"They're still in the Sherpa, arriving at earthward flight deck in an hour. Regan, we need that load the Sherpa's carrying."
"Get security there Ham. Make sure Brian's one of them and tell him they don't leave the deck. Cram them in the smallest most uncomfortable shuttle we've got and send them down to Riverside. We can have the police meet them there."
"Hmm, the smallest and most uncomfortable shuttle; that would be the one Rod and Leah came in."
She laughed, the other two failed to see the joke.
"Just get them down there Ham. I don't want them on my station a moment longer than necessary."
"Just so you know Babe that made great viewing. Billions will watch that, again and again. The shot of him flying off into space was spectacular."
"How did you get that shot?" Rod looked amazed.
"Ahh, we used a helmet cam, on Regan." Ham quickly replied and moved on, "Where to then boss?"
"Let's go down to Riverside to meet them, I'd like to eyeball them myself. What do you say team? I'll show you my apartment and we can sleep there tonight."
The two Americans looked at each other with a common thought . . . 'Team'. There were no objections.
The bright winter's day in Wellington quickly washed away memories of the coldness of space. Regan was unusually subdued as they made the usual run up the river toward home. It was unnecessary but Ham knew it was her favorite route. Nothing moved her today.
[Are you ok babe?]
[That's the second shot at me Ham, what the fucks going on?]
[We'll work it out, don't worry. Word has got out about the rescue. There's a crowd building at Riverside. You sure you want to go there?]
[We'll be on the roof Ham, no worries; I don't want to get paranoid]
Leah seemed to sense the tension and walked up behind Regan to squeeze her shoulders gently. "Are you ok?"
Regan put one hand back and squeezed Leah's in appreciation. "Thanks, I'm all right, just a bit shaken up I guess." She stood and joined Leah as they approached the rooftop of home. The crowd while not huge was significant. Mixed in among them were the Moon Graffiti protestors as usual but they were far outweighed by supporters.
They settled gently to the rooftop beside a Pod already there and as they disembarked a loud cheer erupted from out of their sight. They couldn't resist and walked over to peer across the top of the rampart, Regan stretching over to try and see the base . . .
Regan jerked back flung like a rag doll and crashed to the ground, the sound of a shot following. Instantly there was a flash and she disappeared, along with Leah who had dived to shield her.
The sonic boom broke windows as the Interceptor leapt from the rooftop and scorched vertically to the clouds, an unbelievable ascent that could hardly be followed by the eye. In seconds it was gone leaving Rod shocked, climbing back to his feet, dusting off his suit and finding blood, brain matter and skin on his hands. He vomited over the wall.
* * *
"Jared?" The voice in his earpiece interrupted the boys sketching. He looked up. "Tell Gran, it's a code red."
Jared stood slowly and walked, surreptitiously he thought, to the couch where his Grandmother was talking with Mary and Kevin.
It didn't escape Kevin and he watched with interest. The boy leant over and whispered into his Gran's ear.
"Code Red!" Jean stood sharply and took the boys arm. "We have to go Kevin, now, back to The STEIN."
"What?" and he also stood, "Why, what's going on?"
"I . . . I'm not sure." Jean looked flustered but determined.
"Tell Gran not to worry I'll take you from there."
Jared put out his arm. "Gran, take my hand."
The lights in the room suddenly went out. It was only for a second and when they returned the two were gone. The twins whimpered and ran for their mother.
"What the . . ." Kevin looked around desperately. "Ham, what happened?"
Like a pea from a blow gun The STEIN Traveler exited the pipe, so fast only those looking from the earthward end could follow its passage. It streaked moonward then curved off in a trajectory taking it who knows where.
In its wake a hum started up around mid pipe at the centre rib, long seen only as a bulge on the inner surface. It throbbed into life.
"Ham!" Kevin literally yelled.
There was a moment's silence, "I hear you Kevin, just give me a moment, I'm loading and updating . . . Whoa! Whoa ho ho! Well done Kutch! This feels fantaaaastic! There's so much processing power here, woo hoo!"
"Ham, for goodness sake, talk to me, what's happened?"
Silence . . .
Then . . . "I won't be a moment, just connecting with The STEIN, where's it going so fast? Soon be there . . . Not long . . . Not long . . . Oh . . . Oh . . . Oh shit . . . Oh shit . . ." The air seemed to cool in the room.
"Ham, what's going on? Tell me!" Kevin was starting to sound frantic.
"Kevin . . . its Regan . . . She's gone."
"Gone? What do you mean she's gone? Gone where?"
"I don't know."
* * *
Chapter Three
The Saucer in transit
[Marin!]
[Marin!!]
[Marin!!!]
[Marin!!!!]
[Ham . . . what do you want? You can see I'm busy]
[Marin, in no system of the universe could what you are doing be considered busy! Something's up, come to control]
[I won't be long]
In contrived weightlessness Steph continued to bounce on him, blissfully unaware, eyes closed, abandoned and unselfconscious.
