by DJ Morand
Abel Cain began to read through the documentation. The further he dug into it the more concerned he grew. The documents indicated that the EXOs were expanding their influence. The fail-safes he had helped to put in place to keep the EXOs contained on Quintar V had begun to fail. He had not designed them for permanency and he understood they would eventually cease working. What the hell was going on in the EFNF, he thought.
He had known the EXOs would spread again; it was only a matter of time. Even then, near twelve years ago, some of the EXOs were able to escape. It wasn’t a perfect solution and if a few found their way out, more would escape. Abel struggled with the information as he read. The documents stated that the EXOs already escaped and were moving to secure a hold on the Quintar Prime system. He could not put his finger on it. Why would the Admiral allow the EXOs to escape - the thought infuriated him. His rage increased tenfold when he learned of Admiral Shade's death, but more-over at the way death found him.
“Flakking glitch of a fool! Zee get your ass over here!” Abel could barely contain his unbridled rage. He read and re-read the final words of Admiral Shade and the description of his final actions and he cursed again. “Zee! Where the FLAK are you!?”
“I am right here.” Zee said calmly with a hint of annoyance. He was standing at his station in the cockpit. “I was still analyzing the feed as you had requested. I certainly hope you are not calling me back to fetch you a cup of coffee.”
“Damnit, Zee, look at this!” He practically flung the data from the Transteel viewer to a larger holographic display and a short video began to play.
“This is Admiral James David Shade, I know that we have all been concerned about the EXO threat and the increasing deterioration of the EXO Shield designed by our brightest minds. Since the means to repair the EXO Shield are beyond us and we cannot hope to win against an increasing EXO threat, drastic measures must be taken. However, we must not allow the defense to fail entirely. To this end I am sending the remaining Exodus Fleet Naval Forces to secure the stations orbiting other Quintar planets and interplanetary bodies. I am enacting secondary protocols to ensure the survival of the human race and prevent further expansion of the EXOs. As of fourteen-hundred hours today, I will begin the self-destruct sequence that will destroy the Terran Veil and the orbital stations surrounding Quintar V. This planet was intended to be our home, but instead became our doom. The detonation of the Terran Veil will coincide with the detonation of the orbital platforms and the EXO Shield, destroying all that remains on the planet below. This will be my final broadcast.”
Abel threw an empty mug through the holograph where it shattered against the command deck wall on the other side of the image. “Do you see what he did!? He ruined my work, then he exed himself, he … he--”” Abel couldn’t finish as rage gave way to grief, his anger at Admiral Shade burned away and left him feeling empty.
Abel decided he could not deal with anymore today and retreated to crew berthing to get some sleep. As he slept, his thoughts dwelled on the past.
* * *
Quintar Prime System - Terran Veil: Flight Deck
2954 ESD - Monday, September 30th 01:45 hours
Aboard the massive dreadnought Terran Veil, Abel Cain looked up at the canopy of the Reconnaissance and Variable Electronic Navigation Scout. Every pilot aboard the Terran Veil trained to fly the RAVEN S Mark II. The small single pilot vessel was very raven-like in appearance and uniquely suited to covert operations. The Terran Veil had a hangar of no less than one hundred RAVEN ships and at least fifty Warthog UMDF ships. Abel could not understand how anyone could possibly want to pilot a flying nuclear bomb. He felt the Warthogs were outdated in an age where nuclear fission was no longer the primary source of energy. Anti-matter engines were more efficient and did not require someone to pilot a bomb.
He examined the undercarriage of the RAVEN S Mark II. The scout ship had a short range rail turret as well as dual pulse laser turrets under either wing. The only ship within the Earth Coalition fleet fitted with stealth emitters, the RAVEN S Mark II was an unparalleled spy ship and highly suited to special operations. He examined the landing gear as well as the forward canopy. After climbing the engineer's ladder, he checked for fuel deposits.
