1
After leaving the orbit of Aura and setting course for Earth, Duncan ordered his entire crew to assemble in the Mess Hall. Once there he introduced their guests; Prime Minister Gordon; the two scientists, Mistress Tara, and Lady Killian; and two security guards, Pro Dantu and Pro Endin.
He related to the crew all that had taken place on Aura; and then informed them of the trouble they might face. He gave them a brief history of the Ogatu people, their origins and the on-going war with the Scathers. He told them if any of them had questions, Minister Gordon would be happy to answer them. Thus he ensured that there would be an open dialogue between the two species.
No one had a problem with the origins of the Ogatu; just the part about the unrelenting hatred of the Scathers. Minister Gordon explained about the hierarchy of the Scather civilization. The Elders ruled without question; and their life span was along one.
Duncan informed the two scientists that if they had any questions, they could address them to Alexei, who rose and presented himself to them with a flourish. The two ladies seemed to find Alexei very pleasing as they both made a purring sound, much to Minister Gordon’s dismay, and the growls of the security detail.
It’s going to be an interesting trip, Duncan thought with a chuckle.
Several weeks later everything had settled down and the ship was moving along at a good pace. All five Ogatu passengers had settled themselves in. The crew accepted them without any problems. The two females followed Alexei around for the first week to get to know the lay out of the ship and all the various departments. Not far behind were the two security guards who shadowed them wherever they went.
Most of the women on board found the females to be great companions, and each species shared small secrets with the other. The human females learned about Ogatu society and vice versa. There were many discussions on the mating habits of each species. Several of the human women admitted they wouldn’t mind having a go at one of the Ogatu males.
After much giggling, Mistress Tara said she did entertain the thought about Alexei; at which point the human females admitted they all had done the same.
The human males, on the other hand, were tongue-tied around the two Ogatu ladies. They did however manage to carry on a dialogue with the Ogatu security men. Men always seem to be able to bond easily, and it was the same with the male crew of the Phoenix and the security detail. They shared many stories of battle and many of rowdy behavior. The Ogatu males found the workout room and enjoyed using it on their down time with the crew.
Aware that winter was upon their home world, and that the social event of the year would take place during the winter encampment, the two female scientists decided the trip to the human world must be accomplished with all haste. They began showing up in the main engine room walking around taking measurements and making notes, much to the chagrin of Chief Swanson. They would come into the engine room and simply watch what everyone was doing, writing copious notes in their books. They would measure here and there, and then confer with each other, not realizing it was driving him crazy. Every now and then Lady Killian would ask him a question and his whole world would turn upside down with the sound of her voice.
Chief Swanson was a bear of a man, huge in girth and demanding of those in his engine room. Having the females coming and going was very disconcerting to him. He considered the engines to be his babies, and these women were eying them with coveted eyes. He spoke with Duncan about it, but since they were really doing no harm Duncan would not bar them from the area.
Then one day Lady Killian came to Duncan all excited saying she and Mistress Tara could reconfigure the engines and give him 40% more power, and it would only take a day to refit the engines. Chief Swanson refused at first. But after Lady Killian spoke to him, he agreed to let them work on his engines on the condition that he be allowed to help in the process. Lady Killian said that would be fine, she could use the help; besides he would learn the process and be able to do the same to other ships in the fleet.
Several days later the Phoenix was traveling along at a pretty fast clip and Duncan was very pleased with the improvements. He also noted Chief Swanson seemed to be very impressed with Lady Killian’s abilities. The entire crew had embraced the Ogatu and all seemed to going well.
Lt. Plummer interrupted his thoughts, “Sir, I have a blip on my screen, it’s fading in and out.”
“How far,” Duncan asked.
“Two, three parsecs can’t be sure, sir.” He pushed several switches, “The signal is very weak.”
“Can you tell what it is, Lt Plummer?”
“Not till we get closer, sir.”
“Sound the alert, and bring us in a little bit closer Ensign Cooper,” Duncan ordered. “Nice and easy Ensign, just close enough so we can get a fix our mysterious blip.”
