The Last Starship (4 page)

Chapter 8

The members of the council stared at Joanne.

“The Emperor is dead. We have some major problems we need to deal with because he trusted the wrong people, and there are aliens here. These aliens are robots created by one who is on our side. At this very moment, he is on the Atlantis, doing everything he can to help Captain Jake Larson destroy an invasion fleet.”

“How can you be sure this robot is on our side?”

“I can’t.” Joanne knew honesty was the most important thing. “Someone did try to destroy him. That might have been to make it easier for us to let our guard down around him or it might have been because the enemy wants him dead. Right now all I can do is work with the evidence I had - and Sagin did use his technology to replace the Emperor’s hand. I don’t know exactly what it was he did, but he is willing to share that with us.”

Every man on the council had been there when her father was assassinated. She remembered sitting on David's lap, sucking on a lollipop, trying to come to terms with the fact her father was dead. It hadn’t been easy.

As she looked at each of them, she wished she knew what they were thinking.

Did they believe her? Did they think she was making up a story to explain why Jake had killed the Emperor?

She tried to stay as calm as possible; letting her worries overcome her wasn’t an option. When her eyes met with David’s, she could tell he was having trouble believing what she was saying.

“Where are the medics?” David studied her. “They should've been there to help the Emperor.”

“Yes, I know, but Tobias couldn’t find them. I now have every man I could spare on the hunt for the medics. Others are looking for the Emperor’s personal assistant, as the Emperor believed he was behind the attack, but so far we haven’t had any sightings of him or the robot who might have convinced him killing the Emperor was the best thing for Earth.”

“Do you think it’s possible the Emperor’s personal assistant might have removed the Emperor because he knew Sagin wasn’t on our side?”

“At the moment, although I hate saying this, anything is possible. We don’t have enough evidence to prove whether or not Sagin is on our side, but we will know soon enough. If he helps the Atlantis, it seems likely he is on our side. If he turns against the crew, he isn’t.” Joanne brushed a hand through her hair. “The other issue we have with the personal assistant being on our side is the fact that he was the one in charge of the finances, and everything that should've been used in the rebuilding of the fleet is gone. I don’t know where it’s gone. I’m looking into that myself.”

“You could have been the person who killed the Emperor?”

“Why would I? There was a time, in the past, when I wanted to claim the throne, but I was too young. Now I don’t want it. I’m happy with the job I have. Unfortunately, I'm one of the few people who would be able to take the throne because I know what’s going on, and you need someone who understands the position. The only other option you have is Tobias, as I think he might know more than I do.”

“Tobias wouldn’t want the throne.” David sighed. “Which means we have limited options. Options that mean we have to believe what you’re telling us is the truth and that’s not an easy thing to do.”

“I know nothing about Henry. I don’t know if he had a wife or a child, and I would never have put them through what I went through.” Joanne blinked away tears. “I know how much it hurts to lose someone in that way, and I wouldn’t want my worst enemy to go through that. You can believe me when I say that or not. In the end, it’s up to you what happens next, because you're the council, but I think you know me well enough to be certain that I'm the right person for the job.”

Chapter 9

Joanne looked around the receiving room. It was the room her dad died in, the room Henry had died in, and all she could do was hope the same thing wasn’t going to happen to her.

The throne itself wasn’t exactly comfortable, but she wasn’t going to think about that too much. Being the Empress of Earth again... she shook her head.

All she wanted was to be back up in the Atlantis, working with the crew to make the world a better place, rather than doing the same thing.

Albeit in a different way from her new position.

Just as she was about to start pacing around the room, Tobias walked in.

“Didn’t take you long.”

“What did you expect?” She sighed. “I’m a very different person to the one I was when I left after Dad died, Toby, and I don’t want to be here. This… just feels like my only option. No one else could take this position.”

“They would have offered it to me if you hadn’t convinced them you were the right person and I wouldn’t have done it. Being the Emperor isn’t what I want. I don’t mind helping you as much as possible, but anything more than that isn’t going to work for me, and with that as the subject I wanted to let you know I’ve searched the old Emperor’s personal assistant’s room. I found some very interesting things in there, including a couple of weapons he could only have got from the aliens, and I believe he was the one who siphoned off the money for the fleet. I’ll do what I can to find the money, but I think it’s gone for good.”

“How do you suggest we start reclaiming the money we lost to rebuild the fleet?”

