No Technology Is Invincible (The Death Prophecies-Book Four 4) (29 page)

Gabe shrugged, “I guess after a few hundred years passed, that could have happened. She’s a wonderful person.” Janell stared at him and Gabe tilted his head, “However, I hope you brought a dress. I’m the Best Man at her wedding tomorrow.”

“What?”

“She’s marrying the engineer that went on the mission with us. They’re perfect for each other.”

Janell kissed him again and when she stepped back, Gabe reached into his pocket. Janell saw him holding the ring he had given her. He sighed, “I’ve kept it with me.”

“Why?”

Gabe smiled, “Just in case.” Janell started crying as he put it back on her finger.

“It’s good to see the two of you have come to your senses.”

Gabe turned around and saw Amy walking down the ramp with Scott and her two sons, “It’s good to see you, too, Amy.”

“The manatee’s will arrive on the next colony ship. Has a place been found for them?”

Gabe smiled, “Yes. We’ve sealed off an area where there are no predators to attack them and the water is a constant seventy eight degrees.”

John smiled behind Amy, “OUTSTANDING!”

“Oh, I nearly forgot.” Amy reached into the bag she was carrying over her shoulder, “Admiral Connor asked me to give you this.”

“What is it?”

“You’ve been promoted to Fleet Admiral and will command all of our forces in the colonies.”

“What about him?”

“He’s remaining behind. I think as long as he stays on Earth, the Darkness won’t get suspicious. One day he’ll retire and he’ll bring Lani and the Children to the colonies but I don’t expect that to happen for a few years.” Amy looked around, “It appears you’ve chosen a good world for the Ghost Colony.”

“It was the only world that has the natural materials and ores we’re going to need to build the new warships.”

“How are you going to keep it hidden? Won’t the new ships have to be built in space orbit?”

“We’re disassembling a huge number of our warships to build the structures, machinery, and buildings we’ll need to survive first. Without a magnetic field, they’ll be invisible. We’re going to send a few colony ships through the black hole in this galaxy and use them to build the space docks we’ll need to assemble the new ship in orbit. You’ll need to send John and Timmy on the first ship to go through the black hole so they’ll undergo the change.”

Timmy looked at Gabe, “OUTSTANDING! It’ll be good to be able to see Mom when she’s secretly watching us.”

Amy stuck out her tongue at him and then laughed. She turned back to Gabe, “I’ve not seen the plans for the new warship. Is it going to be what we need to defend ourselves?”

“It’s different. From the beginning we’ve depended on small warships that could be manufactured quickly and in large numbers. The ship we scanned is the pattern for our new warship is the largest vessel ever seen.”

“Larger than the Black Motherships?”

“Much larger, Amy. However, it’s like Poul once told me, ‘It doesn’t always come down to mass and energy’. The science we’re using to build our new ship is what will make them dangerous. Now don’t get the idea that the new vessel is going to be small, it isn’t. It will be at least four miles long and require a crew of six thousand to fly it. It will, however, be another magnitude of power above any of the species we’ve encountered.”

“How many ships do you anticipate we can build before the Builders and Black Motherships start their war?”

“A couple of thousand.”

Amy’s eyes narrowed, “That’s all?”

“Say that after you see what the finished product is capable of doing. It will have a complement of small warships carried on board that will be built using the same technology. That’s why the crew is so large. Two thirds of them will be assigned to keeping the small warships provisioned and serviced.”

“How many will it carry?”

“About two thousand.”

“This sounds like one of the old aircraft carriers used in the World Wars.”

Gabe tilted his head, “Well, yes and no. The old aircraft carriers launched their fighters, which were its most powerful combat weapon, to do damage to their enemy. The rest of the ship was covered with weapons to defend it against attackers. This new ship we’re building will be the most powerful weapon in this section of the universe. It will be the main weapon used against any enemies and the fighters are like its blasters, just another weapon to use to kick an enemy’s backside.”

Amy smiled, “Let me know how I can support your efforts, Gabe.”

“I will.”

Amy took her two son’s hands in hers and as she walked away Timmy said, “Awwww, Mom!”

