The Catherine Kimbridge Chronicles #4, Retribution (26 page)

“
Yes, m
a’
am
,
” the lieutenant answered.

Cat looked at Ken and caught his attention. He had gotten up to personally inspect the sensor console. His look was grim.

“
Ken, how many of the Suhtii weapons do we have left
?
”

“
Six, Admiral. What are you thinking
?
”

She held up a hand to pause his question
.“
Tha
t’
s not enoug
h
… Ziggy are the others online yet
?
”

“
W
e’
re here, Cat
,
” Admiral Faragon said.

“
Sir, I need to know how many of the Suhtii shield weapons you each have available for immediate deployment
.
”

Once they all responded there were an additional six missiles. All told they had twelve.

“
101, how long before the detonations begin
?
”

“
One minute, thirty eight seconds
.
”

“
If we were to launch no
w
… how long before our missiles could reach the farthest of the detonation sites
?
”

“
One minute twelve seconds, Admiral
.
”

“
101, on my authority override the command and control systems on each of our ships and immediately launch all missiles at optimum targets.
Do it now
!
” Admiral Faragon barked.

The massive Heshe AI broke into each of the starshi
p’
s systems and took control of the missile launch subsystems. Faster than a human could blink twelve missiles launched and headed toward their designated targets. A little over a minute later they reached their respective destinations. 

The systems treated their target zones as if they were starships and erected perfectly spherical black domes over each site. Within those domes thermonuclear devices exploded with unimaginable force. The Suhtii shields responded by folding the energies back through time into Naana
c’
s distant past.

Cat stared at the planet below. Three of the black domes were visible from the
Yorktow
n
’
s current orbit... including the one that now covered the capital city of Harramog.

“
Zigg
y
… Where was Professor Debbu when he contacted you
?
” She had a horrible feeling she already knew the answer.

“
Harramo
g
… Admira
l
”

Epilog...

Nitup of the Uruk could afford to be patient. He had lived for tens of thousands of years, and he would live for tens of thousands more. His proxies, however, had failed him this time. That was a failure he could not abide. Oh, he was
n’
t concerned about the loss of a world. After all, he controlled entire galaxies. What was one planet more or less? No, he was more concerned that their ancient adversary had been apprised of their presence in this particular corner of this particular universe.

Nitup sent a message to his brothers. He was sure he would need their help before the coming war was over.

*** This Ends Book Four of the Catherine Kimbridge Series ***

Watch for Book Five – Liberation (2014)

Did you enjoy this book and want to see more of Ca
t’
s adventures?

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The Catherine Kimbridge Chronicles, #
5
– Liberation

Chapter One - Memorial...

Personal Log

2125 was the year the Proxy war began in earnest. The Heshe and Uruk, each with drastically different views of right and wrong, met in open conflict with disastrous results for the known universes. At the same time this was the finest year for the Galactic Coalition...

Admiral Catherine Jackie Kimbridge
,‘
Ca
t
’ to her friend
s
… sat in the newly installed Admira
l’
s chair on the Bridge of the
GCP Yorktown
.  From this chair she could monitor, and to a limited extent, control the disposition of forces under her command. It had been two months since the battle at Naanac and although the GCP and the freedom fighters they were aiding had won that battle; the war went on and the cost continued to be high. She had lost friend
s
… a Naan Professor named Debbu, two GCP officers named Lieutenant Andy McKinney and Lt. Commander Pete LeAnder as well as a host of others trapped in the cities of Harramog, Napoli, Darmog, Glispen and Surdom.

Cat had been forced to utilize an imperfect Suhtian technology that encapsulated a handful of the Naanac cities in protective energy containment domes. Their world had been saved from a ruthless sterilization by the Modos Syndicate but the cost has been thousands of lives extinguished. Cat had given the order. It was the right order. That did
n’
t make it any easier to sleep at night.

“
Admiral, we have a signal coming in from the
Mador
  task forc
e
” Lieutenant Zimmerman said from the communication station.

“
Route it to my display Zigg
y
” Cat ordered.

A holographic screen materialized in front of Cat. Commodore Jason Ruck appeared to float in front of her.

“
Greetings Admira
l
”

“
Jaso
n
” Cat nodded
.“
Any word from Agur Alliance
?
”

Jaso
n’
s holographic imagine smiled
.“
Given the current situation, they were most willing and even eager to talk
.
”

The current situation was a Modos taskforce consisting of twenty dreadnaughts setting up camp in a star system a mere thirty light years from the Agur home world. The Agur were a curious people. If Cat had to categorize them she would call them the Milky Wa
y’
s historians. They had an insatiable appetite for the history of other races. More interesting was the archive they maintained which cataloged the major achievements of the countless civilizations. Many of these civilizations were now extinc
t
… victims of the Uruk doctrine of intelligent species suppression.

