"That should be doable if I can establish the manual override, now that we’re in the system." Umgabe began typing into his console and, after a few minutes, reported that the failsafe was overridden.
"The reactor is going into overload. We should have meltdown in two hours. If she doesn't blow, she'll melt through the hull and make the alien vessel uninhabitable."
Diana reported that the Hayden fire control was now on her console and she could fire the missiles at any time. Now the wait began. One of the most frustrating, and boring aspects of space travel is the long time it takes to traverse the distances involved. There is always a lot of down time, especially in a small ship with minimal maintenance work needed. The Dragon’s Claw was a well-built ship designed for deep space exploration and was capable of long journeys with little attention. Now, her only problem was a lack of fuel, requiring a more constant use of sail. The bright side of this is the tradeoff between speed and added stealth due to the need for sails. The Dragon’s Claw slid through space without an engine or electronic trail.
Slone looked at the alien vessel, which was now moving closer to the Dragon’s Claw, as both vessels converged on the wormhole. As the distance closed, Slone could begin to see significant damage on the hull of the alien with atmosphere turning into ice as it ejected from the ship to the cold of space. As the time passed, the view of the hangar in which the Hayden sat showed the Methane breathers in complete control and breaking through the bulkheads, penetrating deeper into the ship. The hangar was littered with bodies from both sides, but the silicon life forms held the hangar and the other aliens were all dead or retreated.
"Captain," Umgabe said, "the EMP weapon on the alien ship is powering down and she is no longer under her own power. She is drifting towards the wormhole."
"Will she still enter it?"
"If nothing alters her course, yes."
"Make sure we stay just slightly ahead of her. I want us to enter the wormhole only a few seconds before they do. Also, set a thirty-second timer on the Hayden missiles that we can activate as we enter the wormhole. We may not be able to push the button if we get disoriented or lose consciousness."
"Yes, sir."
Paul McMann guided the scout skillfully to the opening of the wormhole, keeping just in front of the alien. "We are fifteen minutes from the wormhole horizon. Any orders before we enter, Captain?"
"Take down the sails and let us drift in. Don't want them damaged by the transit."
"Yes sir."
Paul pushed a few buttons on his console and they could all hear the motors as the sails furled and the masts retracted into the hull. Slone was not sure how telepathy worked but he hoped the Hive Queen could read his thoughts as he tried to think their plan to her. Thirteen minutes later, they crossed the wormhole horizon. They were sucked in just ahead of the alien. Slone's last order before the plunge was to activate the missile timer on the Hayden.
Chapter 9 – Revelation
The wormhole spit out the Dragon’s Claw like a great mouth spitting out a little seed. The situation on the Alien vessel was chaotic as it drifted into the wormhole. The last message received by the Hayden computer, just before the plunge, was the order to start the 30-second timer to fire the missiles. Paul and Diana had calculated the Alien vessel would take more than 30 seconds to enter the wormhole, and would thus be destroyed on the Andromeda side of the wormhole. What they could not have known is that the Alien vessel was so damaged because of the ongoing combat with the methane breathers and their queen that the onboard systems were unstable and there was a slight increase in speed, which had not been anticipated. Just before the plunge into the wormhole, the timer ran out and the missiles all fired against the locked outer doors.
The trip through the wormhole was almost instantaneous. As the large vessel moved through, the Hayden in the hangar bay began to explode in a massive fireball. The concussion and heat from the explosion blew the hangar apart and fed so much energy into the overheating reactor that it became critical and a thermonuclear explosion began to develop. None of the grub-like aliens survived the initial explosion, as the first blast was sufficient to destroy the vessel and cause the reactor core to fall through the hull as it became critical. The methane breather’s hive mother received Slone’s message and had all her children leave the ship on their boarding sleds. Being made of silicon, she was able to go into suspension when in space, and was towed and pushed into the wormhole just ahead of the alien vessel. Just after the queen and her hive shot out of the wormhole, and the tip of the alien ship poked into normal space, the reactor core went critical. There was a massive thermonuclear explosion that also resulted in the explosion of the unstable and larger reactor aboard the big ship. The rule of unexpected consequences now came into play. The amount of energy resulting from the two explosions caused immediate disintegration of both ships and was sufficient to break the tether of the wormhole at its Milky Way anchorage, resulting in permanent closure of the wormhole as all of the energy was sucked back into the void between the galaxies. Whatever the future held, there would no longer be travel between the galaxies from Bickle’s star.
