The Ocoda Chronicles Book 2 Lost Heroes Read online

  Val once again interrupts as he looks over his holopad, saying, "General, I should have a way to disrupt their gateway use in our solar system, so to prevent them from using that as a weapon against the Earth, just like the X’ena did on their world."

  Jackson, becoming a little annoyed as Val continually interrupts asks, "Can you create this, whatever this thing is to function on our ships Val?"

  Val, not even looking up at Jackson, replies, "No General, the device is very large, almost the size of this ship itself. The one the X’ena’s used back during our initial foray into their system was very intricate and I have those plans in my head."

  Jackson sighs replying, "Val, do what you can to get this fleet up and running first. Then focus on this gateway jammer.” Val is really acting so differently, not sure what to think about this, but I'll have to keep an eye on him and see what develops.

  Val, Kitanna, and Qui Shi leave, as Jackson sits in his room waiting. After an hour, he sees the pressure sensor go up, and he says aloud, "I knew you wouldn’t listen Tess. What do you want now?"

  Tess appears and says, "Well I guessed you’d be waiting for me, and I didn’t want to disappoint you."

  Jackson annoyed replies, "I survived, so your fortune telling abilities are over. You don’t know what is going to happen anymore, so what do you want from me now?"

  Tess replies, "In the alternate timeline the Earth fleet suffered heavy losses fighting the T-Challa base. They won, but at a terrible price. I want to help prevent that."

  Jackson sits and states, "I’m listening."

  Tess says, "Give us Carla, and my people will destroy the T-Challa base for you."

  Jackson scoffs answering, "Get the hell off my ship."

  Tess quickly adds, "Wait Jacks! We have her mother."

  Jackson, very confused asks, "Emily was… killed? . . .” Damn it, they must have been on the planet just before the attack. Regaining his thoughts, Jackson continues, asking, "You have her personally?"

  Tess reluctantly answers, "No, another Paladonian sect got to her just before I could get there. She is nonetheless with our people, and Jacks, you know Carla will be safer with us. Besides Jacks, you don’t know what she is capable of."

  Jackson smiles and says, "Sounds to me you need us, more than we need you. Care to start with the complete truth Miss Tess, because you see I have made a career out of seeing when people are lying, or holding back. I know your tap dancing around a lot of information."

  Tess sighs and says, "My sect is the youngest of all the Paladonian sects Jacks. Caleb gave my people one specific mission, and we succeeded, you survived the battle. However, the other sects felt that Caleb’s personal missions were pointless, so long as he went through the gateway and changed the past. So long as they would live, and as such they care very little for what happens to you or the Earth."

  Jackson smugly smiles, "And having Carla, will give your sect the power and respect you want." I wonder what really happened to Caleb, that man always covered all his bases.

  Tess annoyed answers, "No, that’s not what I am saying. You don’t understand her powers Jacks, her real potential. That Little Flower as you like to call her is a lot more powerful and dangerous than you realize, and we know how to handle her."

  Jackson smirks, asking, "How many ships do you have at your command Tess?"

  Tess confused replies, "We have many ships, but not as many as the others."

  Jackson smugly suggests, "I’m figuring, that you have at most few dozen warships, and I’m guessing you alone cannot command those ships."

  Tess aggravated replies, "Yes Jacks, I share leadership with my older brother Kalen, and he didn’t want to risk our fleet to save you."

  Jackson chuckles as he says, "Sounds like Caleb’s little experiment didn’t work out all too well. So tell me Tess, what happened to Onatof, White, Cooley, and Benton?"

  Tess smirks and reluctantly answers, "Well, I don’t know what happened to everyone, but Cooley and White are my direct descendants."

  Jackson’s eyes go wide and asks, "Your Reggie’s grand kid?"

  Tess smiles and says, "Well, a few generations removed Jacks, but yes I am."

  Jackson shakes his head in disbelief and says, "Well Tess, I want Emily to be released immediately. So tell me who I need to speak to."

