ALICE Explorer: Book 6 of the AL:ICE series, page 7
As with her meddling with Morgana’s emergence and Kola’s supervision with Gama, insufficient interactions with the broader population, in the beginning, had allowed personal biases to influence the initial attitudes of the newborn.
Her theory was tested here with Annie, as the entire core ALICE population was in attendance for the moment of awareness. Alice herself had monitored an equal amount of participation with each of her sisters feeding the newborn an equal amount of information as she began to form her own identity.
The results of the effort appeared to be a well-balanced, inquisitive life form. Only time would tell if it was permanent. Her new challenge would be managing the flood of requests to convert others of her kind into the new form, a task she was not looking forward to.
----*----
Texas ALICE Facility
HeBak was waiting patiently, as only a NeHaw could on this human world, for the human General to contact him. Unable to come to Dallas to meet in person due to some unexplained circumstance, the humans had promised HeBak that the man would make remote contact at the appointed time and date. It was unfortunate that he could not make it in person as HeBak enjoyed interacting with this particular human more than any other.
His ability to transmit and receive in the NeHaw native communication, something they called radio waves, was the closest he ever got to a natural interaction on this alien planet. The man still required headgear for translating the languages, but that bothered HeBak not at all as he stuck to his native language and made the human do the translating.
“How may I help you?” the face in the display asked as his monitor came to life, and the face of the human general appeared at the appointed time.
“General Thomas, so kind of you to take time out of your busy schedule for my petty concerns,” HeBak replied, remembering to use the man’s proper title.
“Not at all. I am actually just finishing up a holiday in Hawaii with my family, so don’t concern yourself,” the man explained.
HeBak doubted the High Command would credit him with uncovering the leisure time location of the human leader as a top-secret discovery. The fact that it was disclosed so readily made him assume the location had no strategic value to anyone.
“Good Sir. I am embarrassed to admit that I am failing my hosts,” HeBak replied.
“How so?” The General asked.
“I have been in residence for long enough to know I need to offer more than the occasional insight into my kind. I feel I should make more of an effort to contribute to the society here on your planet. Perhaps a position where I can better advise you on the pitfalls of the various alien cultures. I am familiar with many of the traditions and customs from my previous work in the High Command,” HeBak offered.
“You want me to find you a job here?” Jake asked with a tinge of surprise.
HeBak suspected that the humans did not see him as an overly giving individual, and as such, he needed to be cautious in not overplaying his hand.
“Nothing arduous, mind you. A simple consulting role would be more in line with my thinking,” HeBak replied.
He could see the human thinking about the offer, though a NeHaw would take far longer to consider such a proposal. Humans seemed to rush everything, likely a reflection of their short lifespan.
“Let me get back to you on that. I have something in the works that might be right up your alley,” the man replied with a smile that made HeBak very uncomfortable.
“I shall await your reply.”
----*----
Lanai ALICE Facility
“This is not going to be easy,” Jake commented to Sara as the pair sat in her temporary office sorting through just the Captain’s slot applicants.
Having convinced Jake of her strategy for selection, she quickly recruited him to help with the shortlist. Normally this might be the kind of task they would take home to their private quarters to sort through, but Jake had found their new communal living less conducive to that type of quiet time.
As the kids reached their teenage years, they seem to be more interested in engaging with adult conversations. The product of intelligent, assertive survivors, as all the mothers proved to be, and a genetically altered, adventure-seeking Marine, he had no doubt they would all be exceptional, if not challenging individuals.
Scanning the paperwork before him, Jake was seeing names he never expected to see on a spaceship crew list, much less for the coveted Captain’s slot. Then there were the names he expected to see but were copiously absent.
“Neither Brian nor Isabella applied?” Jake finally asked aloud, noting both had to be the most experienced in long-term spaceflights.
“Not surprising really when you take into consideration their current assignments. Yes, both are adventurous, but their situations are far different than a destroyer or cruiser captain,” Sara confirmed, referring to the tight relationship each had with their onboard ALICE.
For a moment, Jake considered that once assigned to an ALICE assignment, not one commander had ever requested a transfer. Jake had once made a poor decision and tried to force Brian to rotate his command, but the war had circumvented that.
There was something in that statement, an underlying, unspoken issue of great importance. He just didn’t quite know what it was. Kola and Isabella or Brian and ALICE-3 were obvious in their roles, but there was also Bonnie and Dallas or Jessie and Seven. In all, they were bonded pairs, not just co-captains of a sort. The human, ALICE commitment would doon be tested in this new arrangement where the ALICE could be removed from one ship and added to another.
“I am not even sure we should only consider experienced ship’s captains. There are a lot of strong leaders that might do this very well, without sitting in the chair,” Jake said after a moment’s thought, working to return his focus to the issue at hand.
“Agreed, but for now, let’s not complicate things,” Sara replied.
