Spacers’ League government complex,
City of New Dawn, Providence, Alpha Centauri B
The members of the High Council sitting around the long conference table fell silent when Tina Forster was introduced inside the Chambers’ conference room and went to her seat. Once she was seated, Chairwoman Jeanne Mercier spoke in her microphone while smiling to Tina.
‘’Welcome back, Tina, and congratulations for your crushing victory over the Space Predators in the Gliese 581 System.’
‘’Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.’ replied Tina, who had a sober expression on her face. ‘’I am sorry about having hidden things from this council but I had my reasons to do it, reasons I am ready to explain to all of you today.’
‘’And we are ready to listen to you this morning, Tina. First, known that Admiral Yamashiro has formally disciplined Vice-Admiral Makarov for his attempt at arresting you aboard the VICTORY. He clearly abused his authority and lost the confidence of Admiral Yamashiro...and of me. Vice-Admiral Makarov has since resigned his commission and has retired from the service.’
‘’I take no joy in that, Madam Chairwoman, truly. I just wish that things could have gone otherwise. May I now present my explanations for my conduct to the High Council?’
‘’Please proceed, Tina.’
Tina then stood up and looked around at the other members while speaking in a firm but calm voice.
‘’Members of the High Council, friends, the secret weapon I have been hiding from everyone was invented by the late Doctor Koomak some three years ago, a few months before his death. He then revealed his secret to me in his last will, in which he enjoined me to not tell anyone about it, except for Spirit, the AI central computer of my
160
ship, and to use it strictly for the defense of Humanity and of other decent sentient races against invaders like the Space Predators. I accepted to keep his secret and subsequently restricted its use to the defensive batteries of my ship and to those of my embarked armed craft. I have had the exclusive use of this new weapon, which I call a
‘matter converter cannon’ for a bit over two years now and, as you can see, never waived it around or threatened its use in order to gain power or influence. The battle against the Predators in the Gliese 581 System was only the second time it was used in combat, the first time being when one of my heavy starfighters searching for the missing prospectors ship GOLDEN NUGGET encountered an invading Predator fleet in the HIP
78288 System. Thus, my secret weapon has been used solely against the Space Predators and I intend that to continue to be so. On that, you have my solemn promise.’
As she paused to see if there would be any question or comment for her, Vladimir Gasparov, the CEO of the Sverdlovsk Group and governor of the planet New Venice, in the Tau Ceti System, then raised his hand for permission to speak, with Chairwoman Mercier nodding her head to it.
‘’Go ahead, Vladimir.’
‘’Thank you, Madam Chairwoman. Tina, I have two questions for you. First, how powerful is this secret weapon of yours? Second, who has the use of it at this moment?
Only you?’
Tina gave Gasparov a somber look before answering him.
‘’Vladimir, the best way to describe my matter converter cannon is as a planet buster-class weapon. When its beam touches a ship or another material object, including an atmosphere, it then converts to anti-matter a part of its volume, something that then produces a huge matter/anti-matter reaction and explosion which liberates energy in the order of many tens of megatons or more, depending on the power class of the weapon. To illustrate this, I am now going to show you part of a recording made by the targeting system of the cannons of one of my heavy starfighters who fought the Space Predators in the Gliese 581 System. The Predator ship you will see centered in the crosshairs was actually a full eight kilometers-long and had a maximum diameter of 2.8 kilometers. My starfighter shot at it from a distance of some 230 kilometers.’
The members stared at the display screens of the individual computer stations facing them and saw a dark, mostly ovoid shape orbiting in Space, with a crosshair centered on it. Then, an intense red beam shot at the speed of light towards that Predator ship and hit it near its bow. A blinding flash of light then suddenly filled the camera’s field of view.
161
That flash persisted for a second or so before dissipating, allowing a fresh view of the targeted ship. There were gasps around the table when the members of the High Council saw that the forward third of the Predator ship was now nearly entirely gone, with the ship tumbling out of control and going upward, propelled by the power of the explosion that had disabled it. Vladimir Gasparov then looked up at Tina, his face pale.
‘’And you say that a sixty meter-long starfighter did this? What would be the effect of the super-heavy cannons aboard your NOSTROMO, Tina?’
‘’The matter converter cannons of my NOSTROMO’s main battery would be able to split open a moon or a planet, Vladimir. In the case of that Predator ship, it would have been completely and utterly destroyed in a single shot from my NOSTROMO. As for who has the use of it, I am the only one presently in possession of that type of weapon. Since it was an invention from Doctor Koomak, a Koorivar scientist, I informed Governor Sheraz about it but he refused the use of it while promising to me to keep silent about it.’
All heads around the table turned towards the Koorivar, who was the political leader of the Koorivar colonies and the governor of New Shouria, in the Wolf 1061 System.
