Chapter 9: Lisirra

“Jason, you will be fully conscious during the trans-dim power infusion. You will not feel any different,” said the doctor. “The alien is talking telepathically to me; do you want to hear what it is saying?”

Jason saw Mergal, who decided to wait with Jason, was listening intently.

“Why not?” said Jason, “I have nothing better to do while we wait. I may get some sort of explanation.”

“Listen doctor, I know you are busy out there. I know what you are thinking! You leave me alone or you will find the hospital destroyed by my ship. Are you listening dimwit?” The Zaos said in a dulcet feminine voice that contrasted with her threatening words.

The doctor turned towards Jason to reply. Jason put up a finger.

“Zaos person, what are you doing in me?” Jason asked.

“Sheesh, turn down the power a bit. Who is this?” The Zaos asked.

“I told you halfwit, you are in me, who else are you in, are you simple or are you just thick?” Jason asked.

The Zaos laughed. “You have a funny brain. I can’t get in to your mind and I can’t locate where you communicate from. What kind of animal are you?”

“I am the person you are in or do you have no idea where you are? You seem confused. Do you have a name or have you forgotten it?”

“I am Lisirra Chamadar, princess of the Zaos. You are truly fortunate to be in my presence. To which pathetic peasant do I speak?”

Jason was amused at first but was then suddenly overwhelmed with rage. He heard himself speak telepathically.

“Simpleton, you insult me with your frivolous impudence. Feel a small sample of my wrath.”

Jason saw a clear picture form in his mind. The Zaos had a bull like body with eight legs. The face looked like a lizard but with ferocious looking teeth. The eyes were fearsome like a basilisk’s. The legs ended in talons and it had feathery wings. It held a pad like device in its front legs.

Jason saw the ground move beneath her feet and saw large cracks form before the ground formed sinkholes. The creature stumbled and looked discomforted.

“Very well, I can see you are not happy with me. I don’t know how you did that. I am sorry. Let’s talk.”

Behind her he could see the ship. It was huge, and as described by Ship was shaped vaguely like a manta ray on a long cylinder with spoilers and wings and looked to be in excellent condition other than several minor scorch marks on the hull, which drones were painting with a shiny metallic paint. The ship looked as large as his battleship and continued far into the distance. He entered the open door. The interior had a fairytale-like look to it and was done in colors that reminded him of colorful Mediterranean houses with painted stucco walls. He turned and looked outside and saw a plain covered with reddish grass extending into the distance as far as he could see.

Thousands of drones that resembled the Zaos were building an impressive castle with thick walls and turrets. It looked like it could accommodate hundreds of people.

“So, talk,” said Jason. “Begin with how you think you found your way into me.”

“I was on an important mission when I saw a large enemy fleet traveling towards me. Several ships broke away from the main group and began to fire on me and chase me. I was attempting to escape. I saw they had laid a large trans-dimensional trap on my starboard side and then I saw your ship enter our dimension and get stuck in the trap. I was still evading the chasing ships, changed my engine nul cube confusticle to evade the trap and then I felt the trans-dim power from your ship. I decided to head towards you and above you and then I found myself in your trans-dim space which we then converted to the space that I’m currently in. Even though we are part of the dimension I came from, we have boundaries here for reasons I don’t understand. I am safe here and I intend to stay here, so I can have a break for a few centuries before I move on. My mission can wait. There is nothing you can do about it!”

Jason felt familiar rage growing in him again, felt himself dissociate and then found himself watching the internal scene. He saw a huge fireball grow in the distance some way behind the Zaos. It must’ve made a noise behind her as she turned to look at it. The fireball exploded spectacularly.

“Zaos, I strongly suggest you watch your words. You are trying my benevolence, do not cross me again or take me for granted. I saved you as I could see you were doomed; do not pretend you knew how you were saved. You are pretentious and arrogant, I will leave you now to consider your response. I recognized you as Zaos. Complete your activities, for they may be your last unless you mend your ways. You try my patience and you overestimate yourself.” said Jason.

