Chaotic Futures, page 37
As that pair disappeared, Escher sent,
Escher nodded, and he waited while Ceda did her best to hug Miranda. The bond between ex-clone and protector had only grown stronger over time. Escher noted Miranda’s contented expression every time Ceda hugged her, leaned against her, or gripped her hand.
While Escher and Ceda waited, she shared,
Escher stood close to Ceda and stared into the eyes he loved.
Ceda laughed quietly. She gently kissed Escher and then sent,
Escher and Ceda had witnessed Jasper’s efforts to make himself the subject of jokes. It was how he helped the team handle the pain of Tammy’s and Red’s deaths.
As the group boarded, Bethany, Johann and Stacey came running. Their suits resembled Escher’s and Ceda’s, meaning they were in the worst conditions of any suits.
The Naiads took an opportunity to use the refreshers in some of the freighter’s spare cabins. Of course, two pairs took longer than others.
The new suits required an acclimation process, and the Naiads made use of a section of bay, while the pilot sat outboard of the freighter.
Like most of the freighter crew, the pilot watched the action via the bay’s vid cams. At first, there was nothing to see, and the crew exchanged thoughts as to why the Naiads stood stock-still.
Escher had downloaded the new apps and shared them with the team. After the apps were unpacked, the suits obtained their full capabilities.
As if warming for a dance, the suits began fluid movements, and the crew members’ interests rose.
It was Escher who first exhibited his suit’s enhanced capability. He flipped into the air and managed to perform a triple somersault.
Escher shared the function he’d found.
Immediately, every Naiad was executing the maneuver.
By the time most of the team had tested the basic functions and found them to be more capable than the old suits, Escher had moved on to a folder that he’d not seen in the previous model.
Opening the program, Escher discovered a complete copy of the old team’s coordinated actions. In addition, there were more intricate maneuvers that weren’t meant for exercise. They were to be executed in fights. He waited until the team had finished their perusals of the basic functions. Then he directed their attention to the new program.
There was some maneuvering as to who would participate for the first test, but Bibi stipulated one element of it.
Escher accessed the code that regulated the strike. He edited the algorithm to end in a near miss and shared it with Ceda.
Then Bibi stood near a bulkhead and faced a trio, who linked implants and triggered the first strike program.
Simultaneously, three suits launched across the bay at Bibi.
The speed with which Bibi’s attackers came at her had her eyes growing wide. She imitated a Radag warrior pulling an energy weapon into firing position.
Jasper, who was on the right side, peeled off.
Escher, who was in the center, hooked wrists with Ceda and swung her in an arc toward Jasper. Then he ducked down to evade the release of the beam weapon.
Jasper turned his back, allowing Ceda to use his suit as a platform. She kicked off it, and a boot lashed out at Bibi’s head, narrowly missing it.
Scrounger pronounced.
Jasper urged.
Ceda shared.
Bethany sent.
After that, the Naiads were fully engaged in their tests, much to the enjoyment of the freighter crew, and the many others who were linked to the ship’s controller.
Z, who had been watching with Miranda, sent to her,
Z detected the sadness in his partner’s thought, but he didn’t respond to it. Both of them knew what they feared. Sublimating the reaction, he focused on the efforts of the Storyteller sisters and the hundreds of city adults and youths who were expanding the city.
The previous plan for the city’s expansion was shelved, because of the presence of the Dischnya. Many of them patrolled beyond the nearby knoll. The others stayed just outside the new perimeter to protect the residents.
As the inner and outer walls were conclave constructions, which meant designed by SADEs, the residents started by disassembling the outer wall. They laid the heavy constructs on grav pallets, and one of the implanted matrons guided the pallet across the uneven ground toward the new placement.
Moving the wall and adding new sections would take several cycles. During that period of time, the Dischnya were on constant watch to blunt any attack.
The wall’s new sections had waited in the class one freighters that had been on station above since they arrived with Julien.
Freighter crews got busy offloading the wall segments and transporting them to the approximate build area.
The residents didn’t need any motivation. As soon as a group rested to eat and drink, others stepped in to take up the slack. When starlight faded, lights turned on to illuminate the work areas, and the pace continued.
The lights were a calculated risk. They would attract the Radags’ attention, but they would also speed the process of building the new sections of the outer wall.
Every traveler that descended from any ship slowed above the expansion area to examine the area.
Sisters, suits, Dischnya, and protectors linked to the travelers to take a moment and share in the visuals.
