Galactic Empire Wars 2: Emergence (15 page)

“Yes, Sir,”
Wade replied, pleased with Adamson’s suggestion. It made him feel better
knowing he would be in the thick of things with his marines if it became
necessary.

“The Warspite
and the Furious will be the two assault ships going in with you; we'll hold the
Centurion and the Trafalgar back in reserve.”

“Where will
you position the rest of the fleet?” asked Captain Rios, worried about how
quickly the Constellation could respond if they came under attack.

“We’ve chosen
a system four light years distant,” Colonel Adamson informed them.

“That puts
help nearly an hour away,” Rios stated with a frown. “If we get into trouble it
could be over with before you can get there.”

“We don’t dare
come any closer,” Adamson said with a sigh. “There’s so much traffic in the
local area that we could easily be detected. If the Kleese became aware of the Constellation,
they might recognize it as an Earth warship. We don’t want that to happen; it
could compromise the entire mission.”

“If the Kleese
become aware of us, we just need to hold the flight bay until the Constellation
arrives,” Wade spoke with narrowed eyes as he thought over the possible
scenarios. “With one hundred sixty marines in Type Three battle suits, we
should be able to hold the bay for at least an hour.”

Beth nodded in
agreement. “It'll take the Kleese some time to organize against us, especially
if they're unaware of what’s inside the assault ships. We'll have to remain out
of sight until we’re needed.”

After a few
more minutes of discussion and planning, the group broke up. Wade found himself
in the outside corridor walking next to Beth.

“Are you ready
for this?” he asked, wondering how she was doing.

“As ready as
I’m going to be,” she replied her eyes looking over at Wade. “We’re just so far
away from home; I worry about what would become of my mother if something were
to happen to me.”

“She would be
well taken care of,” Wade assured her. “We’ve been through a lot together;
we’ll get through this.”

“So, is your
little brother going to enroll in the new academy?”

“I think so,”
Wade replied as he thought about his family back on Vesta. “Ryan likes the idea
of being an officer in the space fleet someday and seems to be willing to try
the academy for at least one semester.”

“I’m happy to
hear that,” responded Beth, knowing how concerned Wade had been about Ryan joining
the military too soon. He was also a very bright young man; the academy would
be good for him.

“It was a huge
relief to my parents,” added Wade, recalling the relieved looks on their faces
when Ryan had announced that he would try the academy. It had taken a load off
Wade’s mind as well.

“You’re lucky
to have your entire family for support,” Beth said with a sad look in her eyes.
She still found that she greatly missed her fiancée. Not knowing how he died
continued to haunt her.

“Let’s get
something to eat,” Wade suggested. Over the last eight weeks, he had missed the
meals he and Beth occasionally shared. “I hear the food on this ship is much
better than the military ones.”

“They have an
actual cafeteria with a wide selection of food,” Beth informed Wade with a
twinkle appearing in her eyes. “Unfortunately, they don’t serve Italian. I have
about two hours before the shuttle is scheduled to pick me up and take me back
to the Warspite.”

Wade laughed.
Italian food was Beth’s favorite and he was looking forward to the next few
hours and her company.

-

Wade stood
nervously in the Control Room of the Distant Star as it dropped out of Fold
Space a scant ten thousand kilometers from the trading station. On the main viewscreen,
the massive station was plainly visible. It was one hundred and twenty
kilometers across and twenty-four kilometers thick, with its surface covered by
numerous habitation domes ranging in size from five to twenty kilometers. The
domes were the homes for the station’s crew as well as training areas for the station’s
military conscripts.

“We’re
receiving a challenge,” the communications officer reported.

“I’ll handle
it,” Taalon responded. He tapped a few commands into the ship’s computer and
sent back a prepared response he had placed there earlier.

A few moments
passed and then the communications officer breathed a sigh of relief. “We’re
being directed to dock in flight bay twenty-seven along with our two assault
ships. If we require any further assistance, we’re to inform Flight Control.”

“We’re in,”
stated Captain Rios, letting out a deep breath. “That was a lot easier than I
thought it would be. I wasn’t sure what to expect.”

“They’re not anticipating
any trouble,” Marken said as he gazed at the steadily approaching station.
“We’re four thousand light years away from Earth. The last thing they'd expect are
for Humans to show up.”

