The Defense of Earth ( Mission Impossible 31)

Dranke watched the proceedings with nervousness. It always felt like this when dealing with new personnel. He rested his clammy hands on the guardrail on the bridge as he watched the formation change. The Jexx had their own tricks up their sleeves. Using the apex of their formation, they had formed a battering ram. They wanted to get to Earth!

The commands were relayed instantly. Without an apparent word, each darkmatter starcraft was involved in a dance. They formed a triple wave - one over the other formed like layers with each one turned in the opposite orientation to the one below to cover any possibility of missing a single enemy ship. Dranke told them to hold their fire. He wanted the Jexx to come into range. Without warning five darkmatter starcraft moving at incredible velocities overtook the triple crescent and headed straight for the tip of the 'battering ram.' Dranke was astounded. Fenie got onto his Jen subroutine. "You can thank me later, these are remote controlled ships. We are going to have some fun." Dranke watched in amusement and then in horror as they ships moved ever faster to their target. They were actually a reverse battering ram, except that they were expendable.

The Jexx ships scattered under the furious onslaught as the five ships started to fire. Dranke controlled his fleet as they caught stragglers from the battering ram which started to waver. The five ships had gone straight through the Jexx fleet. Their shielding was incredibly resilient. Dranke spoke to Niket - the battle was joined. In a few minutes, the formation had lost all semblance of a military attack. Dogfights broke out and all one could see was the flash of a laser and the firing of engines.... blue flashes lit the space around them. Yanni was in hot pursuit of a bunch of Jexx spacecraft. She had to be called back. Her inexperience was showing, but she had incredible skills with handling the enhanced darkmatter starcraft. Tenne on the other hand was a pro at dogfights. She was a vet, and it showed. She picked off the enemy with consummate ease. Kisen's ship seemed almost to be in a daze. It was firing randomly. Dranke was watching everything very carefully. He needed to know when to step in.  He thanked Kell and Piteer for taking leadership of mini-squadrons, which allowed for greater flexibility in just these kind of situations. Piteer and Kell were corralling darkmatter starcraft which strayed too far in pursuit of the Jexx ships.

Niket had held the line. Jexx ships broke over the dogfight, looking to pick up holes in the defense, but Niket's fleet was positioned for just this maneuver. It was not a contest. The Jexx gave up and turned tail. Dranke gave the order to hold and not follow in their wake. It was most likely a trap. They needed to regroup. A quick check showed damage to two of the darkmatter starcraft. But it was nothing which could not be fixed in the repair bays. Jexx ships littered space all around. They had been willing to sacrifice lives. Dranke wondered. He felt a strange sense of loss. So much death, and so senseless - Why did the Jexx think it was worth sacrificing lives over? The other Captains echoed his feeling. He was shocked to realize he had telegraphed his feeling over the Jen subroutine.The battle was over. They headed back to spacecommand. Debriefing would be a lengthy business.

Fenie was there to greet them as they entered spacecommand. She looked solemn. She wordlessly hugged both Dranke and Niket and led them out. Taking lives was part of their job, though it had not been asked of them before. And it was never easy. The cadets were celebrating, beer being passed around as they congratulated each other. Fenie's eyes said everything. She kissed Niket tenderly. Dranke felt uncomfortable. He was clearly trespassing in their relationship. He turned away. "You don't have to be embarrassed Admiral. We are too close for that." Dranke turned and forced a grin "I know. And you know I know." The cadets continued celebrating, studiously avoiding the fact that lives had been lost.

General Selin walked in and shook their hands. He looked grim. "The Leader wants to see you three." He did not say why. They left the scene of revelry and back-slapping as they hurried behind the General. He led them into a relatively small room where the Leader was standing with his back to them. If you could call it standing. He was almost fully enhanced, and there was very little of him which was human anymore. Even his face seemed to battle itself into a smile. Dranke realized he was speaking "We believe that the Jexx have been able to subvert the Jen subroutine. Hnnet technicians are working overtime to overcome this security flaw, but we will have to do without the subroutine until they come up with a fix." He looked tired. Dranke realized the ramifications. The Jexx would be able to know almost everything about their plans. Hell, he was afraid they could read his mind. He shut off his subroutine and noticed that both Niket and Fenie were doing the same.

The Leader looked at them "The downside of shutting off the subroutine is we lose contact with Vaxe and the Hnnet. We are trying to manage FTL communications, but this is the only way we know of communicating across galaxies. This will set us back years" His shoulders slumped as he walked out of the door. No one dared move. General Selin cleared his throat "You know what is to be done. Dranke please prepare to leave for the Hnnesset. We must keep our channels to the Hnnet open." He stared at the hologram showing the spacecommand complex. The discussion was over. Niket, Dranke and Fenie snapped to attention and left to prepare for what was to come.





Pic Courtesy: Wikimedia commons : NASA/JPL-Caltech/2MASS/SSI/University of Wisconsin - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Polycyclic_Aromatic_Hydrocarbons_In_Space.jpg

War Games (Mission Impossible -30)

Unlike what one would have expected, the simulations were much more realistic than the mock-battles they had practiced on the ships. The simulators allowed for huge numbers of Jexx ships to be built into the simulation. . They practiced and repeated their maneuvers until they were perfect. Formations were much quicker, and Dranke could see that the pilots had now figured out where they needed to be at each part in their defensive measures. Gone were the jostling-for-position movements which had horrified the top brass just some time back. There was now a much lighter touch - each ship moved in concert with the others in a synchronized dance. Dranke felt better seeing that, he was proud of the effort his teams had put in.

Since all Dranke's Captains were now linked via the Jen subroutine, they continually chatted about where they were and how things were going. It now seemed impossible to work without the subroutine. It was also very cumbersome in hindsight. Dranke watched Niket's ships which were much slower, and knew that the subroutine had a lot of do with it. Her captains were not on the subroutine. Niket did not trust the Jen subroutine, even after she herself had got the enhancement. He empathized with her. He did not trust it fully too, but it was a crime not to use something which gave such a huge advantage. Niket was standing next to him watching the crews of her fleet work in tandem with Dranke's fleet "I know what you're thinking. You want me to enforce the subroutine on my captains." Dranke smiled "It's your choice. You know it helps us work almost like a single unit." Niket nodded grimly. It could be the difference between life and death. She knew what she had to do.

The 'night' was almost upon them as the ships lights dimmed in the corridors. Fenie kissed Niket hello and nodded to Dranke "Admirals, we have some interesting news. The Hnnet ships have a small upgrade this night in the docks. We are adding the Hnnet controllers for remote control operations. By tomorrow, we will be able to fly the ships right from these simulation consoles." She was sitting on a simulation console, using it almost like a game. It was a stand-alone console, so she could pull apart all the controllers and use them in ways not built into the consoles.  She practiced an impossible maneuver.... the ship flipping over itself as it dove straight for 'Earth' and then moving away at an acute angle. It was unreal. Dranke watched in interest. Niket was transfixed, watching Fenie as she used the gravitational well of the 'Moon' to slingshot away and then reversing the engines to spin around and arrive at a wide angle back to the Moon. She 'jumped' away suddenly as she approached the Moon. It was too close for comfort. Only the Hnnet technology allowed them to do such things. How much could they push this technology? It would be frightening to do this with real ships. Dranke couldn't help but ask "Fenie, what is the performance we can get with these ships?" Fenie grinned "We don't know yet. But with the remotes, we can try things which we couldn't with manned darkmatter starcraft. They decided to join in her game - this was serious buiness.

Later in mess, General Selin walked into the the crammed mess, dressed in a casual grey singlesuit. All the fresh recruits stood to attention as they saw him, drawing grins and amused shouts of derision from the older vets. The fresh-faced youngsters were not aware of shipside protocol. General Selin sat with Niket and Dranke and spoke to them "The games are going well, and the Hnnet have agreed to help us understand the darkmatter ship enhancements through the Jen subroutine. We need to know every single thing they can do." Niket nodded "We were just talking about the same thing with Fenie, and were putting the ships through their paces." General Selin told them of the plan.

Without warning, the klaxons started to blare. When they stopped the silence was deafening. It was only punctuated by the sound of feet running as the crews ran towards their ships. Dranke and Niket watched the swarms of Jexx ships rising from the false horizon created by the Earth. They were moving before the General whispered "Good luck." There was not a wasted moment. Darkmatter starcraft were leaving their docks like winged insects leaving their nest, detaching and speeding towards the Jexx fleet. Dranke watched from the bridge of the Raven, Sette and Dex taking over the piloting of the ship as they joined the formation with their fleet. Dranke knew they had been preparing for this, but it seemed to be too soon. He watched as Niket's ships joined formation.

There was no more time to wonder. The Jexx ships broke formation, they were in the thousands and they bore down on the human fleet.





Pic courtesy: Via Wikipedia NASA/Ames - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_in_science#mediaviewer/File:Kepler186f-ArtistConcept-20140417.jpg

Formation (Mission Impossible -29)

Dranke watched as his darkmatter starcraft wove their way into the desired formation. He preferred to have a quarter-moon formation since it allowed for a strong defensive position, but he worried about the edges. They were too vulnerable to attack from the sides, with too much time required to readjust. He spoke to Piteer on the subroutine "What do we do to ensure that we have flexibility and maneuverability in the event of an attack from the sides?" Piteer was connected instantly, and he roped in all the other captains as well "Yani and Kell have worked on similar simulations, I found that having a spherical system in three dimensions will work well, but it takes too many resources, and there is a lot of waste." Yani sounded apprehensive "Admiral, we could possibly have a layered approach, which allows for much better coverage." Kell was silent.

