The Lost Command (Lost Starship Series Book 2)

by Heppner, Vaughn

  As they endured, Maddox took Dana’s communicator and tried it. He doubted the New Men would get any reception up in orbit. He need not have worried. All he got was horrible static. No one was getting any reception down here either.

  Time passed, and Maddox began getting drowsy again. Then something alerted him, a premonition of danger perhaps. The hairs rose on the back of his neck. It felt as if something big prowled outside. Then, a low growl told him one of the slarns must be outside the tent.

  Drawing his tri-steel knife and long-barreled gun, Maddox debated sliding outside. Should he hope the snow beast went elsewhere? Or should he defend them from death?

  Maddox tried to reason this logically. If the beast was outside, it must have trailed them through their scent, hunting them as prey. Should he wake the others to help him? No. He would do this himself. They needed rest, giving their bodies time to repair the damage they’d taken for what must have been a grim ordeal for them.

  With his frost mask in place and with the goggles protecting his eyes, Maddox unsealed the tent. A musky odor told him he’d been right about there being a beast outside.

  Steeling himself, Maddox slid out on his back. A flash of lightning in the distance showed him a long and sinuous animal with a mouthful of teeth. It looked like a giant weasel the size of a grizzly bear. The slarn opened its jaws with its ears pinned against its narrow skull. Then, it roared dreadfully. That caused an awful odor to wash over Maddox’s face. He didn’t want to think what he would have smelled if he hadn’t been wearing the frost mask.

  Rising up onto its hind feet, the thing towered an easy four meters, almost twice Maddox’s height. It had six legs with six sets of wide claws.

  Maddox stood up. He doubted his bullets could kill the thing in time—

  The slarn arched back and roared in agony, with its jaws aimed into the heavens. It took a second for Maddox to comprehend what happened. Sizzling lines of energy played upon the snow beast’s luxurious fur along its back. Another bolt struck the creature, and more energy burned the fur and made the slarn thrash back and forth in agony.

  Maddox barely hurled himself away in time. The big creature rolled over the tent. Then it flipped around onto its feet, bending its body like a weasel would. It crouched as if threatening to leap, snarling at the person who had shot it with an energy weapon.

  Lifting the long-barreled gun, knowing this was the time to act, Maddox pulled the trigger in quick succession, pumping round after round into the monster.

  The slarn sprang at the other person, but without coordination. It was more of an instinctive flop away from Maddox. Something silvery dodged the attack. The other person raised a weapon and another energy round blazed over the stricken creature.

  Of course, it was the New Man. The surviving parachutist had trailed them after all. Why hadn’t he let the slarn kill the three of them?

  Maddox would have liked to know. He watched as the monster thrashed in the snow, with lightning once again playing in the heavens. Wind howled and distant thunder boomed.

  The New Man was Maddox’s enemy. He had no idea how the man could survive in his silvery suit fabric. He should have already frozen to death. Whatever the case, the New Man had just saved their lives from the slarn. Maybe both of them realized the animal was dying. The thrashing wasn’t as wild as earlier. Blood soaked the snow and the slarn’s teeth were red with gore. The roars had diminished in volume. Could the beast still rise up to attack? Maybe and maybe not.

  Maddox retargeted his long-barreled gun, aiming at the enemy. The New Man aimed his blaster at Maddox. The golden-skinned man hesitated. Maddox did not. His trigger finger moved faster than it ever had in his life, once, twice, three times. Each shot caused the New Man to jerk back. The third bullet hurled the man down onto his side.

  Maddox stood in amazement. He’d beaten the New Man to the draw. No. That wasn’t right. His enemy had saved their lives from the slarn, and the New Man hadn’t pulled the trigger. There had to be a reason for that, but Maddox had no idea what it could be.

  That bothered him.

  In the heavens, a jagged lightning bolt flashed across the sky. A new premonition struck the captain. The star cruisers were still up there in orbit. He didn’t know how he knew that, but he was certain it was right.

  Shoving the gun into its holster, Maddox lunged at the fallen tent. He dragged it off…Dana. She held her left leg. It might have been broken, maybe by the slarn rolling over it earlier.

