Chapter One

Mason Randle gazed out of the cockpit window at the approaching mass of gray rock. Vesta was one of the larger planetoids in the ring of asteroids that existed between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. The asteroid was approximately 326 miles in diameter and contained the headquarters for the Smithfield Mining Corporation. Mason was the current CEO and majority stockholder in the company originally founded by his grandfather.

“We will be landing in ten more minutes, Sir,” the pilot commented as he reached forward and turned on several instruments on the complicated control panel. His copilot mirrored his movements as they prepared to land.

“It will be good to get back home,” Mason responded as he leaned back in his acceleration couch and stretched. He had come up and taken a seat in the cockpit to watch the approach and landing.

They were in an interplanetary cargo ship that normally traveled between Earth and Vesta. The Smithfield Mining Corporation owned twenty-seven of the versatile three hundred-meter ships carrying refined metals to the company’s large space station in orbit around Earth. From there they were sold to various Earth companies for a very lucrative profit.

“I know how you miss Vesta,” Captain Sanders replied with a smile as he made several minor adjustments to the controls. “Smithfield will be a welcome relief after spending the last two weeks at Holbrook Station.”

Mason nodded; he was thirty-four years old and had gone to Earth to sign several important contracts with a number of companies wanting metals from the company. Smithfield was the only corporation currently with the money and the resources to mine the asteroid field and make money doing it. Several others had tried and failed, losing nearly everything in the attempt.

“Airlocks are opening,” Captain Sanders reported as the ship’s LIDAR system scanned the asteroid, giving real time data to the flight computer as the ship dropped steadily down toward the asteroid’s pockmarked surface. It was large enough to generate a slight gravity field of its own, but the powerful engines of the cargo ship had no trouble compensating for it.

Mason looked ahead at the asteroid, feeling glad to be home. He had been raised inside Vesta in the artificial world his grandfather had created and his father and he had added to. He could see the flashing lights on the surface, which designated the location of the main airlock.

The massive airlock doors slid open and the cargo ship flew smoothly inside, finding itself in a long and brightly lit tunnel two hundred meters in diameter. For another twenty-five kilometers the ship flew, passing through several more massive airlocks as it descended deeper and deeper into the asteroid. It finally entered a large chamber nearly two kilometers across and half a kilometer high. There were a number of berthing docks on the floor and the cargo ship dropped down smoothly toward an empty one, settling gently down on its landing struts. Moments later, the engines shut off and the ship became quiet.

“Good flight and landing, Captain,” spoke Mason, feeling anxious to leave the ship. His quarters on the ship had been comfortable, but Vesta was special. He knew that Captain Sanders was one of the best pilots in the company and had gone out of his way to accommodate him on this trip.

“It was a pleasure to have you aboard, Sir,” Sanders replied with a friendly nod.

Mason left the cockpit and made his way to the hatch, finding the docking tube already connected to the ship. Walking through it, he went into a smaller airlock and then exited to find two people waiting for him. One was his close friend, Drake Thomason, and the other was his secretary, Adrienne Lynn.

“Mason, it’s good to have you back,” spoke Drake, reaching out and shaking Mason’s hand. “How was your trip to Earth?” Drake was an expert mining engineer and second in command behind Mason.

“Very good,” Mason responded with a pleased smile. “I signed several lucrative contracts for the delivery of ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium, iridium, and platinum with our two biggest rare metal contractors.”

“Wow!” exclaimed Drake, feeling excited that Mason had managed to sign contracts for the precious metals. “How did you accomplish that?” Drake knew they would make some good money for the delivery of the rare metals. It would also please a number of the prospectors.

“It’s becoming increasingly more difficult to find the metals on Earth, and they have finally had to turn to us,” Mason replied with a satisfied smile. “We stand to make a good bundle off the new contracts.”

“Enough to pay for your new exploration cruiser?” teased Adrienne, referring to the unfinished hulk of the five hundred-meter Phoenix that was in the landing bay. Adrienne had blonde hair and deep blue eyes that made most men swoon.

“Perhaps,” Mason responded with a grin. She was always teasing him about all the money he was putting into the new ship. It was a big investment, but he knew in his heart that someday it would pay off.

Adrienne was the most efficient secretary he had ever had; things seemed to run very smoothly with her around. She was twenty-eight years old, extremely attractive, and somehow still managed to stay single. She also kept good track of the work being done on his pet project, the Phoenix.

The Phoenix was supposed to be the first interstellar exploration ship to leave the solar system. The ship would be the largest and most modern spacecraft ever built once it was finished. The only problem was the star drive. The scientists had still not managed to come up with a workable star drive that could break the speed of light barrier. Until that happened, the ship would remain unfinished. Even so, other systems were being installed and tested. Her new sublight drive would be the fastest one ever placed in a spaceship. Mason couldn’t wait to test it out and see if they could break the system speed records. There was no doubt in his mind that they could do so easily.

The three walked down several corridors until they reached a large transit station. Once again, they passed through an airlock to find themselves upon a large platform, similar to a subway station back on Earth. A number of other people were present as they were going to and from work. They made their way to a waiting transit car and sat down. The cars could hold up to twenty people at a time, ran on electricity, and were extremely comfortable.

“How are Larcy and Madison?” asked Mason, looking over at Drake as they waited for the car to begin moving. There were still a few people taking their seats. Larcy was Drake’s wife, and Madison was their twelve-year-old daughter.

“They’re doing great,” Drake responded, pleased that Mason had asked. “Madison is doing excellent in school. They’re supposed to be interviewing someone for a school project and I believe she has chosen you as her victim.”

Mason laughed. He loved kids, his sister had two of them, and he never got tired of being around them. “Tell her to come by the office and we can do it; have her check with Adrienne first to make sure I’m there.”

The car began moving, rapidly accelerating to its top speed of sixty kilometers per hour, and entered a narrow tunnel. After traveling twelve kilometers, the car began to slow and finally pulled into another transit station.

“We’re here,” spoke Adrienne, smiling. “Are you going to the office or the Control Center?” She knew that Mason would want to check on everything to see how things had run during his absence.

“The Control Center,” Mason replied after a moment of thought. “I want to check on several of our current mining operations as well as what our stock levels are on the precious metals I just signed contracts for.”

“Your sister wants you to come over for supper tonight,” Adrienne added. She knew being around his sister’s two young children was something Mason really enjoyed.

“Tell her I’ll be there,” Mason responded with a smile. Just thinking about his sister’s cooking make him feel hungry. Susan was a good cook, and her husband Michael was one of the top asteroid prospectors in the company. A home cooked meal sounded great after eating the MREs on the cargo ship.

“Don’t be late,” warned Adrienne, folding her arms across her more than ample chest. “You know how your sister gets if her food gets cold.”

“I won’t,” Mason promised, as he didn’t want to upset Susan. “Is Michael home, or is he out prospecting?”

“I believe he’s out at one of the mining operations,” answered Adrienne, recalling one of the reports she had read earlier in the day that detailed the current status of the prospectors. She tried to stay up to date on everything just in case Mason asked.

“He is,” Drake confirmed as the three stepped out of the transit car and onto the brightly lit platform. “He left yesterday and will be gone for three days. He took some new mining equipment out to one of his newer claims.”

Mason nodded. Over one hundred licensed prospectors worked for the Smithfield Mining Cooperation out of Vesta and were responsible for setting up mining operations on any asteroid they filed a claim on. The minerals were mined and sent back to Vesta to be refined, and each prospector received a lucrative paycheck, which he used to pay for his mining operation and deposit in his bank account. Most of the miners worked numerous claims to bring in as much cash as possible.

The three walked down a short corridor and passed through yet another airlock. This was the last one as they stepped out into the massive habitat that had been created inside of Vesta to house the employees of the Smithfield Mining Corporation. For thirty kilometers, the habitat extended. As far as the eye could see were trees, grasses, streams and a few small lakes.

The city of Smithfield itself was in the center and contained seventy thousand people. The habitat was twelve kilometers wide and two kilometers high. It was like a miniature Earth but free of pollution. Birds and other abundant wildlife were allowed to roam free in most areas. Special wildlife rangers kept a close watch on the animal species, making sure they didn’t get out of balance and that they remained healthy. Mason’s grandfather had begun the construction of the habitat and Mason’s father and he had finished it. It had been a massive, expensive project and Mason was extremely pleased with what had been built here. Nothing else like this existed anywhere else in the solar system.

Many people had felt it was a boondoggle to build something like this so far from Earth. However, once his grandfather and father had begun exploiting the available resources to be found in the asteroids, many people soon came to change their mind. Families flocked to Smithfield to find their fortune and soon found that they had found a home instead. The population had swelled until they had to put restrictions on who could come and live here. Now only the best and brightest were even considered. Construction of a larger habitat had already begun as Mason had ideas for the future that would allow their lucrative mining operations to be greatly expanded. The moons of Jupiter and Saturn beckoned, and Mason intended to be the first to plant mining operations on each one of them.

The three took an electric car to the city and after dropping Adrienne off at the office, the two men soon made their way to the underground Control Center that monitored the habitat as well as the ongoing mining operations. They had to take an elevator down to the Control Center, as it was located six levels beneath the city of Smithfield.

Entering the Control Center, Mason let out a deep breath. They were in a large room where over sixty men and women were busy at work. On all four walls, massive viewscreens showed views of the inside of the habitat, Smithfield, as well as some of the nearby mining operations. Everyone was dressed in a standard dark blue uniform, which was the normal dress code for company employees while they were on the job.

From the Control Center, all of the outgoing prospecting missions were monitored as well as the current mining operations on numerous large and small asteroids. Mining on an asteroid was a dangerous business, and the company had long since come up with stringent guidelines to maximize safety. Many of the operators in the Control Center were busy monitoring and speaking to different ongoing mining operations. Each operation had to report back to Vesta on a daily basis.

“Mason, I’m glad you’re back,” Pamela Cairns said, hurrying over to where Mason and Drake were standing. She had a look of confusion in her eyes. “Something interesting is coming in over our communication feeds from Holbrook Station and Luna City; you need to see it!”

Holbrook Station had been named after Mason’s father and was the large company space station in orbit around the Earth. Pamela was thirty-two-years-old, married, with dark black hair, which she normally kept cut short. She also had a ten-year-old son that constantly got into everything.

“What is it, Pamela?” asked Mason, feeling curious. There hadn’t been anything out of the ordinary mentioned on the media channels when he had been down on Earth or on Holbrook Station. He had just left the station four days ago; he couldn’t imagine anything that could have changed in that short amount of time.

“You need to come to the main communications console,” Pamela said, gesturing for the two men to follow her. “We just started receiving this a few minutes ago and we’re not sure what’s going on. You’re not going to believe this!”

They made their way across the room to the main com console. There were four communication specialists sitting in front of the large console. From here, they could keep track of their twenty-seven cargo ships as well as the one hundred and five smaller prospector ships. They could also communicate with Earth, Luna City, or Mars Central if need be.

Fortunately, thanks to a communications breakthrough on Earth, faster than light communication had been discovered. So far, the principles that allowed communications to bypass the light barrier hadn’t found its way into ships yet. When it did, the Phoenix would be ready and Mason would be off to Alpha Centauri on the first interstellar trip. He already had a team of engineers and scientists looking into that aspect of the new communications technology.

“What do we have?” asked Mason, looking over at Pamela curiously. She was showing a lot of concern on her face, which was unusual. Even her shortly cut black hair looked slightly ruffled.

“Put it up on the main screen,” Pamela instructed Jessica Lang, one of the communication specialists.

The young woman pressed several icons on her computer screen, and the image she had been observing was transferred to one of the big viewscreens on the wall above her.

Instantly an image appeared on the screen. Mason and Drake stopped breathing at what was being shown. They hadn’t been expecting anything like this.

“Where is that?” demanded Mason, stepping even closer to the screen, staring at it in disbelief. Surely, this had to be a joke of some kind.

“That image is being broadcast from Luna City,” Jessica replied as she checked the video feed. “We just started receiving it a few minutes ago. Holbrook Station has confirmed it.”

Upon the screen was a massive spacecraft, larger than anything Mason had ever seen before or even believed to be possible. He had thought the Phoenix was huge, being five hundred meters long and ninety meters across, but the Phoenix would look like a gnat up against this monstrosity.

“How large is that thing?” Drake asked in a stunned voice. He knew there was not any way that ship had originated in the solar system. This could mean only one thing; aliens had found the Earth!

“LIDAR readings from Luna City indicate that it’s eight thousand two hundred meters across, and one thousand meters thick,” Jessica replied as she glanced at a computer screen showing additional data that Luna City was transmitting. “It looks like a giant black disk.”

“Contact Holbrook Station and inform them to halt all traffic,” ordered Mason as he tried to grasp what was happening. “I don’t want any launches until we know what this thing is and why it’s here.”

“Yes, Sir,” Jessica replied. Then she glanced at Mason with a frightened look upon her face. “Sir, is that an alien spaceship?” Several of the other communication specialists paused as they waited expectantly for Mason’s answer.

Mason was silent for a moment. “I think so,” he finally replied. “I don’t know of anyone on Earth that could have built something like that. That’s why I want all launches halted. I don’t want them to misconstrue the movements of our ships as being threatening.”

Jessica nodded and turned back to her console to begin transmitting Mason’s orders to Holbrook Station. “I just hope they’re friendly,” she commented in a strained voice, her heart racing.

“So do I,” Mason said as he continued to look at the screen. “Pamela, I want you to send a message to all of our mining operations, as well as all prospector and cargo ships. Until further notice, all communications are to be halted. Only in the case of an extreme emergency is anyone to send a message. Tell them an alien craft is approaching Earth and we’ll keep them informed as we get more information.”

“Yes, Sir,” Pamela replied as she stepped over to her command console and began speaking rapidly over her com unit to all the operators in the large room. There were lots of messages that needed to be sent out as rapidly as possible. Even as she passed on the orders, her eyes kept glancing nervously up at the viewscreen and the alien ship. She could feel the rising tension in the large Control Room.

“What do you think they want?” Drake asked as he gazed uneasily at the alien ship. His wife would be scared to death when she saw this thing on the news. Hell, a lot of people were going to be!

Luna City was now sending some close-ups of the ship, and it was evident that it was heavily armed. Large weapon turrets were visible upon the hull of the ship as well as numerous hatches that were now opening. Drake was glad that his family was here inside Vesta. His parents, his brother, his wife, and daughter were all safe in Smithfield.

“That thing’s armed,” Mason spoke, not liking what he was seeing. “Why would an exploration ship be covered in weapons?”

“We never even considered putting weapons on the Phoenix,” Drake responded as he looked intently at the weapon turrets on the alien ship.

He shook his head in worry, knowing he needed to call Larcy soon. He was sure it was only a matter of time before this breaking news was all over the major media outlets, most of which could be received in the homes of the people who lived in Smithfield.

“Sir,” another one of the operators broke in. “The United States government has been attempting to contact the aliens.” She paused for several moments as she continued to listen. “They are reporting that there has been no reply from the alien ship to any of their communication attempts.”

“I don’t like this at all,” muttered Drake, shaking his head.

They continued to watch as over the next half hour the alien ship continued its approach to Earth, finally settling into orbit twenty thousand kilometers above the planet. From several of the large open hatches on the ship, smaller vessels could be seen leaving and heading toward Earth.

“The United States has just raised their defense status,” Pamela reported uneasily as she monitored the main communication console and talked to the four communications specialists. “The U.K., Russia, Germany, France, China, Australia, Canada, and several others have followed suit. They are also launching interceptor aircraft, and the U.S. and the U.K. have just activated their missile defense grids.”

“This could get serious fast,” Drake said with a concerned look upon his face, looking over at Mason meaningfully. “Why won’t they speak to us, and where are all of those small craft going? What if a fighter jet shoots one down?”

“I don’t know,” Mason responded as his eyes gazed fixedly at the main viewscreen. He didn’t like the way this situation was developing. There were too many things that could go wrong.

For several heart-stopping minutes, they waited for additional information. At any moment, they expected to hear reports of one of the smaller alien ships being shot down.

“A special report is being broadcast over all media stations confirming the approach of the alien ship,” Pamela informed them with a pale look upon her face. “The people are being told to remain indoors and not to panic, that the world governments have the situation under control.”

“Like hell they do,” commented Drake, shaking his head. “They’re just as scared as we are.”

He knew he should go make a call to his wife and tell her not to worry. Larcy had a bad habit of overreacting to situations at times. It might not be a bad idea to ask his parents to go over to the house to help keep her calm.

Mason remained silent. He was looking at the alien spacecraft, noting that there was no visible sign of what type of propulsion it was using. The size of the craft, the obvious presence of numerous weapons, and its continued refusal to communicate worried him. This was a situation that could go south in an instant if anyone overreacted, and the small ships that were flying into the Earth’s atmosphere might just cause that to happen. All it would take would be for one of the fighter jets to shoot one down and they might find themselves in an interstellar war.

“How many of the small craft did Luna City detect leaving the ship?” Mason demanded as his eyes focused back on Pamela.

“Over thirty,” she replied as she checked a computer screen. “Luna City is reporting that each of the small ships is nearly two hundred meters across and similar in build to the mother ship.”

“I think I saw this movie a while back,” commented Drake dryly, glancing over at Mason. “It didn’t end well.”

“Pamela, contact all of our cargo ships that are currently in transit to Earth and turn them around,” Mason ordered after thinking the situation over. He was getting a bad feeling about this. “I want our ships to stay away from Earth space for the time being until we know more about these aliens.”

“Is there anything we need to do here?” asked Drake, raising his eyebrows. “What if one of their small ships heads out our way?”

Drake knew that all the major weapons that might be a threat to the aliens were located on Earth; none had been allowed to go out into space due to numerous treaties. Those treaties were aimed at keeping the solar system weapons free.

“Make sure all the airlocks are secure, and place armed guards at the ones in the transit stations and a few in the spacedock,” Mason ordered as he thought about what they could do. “I want Vesta locked down tight until we better understand what’s going on.” He knew the thick metal airlocks would make it virtually impossible to break into the inhabited sections of the asteroid.

For once, he wished he had a larger security force. Crime was almost unknown in Smithfield. His security force only consisted of thirty men and women with light weapons such as pistols and small caliber assault rifles. They were all the treaties allowed.

“Where have those small craft gone?” demanded Mason, looking back at the viewscreen. The way those ships had headed toward Earth looked ominous. This was not how he had visualized a first contact situation.

He could hear people talking in the Control Center as they speculated about what the aliens wanted. He couldn’t blame them; this was making him nervous also. This would be their first contact with an alien species and from the look of their heavily armed ship; Mason wasn’t sure just how friendly they were going to be.

“We don’t know,” reported Pamela worriedly, turning around to face Mason. “Luna City and Holbrook Station lost track of them when they entered the Earth’s atmosphere, and it seems that no one on Earth can track them either. The United States has just upped their defense status to the next level and we can expect the others to do so shortly. They’re scrambling more fighters to find and intercept the alien ships that have entered the atmosphere. The United States government has ordered the fighters not to let the alien ships land unless they initiate communications first.”

“All we need is for someone to start shooting,” Drake muttered, his eyes growing wide at the developing situation on Earth. “We don’t need to start an interstellar war! If these aliens can build ships of that size, who knows what type of weapons they possess.”

“A shuttle is being dispatched from the International Space Station to attempt to make contact,” Pamela added as new information appeared on her screen. She was staying busy trying to stay on top of everything as it occurred.

Mason nodded. The new International Space Station was much larger than the previous one that had been built back around the turn of the century. It currently had a crew of nearly seventy and was mostly a research facility. He wondered what that crew thought about the aliens.

Drake stepped over closer to the communications console so he could read some of the data coming in over the numerous screens. Most of it was from Luna City, and it was evident that they were feeling panic. The majority of Luna City was built deep underground, and was similar in many ways to Smithfield but on a much smaller scale. Instead of one large underground habitat, there were a dozen smaller ones. Over twenty-two thousand people called Luna City their home. Drake knew it had to be frightening for them, knowing how near the alien ship was. He also knew that there were very few weapons at Luna City. They were much like Vesta with a small police force equipped with only light weapons.

For the next hour, they continued to monitor the situation. The alien craft was still refusing to communicate, and no trace could be found of the thirty smaller ships that had entered the Earth’s atmosphere. Somehow, the ships were able to avoid or neutralize all of the Earth’s sophisticated detection equipment. Radar, LIDAR, and other sensor equipment could detect nothing. It was as if they had vanished.

“The shuttle from the International Space Station is nearing the alien ship,” Pamela reported anxiously. She turned to face Drake and Mason with a concerned look upon her normally calm face. “They are halting their approach at twenty kilometers and will attempt to communicate. Some of the scientists on Earth have suggested several different methods to initiate communications. A few feel the aliens may not have understood our first attempts. They will be transmitting a language primer based on numbers. It will contain several universal concepts and should form a basis for allowing the aliens to learn our language.”

“Why do I think it’s a waste of time?” muttered Drake, shaking his head doubtfully. “As large and advanced as that ship is they are bound to know how to communicate with us if they wanted to.” He shifted his weight over to his other foot. He had called his parents and they should have made it over to his house by now. He hoped Larcy was doing all right; he probably should give her a call when he had a chance.

“I think you’re right,” Mason said in agreement. “This whole thing seems kind of odd. If their ship is as advanced as it looks, they should have a method for initiating communications in first contact situations. Surely we’re not the first race they have come across.”

For several minutes, they waited tensely as Luna City and Holbrook Station monitored the communications attempts from the shuttle. Everyone held their breath as they waited for the aliens to reply, wondering what the alien’s first words would be.

“Nothing,” reported Pamela after several minutes had gone by with no response. She shook her head in growing worry. “They still will not communicate, and the crew of the shuttle have tried over half a dozen different methods of communication that the linguists down on Earth suggested.”

“They even tried flashing lights,” Jessica added as she looked at additional information on a data screen. “There was no response to anything.”

“Now what?” asked Drake, folding his arms across his chest as he looked over at Mason. “Do we just let them sit there?”

“There are reports of riots breaking out in several cities,” Jessica continued as she listened to a number of media feeds that were coming in over several of her screens. Her eyes took on a frightened look. “There is panic buying going on, with people stocking up on food, water, and other essentials. All the stock exchanges across the world have been closed down to prevent panic selling from devastating the markets.”

“It’s only going to get worse the longer the aliens go without communicating,” commented Drake, shaking his head.

“Pamela,” one of the other communications specialists broke in. “The communications shuttle is being ordered to back off to one hundred kilometers as a safety precaution. They don’t want the aliens to feel the shuttle is a threat.”

“The shuttle,” laughed Drake, arching his eyebrows. “I suspect the aliens don’t consider the shuttle to be a threat at all. They are just ignoring it like everything else.”

“I just wish we knew what those smaller craft are up to,” spoke Mason, worriedly. He had a bad feeling about all of this and those small craft concerned him. What were they doing down on Earth, and why couldn’t they be detected?

-

One of the small alien ships was flying low over the ground in the United States as it scanned the cities and towns below. The crew of the ship knew it was invisible to any of the primitive detection technology available to this world. It was dark below, and none of the sleeping populace knew what was flying above them. Finally, the crew found what they were seeking. The ship slowly circled as its powerful computers confirmed that they had found what they had been sent to retrieve.

The ship slowed and came to a stop five thousand meters above its intended target. Several small hatches opened, and powerful paralyzing beams shot out and played over the area below, knocking all forms of life unconscious. Once the crew of the alien ship was satisfied that all life forms below had been rendered helpless, the ship landed. It was time now to complete the primary part of their mission.

Airlocks opened and ramps descended to the ground. The crew emerged and began spreading out across the small military base. They were dressed in dark suits of combat armor and stood nearly ten feet tall. Only a few were armed, as they expected no resistance due to the paralyzing beams. They began loading hundreds of unconscious Humans into the ship. They carried them into the ship two or three at a time since the suits of battle armor gave the wearers nearly superhuman strength. The small craft could hold over one thousand of the targeted Humans they had been sent to find. Once they were finished, they would return to the command ship, unload their unconscious Human cargo, and come back for more.

-

Mason had finally gone to his sister’s home to eat. There had been no further developments with the alien ship; it remained in orbit around the Earth and was still not communicating. Luna City had reported that they had spotted several of the smaller ships return and then later leave again. This made Mason nervous; he wondered what they could be up to. Drake and Pamela were still in the Control Center and would contact him if anything new developed.

“What’s going on, Mason?” Susan asked as she placed the food on the table. She was deeply concerned about the alien ship.

News about it was on all of the media stations, and the fact that her husband had gone off to one of his mining ventures didn’t help. She was concerned about Michael’s safety and didn’t know what she would do if something happened to him.

“No one knows,” Mason replied as Susan sat down across from him. “The aliens are not communicating, so everyone is still in the dark as to why they’re here.”

The two children had eaten earlier and gone over to a neighbors to play. Mason and his sister were very close, and she worked several hours a day at the main office reviewing the contracts that Mason managed to get signed. She had several business degrees and enjoyed working during the day while the kids were gone to school.

“I wish Michael were here,” she said as she began eating her salad. She didn’t have much of an appetite. “I don’t like him being gone while something like this is occurring.”

“The alien ship is at Earth,” Mason responded as he buttered a roll. His sister was an excellent cook, just as their mother had been. “We’ve cut off our communications with everyone except an occasional tight beam message to Luna City and Holbrook Station. The aliens may not even know that we’re out here.”

“I hope not,” Susan replied as she reached for the salad dressing. “I spoke with Larcy earlier, and she’s really frightened. Drake’s parents came over to stay with her until he can come home.”

“Drake was afraid this would frighten Larcy,” Mason responded as he took a bite of his roll. “So far the aliens are not communicating even though Luna City has reported seeing a number of small craft leave the larger ship, go to Earth, and then return only to leave for Earth again. Drake is still in the Control Center with Pamela. He should be going home in another hour or two if nothing new develops.”

Susan stopped eating her salad and gazed across the table at Mason. “Why?” she asked, looking perplexed with her eyes focusing on her brother. “What are they up to? It almost sounds as if they’re hunting for something.”

“I thought about that also,” confessed Mason, still feeling uneasy about the situation. “But I doubt if that’s the case, and if it is, why don’t they just tell us? If they need something, I’m sure the world governments would be willing to help.”

“Is it true the ship is armed?” Susan asked in a lower voice. She had heard about this on the news earlier. One of the media stations had shown pictures of what looked like weapon turrets on the alien’s ship.

Mason hesitated, but he knew there was no point in keeping that fact a secret from his sister. “Yes, it’s armed. Pretty heavily from the information that Luna City has sent us.”

“What about Holbrook Station?” Susan asked with growing concern in her eyes. “What are they doing?”

Susan was concerned because her brother-in-law was in charge of the large station where their cargo ships docked and unloaded their cargo for distribution to Earth. There were also nearly six hundred crewmembers on the space station as well.

“I’ve ordered the station to do nothing,” answered Mason, knowing Susan was concerned and why. “I’ve stopped all traffic to and from the station as well as ordered all of our ships currently in transit to Holbrook to turn around and return here until we know more about what’s going on.”

Susan nodded as she resumed eating her salad. It sounded to her as if Mason had done everything he could. “You don’t think they will come here, do you?”

“I don’t know,” Mason replied evenly, not wanting to frighten his sister any more than she already was. “I’ve locked everything down and placed security guards at the main airlocks. If they do come, they will have a hard time getting in.”

Mason had already wondered what he would do if the aliens were to show up at Vesta. He knew it might be wise to make a brief broadcast to the people in Smithfield telling them there was no reason to panic and to let them know that they were monitoring the situation at Earth.

Mason finished eating his meal and then spent some time talking to his sister before telling her good night and heading back to the Control Center. He would make a short announcement to the people in Smithfield, and then if nothing was occurring with the aliens he was going to turn in for the night. He had a feeling the next few days were going to be hectic, and he might not get a lot of sleep.

Chapter Two

Mason was back in the Control Center early the next morning. He noted with surprise that Pamela was also there, hovering over the communications console and talking to the four people on duty. Pamela was responsible for the Control Center and normally came in later so she could spread her time out over two operational shifts. Mason suspected it was the presence of the alien ship that had caused Pamela to come in so early.

“Anything new?” Mason asked as he stepped over to the main communications console.

He looked up at the large screens on the wall, noticing that they were still showing the alien ship. It looked exactly as it had the previous day, dark and unmoving. He had made a brief announcement the previous night over the city’s media stations about the aliens. He had asked everyone to remain calm and that he didn’t expect there to be any problems at Vesta or their mining operations.

“No, it’s still just sitting there,” replied Pamela with a heavy frown as she listened to a news broadcast up on one of the screens. “However, we are starting to get a lot of missing person’s reports showing up all over the media stations, primarily military personnel. Civilians going to work this morning are reporting the troops at some of the bases are simply gone!”

“Military troops,” uttered Mason, arching his eyebrows and feeling confused. Why would they be missing? “How dependable are these reports? It could just be panic reporting.”

“Several of them have been confirmed,” Pamela replied as she called up some data on a computer screen. “We have one marine base in North Carolina with over twelve hundred personnel missing. The few people that are still on the base don’t recall seeing or hearing anything out of the ordinary during the night.”

“How many reports do we have of missing military personnel?” asked Mason, looking over at Pamela with growing worry in his eyes.

He knew if the aliens were responsible for these abductions, it could cause a massive panic in the civilian population. He also wondered how Earth’s military organizations would react. It might increase the threat level to the point that the military might attempt to shoot down some of the small alien ships if they could be found.

“Over a dozen so far, and they’re mounting as new reports come in,” Pamela replied with deep concern in her voice. She looked over at Mason with confusion in her eyes. “Why are they taking military people?”

“We don’t know what’s going on yet,” cautioned Mason, not wanting people to start feeling frightened. He could already detect the growing anxiety in the men and women in the Control Center. The quiet conversations, furtive looks, and the worried eyes that were watching the multiple viewscreens that were focused on the alien ship all hinted at deep unease for what was happening back on Earth. “Let’s wait until we hear something more definite from the government.”

“The government has been strangely quiet this morning,” Jessica Lang commented from her position at the large console. She hoped her parents, who lived just outside of St. Louis, were safe. With the communications blackout that Mason had initiated she couldn’t call and check on them. “There have been no official announcements about the alien ship or the abductions.”

“Do we have any reports from Holbrook Station?” asked Mason, hoping the station was still okay. The last thing he wanted to hear was that all the personnel on the station were missing also.

“Yes,” replied Pamela, turning to face Mason. “Darren Kirby sent a brief message earlier that they are still seeing the alien small craft going back and forth between the Earth and the larger ship. They have several small telescopes they are using to keep an eye on what’s going on. He also asked if you would tell Susan that he and the station are still fine and not to worry.”

Mason nodded as he heard the door to the Control Center open. Turning around, he saw that Drake had come in. Mason suspected that Drake was as anxious as he was to find out what was going on with the aliens. Mason quickly filled Drake in on the missing military personnel.

“Do you think the aliens are abducting them?” Drake asked with a confused frown on his face. “Why take military personnel?”

“I don’t know, but I don’t like this,” answered Mason, letting out a deep sigh. It made him realize just how vulnerable Holbrook Station and Vesta were. “Drake, how difficult would it be to place explosive charges in the ship tunnel to collapse it if it becomes necessary?”

Drake looked at Mason in surprise, and then his eyes narrowed. This was something he hadn’t considered. “We have plenty of explosives that we use in the mining operations,” Drake responded as he thought about what would be needed to bring the long tunnel down. “Why would you want to collapse the ship tunnel?”

“If the aliens are indeed abducting people, then I want to be prepared in case they come here,” Mason responded in a quieter voice as he thought over what he wanted to do. “We have over seventy thousand people in Smithfield. If the aliens show up and we collapse the tunnel, they might not want to make the effort to dig us out. It might encourage them to leave us alone.”

Drake nodded his head in understanding. If they brought the tunnel down it would take them several months to open it back up. It would be a horrific job, but it could be done. “I will see to it right away.”

Drake turned and left the Control Center, hoping the charges would never have to be set off. He also did not intend to tell his wife about the precautions they were taking with the tunnel. When he had left home, she was already watching the latest news reports with a frightened look on her face. His younger brother, Samuel, was coming over a little later to spend the day with her.

Mason watched Drake leave and then went over and sat down in a chair close to the command console where Pamela was. From here, he could watch and see everything that was going on in the Control Center. He suspected it was going to be a long day.

-

On Earth, the world’s governments were starting to panic. Confirmed reports of military troops being taken were now coming in from all across the globe. China, Russia, the U. K., and others were confirming that thousands of troops were missing from their bases. In the United States alone, the estimate was close to ten thousand.

Beneath the White House in the presidential bunker, President Barnes was meeting with his military leaders. General Adams had a look of deep distress on his face as he stood to address the group.

“We keep losing more troops every hour,” Adams reported, grim faced. “We managed to go back and recover some of the security footage from several of our bases to see if we could find out what’s going on. You’re not going to like it.”

On a large viewscreen, a massive figure appeared. It stood ten feet tall and was made out of some type of dark grayish looking metal. They watched as it carried two unconscious soldiers back to its ship and then returned for more.

“What are those?” President Barnes choked out, looking at the screen in shock. “Are those some type of robots?”

“We don’t believe so,” Alvin Winters the president’s science advisor replied. “We think there are living beings inside, and what we are seeing is some type of battle armor. It gives the operator tremendous strength and mobility. We have been looking at something similar ourselves, but are years away from producing even a prototype.”

“Can we take them out?” the head of one of the security agencies asked. “We can equip our troops with armor piercing rounds that might be able to penetrate those suits.”

“We don’t know and don’t want to try,” replied Adams, looking across the table at the man who had asked the question. “So far the raids have been limited to military facilities; no civilian areas have been hit. If this is some type of sophisticated battle armor the damage the aliens could inflict if they decided to use it in that capacity could be horrendous. It is also questionable if any of our conventional weapons, even using armor piercing rounds, could harm it.”

“What’s wrong with our soldiers?” President Barnes asked as he watched the screen. “They look as if they’re unconscious.”

“We believe the aliens are using some type of knockout gas or unknown technology to immobilize our troops,” General Adams explained as he looked down at several reports in front of him. “With your permission, I would like to put more of our fighters up in the air and try to intercept these alien ships as they enter our atmosphere. I would also like to assign some helicopter gunships to patrolling the perimeter of our military bases.”

“Then what?” replied Barnes doubtfully, looking over at Adams. “Look at that monster ship sitting up there in orbit. If we fire upon or even destroy one of their smaller ships, how is it going to react? Do we have any weapons that could even damage something of that size?”

“But what else are we to do?” General Adams asked in a rising voice. He knew his troops couldn’t fight something wearing this sophisticated battle armor. His only hope was to stop the ships themselves. “We can’t let them keep taking out troops and do nothing. Our people should at least be allowed to fight back!”

“I don’t know,” President Barnes responded, his voice filled with doubt.

“You said earlier that if we got into a fight with these invaders, the results could be devastating.”

“Against their battle armor,” replied Adams, defensively. “Their small ships are the best target. If we could hit them with a missile, it might be possible to bring them down. Our defensive missile grid is designed for just this type of threat.”

“The grid was designed to take out inbound nukes,” President Barnes reminded the general, “Not inbound alien spaceships. What if we take one of their ships out and then they retaliate against our cities? We could be talking about millions of casualties!”

“I don’t think it matters,” spoke Winters, shaking his head. “From what we have been able to observe of their big ship and the small ones, their technology is far ahead of ours. I doubt if we have any weapon that can significantly damage them. All we might do with such an attack is make them angry.”

President Barnes was silent for a moment and then turned toward the Secretary of Defense and General Adams. “Do you have any practical way to attack the alien ships that has a reasonable chance of success?”

Adams was silent for a moment as he gazed back at the president. “No, Mr. President,” he finally admitted, his eyes looking down at the table. “Any missile we launch they could probably shoot down, and our shuttles are not armed. We have no weapons on the International Space Station, and Holbrook Station isn’t armed either. The treaties we have signed prohibit any type of heavy or dangerous weapons from being deployed in space.”

“Which brings up another question,” President Barnes said, looking at Winters and General Adams. “Why haven’t they abducted the people on the space stations or Luna City? It seems to me they would be the easiest to take.”

“They don’t want the people on the Moon or the stations,” replied Winters, arching his eyebrows. “That’s not what they’re after.” The science advisor looked over at General Adams, waiting for him to explain. The two had already discussed this possible scenario.

Adams was silent, and then looked directly into the president’s eyes. “For some reason they want trained military troops, which seems to indicate they have a use for them.”

“That ship is heavily armed,” Winters reminded the president, taking a deep breath he continued. “They may be taking our troops to fight a war!”

The room became silent as President Barnes leaned back in his chair, his eyes growing wide. “Fight for them,” he uttered in a stunned voice. “Like mercenaries? What can we do to stop them, and why won’t they talk to us?”

General Adams looked at the president and then replied in a grim voice. “Nothing, if Winters is right, we have no weapons that will be effective against these aliens. There is nothing we can do to stop them from taking whomever and whatever they want. They’re not talking to us because they don’t believe it’s necessary.”

-

On Holbrook Station, Darren Kirby sat in the Control Center, his eyes focused on the main viewscreen, which was showing a close up of the alien ship. They were trying to collect as much data on the alien as possible to study later. Holbrook station was built as a massive wheel with six spokes connected to a large central hub. It had artificial gravity and a crew of six hundred.

“I wished we had some damn weapons,” Shirley Melvin commented as she came back into the Control Center from her latest rounds of the station. Once every two hours, she was making a quick tour of the station to ensure everything was as secure as they could make it.

There were six docking ports on the outer wheel and she had just finished inspecting them to make sure they were secure. She had placed four crewmembers at each one with orders to report anything strange, particularly a ship attempting to dock. They were prepared to jam the airlocks if necessary so they wouldn’t open.

Darren looked at his second in command with a frown. “I don’t think we want to be firing off any weapons inside a space station,” he chided. “So far the aliens are ignoring us; perhaps they will continue to do so.”

Shirley brushed her long blonde hair back behind her shoulders and nodded. “I realize that; it’s just frightening knowing how defenseless we are.”

Darren looked around the Control Center. There were twenty people operating the different consoles that oversaw the massive station. Everyone seemed to be going about their jobs even though there was a lot less talking than normal. He knew everyone was feeling considerable stress over the situation with the aliens.

Studying the main viewscreen, he looked at the alien ship. There were dozens of massive weapon turrets visible, and it was impossible to tell what was hidden behind some of those closed hatches. The ship’s hull was not smooth; it was covered with various types of unknown devices, indentations, and small structures. To Darren this ship seemed to be built for war, and that thought was extremely worrisome. If that was correct, then why had they come to Earth’s solar system?

-

Michael Kirby was at one of his larger mining operations after dropping off some equipment at his most recent prospecting site. He was sitting in the cockpit of his prospecting ship, the Raven. The small ship was fifty meters long and held a crew of twelve.

“I wish we knew more about what the hell is going on!” his second in command uttered in growing frustration. “Can’t we send a message back to Vesta and ask?”

Michael looked over at Brian Jones and shook his head. “You know we can’t do that, Brian. We’re under strict orders to maintain radio silence and to stay at the mining site until Vesta signals the all clear.”

“Aliens,” Brian oathed, his eyes narrowing. “Where the hell did they come from? We’ve been out in the solar system for decades and they never put in an appearance. Now all of a sudden here they are!”

“It had to happen sooner or later,” responded Michael. They were listening to the communications channels, seeing what news they could find. They were picking up a few media stations from Earth, but they sounded more panicked than anything else. He wished he were home with Susan and the kids. He knew this entire situation had to be worrying her. At least Mason was back at Vesta. “Look, even Mason is building an interstellar ship. He just needs the star drive. If we someday go off exploring the galaxy and discover intelligent life in another system it will be us who will be considered the aliens.”

Brian mulled that thought over for a moment and finally nodded his head. “I guess you’re right; it’s just hard to sit here doing nothing.”

“Why don’t you go check on the mine?” suggested Michael, knowing Brian just needed something to do.

The small asteroid they were on was nearly six kilometers in diameter. They had sunk a mineshaft to the asteroid’s center and were in the process of mining a lucky find of gold and gemstones, which would fetch a good price on the Earth precious metal’s markets. They had also found some platinum. Michael had a crew of twenty men and women working the mine in a three-shift operation.

Much of the operation was automated, and the miners primarily watched over the equipment and implemented occasional repairs. They had built temporary quarters in a small auxiliary mineshaft beneath the surface since this operation was going to last for a while. They had dug the shaft and then put in several rooms off the side for sleeping and eating. It was sealed tight with a double airlock for safety. While they weren’t the greatest quarters in the world, they were still quite comfortable.

If this had been a smaller operation, the mining crew would be living and working out of the ship. Michael went out of his way to make sure his crews had everything they needed. He had a reputation for having one of the best safety records of all the prospectors. He also had the best crews.

Michael had eight mining properties he was currently working. He also had leads on half a dozen more potentially new mining sites. The plan had been to check several of them out on this trip, but now he was not so sure. The Raven was one of the newer prospecting ships and he usually felt safe in her, but not when it came to aliens. For now, he would stay docked to the asteroid and wait this thing out, and then return to Vesta to find out what had happened. His eyes strayed to the ship’s sensor system, which was scanning everything within ten thousand kilometers of the asteroid. So far, nothing unusual had shown up on the sensors. Michael just hoped it stayed that way. He was also concerned about his brother, Darren. Holbrook Station was very close to the alien ship and Michael greatly feared that Darren was in the middle of everything.

-

The small alien craft dipped back into the Earth’s atmosphere. The commander of the craft was quite pleased. There had been no armed resistance from the planet’s inhabitants to attempt to restrict their flights to and from the planet. Of course, it wouldn’t have done them any good; their technology could not harm his ship, and he could destroy anything they threw at him.

The ship went down deeper into the atmosphere and was soon flying ten kilometers above the surface. They were returning to one of the planet’s small military bases to pick up some supplies for the Human soldiers they had taken. A few of them had been awoken and interrogated as to what they would need to survive away from their planet. It was his mission, as well as a number of other ships, to begin procuring those items.

-

It was daylight down below, and the ship was plainly visible. This time there was no effort to hide their presence. Two F-45 fighter jets suddenly appeared and flew just below the alien ship, keeping a watchful eye on it. Both pilots wanted permission to engage, but orders from the higher ups strictly forbid it because of fear of reprisals from the larger ship in orbit.

The two pilots watched as the alien ship continued to descend. Both pilots felt frustrated, knowing they were helpless to stop the invader. All they could do was watch and report.

-

The alien ship landed at one of the bases it had stripped of its Human personnel the night before. The ship had once again used its paralyzing beams as it descended, making sure that all Humans within ten kilometers of the base were unconscious. The ship’s hatches opened and its armored crew descended the ramps. This time they were dragging anti-gravity sleds behind them to stack the supplies upon that they had been sent to get.

For two hours, the armored figures entered various supply buildings, stripping them of everything that was needed except for weapons. The Human weapons were too primitive to be taken. Instead, they focused on food supplies, uniforms, medicines, and other basic provisions that might be needed in order to keep a Human alive for the long term. Above them, the two Human aircraft were circling but not making any aggressive moves.

-

In Washington, the president and his staff sat in shock as reports continued to come in. They had now confirmed that there were thirty-two of the smaller alien ships in operation around the planet. The aliens were still abducting military personnel, but now they were also taking supplies from the various bases they had visited previously.

“What are they doing?” President Barnes demanded as he looked over the most recent reports of the supplies being taken from the bases. “Why do they need these items?”

“Food, water, uniforms, medicine, and other basic supplies,” spoke General Adams, letting out a deep breath. “They are gathering what might be needed to keep the people they have taken alive.”

“But with their technology, why do they need these supplies?”

Winters looked over at the president. “We have no way of guessing their thought processes,” the science advisor explained. “They still refuse to communicate and seem to be just taking whatever they want. This could indicate that they have done this before, and it has become a standard operating procedure for them. What concerns me most is what happens once they leave.”

“What do you mean?” asked Barnes, looking confused.

“If they came to our planet once, what’s there to stop them from coming back again?” Winters answered, his eyes showing deep concern at the thought. “They may raid us continuously for more military personnel as well as whatever else they want. This may just be the beginning.”

Everyone looked at each other with growing worry on their faces as they realized that Winters was correct. What would stop the aliens from coming back and continue to abduct the planet’s military personnel? It also made them wonder just what was going on out in the galaxy that a ship as large and obviously as powerful as this one would want troops from a relatively primitive planet like Earth.

“If they come again, we need to be prepared,” General Adams grated out, feeling frustrated at being so powerless against these aliens. “We need to put our scientists to work and develop weapons that we can deploy in space. Next time they won’t find us such easy pickings.”

Winters looked over at the general but decided it might be best not to speak. It would take years to develop the type of weapons and delivery systems the general was talking about. Winters doubted that the aliens would give them the time.

-

Two days passed and the aliens continued to raid the planet. The Earth’s militaries refused to engage the aliens for fear of what the mother ship in orbit would do in retaliation. At the end of two days, it was estimated that the aliens had abducted close to sixty thousand military personnel and thousands of tons of supplies. Finally, the alien’s small craft docked back with the mother ship and did not come out again.

-

Mason had been summoned by Pamela to the Control Center. As he stepped inside he saw that Drake was already there gazing in rapt attention at one of the large viewscreens.

“What’s going on?” Mason asked as he walked up to stand next to Drake and Pamela.

“The alien ship’s leaving,” replied Pamela, glancing over at Mason. “Luna City reports that it broke orbit and is slowly accelerating away from the Earth.”

“It’s over,” Drake said with a sigh of relief. “Once it’s gone things can finally get back to normal.”

“I don’t know if things will ever be normal again,” Mason responded as he thought about the events of the last few days. “The appearance of this alien ship will change a lot of things. We know a faster than light drive is possible because that alien ship has one. We also know the galaxy out there is a dangerous place if that ship represents what is waiting for us someday when we leave the solar system.”

“I wish we could have gotten a hold of one of their small ships,” Drake said wistfully as he continued to watch the screen. The alien ship was moving faster now. “We could have learned so much.”

“What if they come back?” asked Pamela, worriedly folding her arms across her breasts. Her son had been full of questions the previous night about the aliens and why they had come. It had caused her to do a lot of thinking. “Many people have been abducted; what’s to stop them from returning and doing it all over again, or even coming here?”

Drake and Mason were silent as they realized that Pamela was right. The world had changed dramatically with the arrival of the aliens and things would never be the same. They would have to be ready for the aliens if they ever returned. That might mean they would have to arm some ships to meet the aliens before they could reach Earth. As large as the alien ship was, was it even feasible to mount a defense against it? They knew that someway they would have to try.

“The ship is now nearly to the Moon’s orbit,” Pamela informed them as the data from Luna City continued to come across the screens. One of them was now showing a close up of the alien ship.

“I’ll be glad when it’s gone,” Drake muttered as he gazed intently at the screen. He knew that Larcy would be relieved. They had sat up much of the night talking about the aliens; his wife was scared to death that when the aliens were finished at Earth they might come out to Vesta.

Even as they watched, a small black hatch slid open and something gray and sinister looking exited it and headed back toward Earth.

“What was that?” Mason demanded loudly. It almost looked like a missile.

“I don’t know,” Pamela replied worriedly as she tried to contact Luna City to see if they had any idea.

“I have Darren on the com,” Jessica suddenly reported.

“Put him on the speaker,” Mason ordered as he stepped closer to Jessica. “Darren, what’s going on?” He knew that Darren wouldn’t break radio silence unless he felt it was important.

“The aliens have launched what appears to be a missile toward Earth,” Darren replied in a strained voice. “We’re tracking it, and it will impact the planet in six minutes.”

Mason felt a cold chill run down his back. What were the aliens up to? Were the aliens targeting a single city to send a message that future resistance would not be tolerated?

“Darren, keep us informed. I’m going to keep the line open.”

On the screen, Luna City had now turned from tracking the alien ship to tracking the inbound missile that was targeting the Earth.

“It’s just one missile,” Drake muttered, his eyes focused on the viewscreen. “What have they targeted?”

“Luna City thinks its target is somewhere in South America,” reported Pamela, turning toward the other two. “Possibly in Brazil.”

Minutes quickly passed as the missile neared Earth. From the surface of the planet, a number of interceptor missiles rose up on pillars of fire as the missile defense grid in the United States attempted to intercept and destroy the in coming missile. This was an obvious attack and the Earth’s military was going to do everything in their power to try to stop it.

The alien missile easily evaded the interceptors and darted down toward the surface to vanish into the high cloud layer. Brazilian fighter jets on afterburners tried to reach the missile before it impacted, but it was moving too fast and they couldn’t lock onto it with their long-range interceptors.

“Impact,” Darren spoke over the com, sounding confused. “We’re not seeing or recording any type of detonation.”

Drake looked over at Mason with a puzzled look upon his face. “Is it a dud?”

“I don’t know,” replied Mason, looking over at Pamela wanting an explanation. “Are we receiving anything from any of the Earth stations about an explosion?”

Pamela spent several minutes scanning the various Earth frequencies as well as several government channels they had access to, and then she turned back toward Mason and Drake. “No one is reporting anything. The missile came down in Brazil in South America, and the Brazilian government is rushing troops to the area to secure and attempt to locate it. The area of impact is mountainous and in a rain forest, so it may take a while to reach the area and find the impact point.”

“I don’t like this,” spoke Drake, clenching and unclenching his fist as he continued to watch the screen, which was now focused on South America. “We’re missing something. There has to be a reason why the alien ship launched that missile, and I can’t believe that it malfunctioned.”

“Luna City is reporting that the alien ship has vanished,” Jessica reported as she listened to a message that was coming in. “Their scientists believe it activated some type of star drive and has left the solar system.”

“Darren, activate all of Holbrook Station’s scanning equipment and scan the surface where the missile impacted,” Mason ordered. It was time to take a more active roll now that the alien ship was gone. “I want to know if you can detect anything out of the ordinary. Also, contact the International Space Station and see if they’re detecting anything.”

“I’m passing on the orders now,” Darren replied. “Give us a few minutes.”

Holbrook Station was equipped with advanced forms of radar, LIDAR, weather scanning equipment, devices for monitoring earthquakes and volcanoes, and everything else that could be thought of. Much of the information on weather, earthquake predictions, and volcanic eruptions was furnished to various countries on Earth for a token fee.

-

In Washington, President Barnes and his staff continued to listen to the reports coming in from South America. The missile had come down in a remote region, and it was going to be nearly an hour before the Brazilian military could reach the impact site.

“Any ideas?” Barnes asked as he looked around the conference table. “They had to have launched that missile for a reason.”

General Adams shook his head. “Perhaps it was just to show how helpless we are against their technology. We launched fifteen of our best interceptors in an attempt to take down that missile. None even came close.”

“That may not have been the purpose of the missile at all,” Winters spoke as he stepped back into the room with several computer printouts in his hands. “We are detecting some minor earth tremors at the impact point.”

“Earth tremors?” said President Barnes, looking confused. “Do you mean this thing has set off an earthquake?”

Winters sat back down and shook his head. “I don’t think so. From what we have been able to determine, the tremors are occurring deeper and deeper beneath the Earth’s crust.”

“The missile,” General Adams gasped in sudden realization, his face turning pale. “It’s burrowing into the ground. It was never designed to explode on the surface. Do we know how deep it is now?”

“Several hundred miles and still descending,” Winters responded and then looked around the group. “This could be extremely serious if it detonates with any force.”

“How serious?” asked President Barnes, feeling a cold hand grasp his heart.

“If the missile goes deep enough and if the explosion is powerful, it could cause a series of earthquakes and even volcanic eruptions,” Winters explained. “If it detonates in the liquid part of the core it could be devastating.”

“At least it’s in South America,” General Adams said. “We should be unaffected here.”

Winters stayed quiet; he didn’t want to tell the general that might not be true. If the missile penetrated the mantel, reached the Earth’s liquid core, and exploded there with enough force, then earthquakes and volcanoes could ravage the globe and there would be nothing they could do to stop them. It would be the end of the Human race.

-

Several hours passed, and Mason looked worriedly at the latest information from Holbrook Station. They had managed to detect the earth tremors caused by the burrowing missile and were tracking it. It was now so deep beneath the Earth’s crust that they were starting to lose it.

“Mason, we may have a problem,” Darren suddenly said over the speaker on the com panel. “We have just detected a massive earth movement deep beneath the crust in Brazil. It’s completely off the scale.”

“The missile just detonated,” Drake spoke with deep concern in his voice and looking extremely worried. “What does this mean?”

“Darren, give us a close up view of the area where the missile impacted,” Mason ordered.

Instantly one of the main viewscreens showed a close up view of the mountainous region the missile had struck. Suddenly upon the screen, a massive explosion occurred, throwing rocks and dirt far up into the air. More tumultuous explosions continued to occur and then fiery red magma appeared as it was flung far up and away from the Earth.

It’s a volcanic eruption!” Pamela exclaimed as she gazed pensively at the viewscreen. “There are no active volcanoes in Brazil!”

“There are now,” Mason said in a grim voice.

“We’re detecting more earthquakes,” Darren suddenly reported with mounting fear in his voice. “Mason, the entire ring of fire around the Pacific is starting to show movement. We are picking up growing earthquakes and increased lava pressure, which tends to point toward the potential for numerous major eruptions within the next few hours.”

“The San Andreas Fault just went,” Jessica suddenly screamed as she switched one of the main viewscreens to show a view of the Greater Los Angles area.

The view was obviously from media helicopters or drones flying high above the stricken city. Buildings were collapsing, and smoke was rising above the urban area as numerous fires broke out. The earthquake was still going on as they saw several wide fissures open up in the earth and swallow entire buildings. Even as they watched, a massive wall of turbulent blue water swept in from the Pacific, adding to the carnage. In minutes, Los Angeles was gone, with just a few of its tallest buildings showing above the swirling ocean water.

“We just lost contact with Tokyo, Singapore, Paris, Kansas City, Miami, Hong Kong, and many others,” Pamela reported in a stricken voice. “Media stations all over the world are dropping off the air!”

“We are detecting more earthquakes spreading across the globe. Some of them are in the 9.5 to 10.5 range,” Darren reported over the com link in a stunned voice. “The Three Rivers Gorge dam in China reportedly has just collapsed.”

Mason let out a deep breath of horror at that revelation. Hundreds of millions of people lived along the Yangtze River beneath the dam. There would be no way they could escape.

“What’s happening?” Drake asked as the magnitude of the disaster began to fill his mind. What would Marcy be thinking at home as news of these disasters were spread by the still active media stations?

“The alien’s missile activated the planet’s earthquake zones and volcanoes,” answered Mason in a disheartened voice as he realized the ramifications of the growing disaster.

There would be millions of tons of ash from the volcanoes thrown up into the atmosphere. In a short time, days would turn into night and nothing would grow. It would be worse than a nuclear winter. Plants and animals would begin to die from a lack of sunlight. There would be mass starvation, and soon there would be nothing left living on the surface of the Earth.

“What’s going to happen?” Drake asked, afraid of the answer.

Mason was silent for a long moment. Looking over at Pamela, he could see that she too realized the truth.

“This is the end; the Earth will not survive this,” she said in a quiet voice. Her sister lived in Denver; Pamela grew fearful of what would happen to her.

“The Earth will survive,” Mason replied, still feeling stunned by what was happening on the viewscreens, “But humanity will not.”

Drake looked in horror at Mason as he realized the enormity of what was occurring. He was glad that most of his family lived in Smithfield and not on the Earth.

-

In Washington, President Barnes and his staff were in the process of being evacuated. Under advice from Winters, they were going to fly farther inland to an area that should be relatively free of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Just as they were about to board the plane, Barnes thought he could hear a loud roaring sound that seemed to be growing nearer. “What’s that noise?” he asked, glancing back at Winters coming up the steps behind him.

Before Winters could reply a massive wall of water slammed into Air Force One, tossing it about like a child’s toy. The president and his staff never knew what struck them as the giant tidal wave from the Atlantic swept across the East Coast.

-

In orbit, Darren looked at the numerous viewscreens depicting the growing disaster going on beneath them. He felt helpless, knowing there was nothing he could do. He was just thankful that Susan and her two kids were safe back on Vesta and Michael was out at one of his prospecting claims. At least the people that were important to him were safe.

Shirley Melvin stood next to him, not speaking. Her husband was currently at Luna City helping to install new computer equipment, but her and Mel’s parents were down on Earth. She felt numb inside as she watched the disaster below continue to unfold.

Darren let out a deep breath. The Earth was finished; only the orbiting stations, Luna City, Mars Central, and Vesta would survive. The aliens had come, taken what they wanted, and then destroyed the Earth as if it meant nothing to them. Billions of lives snuffed out for an unknown reason. But the aliens had made a serious mistake; they should have made sure that not a single Human survived. People had long memories, and someday humanity would rise up out of the ashes and take revenge on those that had inflicted this calamity. Darren knew they would travel to the stars someday and search for the perpetrators of this act of planetary destruction. Someday in the future, historians would mark this day as the beginning of a new war. Darren just wondered how it all would end?

Chapter Three

“Mason, what do we do?” asked Darren, sounding stunned at what was happening on the Earth. “We’re detecting increasing seismic and volcanic activity across the globe. We’re getting numerous news reports of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.”

“Contact the Earth launch stations and tell them to launch all the shuttles they have with as many people as possible,” Mason replied as he tried to think quickly about what they needed to do. “We need to save as many of those shuttles as possible. We may need them later to conduct rescue operations.”

“Rescue operations?” Pamela asked with a strange look upon her face as she looked over at Mason, her eyes widening. “What do you mean rescue operations?”

“If those earthquakes and volcanoes continue, the Earth will soon become uninhabitable,” Mason explained as he thought about the ramifications of what was happening. “The only places people will be able to survive are going to be in the orbiting stations, Luna City, Mars Central, and here.”

Pamela became quiet as her gaze returned to the viewscreen and she looked at the disaster that was occurring on Earth. She knew Mason was right. They now had a massive rescue operation to conduct if humanity was to survive. It was just hard to believe this was happening.

“How many can we save?” asked Drake, feeling as if a heavy weight had settled upon his shoulders. There were billions of people on Earth. “Where are we going to put them?”

Mason looked over at Drake, seeing a look of shock still on his friend’s face about what was happening. The talking in the Control Center had come to a complete stop as everyone waited to hear his answer.

“Where ever we can,” Mason replied evenly, not sure himself what they could do. “We will do everything we can to save as many as possible.”

-

On Holbrook Station, Darren looked over at Shirley Melvin. “You heard him,” spoke Darren, trying to sound calm. “Contact all of the launch sites that currently have shuttles and instruct them to launch as soon as possible. Tell them to fill the shuttles up with as many people as they can.”

“Then what?” Shirley asked, not sure what was expected of her. “We can’t put too many more on the station; our life support won’t be able to handle them.”

“Put me in touch with Mayor Silas in Luna City,” Darren responded after a moment as he weighed his options. “We need to find out how many additional people they can handle. At the very least, we need him to launch the Fantasy and the Princess to take some of the refugees.”

Shirley nodded and moved over to the communications console. The Fantasy and the Princess were the two small passenger liners that made routine trips between Holbrook Station and Luna City. After a moment, she had the mayor on the line and transferred him over to Darren. Then she and the communications operator Kristen Carlyle began attempting to contact the Earth launch stations. It was going to be a long and frantic day.

“Darren, this is Stan,” Mayor Silas spoke over the com channel. “We’ve been monitoring what has happened to Earth, and we’re at a loss as to what to do. This has been one hell of a day!”

“I’ve been speaking to Mason out at Vesta, and we’re in the process of requesting that all the Earth launch stations send up their available shuttles immediately. We have also requested that they put as many people on them as possible.”

Stan was quiet for a moment as he thought about what Darren was saying. “I agree that we need to get as many people off of Earth as we can,” he finally replied. “But I’m not sure what we can do with them. We can take several thousand more here at Luna City, but that will max us out as far as our life support systems go.”

“I understand,” Darren replied. Living space was going to be a problem. The only place they could put a large number of survivors was Vesta, and there was no easy way to move large numbers of people to the asteroid. “Once we get all the shuttles launched we can get a count on people and then decide what to do with them.”

“Agreed,” answered Stan, knowing time was of the essence. “We have our two small space liners setting on the launch pads here at Luna City. I will order them fueled and sent your way immediately.”

“Thanks, Stan,” replied Darren, feeling relieved. Tourists went to Luna City to experience the Moon’s low gravity environment, and several small space liners had been built to handle the lucrative tourist trade. Darren knew that each one could only hold about two hundred passengers comfortably.

“I will schedule a meeting with my engineers and life support people; we will see what we can do about taking more people,” Stan added before signing off.

“I have Jornada on the line,” Kristen Carlyle reported as she looked over at Darren from her communications console.

“What about the other launch sites?” Darren demanded. While Jornada in New Mexico next to White Sands was the largest and most important, there were half a dozen others scattered across the country as well as one in the U.K.

“Nothing,” replied Kristen, shaking her head. “I will continue to try to contact them, but so far they haven’t responded.”

“We have a report of a massive tidal wave striking the East Florida coast,” Shirley spoke with fear in her voice. “We’ve lost all contact with the cape.”

“Damn!” uttered Darren, shaking his head in frustration. He knew there were six shuttles at the cape. It was going to hurt if they had just lost all of them as well as the valuable personnel at the launch center.

“Henderson, this is Holbrook Station,” Darren spoke into the com system on his command console. “I guess you’re aware of the current situation?”

“Yes, Darren,” Henderson replied in a troubled voice. “We haven’t been affected here yet other than a few minor earth tremors. Can you give me any information on how bad it is?”

