by Jay Toney
"Natty, give me a hand. I need to make the ship less visible to other starships. I think Nathaniel calls it running dark?" I switched our sensor sweeps from active to passive. We still emitted some energy from our sensors but much less, making it harder for others to detect our EMF. Natasha powered down our drives, eliminating our drive plume, and Tanya silenced the ship's transponders. Turning off the transponders was illegal, unethical, and supposed to be something that couldn't be done, at least not without great difficulty. It was a modification Nathaniel frequently used on the Queen Anne's Revenge. He insisted that the Persephone's transponders got modified too. Only pirates, smugglers, and other spacers hiding from the law did it. Nathaniel was all that and more, but he was loved by the people of San Paulos. Natty turned off our formation and anti-collision lights. Then she lowered armored shutters into place, covering the Persephone's viewports. Covering the starships viewports was done as a precaution whenever the ship's shields were raised for combat, or we entered hyperspace. Now they covered our viewports to hide the light. The Persephone vanished, hidden by the darkness of space. Bonifer's sun was too far away to provide any light.
The Valley Forge took the lead position in our two-ship formation. The Persephone coasted across the Bonifer system, hiding in the sensor shadow of the Valley Forge. We were in deep space and could jump to hyperspace as soon as our jump capacitors finished charging, but we were not in a favorable position to enter hyperspace for the Nueva Zelanda star system. Natasha's calculations estimated that it would take 11 more hours to reach a jump point with the proper vector. There was little that could be done, except for waiting and hoping we wouldn't meet with an Alliance patrol or pirates.
"Natasha, maintain passive sensor sweeps. Notify me if there is any change. I'm going to sickbay."
"Are you ill?"
"No, I just want to check on Nathaniel."
****
"Dad, how long are you going to keep me here?"
"As long as it takes for the nanites to finish mending your shoulder. You're lucky, Jane and Amber did an excellent job removing the shrapnel and patching you up. If it wasn't for them, you might not be here now. Don't ever tell them I said that or you will spend the rest of your life here in sickbay as a permanent resident."
"Then who will run the ship?"
"I will. I was the ship's captain for the last 50 years. There is no reason I can't resume being in command."
"I thought you wanted to retire?"
"I still do. I have enough credits to keep me in comfort for the rest of my life. Now, I am looking for the right place."
"Can Amber and Jewel, at least, spend some private time with me."
"Spending time with Amber and Jewel in your condition is why you are staying in sickbay. I can keep an eye on you here, and make sure you don't cause further injury to your shoulder and arm. Those two hellcats would have you back in here within the hour if I let you go."
"They are anything but hellcats. Amber is a lot like me. Jewel is the sweetest and nicest person I have ever met. She just tends to get a little playful."
"A little playful? Jewel dislocated David's shoulder. He stopped by on the way to his ship. I had to repair the torn ligaments and tendons in his shoulder and leg. His injuries came from spending private time with Jewel."
"How much longer do you think it will take for my shoulder to heal enough to leave?"
"The nanites are doing a good job mending your flesh, and you are healing fast, perhaps another day or two if you quit using your arm."
****
"Amber, I'm glad to see you. I've missed you."
"I'm glad to see you back in the world of the living."
"I would say thank you, for the great job you and Jane did on my wounds, but Doc promised he'd make me regret it if I did."
"Nathaniel," Doc warned, "what was it I was just telling you? Oh yes, you might be here for another month or two undergoing extensive nerve regeneration. I regret to inform you that you may never regain full use of your arm again."
Amber turned white and looked as if she may collapse. When Doc turned away, I smiled and raised my arm up wiggling my fingers. I used it to point at Doc and zipped my lips. She got the message.
"Get me up to date, what is happening?"
"By now the Alliance knows we intercepted the Valley Forge. They will come to investigate. I'm trying everything I can think of to get us home safely. I'm running towards the Alliance, hoping to sneak through their lines with a ruse. The other routes are even riskier."
"Where are we?"
"The Bonifer System. I have our engines powered down, on standby to eliminate our drive plumes. I've also reduced our electromagnetic radiation as much as possible and turned off our transponders. The ship is coasting alongside the Valley Forge, close enough to hide in its sensor shadow."
"You are doing a fantastic job. How long will it be before we can jump out of here?"
"It will take about 11 to reach a jump point with a favorable vector for the Nueva Zelanda star system."
"Let me know if there is anything I can do to help."
Amber hugged and kissed me. It would have turned into a lot more, but Doc was standing over us, preventing us from having a little fun.
"Doc, can I at least have access to comms? I might be able to offer advice or help from here."
"I don't see any harm in that. I'll leave comm access open for you.
****
I returned to the bridge, happier, after my visit with Nathaniel. Jewel was in her quarters resting, and Natasha and Tanya were gone. Natasha had no idea where her avatar was, only that she was with Tanya. They were probably up to something that would get them into trouble.
