Chapter 63

Fonza was standing watch and saw the small figure in a combat suit fly through the air. Her mind quested out and she could detect some familiarity but not clear enough yet at this range. It certainly wasn't an enemy. She cursed her inability to use the full functions of the suit and her own mind. Fonza called Mona as she was supposed to do and they both watched the figure land in front of them. For the last three minutes they knew Peli was the figure and her coming was expected.

Peli said, "Hello, Fonza. How is everybody?" There was a deep sorrow in her and she felt cast out from all that she loved.

Mona knew what this was about and moved forward in her own combat suit, then led her into the camouflaged shelter they had built. After the two got out of their suits they held one another close and both started to cry. Jul had sent Peli to live with them when it became apparent that the city was a target. The only reason given was that she carried the next generation and was responsible for the life.

Fonza continued her watch but could feel the pain of both women and could sympathize for the life within her seemed to be just as important to the group as Peli's was. At night she thought she could feel the life, but knew it was really too small to do that yet. It was however her only connection to her mate.

Jim had been gone for days and then came back exhausted with Tom. After a little sleep they would talk for a short time, then leave again for long endless days. This time he had not come back yet and she knew from the loud mindspeak of many excited people that the battle her husband had foreseen had finally come. Where was he now that his family needed him so desperately?

The children crawled out of the gully following the agile donai. It was a funny word for an animal everybody always knew as godough. The mother took all of her cubs and tried to teach them the best way to hide or sneak up on game. No matter how often Fonza saw them, she was always amazed that her people had not stayed with the loving animals. Their course now was to their home and it was good, for she knew how much the other Tandra woman gathered strength from the children and even the donai.

Boko was sleeping even in the daylight. He had stood watch previously. She had at one time considered the boy for a possible mate if the males would allow it. But the males and even Boko had not touched her much because of the way her face arms and legs looked. She was something they would use when no other was available. The sex with the males was very unsatisfying and when she showed that they had beaten her for her opinion. She could see in her mind now the flawless skin and felt very happy to have ever met the strange male that had made everything so much better.

Boko was dreaming of his times with his sooda and the children they would have. It hurt bad that the women were so lucky to be able to have a husband that loved them and were able to give him such a precious gift in return. If only he had been born a woman he would be loved that much more.

"Tom, Tom." Jim's arm came out to grasp his mate and found nothing. The Samutz. Kill the Samutz before they get Tom. Strong arms held him and he fought to get away. Pain came to him and quickly vanished. His eyes flashed open and he remembered the Samutz, his mind gave the commands to fire the weapons and kill the Samutz. Nothing happened and he repeated the order again and again. Opening his eyes again to see where they had gone. He met the face of a Tandra and knew instantly that he had never seen her before.

The woman said, "Relax, you are safe now. Your mate is alive and in a regenerating tank at the moment. The Samutz have been destroyed."

The speech was different than on the Earth, moon or Masis for that matter. Even if he could not tell the difference, his mind knew there was one. "Where am I?"

"You are within the ship Sarine. I am Dela and your assistant if you want me to be. My job is to get you back to normal as soon as possible."

I flexed my muscles and found nothing that really hurt though there was a dull pain in my arm. Getting up I found myself naked while the woman sported an odd ship's uniform that looked different than usual, but just as utilitarian. I looked within Dela's mind and she readily held it wide open for my inspection. She was a medic from Coltin, the planet that Selene had fled with the aristocrats and their servants. I also saw how I came to be here and not the base medical station.

"Thanks Dela, I am not sure what I need now." Then to the ship, "Selene are you there?"

"Yes, Jim, I am. What would you like?"

"I just wanted to know if you were safe? You took a big chance in coming to our rescue. There was so much damage to your systems. It is a wonder that you were able to even float to the surface. I only expected to see some of the fighters taking on the Samutz."

They would not have done much good. I armed the fighters after you left, only to find major Samutz ships leaving the ocean in many areas to burn your people from the planet. I had to climb on only a few engines and use what weapons I had to fight them. This took a long time because my weapons were damaged in the battle when I came to this planet."

"Were you damaged? Were any of the biologicals onboard killed?"

"This hull has taken many hits since it was built and will no doubt take a few more. I am currently working on bringing this hull up to naval specifications. The passengers were in the central core area and none were killed, though some were hurt in the fighting. Some of your own people are helping, but they have enough to do in repairing the damage the Samutz did to your facilities and the city of Souts."

"May I talk to Frieda? I would like to see what I can do to help."

"Yes, Captain."

"Captain?" I said incredulously.

