Jess shivered as he remembered his own trip through jump space without the benefit of a ship. That had only lasted moments yet it had felt like forever. The vacuum of normal space had nothing on jump space.
“Two troopers on the hull,” he told the others. They could see the same on their monitors, but he felt the need to speak.
“What are the others waiting for?” Ali asked.
“I don’t know. They aren’t… wait. Damn.”
The other troopers had turned away from the airlock and were heading for the hole they had recently created. In moments they were through, and they continued to retrace their steps. Reaching a hole in the ceiling, they helped each other up and through.
“Where are they going?” Ali asked.
“I don’t know. There’s nothing obvious in the direction they’re heading.”
“They won’t keep doing this,” Dash said. “It makes them too predictable, and they don’t know whether we’ve set up defences on the route they took.”
“So why do it at all?”
“As a distraction, maybe. What are the two outside doing?”
Jess swore. He’d forgotten them for a moment, too busy worrying about the main group.
“They’re moving quickly. Towards us. They could be here in a couple of minutes.”
“Like I said, diversion.”
Dash sounded smug to Jess.
“Fine,” Jess snapped back. “What are you going to do to stop them?”
“What? Me? There’s nothing I can do…”
“That’s right. Remember that. I’m the one that has to deal with them.”
Jess gritted his teeth. The words had sounded cutting in his head. Now he’d spoken them they sounded petulant and petty. Instead of making him feel better they’d just made him more angry.
Anger. He could use that. Stoking it up, he turned his attention to the two troopers scrambling across the Wanderer’s hull. What he had to do next wasn’t going to be easy.
In the short time since he’d escaped aboard the Wanderer he’d killed more people than he could easily count, even limiting it to those just those he’d specifically targeted using the ship’s defences, drones or the robots. Once he added in those he’d killed when destroying ships the numbers became huge. Thousands definitely, probably tens of thousands. Maybe even hundreds of thousands.
Jess felt the Wanderer begin to produce an estimate of the numbers involved. He quickly cancelled it. That was one total he never wanted to know.
Despite his horror over the total number he’d killed, killing was becoming easier. It was almost routine now. Admittedly he’d never killed someone with his own hands, it had always been at one step removed… via the Wanderer, a robot or a drone. What he was about to do was still difficult. Not because he planned to kill the two troopers, but because of the way he planned to do it.
Jess kept his anger at Dash burning as he prepared to adjust the Wanderer’s shields. Then he paused, struggling to do what he knew needed to be done.
You have to do it Jess, Ali sent. It isn’t your fault. It’s them or us.
Her message was accompanied by a sense of support and caring. Jess sent his thanks back. Then, before he could change his mind, he had the Wanderer change the jump field.
The effect lasted less than a second. In a very limited area the Wanderer’s jump fields went from extending several metres into space to extending only a few centimetres. Then they flashed back to their normal position.
The two troopers were gone. Almost. Each had left behind a thin layer of their suit, all of it within a few centimetres of the hull.
Jess felt sick. The two troopers were floating out there somewhere. Dying if not already dead. Enough of their suits had been left behind to expose them to vacuum, but Jess suspected battle suits would be designed to seal quickly. There was a good chance they were alive and aware of their predicament. How would they be feeling, each floating in jump space, completely isolated and knowing that no one and nothing could save them?
Jess thought he’d hit rock bottom. He hadn’t. The Wanderer drew his attention to two small items it had detected within jump space. The two troopers. It was even suggesting that a pickup could be possible, if difficult.
Jess’s heart sank at that. Swallowing hard, he had the Wanderer change course. He had it move away from the two troopers, leaving them to their fate.
“Two more down,” Dash said. Even he sounded subdued.
“Yeah,” Jess replied. “We still have to deal with the others.”
Everyone fell silent, watching as the remaining troopers moved swiftly. They soon started off in a new direction, blowing holes in the Wanderer’s walls as they went. Dash had been right. Somehow that made Jess feel more hostile towards him rather than less.
Then Jess felt the familiar feeling of nearing a tar pit. They had reached the next defensive layer.
Chapter 32
Greenseed Station
Marsh stared dully at his screens as the latest freighter left the area, its hold crammed full of food. He’d lost count of the number of ships which had arrived. Far more left intact than were destroyed, but the second number was still far higher than he wanted.
How had it come to this? Greenseed was supposed to be an easy assignment. No combat. No danger. No having to make the decisions about who got to live and who would die. The posting had turned into a nightmare, one he showed no signs of waking up from.
The stress was taking its toll. Marsh knew that. He’d dealt with stress before, but never so consistently and for so long.
“Incoming ship.”
Marsh fought a shudder. He hated those words now. He was starting to wish everyone would just leave Greenseed alone, even if that meant tens of thousands starving to death. If the Empire couldn’t contain the Tainted then food only delayed the inevitable. Anyone receiving the food from Greenseed would live just to starve later, or be overwhelmed by the Taint.
“What are we dealing with?” Marsh asked curtly.
“I don’t believe it! Commander… it’s the Willow.”
Gasps of surprise rang out around the room. Marsh felt his stomach hit the floor. No. Not the Willow!
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“No doubt, Commander. It’s them.”
The watch officer’s voice was enthusiastic. The mood in the room was excited. Happy. Exactly what Marsh had feared. Maybe there was hope, though. Maybe the Willow had returned empty, its mission complete.
“Incoming message,” the comms officer called out. “It’s Captain Blunt.”
“Put it through,” Marsh said.
He would have preferred to take the call in private, but that wasn’t an option. For days the mood amongst those working for him had been brittle, ready to break. Now they were excited at seeing the Willow return. Any sign from Marsh that this wasn’t a good thing could be enough to destroy the fragile bonds keeping them in line. Even the guards around the room looked excited at the news. Marsh longed for his days as captain of a warship, for the discipline of those he’d commanded back then. His thoughts were interrupted by his screen flaring into life.
“Commander Marsh! You’re a sight for sore eyes. We worried that something might have happened to Greenseed.”
“Welcome back, Calvin,” Marsh replied.
To his surprise he meant it. Calvin Blunt and he had hit it off from the first time they met. Both men had left the Imperial navy to find posts in the civilian side of the Empire. They shared a common background and outlook on life.
“Thanks, Commander. It’s good to be back, believe me.”
“Did you manage to complete your mission?”
Blunt’s face clouded over. Marsh knew bad news was coming.
“No, Commander. We couldn’t. Everywhere we went was locked down tight. From fleets to stations to planets we got the same message time and time again. They were closed. Any attempt to get close would lead to our destruction.
“We tried everywhere, Commander.
In the end we realised Greenseed was the only place that would take our passengers. So we came home.”
Marsh cursed in his head. His worse fears were turning out to be true. The Willow carried nearly two thousand people, half of them children. People that potentially carried the Taint. People those on Greenseed would never turn away because the Willow carried their own children and relatives.
At the time it had seemed the right thing to do. With rumours of the Tainted becoming stronger, and no sign of the Empire sweeping in to counter the threat, someone had suggested getting at least some of those on Greenseed to safety.
The idea had quickly been taken up, though it became obvious that few parents would let their children go alone. The threat from the Tainted wasn’t immediate enough to make that seem a reasonable choice. After much discussion a lottery was set up for anyone to enter.
Marsh had argued for excluding the most critical people, but had been persuaded that would create bad feeling for no good reason. The number of places available was far smaller than the number seeking to go. The odds of losing more than one or two specialists were extremely low.
The draw had been carried out. Those chosen gathered their children and said their goodbyes. The Willow had set off on a wave of hope. Even those left behind were positive. The Willow would return to evacuate more people once it had found a safe haven, and it would help remind the authorities of how important Greenseed was. Everyone expected the Willow to return quickly, either with or just ahead of a large defensive fleet.
As days turned into weeks it became clear things hadn’t gone as planned. Marsh found himself hoping the passengers had been delivered safely, at least. Soon everyone put thoughts of the Willow out of their heads. The possibilities were simply too painful, and they’d almost certainly never know what had happened.
Yet here the Willow was, returning to Greenseed and still carrying all those who’d left. Marsh knew turning them away would be impossible. So would demanding that they stay outside the exclusion zone. Almost everyone on Greenseed had a friend or relative aboard the Willow, even the guards Marsh was using to retain control.
That left Marsh with two options. Let them dock or destroy them. The Willow was already nearing the exclusion zone. The defensive weaponry had automatically locked on. Marsh just needed to confirm the attack for the Willow, and its passengers, to be history.
“Captain Blunt. Calvin. It’s not that easy. You’ve been away from us for a long time. How do we know your ship isn’t under control of the Tainted?”
Marsh wasn’t sure what reaction he’d expected. Indignation maybe. Passionate denials. Certainly not a wry and understanding smile.
“I know, Steven. I’ve thought of nothing else since we decided to return home. After being turned away by so many places how could I not?”
Marsh stared at his friend, fingers hovering above the final key needed to ensure the destruction of the Willow. Was there anything Calvin could do that would convince him?
“Did you find a solution?” Marsh asked.
“No. There isn’t one. I can show you the records which prove nothing and no one came into contact with the ship, but they could be faked. I can show you realtime pictures of everyone on the ship, together with their medical scans, but all of that could be forged. Or we might be hiding newcomers on board who are Tainted. I can give you a virtual tour of the entire ship, but even if you believed it wasn’t faked we could easily be moving people around so you never saw them.”
Marsh just nodded. His fingers were aching to complete the command, to unleash hell upon the Willow. He resisted. Just.
“Ultimately it’s down to trust, Steven. It’s down to me looking you in the eyes and swearing that I would never do anything to harm Greenseed. If I had the slightest doubt that the Willow was clean we would never have returned here.”
Marsh stared into Calvin’s face for several seconds, trying to read what was there. Calvin looked no different. He was acting no differently, and he was right… Marsh knew Calvin would never willingly place Greenseed in danger.
What if it wasn’t Calvin, though? What if he had fallen to the Taint? Would a Tainted one be able to behave so much like the original person? Would they be able to fool such a good friend?
Marsh had no idea. All he knew for sure was that his fingers itched. He was almost desperate to complete the fire command, to make the problem go away for good. A small part of him still knew that wouldn’t be the end, though. The fragile control he’d managed to keep over those on Greenseed would be shattered. He had to weigh the potential risk of the Willow harbouring some who were Tainted against the certainty of losing control if he chose to destroy the ship.
“Balfazac brandy,” he said suddenly.
Calvin laughed. “Oh stars! What a night that was! I couldn’t see straight for three days. You never did tell me where you got that bottle, but there was no way it was vintage. Someone scammed you there.”
Marsh held his breath and let his hand fall, striking a key. Not the key needed to fire the weapons, the one removing the prepared order. He couldn’t bring himself to destroy the ship, not without strong proof that those on the Willow had fallen to the Taint.
“Welcome home, Captain Blunt,” Marsh said.
“Thanks, Commander Marsh,” replied Calvin, a relieved smile on his face. “I can’t wait to see you again in person.”
Marsh smiled tightly in reply.
* * *
Marsh stared at his screen as the Willow finished docking. The docking process was once a routine event, but now it seemed strange. No freighter had been allowed to dock since before the Willow set out.
He’d taken all possible precautions. Almost every guard he had was down in the docking bay. Some would go into the Willow and ensure it was safe, but most were there to hold back the crowds of friends and relatives desperate to see their loved ones. These were the same people who had regarded the arrival of every ship with fear, yet they seemed blind to the possibility there could be Tainted aboard the Willow.
Marsh went over his impressions of those on the Willow once more. They seemed tired and strained, but that was natural after their journey. They appeared to be in good spirits at the thought of returning to Greenseed. Again, that was completely natural. It did little to ease his mind.
As the Willow’s cargo bay doors slid open those waiting outside started to cheer. The crowd surged forward. The guards trying to keep order had to give ground.
“No…” Marsh whispered in horror. “Don’t let them through…”
For a moment it seemed the line of guards would give, but they rallied and held the line. The waiting crowd took it with good grace.
“Ready to go in, Commander,” reported Lanson, the leader of the guards.
“Go ahead. And for star’s sake be careful.”
“We will, Commander. We will.”
Marsh switched his view to that of Lanson, watching through a head mounted camera. Software worked to remove the worst of the bobbing, but it was still far from smooth. Another reminder of how different his life was now. There was a time he wouldn’t have noticed at all, a time when overseeing his men like this was a frequent occurrence. A time long gone.
Lanson waited as the first wave of guards rushed in, then followed behind. Waiting within the Willow was a small group of people. They all looked slightly nervous but otherwise perfectly normal. The guards checked them over thoroughly, looking for any signs of illness, then moved on. More guards followed behind. The Willow was a big freighter. This was going to take some time.
* * *
Marsh checked the mission timer. Ten minutes had passed since the first guards had entered the Willow. So far they’d covered roughly a third of the ship and found nothing out of the ordinary. Those on board the Willow were taking the delay well, though many asked how soon they could get off and see their families. The children were finding it hardest. Several times the guards had come across groups of kids who could barely contain their energy.
After so long on board the ship they were desperate to get outside.
Marsh had ensured guards with family aboard the Willow weren’t part of the boarding party. Seeing the children reinforced that decision. No one could be blamed for letting his guard down when confronted by a niece, nephew or grandchild.
“Commander! Incoming ships!” shouted the watch officer.
Marsh snapped his attention back to the Operations Room. Sure enough there were ships approaching, and approaching fast. Very fast. Twelve of them.
“What the hell are they?” he demanded.
“I… hang on… they can’t be…”
“Just tell me what they damn well are.”
“Fighters. Moving at top speed, I’d say. But they’re too small to have jump drives. How did they get here?”
“On a larger ship, of course. It either jumped away or is lagging behind them. That doesn’t matter. Davies, can we take them out?”
“Hard to say, Commander. In theory yes, but they’re really moving. We could definitely take out two or three. I don’t know if we can shift the weapons’ focus fast enough to take them all out. I’d say they’re moving well beyond their safe limits. Some of them might not even make it to us before something catastrophic happens.”
“We can’t rely on that. How long do we have?”
“Thirty seconds before they’re in range. We’re locked on already. Maybe two minutes tops before they reach us.”
“Do your best.”
“Sir,” asked the comms officer. “Should we sound the alert? Give everyone a chance to reach a shelter point?”
“Yes. No. Damn it. If we do there’ll be panic in the crowd around the Willow. If not, and one of those ships hits, we could be looking at hundreds of deaths. Hold off for now, but be prepared.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Commander,” Lanson called over the comms circuit. “We have a situation.”
Wanderer's Odyssey - Books 1 to 3: The Epic Space Opera Series Begins Page 72
