A Galaxy Unknown 10: Azula Carver (29 page)

"So you can
actually
have a complete conversation with them?"

"Just as complete as the conversation I'm having with you right now."

"Amazing. Everyone in Space Command knows you have two Jumakas or rather
had
two Jumakas, but I don't think anyone knows they're sentient."

"We're going to change that perception. Shall we go?"

~     ~     ~

Captain Rokowski, the
Dublin's
commanding officer, along with a medical team, was standing by to greet Jenetta when she exited the shuttle. Once introductions were out of the way, Dr. Fabrini signaled to a corpsman with an oh-gee chair. The corpsman approached Jenetta and lowered the chair to the deck. Jenetta breathed a sigh of relief as she sat. The seat of the chair was covered in an oh-gee fabric that made the occupant float very slightly above the surface, so Jenetta felt almost weightless. The corpsman then passed a safety strap around her chest to keep her in the chair as he raised it and began lightly pushing towards the sickbay.

The
Dublin's
medical staff was fast and efficient. Within an hour, all tests had been completed, and Dr. Fabrini sat down to discuss their findings.

"You say you're in your sixth month, Admiral, but our instruments say you're in your eighth month and almost ready to deliver."

"I can't be. I used a contraceptive until February to prevent pregnancy."

"Which contraceptive?"

"Genobarazon."

"Well, that's one of the best and the safest, but this time it appears it didn't work. Perhaps it's that unique physiology of yours. It might have neutralized the effects of the drug in the way it neutralizes alcohol in your system."

"Oh, no. Does that mean that every time my husband and I have sex, I might get pregnant?"

"It's possible, if your reproductive cycle is right, but I can't say definitively without tests, and I can't run those tests while you're pregnant. Perhaps you might put the full responsibility for contraception on him until you know?"

"Well, at least I understand why I'm so huge for six months. Eight months makes a lot more sense. So when will I deliver?"

"When your body decides it's time. But it could happen any time now, or any time during the next thirty days."

"Do the babies look okay?"

"They look perfect, according to all our readings. I'm going to arrange for a birthing room next to the sick bay. You'll stay here until it's time."

"No. I will have my children at the family estate on Obotymot. It's the beginning of a tradition."

Dr. Fabrini smiled. "Admiral Platt thought you might insist on that. She authorized us to set up a mobile unit on the planet until the delivery and then provide support for an additional month."

"Admiral Platt seems to know me as well as my own mother. Very well, Doctor. Set up your mobile unit. We have plenty of space inside the palace, so you won't have to operate out of a shuttle or portable shelter."

~     ~     ~

Two days later the mobile unit was set up and operating. Annette had wanted the Obotymot midwife who had delivered Arturo and Berl but was delighted with having a Terran medical unit in case there were any complications.

The medical unit had set up their operation just one floor down from the penthouse suites reserved for Family Carver members. The rooms there, originally intended for Nordakian nobility of Azulo and Azula rank when the royal family visited Obotymot, were large and spacious. Other than a daily check on Jenetta, there was nothing for the medical staff to do, so they sat around drinking coffee and dreaming of what it would be like to live in the luxurious splendor of the palace on a permanent basis.

Some of the medical staff began spending time in the gardens, watching Arturo and Berl play with the cubs. They were fascinated by the Jumakas and the familial relationships of the species. They were especially intrigued when Cayla or Tayna would conduct a class with their offspring. The cubs would line up like students in a class and pay complete attention to their parents. It was like watching Terran children in school, except if the attention of one of the cubs wandered, they would get a paw smacked across the side of their head— no claws, just a gentle reminder to pay attention. Even mild corporal punishment, such as a ruler across the palm, had long ago been outlawed in some cultures on Earth when students failed to pay complete attention to their teacher or when they failed to complete their school assignments, but it was still de rigueur on most worlds in GA space.

