The Aurora (Aurora Saga, Book 1) (18 page)

‘Do we know when and where their ships will be massing?’ Milonri asked Julio.

‘Yes.’

She pointed towards the top left of the image.

‘Here in the Drej belt, in eight days.’

Milonri moved around the table and took the pointer from Julio.

‘That’s only one day from Earth. What would happen if we attack the supply centre here at Jomi?’ he asked.

‘It could be destroyed if we use our entire fleet, but it would have to be a fast and accurate attack, because their home planet, Dagnamk, is only one hour away. An easier target would be the supply bases at Frenc or Slom,’ Amaunet said.

‘I know, but I’m not thinking of committing the whole fleet, just two or three destroyers,’ Milonri said.

‘But those would be no match for the cruisers they’d send from Dagnamk,’ Cairl said.

‘I think I see what Milonri has got in mind,’ Stuilo said. ‘They’ll have to send at least four cruisers to defend themselves from our attack, and with their main fleet away from Dagnamk massing for the Moulo and Earth’s assault, their base on Dagnamk will be left extremely vulnerable.’

‘The destroyers at Jomi would act as a decoy,’ Milonri added. ‘Once attacked by the Treitans, they’ll withdraw.’

‘Even assuming the Treitans send that many ships, Dagnamk will still be very well protected,’ Cairl said. ‘I forecast that our ships would be going up against five or six cruisers and at least four destroyers.’

‘I know,’ Milonri said. ‘That’s my guess too, but we may not get another opportunity like this again. We know their schedule and we now have a war-ship capable of entering a planet’s atmosphere: the
Aurora
.’

He paused.

‘With Kalrea’s capabilities, we can discover their weaknesses and use them to our advantage. We may even find a way of defeating them.’

‘Of course,’ Julio said, sounding excited. ‘If the
Aurora
could get past the defences around Dagnamk, then their command centre would be there for the taking.’

‘None of their defence ships can go through atmosphere, so the
Aurora
would be unchallenged once it reached Dagnamk,’ Milonri said. ‘But I’m afraid we don’t know exactly where the command centre is located or how strong their ground defences are.’

He looked at James.

‘You’ll be on your own. Kalrea must at the very least access their computer systems. We’ll use our other ships to draw their forces away from the planet. That will give you the best possible chance of making it through.’

‘We would have to hide the
Aurora
,’ Julio said. ‘The Treitans now have data and images of the ship and they’re bound to wonder what happened at Qintaino.’

‘They’ll know it’s a major threat to them, and if detected they will concentrate their forces to destroy it,’ Stuilo added. ‘Remember what they did to the
Brenostar
.’

‘The
Aurora
will have to be shipped inside the
Lonori,
’ Milonri explained. ‘We have to divert their ships with an initial attack; that way the
Aurora
can be launched close to Dagnamk before the Treitans have time to react.’

‘I think it could work, but we can’t afford to lose either the
Lonori
or the
Aurora
,’ Julio said.

‘If their defences are too strong when we arrive, then we’ll abort the mission,’ Milonri said.

Stuilo and Cairl nodded in support.

‘Are there any questions or objections to Milonri’s proposal,’ Julio asked, looking at the others in turn. ‘Excellent!’

‘Now the end begins,’ Milonri said, his voice lowered.

James didn’t understand and there was also an uneasy moment of silence. He looked expectantly around the table.

Kalrea, what did he mean?

Sorry. No idea,
Kalrea replied.
The others seemed to know, though.

Milonri gestured to Julio.

‘Julio and I will plan our strategy. We’ll then brief Isistia. No one else is to know the objective,’ he said sternly. ‘We can’t afford the Treitans to learn of this.’

‘It’s just over six days to Dagnamk at Q3, so we’ll need to leave tomorrow,’ Julio said.

She paused for a moment.

‘So who’s going to tell Isistia that she’s only got fourteen hours to get the
Lonori
back together?’ she said, and then smiled, breaking the tension.

‘I’ve just remembered that I’m needed in the operation centre,’ Cairl said, jumping up from his chair.