Unfortunately for the Agur the Modos Syndicate had become aware of this archive. The war with the Modos Syndicate had evolved into a skirmish war fought on two fronts. One front was a series of revolts in the Modos home Betaverse. The other front was in the Alphaverse.   The Syndicate had a series of harassment fleets operating in GCP space.

The science available in the archive maintained by the Agur was a potential goldmine for any force looking for a strategic advantage in a conflict that was rapidly looking to be a protracted stalemate. The Agur were religiously apolitical and refused to grant others access to this information in the belief that the information could lead to the demise of other races.

The GCP had previously petitioned the Agur for access but been denied. Cat had instructed Commodore Ruck to speak with the Agur elders one more time once it was learned
the Syndicate had learned of the archive. Ca
t’
s instructions were simple. Let the Agur know that the GCP would offer their protection if for no other reason than to ensure the Modos did not gain access to the Agur database. The GCP required nothing in return but if the Agur were willing the GCP would very much be interested in a simple list.

Cat had become convinced that the worlds being brought forward in time by the Heshe were in fact not random. She believed that each race fulfilled a critical need that the GCP would need in order to prevail in the coming conflict. The list Cat wanted was a list of deceased civilizations and their major technological and cultural achievements. It was Ca
t’
s hope that by piecing together why each specific race was being saved and why in the specific order they were appearing she would be able to better predict what would be necessary to ultimately wi
n
… not against the Modos Syndicate but against the Uruk.

“
So they will provide the limited information w
e’
ve requested
?
”

“
In a manner of speakin
g
… ye
s
” Jason said cryptically.

Cat leaned forward
.“
And
?
”

“
Admiral
I’
m having a problem gaging the Agur response. They seem to want to help us bu
t
…”

“
But what Commodore
?
”

“
Admiral, I believe the Agur want to meet you personally to deliver the information you are requesting
.
” He paused before continuing.
 “
Further they have asked that your father accompany you
.
”

Cat was taken back
.“
Jason you know damn well my father is dead and has been since before I came out of stasi
s
… surely you explained this to them
.
”

“
Indeed I did Admiral. Their reply was your father is to come with you or they will not share the information
.
”

***

Captain Nicked-Tail stood on the gangway of the main fighter bay aboard the Syndicate Dreadnaught
Tsunami
. The
MS Tsunami
  was three hundred thousand metric tons of pure killing machine. It sported twenty eight high-capacity railguns each capable of accelerating a depleted uranium shell at a sizeable fraction of the speed of light in under a second. In addition there were forward and rear mounted plasma weapons that were powered by independent high capacity fusion reactors. Each of the beams could generate energies that dwarfed the surface temperature of most suns. None of these weapons systems were as impressive however as what the captain was looking at right now.

Below him stood eighty-six cybernetically enhanced Modos pilots and the most advanced Syndicate fighters ever produced. These ships were being test deployed for the very first time on the
Tsunami
  and Captain Nicked-Tail was determined that those tests would prove decisive.

He crossed his Bearephan
t’
s arms behind its back. In a loud clear voice he addressed the pilots below.

“
You have today the greatest privilege bestowed upon a soldie
r
… You have an opportunity to show the universe what you are made of
.
” He paused to let his words echo in the vast room
.“
The battle you go to fight today is bigger than your individual lives. You fight today for our fundamental right to dominate others. To impose our will on others. Failure to dominate is to be dominated in turn. Failure to dominate is to have others impose their will on us. That is not a future I choose for myself or my progeny
.
”

He leaned slightly forward
.“
Today you go into battle to secure a world that may end this war for us. You will not fail because you are Syndicate soldier
s
… Make the Chairman proud. That is al
l
… happy hunting
!
”

A few minutes later eighty-six prototype fighters streamed out of the launch bays of the massive dreadnaught on their way to a small world fractionally larger than Mar
s
… A world populated by a curious race called the Agur. The jump-capable fighters lined up on their leader in a pristine formation and as a tight group disappeared into a single massive hyperfold.

***

Commander Ben padded into the Captai
n’
s mess on four of his six legs. He had received the invitation to dine in the Captai
n’
s mess during his normal duty shift on the bridge and was instructed that the Admiral sought the pleasure of his company as soon as his shift was done.