J ake and Valerie were sitting in front of the fireplace in Valerie’s living room. She was snuggled up next to Jake, holding him as she felt her love for the man she missed every moment he was away. Her eyes were closed and Jake was staring into the flames. Something was wrong and he just couldn’t put his finger on what it was. The feeling started during the meeting and had grown over the last two days. What could it be?
Valerie opened her eyes and looked up at Jake and asked, “Why have you not tried to find the Gardners?”
Jake did a double take and said, “I thought you were asleep.”
“No, I’ve just been enjoying the moment. But I still wonder why you’ve not tried to find them.”
Jake stared at the fire and after a few moments said, “Because it’s not time yet.”
Valerie leaned back and furrowed her brow, “Jake, we’re about to be attacked by millions of Keepers’ ships. When would be the right time?”
Jake sighed and looked at her, “What kind of vision do you think would force the Gardners to disappear, Valerie? What would they have to see that would cause them to go wherever they have gone?”
Valerie thought a moment, “It would have to have been something so extreme that they felt there was no other choice.”
“Exactly. If I find them too soon, then I may cause severe repercussions to what they’ve planned. I sense that the Keepers must invade on a massive scale before they can be found. It would have to have been a vision of that invasion that caused their disappearance.”
“Do you think they can help? Your psychic power is higher than theirs.”
“It’s not the magnitude of power, Valerie. It’s the skill of using what power you possess. I’m still stumbling into what I’m capable of doing and there’s no one, other than Junior, that has a clue about helping me develop my skills. I also think they would not have gone if they did not have some idea of how to handle the current crisis.” Jake looked back at the fire, “We are no closer to finding a weapon to stop their ships. I pray that the Gardners will have an answer to that problem.”
“So you think there is going to be a massive loss of life before we can find them.”
Jake lowered his head and nodded.
“Don’t wait too long, Jake.”
“I hope I know when to act, but once the invasion starts I want you on board with Junior and me.”
“Is Ross in danger?”
Jake looked at Valerie and said, “We are all in danger. No place in the Realm will be safe, and I’m pretty certain that the Keepers have scouts in our universe just as we do in theirs. I’m of the belief that they know Ross’s importance and it will be a top priority target for the initial attack. Once our scouts determine the invasion is beginning, I want you with me. You should also make Joe leave the castle and join the fleet. I keep sensing that Ross is in great danger.”
“Then you think the generators won’t work.”
“No, I just believe they will chase Ross wherever we move it. They have scanners that will be tuned to Ross and they will be chasing it no matter where we send it. You won’t be able to function as the ruler of the Realm if you are being constantly forced to run from their fleets.”
“Have you made any plans if what you say is true?”
“Yes. Sprig has set up a schedule of more than ten thousand locations for Ross to go that are preprogrammed into the teleport system. Some of the locations are more than fifty hours from the jump limit. I still think the Keepers will not give up no matter how many times we move it, but it’s the best we can do.”
“What will the Realm think about me not staying with the planet?”
“They’ll never know you’re not there. Once the moves start communications with Ross will be next to impossible. Unfortunately, every planet will be on its own until we find a way to kill their ships. The Spiders and Algeans will be in control of the mayhem that is bound to happen when thousands of planets start teleporting.”
Jake thought a moment and asked, “What did Sprig mean about Duke Jongo?”
Valerie sighed, “He has been making life oppressive for the civilizations in his domain. The military, both Searchers and Red Warriors, under his command have been chosen for their loyalty to him instead of the Realm. If the Keepers were not an issue, we would have eventually been forced to remove him as the ruler of the Kosiev province.”
“Are you saying civil war, Valerie?”
“He has his eye on the Stars Realm throne, Jake. He may use this as an opportunity to seize the crown. He has not given any of his forces to assist in this fight, and we cannot make it an issue while we are facing the Keepers’ invasion.”
Jake shook his head, “Is he that blinded by ambition?”
“Yes, and he has infected his forces with the same disease. This has been developing for more than five hundred years and it has accelerated over the last twenty. He is building his own ships, and the taxation his subjects have to pay to build up his military is oppressive. Gambia was in his province and he extorted huge sums from the merchants to subsidize his army. He allowed them to stay in power as long as they paid to be left alone.”
“Are his ships as good as the Gammas?”
