StarDestroyer.Net BBS

A/N: This story is going to run in a TV-series-like episodic format. There will be 13 episodes, each divided into four parts (9 will be single episodes, with 2 two-parters). Please, please review this work, it will be greatly valued in my progress as a writer. Enjoy!

Bold Republic- The Preface

Extinction

When the flooding came, it was without warning. The seas swelled, fed on by greenhouse ice melts from the poles. The coasts disappeared; the lowlands became shallow seas, tropical storms lashed at deserts turning the sands to mud, and in face of the oncoming storm civilization crumbled. As the global economy crashed in the wake of the destruction of virtually every major financial capital, panic took hold. The surviving cities were looted, law and order broke down, and no government could stem the surge of anarchy. Hundreds of wars, simmering for decades, were unleashed almost simultaneously.

Nuclear exchanges became commonplace, and thousands of small offshoots of the main wars erupted, fought with increasingly primitive weapons as the decades wore on. After a hundred years of near continuous famine, pestilence, plague, and war, any semblance of civilization had crumbled into the sodden Earth. Refugees poured into anywhere that they could escape the war, north and south into the much warmer and newly ice-free poles. Small farming communities of survivors sprung up, and these survivors of the Old World soldiered on.

However, it was inevitable that this brief new civilization, founded on farming in areas formerly impossible to plant, should face crippling problems. Health rapidly deteriorated, as modern medicine was nearly impossible to procure. The death rate soared, and the birth rate remained low. The wars gradually ceased, as the number of people willing to fight faded away into virtual nothingness. Aside from a few sheltered subsistence communities world’s new fertile crescents- Northern Canada, from Quebec, Newfoundland, and Ontario Sound north to the former Arctic islands, northern Europe and Scandinavia, Northern Africa, Syria, Jordan, and Northern Iraq, the Punjab and Pakistan, Australia, Patagonia, Antarctica’s Valkyerie Plains, and Siberia. There were less than a million survivors.

For two thousand years, humanity languished, and any memory of the old world was slowly forgotten, passed down merely in tales told to children. The forests, grasslands, winds and rains invaded and violated the old cities, those that weren’t buried beneath the restless seas, and ground them down. The earth, in a new, stable warm state, changed subtly, erasing the old civilization and leaving a blank canvas for the new.

Renaissance

As daily life slowly stabilized for humanity, so too did civilization. Small communities began trading with small communities. The art of shipbuilding was rediscovered, and these early civilizations took to the new, larger seas. Trading posts were established in the arctic islands- Qaanaaq, on the old Ellesmere Island, grew and flourished. The pole’s new climate was temperate- with a warm, breezy day, and a cool, but not harsh night. The city became a crossroads for the expansive farms of Quebec and the Nunavut Islands and the redwood forests and lush coastlines of Siberia. Other world cities grew up at vital maritime crossroads: Panama was the gate between hemispheres; Punta Arenas was the entrance to South America for abundant Antarctican produce, Suez guarded the newly nutrient-rich Mediterranean (filled with a powerful current pumping in through Suez and out through the twin channels of Gibralter and the Midi Strait, cutting off Iberia from the rest of Europe), Kamchatka overlooked the multitudinous East Asian Islands, forested and green, Fremantel in Australia was the main passage for Australian goods to the Indian Ocean and to Antarctica, and Vostok on the southern continent was a bustling port.

With the advent of a maritime culture, technological and cultural developments spread quickly across the globe, and with so much new available farmland, wars over resources were seldom. This new attempt at civilization is marked with far more co-operation and far less strife than the old world; the lessons of the Devastation, while not recent, were too poignant to be forgotten. Over time cities grew and confederations developed- the Arctic, the Antarctic, Australia and Indonesia, Quebec (which in this world was merely a name, and covered most of north-eastern north America, as far west as the west end of the newly enlarged Thunder Bay and as far east as the old New England), The Plains, the Caribbean, Sahel, and dozens of others. The development of air-ships for trade was the next big step after the Industrial revolution, close to 2 500 years after the end of the Devastation. Once confederations could trade across the globe in a matter of hours or days as opposed to weeks or months, the foundations of a global community were formed. And once this global community coalesced into a stable form, there was only one place left to go on the planet- up.

First Steps

Once chemical-propelled rockets were able to reliably lift communications and weather satellites into orbit, as well as sending probes to the Moon, Mars, Venus, Mercury, the Sun, and the Outer Planets, the Earth Space Exploration Association (ESEA) began laying down plans for a fleet of re-usable fixed-wing spacecraft to be used the put together a refuelling depot in orbit.

The general principles of fixed-wing flight were well-known, even though it was not commonly used on Earth, being unable to carry enough cargo to make it an effective alternative to airships. In the year 2512, counted from the detonation of the last nuclear bomb of the Devastation, ESEA launched the ESS Discovery, the first of the Discovery-class local space explorers. By 2518, there were six explorers active in Earth orbit, going in space for tours of duty lasting close to a month. Each one brought up components to put together Home One, a simple space station and re-fuelling depot.

With that built in 2522, humanity’s next steps into space could begin. The Discovery-class vessels were retired, and replaced with Voyager-class fixed-wing reusable craft. These were constructed in two parts: the Orbiter and Lander, with the Lander residing in a docking bay contained within the cargo section of the Orbiter. They would launch from the ground into orbit, dock with Home One, refuel, and head to the moon. Once there, the Lander would launch from the Orbiter, spend half a decacycle (five Old Earth days) on the Moon’s surface, and return to the Orbiter, which would return to Earth and land on a landing strip.

On Cycle 182 of year 2527, humanity again set foot on the Moon, in the sea of tranquility, not 500 metres from the Old Earth Eagle, sat untouched for close to three millennia. The flag of Earth, a two-tone circle of blue on a white field, was run up next to the old pennant of stripes and stars.

Further missions established a permanent scientific base with hydroponics modules and small mining facilities, and within a decade, Home Two, a refuelling base modelled after Home One, allowing a crew of 20 to live in orbit above the moon, which now supported a bustling population of nearly 200 souls. All was set for a mission to Mars.

The Voyager-class vessels remained in service for Earth-Moon runs, with occasional refits, but it was necessary to construct a much larger vessel for the Moon-Mars voyage. The Explorer-class vessel held a crew of 30, much expanded from the 10- and 12-astronaut Discovery and Voyager class vessels. Again, the vessel comprised a main Orbiter, and a smaller Lander, which would accommodate 10 individuals.

The voyage from Earth to Mars took close to a year, and had to be timed precisely to travel the minimum distance. In 2546, the ESS Explorer took up orbit around the Red Planet, and two years after that, in 2548, the ESS Mercalis, named for the first astronaut on the moon, landed on Mars. For the first time, the people of the new Earth had surpassed the accomplishments of the Ancients, dead 2500 years of nuclear fireballs.

The Great Leap

Human exploration of the solar system progressed linearly for some time. By the dawn of the 27th century, there were twelve Home-class bases throughout the solar system, with three around Earth, one above the moon, two above Mars, three scattered through the asteroid belt, and one each around Europa, Titan, and Ganymede. There were close to 10 000 citizens of worlds other than Earth, with Earth’s population pressing three billion.

The ESEA shuttle fleet had expanded and gone through several refits, with vessels carrying up to 100 passengers occasionally used. The increase in space travel had led to several innovations; strip-mining asteroids had ended any concerns about the feasibility and economy of colonizing space. The three Home bases in the asteroid belt had paid for themselves in useful minerals within a decade of opening. However, it was not until 2612, exactly a century after the launch of the Discovery, that the major break-through occurred, one that would alter human civilization permanently.

Scientists at Treble City, on Titan, had been experimenting for some time with the “Jump Drive”, a piece of equipment that would be able to transport matter at speeds greater than light. There had been plans in the works for some time to use nuclear fusion reactors to propel a large colony ship towards Alpha Centauri, but even with the most modern reactors the journey would still take nearly 20 years, which all but ruled it out for ESEA.

The scientists on Titan believed that by wrinkling space, they could allow a ship to jump forwards almost instantly to a point far ahead of it, and by continuing this wrinkling motion they could propel it forwards at enormous speeds. In their public telecast, they likened it to a ship on clear water. The Jump Drive would transform that clear water to waves, but instead of the ship going over crests and down troughs, they would simply jump from crest to crest, without travelling the distance between.

With full ESEA funding, the EX Starleap was constructed at Home One, now expanded to include a shipyard, and with a crew of three, in the year 2623, left Earth orbit. Once free from Earth’s gravity well, the ship’s Jump Drive was engaged. Six minutes later, it dropped back to Fusion Drive, orbited the Sun, and Jumped back to Earth, completing humanity’s first faster-than-light flight.


