by PJ Strebor
The slave’s face showed a glimmer of hope. “Yes sir, my chief engineer thinks so too. He says we will need to maintain a full-power acceleration for four hours to stand any chance of closing down the reactor.”
A slight spark of concern ran down Janzen’s spine. He ignored it.
“Cutting in here, captain.”
“Of course, Colonel Manson.” A shiver ran down Janzen’s back.
“My guards and I will keep things on track over here. And we will take as long as we need to take to solve this problem. I’m not going to waste any more of my time on this rust bucket than I have to. We’ll be back when we’re back. Acknowledge, Captain Janzen.”
Although flustered Janzen managed to choke out, “Aye, colonel.”
Janzen straightened his back as the screen blinked off.
“She’s turning about and accelerating to full power,” Behrens said.
Captain Janzen slumped into his chair beside his XO. Well, you wanted a little excitement didn’t you?
“Captain,” Behrens said, “permission to speak, ah … candidly.”
Janzen nodded.
“Sir, I agree that getting the slave ship away from orbit, and us, is sound. But sir I have concerns.”
“Lieutenant you’ve been posted here for… how long now?”
“Two months sir.”
“Yes, two months. I’ve been here two years and I know the minds of these people well enough to tell you that there is no problem. Slaves are broken and the Athenians aboard Bellinda are no different from any other slaves I’ve seen. And consider this.” He held his hand and ticked off his points on his fingers. “When she was captured we removed all of her weapons, her long range communications and navigation.” He tapped his second finger. “We have thirty of the colonel’s personal guard stationed aboard her should the need arise. It never has.” Third finger. “Finally, we have components from her hyper generator onboard. She’s not going anywhere.”
“I guess you’re right sir,” Behrens said. “It’s just that I, well, sir, I …”
“Spit it out man,” Janzen snapped.
“Well sir, it just doesn’t feel right.”
Janzen laughed and slapped the youngster on the shoulder. “Relax lieutenant. If she’s not back in,” he paused remembering Manson’s words, “a reasonable time we’ll go and get her.”
“Aye, sir.”
CHAPTER 5
Time: 22nd February, 309 ASC.
Position: Kulak system. Pruessen Empire.
Status: Freighter Bellinda, heading out of system.
Lucas Telford examined Bellinda’s disheveled bridge. Smoke lay thick in the air, the sharp tang making his nose twitch. Time, it’s all a matter of time.
“Captain,” Mary said, “we’ve cleared Kania’s sensor envelope.”
Lucas glanced at the first officer’s station. Mary and Nathan stared back. Lucas smiled with more confidence than he felt. Nathan nodded, his mouth stretched into a determined line. Spending his formative years in slavery has aged my boy. An eleven-year-old shouldn’t have a man’s blood on his hands.
“Very well Mary, bring the extractors back up.” Like any good first officer, his wife had anticipated his order. As he looked to the communications alcove the smoke began to thin. The body remained slumped over the console, blood drying where if fell.
“Okay Jack, time to come back to life.”
Jack Telford raised his head. “Hey, what about my performance?”
“You play an excellent corpse.”
"May I return to my quarters now?" Manson's outstanding arrogance came from playing God for so long. Yet he had met his part of the bargain. Now Lucas would meet his obligations to the four from his family, and crewmembers who had died at this sadist’s hand. Including his mother.
"Certainly colonel. However I’ve assigned you new quarters."
"New quarters?" Manson stiffened, sensing danger. "You gave me your word Telford."
"And I keep my word." Lucas’ smile creased into an ugly sneer. "No member of this crew will harm you." He glanced at Manson’s guards. "Escort the colonel to his new quarters … on deck fifteen."
All decks below sixteen were full of Kulak slaves. Manson knew it.
"No, no, you can't do this. You promised, damn you Telford you promised." His voice rose high and scratchy.
"You’re right you sick freak, I did give you my word, and I honor it now. Guards, make certain that neither of you harm the colonel en route."
