Star People

Chapter 2

First Contact

Early morning, July 4^th, 11 AE…

Captain Mark Delan took a sip from his coffee cup as he sat in his chair, while watching the main monitor.  The star battleship Missouri cut through the waves with no problems. Although it had been remodeled for atmospheric and deep space travel and combat, it still retained its ability to move through water at relatively fast speeds. Despite its massive size, it was far faster and more agile than any other seagoing vessels on this world.

Though the ship was quite capable of flying through the air, Mark had decided against it, as a giant flying battleship would most likely spook the natives into a panic. Even though the Missouri was far more advanced than any other vessel on the planet, it still looked somewhat like the steel ships of this world. It would have been far more hazardous to arrive in one of the Nova-class cruisers or Vanguard-class destroyers. Thought they were just as sea and airworthy as the Missouri, they didn’t look like oceangoing ships. Their hulls were more suited for the atmosphere and deep space.

Behind Mark, one of the main doors to the bridge opened up and the First Officer walked in. All bridge crew stood at attention as the helmsman, a Velor, announced her arrival.

“Commander on the bridge!”

“As you were.” Reelan said, causing the bridge crew to go back to their duties. She then saluted her superior officer and husband, Captain Mark Delan. “First Officer Reelan, reporting for duty.” She was in her standard uniform, but like all Kyteeri women, the clothing only emphasized her beautiful form by hugging her curves like a second skin. Her hair was done up in a thick braid that went down her back.

Mark saluted her back and motioned for her to sit in the chair beside his. As they both sat down, he addressed the helmsman.

“What’s our ETA to Greval, Ensign Gatsbu?”

The Velor nodded as he replied. “At our present speed of 30 knots, we will be within visual range of the port in just under two hours, Captain.”

“Maintain speed and course, Ensign.”

“Aye sir.”

As he leaned back into his chair and took another sip of coffee, he began discussing the details of the First Contact diplomatic mission with his second-in-command and lifemate.

“So how do you think we should proceed once we get there?”

Reelan pondered for a moment before replying. “I would think a conservative approach would be the best. Even though the Missouri is imposing all on its own, it would be easier to negotiate with the natives if we show that we mean them no harm.”

“Exactly my thoughts. However, even though they have primitive weapons, that don’t make them any less dangerous. I want all personnel on this ship to show proper discipline and decorum, but also exercise proper caution as well. Is that understood?”

“Aye, sir!” Everyone on the bridge replied.

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Sometime near noon…

Varges was bored as he watched the expanse of the Jirek Ocean from his observation tower. As always, the port of Greval was busy with incoming and outgoing vessels, but watching for new arrivals had become as dull as watching the grass grow. Occasionally, one of the marvelous steamships of the Bisra and Excra nations would appear, or even the magical craft of the Vardo, but for the most part, it was sailing and oar vessels from the Sath and minor countries. Nothing surprised him anymore.

Nothing until today.

 At first he thought it was another sailing ship as he spotted a small dot over the horizon. However, this one was coming in from the north. Other than a few minor fishing villages on some islands, there was nothing north of Mendov, except for the continent of Alder. And nobody ventured to Alder. It was considered suicide to do so. The last attempt was by the Empire of Sath more than a century ago, when it was discovered that there were huge deposits of magic stones and ores on that landmass. However, the Empire was unable to obtain those resources as there were also huge numbers of demonic beasts inhabiting that continent. They had completely wiped out the colonists and forced the Empire to flee Alder. Since then, ships of all nations had never attempted to venture close enough to sight the coast of Alder.

As the vessel came closer, Vares’ eyes widened as he looked through a spyglass. The ship was huge! It was well over 300 meters long! And he could see no sails or oars. So what was propelling it? And how was it moving at such speed? The craft seemed to be made of metal, like the ones used by Bisra, Excra and Vardo. And were those… cannons? They were enormous!

As the Missouri got closer to the port, nearly all of the workers on the docks stopped moving about and began staring at the massive ship. It was unlike anything they had ever seen. Its streamlined form cut through the water like a hot knife going through butter. And its superstructure towered above them like a castle. For something so massive, it moved with precision and took care not to hit or run over any of the smaller ships nearby.