The five
hundred-meter passenger liner approached the station, lined up with flight bay
twenty-seven, and slowly entered the bay, passing through the atmospheric force
field. The two assault ships followed closely behind. The Distant Star settled
down on the indicated berthing dock with the other ships settling in protectively
on either side of her.

“We’re here,”
Wade commented as he studied the multitude of viewscreens on the front wall of
the Control Room. Several showed views outside of the ship and he could see
numerous people moving around. There were over a dozen other ships in the bay,
some smaller than the Distant Star and a few that were larger. None of the
different alien races moving about in the bay were familiar to Wade.

“There will be
a registration facility inside the station where we’ll have to report,” Marken explained
as he gazed at the viewscreens. It felt strange and somewhat frightening to be
back aboard a Kleese controlled station. “If this station does have Kiveans on
board, they will not find it too surprising for me to accompany the trading
delegation to registration. They'll assume I am one of the station’s crew or
that I have been permanently assigned to Kios Four and the Kleese stationed
there.”

“Let’s get
with it,” Captain Rios suggested. “The sooner we’re away from here, the
better.”

Wade nodded.
He was wearing civilian clothes and would be going with the delegation. Trevor
Dakin was the civilian who would be seeking to work out new trade agreements
with the different nonaligned races on the station. He had several assistants
working with him. Trevor was an older man in his late fifties and well skilled
in negotiating contract deals. He had been recommended by President Randle.

As they left
the ship, Wade took note of the half dozen army rangers guarding the inside of
the airlock. They were heavily armed and part of the security force on the
passenger liner. Unfortunately, the corridors in the ship were too small to
allow for a marine in a battle suit to move about.

There were
eight people in Wade’s group, including Marken. They exited the flight bay through
the nearest hatch and found themselves in a long wide corridor. There were
instructions on the wall indicating where the registration area was. As they
walked, they passed several members of other races. A few were humanoid and
several others were obviously of insect descent.

It took them
only a few minutes to reach the registration area. Stepping cautiously through
the hatch, they found themselves in a large, cavernous room several hundred meters
across. In its center were a number of computer terminals used for registering.
However, what concerned Wade the most were the ten conscripts in Type Two
battle suits that were standing around the outskirts of the room with RG rifles
in their metal hands. Their dark armor and appearance looked threatening and
was a strict reminder of who was in charge of this station.

“It’s standard
procedure,” Marken assured the others as he saw them gazing anxiously at the
armed conscripts. “It’s just a reminder that no fighting will be allowed on the
station and security is rigidly enforced.”

The group
continued walking and soon reached the registration terminals. The computers
were manned by a humanoid race slighter shorter than the average Human but with
larger ears and eyes.

“State your
business and world of origination,” the one at the terminal they had approached
informed them.

“Trade,
primarily medical in nature,” Marken responded in a calm and steady voice.
“These traders are from Kios Four.”

The humanoid
quickly entered the data on his terminal and then handed them eight small metal
disks. “These will allow you access to the different trading areas of the
ship,” he informed them in a bored and nearly monotone voice. “Keep them with
you at all times. If more are needed, you will need to come back to
registration. The safety of all traders is guaranteed while you are upon the
station; anyone who threatens or endangers another race will be harshly dealt
with. If you have problems, please let us know. ”

“We
understand,” replied Marken, evenly. “We are primarily interested in seeking
new medical technology from the nonaligned races. Where might we locate their trading
section?”

The humanoid
turned back to his console and quickly printed out a small map. It had a route marked
in blue leading to a section of the station a considerable distance away. “You
will need to use the station’s internal travel system to reach that section.”

“I’m familiar
with it,” Marken responded with a nod. “We will be going now.”

Marken led
them across the large room and through another thick metal hatch. They walked
in silence for several hundred meters until they reached one of the internal
tram stations. Marken turned to look at the others. “Be very careful about what
you say. The nonaligned races are very defensive about some of their
technology.”

They entered
one of the trams, which resembled a small subway car. Marken entered their destination
and they were soon moving. Wade sat down and gazed nervously at the passing metal
walls. He was unarmed; they all were. He just hoped everything went smoothly.
Wade knew if the Kleese captured them they would probably be executed
immediately.

-

Beth was
pacing nervously in the Command Center of the Warspite. She had twenty of her
marines dressed in Type Three battle suits ready to deploy at a moment's
notice. Looking up, she stared at the ship’s main viewscreens, which were focused
on the various hatches in the flight bay. If there was going to be trouble, it
would have to come through those hatches.