Dranke thought about it. "Can we try all the simulations please? Lets ask Niket to use her fleet as attackers, it will give us a better idea, even though we expect the Jexx to use thousands of attack vessels instead of the eleven we each have." Tenne piped up "Admiral, we can use something like a 3-3-5 formation. Similar to how sports used to have in the distant past." Dranke smiled. He understood the reference. Tenne with her vast experience in slower ships would have invaluable insights on positional strategies. He acknowledged her input, signaled assent and signed off.

Niket was involved in her own training and the communication from Dex came just as she had called off the exercises. She was happy to participate. "I would love to get into a training session with your fleet." Dex could hear Fenie just behind her, and felt a sense of loss. They scheduled the training and moved on to different scenarios. It was all about the strategic positioning at this stage. Simulations would handle the armed conflict later. Sette was hard at work on the training schedule. Each person needed to have a role, and she painstakingly constructed scenarios which would require each and every crew member of the fleet to participate. Dranke had a new science officer, an overeager cadet called Leste. She went by the book and was agonizingly correct about everything. She was speaking "Completed the systems check and the engine test, Admiral. I mean Captain. We are now ready to move." Dranke sighed and said not unkindly "Yes Leste; you don't need to tell me that, only if there is a breach of protocol." She almost cried. He had to restrain himself from comforting her. She was very new, but spacecommand had to pull from its pool of raw cadets. Part of it was youth helped in growing the cadre of the space corps and part of it was related to the kind of life one had to live - solitary, on edge and dedicated to one single focus. He would have to talk to Fenie about getting her quickly up the curve.

Dranke got onto the Jen subroutine and all the ship Captains were online at once. It was amazing. He outlined the new formation which Tenne had outlined and asked her to take over. He watched in growing admiration as the pieces began to fall in place. Ships moving in concert, with the ability to move quickly without hindrance. Niket's ships wouldn't stand a chance. He smiled to himself.

The exercises were curiously  manic. Dranke had put Tenne in charge and watched as she got the fleet into formation. In three dimensions, each of the 'waves' of ships were stacked up in different levels and the last wave was stacked upto into two mini waves. Each of the waves were alternately 'up' and 'down.' It made for an interesting design. Niket's ships were very disciplined. They came from all directions, not really following a traditional attack formation. Tenne's defensive position held up well, but it could not be used for a counter-attack. Dranke mulled over the schematics.

Piteer asked Dranke if the first wave could break up and counter-attack, but Niket had clearly planned for such scenarios. Her ships had been held back to lure any such outcome. Dranke asked them to hold their position. Since all the ammunition was actually nothing more than a simulation, the computers were keeping score. None of the fleets had been 'damaged.' It was a stalemate.

Niket got onto the comms and spoke to Dranke "We need to regroup and think of how to take this forward. I'm sure the Jexx will be much more aggressive." Dranke agreed "True. Maybe it's time to take this to the simulations. At least we can work in tandem to defend against real Jexx maneuvers.

This was working out to be more difficult than he had thought. At mealtime, in the spacecommand cadet mess, he met up with his old crew. Fenie grinned at him "Niket gave you a run for your money." He glared at her in mock anger "I knew you were behind that. She seemed to have planned for my every move!" It was good to be back together just to spend some time. They were family.

Pic courtesy: LoganArt on Pixabay - http://goo.gl/051tFL ( http://pixabay.com/en/space-nebula-futuristic-planet-580084/ )

Pandemonium (Mission Impossible - 28)

The satellite docking stations of spacecommand were prepared for the arrival of the Hnnet-enhanced darkmatter starcraft. The viewing gallery was full with cadets who would crew the two new fleets. Dranke and Niket watched in amusement as young science officers and new captains stared at the appearance of the twenty one ships which slid silently into the waiting docking apertures. Much like the Hnnet ships, they did not have an obvious docking arm. Instead, as they approached the docking station, they extruded an appendage which engaged seamlessly; the procedures more like a graceful dance than a mechanical maneuver.

Niket looked resplendent in her Admiral's uniform, and Dranke realized that he must be looking very much the same, and grinned self-consciously. Fenie was in a simple cadet's uniform, but the science director's star shone brightly on her shoulders. She was in her element, her hair thrown back severely as she looked carefully at the ships. Her cadre of science officers would take apart the Hnnet tech and put it together again. It would be back-breaking work, but once they were done, they would be able to repair their ships in their sleep. Spacecommand wanted some fail-safe devices in case the Hnnet tech failed, and Fenie would supervise the installation.

The new captains were the first on board the ships; Dranke knew exactly how each and every Captain must be feeling as they took over command for the very first time. Piteer and Kell were now Captains and they had their own crew to worry about. They led their teams aboard their spanking new darkmatter starcraft.

Dranke sighed and asked Sette and Dex to get their crew together as he walked towards the Raven. It was time for induction. Dex was now a seasoned crewmember, and he did not need direction. He grinned at the fresh new faces about him "Welcome aboard the Raven, It is the oldest ship we have in our fleet now, and the only one which has seen action. Sette is the new science officer and she will show you around the engine room and enhancements later. For now, come with me." He took them to the bridge as Dranke tuned out. He wanted to meet the new crew, but not while they took in the sights of the Raven. He knew each inch like the back of his hand. He decided to give the whole induction tour a miss.

Dranke looked up the captain's list on a hologram. Three new captains Yani, Tenne and Kisen caught his eye. They were all from spacecommand's hierarchy. Yani had simulated over 200 operations, but had never actually piloted a ship. She was one to watch. Tenne had been on an earlier version of spacecraft, which did not have a jump drive. She was a seasoned veteran, but her skills were probably outdated. Kisen was a fresh graduate from the academy. The information on him was sketchy. Why was he considered for the captain's position? It seemed strange. Dranke made a mental note. He would have to put the whole fleet through their paces. There was work to be done. The first thing on his agenda was the Hnnet Jen subroutine enhancement. He told them as much. The captains were too excited to even think about what the enhancement would entail. They all agreed eagerly. It would be some time before the enormity of being continually connected to their Admiral would become apparent to them. Dranke decided he would counsel them when the time came.

Fenie was nosing about the engine room and she smiled "You're lucky to still have Sette and Dex, Captain. I mean, Admiral." She grinned "I have to get used to calling you that, Admiral." It sounded strange to her. Dranke waved her on "It sounds strange to me as well." He joked "So I assume that you call Niket Admiral too?" Fenie was about to respond, when she saw the twinkle in Dranke's eye, and she blushed furiously. "I guess I will have to get used to that, Sir." She ducked her head as she exited the ship, moving to the next. Of all the personnel, she would be the only one who would have to manage every ship in both fleets. 

Without much ado, Dranke commanded Dex to ask his fleet to undock and start maneuvers. There was no time for ceremony. Training would begin right away. Dex grinned "Aye Admiral, initiating undocking." Dranke sighed. It was going to be a long time before he felt comfortable in the new position. He looked on as ten other ships peeled off from the satellite docks and assumed formation. They were a ragtag group without much organization. He instructed Dex and Sette to pass orders onto the new captains so that their ships started to assemble in something resembling a military formation. They responded with alacrity. But it was taking them time to get their orders out to their crews. Dranke watched the chaos in consternation.

Unbeknownst to him, General Selin was watching the fleet performing in a hologram in his quarters. His mouth curled into a smile as he watched the pandemonium. He had expected no less.

Pic courtesy: http://goo.gl/3m3fBb

Moving On... (Mission Impossible - 27)

Dranke piloted the darkmatter starcraft himself as he docked with spacecommand satellite docking station. It was now a very familiar procedure. He was surprised to see that there was no welcoming committee when the airlock opened. He had assumed that Lieutenant Nina Decee would have been there to receive them. Or at least a junior attendant. Instead Jen spoke in his head "Captain, the Leader has asked you to meet your old command, General Selin. Kell will debrief you." Kell was walking alongside Dranke and she nodded silently. It was surreal. They were connected by Hnnet tech to each other, albeit indirectly. And the communication was instantaneous and incredibly efficient. He grinned despite himself. Kell spoke to him in low tones, explaining the agenda as they strode through the cramped walkways.

Fenie and Niket walked behind them hand in hand, and the rest of the crew followed. The winding corridors were no longer a maze with Jen providing visual maps to their destination. General Selin was staring at a large map which rotated endlessly in the middle of the room. It was a hologram. Dranke walked straight through the map and shook hands with his commander "It's a pleasure to meet you again Sir." The General smiled "You are now a seasoned veteran young man. I last saw you as a kid playing at space games." His eyes twinkled in delight. Dex and Sette were craning their necks above the others. They were the only ones who had not seen the General before.

The General was introduced to each to them, and he took the time to talk to each of the crew before he asked them about their last encounter with the Jexx. He took it all in. Niket and her crew seemed to be his focus. Dranke was curious as to where this was all leading. He knew the General was spearheading Earth's defense against the Jexx, but he knew little else.

