Remnants of Empire, page 11
part #4 of The Earth Saga Series
“This mineral.” He shook the vial and allowed the tiny fragments to make a noise as they bounced off the sides of the vial. “Can win us the war.” He took a step towards the Sector Commander and stretched out his arm, the vial at the end of his fingers.
Looking at the vial, then back to Sajoba, the commander walked towards his subordinate and put his arm around over his shoulders. “My heart warms at the prospect.” The Sector Commander started to walk Sajoba out of the cell. “I hope that you are right, for your sake.”
10
The last two weeks had gone by in a blur for Major Michael Tattersall, one surgery after another, trying to repair the damage that a rebel bullet had done to his leg in Iraq in early December. Once he had been stabilised in the country, he had been flown to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham to start his follow-on care, and early stages of rehabilitation, the last place Mike wanted to be waking up on Christmas morning alone, but that’s where he found himself.
His parents had visited him on the 24th but had travelled back to Ireland to spend Christmas day with his brother and his family, and he didn’t blame them. A hospital was never a happy place to be at the best of times, and Mike wasn’t in the best of moods. Doctors had told him that it would take months to get fully healed, and then several more months to get back into fighting shape, and even when that happened, there was no guarantee that he would get his old command back. Santa had dumped a lump of coal in his stocking this year, he thought to himself as he gazed out the window that looked out on the University of Birmingham.
After finishing his breakfast, he flicked on the news just in time to see a live report from a BBC crew in Canada that was bringing updates of a plan to deploy a massive alien drone in the Pacific Ocean to help clean it, a proposal that was getting much resistance from conservative politicians on the Pacific Rim. The program showed an image of the drone which looked like a giant starfish, with nine arms that could each stretch up to fifty kilometres in length with thrusters on each tip and catch and feed all rubbish to a central hub that would cleanly incinerate the waste. Sector Prefect Dinalis was speaking to the camera suggesting that the entire ocean could be rubbish free in two years.
So engrossed was Mike in the program that he didn’t hear the commotion in the hallway adjoining his room, and only looked away from the television when he noticed a bow-tie wearing man walking into the chamber.
“Major Tattersall.” The man said in a low voice. “Merry Christmas.” He stuck out his hand. “Doctor Keegan Beck. I’m the VLT.”
Mike nodded and shook the man’s hand. “I know who you are, Doctor.” Mike gave the man a quick look over. The man looked like a college professor. “What brings you to England?”
Keegan pointed to a chair at the side of the bed and sat down in it. “Am I right that you have no wife or children?” He asked.
Mike nodded slowly. “Not even a girlfriend at the moment.” He smiled and looked around the room. “And being in here won’t help that cause much.”
Keegan smiled back. “How would you like the opportunity to get out of here, today, with me?”
Mike laughed and looked at the ceiling. “Doc,” he pointed at his leg. “I am not going anywhere in my current state.” Mike pulled back the bed sheet to reveal the bandages covering most of his leg.
Keegan stood up and looked at the dressings. “Not very attractive,” Keegan stated, then sat back down. “Still, my offer stands.”
Mike pulled the sheet back over his leg and looked at the man sitting by the bed. “How can you get me out of here?” he asked.
“I can’t, but my associate can.” Keegan said with his eyes fixed on Mike.
Mike started to say something when he caught sight a tall, brown-skinned alien stride confidently into the room; dark navy uniform and knee-high boots, polished to a high shine. A cape hanging from his shoulders.
“Excuse my delay.” Lord Soturi said in a confident voice in English. “The local authorities were,” he paused, “bothersome.”
Mike’s mouth dropped as he stared at the creature that was standing at the foot of his bed.
