Chapter 29

FRI JULY 19

I felt like I’d been run over by a soil mover ... twice ... when I woke up. “He’s awake,” Jenna cried out. Suddenly I was surrounded by my wives and significant others. They helped me drink two more of the enhanced EB mixes while my head cleared. Qwraten showed up a few minutes later, apologizing for over-taxing me so badly. This was the first time the ceremony had been performed on another species and he had overestimated my energy reserves. I’d been asleep for two days. He, on the other hand, had been regenerated after only six hours since his body was being constantly recharged and since the android body had its own cold-fusion power supply.

“Mike, all five of your colony ships have had the upgrades to their engines and power supplies. Your carbon-fiber manufacturing plant in Cairo has also been upgraded so they can begin to manufacture way gates. The carbon is melted, something that requires tremendous pressure and heat in a nearly perfect vacuum. Then it will be guided into the correct shape as it cools and crystallizes. They will be ready to begin manufacturing tomorrow. Within days, you will have the first set of way gates ready to take back to Alpha Centauri for installation. After that, you will be able to begin the manufacture of two new sets every day,” Qwraten explained. I was surprised, mainly because I wasn’t aware of any possible way carbon could be melted.

We headed for the area where the colony ships were being stored. While I had received frequent updates about the progress on the ships before my initiation, I hadn’t actually seen them since they had arrived here. The last report I had was that the upgraded power plants and engines had been completed and installed, and the upgrades to the speed, cloaking, and shielding were finished. Our power plants and engines took up less than a third of the space of Derevenko’s, leaving considerable extra room for storage of supplies.

The ships were no longer the gaudy red that Derevenko had painted them either, now being a non-reflective flat black. We had originally named the ships the Leif Eriksson, the Marco Polo, the Zhang Qian, the Christopher Columbus, and the Amerigo Vespucci. Now, the Leif Eriksson, Marco Polo, and Zhang Qian had DEFENDER OMEGA 1, DEFENDER OMEGA 2, and DEFENDER OMEGA 3 written in both English and in the Defender’s language. Each ship had dual markings, the four-sun logo of the Defenders and my Omega logo.

Aboard each of the three colony ships that had been prepared for Qwraten were 35 Bumblebees. James had already turned 75 of the captured pirate and estate ships into exploration Bumblebees with accompanying exploration transports even before Qwraten arrived, and had finished 20 more sets since then. Thinking ahead while I slept, James also upgraded the engines and power supplies of those Bumblebeees like the new colony ship upgrades. Each colony ship carried enough exploration Bumblebees to leave one at every inhabitable or interesting solar system they expected to encounter along the way, as well as ten extras. Those trained Bumblebee captains who hadn’t been accepted for the original exploration group each requested to pilot one of the new ships on this journey of discovery. They knew that it would be more than a year before they got back. Each Bumblebee would be dropped off along the way and directed to a nearby solar system to explore it thoroughly. James and Qwraten had created more than the three special androids, creating enough that every Bumblebee that went would have one aboard to provide instant communication across the vast reaches of space with either Qwraten or myself.

Most of the solar systems would be uninhabitable, but we would study them simply for the sake of studying them. Those studies would probably begin in a couple of years, depending on the size of the solar system, the number of planets, and any unique attributes the system had. Many systems would include interesting planets, and if so, the study would go on for a year or more, collecting data on the air, climate, geology, strength of the sun’s rays, availability of water, availability of minerals on the planet and in any nearby asteroids, and existing flora and fauna. Those systems with habitable planets or with extensive mineral deposits worth mining or other valuable resources (like lumber) would eventually get a way gate.

Each of the three colony ships would be going by at least one of the planets with Gerrigenian-transplanted humans. At each of those six solar systems, four military Bumblebees, four exploration Bumblebees, four exploration transports, two supply ships, a troop transport with 3000 android troops, a shuttle transport with 100 two passenger and 100 ten passenger shuttles aboard, and a hospital ship would be dropped off. Their orders were only to observe unless intervention was necessary to prevent or stop an unprovoked attack on a group of people on the planet’s surface. If that happened, the captain of the lead military Bumblebee would be my designated representative to that planet and if necessary, would act as Governor of the planet until my arrival.

There was also an empty exploration transport aboard for each of the Defenders they expected to rescue, and ten extras, just in case they managed to find others. As Qwraten’s power increased, so would his range for communication. His plans were to return each of the rescued Defenders to our base to recuperate, using one of the exploration Transports each time one was rescued.

We watched with keen anticipation as DEFENDER OMEGA 1 left, followed minutes later by DEFENDER OMEGA 2, and then DEFENDER OMEGA 3. Together, the size of the three ships was almost a quarter the size of the armada that left for Russia. I was excited about contact with another intelligent species, by what I had already learned from Qwraten, by the possibilities this opened up, and by the excitement of the promised contact with human beings on four other worlds.

