Final frontier, p.1
Final Frontier, page 1
FINAL FRONTIER
A NOVEL BY
F.J. HANSEN
Copyright 2023 F.J. Hansen
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
Thank you for downloading this ebook. This book remains the copyrighted property of the author and may not be redistributed to others for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer. Thank you for your support.
Table of Contents
Prologue
Part I: One Giant Leap
Part II: Lost in Time
Part III: Things to Come
Part IV: Rendezvous
Epilogue
About the Author
PROLOGUE
Earth Calendar: 9 June 2072 A.D.
RAKAN GRIPPED her console with webbed fingers as the ship shook around her. Alarms blared and the deckplates beneath her feet vibrated with the hum from the ship’s engines. She glanced around the dimmed bridge. The chief engineer was feeding all available power into the engines in an effort to combat the effects of the gravity field. Was this what had happened to the eleven ships that had disappeared in this region over the last seventy years?
“Is there any progress?” Captain Shenkak asked.
“We are still trapped in the gravity field,” the helm officer said. “We are slipping toward the source of gravity.”
“Captain, we cannot maintain these power levels,” came the urgent voice of the chief engineer over the intercom.
Shenkak looked up to meet Rakan’s eyes. “Are we in position?”
She quickly confirmed the readings on her screen. “Affirmative. The message probe should now have a favorable return trajectory toward Earth.”
They had spent nearly a year on the third planet of the nearby system, establishing a promising relationship with the dominant sentient species living upon it. “Trennask, is the anomaly still interfering with communications?”
“It is. I cannot guarantee a clear signal to Earth.”
“Launch message probe.” On the viewscreen a moment later, the probe shot away from them, trailing red. With the interstellar communication equipment they had given them, the Humans should be able to inform Perij of their fate.
“Captain, I must shut down the engines. The ship will crumble if I do not.”
Shenkak turned back to the screen and sighed through his gills. Rakan understood the dilemma. If they continued resisting the gravitational force of the anomaly, they would die. If they did not resist, they could very well die anyway—though, admittedly, they did not know that for sure. All they knew was that the Republic had already lost eleven ships in this region, their ultimate fates still unknown. “Very well. Shutdown engines. All hands, brace yourselves.”
Shenkak tightened his grip on his armrests. Rakan did the same as the hum of the engines died. The vibrations in the deckplates continued, steadily growing in intensity. Then, the ship lurched, rattling her bones. She grimaced as light flooded the viewscreen, bleaching the command deck in a blinding white.
PART I:
ONE GIANT LEAP
CHAPTER 1
Earth Calendar: 5 March 2105 A.D.
“WE APPROACH a landmark day in the history of Humankind—the official launch of the Earth Alliance Ship Frontier. We remain on track following a successful test run around the inner planets almost a month ago. Earth’s first interstellar vessel, also the first space vessel commissioned under the joint venture of the Earth Alliance, is scheduled to launch at ten-thirty in the morning, Greenwich Mean Time, on the tenth of March with Captain Bryan Hamilton commanding and Lieutenant Commander Kenneth McClance as his executive officer. Shannon Casey is on Space Station Eternity’s Edge, documenting this historic occasion from there. We connect with her now. Miss Casey, you’re on.”
Ken, sitting back on the sofa, crossed his arms and grimaced at hearing the news anchor for International Broadcast Network, Ian Brocksmith, mention his name. It wasn’t that he objected to the position. On the contrary, he was thrilled to receive such a coveted assignment—executive officer on Earth’s first interstellar spacecraft and a member of the first Human crew to venture beyond their solar system. He had put forth honest effort to qualify for the position. Despite that, Brocksmith’s implication was clear. He would only ever be the son of Aldwin McClance—the man who single-handedly saved the whales!
“What's the matter, Ken?”
Ken looked over his shoulder. Back in the kitchen, Claudia stood behind a counter, breaking lettuce into a salad bowl. “What?”