“I understand you lost men to a Coalition team.” Soturi stated, “And were wounded in pursuit of the same team.” Soturi moved his eyes over the bed, and telepathically moved the bed sheet that was covering Mike, and then unwound the bandage that was covering his wound revealing a heavily scarred leg. “A painful injury. One that will take some time to recover from.” Without moving, he glanced at a fresh set of bandages on a shelf in the corner of the room, and without any trouble, he quickly dressed Mike’s leg. “Did Doctor Beck extend our invitation to you?”
Mike nodded slowly.
“Excellent.” Soturi moved around to the window and gazed out towards the centre of town. “I have another offer for you. The first offer is conditional that you accept the second.” He looked back to Mike. “Understand.” Again, the Major nodded. “Excellent. I am forming a team, the first human team to receive full Alliance training and equipment.” Soturi moved towards the bed. “The Terran Strike Group. And I want you to lead it.”
Mike’s mouth snapped shut. He looked at Keegan, then back to Soturi who was hovering over him.
“Accept the position, and we shall return to the Planetary Command Ship with you, and heal your leg, properly. You’ll be up and running within two days.” Soturi boasted, a small smile on his face.
“I don’t know what to say.” Mike said slowly, looking down and the sheets covering his lower body.
“Say yes,” Keegan said, rising from the chair. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity.”
Mike looked back up at Keegan, then Soturi. He started to think about the endless possibilities that lay in wait for him, and he began to smile, which turned into a huge grin. “Alright. Let’s do it.” He said putting his hand out towards Keegan, who took it and shook it firmly.
Looking back to Soturi, he noted that the creature was moving back towards the room door and out of view, but reappeared seconds later with a pair of all white Light Sentinels.
“These droids will prepare you for transport, and assist you to my shuttle,” Soturi said. “I shall inform the hospital administrator that you are checking out.”
It didn’t take long for the droids to prep Mike for transport, even if the hospital nurses were objecting to his departure, there was nothing that they could do about it. Soturi and Doctor Beck had arrived in a shuttle that had landed on the hospital's helicopter pad and had attracted the attention of both the local media and the local authorities.
When Mike was finally carried out into the cold afternoon on a makeshift litter that the droids were moving with almost no effort, he felt a blast of cold air hit his frame that hadn’t been outside since his injury was sustained in Iraq, where it had been considerably warmer.
A ring of police had cordoned off the shuttle, and a large group of students from the local university were clamouring to get a better look at the ship, and the crew. Immediately beside the ship two Light Sentinels stood guard, albeit unarmed, while the pilots remained at the controls, the two members of the flight crew, still wearing full armour and helmets moved along the police barrier and were handing out something that Mike couldn’t see to those standing nearby, and taking a chance to pose for pictures with some of the residents.
It was an incredibly peaceful gathering, something that didn’t surprise Mike too much, but he knew it could certainly have gone the other way.
Reaching the ship, the side hatch was opened to reveal a plush interior that had a very VIP feel to it. Keegan entered first, followed up Soturi, before Mike was carefully placed on a comfortable chair across from the hatch next to a large window that allowed him to watch the crowd, and finally the two flight crew as they dashed back to the ship. Once the pair was onboard, and the hatch sealed, readiness for departure was relayed from the cockpit, and Soturi gave the command to return to Canada.
Looking around the interior of the shuttle, Mike swivelled in his chair until he was facing rearwards, and made eye contact with Keegan. “Amazing ship.” He commented.
The doctor nodded. “It is. Lord Soturi said they don’t make them like this anymore.”
Mike looked at the Jin-Mona who was looking at a datapad. “Is this an old ship?” he asked cautiously.
Soturi looked up from the datapad, then around the interior of the shuttle. “The Doctor is correct. This shuttle was manufactured before the beginning of the war. Nothing like this currently being produced.” He looked down at the datapad, but his eyes were still fixed on Mike. “Just because time has advanced, doesn’t mean the rest of society has moved with it.”
Nodding, Mike continued to look around the interior of the ship, before looking back to the front, just in time to watch the flight crew removed their helmets to reveal a pair of aliens from a species Mike had yet to see in the papers or on television. Both had what looked like metallic voice boxes where Mike expected their mouths to be. These grey coloured devices were connected to objects that resembled headphones, where a human’s ears would be.
