She could tell by his tone that she might have pushed him too far. She didn't want him to get any angrier than he already was. She relaxed her demeanor and offered him a slight smile. "I appreciate your concern for me. I know you are worried, but I will be fine, and yes, your presence is always welcome. First things first though. The Emperor does need to be informed of everything that we have learned so far. Would it be alright if accompanied you to see the Emperor?"
K'oron smiled back at her. No matter how much she infuriated him, he just couldn't seem to stay mad at this Terran woman. "I would be delighted to have you by my side."
They felt a light jarring as the ship touched the ground, and then another as the walkway tube was extended to dock with the landing tower. The two of them made their way to the airlock and exited the ship.
No matter how many times she saw the capital city of V'drell Prime it still amazed her. The contrast of every element in the city. It was a mix of the modern and the ancient. Even new the newer glass and metal buildings still had a medieval feel about them. The culture of this world was the same as its architecture, a mix of technology and tradition. This world that was so foreign to her only months ago was now starting to feel more and more like home.
They saw a familiar face waiting for them as they left the landing tower. It was the Order's second in command, Del'vath.
"Commandant, it is good to have you back," Del'vath bowed to K'oron. He then offered a nod to Danielle. "It is good to have you back as well, Major. We have received disturbing news concerning the Commonwealth during your absence. It seems they crossed into our territory and engaged some of our ships."
"I know," K'oron confirmed. "We were on board the Strak'zar when the Commonwealth ships attacked us."
Del'vath laughed. "Why am I not surprised, Commandant? Somehow you always seem to be just where you are needed by our people. I will assume that you were victorious since you are here? The Commonwealth ships have been destroyed?"
"I will tell you everything," K'oron assured him, "but first I must report to the Emperor. There is a prisoner on board the Strak'zar, please have him placed in one of our cells." Del'vath nodded and walked towards the landing tower.
"I already instructed the Strak'zar's security officers to take Ridgeway to the cells in the palace," Danielle reminded K'oron.
"Yes, I know," K'oron responded. "However, if he is your prisoner now, which seems to be the case, I would prefer him to be in our custody. Then you can interrogate him at your leisure."
"Okay," she agreed, "that works for me. I'll leave you to bring the Emperor up to speed, and I will go talk to my prisoner."
***
Detective Owen Cordell walked away from the building they had just raided and got in his personal shuttlecraft. He noticed that the ship's data system was indicating was indicating that he had a missed call from Chief Clawson. Probably wants an update on the raid. I'm on my way back to the station anyway, I'll just brief him when I get there. He entered the address for Capital Police headquarters and engaged the auto-pilot.
Cordell pulled the evidence bag containing the data core from his pocket. He looked at the crystalline object and shook his head. If Peterson and Chen are right, this little trinket could be worth a fortune to the right buyer. I'm sure that Democratic Mars would love to get their hands on technology that would let them hijack military drones. He shook his head. A little extra money would be nice, but he knew where his loyalties were and he wasn't going to disappoint the people that counted on him.
This chip could be enough for CTD and Homicide to start putting the pieces together and crack this case. He gazed at the rock-like object. His mind was wondering what information might be on it. His thoughts were distracted by the roaring sound of a large engine. He looked out his window and realized that he was passing by the Research City freight depot. Automated rail transports carried all manner of goods and passengers between Research City and the capital. It was one of the busiest freight systems on the planet, with a rail transport coming or going on the line every fifteen minutes. I hate traveling along the ground. Normally the shuttlecraft would have lifted off from the ground and taken a direct airborne route back to the capital. However, due to the extreme elevation of Mons Olympus, shuttles were required to travel through one of the connecting tubes until they reached a lower elevation.
This is probably as good of a place as any. He gave one last glance at the data core in his hand. Then without hesitation, he used his hands to snap it in half. No telling how much money I just destroyed. He opened the shuttlecraft window and threw the evidence bag with the now destroyed data core onto one of the nearby rail beds. He knew that the next rail transport would finish the destruction. He tapped a number into the shuttlecraft's built-in comms system. After a few moments, a frail-sounding voice answered.
