To top things off, the Captain had no experience commanding starships that she knew of.
On the Independence, Captain Yamato mentored her, grooming her to be a starship captain. What would Captain Pike mentor her on? Assassination tactics?
And this mission could take years. She had taken a big risk. She hoped it was worth it.
Arriving at Engineering she found the same frenzy of movement taking place throughout the ship. Here, perhaps even more so.
A thick chemical smell filled the air, making her want to cover her nose. Throughout the massive room machine battled with human, each trying to be heard over the other. It all seemed like a bizarre ordered chaos.
The ship’s enormous reactors dominated the room, dwarfing everything else by comparison. At the foot of one of the reactors, a man had a panel open, conducting what appeared to be some form of maintenance.
Tall, dark and lean, he stood perfectly straight. He wore a one-piece engineering jumpsuit and carried an ornate dagger on his belt. A tight turban sporting the Hermes emblem covered his head.
The man did not notice her approach, and rather than letting him know she was there she stood quietly and watched him work. He moved with an elegant precision. His strong hands purposeful and exact, they were almost magical in their efficiency. Broad shoulders filled out the jumpsuit, the fabric stretched by the knots of muscle on his back.
As worried as she was about this mission, she knew she could not stay aboard the Independence while this man was away on the Hermes in some uncharted part of the galaxy. The moment Chief Engineer Rajneesh Singh was assigned to the Hermes, Wolfe volunteered.
Singh became aware of someone behind him and turned to see who it was. A smile spread across his face when he saw it was Wolfe.
“Well this is a pleasant surprise,” said Singh.
Wolfe returned his smile. Her heart quickened. That smile had always made her feel weak in the knees. “I thought I’d check and see how things were coming. The captain wants a readiness report.”
“We are ready now. The bulk of the work now is maintenance and redundant testing to ensure we haven’t missed anything.”
“Good. I’ll need a report from you for the captain.”
“Absolutely. I’ll have one for you by the end of the day.”
“Thanks.”
Singh looked at her with analytical scrutiny. That look always made her feel like she was under a microscope. “Is everything alright? You seem pre-occupied.”
“I’m just trying to adjust to the Hermes. It’s proving to be more difficult than I thought it would be.”
Singh frowned and looked down at his feet. “You should have stayed on the Independence. You were on the perfect career track there. I don’t know why you volunteered for this post.”
“You know why I did it, Raj.”
Singh looked at her directly in the eyes. “No, Commander, I do not.”
Wolfe averted her gaze, feeling the microscope lens again. “I did it to be with you, Raj. I did it for us.”
“There is no us, Commander.” Singh’s eyes darted about, worried that his voice had been too loud. He continued in a hushed tone. “Whatever we had is over. You need to accept that and move on.”
Wolfe struggled to suppress the emotions boiling over inside her. Her shoulders slumped ever so slightly and her stomach hollowed out. “I know you still care about me, Raj. I’m not going to let you throw away what we have.”
Singh’s tone became tender and apologetic. “Lynda please, we’ve been through this before. Of course I care for you. I always will. But it just can’t work between us.”
The change in Singh’s tone lifted Wolfe’s spirits slightly and she took in a deep breath. She locked eyes with Singh again and let him see the confidence and determination that possessed her. “You love me, Raj. I know you do. And I love you. That’s all that matters. You’ll see.”
Singh frowned again, a look of resignation in his eyes. “If that is all, Commander, I have a lot of work to do.”
Wolfe knew they shouldn’t be having this discussion while on duty. She straightened her back and adjusted her uniform. “That is all.”
Singh snapped a salute, his eyes expressionless and staring straight ahead at some invisible point behind her. Wolfe saluted in return, turned and walked out of Engineering.
CHAPTER 7
“Your move,” said Security Chief Kevin St. Clair, trying to keep his Sergeant’s mind on the game. A few meters away from them, a group of off duty Marines were making jokes and laughing over a game of poker. But that wasn’t what had the Sergeant distracted.
