Chapter 2

            “Hey Ethan, what are you doing after graduation tonight?”

            Ethan turned and saw Max Cargill, his best friend for the last four years, walking toward him.  Max was a tall, skinny man with deep green eyes and golden hair, and hanging on one of his arms was a younger cadet named Sheila Clancy, regarded by almost all the cadets as the most beautiful and comely of all the female cadets and also the daughter of one of the Federations most respected Admirals.

            “Not a whole lot Max.  I might see if I can jump in the Greyhound sim and do a few rounds.”

            “Sheesh Ethan!  Don’t you ever stop?  It’s graduation!” Max said, throwing his hands up in the air and doing a little dance.  “You should come to the party!  You’re already the best pilot in our class…give it a rest, will you?”

            Ethan blushed a little, then said, “You know I don’t like parties that much.  Outside you two and Laura, I don’t really have that many friends, and I don’t like all that noise.”

            “Yeah, I know.  But my friend, you should really get out more.  Those sims are going to rot your brain eventually.”

            “As if it could be worse than hanging out with you two,” he said, punching Max on the arm.

            “Ow,” Max rubbed his arm where Ethan hit him, “That hurt.  Have you been working out or something behind our backs?”

            “A little.  I was bored one night and decided to try it out.  I kind of liked it, so I’ve been doing a couple hours a day lately.”

            “Uh oh.  The best pilot, smartest cadet, and now he’s going to be a chick magnet.  I’m doomed!” Max said while feigning shock.

            Sheila laughed, “As if you have anything to worry about.  How many women do I have to chase off every day?”

            “There was that one yesterday…and there was the Eak’bal twins on leave a few month ago…and that one weird Brittany woman from Centauri Prime…and Ow!”  Max grimaced when Sheila punched him in the same spot that Ethan had.  “Would you guys stop hitting me?”

            “No,” Ethan and Sheila said simultaneously.  They looked at each other for a moment, and then busted out laughing.  “I can’t win!” Max exclaimed, which made his friends laugh even harder.

            After they had calmed down, Ethan checked the time on the wall computer.

            “Oh no! It’s 1930, and we have graduation in thirty minutes!”

            The three turned and ran to their shared quarters to find Laura in their quarters already dressed in her Class A dress uniform.

            “You guys better hurry,” Laura started, giving Ethan a quick kiss as he ran to his room.  “We need to be there in ten minutes.”

            A flurry of activity followed that announcement, and in just under ten minutes the four companions headed over to the auditorium.  Inside were all their classmates, and they broke apart to head to their assigned positions.  Ethan walked toward the stage, since as the top cadet of the class he would be giving a speech after the obligatory Admiral spoke.  He saluted the Sergeant Major, and then took his seat.  Seated with him on stage were fifty or so other dignitaries, including the Commandant of the Academy, the heads of the various government departments, and the Sergeant Major of the Federation Marines.  Not long after Ethan found his seat, the Sergeant Major made an announcement that the ceremony was about to commence.

            “Admiral on deck!”

            The five hundred cadets of class Theta 14 immediately rose to their feet at rigid attention.  On the stage of the auditorium, Fleet Admiral John Franklin strode purposefully to the podium.  He stood there for a moment to allow the Sergeant Major to seat the cadets.  Once the cadets had situated themselves, Admiral Franklin dug into his pocket for the datapad that contained his remarks.  He looked over them, and then threw them over to the side of the stage to the shock of the assembled personnel.

            “Those remarks were written over three weeks ago.  In them, I talked about the service that you would be providing for the Federation, your duty to Terra, and quite a few frills and dressings.  But, in light of recent circumstances, they are inappropriate.

            “Last night at 0300 Standard Time a Kropellian battle fleet entered the Milky Way Galaxy and annihilated a Federation Fleet stationed to intercept them.”

            The Admiral’s statement was blunt, direct, and was met by pandemonium.  Immediately, the entire Theta 14 class was on its feet—some were crying, some were shouting, and some were just standing there in shock.  It took several minutes, but eventually the Master at Arms and Sergeant Major managed to restore the peace.  As the Cadets managed to find their seats, the Admiral continued.

