STAR BLAZERS: A VOYAGE TO REMEMBER
A fanfic recapitulation of Series One "The Quest for Iscandar" by
Frederick P. Kopetz
EPISODE THIRTY: "GOD, WEEP FOR THE GAMILONS"
Planet Gamilon
April 23, 2200
Desslok grinned slightly as his officers said, "New missile attack. Heat-seekers ready for Sectors Five through Six. Continuing efforts to force Argo into the acid sea!"
Then, he practically hissed. "You bumbling idiots! We have the Argo right here on Gamilon, and you still can't destroy her! Turn the storm machines up to full speed! If we can't shoot her down, we'll melt her down!"
Desslok raised his fists. "What a perfect irony that the gods have given us, Star Force! The same sulphuric acid which has cursed us for so long shall now be your own doom!"
Vice-Chancellor Krypt came up with a tray with wine on it. "This is a most auspicious moment, Leader Desslok! Let us drink to your coming victory!" He held out the tray.
Desslok slapped it out of his hands in a rage. "Krypt! I am at war! This is no time for frivolities, you idiot! Have you learned nothing, Krypt? NOTHING? Have you forgotten how many times the Argo has defeated us? Where are Ganz and Bane? Dead. What happened with my space mines? Avatar made fools out of us when his men and women used their own hands! What happened to my Ecto-Gas? It was a mere joke! What happened with Lysis and with Volgarr? All of their plans, laid to naught, and now they are dead! If we do not concentrate ten times as hard, we could join them in death! But, since I am the superior intellect, we will not! Be you gone, Krypt! Await further orders!"
"Of course, sir!"
On Iscandar, Starsha watched the Argo in its travail. Then she switched the view to Desslok ranting, and she thought, What do I foresee today? A day when your own hubris leads to the cosmic scales being balanced at last. Desslok. You have destroyed ninety-six percent of the population of Earth in your war. Perhaps it is time for the Highest to intervene and bring about a rough justice. Eye for eye. Tooth for tooth. Life for life.
Starsha then shut her eyes in silent prayer. When she opened them, she somehow knew that today, of all days, there would at last be justice. The Star Force's mission would succeed.
But she knew Desslok would pay a heavy price. With sincere tears in her eyes, she thought, So will the scales be balanced. So, there will be justice. Lord, I leave this in your hands. But, weep, El Shaddai, weep. Weep today for the Gamilons.
Near the Argo, more depth charges fell.
The First Bridge quivered.
Nova was again knocked out of her chair.
This time, she felt her own hot blood beneath her uniform at her knee. Skinned knee, no worse, she thought as she felt her knee and carefully moved it.
Derek ran to her side and began helping her up. "Are you all right, Nova?"
"Derek, the attack is getting even worse! What's going to happen to us?" Nova said.
"I don't know, Nova. The ship wasn't built to take this kind of sustained attack."
Nova shut her eyes and said, "Why don't you go see Captain Avatar? Maybe he can help you."
"Good idea. Sandor, you have the conn," Derek said as Nova struggled back to her chair.
"Doing what I can," Sandor said. "Part of the Number One Auxiliary Gun Turret is already severely damaged."
"Trying to keep us on course," said Venture.
With another explosion lighting up the windows outside, Derek went to see Avatar.
"I'm glad to see you, Wildstar," Captain Avatar said. "It looks like we're in a bad spot, doesn't it? How is the crew holding up under the strain of this attack?"
"The crew is doing fine, sir," Derek replied. "But I'm at a loss. I honestly don't know what to do in a situation like this. I've even prayed…and the Heavens are like brass."
"Well, it's obvious," Avatar said. "There's only one thing you can do in a situation like this. Submerge the ship."
"Submerge the ship? That sea is sulphuric acid, Captain. That would be…suicide."
"Our hull can survive the acid for approximately fifteen minutes. Listen carefully. Gamilon has an Achilles' Heel. Its volcanic system. I have learned that the volcanoes on Gamilon are very powerful and active. We can stimulate them to greater activity with a sudden attack with the wave motion gun. It is not my preferred option, Wildstar. It would cost many Gamilon lives, but it is our only hope to escape this attack and distract the enemy. When you attack, strike quickly. Aim at the base of the volcanoes in order to release the most energy. The eruption of the volcanoes should stop the Gamilons' attack."
