Retreat And Adapt (A Galaxy Unknown) (38 page)

"I'm going to assume that whatever they're doing, it's not something we'd like."

"I agree with that."

"So the best thing that could happen to us is to die peacefully or die quickly."

"I agree with that also."

* * *

"Captain," the tac officer aboard the
Yukon
said. "We've passed beyond the furthest point any of the mother ships could have traveled at Light-467."

"Helm, move us to the next vector and head back towards the RP."

"Aye, Captain."

"Captain," the tac officer said, "if the mother ships traveled a distance from the RP and then changed course, we might miss them searching like this. We're assuming they traveled in a straight line from the RP."

"That's true, Lieutenant. But it's the most logical search pattern based on their past history of movement and the expected objectives of an enemy fleet that has invaded our space with intentions to conquer."

"Yes, sir— if they were human."

* * *

"What the hell is
that
?" Captain Gwilloquak of the Milori freighter
Detrizoqan
said when the security station crewman put the image up on the monitor at the front of the bridge.

"It appears to be a ship, sir."

"I know it's a ship, you fool. Where did it come from? Is it Gondusan? What are they doing in GA space? Is it going to intersect our course?"

"It's not Gondusan. According to the ship identification database, it resembles a Ruwalchu warship. Their course is almost parallel with ours, so there's no danger if neither of us alters direction."

"Can't be Ruwalchu. We're at least ten light-years from the Ruwalchu border. Their ships never travel outside their own space."

"I can only tell you what the database reports. The hull shape and weaponry mounted on the ship is consistent with what's been reported for Ruwalchu warships in the past."

"Com, report this encounter to the Territorial Guard."

"Aye, Captain."

"Should I maintain course, Captain?" the helmsman asked.

"Security, has the Ruwalchu vessel changed course or speed?"

"No change, Captain. She's had to have seen us by now."

"Of course she's seen us. We're maxed out with ten kilometers of cargo. She could see us even without DeTect capability. Helm, maintain course and speed."

"Aye, Captain."

"I reported the sighting on the Territorial Guard channel, Captain," the com chief said. "No response yet."

"There probably aren't any ships nearby. Well, we've done our duty. If the Ruwalchu ship doesn't attempt interdiction, we'll simply continue on to our destination."

* * *

Strauss sat in his beautiful penthouse suite, tossing down glass after glass of wine and cursing the DNA Manipulation process that had altered his physiology so that alcohol had virtually no effect. He desperately wanted to get so drunk he would pass out, but his body wouldn't allow it. He could enjoy the taste of wine, but it had little more effect than drinking water. He would switch to hard liquor if that would have more effect, but it would be the same, and he preferred the taste of wine.

So far, none of the eight senior members of the Upper Council had decided to become male again. They actually seemed to be enjoying their new gender. It had been so long since any of them had enjoyed sex that they probably hadn't discovered how unsatisfying it was for a former male. His unfettered access to every division in the Raider corporation had enabled him to substitute a deadly formula for the correct DNA Manipulation formula, but he couldn't force the Upper Council members to begin the process. They would have to initiate that themselves.

It had been weeks since he'd substituted the formulas and the longer it was before they started the change, the more likely it was that someone might discover the menace of the current formula.

Strauss finished off a bottle and opened another. It just wasn't fair. He'd worked so hard to get to the Upper Council and had been deprived of his rightful place. And to heap injury on top of injury, four of Strauss's subordinates had been promoted over him. Not just one but four. Strauss downed the entire liter before lowering the bottle. At that moment, he would have paid almost any price for the ability to get falling-down drunk.

~ February 15
^th
, 2288 ~

Captain Gavin was having supper with Jenetta when he heard a soft chime in his ear and a message that the watch commander was trying to contact him. He touched a finger to the face of his Space Command ring and heard the voice of his XO.

