Battlestation Atlas 01- Elsa.
The spacious bridge of the battlestation, located close to the upper hull, was in a perpetual state of war. Elsa was always ready, of course, but the continuous state of stress was tiring them. It was a surprise, and a lot of nervous people were ready to open fire when the First Fleet defolded close to the first Lagrange Point.
Elsa knew about the first fleet coming here, but the real thing was different. She observed, worried, how the fleet was significantly smaller than the original number. So far, she and Anna were opening the space doors and readying the docking rings to help the wounded ships. After the failed attack on Earth, both sisters had been preparing a lot of nanomaterials and ammunition to replenish the empty magazines. Sadly, Fleet Academia will have to send new recruits to the fight.
Fleet Admiral Chihaya was in his bridge, looking to the blue planet in front of him. An intact blue planet, he thought, grateful for that fact. He was dreary of the next meeting with her extended family. Kongo's loss came back in force, now when he has a bit of personal time back.
"Ludden, open a channel to Elsa and Anna," he asked Ludden.
Two new virtual windows appeared on the bridge in front of him, and Elsa and Anna showed on them. "Admiral Chihaya, we are delighted to welcome you back. Our facilities are available to assist the girls and wounded sailors."
Simple, protocolar, and walking on eggs, he thought. Chihaya looked fast to Anna, who was waiting to speak to him in private. "Elsa, Anna, thank you for your assistance. We have a lot to rebuild, and we saved many cores. The girls want their hulls back."
"These are wonderful news for us, Admiral. We will start the rebuilding as fast as we can, but the orbital shipyards on Earth, Moon, and Mars will help too," Elsa said.
"Thank you, Chihaya, out."
Elsa left, but Anna remained on the virtual window. "Admiral, Choukai, and Kotono are together with your son. When you finish what you must do, we will be waiting for you."
Gunzou knew he was going to spend days just organizing the fleet and the crews back to the planet. Sighing, he left Anna, thanking her for to take care of his family. He went to talk with Luddendorff's mental models and began to review what, obviously, both girls had already organized. He only approved the schedule. That was the easy part. The Admiralty wanted to speak to him in person.
A shuttle transported him from Luddendorff to the Fleet Headquarters in Seattle. A huge building, surrounded by many smaller buildings, was the main base of the Space Navy. When his shuttle touched ground, a small delegation was there to receive him. No rest for me, Gunzou thought.
His enhanced physiology could recover his stamina if he had time, but lately, it was a carrousel of bad news and disasters. A young man, escorted by four marines, approached him and saluted the admiral properly.
"Admiral Chihaya, welcome to the Headquarters. The Admiralty is waiting for you, Sir," a lieutenant explained to him.
"Understood, LT, let's go," Chihaya said.
After ten tedious minutes of walking through the main building, they reached a pair of huge doors, guarded by two marines in armor. Certainly, the rank has its privileges, and Gunzou considered admiring the richness and wealth around him. He entered alone since the LT excused himself and waited outside the saloon.
A large, oval table made of oak wood, full of high ranked officers, admirals, and rear admirals, at least, were looking at him. Gretel was here, too. If the I'kon representative on Earth wanted to be present at a meeting, she was there. She liked it or not her influence in the Federation was considerable. She greeted Gunzou with a little gesture and smiled at him. The gesture didn't pass unnoticed to the powerful men sitting at the table. It was obvious that she supported him, and her trust was power.
Fleet Admiral Chihaya was, in fact, the leader of the Space Navy. However, he supposed that when you lost a fourth of your forces, an investigation must be done. He noted that a chair beside Gretel had his tag on the table. He saluted the officers and sat.
The central chair, usually reserved for him, was still empty. A fleet captain entered the room, announcing the presence of the president of the Federation of Worlds. Wow, that's a surprise. Mary Shizuka, president of the Federation, walked into the room. Everybody, Gretel included, stood up, showing the proper respect.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats," the president said. After that, she explained the reason for this meeting. "Fleet Admiral Chihaya, we have recalled you to obtain first-hand information. The Board has informed me about your losses, but I noted," and she dedicated a hard looking to some people there, "the attacks on our planets stopped, just a few ships doing more raids than real incursions. I had time to review your combat reports, and you fought several hard battles. However, it had been observed that your losses require a serious examination. Please, we want to listen to your report from you, from the beginning."
Good thing I drank two mugs of strong coffee this morning. Gunzou explained in detail every battle and remarked the displays of creativity and individuality exhibited by the machines. His enhanced brain exported to the wall screen pictures and videos from the battles. Many people were showing signs of deep concern.
