Astra Pt. 07

President Grendal nodded, "You need to go there to work the 44 million bars?"

Jack laughed, "We will be closer to 60 million except I will not put those into convoy ships. They get broken down and turned into settlement housing. They are also being set up for the bitch and her lot. Any word on the number of applicants to follow her?"

President Grendal nodded, "Around 5 million applicants."

Jack nodded, "Astra, get him a breakdown of those he should reject because of achievements to mankind if any."

She ran the list, "Only 10 and 2 are very significant. Sending him a file on them."

Jack sighed, "Is my mechanic's sibling on the list?"

She looked, "Her whole family."

Jack looked at President Grendal, "Send him those names. Let the President know as a favor to my mechanic Randall those 3 names he would like to see get the opportunity to experience colony life without hybrid influence."

President Grendal nodded, "Not fans of yours?"

Jack shook his head, "No."

President Grendal nodded, "Will let them know they have been preselected to go to the new colony because of their interest. Through channels of course. Not directly from me."

Jack nodded, "I am heading for my base. I have a stack of work to do between shuttles and ninjas, plus the redesign and refit of my Katana Battleship."

He looked at Jack, "What are you working on now?"

Jack smiled, "I need to do the rail gun test with those new shields. Get the damage fixed from the last battle. It would have to be a solution that works for your current projectile weapons as well. Including missiles which I do not do, except the drones which could also use that fix. To answer your question the prototype for a Wormhole drive is a big new addition.

I will have crews doing communication upgrades including new transponder recognition codes at the Commercial Starbases. Those stations will be able to hit the satellite to Tau Ceti. Then the three facilities out at Jupiter, Titan, and Saturn."

He looked at Jack, "What about the other 6 stations?"

Jack smiled, "I need to know who the next Admiral will be. As you have to make decisions for another 5 years you have to formally request those technology upgrades for your facilities and work through my lawyer and business manager. Grace will start filtering in the patents slowly until we hear of your decision on the Admiral."

President Grendal chuckled, "You want out of that job badly?"

Jack shook his head, "No, I want you to have credibility with the people that the Home Guard is not your new military. You must get the technology rolling to bring them up to speed. I will be talking with my other contractors to find out if the upgraded products should go to them or a competitor. I set one requirement.

Work to improve upon the given technology. If they have sat on it I will let them continue to build it but bring in a different company to take on the new line. Let them try and innovate the old line up to new line standards. Most of it runs on different technologies."

Jack and the ladies left soon after and returned to their ship.

---

Jack finished the shuttle examination and created designs for a camouflage function for ships that were on the surface of a planet. Also, a way of detecting it was added to the sensor readings. He turned it over to Military R&D to examine it fully. The ninja attack proved more challenging. The weapons did not register even under an electron microscope. For all effective purposes, the material did not exist.

Jack went another route. He took apart the wrapping and the guard in the handle to find more of this mystery metal. He took a second apart and ran them both through some paint to see if there were any lines. No tool marks and the paint would not stick to its surface.

He set them down side by side and tried using his will on them. He focused on remaking them into a katana instead. This finally yielded results as it joined together and into just such a blade. He thought, 'Active sword.' Then he did it in Japanese. He then thought of the attacker and the anger they felt and the sword resonated with a clear unseen power.

He let those thoughts go and they deactivated. He had asked Aiko to try it. It was not DNA encoded. It just responded to anger.

He thought, "Justice this material is not from here. It can be made into swords but responds to anger alone that we have found. Have you encountered this before and should our vigilance be even higher for this unknown species?"

Justice responded, "We have seen this material in many worlds including your own. It is rare in such quantity. You said this is from a family in Japan but the best source for this metal is nowhere near that location. It is below what you call the south pole and 300 meters below the ocean floor. Yes, we have a means of detecting the material. The cloth, you would be correct. You have no current means of creating it and it provides little in the way of protection."

Jack thought, "Astra the core you downloaded, did they do any mining below the polar ice pack?"

