by Charles Lamb
“You know better than that. I was carrying out orders.”
“Ah yes, but Alice shared your knighthood documentation. Apparently, you served Her Majesty well, in protecting her heir. The Silver Star your own military awardedgave some additional details on your leadership during the firefight. Most proper, indeed.”
“You saw I stupidly got shot right, in the very beginning!”
“Yes and continued to carry out your duties while losing a significant amount of blood. So it said, your team captured a senior Taliban commander and discovered information pointing to a VEBIED crew, already en route, to the side of the air base near Harry's unit's quarters, with the Prince in residence?” Banks asked.
“The mission was to catch them before they left, we were too late.”
Jake knew that VBIED stood for Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device, but was impressed Banks knew that as well.
“And it says here, you liaised quickly and effectively with an SAS Captain, who was a childhood friend of Harry's and knew at which side of the base he was located?”
“He was a part of the team, we were just lucky he knew the Prince and his location. Look, we just improvised, and coordinated a last minute intercept, before the truck reached the base. We zapped the driver and shotgun before they could detonate the truck VBIED. We took out a buncha guys who bailed out the back, all in suicide vests, and kept any good guys from dying. Later, Harry and the SAS guy came to see me in the hospital, where he jokingly borrowed a sword and knighted me. It was a joke. We were supposed to get together later, once I was released, for a few beers.”
“Evidently it was not a joke to Her Majesty. From these notes in the file, I think the paperwork had still not caught up with you, before the stasis accident. I imagine the delay would have been substantial; considering the time required for Harry to relate the events to his grandmother; HMG to process; USG to figure out a way to square the emoluments clause, perhaps granting the exception as a result of you being MIA due to the facility’s collapse. I can imagine the repeated pressuring by the Royal Household. The SAS Captain was also KCVO'd, by the way. You will never guess who his descendant is, in residence?”
“Surprise me,” Jake replied, not in a particularly guessing mood.
“Leftenant Atkins.”
“No shit. Go figure, he’s a good kid.”
“That is not particularly knightly language,” Banks replied with a laugh.
“Ok, let’s just focus on the mission at hand, shall we?”
“Ivan and I are preparing to start the test phase of the enhancements provided. We expect that to take no more than a day. If successful, we can relocate the NeHaw to his new living quarters and be on our way,” Banks finished.
“And Ivan?” Jake asked.
“A real gem, that one. He has been augmenting the nocturnal education Dallas is providing, with daytime training. I do believe we are both up to speed as the ship's pilot and navigator. That should be unnecessary, however, as Dallas has preloaded our flight plan into the navigation system.”
“All right, let me know when you are ready, I want to be there before you lift off,” Jake replied. With a nod from Banks, he signed off.
----*----
HeBak was not at all pleased about leaving his gold behind. However, no manner of appeal could budge the humans from their position that his safe return of this ship and crew was his insurance of its safety. Transferring to the new vessel the humans had acquired, he selected some things he considered essential to his comfort. He cared little that a dozen or so metal minions were required to relocate said items. He stood by, watching them struggle with their loads.
The quarters provided him were actually quite nice, obviously placed there by the Wawobash traitors. While he was unfamiliar with this particular ship’s design, he could tell that this location was actually space reserved for cargo. The modules that outlined his living space were anchored in place, and then tied to the ship's power and other support systems.
Inside the modules, he had areas to eat, sleep, and entertain himself, as comfortable or better than the ship he was leaving behind. The two things that were suspiciously absent were a ships bridge and his gold. There was a mock up, he was told, to be used to give the impression he was the ship's pilot, should they be challenged.
To enter the real bridge, he would need to don his breathing equipment. As uncomfortable as that was, it would not prevent him from navigating the ship, should the need arise. His primary focus now was to complete this trip as quickly and safely as possible, so he could reclaim his gold, and be gone from this solar system for good.
----*----
Dallas was gratified to see the NeHaw placed upon the spy ship, and headed out of the solar system and away from her facility. She and her sisters had been analyzing the information contained in his ship's computers, comparing it to things they had been skimming off the NeHaw communications network.
Though they had no proof, the description of the creature and his ship compared favorably to reports they had captured of a disgraced communications supervisor. Even though it gave the NeHaw’s story a ring of truth, there was no mention of his protest over earth’s treatment. It did suggest he was far more than an ordinary government clerk.
It also gave credence to their suspicions that he was in fact a thief, here to loot earth’s treasures for personal gain. With everything they had before them, it seemed to fit nicely. It was with a feeling of justification that she had informed Colonel Banks of the button installed to the far right on the command console. One push and all the modules that made up the NeHaw living quarters would be jettisoned into space.
----*----
LeBek was hardly half way through his checklist, yet he had accomplished much. He reported regularly to the Head of the High Council, providing the figures she requested. She appeared delighted at his progress, and insinuated that it could mean an appointment to the lower council, if he could complete the mission undetected.
