“We can jump,” he told the others, his voice lacking any emotion. He was too drained.
“So should we go?” Ali asked.
“I don’t know. I guess so, but I’m still worried. Why haven’t they sprung the trap?”
“Maybe there is no trap.”
“Then why didn’t they attack?”
“We should jump,” Dash said. “If there is a trap we haven’t seen yet it’s probably placed near the point normal ships could make it into jump space. If we jump now we bypass whatever is there. If there is anything.”
“I guess,” Jess said. “Anyone disagree?”
No one answered.
“All right,” he said. “Here we go…”
He threw the Wanderer into jump space, once again ramping up the speed of his thoughts. Partly in case there was some form of trap within jump space, impossible as that seemed, and partly in case they ran into the next tar pit as quickly as the last.
They soon cleared the area of space where any trap might lay. Jess slowed his thoughts to a level where he could still react quickly but conversations wouldn’t seem to drag out over long minutes.
“Dash, do you think there was a trap?”
Dash sat thinking for a moment, then shook his head.
“No. I don’t think so. It wouldn’t make sense.”
“So they chose not to attack us?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never seen Imperial forces acting like this. It’s not even that they’re being cautious in the face of a powerful foe, they just don’t seem interested in tackling us. I don’t know what’s going on. We need to see what happens at the next layer.”
“Judging from the distance between the last two I don’t think we’ll be waiting long. I’m ready for it this time. We should be able to stay within jump space for longer. If the forces there stick to the same deployment we should be well clear of them.”
“That’s a big if,” Dash muttered darkly.
* * *
The gap between defensive layers was larger than before. This time it was almost seven minutes before Jess felt jump space around them becoming thick and heavy. Accelerating his mind as far as possible he started fighting to keep the Wanderer from returning to normal space.
Time and again he found a point of traction for the jump engines, only to have it disappear almost immediately. The jump drives groaned under the strain but kept on fighting. Finally, after eight seconds, there was simply nothing left that the jump engines could grab onto. The Wanderer crashed back into real space.
Studying the displays Jess wondered if he was seeing what he expected now and somehow missing what was really there. He wasn’t. The Imperial forces were arranged in the now familiar pattern, well behind where the Wanderer had emerged.
Jess started the Wanderer heading away, following a much less aggressive evasion pattern than he’d used the last time. He was more interested in getting through the tar pit’s influence quickly than evading a non-existent threat.
“Exactly the same again,” Ali said quietly.
“I don’t like this,” Dash said.
“I’m not keen on it either, but it beats fighting,” Jess said.
“Maybe. Maybe not. That’s three layers we’ve been through now which have been set up in formation to defend against anything coming the other way. Coming from where we are heading.”
“Oh… damn.”
“Exactly. Whatever it is, the Empire thinks it has at least a chance of getting past two huge fleets. And I’m starting to think we’ll see the same pattern for at least a few more layers.”
“And what do you think we’ll see after that?”
“Wreckage,” Dash replied. “And, if we’re unlucky, whatever turned the Imperial forces there into wreckage.”
Jess glanced over his shoulder at Dash, trying to gauge if the older man was joking. If so he was doing an amazing job of hiding it.
“What should we do?” Ali asked.
“Exactly what we are doing,” Dash replied. “There’s a chance we’ll pass whatever it is in jump space and never know it. We might drop into real space already past it, or be able to jump before we reach it.”
“Or we might drop out right on top of it, or right in the middle if it’s a fleet of some kind.”
“Yes, but even then we have a chance.”
“A chance? Against something that has devastated at least one massive Imperial fleet?” Ali said scornfully.
“Yes. We have an advantage the fleet doesn’t. We don’t need to fight. Or want to for that matter. We’re just trying to pass through. The fleet had to try and stop whatever is out there.”
“And none of the Imperial ships will have had the same idea? Seeing their fleet being destroyed, none of them would think to run?”
“You might be surprised,” Dash said. “The penalty for cowardice in the face of the enemy is execution, and not just for whoever is charged. At least one member of their close family will also be executed.”
“That’s… that’s horrible!”
“It doesn’t surprise me,” Jess said. “As slaves they treated us far worse than that. I always envied those who were free, those who oversaw us. I’d still swap my time as a slave for their life in a shot, but maybe it wasn’t as perfect as it seemed.”
“A few ships may have tried to escape,” Dash said. “And there’s no reason they can’t have made it. They won’t have travelled this way. Not with the death sentence hanging over them.
“A few survivors don’t matter though. The point is that the vast majority of any fleet will be destroyed before it will give in. As long as we aim to just escape we should be fine.”
Jess wasn’t so certain, but he didn’t want to scare Ali any more. In the end it didn’t matter. Their course was set. They couldn’t go back. They would just have to find a way to survive whatever they encountered out there. Somehow.
* * *
Jess fought to keep the Wanderer in jump space for as long as he could manage. He was tired, though. Even with the Wanderer helping to tweak his body chemistry he was exhausted.