            “Last night, the carrier TNS Napoleon with support from the destroyers Dauntless and Intrepid engaged a Kropellian battle fleet consisting of two destroyers, a cruiser, and what we are calling a battleship.  At first, only the cruiser and two destroyers engaged our forces and it seemed evenly matched.  When their big ship entered the battle, however, it was over quickly.  The data is still being analyzed, however, their first shot destroyed the Dauntless, and next salvo destroyed the remainder of the fleet.  There were no survivors.”

            As the Admiral said that, one of the cadets wailed loudly and collapsed on the floor.  Max knelt to Sheila’s side and tried to comfort her as best he could.  He picked her up and carried her to the door, and after it had closed, Admiral Franklin continued.

            “Effective immediately, all shore leaves are cancelled, as are the festivities tonight.  Unfortunately, I cannot tell where many of you will be stationed.  However, I can tell you this—we are going to defeat this enemy.  Right now, our best scientists are working on new weapons and ships to combat this enemy.  Some of you will be assigned to research, some to testing new designs.  But most of you will be shipped to the fight.  Good luck, and may the Gods of our forefathers bless you and keep you safe.”

            Admiral Franklin turned from the podium and walked briskly off the stage.  The crowd sat there stunned for a few moments and then broke into chaos.  As the shouting and crying continued, Ethan walked off the stage after the Admiral.

            “Admiral, may I have a word?”

            Admiral Franklin turned around and regarded Ethan coolly, “What do you want cadet?”

            “Sir, I wanted to thank you for giving us the straight truth about what happened.  I’d heard rumors that there was a fleet on the way, but I hadn’t known they had arrived as hostiles.”

            The admiral looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, “Son, what’s your clearance level?”

            “I have Delta clearance, sir, as do all cadets who have taken the oath.”

            Admiral Franklin turned to the wall and issued an order, “Computer, raise Cadet…” he paused to look at Ethan’s name badge, “Douglas’s clearance rating to Beta.”

            Immediately, a black shield appeared around the admiral and Ethan, closing out all light from the outside, and keeping the two of them from being seen or heard from outside the shield.

            “Confirm identity.”

            “Authorization Franklin-Charlie-two-Beta-niner-niner-Foxtrot.”

            “Command confirmed.  Identify Cadet Ethan Douglas.”

            Admiral Franklin turned to Ethan and indicated that he should choose a pass code and let the computer get a voiceprint.

            “Authorization Douglas-one-Echo-five-niner-Golf.”

            “Identity recorded and confirmed.  Security clearance for Cadet Ethan Douglas raised to level Beta.”

            Ethan stood there in shock for a minute.  For him to receive a spontaneous security clearance advance of such a proportion meant that the admiral was about to trust him with something that not too many people knew about.  He waited for the admiral to continue.

            Admiral Franklin stood there for several moments before he began to speak.  When he finally spoke, it was not what Ethan was expecting.

            “You know how I got to where I am, so I won’t bore you with the details.  The truth of the matter is, when I met Captain Ch’aria all those years ago, I was scared shitless.”

            Ethan’s face must have registered some shock at Admiral Franklin’s lack of decorum because the Admiral merely chuckled and continued, “Yes, I swear as much as anyone when it’s appropriate.  But to continue, we didn’t know anything about what we were getting ourselves into.  There was no indication that we were going to meet anyone.  It was sheer luck that we found a peaceful civilization first,” he paused to consider his words, “The point is, we never know what is going to happen.  When the Kropellians first came out of hyperspace, we started peacefully.  We’ve recovered the data recorders from the Napoleon and Intrepid, and it doesn’t look good.

            “What I am about to tell you requires Beta clearance, which is why I raised your level.  You are to repeat this to no one.  The Dauntless wasn’t merely destroyed.  It was vaporized.  The carrier Spectra was in route to assist the defense of the Ganymede system when the battle occurred.  The Spectra was too far away to aide the other ships, but they did enter the system within a few hours after the battle was over.  Initial scans showed no survivors, however, one survived.  Before it was destroyed, the Napoleon was able to eject its computer core and AI core.  Both are being analyzed as we speak, but whatever weapon the Kropellians used, no one in the Alliance has ever seen its like.  Scans from the Spectra indicate that the mass from the debris left over from the Dauntless was almost forty-five percent less than it should have been.  Whatever it is, their weapon destroys on the atomic level.”

