The Lost Fleet: Genesis: A Slaver Wars Novel (30 page)

“That’s one of
the vortex field generators,” the Originator AI explained. “There are eight of
them around each intergalactic vortex station. They store power from the star
at the center of the Shrieel and control the energy shield that surrounds the
area. They can be used to prevent anything harmful from coming through or
entering.”

“Is it
operating now?” asked Lindsey, peering out the viewport and not noticing any
obvious evidence of a shimmering in the air that might indicate the presence of
an energy shield.

“Yes, we
activated it as soon as we realized what the Simulins might be up to. Even with
the command key, the Simulins won’t be able to bring the shield down until the
main computer here completes its diagnostic.”

“How much time
do we have left?”

“Eighteen
hours,” replied Rakell. “We’ll need to move quickly once we disembark. There’s
a transit station nearby we can use to take us to just outside the area we need
to enter. The only way the Simulins can activate the vortex and shut down the
primary energy shield is in the Control Center where the main computer’s
located. If they can insert the key into the command slot, they’ll have full
control of the vortex site and the Shrieel’s core computer will recognize them
as having permission to use this particular vortex. It won’t allow them
admittance to any other areas of the Shrieel as that takes an override from a
living Originator.”

“Can they
access other vortex sites?”

“Yes, but only
from the outside of the Shrieel and with the command key. They can use the key
to access each site and activate it.”

Lindsey mulled
this information over. “Just how did they get a hold of one of these command
keys? I can’t imagine it just lying around.”

“We don’t
know,” confessed Rakell uneasily. “It has been a subject of much discussion
over the years. We’ve never been 100 percent certain they have a command key,
but it’s the only explanation we could come up with for how they’ve managed to
gain admittance to so many of the Shrieel.”

The hatch to
the cockpit opened and Sible appeared. “We’re down and you can disembark. The
local energy shields are up, but you can go through them using one of the
copper colored keys.”

Rakell stood
and gestured for Lindsey to follow him. “This will be a combat operation and in
that I can be of no help. I’m not programmed to engage in hostilities. I do
have a key we can use to gain admittance. I believe Sergeant Wilde is in
possession of one as well.”

“Don’t worry,”
Lindsey replied as she checked the pulse rifle she was carrying. The pulse
rifles had been developed by the Altons. This particular model was capable of
firing twenty energy bursts before a new power pack had to be put in place. She
had four extra power packs in the pouches on her belt as well as two Fulton grenades. “Let’s go, people,” she said in a loud and commanding voice. “We have
some Simulins to kill!”

-

Four hours
later they approached the Control Center for the intergalactic vortex,
advancing in a double file along a wide corridor. Around each corner, they
expected to find the Simulins waiting or a Conqueror Drone. So far, they had
encountered no resistance what so ever.

“It’s sure
awfully quiet,” Corporal Metz commented as they went around another corner with
no signs of the enemy. “Are the robots sure there are Simulins here?”

“AIs,” Brenda
reminded the corporal. “There’s a big difference between robots and AIs.”

“They’re both
artificial,” Metz answered. “Ones just smarter than the other.”

“They’re not
expecting us,” announced Private Trent confidently. “How could they know we’re
here? I’ll bet they’re all in this Control Center.”

Brenda nodded
her agreement. “You’re probably correct. The Simulins must have done this
countless times before, and they know once they reach the Control Center there’s nothing that can be done to stop them from activating the vortex. There’s no way
the Simulins can suspect we had already gained entry to the Dyson Sphere before
they arrived. We might just be able to sneak up on them without being
detected.”

Corporal Metz
shifted his assault rifle into a ready position. Even though the Simulins might
not be expecting them, he intended to be prepared for anything. He was well
aware of how the Conqueror Drones killed, and he had no intention of allowing
one of them near him.

-

Simulin High
Commander Hark Brasht gazed in unbridled frustration at the computer console in
front of him. He had repeatedly placed the command key in the slot designated
for it, and there had been no response.

“The system
seems to be running some type of internal diagnostic,” another Simulin who was
well versed in computer operations reported. “From what I can tell the
diagnostic still has some time to run.”

Brasht gazed
with impatience around the large Control Center. He had been inside several of
these in other galaxies controlled by the Simulins. Never had he heard any
reports of the computer that controlled the intergalactic vortexes running a
diagnostic.

“I don’t like
this,” Brasht said, his eyes narrowing sharply. “Something here isn’t right.”

