanted to simply leave. What were the Farnok to me?

Yet this was not the Union way. It was most likely that we were responsible for this crisis in the first place.

“Shaka, return to the surface. Har-Hi, coordinate with Hans. Prepare to take in as many Farnok children as we can. Shea, SHIP, Circuit, Narth see if we can somehow stop what is happening.”

To the Farnok on the screen, I said.

“I don’t know what we can do, this is also beyond our technology, but we will try to help. We will take on as many children as possible.”

He belonged to a species we never had any contact before, but I was certain in all his distress I noticed his thankfulness. As boisterous and alien they had appeared to me, this leader was concerned about his people and that earned my respect.

There was not a single word of objection from my crew either. Har-Hi had already left the bridge and I heard him over ship-wide giving orders to prepare to take on evacuees.

Krabbel and Shea took the moment to fill me in what happened while they were at that mountain facility. My Archa friend was deeply troubled and believed it was all his fault.

I put my hand on his hairy torso and consoled him.

“Don’t chastise yourself, we figure something out.”

Shea said.

“There is not much we can do from here, Captain. We must return to the source and see if we can isolate the power source. I am almost certain, if we can cut the power, the effects will subside.”

Three-Four came to the bridge and said.

“I am following all of this, Captain. As you know I can see energies in a different way. I volunteer to come along, maybe I can help.”

“Alright, Roghor you have the conn. SHIP give me Har-Hi.”

“You’re on, Captain.”

“Continue with the evacuation effort and take off if we are not back in time. I will take the Apparition and a few volunteers and see if we can stop this Orlan thing from transplanting more of the planet. We will keep in contact.”

“Aye Captain.”

The high ranking officer and member of Fleet command burst into Admiral McElligott’s office.

“Admiral, Sir a fleet of unknowns appeared in Quadrant seven and there are reports of attacks on planets by unknowns in Quadrant 14.”

Both quadrants were considered deep in Union Space and no known enemy would dare to venture that far. Quadrant five was known as the Pluribus Quadrant and the very heart of the Union.

McElligott got up, while NELSON populated the air around the old admiral with dozens of info bubbles and field screens.

The Commander, a seasoned and experienced officer who had been around the ancient admiral for several years was still amazed about the old man’s ability to consume dozens of reports, messages, tactical maps, situation analyses and give fast and precise orders.

McElligott was not as famous as the Eternal Warrior, but he had been an Admiral for three thousand years and had more experience than everyone in the huge Annapolis tower combined.

He moved ships and fleets, gave evidence that he knew the location of these ships, the Commanding officer’s names and many details without consulting a Computronic.

The Commander wished the Union public could see and experience the Old Highlander in action, not just as an administrator, but as a military leader.

McElligott was still surrounded by message bubbles as he moved quite fast to his Inter-Building Transport.

“What are you waiting for, Commander Huggs? The USS Shetland is getting ready and I want to be on our way in ten minutes.”

The Commander folded up his Uniform bib and closed it, as he followed the old admiral.

McElligott had retrieved a TKU sidearm from a wall compartment and checked the weapon as the I.B.T. shot down the vacuum tube at great speed.

“Are you expecting, close quarter combat, Sir?”

“We are at war, Commander. I expect everything and like to be prepared.”

The old man did not slow down as he left the I.B.T. capsule and rushed towards the Transmatter Tunnel connection.

“NELSON are we dialed for Moonbase?”

The bodyless voice of the new super AI of the Spatial Navy immediately responded.

“Yes Sir, receiving station is docking bay one, Armstrong port.”

The Commander had to quicken his pace to keep up with McElligott.

“Sir, where is Stahl?”

“I already talked to him. The First Fleet and the Devi are at Arsenal system. He is on his way, but no worries Commander, I am not exactly an amateur when it comes to these things.”

“I did not even think that, Sir.”

Both men had stepped through the pitch black field inside the metallic hexagonal frame that was part of the Transmatter system. Without any measurable delay, they arrived at Armstrong Port, on Luna.

Earth itself no longer had any spaceports, civilian space traffic terminated at Sol Hub, a gigantic space station over eight light hours away.

Armstrong port was not the biggest spaceport of the Sol system, but it was a military one and was also the home port for the USS Shetland, the Union flagship.

She had already emerged from her sub-lunar hangar and was ready to jump into space.

Marines and several Cerberus robots waited for them already and without much ado followed the surprisingly fast old admiral.

Commander Huggs glanced at his PDD, not even ten minutes had passed since he stormed in McElligott’s office and now they had arrived on the bridge of the Shetland, who was already past Mars orbit, as she accelerated to transition speed and jumped into Quasi.

Captain Sheila McKenzie greeted the Admiral of the Fleet with a crisp.

“Welcome aboard.”

Huggs didn’t even know where they were going.

McElligott took the cup of tea, a yeoman was offering him.

“Seven previously unknown Trans-Spatial gateways of sort suddenly became active. All of them within Union Space, two of them so far are used by unknown sentients to infiltrate and attack Union assets. In the first case, it appears to be a fairly sizeable fleet, Second fleet is already engaging. In the second case, only a few ships also of unknown origin raided an agricultural planet and captured a wheat transport. I am almost certain these are pirates of sort taking advantage of the sudden active gate.”

The commander with all his years at fleet command, never seen this side of McElligott.

The captain of the Shetland apparently had, as she commented on it, while she looked at the commander.

“Our Union has more than one warhorse, a fact not too many realize.”

To the Admiral she said.

“Why Kelly’s planet? This planet was already raided.”

The old man sat down in the observer seat and sipped from his tea.

“The other warhorse is speeding with red hot engines towards the first problem and Admiral T. Moyer commandant of the 17th fleet is not nicknamed the Hammer for his gentle approach to things. Those pirates or whatever caused that trouble will be in for a ride that either end on a executioners noose or a cloud of nuclear dust.”

He pointed with his entire cup at the front screen.

“We are showing Union muscle and open concern, nothing soothes angry colonists better than the flagship.”