There was a long silence. Derek then said, "Sir, I do…I do not feel comfortable with being a party to mass murder. Isn't that all this is? Genocide? Tit for tat? Will Starsha even give us the Cosmo-DNA after we do…this?"
"We have weapons that are given to us, Wildstar. There are times when we need to use them in order to save ourselves. Starsha understands that…I am sure. The people of Earth are depending upon us to get to Iscandar and home with the Cosmo-DNA. Think, Derek. Do you want to be the man who condemned humanity to death because you're afraid to act?"
"No, sir. But I can't sacrifice our humanity."
"No one is asking you to," Avatar said. "If need be, I will take the full responsibility before Heaven when I pass on. I order you to act, Derek."
Wildstar stood in silence for a while. "For Earth's future, sir…I'll do as you ask. I do not have to like it, though."
"No one is asking you to, my son," Avatar said. "Remember. We can't stay submerged long. Do this as quickly as possible and get us out of this Hell."
"Yessir," said Wildstar. He saluted Avatar and left.
Derek almost felt nauseous as he looked Venture in the eye.
"Derek, did I hear you correctly?" he snapped. "You said submerge the ship?"
"Yes, as quickly as possible," Wildstar said.
"Wildstar, that order is insane," Sandor said. "That acid is very destructive. You saw what it did to the Third Bridge!"
"I know what it'll do, Sandor!" Derek snapped. "If we secure all of the watertight hatches and protective shields, would that protect the ship until we could fire the wave motion gun at that volcanic system?"
"Yes, until the acid eats through the hull, that is. Then we'd all die in great pain," Sandor said. "Needless to say, that would be the end of the mission."
"There's no other way?" Nova said.
"No. Captain Avatar and I discussed this. It is all we could think of. Granted, it's a Hail Mary pass on Fourth Down with 17 meters to go, but…."
"Let's do it, you crazy long-haired quarterback!" Nova said with a wink. "C'mon, who's with us? If you have misgivings, Derek and I can do this ourselves if we have to!"
"You…you… loopy cheerleader," laughed Sandor. "We'll do it."
"Okay. Lower the shields over the hull," said Wildstar.
"Lowering shields," said Sandor. The shields went down.
"Priming wave motion engine," said Orion.
"Prepare to submerge," said Venture.
"Ready?" snapped Wildstar. "SUBMERGE!"
The Argo plunged towards the sea and went under the surface at full speed.
"This is an interesting development," said Krypt. "Leader Desslok, the Argo has just submerged."
"So? Avatar must see how hopeless their situation is. He has decided to commit suicide at last," chuckled Desslok. "The acid will do our work for us. Their hull will dissolve in fifteen minutes. Stop all missile and depth charge attacks. They are quite unnecessary now."
"Yessir," said Krypt. "Stop all bombing. We will watch the end of the Star Force."
"With pleasure," Desslok said.
The Argo was close to locating a major undersea volcanic range.
"Getting closer to the thermal energy source I am picking up," said IQ-9. "Ten degrees starboard!"
"Ten degrees starboard," said Venture.
Yurisha was not on the Bridge.
She was in mental contact with Starsha on the aft observation deck.
Starsha, she thought. Is there no other way for them to escape? No other?
Starsha was silent.
The Argo cruised on.
"Another five degrees starboard," said IQ-9.
"Five degrees starboard!" said Venture.
Parts of the Argo's main communications mast dissolved. "Hurry up!" said Sandor. "We're losing parts of the ship!"
"I have spotted what we need," said IQ-9.
"FULL STOP!" snapped Venture.
"Spotted: A large volcano with connections to several others, all large. We are close to the Gamilon Capital City. Total Eruptive Power is off my meter!" IQ-9 said.
"Wave motion gun, ready to fire! Target, Gamilon volcanic system!" Wildstar ordered.
The wave gun began to charge up.
"Power at ninety percent!" said Orion. "Power now at one hundred twenty percent!"
"Commence ten-second countdown," Derek ordered. He counted down, and then squeezed the firing grip. "FIRE!"
The Argo's wave motion gun fired.
The energy wave blasted into the volcanoes, which went up at last.
One, two, three volcanic peaks blew. Then four.
Lava began to flow down the peaks into the Gamilon Capital City of Gamilstadt and its neighboring city of Valeras.
Towers collapsed into the lava.