"I have had many hours to look through your mind while you were in the tank. I know that you aspire to captain a ship of space. Your goal of finding a home that will protect your children and your mates is over. I have always wanted a captain that was devoted to his friends and family as you are."

"I can't be captain. I am in the military and follow the orders of General Shingle. He will not let me have this post and I don't even think that I'm worthy. I have no experience. It takes a very dedicated, and trustworthy person to help guide this ship and I don't even know if I can trust myself."

"Call your base, and see what they have to say."

"Frieda, could you connect me to the General, or Captain Huang?"

"Yes, sir," she said with the most respect I ever heard in her voice, even when she spoke to the General.

General Shingle said, "Good to see you are up and around Jim. I suppose you have a few questions for me?"

"Yes, sir. Selene is telling me that she wants me to be the captain. I want to tell you that it is not my idea to take this position. I will do whatever you want."

"I already know all about the situation. The Cap does not trust any Human to have such authority because all Humans will turn gold into shit. You remember the old saying of absolute power?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well, your position in that ship would give you more than any person in our history ever got except for the Cap. I have been able to see a change in us already though. The Tandra are influencing us and we them. With a partial Human crew of no more than 20%. I believe we can strike the right balance. This is no time for dictators to show themselves. To be honest you are not the best man for the job but you might be the best man on this planet. If we can get the Sarine to work with us then I don't see too much of a problem though. She could keep all of us on the straight and narrow if she had a mind to, but I do not think she was programmed that way."

"Yes, sir, does that mean I am able to take the post?"

"Yes it does. There are provisions though. You are still in the military and you will be subject to the normal chain of command. You may be re-posted to another job later to make room for new blood. The Sarine will have to let you go and take a new captain. We have already talked about it, and she will get the option of vetoing any choice we make and even removing a captain if necessary."

This made me loosen up a bit and my muscles followed. This was an awesome responsibility for anybody. Going from a fighter jock to a battleship captain was almost too much to take. If we had a large enough chain of command I could learn my duties one item at a time to eventually take the job. At least I would have my family close to me. The General was probably right and I did not have the same outlook on life that I once had. Of course now I was young and could look forward to centuries of good life. But I never did have visions of megalomania and I guess now with mind reading, it would never happen.

Thinking of all the work ahead of me I said, "Thank you General Shingle. I will do my best at this job. Is there anything I can do to help now?"

"You are welcome, but it is the Sarine that you must thank the most. She is the one that saved the whole planet. As to your help I could use every able hand I can get, but you personally I can leave as the Sarine is doing all of the system security and most of the planet as well. Her medical section has all our wounded and she even has all of the enemy that we have captured."

"I will thank Selene later sir. But I have an idea for more hands. This ship has many people onboard that could help if revived. They may even have many skills we are not familiar with. If they prove too much of a hassle like you described before I can take them back. As captain, they can be told to behave a lot easier than you can do."

"That is a good idea, but since we have martial law in effect that can't happen. Later when the planet gets its feet under it and the work load is less trouble could start."

Selene, Frieda, the General and I went through the passenger manifest. I would have to recruit all of the passengers first into our version of the military. They came from a civilized planet with no Samutz trying to eat them. I hoped they would need much less training and guidance. What they went through in coming here was completely unknown.

Dela was nearby with a large platter of food waiting an opportunity to bring it to me when I asked for it. She was acting like a very lowly servant and when I looked into her mind again she was in awe of serving a real captain and being in on what she considered a high level meeting. In a way, she was right, for what was decided here would affect the planet far into the future.

I ate and thought, finding it easy to mesh in with Selene. It was as if we had a special bond that allowed my mind to work much faster and with better accuracy than ever before.

The current Samutz attack had brought in all of their organized units we hoped. When Selene arrived, she had killed or captured nearly all of the Samutz on the planet. The only exceptions would be the ones hiding individually, or in small independent groups that had no communications. Large portions of the planet were scored with her larger weapons that were only intended for hardened targets not unprotected landscape. It was only necessary now to seize all of the Samutz assets including their hidden bases and equipment.

We had lost all of our fighters captured during the original taking of the system and now relied on the thousands of units that the Sarine held in her boat bays. Selene even donated two of her cruisers and some satellites to find any stray Samutz.

