“There you have it, ladies and gentlemen, the view of Dr. Zoran, Elipson's foremost expert on synthetic machine intelligence weighing in on the tragedy at Senator Tom's office and the many others caused by Futurecore Technomatics machines while his very own ELF's have a spotless track record. I'm Katherine Jones for Good Morning Elipson. Have a great day.”
To Protect and Serve
Science Vessel Under Duress
Meanwhile, on board the science vessel Erudite . . .
“Chase, what's the progress on the tri-phase crystal search?” asked captain Roderick, commander of the science vessel.
“So far, they've discovered only one large deposit on Savor's third moon, Bendar. Nothing in the orbital rings. But there are several large deposits on Savor itself. At least 7.”
“7?”
“Yes, we won't know the exact number or have a good estimate for another 3 hours.”
“Well, I guess the Vanguards will be building a colony on the Savor itself for their precious material,” said the Captain. “Quite convenient for them, wouldn't you say? What's the status of-”
“Captain, sir, I've pinpointed the source of the powerful radar waves,” said the scanner officer. “The radar is definitely military class and the source has just appeared on our long ranged radar.”
“Can you identify the ship?” asked the captain.
“No, sir, we're too far away for transponder signals. But it is headed for us.”
“Speed?”
“50 kilometers per second, sir.”
A silence fell upon the bridge.
“They're not just patrolling the region, they're blazing right toward us. Damn! Okay, lieutenant, keep me posted.”
A few minutes later . . .
“Sir, there is a Tayairosko Star Navy vessel hailing us,” said the communications officer aboard the Erudite.
“Brink, is it the same ship that's approaching us?” asked the captain.
“Yes, sir,” said the scanner officer.
“Open a channel, Mr. Trinago,” said the captain.
“Channel open, sir,” said Mr. Trinago.
“This is Captain Roderick of the Science Vessel Erudite of Elipson, how can we be of service?”
“This is Major Varno of the Tayairosko Star Navy space cruiser Hammer. We are arresting you for intrusion into a restricted zone without filing a flight and purpose manifest with Tayairosko Star Command. We will board your ship, arrest all aboard and confiscate all equipment and information gathered during your intrusion.”
“We are a scientific vessel exploring Savor's system for scientific research. We filed a manifest with the Interplanetary Science Society. Under interplanetary law, you cannot board our ship and seize the crew and all equipment on board without interplanetary jurisdiction and probable cause which you do not have.”
“I am the commander of the Tayairosko space cruiser Hammer, the largest and most advanced space combat ship of the four planets built by the most powerful corporation of the four planets. You will do as I command or be destroyed.”
“Please stand by for our reply,” said Captain Roderick.
He motioned to cut communications.
“Ro!” said Captain Roderick.
“Yes, sir?”
“I want engines at full capacity. Get the dual ionic drive online as quickly as possible. We're leaving. Chase, how quickly can we recall our recovery teams?”
“Time to shut down and return to the ship is approximately 45 minutes, sir,” said Chase, the science coordinator.
The captain said, “Farlo, how long until the Tayairosko cruiser gets here?”
“At their current speed and heading, approximately 30 minutes.”
“Recall the science teams immediately, tell them the situation. Prep the ship for maximum ion push.”
“Yes, sir,” said Chase.
“Yes, sir,” said Ro.
The captain then signaled to the communications officer to resume transmitting.
“This is Captain Roderick of the science vessel Erudite. We are having problems communicating with some of our science teams on the other side of Savor's moon. We'll need some time to collect our assets and turn them over to you.”
Major Varno replied, “You have until we arrive. We shall dispatch teams to retrieve any problem assets.”
“Understood, captain out,” said the captain. He turned to his communications officer and said, “Send out a distress signal.”
Thirty minutes later . . .
“Sir, the Hammer is here,” said the scanner officer. “And it's huge! It's more than five times the size of the Erudite.”
“Well,” said the captain. “This should be fun.”
The science vessel's communications officer spoke up, “Captain, the Tayairosko cruiser is now hailing us.”
