Escape to Earth 3: Defending Holy Ground (21 page)

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manda and Trevor finally flew the Gravity Ship to the white planet after they learned how the reactors operated. They lowered a giant sled filled with scoops into the planet’s surface and withdrew them after thirty minutes. The coated scoops were brought back and were installed on the first battleship to be fitted with the lock band above the reactors. The ship launched and flew through open space at maximum speed. After two days, all fifty reactors were filled with compressed Dark Energy. Amanda remotely pushed the igniter that lit the first reactor and the ship’s systems almost immediately overloaded. It took another two years to redesign the entire electrical system to handle the increased load. Once the final design passed inspection, three more ships were completed. Amanda contacted Chris and told him his ship was ready to be picked up.

• • •

“Have the new battleships been trialed?”

“Yes, Great Leader. The first group have just finished having their weapons installed and tested.”

“What about the new engines?”

“They operate according to their specifications.”

“Where are they now?”

“They’re currently being provisioned out in open space between our galaxies, Great Leader.”

“For their initial field mission, I want them sent to the Spiral Galaxy to check on that planet we destroyed. How long will it take them to arrive?”

“About four weeks.”

“Let me know when they leave.”

“What do you want them to do when they arrive?”

“Make sure everything is as we left it and do a quick scouting of those other civilizations. Once we’ve upgraded our fleets to the new engines, we’ll be going back to remove them and start taking control of that galaxy.”

“Yes, Great Leader. They should be leaving within six days.”

“Make sure I stay informed!”

“I will follow your orders, Great Leader.”

• • •

Chris arrived at the spaceport and took possession of one of the ships. He had it taken to the shipyards and had every disruptor, cannon, and rotary gun barrel plugged. He also had all the swivel mounts for the disruptors made out of a frictionless material with no outer seams. Once the job was complete, he then lifted his communicator, “Are you busy?”

Audrey almost fell out of her command chair, “What kind of question is that after three years!? Of course I’m not busy.”

“I need you to bring the crew of your flagship and meet me on Eden.”

“Where?”

“I’ll be out in the center of the port’s landing area.”

“Should I bring my ship?”

Chris hesitated and said, “Yes.”

Audrey saw the display darken and felt her heart in her throat. She got a grip on her emotions and looked at Hawk, “Captain Red Feather, we’ve been ordered to report to the main landing field at the space port on Eden.”

“Did they give you a landing assignment?”

“I was told to land in the center of the field.” Hawk nodded and turned the Destiny out of formation.

“Commodore Malone, you’re in command until I return.”

Frank smiled and said, “I’ll take care of the children.”

“See that you do.” Audrey saw Chris in her mind. He looked older and more mature. He was only in a body twenty-four years old but his eyes delivered a different message. He had changed. She sighed and hoped she could control her emotions.

Janie said, “Sir, why are we going to Eden?”

“I don’t know. However, I expect all of you to be on your best behavior, it that clear?”

Everyone shouted, “Yes Sir!” Audrey didn’t have to worry. This crew was the best of the best. She’d put them up against any ship in the fleet. They had won the last fleet trials. What did Chris want?

“Sir, we’re entering atmosphere. I’m looking at the space port and there appears to already be a battleship in the center of the landing area.”

“Land next to it.”

“Yes Sir.” The Destiny dropped out of high atmosphere and settled smoothly to the high strength concrete of the landing area. She looked at Janie, “You have the ship.”

“Yes Sir.”

Audrey went to the front port and the sailors saluted and opened the port for her. She returned their salute and walked down the steps that had been deployed. She looked around and didn’t see anyone. She looked at the ship they were parked next to and was shocked at what she saw. This was unlike any ship she had ever seen. It was as long as a normal battleship but it was not as tall. Its sleek design screamed one word…speed. “How do you like it?” Audrey turned around and saw Chris. She tried to speak but couldn’t. “This is one of the new ships we’ve been building. I need your help to complete its construction.”

Audrey’s heart was beating a mile a minute but she managed to say, “She needs to be painted before we take her out.”

“That’s what I need your help doing.”

“What?”

“We’re going back to see the monster.”

Audrey’s heart actually slowed down, “You can’t be serious.”

“I’m not a kidder. Please call your crew and have them meet me on the bridge. It’s still located at the front of the ship.”

