NEBULAR Collection 3 - Morgotradon: Episodes 12 - 16 Read online

  »Hold on a moment. As my deputy commander, you should know what I have in mind for our future,« Morgotradon said. »If anything happens to me, you will lead the fleet out of this sector and relocate to a safer place elsewhere in the galaxy. The galaxy is vast and even the Dark Brotherhood cannot be everywhere.«

  »Nobody will be able to touch you, Raghoon. We still have 2,000 ships whose crews will defend the flagship to their deaths,« replied Mandatt quickly.

  »Mandatt …, « Morgotradon stepped a little closer to him, »… that is exactly what I want to prevent! Don’t you understand the signs of the time yet? The Progonaut Empire is history! Our culture was defeated by a much stronger enemy. Those 2,000 ships of yours are now the building stones of a new Progonaut society. Since we haven’t received any news from Persia, we must assume that our home-world is at the brink of existence, maybe already destroyed. None of our scouts has returned. We have to assume that they all fell victim to the Dark Brotherhood!«

  Mandatt’s eyes widened.

  »Why are you expecting the worst, Raghoon?« he asked, looking depressed. »We can send out more scouts!«

  »No! I’m expecting the loss of our main empirical worlds! Our 2,000 ships can’t change that. As long as the enemy has the ultimate weapon, we have no chance at all! Heed my words, Mandatt: No more scouts! We need every woman, man and child if we hope to survive as Progonauts. The fleet’s priority is not to defend my life, but save what is left of our people!«

  »Raghoon ...« Mandatt almost shouted in defiance. »The other side of the galaxy is uncharted, and there’s that myth about the great catastrophe. You’re talking about the fleet as if we were cowards or refugees. WE ARE WARRIORS!«

  Mandatt stepped back three steps and slammed his right fist on his chest, eyes shining.

  »Myths are one thing, reality is something else,« Morgotradon replied calmly. He fully understood Mandatt’s feelings and didn’t blame him for his short outburst. »You will follow my orders, Mandatt. You will lead our people to a safe place, if I can’t do it anymore for whatever reasons. Our warriors need to change their perspectives and accept this new challenge. They have to rescue our civilization, not fight senseless battles in space! It is nonsense to die for an Empire that no longer exists!«

  Mandatt frowned and looked down, hiding tears of frustration and sorrow.

  Morgotradon took him by the shoulders.

  »Mandatt, you don’t need to hide your tears. I’m feeling the same way. We need to make new plans, leave this sector as soon as possible. For now, we’re relatively safe in Lanuk’s orbit; and can repair our damages, replenish our supplies and prepare for a long journey. Send some scouts to the system edges and position some near the gas giant. The fleet will gather in orbit around Lanuk. Let the crew visit the planet, but keep the fleet on a high state of alert. We will establish a temporary base on Lanuk.«

  »How long, Raghoon?«

  »As long as necessary. We have to make sure there’re no more Dark Brotherhood carriers in this sector. If they find us, then only our Gods can help us!«

  Inside the Lord’s abode

  Maya Ivanova stared at the small memory cube, musing over the chapter of Morgotradon’s history it had just replayed. She knew its contents might not be authentic, but an inner voice told her it was.

  He belonged to the same people as Vasina, but he changed sides!

  »How did you like the small journey into my past?« Morgotradon’s voice sounded suddenly.

  Maya turned around, startled, but he wasn’t in the room. An acoustic holo replicated his voice.

  »You’re a traitor, from what I’ve seen so far!« she replied harshly.

  »You don’t know all the circumstances yet, my love, but you will. I want you to know my past, so you can comprehend my reasons.«

  She tossed her hair back with a jerk.

  »I’m not your love … get that into your Progonaut head!«

  »But … my dear Maya Ivanova … you will be soon, and there’s nothing you can do about it,« he replied coldly.

  »In your dreams!«

  Morgotradon left it at that for now.

  »Rest a while, eat and then watch the rest of my history. I’m certain we’ll understand each other much better in a while.«

  The acoustic holo disappeared.

  She glanced at the memory cube and closed her eyes.

