“Once it sank in where we were, the question was where did the wormhole let us out? We had entered a binary star system. The first star was a blue-white giant and the second a yellow dwarf. Circling both stars were several gas giants and a large number of moons, most of them barren. We went under the assumption that our other manned scout ships entered here as well and they would have started to survey and the second ship would be looking for the first one. After a short discussion we decided to work on that premise and act in the same manner. We set course for the nearest planet, a gas giant two Jupiters in size. There were nine moons of any size and three of them had a worthwhile mix of ore. We marked them on a chart we made of the system and went to the next planet.
”This one was a gas giant about three times larger than the previous one. There were rings around it as well as thirty-two moons of decent size and many smaller, insignificant natural satellites. Most of the moons were either ice covered or cratered, lifeless spheres. Two of the moons were different. They both had dense atmospheres of abundant nitrogen as well as methane. We couldn’t see the surface but our mining sensors indicated there were high concentrations of ore of all kinds as well as rare minerals. Just one of them would make Sinclair Corp twice as much money, as all the other mining operations combined and, with no competition, since we controlled the Bickle system with its wormhole. As you can imagine, we cracked open the champaign for that one.
“As we continued to survey through the cloud cover of the moons with our deeper, penetrating technology, our sensors suddenly registered both of our missing ships on the moon closest to the gas giant. They were in a valley on the surface of the methane moon and we would have to land to investigate them. We entered the atmosphere and slowly descended. Our descent was on instruments only, as we were visually blind due to the dense atmosphere. The ground came into view at an altitude of one thousand meters, and we soon discovered a landscape of toxic rivers of methane with mountains covered in frozen methane. In the distance, the radar indicated a mountain range covered in frozen gases. Rain began to fall on the ship and we soon discovered this had sulfuric acid in it. The ship was shielded enough to prevent damage but, even with environmental suits we could not stay out of the vessel for any length of time.
“We soon came over the place where our ships registered and discovered the opening of a large cavern. The opening itself was large enough to allow our ship to enter and that’s what we decided to do. Inside the cavern, there was protection from the acid rain, so we would be able to exit the ship. We lit up the cave with the external lights that all mining scouts have for night exploration and finally caught a glimpse of our ships. They were literally torn apart, with no sign of any of our people. We landed next to one of the wrecks and found ourselves in a large, vaulted cavern with liquid methane dripping from the walls. The outside temperature was minus one hundred and fifty degrees Celsius and this kept the methane liquid. Seismic activity melted enough of the methane to allow an atmosphere containing about ten percent of the gas. We decided to suit up and check out our lost ships. After exiting the airlock, the heaviness of the atmosphere surrounded us in the cave. Moisture began to build on our helmets and it became more difficult to see. Our faceplates were in constant need of wiping to keep them free of liquid. Movement was not difficult, though we did have to be careful due to the slipperiness of the wet stones and ice under our feet. We reached the first of our ships in a few minutes and it was evident that her guts had been ripped out. We had no idea what could have done it but the outer hull was holed in many places and all of the electrical panels were ripped out. We assumed that the survivors had realized they were not leaving without rescue and used the ship parts to build a shelter. We believed the second ship found the first and now both crews were sheltering deeper in the cave, or, at least had been. With all the time that had passed since the first expedition, it was unlikely any survived.
“We left the first wreck and started towards the second. That was when they hit us. What we had viewed as rock formations in the cavern turned out to be the aliens you already encountered. Two of my men were taken out immediately. The aliens jumped them and dragged them off. We never saw them again. The rest of us managed to make it back to the ship and went inside. Large numbers of aliens quickly covered the ship and they began to try breaking through the hull. I realized that’s how the other ships were damaged. Fortunately, we were in an experimental scout craft designed for repelling lower life forms. We were not sure how electricity would affect the aliens but we had to try. We sent a charge to the ship’s hull and they fell off like leaves. We could see, as they moved away, that they were defenseless against the charge and we actually managed to kill two of them. We had to go outside to check the integrity of the hull and we brought one of the bodies in after our inspection. They had bent one of our landing struts, but otherwise the ship looked good. We would have to lose the landing gear after takeoff, since it would no longer retract with the bend.
