by John Walker
***
Gray read over the discovery of how they didn’t see the enemy attack them. He shared it with Clea and shook his head. A simple trick, hardly rocket science, blew out their sensors and blinded them. In another time, before their upgrades, they would’ve died. But they didn’t and now, his people learned to counter their nonsense.
If only we would’ve been one step ahead instead of three steps behind that time. He’d been so proud of himself with the bomb trick, this bit of humble pie tasted all the more foul. He deserved the self chastisement but didn’t have the time. He shook it off and directed his attention forward.
The enemy maintained their distance, probably still conducting repairs. A half hour stretched to an hour. Higgins reported more systems restored. Eventually, one side or another had to crack and attack again. The trick involved risk analysis. Were they combat effective enough to survive a second engagement? More importantly, could they catch the enemy unprepared for the next bout?
“Sir?” Agatha broke through his concentration. “We’re being hailed.”
“The enemy?” Gray exchanged a glance with Everly.
“No, they’re channel states they’re with the African League. It’s the ADF Nile.”
“Paul? Do you have them on scan?”
“Aye.” Paul checked something on his console before continuing. “They’re on a rapid approach from the enemy’s flank.”
“What the hell are they doing?” Redding asked. “They’re not planning on joining the fight, are they?”
“If they do,” Clea said, “they’ll be slaughtered.”
“Play their message, Ensign,” Gray said. “Let’s see what they have to say.”
A voice crackled over the speakers immediately. “This is Captain Jaren of the ADF Nile. We are here to engage the enemy and lend the Behemoth any aid it may require. Our superior firepower and technology will make us more than a match for the invading force.”
Clea’s brows shot up. “I believe they are actually insane.”
“Any truth to what they’re saying, Paul?”
Paul shook his head. “Conventional weapons, sir. They don’t even have a pulse drive to speak of. Maneuverability is hampered by old thrust engines…their core is fusion…its state of the art for what it is but if they start trouble with the enemy ships, they won’t stand a chance.”
Gray engaged the communicator. “Captain Jaren, this is Captain Atwell of the Behemoth. Withdraw from the combat zone immediately. You do not have the firepower to deal with this threat. The enemy we’re facing has superior armament and defenses. Your weapons won’t even penetrate their shields. I repeat, withdraw immediately!”
“You have nothing to worry about with us, Captain Atwell,” Jaren replied. “We are well trained and prepared for this engagement. We appreciate your concern but it is unnecessary.”
Gray slapped his arm rest. “Don’t be a fool, Jaren! I’m not telling you this because we’re too proud to accept help! We don’t want your people to die in a pointless exercise of vanity!”
“They’ve cut the transmission, sir,” Ensign White said.
“They’re advancing!” Tim shouted. “Look! They’re actually moving in to engage!”
“God damn it!” Atwell gestured at Redding. “Turn us around, they’re pushing our hand. Get in there to help! White, radio the Silver Star and tell them to engage immediately. All pilots, hit them now! Make it happen, people! The Nile doesn’t stand a chance without us.”
Everyone on the bridge sprung to action. Everly hit the coms with Revente, White contacted Olly and the ship began to move, fully powered and ready for action. The enemy powered up their own weapons as the Nile closed within range. The Behemoth shoved ahead, closing distance.
“I don’t think we can make it in time, sir,” Redding said. “I’m pushing it and we’ve got one hundred percent power but this…this doesn’t look like we can make it.”
“Don’t say that,” Gray replied. “Just concentrate.”
And pray the Nile can survive long enough not to get blown straight to hell.
“Thirty seconds to range,” Paul announced.
“Twenty,” Tim corrected. “Thirty for the Silver Star.”
Gray turned to his tablet and cursed under his breath. The Nile would be on the enemy in ten seconds and was probably already in range of their weapons. Pulse blasts erupted from the invading forces, cutting into the Nile and blowing straight past their inferior shields. Everly stood and took two steps forward, staring at the screen with wide eyes.