Contact

The Jump Drive revolutionized space travel in the solar system. The trip to Titan, a voyage that used to take months, could now be made in a matter of hours. The Jump Drive did for the Solar System what the airship did for Earth more than two hundred years prior. It was not long before mankind began to look outside their back garden, and into the stellar neighbourhood. The fastest ship yet constructed in Earth Orbit, with a crew complement of 8, was the ESS Prosperity, the ship designed to bring Mankind to Proxima Centauri. In 2649, the Prosperity launched from Home One, which now supported a permanent population of 1000 through extensive scientific and engineering facilities, and engaged the Jump Drive, headed for Proxima Centauri.

After a four-month voyage, the Jump Drive disengaged, and the Prosperity entered orbit over Proxima Centauri II, a blue-green world reminiscent of Earth. Within ten years, a thriving colony of 7000 individuals had been transported to the world, which had been renamed Taen, watched over by the new station Home Eighteen. With more than two dozen colonies spread out over close to a dozen worlds, Earth’s central government renamed itself the Republic, with founding members over two systems.

One ordinary afternoon, humanity’s progress towards the stars finally was acknowledged by the stars themselves. A vessel was detected by scanners streaking towards the solar system, from the direction of Delta Pavonis, at a speed far greater than anything the republic had fielded. Humanity watched and waited with bated breath- there were no defences that the newly renamed Republic Interstellar Organization’s (RIO) Navy could deploy, as the program simply could not afford to waste mass on vessels by adding weapons to them. The few anti-asteroid lasers that were present throughout the Solar System were activated, with the Republic hoping desperately they would not be called for.

The vessel slowed to its fusion drive in Earth orbit, halfway to the moon, and began transmitting The historic first image of the Asyrn race, vaguely humanoid, but with long, feathered wings that ended in four-fingered hands, and a large, flat beak extending from the eyes down to the chin, was broadcast throughout the solar system, along with their message, in perfect Standard. “Peoples of the Republic, congratulations. You have taken your first step into a wider Universe. Welcome to the galaxy.”

Occupation

The Asryn, a race with a federation of worlds comprising twelve systems, peacefully integrated themselves in Republic culture. They shared information freely- RIO gained gravity plating for their ships, new alloys with which to build hulls, and the engineering knowledge to increase the speed of the Jump Drive up to 50 times the speed of light, designated Jump Factor Four. However, at the same time, they also extended a certain degree of control over Republic policies. RIO missions within the solar system were granted autonomy, but Interplanetary missions fell under Asyrn Spacefleet jurisdiction. All Earth vessels outfitted with Jump Drives fast enough to make the trip to Taen in a month or less were brought in under control of the Asyrns, and crewed by Asyrn crews.

Foreign policy was also controlled by the Asyrns, with the constant justification that “the galaxy is a dangerous place, and it would not do well for your civilization to be wiped out by a few careless words.” Slowly, the Asyrns designated themselves in various diplomatic positions throughout the republic, unelected masters of Spaceflight, Foreign Policy, and even many economic initiatives. And while they did bring human ambassadors to meet several races, including the Drell, a porcine species several systems over, with a small empire of their own, the Raveern, a spider-like philosopher race, and the Ghôm, a large race of four-legged lizards with a prehensile tail ending in a grasping cluster of tentacles, there was no question that the Asyrns were firmly in control.

In the early cycles of 2708, the Republic’s leader, President Revv Tainer, had had enough. Presented with an offer of admission to the Asyrn Federation, he ripped it up, and ordered the Asyrns to relinquish control of domestic issues and RIO to the Republic. The Asyrns responded with a compromise. The Republic would be granted the opportunity to become a partner of the Federation; they would retain control over all domestic policies, interplanetary flights within their jurisdiction, and would be permitted to build a run of interstellar exploration craft to allow them to explore the local universe on their own. They would be provided with technology required to increase the power of their Jump Drive to Factor Five, and granted permission to negotiate trade agreements for themselves. The stipend was that these new vessels would have an Asyrn State Officer, for supervisory and advisory roles. President Tainer agreed, and signed the landmark Earth Declaration. Work commenced on the Republic-class deep-space exploration vessel the following year, with the RSS Republic being completed in 2712. Two centuries after its first tentative steps into space, humanity was ready to reach for the stars.

A/N: This is the background history for a new OSF fanfiction I plan to write, about Earth's first real interstellar explorers. I plan to have the first few chapters will get written sometime in the near future.

Episode 1 - "Birth", Part 1

The Vernal Equinox celebrations on Earth were always boisterous. All over the planet, revellers gathered together in city streets, private homes, public squares, festival halls, and canopies. From the Siberian grasslands and farmlands on the shores of the Ob Sea, to the redwood palisades of Quebec, to the steamy shallow Amazon Sea, to the annual sunset on the Valkeyrie Plains in Antarctica, hundreds of millions of people were outdoors drinking, laughing, dancing, singing, and simply being together. It was the day of supreme balance, where the day and night were exactly equal, celebrated across the globe as the beginning of the new year.

However, in some places the festivities were wilder than others. In the great northern city of Qaanaaq, on the old Ellesmere Island, the Vernal Equinox marked the return of the sun for six months of day. Soon the thin winter snows would thaw and summer would hit in full bore, bringing flowers, crops, and warmth to the North. The city was alive even though it was barely 8 decicycles; down by the docks, where ships pulled in from Siberia, Quebec, Alaska, and all around the Arctic Ocean, a massive party was running full tilt. Most of the revellers wore masks, and held flagons of Applewine, the last of the previous year’s crop. Loud songs rang out, not only in Standard, but in Quebecoise, Siberian, Punjabi, and Plains. Most of the houses, squat, modular constructions that looked merely like a group of domes connected by covered hallways, were strung with riotous lights, and dozens of airships lit the night with luminescent streamers being fired out into the crowds and the bay.

It was into this madness than Lieutenant Yith Jebrom entered as his airship docked with one of the tall towers of Qaanaaq Airfield. He nodded to the steward, who thanked him for flying Air North, and walked down the strong metal gangplank to the main tower. He just barely caught one of the high-speed descenders to the ground before the door slid shut, and dropped the hundred metres to the ground in a millicycle. He pushed his way out of the descender, elbowing through some weary commuters who seemed to be heading to the street party below with great trepidation, and exited from the Airfield into the cool night air. It was just barely above freezing, but the thick uniform jacket he had on fought back the cold. He reached into the large pocket in its front and pulled out his communicator. He hit a few buttons, scanning through several command screens, before finding the person he wished to speak to.

“Lieutenant Jebrom to Commodore Quom.” The small screen showed only the Republic Interstellar Organization’s crest. It was the standard Republic two-tone circle, overlaid with eleven stars, one for each inhabited world in the Republic, with a phrase in Standard below it: “To the stars’ reach and back.” Within ten microcycles, a face appeared on the screen.

“Commodore Quom here. I see you’ve arrived in Qaanaaq.” The Commodore’s smile was genuinely warm; it was clear that she wished that she too were at an Equinox celebration. Leonor Quom was among the most respected officers of RIO. She had been to Taen, the Republic’s first interstellar colony, in the Proxima Centauri system, and had been on several Asyrn-led expeditions to other planets throughout the nearby areas of the galaxy. Her clear dark skin and firey eyes gave no hint of her old age, even though the Commodore was pushing ninety.

“Aye, ma’am. Have you not found a celebration in Suez?” Jebrom smiled.

“So near the equator the Equinox doesn’t make much difference here,” responded the Commodore. “In any event, I have the rest of your orders.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“On your screen now, a picture should be appearing. It is of Commander Karm ao Goeprey- do you recognize him?” The face of a man with fair skin, sharp yellow eyes, and fair hair appeared on Jebrom’s communicator screen. He was wearing the standard uniform of RIO, a navy blue full body suit, with a large pocket at around the stomach opening at the top, with a light blue stripe, maybe 5 or 6 centimetres thick, running from the right shoulder down to the waist, with a series of small metal pips denoting rank on above the breast on the stripe.

“Aye, ma’am. He was the first officer on the Varga when it was making Outer System runs from Taen, correct?”

Quom’s face re-appeared on the screen. “The very same. Your mission is to find him in Qaanaaq tonight and bring him back to Suez by Newcycle tonight.”

Jebrom balked. “That gives me less than a decicycle to find him! There have to be a million people on the streets tonight!”

Quom grinned. “His co-ordinates are being transferred to your communicator now. I’ll see you later, lieutenant.”

“Aye, ma’am. Jebrom out.” The Lieutenant broke the link, and surveyed the co-ordinates. He tapped the screen a few times to get the device to give him directions directions, and noted with moderate interest his destination was a theatre, about ten minutes’ walk away from the Harbourfront. Forcing his way through the crowds of people gathered outside the airfield, he hailed a tram, and strapped in. The little electric cart zipped forwards along the street rails as soon as he gave the driver directions.