Darren was silent as he mulled over how you told someone the world was coming to an end. “It’s bad, Lawrence,” replied Darren, using Henderson’s first name. “We have volcanoes and earthquakes going off everywhere. The alien ship exploded some type of missile deep in the Earth’s core, and it’s going to do the planet in. We also haven’t been able to contact any of the other launch centers, and we have a report of a possible tidal wave taking the cape out.”

“How much time do we have?” Lawrence asked with a slight tremble in his voice.

“We don’t know,” Darren replied. “But Mason wants to start evacuating people as soon as we can. We can take a few hundred here on Holbrook Station, and Mayor Silas has said they can handle a few thousand more at Luna City.”

“That’s not a lot,” replied Lawrence, thinking about all the people that lived in the small town just south of the spaceport.

The spaceport had a workforce of nearly 2,500 people and most of their families lived in the town of Jornada. There were also several military bases close by, and Lawrence knew there were thousands of soldiers and their families at them.

Darren was quiet, as he thought about the resources available at the large spaceport. “Lawrence, can you take several of your larger hangars and rig them up with some type of air filtration systems and facilities to house large numbers of people?”

“We could,” Lawrence replied after a moment. “It would take some work.”

“We need to do everything we can to protect people,” Darren said. “You’re going to be experiencing ash falls from the volcanoes probably within the next two or three days at the most.” He knew the ash being hurled up into the Earth’s atmosphere was going to quickly become a problem.

“We have a couple of military bases close by, and I know one of the commanders fairly well. Let me speak to him and see if he has any ideas. I think he will readily cooperate since we are the only way off the planet. He also has a number of large transport helicopters available to him. If we need to start collecting people, he has the equipment with which to do it.”

“All right, start working up the details. However, you may want to start sending some of your people’s families up. Mayor Silas is sending his two passenger liners, the Fantasy and Princess, to Holbrook Station to pick up survivors. We can make one trip per day, so that’s four hundred people you can send up daily.”

“Then what?” Lawrence asked in an even voice. “We will fill up Luna City in a week; what do we do with all the rest? It’s a four day trip out to Vesta.”

“I wish I knew,” Darren replied with a sigh. “Mason is trying to figure something out. For the time being just build some facilities where we can protect the survivors from the effects of the volcanoes. The air will be getting bad soon from all the ash and other crap that’s being put into the planet’s atmosphere.”

“Will do,” Lawrence said with worry still in his voice. “This is a bad situation, Darren. Keep us informed.”

-

Mason was back in Smithfield at his office meeting with a group of people. He looked around the large conference table at the group he had called in. There was Keith Davis, a structural engineer who was responsible for maintaining the habitat that housed Smithfield. Seated next to him was Sean Miller, who was responsible for the spacedock and flight operations. There was Ethan Hall, a ship repair specialist and construction engineer, and Craig Carter, who was a brilliant systems analyst for Smithfield. There were two women present also. Lori Wright, who was an ecologist and life support specialist responsible for maintaining the plants, food production, and life support systems that kept Smithfield a pleasant place to live, and of course Cheryl Robinson, who was the personnel recruitment specialist for the company.

“All of you have heard about the current situation on Earth,” Mason began as he looked somberly around the group. “The question is what are we going to do about it?”

“Do?” Keith said with a surprised look upon his face. “What can we do? We can’t stop the earthquakes or the volcanoes. The Earth is finished!”

“I didn’t mean that,” Mason responded with a frown. “I want to rescue as many people as we can, and our window to do that is rapidly closing. How many more people can we put in the habitat?”

Keith looked over at Lori Wright as he mulled over the question. “What do you think, Lori; can we add another ten thousand without overtaxing the life support systems?”

“I think it would be closer to eight thousand,” Lori responded after a moment of thought. “More than that would throw everything out of balance.”

“Where are we on the new habitat? I want to save a lot more than eight thousand,” Mason replied, his eyes focusing on Lori and Keith. He had hoped the number would have been a lot larger, but he trusted Lori’s judgment in this. He knew that the environment in the Smithfield habitat was carefully controlled.

Keith leaned back in his chair and let out a deep breath. “We have been working on it for several years as the money and resources became available, but it will take another six to eight years to complete.”

“Is there anything else we could do on a temporary basis while we finish the larger habitat?” Mason asked his eyes narrowing as he desperately searched for a way to save more people. “It doesn’t have to be comfortable; it just needs to allow people to survive.”

“Maybe,” replied Keith hesitantly, as he thought about possible solutions. “Lori and I would have to study the environmental impact, but it might be possible to build some long tunnels extending from the current habitat and construct living quarters within them. The biggest problem with a large ecological habitat like Smithfield is its huge size. If we keep the roof low, say twenty-five feet, and build the tunnels about fifty feet wide, we could add two rows of small apartment complexes. We keep them simple and build one row on each side of the tunnels. They wouldn’t be as roomy as what’s in Smithfield, but they would probably suffice until we can get the new habitat done.”

“We would also have to bring in a lot of supplies,” Lori added as she thought about the difficulties. “In Smithfield, because of all the plants we have growing, it’s relatively easy to keep the atmosphere breathable. We also do a good job of recycling our water. We’ll need some massive new environmental systems to handle the number of people you’re talking about.”

“Okay,” Mason replied with a nod. “Get to work on it as soon as this meeting is over. I want to know how soon you can begin and what materials you need. You will have all the people and resources we can spare. I want to know how many people we can accommodate, and work on both the new habitat as well as the emergency tunnel concept. We can use some of the people we’re bringing up to help, so labor shouldn’t be a problem. I want work on the new habitat going twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week!”

“How do we get these people here?” asked Ethan Hall, arching his eyebrows. “Our cargo ships have only a few staterooms on them. We can handle about twenty passengers at the most. You’re talking about moving thousands!”

“We’re not going to need too many cargo ships anymore with Earth gone,” replied Mason, gravely “What would it take for you to convert some of our cargo ships to passenger ships?”

“Passenger ships?” Ethan repeated, his eyes widening at the idea. “Our ships aren’t designed to haul passengers. The cargo holds are for hauling metals. You’re talking about some major modifications.”

“We don’t need anything luxurious or comfortable,” Mason explained as he looked at his ship building engineer. “Just some cots anchored to the decks would do.”

“The life support systems would have to be upgraded,” Ethan added as he thought about what would have to be done. “All the cargo holds are airtight with their own airlocks. We would have to add additional restroom facilities and some way to feed these people. Cots won’t do; we would need something more substantial to be able to handle maneuvering and acceleration.”

“They can eat on their beds,” replied Mason, calmly. “As I said, they don’t have to be comfortable; we are trying to save their lives.”

“What would they be allowed to bring with them?” asked Cheryl Robinson, taking a deep breath and looking over at Mason. “We don’t really have spare clothing and other necessary products for that many people.”

Mason looked over at Ethan. “We have twenty-seven cargo ships. The trip to Holbrook station and back will take approximately nine to ten days, add a couple of days to check over the ship, and then we do it all over again. Can we change ten of our cargo ships to passenger ships? That would leave us the other seventeen to haul supplies back from Earth.”

“How are we going to get those supplies?” asked Lori, looking confused. “Holbrook Station and Luna City won’t have them to spare.”

“We go down to Earth and get them,” Mason responded in a grim voice. “Very soon the atmosphere on the planet will become too bad to breathe; all life will die out shortly after that. There will still be large quantities of supplies in some areas we could probably reach. We can search malls, department stores, factories, and any other place that may have what we need.”

“How?” asked Craig Carter, confused. “Our cargo ships can’t land on Earth; they don’t have the power to take back off again. Without refueling facilities, we can’t land the shuttles either.”

“No, but our prospecting ships do,” replied Mason, looking around the group. “We can refuel them at Holbrook Station, land on Earth, find what we need and bring it back to the station to be loaded onto a cargo ship.”

“Holy crap,” mumbled Sean Miller, shaking his head at the thought. “You’re talking about changing our prospectors into scavengers.”

“Yes,” Mason replied as his eyes swept across the group. “I don’t think we have any other choice. It will be years before we’re capable of making everything we need. Until we can, Earth will have to be the source for our supplies. This is a question of survival, people; if we can’t rescue enough people off the planet to give us a viable population then humanity in this system will die out.”

“We’re going to have problems of our own,” Cheryl added as she looked around the group. “Nearly everyone in Smithfield has family and friends still on Earth. We’re going to have a rough couple of months ahead of us.”

Everyone was silent as they thought over what was ahead of them. Their lives were about to change, and the entire premise behind Smithfield and its parent corporation was now history.

-

Marine Captain Mark Stevens gazed down at the Jornada space complex. He and his company of marines had been reassigned to protect the facility. He knew that four other companies would soon be en route also. They had been undergoing maneuvers in the desert near White Sands and been reassigned to the space complex. Even as they prepared to land, he saw a shuttle accelerate down the nearest runway and head up toward space. In his briefing, he had been told that the space complex was going to be a gathering place for survivors from the catastrophe that was overtaking the planet.

Looking up into the clear blue sky, it was hard to imagine the disaster that was unfolding around them. The base commander had told him and the other four captains that it would only be a matter of a few days before they began feeling the effects of the calamity.

As soon as the helicopter touched down, he and his marines climbed out. They were directed toward a large hanger with open doors. Once inside, they found a marine major waiting for them, along with several other men who were obviously officials from the space complex.

“I’m Major Anderson and will be in charge of this operation,” the officer said. Then gesturing toward an older man near him, he continued. “This is Lawrence Henderson, the chief operations and flight control officer here at Jornada. He has a few words to say to you to further explain our mission.”

Lawrence looked over the assembled marines and then began speaking. “As all of you know the alien ship that was in orbit, besides abducting a large number of military personnel, launched a missile at Earth as it was leaving. That missile exploded deep inside our planet and has set off a series of massive earthquakes as well as volcanic eruptions. Orbital observations indicate the earthquakes are worsening, and more volcanoes are erupting every hour. In just a matter of weeks or perhaps days, our planet will become uninhabitable.”

The marines looked at one another and a few began talking. “What’s going to happen to us?” asked one of the marines, receiving an icy glare from the major.

“We’re going to evacuate as many people as we can to Luna City and Vesta,” Lawrence replied in a somber tone. “Preparations are already being made to expand both to accommodate more people. While that is being done, we will be gathering survivors here at the spaceport. We’ll be putting up facilities for people to stay in that will give them breathable air and a chance to live. Your job will be to protect this complex until we can all evacuate.”

“What about our families?” another marine asked worriedly. His wife was in Missouri. “What’s going to happen to them?”

“We will rescue those we can,” Lawrence promised. “Our big concern right now is that as soon as people realize this spaceport is their only hope for survival, we may be swamped with an influx of refugees.”

Major Anderson nodded and took over. “There will be more regular army units as well as our other four companies of marines arriving over the next several days. We will be setting up a perimeter five miles out from the spaceport. We have White Sands to our west, so our main concern will be the other three directions.”

“You will also have to protect the town of Jornada where most of the families of the people who work here at the launch center live,” Lawrence added.

“What do we do with the civilians that show up?” asked a female marine.

“We will be setting up a screening facility just outside the perimeter,” the major replied. “Civilians will be screened, and those that are found acceptable will be allowed access to the complex and the accommodations that are being prepared.”

“What about the rest?” the female marine asked. “What do we do with them?”

“We’re still working on that,” Major Anderson replied as he looked over at Lawrence Henderson. “We have some important decisions to make in the next twenty-four hours; we’ll let you know more then.”

Captain Stevens listened to the major, knowing there might be problems if they received a massive influx of refugees. He looked over his marines and could see the growing unease in their eyes. Many were worried about their families, and others were still feeling confused about the situation. Captain Stevens didn’t blame them, hell; he was feeling confused as well!

-

Darren was watching the main viewscreen intently. They were searching the United States for safe zones where people could be directed until they could be rescued. Every instrument the station had was pointed at the Earth and information was being fed into the station’s computers.

“The Earthquakes are getting worse and more volcanoes are erupting,” Shirley Melvin reported as she looked over the latest data. Even as she spoke the station’s meteorologist, Juan Ramos, came into the Control Center carrying a large sheaf of computer printouts.

“The weather patterns are changing rapidly,” Juan reported with deep concern on his face as he walked over to Darren. “In the next forty-eight hours we will see steadily increasing clouds and a wide range of weather. High winds, torrential rain, and about everything else you can imagine.”

“What about safe areas?” Darren demanded. “Are there places we can direct the survivors to?”

“There are a couple of areas in Texas that may be relatively safe,” Juan replied. “The spaceport should be safe for the time being. The best bet may be to instruct the survivors to stay in their homes and wait for rescue. It’s not going to be safe for them to travel.”

Darren frowned; the job ahead of them was staggering. They needed to start rescuing key people, ones that would be useful and not dead weight. They would need helicopters and other vehicles to find the individuals they needed. He would have to call Lawrence again. His friend at the military base, General Wainright, would have to be called upon to furnish the necessary equipment. He just hoped the general would cooperate.

Kristen was sitting at her communications console listening to the various com channels. Every one she went to was filled with pleas for help. Earthquakes were leaving hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of people, homeless. Erupting volcanoes were wiping out entire communities and sending millions of tons of ash up into the atmosphere. She also knew that huge tidal waves were striking the coasts of many countries around the world, causing massive devastation.

As she listened, she could hear people pleading for help, and no one was replying. Everyone had their own problems and there was no help to give. She wiped the tears from her eyes and changed the channel back to listen to Luna City and Vesta; she didn’t want to hear the desperate cries for help from Earth any longer.

-

Captain Stevens peered through his high powered binoculars across the flat desert terrain. A few cactus and small, scattered plants were all that he could see. In the distance, he could barely make out the town of Jornada. The major had informed him that two of the marine companies that would be arriving in the morning would be assigned to guarding the town.

There were few roads in this section of the desert, and he had already set up checkpoints on the two that ran through his area. Unfortunately, one of the two roads was the main one that serviced the spaceport. If there were going to be problems that was the road they would be coming down. He had one hundred and six marines in his command and a five-mile stretch of land to patrol.

“Damn, it’s hot,” complained Lieutenant Griffith, as he walked up to the captain. “I’ve never liked the desert.”

“Have the men set up some tent canopies for shade,” Stevens ordered as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He had requested a large number of canopies and fully intended to put them to use to protect his marines. “We have several jeeps from the spaceport; use them to take cold water to our people periodically. We don’t need anyone to have a heat stroke out here.”

“Yes, Sir,” replied Lieutenant Griffith. He looked up and noticed the sky had an unhealthy tinge to it. “How long are we going to have to be out here?”

“As long as it takes,” Stevens replied as he thought over the best defensive strategy for the area he had to cover. “I will set our command center up here and another behind the check point at the main road. If we have survivors coming, that’s the route they will take.”

“I’ll be glad when our heavy equipment gets here,” Griffith added as he looked up and down the stretch of desert they were expected to guard.

They needed some LAVs and Humvees for additional firepower. There just wasn’t much cover and Stevens didn’t like the idea of his marines being so exposed. He turned to go back to his jeep and check on the positions being set up. It was going to be a long and hot day, and then there was the night, which wouldn’t be much better.

-

Lawrence had just gotten off the phone with General Wainright. After a long talk, the general had agreed to try to procure as many helicopters as possible along with more troops. He had some communication lines still open with a few of his superiors, but not many. The military had been hit as hard as the civilians in the disaster that was rolling across the country. He would also be sending some heavier equipment in the morning to reinforce the marines. There was a nearby airbase as well as the White Sands test range that could be called upon for help.

After speaking with General Wainright, Lawrence went to the complex’s Control and Operations Center. Stepping inside, Lawrence looked around. There were over forty people in the room manning the consoles and computers.

He stepped over to the main communications console where Marsha Trask, his second in command, was speaking with several communication specialists. “What’s the latest, Marsha?” asked Lawrence, seeing the pained look upon her face.

“It’s horrible, Lawrence,” she replied, shaking her head in despair. “All we’re picking up are pleas for help. We have numerous reports of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Mount St. Helens, Mount Rainier, Lassen Peak, Mount Hood, and others have erupted. More are being reported every hour. We also have an unconfirmed report of eruptions at Yellowstone; Holbrook is checking into that. Both the East and West Coasts have been hit by massive tidal waves.”

Lawrence felt numb knowing that millions of helpless people were being killed. He looked up at several large viewscreens, which showed views from space of the Earth. Already, the atmosphere was changing to a darker, more threatening color. Soon, much of the light from the sun would be blocked out.

“We are in a dire situation, Marsha,” explained Lawrence, thinking about what all needed to be done. “Get with our people and set up more shuttle launches for tomorrow. I want to start sending four hundred people a day up to Holbrook Station. We also need to take two of our larger hangars and set them up to hold refugees. The hangars will need some type of air filtration systems to take out contaminants. We also need to find as many breathing masks as possible. General Wainright said the military bases may be able to furnish some of those.”

“What’s going to happen, Lawrence?” Marsha asked, deeply concerned. She trusted Lawrence to tell her the truth.

“We’re leaving,” he replied after a moment, his face taking on a somber look. “The Earth is finished. We’re going to evacuate as many people as possible to Luna City and Vesta, and maybe even a few to Mars Central.”

“My family?” asked Marsha, suddenly feeling worried for their safety. Her husband worked at the spaceport, and her teenage son attended school in Jornada City where their home was.

“Your family too,” Lawrence assured her. “The families of the people working here will have first priority.”

The Control Center suddenly began trembling, and the lights briefly flickered. A faint rumbling could be heard in the distance.

“What’s that?” Marsha asked, her eyes widening.

“An earthquake,” Lawrence answered as the trembling subsided. “I think we had better get used to them.”

He spent a few more minutes giving Marsha instructions and then went on to talk to a few others. They had a lot of work to do, and he didn’t know how much time they would be given to get it all done.

-

Michael Kirby frowned at reading his most recent orders. Brian had just handed him the latest communication from the Control Center at Vesta. He read them again with a heavy frown crossing his face.

“We’re to return to Vesta immediately for possible assignment to Holbrook Station,” he read aloud, looking over at his second in command. “What do you make of these orders, Brian?”

“All hell’s broken out on Earth,” Brian responded in a strained voice. “This sounds to me as if the Raven is going to be used for some type of rescue operation.”

“We’ll have to ask someone else to keep an eye on our mining operations,” said Michael, thinking about which one of the other prospectors he could trust. He also knew that whomever he asked would demand a hefty fee.

“Get the crew ready; tell them we’re returning to Vesta immediately,” Michael ordered. He hoped this ordeal with the aliens hadn’t frightened Susan too much. He also wondered just how bad the situation on Earth was. If he was being ordered to be prepared to go to Holbrook Station, then it must be grim indeed.

-

Mason was in his office going over the latest reports from his people. Ethan Hall had already begun converting two of the cargo ships to handle evacuees. Keith Davis was busy with his engineers preparing to start blasting the first of the new tunnels. Lori Wright had just finished talking to him about what she could do to increase food production as well as recycle their air and water. She had also requested that they try to procure some additional environmental equipment. Some of it he could get from Jornada, the rest he would have to check on.

Mason looked up at the large viewscreen on the far wall of his office. Normally it showed a scene from inside Smithfield or of the stars. Now it was showing the latest video feed from Luna City. The view was of the Earth, highly magnified. There were very few areas of blue sky now. Storms were increasing, and conditions on the surface were rapidly deteriorating.

He had Cheryl Robinson working on a list of people they were going to try to find and rescue. He was recalling several of the prospecting ships because they were the only ships he had at his disposal with powerful enough engines to land on Earth and take off again. He knew that Michael and a few others could be depended on to do whatever was necessary.

Cheryl was compiling a list of scientists, engineers, technicians, doctors and others that would be needed if Vesta, Luna City, and Mars Central were to survive. Fortunately, a number of the brightest were already working for Smithfield or were at Luna City or Mars Central. Mason planned to send ten prospecting ships to Holbrook Station to assist in the evacuations and the search for specific individuals. Their main priority would be the people on the list that Cheryl was compiling. They would also be used to salvage certain equipment that was needed by the space outposts.

Before proceeding to the station, all ten would be docking at Vesta and undergoing a minor refit to allow for passengers. According to Ethan, he could quickly modify two of the prospecting ship’s four small cargo holds to handle survivors. He already had the plans worked up and work crews on standby, and was fairly certain he could complete the modifications on all ten ships in four days if they worked around the clock. Mason knew the bigger job was going to be explaining to the ship captains why their ships were being modified.

“It’s getting bad on Earth, isn’t it, Sir?” Adrienne asked as she gazed with fear in her eyes at the viewscreen. She had just stepped into Mason’s office to ask him a couple of questions about the disaster. “My parents are down there somewhere.”

“Where do they live?” asked Mason, knowing that most of the people that lived on Vesta still had family living on Earth. Everyone was going to experience losses in this disaster, some more than others.

“Seattle,” replied Adrienne, slowly. “I heard from the news reports that Seattle was struck by a tidal wave, but I don’t know how bad the damage is.”

Mason was silent as he mulled over what to say to Adrienne. He knew that the tidal wave, which had struck Seattle had been nearly two thousand feet high as it rolled across the city. The odds of her parents having survived were minuscule.

“There have been a lot of disasters across the globe today,” Mason spoke in an understanding voice. “It’s hard to say who has managed to survive; all we can do is hope.”

Adrienne nodded; she knew from the look on Mason’s face that her parents were probably gone. She took in a deep breath and tried to control her trembling. It was all she could do not to break out into tears. Holding up her head, she gazed at Mason, seeing the compassionate look upon his face. “If you need me, I will be at my desk. The ten prospecting ships should be docking shortly. I believe the Raven will be arriving first.”

“Susan will be glad to hear that,” Mason responded with a nod. He wished there was something he could say to make Adrienne feel better. He knew she didn’t have any family here in Smithfield.

Mason watched her go back to the outer office to her desk. He let out a deep breath and shook his head. The day was nearly over and there still was so much he needed to do. In the morning, more shuttles would start launching from Jornada. Mayor Silas had already given the orders to drastically increase fuel production at their facility at Luna City.

There were two shuttles equipped to carry fuel to Holbrook Station as well as the International Space Station as needed. The two shuttles were already being loaded and sent with full fuel tanks to Holbrook. Silas was already in the process of converting a third shuttle into another fuel tanker. If they were going to conduct all the rescue operations they were talking about, they would need massive amounts of fuel. Fortunately, it could be produced on the Moon.

-

Beneath Cheyenne Mountain, General Alex Dreland felt the Command Center shake as another earthquake struck somewhere close by. To be felt inside the mountain indicated it had to be of strong intensity, as the complex rested on 1,380 special springs that could handle a thirty-megaton nuclear blast. From reports in the past hour West Spanish Peak in southern Colorado had erupted, spewing ash and magma across southern and central Colorado and the upper Texas Panhandle.

“Do we still have contact with Peterson Air force Base?” Dreland asked. Peterson was the nearest military airbase and part of the command network.

“No,” reported Colonel Allison, shaking his head. “The last communication we received from General Pittman indicated that they were evacuating to White Sands to help protect Jornada.”

Dreland nodded his head in understanding. He knew that for General Pittman to remain at Peterson would have been suicide.

“We’re losing contact with more of our military bases every hour,” Colonel Allison continued with growing worry on his face. “If this keeps up, we won’t be able to contact anyone in another twenty-four hours.”

General Dreland gazed at the multiple screens covering the huge wall of the operations room. Most were filled with static, while a few still showed views from operational satellites. “General Wainright has been speaking to Lawrence Henderson at Jornada. It seems they are going to try to evacuate as many people as they can to Luna City, Vesta, and Mars Central.”

“Evacuating Earth,” Allison responded, his face turning pale at the idea.

“I don’t think there’s any other choice,” replied Dreland, rubbing his forehead with his right hand. “Even our people here have reported that we will soon be in a nuclear winter scenario much worse than any predicted in our simulations.”

“What do you want us to do?” asked Allison, staring at the commanding general. He knew it was already too late for them to leave the complex with the ash coming down heavily outside.

“We contact all of the remaining military installations we can and have them send everything that flies to General Wainright and General Pittman at White Sands. Troops, planes, helicopters, supplies; anything that may help in moving survivors off the planet. I will also be issuing orders giving General Wainright full command of all surviving U.S. military forces.”

Colonel Allison nodded; he realized this was the end. His family had been living in Denver, and he knew he would never see his wife and young daughter again. The falling ash outside made travel impossible. He hoped their deaths would be quick.

General Dreland went to his office to sit down and pass on the necessary orders while they still had some communications ability. He had always been a dutiful commanding officer, and being placed in charge of the Cheyenne Mountain facility had been the highlight of his career. He found it fitting that this was where it would end.

Chapter Four

Lieutenant Wade Nelson awoke with a start. He opened his eyes and felt a brief moment of disorientation as the world around him slowly swam into sharp focus. He could hear moans and complaints from other men and women. Sitting up, he looked around; nothing seemed familiar. Where the hell was he? About a dozen other marines were in the small room looking as confused as he was at their new surroundings, a few of which he recognized.

They were in a rectangular room that seemed to be constructed of some type of gray metal, and there was a large metal hatch that served as a door. Two rows of narrow bunks stacked three high were against opposite walls. He felt something strange around his neck and reaching up, felt a thin round metal collar. It was no more than a quarter of an inch thick and felt cool and very smooth to the touch. He could detect no clasp or any way to remove it.

“Where the hell are we?” asked Private Phil Dawson, swinging down from the top bunk to land on the floor. He swayed unsteadily on his feet as he fought to keep his balance. “This sure as hell isn’t our regular marine barracks!” Then his right hand went to his neck, feeling the small metal collar, and a look of astonishment crossed his face as he looked over at Lieutenant Nelson. “Where did this come from, Lieutenant?”

“I don’t know,” answered Wade, as he saw that everyone in the room was wearing one. The collars were silver with a light bluish tint. “I would suggest that we leave them alone for now until we know what they’re for.”

“What’s going on?” asked Dawson, wanting an explanation. The last thing he remembered was going to sleep in his bunk.

“I don’t know,” replied Wade as he examined their surroundings more closely. The room they were in was about twelve feet wide and twenty feet long. On one end was the hatch and on the other were some narrow lockers and what looked like a normal door.

Lieutenant Nelson stood up and walked slowly over to the metal hatch, feeling surprised at how rubbery his legs were. His entire body felt weak and out of balance. Grasping the handle on the hatch, he tried to turn it but nothing happened; they were locked in. He wondered if they were on some type of navy ship. He just couldn’t remember how he had gotten here.

“We’re not going anywhere soon,” he spoke, turning back around to face the seven men and four women that were in the small room. “We’re locked in.”

One of the women sat back down on her bunk, looking frightened. “I don’t understand; the last thing I remember was being on guard duty at the main gate and now I’m here.”

“Does anyone remember anything?” asked Wade, looking around the small group. He noticed that a few of the marines were fully clothed while others were standing around in just their undergarments.

“I don’t remember anything other than going to bed,” one of the other women spoke as she opened several of the lockers to see what they contained. “We seem to have some spare uniforms in these lockers.”

Wade nodded as several of the group went over to find uniforms that would fit. After a few minutes, they were all fully dressed and standing around looking at one another. Everyone gathered around Wade waiting for an explanation since he was the only officer in the room other than Corporal Jamie Sterns and Corporal Brandon Perry.

“What now, Lieutenant?” Jamie asked, her eyes focusing on Wade. Jamie had been in the lieutenant’s unit and was relieved that he was here with them.

“We wait,” replied Wade, knowing they had no other choice. “We’re locked in and sooner or later someone is bound to come and unlock that hatch.”

“I wonder if this involves that alien ship?” asked Private Lisa Hays. She had been the one on guard duty.

“You think we’ve been abducted?” Private Dawson spoke, his eyes growing wide at the thought. “I’ve read about that in UFO books.”

“Abducted!” Private Eugene Russell spoke derisively with a halfhearted laugh. “That’s ridiculous.”

“We don’t know what’s happened,” Wade broke in with a frown. “We just need to wait and see how this plays out.”

The others nodded; they searched the small barrack like room and found no weapons of any type, not even a knife. They sat down on the bunks and began talking in quiet voices, stealing occasional furtive glances at the locked hatch. Everyone had the same questions on their mind. What was on the other side and where were they?

Wade wasn’t sure how much time had passed when they all heard a noise at the hatch. Their eyes instantly went to the metal handle as it slowly began to turn. The hatch swung inward, and everyone gasped at what was standing there. Wade slowly stood up and tried not to show panic.

A man was standing there, but one like Wade had never seen before. He was taller than Wade at well over six feet. His skin was a light red, and his arms seemed to be slightly longer than normal with long, narrow fingers on his hands. The face was humanoid with narrow eyes, no eyebrows, a wider than normal nose, and his ears were small. The most unusual thing was that there was no hair at all upon his head. Wade knew with a sinking feeling in his stomach that he was looking at an alien.

“Greetings,” the man spoke as his eyes swept across the room. “I am Marken of the Kivean race; I will be responsible for your group as long as you are on board this ship.”

“Ship?” spoke Wade, noting that Marken seemed to be unarmed other than what looked like a small metallic rod that he carried at his waist.

“Are you an alien?” Private Dawson asked his eyes growing wide at the thought. “Are you from the ship that was in orbit above the Earth?”

Marken eyed Dawson for a moment before replying. “Yes,” he spoke in a steady voice. “You and a number of others have been taken aboard to serve the Kleese.”

“Wait a minute,” spoke Wade, taking a cautious step closer to Marken. “We are marines and serve in the United States military, not for these Kleese you speak of. What’s going on?”

Marken eyed Wade and then motioned to someone behind him. It was the same with all new recruits. There would be some initial confusion followed by refusal to accept their new situation. He had been through this before and knew exactly what to do. In the end, they would do as told.

Everyone in the room stepped back as a tall metal figure suddenly appeared in the doorway. The figure stood ten feet tall and looked like a massive robot. Unlike Marken, this thing was obviously armed. The thing’s armor was nearly black with some dim red lights glowing at various junctures. The weapon it carried on its left arm was long and tubular and was focused on the marines. No one said anything as they gazed in shock at the metallic figure in front of them.

“This is a Type One battle suit,” Marken explained in a calm and lecturing voice, seeing that the appearance of the battle suit was having the desired affect. “You will all be trained to use it and become part of the Kleese military.”

“What if we refuse?” asked Corporal Stern, her eyes staring at the battle suit in astonishment. She had never seen anything like it before. It was beginning to sound as if they had indeed been abducted from Earth. This was like something out of a science fiction movie, only now it seemed that she was a part of it.

“That would not be wise,” Marken replied with a slight shake of his head. “I am sure that by now each of you have noticed the metal collars you are wearing. Each collar contains a chemical that when exposed to any type of light or air will explode. I can assure you the result is quiet messy and unpleasant.”

Corporal Stern’s right hand went to her collar and then fell back down as she gazed at Marken in bewilderment. She could not believe what she had just heard. “Why would you do such a thing? That’s barbaric!”

“It ensures obedience,” he replied in explanation. “Now, if everyone will follow me, we are due in the main indoctrination hall for your first briefing.”

“How is it that you can speak our language?” asked Wade, realizing that Marken was speaking nearly perfect English.

“I’m not,” Marken replied, his narrow eyes focusing sharply on Wade. “While you were asleep our medics emplaced small translation devices in your brains. They are programmed with all the known languages for this section of the galaxy.”

“You operated on our brains!” Private Dawson yelled, horrified at the thought as his hand went to his head, searching frantically for any sign of where they might have drilled a hole in his head.

“You won’t find and evidence of the procedure,” spoke Marken, growing tired of this group. “Now, follow me.” Marken turned and walked out of the door.

The being in the body armor indicated with his weapon that the marines should follow.

“I guess we have no choice,” commented Lieutenant Nelson, motioning for the others to follow him.

Nelson stepped out into a brightly lit corridor and fell in line behind Marken with the rest of his group close behind. The slight clanking noise from behind them indicated the individual in the body armor was following.

As they walked, they saw other aliens leading more soldiers from Earth. Some were obviously of the same race as Marken, but several others were just as obviously not. All were humanoid in form, but with minor differences ranging from skin color to general body build.

“I don’t like this at all,” Corporal Stern whispered worriedly as she stepped up next to Wade. “What do they want with us, and is this ship still in orbit over Earth?”

“I think we’re about to find out,” Wade said as they approached a large wide open hatch where other soldiers and their escorts were already entering.

Going inside, Wade and his group were hustled forward and put in formation with other soldiers already waiting. The assembly hall was massive, and soon close to ten thousand men and women from Earth were lined up in separate sections with their towering escorts prominently intermixed.

There was an upraised section in front of them where a number of higher-ranking military officers were standing. Wade instantly checked their rank, seeing a general and several colonels. Once everyone was inside, the general stepped up to the front and looked over the group. His face looked tired and his eyes weary from what had happened. Two of the red-skinned aliens of Marken’s race stood next to him.

The general looked over the assembled soldiers and then glanced at one of the two aliens next to him, who nodded his head. Taking a deep breath, the general began to speak. “I am General Mitchell. I know this is very strange to all of you, but we are on board the large spaceship that went into orbit above our planet several days ago.”

At this revelation, a number of soldiers began mumbling, as they hadn’t realized that much time had gone by or where they were. Men and women began looking around with growing concern on their faces.

“This ship is from the Kleese Empire, and we have been conscripted to fight for them in an ongoing war between them and two other large galactic civilizations.”

More people began to talk as they were having difficulty understanding what the general was saying. It sounded as if they would never be going home again. A feeling of general uneasiness spread over the assembled soldiers as they turned their attention back to the general.

“What if we refuse to fight?” a soldier in one of the front lines yelled out. “I’m not fighting for no God damn alien!”

“Nor am I!” another spoke loudly. A few others nodded in agreement as the talking in the large hall grew even more animated.

A hatch behind General Mitchell suddenly slid open, and the room instantly fell silent when they saw what entered. It looked like a giant tarantula, but had a large hair covered chest in the front that rose up into the air with a large triangular shaped head on top and strange looking multifaceted eyes. Two arms extended from its upper chest ending in what looked to be hands with seven long digits. The creature was carrying a small control box as it came to stand next to the general and the two other aliens. The creature was large, with its body and six legs reaching nearly eight feet in width and seven feet in height.

“You will obey,” the creature spoke in a deadly voice that showed no sympathy for the plight of the Humans in the room. “You have been chosen to serve the Kleese, and refusal is not an option.”

“And if we don’t?” challenged the first soldier who had spoken, stepping forward and glaring at the creature on the platform in defiance.

The creature studied the small control box it was carrying for a moment and then seemed to gently touch its surface. A resounding explosion echoed through the hall as the collar around the offending soldier’s neck detonated. Several soldiers next to the unfortunate individual fell back injured, and everyone panicked as they saw the headless body slump to the floor.

“You will obey or die,” the alien spider spoke as it turned and left the way that it had entered.

One of the red-skinned aliens looked on unsympathetically and then spoke. “Your injured will be treated in the ship’s medical facilities. Training will begin in the morning to prepare you for your first deployment. Those of you found to be unfit to operate our battle suits will be eliminated, so I suggest you get some rest and be prepared.”

“We will now return to your section of the ship,” spoke Marken, looking over the small group he was in charge of. “In that section you will find food supplies as well as other essential items we felt you might need. Take only what you need for today; it will need to last.”

“Was that a Kleese?” asked Private Dawson, hesitantly.

Marken found and gazed at Dawson disapprovingly. “Yes and their orders are never to be questioned.”

“Are we still in orbit above Earth?” Dawson asked in a subdued voice.

“No,” Marken replied as he turned to head for the exit. “We left Earth long ago, and you will never see it again.”

-

Later, they were all back in their quarters talking over what had happened. Once they had left the large assembly hall, they had been taken to another large room where massive amounts of supplies were stored. They had found MREs, toiletries, and additional uniforms. Following Marken’s instructions, they took back with them what they would need for the rest of the day and for their morning meal. They also found a restroom facility similar to what they were familiar with behind the small door at the far end of their quarters next to the lockers.

“What are we going to do, Lieutenant?” Private Eugene Russell asked with concern in his deep voice as he slowly chewed and swallowed the last piece of the roll that had come inside his meal. Eugene was a large man and had joined the marines in order to stay away from the gangs that surrounded and controlled the neighborhood his family lived in. “It sounds as if we’re never going to see home again.”

Wade was quiet for a long moment as he mulled over an answer. He needed to talk to the higher level officers and see what they said. Surely, they would know more. The briefing they had just attended had been more to intimidate everyone than anything else. “I don’t know, Private Russell,” Wade replied in an even voice. “For now, we’re at their mercy. These damn collars around our necks don’t leave us much choice. You all saw what happened in the assembly hall.”

“It was gruesome,” Corporal Stern replied. She knew she would have nightmares for days after seeing the private get his head blown off. Without thinking, her left hand reached up and touched the small metal collar around her own neck. “I say for now we go along with their training and try to learn as much as we can about what’s going on.”

“I agree,” responded Wade, knowing that was the wisest thing to do. “Right now let’s all turn in and get a good night’s rest. We don’t know what’s ahead of us for tomorrow.”

Everyone nodded and went to their bunks. A sensor in the room must have detected that everyone was retiring for the night as the lights in the ceiling instantly dimmed to near darkness. As everyone thought about their plight, Private Dawson spoke one final time. “I didn’t join the marines to become an astronaut. I never did like flying.”

A few people chuckled and then the room became silent. Each was lost in his or her own private thoughts. They were far from home on an alien spaceship, and no one knew if they would survive the next few days. The gruesome death of the private in the assembly hall was on all of their minds.

-

Wade felt as if he had just fallen asleep when an alarm sounded, and the lights went from semi-darkness to bright. His eyes instantly snapped open, and then he remembered the previous day’s events. According to the alien Marken, they would begin their training this morning.

“Every one up,” Wade spoke in a loud voice as he got out of his narrow bunk and began to dress.

“What time is it?” Phil Dawson complained as he sat up and rubbed his eyes.

“Don’t know,” Corporal Stern replied as she finished buttoning up her shirt. “We just need to be ready when Marken comes for us.”

“I wonder what this training is going to be like?” Corporal Perry asked. So far, he had been quiet and hadn’t really said much.

“I’m hitting the shower,” Private Nicole Foster spoke as she stood up and headed for the small door at the far end of their quarters.

“Make it quick,” Wade ordered not knowing how much time they had.

They had just finished eating when the hatch to their quarters opened and Marken put in an appearance. An alien in a battle suit stood directly behind him. “Let’s go,” he ordered, gesturing for everyone to follow him. “Lieutenant Nelson, you are responsible for the behavior of your marines during the training.” Marken then turned and went out into the corridor, expecting everyone to follow him.

“Double file,” Wade ordered as he and Corporal Stern stepped outside and into the wide corridor. The rest of the marines followed them, and they were soon walking in step toward their destination. Wade had already decided that their best bet to survive this ordeal was to maintain discipline and work together as a unit. He planned to keep his eyes open and try to learn as much as possible. He didn’t know if escape was possible, but he wanted to keep all of his options open.

They walked briskly through several long corridors seeing other marine and regular army troops going in the same direction. At regular intervals, aliens in battle suits stood watching for any signs of trouble. After the demonstration the previous day of what would happen if the collar around a soldier’s neck exploded, no one seemed to want to challenge the alien’s authority.

Wade wasn’t too surprised to see most of the small groups of soldiers walking quietly in formation. There were a few groups that looked more like a rabble and were not organized. Wade felt concern at what would happen to those who failed to follow through on the necessary discipline to keep their units organized.

They finally reached a wider corridor with a number of large open hatches on both sides. Marken stopped, and then turned around to face the group. “These are our onboard training facilities. There will be four hours of training this morning followed by a brief break, and then an additional four hours of training before you will be taken back to get additional food and supplies.” Indicating for the group to follow him, he entered one of the open hatches and vanished from sight.

Taking a deep breath, Wade and Corporal Stern entered next, followed by the rest of their marines. Going inside they stopped and gazed around in astonishment.

“They sure know how to impress people,” Corporal Stern spoke in a quiet voice as her deep blue eyes took in what was in front of them.

They were in a large room easily two hundred meters long and sixty wide with a ceiling a good forty meters above their heads. In front of them were several long lines of dark battle suits. The front of each one was open and there was a small platform where a person could step up and take their place inside. Jamie shivered slightly as she gazed at the narrow opening in the suits. She was slightly claustrophobic, and the thought of being enclosed in one of those suits sent cold chills down her back.

Wade looked behind them and saw with surprise that several other groups had followed them inside. He was relieved to see that they were all marines; in all he estimated there was close to fifty of them in the large training room as well as three more members of Marken’s race.

“These are our Type One battle suits,” Marken explained in a loud voice to the assembled marines. “In today’s drills you will become familiar with how they move and what their capabilities are. No weapons will be allowed.” Marken then pointed to Lieutenant Nelson and Corporal Stern. “You two, step up on the platforms and take the first two suits. Once inside the suits will close and form up around you. You may feel some initial panic, but as the suits internal computers sync with your body the feeling should go away.”

Wade and Jamie glanced apprehensively at each other and then approached the two battle suits. They stepped up on the platforms and looked inside. The suits seemed to be heavily padded, probably to prevent the occupant from being injured during combat.

Turning around, Wade took a cautious step backwards and eased into the suit. It was fairly obvious where your legs and arms needed to go. Once he was in and leaned his head back, the suit began to close up around him. In moments, he was in total darkness and felt as if he was suffocating. The suit adjusted itself around him and something like a helmet came down onto his head.

Wade could feel a prickling sensation on his scalp as the helmet molded itself to his head. Suddenly he could see out normally as if the suit wasn’t even there. With astonishment, he raised his arm, only to see the suit’s metal limb rise up at his side. He raised the other arm experimentally and saw it perform as the other had. It was obvious that the servos and computers in the battle suit duplicated whatever motions his limbs made inside the suit.

Wade saw Marken press a button on a control device he was holding, and the small platform in front of him descended into the floor. Marken then stepped forward and placed his hand upon the metal arm. Wade was astonished as he could feel the touch of Marken’s hand upon the metal.

“Once the suit has acclimated itself to you, it will be like an outer layer of skin. After a while, you will scarcely notice you have it on other than being much stronger and faster.”

Wade took a couple of tentative steps forward and found it was just like walking. He suspected there had to be some type of device in the suits helping him to keep his balance. Looking over at Corporal Stern’s suit, he saw with relief that she too had managed to take several cautious steps. Another thing he noticed was the steady stream of cool fresh air that was circulating within and how comfortable the feeling of the suit on his body was becoming.

Jamie was still fighting to breathe in her battle suit. The thing was just so damn claustrophobic! After a couple of minutes, her breathing slowed down and she began to relax. It was a relief to know that she wasn’t in danger of having her head blown off because she couldn’t handle the suit.

Marken nodded in satisfaction and then turned to face the other conscripts. “Excellent, everyone get a suit. We will begin the first phase of your training.”

Everyone quickly obeyed and suddenly Wade heard a woman screaming in fear. “I can’t do this; there is no way I’m getting in that thing!” Looking quickly, Wade saw the woman was not a member of his group. He knew in his heart that this wouldn’t end well.

A moment later, one of the other members of Marken’s people escorted the frightened marine out of the room. Wade had a sinking feeling that they would never see her again.

For the next several hours, they worked out in the battle suits. Marken’s people had them jogging in formation, stopping suddenly and laying down, only to jump back up and resume jogging again.

“Your suits must become a part of you,” he informed them in a loud, commanding voice as he gazed at the assembled marines in their battle suits. “Each suit is capable of operating at full combat power for ten hours, at which time they need to be recharged. The armor the suits are made of is a composite material extremely resistant to most weapons fire. They are also very expensive to produce, and the Kleese frown heavily upon one being damaged due to carelessness.”

The rest of the day was much of the same. Learning how the suits moved, how to communicate with one another, and how the suits needed to be recharged from a portable power unit. At the end of the day, Wade felt as if he had done a full day of calisthenics; his joints and muscles ached and he was exhausted. He knew the suits would take quite a bit of getting used to, but at least his entire squad had survived the first day of training.

They went back to the supply room and picked up what they would need for their evening and morning meals. They then jogged back to their quarters and collapsed on their bunks, exhausted.

“It’s just like basic training all over again,” moaned Dawson as he opened up his MRE. “I just barely made it through that!”

“At least we’re all still together,” Corporal Perry commented as he sat on his bunk looking at the others. “That poor girl that broke down; I wonder what happened to her?”

“You don’t think they executed her, do you,” Private Hays asked with worry in her eyes.

“I don’t know,” Wade replied as he began to eat. “I suggest we finish eating, get cleaned up, and get a good night’s rest. If tomorrow is anything like today, we’re going to need it.”

-

Day two of training began with more exercises in the battle suits. This time it involved hand-to-hand combat in simulated battle situations. Wade quickly found out that the servos in the suits gave him near superhuman strength and speed. They weren’t all that agile, but once you mastered their limitations they became quiet easy to handle.

“Cease combat!” Marken suddenly spoke over the com system that all the suits were equipped with. “Take your suits to the dismount stations and remove them. There will be a special meeting by one of your higher ranking officers.”

Wade quickly obeyed, and he soon had his entire squad standing at attention in front of the now empty suits. A few moments later, all forty-nine marines were lined up and waiting. Wade saw with surprise a marine major enter through the hatch escorted by several members of Marken’s race.

“Attention!” Corporal Stern snapped in a loud and commanding voice. Her and Wade had agreed to put on the best show possible for Marken and his people until they could decide what could be done to improve their precarious situation.

“At ease,” spoke the major, gazing at the assembled men and women with a glint of approval in his eyes. “This will be your first briefing about the situation we now find ourselves in.” The major paused as he gazed down the double line of assembled marines. “I am Major Sanchez, and as you have been told, all of us were removed from Earth to serve the Kleese Empire in a war that is going on between the three largest civilizations in our galaxy. From my understanding, this war has been going on for well over a thousand of our years.”

“A thousand years,” a private repeated down in the lines, finding it hard to comprehend how a war could last so long.

“Yes, a thousand years,” the major repeated, deciding not to reprimand the private for the interruption. “This war involves the possession of newly discovered planets with inhabitants that two or all three of these empires desire.”

“Did they desire Earth?” asked another marine.

“No,” Major Sanchez replied with a frown crossing his face. “Our world was found to be unsuitable and a possible future danger to the empires.”

“Will we ever get to go back home?” asked another private from the center of the formation.

“Our duty and our survival rests now with the Kleese,” the major replied evenly. “We are going to a larger combat training facility where we will learn how the weapons for these battle suits work.” Major Sanchez paused again and looked slowly across the two lines of marines. “Early this morning an army corporal used one of the combat suits to kill one of his instructors. In retaliation, a member of the Kleese race entered the training room and set off the collars of all fifty of the trainees. Let that be a word of caution to you, the Kleese will show us no mercy. Our only hope to survive is to learn how to operate these battle suits and follow their orders.”

The major then turned and left the training room along with the two aliens that had entered with him. Wade and Corporal Stern just looked at one another.

“He never said what happened to Earth,” Jamie commented in a low voice.

“No, he didn’t,” replied Wade, feeling deep concern. “These Kleese are worrisome; they just came in and killed all fifty of the army troops due to the infraction of just one of their number. They seem to have a very low regard for the lives of others.”

Wade also wondered if Major Sanchez knew what had happened to Earth. It was at that moment Wade decided one thing for certain: someday he would learn the secret to these collars that everyone wore, and when that day arrived, he would find some way to return home.

Chapter Five

Mason stared with growing anxiety at the main viewscreen in the Control Center. It had been over a week since the alien ship had launched its deadly missile at the Earth and its effects were obvious. The atmosphere was a darker and more sinister color from all the ash, smoke, and other gases being thrown up from the erupting volcanoes and numerous fires that were sweeping across all of the continents. Each day, he knew that the air was becoming more dangerous to breathe, and the number of survivors rapidly dwindling. All the major media stations that normally broadcast from Earth were silent.

“We’re only picking up a few of the smaller private stations now,” Pamela Cairns informed Mason as she scanned the latest reports. “I’m sure some stations are being blocked by the interference in the atmosphere from all the ash and other pollutants being released from the fires and volcanoes.”

“Holbrook Station is still picking up a lot of pleas for assistance from isolated communities all over the planet,” Jessica Lang added with a look of anguish in her eyes. Her parents lived just outside of St. Louis and she knew there had been a major earthquake in that area. She greatly feared she would never see them again.

“There’s no one to help them,” Drake answered in a low voice, trying not to think about the misery the scattered survivors on the planet must be suffering through. “Everyone is on their own now. As near as we can tell, there are no effective governments left anywhere on the planet.”

“The disaster overwhelmed them,” Pamela said, her eyes focusing on the main viewscreen. “No one could be prepared for this; if any government leaders survived they are either in bunkers or trying to escape themselves.”

“Which brings up another important issue,” Mason said, looking over at the other two. “What do we do when a government official does shows up? There are bound to be some governors, senators, or other world leaders that have survived.”

“As far as I am concerned, they’re all civilians now,” Drake replied in a steady voice. “They will be treated like everyone else and will no longer hold any authority. We don’t need some lifelong politician trying to tell us how to run Vesta or anything else.”

“I agree,” Pamela added with a nod, looking at Mason. “You and Mayor Silas need to remain in control.”

Mason nodded; he knew this was a situation he would have to deal with when it occurred and it was one he wasn’t looking forward to. “What’s the latest status on the new construction going on at Luna City?” he asked, looking over at Drake who was standing next to Pamela. The two had been busy talking to Luna City as well as Mars Central trying to get their latest status reports. The last week had been frantic, trying to find people on Earth, make arrangements for their evacuations, and working on the ships in the spacedock.

“Mayor Silas has started an emergency expansion program to build more dome settlements,” replied Drake, glancing over at Mason. “They managed to send several shuttles down to one of the other launch facilities that had some of the equipment they need. They also found four usable shuttles in several undamaged hangars, which they are in the process of attempting to recover.”

“We probably should send teams to the other launch facilities to see what is salvageable,” Mason commented, pleased that additional shuttles had been found; they were going to need every one. “Why didn’t the launch facility get the shuttles off?”

“Everyone at the facility was dead,” responded Drake, sadly. “One of the commanders of the two shuttles believes they were overwhelmed with poisonous gas from a nearby erupting volcano. The shuttle crews wore protective suits so they were not affected.”

“What about these new domes that Mayor Silas is building, how soon before they’re ready?”

“They won’t be very comfortable, but he thinks that, within twelve weeks, he can handle an additional twenty thousand people. He can finish the domes later with added necessities when they have the time,” answered Drake, recalling his long conversation with the mayor. “For now the domes will consist of heat and air with basic life support. Their biggest problem is getting the materials with which to build the domes.”

“They’re also going to need food,” added Pamela, wondering where that was going to come from.

“See if there is anything we can send them to help,” responded Mason. He knew Vesta normally kept a large stock of food supplies on hand in case of an emergency. “Also, contact Lawrence and see what they can find to send up to Luna City, both in the way of food as well as building materials.”

“I’ll get on it right away,” Drake promised. The list of things they needed to do was growing daily. They had a mountainous task ahead of them.

“What about Mars Central?” asked Mason, satisfied that Mayor Silas was doing everything he could to accommodate more survivors.

“They’re not going to be of much help,” Pamela replied as she recalled her recent conversation with Professor Alex Scott who was in charge of the large Mar’s exploration base. “They currently have slightly over fourteen thousand people on the base and he believes that with their available resources it could be expanded to hold around twenty thousand. He also estimates it would take four months to finish the additional expansion.”

Mason let out a deep breath of disappointment; he had hoped that Mars Central would be able to hold many more. “That’s six thousand more survivors,” he said after a moment of thought. “Perhaps later, we can expand the base even more if we can find the resources that we need. What’s the latest from Jornada?”

“Lawrence is working closely with General Wainright and General Pittman,” Drake reported. “General Pittman is from Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado and has placed himself under Wainright’s command. General Dreland at Cheyenne Mountain has placed general Wainright in overall command of all surviving U. S. military forces.”

“Any additional word out of Cheyenne Mountain?” asked Mason, knowing that General Dreland would have been high up in the military chain of command. He waited patiently for Drake’s answer.

“No, there’s a volcano close by that has erupted and the entire Cheyenne Mountain complex, as well as Peterson Air Force Base, is being buried under ash. That’s why General Dreland turned command over to General Wainright.”

“What about White Sands; is that where the military is evacuating to?” Mason had spoken to General Wainright a few days previously about another matter that had been weighing heavily on his mind. A lot had changed in the last day or two.

“Seems like it,” replied Pamela, looking at some data on one of her screens. “General Wainright and Pittman have ordered nearly every surviving military asset to make for the testing grounds. They are also bringing in a tremendous amount of supplies as bases around the country are evacuated.”

“We’re going to need those supplies at Jornada and Luna City,” Mason said as he thought about everything that needed to be done at the spaceport and on the Moon. “Contact Lawrence and see what he can work out with General Wainright.”

Just the logistics of what they were attempting was overwhelming. For the last week, Mason had gotten very little sleep as he worked with the others trying to get everything organized. How could he afford to sleep when people on Earth were dying? Susan had even come by and told him that he needed more sleep. Mason knew his sister was worried about the pressure he was under.

“They’re bringing in military troops as well as their families,” Pamela continued as she read through the data on her screen. “At last count they have nearly eighty thousand people at White Sands alone, and that doesn’t include the two military bases that are close by.”

“How much can they help Lawrence with Jornada’s refugee problem? I know they’ve been helping out some.”

“General Wainright has sent a large number of self-contained military tents to the spaceport and they are setting them up on the south side of the complex. The tents have air filtration systems since they were designed to be deployed in the deserts of the Middle East. Lawrence estimates that, between the tents and the two large hangars they’re converting, they’ll have room for close to sixty thousand survivors.”

“That’s not a lot,” said Mason, disappointedly, hoping they would have been able to accommodate more. He knew there were millions of survivors scattered around the country.

“General Wainright has brought in some military construction people and they are in the process of building additional permanent barracks. He is still bringing in supplies from all over the country,” Drake added. “They have some large transport helicopters that were designed specifically to work in the sand of the Middle East, and they can fly through the ash fall if they’re careful.”

“Those might be useful for gathering other survivors,” Mason commented as he thought about some of the people he would like to locate and bring to Vesta. There were scientists, doctors, and engineers spread out all over the country that he would like to attempt to find. They had already located a few, but many more were still missing.

“I agree,” responded Drake, knowing Mason wanted to rescue as many key people as possible. “Wainright and Lawrence feel they can greatly expand the holding area for survivors and be able to keep a large number safely for a considerable length of time, even in the deteriorating conditions. Lawrence also reports that thousands of survivors are arriving daily and a large tent city has sprung up just south of the spaceport. They are processing the new arrivals to see if any qualify for immediate evacuation; the rest will have to wait until later.”

“What’s the latest status on other survivors?” asked Mason, knowing that there were still probably hundreds of millions of people alive on the planet. He couldn’t imagine how it must feel to be trapped on Earth knowing there was no hope for the future.

“Not good,” Pamela responded in a slightly strained voice. “General Wainright is trying to set up a second survival center just south of Amarillo in the Texas Panhandle. The earthquakes and volcanoes have pretty much destroyed the East and West Coasts, and the eruptions at Yellowstone are taking out the northern half of the country. We have also had massive tidal waves on all the coasts, including the Gulf of Mexico. Holbrook Station has been broadcasting non-stop instructing survivors to stay in their homes and try to ride it out until they can be rescued.”

“What about other countries?”

“Canada, the U.K., Germany, and Australia have all set up survival centers. The U.K. reportedly has several shuttles available and will be launching them from Lakenheath airbase in Suffolk. That’s also where they are gathering their survivors. The same in Germany; they are concentrating their survivors around Ramstein Air Force Base in the hope that we can eventually send in shuttles to pick them up.”

Mason nodded; it was hard to think about the hardships the survivors were going through. “I need to go meet with Sean and Ethan at the Phoenix. Keep me posted if anything new comes up.”

Drake watched Mason leave the Control Center; he suspected that Mason hadn’t been getting much sleep over the last few days, not with trying to organize saving as many people from Earth as possible. It was easier for Drake as he had his wife Larcy and their daughter Madison to go home to at night. Letting out a deep breath, he knew he needed to meet with Keith Davis and Lori Wright about the new construction going on inside Vesta.

If they were going to save many people, they would have to be brought to the asteroid, and in order for that to happen they had a massive amount of construction work that needed to be done. Then later on he had a conference call scheduled with Mayor Silas, Darren Kirby, Lawrence Henderson, and General Wainright. Drake knew it was going to be another long and tiring day.

-

Mason reached the spacedock and stood gazing at the Phoenix. The ship was five hundred meters long and nearly ninety meters wide, containing twenty decks, which added a height of fifty meters to the massive ship of exploration. Mason breathed out a heavy sigh, knowing now the Phoenix would never be used for that. It was going to have another new and deadlier purpose, one it had never been designed for. Looking at the main hatch, which was open, he saw Sean and Ethan both standing next to it in animated discussion.

Gazing around the large spacedock, Mason could see four of the three hundred-meter cargo ships currently being refurbished to carry survivors from Earth. There were also six of the fifty-meter prospecting ships going through alterations. One of them was the Raven, the ship that belonged to his sister’s husband, Michael Kirby.

After a minute, Mason reached the Phoenix and saw that both Sean and Ethan were looking at him expectantly.

“How soon before the first cargo ship is prepared to handle passengers?” he asked, wanting to begin ferrying survivors between Holbrook Station and Vesta as soon as possible. Currently, survivors were being taken to Luna City but they could only handle so many until the facility was expanded.

“Two more days and the first will be ready,” Sean replied in a tired voice. He had been up for nearly thirty straight hours showing the engineers what needed to be done to the cargo ships as well as the smaller prospecting ships. “By the end of the week, we will have the first four done as well as the six prospecting ships that are in here.”

Mason nodded, knowing they were doing the best they could. “Let’s take a walk through the Phoenix.”

Mason led them inside and quickly made his way to the engine room, which took up nearly six decks in the stern of the ship. Inside were the newly installed sublight engines, which would allow them to travel anywhere in the solar system in a matter of a few days. Several of the crew were busily checking ship systems and calibrating the new engines. Everything looked new and modern.

“The Phoenix won’t be going to another solar system anytime soon,” Mason informed the other two as he turned around to face them. He folded his arms across his chest, and his face took on a very serious look. “We need to be more concerned about what might happen if the alien ship returns.”

“I don’t understand,” Sean responded with a look of confusion on his face. “What makes you think they will return?”

“I don’t think we can take the chance that they won’t,” replied Mason, grimly. He hated what he was about to ask them to do. “If they do return, we need to be prepared.”

“You want to arm the Phoenix!” Ethan said in dawning comprehension his eyes growing wide at the thought.

“Arm the Phoenix?” Sean echoed in astonishment. “With what? We don’t have any weapons on Vesta!”

“Railguns and missiles to start with,” responded Mason, evenly. “We can get the railguns from Earth as well as the missiles. I have already spoken briefly with General Wainright, and he can get us what we need. They have a large number of new experimental railguns at White Sands.”

“Railguns,” repeated Ethan, nodding his head in thought. He knew that railguns depended on sheer velocity to do their damage. A number of U.S. navy warships were currently equipped with them. They would make an ideal weapon to put on the Phoenix. “How many, and will we have to modify them?”

“Wainright is already having the engineers at White Sands modify them so we can use them on the ship. They will be sending us twenty-four of the railguns. Four of them are quite large, and we will mount them in the bow as our primary offensive weapon. Each one of the four is capable of launching a three thousand pound tungsten round at a speed of over 22,000 feet per second.”

“What about heat buildup in the barrels?” Ethan asked. He knew that the sheer velocity of the railgun rounds generated a tremendous amount of heat. It was the biggest problem with a railgun.

“These railguns are made out of a special alloy that is more heat resistant,” responded Mason, recalling what General Wainright had told him. “Even so, the main railguns can only be fired once every twenty seconds.”

“At 22,000 ft/sec that would give us an effective range of approximately forty miles on a moving target and over two hundred on a stationary one,” mused Sean as he did the math in his head.

“The general will also be sending us a company of marines to help defend Vesta as well as some specialists that are familiar with the weapons we want to install on the ship,” Mason added. “As soon as they get here we need to start on the modifications. We don’t know how soon the aliens may be returning to make sure their missile did its job.”

Ethan was silent for a long moment before he responded. “I guess I can see why arming the Phoenix needs to be done, though I don’t know if the weapons would be effective against the alien ship. That ship was huge!”

Mason nodded in agreement. “They may not be, but they might be effective against their smaller ships or other aliens that might show up. I seriously doubt if the aliens that attacked us are the only ones out there. From now on I want us to be ready.”

It pained Mason at what he was getting ready to do to the Phoenix. He had always dreamed of leaving the solar system to discover new worlds and possibly friendly alien races. Now those dreams had been shattered, and the Phoenix and her future sisters would become the solar system’s first battlecruisers.

-

At Jornada, Lawrence Henderson and General Wainright watched as another shuttle rocketed up toward Holbrook station. They were evacuating all non-essential personnel from the base as well as Jornada city. Everywhere around the base, military personnel were prevalent. A number had been assigned to the Operations Center to help with the shuttle launches.

The shuttle launched like a normal jet airplane using the spaceport’s long twelve thousand foot runway. Once airborne, it activated its powerful rocket engines and was propelled on a pillar of fire up into orbit.

