by Frank Carey
A panel on the side of the door flashed colored lights before the door opened onto a standard airlock. "Tell me that was you, Gamma," Gabe said as he stepped inside.
"It wasn't me, sir."
"So, someone or something is awake enough to cycle an airlock."
"Yes, sir."
The room shook for a while before the door behind them opened onto a long, dimly lit corridor.
"On the left, 100-feet down the corridor," Gamma said. "Sir, the readings do not completely match those on file for the Orta species."
Gabe formed a blaster and set it on stun before hurrying down the hallway. He found a partially opened door. Swinging it open, he stepped inside and found someone lying unconscious next to what looked like a communications device. The person wasn't an Orta.
It was a fire demon.
CHAPTER SIX
"Gamma, what the hell is a fire demon doing on Orta? I thought they disappeared."
"Gabe," the demon whispered in a familiar voice. "Help me!"
"Dammit, that's Natalie!" Gabe absorbed his weapon, then replaced it with an advanced-technology med kit which he placed on her arm. In moments, her eyes fluttered open.
"Gabe? What happened? How the hell are you here?"
"You called for a pizza, and I happened to be in the neighborhood. Hold still while the med unit finishes its diagnosis... Got it." The unit flashed a few lights, then emitted a continuous glow. "That should hold you for a few hours. How do you feel?"
"Mortified. Could I bother you not to tell anyone about this?"
“What, that you’re a four-foot tall fire demon whose body temperature is the same as mine?”
She glared at him.
"Sure, I can keep a secret, especially if you help me to convince the planetary defense system not to target Primus."
"What? Shit! Help me up," she demanded. Once on her feet, and with his help, she hurried over to a control console and input commands. "Ok, I've put the system on standby, but I don't know for how long." She checked another console. "We have intruders in Power Station 118. By the looks of their energy signatures, some of them are strykers."
"What are the others, the non-strykers?"
"Tralaskans. The system indicates the backup converter crystal was destroyed while still on-line. That tripped the primary which tripped all the crystals. Someone has to reset the node."
"How does one reset a node?" Gabe asked.
"You don't really think I'm going to let you go there to face a bunch of strykers do you? Then there's the problem of sunrise which will occur in only a couple of hours. I don't think even your armor can survive that."
"How much time between reset and when you can send a security team to help me?"
"A few minutes at most, but even that may be cutting it too short. I can go…"
"Not going to happen. Remember the strykers? And you’re barely able to stand up. Can robots perform the reset?"
"Not with the power instabilities."
"So, what do you suggest? Prayer? Look, Ambassador, I'm as religious as the next guy, but my parish priest taught us that God helps those who help themselves."
She grimaced as only a fire demon could. Leaning over, she punched a button on a console, opening a door in the wall. Inside was a brightly lit platform about fifteen-feet across. "It runs on its own power, so it's not affected by the power surges," she explained.
"And 'It' is?"
"We call it a traveler. You might know it as a teleportation device. We use them to quickly get around the planet."
"You couldn't just give me a fast motorcycle, now could you? Nooooo, you've got to scramble my atoms and throw them around the universe." He stepped up on the platform.
"Call me when you get there, and I'll walk you through the reset. Any questions?"
“Why are you four feet tall?”
She glared at him once more.
“As the egg says: scramble away. "
Nat shook her head, then did something to the console. Gabe disappeared in a shimmer of light.
CHAPTER SEVEN
The Primus control center was a hotbed of activity as the techs gathered information about what was happening below. Rista was no exception. She was frantically trying to track her father and Gamma while maintaining a calm demeanor for the sake of morale. Meanwhile, with Saffron's help, Pris was busy contacting Earth or the League for instructions.
"Dammit! I can't get a line through to either OffSec or EarthSec. It's like we're being jammed!"
