The Siege of Sirius Page 4

  HOT SUN RESTAURANT and Bar

  Kingston, Earth, Sol system

  March 6, 2033, 17:41 SST (Sol Standard Time)

  Williams took a seat in a crowded restaurant not far from the Radiance Embassy. His belly demanded it while his mind wanted a place to pass the time before his transport ship was due to depart. The Carl Sagan was officially out of dry dock and several crew members he had recruited had started to arrive and make themselves at home in their quarters.

  The restaurant was different from the rest in the area as it had a menu suited toward humans and aliens, and oftentimes fused the cooking styles of Earth and Radiance to create unique dishes that all could enjoy. At least one third of the menu was vegan, which made sense considering both the Aryile and Javnis races were herbivores. The rest of the menu was carefully crafted to suit the needs of humans, Linl, and Rabuabin, while a tiny section had meals made from insects, Vorcambreum feasted on bugs exclusively. Escargot was a huge hit here.

  Williams’ lunch consisted of barbecued ribs, smothered in spices found on Talsyk the Rabuabin home world, served with poached vegetables from Foicanta, a planet orbiting Proxima Centauri. A dish with ingredients from Earth and two other planets in the galaxy, describing it as something out of this world was an understatement, his taste buds could attest to that.

  A finger tapped his shoulder from behind. He turned around, and saw nothing but servers taking orders from newly seated patrons in the restaurant. He then heard someone take a seat in front of him.

  It was Foster, playing tricks on him as she smiled warmly at him. He almost didn’t recognize her through the sunglasses, blue summer dress and matching hat, with flip-flops.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked her.

  “Sorry can’t let you have all the fun!”

  “I’m just doing paperwork.” He nodded at his data pad on the table as psychedelic images of its screensaver danced across the screen.

  Foster made a face at his data pad and then from her bag, she pulled out a pad of her own. Only it was different, it projected a holographic screen as it powered on, one that she could interact with.

  “What the hell is that?” Williams asked.

  “Jealous?”

  Damn right I am!

  “It’s a holo pad,” she explained. “It’s gonna replace data pads in a few years. Least for us it is, doubt Radiance will use ‘em.”

  “So, it’s just like a data pad?”

  “Holographic interface rather than a touch screen, and its human-made.”

  “Where did you get it?”

  “Our new chief engineer, it was one of the last projects she worked on before, uh, going off the grid. I managed to convince command to let us use ‘em. May as well, as any new technological advancements will remain here and not with us in Sirius.”

  “We got an engineer, progress.”

  “She’s pretty cute too,” Foster added with a chuckle.

  As far back as Williams could remember she was always trying to play the role of a matchmaker for him. It didn’t always work, and the few times it did the relationships he had didn’t last longer than two months. Nevertheless, like a big sister looking out for her adopted brother, Foster kept an eye out for women and pushed Williams to talk with them.

  “Any progress on your end?” Foster said as she put the fancy, new age device away.

  “Yeah we get to pick between a rookie ship psionic and an old psionic soldier.”

  “We ain’t a warship, so I’d say take the rookie.”

  “That’s what I was thinking.” Williams tapped his pad and then lifted it up for her to view the contents of his screen. “Until I read this report on psionics. Their skill takes years to develop and a rookie might have a rough time with ESP, bridge gravity, and telepathic communications with Earth. Whereas even a combat psionic could still perform those duties provided they developed their mind after all those years.”

  Foster stroked her chin in a sage like manner. “Hmm.”

  “Yes, hmm indeed. I’m down for giving newbie’s a chance, but he’s useless to us if he can’t do those duties reliably. And remember we’ll be all alone out there.”

  “Ain’t no backup or new recruits comin’ our way,” she said. “I’ll leave it in your capable hands, Dom.”

  “I thought you’d say that.”

  “The Carl Sagan is officially operational, we’ll be boarding it soon and therefore this will be the last chance to relax on the beach before its exploration, science, and discovery time. And I for one have a really daring bikini to try out before we do all that.”

