Wings of Steele - Destination Unknown (Book 1)

by Burger, Jeffrey

  "It's not," said a mechanic. Jack could see M7 and the medic standing behind the security team. They were leaning casually against the gurney, talking quietly. Jack turned back when he heard the hiss of the hatch, first for one, then the other of the two pods. There was a cold rush of air out of the first, as the door squeaked open, the hinges frozen with ice. Two frozen figures covered in frost, one man, one woman, sat huddled together, wrapped in blankets. The mechanic shook his head in sorrow. "Total system failure..." Ironically, the second life pod which was functioning perfectly, was empty.

  Everyone moved around to the other side of the shuttle, to open the last two life pods. Again, the doors hissed as the seals were broken. A man stood in the doorway of the first, wrapped in a blanket. He shielded his eyes with his hand from the lights in the landing bay. "Where am I?"

  "Safe," said Raulya, taking his hand. "You're on the cruiser Freedom."

  "What is you're alliance?" he inquired as he stepped to the deck.

  "Independently owned, we ally with the UFW." He nodded and looked relieved. M7 and the medic assisted him to the gurney. As he laid down, the blanket parted and revealed a tattered uniform tunic and a bent pair of wings. Raulya noticed but said nothing.

  "What of Dakkah... Mozzy..." The medic hushed him and administered a sedative.

  The last pod held a prone occupant cocooned in blankets. Raulya and M7 entered to see if he was alive. His eyes opened slowly and did not blink. "Let's get him outside," said M7. He was carefully moved out and placed on a second gurney. With the assistance of security, M7 and the medic moved the two survivors to the infirmary.

  Jack grabbed a line Chief. "What about the other two?" He was referring to the unfortunate couple who had frozen to death.

  "Well," he thought for a moment. “We'll probably just seal the pod... permanently," he added, "then eject it with the others."

  Jack nodded. "Ok, but wait until after dinner to eject it. I'll see if we can find out who they are, and we'll say a few words first."

  The mechanic had no idea what Jack meant by a few words, but it didn't make any difference to him. "Sure, Captain, whatever you want."

  The pilots agreed to eat dinner and visit the infirmary before taking a third trip to the wreck. Ground crews ejected the empty life pods and busied themselves doing prep and maintenance on the ships that would be going back out. The pilots went to dinner. "I'm going to the bridge to see the Professor first," said Jack, "I'll meet you guys in the galley."

  ■ ■ ■

  "Listen Jack, I know you want to check out that wreck, see if there's anything on it we can use, Lord knows we need everything... but I think we should move on."

  Jack sat in his command chair and scratched Fritz's head. "What's on your mind Walt?"

  "I just get the very distinct feeling that our friends will be back. And very possibly with some assistance." He could see the doubt in Jack's face. "Let me show you why," he continued, rotating a monitor on his console toward Jack. "We're here..." he pointed. "Here's the gate we're heading to, it's about three hours off. According to the logs on your fighters, that pirate cruiser went this way..." He drew a line on the screen with his finger, to another gate. "Towards this gate, less than an hour away from his last position."

  "Ok," said Jack thoughtfully, "what does that mean to us?"

  "That gate..." Walt hesitated, "goes to heavily patrolled pirate territory." He held up his hand before Jack could interrupt. "And I did a bit of digging on that wreck out there. It looked familiar, but I wasn't sure, I mean with all that damage..."

  "What did you come up with Walt?" interrupted Jack, growing a bit impatient, his stomach growling.

  "I believe that's a Royal Velorian freighter."

  Jack shrugged, "Ok..." The name meant nothing to him.

  "I only know, because I saw one when I visited Rathskell Spindle, a spaceport in..."

  "Get to the point, Walt."

  "Oh yes. Well... Royal Velorean freighters are very fast. Owned by the royal family of Veloria, they are usually reserved for cargo of extreme importance. Sometimes diplomats, but usually rare goods, even military equipment. We are like the proverbial Lion who has stolen the prize of the Jackals. They will return with the pack."

