Condition Zero, page 17
part #6 of The Earth Saga Series
80-The Seven
“The damage didn’t look this bad in those recce images.” Mike Tattersall said.
“Yeah.” Was all Colonel Hunt could say. He was distracted.
The pair were bent over a science terminal looking at detailed images of Earth. The planet was mostly intact. The devastation that the Coalition had rained down on it was mostly contained to several cities, Moscow, Tokyo, Lagos, Sao Paulo, Sydney and Mexico City. The estimated death toll from those attacks was above fifty million.
Israel and Pakistan had killed themselves. Ludicrous attempts to launch nuclear ordinance into space at the Coalition ships had resulted in both countries being heavily devastated. Pakistan wasn’t gone, but there was almost nothing left of Israel or its nine million citizens. The entire region had been razed. Amman, Damascus, and Beirut were all gone. It was a nuclear apocalypse in the Holy Land.
Some of the Coalition ships that had been destroyed retaking Earth had crashed down to the surface. The worst incident was a frigate crashing in the centre of Astana in Kazakhstan taking out the Bayterek tower and half the government district, but in the end, Earth got off lightly.
“Admiral Taark sent infantry and support forces down to the surface once the shield went down.” Joe righted himself and looked at Mike. “Medical drone teams have been deployed worldwide.”
“I know.” He turned around and looked at Kol Fine, who was talking with the admiral. “I’ve already been down to the surface.” He declared. “Most of my teams made it out alright.” Mike stuck out his hand. “I need to see to my teams.” Joe shook it.
“Give my best to your men.” Joe said.
“Thank you.” Mike took a step away. “I hope you find the Five.”
“Yeah.”
Joe watched as the British officer walked off, then turned his attention back to the image of Earth that was on the monitor. Zooming in, he checked that Maryland was still in one piece. The image was from a live-feed and was crystal clear. He could see his parent’s house easily. The neighbourhood looked a little worse for wear, but it didn’t look like chaos had broken out.
Chaos. Anarchy. Madness. Didn’t matter what you called it, a wildfire had swept Earth since the Coalition had arrived and hit the planet with an electromagnetic pulse. Governments had fallen, and order had broken down. From North America to Asia to Africa to South America. No corner of the globe had survived unscathed after the electromagnetic pulse had killed almost all electrical appliances on the planet. Aeroplanes had dropped from the skies everywhere. Ships were left stranded at sea. The lights had gone out.
Governments tried to use their police and militaries to maintain order, but that had only been effective for so long. Looking down on the planet he hadn’t stepped foot on in months, Joe could see the cities that had been consumed by fire and upheaval. The earth was scared. He wasn’t sure that his parents were alive, but he suspected they were. He had requested an infantry unit check on them, he was still waiting on the arrival of the unit.
Looking around the massive bridge of the Seven, Joe started to wonder if everything that had been unravelled by the appearance of the Epsilon could be on the verge of being put right again. Was everything finally going to turn good? If there really was a chance for peace in the galaxy, maybe this was the last battle. The final fight before the new era that was to come.
There were a few pressing issues to deal with before that utopian dream could come true. The Five was missing. That was foremost in Joe’s mind. But there was also something else that had caught his eye that Major Tattersall had mentioned from his raid on the Lone Hunter. Something that was almost too horrifying to contemplate.
Walking over to Kol Fine and Admiral Taark, Joe interrupted the duo. “Did Major Tattersall retrieve some data that pertained to Australia?”
Fine nodded. “Yes. It was in the Coalition ship’s database.”
“What was it?”
“The commander of the Coalition forces that was put in command of the system over Sector Commander Varus allowed slavers to take a considerable number of Terrans from that continent.” Fine answered.
“How many?” Joe asked.
Fine just shook his head. “I don’t recall.”
Joe crossed his arms. “The Five is missing. The planet is in all sorts of fucked up shape, and now you’re telling me that some Australians have been snatched by slavers.” He shook his head. “Fuck.”