“Since you have one of the alien bodies in your sickbay, you know that they are encased in a stone-like shell. We never actually found out what that was, but we thought it was body armor of some kind.”
At this point Dr. DeFleur interrupted. “We discovered that is actually their skin or whatever one would call it. They are a silicon based life form and their bodies are naturally dense and stone-like.”
“Thank you, doctor that actually explains a lot. We shot the body and tried various weapons but could not penetrate the outer shell. We had no way of analyzing them since we are a mining exploration scout, not a science vessel. That said, our job was to break rocks and we found that our thermite charges with surrounding oxygen paste, the ones we use on airless worlds, did a wonderful job of taking out the methane breathers. We found this out accidentally when we discovered that electricity did not kill them after all but only knocked some of them out. The one in our ship suddenly woke up and impaled one of my crew with the whip structure above its head. It then pulled the appendage out of the crewmember and damaged Charles’ ribcage with a whip like hit. It then crushed the head of our other crewmember between its upper two extremities. It never actually rose up on the other extremities, so I assume they have a way of crawling. I was near the rear hold of the ship where we kept our survey charges and pulled out a thermite charge. As the alien moved towards me, I could see he was having problems since he was in an oxygen atmosphere. I assume when he was unconscious his respiration stopped since the oxygen only started to affect him when he came to. He was dying, that was for sure but I couldn’t take the chance he had enough strength left to kill me. I got a running start and vaulted over him. As I put my hand on his body, I set the adhesive thermite charge. I pulled Charles out of the ore-sample, storage compartment and into the bridge. Just as I closed the hatch, the charge went off and I could see the alien split open. The heat from the thermite could have damaged us so I opened the ore ejection chute and the alien slid out, along with the bodies of my men in the hold. At the same time, I jumped into the pilot’s seat and fired the lift off rockets. I gave it forward propulsion and sent it toward the cave mouth. I sealed the chute and re-pressurized the ore compartment. I can tell you I was glad to see the last of that place. My entire crew was lost in that cavern, except for Charles. He suffered severe injuries; as it turns out, they were fatal. Charles was still able to move at that time and I helped him into the copilot seat. As we breached the atmosphere of the moon, we saw three vessels. They looked like a dreadnought and two destroyers.
“At first we thought they were ours but then the destroyers fired missiles at us and it was all I could do to maneuver to avoid them. I headed to the wormhole. For some reason the destroyers broke off and went back to the dreadnought, I have no idea why. The bridge contained six stasis pods for long scouting voyages and I could see that Charles was fading. I felt, if I could get him into stasis, I would be able to stop his bleeding and stabilize him until we could be rescued. I got him into stasis and realized I hadn’t
escaped unscathed. I had corrosive burns on my right arm and side. In all the excitement, I hadn’t noticed. As the hours passed, the burns got deeper and I had to take some of the saline solution from the med bay and wash the wounds. That seemed to stop the progression. It felt as an eternity passing, as I travelled through the system and finally reached the wormhole. I guided the ship in and the disorientation started immediately as the system faded and Bickle’s star system came into view. This time I had to vomit from the vertigo effect but that soon passed. That is when I sent the distress message pod and headed for the first planet. I knew Bickle’s star had a moon around the third gas giant that had a methane atmosphere and I wanted to stay far away from that, thinking if they do follow me, they will head for what they know. After a trans-system trip of eight hours, I put us into orbit around the first planet and went into stasis myself. The next thing I remember, the good doctor here was giving me shots for stasis sickness. And that brings us up to date.”
The officers around the table sat in silence and digested what they had heard. Slone was the first to speak. “I can see you’ve had quite the adventure. Truthfully, if we had not dealt with the aliens ourselves, I would not have believed you.”
“I don’t blame you, Captain. I hardly believe it myself. Believe me when I say I wish it had been a dream or hallucination. For me, this has been a nightmare. I have dealt with natural and human disasters, but nothing prepares you for an encounter with beings who don’t think in the least the way we do. For all I know they look at us the way we look at rocks.”