*****

The Global Theatre was right in the heart of Qaanaaq’s cultural district. Every few steps, one encountered a museum, library, bookstore, theatre, or concert hall. Tonight, the city’s Equinox celebrations had spread up the hill from the harbour, and people in masks revelled all over the area. Impromptu street performances were underway by dozens of theatre troupes, both professional and amateur, telling stories dating back as far as Old Earth. For Commander Karm ao Goeprey, however, the street performances were merely garnish to the main meal. Unlike many of the celebrants tonight, full of spontaneity, ao Goeprey had a clear purpose.

He would never forget his first Equinox in the North. It was a family vacation; his father had just come into some money, and decided to splash out by visiting one of the planet’s Equinox hotspots. They had come north, to this very theatre district, and seen a company called the Qaanaaq players render a version of an old Earth comedy, by a man called Wilm Saykseer. It was a light-hearted story about a pair of lovers, that had been his father’s favourite from school. Young Karm had been thoroughly moved by the story, seeing in the players a glimpse of a tragic old world, three thousand years prior.

“Father,” he had asked afterwards, “What was Old Earth really like?”

His father had smiled down at him, patted him on the shoulder, and looked him in the eye. “Smaller. They had only one world. They couldn’t predict the consequences of their actions. And it’s from their mistakes that we’ve built the world as we know it.” At that moment, looking down over Qaanaaq, almost the same sight as this night, 30 years later, and looking up at the stars, Karm knew he would need to go into space.

So once he graduated third school, with a focus in astronautics, he enrolled, went through basic training, and got a post as a labourer on one of the cargo vessels running between Titan and Ganymede. He moved from ship to ship, finally enrolling in officer’s training a few years later on suggestion of a senior officer. From then, he had been out in space nearly constantly, pushing back the boundaries of knowledge in the Taen system.

But every Equinox he returned to Qaanaaq, to the same theatre, to see the same play. He entered through one of the side gates, bought a stick of smoked Roo from a vendor, and took his seat in the enclosed auditorium. It was a fairly standard stage- a platform maybe 10 metres in diameter, with seats rising above it in every direction. Players entered and exited through doors cut into the stands, allowing every audience member a view of everything that was going on at each moment.

The house lights went down, and the performance started.

*****

Lieutenant Jebrom rushed towards the auditorium, but was too late to sneak inside. It was not until the Interval that he would be able to make his way inside the building and find ao Goeprey; he hoped fervently that that would leave him enough time to make it back to the airfield to catch an airship heading for Suez.

The minutes seemed to pass by agonizingly slowly, but finally the show let out, and Jebrom rushed through the crowds. He saw ao Goeprey almost immediately. He marked the man’s position, noting his large height as a sort of ‘landmark’, and adjusted his uniform.

“Commander ao Goeprey,” he finally intoned, after determining to his satisfaction that his uniform’s buckles were sufficiently done up.

“Who are you?” asked ao Goeprey, unimpressed. Although his Standard was fluent, ao Goeprey spoke with just the faintest hint of an Iberian accent, precise and mechnical.

“Lieutenant Yith Jebrom, sir. Republic Interstellar Organization Space Navy.”

“I noticed the uniform.”

“Yes, sir, I’d imagine you would.”

There was a brief pause.

“What do you want?”

Jebrom nodded, seeming to recall why he was there. “I have orders for you, sir, from Commodore Quom.”

“She realizes tonight is the Equinox?” he asked.

Jebrom. “Yes, sir, but she has urgent need of you.”

“How urgent?”

“You are to be in Suez by Newcycle tonight.”

“And miss the Equinox itself? It isn’t just Newcycle tonight, it’s New Year. Is there a situation?”

“Not that I’m aware of, sir.”

“Well, I’ll be there when the play is finished.”

Jebrom shook his head. “No, sir, you need to come with me now.”

“I have seen this production every year since my father died. It was his favourite. I am not leaving.”

“Be as that may, sir, I have orders.”

“I am on leave.”

“These supercede that, sir. I’m very sorry.”

ao Goeprey looked perturbed. “And if I refuse?”

“I have been authorized by the Commodore to use any means necessary to bring you to Suez.” That was blatantly not true, but Jebrom knew that the Commodore would be anything but accommodating if he ailed to bring the Commander to the appointed place in a timely manner. He hoped the matter would not be pressed.

The Commander looked away distractedly, seeming unwilling to telegraph the idea that he was considering going. He turned back to Jebrom. “This had better be worth my time, Lieutenant, or you’ll be spending a lot of time scrubbing ductwork.”

*****

The RIO headquarters at Suez was a sprawling affair, with thousands of dome-shaped buildings interspersed with parks, green space, and water features. Republic architecture had, in the past hundred years, veered sharply towards the use of domes as buildings- they were easily to construct modularly, were inexpensive, and extremely strong. Most houses were collections of three or four domes- some sleeping units, some eating units, and some living units, connected by paths and streams. RIO headquarters had mammoth domes, used for storing and repairing spacecraft, research and development, and acres of office space, to feed to mighty bureaucracy imposed by the Asyrn. The conference centre was a fairly small dome, located near the centre of the facility. Inside was a collection of Space Navy brass nearly unparalleled in recent history.

As Commander ao Goeprey entered the room, gazes from all five Admirals, a collection of Commodores, two or three Captains, and a handful of Commanders greeted him. A variety of aides and other personnel, largely enlisted, surrounded the back of the chamber. Altogether, there were maybe 70 people, in a room designed to hold fifty, comfortably. It was warm; ao Goeprey dropped the jacket he had been wearing in Qaanaaq, and was left in his uniform undershirt.

“Commander ao Goeprey, nice of you to join us,” said Commodore Quom, and ao Goeprey smiled.

“It was a struggle.”

One of the Admirals, Rellik Tem, if ao Goeprey remembered correctly, raised his hands, and ao Geoprey took a seat. “Let us begin,” said Tem. He had a thick Quebecois accent, and ao Goeprey decided he had learned Standard later in life, probably as a career move.

He turned to the large screen behind him, which currently showed a schematic of a ship. It looked modern; it had a large front saucer section, which was connected by two narrow strips to a large engine block. There was no scale on the image, so ao Goeprey had no idea if what he was looking at was ten centimetres or ten kilometres.

Tem faced the room. “All of you are aware of the Earth Declaration. It was signed by the President of the Republic and the Temain of the Asyrn Federation, and, among other things, allowed us to build a fleet of interstellar exploration craft, capable of a top speed of Jump 5, equipped with the latest in sensor and science facilities. In official telescreen broadcasts, we have previously made public that the first of these vessels, the RSS Republic, would be operation in a hectocycle.” Tem paused, to ensure everyone in the room could follow him.

“Unbeknownst to the Asyrn, the Republic was actually completed two cycles ago, and is now awaiting a crew for launch. Her sister ships, the Freedom and the Liberty, will be ready within a decacycle. There are nine more Republic-class vessels slated for launch within a hectocycle.”

There was slight applause. “I am certain,” continued Tam, when it abated, “you are all wondering why we have torn you away from your Equinox celebrations, and even brought some of you all the way from Taen, to tell you what will be public knowledge in a few decicycles.” There were some nods. Tam gestured to one of his aides, who began distributing datasticks to the assembled officers.

“You all have new orders. I would like to congratulate all the Commanders in the room on their promotions to Captain, and all the Captains on their new commissions.” There was a moment of stunned disbelief before real, unbridled applause began. The Captains shook hands, and looked happily over the information pouring into their communicators from the datasticks.

Tam raised his hands for quiet. “Tomorrow, the first day of the new year, will see us greet the people of the Republic with good news. Before this year is out, the Space Navy will be going on tour.”

Episode 1, Part 2

The Asyrn Embassy in Punta Arenas, on the Patagonian Coast, was something truly alien to Earth. It had been built in a style suited to the avian Asyrn- all tall, jagged pillars with a ‘human door’ on the ground level; aside from that, the only access was to be granted by air. In the wee hours of a morning such as this, brightly coloured tendrils, bioluminescent vines native to Asyr, cast an eerie glow all over the compound as they swayed in the gentle sea breeze. It held its own spaceport, a strip of land from which Asyrn shuttles could arrive and depart without any knowledge from the Republic’s Central Control in Panama, usually Asyrn nobles and diplomats. The Asyrn shuttles were little more than winged tubes that fell from the boxy, orbital ships, but according to the avian race’s engineers they provided the optimum required lift for a smooth surface landing on as little runway as possible. The space around the compound was quite cramped to a human, consigned to the two dimensions of the ground interspersed with the mammoth pillars, but to the Asyrns, it was open, majestic, and beautiful.

