by Randal Sloan
Julie immediately noticed that they had upgraded their missiles as expected, but it was child’s play for her to avoid them. She used one of her defensive strategies that she knew would work, using the ship’s drive to fool the missile tracking systems. In seconds the missiles lost track of her, flying off until their drives fizzled out.
As soon as she was clear of the missiles, Julie fired two missiles of her own. The pirate ship had no systems to defend itself, vainly at the last moment trying to change course to avoid the missiles. But Julie’s missiles both tracked them unerringly, their guidance systems easily following their movement. Seconds later it was over, the pirate ship exploding in a ball of fire. Julie couldn’t help the burst of joy she felt on seeing the explosion, but she concentrated on her reasons for doing this, pushing the feeling to the back of her mind.
While Julie’s little adventure with the pirate ship was playing out, the Space Tech boarding ship had docked at the space station and the armored special forces and mercenaries quickly swarmed off the ship. The station had evacuated the air from the docking area, but that had no effect on Space Force Delta, as they were calling themselves. They simply switched on their armor suit’s air supply and continued the attack.
Julie and Zeke listened on their coms as the Space Forces fought the limited resistance the Organization offered. Julie concentrated on Major Newsome’s group as she knew them better. She listened as the sergeant put Jimmy and Jazz on point, the two leading the way down the corridor into the station, each dropping into a defensive position when they reached a locked door. As the sergeant attached explosives to the door, the Major was broadcasting a warning to the station. If they didn’t restore the air to the docking area, when they blew the door it would be “bad” for the station.
As Sarge prepped the explosives, they heard the sound of air hissing into the corridor. Before he could blow the door, it snapped open and a rain of bullets poured into the corridor. Instinctively the Sarge dropped to the floor so most of the bullets missed him. Very few struck any of the team members, but any that hit a target simply bounced off the armor. The men and woman inside didn’t even feel the concussive force, the design of the armor shunting the force away.
Jimmy, Jazz, and the sergeant immediately dove through the door, each rolling to a defensive position and letting loose their own stream of bullets. Their bullets did not bounce off. In seconds it was over, their area secured as the last man went down. The Space Force team immediately infiltrated the next room, which was the station control room. There they quickly secured the terrified technicians, who offered no resistance.
Zeke had stressed to his techs how important their task was, so as soon as the major sent the message that their section of the station was secure, they almost ran the distance to the control room. They quickly set up the new AI, pulling the input and output lines from the old system and bringing them up using the AI. Because the Organization techs had at least followed the standard wiring scheme, the Space Tech group rapidly worked their task.
Julie looked over at Zeke, “What is the status of your techs in the control room? I am hoping we can get long range scanning working so that we can look for the other pirate ship. The fact that we know now for sure that they have upgraded their missiles makes me nervous.”
Zeke had been wondering if he would be able to keep her out of the station until his group finished their work. He had grown quite stressed about that as Julie had flown their ship back toward the station. “They’re close, but they need just a few minutes more. If you are worried about the pirate, I suggest you wait. It shouldn’t be very long.”
Julie surprised him by nodding, keeping her approach to the station cautious. She didn’t want to be ambushed by the pirate. Plus, they were still waiting on a status update from Major Gonzalez, whose team was leading the attack on the Organization leaders. He should have been finished by now.
Zeke finally got the confirmation from the team of techs that they had finished installing the AI. Quickly he opened his VR interface into the control system. “They say that they are finished. I’m checking it now,” he told her. Everything checked out, so he breathed a sigh of relief. “It looks good. I’m sending you a connection to the long range scan.” Zeke already knew it was clear. There would be no stopping her now, as she completed her docking procedure. But taking the First Lady’s warning to heart he planned to not leave Julie’s side.
Major Gonzalez finally called in with the information Julie wanted to hear. “The station is secure. We have captured all of the leaders of the Organization but one, and have been looking for him, under the assumption that he was either hiding or trying to escape to a shuttle. I have just received notice that he has been apprehended and is being brought in. All of the prisoners have been brought to the large central area in the station.”
#
Setting the code to lock her ship, Julie and Zeke quickly headed toward the assembly point. With the warning he had been given, Zeke kept his attention level high. They had just arrived in the main area, when Jon Rupert, the man who had been the Space Tech mole, came in bringing his uncle. He had carried a syringe containing a powerful paralytic, allowing him to ambush his uncle and thus subdue him. He had him in a decidedly low tech wheelchair. Totally without space legs, he was struggling to handle it in the low simulated gravity that the Organization Space Station had managed to generate, about one-third earth gravity.
All of the Space Forces had been informed that Jon was on their side and to look out for him. Uncle Ted had stressed that Jon was the one giving them information that was going to allow them to capture the Organizations leaders. Everyone gathered around him, even Julie. A couple of men quickly took control of the prisoner. Several of the men were clapping Jon on the back, calling him a hero. After all, he had just brought in the most important one, the ringleader of the terrorist group.
Zeke was watching everyone carefully, not sure what was to happen, but knowing that it had yet to take place. He sensed something was off about Jon, especially the way he was looking at Julie. That could have been simple jealousy on his part, but he knew it was more than that. He edged closer to Julie, planning to speak to her about it. He didn’t get that chance as Jon separated himself from the group to come over to them.
