The Lost Fleet: Genesis: A Slaver Wars Novel (6 page)

Jeremy nodded
his agreement. However, he couldn’t help feeling there was something else
behind the Originator AI suddenly deciding to grant them access to the
Dominator
.
He had to remind himself that the AI might have its own agenda. There was a lot
they didn’t know about the Originators and the relationship they had with their
AIs. While he trusted Ariel implicitly, he had a long way to go before feeling
the same about Kazak.

Reaching a
decision, Jeremy decided they couldn’t pass up this opportunity to learn more
about the Originator warship and the AI that controlled it. “Ariel, inform
Kazak I will assemble a team and we’ll come aboard early tomorrow.”

Ariel closed
her eyes briefly, as she often did when she was sending messages or communicating
with someone who wasn’t in the Command Center. “Kazak agrees. He will be ready
to receive you in the morning.”

-

In Simulin
controlled space, Supreme High Commander Callat stared angrily at the latest
reports. His skin was opalescent and blood vessels, as well as some of the
internal organs, could be seen. Since the destruction of the Great Sphere, no reinforcements
had been able to come in from the other nine galaxies dominated by the
Simulins.

“We suffered
massive ship losses with the destruction of the sphere and the dark matter that
surrounded it,” reported High Commander Faberh.

“Our
scientists claim the highly stressed area of space at the former Great Sphere
location is causing such a disruption in the higher levels of hyperspace that intergalactic
travel is currently not possible. They say the power needed to power an intergalactic
vortex is more than even a Great Sphere can generate.” This greatly concerned
Callat. There was now no way to contact the Simulin Grand Council. For the
first time that he could remember, an entire galaxy had been cut out of the
Simulin network.

“It is the
fault of the organics and the AIs from the Fitula Nebula,” stated Faberh in a
cold voice. “We must find a way to destroy them.”

Callat turned
his gaze toward his second in command. “From reports we have received from the earlier
battle at the nebula, the Fitula organics have come into possession of a ship
of the builders of the Great Spheres.”

“I have seen
the reports, though I find it hard to believe a singe ship could have disabled
so many of our warships.” The battle at the nebula had been a disaster when so
many Simulin ships suddenly lost power.

Callat
adjusted a control on the command console in front of him and on the front wall
of the Command Center, a map of the galaxy appeared. Nearly 70 percent of the
map was covered in blue, indicating Simulin control. “We have twenty-seven
systems that have large populations of our people and sixty other systems in
the process of being colonized.” Callat paused as he considered what he was
about to do. “I believe that until these new organics and their AIs are dealt
with, it would be wise for us to stop our expansion in this galaxy.”

“Stop the
expansion?” uttered Faberh with a scowl spreading across his face. “Something like
that has never been done before. To halt the expansion now could allow other
organics to rally and oppose us.”

“It is a risk
we must take,” answered Callat, folding his arms across his chest. “Too many
vessels have been lost. We must consolidate our forces and increase
shipbuilding in our established systems.”

“What about
our probes seeking out new organic worlds to cleanse?”

“They will go
on traveling outward in this galaxy. We will continue to send small task groups
to confirm the presence of organics on any worlds the probes find. When our
forces have been rebuilt, we shall descend upon those worlds and cleanse them
of their organics.”

“Yes,” nodded
Faberh in agreement. “There can be none but Simulin.”

“None but
Simulin,” answered Callat.

Callat changed
the main viewscreen to show the space around his flagship. Hundreds of
seventeen-hundred-meter long Simulin battlecruisers floated in space nearby. In
the distance, a pristine blue and white planet was visible. Around it, there
was heavy traffic consisting of cargo ships as well as additional warships.
This was the world of Malkor, the primary and most heavily colonized Simulin
world in this galaxy. Around it, numerous orbital stations were present
consisting of massive shipyards, defensive stations, as well as huge space
stations which received and processed raw material being delivered from other
planets and mining operations in nearby systems. This system alone had the
capacity to build large numbers of Simulin warships.

