Chapter 4
Entering the bridge, Jason walked into a flurry of activity.
“What’s going on, XO?” Jason asked, looking up at the display and seeing multiple Allied Craing warships.
“We’ve got five Alliance Craing battle cruisers maintaining a slow perimeter around the outpost, sir. Multiple hails have been ignored. Totally unresponsive with the exception of a repeating message. They’re providing The Lilly with heading and specific landing instructions.”
Jason watched the distant warships and wondered who was manning them. He had his flight crews in orbit conducting training, but they wouldn’t have been ready for this. Perhaps the prisoners, the Craing crewmembers? But he hadn’t authorized their use, at least not here at the outpost.
“Captain, I believe the outpost has been compromised,” the XO said, “Communications to the rest of the world has completely gone dark. There’s definitely something going on.”
* * *
Fifteen minutes later, Jason was back in the cockpit of the Pacesetter and skimming across the desert floor at close to three hundred miles an hour.
“For God’s sake, why so fast? And why so close to the ground?” Admiral Reynolds asked from the second pilot’s seat behind Jason’s.
Just what I need, Jason thought, a backseat driver. “I want to come at the outpost from a completely different direction than from The Lilly’s underground position. Probably being overly cautious, but—”
“That doesn’t explain your flying like a lunatic,” the admiral shot back.
Jason didn’t respond. Truth was, he was worried. Ultimately, the outpost was his responsibility—the outpost was his idea, he had set it up, and he had put Cramer in charge. Coming within a mile of the outpost, Jason pulled back on the stick to gain some elevation. If he hadn’t known better, he’d think he had the wrong coordinates. The outpost he visited three weeks ago, with its ragtag collection of tents and hastily constructed structures, had been replaced by what looked like a sprawling, modern military compound. Multi-level buildings, three runways, several large hangars, ten Apache helicopters, and the remainder of the massive Allied Craing warship fleet, hundreds of them all lined up in perfect rows disappearing off in the distance well beyond the confines of the original base. Fifteen-foot fencing, topped with razor concertina wire, outlined the distant perimeter. Separate and to the east, also surrounded by fencing and more concertina wire, hundreds of small tents were clustered together. Commonly referred to as Craing City, they hadn’t finished erecting this area three weeks ago. More like a prison, this is where the enemy crewmembers and overlords were being held. Jason took in the view of the outpost below. Strange, Jason thought. No activity—not a soul in sight. He wasn’t going to get any answers hovering up here in the air. Jason looked for a suitable place to set down.
“Aren’t you going to request permission to land?” the admiral asked.
“I’ve already left word with Admiral Cramer. Seems to be a real hotbed of activity down there—I think we can find a place to land,” Jason replied sarcastically. Like The Lilly, the Pacesetter was undetectable to sensors, although visible to the naked eye. He scoped out the landscape ahead, entered new coordinates, and phase-shifted from a mile out. An instant later, the Pacesetter was stationary—thirty yards from the entrance into the compound’s largest building.
* * *
They had been ready for them. Even before the cockpit canopy had time to fully open, assault teams were filing out from multiple buildings—easily one hundred men wearing dark grey uniforms and holding automatic weapons were surrounding the Pacesetter. Jason didn’t recognize any of these men; they were definitely from another unit. Some had long hair. Others wore beards. Suddenly, the five Craing battle cruisers dropped from the sky in unison and held position at several hundred feet above the ground. New trainee pilots couldn’t have made that maneuver.
“Shit, Jason—what the hell were you thinking?”
“Oh, come on, Dad … It’s good to be unpredictable sometimes. I’m sure it’s fine.” An alarm claxon started howling from all ends of the compound. “But to be safe, don’t make any sudden movements,” Jason said warily.
“You think?”
They both slowly emerged from the fighter, one following the other. Once down, they stood with their hands raised. No one spoke, no orders were issued. That’s when Jason noticed the flag. Why would the stars and stripes be flying here—and something else. Something was different about the flag.
More armed, grey-uniformed soldiers emerged from the nearest building. It was her bright patch of red hair that caught Jason’s attention. Admiral Malinda Cramer, an air of authority in her hurried gate, was leading a small armed contingent headed in their direction.
“She doesn’t look happy.”
“That’s right. You haven’t had the pleasure yet,” Jason replied.
“I’m not sure if I should be intimidated or strangely aroused. That woman projects one hell of a presence,” the admiral said.
Admiral Cramer halted ten feet in front of Jason and his father.