“Well no matter, we have to fight them. They attacked us with no warning or provocation. Commander Stravinsky, can engineering make a large supply of thermite charges for us?”
“We should have what we need to make them. I’ll set a crew right on that, Captain.”
“Since we will be going up against two ships that are more maneuverable than us and filled with aliens, being boarded is a possibility. I want all department heads to make plans on how to repel these aliens if they board us. Remember, they can produce corrosive substances and eat through our hull. I also want engineering to be ready to put a charge through the hull so we can stun them. We’ll have another meeting as we traverse to the slipstream for Purgatory. Dismissed.”
The meeting broke up and all of the officers went to their stations to discuss the upcoming combat with their crews. The marines knew that all of the boarding and the bulk of repelling operations would fall on them. They were down a few troops but the injured would be available by the time they next engaged. Major Sardac was already planning troop distributions to cover all contingencies. Slone found he was alone, with Alaya Sinclair, who had not left the ready room.
“Where is my station, Captain? I have combat gear in my ship and defending the Hayden is the least I can do.”
“We’ll find a spot for you when the time comes. I wanted to discuss something with you. These aliens are completely different from any life forms we have ever seen. Yet their ships look just like ours. How do you explain that?”
“I can’t. The ships that went ahead of us had no ship-to-ship battle damage. The only explanation I can think of is they took our designs from the ships computers on the scout craft. That would explain how they look on the outside. What are they made of?”
“As far as engineering can determine, they have a crystalline structure. They are very brittle, and shatter like glass or rock. There is no metal for our magnetic boots to adhere. The interior of the dreadnought was empty with no identifiable rooms. The bridge was more like a mockup than a functioning bridge. I think you’re right about the aliens just copying them. I can tell you from personal experience though, their cannons work.” Slone pushed a button on a console next to him. “Ensign Jones, assign a cabin on the officer’s deck for Ms. Sinclair.” After his adjutant acknowledged the order, Slone closed the line. “Ms. Sinclair,”
“Please, captain, call me Alaya.”
“Very well, Alaya, since you are a civilian, I am hesitant to put you in harm’s way,” Slone could see her about to raise an objection, when he held up his hand and continued, “but, this is a warship and apparently we have stumbled into a war. I would greatly appreciate if you could help engineering with the thermite charges and work with our marines to make sure they know how to set them. You and Major Sardac should get along well. I suspect you’re both very much alike.”
“Thank you, captain. I’m most anxious to get at the aliens who killed my men.”
With that, Alaya took her leave and worked her way down to engineering. Slone sat for a while in the ready room thinking about the events of the past few days. Three days ago, they were at peace and the human race was the ruler of the universe. Now, they are in a war not of their choosing, against an alien enemy, they do not understand, nor have the least bit of knowledge about. They needed to know more, a lot more, and Slone was determined to capture one of those ships. The Hayden had not detected any kind of communication from the dreadnought to the destroyers. That gave him hope they could enter the system and surprise an enemy who must think they’re dead. The chirp of the intercom, notifying him that the Hayden was approaching the first slipstream, interrupted his thoughts. He left the ready room and walked onto the bridge to the usual notification of his presence. Normally that annoyed him, but he was beginning to feel like it was a signal he was home, and it felt good.
“Captain, we’re ready to enter the slipstream and deploy on your command,” notified the navigator.
Slone gave the order and the Hayden entered the slipstream and deployed her sails. They were polarized and the ship leapt into faster than light speed. “Speed 1.5 light years per hour with distance of 11.7 light years. Calculated travel time to system is 7.8 hours.”
“Set the ship to light travel. Essential jobs only, have the rest of the crew get as much rest as they can.”
“Aye, Captain.”
“Navigation, you have the con.” With that, Slone retired to his cabin, got undressed and practically fell into his bunk. It had been a hard and confusing day and he was beyond exhausted now that the adrenaline was out of his system. He slept like the proverbial baby.
