“That’s when you lost your legs?”
He shook his head.
“No, Sir, one of the Biomech creatures took them from me as we took the control room.”
He pulled up his left sleeve to show a fully mechanical arm. It was well built and fitted inside a sleek ceramic-looking housing to emulate the shape of the arm. The fist was more mechanical looking and fully articulated. He moved the fingers in sequence and looked back at her.
“They patched me up, and I’m back on active duty.”
“You’re combat effective?” she asked in a concerned tone.
Captain John Tycho turned his hand and extended it in front of him.
“Colonel. I had to pass the physical training tests the same as I did nine years ago. I came third out of thirty.”
“Impressive, well, good to have you here, Captain. We need marines with skills and experience if this struggle is going the way I think it will.”
Her mind drifted back to Spartan and the cuts and markings she had seen on his body. The report from Earth had been minimal in scope, yet she feared for what he had been through. They’d suffered enough with the loss of APS Corp, something she suspected Spartan would know nothing about. They’d both worked hard to build it from nothing, only to have it taken away by the cancellation of contracts. Teresa shook her head to rid herself of the thoughts and looked to the Major.
“Major, what do we have then? I’d like to see our unit.”
“If you come with us, we’ll show you our facilities.”
“Thank you.”
The small group walked away from the hangar, making for the hexagonal doors that led into the vast internal structure of the ship. Teresa had been aboard a number of similar ships, but she could already see how the hangar and mission part of the ship were so small compared to the similar sections on the other Battlecruisers. They passed through the first of several bulkhead doors, passing small pairs of Marine guards.
“As I’m sure you’re aware, this particular ship is using one of the trial combat units for use as a heavy Battlecruiser. Because of this, we’re lacking in space for marine units.”
“Yes, I know,” replied Teresa, “Even the Crusader class have space for half a battalion on board. From the specs, it looks like we’ll be hard pressed to do that?”
Major Terson nodded.
“That’s true, Sir. I’ve had our people use every bit of space they can find. Even so, we have all the 39th here under one roof. Just over three hundred marines plus officers and specialists.”
“So few? Can we expect any more?”
The Major shook her head.
“No, Sir. The 39th are just under of the expected number. I’ve arranged for platoons to merge to create something useable. We have some experienced marines and half came from either the new cadet intake on Terra Nova or from the reserve units. We have enough marines to make up three complete heavy companies plus a single Jötnar platoon on transfer from Hyperion.”
“Hyperion? Who is their commander?”
Major Terson looked lost as she tried to find the relevant page on her secpad.
“I…uh…they have not yet transferred through. Their ship is meeting up at Prometheus, along with the remainder of our ships. We have to stop there to collect our equipment.”
“Wait,” said Teresa, “we’re stopping at Prometheus?”
They had now reached a large open passageway with four hatches leading to barrack rooms and a mess area. A small group of marines in training clothes spotted them and moved away, speaking quietly.
“Yes, Sir, the foundries on Prometheus have our stores and armor. All we have at the moment are personnel, provisions, and uniforms. We don’t even have a training ground. Have you ever been there?”
Teresa tried not to bark out a laugh at the question. She’d spent some uncomfortable weeks on that burning hot world. It had been where she and Anderson had spearheaded a rescue operation for General Rivers and Spartan. It was also where they’d met Gun and his comrades for the first time.
“Yes, I’ve been there, and I’m not excited at the prospect of going back.”
Major Terson suspected there was more to this and made a mental note to check on it later. She pointed toward a door.
“We have converted one of the larger munitions bays into a temporary fitness area and sparring room. It isn’t big, only enough for a dozen marines at a time.”
Teresa walked in while the Major continued to speak. Inside was a small group of marines, each of them stripped down to just their training clothes and working on a series of weights. Off to one side was a trio of marines taking it in turns to spar with a muscled black fighter. All wore straps on their hands and padded helmets to protect their jaws and forehead.
Nothing changes, Teresa thought.
* * *
How the three of them reached the control station was beyond Spartan. They’d covered nearly two hundred meters through the station and moved past a dozen wounded people trying to make their way out from the transport dock part of the station. This was as far as they could get without exposing themselves to the glare of the invaders. All three kept down low along the side of the small passageway and looked to the end point that ran into a tall crossroads.
“The control station is in the room to the right of the crossroads. It’s positioned on the outer wall of the station.”
Spartan looked to Khan who waited patiently with the smashed piece of metal still in his arms.
“What about the machines?” he asked his friend.
Khan shrugged.
“Without armor and weapons it isn’t gonna be easy.”
As they waited, the sound of clanking metal feet became louder. Spartan stopped talking, and all three waited and watched. The body of one of the metallic beasts appeared at the crossroads and stopped for a moment. Spartan paused and readied himself, even though there was almost nothing he would be able to do against such a thing. He lifted his hand to warn them to make no noise. The machine finally moved on, and the sounds of its feet faded into the distance. Spartan looked to the other two.
“Ready?”
