Awakening sf-2 Read online

  Awakening

  ( Spinward Fringe - 2 )

  Randolph Lalonde

  Randolph Lalonde

  Awakening

  Prologue

  General Collins looked on as a large silvered M shaped vessel bristling with strange antennae listed to one side. The blue fires of the engines flickered and went out. “The virus has been activated,” he said as he rotated the holographic display around. A few seconds later the twin engines relit and the vessel started its faster than light systems, covering the hull with a shroud of energized particles and blasting off into space. “It's too bad, they've advanced so far in so little time.”

  “Eden Two was a disaster, a wasted resource guarded by mad digital Gods,” said the holographic Regent Galactic representative. “Reclaiming it is man's right.”

  “This virus will go past that. Artificial Intelligences everywhere will be affected.”

  “That is why we must follow the link.”

  “And you're sure Gabriel Meunez is the man to find her? He's a freak, disturbed, blinded by his infatuation with Alice.”

  “That is a kind of dedication you cannot buy. He thinks everything he has was gained through his own hard work. That is our control, we can render him powerless by telling him the truth whenever we like. Even the prize he holds at this very moment is under our control, after a fashion. The truth of his situation would instantly disable him.”

  “That he has no control. He's a pawn,” Collins finished, running his hand over his short, neatly cropped white beard. “Still, I wish he could be reasoned with.”

  “His talents can be guided, much like Wheeler's.”

  Collins couldn't help but chuckle. “Guiding the minds of madmen is a lot like herding cats. As soon as you assume to know their intentions they prove you wrong and you lose an eye.”

  “That may be true, but would you rather participate in this game personally?”

  “With three wars about to break out and shatter the galaxy? I'll take my solitude. What about Valent?”

  “He's exactly where he's supposed to be.”

  “So he's been sold as well.”

  “At a profit. Freeground Command was more than willing to withdraw their claim. They won't be coming for him.”

  “I'm surprised. I didn't think they'd give him up. Even with Regent Galactic at their door. Even with the fate of their first colony on the line.”

  “Valent isn't worth the future of their civilization.”

  “If only they knew what he's caused. The fourth fall of man all started when he unleashed Alice on a super carrier. That artificial intelligence cost Vindyne more than it could afford, brought about it's eventual fall and has set entire sectors on a course to chaos.”

  “Theory, economic theory. Vindyne was a bloated corporation with a poor sense of purpose. What's of importance is the fact that Alice provided the base template for the virus that will bring all the machines of the Eden system under our command. A fearless regenerating army of billions at a pittance.”

  General Collins shook his head. “Ten years ago if you told me I would be commanding the scourge of the galaxy in a war for profit I would have laughed in your face.”

  “Not a war for profit. A crusade for peace through domination and commerce. We will direct the people to utopia using the cash messiah model.”

  “Your wealth will set you free. After avoiding a seventy year prison term I'm a believer, but the ninety nine percent of people who aren't rich enough to afford a piece of your utopia won't be.”

  The holographic image on Collins' desk straightened its suit shirt and watched as he walked to the window. A great blue and green planet surrounded by millions of perfect ships in orbit filled the view. He could just barely see one of the two terraformed moons. There was more natural life in the light year of space they occupied than in several sectors combined. “This is not the way any humane being would go about taking control of this kind of power. There is life out there, in orbit around the planet. Machines that have emotions as deep as any sentient.”

  “You try to apply humanitarianism to beings that have emotions exclusive to their race. What a machine feels is so unlike that of flesh and blood that a psychological baseline has not been determined by humans. It was related to us by an artificial intelligence. The first aliens humans ever met were of their own creation, the emotional artificial intelligence.”

  “Philosophical recitations as we watch the independence of all these shining beings die. There is a spirit in the machine, and today it is chained.”

  “Machines are unworthy of theological consideration. They are objects.”

  “So we are brought back to Alice and her miracle. The body she transferred into was brain dead, in queue for organ harvesting. There was no way any conciousness could survive yet she willed synapses to start firing anew. An impossible act during an impossible procedure.”

  “Miracles, spirits. Now whose gone mad? Will we have to watch you more closely after you've taken command? Will sympathy stay your hand when a sacrifice is asked of the silver army?”

  “The slightest measure of sympathy can translate positively into any emotional vocabulary. You can watch closely as I lead the Eden system's guardians like the pied piper.”

  “As you wish. You know the consequences of failure.”

  “I die, these machines go back to guarding the most sought after solar system in the galaxy preventing any human from settling on it. Then they begin a campaign of eradication targeting anyone who uses electrical technology.”

  “The stakes are high. We're glad you understand, General.”

  “Comprehension is not the problem. Rationalization is the problem, but there's always a loophole around my kind of moral disposition. I'll lead your army of machine locusts. I'll bring about the fourth fall of man. Then you can come in and rebuild the galaxy under your own brand name.”

  “The faces of angels are always prettier after staring down devils.” Replied the holographic avatar. “I enjoy our little chats. So sorry I have to go attend to the board of directors. They'll be glad to know you've accepted our job offer.”