This entire
mission had been a disaster. For the first time in recorded history, a Great
Sphere had activated its defensive weapons. And what weapons they were! His
entire fleet had been wiped out of existence as if they were insignificant
balls of space ice. Nearly all of his shuttles and the Conqueror Drone pods had
been destroyed. Never had he imagined a weapon of such power!

“Once the
diagnostic is complete, the command key should work,” the computer technician
said. “We just have to wait.”

Brasht’s
attention was drawn toward a disturbance at one of the entrances to the Control Center. As his eyes shifted toward the hatch, a sudden explosion obliterated the
Conqueror Drone assigned there as a guard. Heavily armed organics suddenly
began pouring into the room, firing their weapons.

“We’re under
attack!” Brasht yelled as he grasped for the weapon in the holster at his
waist. “Kill the organics! There can only be Simulins!”

Somehow, the
organics must have gained access to the Great Sphere before his fleet arrived.
Bringing up his pistol, he began firing desperately at the hatch. He had to buy
enough time for the diagnostic to finish running so he could summon
reinforcements.

-

Brenda burst
into the Control Center with the rest of her platoon right behind her. Captain
Abrams was directly in front of her and her platoon was already heavily engaged
with what appeared to be ten Conqueror Drones and thirty to forty Simulins.

“Spread out!”
she yelled. “Don’t bunch up and give them easy targets. First priority is to
take out those Conqueror Drones!”

Brenda
shuddered at seeing the monstrosities in front of her. The drones were
crab-like metallic robots about ten feet across with numerous legs and four
appendages with large and dangerous looking claws. The claws were used to tear
their victims apart. Even as she yelled out her orders, one of the drones
scrambled forward and grabbed a surprised Marine, who had gotten too close. The
Maine let out a loud piercing scream as his body was torn in two. Seconds
later a barrage of armor-piercing rounds riddled the drone, incapacitating it.

The battle
grew more intense as the Marines moved further into the room. The Simulins had
taken cover behind computer consoles and other equipment and were now firing
back with some type of large pistol that fired explosive rounds. The room was
becoming full of smoke and the sounds of heavy combat.

Brenda winced
as she saw Private Marlton Frasier fall to the floor with a spreading patch of
red covering his chest. Taking aim, she fired a long burst into an approaching
Conqueror Drone. More Marines shifted their fire until an explosive round blew
a deep hole in its carapace, bringing the drone down.

Another loud
screen suddenly split the air and, looking in the direction the scream was
coming from, Brenda saw one of the few remaining drones had managed to grab
Captain Abrams. “Kill the drone that has the captain!” yelled Brenda as she ran
forward firing her rifle on full auto, trying desperately to disable the drone.

One of the
drone’s large claws suddenly grasped the captain at the waist and squeezed.
Instantly the captain’s screams came to a terrifying stop. Half a dozen pulse
rifle beams pierced the drone, destroying its CPU and causing it to collapse to
the floor unmoving. But the harm had been done; Captain Abrams was dead!

“Destroy those
last drones!” ordered Brenda, feeling anger over Captain Abrams’ brutal death.
While the captain had been a strong disciplinarian, she had always treated
Brenda fairly.

The fighting
continued to intensify with more Marines falling, but now all the Conqueror
Drones had been eliminated and additional weapons fire was being directed
toward the Simulins. It became rapidly apparent the Simulins hadn’t been
expecting any resistance. Their pistols, while dangerous, were weak when
compared to the weapons the Marines were using. The Marines also were wearing
body armor, which gave them some protection.

The fighting
began to wind down when Brenda noticed one Simulin, a little taller than the
others pointing his pistol at Corporal Metz. A quick burst from her rifle and
the Simulin collapsed.

-

Simulin High
Commander Hark Brasht lay on the floor, gasping in pain. He had been defeated
by organics! Looking around the smoke-filled room, he saw all the drones had
been annihilated, and his fellow Simulins were in the process of systematically
being killed. He saw one of the organics, who he recognized as a female, moving
toward him with her rifle held at the ready. He knew his duty as a High Commander.
He could not be captured by a lowly organic life form. He raised his pistol and
put it against his forehead. “There can only be Simulins,” he yelled as he
pulled the trigger.

