E:A Vol 5 Ch 6—June 22, 2120

Chapter 6: June 22, 2120

The air was hot, dirty. Lt. Col. John Hagen looked ahead as Major Chris Chapman walked beside him. Both had their weapons raised, each panning the area around the bridge portal. Ahead of them, smoke and ashes.

Be’atta Jollan walked across the portal, her gun also at the ready, followed by Dr. Becket McKenna and Head Nurse, Janice Evans. Simon Harris, their tech specialist joined on this trip but when they saw the smoke and fire in the distance near what Be’atta told them was the capital city, John stepped back over the bridge. “Need another team, full gear. Doc Victoria and a nurse. Probably casualties,” he said to the technician in the control room, then stepped back across the portal onto an entirely different planet.

After arriving in Be’atta’s village and learning about the Nix, the name given to the Rayth, and the dangers facing everyone using the bridge portals, every Expedition: Andromeda team that went off-world had at least one team ready to cross over as backup. Since the medical staff was sparse, only in situations like this one would the team leader call for a second doctor and nurse. John had a feeling they’d be needed.

Major Steve Kessler and a team of three other marines walked over, providing cover for Dr. Victoria Carson and nurse Lutia Glasson.

“Steve, up here with me. Rest of you keep the med team safe between us. Let’s go,” John said.

“Industrial,” Chris said, “smoke stacks. Means the locals have guns, most likely.”

“Doesn’t look like it would have done them much good,” Steve said.

“They are good people,” Be’atta said. Being an Andromeda native, who they just added to their team a few months prior, she suggested worlds they should visit, ones with whom her people traded and trusted. They were also looking for a world on which to relocate her people.

“Really wish we knew how to use those shuttles,” Chris said, speaking of the shuttles in a hangar near the bridge portal control room back on Terra 2. No one knew how to even start them up, let alone fly them. Everything was labeled, but in the Mythican language. Be’atta knew some of the language, enough to use the bridge portals, but not much more than that, and certainly not enough to decipher the controls on the shuttles.

“It’s a half mile,” John said, “you can hoof it.”

“Not the walk that bothers me, it’s the lack of laser weapons and armor,” Chris replied.

“We don’t even know if those shuttles have either of those,” John said, eye level with his gun, sweeping the area as they headed towards the capital.

“Okay, then at least they’d provide a faster escape for us than hoofing it,” Chris said.

“I’ll give you that one.”

From John’s left there came the unmistakable click of a gun being cocked. “Drop your weapons,” came a voice that meant business.

“We’re friends,” John said, lifting his weapon so that the barrel pointed to the sky. His other hand was held up as if in surrender. A nod to his group and they did the same. “Not going to drop these until we’re sure you’re not a Nix.

“A Nix wouldn’t talk to you, they’d just kill you,” came the reply.

Be’atta stepped forward, hands raised. “I am Be’atta Jollan. I’m from the village of Shian on Lyvenia. We’ve done trade with your world. I’ve personally traded with many here in this town. Rancher Haan was one. We often bought cattle from his ranch. These are new friends of my people.”

“Shian? I heard it was destroyed a few months ago,” the enormous warrior said, walking into view. Though he was tall and quite muscular, he looked weak, tired, hungry.

“Nix and some humans destroyed my village, my planet,” Be’atta said. “I was a village leader. My parents, my brother did not make it. These here with me helped me get the few of us left out and are helping us to find a new home; we’re staying in their city until then. Are there any Nix here, these friends can help fight them off. And we have doctors with us, healers to help your wounded.”

“My name is Kaven Maneese. Who are you and what are you doing here?” the gun was still leveled on John Hagen.

“We’re trying to find out more about the humans with the Nix. And trying to help Be’atta find a new home for her people,” John said. “Also looking for trading partnerships and such.”

“Gyhan,” Kaven said. “They’re Gyhan. Human rebels that sided with the Nix.”

“Gyhan are good people,” Be’atta said, surprised. “We often deal with them. We’ve never had issues.”

