The Prophet's Eyes: The Death Prophecies book two. Read online

  “We’ll be waiting for their arrival.”

  “All Ships turn ninety degrees and leave by fleets at full speed.” Whitehall’s fleet turned and disappeared in an instant. Holmes disappeared a moment later. “Good luck.” Connor’s fleet turned and he said, “Why are you killing all the inhabitants?”

  “They’re carnivores.”

  “I understand.” Connor’s fleet disappeared.

  • • •

  “Commander, those ships traveled at double our best speed.”

  The commander stared at his display and saw the strange ships were out of range in less than five minutes. He shook his head and wondered if he would have not attacked if one of his ships was attacked. There was a lesson here and he would not forget it.

  • • •

  “Admiral Connor.”

  “Yes Sir.”

  “Fleet Admiral has requested that you report directly to her upon your arrival.”

  “I thought I was to go back to my scouting mission?”

  “Your fleet will continue but you will report to Fleet Headquarters immediately.”

  “Yes Sir.” Connor shook his head, “Commodore Smith.”

  “Yes Sir.”

  “Turn your unit over to your second and report to the Kindred. You will be in command in my absence.”

  “Uhhh, Sir, where are you going?”

  “I’ve been ordered to report to Fleet. Contact me if you encounter anything.”

  “Yes Sir.”

  Lt. Halekia looked at him, “Good luck, Sir.”

  “Do you think I’ll need it?”

  She tilted her head, “You know how it is with politicians, Sir.”

  Connor snorted, “No, I guess I don’t.” He walked off the bridge and headed to the landing bay. His ship was powered and waiting on his arrival. The crew saluted and he returned their salute. He boarded the gleaming bronze warship and lifted it off the deck. He flew the ship through the force field and out of the cavernous landing bay as he entered the location for Earth in the Stardrive. He activated it and pushed the thruster handle fully forward. This couldn’t be good. He had a long way to go and he wondered where he had gone wrong. He replayed the events in his mind and decided that he would have followed the same course of action. Oh well. He’d follow the tenth Prophecy; only worry about things you can control.

  Chapter Two

  Admiral Pam Osborn went back to her conference room ten minutes before Admiral Connor’s expected arrival. She saw the other four senior admirals were present. She wondered briefly if they were jealous of her position. The Leadership Council had promoted her to Fleet Admiral over the other four Senior Admirals who had much more experience than she did.

  Calling in the first Admiral who encountered an advanced aggressive species to censure his actions wasn’t a good way to start her tenure. However, after listening to the evidence, she had to agree with the others that Admiral Connor needed to justify his actions or be demoted. The data that was sent to her was still being organized by Fleet Intelligence and she wondered how Admiral Malone had the information before she did. She sat back in her chair and Admiral Malone said, “He just landed. He’ll be here momentarily.”

  “Since you’re the one that called for his censure, you will lead the questioning.”

  Malone smiled, “I’m happy to do it. There’s no room in the service for cowards.”

  Pam looked at Admiral Rickman and saw she didn’t like Malone’s remark. Admiral Knott didn’t give any indication of how he viewed the situation. He voted with Malone to bring Connor in but he didn’t seem to be animated about his decision. She saw the door open and Admiral Connor was escorted in by her Executive Officer. He closed the door behind Admiral Connor and Pam said, “Please take a seat, Admiral.” She pointed to a chair in front of the raised half circle table. This was the first time she had seen Admiral Connor. He was impressive. His green eyes were bright and they didn’t appear to miss anything around him. She saw he had already determined that Admiral Malone was his main problem. He walked to the chair and sat down. He remained silent and Admiral Malone said, “You don’t have anything to say?”

  “I was told to come in and sit down, Sir. I wasn’t given instructions that I could talk.”

  Malone stared at him and said, “Is it true that one of your ships was attacked by a black and silver colored warship?”

  “It is.”

  “Was your ship close to being destroyed?”

  “It was.”

  “Why did you not fire on the ship that left the formation it was in and rushed to attack your ships?”