81-Asiatana
Sinus Fu was standing ten metres behind Prince Salrugina. The Prince was sat across from the Grand Marshall, the head of the Etelainen territory and all Alliance forces in the galaxy. Behind the Grand Marshall was Il Rotana. She was wearing full body armour, but she had her face shield flipped up, looking relaxed.
Sinus had been convinced by the Prince not to wear full armour, but Kio was fully kitted up in orbit, giving him some reassurance that if things broke down, he’d have some backup, which would probably arrive to change anything. Then again, he very much doubted there would be any shooting. You don’t put the two most influential people in the galaxy at a table together on a deserted planet for a peace-talk and then start blasting away.
“All Alliance forces are stood-down.” The Grand Marshall said.
Prince Salrugina looked at the data-pad he had brought with him. “All Coalition forces are pulled back to Pohjois systems.” The Prince squinted his eyes and studied the pad. “But I see an Alliance incursion into a system under our control.”
The Grand Marshall sat back. “Taark.” He said under his breath.
“Excuse me?” Salrugina asked. “The Terran System.” The Prince added. “There is an engagement currently underway there.” He paused. “Terran?” Salrugina rubbed his chin. “Beyond the Reach.” Salrugina turned around and looked at Fu. “You were beyond the Reach recently, were you not?”
Sinus Fu stepped forward. “I was. I helped reconnoitre the planet in question.”
“Ahh.” The Prince looked to his admiral. “A battle is there?”
The admiral nodded.
Salrugina shook his head. “Who cares. This is bigger than one conflict on a world beyond the borders of the once great Empire.”
The Grand Marshall took a deep breath. He had feared that Taark would sink everything, but luckily, that wasn’t to be the case. “I am glad that this one incident will not spoil our attempts to bring the war to a swift conclusion.”
Salrugina swept his hand through the air. “I am too old to waste time. With my sister now dead, I realise that it is time to right the wrongs I made so many years ago.” He stopped. He was getting excited, and he knew that he needed to remain calm. “But there is nothing that I can do to change that now. We must focus on the future. Rebuild.”
“And how do you propose that we start such a healing process?” The Grand Marshall asked. He had his own notions of what it was going to take to have peace, he also had ideas about how to go about getting to that point.
Salrugina looked at the small datapad. “My advisors want us to move with caution, and with that in mind, we have two proposals. The first proposal is that we open up the Borders to civilian and all non-military travel. This would allow trade between the Pohjois and the Etelainen to resume and for our citizens to openly interact with each other.” The Prince paused. “The second proposal is a little more drastic.”
“Go on.”
“I would propose that we start a program of recolonising the Core, or what planets we can within the Core.”
“There were roughly eight-thousand populated planets in the Core before the war started.” The Grand Marshall shook his head. “It would take years to survey them all, identify which ones are safe for re-colonisation.” He gently rubbed his fingers on the table. “And there are dangerous elements within the Core. Many of the systems are run by pirates, brigands, rebel military forces.” He stopped rubbing the table and looked off towards the trees. “Taking back the Core would be costly.”
“But it would be possible.” The Prince said, a sense of optimism in his voice.
“It is possible, but how many of our citizens were born on Core Worlds? You think they would be willing to bear the cost that this venture would entail?”
“It would give them hope.” The Prince replied. “Hope of a galaxy at peace.”
“And you propose what timeline for the introduction of these two initiatives?”
“The first, open borders, could be started at any time of our choosing. The second would require significant amounts of planning and cooperation between our two fleets.”
“Not easy when they’ve been trying to destroy each other for seventy years.” The Grand Marshall interjected.
“That is true.” The Prince shook his head. “Perhaps after a few years of open borders, then our peoples will be ready for the second.”
“I can start putting a directive in motion later today in preparation for the open borders plan. I have to say that not all the systems in Etelainen space are currently under our control. With so many resources focused on the war effort, some services have slipped, and as a result, some systems have moved out from under our control.”