I know I have political enemies here, Gunzou thought. Is this an ambush? Good thing it seems Gretel decided to put her weight behind me, he thought.
Gunzou said, finally, "I believe this concludes my report, Madame President." He waited the next question. The president frowned, considering the news. She knew the reports, but she felt the summaries were a bit tendentious.
Gretel chose to speak first. "They are evolving. It seems their leadership was affected, maybe destroyed. Since we don't know her social structure, it is impossible to know if we did it. But, they are showing individuality. The fact that the Nexus has come to our universe looks artificial to me, so it means we must exterminate them fast. Don't underestimate their abilities. They only need to catch one of our capital ships and do a bit of reverse engineering."
One of the admirals looked worried to Gretel. "Do you mean they were sent here on purpose?"
Gretel only said, "There are uncountable universes, Admiral, but few can sustain life like this one. The probabilities are against "accidents" like this." The logical conclusions from Greted disarmed whatever some of his enemies were preparing to take him down from the Fleet Admiralty.
The president only said, "So this war is just an aperitive. Something worst is coming for us."
Gretel replied, "The power to open a universal gate is considerable, Madame President. Even I would be hard pressed to do such a feat."
Gunzou had been thinking in silence. He only said, "Perhaps we must visit their universe. I prefer to confront them out there, not here."
Many admirals looked at him, even his political adversaries. The idea of him trapped into a different universe seems to appeal to many of them. However, the president terminated all the speculations, "In time, when these beings belong to a history book, we will discuss that idea again. Admiral Chihaya, certainly your actions forced our enemy to cease the attacks. "
Gunzou only nodded, waiting for her next words. "I know the only way to reach victory implies sacrifices, but I must say the losses seem a bit...excessive to me. How we can sustain this war losing so many ships and crews?"
"Madame President, your question and board's show how we are poorly prepared for the challenges of a space war." He sighed and explained, "The losses implied in this kind of war are of a magnitude hard to accept. Hundreds of ships here, millions of people there. That is a war in space."
Gretel added her own conclusions, "Admiral Chihaya has touched an important point. The challenges in front of you will be bigger than you think. Learn while you can. The quantum malware is another example. The Nexus was infected, as we are. It seems to me we have an enemy here, in our galaxy, hidden, and another very different in the other universe."
When the Admiralty Code chose to explain, it means you must listen. Everybody, including the president, swallowed the pill and nodded. The president rested her chin on her hands and said, "Fleet Admiral, your mission is still the same. Exterminate this plague and give us time. We need to rebuild, we need more resources and ships. According to my sources, the fourth fleet, made only of ships crewed by humans, is ready to fight, right?"
Admiral Peterson, one supporter of Chihaya, affirmed "Yes Madame President, three hundred ships are ready to fight. However, I insist we must make mixed fleets. As Gretel said", and he looked at Gretel, "If they capture a capital ship, we could lose a lot of our technology."
One of his more staunch critics for her relationship with the mental models was Admiral Ivanov. The man, a typical human supremacist, asked, "Peterson, are you implying that our men are incapable of fighting?"
Before Peterson could reply, Chihaya said, "Ivanov, we are fighting against machines. Like it or not, we can't compete in terms of reflexes, strength, or speed. The computers help us in pre-arranged maneuvers, but if humans must react in fractions of a second, we can't make it. I can't compete, and I am a first-generation hybrid."
His adversary was acquiring a nice red color and finally exploded, "So, without them, we are basically useless, that's what you mean!"
Gretel intervened in the discussion, "I wouldn't be so extreme in your evaluation, Admiral. But organic versus machine is a scenery I don't want to watch. In short-term engagements, the reaction time will favor the machine, whether you like it or not."
It was logic, but Gretel knew human males hated to feel inferior or powerless. Ivanov chose to keep silence, especially after a hard stare from the president, remembering him who was the big dog here. Trying to keep the discussion railed up, the president asked for the next movements. Since he was still in charge, it was Chihaya's duty to propose the next operations.
"Madame President, I will take the part of my fleet in good shape. After two days of reloading ammo and fuel, I will take experienced sailors from the most damaged girls to replenish losses. I understand that it's not a long time to rest, but my guys need it. Then, I will join forces with a third of the Fourth Fleet and the Second Fleet. It will be a mix of veterans and new people, but they need the experience. I am going to destroy the three stars remaining. I am afraid they could send some kind of Ark far from us, and we will have to chase them through half galaxy."