“Yeah, sure.” Sergeant Henderson nodded, scanning the chess board. His hand came up and raked through his crew cut. Deep craters formed on his broad forehead accenting his severely crooked nose.
He studied the board for a bit longer and looked back up at Kevin. He had small, dark, menacing eyes, which were known to make even the bravest recruit practically crap themselves.
“The thing is, with this new jump system, we’ve really got a shot. We can install this thing on all our battleships and then who’s gonna fuck with us?”
Kevin rolled his eyes. Here we go again, he thought. With the exception of Captain Pike, there was nobody other than Sergeant Henderson he would rather go into a fire fight with. Smart, tough and disciplined, Kevin knew he could count on him to get things done.
But for all his good qualities, he kept rambling on about his theories and philosophies. Most were afraid to tell him to shut up, and Kevin figured he knew it. It didn’t matter much, though. The man had earned the right to talk, as far as Kevin was concerned.
“See the Diakans, they’ve been helping us take out the Juttari, but we’ve got to stand on our own two feet,” Henderson continued. “We need to be self-sufficient.”
“Are you going to move, or not?”
“Yeah, sure.” Sergeant Henderson picked up a bishop and slid it across the board. “Look, when we find the lost colonies and reunite them with Earth, we’ll easily double in size. Hell, we may even triple. Who knows how many people there are there. Five hundred years is a long time. The Juttari practically wiped us out, but the colonies? They probably just kept on growing. Once we get together with them, we can setup their ships with their own jump systems and there’ll be no stopping us.”
“How do you know they’ll even want to join up with us? How do you know they still exist? You’re right, five hundred years is a long time. Anything could’ve happened to them. War. Plague. You name it.” Kevin grabbed his queen with a big, meaty hand and moved it across the board, taking Henderson’s bishop. “Check.”
Henderson jerked his head back, surprised by Kevin’s move. “Damn, I didn’t see that,” he said, moving his king out of the enemy queen’s line of fire.
“No, you didn’t,” said Kevin, moving his queen again and seizing one of Henderson’s pawns. “Check. Mate in two.” He looked across the table at Henderson, who looked confused. “You know what else you didn’t see? Earth is like this here king,” he said, pointing at the Sergeant’s besieged piece. “You want your king to overcome the overwhelming force amassed against it, but in the end, there is just too much firepower pointed at it.”
“This is a chess board, not the galaxy.”
“Same thing. Your position is crumbling. Why? It wasn’t strong enough from the start. Earth is the same. If it were to try and go it alone its position would fall apart as well. There is no power base without the aliens. Since the position defending the king wasn’t strong to begin with, it eventually lost control of the board. Once my pieces took control of the board’s strategic squares, checkmate was just a matter of time.
“Say this board here is the galaxy. The Diakans and the Juttari control all the strategic squares. Jump system or no jump system, colonies or no colonies, Earth can’t stand on its own. We need the Diakans. They control the board. Without them we’re dead. Like your king.”
Henderson studied the board a whil
e longer and shook his head. Reaching out with a thick index finger he knocked over his king. “You’re right, the aliens control the board. The thing is, those squares they control are the jump gates. With this jump system, we’re going to make us a new board, and all the squares are gonna be up for grabs. And we’re grabbing those new squares first. Before the Diakans and Juttari know it, they’ll be playing in a new game. We’ll be the ones controlling the board.”
A smile spread across Henderson’s scarred face and he reached across the board offering a handshake. “Good game, Chief.”
CHAPTER 8
The ship’s sickbay followed a Diakan design. A small preliminary room greeted the visitor with doors on all sides leading to a web of larger interconnecting spaces. The wall facing the entrance had a large window through which Doctor Ellerbeck’s office was visible.
Jon could see Ellerbeck seated in front of a translucent screen, busy at work. Looking up she smiled at Jon and gestured for him to come into her office.