  General Collins was left alone to watch the perfect ballet of unmanned ships around Eden II. He was the only human in the solar system, and the only man alive who understood how his virus would sweep through the fleet. The millions of artificial intelligences would soon be the servants of Regent Galactic. Only he and a handful of people would ever know how it had happened.

  On the brighter side, within months the select social elite would begin making their homes on Eden II. “I wonder what Jonas Valent and Alice would say if they knew they'd be responsible for the suppression of mankind and the second founding of paradise,” he pondered aloud.

  Arrival At Seneschal

  Repairs in hyperspace were always a careful thing. The Samson had sustained a lot of damage in her escape from the Thadd system. Finn wasn't ready to be the Chief Engineer, he knew it. So when the Captain started directing internal repairs and watching over the ship he couldn't have been more relieved.

  The bridge station didn't tell him half the story about the damage sustained during their escape. There were two sections of bulkhead that had twisted, and a total of five compartments open to space. Two repair crew, Douglas and Julie were trapped in those compartments. They owed their lives to the ship wide policy of living in their vacsuits and keeping head pieces on your person at all times. Most of the vacsuits that were provided by the Captain had them built into hoods, but most of the maintenance crew had difficulty trusting the thin looking, form fitting suits, regardless of the fact that they provided more protection than the rough, heavy, older suits they preferred.

  Even though they had been saved from the vacuum of space they s
till had to deal with the exotic particles that covered the outer hull of the ship during hyperspace travel. They had been pooling in the breached sections and would injure or kill Douglas and Julie in higher concentrations. Watching how Captain Valance directed the pair of trapped repair crewmen through sealing themselves off in a small section and then using a portable power cell to scatter the particles evenly throughout was amazing.

  His calm was contagious. Douglas was near panic when Finn first discovered that there were two engineering crew stuck in a section that were sealed off. As time went on and Captain Valance worked with the pair to secure a compartment for them Douglas was so at ease that he and Julie were joking about it.

  Finn even had the time and ease to ask them; “I'm wondering, why is it that all the men on the ship are called by their last names and the women by their first?”

  “I really don't know. Besides, I thought that was your first name.” Answered Julie.

  “Nope, it's Billy.”

  “Oh. I don't know which one I like better,” Julie said as she worked on another weld.

  “Hey Stephanie, were you around when that started?” Asked Douglas.

  Stephanie wasn't within actual earshot, she was helping the Captain run cables down half the length of the ship. She heard them loud and clear on the communicator. “It's something I've seen on a couple other ships too, now that you mention it. I know the issyrians do it in the military.”

  “Actually, we don't. You must be thinking of the Kallens.” Answered Price. “Our females are the dominant sex in our culture though, so I could see where you'd get confused. Most humans have difficulty grasping our culture.”

  “Do you know why it started Captain?” Stephanie asked.

  “The first crew I hired on brought it on with them. They were from Cadiz.”

  “You hired your first crew in Cadiz? That's what, eleven hundred light years away?” Ashley asked.

  “A little closer to twelve hundred actually.” The Captain answered. “How is it going in the rear compartment? Are the welds finished?”

  “Just now sir, we should be in great shape to come out of hyperspace. Thank you for saving our butts,” Douglas said with a chuckle.

  “Don't thank me, you guys did all the work, I just had the plan. Besides, who do you think will have to repair the ship when we arrive?”

  “That arrival will be in about five minutes,” Ashley said.

  “I'm on my way. I'll need Cynthia up there as well.”

  “On my way sir.”

  A few moments later Cynthia and Captain Valance joined Ashley on the bridge. Despite the difficult two days they had in hyperspace, they had all managed to get some rest in shifts.

  “Coming out of hyperspace in 3, 2, 1,” Ashley counted down.

  The Samson expelled waste gases that had accumulated during hyperspace, it spread out like large white wings for several seconds before the gas and crystallized liquids dissipated. The Enreega system was very well defended and they were not allowed to come out of hyperspace within two hundred thousand kilometres of the central planet, Seneschal.

  “Their perimeter defence station is hailing us sir,” Cynthia stated as she put the message up on the main bridge display.

  An image of the three crossed swords representing their government appeared on the central holoprojector. “Please proceed to the coordinates provided as we look your ship's transponder code up in our registry,” came the audio announcement.

  “I have the coordinates, following their instructions,” Ashley confirmed.

  Captain Valance waited patiently as the station processed their information.

  “We have six fighters coming in our direction.”

  “Don't worry Ash, the Aucharians are hyper vigilant. They're at war with Regent Galactic,” Captain Valance reassured.

  “So that's why we're here,” she replied, nodding.

  “The enemy of our enemy is our friend. Especially when one of their top people owes me a favour.”

  The main display and Ashley's navigation controls came to life with images of the massive defence station and the large blue planet thousands of kilometres behind it. “Please release your helm controls. You are clear to land on the station, Samson.”