  “I didn’t have any evidence that it was going to attack.”

  Malone’s eyes narrowed and he shook his head, “What more evidence do you need? It flew at its fastest speed and opened fire as it approached the Cabo.”

  “Until it actually fired on the Cabo, I had no idea what it was doing.”

  Malone looked at Pam, “What incompetence!” He turned back to Connor, “You ordered your ships out of the path of four hundred warships that were sent to find your fleet and didn’t attack them. You went to the planet where the enemy’s remaining warships were located and allowed the four hundred to trap you between them.”

  Malone stared at Connor and he remained silent. “Are you going to answer the question?”

  “I will if you ask one, Sir.”

  Malone’s face turned red and Pam said, “You didn’t ask a question, Admiral. You made a statement.”

  Malone looked at her and turned back to Connor, “Is what I just said an accurate description of your actions?”

  “It is.”

  “And you heard the commander of that fleet threaten you and did nothing.” Connor stared at him and Malone added, “Did you?”

  “No, I did not.”

  “So this alien species had demonstrated they are aggressive and you had no evidence to the otherwise. You exhibited cowardice in the face of an enemy.”

  Malone stared at Connor and saw him suddenly smile. Something he said made the Admiral’s expression change. What was it?

  Connor listened to Malone and knew who had caused him to be called in to be censured. Now it all began to make sense. Malone turned to Pam and said, “I call for a vote for Admiral Connor to be formally charged with cowardice in the face of the enemy.”

  Steve stared at Admiral Malone with a smile on his face. Pam saw him and tilted her head, “Admiral Connor, you don’t appear to be taking these charges very seriously.”

  Steve looked at Pam and said, “I assumed at some point I would be asked a question that made sense. At that point, I think Admiral Malone will shut up and apologize for his very unprofessional behavior.”

  Malone’s face turned to rage and Pam said, “Shut up, Admiral; sit down.” She looked at Steve, “You have just been disrespectful to one of Earth’s highest ranking officers.”

  “Then Earth is an idiot for putting him in the position.”

  “Admiral, I will give you three minutes to prove your point or I’ll have you arrested and busted out of the service.”

  “I don’t need three minutes. I intercepted a communication from the Commander of the alien fleet calling for the execution of the Officer that ordered my ship to be attacked.” Connor stared at Malone as he made the statement and Malone’s eyes went wide. He jerked his head down to his panel and began pressing buttons. He looked up and said, “There is no record of that communication.”

  Steve looked at him and lowered his eyebrows, “Admiral Holmes didn’t have the translation data when it was intercepted. He had no record of it.” Steve looked at Pam, “Sir, if you will look at your records, you’ll find the communication.”

  Pam pulled up the raw data that was sent to her computer and after scrolling through four screens she stopped and looked up, “I have the communication you’ve mentioned.” Malone jumped up and ran around behind her to look at her panel. He read for a moment and then turned and went back to his chair. He looked at Pam a
nd she stared him down.

  Pam looked at Steve, “Why don’t we do this without assuming guilt before the meeting starts, shall we. Admiral Connor, explain why you chose to take the actions you chose?”

  “I allowed the four hundred ships to pass with the intent of taking out the ships attacking the planet first and then moving on the ones sent to find me. I delayed moving on the planet until the translation program collected enough of their communications to understand their language. It was at that point that I learned the Alien Officer that ordered my ship attacked was executed for his behavior. That didn’t sound like something a purely aggressive civilization would do. I decided to wait and make sure if they were. I ordered Admiral Holmes to hold position and be ready to attack the Alien Fleet at the planet. I would take the ships that I knew would come up behind me. Admiral Whitehall would be used where he was needed most when he arrived at the scene.”

  “So you felt like you had the forces you’d need to win if they attacked.”