She responded, "Yes they pulled up 300kg of a metal they had never encountered before. They made another hybrid! Searching the world for Drakor DNA at that level. Found one."

Jack asked Justice, "Were you aware of this other hybrid?"

He heard back, "We do not believe he is one. He may never have had the limb move on. It never connected to his mind. It received no guidance. We make that link when we do it. You had to ask for that, you had to choose. He or she is your responsibility."

Astra continued, "Hiroshima, Japan."

Jack sighed, "Alert the ladies I want every highly trained Hybrid coming with me. I want a full shuttle."

He took 2 more and fused them and put them out into three bars. He took two bars and held his hand over them, "I am, Dispenser of Justice. Just create a psi-blade attuned to me with this, A Kitana handle like my other. Same style as it is perfection."

It merged and had the silver woven thread on the handle but was clear on the other part. Down to the silver threads on the handle. He activated it and got his dark purple blade that was lighter on the edge.

Jack told Justice, "I have part of my answer. Is it unusual to have psi blades from two different materials?"

Justice responded, "Yes, for a special. No, overall. Many materials can be used that way and a Kitana seems to be your weapon of choice. The one who added 3 for his sword. You thought it had too much material."

Jack replied, "It also explains the swords resonant to anger. The man or woman had this done to them and is angry with no answers. The AI units put this responsibility on them. They sought a way to kill me without giving them any knowledge about choosing. Meaning they learned from another hybrid about making it from other material. They mentioned they jumped from the Feldar System. Would they have hybrids? I do not know where it is."

Akio walked in and saw him holding the two Katanas. "You got it to work?"

Jack nodded, "Yes the person is not a hybrid, not yet. They resonate with anger because right now that is all they know."

He heard back, "They are close to true graduation in this timeline. Yet we have no proof it was them. Your theory is sound. The cloth is made in another nearby system in quantity. Though they are cold-blooded and they do not use it for that purpose."

Jack asked, "Would his DNA have been in the hand that was severed if it came from a hybrid of another species? Astra, show me everything you have on this other hybrid. Was he from this timeline and how did they get him?"

Astra sighed and displayed the information, "This timeline. In space. Destroyed his craft. They kept him under for months while they searched for something suitable.

His ship name was the Shimada X, he and his wives were geologists and mineralogists looking at the outer rim, the asteroid field. His name was Shimada Riku."

Jack sighed, "First, give everything you have on where in the fuck they got the hand and the knowledge."

She looked through the data, "A Planet called Leron in the Feldar system. Some hybrid merchant was making weapons or cookware out of raw material in his 'mystery box.' Told the story of hybrids and was selected to have this magic. This was after a catastrophic civil war devastated the planet. It did a lot of radiation damage. They were using neutron tactical missiles, neutron guns, and bombs. They met other species. He was fascinated by him and his curiosity so he answered the question for a fee.

The AI commander had generated food and acceptable currency on the fabricators. He told them this does not need to happen. He said they told him they would give him a year's worth of food, and plans for a drive to let him jump back in time. He had to pass a physical first. He got back to the ship, got him up on a table, and strapped him down. Confirmed he was a hybrid and killed him. Then took all 3 viable hands and 2 of 4 feet and shoved him out an airlock in space.

They got their fuel and jumped the next day. The other specimens went bad. They figured if you did show they could get you killed and captured and take your hands and feet to continue whatever they could think of to destroy the other hybrids."

Jack thought, "We do not know these creatures. Do those numbers of limbs make sense?"

Justice replied, "Yes, this is bad. We may need to eliminate them."

Jack thought, "Different timeline. Things might be different. Can you not just hold off their final graduation for 250 years? The simple knowledge that is likely to occur might get their leader to take action now, especially against neutron weapons."

Justice replied again, "We will consider these aspects but the choice is their choice."

Jack thought back, "Humans had to screw it up twice before I figured out what had to be done. They have not made that choice yet and I have proved that those choices are not always the same."

