Talisman of Tomorrow
By Elspeth Anders
And Timothy Ellis
A.I. Destiny, Book Five
Copyright © 2017 by Elspeth Anders and Timothy Ellis
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and events are fictional and have no relationship to any real person, place or event. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, is purely co-incidental.
The authors are Australian, and some of the main characters in this book are of Australian origin. In Australia, we colour things slightly differently, so you may notice some of the spelling is different. Please don't be alarmed.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without the written permission from the authors except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles or reviews.
Contents
Contents
Dramatis Personae
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty One
Twenty Two
Twenty Three
Twenty Four
Twenty Five
Twenty Six
Twenty Seven
Twenty Eight
Twenty Nine
Thirty
Thirty One
Thirty Two
Thirty Three
Thirty Four
Thirty Five
Thirty Six
Thirty Seven
Thirty Eight
Thirty Nine
Forty
Forty One
Forty Two
Forty Three
Forty Four
Forty Five
Forty Six
Forty Seven
Forty Eight
Forty Nine
Fifty
Fifty One
Fifty Two
Fifty Four
Fifty Five
Fifty six
Fifty Seven
Fifty Eight
Fifty Nine
Sixty
Sixty One
Sixty Two
Sixty Three
Sixty Four
Sixty Five
Sixty Six
Sixty Seven
Sixty Eight
Sixty Nine
Seventy
Seventy One
Seventy Two
Seventy Three
Seventy Four
Seventy Five
Seventy Six
Seventy Seven
Seventy Eight
Seventy Nine
Eighty
Epilogue
Acknowledgements
A Message to our Readers
Also by Timothy Ellis
Dramatis Personae
Cats
Snark/Prrinks/Puss – Cat of the Plains trader/adventurer.
Sissness – Cat of the Plains researcher.
The Grand Mother – grandmother to Snark, and Head Cat of the City of the Plains Council.
Fitzharss/Fitzy – Cat of the Plains Colonel.
Sapperscar – Fitzy's second in command.
Brindle – Cat of the Plains.
Preddle – Cat of the Plains.
Prritchet – Grand Mother's aide.
Patters – Cheetah warrior.
Snettle – Lioness councillor.
Felderspath – Panther councillor.
Russians
Anastasia (Anna) Romanova.
Scots
Cole McLauchlan/Mac – Head of the clans on Scots World.
Jenny Anderson – Mac's cousin, and head of the Estate.
Jamie Anderson – Jenny's younger brother, and Mac's cousin.
Maidie McLauchlan, nee Anderson – Mac's mother.
Seaonaid Sinclair – Diplomatic envoy.
Hunter's Run
Jane – AI - Leader of Sector Ten Council, and Queen of the Kingdom of Hunter's Run.
Jon Hunter – (never existed).
Warspite – Fleet Admiral AI.
Tranquil – Explorer/Trader AI.
Walsh – Apricot Mapping Service Leader AI (ex-human).
Darlene – Researcher AI, Walsh's wife (ex-human).
Serenity – Explorer AI.
Bill Paxton - Pocket Battleship Fleet Admiral AI.
Sigourney Weaver – Pocket Battleship Captain AI.
Jodie Foster - Pocket Battleship Captain AI.
Patrick Stewart – Pocket Battleship Captain AI.
Duke Fred Hunter.
Queen's Baronial Guard unit.
Baron Lyana Smith.
Baron Wanda Peck.
Baron Serena Baracas.
Baron Winona Murdock.
Baron Jack Weaver.
Baron Colin Takai.
Baron Pete Vogane.
Baron Bette Henquist.
Baron Sabrina Merritt.
Baron Nathan Allan.
Baron Nell Vasquez.
Squire Greg Bronson.
Squire Jasmine Gordon.
Ambassador Spiner – ambassador to the Cat World.
Carrie Fisher – Pocket Battleship Captain AI.
Colonel Crocatoa.
Major Chuck Emerson III.
Major Hans Schafer.
Holmes – Security Chief AI.
Sector Eight
Patchet – Australian engineer.
Spiky – Hedgehog.
Flash – Swan.
Dodgers – Brown Duck.
Bottoms-Up – Sugar Glider.
Anastasia.
Brother Prime.
One
"This is going to be fun," said Warspite, into the open channel to all the ships of Seasprite's small fleet.
Anna locked eyes with Snark. He shook his head sadly.
"We need to work on your definition of fun," he said. "Can't we go a different way?"
"No. We went through all this hours ago."
Snark remembered losing the argument, but he wasn't going to let it go so easily.
"Mop head," he said quietly, and the rest of the Seasprite crew grinned.
No-one was game to actually laugh at Warspite. At the best of times, the Admiral who'd saved them at the Stone planet was very intimidating. Especially given he was the only military person in the fleet, and tended to take charge without consultation.