“You're crossing your arms. You always cross your arms when something’s troubling you.”
Ken separated his arms and broke out a grin. “You know me too well.”
Claudia broke the last of the lettuce and circled the counter to step down into the living room. As she stepped up behind the sofa, Ken glanced at her belly, just beginning to swell, before he looked up to meet her eyes. “It’s known to happen between married couples,” she said.
Ken turned back to the monitor mounted on the wall at the other end of the room, re-crossed his arms and sighed. “It’s my dad’s shadow. It follows me into space.”
On the monitor, a woman in a black suit with shoulder-length brown hair—Shannon Casey—had replaced the male anchor. She stood beside a viewport aboard the Alliance’s space station. “Thirty-four years ago, the U.S.S. Copernicus made contact with the Peridjinn Survey Ship Krask. Ten years later, Peridjinn engineers began working with an international group of Human engineers and scientists to develop warp drive. Finally, twenty-four years of perseverance have been rewarded.”
Casey gestured toward the viewport. The camera panned to reveal the E.A.S. Frontier, in her drydock outside. The blue globe of Earth, its white, swirling clouds, formed a stunning backdrop. The view of the planet moved with the station’s orbit and rotation and the Earth's rotation. “Moored here is the Earth Alliance Ship Frontier, undergoing final preparations for the momentous occasion.”
“Frontier! Frontier!” a high-pitched voice cried, accompanying the patter of little feet on the wood floor. Edward ran into the room from the hall and jumped onto the sofa. Ken barely felt anything as the cushions absorbed the impact. “Is that the Frontier?” Edward held wide eyes on the monitor, now showing various angles of the ship that Casey and her assistant had captured, presumably on their approach to the station.
Ken smiled and put an arm around his son. In his small hand, the boy clutched a miniature version of the ship. “That’s her, Eddie.”
The door chime sounded. Ken, rolling his eyes and repressing a sigh, withdrew his arm and came to his feet. He followed his wife up to the front door and braced himself against a blast of cold air when Claudia opened the door.
“Claudia, dear!” his mum cried with open arms as she stepped in, followed by his dad. She and Claudia hugged each other. Then, she moved towards him. “Hello, Kenneth.”
“Hiya, Mum.”
“Grammy! Gramps!” Edward ran up to his grandparents, cutting between Ken and Claudia.
Aldwin, with peppered hair, bent and opened his arms to the boy. “Hey, Eddie! How’s my grandson, eh?”
All the while, Ken watched him, his dad obviously trying to avoid his son’s eyes. “Aldwin, are you forgetting someone?” his mum asked, her tone rebuking. The evasion did not escape her notice either, evidently.
Aldwin looked up at her, then finally met Ken’s eyes. The smile vanished as he straightened. “Hello, Kenneth.”
“Hello, Dad.”
“Go on, Eddie. I’ll be with you later.”
“So, Claudia, have you had any odd cravings lately?” his mum asked, leading her off to the kitchen while Edward went back to his room.
Soon, Ken and Aldwin were alone. For what felt like minutes, neither said a word while the air between them thickened. On the monitor, Casey continued talking about the Frontier and her place in history. “I hear you've been accepted for a position aboard the starship,” Aldwin finally said.
“That’s right.” Ken swung back towards the monitor, just switching back to Brocksmith. “Lieutenant Commander Kenneth McClance, son of Aldwin McClance—the man who single-handedly saved the whales!”
“Coming up next,” the anchor said, “we’ll speak with Professor Deshi Kwang of Harvard University regarding the incredible discovery recently made near Manu, Nigeria, which seems to indicate the existence of Humanoid life on Earth sixty-five million years ago.”
“Monitor off,” Ken ordered.
“Of course, I didn’t do it single-handedly,” Aldwin said as the monitor obediently went blank. “You know how much the media loves to exaggerate things.”
“You haven’t seemed to mind it.”