“Be calm,
Captain,” Major Donaldson suggested from where he was sitting in his command
chair watching the same viewscreens. “They’ve only been gone for about an hour.
As near as we can tell, there has been no increase in security or activity in
the bay.”

Beth nodded
her head and drew in a deep breath. She knew this mission could take several
days, particularly if any of the nonaligned races agreed to exchange
technology. “It’s this station,” she replied, coming to a stop in front of the
major. “There’s Kleese on board and probably thousands of armed conscripts. If
we have to conduct a rescue operation, it might be exceedingly difficult to
extricate our people.”

“Let’s just
hope that doesn’t happen,” Donaldson responded. “Marken doesn’t think the
Kleese will even know we’re here.”

“Marken isn’t
a military minded person,” Beth reminded Major Donaldson. Returning her eyes to
the viewscreens, Beth knew it was going to be a long several days. She just
hoped they were all still alive when it was finally time to return home.

Wade was back
in the Distant Star listening as Trevor Dakin reported on what had been
accomplished so far. For the last two days, the trading team had split up into
three separate delegations to speak with different nonaligned worlds trading
representatives.

“We’re not
accomplishing much,” Dakin admitted in a disappointed voice as he looked at the
others. “Most of the nonaligned worlds seem afraid to trade with us, even
though they think we’re from Kios. There’s an undertone I’m sensing that I just
don’t like.”

“Kios is not a
nonaligned world,” Marken spoke with a frown on his face. “It's one of the more
highly developed worlds controlled by the Kleese and that might be the reason
they're refusing to set up any trade agreements for higher technology.”

“I’ve had some
better luck,” Harnett said from where she was sitting next to Marken. “I’ve
managed to procure the advanced equipment from the Trelins for production of
medical nanites.”

“What did you
offer them in return?” asked Wade, feeling curious. He knew they'd brought a
number of different rare metals as well as some high quality gems that were an accepted
method of payment. There were even a few Kivean technologies they were willing
to share.

“Diamonds,”
Harnett replied. “They use them in some of their medical equipment.”

“Blue and red diamonds
in particular were what they seemed the most interested in,” added Marken,
smiling at his life mate. He knew how important it had been to her to procure
the medical nanite production equipment. “We did have to throw in several
carats of Tanzanite to close the deal.”

“What’s
Tanzanite?” Wade asked. He had never heard of it before.

“It’s a rare
gem found only in Tanzania,” Trevor responded. “We brought some if it along
hoping it was as uncommon on other planets as it is on Earth.”

“When will the
equipment be delivered?” asked Captain Rios. He wanted to make sure he had one
of the small cargo bays ready for it. Procuring the nanite equipment had been
one of the main priorities of the mission, and he was relieved to know they'd
been successful. He also needed to make sure the army rangers were out of
sight.

“Tomorrow
afternoon,” Harnett replied. She was pleased that she had managed to get the
equipment. Medical nanites could save thousands of lives if used properly. They
were especially useful for tissue and bone reconstruction. In the Humans' war
against the Kleese, it was essential that they have access to this advanced
medical technology.

“Have any of
the other nonaligned races indicated they might be willing to provide us with
additional technology?” asked Wade, glancing at the others. He knew if they
didn’t make at least a few trade agreements this mission would be considered a
bust.

“There are two
nonaligned worlds that have indicated they might be willing to offer us some
limited technology,” replied Daiken, letting out a heavy sigh. “It’s obvious
they seem nervous about sharing certain types of technologies due to fear of
aggravating the Kleese. They’re perfectly willing to trade some specialized
technology that they feel is fairly common and certain food products that are
grown on their worlds. There also seems to be a vibrant trade in artwork
between a number of them.”

“Anyone have
any suggestions?” asked Wade, leaning back and frowning, his eyes looking at
each member of the trade delegation.

“Just to keep
trying,” replied Dakin, letting out a deep and frustrating breath. “We have more
meetings set up for tomorrow.”

“I’ve a conference
with several of the Kiveans on the station tomorrow morning,” Marken informed
them with a slightly confused look upon his face. “It’s been difficult to get
them to agree to meet; it almost seems as if they’re afraid to.”

