“Go for it then.” There was a momentary pause. “I must say, Harry, this is a damned useful way to speak to you, especially if I need to discuss our shadow with you. I suspect our normal channel may be under surveillance by Palmer and his group, but I can’t catch him red-handed.”
Harry dismounted and hurried closer to the geologists. “Dr. Young, we have a security alert from the ship. We must leave immediately. All work must stop at once. We have to get everyone and everything aboard as soon as possible. Beagle is sending down the pod carriers so that we can raise the units and personnel in one lift.”
“Immediately? But we’ve only just begun. And what’s this about a security alert? Have we encountered some new life form?”
“No, but a strange ship is approaching, and it appears to be one of the former Consortium ships. This is just a precautionary measure in case they reopen hostilities or contest our mission under their prospecting agreement.”
The Commander intruded on his thoughts, a bit too loud in Harry’s ears, but he tried not to wince. “Nice excuse, Lieutenant. I must remember that!”
Harry suppressed his annoyance as he responded to the geologist. “I suspect there’s a wealth of research here. I’m sure we’ll return once we’ve established who these newcomers are and their purpose here. Please get your team back to the base immediately. I will bring in the second team.”
Leaving the scientists loading their transport, Harry opened his throttles and headed for the location of the second group.
“Well done, Harry,” said the Commander, their link still open. “I’ll leave you to chase these guys back. The pod carriers are on their way down. See me when you get back aboard. I’ll use this link, if you don’t mind, if anything else comes up.”
“Thank you, sir.” Harry waited until the ship assured him that the link with the Commander was closed, and then he allowed his thoughts to explore his annoyance. He hoped that the Commander didn’t intend to use this method of communication too frequently. It would mean that he’d never have any privacy at all. He slid the transport to a halt next to the suited figure of the team leader, a friendly woman a few years older than himself. “I’m sorry to break up your research, Eleanor, but we have to return to base and the ship immediately. There is a strange ship approaching that the Commander thinks might be a renegade Consortium vessel, and we must take precautions.”
“Damn,” she said, followed by a wry chuckle. “Oh well, we were just about to pack up anyway. Give me a few minutes, and we’ll follow.”
“Certainly.” Harry smiled. Whenever he was around an attractive woman, he found himself wondering what it would be like to be intimate with her, and then thoughts of his last night with Mary before this deployment chased that thought away on a stream of guilt. He distracted himself by watching the flurry of activity as the five scientists and technicians mounted their sled and signalled their readiness to follow.
As he set the vehicle in motion, Harry had a sudden idea. He contacted the ship again. “Beagle, can you link me to the Commander please, and privately.”
Harry heard the Commander in his head.
“Yes, Harry?”
“Sir, I think that we should leave a probe in orbit and one on the ground where our base is. I’m not sure, but I think that our shadow might want to examine the area where we’ve been, and it might give us a chance to see who or what it is.”
“I’ll send one down to you immediately,” the Commander replied. “How soon will you be ready to lift?”
“I’m almost at the base now, sir, and the underground teams are already there.” Harry looked across to where another transport had just come into view. “The other surface team should be here in about five minutes.”
“Good. Get ’em loaded, and the carriers should be in the final descent.”
“They are, sir. I can see them already.”
Dismounting at the camp, Harry checked that everyone was present. “Warrant, get everything disconnected and ready for lifting. Roberta, can your people see that all their samples and gear are stowed, please?” He chuckled. “Dr. Young is not pleased with me. I disrupted his study of a large fissure, I think.”
“Sid will get over it.” She laughed as she watched the first of the pod carriers descend to settle astride one of the modules. “We’ll be ready in a jiffy. What’s the real problem?”
“As far as I’m aware, the Captain is merely being very cautious. There have been a number of reports of rogue former Consortium ships operating as pirates. I think Captain Kretzmann is simply not wishing to leave any hostages to fortune.” He saw a burly figure approaching followed by two men towing a strange looking machine on a small sled. “Ah, I think you’ll have to excuse me for the moment. I have to decide where to place this beacon.”
Harry took his seat as the last pod carrier powered up and rose slowly into flight. The last few days on the devastated surface had been a challenge, but they had also produced a number of surprises. That the planet had once had life, water, and even an atmosphere was certain. The exploration of what they thought was a tunnel had revealed a small and very complex arrangement of linked subterranean structures. There was evidence of damage to the walls that resembled the marks left by plasma cannons, but there was not a single trace of any machinery or of any metal object. Strangest of all had been the discovery of tracks unlike anything that anyone had ever seen before.
“All very ambiguous. Nothing to indicate its age or how much time has passed since these structures were formed,” Roberta told Harry as they settled into their seats. “The geological disruption is massive and not recent, but we’ve no way of knowing whether the tunnel or that little city was stripped before the catastrophe or after it.” She grinned. “Perhaps whoever made those tracks can tell us.”
“Perhaps.” Harry returned the grin. “Or perhaps they had a hand in it.”
“Then they would have a weapon far greater than anything we have access to.” The geologist shook her head. “No, I think this is something else—probably a natural event that overtook this system, but it left a few puzzles for us to unravel.”