“Jason, I heard that entire discussion and saw the Zaos and the ship and the whole earthquake followed by fireball. Remind me never to get on your bad side, I promise to be an excellent mother-in-law,” said Mergal laughing.

“I experienced the whole thing as well,” said the doctor, “and I have never seen anything like it in the million and a half years I have been alive ... nothing like that at all!”

“Your display of power to frighten the Zaos used a trivial amount of your trans-dim energy reserve. For most people they would’ve been depleted for days. I can now see how you could have knocked out a fleet. I would never have believed it if I hadn’t seen it” — the doctor stood grinning in front of Jason — “My father used to tell me about the Zaos. He said they were the most impossibly arrogant people until you got to know them well. He said they were loyal friends, but the process of getting to know them was agonizing. He said establishing a balanced relationship was a constant battle. In our original galaxy they were humanoid, much like us, and certainly were nothing like what we saw.

“The king was aggressive and an expansionist but did not intrude into the territory of friends. He had a great respect for intellect and was interested in Azayal culture. My father said they were supportive allies and happy to pull their weight. They specialized in espionage. They also had wonderful technical expertise and passionately believed in the beauty of all they created. Many of the colors you see in Merka and the styles of building were influenced by them,” said the doctor.

“Jason, you should be back to your previous energetic self. You were seriously depleted of energy, but I understand why and how. Your rate of self-replacement is fast, but full recovery would have taken two days.

“We checked you over, you are in excellent health. Your percentage of ancient DNA has increased to ninety nine percent. You are fine to go, Mergal you can take him away. You have a pretty impressive son in law,” said the doctor smiling and waving them to the door.

Mergal led Jason to a portal, they passed through and Jason found himself in the palace near one of the smaller conference rooms.

Mergal’s brain pinged. She looked at it.

“Sheila, has arrived, she has inspected the battleship and wants to talk to you about repairs,” said Mergal. “She is waiting in the conference room. I will be in my office if you need me or want to discuss parking a fleet in your trans-dim space. Have you considered charging rental for the use of your spaces?” Mergal asked before walking away softly laughing. “First one of the Una now a ship and a Zaos building a castle, who would believe it?”

Jason walked into the room to be met by a radiant Sheila who came up to him and gave him a passionate kiss. “I have missed you even though I have been so busy. The baby is doing well. Porquenta is looking after her. She is receiving the best of loving care. Porquenta worries every day about the fetus and how she is progressing.” Sheila put her hands on her hips and inclined her head to the left. She raised her eyebrows.

“I hear you have a Zaos princess in you and she has parked her cruiser in a trans-dim space. Porquenta says he has never heard of such an event in the history of his people. He spoke with Nuswa and Jones. He then conferenced in Cassius, Felix, Alana, Philippa, Ouma Chatzke and Lynas Parayekt. They then added in the other allies. Mergal is showing them the pictures as we speak and is telling them of the conversation you had with the Zaos. The palace looks quite impressive. I have never heard of anything so funny in my life,” said Sheila smiling. “Porquenta says it is one of your greatest stories. If it wasn’t a time of war it would be all over the media.”

Jason blushed.

“So, what is the story of the battleship?” said Jason brusquely.

“Don’t change the subject Jason and there is no need to get all huffy. Is this going to be another of your women?” Sheila asked laughing. “She looks pretty enough. An eight-legged woman would be a great catch. Her personality would be a delight day to day. She might argue you to death in a week unless you shot her with a fireball. That could be a dramatic example of domestic violence.”

“Who is this insufferable moron, Jason, with whom you speak? I had no choice of this form. Who is this machine to criticize me and how can a machine have your baby?” Lisirra Chamadar asked.

“Jason, who is this rude, insufferable creature who has the temerity to insult me?” Sheila said indignantly before addressing Lisirra directly.

