Dusts of Creation (Confederation Reborn Book 7) Read online

  Dusts of Creation

  CONFEDERATION REBORN

  A Voyage of Captain Kirn

  Bernard Schaffer

  Tony Healey

  The Stars,

  a never-ending field of wonder

  and promise.

  Peace held together

  by the union of vast civilizations

  all working together

  to ensure freedom and justice

  in the name of interstellar Confederation.

  This is the mission of the

  ICSS Endeavor,

  to ensure that bright light of hope

  burns until the end

  of time.

  1.

  Mission Log - William Kirn, ICSS Endeavor

  1110 Hours

  We've received a transmission from Confederation Command of impending disaster in the Hayeren System. Long range scans of that sector indicate the collision of an uninhabited planet called Tgegh and its moon, in approximately six hours. But there is a larger problem, which Confederation failed to notice, and we may already be too late to prevent the deaths of hundreds of people.

  Captain William Kirn leaned back in his chair, scratching his chin as he stared at the screen. "Mister Saris, run the simulation again."

  The Valkar First Officer returned to his science console and entered a sequence on the keypad, activating a series of images on the screen's display. The rest of the crew turned in their seats to watch, as Saris said, "The planet Tgegh is the fourth in this system, orbited by a single moon. Tgegh is barren, with no signs of intelligent life."

  A gray planet appeared on the screen as he spoke, with none of the usual colorful formations indicating an active environment on its surface. There did not even appear to be swirls of gas, it was simply a large, spherical rock, spinning slowly in space, with a smaller gray sphere spinning alongside it. The moon began shifting off course toward the planet, drawn in by some unseen force.

  "At approximately 1700 hours, this date, Tgegh's moon will enter its atmosphere. The stress of the approach will cause the moon to fracture," Saris continued.

  Cracks formed along the moon's surface, splitting it into massive, continent-sized fragments that glowed red hot as they picked up speed, hurtling toward Tgegh. "The results," Saris said, "Will be predictably catastrophic."

  Each chunk of moon blasted the surface of the planet with the explosive force of antimatter bombs, filling the screen with fiery detonations as Tgegh shuddered violently.

  "Within minutes of its moon veering off course, the planet Tgegh will cease to exist," Saris said. Captain Kirn raised his hand to shield his eyes as the others around them lowered their heads and turned away from the bright explosion on the screen.

  The screen filled with debris from the planet's explosion, millions of large fragments spreading out across Hayaren's solar system. The only other object on the display was a small, vulnerable thing of bright blues and greens, with swirling oceans and cloud formations, and multiple chunks of Tgegh were rocketing toward it, larger than any asteroid.

  "Sirvat is the only inhabited planet in the near vicinity," Saris said quietly. "A veritable Eden, from what our scans detect. As historians of your planet Earth can attest, the impact of just one large object from space is enough to decimate life on any planet. The impact of so many will all but render Sirvat uninhabitable for a millennia."

  Kirn watched the asteroids rain on Sirvat, until its colorful surface was rendered dark by smoke, and said, "How many people live on that planet, Mister Saris?"

  "Unknown," Saris said. "Based on my scans, I would estimate less than a thousand."

  Kirn leaned over to press the intercom on his chair, "Mister Doone, what is the maximum capacity of the Endeavor?"

  It beeped and the Chief Engineer's voice crackled, "Four hundred crewmen, sir. If this is a promotional exam, I suggest trying something a little more difficult."

  Kirn smiled and said, "I'd promote you tomorrow if I could, Doone, but I meant the absolute maximum amount of people the ship can possibly hold."

  A pause, "Maybe an extra hundred or two, but that's pushing it, Captain."

  Kirn looked at Saris, who merely raised an eyebrow at him. He pressed the intercom again and said, "Find me room for double that, Chief."

  "I-I beg your pardon, sir?"

  "Find me room for several hundred more people, Mister Doone. It will only be for a day or so until we can reach the nearest Farstation."

  "You'll have people sleeping in the corridors, Captain," Doone complained. "We'll be sleeping five to a cabin."

  "Good. Make sure you assign them to my quarters first." He toggled the intercom off and said, "I never thought I'd be the kind of Captain who took to falling asleep in his command chair, but I suppose there's a first time for everything." He motioned toward Lieutenant Cho and said, "Plot a course for Sirvat. Maximum speed."

  "Aye, sir," the navigator responded. As he engaged the ship's engines, they began to hum with power.

  Saris stood at his station, "May I remind the Captain that Primary Order one-one-two instructs that no Confederation vessel may interfere with any natural event on an unincorporated planet, without specific request?"

  Kirn looked over his shoulder at the dark-skinned woman sitting behind him, taking a moment to enjoy the fact that she was smiling at him. Lieutenant Uthando crossed her long legs, her uniform skirt showing most of her caramel-colored thigh, as he said, "Would you mind contacting them, Lieutenant? All channels."

  She touched her earpiece and said, "This is the ICSS Endeavor, can you read me?"

  "That is cheating," Saris said flatly.

  "That," Kirn said, turning to look at him, "is adapting to the situation at hand. Tell me, would you consider a moon veering off its course to crash into its own planet a natural event, Mister Saris?"

  Saris shrugged slightly and said, "Perhaps a rather unusual one."

  "An anomaly?" Kirn said.

  "By some standards, yes, it would be considered an anomaly, I suppose. Certainly in opposition to Newton's Law of Motion."

  Kirn held up his hands and said, "There you have it. An anomaly, by definition, deviates from the norm. Thus, this is not a natural event, and thus, we are not in violation. It all makes perfect sense. Especially when you consider that we just made contact with the people of Sirvat—" he turned and looked at Uthando. "And they requested our help, correct?"

  Uthando lowered her earpiece and said, "I'm sorry, sir. No one is responding to my hails."

  "Well, I suppose we'll have to do this the old fashioned way, then," Kirn said. He stood up from his chair and said, "What is our estimated time of arrival at Sirvat, Mister Cho?"

  The navigator checked his readings and said, "Less than ten minutes, Captain."

  "That leaves us a little more than five and a half hours until lunar impact?" he asked, looking at Saris.

  "A respectable estimation."

  "Plenty of time," Kirn said. "Commander Saris, you're with me. Have Doctor Kelly meet us at the teleporter room. We'll be delivering this message in person. Lieutenant Cho?"

  "Aye, sir?" Cho said, turning around in his seat.

  "You have the bridge. Maintain geostationary orbit and await my signal. If you do not receive any word from me, you are to vacate this sector prior to lunar impact, do you understand?"

  Cho nodded and said that he did.

  "I'm trusting you with my ship, Mister. You'd better not get a scratch on her."

  "I won't let you down, sir," Cho said, standing up from his chair as they headed for the lift.

  Kirn waited impatiently for the li
ft to stop on the teleporter room deck. "How can a moon crash into its mother planet, anyway?"

  "It is a fascinating thing to observe, Captain," Saris said. "We are lucky to witness the event and gather data for Confederation researchers."

  Kirn looked back at him, "And to be in a position to help the people of Sirvat also, right?"

  "Of course."

  Kirn laughed as the lift doors opened, only to stop short at the sight of an annoyed-looking Dr. Jackson Kelley standing in front of them, arms folded. "What the hell am I getting dragged into this for?"

  Kirn maneuvered around him to head down the corridor, "I thought you volunteered?"

  "More like voluntold," Kelley snarled.

  "You are the Chief Medical Officer," Saris reminded him. "We do not know what is preventing the people of Sirvat from responding to our hails. Perhaps your skills will be required."

  Kelley followed after them, "You're a walking computer, Saris. Do the words Chief Medical Officer appear anywhere on Confederation's recommended key personnel lists for away missions? No they do not. Do you know why? Because his place is in Sickbay. On the ship!"

  Kirn stopped at the door to the teleporter room, "Would you rather we take the lifeboat down to the planet's surface, Jax?"

  Kelley's face brightened a little and he said, "Actually, that would be great."

  "Well, too bad. We don't have time. Now get on the teleportation pad, and that's an order." He watched the doctor slump forward and head through the doors, muttering under his breath about refusing to save them if they caught an inexplicably ferocious brain-eating parasite.

  Saris shook his head and said, "I fail to understand the doctor's fear of teleportation."

  "He's been that way as long as I've known him," Kirn said. He nodded at the officer manning the console as he headed up onto the pad. "Hopefully, we'll be bringing a lot more back with us, so stay ready."

  "Aye, sir," the officer said. "I'm trying to find the best coordinates to send you to."

  Kelley flinched slightly as the lights above the teleportation pad grew brighter. He closed his eyes and tried to steady his breathing, bracing himself. The doctor wiped a bead of sweat from the side of his face and noticed Saris looking at him. "I'm not afraid of teleporting," Kelley snapped. "I just don't like it, is all."

  Captain Kirn sighed, "You'll be fine, Jax. Think of it as an adventure."

  "I hate adventures."

  "You see, that's your problem," Kirn said. "Always looking at the negative. You know what would be nice? Just once, hearing you say, Yes, Captain. Sincerely. The Ensign seems to manage it just fine. Could you do that?"

  The teleportation Ensign looked up from his console and said, "I've found the area with the highest level of electrical activity, sir. There should be something there."

  "Sounds good, Ensign," Kirn said. Static electricity hummed all around the teleportation chamber, buzzing in their ears. He heard Kelley whimper slightly and he called out, "Are you ready to disembark on a thrilling away mission with your Captain and First officer?"

  The hair was standing up on Kelley's head and he forced a grin that made him look like a deranged puppet as he turned and said, "Yes, Captain. Oh so damned sincerely it hurts!"

  Kirn's laughter gave way to the intangible glowing sparkle of the teleportation beam separating him at the sub-atomic level, carrying his essence up into its lights and casting them toward the planet far below.

  Moments later, the landscape took shape around them, a swirl of colors that slowly assembled into hills and trees and orchards filled with plump fruit. Kirn stood blinking his eyes, adjusting to the bright sun overhead. He turned to see Doctor Kelley checking himself over, feeling his limbs and torso, making sure there weren't any missing pieces or rearranged parts. Kelley looked up at him, "If you were smart, you'd be doing the same thing."

  "Jax, how many times have you teleported?"

  "It only takes once," Kelley fired back. He pinched his finger and thumb together and said, "Just one little miscalculation, and you've got an extra knee. Or a missing arm. Or a finger poking out of your forehead. I've read the studies on teleporter malfunctions, Bill. It's a damned cover up by the government, I tell you!"

  "Doctor, if you had an extra digit poking out of your forehead, as you so eloquently put it, rest assured," Saris said calmly, "I would be the first to inform you."

  "I bet you would," Kelley muttered.

  Captain Kirn waved his hand between them like a referee stopping a fight and said, "If neither of you mind, I would like to get on with things before we're obliterated by space debris. Saris, where are the inhabitants?"

  Saris raised his handheld scanner and watched the screen as it beeped and whirred. He dialed in a new configuration and pointed the scanner forward, frowning.

  "What is it?" Kirn asked.

  Saris looked up and said, "Captain, either something is wrong with the instrumentation, or there are no inhabitants on Sirvat."

  2.

  They broke into formation, each of them searching in a different direction. Kirn followed a trail that lead him down a steep hillside, overlooking a bright blue stream that wound through the valley below. A veritable paradise, he thought. And all doomed to cease existing by some cruel trick of the cosmos.

  He flipped open his commlink and clicked it, "Kirn to Endeavor, do you read me?"

  "Loud and clear, Captain," Uthando's voice crackled.

  "I want you to run a geothermal scan on this planet's atmosphere and tell me if you see any trace of ship activity. Check everything from small crafts to starships. Scan this planet's surface for construction facilities and Lucasian crystal deposits, anything."

  "Sir?"

  The valley below was vast and wide open, filled with pastures and sections of field that were being harvested for crops, and it was absolutely empty. "There's no one down here, Uthando. They must have gone somewhere. I want the Endeavor to find them."

  "Aye, sir," she said, just before he closed the comm.

  A voice calling out from above the hill made him turn. He could hear Saris shouting, "Captain! I have something."

  He made his way back up the hill, following the sound of Saris' voice. It made no sense that the people of Sirvat had left. Confederation records showed them as not yet achieving space travel. As far as Confederation knew, they lacked a scientific program advanced enough to even detect a pending lunar collision, let alone evacuate prior to one.

  He ran the various scenarios through his mind. They were rescued. All right, he thought. By who? And why? He imagined a race like the Korgons finding the people of Sirvat first, telling them they were safe and to get on board their ships. Within seconds those people would be in chains, headed for a lifetime of slavery at the nearest mining colony. Or ritualistically slaughtered like the inhabitants of Fev'ol VI.

  Doctor Kelley was standing in the center of the woods, staring down at the ground between his feet. He looked up as the Captain approached and said, "Lucky the door was closed, or I'd have fallen down in it."

  Kirn saw an open metal hatch in the grass, its surface camouflaged to blend in with the woodland floor. "Where's Saris?"

  Kelley pointed down and said, "Into the rabbit hole, he went."

  Saris' voice echoed up through the hatch, "I am approximately twenty meters down, and have not yet hit the bottom. It is a most curious design."

  "That," Kelley said, "is the understatement of the year."

  "Let's go," Kirn said. "We don't have much time."

  The doctor rolled his eyes as Kirn lowered himself through the opening and grabbed the top rung, working his way down inside the hatch. "I don't think this is really in my job description, Bill," Kelley said, following him in.

  "I know, I know. You're the Chief Medical Officer, not part of a circus troupe. Less talk, more ladder. Move it."

  "If I fall, I fall on you, and then we both fall on Mister Personality," Kelley said, grunting with effort as he followed the rungs down. "And then I bet you
'll be sorry you dragged me into this mess."

  "If it spared me listening to you complain, I'd consider it," Kirn said. He could see lights emerging through the darkness, far back in the shadows beneath the tunnel as it opened up to an enormous cavern. In the distance, Saris stood silhouetted by the lights, looking down at a bizarre contraption made up of twisted wires and flickering diodes.

  Kirn leapt down from the ladder and ran toward his First Officer, only to feel the Valkar's arm shoot out to slam him the chest so hard it knocked him backwards. Kirn gasped for air, saying, "What…what the hell did you do that for?"

  Saris pointed down at the white disk on the ground, just inches from where Kirn stood. "I believe you would have activated the device, Captain."

  Kirn rubbed his chest and nodded, "Thank you, then. I think. What does the device do?"

  Saris looked back at it and said, "I do not yet know."

  There was a small screen with cryptic runes flashing across it, and hundreds of tiny cables dropping down from the back of the screen like limp spider legs. Attached to the end of each cable was a dull glass ball, so many that they were piled together behind the device like rubbish. Kirn moved carefully around the disk and said, "This must have something to do with the missing people."

  Saris aimed his scanner at the device, and then waved it over the cables, following them to walls of the cavern. He pressed his hand flat against the rocky wall and said, "Astonishing. These walls are made of a metal alloy I have never encountered before." He stopped moving and peered at the stones set within, "There are enormous power readings coming from them. I believe they must be powering the device."

  "That's fascinating, Mister Saris," Kirn said, leaning down to better inspect the strange symbols flashing on the screen. He touched the screen with the tip of his finger, trying to turn it on. "But what does the device do?"

  "I have no idea, Captain," Saris said, turning back in time to see the Captain reach down to pick up one of the glass balls. "I do not recommend that until we—" the Valkar called out, just as the ball in Kirn's hand lit with purple, incandescent light.