“Aye sir,” he replied, “nice and easy.”
The Phoenix slowed and began to creep closer to the area. Lt Plummer kept pushing buttons trying to get a better view of the area ahead; but he was having no luck.
Alexei and Minister Gordon had become fast friends after Alexei had introduced the little man to Chess. He took to the game quickly and with great gusto. He truly enjoyed strategizing and planning moves; and much to the surprise of Alexei, he won most of the rounds they played. They were in the Library enjoying a game when the alarm went off
“Ah, what is that,” Gordon asked when the alarm went off.
“It’s an alert. It means Duncan has reason to believe we may be heading into some kind of trouble.” Alexei explained. He stood, “I must report to the bridge, Minister Gordon, we can finish this game later if you wish.”
“Yes, yes,” said replied Gordon, “I would like that.”
Alexei excused himself and headed to the bridge.
There was a flurry of activity when he arrived; he went straight to Duncan, “What’s up Duncan?”
Duncan explained the situation. “Something is out there, not sure what it is. It’s possible we’re being shadowed. I don’t want to go in blind and unprepared.”
Mistress Tara casually slipped onto the bridge and went directly to the sensor array. She studied the screens for a moment, and then asked Lt Plummer if she could make a few adjustments. He looked at Duncan, who nodded, and she began pressing buttons and quickly brought their ‘blip’ into view.
“You can put it on the main screen now Lt Plummer, you should be able to see it clearly,” she said in a soft voice.
The screen came alive and before them all was a badly damaged Scather ship; or what was left of one. It seemed smaller than the one they encountered, but it was definitely a Scather ship.
“Scan it and see if you get any readings, Lt Plummer,” ordered Alexei.
“Scanning sir, I’m getting one very faint life reading in the forward pod,” he informed them, “nothing else sir.”
“Wait a minute, pan the camera over that way,” interrupted Alexei, “Duncan, look at the open sites; they appear to be outward, not inward.” Everyone studied the ship, “The explosions came from inside the ship.”
Duncan looked carefully at the ship, “you’re right Alexei, there was no fight here. All the explosive sites appear to be outward, something happened inside the ship.”
Everyone’s eyes were glued to the picture of the dead ship, slowly turning in space.
“Something happened inside the ship; I wonder if we could board her,” Duncan thought out loud.
“It would be unwise Lord Duncan,” offered Mistress Tara quickly. “The Scather’s have an automatic self destruct should they lose a battle; we found this out the hard way.”
“Thank you for that information Mistress Tara, but they would have blown up long before this, I think.” Duncan replied. “Something must have happened inside the ship that caught them unawares. What do you think Alexei, should we give it a try.”
“Not you old friend, sorry but we need you alive,” Alexei replied in a deadpan voice. “It’s my turn, I’ll take this one.”
“Take what you need but be very careful, Alexei. You haven’t seen these guys in action yet,” Duncan told him, “they’re very fast and very deadly.”
As he turned to leave, Mistress Tara grabbed Alexei’s arm. “Sir, wait!” She quickly let go, seemingly embarrassed, “Oh, please forgive my forwardness.”
“It’s okay Mistress Tara, don’t give it a thought; now, what is it?” Alexei asked.
“The sensor shows only one life sign; the creature is obviously dying or it would have attacked already. They are more deadly than ever when they know this. Please use utmost caution when approaching it. If the third leg on the left side is extended then you are safe.
If it is curled close to the body, use extreme force or you will die.”
Alexei looked closely at Mistress Tara with new appreciation. “You sound as if you have had more contact with these creatures than most.”
“Before I received my appointment to the scientific community I was a Hunter. We paid a costly price learning how to deal with these creatures.” She looked at him without emotion and continued, “I assure you I am not boasting; I am only concerned for your welfare.”
“Mistress Tara,” Alexei replied in a sensuous voice, “I can think of nothing more pleasing than your concern. Now, what else can you tell me,” he asked smiling.
Tara blushed and the whiskers on her face stood out. She cleared her throat and answered.