~     ~     ~

Jenetta was walking from her private office in her suite to her bedroom when her water broke. Her babies weren't going to wait any longer to be born. She pressed the button on the special wrist monitor she was wearing and every member of the medical team was alerted instantly. Before she could even reach the doors to the corridor, two nurses had opened those doors and were pushing an oh-gee gurney into her sitting room. They helped Jenetta get aboard and then pushed the gurney towards the elevator.

~ August 9
^th
, 2289 ~

"I call this emergency session of the Admiralty Board to order," Admiral Moore said.

The large hall was almost empty. Only the admirals seated at the large horseshoe-shaped table and a few of their key aides seated behind their bosses were in attendance. The gallery seating was completely empty.

"I'm going to play a message received from Captain Lawrence Gavin a few hours ago." Admiral Moore nodded towards an aide and the image of Captain Gavin filled the enormous monitor on the wall behind the Admiral of the Fleet.

"I have a most serious condition to report," the image of Gavin said. "You've no doubt received my previous message about the five Denubbewa warships. We successfully determined their destination and have arrived here days ahead of them. What we've found is a Denubbewa base. Allow me to put up an image taken by the
Pechora
, commanded by Lt. Commander Eliza Carver."

The sharpest image available from the SDB filled the monitor as Captain Gavin's voice could be heard describing the scene.

"As you can see, there is one complete Denubbewa mothership surrounded by three more motherships in various stages of completion. We know now why the Denubbewa have been attacking freighters. It wasn't for the value of the cargo or the foodstuffs. It was for the kilometers of unprocessed ore the freighters were transporting. In the image you can see what appears to be a foundry. Of even more concern are the number of other motherships being built. In the image you can see at least twelve more hulls already laid. That will give the Denubbewa sixteen motherships right in the heart of Region Two if we don't destroy them.

"I asked for a handful of SDBs when I thought we were facing five Denubbewa warships. Now I'm requesting every SDB you can send. We have to stop the construction and stop it now. I have no idea if any part of those three partially constructed motherships are operational, but I think we can assume the one mothership is fully operational and probably packed with Denubbewa warships that will come streaming out like bees from a bothered hive when we attack. We have to hit them, and hit them with everything we've got. I leave the ship assignment request with you.

"Lawrence F. Gavin, Captain, aboard the
Ares
on patrol in Region Two. Message complete."

Normally, the monitor cleared when the message was completed, but Admiral Moore's aide had paused the playback because he believed the admirals would want to study it. There was silence around the table while everyone looked at the image showing the Denubbewa shipbuilding scene.

"They're back," Admiral Plimley said, breaking the silence.

"They never left," Admiral Woo said. "We just didn't know they were there. Those nearly completed motherships weren't just slapped together in a few months. Even creatures who can work twenty-four/seven because machines don't have to sleep can't work that fast."

"It makes you wonder how many other places there are like this in the GA. This is just one miniscule area in a region that's two thousand light-years across and almost as wide."

"When my SCI agents came across that Denubbewa mothership in Region Three," Admiral Bradlee said, "I hoped it was just an anomaly. Now I find myself wondering just how many operational Denubbewa motherships are out there and how many more are being built as we speak. There could be operations such as this one sprinkled throughout GA space, including Region One. All they need is a source of ore and a construction site in a place where spaceship traffic is limited."

"But even if they have the ships," Admiral Yuthkotl said, "they certainly can't have enough people to crew them."

"If they were people," Admiral Hillaire said, "I'd probably agree with you. But we're talking about mechanical beings that can be produced on an assembly line. Even if they do have an organic brain, they probably have some way of growing those quickly. Why else would they be building so many ships?"

"Perhaps this is the way the Denubbewa always conquer new territory," Admiral Bradlee said thoughtfully. "Rather than a massive invasion, as we've been expecting, perhaps they send a dozen or more motherships to different remote locations and those ships begin building new fleets so as to attack from within. Then when the ships are ready, they crank up their assembly line and start turning out cyborgs to man the ships."

