The Pathfinder Project (15 page)

A very curious bunny rabbit
stood up on its hind legs and watched him enter one of the animal habitats. He
could hear birds chirping in the distance, and several fluttered by overhead as
he walked further inside. There was a very nice dirt-covered walking path in
front of him, and he remembered a comment Lt. Hastings had made earlier about
riding horses in here. Leave it to Mary to find a way to keep the great
outdoors in her life – even millions of kilometers from home.

Several days earlier, Joseph
had told him to be sure and “Look up!” if he made it onto one of the farming or
ranch areas. He had laughed at the time, knowing why his son was so impressed
by the idea and couldn’t resist glancing upward now. A warm smile crossed his
features as he noted that he was standing directly under – over? – one of the
wildlife habitats on the other side. He could see some of the wilder beasts
that composed their small zoo idly walking around or reclining lazily in shaded
areas beneath the simulated daylight. Obviously he had chosen to walk on the
side with four seasons, since those beasts would be unable to withstand colder
weather.

Fenced off areas appeared on
the left and the right as he strolled leisurely by, some containing a herd of
horses, others keeping various breeds of cattle organized. There weren’t as
many cattle on board as had been promised, so it was now up to their on-board
veterinarians to make certain that all of the animals had plenty of babies. He
noticed a gopher digging a large hole at the edge of one of the fence posts and
laughed to himself at the memory of a recent report that had crossed his desk.
Someone in Thomas’ software section had complained angrily about some of the
smaller rodents getting into the passenger areas of the ship. “
The Lab wing
isn’t the only place on board the
Pathfinder
where sensitive equipment
is stored and maintained
…” the report had read.

There were other people visiting
the wing, also walking along the dirt roads running through the area. Some
waved at him, others passed by not knowing quite what to say. Dennis carefully
surveyed the suspended ceiling again, admiring the quality of work that had
gone into creating its two-sided lighting and environmental systems. The
windows had no glass in them now but come winter they would be sealed off and
coated with frost. The cold temperatures from this side would help keep the
temperature on the other side milder and properly simulating the effects of a
winter season in a warmer climate.

It was all so carefully thought
out, well-designed, and organized. Dennis had invested nine years of his life
keeping the
Pathfinder
project on schedule – Joseph had been only five
when they had first arrived at Khyber Base. The boy had been too young to
remember his mother Elizabeth… but Dennis remembered her vividly. He had been
completely content to serve in the military and play part-time family man until
she had passed away… taken before her time by an unpredictable brain tumor.
Angry about that for quite a while but eventually converting the anger into
both purpose and focus, he had worked harder than ever to stand out as one of
the best officers serving in the Fleet. The day they offered him command of the
Pathfinder
had been one of the happiest days of his life, second only to
the day he had wed his beautiful Elizabeth.

Their current crew complement
was completely and absolutely ready to begin their exploratory mission. All he
had to do was give the command and they’d be off, galaxy-hopping across the
known and unknown universe that lay beyond them. It was very tempting and a
choice that had now become a lot easier to make. He had been trained in
tactical strategy and knew that it wouldn’t take the Brotherhood long to devise
a defense against the CAS technique they had used so effectively. There were
basically two options left: begin their exploratory mission and expand its
objectives to include the survival of the human race, or sit around and wait
for the Brotherhood to find or trick them into another confrontation. Having to
fight them again with such a vulnerable starship and a full load of civilians
was not something he was looking forward to. The images of the Brotherhood
warship still astonished him. The firepower that just
one
of those
mother ships could utilize against Earth vessels and the planet’s surface was overwhelming,
to say the least.

Where had this Brotherhood so
completely hidden a fleet of that size?

