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

  Admiral Rickman shook his head, “That means the scans of that derelict won’t be as helpful as we hoped.”

  “Why not?”

  Rickman shrugged, “If you scanned one of our first warships, how much would it help you in taking on one of our current vessels?”

  Connor looked at Rickman, “They had the planet killer on that ship. That should help us.”

  “But it could have been changed since that ship was destroyed.”

  “I’ve looked at some of the images Wade sent and the size of the crater on all the destroyed planets were basically the same size. However, the ships attacking Wade were larger than the ship he found on that moon.”

  The four Admirals looked at Connor and Pam said, “How much larger?”

  “Thirty percent.”

  “That figures.”

  Connor raised his eyebrows, “Oh?”

  “Our current warships are actually forty percent larger than the first ships we built. Most of that additional space was needed to install the additional reactors. I suspect their ships are larger for a similar reason.”

  Malone shook his head, “We need more information.”

  Pam looked at him, “Do you think this species represents a greater danger to Earth than the Traugh?”

  “I’d rather face the Traugh than those warships. They’re faster with more powerful force fields and beams. The real question is how many of those ships do they have to use in a war?”

  Pam looked at Connor and saw him staring at her. She shook her head and looked at the others, “I’ve recommended Admiral McAlistor to the Leadership Council for the Orion Medal of Valor.” She looked at Connor, “I know you and Wade became close and if the Council approves it, I would like you to present it to his daughter.”

  Connor smiled slightly, “It would be my honor to do it, Sir.”

  Pam nodded slightly and said, “I’m adjourning this meeting until we receive the analysis from the ones working on it.” She stepped back from her console as the Senior Admirals starting discussing the recordings among themselves. She walked up to Connor and said, “Come with me. We’re taking a trip.”

  “Yes Sir.” She walked out of the conference room and the other Admirals wondered where she and Connor were going.

  Pam led him to the elevator and punched the top floor. The elevator opened and Connor saw the Admiral’s private shuttle. She walked through the open port and he followed her inside. “Take a seat.” Connor sat down in the second chair and Pam activated the thrusters and lifted off the top of the tall building. She flew the ship out of New York and turned south. She flew over the giant metropolis of Washington/Baltimore. She turned slightly and headed toward the mountains. After ten minutes he heard a mechanical voice, “You are entering restricted air space. Withdraw or you will be fired on. Pam lifted her communicator, “Fleet Admiral Pamela Osborn. Code yellow, one, ten, sixty four, Kam, Kam, Kam.”

  “Code accepted.”

  Pam flew the shuttle over the forest and then began moving lower. In two minutes she was landing in a clearing beside a long row of hills. She shut down the power and stood up, “Come with me.”

  Connor followed her out of the shuttle and she walked toward the closest hill. They moved to within fifty yards and Pam stopped. She put out her arm and stopped Connor from going any further. She stood still and after a few moments, Connor heard a force field shut down. He’d recognize that sound anywhere. He suddenly saw a large door in the hill. He was amazed that he had not seen the force field which had to be just a few feet in front of them. Pam walked up to the door and placed her eye over a reticle to the side of the door. It instantly began rising into the hill. She looked at him, “Come on.”

  Connor hadn’t spoken the entire trip and as they passed through the door, he froze in his tracks. He shook his head. Sitting on the floor thirty feet in front of him was the Prophet’s Eyes. It couldn’t have been anything else. He looked at Pam and she pressed a series of numbers into a key pad on the wall. The translucent ship suddenly had a port open in its side and a ramp extend to the ground. Connor looked at her, “My family once owned this land.”

  “Yes they did. The Leaders of Earth took possession of the land and made the cabin a mile away a World Treasure. This is the cave your great-great grandfather and his family hid during the Violent Year. Come with me.” She walked up the ramp and said, “Do not touch anything but the ramp.”

  Connor stopped at the foot of the ramp and looked at her, “What will happen if I do?”