General Selin cleared his throat "We are now ready to create a full fleet of darkmatter starcraft. As the senior captains and crew, you are the vets and the core who will now be promoted to Admirals." Niket and Dranke looked at each other in surprise. This was not something they had expected. The General was still speaking "In order to defend Earth from future attacks, the Hennet will supply the ships which will be fitted in their yards in Hexe. As you now know, their tech is light years ahead of ours, and it will give us a huge advantage over the Jexx. As part of our upgrade, you will have ten ships each, and a science officer who will have to be trained in the Hnnet tech for running repairs, if so needed. Fenie as science officer will be promoted to science director and will report into spacecommand directly. Any questions?" There were many questions and the General answered them patiently. Twenty new captains would be blooded into the fleet, and they all needed to know what was expected of them.

Dranke felt a little sad. Most of his crew would be captains of their own ships. And while he would now be an Admiral, he realized that he would have to now work with a brand-new crew. Fenie and Piteer would get their own ships for sure. Only Dex and Sette would remain from his old crew. He would miss them all.

The General realized what he was going through and after the rest of the people had been dismissed, he took Dranke aside and spoke with him. "It's always like this Admiral. People move on. Your crew were a tightly-knit unit, but your skills are now needed to create a tightly-knit fleet. We have full confidence that you will make that jump successfully. Not to mention the worry that Jexx will attack spacecommand or Earth, and we need to be prepared with enough firepower to repel them. Their advantage is numbers, so we need to be able to ramp up very quickly." Dranke agreed "Of course Sir. I understand the logic perfectly." The General gave him a smile and said a few words of goodbye, not unkindly, and left quickly. It had been some time since someone had treated Dranke as a youngster, and he realized he missed it. Just a little. He turned abruptly and walked back to the anteroom where his crew were getting ready to head to their quarters.

The new ships were due to reach spacecommand in a couple of days and everyone was excited among the crew. There was a new technical detail which would be a core of science officers, who were even more excited, if that was possible. The quarters given to the two 'fleets' were humming with speculation and yells of cadets and vets alike rung though the night. Dranke was getting used to the idea that he would be separated from his crew shortly. He went up to Kell and asked her of her experiences of being detached from her old battalion. It was instructional to say the least. In the meantime Jen was constantly in his head. She was fast becoming a part of him. A constant companion.

Dranke looked forward to the new day which promised so much. He sat at his bed at looked out the viewing porthole. The dark sky beckoned. It called to him. He needed to be among the stars...





Pic courtesy: From Wikimedia commons - link http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/Eve_Online_-_Empyrean_Age_screenshot.jpg

Surprise attack ( Mission Impossible - 26)

Dranke had no idea they would actually reach Jexx before time; and it seemed that Piteer was taken by surprise as well. He thanked the stars that the shipboard computer gave them enough warning much before the last three jumps were being executed. Dranke needed to slow down the mad rush to the Jexx planet and he asked Fenie to stop jumping while they formulated a plan. They needed to approach the planet with some caution, especially since they suspected that the Jexx had taken Niket and her crew in custody.

Fenie and Piteer decided on a spiral approach from the far side where they would be shielded by the star around which the Jexx planet orbited. Dranke agreed, it would have been his choice as well. Except he asked them to jump to a space much closer to the star than the Jexx would expect. It would give them an element of surprise, especially that now Piteer had tested the ability of the darkmatter starcraft to jump really close to a gravity well. The Jexx would not expect a sudden appearance of the Raven so close to their sun.

It was a tense time as Piteer's navigational skills would be tested to the hilt, and Fenie circumvented a arc which would carry them as close to the Jexx planet as possible without detection. They would be in the shadow of a large moon orbiting another planet, but it would be sufficient for their purposes. It would have to be enough, though the plan was far from foolproof. Dranke signed off on the plan and they began the jump. Sette sent off a ping to spacecommand giving them a quick update, she missed Vaxe's calm assurance and experience. Dex realized what she was going through and nodded solemnly. He felt much like she did. But there was no time to linger and daydream. They were entering a hot zone!

The Jexx star filled the sky, and the filters were engaged automatically, cutting off all radiation. The ship catapulted using the star's immense gravity well and slung out streaking towards the safety of the moon which they had identified. Sweat beaded Piteer's forehead as he worked feverishly to ensure that their time exposed would be minimal. It was a short trip and they needed to lose all the kinetic energy as the engines reversed and matched the movement of the moon. It had been a perfect maneuver! Piteer grinned at Dranke and gave him the thumbs up. Dranke nodded, he had expected no less.

The sky was dark, but Piteer was scanning it for anything out of place. Within moments he sounded the alarm "They were waiting for us Captain, what are your orders? We have just a few minutes to react." Dranke seemed to take it in his stride. "We knew this might happen. Wait. And open channels to communicate. Sette send out a hail." They waited. Tiny pinpricks resolved into heavily armed Jexx craft. They were small and nimble and there were more than twenty which had been patrolling the moon. Dranke groaned inwardly. He asked for the comms and spoke to the Jexx commander directly "We are here to inquire into the missing darkmatter starcraft which is captained by Captain Niket commander. Can you tell us what has happened to it?" The Jexx commander seemed excited "You are not invited to Jexx. We are commencing fire, as we would to an intruder. Goodbye." All the Jexx ships opened fire on the Raven. It was too late to jump.

Fenie gasped as she watched the flashes of weaponry being discharged. But they waited for an inordinately long time. Nothing happened. Fenie stared at Dranke "Captain it's the Hnnet tech. It's actually warping the spacetime around the ship. It makes no sense from any science I've studied. But that's what has happened." Dranke nodded. Jen had already been whispering urgently in his head, updating him quickly with all the capabilities of the Hnnet tech. Apparently they could not be attacked with this warp shield. It was incredible! The Jexx hailed them "We apologize. We would like to board and study the tech which you have brought with you." Dranke replied "Of course, as soon as we see Niket and her crew commander." It was a stalemate, but Dranke knew that the Jexx would gamble everything for the kind of tech they had just seen. The commander said "They are safe. We are not monsters." Dranke was not fooled for a moment "Once they are on my ship, I will allow three of your people safe passage on my ship. But not before." The commander went offline.

In a few moments, a beacon went off - it was the crew of the other darkmatter starcraft! They were still on their ship, which seemed to be disabled. Piteer docked gently with the ship, which bore the marks of attack. Niket strode through "What took you guys so long?" Her smile did not conceal the worry and sleeplessness she had had to endure. The rest of the crew traipsed into the Raven after her. "They were holding us hostage. I think it had something to do with commander Yod, but they are more likely to shoot first and ask questions later." Dranke nodded "We had made a deal with them to board. But I'm wondering if I should uphold my end of the deal." The commander of the Jexx ships was also thinking that the humans might renege and his comms were getting shriller "We are now boarding you captain." Dranke answered calmly "Three of your delegates may visit us. Without any weapons or any other demands." The Jexx broke communications. Within seconds they were under attack again. The Jexx had expected to take them by force.

Since the decision had been made for them, Dranke shrugged and gave orders to return to spacecommand headquarters. The Jexx were helpless to stop the Raven from jumping away. None of their arsenal seemed to work on the enhanced darkmatter starcraft. They had lost Niket's darkmatter starcraft, but the tech it carried was something the Jexx would have had in any case. Niket's ship had not been enhanced by Hnnet tech. When they were jumping away from the Jexx homeworld, Dranke saw Niket and Fenie hugging tightly. He had suspected as much, and he was glad they were able to rescue Niket and her crew. It had been a fruitful trip, but it was time to go home.





Pic courtesy: http://silnae.deviantart.com/art/Area-space-359963719 -  http://goo.gl/eUn6dy (Area space by SilNae)

Heading Home (Mission Impossible -25 )

The Darkmatter starcraft was on its way back to Earth, winding it way through jumps as it avoided large gravity wells. They all missed Vaxe, who had decided to stay back and join the Hnnesset. But at least she was happy and keen to take up the challenge. Nevertheless, it felt strange. The Raven had been changed, and they all felt it. All the controls felt the same, but the ship seemed to 'know' commands even before they did. It was unnerving.

Dex and Sette spent all their time in the engine room. The new additions to the engine were strange and alien. Clearly the work of the Hnnet. In addition, parts often transformed into some other working part when needed. Simple buttons had the propensity to change into a touchpad. No one quite knew what to make of it. They went to see the captain. Dranke was still mulling over leaving Vaxe behind. He had the sneaking feeling that Kell was behind her whole sudden reveal, but he couldn't pin down where the thought had originated from. Dex cleared his throat "Captain, the engine has components which transform on their own. We are unable to get a fix on how to stop that, or even why it happens." Dranke looked at him in surprise "We must find out. Have you tried everything?" Jen interjected in his head "Ask Dex to look for the programming. Its a learning smart program. The transformation is just the outcome, not the effect." Dranke told Dex and Sette what Jen had told him. They nodded and marched off to the bridge. All the computing was done there.

The ship also jumped faster. Dranke could not explain it. He asked Jen. She told him to check their fuel. There was almost no utilization. Dranke did a double take. Jen giggled in his head "It's using any subatomic particles which get trapped by the engine during jumps and enhancing the energy patterns. Don't try to understand the physics. Your people will know about it soon enough." Dranke was flabbergasted. The Hnnet had tech which humans would have given an arm and a leg for. And now it was on his ship as well.

Piteer came down from the navigational deck and got himself a coffee analogue. "You know captain, there is another thing. We are now able to jump very near gravity wells. So maybe you don't need a navigator anymore." He gave a twisted smile at Dranke. Dranke raised his cup in response "We should all get to be superfluous. Though we still need you Piteer, so stop daydreaming of walking off my ship."