  Jack sat perfectly still for a moment, staring at nothing. The Professor's concerns were well founded, but he just couldn't pass up a peek. It was like finding yourself in the ladies locker room and not sneaking a look into the showers. Half the thrill was getting away with it. Jack snatched the wireless comm headset off his console and jumped up. "Keep an eye on things, Walt." He trotted towards the door followed by Fritz. "Leave us on yellow alert..." he passed into the corridor.

  ■ ■ ■

  "Pilots to the infirmary, pilots to the infirmary." The pilots stopped eating when the page called and looked up, expecting more. "That's Jack," said Brian.

  "Wonder what's up," said Paul, rising from the galley table. Brian rose, sandwich in hand. He picked up another, wrapped it in a napkin one handed and carried it with the first.

  "Still hungry?" asked Mike.

  Brian shook his head. "Jack didn't eat yet..."

  The three pilots hustled down the hall, still eating what they could carry from the galley.

  Jack and Raulya were waiting outside the infirmary door when Mike, Paul and Brian arrived. Derrik was inside, still visiting with Maria.

  Jack gratefully accepted the wrapped sandwich from Brian. "Thanks, Bri, I'm really starving."

  "So what's up?" asked Paul.

  "A bunch of stuff. First, Raulya thinks these guys are pilots. And quite possibly military pilots..."

  "Anybody talk to them yet?" asked Paul.

  "Not yet," answered Raulya. "M7 was giving them an exam and some tests. He's just finished.”

  Alité emerged from the infirmary doorway. She had bought Derrik and Maria dinner from the galley and was heading back to get food for the two survivors as M7 had asked. "Ensign Arroyo is asking for you, Captain." She was always conscious of proper protocol when others were present.

  "Thank you Alité" replied Jack. He continued briefing the others as Alité headed down the hall. "Anyway, the Professor did some records checking and thinks that junk out there used to be a Royal Velorian freighter..."

  Alité stopped dead in her tracks. She whirled around. "Did you say a Royal Velorian freighter?"

  Jack was puzzled and a bit annoyed at another interruption. "Yes..." She left the galley cart in the middle of the corridor and ran back through the confused pilots into the infirmary. After an odd moment of exchanging blank glances, the pilots filed in after her. Alité had pulled the curtain back that separated the two halves of the room.

  "Princess?!" The pilot sat up in his hospital bed.

  Alité's eyes were wide like saucers. "Walrick..? And LaNareef! My Lord! I had no idea!" She stood between the two beds.

  "Alité?!" LaNareef opened his eyes and tried to get up. "We thought you were dead..."

  "Lay down you fool!" she scolded. "You're not well enough!" Raulya, Jack, Paul, Mike and Brian, stood in a group behind her. Maria and Derrik watched from the other side of the room.

  LaNareef laid back down and took her hand when she offered it, kissing it gently. He smoothed his silver blond hair and looked upon her with devotion, his gray eyes sparkling. "It is good to see you again. Your father will be delighted when you return."

  Walrick leaned over and reached for her other hand. She gave it and he pressed it to his face. "Home has not been the same since you left."

  "How are Dakkah and Mozzy?" she asked. Neither man answered. "Do things go well?" she insisted.

  "No..." answered LaNareef. "The war goes poorly. The pirates intercept ev
en our fastest transports. We have great difficulty getting supplies to the Navy." He'd succeeded in changing the subject. Though temporarily.

  "So, will neither of you tell me of my brother and sister?"

  Jack had moved closer and stood directly behind Alité. Both pilots saw the gold wings and the Captain's insignia. They each in turn looked him in the eye, then cast their eyes down in silence. Then he knew. Jack put his arms around her from behind, pulling her close against him. She turned to look over her shoulder but he held her tight. "I'm sorry..." he whispered softly. Jack had a flood of questions, but now was not the time.

  She had let go of Walrick and LaNareef and reached back behind her to touch Jack's face. She clutched his hair and pulled his face against her neck. "Nnooo..." she cried, "nooo, please..."

  "I'm sorry," whispered Jack. Her knees went weak but he held her up, one arm around her waist the other around her shoulders. He half turned her and lifted her up, carrying her to the bed next to Maria. He laid her on the bed and she sobbed into the pillow as he pulled the covers over her. Jack clicked on the mic on his headset as he walked back over to Walrick and LaNareef. "How do we look, Walt?"