"That's because you are being jammed, ma'am," a waiter said. Pris pushed Saffron out of the line of fire as a weapon appeared in her hand, but the waiter was ready. He shot her, sending the gun into a bulkhead. He then turned the gun on Rista who had her weapon part-way out of its holster. "Uh-uh, Officer. I've got enhanced reflexes and a nasty temper. I'll shoot you before you can move another micron, then shoot your mother for good measure. Now, lay the piece on the counter and step away."
Rista looked at Pris who was being attended to by the first officer and Saffron. "Do what he says, Officer," Pris ordered through spasms of pain.
Reluctantly, Rista did as she was told. Once she was clear of her weapon, the waiter walked over and disarmed it by pulling its power pack and placing it in a jacket pocket. "Good girl."
"Can I see to the Commissioner?"
"Sure, just no funny business. Now, where's your father?"
"Taking a spacewalk," Rista replied as she knelt next to Pris and applied a first aid kit to her mother's wound. "Who the hell are you people? "
"Zoe sent us to make sure her people retrieve something from the surface. We'll be out of your hair when they complete their mission."
"Zoe Muntz is alive?"
"Yeah, and she's planning on changing everything. Now, where's your father?"
"He's making his way along the hull to find another way into the hangar. Once inside, he plans to set off every EPIRB he can find. Trust me, someone will hear that kind of racket."
The waiter thought for a moment. "Mal, get down to the computer center and tell Cross to be on the lookout for Stryker-1. Tell him we think DCI Adon is heading to the hangar deck."
"Jeez, Resh, can't we just use the intercoms?"
"We cooked the intercoms, remember? Now get!"
Resh opened the door and stepped out only to fly back into the far wall where he crumpled into a heap on the floor. Behind him a tall, human woman with black hair and anger-filled eyes strode in and headed toward Resh. He had his weapon aimed and fired before she completely entered the room. What he didn't plan for was the shot having no effect on her except for ruining her gown. Before he could get off another shot, she grabbed him by the throat and threw him into the wall where he joined his friend on the floor. "Seal the door," she ordered.
Ryyst nodded to one of his lieutenants who flipped a switch, once more sealing them in. "Yes, Agent Minos. Control Room, power core, computer core, and banquet room are secure. Common areas and hangar deck read compromised."
"Agent?" Pris asked through the pain.
"Yes. I'm an agent of the Immortal Security Force. We were formed shortly after the incidents involving Typhon. Our existence is generally kept on the QT. How do you feel?"
"I'm OK. Sorry about your dress."
"Yeah, I really liked the fit. Commander, do you have something I could change into? "
"Yes, Agent." He looked around, then waved someone over. "Daphne, could we borrow your spare uniform?"
"Yes, sir," the young Erdexi said. "This way, milady."
Rista turned her attention back to her mother just as she tried to stand up. "Where the hell do you think you're going?"
"I'm fine," she said as Saffron and Rista helped her to her feet. "Computer, you said the banquet room is secure? Secure how?"
"Ambassador Kitra and his wife have subdued the enemy force."
"Open comm link."
"Working..."
"This is Kitra."
"Dad, what the hell happened
?"
"Those animals interrupted dinner, then shot the main course. A male can only take so much. Are you and your family all right?"
"We're safe, but Gabe is off on one of his 'Save the planet' tears."
"Did Agent Minos make it to your location?"
"Yes, Stenosh, I made it, and I told you to call me Athea."
"Forgive me, my dear. Battling mercs makes me forgetful. Priscilla, is there anything we can do from our end?"
"Just keep everyone safe. We'll get back to you when we have a plan. Priscilla out. Damn, I pity those mercs."
"Commander, do we have word on how Gabe's doing?" Athea asked.
"No mistress. There is now a planetary shield in place, one that our sensors cannot penetrate. It came on shortly after your son left." He looked at the scanner readouts. "Planetary defense satellites have stood down as well. It seems the Orta have gone to a purely defensive posture."
"Good job, Dad," Rista said .