Once in orbit, the shuttle would rendezvous with Holbrook Station and its passengers would then be transferred to one of the Luna City space liners to be taken to the Moon. The Fantasy and the Princess had already made several trips back and forth with survivors.

Lawrence looked up into the darkening sky and shook his head. It had been several days now since he had seen any blue. A very light rain of gray ash was falling from the distant erupting volcanoes, and he hoped it didn’t get any worse. Twice a day all the runways at the spaceport were cleared of the dark gray ash and hauled off in dump trucks.

“We have more people arriving every day,” General Wainright commented as he turned and looked toward the south.

Just south of the spaceport over two hundred massive tents stood, holding thousands of refugees. Behind the tents, construction was ongoing on several long rows of new barracks. The barracks were being equipped with special air filtration systems, which should keep out the worst of the contaminants that were becoming more prevalent in the air with each passing day. They would also be heated and air-conditioned. Wainright hoped that would be sufficient to keep Jornada operating long term.

“How’s the site south of Amarillo coming along?” asked Lawrence, knowing they had an immense task in front of them.

“Slowly,” General Wainright replied with a heavy sigh. “General Stockton is leading the effort and is in the process of setting up tents and building barracks. We should be able to start processing survivors toward the end of the week. We wanted to set up another one in Georgia, but the conditions are just too bad. Colonel Perkins is going to try to assemble survivors at a former air force base, but I don’t know how successful he will be.”

“Lawrence, you’re needed in the Operations Center,” Marsha Trask spoke as she walked up to the two. “Darren needs to speak with you.”

Lawrence nodded. He knew that Darren was concerned about the worsening conditions and how much longer they could safely launch the shuttles. The Earth’s atmosphere was becoming more turbulent each day, and the shuttles had not been designed to operate in such conditions. They were going to discuss some possible modification to the shuttles to make them more aerodynamically stable.

-

Captain Stevens looked along the long row of recently finished wire fencing that stretched in front of his position and currently ran five miles on each side. The fence was eight feet tall and consisted of eight strands of barbwire with a coil of razor wire on top. Directly in front of the fence another coil of razor wire lay on the ground and up against the fence. It made passing through the fence virtually impossible. Army construction personnel had been working for two days to get the fence built, and construction was still on going since plans called for the fence to completely enclose the spaceport.

“I feel safer with the fence up,” Lieutenant Griffith commented as he stepped outside the small command bunker and gazed up and down the long row of fencing.

The bunker had been dug into the ground with dirt piled up on top to keep the people inside cooler and help keep it protected from any incoming weapons fire. Inside were several bunks and a small communications center to allow them to keep in touch with the marines spread out across the three miles of the fence they were currently responsible for. They had originally been responsible for a five-mile long area, but as additional marines and army troops had arrived, their area of responsibility had been reduced.

Stevens nodded as he looked up and down the section they were guarding. He had ten Light Assault Vehicles at his disposal, and six of those had been positioned along the fence to ensure security. He also had two full companies of marines under his command to patrol the three-mile stretch of wire.

“More people are coming every hour,” Lieutenant Griffith said as he stared at the thousands of small tents and even a few RVs that were encamped on the other side of the fence.

“Let’s take a jeep and go up to the main road,” ordered Stevens, wanting to check on the marines that were stationed there. This flood of refugees was turning into a torrent, and if there were any problems, it would probably be at the main gate.

The two climbed into the waiting jeep and were soon bouncing across the rough road that had been graded out on their side of the fence. Looking ahead, they could see what looked like thousands of vehicles lined up on the road trying to gain admittance to the spaceport, survivors seeking a way off the dying Earth. Even from here, they could hear numerous horns honking as their impatient drivers wanted the line to move faster.

Reaching the main checkpoint, Stevens and Griffith climbed out of the jeep. The checkpoint had been covered with a large metal roof to allow the soldiers beneath it to stay out of the falling and blowing ash as people were processed. Four more of the Light Assault Vehicles were stationed there, with their weapons aimed at the main gate. Forty of Captain Steven’s marines were on duty ensuring that no one pushed through without permission.

The checkpoint was open twenty-four hours a day as they attempted to process all the people seeking entrance. There had already been several unfortunate incidents when people had been told they could not enter but would have to wait outside. In one of those instances, two marines had been killed. Currently only people with a useful or needed skill were being allowed inside. The majority of the vehicles were being turned around and sent to the growing tent city outside the fence.

“My wife and kids arrived yesterday,” Griffith commented with obvious relief in his voice as he gazed at the turmoil outside the gate.

He had been frightened for their safety, knowing they had a long drive from Albuquerque to reach Jornada. He had managed to get a hold of them just before the phones quit working. They were now safely in one of the large tents just south of the spaceport with other military families awaiting evacuation.

“I’m glad,” Captain Stevens replied. He knew a lot of others hadn’t been so fortunate, though helicopters from White Sands and the nearby air force base were being sent out hourly to bring additional military families in as well as important civilians.

He was just about to add something else when he saw a scuffle suddenly break out between two marines and four rugged looking men. A moment later, gunshots rang out and both marines fell. The four men started running, heading toward the distant spaceport. Instantly one of the machine guns on one of the Light Assault Vehicles swung around and opened up, taking the four out. All four men dropped to the ground and lay still. Additional marines raced out to check them as medics rushed over to the two fallen marines.

“How are they?” Stevens demanded as he ran quickly over to his fallen marines.

“They’re dead,” one of the medics answered with a frustrated look on her face. “They were shot at point blank range with armor penetrating rounds and never stood a chance. The rounds went right through their body armor.”

Lieutenant Griffith came up and shook his head; he had gone to check on the four men that had murdered the marines. “All four of them are dead,” he announced. “At a rough guess it looks as if they were drug dealers that thought they could buy their way in. When the marines refused, they shot them.”

“Murderers!” a man hollered from outside the fence.

“Let us in!” a woman screamed.

“What right do you have to keep us out?” an irate man’s voice yelled.

“Open the gate or we’ll tear it down!” threatened another.

Captain Stevens looked at the gathering crowd that was quickly turning into a mob. The gate had been closed after the shooting. “Lieutenant, call headquarters and tell them we’re going to need reinforcements at the main gate. Tell them about the shooting and that things are about to get out of hand.”

“Yes, Sir,” Griffith replied as he sprinted toward the communications shack that was nearby.

Stevens then ordered all of the civilians that had been busy processing the new arrivals to move back and he had his marines take up positions facing the gate with their weapons at the ready. Looking at the growing mob, Mark estimated they were facing several thousand people with more joining every moment. If they attempted to rush the gate, he would have no choice except to open fire. It would be a bloodbath, as he knew the machine guns on the four assault vehicles would be deadly at this close range.

Several tense minutes passed as he watched the mob grow; a few were throwing rocks at his marines as the demands for entry grew. Hearing a noise behind him, he saw with relief that reinforcements were coming down the road. Another six Light Assault Vehicles, as well as four heavy tanks, led the way. Behind them came a full company of army rangers.

The civilians, upon seeing the tanks, quieted down and backed away from the fence. Major Anderson jumped out of his jeep and came up to Captain Stevens. “Report,” he snapped, not liking what he was seeing.

Mark quickly explained what had happened and why he had called for reinforcements.

“You did right, Captain,” Major Anderson replied as he quickly assessed the situation. He then walked over toward the gate and picked up a microphone that was hooked up to a number of large public address speakers.

“I am Major Anderson and I expect you to listen. We have limited space inside the fence, and only those we feel are essential to our survival are currently being allowed admittance.”

“What about the rest of us?” a woman shouted. “Are we just going to be left to die?”

“No,” Major Anderson responded in a steady and commanding voice. “We are going to try to save everyone we can. Right now we are being overwhelmed with refugees.”

“What about food and water?” another man demanded in a loud but calmer voice. “We’re running out; our children are hungry.”

“We are aware of the situation,” Anderson replied as his eyes swept across the crowd. “Starting tomorrow, we will be setting up a number of mess halls outside the fence to furnish food and water. It won’t be anything fancy, but you should be able to get by. We’ll also be setting up several medical facilities as well as more processing stations. One word of caution; all of these facilities will be well protected, and I will not tolerate any threats to the military or civilian personnel that will be manning them.”

“You’re going to take all of us?” the same man who had asked about food and water spoke.

“Everyone we can,” Major Anderson promised. “You just need to be patient, and we will do everything in our power to keep you safe.”

The mob seemed to calm down and began to break up, with many going back to their vehicles or tents. A number stood around talking and then after a few minutes even these left the vicinity of the closed gate.

“Keep the gate closed the rest of the night,” ordered Major Anderson, turning around to address Captain Stevens. “I will return in the morning with more soldiers and we will address the growing problems outside the gate. Most of these people are just frightened, but it only takes a few malcontents to cause problems and we need to try to weed those out. If necessary we can set up a detention center for those with criminal records.”

“Yes, Sir,” Mark replied, glad the situation hadn’t gotten any worse. He watched as Major Anderson climbed back into his jeep and headed back toward the spaceport. Then, turning to Lieutenant Griffith, he began giving orders. “I want those tanks positioned to cover the main gate. Spread those other Light Assault Vehicles out across our perimeter.”

“Where do you want us?” an army ranger captain asked as he stepped up next to Mark.

“Place your men one hundred yards east and west of the main gate,” Mark ordered. “I don’t think we will have any more trouble, but a good showing of force will help deter any thoughts of attempting to get over the fence or through the gate.”

“I’ll deploy my rangers,” the captain replied as he turned and walked toward his outfit.

“That was close,” spoke Lieutenant Griffith, shaking his head.

“I know,” replied Mark, letting out a deep breath. “But I guess we can’t blame most of them. They’re frightened, and the world they know is ending. Many of those people out there are just families trying to survive. If we were in their shoes we might be acting the same way.”

Griffith nodded. He knew that the captain was speaking the truth. He himself would have done anything to save and protect his own family.

-

Mason was at his sisters meeting with his brother-in-law Michael Kirby. The two children, Candace and Karen, were outside playing with friends.

“I can’t believe this has happened,” spoke Michael, shaking his head in disbelief.

“So many people have died,” Susan said with sadness in her eyes. “The alien’s attack has left billions dead. It seems so strange not to have any Earth media stations broadcasting.”

“How many are we going to be able to save?” asked Michael, leaning back on the sofa and gazing inquiringly at Mason. “Where are we going to put them all?”

“Those are difficult questions to answer,” responded Mason, taking a sip of his coffee. He put the coffee cup down on an inn table and gazed over at Michael. “We’re going to try to put as many as we can inside the new habitat we’re building here on Vesta.”

“How many?” asked Susan, knowing that it would take years to finish the new habitat. “It isn’t even close to being ready.”

She knew how long it had taken just to build Smithfield; three generations of their family had worked on it. Their parents had died in an accident shortly after Smithfield had been completed. She wished they could have lived so they could see how it looked now. They would have been so proud of what all Mason had done.

“We’re putting all of our resources into it,” responded Mason, knowing the herculean task that was in front of them. “The new habitat, when completed, will be able to hold nearly two million people.”

“What about the Moon and Mars?” Michael asked. “Surely we can expand Luna City and Mars Central?”

“Luna City for sure and eventually Mars Central, but it might take us years to get everyone off the Earth.”

“Do we have that much time?” asked Susan, glancing at Mason and feeling glad that all of her family were on Vesta. She tried not to imagine the horror others were going through who had family either missing or trapped on Earth. She knew what the local media stations were reporting and the news from Earth wasn’t good.

“We’re going to try to build some facilities that will allow people to survive until we can get them off the planet.”

“I watched the news broadcast tonight,” Susan spoke with a heavy frown. “The weather on Earth is getting bad, and they say soon the air may not be breathable.”

“We’re seeing to that,” Mason replied, gazing at his sister. “General Wainright is working with Lawrence, and they are building some new barracks and other facilities that will enable people to survive for quite some time, even in the bad air. The military has a lot of breathing masks that they can hand out if needed.”

“Just what are the plans for the prospecting ships you’re having modified?” Michael asked, finally getting to the question he was most curious about.

He had a suspicion he wasn’t going to like the answer. He had been aboard the Raven earlier and seen some of the modifications being made. Entire sections of the interior hull were being ripped out. It had pained him to see his ship being torn apart that way.

“There are a number of people on Earth that could be invaluable to our continued survival,” explained Mason, leaning forward in his chair. “Only the prospecting ships have engines powerful enough to safely land on Earth and take off again. We’ll be sending the prospecting ships down to try and locate these people. Then later, we may need them to salvage whatever supplies we can find off the surface of the planet.”

Michael nodded; he had suspected something of this sort. “We’re going to become scavengers. That could be dangerous,” Michael said as he thought about going down into Earth’s now polluted atmosphere and the steadily worsening conditions.

“Mason, you’re not asking Michael to do anything unsafe, are you?” Susan asked accusingly, not wanting Michael to risk his life in the endeavor that Mason was suggesting.

“We will take every safety precaution possible,” Mason assured her.

Susan heard the alarm on the oven in the kitchen sound, indicating the roast she was cooking was done. She stood up to finish setting the table and get the rest of the food ready. At least tonight, they could all have a decent family meal together. Later, she would have a long talk with Michael about this new mission that her brother was suggesting.

-

Mason was walking down the sidewalk toward his small home a short distance away from his sister’s. It was twilight in the habitat, and he could hear a few birds calling in the distance. He was in a residential neighborhood and children were out playing and laughing. Everything seemed so normal; it was hard to believe the disaster that was still unfolding on Earth. Mason stopped at a small park and watched a family playing on one of the swing sets and slide. The father was pushing his young daughter on the swing, listening to her squeal in delight each time he made it go higher. The young mother had her son over at the slide, encouraging him to slide down and promising to catch him at the bottom.

Mason watched them for several minutes, almost wishing he had a family of his own. Perhaps someday, when things settled back down, he would have to consider it.

Chapter Six

Wade was out of breath. The training room had been modified and they had been divided into four squads of twelve each. The room now contained numerous obstacles of various shapes and heights, which they had to maneuver around or could hide behind if they so chose. They had been provided with what looked like a large assault rifle with a thicker than normal barrel. The weapon fired a beam of blue light, and when it hit an opponent, it disabled the part of the battle suit it struck. If the beam struck an arm or leg, that limb instantly became disabled. If it struck the chest or the head, the entire battle suit became immobile. The bad thing was when you fired off a shot it allowed your opponent to instantly spot your location and return fire.

Wade was currently standing behind a large metal obstruction with Corporal Stern and Private Dawson at his side. Glancing at the HUD in his helmet, he saw that four of his squad were already down, and several others were partially immobilized. Immobilized squad members showed as red and partially immobilized ones showed as amber. The war game had been going on for nearly four hours.

“What now, Sir?” Private Dawson asked as he looked around the obstruction, only to quickly jerk his head back as a blue beam narrowly missed him. “They seem to have us pinned down.”

Wade nodded; it had taken them a while to work their way through the obstacles to this position, dodging enemy fire the entire way. Two of the other squads had been completely immobilized and were out of the game. The other remaining squad was behind a series of low mounds fifty yards away and had so far refused to move from their protected position. The other two squads had been wiped out when they had attempted to rush them across an open area. Wade had played it more cautiously, preferring to snipe at the other squad whenever one of them made a mistake and allowed themselves to be exposed. He figured there were still six or seven effective members of the other squad left.

“Sir,” spoke Corporal Stern as she leaned back against the metal obstacle and looked up. “This thing’s nearly twenty feet high, if I could jump to the top of it I could see over the mounds the enemy are hiding behind and pick them off rather easily.”

Wade looked up and thought over Stern’s suggestion. She was right about being able to see over the enemy’s position, but she would be exposed and would quickly be immobilized. However, he had an idea how to make her suggestion work. She had already demonstrated that she was the best shot in the squad; she just needed a few precious seconds.

“Okay,” Wade said after a moment. “But here is what we’ll do.” Wade quickly communicated his plan to the rest of his squad who were waiting behind other protective barriers. No one was going to die in this scenario, but Wade did have an idea as to how they could win.

Moments later, Wade and Dawson both stepped around the metal obstacle and began laying down a heavy covering fire for Corporal Stern. She backed up and then took a short run, bending her legs, and then jumped her ten-foot battle suit to the top of the obstacle. The rest of Wade’s squad also began firing trying to pin down the enemy. Blue beams crisscrossed the open space, and occasionally Wade could hear one of his marines swear as they were hit.

On his HUD, he saw two more of his squad fall to the enemy’s weapons, and then the firing stopped. He started to move forward and saw with surprise that both of his legs and one of his arms was immobilized. He glanced over at Private Dawson and saw him laying face down next to the metal obstacle. His entire suit had been shut down. He heard a loud thump and, looking to his side, saw where Corporal Stern had jumped to the floor. Through the shield on her helmet, he could see her grinning.

“They never knew what hit them,” she bragged with a laugh.

“You’re a damn good shot, Corporal,” Wade commented in acknowledgement.

“Training simulation is over,” Marken’s voice announced over the suit’s com system.

Wade thought he could detect a trace of satisfaction in Marken’s normally calm and cold voice.

“All suits are now reactivated,” Marken added.

Wade felt his limbs unfreeze, so he walked over to Private Dawson to help him up.

“They got me as soon as I stepped around the corner,” complained Dawson, shaking his head in frustration. “I only got a few shots off.”

“But it was enough to distract them and allow me to take them out,” Corporal Stern said. “They weren’t expecting to be fired upon from above. At the height I was at they were all exposed.”

“Good job, Lieutenant Nelson,” Marken spoke as the red-skinned alien made a sudden appearance. “You have learned that the suits give you mobility to take advantage of your enemy’s weaknesses. It was a brilliant move to jump one of your squad’s battle suits to a higher level to give you the tactical advantage. No one else on the other squads thought about using the strength the battle suits give you to take advantage of that.”

Wade nodded but didn’t say anything in reply.

“Tomorrow our ship will be rendezvousing with our main training and trade station for this section of space. All Humans will be transferred to the facility and finish your training there.”

“What about you?” asked Dawson, looking down at Marken. The battle suit allowed him to tower over the tall alien.

“I and my people will be transferring also,” Marken replied with an unpleasant look upon his face. “The Kleese have decided that we will be responsible for completing your training and supervising you during your first few deployments. Don’t disappoint me.”

Marken turned and left leaving Wade and the others behind. He knew that they were expected to spend another hour working out in their battle suits and then remove them. They were then required to go to the supply room, pick up what they needed, and return to their quarters. Looking at the large hatch to the training room, he saw that the alien in the ever-present battle suit was still there watching them.

“I wonder just what they’re training us for?” Lieutenant Jeffries from one of the other three squads asked as he strode up in his battle suit. It had been Jeffry’s squad that had taken refuge behind the low mounds, which had caused all the others so much trouble.

“I don’t know,” replied Wade, glancing over at the other lieutenant. “The only thing I am sure of is that we will probably not like it.”

Corporal Stern was listening to the exchange and agreed with Lieutenant Nelson. They were in a bad situation, and at the moment, she saw no way out.

-

Marken returned to his quarters where his mate was waiting. “Do you think they’re the ones?” she asked as he sat down across from her.

“They show promise,” replied Marken, thinking about the recently completed drill. “They are a very aggressive race and probably the most warlike we have ever come across. I am almost certain that is why the Kleese elected to destroy the Human home world.”

“Do they know?” asked Harnett, looking at Marken and wondering what it would feel like to know that your world and all of its people were gone.

“Some of their officers may suspect, but they haven’t been told.”

Harnett nodded. It was the way of the Kleese; they treated all the subordinate races as if they were insects. All three of the dominant races were like that. She just hoped that someday another race would put them in their places.

“This Lieutenant Nelson shows much promise, along with a few others. Their training is already far ahead of many of the other groups. Once we reach the training facility, some of the Humans will be shuffled around. Those that fit into our plan will be placed together and given advanced training.”

“Advanced training?” Harnett exclaimed in astonishment, her narrow eyes growing wider. “That will be the Type Two battle suits. Is that wise? What if the Kleese suspect?”

“The Kleese will never know,” replied Marken, confidently. “The training is left up to us, and the only time a Kleese makes an appearance is when it is necessary to hand out discipline.”

“I have seen their discipline,” Harnett said with obvious disgust in her voice. She worked in the ship’s medical facility and too often, she had to treat alien races who had suffered from the Kleese’s obvious contempt for the welfare of others.

“I like these Humans,” Marken continued with a thoughtful look upon his face. “They remind me much of our own race, except they are much more aggressive. If the situation were different their people and ours would have been friends.”

“If things work out as you hope, perhaps we still can be.” Harnett stood to go and prepare their evening meal.

“Perhaps, but I don’t know if they will ever forgive us for what we are about to do to them.” Marken leaned back and closed his eyes. He dreaded what he was about to put the Humans through, but if their plan was to succeed and if these Humans were indeed the ones they needed, he had no other choice.

-

Wade was surprised the next morning when Marken put in an appearance and informed them that training for the day was canceled. He then requested that Wade and Jamie come with him.

“I wonder what’s up?” Corporal Stern asked as they followed Marken through several long corridors. For once not even their ever-present guard in the battle suit was with them.

“I’m taking you to one of the ship’s observation decks so you can see us dock with the training facility,” Marken replied, having overheard the question. “I think you will be quite impressed.”

As they continued through the ship, Wade was surprised to see just how many different alien races were on board. He estimated that just since leaving their quarters he had counted over ten. All were humanoid in appearance.

“Marken, may I ask a question?”

Marken stopped and looked inquiringly at Wade. “Yes, but make it quick. We need to get to the observation deck shortly.”

“Why are all of the races on this ship except the Kleese so humanoid in form?”

Marken was silent for a moment, and then gestured for them to continue to follow him as he talked. “Various species seem to dominate specific regions of our galaxy,” he explained as he turned down another long corridor.

He noticed a few of the humanoids they were passing were frowning upon seeing the Humans that Marken had with him. Most of the humanoid races on the ship were very submissive to the Kleese and never questioned the wisdom of the older galactic race.

“The Kleese may know the reason for that, and if they do they have never mentioned it to any members of my race. There are six species that seem to dominate most of the inhabitable worlds of our galaxy; the Kleese and the other two dominate galactic powers, the humanoid races which may be the most numerous of all species, a dominate insect species toward the outer edge of our galaxy, and then there are the cold-blooded, or in your language the reptile species, scattered throughout. One thing we have found is that all the primary species have many similar traits.”

Wade nodded; this didn’t seem to surprise him too much after what he had seen on the ship.

“Are there other races besides those six?” Jamie asked curiously.

“Yes. On some worlds, evolution has taken strange paths, and there are races that you would find frightening to look upon. There are others that it’s hard to believe they ever found intelligence. These species are not numerous, but they can be found in isolated solar systems across the galaxy.”

They reached their destination and Marken entered a special code on a control panel next to a metal hatch. Once entered, the hatch swung smoothly open and the three stepped inside.

Jamie gasped in amazement at the sight in front of her. One entire wall seemed to be open to space. She stepped over closer and reaching her hand out, encountered a hard, transparent substance that served as a window. It was so clear that it was nearly invisible.

“When the ship is in combat or an unknown situation, large metal blast plates come down to shield the observation windows,” Marken explained. “The ship is protected by a low level energy shield, which can protect it from most space hazards and is also quite effective against energy weapons.”

Wade looked out and his eyes grew wide in disbelief. Everywhere he looked there were stars, but the most amazing thing of all was the huge structure they were approaching. It had dozens of massive domes upon it and there were several ships similar to the one they were on docked to it. Other small ships could be seen moving around with some in formations and others singly.

“What’s the main purpose of the station? I can’t believe it’s just for military training.”

“It’s the training and trading center for this sector of the galaxy,” Marken explained as he came to stand next to Wade. “Some of those domes are training facilities and range in size from ten to twenty of your kilometers across. There are smaller domes that are home to some of the humanoid races that serve the Kleese on their ships. The entire station is one hundred and twenty kilometers across and twenty-four kilometers thick. The Kleese maintain fifteen of these in their section of the galaxy to help control their Empire.”

Wade was awestruck as he realized the power the Kleese must wield. It made him wonder just what they needed with Humans.

“You said trading center,” spoke Jamie, looking thoughtful. “Do other races come here to trade products made on their home planets?”

“Some do,” Marken replied as he watched a flight of six deadly assault ships pass close by. “The Kleese furnish each planet that is part of their Empire a list of what is acceptable for trade. A number of nonaligned worlds also send trading ships to the stations.”

“Nonaligned?” spoke Wade, glancing curiously over at Marken. “I thought all space traveling races were part of one of the three Galactic Empires you speak of.”

“No,” replied Marken, shaking his head. “A few of the more civilized ones have managed to remain free of being controlled by any of the three galactic powers.”

Wade nodded as he filed this information in his head. What was so special about those races that the Kleese were willing to leave them alone?

Marken turned his gaze to a group of five assault ships passing close by between the ship and the station. The assault ships were two hundred meters long, one hundred and fifty meters wide and forty meters thick. They were the main fighting ships deployed by conscripts in the Kleese Empire. They normally carried a flight crew of one hundred, plus four drop groups of twenty battle suits each. Marken had served on one for several years before being reassigned to this training detail.

“What exactly are we going to be used for?” ventured Wade, seeing that Marken seemed to be in a talkative mood and wanting to take advantage of it.

“The galaxy has billions of star systems in it, and every day new civilizations are being discovered,” Marken explained as he watched a large freighter maneuvering itself toward a docking port on the station. “Contact is normally made after they develop space travel within their solar system. At that point, a ship from one of the three galactic powers makes contact and offers them the choice of joining their Empire.”

“What if they refuse?” Jaime asked, already suspecting the answer.

“They are not allowed to refuse,” Marken replied, his eyes focusing on Jaime. If they do, then force is used to bring them into the Empire. That’s where you Humans will come in. The Kleese will arrange for you to be dropped upon planets that refuse in order to demonstrate to them the wisdom of joining the Kleese Empire. The superior firepower from the battle suits normally encourages most planets to change their minds and agree to join rather quickly.”

“What if more than one of the Galactic Empires wants the same planet?” asked Wade, seeing where there could be a major conflict.

“It does happen, probably more than the Kleese are willing to admit,” Marken answered as he continued to watch the station they were approaching. “When it does, the fighting is intense and there are more casualties.”

Jamie nodded to herself as she listened. What would actual combat between two opposing armies wearing battle suits be like? She shuddered just thinking about how dangerous such a battle would be for both sides.

“Do the three Galactic Empires ever actually fight one another?” Wade asked. It was hard to imagine ships of this size fighting.

“No,” replied Marken, shaking his head. “The war between the empires is more of a proxy war being fought on planets that two, or occasionally all three, of the empires want. The battles are fought on the ground upon the planets in question.”

Wade turned his attention back to the massive structure the ship was approaching, marveling at the technology it had taken to build something like this in space. It was years ahead of anything that Earth possessed. Thinking about Earth, he eyed all the small spacecraft that were flying around or docked to the station, his eyes studying several of the nearer ones. If someday they could find a way to safely remove the collars and if they could grab one of the small ships, they might just be able to fly it back to Earth.

Wade knew that any hope of ever escaping and going back home depended upon them learning as much about the alien’s technology as possible. He had a vague plan in the back of his mind, but he needed to learn a lot more before he seriously contemplated enacting such a dangerous idea.

They stood at the large windows for several more minutes before Marken indicated that they needed to return. There were a number of other humanoids in the room, including some from Marken’s own race. Wade and Jamie were the only Humans present.

As they walked out, Marken smiled to himself. He had noticed the intense looks that Lieutenant Nelson had given the smaller ships. It was not difficult to guess what he was thinking. All in good time, Lieutenant, Marken thought.

-

Several hours later, Lieutenant Nelson and his squad stood with other marines in one of the large domes. Looking around, Wade guessed it was a good twelve or fifteen kilometers across. The inside of the dome was amazing. There were rolling hills, small forests, and even what looked like a small mountain that rose several thousand meters above the floor of the dome. Directly in front of them was a flat training area with buildings off to one side.

“This will be your home for the next six weeks,” Marken announced, standing in front of the assembled squads with several other members of his race as well as a marine captain. “You will be trained on how to use the weapons that go along with the battle suits, as well as practice being dropped on a planet. You’ll also begin training in the Type Two battle suits.”

The marine captain stepped forward and spoke for the first time. “I am Captain Matt Jenkins, and I will be in command of the platoons assigned to this dome. As of right now, there are two hundred and fifty marines assigned to this training facility. Over to my left you will see some buildings. The Kleese have set up some barracks as well as a mess hall. There is also a small medical center as I have been told that it is not unusual to suffer injuries during this phase of our training.”

“We try to make the training as lifelike as possible,” explained Marken, his voice taking on an ominous tone. “While there normally are very few fatalities, sometimes severe injuries are common in this type of training environment if you become careless.”

“I expect everyone to act like a marine and I will enforce discipline in the ranks,” Captain Jenkins continued as his steel gray eyes swept over the assembled formation. “We will learn how to operate these battle suits and become quite deadly in their use. Our continued survival rests on what we learn in this training.”

“Training will begin tomorrow,” Marken informed them. “You will soon learn just what the battle suits are capable of and the destructive power of the weapons you will be entrusted with. Make the most of this training period; your lives will depend on it.”

“Will Lieutenants Nelson and Williams remain. The rest of you are dismissed and may go check out the barracks and other facilities,” Captain Jenkins said.

Wade stepped forward, noticing a woman lieutenant farther down the line do the same. Captain Jenkins and Marken came to meet them as the rest of the marines began walking toward the indicated buildings.

Nelson and Williams both saluted and stood waiting for the captain to speak. Jenkins returned their salute and his eyes gazed piercingly at the two.

“According to Marken we have six weeks to prepare for our first drop,” Captain Jenkins began. “When we are deployed we are taken down to the target in small drop ships that can carry up to twenty marines in battle suits. Depending on the deployment, the engagement can last a few hours to several days, so we will need to learn how to operate and maintain the battle suits in an ongoing field of battle.”

“As I have mentioned earlier, the suits have a combat charge of ten hours with an emergency reserve of two more,” Marken stated. “The battle suits have to be recharged from the generator inside a drop ship or with a portable one. It takes thirty of your minutes to fully recharge a suit.”

“There are two hundred and fifty marines here presently, as well as a few other personnel that will serve as cooks and in other support capacities,” Captain Jenkins added. “In total, there will be slightly over three hundred of us inside this dome. Each of you will be in charge of five platoons of twenty-five each. There will be two corporals assigned to each platoon. Unfortunately, we are short on sergeants though some of the corporals may later be promoted to fill those slots. I expect you to maintain discipline and learn from this training. For now, all we have is each other, and I intend to keep us together and alive. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Sir!” Nelson and Williams replied in unison.

“Very well; go get your people settled in. Lieutenant Nelson, your people will be identified by a blue armband. Lieutenant Williams, your people will have a red one. Dismissed.”

As Wade walked toward the buildings with Lieutenant Williams, she turned to him and spoke. “What do you think about all of this? Do you think we will ever see Earth again?”

“Call me Wade, and I hope so. I know that as long as we’re alive there will always be hope.” Looking at Lieutenant Williams, he guessed she was in her late twenties.

“You can call me Beth, and I agree.”

The two walked along in silence for a few moments and then Beth asked. “Did you leave anyone behind?”

Wade was silent for a moment. “My parents and my younger brother; they all live in Phoenix.” He tried not to think of those he left behind too often. He knew that by now his family had to be extremely worried about what had happened to him.

“I left my fiancée as well as my mother,” Beth said with a sad look in her eyes. “I was supposed to get married on my next leave.”

“I’m sorry,” Wade replied.

Beth stopped and looked at Wade intently. “We need to find a way home!”

Wade nodded in agreement. “Let’s just get through this training and see what we can learn. The more we know about their technology the better off we will be. It’s too early yet to be making any escape plans.”

-

Marken watched the two lieutenants walk off. Captain Jenkins was on his way to the mess hall to check it out as well as the supply situation. Marken smiled to himself. The three hundred Humans in this dome had been specially chosen by Marken and several others of his race. If their plan was to work, it all depended on these so called Human marines.

This was the smallest of the training domes, and it had taken some special tinkering with the assignment rosters to get these Humans assigned to this particular facility. Many of the other domes had much larger numbers, with the largest domes holding just over two thousand. What the Humans didn’t know was that the majority of their people were still in stasis and wouldn’t be awakened until they were needed to replace casualties. That’s how the Kleese worked. The sixty thousand Humans they had abducted would serve them for decades in a military capacity as they were awoken in small groups. Marken should know; his own race had been abducted in much the same way.

Chapter Seven

Michel Kirby swore as he fought the controls of the Raven. The fifty-meter prospecting ship was descending through Earth’s turbulent atmosphere.

“Winds are gusting to over seventy,” Brian reported worriedly, as both of them worked to keep the ship steady. “Stabilizers are barely holding us on the flight path.”

“What flight path?” Kirby complained as he fired several thrusters to keep the ship stable as it continued to descend. “We should have waited for the winds to calm before attempting this.” Small external wings had been added to the Raven to help increase flight stability. At the moment, they didn’t seem to be helping.

“Ten kilometers to the ground,” Marcus Santos reported as he watched his instruments closely. “We’re coming down slightly southwest of our targeted landing zone.”

“Damn,” Kirby muttered as he tried to adjust course. He glanced at the viewscreen just above the control panel, but all it showed was a thick dark cloud layer.”

“It’s going to be crap down there,” commented Brian, shaking his head. “I just hope the people we’re going for are ready.”

“They better be,” Kirby responded as another high gust of wind buffeted the ship. “Extend the landing struts; I’m taking us in.”

The ship continued to descend, dropping down through the thick cloud layer into the blackness below. It was mid afternoon, but the land was covered in eerie darkness. The cloud layer was full of ash and dust, and very little light was penetrating. It was one month after the initial catastrophe and the Earth still hadn’t finished dying. Kirby knew it was now in a nuclear winter, one it might never recover from.

The ship dropped down over a small city in Central Missouri and after a moment, brilliant searchlights snapped on to shine on the ground below. For a few precious minutes, Kirby scanned the viewscreen until he saw what he wanted. “That shopping center parking lot is big enough, we can land there.” With precision, he brought the ship down until he felt the landing struts touch the ground.

“We have solid contact,” Brian reported with relief in his eyes as a number of green lights flashed on the control panel in front of him.

“Engines off,” Kirby responded as he reached forward and flipped off several switches.

The engines shut down, and all that remained were the steady sounds of the ship’s power and environmental systems. They had made a safe landing.

“Let’s go find our survivors,” Michael said as he unbuckled his safety harness and stood up.

Going down a short corridor and through several hatches, he arrived at one of the newly modified cargo holds. Four army rangers were waiting there for him, all heavily armed.

“Open the hatch and lower the ramp,” Michael ordered as he put on a heavy parka from a nearby locker.

He watched as the hatch slid open and the metal ramp extended until it touched the concrete of the parking lot. Volcanic ash swirled around in the outside air, reducing visibility. Michael knew the ground was covered in a thick layer of the stuff, which might make getting to their destination difficult.

Letting out a deep breath, he walked over and climbed into a refurbished Humvee that had been designed just for this type of operation. The four army rangers climbed in and one took the driver’s seat, starting the engine. A moment later, they drove down the ramp and set off toward their destination. Glancing behind, Michael watched with satisfaction as the cargo ramp slid back up and the hatch closed. No one could now enter the ship and the crew should be safe until they returned.

“Who is this doctor we’re supposed to rescue?” Sergeant Andrews asked as he gazed out the bulletproof glass windows of the vehicle.

They were driving down a wide street covered in volcanic ash. Andrews figured it was already over six inches deep and getting deeper every day. The Humvee had been equipped with special air filters for its diesel engine as well as an air filtration system to take out the contaminants in the atmosphere so the occupants wouldn’t have to wear masks. The air outside was still fit to breathe; you just had to be careful about the falling volcanic ash and make sure you wore a breathing mask anytime you were out in it. The ash could fill up and shut down your lungs like concrete.

“He’s a disease specialist that worked for the CDC,” Michael responded. “He’s supposed to be quite brilliant, and they want him up at Luna City. There’s growing concern that with the steadily worsening conditions, a disease outbreak might occur in the people we are rescuing. Also, having so many people cooped up in confined environments such as the Luna City domes or the interior habitat at Vesta, they wanted some specialists on hand in case a disease were to break out that the local doctors couldn’t handle. The hospital and the civil defense center are still operational in this community, and Holbrook station managed to contact them over the emergency frequency.”

“I am surprised that more of them are not demanding to go up on the Raven,” Sergeant Andrews commented as he scanned their surroundings carefully, ensuring that there were no threats. The Humvee had a number of large spotlights, and these were being used to light up the surrounding streets and buildings as they drove.

“The back of the Humvee is packed with emergency medical supplies and several crates of MREs,” Michael explained. “We’re going to turn them over in exchange for the doctor and his family. They have also agreed to gather certain materials for us that we will pick up at a later date. We promised them that we would come back and evacuate additional survivors. They also know that if there are any difficulties with this exchange, we will not be returning.”

“It’s a tough world out there now,” Andrews said in a quiet voice as he continued to gaze out the window at the desolation. “I pity anyone that is trapped down here.”

Michael nodded, gazing at several large buildings in their spotlights where roofs had collapsed from the weight of the ash. All the lights in the town were out as the nation’s power grid had finally collapsed from the damage caused by the volcanoes and the earthquakes. There was no doubt in Michael’s mind that there were probably other survivors still in the town, but the horrible atmospheric conditions prevented them from coming outside. Most were encamped in their homes trying to stay warm and living off what food they had stored. Michael knew that by now the supermarkets, convenience stores, and any other places where food was sold had been stripped clean.

“It’s just up ahead,” Sergeant Andrews spoke as they pulled onto a side street with a big blue sign with a white H in the center, indicating a hospital was up ahead.

As they drove up to the hospital, they were surprised to see the interior lights were on, with several National Guard troops standing outside under the breezeway at the entrance where they were safe from falling ash.

They pulled up beneath the breezeway and stopped. Sergeant Andrews climbed out and went to speak to the two soldiers. After a moment, one of them went inside to return shortly with an older man. Michael got out of the Humvee and walked over to them.

“This is Doctor Prescott, who is in charge of the hospital,” one of the National Guard troops explained.

“I’m Michael Kirby,” Michael said, reaching out and shaking the doctor’s hand. “We have some supplies for you inside the Humvee.”

“Thank you,” Prescott replied with gratitude in his eyes.

“You still have power,” commented Sergeant Andrews, gesturing toward the lights in the hospital. “Are you running on an emergency generator?”

“Sometimes,” Prescott replied as he looked over at the heavily armed sergeant. “The hospital was fortunate; several years ago we installed some wind generators as a cost saving measure. As long as the wind blows we have plenty of power; when it dies down we have a large diesel generator that kicks in.”

Michael nodded his head approvingly. He would make sure to include that in his report to Darren when he returned to Holbrook station. If the hospital had a dependable source of power, they could possibly survive for the long term as long as they had food to eat.

Sergeant Andrews had the Humvee pull up as close to the door as possible and they began unloading the supplies. Several more National Guard troops appeared and pitched in.

“That’s more than I expected,” Prescott said with a huge sigh of relief. “I don’t know what I can do to repay you.”

“How many people are still alive in your town?” Michael asked curiously.

Prescott was silent for a moment as he thought over the question. “We have about five hundred survivors here at the hospital and the nearby buildings that serve as part of our medical annex. We just shut down the civil defense center at the city hall and moved those people here. There are probably a few hundred more scattered around town. We don’t see the others too often.”

Michael saw a young man and woman along with three children step out of the hospital door. All were dressed in heavy coats, and the kids all looked frightened. He knew that these must be the people they had come to get.

“When we get back, I will see about getting you some more supplies,” Michael promised as one of the army rangers escorted the family to the back of the Humvee.

“Thanks,” Prescott replied with a grateful smile. “We will take all the help we can get, particularly food. We’ll also start gathering up the items you requested and let you know when they’re ready.”

Getting back in the Humvee, they started back toward the Raven. Looking in the back, Michael saw the doctor and one of the army rangers talking. He was sure the doctor and his wife were full of questions about what would happen to them now. The three kids were quiet, not sure what was happening.

They were nearly back to the Raven when several shots rang out, striking the window of the Humvee. Michael instinctively ducked as the driver slammed on the brakes. One of the army rangers popped open the upper hatch and soon the M280 machine gun opened up. The three children started screaming in fright. Michael watched as a trail of brilliant tracers penetrated the darkness to strike at where the unknown gunman had fired. After a moment, the firing ceased and the spotlights were turned in the direction of the shots. Michael felt sick when he saw two bodies lying beneath the lights.

“It’s like this in every city we go into,” Sergeant Andrews explained with a sad look in his eyes as the Humvee started moving again. “People are starting to kill one another for food.”

Michael nodded in understanding. The world was a dangerous place due to the earthquakes and the volcanoes, but the struggle between the scattered survivors made it even more dangerous to anyone who dared to venture out. Looking in the back, he saw the doctor and his wife comforting their kids. Michael knew they had all been shaken by the sudden attack.

They pulled up to the Raven and after signaling Brian, the cargo bay hatch opened and the ramp descended. The Humvee quickly drove up and was soon anchored down in the cargo hold. Ten minutes later, the Raven leaped back into the air as her main rocket engines fired. It was time to return to Holbrook Station and see what their next mission would be.

-

Lawrence and General Wainright were in the main operations building at Jornada looking out of the large quartz glass windows at the darkness outside. It was more like a dark twilight as the ash fall here was not nearly as heavy as it was just to the north.

“Do you have any family?” Lawrence asked as he watched a shuttle taxi down one of the three long runways in preparation for taking off.

“My wife and son are back at the base,” Wainright replied. “They’re safe enough for now.”

Lawrence nodded; he wasn’t married and only had a sister. Fortunately, she also worked here at Jornada and her husband and two kids were now living at the spaceport in temporary housing that had been erected by the military. It was a relief to Lawrence to know that he had family nearby.

“We’ve been bringing in a lot of military families,” Wainright added. “General Pittman has been instrumental in that. We have helicopters flying rescue missions daily looking for people as well as supplies. There are nearly one hundred thousand military personnel and their families at White Sands and the two military bases now.”

“What’s our latest census count here?” Lawrence asked as he turned and walked over to another set of windows where he could look out over the temporary housing settlement.

The military had worked miracles in construction. Over two hundred barracks made out of wood and sheet metal stretched out for nearly as far as the eye could see. Several underground tunnels linked all the barracks so people didn’t have to go out in the now cold temperatures and steadily falling ash. Behind the barracks were long rows of massive tents that housed even more survivors.

“We have nearly one hundred and twenty thousand in the barracks and tents,” General Wainright reported with a heavy breath. “As we empty a barrack of survivors, we move people in from one of the tents. From there we bring in qualified survivors from those waiting outside.”

“How many are outside?” asked Lawrence, knowing that more people were still arriving. However, as of late the influx of people had slowed as fuel became harder to come by and travel due to the falling ash and earthquakes was becoming virtually impossible.

“Almost seven hundred thousand at the last count,” replied Wainright, recalling the latest numbers. “We’re starting to lose a few in the outside camp due to disease and freezing temperatures. There are just too many people crowded into a small area, and our medical facilities are maxed out.”

“What about food and water?” Lawrence asked. The people at the spaceport had been eating MREs for over two weeks as the regular food had finally given out.

“We are sending out helicopters scouring military bases and other facilities that might have food in storage,” Wainright answered. “I would guess we have food and water supplies for another six months and then I don’t know what we will do.”

Lawrence nodded his head in understanding. He needed to speak to Mason about the food situation. There were still many survivors scattered around the country, and if they wanted to save them, they would have to come up with a viable source of food. He also knew that the number of refugees at the survival facility south of Amarillo was rapidly growing. There was another smaller facility in Georgia, but communication with it had been intermittent.

-

Captain Stevens and Lieutenant Griffith were walking through the tent city outside of the heavily guarded fence that protected the spaceport. Six other marines were with them as support. Close to three thousand troops from the marines and the army had been assigned to patrol tent city to help keep the peace, and another two thousand were on duty inside the fence. Each wore a white breathing mask over their mouth and nose as well as protective goggles over their eyes to protect themselves from the ash.

“This damn ash is everywhere,” complained Lieutenant Griffith as he kicked it with his boot, sending it flying ahead of him. “It must be several inches deep now.”

“I’ve heard it’s even deeper than that farther north,” Mark replied as he glanced around the tents to see if anyone was out and about. “I heard one of the helicopter pilots mention that, in Montana and Wyoming, the ash is already over a foot deep from the Yellowstone eruptions and getting deeper.”

“Sheesh,” muttered Griffith. “A foot of this crap; that’s hard to imagine.”

They were nearing one of the large tents that served as a mess hall for this side of the camp when they heard what sounded like a fight. They could hear yelling and angry people. Rushing forward with their weapons at the ready they burst upon the scene. Just inside the mess hall, several soldiers were scuffling with a group of rough looking men armed with baseball bats and two by fours. Other people stood nearby, unsure what to do.

“We want some decent food!” one of the men demanded, brandishing a bat in his hand in a threatening manner. “These MREs are a bunch of bullshit!”

“It’s what everyone is eating,” one of the soldiers shot back as he was shoved by one of the other men. The soldier didn’t know how to respond to this verbal and physical attack.

“What’s going on here?” demanded Stevens, striding up to the men. The marines behind him stopped and carefully held their weapons at the ready.

The man clearly had not expected to be challenged in such a manner and he backed off, eyeing this new arrival. “It’s the food; it’s a bunch of crap.”

Mark stepped over to a serving table and picked up an MRE out of the stack that was setting there. “Look around you,” Mark spoke in a loud and commanding voice. “Hundreds of millions if not billions of people are dead because of this alien attack. Millions more are in the process of starving because this ash has destroyed our ability to grow crops, and you have the gall to complain because you can’t eat a steak. I want you to know my men and I have been eating the same MREs you have for weeks. There is no other food, so you can either eat it or go without!”

The man hesitated and looked back at his supporters. Most of them had their heads hung low or were looking at the ground. “I just want better food,” he grumbled as he turned and walked off.

“What about you other men?” Mark demanded.

“I guess we were mistaken,” one of them replied in a quiet and cowed voice. “It won’t happen again.”

Mark turned around to Lieutenant Griffith. “I want the guards at the mess halls doubled for the next few days. We can’t have more problems like this one.”

“I will pass on the order,” Griffith replied.

They continued on their tour of the camp. There were a large number of RVs mixed in with the tents, and electrical lines had been run by the army engineers to furnish power. Those staying in tents spent a lot of their time in the large mess tents trying to stay warm, though the army had gone from tent to tent passing out blankets and sleeping bags to those in need. Even so, sleeping out on the ground in these temperatures was brutal. Every day more people showed up sick at the medical tents.

Mark and his team finished their tour in a little over two hours and then returned to their command bunker. It had been greatly expanded and now contained a dozen bunks as well as a few other comfort features, including heat and a working restroom with a hot shower. At night, the temperature outside was dropping to nearly twenty degrees, and Mark knew as the weeks went by the temperature would continue to get colder. Several of the climatologists were predicting that snow would eventually start falling and perhaps bury the area to a depth of six to ten feet. Mark hoped they were wrong.

“Rough night,” Lieutenant Griffith commented as he prepared to take a jeep into the spaceport to the small complex of buildings where his family was staying.

“They’re only going to get worse,” replied Mark, sitting down on his bunk and looking over at the lieutenant. “As it gets colder and the food becomes scarcer, the people are only going to become further frightened.”

“I heard a rumor that they’re thinking about rationing,” commented Griffith, arching his eyebrows. “If they do that it will really panic the civilians.”

“It’s probably going to happen,” Mark admitted with a heavy sigh. “I just hope we can get most of these people up to Luna City and Vesta or they’re going to die down here.”

“I hope so too,” Griffith replied as he turned to leave. “See you in the morning.”

Mark watched Lieutenant Griffith leave. In a way, he felt jealous that Griffith had a family to go home to, whereas he had no one.

-

Mason watched as the latest load of refugees were unloaded from one of the converted cargo ships. Four hundred more people to add to Vesta’s rapidly growing population.

“How soon before the remaining cargo ships are converted?” asked Mason, knowing they needed to speed up the evacuation of survivors from Earth or they were going to lose them due to the steadily worsening conditions on the planet. The original plan had been to convert ten of the cargo ships to haul people between Holbrook Station and Vesta.

“Two more weeks and we will be done,” Ethan Hall replied. “We’re working on the last four now.”

“We’re not going to be able to move people fast enough,” Mason said at last. “Even with all ten ships we can move less than three hundred thousand people in a year.”

“It’s going to take us a while to finish the new habitat,” Keith Davis reminded Mason. “Three hundred thousand a year is all we’re probably going to be able to handle, and even that is going to stress our environmental systems.”

“What about the tunnels?” Mason asked. He knew they were putting a lot of work and resources into building the small apartment buildings in the new tunnel complex to house survivors until the larger habitat was ready.

“They’re coming along,” Keith replied. “The first ones will be ready in another two weeks.”

Mason’s eyes wandered over to the Phoenix. Even from here, he could see workers, including some military personnel, working on the ship installing the new railguns and missile tubes.

“Two more months before the Phoenix is done,” reported Ethan, seeing where Mason’s eyes had wandered. “We have to modify the inside as well as change the power setup. We’re installing a small nuclear power plant the military sent up to help provide the power we’re going to need for the railguns. Do you have any idea as to who is going to command her?”

Mason was silent. Originally, he had planned to command the ship on its maiden journey of exploration, but he wasn’t a military man. “Captain Sanders has some military experience in his background,” Mason finally replied. “I think he would do a good job. I have requested several naval and air force officers from the military to fill in some of the other spots.”

Ethan nodded and then noticed Mason’s eyes return to the cargo ship from which the refugees were still disembarking. He had a feeling Mason wasn’t finished with him yet.

“We need a fleet,” Mason finally said as he mulled over what he had been thinking about for the last few days. “If the aliens return, I don’t want all of our eggs in one basket. When the Phoenix is done, I want to convert four of our cargo ships into support vessels. I will get with General Wainright and see what other weapons he can dig up. Once the support vessels are finished, I want to take ten of our prospector ships and arm them also.”

Ethan let out a long whistle and gazed at Mason as if he were insane. “That’s going to take a lot of resources,” he said at last. “I don’t know if we can do it.”

“If we need anything, we will take it from Earth,” replied Mason, evenly. “Put together a list of items we may not have available or can’t produce. We will make them a top priority in our salvage efforts.”

Mason didn’t go on to tell Ethan that once all the ships were converted they would start construction on a new ship. It would be the first ship ever built in the solar system designed and built only for war!

Later, Mason was back in the Control Center checking the latest reports from Holbrook Station and Luna City. Already Mayor Silas had added four more small domes to put people in. He had also started a massive project to grow more food. Silas had already taken in eight thousand refugees and was working feverishly on more domes.

“The weather is getting worse,” Pamela reported as she saw Mason step inside the Control Center. “Several of the climatologists on the International Space Station feel another ice age will begin shortly if it hasn’t already.”

“We need a plan,” Mason said as he sat down and gazed at the main viewscreen showing a cloud-shrouded Earth. The clouds were a dark, sickly color. “At this rate we’re never going to get everyone evacuated in time.”

“I’ve been thinking,” Pamela spoke as she came over and sat down at the command console next to Mason. “Paul and I were talking last night and he made a suggestion which I think we need to consider.”

“What’s that?” Mason asked. He knew that Paul was Pamela’s husband and worked as an engineer.

“Why rush to move all of these people off the Earth?” Pamela asked, her eyes meeting Masons. “Why can’t we build more permanent shelters that would allow people to survive on the surface until we’re ready for them at Luna City or here at Vesta?”

“We don’t know what type of conditions they may be facing in the long term,” Mason responded with a frown. “Particularly if we’re talking about a new ice age. Whatever we build might not be protection enough.”

“It will take years for a new ice age to establish itself,” Pamela replied, growing more confident in what she was suggesting. “There are four large wind generating plants around White Sands and Jornada. There is plenty of power for years as long as the wind generators are kept in good repair. They are also sealed units and should be good for forty years at a minimum.”

Mason leaned back as he thought about Pamela’s suggestion. “That still doesn’t solve the food problem.”

“We can grow the food,” Pamela responded. “Paul says we will have enough space in the new habitat as well as in Smithfield to grow enough fruits and vegetables to feed several million extra people. There won’t be any meat for them, but people can survive on a vegetarian diet.”

“Mars Central and Luna City can grow food too, if necessary,” Mason said as he thought over Pamela’s suggestion. “You may have a good idea; I’ll talk it over with Lawrence and General Wainright tomorrow. We may not have any other choice but to do as you have suggested.”

Pamela nodded; she would still like to know if her sister was alive. Carmen lived in Denver, and the last she had heard the city was suffering a major ash fall and the electricity was out. No word had come out of there for several weeks. Daily Pamela listened to the calls for help from Earth, hoping one would come from Denver. Every day those calls became fewer and fewer and Denver remained silent.

Her eyes returned to the viewscreen and the cloud-shrouded Earth. Her ten-year-old son had asked the previous night when his aunt Carmen could come for a visit. Pamela had replied that she didn’t know. After Mike had gone to bed, she had cried herself to sleep in her husband’s arms. Carmen and she had always been extremely close, and she missed her younger sister. She just hoped that someday she would know Carmen’s fate.

Chapter Eight

It was their fourth week of intense training and Lieutenant Nelson was leading two of his twenty-five member marine platoons up the side of the mountain. Corporal Stern and Corporal Perry were acting as defacto platoon leaders, responding to and implementing Wade’s commands. If they continued to perform as they had the last few weeks, Wade fully intended to promote them to sergeants.

“Sweep the slope above and to the right of the trees with rifle fire,” Wade ordered as he gazed up ahead. The mountain slope concealed numerous hidden automatic weapons that would fire upon detecting movement.

Wade was standing behind a small boulder, and stepping around it, he laid down a withering fire from his rifle at the indicated area. The rifle was a smaller version of a railgun and fired both regular and explosive rounds at tremendous speeds. Due to the velocity, the railgun rounds were smaller but still carried a deadly punch upon reaching their target. The explosive rounds were like grenades going off, and the rifle could be switched to fire either of the two. Wade knew that, without the battle suit, the recoil from the rifle would probably knock him down. With the battle suit, he barely noticed it.

The entire area Wade had indicated came under heavy fire, and he saw with satisfaction four embedded weapons emplacements explode as the rifle fire swept them away. “Hold fire,” Wade ordered as he used the optics in his suit to scan the slope ahead in more detail. After a moment, he nodded to himself satisfied that they had eliminated the weapons in their immediate vicinity. “Advance in staggered formation to the tree line and take up covering positions there.”

Wade stepped out and quickly sprinted ahead, reaching his planned position in only a matter of seconds. The ten-foot tall battle suits allowed him to run twice a fast as he normally could have. He heard a man scream over the suit’s com and saw one of the green icons on his HUD suddenly turn amber.

“Report!” he ordered as he bent down to take cover behind a large stump that would serve to partially conceal him. He knew they must have missed a hidden weapon emplacement.

“Private Richards took a hit to his left arm from an energy beam,” Corporal Perry replied. “His suit has injected him with pain killers, but his arm is badly burned and his suit has a hole in it the size of a quarter.”

“Damn,” Wade muttered as he scanned the upper slope of the mountain. They were facing live weapons in this war game and any mistake could result in an injury.

They were only a fourth of the way to the top. He knew the hidden weapon emplacements were programmed to only wound, but training accidents did happen and Lieutenant Williams had lost two marines in one of her platoons several days back when they had crossed into the path of an energy weapon just as it fired at another marine. Both had been struck in the chest and died instantly.

“Did anyone spot where that energy weapon fired from?” he asked as he continued to use his optics at high power to scrutinize the slope above them.

“Yes, Sir,” a female marine responded. “Just to the right of that large burned out tree and up the slope about twenty meters.”

“Corporal Stern, hit that area with explosive rounds.”

Almost instantly, grenade like explosions began rolling across the indicated area of the slope, churning up the soil and ending with a violent explosion as the hidden energy weapon emplacement was destroyed.

“Got it!” reported Corporal Stern, jubilantly.

“Private Russell and Private Dawson, scout ahead but be cautious,” Wade ordered.

He watched as the two ran, using the trees for cover until they arrived at a position forty meters further up the slope. “Report.”

“We’re scanning, Sir,” Dawson replied. “No sign of hidden emplacements, but they may be inactive until they detect movement. That last one didn’t show up on the scans.”

“Keep an eye out as the rest of us move up,” Wade ordered as he eyed the tree-covered slope ahead. “If you detect any movement, destroy it!”

“Everyone up the slope,” Wade commanded as his marines stood up and advanced in a long staggered line, weapons held at the ready. He knew that to an enemy the sight of the nearly black battle suits coming toward them would be a frightening spectacle.

Suddenly, up ahead, Private Dawson rose up and fired explosive rounds from his rifle into a small grove of trees, causing a series of explosions to hurl rocks down upon them from the slope above.

“What is it?” Corporal Stern yelled as she gestured for her advancing squads to take immediate cover.

“Two energy beam emplacements popped up,” replied Dawson, breathing heavily. “But I got both of them. I don’t see anything else.”

Corporal Stern and Corporal Perry resumed the advance, and soon the line of battle suits were even with Privates Dawson and Russell. Everyone stopped and spent a few minutes examining the slope ahead. The battle suits had a number of optic and sensor systems that allowed the wearer to detect even the movement of a cockroach if the marine so desired. Everyone was quickly becoming familiar with the advanced capabilities the suits furnished them.

“Slope ahead seems clear,” Corporal Stern reported. “No visible movement.”

“Keep a close watch,” Wade ordered. “There are bound to be more of those damn pop up weapons hidden on this mountain. Marken wouldn’t have made it this easy.”

They continued their slow and methodical advance up the small mountain, taking advantage of cover whenever possible. Over the next two hours, two more marines suffered injuries from hidden weapons, but at last they reached the top. Upon reaching the summit, Wade strolled over and pressed down firmly on the large green button that rested on a metal pedestal. Upon pressing the button, all other embedded weapons that still remained on the mountain were disabled.

“Well done, Lieutenant,” Marken’s pleased voice came over the com channel. “You made it in record time today. The exercise is over, so you may descend the mountain and bring your wounded to the infirmary.”

Wade sighed. He knew that tomorrow it would be the same thing for William’s platoons. During the night, new automatic weapons would be hidden upon the mountain for the next drill. They were never put in the same place twice.

-

Once they were off the mountain, Lieutenant Nelson had his people jog back to the barracks. He then went to the infirmary with his three injured marines. One thing about the battle suits, they allowed even a severely injured soldier to keep on fighting. All three injured had made it to the top of the mountain and then jogged back to the base. The suit was a miracle of engineering. It would inject drugs and could stop bleeding to allow the marine in the battle suit to continue to function.

Reaching the infirmary, the three marines exited their battle suits and two of them immediately collapsed to the ground as the suits were no longer protecting them from their injuries. Several orderlies rushed up and took the three inside. Wade quickly opened up his own battle suit and after stepping out, followed them into the infirmary.

Inside were several Human doctors, a few nurses, as well as four members of the Kivean race. One of them Wade recognized as Harnett. She seemed to have taken a keen interest in the Humans and made sure that the injured received the best treatment possible.

“What do we have?” she demanded as she went from bed to bed checking on the injured marines. She saw there were two men and one woman.

“Two energy beam wounds, one to the leg and one to the arm,” one of the Human doctors replied as he administered a sedative to one of the marines. “The woman has a projectile wound in her shoulder.”

Harnett instantly went to the woman as her injury seemed to be the most serious. She quickly used an advanced medical device to scan the wound.

“Damn this hurts,” the woman complained as she winced when Harnett touched the edge of the wound, probing it with her long, supple fingers.

Harnett motioned and one of the Human nurses came over and injected the marine with a painkiller.

“That should ease the pain,” spoke Harnett, hating these war games that resulted in these types of wounds. She had complained to Marken about the injuries, but he had only shook his head and answered that they were necessary.

“Will I have a scar?” the woman asked as the pain began to lessen.

“No,” replied Harnett, patting the woman’s hand reassuringly. “I will make sure there is no scarring.”

Harnett finished her examination seeing that the bullet had gone all the way through, damaging both bone and muscle tissue before exiting out the back of the woman’s shoulder. Shaking her head, she walked over to a sealed cabinet and after entering a special code, took out a small vial filled with a gray, watery substance. Placing the vial in a small receptacle on top of her medical computer, she began tapping on the control screen.

She spent a few moments entering information and then, once she was satisfied, removed the vial and placed it on an injector. She then injected the woman’s shoulder with the nanites that she had programmed to repair the injury. They would help to regenerate the skin, bone, and muscle tissue and close the wound. When the nanites were done there wouldn’t even be any scar tissue. When the reconstruction was complete, the nanites would shut down and die, dissolving in the bloodstream.

When she was finished with the woman, she went to check on the two men. The Human doctors treating them had already implemented similar procedures under the guidance of another Kivean doctor. Harnett and the others were spending much of their free time training the Human military doctors on how the Kleese’s advanced medical technology worked. She also knew that it was against the rules for races like the Humans to be exposed to this type of advanced technology, but Marken had assured her that the Kleese would never know.

-

Wade watched approvingly as his marines seemed to be well on the way to recovery. One thing he had noticed was that the female Kivean doctor, as well as several of the others, seemed genuinely interested in his people’s health and were teaching the Human medical staff how to use some very advanced medical equipment.

“How are they doing?” Wade asked once he saw that Harnett was finished treating his people.