  Pam stopped and looked back at him, “You will die. Every atom in your body will be stripped of their electrons and this ship will absorb them.” She continued up the ramp and entered the port. Connor carefully followed her into the ship.

  She walked to the front of the ship and stopped beside the command chair. He walked up to the other side and looked at the chair. Sitting in the middle of chair was an egg shaped, clear piece of crystal about the size of a medicine ball. The only thing he could see was a plug coming out of the bottom of the crystal. Pam looked at him, “This is the only helmet in existence that can be used to fly the ship. Once this plug is snapped into the chair, the helmet will be safe to use. The person that puts it on will be coded to the helmet and no one else will ever be able to use it. Steve, I need to know if our current situation requires us to code the helmet.”

  “Sir, I can’t make that decision.”

  “No one can. The reluctance to lose this ship from ever being used again will always paralyze the one making the decision. How can we ever be sure that a dangerous situation in the future will happen that only this ship can save us? I trust your judgement, maybe even more than my own. I need you to make the decision. Do you still want to take it?”

  Steve closed his eyes and sighed heavily, “Sir, we need to see what our scientists discover before I can make a good decision. I can’t…do this now.”

  Pam took a deep breath and blew it out, “You’re right. We should wait. But once we have that information, you will decide.”

  “Sir, this is something you should do.”

  “Death Prophesy Six says to choose your best to lead. You are my best War Admiral. I have no doubt about that and it’s become clear to me that I don’t have enough experience to do this. Number Six says that I should choose the best leader to make the decision. That would be you. Be prepared to make the decision after the analysis is completed.”

  “But Sir!”

  “Steve, you aren’t alone in how you feel about doing this. Quite frankly, I’m paralyzed and recognize that this calls for someone who can see things that I might be missing. I’ll help you anyway I can in reaching your decision but you will decide!”

  Steve stared at her and saw the turmoil she was going through in her eyes. He looked at the egg shaped crystal and then looked at her, “I will make the decision, Sir.”

  Pam smiled and nodded, “Good. Let’s get out of here and go back to Fleet Operations. You will stay here on Earth until the analysis is completed.”

  “Yes Sir.”

  • • •

  They lifted above the forest and Pam said, “Do you need transportation?”

  “Sir, if you don’t mind taking me to my parents’ home, I would appreciate it. I’ll wait there for the analysis to be completed.”

  “Where do they live?”

  “Tampa, Florida.”

  “I’ll drop you off at the armory next to the bay.”

  “The one on Gandy Boulevard?”

  “Yes.”

  “How do you know about it?”

  “I was stationed in Tampa after graduating from the academy. The armory on Gandy has the best training on how our new blasters operate.”

  Connor smiled, “You’re right. I also trained there. I’ll contact my sister to meet me there.”

  Pam nodded and turned the shuttle’s nose vertical. She went into low orbit and dove toward the Florida Peninsula. In fifteen minutes, Connor stepped off the shuttle and watched it lift and di
sappear into a bright blue sky. Thirty minutes later, Stella arrived and shook her head, “How long have you been waiting?”

  “Thirty minutes.”

  “Where did you come from?”

  “Washington.”

  Stella shook her head and sighed, “Since I resigned from the Navy, I’ve forgotten how fast our ships can fly.”

  “Do you miss it, Stella?”

  “More than I could ever express but it’s impossible to raise two babies and fly a warship around the galaxy.” She smiled, “Get in, Mom and Dad are excited about seeing you. They’re really ticked you didn’t visit when you were here last time.”

  “Stella, I didn’t have much time and leaving so quickly would have hurt their feelings more.”

  “I suppose. I’m going to drop you off and go pick up the kids from school. I’ll meet you there for dinner.”

  “Will Scott be joining us?”

  “No, he’s completing a sale of high technology computers to the factories in Indonesia. He should be back in a couple of days.”

  Connor laughed, “If you must retire, it helps if you’re wealthy.”