-

Brenda saw the
Simulin she had just shot use his pistol to commit suicide. Walking over to
him, she prodded him with her rifle confirming he was dead. Looking him over
she saw a round bulge in one of the pockets of his uniform. Leaning over, she
reached inside and pulled out a small metallic gold colored globe. It was an exact
duplicate of the one Reesa had originally and the ones they found in the
museum, just a different color. There was no doubt in her mind this was the
command key that had caused so much trouble.

“That’s it,”
said a voice from behind her. “That’s the command key.”

Turning,
Brenda saw Rakell. Looking at the golden globe in her hand she slowly handed it
over to him. “Don’t lose it this time.”

Rakell smiled
and nodded. “You have no idea what you have done this day. By taking this
command key from the Simulins, you have ensured they can never invade and take
over any more intergalactic vortexes on other Shrieel. You have stopped their
expansion through the galaxies.”

Brenda nodded.
Looking around the room, she suddenly felt very ill. The fighting was over and
there were a large number of Marines on the floor, unmoving. They had paid a
heavy price to recover the command key. She just hoped it was worth it.

Jeremy was
standing in front of the long-distance holographic tactical display. He was
gazing at the twenty friendly green icons surrounding the
Avenger
. As
soon as the
Dominator
had left, Jeremy had set out in pursuit trying to
catch up to the Originator ship before it could become lost in the vastness of
space. He had hurriedly organized a small pursuit fleet consisting of the
Avenger
,
three Federation battleships, one battlecarrier, four Alton battleships, and
twelve AI warspheres. The rest of the ships he sent back to Gaia much to the
chagrin of Grayseth, who had wanted to bring part of his fleet along.

“Ariel, what’s
the latest status on finding the
Dominator
?” It had been over a day
since Kazak had taken the ship and set out to attack the Simulins. The
long-range sensors on the
Avenger
were capable of reaching out ten light
years ahead and around them.

“No trace,”
replied Ariel, feeling highly upset. Kelsey and Katie were on board the
Dominator
,
and there was nothing she could do to protect them. “I’m still correlating the
data Kazak sent me from the computer on the Simulin battlecruiser he accessed.
Many of the coordinates for inhabited Simulin star systems match those the
Distant
Horizon
came across when they first arrived in the Triangulum Galaxy. It
seems as if all the Simulin worlds lie in the same spiral arm. Kazak must be
headed toward that region.”

“Nothing in
the rest of the galaxy?” asked Commander Malen, showing surprise at Ariel’s
revelation. “I would have thought they’d have a few worlds elsewhere.”

“No, there are
a few small bases for their fleets to resupply, but nothing of significance,”
Ariel answered.

Commander
Malen shook her head in disgust. “They wipe out hundreds if not thousands of
civilizations for worlds they may never need. The Simulins are far worse than
what the Hocklyns were in our galaxy.”

“Don’t
forget,” Kurene said. “The Simulins are also responsible for the changes in the
AIs’ master Codex which caused the problems in our home galaxy.”

“They have the
blood of trillions of beings on their hands,” Commander Malen said, her face
pale at the thought. “Perhaps we should allow Kazak to destroy them.”

“What’s going
to happen when the
Dominator
reaches a Simulin world?” asked Kevin. He
couldn’t believe Kazak had gone rogue and taken the
Dominator
to wipe
out the Simulins even if they did deserve to die. “How does he expect to
destroy so many Simulins worlds? They’ll have thousands of warships plus
defense grids protecting them.”

“I’ve been
studying some of the files Kazak sent us,” Kurene said from her position in
front of her computer console. “I found a download from Mikow hidden in the
data.”

Jeremy turned
toward Kurene. He wondered what Mikow had considered so important to attempt to
hide it from Kazak in the data he had sent on the Simulins. “What did she
send?”

Kurene took a
deep breath. “It seems the Dyson Sphere supernova was much more dangerous than
expected. As a result, Kazak used the
Dominator
to procure a small
amount of dark matter.”

“He what!”
exclaimed Jeremy, his eyes widening in disbelief. He couldn’t believe the
Originator AI would take such a risk. “What did they do with the dark matter?”
He knew originally he and Kazak had planned on creating dark matter bombs to
disrupt hyperspace to slow down the radiation front from the supernova.

“Kazak built
ten dark matter warheads and attached them to the missiles he had built,”
Kurene explained as her eyes focused on Jeremy. “They then used the AI
warspheres to deliver them to selected star systems and set them off, causing
the stars to become supernovas.”