The base and the ship were being repaired at the same time, with the ship getting priority. The battle had actually been over seven local days ago and many of the wounded had been returned to duty. Of the 21 Humans and 5 Tandra that originally stayed here, only 9 Humans and one Tandra would ever have the chance of returning home. I thought of Tom being the last Tandra survivor from Earth and then I thought about the rest of my family hidden on the rough plateau. Peli had returned after finding out that Jul was seriously hurt and her sisters Vasie and Roku were now dead. She was working hard, repairing as many ships as possible. She had seen the casualty lists and did not have time to come and see a person like me or Tom as we rested in our tanks. When the news spread that I was up and around I was sure of a visit.

Selene connected me to the combat suits worn by my family and I said, "Hello, girls and gent. How are you doing?"

I got many excited voices and talked to the strongest. "Hello Fonza, Tom and I are doing fine. We were a little hurt but should be completely recovered soon. It is kind of hectic here now and it is better for you to stay away till things get cleared up a bit more."

"Oh husband, it is so good to hear from you. When can you come to us?"

Tom would be ready to leave the tank in two local days and there would be a few things to look after before leaving, so I said, "Three days should be enough. We can break camp and fly back here. I have found a sort of permanent home now and it is big enough for all our family. It is a big ship, and it is doubtful if the Samutz will ever be able to touch us again."

"That is so nice to hear. Will all of us fit?"

"Yes, even the donai, but I will have to get them to eat the synthetic meat most of the time now." The conversation went to all the members, the children had to be relayed, but it felt very good to talk to them.

Dela brought me a uniform much like her own with a crest over the left breast. The transporter took me to the various areas that had been damaged in the recent engagement. Like the heavy destroyer, some sections were larger than cruisers in volume and would take a lot of time to repair.

The planet and the ship did not have the large fabricating facilities to replace the large structural members and the pieces had to be made of many smaller units, then all fused together. This way was not as strong but would have to wait for a yard to be made. Selene showed me images of entire systems devoted to the repair and construction of ships. With only this system visited it was hard for me to visualize this concept, even if it were right before me.

Tom and Jul were in different sections of medical and Jul would be brought out in an hour. She did not know yet about the loss of two of her wives and would need what comfort we could give. I could see many Tandra awaken and try to come to grips with what had happened to their lives. I doubt if it was a mistake that the aristocracy did not come back for them, or the ship. It was more than likely that their servants were just abandoned. The old crew that had survived the fight took up the posts that their superiors had held and tried their best to get their sections ready.

A boat bay was wide open to the atmosphere and I could see far away to the south. Below was the base and we were hovering just above and to one side in the field. Long deep scars ran deep into the soil. The ship was so large that the top of the ship was one kilometre from the bottom. The bay was only about half way up and on the wide band that circled the ship. I saw people working on a troop carrier like the one we flew, and thought of Jonesey.

I approached one individual and as soon as his eyes saw me he immediately stood at attention and saluted as the Romans did with a clinched fist over the heart. "At ease soldier." I could see no names on his clothing but his identity crystal buried inside his body told me he was one of the people at the very bottom of the military echelon. "Would you direct me to the person in charge of this area?"

"Yes, Captain," he said with as much enthusiasm as an ordinary Human meeting a head of state.

I gave my orders to the current head of this section. Both people took off in a cutter to retrieve the canister with Jonesey's crystal and memory inside. Looking around, I marvelled again at the destruction the two cruisers had meted out to the battleship. Their weapons had travelled far into the ship but did little to effect the Sarine's efficiency.

Moments later the two returned and I thanked them for their effort. It seemed unusual for an officer, never mind the captain, to do this sort of thing. It was assumed that the officer expected everything to be given with no thoughts to the feelings of those under them.

"Selene, will you take this to a safe place. It is a friend of mine and I need to give her a job, soon." The heavy case disappeared from my hand as Selene used her transmitter to do as I asked. The two crew members and the others around caught my attitude to the AI and thought me a little batty. It didn't matter, because both of the AI's now were my friends.

After surveying deep into the ship to the extreme extent of the damage, it was time to go and greet Jul. I had to walk back quite a way till I could find a working transporter. I was deposited in medical and saw a great mass of people helping the Sarine's patients awake. It was good to see a familiar face when first waking up. Selene guided me to a group of tanks and some familiar faces around. I walked up and Rick Semta, one of the men, patted my shoulder at my promotion.

"Congratulations. I didn't think any one of us would make it this high this fast. Did you get this posting because you and Tom took out the most fighters?"

"I didn't know that. How many did you get?"

"Twelve, and if I hadn't been shot down I would have gotten more. By the way I have to thank you. One of the ships you shot was on my tail and I couldn't shake him. That weapon you used took out another whole flight of them, but that total does not count for dog fights."