            “But admiral, so does the antimatter weapons that we possess.  The matter and antimatter react and…”

            “I know that Douglas,” Admiral Franklin interrupted, “But the size of this weapon means that it can’t be antimatter.  We have the largest antimatter weapons in the Alliance, but we can’t vaporize a destroyer.”

            “I think I see, sir.  This weapon alone could turn the tide of any battle…unless we can find a way to match it or neutralize it.”

            Admiral Franklin looked at Ethan strangely for a moment, and then he smiled.  “I knew there was a reason I wanted to talk to you.”

            “What do you mean sir?”

            “We haven’t even had time to think very far about it, but every recommendation I’ve heard of was either building a better shield or matching the firepower of the weapon.  No one has suggested neutralizing it.  How would you do it?”

            “I’m not sure I’m qualified to…”

            “Bull…just think out loud.  I’ve read your file, and I know you’re the highest scoring cadet ever through these doors.  Let’s hear it.”

            “Well, sir, it would depend greatly on how the weapon works.  To my knowledge, the only thing that can destroy matter is antimatter.  But,” Ethan continued, starting to run with the idea that had just popped into his head, “the power requirements for an antimatter weapon of that size would be far too massive for even a ship of that size to produce.  But what if you phased the antimatter?”

            “Phase the antimatter?” Admiral Franklin asked.  “What do you mean?”

            “We know we can phase energy weapons, so they appear in several phases of reality, correct?” Ethan started to explain, “What if the Kropellians managed to figure out a way to phase the antimatter weapon?  By phasing it, they would get around our shields, and that would effectively increase the power of the weapon.  Maybe the size of the beam isn’t necessarily an indication of power, just what it takes to make the weapon phase.”

            “Son, I’ve never heard of anything like that.  But the idea has merit.  I’ll propose the idea to the analysts and see what they say.  So now the big question—how do you stop it?”

            Ethan thought about it for a moment, and then said, “I think a multi-pronged approach would be best.  First, we need to figure out for sure if that is what the weapon is doing, and that won’t be easy.  The best way would be to capture a ship and tear it apart, but I don’t think that’s going to work,” Ethan joked, and got a chuckle in reply.  “So once we figure out if that’s the true weapon, we match it—build a ship as big or bigger and put the meanest weapons we have on it, and put it up against their big battle ship.

            “If it is a phasing particle beam, stopping it won’t be easy.  If we could make our shields phasing as well, that would negate some of the weapon’s effectiveness.  Or,” Ethan suddenly had an idea, “instead of going bigger, go smaller.”

            “How do you mean?”

            “If we can figure out a way to recreate their weapon, make one smaller.  Put it on a smaller attack craft, and put several into service.” Ethan paused for a moment and saw the blank look in Admiral Franklin’s eyes.  “It’s a little like wolves from Terra.  One alone can’t bring down an elk, but a group of them working together can.  We do the same thing with their big boy.”

            “Or do both.  Build a super battleship to match theirs, and do your idea.”

            “As you say sir.”

            “Don’t give me that.  You have a damn good idea, and I’m going to make sure it goes through.  Whether that is what their weapon is doing or not, your idea is worth investigating.  Good job cadet. Computer, disable privacy shield.”

            “Acknowledged.”

            “Cadet, I don’t think I have to tell you that what we talked about it top secret.  Very few people know what I told you, and we need it to stay that way.  No one under Beta clearance is to know of this, is that understood?”

            “Yes sir,” Ethan said.

            “Very good, Cadet.  You’re dismissed.  I’ll be in touch though—you’re the kind of officer we’re going to need in this war.”

            “Yes sir, thank you sir,” Ethan said, then saluted and walked away.  Ethan couldn’t understand what made Admiral Franklin discuss those things with him, but he was sworn to secrecy.  Which meant he would have to figure this out by himself, with no help from Max or the others.

            Maybe I just need to meditate.  It always helps me calm myself, and perhaps another idea will appear to help with the war.

            Ethan strolled toward his favorite meditation spot, just letting his mind wander.  His feet had taken him to this spot so many times he didn’t need to think about the path, however he did take a moment to look at his surroundings.

