Starship Armstrong - Season 2

Part 39 - Imperator Galactica (I)

The Armstrong had been in the Saehrimnir system for a week looking for inhabited planets and had come up short. Not even a trace of a colony. A few of the old imperial records had indicated shipments of supplies to a colony in this system, flagging it as a place of interest. It was starting to look like if there had ever been a colony there it failed many centuries ago.

"Lieutenant?" said Ensign Tengku, like it was a question.

"Yes?" answered Lieutenant Solarin.

"One of the last probes has some really crazy data," said Tengku, pointing at his console "There's a gravity disturbance on one of the really small moons of the fourth planet. It looks like it might be AG."

"Artificial Gravity, hm?" said Lieutenant Solarin, walking over.

"The whole reason we didn't do a flyby on that moon is because it's too small to have sufficient gravity to support a colony. But these readings could be explained by a little bubble of Earth-type gravity."

"Do you think it's worth waking the Captain up?" asked Solarin.

"I couldn't say," said Tengku "It's your call."

"Bridge to the Captain," said Lieutenant Solarin.

"Captain Littlecrow is in do not disturb mode," said the electronic voice of the Armstrong.

"Command override," said Solarin.

"This had better be good," came the Captain's voice a moment later.

"We may have found the planet, Captain," said Lieutenant Solarin.

"Set a course," replied the Captain "I'll be there in 5."

"You heard the Captain, Ensign," said Solarin.

Ensign Takahashi brought the ship around and engaged the relativity drive for a quick in-system burst.

* * *

The first thing the Captain had done when she arrived on the bridge was have the command crew paged. Mitzner and Gibson arrived soon after. Dr. Kang was presumably still asleep.

By then they had arrived at the moon and matched orbit.

"There's definitely a matter/antimatter reaction going on down there," said Ensign Tengku, after a quick scan.

"Let's say hello then," said the Captain "Hail them on the ansible."

"Go ahead," said Ensign Tengku.

"This is Captain Alexandria Littlecrow of the Huxley Foundation Starship Armstrong," she said "We come in peace. Is there anyone down there who can hear this?"

"Nothing," said Tengku "Oh wait, someone is replying."

"Main screen," said the Captain.

Two men wearing threadbare Imperial uniforms circa the Martian Empire appeared on screen. They each had equally sunken eyes.

"Starship Armstrong, what is your business?" asked the man on the right.

"We're explorers," said the Captain "We couldn't help but notice your gravity field and wanted to come by and say 'hello'."

"We are not authorized for hellos," said the man on the left "We neither accept nor reject your hello."

"I certainly mean no offence," said the Captain "Do you think it would be possible for me to speak with someone in a position to be hello'd? Or better yet someone authorized to say 'hello' back?"

"We can neither confirm nor deny that we are going to ask permission to do that," said the man on the right "Await our reply or don't because it is an open question whether you will recieve one. End transmission."

The strange men disappeared from the screen.

"Well that was rude," said Mitzner.

"Do you think they're going to get back to us?" asked Lieutenant Solarin, who was now standing awkwardly beside the command throne.

"I'm betting yes," said the Captain "Continue to match orbit."

* * *

It didn't take long.

"They're hailing us," said Tengku.

"Main screen," said the Captain.

A man appeared on the screen wearing the unmistakable ceremonial uniform of the old Martian Emperor. Every person on the bridge had seen pictures of people wearing that uniform in old history books. The enormous shoulder-pads, the absurd overburdening of medals and honors, the fur cape. It was exact in every detail.

"Greetings beloved subjects!" he boomed "It is I, Hercules Gormenghast VI, Emperor of the Milky Way, Lord Protector of Mankind, and Master Of All The Stars. I apologize for my Imperial retainers they have been inbred and incompetent for many generations."

"I'm pleased to meet you, your Imperial Majesty," said the Captain, trying not to smirk "I thought House Gormenghast was extinct."

"A useful fiction I am keen to perpetuate," said the apparent Emperor "To that end I'm afraid I must impose an Imperial edict upon your entire crew: you are not to reveal the location of my refuge upon pain of death."

"Alright," said the Captain "With the exception of your quite unnecessary threat I think that's reasonable. If you want your privacy you can have it."

"Of course I can," said the Emperor "I can have anything I want. I'm the Emperor. Still, one has so few visitors when one is in hiding. Since I have forbidden you all from revealing my presence on pain of death I think I can trust you as dinner guests."

"I'm not so sure about that..." said the Captain.

"Oh come on, Captain, that sounds like fun," said Mitzner "You don't want to dine with the 'Emperor of the Galaxy'? That's a feather in your cap."

"Not particularly," said the Captain.

"Can I go?" asked Mitzner.

The Captain sighed.

At that moment the door slid open and McAfree walked onto the bridge, rubbing her neck. Her hair was disheveled and she was obviously wearing the same clothes she had been the day before.

"Doc paged me and said you needed me on the bridge?" she said "I'm guessing you actually asked for him but it looks like you're going to have to settle. I also can't promise that I'm going to try very hard at whatever you have for me. That's what you get when you don't respect people's sleep schedules."

"That won't be necessary anymore," said the Captain.

"Thanks for waking up from a dead sleep to come do our jobs for us McAfree, we really appreciate the sacrifices you make for the ship," said McAfree, using a slightly lower register "Don't mention it," she added, in her own voice "The enduring sense of camaraderie I get around here is thanks enough."

"Who is that enchanting creature?" asked the Emperor.

McAfree looked back and forth, hoping to catch a glimpse of the enchanting creature.

"Allow me to introduce you," said the Captain "Yoshiko McAfree, this is his Imperial Majesty the Emperor of the Milky Way. Your Imperial Majesty, this is Yoshiko McAfree."

"Yeah, okay, hi," said McAfree. She turned to Mitzner and shrugged her shoulders.

"I am stricken utterly speechless" the Emperor lied "Serendipity has led me to this place where the sky is black from the arrows of the Erotes. Bright star, would I were steadfast as thou art! Not in lone splendour hung aloft the night!"

McAfree pointed at nothing.

"So I'm going back to bed," she said.

She sprinted from the bridge with more effort than any of the crew had seen her exert before.