Gamilon soldiers and sailors, and civilian men, women, children, and infants had no time to take cover.
They died screaming as magma covered their bodies.
Some of them had no time to scream.
Some of them breathed in toxic gasses and ash and fell down dead; their bodies soon covered by ash and pumice from Gamilon's stratovolcanoes.
Desslok's Palace in the lower part of his city was hit by lava and collapsed slowly into a lake of fire.
The huge courtyard where Lysis and Desslok had reviewed the troops heading to Rainbow Cluster weeks ago ceased to exist.
Fire and ash fell on shops, cars, apartment buildings.
A vast earthquake started up on Gamilon, adding to the carnage.
Leader Desslok grinned like a madman at the fire and ruin.
"The Star Force…ha ha ha….and we forced them to come here! Look! Gamilon is dying at last, and we dragged them here! Ha ha ha ha ha ha haa!"
"Sire," said an officer. "We read the Argo hit the Hanaski Undersea Ridge with the wave motion gun. They caused this!"
"They destroyed themselves and us! Ha ha ha ha ha! We forced them here, Krypt! And what do we all get? DEATH! DEATH! DEATH! Ha ha ha ha!"
"What is to be done?" said Krypt.
Desslok then shot the officer who gave the report about the Argo.
"He's gone mad!" said another officer, whom Desslok also shot.
"We're all in Hell!" screamed Desslok. "The Star Force sent us all to Hell! Ha ha ha ha HEE!"
Desslok laughed and drooled down his chin for several minutes.
He was armed.
None of his men, women, or other underlings dared to come near him.
Krypt wondered if Desslok would shoot himself next.
Then, while watching the waves thrown up by the lava, Desslok snarled…
…as he watched the Argo emerging from the acid sea, damaged, but almost intact and still able to fight.
"I cannot believe this!" gasped Krypt. "Sire, the Argo is airborne again!"
"They cannot have survived that!" screamed Desslok. "It is a ghost ship. Look! Now we must slaughter that ghost! Empty the arsenals. Shoot down all of our missiles! Erase the memory of the Argo forever!"
"Two of the batteries in Zone Six stopped firing, M'Lord," said an officer. "One of the commanders was known to be a believer in the Terran faith of Adonai! They call it "The Way", sire!"
"I know that! Have them killed," Desslok said. "ALL OF THEM! Those accursed heretics of The Way must die for their disloyalty! Damned pacifists! I want to see heretics crucified when this is over with!"
"Sire, we may not be doing this correctly," said Krypt.
"I can defeat them myself, you bumbling cabal of idiots," said Desslok. "It was a mistake for me to have left such an important matter to others! I am now taking full command and will not stop until I destroy the Argo. Are we clear?"
"Leader Desslok, we must stop deluding ourselves," said Krypt.
"WHAT?" hissed Desslok.
Krypt said, "You have said it yourself, Sire. It is almost as if we have been fighting an immortal ghost ship. How can…a battered old Earth space battleship defeat all of Gamilon? We have been fighting a force we do not understand. Starsha was right. We were warned. Let the Argo go. Your plans have failed! We need to stop fighting them before they utterly destroy us! And, besides, there are survivors in what remains of the cities. Should we not stop this attack and aid the survivors…sir?"
Desslok drew his weapon again and fired into Krypt's back. "I don't want to hear a single bleating word from you again, Krypt! And I never will! Take him out of here to die! I am taking command. Does anyone else care to die today?" said Desslok as Krypt's body was dragged away. "You do not? Good. We fight on. To the bitter end. The end of the end!"
Aboard the Argo, Sandor said, "We've taken severe damage, Wildstar."
"We'll have to repair it later, when we get to Iscandar," Derek said. "Right now, the primary thing on my mind is getting us out of here before they attack us again!"
"That's not gonna be long!" cried Eager. "Big wave o' heat seekin' missiles, all approaching!"
Venture tried to accelerate as three small Gamilon corvettes came at them. "Three small warships approaching!" Nova cried.
"Ready all working guns, fore and aft!" Derek ordered.
The Argo's guns turned and fired first at the missiles approaching their stem.
Some of them were repelled, but others hit, with heavy damage to the lower fighter bay.
Men, women, and fighter planes were blown everywhere.
Soon, the lower landing bay was on fire.
Nova said, "Derek, those ships are approaching, and…what? They're ignoring us and heading away! What's going on?"