“Get used to it. I’ll always be holding your hands.”

Janell looked at Gabe, “Is it possible to make the wedding tomorrow a double?”

Gabe shook his head, “No, Gabby and Ali deserve their moment.” Janell stared at him and nodded. Gabe smiled, “Besides, I’m not willing to share ours.”

A middle-aged man walked down the ramp and saw Gabe. He walked up and smiled, “Admiral Eagle, all of the other scientists and engineers will be arriving tomorrow on the colony vessel. We are prepared to go through the black hole once all of us are here.”

“You don’t need to rush it. The Darkness didn’t follow us and we have a year or so before we have to make sure everyone here has undergone the change.”

“I’ll get the teams organized when they arrive and start designing the new systems.”

Gabe nodded, “That would be good, thank you.”

Janell looked at Gabe, “You’ve got a lot on your plate.”

“I know. This is where we’re going to build the ships that will defend mankind. The scan we took of that warship is going to be the main pattern but I suspect that civilization would have never allowed us to make that scan if they knew the difference that Ali’s computer and the stardrive would make in their design. They also weren’t aware that our new reactors can make a fusion reaction which makes our smaller vessel more powerful than most of the giant warships we’re going to have to confront.”

“How long do we have, Gabe?”

“I suspect we’ll have twenty years before the real problems raise their heads.”

“That long?”

“If the Black Species doesn’t attack before then, we will. After that, I expect to see Builder Worlds and Defense Satellites coming through the black hole in the Milky Way.”

Janell sighed, “What’s going to happen to the Bosrean?”

“They’re sending us all of their warships to use in our construction ventures and once that’s done, all of their population will be taken by our colony ships through a distant black hole to undergo the change; that is going to take a few years to complete. In the meantime, they’ll be building huge transports that make our colony ships look tiny in comparison. They plan to ferry huge loads of the specialized metals found on their planet through a black hole and bring them to us here to use in our construction efforts. Ultimately, we’ll use those transports for materials to construct the new warship. They’re also going to build a society out of those materials, which will be invisible to scanners. Their planet has a sulfur atmosphere and I really believe they’ll be ignored by any aggressive species that happens by their location. They intend to return to the peaceful society they were before the Prophet showed up and will depend on us to defend them if they’re threatened. If any future problems do arise, we’ll go to their defense.”

Janell looked up at the clear blue sky, “Do you think the Darkness realize that the Builders could come through our black hole?”

Gabe shrugged, “They never got a reading on the force fields being used by the Builder Worlds and Satellites. We certainly aren’t going to tell them about it.”

“Will we intervene?”

“Only if they threaten Earth. I will be sending the Darkness Leader a message at the end that we’ll be watching his demise.”

“Do you really think the Builders can defeat them?”

“Does a spider have a leg to stand on?”

Janell started laughing and Gabe joined her.

T
he Wedding was beautiful and everyone had their magnetic fields activated, even though those that went through the change could see each other. However, there were many scientists and engineers that had not gone through the change who wouldn’t have been able to witness it. This was the first wedding on the new Ghost Colony and was one for the history books. Janell agreed to be Gabby’s Maid of Honor and she was absolutely beautiful. Gabe and Janell stared at each other throughout the ceremony and both of them knew theirs would be the second wedding. The thought brought a smile to Gabe’s face. It was only appropriate, Gabby was on the top of the list at the Academy and she deserved this honor.

After it was over and the cake was cut, Gabe pulled Gabby and Ali aside, “There’s something I’ve been waiting to discuss with you.”

Ali’s eyes narrowed, “What is that?”

“How the two of you are going to be together.”

Gabby’s head went back, “I thought we’d just be here on the planet building warships.”

“Do you think either of you would enjoy doing that?”

Gabby looked at Ali and he shrugged as he said to Gabe, “It seems like that’s what we’ll all be doing for a long time.”

“Death Prophecy Seven.”

Gabby lifted her chin thinking out loud, “Only knowledge can save you.”

“I’ve had the Bosrean build two helmets for you and Ali. I’m sending the two of you out to scout in the Prophet’s Eyes to see what we’re up against and if the war between the Builders and Galaxy Killers kicks off earlier than expected.”