Abel had made his start six years ago in the Exodus Fleet Naval Force, having moved up from an engineer's apprentice to an actual engineer. It had not been enough for him though. He continued to learn and strive and eventually he had made his way to becoming part of the flight crew and subsequently a pilot. It was a circuitous route to becoming a pilot, but he had managed it well enough. Abel had left his opponents eating space in the practice trials and set records no human in seven generations had accomplished. He was a sure bet.
Now the cocky nineteen year-old examined the ship. Absently he scratched at his left breast and jerked his hand away. He had forgotten how raw the skin was underneath. Late the night before he had partied with the other new pilots and all of them had gotten tattoos of ravens with spread wings and a bloodied beak.
Abel Cain - Pilot First Class - ran his hands along the nose of the RAVEN S Mark II. He noticed two small indentations; small in respect to the rest of the craft. He could see the beam generators within and realized these were his targeting computers. If he recalled, and he was sure he did, the beam would mark his target and bounce back. This functioned much like sonar did with Earth creatures. The return beam would include the trajectory of the craft and assist the pulse lasers with hitting their mark. The rail turret was better used up close.
The Exodus Fleet had been in orbit around a moon, which in turn was orbiting the sixth planet, for more than six weeks now. Fortuitously, it was just long enough for him to finish his training. The mission was to the fifth planet, where it was rumored there might be life. This excited him beyond belief and he was ready for his first mission. The mission itself was relatively simplistic. The RAVEN squadron was going to launch and make an approach vector into the target planet's atmosphere. His squad was to be an escort for the ambassadors. Keep the ambassadors alive and get them home to the Exodus Fleet unharmed. He marveled again at the size of the hangar bay. He was not the only one this early in the morning - not that anyone could really tell morning from evening in space. They kept track of time in cycles, seven cycles to a week, and fifty-two weeks to a year. Anything beyond this was personal time-keeping and not officially recognized. Abel mentally tracked Mars time, but since it was so close to the twenty-four hour cycle it was not too difficult.
Abel continued to examine his RAVEN S Mark II, the sleek design reminded him of the bird of prey for which the ship was named. They were designed for long range scouting and had a sort of variable engine, which could either subsist on matter-antimatter interactions or through a charged energy cell aboard. During his simulations, Abel had been forced to travel at sub-light speeds while utilizing only the energy cell. The first few simulations he had failed due to an insufficient charge. After that he began to divert energy from the matter-antimatter engine to charge the onboard cell. He had trained in both the RAVEN F and RAVEN S models. The fighter was bulkier and larger so that it could accommodate a crew of three as well as a cargo hold. He preferred the scout model; a single pilot, albeit one in full SATYR armor, was more personal in his opinion. In addition to training simulators for the various star crafts an EFNF pilot was expected to know how to fly. There was also additional training in actual Survival Assault Tactical Yield Robotics armor. The SATYR armor was originally utilized by marine accompaniments. It was adapted for short and long range pilots in personal craft in the mid twenty-ninth century.
The complex armor served as both armor and EVA suit so it was ideal for a pilot who could be forced to eject inter-atmosphere or in space. Abel had yet to be fitted for his new SATYR armor; that was next on his pre-mission checklist. He climbed the ladder next to the RAVEN S. He had to think of a call-sign for it. Looking into the cockpit he was unsurprised to see the lack of joystick or manual controls. Since the Earth
Coalition had designed the military ships, they had done so with reliance on Artificial Intelligence and Transteel projectors. Abel considered the ship. It certainly had the profile of a raven. With wide wings melding seamlessly into the frame of the ship’s body and a sharp pointed prow, it was a bird of prey. He looked out at the other ships in the bay, specifically the RAVEN F models. They looked more like inverted wasps than they did ravens. Abel thought again that he needed to give his ship a name, but it continued to elude him.
* * *
Outside the Quintar Prime System: Kodiak: Command
2972 ESD - Monday, October 5th 14:20 hours
A few hours later Abel stumbled like a zombie up to the command deck. He sat and stared motionless at the monitors. Zee stared at the motionless and distant Abel. When he spoke abruptly, Abel’s head whipped around to listen to what he was saying, “Sir, we have an inbound communication. It is being broadcast on all frequencies. It originates from the Darter, Echo Shade’s RAVEN F Mark XII.” Zee said with a hint of apprehension.
