The Orion Front - A Hard Military Space Opera Adventure (Aeon 14: The Orion War Book 9) Read online

  THE ORION FRONT

  THE ORION WAR – BOOK 9

  BY M. D. COOPER

  Just in Time (JIT) & Beta Readers

  Copyright © 2019 M. D. Cooper

  Aeon 14 is Copyright © 2019 M. D. Cooper

  Version 1.0.0

  Cover Art by Andrew Dobell

  Editing by Jen McDonnell, Bird’s Eye Books

  Aeon 14 & M. D. Cooper are registered trademarks of Michael Cooper

  All rights reserved

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  FOREWORD

  KEY CHARACTERS

  MAPS

  PART 1 – FAILURE

  STAR CITY EXPRESS

  WHERE ARE WE?

  BAGGED

  THE PLAN

  PART 2 – WIDOWS

  WIDOW A1

  FATHER’S PURSUIT

  A GENERAL BESIEGED

  ILL CONCEIVED

  DETERMINISM

  PART 3 – AIRTHA

  UPDATES

  WIDOWHUNT

  PURSUING MOTHER

  DIRECTION

  A FATHER’S DISMISSAL

  WAR TABLE

  PART 4 – ESCAPE

  LAST DITCH

  THE JUMP

  DEPARTING AIRTHA

  FATHER FIGURE

  PART 5 – COMMS

  INTO THE MAW

  BOTTLED MESSAGE

  ENEMY MINE

  NEW MANAGEMENT

  THE MACHINES

  A CLONE FOR YOUR TROUBLES

  GOING UNDER

  DURGEN FLIGHT

  WAR CRIMINALS

  PART 6 – FORWARD

  REFLECTION

  THE LOST AI

  THE BOOKS OF AEON 14

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  FOREWORD

  When I was preparing to write this book, I was wandering around the Interwebs (as I often do) and I stumbled across an article on bacteria that feeds directly off electricity.

  In essence, all life is really about electricity, which is to say, shuffling around free electrons to make different ionized things that we then use to keep ourselves alive. We breathe in oxygen so that our cells can push electrons into that element, and keep a flow of energy going through our body.

  Obviously, this is a super simplified version of a very complex biology, but an important part of it is that we (along with most lifeforms) are not capable of directly harvesting electrons from an electrical flow. We have to get them out of various compounds that will give up their valence electrons without a fuss.

  However, as it turns out, if you stick a rod into moist soil or dirt from the seabed, and pump electrons into it, you will find that bacteria begins to move to the rod. This bacteria (scientists are discovering that there are many, many types that do this) feeds directly off the electricity. They even form cables several centimeters long to channel energy to their buddies.

  For reference, the first of these were discovered by Derek Lovely of the University of Massachusetts. He found them on the banks of the Potomac near Washington DC.

  From a BBC article: “The microbes, called Geobacter metallireducens, were getting their electrons from organic compounds, and passing them onto iron oxides. In other words they were eating waste—including ethanol—and effectively ‘breathing’ iron instead of oxygen…. They are even able to effectively ‘eat’ pollution. They will convert the organic compounds in oil spills into carbon dioxide, or turn soluble radioactive metals like plutonium and uranium into insoluble forms that are less likely to contaminate groundwater—and they will generate electricity in the process.”

  Over the years, more and more of these bacteria have been found, and while many harvest their electrons from sources not available to most life, some are capable of sucking up raw electrons. Essentially, they can drink from the firehose.

  I won’t put in links, as those are likely to be no good after a time, but googling “bacteria that eat electricity” can start you down a rather fun rabbit hole.

  Why is all of this noteworthy? Well, other than that fact that I’m a huge nerd and I think it’s cool, it’s just amazing that such a thing exists…and that it has so much amazing potential to help us manage our environment. Of course, it might get used in some very interesting ways in the future too….

  So, I should probably make this foreword about something in addition to the research. One thing of note is that I really took my time writing this book. I freed up my schedule a lot, and spent a lot of time just thinking about where to take this part of the story. I still know where it’s all going, but there are parts of the journey that are fuzzy to me, and sussing out where the characters are going is half the fun of writing.

