Wanderer's Odyssey - Books 1 to 3: The Epic Space Opera Series Begins

by Simon Goodson

  “Jess friend,” Teeko said. “Little children carry can I. Sit on my back can they.”

  Teeko lowered himself to all eight legs, meaning his back covered a large area. Jess quickly grabbed one of the smallest children, lifting it onto Teeko’s back.

  “Who else wants a ride?” he asked.

  Most of the children put their hands up. The adults picked out five more of the younger children, then picked up one more each to carry themselves. With the youngest eleven children riding or being carried Jess thought they had a much better chance.

  “Come on, we need to get moving,” he said.

  He took the lead and moved quickly into the corridor. Almost immediately there came the crash of a gun being fired and Jess’s personal shield flared bright. Mind still accelerated, he spotted the guard hidden in a door recess, swung a drone around and blasted the guard with weapons fire before a second shot could be unleashed. He beat the robot by a few milliseconds, and Ali’s drone by a little more due to its positioning. By the time all three had fired the corpse was mostly drifting ash.

  Jess, be careful! sent Sal. Let the drones scout ahead.

  He wasn’t about to argue. The shot had shaken him badly. They set off down the corridor, a strange collection indeed. Two drones leading the way followed by the gleaming robot. Jess came next, pushing the trolley Elizabeth lay on, then came Teeko loaded down with young children, and finally the mix of adults and children. Some distance behind the final two drones patrolled on high alert.

  Can we get everyone on the shuttle? Ali asked.

  Yes, just about, Jess replied. We’ll have to leave the robot and the drones, and it will be a tight fit, but we can do it.

  Great. I’m launching the other shuttles now. Many of the slaves are grouped together which will make our life easier, although we can’t take them all in one go. I’ve loaded the shuttles with armour, medkits, and some weapons for those that can’t get on the first wave. The other two robots are on their way over too. I’ll start letting the prisoners know now.

  Jess listened with half an ear to Ali’s message, mostly focused on reaching the shuttle safely.

  “This is a message for all prisoners. We are here to rescue you. All of you. Shuttles are on their way to key airlocks, along with combat drones to protect you. Your collars have been temporarily disabled. Please make your way to your closest airlock if it is safe to do so.

  “If not, please group together. We can see where you are and will come to get you. We have room for everyone on the ship, but the shuttles will need to make several trips. Armour, medkits and some weapons will be on the shuttles. Use them to keep yourselves safe, but do not go after the guards. Please help those who are very young, old or ill.

  “Guards, listen carefully. We have killed many of you already. We will kill you all, if necessary. Stay out of our way and do not interfere with the prisoners and we will spare you. Step in our way and be crushed.”

  The message started to repeat. Jess smiled to himself, greatly impressed. He doubted Elizabeth could have done better. Then he wondered if she had helped cook it up.

  They neared the docking bay without issues, but through the stations sensors Jess saw several armed groups closing in from behind. While his ragtag band could reach the shuttle safely they’d be sitting ducks whilst trying to get on board.

  Sal, we need to hold those guards up.

  I know. Two more corners and all the approaches merge. We’ll hold them there. Be quick though, this lot seem to have some hefty hardware.

  Better stagger the defence, then. Pull the drones from the shuttle too, we know the area is clear now.

  Done.

  They turned round the next two corners, then the robot and drones at the front slipped to the slides. Ali’s voice boomed out of the robot again.

  “Keep moving! Follow Jess. Quickly now! You’re almost there.”

  Jess shoved the trolley with Elizabeth on even faster, only a few corridors remained and the doors in those corridors were all single rooms with no other exits. Sensors and cameras showed them all to be empty. Several drones from the shuttle flew into view and shot over his head, heading towards the fight. He heard weapon fire behind him as the first units of guards were cut down. Sal had been right though, this lot had far heavier weaponry. The second wave opened fire, severely damaging one drone and rocking the robot within its shielding.

  “Keep moving!” Jess shouted over his shoulder.

