Thumar
Chapter 2: Command and Control

Derak took a drink of coffee as he looked over the morning reports on his e-pad. What I wouldn’t give for Martian grown java and real pork, he thought to himself as he ate breakfast. He sent a telepathic message to the blank wall in front of him and a six-by-four foot window appeared, showing the landscape outside of the kitchen.

In the middle of a bite, a flashing red alert signal caught his attention. He grew concerned and looked at the e-pad again, reading the full report twice.

He telepathically sent out his thoughts to his private computer. “Terga, when did this red alert come in?”

Terga, Derak’s assistant of choice, answered. “2:15 a.m. I didn’t feel it was required to wake you, the space docks handled the emergency.”

“Who are the CO and XO?”

“The captain is, Bob Arnold, and the executive officer is, Jack Morgan.”

“Are they alright? The damage reports look bad; whole sections of multiple decks are missing, including the hydro-bay.”

“There’s a meeting this morning at Command and Control to go over the incident. Commander Morgan is in charge of The Armstrong. Captain Arnold is recovering in the hospital.” Terga’s pleasant voice echoed in his mind.

“That could take some time, what do I have after that?”

“The Armstrong review will be followed by a meeting with the Thumarian ambassador, and then you have an inspection of the space docks,” Terga informed him.

“Who is the ambassador, and where are we meeting?”

“You’re going to meet her in your office.”

“Her? What’s her name?” He inquired with interest.

“Her name is Shesain Andehar, the niece of the current Thumarian president.”

What kind of new weapon can tear an Alliance Navy Battle Cruiser apart?

Derak kept his thoughts to himself as he cleaned up breakfast. Fifteen minutes later, he entered CNC and was greeted by the usual hum of activity.

“Officer on the deck” The watch officer called out.

“As you were.”

As Derak entered his office, his secretary, Carol Peterson handed him a stack of reports.

“How are you doing this morning Carol?” She was a pretty woman with a slight figure, holding the rank of lieutenant.

“Fine, sir. Did you hear about ‘The Festival of the Lights’ celebration tomorrow?”

“Yes, I read the information in my morning report.”

“Very good. Andar, Gamar, and Threll are arriving for the morning meeting”

“Thanks, Carol. I don’t want to be disturbed.”

“Yes, sir.”

His senior duty officers entered his office.

Derak sat down and organized his desk. It was beautiful. One of the few pieces of furniture he brought from Earth made of solid teak wood in a classic mid-twenty first century design. The front had a slight outward bow with the hand-carved feet of two sculpted lions facing away from each other in a rampant stance. In front of Derak was the three-dimensional plaz-screen embedded into the top. High tech inputs and control panels were built into the front edge of the desk that could be tilted to a 45-degree angle for his use only.

Andar, Gamar, and Threll seated themselves and set their refreshments down on the table.

“Are you ready?” Derak asked.

“Yes,” Andar, Derak’s chief duty officer, replied.

“The hot topic this morning is the AS Armstrong.”

The com-unit buzzed.

“What is it Carol? I told you not to interrupt me.”

“Sorry, sir. It’s a priority one message from fleet headquarters.”

“What’s the message?”

“The Andromeda and her task force are changing course and will be arriving in six weeks.”

“Who’s in command?” Derak asked.

“Admiral Morton.”

Derak and Gamar responded simultaneously, “Admiral Morton!”

“Is something wrong?” Carol asked.

“No, nothing!” Both of them snapped back at the same time, exchanging inquisitive looks.

“I’m sorry Carol, thanks for the report.” Derak replied.

“Who is this admiral Morton?” Threll asked.

“No one you would take pleasure in meeting.” Derak replied darkly.

“What did Morton do to you?” Gamar asked.

“Well talk about it later,” Derak remarked. “Let’s get started. The AS Armstrong arrived in the space docks this morning with major battle damage. The commanding officer is on a direct com link and will brief us now.”

A holographic screen materialized between Derak and his lieutenants. The image would play on both sides. The link was initiated, and commander Jack Morgan’s face appeared.

Derak couldn’t express the relief of seeing his best friend alive and well on the other end of the link. This was business as usual. “Commander Morgan, what happened to The Armstrong?”

Commander Morgan gave a detailed account of the firefight and escape. The most disturbing facts about the account were the presence of Kek involvement. The second one was the weapon that nullified shields and armor.

