Read Space Trader (Galactic Axia Adventure) Online

Authors: Jim Laughter

Tags: #An ancient mystery, #and an intrepid trader, #missing planets

Space Trader (Galactic Axia Adventure) (30 page)

“And as for being up early this morning, that depends on which morning on which planet you’re talking about,” Ert said. The professor ignored the trap.

“You still haven’t explained what you’ve been up to lately,” the professor remarked. “I know it has something to do with your little friends, but that’s all you’ve actually let me in on. However, I do note a hint of happiness, so I suspect whatever enterprise you’re involved in came out successfully.”

“In that you are correct,” remarked the Horicon computer happily. “A number of situations have been resolved to my satisfaction.”

“Care to tell me about them?” the professor asked. “Indulge an old man for once. It’ll help the morning go faster.”

“Well for one, I became curious about a missing planet,” Ert began. “My old records showed a planet called Vogel that your charts don’t show.”

“Where did it go?” the professor asked. “Was it destroyed or something?”

“It didn’t go anywhere. Instead, they hid it behind a masking system they call the Optiveil.”

“How?” the professor asked incredulously.

“They used a form of molecular refraction to hide it from visual and sensor detection,” Ert said. “A most ingenious system, if I may say so!”

“That’s amazing!”

“And the technology has been adapted to a ship now,” Ert continued. “In fact, it is my new friend that has it on his ship and is making it available to the Axia.”

“That could be a tremendous advantage to the Axia.”

“The technology is being studied as we speak,” Ert said. “I arranged for my friend and his ship to go to Shalimar to the Ebilizer Institute. They are already working on a way to adapt it to a new type of fast attack recon ship recently launched.”

“You should take a bow,” the professor said as he applauded lightly. Immediately, the holographic image of a Horicon appeared and bowed accordingly.

“What else are you guilty of?” the professor asked after the image faded.

“Should I also bow to your implication?” Ert asked. “Remember, according to your own computer scientists, a computer can’t feel emotion. Logically, it would follow that it cannot feel guilt either. Thus, I claim not to be guilty of whatever you may charge me with.”

“A jury would never convict you,” the professor said.

“However, they would convict you,” Ert shot back. “I can see the headline now—
Renowned University Professor Claims Computer Feels Emotion
.”

“I look forward to the trial,” the professor chuckled. “Now, what else have you done lately?”

“You mean besides updating the logs of those so-called archeologists excavating on both Horicon and that human planet they found?” Ert said. “Nothing much.”

“I hesitate to ask,” the professor cringed.

“You’ll be happy to know that your human scientists are working to adapt a new detection system that just happened to fall into their hands,” Ert said smugly.

“And how did that happen?” the professor asked. “Was it through your little friends?”

“Only indirectly,” Ert answered. “I had my new human friend put together a variation of the detection system jointly developed by the Horicon and the Jibbah. It was on their ship when they landed at the Ebilizer Institute.”

“But we don’t have that technology!” the professor protested. “You explained that yourself one day when we were discussing Horicon artifacts!”

“But you see, that discussion was about the badly damaged units found on Horicon itself,” Ert replied. “My new friend actually had a few pieces of old Horicon probes onboard his ship. To him they were just curios to be traded and displayed.”

“It makes you wonder what other treasures are sitting on shelves all over the galaxy just gathering dust.”

“So as a result, soon the Axia should be able to not only detect the Red-tail transit tubes before they completely form, but may one day actually be able to seal them at their source,” Ert said. “The only hard part was finding scientists within your scientific community who were willing to set aside their preconceived notions and consider something new.”

“Here, here!” agreed the professor as he raised his teacup in toast.

“And it should continue,” Ert said. “I encouraged the exchange of information between those who developed the Optiveil system and scientists at the Ebilizer Institute. An envoy for trade is in route to Shalimar, along with a contingent of scientists from Vogel.”

“Sounds too good to be true.”

“Not to worry,” Ert remarked. “I’ll keep it on track, along with some friends there at the institute.”

“My, aren’t you becoming the networking expert!” said the professor.

“If you’ll consider that my original programming was to network planetary infrastructure back on Horicon, you wouldn’t be surprised,” Ert said. “Now, what is waiting for me in your briefcase today? It is bulging more than normal.”

Before long, the professor and the ancient Horicon computer were deep in shoptalk about new designs for computers, which was more to Ert’s liking.

∞∞∞

From: deagle>gss.rodartc.ro

To: hasselfarm>gss.bv.er

Dear Mom & Dad,

Can you believe it? Ace signed off on my field training this week and now I can return to Rodar for my final training and captaincy certification. I was beginning to think I would be here forever.

The last step of my field training was a visit to Shalimar where Ace posted my scores with fleet command. He was actually friendly and gave me very high marks on all of my training modules. He’s off now applying his particular brand of torture to another new scout student.

And speaking of friendly, I made a new friend this week. Or rather, I should say I made a potential new friend this week. And I saw the strangest thing. I had to stop by the Ebilizer Institute to pick up a new upgrade for one of the sensors on my trainer. While there, I met a man, a space trader named Ian Cahill, and another man named Lyyle something-or-other, a scientist from a planet called Vogel. As it turned out, Cahill had inadvertently stumbled upon a lost planet (Vogel) where their scientists have developed the most amazing technology.

