by Ryk Brown
“I just wish I could be there.”
“Why? I wish I could stay here,” Nathan joked.
“Every time you guys jump away, I’m sure I’m going to be stuck here forever, waiting for the Ta’Akar to come and glass the planet.”
“How much longer do they want to keep you here?” Nathan asked.
“A few weeks at least,” she answered.
“Don’t worry,” Nathan assured her. “I’ll make sure Abby’s finger is on the jump button the entire time we’re in the Savoy system.” Nathan leaned back in his chair, taking a deep breath and changing the subject. “Now, enough about the Savoy mission. I’ve got a few other ideas I want to talk to you about.”
* * *
The Corinairan sun had set an hour ago, and the air had already taken on a chill, made colder still by the winds sweeping across the open grounds of the spaceport. Winter, it seemed, was coming earlier than usual this year. The spaceport was poorly lit this night. Damage to the city’s power generation facilities had made Aitkenna reliant on massive portable generators located throughout the city. Unfortunately, they were not enough to meet the normal demands of the burgeoning population of one of the planet’s largest cities. The spaceport alone had four dedicated generators running, and even that was not enough to light all areas at once.
The poor lighting was to their advantage, however, as no one wanted to advertise their presence at the spaceport. Ensign Willard had been dressed in a standard uniform from the Aurora, while the eight Corinairan volunteers from the Yamaro’s crew had been dressed in civilian attire prior to being smuggled out of the detention facility where the entire crew of the Takaran warship was being held. There were still those among the population of Aitkenna that might blame the crew of the Yamaro for the destruction rained down upon their city weeks ago. All had thought it best to avoid such problems.
“Attention on deck,” Ensign Willard announced as the captain approached the waiting shuttle.
“Ensign,” Nathan greeted as he approached, Sergeant Weatherly and his security detail following closely behind.
Ensign Willard snapped a salute, doing his best to keep up appearances as he tried to emulate the salute used by the crew of the Aurora. “The volunteers are ready for boarding, Captain.”
“Very good. As you were, gentlemen.” Nathan stopped and looked over the group of men, all members of the Yamaro’s crew, all of them also having fought to liberate the Aurora from the hands of the Ta’Akar. “I want to thank you all for volunteering for this mission. Each of you has already done more than your part. Ironically, all of you fired the first retaliatory shots on behalf of your home world. Yet, here you all stand, unrewarded, imprisoned on the very same world you risked your lives to protect. I’m sure you’ve all been told time and time again how it’s for your own safety.” Nathan looked them over once more. “Yeah, I wouldn’t have bought that either.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “I cannot promise you your immediate freedom upon your return, nor the freedom of your shipmates. However, I can offer you a chance to work on the Yamaro as free men, or perhaps even on the Aurora as members of my crew. You will not be required to serve in either capacity, and you may choose to return to the detention center if you desire, until this conflict is over. The choice will be yours. But I promise you this much; you will have a choice, as will all of your shipmates. On this you have my word.”
There was no response from the volunteers as they stood at ease in a precise line, just as they had been trained by their former leaders, the Ta’Akar. A few hopeful glances were exchanged among them, but no words were spoken.
“Load them up, Ensign,” Nathan ordered. At the slightest of gestures from Sergeant Weatherly, two of his security detail went up the boarding ramp first, checking that the shuttle was secure.
“Gentlemen,” Ensign Willard began, “pick up your gear and board the shuttle single file, and move briskly to the rear. Leave the last two rows empty. Move out.”
The volunteers picked up the gear bags containing the Ta’Akar uniforms that had been taken from the Yamaro’s supply lockers. The armor and weapons they would need to complete the masquerade would be waiting for them aboard the two shuttles that had been taken from the Yamaro and were now sitting in the main hangar deck of the Aurora.
Nathan stood fast against the chilling wind as he watched the volunteers file up the boarding ramp. Sergeant Weatherly moved next to the captain, also watching the men as they boarded. “Those men are either really brave, or they really hate that detention center,” Nathan mused.
“They’re brave, sir,” the sergeant responded. “Trust me; I’ve fought alongside them.”
* * *
“Open space in one minute,” Loki reported.
“Threat board?” Nathan asked.
“Telemetry from Karuzara shows the system is clear, sir,” Jessica reported. “All traffic has been identified. No tracks in the area of Karuzara or Cleo.”
“Very good.”
“Thirty seconds to open space,” Loki updated.
Nathan watched the forward view screens as the last few hundred meters of the exit corridor from the Karuzara asteroid base slid past. It had been weeks since the Aurora had actually been out in space, and despite all the trouble they had run into since leaving Earth more than a month ago, it felt good to get underway again.
“Open space,” Loki announced.
“Switching to live scans,” Ensign Yosef reported.
“Helm, set course for Savoy and increase speed smoothly to ten percent light,” Nathan ordered.
“Aye, Captain,” Josh answered. “Changing course for Savoy. Coming up smoothly to ten percent light. Time to first jump point, ten minutes.”
“Very well,” Nathan confirmed. “Doctor Sorenson, our first jump will take us to just outside the Savoy system, correct?”