  Turning back he saw a door further down the corridor opening and a shimmer of movement. Without his implants and fast thoughts he would have seen nothing, even with them he could only make out an outline; a man holding a weapon of some sort.

  With a shout Jess shoved Elizabeth’s trolley to the side and started to charge towards the near invisible assailant. He forced his body to move faster, feeling muscles starting to tear under the extreme load. Spreading his shielding he tried to protect the children behind him. He made it almost halfway before the guard opened fire. Jess saw the flare of energy at the same moment something struck his shields. This was no mechanical gun, it was an energy weapon of some sort. His shields held, flaring the energy off in dazzling sparks of energy which flew to the sides.

  The guard fired again. Jess’s shields held but were struggling. The third shot partially overloaded his shields, thanks to the speed he was moving the shot pierced his left shoulder but didn’t hit anything vital. Jess was aware of the impact but the pain hadn’t hit yet. He pressed on, now three-quarters of the way to the guard, but knew he wouldn’t make it. The guard would get off two or three more shots and Jess’s shields couldn’t handle it.

  Realising he had to try something desperate, Jess studied the weapon, struggling to penetrate its camouflage and tell where it was aimed. He thought he knew but it was partly guesswork. If he was wrong he’d be dead. So would those behind him, soon after. Desperately hoping he had it right, he collapsed his shields to a small area only a hand’s width across so it could withstand another shot, forming it into a cup shape with the open top pointed towards the weapon.

  The guard fired once more. Jess had guessed correctly. The shot impacted the shield and once again the energy was flared away in crackling lines of electricity, but this time the shape of the shield sent the energy back at the guard. The blast spread out slightly on the way. When it hit the guard it blew a hole the size of a dinner plate through his chest, killing him instantly.

  Jess stumbled to a halt, then the pain from his shoulder hit. He screamed but almost as soon as it came it faded again – his implants limiting the pain and already sending out tendrils to start the healing process. The blast of energy had cauterised the wound so he wasn’t bleeding, at least.

  Jess! Ali’s message crashed into his mind, somehow far more forceful than normal. Are you OK?

  Yeah, that was close though. There might be more of them. Can you spare any drones?

  No, but we will. You need the protection. Just get in that shuttle as fast as you damn well can. Bring the Wanderer in closer, too. Once you’re clear we can blow that whole section apart.

  Doing it now. Good idea.

  Of course it is. Now move!

  Yes, Sir!

  “Come on everyone, we have to hurry!” Jess shouted.

  A boom overhead announced four drones arriving. Two took position ahead, one overhead and the other behind. Jess ran back to get Elizabeth’s trolley and then set off down the corridor as fast as he could. Behind him he could hear the adults shouting at the children to move. Many of the kids were crying, but Jess was relieved to see they all moved quickly.

  Three more of the nearly invisible guards tried to ambush them. The drones dealt with all three the moment they appeared. However their cloaking worked, it clearly didn’t extend to providing shields.

  Jess rounded the final corner and ran into the shuttle bay, ordering the shuttle to open its rear and cabin doors. Three of the drones turned and streaked back into the corridor. Jess quickly checked the status an
d saw why. The robot was badly damaged and retreating under heavy fire. All but one of the drones with it had been destroyed and that one was in trouble.

  “Move!” he screamed as the mass of people behind him stumbled to a halt. “Get into the back of the shuttle, right now! Teeko, you go to the cabin. Help me to get Elizabeth in there.”

  Not looking to see if he was being obeyed, Jess started to drag Elizabeth off the trolley. Teeko was there almost immediately, using its arms to help lift Elizabeth and drag her into the shuttle. The children on its back were clinging on tightly, eyes red from crying. Jess didn’t have time to reassure them. He jumped into the pilot’s chair and strapped himself in, then started the side door closing.

  A flare of alarm told him the robot had been destroyed. All the remaining drones followed quickly after. Checking the shuttle’s sensors he saw that most of the children were in. The adults were quickly guiding the last few. One older child had fallen over on the way and lay crying on the floor, too overwhelmed to move again.