            When the Academy was first designed, it was fifteen floors of classrooms, dorms, a cafeteria, a gymnasium, and an auditorium built on the surface of Titan, the largest of Saturn’s moons.  There were no places for cadets to just relax, so a year after initial construction, a botanical garden with a small pond was added.  No animals were allowed into the space due to hygienic reasons, but sounds were played over hidden speakers of birds and squirrels and the like occupying the space, giving the impression of a hidden grotto or lush garden.  A holographic sun and synthetic breeze were added to add realism, as well as the occasional shower.  For those that needed more extremes, several holographic emitters were installed in a few large, empty classrooms to generate whatever the user required.  The spot that Ethan had picked almost four years ago was a secluded clearing in one of the farthest corners of the room.  He’d never encountered anyone in the clearing, and much like every time before this one, it was empty.

            He sat on the grass, crossed his legs, closed his eyes, and shut out everything but the Kropellians, their weapon, and the war.  He meditated for close to four hours, but didn’t come up with any answers.  He needed more information, so perhaps a trip to the library was in order.  With his new clearance level, he should be able to find some more information.  He rose from the grass and made his way to the library.

            When he arrived at the library, he first checked out one of the private study rooms.  The librarian gave him a funny look since finals were over and he hadn’t had a cadet in all day long.  Once in the room, he asked the computer to establish a privacy shield around the room, and began to research.  After an hour, he had only the most basic information on the enemy.

            Species: Kropellian

            Home planet: Unknown.  Assumed in Andromeda Galaxy

            Government type: Aggressively Empirical.  Ruled by Empress Grothala

            Language: Unknown

            Religion: Unknown

            Anatomy: Unknown

            Physiology: Unknown

            Ship classifications:

                        Light Fighter—armament unknown.  Code name “Vephar Class”

                        Destroyer—armament unknown.  Code name “Chimera Class”

                        Cruiser—armament unknown.  Code name “Astaroth Class”

                        Battleship—armament unknown.  Code name “Samael Class”

                        Other ships—unknown

            Military Information: Unknown

            Miscellaneous Information: Unknown

            Ethan sat back and pondered what he had learned, which admittedly, wasn’t much.  Basically, we don’t know what we’re up against.  We have no clue.

            His com unit beeped then, and Ethan answered it.

            “Cadet Douglas.”

            “I see you’re already putting your new security clearance to good use,” the voice on the other end said, “That’s good.”

            “Admiral Franklin?”

            “Yes, cadet, it’s me.  I have orders for you.  You are to report to landing bay Alpha one tomorrow at 0800 with two bags only.  Everything else will have to remain behind, but don’t worry about it because we’ll put it in storage for you.  Your assignment will be given to you at that time, but…do you have a privacy field engaged?”

            “Yes sir.  Ever since I started my research.”

            “Good.  Your idea worked in the computer simulation.  We’re working on adapting it to a ship, but the size it had to be to work is enormous.  I won’t tell you what your exact assignment is now, only that you won’t be working on the big battleship.  But because of your idea, and your scores at the academy and in training, you are being given the rank of Lieutenant Commander, skipping the normal ranks of Ensign and Lieutenant.  Congratulations.”

            Ethan was dumbstruck.  Such a thing rarely happened, and he couldn’t believe that he had already achieved the rank of Lieutenant Commander.  Before he could respond to the admiral, he continued.

            “Your silence speaks volumes, Commander.  You cannot tell anyone about your assignment, but you may tell your friends about your new rank.  Say your goodbyes tonight, because odds are you won’t see them for a long time.  I have to leave, Commander.  Good luck, and I’ll see you in a few days.”

            “Yes sir.  Admiral…thank you.”

            “Don’t thank me till it’s over, Commander.  Franklin out.”

            And with that, Ethan’s communicator went dead.  He sat there in shock for several minutes, and then shook himself.  He needed to get going, if he was going to have time to pack.  He erased the data panel he had been using to research the Kropellians and cancelled the privacy shield in the room.  Picking up his uniform jacket he left for his room deep in thought.

            A half hour or so later, he arrived in his room to find Sheila and Max curled up on the couch.  Sheila seemed to have calmed down and had fallen asleep in Max’s arms.  Max looked up at his best friend and smiled.

            “She just fell asleep a few moments ago,” he said softly.

            “That’s good.”

            “What’s wrong?  You look like you just took a big bite of that Yarunan fish that they served when their ambassador was looking over the Academy.”

