“We can have the rest of the Dox ready for you by the end of the day. We just need to synthesize some more psychoactive ingredient, and we’ll be ready for the final batch manufacture.”
“Good. Thank you, gentlemen.” Beretta opened the door. One of his men was waiting outside. A large man with a bald head and a large moustache stepped inside. The tattoos on his knuckles promised pain before death. He stood inside the door and folded his arms.
“This is my associate. He will watch over the final manufacture. He’ll let me know when you have finished.”
The old chemist nodded. “Does your associate have a background in chemical engineering?”
“No,” Beretta said. “But I’m pretty sure he knows what blood tastes like.”
He took a large puff on his cigar, leaving the smoke in the room behind him as he stepped out into the clean corridor.
This time tomorrow, the entire ship would be his.
5
Back on the Scorpio, Jack looked over the list of trainees. It was short, but it made no difference. Jack was not able to bring even one more recruit into his training program, and the dozen Marines he had been allowed to train would only make up a single squad. That was far from the several companies he felt he needed to restore the Fleet Marine service to somewhere near an operational standard.
The knock at the door was familiar, and Jack called for Sam to enter.
“What did the colonel say?” Sam asked as he took a seat in Jack’s small office.
“He said you’re a belligerent old Marine,” Jack replied, deactivating the holofile. The list vanished along with Jack’s hopes of rebuilding the service.
“Less of the old, you old scroat,” Sam said.
“The colonel will let us train the twelve recruits we currently have in the program, but he won’t authorize any more resources for the training program.”
“But he has to,” Sam said, standing up and pacing. “How does he expect us to maintain any kind of force without replacing our losses?”
“I agree, Sam, but the colonel made it quite clear,” Jack said heavily. “We have to make do with what we have.” Jack slumped back in his chair.
The short silence between the two was broken by a call alert on Jack’s desk. Jack tapped the small holostage, and the image of General Wallace appeared.
“Major, we have a situation on one of the civilian transports. I need you to assemble a squad. You’ll be going in with Fleet Intelligence under the authority of Special Agent Kitt. You depart from the Scepter’s number one hangar at the end of the watch. I’ve recommended you personally, Major. Don’t let me down.”
Jack nodded. “Absolutely, sir. My best, of course. Can I ask, what is the operation?”
“Fleet Intelligence has been tracking criminal activity on the civilian transports. One vessel is falling almost completely under the control of an old pirate. We thought he was dead, but he’s just shown up on micro-drone scan of the lower decks. I understand you had a run-in with him yourself. It’s—”
“Lou Beretta,” Jack finished the general’s sentence with him. “Yes, we have met, sir. He’s a very tricky individual. Dangerous, devious, violent.”
“That’s him,” General Wallace said. “Report to Special Agent Kitt right away. Wallace out.”
The holoimage of General Wallace faded away. Jack turned in his seat and looked at Sam, who was still on his feet.
“Do you want to take any of the recruits?” Sam asked.
“I don’t think so,” Jack said. “Beretta is a dangerous individual. Even if we are going in with the Fleet Intelligence, I still want our best Marines. Call up whoever is left from sixth squad of Cobra Company. Is Osho still squad leader over there?”
“She is if you want her to be, sir,” Sam said.
“I only want veterans on this one, Sam. We haven’t got time for handholding. We’ll see what this intel agent wants, but I expect it’s going to be in and out fast and hard.” Jack stood and grabbed his pulse pistol off his desk, slipping it into his hip holster. “Go and assemble my squad, Sam, and I’ll see you on the hangar deck.”
Sam Torent turned and stepped up to Jack’s office door. He hesitated.
“Jack, I just want to say…about the training… I know it’s your call on how to train them, but I think you needed to let me go a bit harder on them. Those recruits might have to go up against Beretta or someone like him soon. They are not going to be ready if you try to ease them into it. We need to throw them in hard, Jack.”
Jack nodded. “Thank you, Sam. I appreciate your input. We’ll do it my way for now, but I need you at my side just to keep me on my toes. Agreed?”
Jack held out his hand. Sam took it in a firm handshake.
“How did a scroat like you get to be in charge?” Sam said with a smile.
“How did a scroat like you get to be my friend?” Jack said.
“Because you know it’s better to have me on your side than as your enemy.” Sam stepped back and gave a casual salute.
Jack smiled and patted his friend on the shoulder. “Get me my squad. And be quick.”
Jack waited for Sam to leave his office before he sat back down. He turned to his desk and put in a holocall back to the general.
“Major. What is it?” The general appeared on Jack’s small holostage but his attention was elsewhere.
“General, it’s the situation with the new recruits.”
Now Jack had the general’s attention.
“I’ve spoken with Colonel Snipe,” Wallace said, “and he’s told me you were borderline insubordinate arguing with him over the necessity for more training resources.”
“I protest, sir.” Jack was irritated that he had been misrepresented.
“It’s okay, Major. I know you’re not insubordinate by nature, but the colonel has a point. You can’t expect to have everything you need to do your job. There’s not a military commander in history who thought he had the resources he needed to do his job, but they all got the job done nevertheless, or their superior officers found someone who would.”