Kevin stood up
and gazed in disbelief at Kurene. “Are you telling me the
Dominator
destroyed ten entire star systems?”

“Yes,” Kurene
answered. “They used the dark matter warheads to cause the stars to become
unstable. Kazak felt certain exploding these ten particular stars would negate
the Dyson Sphere supernova radiation front slowing it down to under the speed
of light. If that occurs, it shouldn’t affect anything outside the blue-giant
nebula.”

Jeremy felt
vastly relieved. “So the rest of the galaxy is safe?”

“Yes,”
answered Kurene, nodding her head. “The radiation from the Dyson Sphere supernova
should be rendered harmless.”

Shaking his
head, Jeremy wondered what else had occurred on that mission to the blue-giant
nebula. With a deep sigh, he wondered if Kelsey was in over her head and just
how dangerous Kazak actually was. Also, just what was he planning to use to
destroy the Simulins? With a sudden chill, he suspected he knew the answer.
“Ariel, is there any chance that Kazak still has some dark matter on the
Dominator
?”

Ariel looked
surprised and then turned her head toward Jeremy. “Yes, it’s possible.”

Jeremy closed
his eyes and shook his head. There was no doubt in Jeremy’s mind what Kazak was
preparing to do and there was no way to stop him.

-

On the
Dominator
,
Kelsey was arguing with Kazak. They were in her quarters where no one could
interfere.

“This is not
your decision,” Kelsey stated firmly, her hands on her hips. “You agreed to
allow the
Dominator
to be part of our fleet under Jeremy’s command. You
don’t have his permission to go off on your own and attack the Simulins.”

“The situation
has changed,” Kazak said evenly. “I cannot allow this ship to be endangered. If
the Simulins are not stopped now, they will continue to expand and someday
control this entire galaxy. Even the nebula your people are hiding in will no
longer be safe.”

Kelsey was
silent for a long moment. She knew the answer to why Kazak was acting this way
lay in the center of the ship. “What’s in that central compartment you’ve been
hiding from us?”

Kazak’s eyes
turned icy. “That does not concern you.”

“It does if it
threatens the safety of this ship and everyone in it!”

“You and your
people remain on this ship only as long as I feel you can be useful. Don’t make
me regret that decision.” With that, Kazak turned and left.

Kelsey was fuming.
She was angry Kazak was treating her and the rest of the crew with such
indifference. None of the control consoles in the Command Center were
responding other than the science console Andram used. What was she missing?
How did Kazak plan on annihilating the Simulins? They were on numerous worlds
and still possessed a powerful warfleet. The odds against the
Dominator
would be nearly insurmountable. However, Kazak seemed confident he could
accomplish his goal of destroying them.

A sudden chill
passed through Kelsey. She could think of only one way Kazak could accomplish
his plan. Dark matter, she thought to herself. The Originator AI had promised
to dispose of all that hadn’t been used to destroy the ten star systems in the
blue-giant nebula. What if Kazak hadn’t gotten rid of it? What if it was still
on the
Dominator
? With growing apprehension, Kelsey left her quarters to
head toward the ship’s munitions storage area. If Kazak had kept the dark
matter, he would have to construct new missiles as well as the warheads, and
she knew exactly where they would be.

-

It didn’t take
Kelsey long to reach the ship’s munitions storage area. In the same vicinity
were several large compartments with the equipment necessary to build missiles
or other specialized equipment. On the way, she passed a number of the small
work robots going about their normal ship maintenance routines but no members
of the crew.

Taking a deep
breath, she paused for a moment before opening the hatch in front of her. With
a sharp feeling of aggravation, she realized she should have stopped and
brought a squad of Marines with her. However, she had been in too big of a
hurry to confirm her suspicions of what Kazak was up to.

Reaching out
her hand, she turned the handle of the heavy hatch and pushed it open. Stepping
inside she felt as if she had been struck in the stomach. Work robots were
everywhere and her suspicious were confirmed. Seven of the highly advanced dark
matter missiles were resting on construction pedestals. From what Kelsey could see,
they were nearly finished.

“I suspected
you might come down here,” a voice spoke from behind her.

Spinning
around, Kelsey saw Kazak. “You promised to get rid of all the dark matter after
we destroyed those ten star systems in the blue-giant nebula,” she said
accusingly. “Why didn’t you?”