  Stella laughed, “Indeed it does.” She turned off Westshore and dropped Connor off in front of his parent’s house. He didn’t have the door fully opened before his mother rushed out and wrapped her arms around his neck. Stella smiled, waved, and drove away. He saw his father limping out of the garage and he managed to pull his mother along with him until his father could join her in hugging him. It was good to be home.

  • • •

  Connor sat on a stool in the kitchen talking with his father as Molly prepared dinner. “How’s life treating you, Son?”

  “Pretty good, Dad.”

  “Is there anyone you’re serious about?”

  Connor shook his head, “Dad, why is this always the first thing you bring up? No, I am not in a relationship.”

  Molly put the Cuban Bread in the stove and said as she bent over, “Isn’t it about time you found someone?”

  “No, I have plenty of time.”

  “You should start having children at a young enough age to enjoy them, Stevey.”

  “Mom! I will tell you that if I ever do marry, my son will not be another Steven Alexander.”

  “You can’t be serious.”

  “He should have his own name and make his own place in the world.” Molly stared at him and shook her head. “What?”

  “Stevey, a good name is one of the greatest things a parent can give their children. It forces them to live up to what it means and makes them realize that they are meant to accomplish great things. It’s a driving force in their development.”

  “Even so, I’m not going to do it.”

  Molly rolled her eyes and stood up, “Well, there’s other reasons you should have your own home.”

  Steve looked at her and saw his father roll his eyes. Good, he was on his side on this one. His mother probably put him up to asking the question. Steve continued to stare at her as she bent down to put the pan of corn on the cooking surface. She saw him staring and said, “Well, there are other reasons.”

  Steve shook his head, “Such as?”

  Molly stared at him and said, “You need to take all the boxes of things that have been passed down to your father to your home. You’re the next one in line to take them.”

  “Stella could take them.”

  “Come on, Steve, you know she’d dump them as trash.”

  “Isn’t that what they are? Besides, how much could there be?”

  Molly looked at Steve Sr., “Show him.”

  “But…”

  “You have some time until Stella and the children arrive. Take him up and show him.”

  Steve looked at his father, “Dad, it’s alright. I can look at them another time.”

  His father looked at his wife and sighed, “Come on. You should at least know what you’re getting.”

  Steve Sr. stood up and walked to the stairs. They went up and Steve heard his father say, “If I don’t show you, I’ll never hear the end of it.” Steve started laughing and he said, “You know I’m right!”

  “I know, I know. Besides how much could there be?” Steve saw his father roll his eyes and he started wondering what that meant. He found out when his father opened the door to the attic and stepped inside. Steve’s eyes flew wide open. His father shrugged as they looked at the mass of boxes crammed together filling the attic, “The number of boxes has grown over the years.” Steve could only shake his head. This was impossible.

  “Where did all these boxes come from?”

  “Most of them came from my father. Jim was a hoarder and I believe every award and medal he received is in here somewhere. He would have helped me sort them out but he died of a sudden heart attack on his Flagship. I really don’t know what’s in most of them.”

  “No kidding?”

  “I really don’t. There’s one box in here that your great-great grandfather wrote, ‘For our eyes only’.”

  “What?”

  “I remember it. It must be something he wanted kept in the family.”

  “What’s in the box?”

  “I have no idea.”

  “Dad, that box was passed down from Essay Connor. It could have a memoir of all the things that happened during his life.”

  Steve Sr. shrugged, “You could be right. That would make sense that he would only want that shared with the family.”

  “Where is that box?”

  Steve Sr. looked into the attic and shook his head, “I don’t know.”

  “Let’s see if we can find it.” His father shrugged and moved into the attic. “I’ll start on this side, you take that side.” They moved into the mass of boxes and began moving them to see if anything was written on them. After forty minutes Steve said, “Mom is right, Dad. You need to do something with these.”

  “I guess. Have you found it yet?”

  “No.”

  “What are the two of you up to now!?”