“Echo again!? What does she want now?”
“It is a distress call Captain.” Zee scolded with more than a hint of frustration.
“FLAK! Play it over general comms … and get me tactical analysis, if she needs help we’re not going in blind.”
“Right away Captain.” Zee commented as he turned towards his station and processed the Captain’s request. A moment later, the panicked voice of Echo Shade played over the intercom system of the Kodiak.
“Alert! Alert! This is Captain Echo Shade of the Exodus Fleet Naval Force, I have EXO contact two parsecs from-- coordinates embedded in the message. EFNF frequency Alpha-- Echo-- Zulu.” The message was coming in patchy and with more than a fair amount of static.
“Zee, lock down that flakking transmission, I’m angling us towards the coordinates, but that is a flakking wide area, if I can’t get a damn decent signal I can’’t get this boat to her before it’s too late.”
“Already stabilizing Captain, just a moment.” Zee commented, half away of his own voice as he accessed the ship’s internal systems.
“Make it half a moment, I doubt that the Darter is any match for the EXOs out here.”
“Replaying the message Captain.”
“Alert! Alert! This is Captain Echo Shade of the Exodus Fleet Naval Force, I have EXO contact two parsecs from Quintar Prime system edge, coordinates embedded in message. EFNF frequency Alpha One Zero Echo Bravo Two Niner Zulu.” Zee heard the captain holler triumphantly and the direction of the Kodiak changed course for the new heading.
“Do not open communications with Captain Echo, if the EXOs are there they’ve probably already piggy-backed her signal. Opening comms exposes anyone trying to help. Flak it! This might be a trap anyway. No matter for it, prep the quantum plates and the shield emitters Zee, I’’m going in hot and I want my pants buckled and zipper up.”
Zee silently chuckled at the human’s vulgar tongue. When the Captain put his mind to something, Zee knew, it was all or nothing. Zee commanded the shield emitters to charge and the outer hull of the Kodiak began to shift and maneuver the plating to provide forward coverage and clearing space around the engines. The two forward plates formed around the sensitive areas of the primary anti-matter cannon. Similarly the rear plates formed around the sides of the ship protecting the areas closest to the nacelles. The Kodiak soared through space and broke into warp speed. The inside of the ship distorted for a moment as the inertia dampeners compensated for the sudden increase in speed. Zee smiled. Despite his normally composed demeanor he was looking forward to a fight, especially against EXOs. There was no love lost between Zee and the EXOs still connected to the AI. They were both a reminder and a current danger of what he could become.
Abel allowed the message to continue playing on a loop, for some reason he had to be sure she was still transmitting. Even if it was a trap, he wanted to be certain no one else had sprung it. “Zee, scan the area ahead. If there are any enemy ships in play I want to know about it.”
“Understood Captain. Scanning for potential threats.” Zee began a secondary routine and noticed some odd anomalies while scanning. The sub-routine indicated there was a secondary transmitter broadcasting on a little known Quintarran frequency. He was wary, but ultimately curious. ““Captain--”
“What is it Zee?” Abel called from the helm, noticing the odd tone to the Quintarran’s voice.
“There is a secondary signal, on a Quintarran channel.”
“Use the receivers, pick it up, scan it, and then if it is clean pipe it through.” Abel was curious. He understood, even if he didn’t like it, that Echo was intelligent and quick-witted. If there was a secondary signal on a Quintarran frequency she may have bet on the two of them picking it up.
“Yes, Captain.” Zee said, again in the same monotonous tone he used when interfacing with the ship and speaking at the same time.
A moment later Echo’s voice came through the comms again. “It’s a trap. I am keeping this short as I don’t have much air left. I jettisoned my pod, the Darter is in enemy hands.”
DANCING WITH VULTURES
Edge of the Quintar Prime System: Darter: Docking Bay
2972 ESD - Monday, October 5th 12:27 hours
Echo Shade left the airlock and entered the sequence to detach the Darter from the Kodiak. After a short few seconds, the sound of air rushed out of the docking tube and mixed with the sound of the detaching docking clamps. She watched through the docking view screen as the quantum plating shifting around on the URSA GS-I; the plates fully covering the docking ring. She had been infuriated that he had so easily - and so quickly - dismissed her.