"Captain, we've just intercepted a message on the Territorial Guard Reporting channel. A Milori freighter claims to have spotted a Ruwalchu warship ten light-years inside our border. They gave the location, speed, and heading of the ship. Our navigator confirms that the location cited is eleven-point-two-six-eight light-years inside the border we share with the Ruwalchu. I thought you should know right away in case you wish to take action."

"Thank you, Commander. No action at present. Gavin, out."

"Interesting," was all Gavin said after the contact ended.

"Don't rouse my interest and then go silent," Jenetta said, and punctuated it with a smile.

"Oh, sorry. We just intercepted a message from a Milori freighter to the Territorial Guard. The freighter claims to have spotted a Ruwalchu warship in our space, eleven light-years this side of the border."

"Not just a Ruwalchu ship, but a Ruwalchu
war
ship?"

"That's how the report read," Gavin said.

"Interesting," Jenetta said, also in an enigmatic manner.

"Have you ever heard of a Ruwalchu warship, or any Ruwalchu ship, entering GA space?"

"No. They've never entered our space as far as I know."

"So why now?"

"Ever since we learned of the Denubbewa ships, I've wondered if there was a connection to any of our former foes. Unusual events involving the Tsgardi and Uthlaro have occurred since I returned from Region One. Now we have a neighbor with whom we've never had a problem entering our space with a warship. The question is: Are
any
of these events related to the situation with the Denubbewa?"

"Perhaps the thing to do is confront the Ruwalchu ship."

"How far are we from their location?"

"Off hand, I'd have to say about nine to ten days at Light-9790."

"It could take weeks to find the Denubbewa ships again," Jenetta said. "Rather than sitting around here, let's see if we can find the Ruwalchu warship that's in our territory. Have the
Ferdinand
remain here, along with eight of the bombers and eight of the targeting ships. We'll take the other two bombers and targeting ships with us."

Gavin nodded and then touched his ring to activate a carrier signal. He relayed Jenetta's instructions to his XO, then closed the carrier with a "Gavin, out." Picking up his fork, he said, "Everything is in the works. We should be on our way to the estimated location of the Ruwalchu ship within the hour. ETA is roughly nine days, eighteen hours. We'll have an exact time once we're under way."

* * *

The Ruwalchu ship wasn't at the estimated location when the
Ares
and its small battle group arrived, but no one really expected it to be. It would have been beyond luck to find it exactly where they estimated it might be after almost ten days of travel.

The five ships that comprised the battle group then divided up and began a search of the sector. One of the SD's located the ship after just two days of searching. The rest of the ships joined it at an established RP an hour from the last reported location of the vessel. When the group was whole again, they moved to intercept the ship. After passing it at Light-9790, the task group returned to position themselves in the path of the Ruwalchu ship, dropped their double envelopes, and established a single envelope.

The Ruwalchu ship DeTect'd the battle group ahead of it and came to a halt a million kilometers from the SC ships. It had been crisscrossing this part of space for many months expecting to find a Space Command vessel on patrol, but its captain had never expected to come face to face with an entire battle group.

Jenetta was on the Admiral's bridge and had her com chief attempt to make contact. It took several minutes, but the Ruwalchu ship finally responded. Jenetta was able to get her first real-time look at a Ruwalchite. The creature that stared back at her looked oddly disproportionate by human standards. It had a thick body, almost massively thick, and two spindly arms that each ended in eight fingers. It didn't have shoulders exactly. The top part of its body just narrowed into a wide head. There was no visible nose, but it had a mouth and two eyes.

"I'm Admiral Jenetta Carver, the Military Governor of this part of space. I welcome you to Region Two. How may we assist you? Do you need help finding your way back to the Ruwalchu Confederacy border?"

The Ruwalchite military officer simply stared at her. He knew he was outgunned by a contingent of military vessels whose weapons were every bit as powerful as those of his own ship.

Jenetta had delivered her little speech, so it was up to the Ruwalchu to either respond or take some action. She sat patiently, as if she had all the time in the world.

The Ruwalchite finally responded. "How dare you block our passage."

