Chapter 65: To Earth

“We have about ten days before we arrive in the Earth system. Brian and Laine, I want you to come up with surprises for the Aenat,” said Jem.

I nodded. “We have the schematics for their vessel,” I said.

“Ship, you will coordinate with Quon when we arrive. Work on potential strategies,” said Jem.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“What can I do?” asked Mina.

“I don’t know yet. But don’t wait for me to find something,” replied Jem with a smile.

“It’s unfortunate we don’t get to try out the new resort island,” said Laine.

“I hope we aren’t too late,” I said. “There are billions of primitives on Earth.”

“We only just found out. It depends on how long the Aenat take to ready their invasion fleet,” replied Jem.

“Laine, would you come with me,” I said. She smiled and nodded.

Laine and I rose from our seats and left the main bridge.

The Aenat battle fleet travelled through hyperspace in formation.

Admiral Kel sat in his briefing room aboard the flagship going over readiness reports.

This was the biggest mission of his career. When he returned victorious with captured Baglogi technology, he would be a hero.

It disappointed him that the one vessel which had already visited the system was not part of his battle fleet. Captain Suth reported that a virus triggered a system crash. It was out of service, and the crew had to evacuate because life-support failed.

Baglogi technology was beyond anything they had. With it, he could dominate this region of space. Admiral Kel salivated at the thought.

Laine and I sat on a sofa in the lounge area of the main dining lounge.

“What new surprises can we dream up to defend against the Aenat?” asked Laine.

“I don’t know yet. So far, Quon sent one Aenat vessel home. He might do so again,” I replied.

“But Quon expected them to return and in greater numbers,” said Laine.

“Yes. Ship, do you have all of Quon’s findings?” I asked.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship. Lots of data appeared on the display in front of us.

“Too much detail, Ship! Why did Quon expect the Aenat to return? Why can’t they respect a closed system?” I asked.

“The data from their vessel suggests the Aenat don’t respect closed worlds,” replied Ship.

I sighed. I didn’t want to keep visiting the Earth system.

“So they are likely to return soon?” asked Laine.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“The data port probe worked on their vessel. It might work again,” said Laine.

“If they return, I expect Quon to use nano-bots,” I said.

“Quon could use both,” said Laine. “Once a vessel is under our control, it can attack other vessels or lure them into the path of a cloud of nano-bots.”

“Agreed. Ship, is Quon likely to use this strategy?” I asked.

“Confirmed. Quon will make use of all available strategies as required to defend the Earth system,” replied Ship.

“Perhaps Quon will succeed without our help,” I said.

“We don’t know how many Aenat vessels will attack. How many is too many?” asked Laine.

“A good question, Laine. It depends on how many defensive probes Quon has and how many Aenat vessels attack. Ship, do you have any answers?” I asked.

“Negative, Commander,” replied Ship.

I sighed. “Quon is unaware if we got the message in time. He will base his decisions on fighting them off without our help,” I said.

We were both silent for a moment.

“Quon is in the system, facing outwards. The Aenat will face inwards when they attack,” said Laine.

“Yes, that is a reasonable assumption,” I replied.

“If we arrive during the battle, we will be behind the Aenat,” said Laine.

“That is an advantage. Excellent!” I said.

Laine smiled at me.

“Ship, can you adjust your course to drop out of hyperspace further out from the system? I want to be behind the enemy lines if possible,” I said.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“Thanks to you, we have our first surprise for the Aenat,” I said.

Her smile went up a notch.

Later, Laine and I took a break from our work. We took the elevator down to visit the new garden. I was keen to see what progress Mina had made.

We approached the double doors, and they opened. I gestured to Laine, and we entered.

“Hello, Mina!” called Laine.

Mina was kneeling, working in one of the planting areas. She turned to face us.

“Hello, Laine and Brian. I was just planning out the layout for this section,” she replied.

There were stakes placed in the ground where she intended to put plants.

“We are taking a break from our work, so we came here,” I said.

Mina smiled. She got to her feet and brushed the dirt off her jumpsuit.

We moved over to a seating area where we sat together.

“The garden is peaceful,” said Laine.

“The plants will make it even better, eventually,” said Mina.

