He made his way to the officers’ mess. It was empty. Cranky Jack, ever alert, appeared and asked if he wanted anything. Warner asked for a coffee and sat down at the dining table. He decided to leave alone any thoughts about what he was missing. He now turned his attention to the question of who would lead the ground forces. He had promised to give Chase his decision by 0900 so that planning could be finalised.
On frigates with only a small complement of officers it was usually the ship’s captain, the XO or the Ops officer who led shore parties. Warner was weighing up the pros and cons. Chase had proposed himself as the ground force commander. But Warner was worried about his inexperience. This would in fact be his first ground force command and would be a difficult one. Maybe that was why Pug had volunteered himself for the task.
The main objective of this mission was to trap Archangel and that would all happen on board, so he wanted to be there for that. For the same reason he wanted Rihan on board as well. That narrowed the choice down to Chase or Pug. In the end he opted for both of them. Chase being a commissioned officer would be in command but his deputy would be the seasoned Marine Chief.
Chapter 19. Hermes 0800, 25 April.
Fifteen minutes later in the conference room, Chase was delighted to have the honour. Pug was also well pleased. He accepted the role of wise counsel. The two of them left the conference room to go and finalise the plans and brief the assault troops.
“Are you sure Chase is up to this task?” asked Rihan after they had left.
“I have a few reservations. But he’s quick and eager.”
“Do we really want ‘eager’ for this mission?”
“Pug will restrain him and prevent him from doing anything foolish.”
“I hope so” said Rihan. “I would hate to see him hurt.”
“You know I can’t guarantee that.”
“I know…It’s a good decision.”
“So how do we go about catching Archangel?”
Rihan thought for a few moments as did Warner. Then they both started talking at the same time.
“You first” said Warner.
She laughed and smiled at him. She noted his gallantry. “We know where the communicator is and Archangel is going to have to go to it to use it”
“And he’s going to have to do that real soon after coming out of warp to give his buddies down on Alpha Phi a chance to respond” added Warner.
“Correct” continued Rihan “so we need to be monitoring the comms server log.”
“And as soon as it indicates access,”
“We nab him.”
“So I’ll nab him and you monitor the log” said Rihan.
“Hold on a moment” said Warner “I think I’m still the boss here. I’ll do the nabbing, you monitor.”
Rihan gave a shrug of her shoulders accepting his decision with good grace.
“Can you ask Chief Rapperberg to meet me at my cabin immediately we come out of warp and make sure he’s armed?”
The last point reminded Rihan of the seriousness of what they were about to do. “You will be careful?”
“Don’t worry. I’m a lousy hero!” he said, making light of the situation/ keeping things light.
Chapter 20. Hermes 1500, 25 April.
“You wanted to see me Sir” Pug Sterkze said in his deep voice.
“Come in Pug” said Warner ushering him into his cabin. He waved his hand towards the visitor’s chair. As Pug sat down, Warner continued “I wanted to have a chat to you before you go.”
“Of course Sir, what’s on your mind?”
“Chase is in command of the ground forces but he’s going to need your support”
“He’s got it Sir.”
“I appreciate that. As you know, this is his first ground command. He needs to work things out for himself. So a light touch, hey. Only intervene if the safety of the force is being jeopardised.”
“Understood Sir.”
“But if he asks for your advice then give it to him”
“Don’t worry Sir. You know me. I’m not afraid to put my few cents in.”
Warner smiled. He knew alright.
“Thanks Pug and take care down there.”
“Will do Sir. Anything else?”
“No. Good luck”.
Chapter 21. Hermes 1520, 25 April.
Chase was supposed to have been at his cabin five minutes ago. So Warner decided to head down to his and see what the holdup was. His door was open and there was Chase adjusting his equipment.
“Did you forget something?” Warner asked.
“I don’t think so” called out Chase without lifting his head or turning to see who it was addressing him. He was so totally engrossed in his packing.
“Are you sure about that Mr Hanlon” called out Warner in an official sounding voice that brought Chase upright.
“Excuse me Sir, I’m sorry.”
“Meeting, my office, five minutes ago?” said Warner.
“Oh…I really am sorry Sir. I’ll come right now.”
“Don’t bother, here will do.”
Chase quickly moved the gear from the chair so Warner could sit and he sat on the bed. It was cluttered with all manner of stuff. When Warner saw it, he was reminded of when he was a greenhorn subaltern and of the hours he would spend getting his kit to fit just right and agonising over what to take and what to discard.
Glancing at his pack Warner asked “You got it right?”
“Yeh, I think so.”
“Good. Nervous?”
“A little, Sir. But I’ll be right. I won’t let you down.”
“I know that Chase. But don’t let yourself down either.”
“Sir?” Chase queried with a puzzled expression.
“You’re going to be in command down there but you are also an individual member of that team. You must stay focussed on your own personal safety. I don’t want you getting your head blown off because you weren’t looking around.”
Chase was all focus now and nodded at his commander.
“You call the shots but don’t be afraid to ask for support and advice from Chief Sterkze. He has a wealth of experience. Draw on it.”