  How do I get out of this nightmare?

  11.5 lightyears from home

  The Yax K’uk’Mo’ had left the tachyon trail and approached Procyon C as Scorge had programmed. Her approach parameters and vectors were painstakingly selected to avoid both detection and the sun’s radiation. Her own scanners were as useless as the conventional communication channels. The tachyon-comm worked flawlessly, but he couldn’t use that without inviting detection.

  »Staying this close to Procyon C, I have to have the defense shields activated at all times. The gravitation has a negative effect on the tachyon drive, as well. I can’t execute an emergency start from here, or we might end up in the sun’s core before we knew it,« Scorge grouched.

  As before, they had gathered in Scorge’s refuge; the Shwakan seemed to have resigned himself to the fact that his private sphere was now a gathering place for the entire crew. Of course, this was the place where all threads came together. Separation of command central and living space was unknown to the Shwakans. Several large holographic displays were online, showing the space sector around the ship. Distortions flashed across the displays at times, but nothing they couldn’t live with for the time being.

  »Have you learned anything about Procyon A in the meantime?« Arkroid wanted to know. The displays showed Shwakan symbols, cryptic to Arkroid; even Vasina couldn’t read them.

  Scorge had retracted almost all of his tentacles and sat meditating in his command seat. It looked as if he was mentally communicating with his onboard computer, but Arkroid wasn’t sure about that.

  »The tachyon space around Procyon A is different and strange. It’s not clear if we will be able to start the ship from there,« he replied moments later. »One thing is certain: this anomaly is not caused by the dual stars!«

  »Is it possible it’s caused by the tachyon feed to the portal planet?« Vasina inquired calmly.

  »I have no idea,« Scorge admitted freely, »I don’t know how they work.«

  About a minute later, Scorge extended all of his tentacles at once. A scream came from the universal translation device.

  »What’s going on, Scorge?« Pi asked urgently.

  Scorge didn’t answer; he froze for a couple of seconds then fell to his left and remained there motionless.

  Vasina and Arkroid jumped from their seats and tried to support Scorge, but their attempt failed.

  »He’s so damn heavy!« Vasina complained, moaning.

  »What’s wrong with him?« Arkroid asked worriedly, but didn’t get an answer.

  Scorge’s skin had turned bluish.

  »It could be shock! Maybe it’s due to the anomaly he was talking about,« Pi suggested.

  »I can’t tell,« replied Arkroid flatly. »I know nothing about Shwakan anatomy. What if he desperately needs our help?«

  »Step back!« Vasina commanded, then Arkroid too noticed what was happening around them. A fine mist was raining down from the undersides of the large mushroom heads in the refuge. It enveloped Scorge along with his command seat – the rest of the refuge was unaffected. Scorge’s body twitched uncontrollably and he began rolling from one side to the other. Pi moved to help Scorge, but Arkroid pulled him back.

  »Stay away from that gas, Pi!« he warned.

  Pi looked at Arkroid, frowning.

  »What happens if he dies?«

  »Look!« Vasina shouted. »His normal skin color is returning!«

  Scorge’s bluish color faded back to normal, and he began to move. It was as if the mushrooms had noticed the danger to Scorge and acted in symbiosis with him.

  Scorge woke up and began screaming.
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  »We must leave at once!« he screamed and screeched.

  Arkroid had never seen Scorge like this before.

  »Uhh … where did you bring me? How could I’ve been so blind?« he kept screaming. Scorge didn’t seem to notice his visitors, but began manipulating the controls.

  »Stop! Wait! What are you doing?« Arkroid shouted in alarm.

  The holo displays showed that the Yax K’uk’Mo’ was flying away from Procyon C at high acceleration.

  »We have to leave this system at once!« Scorge raged. His body was overcome with waves of cramps and twitches. Again, the mushrooms enveloped him with their gas, and Scorge calmed down a little. Strange noises came from the translation device, then his voice became clearer.

  »We have to leave!« Scorge announced unilaterally.

  »First explain to us why! What happened to you a moment ago?« Arkroid insisted.