Keegan moved forward and knelt next to Mike’s seat. “No one knows where their species came from, but a colony ship with six hundred thousand Tugarians entered orbit over one of the worlds of the Etelainen over two hundred years ago. The Tugarians are telepathic, that’s why they have the voice and hearing augmentation.”
Mike looked at the doctor, then back to the flight crew. “So those augmentations are there just for decoration?”
“No. No.” The scientist shook his head. “Their placement is to help them look more in common with other species of known systems, but the augments allow them to produce spoken words and hear spoken words.” Keegan started to move back to his seat. “It makes things easier, I suppose.”
Trying not to stare, Mike diverted his attention to the window and noticed that they were gaining altitude at a furious rate, and the sky above them was turning black. Looking towards Soturi, he thought better of troubling the creature, then looked back to Keegan.
“We are going to Vancouver?” He asked.
“Yes.” Keegan nodded, a smile on his face.
Mike looked back to the window and confirmed his suspicion that they were still climbing away from the ground.
“And how are we getting there?” He asked
“A small detour through space.” Keegan replied.
“So how fast are we travelling?”
“If memory serves me, roughly forty-two thousand kilometres per hour.”
“Then why does it feel like the ship is barely moving?”
“Inertial dampeners.” Keegan smiled. “I’m still trying to wrap my head around how they work, but they prevent us from being turned into gooey puddles at the back of the compartment.”
“That’s reassuring.” Mike said with a hint of sarcasm and looked back towards the window as the ship left Earth’s atmosphere, and started to race around the globe towards its final destination.
Not bad, he thought to himself, on day one of the new job I got to go into space.
By the time the shuttle landed on the beach on Lasqueti, Mike was drained from the emotional rush the last hour had been. Perhaps he underestimated the toll that lying in a hospital bed had taken on his body, but when the side hatch opened, and the soft noises of water breaking over the beach, and clean air hit his lungs, his body felt reinvigorated.
The two droids that had assisted him earlier reappeared, and helped him from the ship, allowing him to take in the splendour the Pacific North West. There was a light layering of snow on the ground, and a sense of peace and calm that he hadn’t felt in some time.
While Soturi walked off towards the PCS, Keegan came up to Mike who was now on a mocked-up thrown that was being carried by the droids, at eye-level with Keegan.
“The droids will take you to the Med-Lab. I need to get back to some pressing business.” Keegan looked towards the trail that ran away from the beach. “We’re set up on Doctor Stoke’s parent's property just down the road. I think they’re going to set up a temporary barracks for the Terran Strike Group while you find your initial team, but until then, you’ll be staying with me in the VLT quarters.” Keegan put out his hand. “You’re in good hands with their medical team. I’ll see you in a few hours for dinner.”
As Keegan walked off, the droids turned towards the huge PCS and started moving cautiously down the beach to the ship's ramp on the sandy beach. Mike closed his eyes and soaked in the smells and sounds that nature was offering. It’d been a while since he’d been back in the woods, and it was just what he needed after the desert and the sterile hospital. Time for a new chapter.
The cavernous main hall was bigger than Mike was expecting, and the energy in the space sent another jolt of adrenaline through his veins. As the droids slowly manoeuvred his litter come thrown across the open floor, a figure approached him and quickly introduced himself.
“Greetings Major Tattersall, I am Sector Prefect Dinalis. Merry Christmas.” The alien was speaking in Universal, but a hovering translation device had accompanied him and provided real-time translations for Mike.
“Thank you, Sir.” Mike replied, in classic army fashion.
Dinalis shook his head. “No need for that.”
The droids continued towards the hallway that led to the med bay, and out of the main chamber, Dinalis walking just behind Mike’s litter.