He then received word that the huge ship had sent a message for permission to dock. The higher ups had granted them permission and the port master was sent to greet the new arrivals. As the massive ship neared the main pier, he saw a flag flapping at the top of the mast. He didn’t recognize the flag as it had a blue background with five white stars arranged in a pentagram formation. In the center was an image of a sword. This was the emblem of the Star Alliance.

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On the bridge of the Missouri, Ensign Gatsbu maneuvered the ship between the other vessels with practiced skill. For him, it was far easier than navigating an asteroid field. Finally, the ship came to a complete stop just a few meters from the dock. Fortunately, the port was deep enough for the Missouri.

“Well done, Ensign.” Captain Delan praised as he stood up. His First Officer also stood up as he motioned for her and a few of his officers to follow him. He nodded to his third-in-command, Lieutenant Commander Harken, who happened to be a Catian. He would be in charge of the ship until Mark and Reelan returned from their diplomatic mission.

The envoy consisted of the captain, Commander Reelan, three other junior officers, (all Kyteeri females), two Terran diplomats, and a small entourage of twelve security members, consisting of three Velor, two Catian and two Nemonians, and the other five being Terran. Since this port accepted non-human beings, it was decided that the envoy would consist of all members of the Star Alliance.

Mark and his group paused at the hatch as the captain reminded his crew and the diplomats to be on their best behavior but to also stay on alert. He took a deep breath before turning on the boarding ramp and opening the hatch. Twin heavy doors slid to the side as a boarding ramp appeared to ferry the group to the dock.

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As the diplomatic group walked down the ramp, they were met by a grizzled old man in a navy uniform as well as several workers and security guards. All of them stared in awe at the ship, then at the various beings that were approaching them. Some of the male workers couldn’t tear their eyes away at the sight of amazingly beautiful women coming down the ramp. Not to mention the sight of what appeared to them as beast-kin, dragon-folk and fairy folk.

“Are those elves? I’ve never seen blue-skinned ones before!”

“Are they slaves?”

“Look! They have gold eyes!”

“What I wouldn’t give to spend one night with them!”

“I’d give up an entire year’s pay!”

“Look! Are those lion-kin?”

“Are those fairies? Look at those wings!”

“They even have dragon-folk!”

“Will you all shut up?!” The port master shouted, silencing his crew as the newcomers approached them.

Macus Vern was an old veteran of two wars and had reached his late fifties at this point. His body still had most of his muscle-mass but was also littered with scars and a few tattoos. He walked with a bit of limp, thereby needing a cane. However, he knew how to keep a cool head as he stepped forward and offered his hand to what appeared to be the captain of this huge ship.

“Greetings! Welcome to Grevel! I’m the port master, Captain Macus Vern.”

Mark smiled as he saluted and then shook hands with the port master. “Thank you. I am Captain Mark Delan of the space battleship Missouri. We come from Free Land.”

“Free Land? Never heard of it.”

“I’m not surprised, since we are a new country and we’ve settled on the Alder continent.”

“Alder?” Macus exclaimed. “Heh! Your people must have guts of iron to live there!”

“In any case, this is our first excursion to the Merdov continent and we’d like to establish diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Vereles.”

“So you’re an envoy then? All right then. That means that you’ll be going to the country’s capital then?”

“Eventually. In the meantime, my ship will be docked here for a few days.”

“That’ll be fine. All you have to do is pay a fee and we’ll be happy to have you here.”

“How much?”

“Well, let’s see… considering how big your ship is and how much harbor space it’s taking… I’d say ten silver coins or one hundred bags of food will do. One silver coin is equal to about 1,000 Neublins by the way. ”

Mark nodded as he tapped the communicator on his collar. “This is the captain. Bring down two standard storage units of rations and water.

In under a minute, a group of men came down the ramp with two large, metal containers, each about the size of a standard wooden crate. Mark opened one of the containers and opened a rations packet. He then showed how it worked by pouring some water into the packet. To the amazed eyes of the port master and his men, the packet expanded to the size of a bag of potato chips, and heated up. The smell of food wafted through the air. The Missouri’s captain then offered the packet to the port master with a spoon.