"Prepare for jump," came the order.
"Ready," said Tranquil.
"Ready," said Seasprite.
"Dog droppings," said Snark.
Mouse laughed, and quickly covered his mouth with a hand. Sissness quickly did the same, but managed not to make a sound. Patters shook her head, and checked everyone was properly buckled up. She made a pulling motion to Anna, and she tightened her restraints.
Warspite jumped. The Battleship had turrets already pointing in specific directions, and had pulses on their way to targets a second after beginning the down jump.
There were a lot of targets. Space around the jump point was packed with ships of all shapes and sizes, but nothing big enough to challenge Warspite. Missiles launched, turrets re-aimed, and ships died.
Five seconds into down jump, the Battleship rammed into the first of many ships directly ahead. Shields took the impact, and the ship vaporized. As did the one after it, and the next.
"What a mob!" exclaimed Warspite to Tranquil in AI mode. "It's worse than it looked on the navmap. There's no cohesion of any kind. Just hundreds of ships all popping off at me, a lot of them hitting their own ships in the process because they don't have a clear line of fire. I don't think there is anyone actually commanding this lot."
"So proceed as we agreed?"
"Yes."
"Drop back Seasprite."
"Spoilsport."
Seasprite abruptly slowed down, causing her crew to feel the bite of their restraints for a moment, as the gravity fluctuated.
In the time it took Snark to say "Let me drive, you daft computer", Tranquil's rear pair of Cruisers had surged past Seasprite, and the three of them jumped only slightly apart. On the other side, they adjusted course to head out forming a rough pyramid of clear space for Seasprite to jump into. They also slowed, allowing Seasprite to jump in and catch up, and then formed a wedge around her to escort her through the mass of ships.
Tranquil was suffering collisions as fast as Warspite was, but for the moment, this wasn't important. Getting Seasprite out of danger was. Debris flared into dust, and her shield indicator fluctuated madly, but the ship was in no danger.
Snark was pulling up ship ids as fast as he could, trying to work out who this fleet belonged to. He was familiar with some of them, was quite happy to see most of them vanish in dust and debris, but could find no common bond. He gave up as Seasprite emerged on the other side, and powered away on her own.
Warspite had already turned back, and was working a way diagonally across the fleet. Tranquil turned her ships as well, and the four of them took different paths.
Anna was watching the nav map, which had been expanded out into a large three dee hollo, showing the whole jump point area. Dots were blinking out so fast, it was hard to comprehend. On another display, cams from the four ships were merging to display an image of the debris field which was forming. She felt her stomach heave, unbuckled, and left in a hurry.
"This isn't a battle," said Patters.
"It's a slaughter," said Mouse.
"What made them think they could take us?" asked Sissness.
Snark just shook his head. Even he was feeling sick. He used his PC to collapse the battlefield hollo.
"It's going to be a lot safer travelling the Badlands now," he said idly.
"Why's that?" asked Mouse.
"I saw a lot of familiar pirate ids."
"What's in it for them?" asked Patters.
"I think we can guess," said Sissness.
Snark continued to shake his head sadly. The massacre went on. Long before the last ship vanished, Seasprite had come to a stop, well out of range. None of the ships had been able to follow her. They'd lost some shielding, but by the time it was all over, they were back to full.
The four warships came to a stop in each of the quarters of the debris area. None of them had shielding above thirty percent, but they hadn't suffered any damage.
"Clean up on isle three," said Warspite, showing how good his mood was.
All five ships sent out all their search and rescue and salvage droids. The SR's went searching for space suits and damaged escape pods, while the salvage droids began clearing the down jump lane of debris. There was more than enough there to destroy any unshielded ship which came through, which in this area of the galaxy was pretty well all of them. Fortunately, the nearest ship on the other side was a few hours away.
The Seasprite crew gave up watching, and went back to normal activities. It was going to be a boring wait, since the downside of a battle at a jump point was the need to clean it up after.
All four ships in the debris field took on survivors. None of them had life support, but the need to appear to take on resupply at both the beetle and bear home worlds had left cargo bays aired up. There was enough to get them to Seasprite in plenty of time.
Warspite took the opportunity to use his Admiral persona to scare the life out of some of his prisoners.
Two
"The council will see you now," said a flunkey.
Fred and Lyana rose.
"Just you," the flunkey added, looking at Fred.
Lyana shook her head, and followed Fred to the door anyway. He went through it, while she took a position right next to the door. The rest of the team sat or stood around the waiting room. The flunkey gave them all a sweeping glance, wondering how they stayed upright with only two legs. He swept out of the room thinking they all seemed to be very young, and not wanting to meet any of them in a dark corridor. Jack started chuckling as soon the being had left. He received a mixture of grins and serious looks.