  Tess sighs heavily answering, "Jacks, those that have her are an extreme radical group within the Tof sect itself. They most likely have her in suspended animation, along with Caleb's son Domingo. Nevertheless, Jacks, this splinter group has hundreds of ships at their command, and these people don’t negotiate with anyone. The Tofs in general are one of the most difficult sects to deal with. Only the First Ones are more reclusive."

  Jackson smiles, "Hundreds of ships, that can’t fire on us, and which I can shutdown at the whim of a seven year old child."

  Tess arrogantly replies, "She is far too young to know how to use that ability yet."

  Jackson smiles replies, "Willing to bet on that Tess."

  Tess now concerned and humbled says, "No, not really Jacks."

  Jackson smiles, saying, "Ok Tess, this is how it is going to go from now on, you are to be my personal advisor. You will be allowed on the ship with your brother and given full diplomatic courtesy. Oh, and I know you’re on a modified support fighter, I will allow you to bring it into the hangar bay of the Yorktown. So, we will either work together, or the next time you try and talk to me, I can and will power down your ships, and introduce you to the inside of my brig."

  Tess confused asks, "How did you know what I’m flying Jacks?"

  Jackson smiles, and activates his holoplayer, which then plays a holocom recording of the previous battle, which clearly shows Tess’s ship firing at a T-Challa Medium Cruiser.

  Jackson confidently says, "I’m pretty sure you need us, more than we need you, but it doesn’t hurt to have some inside information on the rest of the Paladonian’s."

  Tess sighs and says, "Fine Jacks, me and my brother will help you."

  Jackson smugly replies, "Welcome aboard Tess."

  CHAPTER SIX

  RETRIBUTION

  Jackson steps out of his ready room with Tess beside him announcing, "This is Tess White. She is my advisor, and is to be treated as a diplomat with all due respect and accordance with her title as an ambassador of her people."

  Mulvey shocked asks, "General, just where did she come from?"

  Tess answers, "I am a Paladonian, from the moon called Whitefeather."

  Jackson a little surprised whispers, asking, "Who named the moon?"

  Tess replies, "Caleb did, he named every moon."

  Jackson smirks and then turns his attention to his command crew ordering, "Get me Earth on the holocom now."

  A few minutes pass when the communications officer states, "I have the Earth central command on the com sir."

  The leaders of earth all appear as Haggier says, "Good work General Jackson, now bring our ships home."

  Jackson irritated by Haggier replies, "No, we are heading to the T-Challa base to shut it down now."

  Baker speaks up, "Andrew, your fleet is heavily damaged, come home make repairs, and then you can go after them. Surely this offensive can wait until after we make repairs."

  Tess speaks up, "Hello President Baker, I am Tess White of the Paladonian sect Whitefeather. I suggest you listen to the General, and to me. If you don’t go on the offensive, they will return with a more covert style of fighting, which will not only endanger your people but mine as well. The base must be shutdown now, before they can regroup."

  Chan than stands as he is curious, asking, "Who are you, and just how do you know this?"

  Jackson replies, "She has information from the future, directly from Caleb and Paladin."

  Haggier confused asks, "Caleb is alive?"

  Tess than declares to the dignitaries and the bridge crew the story of Caleb, "We don’t know if he is still alive today General, but he did survive the T-Challa trap. He did so
by entering the gateway just before the nuke he had launched exploded. However, the resulting explosion caused them to be thrown into a time vortex, which propelled them some three thousand years into the future. Once there, they discovered a series of fatal errors that had led the human race into a horrific future. Caleb then found a way to return to the past, to prevent that future from happening. Regrettably, something happened while traveling back in time. He was sent back over two thousand years into your past."

  Tess pauses catching her breath, she continues, "Having no way to return to this time. Caleb decided to create a new culture, a new race of humanity, which he would call the Paladonian’s, my people. We were giving one primary mission, and that was to prevent this fatal future from ever occurring."

  Haggier suspicious asks, "Just how did Admiral Caleb create your people?"