"Easy," said Sandor. "The Gamilons must realize their planet is like a sinking ship. We just saw some rats trying to run!"
To the Star Force's surprise and shock, a missile was launched from the lower roof right at one of the ships, which blew apart.
The other two just cleared the barrage by their skin of their teeth and ascended up to one of the openings.
"Refugees," Wildstar said. "That explains it."
"And their High Command doesn't want them to leave!" Venture hissed. Strangely enough, he felt some sympathy for the Gamilons who wanted out of this mess as badly as they did. He saw another small Gamilon ship being chased by fighter planes. It was shot down and fell into the acid sea. Then, the fighters turned back around and attacked the Argo, followed by more Gamilon missiles.
The Argo was soon smoking in five more places.
"Our speed is dropping," said Venture.
"I'm reading an opening six hundred kilometers away," Nova said. "We can get out through there!"
"We have to stop these missiles," Sandor said.
"Venture, take us right to their command post, four hundred kilometers away," Wildstar said. "Then, they'll be battered by their missiles just as much as we will!"
The Argo thus took a beeline right for Desslok's command post.
More missiles fired.
Some hit the Argo, but others actually hit a part of the city of Baleras that was untouched.
Mushroom-shaped towers were felled now by the Gamilons themselves.
Some men and women gathered on a hill near the overhanging command post where Desslok was.
They began to chant, in desperation, "Leader, let them go! Leader, let them go!"
Desslok looked at the assembly on a screen and sneered. "General Kelzart," he said to a member of his general staff. "Would you shut those people UP?"
"With pleasure, M 'Lord," said Kelzart.
Soon, more missiles were fired.
Right at the protestors.
They died in flames.
"Number one auxiliary turret is down to one working gun," said Dash. "We might be able to get another gun to work by manual fire."
"Venture, take the conn. I'm going below myself," Derek said.
"Derek! Be careful!" Nova cried.
Wildstar pulled on a helmet. "We have no choice. All of you, get helmets on, too. This could get pretty rough!"
Nova nodded and threw on a helmet.
Derek left.
Wildstar sat behind a gunnery console and found he could get the number one gun working.
The console slammed around as the ship was hit again.
"My leg!" yelled Robert Turner. "I…I can barely move it!"
Turner was next to Wildstar in the gun house. "Robert, get out of here! Nishimoto!" Wildstar yelled to a rangefinder Chief to his left. "Take over Turner's gun!"
"Yessir," said Nishimoto as Turned staggered out of the turret.
"We're right near their HQ!" Eager's voice said over the 1MC.
"Good. Lining this up now…FIRE!" barked Wildstar.
His gun fired, along with the number two main turret beneath them.
Nishimoto followed.
Five bolts of plasma energy blasted right into Desslok's command post.
The results were immediate, and gory.
Desslok looked around in shock, seeing that what remained of his General Staff, his officers, his enlisted men, were all dead on the deck.
His Command Post was on fire.
The video panels were smashed, smoking, and on fire.
Starsha, Krypt, perhaps you were right after all, Desslok thought as he staggered to a control panel.
He thumbed a firing pickle three times, hoping to fire some missiles straight at the Argo, which was visible with the naked eye now, and wheeling away from his command post like a terrible bird of prey.
Nothing happened.
Then, the planet shook, and Desslok heard the roof crumbling above.
He screamed in rage and agony as stones came down, smashing one of his arms.
He jumped towards a trap door in the floor and went down a ladder.
He found himself in his command ship, the Gamilstadt.
Laughing and cursing, he took the helm himself.
Soon, after almost falling into the acid sea, his own flagship also blasted away from Gamilon.
He was the last rat to flee the planet.
Unknown to him, eight more small ships of refugees fled the tomb that Gamilon had become in an hour's worth of battle.
At that point, Gamilon's organized resistance against the Argo came to its end.
The Argo hissed to a stop near the opening she was about to escape from, drifting on her anti-gravs as the engines momentarily went dark.
The battle was over.
Now, there was only silence.
Derek Wildstar stood up, a little shocked that things had gone silent.
There were no more missiles coming in.
No more guns to be fired.
Derek then saw Nishimoto slumped over the controls of his gun.
He gingerly picked him up.
Nishimoto was utter deadweight. The reason was obvious. His neck was broken.
Nishimoto was dead.
