Rise of the Human Androids: Galactic War

By Malcolm P. Chester

In this sequel to the Rise of the Human Androids, lizard like aliens called the Sharptors have perfected high-energy shields for hyperspace travel and begun exploring the galaxy.

Meanwhile, James decides to not run for re-election for President of Mars. He plans instead to search the galaxy for old ones technology in a heavy cruiser with a supergun named after his wife. His wife and two children will join him on this journey. Susan, Mars' Secretary of State and former President of the U.S. will run for James' spot and James' adopted human android daughter Martha will run for vice-president. James' actions are motivated by the re-emergence of Ergone as the Marshall of the powerful and independent Altararian military. James knows Ergone wants to avenge his loss to Mars and Earth in their last war. James fears the Altararians with their vastly superior forces will crush Mars if he can't find advanced technology to stop them.

In a chance meeting, James encounters the Sharptors while looking at a promising planet for exploration. A fight breaks out. James wins the encounter but the Sharptor warship escapes. Still, a plan begins to emerge in James' mind of how to use the aggressive new aliens against the Altararians.

Meanwhile James and his associates explore an old ones site on their promising new earth like world Sisney 1. They must battle a super aggressive mammal the Ratang and insect the Botos, which have stripped Sisney 1 of almost all of its land animal life as they explore the site. They find new technology at the site, which they plan to use against the Altararians.

Meanwhile a secret organization called the Committee, which has controlled many economic events on Earth, finds it difficult to control Mars and its allied planets. As a result, to make themselves relevant in the changing world around them, they join with bigoted groups on Mars and Ganymede and in a secret deal with the Altararians to sabotage Mars efforts to arm itself against the expected Altararian invasion. Many characters on Earth, Mars and Ganymede battle this super secret group in their efforts to prepare Mars for the Altararian invasion.

All these forces clash as Mars struggles to survive its confrontation with the Altararians and preserve its Utopian World of human androids and human immigrants.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jan 15, 2014
• ISBN: 9781493155828

Malcolm P. Chester

Malcolm Chester has a lifelong interest in writing and science fiction, which he reads with some regularity. He earned a bachelor’s degree from an ivy league college in political science and a masters degree in child study from a private college in Massachusetts early in his career. He minored in creative writing while in college. Later in life, the author earned a Juris Doctorate degree. He has been a public affairs executive at a major corporation and has continued to work in this area as a consultant while also practicing law. This is the author’s first published work, but he has written poetry and other stories throughout his life which he intends to publish someday.

Book preview

Chapter 1

The Sharptors

R azor emerged from his cryo tank, covered with mucus, which smelled a little like rotting eggs and meat. He felt very groggy and had difficulty thinking clearly. As commander of the great warship Knifor , he must return to full awareness or risk being labeled as weak. Cursing, he walked quickly to the bridge where he could assert command of his ship. As his mind slowly cleared, Razor suddenly realized that his ship had traveled a great distance without apparent other-universe matter intrusions. The ship appeared undamaged, and many crew and soldiers already moved in the ways they did prior to their going into hyperspace. By all the gods, the ship, if he could verify it on the bridge, traveled five hundred light-years. The new high-energy shields worked as claimed as did the old ones’ hyperspace system utilizing the base crystals. They should be close to one of the solar systems identified as having a planet with the possibility of life and perhaps intelligent life. Finally, Sharptors would have the ability to wage war and conquer other planets outside their own solar system. Glory would be available to all the four great houses. Maybe the constant war between the houses could be put aside for the wars against other races soon to come. His job would be to find one of these races, conquer them, and take over their world or worlds. As he reached the bridge, Razor called out to his crew.

Fellow Sharptors, we’re now an intergalactic fighting force. Victory will soon be ours.

That’s right, Commander. We’ll fight to the death to spread our race throughout the galaxy, the entire bridge crew said in unison.

As will I, Razor shouted.

As Razor stood on his bridge, turning a bright green, signifying his joy, his journey to this moment suddenly played before his eyes.

