Genesis Project Ch. 16

"Yeah, yeah Mister Turner. Don't let the chance at stardom go to your head. What else is there?" Mike asked.

"The last thing you'd want to hear actually. There is a lot of activity in the general location of Cape Canaveral. Looks like the US is preparing to launch a shuttle our way. From what Pike can tell me is that the shuttle is loaded down with two scientists whom have a background in avionics and computerized technology, plus a squad of Marines." Jack stated.

"Well, we'll just have to handle them when they get here then." Emily said like it was a matter of fact.

"Ok, so did you guys watch the presidential speech? God, I swear that guy is a complete idiot. I wonder how he got elected in the first place?" mused Mike.

"Who knows?" Jack said with a shrug.

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Location: Helios System.
Planet: Helios Prime.
Number of Planets: Twelve.
Status: Under Dagon Blockade.
Confrontation Level: Reaching Critical.

"Sir, we're running out of supplies. The wounded are going to die soon without medical aid, which we have almost none at the moment. The Dagon Blockade is slowly squeezing us, cutting us off from the trade routes, where most of our food and medical supplies are brought into us. Every time we try to send out a one manned scout ship they destroy it. By the gods, they destroyed our entire fleet within three hours of arriving in system. Without help, sir, we are as good as slaves corralled in the pens. I would rather die then face the pens." Said the passionate lieutenant.

General Brackas nodded solemnly as he looked on the worn and dirt covered uniform. It was one month since the Dagons arrived. First they destroy the fleet by swarming them like Lincindu fruit gnats, and then they bombarded the planet from high orbit. After that the Dagons called for a general surrender from Helios Prime, which was refused. So the Dagons cut off the Helios system from out side help, sat back and would wait out the Helions, until they could no longer put up a fight and then take them, standard operating procedure for the Dagon military doctrine. Planetary shielding was slowly fading, unable to withstand the barrages coming from the Dagon attack force, in some places large gaps were soon appearing at random. Cities under those gaps became molten slag within seconds, so far thirty million civilians dead, ten million wounded, five hundred thousand missing. The ones that were capable managed to make their way towards the last standing military complex, some five million in all. Many were left outside the base, erecting portable tents or primitive shelter made of bulky tarps.

"Well lieutenant, the Dagons are going to complete that jamming station on Tauro, within the next two weeks. When that happens we will be completely cut off from any out side help. So, how long will it take the repair crews to fix the communications array?" asked the General.

"From the last report, they'll have it operational in one hour or two. I had search teams scavenging parts from around the base and in military surplus warehouses in the city. Took them a while to find everything, some of the buildings took damage from a laser cannon." Said the lieutenant. He stood there, shoulders stooped, his sweat-covered face glistening in the setting sun. His face had a sunken appearance after days of not eating properly and had dark lines under his eyelids.

"Alright, go get some rack time while theirs a chance, but report back to me in three hours. We'll go over the message we're going to send. Gods know who'll intercept it though, pray that help comes lieutenant." Brackas said quietly and leaned back into his rickety chair.

"Yes, sir. Goodnight sir." And the lieutenant walked out of the general's office and back to his bunk.

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The call for help was sent three hours later, calling for all and any aid that could be given. It traveled outward in every direction and passed through several star systems some, which held intelligent life, but were not capable of space travel or advance communications technology. A few had did have space fleet capable of helping, but they could not be concerned with a backwater world on the fringe of known space nor did they want to fight the Dagons. Two weeks of traveling at five times the speed of light the communiqué reached a very unlikely system full of life in the middle of nowhere. This system held nine planets, eight if you want to argue about the last being a large moon, orbiting around a yellow star. The communiqué reached the small satellite orbiting the third planet, where a ship orbiting the satellite intercepted the message, bringing it to the attention to those aboard it. Some day these people would bring hope back to the rest of the galaxy, but that is another story to be told for another day.