“I have been told that the local soldiers are hosting a Christmas feast in a few hours, and some of our troops and some members of the Alliance Diplomatic party will be joining them. I hope that you’ll accompany me as my guest.” Dinalis said through the small hovering device.
Mike shook his head. “I’m not sure I’m in any kind of shape to be attending a feast. My leg is,” Mike rubbed his leg, and just noticed that it was completely numb. He suddenly realised that it had been numb since Lord Soturi had removed his bandages to inspect the wound back in Birmingham. The only problem was that he hadn’t taken any painkillers, or been given a shot for the pain. Mike turned slightly on the litter in an attempt to look at the alien that was walking behind him and the droids. “I can’t feel my injured leg.” He said in almost a whisper.
Dinalis said something in Universal to the droids, and they stopped in the corridor they were in, allowing the Sector Prefect to walk to a position in front of Mike. “Were you treated by the local medical personnel at your hospital?” He asked, tilting his head to one side.
“No.”
“Did the medical droids administer any drugs or medications to you?”
“No.” Mike replied again.
Dinalis nodded, “Lord Soturi has probably blocked your pain receptors for that leg.” Dinalis gently put his right hand on Mike’s injured leg. “I can assure you that there will be no side effects.”
Mike looked down at the alien’s hand, then back up to his eyes. He wasn’t sure what to make of that, so he just kept quiet and looked past Dinalis down the hallway they were moving and waited until they continued forward.
Saying nothing, Dinalis removed his hand from Mike’s knee and started walking down the corridor until he reached a set of clear sliding doors which opened with a hiss. Waiting for the droids, Dinalis allowed Mike to be carried into the Med bay before following behind.
When Mike saw the medical bay, he was shocked at how stark it looked. The white walls and flooring gave a very sterile appearance, and while it wasn’t cold in the room, it certainly felt cold. In addition to the stark colours, other than a few beds that had been folded down from the walls, the room had very few furnishings.
At the far end of the room stood a pair of white droids that looked smaller than the Light Sentinels that were carrying his litter, and in between them, a single alien that was dressed in a skin-tight white jumpsuit, and had what looked like a tail whipping around in the air behind him.
Mike blinked twice as the creature approached, just as the droids that were carrying him lowered his litter to the ground in the middle of the room. As the creature drew closer, Mike could tell that the alien's tail was clutching a device, that was passed to the creature’s hands when he was just a few feet from Mike.
Sitting in silence, Mike looked up at Dinalis, and then back at the creature that was standing before him. The hovering translation device moved to a position in front of Mike and waited for someone to speak first. After a few moments silence, the creature with the tail bent forward and pulled back the dressing gown that Mike had been wearing when he had been liberated from the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
Spotting the bandage, the creature pulled out a small, pen-shaped device from a utility belt on his hip, and proceeded to run the instrument the length of the bandage. At first, nothing happened, but after the creature had withdrawn the device, a small fissure appeared, and the dressing came apart, revealing Mike’s wound.
The alien returned the pen-like device to his belt, and pulled out a single monocle and placed it to his left eye and gave the wound a good look. After a brief inspection, he returned the monocle, then spoke to Dinalis in Universal.
Dinalis nodded, then looked down at Mike. “It would seem that the Master Doctor would like to repair your leg manually, instead of using the healing baths.”
Mike looked down at the wound, then to the individual that had just inspected his leg, then to Dinalis. “Okay.” He said it almost as if it was a question. It was evident he wasn’t convinced of the course of action that was going to be taken, but by the time he brought his head around back to his front, he was a fraction of a second too late to spot a needle that sunk into his injured leg, sending him into a warm slumber.
11
The floor of the main laboratory was covered in components of all shapes and sizes divided into several key groups. Anything that was considered part of the drone’s propulsion system, including its battery cells had been put in the first taped off area on the smooth floor. Next down the line were the weapons systems, followed by sensors, then armour and plating, and finally all components considered part of the drones AI.