Like most male Sharptors, Razor had only two possible ways to fame and fortune: through science, engineering, and mathematics or through the military. Since Razor failed to score well enough in his science, engineering, and math exams, only the military offered any chance for Razor to improve his lot in life. His modest apartment in a huge complex, which he shared with his mother, brother, and sister, rankled and irritated him from an early age, particularly when he compared his poor living accommodations against the vast houses and estates of high-ranking military leaders, scientists, and mathematicians. The smells from so many Sharptors living together in such a small space bothered him so much he often could not eat the food his hardworking mother prepared for him. They lived upon the modest salary his mother made as a clerk in the transportation ministry.

His older brother, Sheeror, felt much the same way and shared Razor’s ambition to join the military. From an early age, the two brothers trained in the free time they had with their Zorators, a super sharp sword that required a guard placed over the edge until an actual contest. Sheeror, older and stronger than Razor, always won their practice sessions, but Razor showed more intensity and commitment to learning the art of the sword. To enter the military, when they came of age, they must fight to the death five opponents selected for them by the defense ministry. If they survived and acquitted themselves well, then they could apply to the military academy for admission. If accepted, whether they became mere enlisted men or officers would depend on their success in fights within the military, but first they must gain the right to apply before any of this became possible.

When the fateful day in Razor’s life arrived, Sheeror, beginning his career earlier, had successfully dispatched four opponents, while Razor had only killed one opponent. Razor remembered the day as if it occurred yesterday. A notice from the defense ministry informed both him and his brother that they would fight each other in their next match. Both Razor and Sheeror knew that this might happen; the ministry would often pit brothers against one another to test their commitment to a military career. At first, they did not respond to the ministry, taking the full thirty days to make up their minds. Razor and Sheeror loved each other very much but had no future if they failed to accept the match. Their sister and mother strongly opposed the match and did everything they could to persuade Razor and Sheeror to decline. Razor offered to decline so Sheeror could accept, but the ministry, aware of this ploy, would disqualify both of them from admission to the academy unless they both accepted the challenge. They must fight each other for one of them to have a military career. On the last day for acceptance, they both accepted the challenge and delivered their acceptances to the ministry. After they accepted, the brothers trained every day for seven days before the scheduled day for the match. They didn’t speak to each other or to their mother or sister, who only stared at them with contempt. The hostility in their tiny apartment greatly disturbed both of them, but they stubbornly refused to back away from the contest.

When the date of the fight finally arrived, Razor and Sheeror entered the ring at the academy without even looking at each other. They stripped to their underwear, grabbed their Zorators, and began circling each other without a moment’s hesitation. The dirty lightbulbs on the ceiling of the auditorium emitted a diffuse and weak light. The excited Sharptors who crowded around the ring gave off a musky odor. Razor must ignore the suffocating smell and gestures of the crowd or give to his brother a concentration advantage he could not afford to give. Brother-against-brother matches generated a great deal of excitement and resulted in loud and boisterous crowds of spectators.

At first, the match appeared to be even, the brothers easily anticipating the other brother’s attack moves and blocking them with considerable skill. They had excellent reputations as fighters and knew each other’s style and moves well. The crowd showed their approval by clapping and stomping their feet loudly. Razor didn’t mount very many attacks. He waited for Sheeror to use his signature move, a very quick spinning movement, putting Sheeror behind his opponent on his right and allowing him to sever the opponent’s legs before the opponent could turn to meet the attack. Razor, in practice with his brother, had never been able to anticipate or counter the move. Yet in their last practice before they knew they would fight each other, Razor noticed a small twitching of Sheeror’s eyelid before the move began. For the last seven days, he had practiced a quick turning movement to the left at the first sign of the twitching, followed by a chest thrust of his Zorator. Razor realized this represented his best chance for victory. Sheeror had superior fighting skills. No matter how long the match lasted, Sheeror in the end would win. He always did. Razor only focused on staying alive until Sheeror made his signature move, a task that grew more and more difficult as time passed. Razor already had a painful cut on his arm and leg from partially blocking Sheeror’s strikes.