“Fine,” replied Harnett, seeing that it was Lieutenant Nelson that was addressing her. “They will all make a full recovery and will only need to be under medical care for twenty-eight of your hours.”

“That’s good,” Wade replied with a friendly smile. “If Marken is correct, we could be seeing our first deployment in another few weeks. I want everyone ready.”

Harnett nodded as she watched Lieutenant Nelson turn and leave the infirmary. He didn’t know that she was Marken’s mate and neither had bothered to tell him, at least not yet.

Wade walked over to another long, innocent looking building and was allowed entrance by the two marines standing guard duty. Stepping inside, Wade blinked at the brightness in the room. Over a dozen military engineers mixed in with a few military research scientists were busily tearing apart certain high tech devices Marken had furnished them. Wade didn’t know what kind of hand Marken was playing, but he had a strong suspicion that the Kleese had no idea that these devices had been made available to the Human scientists.

“This stuff is amazing,” Brent Adamson spoke as he saw Wade walk up. Brent was the lead scientist working on the alien technology.

“What’s new?” asked Wade, curiously. Brent was a brilliant research scientist and had been enthusiastic when these devices became available for them to experiment with. It seemed as if every day the engineers and scientists were discovering something new and amazing.

“Marken gave us one of their portable computers, which describes how their star drive works,” Brent replied with a big excited smile. “It warps space directly in front of the ship, which decreases the distance between point A to point B. The more power that is applied, the greater the warp effect is.”

“So that’s the secret to their star drive,” said Wade, thoughtfully. “Do you understand it well enough to build one?” Wade only had a vague idea as to what the scientist was describing. His strong point in school had not been science.

Brent laughed and shook his head. “Not from scratch! The quantum math involved is far above any of us here, though there might be a few people on Earth that could understand it. If we had one of their ships, I firmly believe we could duplicate the drive.”

Wade nodded. If someday they did manage to escape and return to Earth, the secret of the star drive would be essential. “Anything else?”

“Yes,” the scientist replied. “We found some star charts on one of the computers and we know how far from Earth we are.”

Wade stepped back at hearing this bombshell. “How far?”

“A little over six hundred and twenty light years,” Brent announced, pleased that he had surprised the lieutenant.

Wade was silent as he mulled this surprising information over. “That’s a long ways from home.”

“It’s a start,” Brent responded with a nod. “At least we know where we are.”

Wade spent anther thirty minutes walking through the large building, talking to the different engineers and the few scientists they had at their disposal. Most were making progress daily in understanding the science and technology they were being exposed to. As he left the building, he was still confused by one thing. Why had Marken made all of this available to them? In the four weeks they had been here, not once had a Kleese put in an appearance. The only aliens they had been exposed to were of Marken’s race. At some point in time, Captain Jenkins was going to have to confront Marken and demand an explanation. Wade just hoped he was there to hear it.

-

Harnett finished her work in the infirmary and after checking on her three patients one final time, left to go to her quarters. As she walked down the long wide corridors of the station, she was surprised at how easy the Humans were to work with. They learned very quickly and were full of questions. Reaching a small hatch, she keyed in her code and it slid open. Stepping inside, she took a deep breath of the fresh air and gazed out over the small dome and the vegetation that was visible. The trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowers all came from the Kivean home world. In the center of the dome was a small city where nearly six thousand Kiveans lived when they were on the station.

Harnett had never seen her home planet. She had been born on the station and taught early in life how to serve the Kleese. Later, Marken had chosen her as his life mate, and they had been together ever since. Harnett stepped over onto a moving walkway, which would take her to the heart of the city. Marken and she lived in a small apartment building which they called home whenever they were not called away to serve upon a Kleese ship. If Marken’s plan worked, neither of them would ever have to serve on a Kleese ship again.

-

Marken was in a meeting with several other members of his race. It was a small group, and they still had much planning to do if their plan to escape the clutches of the Kleese were to become a reality.

“We risk much,” Taalon commented with a concerned frown. “The Kleese must not be allowed to suspect what we are doing.”

“We must continue to hide what we’re attempting,” Kalarn agreed. “The Kleese will not grow suspicious as long as we don’t give them a reason to.”

“The Humans are learning rapidly,” Marken informed them. “We were fortunate to have abducted several of their military research scientists as well as a few engineers. They are already studying the technology we have furnished them for experimentation.”

“We have three chosen groups of Humans,” Larnell added as he thought over Marken’s words. “Nearly one thousand Humans are going through advanced training.”

“Normally they would not receive this training until we knew they could be trusted to serve the Kleese,” said Kalarn, showing some worry in his voice. “What if they turn against us?”

“They won’t,” promised Marken, confidently. “A few of them already suspect something is going on, particularly several of their more astute officers.”

“What will they do when they learn that their world has been destroyed?” Kalarn asked his eyes narrowing. “They have no home to go back to.”

“Not all of them died,” remarked Taalon, recalling the subterfuge they had all participated in. “While their planet is no longer available to them, there are still places in their solar system they can go.”

“We made sure the Kleese never knew about the colony on the fourth planet of the system or the large one in the asteroid,” Marken added. “The Kleese also ignored the base on the planet’s moon because they believed it would die out on its own without supplies from the home planet.”

“The data about the fourth planet and the asteroid were purposely deleted from the ship’s computers and scanning systems,” Taalon explained.

“The Humans on their moon and in the asteroid should have been able to rescue a large number of their people,” added Marken, hoping he was correct in this assumption. “In time they will grow strong and become a viable threat to the Kleese themselves.”

“Are you certain?” Kalarn asked, his eyes narrowing even further than normal. “Have we chosen the right race? If we’re wrong we will lose everything, including our lives.”

“The Humans are the most aggressive humanoid race the Kleese have ever encountered,” Marken replied as he crossed his long arms across his chest. “There was always a war of some type going on upon their planet. It frightened the Kleese enough that they ordered the planet to be destroyed rather than risk the Humans developing a star drive.”

“We have already gone too far to turn back now,” added Taalon, looking at the others. “This is our only hope to return to our own world someday and to free it from the clutches of the Kleese.”

“It’s a desperate and a dangerous gamble,” responded Kalarn, looking at the others. “If we are wrong and the Kleese learn of what we are doing, they will kill all of our people on this station.”

“That’s why all of our people will be going with us,” Marken answered. “We will only get one chance at this, so we cannot fail.”

“When do we enact our escape plan?” asked Kalarn, looking over at Marken. “The sooner we get away from the Kleese, the better.”

“The Humans must be allowed to learn more of what the Kleese expect of their servants,” replied Marken, sadly. “They will have to go out on several deployments before all is truly ready.”

“We may lose a few of them,” Taalon pointed out.

“It will be a small price to pay for our freedom,” replied Marken, evenly. “It is unfortunate, but we all knew that there would be casualties in this, and some of them may even be our own.”

The group continued to talk and make plans. For years, they had been seeking a race that could be a threat to the Kleese. In the Humans, they had found such a people.

-

Lieutenant Nelson was speaking with Lieutenant Williams about his suspicions. “There is something going on with the Kiveans. I was in the research building earlier and some of the technology our people are studying has nothing to do with war. It’s as if the Kiveans want us to learn as much of the Kleese technology as possible for some reason.”

“I’ve thought much the same,” replied Beth, letting out a heavy sigh. “Since we arrived here at the dome they seem much more personable, as if they actually care about our welfare. Did you know that the Kivean female doctor in the infirmary is Marken’s mate? I believe they call it life mate.”

“No, I didn’t,” Wade replied, his eyes growing wide in surprise. “Watching her, she seems deeply upset anytime someone is injured in one of these war games.”

“I can assure you that she is,” responded Beth, looking intently at Wade. “She treats our own doctors and nurses as equals and never acts as if she is superior.”

Wade leaned back and folded his arms over his chest as he thought. “We need to be careful and keep these observations to ourselves,” he said at last. “If we can get some of these Kiveans to work with us, we just might be able to escape and return to Earth. They understand the technology and could probably get us home.”

“I agree,” Beth replied as she stood up and walked over to stare out the small window in her quarters. Both she and Lieutenant Nelson had been furnished with private quarters to live in. “The Kiveans are up to something. I think it’s best if we just play along for now until we see what it is.”

“Perhaps you can still attend that wedding someday,” Wade said. He knew that Beth had been preparing to get married but had been abducted by the Kleese instead.”

“Perhaps,” Beth replied as she turned around with a glint of hope in her eyes. “But a lot will have to occur between now and then for that to ever happen.”

“We just have to believe,” Wade responded as he stood up and came to stand next to Beth. “None of us can ever give up hope. I firmly believe that someday we will all see Earth again.”

Beth nodded. Wade was always so positive and upbeat. In many ways, he reminded her of her fiancée. “Let’s go to the mess hall and eat; it’s been a long day.”

Wade went to the door and opened it, and they walked the short distance to the mess hall. Once inside, they saw it was full of hungry marines and the aroma of freshly cooked food filled the air. Somehow or the other, the Kiveans had managed to get a hold of a number of frozen food lockers on some of the bases they had stripped. He was also glad that excellent army cooks had been abducted as well. The men and woman were talking as they ate, and occasionally laughter rang out. If Wade didn’t know better, this mess hall seemed no different than the ones back on Earth.

Going down the chow line, he quickly filled his plate and smiled at seeing meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy, as well as some baked rolls were on the menu. Good food always helped morale and he knew that, in the coming months, everyone in this room was going to need it.

Chapter Nine

Mason was inspecting one of the new long tunnels built to house the survivors coming from Earth. The first one was nearly finished and extended nearly a mile into the hard rocky ground of Vesta. It had been drilled into the eastern side of the Smithfield habitat, and already a second and third tunnel were in progress.

“The tunnel is twenty-five feet in height and sixty wide,” Keith commented as he gazed down it at the two long rows of apartment buildings being rushed to completion. The structural engineer had been spending much of his time in the tunnel trying to get it finished as quickly as possible. “Each apartment has two bedrooms, a small living room, a basic kitchen, and a single bathroom.”

“How many people can we put in these apartments?” Mason asked as he watched several workers driving down the center of the tunnel in a small electric work truck. Every day, he was receiving calls from Earth, asking when more survivors could be sent to Vesta.

“Close to four thousand,” replied Keith, glancing over at Mason. “That’s figuring an average of four people per apartment.”

Mason let out a deep sigh; that wasn’t many compared to all that needed to be rescued. Ten thousand additional survivors had already been brought into the Smithfield habitat, with some living in tents on the outskirts until more permanent structures could be built. Lori and her people had been working to add additional life support systems so the ecology in the Smithfield habitat wouldn’t fail.

“How many tunnels can we build with our available resources?”

Keith looked down at the floor of the tunnel and then back up. “We are planning on ten; five on the west side and another five on the east side of the habitat.”

“That’s enough room for about forty thousand people,” Mason spoke with disappointment in his voice. He knew they were limited in what they could do with their available resources. “What about the new habitat; how is it coming?”

“We’ve increased the construction pace considerably,” answered Keith as he watched several workers apply a protective fireproof coating to the walls of an apartment. “But it’ll be two more years until we can start moving people in. The biggest problem is going to be getting the ecology in the habitat established as well as the new environmental systems we’re going to need.”

“What’s the latest estimate of the number of people it will hold?”

“Two point two million,” Keith responded. “That’s the most our environmental systems will be able to handle with a reasonable margin for safety.”

Mason nodded. With over two million people that would give Vesta a good population as well as enough people to form a solid industrial base. Many items that had been produced on Earth would now have to be produced on Vesta and at Luna City. Already, much of the land in the Smithfield habitat was being turned into farms to grow food. Even so, he wondered if they could put more people in Smithfield. It was a subject he would talk to Lori Wright about; she was still frantically scrambling trying to set up the new environmental systems needed for the habitation tunnels.

“Just keep doing everything you can,” Mason added. “Lawrence is having a hard time on Earth with all of the refugees. We have to find a place to put them.”

Keith nodded in understanding. “I know it’s tough and we’re doing everything we can; I just hope he can keep control of what’s going on at Jornada.”

“We’re fortunate White Sands and the two military bases were so close,” Mason spoke in agreement. “At least he has the troops to keep the spaceport secure.” Mason took another long glance down the tunnel. At least he could tell Lawrence they would shortly be ready for more survivors. He just wished there was more they could do.

-

Captain Stevens stepped outside of his command bunker and instantly buttoned the top button on his heavy winter parka. It was cold outside, and a light dirty snow was falling. With all the volcanic ash in the atmosphere, the snow that fell was no longer a pristine white.

“It’s going to be another miserable day,” Lieutenant Griffith muttered as he pulled up the hood of his parka over his head and repositioned the goggles he was wearing to better protect his eyes.

Mark nodded in agreement. They were both wearing breathing masks over their nose and mouth to protect them from the ash and other contaminates in the air. “Let’s check the processing station first, and then I want to go inspect a couple of the infirmaries in tent city.”

Lieutenant Griffith nodded as he gestured for a driver to bring the waiting jeep over. The jeep was now fully enclosed to give added protection to the occupants. All the open air jeeps had been retired or refurbished several weeks back. Climbing in, the two took their seats and gazed out the windows as the jeep headed down the road toward the processing center.

Things had changed considerably in the last few weeks. Small corrugated buildings now stood every one hundred feet along the fence. Large windows in the front of the small, twelve by sixteen structures faced the fence and tent city. Buried electrical lines furnished power for heat so the troops inside could stay warm. A series of bright lights on poles spaced evenly along the fence kept the area lit up so it would be easy to spot anyone trying to crawl through or over the wires.

Reaching the processing center, Captain Stevens and Lieutenant Griffith got out of the jeep and ran quickly over to the now nearly fully enclosed structure. The temperature was down to around ten degrees with a brisk south wind blowing and no one wanted to be outside for long.

The new processing center was a long low building with a large roof that enclosed the entire area on two sides. In the front and back there was just enough room for a single vehicle to pass through, but even those two entrances could be closed up if needed. A number of marines were on guard duty stationed close to the main gate. There were also several LAVs stationed nearby with their heavy machine guns pointed in the direction of the entrance.

Going inside the building, Captain Stevens saw with satisfaction that the dozen marine guards inside were alert and ready to reinforce the main gate if needed. They were keeping a close watch on everything, though there hadn’t been a serious incident for days. Mark knew that the steadily deteriorating weather was helping to deter potential problems.

“Good morning, Captain Stevens,” Major Anderson spoke as he rose from his desk upon seeing Mark. “Time for your morning inspection?”

“Yes, Sir,” Stevens replied as he saluted. “We’re gong to check several of the infirmaries today.”

“Be careful out there, Captain,” Major Anderson cautioned. “We ran additional electrical lines yesterday to get some heat to more of the tents. This cold and snow is making living in tent city nearly unbearable.”

“How many people do we have now?” Lieutenant Griffith asked. He knew that, in the last week, the number of new people coming in had dwindled to just a trickle.

“We have eight hundred thousand people living outside the fence now,” answered Major Anderson, shaking his head. “We had less than a dozen new ones show up yesterday. From what they reported, many of the roads are now impassable from the snow and ash, and fuel is almost impossible to find.”

“How’s the food situation?” Stevens asked. The previous week they had begun rationing, allowing only two full meals a day. There had been considerable grumbling from the civilians when that had been announced.

“General Pittman’s people found another warehouse full of MREs yesterday at one of our larger military bases that had been abandoned. They are in the process of sending helicopters to move all of them here and to the installation south of Amarillo. He also has been bringing in huge stocks of flour and the cooks at the airbase are in the process of baking massive amounts of bread. We’re hoping that by making the bread available at the mess halls in tent city it will help alleviate the food problems.”

Stevens nodded. He knew that hungry people could rapidly become dangerous and desperate. “I hope so. We’ll check back in after our tour.”

The two made their way back out and to the main gate. Six marines from Steven’s unit were waiting for them and they passed through the gate together.

“Damn, it’s dark out here,” Griffith muttered as they walked away from the lights and into tent city. There were only a few lights as most of the electricity was being used to generate heat.

The sky was overcast with a light gray snow falling. Even though it was early morning, it was still nearly dark with visibility of only a few feet. Mark knew it was like this nearly everywhere now.

As they passed by a small tent, a woman stuck her head out and looked at them pleadingly. “Help me please; there is something wrong with my children!”

Lieutenant Griffith looked over at Mark and then went inside the tent with the woman to check on the problem. A moment later, he came back out holding a small child wrapped in a blanket in his arms and after handing the young girl to one of the other marines, went back inside and came out with another followed closely by the mother. “We need to get these two kids to the infirmary,” reported Griffith, briskly. “They’re both suffering from hypothermia.”

Looking at the two children in the light of a flashlight Mark could see how white their faces were. “Let’s go,” he ordered as he headed toward the closest infirmary. He hated seeing children suffering like these two were. Tent city was a harsh place to live and getting worse every day.

It took them only a few minutes to reach the infirmary and once inside they quickly turned the two kids over to a doctor. Without surprise, Mark noticed that the beds in the infirmary were nearly full. At least it was warm, with several large electrical heaters running nonstop to keep the cold out.

“This cold is kicking our butts,” complained one of the doctors, standing next to Mark, as several nurses and another doctor were busy checking over the two kids. “We’ve had over sixty incidents of frostbite and exposure in the last twenty-four hours. If this cold continues, we’re going to lose a lot of people.”

Mark didn’t reply. He knew from the weather forecasts issued by Holbrook Station and the International Space Station that the weather was only going to get worse.

-

General Pittman was in the air in one of the large, specially equipped helicopters that could fly in the ash and cold weather. He was on his way to check on the survivor facility south of Amarillo. General Stockton was in charge of the facility and unlike Jornada, people were still flooding into his area. Pittman had arranged for more MREs to be sent to Stockton, but the food situation was starting to become a serious issue. He knew that Stockton was sending out scavenging squads around the local area to bring in everything they could find.

Looking out the thick protective windows of the helicopter, all he could see was darkness. He knew the distance from the airbase next to White Sands to the facility just south of Amarillo was a little over four hundred miles.

“We’ll be there in another thirty minutes,” the pilot reported over the com system. “The weather report from the facility indicates a light wind and only lightly falling ash. They have visibility of slightly over half a mile.”

Pittman nodded. He knew the faculty they were going to had received less ash than most areas. One of the reasons he was going was that General Stockton was becoming overwhelmed with the refugees he now found under his protection. In recent days, Pittman had shifted a few more troops to Stockton’s command to help keep the situation under control. He wanted to make an inspection himself to see if anything else was needed.

A few minutes later and they were passing over Amarillo. Looking down, the sprawling city looked like a ghost town with no lights and no sign of anything living. It was like this everywhere. Only occasionally did they see any lights on their supply and recovery missions. In a few isolated areas, people still had fuel for generators and whenever any lights were seen, reports were sent in for a possible future rescue.

“Nearing the facility now,” the pilot reported as the helicopter began to descend.

General Pittman looked down at the survival facility. It stretched for miles, and even from the air he could see thousands of lights. Just like Jornada, the facility had access to a number of wind generating farms for power. That was one good thing about this part of the country, including Jornada; there were plenty of large wind farms that were still operational.

From the latest reports, General Stockton had indicated that he had over one point six million people here. Many of them from Amarillo and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Pittman knew they needed to do some major planning if they wanted to save the majority of these refugees.

-

Lawrence Henderson and General Wainright were inspecting one of the new barrack shelters that had recently been finished. It was in the form of a regular army barracks with a curved roof and walls made of corrugated metal. Thick foam insulation had been added to help keep out the cold. There was a wide hallway running down the center with partitions dividing the sleeping sections to give a semblance of privacy. Each section had two sets of bunks for families and a small table with four chairs. At the far end were a set of restrooms for men and women.

“How many can this one hold?” Lawrence asked as he noticed the warm air coming out of the ventilation system.

“Ninety-six,” General Wainright replied as he looked down the length of the one hundred and twenty foot hallway. “This isn’t luxurious by any means, but it’s a bed, the barracks are heated, and there are showers in the restrooms.”

“How many of these have we built so far?” inquired Lawrence, knowing this would be a big improvement over what many of the families inside the spaceport fence were living in. Responding to Mason’s advice, they were now building more permanent structures.

“We have built sixty-two of these so far,” Wainright replied as he stepped over and slid open the door to one of the small twelve by twelve rooms, glancing inside. “We’re planning on building another two hundred on the north side of the spaceport, and when we are finished we should have permanent facilities for forty thousand people.”

“At least it’s warm in here,” Lawrence said, unbuttoning his coat. “How much longer are we going to be able to continue using the tents?”

“As long as we need to,” Wainright replied. “They were designed for long-term deployment in harsh conditions, and they are hooked up to heat.”

“What about your people at the two military bases and White Sands?”

“We’re digging in,” answered Wainright, shutting the door to the small room. “On all three bases we currently have over one hundred and twenty thousand people. Most are military personnel and their families, plus a few civilian contractors. General Pittman feels that, in another six months, we can have everyone safely underground in new quarters and prepared to stay for the long haul.”

“Let’s get back to the Operations Center,” Lawrence suggested.

There was a shuttle launch scheduled in another hour, and he wanted to watch it. The shuttle was taking some environmental equipment up to Holbrook Station where it would be loaded onto the passenger liner Fantasy to be taken to Luna City.

-

Deep in the Pacific, a chain of underwater volcanoes suddenly vented their fury, shaking the ocean floor. The Earth’s crust beneath the volcanoes shifted and a massive fissure opened up, spewing forth molten lava. The resulting earthquake caused a nearby underwater mountain range to drop suddenly by nearly a thousand feet. Upon the surface, a tsunami formed and rushed toward the battered west coast of the United States.

As it neared the coast, the wave rose until it towered nearly two miles in height. Striking the coastline along the California, Oregon, and Washington coasts, it swept away everything in its path. The area had already been hit by numerous tidal waves but nothing of this size and fury. The wave continued on, rolling up against the mountain ranges, but even there found its way into low-lying valleys and through mountain passes.

The San Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys fell victim to the encroaching water as the few survivors still holding out suddenly saw a wall of water coming toward them in the dim light. In just a few hours, the valleys were flooded and nothing was left living. The wave even made its way into the Mojave Desert. When at last the tsunami began to recede, it left desolation in its wake. Buildings, roads, bridges, power lines, dams, trees, and even rivers had vanished.

The deep layer of ash had been transformed into a swirling mass of sludge that now flowed in and covered everything. There was nothing left living in hundreds of thousands of square miles as the water flowed back into the ocean, leaving its path of destruction behind.

Due to the shift in the ocean’s crust, more earthquakes began to rattle the globe as the Ring of Fire around the Pacific let loose in even more unbridled fury. At Yellowstone, there had been six massive volcanoes hurling lava and ash up into the air; now a new one formed directly over the ruptured Caldera. This one was larger than all the other six combined. Burning rocks were hurled up into the upper atmosphere, nearly reaching escape velocity. It would take hundreds of years for the ash from this single volcano to fall completely to Earth.

The massive wave racing across the Pacific was not through with its destruction yet. Indonesia, Australia, the Philippines, Japan, and China felt its deadly fury. When the waters of the Pacific finally subsided, hundreds of thousands of survivors had lost their lives.

-

Lawrence and General Wainright were in the Operations Center when they felt the massive building shudder as the ground rumbled from an earthquake.

“Where’s that earthquake’s epicenter?” demanded Lawrence, rushing over to where a group of men and women were bent over a set of computers, pointing and gesturing.

“We’re not sure,” one of the men responded. “There’s been some type of major event out in the Pacific. We think the West Coast has been hit by another tidal wave of massive proportions. We are also picking up an increase in the frequency of tremors in Yellowstone. We recorded one major tremor there a few minutes ago, and we believe there is going to be another eruption if it hasn’t happened already.”

“From the remaining instruments we have that are transmitting data, the entire Ring of Fire around the Pacific is becoming even more active. We’re talking about millions of tons of ash being hurled up into the atmosphere.”

Lawrence looked grimly over at General Wainright. “We better talk to Mason; we might not have the time we originally thought.”

Marsha Trask came over with a pale look upon her face. “I just finished talking to Darren Kirby on Holbrook Station; he confirms that Yellowstone has erupted again. They can see burning lava and rocks being thrown up above the cloud layer. They say the eruption is truly massive; it may be the largest one they have seen so far.”

“This just gets worse every day,” General Wainright said with growing worry in his eyes. “Is it even going to be possible for anyone to survive here on Earth?”

“I don’t know,” responded Lawrence, his shoulders drooping in despair. “I’m going to speak to Mayor Silas at Luna City. Our best bet may be to get as many people to the Moon as we can. While Vesta is obviously our best hope for long term survival, we may have to settle on the Moon for the short term.”

“What are you going to ask him to do?” Marsha asked. She knew that Luna City didn’t have the resources available that Vesta did.

“We need to find out what he needs to construct more living quarters on the Moon,” responded Lawrence, evenly. “Then we’re going to tear this country apart finding whatever he needs, even if we have to send him the construction people ourselves.”

General Wainright nodded as he felt the Operations Center shudder again. There was no way of knowing just what the alien missile had done when it exploded in the core of the planet. He was beginning to grow concerned that what they were experiencing now was only the start of something even worse.

-

Mason had just finished talking to Lawrence Henderson and was still feeling stunned by the latest developments on Earth. It now seemed as if they had a much shorter timeframe to rescue survivors than they had originally believed. He was in Keith Davis’s office with Drake and Ethan Hall trying to come up with ideas on how to save the survivors on Earth.

“This isn’t good,” commented Drake, running his right hand through his dark hair as he read the latest reports from Holbrook Station on the recent events. “These new eruptions and earthquakes are tearing the planet apart.”

“Is there anything Mayor Silas can do to expand Luna City any faster?” asked Mason, looking over at Keith Davis.

Keith was silent for a long moment. “I would suggest they build tunnels like we are,” replied Keith, finally. “However, I wouldn’t even mess with building actual quarters. Just build tunnels covered with enough lunar soil to provide protection, add environmental systems, and then fill them full of cots and people.”

“Can they do that?” asked Drake, knowing the living conditions would be terrible and probably unsanitary.

“If we want to save people I don’t think we have any choice.”

“We will need to assign all the cargo ships we have modified for carrying people to hauling them from Holbrook to Luna City,” Mason added. “How many can we move per day?”

Drake was silent for a moment as he ran some numbers on the small computer in front of him. “If we’re just going from Holbrook to the Moon we can increase the number of passengers substantially. Our biggest problem is shuttles; currently we have thirty-two available to us. If we schedule shuttle launches around the clock and do minimal maintenance on them we can still only move about two thousand people per day.”

“I don’t want to cut back on shuttle maintenance,” spoke Mason, shaking his head. “The only place we can build a shuttle is here and that would take a while. We can’t afford to lose one.”

“Then let me make another suggestion,” Ethan Hall said as he looked up from where he had been doing some calculations. “I can modify four of our cargo ships to safely land on Earth. We will have to make some modifications to the engines and add airfoils for stability for atmospheric flight, but it can be done.”

“How long?” Mason asked, his eyes focusing on Ethan. He knew that, with the rapidly changing conditions on Earth, each day was precious for rescuing survivors.

“Two weeks for each one,” Ethan responded. “We can move six hundred people on each up to Holbrook and probably make two trips per day.”

“That would be four thousand eight hundred people, and the rest can be done by the shuttles,” said Drake, nodding his head in approval. “That just might work.”

“It will depend on how quickly new tunnels can be built on the Moon,” Keith pointed out. “We can probably move people faster than they can build tunnels. Don’t forget they will need additional supplies, particularly food.”

“Let’s do it,” Mason said, standing up. “I’m going to speak with Mayor Silas and get this effort started. He can furnish us with a daily report on how many survivors they can take, and then we just have to make sure it happens.” Then Mason looked back over at Keith. “I think the next two tunnels we build need to be set up like massive barracks. Cots, a few lockers, and restroom facilities. With what’s happening on Earth we don’t have the time to do things right. Also, get with Lori and see what will have to be done for life support for the tunnels if we put even more people in them.”

Keith nodded. He had been afraid that Mason was going to want this due to the latest news; he also knew they really didn’t have any other choice. This would also send Lori into a tailspin trying to figure out where to get the equipment for more life support systems.

-

Later, Mason was standing in the Control Room of the Phoenix. He walked over, sat down in the command chair, and gazed at the large viewscreen on the front wall. He had always dreamed of commanding the ship from this chair as it made its first trip to another solar system. The room was circular in shape, with a number of consoles that controlled the systems in the ship. A crew of ten would normally be present, but with the weapons they were adding to the ship, four additional consoles had been added as well as a large control console for a tactical officer on an upraised dais just behind the command chair.

“Still dreaming about going to the stars?” Adrienne spoke as she stepped into the Control Room.

She stopped and gazed around; it had been several months since she had been on the Phoenix and she could see that much had been accomplished. The ship was basically finished now; all it needed was its elusive star drive.

Mason stood up with a somber smile. “I can always dream, I guess. I don’t think we’ll be going to the stars for quite some time.”

Adrienne came and stood beside him, looking around at the controls and consoles that were everywhere. It was hard to picture the ship with a full crew and what it would be like. “When are you going to launch her?”

With a sigh, Mason walked over to the consoles that controlled the ship’s new weapons. Glancing down he saw that a command code had to be entered to activate the console. It was a code that currently only the military had, and Mason had no desire to know it.

“Captain Sanders will be coming on board tomorrow with a group of handpicked naval and air force officers from Earth. They will spend the next two weeks familiarizing themselves with the ship and then they will take her out on a shakedown cruise. There will also be additional military engineers and technicians coming on board to train with the civilian crew.”

“Is the civilian crew going to remain on board?” asked Adrienne, curiously. She knew that it would take the military people much longer than a few weeks to learn all of the Phoenix’s complicated systems.

“Some of them will be,” Mason replied with a nod. “Captain Sanders has chosen about half a dozen people from other ships to serve on the Phoenix in key positions. His second officer is a former air force major that’s has been flying shuttles between Earth and Holbrook Station. The man seems to be highly qualified and has some combat experience in his background.”

“What will the crew complement of the ship be now?” Adrienne knew that originally the crew would have consisted of one hundred and twenty plus about fifty scientists.

“We’ve removed the labs and exploration equipment,” replied Mason, regretfully. “The ship will have a crew of three hundred and sixty plus a complement of forty marines.”

Adrienne reached out and touched Mason on the shoulder, understanding his regret over what the ship would now be used for. “It had to be done, Mason,” she spoke softly. “We don’t know if the aliens are coming back or if others will come someday. We have to do what it takes to protect those of us that are left.”

Mason nodded and turned around to face Adrienne, noticing her deep blue eyes that at times could look so caring. Her eyes had that look in them now. “Why did you come to the ship? I know it wasn’t just to take a look at the Phoenix.”

“No,” admitted Adrienne, blushing slightly. “You haven’t been acting like yourself the last few days, and I knew that seeing the ship like this would be hard on you so I decided to come and check to make sure you were okay.”

“I’ve dreamed for years about flying to the stars in the Phoenix,” Mason confessed in a yearning voice. “I always believed we would go out into the galaxy to find new worlds and maybe alien civilizations we could be friends with. I never imagined one of them finding us and being so deadly.”

Mason looked down at the console, seeing the instruments that controlled the targeting scanners and the weapon firing buttons. This particular console controlled the four primary railguns that had recently been installed on the bow of the Phoenix. There was also a small viewscreen immediately above the console that would show the target being fired upon.

Two of the other consoles controlled the remaining twenty railguns that were spaced along the outer hull. They were aligned so ten could fire from either side of the ship. The final weapons console controlled the missiles. Mason wasn’t sure exactly what type of missiles the ship was going to be equipped with as they hadn’t arrived from Earth yet. There were two missile tubes on the bow of the ship just beneath the four large railguns, and six more on each side of the ship for a total of fourteen. General Pittman had been involved in sending them the specifications for what size the missile tubes needed to be and how they should be built.

Looking over at Adrienne, Mason spoke in a low and sad voice. “The Phoenix is no longer mine. Let’s go.”

With that, the two turned and left the Control Room. The Phoenix was now a ship of war and not of exploration. After a few minutes, the two left through the main hatch and walked across the dock facility toward the short corridor that led to the transit station.

Adrienne had been quiet as they walked, respecting Mason’s silence. She knew giving up the Phoenix had been difficult. “Perhaps someday we can build another exploration cruiser,” she suggested finally. “This war will not last forever, and the aliens might not even return.”

“You’re right,” responded Mason, forcing a weak smile upon his face. “But even if we do build another, from now on they will have to be armed. The galaxy out there is much more dangerous than any of us ever believed. If we do go exploring someday, we’ll have to go in a ship that can protect itself if necessary.”

Mason didn’t explain to Adrienne that shortly Ethan Hall and Sean Miller would begin construction on an entirely new generation of spaceships. The new ones would be the same size as the Phoenix, but instead of being designed for peaceful exploration, they would be built for war. Mason was determined that Vesta, Luna City, and Mars Central would never suffer the same fate as Earth. Most of the survivors didn’t realize it as they were too busy trying to stay alive day to day, but the day when the aliens had attacked Earth the Human race had become involved in a new and deadly war.

Chapter Ten

Lieutenant Wade Nelson was standing in the Command Center of the Kleese assault ship W-274. The Kleese, instead of naming their ships, had instead decided to use numbers to designate a ship’s identity. Lieutenant Williams was standing next to Wade, looking out the massive viewports that encircled the front half of the Command Center.

“It feels strange knowing we are going into combat,” Beth spoke quietly, her eyes focused on the star that was slowly growing larger in front of them.

“You will get used to it,” Marken replied from the command chair. Marken looked around the small Command Center, satisfied that everything was proceeding as planned.

“Are the enemy launching ships to engage us?” Wade asked as he noticed a number of red icons that had suddenly showed up on the tactical screen, which hung to one side of Marken.

Marken’s eyes strayed to the screen, and he nodded his head. “It appears that way. This world was only recently discovered by a Kleese exploration ship and has refused to become a part of their Empire. They call themselves Jaltons; their home world is Jalt. They’ve had space travel for well over one hundred years.

“We might have done the same eventually,” Beth whispered as she continued to look out the windows at the stars. She had heard rumors on Earth that an interstellar ship was being built inside Vesta, but no one had ever been able to confirm it.

Wade nodded; he was still watching the tactical screen. He could count nearly twenty of the small red icons moving on what was obviously an intercept course for the inbound assault fleet.

“What will happen now?” he asked, looking over at Marken. “Will we engage their ships?”

“We have forty assault ships in our fleet,” Marken replied evenly as he reached forward and pressed a button on the control console next to him. Instantly, metal shields slid into place over the viewports, closing off the view of space. “Our ships are armed with pulse fusion beams, energy weapons, and antimatter missiles. The battle will be quite one sided and probably very short. A low-level energy screen also protects our ships, which is quite effective against any energy weapons the enemy may use. Our assault ship’s hulls are made out of a composite metal that is very resistant to explosives, so I doubt if their ships can even cause us any damage.”

“Will you ask them to surrender?” Beth asked, not wanting to see these people massacred. They had already been told that this was a humanoid species. The only mistake this race had made was being found by the Kleese.

“We have already done so,” Marken replied, his eyes showing deep sadness. “They declined and have demanded that we leave their system. Of course we have refused and will soon be in range of their fleet.”

“Why are there no Kleese aboard the assault ships?” Wade asked as he looked around the small Command Center. There were about twelve of Marken’s race standing or sitting at the consoles that controlled the ship.

“The Kleese never leave their big ships or the trading stations,” Marken responded as he saw that they were rapidly nearing engagement range. “One of their command ships is stationed just outside the system monitoring everything and will respond if needed.”

Wade nodded in understanding. It was growing more evident that the Kleese preferred their subordinates to handle everything, and they only put in an appearance to enforce discipline or to make a point. The Kleese also seemed to go out of their way not to risk injury to themselves and to stay away from combat situations.

Wade knew the assault ship was the primary vessel used to transport the powerful armies the Kleese had conscripted and provided with battle suits. Each assault ship was two hundred meters long, one hundred and fifty meters wide, and forty meters thick. They normally carried a flight crew of one hundred plus four drop groups of twenty soldiers equipped with battle suits.

In space, the two fleets continued to close. The twenty defending Jalton ships were one hundred and twenty meters long and thirty meters wide. The ships had been built as a defensive fleet before the Jalton government had allowed the first interstellar flight to be made. However, the fleet had never been designed to face what it was now approaching.

The Jalton commander knew that any chances of victory were remote, but he had sworn to defend his planet. If they could inflict enough damage on the invading fleet, it just might reverse course and leave them alone. The Jalton commander sent out word to the ships under his command to prepare to fire.

As the two fleets neared, hatches on the Jalton ships slid open and powerful missiles flew out which quickly locked onto the approaching assault ships. One hundred and twenty nuclear tipped missiles accelerated toward their targets, only to be met by a wave of defensive fire as the energy beam turrets on the hulls of the assault ships locked on and began to blast them apart. The missiles detonated in bright fireballs, lighting up space. In less than ten seconds, all one hundred and twenty missiles were nothing more than harmless debris.

-

The Jalton commander watched in consternation as their first attack was easily thwarted. He knew the odds of stopping the alien fleet from reaching his world had just been substantially reduced. Their nuclear missiles had been their best long-range option to deter these invading aliens. With fatal determination, he ordered his ships to continue the attack. They had other weapons, and if necessary, they could always ram the invaders. He knew that none of his ships would be returning home.

-

“It’s as I said,” Marken commented as he gestured toward a viewscreen, which had been showing the destruction of the inbound missiles. “Their technology is no match for the Kleese.”

The assault ships continued to close, and now their pulse fusion beams began to fire. Wade watched in fascination as from the bow of a nearby ship a bright blue beam flashed out to impact the hull of a Jalt spaceship. A devastating explosion shook the ship and it disintegrated as several more of the deadly beams struck and penetrated the hull.

“It’s gone,” Beth cried in anguish, staring at the screen, knowing that everyone in that ship’s crew had just been killed.

On the viewscreen, other Jalt ships began suffering the same fate. They were now moving their ships around, changing formation, trying to make it harder for the deadly fusion beams to lock on.

The Jalton ships were desperately trying to get closer so they could fire their most powerful weapon. From the remaining ships, orange-red high intensity lasers lashed out at the invading assault ships. The beams struck the energy screens of the assault ships with little effect. In a few spots, the screens seemed to flicker with energy, but that was all. Not a single laser beam was able to penetrate the Kleese energy screens.

In the Jalton formation, blue fusion beams continued to destroy ship after ship. Bright explosions dotted space as the ships died, but none turned back. They were fighting for the freedom of their world, and they continued to press on. In a few more minutes, it was over as the Jalton command ship exploded well short of the invading assault ships. None had been able to ram.

“Now what?” asked Wade, trying not to feel anger at the slaughter of so many ships. He knew that hundreds of lives had just been snuffed out in a matter of a few minutes.

It was obvious that the attacking fleet had never posed a serious threat to the assault ships. Why couldn’t the assault ships have demonstrated that and then repeated their demands for the Jalton ships to surrender?

“You slaughtered them!” Beth said accusingly, looking at Marken with anger in her eyes.

Marken looked at Beth and then replied in a harsh voice. “It is the Kleese way! Even if I had wanted to ask them to surrender again, the Kleese would not have allowed it. The Kleese are not a humanoid race and don’t think as we do.”

Wade reached out his hand and touched Beth’s shoulder. “Marken’s right; the Kleese are the ones to blame.”

Beth looked down and refused to meet Wade’s eyes. She knew that soon they would be going down to the planet, and they would be just as guilty as Marken’s people for enforcing the Kleese’s demands.

The assault fleet approached the Jalton’s planet and then went into orbit. From its surface dozens of missiles rose up in its defense, only to be swatted down by the invading fleet’s energy weapons.

“It’s time for the drop,” Marken spoke as his eyes focused on Lieutenant Nelson. “They should have no hand weapons that can penetrate a suit’s armor as long as you and your people are careful. The only weapon you will need to be fearful of are large explosive charges.”

Wade nodded. He knew that now it was their turn. “Come on Beth; let’s go get our people ready.”

Beth was silent as they left the Command Center; she was still visibly shaken by the lack of mercy shown the Jalton fleet. It made her realize just how monstrous the Kleese were. She also had her doubts about the Kiveans, since they had carried out the Kleese’s commands so efficiently.

Marken watched them leave; he hated that they had to witness the Jalton fleet wiped out so callously. However, they had to understand how the Kleese fought a war. They never showed any mercy or compassion for anyone. The Kleese were a very cold and impassionate species.

-

A few minutes later, Wade was inside his battle suit sitting in one of the four drop ships the assault ship had in its small flight bay. Each drop ship contained twenty marines. Lieutenant Williams had two platoons she was responsible for and Wade had the other two. Corporals Stern and Perry had been promoted to sergeants just prior to this operation and were in two of the other drop ships.

Wade felt the ship move and knew they were exiting the flight bay, heading for the planet. “Listen up, you knuckleheads,” Wade began as he stared at his suited up marines. “Our target is the main power station in their capital city. Once we’ve destroyed it, we will go to our extraction point, which is their main airport. Other units will be targeting different targets of interest in multiple sections of the city. As we withdraw to the airport, we have instructions to cause as much damage as possible.”

“Lieutenant Nelson,” Marken’s voice came over the private com channel. “Their capital city has been evacuated; all that remain are their defending military troops. I thought you should know that.”

“Thanks,” replied Wade, appreciatively. He wondered just why Marken had told him that. Sometimes Marken seemed so cold and callous, and other times almost Human.

Wade felt the drop ship begin to shudder in the thicker atmosphere as it neared the planet’s surface. He knew that soon the ship would land, the landing ramp would open, and they would have thirty seconds to exit the craft before it would take off again.

The ship continued to shake and Private Dawson spoke up. “I’m going to get sick if this keeps up.”

“I told you not to eat before the drop,” replied Private Russell, unsympathetically. “Next time maybe you’ll listen.”

“I was hungry,” responded Dawson, defensively.

“Everyone arm up,” Wade ordered as he stood and grabbed the metal support rail above him so he could remain standing. He picked up his RG rifle and checked the weapon’s display in his helmet. It quickly informed him that it was fully loaded and ready to fire.

The rest of the group stood and made ready. The drop ship suddenly slowed, seemed to drop the last several meters to the ground, and then with a sharp jar came to a stop. The metal hatch at the rear opened and the ramp extended to the ground. The marines quickly exited, taking up a defensive position around the ship and looking nervously about.

“All right, move out!” Wade ordered as he came down the ramp and pointed toward a large building a few hundred meters in the direction they needed to go. It looked as if the drop ship had landed them in a small park. Even as he spoke, the ramp closed and the drop ship rose up in the air and then accelerated back up toward space. A second drop ship a few hundred meters away was doing the same. He could see two others a short distance from them and knew those should contain Lieutenant William’s marines.

“Lieutenant Williams, are you down?” asked Wade, hoping the other drop ships were hers.”

“Yes, we’re down,” she answered promptly.

“Head to the large building toward the west; that’s the direction we need to go.” Captain Jenkins had placed Wade in charge of this operation.

“On our way,” she replied.

Wade checked his rifle one more time, satisfied that he had done everything he could to prepare his marines for this situation. “Move out!” he ordered. “Staggered formation; scouts ahead. Privates Russell and Dawson, you have the scouting duty. The city is supposed to be evacuated, so anyone you come across will probably be hostile. Sergeants Stern and Perry, keep an eye out for enemy forces.”

Everyone began moving through the park-like area. Wade noticed immediately that the trees and bushes were much different from those back on Earth. There was a silver tinge to the leaves, and the leaves themselves seemed to be more of a grayish color.

They were not quite out of the park when firing broke out. What sounded like light weapons fire was coming from the left side of the line where Lieutenant William’s marines were.

“Report!” Wade barked over the com as he checked his HUD. It showed all eighty combat suits in a ragged line with four scouting ahead.

“One of my scouts has encountered enemy troops,” Williams replied. “We are moving up to give assistance.”

Over the next ten minutes, resistance stiffened as the marines continued to advance. Weapons fire became constant as more enemy troops arrived to attempt to stop the invaders in the dark battle suits.

Wade winced as automatic weapons fire stitched itself across his chest. He instantly dropped to the ground and rolled several times until he was behind a protecting building wall. Checking his display, he was relieved to see that the suit had not been damaged, just scratched a bit. He knew from the material it was made of that it should be impervious to small weapons fire. He stood back up and checked his rifle one more time.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped back around the corner and fired his rifle in the direction where he thought the shots had come from. An enemy soldier fell to the ground and didn’t move. Wade paused for a moment. This was the first time he had ever killed someone. All this humanoid was doing was protecting his home. Wade shook his head; he couldn’t look at it that way. They had an objective to take, and if any of them ever wanted to see Earth again they had to complete this mission. The humanoids they were fighting were in this planet’s military, so it wasn’t as if they were fighting defenseless civilians.

A sudden explosion suddenly went off on his right side, and he heard one of his marines swear over the com system. At the same time, one of the battle suits on the HUD suddenly turned orange.

“They’re tossing some type of grenades,” Private Gonzales reported in a strained voice. “My right shoulder’s been injured, but I can still move.”

More explosions began going off all across the marine’s slowly advancing line. Several more icons turned orange. The enemy had realized that their weapons fire was not being effective so they had switched to explosives instead. Dozens of small explosions rang out down the line, and the air was becoming filled with drifting smoke.

“Enough of this!” Wade barked not wanting to lose any of his people. He had hoped to hold enemy casualties to a minimum. “Switch to explosive rounds and let’s end this.”

“Are you sure you want to do that?” Beth asked on their private communications channel. “It will cause the enemy troops to suffer lots of casualties.”

“I don’t think we have a choice,” replied Wade, evenly. “The sooner we get this over with the better, or we’re going to lose some people to those damn explosives.”

Switching his own rifle over to the deadlier rounds, he began firing in an arc ahead of him. Grenade-like explosions began rolling across the small buildings and streets ahead as all eighty marines began laying down a deadly hail of explosive rounds. Thick smoke began to fill the air as buildings caught fire, and some collapsed from the intensity of the weapons fire. The firing from the enemy troops began to lessen, and then it stopped.

“Let’s go,” Wade ordered as he began moving forward. “I want to increase the speed of our advance. Use explosive rounds to keep the space ahead of us clear.”

For the next thirty minutes, the marines steadily advanced behind a powerful wall of explosions as they leveled everything in front of them. They cut a swath nearly five hundred meters wide through the heart of the city. Behind them, they left burning buildings and rubble, very little remained standing. Finally, they reached their objective; a large plant that furnished power for the entire city.

“This is our objective,” Wade said over his suit’s com. “I want it leveled so we can get out of here. Pick your targets and let’s get this over with.”

Wade had his marines spread out and then passed on the order to fire. Explosive rounds began landing all over the plant complex in resounding explosions. Several large tanks burst into flame, shaking the ground and sending mountains of fire high up into the air. Wade guessed they must have contained some type of fuel for the plant’s generators. It only took a few minutes and the plant was demolished with all of its structures reduced to burning and smoking rubble.

A warning alarm sounded in his suit and looking down at his weapons display, he saw that he was down to ten percent explosive rounds remaining in his rifle. “Switch back to penetration rounds,” he ordered, wanting to conserve the deadlier ammunition in case it was needed later. “Let’s head to the extraction point.”

“I haven’t seen any enemy troops recently,” Private Dawson remarked over the com.

“It’s been quiet,” Lieutenant Williams confirmed.

“I think they’ve pulled out,” Sergeant Stern added. She hoped that was true. It had been difficult to fire upon the enemy troops knowing they were only defending their planet from invaders.

At a quick jog, they set off across the city. Resistance had come to a standstill, and Wade wondered if Jamie was right and the enemy troops had withdrawn after realizing they couldn’t bring down the deadly battle suits. He hoped so; he didn’t want to kill anymore of them if it wasn’t necessary.

Looking around, he could see other areas of smoke rising from different sections of the sprawling capital. Wade knew that these were the results of strikes by other units. This was a show of force to make the leaders of this world understand that they had no choice but to bow down and follow the wishes of the Kleese. Wade felt a pang of guilt knowing they were being used as pawns to help the Kleese to bring this world into their Empire. He also knew that they had no other choice. They all still wore the explosive collars around their necks, and all of the marines knew what disobedience to the Kleese could bring.

It took about twenty minutes and they finally arrived at the airport. Wade saw that a few other units were already there and had secured the facility. He could see several large aircraft that vaguely resembled the airliners of Earth. The craft had long fuselages, but instead of a single swept back wing the planes had two wings on each side of the fuselage and what looked like some type of rocket motor attached between them.

“I guess we’re here,” Private Russell called out over the com as he strolled over to stand next to Private Dawson.

“At least the fighting’s over,” responded Dawson, cradling his RG rifle in his suit’s arms.

“I think I’ve had enough for today,” Russell commented. “The enemy troops never really had much of a chance against these battle suits we’re wearing.”

“Cut the chatter,” Lieutenant Williams ordered. “Keep an eye out; the drop ships should be arriving shortly.”

Wade had his four platoons spread out and take cover behind what appeared to be hangars for the aircraft. He didn’t see any reason for them to remain out in the open as tempting targets for any enemy snipers that might be around.

Lieutenant Williams walked over and then spoke in a flat and disconcerted voice. “Does this make us murderers now?”

Wade was silent for a long moment. “No,” he finally answered. “We’re in the Kleese military, and we’re just doing our jobs just like the soldiers we killed in the fighting. We did this to survive, and that’s how we have to look at it. We mustn’t second guess ourselves.”

“I guess you’re right, but I still don’t like it.” Beth knew she would have a hard time sleeping. Turning, she went back to her two platoons to await the arrival of their drop ships.

-

From orbit, Marken looked at the viewscreen, which showed a close up of the Jalton’s capital city. He was stunned at what the Humans had done. They had marched through the city eliminating opposition and destroying their objectives in record time. Marken guessed that a good twenty percent of the city was now in ruins. The Jalton leaders were requesting an immediate cessation of hostilities.

Marken let out a deep breath; he knew that if these Humans could be turned against the Kleese someday many things might change. Before that could happen, Marken and his group had much planning that needed to be done. There would also be more battles to be fought as they honed the Humans into the deadliest fighting force the Kleese had ever seen.

-

Four days later, the marines were back in their barracks on board the station. They were all pretty shook up from the fighting on the Jalton’s planet. Wade knew that before they had even left orbit the Jaltons had surrendered. Wade had watched from the Command Center of the assault ship as one of the Kleese’s large ships arrived and went into orbit around the planet. Wade knew that, with the arrival of the Kleese ship, the Jalton’s civilization would never be the same again.

They had talked about it on the way back, with everyone voicing an opinion. Wade had decided it was best to let his marines speak and get all of their misgivings out of their systems. Even after all the talking they had done, it continued even after arriving back in the barracks.

“How many more times are we going to have to do this?” Private Dawson grumbled. “They had no chance against us. It was almost like they were throwing firecrackers at our battle suits.”

He was about to say more when Captain Jenkins stepped into the barracks. The captain looked around and gestured for everyone to remain sitting. “I know this op was hard on everyone,” he began. “In all, twelve hundred marines and army troops were dropped on the Jalton’s planet. From what I have been told, we achieved our objectives in record time and the Kleese are quite pleased. The Jalton planet has surrendered and agreed to become part of the Kleese Empire.”

“After we murdered them!” Private Lisa Hayes choked out.

Captain Jenkins turned his attention to the young woman and could see she was extremely stressed by what they had done.

“You actually saved lives,” he replied in a steady voice. “If the Kleese ship had gone into orbit and engaged the Jaltons, the first thing they would have done would have been to completely destroy the Jalton capital city and others, killing millions. From what the Kiveans have told me, the Jalton military suffered less than one thousand casualties in our attack upon their capital.”

“Millions,” mumbled Private Hays, finding it hard to grasp the number. “So you’re saying that by allowing us to scare the Jaltons to death we actually saved lives?”

“Yes,” replied Jenkins, calmly. “In future engagements that’s how we must look at this. If we can achieve our goals and hold the enemy combatant casualties to a minimum, we are saving millions of lives on each mission.”

“I guess I can accept that,” replied Private Hays softly, looking at the others. “I don’t like it, but it might make this more bearable.”

Jenkins eyes swept across the group one more time before he continued, then he spoke in a very serious and somber voice. “There was one army platoon that refused to attack the Jaltons. They wouldn’t move from their embarkation point. A drop ship was not sent to retrieve them, and when the Kleese ship went into orbit it sent out a signal, detonating all of their collars. All twenty died immediately. The Kleese then sent the Kiveans down to retrieve the remains and the battle suits.”

The room was silent as they thought over this ghastly revelation. It reminded each and every one of them about the deadly collar they all wore around their necks. It was a grim reminder of what awaited them if they ever disobeyed the Kleese.

Later, after the captain left, Sergeant Stern stood and walked over to Lieutenant Nelson. “What do you think, Sir? Is this all going to be worth it?”

Wade let out a deep breath. He saw that nearly everyone was waiting to hear what he was going to say. “As the captain said, by attacking the Jaltons the way we did we may have saved millions of lives. From now on we will do everything we can to achieve our objectives as swiftly as possible. If we appear as frightening and as deadly as we can to the enemy and make them realize we can’t be defeated, perhaps we can hold their casualties down even further.”

“We become so frightening that they are afraid to fight us,” Private Dawson spoke as he thought the idea over.

“I can live with that,” Private Hays spoke as her right hand went up to touch the thin metal collar around her neck. “If it means fewer casualties for the people we’re fighting I will do anything.”

“That means more intensive training,” Wade added as his eyes swept over all of the marines in the barracks. “We learn to use the battle suits until they feel like they are a part of us. We become the fiercest fighting force the Kleese have ever seen.”

Everyone nodded in acceptance; they all knew they had no other choice. What Wade didn’t tell them was that someday he hoped to turn that fighting force against the Kleese and take his people back to Earth.

-

Marken was meeting with his small group of conspirators, discussing the recent deployment of the Humans.

“It was astonishing to see how they fought,” Marken said as he looked at the others. “Once they came under fire they tore right through the defending military forces and annihilated all of their objectives in record time.”

“I have seen some of the videos of their attack,” Kalarn added with a nod. “Almost every group resorted to using explosive rounds to annihilate their opposition and clear a path to their selected targets. It was almost gruesome to watch as they wiped out their opposition.”

“Only one group refused to fight, and the Kleese eliminated them as soon as their ship went into orbit,” Taalon commented.

“Why did that group refuse to fight?” asked Larnell, looking at the others. “Were they afraid?”

“No,” replied Marken, shaking his head in denial. “I think they were refusing to kill other humanoids. From talking to various Humans, I know they greatly resent being used this way by the Kleese.”

“Our own race feels much the same way,” commented Kalarn, nodding his head in understanding. “However, after what the Kleese did detonating the collars I doubt if the Humans will have that problem again.”

“It will only make the Humans hate the Kleese even more,” added Taalon, knowing how he would feel if he were in their situation.

“How are we coming with our plans to escape and take the Humans with us?” asked Marken, looking over at Taalon. Being a computer specialist, they were depending on him to carry out the careful sabotage of the station’s computer systems.

“The virus is ready, as well as the false information we will be feeding into the mainframe,” Taalon replied. “All traces of the location of the Human’s home system will be eliminated.”

“There will be pursuit,” Kalarn informed them with concern in his eyes. “They will follow us with every assault ship they can muster in an attempt to destroy us.”

“Those assault ships will have to be destroyed if we want to keep the location of the Human’s home system a secret,” Marken spoke in a grave voice.

“We have a method of temporarily jamming hyperspace transmissions,” Kalarn responded. “The same method will also disrupt all the assault ship’s star drives as well. The only problem is that it will also disable the drives on our own ships.”

“I may be able to use the station’s computers to lock down all of the flight bays except the ones we’ll be using,” Taalon commented slowly. “It will take some effort, but I think I can prevent them from using the other assault ships against us.”

“Work on that and let me know if it can be done,” Marken said.

“It would make things less complicated,” Kalarn spoke.

“What about the new weapon?” Marken asked, his eyes focusing on Larnell. He knew the new weapon they had been working on in secret was essential to their long-range plans.

“It’s ready, but we can’t build it,” Larnell responded his eyes focusing on Marken. “All the research has been hidden, and the Kleese have no clue as to what we’ve developed.”

“Will it destroy a Kleese ship?” Marken pressed.

If they didn’t have an effective weapon against the Kleese, they would all die when the Kleese eventually found them. Marken knew that, at some point, the Kleese would eventually find them. While they wouldn’t have a clear idea of where the Human home system was, they would have a general idea of the area of space in which it was located. The Kiveans just needed enough time to build and install the new weapon on their ships.

“The particle beam weapon will cut right through their shields as well as their ship’s armor,” Larnell informed them, letting out a deep breath. “It’s a great development by our scientists and one the Kleese have no knowledge of.”

Marken nodded; in recent years, the Kleese had come to depend more and more on their subject races to perform research for them. They had allowed Marken’s people complete access to the heart of the main computer system on the station. Over the years, a secret team of research scientists had used the Kleese’s own treasure trove of scientific information against them.

“If we can escape with the Humans and give them this weapon to use against the Kleese, what do you think will happen?” Kalarn asked nervously. He still didn’t fully trust the Humans. They frightened him, knowing what they were capable of.

“The Kleese destroyed their home world,” responded Marken, folding his long arms across his chest. “You have already seen how their soldiers fight. In time, I believe the Humans will attack the Kleese Empire and perhaps the Kleese themselves.”

“We will be unleashing a very deadly force against the Kleese,” Larnell admitted as he thought about the ramifications. “I just wonder how all of this will end?”

“It will start a galactic war,” warned Kalarn. “In time, it could involve all three of the galactic powers.”

“Perhaps,” Marken responded, his eyes sweeping over his fellow conspirators. “It is a risk we have to take.”

“The Kleese will have brought it upon themselves,” added Taalon, unsympathetically. “They will get what they deserve.”

“We still have months of careful preparation ahead of us yet,” continued Marken in a cautious voice. “We must be careful that the Kleese don’t learn of what we’re planning.”

“They will not know,” replied Kalarn, confidently. “They do not believe that any race can be a threat to them and their Empire. They and the other two galactic powers have been at the top for far too long and haven’t faced a well-armed adversary in many lifetimes. They have become too trusting and dependent upon their subject races and will never suspect a possible rebellion because it has never happened before. All their subject races have always been afraid of the power wielded by the large Kleese ships.”

Marken nodded in agreement. If they were successful, all of that was about to change. The Kivean race was about to throw a major portion of the known galaxy into war. Marken just hoped he was right about the Humans in that they would take the war to the Kleese. To the best of his knowledge, it had been generations since an actual Kleese had been killed in combat. He also knew that the Humans would show no mercy to any member of the Kleese race, particularly after they discovered what the Kleese had done to their world.

Chapter Eleven

Wade let out a long, deep breath as he lay down on his bunk. They had just returned from their fourth combat mission in the past month. For the first time since they had begun, they had suffered a casualty. Private Richards had stepped on a land mine that had blown his battle suit apart. Wade didn’t know how powerful the explosive charge had been, but it had left a hole a good ten meters across and five meters deep in the ground where Richards had been standing. There had been very little left of the private or the battle suit to recover. Another six of his marines were in the infirmary suffering from various injuries, none severe.

There was a knock at his door and Wade forced himself to sit up and then stand. Going over to the door and opening it, he found Lieutenant Williams standing there.

“Come in,” spoke Wade, gesturing for Beth to enter.

Beth came in and sat down in a chair against the wall. “This last one was rough,” she said, closing her eyes and then reopening them. “I just finished talking to Captain Jenkins, and he said that there were twelve casualties overall from all the units involved. All were similar in that the marine or soldier stepped on one of those God damn land mines!”

“They weren’t supposed to have them,” Wade said in a tired voice as he sat back down on his bunk. “At least their deaths were quick. I doubt if they even knew what happened.”

“We may be going back,” Beth said in a quieter voice. “Captain Jenkins said the planet still hasn’t surrendered, even after what we did to their capital. The planet is rich in natural resources, so the Kleese are hesitant about bombing them into submission.”

“I’m not surprised,” responded Wade, his eyes focusing on Beth. “This planet isn’t quite as advanced as Earth. A trading vessel from another system stumbled upon it and then made a report to the Kleese when it came to the station. They have a highly developed industrial complex due to their resources. I’m sure the Kleese feel those resources could be put to better use.”

“The Kleese believe everything is theirs to take,” grumbled Beth with contempt in her voice. “What makes them think they’re better than all the other races?”

“They’ve been out here longer and have a higher technological level,” answered Wade, wishing things were different. “They and the other two galactic powers have grown so large that no one can stand in their way.”

Beth nodded. She hated the predicament they were in. To be used to expand the Kleese Empire was aggravating to say the least. Even worse was not knowing what was going on back home on Earth. What had happened after the Kleese left? Had conscripts from other races equipped with battle suits been sent in to conquer the planet? So far, the Kiveans had been silent when asked about Earth, even though Beth thought from the strange looks that occasionally appeared on Marken’s face that he knew the answer.

It had been four months since they had made their first attack on the Jalton home planet. On an average, they had been sent out twice per month for some type of operation the Kleese wanted. Anywhere from a show of force to encourage a planet to fall in line to downright fighting on a planet’s surface.

“Marken said we will be training in some new type of battle suits tomorrow,” Beth added with a tired yawn. She covered her mouth with her hand and forced a smile. “I’d better be getting back to my own quarters; I think we all could use a good night’s sleep.”

“I think you’re right,” Wade said, nodding his head in agreement. The quarters in the assault ships were not very comfortable and he hadn’t slept much in the past week.