Audrey shook her head, “And who’s not a kidder?”

Chris smiled, “You’re wasting time, Admiral, get moving!”

Audrey straightened up and saw that this was going to be all business, “Yes Sir.” She lifted her wrist unit and began issuing orders. She waited for the crew to exit her ship and had them follow her on board. The inside of the ship was completely different from their battleship. The corridors were smaller and the sounds coming from the engine bay was a muted hum. “What kind of ship is this, Sir?”

“I don’t know. This must be one of the prototype gravity warships.”

“Get out of here!”

“I honestly don’t know if it is but there have been rumors.” They entered the bridge and Audrey said, “Attention!” Her bridge crew came to attention and she saluted Chris.

Chris returned her salute and said, “At ease. Please move to your normal stations.”

The crew moved around the bridge and Chris pointed to the command chair, “If you please, Admiral.”

Audrey moved to the command chair and shook her head at the sleek panel in front of her. She shook her head and said, “This is amazing.”

“We’re taking the ship out for trials and each of you have a tutorial at your stations to teach you how to use your systems. You have exactly twenty-four hours to learn them. At that time you WILL go and get some sleep. Is that clear?”

“YES SIR!”

Chris glanced at Audrey and said, “Good luck and study hard.”

He left the bridge and Aman said, “Was that Christopher Stone?” Audrey nodded. “He’s bigger in real life. The pictures don’t do him justice.”

Janie smiled and cooed, “NO…they don’t.”

Audrey blew out a breath and said, “Get to work. We have a lot to do and we will not let Mr. Stone down!”

“Yes Sir!”

Audrey plugged in the headset laying on her panel and began learning how the ship functioned. In less than thirty minutes she was totally immersed in what this ship could do. Her crew were also silent as they listened to their tutorials. Twenty-four hours later they completed the simulations and the bone weary crew fell back in their chairs. “Admiral, if you don’t mind, I’m just going to go to sleep in this chair.”

“No you’re not. Move out to the sleeping quarters and get some rest.” The crew stumbled off the bridge and took the high-speed sleds to the living quarters. All of them, except Audrey, fell asleep instantly. It took her a little longer but fatigue finally took her.

Audrey awoke and felt refreshed. She showered and found a clean uniform at the foot of her bed. She never heard anyone deliver it. It was even the right one. Even her stars had been taken off her dirty clothes and put on the collar. She walked to the port and looked out across the landing area. She heard a loud voice shout, “I AM GOING WITH YOU AND THAT’S FINAL!!”

She looked out the door and saw Amanda yelling at Chris. He shook his head and thought, “Lukas, you better get out here pronto.” He turned to Amanda and said, “You can make the second trip if the first one is successful.”

“Christopher Stone, I will not be denied.”

A surface vehicle roared up and Lukas said, “You will not be going, Amanda.”

Amanda turned and Lukas stepped back, “Lukas, I have given in to you every time you’ve asked. I am not going to do it this time!”

“Why not?”

“Because this is the fruit of all I’ve worked on for three years and I deserve to be there at the christening!”

Lukas stared at Amanda and after a moment his gaze softened, “Will you do it if I beg you not to go?”

Amanda started crying and lowered her head, “You know I will.”

Lukas looked at Chris, “She’s going with you. She’s earned the right.” Chris stared at Lukas and looked at Amanda who couldn’t believe her ears. Lukas said, “But Trevor stays. Both of you can go later but I’ll not risk losing both of you.”

Amanda looked at Lukas and after a moment shook her head, “He can go in my place. He deserves it.”

Trevor stepped out of the vehicle and said, “I will not go without you. We go together or not at all.”

“But Trevor.”

“I love you, Amanda. I will not do this without you there with me to share in the experience.”

Amanda looked at Chris and said with biting sarcasm, “I guess this makes you happy!”

Chris shook his head, “No, it doesn’t. You should always share the most important moments in your life with someone you love. Chris looked at Lukas, “I’ll take care of them.”

“But…”

“Like you said, they deserve it.”

Lukas stared at Chris, looked at Trevor and Amanda, and started shaking his head, “If anything happened to them…”

“I’ll make sure it doesn’t, Lukas.”