“Which teams have not returned?”
“The last three tri-phase team, sir,” said Chase.
“Damn, that's they're the most important ones,” said the captain. “Okay, put the major through.”
“Yes, sir,” said the communications officer.
The video screen flashed on and then the bridge of the Hammer appeared on the bridge's main monitor.
“Captain, I trust you are ready to surrender your ship,” said Major Varno.
“Sir,” said the scanner officer. “There appears to be energy building up at specific locations on board the hammer. It would appear they are charging energy weapons.”
Destroyer
An object shimmered into view between the Hammer and the science vessel. It had an arrow shaped forward section connected by a neck-like fuselage to the main body. It had four, large and thick, forward swept wing sections giving it the appearance of an aggressive, space predator of alien origin. It had large dorsal and ventral fins, also forward sweeping. Adding to its alien appearance was its black and deep purple coloring.
It was much smaller than the Hammer. It was even smaller than the science vessel.
The scanner officer aboard the Hammer said, “Sir! An unidentified object has just appeared between us and the Erudite! It did not register on long ranged or even medium ranged radar! Attempting to scan, now.”
“Sir, the object that just appeared is hailing us,” said the communications officer.
“Put them through,” said the major.
A female, computerized voice said, “I am Phoenix of Vanguard. The science vessel Erudite is under our protection. You will stand down from your current actions and retreat to the minimum safe observation distance as outlined in section 7 point 9 point 2 of the interplanetary scientific exploration and experimentation code.”
Major Varno smiled and said, “This is Major Varno of the TSN Hammer, the most advanced warship in the planetary system. Your little ship couldn't possibly survive an engagement. Stand down or be destroyed.”
The scanner officer said, “Sir, I need to tell you something important about the Vanguard ship, it is urgent, sir.”
The major gestured for the communications officer to silence transmission.
“What is it, lieutenant?” said the major.
“Sir,” said the intelligence officer. “I've located what appears to be insignia on one of the ship's dorsal fins.”
“Put it on the main screen,” said the major.
An image of the fin appeared with an insignia barely visible as a thick vertical line.
“Rotating and enhancing image,” said the intelligence officer.
“There's a circuit board inside of an eye?” said the first officer.
“That is the insignia of the ELF, sir. The other components: a space ship and shining star, could designate a new aerospace division within the ELF classification system.”
“So the Elipsonians created a space ship to travel with their artificially intelligent machines, how sweet,” said the major.”
The intelligence officer sa
id, “Sir, there is the distinct possibility that the ship is a pure ELF system, designed and constructed by ELF's.”
“Are they that intelligent?” asked the first officer.
“The ELF's have been designing and constructing their own low level worker drones for decades. And that is only what we know for sure. It's speculated that they have been working on more advanced systems for quite some time. What distinguishes the ELF's from all other artificially intelligent systems is their ability to adapt, expand, and make hypotheses, leading to the ability to make small scientific and engineering achievements. I recommend caution when dealing with this entity.”
“Taken under advisement, lieutenant,” said the Major.
“Major, sir,” said the scanner officer. “I can detect nothing inside of the ship, or even just below the surface. Our radars and x-rays are simply not penetrating the outer hull at all. It also seems to be one, smooth construct. I cannot detect gun turrets or gun ports of any kind. No seems, no paneling. Simply one smooth external surface.”
The intelligence officer chimed in, “Sir, there's also no infrared signature besides the engines and they are extremely small. I'm detecting no ion emissions at all. There's something wrong.”
“Ha, I'll tell you what's wrong,” said the Major. “She's bluffing. She has no weapons. She just has a few cloaking tricks. Machines aren't more intelligent than the best scientists and engineers at Tayairosko.”
“Sir,” said the intelligence officer, “I suggest we proceed with caution and attempt further scans.”
“No need. Target the Phoenix!” said the Major.
“Targeting the Phoenix, sir,” said the weapons officer. “Targeting systems not locking onto the ship, sir!”
“What?”
“Scanners not getting a lock