  An adult dropped the child they carried off in the shuttle and ran back. Jess realised it was Alex. In that moment Jess completely changed his opinion of the man. The others made it into the shuttle as Alex reached the child. Hooking his arms under the boy’s stomach he was turned and sprinting back before he’d even slung the boy over his shoulder.

  Two guards appeared at the corridors entrance, swinging to target Alex and the boy. Somehow Alex put on a last burst of speed and dived into the back of the shuttle just as they fired. The shots were mostly blocked by the shuttle’s side, but Jess saw Alex’s feet blown clean off, the energy blast sealing the wounds.

  Jess immediately started the shuttle lifting, closing the rear door and raising the shuttle’s shields. More guards appeared and even the shuttle’s shields were rocked by the firepower aimed at them. Jess reached out through the Wanderer to the station’s controls and ordered the docking bay door open. Nothing happened. The guards had jammed the mechanism somehow. More shots impacted the shuttle’s shields. Jess knew it couldn’t take much more punishment.

  In desperation he reached out to the Wanderer, carefully chose lasers he felt were not too powerful and fired at the door. One moment it was there, the next it was gone and the shuttle was rocked by a huge blast which nearly collapsed its shields. Jess smiled grimly at the thought he’d nearly done the guards work for them. He threw the shuttle forwards, hoping none of the passengers would be too badly hurt. With them packed in so tightly he hoped they wouldn’t be thrown around too much.

  As he cleared the docking bay more shots impacted on the shields, which flickered dangerously before holding. The docking bay had automatically sealed when the door had been destroyed, preventing the station’s atmosphere escaping, but the guards’ armour clearly had life support built in. He threw the shuttle down and to the right – taking it out of the line of fire for the moment. Using the station’s sensors he saw the guards rush towards where the door had been, looking to get more shots off. What they saw stopped them dead. Sitting less than five hundred metres away was the Wanderer. Jess gave them a few moments to contemplate their fate, and for the shuttle to reach a safe distance, then he used his control of Iona’s systems to drop its shields and opened fire with some of the Wanderer’s heavy weaponry. The docking bay and several floors around it simply ceased to exist. Jess smiled to himself grimly, then swung the shuttle and Wanderer onto paths that would let them dock as soon as possible.

  Chapter 29

  Less than a minute later the shuttle touched down in the Wanderer, clamps locking it in place. Jess opened both the cabin and rear doors and hurried out, telling the children in the cabin to stay with Teeko. Elizabeth too would have to wait. Her breathing was still stable. She could sleep off the effects for now. He ran around to the back entrance of the shuttle.

  “You’re safe,” he told the anxious looking adults and scared looking children. “We are back on the Wanderer, our ship. You can stay here for now, but the room through there is our lounge and will probably be more comfortable. There’s some sofas and chairs. We need to get Alex into the medical bay. Two of you help me carry him.”

  Alex looked in a bad way, the shock of his injuries had hit him hard. His face was pale and coated in sweat, his breathing rapid and he was barely conscious. Swallowing hard at the ruined flesh Jess lifted the injured man under his knees. One of the men grabbed Alex under the shoulders and the woman who had argued with Alex earlier put her arms under his back, sharing the weight.

  Jess led them through into the lounge at a near run, headed through into the short corridor and then into the medical bay. A low bed was already in place, formed out of the ship’s structure as always. They carefully placed Alex down on the bed which immediately started to mould itself around his body, his legs in particular. The ship started pumping chemicals into his body to combat shock. Almost immediately his breathing deepened and he soon settled into a deep sleep.

  “Alex! No!” the woman screamed, reaching out to grab Alex by the shoulders. Jess grabbed her hands.

  “It’s all right, really it is. The ship has put him into a coma while it works on him. He’ll be fine. I was worried we wouldn’t get him here in time, now we have the ship will take good care of him.”

  “I want to stay with him.”

  She glared at Jess, challenging him. He realised he didn’t have the time to argue.

