THE BLACK FLEET CRISIS #3 - TYRANTS_TEST

by Michael P. Kube-Mcdowell

  ambush and put raiders in these cockpits. Think about it."

  "Bravo Flight leader, beginning recovery operations now," Venture

  advised. "Request you observe comm silence until further notice."

  "Affirmative, Venture. Bravo Flight, observe comm silence, effective

  immediately."

  Lieutenant Bos's recon-X was the first to be pulled out of line and

  towed inside Venture's aftmost landing bay on the invisible line of a

  tractor beam. Plat Mallar could not see what happened after that he

  did not have a good angle on the bay, and the outer doors closed again

  quickly after Bos's ship disappeared inside.

  Five minutes later the process was repeated with Lieutenant Grannell

  and Ferry Two, taken aboard amidships.

  Nearly an hour passed before it was Plat Mallar's turn--a long, lonely

  hour of anxious silence. They will never forgive us [or what we let

  happen, Plat thought as his ship began to move. They will never trust

  us again.

  The lights in the landing bay were blazing at the levels used for

  maintenance work and foreign-object scans. After living for nearly two

  days under combat-cockpit lighting, Plat Mallar was blinded. Before

  his eyes adjusted, he heard the honk of the rescue alarm and the hiss

  of the hydraulics as the cockpit canopy began to rise around him.

  "Come on down out of there," a commanding voice barked sharply as a

  boarding ladder clanged against the side of the recon-X.

  Squinting against the glare, Plat started to rise, but was hauled back

  by his unseen umbilicals. He fumbled with the releases, then felt his

  way over the side and onto the ladder, assisted by a hand that guided

  his booted foot to the top rung.

  By the time he reached the bottom of the ladder, he could see well

  enough to identify the six helmeted and body-armored troops that

  surrounded the recon-X.

  Their blaster rifles remained pointed at him as he stepped down off the

  ladder and backed away from the ship.

  The two security officers who were actually within reach, however,

  appeared to be unarmed. "Second Lieutenant Plat Mallar reporting.

  What's going on?" Mallar asked, still trying to blink away the last of

  the dazzle spots.

  "Just stand right there while we take a look at your ID disc," said the

  nearer of the two officers.

  Mallar fished the silver circle out of its special shoulder pocket and

  held it out to the man who'd spoken.

  The major dropped the disc into a portable scanner and studied the

  display. "What race are you?"

  "Grannan."

  "That's a new one on me," said the major, handing the disc back to

  Mallar. "Isn't Granna an Imperial world?"

  "I don't know what its current status is, sir," said Mallar. "I was

  born on Polneyeand I was never much interested in politics."

  "Is that so?" The major dismissed four of the troopers with a flick of

  his fingers. At the same time, the other two shouldered their weapons

  and moved behind Mallar, one hovering over each shoulder. "Report on

  ship status."

  It was then that Mallar noticed another pilot standing by, a flight

  helmet tucked under one arm. Behind him a tech crew waited with an

  instrument sled. "Engine three gets close to the redline running up to

  rated thrust. Other than that, I didn't notice anything."

  "Any combat damage?"

  "Uh--we were hit by an Interdictor, and then we took a heavy ion salvo,

  maybe two, I don't really know.

  Everything went out for almost five minutes."

  "Any operational gremlins or glitches afterward?"

  "No, all the systems seemed to come back all right once the integrator

  was stabilized. It should all be in the flight logs."

  "Very well," said the major. "Second Lieutenant Plat Mallar, I

  formally accept delivery of recon-X KE-four-oh-four-oh-nine, pending

  technical inspection, and release you from your responsibility for this

  vessel. Sergeant, escort this pilot to DD-eighteen and remain with him

  until the debriefing officer arrives."

  "Can I recharge my purifiers first?" Mallar asked, tapping the

  rectangular casing on his chest.

  The major frowned. "I don't know what that's about, son. I just know

  if I were you, I wouldn't be asking even for small favors right now."

  Chewbacca and Lumpawarrump stood together at the boundary of the Well

  of the Dead, where the Rryatt Trail turned away toward Kkkellerr.

  "It is time,] Chewbacca said. [Tell me what you have learned. Tell me

  the things you must know to hunt the katarn.] Lumpawarrump looked

  nervously at the green thicket. [Never show him your back, for the

  katarn will stalk you. Never flee, for the katarn will overtake you.

  Never hasten your hunt, for the katarn will vanish before your eyes.]

  [Then how are you to conquer your adversary?] [You must be patient, and

  you must be brave,] Lumpawarrump said, sounding not at all brave.

