Jasper stood in silence, not sure of how to respond.
“Mr. Mallot, set up a sensor feed to shuttle one. Mr. Collins, I’m assuming you’d like to pilot this mission?”
Jasper nodded. “I would.”
Shuttle one, the E.A. Collins, left the bay, zipping through the void of space between the Rogers and the Mawga repair dock. As it pulled alongside the giant machine, the grappling extended and took hold. The first attempt at moving the dock resulted in nothing more than a slow spin.
Jasper came over the comm. “We have a problem. The mass of that thing is too big. The drives of this shuttle can’t handle that lateral force.”
Jasper laughed.
“What is it?” Mace asked.
Jasper replied, “Hold on… I’m patching through a video feed from one of my port cameras.”
The display wall image changed to one of a clear window into a hallway on the space dock. Half a dozen Mawga workers could be seen banging on the transparent window material.
Jasper continued to laugh. “Idiots are banging on the window and yelling like it’s going to scare me away. I tell you, Mr. Hardy, if we Humans could get our act together, we would rule this galaxy.”
Mace replied, “Well, first we have to figure out how to make you effective. I want that dock moving.”
Jeff opened a comm to the bridge. “Mr. Hardy, he needs to move that shuttle to a point along its center of gravity and grapple there. With the mass of that station distributed evenly, the shuttle should be able to push it in a straight line. And I would suggest that straight line not be directed back out at our base. Take it somewhere first, and then move it to wherever we permanently want it.”
Jasper said, “We aren’t all idiots like the Mawga, Mr. Moskowitz. I wasn’t trying to push it toward Proteus.”
Jeff began to say something. Johnny cut him off. “Don’t get pulled into one of his arguments, Doc. Just let it go.”
Mace said. “Make the necessary adjustments, Mr. Collins. Regardless of the condition of Stark’s fleet right now, I’d rather we be out of there sooner rather than later.”
Jasper replied, “Agreed. Moving to a new piece of framework now… grappling… and we’re on the move. I’m passing the nav data to the screen.”
Mace turned to Liam. “Mr. Hobbs, given his acceleration, can you give an estimate of how long it will take to get that dock out of sensor range?”
Liam typed away on the console in front of him. “Three hours maybe. He should be at his top maintainable speed just before that. One thing for him to keep in mind is it will take him an equal amount of time to bring that dock to a stop.”
Johnny chuckled. “I can’t believe we’re stealing that thing. Stark has got to be pissed about now.”
Mace said, “We don’t have it yet. At least not until we’re well out of range.”
Humphrey Mallot yelled, “I have a wormhole opening at five hundred thousand kilometers! Almost right on top of Jasper! And it’s huge!”
Mace yelled into his comm: “Jasper! Release that dock and get your ass out of there! Mr. Hobbs, take us to maximum sensor range!”
Cruiser after cruiser flew through the portal opening, forty-six in all. Following just behind was a Muhatha-class dreadnought, the largest of the Union ships, this one broadcasting the Targarian banner, another Galactic Union founder, and an opposing species to the Dellus.
Jasper replied, “I got nowhere to go, Mr. Hardy. Just save yourselves!”
~~~~~
Once again, this Human is asking for your help! If you enjoyed the book, please leave a review on the site where it was purchased. And by all means, please tell your friends! Any help with spreading the word is highly appreciated! I have a free science fiction ebook short story, titled “THE SQUAD”, waiting for anyone who joins my email list. Also, find out when the next exciting release is available by joining the email list at [email protected]. Visit the author’s website at www.arsenex.com for the rest of the series and other works!
Thank you for reading my work! I hope you have a great day!
Stephen
Books by Stephen Arseneault
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SODIUM-AMP-OMEGA trilogy series
SODIUM - A six-book series that takes Man from his first encounter with aliens all the way to a fight for our all-out survival. Do we have what it takes to rule the galaxy?
AMP - Cast a thousand years into the future beyond SODIUM. This eight-book series chronicles the struggles of Don Grange, a simple package deliveryman, who is thrust into an unimaginable role in the fight against our enemies. Can we win peace and freedom after a thousand years of war?
OMEGA - An eight book series cast a thousand years into the future beyond AMP. The Alliance is crumbling. When corruption and politics threaten to throw the allied galaxies into chaos, Knog Beutcher gets caught in the middle. Follow along as our hero is thrust into roles that he never expected nor sought. Espionage, intrigue, political assassinations, rebellions and full-on revolutions, they are all coming to Knog Beutcher’s world!
HADRON Series
HADRON is an eight book modern day Human survival story. After scientists using the Large Hadron Collider discover dark matter, the world is plunged into chaos. Massive waves of electromagnetic interference take out all grid power and forms of communication the world over. Cities go dark, food and clean-water supplies are quickly used up. Marauders rule the highways. One group of citizens takes a stand. Can they make a difference? And the devastating EM waves, where are they coming from? A benevolent species will arrive in their spaceships to rescue the Human race. Only, are they really so benevolent? Is our little corner of the Milky Way a hostile place? With HADRON we’re about to find out.
ARMS Series
ARMS is an eight book series set in the future. Earth was nearing an apocalyptic event. Two competing colony ships were built, taking five million inhabitants each through a wormhole to a pair of newly discovered planets. The planets were settled and soon after the burgeoning colonies looked to the surrounding star systems for ownership and expansion, an expansion that led to a centuries long war between them. A truce was declared after the aggressor side began to lose ground. The competing worlds are two years into that truce.
Tawnish Freely and Harris Gruberg are genetically engineered Biomarines. They we made and trained for fighting in the Great War. With the war halted and their service commitments ended, they find themselves struggling to live among a population that fears them. Work is found with the delivery of illegal arms to the outer colonies. Things go awry when they discover their illicit and yet lucrative dealings may just be the catalyst that brings back the Great War. They are determined to prevent that outcome from happening.
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HADRON Incursion Page 27