“I am a fully biological artificial intelligence. I have the capacity to reproduce and I will have normal children. How dare you call me a machine. You invade my husband and then behave abominably. We know of you people but did not know that you escaped into trans-dimensional space. You will recognize my originators who were your allies,” said Sheila and sent her several pictures of the originators.

“Why don’t you get off your high horse? You are in an extremely poor negotiating position. If you carry on like this you will be both trapped and lonely. You know we have the ability to remove you involuntarily if necessary. You do not meddle with us. In that form, you cannot survive out of the dimension. I would strongly suggest you begin to moderate your tone and consider what you are going to do to get yourself out of the hole you find yourself in. Incidentally, you are stuck there unless we help you. You were seconds away from being destroyed when Jason rescued you. From my point of view this is one of the most amusing situations I have encountered. It is amusing because Jason attracts the most bizarre situations. Now why don’t you tell us what you would like to happen?” Sheila asked.

“So, were you grown in a vat?” Lisirra asked insultingly.

“Something like that, “ said Sheila negligently. “I suppose you would like to have a gorgeous body like mine?”

Lisirra sighed and replied in a more conciliatory tone.

“I would be prepared to trade some valuable information about a future attack upon the people you call the Tyrannosauruses in order to get such a body. Do you know those who were chasing us? The scum are called the Ordreg and they used to be friends and allies. Now they are our bitter enemies. They look worse than we do. These monstrous creatures have two legs with taloned feet and six arms with taloned hands. They have a face that resembles that of a Pterosaur and their sturdy body is covered in chitinous armor. They come from Bekta Delta where the Grork and Schlogg are strong. The Ordreg are vicious predators and they are allied with the Grork. We have been enemies of the Grork for millions of years and they have sent the Ordreg to kill us all. It is vengeance for the sake of vengeance. We are not a threat to the Grork on our own without allies in that miserable dimension where we exist.

“We have been fighting a long war of attrition with the Ordreg. I will as a gesture of goodwill give you vital information which might help you save your allies. We have intelligence the Ordreg and others will be invited to join in an attack upon the Tyrannosauruses. My father sent me to seek allies to help us fight the Ordreg. Jason has conveniently destroyed most of their fleet so the Grork may be forced to change their plans in the short term,” said Lisirra.

“Does that mean you would prefer to live in our universe?” Jason asked.

“Sheila, is he always so stupid? Dumbo, I just told you we live in a miserable dimension and Sheila explained I was trapped. I used to be gorgeous and I hate this miserable form. Don’t assume for even five-seconds I want to be associated with you in any way and I certainly don’t want to be your woman. You are clearly a very strange man and a pervert. You are involved with Mergal’s daughter and you are having a child with this woman. I can’t imagine someone with morals like yours. If you try to make that part of your deal, I will not deal. I want my own prince and I don’t want to share. I have a reputation to maintain. If it means I have to stay here for a million years so be it.

“Sheila, I don’t like the idea of me being one of his women. I don’t know how you could even think that. I am absolutely sure that I have given no such suggestion. My father would be appalled and my mother would be disgusted if I became part of a marital group. It is a disgraceful idea. What kind of a woman do you think I am? Do you think I am that desperate that I would want to become one of Jason’s women?” Lisirra asked.

“I have to admit Lisirra, the thought did enter my mind. Jason has so many women I have lost count and he will have close to thirty-four million children in the not-too-distant future. I thought one more wouldn’t make that much difference,” said Sheila.

“Obviously you are joking. That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. Don’t expect me to believe a word you say after this. I cannot imagine someone having more than ten children. That would be exceedingly rare in any sentient species and ten children would be tiring even with AI help. I still don’t like the idea of him being involved with two women. It makes me feel quite uncomfortable.

“Now how do I get this body and how long will it take?” Lisirra asked.