  I think that some things are moving in interesting directions, and moreover, we’re getting a lot more time with Tangel—who is really hard to write for because so much of her conflict is extradimensional, and not really describable to our 3D-oriented minds, at least not without making a lot of tiresome descriptions.

  Luckily, some new challenges came along for her, and Tangel is going to have to grow in ways she didn’t expect.

  Michael Cooper

  Danvers 2019

  KEY CHARACTERS

  Airtha – Both the name of a ring encircling a white dwarf in the Huygens System and the AI who controls it, Airtha was once a human woman named Jelina, wife of Jeffrey Tomlinson. After venturing to the galactic core on a research mission, she returned as an AI—one with a vendetta.

  Amavia – The result of Ylonda and Amanda’s merger when they were attacked by Myriad aboard Ylonda’s ship. The new entity occupies Amanda’s body, but possesses an overlapped blend of their minds. Amavia has served aboard Sabrina since the ship left New Canaan after the Defense of Carthage, but is now the ambassador to the League of Sentients at Aldebaran.

  Amy – Daughter of Silva, rescued by Rika and Team Basilisk from her father, Stavros.

  Carmen – Ship’s AI of the Damon Silas. Captured by Roxy during her assault on the ship.

  Cary – Tangel’s biological daughter. Has a trait where she can deep-Link with other people, creating a temporary merger of minds, and is able to utilize extradimensional vision to see ascended beings.

  Cheeky – Pilot of Sabrina, reconstituted by a neural dump Piya made of her mind before she died on Costa Station.

  Erin – Engineer responsible for the construction of the New Canaan Gamma bases, in addition to a number of other projects.

  Faleena – Tangel’s AI daughter, born of a mind merge between Tangel, Angela, and Joe.

  Finaeus – Brother of Jeffrey Tomlinson, and Chief Engineer aboard the I2.

  Flaherty – Former Hand agent and long-time protector of Sera.

  Helen – Former AI of Sera’s who was killed by her father in the events leading up to Jeffrey’s assassination. A copy of that shard was found to be on the Airthan ring as well.

  Iris – The AI who was paired with Jessica during the hunt for Finaeus, who then took on a body (that was nearly identical to Jessica’s) after they came back. She remained with Amavia at Aldebaran to continue diplomatic relations with the League of Sentients.

  Jeffrey Tomlinson – Former president of the Transcend, found in stasis in an underground chamber on Bolt Hole, a planet in the Large Magellanic Cloud.

  Jen – ISF AI paired with Sera.

  Jessica Keller – ISF admiral who has returned to the I2 after an operation deep in the Inner Stars to head off a new AI war. She also spent ten years traveling through Orion space before the Defense of Carthage—specifica
lly the Perseus Arm, and Perseus Expansion Districts.

  Joe – Admiral in the ISF, commandant of the ISF academy, and husband of Tangel.

  Kara – Daughter of Adrienne, Kara was rescued by Katrina when fleeing from Airtha, and came to New Canaan aboard the Voyager.

  Katrina – Former Sirian spy, wife of Markus, and eventual governor of the Victoria colony at Kapteyn’s Star—and Warlord of the Midditerra System.

  Krissy Wrentham – TSF admiral responsible for internal fleets fighting against Airtha in the Transcend civil war. She is also the daughter of Finaeus Tomlinson and Lisa Wrentham.

  Lisa – Former wife of Finaeus Tomlinson, she left the Transcend for the Orion Freedom Alliance when Krissy was young. Head of a clandestine group within the OFA known as the Widows, which hunts down advanced technology and destroys it.

  Misha – Head (and only) cook aboard Sabrina.

  Nance – Ship’s engineer aboard Sabrina, recently transferred back there from the ISF academy.

  Priscilla – One of Bob’s two avatars.

  Rachel – Captain of the I2. Formerly, captain of the Enterprise.