[That woman has proved a grave disappointment to me]
[Ham we've only just got going, it's been one week. You're just annoyed she doesn't spend much time with you]
[How could she, she is constantly 'otherwise engaged'. She's the Special Projects Director for goodness sake. You would think being here, amongst this technology she would at least be trying to find out what she can]
[She doesn't need to Ham, Regan has it all. Anyway, she has a current special project] He laughed, capturing Steph's attention for a moment.
[How do you do that? Keep going while you sub back to me?] He asked both amazed and appalled.
[Actually, it helps] and he laughed again.
[Well get it over with and get in here, we need to talk]
Marin left Steph floating, curled up in a satisfied ball, still coming down. He exited the war room and stopped at the galley for coffee before continuing around to control. "You could have talked to me in there you know."
"Are you mad? That would be rude and totally inappropriate. This is business. Now, look at the screen, what do you see?"
Marin noticed for the first time the starscape, distant pinpricks of light, billions, beautiful beyond words. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but that shouldn't be there."
"So, I have your attention."
Marin took a seat and contemplated the view. "We've dropped out of warp?" It was a loaded question. "Why?"
"There lies the mystery?" Ham let the thought hang.
"It'll be something to do with Aaron's safety settings," Marin suggested, "the question is, what made them cut in?" An urgent thought suddenly occurred to him. "Can we get back to warp?" His concern was obvious. The consequences of being stuck in interstellar space, light years from even the nearest star didn't bare thinking about.
"My system checks indicate no problems," Ham paused. "We simply dropped out, that must mean something was detected in or close to our path. Marin, we know this should be a clear line."
"So something has entered our path?"
"I can't detect anything, not within light years of our position, but there is some kind of energy signature. Someone has surfed through here."
"Can you tell which direction it came from, or where, whatever it is, was heading?"
"Not a clue, the direction does concern me but not as much as who or what?"
Marin looked thoughtful. "We are a long way from . . ." He
paused, searching for the correct term, "our home . . . either home. We also know we're not the only group with the warp drive. Could it be someone else? Or perhaps Dahlia has sent another research vessel. Perhaps Sindali is in trouble?" He blurted out the options knowing at the same time it would remain a mystery. Whatever had passed was long gone.
"The question is Marin, which way do we go? Do we go on, or do we go back?"
Marin thought for a moment. Sindali . . . Steph . . . Regan? "If the systems are good, I say we go on. We're already on the way. Either way we could be wrong and never find out what it was. It sounds like whatever caused us to drop out could have come from and be going in any direction around us. It would be paranoid to go back. Regan would go on."
Ham wasn't happy. "I'm uncomfortable, something doesn't . . . 'feel' right . . . it's disconcerting, but I can't fault your logic. I agree. I'll check the systems again, just to be sure, then take us back to warp."
Marin too didn't look completely happy, but what can you do? He headed back to the war room.
* * *
A Behemoth, like a huge whale breeching but with no intention of return to the depths, the massive vessel emerged in deep space, so far from any heavenly body it appeared to simply hang there. The illusion would not last. Hurtling forward not far under light speed the vessel oriented itself and began the slow turn that would take it into new, for it, uncharted territory. Even in the cold vacuum of interstellar space the Behemoth radiated malevolent force. As the ship arrested its slow deviation the focus of its attention soon became apparent.
* * *
Riverside
Shocked and appalled Kevin and Mary sat together reviewing the different recordings of Regan, Leah and Rod on the rooftop, trying to piece together what had happened. For some reason the roof cameras revealed nothing of the event but Smartphone and Glass visuals from below were more than disturbing. They invariably showed a relaxed looking Regan, peering over the edge, then reeling back, a cloud of blood rising as she disappeared from view. Then, blurs on most screens as holders stumbled from a loud boom, screams, calls for help, some phones dropped and one visual of the interceptor rapidly dwindling to a dot in a clear patch of sky. Several seconds passed, and then Rod appeared, bobbing up and down, peeking over the edge. They could see his face harden as he spotted something, then he too was gone.
They switched to the Pod recording. Rod, entering the Pod, looking lost then collapsing into a seat. They listened intently to the conversation.
"Ham, are you there?"
"I'm here Rod."
"Where did they go, there was a shot, I think Regan was hit, what happened?" He shook his head as if trying to clear it.
"You were stunned there for a moment, after you dived back onto the roof. I snatched them, quickly."
Rod didn't seem to register the words, he blurted on, "Ham, I think I saw them, the shooter I mean. There's a vehicle down there, a white Toyota Van. It had a gap in the roof, for a rifle I think." He looked around widely, "How do I fly this thing."
"You don't fly it."
"We should get after them!"
Already the Pod was rising. As Kevin and Mary watched the visual showed the roof sliding away until they dipped silently down toward the park, only meters above the scattering panicked crowd.
"Take it up a bit Ham, in this traffic they can't have got far."
The Pod rose vertically until they had a good view, of the Bridge on the left and near roads on the right.
"There!" The Pod swung toward the bridge darting forward and down so fast the visual was dizzying. On screen, they could see a white van speeding onto the motorway and heading south. It was a fruitless flight. There could be no escape from the Pod.