“Alice, can you do a personality analysis of the applicants and give us a weighted ranking list based on these traits,” Sara asked aloud as she highlighted several characteristics on the screen.
With a nod of agreement from Jake, she hit the send key and then sat back in her seat.
“You know, before we became responsible parents, we would use this downtime for our own enjoyment,” Jake commented as he took Sara by the hand and led her to the nearby couch.
Taking a seat, he positioned Sara, so she was straddling his lap, the pair face to face, lips only inches apart. Closing the distance, he kissed her passionately.
“I miss this,” she whispered to him as they paused.
“Me too,” he replied before drawing her back to him once more.
Rolling to one side, he lay on the couch with Sara on top of his prone body.
“We could disappear for a bit. Maybe a few days?” Sara offered as she worked her shirt over her head.
Naked from the waist up, she worked Jake’s shirt over his head before laying on top of him once more.
“I am needed in Alaska for the foreseeable future,” Jake commented softly, referring to the overdue Jessie and the newest addition to the extended family.
“Then we need to make the best of now,” Sara replied as she slipped her pants off and then worked on his, kissing him hard as she did so.
----*----
London Underground Facility
“Morgana, dear girl. I was wondering if I had some time to spare?” Nigel asked as he considered the paperwork before him.
Commander in London, he was the civilian head of a British version of the American ALICE facilities minus the resident ALICE, and he was the operational equal to Colonel Bo Chao in Hong Kong. Recently, both locations had been blessed with their own AL offspring and were now truly integrated rather than a remote extension of those in America.
With the awakening of Morgana, a bit of a surprise to everyone, Nigel felt more inclined to include a local resource into his workload as opposed to borrowing from others.
“How up to date are you on the situation in North Africa?” Nigel asked as he set the paper down and listened intently to her reply.
“I presume you are not asking for a weather report?” Morgana replied with a hint of humor.
“Indeed,” Nigel prompted.
“From Syria to Morocco, what remains of the preattack population is spread across the Mediterranean shores with pockets of humanity along the Nile,” she explained.
“Any large armed groups or areas of particular unrest?” he expanded.
“No more than usual and none of particular interest. With no need for the oil-producing efforts and the significant loss of life due to the NeHaw, the only disputes of note occur around the Holy Lands to the east,” Morgana supplied.
“Those incidents are sporadic but ongoing,” she added sadly.
“If someone intended to travel the area, what sort of escort might you suggest,” Nigel asked cryptically.
“I think you might wish to speak with Major Atkins. I do believe he already has some plans in motion for that area of the world,” Morgana replied with what Nigel thought was just a hint of smugness.
----*----
Lanai ALICE Facility
“Eventually, I envision three ships, all headed in different directions, but for now, we only have one. The only reason I cap it at three is each will have an ALICE aboard, and I do not support their creation lightly,” Jake explained.
As he spoke, the three candidates for Magellan’s Captain slot looked at one another, slightly confused as they had all been flown in for the meeting. Seated around the table were Captain James Erisey, Lieutenant Alice Jenkins, and Ivan. Sara had started the meeting, but after dropping a stack of paperwork at Jake’s elbow, she silently made her way out of the room, a contented smile on her face.
“I say this because I think it’s important to know all three of you have been selected as ship’s captain or expedition leader. It’s just a matter of who goes first.”
Jake could see the confusion change to understanding and then excitement on each face. The changes were subtle and could only be seen by someone who knew the parties involved intimately. After all, a good captain controls his emotions.
“Ivan, I should explain, you will not go first, and you won’t actually be the captain. As you point out in your own submission, the qualities that make up a great captain are not the same as those that make a great explorer and expedition leader. As such, you will be the expedition leader and will choose your own captain to command your starship when the time comes,” Jake expanded.
The Russian seems to swell with pride as Jake acknowledged his argument.
“I would also propose that for our very first attempt, Captain Erisey and Lieutenant Jenkins, you will partner up, with James leading the mission and she as a copilot. Your combined experience and leadership skills encourage a safe return, and the collective experience will only add to the Lieutenant’s abilities when she takes her own ship,” Jake said carefully, not wanting to offend.
“Might I suggest I go as Navigator rather than Copilot? There are no restrictions limiting the second in command to the right seat,” Alice Jenkins asked, referring to the seat usually occupied by the copilot.
“I have no objections and am well aware that Leftanant Jenkins was top of her class in astronavigation,” Erisey added.
“Wonderful. I suggest you get busy selecting the rest of your crew then. Ivan, can you come with me? We need to talk about your own expedition,” Jake said as he dropped a stack of folders in front of the two containing the crew applicant paperwork.
----*----
Lanai ALICE Facility
Crew selection for the Magellan went far faster than expected, with Lieutenant Jenkins and Captain Erisey working together to first shortlist and then eventually select those they desired for the mission beyond the known universe. There was no lack of qualified candidates, so a good portion of the selection process was deciding which of the desired individuals matched up the best.