Kazak spent a
moment watching Kelsey and then responded. “I did jettison most of it. However,
I kept enough to build seven more warheads in case they were ever needed. The
Dominator
has many powerful weapons systems, but nothing with the destructive power of
these missiles.”

“You’re going
to use them to destroy the star systems of the Simulins?”

“No, just
their inhabited planets,” Kazak answered. “I don’t understand why you don’t
agree with this strategy. Look at what the Simulins have done to countless
civilizations since they first left their home system. In the long years that
have passed, they wiped out trillions of beings and spread across numerous
galaxies. Don’t they deserve to die?”

For a moment,
Kelsey hesitated. Kazak was right about what the Simulins had done to so many
civilizations. How many great cultures had been lost? Perhaps they did indeed
deserve to die. Hadn’t that same decision been made by Fleet Admiral Streth
when he had all but eliminated the Hocklyns? True, a large number of their race
had survived, but their empire had been taken away and their population greatly
reduced.

“It’s not our
decision to make,” responded Kelsey defiantly. “It should be Jeremy’s.”

“This is too
important,” answered Kazak, refusing to consider Kelsey’s argument. “The future
of the Originator race is at stake, and my first priority is to my creators.”

Kelsey felt an
icy chill run through her. Kazak had more or less just revealed there were
Originators in that central compartment. Perhaps Kelsey could use that tidbit
of information to her advantage.

“The Simulins
still have a large fleet here in the Triangulum Galaxy,” began Kelsey,
carefully thinking about her words. “They already managed to damage the
Dominator
back at the nebula. What if that happens again? Do you want to put the future
of the Originator race at risk? Jeremy can help protect your ship and what’s in
that compartment.”

Kazak walked
over and put one of his hands on a warhead. “That was a fluke accident that
won’t occur again. Next time I will be prepared. Due to the nearness of so many
of your warships, I couldn’t bring all of the
Dominator’s
weapons to
bear. The Simulins won’t ever get that close to this ship again.”

“Kazak, I
implore you, return to Gaia and speak with Jeremy.” Kelsey was growing fearful
Kazak wasn’t going to listen.

Kazak turned
back around to face Kelsey with a grim look of determination on his face. “No,
I will finish this mission. Once the Simulins have been eliminated as a threat,
I will return to Gaia. I may have a use for your people and the Altons. Now,
Commander, return to the Command Center. I will be returning most of the
consoles back over to your control. If I detect any treachery from any members
of the command crew, I will take it upon myself to eliminate all the Humans and
Altons upon the ship. Have I made myself clear?”

Kelsey nodded
her head. “You leave me no choice; we’ll cooperate.”

“Then you will
not be harmed,” promised Kazak. “You should take joy in the fact that shortly
the Simulins will no longer pose a threat to any of your people. I mean your
people no harm, but I have my own priorities which must take precedence.”

Knowing there
was nothing else she could say, Kelsey turned and left the compartment. She
would tell Andram, Katie, and Mikow what had just transpired though, at the
moment, she didn’t see anything they could do to stop Kazak and his new found
vendetta against the Simulins. For the time being, it appeared their best hope
to survive was to cooperate and work with the Originator AI. Perhaps if they
survived this and returned to Gaia, Jeremy could figure out what to do with
Kazak

-

Simulin
Supreme High Commander Callat gazed critically at the viewscreen in the Command Center of his flagship. The defenses around Malkor were nearly finished, and he was
growing deeply concerned over the latest reports from the Fitula Nebula. The
fleet he had sent to capture the ancient ship of the Sphere Builders had been
annihilated. Not only that but long-range scans from several Simulin
battlecruisers which had been assigned to watch the battle indicated the
ancient vessel had spent some time near a Simulin warship it had captured.
Immediately afterward, it had jumped into hyperspace on a heading toward the
Simulin population centers. Shortly afterward a small group of organic and AI controlled
vessels from the nebula had set out in what was obviously a pursuit.

“It’s coming
for us,” Callat said as he sat down in his command chair. “We made an error in
attempting to damage or destroy that vessel. From the reports of our
battlecruisers, it drained the power from our fleet and then spent some time
examining one particular ship. No doubt it was attempting to access its
computers. From its course, it was at least partially successful.”

“It’s just one
vessel,” commented High Commander Faberh dismissively. “We have thousand of
warships at our disposal, and all of our worlds are sitting behind massive
defensive networks thanks to you. If the ship shows up here, we will destroy
it.”