  Tess smiles as she answers, "Paladin brought back, thousands of human survivors from the future. Paladin used the historical information on the complete history of your world. We used that knowledge to locate any individuals or even entire cultures that would have otherwise simply disappeared without a trace. Caleb brought these lost souls to our home system. There we grew as a people and lived and developed into the Paladonian people."

  Chan inquisitively asks, "So you have ships, and warriors to help us?"

  Jackson rolls his eyes and replies, "It appears that Caleb’s plan of a unified people isn’t as simple as he hoped. They’re a broken people, which don’t always work together, and other than ensuring that Caleb went through the gateway, they don’t really care about anyone, or anything but themselves."

  Baker very concerned asks, "Do your people pose a threat to us?"

  Tess replies, "Caleb, made sure that we could never attack each other using technology based on X’ena science, so, to answer your question, no we do not pose a threat to you, nor do you pose one to us."

  Baker asks, "I would like to establish a dialogue with your world’s leaders, so that we can come to a better understanding, and perhaps work together."

  Tess replies, "Our people have been on your world for hundreds, if not thousands of years. Watching and studying your people. Some maybe open and willing to do this. Others are so distant, so untrusting of anyone, they are almost xenophobic."

  Chan, studying Tess speaks, "Miss Tess, I’m assuming correctly that you are a descendant of Commander Reginald White, of Caleb’s original crew?"

  Tess confused asks, "Yes, but how the hell do you know that? I just told General Jackson that just minutes ago."

  Chan confidently smiles, saying, "I make it a point to know these things Miss White. I knew that Commander White’s real last name was Whitefeather, which is the name of your home world. Your last name is White, and you are the acting as leader of your people. So Miss White in my position it is important to quickly size up who you are dealing with."

  Tess smiles and replies, "Caleb had details about each and everyone in the command chain, but I would have to say that Caleb never knew you were so intuitive."

  Baker refocused on the possible battle asks, "Do we have time to rebuild our fleet to attack that base, or is your ability to see the future now useless that you have interacted with us?"

  Tess replies, "By saving General Jackson, the future as we knew is no more, so, I don’t know if you have time or not, but what I do know is that you waited to attack that base the last time. The T-Challa had time to heavily fortify it, and as a result. You suffered heavy casualties. So waiting is an option, but a very costly one."

  Chan concerned at Tess's statement asks, "Saved General Jackson?"

  Tess reluctantly replies, "Paladin determined that the future that he encountered would not have happened if General Jackson had survived the recent battle that has just passed."

  Chan even more concerned asks, "What exactly did or will my son-in-law do, which will prevent this horrific future from ever occurring?"

  Tess becomes more hesitant at Chan’s question answers, "I’m sorry, but we are talking about information thousands of years old. All I knew was General Jackson had to survive that last battle, and that his survival was paramount to preventing the loss of the planet Earth and to the future witnessed by Caleb. I am sure you know Paladin’s ability to predict probabilities is unprecedented, but with so much time, he couldn’t be as accurate as he usually was."

  Chan warily replies, "I see. Well Miss White, I'm very well versed on Paladins predictions. We will have to discuss this amongst ourselves. We will get back to you shortly."

  With that, the transmission is cut. Jackson pulls Tess aside and softly asks, "I'm curious Tess, why didn’t you tell them about Carla, and her loss of control against the Queen? It may have helped you.” Jackson pauses then asks, “And Tess, what really happened in the future."

  Tess quietly replies, "Carla’s power is to remain a secret for as long as possible. Caleb made it one of his primary rule’s to protect Carla and this new timeline." Tess pauses then continues, "Jacks, you should know that some of the people Caleb brought back...” She pauses again as she thinks or hesitates to finish, "Well, they are what caused the dissections within the Paladonian people. These people caused such fear about Carla, and their stories of what she did to the Earth is beyond belief. It is so unbelievable that something so sweet and young grows up and becomes so evil."

  Jackson thinks. She’s not telling me the whole truth. She is holding back something. Jackson asks, "I refuse to believe that Tess. What happened, what did she do?"

