Theogony 1: Janissaries (18 page)

“We leave within a month,” said Captain Deutch. “Don’t you
think it’s time to tell us how the star drive works? I think that would be kind
of handy information to have.” Captain Deutch had invited the Psiclopes to the
weekly staff meeting, and they had joined him in the CO’s conference room along
with the rest of his staff. He had been trying to get this information from the
Psiclopes for several months, but they had always put him off. Calvin finally
advised him to put them on the spot in front of others; it was the only thing
that had worked for him.

“I’m sorry,” said Arges, “but your minds are not ready to
understand it.”

“What do you mean, ‘not ready to understand it?’” asked the
executive officer, Captain Lorena Griffin.

Arges shook his head. “I mean that you have neither the
technology, the mathematics, nor the physics to understand it. Your minds will
have to expand significantly before you will be able to understand stargate technology.”

“Well, how about this?” the XO asked. “Does the ship go
faster than light, or does it go through something like a wormhole?”

“The star drive uses wormholes, which are black holes linked
through a process that you wouldn’t understand,” said Arges. “If you enter the
first one at the correct angle, you will exit the other one at the same speed.”

“So,” said Captain Deutch, “the stargates are wormholes
between two black holes?”

“Correct,” agreed Arges.

“And if we enter one going the right direction, we emerge out
of the other one?” asked Deutch.

“Also correct,” said Arges.

“Where are we when we are in between the two black holes?”
asked Deutch.

“I’m sorry,” said Arges, “but you wouldn’t understand it. It
involves math that hasn’t been downloaded to your implants and six dimensional
space.”

“What a minute,” said Deutch. “I thought there were only
five dimensions.”

“See?” asked Arges. “That’s what I’m talking about. You
wouldn’t understand.”

“OK,” said Deutch, “if that’s the case, I doubt I’d
want
to understand. What can you tell us about these black holes?”

“Every system that we know about contains at least one black
hole stargate,” said Arges, “and most systems have two stargates in them, that allow
you to pass through. About one in five have multiple stargates. These are nexus
systems. These are key systems to hold as they give a civilization mobility and
trade advantages over neighboring civilizations.”

“How many stargates are there in this system?” asked Calvin.

“There are two that we know of,” said Steropes.

“What do you mean, ‘that you know of?’” asked Calvin

“They’re very hard to find,” replied Steropes. “Sara and the
University of Washington are working on some ideas that may result in a better
method of finding them, but for now, we have to do it the slow, laborious way.”

“How slow and laborious?” asked the CO.

“In most cases,” answered Arges, “it will take us between five
days and a week once we enter a new star system for our magnetic anomaly
detectors to ascertain the location of any stargates and another day or two to
resolve the required transit direction for employing them. That time will not
be wasted, as we will use it to gather data on the rest of the system. Hopefully,
on the next trip we will be able to trim down the amount of time required for
stargate detection.”

“Can you at least tell us something about the systems that
we are going to be traveling through?” asked Deutch.

“Unfortunately, no,” replied Steropes. “Apparently, the
Drakuls didn’t update the ephemeris or take notes on the systems they passed
through on their way here. The ship’s ephemeris is blank. We have no
information on the systems through which we will be traveling.”

“Wonderful,” replied Deutch. “Got any other good news for
me?”

“No I don’t,” replied Arges, missing the sarcasm. “Unfortunately,
the last Eldive on the
Vella Gulf
was able to wipe out the navigational
data before he was killed by the Drakuls. We don’t know anything about the star
systems going up the other chain, either.”

Deutch sighed. “Why do I even bother asking?”

TSS
Vella Gulf
, Dark Side of the Moon, DATE

“When is Irina scheduled to get her implants?” asked Calvin.

“Tomorrow,” replied Night. “You still think this is a good
idea?”

“I think it’s a horrible idea,” answered Calvin, “fraught
with danger and the possibility for everything to go catastrophically wrong.”

“So why do it?” Night asked.

“What do you know about geography?” Calvin asked in reply.

“I know a little bit,” said Night. “I can also now download
anything I need from the internet by way of my implants.”

Calvin smiled. “OK then, when it comes to natural resources,
what country has more than any other? What country also has the second largest
deposits of rare earth minerals after China, whom we currently don’t get along
with? Third largest gold deposits? Most natural gas? Any guesses? Oh, yeah,
they also have the fifth largest military, too.”