“Yes.”
Jake’s internal alarm went off at full blast, “Then that’s another reason for you to be with me. Not only is Ross a target for the Keepers, but I can see where it would also be a target for the Duke.”
Valerie nodded, “I will join you at the first sign of trouble.”
“No, Valerie; you will join me now. If he’s going after Ross he won’t wait until we start moving it; he’ll strike before the Keepers arrive. Now I know why he had so many questions and what’s been making me nervous. If we announce that you are not on Ross but with the fleet preparing for the invasion, attacking Ross would not accomplish anything. He has to eliminate you in order to take the Throne. If he attacked just as the Keepers invaded he could say that the Keepers destroyed Ross and that he was assuming leadership of the Realm to protect it. If we win, he’s the new King of the Realm.”
“Junior?”
“Yes, Jake?”
“Teleport Valerie and me on board now!”
“Jake, you don’t think he would act now?”
“I’ve just looked at the possibilities and yes, he will. Do it now, Junior!”
“Sorry, I had to scan for your location.”
Valerie and Jake disappeared from the huge sofa, leaving the fire burning behind.
“Manny?”
“Yes, Jake?”
“Issue an announcement that the Royal Family is with the Realm’s Fleet going over preparations for the Keepers’ invasion. Do it as fast as possible.”
“What?!?”
“Just do it. I’ll explain later.”
The small ship had worked its way close to its intended target and the pilot was energizing his weapons when he heard over his communication panel, “Members of the Realm, the Royal Family has joined the Realm’s Fleet to help prepare it for the coming attack. The family will be inspecting the forces of the Realm and making sure that we are as ready as possible for the expected invasion. We will keep you informed about the progress we are making. Thank you for your support.”
The pilot of the small ship swore and slammed his fist on the console. It had taken a week to get in close to Ross and now it was wasted effort. Without the presence of the Royal Family, especially the Queen, the plan was worthless. Ales Jongo turned and began working his way out of the Ross system. He knew his father was going to be furious, but there would be other opportunities.
Jake and Junior watched the small ship as it started leaving.
“Junior, I thought the stealth systems were supposed make those ships invisible.”
“They do, Jake. But the Algeans don’t put all their toys on every ship. I can see the Gammas with a system they installed in me. It seems they trust me with their most advanced systems. Do you want me to fire at that traitor?”
“No, we don’t need to let the Duke know we are on to him just yet.”
“I sure would like to light him up.”
Valerie watched the ship and felt barely restrained rage. She felt adrenaline course through her body with her close call with death. “Jake, how could he have explained the destruction of Ross?”
“A Keepers’ scout ship.”
“They don’t use energy weapons!”
“Are you certain about that? With no evidence to prove otherwise, you can’t do anything.”
Junior also felt a rage building, “Jake, we can’t just let this go.”
Jake thought a moment, “Junior, is there any way to prevent a teleportation screen from working?”
Junior was confounded by the question. Moving from anger to logic demanded a jump that took a few moments, “Why do you ask?”
“I remember that Cynthia told me that the pit boss in the casino put some kind of device on my back that would prevent a teleport screen from allowing me entrance.”
Junior thought a moment and said, “Twig would know the answer.”
“Let’s assume that such a device exists. What would happen if we place such a device on the good Duke’s ship and on as many of his military vessels as we could access. Could that device be turned on with remotely?”
“Give me a moment.”
“What are you planning, Jake?”
“You don’t need to know, Your Majesty. Just let me work on it and I’ll let you know.”
“You don’t think I’ll allow you to do what you’re planning.”
“I know you won’t, so quit pressing me. There are some things I must assume responsibility for doing. Now let it go.”
Valerie was worried about what Jake was planning, but then she looked back at the display, saw the ship still sneaking away, and her rage returned. Whatever he was planning, she hoped it worked.
“Junior, what did you find out?”
“Where’s Valerie?”
“She’s finally fallen asleep. Don’t use telepathy, just speak to me.”
“You don’t need the device you mentioned. The Algeans have a device that will emit a field that will prevent a teleportation device from operating.”
“What is the range of the device?”
“It will operate inside the jump limit of a solar system.” Junior paused and said, “You’re going to do it.”
“Yes, I am. Who is the ship operator of the frequency generator in the Duke’s system?”