Macus’ eyes opened even wider as he sampled the food. It was the 22^nd century version of the Meal Ready to Eat packet or MRE, but was reduced to half the size of an 8 ounce soda can. The preserved food would last for centuries. Today’s meal was minestrone soup.

“Amazing! It’s so good!” Macus exclaimed.

This got the other dock workers excited as the Missouri’s crew handed out several more ration packs for them to try. The various flavors astounded their palates as they tasted hot food that was literally out of this world.

After finishing his meal, the port master wondered what to do with the empty packet. Mark then simply told him to press the red spot on the side and hold it for fifteen seconds. He did so and was amazed to see the packet disintegrate into nothingness. The other dock workers followed suit and were equally astonished at the easy clean up.

“What kind of magic is this?”

“No magic. You just activated the packet’s self-decomposition program. It reduces the packet to its component molecules so there’s no trash and…” Seeing the confused look on Macus’ face, he shrugged his shoulders and said, “… well, I guess in your terms, it would be considered as magic so let’s just leave it at that.” He gestured back to the two storage units. “There’s enough Instant Food Packets in these two containers to feed 1,000 people for around four months. The food inside won’t spoil and can be stored like that for decades.”

“Four months?!” He stared at the metal boxes in amazement. If it were just himself, they would probably last him for the rest of his life, and then some. “A few of these boxes could end famine in a small country! What kind of wondrous magic is this?”

“As I said, it’s a little difficult to explain so…”

“Ah yes, you said you were from the Alder continent, right? That means you have easy access to magic gems and material there. Now I understand. It also explains your metal ship and such.”

“Uh… all right. In any case, will this be enough to cover the docking fee?”

“It certainly is! Now if you’ll just follow me, we’ll have you registered. I’ll have my men take these containers to the main storage building.”

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As the Missouri crew followed the port master to the main headquarters, a hooded figure watched from the shadows of a nearby alley. He nodded as he took note of the Velor, Catian and Nemonian members, but was especially interested in the blue-skinned elven woman. He smiled as he disappeared into the alleyway.

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Two hours later, the Missouri group exited the port headquarters building and began making their way back to their ship. The port master had sent a magical telegram to the capital city Areset. The response was that an envoy from the capital had been dispatched to meet with them in two days.

As the group walked down the streets, many people stopped in their daily lives to stare at them as they passed by. It wasn’t that beastkin weren’t rare, as many of the dock workers were from those races, but the appearance of dragon-folk, fairy and especially blue-skinned elven females caught their attention most.

As they neared the dock where the Missouri was moored, they decided to cut across a wide alley. That was when some began to notice they were being followed.

“Captain?” Reelan warned as she began fingering the sidearm on her right hip.

“I know.” Mark nodded as his body language was picked up by the other crew members, causing them to be on their guard. At that point, a fat individual wearing pompous and expensive clothing approached them in front, followed by a gang of what appeared to be hired thugs. Behind the crew, another group of unsavory people blocked their rear. All were armed with swords, knives, clubs and various other melee weapons.

The leader of the group stepped forward and gave them a slight bow before speaking. “Hello there, my friends! You seem to be new to Grevel, are you not?”

Placing a hand on his holster, Mark stepped forward. “Yes, we are new here, but we have some pressing matters to attend to, so if you’ll kindly move aside…”

“You’ll be on your way soon enough.” The sleazebag interrupted. “I’m only here to conduct some business myself. I see some very fine merchandise with you and I was hoping that you’re in the market of selling them to me.”

“What merchandise?” As if I couldn’t already guess.

“Why those fine elven beauties of course!” The man said with a sneer. “I can imagine they would bring the highest prices at auction. I have never seen such visions of loveliness and their blue-skin makes them look even more exotic. So what do you say? Two gold coins per girl? That’s very generous don’t you think?”

“Up yours!” Mark growled as he undid the flap on his holster and pulled out his weapon.

“What?”

