How could we have missed… all this? Titus cleared his throat. “Violet… what… what are your thoughts?”
“If you’re worried about possibilities,” Violet replied, “then the science division has been theorizing about alien life for years. Many have thought we simply haven’t gone far enough out. Reasonably speaking, the universe is practically infinite. We could engage warp right now and go for sixty years without reaching the end.”
And that helps it make sense, Titus thought, but why now?
“Violet,” Jane turned to the woman, “do you really think they’re aliens?”
“Based on these scans?” Violet nodded. “I certainly do. It’s a logical explanation. Our technology is not this good. Some rogue corporation or people with money wouldn’t be leaping fifty years into our future of defenses let alone on all fronts. At least, I don’t believe they could possibly do it.”
“So we faced aliens.” Jane spoke softly. “And we’re still alive…” She swallowed the rest of her sentence, glancing back where Captain Barrington had been sitting. “Mostly.”
“Let’s focus on repairs,” Titus said. “Get me those reports. We’ll worry about the semantics of what happened later. Right now… well… right now, we need to focus on our own. The ability to get out of here. Survival. Then the fantastic can have a go at us. I’ll coordinate with Chief Huxley from here. Do we have long-range comms?”
“Negative,” Violet replied. “They’re down right now.”
“Okay, get a tech crew on those. We need to report in.” Titus thought about the rest of the crew… what they must be thinking. “Reduce status to yellow. I’ll address the ship shortly.” If I can wrap my head around what happened. Hopefully, informing everyone else will help me do that. Otherwise…
Titus had no idea what to think. His mouth was dry, his head hurt, stress clung to his muscles and back, but deep down, he felt tremendous relief. We made it. And now we can find out what happened. This might be the best thing that ever happened to our people… or the absolute worst.
Depending on what Commander Dain had to say, Titus figured he’d be in for a mixed bag. One way or another, humanity was in for a tremendous change.
Chapter 4
Titus hadn’t been able to speak with Commander Dain again before long-range communications came back online. They had received plenty of messages from their new allies, mostly assuring them they didn’t have to worry about enemy reinforcements. Apparently, the force they met happened to be a probing strike.
It would be quite some time before the Kahls even knew they lost the ships.
Seems odd. Titus wasn’t entirely convinced until Violet let him know what was going on. Apparently, the Brekka mimicked their transmissions, sending an all clear. That’s what bought them time not only repair the Triton sufficiently to leave the area but also check for survivors on the surface.
Unfortunately, the latter endeavor proved fruitless. No one had survived down there. The bunker had been busted open, and the people inside slaughtered. None of the farmers made it either. If anyone happened to be alive down there, they must’ve gone to ground, hiding where they couldn’t be detected by scans.
Repairs went well enough. As promised, the warp drive was up in thirty minutes. Engineering restored power to key systems, restoring the ship to basic operational status. They still had some hull damage to contend with along with replacement of temporary parts but returning home was possible.
Huxley made it clear another fight would end them, though. He suggested immediate dispatch to the nearest station for dry dock repairs.
Titus sat in his office, preparing himself for a conversation with high command. He didn’t look forward to giving his report. Offering it with perfect honesty might paint Captain Barrington in a poor light. It seemed unnecessary to trample his name posthumously. Cruel even. The man had a family. They didn’t need to think he made a mistake.
But did he really? Titus couldn’t blame him entirely. Yes, he wanted to exercise more caution but they had no way of knowing the enemy they were facing would be so devastating… so dangerous. When the destroyers went up, we should’ve immediately backed off. Part of him picked the situation apart because he knew high command would do the same.
A message appeared on his screen from Violet. Commander Dain and his second would like to board the ship for a conversation with you in person. You weren’t answering the comm. Titus glanced, noting he had missed a couple incoming requests. They’re… kind of being impatient about it.
“I wonder why,” Titus muttered. He brought her up on voice chat. “Give them clearance. I’ll meet them at the hangar. Send four security guards to meet me. I’m on my way now.”
“Yes, sir.”
Titus pulled his jacket on, looking in the small mirror beside his private washroom. He looked tired, but about as good as could be expected given what he and the crew had been through. Other news weighed on him heavily. The deaths of the men on the surface, nearly the entire landing party. Gunny and Hans were the only two to make it.
And this new person, the militia soldier named Alon Dess. If not for him, even they would’ve been lost. He’d proved a bit more heroic than expected. Andrews filed a report suggesting he had really freaked out on the way off the planet, but otherwise, he seemed like a solid operative.
I’ll have to find out what he wants to do with himself now that he’s survived this threat. Titus didn’t know what his future held with the TCN. Whatever it was, he hoped he might offer Alon a position somewhere. Perhaps as a consultant. Someone who had seen the Kahls in action might prove valuable to intelligence. Though I don’t know what