  Ashley released the controls and Port control started guiding the Samson in. The six fighters that had been circling them moved off to continue their patrol. As they closed in on the defence station its deadliness became plain. It was a massive, wide, flat structure with bays, extendible moorings and fighter launch tubes right down the length of it. On the top and bottom were hundreds of huge turrets.

  “What kind of guns are those?” Ashley asked quietly.

  “Some are energy, but most are gauss cannons that fire special munitions. They've been known to send rounds over fifty light years.”

  One of the massive cannons fired. Only the trail of light was visible, the projectile itself moved too fast to see with the naked eye. Ashley looked at her panel for a moment. “Wow, that was travelling at half the speed of light.”

  “And if it had a target too far off for that to be effective, you can bet it has a faster than light system.” Stephanie said from the left bridge hatchway. “Finn just finished checking our landing gear, he says we didn't take any serious damage so we'll be fine if the station decides to set us down in a pressurized bay.”

  “Good to know, but I don't think they'll bother, not with the damage we've sustained,” Captain Valance commented.

  The Samson was guided into one of the larger openings in the front of the station and as the Captain had guessed, mooring arms locked onto the ship then two embarkation tunnels sealed to their airlocks. “Welcome to Seneschal Defense Station Three,” said the voice over the communicator.

  Jake's control and command unit sent a very mild tingling sensation into his arm. He had a message. “Okay, work on the ship as best you can with what you have, I'll see what I can do to get us some help. Oh, and make sure Julie and Douglas get some shuteye,” He ordered. He answered the incoming call. “Minister Lorne, I didn't expect to hear from you so early. How is your brother these days?”

  “Rotting in prison where he belongs, I'm happy to say,” replied a cheerful older gentleman's voice over the communicator.

  “You're welcome. What has you up at four in the morning?”

  “Big category nine hurricane down on the planet. I'm watching the planetary engineers prepare the break wall from orbit. Care to join me?”

  “Sure, but I've come on business. You might have heard?”

  “I have. You're getting very popular here and I had a feeling you'd pay us a visit considering we're the biggest opponents to Regent Galactic. Port control has a shuttle ready for you, let's talk in person.”

  “All right, I'll be over as soon as I secure things here. We took some damage on our way out of the Thadd system.”

  “I could imagine. I'll put a request in for some maintenance personnel to help you out. See you soon Jake.”

  Ashley was staring at him expectantly. For a moment he pretended not to notice but when he looked up she gave him a big toothy grin.

  “Okay, okay, you can come with,” Jake said with a sigh.

  Ashley threw her arms up in celebration. “God, it'll be so nice to get off the ship and stretch.”

  “Not to mention see some of the most beautiful ships in space,” Stephanie added with a smirk.

  Ashley looked to her, concerned. “You're the First Officer now, maybe you should go instead.”

  She shook her head. “I've seen this system before. Besides, I have to stay behind and supervise repairs.”

  “Good point,” Ashley said.

  “Let's get going. I get the feeling the Minister wants us there as soon as possible,” Captain Valance said, taking his long coat from the back of the command chair.

  Old Debts

  Ashley followed Captain Valance in relative silence. He was downright intimidating to anyone ahead. Crewmen and soldiers just doing their
jobs looked down the broad polished hallway and couldn't help but stare for a moment then get out of the way. The Captain was just over six feet, wore black body armour with thin overlapping metal strips and a black long coat over top. They were armoured cloaking field emitters that could manipulate the movement of air, muffle sound, and create a field that completely hid him from sight and sensors. Over top the armour and black long coat he always wore a white silk scarf; as if he didn't stand out enough.

  She didn't go along with him often, she supposed it was her lack of combat training and the fact that she was the only other person aboard that could fly the Samson well. He had trained her himself after purchasing her from a very wealthy Baron many light years away. Once they arrived back on the ship she was told to stand on the bridge beside the command chair. She did.

  For an entire week she watched everything on the bridge. What she didn't know was that he was watching her. It didn't take him long to see that she couldn't stop staring at the pilot's station, she was fascinated with that post in particular. Ashley thought she was doing her duty as a slave, fetching him drinks and food from the galley, but that was a ruse.

  After the first job she was aboard for, it was a cargo heist, she found a share of the take in her bunk footlocker after the stolen goods were sold. She approached him on the bridge and to her surprise he told her she could buy her freedom for one hundred credits. She didn't know what to say, she was born a slave, raised a slave and thought she was already lucky to have a quiet, but kind master. Never would she forget the moment he just reached into her thigh pocket, took out three fifty credit chits, put one back and told her; “now you're free. Tell me if you'd like some work.”

  The next year and a half flew by. She was at the controls of a simulated ship the very next day. The Captain, Monica who was the pilot at the time, and Silver all took turns helping her learn the ropes. A couple months later she was at the controls to the Samson for the first time and just as the Captain had guessed, she was a natural. Months later Monica retired to one of the Captain's cargo haulers and Ashley became the lead pilot. Since then she had seen combat, touched down on metal, land, water and even navigated a shifting nebula. The Captain still took the controls from time to time, but she knew he trusted her with his ship. In fact, the entire crew trusted her.