  »Somewhere in this system … exists a Trox-Altar!« he replied with a trembling, terrified voice.

  »I don’t understand, Scorge. What is a Trox-Altar?«

  Arkroid looked at Vasina and saw the alarm on her face. Vasina had gone pale!

  »Are you sure, Scorge?« she asked terrified.

  Scorge was still in shock.

  »I was almost overcome by the Trox-Altar’s emissions … it would have turned me into a Trox! Only my loving mushrooms could prevent the transformation.«

  Lai Pi frowned.

  »What do you mean, transformation?« he asked. »Like Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde?«

  Scorge was still weak, but he managed to straighten under waves of pain.

  »I don’t exactly know … but once I turned, I would have killed you all!« Scorge replied.

  Silence followed after Scorge’s words. Arkroid and Vasina exchanged glances. Vasina nodded slowly.

  »I’ve heard of the Trox-Altars. Each clan has one or more. Each clan brings an emitter with them wherever they go. The altars are mostly in the flagships, but that’s not hard and fast.«

  Arkroid still didn’t understand.

  »What does it mean?«

  Pi helped him out and explained.

  »Whatever this Trox-Altar is, it means that Scorge’s forefathers – or their descendants – are in this system!«

  Arkroid paled. He now understood the consequences.

  »They’re 11.5 lightyears from home!«

  I want to know more

  The makeshift base on Lanuk was growing fast. Assisted by construction robots it mushroomed over the area. Morgotradon watched the construction site with mixed feelings. Despite his assurances that this would only be a temporary base, some of the crew had made it their home already. A permanent settlement was out of the question, Morgotradon knew; this galactic sector was too dangerous.

  The new Progonaut home had to be at a remote location, far away from galactic traffic, inconspicuous while it developed a vision for the future. It could take hundreds of years for Progonaut society to recover and regenerate itself. They needed some breathing space. Scouts still reported the tachyon signatures of enemy ships in the sector. The Dark Brotherhood didn’t need to hide or cover their activities, but the Progonauts had to keep a low profile, avoiding electromagnetic or tachyon emissions.

  Morgotradon realized very early that those chaotic-seeming tachyon signatures were nothing less than a systematic search procedure, one that would lead to the discovery of the Progonaut fleet sooner or later. Morgotradon was a realist. He knew that if the enemy found them it would be all over for his fleet. Even if the Progonaut ships fled on emergency vectors and routes, their enemies’ carriers would hunt them down. They needed to lay low and wait for an opportunity to escape into the galactic star jungle.

  Morgotradon had given permission for some of his ships to land on Lanuk. Soon, a small, improvised spaceport had been established.

  »Do you see what this is leading to?« Mandatt asked respectfully as he entered Morgotradon’s quarters on Lanuk.

  »I’m not blind, Mandatt,« the leader replied calmly. »Our people are beginning to transform this base into a settlement. Regardless, we’ll leave here as soon as we can.«

  »We know more about the crystals on Baldar,« Mandatt changed the subject. »All our collected samples reacted with organic matter. The interesting part is that the crystals are trying to copy organic DNA, by completely absorbing the cell material to replicate it. Those crystals are very dangerous, because they also use the affected cells as their food source.«

  Morgotradon grimaced.

  »In other words, they’re decomposing the cells?«

  »Exactly, Raghoon. They decompose the cells and replicate them with a crystalline structure. It almost appears as if the crystals are trying to replicate organic lifeforms.«

  Pondering, Morgotradon looked out of the window of his makeshift command center. Baldar was clearly visible in the day skies over Lanuk, and getting bigger every day. The two planets were on an approach orbit around their sun. There was no danger of a planetary collision, but the Progonauts on Lanuk were growing restless and nervous. Morgotradon’s worries increased as he looked up into the sky.

  »Is there any news regarding the mysterious blooming phenomenon we have noticed with the moss forests? Is it a reaction to Baldar’s approach to Lanuk?«

  »We can’t answer that; most of our resources are devoted to finding a solution against the ultimate weapon. Research into Lanuk’s flora has to wait,« Mandatt replied respectfully.