“When you first board the ship and the hatch opens, look for a thin strip of blue metal. Be very careful not to touch it, it is an explosive device. On the panel directly in front of you, you will see a green plate light up; press it and the device will disarm.”
“Are there any other surprises?”
“One can never be too sure where Scathers are concerned, they are very aggressive,” she said with distaste. “They attack without warning, and without mercy.”
“They hate your people that much?” He asked
“We believe the population has been manipulated and lied to over the centuries. It is the only explanation for their being able to carry on this senseless war. It would also explain why they attack the second they see us. Their losses over the centuries have been great, and they would have to explain it away to their people somehow. So they use us to keep the hatred alive. Just be very alert to your surroundings.”
“Perhaps you should follow me in via the cam-con,” he said pointing to a console across the room. “I would feel a lot better with you at my back.”
She smiled at him with genuine emotion and Alexei suddenly felt himself drawn to her. A quick flash across his subconscious of holding her… What the hell?
“I shall do my best to guide you safely thru the ship,” she cooed and nodded slightly.
“I shall take everything you say to heart, dear lady, and I shall be very alert,” he replied bowing slightly in return. He raised his head, smiled and winked, then turned and left the bridge.
Mistress Tara stood there wide-eyed, purring softly.
2
Alexei headed for the docking bay and suited up, he placed the camera on his helmet.
Well… this was a ridiculous idea, he thought to himself; his emotions were conflicted. On one hand he was very curious to see the inside of their ship; and on the other, given what he had been told of these creatures, he was extremely wary. He calmed himself and focused all his senses; he would have to be very cautious. . He stepped into the air lock, sealed the door behind him; waited for the depressurization to complete, and opened the door.
God, what was I thinking?
He floated out into space and looked carefully around. He could see several dead bodies floating about near the ship.
Damn they look bigger than I remember. Great, just what I need.
He began to make his way towards the ship wondering where he could find a way in when he heard the soothing voice of Mistress Tara.
“Sir, Alexei,” she whispered in his ear piece and he felt it throughout his body; “be calm my friend, I am with you.” The sound of her voice seemed to give him the boost he needed.
“See if you can make it to the third pod; the life sign emanates from that area. You should find an opening there. If I had to guess I’d say this appears to be scout ship.”
Alexei headed for the area using his jet pack sparingly. The closer he came to the ship the more he felt alone. Okay Alexei, get it together.
As he approached the area he saw the ‘door’ and headed for it. A lifeless body passed close to him giving him a start.
“Son of a bitch!” he exclaimed sending himself into a spin.
Mistress Tara understood and cooed reassuringly, “it is okay Alexei; they would have attacked already if they were alive. Easy, just keep going; see that opening port in front of you?”
“Yes, I see it,” he answered.
“Press the panel to the right,” she instructed.
He did so and it opened revealing three panels. “Now what,” he asked.
“Press the top panel and the door should slide open.”
He pressed it and watched as the door depressed a few inches and silently slid to the left.
Inside he could see just a stainless steel room, an air lock.
“Slowly now, carefully step inside the airlock,” her voice soothing to his ears.
He made his way towards the opening and stepped inside. He noticed that Mistress Tara’s voice was taking on a different, almost protective tone.
“Now listen carefully Alexei, when the door closes behind you, stay there. Press the yellow button and wait for the area to pressurize. When the inner door slides open, do not move.
In about 30 seconds a green light will light up on the panel; it should be safe then to enter the ship.”
Alexei was beginning to realize just how crafty these Scathers were and he was glad he had someone like Tara to guide him.
Onboard the Phoenix Duncan and the crew’s eyes were glued to the screen following Alexei’s every move. Minister Gordon came onto the bridge with Lady Killian and stopped in surprise when they saw what was happening.
“Mistress Tara,” said Gordon in a breathless whisper, “you let him board that ship alone!”
Duncan turned, “it’s all right Minister, Alexei is very capable…”
“You don’t understand Lord Duncan,” he answered alarmingly, “he could be in grave danger.”