Inside the office of Ambassador Vrek, however, the atmosphere was anything but calm.

“They did what?” The Asyrn tongue was a screeching, guttural affair, and Vrek’s tone caused window membranes to shake and wobble.

“The Republic’s government announced this morning, with full visual feed all over the interplanetary network, that they have completed the RSS Republic, with the next two Republic-class vessels to be completed in less than one of their hectocycles.” Vrek’s aide was aging- he had been a distinguished diplomat himself, until a fatal portfolio mismanagement had cost the Asyrns three outlying systems. His life had been spared, but the stress had caused many of his wing feathers to come out, leaving him with a somewhat plucked appearance. He compensated for this with elaborate wing ornamentation, but he was clearly a man past his peak.

Vrek twitched his head to show his disapproval of the situation. For his part, Vrek had been rewarded handily for his work in bringing the Republic into the Asyrn Federation. The Republic’s space travel lagged not terribly far behind the Federation’s, and noted futurists predicted singularity within a century. Deciding they would rather culturally assimilate the Republic, rather than competing with it, every effort had been made to bring the two systems of humans until Federation control. The plan had fallen through when the Republic refused to become a signatory, but with the trivial concessions of allowing control over domestic affairs and the creation of a small fleet of exploration craft under direct Republic Interstellar Organization control, the door remained open for the Asyrns to be a close partner with the humans. Vrek’s thick feather plume and nearly arrogant seated posture showed him to be a powerful man, and many Asyrns simply avoided the man, thinking it in their best interests to keep a low profile in the Embassy. “Why would they do that?” he hissed.

The aide clucked his beak, vocalizing his confusion. “It seems to be a move to tell us, the Asyrns, directly that they do not need us.”

“Ohh, but that’s their mistake. Without our weapons, they will be defenceless. Without our maps and data they will be blind and mute.”

“That is very true, sir.”

“We could, in theory, allow them to go ahead with their program, simply without our help.”

“They would likely fail, sir.”

“They brought it on themselves.” Vrek sat back and shook his head, ruffling his crown of feathers.

“With all due respect, sir, I do not think this would be the best idea.”

“Oh?”

“By creating these vessels, the humans have received a great boost in national pride. If they are destroyed, that pride will be gone. They will begin looking for places to cast blame, and it will not take them long to find us. We’ve worked for far too long to allow them the revolt against our presence; if we give them an excuse, they will sue it. None of the humans who know anything about interplanetary affairs are happy about our presence in their government, and it will be a trifling matter for them to transmit their displeasure to the masses. We would have no choice but to leave, as fighting a war of conquest is not tenable at this time.”

“Yes, the war against the Draebar. Thank the maker that the humans don’t know about that. I don’t know what they would do if they knew how thin we were really spread.”

The aide nodded. “We can’t afford the soldiers to hold Earth against the humans’ will.”

Vrek sighed, looking out the window into the glassy bay. There were still fireworks going off, the last vestiges of the evening’s Equinox celebrations. Vrek saw from the clock that it was not yet four decicycles, still pre-dawn in Patagonia; elsewhere, the RIO’s news had already broken. “What do you suggest?”

“We need to act like it was part of the plan the entire time. We need to give a speech of some kind, expressing our congratulations to RIO, and reaffirming our commitment to the project.”

“And then?”

“Wait ‘till they return from the mission, declare it a success, and begin crewing ships with more Asyrns, for whatever reason we please. Needed to finesse the systems, for efficiency’s sake, for diplomatic support, whatever. We need simply to retain a presence, and try again to bring them into the Federation. I would far rather fight with this race than against them. And in the end, someone needs to fight the Draebar for us.”

Vrek nodded, slowly. “Summon a newscrew. We must present our speech by Halfcycle.”

*****

Home One Shipyards, Earth Orbit

The Home One shipyards had evolved over two hundred years into a mammoth, sprawling complex, seemingly tenuously hanging over the Earth. Technically speaking, no part of the station was older than a couple of decades, with modules being nearly constantly replaced. It had been humanity’s first orbital refuelling stop, and the station from which they launched their voyage to the moon. It had grown, and changed- the invention of gravity plating allowed it an almost Earth-like feel, simply with spheres instead of domes. The thousands of tunnels and crosswalks formed a lattice in space, allowing dozens of vessels to dock, and for some to be taken inside entirely.

It was to the largest sphere that Captain Karm ao Goeprey and his entourage were taken. They stood on a platform inside a sphere five hundred metres in diameter, by far the largest space construction in the Republic, and built with extensive aid from the Asyrns. Behind them was a glass wall, the “Observation Room”, for those who did not wish to fight vertigo to stand on the catwalk in the sphere itself.

A half-dozen ship filled the dock, all in various stages of construction, but all showing the same basic design. A large saucer, perhaps fifty metres in diameter and ten high, was connected by two thick spars to a large engine block, perhaps fifty metres wide and ten long and high. On some the less complete vessels, the spars could be seen to contain hallways, equipment, and a variety of rooms.

“Your vessel, Captain ao Goeprey,” said the Admiral beside him. She was perhaps sixty, fair of hair and skin, with sharp blue eyes. She spoke Standard effortlessly, which was unusual; the ‘common language’ of the Republic was not spoken by anyone natively; most people in the Republic learned a local dialect in the home, and then began their Standard education at age four in First School, leaving many of them with regional accents and vocabulary. Those who continued with their education generally did so for political or career reasons.

“She’s beautiful, Admiral Yiam. I’m honoured.”

“An honour you have earned squarely. The greatest ship ever created by the Republic, and bearing her name and flag. Fast enough to reach Proxima Centauri in two days, the engineers assure me. A fully modern sickbay, and all the Asyrns files on nearby races and stellar cartography. I’m excited to see the laboratories, myself- I was a cartographer on the Taen expeditions to the Moons. I understand from your file that you were also involved in the Taen system?”

“Yes, ma’am- I was the navigator and later First Officer on a three-year sub-light expedition to the Outer Planets. If you ever get the chance, I’d suggest seeing the Ion Storms in Phar’s atmosphere- like supercharged aurorae.”

“I’ve heard it’s quite the sight. I grew up in the North though, so I’ve spent months seeing no light but aurorae; it does get wearisome after a while,” she said with a wink. “In any event, would you like to take a tour of your ship?”

ao Goeprey grinned. His ship. The flagship of the Republic Space Navy. His.

“I’d absolutely love to,” he began, but was cut off by a sharp bang. A young officer, an Ensign in the Diplomatic Corps, judging from the dual insignia on his uniform jacket, ran into the room, making a beeline for Admiral Yiam.

“Slow down, Ensign,” she said, seeing his panicked disposition.

“Ma’am, you’re going to want to see this- Ambassador Vrek is on the vidscreens, making a speech.”

Yiam swore. “Did we know about this beforehand?”

“No, ma’am, it appears to be an impromptu speech in response to our announcement that the Republic will be ready ahead of schedule.”

A pall was cast over the Admiral’s face, and she stormed towards the door of the balcony. Following after her quick gait, ao Goeprey just slipped into the Observation Room behind her. One the large telescreen, he saw the unmistakeable visage of Ambassador Vrek, possibly one of the most hated men in the galaxy by RIO. No-one in the entire organization had ever really forgiven him for his heavy-handed ‘diplomacy’, that saw the Republic’s space navy reduced to a mere handful of freighters and sublight exploration ships, while simultaneously bringing much of the organization under Asyrn control. He began to say something, but Yiam cut him off with a gesture of her hand.

“…and it is therefore with great pleasure that I congratulate the Republic on the launch of its first dedicated interstellar exploration vessel. It marks a great leap forward for the Republic as a whole, and will hopefully usher in a new era of exploration and the pioneering spirit that has made the Republic into the great body it is today.”

Yiam swore. “Missed most of it. Ensign, can you give me the gist?”

“It was mostly a tirade about how the Asyrn Federation are proud of us, and that they will be pleased to share even more information in the future.”

Yiam snorted. “Taking credit for the whole project.”

ao Goeprey nodded. “It’s pitiful. They come in, take control over our entire Space navy, and then start taking credit for our new ships. It’s about time we just chuck the lot of them out of our space and take control of the organization ourselves. We would have been here fifty years ago, without Asyrn meddling.”

Yiam smiled. “Except that without the Federation, our technology would never have progressed at a quarter this speed. Unfortunately, for some time, we’re going to need them. We’re not experienced or knowledgeable enough to explore deep space on our own, without making some likely catastrophic mistakes.”

ao Goeprey grimaced. “Fair enough, but I’ll hopefully never see another Asyrn again once we leave to go exploring.”

