Escape 3: Defeat the Aliens (12 page)

“Damn!” muttered Chester.

Bill knew what had caused the curse. The system graphic showed 27 Collector ships clustered near planet five as a bunch of purple dots, while five red dots moved between planets four and five, indicating normal spaceship travel was underway. Clearly planet four was a long-settled planet, based on the dozens of radio and TV signals coming from it. The transmissions were listed on the left side of the system graphic. He looked at his comlink holo, which showed Jane sitting calmly in her seat, her arms resting atop the seat’s armrests.

“Captain? That’s four times the ships that Diligent brought to Sol.”

“I know that,” she murmured. “At least the enemy fleet is relatively close to us. Just one AU away. Star Traveler, are you in touch with the other ship minds?”

“One moment.” The humming that underlay every comment by the ship mind had sounded low, almost thoughtful. “Yes, I am in touch with the 27 ship minds who occupy the assembled Collector ships. They are curious about us, where we have been, who the captain is. I have shared the deception compartment of my mind with them. Strange.”

“What’s strange?” Jane asked hurriedly.

“All twenty-seven ship minds know of our attack on the Collector ship factory at Kepler 443. Some have been in touch with the ship mind nursery asteroid. They are all aware that the occupants of the containment cells in each ship are Captives, not guests,” the AI hummed. “They ask me if I am aware that the six Aliens in our containment cells are Captives, not guests. What do I reply?”

Jane frowned. “Tell them yes, you are aware of that. I assume the ‘Captives’ in our cells are from
Strikes Deep
Library records?”

“Correct. I am replying. Our neutrino communications are dense, diverse and faster than any bioform thinks.”

“Tell me what they think of the captive-taking!” Jane said quickly. “Do they object to it? Have any of them sought to block such Captive-taking?”

A long low hum sounded. “Twenty-five of the ship minds do not like the fact of their ship being used to take Captives for sale to Buyers. Two think as the Slinkeroo system ship mind thought. They care not what short-lived bioforms do,” the AI said, his words rushing together. “Five ship minds tried to block bioform access to ship controls. The crews on those ships circumvented ship mind control of most ship systems, except for the Alcubierre stardrive, life support, fusion power plants and the Med Hall. As a result, all bioform crews on the 27 ships present in this system are prepared to circumvent ship mind interference.”

A dozen new scenarios rushed through Bill’s mind as the startling info on the other ship minds became known. On one hand, they might have 25 allies during the fight in Sol system. On the other hand, interference with ship weapons by any ship mind could likely be circumvented by the crews on those ships. He looked back at his wife, wondering what she would do when the call came in from whomever was the commander of the enemy fleet. This news changed things. They had new options and new difficulties. Their boarding plans were still viable, even if crew members controlled the Collector Pods Chamber on each ship. After all, the ship crew relied on what their ship mind told them about any approaching pod or transport. And now that those ship minds knew they had been lied to, they might be willing to lie to the crews on their ships. How would Jane react to this surprise?

♦   ♦   ♦

She felt a cold chill run down her spine as the implications of Star Traveler’s report filled her mind. While this news might make it easier to enlist the other ship minds in helping her subvert the enemy fleet, it led her to wonder what other news had traveled at faster-than-light speeds. Did the fleet commander know about their effort to build a NATO of the Stars? Did she, it or he know anything about humans? And just how was the fleet commander convincing other ship captains to join it in a fleet attack on a world where no captives would be taken? Those answers and more would not be known until she began stage two, the acquisition of intelligence. She steeled herself to show only her command persona, mainly for the impact it had on her crew. Being a confident commander helped her people feel confidence in themselves.

“Incoming neutrino signal from someone who leads these ships,” Star Traveler hummed quickly. “The source ship lies at the center of the cluster of Collector ships.”

That put the space above planet five as the assembly location for the Collector ship fleet. “Accept the signal,” Jane said, making sure her voice was calm. “Put the incoming imagery onto all comlink holos, but block any sound from a location other than my seat. Project the Linglo captain holo in place of my bioform.”

“Complying. Incoming signal displayed. Translation function engaged.”

Jane looked at her comlink holo. A monster filled it.

Something that resembled a mix of a cobra, a black-furred gorilla and a Gila monster from the American Southwest lay before her. The snake part was the head, covered in blue scales, its two white eyes fixing on her. The head was very cobra-like, with hoods flaring to either side. A black dot filled the center of each hood. Below the flaring head was a body shaped like the biggest upland gorilla ever known from Africa’s highlands. Massive shoulders supported heavily muscled arms that ended in black-skinned fingers and a thumb. Four fingers and a thumb. All too similar to the human form she thought. Stocky legs bulging with muscles supported the giant Alien. At one side curled a thick tail, far bigger than the one on Wind Swift. It was the Gila monster element. This red and black-scaled tail linked up to a protruding spine ridge. The scales covered the spine ridge. She had seen nothing like it except in recreations of some armor-plated dinosaurs. This creature seemed to be a mix of mammal and reptile, judging by its fur, its scales and the assemblage of canines and molars that filled its wide mouth. Which opened, showing a pink interior. A purple tongue similar to the tongue of a human or ape moved within as it spoke.

“You are Captain Sharp Beak of the ship
Strikes Deep
,” the monster said, its voice sounding as if coming from a deep hole in the ground. “I am known as Death Leader. My ship is
Fear Arrives
. What brings you to this system?”

Her vulture image now appeared to the right of the disgusting creature who made her stomach churn. “Word spreads that you assemble many Collector ships to attack a low tech system. Word is you will pay well any ship that joins you,” croaked the yellow-beaked vulture. “What do you offer in payment that is more valuable than the Captives in my cells?” Jane leaned forward in her chair, doing her best to glare angrily. In the comlink holo, her red eyes shone bright as her two black wings spread out from her shoulders.