“You will need to decide if you take an AI chassis today or wait three months for a gorgeous body like mine. If you want a body like mine you will be bio-mechanical like me. Your primary brain will be an AI and your secondary brain biological. Jason’s primary brain is biological and he has two different kinds of AIs. You can discuss what form you would like to take and who will build it for you. We have different possibilities. The Collective may have a different alternative. This is however not a decision I can make. We will need to discuss this with our allies. The big problem that I see is that you now compromise Jason. You are possibly a spy,” said Sheila.

“That is outrageous. We were allies of your people and were always loyal allies and friends. How dare you accuse me of being a spy,” said Lisirra angrily.

“In the first instance, how do I know you are a Zaos? You don’t look like the Zaos we used to know. For all we know you could be an Ordreg,” said Sheila. “The Ordreg also used to be our allies.”

“That is preposterous, I have never heard such rot in my life. How can you suggest I could be an Ordreg. Do I look like an Ordreg?” Lisirra asked.

“You are asking us to trust what you say, when you yourself don’t look like a Zaos. We know nothing about you. Perhaps the whole idea of the attack was to get you into Jason to spy on us,” said Sheila winking at Jason.

“You have a sense of entitlement that is a mile wide, and you make vague suggestions about valuable information. If you are genuine, it is my view you need to be prepared to talk to our intelligence people to establish your true credentials. You insult our lifestyle and you accuse me of lying to you. Should we, on the other hand, believe a word that you tell us?” Sheila asked.

“I am not scared of talking with your intelligence people. I will get ready to speak to them. You can talk to Jason about the state of the old crock ship that we arrived in, then bring in the intelligence people. While you talk about the ancient relic, I will collect my credentials and at your convenience I will speak to the intelligence people,” said Lisirra angrily. “I am going to the refresher for a relaxing deep clean. Today has been a trial and insufferable people tire me.”

Sheila turned to Jason. “She is typical of the Zaos, really hard work.

“Jason, your ship has been moved to one of the large docks in the second asteroid Porquenta sent a few days ago. It was quite a job to get it into the asteroid as it is so wide and long. I brought four of the biggest of the engines Porquenta has made and they are being fitted to the ship. The other engines will be taken back to Porquenta in a cargo ship. The ship needs a major overhaul as it has been neglected for so long. The atmosphere that it was exposed to eroded several layers of the armor. That applies to all the other ships as well and it did the same but to a much lesser degree with your armor despite your short exposure to that nasty place, but your armor is much thinner than the ship. Your armor was penetrated by a weapon as it was already compromised.

“I will supervise the upgrades to the ship AI. It is a very long way away from functioning at an optimal level. You are fortunate the trans-dim projection of your power worked. The psychic amplifier is a wreck and burned to a frazzle. It could not cope with your demands on it.” Sheila explained.

“The medical systems are utterly magnificent, but they will need a lot of work as will the rest of the ship. We are carefully preserving the educational material we have found. There is much more on board your battleship than there was on the destroyer. We recovered information and new technology of enormous value. The Ship insists we ensure you and your people are the first exposed to the new educational systems. Norbert is on his way here together with a technical team to work on the educational material.

“We have an enormous team of AIs and drones to supplement those who are already on the ship. They are working together on a strategy to refurbish the ship. The Azayal insisted they play their part. They are refurbishing the weapons. They are going to rebuild all of them and test them against the best of the weapons we developed. They will discuss with Porquenta the optimal mix of weapons to be installed. Porquenta will rebuild everything else. He’s not going to be happy unless you are in a ship where he can guarantee every component. His only regret is you may have some inferior components in the short term. Once the Ship AI is functioning, we will see if we can rebuild the replicators to Uzliumbax standards and then rebuild everything properly.

“Porquenta tells me Uzliumbax level electronics will take a considerable effort to master, far more time than he originally anticipated. He said everything can be replicated using his or Collective technology to ensure that it does work at least in the short term but he prefers to use the replicators on the ships to build replicators that can manufacture the genuine electronic components. The engineering facilities on the ships appear to have everything necessary to build anything on the ships. The problem we face is we need to understand what we are doing.

