Fractured Alliance Read online

  FRACTURED ALLIANCE

  by

  Robert Stadnik

  Exodus Series #5

  Fractured Alliance

  Copyright 2018 Robert Stadnik

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  To Dad

  I miss you a lot and think about you everyday

  I’ll see you again, elsewhere

  PROLOGUE

  March 9, 2147

  Location: Volux, former homeworld of the Mirimiss and Cruo races

  John Roberts looked around his surroundings. The landscape was littered with damaged buildings, burnt out vehicles, and the ashen remains of the life that once flourished on this planet. It was all that was left of the civilization that once existed here. As difficult as it was seeing all this decay, the captain felt it necessary to come here. He needed to take a firsthand look at the state of the planet. After all, it was his ship’s arrival that set off the chain of events that led to this world’s destruction.

  “I never thought I’d come here again.”

  X, John’s personal bot, rolled up from behind the captain. The bot had helped to take care of him ever since he was born. “You have not specified the reason for visiting this planet.” Its upper body rotated as its ocular sensors scanned the area, trying to find any life forms. It picked up none. “What species inhabited this planet?”

  John took a deep breath. “There were two races…the Mirimiss and Cruo.”

  “How did they become extinct?”

  The captain didn’t immediately answer the question. All he could do was look around the landscape. He felt responsible for all this destruction. A few years ago, the starship PHOENIX visited this system during their Screen mission. The Screen were an alien race that used fear to keep the local alien races suppressed. The Screen had trapped humanity within the solar system for over a hundred years. PHOENIX’s mission was to seek them out and determine what they had planned for the human race. In the course of their mission, they made alliances with several alien races.

  Hoping to secure alliances with the Mirimiss and Cruo, Captain Roberts had tried negotiating with them. His attempts to establish a dialogue went horribly wrong. Both races were hostile towards one another, and both accused the other of trying to acquire PHOENIX’s superior weapons. Nothing the captain said could shake them of their paranoia. In the end, they launched their full weapon arsenals at each other. The PHOENIX crew could only watch from orbit as both races were obliterated. John considered what happened one of his greatest failures as a ship commander.

  The captain never thought he would ever return to Volux. The memories of what happened were too painful for him. The probes PHOENIX left behind showed the radiation had dissipated to low levels, enough to support life again. He wrestled whether to come back here. What would it accomplish? He couldn’t come up with a reason for returning. In the end, he decided to come back, if for nothing else as a reminder. No matter how careful he was as a ship commander, things could and would go wrong. He was no longer a fugitive harboring a stolen starship, but the captain of TERRA’s flagship. He wanted to remember what happened on Volux. He didn’t want to be complacent as PHOENIX began its exploration into unknown space.

  “Never again,” he muttered.

  “The inflections in your voice indicate you are in despair,” X noted. “Did you know of the individuals who lived here?”

  “No one specifically, it’s just…” The captain didn’t know how to explain it to his bot. It was complicated. He didn’t have it in himself to rehash what happened.

  X’s robotic arm extended from its round body. Its claw reached out and gently took John’s hand. It found that this method of contact brought comfort to its owner. It worked. John felt instantly at ease. He was grateful that he brought his bot to live on PHOENIX.

  The distant sound of engines broke John’s attention away from the depressing scene. He looked up to see a shuttle descending from the sky to land right by his shuttle. A few moments later, the side door opened. His executive officer emerged from the shuttle.

  “They told me you were down here,” Julie said as she stepped onto the ground. “Mitchell and I were hoping to have a few more days before returning to PHOENIX,” she said, referring to her newly married husband. They had spent their honeymoon on Plein, the Onixin homeworld. It was a promise Julie made to a former colleague and good friend, Alex’sis Brandus, who fell in love with the planet the first time PHOENIX visited it.

  “We were passing by this system. I felt it important to stop here,” John explained.

  “The Onixin cruiser received new orders to conduct patrols around the Cresorian homeworld,” Julie revealed. “PHOENIX stopping here allowed us to catch up to you sooner.” Julie looked around the landscape. “Given everything you accomplished against the Screen, why rehash bad memories and come back here?”

  John shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe I needed the reminder that I’m not invincible.”

  “You’re not the arrogant cadet I knew at the Academy. You’ve grown through all the hardships you faced these past few years. Why start doubting yourself now?”

  “I don’t know. I didn’t feel right passing by here without seeing it.”

  That was a trait Julie found endearing about John. He had immense compassion for others. She knew he beat himself up with how things had played out here. John struggled so much during the Screen mission. Besides with what happened on Volux, he dealt with dissidents amongst the crew, lost his love Alex’sis, learned of his sister’s death at the hands of the admiral who recruited them, and had lost his composure and tortured and killed Screen prisoners. He persevered from those hardships and grew stronger.

  Julie patted her friend on his shoulder. “It was the Cruo and Mirimiss who destroyed each other, not you. We came here under the best of intentions. They were on the path to destruction long before we showed up.”