After the transition through the wormhole, the crew of the Dragon’s Claw was dazed, but all remained conscious. There was some disorientation but it soon passed and all returned to monitoring their stations.
“The alien vessel is coming through,” Alaya said and just as she did there was a bright flash of light and the ship vanished as the energy was sucked back into the wormhole opening. “It’s gone,” Alaya said, “and so is the wormhole. The explosion must have closed it, but not sure for how long.”
“Let’s hope forever,” Slone said.
“Captain,” the navigator suddenly said. “Just before the ship exploded, a large number of boarding sleds came out of the wormhole ahead of it. They’re heading away from the wormhole. It looks like they’re heading for the moon of a gas giant closer to Bickle’s star, one with a methane atmosphere. Should we pursue them?”
As Paul McMann was describing the intruders entering the system, Slone got a sharp pain in his head and he heard a voice drowning out what was being said on the bridge. He knew the feeling by now, it was the queen making contact. She confirmed that only she and her surviving children made it through the wormhole as it closed and none of the other aliens survived. She asked permission to live in peace on the methane moon she detected in the Bickle system. Slone tried to convey images of peace to her and told those on the bridge, “We have nothing to fear from them. It’s the queen and some of her hive. They’ll live peacefully in this system.”
“Paul, scan for the Sinclair ships left to guard the wormhole.”
The navigator pressed a few buttons and looked intently at the screen. “Captain, there are no other vessels in this system.”
“Very odd. We weren’t gone that long and they were supposed to make sure nothing comes through but us. Check for wreckage and message pods.”
Again, the navigator looked intently at the data and reported no evidence of wreckage or message pods in the system. There was also no trace of residual energy from recent engine trails.
“How long ago would they have had to be recalled to leave no trails?”
“Shortly after we went through the wormhole.”
Everyone on the bridge looked at each other, as they knew this implied they were not expected back. What did Sinclair know that they did not? “Set course for Purgatory, maybe there were more attacks pulling the ships away.”
The navigator unfurled the in-system sails and programmed the autopilot to the outbound slipstream on the course to Purgatory. “Course set. Twelve hours and twenty-two minutes to slipstream insertion.”
“Then I suggest we all get some rest. I’ll take the first watch.”
“I’ll join you, on the first watch, captain,” Alaya said immediately. The others left the bridge and retired to their bunks. Those who would be on watch next decided to start cleaning up the ship and returning what was
left of the equipment to its place. The hangar was particularly messy due to the ejection of the marines and Dane. Many things needed cleaning up because of this mission.
Meanwhile, on the bridge Slone and Alaya found themselves alone, for the first time since this nightmare began. Whether there was an attraction or not, there had been no time to pursue it, and now they were both exhausted and it was all they could do to stay awake. Alaya naturally placed her head on Slone’s shoulder and he did not push her away. “What do you think we will find when we reach Purgatory?”
“I have no idea,” Slone answered truthfully, “but some answers would be nice. Whom was Dane working for and why did he turn on us? I also have many questions about the aliens. Didn’t you think it was odd they showed up just as we were in the system? I realize they may have just been checking on the progress of their slaves on the methane moon, but that was no mining ship and the queen didn’t need to be present when they did their checking. Something just doesn’t add up.”
