Starship Vengeance

Chapter 26

We were halfway through our two day journey to the final anomaly. So far, everything had been quiet. I had decided to spend some time in the bowels of the ship. Things had been so busy that I felt like I was neglecting my crew. I spent hours talking with everyone who passed by. I turned to make my way back to the bridge when I saw Sarah.

I called out her name and she stopped."What are you doing down here Admiral?"

"Just taking a stroll," I answered nonchalantly. "I heard you were in the hanger when the Zrynt ship detonated. Are you alright?"

"I was present, yes and I am undamaged. I had hoped to quickly access the ship and download the data."

"I've been thinking about the incident. You have more experience with the Zrynt than anyone. I was wondering if I could pick your brain for a moment."

"I have no brain to pick, at least in the traditional sense. You may ask me anything," she replied.

"One thing that has always frustrated me is the very little knowledge we have of the Zrynt. An ancient leader on Earth once said, 'If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, you every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat.'"

"That is quite thought provoking. Many of your leaders have followed the advice of Sun Tzu."

"I'm trying to make a point. From the little we do know about the Zrynt, they appear to be a proud warrior race. They can be compared to some of the ancient groups of humans. I find it odd that they would commit suicide in that manner. Most warriors would see that as cowardly. I wanted to get your take on it."

"The Zrynt are not human, therefore they cannot be expected to act like humans. We could speculate that they saw self-destruct as a way to inflict the most damage to an enemy."

"If that were the case, they would have done much more damage had they waited until they were fully in the hanger. Also, I find it interesting that we have not seen that behavior before. Even when facing certain death, they still fight to the bitter end. Not even their boarding craft are equipped with a self-destruct. This is the first time we have ever seen one of their ships self-destruct."

"The Zrynt are mindless murderers," she snapped. "They don't think. They just see opportunities to kill, no matter the cost."She stormed away, leaving me more than a little confused. I brushed it off and made my way to the bridge.

The remainder of the journey continued to be Zrynt free. We made good time and arrived several hours sooner than predicted. The moment I laid eyes on the anomaly my hopes soared. The space right in front of us was full of healthy stars that would hopefully provide sanctuary to a sentient race.

"Admiral, all scans indicate the presence of a subspace jammer," Lt. Sanchez stated.

"Take us in slowly and begin searching for any habitable planets. Stay sharp. If there is an intelligent race here I want some time to observe them before making contact."

We spent a grueling five hours slowly jumping further into the anomaly. Finally, the end was in sight.

"We have confirmed that a solar system resides at the center of the anomaly. Multiple planets were detected as well,"Lt. Smith announced.

"Looks like we have another chance,"Shahae said.

"Let's just hope that we don't find another dead planet," I replied. "We need allies just as much; if not more than we need new tech. Lt. Haas, find a location close enough that we can observe the planets without being detected. Initiate jump once a suitable location has been found.