Wildstar let Nishimoto fall back into his seat. We'll collect his body later. But that could have been Robert Turner in that seat…and we'd have to tell Natalie that her fiancee' is dead. Or, it could have been me…and someone would have to tell Nova her husband has died.
Derek climbed out of the wreckage, stepping over the dead bodies of other Star Force members and what looked like Gamilon jet-pack troopers on the upper deck.
Smoke blew in from the burning city of Valeras.
Derek staggered over more dead bodies, and he climbed down a ladder.
He ended up on the main deck, looking at the silent, burning Gamilon city.
Nothing could be seen alive for kilometers.
There was no movement, no sounds of workmen yelling, no sounds of children at play, no wives yelling to husbands, or husbands yelling to wives.
Everything was dead and silent, except for the wind.
What have we done? Derek thought. It looks as if…we wiped out most of the planet. When we were forced here, it was a living planet. Now, it is nothing but a place for the dead.
Then, Derek finally heard a sound at last.
It was a woman, kneeling on deck in a gold and black Star Force uniform, weeping into her gloved hands.
It was Nova.
She glanced at Derek, and cried even harder. She said, "Here we are, so close to Iscandar, and we're still fighting! And look at what we've done to Gamilon! How can I look God in the face at the Judgment now, knowing what we did to them? We've committed genocide, Derek! Do you realize that? What have we done?"
After a long, long time, Derek replied, He said,"It's war. War at its worst. Nova, Ever since we were children, we were taught to win. We've always been taught that winning is everything. But wherever there is a winner, there is a loser. What happens to those who are defeated? Don't those who are defeated also have the right to live? In order for us to win…Gamilon had to lose this war. But why? Now we can see their world was dying, just like our Earth. Didn't the Gamilons have a right to live, too?"
"This was no soccer game or swim match," Nova sobbed. "I swam in many swim matches in college. No one killed the losing girls! If the Gamilons wanted to live, why didn't they just let us go? Couldn't they have found a more peaceful way to solve their problems?"
"The Gamilons were attacking us and Earth as part of their own cruel struggle to survive, Nova. But why did we have to fight? If they had appealed to us for help, shouldn't we have helped them?" Derek said while picking up a fallen rifle.
"They didn't stop, Derek. Even though it would have been better if…there was another way?"
"We could have cooperated with them! I know now from our history…Captain Avatar told me…that we first fired on their ships on General Stone's orders after they had been investigating our solar system and attacking probes for years!" Derek cried.
"General Stone started this?" Nova said. Derek nodded. She made fists and whispered, "Damn his soul to Hell!"
Derek said, "Funny, I never thought of that until this day. It makes me sick to my stomach. It makes me sad and angry. We were wrong to have fought them the way we did! We should have tried to help them! Damnit, we should have shown them that we cared! Their planet was dying. We should have tried to do something..."
"What could we have done?" Nova sobbed.
"Something more than…than mass slaughter," Derek said. He clenched his rifle. "So, this is victory? Standing here in a stinking graveyard? Victory...hah! Victory tastes like ashes."
At that, he threw the rifle over the rail. Then, he put his hand on Nova's shoulder, and said, "Come on, Nova. We've got to patch up the ship, and some of the crew need patching up, too. There's plenty of work ahead for both of us."
"Yes. Before Earth turns into a graveyard like this," Nova sobbed.
Nova stood and comforted him, still weeping herself.
They stood in each other's arms, receiving comfort from each other's presences.
They went back into the Argo together.
It was time to get to work.
Two hours later, the Argo landed on an even plot of ground. The gangplank had been lowered to allow workers to work on restoring the Third Bridge and repairing damage to the engines before leaving for Iscandar.
Sandor estimated that the damage could be repaired in twenty-four hours or so.
Wildstar sat at his station on the First Bridge, and he thanked Nova as she brought him his third cup of coffee.
It had just turned over to Terran Date April 24th on the battered ship.
On Gamilon, it was growing dark eerily fast as the sun began to set in the hollow of the nearly dead planet.
Royster was outside, hanging shakily onto a Jacob's Ladder welding girders as he suddenly observed something.
"Deputy Captain! This is Royster!" he said into the mike in his helmet. "A small party is coming towards the ship! There's survivors!"
Venture and Nova looked at Derek in shock. Derek said, "Get down there and assume a defensive position! They might be trying to attack us!"