“It’s an old saying back where I come from. It means you can take your ‘generous offer’ and shove it up your ass!”

The slave merchants stuttered a bit at the insult. He then looked down at Mark’s weapon and smirked. What could that puny metal thing do to him? Was this a joke?

The weapon in Mark’s right hand was no joke. Instead of the standard-issue sidearm that most Star Alliance Fleet captains were given, Reelan’s husband wielded a Mark IV, Nova-Eagle ACMAG blaster-pistol. Instead of using chemical propellants, the weapon used a micronized, magnetic/kinetic accelerator field to launch its projectiles. Basically, it was a mini-railgun. At its maximum setting, the rounds could reach hypersonic speeds and punch through a foot of reinforced titanium alloy at 100 meters. The gun also had an alternate mode, which could fire off bolts of condensed plasma. Each clip carried 50 micronized projectiles that instantly expanded when entering the firing chamber, as well as a small supply of ionized gas.

Behind Mark, Reelan and the rest of the group took out their weapons, which included standard-issue Mark III Space Sentinel Pistols, and Mark II Vanguard Pulse ACMAG carbine/rifles.

“What a pity.” The slave merchant said with a shrug. “You could have walked out of here as a rich man instead of a poor dead man.” He then ordered his men. “Leave the elven women alive and kill the rest.”

The thugs surged forward as Mark barked out his command.

“Fire at will!”

At that point, things got loud and very violent. Leather and chainmail proved to be no protection as the Missouri’s envoy mowed down their attackers. The slave merchant’s smug expression disappeared almost as quickly as his men. In fifteen seconds flat, he was the only one of his group that was still standing amid the carnage. A wet stain appeared down his pants’ leg as the last of his men fell. Then Mark turned toward him and pointed his weapon at him.

The slave merchant let off a scream and tried to run but was knocked down as Mark fired off a blue energy bolt. He dropped like a sack of potatoes and was rendered unconscious.

“You stunned him?” Reelan asked as she holstered her weapon. The others were still on guard and waiting for any new attackers to show up.

“We need to get some information from this lowlife.” Mark holstered his own and gestured for his crew to take their prisoner back to the ship.

“By the way, Captain?”

“Yes?”

“Up yours?”

Mark shrugged. “It seemed… appropriate at the time.”

Reelan smiled. “Indeed.”

The rest of the crew also smiled in approval. Some gave him a thumbs-up.

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A little before before this incident, in the capital city of Areset, King Lurat Valza the Third let off a tired sigh. As ever, that damned Empire of Sath had been making their usual, unreasonable demands, and it was getting harder and harder to appease them. Even though the Kingdom of Vereles was not officially part of the Empire, it was still being forced to pay yearly tributes to it. It was understood by both sides, that should the Kingdom fail to pay its tribute of gold, slaves, harvest and magical gems, then the Empire would annex the nation and all members of the royal family would be executed. As a result, the country was in a continuous state of recession and famine.

Lurat cursed the day that his great-grandfather had put his nation into permanent debt with the Sath, more than a hundred years ago. When Vereles was first formed, Lurat’s great-grandfather had enlisted the military aid of the Sath Empire to expand the territory. Unfortunately, the Empire imposed dire stipulations for their help that still persist to this day. This included the costly tribute and the right to take whatever they wanted. Though slavery was not practiced in the nation, Lurat could do nothing to stop the slave merchants from entering the country and taking its citizens. They were sanctioned by the Sath after all and fighting against them would be seen as fighting against the Empire.

Oh how he wished that there was some nation that could stand up to that arrogant superpower!

At that moment, his Prime Minister, Tarkot Vills, came into the throne room with an urgent message.

“My liege! I have just received word from the port master at Grevel!”

“What is it?”

“It seems that a huge ship has docked there!”

“Really? So what makes that news so important?”

“It’s not just big, it’s gigantic! And it does not move by oars or sails!”

“Was it a magical craft like from Vardo? Or maybe one of those mechanical marvels from Bisra or Excra?”

“Neither my liege. The captain of that ship says they are from a new country from the north!”

“The north? There’s nothing north of here but the Alder continent!”

