The Blue System Read online

  Within 18 minutes the second orbiting power station was destroyed. The great rent in the outer screen widened considerably. Shortly thereafter we were hailed by Reginald Bell, Rhodan's Solar Deputy Administrator and provisional Commander-in-Chief of the 'normal' Fleet. He was about to enter the Blue System with 14 Terran super battleships of the Imperium class. His message was short. He was purely businesslike and managed to conceal his great relief over Rhodan's rescue.

  Rhodan instructed him over the hypercom. "You are not to attack any planets or other celestial bodies in this solar system under any circumstances. However all space stations recognizable as power projectors for the blue defense screen are to be destroyed. Such stations are unmanned. The small technical crews are able to get to safety through their transmitters. You may engage any attacking spaceships. Repeat and confirm!"

  Eight minutes later the first of the Terran space giants penetrated the unprotected solar system of Akon. Behind them came the swift heavy cruiser squadrons followed by light cruisers of the State class. I wasn't able to determine what other light spacecraft might be moving into this work of destruction but later I could recall staggering as in a trance to the hypercom console to contact the Chief Admiral of the Arkonide robot fleet.

  I couldn't believe my ears. The Regent had launched 30,000 ships of the heavy and super-class types just to pull the Imperator, Gonozal VIII, out of a very tight scrape. 30,000 ships—it was too much to grasp all at once! I also had my fleet fly into the system but I deployed the ships into picket positions in a battle-free sector of interplanetary space. This was all I could do from my side to bring the situation under control.

  The Terran ships experienced 18 separate attacks by Akon units. We knew they had to be the few spaceships of the Energy Command which had been ordered by the Ruling Council to enter a completely hopeless battle. On Akon 5, known as the planet Sphynx or Drorah, they seemed to be utterly desperate. There was no other way to explain such suicidal action.

  As for the power space stations, Rhodan's commanders tracked them down one after another. They practically made a game of it, going into increasingly complex approach patterns before shooting them out of their orbits. Within a space of 6 hours, 3,407 of the massive power plants had been turned into atomic infernos. The former Blue System was now as normal as any other, except that it had now acquired about 3,000 artificial suns out just beyond the farthest planetary orbit. Owing to some highly refined catalytic carbon process they didn't look as though they were going to bum out.

  10 hours later I pulled in the Arkonide Fleet to closer positions and the units were soon re-deploying at half lightspeed toward all inhabited planets in the system, where they formed their blockades in accordance with regulation containment procedures. Thus the Sword of Damocles hung over the various life centers in the form of a combined fleet formation.

  If now there should be one misunderstanding of commands... one false move... the smallest error...?

  I left the hypercom station and went back to join Rhodan. TheIronduke was in a close orbit around the 5th planet. Perry sat in his high-backed chair and concentrated his gaze on the giant screens of the panob gallery. Some of the female members of the Mutant Corps were taking care of Auris.

  As I came into the area the Terran officers acknowledged me. I felt tired and drained. The past hours of crisis had been exceptionally rough. I watched the viewscreens in silence. Curiously, nothing was happening! We knew for certain that formidable surface fortresses threatened us but apparently they had not received their firing orders.

  So far the Akons had not suffered any casualties except for those few whom the Akon government had sacrificed in a kamikaze attempt. The space stations had been empty of any humanoid life, as we had been able to detect through the continuous warp-shocks from activated transmitters. However if there were any new hostilities now, not only would their fortresses go up in smoke but moons and mighty planets as well. My eyes sought Rhodan's face. The two of us studied each other for some time in silence and he finally broke into a smile.

  But then came Auris, appearing behind us with tearful face. "We could have killed you—but we didn't!" she half stammered, as though to make us change our minds.

  I had to explain to her, first of all, that there was nothing she had to dissuade us from, because we had no intention of attacking the planets. However I reminded her that the galaxy certainly did contain a number of intelligences who might be differently inclined. In a case such as ours, aware of holding a quite formidable opponent at bay, they would not have hesitated to strike the final blow.

