The Black Planet (21 page)

Chapter 42

Steven rose before Komoru and put on a tracksuit.  He ran for a couple of miles in the fresh mountain air.  Today everything seemed new.  The light brighter, the air fresher and the colours deeper.  The blood seemed to sing round his veins as he ran.  On returning to the estate he began to do stretching exercises and was soon lost in the world of martial arts as he went through the different exercise patterns.

The Sarge had soaked for a long time trying to get rid of his hangover.  Refreshed he had made his way down to the small dining hall where Lady Jane was standing looking out of the large bay windows with a cup of tea in her hands.

‘Hey Lady what’s doin?’

She raised an eyebrow at him, ‘our captain seems to be doing some strange form or ritual dance.  That’s what’s doin!  Sargent Kelly.’

Kelly grabbed himself a hot cup of coffee and joined her.  It wasn’t long before his eyebrows were also knitted together.  ‘Looks like that Jap stuff.’

‘Stuff?’  She enquired.

‘Yeah you know Jap fighting stuff.’

‘Actually no I don’t.’ 

Kelly was ready to growl at her but Tapper intervened, he soon joined them at the window with his first morning cup.  ‘Maybe you can shed some light on what the Captain is doing Lord Dunedin.’

Tapper was soon frowning, ‘indeed, what is the captain doing.’

‘I think it’s that Jap fighting stuff.’  Kelly supplied.

‘It isn’t just Japanese Sarge, I don’t recognise that style at all and I am a black belt in two different martial arts.  That’s what they are now called by the way.’

Kelly just grunted.  Lady Jane was more vocal.  ‘It doesn’t look like any form of art I know.’

‘You consider the ballet an art Jane?’

‘Of course she admitted.’

‘Same sort of thing Jane, it takes years of practise to master even one martial art and so far I have seen our captain perform patterns from at least three I recognise.’

‘Morning everyone,’ Buzz came bursting through the door looking for a coffee.

‘Morning Buzz,’ Tapper greeted him, ‘how many martial arts is the captain proficient in?’

Buzz grinned seeing Steven beyond the window, ‘I lost count years ago; he is quite something to watch isn’t he.’

‘I’ll say.’ Tapper agreed.

‘Ain’t gonna do you any good against a bullet,’ Kelly snorted.

‘Great against bullying jocks at school though,’ Buzz grinned, ‘which was why his father sent him too classes in the first place.’

Lady Jane gave Kelly a dirty look, ‘the Captain isn’t a military man, he is a man of science and peace.  Our generations failed and that cost millions of human beings their lives.  Our Captain through unforeseen circumstance has been forced into a military role against his deepest desires.  Our race stands on the precipice of extinction and one man stands foremost among all others in this battle to come.  That is the man you mock now Sergeant Kelly.  He prepares himself for battle in the only way he knows how.  If we survive as a race it will be because of him and humanity will move forward into a new era of peace and prosperity.  If humanity takes its place amongst thousands of others then it will because of that man out there.  I would sincerely hope if that bullet does come, then you would have the decency to step in front of it.’

The air crackled with tension for a few moment, then Kelly slowly grinned, ‘how about I just pull him out of the way.’

Jane stuck her nose in the air and went back to studying the captain. 

The door clicked and all heads turned.  A very dishevelled Komoru froze like a deer in the headlights of a car.  She had slipped out of Stevens’s room quietly without being observed and was pleased.  She soon got lost in the many corridors trying to find her own room.  When she found herself by the small dining room she realised she could reach her own room from there.  Bursting through the door she hadn’t expected to find anyone there.  ‘Morning,’ she squeaked before dashing off through the other door blushing furiously.

The three men stood with stupid grins on their faces, ‘looks like someone got a little lost last night,’ Tapper suggested.  They burst out laughing. 

The only one who wasn’t amused was Lady Jane.  ‘Well at least they had the decency to get engaged first.’

The three men stopped laughing, Buzz blinked, ‘engaged, when?  Stevie never said anything to me.’

