----------------------------------------------------------- - The Ta’ainvel - – By Khan – ----------------------------------------------------------- 17. The ships undocked and proceeded separately in Hyperspace past the outer planet of the system. Two hours later they had arrived at Arathur and exited Hyperspace. The planet outside the window had two large continents and was elsewhere quite blue. Clouds made their leisurely way across the surface and the two white capped poles of the planet shone brightly in the blackness of space. It orbited at a distance around a larger yellow sun and had a slightly smaller twin planet, also with oceans and a continent and a clear atmosphere. ”Home,” Ayshala whispered into the silence of the communication channel. Jante’s voice broke as he spoke right after Ayshala. ”This is the starhip Handrillian of the Mars Colony Fleet, identification signature MCF-04-HAN calling Arathur Starport. We request permission to enter the atmosphere and set down shuttles.” The two other Commanders repeated his words and request with their signatures, both of them with a slight hitch to their voice. A silence met them for a few seconds, then a soft click as if someone turned on a channel. ”This is Arathur Starport. You have permission to enter the atmosphere but not to shuttle down. We will send ships up to you. Please state class of ship.” Jante exchanged glances with Charlotte and Ayshala, then said, ”We declared out signatures already, they will tell you all you need to know about these ships.” ”Your signatures mean nothing to us. I repeat, what class ship are you?” ”Multigenerational Colony Starship.” ”Kindly no jokes, the last ships of that class built on Arathur left here two hundred seventy years ago for the Sol system fifty light-years away taking almost all space- flight technology with them, and even that information is half legend. If you again fail to state your class we will be forced to send fighters against you.” ”I am Commander Jante e’Darin of the starhip Handrillian and I make no jokes. If you want to send fighters, I would advise you to first run a closer check on what ships you have been contacted by. I believe there is a system to the left of the Comm station doing that right now.” Silence. Then ”You have permission to enter the atmosphere and shuttle down escorted by a squadron of our fighters.” Jante didn’t respond, simply moved the ship out of orbit and towards the planet. The three massive ships descended side by side through the clouds and soon they cast shadows on a good fourth of the capital city of Arathur and its starport a mile to the south. The mile wide ships were soon met by ten fighters looking like specks compared to what they approached. Six jet-black crafts exited the starships, two from each, through the hatches beneath the bridge windows. Through hatches further down came thirty D-fighters forming up around the pilots. The D-fighter was something that had been developed over the eight years of flight on the starships and was a larger version of the normal fighter, now classed A. Two pilots could be seated one behind the other in these crafts and had different tasks aboard the ship. One would pilot the craft and open fire on enemies, while the other handled radar and weaponry selection controls. No comments came from the Arathurian fighters and they soon flew down towards the airport ahead of the other thirty-six crafts. Beneath them was the great Capital City Arathur, named after the planet several thousand years ago. It was a large sprawling white city and spread out in a luscious green valley between two mountains. One side of the city was towards the ocean and a large harbour spread out into a square bay with ships crowding the inner parts and larger ships lying at anchor further out. High buildings reached for the hulls of the starships at the centre of the city and seemed to smoothly level out as the city spread. Crafts rushed along the raised roads and bridges and some flew over the city itself, but most had stopped and people had stepped out to look up at the starships. The six crafts belonging to the commanding groups of the starships set down on a pad before a large building and were soon surrounded by the thirty fighters they had brought with them. The ten fighters from the planet quickly left the area. Within twenty seconds sixty-six green-jacketed men and women had exited their crafts and stood between their ships and the building facing twenty grey-clad soldiers with rifles held across their chests. A yellow-furred man stepped forward from between the soldiers and approached the five Ta’ainvel and one Human standing before the other sixty fighterpilots. ”I am Daio e’Nevin, commander of this starport. I am also authorised to use full force against you if you do not co-operate. Who are you?” the Ta’ainvel asked and looked at all of them, staring at Charlotte. ”I am Commander Jante e’Darin of the starhip Handrillian.” ”Commander Cyle e’Guir of the Jainar.” ”Commander Inaina b’Lar of the starhip Galontha.” ”Second pilot Charlotte Westings of the Handrillian,” looking back at the man with level eyes while the other two Second pilots also stated their names. ”And quite frankly, we wouldn’t be the ones coming out bad if ’full force’ was exchanged between us,” Jante added. ”I want to see whoever is in charge of this planet or whatever leader you have these days.” ”I am afraid that is impossible. The High Imperial Commander is with the main space fleet on course to Brotherplanet Continn to destroy the traitors. You will have to talk to me.” ”What to you mean, ’destroy the traitors’? Who are the traitors?” ”Why should I tell you? For all I know you could be sent out by the Continn scum to attack Arathur itself,” e’Nevin said and glared at Jante. ”We were not sent by Continn to attack any part of Arathur. We have returned from the colonies on Mars and Tellus in the Sol system that our ancestors set out for three centuries ago. Now, please, why are they traitors?” Jante put a little strength in the last, the commanding tone that Charlotte had heard him use towards subordinate members of the crew. ”Your story about being from Tellus, or Mars, I do not believe but I can remind you of the traitors, your friends.” Jante sighed but the man went on. ”Five years ago you cut all contact with Arathur and forced the Imperial Regiment on the planet to leave. You also destroyed the garrison and all its different connecting installations and naturally this could not be tolerated, that the younger brothers of the Glorious Arathurian Empire rebel against its betters. So the High Imperial Commander ordered five battleships built and a few days ago they left, with the High Imperial Commander onboard, to quell your little uprising. And now you have come to attack the heart of the Empire as a last cowardly act of desperation.” The man’s face was blood red by the time he finished. Jante looked coolly upon the man, meeting his glare. ”And how will the fleet quell the uprising of Continn?” ”By destroying the rebels and all they have touched with their rebellious thoughts. You see, the fleet is armed with a few million tonnes of deadly gas in five large containers that they will simply drop on the planet, letting them explode and spread the gas to kill the rebels. The gas will be gone in about fifty years and the planet will be ready for re-colonisation. Simple. So your attack on us will be futile, and we will me-” ”I’ve heard enough,” Jante said and put up a hand. ”We will leave this warring planet and find another home.” He walked back towards his craft with the others in tow while the Ta’ainvel yelled behind him that they were desperate cowards, not worth to kill and so on. Jante slammed the hood shut and roared up into the sky towards the starships.