Sheraz, who looked like a kangaroo with a large deer head, shrugged his shoulders.
‘’I am sorry, friends, but I agreed with Tina that the existence of such a weapon needed to be hidden from all, for the sake of our two races. Besides, us Koorivars are what you would call incorrigible peaceniks. Even if we possessed that super weapon, no Koorivar crew would ever accept to use it, except in extreme cases of self-defense.’
‘’We believe you, Governor Sheraz.’ said softly Jeanne Mercier. The chairwoman then looked at Tina, her expression most serious.
‘’Now that the existence of your super weapon has been revealed, Tina, would you now be ready to reveal its secrets to our Navy, so that our warships could better fight off the Space Predators’ threat?’
Tina, herself looking sober, took a moment before answering her.
‘’In view of the continuing grave threat from those monsters, I am now ready to give that secret to our Navy, but on one condition: that this High Council solemnly promises to never use it except against the Space Predators or against any similar major threat to Humanity or to other decent sentient races.’
The High Council members looked at each other, exchanging whispered comments for long seconds before gradually falling silent and looking back at Tina. Chairwoman Mercier then spoke up again.
162
‘’If I hear no objections to this, then we will now vote on accepting or not the request by Tina for us to respect the promise she is asking from us. Please raise one hand in order and say either ‘yai’, ‘nay’ or ‘abstain’. Governor Goldberg of Providence?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Braun, of Vinland?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Kendrick, of Trappist 1?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Gasparov, of New Venice?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Lynn, of Wotan?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Tomunaga, of New Polynesia?’’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Winthrop, of Nova Domo?’
Winnie Winthrop, who was in theory subordinate to Agneta Braun, whose corporation-controlled Nova Domo and who had already voted ‘yai’, hesitated for a moment before answering.
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor O’Donnel , of Utopia?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Lombardi, of Atlantis?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Berman, of the El Dorado?’
‘’Nay!’
Many, including Jeanne Mercier, reacted to that vote by staring for a moment at the Pallas Mining Industries executive, who had been closely allied with ex-Chairman Paul Stein, before the chairwoman continued her roundup.
‘’Governor Kim, of Mu?’
‘’Nay!’ answered Kim Dae Wo, another executive of the Pallas Mining Industries, another past ally of Paul Stein, attracting a dirty look from Michael Kendrick, the present head of the Pallas Mining Industries, who had voted ‘Yai’. On her part, an impassive Tina couldn’t help have a thought then.
‘At least I know where my friends and my enemies are now.’
163
‘’Governor Armstrong, of Upsilon Andromeda?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Consuela, of Teegarden’s Star?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Sheraz, of New Shouria?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Dominguez, of Gemini?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Governor Watts, or Mars and Utopia?’
Charles Watts, an old friend of Tina, answered firmly and at once.
‘’Yai!’
‘’Minister of Defense Cardona?’
‘’Abstain!’ answered Juan Cardona after hesitating for a couple of seconds.
Jeanne Mercier stared at him for a moment before continuing her vote call-up.
‘’Minister of External Affairs Nisstrom?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Minister of Justice Prabang?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Minister of Finance Munroe?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Minister of Industries and Economy Miyagi?’
‘’Yai!’
‘’Minister of Health and Social Affairs Shu?’
‘’Yai!’
Jeanne Mercier then started counting the votes but was interrupted by a smiling Tina.
‘’Excuse me, Madam Chairwoman, but you didn’t ask for my vote.’
Jeanne Mercier gave her a sardonic look in response.
‘’Did I really have to ask for your vote, Tina?’
‘’No, but I simply wanted us to strictly follow the procedures, in case someone would say in the future that this vote had irregularities and thus did not count.’
‘’Hum, true! Governor Forster, of New Haven?’’
‘’Yai!’
164
‘’Good girl! The results of the votes are as follows: twenty ‘yais’, two ‘nays’ and one ‘abstain’. The ‘yais’ have it. Tina, when will you be able to pass to us the technical specs of your secret weapon?’
‘’Right now, Madam Chairwoman. I brought a thumb drive which contains the detailed schematics of my matter converter cannon and which I will hand over to you personally. I must insist now that those files be treated as ‘Top Secret – High Council Controlled’ classified documents and be given as limited a circulation as possible.’
‘’Agreed!’
‘’Uh, are we talking about something that will cost a bundle and will need a major industrial effort in order to equip our Navy ships with it, Tina?’ asked Minister of Finance John Munroe, getting an amused chuckle from Tina.
‘’Hardly! My so-called ‘new weapon’ is basically nothing more than a muzzle piece which is to be attached to our existing disintegrator cannons. I was able to build most of them in the workshops of my NOSTROMO.’