The two security guards behind Gordon were also alarmed. Pro Dantu chastened her, “We should be over there with him; he has no idea what these creatures are capable of.”
“Minister Gordon, Pro Dantu,” Mistress Tara began in a deep voice, “there is only one life sign on that ship, and it is stationary. If you look carefully you will see that the explosions came from inside the ship. It appears that their warp coil failed and exploded.”
Mistress Tara’s voice indicated that she was in charge here.
Both men stared at her like boys caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
“Gentlemen I appreciate your concern, but this is my area of expertise. Captain Alexei is following my instructions to the letter; you need not have any concerns in this matter.”
Pro Dantu looked like a chastised child, head down he mumbled something and backed up.
Minister Gordon sighed and acquiesced, “Very well Mistress Tara, I bow to your expertise.”
The door slid open and Alexei got his first view of the inside the ship. There was an orange glow about the entire inside and it appeared to be honeycombed. The explosions caused everything inside this area to be thrown about. There were many large pieces of machinery and consoles strewn about. There were wires and cooling ducts hanging from the ceiling; a lot of steam was being vented into the room off to his left. And he could hear something, or someone moaning just off to his right, up ahead.
“Can you hear that Tara,” he asked in a low voice, “someone is trapped in here. Geeze, this place is a mess. I’m going to move ahead a few steps.”
“Take three or four, but no more; I have to get a better view of the interior. Please pan the camera about so I can see,” she instructed. Alexei did as requested.
“Ah there it is!” she exclaimed. “Alexei, do you see the area to your left, the large black knob on the console mounted against the wall?”
Alexei turned and looked amid the rubble, “Yes, I see it.”
“I want you to make your way over there carefully, try not to touch anything else just yet.
Yes, there, very good, now pull the knob out and down.” She held her breath for a moment.
There was a grinding sound and a series of clicks and then silence.
“Very good Alexei, you are safe now to move about the ship.”
Panning to the right and upward, Alexei asked, “Is there a way to turn off that steam vent?”
“The panel in front of you, see it? In the upper left corner, fourth knob - push it. It should shut off the valve.”
“Ah, much better,” exclaimed Alexei as the steam abated and finally stopped pouring into the room. He turned around and panned the camera around the room.
“Well, what’s next Tara,” he asked admitting she was the expert in this environment.
“Listen carefully to each and every sound,” she said promptly.
Alexei set his famous ears and awareness in motion. He closed his eyes and listened; creaks and groans of metal on metal; hissing of other steam vents towards the back of the large room. Then he heard what he was listening for; it was a moan - whisper-like, but nonetheless, a moan.
“Do you hear that Tara,” he whispered.
“Yes Alexei, it’s coming from your right; be extremely careful,” her voice betrayed her.
“Don’t you worry yourself dear lady, I plan on coming back there and having a very long conversation with you about these Scathers.”
He began to move in the direction of the moans making his way around a series of huge consoles that had been upturned and thrown about the room. He was cautious enough to move as silently as possible. The moans were definitely getting louder. As he came around a rather large piece of machinery he saw his quarry.
“Taut!” shouted Mistress Tara into his earpiece.
Alexei froze and backed up quickly, whispering, “What did you say?”
“I am sorry, I reverted to Ogatu,” she explained, “it means do not move.”
“Ah, I understand,” he chuckled, “our word is ‘freeze’, and it means the same thing.”
“Freeze it is then, Alexei. Can you pan the camera around the corner and remain out of sight for a moment,” she asked.
He did as she requested and she studied the creature pinned under debris. She turned a dial and zoomed the camera in, carefully studying its features.
“By the stars,” she uttered under her breath.
She turned to Minister Gordon in surprise. “Minister, it is female!” Gordon also looked shocked. “Something is very amiss here; they never allow females on their ships.”
“Hey there folks, what’s the problem,” Alexei called, “can I move or what?”
“I’m not sure, stay where you are for the moment Alexei. This is unheard of; the Scathers believe females are inferior; they would never allow females on board a ship. Wait just a minute more Alexei; I want to check on something.”