“Push it, Redding!” Gray grunted through gritted teeth. “They don’t have a lot of time!”
The Nile fired a volley of missiles, each one ineffectually flashing against the shields of the enemy as if they were no more than space pebbles crossing the wrong path. A second barrage of pulse lasers struck the Earth ship, this time causing catastrophic damage. Gray watched helplessly as the ship parted in the center, bubble explosions occurring along the hull before the engines caught.
Agatha stiffened seconds before the entire ship went up, pieces of the wreckage flung off into space. “I…I heard them scream…”
Everly turned to her. “What was that?”
“Their coms were linked to mine…” She trembled. “I heard them. Just before the explosion…I heard them.”
“Slow down,” Gray muttered. “Cancel the attack order. Pull back to our previous position.”
“Sir?” Everly turned on him, scowling. “They just annihilated an Earth vessel! Murdered every single person on board!”
“I’m aware of that, Adam.” Gray returned his severe look. “But blindly rushing in and attacking at this moment wouldn’t exactly do us any favors. We have a plan…find out what the Protocol Seven is. When we have it, we’ll employ it and send those dogs straight back to whatever hell they crawled out of.
“In the meantime, we will fight this battle with patience, strategy and intelligence. A full on assault right now, even with both ships, is not a guaranteed victory.”
“My experience suggests attacking at a time like this is the unexpected thing to do,” Everly replied. “We go in and get them after they’ve had a quick victory…and show them what it means to mess with us.”
“But yours isn’t the experience we’re listening to today,” Gray said. “Kindly work with Paul to see if there are any survivors from that explosion…escape pods or shuttle craft. Our first order of business is to save lives. Not risk our own seeking vengeance.”
“Yes, sir.” Everly sat down, albeit in a seemingly grudging manner and spoke quietly with Paul.
Gray remembered the first engagement with the enemy. He saw people die then too and it affected him just as much now as then. These people, the soldiers who attempted to help, only meant to protect their planet. Not wise, but their hearts and souls were in the right place. Like every other being, they only wanted to keep those they loved safe.
Whatever vanity or arrogance pressed them on cost them their lives but these invaders, these warmongering aliens were to blame. If they hadn’t gone on a galactic wide rampage, countless dead would still be alive. On all sides of the conflict, enemy, Alliance and human. No wonder so many banded together to stop them.
As Gray looked over the people on the bridge, he recognized the same grim determination in their expressions as he felt in his soul. He never doubted anyone’s determination but even the coolest individual must’ve felt some heat in their blood. Witnessing the death of so many human beings elevated their resolve.
“It’s the right decision,” Clea said.
“I don’t need you to tell me that.”
Clea shrugged. “I was under the impression that humans appreciated validation from time to time.”
“Now’s not that time.” Gray turned to her, softening his severe expression. “I’m sorry. But in this case, after what I just saw…I want to do what Adam suggested but I know it’s the wrong course of action.”
“Yes, we both know impul
sive behavior costs lives.” Clea turned to the view screen. “And our enemies seem to have a knack for taking advantage of weaknesses.”
“I can’t wait to exploit theirs.” Gray hit his com, connecting with Engineering. “Higgins, you’d better have some good news for me. You’ve got another few minutes for repairs. How much do you have left to do?”
“The hull damage has to wait until we can safely dock,” Higgins replied, “but those decks are sealed. All systems have been restored. I’ve had to do some rerouting of power and such but weapons, shields and engines are all ready to go.”
“Fantastic. Let’s hope the Silver Star has as good of news.”
I sure could use a little right about now.
Chapter 15
Lines of code flew across Olly’s screen, the twenty-third attempt to run the revival program without errors. It ran through each command, checking them for errors and corruption. The whole process took less than a minute but each second felt like eternity. He willed it to go faster, wishing for an instantaneous option.