“And that is exactly where they say they are from!”

“Are you mad?! Who would actually live there with all those dangerous beasts?!”

“Apparently they do! They say they had been there for over six months! They call their nation Free Land.”

“Free Land … hmmm …”

King Lurat was deep in thought after hearing this. An actual country had emerged and was living on the Alder continent. Such a thing was considered impossible due to the enormous numbers of dangerous beasts that existed there. The Empire of Sath had been beaten back more than a century ago when trying to colonize the continent and take advantage of the vast deposits of magical gems and minerals there.

The enormous sources of magical material in the Alder continent were also a factor to consider. If there was a country on that landmass that was thriving, then that meant that they had access to those resources. That would explain their huge ship. Establishing diplomatic relations with that country would also permit Vereles to have access to those resources as well. Perhaps enough to finally break free from the tyranny of the Sath!

With that in mind, King Lurat immediately ordered a diplomatic envoy to be sent to the port city of Grevel to meet with the Free Land emissaries. It was imperative that they establish a relationship with this fledgling new country before the Sath could get their greedy hands on it.

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Empire of Sath, Capital City Garres…

“Sire! Our spies report that a new country has docked one of their ships at the port city of Grevel.”

“A new country you say?” Emperor Garres Lorcra VII said as he sat forward and listened to his head military advisor General Craxil Snee.

“Yes my liege. Apparently they came from the Alder continent.”

“The Alder continent? That’s impossible! Neither human nor demi-human has ever conquered that landmass! My great-grandfather tried to colonize a portion of it and nearly all of the fleet he had sent there was wiped out! We barely managed to hold onto the territories in Merdov after that devastating loss. We’ve only now regained that level of military might. Nay, we have since exceeded it! There is none who can challenge us on the entire Merdov continent!”

“And yet we are seen as inferior by Bisra, Excra and Vados…”

“Watch your tongue General, lest I have it sliced off!” The emperor warned. If there was one thing that got under his skin, it was being reminded that his empire was only a mid-level superpower. Despite having total control over 100 other countries, his nation’s overall power was still considered inferior compared to Bisra, Excra and Vardos.

“However sire, if we were to make this new country our vassal state, then we would have access to the immense riches of magical gems and materials. Our military power would rise substantially!” Craxil pointed out.

This definitely got the emperor’s attention. If he could gain control of those magical resources, then there would be no force on this world that could stop him from realizing his great-grandfather’s dream and his own… total world domination!

At that point, his offspring came into the throne room and bowed to their emperor and father. His son, the crown prince Vexor Lorcra, was a brash and rather brutish individual. Though he was tall and solidly built, he tended to use brute force rather than his brain to solve problems. He was arrogant to a fault and was quite spoiled.

His daughter Princess Lexina Lorcra, was more level-headed than her older sibling. She was actually very intelligent and was very astute in terms of politics and military tactics. She even had her own personal division of female knights that was the equal of any regiment and better than some.

“Father! Have you heard the news? A new country from the Alder continent has appeared!” Lexina exclaimed.

“Watch your tongue, dear sister! I was about to inform our father of this very thing!” Vexor shouted.

Emperor Garres raised a hand, immediately silencing his two children before their squabble could escalate.

“I have already been made aware of the emergence of this new country. And in a way, it is quite fortuitous that you have come to see me this day. In response to this event, I have decided to send emissaries to meet with the representatives of this fledgling country, and have it become a vassal state to our great empire. And I see no better way to do so, then to have a member of the royal family there to claim that nation and in turn, seize the continent of Alder itself!”

 “A brilliant plan, father! I shall go there myself and…!”

“What makes you think you will lead the emissaries?” Lexina cried out. “I think it would require someone who actually uses his brain! I will go!”

“What?! What would a mere girl who pretends to be a general, know about conquest? I…”

“SILENCE!”