It was supposed to be my rest cycle, but I didn't want to be alone, nor did I want to suffer from the nightmares that Nathaniel kept from haunting me. I brought up the tactical display on the main viewscreen, so far there were only two ships on the viewscreen. I felt uncomfortable sitting in Nathaniel's chair and got up and sat in mine. I stared at the instruments and sensor readouts on my screens and prayed that they stayed blank.
I must have dozed off. When I looked up, my dead husband was hanging from a rope on the bridge. His eyes didn't have the vacant stare of death. They were staring down at me, aware of where I was and that I was sharing my bed with a new husband. Why wouldn't Stan leave me alone? I knew it was a dream, but it looked and felt real to me. I tried to wake, but the nightmare wouldn't release me from its hold on me. Stan started to speak.
An alarm sounded diverting my attention from what Stan was trying to say. This was a new element to the dreams that haunted me. My dead husband never spoke to me in my nightmares. The alarms grew louder, breaking my attention. I couldn't hear what Stan was trying to tell me; I woke.
"What is it, Natasha?"
"I have two targets ahead. Their transponders identify them as the Falcon and the Gryphon. Both ships are Alliance scout ships."
"Have they seen us?"
"Negative."
"Sound alert condition yellow, all officers, to the bridge."
****
"Doc, something is wrong. Amber just sounded alert condition yellow."
"Unless we are under attack, or until your shoulder is finished healing, you are confined to sickbay."
"She may need my help."
"Amber can ask you for advice, over the ship's comms, but you are staying here."
Doc left, locking the sickbay door behind him. No one could enter without his access code, worse; I couldn't get out. I was stuck here.
****
"Nathaniel, we're not going to be able to bluff t
he Alliance without visual communications. Do you have any ideas that may help?"
"Send a shuttle over to the captured destroyer. Make sure our men are armed and wearing power armor. They will probably run into Alliance soldiers. Have them go to the bridge, and the officer's quarters, gathering all of the uniforms and rank insignia they can find. Doc or Jane can make the captain's insignia in our machine shop and duplicate Captain Thornton's decorations."
"I'll dispatch a team right away and get Doc and Jane busy making the captain bars and medals. How will you impersonate Captain Thornton from sickbay?"
"I won't be able to. Doc is better suited to impersonating him. He mentioned that he met Captain Thornton a long time ago. He never talks about what happened at that meeting, not even to me. With your skills with cosmetics, you and Jewel shouldn't have any problems making Doc look like Captain Thornton.
"Doc isn't going to keep you in sickbay for a month or two, is he?"
"No, I'll be out in a day or two.
Chimes sounded for Amber's attention, bringing her focus back to what was happening on the bridge.
"Amber, I am intercepting a communications signal between the Gryphon and the Valley Forge," Natasha reported.
"Can we listen in on the conversation without them knowing?"
"You are as devious as Nathaniel. I see why he married you."
"Captain Jenkins, what is that hulk you are towing, and where is your escort?"
"That hulk is the remains of my escort. Rebels ambushed my ship and its escorts. They destroyed the Raven and crippled the Jackel before we could fight them off. I am lucky to be alive. The wreck that I am towing is what remains of the Jackel. There is enough left of the warship that may be worth our efforts to salvage it."
"Is the cargo secure? The Alliance needs what you are carrying to finance our expansion, into this sector."
"The cargo is secure. We should have been given a bigger to ensure the safety of the cargo I am carrying."
"A larger escort would have attracted too much attention. My orders are to verify the cargo visually. Prepare to be boarded."
"That won't be necessary. My every movement is being observed."
"By who? I'm not showing any other vessels on my sensor sweeps?"
"That is how the commander wants it. He's here to make sure my ship makes it to Alliance headquarters, undisturbed."
"What commander?"
"I've already said too much. If I disclose anything else, my watcher will have me flogged or hanged."
"I am changing course to intercept your cargo ship, prepare to be boarded."
Doc, Jane, Amber, Jewel, and Randolph changed into the Alliance officer uniforms. Doc, disguised as Captain Thornton sat in the command chair.
"Natasha, set our transponder to match the Ajax's codes and begin broadcasting our IFF."
"Jewel, open a communications channel between us, the Falcon, and the Gryphon."
"Our viewscreen split into three views, our forward view and the images of the two Alliance captains."
"I should have you bumbling idiots whipped for this intrusion."
The Gryphon's captain spoke, "We apologize Captain Thornton. We had no way of knowing that you were escorting the freighter."
"I heard the communications between you and Captain Jenkins. He said far too much. I will deal with him later. This operation was supposed to be a simple covert pick up. Almost everything about it has failed. First, rebels attacked us, and now I have to deal with you, two idiots."
"Perhaps there is something we can do to help?" the Gryphon's captain suggested.
"What I demand is absolute obedience, unless of course, you two want to spend the rest of your lives scrubbing out the tanks of garbage scows?"
"No sir!" both captains responded.
