by William Lee
Mike settled down into the pilot’s seat, finding the perfect spot, before flipping the switch to engage the optical stealth, and changing course toward Antarctica. Mike turned off the Mission-Computer-Display and radio panel. He knew it would be a long flight to Antarctica. As he glanced over the gauges and four display screens, he remembered that fuel would be an issue. With a cargo this valuable, he was certain that the Ondagra would take care of the fuel, eventually.
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
Major Tom had not slept since the Impegi went down. He stood next to General Stone Byrd in the rear of the command center on the Moon Base. Most of the officers were looking disheveled and tired, but Stone Byrd stood amongst the chaos like a chiseled statue with not a hair out of place or a wrinkle on his shirt.
Standing next to Stone Byrd, Major Tom thoughtfully recounted, more to himself than anyone else, “Magadan: The city that Jesus traveled to after he fed the five thousand.”
Stone Byrd nodded his head, “Really?”
“Yes Sir. It was an ancient city on the Sea of Galilee. It’s mentioned in both the Books of Matthew and Mark. Some say that Mary Magdalene was from there.”
Stone Byrd was somewhat amused, “Well, aren’t you a fountain of knowledge. Are you a Christian, Major?”
“My parents took me to Sunday School when I was a kid.”
“You learn all that in Sunday School?” Byrd asked.
“Not really. I also read a lot. Some scholars believe that there may have been an ancient tower or fortress there.”
“Anything else happen there?” General Byrd asked.
“Not that I can recall,” Major Tom replied.
“Well, 2,000 years from now, they will be reading about how the events in Magadan Oblast changed the course of human history,” Stone Byrd said, confidently.
One of the officers loudly announced, “All jump shuttles and cargo planes have cleared the crash site and are heading home,”
“Have all jump shuttles finished boarding the C-17s?” Stone Byrd asked.
“No. They are still trying to board, but there are no reports of problems,” the officer reported. “Wait. No. I see one of the Russian crafts approaching a jump shuttle that has not yet boarded the C-17.”
“Dammit. Fucking Russians,” Stone Byrd muttered. “Keep me posted on that shuttle, let me know when it makes it to the cargo plane.”
“Yes Sir.”
Stone turned to another officer, “How much cargo did our boys leave at the site?”
“According to the last ground report and our sensor readings, it seems that we got about two thirds of the Element 115.”
Stone shook his head in disgust, “So, the Russians and the Grays have a third of our Element 115. Damn. Major Tom, what are my options? Can we destroy that ship and all the remaining cargo?”
Major Tom responded slowly, “Yes Sir. I have four TEPNOS missiles left. One should do it.”
Stone Byrd, sensing Major Tom’s hesitation, asked, “But?”
“Well, Sir. It has been over a day since we launched six TEPNOS missiles at Russia. I’m certain they will have been trying to figure out what hit them, and with the incursion into Siberia, it’s likely they have figured out what’s going.”
“Speak your mind, Major.”
“Sir, two problems. Yesterday, they were not expecting a missile attack; so, they weren’t looking for it, or trying to defend from it. Today, not only are they looking for it, but they may have figured out a way to defend. Second, yesterday we had the possibility of plausible deniability; today, they may be able to track these missiles right back to the Moon Base.”
“I see your point, Major.” Stone Byrd pressed his lips together so tightly that they began to turn white, then he clinched his fists. “Major, do we have any other options?”
“Not as I see it, Sir. Also, they have two off-world antigravity fighters in the area. So, it’s possible that they could shoot down our missile.”
“Have all of the jump shuttles and C-17s cleared the blast zone?”
“Yes Sir.”
Stone Byrd took a deep breath, silently said a quick prayer to a God he didn’t really believe in, and said, “Fire one TEPNOS missile at the Impegi.”
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
Nox felt at home behind the controls of his fighter. Despite having his weapons systems offline, and the Impegi crew escaping with the most valuable cargo, he knew there was still a victory to be found. The battle would be over soon, and he could get a full inventory of the remaining cargo aboard the disgraced interstellar ship. He knew there was no way that those little jump shuttles could carry away but so many resources.
Manpugna announced that he had just shot down one of the shuttles.
Even more precious cargo. No doubt, whatever is in that shuttle would be priceless. Why else would they have risked so much to recover it?
Nox piloted his craft toward the debris field that was once an escaping shuttle.
I will kill the survivors, if there are any, and then personally take inventory of the cargo. I wonder if Dale Matthews was on that shuttle. Stop thinking about him, it can’t be him. He would be an old man now.
Visions of off-world technologies, equipment and gadgets that would soon be at his fingertips danced in his mind.
This could be a game changer. This cargo could shift the balance of power for centuries to come.
Nox’s fantasies of finding a rare and precious cargo evaporated, when a familiar voice came through his COMM, “General, you have an incoming missile. We assume nuclear. Thirty seconds to impact.”
“Target?” Nox asked, as sense of overwhelming dread washed over him.
“Crash Site Four,” Popov reported.
Nox quickly turned the fighter toward the wreckage, while glancing at his display. Manpugna was out of position, too far away. Nox scanned the sky and his display panel. He spotted the missile arching down toward his prize. Instinctively, Nox lined up his weapons system and fired. Nothing happened.