“I do, and I’ve tried to set it straight. That I could never have done it without my team or the efforts around the world. But when a story achieves the status of legend, details get twisted or lost. And when the world watches you and sees you in a certain way, you’re obligated to live up to it. I would’ve thought they understood that—Robert, Sam, and Nancy. I'm sure David would’ve.”
Ken looked back at his dad, the weary eyes gazing into the past as he recalled his old friends and teammates. He remembered Robert Davis and Sam and Nancy Fisher—they used to come around often when he was a lad. That is, until Aldwin started welcoming the attention. Then, Robert and the Fishers distanced themselves, causing a stir in the media. David Vargas had been killed in the war, so Ken only knew of him through photos an d what his dad and friends had shared about him.
“You’re not the only one who’s got to live with it,” Ken said. Aldwin looked up to meet his son’s eyes. “Have you any idea what it’s been like to grow up in your shadow? I can’t do anything without being singled out as the ‘son of Aldwin McClance’. Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate what you’ve done. I admire it even. It’s just so frustrating to have my accomplishments paired right alongside yours.” Ken glowered at his dad, then at the floor.
“I hope deep space is the answer for you.” Finally, Ken looked up to meet his dad’s gentle eyes.
At that moment, the enticing aroma of lasagna filled the flat, clearing the air. “Dish up!” Claudia announced from the kitchen.
*
Captain Bryan Hamilton gazed out the viewport at his ship, caged in her drydock. Initially, he was proud to have been chosen to command Humanity’s first interstellar vessel. But, because the E.A.S. Frontier was the first interstellar vessel, he would have to act as host to a reporter documenting the maiden voyage...and other passengers who, except for the Peridjinn, probably have never been in outer space before now. The frustration canceled out what pride he would have felt otherwise.
“Our next broadcast will be on the ninth, the night before the launch, from aboard the E.A.S. Frontier,” the reporter said, standing in front of another viewport to his right, speaking to the camera headset that her assistant wore. “Until then, this is Shannon Casey signing off.”
Her assistant flicked a switch on his headset. “We’re off,” he said.
“Thank you, Ward.” Casey turned to the captain. Bryan met her eyes squarely. “Well, Captain, any thoughts?”
“You're a promising reporter, Miss Casey, but that doesn’t change my mind about your presence on our maiden voyage.”
Casey scoffed and rolled her eyes. “This is a historic event! As big as making first contact with the Peridjinn, the first colonies on the Moon and Mars, the first ion-driven spaceship, the moon race of the 1960s, and the launch of Sputnik.”
“Yes, I heard you say all that on your broadcast. And, if you don’t like my opinion, you shouldn’t have asked for it.” He turned to leave the lounge.
Casey followed. “Why shouldn’t we be aboard to document the maiden voyage of Humankind’s first interstellar spacecraft?”
“I don’t object to that, Miss Casey,” Bryan said, keeping his voice calm. He stopped and turned back to her. “I object to having individuals aboard who are untrained.” Casey opened her mouth for a rebuttal. Bryan cut her off. “If it makes you feel any better, yours isn’t the only presence I object to.”
The station’s intercom whistled for attention. “Captain Hamilton. Captain Hamilton. Admiral Maddox will see you now.”
“If you’ll excuse me.” Bryan hastened his step, leaving Casey in the lounge, though lightly tapping footfalls on the deckplates told him the reporter followed. Bryan resisted the urge to look over his shoulder. Well, let her follow. This meeting was partly about her, anyway.
“Yes, Hamilton, what did you want to see me about?” the admiral asked the moment he entered her office, her eyes on the computer terminal, angled away from the door. Her short, red hair had just the slightest hint of gray in it.
“I wish to file a protest, Admiral,” he said, drawing her attention, “in regard to having this civilian aboard my ship.”
“And I must remind the admiral,” Casey said as she entered the office, right on cue, “that Alliance Command understood and agreed to the importance of having this achievement fully documented. Cooperation was ensured.”