Lukas stared into Chris’s eyes and softly smiled, “Take good care of them, son. They’re precious cargo.”

Amanda screamed and jumped into Trevor’s arms. Trevor went over to the vehicle and took out two backpacks. Lukas looked at him and Trevor said, “It never hurts to hope.”

Lukas smiled, “No, I guess it doesn’t.”

Chris turned and looked into the port and saw Audrey. His expression almost broke her heart. He missed her as much, maybe even more, than she missed him. He took a deep breath and said, “Admiral, would it be possible to lift off in an hour?”

“Yes Sir, sooner if you want.”

Chris nodded, “The sooner the better.”

Audrey walked over to a panel on the wall and lifted it. She pressed the intercom button and said, “We will be lifting off in twenty minutes. I expect all of you to be at your stations prepared to operate the ship.” Chris raised an eyebrow and Audrey smiled, “They heard me. They’ll be ready. I’ll meet you on the bridge in fifteen minutes.” Audrey turned and headed toward her quarters to get her hair pinned up. She arrived on the bridge ten minutes later and found the crew at their stations going through their checklists. She sat down in the command chair and looked at her panel. The engines were operating and all of the reactors were showing green. She looked at Hawk, “Pilot, are you up to speed on your panel?”

“Sir, this panel is so much easier than the one on Destiny. If the tutorial is right, this ship will run circles around any other ship on the fleet.”

“Why is that?”

“This one was not built by the Fellowship and then modified. This one has an entirely different keel and structure. I’m sure you noticed it’s not as tall or quite as long as a normal battleship.” Audrey nodded. “However, the reactors are larger than the ones on Destiny.”

“How do you know that, Hawk? There was nothing in my tutorial that mentioned anything about the reactors being different.”

Hawk shrugged, “I went to the power room and looked at them. Trust me on this, Admiral. It doesn’t look like any reactor I’ve ever seen.”

“Both of you are right.” Audrey turned and saw Chris, Amanda, and Trevor enter the bridge and started to jump to attention, when Chris said, “As you were!” Audrey sat down and Chris turned to Hawk, “Captain, this is the second ship built on Eden.” The entire bridge crew was stunned at the remark. “The facility is located on the third moon underground. We’ve been working on the converters since we arrived and this ship is much stronger than anything we received from the Fellowship. It’s also powered by a new reactor that Commodores Amanda and Trevor Ambrose developed after building the first ship.” Chris looked at Hawk, “One of the reactors is more powerful than ten of the old.”

Hawk tilted his head and said, “Are we going to use them to build a force field around Earth and Eden?”

Chris’s eyes widened and he shook his head slowly. He looked at Audrey and smiled, “It appears you have an officer who does some thinking outside the box.”

Audrey nodded, “Hawk will surprise you with his observations.”

Chris turned back to Hawk and tilted his head as he said, “The following is top secret and you can be arrested if you repeat what I’m about to say. The reactors to power a force field around Earth left Eden more than two months ago. The construction crews went with it to build the projectors around the planet.”

Janie said, “Sir, what kind of shape is Earth in now?”

“It’s healing well. The invaders used heat beams to kill every human on the planet and the cities burned for months afterwards. But rain and time have extinguished the fires and plant life has returned and many of the cities are being overrun by it. You can find the remains of the cities under the plants; most of them were knocked flat by the invaders. The interstate highways are still there. It’s difficult for plants to grow through three feet of reinforced concrete.”

Audrey looked at Chris, “Is that what you’ve been doing for the last three years?”

Chris looked at her and smiled, “Among other things. Are we ready for lift off?”

“We are.”

Chris looked up, “Willow, are you on board?”

“I am.”

Audrey’s smile was instant, “WILLOW!”

“Good morning, Admiral. It’s good to be here with you again.”

Chris looked at Audrey, “You know where we’re going. Let’s get this show on the road.”

Audrey looked at Hawk, “Take us up.”

Hawk gripped the steering wheel and pressed several buttons on it. The hum of the gravity compensators rose in pitch slightly and the thrusters under the huge ship began firing. After a moment, the ship lifted off the concrete and rose at an increasing speed. Once it was a quarter of a mile above the surface, Hawk activated the rear and bow thrusters to turn the ship vertical. He began moving the thrust slide slightly and the ship began accelerating.