Shackleton's Folly (The Lost Wonder Book 1) (32 page)

The forward port’s viewing screens of the battleship filled with images of the unimaginably large sphere. Captain K’Dhoplon lorded over his domain, watching over the coming and going of his staff, as the viewers filled with the sphere’s analysis and tactical assault plans were being drawn up.

Wolfgang Gray pored over the findings of the probes and Skiptracer’s reports. He was truly excited at the find of not only the First Ones’ Empire but one of such staggering significance that all others within memory paled beside it. “I must congratulate Shackleton for leading us here. The advancements and technology of this find would lead me to guess that the First Ones’ Empire was that of a civilization rating of a type III on the Kardashev scale, Captain K’Dhoplon. A civilization that extracts fusion energy, information, and raw materials from star clusters,
etc.
The proof is this technological marvel.”

Captain K’Dhoplon looked down his snout. “I see.” He reviewed the reports of the Skiptracers.

Gray took a look at some additional readings. He read more of the data analysis and combed back his hair with his fingers. Gray said, “We are going to be the most powerful force in the galaxy.”

Captain K’Dhoplon’s rage nearly boiled over. “
We
, Doctor Gray?” He eyed Gray coldly. K’Dhoplon spat out, “With your death, we’ll start a campaign to rid the galaxy of the dead races, starting with humans.”

Gray glared back at the Koty Captain. His contempt of Koty Union authority crept into his speech. “You do have the power to throw me into your chipper,” he said as he eyed the deadly instrument. “It is I who got you this far.” Gray walked over to the chipper booth. He switched it on. “I also have additional knowledge which will lift the Koty Union to a position of preeminence and help it become the most powerful race in the galaxy.” Gray turned his back to the blades just behind him. “Push me in,” he spoke to a nearby security guard. “Come on,” he commanded. When the guard looked from him to Captain K’Dhoplon, Gray strode over to the guard and gave him a right cross to the chin. The guard was taken aback as the human hit him. His response was quick and decisive. He grabbed Gray, picked him up, and propelled him toward the booth.

“Stop!” commanded Captain K’Dhoplon as he reflected on the situation. The security guard changed the path of his prisoner only slightly as he propelled Gray toward the chipper. Gray’s momentum took him into the wall just outside the deadly instrument; his body slid slowly to the floor. The human had brought them to the most significant find of First Ones’ technology in millennia. If he let his emotions run wild and killed the human, he could actually lose the prize. He had to do this for the One. Captain K’Dhoplon chewed on his words. “Don’t test me again, human. You will not be so fortunate.”

Gray worked to get himself up from the floor; the security guard towered over him. “Yes, Captain.” He stood up, glaring at his latest tormentor, and wiped away some blood from a newly formed split lip.

The
Illia
’s first officer, Tulal, strode to the dais. “Captain, the energy signatures of two small vessels have recently come through this area. We have been unable to trace them further, and it must be concluded that they did, in fact, enter the station.”

“Is that what you are going to call the most significant find of First Ones’ technology?” asked Gray. “The station’ is like calling a hypernova a ‘bright light.’”

The Captain and first officer looked from Gray to each other.

“Move us closer in to get a better look at this station,” said the Captain.

The first officer barked orders to the crew. Captain K’Dhoplon watched the members of his crew furiously process the commands of his first officer. The
Illia
’s course changed, taking the battleship closer to the station.

The battleship
Saleen
hung back in the strange emptiness of the void. Her command deck still showed the heavy damage that had been done. A careful look also showed a surface teeming with teams of damage-control technicians fully engulfed in cutting away the damaged sections of the hull and replacing them with straight sheathing. The job was 86% complete in the exterior rebuild. The largest flat sections were the first completed, leaving the finer work around the ports and terraced sections for last.

The
Saleen
’s sensors were not affected by the strike and extended to maximum range within the nebula. The data was rerouted to the secondary battle bridge for analysis and action. The sensors found no vessels, probes, or life in nearby space other than the sphere. They were quite alone.