“Do you think
we’ve been identified?” asked Captain Rios, worriedly. “Is it possible they
know we’re from Earth?”

Marken was
quiet as he mulled the question over. “I don’t know,” he said after a few
moments of thought. “Something is going on or they wouldn’t be so hesitant
about this meeting. Perhaps we’ll know more tomorrow.”

Wade didn’t
like what he was hearing. If the Kleese had discovered that Humans from Earth
were on the station, it could change everything dramatically. “I’m going to
raise the alert status on our two assault ships,” he said, preferring to play
it safe. “We’ll have two full platoons in Type Three battle suits ready to
deploy at a moment's notice.”

“How much
longer do we need to remain on the station?” Captain Rios asked. He wanted to
depart as soon as possible; he felt the situation was suddenly turning for the
worse. “The longer we stay, the more likely our cover will be blown.”

“Two more days
at the most,” responded Daiken, arching his eyebrow. “If we haven’t accomplished
anything by then there'll be no point in staying any longer.”

-

The next
afternoon, Wade walked with Beth down one of the primary corridors of the station
toward the nonaligned worlds trading section. As they passed through the
hatches and took one of the trams, Wade couldn’t help but notice that there
were more conscripts in Type Two suits around than there'd been when they first
arrived.

“I don’t like
this at all,” Wade spoke in a quiet voice as they exited the tram and stepped
through a hatch into the large room where the nonaligned worlds had set up
their trading stations. Looking around, Wade could see at least twenty
conscripts in battle suits spaced evenly around the perimeter. The day before,
there had only been six.

“What is it,
Wade?” Beth asked as she gazed around at all the different alien races that
were present. While the majority of them were humanoid, there were a number of
insect and reptilian races represented.

“Security has
been increased,” he said worriedly, wishing he and Beth were armed. “It’s been
increased a lot.”

Beth stopped
and looked around; this was the first time she had left the Warspite. Even as
she watched, she saw several of the conscripts in battle suits turn slightly toward
her and Wade. “I think we need to get back to the flight bay,” she suggested in
a quiet and decisive voice. Then she turned and looked directly at Wade, trying
not to act or look concerned. “I think they know who we are.”

Wade let out a
deep breath and nodded after hearing Beth’s chilling announcement. He was
afraid Beth was right. “Let’s move casually back to the hatch and return to the
bay. Once everyone is back, we’ll leave. I think you’re right; we’ve worn out
our welcome.”

Beth nodded
and the two left the large trading room. As they walked back to the bay, Beth
couldn’t help but notice all the conscripts in battle suits that now seemed to
be about. She felt as if at any moment, she and Wade could be struck by RG
rounds. It was with a massive feeling of relief that they reached the flight
bay and entered the Distant Star, going immediately to the Control Room.

“I think we’ve
been made,” Wade said simply as he stepped over to stand in front of Captain
Rios.

“Damn!” Rios
swore his face growing concerned. “Why do you say that?”

“There are
conscripts in battle suits everywhere,” Wade reported. He then told Rios
exactly what he and Beth had observed on their trip to the nonaligned worlds
trading section. “Something has caused the Kleese to implement a massive
increase in security. I strongly suspect that something is us.”

“I think
you’re right,” said Rios, knowing that they might now be in a precarious
position. This was exactly what he had been afraid of.

“Where are the
rest of our negotiators?”

“Everyone’s
still out,” Rios replied as he stepped over and checked a screen, which
detailed the current status of the negotiation teams.

Wade stood
still for a long moment as he weighed their options. “We can’t do anything to
tip off the Kleese that we’re aware of the increased security. Let’s just wait
and hope our negotiating teams return safely.” Turning to Beth, he added.
“Inform Lieutenant Stern to expect a possible combat scenario sometime in the
next twenty-four hours. If they’ve already increased their security, I doubt if
it'll be much longer before they try to take the bay and storm our ships.”

“Why haven’t
they already?” asked Captain Rios, looking intently at Wade.

“They’re
probably trying to determine exactly why we’re here,” Wade responded in a grim
voice. “They may also want to know if any of the nonaligned worlds have violated
their neutrality agreement by helping us.”

“What do we do
now?” Beth asked with growing anxiety on her face. She knew they could be in a
bad situation.

“We wait,” responded
Wade, looking at Beth and Captain Rios, “For our people to return and then we
leave.”