Yiam’s expression lost its playfulness. “You haven’t read your orders, then.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Federation are appointing a “State Advisor” to the Republic, as well as all the Republic-class ships we launch. His name is Kraar, and he’s your First Officer.”

ao Goeprey’s mouth hung open in surprise. After a moment, it turned to frustration, and then through to anger. He turned away from the Admiral, and kicked a wall panel. “So the last two hundred years have been for nothing, then! Every step we take, the Asyrns are right beside us holding our damn hands!” he turned around, and his dishevelled appearance made it seem as if he wished there was an Asyrn around right now that he could bite a chunk out of. “What’s the point?”

Yiam smiled. “Believe me, Captain, I’ve said these same things, and have been saying them for decades. The point is that this time, it’s us. It’s a Republic ship, crewed by humans, reaching out and touching the stars. In the next year, your ship will make contact with more worlds and species than in all of history. We are going into space this time, not as underlings or lackeys to the Federation, but as honest, straightforward humans. We can speak for ourselves, make our own decisions, and deal with the consequences as a responsible, adult species. This is our time.” Seeing ao Goeprey calm, she continued. “Your crew will be arriving over the next few cycles, and you will launch officially in a decacycle. You can move into your quarters whenever you lie, and get a feel for your ship.” She offered her arm to the Captain.

ao Goeprey regarded her, and looked out the window to the drydock where the Republic sat. He nodded, and began walking towards the door, and the small pods that would carry him to his new command. Yes, he thought, our time.

A/N: This will be run in four-part "episodes", in a somewhat TV like format. I'm going to try and make them into much tighter, faster episodes, to keep the plot from getting stale or stagnant. Parts 3 and 4 will invovle an assassination and a space launch- fun stuff! Please comment!

Episode 1, Part 3

Flower-strained light filtered in through the window of Ambassador Vrek’s suite in Punta Arenas. The building was a luxury Asyrn construction, a tall spire overgrown in foliage, with tightly pulled clear membranes to cover windows, doors, and other apertures. It was early in the morning, and Vrek was still resting after an exhausting day of speeches and negotiations, all related to the damnable humans’ insistence on launching their vessel in the next few cycles.

There was a loud thump on the roof. Vrek rolled over, but did not wake. One eye opened with the next thump. Finally, with the sound of the skylight membrane in the next room being ripped open, Vrek rolled off his sleeping mat and crouched in the corner. He crept forwards to see where the noise was coming from, felt intense heat on his forehead, and then felt nothing.

*****

The assassin worked quickly. The plasma rifle she had used to kill the Ambassador had been easily procured, as it was fairly standard military equipment in the Republic. She dropped in through the hole in the Ambassador’s ceiling, and crossed the room quickly. It was filled with knick-knacks, innumerable badges and pennants from countless summits and negotiations in service to the Federation.

There was a banging on the front door, three levels down. She heard some squawking in Asyrn, nothing that she recognized. She hoped she would have a few moments. She rolled the Ambassador onto his back, ignoring the sticky green mess that was the remains of his feathered face. The plasma had cauterized the wounds, so she did not have to worry about staining the floor, but with her goal that was not likely to be a problem.

She pulled out a laser scalpel, and began to cut off the ostentatious robes that the Ambassador wore, even apparently to bed. When he was lying naked, she made a few deft cuts into his chest, incisions that came together to form ideograms. The banging from the front door intensified.

She cast about the room, looking for something to bar the door to the Ambassador’s bedroom with. She cursed the Asyrn architectural tendency to merely have thin curtains separating rooms, and returned to her work. Content with its legibility, she crossed back to the small alcove from which she entered. From below, she heard the sound of the door being broken open, and the flapping of wings spiralling upwards to where she was.

A small device on her waist allowed her to send a rope up to the ceiling with a flick of a switch, with another flick she was hoisted up to the roof. She clambered out, and began skirting around the roof. She heard movement in the room below her; there was a squeal that could have been either frightened or horrified. The assassin’s eyes cast around the sky for the shuttle that was meant to pick her up, and a winged figure, an Asyrn soldier, leapt up through the roof.

“You did this,” he squealed, his beak horribly mangling the Standard words.

“Guilty.”

“Why?”

The assassin smiled. I have to keep him talking, she mused, I just need a little more time. “He deserved it. He’s been trying his best to keep the Republic under heel, and we won’t stand for it. Humanity is rising.”

The Asyrn screeched. “We will rend you for your crime!”

“Good luck catching me,” she smirked, and hoisted a plasma pistol. She fired a shot into the Asyrn’s chest, ripping it open and catching his grandiose uniform and feathers alight. With his dying breath, he screeched, and three more Asyrns descended on her- one who had clearly come from the ground, one through the skylight through which she had ascended, and another from the window of a nearby building. Grinning at them, she turned the pistol towards her head, and fired.

*****

The briefing room aboard the RSS Republic was cramped. It was a purely perfunctory gesture to hold the meeting aboard the vessel, as she was still in drydock- it would likely have made more sense to hold this conference in one of the innumerable rooms in Home One. However, the ship gave them an added level of security and secrecy, as there was only one, easily controlled, avenue aboard the vessel from the station.

The room was fairly unremarkable. The top ceiling was slanted, following the curve of the saucer; Captain ao Goeprey had noted that this was a general trend aboard the ship, from the bridge in the very front section to his quarters on the underside. The only place it abated was in the engine block in the extreme rear, and that was three-quarters full of the enormous equipment needed to propel the vessel through space. The conference room sported large windows cut into the ceiling, and a pleasant grey colour, offset with blue carpeting, a material engineered to mimic the feel of short grass as closely as possible. It leant a feeling of nature to the ship that ao Goeprey knew would be very important after months in deep space.

Inside the room, surrounding the large round table, were the five Admirals of the Space Navy, Commodore Quom, Captain ao Goeprey, and his First Officer, an Asyrn named Gyrk. Gyrk seemed fairly severe; he had not shown anything even approaching a sense of humour in the two days that ao Goeprey had been working with him on crewing decisions and supply reports and requisitions, and that gave the Captain a sinking feeling. Gyrk had, after all, been chosen by the Asyrn Embassy, likely on orders from the Federation Council itself, and for them to appoint a regulations-stickler to his ship gave him a distinct feeling of unease. Everything I say or do will make it back to the Embassy, reflected ao Goeprey.

It was Admiral Yiam that spoke first. “I’m certain by now all of you are aware of the assassination of Ambassador Vrek. I must stress tat that information is not to leave this room; his death has been reported as a sudden illness, and those few people who do know of the assassination have been personally informed by either the President of the Republic or myself. Do not spread rumours, as they have a habit of causing problems later on.”

“Do we know who was responsible?” asked ao Goeprey.

“Republic Independentists,” answered another Admiral, Tem.

“How do we know?” asked the Captain.

“He had the words ‘Long Live the Free and Bold Republic’ carved into his chest in Standard,” responded Commodore Quom, humourlessly. “We knew this sort of backlash against the Asyrns was coming, but we did not expect it to be so sudden, or violent.”

Gyrk nodded. “Your people seem greatly resentful of the advances that mine have given you,” he said, in Asyrn. His communicator, standard RIO issue, translated in real time with a pleasant, resonant male voice. ao Goeprey had never understood how that worked; he assumed that the translation matrix must be able to interpret brainwaves to make instant translation possible, but his interests had always leaned towards the astrophysical side of science, not the biochemical. With a glance, Quom brought his attention back to the conversation in time to hear the end of Admiral Tem’s response.

“…possible intergalactic incident.”

Ao Goeprey frowned, that didn’t seem good.

“The Asyrn people, likewise, wish to prevent an intergalactic incident, even though I do not speak for them. You have been in contact with the Embassy, what are they telling you?”

Yiam frowned. “Not very much; there doesn’t seem to have been a clear line of succession to the Ambassador. Ostensibly, the Federation Council are working on it, and I hope a decision comes soon. In any case, we have precise orders from the President of the Republic as to RIO’s next steps. The Republic is going to be launched on schedule, in three cycles. Captain ao Goeprey, will your ship be prepared?”

“Yes, Admiral. Much of the crew have come aboard; we are still waiting on the department heads, all of whom have arranged to arrive over the next two cycles. We will be having a formal launch party on the shakedown cruise to mark the transfer of ship’s operations from Home One crew to ours. In almost all cases, training is already complete, and close to 80% of duties are being undertaken by our own crew.”

Tem nodded. “That is good news.”

Yiam smiled. “I had expected no less. In that case, you will likely wish to hear about the destination of your shakedown cruise.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“You will be carrying a full honour guard of Asyrns, as well as the body of Ambassador Vrek. It will take you eight days at Jump 5 to get to the Asyrn homeworld, which will give your crew enough time to attend his state funeral as the Republic’s official representatives. I do not need to remind you that this assassination is a sign of a particularly troubled patch in Federation-Republic relations, nor do I need to remind you of the importance of our continued close collaboration with the Federation government.”