The nudge was hardly needed, as LeBek was already motivated to complete his duties and return to the home world ahead of the timeline outlined by the supreme leader. While he still was at a loss as to the use of all he was assembling, he had no doubt the Head of the High Council had a good reason.
----*----
Jake left the family drama behind, as he headed to Texas to see Ivan and Edwin off. With no conveniently scheduled shuttle, he grabbed his fighter and hotfooted it across the distance in short order. Crossing over Arizona and New Mexico, Jake realized it had been a while since he had done his own flying and he missed it.
As he closed in on the Texas location, he remembered how seriously, they originally took the daylight arrivals, concerned about onlookers. Since then, they came to realize these locations were isolated before the attack, now they were outright in the middle of nowhere.
Slowing to a hover, he watched as the doors opened beneath him, and then dropped into the hangar below. He could see activity everywhere, from cargo transports loading to shuttles collecting crew for the ships in space. Dallas was one of the mustering points for the convoy crews.
Once inside, he could easily identify Edwin and Ivan, with Becky and Sandy nearby. The fact that Sandy had made an appearance gave him hope. Exiting the fighter, he watched as Becky seemed to be lagging behind Sandy, or at least allowing her to reach him first.
“How are you?” he managed to get out before she sprinted the last few steps and wrapped her arms around his neck for a kiss.
“Better!” she replied with a weak smile while still holding on, “but still sad at times.”
“I’m good too,” Becky added pointedly, kissing Jake’s cheek to avoid displacing Sandy. Jake knew she was bending over backward to accommodate her friend.
“I hear your Australian work is paying off. Patti says we are looking at thousands of volunteers.”
“Yeah, Becky told me. I am not so sure….”
“Nonsense,” Jake replied, as he spun her around and l
ed her, his arm around her shoulders, to the two men waiting patiently.
“Welcome,” Ivan said first, “we missed your company!”
“And your intervention…..” Banks added dryly.
Jake was wondering how these two were going to handle weeks of isolation together.
“Ship is ready?’ he asked, ignoring the comment.
“Already relocated the NeHaw, although he was quite distressed that his gold was being left unattended. I fear his proclamations of persecution might be less than accurate. He has the smell of a thief about him,” Banks said.
“Yeah, he stinks alright,” Jake added with a laugh, “but I have an idea that might motivate him to insure the success of this mission.”
With that, the five headed into the main facility door, leaving the noisy hangar behind.
----*----
It had been no more than a few hours since Jake’s arrival in Texas, when Banks, Ivan, and HeBak found themselves airborne and headed for space. Edwin felt no resentment from the Russian when Jake reminded all he was the mission commander, and who knew or cared what the NeHaw was feeling.
The only measurable change in the creature’s posture occurred when Jake explained to the alien that he would pay additional gold for every piece of valuable information they returned with. Once that was made clear, the NeHaw declared himself ready and retreated to his part of the ship.
With everything ready, they had led Jake on a tour of the craft, reviewed the flight plan, and then said their farewells. Since both he and Ivan had been training as ships pilot, Edwin asked Ivan to do the honors and take them off planet. Once in space, both men settled back and watched the stars.
----*----
April took full advantage of Patti’s return, hijacking her and her boyfriend at breakfast. Catching them in the small dining room on the quarter’s level, she grabbed a tray of food and hurried over to their table.
“Am I interrupting?” she asked as she stepped up to the couple.
“Hi April, no please join us,” Patti said with a smile, as Daniel rose at Aprils arrival.
“Daniel, this is April, my best analyst.”
“A pleasure,” Daniel replied to April.
“As for the analyst part, Jake made me head of the team in your absence. Please say you are home, and I can work for you again?” she said as she sat.
“I honestly don’t know?” Patti said while looking at Daniel.
“Are you here long enough to help me then?” she asked after a sip of coffee.
“What are you working on?” Patti asked, appearing curious.
“We are organizing convoys to deal with the NeHaw blockade. As usual, we are short of resources, specifically ships and crew, for the number of routes requested.”
“Oh, yes. I remember reading your reports while in London. Daniel, do you mind?”
“I would love to watch you work!” he replied, with a dashing smile.
“If Patti doesn’t keep this guy I am calling dibs,” April thought to herself.
----*----
After watching Banks and Ivan depart, Jake went to see Bonnie and his daughter Julie. He was happy to find Bonnie available to go with him, rather than just Julie. The issue with Sara was weighing on him, a constant reminder that as a father and a mate, he wasn’t living up to expectations.
Even though Bonnie was now with Robert and reportedly happy, he wondered if his distractions had motivated her. Pushing his insecurities aside, he played with his daughter, who was over a year old now, watching as she got into everything.
After leaving the two, Jake went to his quarters to check his messages and clean up. As he moved down the hallway, he overtook Sandy, headed in the same direction.
“Hey you, where are you going?” Jake asked, just happy to see her out and moving around on her own.
“To see you actually,” she replied with a smile.
Jake could see both the improvement in Sandy’s demeanor, and the distance she still needed to go to be her old self.