"Mr. Tatsuda, this is Cordell at CTD," Cordell announced. "The police just raided Roscoe Harrison's location. I made sure that he wouldn't talk, and I retrieved the data core from his console before anyone else could. It has been destroyed." The frail voice didn't respond, instead, the line simply went dead.
"You're welcome," Cordell said sarcastically, knowing that the line had been terminated.
CHAPTER 14
After his victory over the Terran Dreadnaught, No'tok felt invincible. He had made the crew of the Nightfury feel invincible as well. They had moved deeper into the Commonwealth and had now taken a stealth position on the dark side of the Martian moon Deimos. The Nightfury had successfully destroyed two more Dreadnaughts and three Pathfinders along the way to its current location. The Commonwealth had its ships patrolling the entire star system in an attempt to figure out why several of their ships had gone missing, but they could not detect the camouflaged Nightfury.
He sat in his office and was looking over the passive sensor data they had been collecting of the red planet the Terrans called home. No'tok's plan was to take out every ship that was inbound for the planet. He knew that cutting off a planet's supply lines could quickly cause a planet to implode on itself. After all, hungry people don't care who their leader is, as long as there is food. It was a tactic that the Dominion had often used in its more glorious past. He had invited Gar'loz to join him. He thought it would be good to see how his first officer might approach a mission to cripple the Commonwealth Fleet. The Nightfury's first officer had been looking over the data for some time now without saying a word.
"What are your thoughts, Gar'loz?" No'tok asked. "How would you conquer this planet?"
Gar'loz looked up from the data readouts. "I would attack their shipyards." He pulled up a chart of the local space around Mars on the desk console. "The ones here, here, and here," he said pointing to different locations in Martian orbit.
No'tok was surprised and somewhat disappointed. "The shipyards are their most fortified positions. They are heavily armed by themselves, and there are always ships docked which will also have armaments. It would be foolish to attack such targets."
"Begging the Admiral's pardon, but I disagree," Gar'loz countered. "The shipyards do seem to have a tremendous amount of firepower. Probably enough to cut through even the Nightfury's advanced shielding technology. However, they have no shields that we have detected."
"Their weapons are their shields," No'tok replied. "They have enough pulse cannons to take out any missile fired at them. As do the ships docked there. We might be able to get one volley of shots off if we were using our camouflage and sensor dampeners, but that would be the most we could hope for."
"I completely agree with your assessment, Admiral," Gar'loz nodded. "However, one volley is all we would need if we target the engines of an unsuspecting docked ship. The explosion from the ruptured engine core would do far more damage than our weapons could. Without energy dampening shields, the resulting blast would tear the shipyard apart. With their largest shipyards gone, they will have to divert their warships to one of their colonies that has a shipyard to resupply and for any needed repairs. The oth
er two shipyards are too small to handle anything but passenger and cargo transports, and maybe small fighters. Without their larger warships, the entire planet will be defenseless."
No'tok thought on Gar'loz's idea. "You might have a point, Commander." He had underestimated Gar'loz, and that was not something he did often. He has promise. Our ancestors would be proud of him. No'tok smiled at his first officer. "I will leave this in your capable hands, Gar'loz. Draw up the attack plan, and we will go over it together when you are ready." Gar'loz saluted, then left the room.
No'tok looked out the office window into space. In the distance, he could see part of the red planet behind the moon he was orbiting with. Gaelon was a fool to give me this ship. With it, I will start a new empire built on the ruins of these weak, pathetic, Terrans. An empire of conquerors, like the Morgalans and V'drellians of old. I shall claim more souls than even Th'warzin!
***
Captain Kirk McAvoy had read his orders and then read them a second time. He had been instructed to hunt down one of their own ships, the Athena, without attempting any communications. Why would we think that one of our ships would be filled with Dominion troops? Fleet Admiral Capshaw didn't want to offer any type of explanation, even when I asked. I understand that orders are orders, but this is unusual, to say the least.