  Rhodan spoke to her, calmly and succinctly. "Auris of Las-Toor—you may thank your lucky stars that your Council chairman did not decide to assassinate either Atlan or myself. In such an event, right now there would be no more of your Akon Empire! I will have one of my officers take you down to the fifth planet in one of our scout ships. I am demanding a full capitulation. You may inform the members of the Ruling Council that I should be quite happy if I have succeeded in destroying the source of their exaggerated presumption and arrogance—meaning their orbiting power stations. I demand an assurance that you will never again try to attack us without warning from ambush and that you will henceforth abstain from any such underhanded methods. Further: I demand that unrestricted commercial and trade relationships be opened between yourselves and our respective star systems; and along with that we want the details of Akon linear spacedrive. That's about it. You will be leaving in 10 minutes."

  She drew herself up in unexpected hauteur and stared down at him. This unpredictable Terran had finally turned the tables. Now he was demanding from them the details of their hyper-propulsion system, which in its design was considerably more simplified than the Terran version. She was even moved to smile. Apparently she sensed the tragicomical irony of the situation.

  "Is thatall ... Your Excellency?"

  He only nodded and she departed. Her escort was Maj. Hunts Krefenbac, First Officer of theIronduke . In a late-model space-jet he chauffeured the lady down to the fifth planet below us.

  • • •

  We waited seven hours, which I took advantage of to get some much-needed sleep.

  Just prior to this, the Akons had made contact with us and asked for a truce and I in my capacity as Imperator of the Arkonide Empire had made my counter demands. I insisted on a political recognition of the Imperium, an official confirmation of my rank and a final relinquishment of Akon claims to power or jurisdiction, which had become illusory anyway. In addition I also demanded a submission of all data concerning the Akon linear spacedrive.

  Rhodan had looked at me with a slight frown during this demand but he finally decided to say nothing. Only Col. Claudrin had chuckled at this because he also comprehended. Why should Terrans alone possess this marvelous translight equipment? I was convinced that I would soon be able to convert the Arkon 3 assembly lines.

  It was some time later after I had slept that Krefenbac contacted us over the videocom. He informed us of the Ruling Council's response. They were in agreement with all conditions except one: they did not wish to surrender the details of the linear propulsion system.

  This we rejected with icy finality and we gave them an ultimatum of 3 hours, Terra time.

  Shortly before the termination of this deadline we received their final capitulation. All of our surrender terms were accepted. Shortly thereafter the space-jet brought us 4 authorized members of the Council. Rhodan and I received them with cool politeness. I had never seen such a troubled and crestfallen delegation.

  The covenants of the accord were drawn up and signed. Auris was also present.

  Once we had this taken care of, the first Terran and Arkonide warships landed on the central world of my true ancestors. I had arrived at the starting point where the first emigrants had begun their great peregrination. Rhodan personally inspected the area designated, according to agreements, for the commercial trading base—which of course would not take long to develop into a f
leet stronghold at the galactic core. We figured it wouldn't hurt anything to meet the Akons face to face but after a few hours I withdrew. The reception of the Ruling Council did not interest me. Rhodan had worn his plain service uniform as usual. I called for a shuttlecraft from the Arkonide Fleet flagship and ordered the pilot to take me back out into space.

  I remember shaking hands with Rhodan in the airlock of the commuter craft. The Blue System stretched above us from horizon to horizon. Number five was a beautiful, Earthlike world. The First Administrator was speaking to me reflectively.

  "Do you know, friend, it's a beautiful feeling to have won without any bloodshed to speak of. Do you think these people have finally gotten the idea that they caught the wrong tigers by the tail?"

  He went away chuckling to himself. As I watched him go my eyes were burning because I was only an Arkonide Imperator for whom the binding chains of ceremony were waiting, as ever.

  I turned slowly into the airlock. After all, I was still a sad old hound dog!

  THE BLUE SYSTEM

  Copyright © 1976

  Ace Books

  by arrangement with Arthur Moewig Verlag

  All Rights Reserved.