“How can I help you?” he asked while taking her arm and walking with her to his room.
“I want to go back to work,” she replied as they reached the door to Jake’s quarters. Waving her inside, he followed before asking, “and what does Becky say?’
“I shouldn’t be doing anything stressful.”
“So you are asking me to override her?” Jake asked, the tone in his voice telegraphing his disbelief.
“No, I didn’t say I wanted to go back to what I did before. I want to do something else.”
“Actually, that sounds like a good idea to me. Something constructive, but less stressful?”
“Yes,” she replied with a smile.
“OK, what were you thinking?” Jake said, waving for her to sit on the couch while he took one of the chairs.
“Well, Becky suggested I go help Jessie with the art up in Alaska,” she replied, sounding not so enthused at the idea.
“But,” Jake asked, prompting her for the real suggestion.
“I want to be a mom!”
----*----
Patti was feeling right at home, back in her little converted conference room. Everyone was happy to see her and very interested in Daniel. Were she the jealous type, she would have threatened more than a few of the women, who were eyeballing her boyfriend. Daniel seemed oblivious to it all, and simply smiled and shook hands with everyone he met.
Once things settled down, she eagerly attacked the problems that grandpa Jake had saddled them with. The NeHaw blockade was ingenious in its implementation, avoiding direct confrontation, while inhibiting the one thing the rebelling worlds valued; free trade. She applauded the one kill Brian had scored in the Wawobash system, but doubted it was even an inconvenience to the NeHaw.
The convoys were a solid counter to the current mess, but as April had pointed out, there were not enough ships and crews to meet the demand. Pulling together all the relevant reports of NeHaw ships participating in the blockade, she then cross-referenced the latest on the ships they had been arming. She also noted that Jake had started to build something they had discussed but never committed to.
After the Battle of Klinan, they had proposed a two-seat fighter, more suited as a fighter/bomber, allowing for additional firepower and a ground support capability. Not just longer than the current fighters, it’s updated airframe permitted more guns and internal bomb storage.
Still built of ferrous metals, they would have to be stored in stasis bubbles while in FTL. That issue had been mitigated by upgrading all the destroyers and cruisers with the same stasis pads the battleship and carrier had. Now the crews could access the cargo bays in FTL, instead of the total lockdown they had been forced to use in the beginning.
Patti worked with the team for several hours, Daniel appearing fascinated with the process, until she arrived at a solution that met the needs.
“Ok, I have it. We can cover all the routes,” she announced to the group, after going over the numbers one more time.
“How?” April asked, convinced she had already considered all the angles.
“We need to swap out all the fighters with the new supermodels. Then we cut each convoy down to two destroyer escorts or one cruiser.”
“Patti, that’s not enough firepower if they get hit,” one of the analysts replied.
“Normally, yes, but the super fighters can carry two additional rail guns in the bomb bays. Two fighters per destroyer means, if attacked, they will have four fighters and two destroyers. With the additional firepower in the fighters, they equal a destroyer, and their mobility makes them more effective.”
Patti could see April thinking it through.
“That might work; they are not at risk in FTL, just at each endpoint. What of the destroyer/cruiser convoys?”
“Unfortunately, only one cruiser per convoy, however, they hold four fighters so it matches the destroyer/cruiser mix you had before.” Patti replied.
After a few small discussions between t
he others, April got up from her terminal and crossed the room to Patti.
“We missed you!” she said as she hugged her.
Chapter 33
As they reached the edge of the solar system, Banks and Ivan were preparing to go to faster than light, when an alert sounded. Checking his displays, Ivan found the source.
“There are a lot of ships leaving earth’s orbit.” he commented while tapping the source of the alert.
“It appears that the convoy ships are bound for their escort duties,” Banks replied. Considering they had just spent the last four days getting to the edge of the gravity well that was inhibiting faster than light drives, they had his sympathy.
During the trip to this point, they had only seen the NeHaw twice. Once, just after they left orbit, he had come out of his quarters to check on their flight plan, and once yesterday. For that, he hadn’t even come out, he just videoed from his mockup pilot’s chair.
As part of the deception, they had created a mockup of the ship's bridge inside the NeHaw’s quarters. He could communicate as if he was piloting the ship, but the controls there had no use. If they were challenged by anyone, HeBak was to reply, while everything he said or did would be visible to the men on the real bridge.
He had contacted the two to ensure everything was working properly, and to verify the first stop in their flight plan. As a test, they had selected a NeHaw controlled world of no tactical importance, but one that would validate their ability to deceive any potential detection systems.
Should they be unmasked, Edwin and Ivan both knew the preprogramed course selection to return them home. If all went well, they simply selected the next destination.
----*----
Brian was watching the fleet of ships departing orbit, headed to the edge of the system and on to their various destinations. He had pulled up the convoy plans once they had been announced, and studied the proposal. At first, he had thought Patti and April had lost their minds, sending so few ships to guard each convoy.