  Roxy – Justin’s sister, kept subservient to him as his lover via mental coercion.

  Saanvi – Tangel’s adopted daughter, found in a derelict ship that entered the New Canaan System.

  Sabrina – Ship’s AI and owner of the starship Sabrina.

  Sera – Director of the Hand and former president of the Transcend. Daughter of Airtha and Jeffrey Tomlinson.

  LMC Sera (Seraphina) – A copy of Sera made by Airtha containing all of Sera’s desired traits and memories. Captured by Sera and the allies during their excursion into the Large Magellanic Cloud.

  Valkris Sera (Fina) – A copy of Sera made by Airtha containing all of Sera’s desired traits and memories. Captured by ISF response forces who came to the aid of the TSF defenders during the siege of Valkris.

  Svetlana – Transcend admiral dispatched deep in Orion Space with one of the Hoplite forces.

  Terrance – Terrance Enfield was the original backer for the Intrepid, though once the ship jumped forward in time, he took it as an opportunity to retire. Like Jason, he was pulled into active service by Tangel when New Canaan became embroiled in the Orion War.

  Troy – AI pilot of the Excelsior who was lost during the Battle of Victoria, and later found by Katrina. He joined her on the hunt for the Intrepid aboard the Voyager, jumping forward in time via Kapteyn’s Streamer.

  Tangel – The entity that resulted from Tanis and Angela’s merger into one being. Not only is Tangel a full merger of a human and AI, but she is also an ascended being.

  Usef – ISF Colonel who served on Sabrina for several years, as well as aided Erin in stopping several acts of sabotage in New Canaan.

  MAPS

  For more maps, visit www.aeon14.com/maps.

  PART 1 – FAILURE

  STAR CITY EXPRESS

  STELLAR DATE: 10.03.8949 (Adjusted Years)

  LOCATION: ISS Lantzer

  REGION: Buffalo, Albany System, Theban Alliance

  Six days before the assault on Airtha; the same day Tangel faced Xavia in Aldebaran…

  “How does it feel to be at the helm of a cruiser again,” Trevor asked Jessica as the pair walked toward the bridge’s central holotank.

  “Well…” Jessica winked at him. “Ensign Lucida is really at the helm. I’m just the skipper. So for me, it’s about the same as being captain of Sabrina.”

  Her husband lifted an eyebrow, regarding her with his dark, serious eyes. After a moment, a smile quirked the corners of his mouth, and he shook his head. “You miss Sabrina already, don’t you?”

  She resisted the urge to smack him on the arm. “Stars, yes! Don’t you? Sabrina was your home almost as long as she was mine. Core, I’d even take the chickens right about now.”

  “It’s only been a day.”

  Jessica ignored his comment and swiped a hand through the holo, pivoting the visual of surrounding space until the I2 was centered on the display.

  “I just…I dunno,” she finally responded. “We’re making a jump through Stillwater again. Last time we did that, it took a decade to get home.”

  “Sure,” Trevor nodded compassionately and placed a hand on Jessica’s shoulder. “Granted, the first time, we made an emergency jump with a mirror built out of spare parts. Then someone re-oriented the gate at the last minute, trying to send us right out of the galaxy. Sort of a once-in-a-lifetime event. Besides, we’ve made plenty of jumps since then that got us right where we wanted to go.”

  Jessica slid her hand along Trevor’s back and hooked it around his waist. “Yeah, I know. Not the same. Plus, the Lantzer has four gates aboard, so if we run into trouble, we’ll have a lot of options.”

  “Yup, so long as we survive the jump.”

  Jessica turned to give Trevor a sharp look, but saw that he was grinning at her with a twinkle in his eye.

  “Stars, man,” she muttered. “I’m going to make you leave the bridge if you talk like that.”

  “Sent to the cargo hold.” His voice carried a tone of mock sadness. “Feeling like home already.”

  A laugh slipped past Jessica’s lips, garnering the attention of the rest of the bridge crew. “OK, people. We’re next in the queue. How’re we looking?”

