Tau Fleet: The Broken Fleet, #3

By Richard R Lockwood

In volume 3 - Tau Fleet, the Twins of an Alternate Universe expand their reach tbeyond the ancient gate system network. 
As their powers increase they reach for other nearby stars not served by the gates. Odd things are happening out there along the Orion arm. But odd things are happening at their home stars as well. People are getting strange and deadly ideas on Earth. Can the Tau Fleet solve their problems at home while taking on the troubles of the galaxy? They'll give it a shot.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Richard R Lockwood
• Release date: Sep 24, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215262931

Richard R Lockwood

Was born in Miami FL. Worked for the University of Florida until I retired. Been married to the lovely Cecelia for 40 years now, proof that I'm a lucky guy. Now living on the Nature Coast in Citrus County. Enjoy all kind of wildlife, especially reptiles and insects, so I'm pretty sure I'm in the right place. When I'm not writing I enjoy wood carving. Both of the heads beside me in the picture are cedar from the Chassahowitzka Forrest. I also love to walk my dog Bark Anthony. Probably need to go do that now. A Chronology of the Twins Alternate Universe novels and some thoughts and rationales - https://www.ricklockwood.net/Chronology.html My Books on Books 2 Read - https://books2read.com/ap/RaZ9Br/Richard-R-Lockwood  

Book preview

Tau Fleet

1

Chen Shanshan woke from a troubled sleep and called her garden. The floating collection of fragrant trees and flowers would take a few minutes to rise to her level from the more humid lower levels where it usually spent the night. She spent those moments trying to recall the fragments of her dream, but no details would come back, just a feeling of unease, the closeness of peril, a danger to herself and her child. She held her stomach and its swelling shape, then contacted the house monitor even though she knew it would have already alerted her to any problem. But the monitor was unable to reassure her, it could only report the absence of a threat to her health or her house, and so she was left with her fear, subtle but strong and not fading.

She put on a robe and when her garden reached her level she stepped lightly on to a pad for the short journey. Soon she was surrounded by fragrances, jasmine, frangipani, lemon trees, roses, gardenias and honeysuckle vines. Water cascaded from a small terraced mountain on the far side of the garden, making its way through a series of carp pools in the center. She stopped by one of the pools and fed the fish for a while from the bread the gardeners always left for her.

She felt a little better from the familiar act. Perhaps, she thought, I just have an urge to be a mother, to feed and care for something. But she knew better, the anxiety was still there.

For a moment, she thought of contacting the house guards, but knew it would come to nothing. There were no credible military threats to her home, she and her husband were surrounded by men and warships and a network of intelligence around the Earth constantly searched for any danger.

Her husband soon joined her. He had missed her as soon as she left, he knew from the monitors where she was, and why she went there.

Is it the dream again, darling? he asked. 

She thought of teasing him but realized she just wanted his arms around her, and so she nodded, and held him, and he held her.

They sat on the bench beside the pool, a full moon in the clear sky about to drop below the Pacific horizon to the west, and a glow in the east the herald of a new day.

Their house and garden were 2400 kilometers east of the Philippines, and headed to the north east and Hawaii. She had been visiting her father in Shanghai, her mother was still on D-Tau, but she had many relatives and friends to share her joy with, and her whole nation was rejoicing with her. Her 88 Company was bringing new prosperity to her country, Chinese art and culture would soon be visiting the rest of the galaxy, and China's real wealth, her people, were piloting star ships and exploring far beyond the Middle Kingdom. So who would want to threaten this new prosperity, this new wealth of possibilities for the future? Only a fool would want to take them back to the past. But then she shuddered, her sub-conscious had finally gotten through to her. Somewhere, somehow, there was a danger from time.

I'm sorry, darling, said Captain William McKenzie, her husband, It makes no sense. I think you're just feeling concern for the future of our baby. How can there be a danger from time? And if there is, what could we do about it?

You're the warrior, husband, she replied, How would I know the answers to that? Maybe you're right, but please talk to Bronstein, talk to the people who can think about these things. If there is a way to turn time travel into a weapon against us, they would know. And if it's possible, you should know.

I can't argue with your logic, dearest. Let me arrange a meeting. He spent a few minutes messaging. Tau City was off the Southern California coast, and Lieutenant Commander Bruce Tarleton was preparing to start the first class of 200 cadets for the Tau Fleet Academy. But Lieutenant Erica Griffith, the Fleet Science Officer, was in Antarctica. She wanted to be involved every step of the way with the next city and had taken over the job of construction boss from Terry O'Casey. She promised to get Lev Bronstein and a few others who had done work on the subject together for a meeting in three days time.

We'll do what we can, darling, he promised. I'll ask Tommy Flanagan to go with us, he should be involved if there's any security issue they can think up.

I'm sorry, lover, she said. Now that I've set it in motion, it does seem silly.