  Julie’s words resonated with John. She was right. Now was not the time to start doubting himself. The Mirimiss and Cruo chose to obliterate each other.

  John looked at his best friend and nodded. “There’s no reason to be here. Let’s go home.” The trio returned to their shuttles and departed Volux for the last time. There were new adventures to be had out there.

  CHAPTER ONE

  “Walters to farm deck. Water reclamation will be reduced by fifteen percent. Adjust your operations to compensate and acknowledge your status change.”

  “It’s Morgan here. We have several parcels of plants we’ve seeded and need…”

  Shelly interrupted him. “The reduction is needed to readjust the new flow valve system.”

  “That can wait. We’re on a timetable here.”

  “The reduction’s happening.” Shelly turned off the comm line before he could reply. She didn’t have time for an argument. She was swamped with resource requests and was trying to get a handle on them before PHOENIX left the star system. During its time back in the solar system, TERRA took the opportunity to upgrade some of the original systems left untouched by the Ni when they rebuilt the PHOENIX after its battle against the Screen near the Ni homeworld. The crew was still refining some of those newly upgraded systems.

  She moved onto the other issues on her list. “Vish, send a confirmation to medical that their lab supplies are en route from the hangar,” as she read the delivery confirmation on her station terminal.

  “Acknowledged,” the sentient computer replied.

  Shelly didn’t like using the Senfo computer artificial intelligence (AI) to do her job, but she found herself relyi
ng on it to get things done. The captain chose her as senior operations officer, and she felt honored being selected. After all, he was the hero of TERRA who had saved humanity from the Screen and united several alien races. Her selection was a surprise, as she had just graduated from the Academy. Thousands of seasoned officers clamored for a position on PHOENIX. Captain Roberts had exclusive authority to hand-pick those officers he wanted to serve aboard his ship. He raised more than a few eyebrows when he selected several new graduates, including Shelly, to serve in key positions. Operations was considered one of the more challenging positions to run and was usually reserved for experienced officers. Although she was surprised at the assignment, she wasn’t willing to question the captain’s decision. Even her brother, who served as chief engineer on a capital ship, thought she was a perfect fit for the position.

  “Medical bay to Lieutenant Walters,” came the voice of Doctor Roth, one of two chief medical officers who served on the ship.

  “Go ahead,” Shelly replied.

  “Where the hell’s the Senfo medical equipment at? I’ve got engineers here waiting to install them.”

  “Crap,” Shelly muttered as she checked the assignment manifest. She remembered something about them. The manifest answered her question. Medical had put the request in but she forgot to prioritize it in requisition’s delivery schedule.

  “I’m sorry, doctor. I forgot to log the supplies with the requisition. I’m doing it now.”

  “I’ve rescheduled several surgeries around the installation. My patients can’t wait…”

  “I’m sorry, doctor,” Shelly interrupted. “I’ll take care of it.”

  “You didn’t take care of it,” Roth shouted through Shelly’s pip. “If any of my patients suffer, it’s on you. Get it done!”

  Roth cut the communication before Shelly could reply. The young officer leaned on the operations table and took a deep breath. This was overwhelming for her. How could she possibly keep up? “Vish, double-check the requisition list. Make sure everything’s been tagged with the proper priority level.”

  “All submitted requisitions have been assigned,” Vish replied.

  “Lieutenant.” Shelly looked up to see Jufo, the Senfo navigation officer, speaking to her from his station. “Captains Roberts and Olson are coming up from the planet. They will want to depart once they are on board.”

  “PHOENIX will be ready,” Shelly assured as she got back to her duties. She reviewed her display at the incoming requests pouring in. How would she be able to handle all of this? One operations officer on duty couldn’t handle everything on a ship this big.

  “Glad to hear we’ll be ready to depart,” Commander Tim Richardson said as he descended into the pit and joined Shelly at the operations table. “I just got a nasty call from Doctor Roth.”

  Great! Just what Shelly didn’t need to deal with. “I told her I messed up. I’ve already corrected the issue.”

  Tim held his hand up. “It’s no big deal. They’ll be fine.”

  Shelly was confused. “Really? She implied some of her patients needed surgeries that were time sensitive.”

  Tim chuckled. “The doctor tends to exaggerate when things don’t go exactly as planned. I checked the surgery schedule. They’re all minor, routine procedures.” The commander leaned in towards Shelly. “Seriously, it’s fine. You’re new to your position and bound to miss a couple of things. Don’t let it get to you.”

  “I won’t sir, thank you.” Shelly felt relieved that the commander wasn’t questioning her abilities…yet. She resolved that she wouldn’t make any more stupid mistakes. This was the PHOENIX. Serving on the flagship came with high expectations and she was determined to meet them.

  ********

  Korifluxinina made her way into The Lounge. Although the science officer wanted to visit all the various establishments in Central, she spent most of her time in her quarters reading about human, Senfo, Onixin, and Cresorian scientific advancements to further her own knowledge. She realized that when she wasn’t either on the command deck or her lab, she was in her quarters. She wasn’t interacting with others on the ship. The primary reason why she chose to remain on PHOENIX was to enjoy the diversity of races living here. As she never spent any time at The Lounge outside the performances Chris Anne used to do, Korifluxinina elected to spend her evening there.

