The Stars Came Back

by Rolf Nelson

  DISSOLVE TO

  INT - NIGHT - Middeck passageway

  Injured soldiers shuffle down the passage, going into their assigned cabin as they get to it. The camera pans into a room, showing them getting settled in. One puts his duffel into the locker at the far end, four bunks have people in them already, one guy is awkwardly sliding himself into a lower bunk.

  CUT TO

  INT - NIGHT - Bridge

  Cooper is at the pilot station, Helton command, Kaushik copilot (wearing full space suit), Kat at com/sensors

  Cooper is just closing the preflight checklist.

  Cooper: And, that’s everything! Only four check failures total, acknowledged as mission non-critical. A new record. Time to see how she flies loaded. Aaaannnnd, powering up. Main power nominal. A-Grav and Drives show on line… Here we go!

  CUT TO

  EXT - NIGHT - Mil Base 1

  In the dark of the night the shadowy figure of the Tajemnica rises slowly, faintly lit by lights on the ground around it and the weak glow of the drive field. It noses up, turns slightly, and climbs for altitude.

  CUT TO

  INT - NIGHT - Middeck Starboard Passageway

  Harbin is looking in on some of the injured troops. Most bunks are occupied.

  Injured Soldier1: This is the smallest berth I’ve ever been in!

  Injured Soldier2: When yo sleepin, makes no diff, though. An you sleep a lot on those drugs!

  Injured soldier3: Food’s best we’ve had in a while. Reminds me of home.

  Injured soldier4: And those curves goin’ round makin’ sure we comfy? Whoo!

  Harbin grins and nods; he’s heard it before, the normal chatter of troops in good spirits. For no obvious reason the lights brighten to full. Talking pauses, people glance around wondering what’s up. Quinn walks down the hallway, past their door.

  Harbin: Light back to 50%.

  Ship AI (OC, calm female voice): I can’t do that.

  Harbin: Why not?

  Ship AI: (OC) Proper pediatric ocular development requires a minimum of two hours Earth-normal full sunlight per day cycle and periods of enhanced UV exposure for vitamin D.

  Injured soldier1: Huh? Pediwhatic?

  Injured soldier4: Means kids eyes need bright sunlight.

  Harbin: Well… Oh, whatever. Just don’t do it when he wakes up in the middle of the night, OK.

  Ship AI: (OC) Of course not. At night, it’s dark.

  Harbin shakes his head with a sigh and moves off to check the next cabin.

  Helton: (OC over the PA) Harbin, can you come up to the bridge?

  Harbin: On my way.

  FADE TO BLACK

  Intruders

  CUT TO

  INT - DAY - Bridge

  Harbin walks in. Helton, Kat, Cooper, Kaminski (now in space armor), and Kaushik are at stations looking concerned.

  Cooper: We may have a problem.

  Helton: Did Lag tell you about any pirates or military craft in the area?

  Harbin: No. See something?

  Kat: Saw an anomaly.

  Helton: (Into mic) Stenson, any issues with the sensors?

  Stenson: (OC, over speaker) Beats me. I’m getting all kinds of crap that shouldn't be there. Not sure what’s going on. They were fine five minutes ago.

  Kat: If the readings are right, we have a low-profile vessel on an intercept course.

  Harbin: How “low”?

  Cooper: If we knew that, we’d know a lot more than we do right now.

  Helton: More of a “hole” in the readings than something being there. Thermals show background temp, but visible has stars blocked. Radar, nothing. No noticeable drive glow.

  Harbin: Sub?

  Kaushik: I’d be surprised if sensors this old could see a modern mil sub. Hence the question.

  Harbin: How soon to intercept?

  Cooper: Close, didn’t see it until just a few minutes ago. Ten, eleven minutes out.

  Harbin: Hmmm. Rocks are cold, but they usually aren’t stealthy, soooo… If they wanted to launch missiles at us, they would have done it already. Too far for guns, except on a course-denial path, if they don’t know about our armor. Beams could be used any time, but it would instantly show position and intent. Must be sneaking up to board. Who else is suited up, sergeant?