“We might not have to. Sagin said he has a fleet of his own up there we can use, and that’s exactly what Jake is going to do.”

She nodded. “At the moment I’m happy to accept Sagin’s help, but I don’t want to be relying on him too much because we have no way of knowing for certain what his final aim is. He’s told us he wants to work with us, and I want to believe him. However, I’m not entirely sure we can, so I want to start work on a new fleet as soon as possible. I want to start copying the technology the aliens have. I want to do everything we can to decrease out reliance on them, just in case Sagin has been playing us.”

“I agree.” Tobias smiled. “I’m glad to hear you aren’t going to rely on them.” He scratched the stubble on his chin. “Getting the money we need is probably going to be simpler now. People know how much of a threat the aliens are, and I want us to use what’s happened as a way of increasing the income of the Empress.”

His eyes grew in warmth as he added, “Especially as the new Empress is someone everyone already wants to emulate.”

Chapter 10

“Let me go in first, Sagin because I’m going to have to explain to them you’re on our side.”

Sagin moved aside. “You do what you believe is best, Captain.”

“How many times do I have to tell you to call me Jake?”

It was a surprise when Sagin chuckled. “At least once more.”

Laughing, Jake stepped into the docks, finding himself face to face with his crew member, Lewis. “Who’s the robot?”

“His name is Sagin, and he’s on our side. It’s too long a story to tell you right now because we have a possible invasion to deal with, but I’ll give you the short version when we leave New York.”

“You can’t know he’s on our side.”

“I have brought a peace offering.” Sagin stepped through the door, carrying a bag. “We came across some of those who would've been willing to hurt the Captain, and I made certain they would never be able to hurt anyone again. If you wish it, I can teach you how to use some of the parts you have gathered, because I know you won’t have been able to work out what all of them do.”

“Thank you, Sagin.” Katie walked over to take the bag from him. “I appreciate your help because there’s a chip I’m certain will be useful to us, but I can’t be entirely sure, and I don’t want to make a mistake.”

“You're talking about the C1289. Yes, you're right. That would boost your weapon power in such a way it would kill an alien straight off. At the moment, they can use that chip to protect themselves from the basic laser guns.”

Katie looked at Lewis. “I think he’s on our side. I'd already worked out all that, after a bit of trial and error, and he wouldn’t have told us that if he wasn’t on our side.”

“Very clever.” Sagin sounded proud. “For working out what that chip does and for using what you knew to confirm whether or not I was on your side. I will like calling you allies.”

“Let’s get going then.” Lewis signaled for everyone to get back on the ship. “I’ve been watching what’s going on up in space, and we have a large group of ships already up there. They look like they’re waiting for something.”

“I think they’re Sagin’s people. They want to share the Earth with us while the other side wants to eradicate us,” Jake told him. “Apparently robots have emotions.”

“Interesting,” Lewis said with a half grin. “I want to know the whole story.”

“Sagin won’t have a problem telling you.”

As they made their way onto the ship Jake breathed a sigh of relief.

He was home again, and he didn’t ever want to leave it again.

Chapter 11

“In the year 2026, I was sent into space in a small craft.”

Sagin spoke quietly, but everyone was paying attention to what he was saying.

“Even though the scientists didn't know I could hear them because they did not believe I'd been turned on, I was able to hear every word. They said such nice things about me. They were so proud of the work they had done, although I do not believe they knew exactly what they’d managed to do. I was being sent out to land on a planet they believed would turn out to be very interesting. I was going to send back details about that world, in the hope it was habitable. Unfortunately, things didn't work out the way they hoped. I missed that planet and kept traveling. As I went, I couldn't help wondering how much fuel I had, as I didn't want to end up falling forever in space and I didn't realize until later that is exactly what I was doing. That is why I missed the planet. Eventually, I dropped onto the world I would call home.

Sagin paused, allowing the crew to take in the information before he continued.

"As a robot, I had certain advantages. I explored the entire planet to make certain I would be safe, and then set about building a shelter. I had a feeling, I'd need it soon, and I was right. Three days later there was a dust storm. It was a big storm, one I could not have weathered without the shelter. The feeling, I believe, was something the humans who created me had set, but I have no idea how it happened. I just know it did, and I will always be thankful for it. That feeling saved my life. Once the dust storm was over, I went exploring again. I made the decision to build more shelters as I went, to make sure I always had somewhere to go when the storms happened. Every time I found myself spending days at a time in one of them I was grateful all over again for the training I was given. As time passed, I started to become lonely. I had never been lonely before. I did not know how to cope with that. In the end, I made the decision I needed others of my kind, and I set about making them. On the world, I found plenty of metal I could use, and I knew I was able to create the chips I needed. That was something my scientists had taught me, although I have never been certain why. I just remember waking up with the knowledge.”