            “I got my orders.”

            “Where are we going?”

            “I don’t know about you, but I’m leaving tomorrow at 0800.  I don’t know where yet though.”

            Just then the door chimed indicating a visitor was outside.  Ethan walked over to the door and answered it, and a younger cadet entered with a bundle on his arms.  He saw the sleeping female on the couch and said softly, “My apologies for interrupting, Commander, but Admiral Franklin ordered me to bring these to you.”

            “Commander?” Max asked.

            “In a minute,” he said to Max, then turned to the young man holding the bundle, “Just put them in that chair over there Cadet, and then you’re dismissed.”

            After the young cadet had left the room, Ethan walked over to the bundle and started to open it.  Max came up behind him and asked again, “So why did that guy call you Commander?”

            “Because the Admiral promoted me to Lieutenant Commander.”

            “What?” Max started with disbelief, “Why did he do that?”

            Ethan looked at Max with regret in his eyes and said, “I can’t tell you, Max.  I really wish I could, but it’s Beta clearance.”

            “You have Beta clearance too?  It must be something to do with the massacre and the Kropellians.”

            “I can’t tell you Max.  You know what happens if I do…”

            “I know.  I won’t press it.  When do you leave?”

            “Tomorrow morning at 0800.”

            “Well, we’ll make this as happy a night as we can,” Max said, looking over at Sheila laying on the couch and gently snoring.  “Poor thing cried herself to sleep.  Her mother was on the Napoleon.”

            “I know.  Hell we all know.  I feel so sorry for her.  I only hope we can find a way to beat them back to wherever it is they come from.”

            “I hear you there.  What do you think?” Max asked.

            “I think that we’ll figure something out.  I just wish I knew where I was going.”

            “Well, don’t worry about it right now.  Let’s go over to…” Max stopped when he heard the door open.  Laura had just entered the door, and she took one look at the serious expression on the men’s faces and her smile instantly turned to a frown.

            “You’re leaving.”  It was not a question.

            “Tomorrow morning at 0800,” Ethan nodded.

            Laura didn’t say anything.  She just turned around and went to her room, shutting the door behind her.  Ethan looked questioningly over at Max, and then followed Laura to her room.  When he arrived at the door, he found that Laura locked it behind her, so he pressed the wall panel next to the door to request admission.  Several seconds past, and Laura still didn’t allow him entry.  He pressed it again, yet still couldn’t get the door to open.

            Time to try out this command override thing.

            “Computer, override door lock, authorization Douglas-one-Echo-five-niner-Golf.”

            “Command Level Authorization confirmed.”  The door swished open, and Ethan stepped through the doorway into Laura’s room.  Laura was lying on her bed, sobbing into her pillow.  He approached her bed quietly and sat on the edge, rubbing her back.  After a moment, her sobbing quieted down, and she looked at him.

            The vulnerability in her eyes nearly broke Ethan’s heart, but instead of saying anything he merely pulled her close.

            “I know sweetheart.  I know,” he said, holding the once again crying girl to his chest tightly.  “We both knew this day would come.  The chances of us getting the same assignment were slim.”

            “Why…d…d…do you have to go?” Laura sobbed.

            “Because I’ve been ordered to by Fleet Admiral Franklin.  I talked to him after he dismissed us, and I came up with a few ideas that he liked.  So he’s assigning me personally.”

            Laura looked up and saw how much it was really hurting him to leave her.  She leaned up and kissed him ever so gently on the lips, then pulled back and started to wipe her eyes with the back of her hand.

            “Do you know where you’re going?” she asked with a final sniffle.

            “No, and even if I did I don’t think I would be able to tell you.”

            “Why not?” Laura cried, looking hurt and ready to jump off the bed.

            “Calm down, please.  Let me explain,” Ethan started, soothing her back down.  “When Admiral Franklin talked to me earlier, he did a couple things to me.”

            “What do you mean?”

            “Well, to start with, he gave me Beta clearance.”

            “He gave you Beta clearance!  Why did he do that?” Laura cried.