“Without researching it, I’m going to go out on a limb and
guess Russia,” Night replied.

“Correct on all counts,” agreed Calvin. “They’ve got lots of
resources, which we need, and a big military to help counter-balance China, which
we might still need at some point. Besides, they consider themselves a world
power and get all pissy if you don’t invite them to the party. Then they make
everything harder by throwing up road blocks everywhere they can. It doesn’t
take a student of history to see all the times they’ve done that over the last
forty or so years.”

“Well, that’s certainly true,” said Night.

“So, we can either get them to play with us and be really
helpful, or we can alienate them and drive them away. If we drive them away,
they’ll probably try to form their own world government with China and anyone
else that will join them, just to spite us. Who knows? We’re not as well liked
as we once were; they might even get more countries to go along with them than
we have with us. I wonder if the Psiclopes would have to switch allegiance to
them if that happened...boy, wouldn’t that just absolutely suck?”

Night looked like he had just swallowed something bad.
“Yeah, that would suck.”

“So our only real option is to include them, right?” asked
Calvin.

“When you put it that way,” replied Night, “we don’t really
have much of a choice, do we?”

“No,” said Calvin, “we don’t.”

“OK Jamal, take good care of Austin.” Turning to the other
twin, the Ranger Company’s XO, First Lieutenant Odysseus Bollinger, said,
“Austin, take good care of Jamal.”

Both of them chorused, “We will, sir!” and saluted him.

He returned their salutes and then turned to walk off as
they boarded the ship. Having overheard his former XO, Top decided he just had
to know and stopped the officer. “How do you tell them apart, XO? You are the
only one who can do it, and you never get them wrong.”

“Bugs you, does it?” asked the XO, smiling. “You’re such a
good judge of people, Master Sergeant. How is it that you can’t tell them
apart?”

“To tell you the truth sir, it bugs the ever-living crap out
of me,” answered Top.

“OK,” said the XO, “I’ll tell you, if you promise to keep it
just between us. Deal?”

“Absolutely sir. Deal!” agreed Top.

“OK,” the XO repeated, “the secret is that the twins aren’t
just identical. They’re mirror image twins.”

“What the hell does that mean sir?” asked Top.

“A set of mirror image twins are identical twins that are
created when the fertilized egg splits late, between days 9-12; if it split any
later, they might be born conjoined. Mirror image twins are genetically
identical, including the same DNA, but they have small mirror image
differences. With the Gordons, they have two different size feet; with each of
them the opposite foot is larger. They each buy a set of different size shoes
and trade one to the other.”

“So you look at their feet?” asked Top

“Naw, that would be too hard. Besides, it’s only a half size
different, and I can’t tell that.” The XO shrugged and smiled. “I know; I tried.”

“So, how do you do it?” Top growled, starting to lose his
patience.

“It’s actually very easy,” said the XO, giving in. “They are
opposite handed; Jamal is left-handed, and Austin is right. When they talk,
they always point and gesture with their dominant hand; if one is pointing with
his left hand, it’s Jamal. You can’t tell them that you know that, though, or
they’ll disguise it. They’ve practiced all their life to imitate each other and
can do it when they think about it. They can even write with their off hands if
they have to. I understand it took almost a year before they mastered that.
Watch them when they stand next to each other; they look like a mirror of each
other.”

“Wow XO, you’ve got some outstanding powers of observation,”
exclaimed Top. “No one else has ever caught on to that.”

“Or, maybe there’s another explanation…” the XO said,
allowing his voice to trail off.

“Uncle!” said Top, “Just tell me already!”

“You’re going about it all wrong,” said the XO. “There was
an easier way to figure it out.” He paused, grinning. “I asked their mom.”

“Gah!” exclaimed Top. “Why didn’t I think of that? It seems
too easy!”

The XO shook his head. “Actually, it wasn’t easy. She made
me beg and plead. Finally, she made me promise to give her status updates on
them, because they never write or call. I promised to do that, and she told me
the secret. Of course, since I’m not going on the mission, you’ll have to do it
for me. Would you do that? She’s really a very nice woman, despite how her sons
act.”

“Yes sir,” agreed Top, “I’ll write her about the mission...when
I can.”

“Good,” answered the XO. “In that case, I’ll give you a
freebie. Their surfer-dude accent is faked.”