“Yes, sir. Twelve hours beyond the system’s heliopause, to be exact.”
“I’d like to linger there a bit before going in.”
“Yes, sir,” Abby answered.
“Captain?” Jessica started to question.
“I think it would be a good idea to take a series of long-range scans before heading into the system. Take a good, long look so we can verify that Ensign Willard’s recommendations are sound.”
Jessica looked quizzical. “You don’t trust him?” she asked.
“It’s not that I don’t trust him,” Nathan explained. “I just think it would be prudent to verify intelligence, even from a reliable source, before acting upon it.” When he did not get a response from Jessica, he turned his chair around to face her. “I’d expect that you of all people would agree.”
“Oh, I agree, sir,” Jessica was quick to say. “I’m just surprised to hear you say it.”
“What can I say? I guess being captain has made me more cautious.”
“That’ll be the day,” Jessica mumbled to herself as Nathan began to turn back around.
“Besides, Commander Taylor insisted on it,” he admitted. “Something about regulations.”
“Yeah, that makes a little more sense,” Jessica stated.
“Ensign Yosef, how much time will it take to get a detailed sweep of the system using passive sensors?” Nathan asked.
“At least thirty minutes, sir,” Ensign Yosef responded. “An hour would be better.”
“Very well,” Nathan said. “An hour it is.”
* * *
Tug paced up and down the line of eight men in Ta’Akar security uniforms, checking them over one by one as he spoke. “The Ta’Akar always look polished and impressive when they arrive. This helps promote a sense of order and efficiency, and it serves to remind those that they have conquered who is in charge. As a Ta’Akar soldier, you must always appear confident and self-assured. Your eyes must not shift about. Your expression must not falter. You must at all times appear confident in your knowledge that no one would be foolish enough to oppose you and the mighty empire that you represent.”
&
nbsp; Tug stopped pacing, standing front and center to face the line of men. “Remember the day that you were inducted. Remember standing on the tarmac as those fearless men marched out of the shuttles. Remember feeling as though your life were about to end. Those men never raised a weapon or even looked at you, yet you feared for your very lives. That is how the Ta’Akar operate. That is how they maintain discipline, through the knowledge that any and all disobedience will be met with extreme force.”
“Attention all hands,” Naralena’s voice announced over the loudspeakers in the hangar bay. “Prepare for jump.” The volunteers from the Yamaro’s crew glanced at one another. Thus far, the jump drive had been a rumor which many of them had begun to dismiss as another Corinairan legend.
“Now, we will go through the drills again and again, ensuring that you all move as one unit, the way that you were taught during your basic training on Takara.”
“Jumping in three……two……one……jump,” Abby’s voice announced.
Tug watched the faces of the men in the line, none of whom had ever experienced a jump before. To his knowledge, no one other than Marcus had ever described any sensation as a result of a jump. The men looked at each other, wondering if anyone had felt anything.
“Jump complete,” Abby announced.
“In case you’re wondering, we are now positioned approximately twelve light hours outside the Savoy system,” Tug told them. As he had anticipated, looks of disbelief spread across their faces. It was certainly not in keeping with their expected performance as Ta’Akar security troops.
“Attention on the line!” Ensign Willard barked in perfect Ta’Akar. It was so perfect, in fact, that the men snapped to attention as if they were back aboard the Yamaro getting yelled at by a nobleman.
Tug looked at Ensign Willard, who had just arrived. He was wearing a Ta’Akar officer’s uniform, complete with the sash of his house’s lineage, just as any nobleman in the Takaran Imperial Forces would wear. “You’re getting into character nicely,” Tug said with a grin. “You wear the sash of your house well.”
“Don’t remind me,” Ensign Willard stated with obvious disgust. “I was sincerely hoping to never wear such uniforms again.”
“Hopefully this will be the last time,” Tug agreed.
* * *
Jessica made her way briskly down the command deck’s main corridor. It was a short distance to the office they had turned into the ‘intel shack’. There was an actual intelligence section designed into the main deck, just forward of the primary bulkheads, but they had been inaccessible for the last month due to the rupture in the Aurora’s bow. The office they had been using had actually been the XO’s office, which Cameron had never gotten around to utilizing. Since Jessica also had to serve as the tactical officer on the bridge, the shack’s close proximity made it quite convenient.
Jessica had spent so much of her time managing the security of the ship over the last few weeks that she had done little actual intelligence work. Although she lived for field operations, she did enjoy the analytical side of the intelligence world as well. Transmissions were perhaps the most common source of intelligence for the Aurora, and while flying through the Savoy system, they would have the perfect opportunity to gather more information about the state of things in this corner of the Pentaurus cluster. The Savoy system was only a light year from Darvano, which made it of particular interest, and until now all the signals intelligence they had gathered on this system was at least one year old.
With Jalea going to Ancot to gather intel on the ground and make contact with any Karuzari hiding out there, it was even more important for Jessica to better understand the state of affairs within the system. She still didn’t trust Jalea, and Jessica wanted to be prepared to second guess any intel Jalea sent their way.
