Chapter 12

Aboard The Hms Phoenix, In The Captain's Conference Room

"You want to say that again?" the captain of the Phoenix asked, his voice full of incredulity.

"Certainly, Sir. We came out WHERE we were supposed to come out. We just didn't come out WHEN we were supposed to come out," answered the Navigation Officer.

"What do you mean, when?" Captain Manson asked.

"I mean, Sir, that we came out precisely where we expected to. We just came out about 700 years in our past, Sir," reported the Navigation Officer.

"Do you realize what you're saying?" Captain Carl Manson said, with his voice rising with each word.

"That will be enough," Emperor Richard Newcastle said. "I am sure that his findings have been confirmed, already?"

The emperor finished the query by directing a glance at the remaining astrogation personnel. They nodded their affirmation.

"Yes, Your Majesty. With fixed known points to shoot at, and with the ability to tap into one of the old Terran Federation signal satellites, as well as known star density and... Well, let's just say we know that we are at least 700 years in the past. We can refine it and give you a more exact time, in a few more days," replied the Navigation Officer.

"How, by all that's holy, did we get into the past?" the captain asked.

"If I may?" asked a civilian scientist who was part of the crew that installed and was onboard to monitor the wormhole generators. The captain nodded.

"Just before the generators reached the critical levels needed to open the wormhole, something changed in the internal settings on all the generators, and brought a third fusion plant on line.

"This changed the dynamics of the wormhole, and added to the gravity displacement that is generated with each wormhole. So in effect, we traveled to where we were supposed to, but we also... fell through time. We had no idea this was possible, Sir," finished the scientist.

"Unbelievable. Don't you people do any research into what you're doing? If it were up to me..." he was interrupted by Richard.

"That will do, Captain!" Richard said sharply. "Recriminations are useless at this point. We need to formulate a plan of action. We do not need to place blame on who did what. I already know what happened," Richard said with finality.

Everyone stared at the Emperor. Richard looked back with feigned unconcern.

"You know what happened?" Captain Manson asked.

"Yes. You people are about to be privy to something only a very few people in the Empire know. Only 6 other people know this. You will listen, then you will keep this to yourselves. Is that understood?"

Richard paused, looking around. Everyone nodded or Yes Sir'd him.

"When I was a captain for the Terran Federation, I was given a ship. It was a battleship. I was sent with a task force, out to where the Empire's 'core worlds' are now. I was a young man then, and was very idealistic.

"The Federation was falling apart. It was rotten and corrupt. Yet it was my duty to preserve it as best I could. I fought for that. For over a year, I fought battle after battle. My own superiors were in on the corruption. The battles I fought in were not for the preservation of the federation, but for a new private kingdom.

"I found out that fact, accidentally. When I returned to my command base, I confronted Admiral Taffleman. He ordered me to surrender my command, but I refused. I had confided what I had found out with my officers. Every single one of those men were with me.

"I mutinied. There was a fierce battle, and we destroyed the backbone of Taffleman's forces, but my ship was shot to hell. Just before it was destroyed, I was wounded, and became unconscious.

"An Ensign got me to a lifeboat, and away from the ship, just before it blew up. The lifeboat took damage, and we crashed hard, onto a world. Everyone was either dead, or dieing. The lifeboat was cracked open like an egg.

"That's when it happened. I felt something crawl onto me, and then into me. It sealed my wounded leg, and started to... Ahh, meld with me, I guess you would say. It is a symbiot. It is partly organic, and partly a machine. It kept me alive. It is as much a part of me, as your arm or leg or eyes, are a part of you," Richard paused.

"This is all fascinating, Your Majesty, but what does it have to do with our current situation," a civilian scientist asked.

"I'm getting there. You needed the background to understand. The symbiot was placed very carefully on that planet for me to find. Or perhaps it was placed there, for It to find me. In any case, it has carefully guided me towards this very situation.

"A lot of the technological breakthroughs came via the symbiot. The symbiot is the one who tampered with the settings, and brought the extra fusion plant on line. That enabled the time shift.