The pod carrier lurched as it made contact with its docking points on the Beagle. “We may have to come back to do more research on this.” Harry was on his feet. “I’d better report to my station. If the Captain decides to transit, I have work to do in the navigation centre.” He grinned. “And an EVA suit is hardly the appropriate dress for that.”
Roberta laughed. “True. If I remember correctly, you might find seating yourself at the console difficult. Go, my friend—I had better see that our samples and equipment are unloaded safely.”
The Navigation Centre was a hive of activity. Taking his seat, Harry allowed the ship into his head. “What is afoot, Beagle?”
“The contact is behaving strangely. It isn’t approaching or answering our signals. It is a human ship, and it matches the signature and profile of one of the Consortium destroyer class reported as lost at the end of the war.”
“Thank you,” Harry responded, and his comlink chirped with the Captain’s voice.
“Report to the Command Centre, Mr. Heron.”
“Aye, aye, sir.” Harry got out of his seat and headed for the door. He paused at the navigation officer’s side. “I’m required in the command centre, ma’am.”
Lieutenant Commander Penn nodded. “Better see what the old man wants.” She flashed a smile. “Tell him if he wants to transit, I’ll need you here.”
Harry grinned. He rather enjoyed working with Lieutenant Commander Penn. “I’ll do my best, ma’am.”
“Harry,” said Captain Kretzmann, “your ghost ship is moving in. I want you to get up to the Observatory and see if you can get a look at it. Don’t use the electronics, though—keep it manual and visual only. I think our Consortium pal has encountered this ship before, and I want to know what he’s keeping clear of.”
Harry grinned. “Aye, aye, sir. I’m on it.”
Greg Palmer studied the im
ages his team had gathered. “So there was life here, and it could still survive somewhere.”
“Whatever it was, it seems to have had multiple limbs,” Hallam ventured. “And it probably wasn’t humanoid. The structures suggest something taller than a human, with very different physiognomy.”
“I agree with Hallam,” said Anton du Bois. He indicated one of the structures. “This is typical of what we found there. It would be awkward for a human to move about comfortably in such a structure.”
Palmer frowned. “Any inscriptions? Images? Anything that indicated a writing system?”
“Nothing we saw. Of course, we only had time for a very brief examination.” Yanik Hallam knew his boss well. “There could be a surviving population, but with Heron in charge …” He lifted his hands and shoulders in a doubtful shrug.
Palmer took the bait. “Collate everything we’ve got. Hallam, I want access to Heron’s data, and I want it now. I don’t care how you get it. The rest of you, if you hear anything, any suggestion from the other teams, that there could be a surviving population, I want to know.” Thrusting himself out of his seat, he announced, “I’m going to see Polen. I want Heron kept away from any contact with any aliens we find.”
Chapter 4
Discovery
The big reflector telescope really needed two people to handle it properly, but Harry knew that none of the men he currently worked with had the skill to operate it manually. “Ferghal, why aren’t you here when I need you?” he muttered to himself as he cranked the scope onto the bearing that the ship had supplied. He set the elevation and then swung himself into position for the sighting eyepieces.
Adjusting the focus, he carefully scanned the visible sky. The telescope’s view was quite narrow, but the magnification was high. There appeared to be nothing in the view field. He double-checked the bearing and began a section-by-section search of the field. Soon he spotted something.
Darker than the background into which it almost blended, it betrayed its presence as it occluded a small star. He tweaked the magnification and managed to reach down with one foot to catch the training crank. He cursed as the telescope moved the wrong way. Quickly he adjusted the aim. “That’ll have to do.”
He strained to make out any detail. Whatever it was, it was huge. It had an ovoid shape and projections from its hull that gave it an organic appearance.
He watched as it changed shape and direction. Then it grew. Harry keyed his link. “Captain, it’s making straight for us.”
“Right. We’re transiting out of here. Secure the scope and return to your station.”
“Aye, aye, sir.”
Harry jumped down, secured the telescope, and hurriedly pushed his feet into his shoes. He was about to order the dome display to cease when he got a clear look at the approaching ship as it caught the reflected light from the planetary surface. He felt a shudder of revulsion in the microseconds that preceded the brilliant flash as the ship’s transit shut down the display.
He was deep in thought as he made his way to the Command Centre. The hideous image of the strange ship burned into his mind.
“I demand that we return and attempt to make contact with these strangers!” Dr. Palmer was flushed and at his most obnoxious. “We have to ascertain what state of development they have reached so that we can determine the appropriate protections for their culture and further development,” he spluttered.
The Commander studied the picture Harry had sketched. Turning to Harry he asked, “How big did you estimate this thing to be, Mr. Heron?”
Harry paused. “It is very difficult to be accurate, sir, since distance is deceptive in these circumstances, but I think the estimate of a thousand kilometres in diameter is close.”