He heard back, "Thank you for your input Dispenser of Justice. We will discuss the options."

Jack looked at the ladies, "I looked up that name. Large family estate. Swords only, no guns, and no body armor."

Everyone nodded and boarded the shuttle. He took the second chair and Aiko flew as she knew Japan within this time better than he did. He called up the President. They got past the operator and he saw him. He had a smile on his face. Jack laughed, "The intern, the sword instructor, or a current wife. One of them put that smile on your face. Maybe more than one."

President Grendal laughed, "None of your business. What do you need Jack?"

Jack smiled, "I got an answer on the Ninjas. The bots took a man in space in this time, killed his wives and he was probably told some outrageous lie about them helping with something. Just to kill him when they were finished.

They stuck a Drakor hand on him and told him how to make blades but he is creating ones that respond to anger. They got it from another hybrid who they killed in the future. They put a contract out on me to force his cooperation. If he knew the ship and he saw me destroy it; it could have sent him over the edge thinking he lost whatever."

President Grendal sighed, "What do we do?"

Jack smiled, "I am visiting him. See if we can get him to talk. Put an end to this before anyone else gets killed."

President Grendal nodded, "Thanks for letting me know."

Jack ended the call. Jack looked and found the records for the main number on the estate. He called it up and a young woman answered who was surprised to see his face, to say the least. Jack spoke in Japanese, "I wish to speak with Shimada Riku."

She looked at a loss for words. He finally said, "We know of his hand and why he is in turmoil. We know of the flawed swords he has been building. We are en route to your estate and would like a warmer welcome than 12 ninjas we could see plain as day. Our eyes can see in different light bands. I grew up in Japan and am trained in many styles of martial arts and sword fighting styles. I am no stranger to the blade. We only wish to help him come to terms with what was done to him.

In the same manner in which it was done to me. I spoke with the President. He told me good luck in getting this resolved. No military is coming and the only guns are those on my shuttle. I am traveling with other hybrids who wish for this to end peacefully. Would you tell him, I do have the answers he is looking for to find peace in his life again?"

She nodded and hung up. Aiko looked over, "We are 5 minutes out. They have a TC for the gated residential neighbors he lives in. It has only 3 houses."

Jack nodded, "Handle it or let them know I can have the President handle it."

She nodded and talked for a few minutes and they flew over the gate up toward the main house and a numbered landing pad. The shuttle landed and there were 6 men with automatic weapons drawn. Sprits thought, "Got a wall up at the doorway."

Jack walked forward and spoke in Japanese, "We are expected. You do not need those unless you wish to fish them from the middle of the lake."

One of them said, "No weapons. We take your swords."

Jack sighed, "Ash, put just their guns in the center of the lake. Including handguns."

The men's weapons went flying and fell into the lake. "Hybrids do not surrender their swords. Not even at the Capitol."

Jack walked forward and one man tried to kick him and Jack tossed him telekinetically into the lake away from the guns.

Jack looked over, "Trying to attack us when we came to talk is not the best way to start a dialog. Go speak with your boss about what he would like to do. Work and talk with me or have military special forces storming this place."

One left and went to talk that left 4 of them blocking their path, He came back a moment later, "He said to let them in."

Jack pointed, "Lead the way please."

Astra, button up the shuttle and take it up 30 feet facing away from the building."

He looked, "Who is in the shuttle?"

Jack looked at him, "Nobody, Remote controlled from our carrier base. People have gotten into a nasty habit of planting explosives on it so it became required to do it this way. Anybody fires on it and 4 squadrons of fighters will be all over this place."

The man opened the door, Jack shook his head, "At least one of you steps inside of the firing squad waiting first."

They looked shocked. "Go."

Jack put him in a barrier and walked him into the house first. Five or six shots bounced off the shield, "Do I need to send more guns into the lake?"

Jack was behind the one guard, "If I had wanted you dead, I would not have shielded you."

He stepped away and Jack walked forward with the others following, "I came to talk with Shimada Riku face-to-face."