Maddox nodded her agreement. “Yes, it was. Your protest is noted, Captain Hamilton. Anything else?”
Bryan threw the reporter a quick glare, then returned his attention to the admiral. “As a matter of fact, there is.” He opened his mouth to continue but paused as he considered the reporter behind him. He swung back to her. “If you don’t mind, I’d rather not have this shared with the inner system.”
Casey crossed her arms. For a moment, Bryan thought she was about to refuse to leave. Finally, she stepped back, slowly and holding the captain’s eyes a moment longer before turning to storm out.
When he was sure she was gone, Bryan once again turned back to the admiral. “While I’m at it, I also protest the presence of the Peridjinn and Soviet observers—especially the Soviets.”
Maddox leaned back in her chair, her brow furrowed in puzzlement. “The Federation delegation I can understand, but why the Peridjinn? They’re the ones who gave us the warp technology. Their engineers spent the last twenty years working with our people—and with the Federation—to make ships like the Frontier a reality.”
“And I’m grateful for that, but is it necessary for them to hold our hands every step of the way?”
“Their government extended the offer, in an effort to maintain strong relations between our worlds, to place observers aboard the Frontier for her maiden voyage. Alliance Command accepted. But again, the observers will only be aboard for the maiden voyage. After that, they’re off. Same goes for the Federation delegation—the maiden voyage is enough to satisfy our agreement with the Peridjinn Republic that the Soviet Federation be included in all matters relating to the warp technology.”
Hamilton sighed his resignation. “Fine. As long as it’s clear that I'm the one in command. Do I have permission to lock them in their quarters if necessary?”
“Granted,” Maddox said slowly, then hardened her eyes, “but only if absolutely necessary. All three parties want a smooth voyage. Toward that end, you are ordered to extend every courtesy to the Peridjinn and Federation delegations, and to the reporters, short of jeopardizing the safety of the ship and those aboard. Is that understood?”
“Perfectly. Do I have that in writing?”
“Yes. It’s in the orders I transmitted to your ship.”
*
Sharesk inhaled. The cold winter air rushed into his gills and down his air passages into his lungs, warmed by his body along the way. Even after six years, it was still strange but curiously invigorating to feel the icy, oxygen-rich air chill his neck from the inside. The cold air did not affect him in any way tonight, however. He did not even feel it through his standard jacket.
He looked up at the crystalline night sky, alive with millions of twinkling stars and a waning crescent moon. He ignored all that as his thoughts dwelled on a world twenty-two light-years away.
Norcz. Thirty-six years ago, an exploratory mission to that world had made contact with the sentient natives there, the reptilian Norseen. Since then, they have been assisting the Norseen in achieving warp flight, just as they have been assisting the Humans. The Norseen had seemed cooperative. They were certainly more unified than the Humans. Why did they attack the embassy? And what has become of his mate, Fech? Everything had seemed fine just two weeks ago when he had gone to visit her.
Dear Fech… What had gone wrong on Norcz?
Sharesk approached the balcony overlooking the main courtyard and Lake Geneva beyond. Lights in each corner of the lower yard and the upper yard behind him lit up the night. Southward, a million-plus specks of light formed an outline around the dark, reflective expanse of the lake—more concentrated in certain areas than in others.
He bent his head and closed his eyes. Tears swelled. He clenched his fist and slammed the metal railing.
“You have heard.”
He whirled to find Krishnik standing behind him, bundled in a thick coat like the ones the local Humans wore, a fur-lined hood up. He carried another, which he offered Sharesk. Now noticing the cold piercing his bones, he accepted the coat, dipping his head in acknowledgment. “Do we know the extent of the damage?” he asked as he slipped on the jacket.
“The Norseen have seized every bit of technology that is not integrated into the structure. They now occupy the building with thirty hostages—it is unknown if your mate is among them. The Norseen are threatening to kill them if Captain Jureskan fails to surrender her vessel. She is attempting to stall until reinforcements arrive.”
