CHAPTER 2 : LONG TRIP

CHAPTER 2 : LONG TRIP

Interlude: Devastator

The Devi dropped out of Quasi Space and one could almost hear the entire crew sigh in relieve. The huge ship and her crew was back in the Union Galaxy and was heading straight for Arsenal IV, her home port. The situation in the Fornax Cluster was not clear but progress to connect that cluster with a string of space stations was made in breakneck speed. The new 234th Fleet Command had taken permanent residence at Fornax Hub and several battle groups with battle hungry Attikan Crews patrolled and surveyed that cluster, eager to find any signs of Y'All Clones. Long range expeditions were sent out to find traces of the enemy as well, in other words the situation was under control as good as it could be. There was a mountain of intelligence reports to shift through and with a Narth sphere now operating under Union Flag easily able to reach any trouble spot in mere hours was quite reassuring to the Old Admiral.

Captain Harris got up from his chair and stretched." I am the last one saying it but it will be good to have a little R&R. I truly love this big tub of ours but no Virtu Simulation can really replace open Sky and the warm rays of good ol Sol!"

Richard Stahl gave his old friend a knowing smile."Indeed old friend. I too look forward to a little off time. I just might do the same and go to Terra. Bavaria is especially scenic this time of year and I might just make it in time to the Oktoberfest."

„Don't they have them all over the Galaxy?"

„Not like this, nothing is quite like the original."

The Captain of the Devastator looked up to the tall Immortal. " So are the rumors true?"

„What rumors?"

„You and the General?"

„I had no idea there were rumors about that."

„As big as this ship is, it's a closed community and there are eyes and ears everywhere. You know that."

„I have no idea what the rumors say but yes something might happen, not that I have any plans but she is a woman and I could be twice as old and not figure them out. Now I suggest you get this ship landed."

Stahl left the bridge while Harris prepared the Devi for planet fall. It did not happen often and was a major task.

He reached his office and was greeted by McElligott's Avatar." Good to have you back old battle ax. The Nul and the rest of our enemies already starting to miss you."

„Well they have to miss me a little longer then. I am planning for a nice little vacation and tend to take it."

„I think it will do you good, but we do have a few situations I think you need to know about. Situations I have kept of the regular channels."

Stahl sighed."It never really ends does it?"

„I am afraid not, my friend. The situations are well at hand as much as possible but still I wanted your opinion."

„Just get it off your mind and tell me already."

„ You do remember Admiral Swybar?"

„Yes but I never thought to hear this name again. Was he not executed?"

„Apparently not. His execution had been faked and he was rescued in quite a spectacular way. NAVINT believes it was the Worm acting for the Kermac."

Stahl grunted a curse in his old native language. "Is our Intel asleep? We are preparing for a possible new Y'All invasion and don't need any internal security problems. I have a good mind and taking the First fleet straight to Kermac Prime and end it once and for all. If we strike fast, it be over before they know give me the rest of the bad news, somehow I don't think this is all."

„No it is not. Swybin used his old contacts and his considerable insider knowledge to obtain a ship load of the finest Union Mil Tech along with a Ship that is second to none. He is in possession of the Red Dragon Prototype loaded to the max with weapons, including a Translocator canon. Thankfully a heroic Oromal technician, destroyed the weapon. He paid with his life doing it, but we are sure he has full control of the rest."

There was no sense crying over spilled milk, but Stahl was still angry. "And what is done about it?"

„We aree currently overhauling the security on our Bone Yard planets and revising the material acquisition procedure, Cherubim went under cover to hunt for the rouge Admiral and to find out who or what is behind. Initial reports have him with two unidentified accomplices, we think at least one is Kermac."

„There is little I can do. The Devi is a battle ship, I am a Soldier. Despite all this I am no spy, no counter intelligence expert. This is nothing I can solve with Exo canons and Space marines, unless the Assembly finally sees the light and declares war on the Kermac."

„It is not all as bad as it seems. I think considering it all our system as big as it is had reacted quite fast to the situation and it has shown us weak points in our armor. The Union is simply to big for us to keep it all water tight! Nelson II will be online in a year and Narth Supreme promised us 200 Narth to boost the numbers of our PSI Corps. With these assets we can start sweeping and exterminate the worm."

Stahl had calmed down and actually began to pack a little suit case. Not that he needed to, but he was old fashioned in many ways and unlike other Admirals he didn't even have a personal assistant or a big staff of Adjutants. "Anything else?"

"It never made the big news, and I think you know much more about it than I do, but the Coven have joined the Union."

