“It feels like someone hit it with a hammer.”
“Here, take two of these and call me in the morning.”
Randall smiled. “Thanks for the pills, but who is Doctor Me?”
Addison giggled quietly as she slowed to come along side Guardian. “This is where the call went out, sir.”
Randall checked the satellite chart Verna had given him a few days ago but there was nothing listed at this position. It was larger than most of the ones he had seen and flat black.
“This is it. The Black Knight.”
“Are you sure, sir?”
“I know a way to find out.”
“How?”
“I’m going over there.”
“Are you sure you want to do that, sir?”
Randall looked at Penelope without expression.
“Aye sir, be careful.”
Not long after, Randall was staring at a modern-day keypad as he stood on a narrow ledge that served as a step for the main access door of the satellite.
“This looks familiar. Let’s get the cover off and see what’s behind door number one.” After prying the cover off he turned it over and soon began to laugh.
“Vixen to Ferryman. Are you ok, sir?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
Randall pulled two wires off the back of the keyboard and crossed them. A second later the hatch opened, and he went inside. Two minutes more and he had returned to 107 with an interesting item for Sela to inspect. Now back on the bridge, he went to Sela’s weapons station, placed the cover from the keypad on her console and only said one word. “Gvwadalidasdi!”
Sela grinned as she picked up the cover. “It’s a trick?”
“Look at the back. Do you recognize anything?”
Slowly she flipped the pad over and began shaking her head in disbelief. “The Sirius logo! Was it made by Sirius, or is Sirius maintaining it?”
“I don’t know for sure who built it, but we’ll soon find out.”
Addison looked totally bewildered. “How is the satellite going to help us find the people that use it?”
The question caused Randall to smile. “It’s not going to help us find them. It’s going to help them find us. While I was over there I sent them a message.”
“You sent them a message? How?”
“I pulled the plug. When the owners realize it’s off line they’ll come to check on it and we’ll be here when they do.”
Penelope looked concerned as she reminded him of his orders. “Sir, you have a meeting in less than two hours with the general and other ship commanders at HQ, and besides that, you aren’t even supposed to be here in the first place.”
“Yes, well, I’m not going anywhere until I find out what happened to Verna, and if I’m correct it won’t be long before the ones who use the satellite respond. As for the meeting, we can listen in from here, but meanwhile I’m going to lie down for a few minutes. COM, stay on your scopes and let me know when they arrive, or if there’s anything new on Verna and the lieutenant.”
“I’m still confused, Sir. When who arrives?” Randall didn’t answer as he closed the door to his quarters and collapsed on the bed.
“Sela, who does he think is coming.”
“Dosvdali anisgaya.”
“Who?”
“The Ant Men.”
Chapter 13
An hour later Penelope was watching scan 316 as a large ship materialized on her SRN screen, and when she checked its speed she had to do a double take.
“Whoa! Commander, I have a large ship approaching us at half the speed of light!”
“On my way.”
Randall was on the bridge in seconds. “Put them on main viewer. Can you identify?”
“I’m trying, but they’re so fast SRN is constantly recalibrating.”
“I’d say they received my message; time?”
“Three minutes. They’re slowing… ha, got it! Rigelian. It’s Kontana’s ship.”
“Randall looked at Sela and grinned. “This should be interesting.”
“Sir, Kontana is signaling us.”
“Put him through.”
“Commander Randall, this is Kontana. Since you are not authorized for direct communication with us I am going to assume you have damaged our satellite in effort to gain our attention.”
“Welcome back, Kontana. Your assumption is half right. I shut down Guardian, but it has not been damaged.”
“What is it that you require?”
“To start, identification. I did not know the satellite’s origin. For some time now, I have been searching for alien spy satellites and when I found this one I decided to find out who placed it in orbit. And so, here you are.”
“You do realize, Commander, that we are allies. We are not spying on you. We are trying to help protect Earth.”
“Of course, but it strikes me as odd that our ally would have a covert observation platform monitoring this planet. There are no Rigelian markings on the craft and it does not appear on our satellite charts. What else was I supposed to think?”
“Commander, for several reasons Guardian frequently changes orbit, but that is not your concern. I believe I understand why you took it upon yourself to try and solve what you perceive as a mystery, and to protect your planet. But those with a need to know, like Cheveyo and your government, are aware of our monitoring station, and they are involved with its operation and maintenance. Its presence was a mystery only to you. It has been here for a very long time and will remain.
“Your actions today have caused us great inconvenience and precious time away from other important responsibilities. I am tempted to speak to your superiors, but out of consideration for Cheveyo I will allow you this one mistake. We will now reactivate the platform and you will not interfere with its operation again. In the future you should take your concerns to Cheveyo. If she determines there is a need, she knows how to contact us.”
“Sir, power has been remotely restored to the satellite! But how?”
Randall glanced at Penelope and shook his head. “Well, that’s very magnanimous of you Kontana, not to report me, but Verna is not here that I could go through her to you. In fact, she’s missing, and since you are here, may I ask if you are aware there is a large fleet of Emim, Nephilim and Grey ships headed this way?”