“Apparently some of them decided to side with the Nix. We just found out about two weeks ago,” Kaven said, finally lowering his weapon. “Don’t trust them; keep your people away from their planet. The Nix are gone from here, we’re just making sure they don’t come back. They took anything the Gyhan didn’t kill.”

“What can we do to help?” John asked. “We’ve got a couple of doctors with us. Healers.”

“Their healing technology is beyond ours,” Be’atta said.

Kaven nodded and waved them to follow him. “Come. Jeyak,” he said to a man still silently hiding on the other side of the group, “watch our backs, follow us in. You need some patching up. Let’s get into the bunker.”

It wasn’t a bunker as John or Chris would think of one. Yes, it was underground, yes it had a concrete surrounding, but it didn’t look reinforced. They set their packs down and pulled out their bags of rations. “Pull this,” John demonstrated the packaging, “it heats automatically. Spoon comes off. It’s not great, but it’s got nutrients.” Becket, Victoria, and the nurses were already over with the patients, checking out the situation.

“Those in that corner are the worst injuries,” Kaven nodded toward the patients, as he took a package of rations. He and his warriors eagerly dug into the rations, probably eating for the first time in a week, while the doctors made their assessment of each patient.

Be’atta went over and talked quietly to Kaven, finding out he was a military warrior. Those with him included six women two old and four younger, two young boys who had been running errands for their parents’ store in the nearest village, and finally the three men with severe injuries, and eight warriors. Out of a city of ten thousand, the bunker held only nineteen people.

“We need to get these three out. They all need major surgery,” Victoria spoke up.

“Surgery? We have a hospital,” Kaven said, “or what’s left of one.”

“Our facilities are probably better. We have to get them there immediately.”

Be’atta looked at Kaven, who was the one everyone seemed to be turning to for leadership. “They can help,” she said. “Trust them.”

“We cleared the town,” one of the other warriors said, “We’re all that’s left. I say we go, get healed, come back and check other towns.”

“Agreed. Let’s go,” Kaven said.

“So everyone that’s left in this town are those here in this building?” Chris asked.

“Yes.”

Chris shook his head, “I’m sorry. This is…horrible.”

“Thank you. Many were evacuated, we knew we were targeted. Still, more were taken and killed than escaped,” Kaven said.

“Chris, Steve, up top, make sure the way’s clear,” John said. “The rest of you, help lift these cots.”

“Any of these women your wife? Or do we need to find her?” Be’atta quietly asked Kaven.

“She is not here. She died in the first wave. I have buried her and sworn revenge against the Nix in her name.” He threw what few items he had into a black bag and slung it over a shoulder after dumping the rest of the rations package into his mouth. “I’m sorry about your family and village,” he said after downing his meal.

“As I am about your wife. Did you have any children?”

“No. For that, I’m thankful. It’s hard enough to bury a wife.” He waited for the others to leave. Be’atta helped one of the older women up the stairs, then Kaven was the last up and out of the bunker.

Back on Terra 2, those rescued were given medical attention and were allowed to stay until new homes could be found for them which was the same offer they gave to Be’atta’s people.

With Kaven’s knowledge of the ancient Mythican language, though only slightly better than Be’atta’s, they figured out how to use the shuttles. John, through trial and error, figured out how to lift off and maneuver the thing. Other than that, he had no idea what else the thing could do. But he was now confident they could load the shuttle, take it across through the bridge portal, fly to a destination, and return. Meanwhile, he talked to Kaven about joining their team.

Kaven and those with him traveled back to Fingla, his world, and found only a few more survivors, less than a hundred, on a world where the population was just under two million. Kaven told John that many had managed to get across the portals before the main force attacked. He found out where some of them had gone and once the women and young boys were in a condition to leave, he took them to relatives. Kaven and the eight warriors with him that first day took John up on the offer to stay on at Terra 2. Though their weapons were no match for what Expedition: Andromeda had, their knowledge of hand-to-hand combat was immense and no one on the E:A military team could best them in a fight—not even those with martial arts training. Kaven and his warriors were quite good at what they did.