“Sorry Jason, Porquenta is calling ... Porquenta has just told me he talked to the ship AI and he agreed to use the ships to build the necessary equipment and build the equipment for training facilities. The ship AI told him the technical people will master the electronics faster if they train on the Uzliumbax simulators and learn using the cubes they will provide. As the allies become more familiar with the science, we will speed up the manufacturing process. The allies see education as a major priority, but they realize there is going to be an educational gap until everyone can be educated and can understand the concepts. We can’t yet fully assess how long it will take. The scientists and technicians need to learn more mathematics, much more physics and entirely new theories of electronics. Then they have to duplicate the necessary replicators and other facilities to build the products. All the allies are growing new generations of crystals to augment our scientists. The Coven is contributing enormous manpower and effort to assist.

“The ship AI says they will train everyone and in the interim the ships will produce sufficient AIs and drones to do the work and train the allies concurrently. They say no time should be wasted. They will send AIs and replicators for education cubes to the universities to start training the new generation if we wish.” Sheila said.

“How is Nuswa progressing, Sheila?”

“Nuswa is functioning at seventy-five percent and will be at full function in three months. The ship will send an AI to her to see if they can help speed up the process.” Sheila replied.

“Send her my best wishes. When can I communicate with her like I do with Porquenta?” asked Jason.

“Probably within a month, you will be able to speak to her via meditation. Following our experience at Porquenta, Coven archeologists have discovered extensions of the core of Nuswa and huge chunks of memory. We only activate the memory for long enough to transfer the information to newer memory. Each core element is replicated once we establish its function and then it is attached to Nuswa. The Emperor of the Coven is dedicating an enormous resources to the renovation.

“I have an update from Porquenta, events are moving much faster than he expected. He says he sadly underestimated the ship AIs and the worker AIs. The ships are building tens of thousands of AIs to help us learn and are taking us and the Azayal through the repair and renovation of the existing cannon. They are building computer components to rebuild the Ship AIs and replace the temporary components on your ship we were providing. They are renovating their own mining drones to send for material to the asteroid belts both here and near Porquenta.

“The Azayal are providing critical raw materials to speed up the processing in the short term before we are supplied if needed by Porquenta,” said Sheila. “There is a rich asteroid belt nearby we can also access.”

“Thanks for the update Sheila, will we be able to get back in my ship to Porquenta for the meeting or should I leave it behind?” asked Jason.

“Leave it behind. There is too much work to do to get it ready. Porquenta believes it is a good idea for the Azayal to get experience with the ship and the technology here. They have all learned the Uzliumbax language from the learning machines. The educational process begins. Jason, the ancients operated at very high speed. In war microseconds counted.

“Andrea will take you back on your battleship. She will meet with you, Linda, The Una, Mergal and her people to discuss strategy prior to the meeting. They will be here within the hour. The Una are touring the planet.

“The intelligence people are waiting in the medical area in the palace to interview the Zaos, so I suggest you make your way there now. I will catch up with you later, daddy,” said Sheila giggling as she hugged Jason kissed him passionately and walked out.

Jason walked down to medical and was placed in a pod. He was unconscious during the interview. It took five minutes to extract the information from the brain of the Zaos and a half an hour to have a chat with her. Jason was woken and spoke with the intelligence general.

“Lisirra Chamadar is who she says she is and is known personally to some of us. She was regarded to be a strategic genius. The obnoxious front is nothing to concern yourself about. Beneath the abrasive front is a lovely woman with a frightening intellect. Do not underestimate her for one second!

“We matched her memories of events to our data and she definitely checks out. Her people have been having a terrible time in dimension Gamma Zeta since the Ordreg have been attacking them. The attacks have persisted for thousands of years. Only recently they decided to consider looking for allies or moving elsewhere. They finally accepted hiding was not a great strategy. We have that in common with them. We are also slow learners. They only discovered recently that their enemies were their previous allies. Lisirra doesn’t think the Ordreg know they are fighting the Zaos. She says the whole scenario is typical of Grork machinations.