Her door slid open and Jon stepped through. Ellerbeck stood from her desk and saluted. She was taller than Jon had thought, and quite attractive. There was a quiet elegance about her.
She was thin, yet strong, like a ballet dancer. Freckles loosely dotted her fair skin, fanning out across her cheeks. A crop of red hair accented eyes that were as calm as a pool of water.
Jon returned the salute and motioned for her to sit down. He pulled up a chair opposite her desk and sat as well.
“Thank you for making time for me Captain. As I mentioned, I need to do a physical on you and your symbiont,” said Ellerbeck.
“You know about my symbiont?” Her knowledge made him a little uncomfortable.
“Of course, Captain. I’ve been fully briefed on your medical history. As your doctor I need to know everything about your health.”
“And you know how to care for a symbiont?” said Jon, becoming hopeful. The Diakans weren’t famous for their bedside manner. He felt more like a lab rat than a patient under their care. But here was a human who might change all that.
“I am well versed in both human and Diakan medicine, and that includes host – symbiont medicine. Of course, your situation is quite unique, as you are the first and only human to successfully host a Diakan symbiont.”
Lucky me, Jon thought.
“The combination presents some challenges,” said Ellerbeck.
“Yes, the Diakans have told me that I can’t remove the symbiont. If I do so, it will kill me. Is that how you understand it, Doctor?”
“Yes, Captain. That is correct. But you see it works both ways. The symbiont is also dependent on you for its survival. Let’s say, for example, something happened to you and you died. In that case the symbiont would die. Now let’s say something happened to the symbiont and it died…”
“...I die as well.”
“That is correct, Captain.”
Jon didn’t like what he was hearing. Even after what Ambassador Varyos had told him, he still believed he had options. But if Ellerbeck’s explanation was true, then he had no options. No escape. He was condemned to carry that thing inside him until the end of his days.
Ellerbeck’s brow furrowed making Jon wonder if she could read his thoughts. “Diakans live in harmony with their symbionts their entire lives. Both benefit in numerous ways from the relationship,” said Ellerbeck.
“I’m not a Diakan, Doctor,” said Jon. He hoped this was not the beginning of a sermon.
“Yes, Captain. Your physiology is different from that of a Diakan, and that presents some unique challenges.”
“Unique challenges? Are you kidding? I have a hostile alien using my gut as a bunker, and I can’t get rid of the goddamn thing. That is one hell of a unique challenge, wouldn’t you say?”
“Forgive me, Captain, I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“I’m not upset, Doctor, I’m just stating a fact.”
“Captain, a Diakan symbiont is a sentient being. You are likely just as alien to it as it is to you. It needs to adapt to you as a host, as much as you need to adapt to it as a symbiont. More importantly, you both need to accept and trust each other.”
“Accept? Trust? Doctor, that’s not going to happen.”
“Maybe not right away, but I want you to think about it. If you are feeling hostility towards your symbiont, it will mirror that emotion and be hostile towards you. If you don’t trust your symbiont, it will not trust you. You both need to trust each other. You cannot continue to act separately. You need to live in harmony. This is how Diakans...”
“…I’m not Diakan, Doctor.”
“Yes, of course. Still, you are host to a Diakan symbiont. You need to find harmony with your symbiont in the same way a Diakan does.
“With all due respect, Doctor, everything you’re saying sounds like some kind of fairy tale. The thing inside me is not some cuddly little pet. It is an aggressive, dangerous monster.”
There was a reaction from the creature. It didn’t like Jon’s comment.
Monster, Jon taunted.
He suddenly felt a painful cramp in his side.
Little prick!
The cramp went away.
Ellerbeck watched him closely. “Just think about it,” she said.
“Very well. Now how about that physical?”
“Of course, Captain. If you’ll follow me into the examination room, we can get started.”