No, darling, it's my job. We've had so many examples of complacency, on Earth and out in the Galaxy, my happiness with you has made me forgetful.

So it's my fault? Too much happiness for Bill? Should I do something about that?

Um, no. I think you should go back to bed and get some more rest. Think about our baby, my life is already interesting enough.

2

Vinca, Kajima and Bechtel, all had experienced crews by now; they had built several homes in Antarctica for the Tau officers since the first city. The one they had built for McKenzie was a square two hundred meters on each side and rested on four of the huge pontoon balloons. The house itself was a pyramid, silver and layered like a wedding cake, with terraces and windows mixed in to every other level. He had wanted a house that could travel, and each of the components, from the balloons, to the surface, to the house itself, were strongly attached to each other. With the double impellers on each balloon pushing it along, the house had reached a speed of 120 kph without showing structural strain. Of course that was far faster than the garden could go without damage to the plants and structures, and sometimes they would leave it behind to catch up, as they had when they approached Shanghai.

Besides houses, the Tau Southern Factory Zone was producing an incredible amount of generators and impellers. They were easily the most popular items and orders from around the world were being filled by a fleet of balloons. A balloon would have its cargo cage filled by the robot forklifts, the destination would be programmed remotely by a Tau Stellar employee in Aukland, New Zealand, and off it went. It would be met by another employee when it arrived at its destination several days later, they would verify the order and unload.

The generators were powering neighborhoods, hospitals, and schools around the planet. Tau Stellar had started a program to bring clean water to poor neighborhoods around the world and the generators were powering new wells and pumps every day. When matched with gravitic impellers the generators were pushing cargo and cruise ships around the oceans. Andrew Green's company, Carnival Cruise, was the first company to be able to boast a completely clean energy fleet.

Down in Antarctica at the construction site, Erica Griffith had decided on an ivory color for the next city. It would be a science city, and at first she thought a classic red brick color might be good, but imagining it in the sky, it seemed a little too much like blood or rust. She finally decided on a sky blue for the balloons and the bottom surface, and an ivory shade for the habitats in the interior and the top surface. My very own ivory towers.

She was at the Factory Alpha site when she got McKenzie's message. It was the original construction site for Tau City, the other three complexes were now named Beta, Charlie, and Delta. The other sites were busy filling up balloons with orders, but this one was hers as long as she needed it. Two of her favorite students had accepted jobs as administrative assistants for her science department, they were in charge of documenting every phase of construction and every decision made. She was treating it like a big science project and having a wonderful time, so McKenzie's request was not a welcome one, but it was not a big imposition when she had been given so much, and it would be nice to see her friend Lev again. And of course Hawaii was always a pleasure. Tau Stellar owned a big seaside resort complex that was never more than half full, it would do for the meeting.

Since the arrival of the original Tau fleet a year ago the subject of time travel had been a popular one, many of the old media shows and books on the subject had enjoyed a revival. Most of them had turned into comedies in the light of their new knowledge of the realities of time travel and quantum universe theory, but some of them had been that to begin with and were even funnier now. Of course there were new ones also, but it was not easy to work with the theory of multiple universes and alternate realities and make it a drama. Lieutenant Commander Scott Carlson was consulting with a Hollywood producer who had won the rights to the Tau Fleet story, and conversation among the original Tau officers often turned to the project, and who would be playing whom. The usual conclusion; the story needs more hot babes.

But scientists had different views and different ways of amusing themselves. Tau Stellar had not encouraged them in the study of time travel, but it was impossible to discourage them, and so McKenzie had felt that it was the best strategy to manage and keep informed on the state of the science.

Lev Bronstein headed one group devoted to time theory at Tel Aviv University in Israel, there were others in every center of learning on the planet, but Tau also had funding relationships with MIT, Harvard, Yale, Cambridge and Oxford. Erica sent a message to each institute announcing a ten million dollar grant to study possible threats from time, and asking for a representative to attend the meeting in Hawaii. As usual, Tau money got a positive response.

3

Three days later the meeting got under way with a brunch at a table on an upstairs terrace overlooking the beach. All of the scientists knew each other and Captain McKenzie was of course world famous. Lieutenant Commander Tommy Flanagan, the director of Tau Security, was the only one who needed an introduction, and he asked each of the scientists to remind him who they were and where they were from when they first spoke.

Captain McKenzie started off. "Please call me Bill. I don't want this to be a formal meeting, I hope each of you will feel free to speak, even if your ideas are a little crazy. To me, the whole idea is a little crazy, but I feel like it has to be examined. I don't want to be blind-sided by something if we can prevent it.

"There are a lot of things we care about on this planet, and in this system. The humans from Earth are going to farther places every day, and I'd like to think that things are getting better here every day, at least that's what we're trying to do. All of us in the Tau Fleet want to protect what we have and the progress we've made. So this is the structure I'd like to see here; I want each one of you to try to convince Tommy and I that time travel is somehow a threat to us, or a threat to Earth, and that someone can use it to hurt us.

