The Key

by Brian Fisher

  Chapter 39

  Angel stood before her Captain, shimmering like her namesake in the relative darkness. She knew what Captain McWilliams had done, and what he had risked to bring her out of stasis. Now, it was her job to ensure that her Captain and crew were able to function. It was her job to repair herself so that they could live.

  "How long will it take?" Captain McWilliams asked quietly. He knew how extensive the damage was, and that most of his crew was dead.

  "Life support will be restored to most of the ship momentarily. Emergency force fields are still in place." Angel glanced at her Captain, truly seeing him for perhaps the first time. Something seemed different to her. Maybe it was what he had been through, or maybe it was Angel herself. In either case, she felt closer to the man than she ever had. "I am activating all repair drones Sir. The first thing that needs done is to straighten the superstructure, and seal all hull breaches. After that is accomplished, we can repair the other systems. Is this satisfactory Captain?"

  "While the drones are doing that, the crew can tend to the wounded." Jason thought about the dead crewmembers that he had encountered as he tried to reach Engineering, vowing to himself that their deaths would not be in vain. "I need to be with the crew, Angel. We also need to mount a search for any surviving Marines and fighters. Launch shuttles as soon as possible. Keep me informed of the progress.

  "I will Sir." Angel looked from her Captain, to herself, the massive collection of circuits and algorithms towering meters above her Captain's head, wishing that she were flesh and bone. "Captain, we have been able to launch two shuttles. They were undamaged, and the crews already aboard. They are commencing search and rescue operations."

  "Thank you Angel." Jason breathed a small sigh of relief as he stepped out of Engineering. The ship beyond was a mix of destruction and hope. Bulkheads and conduits were buckled and ruptured, making passage without an environment suit impossible. Beyond the wreckage, crew members were working to help their injured comrades and make repairs to the ship.

  Jason helped when and where he could as he worked his way through the heart of Redemption. He took heart in the way that his crew worked together, no matter where they came from, or what they looked like. In the end, they were all brothers and sisters, all children of Redemption.

  After several hours of working to help the injured and assist in repairs, Jason finally returned to the destroyed bridge and solace of his ready room. The room was a disaster. His desk lay toppled in the far corner, the remaining furniture was scattered haphazardly across the room, making it nearly impossible to reach the wall that had been ripped away, leaving a flickering blue forcefield in its place with stars shining on the other side. Jason immediately felt that his personal sanctuary mirrored the rest of his ship.

  Jason picked his way through his ready room. Bracing himself against the bulkhead and deck, Jason righted his desk. He leaned heavily against the polished top and activated the holographic projector. After a moment of adjusting the settings on the projector, an image of Redemption came to life above his desk, covered in glowing red icons that indicated the damage to the ship.

  "Angel, give me a report on the search." Jason stopped and stared at the place where a wall used to be. The bright blue forcefield flickered as pieces of debris bounced off it, and flew away into space. Watching the debris reinforced to him, just how lucky he had been when he crossed Redemption's broken hull in his quest to restart Angel. How close had he actually come to being lost himself? He quickly decided that he did not want to know.

  "Captain, we have located a handful of fighters and one Marine so far." Angel’s voice crackled, faded, and strengthened again.

  "Very well." Jason sighed. "Bring them aboard as soon as possible. Make sure that a thorough triage is done on all of the wounded."

  "Yes sir." Angel paused. "Captain, the Marine is Major Narja."

  Jason looked up in surprise. Of all of the Marines that he had sent down to Olcai, Narja was the one that was irreplaceable, the one that he depended on the most. "Get him aboard now." he took a deep breath, forcing himself to remain calm. "Angel, establish communications with the Major please."

  "Yes Sir." Angel paused. Silence hung palpable in the air. "Captain, there is no response. It is possible that his communications unit is not functioning."

  "Understood. Continue trying to raise him, and let me know as soon as contact has been established." Jason turned and gazed at the stars beyond his shattered ship. Chaos greeted him in the dark expanse, waiting to consume him the moment he faltered. "Thank you Angel. That will be all for now." he said without looking, knowing that the AI would be gone.

  Jason turned, and exited the ready room. What remained of the bridge was completely deserted, only the faint glimmer of a forcefield illuminated the destruction. The bridge crew was gone, killed during the battle; their stations obliterated by a Kamikaze attack. He alone had been lucky. The emergency forcefield had snapped into place an instant before he would have been either crushed or sucked out into the vacuum of space. They had won the fight, but does anyone ever actually win, or do they simply survive? He didn't know anymore.