“Yes, we are aware, and will be monitoring the situation provided there is no further interference. What do you mean, she is missing?”
“An Emim ship was here less than two hours ago. It now appears it acquired a smaller DSSF ship and they may have inadvertently collected Captain Starr and her personal aide along with it. I believe she was here working on Guardian when the ship was taken.”
“We were aware an Emim ship was in orbit briefly, but not that it had interactions with another vessel. Standby Commander, while we review the satellite’s data banks.” A few moments later Kontana was greatly alarmed as he watched Starr’s Interrogator drawn into the Emim ship.
“Commander, our recordings show a DSSF ship being taken by the Emim. Do you believe Cheveyo is on that vessel?”
“It’s a strong possibility.”
“This is very alarming. Not long after the Emim ship departed it entered what you term a wormhole. It is possible they are returning to their home world or they may have gone to an exceptionally dark region of space they use to escape their enemies. There they commit many atrocities to those who oppose them.”
“Their home planet would be in the Etamin system?”
“Correct.”
“And this dark region?”
“Your star charts call it the Bootes Void. It is a considerable distance, even for us.”
“Kontana, please standby. COM, close communications.”
“Line closed, sir.”
“Oh my God! They were aboard that Emim ship! We have to track them down.”
The look on Penelope’s face was one of total confusion. “Track them down, how? You can’t smell or see tracks in space and they’re no
t on SRN.”
“There are always signs. A true Taslagi agateno (Cherokee tracker) uses all eight senses when hunting.”
Addison’s face quickly revealed she, too, was confused. “All eight senses, sir? I thought there were only five senses?”
The commander glanced at her and grinned. “There’s that face again, Sela. Explain.”
“The eight senses of a tracker are sight, smell, touch, taste, hearing, mind, spirit and experience.”
“COM… nav info.”
“Draco is approximately 47 parsecs or 153 light years from Earth.” Penelope watched as Randall turned to look at the forward viewer as though he were contemplating a voyage to Etamin.
“I don’t think we have provisions for that long, sir.”
“Open comline again. Kontana, do you think your ship can find them?”
“Yes, but it may take some time. We will send out a call for all Rigelian ships to search the nearest star systems for the Emim ship. It’s possible their commander does not know they are onboard, but if Starr has been discovered and he understands her importance to your world, it may already be too late.”
“Then we have to get started at once! I’ll come over to your ship and accompany you.”
“There is no time for that. We will do our best to find her, but the odds are not in our favor. I will contact you again when we have something to report. Be patient, Commander. Trust me.”
As Kontana terminated the transmission, it only took a quick glance at Randall for Sela to confirm her suspicions. “I know what you’re thinking, sir, but we don’t know how to activate a wormhole, and even if we did, we wouldn’t know where to look. Without proper charts we don’t even know where a wormhole would lead.”
At first Randall said nothing as he nodded in agreement to Sela’s counsel, but as he did she saw him begin to grin. “Since the Rigelians have been reluctant to share their technology, I’ve been working on how we can utilize it without actually having it ourselves. Much like the mighty flea, I believe I have a solution for at least one voyage but it might be a one-way trip. Ladies, this ship and I are going with Kontana whether he likes it or not. All of you may stay behind, but I have to move quickly! Please activate your pods and prepare to eject.”
The stunning announcement caught the lieutenants completely off guard, and for just an instant they were all left frozen at their stations.
Sela was the first to respond. “No, sir! Where you go, we go! Right ladies?”
From his command chair Randall could see all three. “Penelope?”
“Yes, sir, I’m with you!”
“Addison?”
“Absolutely! But how do we take advantage of their technology?”
Randall smiled as he ordered, “Skin to black!” Quickly Randall punched up an external schematic of Kontana’s ship and displayed it on their monitors.
“On your screens you will see I’ve highlighted an area on top of Kontana’s ship, aft, where we can use two of our tow cables to attach 107 to their ship.” On their screens the lieutenants could see a pair of ring shaped structures marked by small red circles indicating where Randall wanted the ship tied down.
“We’re going to become a…parasite?”
“Exactly! I’m sure they will be underway very soon, so we have to move quickly! Addison, get us into position just above the anchor points indicated and drop our landing gear. Sela, once we’re in position attach the cable clamps to those ring-like supports forward and aft, then wench us down gently but tight, and do not let us bang into them! We must be quiet!”
“Aye, sir.”
In only a few seconds Addison had them hovering just above the massive ship. Sela used the grappling gear to attach the forward cable in record time and was almost finished with the aft line when they suddenly began to move.
As the almost mile long vessel rapidly accelerated Randall snapped, “Get it done, Lieutenant!”
“Aye, sir… done! We’re locked down as tight as we’re going to get.”
“Good job! Window armor up, seal all bulkheads, secondary systems to standby, minimum power. Activate full suit life support, helmets closed and suits pressurized. Strap in tight and hold on! You ladies are in for quite a ride!”