            “He wanted to tell me something, and I needed Beta clearance to hear it.  As Fleet Admiral, he has that authority.  But that’s not all he did…” Ethan paused here, gathering his courage.  In the four years that the two cadets had dated, all Laura had wanted to do was to become a Captain of a vessel.  Usually, the path to being a Captain was long and hard.  One served for several years as an Ensign, then some as a Lieutenant, then a few more as a Lieutenant Commander, and then finally becoming a Captain.  Usually, it took ten to fifteen years to become a Captain.  The more advanced rank of Rear Admiral almost that long again to attain, and there was only one Fleet Admiral, and another wasn’t appointed until the sitting Fleet Admiral either died or retired.  Admiral Franklin’s advancing of Ethan had shaved almost fifteen years off his trip to becoming a Captain, and he didn’t know how Laura was going to react to the news.

            “What else did he do?” Laura prompted when Ethan was silent for several moments.

            Ethan took a deep breath, and then said quietly, “He made me a Lieutenant Commander.”

            “HE DID WHAT?” Laura screamed.

            “He made me a Lieutenant Commander,” Ethan said, with a little more confidence to his voice.  “I didn’t know he was going to do it, and I didn’t ask for it,” he started after seeing that Laura was about to lose it, “I almost didn’t know what to say when he did it.  I think it has something to do with my assignment, but since I don’t know what that is, I’m not sure.”

            Laura calmed a little at that, but was still agitated.  “Well,” she chuckled as she calmed down, “it explains how you got into my room.”

            Ethan grinned a little, and then said, “Yeah.  ‘The highest-ranking officer in any domicile has full access authority to all areas of said domicile.’  I never thought I’d have the chance to use it, but it seemed a noble use of the authority.”  Ethan stroked her back a little and looked into her eyes.  “I don’t know when we’ll see each other again, so tonight is yours.  We can do whatever you want.”

            “As much as I’d like to have you all to myself, we should be with Max and Sheila some too.  They’re your friends as well, and I think we need to do something to cheer her up.  How about a game of Chunkey in one of the holosuites?”

            “Ugh,” Ethan groaned, “You would pick the game you always win.  Why can’t we play something like baseball or something?”

            “Cause,” Laura grinned, “I suck at those games.”

            Ethan laughed and then held his hand down for Laura to grab.  As he pulled her to her feet, he kept pulling until he held her close.  “I love you Laura Imhoff.  I will come back for you, I promise.”

            The two young lovers leaned in for a quick kiss, then went to try to cheer their friends up.

            Well, this is it.

            Ethan slowly looked around his room for the last time.  He’d been up for over two hours now, packing and organizing his things.  He didn’t have much, really.  Just some picture panels of his friends, his parents that had passed on, and some old Academy medals and papers lying about.  He had packed everything, including the new uniforms that Admiral Franklin had sent over, in one fairly small bag.  He’d never had anything really, coming from a very poor family.  It was one reason that from a very young age he wanted to be in the Federation Navy.  His hard work and diligence during primary school had earned him the coveted Armstrong Scholarship, a scholarship set up in the name of the first human to walk on Terra’s moon, to pay the way for his Academy training.  The Academy had provided all the food and clothing he had needed, and the few things he’d managed to accumulate over the last six years were few.

            His parents had died several years ago in a tunnel collapse in the mine they worked in on Tau Ceti III.  Both had been trying to repair one of the automated mining machines that had gotten stuck when the whole mineshaft they were working in collapsed.  Their small pressure suits were nowhere near adequate enough for that much tonnage of rock and ore, so they died almost instantly.  But their modest life insurance through the company had been enough for Ethan to buy a few picture panels, a nicer panel for himself, and his sidearm.  Not all cadets were allowed a sidearm, but Ethan, as the top cadet of the class and squadron leader of his training squadron was required to wear a sidearm.  Before he could afford one, he had worked out a deal with the Master at Arms to borrow one.  It was quite a bit of work, but he learned a lot as he cleaned and polished guns in his off hours in order to get it.  He and the Master at Arms became quite good friends, and when Ethan’s parents died, the Master at Arms helped him choose a new weapon, and find it at the least expensive price.  The Master at Arms was transferred out, and shortly thereafter retired.  The last Ethan had heard, he was living on Terra Prime in the foothills somewhere.  The weight of his sidearm on his side made him smile and think of his friend.  I hope he’s happy.

            Ethan took one more look around the room and then picked up his bag and stepped out the door.  Everyone else was still asleep, so after recording a quick video message to Laura, Max, and Sheila, he headed out the door.