  Silently Jason chided himself for allowing Kam to go down to Olcai. He should have gone himself or sent someone else. It was his fault that she was gone, missing somewhere out of his reach or dead. Jason walked around the ruined bridge, his bridge, inspecting the damage, looking at where his crew had last been alive. In the darkened silence of the bridge, Jason fell to his knees. With his head in his hands, he cursed himself as he shed his first tears in many years. Anger coursed through his body in waves, threatening to swallow him whole. He clenched his fists until his knuckles were bone white and his arms shook violently. Roaring with pure rage, Jason slowly climbed to his feet, his anger and guilt galvanizing him.

  "Angel, patch me through to the crew." Jason commanded, closing his eyes despite the darkness. He took a deep, steadying breath as he heard the communications system come alive. "This is the Captain. Your performance is to be commended, your sacrifices though extreme, will be felt throughout the galaxy. Because of you, the people of Olcai still have a fighting chance. They are out there, alive on those floating cities because of us, because of our fighters, our Marines, our sacrifices. You have done your duty, and done it well." Jason paused for a moment to gather his thoughts."But our job is not done. Redemption needs us. Repair crews need to work hard, but most of all they need to be smart. More casualties won't help us. I know that I can count on each member of this crew, and you can count on me."

  "With all of us working together, we will defeat the Ta'Reeth. We will take this war to them. Keep up the good work." Jason sighed as he severed the link. He meant what he said, and what he hadn't. This was a good crew. Probably better than he deserved. His mind swam in a torrent of guilt and accusations. A decent Captain would never have sent his Chief Engineer to the surface, alone, when the ship needed them so desperately.

  "Captain." Angel’s voice came quietly from behind him.

  "What is it Angel?" Jason’s voice was raw from emotion.

  "We have been able to retrieve Major Narja. He will be aboard shortly." the AI could feel the difference in her captain. "We will be operational again Sir. And we will find your wife."

  "Thank you. Will you be taking Narja to the Infirmary?" Jason asked as he made his way to the lift.

  "Yes Sir. The Major should be there by time you arrive"

  Captain McWilliams entered the lift. The small chamber resembled the carnage on the bridge. It was operational, but barely. His ride lasted only a few moments before grinding to a stop.

  The lift doors hesitated before they ground open, and Captain McWilliams stepped out into chaos. Smells of burnt metal and charred flesh permeated the stale air. Bulkheads were blistered, broken and barely holding together. Crewmembers hurried from place to place, desperately trying to repair the wounded ship.

  Keeping his face as passive as he could manage, Jason silently chided himself
all over again. He should never have sent Kamira to Olcai. If she were here, with him, things would be different. Everything would be better.

  Jason kept to himself as he walked to the Infirmary. He acknowledged the crew as he passed, but little more. His senior Marine, his friend, was alive in the sickbay. At least that is what he told himself. It was more than he had hoped for when he had sent them out. So many had left, and only one returned.

  Pausing before the Infirmary doors, Jason did his best to steady his nerves. He wasn't entirely sure what to expect inside, he just knew that it couldn't be very good. There was a man inside, not just any man, but one with whom he had entrusted his life, and the life of his wife. Narja was a man to whom the Captain owed much.

  Forcing himself to enter, Jason opened the doors and walked through. Bodies lay everywhere. Emergency Medical Technicians scrambled about doing triage, and helping those that they could. The whirlwind of activity stunned the Captain. He had known that there were casualties, and he had known the numbers, but he was still unprepared for this. The stench of blood mixed with waste and disinfectant permeated everything.

  Moans came from all directions as Jason looked around. He recognized a few faces, even recalling their names occasionally, but he could not find the Major. Finally, in an act of desperation, he grabbed a medic by the arm. "Where is Major Narja?" he asked as calmly as he could manage. Without saying a word, the medic simply pointed towards the rear of the Infirmary. She pointed to the area designated for immediate intensive care.

  Barely stopping to thank the young woman, Jason released her and made his way to the ICU. It took only a few moments more for the Captain to reach his destination, and the point in which he could go no further. The Intensive Care Unit was sealed hermetically, blocking access from the rest of the Infirmary. Nothing could go in or out without shutting down the containment system.

  Jason took a deep breath, held it for a count of ten, and then called for Angel. Almost instantly, the AI responded with her hologram standing next to the Captain.

  "How is he?" Jason asked, already knowing that the prognosis could not be good.

  "Captain, for an unknown reason, Major Narja turned off his life support system. His suit was damaged during the battle, and was leaking atmosphere when we found him. He is suffering from extreme oxygen deprivation, vertigo, and radiation sickness." Angel kept her voice low as she spoke. "Frankly Sir, he is lucky to be alive."