‘Didn’t you see the ring on her finger?’ Jane asked, ‘it has to be the size of a sparrow’s egg.’

‘Trust a Dame to spot a sparkler,’ laughed Kelly.

She skewered him with a look, ‘I am not a Dame Sergeant Kelly, I am a Lady.’

Tapper rubbed his hands together with a grin, ‘breakfast anyone?’

They all agreed, there was nothing like starting the day with a hearty breakfast and a juicy piece of gossip.

Chapter 43

The airport at Kyoto was a hive of activity and the arrival of the two ships caused quite a stir.  Crowds of people stood with their phones in the air trying to catch a photograph.  Babes had converted a part of her body to carry Stevens’s car and during the journey had made significant improvements to it.  They had dropped off everyone all over the world before proceeding to Japan.  As Komoru was the only one of the pair that had her own home and they still had a few days off, it was a no brainer.  The ships had permission to land in Japan but had to do so at an airport.  An armed guard was waiting to provide protection for the ships.  Most of Komoru’s crew also decided to get off at Kyoto and make their way home from there.  Only those who had drawn the short straws were left on duty aboard the two ships.

Steven spotted the differences in is car the moment he sat inside. ‘What have you done Babes?’ 

Her voice boomed from the speakers, ‘I have made your Ferrari safer my heart.’

Steven was getting worried, ‘how so?’

Komoru was sitting in the passenger seat with her hand in front of her mouth trying her best not to laugh at his expression.   

‘I have replaced the anti-gravity drive with a safer version my heart and the power plant.’

Steven paled, ‘oh hell no, you haven’t changed the engine?’

‘Not the ground running engine my heart, only the power plant that supplies power to the anti-gravity unit.’

He felt relief was through him, ‘oh thank god for that.’

Komoru burst out laughing, he just frowned at her, ‘so what exactly have you done, what are all these new buttons for?’

‘You now have the capability to fly at two thousand miles an hour.’

‘That would strip the paint off her.’

‘I realised that my heart that is why I repainted the car with a special paint that would not come off on re-entry.  I used the original pigmentation for the colour.’

‘So I can take this into space.’

‘No my heart, you can take it up to two thousand feet above ground level or two thousand feet below sea level.’

A large grin split his face, ‘we can go under water, cool.’

‘The undercarriage will also retract into the body to facilitate better aerodynamic functionality and the stabiliser on the rear of the car will now also act as a rudder.  I am worried about the ground speed this car of yours can operate at, it isn’t safe, may I limit it to safer speeds?’

‘Uh! No, leave it be, I will drive safely, I promise.’

‘As you wish my heart.’

Steven grinned at Komoru, ‘so which way is it?’

Laughing she pointed the way.  They were soon caught up in the morning Kyoto rush hour.  With a grin Steven engaged the antigravity drive and lifted above the traffic.  Many cars came to a halt and people got out to stare as the bright red car lifted away from the ground and disappeared into the distance.  They didn’t get very far before a couple of Japanese fighters slid up alongside.  The communications equipment sprang to life and Komoru replied to the pilot’s rapid fire questions.  They had already broken a dozen rules and regulations.  Komoru apologised profusely and they guided the red car down to 200 feet before waggling their wings and leaving them to it.

Steven set the car down gently and they drove the last few miles.  She directed him up a secluded driveway, through an ancient forest.  First sight took Stevens breath away.  It looked like something from a film set from one of those movies about the old samurai.  They took their shoes off at the door.  The inside also looked ancient, broken up by highly decorated paper screens.  Steven quickly discovered it was anything but.  Komoru had soft touch technology that sprang to life at a gentle stroke of her fingers.  Steven immediately fell in love with the place.

Komoru introduced him to a Japanese version of a hot tub and then they spent the rest of the morning in bed.  After a light meal they decided to explore Japan.   Komoru showed him around her home, they visited a dozen temples and sites of significance before Steven decided it was time to try out the underwater capabilities of his new car.  They explored reefs and sunken wrecks, cruised along with shoals of fish.  The afternoon ended as they cruised along a few feet under the waves and explored what you could and couldn’t do in the front seat of a Ferrari.