While the walls were moved and elongated, many residents worked with Z and the sisters to decorate the damaged avatars.
A sign of the positive outcome was that the Darmian sisters designed a lottery system. As the decorated avatars became available, the next winner in the list gave up whatever avatar she had, new or used, and relocated into one of the decorated ones.
Escher looked through the information on the protector’s Trident. He’d noticed that Miranda and Z traveled with a massive library, which contained the histories of many races, including that of Earth. He found ancient tales about a Nordic race, and the descriptions matched what he thought of the decorated avatars, especially the terrifying masks.
When a sister passed him wearing her Gurderg-and-Z creation, he linked and sent,
The sister queried Escher, and he shared the link to the protector’s Trident and its trove of data about the early human race.
It didn’t take but a few minutes for the Darmian sisters to adopt the name of the new creations.
The inner wall’s expansion, which started after the completion of the outer wall, wasn’t complete when travelers and their multiple observers spotted Radags watching the construction from two hilltops. Although, they were camouflaged from sight and heat signatures, the digital sentients could compare the area’s previous recordings with the new ones. The small differences were immediately identified as Radag warriors.
When the arrival of a vast number of warriors during the night was noted, the protectors took steps.
Miranda and Z decided that defense was no longer an option. The Radag warrior mentality would take too long to learn the lesson.
The residents continued to work, but they were no longer allowed outside the inner wall. The directive also applied to the Storyteller sisters.
In preparation, the Dischnya unpacked their energy rifles.
The original Darmian defenders amassed at three of the city’s double gates with the Dischnya.
Miranda and Z each boarded a traveler with many implanted residents and loads of mini-minelettes.
When the Radag commanders and warriors congregated the next morning, they attacked the gates and raced over the hill to scale the outer wall. Their intent was to meet at the inner wall’s incomplete stretch, where they would break into the city and take their rightful revenge.
The chiefs had chosen to lead the attack, which encouraged the commanders and warriors to believe that success would be theirs today. The Radag leaders were aware of the number of new defenders, which is why they led eight times those who would try to stop them.
The Radags charging the gates saw them open, and they were encouraged, believing that the defenders were making last-ditch stands. However, before any Radag reached the gates, they met a horde of howling Dischnya and wailing berserkers.
To the Radags’ dismay, the enemy fired beam weapons into their midst, which blunted their attacks. Then the raging strangers were among them, and no quarter was given.
The Radags’ heaviest attack came from the hillside and was aimed at the extended outer wall. It represented the shortest distance to the unfinished inner wall. As expected, the enemy’s bombs rained from their ships, but the Radags knew with their thousands of warriors they were too many to be stopped.
The hillside attackers met the same forces as those testing the gates. Dischnya fired rifles and then slung them to engage with Radags in the company of the sisters.
When the Radags were decimated and chose to retreat, they were shocked to discover they were pursued. Reaching residential or commercial areas, they attempted to hide, but it did them no good. This was the lesson that Miranda and Z chose to teach. If you attack the city, chances are you won’t survive.
The defenders suffered losses against the massive number of Radags who tried to gain entry to the city. Nebulon lost fourteen sisters. Of Jasper’s team, only Lita, Scrounger, Bibi, and he survived.
The original Naiad suits did survive. Although, it was Johann’s turn in a Jatouche tank, and Bethany was in a tank next to him.
It would be many weeks before the Radag commanders forgot the lesson they learned that cycle. They would try again but with more sophisticated approaches.
30: Time to Wake
IMPERIUM, PALTUR SYSTEM
KRACKUS HOME WORLD
As soon as Janus and her flotilla left the vicinity of the Krackus orbital construction platform, the three executors hurried to their transport and fled for Imperium.
After landing on the home world, Rebtar, Dakargk, and Grageth took separate vehicles to their residences.
The next morning, Dakargk arrived at Rebtar’s home for their conference.
“We have to prepare for the assembly,” Dakargk pointed out, as the sunroom door closed behind an admin.
“If we exclude Grageth, we’ll have eleven executors wanting updates on the governor’s copies in our ships,” Rebtar responded. He’d spent the prior evening trying to design appropriate answers to their questions. None of them satisfied him.
The admin tapped at the door and opened it. “Your pardon, Executor Rebtar, a guest has arrived who isn’t scheduled.”
“Executor Grageth, is it?” Rebtar queried, gurgling, which annoyed Dakargk. “Admit him.”
When Grageth was shown into the sunroom, Dakargk queried, “Why are you here?”