There were
several other Simulin systems that held very similar shipbuilding capacity.
However, even with all of this at his disposal, Callat still felt uneasy about
the Fitula organics and their AI allies. The ship of the builders of the Great Spheres,
which they possessed, was also a great unknown. Callat was certain of one
thing, if the Simulins hoped to one day control this entire galaxy, then the
Fitula organics and the AIs must be destroyed.

-

It was early
the next morning and Jeremy was inside a shuttle along with Admiral Jackson,
Admiral Cleeteus, Andram, Shilum, Mikow, and Kurene. He had thought it
important to bring a number of the Altons, as they were more capable with their
advanced science at being able to understand what they would be seeing on the
Originator ship. There were also four AIs coming along. All were well versed in
science and being led by ZED, who had been working with Kurene for quite some time.

“I am curious
to see the interior of this ship,” spoke ZED. The AI had a cubicle shaped body floating
slightly above the deck on antigravity repulsors and four flexible tentacles
which it could use to grasp and manipulate equipment. Its head was a glowing
ball of light blue energy about the size of a basketball.

“We all are,” responded
Kurene, smiling at the AI. She had rushed back from Borton with ZED when
invited by Fleet Admiral Strong to accompany him to inspect the
Dominator
.

“The addition
of the Originator’s science to our own will be quite useful,” ZED added.

“If Kazak
agrees,” Kurene replied.

“This is the
first time the Originator AI has agreed to allow anyone to visit his ship,”
said Andram. “We must be careful what we say and do so Kazak will come to trust
us. Only then will he be willing to share the science that helped to build the
Dominator
.”

ZED remained quiet
as the AI thought over Andram’s words. There was much about Humans he did not
understand though the Altons were much more logical. He knew this trust issue
was important though he still felt confused over it.

As the shuttle
approached the Originator ship, a massive hatch slid open. The
Dominator
was five thousand meters long and six hundred meters in diameter. There were no
visible signs of anything that could be used for propulsion on its stern,
though Andram had suggested to Jeremy that the ship might use some type of very
advanced gravity drive.

“Are we sure
we’re safe in doing this?” asked Admiral Jackson as he gazed ahead at the now
open hatch. They were going on board an alien ship without any security
protection. He had suggested to Admiral Strong that they should at least bring
a squad of Marines along with them but Jeremy had objected, saying they needed
to fully gain the trust of the Originator AI.

“Kazak and the
Dominator
have been in orbit around Gaia for quite some time,” Jeremy
replied. “I’m sure if there were going to be problems we would have already
encountered them.”

“Entering the
hatch,” the pilot said as the shuttle slowed and then eased through.

Looking out
the cockpit window, Jeremy saw what appeared to be a large flight bay. There were
several small shuttles inside, none of which resembled anything the Federation
used. They resembled the old flying saucers from the late 20th-century science
fiction movies.

“Atmosphere is
being detected,” the copilot reported as a green light appeared on his console.
“Nearly Earth normal.”

“So there
won’t be any need for atmospheric suits?” asked Mikow. Mikow disliked wearing
the suits though they provided adequate protection from most radiation and a self-contained
environment.

“No,” answered
Jeremy. “Ariel assured me earlier the atmosphere on the ship will be breathable
and the temperature acceptable. Even the gravity will be similar to what we’re
used to.”

The shuttle
maneuvered to an open spot on the bay floor where a circle of lights were
flashing. The shuttle gently set down and the slight rumble of the engines died
away.

“Shuttle is
secure,” the pilot reported as he turned to look at Jeremy, who was sitting
directly behind him. “Should I open the hatch?”

Jeremy felt
his pulse quicken. After months of waiting, he was finally going to set foot
inside the Originator ship. “Yes,” he replied. “There’s no point in delaying.”

Getting up,
Jeremy walked toward the now open hatch. Just before reaching it, Admiral
Jackson stepped in front of him, barring his path.

“Let me go
first just to make sure everything’s safe. You’re the fleet admiral and it’s my
job to ensure no harm comes to you.”