Charles Watts, the governor of Mars and of Utopia, hid his face in his hands on hearing that.
‘’Such a doomsday weapon: a simple garage job!’
Tina laughed briefly before pointing an index at Watts.
‘’Well, it is a bit more than a garage job, Charles. But it is quick and economical to build, I will give you that.’
Tina then became most serious and looked around at the other members of the High Council.
‘’Ladies and gentlemen, with this new weapon, Humanity will soon be able to resist efficiently any new attempts at invasion or attack by the Space Predators. The one thing I hope now is that we will never become stupid enough to use it against each other.’
‘’Amen to that.’ said Jeanne Mercier before looking at the High Council members sitting around the long conference table. ‘’Starting tomorrow, we will institute an emergency update program of our Navy’s disintegrator weapons, so that we could as rapidly as possible be able to face the Space Predators and defeat them the next time we will encounter them. This meeting of the High Council is thus adjourned.’
Mercier then banged her gavel on the table, making the members of the council get up from their chairs and start gathering their documents to put them back in their briefcases.
However, the chairwoman signaled her defense minister, Juan Cardona, to come and
165
see her. Cardona hesitated for a second but went to her, following her to a far corner of the room, where Jeanne Mercier stared at him with contained anger.
‘’I myself supported Captain Forster’s request for us to respect her wishes concerning her new weapon. What took you, my minister of defense, to vote ‘abstain’ on it, although our Navy will be the direct beneficiary of this new weapon?’’
Cardona took a deep breath before answering her.
‘’Simply said, I do not have full confidence in Captain Forster, Madam Chairwoman. This is not the first time that she actually hid important secrets or initiated discreet programs without the prior approval of the High Council.’
His excuse, instead of assuaging her, only made Mercier angrier and she rose her voice by a notch while pointing an index at Cardona.
‘’You don’t have confidence in Captain Forster? And who the hell are you to doubt the loyalty of such a woman towards the Spacers League and Humanity? You never fought personally once to defend the Spacers League and never served in the Navy. You are in fact little more than a simple bureaucrat and you dare judge such a hero as Tina Forster? By you voting ‘abstain’, you showed me that you are not ready to support my decisions concerning the good and security of the Spacers League. In fact, I am starting to wonder if you are not in league with those two idiots from the Pallas Mining Consortium who voted ‘nay’, possibly in order to effect some future attempt at a power grab. I will not have a defense minister in whom I can’t have confidence into.
You are thus fired as defense minister, Cardona. I will assume the control of our defense ministry until I can find someone more reliable than you to fill that position in my cabinet. Now, get out of here and go prepare and sign your letter of resignation. I want you out of this building before noon, without your security pass.’
Severely shaken and pale, Cardona could only turn around and walk away, to leave the conference room under the angry eyes of Jeanne Mercier, who then uttered a question to herself in a near whisper.
‘’How many such idiots and misguided people do I still have serving me, apart from him?’
166
THE A.M.S. NOSTROMO – EXTERNAL VIEWS
167
THE A.M.S. NOSTROMO – LONGITUDINAL CUT
168
STAR CHART OF THE SPACERS’ LEAGUE
169
MISSION CREW, CHAPTER 4: DEEP SPACE RECONNAISSANCE
CREW OF THE HEAVY STARFIGHTER ‘SHOOTING STAR’: Pieter Nordlung: Pilot and commander of the ‘SHOOTING STAR’.
Born on March 17, 2302, on Hygiea, Solar System. 186 cm, blond hair, blue eyes. Ethnic Dutch descent. Married with Senior Centurion Jehanne de Domrémy, is adoptive father to 3-year-old Frida Thorund. Resides in Apartment # 554-042, Habitat Ring Complex, A.M.S. NOSTROMO.
Lisa Wong: Copilot & navigator of the ‘SHOOTING STAR’. Born on July 04, 2306, on Ceres, Solar System. 172 cm, black hair, brown eyes. Ethnic Chinese descent. Single. Resides in Apartment # 558-106, Habitat Ring Complex, A.M.S. NOSTROMO.
Felix Delgado: Weapons Officer of the ‘SHOOTING STAR’. Born on October 20, 2307, on Callisto Prime, Solar System. 178 cm, black hair, brown eyes. Ethnic Latino mix. Married to Francia Hidalgo, has two children (son Riko, 5-yo, and daughter Maria, 2-yo).
Resides in Apartment # 554-308, Habitat Ring Complex, A.M.S.
NOSTROMO.
Beza Gebre: Sensors Officer of the ‘SHOOTING STAR’. Born on May 02, 2313, in Ethiopia, Earth, Solar System. Daughter of refugees from civil war in Ethiopia who were given asylum on New Haven in 2320. 180 cm, black hair, black eyes, dark brown skin.