“How are we going to do that with all the black holes closed in this corner of the universe?”

“Ali, the Prophet’s Eyes has been upgraded with the technology from the ship we scanned at the Ritual and its force field is strong enough now to withstand the jets in the Milky Way and I suspect it could also go through the black hole in Andromeda as well.”

Gabby stared at Gabe, “You’re serious?”

“Gabby, the only thing I want you to promise is that you will do what the spirit of the Death Prophecies dictate.” Gabby and Ali stared at Gabe and he smiled, “You will not do anything that would cause you to not be an unknown enemy. You will do nothing that would reveal your presence while you’re scouting.” They looked at each other and then Gabby nodded. Gabe smiled, “Besides, it will give you time to teach Ali some more dances.” Gabby’s eyes went wide and her mouth fell open. “Yes, I watched the recordings. I started to send them to Admiral Connor but I felt that his seeing one of his officers in a certain state of undress on the bridge might cause an issue.”

“YOU SAW THAT?!”

“No, I didn’t, however, the two of you are really remarkable together. Will you take this assignment?”

Gabby smiled, “How does Poul feel about this?”

“He’s looking forward to it. You might find it interesting to know that the voyage home from that distant galaxy will now only take a week.”

Ali smiled, “We’ll do it, Gabe.”

“Congratulations. I’m really happy for both of you and you should get back to your wedding.” Gabby hugged him and Ali shook his hand.

He walked away and Ali smiled, “He’s really something.”

Gabby nodded, “He certainly is. WAIT A MINUTE!”

Ali looked at her as her eyes narrowed, “If he didn’t see me with my top off, how did he know about it?”

Ali laughed out loud and pulled Gabby into his arms. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s go show the crowd how the Bride and Groom can cut mix it up on the dance floor.”

“But…” Ali laughed all the way to the dance floor as he pulled her behind him.

• • •

Gabe looked at Emmitt Maxwell, “How long is it going to take to build the structures we’ll need to start ship construction?”

“About two years or so.”

“Why that long?”

“Because most of the crews from the fleet aren’t trained engineers or builders. They’re smart and should pick up on the necessary skills rather quickly, but I don’t have enough builders to make it happen faster than that.”

“I thought the colony ship brought enough manpower to make it happen faster.”

“Admiral, we’re not just going to have to build the ships. We’re going to have to start mining this planet to get the materials we’ll need to build the ships.”

“I thought we were going to use the warships we built earlier to construct the ships?”

“We are going to use them extensively but all of them put together will not come close to building the numbers you’ve directed me to build.”

“If you don’t use the old warships exclusively, the new ships will be visible.”

“And we’ll take them to the black hole we’re currently using to put them through the change. Until that happens, the structures needed to build them will be built in underground facilities that will have to be constructed along with all the structures for the colonists to live in. We’re fortunate that we’re receiving materials from Earth with each trip they make and once the Bosrean Transports start delivering their loads of specialized metals, the building process will accelerate. The Bosrean say that the construction of those transports is going to take two years to complete. However, we’re talking about a planetary scale here and we’re not constructing just a single city.”

“Emmitt, we need those ships. Our current warship can’t stand up to the Darkness Warships and Towers.”

“Are you relatively certain they didn’t follow us to this planet?”

“We’ve broke their encryption and it appears they didn’t want to use the forces to do that. They no longer see us as a threat.”

“So they won’t come looking for us as long as the Builders threaten them. Our current warships are capable of defending us against any other civilization in this galaxy, aren’t they?”

“They are,” Gabe replied.

“Then we have time to do this right. The first thing we have to do is build the new communication system.”

“I was just told about that. Is it better than the current one we use?”

“Yes and no. It doesn’t have the range of the Other Space Communicator but it isn’t detectable by the Darkness.”

“Is it as fast?”

“It is,” the scientist continued. “It uses a compressed gravity field to send out messages on the fabric of space-time. I’ve never really liked the vulnerability of other space communicators. Any species that discovers other space could then listen in to our communications and you know the Darkness will never allow us to send encrypted messages.”