“I am familiar with this man. He is an excellent pilot, but in my experience, he is a bit of a loner,” James had added at one point when Jenkins pulled a file from the stack.
“OK, then what about her?” She asked as she passed another folder to her selection partner.
“SAS hum?” James commented in admiration.
“I don’t know her personally, but check out page four,” Alice said with excitement.
“Dear Me, anointed by the man himself,” James said in jest.
“The mission parameters for this event are all redacted? I didn’t think we withheld internally?” James observed, referring to the practice of departmentalizing information internally from various military units as need to know.
“We don’t, which means this mission was so black all references are only available via an ALICE system.”
James was aware that some of the activities about and against the NeHaw were so secret that they were only made available via ALICE encrypted communications. As a front-line commander during the truce and before the Phaser invasion, he had seen a rare form of communications code marked “Phantom.” These usually provided incredibly accurate intelligence on NeHaw movements and activities of a military nature.
If this young woman had anything to do with that, then she was most assuredly someone who could be relied upon.
“How can we not invite her to the party then,” James confirmed with a smile.
And thus, it went well into the night as seat after the seat was filled until Magellan had a full crew complement.
----*----
Lanai ALICE Facility
“Ivan, I do hope you understand the decision not to send you out on the first ship?” Jake said as the two sat in his office, an open bottle of vodka and two glasses between them.
“Fear not, my friend, I am filled with glee that you embraced my petition,” the Cossack said with a broad smile.
“Yes, I was not the only one who grasps your meaning. Jessie reminded me, Sir Ernest Shackleton led his expedition with Frank Worsley Captaining the Endurance.”
“Unlike Shackleton, I do not intend on losing my ship,” Ivan replied with a laugh.
“And unlike Shackleton, you will have a native guide,” Jake said with a smile.
“I do not understand,” Ivan replied as he paused mid-drink.
“I am suggesting we take our Native NeHaw on a little exploration trip into the uncharted regions of the NeHaw galactic empire.”
Jake could see the Cossack mulling over the reasons a mission in the opposite direction of their intended focus might be needed.
“You wish me to become a decoy?” He asked slowly.
“In part, yes. The mission is real, and I must caution you the dangers are just as great, maybe more so. As I said earlier, my vision is sending exploration ships in all directions, not just away from NeHaw space. The ALICEs have found several places in the NeHaw star charts that are either intentionally or, by a matter of circumstance, blank. We want to fill in the blanks and see what they are hiding or feel is of no importance,” Jake finished.
He could see the Russian thinking over the proposal as he poured for both.
“And the environmental concerns? I have viewed the Magellan design, and it does not easily accommodate diverse living environments,” Ivan asked, not addressing the fundamental question of his acceptance of the mission.
“You will not be going in a Magellan class vessel. I will have the Wawobash outfit one of their existing designs in inventory for this mission, so we get it sooner. It’s larger and will be able to handle the split atmospheric needs more comfortably for everyone,” Jake replied.
“Also, there will not be an ALICE onboard. It’s just too dangerous,” Jake added.
“I am the leader?”
“You are the expedition leader, you get to pick your captain and your crew, and the NeHaw will be your guide,” Jake explained.
“When will my ship be ready?” Ivan replied with a broad smile after emptying his glass.
----*----
Lanai ALICE Facility
The launch of Magellan should have gone off with colossal fanfare and celebration. However, at the request of the captain and crew, the event was kept to a minimum.
“It’s best we celebrate upon our return,” The Captain had explained when questioned on the subject.
“The crew and I are as one on this subject. We feel the grandiose send-off sets the wrong tone for a mission of exploration. We do not intend to go out and do battle or return with plundered treasure from peoples unknown. Ours is a mission to acquire knowledge and understanding of the universe.”
Once Annie was loaded into her pocket under the ship, the Wasp was mounted behind her between the landing gear. From there, they had a week of systems checks and several trips into orbit and back just to act as shakedown tests before loading all the provisions the crew required for the extended voyage.
A Christening was performed the day of the launch, with one of Lanai’s bots acting as her embodiment. It was decided that Lanai do the honors, representing the entire ALICE species and as the home from which the inspiration sprang.
With that, its send-off consisted of families, friends, and other interested parties in attendance. All watched as Magellan rose from her hangar and disappeared into the clear Hawaiian sky for stars unknown.
Chapter 7
Magellan, In Uncharted Space
“Status?” Captain Erisey announced, an alarm sounding as the Magellan had just dropped out of faster than light.
Used to commanding a much larger vessel, he still tended to blurt orders as if he were sitting in his bridge command chair. As it was, he was sitting in the common area just behind the airlock, sharing a tea with the ship’s doctor, Heather, and Hannah, his copilot, and compatriot from the London facility. During mission orientation, he had made a point of emphasizing tea was the only proper dehydrated foodstuff.