He watched as Beth let herself out and then lay back down on his bunk. In just a few minutes, he was sound asleep and dreaming about the family home back in Phoenix where his parents and his younger brother lived.

-

Are you sure this is wise?” Larnell asked as Marken finished explaining what he wanted to do.

“The Type Three battle suits are the most powerful the Kleese have developed,” answered Marken. “The sooner we begin training the better off we’re going to be.”

“But will the Kleese allow it?” asked Taalon, sounding doubtful. “Very seldom have the Kleese ever let anyone use one of those suits.”

“The current situation with the Bresth can be used to our advantage,” Marken replied craftily. “I have already mentioned to one of the Kleese that the use of the Type Three suits might be exactly what is needed to bring this race into the Empire.”

“What was the response?” Larnell asked, his eyes growing wide with interest. It was always difficult to broach any type of subject with the Kleese.

“The Kleese have indicated that they will consider it,” replied Marken, nodding his head in satisfaction. “I am sure they will agree to it as they truly want the natural resources and the industrial capacity this planet possesses.”

Kalarn looked over at Marken and spoke. “If the Kleese agree, then we need to begin training the Humans immediately. We have made much progress in our preparations to escape. If the Humans have access to the Type Three battle suits it could make everything that much easier.”

“If the Kleese allow the Humans to use the suits against the Bresth, will they allow the Humans to keep them afterward?” Larnell asked, looking at the others. “They may insist on the suits being returned immediately.”

“I firmly believe that once the Kleese give the Humans the suits and see them in action that they will allow them to keep them,” Marken responded in a voice of confidence. “The Kleese can’t imagine anyone being a threat to them. It will never occur to them that it’s a mistake to allow the Humans to keep the battle suits.”

“I hope you’re right,” Taalon said with a sigh. “We have much riding on this, and we can’t afford a slip up.”

“What about the passenger liners and transport ships?” asked Marken, looking over at Kalarn. “Are we going to have enough to evacuate all of our people when the time comes?”

“I have made the arrangements,” Kalarn responded. “A number of races have ships that will be suitable for our purpose. When the time comes, enough will be here to transport all of our people to safety.”

Marken nodded; the Kleese did allow unrestricted travel between established star systems of their Empire. There was even a lucrative tourist trade amongst some worlds. There were thousands of ships that traveled the space lanes daily, all of which had to check in at one of the massive trade stations on a regular basis. The Kleese, while they did allow travel and some trade, were very strict about what items one planet could trade with another.

-

Later, Marken was in his quarters with Harnett talking about the Humans. “They are so much like us,” Harnett said as she took a seat next to him. “While I believe our race is more technically advanced and perhaps more scientifically minded, they are the more caring and aggressive.”

“Don’t underestimate their intelligence,” Marken cautioned as he took his life mate’s hand. “Their scientists and technicians are making rapid strides in understanding the technology we have turned over for them to study. We may do things in a more rational and methodical way, but the Human’s approach also seems to work.”

“I didn’t mean to make it sound as if they’re not as smart as we are,” replied Harnett, embarrassed. “I just meant that we are an older race and they seem to have more vitality. I have studied the sports played upon their planet. Where our people prefer games that involve the mind, the Humans prefer sports that are more physical and can cause actual physical injury.”

Marken nodded, understanding what Harnett was trying to say. “That’s what will make them so dangerous to the Kleese,” he commented. “Armed with our technology and their aggressiveness they will quickly become a force to be reckoned with.”

“That’s assuming a large enough number of them still exists in their home system,” Harnett reminded Marken with a concerned look. “We don’t know how many have managed to survive.”

“We will know soon,” Marken responded in a quiet voice. “Two or three more months and we will be ready to make our escape attempt with the Humans.”

“When are you going to tell the Humans what you’re planning?” Harnett asked with concern in her voice. “They deserve to know.”

She had always felt uncomfortable about keeping the fate of the Human home world from them. If they were to play an important role in the Kivean’s future plans, then at some point in time their leaders would have to be brought in and told what was going on.

“Not until the last minute,” Marken replied with a deep sigh.

He felt guilty about not sharing with the Humans what his people were planning. However, he couldn’t afford to take the risk of the Kleese finding out. One wrong word spoken where one of the other humanoid races could overhear could ruin everything. There were several other races on the station that would go straight to the Kleese if they suspected the Kiveans or the Humans were up to something. At some point in time, they would have to tell the Humans, and Marken knew that day was not too far off.

-

Two days later, Wade was standing on the training grounds looking in astonishment at the new battle suits lined up in front of them. The suits were nearly a solid black with small blue lights at key junctures. Strapped to the left arm was an energy weapon that looked more like a small cannon. The armor was thicker and the overall suit looked more massive. Wade wondered if they would be harder to handle.

“This is a Type Three battle suit,” Marken announced once he saw that he had everyone’s attention. “As you can see, it comes equipped with an energy weapon as one of its main forms of armament. On the back of the suit are two tubes capable of launching explosives at any target within two kilometers. Each tube contains twenty explosive rounds. The rounds have ten times the explosive power of the ones used in your rifles.”

“So no more rifles?” Private Dawson asked as he examined the nearest suit more closely. He guessed the new suits must weigh a third more than the old ones.

“Yes, you will still have your rifles,” replied Marken, looking over at Dawson. He recognized Dawson as being one of those who was not afraid to ask a question. “They also have been modified. The rate of fire in the new rifles is double that of the old ones, and the explosive charges are twice as powerful.”

“This battle suit is to be used against the Bresth?” spoke Sergeant Stern, realizing the reason they were being given the new suits. She had a suspicion that they would shortly be returning to the Bresth’s home world.

“Yes,” replied Marken, evenly. “The Bresth are still refusing to join the Empire. However, there is one more weapon that goes with the new battle suit. This weapon is designed for hand to hand combat.”

Marken stepped over to one of the suits and pulled a slim metal rod about a meter long out of a sheath at the suit’s waist. A small flexible wire connected it to the suit. Pressing a button on the handle, the rod suddenly glowed a deep dark blue and the smell of ozone filled the air. The rod seemed to vibrate with power.

“This is an energy lance,” Marken explained as he carefully moved the rod from side to side.

Marken stepped over to a one-meter block of metal, which rested on a short pedestal close to the suit. He slammed the lance down against the block, cutting it cleanly in two. He pressed the button on the handle and the blue glow faded.

“The wire furnishes power from the suit,” he explained as he replaced the lance back into the protective sheath at the waist of the battle suit. “The new suits can operate twelve hours without needing to be recharged. They also have a reserve of two hours.”

Wade had listened to everything in astonishment. He couldn’t believe they were being given such deadly weapons. Now more than ever he suspected Marken had an ulterior motive in his actions, and furnishing them with these new suits and weapons only seemed to confirm that. Looking across the line of marines, he could see Captain Jenkins standing there with a thoughtful look upon his face. Wade was sure the captain suspected the same thing. He wondered just what type of game Marken was playing and how it involved the marines,

“Lieutenant Nelson, will you try on your battle suit first?” asked Marken, pointing to the one he had just taken the lance from.

Wade nodded and stepped up onto the small platform. Positioning himself in front of the open battle suit, he stepped backward. As soon as he was inside it closed up around him and he felt various sensors attach themselves to his body. The suit suddenly came alive and he took a tentative step forward. In incredulity, he realized that this suit was much more flexible and responsive than the other suit had been. After a couple of minutes, it felt as if he was not even wearing a suit of armor.

Marken watched Lieutenant Nelson with interest. Of all the marines, the lieutenant seemed to understand the battle suits better than anyone else. Watching him in the Type Three suit, he saw how quickly Nelson had adapted to the new suit of armor and how smoothly he was already using it.

“Okay, now everyone else try yours out,” Marken ordered. “The energy weapons and the lances are not active.”

-

For the next several days, the marines trained in the suits under the watchful eyes of their Kivean trainers. They were taught how the new railgun rifles worked and fired off several of the more powerful explosive charges, with which they were equipped, at targets obliterating them. The two tubes on the back of the suit that carried the more powerful explosive rounds were empty, and Marken had explained they didn’t want to set explosives of that power off inside the dome.

Lieutenant Nelson and Williams worked their marines hard, knowing the new suit with its more powerful weapons and armor would help to keep them alive in combat situations. It was almost as if each marine had become a walking tank with the firepower they now had at their disposal.

The weapon that Wade found the most interesting was the energy lance. The power from the suit flowed into the one-meter rod and it served as a focus, allowing the energy to cut through most metals. Fortunately, one of the metals it had no effect against was the one that composed the armor of the Type Three battle suits. Marken had explained that the composite material the suits were made of were resistant to the energy given off by the lances.

When their final day of training was finished, Wade and Beth went to the mess hall to eat. Sitting down at a table, Beth looked over at Wade and leaned forward over her tray. “We’re being deployed tomorrow,” she spoke in a quiet voice. “We’re going back to the Bresth home world.”

“I expected that,” Wade replied as he took a bite of his mashed potatoes. “I think the Kleese hope that the new battle suits will be so frightening to the Bresth that they will immediately capitulate and surrender.”

“I don’t think that will happen,” responded Beth, unhappily. “I think we will have to inflict massive casualties on them to make that occur, and you know how I feel about that.”

Wade nodded. Neither of them enjoyed killing any member of the races that attempted to resist the Kleese Empire. Unfortunately, the only hope they had of ever seeing Earth again was to obey the Kleese and participate in these military operations.

“Have you been over to the research building recently?” asked Beth, curiously.

“Yesterday,” Wade replied. He was surprised at all the technology Marken and his people had been providing the military researchers. It only seemed to confirm that something else was going on. “Our scientists are learning more about the Kleese technology every day.”

“The Kleese don’t know about that building, do they Wade?”

“No,” responded Wade, softly. He put down his fork and looked over at Beth. “The Kiveans are up to something, and I suspect we’re going to play a major role in it. Marken has made it very plain that if the Kleese ever learn what our people are doing with what’s in that research building we could all lose our heads.”

“We’re being manipulated by them,” Beth said with a long frown. “I don’t like that.”

“I spoke to Captain Jenkins, and he feels the same way,” Wade answered. “He suggested we play along for now until we see exactly what the Kiveans are up to.”

Beth nodded. She knew there wasn’t anything else they could do and the military research people were learning a lot about Kleese technology.

-

Wade peered cautiously over the partially destroyed wall he was taking cover behind. Earlier that morning, they had landed upon the Bresth home world and launched their attack. The Bresth were not a humanoid race and their thinking was radically different. They fought in packs and had little regard for their losses as long as they won in the end. They were bearlike, standing nearly eight feet tall with thick, muscular bodies. A heavy coat of hair covered them from head to toe and they were ferocious fighters. The biggest problem with the Bresth was their lack of sound military strategy. As a result, their casualties were much higher than necessary.

One of the tactics the Bresth had been using that morning was strapping high explosives to their bodies and then rushing the Human lines, trying to get close enough to set off the bombs to destroy battle suits and the Human operator inside. They had been successful eight times so far with their suicide attempts.

“What’s our latest casualty figure?” Wade demanded over the com system to Lieutenants Williams and Jeffries. There were one hundred and twenty marines under his command, and they had been hit hard that morning by the suicide bombers. Lieutenant Jeffries had been assigned to his unit along with forty of his marines.

“Eight dead and twelve wounded,” reported Williams with concern in her voice. “Each attacking wave has been larger than the last. I don’t know how much more of this we can handle.”

“I have several scouts out, and they report that the Bresth are getting ready to hit us again,” added Jeffries, worriedly. “It won’t be much longer.”

Wade let out a heavy sigh; the Kleese had wanted to capture this manufacturing city intact as a demonstration of Kleese power. So far, Wade had been using only rifle fire and had stayed away from using explosives or the energy weapons so as to reduce the amount of damage they caused.

Blinking his eyes, he knew he was not going to be able to hold the Bresth causalities down. Not unless he was willing to suffer heavy casualties to the marines under his command. He switched to the general frequency so all of his marines could hear him. “All right everyone, we’ve played nice and taken some casualties; now it’s time to end this. Those of you with energy weapons are free to engage targets of opportunity. Lieutenant Williams, there are four large storage buildings in front of us. I want you to take them out with your suit launchers; we’ll follow it up with a barrage from our energy weapons.”

“That’s going to cause a lot of Bresth casualties,” she replied, letting out a deep breath.

“I know,” answered Wade. “But I don’t think we have any other choice.”

Lieutenant Williams quickly assigned her marines to specific targets and gave the order to fire. From eighteen battle suits, two high explosive rounds arched up into the air to fall upon and around the four indicated buildings. The buildings covered two full city blocks and the Bresth had been using them for cover to gather for their next attack. The buildings were three stories high and made out of concrete and steel.

The explosive shells landed; each one had enough explosive power to level a small building. All four structures vanished as massive explosions rolled across them. Smoke and fire filled the air and then, after a few seconds, the shelling stopped.

Wade gazed over the wall and was astonished at the carnage caused by the suit’s explosive rounds. He had known they were powerful, but nothing like this. Of the four large buildings, nothing was left standing; all that was visible was a smoking pile of rubble with occasional wisps of fire. Of the enemy troops, there was no sign.

“Advance,” ordered Wade, wanting to take advantage of the break in the enemy lines.

Wade jumped over the eight-foot wall with his rifle in his right hand and began sprinting toward the destroyed buildings. On his HUD, he could see green and amber icons representing the marines in his command moving up in a staggered line. Looking to his right, he could see several blue energy beams firing and hear the resulting loud, crackling noise whenever they struck something.

“Here they come,” Lieutenant Jeffries yelled over the com as the Bresth finally put in an appearance. They were charging forward in a massive wave numbering in the hundreds.

“Use rifle explosive rounds and the energy weapons,” Wade ordered evenly, knowing they were going to have to kill the Bresth troops.

He knew some of those Bresth would be armed with explosive charges, and he was not going to risk losing any more of his marines. He could hear the savage screams and primeval roars of rage coming from the charging Bresth.

Explosive rounds began going off, killing dozens of Bresth at a time and blasting wide swaths in the charging ranks. Several massive explosions shook the ground as Bresth troops carrying explosive charges were hit and their suicide charges detonated. The air became full of smoke as the fighting intensified and more Bresth troops joined in, attacking from the flanks.

“Where’s our support?” Lieutenant Williams screamed as a Bresth soldier carrying a suicide charge detonated just short of her position, showering her suit with shattered stone and debris.

“They didn’t move up when we did,” Lieutenant Jeffries reported. “They’re still pinned down by suicide bombers. Both of our flanks are under heavy attack!”

“Then we have to do it on our own,” Wade said decisively as he realized what had to be done. “Use of suit explosives is now authorized. I want everything around us and to the city’s center leveled!”

Wade knew that this might anger the Kleese as they had wanted to capture the city intact, but he was determined not to take any more unnecessary casualties. Already the Bresth were getting uncomfortably close to his marine’s positions.

“Firing,” Private Dawson spoke as he began shooting explosive rounds from the two tubes on the back of his suit.

“Same here,” Private Russell added as he targeted a large building about a kilometer away.

“I want some of those rounds directly in front of us; the Bresth attacking wave must be eliminated.”

Responding to his orders, massive explosions began to go off in front of Wade and each side. Entire buildings vanished as they were pulverized by the powerful explosives. The noise reached an incredible crescendo as explosions marched across the city.

The Bresth screamed in renewed fury at the destruction around them and attempted to rush the now deadly Human line, hoping to breach it while they still had the advantage in numbers. Several explosive rounds fell amongst the nearest Bresth, wiping out entire sections of their advancing troops. The attack faltered and then came to a sudden halt as energy beams tore into the beleaguered attackers.

For a full minute, Wade watched impassively as the explosions marched across the city, destroying everything in their path. Even small skyscrapers ten to twenty stories high fell victim to the powerful explosives.

When the explosions finally stopped, Wade gazed at the devastation his orders had wrought. An area of the city four city blocks wide and nearly a kilometer in length had been leveled. A few fires burned and smoke was prevalent in the air, but Wade knew that there was nothing left living in the section of the city he had just ordered destroyed. He felt numb, knowing that his orders had probably killed hundreds if not several thousand enemy troops.

A few Bresth troops had turned and fled back to the flanks, running from the carnage that Wade had let loose. Their will was broken, and Wade suspected the battle might now be over. The word of what he had done would soon spread to the other defenders. What enemy in their right mind would want to face what had just been unleashed upon the heart of the city?

“That’s done with,” Wade spoke calmly over the general com frequency. “Let’s move to the city’s center and wait for pickup.”

“They’ve pulled back,” Beth spoke as she motioned for her troops to advance. “I don’t think they’ll be returning.”

They moved forward in silence, everyone awestruck at the damage the new suits were capable of inflicting. Each one had the power and destructive capability of a full company of marines.

“Keep a watch out,” Wade cautioned as he stepped over a pile of smoldering rubble. “There may still be a few Bresth around.”

“The other units on our flanks are moving up now,” Lieutenant Williams spoke. She too had been stunned by the damage they had inflicted. “They are reporting that the enemy troops are withdrawing and fleeing the city.”

“I think we’re in the clear,” Lieutenant Jeffries added with relief in his voice.

Wade nodded; this part of the battle was over, and he wondered just what the consequences of his actions would be when they returned to the station. Would what he had ordered cause the Kleese to activate the collar around his neck for destroying such a large part of the city? He didn’t know, and at the moment, he didn’t care. His actions had ensured that no more of his marines were lost or injured, and that was what was important.

-

Marken gazed at the viewscreen in astonishment and fear. Never had he imagined that the Humans would use their suits to wreak so much destruction upon the Bresth city. Already he was wondering how he was going to explain this action to the Kleese who were standing by in one of their large, disk shaped ships.

“The Kleese are giving us permission to launch the drop ships and pick up the Humans,” one of the other Kiveans reported from his position at communications. “The Kleese are also reporting that the Bresth have surrendered and are now willing to join the Empire.”

Marken breathed a long sigh of relief. He knew from monitoring communications that Lieutenant Nelson had been the one to give the order to use the battle suit’s higher explosives to level part of the city. It seemed as if the lieutenant’s gamble had worked. He also knew there would be no punishment from the Kleese as the planet was now under their control.

“Send the drop ships down,” Marken ordered with a satisfied nod. Unless the Kleese specifically forbid it, he planned on allowing the Humans to keep the new battle suits. Of course, not all the Humans had the new suits, only a select few.

Marken watched on the main viewscreen as four drop ships left the flight bay and headed for the planet. It was unfortunate that a few Humans had been killed on this mission, but in war there were going to be occasional casualties. Marken was just thankful that none of the key Human officers had died or been injured. Once the assault ships returned to the station he would meet with his fellow conspirators and finish making plans for their escape. All the pieces were now in place; all they needed to do was speak to a few of the Humans and set everything into motion.

He knew that what his race was planning would probably set off a galactic war between the Kleese Empire and the Humans. How it would end he didn’t know, but he strongly suspected the Kleese would not be prepared for what was coming.

Chapter Twelve

Michael Kirby carefully brought the Raven down onto the snow-covered parking lot of the large shopping mall. As soon as he felt the landing struts touch down and was satisfied that his ship was on a firm foundation, he turned off the engines.

“Searchlights on,” Brian spoke as he reached forward and flipped several switches. He was anxious to see just what was out there.

Instantly a set of brilliant lights flared to life on the outside of the ship, illuminating the side of the shopping mall nearest them. They were in a small town in Ohio on a scavenging mission to gather computer parts. This particular mall had several large computer stores as well as a smaller one that specialized in building powerful computers for small companies.

“Everything looks quiet,” Sergeant Andrews said as he stared fixedly at several viewscreens on the forward wall of the Control Center in front of Michael that were focused on the mall.

Looking attentively at one of the viewscreens, he could see where the roof of the mall had collapsed in several key spots from the sheer weight of the volcanic ash and snow. He just hoped the collapsed roof hadn’t damaged any of the computer stores.

“Darren is giving us forty-eight hours to strip the mall of computer parts,” spoke Michael, looking back at Sergeant Andrews wanting to make sure he was clear on that point.

“Any chance of survivors?” asked Andrews, turning his attention to Michael.

“There have been no radio signals or other signs of anyone still being alive anywhere near here for several months,” Michael responded. Since the last eruption at Yellowstone, very few survivors had been found in the northern half of the country.

“What about other items?” Brian asked, his eyes focusing on Michael. “After all, this is a mall and it’s bound to have a lot of other things we need. Hell, there are some things that I need!”

“Computers and computer parts first,” Michel said firmly. “Then, if we have time, we can load the ship up with anything else that might be useful.”

Brian nodded. It had been six months since they had made their first trip to Earth in the Raven. During that trip, they had rescued a CDC doctor and his family. Due to the large number of refugees being taken up to Luna City and Vesta, they were short of nearly everything. Brian would love to spend a few hours just gathering up some personal items. Even a few new shirts would be nice.

-

A little while later, Michael climbed into one of the two modified Humvees in the main cargo hold. Sergeant Andrews now had ten army rangers under his command. Four of them would stay with the ship while the rest, as well as Michael and a few other crewmembers, would go out on the scavenging mission.

The two Humvees drove up to the mall and after a little searching, found the main entrance. The ash and snow seemed to be well over a foot deep and both were still falling. The volcanic eruptions had continued to intensify, and now the entire planet was suffering heavy ash fall. Michael knew that even at Jornada it had become necessary to clear the three long runways a minimum of four times a day just so the shuttles could safely launch and land.

“The main entrance seems to be intact,” Sergeant Andrews said as he put on his breathing mask and goggles. He pulled up the hood of his parka and opened the door of the vehicle.

Michael flinched as the cold air hit him. He knew the temperature outside was now hovering close to the five to ten degree mark. Getting out, he walked with Andrews and the other army rangers to the large glass doors, followed by the members of his crew that had come along. At least the short breezeway in front of the doors was protecting them from the falling snow and ash.

One of the rangers tried both of the large doors and found them to be locked. Using the butt of his assault rifle, he broke out the glass panel on one so they could gain entrance. Once inside, they made their way to the large map of the mall at the end of the wide corridor, shining their lights around at the stores that surrounded them. Most seemed untouched. It was eerily quiet inside; the only sounds besides their voices were their footsteps echoing hollowly in the corridor.

“One of the computer stores is on the second level, and the other two we want to check are the first,” Sergeant Andrews announced as he pointed out the locations on the map. He turned around to face the assembled group seeing that everyone had made it inside. “I will take one group to the upper level. Corporal Burns, you will take your group and check out the other large computer store. If you see or hear anything, call out on the radio; I don’t want there to be any surprises.”

“There shouldn’t be,” Michael said evenly. “According to Holbrook Station it’s been months since any radio signals have been picked up in this area. A ship rescued a small band of survivors north of here and there has been nothing since.”

Michael went with Corporal Burns and they were soon standing in front of the computer store on the main level. “I don’t like this,” Michael said as he looked in astonishment at the tiled floor outside the store. He could see evidence of footprints in the ash that had made itself inside through holes in the roof.

The footsteps led off further into the mall and vanished into darkness where their lights didn’t shine. The four army rangers shifted nervously on their feet, their heavy assault rifles at the ready. Two other members of the Raven’s crew were with them besides Michael.

“There could be survivors in here after all,” Michael said, gazing into the darkness. “The mall would have everything people would need to survive. Clothes, food, water, and even camping gear.”

“You’re right,” replied Corporal Burns, uneasily. He quickly called Sergeant Andrews and reported the footprints.

Michael looked around, wondering if anyone was watching them from the darkness. The mall was quiet and there was no other evidence of anyone else being around.

“Sergeant Andrews says they’ve found footprints upstairs also,” Burns reported, looking worriedly over at Michael. “We’re to check the store out first and then begin searching the mall to see if anyone else is actually here. I’ll post a guard outside the store while the rest of us go inside and see if what we need is present.”

Michael nodded. After gaining entrance, they set up several portable lights they had brought with them. Searching the back of the store, they were pleased to find a large supply of the most recent computers and computer supplies still in boxes in a large storage room.

“This is just what we’re after,” Michael said in a pleased voice. He knew that some of the computers would be used as they were, while many of the others would be torn apart for the valuable parts they contained. Most would be going to Luna City.

“I will leave one of my marines here, and the rest of us will begin searching the mall,” Corporal Burns informed Michael after reporting in one more time to Sergeant Andrews. “Why don’t you gather all the computer supplies and set them just outside the entrance. After we’re finished with the search we’ll help move them to the Humvees.”

“Be careful, Corporal,” Michael cautioned, not sure that he approved of the corporal and two of the army rangers going off on their own, leaving only one behind. “We don’t know how many survivors could be hiding in here.”

“I’ll be careful,” Burns promised as he turned to leave followed by two of his rangers. “More than likely there’s no one here at all.”

Michael watched them leave until their lights vanished around a corner. With a heavy sigh, he turned and led his two crewmembers back inside the store to begin carrying the heavy computer boxes out.

For the next hour, Michael and his two people hauled box after box of computers and computer parts to the front of the store, setting them just outside the entrance. Michael was bringing out one of the last boxes when he stepped outside the store, sat the box down, and then turned to speak with the soldier that was standing guard duty. With surprise, Michael saw that the soldier was gone.

“What the hell?” Michael said, walking quickly over to where the soldier had been standing and examining the floor.

From the marks in the ash, it was evident that something had happened. He could see scuff marks where the soldier had been dragged off. Michael followed the marks for a short distance and then stopped upon seeing that they vanished into the darkness. He was just about to use his radio to contact Sergeant Andrews when he sensed a presence behind him. Spinning around Michael realized that he had screwed up. A figure was standing there and then Michael felt something strike him in the head. Blackness instantly followed as he crumpled to the floor.

-

Michael opened his eyes and felt a sharp pain on the back of his head. Reaching up, he gingerly rubbed it. He noticed it was pitch black and putting his hand up to eyes, realized that he was blindfolded.

“Don’t remove the blindfold,” an older male voice said in a threatening tone. “Just who the hell are you and what are you doing stealing from our mall?”

“I’m Michael Kirby from Holbrook Station,” replied Michael, wondering just what he had gotten himself into. “We’re here to pick up some computer supplies for the new habitats were building on the Moon.”

“Yeah, right,” another male voice spoke derisively. “You’re just common thieves trying to take what’s ours.”

“My ship’s outside in the parking lot,” Michael said defensively. “Go and look if you don’t believe me.”

“You’re trying to tell me that you landed a spaceship in the mall’s parking lot?” the first voice spoke in disbelief. “Just how big a fool do you think we are?”

“Take my blindfold off and I’ll show it to you,” Michael responded, not knowing what else to do.

“Take his blindfold off,” a woman’s voice spoke. “His story will be easy enough to check out. Derrick, go up on the roof and see if anything is out there.”

Michael felt the thick blindfold jerked off his head and he blinked at the sudden light. Looking around, he saw about twenty people watching him with suspicion. They were in a large room with several lanterns furnishing light. Several gas stoves were being used to furnish heat.

“Who are you people?” Michael asked as he struggled to sit up and then leaned back against the wall. “We didn’t think there were any survivors still in this area.” An older man with slightly graying hair was standing in front of him.

“I’m Jacob Kindler and this is my wife, Anita,” the man said, gesturing to a woman just behind him.

“Where are we?”

“In the basement of the mall,” replied Anita, stepping closer. “We’ve been here for months. We have a radio, but we haven’t heard anything on it since shortly after the ash started falling. We didn’t think there were any other survivors until we saw your people up in the mall.”

“There are a lot of survivors,” responded Michael, knowing he needed to put these people at ease. He noticed that several of the men that were hanging back listening were heavily armed. Michael began telling them about Jornada, Luna City, and Vesta.

“You say there are millions of survivors?” one of the men with the rifles said in disbelief when Michael stopped talking. “I don’t believe you.”

Another man came in through an open doorway and stood looking at Michael. “We may have made a mistake,” he said in a soft voice. “There is a spaceship in the parking lot. I also saw more soldiers in the mall as well as outside by the ship.”

“Are you telling the truth about more survivors?” a young woman with several small children asked with hope in her voice.

“Yes, there is an ongoing effort to rescue survivors all over the world,” answered Michael, knowing he was close to winning them over. “How many of you are down here in this basement?”

“There are forty-two of us,” Anita responded, her eyes focusing on Michael as if she were trying to judge him. “Can you take us away from here? We have food and water for only a few more months, and some of the children are sick.”

“Yes, please,” the young woman with the two children said in a pleading voice. “At least take the children!”

“Let me go and I will contact my brother on Holbrook Station and see if I can’t get another ship down here. He’s in charge of the station. I can’t take all of you on the Raven, but with another ship we can take everyone up to the station where I promise you will receive medical care and be safe.”

“You can give our children medical care?” the young woman spoke, stepping forward holding the hands of her two children.

“Yes,” Michael replied in his best voice, trying to put her at ease. “We have plenty of medical supplies as well as doctors.”

Jacob eyed Michael for a long moment, then reached down with his hand and helped him up. “I don’t think we have any other choice but to trust you,” he said in an even voice. “As my wife said, we can’t stay here much longer, so we’re going to have to take a chance that you have been telling us the truth. The soldier we took earlier is in the next room. I’ll go with you to meet with the rest of your people.”

Michael nodded, feeling relieved. Not only were they going to get the supplies, they had found more survivors. It made him wonder just how many others were in hiding like this group. He wished there were some way they could search for other survivors like these. The weather outside was now so bad that communication with most of the surface of the planet was impossible. Michael knew they were finding fewer and fewer people every day now. Shortly the only survivors would be those at the camps waiting for rescue. The Earth was rapidly becoming a world of the dead.

-

Lawrence, Marsha, General Wainright, and General Pittman were all standing on the second level of the main Operations Center at Jornada looking out at the heavy gray snow falling. Visibility was down to only a few hundred feet.

“It’s nearly two feet deep now,” Marsha commented as she pulled her jacket tighter around her. It wasn’t cold inside the Operations Center, but just looking outside made her shiver.

“We’re having to clear the runways just before every shuttle launch now,” Lawrence informed the others. “Luckily the cargo ships can come straight down and don’t need the runways to land or take off.”

“What’s our power situation?” asked General Pittman, glancing over at Lawrence and Marsha.

Lawrence shook his head. “Not good. The wind generators are still functioning, but we need so much power for heat that it’s starting to tax our ability to produce electricity. We’ve been using our standby diesel generators more and more as of late.”

“We have people in the camp and tent city dying daily from the cold,” Marsha said worriedly. “I don’t know what we’re going to do if the weather gets any worse.” She was glad that her husband and teenage son had been evacuated a few weeks back. Both were now at Vesta and out of harm’s way.

“We have some additional large diesel generators we can bring in from the bases,” said General Wainright, knowing that heat was the biggest problem. “They should get us by for a while. Fortunately we have a large supply of diesel fuel, so that won’t be an issue.”

“We’ll have to build a large structure to put them in,” added General Pittman, knowing the snow and ash would make short work of the generators if they were used out in the open.

“I’ll put some of our engineers on it,” General Wainright responded. “We’ll also see if we can scrounge up more heaters for tent city.”

“What about your helicopters; are they still flying rescue missions?” Marsha asked. She knew that the large rescue helicopters had been flying almost daily from the two military bases and White Sands.

“Not right now,” answered General Pittman, shaking his head. “The weather is just too bad. Once it calms down some we will get them back up in the air.”

Lawrence nodded; each day the situation was getting worse. They had seen heavy rain, snow, and even ice in the last four weeks, all of it laced with the dirty volcanic ash that was now everywhere. There were nearly one and a half million survivors huddled in the barracks, the large tents around Jornada, and in tent city. Each day nearly two thousand survivors were hauled up into orbit to Holbrook Station, and from there they were sent to either the Moon or Vesta. There were millions of other survivors holding on at other survival camps around the world. Lawrence knew that if something didn’t change soon, many of them were going to die.

-

Captain Stevens stepped outside of his bunker and instantly felt the icy cold. The temperature was close to zero with a strong northerly wind. A snowplow had come through recently, clearing the road that ran in front of the fence. Looking over at tent city, Mark shook his head in concern. People were dying every day from exposure. The military had brought in better tents and even built some barrack-like buildings where people could huddle for warmth, but it still wasn’t enough.

“It’s cold out,” Lieutenant Griffith muttered as he buttoned up his parka as far as he could. “I checked tent city this morning, and we lost another one hundred and twelve yesterday to the cold.”

“Damn!” uttered Mark, knowing he was powerless to stop the deaths. He looked out at tent city and the heavily falling snow. It was the middle of the day and it was pitch black other than a few scattered lights that were barely visible.

In the distance, they could hear a muffled roar as one of the modified cargo ships took off, loaded down with survivors. At least they were large enough to still take off and maneuver in this infernal weather.

Mark gestured at Griffith and the two went back inside the bunker where it was warm and well lighted. There was no point in going over to tent city in this weather. No one would be outside; everyone would be staying inside trying to keep warm. Mark knew as soon as the snow let up, troops would go into tent city and search the thousands of tents for any that had died during the storm. It was a gruesome task, but it had to be done.

-

Mason was making an inspection of one of the habitation tunnels crammed with survivors from Earth. It was full of bunk beds and small lockers for personal items. There was very little privacy other than a few blankets and thin sheets that had been hastily strung up. Nearly ten thousand people lived in the tunnel, and the living conditions were barely tolerable.

The people inside were given food twice per day and allowed to take a shower every other day. Also, once every other week they were given a pass that allowed them to go into Smithfield for a full day. The tunnels were patrolled heavily by military troops making sure everyone stayed safe and there were no problems.

“I don’t like this at all,” mumbled Mason, watching a mother and two children sitting on a bottom bunk playing a board game.

“We have five tunnels like this now, and ten with apartments,” Keith Davis responded. “That’s ninety thousand people, plus we’ve stuffed another twenty thousand in and around Smithfield.”

“The new habitat?” asked Mason, wishing it could be finished quicker. He had made a tour of it a few weeks back and been impressed by the progress being made.

“Another year at least before it’s fully ready,” answered Davis. “We almost have the interior section hollowed out, but putting in the ecological systems, as well as the infrastructure, is going to be a big job.”

“Keep working on it,” replied Mason, knowing that was all they could do. He was surprised that the people living in the tunnels were not doing more complaining. Then again, living on Earth was so much worse. “Use whatever people you need, even some of these. We have a number of well qualified people in the tunnels.”

“I know,” replied Davis, nodding his head in agreement.

Just the day before he had found several structural engineers living in this very tunnel. He had already transferred them to the work detail in the large habitat. It also allowed them to live in the small living area that had set up inside. While not very comfortable, it was much better than the crowded habitation tunnels.

-

An hour later, Mason was in the Control Center talking to Pamela Cairns and Drake Thomason about the current operations in progress. The Control Center was now monitoring the movement of all spacecraft in the solar system with the help of Luna City and Holbrook Station.

“I just finished speaking to Professor Scott at Mars Central,” Pamela reported as she turned away from her main control panel. “He’s finished the initial expansion of the base and says they can now take six thousand survivors.”

“That’s good,” Mason responded, pleased to hear the news. “Inform Professor Scott that we will start sending him eight hundred refugees a week as well as additional food supplies.”

“He says in another two months the new hydroponic domes will be completed and they should be able to grow their own food, though he says that meat will be in short supply.”

“That’s going to be true everywhere,” commented Drake, dolefully.

Fortunately, Smithfield had a large cattle herd as well as other domestic animals, but even those wouldn’t be enough for the large population they envisioned. Meat was going to have to be severely rationed for the foreseeable future until they could find a way to greatly expand the current food animal herds.

“We’re losing a lot of animal species,” Pamela said with sadness in her eyes. She was just thankful that Smithfield had such a large diversity of animals within the habitat. It was strange to think of all the animals that they would never see in the wild again; different species of colorful birds, butterflies, and thousands of other species that were now extinct or nearly so.

“At least we rescued a lot of animals from the zoos,” spoke Mason, knowing they had done everything they could.

It had been a hard decision to divert several cargo ships to pick up animals instead of people, but it had been decided that they needed to do everything they could to try to save as many different species as possible. Unfortunately, some of the larger animals such as whales and elephants could not be put on the lists as they were just too large to transport. Many of the more predatory species such as wolves and coyotes had also been banned.

“The population of Vesta has just passed the one hundred and eighty thousand mark,” added Drake, recalling the latest census numbers. “We have converted a lot of the outlying areas of the Smithfield habitat to farming, primarily vegetables. We are also trying to increase the size of our food animal herds. Lori has her hands full trying to keep all the new farms operating at peak efficiency. She’s requested that we bring some farmers and ranchers up from the survival camps to help. They might not be completely familiar with the techniques she is using to grow food, but they would be easier to train than some of those she’s been attempting to use. She said she caught one of them trying to milk a bull the other day.”

“I bet that was interesting,” said Mason, letting a smile spread across his face. “Contact Cheryl Robinson and have her find the people that Lori needs. Those farms right now have the utmost priority. We have a lot of food to raise if we want to feed all the survivors.”

“Luna City is also building agricultural domes,” Pamela informed them. “I spoke with Mayor Silas early this morning, and he is ordering ten new domes to be built just for the purpose of raising food. He is already having a hard time dealing with all the refugees and reports that some of the living conditions in the tunnels on the Moon are extremely bad.”

Mason nodded. They had so much to do, and every day more survivors on Earth were dying. They just didn’t have the engineering capacity to get everything done as quickly as needed. He knew they had to be careful or the fragile systems on the Moon and even here on Vesta could be overloaded and come crashing down. They had already been forced to reduce the number of survivors going up daily to Holbrook Station due to the limited space at Luna City and Vesta.

“If we need to, order Lawrence to suspend refugee flights until Luna City has their food domes finished,” he said with regret in his voice. “That might also give him the time he needs to get Luna City better organized. I don’t want to put the people we have already rescued at risk.”

Pamela nodded; it seemed that every day they were trying to solve another type of crisis. She turned back to her command console to begin sending messages. She would be glad when her shift was over and she could return home to her husband and son. At least being with her family allowed her to get away briefly from the tragedy still occurring on Earth.

“How’s Susan doing with Michael gone?” asked Drake, looking over at Mason.

“Aggravated,” replied Mason, with a heavy sigh. “Michael’s been gone for nearly three months since his last break, and Susan and the kids really miss him.”

“I can understand that,” Drake said. He knew that his wife Larcy and his daughter would feel the same way if he were gone for such an extended time.

“I’m ordering Michael back in a few more weeks,” Mason added with a slight smile.

“You’re ordering him back?” Drake said with surprise, his eyes narrowing. “I thought he still had another month of salvage operations before the Raven was due to return.”

“Change of plans,” Mason replied. He then turned and looked directly at Drake. “I’m giving him command of the Armageddon.”

Drake stepped back in astonishment. The Armageddon was the new battlecruiser being built in the spacedock by Ethan Hall and a number of military engineers. Construction was going on around the clock with expanded work crews as they raced to get the large warship completed. It would be the first spaceship ever built for war.

“Why, Michael? He doesn’t have any military experience.”

“No,” Mason replied in agreement. “For that matter, who does in space combat? However, Michael is the best pilot and ship captain we have. I have already spoken to General Wainright, and he has several naval and air force officers that will be coming to Vesta. We’ll assign the most qualified as Michael’s executive officer.”

“Susan won’t like this,” Drake warned in an even voice, shaking his head. “You’re going to make your sister highly upset when she learns what you’re doing.”

“I know,” answered Mason with a heavy sigh. “But this is a question of survival and Michael needs to command that ship; I wouldn’t trust anyone else.”

Mason turned his attention back to the screens on the wall. One of them was currently showing five large red icons floating in space a short distance from Vesta. The largest of the icons was the Phoenix and her four recently completed escorts. Soon ten updated prospecting ships would join them, and they would become the solar system’s first war fleet. Mason just hoped it was enough.

-

In space, the five hundred-meter Phoenix and her four escorts waited. Commander Sanders sat in the command chair with his executive officer, Colonel Whetworth, standing next to him. On the large tactical screen, four other green icons hovered in supporting positions around the battlecruiser. The four former cargo ships had gone through a major transformation, with most of their internal structures being ripped out and rebuilt. The now recently commissioned three hundred-meter support cruisers were armed with two large railguns in the bow and twelve additional heavy railguns on the hull. In addition, there were eight missile tubes equipped with MK Four high explosive missiles.

“This new tactical screen is a marvel,” Commander Sanders spoke as he eyed it thoughtfully. The new screen was designed using the FTL communications technology and gave them real time information out to a range of nearly ten million kilometers. It would be extremely useful in a fight.

“How soon before the scout ships are finished?” asked Colonel Whetworth.

“A few more weeks,” Sanders replied. “The Armageddon will be finished two months after that.”

Colonel Whetworth nodded. With the ten scout ships armed with railguns it would allow them to better patrol the space around Vesta and Earth.

Commander Sanders leaned back in his command chair and let out a long breath. He just hoped the aliens didn’t show up again before the Armageddon was finished. At least with the addition of the Armageddon they might have a chance of driving the aliens off. The new battlecruiser had a heavily armored hull. New and more powerful railguns were being sent up from White Sands. The secret production facility at the test site was still operating and had designed an entire new line of railguns for the Armageddon. Sanders just hoped it would be enough.

Chapter Thirteen

Lieutenant Nelson was standing in the Command Center of the Kleese assault ship W-274 alongside Captain Jenkins. Glancing over at the tactical screen, he saw a myriad of red threat icons rising from the planet ahead.

“They’re launching their fleet,” Jenkins said as he watched the numerous red icons form up above the planet.

“It is useless to attempt to stop an assault ship with the technology we have available,” Marken commented dryly as he ordered the ship’s course to be altered slightly. “From previous reports they have primitive laser weapons and light railguns on their spacecraft, nothing that can endanger one of our assault vessels.”

“Railguns?” Wade said with a frown. “We had railguns on some of our navy ships on Earth; I never thought about using them in space.”

“They would make an excellent space-based weapon,” Captain Jenkins informed Wade, recalling what he knew about them. “They fire a high density round and are extremely accurate. Several nations on Earth wanted to put a few in orbit to use against terrorist organizations. A round fired from space would be virtually undetectable until it nearly reached its target.”

“The Kleese have not used railguns in centuries,” Marken spoke as he watched his instruments and data screens carefully, noting the fleet’s formation.

There were one hundred and twenty assault ships in the fleet, all heavily armed and carrying Human soldiers. The world they were approaching had launched twenty-eight vessels to oppose them. Marken knew this would be a quick and extremely one-sided battle. Very few races had the technology to damage a Kleese constructed warship.

Lieutenant Nelson and Captain Jenkins had been told that this world was inhabited by an insectoid race. The beings upon the planet were very similar to Earth locusts with wings and very powerful arms and legs. Marken had explained to them that a Kleese exploratory ship had found the planet nearly two years in the past and they were only now getting around to bringing it into the Empire. Part of the problem had been the language barrier, as many insect races used a form of telepathy as well as scents and even body gestures to communicate.

“What do the Kleese want out of this race?” asked Wade, turning his attention toward Marken.

Marken hesitated for a moment before replying. Sometimes it was difficult to explain why the Kleese operated the way they did, particularly since the Kleese themselves were not a humanoid race. “This particular insectoid race is called the Wren and have begun to move out into space. They are capable of breeding in vast numbers and could spread out into the galaxy very rapidly. The Kleese do not want that to happen since there are a number of inhabited worlds they control nearby. The Wren also possess a highly developed science in entomology which may be useful to the Kleese.”

“What are our orders?” Captain Jenkins asked curiously. He also was wondering how the combat suits would hold up against this race of insects. From the briefing he had sat through earlier, he knew the Wren were extremely powerful with mandibles that could tear through most metals and arms that could tear a Human apart.

“The Kleese want all of the Wren’s facilities capable of building or launching a spacecraft destroyed,” answered Marken, knowing this would be the toughest battle for the Humans yet.

From his experience, most insect races were difficult to kill in battle. Many of the species he had previously encountered could be cut in half and the separate pieces would continue to fight. He was not pleased that the Humans would have to fight such a race. At least the soldiers under Captain Jenkins still had the Type Three battle suits.

“Ground them to their planet?” Wade responded with a heavy frown. It seemed as if the Kleese wanted to severely limit some race’s access to space.

“Yes,” confirmed Marken, noticing that the Wren fleet had broken orbit and was coming out to meet the inbound assault ships. “There are some insect races that are slow breeders, but the Wren are just the opposite. Their world is heavily populated, and their cities are very similar to hives. From the reports the Kleese have furnished us, their race is divided up into casts. The working casts, including their military, are considered expendable and easily replaced.”

“So we could be facing an army of thousands when we launch our attack,” mused Captain Jenkins with a look of deep concern. “Can the suits withstand attacks from such numbers?”

“We’re going to find out, aren’t we?” Marken replied as he noticed the Wren ships were almost within engagement range. “The biggest danger will be from the Wren themselves and not so much their weapons. They are extremely strong.”

In space, the one hundred and twenty assault ships were in a staggered formation twenty ships wide, three ships high, and two deep. All the ships were spaced three kilometers apart. On the hulls of the two hundred-meter ships, hatches slid open revealing missile tubes containing sublight antimatter missiles. Energy gun turrets rotated and locked upon the incoming Wren vessels.

“Weapons locked on,” reported the Kivean at Tactical, glancing back at Marken.

“Standby to fire,” responded Marken, folding his long arms across his chest. “Fusion beams first, followed up by a missile strike. We want to eliminate the Wern ships quickly so we can begin our troop landings.”

“The Wren are firing,” Skagern informed Marken as he saw several scanners record sudden power spikes in the Wren ships. Skagern was Marken’s second in command.

Wade felt the assault ship shudder as if had been struck by something, and several warning alarms went off in the Command Center. “What was that?” he asked Marken, seeing the surprised look upon the other Kivean’s face.

“Two railgun rounds struck our hull,” Skagern responded as he quickly checked for damage. “We have a pressure leak in zone four, section three; I am dispatching repair teams.”

“I thought the railguns were not a threat.” Captain Jenkins admonished as he saw one of the green icons representing a Kivean assault vessel vanish from the tactical screen. He knew that eighty Humans had just died on that ship.

“Did we just lose a ship?” asked Wade, glancing with concern at Marken. In all of their battles before, he had never seen one of the assault ships destroyed.

“Yes,” Marken replied, his eyes full of worry as he hurriedly checked his instruments and data screens. “The energy shield is not designed to withstand railgun rounds. However, the composite armor of our hull should have easily stopped them. Something is not right here.”

In space, the twenty-eight Wren ships continued to close. Each ship was one hundred and ten meters long and twenty meters wide. Unknown to the Kiveans, a massive railgun cannon ran down the center of each ship capable of firing a round of nearly ten thousand pounds.

Assault ship W-274 shuddered violently again as one of the large railgun rounds struck the ship just below the Command Center. Several Kiveans screamed out in pain as their consoles shorted out and the lights in the Command Center visibly dimmed. Several were thrown to the floor as smoke filled the air. Alarms sounded and red warning lights began flashing.

“All weapons, fire!” Marken screamed in terror, knowing his ship could not take another hit. Looking at the main tactical screen, he saw two more green icons blink out. The air circulation system was having a hard time clearing the smoke out of the Command Center, and several consoles were still on fire. Kiveans were rushing around trying to put out the fires and get a handle on the damage. “Turns those alarms and warning lights off!”

From the W-274, four bright blue fusion beams shot out, striking one of the Wren ships. The ship instantly lost power as the beams melted through the thin armor before striking the ship’s reactor. Two sublight antimatter missiles followed and the Wren ship vanished as it was consumed by the massive explosions. All up and down the Wren attacking fleet it was the same. Powerful fusion beams damaging or immobilizing their ships and then antimatter missiles finishing them off.

The Wren refused to back off and continued to fire their massive railgun cannons, sending round after round into the advancing Kivean ships. Three more assault ships exploded as the heavy rounds tore the ships apart. Ships fell out of formation as their panicked commanders tried to evade the Wren railgun rounds. However, others stayed in formation and continued to fire upon the Wren ships, destroying them one by one.

The Wren command ship was the last to go; it was slightly larger than the other Wren ships. It also had two of the massive railgun cannons and thicker armor on its hull. Two antimatter missiles struck it, carving massive glowing holes in its side. But even as it died it managed to take out two more of the Kivean assault ships with its deadly cannons before succumbing to heavy fusion beam fire.

Wade watched in horror, knowing that over six hundred Humans just died on the eight assault ships that had been destroyed. “We lost eight ships,” spoke Wade accusingly, looking at an ashen faced Marken. “If they would have had more ships we all could have died!”

“But we didn’t,” Marken snapped as he realized how close they had come to death. If the railgun round that had impacted the ship just below the Command Center had hit another ten meters higher, everyone in the Command Center would have died. “They possessed a weapon we were not aware of. I will certainly report this to the Kleese and demand an explanation!”

“It’s war,” Captain Jenkins spoke, surprised at how frightened Marken had become. It was evident that very seldom did the Kiveans ever encounter an opponent who could strike successfully at one of their assault ships. “Losses are to be expected, even Kivean.” Jenkins looked at Marken pointedly, curious how the Kivean would respond.

“You are right,” admitted Marken, calming down. “It just happens so seldom I was not prepared for it.”

“Lieutenant Nelson and I will go get our marines ready,” Jenkins said as he gestured for the lieutenant to follow him.

The Wren had managed to destroy eight assault ships; it made the captain wonder just what else might be in store for them down on the planet. This operation was not starting out well considering that they had already lost over six hundred soldiers and the ground battle hadn’t even started yet.

Marken watched them go, realizing the Humans didn’t understand what was at stake. There were certain key Kiveans in the assault fleet that couldn’t be lost, not if their plan to escape from the Kleese was to be successful. This was also the first time in years that he had come so close to death. It made him wonder how the Humans did it, knowing that, in each ground campaign, they could die. It made him respect the Humans even more.

-

Reaching the main flight bay where the drop ships were waiting, Wade saw that Sergeant Stern already had everyone suited up in their Type Three battle suits. Each suit was plugged into a power unit, ensuring that when they departed the ship the suits would have a full charge. For the first time, all three units that normally trained in their dome would be going down. There were three assault ships that contained Captain Jenkins’s marines. Wade just hoped that the other two ships had survived the Wren’s attack. Lieutenant Williams and Jeffries were on those other ships. Several weeks back, Lieutenant Jeffries had been transferred to Captain Jenkin’s command.

“What hit the ship?” Jamie asked over the com as Wade mounted the small platform and felt his suit close up around him. “We could feel it even down here.”

“A damn railgun round,” replied Wade, shaking his head and looking over at Sergeant Stern. “Evidently these Kleese ships have a problem with certain primitive weapons. We lost eight assault ships and several others, including this one, were damaged.”

“Prepare for drop,” Captain Jenkins voice came over the com.

“Let’s mount up,” Wade ordered as he activated his suit and strode over toward one of the four drop ships in the bay.

“We’re fighting bugs, Sir?” asked Private Dawson, sounding nervous.

“They look like giant locusts,” replied Wade, calmly. “Just shoot them like you would anything else.”

“I hate grasshoppers,” Dawson complained as he climbed into the drop ship. “I can’t believe we’re going to be fighting intelligent grasshoppers.”

“They’re not grasshoppers,” Captain Jenkins’s voice came over the com. “They’re more similar to Cicadas, though most people call them locusts.”

“I don’t like those either,” Dawson muttered as he tried to picture a giant Cicada in his mind. “They’re loud.”

“Just remember their mandibles are strong enough to tear through metal,” Sergeant Stern reminded him. “Don’t go getting your head bitten off.”

Dawson reached up and touched the armor around his suit’s neck. “If one gets near me, I’ll kill it!”

Wade nodded as he listened and watched the last member of his team climb on board the drop ship. At least fighting an insect race would make the killing easier; it was the humanoid races that left everyone feeling guilty afterward.

A moment later the hatch closed, and shortly afterward they were falling rapidly down toward their destination. The ride was rough as the drop ship was buffeted by the thickening atmosphere.

“Our target is their main spaceport,” Captain Jenkins’s voice came over everyone’s com. “There will be our own three units as well as six others taking part in the attack. We can expect heavy resistance and massive suicide waves. The Wren warriors have no fear of death; they only live to serve the ruling cast and their queens.”

“Sounds like fun,” mumbled Private Russell over the com. “Any idea about how many we will be facing?”

“Could be a few hundred to a few thousand,” replied Captain Jenkins, evenly. “Remember, our job is to destroy the spaceport as a demonstration of the power of the Kleese. They want the Wren to understand that we are not afraid to land on their planet and fight them on their home ground if necessary.”

“That’s easy for the Kleese to say,” complained Private Dawson. “At least they’re safe in their big ship.”

Jenkins didn’t reply as Dawson was speaking the truth. One of the big Kleese disk ships was currently sitting on the edge of the system, monitoring the attack.

“Weapons check!” snapped Sergeant Stern, her voice sounding firm and confident over the coms. “RG rifles and energy beams at the ready. Hold off on explosive rounds until needed. Suit rounds are for the spaceport only, so don’t go lobbing them around without permission. We don’t want to blow anybody up by accident.”

Another several minutes passed, then Wade felt the drop ship suddenly slow and level off. He could feel his weight increase as the drop ship’s inertial compensators struggled to maintain normal gravity. Then they were down and the hatch came slamming open.

“Let’s go!” Wade yelled as he jumped up and moved quickly down the ramp, his RG rifle held at the ready.

He paused at the sight in front of him. The area immediately around the drop ship was clear of Wren troops, but in the distance he could see hundreds, if not thousands heading toward them. The ground was relatively level with small rolling hills. Abut two to three kilometers away was the beginning of the spaceport. Even from here, Wade could see that it stretched on for kilometers.

Looking to his side, he could see the other drop ships that were under Captain Jenkin’s command. Their marines were also pouring out and had paused at seeing all the Wren soldiers coming toward them. This was going to be a battle much more intense than any they had fought before. As soon as the marines were all unloaded, the ramps rose up and the hatches closed. Soon after, all twelve of the drop ships took off, heading back up toward the safety of space. Wade knew they were on their own, and the drop ships would not be returning until after the battle was over.

“Form up in a staggered skirmish line!” Jenkin’s commanding voice came over the com as he took stock of the situation. “Use of RG explosives is permitted, let’s thin those insects out!”

“Move it!” Wade yelled over his com, seeing that the Wren soldiers were moving extremely fast. It wouldn’t take them long to reach the skirmish line. “Sergeant Stern, lay down a suppression fire with RG explosive rounds, Sergeant Perry, I want to see energy weapons sweeping the front of those advancing enemy troops.”

All eighty suits of battle armor in Lieutenant Nelson’s command instantly formed up in a staggered skirmish line and began firing. Eighty dark, nearly black, ten-foot tall battle suits were an imposing sight. They were quickly joined by the other units, and soon two hundred and forty marines were firing into the horde of advancing Wren. Explosive rounds began going off in the midst of the charging troops, killing dozens at a time. Blue energy beams flicked out cutting the Wren in two.

From the Wren troops, weapons fire began to echo up and down their advancing line, and a few explosive rounds fell harmlessly amongst the marines. Even with the massive losses from the explosive rounds and the energy weapons, the Wren continued their charge.

“Intensify your rate of fire!” ordered Captain Jenkins, seeing the enemy were coming closer and seemingly unaffected by their losses. It was as if for everyone they killed two more rose up to replace them. A solid black mass of charging Wren was bearing down on the armor-encased marines.

Wade took careful aim with his RG rifle and began firing off regular rounds in a steady and controlled rate. He found quickly that it was taking more than one round to bring down a Wren soldier. He quickly switched to explosive rounds and began firing nonstop at the advancing enemy, knowing if that massive wave of bodies reached them there could be serious problems.

“There’s too many of them!” Private Dawson exclaimed with worry in his voice. “I don’t think we’re going to get them before they reach us!”

“Just watch your damn neck!” Private Russell replied as he fired an energy beam into two advancing Wren, cutting them down.

Wade watched as blue energy beams swept the front of the Wren troops, cutting them in half. Even then, the body kept moving with the head and torso continuing to crawl toward the Human lines. It was a chilling sight. “Captain Jenkins, we need to use the suit explosives to help clear some of these Wren out or we’re going to be overrun!”

“Agreed,” Jenkins replied quickly, he had already reached the same conclusion. “Every fourth marine step back and fire off two rounds from your suit tubes. Target is two hundred meters in front of us; I don’t think we want to fire any closer.”

Wade felt the first concussion as one of the suit explosive rounds landed, blasting a huge crater in the ground. It was immediately followed by dozens of others as an entire area nearly two hundred meters wide and a kilometer in length was leveled. Wade knew that several thousand Wren troops had been obliterated, if not more, but the others were nearly upon them. For the first time, Wade got a close up view of a Wren. It stood nearly eight feet tall and had four arms standing on two legs. Large wings on their backs indicated they were capable of flight. In one of their arms, the Wren held some type of rifle and what looked like a large war axe in the other.

“They’re going to get to us,” Lieutenant William’s voice came sharply over the com. “We’re not going to be able to stop them all!”

Wade checked the HUD in his helmet. Only two suits showed amber from the Wren weapons fire, but he wasn’t sure how a suit would hold up if struck by one of the large battle axes the Wren were wielding. “Everyone, this is going to be hand-to-hand really quick. Use the energy lances!”

Wade slung his rifle back over his suit and grasped the energy lance at his waist. As he pulled it from his scabbard it instantly lit, emitting a blue surging light and making a crackling noise. The first Wren soldier was almost upon him as he thrust the lance into the midsection of it, cutting easily through the body. Wrenching the lance free he made a swinging motion, cutting the insect completely in two. All around him he could hear the sizzling sound of energy lances cutting through flesh and the occasional scream of a marine as he went down under the weight of Wren troops.

The fighting grew more intense, and Wade suddenly felt another battle suit bump into him. “We need to stay close together,” Sergeant Stern said as she lopped off a Wren’s head directly in front of Wade. “The energy lances work best if two marines work together. Stay away from those damn axes; I saw one of them cut right through a suit of armor.”

“You heard the sergeant,” Wade yelled over his com. “Groups of two and cover each other.” Looking at his HUD Wade saw that eight icons were now amber and three were red. Marines were dying!

For what seemed like hours, Wade swung his energy lance, killing Wren after Wren. But they still came on and soon Wade and Sergeant Stern were standing upon Wren bodies as they continued to pile up. Then he began to hear more explosive rounds going off and suddenly felt himself hurled upward and slammed into the ground. For a moment, Wade laid there stunned and couldn’t move. Opening his eyes, he realized a Wren was lying on top of him. Shoving the dead Wren to the side, he staggered to his feet. Next to him, Sergeant Stern was still on the ground, and he heard her roll over with a moan.

“What the hell happened?”

“Someone fired suit explosives almost directly on our position,” Wade answered as he saw the four smoking holes in the ground less than fifty meters from their current location.

Looking around, all he could see were piles of Wren bodies all cut apart or blown to pieces. More marines in battle suits were standing back up. A few were now using their energy weapons or RGs to finish off the few surviving Wren in the immediate area or whose bodies were still moving.

In the distance, he could hear the rumbling of more explosions. The far side of the spaceport was being attacked, and he could see several buildings on fire. The marines on that side of the spaceport had obviously reached their objective.

“Lieutenant Nelson, we have a problem,” Lieutenant Williams said in a strained voice over the com system. She had been the one who had ordered the explosive rounds to be fired, realizing too many marines were being injured or killed. It had been a dangerous decision, but it had worked.

“What is it, Lieutenant?” Wade asked as he sheathed his energy lance and looked toward the lieutenant’s position. She was about one hundred meters away from him.

“It’s Captain Jenkins, he’s badly injured.”

“Crap,” responded Wade, feeling as if he had been punched in the gut. “I’m on my way. Sergeant Stern get our people organized and back into a skirmish line. We need to begin advancing before the Wren can hit us again.”

“Yes, Sir,” Jamie replied as she turned and moved off to carry out his orders.

Wade hurried over to Beth’s position to find her leaning over a prone battle suit with several other marines standing vigilantly by with their RG rifles at the ready. It took Wade only a moment to recognize what was wrong. One of the Wren had made it to Captain Jenkins and managed to tear or bite the complete right arm of his combat suit in two. There was blood everywhere, and the captain wasn’t moving.

“What happened?”

“It was the Wren,” sobbed Beth, knowing the captain was near death.

She had already checked his vitals, but even with the suit he had lost too much blood. She wondered if the Wren had injected some type of poison into his system when it had bitten him. The captain’s arm had been torn or bitten off at the shoulder, and there was also a ragged hole in the side of his suit where one of the Wren battle axes had struck. “They overran us and the captain got cut off. Before we could get to him it was too late!”

Wade bent over and tried to speak to the captain. “Captain Jenkins, can you hear me?”

“I’m done for,” Jenkins replied in a weak voice. “My suit’s too damaged. You have to take charge, Wade. Tell General Mitchell that’s what I want.” Captain Jenkins’ left arm raised up to grasp Wade’s shoulder. “Wade, get our people back to Earth someday.”

“I will, Sir,” Wade promised as the captain’s grasp relaxed and his arm slid back down. On his HUD, one of the amber icons turned red.

Letting out a deep breath, Wade stood back up and gazed around. A number of marines were standing close by in their battle suits, watching. Others had taken up their positions in the skirmish line. “Captain Jenkins is dead,” Wade announced over his suit’s com. “Let’s move out and finish this job; we can mourn the dead when the fighting is over.”

Wade turned to leave when he felt a hand on his right arm. He saw that Lieutenant William’s battle suit was still next to him.

“Wade, did you really mean that about going home?”

“Yes,” Wade replied with conviction in his voice. “I promised the captain, and I keep my promises.”

