The Key
Page 13
Chapter 13
"Captain, we have a problem." Angel reported as she materialized in the Captain's ready room. The room was small. A hand full of pictures dotted the sparse walls, giving a hint of color to the otherwise drab surroundings.
"What is it Angel?" Captain McWilliams looked up from a hologram of Olcai. The planet slowly revolved on its axis as it floated above the cluttered desk. The different layers of Olcai faded out of existence until only a wire frame model displaying the cities and the core remained. The Olcaina debris field appeared at the edge of the hologram, with a small red dot blinking ominously.
"Captain, my sensors have detected an anomaly near the Olcaina debris field. It appears to be organic in origin Sir." Angel shimmered slightly as she moved closer to the model of Olcai. Her long crimson hair drifted behind her like silk on a gentle breeze.
"Are we finished with the repairs yet?" Jason asked. A deep sigh escaped his tightly drawn lips.
"No Sir." Angel clasped her hands in front of her. "We are at eighty-six percent. Repairs are proceeding on schedule."
"Get the long range sensors fully operational. Until then, monitor the anomaly the best that you can. Inform me of any changes." Jason ran his hand over his face, wincing as he touched the white bandage that covered his nose. "Launch two fighter squadrons. I want one squadron to form a defensive perimeter around Redemption, and the other to investigate the anomaly."
"Yes, Sir." Angel replied. She faded slightly, and then reappeared.
Jason touched the communications panel on his desk. "Major Narja, please report to my ready room." he said, before he looked up at Angel. "Angel, we need to have this ship in fighting trim. Get the weapons, shields, and engines on line."
"Yes Sir. Is there anything else Captain?"
"No, that will be all." Captain McWilliams returned to studying the hologram as he waited for Major Narja to arrive.
Jason sat motionless in the old brown leather chair that sat behind his desk. The tiny hologram spun lazily in air, a scant six inches above the cluttered oak surface.
Pale blue lights flashed intermittently across the base of the hologram, calling Jason into the past. Bakesh beckoned in the lights.
"Angel, auxiliary power to the shields!" Jason yelled a he pulled the onyx visor down into position. Every system aboard Redemption crashed into the Captain's mind. His very thoughts became instant action as the ship twisted through space. Ta'Reeth ships swarmed around Redemption, belching liquid fire that pounded into her shields.
Redemption retaliated against the assault with a merciless barrage from her particle cannons. A hundred Ta'Reeth fighters evaporated instantly in space as if they were water and not flesh and bone. Fragments of the fighters pelted the shields as three Ta'Reeth cruisers came into range. Their hulls were black and twisted, leaving a nightmare in the minds of those who looked upon them.
"Captain?" Angel’s voice slipped into Jason’s thoughts.
"I know Angel. We have three heavy cruisers off the starboard bow." His own thoughts reverberated in the distance between man and machine. Redemption reacted quicker than Jason’s own reflexes, diving and turning to use Bakesh's lowest moon as a shield. Flames licked at Redemption's weakened shields as the ship entered Bakesh's uppermost atmosphere. Her hull began to glow, and blister from the heat. Repair drones automatically began repairing the damage, only to melt into slag.
"Captain, hull temperatures are at unacceptable levels. Interior temperatures are climbing rapidly."
Redemption clawed her way out of the atmosphere, and around the dark side of the moon. She approached the Ta'Reeth cruisers from behind and below. Her cannons ripped into the drive sections of the enemy ships. Shards of bone hammered Redemptions shields and hull as the cruisers erupted into twin balls of blood and flame.
Jason gasped and sat straight in his chair. Wet palm prints stained his trouser legs as he fought with his racing heart. He took a deep breath and quietly focused his mind. Major Narja would arrive soon, and he needed to be focused. Only intelligence coupled with decisive action could bring Kamira back.