-

It was several
hours later that Captain Rios called Wade’s attention to a viewscreen showing
the one of the hatches to the flight bay. They could see Marken and Harnett
hurrying through it nearly at a run.

“Something’s
wrong,” Wade said as he made for the metal hatch to the Control Room. “I’m
going to find out what.”

Wade quickly
made his way through the ship to the airlock to find an agitated Marken
standing there arguing with Harnett.

“What’s going
on?” Wade demanded as he walked up to the two.

“Disaster,
that’s what,” Marken replied with an apprehensive look upon his face. “The
Kleese know we’re here and have positioned their mother ships outside the
station to ensure we can’t escape!”

Wade felt a sinking
sensation in the pit of his stomach. With the two assault ships and the Distant
Star, they didn’t have the firepower to take on even one of the Kleese mother
ships. “Just how do you know that?”

“From the Kiveans
we were talking to,” Harnett replied her worried eyes focusing on Wade. “They've
given us some horrendous news.”

“After our
initial escape from the station, the Kleese were livid we had dared to harm
members of their race,” explained Marken, recalling the scene in the Command Center of the station as Major Nelson and several other marines had slain the
Kleese in the room. “As you know, they killed the station’s entire crew in
revenge for what we did.”

“Yes,” replied
Wade, somberly. He well recalled what they'd found after taking the station
from the Kleese; it was full of dead and decaying bodies. The entire crew had
been killed.

“It’s worse than
that,” Harnett added with tears flowing out of her eyes. “The Kleese bombed our
home planet, killing most of our race!”

Wade stepped
back, stunned. They'd never considered the Kleese taking such an action. The
Kiveans on the home planet had not known about the revolt or what happened on
the station.

“There are
only a few hundred Kiveans still on this station,” Marken added. “The rest have
been eliminated. The only ones still alive are those the Kleese considered
essential in the functions they are serving. From what we were told, most of
the Kiveans serving on other stations have been killed also.”

“I’m sorry,”
Wade stammered, unsure of what to say. It seemed as if the Kiveans had suffered
a worse fate than Humanity.

“They also
gave us this,” added Harnett, handing Wade a small Kivean designed computer
flash drive.

“What is it?” asked
Wade, looking at the small dark gray computer drive in his hand.

“What we were
seeking,” Marken answered with a grim look upon his face. “The nonaligned races
knew all along who we were and they wanted to help.”

“But they
didn’t dare do so openly for fear of retaliation from the Kleese,” Harnett
explained. “Most of the nonaligned races have very powerful fleets to protect
their home planets, but none of them could stand up to a determined assault by
a massive Kleese fleet. They will not become active participants in our war
against the Kleese.”

“What’s on
this flash drive?” Wade asked as he placed it securely in his shirt pocket.
This was all totally unexpected.

“Technology,”
Marken replied with a pleased and almost wolfish grin. “Half a dozen of the nonaligned
worlds have put some of their highest technological achievements and designs on
that drive. The core things we will be interested in are more powerful fusion
plants and energy shields for our ships. There is also a design for an ion particle
beam cannon that can be based upon a planet.”

“Better
sensors and guidance systems are also on that flash drive,” Harnett added her
face flushed with worry. “It'll put us on a more even footing with the Kleese.”

“How do we get
out of here?” Wade asked as he led the two back up through the ship toward the
Control Room. He wanted Captain Rios to hear all of this firsthand.

Marken looked
over at Harnett who nodded. “The Kiveans still on board have arranged to have a
message transmitted to our fleet informing them of the situation. The Kleese
ships outside are currently jamming all communication frequencies, but a
message can be gotten out through one of the nonaligned worlds' ships that’s
scheduled to depart shortly.”

“They’re
willing to do that for us?” asked Wade, knowing they were taking a huge risk if
they were caught.

“There’s a
condition,” added Harnett, looking down at the deck and then back up at Wade.
“They want to come with us.”

-

In the Command Center of the station, eight Kleese stood upon the Command Pedestal. The
viewscreens were focused on six of the mother ships that had been moved into position
to prevent the Humans and their Kivean allies from attempting to escape.
Several other viewscreens were showing scenes from inside the flight bay where the
three Human ships were docked.

“All Humans
have returned to their ships,” reported one of the Kleese as it listened to a
report from several of the conscripts who had been tasked with keeping track of
the Human vermin and the Kiveans that were with them.