As if out of a dream, Razor saw the twitching in Sheeror’s eyes and made his left turn and thrust as practiced, hoping Sheeror would make his signature move and appear in front of him. Otherwise, his neck, as well as his legs, would be exposed to his brother’s sharp sword. His brother made his move. To Razor’s surprise, his Zorator buried itself to the hilt in Sheeror’s chest, halting Sheeror’s Zorator before it struck Razor’s legs. Sheeror fell onto his back mortally wounded. Razor put his arms around his brother, his skin turning from pale green to blue, a Sharptor’s way of crying. His brother managed a weak smile and said, Brother, don’t feel bad. You had no choice. I would’ve killed you. You must promise me to succeed in the military for both of us. It’s better one of us lives a good and rewarding life rather than both of us live a life of misery and regret. I love you…

Then the light went out of Sheeror’s eyes, and he collapsed.

Instead of being triumphant, Razor fell to his knees in torment. Minutes later, he stormed out of the arena and locked himself in his room for four days. He refused to talk to his mother and sister, and they in turn refused to talk with him. Where once they looked upon him with love, they now stared at him with hatred in their eyes. Razor finally emerged from his room and focused his attention on his three remaining fights. He found that he no longer had any emotion whatsoever. He dispatched his remaining opponents with ease and cared little for their demise or suffering.

After applying, the academy accepted him and he did well. Razor moved out of his home and never returned or spoke with his family again. He continued to fight opponents set aside for him and win, but in the academy the rules prevented him from killing his opponents. Instead, he injured them and forced their submission. Now twenty years later, after wining twenty-five fights in the academy and sixty-three fights since graduating from the academy, he found himself a commander in charge of the Knifor.

Razor never dwelled on his loneliness. As a high-ranking military officer, he could date and marry a female on a priority basis. As females constituted only 40 percent of Sharptor babies, this privilege carried great value in Sharptor society. Razor enjoyed having sex with the many women who offered themselves to him, but found he could not form any attachment to them. He knew that this sex could create a new life in one of the ten eggs a typical female would lay, but if one of these females later contacted him with news that he created a child, he would ignore them. Razor would not take responsibility for any of his offspring. Funny, although he desired these women when he dated them, he could not remember any of their faces or names. In truth, he felt like a hollow shell. When sleep finally came to him, he only saw his brother’s face as it appeared to him moments before he died. He often wondered if the robots on his ship felt the same way he did. They certainly acted as he did.

On his way to the bridge, Razor passed the execution room, where relatives or friends of killed Sharptors beheaded a Sharptor who caused the death of another, a ceremony known as the Riptor. This practice stemmed from the general Sharptor approach to criminal law, which could be summed up as a literal eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth. In Sharptor culture, if you stabbed someone and he did not die, that person had the right to stab you in the same place. If you stole from someone, you were allowed to take the same goods and money back from your thief. If they could not make full restitution, an offended party could exact some other sort of punishment short of killing the offender. If you slept with someone’s wife, they then had the right to sleep with someone from your family, a wife, a sister, a mother, or a daughter.

Causing the death of another carried the only proscribed penalty, death, in Sharptor criminal law. Razor, as did all Sharptors, endorsed this very simple approach to criminal behavior as he looked upon a bloodstained block with a large container underneath sitting in the center of the execution room. Zorators of various designs and sizes covered the walls. A wronged relative had his pick of these weapons during the ceremony. A slight stench of death mixed with cleaning fluids emanated from the room. Razor shuddered a little at the thought of his own neck on the chopping block. The door remained open at all times to remind the crew of the consequences of needlessly taking a life.

A tradition buried deep in Sharptor history, the military adopted the civilian practice of the Riptor, the ritual beheading, and even expanded the concept to include cowards. In military thought, a coward caused the death of other military members by failing to act as a soldier. Most of the beheadings taking place in the military concerned cowardice. Sharptor soldiers pledged to sacrifice their lives and the lives of others in pursuit of victory. By definition, sacrificing your soldiers in the pursuit of victory did not cause the death of another Sharptor. These deaths honored the Sharptor state. Also, deaths in combat leading up to a cadet’s acceptance into the military academy did not cause the death of another as both combatants granted permission to the other to kill them. As did most Sharptors, Razor greatly feared the shame and dishonor of his life ending this way.

Suddenly, a general ship alarm tore Razor from his thoughts. An alien ship, a little larger than their own, had just appeared in their scanner range. It appeared to be leaving the same solar system where they were now headed. For the first time in years, he smiled, thinking of the battle and glory to come. There must be a beautiful inhabited planet for the taking in that solar system.