  [The katarn will allow you to follow it until it has taken your

  measure, and then it will turn and charge.] [And then?] [And then you

  must stand your ground until the katarn's breath is in your face and

  the scent of its glands is in your nostrils. Your hand must be steady,

  and you must take it in the center of the chest with your first shot,

  because your second will find only empty air.] [You have listened well,

  and remembered everything I have told you. Now we will see how much of

  it you have truly learned.] Lumpawarrump unslung the bowcaster from his

  shoulder and rubbed the newly polished metal of the stock with his

  paw.

  [I will try to make you proud.] [There is one more thing you must

  remember: Mind the light. Do not let night find you in the Well of the

  Dead. The katarn still owns the shadows and the darkness, and even the

  Wookiee must respect that.] [How many katarn have you hunted, Father?]

  [I have pursued the old prince five times,] Chewbacca said. [Once he

  escaped me. Three times he fell: And once he gave me this warning that

  I had been inattentive.] Taking his son by the wrist, Chewbacca made

  him touch the long double scar ridge hidden by the thick fur on the

  left side of Chewbacca's chest. [Be attentive, my son.] Lumpawarrump

  stared for a moment, then pulled his hand back and began to load the

  bowcaster.

  Chewbacca stopped him.

  [Why? Am I to go in unarmed?] [Wait until the moment. If you hunt

  katarn with your weapon drawn and ready, you will find it too easy to

  fire the quick shot, the long shot, the startled shot.

  And then you have given over the advantage. You will never see the old

  prince that takes you.] Those words shattered the last of

  Lumpawar-rump's pretense. [Father--I am afraid.] [Be afraid. But go

  forward, all the same.] Lumpawarrump stared, then slowly shouldered the

  weapon. [Yes, Father.] Turning, his paws found a seam

  in the green growth and parted it noiselessly. After a moment's

  hesitation, Lumpawarrump eased himself lightly through the opening and

  vanished from sight.

  Chewbacca waited on the trail for a count of two hundred, then followed

  his son into the Well of the Dead.
>
  The man who entered compartment DD18 wore a dark green uniform with

  markings wholly unlike those of Venture's crew or the troops aboard

  her.

  "My name is Colonel Trenn Gant, New Republic Intelligence," he said as

  Plat Mallar jumped to his feet.

  "Sit."

  Mallar complied. "You must be here to ask me about the attack on the

  commodore's shuttle."

  "No," said Gant. "Actually, we have a pretty good idea of what

  happened there." The colonel circled the table and Mallar once before

  sitting down and Placing an interview recorder between them. "When did

  you first learn the nature of the mission?"

  "The nature of the mission? You mean the ferry duty, or that we would

  be escorting Tampion?" When Gant showed no sign that he was going to

  answer, Mallar went on. "I was called to the training commander's

  office at oh-nine-fifty the day before yesterday, and I was told I had

  been assigned to a recon-X ferry flight."

  "And that was the first you knew of that assignment?"

  "Yes--well, no. Admiral Ackbar told me the day before, when we were at

  the simulator, that there was a chance they might need pilots for a

  ferry mission. But I didn't know anything else until Captain Logirth

  called me in. I got the details at the mission briefing, the same as

  everyone else."

  "What details were those?"

  "It was a mission briefing," Mallar said, puzzled that Gant would need

  an explanation. "Ship assignments--the jump vector--the formation we'd

  be us-ing-the mission schedule--the lift order--the fact that we would

  be escorting Tampion, and that some of us would be returning in the

  shuttle."

  "Is that all?"

  "Well--there were some technical details on comm configuration and so

  forth, yes."

  "When did you learn that Commodore Solo would be aboard the shuttle?"

  "Not until we were in our ships, ready to lift. Lieutenant Bos

  recognized the commodore as he was boarding.

  Before that, all we were told was that the shuttle would be carrying

  command staff."

  Gant nodded. "How much time elapsed between the mission briefing and

  the cockpit call?"

  "Four hours."

  "I need for you to account for your whereabouts during that four

  hours.

  Don't leave anything out."

  "I went right to the simulators and spent two hours doing lifts and

  formation work. On the way back to the lockers, I stopped for about

  ten minutes at the Memory Wall, looking at names. I took a five-minute

  scrubdown, then I crawled into a sleep tube and spent the rest of the

  time trying to--sleep, that is."

  "Who'd you talk to?"

  "I hardly talked to anyone. Lieutenant Frekka, my simulator

  controller. I said a few words to Rags--Lieu-tenant Ragsall, who flew

  as Ferry Seven in our group--in pilot country."