After a question-filled lunch, Qwraten and I headed for the school. There had been rumors and half-facts running rampant around the base for the two days that I slept and I felt it was time to let everyone know what was going on.

I apologized to Li’s teacher for the interruption and explained that I wanted to make an important announcement to the entire base from their classroom. Surrounded by the students, with Li on my lap and Qwraten standing behind my shoulder, I began the announcement that was broadcast on screens across both bases, in every city at the base we had people living in, and on every one of our ships around the world, as well as the three that just left.

I explained who and what Qwraten was, cutting to a shot of his glowing, crystalline body. I explained about the war the Defenders had been involved in, and that Qwraten was currently recuperating from injuries received when his energy was sapped in a battle 3000 years ago. I told them that I had accepted his offer to become the first Defender ever of a different species, and that three of our colony ships just left to rescue at least twelve more injured Defenders. I explained that the ships would be dropping off survey teams in solar systems along the way, many of which had planets that could be colonized. Finally, I told them Qwraten had given us the knowledge we needed to build way gates we could locate across the galaxy to provide instant transportation to other solar systems. Once the way gates were installed and operational, the trip to other solar systems would take no longer than the trip to reach the closest way gate.

I answered the questions forwarded to us via the android that helped us set up. First, I had not obligated anyone on the base except myself for anything. Anyone who wished could still leave at any time. Second, yes, anyone here who wanted would be considered for one of the colonization efforts. The final answer was the doozy. Yes, there was intelligent life out there besides the Defenders and us, although the Defenders were by far the most advanced. There were also four planets out there with a human population descended from people who left Earth voluntarily several thousand years ago. To the best of our knowledge, the most advanced transplanted human civilizations were still thousands of years behind us, and the rest were even farther behind. Part of my responsibility as a Defender would be to watch over and guide the people on those four planets, protecting them from each other if necessary. To that end, the three ships that just left took four military Bumblebees and other ships to watch over each of the human-inhabited worlds that they passed. As I signed off, I hoped that I had put their minds at ease and possibly excited them about the possibilities.

Li’s classmates had a dozen children’s questions: where did Qwraten live, what were the names of the planets the other humans lived on, did he have any children (two), were there any green space people (yes, yellow and blue, too), did the children on the other planets with humans have to go to school, and so on. I finished by reminding them that I got where I was mainly because I learned so much in school.

I had enabled the link to Sven so he could watch the broadcast. He commed me right afterward suggesting that we might as well make the announcement to the heads of government around the world before word got out. I agreed, suggesting that we have the meeting here so everyone could actually meet Qwraten. Besides, where else would they find such tight security? Sven concurred, saying he would set it up as soon as possible, probably tomorrow if he could. I asked if he would personally extend an invitation to the Russian Transition Council. He agreed, saying he’d make that phone call first.

The base was abuzz with talk about Qwraten and the information he had given us. Most people were excited about contact with another intelligent life form, albeit slightly worried about any ulterior motives. I assured everyone who asked or commented that I had access to Qwraten’s mind and thoughts during the ceremony and there were no ulterior motives. While still weak, he possessed enough power to have simply taken any of the ships he wanted without asking, but that was not their way. They would have loved Teddy Roosevelt and his policy of “Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.” The Defenders always tried diplomacy to avoid or to end any existing conflict between two or more parties, but anyone knowing the Defenders knew the conflict had to end immediately with any further issues to be worked out peacefully at a future date agreeable to all.

Failure to do so meant immediate intervention. Immediate intervention could take many forms. Generally, they did what we did with everyone, shield them and then knock them out. When they finally came to, they usually found their weapons missing or incapacitated. If all else failed, warring parties would be shielded from each other with a limited supply of air and water, or whatever things they required to sustain life. Failure to reach a cease-fire before those items ran out would cause the hostilities to cease when the air ran out. If one side ceased and the other didn’t, both sides would remain shielded, but only the unruly side remained cut off from the necessities for life. To date, only three small groups had ever pushed it that far, unwilling to believe that the Defenders would carry out the threat. The war with the Gerrigenians had been the first major use of physical violence by the Defenders in well over 185,000 years. There had been minor incidents when they had tried to break up a conflict and one or both sides turned on them. Anyone firing at them was immediately incinerated, even though their attack would not have harmed the Defenders.