  They laughed heavily at her statement. Williams couldn’t blame her for sneaking in some last second R and R. Sirius was a star that was brighter, larger, hotter, and emitted more radiation than the sun. Sun bathing on a planet there would probably get you killed within hours. Sure, radiation shields could be built and probably were going to be used for the future colonies if they were on a planet that lacked a strong enough ozone layer, but where was the fun in that?

  Foster was getting ready to get up from her seat as Williams went to finish his lunch. She stopped, almost frozen in time, as she saw his meal.

  “I’ll be right here if you need me,” he said.

  “On second thoughts,” she sat back down and leaned in closer to look at his dish, “I’ll join you for lunch.”

  “You just want this because you saw it.”

  “And smelt it. Shit that looks amazin’.”

  Williams called for a server so that Foster could order a dish for herself. Idle chitchat followed, and they caught up on what they had been up to the last few days. The most shocking thing she revealed was that she broke up with Mike. The breakup itself wasn’t a big deal, as he himself had ended a relationship when he learned he would be leaving Earth for years. The shocking bit was that she seemed so eager for him to take a break and hang out on the beach with her. It was a tempting thought. He had been working out quite a bit prior to their assessment, but she was always like an older sister to him. It would feel odd for the two of them to walk on the beach together showing off their sexy beach bodies for the masses to see, as if they were a couple.

  The server came back later to clear the two empty plates that were on their table and asked. “Enjoy ya meals?”

  “Amazing,” Williams replied.

  “It’s the chef’s last day,” said the server. “He’s retiring to go on a spiritual journey or something.”

  The server’s reveal got Williams thinking. He checked the list of crew positions that still needed to be filled on his data pad. A head Chef was still vacant, and regardless of what psionic he’d end up selecting, they were going to need to eat food suitable for their species, and the chef here proved to be able to pull that off with ease.

  “Mind if I have a chat with the chef when he’s free?” Williams asked.

  “Sure, mon!”

  Foster raised her eyebrow as the server left. “Dom?”

  “If we’re going to be separated by eight point six light years, lets at least get some good grub with us.”

  “He’s retiring though.”

  “For a spiritual journey. What better way to do that than to go out to the stars, away from civilization, big cities, and such?”

  5 FOSTER

  Transport en route to ESRS Carl Sagan

  Earth orbit, Sol system

  March 10, 2033, 04:19 SST (Sol Standard Time)

  Captain Rebecca Foster allowed her body to float freely as the transport she boarded broke free of Earth’s gravitational pull. It was a reminder that she had crossed the point of no return. She had left Earth and wasn’t going to see it for a long time, if ever. Her home had been given away to her mother, and they had shared a tearful and emotional goodbye as she went on to continue the work of her father, discovering more about the cosmos.

  She tried her best to not let it get to her, and reminded herself that if her father was still alive, it probably would have been him aboard the tran
sport packed with UNE navy personnel and IESA explorers, like herself, traveling to their assigned ships.

  Just beyond the orbit of the Moon were the Nikola Tesla, Stephen Hawking, Freeman Dyson, and Carl Sagan in a diamond formation. A multitude of transport ships docked with or departed from the four massive ships, unloading crew, colonists, and supplies, while off-loading personnel that were to remain in Sol.

  Foster entered the cockpit where a young Asian man with a thin goatee manned the transport. “Hey there, sorry didn’t catch ya name,” Foster said as she floated next to him.

  “Chang, Flight Lieutenant Denis Chang at your service.”

  “Give us a grand tour.”

  “Grand tour?”

  “Of the Carl Sagan,” Foster said, pointing toward it through the windshield. “I wanna see it from all angles before we dock.” She looked back at the various navy and IESA personnel behind her. “I’m sure y’all wanna check it too, so come on over!”

  Chang grinned as he made the course adjustments on the flight controls before him. “One grand tour of the Carl Sagan coming right up!”