Stahl did stop packing and turned to face his ancient friend. "From what I know about them this is perhaps as significant as the Narth's decision to become more active."

"Well the Narth and the Saresii delegates immediately embraced the new Coven representative and that indicates that much to me, what are they Richard? And why did you send that Cadet there?" "I actually don't know much more about them than you do, but I know they are not home in our Universe. They are very old, control powers I don't understand and have deep wisdom and knowledge about the greater scheme of things. I know the Narth respect them and that should tell you something. I do know one of them very personal and I trust her blind. It was her who rescued me during my exile and it was them who helped me to find and access this ship!"

"What about the Cadet, how does he fit in?"

"They believe he might be the key to fight the Dark Ones. You know as well as I do that this is our true purpose. It is the real reason the Guardian has made us immortal. It was not the Xunx or the Kermac, it is not the Y"All. We will face something else, something much more dangerous and powerful ina final test."

Now the old Highlander cursed in his old gaelic brough. "I never dared to say it openly but yes I think the same way. The more the Union grows the more do we become like the Celtest. I just hoped we have a few thousand more years to develop."

Stahl closed the suit case. "The Coven does not know if it will happen soon,as far as I know. I think they are in the dark as we all are as to when this test' whatever it might be' will happen. But I am sure they have no doubt it will happen."

Elligott reached for the Comm. Controls."I guess all we can do is as we always did, play by ear, reinforce the armor as much as we can and face the crisis when it is upon us." He waved and cut the transmission.

From out of the shadows in the background Alycia stepped into the light."You are a wise man Richard."

"Not as wise as I would like to be. I would love to know what I can do to prepare us better for that conflict!" He looked at her."If this is going to work between us, you got to use doors, girl. This sudden appearance number is something I never get used to!"

"I promise, doors from now on! I also going to show you how this is done so you can travel this way. It is a time saved you know."

„So the Coven has joined? The Cadet has been there?"

„Yes he saw our true forms and acted like a real Union Officer. He tried to establish first contact and impressed us all. There was no fear, but I think someone who has seen the Hugavh of a Narth can not be shocked by anything really."

She stepped into his reach and rested her arms on his wide shoulders. "We don't think the fight against the Dark Ones can be won with military power as the Celtest have tried. We think it will be a confrontation of a different nature. The forces will manifest itself in avatars, in beings and these beings will face each other. The prophecy speaks of a decision that will be made and that act will decide the outcome of this fight for all eternity to come"

„This is way to metaphysical for me, Alycia. I like to think that I can make a difference with this ship, with marines and with good old human sweat and blood and not mythical super powers."

" And you will. You do know that I will follow you to whatever end. The Narth joined the Union and so did we. I can not say it any other way, but I feel it is you who will persevere. I think I told you the future is not pre determined. It is  shaped by each action we take, but we think there is a reason we Coven manifested in this Universe of all the possible choices. While there are an infinite number of Parallel Universes and realities, there is only one Coven and we think this is the only Universe with Narth. We are certain the decision is made here in this reality in this Universe."

"So this Eric. Is he the one you think he is? Is he the one to face the Dark Ones?"

„He came before the Coven and we showed him the token to see if he could touch it. To me and you, to everyone it appears to be a simple ring with a fanged skull symbol. Yet no one could touch it. It seems right before you and yet whenever you reach for it it seems out of reach, it is always a finger tip with away, no matter how you try."

Richard held his breath." It is one of those artifacts you told me about?"

"Yes, the circle is certain it is one of the twelve tokens. once they are united the Dark One returns to this plane of existence. We are very certain that this ring is one of those."

"So what happened?"

"Eric wears that ring as we speak! He simply took it and mentioned how neat it looked.  We questioned him about his mentors and teachers as the prophecy is quite clear that there must be a White God that teaches and influences the true incarnation of the Dark One. There was none in his life so far. He told us about his youth and how his mother was killed and all this does not fit the description of the promised defender. We believe he might  be the father or grandfather of that champion. So if one believes in the prophecy, the coming of the Dark One is still far off, and then there is the prediction of the Narth Supreme that Eric one day becomes Narth. As much as I like to believe all this metaphysical stuff we Coven like so much, I trust Narth predictions far more."

Richard chuckled." Amen to that. Now that we discussed al this meta stuff, would you care to join me for a Weiswurscht and a Brezen?"

"What?"

"Local delicacies of my ancestral home. I am planning to attend a traditional fair and eat myself from one end of the Wiesn to the other with plenty of beer."

"I love to join you. What does one wear?"

"You will look gorgeous in a Dirndl."