A horse neighed off to his
left. He casually wandered over to the fence and the large brown and
white-haired animal leaned its head toward him and snorted. Dennis smiled as he
rubbed the animal’s long snout and looked in its warm, friendly eyes. The horse’s
tail randomly flapped back and forth, slapping at flies. Kaufield noted he had
just passed a goat pen and up ahead were several small herds of sheep. Such an
idyllic setting, he thought carefully to himself – and so vulnerable to attack.
If the Brotherhood hit them with any significant ordnance of any kind – a
strafing run or a stray missile – the
Pathfinder
might have survived but
its ability to function as a colony ship would be completely compromised. It
was very unlikely that they would be allowed to simply drop into orbit back at
Earth and put in for repairs.

What about all those people
who still could be alive
?

The thought had entered his
mind repeatedly since the morning after that first day, and he still felt just
as completely helpless as he had then. The fact that there were no
transmissions other than the fake bait they had received only helped him
conclude that other Captains had made the same decision that he was leaning
toward – point yourself toward open space and transit to at least temporary
safety. The attack had been so thorough that
none
of the communications
grids normally active – from any of the space-faring nations - was up and
running. His thoughts drifted to the bloody ambush they had just escaped from
each time the thought of leaving entered his mind.
If we try to begin a
relief effort back on Earth with the Brotherhood still in control, that’s what
it’s going to continue to be… a bloody fistfight the entire way, with our own chance
for survival miniscule at best
.

All said, it was probably
easier for him to permanently leave behind family and friends than it was for a
lot of the people currently stationed on board. When he had first signed on to
the project he knew full well that he and Joseph might quite possibly leap
toward distant stars someday and not see their loved ones for quite some time.
If the kid was old enough, he had even been prepared to offer Joseph the option
to stay behind. Thus far their distance tests had yielded no limitations but he
had no doubt that if they traveled far enough the “one transit and you’re home”
option would soon be lost. The
Pathfinder
was a “next-generation” colony
ship, after all, constructed specifically for extremely long-term exploration.

It’s just nice if you have
the opportunity to say goodbye first, whether it be forever or just for a while
,
he thought idly.

The idea of getting a much
better picture of what surrounded their galaxy appealed to him for other
reasons as well – not the least of which was the possibility of finding
resources to help them come back and fight. It was a long shot, to be sure, but
with their new CAS Drive they now had the ability to cover a significant amount
of territory in a hurry. The longer they remained near their home system, the
more likely it would be that the Brotherhood would find them again. Having
carefully reviewed everything that his officers had said in their meetings over
the past five days, he headed hastily for the exit as he reached his final
decision. Right now the people on board needed to feel safe, they needed
something to believe in, and they needed something to occupy their time. He
stopped at a Comm-panel on the wall near the exit and opened its link.

“Thomas, this is Kaufield –
please respond.”

“
Aye, Captain. What can I do
for you
?”

“We’re not safe here with the
Brotherhood obviously still running things. If we stay we will be found. I’d appreciate
it if you would take a break from working on the fighters and recheck your
figures in the Lab wing. If everything checks out…” he paused, knowing there
was only one choice, “…
IF
everything checks out, please use the CAS
Drive to move the
Pathfinder
to Bravo Point.”
And that will most
definitely eliminate the immediate threat
, his conscience reassured him.
“And Thomas?”

“
Yes sir?
”

“Set the range for a few
kilometers farther than the shuttle flight. Let’s set another record!”

“
Aye Captain!
”

Fifteen minutes later – his
Captain’s tour completed after a brief stop at one of the cafeterias – Dennis
was sitting quietly in his quarters when the alarm klaxon sounded and a brief
warning was issued for everyone aboard to prepare for transit. Joseph was
curled up in one of the beds sleeping and he took a deep breath, turning over
on his side as the caution sounded. The kid was definitely a sound sleeper – he
didn’t awaken.
Just as well
, Dennis thought to himself.
Tomorrow I’m
really going to be able to show you yet another impressive view, my
enthusiastic young son
.