"Captain, we've reached the border with Dominion space," his navigation officer informed him. "Are we authorized to cross into the QZ?"
McAvoy's orders had given him permission to hunt down the Athena, even if that meant entering Dominion-controlled space. However, he just couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't adding up. "Negative. We will hold position here." A part of him didn't want to find the Athena, at least not until he knew more about what was going on. I wish we had longer range sensors. I wish we could see past the end of our nose sitting her at the border. I don't like it. Too much as happened in this region lately. I bet Sentry Command has a better idea of what is going on. I think Jason Rutledge is still the commanding officer out there. I haven't seen him since his stint teaching Command Procedures at the academy years ago. McAvoy chuckled to himself. I almost failed that class under him.
"Comms, open a channel to Sentry Command, Commander Jason Rutledge," McAvoy ordered. "Put it through to my office." His communications officer nodded and started working at her console. He left his chair on the bridge of the Nautilus and walked through the door to his office. He sat down at his desk just as the console screen flickered to life.
"Hello, Commander Rutledge," McAvoy started. "I'm not sure if you remember me or not. My name is..."
"Yes, I remember you, McAvoy," the old man replied. "One of the few students that passed my class on the first try back when I was still teaching. What can I do for you, Captain?"
"I was hoping that maybe you could give me some intel on the area. We've been ordered to find the Athena. She was part of the battle group led by Admiral Hawthorne that entered the QZ about a week ago. She is reported to have been captured and now being used to smuggle Dominion troops into the Commonwealth."
"We haven't detected any ships at the border except his group and your ship just now." The older officer turned away from the screen and began addressing someone. "Sensors, give me a long-range scan into the QZ, full power." Rutledge waited for a reply from the officer he had been addressing, then he turned his gaze back to the screen. "You might be on to something. Our long-range scan is picking up a Commonwealth vessel inside the QZ headed this way. It's moving pretty slow, so it will be a few hours before it crosses into Commonwealth space. It's too far out for us to identify it, except by engine signature, but it is definitely a Dreadnaught."
"Well, I guess the rumors are true then," McAvoy sighed. "I appreciate your help, Commander." He reached to touch the console to end the call.
"Hold on, son," Rutledge interjected before McAvoy could terminate the signal. "I would never tell you not to follow orders. You know me well enough to know that. But there is one thing I have learned about this area over the past few months. Strange things happen out here. I'm just a lowly station commander, but I know that we have picked up all kinds of sensor data since this started with one of my patrols being destroyed. When Hawthorne was the Fleet Admiral, he wanted every bit of it he could get. The new guy, Capshaw, doesn't seem to care. I think he's more interested in puckering up to the new Regent's backside than he is in actually doing his job. Strange things happen out here. I watched a Pathfinder like yours enter the QZ with a squadron of Sovereign Angels. They never came back. I relayed messages from the defector, Danielle Hart, to the Queen before the assassination. I watched my niece, Lt. Commander Whitley Paige, and the Odyssey disappear over the border and be declared traitors. I watched Admiral Hawthorne take three ships and invade the Dominion. Now you are telling me that one of them is really Dominion soldiers sneaking across the border. Maybe so, but the one thing I know is that nothing is what it appears to be at the border."
"So you think the reports are wrong?" McAvoy asked his former instructor. "You think I should disregard the order to destroy the Athena?"
"You're the Captain," Rutledge laughed. "I'm just a Commander. I wouldn't dare to tell you how to do your job. I just wanted you to know that out here, you have to do what you think is best based on what you are dealing with at the time. Those brains back on Mars don't know what is going on out here by looking at data. You are the commanding officer of a Commonwealth ship, and your crew depends on you. Follow your instincts."
"I think I understand what you are saying," McAvoy replied. "Thanks for the advice."
"Advice?" Rutledge grinned. "I just gave you the sensor data you asked for. Good luck, Captain."