“It is?” asked the first sergeant.

The XO nodded. “Yep, it’s all a big put on. They’re actually
from Wisconsin; they just do it to annoy people.”

“That’s too funny!” exclaimed Top, and they both started
laughing.

“Why haven’t you ever said anything?” asked Top, once they
had stopped.

“Isn’t it more fun to be in on the joke?” asked the XO.

USS
Vella Gulf
, Naval Station Norfolk, March 13,
2019

The USS
Vella Gulf
departed Pier 7 at Naval Station
Norfolk on its final deployment. A sense of nostalgia filled the air. Captain
Deutch looked at his executive officer, Captain Lorena Griffin, “In some ways,
I’m almost sorry that we won’t be taking this ship on her last deployment. She
deserves one more cruise before getting decommissioned.”

It wasn’t long before the ship was passing the Hampton Roads
Bridge Tunnel (HRBT), where several news crews had parked to get their digital
recordings of the ship’s last transit. The executive officer nodded toward the TV
crews. “It appears our departure is being well noted.”

“Good,” said the Captain Deutch. “Let them see us leaving.”

The ship passed the HRBT and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge
Tunnel and was out into the Atlantic Ocean. Captain Deutch had the helmsman take
the ship far enough out that they couldn’t be seen from the beach and then found
an open area away from other ships.

“
We’re here,
” he commed.

“
On our way,
” replied Captain Howard Toncha, the WSO
of
Shuttle 01
. Within minutes, the shuttle appeared next to the
Vella
Gulf
. Its pilot, Flight Lieutenant Ken Smith, set the large craft down next
to the ship with barely a splash. The shuttle crew quickly tied up to the
Gulf
and put a boarding ramp in place between the two ships. Half of the crew from
the USS
Vella Gulf
made their way to the shuttle for transport to the TSS
Vella Gulf
. As the shuttle lifted off and cloaked, Captain Deutch was
amazed at how quietly the shuttle could move when its pilot only used its
anti-gravity systems. If the object was to overawe viewers with a roar and mass
of flames, the shuttle could also land using its thrusters at full power. He
had seen it done once that way, too, and knew it was impressive.

The last rays of nautical twilight faded, and the ship
turned back west and retraced its path. Although all of its navigational
equipment was on, all of its lights were off. The ship carefully passed both
bridge tunnels and proceeded up the James River to where the Dead Fleet silently
kept watch over the waterway.

The National Defense Reserve Fleet or ‘Dead Fleet’ was a
group of about 25 retired merchant ships that waited silently at anchor in the
middle of the James River. The ships had been preserved and were maintained at
a moderate state of readiness on the chance that one day the nation might have
an urgent need for additional merchant shipping. The Captain watched, holding
his breath unconsciously, as the
Vella Gulf
silently approached a group
of seven large former fleet oilers, which they would use to camouflage the ship.
Finding the gap that tugboats had opened for them earlier in the day, the crew
tied the ship up between the USS
Merrimack
(AO-179) and the USS
Monongahela
(AO-178) and began shutting down its systems.

As the remaining crew members finished with their duties,
they boarded the second shuttle from the TSS
Vella Gulf
that had
materialized next to the cruiser’s stern. Captain Deutch looked at the ship’s
logo on the
Monongahela
. In the center of it was the
Monongahela’s
motto, ‘Pride in Service.’ Captain Deutch sighed, lost in nostalgia. Pride in
service was what it was all about. Those that had never served would never know
what it felt like to leave the ship that had been your home for two years, as
well as the home for your close-knit family of 400. It might be a dysfunctional
family at times, but what family wasn’t?

Within minutes, the Commanding Officer was the only person
left onboard the ship, standing alone on the bridge wing. He looked at the
Vella
Gulf’s
motto next to him, ‘Move Swiftly, Strike Vigorously!’ The new
Vella
Gulf
was going to move faster than any U.S. ship had ever moved before. He
hoped it wouldn’t be necessary to strike vigorously, or they would run the risk
of failing completely in their mission. Misty-eyed, he patted the
Vella
Gulf’s
plaque one last time for luck. “Good luck old lady,” he said, before
walking to the ramp.

Bridge, TSS
Vella Gulf
, Approaching Black Hole #2,
Solar System, March 14, 2019

“Five minutes to wormhole entrance!” called the helmsman.