"You're in Galactic Alliance space. You have no right of passage here."

"We are the Ruwalchu Military. We go where we please, when we please."

"That's fine, when you're inside your own nation. But right now you're in our nation, and we decide where you may go and when."

"I've heard of you. Your arrogance is legendary."

"Is it? You haven't told me your name yet."

"I am Captain Debillisa of the
Vormeddo
, a ship of the Ruwalchu Confederacy Space Society, Advanced Fleet Services, Section Two, Division Four."

"Thank you. And can you tell me why you've invaded our space?"

"We go where we please, when we please."

"You've said that once already. Are you saying you don't respect a neighbor's borders?"

"We go where we please, when we please."

Jenetta sat and stared at the Ruwalchite. He was definitely in the wrong, but as far as she knew, he hadn't attacked any ships or settlements and hadn't broken any laws other than trespassing. She wasn't about to start a shooting war simply because he had trespassed in GA space. She also believed she wasn't going to get anywhere talking with him. He almost seemed to be daring her to attack.

Jenetta touched a point on her left-hand monitor from among a row of contact points just below the image of Captain Gavin. An instant later, the communication between the
Ares
and the
Vormeddo
ended. At the same instant all five ships engaged their FTL drive at maximum. They passed the Ruwalchu ship, still sitting where it had stopped, at almost one hundred thirty-five million kilometers per second. If the Ruwalchu ship had fired torpedoes, they never would have even cleared the tubes before the SC ships were a distant memory.

The Ruwalchu captain had expected an attack as a result of his displayed attitude. General Ardlessel had been quite specific on what Debillisa's responses should be when the
Vormeddo
encountered a patrol ship, and despite the fact that they had encountered not one but five ships, he had played the part as spelled out by Advanced Fleet Services Command.

When the communication ended and Jenetta's image disappeared from the monitor at the front of the bridge, Debillisa yelled, "Tactical, prepare to fire torpedoes, but
they
must fire first."

"But they're gone, sir."

"What?"

"They're gone. They're almost a billion kilometers away right now."

"Gone?"

"Yes, sir. They left the instant the communication ended."

Debillisa sat back in his command chair, stunned. This was as unexpected as encountering five ships on patrol. This certainly didn't fit the image of the enemy identified in his mission briefing.

Once beyond the four-billion-kilometer range of the DeTect system, the five ships stopped, canceled their single envelopes and built Transverse Wave envelopes. In just over two minutes they were underway again, but this time they were traveling at Light-9790.

Captain Gavin left third officer Lt. Commander Eliza Carver in command of the bridge while he went to the Admiral's bridge to talk with Jenetta.

"That went well," Gavin said facetiously.

"Think so?" Jenetta said, in the same spirit. "I think I would have liked a more congenial first contact."

"What now?"

"Now, we give them a taste of their own."

"I don't understand."

"That was an obvious confrontation. They wanted us to react badly. Now we allow them the same opportunity. Let's head for Ruwalch."

"You intend to invade the Ruwalchu Confederacy?"

Mimicking the voice of Captain Debillisa, she said, "We go where we please, when we please."

Gavin chuckled. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"It was obvious we weren't going to get any answers from Debillisa. When we reach Ruwalch, make sure that none of the ships drop their TW envelopes. We're not going to fire torpedoes or lasers despite any provocation. This is a talking mission."

"I'll make sure all ship captains understand that."

"Do you have a rough idea of the travel time required to reach their planet?"

"I'll have to check with my navigator, but I'd say between twenty to thirty days if we go around the Hudeerac nation. If we take a shortcut through their space, we could save probably five to seven days."

"Five days would be a nice saving. I'll contact them and ask for permission to cross through their space, going and returning."

"I hope we'll be returning."

"No problem. If we never drop our TW envelope, they can't touch us."

"Never underestimate an enemy. A year ago we thought no one could harm a Dakinium-sheathed ship."

"You're right. I have to remember not to depend too much on the technological wonders we've created or discovered."