"I don't think so," said Royster. "It looks like a procession of the injured! They're carrying torches! A woman is leading it behind a man carrying a white flag! Some of the wounded are on stretchers!"
Nova ran to her post and changed the video panel. "He's right. They don't look hostile!"
"They could be," said Derek. "Nova, head to Sickbay to assist Doctor Sane. Set up a triage in case these Gamilons really are injured! Dash, Hoshina, Rosstowski, follow me! Hilgar, follow us and translate!"
A few minutes later, Derek was at the lower part of the gangplank with six other Security men.
He saw that the Gamilon soldier leading the procession with the white flag had a bandaged face beneath his brown space armor helmet and no weapon. He held up the white flag with one hand and held an empty hand out in token of peace with the other hand.
Wildstar saluted him and he saw the woman, who was blonde, in a long black dress and filthy boots, kneeling on one knee before him.
To his surprise, she spoke Terranglish. "I would like to appeal to your Captain for aid and supplies. I speak your tongue and I can translate. The leader of this procession can also speak your tongue. He is injured."
"Our Captain is ill," Derek said. "I am Deputy Captain Derek Wildstar, the acting Skipper of the Argo. Who are you, ma'am?"
"I am Duchess Eliza Lysis, second-in-command here. I had nothing to do with the war against your people. If anything, I did time in prison opposing Leader Desslok's regime and this war. We should have found another way to save ourselves that did not impinge upon your rights and existence."
Derek looked at Dash and Rosstowski with shock in his eyes. "Duchess. Were you related to Field Marshal Erich Lysis? He attacked us at Rainbow Cluster."
"Erich Lysis was my husband," said Eliza with a bowed head. "I am his widow now, based upon what we heard."
"We had to fight," Derek said. "For my part, I am sorry for your loss."
Eliza smiled slightly at that.
"Who is in command here?" Derek said.
"Not I," Eliza said. "We believe Leader Desslok is dead. Our Vice-Chancellor Reydolf Krypt has assumed command, but he is badly wounded. Bring him forward."
Four litter-bearers brought up a rude stretcher on which Krypt lay, barely conscious, with blood covering his uniform blouse and seeping down from his mouth. "Wildstar. We have heard of you, in the Palace. I was shot by Leader Desslok and left for dead after I tried to stop this. His orders led to death for your crew and also to many Gamilons. He went mad with rage. By him, I was shot in his rage and left for dead. However, I take full responsibility for everything that happened today and in the past few years. We have enough access to communications so that if I declare a truce between our forces, the survivors will understand."
"Good, because you are under arrest for war crimes, General Krypt," Derek said, although not unkindly. "You have much to answer for. There will be a trial for you. You will be held under guard in our Sickbay along with the rest of the injured. Duchess Lysis. You are welcome aboard with the non-injured. You will be searched for weapons and bombs and held under guard yourselves, ma'am," Derek said formally. "We shall also interrogate you under a lie detector to verify your story."
Eliza nodded. As she entered the ship, she whispered to Wildstar, "I only ask that you not be too hard on Vice-Chancellor Krypt."
"Why, ma'am?"
"He is losing color in his face. Even with the best of your medical care, I do not think he will survive the night. He has lost too much blood."
"That may be," said Derek. "It remains to be seen."
THREE HOURS LATER…
Doctor Sane and Nova did their best to save Vice-Chancellor Krypt's life. Even though he was unconscious with anesthesia, Krypt was still handcuffed to the operating table in Sickbay.
Doctor Sane removed one frangible* bullet from Krypt's lung, while Nova removed the other from near his aorta. The damage from the bullets, which broke apart as designed when they hit his ribs, was horrendous.
The aorta had been nicked by the bullet.
As soon as it was removed, despite Sane and Nova's best efforts to clamp the vessel, Krypt went into cardiac arrest. Every nurse and medic assisted Sane and Nova in coding their important patient, but to no avail.
Krypt was sustained by a heart-lung machine for ten minutes before his brain responses flatlined. He was pronounced dead at 0320 Hours that night, only six hours after Desslok had shot him.
Much later that morning, Eliza had passed her lie-detector test.
After more questioning, she and her nineteen uninjured comrades were given fresh clothing and invited to have breakfast with the Star Force in the messhall as guests, not prisoners. Sheena had helped Eliza groom herself, and Nova had given her a white dress and clean brown boots.