“You’re meeting about how you’re going to explain the debacle of the governor’s copies,” Grageth pointed out.
“An educated guess?” Rebtar inquired.
“My work with the governor has paid off,” Grageth replied, making himself comfortable. “Did you know that if you request an executor’s schedule for the present cycle that you can get the meeting times and the participants? Also, if you ask about a meeting, you can receive the details.”
“Our senior admins probably know those kinds of points,” Rebtar admitted.
“And how much of what we did at the orbital platform do they know?” Grageth returned.
Rebtar and Dakargk glanced warily at each other.
“Not mine either,” Grageth said, before he could be asked.
“If you know why we’re meeting, why did you come?” Dakargk challenged.
“Your belligerence is tiring, Dakargk,” Grageth remarked in tired voice. “That might have worked for you in the past to subdue the other executors. But, if you haven’t noticed, you’re being ignored more and more.”
“Rebtar, I recommend you direct him to leave,” Dakargk said in a peeved tone.
When Rebtar said nothing, Grageth gurgled. “Our presiding executor understands our situation better than you do, Dakargk. The three of us are the designers of this debacle. We’d better be ready to provide an organized front, which means you need me.”
“I don’t,” Dakargk retorted.
“Then you aren’t staying abreast of the news,” Grageth replied, his crest rising fully. “My territory is completely shut down. I’ve no income, and the home worlds aren’t receiving my goods. I’ve got nothing left to lose. I could just as easily explain to the assembly how the two of you directed me to drive the AI project in cooperation with you. Make up your mind.”
Dakargk was unaccustomed to an executor boxing him into a corner, and his anger rose.
Rebtar signaled an admin, who hurried into the room. “Cool drinks for all,” he ordered. “Make Executor Dakargk’s drink a tall one. He’s complaining of overheating.”
After the admin left, Rebtar stared at Dakargk, daring him to vent his ire.
Dakargk didn’t say a word, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t trying to devise a plan to teach Grageth a harsh lesson.
“Grageth, before you came, I noted that eleven executors will ask us about the copies we requested they order from the governor,” Rebtar said.
“It would seem our explanation might incorporate fact and fiction,” Grageth responded. “We can say that we planned a test with two AIs against a tri-hull, and we sent a third AI to observe. The AIs performed as they were programmed. Unfortunately, a tri-hull with its fighters can overwhelm two peacekeepers at once, even when they attack from opposite directions.”
“That’s good,” Rebtar commended. “It demonstrates that we’re trying new tactics and learning about the conclave, at the same time. Go on.”
“This is where we turn toward fiction,” Grageth continued. “Having learned more of the tri-hulls’ capabilities, we chose to augment our AI tactical programs, and we assembled a larger force. Then we sent them to seek out and destroy single tri-hulls or single squadrons. At this time, we’re waiting for their reports. Until we understand their level of success, we’re unwilling to commit further resources to the effort.”
“You’ve given some thought to this,” Rebtar replied, nodding his head appreciatively. “Dakargk, anything to add or any objections to make?”
Dakargk was reluctant to admit that what he’d heard was good. What he did say was, “It’ll do.”
“Then that’s our plan. Thank you for choosing to join us, Grageth,” Rebtar said. Then he stood and motioned to the door, deciding to escort Grageth out.
When Rebtar returned to the sunroom, he said, “Grageth nicely took care of our report to the assembly. Now let’s talk about how we lay this at his feet.”
“The problem is that Grageth requested his copy from the governor,” Dakargk pointed out. “You asked the other executors to contact the governor and order their copies.”
Briefly, Rebtar glanced toward Dakargk. He could imagine Dakargk using the opportunity to smear him and take the presiding executor’s position for himself.
“Are you saying you’ve no plan for tying this mess around Grageth’s neck?” Rebtar inquired.
“Not at this time,” Dakargk replied. “I think we have to wait and see what develops. If we’re fortunate, the conclave will destroy the last nine of them.”
“We can only hope,” Rebtar commented.
As Grageth sat in his private vehicle, he replayed the conversation on his device, which he’d used to secretly record the exchange. Normally, an admin would request his device, or inform Rebtar that he carried one. He’d hoped that by showing up unannounced he’d throw a little turmoil into the usual protocols.
The conversation implicated him, as well as Rebtar and Dakargk. This was by design to put Rebtar at ease. Prodding Dakargk also served a purpose. While he wouldn’t dare use this at the assembly unless he was forced into a corner, it would serve as leverage to prevent Rebtar and Dakargk from making him the disaster’s architect.
