Carthage Prime

by Toby Neighbors

  Captain Chastain was in a hurry. They were leaving all their equipment except for the PCCs. Lieutenant Cooper was staying behind, as well. Only the Captain, Nyx, and the two controllers for Ash and Sly would take the drop ship back to orbit. There was still no word on why the mission was so important. The rational thing to do was to order the transport to turn around and return through the space tunnel it had arrived through before the battleships destroyed it in retaliation for the loss of their operators and ships on Carthage Prime.

  The little group hurried onto the ship, which was powered up and ready to go. More importantly to Nyx, the life support was on, and the temperature inside was much warmer than outside. She sat in a seat in the shuttle’s first row and whispered into her headset mic.

  “Alex, what’s your status?”

  “Still waiting for the techs to unhook us from the power lines,” he responded.

  “We’re about to take off,” Nyx explained. “I’ll send our flight plan to you once we’re in the air. Just head south once you’re able.”

  “We can do that. Any word on why this transport is so important?”

  “None,” Nyx admitted. “Once you reach the ship, you’ll need to match our speed, then use your magnetic clamping abilities to stick yourself to the hull.”

  “Okay,” Alex said.

  “I’ll be right here the whole time.”

  She hoped her presence was reassuring to him. Alex had been through a lot in the past twenty-four hours, and things didn’t seem to be slowing down at all. The toll for holding Carthage Prime had proven costly. Thirteen operators were dead, and four more were seriously wounded and wouldn’t be able to continue as operators. That left just a handful to protect the colony. Lima Company, which consisted of twelve AT Interceptors, was already on their way north to join the group protecting the citizens in case the Zen Tech forces tried another attack. The presence of the FA Titans made the Zen Tech forces wary, but if they got wind that the Titans had left the planet, which they surely would, they might risk another drop ship full of Vipers or Hunters. If so, things in Tunis were bound to get ugly fast.

  The drop ship lifted off and began flying north. Nyx tapped into the ship’s network, got a heading from the navigation computer, and sent the info to Alex. If he could get moving, they would need less than an hour to meet in the air.

  Captain Chastain appeared from the cockpit, where Nyx guessed she was giving the pilot orders or perhaps using the ship’s communication system. Chastain looked tired, which made Nyx feel tired. She missed the comforts of being on board a ship where she could work in shifts and get regular rest and meals. She hadn’t eaten in a while and was tired of wearing the PCC. Still, she wouldn’t leave Alex in the lurch, not even for a soft bed and a gourmet meal.

  “Do you have a status on the Titan team?” Captain Chastain asked.

  It was courtesy to ask, but the truth was, if Nyx didn’t know their status, she wasn’t doing her job.

  “Yes, Captain. Unfortunately, they’re still at the colony, waiting to be cleared by the technicians.”

  “I’ve sent word that we need them ASAP.”

  “Captain, may I ask why the transport doesn’t just leave the system?” Nyx asked.

  Chastain settled into the seat next to Nyx and fastened her safety harness. She even closed her eyes for a few seconds before replying.

  “The transport is malfunctioning,” the captain said. “Comms are down, so we can’t warn them of the danger. And either their radar is down and they don’t see the danger, or for some reason they can’t turn back.”

  “Why would a company transport be coming all the way out here?” asked one of the other controllers.

  “That’s a very good question,” Chastain said. “We don’t know for certain. Nothing is scheduled that we know of. My guess is that Vice President Haley is coming to check on our efforts.”

  “The Vice President of Ahzco security?” Nyx said. “But why would he come out here?”

  “He has a propensity for checking on projects personally,” Captain Chastain said. “I’ve always admired that about him. He was an operator once upon a time. But in this instance, I wish he weren’t coming.”

  “We don’t know for sure that it’s him, do we?” Nyx asked.

  “No, we don’t know...we can’t know. But neither can we risk letting him get captured or killed. Do you know what a rival corporation would do with a powerful executive from Ahzco?”