They dropped into normal space only five seconds after encountering the tar pit’s field. That was still five seconds longer in jump space than any other ship could manage, but would it be enough?
Of course it was. The fleet was yet again arranged in the intensely defensive formation, so the Wanderer was well clear. This was the eighth layer they had entered. It was almost becoming routine. Space ahead was clear. Jess just had to get the Wanderer to the other side of the tar pit’s influence then jump out. Yet again.
He needed to rest, but there was no time. When crossing a layer he had to monitor for any threats. Once in jump space he had to be constantly alert for the Wanderer reaching the next tar pit.
The only way to rest would be to stop between layers. To drop out of jump space where they were certain to be given peace, and to rest then. Two things prevented that. The first was concern that a layer they had passed through would send warning ahead. That seemed unlikely, though. The far more likely threat was the Imperial fleet that was pursuing, and somehow tracking, the Wanderer. With so little time spent in jump space Jess hadn’t managed to open up a decent lead over them.
Having confirmed there was no immediate danger, Jess let his mind slow to only a few times faster than normal. He went to speak, but an enormous yawn overtook him.
“Jess, you need to rest,” Ali said, concern in her voice.
“I can’t.”
“Yes, you can. Let me take over now, while we cross normal space. I can use the Wanderer’s sensors and wake you if anything unusual or dangerous shows up.”
Sleep. The idea was wonderful. Jess felt as if he’d been up for days already. Still, was it fair to dump this on Ali?
“Are you sure?” he asked, stifling another yawn.
“Certain. I can even keep an eye on the troopers in the hold at the same time. Now get some sleep.”
“The troopers…” He yawned again. “
Sorry. The troopers… what have they been up to?”
“Not a lot. They’re starting to get a little more adventurous, but they’re still taking care to secure themselves before every step. It’s funny, actually.”
“Don’t underestimate them,” Dash warned. “Just because they seem to be beaten back, don’t assume they are. Most likely they’re looking for weaknesses right now. You won’t get any warning.”
“What might they do?”
“Anything!”
“That isn’t very helpful!”
“Sorry, but it’s true. You need to be ready. One thing is pretty certain, they’ll move like lightning and get well clear of the area they’ve been in.”
“You’re sure?” she asked.
Dash smiled. “It’s what I would have done. They’ve been in one place too long. That gives the defenders time to concentrate defences and traps. They’ll want to get a good distance from where they are. Be ready. When they move, get Jess to shake the ship up again. Whatever their plans are that will slow them down a lot. They’ll still move. They’ll have been planning for that possibility, but they’ll have to be a lot more careful.”
“OK. I can do that.”
“Are you sure you can watch them and sweep for any threats to the ship?” Jess asked, fighting off another yawn.
“Yes! Now get some rest!”
“All right. I’ll leave the ship making random evasions. It doesn’t need me awake to calculate those, though I might get a few weird dreams. Remember to wake me up if anything happens.”
“I said yes, didn’t I? Now get some…”
Jess didn’t hear the end of the sentence. With the pressure lifted, even if only for a short while, he was already asleep.
* * *
Jess blinked slowly, head still blurry with sleep. He’d woken naturally. There had been no emergencies while he slept. The Wanderer was nearly able to reach jump space so it had slowly brought him round. Now it started to push stimulants into his system. A few moments later he felt wide awake, and far better for the short sleep.
“Hello, sleepy head,” Ali said affectionately. “Feeling better?”
“Much,” he replied, stretching in his chair. “All quiet?”
“Yep. Just the same as the last seven times. This could get boring.” She raised a hand towards Dash quickly. “I know, Dash. That’s when things get most dangerous.”
Dash chuckled. “Have I said that already?”
“Once or twice,” Ali said.
Jess smiled. He realised that, for the moment at least, some of his mistrust of Dash was gone. He still thought Dash would seize control of the Wanderer if he could, but he no longer thought Dash was leading them into an elaborate Imperial trap. Dash had seemed just as puzzled as the others by the defensive nature of the forces they encountered. For the moment some of the tension had left the group.
Some, but not all. Sal sat behind Ali with her head down, seemingly lost in thought, yet something in her position told Jess that she was listening to every word which left him feeling guilty. She seemed to be drawing away from Dash, which was no bad thing, but if anything she was drawing away from Jess even faster. He would be happy for her to stay if Dash staying was no longer part of the deal, but the rift just kept getting bigger.
Jess felt a nudge in his mind from the Wanderer.
“Here we go again,” he said, pushing the Wanderer into jump space.
Chapter 29
They’d only been in jump space for a couple of minutes when Ali cried out.
“Jess! The troopers are moving!”
Jess accessed the sensors. The troopers were moving fast. They were already several rooms from where they’d started. They paused by a wall, fixing something to it. Almost immediately a shaped charge blew a hole through into an area of the ship Jess had sealed off from them. There wasn’t anything sensitive in it, but it allowed them to bypass the maze of passageways he’d formed.
“Jess, throw them around,” Ali shouted.
“Damn,” Jess replied. “I can’t. Not while we’re in jump space. Hold on.”