  As the Quix science officer entered the bar, she spotted several blended groups of humans, Senfo, and Onixins socializing together. There were Cresorians present, but they were clustered at the bar and keeping to themselves.

  “Last one,” Max said as he delivered a tray of drinks to the Cresorians. He was the bartender and owner of The Lounge.

  “We shall see, human drink dispenser,” one of the Cresorians replied as he grabbed his drink. “You will not impede our victory celebration against the Screen.”

  Max rolled his eyes at the comment. “We defeated them months ago, get over it already.” He stopped himself from throwing out anymore sarcastic comments when he saw Korifluxinina come in. He quickly moved to the end of the bar where the Quix took a seat. “What can I get for you, K?”

  Unarnu Korifluxinina looked at Max with confusion. “K? My name is Korifluxinina. However, since most individuals have difficulty pronouncing my name, it is permissible to address me by my title, Unarnu.”

  “Even calling you Unar….Unar…it’s hard for me,” Max admitted. “Calling you by your first initial is easier. It’s sort of a compliment. Friends give each other nicknames all the time.”

  Korifluxinina had heard of the concept of nicknames among humans. It intrigued her that they would show affection by butchering their proper names. This cultural nuance was odd, but she took it as an honor that Max would choose to apply it to her. “Very well, you may call me K.”

  Max smiled. “Great, what can I get you to drink?”

  “Orange juice and loog.”

  “Coming up.” Max poured the beverages in the glass in front of his patron. “How’ve things been going?”

  Korifluxinina had been on the ship long enough to realize the bartender was engaging her in banter. She welcomed the opportunity to interact with the crew and learn more about them. “It has been satisfactory. My studies in alien science achievements go well. I hope to author some…papers…with the other scientists on the ship.”

  “Sounds great.” Max wasn’t about to ask what scientific advancements she was reading up on. He barely finished secondary school and didn’t do well in any of the science classes he took.

  “How are things with you?” Korifluxinina asked, wanting to show interest in the bartender’s life.

  “Not too bad, although these guys are running me ragged,” he said as he motioned to the group of Cresorians.

  “Are they giving you any difficulty?” Korifluxinina had not interacted with any of the Cresorians on the ship. She had heard of several disruptive incidents involving them.

  “No, they’re just buying a lot of drinks and being loud,” Max replied. “They’re a bunch of blowhards, but harmless.”

  Unarnu was about to ask what a blowhard was but never had a chance.

  “Hey!” one of the Cresorians yelled at Max.

  Max rolled his eyes. “What!?”

  “Your drinks are insufficient. We require more potent elixirs.”

  Max pointed at their half-empty glasses. “You haven’t finished what’s in front of you. When you’re done, I’ll get you another round. Until then, I’m talking with my friend here.”

  Korifluxinina felt privileged to be addressed as a friend by Max. These humans had garnered a reputation for being open and welcoming to others.

  “You think that slug is more important than us?” another Cresorian asked.

  “I am the chief science officer. Unarnu Korifluxinina of the Quix Protectorate.”

  “We do not care,” the Cresorian said dismissively. “Your designation does not impress us.”

  “My position title dictates my level of achievement
within the protectorate,” Korifluxinina explained, referring to the Quix military. “It is courtesy in my culture to recognize titles and the achievements earned from such designations.”

  “We do not bother with official titles. We suffered at the hands of the Screen and spent many cycles just trying to survive,” another Cresorian said.

  “You’re wasting your time explaining anything to them,” Max said to Korifluxinina, but she felt the need to clarify their misstatements.

  “All of us in the alliance suffered greatly at the hands of the Screen,” Korifluxinina reminded. “That is how the alliance came to be.”

  “None of you lost your worlds!” a Cresorian shouted. The outburst got the attention of the rest of the bar. Everyone stopped their conversations to look at the Cresorians and Quix.

  Korifluxinina considered herself an even-tempered individual who could get along with most people, despite any cultural differences. However, she wasn’t about to be bullied by anyone. “I am certain my title alone is more important than what any of you do here. You have demonstrated you excel at being refugees unless you can tell me what meaningful contribution you have made to this ship.”

  “Ah, shit,” Max muttered. He knew an insult when he heard it.

  The Cresorians stood up in unison. “You are calling us useless?” as they collectively approached Korifluxinina.

  “Knock it off or I’ll call security,” Max warned.

  “I do not know any of you, so I cannot attest to how useless you are,” Korifluxinina said as she stood up. Her seven-foot frame towered over the Cresorians. “Are any of you prominent in any particular field?”

  Some of the Cresorians were intimidated by the sheer size of the Quix, but they were not about to back down to her. She had insulted their honor. “We spent our lives roaming the stars because the Screen destroyed our world. We survived the harshness of life in space as we tried to keep our race alive.”