“Let’s hope we get some answers when we reach Purgatory. I wouldn’t mind a little R&R planet-side, when we get there.” Before Slone could answer her, he felt her sagging next to him and knew sleep had finally overcome her. No matter, there was nothing in the Bickle system that could hurt them, now that the wormhole was sealed. Slone only hoped they would get some answers when they got to Purgatory. Slone looked out over the vast expanse of space as the Dragon’s Claw silently glided through the void with her sails filled by the star-wind of the system. He found the creaking of the ship under sail to be as comforting as the great ocean ships of old earth were to their sailors. Ironic that the more we advance, the more we discover the wisdom of the ancients. Slone had also remained in contact with the hive queen as long as they were in the system. Apparently, direct mental communication was not hampered by time or distance when in the same system. The queen let him know that they were safe on the moon and starting to build a new life in a new galaxy. Slone assured her that they would keep her location secret and her last communication was one of peace and gratitude. She then broke contact and Slone was not sure he would ever hear from her again. Just before the break, he wished her well.
It took several days to pass through the two slipstreams and the planetary system in between. Finally, they entered into the Purgatory system and set course for the mining colony. The fact that they had to remain under sail due to lack of fuel, made them invisible to any ships that may be in system, but they would be able to communicate with the base and her protective ships. There was no way Sinclair Corp would allow the system to remain unprotected after the recent incursion. The entire crew of the Dragon’s Claw was in the bridge as they came out of the slipstream, furled the slipstream sails and unfurled the in-system sails. Now they waited anxiously as they calculated the travel time and watched the telemetry screen as the onboard computer made contact with system telemetries. Within minutes of enterimng any inhabited system, the ship computers search for the background noise that is constantly generated by ships and bases, broadcasting their status and identification codes.
After several minutes in system, Tom Gardner turned to Alaya and Slone. “There’s no telemetry in this system. It reads as uninhabited.”
Slone looked at the communications officer. “That’s impossible. This is a mining system. There should be a large volume of bulk ship traffic from haulers to the inner systems.”
“There is nothing, Chris. The communication channels are all quite.”
“Roger, anything on the scanners?”
Umgabe examined his screens and adjusted the range several times. After a few minutes, he shook his head. “There is nothing on the sensors. I scanned all the way from here to the base. I can tell you that the base is on the side of the planet away from us at this time so I can’t get a reading. There is something in orbit around the planet but no signals of any kind are coming from it.”
“This keeps getting stranger. How long till we arrive at Purgatory?”
Paul McMann looked up from the navigation console. “Transit time under sail will be 10 hours, 46 minutes.”
“Well you all heard the man. Nothing to do till we get there. I suggest we get some rest. Normal watch stations and we all return to the bridge one hour before scheduled arrival.”
The group on the bridge broke up and went to their respective quarters. Some took the time to relax with some reading but most of them took the time to get some much-needed rest. Within an hour of going to their quarters, all were asleep except for Slone. He could not get out of his head the lack of telemetry in the system. Even with Purgatory facing away from the ship now, there should be indications of ship traffic. Soon he began to feel that knot of fear in the back of his neck that he felt whenever the communication his world was flooded in suddenly stopped. They had no telemetry in Andromeda, due to the alien nature of the environment. Now he almost felt as if he was back there, began to wonder if they had indeed made it through the wormhole, and were not just in a similar system still in Andromeda. After tossing and turning for a while, he decided to go to the community room and get a snack and a hot drink to relax. He had been lost in his thoughts for a short time when he heard the door to the room slide open.
“Couldn’t sleep either?” Alaya said as she stood in the doorway wearing the black leather jumpsuit that fit her like a glove. Slone liked her fashion sense and hoped they survived long enough for him to explore the possibilities of a relationship with her.
“Too much going around in my head.”
“Same here. I don’t like the lack of telemetry. Only total destruction or total abandonment can make a system go dark. This is a high-level mining facility system. No way would they abandon it. I have a bad feeling about this.”