Manson struggled against the two large Athenians to no avail. "Telford you promised, you promised!" Manson's screams died away as the bridge hatch snapped shut.
Lucas fell into the captain’s chair and took a deep breath.
“Jack, put me through to engineering.”
“Channel open, skipper.”
“John, what’s happening down there?”
“Same as the last time you called me, Lucas,” his uncle growled. “We’re fitting the components as quickly as possible but you’re asking me to do ten hours work in four so don’t push it.”
Lucas opened his mouth to reply.
“And before you ask,” John continued, “we’ll get them fitted in time. Then we have to calibrate the harmonics for ingression to hyperspace. And when we do that …”
“Yeah, I know. Let’s hope Kania isn’t in range at the time. That would make things … difficult.”
John snorted. “Lucas, I’ve made no guarantees to you. This jury-rigged contraption might not even work.”
“Have a little faith, John.”
“After what we’ve been through I’m all out of faith. But you’ll always get my best.”
“I know I will. Bridge out.”
The hours ticked by. From Lucas’ point of view the hours rushed by. Time, it’s all about time. He drummed his fingers against the side of his chair. Time.
If time favored their old freighter and her crew, they would reach the hyper ingression point without hindrance and escape their miserable imprisonment. If time worked in their enemy’s favor and Kania caught onto their deception, everyone aboard Bellinda would die. Minutes were nothing, really, until your life depended on them. Easing himself from the captain’s chair he stretched and stood between the helm and navigation stations.
“Rebecca?” he asked his daughter.
“Once we reached maximum accel I put her on coast mode to allow for the continuum resistance. We’re going as fast as is possible in null space.”
“David?”
“At current speed we will reach the hyper ingression point in thirty-eight minutes, skipper.”
“Very well.”
Thirty-eight minutes might as well be thirty-eight days, if Kania is on her way to kill us.
The family had bet all of their chips on this one bold and dangerous ploy to escape slavery. How ironic that they were slaves to the slow-ticking clock.
“Mary, any changes?”
“Scans are clear.” She licked her dry lips. “For the time being.”
“Elapsed time?”
“Four point nine hours since we left Kania in orbit. And three point seven hours since we cleared her sensor envelope.”
“Did she continue to ping us on the way out?”
“Yes, right to their limit.”
Lucas fell into his chair. He struggled to maintain a calm visage as his pulse throbbed in his ears.
“I don’t think Kania’s captain believed us, father,” Nathan said.
The tension in Lucas’ face softened. “You think not?”
Nathan shook his head.
“Perhaps. But we’re committed now.”
In the following silence, Lucas could hear the seconds as they ticked down. He hated the long silences. Their slave masters had forced them into silence. The five hundred slaves in Bellinda’s lower holds were silent too. Twenty-two years under the absolute control of a brutal regime had crushed their spirit, turning them
into something less than human beings. Lucas and what remained of his family and crew had endured violence, rape and death but at least some of them were together and their lot, though harsh, was mild compared to those poor wretches. When we get home I’ll tell of every hideous act I’ve witnessed and endured in the north. There will be public outrage. With a little luck it will lead to war with Pruessen and this time there will be no turning back until that perverted society is brought crumbling down. We’ll see how high and mighty they are after …
"Contact!" Mary’s voice shattered the silence. "Captain, I have a contact, coming in fast from astern." The blood drained from her face. "It's Kania."
A collective groan filled the bridge.
"Mary, Alert Condition one, button us up. Helm, stand by for evasive maneuvers. How long, Mary?"
"She will be in extreme weapons range in fifty seconds. She is on full tactical alert and her sensors are active."
Lucas sensed the spike in tension from the surrounding crewmembers. By now they will have read our hyper emissions. They know we can escape and they’ll destroy us before allowing that.
"Very well people, we knew this was a possibility from the outset.” He kept the uncertainty from his tone. “Stand to your stations and do your duty."