He spoke to his subcommander. Raise our shields, power our weapons, and head for the alien at flank speed. Victory awaits us.

Yes, sir.

Chapter 2

Renewed Assassin

M eanwhile back on Earth, Bruce sat cross-legged in his China home. He was the undisputed master of his craft. The noisy birds and soft wind brought some sense of peace to his troubled soul. Since returning from the space station, he meditated for hours every day. The remainder of his hours he spent training. He had improved not only his martial arts skills but also his other assassination skills. No longer content to be a master of all the martial arts and of his own school, Bruce had also become an expert marksman rivaling the skills of Edward, an expert swordsman, a knife maestro, a demolitions expert, and a master of poisons and their delivery rivaling Cynthia. In fact, he seemed to have mastered every way known to man to kill another man.

His obsessions sprung from his failure and humiliation on the space station. For the first time in his life since those thugs terrorized him at school, Bruce felt like a weakling, an object of scorn. Despite all his training and skills, he did little to prevent his humiliation on the space station. With each day since then, this humiliation burned hotter and hotter inside him until it almost consumed him. He must retaliate against the human androids or die trying. He had no alternative, none. His determination became even greater following the assassination failure and death of his old comrades Edward and Cynthia at the hands of the Beltoids. They must be avenged; he must be avenged. Clearly, no human could stand against him, but Bruce still worried about his human android adversaries.

When he made contact with the new handler, who controlled Edward and Cynthia on their last assignment, the handler immediately accepted him back into the assassination business. Bruce’s reasons for not getting in contact sooner, his training in other lethal disciplines, the handler accepted as a justified use of his time given the difficulty and risk associated with assassinating Beltoids. In fact, difficult times had descended on the assassination business as contracts to kill Beltoids often failed, bringing into question the effectiveness of one of the world’s oldest trades. As Beltoid began to dominate Earth’s commerce and its political future, the handler’s clients increasingly sought kills on Beltoid worlds against Beltoids. The handler had to show more success on these assignments, or he and his assassins would be finished. Bruce might be one of the few people who could deliver this kind of success for the handler.

Bruce’s private phone suddenly rang. The handler’s distinctive voice reached out to him.

Bruce, I’ve an assignment for you from the line Committee, our most important client. For half a million dollars up front and half a million dollars on completion, you’re to assassinate Chase and Dorothy Lofgren, the famous human/android couple, who live in Mars City. You’ll be provided an alias, a disguise, and weapons once you enter Mars City. Also, the Mars City computer recognition system will be altered to allow you entry into Mars City unobserved.

I’ll take the assignment, but I’m trusting that you’ll deliver what you just promised.

I will. You’ll leave in two weeks. Your travel arrangements are already being made.

Good, it’s finally time for me to get back into the assassination business again and at the same time pay back some old debts.

Chapter 3

Chase and Dorothy as Adults

W hile Bruce suffered and plotted, Dorothy and Chase’s life over the past ten years had been a fairy tale for both of them. With each passing year, their love grew and deepened as did their friendship with Rafael and Sarah. They grew up together, sharing their high school and college years with all its trials and tribulations. Sarah, Dorothy, and Chase graduated from Beltoid University with a double major in math and physics, but as androids with vast information already programmed in their brains, Sarah and Dorothy could hardly fail in school. Primarily, they trained their organic brains to approach complex mathematical and scientific problems in novel and creative ways. As a human, Chase turned out to be a brilliant student, achieving almost perfect grades in both high school and college. Sarah, Dorothy, and he easily gained admission to the advanced physics and mathematics doctorate program at the university. Rafael, far beyond the need of any education, taught at Beltoid University, where he also conducted research, primarily because he wanted to stay close to his friends. He could not bear to be without his friends’ company for very long. Also, he passionately loved and cherished Sarah, marrying her in a dual ceremony where Dorothy and Chase also married each other.

