by T. J. Jones
A hundred fifty more meters and they finally came up with the first shield grid junction box. It was a foot across and a foot and a half tall. It rather reminded him of a fuse box in ways. Maybe that was its function after all. Adrian popped it open to have a look and inspected it. He nodded after he saw enough to confirm his hypothesis.
“This’ll do. If we blow enough of these, we will cause a surge out in the shield grid and destabilize the oscillation matrix. Their siege shields will drop and revert to the normal grid.”
A sergeant from the marines stepped forward with a demo satchel. “I believe that’ll do the job, sir.”
Adrian nodded and the marine started to set up the demo charge on the inside of the panel’s door. Adrian grinned. “Keeps them from seeing it, right?”
The Sergeant shrugged. “I suppose so, sir. I just figured this would keep it closest to the blast.”
Adrian nodded. “Huh, guess I wasn’t thinking about it quite like that.”
The marine slapped the panel door shut and patted it. “Just like new.”
“Dekav?” Adrian asked.
“This way.” The elite led them onward again.
“Watch your lanes of fire and check your targets. Just because they aren’t jumping into our weapons fire anymore doesn’t mean we can let our guard drop. Stay frosty, marines.”
Sure enough, though, Dekav was right. For whatever reasons, Vay had pulled his security teams back and they were moving freely through the ship now. They would run into the occasional crewmember or service technician, but no one offered a fight when they saw Dekav leading an assault team. They simply slunk back out of the way allowing the group to pass.
The marines training when it came to covering the corridors and various junctions the team came upon was superb. They moved with the efficiency of an old Earth twentieth-century pocket watch. One man would clear his hand; another would sweep next to him a clearing center, and then adjust to the opposite angle and the last would shift to take up a lane of fire down the entire length of the corridor.
It reminded him of his days covering security procedures when he was in the academy back at the Crucible. As his mind drifted to the massive superstation, he felt what he could only describe as longing. It was home for him as much as Earth was. A home he missed a lot. He wondered what Admiral Howell was up to right now. If they’d held the funerals for him and his crew. Maybe some kind of memorial monument in the boardwalk.
That would be nice. He could imagine her giving some kind of moving speech about how they were explorers, braving the black of space. She was not wrong in a way. They were definitely facing some trials. Just not quite the ones she was imagining. He wondered how she would react when he returned. He could still remember the pep talk she gave him as he took his new position as the executive officer of the Odyssey.
“I’m going to speak frankly with you, Commander.”
“Adrian, ma’am, if we’re being frank.”
She nodded. “You’re not a young buck, so I won’t patronize you with lectures about remembering the training and so on. You are a Dominus War vet and one of the Alliances’ ace pilots. Hell, you have practically written the book on unorthodox maneuvers in a vacuum. However, being in command is something different altogether. They cannot really train you completely for it — just prepare you as best as they can. In the end, it all rests on you. Stay flexible, adaptable. Be willing to see solutions to problems you normally wouldn’t find.”
She paused. “Most of all look after your crew. Own them like a father, and they will have your back. That kind of comradery will carry you when the entire batch of latest tech, all the weapons, all the shields and the charisma you can muster fail. When all else fails, your crew will not. They are your most precious commodity. Take care of them, and they’ll care of you, Adrian.”
That conversation with her gave him some insight on the woman she was. The kind of man he wanted to become. The kind of man he wanted to become was not going to let her have the chance to eulogize them. No memorials. No monuments. Not today.
“The second charge placed, Commander,” the marine sergeant said.
“Right, let’s move. Clock’s ticking and we’ve got a date with a bug.”
Dekav nodded and led them onward. The ship rocked again, and he placed a hand on the hull. The way the vibrations were resonating felt like another elite vessel destroyed by the Truth’s weaponry. He said a silent prayer for them. The arbitrator was making a big sacrifice in helping them. Buying him and his crew time.
They pushed forward to the next junction, the marines clearing it as they did and continuing to move. The conduit networking looked different as they approached. His expression scrunched as he tried to figure it out.
“This is the oscillation junction isn’t it?”
Dekav nodded. “Yes, according to the ship’s specs, that’s precisely what it is. How did you guess?”
He shrugged. “Well, the other relays were pretty simple and far less busy. This one looks like several different systems and power nodes are feeding into it, and there is a lot of hardware attached. The control point is probably on this deck somewhere. I’d say within fifty meters easily.”
Dekav nodded impressed. “Very observant.”
“You start keying in on engineering tendencies when you have to fix your own bird. Now it’s just kind of a knack.” He paused, tapping a finger to his lips. “If we find that control point and bomb that. It would take down their siege shields for good, right. Bombing relays would just rob it of infrastructure but a ship this redundant I’m sure they could just route power through other systems. But if we took out the control point, that’d kneecap them real good.”
“Kneecap?”
“Oh uh…yeah, your kneecap? Ever been shot in it and then tried to walk?”
“I see. Earth slang for the act of crippling something.”
“Yeah. You know, it’s less fun when you say it that way.”
Dekav looked blankly then shrugged.
