Sheppard's Quest

Gary Caplan

Description

Commander Robert Sheppard and his crew aboard the Phoenix have a sworn duty to uphold order in the universe. Even when that duty means they have to put their lives on the line, each individual is ready to make the ultimate sacrifice for the Alliance of Worlds. In his latest adventure, Sheppard may have to do just that. He is facing dangerous new enemies with advanced technology, weaponry, and intelligence. It might just be his most deadly adventure yet!

When Sheppard is asked for help by his new allies, the Talcon, he can hardly refuse. From their planet-sized spaceship, the Talcon Starcity, the alien race is looking to establish colonies in the Milky Way. Their impressive technology forces all other planets and organizations to play nicely.

The Talcon have a problem that they think Sheppard can solve. Animals from Starcity are going missing. It seems like such a simple mystery, but the solution to the puzzle will take Sheppard across space and into the hands of a strange new entity. Despite his many years working for the Alliance of Worlds, there is still much Sheppard doesn't know about the universe and its many species. He'll soon discover some hard truths!

Sujets

• Science Fiction
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: eBookIt.com
• Date de parution: 27 mars 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781975920159
• Langue: English

Extrait


Sheppard’s
Quest
 
 
Gary Caplan
© 2018 Gary Caplan
All rights reserved.
 
 
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com
http://www.eBookIt.com
 
ISBN: 1975920155
ISBN 13: 9781975920159
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017913806
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
North Charleston, South Carolina
 
 
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
Contents
Foreword
Chapter 1
Collecting
Chapter 2
New Allies and New Problems
Chapter 3
Back on the Phoenix
Chapter 4
Talcon Zoo
Chapter 5
Enemies
Chapter 6
Colony Attacked
Chapter 7
Planet Treeton
Chapter 8
Star Knight’s Meditation
Chapter 9
Varlon Arrive
Chapter 10
Battle for Treeton
Chapter 11
Battle Onward
Chapter 12
New Information
Chapter 13
The Arkology and Other Events
Chapter 14
The Search
Chapter 15
The Ceyloom
Chapter 16
The Specimen Keeper
Chapter 17
Split Space
Epilogue
Glossary of Terms
 
Foreword

I would like to thank those who inspired me to write this book: those with whom I had active conversations and who helped develop names or ideas, including Jim Varian, David St. John, Bob Fedick, Mark Caplan, and Brian Godshall. I would also like to thank Philip Athans for editorial help and suggestions on improvement.
Chapter 1