  “Sir, the ship that attacked the Cabo was taken out with just one missile. Its beams were unable to target it which told me that the computers used to control their beams aren’t nearly as good as ours. When we were surrounded, I had a missile targeted at every one of their warships. I do confess when the Alien Commander told me I was in no position to demand anything and that I would remain where I was, I wondered about having to destroy them. When my scanner officer told me that the Aliens were killing every inhabitant on the planet, it really looked like they were an aggressive civilization.”

  “But you didn’t attack.”

  “The Alien said that he was going to ask his leaders what to do. I decided to wait and see what they said.” Connor paused and looked at Malone, “I want each of you to consider what you would do if you commanded a fleet that was attacking a Traugh planet and a fleet of strange warships showed up. What would you do?”

  Pam looked at the other three Admirals and saw they would have attacked the ships moving in on them from the rear. Pam looked at Connor, “It would be difficult not to attack them.”

  “But that Alien held off even when he had superior numbers. He sought direction on what he should do.”

  Malone said, “But he was killing every defenseless being on the planet.”

  “Admiral, if we invade a Traugh Planet, are we going to take prisoners?” Malone stared at him and shook his head, “The Prophet told us that they must all be destroyed down to the last one for the universe to be safe.”

  “The Alien Commander told me that the beings on the planet invaded his home planets more than a thousand years earlier. When I asked him why he was killing everyone on the planet, he told me they were carnivores. The Traugh are not the only dangerous species in our galaxy.” He looked at Malone, “Holmes had left with his fleet when that was discussed so he didn’t include it in the report he sent you about my cowardice. He demanded to attack twice and I told him to follow his orders.”

  Pam looked at Malone, “Is that where you were given the information to call Admiral Connor in?” Malone nodded. “Send him a request to report immediately.”

  Steve said, “I would like to make a recommendation.”

  The four Senior Admirals turned and looked at him. “Admiral Holmes is driven by raw ambition. He desperately wants to sit in one of your chairs. He sees me as a competitor and that’s why he set you up, Admiral Malone.”

  “What do you mean set me up?”

  “He gave you inaccurate information and I suspect Admiral Osborn no longer trusts you to give her good information. It weakens your position, Admiral. If you asked Admiral Osborn who she would give up first, if one had to go, who do you think she would choose?”

  Malone stared at Connor and said, “That son of a…”

  Pam looked at him and silenced him with a stare. She turned to Connor, “What is your recommendation?”

  “Admiral Holmes is a perfectionist and a very capable Fleet Admiral. He’s going to ultimately make a mistake because of his burning ambition. I would send him to the Aliens in a week to go and meet with their leaders.”

  The four Senior Admirals stared at Connor in silence as they thought about it. Connor smiled, “It would give him the opportunity to rub shoulders with an alien species and maybe learn that it’s necessary to really see the situation before making a terrible mistake. If you send him out with orders to establish an alliance with them, his ambition would drive him to make it happen. Perhaps in the process, you’ll get a wiser and better officer.”

  “I don’t want him commanding any of our ships.”

  Connor looked at Malone, “Then make him the ambassador to this species once diplomatic relations are established. However, he really is a good officer.”

  Pam looked at Connor, “How can you recommend saving him after he tried to get you court-martialed?”

  Connor looked at Pam and then Admiral Malone. He turned back to Pam and smiled, “Because it’s the best thing for Earth.”

  “Are you suggesting I should just forget what he’s done?”

  “We both won’t forget what happened here, Admiral. I do apologize for my earlier disrespect.”

  “I deserved it. And you’re right. Good commanders are hard to find. Maybe he can be saved.”

  Admiral Knott smiled and Pam said, “Why did you vote to bring Admiral Connor in?”

  “I was looking forward to his making a fool out of us for doing it. I wasn’t disappointed. I must confess that I expected you to railroad him out of the service but you surprised me.” Knott looked at Connor, “You remind me so much of your grandfather. He was the best commander I’ve ever served with.”

  “Thank you, Sir. We miss him.”

  Pam looked at Connor, “We might need to make another chair for you to join us.”