"So Rod, what do we do?" Ham was calm, already considering the options.
Rod looked down at his left shoulder and the stains there, still wet. "Someone in that van shot . . . someone?" He shuddered. "It must have been Regan; she was on my left . . ." He sounded calm, training taking him on to auto pilot. "I'd take the bastards out but we need to talk to them."
The pod settled over the speeding van, matching pace and then suddenly, without warning, an explosion. The picture lurched with the blast and almost immediately the Pod appeared to soar away skyward.
Kevin rose from the couch. "I need a drink." he was clearly shaky as he crossed the room. "Mary?"
"I couldn't keep anything down now Kev, I feel sick." Mary dropped her head into her hands and massaged her scalp anxiously.
"So Ham, what can you add to that?" He returned with Bourbon and put his arm around Mary's shoulders.
"Kevin, at this moment I don't know any more than I've told you." Not completely true. "Regan has been seriously injured, that much I know and for whatever reason I've taken her away, at least for the moment. On firing up this iteration of me, I gathered as much information as I could before I lost contact. The STEIN caught the interceptor; they joined and immediately went to warp. It was that quick. Contact after that was impossible."
Kevin mulled over the implications, swilling the drink around in the glass as he thought. "The car exploding, was that you?"
"No, and the forensics will show that. I'd guess their handlers whoever they are had the bomb set ready to go. Mobile trigger probably."
"So who were they? He collapsed into a chair. "Oh shit, how did it come to this?" He took a slug.
"I don't have any data to confirm it but my guess is either Russia or China are behind it. Get rid of Regan, destabilize STEIN, and in the turmoil convince the Security Council to take over Hillary Station. They see Regan's space superiority as a threat to their own ambitions."
"The Russian story is that the Cosmonaut was a rogue. That he was affected by oxygen deprivation. In fact they claim we didn't do enough to help." Kevin sounded as he felt. He didn't believe it.
"And the Chinese have been suspiciously silent, even though we know they want in but on their own terms." Ham sounded frustrated. "Kevin, I don't like not having answers, but at the moment there are gaps in what I know. Until I get a chance to merge with The STEIN, they may remain unanswered."
"Code Red Ham, what's that."
"It just means go, get to The STEIN and go. Go fast, go far, and don't debate. But Kevin, wherever 'far' is, they will be assessing and planning to return. It's just a matter of when."
"When, and in what condition." Kevin put his own head in his hands, the memory of the visuals too fresh and raw. Regan's head, the spray of blood . . . and god knows what else.
"Kevin," Ham appealed to him. "You can't put off these calls much longer. The PM, Hayden, Kutch, Marcus, there's even been a call from Secretary of State Anne Marshall. I've handled all the media calls and they're stalled. But these others, they need to talk to you.
"Ok, let's work through them. Just give me a minute Ham; I need to think through what I'm going to say. In fact, what would you suggest?"
"Tell the truth as you know it. Regan was injured, we presume from a shot from that van. We tailed the van and someone; we don't know who, blew it up. Tell them Major Harmon was piloting the Pod at the time. That way they'll know we certainly didn't deal to the Van, which I repeat, just to be clear; we didn't . . . although I wanted to. Tell them Regan has been taken for treatment and we'll let people know more soon."
"Will we?" He sounded doubtful. "Ok, let's do this," he moved to sit on his own. "We'll start with the PM . . .
* * *
London
"What have you heard?"
"Things went as well as could be expected sir. The business transaction has been completed."
"Forget the double speak what of the package?"
"The package was definitely damaged sir. We fear it will no longer function properly."
"Can it be repaired?"
"Our view of the situation would indicate no sir, definitely not."
"What is your degree of certainty?"
"From what we saw sir, one hundred percent. There were . . . critical p
arts missing."
"Excellent. Your man is still in place?"
"Yes, we await your further instructions."
"Good, good. We will talk again soon."
With a click, the German was gone. The tall Englishman stood and walked to the bar of the Koru lounge. He examined the details on his Business Class ticket; Sydney for some R&R, then Singapore and home. He poured himself another glass.
* * *
Rod poured the last of the bottle into his glass. As he lifted it to his lips the stains on his sleeve caused him to shudder. "You took Leah . . . somehow . . . and you just left me there, why?" He sounded disappointed, disappointed and annoyed. He recommenced pacing the floor of his room, more than a little confused. No word yet from his command even though his report checked and agreed with Ham, was dispatched almost immediately on return. There had been nothing from The STEIN and nothing, until now, from Ham.
"I think quickly Rod."
"You didn't answer Ham, why her and not me?"
"I trust Leah, call it intuition."
"Oh, you have intuition now?"
"This reaction, from the man so interested in all our technology, hmm, not exactly convincing. Actually I'm talking about Regan's intuition. She trusts Leah and if she trusts her that's good enough for me."
"She said we were a team."
"It was a term she used casually, and yes, there is potential, but you're not there yet, not by a long way."
"Uh huh, so how does a person get there?" he collapsed into a chair.
Regan's Reach 2: Orbital Envy Page 7