Collecting
T he huge, partially crystalline, decahedron-shaped starcraft moved through the swirling hyperspace tunnel as it closed on its destination. It was guided by intelligence and had its own activity parameters. This was one of several worlds it had visited in the past, and it had a few other worlds to visit still. The starcraft emerged safely above a blue-green world. The sensors registered highly positive life signs. The main decahedral section detached, and both sections activated a cloaking device. The main section began to expand and morph its shape while monitoring a spatial distortion that was in the path of this star system’s orbit in space. The other section began releasing crystalline probes that moved downward through the planet’s atmosphere.
Once near the surface, the probes began to relay information back to the orbital sections. They scanned and studied many forms of animal and plant life. The invisible probes flew, swam, or landed and sampled the soil, all the while obtaining information about the nutrients the animals and plants needed for growth in their usual environments. This process continued until a detailed life-forms catalogue was completed. Then, using local matter, the probes morphed. It was time to collect some specimens. The cloaked probes flew stealthily and approached the specimens that had been selected by the main collector program. They began the transference process. Each specimen was collected intact, its atomic and molecular patterns deciphered, and then the specimen’s information was stored for later reintegration. The specimens were then converted to energy and sent to the Hub section for transport.
The Hub starcraft noticed that the spatial distortion was now much closer. Some unidentified entity was beginning to actively scan the distortions, but not from this area of space or hyperspace. The scans originated from the other side of the distortions. The Hub had some older required programs that activated after the recent set of distortions was scanned. This activated an alert that sent a transmission into hyperspace to the home system, and as required by treaty, to two allies and also a general alert to the Hegemony’s hyperspace communication network that notified their designated authority of a potential breach. The Hub then accelerated the remaining specimen collections. The sensors and computer algorithms calculated that a probable breach of local space would occur soon. Eventually the planet moved closer to the area of distortions that were directly in the planet’s orbital path. The specimens needed to be protected and stored for the future, perhaps to help reseed worlds that might be destroyed by a similar catastrophe.
Glowing light and swirling dark energy collided as the space rift formed. It was as if something were pushing through to get into this universe. There was a flash of energy across several spectrum levels. The Hub scanned the forming area, charting the space distortions. Then, as this was considered a priority warning event, the Hub transmitted the new data on a hyperspace link to the home world and to the ally Hegemony’s hyperspace communication network and its constructors.
The Hub section, having finished its mission, reconnected with the probe sections and began to plot a course away from the planet. Soon afterward, the planet, continuing in its orbital trajectory, moved into the area of distortions. At first no notable changes occurred; it was as if something were waiting for further contact.
There was a rippling of the space not far from the planet. Something big was emerging, about a tenth the size of the planet. The object had no definite form and seemed to shift within itself. As it emerged from the rift, it began to head directly toward the blue-green planet. It seemed to slowly change shape and began to vibrate and quiver, and each time tendrils grew out of it.
It headed down into the planet’s atmosphere. As the tendrils, which appeared tentacle-like, moved down into the atmosphere, they emitted dark gasses. Near the surface the pressure of the gas release sounded like steam horns bellowing. Creatures that could move hopped or ran away from the sounds.
The tendrils seemed to be drawing energy from the planet. As they moved closer to the surface, more tendrils sprouted, forming many somewhat thinner ones. Tendrils began to grasp trees and reach for animals. The main body of the entity moved into the atmosphere, releasing cascading liquids, strange gasses, and bursts of chromatic light. The heat increased, and eventually the surface water began to evaporate. Only a few hours later, the colors seemed to drain away from the trees and plants. The gasses released from the tendrils seemed to be of various types. Some seemed incendiary, while others were gel-like and seemed to dissolve animal matter. Strange, shadowy things sprang out and moved away from the main entity. It was as if the huge entity carried smaller parasites or creatures with their own agency. As time passed the entity continued to absorb the life energy of the planet.
Another probe, a different type, appeared in the system. It simply materialized as if leaving some other dimension: one moment there was nothing, then a flash, and the starcraft appeared. This spacecraft came as a response to the signal sent earlier by the Hub, and it went directly to the area of the spatial distortion and began to scan the area. Then it began to discharge some particles and emit energy, energy that seemed to reduce the area of distortion. Not long afterward the distortions and the rift seemed to be diminishing. It was then that several huge, crystalline objects appeared after exiting hyperspace at the other side of the planet nearer to the entity that had sent tendrils into the planet. These newly arrived starcraft were similar to the Hub and probe starcraft that had been in orbit earlier, only much larger.
The crystalline starships began to surround the tendril-making entity. The crystalline vessels released disruptive energies in pulses and used mass drivers to hurl highly accelerated matter at the entity with destructive effect. The hurled matter moved at speeds over half the speed of light and impacted with penetrating force, exploding several sections of the immense entity.
Chapter 2

New Allies and New Problems
C ommodore Robert Sheppard listened intently to the briefing with the Talcon. Sheppard was a tall, robust man in his sixth decade with a light complexion, slightly graying hair, and blue eyes. Sheppard was dressed in his bridge duty uniform, its imbedded sensors providing data about his health and activities.
He believed in honor and duty and the Alliance of World’s mandate to explore space. As one of the Alliance of Worlds’ senior ranking officers, presently granted admiral-level rank due to past senior-officer attrition during the recent war, he, along with a few others, had been invited to the shared briefing being held on the Talcon Starcity.
It had been almost a year since he’d last been on the Talcon Starcity. Back then the Talcon were just coming out of stasis from the transit across to the Milky Way galaxy from the Magellanic Cloud where they had established previous colonies. The Talcon were interested in setting up some colonies in the Milky Way. They had begun their colonization process shortly after their immense starcraft, known as the Starcity, completed awakening over a quarter of their colonists and most of their military forces. The Talcon leaders decided it was in their interests to become friendly with the Alliance of Worlds and renew relations with the Hegemony, whom they knew from the past.
Most Talcon had small, closely interspaced, gray-blue feathers, though there were some other colors present. They had avian features with large eyes compared to humans. Instead of a nose they had a hawkor eagle-like beak. Unlike an Earth bird, they had arms and hands in addition to wings. Their hands were mostly featherless and had scales instead of skin, with opposable thumbs and mildly talon-like fingers.
Security was high for this gathering as the leader of the Talcon Starcity, Prince Kyr, was present, and there had been reports of enemy fleets not far away. The birdlike Talcon had been attacked by the Accad and their local allies the Varlon ever since they first entered the Milky Way. The combined forces of the Accad and the Varlon were a