In all the banter they almost missed the message which had been received from spacecommand. Since Sette was sitting at Vaxe's desk, she noticed it first. It was for captain's eyes only. She pushed it to Dranke who looked at her with glazed eyes as the message played "Captain this is a matter of grave urgency. We suspect that Captain Niket and her crew has been taken by the Jexx. We have lost contact with the darkmatter starcraft some days back, and even the auto-ping has not confirmed its existence. We need you to investigate at the soonest and attempt a rescue if so required. As of now, we are not sure if the Jexx are involved, but all indications are that they had a hand to play in this new development. Since the time for you to revert to us will be a few weeks, we are only waiting for a ping. By order of the Leader." It was ominous.Dranke relayed orders quietly to Fenie who came to his side unbidden. She always knew when she would be needed. He looked at her searchingly "I know you and Niket are close, so please let me know if you have any problem.I need the crew to be on the ball." Fenie nodded "I'm okay. I'm keen to find out what happened to her." She rushed off without any further explanation.

The Raven had already changed its course and started jumping towards the Jexx homeworld before she could even look at the starmaps. She stared at the course. It had cut down time to almost half from what she would have estimated. The ship was anticipating their moves and working around any possible permutations she could have looked at. She stared some more before telling the captain what had happened.

At this rate, they would be at Jexx in under a week. She just hoped it would be in time to save her partner. If not, everyone would know in any case.



Pic courtesy: NASA / Wikimedia commons - http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/Pleiades_large.jpg

The Decision (Mission Impossible - 24)

Dranke had not slept well. It clearly showed as he stumbled into the shower room in the Hnnesset living quarters. Every human concern had been addressed. But there were no familiar trappings. He stared at the small cubicle in consternation. How was he supposed to turn on the shower settings? He touched the wall. it slowly transformed into a tub filled with an impossibly blue fluid. The liquid looked like water. He tested it with his finger. He decided to not overthink it and slid inside. The 'water' gushed around him gurgling and singing. It was extremely relaxing. He could lie here all day.

Breakfast was astonishing. Old Earth food had been laid out when he entered his room. He stared at it. This would be worth a fortune! The eggs and bacon disappeared rapidly. He wondered if he needed to keep his breakfast pills anymore. Jen said he should. That made him sit up. He had work to do!

When Dranke found his way back to Hexe, he found that the full crew had assembled around the Raven. They were staring. And soon he was too. Fenie pulled his sleeve without breaking her stare "Look at the booms." He did. They were working like fingers in hands - millions of fingers all built into the booms. They transformed into drivers or drills when needed. They stretched like silly putty when needed. They were all transfixed as they saw the extent of the technology the Hnnet had. In the meantime the darkmatter starcraft was being rapidly transformed itself. Gone were the human exhausts. In their place was a bank of slim tubes. The edges were being fitted with some material with seemed ethereal. Who was doing the refurbishment? Jen told him it was the upgrade module. The whole time it had been gathering performance data on the way to Hexe. It was a simple matter to decide on the course of action after that. It was all automated. No one was overseeing it. The module was self-sufficient. Dranke told Fenie and Piteer about the module and they marveled at it's programming.

The admiration was broken by Ed coming in and greeting them all "Hello humans. I must tell you the council is now ready to see you. You must come back to the Hnnesset immediately." Dranke noticed that his tone seemed a little strained. But then he was no expert on alien voice modulation. He nodded "Do all of us need to come?" "Dex and Sette can stay back since they are new, but the rest of the crew need to be there." They followed without a word back to the now familiar teleporters.

This time there was no time for pleasantries. Ed hurried them to the Hnnesset main dome-like structure. There were twenty-three aliens there. Only one looked like a Hnnet. The rest were clearly from different planets. Ed said "The council will speak through me. From now on, you must speak to them directly. I will not be able to respond for the duration of your meeting." Dranke said "I understand."

They were seated on a podium and Ed stood in front of them arms akimbo. He said "We are the council. It is our pleasure to meet with you captain Dranke and crew." Dranke was a little unsettled "It is our honor." Ed laughed "Yes, what you humans called honor. We meant no disrespect." Dranke smiled politely "Of course." Ed spoke rapidly "Have you decided to nominate one person for the Hnnesset? You understand that over a thousand delegates make up the Hnnesset?" Dranke nodded assent "Yes, I have decided. I cannot ask anyone else, so I will volunteer." Ed smiled "We knew you would make that choice. But we need you to coordinate with your spacecommand.Can you make another choice?" Dranke was taken aback "Respectfully, I cannot ask anyone to take such a position. My job description is very limited." Ed nodded "We expected that too. Based on our studying your crew, Vaxe may be interested. And don't worry, we will not force her." Dranke looked at Vaxe in surprise. She smiled at him and shrugged "I don't have a family. I like it here."

Dranke felt relief wash over him. Ed was still speaking "Vaxe is free to leave any time she wants. Its not binding." Ed said "It's a temporary position. We understand that it is now vital to Earth to be part of the Hnnesset since we are integrating too fast to allow for our bureaucracy to slow us down. The normal process will happen in parallel, but we understand the desperation of your Leader." Dranke did not know what to say "Thank you." The council retreated from Ed. The council members walked off unconcerned as if they were on a picnic. Ed was now himself "Sorry about that. I had to let you speak to the council directly. It's above my pay grade." He grinned "See I know all about human jokes."

After they were deposited back to their quarters, Dranke and Fenie spoke to Vaxe. She was happy to try her hand at something new. Dranke felt relieved. And then felt guilty for feeling relieved. Fenie looked at him "Its not about you captain, it's about what Vaxe wants." He nodded. It was time to head back to Hexe and their ship. As they all said goodbye to Vaxe, she said "I'm really happy here. And don't be stangers! You are my family." Their parting was bittersweet.

As they boarded the darkmatter starcraft, Dranke realized he would have time to revisit leaving Vaxe behind. Nothing was irreversible.




Pic courtesy: http://pixabay.com/en/artmatic-voyager-moon-starry-sky-115085/

The Council of Twenty Three (Mission Impossible -23)

Dranke had been up for two nights straight and when he finally got to bed, he had slept for a whole day. They were due to reach the Hnnesset in a short while. Dex and Sette had discovered that the darkmatter starcraft had a built-in upgrade module. What exactly it did was something which mystified them. It had only been installed very recently after they had returned with commander Yod to spacecommand.

Dex and Sette were back again at the engine room, which had the upgrade module. It resisted any attempts to scan it. Clearly it was tamper-proof. Dranke had finally resorted to checking with the Jen subroutine to figure out what the upgrade module was. Jen had been evasive. "It will all become clear when you reach the Hnnet location." At least they knew it was Hnnet tech. They had to be satisfied with that.

Dranke had a shower, the booth spun the air around him and vacuumed him clean as he stood in the shower booth. He slipped on the ship suit and found his way to the bridge. The crew was milling around, preparing for reaching their destination. The mysterious Hnnet planet was something which they had been waiting to see. There was a palpable excitement around the ship. In a short while, the jumps stopped and the ship began its slow approach to the planet. Except it wasn't a real planet. It was completely artificial. They all stared at the hologram in awe. The spaceport was bigger than Earth. It had protrusions which pointed out into space. Like a planet, it rotated, and it was in a star's gravity well, but it was clear that it was able to jump. It was incredible. The Jen subroutine connected to Dranke "The spaceport is called Hexe. It is completely transformable, like every Hnnet device." She went on to explain more about Hexe and it's rules. Dranke was unable to respond. This was overwhelming. Jen understood and asked Dranke to connect to the voice response. He did and indicated that Vaxe should take over. She quickly connected to the Hexe operator on the spaceport. "Welcome humans. You are scheduled for an upgrade. As Jen explained, the Raven is to link to the Shipyard which we will guide you to. Please switch off all propulsion, tractor beams will take over."

Vaxe replied as if this was something she had seen many time before "Of course. Engines off. Standing by for tractor beams." The ship was drawn towards one of the long appendages which slid out further until it encased the ship. Then they were inside a transparent tube, moving at impossible speeds around bends and rights angles. The ship came to rest on a cushion of something. Air? It was impossible to tell. The sensors showed structures all around. The Hnnet doorway opened directly into the Raven's main bridge. "Please disembark." They did. They were in a vast shipyard. Everwhere they looked, there were appendages which seemed to come out of nowhere and sped towards the ship. Most of them seemed to meld into the skin of the Raven. Dranke pushed it out of his mind. There was nothing to be done but watch. They didn't even notice when Ed and Jen walked up to them, looking human. Ed grinned "Welcome to Hexe. We will travel to the Hnnesset shortly. Do not worry, your ship upgrade has been cleared by your Leader." Dranke nodded. He was beginning to understand that events would take place, and he had to anticipate, plan and if all else failed, just go along with what was happening.

Piteer and Fenie were the most excited of the lot. The sights and sounds were something to experience, and their eyes widened as they saw the kind of tech the Hnnet employed. Within a few minutes, they were at a concourse. All shapes and sizes of creatures seemed to go past without a care. Some of them were aquatic. Others were wispy or tall, plantlike beings. There were a swarm of something which flew past. Some seemed robotic. It was all very strange and alien. They gawked as they walked past. The concourse led to a staging area. While pads levitated in the air.... Dranke looked at these curiously. The Jen subroutine told him they were teleporters. He looked at the real Jen to see if she was aware of the mental connection. She seemed to be unaware. But he couldn't be sure.