She turned around and looked at Duncan, “Lord Duncan, can you pan your ship’s cameras around and find me one of the bodies floating out there?”
“Lt Plummer,” ordered Duncan, “find me a body.”
“Yes sir… here we go sir, I’ve got one.” He looked at Mistress Tara and waited.
“Zoom in closer please, Lt Plummer,” she instructed as she bent and stared at the video display, “a little more, more.”
The camera brought the creature closer and the entire crew got a look at their enemy in a way that made everyone shiver. Mistress Tara studied it carefully for a few minutes; turning to Duncan and Minister Gordon she announced, “It is also female.”
She looked at Lt Plummer and smiled sweetly; totally captivating the poor man, and purred, “Can you find me another one, please?” Lt Plummer jumped at the chance, like a love struck schoolboy. He found three grouped together and brought them on camera.
It didn’t take her long this time, “Female, female, and the third is also female; I do not understand this.” Her mind was racing trying to explain this sudden change. She knew everything about her enemy, and this was totally unlike them. An entire ship piloted and crewed by females… unheard of in Scather history.
Alexei interrupted her train of thought. “Tara, why don’t we just ask the one in here what’s going on?”
After much discussion between Duncan, Minister Gordon, and Mistress Tara, Alexei’s suggestion seemed the most likely course of action.
“Use extreme caution Alexei,” Tara advised, “this could be a trick of some kind.”
Alexei came around the console and slowly approached the creature. It saw him and tried to back away moaning loudly.
“Ooowwaa,” it yelled in a loud whispery voice, its eyes wide with fear.
Alexei raised his hand and approached slowly, “Easy, easy I’m not…”
The creatures’ eyes opened wide in fear, “Nooo!” It howled loudly, “Kill me quick earthman, get it over, be done with me. Oh, oh, the pain…”
“Now you just settle down!” Alexei shouted, getting her attention. “Calm yourself.”
The creature stared at him in confusion.
“I have no reason to kill you.” He answered in a whisper-like voice; trying to emulate her.
“Damn woman, I’m just trying to help.”
She calmed and turned her large head to look at him in surprise (he thought).
“You do not wish to kill me? But you… you are a human, from Earth.”
Alexei realized she had been lied to about humans; just as Mistress Tara had suspected they lied about the Ogatu.
“Madame, I don’t know where you got your information, but we Earthlings do not go around killing people.” Changing the subject he asked, “what happened to your ship?”
“This is a scout ship; we stole it from the maintenance dock. We had hoped to make it to the Ogatu home world to seek their help in ending this war.” She moved slightly and Alexei jumped back quickly. “Do not fear me sir, I will not harm you.”
“You will pardon me for doubting you,” Alexei replied as he walked around the creature.
“We know only what we have experienced from your species in recent months and most of it has been bad. Your people go to great extremes to hunt down the Ogatu. My people cannot understand this insane hatred of a people that simply wish to be left alone.”
Alexei could see she did not understand. “I believe your leaders lied to you about the Ogatu; lied in order to get your willing acceptance of this war.” Alexei shook his head back and forth, “Well, in any case please, please continue with what you were saying.”
“My sisters and I agree with you on that matter sir, this war against the Ogatu is insane.
We were but a small group of many who wished to end this nightmare. We united and formed a group to do battle with those that run our society. You see there are barely any males left to mate with on our planet. Many of us will never know the joy of motherhood.
The eligible men have been taken and placed in the service of the Elders; ancient men who rule our society,” she slammed her fist (?) down on the ground in frustrated anger, “they are all mad fools! We decided it was up to us; we females must put an end to this madness.
We formulated a plan to try to get the Ogatu to help us. There are many, many more who think this way on our home world; they could not all come with us. We had hoped to make it to the Ogatu world before being found by our own kind.”
Alexei stepped forward and made his way around the trapped creature. He went to the console and tried to lift it off her and in the process something broke lose and slid towards him.