For the first time, Slone felt helpless. Even in the midst of the Andromeda mission, he felt he had some control over the outcome, but he had no experience with the total unknown. There were no message pods in any of the systems they passed through and no trace of any of the Sinclair naval vessels, which were supposed to be guarding the approaches to Purgatory. Even though it has been over one and a half centuries since the last corporate wars, pirates were always a problem and security of high-level mining operations was of the highest priority. Yet here they were in the Purgatory system with a critical mining facility and there was nothing to indicate the system was inhabited. The only indication of any habitation was an unknown object orbiting the mining planet.
“This has been a disastrous few weeks. I just realized that I both received and lost my first command in that short time span and all of the crew I have worked with for years as the first officer is gone in the blink of an eye. I realize this happens in times of war, but we were not supposed to be at war and this was not supposed to be a combat mission. How did a simple insertion and retrieval mission go so wrong?”
Alaya thought for a minute. She felt somehow responsible for the outcome of the mission, especially since the person she trusted and brought along had almost killed what was left of them. There had to be something in that memory core they retrieved, but she would have to wait until her father gave her permission to see it before she could discover any reason for the mission disaster. And a disaster it was. Over 350 lives lost to an alien species that two weeks ago no one even knew existed. She had no words of comfort for Slone, though she could feel some upwelling of affection for him as he sat there and contemplated what she was sure would be the ruin of his career. Involuntarily she placed her hand on his and the electricity of a budding desire welled up in them both. As quickly as they recognized it, they broke contact and finished their snack. They returned to their quarters and instantly regretted a path not taken. However, even in the 32nd century, star cruiser captains and heiresses to empires do not live happily ever after.
With these thoughts, Slone drifted off to sleep and lost track of the passage of time until he was awakened by the alarm telling him they were nearing Purgatory. Everyone got ready and, on Slone’s orders had a quick
meal to prepare for any contingencies. They were still gliding silently under sail as they approached the planet and the seven survivors were again standing on the bridge of the Dragon’s Claw. The mining planet was now filling the windows of the bridge and all eyes were glued to it. During the trans-system approach to Purgatory, the planet had rotated and brought the mining colony to the side facing the ship. By now, it was clear that the colony was completely silent. Scanners had also confirmed that the vessel in orbit was the derelict methane breather’s destroyer from the battle above purgatory. It was left in orbit where it had been towed after the conflict. There was no sign of the derelict San Juan and Slone assumed it had been towed to the nearest system with a shipyard for repair or salvage.
“Paul, bring us into orbit above the colony.”
“Aye, captain. We have enough fuel in the maneuvering jets for a few orbits but that’s it.”
“I have an idea on how to get more fuel.” Slone said. “Diana, you and Roger take a boarding sled over to the derelict. If I know how sloppy people work, they left the fuel in when they abandoned her.”
“That’s probably right, sir. Roger, lets suit up and head over there. The Hayden put enough holes in her that we shouldn’t have any trouble getting in.”
“Paul and Allen remain aboard and keep monitoring for any vessels or message pods that come in.”
“Yes sir, but what about sending a message pod to let Sinclair Corp know we’re ok.”
“I think we’ll wait on that. They may not know what’s going on out here and I want to send them a full report. Another day or so won’t make a difference and we can’t be sure what’s happened down there.”
Paul nodded his head and returned to monitoring the sensor scans. No matter how deeply he penetrated, there was no sign of life or any other activity in the colony. Even from orbit, they could clearly see the above ground damage that had been done by the alien bombardment. Tom Gardner, Alaya and Slone suited up and took a boarding sled down to the planet. Since the moon was airless, they could use the sleds to go planet-side. They landed just outside the ruined, above ground structure of the colony and made their way to the airlock through which they had entered after the battle of Purgatory. When they reached the airlock, they were surprised to find it open.
Voyage of the Hayden (The Adventures of Christopher Slone Book 1) Page 19