  They turned and saw Stella and the two children standing in the attic door. Steve bent down as Kam and Camilla ran into the attic and jumped into his arms, “Oh my goodness you’ve grown so much!”

  Kam laughed, “Cammy is bigger than I am.”

  “You’ll catch up, Kam. How old are you now?”

  Kam held up three fingers, “Three?”

  Cammy frowned, “Noooo, Kam. We’re one more finger now.”

  Steve looked at Stella and she nodded, “They celebrated their fourth birthday a month ago.” Steve smiled and hugged his niece and nephew. “You didn’t tell me what you two geniuses are doing up here.”

  “Dad says that there is a box in here that our great-great grandfather wrote, ‘For our eyes only’. I think it might be a memoir describing everything that happened when the Prophet came to Earth.”

  Stella’s eyes narrowed, “Do you really think that’s possible. It could be worth a fortune.”

  Steve Sr. shook his finger at Stella, “Now there you go only thinking about money. The box said it was for our eyes only!”

  Stella laughed and said, “Kam, Cammy, come with me and let’s see if we can find a box before your Uncle Steve and Poppy.”

  “Yay!” Stella squeezed between the boxes and moved to the back of the attic, “I’ll start back here. The two of you are too overweight to get through the boxes.” They started moving boxes and Steve worried that he might have missed the writing on a side of box he didn’t see. He hated the idea of having to start over again. Molly appeared in the door and said, “Hey, dinner is ready! What are you doing?”

  “I’ve found it!”

  Molly looked at Stella in the far end of the attic, “Found what?”

  “The box with the writing.”

  Steve Sr. said, “Let’s open it now and see what’s in it.”

  “You will do no such thing! Dinner first and then you can play with that box!”

  Steve rolled his eyes and moved through the boxes, “Pass it to me, Ste
lla.” Stella put the medium sized box on top of a box and slid it across several boxes. Steve caught it before it fell to the floor. He put it on the floor and extended a hand to Stella. She sat on top of a box and he pulled her across several rows of boxes and she landed on her feet. Kam and Cammy just climbed up and walked across the boxes. Steve grabbed one and Stella the other. They laughed and carried the twins down the steps.

  • • •

  Dinner was fabulous, Molly was a great cook and really enjoyed doing it. They caught up on what was going on and an hour after they finished eating, the twins were asleep in Stella’s arms. Molly looked at her and smiled, “You can lay them down on our bed, baby.”

  Stella smiled and Steve took Kam out of Stella’s arms and carried him into the bedroom. They came back in and sat down. Molly looked at them and said, “I thought all of you were going to ruin dinner worrying about that box.”

  Steve’s head went back and he jumped up, “I forgot about it.” He ran up the steps to the attic, picked up the box, and brought it downstairs. He smiled and said, “It’s only fair that Mom should open it.”

  Molly smiled and went to the kitchen and came back to the living room with a pair of scissors. She looked at the box and read, “For our eyes only.” This should be interesting.”

  Steve nodded, “That’s what we thought.”

  Molly began slowly cutting the tape and expertly opened the top. She looked in and said, “How beautiful!”

  She closed the top and Stella said, “MOM!”

  Molly laughed and cut the sides of the box. She dropped them and Stella and Steve Sr. were awed by the beauty of what was in the box. Steve was shocked speechless. He gathered his senses, rushed forward and pulled it out of his mother’s lap. “STEVE!”

  Stella looked at Steve and her eyes narrowed, “Steve do you know what this is?”

  Steve looked at her and shook his head, “It’s a helmet that controls the Prophet’s Eyes.” He lifted the egg shaped crystal and saw the plug on the bottom. Wrapped around the plug was a rolled up piece of paper. He unrolled it and read, “I had this made for your family. It will work with anyone that has your DNA. It is the only way I can truly thank you for what you’ve done for me.” Steve saw the name at the bottom of the message was Kam. He lifted his communicator and punched Admiral Osborn’s number.