“The situation I’m going into now on this civilian transport requires trained professionals. We are only going to have the right kind of people available if we give them the right kind of training. I have a dozen volunteers in training program that is suffering badly from a lack of funds. I have another six dozen volunteers waiting to start the training. Sir, that gives us half a company of new Marines, badly needed replacements for the service. I must ask you to reconsider and give me the resources I need to train these people.”
“Colonel Snipe will make the decisions on this, Major. Thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention, though I think you have more immediate concerns. Go and assist Fleet Intelligence and bring Beretta into custody. Do what you can with the training, and when we have more resources, we will look at the situation again. That is my final word, Major. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir,” Jack said. “Forge out.” He had said what he had to, but what could he really do? If the colonel wanted to keep training to a minimum, then training would be limited and there was nothing more that Jack could do about it.
The holoimage faded away again, and Jack stood up from his desk. The thoughts of the trainees waiting to begin their training was pushed to the back of his mind as he focused on the task in front of him. He was going to take down Beretta. Maybe this time, the old pirate would be caught.
Jack left his office and stepped out into the corridors of the Scorpio. The way to the Marine hangar was so familiar to Jack that he barely noticed as he walked there, finally stepping out into the wide hangar and up to the tac boat where the squad was waiting.
They were turned out in their tactical suits, pulse rifles strapped over their shoulders. Jack slid an enhanced data view screen from his cap over his eye and scanned the six Marines before him. Their names appeared over their right shoulder on his screen.
The personnel in Cobra Company’s sixth squad o
f Cobra had changed since Jack’s time with the squad, but some names were still familiar. With the Scorpio Battalion reduced from its original complement of three companies down to a depleted single company, Jack had become familiar with many of the Marines under his command.
Notable among these was the Squad Leader Osho. She had been on the training moon with Jack and they had fought together on many occasions. She stepped forward and saluted as he approached.
“At ease,” Jack said, returning the salute. “How is your squad?”
“Ready for orders, sir. Pleasure to be working with you again, Major Forge.”
Jack acknowledged Osho’s comments with a nod and then turned to Sam to give the order for the squad to board the tac boat.
Sam ordered the Marines to take their places. When all were inside, Jack and Sam walked up the boarding ramp. Sam tapped the panel on the inside and closed the ramp, sealing all within the tac boat’s seating area.
Jack looked up to the flight console and saw the two Marines in the flight seats.
Osho called out to Jack, “Do you want to pilot her, sir?”
Jack sat down in the seat amongst the Marines—thirteen seats in the back of the tac boat with only seven filled.
“No, thank you, Squad Leader. I am fine back here.” Jack turned to Sam. “Get us underway. Let’s not keep Special Agent Kitt waiting.”
The familiar sounds of the drive systems powering up gave Jack a thrill. He felt the slight juddering as the tac boat lifted off the Marine deck and drifted out into space. Jack accessed the sensor data and patched it through to his wrist-mounted holostage. He watched as the boat drifted out into the fleet, and its sensors showed the nearest dozen ships—the Scorpio behind with its attendant frigates and a corvette. The image showed parts of the nearest civilian transports, home to thousands upon thousands of civilians. And dead ahead of the tac boat was the enormous flagship of the fleet: the Scepter.
The flight from the Scorpio Marine deck to Scepter’s hangar was brief and uneventful. The boat touched down and the boarding ramp opened. Jack was first out of this seat and down the ramp onto the Scepter’s deck.
A pair of Fleet Intelligence enforcers waited nearby with the agent. Her ident appeared on Jack’s enhanced data view screen hovering over his right eye. This was Special Agent Kitt.
She was short. Jack knew the person didn’t need to be big to make a big impact in a difficult situation, but he was surprised at how short she actually was. She barely came up to the midriffs of her enforcers. She was unarmed and appeared completely at ease. She stepped forward to greet Jack.
“This is my operation, Major Forge.” Special Agent Kitt had a force of will completely incongruous with her diminutive stature. “I am going to apprehend and detain the pirate Lou Beretta. Your Marines will take orders directly from me. You are here as the Marine authority. You will take your orders from me also. Is that clear, Major?”
Jack Forge was completely at ease with taking orders on a mission, and this was a mission no different to any other. “This is your operation, Special Agent. You have my complete support.”
“We will transfer to a civilian transport on your Marine tac boat. There, we will switch to a civilian cruiser. The civilian cruiser will take us to the target transport, and we will land at the secondary supply hold. Detain any personnel on duty there so none can inform Beretta of our presence. We will proceed alone, and I will isolate Beretta before we capture him.”
“Understood,” Jack said. “If I may offer something, Special Agent?”
Kitt nodded curtly once.
“I have had my encounters with Beretta.”
Kitt cut Jack short. “I know, Major. That is why Fleet Intelligence has requested you for this operation. Move out.”
Kitt directed Jack towards the tac boat he had just left. Jack called the order to his Marines and followed them back inside.
Kitt was wasting no time, and neither was Jack. The mission was on.