            The halls were abandoned in the early morning time, and Ethan thought back to the night before.  It had taken almost an hour to get Sheila into a good enough mood to go play a game.  She seemed to cheer up considerably, especially when she and Laura teamed up against the boys.  They ended up playing Chunkey, much to Ethan’s displeasure.  Chunkey was a truly ancient game played by North American natives prior to the European arrival.  Gameplay was rather simple back then: a stone disk was rolled along the ground and men ran along side and tried to either hit the disk with a spear-like shaft or knock their opponents shaft off trajectory.  It was a game of strategy as much as skill.  The modern version that they played was slightly more complex, as the “disk” in this case was a sphere that flew around the virtual field on all planes, not just along the ground, and the “spear” was a low-output laser pistol.  Instead of trying to knock your opponent’s spear off, this version involved not getting hit by the sphere.  When a team would strike the sphere with their laser, it would start to chase the other team’s members until the other team hit it, then the process repeated until one of the team had a member that got touched by the sphere.  The sphere didn’t hurt the team member, but it recorded the hit, and the first team to get hit ten times looses.  It is a simple game of skill and strategy, but one that Ethan didn’t like.  Of all the courses at the Academy, it was the only one he never managed to surpass Laura in, something she delighted in tormenting him with.

            After their game and a quick shower, the gang had a light meal in the cafeteria, and then headed back to their room for the night.  Max and Sheila went into Sheila’s room to be alone, and it wasn’t long before Sheila was crying again.  Laura and Ethan sat in the common area and cuddled, watched a little on the vidlink, but mostly it was old movies and documentaries playing, so they retired to bed.

            Laura had been…enthusiastic that night.  Ethan guessed it was because they may never see each other again.  He had promised her that he would come back for her, but he was under no delusions.  They were about to go fight a war, and there was a very real possibility that neither of them would come back alive.  After what Admiral Franklin had told him about the entire destroyer getting vaporized in an instant, even Ethan was afraid for the future of the Federation.  If they didn’t find something, and find it fast, that neutralized or defended against the Kropellians, they were going to lose the war.

            After their lovemaking, Laura drifted off to sleep.  It had been a day of whirlwind emotions for her, and she was exhausted from the stress.  Ethan, however, was too wound up to sleep.  He crept from the bed and made his way into their common area.  Their dormitory had a small replicator for drinks and small snacks, and Ethan got a cup of coffee and some lightly salted popcorn.  He turned on the vidlink, but mostly he was thinking about his idea to the Admiral.

            He wondered if it would be possible to make a large fighter that would interface directly with the human brain.  The fighters they currently flew were light and nimble, far in excess of the reaction time of their pilots.  Experiments with AI pilots had failed miserably; the AI just weren’t creative enough to match a human counterpart that could think independently.  If they could somehow interface the pilot’s brain directly with the ship, however, they could cut the reaction time in half and maybe more.

            Ideas started to tumble through his head for half the night until he finally fell asleep on the couch.  He awoke at 0500 and decided to get up and pack.  He’d already said his goodbyes, so there was no reason to linger.

            As he came back to himself, Ethan realized that he was about to walk past his scheduled destination.  Ethan had never been in landing bay Alpha One before, but he didn’t hesitate when he thumbed the access panel.  The computer did a quick scan of his fingerprint and responded.

            “Landing Bay Alpha One requires command level rank.  Please state name and rank.”

            “Lieutenant Commander Ethan Douglas.”

            “Voice print confirmed.  Proceed.”

            As the computer finished, the massive double doors swished open, and Ethan stepped through to a large hangar open to space, a magnetic curtain keeping the atmosphere from rushing out.  Placed around the deck were several different vessels, from the small and agile Greyhound class attack fighters to the massive Mastiff class heavy bombers.  But the ship that caught his attention was the sleek looking ship in the middle of the bay.  It was painted dead black, and as Jonathan got closer to it he realized that it wasn’t just painted black, it was absorbing all the light around it as well.  Just as he was about to reach out and touch it, the black suddenly disappeared and turned to a liquid silver color, almost like liquid mercury.  The ship was almost twice the size of the Mastiffs in the bay, but didn’t appear to be armed at all.  It was smooth throughout its surface, with no visible gun ports, laser turrets, or missile tubes.