Gray pored over the energy-trail data they were following. He announced to any of the bridge staff who might be listening to him, “Two vessels came this way and entered the port.” He pointed to a pentagon port on the 3D display. It was currently on the far side of the sphere, but their course and speed was such that a line of sight was established in less than five minutes. Gray moved quickly from screen to screen, reviewing analysis and views of the opening to the interior of the sphere.

The battleship
Illia
arrived at a port large enough for entire stars to pass through. The edge of the port started to extrude large rods on the side closest to them. They were already six kilometers long, with a diameter of one kilometer, looking much like tube worms coming from the floor of some great ocean bottom for a feast.

Captain K’Dhoplon remarked, “This was not what happened to the other ship.” He edged forward so his body hung over the front edge of his chair.

Gray responded, “No, this did not happen to them.” Gray considered the differences in the situation. Shackleton’s ship was far smaller than the
Illia
, but, to technology of this magnitude, even the largest ship in the Koty Union fleet, the Ecliptic–class dreadnought
KNS Dauphin,
with a crew of more than one million men, FTL, armament, including turbo lasers, ion cannon, and a keel-mounted Brite laser capable of focusing 4.8x10
³⁴
W of energy, would be nothing compared to the scale they were encountering. Shackleton’s
Quest
was built for speed and maneuverability, and the weapons would not mean much to this battleship — and much less to the sphere’s defensive systems. Shackleton would not have powered up his weapons. What would be the point?

The large rod structures appeared to have stopped moving, but either they were not all at full extension or they were designed to have different lengths. Here the rods varied from 8 to 25 kilometers. Energy flowed into the rods as they realigned themselves to face the
Illia
. The power danced between their bases as they built up energy for firing. One of the rods, with a length of 11 kilometers, had successfully aimed itself at the battleship. It grew brighter and began pulsing with light along the entire rod. A pattern in the pulsing revealed an organic structure to the conduits of energy running the length of the rod.

Gray stood beside Captain K’Dhoplon. Gray pointed to the screen in front of them. “Who am I to say, but I think you had better shut down your weapon systems.”

Captain K’Dhoplon watched the screen as the rods pulsed faster and faster. The end of the rod was becoming blindingly white.

Gray turned to his employers, “Either shut your systems down, or pray to your gods — and you had better make it quick.”

Captain K’Dhoplon yelled, “Do as he says!” The Koty weapons officer looked particularly worried as he rushed to shut down weapon systems. The energy dissipated quickly from the
Illia
’s weapon systems.

“Better let the squadrons know, too,” remarked Gray.

Captain K’Dhoplon nodded to the communications officer, who complied. “Yes, immediately, sir.”

The rod’s pulsations slowed as the energy fell. The great defensive weapons were retracted back to their slumber. Kilometers of weapons disappeared into the frame of the portal. This was the first time in many centuries they had been brought forth by a call for action with a warship. It was sad that they had not had the opportunity to fire.

Gray walked to the front viewer, trying to imagine the civilization that could engineer such a structure. They were close enough to the portal now that he could no longer see it in its entirety. The First Ones’ Empire not only built this fantastic structure but did so in such a way as to have it hidden all this time from the rest of the galaxy. Gray was certain nothing like this existed in the rest of the known galaxy. It made sense to have it built here in a nebula — the sheer volume of materials would be beyond comprehension. Here inside the nebula, a stellar nursery, building resources would be easily acquired and, at volumes, a structure like this would be but a simple thing. It would be interesting to see how they had fixed the theoretical problems associated with spheres like this: The orbital stability of the shell around the star, the gravity keeping the inhabitants on the inside surface, and interstellar material impacting the outer surface, in particular.

A pair of Koty security guards walked away from the chipper finishing its kill. Gray glanced over to the empty position at the weapons control. A new crewman was called upon to take the position.

Gray smiled broadly as he said, “You see, you do still need me.”

Captain K’Dhoplon looked to his first officer Tulal. Captain K’Dhoplon hated himself for the words that came. “You have some very small value.”