Ellerbeck stood and walked out the door as Jon followed. They stepped through another door in the reception area and entered a much larger room. It was the same slate gray coloring as the rest of the ship. There were ten beds, five on each side. All stark and clinical. An array of what looked like Diakan diagnostic equipment connected to each bed.
Ellerbeck walked to the closest bed and motioned for Jon to lie down. She then started a series of scans and probes. A translucent holographic screen appeared floating in the air above Jon, and instantly displayed the results of each test.
“You are remarkably healthy, Captain, as is your symbiont,” said Ellerbeck.
Jon shrugged. It was nothing he didn’t already know.
“Captain, I am seeing traces of alien narcotics in your system.” Ellerbeck looked down at Jon. “Care to tell me about it?”
Jon met her gaze but stayed silent.
“Captain, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s going on.”
Jon sighed, there was no point trying to argue with the doctor’s scans. “Red Dust. I use it from time to time when I’m on R&R.”
“Are you addicted?”
“No. It helps with the creature.”
“You mean the symbiont?”
“Yeah.”
“You take this Red Dust to quiet it?”
“Yeah. Sometimes it’s too much, having that thing in my head all the time.” Was he telling her too much? He didn’t know how far he could trust the doctor.
“I understand. Sometimes it can overpower its host. This would be a greater risk in your case. I can’t believe countermeasures weren’t taken to avoid this.”
“What do you mean?”
“As I said, you need to learn to live in harmony with your symbiont. But there is an adjustment period, and countermeasures are usually taken to avoid conflict.”
“What type of conflict?” He already knew what the doctor was going to say, but still wanted to hear her say it.
“In rare cases symbionts have been known to try and take control of the host. Considering the aggressive nature of your symbiont and the fact that you’re not Diakan, you would be at a greater risk. I would think that precautions would’ve been taken.”
More proof that he was nothing more than a lab rat to the Diakans. They wanted to see if the creature would take control of him. Maybe they wanted it to be in control rather than the other way around? Then he would be a true Diakan puppet. Maybe they wanted to make their own version of the Chaanisar? He wouldn’t put it past them.
“At any rate, you don’t have to take t
his Red Dust, Captain. I’ll give you medication that will prevent anymore issues. You’ll still experience the same benefits, but you won’t have to fight the symbiont for control of your body.”
Relief washed over him, but it mingled with a growing anger. Why hadn’t the Diakans given him this medication themselves?
Ellerbeck focused on her work again, her fingers dancing across the holographic display. After conducting numerous seemingly routine scans her fingers stopped moving and she just stared at the information floating in front of her. “This is incredible. The symbiont has established a protective barrier. I haven’t seen anything like this before.”
“What are you saying, Doctor?”
A look of wonder had spread across Ellerbeck’s face. For a moment it seemed like she hadn’t heard Jon’s question. Then she glanced at Jon and responded. “Captain, the symbiont is shielding you from all infectious agents. No pathogens can penetrate this barrier. You are essentially immune to any infection or disease. I don’t believe any free radicals or parasites can penetrate the barrier either. This is amazing.”
“So, you’re saying I can’t get sick?”
“It’s more than that. From the look of these readings it may be much more. I have to study this information more thoroughly to be sure.”
“Doctor?”
“I’m sorry, Captain. I don’t want to speculate until I’ve analyzed the data.”
“Then tell me what you’re sure of. From the sound of it you’re saying that I can’t get sick, correct?”
“Yes, Captain. That is correct.”
“And what do you mean when you say, it’s more than that?”
“I can’t be sure until I’ve studied the data.”
“Humor me.”
She hesitated to respond, her apprehension clearly visible. Her lips tightened, she took a deep breath and answered. “Do you remember when I told you that if you die the symbiont dies?”
“Yes, of course.”
“From the look of these readings the symbiont is not just preventing you from getting sick, its preventing you from dying.”
The Pike Chronicles - Books 1 - 10 Page 4