"Now you don't have to tell me that the Tau Fleet itself is an example of a threat to the status quo, I know that. And yes, we did have to provide a few lessons when we arrived. But the arrival of a stronger military is always a threat at any time or place and we are already preparing for that. I want you all to focus on more subtle threats, the things we haven't thought about, or the things we won't think about because some of us get a headache when we start to consider them.

Tonight after dinner some of you can give it a shot, and tomorrow after lunch the rest of you can try. Anyone have a question or something they'd like to say now, feel free.

I have a question, Captain, er, Bill. I'm Dave Albertson of Harvard, he said with a nod to Tommy. Most of us here are theoretical thinkers, but that has to do with the mathematics of time, or the engineering of time travel. I don't think any of us has any background in the strategic sense that you're looking for.

Most of the people with that strategic sense just get a headache when they think about time travel, even the ones who've done it like myself, replied McKenzie. I've got an appointment at the Naval War College in Rhode Island in two days to see if they may have something for me to think about. I'm hoping between the two groups to get some idea of what's possible.

Barry Daniels from Oxford, Bill. You yourself, in that interview with Lisa Martin a year ago, seemed to dismiss the whole idea of threats from another time. Has something changed your mind?

In the military, Barry, we hate to assume things. Someone convinced me that I was doing just that, and now I want to have an opinion that has a stronger base than my hopes.

Rachel Mellman from Yale, Bill. I think we're all willing to give it a shot, but you may want to have someone go over the science fiction literature on the subject. Many of the writers are creative, and some of them aren't stupid. It's not all Doctor Who and his Tardis.

Thank you, Rachel, but Erica has already started up a group at Princeton, her alma mater, to review the subject with that focus, and I used to like Dr. Who.

Marcus Randolph from Cambridge, Bill. I just want to be clear on what you're asking. You aren't asking us about threats that might grow over time. It has to be a threat from someone traveling through time?

Yes.

Then it would have to be from someone in the future, correct?

That's one of those assumptions I'd like you to help me nail down. Is it possible to travel from the past into the future, some other way besides one day at a time?

Your Admiral Fankron did it, said Tommy.

You're right, Tommy, replied Bill. And that's exactly why I want some other eyes on this problem. I didn't even think of it that way.

Bill, I'm John Fulton from MIT. I'm guessing that you're not worried about someone going into the past and telling his parents to buy certain stocks. Right away that creates a different time line and we'd be unaffected in this time line. Same if you send someone back in the past to assassinate Hitler. It would save 50 million people in that time line but it wouldn't change ours. Right?

That's my understanding, John.

So what's the incentive for someone in the future to do the same thing to us? They would never know if their mission to the past was even successful.

I hope you're right. I hope we all feel the same way a week from now. I have plenty of other things I can worry about if that's the case. Anyway, thank you all for coming. I have a lunch date with my wife, and then we're going to hit the beach. I'll see you all at dinner.

Captain

Yes, Lev?

I think I have already identified the biggest threat from the future.

Good, please tell us.

You won't like it, sir.

I knew that before we began this meeting, Lev. Don't play with me. You made a statement - 'The biggest threat from the future.' Tell us.

It's you, Captain.

4

After the meeting Bill asked Tommy up to his suite to talk it over. He and Shanshan would be having lunch and she would want to talk about the meeting as well.

Both men fixed something from the lunch buffet sent up by the hotel kitchen, then joined Shanshan on the lanai. She welcomed them, then with a worried look at Bill's stony face asked Tommy, It's always good to see you Tommy. But I thought this first meeting was just to say hello. What happened?

You're looking lovelier every day, Shanshan. And that's the problem, the whole world is jealous of the Captain here.

Poo on you, Tommy Flanagan. We already knew that. Now tell me.

Well, he said with a nod to McKenzie, I've been following his logic, and I don't see any faults there, Captain. He turned back to her, You know we in the military don't like to read minds, Shan. We like to go by facts and capabilities. And there's only one person in this room, or even on the planet, who could order a time travel project, for whatever reason. It's possible Captain Bob could do it in Sulia, but he'd need our help, so...

What are you saying, Tommy? Bill's the threat? That's ridiculous!

I agree, Shan. But listen to a scenario that isn't so crazy. Let's imagine, ten years from now, a tragedy happens, whether it's intentional or an accident, and our Captain were to lose you or your child. Can you see the Captain coming back in time five years, and trying to convince you to flee with him? Or even pretending to be the present, er I mean future, er, what the hell, you know what I mean, the Captain of that time, and kidnapping you off into the rest of the galaxy? Just knowing it's possible would be a tremendous temptation.

Shanshan looked at Bill.

I'm still a little stunned, darling, he said. "I've