Ed told them to stand just below the pads..... the pads which floated right above their heads.They turned translucent the moment the crew stood under them. Kell seemed to know what was to happen next. There was a deep blue light which illuminated them.... seeming almost solid and then they were in the Hnnesset. It was a huge habitat. And it had important looking creatures in gaudy colors all over the place. They were in a plaza in the middle of a garden which had some strange looking organic material. It couldn't be called a garden really. And the plaza 'stones' seemed alive. It was strange and unsettling. The Jen subroutine told Dranke that the Hnnesset was a living organism. It was efficient beyond anything that could have been made. It was a living planet! The whole concept was staggering. And the heads of state from all the member planets lived on the Hnnesset. Ed was telling the crew the same thing. They walked on..... Ed was speaking "As explained to you all, the Hnnesset is ready to receive you. We are keen to have an ambassador from Earth have a seat on the membership, as a test. Captain you must nominate one person from your crew, but we would prefer if you were to accept the ambassadorship for Earth. It is a temporary seat until we can formalize it." He seemed almost apologetic.

Dranke was shaken out of his 'go with the flow' attitude. This was serious. Outwardly he said "Let me think about it." but inwardly, everything seemed so fluid, he felt discombobulated. He turned off the Jen subroutine. He would need some privacy to confer with his crew. Ed, in the meanwhile, continued talking without a pause about the twenty-three Hnnet who made up the council. They were individuals with an impressive list of achievements. Many of them had gone on suicide missions to save a species; and survived against all odds. Dranke tuned out; the tour was something he could review with Jen later, he had more pressing concerns right now. Fenie seemed to understand his mood, and she walked close to Dranke, reassuring him with her presence.

There was so much to talk about! Dranke looked at his crew - Fenie, Kell, Vaxe, Piteer, Dex and Sette. Who should he decide on? He did not know how he was to conceive a decision of this magnitude. He decided to wait until they were alone. Fenie looked at him knowingly and grinned. It would have to be his decision.




Pic courtesy: Wikimedia commons, (ESO) Artist's impression of Gliese 667 Cb with the Gliese 667 A/B binary in the background - http://goo.gl/wWTBLh

Awakening (Mission Impossible - 22)

Dranke woke with a start. He had had a disturbed sleep to begin with, but once he dozed off, he slept fitfully. He heard the insistent buzzer going off again - it was Kell pinging him "Good morning Kell, isn't it a bit early?" He could hear the smile in her voice "Captain, its time for your enhancement, should I tell you how to get there?" He grumbled and agreed, watching as the schematic hologram was transferred to the middle of the room. He hadn't even had coffee! He slid out of the covers and got a real coffee mug, the steaming brew smelt delicious.

Dranke got dressed and found his way to the enhancement center. The tech in charge was Gens, a young man with an intense look. He asked Dranke to sit in the high backed chair. Without warning, the chair elevated and a machine descended on Dranke. Blackness enveloped him. He had dreams. Dreams of people talking as he was helpless. Dreams of being captured by enemies. He lost consciousness after a while.

He was brought to by some more coffee. He could get used to the real stuff. The voice in his ear said "Hope that was not painful." He said not at all, and realized that there was no one there. He was speaking to Jen, the Hnnet. He grimaced. "Don't worry, you will get used to it. You don't have to speak or sub-vocalize, just think 'to' me, that should be enough." Dranke tried it "Are you Jen?" "In a way. I am a Jen subroutine. I am her, but I am more. She doesn't really have to talk to you, I do it for her." He wondered at the kind of tech that would do that "It's more complicated than I can account for. Lets just keep it as an intelligence for now, that should suffice." He nodded. "You don't have to nod Captain, I can see the thoughts you are sending me." Dranke thought about it "What about privacy?" "Privacy is a construct. If you want me offline, just ask." This was going to get complicated.

The rest of the crew were just beginning to troop into the general mess, back from their visit Earthside. They were corralled together by Nina who led them back to the crew quarters where their gear had been stowed. Fenie and Vaxe spent a long time going over the maintenance logs and removal of the Jexx weaponry. They would not need them again. Niket and her crew were to visit Jexx with an ambassador to maintain diplomatic ties and explain the situation with commander Yod. Fenie was glad it was not the crew of the Raven who were given this task.

Dranke met up with the crew, grins all around. They were to go to the Hnnet homebase this time! For once, it looked like they had been picked for the easier assignment. They had fun discussing what it would be like. Dranke interrupted their chatter. "We need to get going in the next hour or so. Get your gear together and lets get ready to depart. This is not a joyride, despite what you people think." His voice was solemn, but the twinkle in his eye made them laugh. They were in good spirits. Dranke walked towards his own quarters to pick up his gear. Jen spoke in his head "Yes Captain, the commander Yod has been given the rights of a defector citizen. He is still being debriefed." It was unsettling. He had just wondered if Yod was being treated well. Dranke asked the Jen subroutine to switch off. It/she felt silent. He wondered if he would ever be able to trust his own thoughts.

Kell was also getting her gear when Dranke pinged her "How do I ensure privacy from the Jen subroutine?" Kell picked her stuff up and caught up with him. She spoke in low tones "You can turn it off. Asking the subroutine works well, I doubt the Hnnet will spy on us. But to be sure, there is a hardware just behind your ear." She showed him. It was a switch. "That works perfectly. I use it often. But I like to remain connected, Jen is very useful." Dranke nodded. Inwardly he wondered.

The crew had all boarded the Raven and Piteer was already charting their path to the Hnnet system. Kell entered the final coordinates. The darkmatter starcraft decoupled from the satellite spacecommand module and slid into near space, it's engines firing as it drew towards it's first jump. The crew were full of stories from home, and Dranke listened to them patiently. He felt very alone. He turned on the Jen subroutine. She said "Welcome back Captain. We are happy you are coming here to the Hnnesset. Your Leader is very keen that you make a good impression. But you already have." He smiled at that.

It was going to be a long journey. Dex and Sette came up to him and showed him something very interesting about the Raven. The holograms of the schematics spun around lazily as they manipulated the modules. Dranke's eyes widened. He had not expected this. He plunged into the schematics. Jen helped as he worked. Dranke, Dex and Settte did not sleep that 'night.'




Pic courtesy: Pixabay publicdomainpictures http://goo.gl/IAC2VO

Events Unfold (Mission Impossible - 21)

The Raven slid into the docking bay with ease, spacecommand loomed in the background as the satellite docking station paired perfectly. Piteer was getting to be an excellent pilot. Dranke looked over at the airlock as it cycled out the air from the satellite station and Nina stepped through. She looked at him with a poker-face as she beckoned for Dranke and Kell to follow her. Dranke felt a sinking feeling, but he kept his growing panic under control as he followed Kell out meekly.

Nina took them through a number of corridors. Dranke estimated that they were now in the heart of spacecommand. He was right. They came upon a huge stateroom, ornately decorated for style rather than function. It was rare to see this kind of place in space, where form followed function, but he held his tongue. The Leader sat in a easy chair, looking comfortable. He was heavily modified, and all one could really see as human was his face. The rest was encased in a dull blue composite. "Welcome back Captain, you have done well. I wanted to update you on what has been happening, since we need you to know about our plans." Dranke bobbed his head, not sure whether he should bow or salute, he did both. The Leader smiled. "As you probably guessed, the voice in your head would have been Jen, the Hnnet who you met with Ed last time." His eyes twinkled with merriment. Dranke was astonished. This was something he had not expected. The Leader continued "The Hnnet have found that they can communicate with us, very much like how they communicate with each other. I thought it was telepathy, but it's not. We don't know how it works, but it does."

Dranke looked at Kell who grinned "Yes Sir, I have found that it has been very useful to communicate with the Hnnet, and they can communicate across galaxies." Drake did not like this at all - more secrets! Outwardly, he kept a calm and open stance. This was the Leader ; not some army bigwig. He waited patiently. The Leader said "We have all the information we wanted. Please don't blame Kell, she was under strict instructions to keep you in the dark." Dranke nodded "Yes Sir. I was unable to communicate back." The Leader did not look surprised "You need to be paired with the Hnnet to be able to speak to them that way. For me it was automatic, but Kell required a slight enhancement. You will need one too." Dranke nodded.

Kell said "Jen has confirmed to us that the space outpost was actually destroyed. It was a decoy. And it 'proved' to the Jexx that their weapons were useless against the Hnnet. The space outpost was replaced with another one which was under propulsion just before the attack." Dranke took it all in. Things were becoming clearer. He now knew that Kell was someone who would always have her loyalty with the Leader. But who could blame her? What would he have done in her place? His mind was racing ahead. "And the Jexx murder?" Kell nodded "We expected something like that. The Jexx trios are not a family unit. They are guards. The Hnnet suspected that to be the case. Commander Yod is a different phylum from his guards. They are actually different races of Jexx. Our mission was to get Yod to defect, which the Hnnet have been working on for a long time now; and to neutralize the Jexx. We have achieved both. Dranke could not help but feel a grudging admiration for Kell and the Leader. He also realized he was out of his depth.

The Leader dismissed them and Kell and Dranke were led to a large cadet mess where the rest of the crew were having real food after popping food supplements. There was cake and cookies and real coffee which was steaming hot. Dranke settled down with Fenie and Piteer who were already stuffing their faces. It had been too long since they had been to Earth proper, and Vaxe remarked that they were due for some time off. Kell nodded imperceptibly and Dranke announced a three day holiday. They more than deserved it. He wished he could knock off too, but he knew the business with commander Yod was something he could not afford to ignore.