Both siblings stopped bickering and faced their emperor and father. Garres took a deep breath and let out a tired sigh before gesturing to Lexina. “This may be our best chance to take the continent of Alder, and we need not waste our time with political games.” He then pointed to his son. “You shall go to Grevel and present our offer to become our vassal state. Should they refuse, then we shall simply force them under our control. They are a new nation and should not have any military power strong enough to oppose us. You will prepare to leave for Grevel immediately! The Green Dragon Fleet is currently sailing near the Vargeon Islands. I shall send word for them to head to Grevel. Their might shall be at your disposal to ‘convince’ the representatives of this new country to accept our generous offer to become our vassal state.”

Vexor gave his sister a smug look before bowing to his father and exiting the throne room. Lexina could only fume silently for a minute before she too bowed to her father and left.

After they had left, Garres spoke to his prime minister.

“By the way, what was this new nation called?”

“I believe they called it Free Land.”

“Ho ho ho! How appropriate! The Empire is about to gain an entire continent and it won’t cost us a thing!”

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Bisra continent, Intelligence Headquarters of the nation of Atlans…

“Sir?”

“What is it, corporal?”

Lieutenant Lenns Hodder walked over to the radio operating station and was handed a decrypted message.

“This was just sent to us by our operatives at Grevel in the Merdov continent.” The corporal said. “According to them, a huge battleship had just arrived.”

“Really? Did the Empire of Sath come up with another one of their ships of the line with more cannons? Or did they finally come up with a rotating turret?”

“No sir! It’s not the Empire. It’s a new country from the Alder continent.”

“The Alder continent?” Lenns looked down at the message and read it in its entirety. He couldn’t believe the report. A ship that was actually larger than Atlans’ biggest battleship and it moved without sails or oars? And it came from the continent of Alder? Who could possibly live on that demonic continent of monsters?

What interested Lenns the most was the fact that there was another country that seemed to have embraced the wonders of technology rather than magic. Despite living on a continent with an abundance of magic gems, they didn’t display any spell-casting and such. The report also informed him that the Empire of Sath had ordered its Green Dragon Fleet to set sail for Grevel. Given their position and probable speed, they would reach the port within a day or two. Despite having a battleship, the newcomers would be badly outnumbered 30 to 1. Even though the Empire’s magic cannons were inferior to Atlans’ naval guns in terms of range and performance, they still packed enough firepower to be considered as not a joke.

A new country that used technology instead of magic would be a great ally. Who knows? Atlans might gain some new technology in the bargain, though he doubted that any other nation could equal the technological superiority of his country. In terms of scientific achievements, there was none that could rival Atalans. Still, they couldn’t just sit by and let the Sath grow even stronger by gaining those magical resources.

With that in mind, he left the Intelligence section to send word to his superiors about the situation in Grevel.

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The continent of Vados, the royal palace of the Kingdom of Naran…

“Your majesty!”

“Yes?”

“We have just received word from our observer in Grevel. It seems that a new nation has just announced itself.”

“I see. Well, it’s not every day that a new nation emerges. So what else does the report state?”

“They say that they had settled on the Alder continent.”

“The Alder continent? Now you have my attention.”

“It is also reported that the Empire of Sath has dispatched the Green Dragon Fleet to ‘meet’ with the newcomers. Very likely to force them to become a vassal state and gain access to the magical resources on Alder.”

“And what of the newcomers?”

“The emissaries appear to consist of humans, fairy-folk, dragon-folk, beastkin, and apparently… some new race of elves.”

“A new race?”

“Our observer says they have light blue skin and golden eyes. Your majesty, you don’t suppose that the ancient prophesy of…?”

“Don’t jump to conclusions!” The ruler of Naran said firmly. “We don’t have enough information to give us a proper grasp of the scenario. That ancient legend of blue-skinned elves descending from the stars is just that… legend. Still, the fact that this new nation resides on the Alder continent is of grave importance. We certainly cannot let the Empire of Sath gain those resources and we can benefit from those same resources, if we are able to form a relationship with that new nation. Yes, this will require some more thought.”

After dismissing his advisor, Emperor Vilgar Sensherine IX was deep in thought. His pointed ears twitched a bit as he remembered back to an ancient prophesy some 3,000 years ago. At the time, he was a mere elven lad of 64, but he still remembered the ancient legend well.

“The Blue Star Elves…”

To be continued…