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Homeworld Return - blackjack
:: 05/05/01 ::
Chapter 4
Hjihad Somtaaw sat at his metal desk in his cabin aboard the Kuun-Lan reading the report of the destruction of the Jiik-Lari on his computer terminal's screen. As he reached the section from the analysis and salvage team detailing the probable causes for the apparent detonation, he felt his blood chill.
'While we have very little reason to suspect that the destruction of the Jiik-Lari was caused by anything other than a reactor core meltdown which was caused in turn by a failed reactor containment because of the inherent instability of the Drifts region, what we do have remaining of the ship leads us to believe that the simplest solution is not the correct one. First, from recovered fragments of the reactor we have extrapolated that the Jiik-Lari's electromagnetic shielding, designed to protect against just such an incident, was still active at the time of the detonation. Also, evidence from small fragments of the outer hull that we have collected indicate that the explosion was caused by an outside force rather than an interior one. Several fragments of hull plating, probably those around the engine compartment (aft hull sections) were recovered as well, and it is the markings that we have recovered upon the surface of these plates that we base our conclusion; the destruction of the Jiik-Lari was no accident.
We have cross-referenced the mentioned markings, and there is an extremely high probability that they were caused by damage inflicted by an ion cannon of incredibly powerful design. The markings retain heavy ionization, and appear to have been damaged even at the molecular level - a signature of ion beam fire.
While the implications of this thesis are staggering, we can only say that this is but a possibility. Our information is scarce, since the entire ship has been destroyed and scattered across the whole of the Drifts, and we are relying upon unlikely evidence gathered from unreliable sources. However, our recommendations involving further incidents involve placing all Hiigaran craft on high alert status, and alerting all ship captains of possible danger to their ships immediately.'
He flicked out a finger and switched the screen off. He had read enough.
Pivoting in his chair, he stared out toward the stars, as he often did when confronted with a mysterious problem, one that had no ready solution and one that he had never before encountered. There was a kind of solace in the stars, a sort of peace and solidarity. The stars had glowed for millennia, since the time of his ancestors, and they would continue to glow and shine until he had long passed into the ranks of the dead. There may be wars, there may be genocide, there may be such cruelty and horror going on amidst the stars… But they would still shine, on and on forever.
He regretfully turned his mind toward the problem at hand, and the array of questions that came along with it. If someone had destroyed the Jiik-Lari, who? Why had they destroyed a harmless reconnaissance ship? And more importantly, what would they do next? Whatever had destroyed the ship had obviously been advanced beyond belief, to have completely obliterated the ship before it could even send a message out that it was under attack. Ion cannons, the report had said, incredibly powerful ion beam weapons. A sudden terrible thought struck him then, one that caused him to snap bolt upright and his eyes to widen.
Could the Bentusi have done it?
If they had, the Hiigaran race was in trouble… if the Bentusi were unleashing war upon them, at least. But what if the Bentusi had destroyed the Jiik-Lari to protect something that they did not want the Hiigarans to know? What could possibly be so important… His head spun with the questions. Shaking his head to clear it, he shuffled to the first of the many cards in his mind.
The Bentusi had advanced ion beam technology. That much was obvious. The report, however improbably, had stated that the ship had been destroyed by ion beams of advanced design. So there was a possible connection. But other galactic races had advanced cannons… for all Hjihad knew, it was the Taiidani who had obliterated the ship, with some sort of new, unprecedented ion cannon technology. And the Bentusi were pacifists, so it was far more likely that someone else had destroyed the Jiik-Lari.
He felt a surge of relief at that and momentarily wondered why. It occurred to him that he did not want to face the Bentusi in battle again, after the slaughterhouse at the ancient hypergate…
The memories rushed back to him, like a strong wave, and for the millionth time he watched in his mind the deaths of an entire Carrier's crew as the Bentusi fighters and tradeship beams carved it to shreds… the deaths of the fighter pilots that tired in vain to challenge head-to-head the fighters of a far more advanced friend turned to enemy…
He found his vision clouded by the sudden memories, and reached up to rub his eye. He found it wet, glistening with the thousandth tear he had shed for the families of those brave souls who fought against the Bentusi and lost their lives, without even the hope of retribution. He rubbed the back of his hand against his eyes and tried to shove away the memories which were crowding his senses. It had been a mistake to remember that massacre, and he knew it. He would undoubtedly have nightmares of that event tonight, he thought with a blast of primal fear.
He tried to focus his attention on the situation at hand, but could only half-succeed. He could not let the slaughter at the gate repeat itself, and if this attack was any indicator that someone - or something - was planning to launch a siege on the Hiigaran people, the same massacre would happen throughout all of Hiigaran space. The original invasion of Hiigara would repeat itself, and they would all die.
He must stop this before it happened again. He would obliterate the thing hiding in the Drifts before it could cause any more harm, and before whatever force was behind it rallied against the kiithid.
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