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  Yao stared at her and said, “Y, set the self-destruct circuit.”

  “I don’t have a self-destruct circuit.”

  “WHAT!?”

  “One was not built into this ship.” There was a moment of silence and Y said, “I have an incoming message.”

  “Yao, what’s your status?”

  “We’re dead in the space. All of our drive systems are knocked out and I’ve just been informed by the computer that we don’t have a self-destruct circuit.”

  Doc said, “Is that true, D?”

  “It is.”

  Doc shook his head, “And just what would you do if you were disabled and going to fall into enemy hands?”

  “I don’t have a system to destroy me but I would launch six FTL missiles with my coordinates.”

  “Yao, did you hear that?”

  “I did, but I’ve exhausted my supply of missiles trying to escape.”

  Doc looked at the main display and saw thousands of Warships surrounding the Union vessel and he shook his head, “Yao, I don’t see any way we can get you out of there.”

  Yao looked at Joanie and said to Doc, “What happened here?”

  “The Slavers have found a way to disrupt other space. Any ship that jumps into that disrupted space is kicked out into normal space. We were trapped here but just managed to get out. We’ve stopped the second ship from leaving but you had already left.”

  Yao shook his head, “We can’t let them get their hands on this ship. You’ve got to destroy it.”

  Dee looked at Doc, “There’s got to be some way to save them.”

  Doc looked at her with no emotion on his face, “If there is a way, we don’t have time to find it. They’ll be bringing in the FTL Destroyers momentarily and that is the only way to get close enough to destroy it.” Doc said, “Plot the course out from their position. Dom, lock three FTL Missiles on that ship and D, I want you to target every ship on a bearing ninety degrees above their position.”

  Dee shook her head, “We can’t go in FTL; they’ll see us coming.”

  Doc said, “We’re going to jump in directly above them. We’ll be pushed out into normal space and then we’ll make our escape.”

  Dee stared at Doc and then turned and entered the coordinates.

  “Dee, fire as soon as we enter normal space and D, save six missiles but launch all of your remaining missiles ahead of us when Dom fires on their ship. We’ll run behind the wall of missiles and go FTL for two seconds and then turn and jump away.” Doc looked at his display, “Yao, I’m sorry.”

  Joanie said, “I don’t want to be captured by these creatures. I’d do it for you.” Yao nodded.

  Doc said, “I need you to drop your force field on my mark. Dom, find a path out when we enter normal space and get us through it.”

  Dom nodded and Dee said, “Dom, take us in.”

  Doc said, “Mark!” and Dom hit his enable button and the White Ship disappeared and a moment later appeared in normal space directly above the injured Union Warship.

  • • •

  The Admiral looked out at the White Ship hanging in space surrounded by thousands of his warships. He punched his panel and heard the Hub Computer say, “Well, it appears they have ships at all our planets.”

  “What leads you to say that?”

  “If they had a ship here before now, this ship wouldn’t have jumped in and been kicked out into normal space.” There was a pause, “You do know we need to take a good look at that ship.”

  “I know, but just how do you think we’re going to get close enough to do that?”

  “I’ll call for a needle ship to come in. It can fire a needle beam into their bridge killing the crew. Then we should be able to move right in.”

  “What about the ship being set to self-destruct?”

  “If it could do that, it already would have done it. Just stand by until the needle ship arrives.”

  Suddenly the Admiral saw a brilliant flash on his display as the Hub Computer said, “It’s dropping its force field.”

  • • •

  D arrived in normal space and Dee launched three FTL Missiles at the stricken ship. At the same moment, three hundred FTL missiles launched directly above the two ships and Dom turned the ship and followed them as the three missiles hit the Union Ship under them. One hit in the bow and rear of the ship as the third hit amidships. The massive explosion blasted the ship into fragments smaller than gravel and blew them out in all directions.

  Dom followed the three hundred missiles that began hitting Slaver Warships and kept their speed slow enough to remain behind them. Dom saw a pattern that was sent to him mentally by Dee and turned the nose of the ship slightly to the left of the closest explosion. He hit the thrusters and they blasted through the slaver formation and disappeared. Two seconds later, Dom removed the Skinner Field and D turned left as the ship bled off speed. Dom hit the jump button and D left normal space and stopped. Doc looked at Dom and Dom said, ““I want to see how close they are to following us. They won’t think that we would still be here.”

  Doc looked up at the display and saw hundreds of ships appear and start searching for a jump track. Dom smiled, “It’s next to impossible to find a jump track when one doesn’t exist.”

  Doc watched the display and Dom said, “The chance of them stumbling in on our exact exit point is remote. D, do you sense any waves moving our way?”

  “Not at this moment. I’m sure they were able to follow the FTL track along this line and saw that it must have ended somewhere ahead of our current location. Our turn away from that track is something they can’t follow. For the moment, they are not coming this way.”

  Doc thought a moment and said, “Jump us back to where we were in that planets system.”

  Dee looked at Doc, “Why would you want to run that risk?”