  Kaminski: Horkle.

  Helton: Why’s Horkle in space armor?

  Harbin: He spent years in space with his parents. Got caught borrowing space yachts for joyrides. SOP is to keep a couple of bodies in space armor whenever in conventional, so if bad shit happens fast you have people with a couple hours of air and a weapon to deal. He was the only other option… Not my choice of time or place. What we can do for weapons?

  Helton: Armor we got, weapons, not so much.

  Kaushik: One of the containers has light arms, and we have our training ammo.

  Harbin gets a devious smile.

  Harbin: And, of course, shields and axes.

  Helton: Uh, what? And why?

  Harbin: Shiny stuff. If they want to board, then we let ’em board. Or at least let them think they are about to board unnoticed. Work every angle, have backups. Here’s the plan…

  FADE TO

  INT - DAY - Cargo bay, next to opened container of arms

  Rifles are being handed out to injured-but-able soldiers.

  CUT TO

  Injured soldiers are positioning themselves around the middeck windows, which are slightly opened, and checking line of sight for firing down into anyone coming through a side or end airlock door.

  CUT TO

  Injured soldiers with guns positioning themselves in rooms along the A Deck corridors, with doors ajar.

  CUT TO

  Three recruits filling magazines from stripper clips. One of them tops off a magazine and hands it to an injured soldier holding a rifle.

  CUT TO

  Recruits rapidly armoring up in old fashioned steel armor on the cargo deck, with large scutum-like high-tech composite shield, armed with small axes, short swords at their waists.

  CUT TO

  Kaminski and Horkle, wearing minimal armored space suits, armed with light rifles and fighting knifes, carrying belts full of small equipment pouches, going into an airlock.

  CUT TO

  Bridge

  Helton: (Into mic) OK Stenson, stutter and jack up the engines. Just not so bad we can’t un-jack ‘em.

  Stenson: (OC) They likely think we are already. Here goes.

  CUT TO

  EXT - NIGHT - Space, outside the ship

  Tajemnica floats quietly through space, the faint glow of her drives diming more, then flickers out. A much sleeker ship of 30 meters, with a much more even and diffuse shimmer, glides up along the top and extends magnetic grapples, puling itself down atop of Tajemnica and seals on.

  CUT TO

  INT - DAY - Tajemnica Bridge

  Silence, then creaking, grinding, and banging noises as the other ship comes alongside and latches on. Helton and Kat look around as if to try to see exactly where they are coming from. There is a ringing BANG of explosives on metal, then silence once again.

  CUT TO

  Cargo deck. Two lines of recruits with armor and shields stand on the cargo deck near the side airlock doors. Harbin, armored similarly, stands in the middle of one line with them.

  Harbin: (Quietly, confidently) If you see them come through the door, throw the first ax at them, then throw again. Draw your sword and stand your ground. All you have to do is throw and stand. You can do it. Breathe in, hold. Breathe out, hold.

  More sounds of clanging, banging, and grapnels. Recruits look around nervously.

  CUT TO

  INT - DAY - Cabin of intruder

  Six men in black light space armor, slim air packs, helmets. Their tinted visors obscure identities. They carry carbines slung across their chests for ready action, and a variety of weapons on their belts, including grenades, combat knives, ammo pouches, and sidearms. They look professional and disciplined, a
nd there are no obvious insignia anywhere. One person in similar space armor sits at a pilot chair to the front of the cabin, while another stands ready to operate an airlock door. They are stacking up next to the airlock hatch, ready to pour through.

  CUT TO

  EXT - NIGHT – View of the ships

  They float quietly through space, latched together. The smaller ship detaches, moves, and attaches to the side airlock area. As it moves, two space suited figures come up from the end of the Tajemnica, jet over to the intruder’s ship, and land lightly on the side near a hatch.

  CUT TO

  Bridge

  Helton: (Into intercom mic) They tried to cut in topside with explosives, didn’t work. Looks like they are moving to starboard side midship hatch. Everyone not on the cargo deck hold positions.

  CUT TO

  Cargo bay, showing the lines of recruits.