“Never mind, let’s get this charge planted and go nuke that control room.”
“Commander, using a nuclear munition in the control room would be excessively unwarranted and dangerous for us all.”
Adrian laughed and patted Dekav on the back. “I’m gonna have to set you up a class in the simulator. Get you spun up to speed.”
“I don’t see what that has to…” He stopped realizing it was more slang. “Ohhh.” The marines chuckled softly at the exchange. A few of them sharing grins with each other.
“Soon, big guy. For now, let’s focus on this first.”
He and Dekav helped the marines pull security while the sergeant placed the charge behind some conduits. Once it was live, the sergeant stood back and gave him a nod. Adrian glanced up at the conduits and pointed down the hall. “That way.”
The group stepped off in the direction he had indicated based on the flow of the conduits and piping. The team followed it to a stop at the doorway. Dekav entered a code to which the door buzzed in denial.
“Looks like Docent Vay has finally deactivated my security rights.”
“Then we breach it, sir,” one of the marine privates said.
Adrian agreed. “Let’s do it.”
They stacked up on the door and placed a charge that was specialized for puncturing thin barriers like unreinforced doors. The sergeant counted down and there was a loud bang. They filed through the hole and cleared the area. Two hostiles dispatched with concise snappy fire, and then the sergeant gave the all clear as Dekav and Adrian filed in last.
“Alright, sir, let’s do what you have to do and get the hell out of here.”
“Agreed.”
While the marines went to work placing the last of their charges, Adrian went over to the control console. The interface was a touch screen format but it used a type of script he was not able to read and he did not have time to try to learn it on his own. “Dekav, c’mere.” He waved the elite over. “I need someone who understand
s this gibberish.”
He stepped aside allowing Dekav to start operating the terminal. “Ok, I need to find the flow of power coming into this network.”
Dekav input a series of commands and then looked up. “Got it.”
“Ok, I need you to find a way to dam it up. Block it somehow. Try to force a surge out. That way even if they have a redundancy in place if this hub is damaged, they won’t be able to simply lean on a secondary network.”
“A cascade failure of this scale would neutralize the entire system.”
“Yep. We force them to drop their ace on a bad hand, and then we drop our own hand.”
Dekav took a few moments to input the commands then glanced up with a nod. “There, commands are input. The power will shunt in a cycling loop within this chamber’s conduits. Eventually, the charge will build up and back feed. With the help of the explosion from our charges, it should shove the resulting wave of energy coursing back through all the systems and force a surge in many systems. The damage should be more than sufficient.”
“Alright, looks like we’re set here then. We’re set up to make a right mess of things, so let’s go ahead and put some distance between ourselves and this light show waiting to happen.”
Everyone filed out and double-timed it for the lift. As the lift rose several decks, the marine sergeant handed Adrian the detonator. “The honor should be yours, sir.”
He took it with a nod and thumbed back the safety cap exposing the red button. He waited a few more seconds looking at it for a moment. “For the Captain and all the crew we’ve lost.” He looked to all the marines who seemed to echo his sentiments. “Most of all, for our families and home.”
“Oorah, sir.”
He thumbed the button down. A heartbeat later the lift rocked and whined as it struggled to stay on the tracks. The marines all fell to the floor from the violent turbulence. Adrian braced himself against the wall and Dekav. The lift stopped and the power flickered. A moment later, the lights went back to full lum and the lift went into motion again.
“Looks like our trick worked.”
“Commander?”
Mary Jo was paging his comm device. With the siege shields down now they could communicate again. He tapped the comm device. “Lt. Hunter, good to hear you’re still in the fight.”
“Same to you, sir.” He could almost hear the relief in her voice.
“How are we doing out there, Lt.?”
“We’re pretty banged up, but the elites moved in and started to take the beating for us. They have some losses already. We made some quick repairs, now we’re heading back into the battle. Whatever you did took out the ship’s barrier system. They are starting to take damage normally again.”
He nodded, giving a thumbs up to Dekav. “Good to hear, Lt. Keep up the pressure. We are going to wrap up business in here and we will port back over to you. Rain out.”
“Kick his ass, sir. Odyssey out.”
Dekav glanced down, “She knows you intend to confront Docent Vay personally?”
“It wouldn’t be hard to guess. And my crew are good.”
Dekav nodded looking impressed. Adrian turned to the marines. “Thanks for the assist, folks. Dekav and I will take it from here. Your shuttle should still be where you parked it. Can you guys backtrack to it?”
The sergeant checked a small tablet and nodded. “Aye, sir. I’ve had my tracker mapping our route. We’ll find that shuttle.”
“I don’t know what kind of timetable you’ll have, so my best advice would be to hustle.”
“What about you, sir?”
“Oh, I’m sure I’ll think of something.”
The marine went to the position of attention, saluting him. Adrian returned the salute. “Dismissed.” The lift doors opened, allowing him and Dekav to step off. The marines were still at attention as the lift doors shut.
“Your men are well disciplined, Commander.”
“Yeah. That they are. Let’s go.”