CHAPTER 2 : LONG TRIP

The Seneca was a mess. Whatever had hit her took out much of engineering and had ripped a big hole in her side exposing three decks and the framing underneath the armor plating. Technicians and engineers of the Michigan crawled all over measuring, repairing and canning. Everyone was wearing space suits, not the emergency kind but real Standard Issue Multi Purpose suits, fully flight capable, with a variety of sensors, tools and powerful lights. It took me a while to get my bearings. I had crossed the distance from the Scorpion to the damaged explorer vessel flying the suit. While I was not as panic stricken as I had been on Daniel Station, I still could not shake my unexplained fear being in space with just a suit. Even the smallest ship had some sort of artificial gravity giving me a sense of up and down. Even swimming or being weightless inside a ship or pool was no problem, but being in deep space, with nothing beneath my feet than endless darkness was as nerve wrecking as it always had been. I didn't really feel weightless, it was a sensation of falling, but not in any direction my mind could determine and perhaps that was the reason for this phobia. Zezzazz had ordered me over to the Seneca mostly to watch and learn I guess and also to secure whatever cargo we were supposed to take over.

I was greeted by an armed officer, featuring a double barrel shoulder gun. His helmet plate was completely dark, but his rank insignia made him a Lt. Commander." Identify yourself, Cadet."

I did and after he scanned my CITI his tone turned a little less hostile." You are as much a Cadet as I am a Lt Commander, not with that kind of clearance" He chuckled," I bet this is the first time the Kermac lost a T class Raider fighting a Cadet in a shuttle.|" Each word he underlined with pantomimed quotation marks."

I didn't think it was my place to educate him or tell him that I really was just a Cadet. He used a tight focused index finger light to point at the ragged edges of the hole."Those False Beard whities might not have Translocators but their Matter disintegrators and Line cannons are no joke either. It takes one hell of a weapon to tear such a hole,. While the Seneca did not have not the latest Ultronit armor of course but Saresii Ceramiplate instead as you can see, virtually indestructible by thermo based energies."

He gave me a nice and quite interesting lecture on union ship materials and Kermac weapon design and then simply let me stand where I was and floated up to two other men taking material scans. I wandered deeper in the former engineering section and swallowed hard as I saw a Garbini frozen stiff attached with one tentacle at a hand hold, the furry beings uniform identified him as a member of the Seneca engineering crew.

I wondered how many of of the Seneca had died from this unprovoked attack by a Kermac ship operating deep in Union space. Instesd of keeping this incident secret, there should be a news crew taking images and transmitting them to the Assembly. What right did the Kermac have to commit a clear act of war? What right did NAVINT have to prevent Union Citizens and the Assembly to know about it? How many such incidents happened and how many citizens died without the guilty being held responsible?

While prejudging an entire speciee was something a Union officer should not do, I decided I did not like Kermac one bit. I remembered the two cadets that died on the Yakuta world. It seemed this happened all the time. The Kermac pulled the tigers tail and we did nothing to stop them. The Lt.Commader who had not given me his name interrupted my train of thought.

"Cadet, we have cleared a way to the cargo bay. Your package is undamaged and ready to be transferred." The man with the shoulder cannons pointed with his light finger down the dark corridor of the Seneca, while two robots carried twisted debris out.

--""--

With the help of the Michigan engineers I floated an eight by eight by twelve standard fleet container from the damaged Explorer Ship and loaded it into the Scorpion's small cargo bay. I noticed that while I was doing something and was able to keep my mind occupied I was able to handle the cramping feeling of fear in my stomach, at least somewhat. The Container was bare of any markings, but I noticed the dark graphite shimmer and the fine hexagon pattern of the material. This standard container was made of the finest and strongest armor material known to Union tech, Molecule compacted Ultronit. Ferrous atoms encapsulated in a buckyball lattice woven in super dense carbon fibers. It would take the strongest TKU at the highest setting to even scratch it. Something very valuable or very dangerous was inside that box.

After securing the box and changing back into Uniform Zezzaz ordered me to plot a course to Tabernacle 12, avoiding major traffic routes. It took me a little longer to plot that course as it took us more or less 4000 light years across the Upward sector to the fringes of the Sagittarius arm and across the main region of Union space.

It would take us over 21 days to get there since we could not fly as fast as we could. I had to calculate our trip to the very limits of our small crafts fuel and conserving it by flying slower was the only way. We would arrive with nothing more than a few grams of molecular compacted hydrogen to spare.