John ran his fingers through his hair as he sat at his kitchen table. Six years was a long time. Kaven, Be’atta, and Kaven’s warrior friends had all turned into huge assets for the Expedition: Andromeda team. Part of him worried that the saboteur was one of Kaven’s warriors, they were all set on vengeance, but they, like Kaven, just wanted to end the war. But for now, John just wanted to know why Kaven had called for this Saturday meeting. He looked out of the conference room window at the lush green planet and blue gulf far below him. He’d rather be fishing.

***

Kaven had his items ready and headed to the conference room. He had vowed vengeance on the Rayth for the death of his wife, his friends, his family, and now he was doing all he could to help them. At least those who also wanted to stop the gatherings and who could stop the rebels. But if he ever found the individual who killed his wife, he would have to set his new-found Christianity on the shelf for a moment and handle the situation. At least, he thought that’s how it would be. Things could change. After all, he vowed to kill every last living Rayth and now he was friends with many of them.

John, Chris, Simon, and Be’atta were already in the conference room with Vince when he walked in. “Sorry, I was just going over things one last time,” Kaven said and set down his tablet and a paper map.

“Let’s have it,” John said. “My day off, you know.”

“This will be worth it. I hope,” Kaven said as he sat down. “I’ve been apprehensive about suggesting this. I didn’t want to get hopes up and there may be danger involved. On top of that, when the scientists found those few herds on Tarnia, I was hoping they’d turn out to be more than what it was…” he sighed, “it’s dangerous and it may cost more than what we’ve been paying but at the rate we’re going, we’ll be lucky to have enough livestock just for that little planet of Tarnia by this time next year. If we want to end this gathering of humans for food, we need to do better. That tipped the scales for me. If we do this right, I think we may have a solution for the Rayth…at least one to give them a bigger start than what we’ve been able to help with.”

“Show us,” Vince said.

“I haven’t taken you here yet,” Kaven said, describing Gren, the planet he was suggesting taking them to, while projecting a satellite image of the system on the large screens. “It’s a very private culture. My people were able to trade with them because our people are warriors and they respect that. I was often sent to help barter or buy, so they should know me. At least in the village I’m taking you to. But they are very hostile to outsiders. Very hostile.”

“We can handle a few hostiles,” Chris smiled, “Come on, we’re pretty tough.”

“If you enter their perimeter, which they do have clearly marked, they don’t ask questions. They shoot. Not to kill, but to hurt…to make you change your mind about getting closer. They’re one of the few planets I know that the Rayth don’t bother with much. Too much of a hassle. They’re not well-armed. Flint lock guns, but their archers are of your caliber, Chris.”

“So if they shoot first and ask questions later,” John said, “how did your people get in?”

“They came to us first. That’s their usual method.” He smiled, “A half dozen men and more pigs than I could believe existed were coming from the bridge portal to our city.” Kaven took out a piece of red and white cloth. The background was a bright red with white jagged lines on it, some sort of language. “This is a marker they give to those they trust. I hold this up at a certain location near a bridge portal and, if accepted, they will send a rider to escort us inside their walls. After several trades with my town and others on Fingla, some of us were given these. We could then go to their planet and we would be treated as friends. Of course, we were expected to buy more, which given that we didn’t have a robust pork population, meant our demand was usually high. So we’d go and get more pigs if we ran out before their traders returned to our villages.”

“Why this place?” Vince asked Kaven. “Why risk the danger to our team?”

“Livestock. The villages are larger than most we visit and they love their meat. And they love gold even more. Livestock is their main source of income. I believe they also have a rather burgeoning agricultural business as well, but my people really didn’t need anything in that area.”

“What’s that writing on the flag?” Vince asked.

“A few names, including mine, and the village and trader’s name who gave it to us. I raise it, they see it. They identify me and then let me in. Not exactly high-tech and doesn’t necessarily weed out those who might be holding me hostage to gain entrance, but, for the most part, it has served them well.”