Chapter 44

On the moon of DorthGraa, an area over seventy miles in circumference began to vibrate.  The light lunar dust began to jump around and make strange swirling patterns as it became more excited.  In places plumes of dust exploded high.  A solid ring of light burst from the surface of the moon and molten rock raced past the now falling dust.  The ring of light, never totally diminished.  A few hours later it began to grow brighter as the huge slab began to lift free of the moon’s surface.  Tons of fine dust cascaded over the edges into the growing hole below.  It took almost a full lunar day for the massive slab of rock to be lifted clear of the surface and then it began to pulsate with a strange light as the rock began to move. 

It took a farther two lunar days for the slab to move clear of the cavern beneath.  It was another full lunar day before the dark cavern began to fill with light.  It wasn’t a single light, it was hundreds of thousands of lights, many of them different colours.  Large towing ships slipped into the great cavern and hooked up to the great ship within.  Slowly it was towed out into the light of their home sun for the first and the last time.

Once it was clear of the moon it languished in orbit for a few months as final preparations and tests were carried out.  As the weeks passed thousands of ships in tight box formations began to take their place round the massive city ship.  On the day it finally departed a small probe thousands of miles away began to send the data it had been gathering.

Chapter 45

Steven and Komoru appeared suddenly before the Earths Defence Council.  More than one member present got a surprise.  One of them was the head of the organisation.  ‘I almost peed myself there Captain Gordon, would it be too much to ask to have you use a specified location as some form of transporter room.’

Steven laughed, ‘if you set it up sir I will adhere to your wishes.’

‘Thank you for that.  Did you receive a report from the Emperor?’

‘Yes sir, probably at the same time as you did.’

‘Have you had time to analyse it yet.’

‘Yes sir I have.  Unfortunately we have seriously underestimated the enemy’s numbers.  They out number us by thousands of ships of all types.  The city ship is also the biggest on record with a circumference of about seventy miles.’

‘Are we doomed Captain?’

Steven shrugged, ‘it will take them almost six months to reach the barrier and the city ship is so slow it will take it another eight months from there to the Black Planet, then almost a year from there to Earth.’

‘So we have some time then.’

‘Not as much as you may wish sir.  The city ship itself will take that long but I firmly believe they will split into at least two groups once they cross the Great Barrier.  They have fast scout craft that could reach Earth in a few months once they have crossed.  A large battle fleet could reach us within a year from now.’

‘Say we have eleven months Captain, where would we stand then?’

’We would still be thousands of ships short sir.  If we double the assault battalions we most likely would have enough men and weapons, however the problem would be delivering them.  Until we receive deep scans from the Emperors strike force about their defensive capabilities, we really just don’t know what we are dealing with.’

There was silence for a while.  The head of the organisation seemed deep in thought.  ‘I will put every resource I can at your disposal Captain Gordon, would you look into the problem for us and try and find a solution?’

‘I will try sir.  Will that be all for the moment?’

‘Yes captain, thank you.’

For the next few weeks Steven attended meeting after meeting, but seemed to be getting nowhere fast.  One Sunday he was sitting with his own military men discussing the situation.

Steven was rubbing the back of his neck.  ‘It’s the biggest known invasion force ever assembled.’  His eyes flicked up, ‘even bigger than D Day Sarge.’

Kelly normally felt out of place in these meetings as they talked about things well above his pay grade, but if there was one thing Kelly did know about it was invasions.  ‘Cup of Joe sir?’

‘Thanks Sarge I would appreciate that.’

Howe flicked through his tablet, ‘Even if we could build enough factories sir, we still don’t have the time to build enough ships.’

Steven took the offered cup, ‘thank you.  I know colonel.  They have had the resources of a dozen planets going at it for years and we have the resources of one and no time.’

‘We have the guns sir, just not the ships to mount them on.’

Steven agreed, ‘I know.  We are so far ahead we need to wind that part of the operation down.  Maybe we can convert the factories into making something else.  Any suggestions?’