6
Transferring to the civilian transport’s secondary supply hatch was as quick as it was secretive. No communications from the tac boat’s flight crew to the civilian transport’s command deck were made that Jack could hear or see. They approached from the rear and dipped below the transport’s main drive to the secondary supply dock hatch on the underside of the massive ship. Once inside, Agent Kitt sealed the inner hatch and then walked ahead of the small group of Marines and her two enforcers.
“With me,” Kitt gave her simple command and marched off, moving fast.
The secondary supply hatch led into the secondary supply hold. The hold was empty. Jack could not even see any evidence that any supplies had been stored here at all, given the far end of the empty supply hold was a transport loop access. Special Agent Kitt called the transport pod and within a moment, the doors slid open. All eleven of the group were able to fit comfortably inside, even with the Marines’ tactical suits and the bulky pulse rifles.
With the doors closed, Jack could not detect any movement in the transport loop. Moments later, the doors slid open and the group stepped out into a second hanger.
Even though the civilian transport was vast in size, this hanger was no bigger than the Marine deck on the Scorpio. It was completely unoccupied except for a single cruiser. A sleek spacecraft built primarily for comfort, the cruiser would easily take the eight Marines, two enforcers, and special agent.
Climbing up to the flight deck, Special Agent Kitt called over her shoulder to Jack.
“Your file says you are a pilot, Jack. Take over the flight controls in seat number one.”
Jack followed Kitt and dropped down next to her in the pilot’s chair. He started the flight preparation for the cruiser.
This ship was in good condition. Jack had flown tac boats, fleet frigates, and corvettes since the evacuation, but this ship was, hands down, the sleekest, most well-maintained craft he had ever been aboard. It was completely unarmed, inadequate for any military purpose, but this was merely to transport the small group without arousing any suspicions. A military ship touching down on the flight deck of the civilian transport would alert Beretta that people were coming for him.
“Do you mind me calling you Jack?” Kitt asked, sitting back in the copilot seat and letting Jack do the work.
“Jack will be fine,” he said, focusing on his task. Technically, the special agent held a rank equivalent to colonel and was superior to him. Not to mention this was her mission, and Jack was under her command. He had no problem with her calling him whatever she liked. If she wanted to treat him as a grunt, he didn’t see that it would affect his performance in any way.
With the cruiser ready for departure, Jack handed over to Special Agent Kitt.
Kitt sent a coded transmission via her wrist-mounted holostage and the departure authorization flashed up on the cruiser’s flight console. Jack checked that the flight deck outer doors were open, then piloted the cruiser out into space.
The cruiser handled beautifully, moving easily and responding to every touch. It was an absolute joy to pilot, and Jack almost forgot his reason for being here. This was no pleasure cruise, despite the flashy vessel. This was a dangerous mission, as dangerous as anything Jack had taken on since entering the stellar void. The group was on route to take down one of the most dangerous men at large in the fleet.
They were going to capture Lou Beretta.
The proximity meter showed they were nearing the target craft. This time, the flight plan set the ship to approach the secondary supply dock on the underside of the massive vessel. Although nowhere near the scale of the landing deck on the carrier, the supply dock on the civilian transport was easily large enough to accommodate several cruisers. Jack piloted to the landing site and put her down gently.
Special Agent Kitt sent a message from her wrist-mounted holostage. Jack set the flight console holostage to show activity on the supply deck. Kitt reached over casually and deactivated it. With a gentle wave of her hand, she instructed J
ack not to activate again.
“Shall I ready the team, Special Agent?” Jack said, half-rising from his pilot seat.
“Yes,” Kitt said, watching her personal holostage for a response. “Get everyone up and ready to move. But do it in silence.”
Jack stood up and turned to the group pressed into the rear of the cruiser. The two enforcers in their black tactical suits were already standing at the exit ramp in the center of the cruiser’s main deck. The six Marines in their standard tac suits were sitting where they could find space in the comfortable lounge. Sam Torent, in his uniform with his pulse pistol in hand, leaned casually against a bulkhead.
Jack held his hands out in front of him, palms up. He spoke almost without sound.
Jack lifted his hands. Stand up. The six Marines responded immediately and in almost total silence, climbing to their feet and standing in two rows of three. Jack then tapped his shoulders with the fingertips of both hands. “Equipment check,” he said with barely a whisper, and the Marines ran a final suit system check. In a few moments, they all gave Jack a thumbs-up. Jack clenched the first of his right hand and held it forward, giving the signal to hold and wait for action.
Sam walked slowly over to Jack and stood next to him. Arms folded, he tipped his head to the side and whispered, “Do you really think we can take Beretta by surprise?”
“We have to try,” Jack said.
“You think he already knows we’re here, don’t you?” Sam said with a wry smile.
As Jack was about to answer, Special Agent Kitt came down from the flight deck and walked over to the boarding ramp. She waved her index finger forward and instructed one of the enforcers to open the hatch.
The center of the cruiser’s lounge dropped to create the boarding ramp that angled down from the front section towards the drive. Kitt sent the enforcers first. They brought up their pulse rifles and advanced side-by-side down the ramp and out of sight.
Kitt turned to Jack and spoke quietly. “Send your team in, Jack.”
Last Stand Boxed Set Page 4