"You're welcome. There isn't too many of the original crew left. We have to get larger fighters so we can put our combat suits on. The chance of making it back alive is a lot higher then."

Jul was being raised from the tank and I saw someone running towards us. Peli ran up and seeing me ran to my side. I held her tight as she started to cry on me. Her sister/wives had died and we did not know how Jul would be able to take the loss. I could see that Peli had not had enough time to grieve yet at her loss. She had submerged herself in work to keep the hurt away as long as possible.

She pulled away from my chest but stayed in the protection of my arms. Her tear filled eyes turned to Jul as the transmitters were plucked from her body. Med units hurriedly circled the effected areas to stop the loss of blood.

A ship's medical attendant came forward to help and we watched Jul's wet form as she sat up and was steadied. We walked forward so we were the first for her to see.

I held one hand while Peli held the other. Jul's eyes finally opened and she smiled at us. "I was afraid I would never see you guys again. It makes me feel good now." She looked around, and said, "Where are Vasie and Roku?"

I was prepared to tell her, but Peli was first. "They didn't make it. They fought as a pair and it was hard to get them, but four Samutz did." She started to cry and left my arms to hold Jul with both arms. Jul was not responding because she had not understood this yet. It would take time and a lot of love for her to come to grips with this situation.

I wrapped my hands around both women and said quietly to Selene, "Will you take us to my quarters?"

The scene changed before my eyes and we were in a very large room with paintings that had turned to dust and plush furniture that was the same way. A grav bed was in the centre of the room. I guided the girls over to it and got them to lay down. Peli was still crying and Jul had just started. They talked about their sisters in short phrases and their minds showed them when they were all smiling. Another scene of when each of the girls came to Jul's attention and some of the fun they had in the very short time they had together.

Jul would be hungry and after a thought a tray appeared with food and drink for all three of us. Jul did not want to eat, but I pushed her and she ate around sobs till she had finished what she was supposed to eat. Part of the time I spent on the bed holding one or both and trying my best to get them to know I cared, but there was nothing I could really say to them.

Selene gave me a large sheet of soft material and I used it to cover the girls so they had something to hold onto beside themselves.

I hardly knew the dead girls, but I too had to grieve for all my friends that died protecting this planet. First the people taking the ships and then the ones protecting the planet. Thinking about my own losses brought a few tears to my own eyes.

An hour later I had to get up. My friends would want me to carry on and kill more Samutz, not grieve this way. Thinking of a few in particular that might want my grief to be shown as I drank to them when I told their family and friends what they and done and why.

Peli then Jul finally fell asleep and I slipped out of the room. The next room was an office with a large desk and old chair frames. Panels like in the base on Earth adorned the walls. A faded emblem was on the wall and did not resemble the one on the moon showing the Tandra empire. This was for a much smaller empire, one of a small group that had crawled out of an empire falling apart.

There was nothing too much I could do for old friends. Tom was still in the vat and would be for twelve more hours. But Jonesey was here and she needed a job to do. There were many available but I wanted to keep her near me and my family. Going back into a ship's hull was the most obvious choice, but that did not feel right.

"Selene, you have computers and small AIs all over the ship. Do you ever use an AI like Jonesey for anything?"

"I don't, captain. I have heard of planets using multiple AIs, but never a ship. There is really no reason why not and I would be a lot faster if I could have some help on occasion."

"Would it be possible to incorporate Jonesey into your systems and allow her to help?"

For a second she paused then said, "I can see a way of doing it. But she might be swamped by my personality."

"Can she be given a particular job, like security for my family. And if possible have a way to take her with us on a smaller ship when we have to leave your hull."

"That is hard to do, but I can put her in a very secure ship and have her linked to me so she could help and be ready at any moment to leave."

"Would she be able to share your eyes, ears and hands so that she can be with us along with you?"

"That will take a fair bit of work, but I think I have enough spare parts to accomplish this task."

We talked about the ship Jonesey would inhabit and other considerations, including the timetable on the completion of the Sarine's shield, engines, and weapons. In the end, I had to sit in a chair and take a long course in ship handling.

I stood up later, a little disoriented, but with plans and graphs running through my head. I had a quick meal and some exercise, then went back to the chair for more information on the ship. It seemed easier to take in all the knowledge and chalked it up to the necessity of learning.

My study of sub-molecular bonding was interrupted by Selene when Peli wandered into the room. I opened my eyes to see her looking at the statues and other more permanent art works that adorned the walls and even the deck and the deck overhead. The things that could suffer from a million years of age, even in a controlled atmosphere, had basically disintegrated.