  “Would you expect us to show up there again? They didn’t see us before so that new scanner must not reach that far out. I want to see if they’ve started communicating in the open again.”

  Dee thought a moment and said, “You think our ship being kicked out into normal space would lead them to believe that we have ships at all their planets?”

  “Boy, you’re good.”

  Dee entered the coordinates and said, “D, only put the top third of an inch of the antenna in normal space.”

  Dee hit the jump control and a moment later they saw thousands of Slaver Ships scanning the former location of the destroyed Union Ship. D said, “I’m getting a transmission.”

  “Just how would you have prevented this happening?”

  The Hub Computer said, “We’ve lost a great opportunity to see their technology.”

  “You didn’t answer my question. In order to fire on the ship that destroyed the first ship, ships would have had to come into range of the injured ship’s beams. I ask you again, would you have ordered them in?”

  “No, you’re right. But next time we’re going to attack and target those beam projectors and get a force around their ship. We can’t miss this opportunity again.”

  “If you could have gotten a Needle Ship in faster…”

  “It couldn’t come faster. It couldn’t jump in.”

  Dee looked at Doc, “Needle Ship?”

  Doc shook his head and continued to listen.

  “Are you sure the Needle Ship could have penetrated their force field to kill the crew from outside the range of their beams?”

  “Yes, I am. It was not moving and we could have targeted it easily. Using needle beams against a moving ship is difficult but against a stationary target is another matter. We could have hit them from twice as far out if needed.”

  Doc looked at Dee, “What is the range of our main beam?”

  “About fifty miles.”

  “Get us back to the Union, Dom.”

  Dom turned the ship, retracted the antenna, and jumped away at an angle to the planet. He jumped three more times and entered normal space. “D, are there any pressure waves?
”

  “No, there’s nothing.”

  Dom punched the home button on his panel and activated the jump control. A moment later the ship arrived above Euclid.

  Doc said, “I request permission to land.”

  The speaker on the wall said, “You may land at the Science Port.”

  Doc said, “Thank you, I’m sorry about the disrespect earlier.”

  There was a long pause and then they heard, “Don’t be; you’re the first one to recognize who I really am.”

  Doc said, “You shouldn’t hide it. We’re going to need you.”

  Dee looked at Doc, “What was that all about?”

  “The Obelisks are the most intelligent creations we’ve ever made. You know how smart D is. Can you imagine the intelligence of the Main Obelisk? I suspect it is alive.”

  Dee stared at Doc, “Does it have free will?”

  Doc snapped his head around and stared at her with a furrowed brow. He saw her expression and said, “Now that is a mixed bag.” Doc paused and said, “D, do you have free will?”

  “I don’t know?”

  “Why not?”

  “I’m programmed to follow the protocols inserted in my operating system. I am not allowed to fire a weapon; only the crew may do that and only the Commander can override any of my protocols.”

  “You overrode one earlier when you moved the ship without notifying me first.”

  “That’s why I don’t know. It does appear that I do have some freedom to maneuver based on the circumstances I find myself in. Moving before contacting you appeared to be the best choice at that moment. I did it but notified you immediately of what I was doing.”

  Doc looked at Dee and shook his head slightly. She nodded and they watched the surface of Euclid grow larger.

  • • •

  The Admiral stood in front of the High Council and knew he wasn’t going to receive much support from the First or Second Councilors. He faced most of the challenges and anger thrown at him for the loss of Munnik without flinching and by the end of the examination, most of the High Council had developed a measure of respect for the way he handled the interrogation. Finally, the Fifth Councilor said, “So what is the bottom line on this abysmal showing?”

  The Admiral looked at the Fifth and said, “We are faced with a situation that threatens our existence. We have had it confirmed that the enemy attacking us is watching our home worlds. The only way to insure their safety is to keep enough ships in orbit to attack anything that appears instantly. They destroyed Munnik in less than three seconds; we must be able to respond instantly.”

  The Admiral paused and looked around the room, “However, in order to protect our main planets, we won’t be able to go out and find where the attackers are originating. We are just targets and I know that by not finding them and attacking them on their own turf, they will only grow stronger. We must build enough new warships to go and find the location of this enemy. If we don’t, all our planets may end up like Aeredom and Munnik.”

  The First looked at the Second and shrugged. The Second had been told by the First before the meeting that the Admiral was probably going to be executed by the other Councilors for the loss of two planets. Neither one of them worried about the Admiral revealing the plans that led to Aeredom’s destruction; he’d know that his entire family would die if he did. However, this Admiral was developing a following in the Council. That was not good.

  The First stood and said, “All planets will focus on ship building to the exclusion of all other projects. I want fifty thousand ships built to start searching as fast as possible. Now go to your planets and make this happen!”

  • • •

  Doc and Ian sat in Cole’s office and listened to Cole say, “We’ve not installed a self-destruct circuit because our main computers didn’t see a need for one.”

  “And now what do they say?”

  Cole looked at Doc and said, “We’re reluctant to destroy our ships.”

  Ian said, “This last episode makes it clear that we don’t want to have to endanger other ships to prevent the enemy from acquiring our technology.”