“Do you think maybe you and Be’atta head over first?” Vince asked.

“No. They like open communication, be up front, perhaps even a little bold. If I were to go in advance and tell them I wasn’t staying, I was just letting them know, they would be offended that I didn’t trust them enough to bring the team all at once. And yet, on the other hand, they could shoot us all on sight,” he chuckled. “It’s a fine line. We’re better off going as a team.”

“If we get all this livestock, we’d have to give them the portal address on the mainland,” Vince said. “I’d rather not do that.”

“I thought about that,” Kaven said. “We could send someone to escort them over. I’d be happy to do it. I can enter the portal address and they can herd the cattle over. They understand the need for security.” Kaven looked at Vince, “They’re good people, they truly are. A few of those left after the rebels decimated my planet integrated in with them. They were accepted as brothers and sisters.”

“Have you gone there since we met?” John asked.

“Not often, but yes. To check on those from my planet. To make sure they were doing well. It was, after all, my idea for them to go there.”

John nodded, “Good. It also means they’ll recognize you and we don’t have to be worried about being shot.”

“Me, in any case,” Kaven grinned.

“Should we plan on staying more than just a day?” John asked.

“Plan for a week or two,” Kaven said. “There are a number of different villages that we can go to. We may be able to tap into more than one seller. And it is customary to enjoy their hospitality with a day-long feast. However, each village prides itself on its goods. For us to go to several different villages without the first village’s approval would be a dishonor and likely ruin our chances of getting livestock. So, let me do the talking, we don’t want to risk offending anyone. This is our best shot at getting a considerable amount of livestock for the Rayth.”

“Got it. Okay, we’ll do what we can,” John said. “Any more questions for Kaven?”

“I do have one thing to add,” Kaven said, “they are often willing to trade for medical help or supplies. That’s why I asked Simon to join us. They do have radio transmissions, but if there’s something we can do to help them in that area, I’m sure they’d appreciate it. They’ve gathered equipment from other planets, but maybe we could supply an upgrade. As for the medical situation, given the sensitivity of this mission, I’d only want medical personnel who can be diplomatic and who would have authority to order medical supplies then and there. A nurse wouldn’t be enough and again, a nurse, to them, might be seen as a slight. We’d want to take one of our best. That means Becket or Victoria. Personally, given who we’re getting the livestock for, I think Victoria would be our best bet.”

“He won’t go for it,” Vince said, speaking of Zy’nayth. “They have the demonstrations starting on Monday and even if she wasn’t participating in those, she’d have to watch the kids. You also know he doesn’t like her without protection.”

“Hey, hey, we’re protection,” Chris said, “I  have a gun and everything.”

“Rayth protection,” Vince clarified, shaking his head at Chris.

“Well, okay,” Chris feigned being upset.

“John, Kaven, I’ll leave the convincing up to you,” Vince instructed. “Becket is an option, but keep in mind that I don’t want my Chief Medical Officer off-base for two weeks. It’s in your court. Make the arrangements.”

They wrapped up the meeting, setting a preliminary date and time for the trip, taking into account the length of time the demonstrations on Tarnia were proposed to take. Then John and Kaven went to talk to Zy’nayth while Chris went back to his chambers where his wife was on bed rest for the duration of her pregnancy.

Kaven presented the information about the planet and the potential for livestock to Zy’nayth. Then John floated the topic of taking along one of their doctors.

“Normally we take along a doctor or nurse on our missions,” John said to Zy’nayth. “Standard operating procedure. But Vince doesn’t want Becket off-world for what could end up being two weeks; and I’m sure that in the middle of planning a wedding, Becket wouldn’t want to dump all of that on his betrothed. Danielson’s still a little skittish. Sarah and the others are okay, but Kaven says it would be an honor for them to take one of our best. That sort of leaves Victoria. She can be very diplomatic, she has the authority to procure medical supplies on the spot, and we trust her not to lose her head if things get a little dicey.”