Williams nodded and releasing the arm of Wade’s suit, turned and strode over to her marines. “Get in the skirmish line! What are you waiting for? We have a battle to finish!”

For the next hour, the marines slowly moved forward, encountering occasional resistance from Wren forces. Most of the resistance was light, and it quickly became evident that they had used most of the troops available to them in the initial charge. Only Wade and a few others fully understood how close the Wren had come to winning that battle. One of the things that confused Wade was why the Wren hadn’t attacked them from the air. If they were capable of flight, it only seemed to reason they would have attempted to do so. But not once so far in the battle had he saw a Wren take to the air.

They finally reached the edge of the spaceport and began lobbing their suit explosive shells from the two tubes on the back of their suits at their designated targets. A few worker Wren were spotted, but they were deemed not to be dangerous as they seemed to be wandering around without direction. Buildings, gantries, assembly structures, command and control centers were targeted and were soon piles of burning rubble. Smoke filled the air and the marines in the battle suits stood impassively as they leveled everything within range.

“All targets destroyed,” Lieutenant Jeffries and Williams reported when the last suit explosive round had been expended.

Wade checked the HUD one more time as he used the sensors in his suit to scan for active power sources. There was nothing. The spaceport was destroyed, and nothing remained that could ever be used to construct or launch a spaceship. This same procedure was being used all across the planet by other marines that had been dropped on the surface.

“I wonder how the others did?” Sergeant Stern asked as she walked over to stand close to Wade with her energy weapon cradled in her arms.

“Our units are the only ones with the Type Three suits,” Wade responded. Adjusting the optics in his suit, he could see other battle suits on the far side of the space complex. Even from here, he could see they were wearing the Type Two suits. He suspected their casualties might have been higher.

A noise distracted him and looking up, saw the drop ships were returning. It was time to return to the assault ship and administer to their wounded.

All the dead would be going back also and memorial services would be held later. Looking around at the destruction around them, Wade could see the devastation they had caused. This can’t go on much longer, he thought. If it does, we will lose what makes us Human; we can’t allow the Kleese to turn us into soulless killing machines.

After making sure all of his marines were aboard the drop ships, Wade climbed the ramp and took his seat. There was very little talking as the ship took off and headed back up into orbit where the assault ship was waiting. This had been the most difficult battle yet, and a lot of good marines had lost their lives.

Later, Wade made it to his quarters on the assault ship and collapsed upon his bunk. In his dreams, he saw the Wren falling before his weapons. He and his marines killed and killed, but nothing could stop the advancing Wren.

-

Marken stood in the Command Center as his ship used its Space Fold drive to warp space in front of the ship. It would take them six days to travel back to the station.

“A lot of the Human warriors were killed upon the planet,” Skagern commented from his side.

“Many more than expected,” sighed Marken, shaking his head in regret. “We can’t afford for the Humans to take casualties like this if we want to set our plan into motion.”

“Everything is ready,” Skagern replied in a lower voice. “It is a shame that Captain Jenkins was killed; he would have played a key role in our escape.”

“I will recommend that Lieutenant Nelson be promoted to fill his position,” Marken responded as the assault ship continued to pick up speed. It was already traveling at many times the speed of light. “General Mitchell already suspects something is up, though we haven’t filled him in on any of the details.”

“How soon before we tell the Humans what we’re planning?”

“Soon,” answered Marken as he folded his arms across his chest. “When we get back I will meet with the others, and we will set a date for our revolt. Once that has been done, I will begin speaking to the key Humans. This will only succeed if we have their trust and support.”

“What about their home world; when are you going to tell them that it was destroyed by the Kleese?”

“When we make our escape,” Marken replied with a heavy sigh of resignation. “We don’t know how they will respond to the knowledge that most of their species was annihilated. We can only hope that enough survived so that someday we can take the fight to the Kleese and free our own home world.”

Skagern nodded and returned to his duties. They were traveling in a bubble created by the Space Fold drive, which warped space directly in front of the ship, making the distance between two points come closer together. The more space was warped, the faster the ship traveled. No one was certain what the upper limit was. Skagern suspected the Kleese might know since the top speed was completely controlled by the amount of power a ship had available to generate the warp effect.

Marken watched his second in command go back to his duties. In the battle upon the Wren’s planet, they had lost over seven hundred of the Human soldiers out of the nearly ten thousand they had deployed. That didn’t include the six hundred that had died when eight assault ships had been destroyed. Marken allowed his gaze to wander to the large, heavily shielded windows in the front of the Command Center.

There were thousands of stars out there, and if you watched closely you could almost see them moving as a result of the warp effect. The Kleese controlled most of those stars, and what Marken and the other Kiveans were planning would shake the Empire to its core if they succeeded. Leaning back, Marken thought deeply about the plans that had been made. It would be risky, but they would turn the Humans loose on the Empire once they were told what had been done to Earth. Marken let out a deep breath. It was difficult knowing that the future of his race now depended upon the Humans.

Chapter Fourteen

Marken and his group were sitting in a small conference room on the space station meeting with General Mitchell, Colonel Bailey, and recently promoted Major Wade Nelson. Under Marken’s urging, Wade had been promoted to the rank of major due to the fact that his units controlled all of the Type Three battle suits. Those battle suits would play an important role in the coming insurrection.

“I don’t understand why we’re having this meeting,” General Mitchell began with a frown. “We have no new deployments planned for the next several weeks, and after the disaster with the Wren, our people need some downtime. Several of the units deployed to the planet suffered major casualties.”

“Casualties we were assured wouldn’t happen,” Colonel Bailey reminded Marken pointedly.

“This doesn’t concern any planned Kleese deployments,” Marken replied carefully as he eyed the three Humans.

General Mitchell was an older man and very good at organizing the troops under his command. Colonel Bailey was younger and received a high level of respect from those under him, while Major Nelson was a doer. Give him an order and he would accomplish it using whatever means were necessary. They were just the type of people Marken needed to carry out his plans.

“We are also distressed by the losses,” Marken assured them. “Need I remind you that eight assault ships were also lost, and several of those crews were Kivean?”

“Then why are we here?” asked Wade. His people were still reeling from Captain Jenkins’ loss as well as the others who had died.

Marken was silent as he studied the three Humans, wondering nervously how they would react to what he was about to say. If any one of the three revealed the subject of this conversation after they left here, it would mean the end of the rebellion and the execution of all the Humans and Kiveans on the station.

“The Kleese have long dominated our race and many others,” Marken began. “We want to put an end to that.”

General Mitchell leaned back and placed his right hand upon the conference table. “So? What are you going to do about it?” he asked challengingly, his eyes focusing on Marken. “It seems as if the Kleese hold all of the cards.”

Marken hesitated only for a moment. “We plan to escape!”

“How?” asked Wade, sitting up straighter. “The Kleese will blow your ships out of space if you attempt to leave the station without their permission.”

“Not if they’re dead,” replied Marken, finally daring to say the words aloud.

“Dead?” Colonel Bailey echoed, his eyes widening in astonishment. “How?”

“You’re going to kill them for us,” replied Kalarn, evenly.

“Impossible,” spoke General Mitchell, shaking his head in denial. He pointed to the collars that all three were wearing. “If we make a move against the Kleese they will activate these collars, killing all of us.”

“Not necessarily,” responded Marken, gesturing toward Taalon. “Deactivate their collars.”

Taalon stood up and walked over to a locked cabinet. After entering a combination, he opened the door and removed a small device. He pointed it in the general direction of the three Humans and three red lights appeared on its scanner. After entering a short command, all three lights changed to green. “They’re deactivated,” he reported, looking over at Marken.

“Remove your collars,” suggested Marken, calmly. It had been difficult to discover how to deactivate the Kleese collars, but after several years of research Kivean scientists and engineers had finally discovered the key to neutralizing them.

Wade reached up and found to his surprise that the collar came away easily from his neck. He sat staring in bewilderment at the silver and bluish collar which he now held in his hand. “How?” he uttered in a shocked voice. It felt strange for the ever-present collar not to be around his neck.

“We have the codes to all of the collars on the station,” Marken answered as his eyes swept across the three Human officers. “Two days from today there will not be any of the Kleese large ships docked to the station. We have also arranged for a large number of transport ships to arrive during that time under the guise of delivering trade goods. You will take the Type Three battle suits and use them to kill all of the Kleese. We will be leaving in an evacuation fleet and taking as many assault vessels with us as possible, as well as all of your people that are currently awake.”

“How many of our people?” General Mitchell demanded, his eyes narrowing. He knew from speaking to Marken that many were still in stasis.

“There are nearly twelve thousand of you currently awake,” Marken informed him.

“That leaves nearly fifty thousand still in stasis,” General Mitchell spoke grimly. “What about them?”

“It will take too long to wake them, and the stasis chambers are too cumbersome to move,” Larnell responded. “Once the revolt begins, we will cut off all communications with the rest of the Empire. We will only have a few hours to pull this off before one of the Kleese disk ships returns to investigate the sudden silence from the station.”

“Where are we going?” Colonel Bailey asked suspiciously. The Kleese were nearly everywhere. Where could they go that the Kleese wouldn’t eventually be able to track them down?

Marken was silent for a long moment. “To Earth,” he finally said. “We will be wiping all references to Earth from the station’s computer systems as well as upon the ships that came to your system originally.”

“That will give us time to prepare a defense against the Kleese,” Kalarn explained. “We have developed a weapon in secret that the Kleese have no knowledge of. If we can install it upon enough ships, we might be able to deter them from attacking us. The Kleese do not like to risk physical harm to themselves; they prefer others to do most of their fighting.”

General Mitchell nodded. He didn’t like the idea of leaving so many people behind in stasis, but he also didn’t see much choice. This was an opportunity for them to escape and return to Earth and he didn’t see how they could turn it down; they might not get another. “If we agree to this, will you help to defend our solar system from the Kleese?”

“We will do everything we can to protect your people,” Marken promised. “All of the technology we have developed and discovered from the Kleese will be turned over to your scientists. We will help you build ships that are capable of leaving your system and carrying the war to the Kleese Empire.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” cautioned General Mitchell, raising his hand. “That will be up to the Earth’s governments, not us.”

“Very well,” Marken replied, not wanting to tell the general that the Earth’s governments no longer existed. Then, leaning forward, he continued. “Now let’s plan just how our revolt and escape is to be carried out. We will only have one attempt at this; if we fail, there will be no others!”

For three long hours, the conspirators talked. Plans were made and then discarded until finally all were in agreement on what needed to be done. When they were finished talking, the Humans put their collars back on but with one major difference; they were not activated.

Wade was to return to the dome his marines were in and begin briefing some of his key officers the next day. Once the revolt started, they would have to move swiftly as the Humans were not the only humanoids on the station the Kleese used in their battles. There were several other humanoid races equipped with Type Two battle suits that could pose a problem. The rest of the Humans would be briefed just prior to the revolt.

-

Wade was meeting with Lieutenants Williams and Jeffries as well as Sergeants Stern and Perry. He had briefly described to them the coming rebellion.

“We’re going home,” sighed Beth, as she leaned back and closed her eyes in disbelief. After nearly a year, they were finally going to take the first step on their voyage back.

“It won’t be easy,” Wade cautioned them. They were meeting in his quarters, and he stepped over and gazed out the window at the parade grounds in front of the barracks. “We have to eliminate the Kleese, as well as any other opposition.”

“How many Kleese are there on the station?” Sergeant Stern asked. They very seldom put in an appearance, and during the entire time they had been on the station she had only seen one half a dozen times.

Wade turned back around and looked at the sergeant. “According to Marken there are normally around two hundred Kleese on the station at any given time. Fortunately, all of their big ships will be gone, and all we will have to deal with is the Kleese and the station crew.”

“Just how many people are on this station?” Lieutenant Jeffries asked. He knew from its size there had to be tens of thousands.

“Marken said there are close to six thousand Kiveans plus other races,” replied Wade, taking a deep breath. “The entire station is one hundred and twenty kilometers across and twenty four kilometers thick. Fortunately, many of the larger domes are empty and just used whenever the need arises. The latest census on the station places the crew at nearly one hundred and fifteen thousand, with forty thousand active conscripts being used for military purposes. There are also another two hundred thousand crew family members on board the station, most of them living in the domes.”

“How many of those will we have to fight?” Lieutenant Jeffries asked his eyes wide. “Forty thousand conscripts sounds like a lot. Some of them will have the same battle suits we do. How can we hope to defeat that many?”

“Not quite like ours,” Wade reminded them. “From what Marken has told me, we are the only ones with Type Three suits. Not only that, most of the crew will not become involved in the fight. The only ones we will need to worry about are the Kleese and perhaps a few conscripts they might send against us when they realize what’s going down.”

“What’s the plan?” Beth asked, ready to get off the station. She had a marriage back on Earth to finish planning. For the first time in quite a while, she felt hope for the future.

“Marken’s people will sabotage the station’s main computer system, locking down the majority of the dome habitats as well as the security forces the Kleese maintain. This will also isolate most of the conscripts that have access to battle suits. Our job will be to take the station’s Command Center, as well as the Flight Command Center, and kill all the Kleese inside. Other troops will take and hold specific flight bays until we can get our people as well as the Kivean’s aboard ships. We’re going to take as many assault ships as we can when we leave. We might need them for protection later on.”

“When do we make our move?” Jamie asked, her deep blue eyes focusing on the major. She was also ready to leave the station. She had witnessed too much death recently, particularly on their recent deployment to the Wren’s planet. She didn’t like what she was becoming.

“In twenty-four hours,” replied Wade, drawing a deep breath. “Marken and several of his people will escort us to the Command Center. There will be several guards at the main hatch, which we will have to eliminate. Once that’s done, we go inside and kill any Kleese in sight.”

“Isn’t there some type of emergency Command Center?” asked Lieutenant Jeffries, feeling that in a station this large there should be.

“Yes,” replied Wade, looking over at the lieutenant. “As a matter of fact there are two, but Marken’s people have set up a computer virus that will shut down both emergency Command Centers for at least four hours. There are no Kleese stationed in either one as they won’t be expecting an attack. Marken says the emergency Command Centers were only put in as an afterthought and have never been used.”

Beth thought back to the scene months ago when the Kleese had ruthlessly activated the collars on several marines. She would feel no pity in their deaths. Looking over at Sergeant Sterns, Beth suspected that Jamie was feeling the same way.

-

Later that evening Marken stood with Harnett inside their domed habitat, looking over the small city they had lived in for nearly all of their lives. Already the word was being spread and their people were packing a few personal belongings. Kivean officers in charge of assault ships had discretely made sure that all of their commands were fully supplied and ready for immediate launch. It had been done over several days so as not to arouse any suspicion from the Kleese. The Kleese were so confident that their technology was superior that none of the lesser races under their control were considered a danger.

The Kleese actually paid very little attention to the day-to-day operations of the station or the flight bays. The races they had brought on board the station to serve them handled all of that. They were more interested in monitoring communications within the Empire and ensuring that unrest on the many worlds they controlled was held to a minimum. They also spent considerable time sending their large disk ships on exploration missions, seeking out new worlds to add to their Empire. All three of the major Galactic Empires were intent on rapid expansion.

Marken often wondered what would happen when there were no more worlds for the empires to conquer. Even now, there were occasional skirmishes between conscripts of each side where their empire boundaries overlapped. It was hard to imagine what an actual war between any of the major empires would be like, particularly due to the size of their largest ships and the firepower they possessed. The current war over the acquisition of new planets would be considered only a small skirmish if any of the major powers actually went to war.

There were normally ten of the huge Kleese disk ships assigned to the station and currently all but one were out searching the galaxy for new planets. The other one was due to leave early in the morning. Four hours after it left, Marken intended to launch his revolt. With the ships gone, the assault ships could safely escape without fear of being destroyed. Also, all the weapons on the station would be disabled by a computer virus Taalon would be inserting into the system. It would be hours before any surviving Kleese or the station crew could reactivate them.

“It’s hard to believe we’re leaving,” Harnett spoke in a soft voice as she gazed over what had been their home for so long. In many ways, she would miss it.

“We’ve had a good life here,” spoke Marken, taking Harnett’s hand. “But the Kleese control everything, even when we’re allowed to have children. That must come to an end.”

“I know,” responded Harnett, squeezing Marken’s hand. “I’ve always supported you in this and I know what you’re doing is the right thing.”

“Tomorrow, we will know,” he replied with a sigh. His eyes looked out over the city. This would be their last night here; he just wondered what awaited them at Earth.

-

Marken walked through the long wide corridors of the station as if it were a normal day. His calm measured face hid the rapid beating of his heart. Behind him strolled six giants, Humans wearing their Type Three battle suits. The Humans in the suits were unarmed except for the energy lances hidden securely in their protective sheaths. No one gave them a second look as conscripts in battle suits were a common sight on the station. One hundred meters back, a second Kivean was leading another group of six. It was all Marken could do to keep his face straight and act as if the survival of his entire race didn’t depend on his actions over the next few minutes.

Wade was watching his HUD closely trying to spot any conscripts in battle suits. They had passed a few, but most of them had been encased in the Type Ones, which were not a danger. Marken had assured him that only the marines in Wade’s dome had the more powerful Type Three battle suits. Wade also knew that the powerful energy lances they all carried would give them an advantage in close quarter combat.

“I’m nervous,” Sergeant Stern said from her position next to Wade. “What if something goes wrong?” Looking ahead, she could see another large hatch and several humanoids stepping through it. The humanoids passed by them with scarcely a glance. Jamie felt more at ease, but she knew they were rapidly nearing their destination.

“It won’t,” Wade assured her. “We’re almost there.” It had taken them nearly an hour to reach the Command Center located in the heart of the massive station.

As they stepped through the last hatch, they were met by another humanoid followed by two conscripts in Type Two battle suits.

“What are you doing here?” the man challenged as he gazed inquiringly at Marken. “No Human conscripts are allowed in this section of the station.”

“We have been summoned by the Kleese,” Marken replied as he attempted to step around the humanoid.

“I recall no such summons, and I just left the Command Center,” replied the humanoid, stepping in front of Marken.

“Why else would I be here if I wasn’t summoned?” asked Marken, calmly. “If you wish you can contact the Kleese and confirm the order.”

The humanoid turned pale at the suggestion. Every humanoid on the station went out of their way to avoid contact with any of the Kleese. “No, that’s not necessary. I’m sure they have their reasons for summoning you and the Humans; perhaps they want the Humans to be trained for guard duty at the main hatch.” With that, the humanoid stepped aside and gesturing to the two conscripts behind him, continued down the corridor.

“That was close,” Jamie whispered as she removed her right hand from the hilt of her energy lance.

“They have no reason to suspect anything,” Wade replied as he watched the two conscripts in battle suits pass through another hatch and then out of sight. “No one has ever attempted what we’re getting ready to do.”

“That’s what worries me,” Jamie replied.

“Let’s go,” said Marken, gesturing for the Humans to follow him. “The main hatch will be closed with two guards in front. The guards are more symbols than anything else and will be armed with light RG rifles and stunners. Once we arrive at the hatch you must take them out immediately before they can give a warning.”

They proceeded on down the corridor and soon neared the entrance to the Command Center. Wade saw two conscripts in Type Two battle suits, one on each side of the large hatch. They turned to face Marken and Wade’s squad as soon as they detected them in the corridor.

The plan was simple, they would act as if they were just passing through the corridor and would give no sign of stopping. Privates Dawson and Russell were bringing up the rear and as soon as they passed in front of the two conscripts, they would attack them with their energy lances. If everything worked as planned, the fight would be swift and deadly.

Wade did the best he could not to glance at the two guards as they passed by them, then he heard a sudden grunting noise and the sizzling sound of energy lances. Whirling around, he drew his own lance only to see Private Dawson cut the second guard down. While the armor on the Type Three suits was impervious to the lances, the Type Two armor was not. The two guards were now lying on the floor with their battle suits cut completely in two.

Marken quickly rushed to the hatch as Sergeant Perry and his squad ran up to join them. They watched as Marken entered a code on the panel at the side of the door, then the hatch slid open with scarcely a sound.

Wade didn’t hesitate; he rushed inside followed by the rest of his marines. Scanning the room, he spotted half a dozen Kleese standing at a large communications panel with several more upon what was obviously a Command Pedestal in the center of the massive room.

“Sergeant Perry, take the Kleese out at Communications! The rest of you are with me!”

Wade quickly moved toward the two on the pedestal and noted that they had turned toward the disturbance at the door. Upon seeing the drawn energy lances, one of the Kleese raised up one of the collar activation devices, pointed it at Wade, and pressed the button. Nothing happened. Wade breathed a sigh of relief knowing he still had his head.

“Humans, stop!” one of the Kleese spoke in a commanding voice. The other was still pointing the collar activation device at the advancing Humans and continually pressing the detonate button.

Wade didn’t hesitate. He reached the Command Pedestal and leaping to the top, swung the lance at the Kleese standing before him. It cut completely through the Kleese, making a sizzling sound as it passed through flesh. The look upon the Kleese was of surprised shock. Then his body toppled over and fell from the pedestal with a resounding thud. Sergeant Stern had jumped up beside Wade and already dispatched the second Kleese.

“I enjoyed doing that,” she spoke with satisfaction in her voice.

Looking around, Wade saw that Sergeant Perry and his squad were also standing above a group of dead Kleese. “Secure the room!” ordered Wade, seeing that many of the humanoids were making a mad dash toward the hatch to escape the consequences of this deadly attack upon their masters.

“Let them go,” Marken spoke as he climbed up on the pedestal. Marken waited a few moments until he was satisfied that everyone except his own people and the Humans were out of the Command Center, then he pressed several buttons on a large console. Instantly, the hatch slid shut.

“The hatch will remain closed until I open it,” Marken spoke in a calm voice. “It is now time to activate the rest of our plan.”

There were ten other Kiveans in the room sitting in front of complicated control consoles. Marken nodded to them; it was time to begin the evacuation of the station. After the actions in the Command Center, there was no turning back. Marken gazed briefly at the dead Kleese; it was the first time he had ever seen one killed. Several of the marines were moving the Kleese large bodies to one side of the Command Center out of the way. Occasionally one of their legs would twitch. Marken shuddered and turned back toward the command console. They had a lot to do and it needed to be done quickly.

Taalon was sitting at the main computer console and had been stunned at the brutality of the Human attack. He could feel his stomach churning, but he fought back the urge to vomit and instead pressed several icons on his computer screen. Instantly, airtight hatches throughout much of the station slammed shut, as well as the hatches upon many of the habitation domes, sealing them off.

Wade watched the entire process knowing that teams of his marines were spreading out throughout the large station tracking down and killing as many of the Kleese as possible. All of these teams were escorted by at least two of Marken’s people.

Now it was all up to Lieutenant Williams. It was her job to take out the Kleese that controlled the station’s massive flight bays and monitored the coming and going of all spacecraft. If they failed to take control of the Flight Command Center, they would have no way off the station.

-

Lieutenant Williams had ten marines with her. Skagern was leading them, and it did not take them long to reach the Flight Command Center. Without hesitation, Beth pushed her way past the two startled guards, hearing the sound of energy lances behind her as the two guards were eliminated. There were four Kleese in the large room watching scanners and communicating with inbound ships. Before they could respond to Beth’s sudden entrance, she had already cut the first one down. She heard screams and what sounded like struggling behind her. Turning, she saw that all the Kleese but one were down and it was struggling with Private Nicole Foster. Private Gonzales quickly stepped over and lopped off the Kleese’s head with his energy lance. A number of the humanoids in the room were screaming and running for the exit.

“Let them go,” Beth instructed her marines. “We don’t need them.”

A few minutes later, a group of forty Kiveans filed in and took up positions in front of the numerous consoles. They instantly began giving orders to various ships.

“I want four guards at that hatch; don’t let anyone in without my permission,” ordered Beth. She moved over to a large viewscreen, which Skagern was adjusting to show the evacuation fleet, which would soon be leaving the station. Letting out a sharp breath, Beth knew the hardest part was now behind them. In a short matter of time, they would be on their way home.

-

All over the massive station, there was general panic amongst the humanoid crew, particularly when they heard that Humans were killing the Kleese. Most of them barricaded themselves in their quarters, ordering the conscripts under their control to guard their doors or the hatches to the domes. It didn’t take them long to discover that the airtight doors all over the station were now sealing many of them in, and even at the domes the hatches would no longer open. There was general panic growing about what would happen when the Kleese returned and discovered what the Humans had done.

-

In one of the main flight bays, General Mitchell and Colonel Bailey put in an appearance. They had brought nearly one hundred marines and soldiers with them to ensure the bay was kept under Human control. In other flight bays, the same method was being used. Humans in battle suits were fanning out, securing the bays and the corridors leading to them.

“Major Nelson reports the Command Center is secure,” Colonel Bailey reported. “Lieutenant Williams has also secured the Flight Command Center and the Kiveans have taken over the control consoles. They are starting the evacuation.”

“Very good,” General Mitchell replied as his eyes looked across the large flight bay. Neither he nor Colonel Bailey were in battle suits though they had several marines standing close by in case they were needed.

In their flight bay, Mitchell could see over twenty of the versatile assault ships. The standard crew for one of the assault ships was nearly one hundred, and Mitchell knew that in order to take as many ships with them as possible the Kiveans were sending only twenty of their race to operate each vessel. There were also a number of passenger and transport ships the Kiveans were commandeering as well.

“What’s the current status of the Kleese?” Mitchell asked as Colonel Bailey continued to get updated reports from one of the marines in a battle suit next to him.

“Sixty-two accounted for so far,” Bailey replied. “A large number are in the sealed off sections of the station, and I have ordered our troops not to go in and get them. As long as they’re behind the sealed hatches they can’t cause us any problems.”

“What about the other humanoid conscripts in battle suits?” Mitchell asked, concerned about additional fighting on the station. He knew that the domes most of the other conscripts were in had been sealed shut.

“Only a few have resisted,” Bailey replied. “Most seem to be staying out of our way.”

“All right, let’s get everyone loaded on board these ships. We have two hours and then anyone not aboard will get left behind.” Mitchell watched as his orders were carried out. His biggest regret were the people they were leaving behind in the stasis chambers. He let out a heavy sigh, wishing there was something he could do but knowing there was not.

-

Major Nelson was standing on the Command Pedestal along with Marken watching the large viewscreens on the front wall of the Command Center. Already several assault ships had launched and taken up positions outside of the station.

“We have twelve passenger liners and sixteen transport ships as well,” Marken explained as a rather large and bulky looking ship moved into position between the assault ships. “They will be carrying people as well as some special supplies we managed to acquire. Their crews have all been replaced by Kiveans.”

“All FTL communications have been disabled,” Kalarn reported as he walked up to the pedestal. “It will take several hours before the surviving Kleese can reestablish communication with any of their ships.”

“That should do,” Marken commented with a nod. “What about the information concerning Earth’s location?”

“Also eliminated,” Taalon replied. “I erased it from the computers of the exploratory ship that went to Earth originally as well as from the follow up ship that abducted the Humans. The computers on the station have now also been purged of any references to Earth.”

“So the Kleese can’t find Earth?” asked Wade, glancing over at Marken.

“Not easily,” Marken replied as he looked back across the room at one of the large viewscreens. “They will know the general area the planet is located in, but they will have to search for it. They may have to search hundreds of stars before they find the right one. Hopefully, we will have our new particle beam weapons installed on our ships by then.”

“Will they destroy one of the large disk ships?” Wade asked. He knew if they couldn’t defend themselves all of this would have been for nothing.

“We think so,” answered Marken, trying to sound confident. “Of course, for a ship the size of one of those it will take numerous hits to destroy it.”

“At least we will have a chance,” responded Wade, letting out a deep breath. It was just so hard to believe that they were actually going home. Wade wondered what his family would think when he told them about where he had been. His younger brother would have a thousand questions.

-

For the next two hours, the fleet outside continued to grow. Large passenger liners and transport ships containing nearly five thousand Kiveans continued to assemble outside the station. The transport ships also held the Human support personnel as well as the military research scientists and engineers. Assault ships containing Kiveans and Human military personnel were intermixed to provide both protection and an escort for the vulnerable civilian ships.

“We may have a problem,” Taalon spoke from his console where he was frantically entering commands. “I think several of the Kleese have made it to one of the flight bays we have sealed off and are trying to gain entry.”

“What happens if they get inside?” Wade asked concerned, as his eyes focused on Taalon.

“If they can activate one of the assault ships and get it outside they can use its FTL transmitter to contact one of their ships. We can’t take on one of their disk ships without heavy losses,” replied Marken, worriedly.

“We have maybe thirty minutes before they can override the codes I have set up and get a ship out of the flight bay,” Taalon informed them.

The flight bays had always been a problem, Wade knew. They circled the station, and there was no way they could seize all of them. The bays they were not going to use had been sealed off instead.

“How soon before we can leave?” asked Wade, knowing time was growing short.

Marken made some quick calls on the com system and then turned to Wade. “We can leave now; the last ship has just finished loading. There is one assault ship waiting for us. Even if the Kleese can get an assault ship out of the flight bay and use its FTL communicator it will take at least two hours or more for one of the disk ships to return.”

“It’s time to go,” Wade ordered over his com to his marines. Then, turning to Marken, “Is there a shorter way to the flight bay than the way we came?”

“Yes,” replied Marken, nodding his head. “Follow me. We will take one of the faster transit tunnels.”

With that, all of the Kiveans shut down their consoles and Taalon entered a final command into the station’s computer system. Instantly, the lights dimmed and the consoles went silent.

“What did you do?” demanded Wade, feeling concerned that Taalon might have just shut off the life support to the entire station, which would doom all of the humanoids that were sealed up in the domes.

“Don’t worry,” Taalon replied with a wolfish grin. “I shut down the station’s main fusion reactors. The station is operating on emergency power and will continue to do so until the reactors are reinitialized. That process alone will take several hours. The transit tunnel is still operating as well as the flight bay we will be using.”

Wade nodded. Now they needed to get to the assault ship and off the station.

-

Twenty minutes later, Wade breathed a sigh of relief as the assault ship exited the flight bay and took its position in front of the assembled fleet. At last count, they had twelve passenger liners, sixteen transport ships, and forty assault ships. The Humans had been crowded together on the assault ships with some on the transport ships as well. It wouldn’t be a comfortable trip, but Marken had assured him they had enough supplies to get them through.

“We’re going home,” Beth spoke from his side with an excited smile upon her face.

“Yes, we are,” responded Wade, with a nod. “You might be able to get married after all.”

“I hope so,” Beth replied. “But we’ve been gone a long time; who knows what might have changed back home.”

Wade looked up at one of the large viewscreens in the assault ship Command Center at all the assembled spacecraft. He had kept his promise to both Beth and Captain Jenkins about returning home. The only question on Wade’s mind was what would they find when they finally got there?

Marken gave the order and the entire fleet activated their Space Fold drives. Moments later, they had left the space station far behind as they set their course for the planet Earth.

Chapter Fifteen

Mason had been summoned to the Control Center by Pamela. She had said it was urgent, so he had rushed as quickly as he could. From the tone of her voice, he was worried that another disaster had befallen Earth, as if enough hadn’t happened already. Upon entering the busy room, he could sense an air of urgency from the people who sat in front of their consoles and viewscreens.

“What is it, Pamela?” he asked as he strolled up to the main control console where she was sitting talking frantically to several individuals.

“We may have a problem,” Pamela replied nervously as she gestured toward one of the large sensor screens.

Over the past few months, the Phoenix and her fleet had been placing new scanning satellites all over the solar system. They currently could scan in real time almost all the way out to the orbit of Neptune. The satellites had been built in several of the large electronics labs in Smithfield.

Wade looked at the indicated screen and drew in a sharp breath. At the far edge was a large cloud of red threat icons. “What are those?”

“We’re not sure,” replied Pamela, uneasily. “They showed up about twenty minutes ago and have just been sitting there.”

“Where are the Phoenix and her battle group?”

“Out close to Mars escorting some passenger ships to Mars Central.”

“Contact Commander Sanders and order him to return to Holbrook Station as quickly as possible,” Mason ordered, fearful of what the red icons might mean. If the aliens were returning, he wanted to be ready for them. “Then get me Darren on Holbrook; I need to talk to him.”

A few moments later, Pamela indicated she had Darren on the com.

“What’s up?” Darren asked.

“Check your long-range scanners,” Mason said in an even voice. “Our friends may be back.”

Darren was silent for a long moment and then his voice returned. “We see them. What do you want to do?”

Mason studied the sensor screen for another moment noticing that the icons were still not moving. “I have ordered Commander Sanders to return to Holbrook with his fleet. How are you situated if you have to defend the station?”

Over the past few months, numerous railgun emplacements had been placed on the outer hull of the space station. They had also put an additional layer of armor around the hull for protection. It had been a dangerous job, but in the end Holbrook station now had the firepower of Commander Sander’s entire fleet.

“We have a lot of civilians on the station waiting for transportation to the Moon,” Darren replied with concern in his voice. “Do you want me to contact Jornada and tell them to hold off on any more launches for the time being?”

“I think that would be wise,” Mason replied as he saw Drake come rushing into the Control Center. “Initiate a communications blackout until further notice and let’s wait and see what these aliens do. At the moment, we don’t know if these are the same aliens that attacked us before or someone new.”

“They’re back,” muttered Drake, staring with apprehension at the red icons on the screen. “What are we going to do?”

“What’s the current status of the Armageddon?” Mason asked. He knew the work crews had been working around the clock for months trying to finish the new battlecruiser as quickly as possible.

“She’s ready,” replied Drake, glancing over at Mason. “But I wouldn’t recommend launching her yet. We don’t have all the crew on board, and we still have a lot of systems tests to run.”

“We may not have any choice,” replied Mason, knowing that as soon as word got out about these new aliens there would be widespread panic. They might need every ship they had to protect the system. “We need to be ready to launch her in case we need the extra firepower.”

“I’ll go speak to Ethan and Sean about the Armageddon,” Drake responded with one last look at the sensor screen. “Michael and the command crew are on board and I’ll let them know what’s going on.”

Mason nodded; if the aliens attacked again, it would be a disaster. Luna City had been dramatically expanded, and many of the new domes and tunnels were highly vulnerable, the same with Mars Central. Only Vesta was relatively safe from attack. There were a number of railgun batteries on the surface as well as several inside the kilometers long tunnel that led to the spacedock. If anything attempted to come down the tunnel, they could blow it away. Mason just hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

-

In the outer part of the solar system, Wade stared with deep concern at the tactical display showing Earth. Marken had only told them the previous day what the Kleese had done to the planet. It had been a shock as word quickly spread throughout the fleet.

“Are we detecting anything?” whispered Wade, praying that some people had survived. He was deeply concerned for his family.

“Yes,” Marken replied as reports began coming in from the assault ship’s powerful sensors. “The large space station above your planet is still operating. We are detecting active power sources on it as well as on your planet’s moon. There are also a number of spacecraft in operation.”

“So there are survivors,” Beth spoke in a dull voice. One of the screens was showing a view of the Earth, and it looked disheartening. The planet was covered in a dark cloud layer. She knew the odds of her mother and fiancée having survived what the Kleese had done to the planet were slim. She had never felt so alone.

“Vesta had a large colony on it,” Wade commented as he looked at more of the tactical screens showing other sections of the solar system. “It obviously survived intact as well as Holbrook Station and Luna City. I imagine Mars Central survived also.”

“I would guess they have been performing rescue operations,” suggested Marken, hoping that meant a sizable Human population had survived.

“We have a fleet of fifteen ships out near the orbit of the fourth planet that have suddenly begun accelerating rapidly toward Earth,” Taalon reported as more data continued to come in. “If I had to make a guess, they are probably some type of warships.”

“Impossible,” uttered Wade, doubtfully. “Earth has no armed ships.”

“You may have them now,” replied Marken, softly. “Could Vesta have built or modified some existing ships into warships to defend themselves with?”

“Possibly,” Wade conceded as he thought it over. “Vesta reportedly has a large spacedock capable of building ships. They didn’t have any weapons, though. If those are indeed warships, the weapons would have to have come from Earth.”

“Can we contact Vesta?” asked Marken, focusing his attention on Wade.

He had no desire to come into range of any weapons the Humans might have placed on their ships since the Kleese disk ship had been here. After seeing the ferocity of how the Human military had fought in the battle suits, there was no doubt in his mind that the Humans by now might possess weapons that could be dangerous to the fleet.

“Possibly,” Wade replied as he thought the question over. “I would suggest we let General Mitchell attempt communications; there may be someone there that knows him.”

Marken nodded, sending orders to have General Mitchell flown over from his ship. That way Marken would be well aware of what was said between the general and the Human survivors. While he didn’t think the general would betray them, the Kleese had destroyed their world and Kiveans had been aboard the disk ship when it happened.

-

“Pamela, I’m picking up a broadcast from one of the alien ships,” Jessica Lang spoke with shock upon her face. “A General Mitchell is asking to speak with Mr. Randle.”

Pamela looked over at Mason, “What the hell is going on? Who is General Mitchell?”

“I don’t know,” replied Mason, feeling confused. “Contact General Wainright at Jornada and see if he has any idea.” This whole thing had just gotten even stranger. How could an army general be on one of the alien ships?

Pamela quickly sent the message and a few minutes later, she had General Wainright on the com.

“General Wainright, this is Mason Randle. As you may know, our long-range scanners have picked up a fleet of what appear to be alien ships on the perimeter of the solar system. We are receiving a message from one of the ships from someone claiming to be a General Mitchell.”

“Alan Mitchell,” Wainright’s voice came back in shock. “He was one of the officers abducted by the aliens.”

Mason looked over at Pamela as he considered Wainright’s words. “How well do you trust the man?”

“He’s a good officer,” Wainright replied. “But if this is General Mitchell he has been with the aliens for close to a year. Who knows what they may have done to him? I would be very cautious, Mason.”

“Thanks, General,” Mason replied as he reached a decision. “If you will stay on the line, I’m going to speak to this General Mitchell and see just what’s going on.”

Mason nodded to Jessica and she transferred the alien ship’s message frequency over to the main com channel. “This is Mason Randle,” he spoke, waiting tensely for a response.

“Mr. Randle, it’s good to hear your voice,” Mitchell replied. “I know this is going to be hard to believe, but we just escaped from the Kleese. They are the aliens that abducted us about a year ago.”

“How did you escape?” asked Mason, finding it hard to believe what Mitchell had just said. He wondered if this was some type of ruse to finish abducting the rest of the survivors in the solar system. That might explain why they had brought so many ships.

“We had help,” Mitchell replied over the com. “With your permission we would like to approach Vesta with just one ship and explain everything in person. You will need to see this in order to believe it.”

Mason hesitated for a moment. He didn’t like the idea of one of the alien ships approaching Vesta. “Do you have a shuttle you could come in instead? I would prefer to know what we’re getting into before we allow one of the larger ships to approach.”

“A wise precaution,” General Mitchell replied with approval in his voice. “With your permission, we will approach to ten thousand kilometers off Vesta in one of our larger ships and then take what we call a drop ship to come the rest of the way. Will that be acceptable?”

Mason thought about it and then nodded. “Give us two hours to make our preparations and then you can come,” he replied.

“Excellent,” General Mitchell answered in a pleased voice. “We are looking forward to meeting with you.”

The communications ended and then Mason activated the other com line where General Wainright had been listening. “What do you think, General?”

“It sure sounded like General Mitchell,” Wainright responded, still sounding concerned. “Just be careful Mason; we still don’t know what or who we’re dealing with. Mitchell could have been brainwashed and may be entirely under the control of the aliens. Don’t take anything for granted.”

“We won’t,” Mason promised, fully in agreement. “I have a plan that will ensure this first meeting will go as scheduled.”

Mason ended the communication and smiled to himself. The Armageddon might not be ready to fully deploy, but it could still be stationed just outside the tunnel that led to the spacedock. With its large railguns, it should be able to handle one alien ship if need be.

-

Wade breathed an excited sigh of relief as the assault ship dropped back into normal space ten thousand kilometers from Vesta. If the asteroid colony still survived that meant a sizable Human population did also. He knew from former media reports that the city of Smithfield inside the asteroid had a large number of inhabitants and Wade hoped that number had grown considerably since the destruction of Earth. It was a logical place to bring survivors.

“We may have a problem,” Marken commented as he gestured toward the main viewscreen. His eyes looked concerned.

Wade looked up and saw a large ship hovering just above the asteroid. As the viewscreen enlarged the picture, he was surprised to see the ship was covered with weapons turrets and what looked like four very large cannons mounted on the bow.

“It’s a warship!” Beth uttered in amazement. “They’ve built a warship to protect themselves from future attacks.”

“What type of weapons are those?” General Mitchell asked with interest. It made him feel relieved to know that Vesta was not as defenseless as they had thought.

“Railguns,” Marken replied nervously as several of his people spoke to him over the com system. “The four large ones on the bow could probably destroy this assault vessel. There are also a number deployed elsewhere on the asteroid.” It didn’t really surprise him that the Humans had armed themselves. He knew he should have expected it after being around Major Nelson and his marines.

“I’m impressed,” General Mitchell spoke with a pleased nod. “I knew Vesta had the ability to construct ships in their spacedock, but I didn’t expect anything like this. Just how large is that ship?”

“Five hundred meters in length, fifty meters high, and ninety meters wide,” Marken reported as he thought about the possibilities. “If our engineers could equip that ship with modern space drives, an energy shield, and our new particle weapons, it could possibly take on one of the Kleese disk ships on its own and win.”

“Let’s concentrate on the matter at hand,” General Mitchell cautioned. “We’ll go down to the drop ship and take a little trip. It’s time we find out just what’s happened since we were taken and who is actually in charge.”

Beth looked over at Wade with a glimmer of hope in her eyes. “If they have been rescuing survivors, do you think there’s any chance my family survived?” It had been weighing heavily on her mind that she might now be all alone.

“I don’t know,” replied Wade, feeling her pain. Everyone had freaked out when they had learned about Earth. There had even been a few suicides. It had been bad enough being captives of the Kleese, but then to learn that their families might also be dead had been a devastating blow. Wade couldn’t help wondering about his own family.

-

Mason was standing in the spacedock watching the small alien ship set down in the designated berth. A full company of heavily armed marines were on hand to form a greeting party in case anything threatening occurred. General Wainright had sent nearly twenty five hundred troops to Vesta to help Mason keep control of the growing civilian population as well as to protect the valuable asteroid from attack.

With growing apprehension, Mason waited for a hatch to open on the side of the vessel, expecting to see aliens. Instead, a large hatch in the back of the alien ship opened and a ramp quickly extended until it touched the floor of the bay. Then out walked three people in marine uniforms as well as what obviously was an alien.

Mason took in a sharp breath and watched as a squad of marines approached the four. He could sense an air of anxiety from the other troops in the spacedock. No one was sure what to expect.

The sergeant in charge of the squad stopped, saluted the general, and then began speaking to him. Mason saw the general reply and then the sergeant gestured toward Mason. After some discussion, the general nodded and the marines took up escorting positions around the four and began walking toward where Mason was waiting.

As they approached, Mason noticed that the marine general was an older man, but the other two Humans looked to be much younger. One wore the rank of major and the woman was a lieutenant. The alien was a different story entirely. He was well over six feet tall and his skin had an unhealthy red tinge to it. His face was humanoid with narrow eyes with no eyebrows, a wide nose, and small ears. The top of his head was bald and his arms were longer than a Human’s with long, narrow fingers.

“I’m General Mitchell,” spoke the general, extending his hand toward Mason.

“I’m Mason Randle,” responded Mason, reaching out and firmly shaking the general’s hand.

“The people with me are Major Nelson, Lieutenant Williams, and Marken of the Kivean race.”

Mason nodded at the others, doing his best not to stare at the alien. “I have a conference room set up nearby for us to meet in. Several of my key people will be there also.”

“Excellent,” General Mitchell replied. “We have a lot to talk about.”

The group made their way across the spacedock and passed through a hatch into a long corridor. Along the corridor were several doors, with only one standing open. Reaching it, Mason gestured for the others to enter. Then, turning to the marine sergeant, “I want you and two more of your marines inside with us; the rest are to stand guard in this corridor and make sure we are not bothered.

“Yes, Sir,” the sergeant replied.

Mason went on inside and was soon joined by the sergeant and two of his marines. The marines took up positions on each side of the now closed door holding their assault rifles at the ready. The sergeant followed Mason.

Sean Miller, Pamela Cairns, and Lori Wright were already seated at the long conference table. All were looking in astonishment at Marken, realizing they were seeing their first true alien.

“Have a seat,” spoke Mason, pointing toward a number of empty chairs at the table. Mason sat down with the marine sergeant standing several feet behind him where he could keep a watchful eye on the four newcomers.

General Mitchell sat down and looked over appraisingly at Mason. It was obvious this man was in control and was very confident about his ability to run things. He had expected to see a member of the Earth government in charge of Vesta; he wondered why that had not happened.

“As you know, the Earth has been destroyed; or I should say made nearly uninhabitable,” Mason began in a carefully controlled voice, keeping his anger in check. He still didn’t know if he could trust these people. “For the past year we have been conducting rescue operations, trying to save as many people as possible. Now you show up with a fleet of spaceships. I guess the main questions I have for you is why now, and what do you want?”

General Mitchell nodded and then spoke. “It’s a long story, and much of it will be difficult to believe, but I assure you everything I am about to tell you is the truth.” Mitchell then began explaining to Mason and the others in the conference room what had occurred to them since being abducted from Earth.

Several times he was interrupted as Mason or his people asked pointed questions. Mitchell tried to answer as fully as he could, knowing he needed to win these people’s trust. If Mason turned them away, they had no place else to go.

After nearly two hours of explanations, he stopped and looked at Mason inquiringly. “That’s it. Marken and his people helped us to escape and we returned home. It was only on the return voyage that Marken revealed to us what the Kleese had done to Earth.”

Mason nodded, letting out a deep breath. The general’s story seemed fantastic, but Marken was sitting here in front of him and there was a large alien fleet out on the edge of the solar system. Mason turned his attention to Marken and asked the alien a direct question. “What do your people expect to get out of this, and why should we help you? You were on the Kleese ship when it destroyed Earth.”

“We have much to offer,” replied Marken, carefully. He was one of the few people of his race that could actually speak English. He had put in a lot of time and effort learning to be able to speak it fluently. “We have advanced medical techniques, we are familiar with the Kleese and their Empire, and we are willing to turn over to you all of our technical advances, including the Space Fold drive. You must understand that my race also has been a prisoner of the Kleese and forced to obey their commands.”

Mason’s eyes lit up at being able to get an FTL drive for the Phoenix and the Armageddon. The thought of having an actual star drive for the ships made the offer very tempting. “I understand your plight,” he said evenly, trying to hide his excitement. “But we are short on space and still have millions of survivors trapped on Earth. I just don’t know where we will put your people.”

“I think we can help there,” Marken replied with an honest smile. “With the technology we have available on our ships, we can help you to construct new habitats for your people as well as offer our ships as a means to move them off the planet. The passenger ships we brought are fully capable of landing upon Earth.”

Mason leaned back in his chair placing his right hand upon the table as he thought this over. The biggest problem they had was building new habitats to hold all of the survivors. The passenger ships would also be a big help in getting people off the planet. People were dying daily on Earth due to the harsh conditions upon the surface. “What if the Kleese come looking for you?”

Marken looked over at General Mitchell, who nodded. “We have developed a new weapon that the Kleese are not aware of,” replied Marken, evenly. “It is a particle beam which we believe their large disk ships will have no defense against.”

“We have two large warships of our own,” Mason spoke as he thought over the possibilities. “Would it be possible to install these particle beam weapons on them?”

“Yes,” replied Marken, nodding his head. “I have engineers that could build and install the beams, as well as upgrade your ships with faster sublight drives and the Space Fold drive. We would have to see your ships first, but it could probably be done very quickly. We would also be willing to upgrade all of your weapons systems. The Kleese also have a sublight antimatter missile they use which we can provide you.”

“We could bring the Armageddon back inside the spacedock and allow your engineers to make the modifications there,” Sean suggested, excited about the possibility of upgrading the battlecruiser to something far more deadly. He was also extremely interested in the advanced technology that Marken seemed to be offering access to.

“We have some military scientists and a few engineers that were abducted as well,” General Mitchell added. “They have been studying the Kleese technology for months and should be able to help explain it to your people.”

“That would be helpful,” responded Sean, thinking of the possibilities. He would also like to see the inside of some of the alien ships in Marken’s fleet.

“At some point in time the Kleese are going to find us again,” Wade spoke for the first time. He had been listening and knew this needed to be brought up. “They will be searching for us after our escape from their station, and we must be ready for that confrontation. I will never go back to serve them. None of us will!”

Mason nodded in understanding. “If these Kleese are as bad as you say they are, then we need to be prepared. I have no intention of allowing them anywhere near any of our installations. I’ll want all the information you have on what types of weapons they possess and what we can do to defend ourselves from them.”

“You will have it,” promised Marken, leaning forward. “Given enough time, I firmly believe we can defend this system from the Kleese.”

“I would also like to meet with some of your people,” spoke Lori Wright, looking over at Marken. “If you have engineers that are familiar with life support systems for large habitats I could really use their expertise.”

Marken smiled. “We have a large number that can aid you. On the huge station we just left there are numerous ecological habitats where the various races that serve the Kleese live.”

Beth looked over at Mason and then spoke in a nervous voice. “Do you have a list of survivors?” She desperately wanted to know if her mother and here fiancée had survived. “I was supposed to get married, but I was abducted. I would like to know if my mother and fiancée survived.”

“We have a list of some of the survivors,” responded Mason, knowing how she must feel. He had witnessed a lot of pain and suffering over the last few months as people realized their loved ones had not survived the disaster. “The list is not complete as the survivor camps are quite large and it has been difficult to keep track of everyone. We are talking about millions of people.”

“We have nearly twelve thousand military personnel with us,” General Mitchell said, knowing he was asking a lot. “I think all of them would like to know if they have any family members that survived this catastrophe.”

“If you can furnish me a list of your personnel, I will send it to Generals Wainright and Pittman and see what they can find.”

“General Wainright!” Mitchell echoed with surprise on his face. “I know General Wainright quite well. I am glad to hear that he survived.”

“You should be glad that he did,” Mason spoke in a serious tone. “It was because of him that we allowed you to land.”

-

The next several days saw a number of major changes. The Kivean fleet was allowed to go into orbit around Vesta, and two of their assault ships as well as one of their transport ships were allowed inside to land at the spacedock. The arrival of the ships was broadcast live to all of the inhabitants of the asteroid as Mason did not want to keep secret from his fellow Humans that aliens had arrived. He had also gone live the previous day and explained what was happening and that some of the military people that had been abducted were returning home.

-

Mason was standing in the spacedock with Drake, Cheryl Robinson, and Major Nelson. They were watching the Kivean technicians that were busy working with Human engineers on the Armageddon.

“Do you trust the Kiveans?” Drake asked the major as he watched equipment being transferred from the transport ship over to the Armageddon.

“Yes,” replied Wade, glancing over at Drake. “They revolted against the Kleese and if any of them are ever captured I imagine they will be executed immediately. The Kleese don’t seem to understand the concept of mercy. You either serve them or you are eliminated.”

“I have seen the photos that Marken furnished of the Kleese,” Cheryl spoke. She was currently working on taking the list of military survivors on the Kivean ships and comparing them with the known survivors from Earth or that were still living on Earth in the camps. “They look like giant spiders with Human torsos.”

Even the torsos are not Human,” replied Wade, recalling the first time he had seen one of the Kleese. “Pray that you never meet one up close.”

“What are the Kiveans going to do with the Armageddon?” Drake asked as he watched the work going on around the ship.

“They’re going to turn it into a major warship,” responded Wade, hoping the Kiveans could finish their work before the Kleese found them. “The two assault ships in here as well as the battlecruiser are being equipped with particle beam weapons which should be able to penetrate the energy shields of the Kleese ships. The assault ships are two hundred meters long, one hundred and fifty meters wide and forty meters thick. Normal armament consists of four heavy pulse fusion beam weapons, paralyzing beams, and sublight antimatter missiles with an explosive warhead of twenty megatons. Sixteen dual energy beam weapons around the hull provide a point defense as well as additional offensive capability.”

“How many particle beams are being installed?” Mason asked as he saw large pieces of equipment being moved into the Armageddon through one of the open hatches.

The Armageddon will have two large particle beam cannons mounted on the bow and one each on the upper and lower hulls,” Wade responded. Marken had spent some time earlier explaining to Wade just what they planned to do.

“What is a particle beam weapon?” asked Cheryl, looking confused.

“I had to ask the same question,” Wade replied.

“I think I can explain it,” said Drake, looking at the others. “I spoke to General Wainright earlier, and he admitted they had done some research on particle beam weapons at White Sands but just didn’t have the technology to create one that would actually work.”

“I knew they were working on other weapons research there,” responded Mason, recalling some of his earlier conversation with Lawrence about some of the strange sightings that had been seen around the White Sands testing facility over the years.

“Anyway,” Drake continued. “A particle beam weapon generates its destructive power by accelerating quantities of subatomic particles to velocities close to that of the speed of light and focusing them into a very tight high-energy beam. The energy within the beam is the aggregate energy of the rapidly moving subatomic particles; each particle having kinetic energy due to its own mass and motion. When this beam strikes a target, the energy is partially absorbed and results in overheating of the area, which results in an explosion.”

“A very significant explosion from what Marken has described,” Wade added. “The stronger the beam the more powerful the explosion, and the particle weapons that are being installed on the Armageddon and the two assault ships should be capable of inflicting major damage.”

“What about these pulse fusion beam weapons?” Drake continued. “Will the Armageddon be receiving those as well?”

“Every weapon the Kiveans have will be put on the Armageddon if they have time,” Wade responded. “If the Kleese show up, the Kiveans want to defeat them in battle. Which reminds me, there is one other thing that Marken wishes to speak with you about later.”

“What’s that?” Mason asked curiously.

“The Kiveans are not a very warlike race. They would like some Human military officers assigned to the two assault ships to take them into combat. The Kiveans firmly believe the ships will be more capable in Human hands.”

“They’re going to turn their ships over to us?” Drake uttered, stunned at the thought.

“There will still be Kiveans on board,” Wade explained quickly. “But they want Human officers in charge of the actual combat.”

“I will need to contact General Wainright and see if they can find some more qualified naval and air force officers,” Mason said as he realized the ramifications of what the Kiveans were proposing. If they could get all of the modifications made to the ships before the Kleese came hunting for Earth, they might actually have a real warfleet to use to stop the Kleese disk ships.

Wade looked around the massive spacedock at all of the work being done. It felt good to be back home again, if Vesta could be called home. At least the asteroid had a large Human city and there were no explosive collars being worn by anyone. However, as calm as everything seemed now he knew it would not stay that way for long. Soon the Kleese would come searching, and once they found Earth it would be the beginning of a galactic war that might last for generations.

Chapter Sixteen

Major Nelson and Lieutenant Williams were walking down one of the busy streets in Smithfield. Around them, people were going about their lives as if it was just another day. It was hard to imagine that life here could seem so normal after what had happened to Earth.

“It’s amazing what they have done,” Beth spoke as she looked around in amazement. Tall, ten story buildings rose around her, and she could smell the aroma of baking bread coming from a nearby café.

“I spoke with Cheryl Robinson, their recruitment officer. She told me they have over 250,000 people living in Vesta right now, and that total grows larger ever day as new people are brought in from the camps on Earth,” Wade replied as he watched several young children and their parents cross the street in front of them. A number of troops off the ships had been allowed to come to Smithfield for leave until new barracks were ready for them.

“I heard several of the Kiveans talking about building new, extensive habitats inside a nearby asteroid,” Beth informed Wade as she continued to look round. It felt so good to be around other people. “They’re also going to help finish the new one that is being built here in Vesta. They think they can finish it in just a few months and begin moving people in.”

“But the others are going to take awhile, even with Kivean science,” spoke Wade sadly, knowing that more people on Earth would die before the new habitats were finished. It had been devastating to learn what the conditions were like on Earth. It was difficult to imagine all the suffering the Kleese had caused.

He had spoken to Drake Thomason about the refugee problem. It was amazing what all had been accomplished just to keep so many people alive. Now if they could only find a way to save all of them.

“What’s next?” asked Beth, taking a deep breath. She was still waiting to hear news about her mom and fiancée. She knew that it was a long shot that they might have survived, but she still had hope.

“It will be four more weeks before the Armageddon and the assault ships are ready to deploy,” Wade commented recalling his last briefing. “General Mitchell has offered me command of the marine detachment for the Armageddon.”

“Where does that put you in the chain of command on the ship?” Beth asked curiously.

“Third officer,” Wade replied. “Commander Kirby and Colonel Stehr will actually command the ship. They want an officer on the ship that is familiar with the Kleese and the way they use the assault ships to attack.”

“Are you taking anyone else with you that came back with us?” Beth asked. She had requested not to be assigned to a warship until she found out what had happened to her family. She needed some time to find herself and think about her future.

“No,” Wade replied, shaking his head. “The corridors are too small for us to use our battle suits, so I’m not taking anyone who can. They might be needed elsewhere. The ship was never designed with battle suits in mind.”

“Newer ships will have to be built taking the suits into consideration,” Beth responded with a nod. She thought about how shocked some of the military people on Vesta had been when they had demonstrated what the battle suits were capable of.

“General Mitchell and Marken have already been discussing new ship designs with Ethan Hall and Sean Miller,” continued Wade, knowing that because of the Kleese the Human race would have to maintain a large and powerful battle fleet. He just hoped they had the time to build it.

“There’s an Italian restaurant,” Beth said suddenly, her eyes opening wide in excitement. “Let’s eat there!” She could smell the enticing aroma of Italian food.

Wade laughed and nodded. “Sounds fine! After all, it’s been over a year since I’ve eaten at a real restaurant.”

The two entered the restaurant and soon had their food ordered. It was nice to be able to relax for a few minutes and not have to think about what they had been through or what waited in the future. The food was great, and for a while they felt like normal people again.

-

Captain Stevens looked at his latest orders in confusion. Major Anderson had asked him to check tent city for certain people. After running the names through the computer master files at the main gate processing center, several names had printed out.

“Looks like it’s going to be a lucky day for a few people in tent city,” commented Mark, looking over at Lieutenant Griffith. “We need to pick up a family called the Nelsons, as well as a Janice Williams.”

“Do you think this involves the military people that escaped from the aliens?” Griffith asked, his eyes looking over at Mark.

The news about the new aliens and the military escapees had been broadcast from Holbrook Station. There had even been several recorded interviews with the Kivean Marken. It had caused a lot of heated discussions over the past few days. Griffith would like the opportunity to speak to a few of the returned soldiers himself just to hear firsthand what had happened. He had heard rumors that the abducted military forces had been forced to fight for the aliens.

“Possibly,” Mark replied as he buttoned up his parka. “Let’s go see if we can find them. Tent city is a big place.”

Bracing themselves, they went back outside and through the main gate. Captain Stevens and Lieutenant Griffith trudged through the deep snow toward tent city. Over the months, more permanent barrack style buildings had been added, and most of the smaller tents had been done away with. The temperature was now slightly below zero with blowing snow, which had become quite common. As usual, visibility was limited, and they had to use the guide ropes to make it to the first of the two designated locations. The first was a small barracks building that families lived in. Opening a heavy door, they stepped into a small room where they could hang their parkas.

“Damn, it’s even cold in here?” Lieutenant Griffith complained as he pulled off his heavy parka and hung it up on one of the hooks.

Mark nodded as he hung his own up and they both went over to the other door. Opening it, they stepped quickly through so as not to let too much of the warm air escape. Heat was everything now in the survival camps. Looking across the small barrack-like room, he could see a number of curious faces turn toward him. Most of the people were sitting or lying on their bunks, reading or talking. A few were sitting at tables placed down the center aisle, playing various card or board games. In all, there were about forty people in the room.

One of the men stood up from where he had been sitting at a table and approached Mark. “What do you want?” he asked in a tired voice. Most of the people in the room had been in tent city for ten months or more waiting for their turn to go up to one of the new habitats being built on the Moon or Vesta.

“We’re looking for a family called the Nelsons,” answered Mark, evenly. There had been very little trouble in the camp over the last several months, particularly since the barracks had been completed. There were still some people living in large tents furnished by the military, but at least those were heated.

“Jonathan!” the man called out, yelling at an older man sitting on a nearby bunk next to a woman of the same age and a younger man who looked to be in his early twenties or late teens. “The captain wants to speak with you.”

The man looked up with surprise and standing up walked over to Captain Stevens. “I’m Jonathan Nelson,” the man said nervously. “What can I do for you?”

“Your family has been selected to go to Vesta immediately,” Mark replied. “Congratulations.”

“Why us?” asked Jonathan, feeling confused, his eyes growing wide. He knew neither he nor his wife had any special skills that could be of use on Vesta. He was an accountant and his wife had been a loan officer in a bank.

“Did you have a son or daughter that was abducted by the aliens?” Lieutenant Griffith asked.

“Yes, they took my son,” replied Jonathan, sadly. “He was a lieutenant in the marines.”

Mark smiled. That explained why this family had been moved to the front of the list. “A few days ago some alien ships showed up in our solar system, bringing with them some of our lost military personnel. They escaped from the Kleese, who are the ones that ordered the abducting. I believe your son is one of those that made it back.”

“Wade is alive?” Jonathan spoke, his eyes lighting up with hope.

“It seems that away,” Mark replied with a nod of his head. “If you’ll gather your belongings, I’ll have a jeep come by and pick you and your family up in about two hours.”

“Thank you,” Jonathan said, reaching out and shaking Mark’s hand. “My wife has been having a hard time dealing with Wade’s abduction; you have no idea how much this means to us.”