Jessica stepped through the hatch into the intel shack. It was a medium-sized office, with several desks against the walls and numerous monitors affixed to every vertical surface. There were always at least three people on duty, usually two signals technicians and an analyst. Until Travon Dumar had joined the crew, Jessica had been about the only analyst available. She hadn’t minded the extra work, as she did enjoy it, but she was going on several weeks of insufficient sleep, and she could tell it was catching up to her. However, Mister Dumar was picking things up nicely. It may have been a long time since he was in the intelligence business with the Ta’Akar, but his post-service career as a commodities consultant seemed to have kept his analytic eye for details fairly sharp. She was sure that, given a few more weeks, he would be able to take over as the senior intelligence analyst for the Aurora. At least then she could start getting a good night’s sleep for a change.
“Mister Dumar,” she greeted as she entered the room, “any luck breaking the encryption on that messaging unit you found on our frozen bad guy?”
“Not yet, I am afraid. I am hoping that after this mission is completed, Ensign Willard will be able to assist.”
“You might have Deliza take a look at it as well,” Jessica suggested, “when we get back to Karuzara, of course.”
“Deliza?”
“The young lady programming the bridge simulations, Tug’s daughter.”
“I did not realize she was Mister Tugwell’s daughter,” Dumar stated.
“Yeah, she’s a whiz with computers and stuff, so she might be some help as well. So would the Cheng.”
“He is also good with computers?”
“Yup,” Jessica responded. “He hacked the Aurora’s mainframe and turned her off during the last boarding attempt. Probably saved all our butts.”
“I will be sure to enlist his assistance as well.”
“Come to think of it, he might not have the time. There’s still a lot of systems left to install to bring this ship as close to her original design specs as possible.”
“I see.”
“So,” Jessica said, “anything else going on around here?”
“I was just about to deliver Miss Torren’s ID papers and letter of authorization. She will need them to get past the guards at the Ancot spaceport. I also thought I might go by the galley and pick up something to eat while I can, if that is acceptable?”
“Sure. I’ve got nothing to do on the bridge for another forty minutes. I might as well hang out here. Go ahead and take a break; I’ll cover the shack until you return.”
“Thank you, Lieutenant Commander.” He picked up the documents and started for the hatch.
“Hey, pick me up a sandwich while you’re there,” Jessica told him.
“A sandwich?” Mister Dumar wondered, again finding himself unfamiliar with a word.
“It’s like you guys dropped all the best words from the English language when you made Angla,” she complained. “A sandwich. You know, two pieces of bread with some kind of dressing smeared on them, some meat and cheese in the middle, maybe some veggies shoved in there as well.”
“I will ask the cook,” Mister Dumar promised. “Surely he will know what you are referring to.”
“Don’t count on it,” Jessica mumbled as he left the room. “The guy knows nothing about cooking Earth food.”
* * *
Now that the Aurora was underway and there were no longer hordes of technicians coming and going all day, the number of Corinari security personnel roaming the corridors had been greatly reduced. Although all the guards were still on board, most were off duty during the mission. There were, however, still guards protecting the entrances to critical areas of the ship, such as the main hangar bay. If there were ever a time to make his move, this was it.
Dumar made his way aft through the hangar deck toward the two Takaran shuttles parked near the aft end of the bay. As he approached, he noticed Tug conducting another inspection of the team that was headed to Ancot under the guise of picking up inductees on behalf of the Yamaro. Dumar had been briefed on the details of the Savoy mission, and he knew that Mister Tugwell would be required on the bridge to conduct communications with the ga
rrison on Ancot. Other than Ensign Willard and himself, Tug was the only male on board the Aurora who could speak Takaran well enough to be convincing as a communications officer from the Yamaro. Naralena did speak Takaran, but women were not allowed to serve in the Ta’Akar Empire’s military, and Ensign Willard would be departing on the shuttles at the same time. So Tug was it, and that meant that soon, he would be heading for the bridge.
“Mister Dumar,” Jalea greeted, catching him by surprise, “I was about to come see you.”
“Ah, Miss Torren. I have the documents that you requested,” Dumar stated politely, handing them over.
“Thank you, Mister Dumar. You saved me a trip.”
“Your identity will be that of Analise Devonshire,” Dumar explained to Jalea. “The details of your cover are on the data chip. You should memorize them during your flight and then securely delete them from the chip.”
“I am well versed in field procedures, Mister Dumar,” Jalea assured him.
“Of course. My apologies. You are employed by the Royal Bank of Takara as a senior field auditor. I trust you know your way around interstellar banking and accounting so as to be convincing.”
“I believe so, yes,” Jalea assured him.
“These are your ident cards and your data chip carrying your statement of authority and your power of audit as granted by your employers. It should be more than enough to convince the inspectors at the spaceport on Ancot. I would advise against using them any further than that, however.”
Jalea looked over the ident cards, then inserted the data chip into her reader and inspected the statements stored on the chip. “Impressive work, Mister Dumar,” she praised. “Did you create these yourself?”
“Yes,” he assured her. “Documents of such a nature require individual attention to ensure no detail is overlooked.”