  Their transport traveled silently toward the rear of the ship where its idle sub light speed engines were. Afterward he brought the transport around to its side, sunlight beaming off its hull as the transport cast a small moving shadow along it. The tethers that connected the main fuselage to the rear habitat ring were above them as they passed, Foster saw a glimpse of the mess hall through the windows, with people wheeling in kitchen equipment, pots, and pans for the chef and his cook team to use. Maintenance crews in EVA suits traveled to a disk-shaped maintenance hatch on the habitat ring after completing their structural integrity checks on that particular section.

  More of the central section could be seen from the left side of the windshield, with personnel in space suits performing last-minute checks of the exterior of the hull, while others applied the finishing touches to the paint job, namely the name of the ship: ESRS Carl Sagan with the logo of IESA beside it and the flag of the UNE adjacent to that.

  The forward habitat rings came into view, Chang made sure to slow down the transport as they neared it. The windows of that ring showed the countless families that boarded and were being guided toward their cryostasis pods. Hydroponic bays had small gardens and trees growing inside while botanists attended to them. Although most of the crew will be in stasis, a small rotating skeleton crew will remain awake to tend to the plants and monitor ship-wide systems.

  Chang adjusted course, took the transport to the opposite end of the forward habitat ring, and allowed everyone to peer into the windows of the colonization pods that will be used to build the first cities. Small, compact homes and utility facilities were loaded into this section of the habitat ring. Once a suitable planet was found, section by section, the forward habitat ring will come apart and land safely on the surface of the planet, founding the first city. There were enough pods to provide shelter to the thousands of people aboard, as well as basic equipment to build mines, manufacturing planets, water treatment centers, and power generators.

  The bridge came up on the next leg of their tour. It was smaller compared to UNE battleships. Foster saw Williams check out the bridge’s layout through the windshields. She waved to him, but he didn’t reply, no doubt he didn’t notice her or the transport that was in front. The final destination of the transport approached as they dipped down to the underside of the ship. Earth was huge in the background, and it was a fitting end to the tour as it was officially the last time everyone aboard the transport would be able to see it with their own eyes without the aid of cameras or recorded images.

  “See ya around,” Chang said waving goodbye to the blue world. “Want another round?”

  “I think we’re good,” said Foster. “Guess you’re coming with us?”

  He began to pilot the transport to dock inside of the docking bay’s entrance located underneath the ship. “Yes ma’am, transferred here from the ESRS Nikola Tesla.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “My brother and sister were selected to be part of the colonists here rather than the Tesla, didn’t make sense for me to be serving out there when they are out in Sirius,” Chang said. “Besides, at Luhman 16 is just a pair of brown dwarfs . . . doesn’t sound like an exciting adventure to me.”

  Earth, space, and the moon below them came out of view, replaced with the interior of the docking bay as the doors behind them slid shut. Everyone got off the transport, like passengers leaving a crowded train only weightless. Foster and Chang continued to talk about the life they were leaving behind and the new life that was awaiting them.

  Out from the crowd stepped a woman wearing a UNE navy uniform and magnetic boots that kept her glued to the floor. Foster reminded herself to get a pair of those from the lockup, as she wasn’t fond of having to pull on the handle bars on the walls to gain momentum. The UNE navy woman had auburn hair and the name tag Chevallier on her uniform. It was none other than Foster’s chief of security and leader of all UNE naval personnel aboard the Carl Sagan, Master Chief Mathilda Chevallier.

  “Flight Lieutenant,” Chevallier said with her heavy French accent, forcing Chang to salute her.

  “Yes, Chief,” he said firmly.

  “I think the captain has better things to do than to listen to you ramble, yes?”

  “We’re good, don’t worry about it,” said Foster, then she faced the slender yet strong woman in front of them. “So Master Chief you’ll be in command of all UNE personnel then?”

  “Actually, that will be Commander McDowell.”