“Do you have any ideas on the new weapon, Commander?” Derak asked.

“I have a theory; I think they’ve upped the ante on multi-phasic technology. We have dual-phasic, and I think that they’ve developed a tri-phasic weapon.”

“That wouldn’t bode well for us in a major battle. Thank you, Commander. I’ll be seeing you in a few hours. How’s captain Arnold?”

“He’s fine, sir. He’ll live to fight another day.”

“Thank you, Commander. I’ll expect a full inspection of the damage later.”

“Aye, sir. Commander Morgan out,” the holo-screen disappeared.

“I need the computer upgrades finished today so we can all make it to the festival tomorrow.” Derak ordered.

As they walked out of the office, lieutenant commander Tark, of the Alliance navy, was waiting impatiently with a sneer of superiority plastered onto his granite face.

Derak turned to Gamar. “After this,” he said, indicating to commander Tark, “I want you to walk with me to my shuttle.”

“Yes, sir.”

Derak turned sharply on Tark, controlling his darkening mood. “Why wasn’t I notified sooner? I have a schedule to keep, so keep it short!”

The commander’s disdain coated his answer. “We thought it best to surprise you.”

“Who are we?” Derak managed to growl.

“Are we testy today, Captain? The admiral has every right to pop inspections on any command he chooses.”

“You can drop your condescending attitude, Lieutenant Commander, and get to the point. You have ten minutes of my time. Starting…now!” He indicated the direction of his office, and Tark followed.

“I have a tight schedule today, Lieutenant Commander.” Derak said.

“The admiral sent me to observe and make sure you’re ready for his arrival in six weeks.”

“I know about his assignment and, I assure you, Thumar is capable of handling the logistics. About your observation mission, I’ll tolerate it if it doesn’t interfere in my duties.”

Tark’s irritation was growing as anger filled his eyes. “Captain, I represent the admiral’s authority!”

“You’re not the admiral, Lieutenant Commander, and I’ll not have you or anybody messing up my schedule! Is that understood?”

“Aye, sir!” He replied through gritted teeth.

“Now sit down and start. You have five minutes.”

Anger filled his eyes as he tried to control his temper. “Admiral Morton and The Andromeda Group are assigned to patrol the Terelian borders for six months. He sent me to inspect the space docks, prior to their arrival, to ensure that repairs can be made to any ship in the group, should it be required.”

“Lieutenant Commander, the space docks are capable of handling anything you can throw its way. I have an inspection scheduled for today. I’ll keep the admiral’s concerns in mind. The Armstrong docked this morning. I’m sure commander Morgan will fill me in and I’ll forward her captain’s report to you.”

“Let me make myself clear Captain. I am to accompany you. That’s the admiral’s orders.”

“Let me make myself clear, Lieutenant Commander! Had I known about this yesterday, I could accommodate you. But on such short notice, it’s impossible to change the arrangements.”

Tark’s face was getting red, and his jugular veins were starting to pop out. “New Yorkers! They should have assigned you to a posting on the rim.”

Tark knew Derak’s background in black ops and sank back into his chair, in fear, as Derak menacingly rose out of his chair to his full height and breadth.

Anger filled Derak’s eyes as he glared at Tark from across the desk. He controlled his temper and sat down as he saw Tark wither. If he were a Kek on the battlefield he would die a very painful death.

“Lieutenant Commander, I’m going to assign you to your quarters, and, I’ll call you. Now, get out of my office before I have you thrown out!”

His fear was palpable as he nearly ran over the Thumarian ambassador on his way out.

“Scumbag. If only he were a Kek, murder would be justifiable!” Derak suddenly realized he had expressed his thoughts out loud. He turned around to see Carol and the ambassador standing in the open doorway, staring. He tried to recover his composure.

Carol spoke in a whisper. “Captain, uh…. the ambassador is here to see you, now.”

She left as fast as possible, leaving the Thumarian ambassador leveling a hard, thoughtful look in Derak’s direction.

“Is that how you treat all your appointments, Captain?”

He tried to be as diplomatic as possible, but the answer still came out hard. “I’m sorry you witnessed that, ambassador. He’s nothing more than an irritation. He shows up thinking that he can rearrange my schedule in the name of admiral Morton, unannounced.” He wanted to sit down in a huff, but remembered his manners. “Captain Derak Jamar III.” He extended his hand.