  "Everything's clear so far," came the Professor's reply.

  "Thanks Walt." He turned off his mic and faced the two Velorian pilots. "Gentlemen, I'm assuming since we both share the pirates as enemies that we fight on the same side. With that in mind, we need to know what's on your ship. What were those pirates after?" The Velorians shifted uneasily. "C'mon guys," prodded Jack, "would you rather the pirates got it?"

  "Military stores, supplies," answered LaNareef reluctantly. He stared down at the bed linens.

  "What kind?" If it was ground equipment, Jack decided he would just destroy it to keep it out of pirate hands.

  "Tell him." Alité swung her legs off the bed and sat up. "This ship needs equipment. Tell him."

  Walrick looked at his hands then at Jack. As a Velorian Navy pilot, he was sworn to protect the secrecy of their operations, but he could see no benefit in that now. "Lancia fighters, a couple of Zulu gunships, missiles, parts, tools, food..."

  "Nice..." Jack fought the urge to celebrate though it felt like a win for the Freedom, it wasn't a win for the Velorians, and that put him in a sensitive position. "Ok," he interrupted. "This is what Walt was afraid of... the pirates know what's on that ship. They'll be back and they won't be alone. We gotta' hustle." He clicked on his mic and called Walt on the bridge and Trigoss in engineering so they could listen to the briefing. "Pappy, you, Mike and Derrik launch, pronto. Go to the far side of the debris field and sit on its edge. You'll be hidden to their sensors just like they were to ours. Watch for company, but whatever you do, don't get in over your head. Stall em' and pull back. Go now." Derrik kissed Maria goodbye and the three pilots hustled out and down the corridor. "Walt, the first sign of anything, go to red alert. Trigoss, you're flying the shuttle, take a few good men and your tools. Swipe anything you need, but set demolition charges behind you. Three hours. Whatever we can't take, we burn. Bri and I will get as many craft back to the Freedom as we can."

  "Let me go too." Walrick swung his legs off the edge and got out of bed. "I'm Ok, I can fly. Please, I want to help..."

  "Me too..." chimed LaNareef as he struggled to get up.

  "No," ordered M7, "you're not well enough." He turned to Jack, "Walrick can go if he wants, he's fine. LaNareef needs rest."

  "Thanks," smiled Jack. He extended his hand to Walrick. "Glad to have you." Walrick's grip was firm. "Trigoss, see you in the flight bay." He switched off his mic and kissed Alité. "Keep an eye on Maria for us, Ok?"

  "Ok," she sniffed, "be careful."

  He stepped away and touched her face, staring into her eyes. Without a word, he turned, dashing out the door and down the corridor. "I will!" he called. Fritz stayed at her side.

  "Princess..."

  "Yes, LaNareef?" She answered him without turning around, staring at the empty doorway.

  "He seems like a fine man... do you love him?" He could not bring himself to look at her.

  "With every molecule of my mind and body," she breathed. She turned to face the man who had promised to marry her when they were only five years old. "Now tell me, old friend, how did my brother and sister die?"

  LaNareef looked up at her and shivered.

  ■ ■ ■

  By the time Jack, Brian and Walrick reached the flight bay, the Warthogs were gone and Trigoss had the shuttle warmed up and ready to go.

  “Hold on!” Jack turned and ran over to examine the outside of the failed pod that had been moved to the side of the flight line. Followed closely by Brian, Jack grabbed one of the mechanics and pulled him close. “See any reason for this thing to have failed..?”

  The mechanic shook his head. “Uh, no, sir... there's no damage to the outside that I can see. Sometimes they get hit with something, damage the systems, but this one's totally intact...” He shrugged, “it might have been faulty off the the manufacturing line...”

  “Really?”

  The mechanic shrugged again. “Well, I've never heard of it happening, they're supposed to be pretty bulletproof - but nothing's impossible...”

  Brian leaned in, “What're you thinking, Jack?”

  “Dunno Bri, something just doesn't seem right.” He turned back to the mechanic. “Can these things be tampered with..?”