  “Get up!” Maddox shouted at her. “Hurry! Do it now!”

  The doctor remained bent over, clutching her left leg.

  Maddox knew they didn’t have any more time left. If his premonition was correct, they had to move this instant. He grabbed Dana Rich by the collar. He grabbed his rifle case. Then he dragged her from the tent, churning his legs as he struggled to get away from the dying New Man.

  “Captain!” Keith shouted.

  “Follow me!” Maddox roared. He didn’t know if the pilot heard him or not. If not, they might lose Keith Maker.

  Yanking the doctor, sliding her through the snow, Maddox floundered through the boulder field. The winds howled, snow poured down and distant flashes of lightning played in the darkness, giving them moments of illumination.

  Then, Keith was beside him. The pilot grabbed Maddox and put his face near.

  “What’s wrong?” Keith shouted. “Why are you acting like a madman?”

  “We have to move,” Maddox shouted, shaking himself free of Keith. The captain continued to pull a limp doctor along the ground

  Keith hurried after them, and it happened then.

  Out of the darkness, down from space, a horribly bright beam struck. It had to have originated from a star cruiser in orbit. The beam struck the spot where the New Man lay. Why did the enemy do that to one of his own? Maddox didn’t know, although he had a few ideas.

  Boulders blasted apart. Earth erupted, and everything came raining down, most of it pelting against rock.

  In the brilliance of the destructive beam, Maddox saw a cave. It was twenty meters away. He dragged Dana and wriggled into the opening, pulling the doctor in after him. Keith managed to dive in too. Then, a loud, a terrific explosion caused rocks and debris to rain against the entrance, sealing them in the darkness.

  The winds no longer shrieked. The air wasn’t quite as cold. But they were trapped in the earth, prisoners underground on the barren planet of Wolf Prime.

  -27-

  “Now what do we do?” Keith asked in a forlorn voice in the darkness.

  Maddox lay on the ground, breathing heavily, trying to gain his bearings. His limbs were exhausted and his mind numb. Everything had happened too quickly. And yet, that was supposed to be his power, the ability to act fast.

  How had the New Man found them in this storm? That was a miracle. Maybe the answer was simple. The New Man had seen the slarn trailing prey. It would simply have been a matter of following the beast.

  Why didn’t the New Man fire at me? He must have known I would kill him. Did he sacrifice himself?

  Maddox couldn’t believe that. What kind of being would let himself die willingly and let his enemy live?

  Maddox realized he was missing something.

  From where he lay, the captain raised his head. A different idea struck. Maybe the New Man hadn’t fired because their team was important. Why would that be? The New Man must want Victory. Everything the enemy did might be predicated on that. But if that was true, the New Man had made a selfless act for his side. Were the New Men community-based to such a degree that one of them could make that kind of sacrifice?

  Frowning, Maddox shook his head. He didn’t want to accept that. It would mean the enemy was capable of nobility to some degree.

  The New Men practiced genocide. At least, that’s what people thought. The enemy had used thermonuclear weapons on planetary surfaces. Of course, regular humans had done that in the past. There were treaties against it now. Star Watch enforced the ban throug
hout the Commonwealth.

  “Captain,” Keith said.

  “What?” Maddox asked, and it surprised him how groggy he sounded.

  “What are we going to do?” Keith asked. “It’s pitch black in here. I can’t see a thing.”

  “We need light,” Maddox said. “Give me a second.” He felt for his pack and realized he hadn’t put it on. It had been back in the pup tent. The beam would have destroyed it and everything they had in it.

  Maddox rummaged in his pockets. He had Dana’s oversized communicator. He took it out and began to fiddle with the controls. Soon, he used it as a flashlight, beaming it around their cave.

  “What the heck?” Keith said. “This is bigger than I realized.”

  “Indeed,” Maddox said.

  He played the beam along the cave walls and then on the floor. There were tufts of fur and bones, many of them cracked open. Could this have been the slarn’s den? No wonder the beast had trailed them.

  “How far does this cave go?” Keith asked.