Mark nodded; it felt good to be able to deliver some good news for once. Turning back to Lieutenant Griffith, “Now we need to find Janice Williams.”

-

In the Jornada Operations Center, Lawrence Henderson, Marsha Trask, and General Wainright were having a meeting in one of the small conference rooms. They were discussing the appearance of the new aliens and what it might mean to the scattered survival centers spread across the planet.

“The food situation is still a big concern,” Marsha informed them as she read the latest reports. They had been using orbiting satellites and Holbrook Station to communicate with other survival centers. “Even with the new packaged food rations we’re getting from Vesta we barely have enough to feed everyone two meals a day. There’s been some grumbling, but so far nothing has come of it.”

“We still have plenty of baked bread from the stores of flour we’ve been able to round up,” General Wainright mentioned. The cooks at the two military bases nearby had their ovens going around the clock to keep up with the demand. He knew it was the same at the other camps. “However, in another few months we’ll even run out of that.”

“Mason says these new aliens will be able to greatly speed up the construction of new habitats as well as growing food,” responded Lawrence, leaning back and folding his arms across his chest. “Even so, it’s going to be several years before we can get everyone off the Earth.”

“I don’t know if we can survive on the surface that long,” General Wainright commented with concern in his voice. “Power is going to be a big problem soon. Some of the survival centers are relying on diesel and gasoline to run their generators, and that fuel isn’t going to last forever.”

“These Kiveans have promised to allow us to use some of their ships to expedite getting people off the planet,” added Lawrence, thinking about what they needed to do. “I just wish we had someplace safe to send them.”

“I spoke to General Stockton earlier today,” spoke Wainright. “He says the temperature fell last night to nearly twenty below at his camp.”

“The volcanoes are still erupting, though I understand that Yellowstone has calmed down considerably,” Marsha said. “We are still recording earth tremors every day. The weather isn’t going to get any better for quite some time.”

“This winter is going to last for decades,” added Lawrence, shaking his head. “I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to return to the Earth. With what the Kleese did to our planet, earthquakes and erupting volcanoes are going to be the norm for centuries to come, I’m afraid.”

“Then we move out into the solar system,” Wainright said evenly, accepting the fact that the Earth would no longer be the Human race’s home. “The Moon, Mars, and the asteroids will become the new Earths.”

Lawrence nodded in agreement his eyes focusing on the general, “I believe you’re right. It may only be our distant ancestors that get to return to Earth someday. I don’t believe it’ll happen in our lifetimes.”

“Strange to think that no one will be living on the planet,” Marsha murmured in a quiet voice. “Even so, there are a lot of records and pieces of history we will need to think about retrieving some day. I suspect there will always be a few scavenging missions occurring on the Earth somewhere; it won’t be abandoned completely.”

-

Outside the Operations Center, the snow continued to fall. Personnel in large snowplows were working nonstop to keep the blowing snow from drifting across the three runways. Due to poor visibility and stiff upper winds all shuttle launches had been canceled for the day, and the valuable shuttles had been placed in their hangers to await the time they could be safely launched.

In the barracks and the large tents, hundreds of thousands of people huddled around heaters. In the barracks, the heat was better circulated but people still wore light jackets to help stay warm. In the large, enclosed tents, people felt the chilling temperature as it penetrated the fabric walls. They wore heavier coats and took turns going to stand next to the heaters. Many were coughing, and doctors and nurses were now making regular rounds to all the barracks and particularly the tents, passing out cold and flu medicines.

Around the world, it was the same in all of the survival centers. Even in Australia, where another large survival camp was located, the temperature was hovering near zero. They had less snow than other camps and were anxiously waiting for the day when it would be their turn to be taken to the new habitats being built on the Moon, Mars, and Vesta. Many were on the verge of giving up hope.

All around the world, the major cities were dark. In New York, Chicago, Paris, London, Berlin, Stockholm, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Moscow, and Peking there was no movement and no lights. Around the Ring of Fire in the Pacific, volcanoes were still erupting, and the fault lines were still generating earthquakes. Daily, large tidal waves struck the shores of every country that bordered the large ocean. Even the Atlantic had its own problems as underwater volcanoes and fault lines continued to cause devastation.

There were no longer any known survivors outside of the survival camps. Food had become non-existent, and sources of fuel for portable generators had long been used up. Forests were dead, as well as all the multitudes of wildlife that had once existed on the surface of the planet. Only in the deepest parts of the ocean did life still hang on.

-

Mason was at his sisters. She had invited him over to spend some time with the kids and Michael. He strongly suspected she wanted to ask him about the Kiveans; everyone was curious about the new aliens that had suddenly put in an appearance. Susan had also invited his secretary, Adrienne, over as well. Mason wondered if his sister was trying to set him up with his gorgeous assistant.

“How’s progress going on the Armageddon?” Mason asked as he sat down on the sofa across from Michael. Susan and Adrienne were busy in the kitchen cooking supper and the two kids were out back playing.

“Those Kivean engineers really know what they’re doing,” replied Michael, allowing himself to relax in his large, oversized recliner. “They’re all over the ship tearing out systems and replacing them with their more advanced ones. I was in engineering earlier today, and they were installing a new fusion reactor. One of them told me that when they were finished it would be capable of generating four times the power than what our original nuclear plant had been capable of.”

“That’s good,” responded Mason, knowing they would need the added power for the new weapons and energy shield the Armageddon was being equipped with. Then, leaning forward, he asked the question he was really curious about. “What about this new Space Fold star drive of theirs?”

“It’s amazing,” answered Michel, his eyes lighting up. “It warps space, making the distance between two points less. The more power that is applied increases the warping effect, allowing the ship to travel even faster. From what I understand, our own scientists had experimented some with this but could never create a working model.”

“We can finally travel to the stars,” Mason said with a sigh, knowing that now when they finally could it was not safe to do so.

His dreams of someday exploring other stars had been crushed with the appearance of the Kleese. Now, after what the Human military escapees and the Kiveans had told him, he knew the galaxy for the most part was a very dangerous place.

“How soon before the modifications are done with the Armageddon? I want to get the Phoenix in as soon as possible so we can start on her.”

“Four more weeks and all of the modifications will be finished. The Kiveans will have their two assault ships finished in a couple of more days, then they will bring in two more. They want to add the new particle beam weapons to all of their ships.”’

“I spoke to the Kivean Marken this morning,” Mason said as he recalled that informative conversation. “They have already begun drilling out a new habitat for their race in a nearby asteroid. Their plan is for a habitat ten miles across, which should be adequate for their people. Marken believes they can have the full habitat done in less than twelve weeks.”

“Are they going to put weapons on the asteroid?” Michael asked, not sure if he felt comfortable with an alien race having a military presence so close to Vesta.

“Yes,” Mason replied. This had been a concern until he had spoken to Marken. “They’re going to be installing railgun and pulse fusion beams for protection as well as a number of particle beam cannons. They have requested that we furnish some military personnel to operate the weapons systems, as well as a few squads of marines in battle suits for a security force.”

“These Kiveans really don’t like fighting, do they?” Michael said in surprise. “It sounds like they’re going to be depending on us to protect them.”

“The Kiveans are willing to fight,” Mason replied. “They’re just not very good at it because they don’t have the aggressive tendencies that we do.”

“So they furnish the technology, and we furnish the military,” Michael said after a moment.

“Yes, I spoke to General Mitchell, and he has suggested that we allow a number of the military people that escaped with the Kiveans to handle their defense. He has suggested setting up a small military base upon the asteroid to ensure the Kiveans stay safe. Their technology and knowledge are going to play a key role in our future.”

“I guess I can live with that,” responded Michael, taking a deep breath. “I’ve seen those battle suits they were using; it’s astonishing what they’re capable of.”

“Yes, Lieutenant Jeffries demonstrated one for us as well,” added Mason, recalling how amazed he had been at the suit’s capabilities. It was like watching a one man army.

“Supper’s ready,” announced Susan, stepping into the room with a pleased smile. For once, she had everyone here at the same time. “Go wash up, and Michael, go yell at the kids. It’s about time we all sat down and had a meal together.”

After washing, Mason went into the dining room where Adrienne was busy putting the food on the table. “Hello, Adrienne,” Mason said in a pleasant voice. He noticed that she had her blonde hair tied back and was wearing a knee length skirt. Her legs looked really nice.

“Hi,” she replied with a friendly smile. “I’m glad your sister invited me over to eat. It’s been a while since I had a home cooked meal. Most of the time I just fix something simple for myself.”

“Susan’s a great cook,” Michael responded as the two kids burst into the room. The two girls, Candace and Karen, were eight and ten years old and normally just full of questions. They quieted down somewhat when they saw Adrienne.

“Is she your date, Uncle Mason?” Karen asked curiously as she sat down at the table and looked at him, expecting an answer.

Adrienne laughed and her face flushed slightly at seeing the sudden uncomfortable look upon Mason’s face. “We’re just good friends,” she explained with a smile.

It was at that moment that Michael came in and noticed the flushed look on Adrienne’s face. “The girl’s aren’t misbehaving, are they?” asked Michael, suspecting that they probably were. He knew how his girls could be at times.

“No, they’re just fine,” replied Adrienne. She had always enjoyed being around kids and hoped to have several of her own someday.

Susan came in carrying a bowl full of hot rolls and set them down in the middle of the table. “Let’s eat,” she said, sitting down in her chair.

“When are we going to get to see one of the aliens?” Candace asked her eyes wide with curiosity. “Do they look like the monsters in the movies about space aliens?”

“No,” replied Mason, chuckling. “They look almost like we do. Some of them will be visiting Smithfield in the next few days, so you might get to see one.”

“Are they mean?” asked Karen, worriedly. “The ones that came the first time were.”

“No,” replied Mason, shaking his head as he reached for a roll and a knife to butter it with. “These are very friendly.”

“I met Harnett today,” Adrienne commented as she took a bite of her salad. “She seems quite polite and was telling me about their advanced medical practices. She’s going to meet with some of our medical staff and explain what the Kiveans have to offer as far as medical technology goes.”

“I think our doctors are going to be fascinated by the Kivean’s nanite technology,” commented Mason, knowing how valuable it could be. “Harnett is Marken’s life mate.”

“Life mate?” repeated Susan, looking confused. “What does that mean?”

“It’s the same as being husband and wife,” Mason explained as he took a bite of his roll. There was definitely nothing better than home cooking, and Susan was a great cook.

The conversation at the supper table continued, with numerous questions being asked about the Kiveans. The kids finished eating quickly and asked to be excused to go back outside and play with several of their friends. Once they were gone, the look on Susan’s face became more serious.

“How soon before these Kleese come back?” she asked, putting her fork down.

“We don’t know,” responded Mason, looking over at Michael. “The Kiveans erased all traces of Earth from the Kleese’s records, but they still have a general idea of our location from their initial survey mission. Marken thinks three to six months and they’ll manage to find us again.”

“What then?” asked Susan, worriedly. “Surely we can’t stop one of their big disk ships. What if they come to Vesta?”

“We will be ready for them this time,” Michael assured her, reaching out and taking her hand. “We’ll have the Kivean ships as well as the Phoenix and the Armageddon. With the new weapons and defenses the Kiveans are giving us, it won’t be like the last time.”

“I hope not,” replied Susan, giving Michael’s hand a gentle squeeze.

“By the time the Kleese return we will even have Vesta more heavily armed,” Mason added. “With the new particle cannons the Kiveans are giving us, the Kleese won’t dare come anywhere near us.”

Susan nodded, but she was not feeling near as confident as the two men were. It sounded to her like they were going to war!

-

Later, Mason walked Adrienne back to her home. She lived in a small apartment building on the outskirts of Smithfield.

“Your sister seems very concerned about the Kleese returning,” Adrienne commented.

“I can’t blame her,” Mason replied with a sigh. He had been pleasantly surprised at how much he had enjoyed Adrienne’s company. “She worries about Michael and the kids.”

“You’re lucky to have a family like them,” Adrienne said, her eyes looking sad. Her parents had never made it out of Seattle, and she strongly suspected they had died when the first massive tidal wave struck. She just hoped that their deaths had been quick and that they died together.

Mason nodded; he knew that Adrienne was more or less alone with no family in Smithfield. In recent months, she had really dedicated herself to doing her job well. “We need to do this again,” he ventured after a moment. “I really enjoyed myself tonight.”

“I would like that,” responded Adrienne, demurely. She liked Mason and would truly enjoy spending more time with him. It made her feel warm inside knowing she wasn’t quite so alone.

Moments later, they arrived at her apartment complex, and she was surprised when Mason leaned forward and kissed her gently on the cheek.

“See you in the morning,” he said as he turned to go. “I have an early meeting with Marken and General Mitchell. They have something they want to speak to me about.”

Adrienne nodded and watched as Mason left. She wondered where this relationship would go. With a smile, she went inside. Only time would tell.

-

The next morning, Mason was seated at his desk when Adrienne announced that Marken, General Mitchell, and Major Nelson had arrived. After a moment, she opened the door to his office and ushered them in.

“Hello,” Mason greeted them, rising to his feet. “I understand you want to talk to me.” He gestured toward the chairs in front of his desk and sat back down.

“We have been studying the refugee problem you have,” General Mitchell began after taking a seat. “Even with the Kivean’s advanced technology it’s going to take several years to get the survivors off Earth and during that time we’re going to lose a lot of them.”

Mason sighed and leaned back in his chair. He had seen the reports and the computer estimates that predicted close to thirty percent or more of the people in the camps could die. “I know,” he replied despondently “But unless you have another option, there isn’t much else that we can do. Even with Kivean technology we can only build the new habitats so fast.”

“We have a proposal,” Marken responded, his eyes looking intent as he gazed at Mason. “What if I told you there was a way to get everyone off the Earth within six months.”

“That’s impossible,” gasped Mason, his eyes focusing on Marken. “It can’t be done!”

“We have a plan,” began General Mitchell, looking over at Marken and then at Major Nelson. “If it works we can do exactly what Marken just said.”

“What’s the plan?” Mason asked as an uneasy feeling spread over him. He had a hunch he wasn’t going to like this proposal.

“We want to take some of our ships and return to the Kleese space station,” Mitchell explained in an even voice his eyes steady. “Once there, we will take full control of it and then use its Space Fold drive to return to Earth.”

“The entire station?” Mason spoke in shock, shaking his head in disbelief. “Is that even possible?”

“The Kleese have all of their big stations equipped with Space Fold drives,” explained Marken, patiently. “The stations are built in the Kleese’s home systems and then moved to wherever they need them in their Empire. Due to the huge size of the stations, the Space Fold drive will operate much slower than normal. From the time we take the station and activate the drive, it will take us nearly four weeks to return to Earth.”

“The station is covered with habitation domes,” General Mitchell informed Mason. “Enough that we could put most of the survivors from Earth in them until the new habitats on the Moon, Mars, and the asteroids are completed. The rest can be put inside the station itself.”

“This idea sounds insane,” protested Mason, shaking his head doubtfully. “What if the Kleese are expecting you to try something like this?”

“They won’t be,” Marken said reassuringly. “The Kleese will not expect us to attack the station.”

“Why not?” Mason asked. He could see this entire plan ending in disaster.

“The Kleese don’t think that way,” explained Marken, calmly. “Their way of thinking is totally alien when compared to the humanoid races of the galaxy. They will never expect us to return and attempt to take the station.”

“What if they resist? What if several of their disk ships try to stop you?”

“That’s why we want to take the Armageddon and the assault ships that have been equipped with the new particle beam weapons,” explained General Mitchell. “If we time it just right, we can destroy the disk ships before they can become a danger to us. It might delay a future attack upon the solar system for several years.”

“Enough time for us to build up a real fleet,” Major Nelson added.

“Keep in mind, Mr. Randle, that the station has some extensive manufacturing capabilities,” Marken continued. “It is fully capable of building more assault ships as well as anything else your people might need. As Major Nelson suggested, we can use it to create a sizable fleet to protect this solar system.” Marken didn’t add that the fleet could someday be used to take the war to the Kleese.

Mason closed his eyes, knowing this was not a decision he could make on his own; too much was at stake. “I will need to speak to some other people before we can approve such a mission,” he finally said. Mason knew that, at the very least, he needed to talk to General Wainright, Lawrence Henderson, and probably Mayor Silas on the Moon.

“We expected that,” General Mitchell replied. “This is a big decision, but we firmly believe it’s the right thing to do.”

“How soon can you be ready to go if we approve it?” Mason asked. He knew, after thinking about it for a few moments, that they might not have much of a choice, not if they wanted to save all the survivors on Earth.

“Four more weeks,” General Mitchell replied. “Major Nelson will be taking four hundred marines with battle suits aboard two transport ships. We’ll need the Armageddon and six of the assault ships if we want this to succeed.”

“How hard is this going to be?” Mason asked. He didn’t see how four hundred marines, even equipped in the powerful battle suits, could take a station with a crew of over one hundred thousand.

“We left a few surprises behind in the station’s computer systems,” Marken confessed with an all knowing smile. “If we can take out the disk ships, we can take the station.”

“Keep in mind that there are also nearly fifty thousand military personnel still in stasis there as well,” Nelson added. He badly wanted to rescue them; they didn’t deserve to go through what his marines had experienced.

Mason nodded. “Make your plans and I will talk to the others. You will have your answer tomorrow.” Mason leaned back and closed his eyes briefly. He just hoped they were making the right decision. If they approved this crazy mission and it failed, they might have just signed the death warrant for the entire Human race.

Chapter Seventeen

Major Nelson was aboard one of the assault ships standing next to Marken. For this mission, it had been decided he would command the marine operation from Marken’s ship, which was acting as the command vessel. On board the two large transport ships were four hundred marines under the command of Lieutenants Williams and Jeffries. Beth had agreed to command one of the marine detachments, as she was intimately familiar with the Type Three battle suits and the station. Unfortunately, only two hundred of the marines would be wearing the Type Threes, the rest would be in the Type Twos.

“Your people seem very resilient,” Marken commented from his position at the command console. “I don’t know if mine could have done as well if it had been our planet, which had been destroyed.”

Wade nodded and then spoke. “There are some politicians at Luna City demanding an immediate declaration of war against the Kleese. I don’t think that would be wise at this juncture.” Wade had been impressed how Mayor Silas and Mason Randle had isolated the surviving politicians so their constant bickering would not interfere with the rescue operations.

“Your people on Earth must be rescued first and your fleet built up,” Marken said, agreeing with Wade’s assessment of the situation. “Once we have built new homes for your people on the Moon, Mars, Vesta and the other asteroids then we can discuss war with the Kleese.”

“That was your plan all along, wasn’t it?” asked Wade, focusing his attention on Marken. “You needed a highly aggressive race to take the war to the Kleese Empire so your world can be free someday.”

Marken was silent for a long moment as he contemplated his answer. He knew his best option was the truth. “Yes,” he replied evenly. “We needed a race that was very forceful and would not fear the Kleese. We’ve waited many years for such a race to appear. The Kleese and the other two Galactic Empires have controlled the galaxy for too long. They expect all the other races in the galaxy to serve them. That must come to an end.”

Wade nodded; the answer was what he had been expecting. “After the Kleese destroyed our world they should have made certain there were no survivors. My people will never forgive the Kleese for what they took from us. The war you wanted will someday happen. We won’t rest until we have destroyed their Empire.”

“In time,” answered Marken, knowing the Kleese had made a terrible error in judgment with the Humans, one that someday they would pay grievously for. “For now we must seize the station; it will give us the resources to save your people and someday build the ships we will need for the war.”

“What part do you see your people playing?” asked Wade, curiously. He knew that Marken’s people were not very aggressive or good at war. Even their fleet operations lacked finesse.

“My people are highly innovative and love research,” Marken responded as his eyes wandered around the Command Center. “We’ll help in this war in every way possible except actual combat. We will design new weapons and power systems to allow your ships to meet the Kleese on an equal footing.”

There were half a dozen Human military officers present. Several were operating the weapons systems under the watchful eye of a Kivean, and the others were operating other key consoles. There were eight assault ships, two large transport ships, and the Armageddon in the fleet. Marken had suggested that the Humans be the ones to operate the fleet’s weapons and Commander Kirby on the Armageddon would command the actual battle.

“What do you think the Kleese’s response to this attack will be?”

Marken turned to face Wade. “They will not expect it. It’s been centuries since anyone dared to attack the Kleese or the other two Galactic Empires. If we can successfully take the station and move it to Earth, it will set the Kleese back years in their continued exploration of this sector.”

“The Kleese are bound to search for the station, and the logical assumption will be that it has been moved to Earth’s system,” Wade pointed out. “They will know or strongly suspect that we are responsible.”

“Eventually, they will send a fleet to retake the station,” Marken admitted as he studied the instruments on his console. They were nearing their drop out point. “The fleet will consist primarily of assault ships like this one. They’ll expect an easy victory. Our scientists are even now making further changes to the other assault ships as well as the Phoenix. We are strengthening the defensive energy shield, increasing the power to the pulse fusion weapons, as well as adding more particle beams.”

“Will there be Kleese ships in the attacking fleet?” Wade asked with concern. No one, not even the Kiveans, had ever seen one participate in an actual fleet battle.

“Undoubtedly,” replied Marken, letting out a deep breath. “They will not be prepared for what we’ll have waiting for them. If we can defeat the initial attack, then we’ll have sufficient breathing room to prepare a real battle fleet.”

“I hope so,” responded Wade, wondering if one of those big Kleese ships could be defeated. There was still a dark shadow hanging over the future of the Human race. Wade just hoped the Kiveans could deliver on their promise for more and better weapons.

“We will be dropping out of Fold Space shortly, Major,” Marken spoke. “You may want to prepare your marines.”

Wade nodded; there was a squad of marines on the ship that would be going with him to capture the station’s Command Center.

-

On board the Armageddon, Michael watched tensely as the final seconds ticked by. Colonel Stehr, his executive officer, was standing behind him at the main tactical console. There was an air of tension and anticipation as they prepared for their first battle against an alien race.

“Our foremost targets must be any Kleese ships that are not docked to the station,” Skagern informed Michael. “They will be fully crewed and capable of firing upon us once they realize we are a threat to the station.”

There were a number of Kiveans on board serving in advisory roles since much of the equipment was so new, particularly the Space Fold drive and the weapons systems. Michael was glad they were on the ship in case something went wrong. “What type of weapons does the station have?”

“Only a few,” Skagern responded. “The station has a few dozen energy beam turrets, but their main defense are the assault ships in the bays. Once we drop out of Fold Space Taalon will send a signal to the station’s computers via a back door into the Kleese computer, sealing the hatches to the majority of the bays except the two that we are going to use.”

“Drop out in five minutes,” one of the Kiveans at the main computer station reported.

“Weapons on standby,” Michael ordered.

“Charging particle beam weapons,” Colonel Stehr responded as he passed on the necessary orders to the weapons crews.

Michel knew the Armageddon carried the largest particle beam weapons, and he was anxious to see how the new weapons performed. The Kiveans had promised that the beams would have a devastating effect upon the Kleese disk ships. They had also furnished the exact areas on the Kleese ships to strike to cause the most damage.

The last few minutes passed rapidly by and then, suddenly, the station appeared just ahead of the Armageddon. On the main viewscreen, the station swelled until it filled the entire screen.

“Six Kleese ships detected,” Ensign Bree Fullerton reported from her sensor console. “Three are docked to the station, the rest are in orbit around it.”

“Target the nearest,” Michael ordered firmly. He activated the fleet com system, which would allow him to communicate with all the ships of the small fleet. “Designate them as bug one, bug two, and bug three. Bring us around thirty degrees and close on bug one; all weapons fire upon target lock.”

In space, the eight assault ships took up supporting positions around the Armageddon with the two transport ships falling in behind. From Marken’s ship, a signal flashed out to the Kleese core computer on the station, ordering all of the flight bay hatches to shut until further notice. Additional communications went out powering down the energy cannons on the hull of the massive structure.

-

Inside the station Command Center, the Kleese on duty looked confused as key systems suddenly refused to respond. A warning alarm sounded, indicating that ships had been detected approaching the station. The Kleese quickly passed on the order to their armored conscripts to protect the Command Center. They then turned to the computer system seeking to find why it was not functioning.

-

The Armageddon quickly turned until its bow was facing the first Kleese ship, which was only now beginning to notice the new fleet that had dropped in unannounced.

“Fire particle beam cannons!” Colonel Stehr ordered as several green lights glowed on his tactical console indicating they had a firm weapons lock on the Kleese ship.

From the Armageddon, two dark blue beams lashed out and struck the hull of the nearest disk ship. Massive explosions tore through the ship’s hull, staggering it. The beams blinked out and then moments later fired again. They struck the same spot on the enemy ship’s hull, driving deeper and deeper into the heart of the ship until it struck one of its main fusion reactors. A massive explosion rocked the Kleese ship as a major segment of the hull was blown off into space.

“Fire main railguns!” ordered Stehr, wanting to inflict as much damage on the Kleese ship as rapidly as possible. “Retarget particle beam cannons to secondary target!”

On the bow of the Armageddon, the four large railguns belched forth their deadly three thousand pound tungsten rounds. The rounds struck, smashing large holes in the disk ship, causing secondary explosions as delicate systems inside the ship were compromised. Power conduits exploded and the ship began bleeding atmosphere.

“Keep up the pressure,” Michael ordered, his eyes glued intently to the main viewscreen. They had taken the Kleese completely by surprise and Michael wanted to press the advantage.

He could see now that the other ships were firing and numerous particle beams were striking the now nearly defenseless Kleese ship, smashing its hull. The Kiveans had been right; the Kleese’s energy screen was having very little effect upon the particle beam weapons or the large railgun rounds.

“Antimatter missiles launching,” Colonel Stehr reported. “The energy shield on the Kleese ship is down.”

Michael knew the sublight drives on the antimatter missiles would allow them to travel the short distance to the Kleese ship almost instantaneously.

From the Armageddon, two antimatter missiles launched, striking the unprotected hull of the Kleese ship and detonating. Two twenty-megaton explosions lit up space as the Kleese ship writhed under the punishment of the twin fireballs. Moments later, the fireballs died down, revealing a slowly expanding mass of gases and wreckage.

“Bug one is down,” Ensign Bree reported as the red threat icon representing the Kleese ship vanished from her sensor screen.

“Close on bug two,” ordered Michael, taking a deep breath. “All ships, volley fire upon target lock!”

From the nearest Kleese ship, several bright blue pulse fusion beams flashed out, striking the Armageddon’s energy screen. The screen had been installed by the Kiveans and heavily reinforced with multiple technological innovations. As a result, the screen on the Armageddon was much more powerful than the one on the Kleese ship.

“Shield down to ninety-two percent,” Lieutenant Marsten reported from his station at one of the weapons consoles.

“Target lock,” called out Colonel Stehr. “All ships fire!”

“Two of the docked Kleese ships are beginning to back away from the station and the third is powering up,” Ensign Bree reported as two of the three ships began to show some space between them and their docking ports.

The Armageddon suddenly shuddered violently, and the lights briefly dimmed. A console shorted out, sending a brilliant cascade of sparks across the Command Center.

“Status!” barked Michael, wondering if the ship had been damaged.

“Antimatter missile hit the screen,” Lieutenant Marsten reported. “Shield strength is at forty-two percent and dropping.”

The Kleese ship that had fired the antimatter missile was now under heavy attack from the Armageddon and her fleet. Explosions began to pelt the ship’s hull as railgun rounds and then dark blue particle beams blasted away at the ship. Moments later, two more antimatter missiles finished the ship off in two glaring explosions.

“Bug two is down, and we just lost one of the assault ships,” Ensign Bree reported as one of the green icons on her sensor screen suddenly flared up and vanished. “I believe it was struck by an antimatter missile.”

Michael let out a deep breath. “Close on bug three; we’ll take them out one by one. The other three Kleese ships will be designated bugs four, five, and six.”

“Sir,” I am receiving a message from Marken,” interrupted Lieutenant Jones from communications. “He reports their scanners are detecting a power buildup in the remaining Kleese ship’s Space Fold drives. He believes the Kleese are preparing to flee.”

“All four remaining Kleese ships are pulling away from us,” Colonel Stehr reported.

“Hit bug three with a full spread of antimatter missiles,” ordered Michael, wanting to inflict as much harm on the Kleese as possible while they had the opportunity. He didn’t want them to even think about returning to the station.

He also knew that there was a faint chance that one of these ships might have been the one that had launched the deadly missile at Earth. He hoped that by hitting the retreating Kleese ship with so many missiles at once it might knock their energy shield down, allowing a few to impact the hull.

“Missiles launching,” Colonel Stehr reported.

From the Armageddon, twelve missiles flashed away from their launch tubes. Massive detonations rattled bug three’s energy screen and then four missiles penetrated, laying waste to the hull as they detonated in bright flashes of light.

On the main viewscreen of the Armageddon, Michael watched as the Kleese ship vanished under the onslaught.

“Bug three is down, and the other three Kleese ships have jumped to Fold Space and are no longer showing on sensors,” Bree reported with obvious relief in her voice.

“Contact Marken and tell him he has a go to take the station,” Michael ordered with relief in his voice.

The Armageddon and four of the assault ships would remain on guard duty outside the station while the remaining three assault ships and two transports would enter the two flight bays they had control over and land Major Nelson’s marines.

-

Marken looked over at Taalon and Kalarn. Both had very pale looks upon their faces. Never had he imagined the Humans would be able to destroy three of the large Kleese ships so quickly. He had expected a long, drawn out engagement, with the Kleese eventually backing down after one of their ships was damaged or destroyed. They abhorred physical harm, and Marken had been certain they would withdraw rather than risk death. Of course, the Humans had not given them that option. Only now was he beginning to realize just what his race had unleashed upon the Kleese. He also knew that next time the Kleese would be better prepared.

“Commander Kirby has given the go ahead to begin the station assault,” one of the Humans at communications reported.

Marken nodded. “Take us into the flight bays.”

-

Wade was the first marine out of the assault ship. The others with him quickly gathered around. “We’ll take the Command Center and Lieutenant Williams will be leading a squad to the Flight Command Center,” Wade informed them. “Don’t kill anyone unless they resist.”

A few minutes later, they were making their way quickly through the massive station toward one of the transit tubes, which would take them close to the Command Center. A dozen Kiveans were with Wade’s squad and after a moment, they requested that he stop.

“What’s wrong?” asked Wade, seeing the distressed looks upon their faces.

“It’s the smell,” one of them replied in distress. “It smells like death.”

Wade carefully cracked open his helmet to allow the outside air to enter his suit. He quickly sealed it back shut again, realizing the Kiveans were right. The air in the station smelled like decomposing bodies. They also hadn’t encountered any of the crew.

“Spread out and search some of the adjoining rooms,” Wade ordered grimly. “I want to know where the smell is coming from.” He also activated his suit com so he could speak to Marken back on the assault shuttle. “Marken, the station smells like death. If I didn’t know better, it smells as if there are rotting corpses somewhere close by.”

“I’m getting the same report from the other units,” replied Marken, uneasily. “Something is wrong. No one is reporting seeing any of the station’s crew either.”

Wade was getting a sneaking suspicion, and he hoped that he was wrong. “Lieutenant Jeffries, I want you to take several squads and check a few of the domes where the crew lives, let me know what you find.”

“Yes, Sir,” Jeffries replied. “We’re on our way.”

“Major, you need to come and look at this,” Private Dawson spoke, sounding distressed. “You won’t like it.”

Wade followed Private Dawson over to an open hatch and glanced inside. He froze at the sight in front of him. Half a dozen humanoids were lying on the floor, their bodies already partially decomposed.

“What happened here?” asked Wade, turning toward one of the Kiveans who had followed him into the room.

The Kivean turned around and vomited, retching loudly. After a moment, he turned back and shook his head. “It was the Kleese,” the Kivean responded. “All the humanoid races that crew the station are implanted with a small device under the skin that contains a deadly poison. If an individual displeases or fails to do as a Kleese asks the device is activated, allowing the poison to spread throughout their system. Death is almost immediate. The Kleese prefer that method of control for the station crew rather than the explosive collars worn by their military conscripts.”

“What about your race?” Wade demanded. “Do you have the same poison implants?”

“We did,” the Kivean admitted. “But we discovered how to deactivate them and then we removed the devices as soon as we reached your solar system.”

“Let’s head on to the Command Center,” ordered Wade, backing out of the room and shutting the hatch.

A few minutes later, Lieutenant Jeffries contacted Wade. “We’ve checked the first habitation dome and everyone inside is dead. Evidently the crew has some type of poison device inside of them that has been activated.”

“That’s what it seems like,” replied Wade, fearing that the Kleese may have wiped out the entire crew of the station after learning of the escape of the Humans and the Kiveans. It was hard for Wade to fathom how a race could be so callous and insensitive.

After taking a rapid transit vehicle to the center of the station, they finally reached the Command Center, and for the first time Wade saw a group of living beings. Standing in front of the hatch were ten conscripts in

Type Two battle armor.

“RG rifles!” Wade ordered as the conscripts spotted Wade’s squad.

Almost instantly, the corridor was full of ordnance as both groups opened fire. One of Wade’s marines fell as several rounds penetrated his chest armor and exited out of the back of the suit in a spray of blood.

“They’re firing armor piercing rounds!” Wade warned taking cover behind a bulkhead as rounds stitched the deck just in front of him leaving smoking holes in the floor of the corridor.

“Private Dawson, hit them with explosive rounds!” Wade knew the more powerful explosives of their RG rifles should quickly eliminate the opposition.

Dawson stepped out into the open and fired two rounds down the corridor. He suddenly yelled in pain and fell, grabbing his leg.

At the same moment, two resounding explosions echoed down the corridor. “Use your energy lances,” Wade yelled as he drew his and charged down the corridor with the rest of his marines right behind. The corridor was now full of smoke, making it difficult to see.

Upon reaching the hatch to the Command Center, they found only three of the conscripts still standing and they seemed to be dazed. Wade and his marines made quick work of the three with their energy lances.

Turning, Wade saw Private Dawson limping toward them. “Where are you hit?” Wade asked with concern. Dawson had been with him even before being abducted by the Kleese.

“My leg,” Dawson replied with a slight groan. “My suit has it under control.”

Wade nodded. He had lost two of his marines, and Dawson was injured. He wondered what else awaited them in the Command Center. Turning, he looked back down the corridor where the Kiveans were waiting. They had stayed back in the other corridor during the brief battle.

Seeing that everything was clear, they hurried up to where Wade and his remaining marines were standing. Taalon stepped forward and entered a command code on the control panel next to the hatch. Nothing happened.

“The controls have been overridden from the inside,” he informed Wade as he stepped back away from the hatch.

“We thought that might be a possibility,” Wade responded as he gestured for Private Foster to come forward. He knew Nicole was carrying some special explosives.

“Blow the hatch?” she asked as she stepped up and examined it carefully.

“Yes,” Wade replied. Nicole had been trained in demolition and was an expert when it came to small explosives.

“A few well placed charges should suffice,” she said after a moment.

Nicole removed a small satchel attached to her side and took out four small explosive charges. She carefully put them in place and then inserted remotely controlled blasting caps in each one.

Wade watched her carefully and then motioned for the Kiveans to step back. He also noticed that Sergeant Sterns had arrived with her squad of marines.

“Everywhere it’s the same,” she reported nervously. “They’re all dead. The Kleese must have wiped out the entire crew after we escaped.”

“We’re going to have to blast our way into the Command Center,” Wade informed her. “As you can see, the hatch had guards in front of it when we arrived. There may be more conscripts inside, so we need to be prepared for a battle.”

“Just be careful where you fire your weapons,” Taalon cautioned. “Some of the consoles and equipment in there could easily be damaged. We’re going to need the computers.”

“I’m ready,” Private Foster reported as she inserted the last blasting cap.

Wade had his marines move back a few yards and then nodded at Foster. “Set it off.”

With four resounding blasts, the door fell inwards into the Command Center. Instantly, Sergeant Sterns leaped through the door, her energy lance drawn.

“Damn, she’s fast,” uttered Private Russell as he quickly followed her.

Wade and the rest of the marines entered through the hatch and found the battle was already over. Four more conscripts in battle suits were lying dead, cut into by Private Russell and Sergeant Stern’s energy lances. Sergeant Stern was holding her arm as if in pain. There were a dozen Kleese in the room, and the rest of the marines quickly moved to dispatch them. After what they had seen on the station, asking them to surrender never entered anyone’s mind.

“What’s wrong with your arm, Sergeant?” Wade asked with concern in his voice.

“Just a stinger, Sir,” Jamie replied in a voice filled with pain. “Damn RG round hit the outer armor of my suit. It didn’t penetrate, but it hurts like hell. The damn suit is just ignoring it since it isn’t showing as an actual injury.”

Wade nodded and turned his attention to Taalon. “What’s the situation on the rest of the station?”

“We’re checking now,” Taalon replied. He had already sent a message to Marken informing him that they had taken the Command Center and to send the rest of the Kiveans that had been assigned to this part of the operation. Sergeant Perry and his squad would be escorting them.

“Private Russell, take four marines and set up a guard outside the hatch, let me know immediately if you see or hear anything.”

“Yes, Sir,” Russell replied as he quickly called out four other marine’s names and moved to follow Wade’s orders.

“Lieutenant Williams, have you secured the Flight Command Center?” Wade asked over his com. He hadn’t heard from Beth for a few minutes.

“Yes, Sir,” replied Beth, sounding slightly out of breath. “We had to fight our way in. There were half a dozen conscripts in battle suits waiting for us outside the hatch. I lost two marines, but we have secured the Flight Command Center. There were four Kleese inside, and they’ve been taken care of.”

Wade didn’t need to ask what taken care of meant. “I want you to start sending teams out with Kiveans to the auxiliary Command Centers. If there are any surviving Kleese on the station that’s where they will attempt to go if they want to regain control. Warn your marines to be aware there might be more conscripts waiting for them. We don’t have the marines to search the entire station due to its size, so we have to take over the key control points.”

“Yes, Sir,” Beth replied. “I will have teams on the way shortly.”

“Lieutenant Jeffries?” spoke Wade, assuming that the lieutenant was listening in on the command network.

“Yes, Sir?” Jeffries replied.

“What have you found so far?”

“We’ve checked two habitation domes, and all the humanoids inside are dead; we’re on our way to the next one now.”

“Nix that,” Wade ordered. “I don’t think we’re going to find anyone left alive on this station other than the Kleese and whatever conscripts they’ve kept for their personal protection. I want you to send a squad each to Engineering and the six main fusion reactors, which power the station. I don’t want the surviving Kleese to be able to sabotage anything.”

-

Two hours later, Wade stood next to Marken on the Command Pedestal in the Command Center. Main Engineering, the Flight Command Center, the two Auxiliary Command Centers, and all six fusion reactors were all safely under control of Wade’s marines. A few more conscripts in battle armor had been encountered and after several short battles, had been eliminated. There was also a small group of Kiveans with each squad in case their technical expertise was needed.

“Any idea how many Kleese may still be on the station?” asked Wade, worriedly. He didn’t like the idea of still having live Kleese roaming the station. The problem was there was a good chance they still had conscripts in battle suits with them as protection.

“Unknown,” Marken replied as he studied the controls on the main console in front of him. “Normally I would say a couple of hundred, but most of them might have been staying on their ships due to the conditions in the station.”

“Why didn’t they clean it up?” asked Wade, feeling confused. He was beginning to realize just how alien the Kleese way of thinking was.

“I suspect they were waiting for the new crew to arrive,” Marken replied. “From what we have found in the station’s computer logs the Kleese enacted this complete kill of the station’s crew immediately after our escape. They also eliminated most of the conscripts that were present, only keeping a few of the most trusted ones for personal guards. The new crew was to arrive in two more weeks.”

“What about our military in stasis?” Wade asked suddenly, concerned that they might have been eliminated also.

“Still in stasis,” Marken replied. “I suspect that if the Kleese had been able to remove them from the stasis chambers they too would have been eliminated. It probably would have been one of the first things the Kleese would have ordered the new crew to do.”

“Why not just kill them in the chambers?” Wade asked.

“The long term stasis chambers are very expensive,” Marken replied. “The Kleese obviously didn’t want to risk damaging them.”

“How soon can we get underway?” Wade wanted to be gone from this section of space before the Kleese returned with reinforcements. They had been lucky so far, all things considered.

“Shortly,” Marken replied as he pressed several buttons on the large control panel in front of him. He checked several small data screens and then spoke to Taalon. “All the assault ships except the ones returning with the Armageddon have docked. We’re already powering up the station’s Space Fold drive.”

-

In space, Commander Michael Kirby watched as the massive space station suddenly accelerated away and then jumped into Fold Space. He knew it would take four weeks for the station to make it to the solar system.

“Time to go home,” he said, looking over at Colonel Stehr. There were two assault ships that would be returning with them.

“I just can’t help wondering if we started a war today,” the colonel said in a quiet and worried voice.

Michael looked over at Stehr in surprise and then replied. “Colonel, we have been at war since the Kleese destroyed Earth. I strongly suspect that the battle today is only the first of many remaining in our future.”

Moments later, the Armageddon and its two escorts vanished into Fold Space. The first shots in humanity’s war against the Kleese had been fired, and the first battle had been won.

Chapter Eighteen

Mason was in the Control Room on Vesta staring at the main viewscreen in amazement. General Mitchell, Pamela Cairns, Drake Thomason, and Ethan Hall were all standing next to him. The screen was showing the massive Kleese space station going into orbit midway between the Earth and the Moon. The video was being broadcast live from Holbrook Station.

“How big is that damn thing?” Drake asked his eyes wide in disbelief at what he was seeing. The station seemed to fill the entire screen.

“The entire station is one hundred and twenty kilometers across and twenty four kilometers thick,” replied General Mitchell, watching the viewscreen and recalling the last time he had seen the station. “It has numerous habitation domes measuring anywhere from five to twenty kilometers in diameter.”

“How many people can we put on that station?” asked Pamela, realizing that here might be the solution to saving the survivors down on Earth as Marken had indicated earlier. She was breathing heavier as she realized that here might be their salvation.

“We can put two million just in the habitation domes,” Mitchell responded with a relaxed smile. “They are all set up for humanoid species so our people should be able to move right in. Not only that, we can grow food crops in the domes as well so sustenance should not be an issue.”

“How many people were normally on this station?” asked Mason, finding it hard to fathom how something so large could have been constructed. It must have taken the Kleese years to build something so large.

“From what Marken has told me, there normally is a crew of one to two hundred thousand on one of these stations, with an additional ten to forty thousand conscripts to carry out Kleese combat missions.”

“Where are we going to put the rest of our people?” Pamela asked her eyes still glued to the screen.

“There are barracks and training centers inside the station where we can house more people,” Mitchell replied as he continued to explain what he knew about the station. “It won’t be really comfortable, but we can easily cram ten million survivors on that station until we have the new habitats on the Moon, Mars, Vesta, and the other asteroids ready. The station also has a tremendous manufacturing capability. We can use it to build literally anything we need, including new spacecraft.”

“Are there additional assault ships on board?” Ethan asked, his eyes lighting up at the possibilities.

“Yes,” General Mitchell replied with a bigger smile. “There are close to two hundred assault ships inside the station’s flight bays. All are armed and ready for combat; they just need crews.”

“We have a fleet,” Mason stated as he realized the possibilities. Not only did they have a way to defend the solar system, they also had more than enough lifting capacity to move the survivors rapidly off the Earth. He felt as if a massive weight had just been lifted from his shoulders.

“Yes, we have a fleet,” General Mitchell responded.

“What’s the current situation on the station?” asked Mason, looking over at Mitchell. He knew from the report that Michael had turned in a few weeks back, when the Armageddon and the two assault ships had returned, that it wasn’t good.

“The station itself is intact, but the crew was killed by the Kleese. Major Nelson reports that they have encountered a few more Kleese on the station during their journey here. The ones they encountered had conscripts with them wearing Type Two battle suits. There were several pitched battles on the station over the past four weeks. We still control all the key areas.”

Mason only shook his head. He had seen the battle suits demonstrated and he could only imagine what the fighting on the station had been like.

“We need more troops on that station,” Drake said with a frown. “We can’t send any civilians up there until that threat has been dealt with.”

“We’re already in the process of sending two thousand additional troops to the station,” responded Mitchell, recalling the orders he had already issued. “We will search the entire station from end to end as well as begin the necessary cleanup operations. Give me two weeks and the station will be ready for its first occupants.”

“How soon before you’re leaving for the station?” Pamela asked. She knew that General Mitchell would be going there to take over command.

“In the next hour,” Mitchell replied, anxious to get to the station. “I have an assault ship waiting.”

Mason nodded; at last they had some good news! Staring at the viewscreen and the vast space station it was hard to believe all that had happened in the last year. Perhaps now they could finally begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

-

Captain Stevens was outside his command bunker staring in wonder at the large alien ship that had landed between his bunker and the numerous barracks that surrounded the Jornada spaceport. He was vastly relieved that these aliens were friendly. Two massive power lines had been connected to the assault ship’s fusion reactor, which had completely alleviated their growing power problem. For the first time in months, they had an excess of power and could adequately heat all the large tents and barracks that housed the Human survivors. What was also amazing was that very little snow and ash was falling. He knew that situation wouldn’t last long, but it was nice to be able to see more than just a few feet.

“That’s a big ship,” Lieutenant Griffith mumbled from next to him, shuffling his feet in the gray snow. “I’m glad they’re on our side.”

“There’s an even bigger one up in orbit,” responded Mark, glancing up at the menacing dark clouds. “They say it’s so big we can put almost all of the survivors in it.”

“I don’t know if I want to live on an alien ship,” Griffith replied hesitantly, trying his best to imagine a ship as large as Captain Stevens was describing. “I might prefer to stay right down here.”

“We won’t be evacuating Jornada completely,” Mark responded. “There’s also talk of keeping one of the military bases open as well as the labs at White Sands. There will be a lot of salvage missions that need to be coordinated and launched from here. There’s so much of our history and culture being buried under this snow and ash; we need to rescue as much of it as we can. I suspect it will take us years to save everything.”

Griffith pulled his parka tighter around his neck. It was still freaking cold out. The temperature for the last week had been hovering just below zero. “Sounds as if we still have a lot to do. I’ll just be glad when we can start moving the people out of tent city. Even with the added heat, we’re still losing a few every day.”

Mark turned around and looked across the fence. Tent city was ablaze with numerous lights as power was now sufficient to keep them on. For the first time in months, Mark actually felt there was a ray of hope for the future.

-

Major Nelson was leading five squads of marines down a wide corridor in the station. “Are you in position, Beth?” he asked over his com.

They were about to break into a sealed section of the station that comprised the main living quarters of the Kleese. They had been avoiding this action until they arrived at Earth since they had no idea what was behind the locked hatches.

“Yes,” Beth replied. “We’re in front of two hatches and are ready to blow them on your signal.”

“Private Foster, how are you coming with the explosives?” asked Wade, turning his head to look at her. Foster was busy setting charges on the large hatch, which led into the interior section. It was strange watching the ten-foot tall battle suit hunched over placing the explosives.

“Just about ready, Sir,” Nicole replied as she placed the last two blasting caps in place. “This hatch is thicker than most of the others, so I am having to use several additional explosive charges.”

“All right, people; these are the Kleese living quarters,” Wade announced over the com so all of his marines could hear, including those with Lieutenant Williams. “Several thousand reinforcing troops are in the process of boarding the station, and now we can take the risk of seeing what’s behind these hatches. If any conscripts in battle suits are waiting for us and attempt to surrender, we will honor it. However, I don’t expect to see any living Kleese after we finish sweeping this section.”

“Are you ready, Private Foster?” asked Wade, glancing at the private who was moving away from the large hatch holding a remote detonator in her armored right hand.

“Ready, Sir,” she replied, nodding her head.

“Blow it!” ordered Wade, drawing his energy lance. Wade could feel the slight vibration in his metal hand from the energy flowing into the lance.

Half a dozen large explosions suddenly echoed down the corridor as the hatch was blown inwards. Instantly, Sergeant Stern led her squad through the smoking entrance into the large corridor on the other side. Weapons fire filled the corridor and Wade saw several marines fall.

“We’ve got several dozen conscripts in battle suits,” Sergeant Stern reported breathlessly. “We’re taking casualties.”

Sergeant Perry, move your squad in; use of deadly force is authorized. Take those conscripts out!”

Instantly, the next squad charged through the door and then Wade followed with the other three squads close behind. Stepping through the hatch, Wade saw Sergeants Stern and Perry advancing steadily down the corridor. Their squads were firing their RG rifles at a large group of battle suit encased conscripts. Occasionally one of the conscripts would fall to the deck as an RG armor-piercing round penetrated their suit.

The corridor was becoming full of smoke and suddenly Sergeant Stern called out, “Firing explosive rounds!”

Instantly, four rounds fell among the opposing conscripts and the force of the blasts nearly drove everyone to the deck. It was all Wade could do to remain standing as he was pelted with shards of metal from the blasts. He saw a number of his marines, who had been bowled over from the explosive rounds, stagger back to their feet gripping their weapons. The Type Three battle suits were very resilient, but the blasts had been powerful and in an enclosed space. Looking down the corridor, Wade saw all the conscripts were down, though a few were still moving.

“Give them a chance to surrender. If they refuse, cut their suits open with your energy lances and pull them out. We can set up a holding center for them later.”

“We lost four marines and another three injured,” reported Sergeant Stern, sounding aggravated. “I should have used the explosive rounds earlier.”

“We need to be careful,” Wade cautioned as he stepped up close to Jamie. “All we have had to face so far on the station have been Type Two battle suits; it’s possible the Kleese may have equipped some of their personal guards with Type Threes.”

Wade switched his com frequency to speak to Beth. “Lieutenant Williams, what’s your situation?”

“They were waiting for us,” she replied, sounding out of breath. “We’ve lost six marines and taken out sixteen conscripts. We also have four prisoners. We’re advancing slowly down the corridor.”

“We’re going to need more marines,” Wade said as he called a halt to their advance. “Lieutenant Jeffries, I want four more squads to join Lieutenant Williams and four more to my position. We’ll place one squad to secure the hatches and then we’ll move farther in.”

“Marines are on the way,” Lieutenant Jeffries reported. He had been waiting at a safe distance with ten more squads. He hoped that Major Nelson didn’t need any more.

Wade held up the advance for nearly thirty minutes until the reinforcing marines arrived then; after positioning a squad just outside the entry hatch, he signaled for the advance to begin once more.

Marken had furnished him with an electronic map of the Kleese living quarters, which he had up on his HUD. After moving Privates Russell and Dawson to point, they continued to move deeper toward what Wade hoped was their eventual target area, where the Kleese actually lived.

After another twenty minutes of cautiously advancing through the corridors, they reached another large hatch. Wade called a halt and contacted Beth again. “Lieutenant Williams, we have reached the main hatch to the Kleese living quarters, what’s your position?

“Another five minutes and we should be there,” she replied. “We haven’t encountered any additional conscripts.”

“Same here,” Wade responded. “It’s been quiet, but I expect that to change shortly.” Wade hoped that by attacking from two directions it would prevent the Kleese from mounting an adequate defense.

“Private Foster, put your explosives on the hatch; we’ll be going in shortly.”

Nicole moved forward and with the help of another marine, began placing explosive charges all around the hatch.

“Privates Dawson and Russell, as soon as the hatch is blown I want you to fire half a dozen explosive rounds down the corridor.”

Minutes passed by and then Beth reported back in. “We’re ready, Major; just give the word.”

“We’re going to fire some explosive rounds down the corridor after we blow the hatch,” Wade informed her. “You may want to do the same.”

Moments later, they were ready. The explosives blew the hatch inwards and immediately Dawson and Russell lowered their RG rifles and fired three explosive rounds each through the hatch. They went off, and Wade was certain he could hear screams and yells from inside.

“Move out!” Wade ordered as Sergeant Stern and Perry led their marines through the smoking hatch. Wade followed closely behind and was knocked to the floor as several armor piercing RG rounds struck the chest of his battle suit.

Wade felt a sharp pain in his chest and saw a worried Nicole Foster bending over him.

“Sir, are you okay?” she asked, her voice sounding panicky.

Wade quickly checked the status display for his suit and saw that the rounds had not penetrated. Since he wore a command suit, the armor was thicker than a normal Type Three battle suit. “I’m fine, Private,” he replied, taking her hand as she helped him to stand. “The rounds didn’t penetrate.”

“We’ve cleared the corridor, Sir,” Sergeant Stern reported as she walked up to him visually checking his suit for damage. “Looks like you’ve got a couple of good sized dents in your suit.”

“Sir, I think there are some Kleese up ahead,” Private Dawson called out from where he was standing at the junction of several corridors.

“That leads to their main communal area,” responded Wade, checking his HUD. “That’s where Marken thought they would be.”

Wade quickly led his marines down the indicated corridor and came to an open hatch. Taking a deep breath, he stepped inside the room. The room was full of Kleese as well as about thirty conscripts in battle suits. Without surprise, Wade noticed that a good dozen of them wore the more modern and dangerous Type Three suits.

“Halt, Human!” one of the Kleese ordered, stepping forward. The large tarantula-like being took one of the collar detonation devices and pointed it at Wade, pressing the activate button. Nothing happened. “So it is true; the Kiveans have discovered a way to deactivate the collars.”

“We are no longer under your control,” Wade said in an even voice. Lieutenant Williams had just notified him that they were nearly to his position. This was the first time he had ever spoken to a Kleese.

“Surrender,” the Kleese demanded in a cold and commanding voice. “If you do so we will allow a few of your people to live and serve the Kleese Empire. If you refuse, you will die. Our servants here will destroy you.”

“I think not,” replied Wade, drawing his energy lance. “Fire!”

Instantly, RG rifle fire rang out as his marines stormed into the room and attacked the conscripts in battle suits. There were screams and yells of pain in the air as the two sides met. The conscripts were doing everything in their power to stop Wade’s marines from reaching the Kleese.

The conscripts in the Type Three suits were now wielding energy lances and the more advanced RG rifles, advancing toward the marines. The fighting grew intense as shots rang out, and Wade saw a number of his people go down. Then Lieutenant Williams arrived, bursting into the room at the head of her marines.

Wade swung his energy lance, cutting an opposing conscript in two. Then another one holding an energy lance stepped forward and swung it at Wade. Instinctively, Wade parried the thrust as bright blue sparks flew forth from both lances where they touched. Then the conscript collapsed as several RG rounds stitched him across the chest. Turning, Wade saw Beth standing there holding her smoking rifle.

“You owe me one,” she said as she turned and fired at another battle suit encased conscript.

The fighting continued for another few minutes and then Wade reached the first of the Kleese. He swung his energy lance, hearing the sizzling sound as it cut through the alien’s neck. The Kleese was instantly decapitated, and its body fell to the side, twitching. Other marines had now reached the Kleese and were using their own energy lances. No one used their rifles, only the lances. In a matter of a few short minutes, the battle was over.

Wade looked down at his battle suit, seeing that it was covered in thick dark blood. Kleese blood! Turning off his energy lance, he placed it back in its protective scabbard. Glancing around the room, he saw a large number of marines were down, but so too were all of the conscripts as well as the Kleese.

“I think this is all of them,” Beth commented as she walked up cradling her rifle in her suit’s arms.

Wade nodded. He sure hoped so. This fight, while brief, had been savage.

“The conscripts fought until the end,” Sergeant Stern reported as she finished checking the status of the marines in the large room. “We have seven dead and eight more injured. We also lost Privates Coleman and Gonzales.”

Wade winced at hearing the names. Coleman and Gonzales had been part of his original squad abducted in the very beginning. It was hard to imagine not seeing their friendly faces anymore. “Let’s get this room policed up.”

“Yes, Sir,” Stern replied as she left to carry out the order. It would be a gruesome job, but at least the battle suits allowed them to move the bodies without coming into actual contact with them.

“I count thirty-seven Kleese in here,” Sergeant Perry reported as he finished his inspection of their bodies. Some were still twitching, which made Perry shiver. It took the things a while for their bodies to die, even with their heads removed.

“The other troops will be fanning out across the station over the coming days, searching for any stragglers,” Wade said. “I don’t think they will find any. They’ll also be helping to dispose of all the bodies, and then a crew of civilians will be coming on board to make sure everything is ready to begin receiving survivors. Marken will be assigning several hundred of his people to help train a new crew for the station.”

“How large will the crew be?” asked Beth, knowing how big the previous one had been. It was strange to think that this massive station would now be under the control of Humans.

“Marken has suggested at least twenty thousand due to the size of the station. While much of it is automated, there are still some things that the crew needs to do. There will also be a large military presence, which General Mitchell will command. Mitchell is already making plans to place more weapons on the hull as well as to put into service all of the assault ships in the bays. Human crews will have to be trained for them under the watchful guidance of the Kiveans.”

“Sounds like a lot to do,” Beth responded with heavy sigh. At least their fighting for the immediate future was over with. She wanted to return to Vesta and spend some time with her mother. It’d been wonderful to find out that she had survived.

“This station gives us a chance to save our people,” Wade added as he watched the marines working cleaning up the bodies in the room. “It will also be our best means of protection. Someday the Kleese are going to find us, and we have to be prepared for when that happens.”

Beth nodded. “What about the military people still in stasis? When are we going to start to awaken them?”

“Shortly,” Wade replied, recalling his conversation with General Mitchell about the stasis chambers. “Many of them will be used to staff this station as well as operate the assault ships. General Mitchell wants to awaken them gradually over the next several months. Some of them will need to be trained to operate the Type Two and three battle suits.”

Beth thought about that. For many of them, the awakening would be a shock, especially when they learned about Earth. But once again, the Kleese had made a major mistake. By abducting so many military personnel, it meant that Earth still had a solid group of trained military people, especially when you added all of those still on the ground helping with the survival camps. Someday that mistake would come back to haunt the Kleese.

-

Commander Michael Kirby sat in the command chair of the battlecruiser Armageddon watching the main viewscreen with interest. His fleet had been augmented by six assault ships with recently enhanced particle beam weapons. In addition, his original four support ships had also just finished being upgraded at Vesta.

“At least we have a reasonable fleet now,” Colonel Stehr commented from his position behind the main tactical console.

“The Phoenix will be out of Vesta’s spacedock in two more weeks,” Michael added as he gazed at the large space station on the screen. “Her updates are taking longer since she wasn’t originally designed as a warship. That will give us two full fleets to protect the system with until more of the assault ships on the station can be equipped with particle beam weapons.”

“Are there plans for additional battlecruisers?” asked Stehr, hoping he would be given command of one.

“Yes,” replied Michael, recalling what he knew about the most recent plans. “Vesta is already beginning construction of one, and they are going to be looking at the ship construction capability of the Kleese station also. Marken has assured us that it is fully capable of building new assault ships, but battlecruisers might be more difficult. He has suggested taking some of the advanced ship construction technology from the station and melding it with what Vesta has to decrease the time it takes to construct a battlecruiser.”

“Sir, Darren is reporting that the latest convoy for Mars Central is ready for departure,” Lieutenant Jones reported from Communications.

Michael nodded. He didn’t envy his brother’s job on Holbrook Station trying to coordinate the rescue and movement of so many survivors. At least with the Kleese station in orbit it should take some of the pressure off him.

“Very well,” Michael responded. “The fleet will form up around the convoy, and we’ll head for Mars.” Michael wished all the convoy ships had the new improved sublight drives on them. He knew that the Kiveans were in the process of doing the upgrades, but they could only do so much so quickly.

An hour later, the Armageddon and the other ten warships in her fleet had surrounded the six-ship convoy and set off for Mars.

-

Wade and Beth were back in the Command Center with Marken as they waited for General Mitchell to arrive. It had been decided by all involved that he would take command of the massive station.

“The new troops are already entering areas of the station to help remove the bodies of the dead crew,” Beth reported. They had removed their battle suits and felt much more relaxed.

“It’s a distasteful task,” replied Marken, shaking his head.

He had been very shaken when he had learned what the Kleese had done to the station’s crew. None of his people had expected the Kleese to react the way that they did. It demonstrated once more just how alien the Kleese were when compared to the humanoid races of this section of the galaxy.

“What about the habitation domes?” asked Beth, knowing that a number of them would have a considerable number of dead crewmembers inside as well as their families. “Some of them will have to be gone through also.”

“There are fourteen domes with dead crew inside,” Marken confirmed. “Those are sealed off and can wait until later. Our first priority needs to be the main parts of the station so we can begin training the new crew.”

“I spoke to Colonel Bailey earlier, and they are already screening possible applicants in the survival camps,” spoke Wade, looking over at Beth. “They may also be transferring some specialists from Luna City and Vesta until we can get enough people properly trained.”

“How long before the Kleese find us?” asked Beth, looking over at Marken with concern in her eyes. She knew they weren’t ready yet to face a Kleese battle fleet.

“I don’t know,” replied Marken, uneasily. He took a deep breath and then looked over at the two marine officers. “It could be anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. Remember, it’s already been over four weeks since we took the station. I’m sure that by now the search is well underway. The Kleese only have fifteen of these giant space stations to control each sector of their Empire. The loss of one will be a major blow to their plans for future expansion as well as trade within that sector. They’ll want it back.”

“At least we will have the station’s assault ships to help in our defense,” Beth stated. She had seen them in combat often enough to know what they were capable of.

“The only problem is going to be crews,” Marken pointed out. “An assault ship takes a normal crew of one hundred but can make do with around twenty if necessary. Not only that, but the assault ships on the station need to be updated with particle weapons and better shields. They wouldn’t last long against a Kleese disk ship as they are now.”