He took a sip of hot coffee and
picked up a plate from the nightstand next to his easy chair. The plate held a
fluffy slice of white cake and was topped with whipped cream and fresh
strawberries. He took a bite of the cake and savored its taste as he listened
to the ship’s rumbling thrusters shut down. There would be additional
conflicts, debates and perhaps even a few complaints, but the final say was
his. And he was certain it was the correct one. One of the obligations a ship’s
Captain faced was to make the tough decisions when they arose and live with
them. The knowledge that the consciences of others would be eased by his
bearing this burden was all he needed to keep his own self-esteem under
control.

Dennis took a deep breath and
another sip of coffee from his mug, right before the
Pathfinder
made
history by transporting itself farther than any other manned vessel.

THE PATHFINDER PROJECT

The
spy
in their midst
was uncertain as to his next move. He stood silently waiting, extremely
agitated, next to the window in the quarters assigned to him. Visible in the
distance were the now famous Galaxy clusters, and buried deep somewhere in the
star-filled spiral arm of one of them was his suddenly distant home. The shock
of instant separation from the rest of his kind – sparked by the CAS transit
that had landed them here – still echoed vividly in his memory. He was scared
and frightened, cut off from the rest… and he was also angry.

Open forum
.

The Captain had spoken of it on
the all-call several days earlier when he had granted everyone public access to
the computer transcripts of the senior staff meetings. Anyone could download
the text of their conversations from a simple workstation available in all
quarters.
Report all suspicious behavior to a security officer immediately
,
one of the reports cautioned.
There may be Brotherhood agents hiding among
us
. Not only that, but someone was now posting news updates… including a
video feed of the warship that had taken heavy damage in the
Pathfinder
’s
most recent encounter with fellow members of his kind.

How many of the Brotherhood
were dead?
Would he ever see any of the others again?

He paced nervously back and
forth, trying to keep his suddenly exploding emotions under control. Keeping
cool had been such an easy task
before
, when the sophisticated,
encrypted transceiver unit that he carried everywhere had occasionally lit up,
letting him know that others from the Brotherhood were passing nearby on Earth
ships. But the
Pathfinder
project was different… the Brotherhood had spent
years infiltrating government agencies and carefully making meticulous
behind-the-scenes changes before they were finally able to arrange for
assignment of an undercover operative to Khyber Base. Even after all of the
preparation, their first attempt had failed. The operative serving as an
American officer had been dismissed from the Project after only a limited tour.
Patient as always, the Triumvirate decided to try their luck with him… a
blue-collar worker.

After arrival he had done his
job despite the lack of contact with anyone except for lower level base
personnel. Periodically supply ships had stopped by to provide supplies,
deliver equipment, and assign or re-assign personnel, but face-to-face
interaction with his own kind had faded to a mere memory and activation of the
transceiver became more and more of a rare treat. Covert surveillance of an
entire civilization was much more difficult when there were so few clone lines
at their disposal. Having a twin brother or sister was an easy explanation for
some situations, but the Brotherhood had chosen to be extremely careful in
order to avoid giving away their newfound advantage too soon. Many of the
clones destined to work outside the Brotherhood often received early genetic
manipulation treatments to vary eye, hair, and skin color as well as gender and
other physical attributes. Still, with only three lines to work with, matters
had proven very difficult.

Additional lines were
supposed
to have been created much more quickly
.
What had gone wrong?

The orientation he received
prior to assignment on the moon had helped him cope with his conflicting
emotions, particularly when occasional updates were received from another
passing messenger. However those transmissions had become so few and far
between at Khyber Base – the project was almost
totally
classified by
the American military and he had been unable to work his way into a high-level
position of trust. He had known for some time that
the rest of them
were
losing patience with him – angered by his repeated failures to gather any
useful intelligence regarding the new CAS system. As things turned out, he
unintentionally provided misinformation. During the last transmission he had
delivered to another spy, his report had indicated that: (1) the CAS Drive was still
at least a year away from trial testing, and (2) the
Pathfinder
was
virtually marooned at Khyber Base without it.