  Maddox shined the light into the interior, but he didn’t spot a back wall. That gave him the willies. No doubt, it was an atavistic dread, his spirit wondering if this could be an opening into the underworld. That was foolish, though. It was just a deeper than average cave, nothing more.

  “Can we get out the front?” Keith asked.

  Turning around, Maddox illuminated the rocks piled tight. He slid near and put his shoulder against one, trying to budge it. The rock wouldn’t move. He pushed harder, straining, his feet slipping on the floor. It didn’t make any difference. They were sealed in.

  It was time to assess the situation logically. First, he needed to make sure Keith and Dana were okay.

  “Doctor?” Maddox asked, shining the light on her. “Are you well? Is your leg broken?”

  She sat on the cave floor, bent over, clutching her ankle.

  “Here,” Maddox said. He pushed the communicator at Keith and crouched by the doctor. “You must let go of your ankle,” he said. “Let me check it.”

  Dana nodded, slowly releasing her grip.

  Maddox took off her blood soaked boot as gently as possible. She groaned, becoming rigid. Setting the boot aside, he pulled out his knife and reached under the pant leg, sliding the blade into place. Carefully, he cut her thermals. No jagged bone-ends showed through the torn skin, but there was too much blood welling, a thick and steady flow.

  “This might hurt,” he said.

  Dana nodded, saying nothing.

  Maddox touched her ankle, and Doctor Rich moaned in pain like before. Ignoring that, Maddox moved her ankle, and he felt bones grind against each other. Were they crushed? He let go of her foot, and Dana gasped as she began to tremble.

  “The slarn,” she whispered. “It rolled over my foot.”

  Maddox looked around. The first aid kit was in his pack, burned by the beam. He lunged for his rifle case. Keith centered the beam there. Maddox opened the case and took out strips of oily cloth. These would have to do.

  “Shine the light on her leg,” Maddox said. “Here,” he told Dana, giving her a small piece of wood. “Bite on this as hard as you can. This is going to hurt.”

  Without complaint, Dana did as ordered.

  Maddox took a deep breath, lifted her leg, setting it on his knee. Then, he took the first strip of cloth and bound it around the broken ankle.

  Dana went rigid with agony and began to tremble worse than before. She didn’t scream or even moan as she bit down on the wood.

  Maddox worked fast. He had to stop the bleeding. He tied the strip and wound the second one around the ankle.

  “I’m going to put your boot back on,” he said.

  Dana didn’t acknowledge him. She continued to tremble and moan through her clenched teeth.

  Taking the bloody boot, Maddox worked it onto her foot as gently as he could. Dana grabbed his shoulders, her fingers digging into his flesh. He didn’t stop. The sooner he finished, the sooner they could do something to free themselves from the cave-in.

  Finished, Maddox gently set her foot on the ground. He stood, having to stoop because of the low ceiling. Extending his hand, he took the communicator back from Keith. As Dana spit out the wood and lay on the floor, gasping, Maddox played the light off the walls. He stepped deeper into the cave to look at the back.

  A faint stir of air feathered against his forehead. There must be an opening to the outside somewhere deeper in the cave. Would it be big enough for them to use? He had no idea, but he had no other plan of how to get out of here. They were going to have to head deeper into the earth. Maddox hoped there wasn’t another slarn in here with them, waiting to defend its den.

  Turning around, he explained his thoughts to the others.

  “You’re saying we’re trapped?” Keith asked.

  “We should think positively,” Maddox said. “Remember, others signaled you. They might well come for us. Discovering the cave-in should be easy for them.”

  Dana raised her head. She’d torn off her frost mask and goggles and had sweaty, pain-tightened features.

  “Are you sure?” she asked in a hoarse voice.

  “The star cruiser’s beam will have charred the outer rocks,” Maddox said.

  “These blanket storms can last a long time,” Dana said. “It could be a while before anyone searches for us. There’s another problem, though. The falling snow. It will cover the charred rock.”

  The doctor had a point.

  “We’re on our own,” Keith said. “We have to explore the cave and hope there’s another way out.”