“Sound General Quarters!” ordered Captain Deutch. Onboard
United States’ ships, the General Quarters announcement was made to signal that
battle or the threat of damage was imminent. Also called “Battle Stations,”
whenever the call was made, the crew would quickly prepare the ship for battle.
All of the crew (including any that had been sleeping when the call was made)
would report to their combat positions and would close all of the ship’s watertight
and fireproof doors to keep any potential damage from spreading. Captain Deutch
didn’t have any idea of what lay on the other side of the stargate, and he wanted
to be prepared for battle if it was waiting for them. For a similar reason, all
six of the Vipers were manned in case they were needed upon system entry.

“Aye aye, sir!” said the duty engineer, seated next to the
helmsman at the front console. He was responsible for all of the damage control
systems. He turned on the General Quarters alarm. “Bong! Bong! Bong! Bong!”
sounded a bell. It was followed with the engineer’s call of “General Quarters,
General Quarters, all hands man your battle stations!”

Captain Deutch looked around the bridge. There were many extra
people on the bridge who did not have battle stations there, but who had found
a reason to be on it for the transit. As he was sure that he would have done
the same thing, he didn’t say anything or kick them off.

Arges was running the science station, and Brontes was
looking at something on one of his screens. Similarly, the Operations and
Communications stations each had an extra person staring with feigned
concentration at something on their screens, while they looked at the main view
screens out of the corners of their eyes. Security had
two
extra people.
In addition to the bridge crew, Calvin sat in his seat to the left of the commanding
officer, and the executive officer was to his right. Steropes had claimed the
extra chair on the other side of Calvin, and the ambassador was on the other side
of the XO.

Captain Deutch looked at Steropes. “So, you’re
sure
you don’t know what’s on the other side of this black hole?” he asked. Captain
Deutch had come to understand that the Psiclopes didn’t have a problem with lying
when they thought it necessary. On many occasions, he had also seen them say
that they didn’t know anything about a subject they didn’t want to tell the
Terrans about, even though they knew all about it. It never hurt to ask a
second (or third, or fourth) time; sometimes you got the answer you wanted
after all.

“No,” said Steropes, “I really don’t. This black hole was
discovered after the fall of Atlantis, and we didn’t have the crew to go
explore it. We could have done it with Solomon in control, but that went
against policy.”

“It’s a silly policy,” noted the AI, “but it
is
against regulations.” Interesting, Deutch thought. Solomon seemed excited to be
operationally deploying again after all these years. Normally, the AI didn’t express
his opinions unless he was asked.

“That leads me to another question,” said the CO. “If this
is an Eldive ship, and they perished 3,000 years ago, how old
is
the
Vella
Gulf
?”

“I am 3,348 of your years old,” answered Solomon, since the
AI was part of the original equipment.

“Hmmm,” said Deutch, “that’s pretty old. How much does it
stress the ship to go through a stargate?” He hoped he wouldn’t be the first
human to go through a stargate only to find that his ship blew up upon re-entry
because it was old and fell apart.

“It does not stress the ship to go through a stargate,”
replied Solomon. “I am in fine working order and am in no danger of structural
failure.”

“Even though the ship is old,” said Steropes, “it may still have
some surprises for anyone that is familiar with its type of ship.”

“Like what?” asked Deutch.

“We received technology updates until recently,” replied
Steropes, “and our lasers and grasers have been updated to Alliance standards.
We also got the replicator designs for both anti-ship missiles and counter-missile
missiles, so most of our offensive and defensive systems are close to what the
advanced civilizations will have. We will be a bit of a surprise to any species
that is familiar with this ship type.”

“It is unlikely that anyone will be familiar with me,” remarked
Solomon. “I am the only remaining member of my class and have been unique for
longer than many civilizations have existed.”

“While that cannot be proven conclusively,” said Arges, “it
is indeed likely. Until the
Vella Gulf
showed up on Earth, it was believed
that all of the Eldive vessels had been destroyed in the final battle with the
Drakuls.”

“One minute until stargate!” called the helmsman.

“So, just a little disorientation?” asked Deutch.

“A little disorientation,” confirmed Steropes. “It will affect
the equipment longer than the personnel.”

The helmsman looked up. “Wormhole entrance...”

The stars in the viewer expanded into infinity and everything
went black...then went sideways...then went orange...then went salty...