Seeing what was about to happen, the Scather quickly lifted one of its legs and kicked out, sending the machine flying across the room. Alexei realized then just how easily she could have killed him if she wanted; instead she saved him. He decided then that she was probably telling the truth.
“Thank you madam,” Alexei nodded to her, “you may have just saved my life.”
“I can’t have my rescuer getting killed, can I?” she replied in a different tone, smoother and softer.
“I can not lift this off you by myself. And you are injured; there is some grey ooze under you; if that is your blood, then you need to be seen by a doctor. May I bring some of my people over to help me move this and a doctor to see to your wound?”
“I do not know; I am frightened.” Her voice took on a different tone, “One of you is not so bad, but more of you… I do not know.”
“If it will make you feel better, I will stay right here by your side,” Alexei offered.
“You would do that for me,” she whispered, surprised.
“Yes, I would, I give you my word. Your ship was blown apart madam, I don’t know how long this pod will last; you need to decide quickly.”
“I do not wish to die like this,” she seemed to be crying, (or something similar to it). Will you be able to take me to the Ogatu world? I must try to complete our mission; or else all my sisters died for nothing.”
“I may be able to help you in accomplishing that if you allow me to return to my ship. I will need a lot of help to assist me in freeing you.”
“You will return,” she asked apprehensively.
“Of course, I promised I would free you, and I shall keep that promise.” He bent down on one knee in front of her, “My name is Alexei, what may I call you?”
She hissed his name, “Alexsssi…” she made a strange sound and continued, “My name is Omnimatyu; you may call me Tyu.” (Pronounced tie-u)
“Thank you Tyu, I shall return quickly.”
Alexei made his way to back to the air lock when he heard Tara’s voice in his ear.
“Alexei, can you remove the camera from your helmet?”
“Yes, what do you have in mind Mistress Tara?” Alexei already had a good idea as to what she wanted him to do.
“Can you quietly make your way back to the creature and leave the camera in a place where she will not see it; I want to see what she does when your are gone.” He did as she requested quietly.
When Alexei stepped out of the air lock, Duncan and Minister Gordon were waiting for him. He looked around for Mistress Tara but was told she would join them later. Alexei gave a quick report on the status of the ship. They adjourned to Duncan’s office and a serious discussion was held as what to do with the creature. Alexei relayed his feelings regarding the female; she was very frightened of him at first, but he had allayed her fears.
In the process he learned that her world had been told Earthmen were killers, as bad as Ogatu. She claimed she knew for a fact that Ogatu were not as the Elders said and so believed that perhaps they had lied about the humans also. He stressed that he believed her to be sincere.
“The main point we have to consider first is if her story is true.” Minister Gordon was doubtful, “in all my years of dealing with Scathers, I have found only one constant… they are deceitful. We must find a way to decide if she telling us the truth.”
“She’s telling the truth,” said Mistress Tara entering the office, “I have no doubts now Minister.”
“Explain Mistress Tara,” Gordon demanded.
“I had Captain Alexei leave the camera behind. After he left, and she thought she was alone, I heard her call out to her dead sisters promising them that she would try to complete their mission. She wept for a bit and then she said something very interesting Minister.”
Tara pulled out a disc from her uniform, “here watch this,” she said as she placed the disc recording into the computer. They gathered around the video screen as the scene came to life before them. The Scather was lying under a huge console, pinned down, and in obvious pain.
“Sisters!” She cried out in her pain, “My sisters, you have not died in vain!” She moaned loudly and twisted about. “We were right; they have lied about everything. If the Earthman speaks the truth, and I believe he does, I will complete our mission. Our mothers and sisters will grieve no more. We will finally put an end to the Elders rule; we will finally stop this madness!”
There was silence in the cabin. There was no mistaking the fear and desperation in the female’s voice, nor the determination; the emotion was raw. They looked at each other and then at Minister Gordon.
“So there has been dissention on their home world; this is more than we could have hoped for.” Gordon suddenly said, seemingly delighted.
“Minister Gordon, would you explain,” Tara interrupted, “our hosts do not know Scather politics.”