  “Ransom, maybe,” said one of the other controllers.

  “We could hope to be so lucky,” Captain Chastain said. “If Vice President Haley is on that shuttle, he carries with him the knowledge of all our CDF assets, deployment numbers, and the secrets to our INC technology—and that’s just in the security division. He’s also privy to other proprietary information that would give a competitor an edge over Ahzco. We can’t take the chance that they whisk him away to torture him for information.”

  “But if he gets captured, won’t the company just make changes?” asked the third controller.

  “Yes, but think of the time and money that will be wasted,” Chastain said. “Not to mention, we’ll be seen as vulnerable. Vice President Haley is more than just an executive; he’s the face of the CDF to the galaxy at large. Losing him would hurt us in ways we can’t even imagine.”

  The weight of urgency was just settling in for Nyx when Alex spoke through her headset.

  “We’re on the move,” he said.

  “The Titan team is in transit, Captain,” Nyx said.

  “Excellent. Time until contact?”

  “Forty-seven minutes,” Nyx said, checking Alex’s airspeed against the drop ship’s. It was a complicated formula—two objects moving toward each other at different speeds over a vast distance—but Nyx had always been good with numbers. Her mind fixed on the answer without wrestling with the data. She had no trouble trusting that her estimate was accurate.

  “Catching the Zen Tech battleships won’t be easy,” Captain Chastain said. “But what else can we do but try?”

  Chapter 32

  “There it is,” Ash said, referring to the drop ship that was flying toward them.

  “I see it,” Alex replied. “Let’s swing around and start working to match their speed.”

  It felt strange for only three Titans to be flying. There had only been three training suits at the facility on Helena Prime, and they had often trained in trios, but since the mission on Carthage Prime began, they had done most things as a group of four. Alex had to shake off his thoughts and feelings about Newt’s death. It was counterproductive, and while he didn’t know much about the mission they were being sent on, he knew it would require his full focus.

  “Nyx, we see you,” Alex said via the link he shared with his controller.

  Roger that. Prepare to make contact with the hull. When you do, I’ll activate the electromagnetic portions of your armor that will adhere you to the hull.

  “Do you have readings on my power levels?”

  Yes, I have full system readings. You’ve got more than a quarter of your available power. Once we reach orbit and break out of gravity, that should be enough to power your Titan for eight to twelve hours.

  “All right, keep an eye on it for me. The idea of going into a mission with only a fraction of our usual power makes me nervous. Any word on the transport?”

  We don’t have contact with the ship, and it isn’t turning back. Odds are, there’s a malfunction that’s keeping it here. Captain Chastain believes that VP Haley may be on board, so we’ve got to do something to try and help.

  Alex thought VP Haley must have dreadful luck. By the time the Titan Team reached outer space, the Zen Tech battleships would have a huge lead on them. Just catching up would be difficult. Perhaps, he thought, they could distract the heavily armed battleships, but he didn’t really think there was a lot more they could do. Anything was possible in a fight, but Alex didn’t relish being attacked by a ship with dozens of laser cannons and mi
ssile launchers. One wrong move and he would be dead, just like Newt.

  “All right team, let’s match the drop ship’s speed,” Alex said as they closed in above the ship. “Sly, you come in on the ship’s port side. Ash, you take starboard. I’ll make contact on top.”

  “You got it, team leader,” Sly said.

  “How come you get to ride on top?” Ash teased.

  Alex knew the drop ship was faster than they were and could outrun them if it tried. Instead, it cruised at a relatively slow speed, and Alex had little difficulty coming in from above and making a gentle landing on top. He inverted the Titan suit so that he was flying in the same direction but with his back to the ship’s roof. Meter by meter he closed in on the ship.

  “I’m close, Nyx,” Alex said. “With my back to the ship’s roof.”

  Activating the electromagnets now.

  Alex felt the powerful magnets pull him against the hull of the ship with a thump.

  Wow, that was loud.