“It’s actually not a ship. The generator is placed in one of our advanced probes and is activated by a signal from the planet it’s protecting. It will follow the planet wherever we move it.”
“Has the Duke received his probe?”
“No, it’s due to be delivered in three days.”
“Will you handle the details or should I do the honors?”
“No, I’ll do it. If you don’t know, you can’t tell our Queen.”
“You are one very smart individual.”
“And don’t you forget it.”
Joe watched the recording of the Searcher vessel sneaking out of the Ross system with Manny and slammed the table with both hands.
Manny looked up, “You’re going to hurt yourself doing that.”
“I’m going to kill that traitor.”
Manny shook his head, “Not right now. We can’t start a civil war and survive the Keepers. If we go after the Duke, he might join the Keepers. I’m reasonably certain he would try to negotiate with them.”
Joe felt a rage that was threatening to overcome him, “They tried to kill my sister and family. I cannot let this go unanswered.”
“Just be thankful that Jake prevented the attack. I’ve had my doubts about him being all that Valerie has made him up to be, but I’ve been forced to reevaluate my opinion. He has stopped us from making some huge mistakes.”
Joe looked at Manny, “Have you found new information?”
“Yes, I have. I had Einstein take a look at our scans of the home worlds, and he confirms that births only happen when a Keeper dies. The birth usually happens within six minutes of the death, so they must be able to reproduce at a rate that is staggering. If Jake had not stopped our plan to use novas, we would have been overwhelmed quickly.”
Joe thought for a few minutes as they continued to watch the recording of the ship sneaking out of the Ross system. “Manny, are you saying you are willing to follow his decisions without question?”
Manny looked away from the video, “When the invasion starts, there won’t be time to discuss possible choices. He has proven to me that I do not make the best decisions, even though I think I am doing so. Do you see it any differently?”
Joe shook his head slowly, “No, I’m forced to agree with you.”
“Then from this moment forward we must become tools to carry out his orders. Can you agree to do this?”
“I can. And it removes a huge weight questioning if I am doing the right things for the Realm’s survival. I really shouldn’t have questioned Valerie’s decision about his importance, but my psychic skills are nowhere near her level. I just can’t stop myself from worrying.”
Joe stuck his hand out to Manny and they shook. Manny smiled, “You should have seen him go through the valley in the initial armor exercise. I think that, more than anything else I’ve seen, is what makes me think we have a chance in this fight.”
Joe looked at the video again and felt his rage simmering. Manny smiled and said, “If you think you’re angry, think about Jake’s reaction. I suspect he has a plan for handling the problem Duke that will be more effective than anything we could dream up.”
Joe looked away from the video and considered what Manny said. He looked back at the video and began smiling.
Ales stood at attention if front of his father listening to him rant, “You idiot! You took too long to get in position! You missed our best chance at achieving our goals!”
“Father, the Royal Family had probably already moved to the fleet before I arrived. They don’t announce the Royal Family’s location before their arrival. We assumed they would be on Ross, but they weren’t.”
Duke Jongo stood and walked to the window and stared out at the rain falling from a dark sky. It matched his mood. Still, Ales was probably right and had done the correct thing by leaving without destroying Ross. So close! So damnably close! He turned and looked at his son and saw his fear. Fear was a good thing, even for family members. Still, this was his heir and a future ruler of the Realm, if his plans were successful.
“Relax, Ales. You did the right thing and used good judgment. If we can eliminate the Royal Family away from Ross, then we can move the planet here after we assume power. That Castle is amazing and would make a great home for our family. Do we know where the Queen is located?”
Ales took a deep breath and knew he was going to live to see another day, “No, they have scattered into the Realm’s fleet and we only discovered their whereabouts after they have moved to a different location. I suspect we will have to eliminate them once the invasion starts.”
“That reminds me. Have we received the device to prevent star drives from operating and move our planet should it become necessary?”
“Yes; it is in place and waiting for us to activate it.”
“Do it now. I’m not willing to risk a sneak attack by those creatures. We have a huge electronic signature and I’m certain they will see us in their scans. Have we been able to contact them?”
“We’ve sent four ships and all four were destroyed before they could send a message.”
“Send four more. Those creatures are intelligent and should be willing to accept our help, along with a guarantee of our loyalty in return for allowing us to survive.”