Rafael, as most of the people who knew him as a young man thought he would be, became one of the greatest geniuses in human histories. Not content to merely consider and reflect on mathematical problems, Rafael proved to be equally adept at solving scientific and engineering problems. In fact, no matter what the discipline or problem, Rafael addressed it in ways others could barely comprehend. Beltoid recognized Rafael’s genius and did everything it could as a government to make him happy. As a result, Chase, Dorothy, and especially Sarah, unlike many others who occupied similar positions, had all their requests and needs satisfied on a priority basis. No matter how demanding their schedules and obligations became, the four of them found time to be in one another’s company and to simply enjoy their mutual love. Also, Dorothy and Sarah received their final android bodies. In the opinion of both androids and humans, their beauty surpassed every android and human female. They attracted attention wherever they went but seem unaffected by it. Dorothy remained her bubbly and somewhat outrageous self while Sarah remained shy and quiet. While many men tried to get close to Sarah and Dorothy, they remained fiercely loyal to their husbands and children. They reserved their romantic feelings for them and them alone.

Chase sat at his workstation taking a short rest from his studies. He had an advanced physics test tomorrow devoted primarily to wormhole and hyperspace dynamics. He thought about Dorothy as he always did when his mind had time to do so. Next door, Dorothy also studied for a math exam, which would ask her to explore novel ways of using three-dimensional mathematics to solve the unified theory. Their human children, Donald and Christine, slept. Chase started chuckling to himself thinking about Dorothy over the last ten years. From the many incidents involving them, one stood out from the rest for Chase.

At seventeen, Dorothy, in addition to countless other activities, participated on the cheerleading squad but did not have an opportunity to cheer for Chase, who had not made either the football or basketball teams. Chase ran a little track and played a little tennis, but he did not excel in any sport. Dorothy, in the tradition of high schools, received constant attention from the athletes on both the basketball and football teams. Her fellow cheerleaders pressured her about sex, pointing out that she had her choice of the best-looking athletes on both teams for her inauguration into the world of womanhood. While Dorothy found some of these guys attractive, she would not go out with any of them let alone have sex with them as long as Chase and she remained together. She became increasingly irritated with all the pressure she received. She often took out her frustration on Chase, leading to some fights that she immediately regretted.

As Chase came off the tennis court, Dorothy walked up to him in her cheerleading outfit. As usual, Dorothy looked absolutely gorgeous. She had that intense look on her face when she wanted to tell him something. Chase was worried she would dump him in favor of one of the handsome athletes constantly asking her out on dates. She didn’t even give him a chance to say anything. She stopped centimeters in front of him, staring into his eyes.

Chase, do you remember when we first met and I told you about the sex thing? I would tell you or whoever I decided to have sex with when the time came.

Yeah, I remember, particularly when you look as gorgeous as you do today. I get so sexually frustrated sometimes I want to throw you over my back and carry you away.

Well, sometimes I wish you would throw me over your back, but I love you all the more for waiting for me to decide. In short, I love you, I’ve always loved you, and I’m ready to make love with you now and forever, that’s if you still want me after I all the fights I picked with you.

Want you! Are you kidding? I’ve wanted you since I first met you. It’s only become more intense as I grow older. Now come into my arms and stop talking. I can’t have you so close without you being in my arms.

Dorothy abruptly jumped into Chase’s arms, wrapped her legs around him, and started kissing him passionately. Chase immediately became aroused and stumbled off awkwardly toward the small tennis shack. He closed and locked the door of the shack behind him and then threw Dorothy to the ground. He ripped off her clothes while she ripped off his clothes. They then engaged in passionate lovemaking again and again until they had to leave the shed after another tennis player started banging on the door. As Dorothy put her outfit back on, she stared into Chase’s eyes and said, Hey, Chase, you’re pretty good at the making-love thing.

Chase, laughing, replied, Yeah, but I could use some practice.

Dorothy, with a smirk on her face, said, Huh, you’ve all the practice you need for today, but I did like it.