The arbitrator stood at the forefront of his bridge. The main power had been set to combat ratings, flushing full power into the primary combat systems and running everything else on minimal settings. As a result, the bridge was mostly dark with the combat lights keeping a soft azure glow illuminating the bridge. It gave the purplish blue glossed metal interior a darker purple hue.
“Arbitrator! The Truth’s siege shields have dropped. We’re reading a massive power backflow in their systems. The ship’s oscillating shield grid has been crippled internally.”
“Target that vessel’s weaponry points and fire at will. Notify the fleet to engage the Truth with extreme prejudice.”
So, the commander’s gambit had paid off. Legan understood now why the human had boarded the Truth. He must have realized the battle would not have been successful without undermining the one asset Docent Vay held that would sway the outcome. With his vulnerability now assured, the docent’s time was limited. Now he could bring the full might of the Eaons down to bare on the Truth and Jubilation as a result — down on Docent Vay and his heresy.
Their decisive moment was at hand now. The irony was not lost on him that in defeating the vessel, he would be delivering the truth to Docent Vay. That the Eaons were no longer going to be active participants in the empire, and the lies perpetrated by the prophets no longer be allowed to stand.
Even now as he watched, he could feel the momentum falling in favor of them. His people’s will and resolve tested for so long that now finally they would be delivered from their fate by the gods’ will. No, by these humans and their Alliance. Fitting that the gods would have chosen an outsider to come to the Eaons on their behalf.
He knew the enemy commander did not share his sense of religious adherence, likely a result of mixing so many cultures together in a shared responsibility instead of a dominance like the empire. Perhaps he would choose to emulate their model of mutual work for mutual benefit rather than the subjugation method the prophets elected. Perhaps these humans were right. That no sentient being rated below another when weighing their value of life.
Give a man a reason to fight, and he will fight. Give a man something to fight for, and he will die to protect it. Legan could appreciate those principles. One’s own freedom could be an extremely powerful motivator. If he could wrest his own people from the empire, perhaps he could free others. He shook his head. Best to focus on the task.
“Tell the right flank to clean up their fire control. Those support cruisers are getting too aggressive,” he ordered as he dragged his mind back to the present. Focus your fire on the Truth’s engines as well. I don’t want it making an escape in case Docent Vay opts to survive this encounter rather than meet its end honorably.”
“Yes, Arbitrator.”
“Arbitrator. It looks as though the Odyssey is moving back into the field of battle.”
“On screen.”
The pale silver hull of the Odyssey, pockmarked and scorched black in several areas where the ship had taken its damage facing the brunt of the Truth’s attack. A moment later, Lt. Mary Jo Hunter popped up on screen. She gave him a polite nod.
“Arbitrator. We have effected some spot repairs and patched our hurt as best we can. We are here to finish this out. Thanks for the breath of fresh air.”
“Always glad to be of assistance, Lt. And send my regards to your commander for taking out the Truth’s siege shields for us. That was a big help. In fact, it may have swayed this battle in our favor. Otherwise, it was just a game of attrition. One we would have lost inevitably.”
Mary Jo dipped her chin. “I’m afraid I have to agree with you. However, the commander is still on the Truth. I believe he has the intent of confronting the docent personally.”
Legan was impressed. “Does he now?” This made his mind stir. “Then I wish him luck. Arbitrator out.”
When the connection terminated, he glanced to his combat operations officer. “Link them into our battlenet. All our sensor data gets passed to them.”
“Understood.” The Officer complied as he began to set up comlinks and access authorizations in place.
If the human commander was able to succeed in defeating the docent, they could probably take the Truth with minimal effort. The thought of usurping such a prize from the empire made him grin excitedly. “Well, Commander Rain, it would seem that all eyes are now resting on your shoulders. Gods be with you.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Docent Vay gripped his station when the ship shuddered violently. “Report!” he growled. His moment of victory was becoming statistically less likely by the passing minute. The elusiveness of it was confounding him. What had gone wrong? He had carried the gods’ favor, carried out their will obediently as the prophets had decreed.
“The siege shields have been crippled, Your Holiness.”
“How, the humans never fired their primary weapon and the Eaon vessels don’t have enough punch to match them.”
“The damage was done internally, Docent Vay. Several key power junctions along with the control node were damaged.”
He snarled and stormed in a wide circle around the command center, punching out the officers. “Reroute!”
The defensive operations officer shook his head grimly. “I’ve tried, Your Holiness. It appears before the explosions triggered; the power went into a superconducting loop that back fed into the system. When the explosions detonated, the surge burned out the remaining relays. It would take a month in dry dock to undo the damage alone.”
Vay grinned. “Commander Rain. I knew that human was cunning, but this…”
“Your Holiness,” Tacent Cor interrupted. “We need to keep those humans under control now. If they get access to any other primary systems, this battle will be for naught. Your moment of glory will be but a dream.”
He turned and cast a long cold scowl at Cor. “Know your place, Tacent” His second was becoming more and more petulant with his insubordination. This was Vay’s mission. His glory. Not Cor’s. The audacity to even think of trying to tell him how to do this, how to defeat this Commander Rain, was obnoxiously out of line.
