had gone, but failed. Deep space did not want to share its mysteries…
Nobody knew how long the battle would last.
The work of all ground services reached its heights.
Shelters were being filled with people, water, food and other things, indispensable to life.
The military arrived at their positions and put their machinery on an alert, not paying much attention to their personal comfort.
Thousands of position-radar stations targeted their antennas into space, carefully listening out to what was happening far from Earth.
Space battle stations and orbit satellites were turned to space. The astronauts were defending not just their ship or country; they were protecting the whole Earth – their common house.
They had no enemies on Earth now, but got many new friends. The whole Earth became their safe guard. In case of trouble, they could rely only on each other.
All orbit stations and satellites were transferred to manual actuation. They became directly subordinated to astronauts. The Department of Military Cosmic Alignments on Earth reserved the right to assist and control.
Astronauts got all the codes to use the weapons. There were no previous events in the history of the sixth civilization on Earth when such enormous power was concentrated in several hands.
Dark secrets that countries had kept for a long time, opened now.
Orbit stations and satellites were only shells hiding weapons inside them. Dozens of the most powerful thermonuclear bombs, nuclear-pumped lasers were turned off from Earth and directed into space, ready for actuation.
Military cosmic alignments formed the first safety layer of the Earth planet.
Millions of people were looking into the sky through their telescopes, and even binoculars.
Religious services never stopped – one followed after another.
Hundreds of millions of people did not leave squares, united by one goal – to help Super Queen-Mother to win.
Chapter 4
3D images of the external world sheltered the space cabin. They were around the whole spaceship.
In the middle of the cabin were two armchairs. One of them was very big; the other was a usual one, as in a good office.
The lights on the big armchair switched on, and Super Queen-Mother sat in it. The 3D views made an impression that there was no ship at all, as if her armchair were hanging in space.
Super Queen —Mother was watching as below the roof of the house and «dog ground» were slowly moving away from her. Then she saw her town, which was quickly becoming smaller and smaller.
Suddenly, the armchair tightly enveloped her body. Thousands of cold suction cups stuck to it, and the ship sharply picked up the speed.
She could judge about this from the space view: flat, as it was seemed from Earth, it was becoming extensional. All stars were becoming stretched and thinner, turning into light lines. She did not hear the noise of the engine unit, but felt the vibration of the ship’s corpus.
She felt as if she had jumped into a cold swimming pool after the steam room in a bath house.
Soon after the start – or it seemed so to her – the process of the spaceship speed-up reversed, and the deceleration began. The spaceship speed decreased, and, in a far, Super Queen-Mother saw a huge planet, nearing her.
There were no other planets near it. It was a lonely wanderer of the Galaxy. Being unremarkable, it was chosen to take part in decision making on Earth’s fate.
It suddenly struck Super Queen-Mother that she was not afraid of the battle; she was more curious than frightened. She at once pulled herself up:
«Notice and analyze everything. They did not invite you for a cup of tea…»
Super Queen-Mother shook her head and switched attention to what was happening around her.
Suction cups fell off from her and went into the armchair. It recovered itself and switched off its lights; the small armchair became lit.
Super Queen-Mother sat into it.
She saw a lever in front of her, like the one for computer games. She understood it was a manual guidance of the ship to bring it to the landing point at a low speed.
The landing point lightened on the 3D map of the planet surface, and Super Queen-Mother directed the ship to it.
The spaceship was easily controlled and readily obeyed all directions of Super Queen-Mother. At the planet’s surface it stopped.
She got up from the armchair and came into the light circle on the ship’s floor. The light lift instantly brought Super Queen-Mother to the surface of the unknown planet, which had to become the place of the mortal battle.
Super Queen-Mother saw that her spaceship had disappeared. The three escort spaceships had also vanished.
The lighted path was leading to a tunnel cut through the rock. Super Queen-Mother looked back and decisively went ahead.
The wide and tall tunnel was not long – in the distance a light was seen. Its walls were trimmed up with metallic silver tiles, very small, looking like large fish scales.
The appearance of the yellowish-waxen picture got Super Queen-Mother’s attention. She came into the tunnel and took some steps.
The «fish scales» revived, coming down to her and baring the dark walls of the tunnel. Keeping on walking, Super Queen-Mother sent a high voltage discharge at the insects around her. Lightning bolts came off her one after another, everything around was sparkling and crackling.
The insects fell on the floor, heated to bright crimson color, and then burst, like sunflower seeds. With her every step there were more and more killed insects. They crackled under the soles of Super Queen-Mother.
«So, this is your way to say «hello», she thought. «Then, this is my warm greeting to you.»
Her energy blow evaporated the mountain together with the tunnel.
Only the light path left, on which Super Queen-Mother was walking in a measured tread, not slowing down. The remainder of the energy she had produced flew away into space.
Instantly, several dozens of spaceships appeared above her. Super Queen-Mother looked up and smiled:
«Now you’ve done everything right. You have to stand up when a woman comes in. Or weren’t you taught to do this in your childhood? Now I have to teach you to respect a woman.»
Having walked a bit farther, she paid attention to numerous spaceships beneath, to the right and to the left of the light path.
The ship, she had arrived in, was also there. Super Queen-Mother recognized it at once. It was just a relief for her, as if she had met an old acquaintance.
Just in case, Super