“I will Sir.”
“One other thing. Remember that the main purpose of this mission is to trap Archangel. Knocking out the enemy’s radar station is an optional bonus. If we nab this traitor early, which I do expect, then I’ll signal to extract. So no heroics and bring my troopers back.” Warner leaned forward and held Chase by the shoulder and offering him his hand said “Good luck.”
Chase shook it. He looked up into his commander’s face and felt reassured. “Thank you Sir.”
Chapter 22. Hermes 1550, 25 April.
With just ten minutes to go before coming out of warp Warner checked in on Rihan at the command centre. It was starting to get busy in there, in prep for coming out of warp. So he motioned to her to join him in the corridor.
“Things right with Rapperberg?” he asked in a soft voice.
“Yes he said he’d be there”
“Are you right with the monitoring?”
“Yes I have the comms log up now.”
“Are you packing lady?”
“Never better” she responded.
“Good to hear. If there is any trouble grab the guard from the command centre and bolt down to the scene of the crime. But be careful. Have the guard lead.”
She nodded and took his hand “and you be careful too”. She took a quick glance to see that no one was watching and kissed him on the cheek.
Warner was still smiling as he headed off for his rendezvous with Rapperberg. He rubbed his hand down over his pistol as a physical check of its presence. He was sure he would need it soon.
Back in the comms centre, the XO went back to her terminal. Nothing was showing on the comms log, as it should be when in warp. She bought up the snitch app. In a few minutes she would be glued to it. It would provide its own log of unauthorised transmissions. She opened a channel on her inte
rcom and did a comms check with Warner. He was in his cabin. In fact he was grabbing another mag for his pistol, just in case.
The plan called for the launch of the warthog as soon as the command centre was sure of no hostile ships in the vicinity. 2nd Lt Aubrey Bellard was the watch officer, so Sgt Crystal Wong was in the battle systems hot seat. It would be her job to give the all clear. But it would be the XO’s responsibility, in the absence of the ops officer, to say yay or nay on the launch of the warthog. So Rihan knew that she would have to divide her focus here.
“Coming out of warp in three minutes” announced Aubrey. She was concentrating intensely. Her razor sharp mind was mentally going over the checklist of activities. “Positions people!” she called out. She was pacing the floor and scanning the large display. She turned to her team sergeant who was already bent over her terminal. “Sgt Wong are you ready?” she asked in a voice that brooked no dissent. Wong looked up briefly and acknowledged “Yes Maam, battle systems are ready.”
Aubrey almost pirouetted to shift her gaze onto what should have been an occupied comms terminal. “Where’s the Comms Officer?” she called out tersely. Rihan looked up and sure enough Kiralenko was not at his seat. Technically it wasn’t essential that he be there but it had been their standard operating procedure on warping into a known enemy location that he should be.
“Carry on Ms Bellard. I’ll find out where he is” said Rihan.
“Thanks you Maam” said a relieved Aubrey.
“Kiralenko, where are you” asked Rihan on the intercom.
She repeated the call and only on the third time did he respond “Call of nature Maam. I’ll be there directly.”
“Make it snappy”.
“Yes Maam.”
“Coming out of warp in 10, 9, 8…3, 2, 1” counted down the watch officer.
Rihan’s attention went immediately to Crystal Wong.
Down in the loading dock Chase was extremely agitated. His right hand man for this mission had still not arrived. He called out to the guard on the entrance “Can you see Chief Strekze?”
“No Sir” came the reply.
Charlie team was lined up on the right, their packs beside them. They would be going in the second lift after the warthog returned from inserting Bravo team. The plan called for both Chase and Pug to be in the first lift. They were looking at their young nervous leader with mixed views. For some it was ‘if he’s flapping now, what’s he going to be like when the shit hits the fan’. Others just put it down to first time nerves and were generous enough to recall their own first time and give him the benefit of the doubt.
“Chief where are you?” Chase called on the intercom.
“Sorry Sir my console’s still downloading. I need a bit more time.”
“What?” Chase couldn’t believe it. “You’ve got to be kidding. Get your arse down here now.“
“Will do, Sir.”
The few who were close enough to hear Chase couldn’t believe what they heard. ‘Maybe he has what it takes’ they thought. A few of them even smiled.
In the command centre Rihan waited tensely. Everyone waited tensely.
“All clear’ cried out Crystal.
“Chase” said Rihan on the intercom.
“Yes”
“It’s a go.”
“Right but I’m going to have to leave without Pug. He’s not here. He’ll have to go in the second lift. Can you pass that onto him. I’m oscar mike.”
“Wait” said Rihan “Where is he?”
“Says he’s in his room downloading to his console.”
At that moment, Pug came running through the dock entrance, panting heavily.
“He’s just arrived. Don’t worry” and to Pug he shouted “Come on!”
Pug ran past him, clambered up into the warthog and took up his position at the back.
Chase swung himself into the warthog, slammed the door tight. He strode as best he could amongst all the gear towards the seat behind the pilot. He tapped Parinya on the shoulder and away they went.