With the rest of the crew departing by space capsule for the Earth proper, only Kell and Dranke remained at spacecommand surrounded by hundreds of cadets in spanking new uniforms. Dranke was amused at how young and fresh they looked. He also realized that before his posting, he must have looked very similar. He was now getting a bit of a beard, and he stroked it affectedly. Kell was speaking "We need you to complete the enhancements captain. Will tomorrow be okay to schedule them?" Dranke nodded "Yes. And I want to know everything that happens with commander Yod." "I will tell you all I can" Kell promised. He did not miss the teasing tone in her voice.

Nina joined them later and ran the captain through the enhancements and the process to be followed. The three of them sat in the mess until they had to retire to their rooms. It had been an eventful trip. They all needed their downtime. There was much to be done, but they had time, and they still had not received further orders... Dranke lay in his bunk thinking of recent events. He did not last very long, and was asleep before he knew it. He dreamt of enhancements and secrets.




Pic courtesy:Serendigity (Space City) from Pixabay http://goo.gl/773QQY

Thwarted (Mission Impossible - 20)

It was a strange situation on board the Raven. After the initial jumps, they got used to letting the three Jexx on the bridge take control. It was almost like being passengers. Dranke noticed a lot more of coffee analogues on the bridge and he smiled at the way people were taking it easy. Kell, Fenie and Piteer concentrated on the maintenance work, and Vaxe and Sette and Dex kept busy in the engine room. For Dranke, it was a time for reflection and waiting. He was taken aback from his reverie when he suddenly heard the Jexx speaking to him "Captain we are almost at the Hnnet system. Prepare for combat." Dranke pinged the rest of the crew to get strapped in. There was little to do other than to man the weapons.

The crew came together immediately. Almost everyone was either on the bridge or strapped in close on a console. It seemed strange to be entering into battle for real. And then the alarms went. The holograms showed the Jexx ships close into the Hnnet base they had targeted. Since they had the cloaking tech, they were not visible to the electromagnetic spectrum. Dranke had a sinking feeling. Commander Yod said something in Jexx and spoke to the humans "We are now commencing fire at the following coordinates..... counting down." The coordinates flashed in Jexx and English. Dranke, Fenie and Vaxe were on weapons. They all fired. There was a lot of action and voices in the Jexx language. Dranke looked at Kell, who shrugged.

In a few more moments the fleet regrouped. The Hnnet had not fired back. Where earlier there had been a gigantic space base, there was nothing. The Jexx cheered. It was premature.

As Dranke looked in shock at where the Hnnet base had been, he noticed that they had lost control over the darkmatter starcraft. He asked commander Yod "Are you sure you were able to destroy the base?" Commander Yod spoke in his rolling cadence "Of course. But the enemy has frozen our engines." As if to prove the commander wrong, the space base swam into view. Communications were in both English and Jexx "Do not try that again. As you can see, your weapons are useless against us." Dranke stared. This tech was way beyond anything he could imagine. The Jexx were powerless!

The Hnnet acted as if they had no A priori knowledge of the attack. They were obviously playing some kind of deep game. Commander Yod spoke to his attack force and they broke away. He turned to Dranke "We three will come to Earth with you. The rest of my people will return home, but we need to have a council of war. The Hnnet need to be taught a lesson." It did not require knowledge of Jexx body language to know the commander was seething. He handed over command back to Dranke, who gratefully accepted the responsibility and plotted a route back to Earth. Piteer checked the route map briefly, made a few adjustments to reducte the number of jumps, and within seconds, they started to jump. The whole misadventure had been a waste of time. Dranke wondered why the Hnnet would let this charade play out.

Dranke had seen the Jexx fleet turn back. It had been quite a lesson for them. Some part of him sympathized with the Jexx and their powerlessness. He had felt the same way the first time the Hnnet had immobilized the Raven.

Fenie was fascinated with the firing system. It was something new, and it kept her busy. Kell and Piteer joined her as she studied it's schematic and working. Ship life was almost normal. The Jexx had retired to their cabin, which the three of them shared. Except that the alarm which went off stridently. It was the lifeforce detection unit and Fenie scrabbled to check what it was all about. There was a commotion and the commander Yod stood in the doorway of the main cabins. Dranke rushed to see if the Jexx needed help. The companion Jexx were lying in a pool of the liquid they needed to stay alive. The transparent Jexx were very still. Commander Yod said "I need to end their lives, so that I could defect. There was no other way." Dranke was shocked. He did not know how exactly to react to this. Should he treat Yod as a defector or a criminal. Knowing that the alien species may not have the same rules at humans, he looked at Kell. All the crew had now gathered and were watching agog. Dranke said "Crew please man your stations. Only Kell and Fenie to stay." The crowd dispersed.

Kell whispered "We should not interfere in Jexx politics. This is unprecedented. It would have ramifications on Earth." Dranke nodded. "Commander Yod, you are requested to stay in your cabin. We will clear the bodies. You are not to leave your room please, until we reach spacecommand." Yod said in the curious way of the Jexx "Of course Captain. I would expect no less."

Dranke had posted two sentries outside the commander's door. He composed a detailed report to spacecommand "We are on our way to Earth. The following is the factual events that have unfolded after the commander Yod was thwarted from his attack on the Hnnet space base....." The message was a long one. It would reach spacecommand just a few Earth days before they would reach Earth. The mood was somber.

Dranke was conflicted. He spent a lot of time mulling over the murder. What he did not expect was the voice in his head. The voice asked him to release the Jexx commander. Dranke tried to think back a question to the voice. It was silent in response. He tried again. Nothing. The voice told him not to worry, it was as per plan. He continued to try and ask it questions. The voice fell silent. Dranke was even more unsettled. He looked around, but no one had noticed anything. Fenie gave him a smile and Kell nodded when he caught her eye. They had no clue. He felt very alone.





Pic courtesy : Space landscape from Metalyman at deviantart - http://metalyman.deviantart.com (http://goo.gl/KGDUHP)

Attack formation (Mission Impossible - 19)

The Jexx planet was directly ahead and Dranke watched the docking of the Raven, that Piteer achieved with ease and finesse. This time they were docking with the military space installation directly. Instructions from the Jexx had been quite specific and clear. There was no mistaking the rolling Jexx intonation as they asked the humans to dock their darkmatter starcraft.

Dranke looked at Kell and asked her to take the lead as he followed and led the rest of the crew out of the ship. The now familiar Jexx barrier showed three Jexx as expected. It was Commander Yod. He made the greeting signal which the crew all mimicked. They were expected to follow protocol after all. Yod turned in his liquid, almost transparent now as he spoke "We see you have incorporated our weapons modules on your ship. That is very good. We would like to inspect these." Kell replied "Of course, we would be happy to give you a tour." Yod turned again in the liquid "We are preparing for an attack on the Hnnet. Your ship will be the command vehicle. I will be honored to command our fleet from the Raven." "Of course. As you deem fit commander."

Dranke was too stunned to say anything. And so were the rest of the crew. Luckily Kell seemed to be able to roll with the punches, and she did not miss a beat in the conversation. Fortunately, the Jexx could not read human body language. Or they might have realized that the humans all had shocked expressions. Dranke decided to diffuse the situation "It will be our honor commander." He said it in a calming tone, meant only for his crew. The Jexx misunderstood it as a welcome "You are gracious Captain." Dranke unconciously nodded, though it would mean little to the Jexx. They were to prepare for the 'attack' as soon as possible. The Jexx had given them just enough time to prepare the Raven and the weaponry. Dranke used the same teams they had used for setting up the modules. They would need to test fire everything. Fenie and Piteer were handed a testing schedule to begin.

Dranke in the meantime, took some time off. The quietest place was the bridge of the darkmatter starcraft, and Dranke in his single focus sat on one of the navigator's chairs. He contemplated this new development which he did not know what to make of. He pinged Kell, and waited for her, as he thought about making the Raven a military vehicle. Even though they were technically 'military', human wars had not been enacted in space, since there had been moratoriums of wars in space right from the days of the Political Wars which had been played out as billions had died in an effort to survive the ravages of the fallout of the war. Humankind had not seen any wars other than minor armed conflicts; and even that ended with the world government under the Leader. Most spaceships did not even have a defensive weapon.

Kell settled down comfortably, sitting opposite Dranke in another navigator's chair "I had expected something like this, but I did not think that they would commandeer our ship." Dranke nodded "I need you to be my advisor Kell. I am not well-versed in politics and at best I can resolve conflicts. But you are the Leader's voice. Tell me what I should be doing now." Kell looked at him in admiration "Captain you are brutally honest. I appreciate your candor." Dranke waved off the compliment "I need to be able to trust you." Kell nodded without answering directly "We should follow the lead of the Jexx. That is the only way we can get to know more about them, and earn their trust. They are treating us as equals. Which is more than they have done for any other species they have come in contact with." "And what happens if they ask us to fire on the Hnnet?" Kell said seriously "The Hnnet can take care of themselves. They are complicit in this intrigue with the Leader. If there are casualties, they are cognizant of the possibility. Our partnership with the Jexx is very important to them. I really do not know why."