The environmental suit was becoming beyond uncomfortable. Yes, the atmosphere in the ship stated it would sustain human life but none of them wanted to trust it. They remained safe in their protective gear so no one had to worry about a sudden change in temperature, oxygen or even compression.
I can’t wait to get back aboard the Behemoth.
From what Olly could tell, Paul did a fine job filling in for him. As the fourth shift guy, he proved himself big time. Would Olly have caught the radiation burst weapon? Probably not but the question would be asked in a postmortem analysis of the situation. Every decision, every action needed to be examined, justified and explained.
Unfortunately, the spirit of improving processes felt an awful lot like persecution but most of it would fall on Captain Atwell and Commander Everly. They always seemed prepared for such trials and knew how to play the games. Maybe they took a class he didn’t know about in the academy, something specific for command structure.
Bureaucracy 107, how to survive a full evaluation after a major engagement or mission. Even his made up class sounded boring as all get out.
Olly’s heart raced when the it finally finished, pausing for validation. He tapped his leg and bobbed his head, impatient for the results. Would he have to start again? He allowed a little hope to drift into his heart but deep down, he figured it would fail. A pessimistic side of him suggested the system was too far gone to fix and that he wasted his time.
Don’t give into that crap, Darnell! You’ve got this!
He stiffened when the final line came back green…the code recompiled successfully. It ran without an error. Success? He double checked the final log file and nearly whooped like the marines had earlier Dear God…it is a success!
“Guys! I did it!” Olly called into his com. “I got the revival program operational!”
“Are you kidding?” Cathleen joined him. “I can’t even believe it. That code was seriously hosed.”
“I know, right?” Olly shook his head. “Do we have access to the personnel database?”
“Let me look…” Cathleen paused to look over her own findings. She cleaned up a lot of data without even looking at the results. Now, she went back through and sent a link to Olly’s tablet. “It looks like we’re in luck. Personnel, specialty and, the part you need…pod number.”
“Fantastic!” Olly got the list of names and started scanning their specialties. Most of them were not military. Artisans, corporate workers, home makers, some children…normal citizens. The people meant to crew the Silver Star came up toward the end. Five naval soldiers and before them, a dozen ground troops. He picked the highest ranking officer. “How about this guy?”
Sid translated his title to Captain.
Cathleen nodded. “Yeah, he’d have access to all systems, right?”
“You are correct, Ensign Brooks. Captain Andu Paltein does have full security rights to the ship.”
“Can he give us Protocol Seven?” Olly asked.
“Affirmative. He does have access to such sensitive data.”
“Okay, I’m going to start the revival process.” Olly turned to the marines. “Be on the lookout for activity from one of the pods! I’m waking someone up who can help us!”
The soldiers went on high alert but Olly ignored them, going back to the application. It took several moments for it to initiate the process but once it did, they started to hear it in action. First, a hissing sound from a pod near the center of the room. The globe behind it throbbed, growing brighter before dimming. It repeated the behavior over and over as Olly’s console gave him a status update.
The person’s heart rate climbed and their vital organs essentially woke up. Respiration returned to normal levels and the body temperature rose to only slightly higher than a human. Before five minutes ran out, Captain Paltein entered regular sleep state. The suspended animation ended.
“How do we open the pod?” Cathleen asked. Just as she finished, the top melted away into the body, revealing a humanoid male with blue-black hair, smooth, slightly golden skin and several days of beard. He wore a skintight, blue suit that covered his feet but left his hands free.
The others gathered around him with Olly standing in the back. Marines held their guns at the ready, seemingly prepared for an attack. They waited quietly until the Captain gasped and arched his back. At first it looked as though he were in pain but they quickly realized he was simply stretching.
“Captain Paltein?” Olly asked. “Can you hear me?”
Sid translated automatically, issuing a series of odd syllables that made Olly’s tongue ache just thinking about trying to speak them. The man blinked, peering up at them through bright, teal eyes. They widened and he struggled to move but hadn’t fully recovered yet. He settled into the chamber, terrified but unable to leave.