Prince Salrugina nodded. “We have had the same problems. Very hard to keep track of almost twenty-thousand worlds.”
“True.”
“Now, before I say something foolish, shall we retire for the day and reconvene in the morning?” The Prince suggested.
“That would be perfectly acceptable, Prince. It will allow me time to consider your proposals, and to put steps in place to open up the Borders.” The Grand Marshall replied. “And I shall give you the honour of the first departure.”
“A very kind gesture.” The Prince said.
It didn’t take Prince Salrugina and Sinus Fu long to return to their shuttle and return to orbit. The Grand Marshall had remained at the table, Il Rotana remained unmoved nearby. When the shuttle was out of view, racing towards the waiting warships in orbit, the Grand Marshall called Rotana over.
“What did you make of that?” He asked, looking up at the armoured warrior.
“Don’t know, Sir. Peace sounds nice.”
“Do you trust them?”
“No.” She replied quickly.
“I thought you said you drank with Sinus Fu?”
“I had more guns than him.” She replied.
“Very true.” The Grand Marshall replied. Rising to his feet, he looked around the opening. “A beautiful planet.” He commented. “I want you on the first ship to the Sol System. Find out what happened to Admiral Rasanna and tell Admiral Taark that I want to see him here as soon as possible.”
“Sir.”
“And when he comes here, tell him he better not bring the Seven.”
It took the Grand Marshall less than ten minutes to have a ship ready for Dynamic Operator Master Grade Il Rotana prepped and prepared for transport to the Sol system. At a distance of eighteen-hundred light-years, the vessel would require several stops for fuel, but it would give the experienced operator plenty of time to read the files on the two admirals she was going to see, supplied by the Grand Marshall, the records would have customarily been heavily redacted in the hands of someone with her rank, but not this time.
Rotana had a few ideas of what was going on in the Sol System. The Terran had gone ahead and launched his attack to re-take his system. She couldn’t blame him. She’d have done the same.
“Master Grade.” The Ship Master called out from the bridge. “Ready to make the first jump.”
“Let’s go.”
“What do you make of the Grand Marshall, Fu?”
“An honest individual, Prince.” Sinus Fu replied.
“I seem to have been a poor judge of character for some time now, Fu.” The Prince shook his head. “Bad advisors at every turn.”
“Just one more moment.” The head of the medical team said. “Once we have you in the healing bath, you’ll feel much more refreshed Prince, and ready for tomorrow.”
The Prince was focused on Fu. “You know Fu, I have found that warriors like the Grand Marshall are honest. Politicians, not so much. Those are the real bastards that will turn on you. Get you in trouble.” The Prince closed his eyes. “I’ve listened to too many politicians in my life. It is nice to sit across from someone with some honour and integrity like the Grand Marshall.”
82-Mozambique
The wind was blowing off the Indian Ocean at a steady gust. The palm trees rocking gently just off the sandy beach that was the edge of the African continent. It might have been almost two in the morning, but a full moon overhead illuminated the water enough for Shakil to see clearly. To his front, the two-lane highway stretched ahead in silence. At this hour, there was rarely anyone out in the countryside even before the aliens arrived.
Lieutenant Colonel Nyussi had maintained a quick, but cautious driving pace out of Maputo. Shakil knew that the roads everywhere in Mozambique could be treacherous. They certainly didn’t want to die fleeing the final collapse of the government in the south-east African country. Add to that the wildlife that could jump in front of the vehicle, and the fact that the road they were taking wasn’t in the best shape added to his caution.
“Shakil.”
The LTC hadn’t spoken for some time, mainly focused on the driving.
“Yes?” Shakil responded.
The soldier slowed the car, then pulled over to the side of the road, just metres from the edge of the ocean.
“I need to rest.” He pointed to the right. “Let’s go to the beach for a few moments.”