The fact that we were in Union space and plenty of places we could refuel meant nothing because our orders specifically prohibited contact under any circumstance.

Zezz and I rotated in the pilot seat every six hours. He stressed scanner observation to see if we were followed, intercepted or otherwise trailed.

It was near the end of my fourth shift when he came from the back, entering the little bridge and snarled " Report!"

"Sensors show eighteen contacts in range but none of them changed course to to intercept us. Sixteen are identified as civilian craft and two are Fleet Units."

"Did you check on possible mini or micro signatures? Indicating something camouflaged or running suppressed?"

"Yes Sir, as you instructed me. I added a subroutine to the scanner programs depressing any filter activity so everything is displayed and calibrated them to the max. There are no such signatures in scanner range."

"Very well. Go get something to eat and then get some rest."

"Aye Sir."

I got up and he sat down." Say Ensign, how is it the Fleet Admiral knows you personally. I serve this fleet for 35 years and only meet him twice in all that time. Most officers never see him at all."

"There was a mission during my first week at the Academy when I met him first, and then there was an incident at Basic training that got him involved again."

"And I thought Larson and I caused some trouble. To get Elligott involved that must have been one hell of an incident!"

"An incident that got me arrested, tortured and whipped at the post."

Even though he had an alien lizard face I could see the surprise in his eyes." Whipped? I know it's on the books but I never heard it actually done!"

I more or less told him what happened, leaving out just a few details and he listened without interrupting and when I was done he inhaled air with a sharp sound." I sure comment you for staying. Everybody knows about the Worm but I had no idea it went that far up the ladder."

"What actually is the Worm?"

He lowered his voice. It is an open secret Ensign. No one officially will confirm its existence of course and if you ask most Fleet personnel they think it's just a bogey story, but the Worm exists. The United Stars Navy is so big and spread over such a large area, it is hard to police and really control it all. Secret societies and fraternity groups develop within the Navy. Some are just founded by Officers with no other intend as hang out and have a reason to party and drink. Others are less harmless and seek Terran, Saran, pan Saran or Ult dominance over the entire Union space, to overthrow the Union and make it an Empire with one dictator or Emperor on top. One of these organizations is called the Worm and is a criminal organization dealing with illegal Mil Tech, Drugs and most vile of all sentient beings, you know Slaves! It is called the worm because is wiggled its way into the niches and crevices of our organisation while being soft and malleable, shapeless and easily overlooked."

"And the Navy isn't doing anything about that?" I asked astounded by that information.

"Oh it does. Your incident is a prime example. I bet Elligott is personally chasing down leads and weeding out what he can. He is an immortal but he is only one man and he can do only so much. Of course there is Internal Affairs and the PSI-Corps and they all try to weed out those organizations which are by the way highly illegal. If you want to join a fraternal organization, become associated with an official one. There are plenty with all kinds of flavors and agendas and you get the approved list right from Navy HQ."

His voice became darker. However if you ever get caught in a secret one no matter what agenda it may have, you will be sentenced to death, no second chance, no appeal. We need to focus our energies and our vigil to the outside and protect the Union. That is our mission, anything that tries to prevent us from that from the inside must be dealt with harsh and swift!"

"Why do you think it had to do with the Worm? I was victim of an Admirals vendetta."

Zezz swiveled around. "Eric, think about it. There is a retired Commander growing Califerm right under the Noses of the Navy on a much visited Training Planet. He was I am sure of it, using Navy Assets to transport and distribute his stuff."

"Yes I know I just told you that and He was a friend of Swybin."

"Eric, he would have never risked to expose his operation for a simple vendetta. Not for his friend Swybin or anyone. If the Navy isn't killing that Wilson guy then the Worm will for losing such a profitable operation."

He rised his sharp clawed finger." Unless of course someone else paid so much that Wilson and Swybin where expendable."

"I don't understand. What would the worm want from me? I mean that entire affair ended in me getting whipped with an Alien device in my head ready to commit suicide."

Zezz folded all four of his arms." Maybe you just been there to the wrong time and you simply presented a good target. It is conceivable that the entire affair was simply done as a diversion. Your story made a lot of noise in terms of intel and clandestine operations. If the target or the reason is important enough, it sometimes makes sense to make a lot of noise at one end and thus attract all attention to that spot, while you have a much better chance doing something very quietly somewhere else while no one is looking in your direction. It's an old Intel trick and to me the whole affair tastes like clandestine and intelligence forces at work."

"Would not Stahl and Elligott know about such tricks?"

