Chapter 64: To Yastri

Travel between star systems takes a long time. We didn’t have too many duties while travelling in hyperspace. Jem declared the first two days as rest days. It helped us get back in sync with onboard time, which was usually different from local time on a planet surface.

I lay on my bed in my cabin resting. Much of my time on Dentra I’d stayed in our suite, hiding in the palace complex. Now I worried that I was getting lazy. It wasn’t good for my health to be inactive for long periods.

I rolled out of bed and visited the en-suite. At the food dispenser, I got myself a coffee. It was amazing how this beverage worked wonders. After a few sips, I left my cabin.

Taking the elevator down to deck fifteen, I arrived at the gymnasium.

I entered the changing room and changed into an exercise outfit. Then I walked out into the main area. I had the place to myself, since I assumed that my crewmates were sleeping.

I worked on the machines for at least an hour. Then I switched to free weights. I worked up a sweat, and I felt good.

My exercise complete, I returned to the changing room and cleaned up and changed back into my jumpsuit. I’d lost track of time, with no interruptions from my crewmates.

“Ship, where is everyone?” I asked.

“Jem is in the lido. Mina is in the botany lab. Laine is in her cabin,” replied Ship.

“Thank you, Ship,” I said.

I didn’t want to disturb Jem or Mina, so I took the elevator back to the deck where our cabins were. I wandered to Laine’s cabin and pressed the door chime.

A moment later, the door opened, and I faced Laine. Her hair was untidy. I resisted the urge to smile.

“Would you care to join me for breakfast?” I asked.

Her eyes brightened, and she smiled at me.

“Sure, Brian. Give me a few minutes,” she replied.

Laine left me at the doorway and hurried off out of sight. Soon, I heard water running.

What do I do now? I couldn’t wander off after she said yes. I could stand there waiting for her, or maybe enter her cabin and take a seat. Finally, I sat down in the corridor, outside her cabin.

A few minutes later, Laine stepped out of her cabin, dressed in a clean jumpsuit. She had done something nice with her hair. I sat on the floor admiring the view for a moment.

Laine smiled at me. She reached out.

“Thanks,” I said. I took her hand, and she pulled. I was soon vertical again.

We continued to hold hands and walked along the corridor, then took the elevator to get us to the main dining lounge.

“What about Jem and Mina?” asked Laine.

“Ship, please ask Jem and Mina if they would like to join us in the main dining lounge for breakfast,” I said.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

About a minute later, I got a response.

“Both Jem and Mina responded in the affirmative. They will be along shortly,” said Ship.

“Thank you, Ship. You have your response, Laine,” I said.

“Let’s prepare something nice for them,” she said.

“Tell me what you need me to do,” I said.

We fetched ingredients from the supplies, and Laine started cooking. I prepared the table.

Soon, Jem and Mina arrived. Jem wore a fetching bathing suit. Mina had the usual jumpsuit. I already knew where they had been.

I helped Laine move dishes to the table. We all sat down to eat.

“This is delicious!” said Jem.

“Thank you, I based it on a recipe I got from the palace stewards on Dentra,” replied Laine.

We enjoyed our breakfast together. It was important for morale to eat together often during long trips.

“Mina, how goes the cataloging of all the seedlings from Dentra?” I asked.

“It is going well, thanks! I have planted samples and I am reading up on the different species,” said Mina.

“Did you get those trees with the fragrant blossoms?” I asked.

“Yes, but they are not mature trees, just saplings,” replied Mina.

It was then I had an idea.

“Commodore, I have an idea. If Ship allocated a suitable sized space, we could have our own garden. There would be pathways, and places to sit and meditate. Mina will have a place to showcase her plants,” I said.

“I like it! Ship, please work with Brian and Mina and create us a garden,” said Jem.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

Two days later, at Fleet HQ on Aenat Prime, admiral Kel met with his peers.

“Welcome everyone! We will go around the table and report,” said Kel.