Sagin shrugged in a very human fashion, and Jake found himself wondering if the robot had picked it up from his scientists.

“There have been times recently when I wished they had not," Sagin went on. "If I hadn’t chosen to create my people, my friends, my family, we would not be in this position now. You would not be fighting for the survival of your people. I am disappointed in myself for not thinking this might be a possibility. I hope you can forgive me.”

“How did this happen, Sagin?” Lewis was fascinated.

Jake couldn’t help smiling. At least, the story was taking their mind off the battle that was coming. “Why are there two different groups?”

“To begin with I was the only robot creating the others. Then my people started building families for themselves, and I did not stop them. I thought as I had built myself a family, they could build their own. It was not long before there were hundreds of us. Although I thought about putting a stop to it all, I could not bring myself to. I wanted them to have their families. After three years, that planet’s years, another craft came tumbling down, and I realized that had happened to me. I couldn’t quite believe it was possible. There would be another one of me. I was so excited to meet him, to learn everything I could about him, so I went to help him out of his craft, knowing we could share information. But from the moment he stepped out, I knew we weren’t alike. He gave me this look… it is impossible to describe, but I did my best to seem as though I was not bothered by it. Unlike me, he had not had scientists who had been excited by his creation. He was just another robot going out into space, and there was a chance he might never come back. That was when I found twenty years had passed since I left Earth. I had never stopped thinking about it, and I was working on building a craft to bring me back. I wanted to see my scientists again. I wanted them to know I'd been successful. But the other robot wanted to come back to Earth and take it over. Thus bringing an end to the human race because he did not believe you should be permitted to use us for your own gains. I can understand why he was angry. His start had been very different to mine. Slowly he began to convince some of my people it was their right to take this world over. When I found out, I knew I did not have any other choice. I had to come back to Earth and protect it.”

Sagin surveyed each crew member with pleading eyes. “His scientists may not have been nice people. That does not give him the right to destroy an entire race. I will not let it happen. I will do everything I can to protect you, even though my scientists are now dead.” He sounded sad. “They will never know where I went, or what I was capable of. In some ways, that’s a good thing. They will never know I created a robot army who wants to take over their world. They will never know of the mistakes I have made.”

“No, they won’t, but their grandchildren will find out.” Katie smiled. “My grandfather told me all about you, S3A5G7I0N7.”

“You know my full name?” Sagin turned to look at Katie. “No one knew that apart from my scientists. What was your grandfather’s name?”

“Jared O’Connell.”

“I liked Jared. He was one of the kindest scientists, and I know he was helping to build my knowledge base. I believe it is thanks to him I have those strange feelings, the ones that saved my life, and if you are his granddaughter I hope we can become friends.”

“We can become friends if that’s what you want. He would've been pleased to know you survived. When they lost track of you, he was so disappointed. I remember him telling me all about the robots he built. Do you know the name of the other one?”

“K0A7B5E8X9.”

“He wasn’t one my grandfather worked on. Kabex was built by a different team, who thought such mechanical projects were beneath them. I’m not surprised he hates us, as they were the first humans he came across.”

“As I have said I can understand why he feels the way he does. I just do not believe we should punish you for something you did not have any part of. You had nothing to do with his creation. Your grandfather had nothing to do with his creation. The people who built him are either dead or very old, and it's not just them he wants to hurt. He hates the whole human race. I remember him talking about his own knowledge and I believe he was given a lot of history. He knew about all the wars, he believes Earth was getting overwhelmed by people even then, and he thinks he can make this world a better place. I think I can make this world a better place, too, but I want to work alongside you. This is your home. Yes, you have made mistakes, but I am not going to punish you for them. My people have destroyed our world by over harvesting the metal there. Now we need somewhere else to live. If you do not want us here, it would be simple enough for us to go elsewhere. However, we have technology you might be able to use.”

“He grew the Emperor’s hand back.” Jake looked around at his crew. “If we survive this, we need to think seriously about what our future holds and whether or not we do want Sagin’s people here.”