The Hayden sailed along in the slipstream, protected from any dangers as long as she was under sail. The speeds achieved were of such magnitude that nothing could be done to any vessel while in the slipstream. She could not reach her maximum sailing speed due to the weak energy coming from the red dwarf known as Bickle’s star. It was fortunate that the next system was only 11.7 light years away. In the rest of the ship, most of the crew slept or rested. Many had thoughts that went to their families on Purgatory. The name was always meant to be a joke but those on the Hayden now felt they were in a real purgatory of not knowing if their loved ones were alive or dead. Everyone aboard the Hayden knew his or her home was under attack. As far as they knew, it was still under attack. No messages had come to them from the colony after the first one announcing the attack. There were no illusions about the fate of the San Juan. When the attack started the dreadnought was with the destroyers, and only the luck of the ore carrier saved the Hayden from destruction against only the dreadnought. On the engineering decks, the preparations for the next battle were well underway. Alaya worked for hours with the engineering staff to work out how to make thermite for the charges. The ship’s chemists had to divide their time between making thermite and making the stimulants and pain relievers needed for prolonged battles. Chief engineer Stravinsky finally told Alaya to turn in and get a few hours rest. He could see she was dead on her feet. She had divided her time between engineering and the hangar deck where the marines were staying in shape for the coming mission. Slone had been right, she and Major Sardac got along well, as was common with strong women. She did not stop until all of the marines were familiar with how the mining charges are set. The thermite was never meant to be used as a weapon, but humans had never dealt with an enemy made of rock.
There were still three hours to system entry when Al
aya finally dropped onto her assigned bunk and fell asleep. Her sleep was not restful and she started awake several times due to dreams concerning her encounter with the methane breathers. She wondered what they called themselves and if there was a way to communicate with them. Alaya carried a heavy burden. She was responsible for the lives of her crew on the scouting mission and she felt guilty that she had survived and the others had all died, even her dearest friend, Charles Balpar. She and Charles had never been more than friends, though her missions often required them to appear as more. However, she did truly adore him as a confidant and the only one who knew all of the details of her various missions. Not all of those missions had to do with mining. Her father had his fingers in many pies and she loved playing covert agent as much as mining scout. It also weighed heavily on her that she failed in her last mission. The orders her father gave her were explicit, bring back the computer cores of each of the scout ships lost. She had withheld from Captain Slone the fact that the time spent on the methane moon was a lot longer than her story indicated. They had secured the first ship wreckage rapidly and the tech on her crew removed the computer core without incident. She survived the first attack because she and Charles stayed back while the rest of the crew moved on to the second ship. She had just made it back to her ship and stowed the core when she heard the shouts over the communicator. First, she heard the orders to fall back, and then the order to fire. She and Charles ran back but only in time to rescue the two survivors of the attack. The aliens carried the other two off, as she had told the Hayden officers. After the electrical charge repelled them, she again led an attempt to get to the other wreck and lost a man in that attempt and not in the hold as she said. The rest of the story she told was accurate, with only one death in the hold along with the creature they had pulled in. The landing strut had never been bent and engineering will eventually discover that, if they have time to check out her ship. She didn’t yet know how, but, in some way, she had to get back to that cavern and retrieve the other computer core. She was not told what was on them, but her father was adamant she not return without both of them. Again, she thought of her crew and there was a need for revenge. She was beginning to doze again when the ship-wide intercom announced system arrival and general quarters began to blare over the intercom. She was assigned to the bridge as a battle station and she suited and armed herself for system entry. She arrived on the bridge just as Slone gave the order to depolarize the sails. The Hayden dropped out of the slipstream immediately and the sails retracted. The system they entered was nothing but a waypoint on normal runs. There were two inbound streams, one from Bickle’s star and the other from a system farther coreward. There were three outbound streams, one coreward, one to another part of the rim and one to Purgatory. Fortunately, the Purgatory stream was the closest to the inbound from Bickle’s Star.
Voyage of the Hayden (The Adventures of Christopher Slone Book 1) Page 7