Khan nodded, and they rushed to the crossroads. None of them paused upon reaching the middle section, and they moved through to the door of the control station. The engineer tapped the control pad, and they were inside. Khan pulled the door shut behind them, and they breathed a sigh of relief. Spartan nodded in appreciation to the man who had moved to a row of computer screens. The control room was smaller than Spartan had expected. It was rectangular in shape with a low ceiling and plain walls. The computers were arrayed in a unit in the center of the room and seating for six staff around the screens. One wall was different to the rest. He could follow the shape of pistons and bars in the corners.
“Does this open?”
The man looked up from the display and nodded.
“Yeah, that’s the monitoring window. Want to see?”
Without waiting for a reply, he tapped something on the console. With a soft whirl, the panel slid in four directions, revealing a wide pane of quadruple reinforced glass. There were protective bars running through the structure, but it still provided a perfect view of the docking arm and the T’Kari ship.
“Look,” said Khan in a hushed tone.
Both he and Spartan watched as the arachnid-looking machines moved along the hull of the ship from their hiding places in units fitted beneath the vessel. A large group of them had stayed behind and were moving around on the outer hull of the ship.
“Damn, so they must have fitted that to the ship before we left. Some kind of protective measure?”
Khan shrugged, but the engineer interrupted both of them.
“Maybe they knew you would try and get away and made sure these machines came with you.”
Spartan looked at him and back to the machines.
“But why? What can they do?”
As if in direct answer to his question, the station shook again, and the lights flickered.
“They are Biomech war machines. They do only one thing, destroy,” said Khan.
“If that were true, why leave so many on the ship? Look at them.”
Both of them watched for what seemed an eternity before it became clear to Spartan.
“Wait, they’re building something, right on the outside of the hull. Look, near the cargo hatch.”
Khan followed his gaze and then spotted the thick metal coils.
“Cables, big ones, and they’re taking them right to the station. Why?”
They looked to the engineer who noticed they’d both fallen silent.
“What?”
Spartan pointed out through the window and at the machines working away on the ruined T’Kari ship. Five of them moved along its length and continued to move and alter the thick array of cables running along the ship and to the docking arm.
“That.”
The engineer stared at it for far less than the other two before shaking his head and returning to his screen.
“Well?” continued Khan.
The man moved through screen after screen until reaching a page that showed the internal layout of the docking area of the station. He stopped and looked at it for a moment and then pointed at a series of discs.
“This station is a standard design. We have them around all the moons and planets here. I think the basic design is even used on some of the Alliance worlds in Alpha Centauri, well, some of the older colonies maybe.”
Khan bent down and looked at the screen.
“Cut to it, what are they doing?”
The man wiped his brow.
“The docking arm has a direct feed to the fusion reactor plant on this station. The connection is used to provide external power to waiting ships, or to recharge systems.”
“So they need to recharge their machines?” asked Khan.
The engineer looked up at the scarred warrior and lifted the side of his lip slightly.
“No...they have already bypassed the filters and have connected whatever they are building directly to the station itself.”
He moved the screen to one side and brought up another that showed the T’Kari ship.
“There’s something else as well. The ship is showing a power build-up cycle like nothing I’ve ever seen on a ship before.”
Spartan and Khan looked at each other.
“They are going to blow the ship and the station,” said Khan.
Spartan sighed. He had another completely different idea.
“No, that’s not their plan. I’ve seen this signature before, out on the new colonies at Epsilon Eridani. Back when the first engineer ships had finished their work.”
The engineer nodded, immediately understanding what Spartan was referring to. He moved several overlays to the ship and placed them together.
“Yeah, it’s a match,” he said, and then stood up and moved to the glass to watch the busy machines.
“Uh...is somebody going to tell me what’s going on?” Khan asked irritably.
Spartan’s shoulder lowered a little in resignation though not in surprise.
“These machines have the components on or in that ship to operate a Spacebridge, and they’re using the station as a massive power source.”
“No,” Khan said slowly, “these machines are building a Rift, right above Earth?”
The other two answered in perfect unison.
“Yes.”
Spartan looked at the thick power cables and couplings joining the ship and the station together. He’d wondered all along if their escape had perhaps been a little too easy but hadn’t wanted to believe it. They were at least a day away from any military ships coming to help them, and that was probably enough for the machines to do what they wanted.
“Either they planned this, or it is a default programming mode for them. They arrive, seize a major power source, and then assemble a Rift generator to bring in reinforcements.”
“I don’t understand. I thought the Biomechs were hundreds or thousands of light years away?” asked the engineer.
“Yeah,” replied Khan unhelpfully.
“It’s more complicated than that,” started Spartan, “They can only create bridges of up to about four light years but some places can go further.”
The engineer’s face lit up, remembering something he’d seen.
“The Nexus? Like at Prometheus and in the Orion Nebula?”
“Exactly,” said Spartan, “The Biomechs had a Rift station and a fleet the other side of the Spacebridge we came through. These machines must be trying to create a Rift, using the equipment on this side to manage it.”