“No, ma’am.”

“Any questions?”

“One, Admiral. Do the Asyrns know that we’re coming?”

“They are aware of the fact, yes. However, let us be clear that it was not their first choice of how the honoured Ambassador should return to his home system.”

“On our best behaviour, then?”

Yiam leaned forwards in her chair, and met ao Goeprey’s gaze directly. “This is the most important diplomatic mission we have ever undertaken. Some of your crew may be reluctant to work with two dozen Asyrns on board, overlooking them. We can take an massive step forwards in the area of interspecies communication and co-operation here, one that could set the tone for a century of interaction. The Devastation showed us three millennia ago what lack of co-operation can do, and that is a period in history we would all rather not repeat. Anything else?”

ao Goeprey looked cowed. “No, ma’am.”

“Excellent. Dismissed.”

*****

It was raining in Perth. This was not an uncommon event; Australia’s climate and location near the warm waters of the Indian Ocean ensured that this was generally the case. The electric trams had already gone to their late night schedule, reducing their frequency and availability dramatically, and the few people that were abroad in these deepest hours of the night were all on foot.

Most of these people simply walked by the building with the sign out front reading “First Australian Republicanist Church” in the squiggly Australian ideograms; there was no proffered Standard translation. One figure, however, cloaked in a shadowy hood, ducked into the small vestibule at the front of the structure- it followed the general domed trend of Earth buildings, but the dome had six cylindrical towers protruding from seemingly random locations around the surface, with crystalline stained-glass caps.

Once inside from the rain, the figure shucked off the travelling cloak, and tossed it onto a hook hanging from the low ceiling. The other coats in the room gave it the appearance of a cloth forest, and the figure slipped through it like a jungle tiger. He opened the door, sliding it into the right wall, and crossed through into the main dome. The bleed-off from the city lights trickling through the stained-glass windows was augmented by dozens of thick candles, casting a flickering glow into the room.

In the centre was a small raised platform, and around it were six tiers of seating that rose and wrapped entirely around the circle. On these benches sat perhaps a hundred and fifty people, mostly people in their late teens or early twenties, many of whom with shaven heads. As the figure entered the room and sat down quietly at the rear of the congregation, the doors slammed shut, and people set about blowing out each candle except for the one in the centre of the room, right on the platform. A man walked out to it.

“Children of the Republic. Welcome.” He spoke in Australian, its drawn out, flowing sounds echoing like a sinuous river rolling through a wide field.

A low murmur of thank-yous ran through the crowd, both the ‘Oumammanon’ of Australian, and the clipped ‘Pek toh’ of Standard.

“We are gathered here tonight in celebration. The great traitor, the so-called ‘Ambassador’ Vrek is dead, struck down by a faithful Agent of the Watcher. Let us give praise to Her.”

The crowd responded. “It is right to give thanks to the Watcher. She is good.”

“Through her ever-watchful eye, an enemy of the Republic is dead. This vile creature, bent on absorbing and conquering the republic we hold so dear. His attempt at domination so offended the Watcher that She dispatched an avatar to strike him down.” The man’s eye glinted. No-one in the room was certain exactly who this avatar had been, but a few of the people absent from the usual gathering of the Republican Church appeared suspicious by their absence. Eyes cast about the auditorium, seemingly taking stock of the people present.

“Yet,” continued the man in the centre, “we have been blessed further. The Watcher has seen fit to instruct the Republic Space Navy to appoint one of our own, Lieutenant Perrichar Demerrionan, to the great ship Republic, to be launched in three cycles.” There was much astonished whispering in the room.

“Through him,” the man continued, “we will bring the Truth to the stars, the Truth that we alone are the Watcher’s chosen people, and we alone can inherit the galaxy. We will have the opportunity to destroy the mongrel races, and to punish those who would collaborate with them to crush humanity under their heel. May the Watcher speed you, Perrichar, on your Holy Quest.”

He regarded the room. “Let us pray.”


A/N: Review, please.

This is quite interesting, I like the style you have written with. The preface was well done and covered everything so what was in the chapters could be understood well.

I'm looking forward to more of this, well done!

Episode 1, Part 4

The Captain’s Ready Room aboard the Republic was a squashed affair. The shelves held dozens of cases of datasticks, comprising maps, encyclopaedias, works of art and literature, and music, and the small desk in the corner was cluttered with a variety of equipment and paraphernalia. There was a computer access terminal, with its wide, flat screen, a data-entry keypad, a set of speaker controls (the speakers were inauspiciously placed around the room), and a variety of mementoes from ao Goeprey’s previous postings.

It was early in the morning, not even one decicycle into Newcycle. First shift would not be starting for some time; each day aboard the Republic was divided into three shifts, each exactly .333 of a cycle in length, with the remaining millicycle being a transitional period from Third shift to First. The lights marking the beginning of the shipboard day would not come on for a while, and that suited captain ao Goeprey well; he needed more time to ensure that he looked perfect for the ship’s launch.

He ran his fingers through the small goatee growing on his chin, immaculately trimmed. He checked in the mirror to ensure his fairly long hair was neatly tied back, away from his face, and set to work affixing his new rank insignia. RIO had decided some time previously that their rank insignia would be the standard two-tone blue double-semicircle divided into eight equal pieces, with an eighth given for each rank attained. As a Captain, ao Goeprey had seven-eighths of a complete circle, with only the top-rightmost piece outstanding. With each new rank, ao Goeprey had a difficult time mentally adjusting the image of himself in uniform to include the extra piece; there were times in his mind’s eye where he still wore the single pip of an Ensign.

And now, he mused, I’m in command of thirty of them. And sixteen junior Lieutenants, five Lieutenants, and a Lieutenant Commander. Quite aside from the forty-three general crewmen aboard. And as his eye scrolled methodically around the room, he saw the datastick containing the guest manifest on his desk, reminding him of the dozen Asyrn dignitaries filling the cramped Guest Quarters to overflowing, as well as the corpse lying in state in Cargo Room Three. Only for six cycles, and then we can do some actual exploring.

Even ao Goeprey had to admit to himself that it was a terribly exciting prospect, however. He was aboard the first Republic ship in all of history to travel at Jump Five, and would be setting out on a journey that would involve more exploration than the previous millennium combined. At that moment, a sound chirped from the room’s speakers, a sound that took ao Goeprey a minute to recognize.

“Come in,” he said, eventually, and the door slid into the wall, stopping with a metallic thunk. Through the breach stepped Gyrk, dressed in the standard saffron robe of the Asyrn Spacefleet, the rank of Second emblazoned in four black stripes running vertically from left elbow to shoulder. His black feathers contrasted neatly with the uniform, and they too had been neatly preened for the big occasion. A live feed from the bridge would naturally be pumped all through the Republic, with likely billions of people on Earth, Mars, Taen, and most of the small colonies watching live, and even likely a news spot on the evening’s broadcast on Asyr. Ao Goeprey nodded to the officer. “Second Grk. Have a seat.”

“I would prefer to stand,” replied Gyrk, coolly.

“Fair enough.” Ao Goeprey left it hanging for a moment deliberately; if anyone was going to be made uncomfortable in this office, it would not be him. Gyrk, however, did not miss a beat.

“I decided to inform you that we now have a centicycle before the launch.”

“What, did you think I’d forget?” asked ao Goeprey, smiling.

“With humans, anything is possible.”

The smile slid off ao Goeprey’s face and was replaced with mild distaste. “Second Gyrk.”

“Yes.”

Ao Goeprey paused.

“Yes, sir,” amended Gyrk, in a tone that held nothing more than contempt.

“For the next kilocycle, you are going to be on a vessel crewed, with the exception of yourself, entirely by humans.”

“Unfortunately that seems to be the case.”

Ao Goeprey rose to make eye contact with the Asyrn. “Perhaps then, Second, it would do well to have a little less open distaste for them. As captain and first Officer, we need to work closely together to ensure the safety of this vessel and crew, and to have you blasting our entire species will not make that task easier. As First Officer you are also responsible for maintaining a relationship with this crew, ensuring that concerns are heard and dealt with appropriately, and that each crewmember has high morale. I don’t believe I need to expound to you why that would be hindered by a racist attitude.”

“Permission to speak freely, sir.”

Ao Goeprey nodded. “Knock yourself out.”

“This assignment is nothing less than a fission torpedo launched at my career.” Gyrk clucked his beak in irritation after his diatribe had been translated.

“Explain.”

“I’m posted on a ship not even half as fast as an Asyrn warship, armed with weapons that wouldn’t light a candle, and crewed by savages.”

Ao Goeprey clenched his fists, and purpled. “Savages?” he hissed.