“Then we had better get busy,” suggested Wade, knowing they needed to move quickly. “We need to waken all the military personnel in stasis with flight training as well as bring up any military personnel still on Earth that might be useful staffing the ships.”

“It’s going to be a big effort,” Beth stated with a frown. Then, turning to Marken, “How long will it take to train a crew for one of the assault ships?”

“I can assign a few Kiveans to each ship to help out with the technical details,” Marken replied. “But it will take months of intensive training to get Human crews up to a standard at least equal to what they will be facing.”

“The assault ships we will be facing may have more experienced crews, but I suspect ships operated by Humans will be more unpredictable with their tactics,” Wade responded confidently.

From what he had observed of the strategy employed by the other humanoid races under Kleese control, fleet tactics were minimal. They depended on their superior technology to blow right through enemy opposition. That wouldn’t work against Human controlled ships.

“I hope you’re right,” Marken replied, glancing over at Wade. The Humans had already proven themselves in their aggressiveness. Even Commander Kirby had done well in the brief battle when they took control of the station.

“We’re going to have to protect Mars, Vesta, the Moon, and the Earth when the attack does finally come,” Wade pointed out, knowing they were going to have to spread their forces out. “We’re going to need someone to coordinate everything.”

“A Fleet Admiral,” suggested Beth, arching her eyebrows in thought. “But who?”

“I would suggest Commander Kirby,” Marken spoke unhesitantly. “He’s already demonstrated his command ability in the attack upon the station and is familiar with the weapons on the two battlecruisers as well as the updated assault ships. I will make that suggestion to General Mitchell when he arrives.”

Wade and Beth both nodded in agreement. Their eyes wandered over to the main viewscreens, which were focused on the Earth and the Moon. They both knew that on the Moon massive construction projects were well underway as Humans working alongside Kivean engineers were in the process of building larger and more secure habitation domes. Earth was a different story. The planet was wrapped in a dark, grayish looking cloud layer. Nowhere did sunlight reach the surface. The vast oceans and landmasses were locked away in darkness. Both knew with sadness that the home of the Human race was suffering and it would be many centuries, even with the Kivean’s advanced science, before the surface would be habitable again.

Chapter Nineteen

Newly promoted Admiral Michael Kirby sat in the command chair of the five hundred-meter battlecruiser Armageddon. It had been six months since they had successfully hijacked the Kleese space station and brought it safely back to the solar system. During that time, much progress had been made preparing for the expected attack of the Kleese and their conscripts.

“Current fleet status?” asked Michael, looking over at Colonel Stehr. Michael knew that shortly he would be losing Colonel Stehr to the battlecruiser Liberation under construction in the spacedock at Vesta. Stehr would become the Liberation’s commander.

“All ships in formation and reporting normal operations.”

Kirby nodded. Over the last six months, a massive retraining operation had been launched as the assault ships from the station had been sent to Vesta and modified with more powerful energy shields and particle beam weapons. It was hoped that the new technology would give them an advantage when the Kleese finally did attack.

“Rear Admiral Sanders is reporting they’ve just completed their shakedown cruise for the assault ships added to his fleet,” Lieutenant Jones reported from Communications. “He’s placed his fleet into orbit over Mars and is awaiting further orders.”

The solar system currently boasted two powerful fleets. They had been designated First Fleet and Second Fleet and had been going through continuous training exercises for the last several weeks in expectation of the coming attack. First Fleet consisted of the Armageddon, four light cruisers, and ten updated assault ships. Second Fleet, with the battlecruiser Phoenix, was composed similarly. Fleet Admiral Kirby also had ten scout ships available, all of them currently deployed in the outer reaches of the solar system scanning for enemy contacts out near the Kuiper Belt.

“Everything is still quiet,” Colonel Stehr commented uneasily. “I would have thought they would have found us by now.”

“I did too,” confessed Michael. “Another couple of weeks and the Liberation will be finished. The light cruisers and the assault ships are ready; all they need is their command ship. I just hope the attack doesn’t come until after we have our third battlecruiser available.”

“At least the crew for our new battlecruiser will be trained,” Stehr added. They had added additional crewmembers to both the Armageddon and the Phoenix who would shortly be transferred to the Liberation. He had helped to pick the men and women that would be crewing his new command.

“What do you think, Major?” asked Michael, looking over at Major Nelson. “Is there a reason the Kleese haven’t attacked?”

“I spoke to Marken and several other Kiveans about that on Vesta the other day,” replied Wade, recalling his short trip to the asteroid. He had gone to visit his family who had come up from Earth a few months back. It had been great to see them again. “Marken believes the Kleese may be gathering a massive assault ship fleet to aid in the attack. He still feels the Kleese are hesitant about exposing themselves to any type of physical injury or being killed.”

“So we may not face any of their big disk ships?” asked Colonel Stehr, looking over at Wade.

“The disk ships will be in attendance,” Wade answered. “They’ll probably hang back and wait to see how we handle the assault ships before attempting to engage us. When we attacked the station we took them by surprise; that won’t be the case this time.”

“Then it’s just a waiting game,” stated Michael, letting out a deep breath and shaking his head. “We will continue to work on our defenses until they show up.”

Wade nodded. He had spoken to Beth the previous night; she had been promoted to the rank of captain and placed in command of a full company of marines in Type Three battle suits. Her new responsibly involved seeing to the defense of the large spacedock inside of Vesta. Colonel Bailey had taken over command of the military forces assigned to the asteroid since he had some experience in dealing with the Kleese.

Wade had also spoken briefly to his younger brother who wanted to join the marines as soon as he was old enough. He had told his brother to finish his education first and then they would discuss it. It made Wade feel proud that his brother wanted to follow in his footsteps. It also made him a little nervous knowing how dangerous it was to be in the military right now.

Lieutenant Jeffries had also been promoted to captain and was now responsible for another company of marines in Type Three battle suits; however, his marines were based on the Kleese space station and he reported directly to General Mitchell. Wade let out a deep breath as he gazed thoughtfully at the main viewscreen on the front wall of the Armageddon. He wondered what was in their future and if they could stop the Kleese when the attack finally came.

-

General Mitchell was in the Command Center of the huge Kleese space station watching the myriad of viewscreens on the front wall. Some of the feeds were from satellites scattered about the system. One showed the recently expanded Mars Central exploration base. It currently housed nearly two hundred thousand refugees from Earth in its large, airtight domes dug slightly into the arid Martian surface. The Kiveans had worked miracles with their technology helping to construct the new facilities and setting up Mars Central’s ecosystems. The domes also had deep underground bunkers for the protection of the colonists in case of a Kleese attack. Mars Central was surrounded with a series of energy beam batteries, which could reach out nearly three hundred kilometers into space. Fifteen hundred military troops had been assigned to Mars Central to aid in its defense.

Another screen showed Luna City with its dozens of new domes spread out across the desolate lunar landscape. Mayor Silas had reported the population was nearing one million and that thanks to Kivean technology, the food situation was now stable and they were starting to see an excess in crops. More domes were under construction, and the hopes were that they would be able to continue to expand Luna City until it could house two million survivors. There had even been some serious discussions about building a second city on the Moon to house an additional one million people.

Another satellite was focused on the massive airlock leading to the huge spacedock inside Vesta. Currently, it showed an assault ship exiting to take up a defensive position above the large asteroid. Once it exited the tunnel, the large airlock doors slid shut, sealing the entrance. There were also four powerful pulse fusion beam batteries set up on the surface near the entrance to protect the tunnel from attack.

Inside Vesta, nearly one and a half million people had found a new home in the recently completed second habitat. Over the coming months, plans were being made to move an additional six hundred thousand people into the large asteroid. Vesta was probably the most secure and heavily protected of all the Human colonies. General Mitchell suspected it would eventually become humanity’s new capital.

The biggest screen was a view from Holbrook Station. It showed a steady stream of assault ships and passenger ships entering and leaving the large Kleese space station, depositing refugees from Earth. Already over six million people had been moved into the massive station, allowing the numerous survival camps on Earth to consolidate the remaining survivors into more secure living quarters.

The deaths at the camps had almost come to a stop thanks to that and the advanced medical technology the Kiveans had brought with them. Marken’s life mate Harnett had been instrumental in teaching Human doctors and specialists how to use the new medical procedures. There were also daily search missions ongoing, combing the planet for additional survivors. Surprisingly, a few hundred thousand more had been located thanks to improved sensor technology.

“We’re going to have to start putting people in the corridors shortly,” Colonel Tricia Morgan commented as she walked up to the general. “We’ve filled up all of the available habitats and the barrack facilities inside the station.”

“The corridors are wide enough,” responded Mitchell, turning his head to look over at the colonel. “We can set up bunks on each side and still have plenty of room to walk down the center. What’s the food situation?”

“Looking better every day,” Tricia replied. “We’re using some of the advanced growing methods the Kiveans have shown us and it’s really making a difference. There’s plenty of room in the habitats to grow food.”

“How’s the crew training going?” inquired Mitchell, taking a deep breath.

“As well as can be expected,” she replied with a tired smile.

He knew that Colonel Morgan had been working really hard with the Kiveans training Humans to staff and operate the station. Already, nearly thirty thousand personnel had been trained in station operations. In addition, ten thousand military troops had been assigned to keep order. Most of these had come from the nearly fifty thousand personnel that had been in stasis.

Mitchell’s gaze turned back toward the large tactical screen showing the current status of the entire solar system. More sensor satellites had been spread throughout the outer reaches of the system, and now they had real time data extending out to the very edge of the Kuiper Belt. Looking at the screen, Mitchell could see the numerous ships currently out on missions. In the asteroid belt, dozens of prospecting ships and a number of cargo ships were moving between mining operations.

Closer to the Kuiper Belt, all ten of the converted scout ships were on patrol, scanning it for any hidden Kleese vessels. He could also see Rear Admiral Sander’s fleet in orbit above Mars as well as all the ships around Earth and the stations. For now, everything was peaceful and calm in the solar system; Mitchell just wondered how much longer that would last.

-

Mason was over at his sisters with Adrienne eating a late meal. Susan had asked that he bring Adrienne, and Mason had been pleased when she had agreed to come. Over the months, they had become closer, and Mason had even taken Adrienne out several times. They were currently sitting at the table finishing off the pecan pie that Susan had baked for dessert.

“I can’t believe that Michael is the Fleet Admiral,” Susan spoke with a pleased smile. She knew that he had been extremely happy to have been promoted to the prestigious position.

“He was the best qualified, particularly after leading the military part of the mission that brought back the Kleese space station,” Mason replied as he took the last bite of the pecan pie on his plate, savoring the taste.

Susan definitely took after their mother when it came to cooking. He could fondly remember those home cooked meals his mother used to make for the family. The pecan pie had a hauntingly familiar taste.

“The Kiveans agreed with his selection,” Adrienne added. “They’ve been very impressed with him.”

Susan nodded and leaning back in her chair, folded her arms across her breasts. “Mason, just how much danger is he in out in space? Won’t the aliens come looking for their space station?” She knew Michael was excited about his new job, but she also knew he would be in the line of fire when the Kleese eventually returned. That part made her nervous, and it was something she worried about constantly.

Mason let out a heavy sigh and nodded his head. “Eventually,” he admitted. “We already have two pretty powerful fleets deployed, and the Liberation will be finished in another two weeks. That will give us three fleets to fight the Kleese with when they finally show up.”

“Will it be enough?” asked Adrienne, uneasily. “Can we stop them this time?”

She had spent some time with Harnett recently setting up an advanced hospital based on Kivean medical technology in the new habitat. She had told Adrienne what living under Kleese rule had been like. She had also been frightened when Harnett told her just how heartless and cruel the Kleese were. It was hard for Adrienne to imagine how an entire race could be like that.

“We hope so,” replied Mason, laying his fork down. “We’ve also added a lot of defenses to the space stations as well as Mars Central, Luna City, and Vesta. If the Kleese come back, we’re going to be a hard nut to crack.”

Adrienne nodded and then turned her attention back to Susan. “How are the kids taking Michael’s absence?”

“Not too badly,” Susan confessed with some anguish in her voice. “He calls us nearly every day and spends a few minutes talking to both of the girls. They were already used to him being gone on his mining ventures, so they don’t see this as anything different.”

“I’m glad he gets to talk to them,” replied Adrienne, smiling. “The girls need to hear from their father.”

“Michael will be back to oversee the launching of the Liberation,” Mason informed them. “His executive offer will be taking command of the new ship. Perhaps Michael can take a few days off from his duties then.”

“That would be great!” Susan said, a broad and excited smile spreading across her face. “I’ll tell the kids that will give them something to look forward to.” Then, looking back over at Adrienne, she asked, “Have you been to the new habitat recently?”

“Yesterday,” Adrienne replied, her deep blue eyes looking across the table at Susan. “I went with Harnett to inspect the new hospital. It’s amazing what the Kiveans have accomplished in the new habitat. We thought it would be at least another year before we would be ready to begin moving people in. With Kivean construction technology, they do in weeks what would normally take us months to complete. You need to have Mason take you on a tour; the habitat is beautiful. The buildings are so elegant, and the outlying areas remind you so much of Earth before there was any pollution. They already have trees nearly forty feet high. Harnett explained that the rapid growth was from some type of forced maturity science they have.”

“You need to fly over and see the Kivean’s new habitat in their asteroid,” added Mason, looking over at Adrienne. “If you think our new habitat is amazing, theirs is astonishing. It almost looks like a fantasyland inside. Their buildings are slim and have high, soaring towers. They are interconnected with moving walkways far above the ground. It’s the type of city we might have built in another five hundred years.”

“I might have to get Harnett to show me around,” Adrienne replied, thrilled at the thought. It had been a long time since she had been off the station.

It was at that moment that Mason’s small phone, lying next to his plate, began ringing. With a frown, Mason answered it, and as he talked his frown deepened to a look of worry. He finally laid it back down and was silent for a moment, deep in thought.

“What is it, Mason?” asked Susan, growing concerned. She could sense from her brother’s composure that something was wrong.

“That was Pamela,” Mason answered as he slowly stood up. “They just picked up an unidentified assault ship just outside the orbit of Neptune. It hung around for a few minutes and then left. General Mitchell informed her that it wasn’t one of ours.”

“So they’ve found us,” Adrienne spoke, her eyes widening in concern.

“It seems so,” responded Mason, trying to sound calm. “I’m calling Colonel Bailey, Drake, Ethan, and a few others in for a quick meeting. The ship will have to report back, so we probably have a week or so before they can return with a fleet.”

“I’ll stay here with Susan for a while,” volunteered Adrienne, knowing this news would worry Mason’s sister.

“Thanks,” Mason replied, grateful that Adrienne had volunteered to stay with Susan a bit longer. “I’ll talk to you in the morning.” With that, Mason turned and left.

“I’m glad you’re staying,” Susan said with a weak smile. “It’s good to have someone to talk to at times.”

Adrienne nodded in understanding. She just hoped that everything turned out okay.

-

Twelve days passed, and the Liberation and her fleet were ready to be deployed. Plans were already underway to build the next generation of battlecruisers, and Vesta’s interior spacedock was being expanded under the careful direction of a number of experienced Kivean engineers. The new dock would be able to build four of the newly designed battlecruisers at a time with a completion date of eight months.

Production of the newly designed light cruisers was being shifted to the captured Kleese space station. The spacedock would also be able to continue to construct new cargo ships and prospecting ships as needed. Currently, they only had ten cargo ships being used to haul metals from the mining sites to the smelting operations inside Vesta. New cargo ships would be needed to haul additional refined metals to the large space station for ship construction as well as to Luna City and Mars Central.

Mason was inside the Control Center speaking to Pamela Cairns and Colonel Bailey when the alarms went off on the main sensor panel. Instantly, everyone’s eyes were drawn to the red threat icons suddenly appearing just outside the orbit of Neptune.

“Assault ships detected,” the sensor operator called out as the red icons continued to appear.

“This is it,” Pamela spoke her eyes locked upon the sensor screen. She was glad Paul was home with their son. She knew that the media stations on Vesta would shortly be reporting the incoming ships. She could feel her heart beginning to beat faster.

“General Mitchell is placing all military at Condition One,” Jessica reported from Communications. “He is expecting engagement within the next six hours.”

Colonel Bailey walked over to the four new tactical consoles recently installed in the Control Center. He wanted to speak to the pair of military officers that were sitting in front of each one to ensure they knew their responsibilities in the coming battle. The new consoles controlled the weapon emplacements inside the ship tunnel as well as all the ones that had been installed upon the surface of the asteroid. A series of viewscreens above the consoles gave the weapons techs a full view of the space around Vesta. There was also a small tactical screen above each console.

“Contact all cargo and prospecting ships and tell them to go dark,” Mason ordered. “Same for all mining sites. No communications unless it’s an emergency.”

Pamela quickly made sure the four Communication operators understood their orders and stood over them as they began sending out the messages. Her eyes kept wandering up to the large sensor screen showing more enemy ships arriving.

Captain Williams came rushing into the Control Center, her eyes quickly going to the sensor screen and taking in the red threat icons, knowing instantly what they meant. “They’re here,” she stated, coming to a stop and turning her attention to Mason and Colonel Bailey.

“Make sure the spacedock is secure, Captain,” Bailey ordered in a calm voice. He knew his other military personnel would be securing the rest of the asteroid. Williams was his most experienced officer with the battle suits, and as long as she could hold the spacedock, the enemy couldn’t get to the civilians inside.

Beth nodded; she hoped the sudden change in the situation wouldn’t frighten her mother. If she had time, she would give her a call and try to reassure her. Right now she needed to get her marines ready. They wouldn’t put on their battle armor until they knew Kleese warships were approaching Vesta. She was also glad there were energy beam batteries as well as railgun turrets in the main tunnel that led to the spacedock. An enemy intent on reaching the spacedock would suffer heavy losses if they were foolish enough to try.

-

Fleet Admiral Michael Kirby let out a deep breath as he gazed at the tactical screen. “What’s the latest ship count?”

“Two hundred and twelve assault ships and six Kleese disk ships,” Ensign Bree Fullerton reported in an uneasy voice. “No more ships have dropped out of Fold Space in the last five minutes.”

“That’s probably all of them,” Wade commented. He was currently serving as executive officer since Colonel Stehr had been promoted and taken command of the Liberation.

“What do you think they’ll do?” asked Kirby, seeing they were going to be greatly outnumbered.

“They’ll come straight for the station. Once it’s secured, they’ll take out all of our settlements across the solar system. This time they won’t leave a single Human alive, not after what we did to them.”

Kirby studied the tactical screen for a moment before reaching a decision. “I’m joining all three fleets into one and we will meet them before they can reach the Moon or the Earth.”

“I think that’s the correct decision,” Wade responded in agreement. He felt a little out of place not wearing a battle suit.

“Lieutenant Jones, contact the Phoenix and the Liberation and tell them to rendezvous with us at the following coordinates. The ones he gave her were ten million kilometers out past the orbit of the Moon. “Then get me General Mitchell and I’ll explain to him what we’re doing.”

-

Four hours later, Michael gazed at the tactical screen, watching the approaching Kleese fleet. He looked nervously at the handful of green icons that now comprised his own fleet, hoping it was enough. He had three five hundred-meter battlecruisers, twelve three hundred-meter light cruisers, and thirty two hundred-meter assault ships. His biggest advantages were superior energy screens, particle beams, and the large railguns on the battlecruisers and the light cruisers. He had twenty more assault cruisers equipped with the newer energy screens and particle beams, which he could call forward. They were currently in a defensive position over Luna City and the Kleese space station. The other assault ships in the Kleese station hadn’t been updated and lacked trained crews and were being used to shuttle survivors.

“Enemy is continuing to close,” Ensign Fullerton spoke as she watched her sensors. “The assault ships have taken the lead with the disk ships following a short distance behind.”

“The Kleese don’t want to risk physical injury to themselves,” commented Wade, seeing that they were going to let the assault ships fight the fleet battle. This was a weakness the Kleese were showing, and Wade wondered how they could take advantage of that.

Kirby nodded and activated his fleet communications. “All ships, prepare to engage. Use our particle beams and railguns to knock their screens down and then finish them off with antimatter missiles. We can’t let any of them get past us.”

Wade stood at the tactical console behind Fleet Admiral Kirby. He had trained enough with Colonel Stehr that he knew how to handle the ship’s weapons. He wondered what Beth was doing at Vesta. He strongly suspected that by now she was in the spacedock with her marines ready to repel any attack made on the asteroid. He just hoped they both survived this battle.

Chapter Twenty

The Kleese assault ships advanced in a massive wave, intent on destroying those that had defied their Galactic Empire. The six large disk ships followed in their wake, with the Kleese on board directing the movement of the assault fleet. Nothing would be left to chance; the renegade Kiveans and the surviving Humans would all be wiped out. Defiance of the Empire was not allowed and would not be tolerated. Kleese had been killed by these renegades, and now they would die for it.

There was also some confusion as to why this system still existed. The Kleese exploration ship involved had been destroyed when the Humans and Kiveans had taken the space station from its assigned position. However, several surviving Kleese who had been on the exploration ship when it was in the Human’s system had reported that a fusion missile had been fired into the Human’s planet and detonated.

Now, long-range scans indicated thriving colonies on the planet’s moon as well as upon the fourth planet. There were even indications of activity at one of the larger asteroids. All would have to be dealt with before the Kleese left the system. This time there would be no survivors.

Seeing the Human and Kivean controlled ships were entering attack range, the Kleese commander gave the order to attack. Simultaneously from two hundred and twelve assault ships energy beams, pulse fusion beams, and antimatter missiles were hurled at the blocking Human fleet. They would destroy the defending fleet first and then proceed to the space station. Once it was back under Kleese control, all traces of Humans and Kiveans would be annihilated from the system.

-

“They fired from extreme range,” Major Nelson reported as the Armageddon shook slightly from the long-range attack. Then the ship shook more violently as several antimatter missiles impacted the ship’s energy shield. Fortunately, the reinforced shield held, though it was weakened considerably. “Shield strength at forty percent; regenerating.”

“We just lost one of our assault ships,” Ensign Fullerton reported. “Ship W-212 is down.”

Fleet Admiral Kirby looked at the tactical screen and watched the green icon representing the assault ship fade away; several more ships had amber circles around them indicating damage. “Fire all weapons,” Kirby ordered over the fleet channel. “Two can play at this game.”

Instantly, from the Human fleet energy beams, pulse fusion beams, and more powerful particle beams shot out. Mixed in were railgun rounds and a few antimatter missiles. Kirby didn’t want to waste the powerful missiles at this stage; he needed them to finish enemy ships off when their shields were disabled.

The Human attack also fell to the wayside for the most part due to the distance. Energy beams and pulse fusion beams weakened exponentially at long distances. However, the particle beams were better contained and half a dozen Kleese assault ships vanished in blazing explosions as the beams tore through their shields, vaporizing sections of the hulls and then causing internal damage. Then, a few seconds later, the massive railgun rounds began to impact. Kleese shields flickered as the rounds passed right through and struck the armored hulls. The three thousand pound tungsten rounds penetrated the hulls, inflicting massive amounts of internal damage to vulnerable systems. More shields wavered and then collapsed.

“Optimal firing range,” Wade called out as he directed the weapons crews to concentrate on individual Kleese ships. His plan of attack was simple: hit a ship with several particle beams and then follow up with an antimatter missile.

-

In space, ships from both sides continued to die. The Kleese had no defense against the large railgun rounds or the particle beam weapons. Explosions began marching across their ship’s hulls as numerous railgun rounds from the Human battlecruisers and light cruisers smashed into the Kleese assault ships. Shields wavered and collapsed, allowing energy beams and pulse fusion beams to breach the armored hulls. Large sections of hull plating were blown out, and secondary explosions shook the assault ships. Ship after ship died in fiery explosions.

The powerful particle beams flashed through energy screens as if they were not even there, blasting huge, ragged rents in ship hulls. Energy screens flickered and then collapsed. As soon as a shield failed, an antimatter missile would arrive, blasting the assault ship apart in a massive burst of energy.

The battle wasn’t one sided. The Humans were vastly outnumbered, and the Kleese were taking advantage of that fact. Half a dozen Kleese assault ships would team up under the direction of their Kleese overseers and fire at one of the Human ships. Occasionally a shield would become overloaded and collapse. Whenever that happened, the Human assault ship would die from the massive amount of weapons fire targeting it.

-

“Assault ship W-78, W-116, and W-197 are down,” reported Ensign Fullerton, knowing with a sickening feeling that each one of those ships had contained over one hundred fellow Humans.

“We’ve taken out sixteen of their assault ships,” Wade reported as he checked the tactical screen.

“We won’t have a fleet left at this rate,” replied Kirby, worriedly. “Not if we keep losing ships like this. They just have too many!”

The Armageddon shuddered violently and the lights dimmed, and then brightened back up. On the damage control board, several lights turned amber.

“Light damage to the hull in sections eighteen and nineteen,” the Damage Control officer reported. “Hull integrity is still intact.”

“Admiral,” spoke Wade, knowing they needed to do something quickly. “We need to attack the Kleese disk ships; it might disrupt this entire attack.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Michael answered in agreement. He then issued new orders over the fleet communication frequency. “All battlecruisers force your way through the Kleese assault ships, your new targets are the Kleese disk ships. Light cruisers will furnish support. All assault ships will stay in your current formation and continue the attack. Designate the disk ships as bugs one through six.”

Michael took a deep breath. So much depended on the decisions he was making. On the main viewscreen space seemed to be covered with bright explosions.

-

The Armageddon, Phoenix, and Liberation all suddenly accelerated forward with their accompanying light cruisers taking up screening positions around them to help draw some of the enemy fire.

For a moment, the Kleese assault ships hesitated, unsure as to what was happening and then the Human capital ships entered their formation. Particle beams fired, penetrating Kleese shields. Railguns blasted away at nearly point blank range. Antimatter missiles blew assault ship after assault ship apart as their pent up energy was released. In a matter of just a few seconds, eight more Kleese ships died.

The Kleese hurriedly redirected their fleet’s fire toward the encroaching ships. The light cruiser Repulse was the first to die as the joint fire from over ten assault ships ravaged her shields, allowing several antimatter missiles to flash through, detonating against the hull. The ship vanished as two glowing suns appeared where she had been.

Moments later, two more light cruisers followed the Repulse in death. The cruisers Independence and Fury died as antimatter explosions annihilated them.

-

“Light cruisers Repulse, Independence, and Fury are down,” Ensign Fullerton reported in a strained voice. She could feel her hands shaking as she delivered the ship losses. She had known several of the officers on the Fury.

“We’re through!” yelled Wade, jubilantly. “Targeting Kleese disk ships.”

-

From the Armageddon, two dark blue particle beams shot out, stabbing at the large disk ship in front of them. The ship’s energy shield flickered briefly and then the beams struck the hull, tearing massive rents in the armor. Large tungsten railgun rounds slammed into the ship, penetrating deep within. A railgun round penetrated the Engineering section, damaging the systems that controlled the ship's energy shield. Instantly, the shield collapsed. Detecting the shield had failed; the Armageddon launched four sublight antimatter missiles. The antimatter missiles arrived microseconds after launch and the Kleese disk ship vanished as raging torrents of energy consumed it.

“Bug one is down,” Ensign Fullerton reported.

The other five Kleese disk ships were now frantically returning fire as the Kleese on board finally realized they were under attack. Half a dozen powerful pulse fusion beams struck the Phoenix, causing her shield to waver. Then several antimatter missiles impacted the shield, releasing massive amounts of energy. The Phoenix staggered and fell out of formation as several pulse fusion beams flashed through the weakened screen and struck the hull. Two of the light cruisers quickly interposed themselves between the Phoenix and the Kleese disk ship that had launched the devastating attack. The Kleese shifted their attack to them. Instantly the cruisers screens lit up as antimatter explosions and energy weapons fire blanketed them.

-

Admiral Kirby grimaced as he saw that the Phoenix had been heavily damaged and then upon the main viewscreen a second Kleese disk ship exploded as the Liberation blew it apart.

“Bug two is down,” Ensign Fullerton reported as the red threat icon faded from her screen. She was beginning to breathe a little easier.

“Kleese disk ships are attempting to withdraw,” Wade called out as he saw them turning away and activating their Space Fold drives.

“Light Cruiser Bunker Hill is down,” Ensign Fullerton spoke as one of the two light cruisers attempting to protect the ailing Phoenix vanished from her sensor screen.

Michael winced at the loss of another light cruiser, but the Kleese were now trying to escape. He desperately wanted to take out one more of the retreating ships. He wanted to hurt the Kleese badly enough that they wouldn’t come back.

“Target the trailing Kleese ship,” ordered Michael, seeing that one of the disk ships had fallen behind the others.

Wade quickly called out new targeting orders and watched with satisfaction as the indicated Kleese ship was struck with numerous railgun rounds before it could activate its Space Fold drive. The Armageddon and Liberation shifted their targeting and fired their particle beam weapons. On the main screen, the Kleese ship was covered with fiery explosions as large sections of its hull were blown off into space. The entire ship seemed to be on fire, and then the Liberation launched two more of its antimatter missiles. Almost instantly two glowing stars appeared where the Kleese disk ship had been. Moments later all that remained were glowing gases and shattered debris.

“Bug three is down and the other three Kleese disk ships are gone,” Ensign Fullerton reported with a trace of relief in her voice as they vanished from her sensor screens. “They’ve activated their Space Fold drives.”

“Turn us back around,” Michael ordered as he studied the tactical screen. “Let’s finish off their assault ships. I don’t think they’ll be as well organized without the Kleese here to guide them.”

“Remaining Kleese assault ships are powering up their Space Fold drives,” Ensign Fullerton reported as she saw the energy spikes on one of her sensors. Then her screens indicated the ships were rapidly accelerating away.

“Where are they going?” Michael demanded. Were they fleeing also?

Bree studied her screens for a few moments before replying in a worried voice. “Earth, Mars, and Vesta.”

“Crap,” Michael oathed his eyes widening. Then over the fleet com, he fired out orders. “Admiral Stehr, get your fleet to Mars ASAP. Protect Mars Central at all costs. We’re going to Earth. Admiral Sanders, send your fleet to Vesta. If the Phoenix is too badly damaged, keep a couple of assault ships back for support, but get your remaining cruisers and assault ships to that asteroid!”

-

Over Mars, twenty-two assault ships suddenly dropped out of Fold Space. Immediately, from each one four drop ships left the flight bays. The invasion of the red planet had begun.

In between the Kleese space station and the Moon, sixty-five assault ships dropped out of Fold Space. More drop ships were launched, targeting both Luna City and the station.

Close to Vesta, thirty-seven assault ships came out of Fold Space. Drop ships departed the flight bays, heading toward the asteroid.

-

On Mars, Major Sanchez grinned in savage expectation as he ordered the forty-two energy beam turrets around Mars Central to open fire. Instantly, bright beams of white light speared upward toward the descending drop ships. Whenever a beam touched one of the small craft, a fiery explosion resulted as the drop ship was obliterated. Two minutes after the start of the attack, Rear Admiral Stehr arrived and launched his own assault against the startled Kleese assault ships. Space became full of explosions and beams of light as the two forces tried to annihilate each other.

The conscripts on board the Kleese assault ships immediately knew that, with the arrival of the Human fleet, any hope of victory was gone. The Kleese had withdrawn in their disk ships, leaving them alone to fight. Without hesitation, the assault ships turned three hundred and sixty degrees and activated their Space Fold drives once more. This battle was over; they were returning home. They would rather risk the displeasure of the Kleese than face certain death at the hands of the Humans. As they left orbit, behind them, the last drop ships were blown apart by one of the Human light cruisers.

-

From the Kleese space station, General Mitchell had a satisfied smirk upon his face as the twenty upgraded assault ships that he had held back in reserve launched their attack against the Kleese ships. Already, the numerous energy beam weapons on the hull were firing at the approaching drop ships. There were also twenty-four large particle beam cannons on the station. These instantly locked on and began firing at the nearest ships. This created a quandary for the conscripts on board the assault ships as they had strict orders from the Kleese that the station was not to be damaged but captured intact and returned to its former location.

From the outskirts of Luna City energy beam weapons began firing, taking out the descending drop ships. It was at that moment, Fleet Admiral Kirby arrived with the survivors of his fleet.

The Armageddon quickly targeted one of the Kleese assault ships and blew it apart. The other ships of First Fleet began firing, and more assault ships died.

The conscripts instantly activated their Space Fold drives and fled. They knew this was a battle they couldn’t win. Several minutes later, the last of the left behind drop ships was annihilated by an energy beam from the space station.

-

At Vesta, the Kleese assault ships launched their drop ships. They had already located the massive hanger doors leading to the interior of the asteroid. One carefully placed missile had obliterated the doors and the protective weapons emplacements around it. From the asteroid itself, other weapons were now firing. Even as the Kleese assault ships prepared to fire more missiles at the surface, the battered remains of the Phoenix’s fleet arrived.

-

Captain Williams took a deep breath as she readied her marines. Colonel Bailey had sent her two more companies of marines in battle suits when he realized just what she would soon be facing. Beth looked around at the waiting marines. Energy weapons, RG rifles, and even a few energy lances were at the ready. The air in the large spacedock had been removed, and the large internal airlock opened. There was no point in allowing it to be destroyed in the coming battle.

Beth knew from continued updates via Colonel Bailey that the inbound drop ships were suffering heavily from the embedded weapons in the tunnel. Dozens of drop ships were being annihilated, but many others were still inbound.

“Everyone with energy weapons,” she spoke over the general com frequency. “As soon as those drop ships make an appearance, fire. Try to take out as many as you can before they can land. Everyone else, RG explosive rounds are permissible. Use them to try to take out the enemy as they exit their drop ships. They should still be bunched up, so make it count.”

Beth took another deep breath, trying to relax. She knew there was another company of marines in battle suits at the transit station to Smithfield and one waiting at the receiving end. She just prayed that the enemy didn’t make it that far.

In the distance, Beth could see movement and the first of the enemy drop ships darted into the spacedock. Instantly dozens of blue energy beams flashed forth, spearing a number of the drop ships. They exploded as the beams penetrated the thin hull armor of their hull and reached the delicate systems inside. More drop ships entered and died as even more energy beams were fired from the marines in the Type Three battle suits. But now some of the drop ships were managing to land. Their rear hatches slammed down, and conscripts in Type Two battle suits swarmed out only to be met by explosive rounds that fell in their midst.

Beth had no idea how many they were killing, and part of her mind didn’t want to know. It was slaughter, and she knew there was no other choice. This was about the survival of the Human race and those in Vesta she had sworn to protect. Not only that but the only surviving member of her family was inside the asteroid, and there was no way in hell she was going to risk her mother dying.

“Forward,” Beth ordered as she leveled her RG rifle and began firing in small, controlled bursts.

In front of her, she could now see hundreds of the enemy spreading out to avoid the explosive blasts that were going off within their lines. Then they must have seen the advancing marines as they began firing off their own weapons.

“Lieutenants Stern and Perry keep the enemy off our flanks,” Beth ordered to the recently promoted lieutenants. “Corporals Russell and Dawson take your squads and focus on the center of the enemy line.”

“We always get the worst of it,” muttered Dawson as he fired half a dozen explosive rounds into a group of battle suits advancing across the floor of the spacedock. “Come on Russell; you don’t want to live forever do you?”

“Someone has to protect your ass!” Russell spoke back with a laugh. “I’ll bet my squad takes out more of these goons than yours.”

“Bets on,” Dawson replied as he switched his RG rifle to full auto and began firing into the advancing conscripts in their battle suits. He watched several fall and nodded his head in satisfaction.

With relief, Beth saw that the number of drop ships entering the spacedock had dropped considerably. She winced as an explosive round went off nearby, showering her with metal debris. “Focus, people!” she yelled over the com frequency as she saw how near the enemy troops were coming. “Use energy lances!”

Beth drew her own energy lance and swung it at an opposing enemy who had managed to come too close. Instantly, the lance cut through the neck of the Type Two battle suit the conscript was enclosed in, cutting off his head. It was strange in a way. Without any air in the large spacedock, there was no sound, though she could feel an occasional vibration through the feet of her suit where it touched the metal deck.

All around her, the fighting had become hand-to-hand. Energy lances were flashing, and occasionally she would hear a scream over the com as one of her marines was cut down by opposing fire. On her HUD, she saw numerous green icons turning yellow and then red.

She felt a sudden sharp pain in her left leg and looking down saw a spray of red blood shoot out from a hole in her suit; she had been hit by an armor piercing RG round. She groaned in pain and then felt the suit go to work. It injected her with a painkiller and sealed off the suit around the wound. In moments, the pain was gone and she resumed fighting. She did limp on that leg as the suit was slightly damaged.

For what seemed like hours, the fight ebbed back and forth. Just when she was about to call for a retreat to the transit station, two fresh companies of marines in Type Two battle suits led by an officer in a Type Three suit came pouring out of the hatches behind her.

“Thought you could use some help,” Colonel Bailey yelled as he ran up to stand next to her in his battle suit.

“About time you joined the fun, Sir!” Beth replied, relieved the colonel was here.

“The space battle outside is over. Fleet Admiral Kirby jumped in with the Armageddon, and after a short engagement, the remaining Kleese assault ships fled. Once we get this spacedock mopped up, the fighting will be done.”

“Then let’s do it,” spoke Beth, determinedly. With that, both officers waded into the enemy wielding their energy lances.

Chapter Twenty-One

Mason leaned back in his chair as he slid his plate away and smiled over at his sister. “That was great!”

“Actually, Adrienne fried the chicken,” Susan replied with a grin.

“I peeled the potatoes!” Karen boasted with a big smile on her face. She had recently turned eleven and had been happy to show Adrienne how well she could do the potatoes.

“Yes she did,” Adrienne said. “Both girls were a big help in the kitchen.”

“I’m just glad we could all get together tonight,” Michael added as he eyed the large cherry pie setting in the center of the table, wondering if he had room for a slice.

“How soon before you have to return to duty?” Susan asked.

It had been nice having Michael home the last few days. The girls had taken advantage of it and plied their father with questions about spaceships and aliens. Then they had gone on to show him what they had been learning in school while he had been away.

“I have a few more days yet before I have to get back,” he responded as he decided he did have room for a small piece of the pie. “Our four new battlecruisers will be launching at the end of the week, and I plan on taking them out for their shakedown cruise. The Armageddon will act as flagship.”

“I understand the new light cruisers are already finished,” added Mason, recalling the latest reports from General Mitchell.

“Yes,” Michael replied with a nod. “All twelve are of the new design. They are much more powerful than the cargo ships we converted originally. It’s amazing the difference the Kivean and Kleese construction technology has made in our shipbuilding.”

“What’s Brian up to now?” asked Susan, curiously. Brian had been Michael’s second in command on the Raven, and she hadn’t spoken to him recently. He used to stop by the house occasionally to visit with her and the kids.

“He’s handling all of my mining operations,” Michael replied. “We’ve recently updated the Raven and he’s been out doing some more prospecting.”

“It’s amazing how everything has almost returned to normal over the last eight months,” Adrienne commented. “I was in the new habitat earlier today visiting Harnett. Even she is amazed at all we’ve accomplished.”

“She should be,” Mason responded with a pleased smile. “We just started construction of the additional habitat we’re adding. The new one will be the same size as the one we recently completed and will be able to house nearly one million people. It’ll have plenty of farmland, and we should be able to greatly expand our animal herds.”

“Meat,” Michael said with a pleased smile. “It’s been awhile since I had a good steak.”

“Chickens are easier to raise,” Adrienne quickly pointed out. “Cattle take up an awful lot of room.”

“We got to go to the zoo last week,” Candace interrupted with an excited smile. “There are so many animals there!”

Mason nodded. The new zoo in the big habitat was home to nearly a thousand different species of animals. If they got the opportunity to rebuild the Earth’s shattered biosphere someday at least they would still have some of the animal species with which to do it.

Mason smiled as he listened to Susan, Michael, and the kids talk. Much had changed since the Kleese attack. Nearly all of the survivors had been evacuated from Earth, and almost two million now called Mars their home, and there was already talk of terraforming the planet. The Kiveans thought it would be possible to give the planet a breathable atmosphere in less than sixty years.

Another four million were living in the completed dome habitats on the Moon, and three million were safely inside Vesta. There were still six million living on the large space station, and another two million had been transferred to other habitats built in several nearby asteroids. The latest estimates forecast that most of the refugees still on the station would have new homes in another ten months. Many of the homes would be located in additional habitats being built inside several of the larger asteroids. Mason wanted as much of the Human race as possible protected from future harm.

Adrienne looked over at Mason and felt content. He had recently asked her to move in with him, and she had agreed. Looking around at the smiling children, Michael, and Susan, she knew she was no longer alone.

-

Major Nelson was standing next to Captain Williams in one of the domes on the large space station. It was the same one they had trained in during their captivity. Nothing much had changed except more barracks had been added. The dome had been set aside for the training of the new space marine force that General Mitchell was demanding.

“It’s strange to be back here,” Beth commented as she watched Lieutenants Stern and Perry put the new recruits through their drills. Most of them were military personnel who had volunteered for battle suit training.

Wade nodded. He had asked to be relieved of his obligations on the Armageddon and allowed to return to his marine duties. He hadn’t felt comfortable being a tactical officer. “General Mitchell wants a full two thousand marines trained in the Type Three battle suits.”

“That’s a lot,” Beth spoke, her eyes widening. “Do we have that many of the Type Three suits available?”

“Not yet, but Marken has assured General Mitchell that the construction facilities on the station can make as many as we need.”

“We’re going to attack the Kleese, aren’t we?” Beth asked worriedly. She knew it was always better to be on offense rather than to set back on defense. However, the Human race no longer had the numbers it once had. Sixteen to eighteen million people were not enough to fight a galactic war.

“Yes,” replied Wade, letting out a deep breath. “I’m sure that’s what he’s planning. Probably some hit and run raids to keep the Empire off balance while our population grows. It will only take a few generations to give us the people we need.”

Beth nodded. Over the past few months, she and Wade had become much closer. There were even entire days now that she didn’t think about her former fiancée. No trace of him had ever been found. She had spoken to her mother about Donald, but even she had no idea what had happened to him. He had vanished immediately after the first volcanic eruptions as he left to try to find his parents. Beth strongly suspected she would never know how he had died.

-

At Jornada, Lawrence Henderson breathed out a long sigh of relief. Less than two hundred thousand people still resided at the spaceport and the nearby military bases. There was no longer any rush to get them off the planet as they now had plenty of power and living space.

Looking out the large, reinforced windows of the Operations Building, he could see two of the large assault ships setting next to one of the hangars.

“We did it,” General Wainright said from where he was standing next to Lawrence. “We managed to save a lot of people.”

“More than I ever believed possible,” admitted Lawrence, feeling as if the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders.

“By the end of the week, all of the other survival camps except Lakenheath in the UK and Ramstein in Germany will be officially shut down. We’ll be using those bases to conduct salvage operations. We have a lot of museums and other sites we need to search for artifacts.”

“Our history is important,” replied Lawrence, nodding his head. “It will be essential to recover as much as we can over the next few years. From the latest reports, conditions on Earth are not going to be improving for a long time. Even the Kiveans have said that due to the instability in the Earth’s crust, there isn’t much their science can do to help.”

Wainright looked out the windows at the blowing gray snow that covered everything for as far as his eyes could see. The Earth was now entering an ice age, and life on its surface was over.

-

Captain Stevens stepped outside of his command bunker for the last time. Behind him, Lieutenant Griffith shut and locked the door.

“I understand they’re asking for volunteers to become space marines,” Griffith commented as he stepped over next to Mark. He buttoned the top button on his parka, trying to keep out the biting cold.

“Yes,” Mark replied with a nod. “I’m thinking about signing up.”

“At least it will be warm up on the space station,” added Griffith, kicking his boot at the snow. “I’m tired of this damn cold and this infernal gray snow. My family’s settled on the Moon. I’m going to take some leave time and spend a few weeks with them.”

Mark nodded as the two of them crawled into their jeep. As they drove away the power to tent city was turned off, and darkness swept in to claim the now abandoned Human survival settlement. It was silent across the desert as the gray snow continued to fall.

-

The next day, General Mitchell was holding a meeting with Colonel Bailey, Major Nelson, and Marken on the space station. It was time for them to begin planning their next move.

“Our four new battlecruisers will be undergoing their shakedown cruises shortly,” Mitchell informed the others sitting around the small conference room table.

“We’ve also finished updating all the assault ships,” Marken added. “We have two hundred and ten ships equipped with updated shields, particle beam weapons, and trained crews.”

“In addition, we’ve built defensive weapons emplacements around all of our bases and colonies on the Moon, Mars, and the asteroids that we’re establishing habitats in,” General Mitchell continued. “For the first time I feel confident we’re fully capable of protecting ourselves from future attacks.”

“Then what’s next?” Colonel Bailey asked. He knew there had to be more to this meeting. He had known the general too long.

“We need to go on the offensive,” Mitchell said evenly, his eyes narrowing. “The Kleese will someday return and probably in much greater numbers than the last attack.”

“They’re a Galactic Empire,” Wade spoke nervously, recalling all that Marken had told him in the past. “How can we take them on?”

“Hit and run raids at first,” suggested Mitchell as his eyes swept over the group. “Even commando raids where possible.”

“We launch a guerilla campaign,” responded Colonel Bailey, arching his eyebrows as he thought over the idea. “It just might work.”

“We hold fleet battles to a minimum unless we know we can win,” Mitchell added. “We do everything we can to keep them off balance while we grow our population back and build up our ship strength. Then, when we’re ready, we go and avenge what they did to our world!”

Everyone in the room nodded. It would take time, but the Kleese with their attack upon the Earth had set the Human race on a path that would someday lead to a full scale galactic war. It was a mission that every Human now living would dedicate their lives toward.

-

Two days later, Marken was back in the new Kivean habitat deep within a large asteroid. They had built the habitat at the asteroid’s center and with the help of the Humans, had covered the surface with defensive and offensive weapons. Marken was standing with Harnett, looking out over their new city.

“The Humans will soon be going to war with the Kleese,” Harnett spoke as she watched several children in the distance playing. “They won’t stop until they have avenged the death of their world.”

“Yes,” Marken replied as he took Harnett’s hand and gently squeezed it. “Our race planned the escape from the Kleese; I don’t think even then we fully realized what we were unleashing when it came to the Humans.”

“They’re a good people,” Harnett replied softly, her eyes shifting to those of her life mate. “I wonder how we would feel if our home world had suffered the same fate as theirs?”

“I don’t believe the Kleese understand what is about to fall upon them,” Marken said as he thought about the recent meeting he had attended with General Mitchell. “The Humans will take the fight to the Kleese, and someday there will be a full scale galactic war. I just hope we did the right thing in freeing them.”

“The Kleese are a cruel and heartless race,” Harnett replied, her eyes getting that faraway look. “With the Human’s help, perhaps someday we can return to our own home world. You did the right thing, Marken. The Humans deserve to be free and so do we.”

“I hope so,” responded Marken, knowing that a lot would have to happen to make that day possible. “But this may be a long war and we might not live to see the end of it.”

“We must trust the Humans,” Harnett said, her eyes showing her belief in their new friends and allies. “Our fate and theirs is now intertwined.”

Marken nodded as he and Harnett walked back into their home. Due to his actions, a galactic war was about to start. He just hoped he had made the right decisions and the Humans were ready for what was ahead. In some ways, he almost felt sorry for the Kleese.

The End

If you enjoyed Galactic Empire Wars: Destruction and would like to see it continue as a series, please post a review with some stars. Good reviews encourage an author to write and help books to sell. Reviews can be just a few short sentences describing what you liked about the book. If you have suggestions, please contact me at my website listed on the following page. Thank you for reading Galactic Empire Wars: Destruction and being so supportive. If there is enough interest in the series, there may be three to five additional books. The decision is yours.

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Website: http://raymondlweil.com/

Other Books by Raymond L. Weil

Available at Amazon

Moon Wreck (The Slaver Wars Book One)

The Slaver Wars: Alien Contact (The Slaver Wars Book Two)

Moon Wreck: Fleet Academy (The Slaver Wars Book Three)

The Slaver Wars: First Strike (The Slaver Wars Book Four)

The Slaver Wars: Retaliation (The Slaver Wars Book Five)

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Dragon Dreams: Dragon Wars

Dragon Dreams: Gilmreth the Awakening

Dragon Dreams: Snowden the White Dragon

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Star One: Tycho City: Survival

Star One: Neutron Star

Star One: Dark Star

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The Slaver Wars: Galactic Conflict

Coming May 2014

The Slaver Wars: Endgame!

Coming October 2014

Galactic Empire Wars: Emergence (?)

(Depends on reader interest)

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Turn the page for a brief introduction to The Slaver Wars.

The Slaver Wars: Alien Contact

Chapter One

The 1,200-meter battle cruiser StarStrike slid quietly through empty space. The ship was a Conqueror Class Command Cruiser, one of the most powerful warships ever built by the Human Federation of Worlds. There were only four of the powerful ships of war in the Federation’s entire fleet. The StarStrike and its small fleet were on a fact finding mission deep within suspected enemy territory. The 1,500-meter Galaxy Class Battle Carrier Victory was above the StarStrike, along with its four light cruiser escorts. Several small fighter craft flew around the small fleet keeping a constant vigilance for any incoming threats. Two space destroyers were ahead of the fleet scanning for any potential enemy targets. It was essential that the human fleet remain undetected until it had completed its reconnaissance mission.

Fleet Admiral Hedon Streth sat at his command console watching the main viewscreen on the front wall of the Command Center. He was of medium build, and his dark hair was just starting to turn gray on the sides. The admiral was forty-two years old, and the worry lines on his face showed that he had been through a lot the past few months. Months he would like to forget. It had been a trying and desperate time for the entire human race.

The viewscreen showed unwinking stars ahead, and the scanners and long-range sensors were free of threats. The Command Center was in the shape of a rectangle, and its twenty-crew personnel were efficiently going about their jobs. At the reinforced security hatch, two heavily armed marines stood guard. No one entered the Command Center without the proper clearance. Two more similarly armed marines stood just outside the hatch in the corridor. Security now was much more obvious than a few short months ago.

“Still nothing,” Colonel Amanda Sheen, the executive officer, spoke. She was standing next to the holographic plotting table, which showed the present fleet disposition and the CAP fighters that were flying their routine patrol routes. She was currently checking the large tactical screens above her as well as the information appearing on the table.

“Confirm mission status,” ordered Admiral Streth, letting out a deep breath and shifting his gaze from the viewscreen to his executive officer.

They had picked this system hoping it would be clear of enemy activity. Their mission was extremely sensitive, and the security of the Human Federation of Worlds depended upon its success. Hedon felt the full weight of that responsibility on his shoulders and knew that this mission just had to succeed. Failure was not an option. The entire Federation was in extreme danger, and this mission might well determine the future of mankind in the galaxy.

“Navigation, I want a position status report,” Colonel Sheen barked, her blue eyes turning toward the two officers sitting at the main navigation console.

“We are currently one hundred and eighteen astronomical units out from the target system’s primary. Fleet is currently moving in system at eighteen percent speed of light on sublight engines,” replied the chief navigation officer.

“What do we have on the long-range sensors?” Sheen asked over her mini-com, glancing over at the large scanning and sensor console, which was manned by two fleet officers. She wore a small communications device in her right ear, which allowed her to contact any station on the ship in an instant.

“System has two planets,” Lieutenant Stalls reported smoothly as he checked the latest information coming in on his computer screens. “Both are gas giants in distant orbits. No asteroid fields or moons detected. System is absent of any artificial emissions.”

“System is as we had hoped,” reported Colonel Sheen turning to face the admiral. “There are no signs of any enemy vessels, and the system has no significant resources to attract any type of mining or scientific activity.”

Admiral Streth nodded his head in acknowledgement. He knew that Amanda was a highly qualified officer graduating in the top ten percent of her class at the fleet academy. She was a brunette with a trim figure and thirty-two years of age. She was also a firm disciplinarian. The crew respected her, and she was everything he could ask for in an executive officer.

“Get me the Victory, I think it’s time we get some information about this area of space,” ordered Admiral Streth, reaching a decision. They had been moving steadily deeper into suspected Hocklyn space for the last eight weeks. “It’s time we launch the stealth scouts and find out what’s out there.”

Colonel Sheen nodded. This was their mission and she was ready to get it started. Glancing back at the sensor and scanner screens, she noted that they were clearly empty of any hostile threats. That needed to continue for several more days if they hoped for any chance of success. Looking around the Command Center, she could sense the heightened vibrancy in the crew at the admiral’s announcement to begin the actual mission.

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On board the Victory, Commander Adler listened as the admiral ordered the launch of the stealth scouts. The Victory had six of the highly advanced scout ships on board, which were nearly undetectable to normal methods of scanning. It was hoped that the Hocklyns would have no way to detect the small surveillance vessels. Their entire mission and the safety of their fleet depended on it.

Adler ended the communication with the admiral and turned to his executive officer Major Timmins. “I want all six scout ships ready to launch ASAP. Mission is a go.”

“Finally,” responded Major Timmins letting out a deep breath and then announcing over his mini-com, “All stations stand by for scout ship launch. Mission is a go. Flight bay, begin launch preparations.”

Instantly the tension and excitement in the Command Center notched up. This was what everyone had been waiting for. It was time to find out just how large the Hocklyn Empire was and how big a threat they were to the Federation.

Commander Adler turned toward the lieutenant in charge of Navigation. “I want a list of the twenty nearest stars that are capable of supporting life-bearing planets.”

“Yes, sir,” the young blonde replied as she began entering commands into her computer.

Lieutenant Ashton was rated as one of the top navigators in the entire fleet. She also held an advanced degree in Stellar Cartography. She had written an impressive thesis on deep space navigation her senior year at the fleet academy on Tellus.

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Down below in the main flight bay, the six scout ships were brought up on elevators from their secure hangers beneath. The ships were covered in a layer of dark composite material that the scientists swore would be impervious to Hocklyn scans. Power sources were muffled, and the ships were built to present a minimal profile to enemy ships.

Each scout could carry a six-man crew and were capable of operating independently of the fleet for eight to ten days. They had FTL drives as well as powerful sublight engines. The ships were wedge shaped with gentle curves. Each was twenty-two meters long and twelve meters wide. Weapons consisted of six Hunter anti-fighter missiles hidden inside the wings and two medium lasers in the nose. The nose lasers were a recent development and had been added at the last minute to the scouts. The pilots were still arguing whether the lasers were an improvement over the 30 mm cannons they had replaced.

Technicians quickly checked over all six ships, making sure they were ready for their missions. The ships had been kept on standby for nearly two weeks. A quick check and all the scouts were deemed ready for immediate launch. The deck chief notified flight control that all six scouts were mission ready.

Flight control was at the far end of the massive flight bay. Large reinforced glass windows looked out over the bay allowing the controllers inside to see the activity in the bay. Inside flight control was a hum of busy activity as men and women watched their consoles and kept track of all the activity going on inside the bay as well as outside. The CAG was standing next to the flight operations officer at the main control console. Across the back wall, numerous viewscreens depicted activity inside the bay. Several large scanner screens showed the flight space around the fleet and the current locations of the CAP fighters that were out on patrol.

Activating his mini-com, the CAG gave the order for the flight crews to board their scouts. The technicians were finished, now it would be up to the highly trained crews to begin their mission and bring home the information the Federation so desperately needed.

The waiting crews quickly made their way into their respective vessels. They had been in the pilot’s ready room, hoping this star system would be secure enough so they could start their covert mission. Nerves had been getting on edge and tempers had been flaring as they moved farther away from the Federation and deeper into what was suspected to be Hocklyn controlled space. They all felt relieved and energized that it was finally time to launch the mission.

Captain Karl Arcles settled down into his pilot’s seat in one of the scouts and looked over at his copilot, Lieutenant Lacy Sanders. The young twenty-six-year-old blonde looked slightly pale. It was one thing to train for this type of mission; it was another to actually do it.

“Nothing to be nervous about Lieutenant,” Arcles said with a reassuring smile. “Just treat this as a routine flight. We’ve done this often enough in practice.”

“Yes, sir,” replied Lieutenant Sanders taking a deep breath. Lacy could feel her heart racing. She looked over at Captain Arcles and said nervously. “Only this time it’s for real, and what we find may determine the future of the entire human race. I know they said the Hocklyns shouldn’t be able to detect our scout ships. We all know that the Hocklyn’s technology level is higher than ours. What if the experts are wrong?”

Arcles leaned back in his seat and didn’t reply. The lieutenant was correct. The future of humanity's home system and its four outlying colony worlds rested on what this mission discovered about the Hocklyns. The Hocklyns had attacked the Human Federation of Worlds without provocation. Millions of innocent people had died in the brutal attack.

The mission of this fleet was to find out just how large an empire the Hocklyns controlled, and what could be done to prevent future attacks. Was it just a few worlds as the Federation government hoped, or was it a large galaxy-spanning empire? The Hocklyns held a decisive edge in technology. That had already been determined from the technologies on their ships. Did they also hold a decisive edge in population as well as natural resources? Karl just hoped the experts were right and the scout ships were undetectable.

“Launch at your discretion, Captain Arcles.” The CAG’s voice came over the com system. “Good luck and good hunting.”

“Let’s get the systems powered up,” ordered Arcles glancing over at Lieutenant Sanders. “It’s time to get this show on the road.”

It only took the two a few minutes to finish powering up the small ship and complete their final preflight checks. The techs had already checked everything earlier, so it was mainly a matter of flipping a few switches and powering up the sublight drive.

“Everything shows green,” Lieutenant Sanders reported as she tightened her safety harness. She closed her eyes briefly and said a short prayer. This mission frightened her. They were so far away from home, and if anything happened, they would be on their own. No one would be coming to save them.

Captain Arcles reached forward, taking the scout ship’s controls. A moment later, the little ship darted out from the flight bay and moved away from the majestic battle carrier. “Insert first FTL coordinates,” he ordered, looking over at Sanders. He had flown with the lieutenant often enough that he knew that once the mission began she would calm down. She was a very capable officer; she just needed to learn to control her anxiety.

The lieutenant tapped a few commands into her navigation computer and then nodded as she double-checked the results. “Coordinates locked in.”

Arcles nodded and turned the controls over to the ship’s flight computer. He watched as the FTL timer began counting down and soon neared zero. The other scout ships didn’t show on the small ship’s scanners and sensors, but he knew they were out there.

“Standby for FTL insertion,” Arcles spoke over the com to the other crewmembers. There were two mission specialists in the cockpit behind him who were responsible for the scout’s sensors and stealth systems. Two more technicians were back in the small crew compartment.

Moments later, a spatial vortex of blue-white light appeared directly in front of the curved nose of the scout ship. The scout ship darted into the vortex, which instantly vanished, leaving no sign of the scout. Within a few minutes, the other five scouts had vanished in the same way. Each scout had a different set of destinations to search.

-

Admiral Streth watched as the six scout ships vanished into the blue-white vortexes of light. He let out a deep breath and wondered about what they would find. They were nearly six hundred light years from home, and in what was believed to be enemy territory. The entire outcome of the war might very well rest on what the scouts discovered.

“It’s begun,” Colonel Sheen commented quietly, seeing that the six blips representing the scouts had vanished from her plotting table. They had been tracked by high-resolution cameras as they left the Victory.

In a way, she felt relieved that the mission had finally been launched. Not knowing what the Federation actually faced had been gnawing fearfully in the pit of her stomach for quite some time. Amanda just wanted her parents to be safe back home on Aquaria. Recent events had made her extremely concerned for her parents' safety.

Colonel Sheen pursed her lips, feeling apprehensive at what the scouts might discover. When she had entered the fleet academy, she had never dreamed she would become part of an interstellar war. That was something that only happened on the holo vids or in books. Her parents lived on the colony of Beltran Three, called Aquaria by its inhabitants. The planet was nearly eighty percent water and possessed the most beautiful ocean beaches of any of the four major colonies. Amanda knew that the orbital defenses above her home planet were being heavily strengthened to protect the colony from another Hocklyn attack. She just prayed that it would be enough and that her parents would remain safe.

“Mission counter has started,” she reported as a timer began moving on the plotting table. “First system emergence should occur in twenty-two minutes.”

Admiral Streth nodded. “I want the fleet kept at Condition Two. We don’t know how well the stealth protection on those scouts will hold up. If the Hocklyns detect them, we could have their warships here soon after.”

“Yes, sir,” responded Colonel Sheen, hoping that was not the case. She walked several paces over to a set of consoles manned by two lieutenants and two ensigns. “Keep all weapon systems on standby. If any unknowns are detected, I want firing solutions yesterday!”

Lieutenant Jacobs instantly responded. “All targets will be locked upon FTL emergence until deemed friendly or unfriendly.”

Colonel Sheen nodded and passed the same order over her mini-com to the rest of the fleet after setting her com to fleet-wide so she could communicate the admiral’s orders to the other ship commanders. She then continued to walk from console to console in the Command Center, talking to the men and women who manned them. At the helm control console, she ordered Lieutenant Jenikens to be prepared for emergency maneuvers upon her command if they went to Condition One.

Satisfied that everything was as ready as it could be, she returned to her station at the plotting table. She could have done the same thing over her mini-com, which connected her to all the stations, but she preferred to talk to the individual crewmembers whenever possible. She felt it made a better impression upon them.

Admiral Streth had watched Colonel Sheen move through the Command Center talking to the crew. He leaned back in his seat, thinking about what had brought them to this point. It had all started eight months back when a strange vessel had entered the Stalor System, which contained a small mining operation. The miners had instantly screamed for help when their scanners had detected an alien ship going into orbit above the volcanic moon they were mining. It was the first alien ship ever encountered by the Federation.

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