"Of course they do and there are others almost equally smart and experienced as those two. Not that I think, Admiral Stahl has much interest in it, he is simply not the spook and clandestine type. McElligott on the other hand might just be one of the most experienced spy masters  there is. I  have no doubt our Union has very capable individuals and  this is why we had so few successful enemy espionage missions. There is no doubt however that those two Immortals know more about this than anyone of us ever will." The Shiss scratches his skin fold. "Besides there is a consistent rumor that there are more Immortals still active and alive  and working behind the scenes to keep it all safe."

He pointed at the weapons console." That we have a hell of a Counter intelligence division is evident right here. Union managed to keep the secret of Translocator Canons safe for over 500 years now. That's one hell of a record in Intelligence terms. Nothing is a fleeting as military secrets. Don't think of the Kermac, the Nul, the Shiss as fools. Those are space faring civilizations with immense resources and they are trying everything for the last millennia to gain that secret!"

"Admiral McElligott did not mention anything lke that to me!"

"It's simple a need to know basis. Security clearings are one thing, and need to know another. I just think he didn't tell you everything because it is simply too much information for a simple Midshipman, pardon me for pointing that out, but that is what you are, despite the fact that you know the Admiral of the Fleet, have a security clearance higher than most Senior officers and a chest full of medals."

"What do you think they are after? I mean the Worm"

"Hard to say. If the Worm is involved it is always about profit and if the Worm allows such an operation and risking great losses in assets and profits then you can assume there is a big player behind it, someone able to reimburse the Worm with lots of credits and polonium. Maybe the Kermac, the Shiss, the Nul. It could even be one of the big Mega Corporations. When it comes to big risk games like this, it is usually information they are this is of course pure speculation on my behalf."

"How big do you think this Worm is, Sir? I mean how many of them are there?"

"Despite all the little cracks this is a pretty solid organization. I doubt that there are many involved ,and I bet my own tail that 99 percent of all fleet officers are as honest and honorable as you and me, but at one Trillion beings serving this Fleet even less than one percent is a very large number! "

I was thinking about what Zezz said. It must be a mammoth task even for AI computronics. How easy could a report of some wrong doing slip past the attention of even of the most diligent administration?

Zezz leaned back in the chair and said." I see you are thinking, trying to comprehend it. I tried myself, Ensign. The average mind, Shiss or Human simply can't really understand the scope of it all. Yet Fleet Command does it and remarkably well, even with those flaws."

I nodded." It is mind blowing to think about it. A simple item as an uniforms makes you wonder how many are made each day, how much research has to go into it to make them fit all member species, humanoid or not. That is only one item on a list of items that must be longer than a light year, not counting reports, transfer requests, R&D development."

"Or think about the credits that are transferred each standard month at payday."

"Well if you look at it from that perspective, the Navy is even more fascinating than the Vid Shows that focus just on fighting and such."

He glanced at the scanner and returned his attention back to me." Well all a person can do is keep your fangs clean, live by the book and be the best officer you can be."

"Did you ever run in one of these fraternities or the worm, Sir?"

"I went to Intel school and served a dozen years as a spy on Shiss worlds. During that training I learned about the worm but I never ran into anyone claiming to be a member or noticed any activities first hand but I dealt with a Fraternity on my own ship a few years called themselves Skullbones and invented particular complicated drinking games."

"What did you do with that Fraternity on your ship?"

He gazed outside the window." I executed the entire group, six officers and nine enlisted." The book leaves no room in that regard.

His voice had become quieter and I learned at that moment that Shiss had consciousness too. He sighed very human like." I hope you never have to face such a decision in your career. Ordering an execution is totally different than fighting and killing in battle. It is hard to put in words, and a commanding officer must be ready to make that decision if the situation requires it or our laws demand it, but it isn't an easy one. At least it wasn't for me."

„I did not want to tell him that I had more experience in that regard than I ever wanted.

He changed the subject."Now do eat something and while you there do get me a milk shake. The green ones."

I returned a few moments later with a plastic bottle that bore the likeness of a Shiss and alien lettering. He took the bottle opened it, by biting the entire top off and pouring it down his throat. His long thin tongue flickered across his lower jaw.

„What fruit is in that milk, Sir?" I asked.

He chuckled." You are human you do not want to know what's in that milk, trust me!" Then he tossed the bottle in the recycler and pointed at my ring. "I like the simple bold design of that fanged skull on your ring. Does it have a meaning?"

"I don't know really, friends of mine gave it to me and I liked it. It's not very big and I was told I could wear it."

„It looked familiar somehow but then I can't recall where I had seen it before. Now go sleep we still got a long trip before us."

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