  They all turn to face the starboard side hatchway, Harbin front and center in the line. They adjust their grips and weapons and armor a little here, and a little there.

  Harbin: Fall back four steps! Give ‘em room!…

  The recruits move as instructed.

  Harbin: HALT! Now dress and cover! Hold, hold!

  The line straightens out, evens up, closes up, and hunkers down, to stand motionless.

  CUT TO

  EXT - NIGHT - Side of the unknown ship

  Horkle and Kaminski hang on the side of the intruder with one hand and magnetic boots. The hatch access pad has a red light glowing. Horkle pulls out a pair of credit card-sized devices with wires between them and slips a card into a slot. He presses a few buttons on the other card, the red light on the pad flickers. More button pushes. The green and yellow lights flicker. All three glow a steady light. They touch helmets to talk by helmet sound conduction.

  Horkle: Piece of cake. Air’s out, warning lights off.

  Kaminski: OK. Pop it.

  CUT TO

  INT - DAY - Cargo bay

  INSET - Low angle view of the greave-clad legs of the line of recruits in the cargo bay. Urine runs down an unknown recruit’s leg.

  Harbin: (OC, Quiet, firm, confident) Doin’ fine, gents. Stand, throw, throw, draw, and hold. Let them come to you. All you gotta do.

  Camera pans upward from the line of Harbin’s recruits.

  In the windows above, a line of rifle muzzles with suppressors covers the hatches from above.

  Camera pans back down to show the line of armored recruits.

  CUT TO

  EXT - NIGHT - Side of the unknown ship

  Horkle, holding onto the handle, shoves the hatch hard, and Kaminski dives through it, carbine ready.

  CUT TO

  INT - DAY - Cabin of intruder

  The six men are stacked at an airlock door, weapons at the ready. A seventh is positioned to open it.

  CUT TO

  Airlock of the intruder

  Kaminski stands ready with his carbine in one hand, a grenade in his other, set for a quick toss, facing a door labeled IN. Horkle is rapidly working on the com/access pad with his security override device next to him. The door behind them in the tight confines of the airlock (could fit maybe 4 people max) is labeled OUT, and all three lights on it are lit up. The override that Horkle is working has various lights flicker, then all three light up. He nods to Kaminski, and reaches for the handle.

  CUT TO

  Cargo bay

  Close-up on Alvarez, a recruit standing right next to Harbin, muttering, like a mantra.

  Alvarez: Throw, throw, draw, hold.

  There is the creak of hinges, a BANG, then more, quieter banging. Nervous looks and minor adjustments and positioning.

  CUT TO

  Intruder airlock

  Horkle opens the inner airlock door silently with a gentle shove, Kaminski takes in the layout in a flash, tosses the grenade over into the middle of the cluster of men gathered around the airlock on the far side of the cabin, and ducks back to get both hands on the rifle as Horkle closes the hatch. There is a BANG of the grenade and screaming. Horkle shoves the hatch open hard as Kaminski goes through fast followed by Horkle, firing a lot of three-round bursts so fast it sounds almost like full auto fire. Blood, brass, and bullets fly fast and thick, but the intruders go down quickly expecting to be the ones on offense, confused by the grenade blast, and not expecting an attack from their rear.

  CUT TO

  Cargo bay

  Kaminski: (OC, on intercom) Intruder has been secured. Stand down. Threat neutralized. I say again, threat is neutralized. Unload and show clear, make safe your weapons.

  Everyone breathes a sigh of relief and straightens up, relaxing.

  Harbin: NOT YOU guys! Stand ready until I say so. (Into throat mic) Harbin to Kaminski, private. Code?

  Kaminski: (OC, a speaker into Harbin’s ear) Gold three. I think you should bring Kat and Helton over to take a look at this. It isn’t what we thought.

  DISSOLVE TO

  INT - DAY - Main cabin of intruder’s ship

  Eight violently dead men in lightly armored dark uniform spacesuits, all armed. One of them is lying on his back, showing a badge on his chest, partially covered by his carbine sling. Kat, Kaminski, Harbin, Horkle, and Helton look over the carnage.