After that, they found any reason or occasion for making love together. Dorothy informed her friends that Chase and she had made love and that he would be her only lover now and for always. Gradually, everyone accepted Chase and Dorothy’s love for each other and thus their unavailability to others. Still Dorothy’s personality didn’t change. She made friends easily and received invitations to every party. At a teenage party on the beach of one of the smaller Mars City lakes with many young couples in attendance, Dorothy abruptly led the other girls in a cheerleader routine directed at their boyfriends. After tormenting their boyfriends for a while with provocative steps, jumps, and wiggles, Dorothy abruptly jumped on Chase, saying to the other girls, Ladies, we can tease our guys all night, but I for one am already getting tired of waiting to satisfy my needs. Are you girls game? With that, all the other girls, laughing at Dorothy’s comments, jumped on their boyfriends. Chase and the other boys in attendance didn’t find any reason to complain.

Dorothy also continued in her role as the chief matchmaker. Just as she did with Sarah and Rafael, Dorothy, after carefully studying the men and women around her, introduced potential couples to each other. Surprisingly, she almost always found the human and human android men and women best suited to each other. She constantly schemed to unite more couples she claimed destiny meant to be with each other. When Chase asked her why she liked matchmaking so much, she merely replied that all sentient beings deserved love in their lives. Without love, life had no meaning. Chase often thought that Dorothy had the biggest heart of anyone he’d ever met.

As Chase sat there reflecting on Dorothy as a person and the many Dorothy incidents like these over the last ten years, Dorothy walked through the door and jumped into Chase’s lap. Laughing, she said, Your wife is tired of studying and needs some recreation. Are you game?

Of course, I’m game. I have never said no to you in all the time we have been together, and I don’t intend to do so now.

As Chase and Dorothy made passionate love to each other, Chase realized how much he loved her. He could never live without Dorothy, never. He would simply take his own life if she died.

Chapter 4

James’s New Challenges

W hile Dorothy and Chase loved each other, James sat comfortably in his spacious office at the Presidential Palace behind a massively carved desk, an exact replica of one he found in a German museum. The large office had a beautiful view of Mars Lake. The ceiling soared six meters and displayed beautiful decorative treatments and carved figures. The dark-stained wooden walls contained sconces, which threw off soft light. Several tables and comfortable upholstered chairs adorned the room, four of which lay next to a massively carved marble fireplace, a replica of a French chateau fireplace. To complete the beautiful office, a huge oriental carpet replica matching the chair fabric lay on the hardwood floor. Fragrant, cut Earth flowers, replaced every day, sat on a table next to his desk. He loved smelling them when he arrived in his office in the morning.

James would retain this office after he left the presidency. A new office very much similar to this one would be ready in time for Susan Sloan, the newly elected president of Beltoid, to occupy in two months. A grateful nation did not want anyone else to occupy the founder’s offices. When he died, the Congress already had plans to make it into a museum—if the nation still existed then. He loved the last ten years of his life. Not that the attempt on his and Judy’s life on Earth and the constant tension between Mars and Tenore hadn’t been stressful. They had. Also, he keenly felt the loss of Balthon and Belton. Balthon and he had become close friends with complete faith and trust in each other. With Belton, it went far beyond that in a way that no one else could possibly understand. He and Belton shared the same body and space for so long; James had great difficulty adjusting to Belton not being there with him. Some of his memories remained, but the person Belton had gone to the place all intelligent beings went when their time came, wherever that might be.

James came to rely on Belton’s counsel being there whenever he needed it. In a sense, Beltoid had two presidents when Belton and James occupied the same space. They undertook this great journey together. James wondered whether the Belton part of him influenced his decision not to run for president again. When Belton came to James just before their last trip to Earth with his plan to return to his body and die at Palenque, James, in shock, could barely respond. He tried to persuade his soul mate to reconsider, but Belton wouldn’t change his mind, saying that he had very little life force left and he must choose to die in the way he wanted to now or instead suddenly die losing his opportunity to be in his own body again. Belton’s movement from James’s body back to his own body took place on the ship just before they landed. James remembered to this day how empty he felt once Belton left him.