Dranke thought of the implications. He had asked Kell for her advice. And her reasoning seemed to be logically sound. He decided to go with it. "Thanks Kell, this helps a lot. I've been very conflicted about this whole scenario, but I guess the Leader knows what he's doing." Kell smiled "You're doing great Captain. The top brass at spacecommand speak very highly of you. I can see why. You are not alone. There are many people working behind the scenes to make things happen." Dranke listened with half his attention. The other part of him was watching the Jexx trio walk into the ship in their curious human-shaped spacesuits. He stood up and Kell followed his lead. "Welcome commander Yod." Yod and his two companions went straight to the bridge. They attached a translator for the hologram and alien figures scrolled down. Dranke watched patiently. Yod turned to him "It looks to be in order. I am inputting our coordinates for the Hnnet system. Prepare the crew for departure."

Dranke pinged the crew with instructions and they trooped in one at a time, lugging their kit with them as they bunked down for the trip. The hologram showed Jexx ships taking off from the planet surface. There were thousands of them. They looked like little pinpricks as they took off from the planet, their engines leaving telltale heat signatures as they overcame the planet's gravity well and reached cruising speed rapidly in formation. They were ready and waiting for the commander's signal. The Raven closed its airlocks and pushed off from the military space installation. The engines fired briefly as they easily matched the much smaller Jexx craft in their formation. Commander Yod gave the signal, and they jumped.

The tracking hologram showed them where their target was. Fenie and Piteer watched it carefully, mentally comparing it to the hologram they were mapping for their own travels.




Pic courtesy: By NASA [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons (http://goo.gl/Vx5JxJ)

En route (Mission Impossible - 18)

The Raven jumped rapidly in the inky darkness between galactic disks. It was shocking how dark it was between galaxies, but one got used to it after a few times. Kell was new at starcraft travel, and she still wondered at the sudden transition from the light of a galactic center to the utter darkness between galaxies. The rest of the crew ignored what was happening in the viewscreens as they traversed the darkness to intersect yet another galactic disk, which spun around with bright jewels of stars in it's center.

The Leader had given them a lot to think about. Dranke pondered his next move. It was hard to get through to the Jexx without Kell's help and he needed her to be on his side. It would not do to have conflicting interests at work, especially when dealing with an alien species, who had three observers at any point of time to pick up on every nuance. Fenie and Piteer were working on creating a starmap of their travels so far. It had tracer lines spanning six galaxies and four satellite galaxies. The hologram rotated and the color coding made it look incredibly complex. Dex pinged Kell for her rotation on the maintenance crew, and she got her toolkit together as she headed off.

The Jexx planet was still some time away, and they had to make sure the Raven was ready for whatever they encountered. The darkmatter starcraft had some modifications which had been suggested by spacecommand, based on Jexx technology, and the crew was working round the clock to see that they had incorporated the weaponry which was required. It was all modular, but some of the tech required conversion, which was the tricky part. Sette and Dex were tasked with the conversion and Vaxe spent long hours trying to see that there were no issues with the modular linkages before they tested them.

Since all the work was inside the ship, it was relatively easy to carry out the testing. Once they needed to attach anything on the outside, they would have to shut down the engines and stop the jumps until they were done. It needed to go like clockwork and Dranke himself shut down the engines from time to time to recalibrate the settings. There was not going to be any time for them to experiment in space.

Since Niket's darkmatter starcraft needed some on-site maintenance, she was to follow once her ship had been to the spacecommand dock. Dranke wondered if it would have been easier to just carry out the modifications at the dock, rather than on the go. He dismissed the thought. They had already decided on a course of action. Fenie stood near one of the laser sights which had been dismantled at one corner of the deck. "Captain, we are almost ready with the testing of the weapons, at your order, we will need to mount the external modules for further testing." Dranke nodded "Your call Fenie. I'm keen to do the mounting before we reach Jexx; I wouldn't like to have them see us testing the equipment, for what it's worth." He sipped on his coffee analogue contemplatively as Fenie marshaled the crew together for a briefing on her plan of action. Dranke, Fenie, Piteer and Vaxe had already spent time together debating the sighting of the weapons and their efficacy. Now it was time to blueprint it, and obligingly Piteer pulled up the schematic of the ship with the enhancements being shown in red against the blue outline. It looked impressive.

The maintenance crews were disbanded temporarily and re-purposed into three crews who would handle the enhancements. Almost everyone except for Dranke had been pressed into the work crews. Their training and simulation was the next step. Working in space would be hard without precise plans and instructions. It would require clockwork accuracy. A large space which was multipurpose and had served as the dining quarters had been taken over by the work crews and the pandemonium which ensued as everyone tried to do everything at once made Dranke smile.

After three Earth days on the simulations, the crews were working much better, testing was now at an advanced stage and the modules were ready to be fitted on the outer 'skin' of the darkmatter starcraft. Piteer shut down the engines and the ship coasted on its existing momentum. He reversed the engines until they came to a complete halt. The crews kitted up in their spacesuits and lined up near the airlocks as they cycled out the air for the exercise. It was time to go.

Vaxe was the first out with Fenie and Piteer following. The rest of the crew rapidly exited the airlock, strapped themselves to the outer skin using the handholds provided, and soon there were flashes of lasers as the crews started the fitting. It would involve two large laser weapons, one huge projectile weapon and smaller sighting and automatic modules which took some time to configure. Dranke watched the proceedings from the bridge. He was alone inside the Raven, and it felt strange to be the only one inside.The work would take roughly twelve Earth hours. And then it would be time to make the remaining jumps to keep the appointment with the Jexx. The holograms showed Fenie twisting in above the 'surface' of the ship, while staying anchored to it. The laser beam cutter glowed brightly as she moved, focusing the beam tightly on the target. Dex spun over her as he moved a large mounting tied to his back over to the hull. He grabbed the work-line as Sette pulled him over to the handholds. It was good to sit here and watch the action. Dranke was thankful for the solitude as he reviewed the orders he had received from Nina.

 Pic courtesy: Jeff Keyzer from San Francisco - Beams in Fog + Car Windshield http://goo.gl/IRm1CM

Wheels within wheels (Mission Impossible - 17)

For once, Dranke and Niket and their crews were not the center of attention during a debriefing. Ed led them down the spacecommand satellite corridor until they came to a linked space station. It wasn't of any design they had seen before. Ed walked right at the wall and it moved apart, creating a 'door' when he approached. He waited for the darkmatter starcraft crews to follow him in. They did.

The space station was obviously not of any human design, and Dranke guessed that it was a Hnnet space station. The others were almost running to keep up. At the end of a linked corridor, came a large opening. They trooped in and there were gasps. General Selin, the Leader and various luminaries were seated in a semi-circular configuration. In the well was another Hnnet. Dranke thought she looked just like Fenie. No. She looked exactly like Fenie. Ed walked quickly to the well and stood by her side, indicating that the crews of the ships should take the seats on the other side. He said "Welcome captains Dranke and Niket, as well as your crews. We have spent a lot of time behind the scenes, and I thought it is about time we meet. We are already talking with your Leader, and since you have trained with the Jexx, we want your inputs." The smile with Ed had on his face all the times previously, was gone. He had a somber expression. Dranke shook off the analysis. He was not human, it was all a simulation.

Fenie looked at the Leader in awe. He was clearly someone of import. You could tell. He was almost fully augmented except for his face. The rest was sheathed in various augmentations. He was speaking "I had asked Nina Decee to mislead you folk, and for that I am sorry. But it was necessary to understand exactly what tech the Jexx have and what they are planning. In some ways, this is our first foray into interstellar intrigue." He smiled before continuing "And I have the Hnnet to blame for dragging us right into the middle of it." Ed acknowledged the Leader with a little bob of his head. He introduced the other Hnnet, asking people to call her 'Jen.' "We do not fear the Jexx. They are just not willing to comply with the rules of the Hnnesset. We are afraid they are a danger to themselves as well as others. It was important to understand their motivations and capabilities, but they really have nothing which would concern us."

Dranke listened intently. He realized that the Leader had been playing both sides with consummate ease. He was impressed. Ed continued "The Jexx have been tracking us for some time now, but until you discovered us, we have been unable to visit their facility. Your report has been most helpful to us. We would request you to please continue to play along. Don't worry, you cannot hurt us; and we will ensure that you won't hurt yourselves."

Kell whispered to Dranke "See why I was so evasive? You had to be earnest." Dranke shot her a look and listened as the Leader spoke "The Hnnet have provided us medical and biological tech which is light years ahead of anything we have. But they are right, we need to move to a better societal model before they can consider us for the Hnnesset. The report talks about the Jexx family unit as well as the fact that you were not allowed to go to the surface of the planet. We would like to gather more information about this species, it may be of use to us."

The floor was thrown open to questions and though Dranke and Niket were very keen to ask some questions themselves, they held back considering protocol. General Selin stepped in "I know you people have been at the very edge of diplomacy with alien species. That has to change. Which is why we have Kell and Tesst to stand in as 'observers' on your ships. The distances involved has made it mandatory for us to give the captains a free hand, but considering that the two observers are direct reports to the Leader himself, they stand in as his ambassadors." Nina asked "What is our role now? As spacecommand adjusts to the new reality, the focus will need to change." The General replied "Nothing has to change. Spacecommand continues to be an exploratory body. We will continue to play the role required of us with the Jexx, but frankly, their attempts to attack the Hnnet have never really borne fruit."

The meeting dispersed rapidly, and Nina led the crews back to their ships. She gave them their new orders - they were to try and gain access to the Jexx planet and collect whatever intelligence they could on the Jexx. Other than that, they would have to join the Jexx effort, but should stop short of firing on any alien species. They were all just letting the information sink in.