  Harbin: Intrasystem Customs Enforcement, trying a no-warning boarding.

  Helton: Oh God what do we do now? We just killed a bunch of our guys.

  Kat: Not so much our guys as government guys.

  Kaminski: They’re pirates, just the kind with badges and formal pay grade.

  Helton: GUYS?! What do we do with them? What will they do with us? Kat?

  Kat: Not really my specialty, but I’m pretty sure killing law enforcement is a capital offense around here.

  Horkle: Oh, just fuckin’ GREAT!

  Harbin: They acted like pirates. They get treated like pirates.

  Kat: That’s not how the law works, you know.

  Harbin: That’s why I’m not a lawyer.

  Horkle: Didn’t even notice the uniforms until they were dead. I popped the hatch for Ski, just like a boarding drill we practiced last week. He dove in, I followed, a couple of seconds later it was over. Dead man. I’m a dead man. First mission and I-

  Harbin: No. You are not a dead man, yet. Options?

  Kaminski: If we toss ‘em all in the Carbon Recovery Unit, sterilize the weapons and the ship, it can’t be traced to us.

  Helton: Destroying evidence? That’s gonna look good at trial.

  Horkle: (Sounding ill) I think I’m going to puke.

  Kaminski: Why can’t we just CRU the bodies, strip the hardware, keep it, or sell it? It’s not like they need it anymore.

  Harbin: We are not pirates.

  Helton: They attacked us first, we just won the fight.

  Kat: Wait. Maybe… Maybe there is a way. Are any of the injured soldiers pilots?

  Helton: I wouldn’t think so, but we can check. Are you taking him seriously?

  Kat: Give me a minute. I need to look at something in that word salad Lag calls orders. Don’t touch anything, don’t say anything. Go back to our ship, guard the door, secure things, and find a pilot or two if you can.

  DISSOLVE TO

  INT - DAY - Corner of the Cargo deck

  Recruit Alvarez and Harbin are having a quick post-encounter discussion.

  Alvarez: I don’t understand it at all, First Sergeant.

  Harbin: What?

  Alvarez: Why you put us out there to get killed like that. It was stupid.

  Harbin: I’ll overlook the attitude for the moment. What, exactly, do you think was stupid?

  Alvarez: Everything. Us just standing there. You said last week that we should never throw away a perfectly good weapon if we didn’t have to. Wearing bright, old fashioned armor when we should be hiding. Throwing AXES, for Christ sake, at guys we expected to be armored and carry guns. It was all stupid.

  Harbin: If it was so stupid, why was I standing right there with you? Am I stupid, too?


  Alvarez: No First Sergeant.

  Harbin: Then I must have had something in mind, right?

  Alvarez: Uh, I suppose so. But-

  Harbin: What would they be armed with?

  Alvarez: Carbines, I’d guess.

  Harbin: Right, carbines. Rifles can usually punch through a ship’s skin.

  Alvarez: What difference does that make? They are shooting at us!

  Harbin: You think that particular shield will stop a carbine round?

  Alvarez: Uh… yes?

  Harbin: Yes. And what does the eye get attracted to; things that are big and shiny, or small and hidden?

  Alvarez: Shiny?

  Harbin: Right. Three for three. If they are looking at us, what would they see?

  Alvarez: …Us, throwing axes at them.

  Harbin: Right. And if you saw someone throwing an ax at you, where would you be focusing your eyes, guns, and thoughts?

  Alvarez: At them.

  Harbin: Which means you would not be seeing… what? Remember tunnel vision?

  Alvarez: I wouldn’t be seeing anyone else.

  Harbin: And who else had a great view of the door they would have come in through?

  Alvarez: Uh… The guys with rifles on middeck.

  Harbin: Yes. Combat vets, some with years of practice and training. Anyone coming in the hatch would see you and ignore them.

  Alvarez: So, we were just going to stand there and get shot at.

  Harbin: Yes, we were. You are recruits with a very little bit of training and marginal marksmanship skills. You were placed in the one spot where you could do some real good.

  Alvarez: My first combat, and I’m nothin’ but bait.