  Alex didn’t respond. He could hear a strange keening sound, and his mind seemed to be scrambling. It felt like there was a storm raging in his mind, with hot rain bouncing around in his skull. The ship, now with Alex and his friends on the hull, engaged the main engines and shot upward like a rocket. The wind was howling around him, but Alex didn’t feel it. He couldn’t hear the roar of the engines or their passage through the upper atmosphere—yet he somehow felt the surge of the engines, not through the hull but through his INC. He could sense the power of the vessel, and almost without thinking he began to transfer power from the drop ship’s fusion reactor to his Titan MBS. The energy flowed through the ship’s hull and into his battle suit.

  Hold on, what’s happening?

  Alex didn’t answer. He could read the drop ship’s instrument readings; they were passing thirty thousand meters. He could feel the pings from a distant radar and even sense the passengers and crew on board. It was a radical feeling, as if his mind had suddenly grown, doubling or even tripling in size. He thought about Ash and suddenly knew everything about her Titan. He began to transfer energy to her Titan battle suit the same as his own.

  This is boring.

  Alex was shocked. It was as if Ash had spoken directly into his brain.

  Passing forty thousand meters, her controller said. All systems are...

  Are what? Ash asked.

  That is so strange. Your battle suit’s power is increasing at an exponential rate.

  Alex grinned. He reached out through his mental link to Sly’s Titan and fed power to it as well.

  Alex, Nyx asked, what is happening? Can you hear me?

  “Yes, I hear you, Nyx. I hear everything.”

  What do you mean?

  “I don’t know what you did, but I’m picking up the drop ship through my INC.”

  That’s not possible.

  “Actually, it is. We just passed fifty thousand meters. The ship is at seventy percent power, even while recharging all three Titans.”

  Alex, are you okay?

  “Check the altitude.”

  There was a pause, and Alex knew Nyx was trying to figure out what was happening, but he already knew. He couldn’t help but laugh.

  Why are you laughing?

  “I can almost hear you thinking,” Alex said. “Trying to figure this out.”

  It’s not possible. The drop ship doesn’t have an INC-compatible system.

  “And yet I can feel it. The information is pouring into my mind like a fire hydrant, I’m diverting power to our suits, and that isn’t all.”

  What isn’t all?

  “I can hear Ash talking to her controller.”

  Alex focused on Sly and heard him too. He did a quick weapons’ check and saw that he had eighteen missiles left, his suit’s power was at three quarters, and Sly was humming a song completely out of tune.

  That’s...

  “Impossible? I know it, but somehow I’m doing it.”

  The strange keening sound had transformed to an almost musical pitch, weaving in and out of the lower tones of his connection with his Titan MBS. The two sounds weren’t dissonant, but rather worked together like two parts of the same melody. He closed his eyes and focused on the information flowing into him. It felt like a surge of intoxicating power, and not just from the energy recharging his suit; it was a feeling of total control. He knew in that instant that if he lost his connection with Nyx, he could still operate the Titan MBS.

  You’re connecting via your INC to the drop ship and both other Titans?

  “Yes.”

  I have to tell the captain.

  Chapter 33

  “Captain!” Nyx said.

  “Yes, Sergeant West?” Captain Chastain was listening to the communication coming from the cockpit, the base camp, and Tunis on a small headset. She could give orders as needed, but as the drop ship continued climbing through the planet’s atmosphere, the only thing she had to do was wait for more information.

  Nyx couldn’t keep the worry from her voice. She had her headset muted, but would that matter if Alex could really sense the drop ship through his INC? There was no way of knowing.

  “I’m not sure if this is a problem or not, but my operator is experiencing an increase in his INC connectivity,” Nyx said.

  “I don’t understand,” Captain Chastain said.

  “Since connecting to the drop ship via his suit’s electromagnets, he can sense the ship itself as if it were his own battle suit.”

  “That’s impossible, Sergeant.”