Single. Resides in Apartment # 562-110, Habitat Ring Complex, A.M.S. NOSTROMO.
Matsuo Hondo: First Engineer of the ‘SHOOTING STAR’. Born on December 21, 2300, in Sasebo, Japan, Earth, Solar System. Family emigrated to Ceres in 2302. 176 cm, black hair, brown eyes.
Married to Keiko Tomonaga, has two children (sons Jiro, 10-yo, and
170
Kazuo, 6-yo). Resides in Apartment # 554-210, Habitat Ring Complex, A.M.S.
NOSTROMO.
Edward Lansing: Second Engineer of the ‘SHOOTING STAR’.
Born on September 30, 2307, on Triton, Neptune System. 181 cm, red hair, brown eyes. Ethnic Englishman. Married to Virginia Stanwick, has one daughter, Emily, 5-yo. Resides in Apartment #
566-094, Habitat Ring Complex, A.M.S. NOSTROMO.
Jawal Parmat: Maintenance Technician of the ‘SHOOTING STAR’.
Born on April 15, 2312, on Europa, Jovian System. 176 cm, black hair and short beard, black eyes, dark skinned. Ethnic Indian. Married to Indira Darma, no children. Resides in Apartment # 562-118, Habitat Ring Complex, A.M.S. NOSTROMO.
MEMBERS OF THE FIRST SQUAD, NINTH CENTURY:
Kurt Vogel: Decurion in charge of First Squad/Ninth Century. Built in 2330 at the Avalon Space Yards. 186 cm, brown hair, brown eyes.
Fought against the Space Predators in the TOI 700 System and in the Battle for Nordland. Secondary occupation/hobby: ground vehicle maintenance and repair. Resides in Apartment # 576-230.
Tanya Orlova: Legionnaire member of the First Squad. Built in 2335
at the Avalon Space Yards. 177 cm, black hair, black eyes. No combat experience. Secondary occupation/hobby: cybernetics technician.
Resides in Apartment #576-308.
Jeffrey Brown: Legionnaire member of the First Squad. Built in 2335
at the Avalon Space Yards. 184 cm, black hair, brown eyes, brown skin. No combat experience. Secondary occupation/hobby: Energy weapons maintenance and repair. Resides in Apartment # 576-312.
171
Sven Larssen: Legionnaire member of the First Squad. Built in 2335
at the Avalon Space Yards. 185 cm, brown hair, blue eyes. No combat experience. Secondary occupation/hobby: waiter at the Munich Beer Hall’, Ring Habitat Complex, A.M.S. NOSTROMO.
Resides in Apartment # 576-316.
Jacinda Madison: Legionnaire member of the First Squad. Built in 2335 at the Avalon Space Yards. 179 cm, black hair, brown eyes, light brown skin. No combat experience. Secondary occupation/hobby: stage dancing at the ‘Moonlight Dance Club’, on the A.M.S.
NOSTROMO. Resides in Apartment # 576-320.
Miri Jintsu: Senior Legionnaire and second-in-command of the First Squad. Built in 2330 at the Avalon Space Yards. 175 cm, black hair, brown eyes. Fought against the Space Predators in the TOI 700
System and in the Battle for Nordland. Secondary occupation/hobby: unarmed combat and mixed martial arts. Resides in Apartment # 576-242.
Ahmed Ramadi: Legionnaire member of the First Squad. Built in 2335 at the Avalon Space Yards. 181 cm, brown hair, brown eyes. No combat experience. Secondary occupation/hobby: sword fighting (saber, scimitar). Resides in Apartment # 576-324.
Régis Dumont: Legionnaire member of the First Squad. Built in 2335
at the Avalon Space Yards. 182 cm, black hair, brown eyes. No combat experience. Secondary occupation/hobby: waiter at the ‘Eiffel’
French restaurant, Ring Habitat Complex, A.M.S. NOSTROMO.
Resides in Apartment # 576-328.
Brian Mojambo: Legionnaire member of the First Squad and heavy weapons gunner. Built in 2335 at the Avalon Space Yards. 188 cm, black hair, brown eyes, brown skin. No combat experience. Secondary occupation/hobby: electronics repair technician. Resides in Apartment #
172
576-332.
John Lee: Legionnaire member of the First Squad and combat paramedic. Built in 2330 at the Avalon Space Yards. 178 cm, black hair, brown eyes. Fought against the Space Predators in the TOI 700 System and in the Battle for Nordland. Secondary occupation/hobby: medical orderly at the medical center of the A.M.S. NOSTROMO. Resides in Apartment # 576-336.
173
ANNEX ‘E’ – MAMBA-CLASS HEAVY STARFIGHTER
174