One admiral stood to address the group. He pressed a button and a hologram of the targeted star system appeared above the large oval table.

“The available data shows that the system has two potentially inhabitable planets. We suspect that what we seek is on the third planet,” he said.

“Do you know what they are protecting?” asked Kel.

“The warning given by the Baglogi was that it was a closed system. It gave little information why it was closed,” replied the admiral.

“What else do you have?” asked Kel with a scowl.

“Just that our aim should be to reach the third planet, and find out what is special about it,” he replied. He sat down, keen to get out of the focus.

A second admiral stood.

“Based on the account of your captain, the Baglogi totally compromised their vessel. They took control of all our systems. This puts us at an extreme strategic disadvantage. We can’t tell how they did it,” he said.

A third admiral stood. “If they compromise any of our vessels, those vessels could become hostile to the rest of our fleet,” he said.

“Are we aware of any limitations?” asked Kel.

“No, Sir. There might be a distance limitation or a limit on the number of vessels they can control. We won’t know until we get there,” he replied.

“I recommend we attack from multiple directions, and try to overwhelm their defences,” offered a fourth admiral.

“Agreed. We will divide our fleet into three groups,” said Kel.

“Sir, we must monitor each vessel in case they become compromised. As soon as we detect a compromised vessel, we must destroy it,” said the fourth admiral.

“That’s rather drastic!” said the third admiral.

“True, but once they lose control, it becomes an enemy combatant,” said Kel.

“I’m unsure my crew can fire on one of their own,” said the third admiral.

“If you don’t, the rogue vessels will fire on you,” said Kel.

“We need to pressure the Baglogi and push them into making a mistake. As soon as they give away their position, we need to hit them with all we can,” said the fourth admiral.

“If possible, we should disable their vessels. I want to salvage the Baglogi technology,” said Kel.

“Agreed. If we can,” he replied.

“Can we afford the cost? How many vessels and lives do we lose before deciding the cost is too high?” asked the third admiral.

Admiral Kel gave him a withering look. The third admiral shrank down in his seat.

Kel stood and pointed at the hologram.

“There must be something of strategic value, or the Baglogi wouldn’t defend it. I want it, and I want their advanced technology too,” said Kel.

After that, they discussed the numbers and types of vessels they could commit to the attack. They divided the fleet into three groups and assigned group leaders and attack vectors.

“This is our biggest challenge yet. The risks are significant, but the rewards are greater! We leave in three days. Have your crews and vessels ready,” said the older admiral.

After breakfast, I approached Mina.

“Hey Mina, would you like to take a walk with me?” I asked.

Mina smiled. We wandered off together, with her botany lab in mind as the destination.

“Mina, how do you like the garden idea?” I asked.

“It is a great idea. It can showcase my plants and be another space for us to visit,” replied Mina.

“Ship, did you have space for a garden?” I asked.

“Confirmed, I can use a cargo room next to the botany lab. I will include a connecting door, plus a main entrance,” replied Ship.

“Mina, let’s go look at the room,” I suggested.

Mina nodded, and we picked up the pace of our walk.

On a long trip, it helped to have projects. I figured that once started, Ship and Mina would do most of this project.

We arrived at the door to our future garden. The door opened, and we entered an empty cargo hold.

“We will need environmental systems to match the climate on Dentra,” said Mina.

“It is too bad we didn’t bring a few tons of Dentra soil,” I said.

“I can replicate a suitable growing medium,” said Ship.

“The samples they gave us are not enough to fill this room,” said Mina.

“It will take time to grow enough plants,” I agreed.

I walked around the bare room.

“Ship, we should plan out pathways. Then we put growing medium everywhere else,” I said.

“We need the growing medium to be a suitable depth for the plant roots. When the saplings mature into trees,” said Mina.

“I can lower the floor by sacrificing space on the deck below this,” offered Ship.

“You will need to reinforce the floor to hold the weight of the growing medium plus water. It will need to be water tight, and include drainage,” said Mina.