Gray focused on the situation again. “If Shackleton made it, so can I. I suggest that we move through the port now.”

Captain K’Dhoplon nodded to Tulal. “I want a course through the port. Failure is not an option.”

The battleship
Illia
’s course took the ship through the entrance, giving the rods in the port’s frame a wide berth. The
Illia
’s fighter groups surrounded the battleship in a close, tight formation similar to that of small fish around a large predator into the sphere.

The
Illia
crossed the sphere’s exterior-shell thickness in a much faster time than had the
Quest,
but, in doing so, it had drawn even more attention to itself than one would have wanted and for all the wrong reasons. The
Illia
arrived within the interior wall. Automated systems now tracked the battleship as it continued its course toward the star, held in place at the center of the sphere.

The bridge crew of the
Illia
stood at their stations to get a better look at the sight of the interior of the sphere and its jewel-encrusted walls stretching into the distance.

“Welcome, my fellow travelers, to a very special place,” said Gray. He knew he was right; there could only be one place such as this. It was the stuff of legend, a bedtime story told to children.

“Speak straight, human,” demanded Captain K’Dhoplon.

“It’s The Hanging Gardens, Captain.”

“The Hanging Gardens? Gray, what are you babbling about?”

“Funny you should say ‘babbling.’ On my world, there was such an ancient place as this, a wonder of the world. There, they, too, had hanging gardens.” He pointed to one of the monitors. “Those, I dare say, are ecospheres.” Gray crossed the bridge to Captain K’Dhoplon. “Do you not see it? Captain, this is the legendary Emperor’s Hanging Gardens, the Eleventh Wonder of the Universe.”

Captain K’Dhoplon gaped at Gray, not really understanding what he was being told at first. It was crazy talk one expected from Gray, but what else could it be? He had heard the stories about the First Ones’ Empire and the riches it encompassed, but with the millennia that had passed without any of it being discovered, such stories of the Eleven Wonders of the Universe were just that — stories. He was in charge of the Koty battleship that would claim this relic of the Old Empire for his people.

“Report our findings to home world immediately,” demanded Captain K’Dhoplon.

“I am afraid your communications are nonexistent this far inside the nebula. The ship is now enclosed inside a shell. Your communication will just have to wait until we exit the dust cloud.” He saw concern on the Captain’s face. “At least we will have a lot more to report to the Exalted One and, I am sure, some incredible discoveries.”

The
Quest
’s marker buoy recorded the passage of the
Illia
and her squadrons of fighters through the port. It used a highly directional antenna, pointed in a preprogrammed direction. It fired a burst transmission of all data collected, with video of the craft. The data flew in the opposite direction the
Quest
took as they had sent out a score of small relay drones. The drones had spread out in a long chain formation but kept in touch with the marker buoy. Each drone was stationed in random direction and distance from the last. The final drone kept contact with the link before itself and the
Quest
.

The
Quest
flew above the tops of the gardens, following the worn and offset seams between them as cover. The ship was very hard to see against the backdrop of solar collectors and other apparatus. It continued to the next intersection of walls and followed one fork.

Alec sat back in his pilot’s chair in contemplation. It was very likely that Wolfgang Gray and his masters would show up at some time. The tracking device on the hull of the ship didn’t seem Gray’s style. His was more clandestine. This was more the
modus operandi
of the two lunkheads, the Skiptracers. The question was: Had Gray and his ship reported to home world? That would bring the Koty Union’s war machine here and, with them, the rest of the galaxy’s attention. Every power-hungry dictator in 20,000 light years would be on their way to claim anything they could find to use as a weapon. It wouldn’t be safe for anyone living here. This place still existed only because it was unknown by the rest of the galaxy.

Alec would do whatever was required to save this place. Electra had said the inscription pieces were technology stolen from here that somehow led to the current situation. He would need all three to make the fix. If the fix wasn’t made in time, the sphere would destroy itself. One garden was roughly 340,000 Earth equivalent worlds of life, and there were 1058 gardens. The staggering total population was in the trillions, and they were all in the same danger.