  "What did you say?"

  "I asked him how many of us he thought the Fifth would keep," said

  Mallar.

  "And what did he say to that?"

  "He said that in combat, you don't usually lose the mount and get the

  rider back--that the chances were that with a new fleet they'd need

  almost as many pilots as they needed fighters."

  "Who else did you talk to?"

  Mallar shook his head. "The crew chief for my recon-X, the flight

  leader--that's all I can remember.

  Major, I was nervous, and when I'm nervous, I don't start a lot of

  conversations."

  "What were you nervous about?"

  "About making a mistake. About making people regret giving me a

  chance."

  "Did you talk to anyone off the base?"

  "I never left the base."

  "What about your comlink?"

  "No."

  "Are you sure? Shall we look at the comm log?"

  "I didn't talk to anyone--wait, I tried to call Admiral Ackbar. But he

  wasn't available."

  "Admiral Ackbar again," Gant said. "Do you have a special relationship

  of some kind with him?"

  "He was my primary flight instructor. And he's my friend."

  "You managed to make friends in high places pretty quickly, didn't

  you?"

  "I don't know what you're trying to say. When I woke up in the

  hospital, Admiral Ackbar was there.

  Our friendship's been at his initiative--I wouldn't have known who he

  was to seek him out. I didn't know who he was until much later."

  "If it's at his initiative, why did you call him?"

  "Because I'd just gotten good news, and I didn't have anyone else to

  share it with who'd understand."

  Mallar leaned forward, spreading his hands flat on the tabletop.

  "Look, Major--I know we screwed up, and I know I'm going to be sent

  back. But every one of us would rather have died than show up here

  without the commodore."

  "Really," said Gant. "My information is that not a single member of

  your squadron fired a shot."

  "We couldn't," Mallar said, coming to his feet with enough angry threat

  in his posture to bring the guard a step forward. "It was just like

  Polneye all over again.

  They were waiting for us. We were out of it before we knew what was

  happening. I was hit at least three times in the first five seconds,

  and I don't think I got the worst of it. But I was pumping my triggers

  right up to the moment when the last Yevethan ship jumped out--hoping

  for a green light and a miracle."

  Gant's hand shot out and caught Mallar's right wrist, forcing him to

  turn that hand upward. The movement revealed purple-black bruises

  across the palm pad and a bloody, scabrous blister covering the last

  third of the thumb.

  Cocking an eyebrow as he released his grip, Major Gant sat back and

  crossed his arms over his chest. "Yes.

  They were waiting for you--at an intercept point ninety-one light-years

  outside Koornacht Cluster. They didn't just take a wild shot in the

  dark. They knew exactly who and what they were aiming at. And that's

  my problem, pilot. That's my problem with this whole affair."

  Mallar relaxed into his chair. "I don't know how the Yevetha found out

  enough to be there waiting for us.

  If I had any ideas, I'd have told you when you walked in here, instead

  of making you sift through the sand. The only thing I know is, it had

  to come from someone who knew about it before I did--before the pilots

  did. Tell me if I'm wrong, but I don't think an Interdictor could

  cross ninety-one light-years in four hours--not on its best day."

  "You are correct," Gant said, reaching out and collecting the

  recorder.

  Then he slid Mallar's ID disc across the table to him. "Sergeant, take

  Second Lieutenant Mallar to pilot country and show him how to find the

  'fresher and berth forty-D. Mallar, you're restricted to pilot

  country, comm privileges suspended, until someone cuts new orders for

  you."

  "Yes, sir." Mallar slipped the disc into its pocket as he stood.

  "Thank you, sir."

  "I've done you no favors, Mallar. I'm looking for a traitor. I

  haven't found him yet."

  "Yes, sir," Mallar said, nodding and letting the soldier lead
the way

  toward the hatch.

  Gant stood and turned as Mallar passed him. "One other thing."

  Mallar stopped short, his heart suddenly pounding.

  "What, Major?"

  "Why do you think the Yevetha left you and the others alive?"

  "Sir--at first I thought it was so we could carry the message back, as

  witnesses."

  "And now?"

  "Now I think they did it to humiliate us."

  "Explain."

  "Major, if we'd died out there, or been taken hostage, that would have

  made us important, too. What they did told us that we aren't even

  important enough to kill. It's like they understood just how to make

  us feel small. Futility, Major--that's the message they wanted us to

  bring back. They showed us they can go where they want to and do what

  they want to, and there's nothing we can do about it."

  "Don't you believe that for a minute, son," Major Gant said firmly.

  "This isn't over--it's just beginning.