Damn. I forgot my weapons are offline. The only way to stop that missile from destroying everything is to knock it out of the sky with my fighter.
Intuitively, Nox turned the fighter toward the incoming missile and pushed the antimatter reactor to maximum thrust. Nox had no doubt his fighter could outrun even the quickest American missile. What he didn’t know, was what would happen upon impact. Seconds later, when Nox was absolutely certain that his AG fighter was on an irreversible intercept course with the missile; certain that his craft would slam into the missile that threatened his prize, he pulled the lever that would eject him from the cockpit, and into the dreary gray sky.
A second later, Nox was jetted into the atmosphere, and his parachute engaged, a human invention, he was glad that he had added to his craft decades ago. Large Gray’s don’t experience fear and anxiety quite like humans, but those would be the emotions closest to what Nox was feeling as his favorite fighter collided with the incoming missile.
What if the nuclear warhead detonates? Will my armor fail? Will it destroy the cargo ship? The answer is most certainly yes on both accounts.
The flash and explosion were deafening. Nox hurdled toward the ground, his parachute tangled and on fire. He tried to engage his personal energy shield. Failed. Failed. Failed. For a second, it crossed Nox’s mind that the nuclear warhead did not detonate, but only for a second, as the frozen tundra raced up to meet him.
CHAPTER FIFTY
Snap opened his eyes. His head was pounding, and there was a spider web of cracks spreading across his vizor, impeding his vision. The shuttle was half buried in ice and snow, the fuselage ripped to pieces, leaving him exposed to the wind. Snap looked over at Furier; she lay still, slumped over the ship’s controls. Snap release his harness and reached over to gently push her with his left hand. It was obvious that they would have been killed, if not for their advanced body armor.
Furier’s arm twitched. She was alive. But for how long? Snap shifted closer to her and b
egan to free her from the harness and tangled metal. Furier jerked awake and instinctively grabbed Snap by his shoulder.
“Whoa. Easy there. We are alive. For now,” Snap said encouragingly, trying to calm her down.
“The crew. Did the crew make it?” Furier asked frantically.
Snap had not even thought of the other passengers that were in the back of the shuttle. Snap and Furier turned around to see that all the passengers were a mangled mess of blood and gore, smashed between the heavy cargo containers.
“Shit,” Snap said. “Good thing we had on this armor, otherwise, that could have been us.”
“Maybe, but also, maybe, they would have survived if we had not overloaded the ship with cargo,” Furier said in an accusing tone.
“I’m sorry for the loss of your crew,” Snap mumbled, as he finished freeing himself from the cockpit.
Snap climbed out of the shuttle and helped Furier to the ground.
“I’m surprised that fighter did not finish us off from the sky, or land to capture us. They just left,” Furier said, as she surveyed the sky for enemy craft.
“Who knows why they left. But we need to get away from here before they return to finish the job,” Snap said, scanning the horizon for any signs of enemy movements. “I’m going to see if Command can hear me.”
“Won’t that give away our position?” Furier asked.
“Pretty sure they know our position; they just shot us down. Besides, we have to let Command know we are alive.”
“Slade to Command. Can you hear me?” Snap asked into his broken helmet.
“This is General Byrd. What is your situation?” The voice cackled over the broken COMM system.
“My shuttle craft was shot down by a Russian AG fighter. There is one other survivor besides me, a Vitahician officer. We need an extraction plan. There are two Russian AG fighters in the area, I’m sure they will return soon.”
General Byrd responded, “Major Slade, there is only one AG fighter remaining, the other was destroyed. The remaining Russian fighter has diverted, it is unlikely he will return to your position anytime soon.”
“Roger that, General. Do we have an extraction plan?”
“We can have an AG fighter to your position in a few hours. Until then, you need to hunker down.”
“We can’t stay here. This place will be crawling with Russians in a few hours,” Snap said.
“It’s hard to tell from our position, but it looks like there is an abandoned Cold War research outpost about 10 miles from your position. I’m sending GPS coordinates to you now. Consider that the extraction point.”
“Roger that.”
“Command out.”
Furier had heard most of the conversation, but Snap filled her in on the parts she had missed. They took the emergency supply pack from the decimated shuttle and began walking east. The 10-mile hike would have been nearly impossible but for the exoskeleton armor they were wearing. Despite being damaged, the advanced armor still protected them from the weather and assisted with traversing rough terrain. In a short time, they arrived at the designated location.
“This is it,” Snap said, while studying his forearm display.
“I don’t see anything,” Furier complained.
“Well, it’s got to be here. It probably hasn’t been used in 40 years. The entrance could be covered in snow, for all we know.”
The landscape was flat and rocky, with an occasional small mound or hill. The snow was light and dry, almost giving the appearance of a barren planet or moon.
“Why would they have had a Cold War station out here?” Furier asked, as she studied her display monitor. “There’s nothing here, no trees, no people, nothing.”
“The Russians were very paranoid back then, still are, really. They could have been doing weather research, biological weapons, or it could have just been a listening post. Who knows, the outpost may have only had a dozen people stationed in it. But if we find it, it may be able to give us shelter and possibly supplies.”