"The machinery is fine. It will work as designed. Captain, if you and your officers will remain, the civilian department heads will now return to their work, and get this ship ready for departure," Richard said with a tone of dismissal.

There was a moment of shocked silence, then the civilians stood and left, leaving only Richard, the captain, and his senior officers.

"Ok. This is what we are going to do. There is no point in going to Terra, or any of the other political entities of this era. There is no trace of us in any of the history books, nor any hints from the various intelligence agencies. A ship of our size was never seen in this Era. I think it's safe to assume we don't go anywhere that is currently populated.

"I have a course and heading for us. Captain, we will need to use the wormhole generators to get to where I want to go. I will give you the coordinates. We have two stops. The first will bring us out close to a very large, but very damaged Terran 'Sleeper' colonization ship.

"When we get there, you will find that it's nuclear power generators have failed. Of the 250,000 men, woman, and children on that ship; at this point (or at the point we find them), a little over 22,000 people have died from equipment failure. We really need to go rescue them.

"I can see that you're finding it hard to believe what I am telling you. That's fine. Tell you what. You go ahead and get us to this point in space. If the colony ship is not there, you can build a rubber room for me," Richard said.

There was a restrained chuckle. Richard gave the spacial coordinates to the captain, and left the briefing room.

"All right. You heard the Emperor. Let's get this ship moving," Captain Manson snapped out.

Imperial Palace, Current Time

Empress Vonda Newcastle sat despondently. Her husband Emperor Richard Newcastle, had been declared missing, along with the crew of the Phoenix. Actually, officially, they were listed as 'over due'.

However, two other ships had made the same trip, and arrived at the point where the Phoenix was supposed to have arrived. Although listed as 'over due', the unofficial word was they thought that the ship had suffered some sort of failure in, or going into, or because of, the wormhole.

Vonda was holding the baby and rocking him, when she heard it.

<Vonda. Don't grieve. I will return... soon, >

The baby in Vonda's arms gurgled happily.

She looked around, trying to pinpoint the source. She was sure it was Richard's 'voice', yet he was not here.

Current Time Lantree

Admiral Sethton was once again standing before a full room of commanders of the Imperial Navy and Terran Federation's Navy. The outlook was not good. Intelligence had spotted a massive build up of enemy ships.

"So, as it stands, there will be a nearly 4 to 1 advantage for the enemy. Unless the Terran Federation or the Caliphate come through with reinforcements soon, I don't see how we can stand against this new force. Yet that is what we HAVE to do. It is going to be the biggest, bloodiest, battle in our history. It will be the greatest battle of any era, ever."

Admiral Sethton went on for sometime on that, then went into the briefing. Every ship that could possibly fight was already on station. Ships that were still being repaired, were being repaired in orbit. All docks were empty of ships that could possibly fight. Rear areas had been stripped almost bare of people and ships.

And so it was that the Allied fleet, some 280 ships strong, was about to face over 800 ships of the enemy. It was in fact, the beginning of the greatest space battle in known history. Admiral Sethton deployed his ships and waited.

It was a strange place for such a battle to take place. Lantree's fame was that this was where the Shas'vsaz first came into contact with the Empire. Lantree, in the larger scheme of things, was not important as a location in space. It was simply where the Shas'vsaz always came back, attacking. This time it would be bad, very bad.

Admiral Sethton had placed his ships and battle forts on a front almost a thousand kilometers wide and 500 kilometers from top to bottom. It was the smallest, most concentrated configuration he could create, while still having room to fight. The Battlesphere had launched every RDP (Remote Defense Platform) including all it's spares. Every fighter was launched, and was on station. There was nothing more to do, except wait.

700 YEARS IN THE PAST

The ship that Richard said would be there; was, in fact, there. The planet that he had said they could settle, was also there. So it was, that they started to build a new home. The planet was inhabited with symbionts. A symbiont was different from a symbiot. But they did basically the same jobs that Richard's symbiote did.

600 YEARS IN THE PAST

The first of the new weapons were installed on the Phoenix. There were also two Battlespheres of previously undreamed of power being built. It would take another 30 years before they were finished.