"Your father should think about a career in planetary rescue," Pris said as she slowly sat in a chair. "He seems skilled at it. Commander, do we have any info on the energy instabilities we measured before Gabe left?"
"No. Though the defense field is showing small power fluctuations."
"We need to get word to the League," Athea noted.
"We need to regain control of this station to do that," Pris noted. "Commander, where the hell is your security force?"
"The waiters stunned the six at the party," Athea replied.
Ryyst looked over at his second in command. "The others are not responding to our calls and the computer can't find their tags, Commander."
"Scan outside the station," Rista asked.
"Why would we..." the first officer said.
"Do it!" Ryyst ordered.
The first officer ran a scan, then stopped, unable to continue. Finally, she could compose herself enough to report, "Fourteen tags behind and below the station. Computer suggests they are in a decaying orbit."
The normally calm commander let loose with a stream of Erdexi invectives aimed squarely at a control console. The others in the room carefully stepped back as Ryyst vented. Finally, perhaps running out of words, the commander relented. He stood there silently, but only for a moment. "Athea, you are in command of station security. Commissioner Adon and Officer Adon, you are now working for Agent Minos. I want those creatures holding my station subdued or dead. Am I understood?"
"Yes, sir," they replied.
"Computer!"
"Yes, Commander."
"I am issuing field commissions of Lieutenant Commander to Agent Minos, Lieutenant to Commissioner Adon, and Lieutenant Junior Grade to Officer Adon, all commissions effective immediately. They are given full access to all station resources and systems."
"Yes, sir. All commissions noted and recorded."
"Athea?"
"Yes, Commander?"
"Get to it!"
"Yes, sir," she said, giving him a salute. "Where's your weapons cache for this level?"
"Six doors aft of the control center, port side. The door is marked 'Janitor's Closet.' Communications Officer, give them comms."
The comm officer opened a cover on her console and withdrew two ear-comm units, which he handed to Athea and Rista.
"Pris, put together a response team from the Bridge crew, then call your father and brief him on the situation. Tell him to expect a visit from us shortly."
"Roger that," Pris replied.
With a final worried look at her mother, Rista followed Athea to the main hatch. When she got there, she handed her grandmother her weapon before bending down to retrieve her backup piece from its ankle holster. "Dad gave me that when I graduated from the academy."
"Your dad knows his weapons." Using the station's vid system, she checked the hallway. It was empty, which raised her hackles. "Let's move." She placed her palm against the reader, unlocking and opening the hatch. She stepped out into the corridor with Rista close behind.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Gabe materialized inside a room identical to the one he left. A closed hatch stood about twelve feet away from the edge of the platform.
"Nat, do you copy? This is Gabe, over."
"This is Nat. I copy, over."
"According to my diagnostics, I've arrived in one piece, over."
"Well, then I must me losing my touch, over."
"You must be. So, how do things look?"
"The same as when you left except that I got the planetary defense system to set the weapons to standby and activate the planetary force field. At least the station is safe for a bit."
"OK, care to explain what the hell is going on?"
"What if I say I can't?"
"Then I save the day, then go home and take your name off the family Christmas mailing list."
"I'm on your family Christmas mailing list?"
"Not now, but when I get home, I'll put it on, then immediately take it off. Our newsletters are the stuff of legend."
She sighed. "From your reaction when I woke up, I take it you know the legend of the fire demons."
He walked over to the hatch and ran a scan. He was surprised to find an Earth-normal environment both in the room he was in and the building beyond the hatch. "Yeah, Dr. Blyst told me after the unveiling of the Old New York exhibit. Does she know that you are a fire demon?"
"No. By the way, it's not just me."
"I see. I take it all of your kind are fire demons and not fuzzy, happy energy beings? "
"Fuzzy? Really?"
"Sorry. So, what am I fixing?"
"A planet spanning, life force generator. By the way, this isn't really a planet."
"Then what is it? A big moon?"