Yurisha sat with Erich Nishizawa, who was looking with suspicion at the Gamilon refugees. "How is it that you suddenly turned coats to help us? Weren't the lot of you attacking us?"
"Erich!" snapped Yurisha. "Can't you see some of these people are just women and children?"
"Well, the kids are being nice," laughed Homer, who had a young Gamilon girl sitting on his lap. Not much more than a toddler, the little girl was playing patty-cake with Homer.
A tall Gamilon man with a beard tapped a glass with his spoon and turned to Sheena, speaking Gamilon.
"I have been asked to translate for this man, Captain Reynard Garner," said Sheena as not far down the table, Derek, in his peacoat, sat next to Nova, who wore a white dress. He says, "I was on one of the missile batteries above Valeras. We were ordered to fire upon your ship. That fire also would have hit our own homes. We knew then it had gone far enough. We rebelled and took control of the missile battery, disabled it, and killed the General in charge. I was one of those who was fired upon by my comrades for this. We all know Gamilon is dying, but we glimpsed how bravely you were fighting, and as we saw other batteries going off, we had enough sense to see you were no longer fighting us."
"So, not everyone was totally in agreement with the war?" Derek said. Sheena translated for him, and he shook his head. "No," he said firmly. "I see the cross the woman in pink wears above her dress. We also strive to serve Adonai and follow her faith."
Nova translated this time, haltingly. She stood, kissed Derek and walked over to Garner. "We are brothers and sisters?" she said, holding out her hand.
He took her hand and shook it, and said, "Brothers and sisters, Miss."
Conroy applauded at that. "I never thought that this war would end…like this."
"Peter, ordinary people are the same all over," Nova said. "No one really likes war!"
Erich stood up. He looked hard at Garner. "Brother," he said.
Yurisha smiled at that. "Brother," said Garner as he took Erich's hand.
Yurisha said, "Duchess, we appeal to you for a truce and free passage to Iscandar."
"I shall ask my group to do that," said Eliza.
Garner then spoke rapidly to Eliza in Gamilon.
Eliza nodded. She bowed to Yurisha. "My Group is ready to assist in the repairs of the Argo, and asks permission to come to Iscandar with the Star Force."
Derek stood. "You'll be watched, but we could, honestly, use more hands to assist in the repair of our ship. As for coming to Iscandar, that is Starsha's call."
"She says she will welcome it," Yurisha said softly. "And, eventually, she will send more aid to Gamilon in your hour of need. You will need to choose a temporary Leader."
Garner looked at Eliza, bowed his head, and saluted her.
"It appears that already has happened," Eliza replied with a happy smile on her face.
Eliza Lysis was a little surprised when Sheena and Sandor presented her with a mantle and brooch based somewhat upon that in a picture of Desslok she had.
Sandor was also shocked that Leader Desslok looked so youthful. It was the first any Terran had ever seen of him. He shook his head and said, "It looks as if this mad war was being led by a man not much older than you, Derek," Steve said, looking at Wildstar. "I am amazed."
"Me too, but he doesn't like…sane," Derek said.
"He used to be sane," said Eliza. "But, now as this war has stretched on…"
"The man appears to have lost his mind," Nova sighed. She nodded sadly at Eliza.
A few minutes later, Eliza was mantled as the Temporary Leader of the Gamilons when she met with Captain Avatar. Derek, Nova, and Doctor Sane, of course, had been present at her lie-detector test and they vouched for her before the elderly Captain.
"For my part, sir," said Eliza as she shook hands with Avatar, "I am the Government of Gamilon now. I know it is not much, but I have detailed my men to aid you in repairing your vessel so you can get to Iscandar. As far as I am concerned, Captain, the hostilities between us are paused for the moment. There will be no more missiles, guns, or attacks for as long as you remain here on Gamilon. You have allowed my comrades to be guests. I also consider you guests on Gamilon now."
Doctor Sane made a face at that, but he said, "Well, we could have had a better reception when we were dragged here. We never even meant to land on this planet."
"I hope that we can have peace in the future," Avatar said.
"I do, as well. As much as this has been thrust upon me, I hope to remain Leader for at least a while. I have already had cease-fire orders sent out to what remain of our fleets, Captain. It is my desire that you get home safely with the Cosmo-DNA before your world dies. When you arrive home, could you appeal to your Government for aid of some sort for those of us who are left? We would like to peacefully find another world to live on," Eliza said.