Olly held up his hands. “We’re here to help…” Damn, the helmet! He really didn’t want to take it off but it might be the only way to get the guy to calm down. He disengaged the safety locks and twisted it to the right before pulling it off. “See? I’m a human…humanoid…like you. We just want to help. Your ship found the friendly culture it was looking for.”
Sid continued speaking, giving the Captain the words as quickly as Olly spoke them. It did not visibly sooth Captain Paltein but he did reply in his language, mostly mumbling a response. When he finished, Sid paused a moment before translating.
“He says he doesn’t know what you’re talking about and asks how he got here. He also wonders if you have kidnapped him.”
Olly sighed. “Sid, please let him know that we’ve woken him up from the suspended animation pod. Tell him we’re here to help.”
Cathleen tapped him on the shoulder. “The physical trauma of the suspended animation has affected his brain. I did a scan. I’m not medical track, but the tablet states he’s suffering from a form of amnesia. Must be a side effect of the process.”
“No!” Olly shook his head. “The program worked! I got it fixed. This…this shouldn’t have happened.”
“It is not the programs fault,” Sid stated. “This suspended animation technique was untested. Our people only just perfected it to not kill the inhabitant of the pod.”
“What do we do?” Cathleen asked. “I don’t think we’re equipped to help him.”
Olly stepped away, head bowed in thought. The Silver Star must’ve had a medical bay but then, they might’ve been standing in it. He could wake up a doctor but if they experienced a side effect as well, they’d have two people to care for instead of one. No, they needed a doctor to take care of this. None of his tecks could do anything for the captain.
“We have to get him back to the Behemoth.” Olly stepped over to the console. “Sid, can you download to a device? Something so Captain Paltein has a translator?”
“Affirmative. Please see the shelf to your right.”
Olly turned just in time to see a part of the ship melt away, revealing small, flat dev
ices neatly lined up. He pulled one out. “Is this a tablet of some kind?”
“A mobile processing device. Your people call them computers and tablets. Simply place it near the console and I will transfer a copy of myself to the device.”
“It’s not network capable, is it?” Cathleen warned. “I like Sid and all, but I think people would go nuts if he copied himself over to the Behemoth computers.”
“I will not ingratiate myself on your computer devices, Ensign Brooks. You have nothing to worry about.”
Olly did as he asked and shrugged at Cathleen. “Not that we have a lot of choices here. We can’t speak to the guy and if he ends up on our ship, he has to talk, you know? Besides, I trust Sid. He hasn’t screwed us over yet and I don’t see why he would now. We’re saving these people after all.”
Cathleen held up her hands. “You don’t have to convince me.”
Olly tapped his com and brought up Captain Hoffner. “Sir, we have revived one of the crew but he requires medical attention. I’d like to get him to the Behemoth as soon as possible.”
“What’s wrong with him?” Hoffner asked.
“Amnesia brought on by untested suspended animation,” Olly replied. “Plus, we’re pretty sure he needs to be checked over. This was experimental for them and God knows what else it did to him.”
“I trust he doesn’t speak English like the AI?”
“No, but we have a translation device he can take with him which will allow our staff to communicate with him.”
“Escort him to the hangar,” Hoffner replied. “I’ll get the Behemoth to send over a medical shuttle ASAP.”
“Sounds good.” Olly turned to Captain Paltein. “Sir, we need to get you to the medical bay.”
Sid’s translation seemed to make the man nervous but he agreed in his language.
“I don’t think he should walk,” Olly said. “Do you have a gurney or anything here, Sid?”
“Affirmative. Please check in the back of the room. I have opened the storage room where some medical supplies are stored. Sadly, the perishables have lost their seal and are no longer good but the gurney will be quite sufficient to transport Captain Paltein to your vessel.”