“Take your time. Remember, Jem said not to overdo it,” I said.

Mina nodded.

“How goes the surprises?” asked Mina.

“Laine came up with a good one,” I replied. I looked to Laine.

“While Quon is defending the Earth system, he will face outwards. The Aenat will move into the system, facing inwards. We can approach the Aenat from behind,” said Laine.

“Yes, that sounds good. They won’t expect that,” said Mina.

By giving credit to Laine, she felt good about herself. Mina’s comment helped reinforce her confidence. I didn’t need to be the one with ideas. If they considered me indispensable, it will be harder to leave.

After a few minutes, Mina stood. “I’ll get back to what I was doing. I’m almost ready to plant saplings,” she said. Laine and I also stood.

“Can I help?” asked Laine.

“Yes, that would be great!” replied Mina.

“I will check in with Jem. Have fun ladies,” I said.

I exited the garden and went looking for the Commodore.

As I stepped into the elevator, I called out. “Ship, where is the Commodore?”

“The Commodore is in the lido,” replied Ship.

“Please take me there,” I said.

The elevator took me up to the relevant deck. With the inertial dampeners, I didn’t feel any motion.

I exited the elevator and made my way to the lido.

Jem was relaxing in a hammock in the warm sunshine. She looked up when I entered.

“Hello, Brian. How are you?” asked Jem.

“I’m well, thanks. Would you like company?” I replied.

“Pull up a lounger,” she replied.

I dragged a lounger over into the shade. In this heat, I wouldn’t stay long.

“Any issues?” asked Jem.

“No, Commodore. Laine and Mina are planting in the garden. I thought I’d check in with you,” I replied.

Jem nodded.

I lay back and closed my eyes to block out the sunlight.

“If we stop the Aenat at the Earth system, we must visit their home system and negotiate a peace,” I mused aloud.

“What’s that?” asked Jem.

I looked up at Jem.

“They will probably lose most of their fleet trying to invade the Earth system, which could discourage further attacks. We need to make sure they leave Earth alone,” I replied.

“So we need to visit the Aenat system?” asked Jem.

“They’ll continue sending invasion fleets as fast as they keep building vessels,” I replied.

“I see your point. We need to discourage them,” said Jem.

“It is annoying. I never wanted to go near Earth. Now I am their protector,” I grumbled.

“Peace keeping is our role,” said Jem.

I sighed. She was right.

In the evening, we had dinner and a movie together.

Laine and Mina prepared the meal. Jem selected a movie.

We loaded up plates of food and sat on the couch together.

Both Ori and Quard cuisine featured spicy dishes. It was more pleasant than the bland Tian food I grew up with.

“My compliments to the cooks. This meal is delicious!” I said.

Both Laine and Mina smiled. They seemed to be trying to outdo themselves with their cooking.

“Yes, thank you Laine and Mina for a delicious meal,” added Jem.

Ship dimmed the ambient lighting, and the movie began. It was an epic space adventure. We laughed at the unrealistic bits.

As far as a morale boosting activity, it was a success.

The next day, I met up with Laine in the lounge.

“Laine, do you have any new surprises for the Aenat?” I asked.

She smiled and shook her head.

“Well, you are one surprise ahead of me. Maybe it’s my turn to think of something,” I said.

“Go ahead,” she said.

“Ship, pull up the schematics for the Aenat vessel,” I said. On the display, schematics appeared.

“Ship, please prepare protocols for an Aenat vessel probe. Project the image of an Aenat vessel and send valid Aenat transponder codes. We might use it to confuse the invading fleet,” I said.

“Confirmed. I have updated protocols for the Aenat vessel probe,” replied Ship.

“Did Quon get details of their communications codes?” I asked.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“When we arrive, you will record the transponder codes of the invading vessels. Tune in to their communications. I doubt the Aenat will realize we can listen in,” I said.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“You are to coordinate with Quon. You can send messages using their communications codes, direct vessels or countermand their orders. It should be enough to disrupt their fleet,” I said.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“You can literally order vessels to change course into the path of a cloud of nano-bots,” I said.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“Wow!” exclaimed Laine.

“If the Aenat changed their communications codes, use data port probes to take over one or more vessels. Then get the new codes from their cores,” I said.