“I should have been informed the moment this ship was detected!” Dr. Palmer was clearly working himself into a rage. “Instead, you send a man whose record of relations with other species is questionable at best, and some might even say illegal—”
The Commander’s fist slammed onto the table, bringing silence. “Dr. Palmer! If you continue to slander my officer, I will have you replaced on this ship. Is that clear? Now, take a careful look at this image. Does this suggest to you a race that is in any way inferior to us? Does it suggest a race in need of protection from anything we might be able to offer?” He glared at the doctor. “Does it?”
Taken aback, Dr. Palmer glowered. “We don’t know yet! That’s the whole point, isn’t it? And, since Mr. Heron is the only person who has seen it, how do we know he’s giving us an accurate description?”
The Commander remained silent while he gathered control, but his eyes burned with anger. “Dr. Palmer, I will not warn you again about calling my officer a liar, or suggesting that he may have improper motives.” He waved to the image. “If this is what Mr. Heron saw, then I believe him. I also believe the measurements our instruments made as it closed on us. In fact, those measurements confirm the proportions of this sketch.” His glare swept round the table. “The Beagle is all but defenceless if attacked. We are a research ship, and Captain Kretzmann and I are responsible for ensuring that our explorations are conducted safely, that your research is secure, and that each one of you is returned to Earth in one piece and in good health. Mr. Heron is an officer of the Fleet. He is duty bound to take every measure in his power to protect you and your research.” He was about to continue when the door slid open and the Captain entered.
The Commander, Harry, and the two aliens stood.
“At ease.” Captain Kretzmann took a seat and placed a tablet on the table. He nodded to the Commander and glanced at everyone present. “I have received a communication from the Minister for Alien Relations. Interestingly, he seems to have heard of our encounter before my official report reached him.” His eyes locked on Dr. Palmer. “I have communicated to the minister that we will not attempt to engage with the alien ship.”
“But we must!” Dr. Palmer’s excitement overrode his usual caution, and he realised too late that his outburst unwittingly revealed that he was using an unauthorised hypercom transmitter to communicate with the alien ship. Oh, well, who cares? I’ve said it now. Whoever makes contact with this new race and establishes communications with them will be made for life. That person should be me. It WILL be me.
He tried to play down his blunder and act cool. “My colleagues at the LPSL have been to the Ministry, and have made representations to the WTO—”
“I am aware of that.” Captain Kretzmann cut him off. “Thank you for confirming the ownership of the illegal hyperlink transmitter we found. I’m assuming you weren’t aware that it was interfering with our own transmissions and some of our scanner arrays.” Dr. Palmer’s face blanched. “I thought not. I’ve had it shut down and impounded, and I will take the endangerment of this ship and its people further on our return.” He glanced around the table again. “I have made it clear to the minister that any attempt to approach that ship or make contact with it would place this ship and its mission in serious danger. The Fleet will send a squadron to investigate it further.”
He held up a hand as the doctor began to splutter a protest. “That is all, Doctor.” He waited until the other subsided again. “I have good reason to believe that to do so would be dangerous and possibly deadly. We left two probes at the planet: one on the surface and one in orbit among the debris. Both have ceased operation, and I assume they’ve been destroyed.”
Exclamations of surprise and alarm erupted. Dr. Palmer’s voice was strident and angry among the babble.
The Captain stood. “I’ve decided, in case we have been compromised in any way, to move us to Objective Six on our list. Kepler 646 has a planet that is in the temperate zone and may support life. We will drop out in seven days and recommence our mission.” He looked around again. “Commander, Mr. Heron, I need to speak with you when you’re free.”
“Gentlemen, I think we have a problem. The LPSL had up-to-date information on what we found and what we were doing well in advanc
e of our daily reports and the briefings circulated by the Ministry and Fleet Relations. We found the hypercom transmitter only because we were using the scanner array when they activated it. Lieutenant Merriman shut it down and has it in her lab. Unfortunately, their transmission also cut off the last part of the transmission from our surface probe.” He keyed a command to produce a holographic image. “We think this is an alien from that ship.”
The image was poor, as if there was interference ruining the signal. It showed a very strangely shaped creature standing on what appeared to be four spindly legs, with four “arms” of similar appearance. The limbs seemed to be multi-jointed, and the general shape was completely non-human. It was also large. Harry winced as the transmission ceased abruptly when the creature struck the probe with some unseen device.
“Phew!” he exclaimed. “I wouldn’t want to meet up with that creature, not even in broad daylight!”
This emitted a wry chuckled from the Captain. “Nor would I, Lieutenant. I’ve consulted Fleet Command and forwarded these images. This is something we’re not equipped to deal with, so I’ve called in reinforcements.”
The Commander nodded. “Harry, you saw the tunnel and a bit of that city. Was it something these creatures could have made?”
“I don’t know, sir, but I think not. That creature looks too large for the habitats that we studied.”
“Hmm. Okay.” The Captain looked thoughtful. “The minister suggested that the LPSL have been all over the news with this, and they are lobbying hard for enforcement of their Protocol. That’s going to be restrictive for whoever picks up the task of learning more about this hitherto unknown race, but it won’t be us, at any rate. Now, I’ll be calling another round table and will share these images with the scientists.”
Awakening Threat Page 4