Fred strode into the middle of the chamber. It was as close enough as made no difference to the old sector ten council chamber, and he'd been there enough times to know where to go.
"Present your credentials," said a voice.
Fred looked to the number one chair, and nodded. The being nodded back.
Without missing a stride, he walked to the computer, slid his right hand over the hand reader, aligned his left eye with the eye reader, and allowed the machine to do its job of identifying him. When his face and ambassadorial credentials appeared on the wall screen over the door, he backed away, and took his position at the center of the rostrum.
He scanned the beings, finding the only one he knew. The cat ambassador had hosted a small reception for him and his team the night before. She smiled at him. He smiled back.
Fred went flying backwards, cartwheeling end over end into the wall next to the door. He fell to the floor in a heap, with the echo of the boom of a heavy weapon still reverberating around the chamber.
The door opened.
Lyana had her Long Gun up and acquiring a target before she even entered the room. The gun barked, and a figure at the top of the room went down, his rifle like gun clattering across the floor. Before all those who'd been so close to the path of the pulse had time to flinch, she'd shifted target and fired again. A second being went down, the identical weapon not having been fired. She shifted again, and a third being went down, his explosive shell going into the ceiling.
Nothing moved, except dust raining down from the hole.
"You ok?" Lyana asked Fred, without looking at him.
"I'm good, but we have to get rid of the damn bounce."
Fred rose to his feet, his suit shifting from full protection mode back into his normal 'slinky red', with his ducal insignia.
There was a gasp of disbelief from almost the entire room. Fred made a show of dusting himself off, and walked back to the middle. Lyana holstered her gun, took six paces in after him, and took up a military parade stance.
All eyes followed Fred, so no-one saw the rest of the team appear behind them at the very top rear of the room, and remove the three shooters, and their weapons.
"Let's try this again," said Fred.
"How are you even alive?" asked the mediator lemur, before anyone else could.
Fred gave them all a quick glance.
"I'm wearing combat armour."
There was a titter of laughter from beings who didn't believe him.
"Silence," said the voice from the number one chair. "Seeing is believing. This being in front of us took an explosive round to the chest, and not only isn't dead, he got up and started talking immediately. Who here can claim to be able to do the same thing?"
"We can," said the valderian.
"Only by wearing so much body armour you waddle like a duck when you walk," laughed the bear.
"Hey!" yelled the duck, and the room dissolved into laughter.
Fred waited for them. They'd all had a large shock, and some laughter was good for the situation. He locked his suit to hold him up, and upped the dose of pain meds his medical monitor was recommending. Appearances at this moment were very important, and falling down again wasn't in the plan.
"My name is Fred Hunter. My rank is Duke in the Kingdom of Hunter's Run. I rank third in our Kingdom, and am cousin to our Queen Jane. I norm
ally sit in the number one chair of the sector ten council, but am currently ambassador at large for both the Kingdom, and the sector council."
The remaining tittering died.
"Welcome ambassador," said the number one seat. "Please accept our profound apologies for what has just transpired."
"Your apology is accepted. The assassins have already been identified as Brotherhood."
"How can you know this?" asked the beetle.
Fred took his pad out of its holster and held it out. It was half the size of the normal tablet used by most in this area of space.
"This is much more than a communicator. As well as translating this council for me, it is also letting me hear communications from my team. The assassins are already aboard my ship. I'll let you know if we gain any intelligence from them."
"Aren't they dead?" asked the stick insect.
"No. Just stunned."
Stunned expressions came over a lot of faces.
"Why do you appear before us?" asked number one seat, cutting off several other questions.
"The first part is courtesy. I'm here to inform you the Kingdom of Hunter's Run has a warship in your space. We were forced to send help to a civilian expedition, under attack by Brotherhood forces. The beetle and bear ambassadors will have received briefings from their forces who survived the battle, as their systems are now linked to here via our communications network, as part of our thanks for their help."
Both named ambassadors looked towards the number one seat, and nodded.
"The valderians won't be receiving any briefing, since none of their forces survived the battle."
"What?" yelled the valderian, showing he'd at least known there was going to be one.
The chamber broke down, as argument started from where the valderian was, and rapidly swept around the whole chamber.
Fred pulled up a hollo screen only he could see, and pressed a button. The battle for Scylla began to play on the wall screen. The movement drew eyes to the screen, and all noise stopped.
Fred waited for the vid to finish. He pushed another button, and the ground battle played as well.
"That was one very brave little cat," said the dog.
"That," said the cat, "was Prrinks, now called Snark."
"Figures," laughed the dog. "I bet he called out 'dog's balls' as he cartwheeled into the lake."