Ales didn’t like this part of the plan but knew he had no choice, “I will set it up immediately.”
Twig looked at Sprig and thought, “Are you still committed to your plan?”
“Yes, my love.”
“Is there nothing we can do to save the Realm?”
“No.
“You’re certain of its destruction?”
“You’ve seen the data. Am I missing something?”
Twig’s leaves turned brown, “No, I see it as well.”
“Help the engineers make the device.”
“I will leave momentarily.”
“But first?”
“I want you to hold me for a few moments.”
Sprig wrapped Twig in his branches, feeling sorrow for what was coming and the course of action he was being forced to take.
Valerie looked at her display and saw Duke Jongo was comming her. Jake looked at the display and said, “Play it like we discussed.”
Valerie nodded, took a deep breath, and said, “Duke Jongo, how may I help you?”
The Duke had a smile pasted on his face as he said, “It would be easier to contact you mentally, Your Majesty.”
“The Keepers are able to track telepathic communications. I’ve sent out instructions that all telepaths should avoid using their ability while the Realm is under a threat of invasion. Did you not receive the notification?”
Duke Jongo kept his smile, but was frustrated by his inability to track where the young queen was hiding. He had tried unsuccessfully to find her using his telepathic skills but she had not responded to his calls. “I just wanted to discuss how I should handle the use of my ships during this invasion. What does the Realm suggest we should do with our military forces?”
Valerie smiled to herself and hoped he would take the bait, “We are grounding our Searchers on our most important planets.”
The Duke’s smile disappeared, “Why would you do that?”
“We want them available in the event they are needed for defense. Once the planets start moving it will be next to impossible for them to keep up with the worlds they defend. If they are on the planet, they will just go with it.”
“Why have I not heard anything about this strategy?”
“Check your com log. I believe Mr. Talant sent you that information two days ago.”
Jongo looked down at his log and saw a message from a Jake Talant. “You should have sent this to me directly under your name. This is important to know.”
“I believe that my name is in the message. He is my liaison to the military of the Realm. Did you not see his title?”
Jongo looked again and saw that he had set his com up to show just the name without titles. “Then I am glad I contacted you, Your Majesty.”
“What is it that you want?”
“Nothing more than what you have just given me. I wanted to make sure I had all the information needed before the invasion begins. I also wanted to make sure that all the planets that are moved out of my province would be returned after the war.”
Jake, sitting out of view of the display, smiled, “He doesn’t want to lose his tax base.”
“We have every intention of doing that, and we have started a list of those planets that desire to be moved first. The list is getting quite long.”
This was the real reason that prompted Jongo’s call. He had received the notice and immediately determined it meant trouble. He knew that many of the planets would not want to return to the province if given a choice. His province paid ten times the taxes of the other four.
“ We can assist in moving them back.”
“Oh, I didn’t know you knew the process and the equations necessary to move a planet into a stable orbit. We could certainly use your help.”
Jongo felt his rage begin and his smile disappeared, “I’ll contact you after this is over.”
Valerie smiled, “Please do. We can use your help.”
Valerie terminated the connection and turned to Jake, “Now that is one unhappy puppy.”
Jake smiled and said, “I’ll let you know if he bit.”
“Jake, what are you planning?”
Jake looked up at the ceiling and said, “Oh, nothing. I’m not doing anything.”
Valerie looked at Jake and saw he was being honest… but…something was going on. Whatever it was, she knew it was the best thing for the Realm.
Jongo looked over at Ales, “Do you think she was being honest?”
“The Crown has never been deceptive in all of our past dealings. I also know that thousands of Searchers are landing on Ross every day.”
Jongo thought about what he should do and decided, “I want a quarter of our ships landed on our northern desert. I want you to take the remaining ships and distribute them among our most prosperous worlds. Once this is over, make sure the populations know they are coming back. Use force if necessary.”
Ales saluted and left the room. He didn’t tell his father that the four ships he had just sent to the Keepers’ universe had also been destroyed. He was looking forward to being out of his father’s view. It was never safe to be around the Duke very long.
The Collective observed progress of the fleet updates. It was surprised that the new enemy had not attacked and destroyed more of the main planets, but grudgingly accepted that Psychology was probably right about their reluctance to kill. It remembered millions of years ago when his species had the same difficulty. But that was then, this is now.