  “Fine, but don’t touch anything. Don’t interfere. Some of the ways the ship works are invasive but they are crucial. Promise me. Otherwise you can’t stay.”

  She met his gaze for long moments before nodding. She turned back to Alex without saying a word. Jess motioned to the other man to follow and left the room.

  “Will he really be all right?” asked the man, once the door was closed.

  “Yes. I promise. Now I need to go help rescue the other prisoners. Please help the children off the shuttle.”

  Jess sprinted out into the lounge, dodged past several children that were milling around, then ran through to the flight deck. He grinned at Sal, stole a quick kiss with Ali then jumped into the pilot’s seat and strapped himself in, wincing slightly as the straps pulled against his shoulder wound. His implants had done such a good job of numbing the pain he’d almost forgotten it.

  How is it going? he asked.

  Badly, replied Sal. The only good thing is the fighters are keeping a good distance from us and the station. I thought they would have tried something by now. Most of the guards are ignoring our warnings, so the prisoners are focusing on trying to get past the guards, or get to them. It’s turning into a bloodbath down there.

  Damn. We need to make the threat more real to the guards. I’ve got an idea…

  Sal and Ali felt the idea would work. As Sal had spoken to the station before, they let her send the new message.

  “Guards on the station, you are ignoring our threat. That is a mistake. We not only have a ship stationed beside Iona, we also control all of its systems. To prove that, all the stations defensive weapons will fire seven times on my count. One… two… three…”

  Each time Sal counted they triggered every weapon Iona had, wherever possible the weapons were fired just slightly above the farm sections, ensuring the unleashed energy was visible to everyone.

  “…seven. You have seen we have control of Iona’s weaponry. Nothing can stop our ship from attacking you. Any segment where the guards attack prisoners, in particular any segment where the guards kill all the prisoners, will be blown apart by our ship. There will be no more warnings.”

  If that doesn’t scare them into behaving nothing will, Jess sent.

  Jess checked the deployment of their forces while waiting to see what effect the warning would have. Most of the shuttles were on final approach, with a few already docked and unloading drones. As more and more shuttles docked the three of them were hard pushed to keep coordinating all the drones they had. Many encountered stiff resistance around docking bays, but nowhere near the fir
epower Jess had fled from on the shuttle. They quickly eliminated all resistance around the docking bays, with only a few drones destroyed by lucky hits or being overwhelmed by fire.

  Using Iona’s sensors Jess saw that many of the guards had now pulled back to defensible locations, letting prisoners pass safely.

  It’s working. There’s still a few hot spots, but most of the guards are pulling back. Let’s get some drones there, the robots too if we can.

  Great, Sal replied. Hang on, some prisoners are trying to chase down guards that have pulled back. I think they want revenge. What do we do?

  We send some drones out there. Order them to stop.

  And if they don’t?

  I hate to say it but… we shoot them. Somewhere painful rather than fatal. If the guards feel under threat they’ll start attacking prisoners again. We don’t control all communications, I’m sure the word would spread through all the guards pretty quickly.

  Yeah, OK. Shooting at prisoners though…

  Jess could feel how conflicted Sal was through the link. He felt the same. He had to focus on getting as many prisoners out as safely as possible, though. Despite the earlier chaos and fear he realised the trap had worked in their favour. The people from Ali’s station had all been grouped together and easy to save. At least now he didn’t have to worry about steering them to safety, possibly at the expense of other prisoners.

  Things continued to improve for the next couple of minutes. The first drones started to arrive at two of the trouble spots and quickly wiped out the guards there. The third trouble spot followed suit soon after, but the fourth was much harder. The guards there were dug into much better defensive positions, and were toting the same heavy weaponry Jess had faced in the station’s hub – though it wasn’t used until the drones arrived. Fourteen drones were destroyed in quick succession, Jess, Sal and Ali sent the others diving for cover or back out of range.

  I don’t think they’re guards, Ali sent. Their tactics and weapons are completely different. I think they came with Matt, the ones that attacked you, too.