Zy’nayth let out one of his grumbly groans, causing Baxter to perk up his ears, wondering if he should be growling at something. Everyone seemed friendly, so he went back to his chew toy. Celeste was too busy enjoying the tummy rub Mik’kenna was giving her to care. “I do not think it wise if they are an aggressive people,” he said, “and especially more so if you will be gone more than a day.”

“I’ll be fine. Besides, who’d be looking for me out there?” Victoria said.

“Medical help is a good bartering item,” Kaven said. “And given the amount of livestock we could potentially procure for you…we will protect her. These people are honorable. As long as I present the team as my friends, and as long as they don’t offend anyone, they’ll all be safe.”

“But you have been hesitant over your time here at Terra 2 to have the Expedition team make contact with them,” Zy’nayth said, “due to the danger.”

“True, but Terra 2 wasn’t desperate for meat. Earth supplies us; and will until we build up our own livestock supplies. Your situation is a bit different.”

“I’ll be fine,” Victoria said again.

Zy’nayth stood and paced the hallway where he’d been working to tear down the wall between his old chambers and Victoria’s. This time, Baxter dropped his chew toy and followed the High Chancellor. Ky’nayth thought it best to imitate his father and put his hands behind his back and began pacing back and forth in front of the window, not wanting to get in his father’s way. Baxter couldn’t decide who to pace with, so he ran from one to the other. Mik’kenna and Celeste stayed in their spot in the sunshine, listening but not really wanting to do or say anything. Just enjoy the sun.

“Very well,” Zy’nayth said after a few minutes, “but you cannot leave until after we have gone through the demonstrations with the Tarnians. It will be at least a week before I can allow her to go. Plan for two.”

Zy’nayth looked at Kaven, “I am trusting you with one of my three most precious possessions.”

“Daddy, who other two?” Mik’kenna asked.

“You and your brother, of course,” Zy’nayth went over and picked both up into his arms, giving them kisses.

“But puppies make five. They has be most precious ‘sessions too!” Mik’kenna said.

“Forgive me. Five most precious possessions. My wife, my two wonderful children, and Baxter and Celeste.”

“Yay!” Mik’kenna cheered and threw her arms around her father’s neck. “Love you!”

“I’ll take good care of Victoria, you know I will,” Kaven said.

“We all will,” John added.

The kids were set back on the floor near their dogs but Mik’kenna went over and climbed up on her mother’s lap, giving her a hug and kiss. “You be ‘kay. I no want you hurted.”

“These guys will take good care of me. And if anything does go bad, which it won’t,” Victoria smiled, “Daddy, I’m guessing, will have a ship in the area.”

“Course,” Ky’nayth said also climbing up to hug her. “It da rules! Dat what Uncle Chris say all time. It da rules.”

After Kaven and John left, the two men went to John’s quarters. “I know you said it wouldn’t be good for you to head over to warn them that we were coming, but I still think it’s a good idea.”

“Scared of getting shot?” Kaven teased.

“Scared of Victoria getting shot and her husband wiping out Gren and our little base,” John replied.

“They take their security very seriously,” Kaven said as he sat in a big leather chair, “but as long as we follow protocol and wait for them to ascertain whether we’re friends or not, we’re not going to be shot.”

John shook his head, “I’m more worried about…if something comes out about who her husband is, they’ll do something drastic.”

“Not gonna happen. We’re taking our elite team, right? We don’t mess things like this up, right?”

“I know. It’s just…he doesn’t want her to go. If something happens…say something innocent like she falls and breaks an ankle, he will have a warship overhead and they may misconstrue the accident as an act against the High Chancellor and the next thing we know, this little planet’s been decimated.”

“Do you think they are that undisciplined?” Kaven asked. “If Zy’nayth sends a warship to look after Victoria, do you think he’s going to send a crew that’s jumpy? Do Rayth even get jumpy?”