            Very unusual for a Federation craft.  I wonder if it’s a new Alfari design.

            Just next to him, a door suddenly appeared.  There was no sound to their appearance; merely a melting and reforming of steps that he could climb.  It looked as though whoever was inside the ship was inviting him aboard.  As he stepped into the cabin of the ship, the door behind him suddenly closed.  The lights flared up as the door closed, and Ethan barely had time to duck out of the way of the foot coming toward his head.

            Ethan reacted with grace and fluidity as he dropped to the ground, and tried to kick the feet out from under his as yet unknown assailant.  Dropping his bag, he jumped to his feet to meet him or her head on.  The assailant had jumped back and out of the way of his sweeping leg, so Ethan was able to get a good image of the person before he started to fight again.  The first thing that struck him was that she was a woman.  The next thing he noticed was that she was cute when she was angry.  Then he noticed that she had a laser pistol strapped to her hip.  She was a little shorter than he was, with light blonde hair tied in a tail behind her head.

            She didn’t give any sound for warning; she merely waded right back into the fight.  For several seconds, it appeared that they were evenly matched.  Ethan had studied martial arts for years before he came to the academy, and his studies had only continued while he was at the academy.  The woman across from him was very good, but after a few moments Ethan had figured out her weakness.  Just before she kicked with her right foot, she stepped hard on her left.  Ethan watched and waited for this tell to occur, then when she started to kick with her right foot, he dropped down and spun his foot around again.  This time, the woman landed unceremoniously on her backside.  Before Ethan could press his advantage, the sound of clapping reached his ears.

            He turned and saw Admiral Franklin standing in the doorway looking amused.  “I think you can stop that now, my dear,” the admiral said.  “He’s here to help you.”

            “Help me?  What can a human do to help me?”

            “Trust me, this one is special.”

            “What do you mean,” the woman said, finally reaching her feet and stepping away from Ethan warily.

            “He’s got some ideas to help, and we’re going to test them with this ship.”

            “My ship?  You’re not letting this Cadet modify my ship are you?”

            “He’ll do fine.  Besides, I think the two of you will get along just fine.”

            “He’s not going to modify…me…is he?” the woman asked hesitantly.

            “Why would I want to modify you, ma’am?  Now that I’ve said that, how would I modify you?”

            “Why,” she stated, turning toward Ethan, “you would just modify my programming.”

            Ethan stood there stunned for a few moments before the reality struck him.  “But you feel so real!”

            “Ethan,” Admiral Franklin began, “who you see before you is merely the android avatar of the artificial intelligence of this ship.”

            “But sir, I thought that the Federation had given up on AIs in ships.  Too many variables or something like that.”

            “They had, for a while.  But she is different.  She is not merely the ship’s AI.  She is the ship.  Ethan,” Admiral Franklin said, turning an intense eye on Ethan, “This is the culmination of over fifty years research and development.  There’s more computing power on this ship than in four Nebula class carriers combined.  This AI is a truly independent AI.  She is capable of creative thought and spontaneous idea.  We have not recognized any emotions as yet, but we feel it is only time before she develops them.  Once we had her running, we decided to put her into a ship and see what happened.  She has already come up with the visual shield you saw when you first came out.  By emitting a certain frequency on her shields, she is able to absorb all light coming into contact with them, rendering her absolutely black.  It doesn’t really help against emissions or gravimetric distortion, but in a battle most people aren’t looking for those.  She has totally integrated herself with the ship now, but she complains that the weapons she has are inadequate.  I want you and her to team together and work on your ideas.  Make it work.  You have unlimited resources, and a small moon to do your work.”

            “Admiral, I don’t know what to say.  I fear you may have given me more than I can handle,” Ethan said with some trepidation.

            “Just say thank you, and get to work.  We need your help badly, and I have a feeling that you are going to do great things for the Federation.”

            “Yes sir.  Thank you for your faith in me.”

            “You’re welcome, Ethan.”  Admiral Franklin turned then and headed for the main hatch.  Just as he stepped through, he turned one final time.  “Good luck Ethan, I think you’re in for a hell of a ride.  Welcome to the Aurora Project.”  And with that, Admiral Franklin stepped outside the ship and closed the hatch.