The silence stretched.  It was Kelly who eventually broke it.  ‘I think you fellas are over thinking it all.  There’s too much brains at this table.’

Steven found himself grinning as did Tapper and Howe, ‘go on the Sarge, help us out here,’ Steven encouraged.

Kelly shoved his boots up on the table and took a mouthful of coffee with a sigh.  ‘By the end of the second world war our combined air forces had bombed the shit out of industrial Germany, but still the shits managed to put men and machines onto the battlefield.  What the Krauts were really good at was improvising, making do with whatever they could get their hands on.  When they ran out of steel they saved time and expense by mounting guns on motorised carriages and aimed them by steering the damn things, effective too.  You ain’t ever seen anything as terrifying as a German Panzer regiment coming at you with all their guns blazing.  Blitzkrieg they called it.  We learned how to stop them though.

What I can see from all this is that you are playing the enemy’s game sir.  Looks to me like ships of the line pounding on each other until one ships sinks.  Forget all your fancy fighter squadron tactics at the moment sir.  Strip all that off and you’re going at it like an old naval type battle, right?’

Steven shrugged, ‘I suppose I can see where you are coming from Sarge, go on.’

‘Seems to me that there are lots of examples in human naval history where outnumbered fleets have won the day.  Let’s shove all that to the side for the moment sir.  Right now we got Navy, Air force and infantry all going into battle.  Where’s our tanks sir, where’s our artillery?  It’s how we stopped the Panzers sir, sheer fire power.  You don’t need a thousand battle cruisers or ten thousand Destroyers when you got a hundred thousand tanks or artillery pieces.  Why not mount a gun on a chassis like a tank, give it some form of propulsion.  We got millions of tankie’s and artillery boys just howling to get in on this act, hell I hear they are trying to join the infantry to get in on the fight.  You don’t need bloody big Destroyers or Battleships sir, get some artillery, get some tanks.  Hell my nine year old great nephew could probably fly something like that, I seen him and his friends on those game machines shooting the shit out of things.’

Steven blinked rapidly as he communicated with Babes.  ‘It is something that has never been done before.’

Kelly shrugged, ‘all the better sir, the buggers won’t know what’s hit them until it’s too late.  We got thousands of cargo ships now sir, you could transport them to the battlefield that way then deploy them just out of range.  Take them into battle in large formations of a thousand guns at a time, like the krauts did.’

‘Slow moving targets like those could easily be avoided Sarge, or become easy prey to fighters,’ Tapper pointed out the obvious.

‘Get them into their set piece battle then deploy the tanks sir.  You guys ain’t sure if this is an air force battle or a naval battle yet.  Well it ain’t, it’s a battle for our goddamn existence and we got to use every advantage we got, and anything they ain’t got in their training manuals is a goddamn advantage sir.  Yeah, sure, it won’t take them long to figure out these things are easy prey.  Hell it didn’t take our boys long to discover that their Sherman’s weren’t any good against a kraut Tiger, hell the brass knew before they set foot in Europe that our boys wouldn’t stand a chance going toe to toe against a German Tiger Tank.  What they did was outnumber them about ten or twenty to one.’  Kelly took his feet down from the table and sat forward, ‘let me tell you something else, knowing they were outclassed didn’t stop our boys either.  They found a way of dealing with the Tigers just as we will find a way to defeat these beasts, simply because we have no other choice.  Lay a trap, lead them into a set piece battle then kill them.’

Stevens mind opened up to the possibilities, ‘at this moment in time we have ten thousand heavy guns waiting for ships and another twenty thousand lighter ones, not including those for close defence against fighters.   Sarge you may well have saved the day.  I’m going to go and see if I can wrap a small ship round a gun,’ he stood, ‘if you will excuse me gentlemen.’

The two special service men regarded Kelly with admiration, it was Howe who voiced what he was thinking, ‘well done Sarge.’

Kelly shoved his feet back up onto the table, ‘hell you boys are just kiddies in this game.’

The two men laughed until their sides hurt.