  Tess reluctantly replies, "When she was very young, barely eighteen. She was forced into a battle with the T-Challa. She killed the T-Challa Queen, but something happened to her. She became a different person after that battle. She became corrupt and used her powers attacking the Earth. She became an evil oppressor of the planet. Carla would ruthless destroy entire cities on a whim. This torture of the human race continued for over three thousand years, and those survivors looked at her as the devil incarnate, and that fear of her spread throughout our people."

  Jackson suspicious replies, "Well, that future won’t happen, whatever happened to Carla won’t happen now that I survived."

  Tess doubtful replies, asking, "Really Jacks, you're predicting the future now? Because no one knows what will happen now, and no one knows why she really turned evil."

  Jackson laughs as he replies, "Then you don’t know Caleb Tess. Because I can guarantee, he figure it out, and he put things into motion to prevent it from ever happening. Of that I can be one hundred percent sure."

  Tess smiles and says, "You really have a lot of faith in him don’t you? If it matters, he felt the same way about you."

  Jackson smirks and turns away, as he announces to the crew, "Prepare patrols for constant sensor sweeps, I want detailed scans of all the T-Challa debris." Its only when we are no longer able to tell each other what we think, does it ever matter.

  Four more days pass without incident, as repairs continue. Val has become very quiet and distant, as he continually constructs different devices. Some of which he has no idea what they are. Jackson is notified by some of his crew of his current actions and is troubled by this news. He finally meets with him in his workshop, asking, "Val, for days you have been down here throwing god knows what together. My people tell me you haven’t slept in two days, and you have barely stopped for food. Just what the hell are you building down here?"

  Val does not even look up, he coldly replies, "To be honest sir, anything, and everything I can think of. Whatever it is I’m thinking of it somehow…” Val pauses, as he stumbles through his thoughts, answering, "I’m just able to come up with a way to make it, for example. I was just thinking how easy it would be to move all the reconstruction equipment if we had a smaller device instead of using multiple anti-grav sleds, so I made this device." Val picks up a small remote control device. He continues speaking faster, "It’s a portable tractor and repulsor, and with it I can lift a house and move it across a city. So, I was thinking about how to inc
rease the damage control team's efficiency, and I started making these small service bots." Val hits his holopad and several remote pods surface from under piles of debris in the room.

  Val continues, as he talks faster and faster, "I programmed them to repair ship damage at an accelerated rate. Each one has that same portable tractor, repulsor device built into them. As well as several different repair features and I can have them...."

  Jackson realizing that Val is talking so fast and so quickly interrupts him, saying, "Val! I want you to stop right now."

  Val, confused, snaps back to his regular persona and asks, "Jacks, what’s wrong? I’m just trying to help get us ready."

  Jackson frustrated replies, "I’m ordering you to see Qui Shi right now, and for her to do a complete check out of you. I’m also going to order you to get eight hours of shut eye."

  Val now agitated says, "Jacks, I have to do this. We don’t have much time. I’m working on a way to use nanotechnology to help repair soldiers in combat….."

  Jackson yells, "Enough! Val, stop, and listen to yourself. You’re rambling on like a machine spitting out raw data. You’re only human, and you’re trying to push yourself like Caleb would, but you’re not Cale. You need to stop and think." Jackson shakes his head regretfully as he is aware that he could have done more to stop this he then asks, "Would Cale want all this technology released?” Jackson gives pause for Val to think for a few moments. He asks, “Would he? Stop and think my friend. He trusted you with this knowledge to help us, but you need to slow down and think."

  Val reacts, partially unphased about what Jackson just said, he replies, "No, I didn’t think about that. He trusted me to help, but to do so responsibly. I can hear his voice in my head; it’s the last things he said. I trust you brother."

  With that, Val lowers his head and throws all the equipment off his workbench, angered by his actions. He hastily leaves the room. Jackson begins to walk out as he notices the service bots start picking up all the equipment, putting it back. He immediately thinks to himself. Damn those little buggers are fast, but are they dangerous, and am I responsible for this? I told him to do it. Damn it Cale, I really wish you were here right now.