‘I’ll join you,’ Amaunet said, catching him up just before he left the room.

There was the sound of laughter disappearing up the corridor.

‘Well, it’s your plan, Milonri. You’ll have to tell Isistia. It’s your turn to take all the stick,’ Stuilo said, with a cheeky smile.

‘Thanks, Stuilo,’ Milonri said.

‘Never mind, Milonri,’ Julio said, leaning over and patting him on the back. ‘The way I look at it, is that it might have been my idea. Then, I would have had to tell her. At least I’m off the hook!’

Milonri pointed his finger at her.

‘Next time... You’re telling her next time!’

While Julio and Milonri were talking, James was studying the holographic image of Moulo and Earth above the table. He was puzzled by the Treitans’ need to attack Earth, so when they finished, he asked,

‘Milonri, I don’t understand why they would want to attack Earth. The humans are no threat to them; their space travel is in its infancy.’

‘No planet’s a threat to them anymore, James, but they need the water,’ he replied. ‘They stay fifty to sixty days, sucking the planet dry, and then they just pack up everything and go. The only other thing they’ve ever taken is technology and that’s only if it’s of any benefit to them.’

‘What do they take the water for?’ James questioned.

‘As far as we can tell, it’s what they live on. We eat food; they drink water, just water.’

‘So that’s why Qintaino is now a dessert?’

‘I’m sorry say it is, James. It was once a very beautiful planet. And I’m afraid Earth’s next.’

‘If only we had known they were going to attack us in the first place,’ Stuilo said, looking frustrated.

‘You see, James,’ Milonri said. ‘When they arrived in our galaxy, there was no indication of their intentions. The Qinant leaders tried to make contact with them to offer help, but they weren’t interested.’

‘Some races are like that,’ Julio said. ‘It’s not uncommon in this galaxy, so we assumed they just wanted to be left alone. They settled on an uninhabited planet called Dagnamk.’

‘All was quiet for four sykals, but once they completed their command centre, other ships started to arrive in great numbers,’ Milonri said. ‘Then they started their offensive.’

‘We were one of the first races to be attacked,’ Julio said, ‘along with the Holriods, Yoins and Montrons.’

‘Why?’ James asked.

‘We found out why when it was too late,’ Julio said. ‘They attacked all the strongest races first and in quick succession. This meant that the remaining less developed races would have not been a big threat, even if they rallied together. Their initial force must have been colossal, considering the losses they incurred.’

‘But still they carried on. And now they’re mopping up,’ Stuilo said.

‘Can’t we attack their homeworld?’ James questioned.

‘We know where they come from,’ Julio said.

She changed the image over the table to show the nearest galaxies. Julio pointed to one, before continuing,

‘It’s in the Lonilo galaxy—’

On Earth it’s called the Andromeda galaxy,
Kalrea informed James.

‘Perhaps in time we can pay them back for what they’ve done,’ Milonri said, watching the image fade away. ‘James, I must ask you to do something. No questions…’

Milonri looked over at Julio and Stuilo. They nodded back. Julio moved over to the door.

‘Yes… of course,’ James replied. ‘What do you want me to do?’ he said, feeling very uneasy.

Milonri handed James a headset.

‘Please put this on.’

James wore the headset, which felt warm around his ears and on the top on his head.

‘I want you to get Kalrea to execute a program held in our main computer,’ Milonri added.

‘Kalrea, do as Milonri asks,’ James said and then thought,
what are they up to, Kalrea?

I don’t know
.

‘I’ve accessed the main network. What program am I looking for, Milonri?’ Kalrea replied, over the room’s address system.

‘Kalrea, upload the program M34S,’ Milonri said. ‘It’s self-executing.’

‘Loading…’

‘DISABLING TELEMENTOR DEFENCE SYSTEMS.’

Stuilo and Julio removed their hand pistols from their holders.

‘EXECUTING MIND-SCAN.’

James suddenly felt faint, his vision blurred and he slumped to the floor.