  “My board is green,” Ensign Lucida said, followed by a response from Lieutenant Karma, who was managing both Scan and Comm.

  “All systems nominal,” he said.

  Gil, the ship’s AI, added.

  Other than the five people present on the bridge, the kilometer-long cruiser only had six additional people aboard: two engineers, and a fireteam of ISF Marines. Jessica checked in on them personally, and once they acknowledged readiness for the jump, she signaled the bridge crew to take the ship through the gate.

  “Buffalo Tower acknowledges the gate vector is set for Star City,” Karma said with a note of clear anticipation in his voice. “Damn, I can’t wait to see that thing.”

  “You’re telling me,” Trevor said. “Granted, I care more about the people there than Star City itself.”

  Jessica snorted. “I’m sure our kids will be glad to hear that.”

  “Oh, not our kids. I meant the Dreamers.” Trevor gave her a wink.

  “Funny man.”

  “We’re aligned with the gate, Admiral,” Lucida announced.

  Gil chimed in.

  Jessica turned to face the forward holodisplay, which showed their assigned jump gate and the planet Buffalo beyond.

  “Take us in,” she directed.

  Lucida fired the maneuvering thrusters, using them to ease the ship forward. It coasted through space for a few seconds, and then a shudder ran through the deck. Jessica shifted her gaze to a nearby console, looking for any alerts.

  Gil said a second later.

  Jessica and Trevor shared a look, neither speaking what was on their minds.

  The Lantzer, like many of the ISF’s ships, was newly constructed and had only seen the most cursory of shakedown runs. Considering the speed at which the ISF was building spacecraft, the failure rates were surprisingly low, but a small percentage of ships did suffer significant malfunctions after being put into service.

  Just get us to Star City, you bucket of bolts, Jessica thought. A moment later, she chastised herself and sent a wordless apology to the ship.

  It was possible that the Lantzer would be the deck beneath her feet for some time; thinking ill of her ship wasn’t a good way to start a relationship with it. Of course, it was also possible that Tangel would make good on her threat and put Jessica in command of a fleet—in which case, she’d likely transfer to an I-Class ship.

  Just the thought of that sent a pang of regret through her. She had loved being captain of Sabrina. It had a
lways felt right to her. The notion of having an entire fleet of ISF ships—and the lives therein—under her command caused a flutter of worry to settle in her breast. New Canaan’s resources, especially the ones that took the form of humans and AIs, were so very rare. The concern that she’d spend lives foolishly was one that had taken firm root within her mind.

  Another small vibration ran through the deck, and she shot a questioning look at one of Gil’s optics.

  the AI said.

  “Don’t worry, ma’am.” Lucida glanced over her shoulder as she spoke. “I could fly this beautiful girl with half her maneuvering jets. She handles like a dream.”

 

  “Steady as she goes,” Jessica whispered, her eyes on the twisting knot of nothing in the center of the jump gate.

  In moments, the mirror mounted on the front of the ship would touch the mouth of the artificial singularity in the center of the gate, stretching it out and drawing the Lantzer around its edge. The effect was that of using a wormhole without having to pass through the event horizon of a black hole.

  Something Jessica was certain no one wanted to do.

  Trevor was right. They’d passed through gates dozens of times since that first jump. But ever since landing on the fringe of human expansion and facing a decade-long journey home, Jessica hadn’t been able to look at a gate without feeling some amount of trepidation.

  Gil called out as the ship’s mirror touched the gate’s mass of not-space, interrupting her thoughts.

  For a moment, everything seemed to twist around her. Then the ship jumped.

  At first, all was normal, but then the forward holodisplay went from the nothing of jump space to flashing a kaleidoscope of colors. At the same time, alarms began to wail and every console showed red. Then a shockwave rippled through the ship, and the bridge fell into darkness.

  Jessica grabbed onto the edge of the holotank as another shockwave hit them, but her grip wasn’t strong enough, and she was flung across the bridge, slamming into the forward bulkhead before falling to the deck.