Rihan couldn’t believe what she had just heard. “Shit” she called out, drawing everyone’s attention to her. She ignored them and focussed instead on the snitch terminal. “Shit” she cried out even louder. There it was the unauthorised transmission. She opened a channel to Warner. “Go” she yelled. She looked up and all she saw were bewildered faces with mouths open.
Gunter Rapperberg charged out the door, pistol in hand. He was pumped. Warner, likewise, was behind him. They got to the Gym door in a few seconds, Gunter on the right and Warner on the left. Warner nodded. Gunter threw open the door and went right. Warner charged in after him to the left.
But there was no one there. They looked in the adjacent showers. No one. “Fuck” cried out Warner. “Quick, check the vent”
Gunter dragged over a chair, scrambled onto it and lifted the cover. He peered in. “It’s not there.”
“Damm” said Warner. “Check the camera.”
Gunter synced his console to the camera, set the replay to reverse and began replaying it. They both watched but the frames were a solid white. The time stamp registered 1555 when what looked like a flash occurred, prior to that it was the vent untampered with.
“Oh shit! What do you reckon that was?” asked Dave.
Gunter shrugged his shoulders and then said “Flash bang maybe. Hard to be sure, whatever it was he was onto us.”
“Rihan” hailed Dave.
“Are you alright?”
“Yes we’re fine. But there’s no one here, no communicator.”
“Shit” she yelled out again. “How come?”
“Don’t worry. We should abort the mission.”
“The warthog’s already launched”
“Blast” said Warner. The adrenalin was draining now as failure seemed complete. “We need to recall them anyway. We’ve botched this.”
Kiralenko came back into the command centre jolting Rihan’s brain.
“Wait one…we need to talk. I’ll meet you in your cabin.”
“Roger.”
Rihan stood. Eyes were still on her especially Kiralenko’s. She looked intently at him but said nothing. She turned towards Aubrey “the ship’s yours” and then she marched out with a disgusted angry look on her face. But as she marched the disgust and anger turned to resolve.
Chapter 23. Hermes 1615, 25 April.
Warner was sitting on his bed with Rapperberg on one chair and Rihan on the other. The listening devices that he and Rihan had discovered earlier were lying smashed on the desk. The door was locked. Rihan had just briefed them on Kiralenko’s absence from the command centre. Warner was still trying to get over the complete cockup that had just transpired. He was angry with himself. Gunter was aware of his boss’s torment but he too was just as guilty. His heart rate was still coming down. Part of him actually enjoyed the excitement but he thought better of making light in the current circumstances.
“Alright” Warner said “so things are looking like it’s Kiralenko. We won’t be able to prove anything without a smoking gun.”
“Don’t you think we should arrest him right away before he can do any more damage?” asked Rihan. She was all for direct action and direct action now. “We can find the smoking gun later.”
“And if it’s perchance not him, we’re down a good officer and still vulnerable. That communicator hasn’t disappeared. We need to find it and we need to find it now. First place to look would be the other nearby public areas like the officers’ mess.”
“What about Kiralenko’s cabin?” queried Rapperberg.
“OK that too. Rihan keep an eye on Kiralenko. Don’t let him leave the command centre.” She nodded. “I’ll check the messes on this deck. Chief can you check Kiralenko’s cabin and then the wash areas?”
“You got it.”
With renewed zeal they went their separate ways. As Warner was rifling through a cupboard in the Officer’s mess, Rapperberg called out very excitedly on the intercom “Sir, I’ve
found it. Here in his room.”
“Right Chief. Good work. I’ll be there in a sec.”
As he ran out of the mess and down the corridor he was still finding it hard to believe that Ivan Kiralenko was the traitor. When he got to the open door, Gunter was standing over the desk. The communicator was on top and a magnetic clamp lay beside it.
“Where was it?” asked Warner.
“Simple really. It was clamped onto the back of the desk drawer. Not really that difficult to find.”
“Yeh, but he was in a hurry” said Warner.
“What now?” said Gunter.
“We arrest Kiralenko.” Warner then opened a channel to Rihan. “We’ve found the communicator in Kiralenko’s room. Don’t do anything till I get there.” He then hailed the master at arms and requested him to meet him outside the command centre. “Bring an armed guard and a set of restraints.” He then turned to Gunter. “Chief, stay here till I get back to you. Don’t let anyone in.”
“Yes Sir.”
Warner marched briskly and met the Master-at-Arms, Sgt Chuck Meadows. Meadows was a no nonsense type of guy, perfect for the senior policeman on board. Technically he was overweight but he liked to call it the effects of hard service. His brown hair was almost on end at the moment. It wasn’t every day that they arrested someone on the Hermes. He was looking very concerned.
Trooper Tan Long was behind him. He was a tall strapping lad with big hands, big feet and if the accounts were to be believed other big features that made him attractive to the opposite sex. He was generally a happy, easy going type but right now he was even more concerned than Chuck. Warner saw the concern on their faces but he didn’t have time for explanations. “Follow me” is all he said.
The Awakening: Book 1 of Warner's World Page 13