"I know I'm talking about the near future, but after we finish them, we need to search for hard evidence about the universal gate. Is it still open? Can we obtain data from the universe of origin? That's what we need to know, and fast. If we can wait more...visitors, we must be able to detect the entry point."
A deep silence weighted on the assembled people. This long war will be just the beginning. Gretel interrupted the silence. "You are forgetting our enemies in this galaxy, Admiral Chihaya."
Everybody looked at this enigmatic and powerful being. "More wars are coming," said the President.
"I will recall the High Council and Legislative Assembly. We need to expand more, and we need more ships and planets. I am afraid this is just the beginning," accepted the tired woman.
"Being worth surviving implies to fight an eternal conflict, madame President," stated Gretel softly. A sutile notice, typical from Gretel, thought Gunzou. I really want to know if the test really ended.
Mary Shizuka considered briefly the future and said, "Well, so we have our next steps clear. Gretel, the Core Forge, must work full time. We had a lot of losses, and I want to make some kind of mixed memorial site for all the dead. From this moment, the Federation is on full mobilization time. Dismissed."
Battlestation 02 - Anna.
Gunzou Chihaya, Fleet Admiral of the Federation of Worlds, was diving into the most hard mission of his life. Soon, after his shuttle crossed the space doors, he would be received, as it was customary, by Anna and an honor escort. It was protocol. It was the proper way to receive the leader of the Space Navy. Right now, it was a pain in my back.
He descended from his shuttle. The autopilot had driven him to Anna, so it would be there, waiting for him, when he finished his business. Anna approached him, but she was alone. Weird, he thought, but I'm grateful. I'm not in the mood.
"Fleet Admiral, we are looking forward to having you again," Anna greeted him. Gunzou knew the girls could be the best actress in the galaxy, and when they really wanted, it was hard to catch what they really were thinking. Anna didn't show any external emotion, but it was obvious she had a lot to say.
"Anna, it seems you and your sister were busy in my absence," Gunzou smirked and waited.
"Right, Admiral, the attack on Earth was strong. We experienced a hard battle against almost one thousand ships," Anna remembered. She asked with a gesture that he followed her. "Admiral, the loss of Kongou was felt by everybody here. Kotono is here, taking care of Little Gunzou with Choukai," she informed him.
I didn't know that Kotono was here. A more familiar face would help since this reunion was going to be painful. He nodded, but they kept silent while they went through the inmense battlestation. Almost fifteen minutes later, Fleet Admiral Chihaya was in front of his son's door. Anna had excused herself since it was a private matter.
The door opened, no waiting for him. Kotono's senses were impressive, and she knew, obviously, through Anna that he was standing in front of the door. Kotono gave him an affecttionated hug and kissed him. A bit surprised but grateful, he returned the gesture.
"You had a long fight, my dear Gunzou-kun. Our Gunzou still missed her mother, but he is better now. He needs time to heal, but at least he is not screaming for revenge," she explained to him with a timid smile. Gunzou nodded, accepting that he needed to spend at least some quality time with his son. He entered the apartment and found his son and Choukai drinking some tea. His son, in fact a grown man, had a hard stare. He was talking with Choukai and looked at his father coming into the living room. He simply stood up and embraced strongly to his father. They stayed talking, remembering and crying a bit. He spent the night at home, but duty called him at first hour in the morning.
He went to the Fleet Headquarters in Seattle, and it was received by a Colonel of the Mobile Infantry. His car parked close to the entry doors, two magnificent pieces of sculptured wood, an honor only reserved to the higher ranks. He had to suffer an endless series of hails from the soldiers guarding every junction in the inmense building. When he reached his office, he already had cramps in his right shoulder.
After the last row of salutes, he took his old and comfy armchair by assault. After a heavy row of strong navy coffees, he accessed the network. First, he checked where Iona was. Her last report was from Alex. She was waiting for orders, and probably for him. Sighing, he filed out this knowledge and began to select three hundred ships from his original fleet. The computer assistant had removed from the most damaged girls enough crew to replenish the numbers. Now, enough ships from the other fleets to reach the one thousand. This time, they will operate as two separate fleets. So many ships were too big to form, and it lacked enough versatility.
After an endless row of meetings, salutes, condolences, and a lot of politics, Gunzou felt like a piece of crap. He really needed a shower and sleep. When he was going to call it a day, the chime sounded. He felt who his visitor was. Gretel had used her usual teleportation trick.