"A space station. The people of Orta are hiding from the pain and suffering we caused millennia ago."
He opened the door a crack and saw the corridor clear, so he formed a gun, then went to human form. "Does this have something to do with the three-nearby systems Dr. Blyst mentioned?"
"Yeah... Those planets were our hunting grounds."
"Ouch." He stepped out into the corridor. "I'm in the corridor. Which way do I go?"
"Left. In a hundred feet, you will find a stairwell. Go down to the next level and make a right."
"Copy that." He scanned the area, but found no threats. "So, what happened?"
"We got arrogant, and our prey got smart. All three planets were on the verge of extinction when they launched an all-out attack against our home world. Wiped the damn thing from the face of the galaxy."
He made his way to the top of the stairway. "Yet you and the rest of your species seem to be here, or am I helping a ghost?"
"This space station was used to explore other systems. It and its crew was on a mission when the planet blew. I'm descended from a group of pacifist scientists who happened to be at the right place at the right time."
"OK. Where do the fuzzy Ortas fit into the picture?" After a quick scan, he walked down to the next level.
"Fuzzy Orta." He could hear the disbelief in her voice. "You've taken a race that once ruled this part of space and turned it into a toy line. The fuzzy form is a combo stealth/energy conversion field which allows us to leave the confines of the station without dying or being detected as what we are."
He stopped and ducked into a side corridor as two strykers turned a corner and headed his way. He held his breath and prayed as they walked by. He waited a moment before sending a scan pulse down the corridor in both directions. "Damn, that was close," he whispered.
"What happened?"
"I almost had a family reunion with two of my cousins. Nat, it's Zoe's people. She must need a way to control a shit-load of energy, which means she knows about your power distribution system." He proceeded to his destination. "Where am I going, by the way?"
"Spare part storage. You need to get a powered control module to replace the one damaged by the surge. Once installed, the spare will reset the system and wake everyone up." She paused. "So, t
he rumors of her death were greatly exaggerated."
"No, she was dead. I watched as she was vaporized by a lightning bolt. My guess is it wasn't her, only some kind of robot or clone or something."
"Great. Just last week I was complaining that things were getting a little same-old-same-old."
"That'll teach you. By the way, how the hell much are your people tied to this technology?"
"Too much. Long story short, my ancestors figured out how to efficiently convert sunlight into usable energy, and usable energy into something we could live on without first converting it to food. That's why we need stints in a microwave when we're far from home."
"The crystals the Katalans sell you..."
"Are key to that conversion process. Orta is covered by these crystals in a mesh configuration. Unfortunately, we never foresaw an outworlder tampering with the system. "
Gabe stopped in front of a door marked with strange glyphs. "Umm, Nat. What does 'Spare Parts Storage' look like in Orta?"
"Shit, sorry. I'm sending you a graphic. Hold on."
A second or three later, a graphic appeared in Gabe's internal heads-up display. He looked around and saw the same set of glyphs on the door across the corridor. After a quick check, he walked over and stepped into the room. What he found inside was disturbing. "Nat, the room has been ransacked, I would guess by the strykers."
CHAPTER NINE
Nat sent him another graphic along with a picture of the part. "Found the graphic, but it’s on a destroyed box. I can't see anything that even resembles a power control module. How about I get back to the traveler and go to another site?"
"Yeah, no. The power fluctuations have scrammed the traveler system. I don't know what to do."
He heard the fear in her voice, then he had an idea. "Gamma, you still with me?"
"Yes, DCI Adon."
"You brought a friend?" Nat asked.
"Gamma, meet Nat. Gamma is an AI officer in EarthSec. Gamma, can we create a new power control module using my nanorobots?"
"Yes, sir. Full plans are available in the Orta database."
"You hacked our database?" an incredulous Nat asked.
"Yeah, we hacked your database. Want to put me in the hoosegow now, or wait until I finish saving your planet?"