He sent the Wanderer back into real space, making the transition hard. Then he started to throw the Wanderer through a series of vicious turns and tumbles. The troopers reacted by securing themselves in place with lines, easily riding out the violent manoeuvres. Satisfied that they’d been stopped in their tracks, Jess pushed the Wanderer back into jump space.
Almost immediately the troopers were moving again. Jess dragged the Wanderer back into real space. The troopers secured themselves. This time Jess returned to flying straight, but remained in normal space. That way he could start the violent turns more quickly. If he caught them out and injured one or two it might make the others more cautious.
They stayed secured. Somehow they knew the difference between real and jump space. The moment Jess shoved the ship back into jump space they were on the move again.
“Damn it!” Jess shouted, frustration boiling over.
“Clever,” Dash said. “Very clever. Clearly at least one of them is able to tell when they are in jump space.”
“Is that even possible?”
“I can do it,” Dash reminded him.
“What do we do?”
“There’s no way to shake them up while in jump space?”
Jess shook his head. “No. Nothing that would be violent enough.”
“All right. They seem to be heading in a straight line. Keep dropping in and out of jump space to keep them on their toes. Form as many walls as you can in their way. They must have a limited amount of explosives. We need to make them use it all.”
“I’ll only be able to block a few doors in the time we have.”
“Just do it,” Dash snapped.
Jess bridled for a moment at the tone of command. Glancing over his shoulder he saw the worry etched deep in Dash’s forehead and decided to let it go. This time.
“Are they heading for anything important?” Ali asked.
“No,” Jess replied. “They’ll reach the hull but won’t be anywhere near anything critical.”
“Could they get through the hull?” Dash asked
“Not without a lot more explosives. Why would they want to? Opening that section to vacuum doesn’t hurt us.”
“They might try to move along the outside of the ship,” Dash said.
“What? In jump space?”
“It’s sound in theory. Every ship’s jump field extends a few tens of metres out from the hull. As long as they stay secured to the ship they’ll be safe. And once they’re outside they can head straight for critical areas like the thrusters. Or for us here.”
“Oh, I hope they try that,” Jess said grimly. “Just let them get out on the hull and I’ll remind them that the Wanderer is no ordinary ship. I can easily pull the field in to under a metre from the hull.”
“Surely they know that from what happened to their shuttles?” Ali asked.
“Probably not,” Jess replied. “Remember, these are the ones who were already aboard. All they know is that the shuttles were destroyed somehow.”
“That does change things,” Dash said. “But they might be planning something else. Maybe they’ll get to the hull then keep moving on the inside, using it to guide them to more sensitive areas. We need to wear them down.”
“With pleasure,” Jess said, throwing the Wanderer back into real space and into a twisting spiral. “Let’s see just how well strapped down they are. Maybe we can crack a few bones.”
* * *
Sal braced herself against the Wanderer’s manoeuvres, though there was really no need. She was already well strapped in, and the ship automatically secured her head and arms as the tumbling began. She felt smothered. Trapped.
It just added to the isolation she was feeling. She couldn’t talk to Roberto with Jess and Ali so close by. She’d listened closely to their conversations and had even thought of things they hadn’t. She found herself unable to speak. Each time she tried her chest becam
e tight and she choked on the words, certain no one wanted to hear them.
Roberto had turned round on several occasions, quietly asking if she was all right. She had either nodded briefly or completely ignored him. He’d given up in the end.
Another vicious turn jammed Sal into her seat. She closed her eyes and started to wonder whether dying would be such a bad thing. Her life felt pretty damn awful. There had even been times as a slave which were better. Plenty that were worse too, but she hadn’t had any control over her life then. She hadn’t known any better. Things were different now. She had the power to do something about it, to change her life however she wanted. The thought made her feel both terrified and empowered. She decided both feelings were better than those she’d been nursing before.
* * *
“And back to normal space…” Jess said as the Wanderer lost its battle against the latest tar pit. “Imperial forces are in the usual setup. There’s more of them this time, though. Nearly half as many again.”
“Maybe we’re getting close to the end,” Ali said.
“It’s unlikely,” Dash replied. “This is only the twelfth layer. Unless they decided to jam them all closer together than when I first came through there should be at least eighteen.”
Ali groaned at that.
“Look on the bright side,” Jess said. “We might be past halfway.”
“Might!” she replied.
Jess grinned, but had the sense not to turn around.
Don’t think I don’t know you’re grinning just because you’ve got your back to me, Ali sent.
Ah. Sometimes he forgot about the link they shared.
Sorry, he sent back.
You will be!
Her reply was tinged with laughter. Jess relaxed a little. Having managed to avoid a fight, he turned his attention to space ahead of them.
“All clear,” he said after a few moments.
“Good,” Dash replied. “How about our friends in the main hold?”
“They’re strapped down again,” Ali replied. “They’re nearly at the hull now. Another three walls and they’ll be there.”
Wanderer's Odyssey - Books 1 to 3: The Epic Space Opera Series Begins Page 69