"The new shipyard at Lorense-Three is ready to come on line," Admiral Moore said. "The docks we confiscated from the Uthlaro are in place and the yard personnel are almost ready to start production. We were planning on building a mix of warships, but it now seems like we should concentrate all production on new Scout-Destroyer-Bombers. We must also step up retrofit efforts to add bombing capability to all older SDs. It's frustrating that our biggest and most dangerous warships are completely useless against the Denubbewa and must run away when they encounter them."

"When will the new foundry orbiting Lorense-Six begin operations?" Admiral Burke asked.

"They expect to begin full-scale operations this month," Admiral Ahmed said. "The preliminary work Admiral Carver did before she took her LOA sped the process considerably, and the foundry is already producing raw Tritanium and Dakinium. Once they finish constructing the various jigs and forms they'll need to produce ship framework, engines, components, and sheathing, they'll run twenty-four/seven."

"I'll notify the yard managers at both facilities to halt work on everything except SDBs," Admiral Moore said. "In the meantime, I make a motion that we send fully half our SDBs to rendezvous with the
Ares
to destroy the motherships they've located."

As Admiral Moore looked around the table, every admiral nodded.

"It appears to be unanimous, unless I've misread the reactions to the request. Does anyone disagree?"

After ten seconds of silence, Admiral Moore said, "Let the log show that the motion has passed unanimously. Captain Gavin will get a task force of SDBs to eliminate the Denubbewa threat in his patrol area."

~     ~     ~

Jenetta's eyes fluttered slightly, then opened wide. "Mama?" she said.

Annette had been reading in a chair next to the bed and didn't realize Jenetta was awake until she heard her speak. She put down the viewpad and smiled at her daughter. "Hi, baby. How do you feel?"

"Better than I have in months, Mama. Are my babies okay?"

"You are now the mother of two beautiful children."

"But are they okay? Any problems or— anomalies?"

"None that anyone has observed," Christa said as she walked to where Jenetta could see her. "Don't you remember the delivery?"

"Christa, you made it!"

"When an admiral sends her barge to pick you up, you go."

"It wasn't an order. It was just an invitation."

"I know. And I wouldn't miss this for anything. I arrived during the delivery. Afterwards, while you were out cold, I sent messages to dad, Eliza, and the boys. I'll let you take care of telling Hugh, and I'm sure everyone is going to be dying to see pictures."

"I'll never forget the delivery, but I must have passed out immediately afterwards."

"Yes, you did," Annette said. "The doctor was a bit worried until he examined you, but he said everything seemed fine. They brought you up here to your own bed after the delivery was over."

"I want to see my babies," Jenetta said, throwing back the linens that covered her and swinging her legs over the side of her bed.

"Jenetta, calm down and get back in bed. They'll bring your children to you."

"I'm fine, Mama. I heal ten times faster than other people, remember? For me it feels like days since I delivered. I feel wonderful. Better than I have in months."

Annette stood up and walked to where her daughter was getting to her feet. "Okay, dear, but hold my arm and tell me if you begin to feel faint."

"I feel wonderful, Mama."

"Then do it for
my
peace of mind."

"Okay, Mama," Jenetta said as she slipped her feet into her carpet skimmers. "I can't go out in my nightgown. I need a robe."

"Let's walk to your closet."

Once Jenetta had her robe, she, Annette, and Christa walked out into the sitting room. There were several medical people there, and they jumped to their feet when Jenetta suddenly appeared.

"As you were," Jenetta said. "Relax. I just want to see my babies."

"You shouldn't be up yet, Admiral," one of the doctors said. "You're too weak."

"I'm fine, Commander. I feel like I could run ten laps around the palace. Where are my babies?"

"In the first handmaiden bedroom, dear," Annette said.

As they entered the room, the two nurses in there braced to attention.

"As you were. I'm just here to see my babies."

"We would have brought them to you if we'd known you were awake, Admiral," one of the nurses said as they relaxed. "They should be fed now, if you feel up to it."

"Let me just look at them for a couple of minutes, then they can chow down on mama's milk."

The babies were in small plastic-like enclosures that had the appearance of incubators, but the units weren't sealed and the top lifted up on pneumatic hinges that would hold the cover up until it was pushed down to a closed position.