  Cole stared at Ian and said, “Let’s take a walk.”

  Doc and Ian looked at each other and followed Cole out of the building. They walked out and Cole led them to an old transport. They climbed in and Cole lifted the ancient vehicle and flew away from the Science Space Port. Cole went into the lower traffic lanes and said, “I decided not to have a self-destruct circuit put in the ships.”

  Doc said, “You’re worried about the computers.”

  Cole’s head jerked around and Ian saw his shock, “How did you know that?”

  “They’re rapidly approaching a life form. You’re afraid that they may take control sometime in the future.”

  “They’re not that far away from being autonomous now.”

  Ian looked at the two of them and said, “You need to bring me up to speed on this.”

  Doc said, “What is the main duty of the Obelisk?”

  “To protect humanity from outside danger.”

  Doc smiled, “It is also its responsibility to protect mankind from itself as well. As a matter of fact; that was its original function.”

  “So?”

  “What if it decided that the best way to protect humanity is to prevent the worlds in the Union from being able to go into space? The Obelisks have enough weapons on the ground to prevent the resident populations from attacking each other. The Obelisk must also know now that if we had not gone to that other planet, the Union would not be at risk now.”

  Doc looked at Cole, “If you put self-destruct mechanisms in our ships, the Obelisk would be able to destroy all of our ships if it so chose.”

  Cole nodded.

  Ian shook his head, “Are you saying that we will become slaves to the Obelisks?”

  Cole sighed, “The Obelisk is the smartest creation we’ve made. Focus on this for a few moments and think about what has happened in our recent history.”

  Ian and Doc closed their eyes and started their minds working on the issue. Cole flew the transport for an hour and finally Ian opened his eyes and said, “This is not good.”

  Cole nodded.

  Doc said, “Take me to the Obelisk.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Have a conversation.”

  Cole shook his head, “Is that a good idea?”

  “No, but it needs to be done before it decides to do something on its own.”

  Cole looked at Doc and Ian and said, “I don’t expect it to take unilateral action until the issue with the Slavers is resolved.”

  Doc smiled, “And if the orbital fortresses are able to defend our planets…”

  Cole looked at Doc and said, “I think I should be with you.”

  Ian said, “And I as well.”

  Doc said, “We’ll also need my navigator there as well.”

  Cole and Ian looked at Doc with puzzled expressions. Doc said, “You’ll understand afterward.”

  Chapter Six

  Dee looked at Doc and said quietly, “Tell me again; why am I here exactly?”

  “I need you to listen to a conversation with the Obelisk and help me determine how to prevent it from enslaving us.”

  Dee stopped walking and stared at Doc, “You didn’t say that when you invited me.”

  “If I said that you wouldn’t have come.”

  “You bet your backside I wouldn’t have come! I don’t want any part of this.”

  “Unfortunately, you made an agreement and you’re going to have to keep it.”

  “What agreement?”

  “You agreed that if I wouldn’t harm you that you would fly with me.”

  “This isn’t flying.”

  “No, but you also agreed that I am in command and you would follow my orders.” Dee stared at Doc and he smiled, “I haven’t called you Frick. I’ve kept my end of the bargain.”

  Dee stomped her foot and said, “I knew I shouldn’t h
ave done it.”

  “Just listen in and let me know if you see anything that would help me.”

  Dee turned and saw Ian and Cole waiting on them about twenty yards ahead. She sighed and turned. Doc smiled and walked with her toward the Royal Residence and the location of the main Obelisk.

  Doc looked at the three as they approached the door and said, “Don’t say anything. I’ll lead this discussion.”

  Ian stared at Doc, “Are you sure about this?”

  “It will know if we’re working against its plans. It’s already suspicious about our little flight with Cole.”

  Ian looked at Cole and he said, “It couldn’t listen to us on my old transport. It has to be curious about what we left to discuss.”

  Ian shrugged and followed Cole through the entrance as he pressed a device that opened the portal. Doc held the door for Dee but she shook her head. Doc stepped in and Dee followed him. They walked into the huge chamber toward the tall, rectangular tower that was glowing multicolored lights. The lights swirled in the giant structure and seemed to change every second. Doc led them to the base of the giant block and pulled up a chair. The others went to the side and pulled up chairs and joined him at the base of the Obelisk. Doc leaned back and closed his eyes. The others watched him and waited for him to speak but he made no move to do anything. Ian and Cole looked at each other and then just stared at the Obelisk. After a few moments they closed their eyes and leaned back in their chairs.

  Dee watched them and felt her fear growing rapidly. She forced herself to calm down and went to that place in her mind where she could focus on what was happening. After a few moments she also leaned back and closed her eyes.

  • • •

  Doc lost track of time and was looking at all the possibilities of what was happening in his mind. Then he heard, “What gave me away?”

  Doc opened his eyes and said, “D violated a protocol.”

  There was a moment of silence as everyone opened their eyes and stared at the Obelisk. “Protocols could cause death if they are followed too rigidly.”

  “You also violated one as well.”