  Maddox nodded, although the fact of the SAMs gave him hope. The knowledge that Victory must be racing to Wolf Prime helped too. If there were only five star cruisers in the Wolf System, three of them had chased the ancient starship to the outer system Laumer-Point. Two of the cruisers were in orbit here. Victory could attack two star cruisers and hope to win. It meant Valerie might be able to come down in a shuttle and pick them up, if they stayed alive long enough, and if they could get in the open to use Dana’s communicator.

  Maddox told them his ideas.

  “I don’t know how far I’ll be able to travel,” Dana said. “I can’t walk anymore.”

  “You can crawl,” Maddox told her.

  “Maybe I should wait here,” Dana said. “If I come, I’ll slow you down. The stakes are too high for us to get sentimental about each other.”

  “We don’t leave our wounded behind because it’s hard work taking them along,” Maddox said. “We’re a team. A team sticks together and helps one another.”

  “Captain—”

  “Besides,” Maddox said, “you’re under orders. Mine. Until I say otherwise, you will expend every effort to keep up with the rest of the team.”

  “While I appreciate your concern—” Dana said.

  “Doctor,” Maddox said, interrupting. “I may need your expertise later. I’ll want you to convince Professor Ludendorff to come with us. This has nothing to do with sentimentality but with brute necessity.”

  Dana stared at the floor.

  “We’re wasting time talking about it,” Maddox said. “Second Lieutenant, make sure the doctor keeps up.”

  “Aye-aye, sir,” Keith said.

  Maddox shouldered the rifle case and shined the light into the depths. He hated tight places and being underground. In a half-crouch, Maddox moved deeper into the cave.

  ***

  The cave went back farther than Maddox had expected. It also slanted down. A greater feeling of claustrophobia began to settle over him. The weight of the world seemed to press against his shoulders. What if the tunnel collapsed? He would be crushed to death or pinned in place, unable to move.

  With a mental effort, Maddox forced such thoughts aside. He didn’t have a choice, as there was likely only one way out of here. He didn’t want to remain in the cave for the rest of his life.

  Maddox halted in surprise, blinking at a fork in the tunnel. Now there were two directions?
<
br />   “What’s wrong?” Dana asked.

  Maddox twisted around, shining the light on her face. Perspiration glistened on her skin. Dana crawled on her hands and knees. Behind her, Keith stood in a half-crouch, panting from the effort.

  They must have traveled a kilometer already, although it was hard to judge distances underground.

  “We have a choice to make,” Maddox said. He shined the light on the two openings.

  “Feel which one has the stir of air,” Dana said.

  Maddox nodded. He should have already thought of that. The claustrophobia was keeping him from using common sense? It was possible. He needed to keep his composure.

  Maddox stepped to each opening. The leftward one had a faint stir. The other one seemed stale.

  “Let’s go,” he said.

  Twenty steps into the new tunnel, the path angled sharply downward. Worse, condensation made the sides moist. After another twenty steps, the tunnel narrowed. In order to keep walking, Maddox had to crouch more. After another one hundred steps—he’d been counting—the contraction forced Maddox onto his hands and knees.

  “Wait a minute,” Dana wheezed from behind. “I need to rest.”

  Maddox closed his eyes and leaned against the tunnel. He didn’t want to think about how far down they had come. He didn’t want to think about anything. He just wanted to get out of here.

  “Okay,” Dana said after a time. “I can keep going.”

  Maddox started crawling again. He noticed the comm-light in his hand had begun to dim.

  Dana noticed that too. “How are you going to call the starship if we run out of battery power?”

  Maddox had no answer for that.

  “You should turn off the comm-light,” Dana said.

  Maddox didn’t want to do that. Crawling in the dark…

  “Captain—”

  “I heard you the first time,” he said sharply.

  “Well?” Dana asked.

  “I’ll shut it off in a little while. We might miss another fork if we turn off the light too soon.”

  Maddox kept crawling, and the walls continued to narrow. Soon, he had to squeeze past rock, the thermal fabric rubbing against the walls. The noise and the pressure caused his heart to thud in his chest. His breathing quickened. More and more often, he closed his eyes.