  "Understood." Jason nodded. "Why would he turn off his life support?" he spoke aloud, though asking himself the question more than anyone else.

  "Captain, as I stated, it is unknown why the Major took the actions that he did." Angel flickered slightly as she turned to face her Commander. "It may be possible to deduce his motives by examining his armor."

  "Yeah." Jason sighed. "As usual, you beat me to the punch." He ran his hand over his face, wincing at the touch of bruises that he hadn't known existed. "Where is the Major's armor Angel?"

  "I have secreted it away for you sir. It is in hanger bay three." her eyes bored into his soul as the hologram stood before him. She wasn't human, not even close, but her mere presence brought forth a sincerity, a power that Jason McWilliams could scarcely grasp.

  "Thank you Angel, I will meet you there shortly." he spoke the words to the AI, and then turned his attention to the ICU. "Hang in there Major. I still want my rematch."

  Chaos reigned in the Infirmary as the Captain checked on the wounded. He stayed long enough to offer hope to those that he could, but not long enough to be in the way of their care. Fresh anger poured through his veins as he left his wounded crew. Hundreds of men and women from races across known space lay dead and dying on his ship, in his care.

  Plans and agendas began springing into his mind as he made his was to hanger bay three. Questions kept forcing themselves to the forefront of his thoughts, demanding to answers at all costs. Why did Narja turn off his life support? Why did the Ta'Reeth invade Olcai? What were they after? Where was Kamira? What was his role to play in all of this?

  By the time he reached the hanger bay, Jason was at a dead sprint. It seemed that he could not reach his destination fast enough to silence his demons, his own thoughts, no matter how fast he ran. Nearly out of breath, he finally reached his destination.

  The hanger was massive, easily large enough to hold half a dozen medium transports. Yet the inside of the bay was covered end to end in wreckage. Jason couldn't tell what it was all from, but he surmised that most of it was from Redemption and her fighters. He could make out the distinct shapes of a few ships, but none of them would ever fly again.

  "Captain." Angel said quietly as she appeared beside him. "This way please."

  Jason simply followed the hologram. She was easy to look at after all, with her athletic build and fiery red hair. He grimaced inwardly and shook his head. His wife was one of the most beautiful women, from a race known for their exquisite beauty, and yet here he was watching a hologram. Jason knew deep in his soul that he could only love Kamira, and that he wanted no other.

  After winding through a maze of wreckage and debris, Angel finally came to a stop. The armor lay on the deck, battered but whole. Dents and burns marred the armor but it was nothing that would keep it from functioning.

  "I don't get it." Jason knelt down and began to examine the machinery. He opened the compartment that housed the onboard computer. "If there's anything, it'll be in here." he muttered.

  The Captain's hand stopped just before he powered up the unit. "What the...?" he asked, taking notice of a tiny green flashing light on the heads up display.

  "Angel, what's running on this unit?" his voice wavered slightly.

  "Only the communications system Sir." Angel cocked her head questioningly at her Captain.

  "That doesn't make any sense." Jason looked at the AI. "Didn't you say that system wasn't functioning?"

  "I did say that it was possible. I was unable to establish contact with the Major's communication system." her brow furrowed. "That should not be possible since it is obviously working."

  "Angel, I want to know what this unit is doing, and whom it’s doing it with." Jason stood, brushing his hands against his pants. If he wasn't confused already, he was now. Narja's actions continued to elude him, leading him somewhere he wasn't at all sure that he could follow.

  A handful of moments passed before Angel spoke. "Captain, it appears that the communications unit is in a receive only mode. It is also amplified using all of the suit's available power, including life support." Angel showed her Captain a power flow chart indicating to him what she had just said.

  "OK." Jason started to pace back and forth absently. "The next question is 'What is it receiving?'"

  "That seems to be a bit elusive sir." Angel blinked her emerald green eyes, computing the different possibilities. "It has no text or context Captain, merely a unidirectional transmission."

  "A unidirectional transmission with no text or context?" Jason paused in mid stride. "He's a genius." Jason spun to face the hologram so fast he nearly fell.

  Angel stood silently in front of her Captain and simply looked at him, waiting for his explanation.

  "It's a homing beacon." for the first time since the battle, the faintest spark lit in Jason McWilliams eyes. "Angel, track the source of that transmission, and inform me of what you find."

  "Yes Sir." the AI replied as her Captain headed out to assist his crew in any repairs that he could.