Shakil nodded and hopped out of the vehicle, his feet immediately hitting sand. He knew they were close to Zavala. He could see the town lights just a few miles up the coast. Walking past a row of palms, Shakil stepped on to the sandy beach, walked halfway to the water’s edge, then sat down.
The waves were gently hitting the beach, making a relaxing sound. With a full moon overhead, it was easy to see several hundred metres offshore, and down the beach in both directions. He couldn’t see anyone else.
It took a few moments for Nyussi to reach Shakil. He sat down gingerly next to the young boy, exhaling loudly when he finally relaxed.
“You’re going to have to go on your own from here, Shakil.” Nyussi said.
“What?” Shakil turned and looked at the officer, he could tell the man was pale. Beads of sweat on his forehead, one hand grasping at his left side.
“I caught something getting out of the hotel.” He said, almost out of breath. “Wasn’t too bad, but I should have treated it at the time.” He shook his head, looking down and his bloodied hand that was covering the wound. “Lost too much blood.” He leaned back into the sand. “Would you be so good as to take off my boots?” He smiled. “It would be nice to feel the sand between my toes one last time.”
Shakil hesitated for a few seconds, then moved forward and carefully untied the combat boots that Nyussi was wearing, taking care when removing them. Once they were off, he placed them to the side with the same precision he had been taught at the hotel. Without asking, he gingerly pulled off the LTC’s socks, then placed them on top of the boots.
“Thank you.” Nyussi said. Laying back, the soldier exhaled. “In the morning. When the sun comes up, the world will be a different place.” He looked upwards at the stars. “I don’t know what has happened in the heavens today, but you must be prepared for whatever comes tomorrow.”
Shakil felt numb. He felt neither fear, sadness, nor panic. His chest felt empty; as if his heart had been removed. His eyes kept shifting from Nyussi to the ocean, then up the beach to Zavala. There was a sense of confusion that clouded his mind. He couldn’t speak, and his legs were weak.
“Zavala is only up the beach. Start walking there. You should be there within a few hours.” He said.
“I can’t leave you.” Shakil said.
“It’s not you who is leaving me, Shakil. I am leaving you.” Nyussi pulled his red-stained hand away from his midsection. “Now, on your feet.”
Shakil did as he was told.
“Good.” The Lieutenant Colonel pointed up the beach. “Go home.”
Shakil hesitated. He locked eyes with the Nyussi, the professional soldier was still there, telling him to move on. Nodding, Shakil looked up the beach, focusing on the few lights that marked his hometown, then started walking.
It took almost a full hour to reach Zavala. Shakil had stayed on the beach, half his attention on the town he was approaching, the other half of the time looking off into the Indian Ocean. He wasn’t sure what to find when he reached the town. All he knew was that he was alive, and for the time being, he was out of harm's way.
83-Sol System
“Jump complete.” The tech from the nav station reported.
“Position?” The Ship Master enquired.
“Sol System.” The tech replied. “At one of the more distant jump coordinates from the system's star that was available.”
Il Rotana stood in silence, watching the crew go about their routines.
“Weapons active and ready to shoot.” Another tech reported.
“Report all contacts, friendly or otherwise.” The Ship Master ordered.
“Multiple contacts.” Came the report. “Twelve Alliance, no active Coalition ships. Most located around the third planet from the star. Terra.”
“Where is the Seven?” Rotana asked the Ship Master.
“Give me telemetry on the Seven.” The Ship Master ordered.
“In position over Terra.”
“Hail them, and request permission to dock.” The Ship Master shifted his focus to the front of the bridge. “Pilot, initiate a high-speed run towards the Seven, keep us well clear of any Coalition ships.”
“On it.” The pilot replied.
The Ship Master turned and faced Rotana. “I can’t guarantee that you’ll get on that ship.”
“Use the authorisation codes I gave you earlier.” She replied.
“They were automatically sent when we jumped in. Admiral Taark will know why you’re here.”