The engineer looked as though he didn’t understand.
“Why not just build the generator on the other side and send ships here?”
Spartan smiled.
“Their station is gone. It exploded as we came through.”
Spartan looked at the screen and then to the man.
“What’s your name?”
“Simon...Simon Ford.”
“Okay, then, Simon. This isn’t going to be easy.”
He threw a quick glance at Khan before returning to the man.
“I’m Spartan, and this is Khan. Between us we’ve spent a lot of time fighting these things. Out of everybody in the Alliance, we are probably the best two people you could find that know how these things work.”
The engineer said nothing, but his face showed a mixture of confusion, and more significantly, fear. Spartan pointed to the window.
“There are dozens of Biomechs ships out in space using a network of Rifts we know nothing about. I suspect they are about to reveal themselves, and this might be one of their first targets before they try and open the Black Rift.”
“We need to stop them, Spartan,” Khan said.
Spartan looked over his shoulder to his friend.
“Thanks for that, Khan. I mean to do more than stop them coming here.”
He looked back to the engineer.
“I mean to see every one of their ships destroyed and their homeworld burned to ash.”
The man looked nervously at him, perhaps sensing the rage within the battered looking warrior. Though Spartan had been through tough times, there was no way to hide the muscles and strength. He glanced to Khan, but the expression on the Jötnar looked almost identical.
“Yeah, I think it’s time,” he said stoically.
Spartan moved back to the screen.
“How much longer?”
The man worked frantically, and a trickle of sweat had already started to run down his forehead.
“Another minute, maybe two. The more you talk, the slower it will be.”
Spartan wanted to say something, but he was all too familiar with what it was like when somebody sat peering over your shoulder. Khan moved to the door and bent down low to get a look. He pushed it open a fraction. Spartan moved to the other side, looking about for a weapon. All he could find was a medium hammer that was part of a small escape kit near the door. It was only designed for smashing glass but was better than nothing. The engineer spotted them both and started to speak, but Spartan cut him off with a raised fist. Khan whispered as quietly as he could manage.
“One of them is coming this way.”
Spartan felt his heart skip a beat and altered his stance so that he could drive forward to the doorway when necessary. Khan had already pulled back the door as quietly as he could and lifted the metal bar to his shoulder ready. He looked to Spartan and nodded very slowly. The sound increased in volume and separated as each of the metallic feet clattered in the metallic floor. It moved closer and closer until reaching a meter from the doorframe. Khan took in a long, deep breath and tensed himself for the fight.
This is it, Spartan thought.
The engineer pressed one more button on his computer display and then turned in his chair to face the window in the same direction as the other two. He gave them the thumbs up but said nothing, much to Spartan’s relief. The sound returned outs
ide the door and increased in volume, finally fading away. Spartan pushed it open and gave a quick look.
Nobody there.
He looked back at the engineer who grinned.
“Okay, the clamps are disconnected. That’s all that can be done from here.”
“It’s gone,” whispered Khan.
Both Spartan and Khan waited at the door for almost a minute in case the thing came back, before moving to the window. Spartan watched for a few seconds and twisted about.
“Why is the docking arm still attached? Has that machine out there found a way to counter your work?”
The engineer said nothing; he merely nodded at the window with raised eyebrows. Nothing seemed to happen, then slowly the section of the docking arm near the station tugged, pulled, and finally detached. Arcs of blue energy rippled between the arm, and the station before one final blast separated them. The light flickered and came back but at half the brightness of before. For a second, Spartan felt as if he was falling, but it was just the motion of the rotating section starting to slow prior to the backup power units kicked in. He grabbed the nearest computer unit and slammed his right hand down onto Simon’s shoulder.
“Great work there. You may have just saved this station.”
Shouting from outside, and the clanking sound of metal feet spoilt his words.
“Not quite yet,” Khan said grimly.
He pushed the door open wide and stepped out. The sound of shouting and the occasional scream returned where in the last minute it had been silent.
We need to secure the station,” said Spartan.
Khan looked in agreement as he moved back toward the crossroads.
“What about the ship and the broken docking arm?” asked the engineer.
Spartan watched it drifting away from the station as the dozen or so machines moved about impotently
“Leave them. It won’t stay up here long. Give it a few hours, and Earth’s gravity will pull them down. It’s all they deserve.”
CHAPTER TEN
When news arrived of the initial attacks in Helios, many citizens clamored for the Rifts to the Orion Nebula to be closed. In theory, it could have fixed the possibility that the enemy could attack the Alliance, but the reality was far from the truth. Biomechs had already been seen on Hyperion, and minor incursions in Sol announced once and for all that at least a small number of Biomechs remained throughout the galaxy, and not just those trapped tens of thousands of light years away from Helios. Most quickly realized that turning from Helios would simply cut off the Alliance from a source of allies and resources. The battle against the machines would be decided in every part of occupied space, whether the citizens of Terra Nova or Earth liked it or not.
Star Crusades Nexus: The Second Trilogy Page 38