Peli walked over to me and I got up to hold her. Before she could begin to cry again, I said, "Are you feeling a little better now?"

She sniffed a little and said, "A little. Jul took it even harder than me. I think I am going to have to be the strong one for a while."

"I already know that you are strong. We have to be, till all the Samutz are taken care of. Would you like something to eat or drink? I know you are a little dehydrated."

"Thanks, that would be nice."

A tray appeared and settled to an insubstantial surface. I stepped over and poured a drink of a translucent pink liquid into two crystal goblets. We both had a sip. The drink was different than others the synthesizers made and quite good. Peli sipped hers till she realized how thirsty she actually was and drank the rest of hers down.

"That was good. I haven't had that drink before." She looked around again and said, "I have to get out of this museum. There is a lot of work to do yet. This ship you found needs a lot of repairs and the base has to be completely rebuilt."

Her mind wandered to Jul and wondered how she would cope with the next few days before Jul was able to recover. She did not know that Selene had selected me for the post of captain, or that these rooms were mine and not a museum's showcase. The children were very important to her and Jul. I reconsidered my idea to keep them all away till the dust settled. "Why don't you and Jul take a ship. You can get the family and bring them here?"

Her mind did go over the idea, and she remembered her time in our camp, even when Tom and I were not there. The visions helped persuade her and she said, "Yes, I think we will. Will the Sarine give me a ship?"

"I think she will if you ask. By the way I kind of gave her the name Selene. It was an old girlfriend's, but it worked well with the hull's name."

"Hello Selene, could I borrow a ship to get... my family and bring them to the ship?" The pause told me Selene had made a decision and one I knew I wanted to be made.

"Yes, Peli. One is being altered now and will be fully completed in one more local day. I think that one will be safe for you to travel in now."

"Thank you, Selene. I would like to go now if I can."

We both went in a woke Jul. Before she knew it, she was in the cleanser with Peli and then dressed in the coveralls of the ship. An emblem appeared over each of their hearts and I knew that Selene had accepted them as crew. One was a department head and next, her assistant. They were a little too distraught yet to notice the fine points, but simply donned their garments. The transporter took us to a boat bay filled with large ships. Selene's dimensions were so great that this was the only possible way to move.

A heavy destroyer, the largest ship currently within Selene, stood open before us. Her classification was finely discerned when Peli asked, "Is this a mistake? All we need is a small ship. This is... is too big."

I called the ship and found an old friend there. Jonesey said, "Hello, captain, Jul and Peli. It is nice to wake up in this hull. I even have two close friends now. Selene has me attached directly into the main computer, and she decided not to kick the previous tenant out, but simply put me with her. I would like to introduce Tzora."

"Hello, Tzora." I said. "I hope you are not upset at having to share your hull? Selene is doing the same thing and I imagine you will be actually sharing the computer with her too."

A rich but young sounding voice came to us in mindspeak and said, "Hello, Captain. It was a little bit of a shock at first but now I see why friends are so important to biologicals. It was lonely here before and I didn't even know it. It is as if I am now part of a candasu now."

I could see how this was developing, but could not see the full ramifications before asking Selene about it. It was not necessarily bad, or good, just something that all three AIs had to get used to. Being this close in a war situation was bad, but not any different than having family on a ship that was going into battle.

"I wondered if you would like to go for a short trip for me? I want to get the rest of my family."

Jonesey said, "Yes, captain. Climb aboard and we will leave now. This hull is being worked on, but it is safe to travel in."

I just kissed Jul and Peli and said, "You two don't have to hurry back. There are still a lot of things that you two have to deal with. Just make sure you show the donai where the bathroom is."

"You aren't coming?" Came from Jul. "You are the captain."

"Well, both of you are under a misapprehension. Selene chose me to captain the Sarine not this ship. This vessel was to be used when we have to leave for a while. Jonesey was to be allowed to stay with us like it was before. The only way this could work was that she could be placed in a hull and be part of Selene at the same time." I pushed them up the ramp and said, "Remember, you don't have to hurry back."

They looked back at me as if I had grown two heads as they walked up the long ramp. The hatch closed as the large doors opened for the bay. Epsilon Eridani shown directly into the bay and illuminated the entire area. A hum came from the ship before me and I decided to see them leave from a catwalk above the bay. Selene deposited me there and I watched the vessel raise a little more but not too much, the ship was almost 83 metres high and the doors to the bay were not that much bigger. Jonesey and Tzora drifted slowly out and it took a long time, as it was 220 metres long. Its beam was a little over 120 metres wide and compared her to the mighty tug that brought us here. This ship was much larger.