“Military, how long before our initial attack?”
“Two hundred and forty intervals.”
“Have you selected the initial targets?”
“I have. There are six planets that direct the actions of those in the enemy’s universe. However, there has been a development that is problematic.”
The Collective turned all of its attention to the Military Quadrant, “What is that?”
“The Green Creatures are no longer present.”
The Collective called all Quadrants in to the discussion, “When did this happen?”
“We are uncertain about exactly when they disappeared. Our scouts have not used their wide scanners for fear of being detected and giving away our initial targets. Now that we’ve selected our targets, we had a wide scan done and the Green Creatures are no longer present.”
“Is it possible they are hidden from our scans?”
Military paused, then responded, “Possibly. However, their numbers had a massive mental signature that would be difficult to hide. I suspect they knew we were coming and fled.”
Science said, “They were the reason we went to that universe. Should we delay our attack and search for them?”
The Collective reflected and then decided, “It was not the Green Creatures that caused the supernova. It was a small number of those ships piloted by other creatures. They represent a larger threat to us than the green ships. We must eliminate the new threat and then go after the old invaders.”
The Quadrants thought about the decision and finally reached agreement.
Military said, “So, we will invade with two million four hundred thousand ships in the first wave and knock out the enemy’s most important planets. The fleets will jump directly to their assigned target and begin their attack upon emergence into the other universe.”
Production answered, “Yes, and in another two hundred and forty intervals another two million will join the first attackers. This process will repeat itself until our entire fleet is available.”
The Collective listened to the Military Quadrant and said, “You are aware that the new enemy will know when you launch your attack?”
“No, how did you arrive at that conclusion?”
“Do you think they don’t have ships here scanning our every move? We cannot see them, but they are here. There is no way to surprise them.”
Military was quiet and then said, “We could jump the five fleets simultaneously without forming them into formations.”
“Do you not think their scanners, detecting more than two million ships energizing their drives at the same moment, would not be a clue to our intentions?”
The quadrants all thought about how to solve the problem of attacking without warning. Finally Military said, “You’re right. If they have ships here observing our fleets there is no way to attack without them seeing us coming.”
“Does that change your strategy?”
“Yes, it does. We will form up the six fleets where the dead green ships are located and jump to our targets from there. We will arrive just above our targets’ atmosphere and begin sweeping the surface immediately. A hundred thousand ships will start from the north and another hundred thousand will move from the south. The remaining two hundred thousand ships will surround the planets at the equator, and half will move north and half will move south. They should meet our ships coming from the north and south and complete the destruction in less than six hours. The increased strength and width of our ship’s beams will decrease the time needed to destroy a planet by seventy five percent. Once we destroy those six planets, the enemy’s organization will suffer a tremendous blow.”
The Collective added, “This process should happen quickly. The targets will not have time to move large populations before our ships are directly above their planets. The populations that escape will eventually run out of places to flee as we destroy the planets they need to survive. After the destruction of that universe we will search for the Green Creatures.”
Science asked, “What if we fail to destroy those planets?”
The Collective and the other Quadrants were all stunned into silence by the question.
Science continued, “We have seen these enemies develop techniques that have enabled them to survive our best efforts to kill them. We are assuming success without really knowing what our ships are jumping into.”
Production responded, “But they have not found a way to penetrate the hulls of our ships, and we are now blocking the entry they used to penetrate our drives.”
The Collective pondered the question and said, “Until they can kill our starships, they cannot win. If they could accomplish that task, they would be here now and we would not be alive. I don’t think I am being optimistic assuming we can and will destroy their planets. Keep me informed of our progress.”
Military and Production both agreed to do just that.
Ron Kune’s emergency alarm went off with a loud wail, followed by, “Incoming ships! incoming ships!” Ron silenced the alarm and checked his display. Keepers’ ships were jumping in to the Modification facility by the thousands, filling the space between his ship and the huge Keepers structure. His display had the ship count approaching a million ships, and they still continued to arrive in huge numbers. He hit the active scanner and recorded a picture of the huge fleet, then teleported out of the area.
It was beginning, and the initial attack on the Realm was imminent. He jumped back to the Stars Realm to report his discovery.