  Connor smiled, “Sir, my place is leading warships out into space to remove enemies that threaten us. That is what I’m especially suited to do and I’m certain there are many others that would fill that chair much better than I.”

  Pam smiled, “Admiral, I am promoting you to Full Admiral. You will be the highest ranking War Admiral in our fleets of scouts and before you say you don’t want it, you’re going to take it and shut up.”

  Connor stared at her, opened his mouth, and then closed it. He shook his head, “Sir, I’ll take it but why me?”

  “It’s like you asked earlier about who I trusted to provide me with good information. You have proven to me that you possess good judgment but even more importantly, you have wisdom. We’re going to need both as we go out and search for possible threats. I believe I can trust you to make the right decisions.”

  Connor nodded and said, “I really need to get back to my fleet, Sir.”

  “You are dismissed.”

  Connor stood up and saluted before doing an about face and leaving the room. Pam looked at Malone, “Why did you have it in for him?”

  “I guess I was of the opinion that he was given his rank because of his ancestry.” Pam’s eyes narrowed and Malone said, “Yes, I thought the same thing about you but you’ve shown me we have the right person in command. I was wrong about both of you.”

  Pam started nodding and smiled, “You’ve redeemed yourself, Admiral. It took a lot of courage to admit that. Now I know you’ll tell me what I need to know instead of what you think I want to hear.” She looked at Admiral Knott, “If you withhold your opinion in the future you will be the first to leave. Am I clear!?”

  “Yes Sir.”

  Pam looked at the door and wished Admiral Connor was still there. He was really nice to look at. She glanced at the picture of her great-great aunt. It was Connor’s great-great grandfather, who took her to die with the man she loved. He granted her last request and allowed her to die in peace. History recorded that Pam had screamed that he owed her. He came from a good family. Pam looked at the Senior Admirals, “Let’s go over the data and see if we can learn anything.

  • • •

  Steve sat on the Kindred and
punched a button on his panel. The Fleet Commander of the Silver and Black Ships appeared and Conner tried hard not to smile. He looked a lot like a Teddy Bear, just much larger. His brown fur had silver streaks through it showing his age, “I just want to notify you that I will be moving through your territory to explore further out on this galactic arm.”

  “I’ll notify my scouts to expect you.”

  “Thank you.” The Loran nodded and his display went dark. He pressed another button and saw Commodore McDonald, “Kendell, take your squadron out and start searching the outer edge of the Perseus arm outside Loran Space.”

  “Yes Sir.”

  Connor watched the hundred bronze warships turn away from his flagship and move quickly toward the distant stars.

  “Sir, I have a call coming in for you.”

  “Who is it?”

  “Admiral Holmes.”

  Connor rolled his eyes and shook his head, “Put it on my panel.”

  Holmes appeared on the display and Connor said, “Good day, Admiral.”

  “I don’t know if you had a hand in getting me removed from my command and sent here as an ambassador, but I guess I deserved it.” Connor remained silent. “I’ve discovered that the Loran are very much like humans. They’re good beings and I think about how I tried my best to make you attack them. That would have been a terrible mistake.”

  “It’s good to see you recognize that.”

  “You saved me and my career by keeping me in my place. Thank you. But that’s not the reason for my call.”

  “Oh?”

  “I’ve met with one of the Loran who is their main historian. I told him why we’re out exploring the galaxy and he pulled something up out of their ancient database. More than two hundred years ago a starship with a load of colonists passed through their territory fleeing from a species that had destroyed their planet.”

  “What do you mean destroy?”

  “They used some kind of weapon that fractured the planet’s surface and blew the atmosphere away. He showed me the recording those colonists shared with them. The colony ship had launched prior to the attack and hid on one of the outer planets as the enemy ships rushed in and attacked the planet. They had already destroyed three other planets settled by the colonist’s species and they had barely managed to build the colony ship before they appeared at their planet.” Holmes paused and tilted his head, “They told the Loran that the species that destroyed their planet is located six thousand light years out from the end of the bar in the center of the Milky Way where the Perseus Arm begins.”