“Good morning, Admiral. I’d like to introduce you to—”
“Be quiet. Don’t speak unless spoken to, Captain Reynolds,” Admiral Cramer commanded. Her eyes flickered towards Admiral Reynolds and then back to Jason. “Where is The Lilly?”
“She’s safe.”
“Don’t play games with me. I’m the last person you want to f*ck around with right now.”
“Actually, you’d be the last person I’d want to f*ck around with—ever, Admiral. Are you sure you want to play things this way?” Jason replied, his own temper rising. “Have you forgotten to whom you report, Admiral?”
Steely-eyed, she looked at him for a long moment before she signaled her team. “Lock them up.” As quickly as she’d arrived, she was strutting back in the direction she had come.
“Just so you know … Seven days, Admiral,” Jason yelled after her. She slowed but didn’t stop.
“Three highly-advanced warships. They make up the new Emperor’s Guard. They’ll be here in seven days,” Jason shouted, wincing as PlastiCuffs were tightly secured around his wrists. He felt a pang of guilt seeing his father, also secured, needlessly shoved towards a row of buildings off to their left. He should have left him working on his old ‘49 pickup or, better yet, remain safely aboard The Lilly. They pushed Jason to follow in the direction of his father.
* * *
They were held several floors underground in a holding cell of sorts. No metal bars, but a cell just the same. Jason and his father sat on a long metal bench that was bolted to the floor. Across the room, three guards stood with M-16 rifles pointed at Jason’s and Admiral Perry’s heads. Jason, getting the younger of the three soldiers’ attention, started to speak. Angered, the soldier flipped his rifle around and jabbed the butt into Jason’s left cheek, sending him sprawling to the floor. He felt the flesh of his cheek hanging loosely beneath his eye. The bleeding stopped almost immediately. Feeling the familiar tingle, the open wound was quickly being repaired by thousands, if not millions, of internal nanites.
What did this harsh treatment mean? Had Admiral Cramer’s commitment to a separate United Planetary Alliance Outpost on Earth been nothing more than a greedy power play? A ruse to obtain The Lilly’s advanced technology? Each question triggered a new one. How high up did this go? Jason found it hard to believe that Secretary of Defense Ben Walker, who seemed a man of integrity, would be a part of this. And what about the president? Perhaps Craing hybrids had made new inroads into the government?
Jason sat quietly on the bench for over an hour. He opened a NanoCom channel to The Lilly. It had taken a while to figure out the advanced options for the NanoCom menu system and the specific area that allowed for nonverbal communications. After mentally scrolling through several sub-menus, he found the option he was looking for: NanoText Off/On. Once activated, the process involved optically selecting letters and whole word suggestions, not so different from cellphone texting—something Jason rarely did. Alphanumeric characters appeared optically, appearing to float in space before his eyes. Characters were in turn selected, simply by placing prolonged attention on them. It took some practice, but he was getting the hang of it. On the positive side, no one other than The Lilly’s crew and SEAL teams had been configured with these unique internal nano-devices.
He had just updated Ricket when their cell door clanged open. Still bound with their hands behind their backs, they were not so gently ushered into the hallway and marched back upstairs to a large conference room. Once their restraints were removed, they were told where to sit. The conference table could easily sit twenty people, although a mere handful of officers occupied the other seats. Large flat screen displays were situated on three walls. At the head of the table sat Admiral Cramer. To her left and right were other officers Jason didn’t recognize. Behind Cramer, the stars and stripes hung. Although the rows of fifty stars on the navy blue field were now aligned in a circular pattern and an added, larger, fifty-first star sat at its very center. The flag took up most of the wall and hung from a brass rod at the ceiling. A banner at the top of the wall read Licentia vel nex. Jason looked at the banner and then to back to Cramer.
“My Latin is a little rusty. Let’s see … Freedom or Die?”
“Freedom or Death,” she corrected.
“Whatever. What the hell is this all about, Admiral?
“It’s about doing the right thing. It’s about the beginnings of a new nation. And it’s about taking advantage of opportunities.”
“Where are the men and women who were manning this base?” Jason asked, fighting to stay calm. “There must be hundreds of them—what the hell have you done?”
“I did what had to be done to ensure the longevity of this great country.”
“What does that even mean? I want those people released.”
“We’ll get right on that, Captain,” she said sarcastically.
“So all along you were lying to me. A ploy to make a power play?” Jason asked, more of a statement than a question.
The admiral shrugged, then looked to her fellow officers with a smirk. “Are you really so naive, Captain?”