His last comment caused Sela to quickly turn sideways in her seat as she gazed at him as though she’d had an epiphany. At the edge of his peripheral vision he detected her reflexive turn and for just an instant she saw the commander’s Oh crap expression cross his face. Quickly turning away from her he pretended not to notice her as he finished strapping down.
Randall knew if Sela had caught his slip up she would soon be asking for more details. In order to head her off, he began rattling off information in an assuming tone. “No doubt we’ll be accelerating much faster than we ever have before. Try to remain calm and breathe normally. If they open a wormhole there may be turbulence of some kind as we cross the event horizon or even within the conduit. I suppose there might even be electrical discharges along the way, similar to lighting, but I don’t think it will be too rough.”
From even a short distance away the fighter would have seemed small by comparison. Addison had adjusted the skin color of 107 well, causing it to blend in perfectly with the gigantic vessel, and as 107 settled down, it became virtually invisible. Moments later a large dull white shaft of light appeared directly ahead of them.
Their speed toward the shaft continued to increase and soon the human crew of 107 was pushed to the limits of their abilities to think or move. As predicted there was a bit of a bump as they entered the channel but after a few seconds the ride became fairly smooth with only an occasional electrical discharge. The energy released by the bolts appeared to dance around the Rigelian ship the way lighting moves around a common jet airliner.
Penelope jerked in her seat when she heard Starr’s voice loudly warn, “Abort! Vibrations approaching design limits!”
“COM, set ship to maximum internal pressure!” It took every ounce of strength Penelope could muster to adjust the dials, but somehow, she managed to execute the order. “Max pressure… aye!”
“Pilot, speed?”
Barely able to move her mouth and just prior to passing out Addison answered, “Point seven light speed and increasing.”
Randall struggled to remain conscious as they entered the channel, but he was alert enough to see some kind of conduit beginning to form around the huge ship as they entered a wormhole. Shortly after, the vibrations and G forces returned to normal and from that point on he and the lieutenants slowly began to recovery mobility.
Once the Rigelian ship achieved its desired velocity things began to return to normal within 107. Soon the crew recovered full mobility and Penelope was the first to speak. “That was unreal! I’ll never complain about Addison’s max speed take offs again.”
Addison laughed, “I can barely feel any motion at all now.”
“Is everyone alright?”
“I think so,” came the replies.
Randall tried to focus on the main viewer in order to monitor events outside of the ship, but for a moment he thought his eyes had been damaged by the rapid acceleration to light speed. At first glance the stars appeared distorted but after a few moments to refocus, well beyond the aberrations he could see several constellations through the surrounding energy field and a few seemed to be growing brighter.
Penelope was in awe of the ride. “Sir, how do they keep from running into random objects or even planets?”
“I’m not sure, but I would guess that over the eons they have developed very specific channels and detailed maps of where space has the least number of objects or zones with little or no debris. If you watch the screen every so often you’ll see beams emanate from the ship that strike objects ahead of or alongside the vessel. I think they are using lasers to sweep the corridor of smaller objects as we go.”
Sela’s eyes were glued to her monitor. “This isn’t too bad now that we are cruising but what happens when we emerge from
the channel?”
Randall shook his head. “I’m not sure, but we should anticipate a rough ride from extremely high G forces as we slow down. For that reason, I want you all to remain strapped in and pray the grappling cables hold.”
Addison nodded her head rapidly as she responded. “I’ve been praying since the Emim ship first appeared. We’re in deep buffalo chips!”
Sela laughed. “Yeah, and don’t forget we’re missing the general’s mandatory meeting right about now. He’s going to love that. We’ll be in the septic tank for sure when we get back.”
Penelope thought for a moment, smiled, then quietly professed. “You know, I’m not worried about any of it; not the Emim, the enemy fleet or even how to get back. No matter how many times Commander Randall falls in the pig pen, he always comes out smelling like a rose and since we’re with him, we will too.”
Randall smiled when he heard her statement. “Let’s hope so, Lieutenant.”
Sela suddenly sat fully erect in her chair. “Do you feel the vibrations?”
Glancing at her console Addison announced their current status. “Speed decreasing. We’re out of the channel!”
“Here we go. All hands brace for deceleration.” Their forward screen clearly indicated they had exited into normal space as the ship’s speed steadily decreased. They had only slowed to .80 light speed, but it was almost enough for them to get their bearings.
“COM, where are we?”
“I can’t tell without an optical scan, sir, and the Rigelians are sure to detect us if I do.”
“Then let’s do it old school. Retract window armor.”
Randall made his way over to the glass and stood for about a minute before he was sure of his star references. “I’ve got it. The star directly ahead is Etamin and we seem to be near the second planet. I’d say Kontana is scanning the system for the Emim ship.”
As he was about to return to his seat Randall saw three Emim ships rapidly emerge from channels close to them. In seconds the Rigelian ship was taking fire on both sides and from above. The huge ship was being rocked hard by a barrage of laser bolts and missiles; most of it striking the Rigelian vessel.
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