Jack walked forward a few steps and sat down.

A fairly buff man came out with no shirt and a black hand. He carried two of his swords. Jack pulled them up, merged them, and spit them out as bars on the ground.

In front of him, "I help hybrids make swords. Like me, that was not by choice. I found out what happened to you after we examined the records from Excalibur 2. What did he promise you? What piece of happiness was taken from you? I know of your wives I have lost 17 wives. 3 since being pulled back into this time against my will. Sit. You will learn something."

He walked forward and sat down a few feet from Jack. Jack telekinetically put out two metal bars from his pack and set them down.

"This is normally done after one decides with us. Something we started doing after someone decided that being a Drakor was a good idea with no clue what that meant. You have three decisions to make with that hand. Become an alien Drakor and stumble your way through life until you find them. By the way, I do not know what they eat. We cut off that hand and be done with it, or you become a hybrid. Hybrids have a code of conduct."

The others behind Jack told Riku the rules. They spoke as one. "You, Ash, and I never asked for this. We adapted to a new reality that could span centuries."

Riku looked at Jack, "How do I know this is not some kind of trick?"

Jack nodded, "The hand you carry can answer that question. All you have to do is ask it to communicate with you."

Jack listened in on the discussion and spoke with the hand's mental signature as it made the connection. "I know what you do after a long delay. I ask that you do not do this. Help him with logic, to see reason. But do not change him and think he is indecisive. He was not instructed on what to do with you. He fights with two swords he should get to decide if that is what he wants the extra to go. It is a choice. Up until now, he has not been given one. I am the hybrid Dispenser of Justice. I want justice for what was done to him."

He heard back, "You are a graduate and you did not tell him?"

Jack sighed, "Someone else did this to him and we just found him. We are trying to get him focused and find some peace in a troubled life. Give him this chance."

He heard, "I will treat it as though he just put it on but I know his heart is filled with hatred."

Jack thought back, "I know the next step is to try and dissipate some of that hatred before he does this."

Jack left the mind and looked at Riku, "Ash and Grace have two plates in their heads. One over each side. For being indecisive. If you want your off-hand to be nearly as strong as your other you would let it know that. It is intelligent DNA. Now I know about your wives, the assassins, and the messed-up swords. What else is making you angry and if it is myself or hybrids in general then tell me?"

Shimada Riku looked across, "The fuck that did this to me cut off my balls. Said They would reattach them once you were dead. They put them in status, they told me. Then you destroyed his ship."

Jack shook his head, "Ask your arm about that because it does regeneration. It should have already unless they put something in you to stop Drakor regeneration. That same fuck had a psychotic bitch of a bot make changes to my body. Like removing nerve endings and increasing semen production and semen output on me. I cannot make slow love to a woman if I want to get off and then it might happen after 2 hours. The AI they left me with was so full of failsafe that it created catch-22 errors in her routines.

I ended up replacing power cores to keep them from being remote detonated, rebuilding her body to get rid of the explosives they packed inside her. Killed an assassin bot they had hidden in the ship after it cut off my right hand, and the list is endless. They got corrupted by their creators. My hand grew back. Astra, that is her name, should have died with the Excalibur. I convinced her that her job was not to protect Excalibur but the archives on technology and personal history from the timeline we came from.

She makes sure I did not screw my Great Grandmother 5 times removed and alter her destiny with children. She pulled their archive. I know for a fact they caused the accident in my previous life. They spaced everyone except me and brought me here. Astra is very different. She was programmed to aid me on my mission and to protect those archives. They are protected and sections I instructed her to make read-only to her. She checks every invention I make.

I have only created a few things from the future as they are and that was to help mankind and I gained nothing from that. I took the first 'fortune' I amassed. I built 9 space stations 8 with space docks in this system and 75% of the convoy I took with me to Tau Ceti. You have seen me on the news. Do you think I would waste my time if I did not think you could be redeemed for your wives' sake and your own? Is this the life they wanted for you? Talk with your hand. Ask about the regeneration."