“Wait, I think I’m picking up something on my radar. Looks like a large underground cavern, directly below us.”
“What are you looking at?”
“Oh, you don’t have one? It’s a ground penetrating radar, it allows me to see up to 100 feet below the surface,” Furier bragged. “Definitely, a manmade structure. Too many square edges to be all natural.”
“Well, this must be it. Now all we must do is find the door,” Snap said, as he walked toward a ten-foot-high earthen mound that appeared to be too symmetrical.
“Where are you going?” Furier asked.
“This mound, it’s too perfect, and it’s larger than all other mounds for miles around. I bet its part of the structure.”
A closer study of the earthen mound revealed a concrete entrance big enough for a single troop transport to enter. The metal doors were shut and locked; it appeared no one had been through these doors in many years.
“Look, the doors are just locked with a chain and pad lock. You can shoot it with your DE rifle,” Furier said.
“Yeah, they were not terribly concerned with security when they locked this up, years ago. Probably figured no one would even find this place, much less care to enter.”
Snap shot the lock off, and the doors slowly creaked open with little effort, revealing a dark tunnel leading underground. Furier turned on her helmet lamp; Snap’s was broken. The walls and floor were smooth concrete, with dusty electric light bulbs hanging from the domed concrete ceiling. Snap shut the door behind him, as they began to make their way down into the Cold War base.
The manmade tunnel gave way to a more natural cave-like appearance, as it opened into a cavern with stalactites hanging from the cave ceiling. The stalagmites had been removed in favor of a flat concrete floor. The large cavern was littered with crates, equipment, machinery, and a few old trucks.
“Hey, at least it’s not as cold down here,” Snap said, as he removed his broken helmet.
“Still a bit chilly, but no wind and snow,” Furier said, as she too removed her helmet revealing her long hair and blue eyes.
“Let’s see if we can find anything of use,” Snap said.
“Like what?”
“We got to sit tight for a few hours, maybe longer depending on weather and enemy troop movements. Maybe we could build a fire, find some blankets or a light source.”
“I got a light source, Major,” Furier said, as she flashed the helmet light toward Snap with a slight laugh.
After a cursory exploration of the cave, they found nothing of great interest, just forty-year-old equipment. They did find blankets and fuel to build a small fire for light and warmth.
Once the fire was built, Commander Furier began taking off her armor.
“What are you doing?” Snap asked.
“You don’t expect me to rest in this armor, do you?”
“Well, yes, I suppose I did. What if the Russians show up in the middle of the night? We won’t have time to armor up for battle,” Snap pointed out.
“True. But, I imagine if they show up here, they will come with overwhelming force. We are not likely to prevail in a fire fight either way. Besides, I bet they have more important places to secure than an abandoned base.”
Snap watched her take off her armor, revealing a dark blue, form fitting uniform. “I guess I need some sleep too,” Snap said, as he stood to take off his armor.
In a few minutes, they were wrapped up in Cold War era blankets, gazing at a fire fueled by old wooden storage crates. The firelight danced among the stalactites on the ceiling making strange shadows as the two warriors tried to relax. Only now did Snap really have time to think about his fallen brothers.
Snap settled in on a mound of gray wool blankets that insulated him from the chilly concrete floor. Furier had stacked up several blankets into a make shift bed. Both sat on one side of the crackling fire, watching the light reflect off the run-down equipment from a bygone era.
“Do you think
the Russians will find us here?” Furier asked as she ripped open a sealed package containing a dark green bar. She broke a piece off and offered it to Snap.
“Thank you,” Snap said, taking the food from her hand. “No. I think Command will pick us up in a few hours, long before the Russians have time to look for us. The Russians will be too busy securing the crash site to worry about us.”
“Why don’t your people just destroy the Impegi with a missile?”
Snap shifted in his blankets, and said, “I don’t really know, but I assume it has something to do with politics, and not starting World War Three.”
“World War Three?”
“Yes. Some egg head probably calculated that Russia would not react to us nuking barren tundra, but a crashed ship is going too far. Way beyond my paygrade,” Snap said with a smile. “You know I just found out last week that there are extraterrestrials, aliens if you will, on this planet. Now, I’m sitting in this Cold War bunker with one right next to me. Did you know that they keep your existence, your people, a secret from almost everyone on this planet?”
“Yes, I was aware that your leaders keep us a secret from the people of Earth. It is different on Vitahic, I grew up learning about Earth, humans and your cultures.”
“Wow. How many inhabited planets do you know about?”
“Our space travel and exploration is limited to about twenty percent of the Milky Way Galaxy. We know of several planets that can, or do sustain some type of life. We have diplomatic relations, good and bad, with six different planets.
“As you can imagine, I have so many questions about you, your planet and your people. I hope you don’t mind me asking,” Snap said.
“No, I don’t mind at all. Obviously, we have been trained not to disclose our identity to the general population on Earth; but, clearly, you are already aware of our existence. What would you like to know?”
“Everything, tell me everything about your world,” Snap said, eagerly, mesmerized by the flickering fire light being reflected in her eyes.