“All right, I’m overreacting. But this is a huge deal—getting all of this livestock.” He threw his head back and laughed. “I’m overreacting about a bunch of cows!”

Kaven joined him in laughter. “Don’t worry. Things should go smoothly. These are good people; a bit protective, but good. Nothing’s going to happen to Victoria and we’re going to get a bunch of cows for the High Chancellor. Maybe a few for us here.”

“You know, we didn’t even talk to Vince about that possibility. I know our priority is for the Rayth, but man I’d love to have our own ranch going.”

Kaven looked at the clock, “Let’s go talk to him. See what kind of money we have, see if we can get anything at all.”

The men got up and headed to Vince’s office. With it being Saturday, Vince had only spent time to meet with Kaven and the others, then cleared up a few things on his desk before returning to his chambers. He wanted to do some fishing and was assembling his gear, having just changed his clothes.

“If you want to talk, we’re doing it on the dock,” Vince said. “I haven’t been fishing in weeks. I need to relax.”

“Which dock?” John asked.

“Section three, dock three.”

“I think maybe I’ll grab my pole,” John replied.

“Sounds like a plan to me, as long as you don’t mind company,” Kaven said.

“Just don’t scare the fish off,” Vince said, and left his chambers. Ten minutes later they were all sitting on the dock, casting their lines into the water. The gulf on which the city-ship sat was filled with, among other things, salmon and red snapper. Other varieties of fish were caught but close to the shore, where the city-ship was “parked” those two species were the most common. And the people who went fishing generally ended up giving their fish to the mess hall unless they had chambers that had a kitchenette. Fishing was just done to relax or kill the monotony that sometimes crept in when you weren’t on duty.

Kaven and John talked to Vince about getting some cattle to build up their own livestock breeding program and Vince said he’d see how much money the farm store had brought in. He was for the idea, a man who enjoyed a good porterhouse every now and then. But he also had other items that those who ran the not-part-of-the-budget farm wanted.

By the time the sun started to go down, the men had caught five large red snappers and ten good sized salmon. All of them were taken to the mess hall. Asuka was thrilled. He could make salmon salad for the second shift lunch. Vince, John, and Kaven, hadn’t eaten dinner, so three of the snapper would be cooked up for them.

The mess hall kept a list of people who wanted to be notified if there were any fish available, and usually their preference. Asuka checked the list and sent messages to two people. Both had eaten but asked if their snapper could be held until lunch the next day. That was not a problem.

***

“Kaven?” Be’atta knocked softly on his door instead of ringing the chime. If he was asleep, she didn’t want to wake him.

“Come in,” he said.

She walked in and smiled, “Oh, up late. Sorry to bother you,” she said.

“Day off tomorrow, going to sleep in,” he said. “What’s up?”

“You sure taking Victoria is the right thing to do?” she asked, taking a seat.

“You don’t?”

“I guess…well, he doesn’t let her out much, and she’s got the twins to worry about. Zy doesn’t cook, and he…”

“You know Janice and David and just about anyone in our little circle of friends will see that they’re fed,” Kaven chuckled, “and the twins will be fine.”

“For a day or two. They’ll miss her terribly. I mean, she only works part-time and those kids are used to having her around them all day. To suddenly not have her there will probably upset them.”

“Daddy will be there,” Kaven smiled. “Hey, the kids are smart, even if they’re still basically toddlers, they’re smarter beyond their years. They’ll miss her, yes, but they’ll understand that she’s on an adventure. I know everyone’s worried, maybe I leaned too much on the danger part,” he said. “She will be fine. And she’ll probably video home every day and talk to the kids.”

“I just don’t want them to lose their mother. I’m all for helping the Rayth get these animals, but not if we’re risking Victoria’s life in the process.”

“I promised Zy’nayth and I promise you, nothing will happen to her. I won’t let it. I know you won’t, I know John won’t, I know Chris won’t. Okay?”

“All right,” she said.

“Now go home to your husband and don’t worry about it. We have two weeks to plan for any contingency. I’m quite confident nothing will happen.”