With increasing satisfaction, James watched Beltoid grow and flourish on the planets and moons of Earth’s solar system and on the two habitable planets they discovered and colonized many light-years away. Best of all, Beltoid had flourished as a tolerant and enlightened society that treated all its citizens with dignity and respect. To his delight, human androids married humans and had both human and human android children; the few Altararians living in Beltoid married and had children with Altararian androids or each other. Human androids had just begun to have android children, who shared some of their DNA in their organic parts, and of course, humans still married each other and had children as they always had done. Among humans, human minorities simply did not exist. Those prejudices for the most part did not make the journey from Earth to Beltoid planets, and even if they did, those holding such beliefs found little tolerance or acceptance of their views. Those distinctions simply did not make sense in a world where truly different beings regarded themselves as part of the same world. A walk down any Beltoid street revealed humans of every race on Earth and human androids made to look like them. Some Altararians and Altararian androids could also be seen. Still, as much as James would like to have believed that intolerance did not exist in Beltoid, he knew this to be untrue. The Human Party and the Android Party, while few joined them, espoused racial purity philosophies: the Human Party believed that humans should be masters and androids slaves and that they should never intermix, and the Android Party believed the exact opposite. If James had his way, he would deport every one of these bigots to Earth, where their views would be much more acceptable, but since tolerance of diverse views lay at the very center of Beltoid philosophy, he could not. Instead, they sat there festering away in his utopian society. Yet as their numbers remained small and their activities at least so far appeared to be lawful, he largely ignored them.

James’s largest problem, however, lay elsewhere, in Tenore to be exact. While he had concentrated every available resource at his command into producing weapons, shields, and warships, he had been unable to keep pace with the Altararians, who according to his best intelligence would soon have ten modernized and upgraded battle groups plus some kind of super battleship now being built. Each of these battle groups had and would have superguns and the radar piercing missiles and space mines Beltoid used so effectively in the last war. The super battleship would reportedly have two superguns. To counter this threat, Beltoid only had four battleships, two of which had their own version of a supergun and two battle groups with two mothers ships equipped with superguns, ten destroyers, two heavy cruisers and two thousand fighters, some of which had bases on Beltoid planets and moons. In addition, Beltoid had some ground-based defenses including superguns on Mars, Ganymede, and Neptune’s moon Triton, and heavy-and medium-size guns on Mars, Earth’s moon, and several other moons and planets. As each Altararian battle group had two heavy cruisers, ten destroyers, three thousand fighters, and of course, the battle group ship itself now equipped with over five hundred guns of varying sizes, including a supergun and nine heavy guns, Beltoid would be greatly outgunned if the Altararians decided to send, as he expected, eight battle groups and perhaps the super battleship to destroy Beltoid and Earth. While the numbers of Beltoid and Altararian ships and guns changed over the last ten years, the superiority of the Altararian forces over his own stayed the same and would probably stay the same for many years to come.

As long as Norane remained marshal of the Altararian forces, James and Judy ignored this military disparity. Yet now that Ergone had assumed the marshal post, James and Judy realized that they could no longer do so. They both assumed that Ergone would find a reason to renew the war he lost the last time. James and Judy could perhaps buy some time by giving the Altararians the old ones’ enhanced subspace technology and technology for the manufacture of base crystals, but how much time they could buy, no one knew. Also, whatever time they bought would be more than offset by Altararian strategic gains from the new technology they would gain from Beltoid. Worse yet, once Altararians had these technologies, they would no longer need anything from Beltoid or Earth, which left James’s government with absolutely nothing with which to bargain. James and Judy discussed the issue with Susan and Martha at length, but they had no solution to this problem different than their own. As of now, despite heavy Altararian pressure, they would not provide this old ones’ technology to the Altararians.

While James and Judy intended to spend their time over the next few years visiting the new colonized planets and in search for new Earthlike planets, their family’s highest priority would now be a desperate search for old ones’ weapon and shield technology, which they all believed lay out there somewhere in the galaxy. If they did not find it, Beltoid and Earth would face extinction as they did ten years ago. No matter how hard James tried, he just could not seem to gain the security for his society and his family that he so desperately wanted.

In addition to his primary worry about the future of his country, James worried about Judy’s and his decision to support a Susan Sloan, President/Martha Whitmore, Vice President ticket as opposed to a Martha Whitmore/Susan Sloan ticket. He loved Martha very much and knew she shared Judy’s and his vision for Beltoid. Also, politically he felt it better for the new republic to have a human android as its second president. Yet Martha lacked the experience for such a prestigious post, which Susan had as a former president of