Jeremy
hesitated and then nodded. The admiral was only doing his duty.

Admiral
Jackson walked down the short ramp to step out onto the deck of the flight bay.
He looked around, seeing nothing dangerous. However, everywhere he looked there
was mysterious and strange looking equipment. The flight bay was so different
from any he had ever been in before. “Everything seems to be okay,” he reported
over his minicomm. If there was something wrong, he wasn’t sure he would
recognize it.

Jeremy and the
others stepped out into the bay followed by the four AIs. Looking around,
Jeremy’s eyes were drawn to a hatch that silently slid open. He wouldn’t have
noticed it if he hadn’t been looking in that direction. His eyes widened when
he saw a figure step through and begin walking toward them. The man was easily
eight feet tall and dressed in a high-collared dark red military uniform. He
was very Human in form except his skin had a more bluish tone to it than did
the Altons. His hair was dark black and his facial features seemed very normal
except he had no eyebrows and only minimal eyelashes.

“I am Kazak,”
the man said coming to a stop in front of the group. “Welcome to the Originator
ship,
Dominator
.”

“Was that the
name of the people who created you?” asked Andram curiously. In all of their
research, they had never discovered the name of the race that had inhabited the
ancient ruins on so many worlds. He was surprised to hear Kazak refer to them
as the Originators.

“No,” replied Kazak,
shifting his gaze to Andram. “What they called themselves would be very
difficult to pronounce in your language. For that reason, I think it best if we
stay with the term you have come to associate with the race of builders.”

“I heard your
footsteps as you walked toward us,” Kurene said, her eyes focused on the AI. “I
thought you were a hologram.”

“No,” Kazak
answered. “I am an AI but I reside in this body. It’s an artificial avatar
built by the Originators for my use.”

“Is your body
based on what the Originators looked like?” asked Admiral Cleeteus.

“Yes,” Kazak
responded. “My creators felt this would make interaction between myself and
them easier.”

“We have so many
questions,” Jeremy said as he took everything in. The fact that Kazak had a
physical body had momentarily stunned him as Ariel hadn’t mentioned this. “I’m
not sure where to start.”

“Why don’t we
go to the ship’s Command Center?” Kazak suggested. “To make everything easier,
I will refer to various parts of the ship in terms you will be able to
understand. Ariel has briefed me on the nomenclature you are accustomed to.”

“Your
computers, will we be able to access them?” asked ZED. The blue globe that
served as his head glowed brighter as he asked the question

Kazak turned
to look at the AI. For a moment, he was silent and then he responded. “Fleet Admiral
Strong, I was hoping you would bring some of the other AIs.” Then he addressed
ZED. “In response to your question, for the time being access to any of the
computers on this ship will be denied. Perhaps at a later date that will
change. You must understand that for security reasons, I am not quite ready to
grant you full access to the systems on this vessel.”

“We
understand,” Jeremy said quickly before ZED could say anything else. He knew
the AI was highly inquisitive; it was one of the reasons Kurene got along with
ZED so well. In that the two were alike.

Jeremy didn’t
want to risk offending Kazak. He knew from past experience with ZED that the AI
could get seriously sidetracked if it became interested in a particular line of
research. He knew the AI was intensely curious about the science that had built
the ship.

“Very well,”
Kazak replied after a moment. “If you will follow me, we will go to the Command Center and once there I will answer as many of your questions as I am able.”

Jeremy nodded.
There was so much he wanted to know, and the science and technology on this
ship might be the key to defeating the remaining Simulin forces still in this
galaxy. It might even allow them someday to find a way back to the home galaxy
and the Federation.

-

As they made their
way through the ship, Jeremy was amazed at what he was seeing. Several times
they paused as small-multiarmed robots floated by on their way to do some type
of work or repairs.

“Since I’ve
managed to repair the ship, all of the automatic functions are now operating,”
Kazak explained as he pointed to several of the small robots. “These are repair
automatons responsible for routine maintenance of the ship’s systems. They are
capable of maintaining every major system on the ship.”