“Shesain Andehar, your point of contact for the Thumarian government.” She accepted his hand with a cool, terse grasp.

“Please have a seat. May I offer you some refreshments?” There was a controlled edge to his voice.

“I would like to know why you treated that officer so poorly. It would be a mistake to treat a high ranking Thumarian in such a manner.”

“It’s a long story, and I would never do such a disservice to a dignitary from a host planet.”

“Then I suggest you soften your approach with me immediately, Captain.”

He turned towards the window and cursed Tark, inwardly clenching his fists before stuffing his anger. He turned around and faced her again. Her beauty was stunning. She flashed a genuine smile that softened his mood.

“Would you like some refreshments?” he offered, again.

“I’ll take some ice tea and a scone, if you have them, please.”

“I have both.”

She thanked him as he handed them to her and showed her to her seat.

“Now, if you don’t mind, I would like to know what that officer did to deserve such treatment.” Her insistence was gentle, but firm.

He thought about what to say.

She raised her right eyebrow and looked at him with firmness in her warm brown eyes.

His right eyebrow ticked up, and he started with a scowl. “It began nine years ago. I was posted to Sauros III when I met Tara Morton. I didn’t know she was rear admiral Morton’s daughter. The Morton family comes from the Austrian district on Earth. His family claims roots back to early European royalty. Myself, I’m from New York City; it’s the black market capital of the Terran System, the worst place to hail from on Earth if you want to get anywhere. Lieutenant Tark is also an Austrian, and unbeknownst to me, pledged to Tara by family obligations.”

“So, aside from practicing class prejudice, she was promised to this man.”

“Yes, and she didn’t care. It would have been nice to know at first, but it still wouldn’t have changed how we felt about each other.”

“What did lieutenant commander Tark do?”

“Tark reported the affair to Morton. Tara and I had been intimately involved for six months when she told me that she was pregnant. This sent Morton through the roof. He carries a lot of weight in the Alliance and kept me assigned me to posts that kept me away from Earth and Tara. Two years later, I found out she gave birth to a son, and I tried to see them both, but Morton threatened me. He told me that if I tried to see them again, he would end my career with a rim posting. Since then Tark has hidden behind Morton.”

“Won’t he report back to admiral Morton, and is he the same admiral that’s arriving in six weeks?”

“Yes, on both counts.” Hurt and anger filled Derak’s eyes as he turned away, thinking about Tara and his son.

“Captain, look at me.” There was softness in her voice that caught his attention.

He turned to faced her as he wiped a tear from his eye.

“There is a soft side to you after all. I suggest we resume this meeting over dinner when you’re in a better mood. I’ll leave directions with Carol, say six thirty and be prompt this time.” She stood up and looked at him, “Civilian clothes will be proper.” She turned and walked out as his eyes followed her.

“Captain, your shuttle is waiting for you on the flight deck.” Carol reminded him.

“Thank you, Carol. Tell them I’m on my way.”

“Yes, sir.”

Derak walked out of his office into the command room and signaled Gamar to follow him. They stepped out of CNC and started walking to the flight line.

“Gamar, would you care to explain your reaction to Morton’s name?”

“No. It’s something I’d rather forget.”

“I need to know, so we don’t have any unnecessary incidents during his stay.”

“I’ll tell, if you tell me what he did to you.” He bartered.

“That seems fair. You go first.”

He laughed, “commander’s privileges?”

“Yes,” he smiled.

They began walking to the flight line, and Gamar began his account. “My unit was on assignment with then-rear admiral Morton in the Aries sector six years ago. I headed up a science team, and we were cataloging a newly discovered class M planet. We called it Pelar, after the old Andorian god of creation. The flora and fauna supported life. There were a number of poisonous plants that looked edible that would kill you in hours. The tall trees had foliage in the top quarter sections that looked like giant umbrellas.

“These were home to a lot of the avian population. In winter, the bark turns purple with orange stripping running vertically up the trunks. On the winter solstice, usually the coldest day of the year, large pods drop. Big enough to injure or kill a man if hit on the head. It was soon discovered that the seeds, if processed correctly, were a powerful hallucinogenic. When processed further, they had great healing qualities.