Lucas checked the external feeds on his console. His screen crystallized into a live feed of the patrol ship that came to kill them. Sleek and fast, Kania’s twin pulsar energy beams would rip Bellinda to pieces well before she made it to the hyper ingression point.
"Janine, stand by.” Lucas said. “I will keep this channel open."
"Aye, captain." Janine’s voice acknowledged from the cargo control center.
Silver orbs of deadly energy spewed from Kania’s bow. The ship trembled. "Pulse beams, high and to port," Mary said. "She's coming in at maximum acceleration and will be in optimal firing position in twelve seconds."
"Very well.”
Bellinda’s great size meant she could absorb a lot of enemy fire. But one decent shot through her belly and into the engineering section would breach the reactor chamber and finish them all.
"Remember Rebecca, guard our stern and port side."
"Aye, sir." Her fingers flew across the helm panel, pitching the ungainly vessel about in a frantic attempt to throw off the patrol ship's aim and protect her stern quarter. Rebecca was good but two hundred thousand tonnes of freighter could not outmaneuver a fast attack ship.
Bellinda shook. "Pulsar beams. Direct hits on upper hull. Topside shields reduced by twelve percent," Mary reported. “She’s in range for focused beam attack.”
The ship shuddered as sustained beams ripped along her hull.
"Direct hit, focused pulse beams. We are open to space. Lower midships. Attempting to seal off."
A great plume of frozen air trailed behind the ship, along with detritus from the tattered hull. And hundreds of bodies. The Kulak slaves. Some were broken pieces of humanity, mercifully killed outright. Some of the bodies flailed their arms and legs in their death throes.
Someone cried out while others stared mutely at the carnage. Occasionally an anguished groan.
“Merciful God almighty,” Mary whispered.
The stench of fried conduits mixed with sweat. Lucas rubbed moisture from his upper lip as the ship lurched.
"Hit to starboard upper. Sealing off."
The enemy warship maneuvered into firing position for the freighter's stern lower quarter.
"She has passed optimal and is closing," Mary said.
"Watch her," Lucas warned.
"I see her." Rebecca's hands were a blur across the helm controls. She could not outmaneuver the smaller vessel but she could outguess it.
A handful of heartbeats before Kania fired, Rebecca hit the bow thrusters for two seconds. The bow rose and the stern dropped.
The focused beams missed their intended target, the engine nacelles, and ripped into the boat bay hatches. Massive decompression blew out the hatches together with the untethered landing boats.
Bellinda heaved violently to port, pinning crew to their chairs.
"She's passed us," Mary said. "Switching to forward scanners."
The screen split in two. The great rent at the back of deck one gaped open like a jagged mouth, still trailing a gossamer venting of air.
“She’s coming about for another pass.”
Kania turned with remarkable agility and streaked toward them. They wouldn’t try that, if Bellinda was still armed. She kept coming but did not fire as wildly as before. As the silent seconds ticked by they waited for the coming storm.
“Rebecca!” Lucas yelled. “They’re going for our port side.”
“Damn.” Rebecca fought the sluggish freighter around but the old girl maneuvered like a cripple by comparison with the enemy warship. Almost on top of their ship, Kania’s beams struck, raking the starboard bow. The attacker rotated through her axis and took a snap shot at an oblique upward angle.
A single focused beam pierced the shields, tore through the hull and ripped through the bridge. The ship bucked and people screamed. A chunk of shrapnel the size of a fist smashed into the base of the ops console. The blast had torn through the deck, ripping a gaping hole in the overhead as it exited. The communications alcove had taken the full force of the blast. Now, only shattered consoles and the bloody remains of Jackson Telford remained. Bile stung Lucas’ throat and he forced it back. Crewmembers waded into the gory wreckage and set breach patches. Within seconds the smoky air cleared.
“Kania’s coming around for another pass,” Mary cried. “She’s going for our reactor again. Coming in at flank speed.”