While Sven scurried to set up the meeting, Qwraten and I talked. He admitted that there were two additional reasons he specifically wanted me to join them. The first was that, even though the Mingtons were an extremely advanced and knowledgeable civilization, only the Defenders, the warriors of their race, had survived. The warriors understood the things they had learned as warriors, but had little understanding what much of the advanced knowledge of their civilization meant. Using an analogy I would understand, he likened it to giving a normal grade school student a book containing the mathematical formulas explaining everything from the beginnings of the universe to the intricacies of life. Some would eventually come to understand more of it than others, but none of them could hope to ever grasp even a significant portion. He hoped that my scientific background would help to restore some of the understanding that had been lost. I got the sense that I already understood more about some of the information I had received than he did.

The other reason he wanted me to join them was one he couldn’t tell me about. If he did, it might change my normal behavior, and when the time came for me to make certain decisions, I might make them because I felt obligated to, and not necessarily of my own free will.

Having piqued my curiosity, he went on to explain that there were two basic rules the Defenders could not violate. Violating either would cause the warrior to immediately lose his Defender powers, reverting to a normal citizen. The first was that we couldn’t force anyone to do anything against their will except to stop them from starting or finishing an attack. He did say that we could render punishment of any kind for crimes someone was convicted of, though. The second thing was we were not allowed to alter history in any way. When I questioned him further on that point, he admitted that nobody he knew of had ever been powerful enough to travel back in time, but it had reportedly been done at some point in the distant past.

Next, Qwraten did some more training, taking me into a sort of trance and guiding me, helping me locate the “seed” that he’d created in my mind, a small grain like sand made from the same material as his crystalline body. He taught me how to channel energy to the seed, sending current he generated through my body to make sure I was channeling it properly. The seed would continue to grow until it was roughly a quarter inch in diameter. When it was fully charged, I would be able to generate additional seeds, turning one into a crystalline body of my own. Qwraten and the other Defenders had been born normal Minton citizens on their planet. Only after being inducted as Defender Warriors were they able to generate a crystalline body. Their normal bodies had died when the Gerrigenians destroyed their home planet and they lived only like this, now.

Other seeds I would be able create could be used to create my own androids like his that I could send wherever I wanted. I would be connected to them all the time, and would see and know everything they saw and knew. Planetary exploration was the first thing that crossed my mind!

Finally, Qwraten downloaded more information into my mind, limiting the amount this time so I wasn’t so exhausted afterward. He explained that it was probably the creation of my seed that had tired me so badly, not the initiation. While I continued to eat meals with everyone, I realized that my body was able to get much of the energy it needed from the seed. One interesting development was that I had all the energy I needed to satisfy all of my women every day. I also didn’t need to sleep as much, as my body now absorbed energy from my surroundings and constantly healed and rejuvenated itself. I still slept, though, since I enjoyed being snuggled amidst the naked bodies of the women I loved all night. It also let my body recharge faster since I wasn’t using as much energy while I slept.

SAT JULY 20

Poor Sven could have used some of that energy; he looked like hell the next morning. He spent most of the last 24 hours arguing with delegates of every country in the world over where and when to have the meeting. He finally told them brusquely that it would be at the Omega Base at noon New York time. If they wanted to be there, great, if not, that was fine too. Two representatives from each country would be allowed. They had to figure out how to get there on their own, but he was sure no armed ships would be allowed except UN ships. Suddenly there was a mad scramble as all of the world’s governments tried to line up a ride to the base on a UN ship.

Something deep in my brain had me subconsciously put a hand on the side of Sven’s neck. I realized partway through what I was doing: it was a transfer of energy. Sven stared at me when I finished.

“What did you do?” he asked.

“Gave you enough energy to get through the day,” I answered.

“You should patent and bottle that. It was way better than EB,” he laughed.

A much more relaxed and refreshed Sven finally addressed the assembled delegates. The authorized journalists were here covering the meeting, too, but couldn’t release the information until tomorrow. It was, however, broadcast live to all of our monitors on the base and aboard ships.

There was a collective gasp from the assemblage when Sven announced the existence of and contact with a life form that was more advanced than we were. Then he turned the meeting over to me to explain everything. At first, several delegates tried to shout out questions, but I simply talked over them, letting them know that I wouldn’t be answering questions just yet. They quickly quieted down because they couldn’t hear what I was saying. When I finished, I uncloaked Qwraten’s crystalline body, and let his android body answer their questions. I purposely began by choosing the smallest countries, letting them ask the obvious questions. By the time we had gone through a quarter of the countries, there were no more new questions.

At that point, I told them that I intended to release this information to the entire world tomorrow at noon Omega Base time. That would allow them 24 hours to get back and make whatever arrangements they felt were necessary in case there was any rioting. Talking afterwards, many of the delegates I had called on for questions were curious why I had called on them instead of the big countries. I explained that I wanted to take the bigger countries down a couple of notches since they had been the rude ones shouting questions without giving me a chance to speak first.