“The wild life was just as diverse as the plant life. Most of the land animals were harmless with a handful of predators that evened out the eco system. The avian population was wondrous to observe. Everything from birds, that fit in the palm of your hand, to large raptors, a truly dynamic planet with oceans and waterways full of life. There was no dominant intelligent species that ruled the planet or possessed any technology, a perfect planet to colonize.”

“It sounds like a rare find.” Derak replied.

“Morton’s ship’s sensors picked up an anomaly entering the sector at a phenomenal speed. It had a highly magnetically charged core that increased the closer it came to us. It grew larger and carried micrometeorites in its spiraling arms and had a strange cone shape, almost as if there was a source pushing it from behind.”

“Had you seen anything like it before?”

“No, sir, and I’ve seen a lot of this sector. Our surveys of Pelar were finished, and we were packing our equipment to leave, when the outer arms hit the edges of the solar system. We contacted The Copernicus for retrieval and received a request to upload our data first. I thought that this was an unusual request, but complied. After the upload, I tried to contact the ship and received no answer. After two more attempts, we received a short message to find shelter and wait for a rescue mission. After that, all communication ceased.”

“You’re telling me Morton left you behind?” Derak asked in astonishment.

“Yes, he turned tail and ran like the coward that he is.”

Now I have something new on Morton. “What did you do then?”

“Fortunately, we had located a deep cave system the previous day, just about two miles northeast. We tried to save the most important equipment and data. Then we set off. About halfway there, the outer edges reached the planet. We were pelted with micrometeorites impregnated into high winds. This made the going nearly impossible; we could barely see anything in front of us. All of our equipment, except those magnetically shielded, stopped working and we had to locate the cave by memory. By the time we made it to the cave the brunt of the storm had hit, and we barely made it inside. I lost three crewmembers before we reached the cave, and one more died, setting up the mag-shielded recording equipment at the cave’s mouth. Two more died of injuries.”

“How long did the storm last?”

“Twelve hours before it subsided and we could step outside the cave. Most of our rations and water were lost, and we needed both. We waited until the next morning to leave. The landscape was devastated. There wasn’t a tree, bush, or plant left standing. We recorded winds up to 450 miles-per-hour at the peak. The once lush beautiful planet was a wasteland as far as you could see; nothing survived. We went in search of food and water and found nothing. The land was stripped and the water was gone, along with the atmosphere. We eventually found what remained of the first three to die in the storm. Their bodies trapped by tree trunks, broken and stripped down to the bone by the wind and micrometeorites. All our equipment was carried away. We had nothing left.”

“How did you get off the planet?”

“The Copernicus contacted us and sent down a shuttle. We had time to collect our dead crewmembers and the remaining equipment we saved in the cave. I was angry at being left behind to die and the first thing Morton asked when we boarded was; did you get any storm recordings?”

“That SOB,” Derak’s eyes flashed in anger.

“It took four security officers to remove me from Morton, I was ready to finish the job but they held me back. After we were separated, Morton stated that it was more important to save his ship. Then he turned on his heels and walked away, not saying another word or showing any concern for our survivors or lost comrades.”

“That must have been a terrible loss, Gamar. What happened to the data you collected?”

“I kept it and analyzed it when we returned home. We categorized the phenomenon as a ‘Magnetic Stellar Storm.’ ”

“You have good reasons to hate the man. When he arrives, you need to do three things. First, stay away. Avoid him. He shouldn’t be here long. Second, if you run into him, hold your temper. Third, if you find you have to speak to him, no smart remarks. Stay in control. Keep it short and direct. Am I clear on this?”

“Yes, sir; although, it galls me to hear his name. By the way, I recorded his remarks on vid-com. It’s your turn.”

Derak’s right eyebrow shot up, and he recounted his tale as they walked to the ship, finishing as they approached the shuttle. Derak turned to Gamar before boarding.

“Professionalism must be maintained.”

“It won’t be easy. I’ll do my best sir.”

“Thanks, Gamar. Take the ground shuttle back to CNC. Make sure all the work is completed today. So we can have some fun the next three days.”

“Yes, sir!”

Gamar turned around and caught a ground shuttle back to CNC, leaving Derak alone with his thoughts. He set his mind to the inspection of the space docks and the AS Armstrong.

“Terga, anything I should know before I leave?”

“No, have a safe trip.”