"I need the two of you to jump to the Coria System, search for the presence of rebel forces, and gather as much information as you can. When you have all of the information, you are to return to fleet headquarters in the Avalon system."
"How long do you want us to stay in that system searching?"
"I understand that the suicide rate among sanitizers is nearly 100%."
"Yes sir, we're on the way."
"Doc, for a moment, I could have sworn that you were Captain Thornton."
"I had the displeasure of meeting him once. He is the vilest person I ever had the displeasure meet. If I were him and not just acting like him, those men would be flayed alive."
"Let us hope that his reputation is enough to get us through the Alliance lines."
"Natasha get us out of here, jump to Nueva Zelanda when ready."
"Yes, ma'am."
****
"Do you think they are going to miss us on the bridge?"
"Don't worry about it; this mission is much more important. Keep moving."
"I think we are here?"
"Can't you tell?"
"No. I deactivated my neurolink so no one can track us.
I can't reach the latches in this position. I need to turn around."
"Watch your feet; you just kicked me in my boobs."
"Sorry."
"Quit making so much noise, someone might hear us."
"I'll try... I think I can get to the latches now. Hold the light for me and hand me the pliers."
"Hurry, before Doc gets back."
"I'm hurrying. I think I got it."
The air vent diffuser swung open, and Natasha dropped down into sickbay.
"What are you doing here?"
"Tanya and I have come to break you out. You've been Doc's prisoner for a week. You should have been able to break out on your own by now. Besides, Amber misses you. She won't go to her quarters and rest without you. She's getting grouchy from lack of sleep and getting on our nerves."
"Do you know what Doc will do if he catches you in here?"
"He won't if you hurry."
Natasha lifted Nathaniel up high enough so he could climb into the vent with Tanya's help. She moved a chair under the air vent then stood on top of it. Tanya lowered a string with a hook on it, and Natasha used it to hook the vent diffuser. Tanya helped pull Natasha into the air vent opening. When she was inside, Tanya pulled the door closed and held it while Natasha locked the fasteners from the inside. She removed the string; then they started crawling back the way they came. Hopefully, Doc would be to busy trying to solve the mystery of how I got out of sickbay to search for me.
"Where are we Natty?"
"I'm not sure? I think we missed our turn."
"There is not enough room for us to turn around. We will have to try the next junction."
"Let me guess; we can't get out of here."
"We can get out anytime. The question is where. Natty and I haven't had the time to explore and map out the new ventilation system."
We crawled for a while then turned down a cross section." Be careful. We have to go down a level from here. Tanya carefully lowered herself as far as she could, then dropped the remaining few feet. Natasha helped Nathaniel down, then followed.
"Left or right, Natty?
"Left, I think."
Tanya got back down on her knees and resumed crawling, we followed. She turned at the next junction and crawled for another fifteen minutes. "I think we are close. Let's try here."
There wasn't enough room for Natasha to squeeze by us. Tanya and I had to lay flat while she crawled over us. She turned around and unlocked the vent. Tanya dropped down into Jane's quarters. She called up, "Six down and two to the right. I'll
meet you there."
"What are you doing in the air vents? Your not up to mischief again, are you?"
"No Chief. Natasha and I were taking samples and inspecting the ductwork for viral contamination for Doc."
"I'm not aware of any inspection due?"
"It is a special inspection. We can't have any mold or bacteria growing in the air ducts." Natasha reestablished her neurolink and created the work order.
"I'll have to check my logs. Here it is:
Urgent!
Several crewmen have reported symptoms of Alderian Flu. An inspection of the air ducts and biofilters is needed to ensure the spread of the flu is minimized. The crew members exhibiting the symptoms have been quarantined to prevent the flu's spread.
I guess it is legit."
Tanya borrowed one of Jane's chairs, stood on top of it, swung the vent diffuser closed and locked its fasteners. Then she hopped down onto the floor. "If you don't mind, I'll just let myself out."
Tanya hurried to her quarters. She opened the vent and helped Nathaniel and Natasha down.
"You are aware there is no such thing as Alderian Flu?"
"That's okay, it sounded good. Besides the work order to inspect the air ducts doesn't exist. Natty made it up and sent it directly to Jane's comm."
"She's going to be mad when she finds out."
"She won't. Natty and I have been doing it for years and haven't got caught yet. We're careful."
I crossed the corridor to my quarters. There was no one inside. I used my comm to send a message to Amber and Jewel, "Captain's quarters, hurry."
****
Amber finally got some sleep. In fact, she slept nearly 30 hours. Jewel was gentle with me to make sure she didn't hurt my shoulder, not too much anyhow. So far, Doc didn't come to my cabin and drag me back to sickbay. After two days, I felt safe. He was going to want to know how I got out of sickbay, so he could make sure I didn't escape again. I would have to think of something he would believe, other than the truth. I might need to use the air ducts again.
"How much of the treasure did we get away with?"
"All of it, less what Doc paid the local workers to compensate them for their captivity and helping to load our cargo holds."