Lucas’ lips moved silently as Kania completed her turn. The enemy acted without caution, confident they had nothing to fear from an unarmed freighter.
"Enough of this,” Lucas said quietly. “Rebecca, initiate rollover, now!"
The ship rolled over bringing the undamaged port side to face the onrushing warship. Rebecca sat motionless, her fingers poised over the attitude controls.
"Five degrees over," Lucas ordered."Janine, blow them all, now."
The explosive charges attached to each of the eight massive cargo hatches detonated in sequence. Six hundred and forty tonnes of ejected hatches flew directly into the attacker's path.
“We probably won’t hit her, but if we can make her take pause it might be worth the effort.” Lucas was thinking aloud again.
Kania took a snap shot as she avoided Bellinda's hatches, and the freighter trembled again. Had they given her a scare? Perhaps his tactics would tempt her young captain into acting rashly.
"Stand by, Janine. Rebecca, five degrees over. Janine, fire!"
Each cargo container sat on tracks and had been fitted with light thrusters. Each weighed fifty-two tonnes, empty. Each was loaded to the brim with mining equipment.
Three containers burst from the hold spinning like great oscillating cubes.
"Five degrees over. Fire!"
Each five-degree rotation covered a section of Kania's attack path. In quick succession, thirty spinning cubes covered forty degrees of space ahead of the patrol ship’s flight path. Again, no one expected anything more than a few seconds of confusion.
Continuously on station for three years, and with no enemy to fight, Kania’s crew had turned to fat. That remained one of Bellinda’s few tangible advantages. She hurtled toward them at breakneck speed, impairing her ability to maneuver.
Kania wound her way through the staggered formation of containers, firing hurried shots as she closed. On and on she came, an unstoppable dealer in death.
Then something happened. Kania’s helm officer must have panicked when cargo containers began filling his forward quarter. He maneuvered around all but one of them.
One of the containers struck the patrol ship on the starboard side, stern quarter. The sudden release of so much kinetic energy might not be enough to kill her, but it had to hurt her.
<
br /> “Hit!” Mary yelled. “We actually hit her.”
A great cheer burst from everyone on the bridge. The cheer dwindled and smiles faded as they waited. Kania veered to starboard, venting a stream of frozen vapor.
"Her shields are overloaded," Mary said. "She is venting radiation from her starboard engine, and her hull is breached along a thirty meter section of her starboard engineering section. Power is down. I suspect her reactor has scrammed." Mary sat back and wiped sweat from her lips. “I can’t believe it, but she’s dead in space.”
"In other words,” Lucas said, “she's fucked."
Mary giggled like a teenager. Nathan threw his head back and laughed without restraint, drawing the family in. Lucas sobered and held up his hand. He swallowed the last chuckle and cleared his throat.
“Mary,” Lucas asked, “how badly are we hurt?”
“We’ve been in better shape, but most of the main systems are still functioning. We need to replace the critical shield blisters and set up force fields around the breached sections. If everyone pitches in we’ll have her ready for transition in half a day.” Mary smiled. “Even if Kania got off a distress signal, this far out it will take days to mount an appropriate military response.”
“Very well,” Lucas said. “This crew’s first and only priority is to repair our damaged shields, and patch the old girl back together enough to ensure hull integrity. That completed, we will ingress to hyperspace and finally be gone from this wretched place.”
“The good Lord be praised for our deliverance,” Mary intoned.
“Amen,” the family repeated.
Lucas caught Nathan rolling his eyes and fought down a smile. Yeah, like me he’s wondering where the good Lord has been for the last four years.
CHAPTER 6
That which does not kill us makes us stronger. Friedrich Nietzsche.
Time: 12th April, 311 ASC.
Position: Approaching planet Delos. Athenian controlled space.
Status: Athenian Navy Monitor Impudent on combat interdiction patrol (CIP).
"Are we in visual range yet, D-O?"