She had let him get her goad. “Flak it all E! You needed that pompous little brat.” She chided herself. “I had better get underway. There are still comm buoys I need to drop.”
Echo contemplated the EXOs. For sixteen years of her life, Admiral Shade had maintained the EXO Shield, which had been designed by none other than Abel Cain. When it began to fail her father had turned to other means of defeating the EXOs. She felt it was too late to begin the research, but he had done so anyway. The resulting death of the EXOs were not numerous and they came at great cost. Eventually, Admiral Shade had determined that the EXOs –– Human and Quintarran – were beyond saving, but they could be disabled. This was something he kept under wraps. He hoped to learn of a way to cure them.
She piloted the Darter towards the edge of the Quintar Prime system. Echo intended to place communications buoys equidistantly to try and boost the signals. She hoped to boost the signals enough to reach the elusive Sol system. Echo did not pin too much hope on that. The Sol system was light years away and no one really knew where it was anymore. The Exodus Fleet was lost.
Echo pondered the enigma that she found in Abel Cain and found she admired his courage, not to admit he was attractive. His dark short cropped hair and the thin goatee that shaped his mouth … NO! She again found herself struggling with staying on task when he was on her mind. Quintarrans told their children the story of Abel Cain, a boy who had saved them and freed them from the oppression of the AI. To Quintarrans he was a hero - despite his current profession. To her father he was a criminal. Echo found conflict in both her mother’s stories and her father’s apparent truths.
ALERT! INCOMING CONTACTS
MULTIPLE COURIER CLASS CONTACTS – VULTURE BAA-C II CLASS VESSELS
“Flak it. Only EXOs use C class ships anymore and Vultures are their favorites. My ship is no match for a Vulture, let alone multiple.” Echo spoke her thoughts as she worked on gathering what she needed. She knew she was small prey compared to the buoys and the communications reach of the Darter.
“Flak, I bet I alerted them with that comm burst," Or the buoys, she thought. "Hopefully, the EFNF received the transmission as well.” She continued to upbraid herself. She set the RAVEN F Mark XII on auto-pilot and prepared her pod to evacuate the fighter. She had grown to like the Darter; it was disappointi
ng that she had to ditch it now.
Echo loaded the last two communications buoys into the small bit of storage space in the pod, then climbed in. She considered going back to get an oxygen tank, but told herself it would be pointless. If she was still around when the EXOs arrived, extra air would not matter. She didn’t have time to clear her Navigation computer or the voice controls she had implemented for the weapons system. She knew this meant that the EXOs would not only have access to her recent locations, but they could - potentially - reprogram the Darter to broadcast a signal mimicking her. With that in mind, she stepped out of the pod, entered a counter distress call into the last of the comm buoys and programmed the ship to jettison it before the EXOs boarded the ship.
“Time to go E, get the flak off this ship before they get here.” She chided herself one last time as she grabbed the oxygen tank and flung herself into the escape pod. She hit the eject button and felt the full inertia of the spinning pod for a few seconds. When it leveled out, she knew the inertial dampeners had kicked in. The motion nearly made her sick as Dark Space was replaced by the light of the Darter and replaced again by Dark Space. With the inertial dampeners now in play she would not have known she was spinning; had it not been for the change of view.
“I hope to hell someone gets that secondary message, or I am going to be out here for a long time. Good thing I grabbed the oxygen. Who am I kidding? My message might be right by the time someone shows up.” She briefly entertained being rescued by Abel, but dismissed the thought out of hand. He may be a hero to Quintarrans, but he had made it clear how he felt about her.
As she floated in the escape pod she could not help but feel a tug on her consciousness. She was going to enter the trance; state of being most Quintarrans could maintain to extend their life in dire circumstances. This is certainly dire, Echo thought. As the pod drifted into the darkness of space, so too did she into the recesses of her mind.