Several of the diplomats ate lunch with us, getting to know Qwraten better. After lunch, they left for their homes, and Qwraten downloaded more information to me. At his suggestion, I’d started taking the neural growth solution again. Everyone else that had been taking it, with the exception of Britney, had stopped after 30 days. I let Britney take it for 60 days. By then, she was up to third grade material.

I could actually see what he was downloading to me this time, kind of like ultra-speed reading. Several items stood out and made me think about some of the projects of the scientists starting their research in Alamogordo. They would like this information. The giant housing tower in Alamogordo had been finished and almost everyone except the military had moved in. It was definitely a prototype. Rather than provide several levels for cold and hot fusion shuttle parking atop the building, every fourth level was shuttle parking.

The top floor of the building had a large pool and recreation area. Two floors were set up as kitchens and dining halls, although only one was currently in use. Two more entire floors were set up as gyms, complete with two separate quarter mile indoor tracks. One track was real grass and the other was a synthetic surface. Each track had a real grass field inside of it, and the area over the field extended up into the next floor making it possible to play soccer on the field. There were basketball and tennis courts, as well as lap pools along both ends of the floor. Both exercise floors had hundreds of workout machines of all types, as well.

The first lab building in Alamogordo was finished, too, and over 100 leading scientists had already moved in, including eighteen who won individual science awards this year, and 57 who had previously won them.

Their families (the ones that had families) were ecstatic about their new single-family homes, and the non-scientist spouses were overjoyed with the extra help. I knew it wasn’t a perfect answer, but felt that it would go far to alleviate a lot of the stress on their marriages caused by the non-scientist spouse having to do everything. The single scientists (at least the male ones and several of the female ones) discovered an additional benefit. Living in a housing tower with tens of thousands of beautiful single women (and did I mention frequently horny?) made the scientists instant targets. Several of the women ended up as lab assistants ... some because they had lab experience and others because they had different type of experience the scientists appreciated. An unintentional benefit to having families moving in from the “real” world was that their children were teaching ours how to play and to just be kids.

When Qwraten was finished with the download, he commented that he thought my seed was completely energized, something he hadn’t expected nearly so soon. He guided me through the process of generating another seed and I felt like a proud papa when I was finished. The Defenders had several words that translated roughly as seed. Their word for this type of seed, sknized, translated better as “seed of consciousness.” The seed was the size of a single grain of sand, and glowed, having taken half of my existing energy with it. We set it on a metal tray and started running current to the tray to charge it. When I concentrated, I could feel some type of mental connection and could feel the energy flowing into the seed. I increased the current, slowly, waiting to see how the seed reacted to the increase. By the time I stopped turning up the juice, Qwraten looked nervous.

“Are you sure that isn’t too much energy?” he asked anxiously.

“I backed off when it started to tingle,” I explained.

Qwraten watched my seed for a minute before telling me, “At this rate, your crystalline body may be charged enough to fly in less than a month. I don’t understand it.”

“Is it possible that my human DNA somehow altered the seed?” I asked.

Qwraten shrugged. “That is the type of thing we hope you will help us understand,” he admitted. He plotted a graph showing how much energy he was able to absorb at various levels then plotted the graph for what he thought mine was. Mine was definitely steeper. Much steeper. He calculated that it would take him six months to get back to a 50% charge. At that point, he could fly right next to the sun and finish recharging instantly. A new Defender, one the size of mine, would usually take a year or more to grow to half-size and a 50% charge.

I checked back an hour later, increasing the power even more. It was now even ahead of the advanced curve Qwraten had plotted. I turned my own current up some, too. We stood watch over the seed, adjusting the current every fifteen minutes and re-plotting the graph.

SUN JULY 21

About an hour after midnight, the crystal was the size of a softball. My energy level was full again, too. Qwraten suggested that I create another seed, a sknimal, guiding me in the creation of a “seed of awareness.” Once I finished, he suggested putting it into one of the androids, which would allow me to be in two places at once. I also noticed that it took very little energy to create this seed. Qwraten explained that the seed of consciousness was similar to giving birth, while the seed of awareness was more like removing a single grain of my existing seed. Both grains were instantly replaced, and each time I created a seed, mine would become stronger and capable of absorbing more energy than before. I commed James and he provided me with a look-alike android that had an unprogrammed brain of human brain cells. Qwraten showed me how to install the seed, and after turning the android back on, I got the weirdest experience of my life. I was watching myself through someone else’s eyes ... or more correctly, through my new, second set of eyes. The dizziness that accompanied the added sensory input only lasted for a couple of minutes before I got used to it. A few more minutes and it was second nature to me, almost as if I’d been born with the ability. James looked surprised when I commed him without talking, using the android’s internal communication system. This was cool.