Jason didn’t answer.
“You were a convenience. Please, don’t get me wrong; you’ve proven yourself to be immensely resourceful. Undoubtedly, the American people—the world—owe you their eternal gratitude. You helped save our planet from a horrible fate. But don’t mistake my gratitude for stupidity.” Jason was about to respond when a display on the wall at the end of the table flickered to life. On view was CNN Breaking News, an aerial view of Washington D.C. Two Craing Battle Cruisers hovered in the air—one directly above the Pentagon, and the other above the Capitol building. The feed changed and a third warship was shown parked in front of the White House.
“As you can see,” the admiral said, enjoying the theatrics, “we’ve adopted some of your unconventional tactics, Captain.”
Dark smoke rose from several locations—the most notable being the Jefferson Memorial. It had been obliterated.
“Close proximity military bases, including Fort Myer and Fort McNair, were also destroyed.” She stood and walked to the display. “Everything is coming together. You may not see it—you may not understand it—but we’re patriots, Captain. Understand, we’re not out to destroy America. We’re out to make this country great again. Now, with our fleet of Craing warships, real change can take place. I hope you can see that.”
“I know crazy when I see it, and you’re certifiable,” Jason replied, finding it hard to take his eyes from the screen.
“You’ll come around.”
“Not likely.”
Admiral Cramer waved him off with her hand and said, “I’ll be leaving this evening to speak with the president and Joint Chiefs. Talk about ideas for real change. But who knows? They may not be the right people for the job.”
“I think you’re f*cking crazy,” Admiral Reynolds piped in.
Admiral Cramer ignored the remark. Another display came alive. “I think you recognize the emissary for the Craing Empire?” Admiral Cramer smirked.
Jason looked up to see his brother. His father looked disappointed.
“Hello, Jason … Dad,” Brian said. “I’m sorry. This is not the way I wanted things to go down.”
“Your deceit and treachery seem to have no bounds.”
“On the contrary, Dad, I’m ensuring Earth’s long-term survival. Why can’t you get that through your head? At least now, with the help of Admiral Cramer and others, the Craing Empire will no longer be a threat to Earth.”
“Then you’re a bigger fool than I thought you were, Brian. All you’ve done is hand the Craing our planet on a silver platter. For fifteen years, I’ve experienced their lying, their deceit,” Admiral Reynolds spat. There was a renewed fire in his eyes, one that Jason hadn’t seen for weeks.
“Enough!” Admiral Cramer was seated again at the head of the table. “Here’s what’s going to happen. We will graciously accept the Craing Empire’s offer. We will return to them their damn robot, Emperor Reechet. Second, they have agreed to share their advanced technology—and we’ll provide limited access to The Lilly. Together, our two civilizations will build a long-term mutually beneficial relationship. In the process, we will become strong again here on Earth and as we venture into deep space.”
There was something missing here. Jason didn’t get it. Considering both Ricket and The Lilly were far out of reach from Admiral Cramer’s grasp, what made her think she could pull any of this off? She must have been reading his thoughts. Leaning back in her chair with an all-knowing smile, another display went active. The last person Jason expected to see on the screen was his eight-year-old daughter, Mollie. Eyes wide and obviously scared, she stared blankly into the camera. The screen changed perspectives and a wider shot of both Mollie and her mother, his ex-wife Nan, came into view. Although Mollie looked fine, Nan was not. Several purple bruises and a scrape across her forehead made it clear she had been mistreated. All eyes turned to Admiral Cramer. Even Brian looked shocked. She returned Jason’s glare, then looked away.
“Mark my words. Before this is over, I’ll have both my hands wrapped around your neck.” Jason’s words hung in the air.
“You will comply with everything we ask. This is a revolution. People have already died; we have already killed for our cause. Do not doubt our resolve here, Captain. If you want your wife and child to live, do as we ask—it’s really that simple,” Admiral Cramer said, regaining her composure.
Jason looked back to the screen. Knowing Mollie couldn’t see him, he still wished he could reassure her. Then she did something unusual. Mollie casually touched her ear—strange—she touched her ear with two fingers.
“You have one hour, Captain.” The admiral signaled to one of the guards. Both Jason and his father were pulled out of their chairs. Before they were ushered out of the room, Admiral Cramer spoke again. “I want The Lilly and that robot delivered to the outpost today. Make no mistake about my resolve here, Captain. Do as I say, or witness the deaths of your daughter and ex-wife.” The guards manhandled them out of the room and into the hall.