The whine of the shuttle’s VTOL (vertical takeoff and landing engines) ramped up as

Derak took his seat by the spacious window. Windows in the shuttle were designed for limitless planetary and interplanetary viewing. The seats were wide and comfortable with built-in massage and heater units. Artificial gravity ensured comfort during interplanetary and orbital flights. After vertical take off, it was a smooth ride. Derak looked down as Thumar was shrinking below him. Its beauty becoming more evident the higher the altitude reached. He marveled at the planet’s diversity.

Thumar was a beautiful planet; similar to Earth. Three quarters of Thumar’s surface consisted of ocean, with three continents, Ganmer, Anea and Lelayla, spanning the top third in a circular fashion. Ganmer, the largest continent, was carpeted by pines and cedars in the mountainous northern regions while deciduous trees covered the lower foothills opening up into farmlands that fed most of the continent. Bordering the farms, were arid lands where the Thumdust mines and the main military base were located. From the air, Ganmer’s colors blended into each other and ended in the Red Cliffs, where land met water.

The shuttle crossed the ocean and gave Derak more to appreciate as they approached the coastline.

Anea had one of the most noticeable landmarks from space, the Noanmar mountain range. Noanmar had the honor of not only being the longest mountain range on the planet, but also had the tallest peak, named after Kumar, Thumar’s creator god. The mountains in the North dramatically dropped down to numerous agrarian communities in one of the most fertile valleys on the planet. The southern rim of the valley rose to meet the foothills that turned red, orange and purple when the trees announced the turn of the seasons. The southern foothills were at the leading edge of a large plateau that extended to the shoreline ending in dramatic vertical granite cliffs. The Strands of Pearls, a string of crystal clear lakes, split the plateau from top to bottom. From orbit, they resembled a line of luminescent pearls laid out in a straight line. They shone brilliantly at mid-day with the sun reflecting off water. Fresh water from the eleven lakes flowed into the ocean over the cliffs, creating eleven breathtaking waterfalls that grace the southern edge of Anea.

Lelayla’s named after Thumar’s goddess of love and compassion. It was a continent terraced on two levels and ringed by the Sherayn mountain chain. It is believed that Leleyla’s inland sea was formed by a meteorite, creating the longest continuous waterfall in the system. The Moratain Falls extended the full length of the plateau, twenty three hundred miles long. The Moratian pools, at the base of the falls, flowed into the largest wetlands on the planet, home to the most diversified array of avian life that had been recorded in recent planetary catalogs.

The wetlands drained into saltwater marshes where eighteen-foot reptiles resembling crocodiles, reigned.

Thumar’s North Polar Region contained most of the planet’s water locked in frozen glaciers. The South Polar Region, once a single continent, was struck by a meteorite twenty five million years ago. It hit the center of the continent leaving a titanic crater that filled with seawater and froze.

Three rings of archipelagos encircled the frozen South Polar Sea. The Corano ring boasted the largest islands and the whitest beaches on Thumar, always filled with sunbathers. The Tiamond ring harbored a large sea lion population on rocky outcrops. The Fumark ring consisted of nothing more than smaller rocky atolls.

The crater ocean remained frozen with the outer island chains bathing in a semi-temperate climate with four seasons. The South Seas, the convergence of three different oceans, made passage to the southern islands very dangerous. They were the roughest seas to sail. Thumar’s many colors melded to unite so that the planet resembled a multi-hued jewel floating in space.

The view was replaced with the vastness of outer space and Thumar’s two moons, as the shuttle moved out of the ionosphere. It cruised to an orbital height of nine-hundred miles, the course set for the space docks. One half of an orbit was required for this maneuver. Braking thrusters fired as Derak approached the space docks and repair facilities, the size of a small moon. The orbital base was bisected horizontally at the sphere’s equator.

Derak marveled at the space docks. The Alliance could learn a thing or two from Thumar. The top half was enclosed by plaz-steel with a full gravity environment. The inner core, enclosed in the lower half of the globe, was surrounded by open docking, refueling, and repair facilities. The shuttle maneuvered to its docking assignment. The lower three levels of the enclosed upper facility were equipped with docking garages wrapping around the entire equator for shuttles and small freighters. After the shuttle docked, Derak thanked his pilot and made his way to the de-briefing room. When the door opened, he was pleased to see commander Jack Morgan, his best friend, waiting for him.

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