Fenie and Piteer were already prepping the Raven for its flight, the blue tracer-like lines showing their next jumps. Dranke was too lost in his thoughts to notice as the Raven slid from the spacecommand satellite's moorings and accelerated rapidly for the first jump...



Pic courtesy:Sci-Fi City Digital Sketch Wallpaper HD on Deviantart by lilgamerboy14 (http://goo.gl/9Tcaoz)

Questions (Mission Impossible -16)

Dranke stretched as he limbered up in his cabin while he reviewed what had transpired over the stay at the Jexx space station. His team had spent over two Earth months training in the Jexx facility, but they had not been allowed to visit the planet surface. Apparently the atmosphere was toxic to humans. He had tried explaining that they had spacesuits to take care of the toxicity, but the Jexx commander Yod and his two attendant Jexx had been adamant. Even Kell had been unable to prevail on them to relent.

In the end, the darkmatter starcraft captain and Fenie had satisfied themselves by asking questions. They had learned a lot from their interaction with their trainers. Since the Jexx always appeared in threes, the first question had been why. They had explained that their family unit was three. They actually appeared to be symbiotes. Fenie had also learned that the Jexx planet was green due to an aurora over the planet, and not due to vegetation as they had imagined earlier. All plants on Jexx were black. They had to be, since Jexx was quite far from its attendant star, and the plants needed to be better solar collectors to be able to harness the faint light of the star. The Jexx themselves were a high tech race, but they have very little biodiversity, unlike Earth. The atmosphere was largely a combination of various gases, but with only trace Oxygen. It was all logged into their report which was getting to be quite detailed.

Niket had hitched a ride on the Raven and Piteer had been promoted as acting captain on his darkmatter starcraft as both ships jumped their way back home to Earth. Niket was seated at the main bridge and she stood at a console sipping a coffee.analogue. Fenie was still full of questions "So what did the Jexx offer the Leader for him to agree to align with them?" Niket said thoughtfully "I think it had to do with trading, and of course military tech. But the details are unclear. It does seem like a rush to shake hands though. Something like this would take old Earth countries years to sign." Fenie persisted "Their tech is not much ahead of ours. So what gives?" "No idea Fen. I'm just a lowly cadet remember?" her eyes twinkled at Fenie's earnest questioning. Fenie glared at her "Sure, play the dumb card. I'm actually asking." Niket grinned "My guess is they are not willing to commit to anything unless they have something concrete on what the Jexx offered them, but there were whispers about their cloaking tech."

Dranke in the meantime got to questioning Kell "Does the Leader actually want us to join forces with the Jexx?" Kell shrugged "Way above my paygrade captain. I'm just following orders just as you are" There was so much to find out. Dranke wanted to know it all before they reached Earth. Kell said "I am just here to observe. I would like to be a useful crewmember. I'm happy to assist in the maintenance crew." Dranke nodded "Of course, we could always use an extra hand. There is a lot of work being done in rotation on the hull, the scrubbers and the engines. Sette and Dex are managing the maintenance crews, but you can always join in." He realized that Kell had deftly deflected his question.

The conversation led to the conflict of the Jexx with the Hnnet. Kell tried to answer it as truthfully as she could "They had a problem since the Hnnet refused them membership to the Hnnesset. The Jexx took that as an insult and I fear our Leader may be thinking along the same lines." "But is that a reason for conflict?" Kell looked at him. She seemed to be struggling with answering the question "I actually agree with you captain. We should not align with the Jexx, especially if it means taking on the Hnnet, but frankly spacecommand has no say in the matter." Dranke had read her correctly. She could be an ally. He grinned "Sorry for the inquisition. We just hadn't been briefed on the whole situation." He changed the subject abruptly and asked about Kell's family.They were due to arrive at spacecommand in just a few Earth hours, and Dranke had to find a way to try and get fully up the curve on what was happening. He kept at it.

Fenie had better luck with Niket. Niket was quite disillusioned with the war games and she made no bones about it "Its not our war, I don't know why one would have us fight a clearly superior species in any case. I always assumed a space cadet posting would involve policing near Earth space." Fenie understood exactly what she was saying. "At least the combat training gave us some idea of the Jexx military capability."

As it was, they had exited the jump sequence and the blue spidery web-like jump route displayed by the hologram had ended at their last jump point which was marked in yellow. They were coasting towards spacecommand just as Dranke decided it was worthless to ask Kell any more questions. She looked amused at his efforts, and that only served to frustrate him more.

Earth swam into view, and the crew looked past at the spacecommand satellite which 'rose' over the horizon. It was time to stretch their legs. They waited impatiently as the airlock cycled out and then sprang open. Docking was quick and Dranke strode through. He started!

Dranke was greeted by Ed who had a broad grin on his face, looking more human than ever. Ed shook hands with him and said 'follow me." Dranke felt a conflicting mix of emotions - a rush of relief, curiosity and surprise all at once. He followed the Hnnet meekly, and Fenie Kell, Niket, Sette, Dex and Vaxe trooped into the spacecommand satellite after him.



Pic courtesy: Pixabay / Artist Roark, no attribution required.

Combat Training (Mission Impossible -15)

For once, Dranke held back as Kell led the rest of the crew out of the Raven. The crew walked out into the open hangar space and the main concourse, both of which were oxygenated for Humans. The Jexx had clearly done their homework. Dranke grudgingly acknowledged their attention to detail. The Jexx were separated  by a clear glass division from the oxygenated air - their atmosphere was different. Seeing their true form was a shock. They looked like some kind of marine creature, but the fact that they were transparent made it impossible to clearly see their shape - it seemed to ebb and flow and they got glimpses of tentacles, but Dranke could not be sure. They were clearly at home in the liquid they were inhabiting.

Kell had clearly seen this all before as she spoke to them without breaking stride "Commander Yod, as promised, we are here for your training." She did the introductions. Yod spoke with this two attendant Jexx, but this time the rolling intonation was better. They had installed a translator "We are ready to begin training. Niket and his team will meet up with your team in four Earth hours, as they are out on simulations. A quadrant of the military station has been made Human-friendly, so you should be comfortable there. The trainers will use Human-like suits as enter your quadrant, but please do not leave your quadrant; the liquid here is poisonous to Humans.

Kell made a sign with her hands, clasping them together in front of her. The commander Yod and his two attendant Jexx made the same signal with their appendages. It was a sign the meeting was over. Kell grinned at Dranke "Lets go captain, no time to gawk." She showed them the way to their quarters.

Dranke had a million questions. He managed to get some time to grill Kell and she looked more than willing to answer him "How did we meet up with the Jexx?" Kell grinned "They were tracking the Hnnet, and saw that you were tracking them as well. It was only a question of connecting the dots."

"How did we not detect them?" "Their spacecraft has cloaking from all EM and gravitational waves. It can be detected, but not with ease." Fenie chimed in "Why are they at war with the Hnnet?" "Frankly the details are unclear, but they do not want to follow the Hnnet rules. Our Leader agrees, it should be based on vote." Dranke said "It could be fatal choosing sides without knowing enough. The Hennet is so advanced, it will be impossible to get their tech if we go to war with a far superior species." Kell grimaced "That's the argument that spacecommand made with the Leader. But we have not made any headway as yet. I guess he is looking at the shorter term rather than what the Hnnet promises." After a lot of back and forth, they retired for some rest and recuperation; neither was satisfied with the answers provided, but there was nothing which made them feel better. There was always the nagging feeling that there was something they were not being told.

The alarm buzzing got them to sudden wakefulness. Each of them were given an exosuit to wear, with built-in weapons and enhancements. Earth had something similar, but these were made to meld with the wearer. You couldn't feel where your skin ended and the suit began. A Jexx walked into the combat zone, his two attendent Jexx were kitted just like he was - similar suits to them, but clearly far more advanced. Their training began with simple motor function tests and then progressed rapidly to combat simulations. Everything was customized to human bodies. It was eerie. Niket walked in as they were taking a break. She came in and grinned at the sweating cadets "Hey there newbies. Good to see you bunch. We were starting to think it was just us here on this spinning wheel." Dranke shook hands with the darkmatter starcraft captain "Good to see you too. So what do you think of this setup?" Niket gave a furtive glance "All good, its been quite an experience." Her eyes did not smile as she completed her sentence. Warning bells were going off in Dranke's head. He held his tongue.

Fenie hugged Niket in greeting. They were from the same cadet pod. They reminisced animatedly as the rest of the crew went back to the simulators. The simulators showed very familiar Hnnet spacecraft, rippling in space. It was fascinating. Fenie was beginning to enjoy the simulations, purely from a point of academic interest. It surprised her a little, since she was not not the kind of person who would be itching for combat.

After three days at the simulator, the two crews were pitted against each other. It was a familiar game, which they had come to expect. Scenario after scenario was thrown at them - this time it was three fleets of Hnnet spacecraft. Both the crews were in darkmatter starcraft, but they had their own Hnnet fleet to control. Each of the darkmatter starcraft were modified by the Jexx. They had railguns and laserguns which belched the most horrifying death and destruction in the simulation. Vaxe's lasergun left a deep mark on an asteroid as she fired while on the move. It was all very realistic. Kell watched them closely, as she recognized how they were working together again. It reminded her of the motif which she had noticed while on the bridge of the Raven.

The virtual war began.



Pic courtesy: Born Ready Games - http://strikesuitzero.com/ [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons