by Tripp Ellis
"Oh, so we're friends now?"
"Don't be that way. Of course we’re friends."
"Why the sudden change of heart?"
"I'm just trying to support your accomplishment. I'm very proud of you."
Ryan hesitated. "Well, thank you."
There was an awkward silence.
Kendall fumbled for something to say. "I would have tried to make your graduation, but I've got exams."
There was another awkward pause.
"I saw you on the news. You're kind of like a celebrity around here now."
The phone call was starting to make sense now.
“I’d rather not talk about that."
Kendall kept rambling like he hadn't said anything. "That wrongful death suit is just crazy. I can't believe they're doing that. I mean, anybody who attacks the Federation deserves whatever they get."
"The case got dismissed."
"That's great."
Ryan couldn't think of anything to say to her.
"So, what was it like?"
"What was what like?"
"You know, killing somebody?"
"What part of I don't want to talk about this wasn't clear?"
"Did the Navy take away your personality?"
"No. My personality is very much intact, thank you very much."
"You might want to check on that."
There was another awkward silence.
"I'm sorry. I'm just trying to make conversation. And I'm a little nervous." She paused. "I haven't talked to you in so long, and I'm not really thrilled with the way we left things." She looked at him with those big blue eyes of hers. "I missed you."
Ryan didn't say anything.
"Okay… This is the part where you say, I missed you too."
"It seems like a lifetime ago."
Kendall sighed, disappointed. “Fine. Forget the little people when you become big and famous."
Ryan let out a slight chuckle.
“A smile. Finally!” She paused. “Well. It was nice talking to you. Even if you didn't say much.” Her voice softened. "Take care of yourself out there. Okay? And you know how to get ahold of me if you ever find that life just becomes unbearable without me." She smiled, and cut the transmission.
Ryan just shook his hand. Kendall was never going to change.
52
Emma
Anderson and Emma stumbled into her compartment, locked at the lips. They couldn’t peel their clothes off fast enough. Emma’s shirt hit the floor, revealing her perfect endowments. Anderson slid his hand over her creamy skin, finding her bra strap. His fingers expertly unhitched the clasp, and the fabric of her lace bra went slack.
“So, you’ve done this before,” Emma said with a grin.
“I’ve had a little practice.”
Their lips melted into one another. Emma slid the straps from her shoulders, and her bra hit the deck. Anderson slid his hands down the curves of her torso. His fingers slipped into her waistband and unbuttoned her pants.
Emma’s heart was pounding. Her cheeks were on fire. Her body was misting over with the sweat of desire. Anderson’s muscular body pressed against her skin fed the flames. This had been building up for weeks. After everything she’d been through, she deserved a little fun, she thought.
Her pants pooled around her ankles, and she stepped out of them. Anderson’s jeans were on the floor in a heartbeat. They both marveled at each other’s physiques, then collided again, passionately discovering each other. They staggered to her bunk. It was narrow, but it would get the job done. Within moments, her frilly lace panties were bunched up on the deck. Just as things were about to get interesting, Emma’s mobile rang.
Emma tried to ignore it, but it kept distracting her.
“Ignore it,” Anderson mumbled between kisses.
“What if it’s something important?”
“What could be more important than this?”
She grinned. “Is this a trick question?”
The phone kept ringing.
“Ignore it.”
“I’ve got to answer that.”
“No you don’t. You’re not with the UIA anymore. You’re not on call.”
“I’m just going to see who it is.”
“Come on. I’ve wanted you since I first saw you at the spaceport in Mosaav.”
“Then waiting another few seconds isn’t going to kill you.” Emma reached down and grabbed her phone. Her eyes perked up when she saw the name on the ID. “This is Agent Castle…”
Anderson decided to have a little fun. His tongue traced the subtle curves of her body, licking down her torso, gliding down below her belly button, finally reaching the promised land.
Emma was having a hard time concentrating. She struggled to maintain a normal tone of voice, but inside she was exploding with ecstasy as Anderson worked his magic.
“Really… That’s great news, sir,” she stammered. “No, I’m fine… You just caught me in the middle of something. Yes. Yes, I can be there right away. Okay. Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.” Emma hung up the phone. She was grinning from ear to ear.
“Was that a phone call worth taking?”
“Yes and no. Graham wants to see us ASAP.”
“Now?”
“Now.”
Anderson frowned.
“Pack that bazooka up, big boy. We’ve got work to do.”
“I want a raincheck.”
“Trust me. You’ll get it,” she said with a lascivious glint.
The monitor displayed an aerial view of a sprawling compound in the Aldebaranian desert. At this distance, the signal was highly degraded. It was filled with drop-outs and digital distortions.
"We caught a break," Graham said. “Turns out the intel from your prison buddy was good. The drones picked up Suspa and tracked his movement. He traveled to this complex an hour outside of Mosaav.”
Emma felt vindicated.
Graham pointed to the screen. “As you can see, the transmission isn’t the highest quality. And we've lost the ability to control the drones. They're not receiving our signal. So I can't get a look inside the compound. As it stands, they're in a holding pattern above the complex until Suspa leaves. They’ll pick up on him again and follow his movement. We’ll lose this view of the complex when that happens.”
“So we've got no way to get confirmation Ragza is in that compound?” Emma said.
"Correct. And we're going to lose this feed any minute."
Emma deflated.
“But the drones spotted something else that is interesting." Graham pointed to the screen. "See this man?"
The figure was barely discernible. He was standing in a small courtyard, pacing back-and-forth. The walls of the courtyard were rimmed with concertina wire. There were armed guards surrounding him. From this view, it looked like he was a prisoner.
"Facial recognition identified this man as Dr. Metzger.”
"The physicist?" Anderson asked.
Graham nodded. "Whatever Project Starshine is, I think they're developing it here, using Dr. Metzger."
“Suspa was trying to acquire large quantities of weapons grade uplonium,” Emma said. “Do you know why they would want that? It's not the most efficient fissionable material out there. And besides, according to Vynx, they've got access to nuclear weapons."
Graham shrugged. "I haven't figured that out yet." He paused. "I'm going to push this up the food chain and see what kind of authorization I can get for further investigation. I know the President wants to nail this scumbag as much as we do."
"Does this mean we're back on the team?" Emma asked.
"This means you don't exist. And this conversation never happened."
Anderson smiled. "I guess that means we are back on the team."
The meeting was interrupted by the blaring sound of an alarm. Klaxons sounded throughout the ship. Captain Zoey Bryant’s voice boomed over the 1MC. "General quarters. General quarters. All hands man your battle stations!”
53
> Emma
Several ships appeared on the LRADDS display (Long Range, Direction, Distance, & Speed). It was a holographic display that indicated contacts in 3D space. The ships didn't have an IFF (Identify Friend or Foe) signal.
"Sir, I've got five unidentified gunships that just jumped into the vicinity," the tactical officer yelled. They're not responding to communications.”
Captain Zoey Bryant stood at her command console in the CIC of the Revenant. She was a stunning brunette with emerald eyes and high cheekbones. Her lips were full and pillowy soft. She had model good looks, and a low velvety voice that inspired many fantasies among officers and enlisted. Her body was as sleek and curvaceous as the attack fighters she used to fly. Zoey had always dreamed of having her own command, but in times like these there was always a part of her that missed being in the cockpit of a Stingray. "Target them with the Mark 25s, and launch the alert fighters!“
“Aye, sir."
The massive turrets of the Mark 25 cannons swiveled into action. They unleashed a torrent of super-sabot rounds. The projectiles raced across the star field as the nimble enemy gunships tried to evade their destructive might. The turrets fired M79 HVAP-DU (Heavy Armor Penetrating, Depleted Uranium) super-sabot rounds. Their titanium composite penetrating rods had an incendiary liquid gel core, S9, that when oxidized, burned at upwards of 4000 degrees.
The LRADDS lit up again. Multiple red triangles streaked across the display.
"Sir, I've got multiple inbound nukes."
The auto targeting system of the Mark 25s locked on to the incoming warheads. They were capable of spitting out 200 armor piercing rounds per minute. The staccato rattle of the cannons echoed throughout the ship. They eviscerated most of the incoming nukes before they even got close.
One of the attacking gunships erupted into a ball of flame as the sabot rounds tore through its fuselage. The craft splintered into a million pieces. Shredded metal spiraled into the abyss of space. Fragments of polycarbonate glass, composite steel, avionics, and body parts tumbled into the void. The remnants of the ship would add to the ring of debris that was orbiting New Earth. It was loaded with space junk from the massive battles that had previously ensued with the Decluvian and Robotic invasions.
Before the stingrays could even clear the flight deck, the remaining gunships vanished into slide-space. It was clear this was just a small guerrilla attack designed to harass. If they caused serious damage, that was just an added bonus. But it proved the insurgent terrorists were getting bolder. This was the first time they had directly engaged a military target that could fire back.
The assault was just a diversion geared to focus everyone’s attention away from the real attack. A small stealth drone had emerged from slide-space precisely in between the ion exhaust of the four rear thrusters of the Revenant—it was a blind spot on the sensors, and the drone was able to swoop in undetected. In a normal situation, someone may have noticed the quantum distortion of the drone’s appearance. But in the chaos of battle, it was just a momentary blip.
The drone flew inches from the exterior hull. It glided to the center of the ship. It affixed a shaped charge to the bulkhead in the area of the Situation Room and the intelligence offices.
"I'll be right there," Graham said. He held his mobile to his ear. "Yes, they're with me now." He glanced to Emma and Kevin. "Are you sure? Alright, I’m on my way.” He hung up the phone.
Both Emma and Anderson had a quizzical look on their faces.
"That was the Secretary of Defense. The President wants to see you both in the Situation Room."
Emma’s eyes widened. They followed Graham out of the compartment and marched down the corridor to the Situation Room. It was only a few sections away. The JPOC offices, the UIA, and the Situation Room were all in the same vicinity.
Graham introduced Kevin and Emma as they entered.
"So, these are the troublemakers," President Slade said.
Emma wasn't sure how to take the comment. She was well aware of Slade’s reputation as a no nonsense leader. But the comment came off lighthearted.
"I take full responsibility for the incident, Madam President,” Emma said. “And I sincerely apologize for any grief I may have caused. Agent Anderson was acting strictly on my authority. I would request that you please re-evaluate his discharge from the agency. He's proven himself to be a valuable asset.”
“Relax, Agent Castle," Slade said. "We could use more agents like you."
Emma was stunned. She was expecting to get thoroughly chewed out.
"I've read your reports, and I’ve watched the surveillance video of the compound. I believe it warrants further investigation. I want you to work with Captain Walker here on coordinating some additional reconnaissance, and perhaps a strike team."
"It would be my honor, Madam President."
"If we can cut off the head of this organization, I think the galaxy will be a much safer place.”
"Madam President, if I may…” Secretary of State Joe Donaldson began. “Reinstating these two would prove very detrimental to our relationship with Aldebaran.”
"Mr. Donaldson, these two agents have brought us the only actionable intel we have,” Slade retorted. She glared at him, and Donaldson looked like he wanted to crawl under the table. "As far as I'm concerned, if the Aldebaranian government is hosting terrorists and taking a blind eye, I consider them complicit in the attacks. In my view, it's tantamount to an act of war, and we will respond appropriately." Slade glanced back to Emma, and her stone face regained a soft smile. "Ms. Castle you will have the full support of my office. If there's anything you need to further your investigation, please contact my office directly."
"Thank you, Madam President."
54
Emma
Emma stepped out of the Situation Room with Graham and Anderson after the meeting.
"I'm going to reinstate your security clearance," Graham said.
"Thank you, sir. I won't disappoint you again."
The President and The Joint Chiefs of Staff began to filter out of the Situation Room.
"Emma, I'd like you to meet Captain Walker," Graham said. "He's heading up JPOC. You'll be working closely with him from here on out."
The two shook hands.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," Emma said.
"Likewise. I hear good things about you."
Emma arched an eyebrow at Walker. "I was beginning to think I was persona non grata around here."
"I’d have done the same thing,” Walker whispered aside.
Emma smiled.
"If you've got a minute, I'd like to discuss Aldebaran and get more details about this compound."
"Sure."
"When you finish up, come see me in my office," Graham said.
Emma nodded and strolled down the corridor toward the JPOC offices with Walker.
"What does your gut tell you?" Walker asked.
"It tells me that Ragza is at that compound. It is the central hub for all Saav Krava activity."
“And what about Project Starshine?”
“Whatever it is, I think they are forcing Metzger to develop it.”
A blinding explosion tore through the bulkhead like it was plastic. The overpressure knocked Emma and Walker to the ground.
Klaxons sounded.
The blast ripped through several decks. Metal twisted and bowed. Shrapnel spewed everywhere. Fire engulfed the compartments, searing the flesh of anyone unfortunate enough to be caught in the area. The burn only lasted for an instant as the oxygen was sucked out into the vacuum of space.
Emma was far enough away from the fiery blast to survive unscathed. Her fingertips wedged into the grid-like depressions in the floor, holding on for dear life as the air sucked the contents out of the compartment. Anything that was loose flew through the air.
The ship’s emergency procedures automatically sealed the affected compartments. The gale force winds died down abruptly as hatches slammed shut.
Emma’
s ears rang. She could barely hear a thing. She pushed herself off the ground in a daze.
Walker staggered to his feet.
Emma’s heart was pounding. Her face was pale with terror. She raced down the hallway toward the Situation Room, stopping at the sealed hatch. She peered through the polycarbonate viewport. The area where Graham and Anderson had been standing was gone. All that remained was a gaping hole, and twisted bits of metal and wiring.
Emma’s throat went dry and her eyes welled with tears.
Bodies and bits of debris flowed into space from the gaping breach in the hull. Emma could see the stars through the hole in the hull.
The focused shape charge had concentrated the blast. A relatively small section of the ship was damaged, but the force penetrated through multiple levels.
Walker stood behind Emma, looking through the view port. His eyes wide with concern. Nothing ever scared Walker—but this did. He tapped his earbud. “Aria, do you copy?”
There was no response.
“Aria, do you copy?”
Nothing but static crackled back over the line.
“Can anyone give me a status on the President?” He was frantic.
A few terrifying moments went by, then he heard her soothing voice. “I’m fine.”
“Thank God you're all right."
“Are you okay?”
“We’re fine here. But we lost some good people.”
“I want these scumbags to pay for this.”
Emma tried to hold back her tears, but couldn’t. They streamed from her red, puffy eyes and rolled down her cheeks. There was no way Graham and Anderson could have survived that blast.
She felt her knees go weak. She leaned against the bulkhead and slid down to the deck. She stayed there in a stupor with her head in her hands. She was filled with a mix of rage and sadness. It felt hard to breathe, like an elephant was standing on her chest. The fight was more personal now than ever.
Ragza appeared on the display in the CIC. It was a pre-recorded transmission. "By now you realize that no place in the Federation is safe. These attacks will continue until all Federation colonies have left the sector. Formally announce your plans to evacuate, or I will release the most destructive power the galaxy has ever seen. You have two days to make the announcement."