  “Sure, any system can be altered - but why would someone do that to a life pod though?”

  Jack shook his head, “I don't know... yet.” He turned to head to the waiting shuttle and stopped in his tracks, turning back to the mechanic. “Test it, disassemble it... see if you can find out why it failed...”

  “Yes, sir...” he scratched his head, “but I'll need help...”

  “Then get help,” called Jack as he headed off to the waiting shuttle, Brian in full stride behind him. There were five other crewmen with Trigoss as the two pilots hustled up the boarding ramp.. "Shove off," called Jack as he sealed the door.

  "Ok, hold on, boys." Trigoss eased the shuttle off the deck and accelerated smoothly, clearing the bay door at almost twice the normal launch speed. "Nnyyerrooommm!" Trigoss made airplane noises. "Flew shuttles and airbuses," he called over his shoulder, "for three years before I started on the Princess Hedonist."

  Jack was gripping the armrest like he had claws, "Uh huh..." he grunted, trying to be nonchalant.

  Weaving expertly through the floating wreckage, Trigoss brought the shuttle to a stop at the stern of the Velorian freighter. Arming the Gatling gun, he thumbed off the safety and aimed at the outer edges of the door. He squeezed the trigger. Without any shields to protect it, Trigoss succeeded in blowing the loading bay door off its tracks in less than a minute without damaging anything in the bay. Using the mechanical arms and crabbing the shuttle sideways, the shuttle crew was able to pull the door free and casting it adrift, completely cleared the entry to the bay.

  Trigoss engaged the engines and idled carefully forward through the doorway into the darkened cargo bay. He flipped the switches illuminating the shuttle's floodlights. Jack was watching over the engineer's shoulder. "Holy shit..." he breathed. "Wall to wall fighters..." He pointed to a row of four burly, brutish-looking assault craft. "What are those?"

  "Those are the Zulu gunships," answered Walrick. Brian whistled low and quiet. "You said it," added the Velorian. "They are some of the most devastating birds in the air. The only drawback is, they require a four man crew for battle."

  "Set us down, Chief," said Jack. "Let's get this show on the road."

  "Right." Trigoss maneuvered the shuttle, again crabbing it sideways to allow room to get the fighters off the deck and out of the bay. The shuttle touched down with a thump. Donning their
helmets, the men helped each other seal their suits. After they closed their visors and flipped on their personal life support systems, they checked for leaks. Finding none, Jack released the shuttle door with a hiss of outward rushing air.

  "Walrick, which ones have fuel?"

  "They all have plenty to get back to your cruiser, Captain."

  "Ok, let's go!" Steele turned to Trigoss as he disappeared in the darkness, his hand-light shining ahead of him. "See if you can find parts for these birds, ok?" The engineer waved and kept going. One of the crewmen stayed with the pilots to help them board and take off in the darkness.

  The Lancia fighters were fast looking, graceful craft, smaller and lighter than the Warthogs. Jack admired the lines as he climbed into the cockpit. He illuminated the dash with his hand-light and searched for the systems switches. "Ah," he mumbled, flipping the switch which lit the panels. "Ok... let's see now..." he commented, surveying the dash and electronics layout. Going through the pre-flight in his head, Jack activated the switches as he went along. Engines warming, all systems running including atmosphere, he pulled the canopy lever. It dropped silently in the zero atmosphere of the bay. Once sealed in and the cockpit pressurized, the visor in his helmet opened automatically. Jack connected his comm and power leads.. "Bri, Walrick, you guys ready?"

  "Ready." Brian switched on his Lancia's anti-grav system. Jack and Walrick did the same. Guiding the three Lancia fighters with hand-lights, a ground crewman coached the three fighters in a 180 degree turn and headed them toward the star filled sky. Flipping on their landing lights, the three pilots taxied the Lancias down the runway. Coasting out into space, they switched off anti-grav, retracted landing gear and ignited their engines.

  Jack looked over the armament screen, four Pulse Laser cannons, (two on each wing) and a Mercury Gatling gun in the nose. Plus seven hard points for missiles or accessories. He was pleased and impressed. "How's it looking out there, Pappy?"