McAvoy ended the call and returned to the bridge. "Sentry Command has one of our vessels on long-range headed this way," he informed his bridge officers. "We have reports that it might have been compromised by the Dominion, and be carrying soldiers in an attempt to invade the Commonwealth. I want us to be ready if that is the case. Set general quarters throughout the ship. Ready weapons and energize shields. Have the Lancers ready for launch in case we need them." Throughout the ship, personnel scurried to their posts and readied the ship for battle.
"All decks reporting ready, Captain," his weapons officer informed him.
"Captain, we are picking up a Commonwealth vessel on short range," his sensor officer announced.
This is it. McAvoy was contemplating what he was going to do next. His orders were to destroy the ship without any attempt to capture it, or even communicate with it. Rutledge is right. I have to do what is best for this ship. I'm not going to slaughter the crew of a ship without knowing for certain that there is a threat. If I'm wrong, I'll answer to the Admiral, but I have to at least try to find out what is happening.
He turned to his weapons officer. "If we see a flicker of hostility, we're going to blow them away." The weapons officer nodded.
"Comms, try to open a channel with the approaching ship," McAvoy instructed. The communication officer established a link with the oncoming ship, and the image of a man standing on the bridge of the Athena appeared. "Athena, this is Captain Kirk McAvoy of the Nautilus. We have received reports that your ship has been commandeered by the Dominion. Any attempt to flee or power up your weapons or shields will be taken as an aggressive act and we will attack. Whom am I speaking with?"
"This is Lt. Commander Timothy Roanoke, acting captain of the Athena," the image announced.
"Acting captain?" McAvoy asked. "Where is your actual commanding officer, Lt. Commander?"
"He deserted, along with the rest of the bridge crew and probably twenty-five percent of the crew ship-wide," replied Roanoke.
"What would cause so many to desert their ship?" McAvoy inquired. "Are you speaking under duress? Is there an enemy presence onboard your ship?"
Roanoke let out a sigh. "Is there an enemy onboard? No, Captain. Am I under duress? You could say that. I don't want to be in command of this ship, but I am the highest ranki
ng officer aboard. I was just the chief of security before everyone joined the Dominion. Now I just want to get back home."
McAvoy was startled by what he heard. "Can you repeat that? I must be hearing things. Did you say that your crew deserted the ship to join up with the Dominion?"
"Affirmative, sir," the man on the screen responded. "Our battle carrier group was given orders to invade the Dominion and establish a foothold position. We encountered two Dominion ships and engaged them in battle. The Apollo was severely damaged. The Athena and Poseidon were disabled enough to end the fight. Admiral Hawthorne surrendered to avoid any further attack. He went aboard one of the Dominion ships and apparently met with their officers and Danielle Hart. Afterward, he returned and talked to all of the officers of the three ships. He told us about a huge conspiracy involving a group called the Legion and told us that the Rylan Prime Minister Gaelon and our own Regent are part of this group, and they want to destroy everything that we believe in. Then he gave us a choice. We could stay and help him and the Dominion fight this 'Legion', or we could leave and return back to the Commonwealth on the Athena. Those that stayed with Hawthorne transferred to the Poseidon. The rest of us took the Athena and set a course for home."
McAvoy was still trying to process what he had just heard. The former Fleet Admiral and a huge number of fleet officers and enlisted personnel just deserted and joined with the very enemy that they had been told to destroy? A universal conspiracy? Oh, and the Regent is part of it. It's crazy! Then he pondered his orders to blindly destroy the Athena. Maybe it's not so crazy after all. His head was spinning with an overload of information that sounded insane, yet made perfect sense at the same time. This is way beyond my pay grade.
"Lt. Commander, would you consent to allow me to send a boarding party to your ship?" McAvoy inquired. "That way I can confirm that there is no hostile presence on your ship." Roanoke nodded. "Very well, I will dispatch one of our shuttles immediately. If their report is good, then your ship is free to go. In fact, I will even escort you back to the Solar System."
Hart Of Vengeance: A Danielle Hart Novel (Book 2) Page 17