  Morgotradon nodded.

  »You’re right, Mandatt. It might all be a coincidence, but those large pods that extend above and beyond the forest roof are quite astonishing.«

  »I’ll put some biologists on the phenomenon. Maybe they can find some clues,« Mandatt promised.

  »What’s the progress on the ultimate weapon?« Morgotradon changed the subject.

  Mandatt’s face grew serious.

  »We know that the plasma charges are in fact antimatter charges. That’s the only way the strong discharges and the resulting destruction can be explained. The targeted ships had no chance at all!«

  »How were the charges launched?« Morgotradon had asked this before; he insisted on an answer.

  »As you know, our scientists have thoroughly researched all the data we could obtain. The theory that the weapon was delivered to the target via tachyon space cannot yet be verified,« Mandatt explained. »Our scanner data is inconclusive, but if the weapon had been launched through normal space, we would have associated data available.

  Morgotradon wasn’t satisfied with the answer.

  »We’re missing something … find it!«

  »We don’t understand this new technology,« Mandatt struggled to explain, receiving a hard reaction from Morgotradon.

  »If that’s the case and the Dark Brotherhood finds us before we reach a safe haven, then we’re doomed! Find the answers or we won’t survive the next battle!«

  While Morgotradon raged, a report came in from the biologists studying the large pods.

  »What is it?« Morgotradon asked, still in a rage.

  »Raghoon, some of the pods have opened!« a voice reported. »It’s unbelievable, but they are literally firing very large spores into Lanuk’s sky! The pods work like oversized catapults, and they are firing their spores into space! Some of them fall back onto the planet and land many kilometers from here.«

  Muted boomings sounded from outside. As if at a secret signal, more and more pods opened, firing their spores into space

  Morgotradon jumped to the nearest comm-terminal and linked to one of the guard ships in orbit over Lanuk.

  A peukoom onboard the Gushta answered the call.

  »Raghoon!« the man blurted, surprised.

  »… are the spores leaving Lanuk’s gravitational field?« Morgotradon rudely interrupted the officer before he could rattle off his status report.

  The answer didn’t take long.

  »Yes, Raghoon! Several spores have entered Baldar’s orbit. We’re detecting thousa
nds of them – about one meter each in diameter. There’re more and more coming from Lanuk.«

  »Thanks!« Morgotradon replied shortly and cut the link.

  He clenched his fists.

  »That’s it! The moss and the lichens sense Baldar’s approach and shoot their spores to the other planet to gain a foothold there.«

  Mandatt didn’t seem to follow Morgotradon’s train of thought.

  »But so far, we haven’t found any moss or lichen forests on Baldar, Raghoon. We know the orbital encounter occurs frequently, so shouldn’t there be …«

  »… it’s obvious!« Morgotradon bellowed. »The crystals on Baldar won’t let the moss and the lichens grow! The ability to absorb biological matter is a self-defense mechanism!«

  Mandatt called the Persia’s science section and relayed Morgotradon’s idea. After a short while, they verified Morgotradon’s theory.

  »There’s a high possibility that you’re correct, Raghoon,« one of the scientists called back. »That also means that the moss and lichen plants must have the ability to counteract the crystal spread on Lanuk. We know that crystal dust transfers from Baldar to Lanuk.«

  Morgotradon turned to Mandatt.

  »I want to know more! Use all available resources to find out what this is all about!«

  I’ll get you

  »Three fully armed Nova-Hawks have taken up orbit above the platform. The Blue Moon is on full alert and the Triton Hawks are “Ready Five”! So far … no reaction from the platform. The theory that they’re not invaders but security forces seems to be right. As long as we keep our distance, they won’t do anything!« the Blue Moon’s comm-officer reported directly to Triton Command.

  Nok Daralamai acknowledged and leaned back in her seat.

  »Keep your distance anyway; we don’t want to provoke any action from their end! Report any changes immediately!«

  »Roger, Commander!« acknowledged the Blue Moon.

  Igor Petrow had not yet returned to his ship. He sat across Nok Daralamai, and squinted into the ceiling lighting.