  Foster grimaced as she wasn’t informed of the change. Last-minute changes like that never worked out well especially when someone who was supposed to be in command has it taken away. “As of when?” Foster asked.

  “As of last night,” said Chevallier. “He was transferred here, I’ll be serving under him.”

  “Nice to know that the UNE gave me the heads-up.”

  Officially the UNE navy and IESA were two different organizations. IESA employed scientists, explorers, and physicists while the navy brought on combat personnel and crew personnel to assist with the ship’s operations, most notably the Hammerhead team, which Chevallier was a member of. Hammerheads were the successors to the old world special forces groups such as the Navy SEALs, Joint Task Force 2, SAS, Special Boat Service. The name Hammerhead came from the design of their helmets which had two sensor modules on either side of it, giving it an eerie look, similar to a Hammerhead shark. However, with the creation of the EDF, recruitment into the Hammerheads had been scaled back in favor of funneling new recruits into the EDF program as EDF-1 was currently en route back to Earth to help in cross training.

  Foster was the captain of the ship, but ultimately was still a civilian in the eyes of the military. While she still called the shots, navy members followed orders given by their CO, apparently Commander McDowell rather than the Master Chief as she was originally told. If Foster needed the navy she relayed a request to their CO who then rallied the troops into action.

  It was easy to tell who was who just by looking at their uniforms since IESA and UNE uniforms were different. The flag of the nation the wearer was from were in a different location. Military personnel had their flags on the top back of their uniforms, while IESA had theirs on the shoulders. IESA uniforms were partly inspired by the uniforms NASA astronauts used to wear during the pre-war days, whereas navy uniforms were largely inspired by royal navy uniform used by the pre-war British.

  Foster left the docking bay and traveled up onto the main decks within the central fuselage of the ship. Various people saluted her as she made her way to the rear habitat ring. A lengthy elevator ride took her up where she was graced with the feeling of the artificial gravity. She found the captain’s quarters and entered, it was bigger than her living room back in LA. Most of the furniture and her larger personal belongings were still stored in boxes. She had no plans on unboxing them just yet, they’ll just be idle for sevent
een years anyways. She tossed her two duffel bags into the corner then exited, what was in the habitat ring was more interesting than her quarters.

  She walked past an assortment of sections in the ring such as the gym and crew quarters. She couldn’t help but look out of the numerous observation windows as light from the sun slowly began to shine through. She saw Williams in the reflection of one window as he approached her from the side with the same mesmerized face she had.

  “This is incredible,” he said.

  “It is,” she said and pointed at a large construction scaffold above Earth in the distance. “Check that out.”

  “What’s that?”

  “New warship in construction already; they didn’t wait long. Apparently that one will take a lot longer to build than the others. It’s gonna have new fancy tech no other Earth-based ship will have.”

  “Such as a QEC.” Foster and Williams spun around to see that Rivera had snuck up behind to join their conversation.

  Foster smiled at her and began to introduce the two to each other. “Dom, meet our Chief engineer, Jasmine Rivera.”

  “Nice to meet you, Commander,” Rivera said, shaking his hand as she put her holo pad away.

  Foster whispered into Williams’ ear. “She’s single.”

  Williams smirked and tried his best to hold in a laugh which made Rivera ask. “What?”

  “Nothing!” Foster said, changing the subject. “So, about that new ship?”

  “Yeah.” Rivera stepped closer to the observation window and locked her eyes on the construction scaffold in orbit. “It will be different from the rest of the fleet, Quantum Entanglement Communicator will be one of the biggest additions to it, and possibly an android version of the new EVE AI.”

  “Android?”

  “Still in the early testing phase, they aren’t even sure it will make it in time for the launch,” Rivera said. “Well, I’ll leave you two alone, I gotta see how engineering looks.”

  Foster nodded to their Chief engineer. “Make sure we’re good for launch, we’ll be fixin’ to depart as soon as the last colonists arrive.”