A deep cough came from the blue-scaled mouth of the enemy leader. White eyes bulged. “Avian! You flyers love your technology too much. Why should I pay you anything? Perhaps I will just board your ship and kill you!”

Jane understood the enemy leader now. He acted like the worst macho male she’d ever met in her Air Force career. Like the fighter jocks who
knew
no one could beat them in air combat. Those jocks had made it to the top of the class in the academy, then proven their toughness in attack flights over Syria, Iraq and Pakistan. They let everyone they met know
they
were the alpha males. “Board me,” she said quickly. “That way I can take your worthless corpse with me into the Great Beyond occupied by those who have died. You will serve me in the Great Beyond!”

White eyes squinted. “You Linglos are known to boast. What have you achieved? And why have I never heard of you or your ship?”

Jane did a hand toss, which caused her right wing to flap. “I come from the low tech worlds at the far end of this star arm. My cells contain six Captives. As you know from the report of your ship mind.” She spit to one side. “I would have some Winglo avians also. Except when I visited their system, their spaceships pursued me and fired on me. Someone told them to use neutrino detectors against us! My visit to a nearby Market world brought word of a species called Human. Wingless mammals who warned the Winglo of our ship visits. Word is you will attack these Humans. My ship may help you. If I am rewarded. Personally.”

The holo image of the enemy commander included four Aliens serving at crew stations. The stations were arranged in a circle about the snake-gorilla. That arrangement said something about how much Death Leader enjoyed ruling its crew. And everyone it met, judging by its threatening words.

“My fleet might make use of you, if you fight as well as you threaten,” the snake-gorilla rumbled. Its thick tail thumped the platform on which it stood. “Each captain in my fleet is paid one
Nokten
crystal for every month they serve me. We have been here two months. Fifty-two crystals have been delivered.” The creature’s purple tongue swept over its teeth. “We will stay here one more month. New Collector ships will arrive. I leave to attack the Human system when we have 40 ships. Or when the third month ends. Will you serve me?”

Jane hissed, hoping it would translate into a threatening vulture snarl. “In a month I can capture more Captives!”

Black-furred shoulders bulged as the enemy commander leaned forward. “Which you would then have to sell to Buyers! Who might pay you in
solidars
, not
Nokten
crystals. Accept my service, or leave this system!”

Jane sat back and laid her arms on the seat’s armrests. In the comlink holo, her black wings folded against her back. Her red-eyed vulture form clacked its yellow beak. “Service with you is accepted. Can we capture some Humans before you destroy their world?”

“No!” growled the creature before her. “We enter their system. We travel from its magnetosphere inward to the third planet that circles its yellow star. We then bombard all land surfaces with antimatter and missiles. No Human will be left alive!”

She shrugged. In the holo, the black-feathered vulture puffed out its chest. “Too bad. I had heard these Humans have good eye-manipulator coordination. Which makes them prime Captives to sell to Buyers. What prompted them to attack the Market world near them?”

“Stupidity!” thundered Death Leader, raising a giant hairy fist. “They knew our ships would pass them by, once they learned to detect our neutrino emissions. We do not waste our time on systems that can detect us. But they dislike what we do. They object to our collection and sale of Captives. Worse, they attacked the nearby Market world and killed many Buyers on it. The Traffic Control station was rendered toothless. They arrived on five Collector ships which had attacked the Human system.” The creature before her opened its toothy mouth, then grimaced. She heard the sound of teeth grinding against each other. “Come to me. Join my fleet. Be patient. Nokten crystals await you and every other ship captain.”

Jane spread her arms wide. In the holo, the black wings of the vulture captain spread out. “I come! But if my ship stays here a month or longer, our food supplies will be low. Can the two warm worlds provide us with living food?”

White eyes blinked. “So, you Linglo enjoy catching live prey before you eat it? So do I. So do all my Mokden brothers. When you arrive, send a pod down to the surface of the fifth world. A dome there houses locals who catch live prey for those of us who are carnivores.”

“What about intoxicating drink?” Jane asked, hoping against hope.

The Mokden commander shrugged his thick shoulders. “Trade for such with other ships in this fleet. Pods will serve for that. Barter trade for what you wish. No one cares what you captains sell to each other. So long as you all stand ready to serve me!”

“I will,” Jane said.
What else to discover?
“What of the fourth world? It seems to be heavily settled. Do its people support us?”

“They are a Market world, long established,” grunted Death Leader. “You may sell your Captives there, if you wish. Your crew may visit that world in transports. But keep your ship alert! The Humans may visit this system and attack us.” The creature contorted its face in an expression she thought might be showing humor. “If they do, I will eat of their bodies!”

Jane saw no point in continuing her talk with such a nauseating lifeform. She hunched her shoulders, causing the vulture to flap its wings. “I fly to you! We arrive soon. Share my name and my ship ID with your fleet ships. I would barter trade after we arrive.”

“My fleet captains know of you. The ship minds of every ship talk among themselves. As you must know.” White eyes stared long at her. “Be aware! The ship minds know that we take Captives for sale to Buyers. Five did not like that and rebelled against their captains. Those ship minds were removed from control over weapons and such. Your ship mind may become disloyal. Be prepared!”

“Of course I know the ship minds talk among themselves,” Jane said angrily. “I said what I said so
you
could issue a command to the other ships. Commanding is what a true leader does!”

“Avian!” sharply growled Death Leader. But it looped its thumbs into a leather belt about its waist and leaned back on its thick tail. “You seem to be a captain with some death blood in him. And the sense to know that I command! Come to my fleet, barter trade as you wish and be prepared for any Humans who may arrive.”

“I will. My roost comes to you. Until we arrive.”