"I will do what I can," said Avatar as he coughed. "I am dying from radiation sickness. If I do not survive, I charge you with this appeal, Deputy Captain," he said, looking hard at Derek.
"I understand, sir," said Derek.
"So do I," Nova said. "I will help Derek make sure that the rest of the Star Force understands this. We have had enough fighting."
"You're a good woman," Eliza said, patting Nova's arm. "Perhaps, someday, when you are older, you will be in charge of Terra's government? You are certainly kind enough and charismatic enough, and pretty enough to get people to follow you."
Nova blushed hard at that. "I'm just hoping to be a good doctor, wife to Derek, and mother to our children, that's all. I'm so sorry we couldn't save your Vice-Chancellor's life."
"Some things are meant to happen that way," said Eliza.
"Let's watch our new repair crew, huh?" said Derek.
"You supervise them and give the orders through Eliza, Sheena, and Nova," Avatar said. "You're dismissed."
To the surprise of Derek and Sandor, about thirty Gamilons were assisting in the repairs on the Argo outside.
Boxes of supplies and parts were being passed back and forth by one group as Nova stood nearby, listening to a walkie-talkie and occasionally shouting orders to the Gamilons in their own language along with Sheena Hilgar. Granted, her Gamilon was slightly broken, foreign Gamilon, but the men and women who had been their enemies just twenty-four hours ago both understood and acknowledged their orders with respect, compliance, and military courtesy.
The Gamilons had been present before when a funeral had been held for Krypt and some of the others who died. Both Terrans and Gamilons formed the Vice-Chancellor's honor guard and fired salutes.
Over the next two days, the Argo was repaired far more quickly than she would have been had the Star Force done it on its own with the men and women they had lost in the battle. The aid of some of the Gamilons in trying to set right what had happened was an unexpected gift.
Finally, the tools were mostly stowed away.
Some crewmen were still at work as the refugees who had decided to come to Iscandar with the Star Force boarded the Argo and prepared for departure.
At Dawn on the 26th of April of 2200, the Argo finally took off.
Unexpectedly, some of the Gamilons who had decided to stay cheered from the refugee camp they had been made as they ate some of the Star Force's food as the Argo lifted off and began to head at last to Iscandar.
The Argo majestically passed through one of the openings in Gamilon's outer crust and left the devastation behind at last.
Captain Avatar lay in his bunk, watching Iscandar growing larger in the windows.
Thanks be to God, we made it this far, he thought. He clasped his hands in silent prayer, and then he picked up his microphone to go on the 1MC for what would be the last time.
"Now hear this," he said. "This is the Captain speaking! I extend my congratulations to all of you! There lies Iscandar before us at last. I know many of you wondered if we would ever see it. I thank all of you, of many different faiths and traditions, the best of Earth, for being brave enough to go on anyway. I thank you myself for being the best crew I have ever known, and I also thank our former enemies for their unexpected grace and generosity to us. I hope that you can someday build a new Gamilon even as we begin to act to build a new Earth. When our mission is complete, my friends, you will have my thanks, and the thanks of the entire world. That is all."
Captain Avatar then hung up his mike and smiled slightly as he watched Iscandar looming up larger in the windows.
Then, he fell asleep.
The fighting and chaos were over.
The Argo cruised on towards Iscandar in near silence.
"ETA on Iscandar in one hour," said Venture. "We are heading straight towards the Capital."
"Queen Starsha says she is awaiting us and the refugees," said Yurisha.
Derek sat at his post while Nova stood beside him, in unform again, smiling as she looked in her husband's eyes and at Iscandar.
"It's so beautiful," she whispered to Derek.
"I know," Derek replied. "And we made it. At last."
"We have a lot to do," said Sandor. "As of today, Earth has one hundred and sixty-one days left."
"The return trip oughta be a lot easier than the flight here," said Eager.
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch," said IQ-9. "We don't know what can happen."
"Right," Derek said. "We have a lot to do before we can see Earth become green again."
"Darn straight," laughed Venture.
TO BE CONTINUED….
*NOTE-A "FRANGIBLE" round is a bullet designed to fragment when it enters its victim so it causes more damage. It is also known as a "dum-dum round". They are largely illegal in modern warfare on Earth.