He was going to invite her to come in when Gretel opened the door by herself. "Hello, Gunzou. I know you are really tired, but we need to talk."
"Please, come in. The meeting showed we are not ready for wars of this scale," he admitted tiredly.
"You're right, but there are things you must know. When Atlantea was recovered, we could take a few samples of their technologies. They are not exactly now what they were in their original universe. The information was quite scarce, or it was throughly deleted. Why they were modified when they entered our universe, we don't know," Gretel explained while she munched a cookie.
"The most logical answer is for removing a weakness," said the tactician in him.
Gretel looked at the human, a bit surprised with the answer. She meditated about the possibilities, and she found it could be true.
"Perhaps it was a good idea to keep you out of bed, Gunzou-kun," the ancient being said, a bit prideful of her own contribution to his body. Does it make me like his second mother? Gretel thought.
"Well, this is all I can share with you."
"Gretel, what do you know about the other universe? Do you know if I'kon could visit other universes?" asked Gunzou.
"It's quite possible, but I simply don't know anything from him after I was activated on Earth," said Gretel, a bit sad.
He thought about what he was going to propose. "Gretel, logic dictates that the gate must be close to the Nexus' stars. I am going to send Iona and her two sisters to search for the gate."
"Unfortunately, I must remember you that destroying stars is a good way to destroy evidence," she said.
"True. Can you talk to Iona? Perhaps you can suggest what to look for? Gunzou almost begged.
"Maybe I can give them a few hints." Smirking as always, she teleported out of his room.
Gunzou spent valuable sleep time sitting alone in his now dark office.
Starbase 23, Alexandria.
After four days, the new assembled fleet with Chihaya in command returned to Forge. One thousand ships, with three hundred ships crewed only by humans, defolded one hour ago. The powerful four superbattleships and the Galactica were present, too, to act as command ships for the two fleets. More importantly, Gunzou visited Alex. He knew her old friend was there. What it was more critical, Baltar and Maki were there, under the care of Alex.
The Admiral Jackson Ready Room was presently occupied by Jackson, Tigh, Maki, Baltar, and Iona and her two sisters, Mia and Sia. Since time was of the essence, Gunzou explained everything he talked with the Admiralty and especially with the Admiralty Code.
Iona interrupted him, "I can tell you that Gretel gave me a few ideas about the gate. But, to be honest, it seemed pretty useless."
Baltar had been listening, very interested in the universal gate. "Excuse me, but if, and I know it is an if with capital characters, there is or there was a gate, we can test the fundamental quantum resonance frequency of the interestellar gas. The matter from a different universe must leave a trail to the gate."
Everybody, including Maki, looked very impressed with the proposal. Now, it was time for Jackson to ask, "Girls, can you detect that...frequency?"
Iona said with confidence, "Yes, we can, but literally, we must cross a stream of gas from another universe to find it. The chances are a bit...low."
"So it would be an accident to find it," said Jackson, a bit disappointed.
Tigh, almost lost for the technical jargon flying through the room, asked, "An event so powerful must leave some damage to the universe structure, right?"
Suddenly, Maki almost jumped from her chair, "I know how!" Calming down, she explained, "Look, four days ago, I convinced Mia to make an... instruction tour through this star system, and she showed me the dimensional diving. According to Gretel, the observed brane working as an ocean floor was the theoretical border among universes. So this gate must manifest inside the dimensional ocean, right?"
After a few minutes of a mix of surprise, admiration, and stupor, Iona said, "I believe you guessed it right. We, the submarines, can look through the dimensional ocean. If the gate is still there, we will find out where it is. And, we can confirm the quantum signature using the Dr. Baltar's idea."
Sia only said, "When do we leave to hunt universes?" Everybody smiled.
"Once your crew took a well-deserved rest and your magazines fully loaded, you and your sisters can leave Alex. However, I want groups of fifty submarines. If I have a nice target for you girls, I need you as a small flotilla, not isolated ships."
"Understood Admiral. I and my battle sisters will leave in forty-eight standard hours," said Iona with a bit of non-hidden pride. The Dimensional Submarine Corps had inflicted severe damage to the enemy, and many girls had fresh battle stars painted on their hulls.
"Well, I will jump to the closer star still occupied by the enemy," Gunzou said. The high ranked officers knew it was not going to be easy. The resources still in machines' hands were unknown. In time, the Fleet will know.
Twenty-four hours later, the fleet, under his command, was anxiously looking at the clocks. Now, back in Luddendorff, he waited to the clock. When the countdown reached zero, he commanded, "Fold."