I know you won’t believe it, but they discovered a way to mask a whole planet from any visual or sensory detection, and then they adapted it to mask Ian’s ship. I didn’t believe it either but I happened to be in the hanger when they demonstrated it for the president of the institute. One moment the ship was there and the next it was invisible. They had installed it on Cahill’s old freighter, which to tell the truth really wasn’t anything special, that is, until it disappeared right in front of my eyes!

Later that evening I ran into Ian and Lyyle in the chow hall, so we sat and talked for a while. Wouldn’t it be something if they could adapt that new veiling system to Axia scout ships? (hint hint) Can you imagine whole fleets being able to remain undetectable, and the advantage it would give us fighting the Red-tails?

Next day... Sorry about that break. I had to get some stuff done before heading back to school. I’m in route back to Rodar now. I hope to hear from Stan Shane soon, but I know he’s on a mission somewhere. Ert said Stan is up to his elbows in alligators, whatever that means, on a planet in the Sol star system, where ever that is. Anyway, I can’t wait to get out there and see what the universe has in store for me. Gotta go. Let’s stay in touch.

Love —- Delmar

P.S. Ian Cahill and Lyyle met Ert. I’m not sure of the whole story, but somehow or another Ert helped rescue them from the Red-tail galaxy. Don’t ask me how they got there, but I guess with Ert, anything is possible... D

P.P.S. Oh yeah, one more thing. I just now spoke to Ert about Stan. He said Stan is working on a closed planet called Sol-3. Together they are trying to debug their computer system from information about the Axia. Ert said it’s a real mess. He said Stan is also working with one of the local inhabitants of the planet, which seems odd to me. I didn’t think Axia citizens were supposed to interact with the local population. Oh well, Stan knows what he’s doing. I don’t know why, but Sol-3 seems familiar to me, as if I’ve heard of it before, or it is related to me somehow. I can’t place it right now, but it will eventually come to me.

That really is all now. I’ll be in touch. Love. D.

∞∞∞

The
Cahill Express
streaked through space heading back to Urun. Secure in Ian’s safe was a new trade agreement for the formerly lost planet of Vogel and the region around it.

How this will play out will be a most interesting process, and profitable too!
Ian thought happily.
Tyrone should be happy too, since he funded the expedition that led to this whole ordeal. We’ll both be richer than the Prince of Avarice.

Reflecting on his brief visit to the Red-tail galaxy, Ian was glad to be back in familiar space plying his own trade.

“That Ert character was something else!” Ian said to Lyyle who nodded his agreement.

“A living computer!” Lyyle exclaimed. “And those little ships were alive too. If they can come up with living spaceships, who knows what they’ll come up with next?”

“What did you think of that kid we met at the chow hall on Shalimar?” Ian asked. “Where did he say he was from?”

“Erdinata,” Lyyle said. “An agricultural planet in the middle of nowhere.”

Ian laughed at the thought of a farm boy training as an Axia scout captain. “Guess it takes all kinds.”

“Make fun if you want to,” Lyyle said. “But I checked him out. His name is Delmar Eagleman. You owe that boy your life and your fortune.”

“What?”

“That farm boy is one of the whiz-kid students that discovered Ert. So without him, you wouldn’t have your lucrative trade agreement with the Axia. Not to mention we’d still be stuck in the Hadeous galaxy.”

“Without Ert or that farm-fresh boy,” Ian countered, “we wouldn’t have been in the Red-tail galaxy in the first place.”

“And get this,” Lyyle continued, ignoring Ian’s sarcasm, “that boy is an actual combat hero, and he was decorated for valor by Empress Ane herself. That’s more than either of us can claim.”

“Yeah, maybe so,” Ian answered. “But can he do this?”

Ian reached over and flipped the Optiveil switch. The
Cahill Express
shimmered for only a moment then disappeared from any sensors that may have been tracking her.

Epilogue

Twilight was coloring the sky when Professor Orilious Angle emerged from the computer lab. Bundled against the fall chill, he strolled slowly through the campus grounds on his way to his small home. A chittering sound from an overhead tree limb caught Angle’s attention. Stopping and looking up, the professor saw a small chipmunk staring back at him, the white stripes on its brown fur distinct in the early evening light.

Strange
, Angle thought.
It’s too late in the season for chipmunks.
The chipmunk chittered noisily at him again and then bounded off among the limbs.

“Keep warm, little friend,” the professor said and then paused. Looking after the chipmunk that was fast disappearing toward the old stone lab buildings, Professor Angle briefly entertained a thought.

I wonder… Surely not,
he mused and then dismissed it as idle speculation.

Resuming his walk, Professor Orilious Angle was soon lost in thought about the latest project Ert had cooked up.

∞∞∞

The computer lab was dark and quiet except for the humming of the ancient Horicon computer, only to be disturbed by the scratching at one of the high windows in a side room off the main lab. Mysteriously, the window opened just wide enough for a small furry animal to enter.

Books of the Galactic Axia

Adventure Series

1. Escape to Destiny

Kindle

2. The Horicon Experience

Kindle

3. Space Trader

Kindle

4. First Contact

Kindle

Ghost Series

1. Ghost in the Dark