Gyrk looked at him with a puzzled expression, irritating in its falseness. “I’m sorry, that concept does not translate well. Primitives.”

“Humans are not primitive,” spat ao Goeprey.

“Your planet used to be 10% ice, and on average ten degrees cooler than it is now. You used to have hundreds of population centres that are now concrete, poisonous, overgrown hazard zones or reefs. Humanity nearly eradicated themselves, and if you were stupid enough to do that, my only regret is that you didn’t succeed.”

“That was three millennia ago.”

“It changes nothing. Asyrns may fight wars, but we fight them for reasons, against clear enemies. You turn on each other.”

“We do not shy away from the past, Second. Our school children learn about the Devastation early and often, and each and every one knows the dangers of environmental destruction and wanton conflict. The last fission bomb to detonate on Earth was a hundred generations ago, and they are aboard the Republic at the request of your government, for self defence, the same as our plasma cannons. We are not going into space seeking war.”

“Your species seems to have no problem bringing that with them.”

Ao Goeprey stared at him intensely. “Remember what I told you, Second. Human bash in your reports to Federation Council until your fingers bleed, but I don’t want to hear a single snide comment from this point forwards.”

Gyrk clicked something at him that the computer did not translate.

“What was that, Second?”

“We need to get to the bridge for the launch, Captain.”

Eyeing the Asyrn darkly, ao Goeprey swept out after him onto the bridge. It was a simply beautiful room. On the front wall was a wide viewscreen, right now rendered completely transparent, to show the inside of Home One’s dry dock. When a transmission came in, the screen could be rendered opaque to block out the stars and show the message, and could zoom in on objects and pump in feeds from cameras all over the hull’s exterior, making for an incredibly versatile display.

Right now, the bridge was full of officers making last-minute launch preparations. Three pilots sat around the Helm station at the front of the ovular room, configuring buttons and knobs to their preference, and taking turns at the joysticks and steering column that allowed for fine control over the vessel. The Tactical station, immediately to their left, were verifying weapons loadouts and security arrangements for the Asyrn guests and Ambassador Vrek’s coffin. Science, just above the captain’s chair, elevated at centre, was bringing the sensor arrays online one at a time, checking for any possible problems. Operations, elevated in the back right corner, were running a full computer diagnostic, that looked to be wrapping up, and on the other side of the bridge from them the engineering console stood abandoned; all the Engineering action was at the moment taking place at the far rear of the ship in the engine block.

The twenty-some officers in Republic uniforms were drastically superfluous, but they would soon be sent to their duty stations. They also stood as marked contrast to the group of sombre-looking Asyrn dignitaries, in a variety of colours and patterns of robes, who were looking disapprovingly on from the back. Gyrk unsurprisingly went to talk to them, and though ao Goeprey couldn’t understand a single word or click of their conversation, he thought the other Asyrns were fairly standoffish with him. Just wishful thinking, thought the captain, taking his seat in the centre of the bridge. It was perhaps a foot higher than the Helm and Tactical stations, on level with the back stations of Ops, Science, and Engineering where the floor sloped upwards.

A small counter was ticking down the microcycles until the ship’s launch, ticking down impossibly fast. Ao Goeprey thumbed the communicator on his armrest, and spoke. “All stations, this is Captain Karm ao Goeprey. All hands to duty stations, to prepare for launch. I’m given to understand that the Forward Observation Lounge will also be offering a lovely view for the big event. Ao Goeprey out.”

The bridge exploded into frenetic activity, with all but nearly a dozen crewmen leaving it. Those that remained took their stations in silence, but their excitement was apparent in the bright expressions on their face; the Asyrns at the back did not move. Ao Goeprey swivelled his chair and regarded them with open contempt.

“In case your translators are malfunctioning, ladies and gentlemen, I just told you to get off the bridge and to the lounge. I’m not sure what Asyrn ships are like, being primitive, but I’m going to ask that when I give an order, human or Asyrn, you respect it.” Without waiting for a response, he swivelled back around; a moment later, he heard the door slide open, and stop with a clunk. Ao Goeprey grinned at the indignity of their exit. A moment later, gyrk took his seat at ao Goeprey’s right, and the timer ticked down to zero.

“Captain,” said the officer at Ops, a small dark woman. “We are receiving a transmission from Home One.

“Put it up,” said the Captain, as the screen flashed to a picture of Admiral Tam, his usually expressionless face showing a fervour that inspired ao Goeprey.

“Captain,” said the Admiral.

“Admiral.”

“Just calling to wish you the best of luck, and to send you the best wishes of everyone at the Republic Interstellar Organization.”

The bridge broke into applause, and ao Goeprey beamed. “Much appreciated, Admiral.”

“Safe journey.”

“Aye, sir.” The transmission winked out, replaced with the interior of the dry dock. The captain turned to Ops.

“Lieutenant…”

“Pash, sir,” she replied.

“Lieutenant Pash,” repeated ao Goeprey, putting a real face to the name and image he had seen in dozens of staffing reports that week. “Hail Orbital Control.” Pash nodded to him, and he began to speak.

“Orbital Control, this is the RSS Republic.”

The image of an excited young officer, a junior grade Lieutenant, appeared on screen. “Go ahead, Republic, she said, keenly aware her words were now being heard by billions of humans in two systems.

“Requesting permission to depart on vector two three one point five mark twelve.”

“Permission granted, Republic. Detaching umbilicals now and depressurizing the dock. Safe journey.”

The transmission ended, and ao Goeprey closed his eyes, settling in to the moment. He looked to Helm, already knowing the name of the young blond woman sitting there. “Lieutenant Iblin.”

“Aye, Captain.”

“Take us out, manoevering thrusters only.”

With not even a shudder, the ship began to glide gently forwards in the vacuum. Iblin’s hand was sure and steady as the massive ship was born from the drydock into the cold world of space. The viewscreen showed millions of stars appearing through the port in the dock, and as more and more were revealed as the ship slid further and further out, the sense of awe became palpable. “We are clear of the dock,” reported Iblin.

“Set a course, vector two three one point five mark twelve.”

“What velocity, sir?” Iblin played the part perfectly, allowing ao Goeprey the perfect set-up.

He grinned, savouring the words. “Jump five. Activate.”

As the stars turned from pinpricks into long streaks, and from the outside the Republic stretched into nothing more than a string, the bridge crew applauded. Ao Goeprey rose. “Today, the Republic leaves the womb, and is born into the universe.”

A/N: Any comments would be greatly appreciated- Episode 2 of the season premiere two-parter will be coming soon.

Episode 2- "Corridor", Part 1

The Engineering hull of the Republic was, to Lieutenant Gyn Haep, a world unto itself. The burly, dark-skinned engineering chief had, over the six-month construction phase of the vessel, come to know every rivet and bolt on the entire construction. Many in his department claimed he had a better knowledge of the vessel than her designers. He surveyed it with satisfaction from his vantage point on the top deck, looking down on the mammoth Jump engines that climbed fifteen metres from the floor of deck five to the ceiling of deck one. There were innumerable walkways below him, leading to access hatches in the massive machinery that folded and bent space to its will, on which stood perhaps a dozen Engineering and Operations staff making in-flight tests and checks. A little back from the engines, the Engineering hull regained the standard five-deck construction of the Republic, with rooms branching off corridors containing all manner of equipment needed to keep up the ship’s record speed through space.

“Excuse me, Lieutenant?” Haep started, and regarded the man addressing him. He was fairly old, for a junior officer, bearing the same three-eights of a circle rank insignia as Haep. The Engineer vaguely recalled having seen the man before at a staff meeting, but could not recall his name.

“Yes?”

Seeming to understand that the recognition was not mutual, the Lieutenant smiled. “My name is Perrichar Demerrionan. I’m from Ops, computing specialist.”

Haep nodded, grateful for the information. “How can I help you, Lieutenant?”

“Perr is fine.”

“What do you need?” Haep recognized that he sounded harsh, but small talk had never been his forté. He had grown up on the waters on the Antarctic Sea, making runs around the pole carrying grain from the Valkyerie plains to Patagonia and Africa, picking up both the traditional nautical language and spartan attitude. He was already aware of grumbling among his crew that he was somewhat of a slave driver, but seeing the truth in the accusation, he had let it go, deciding that it was better to be complained about than slandered.

Perr seemed to catch the attitude, but let it go. “I was actually wondering if you’d like to go to the lounge after your shift.” Haep looked at him, startled, and began to trip over an excuse before Perr explained. “Not making romantic overtures, Lieutenant, just wanting to get to know the other senior officers around here- we’re going to be together for a kilocycle, might as well get to talking.”

Haep still looked vaguely uncomfortable. “Call me Gyn,” was all he managed to get out.

“So?”

“I don’t know. I’m not very interesting.”

“Sure you are.”

“How would you know?”

“I’ve heard talk. You’re the one that threatened to use the crewmen as fuel if they didn’t mop faster.”

“Not that interesting.”

“It’s an… older attitude.”

“I just don’t see why the Space Navy needs to put up with laziness.”

“Space Navy?”

Haep smiled. “Sorry. RIO. It is a tempting thought though, isn’t it? Cavaliering around the galaxy, like the old fleets that explored the world. Danger, adventure… more interesting than a government branch, isn’t it?”

Perrichar laughed. “I think we have a lot in common. Lounge?”

Satisfied that all was proceeding much as it should, Haep stepped back from the chasm at the end of the catwalk, and nodded. The two officers set off through the twisting corridors to the Engineering lounge, passing piles of equipment still stacked in corners in their original boxes. Mentally, Haep resolved himself to get the crewmen to unload more quickly, and to throw a hammer at the Quartermaster the next time he saw him. Within moments, they arrived at the inauspicious door that led to the largest source of gambling, applewine, and debauchery outside of the solar system.

Crossing the threshold was unimpressive- a few dozen crates and boxes forming makeshift tables and chairs, with an overturned storage crate (from the markings formerly containing standard 4E size plasma coupling washers) guarding the corner, replete with an impressive collection of drinks from all over the Republic. As it was the middle of First Shift, there were few officers currently in the room; most of those who were not on duty were sleeping. There were a few games of cards being played around the room- occasionally shouts of ‘cheat!’ rang out. However, with two fairly senior officers entering the room, conversation quieted to an awkward halt, with several discomfited looks being hurled at Haep and Demerrionan.

The computer specialist was first off the mark. “As you were,” he announced, wandering over to the liquor cabinet. He pulled out a clear bottle, full of electric blue liquid that looked to Haep like engine coolant, and grabbed one of the plastic cups from an adjoining crate. Haep sat down, somewhat awkwardly, not having spent much time around his subordinates where he wasn’t threatening their lives, and Demerrionan joined him, his glass even smelling like engine coolant.

“What is that?” asked Haep.

“Engine coolant,” responded Perr with a grin.

“No, seriously.”

“No, seriously,” retorted Perr.

“Shouldn’t that be liquefying your stomach?”

“Nope. It’s about 50% standard ethyl alcohol.”

“And the other 50% is a mix of chemicals designed to keep machinery that can warp space itself from getting too warm.”

“I’m from Australia,” said Perr, as if that explained everything.

Haep decided to let it go. “Strange to think that in a couple of days we’ll be actually in orbit around Asyr.”

Perr snorted. “If there was ever a planet I didn’t want to go to.”

“It’s nice. I went with a diplomatic mission… well, must have been nearly two kilocycles ago. To try and persuade the Federation to let us build the Republic-class.”

“Very generous of them,” said Perr, even-handedly.

“Not an Asyrn supporter, then?”

“Not as such.”

“Are you…”

“Am I?”

“Well, not to stereotype.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re from Australia. Are you Watcherist?”

“As much as every Australian. We learn about Her in schools, and it’s the prevailing culture, but I wouldn’t say I’m particularly devout.”

“So you’re a Republicanist?”

Something like anger, or maybe fear crossed Perr’s face, but he quickly covered it with an expression of faint interest. “What would give you that leap?”

Haep recognized the frostiness of the question, but decided to blunder forwards, as opposed to blundering backwards. “I read about Watcherism in school. You believe in the absolute superiority of humanity, don’t you?”

“I believe that we should be allowed to make our own mistakes, yes. Do I want to stab every Asyrn I’ve ever met? You’ve been given a biased picture of our faith, Lieutenant. We’re not all violent killers, like Secularist propaganda would have you think.”

“I’m not a Sec-“

“No, it’s fine. I have to go run a diagnostic on the ODN relays on deck two. See you around.” He stood up, wobbling a little bit, and spun around the door.

Haep sat back, disconcerted. Why would he go off like that on me?” Shrugging, he glared harshly at the young officers playing cards, hoping the dark look would be enough to get them to abandon all recollection of the altercation he had just had, and wandered back towards the Jump Drive’s chasm. Oh well. Only one decicycle ‘till dinner.

*****

Dinnertime aboard the Republic was a cramped affair. There was one mess hall for the full 95-member crew of the ship, and even though not all of them were in the room at the same time, the space right at the end of First Shift, where nearly half the ship’s crew were coming off duty and a quarter were just waking up, made for a busy place. One table, however, was not cramped whatsoever, the comparatively expansive department heads’ table. Around it now sat Captain ao Goeprey, eating a stringy dish that looked like pulled roasted Roo, Lieutenant Saibyl Pash of Operations and Communications, looking disdainfully at a light blue soup that was allegedly sweet potato, Lieutenant Fel Iblin of Navigation, eating the same soup with one hand while playing a game on her communicator with the other, Lieutenant Commander Thella Nar of Science, eating a sandwich enthusiastically, and the Quartermaster Lieutenant Grebel Mingya, with a glass of water, seemingly mentally itemizing every single thing that the crew were eating, and calculating when they would next need to take on supplies.

“Full house,” remarked Pash, looking around the table, trying to distract herself from her lacklustre food. She brushed her hair out of her eyes for a better look.

“Except for Haep,” interjected Mingya. “What’s he tinkering with?”

“He’s likely eating in the Engineering Lounge,” said Nar. “Logically, he wouldn’t bother coming all the way to the mess hall if he could eat there. If you put a cafeteria in science, you wouldn’t get me out until we got to drydock and you cut a hole in the hull for a crane.”

Mingya looked at her, one eyebrow cocked. He had pale skin, but bright orange hair- he had always felt his coiffe made up for his fairly bland features. “I don’t know where you’d find that much food, Thella. The crew would cut you apart before the dry dock staff could if you ate all the food on the ship. I’m pretty close to ransacking the Engineering Lounge myself- they may be engineers, but if they’re recycling properly, I’ll eat a wrench.”

“If they aren’t recycling properly, we’ll all be eating wrenches before long,” said Iblin absently, not looking up from her soup or game.

“I’m sure the Asyrns will give us some when we get there, if we ask nicely,” said ao Goeprey, evenly.

“It worked for our space program,” said Iblin, stopping all conversation around the table. Ao Goeprey looked around the room, before leaning in. hearing the change, Iblin looked up, puzzledly.

“Probably not a good time to Asyrn-bash, Lieutenant. We aren’t on Earth anymore, and a comment like that into the wrong ear would be a very bad thing.”

Iblin flicked her communicator off. “I wasn’t aware we had to guard our tongues, sir,” she replied frostily. “On Taen we’re allowed to speak our minds.”

“That’s because no-one cares about Taen,” remarked Mingya, blindly. With a glare from ao Goeprey, he returned to his water.

The Captain continued. “We’re on a mission of exploration, and we have no choice but to accept the reality that for the time being, we are completely dependent on the Asyrns for the success of this mission. All they need to do is take their maps and language database offline, and we’re stuck progressing at a snail’s pace, checking out our route with a telescope and using gestures to beg for food at planets that could have anything on them. I understand that on Taen it’s different, but on this ship, especially now with Asyrn diplomats everywhere, it’s the case. Am I understood?”

“Yes, sir,” said Iblin, cowed. The table continued eating in silence.

*****

“Mr. President,” said the aide outside the Central Office of the Federation on Asyr, “The Secretary of Defence is here to see you.”

The President clucked wearily. He checked his clock, and saw that he should have gone home some time ago. Stretching his wings, he indicated his willingness to see the Secretary, and straightened his robes. Looking equally harassed, the Secretary entered the room, closing the screen tightly behind him. “Mr. President.”

“Krye. How are you?”

“Tired, Mr. President.”

“What news?”

“The Republic vessel is on its way, and will be here in five of their days.”

“Depressingly slow travel. I wish we could put this Ambassador Vrek unpleasantness to rest faster. It’s terrible for morale.”

“But the humans insist on doing this themselves.”

“I’m certain they have their reasons. However, is this all you have to report?”

“No, sir. I bring bad news from the front.”

Ruffling his feathers, indicating resoluteness to bad news, the President nodded. “Go on.”

“The Draebar have captured Rissk’a.”

The President whistled. “That puts them two days’ travel from Asyr itself.”

“Yes, sir.”

“What do you suggest we do?”

“We need more troops to hold the Rissk’a-Asyr corridor. We need to move ships from outlying systems into that breach as soon as possible. It will likely mean allowing two or three colony worlds to fall in order to protect the capital.”

“Krye, tell me we can win this war.”

“We have not lost yet, Mr. President.”

“Is that the best I’m going to get?”

“Yes, Mr. President.”

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