  “I know,” Nyx said. “But he’s doing it. He even transferred power to the Titan battle suits through the ship’s hull. His MBS went from just over a quarter to ninety percent power, and it’s still climbing.”

  “My operator’s suit is powering up, also,” said Ash’s controller.

  “Mine as well,” said Sly’s controller.

  “He claims he can hear the private links between the other operators and their controllers,” Nyx continued, “as well as the communications from the pilots and all the ship’s systems.”

  “If that’s possible, then he’ll be able to control something we can measure,” Captain Chastain said. “Although it sounds like maybe he’s experiencing a stress-induced episode.”

  “Such as turning on and off the cabin lights?” Sly’s controller suggested.

  “Yes,” the captain replied. “That’s a measurable outcome. Have your con—”

  She stopped speaking in mid-sentence as the lights in the cabin went off and came back on again. They flashed several times, and Captain Chastain looked as if she’d just seen a ghost.

  “He can hear us,” Nyx said.

  “Is my mic transmitting?” Captain Chastain said, pulling the headset off and looking at it as if it held the answers.

  “No, he’s picking something up,” Nyx said. “I think perhaps his INC is malfunctioning.”

  “That’s one way of looking at it,” said Sly’s controller.

  “What’s another way?” Chastain asked.

  “That he’s so sensitive to the EM waves produced by the drop ship and the other Titans that he’s picking them up on his INC,” the controller explained.

  “He’s touching the ship via electromagnets,” Nyx said. “And the other Titans are, as well. Perhaps it’s forming a super-conductive environment.”

  “There may be elements in the atmosphere or from the planet that could be enhancing the connectivity,” Ash’s controller said.

  Nyx knew they were thinking of the issue like scientists trying to understand a strange phenomenon. Nyx just wanted to make sure Alex was okay, but there was nothing she could do.

  “Can the other operators read the drop ship?” Captain Chastain asked.

  The other controllers whispered into the mics and then shook their heads.

  “Where is Sergeant Evans located on this ship?” Chastain asked.

  Nyx pointed up. “The roof.”

  “Maybe there’s something about being on the roof
that’s enhancing his INC’s capabilities. How close are we to orbit?”

  “We just passed eighty thousand meters, Captain.” Alex’s voice boomed through the cabin speakers. “We’ll reach zero-gravity in eighteen seconds.”

  Captain Chastain nodded. “Once we are free of Carthage Prime’s gravity, I want all three Titans to launch. We’ll worry about your operator’s INC once we’ve dealt with the matter at hand.”

  “Yes, Captain,” Nyx replied.

  She sat back in her seat, worrying. Alex’s Titan was fully charged and no longer drawing power from the drop ship’s reactor. All his systems were green. He only had eleven missiles and half of his soft-alloy projectiles, but that didn’t really concern her. She was more afraid that his INC was malfunctioning and might lead to permanent brain injury. She unmuted her headset mic and whispered the captain’s orders to Alex.

  “Roger that. But I don’t think going after the battleships is a good idea,” he responded.

  “Why not?” Nyx asked.

  “They’re too far away. Odds are, we won’t catch them before they damage or destroy the transport.”

  “If VP Haley is on board, we have to do something.”

  “Better to let them capture the transport than risk it getting destroyed,” Alex said. “But don’t worry, I’ve got a plan that I think should draw them away from whoever is in that shuttle.”

  “A plan? Do you want to run it by me or perhaps inform the captain?”

  “Sure,” Alex said. “The best way to save the transport is to attack the carrier.”

  Nyx realized that Alex was losing his mind. He was having delusions, and that meant he was a danger to himself, his team, and the mission. She knew what she had to do, but no controller ever wanted to do it. On her PCC, she had a master kill switch. It wouldn’t harm Alex, but it would terminate his control of his Titan. It was a simple computer program that slammed the door on the connection between his Implanted Neural Controller and the Titan’s advanced computer interface. She could leave him attached to the ship until the mission was over and he could get the help he needed.