Jon ignored Zeke and spoke directly to Julie. “I am Jon, and I have been waiting a long time to meet you. That man I brought in is my uncle. He is one who led the attack against you and killed your mother.” He paused a moment at Julie’s in-drawn breath. But before she could say anything, he rushed on. “That is why I did this. To make up for that and so that you could see how the two of us are bound together. I have believed for some time we are destined to be together.”
Zeke could tell Julie was struggling with her emotions. Jon was the one that had been a big part of the effort to capture the man who had killed her mother. There were tears in her eyes. Zeke sensed Julie’s mental struggle and moved closer, mentally as well as physically. He felt the gratitude that she sent back to him.
Julie couldn’t imagine what this man had gone through all this time, but she had to make it clear to him. She tried to be gentle in her response. “I am very grateful for you helping us to capture him. We will make sure that you are rewarded. I will, of course, see that he gets justice. But I’m sorry to tell you that you and me cannot be more than friends.”
“But I did all this for you,” Jon told her, a crazed look in his eyes. “You have to see that it was meant to be.”
“Let me get you help,” Julie told him. “You’ve been in here too long and too deep. You need time to step back, so that you can see that more clearly.” Julie turned to Zeke, pulling him closer. She momentarily looked away from Jon, motioning to the medic to come over to see her.
“No!” Jon said. He had somehow gotten Julie and Zeke away from the others, and he pushed a control on the wall to close the door, intending to separate them from the rest of the station. With Zeke’s AI in control of the station, the
control didn’t work. But the man hadn’t lasted as long as he had underground in the Organization without backup plans to backup plans. Reaching in his pocket, he grasped another of those fast acting syringes like the one he had used on his uncle. With Julie’s struggling emotional state and Zeke attempting to help her handle it, the two of them were distracted just long enough for him to manage to use the syringe on Julie, temporarily paralyzing her and causing her to collapse to the floor. He pulled a gun out of his other pocket and pointed it at Zeke. “Back away,” he told him.
“No, I can’t let you do this. Sorry, but this is going to hurt,” Zeke told him, throwing his compu-pad as hard as he could into Jon’s face. The throw was so hard that Jon’s nose was shattered, causing him to reach toward his face, dropping the gun. Unfortunately for Zeke, Jon jerked the gun in reaction before he dropped it. While his aim was off, the wild shot still hit Zeke, striking him in the side.
Julie’s nanites had been fighting the drug she was given. She had recovered enough to look up just as Zeke was hit by the bullet. Screaming, she tried to get up to go to him, but unable to do that, she had to settle for crawling over to where he had fallen. The mercenary medic rushed over too. He quickly was able to check on Zeke with Julie watching, tears pouring down her face.
“I have him stabilized,” the medic reassured her a moment later, after swiftly working his craft. “But we need to get him to the Space Tech Medical facilities as soon as possible. I have the bleeding stopped for the moment, but I don’t know the extent of his internal injuries.” Julie could tell from his tone that when he said as soon as possible, he meant exactly that.
Forcing herself to control her emotions enough to speak, Julie told him, “Get him to my ship as fast as you can,” and pointing to Jon, who was lying on the floor holding his hands to his face, blood pouring out of his nose, “and get your assistant to patch this one up, then put him with the rest of the prisoners.”
With pure willpower, she managed to pull herself to her feet. Her nanites were already making progress counteracting the drug, just not fast enough. But she knew she had to get herself to her ship, not trusting anyone else to get Zeke there quick enough. “The rest of you stay here with the prisoners and get them loaded when the transport arrives.”
The medic did as he was instructed, with the help of a couple of the soldiers loading Zeke onto a gurney. The pair of them rushed down the corridor toward the dock, with the medic following beside so he could keep an eye on his patient. Several of the others had gathered nearby. Seeing Tim among them, she looked at him pleadingly. “I don’t care if you have to carry me, but get me to my ship.”
Nodding, Tim scooped her up into his arms, carrying her like he had his younger brother so many times. Julie wrapped her arms around his neck, holding on desperately as he rushed her down the same corridor toward her ship. “Guess this will have to count toward that hug,” she told him as he neared the ship. “But only as a down payment.”
They had caught up to the medic, who didn’t have the code to open the door to her ship. Julie quickly punched it in on her VR interface. As soon as the door started to open, she told them. “Just a little further. Up the stairs to the main control room.”
Tim had to duck to clear the door, but he easily navigated the stairs with his charge. The men helping with the gurney carrying Zeke struggled a little bit, but due to the low gravity of the station it wasn’t difficult. “I didn’t think about medical emergencies when I designed this ship. I’ll have to rethink the entrance in the future.” Julie told them with a sad smile. She pointed to the main control seat. “Sit me in the control chair, Tim.”
Tim quickly did so, rather gently for a man so large. “Thank you,” she breathed. “I owe you a lot for this.” She was already bringing the ship online, the AI performing all the flight checks that pilots in the past would have to do manually. Fortunately, Julie was rapidly recovering her facilities.
Tim just shook his head. “No, ma’am,” he said. “You are one of us now. I would have done this for anyone on our team, but especially for you.”
Julie gestured to all her unwitting passengers. “Strap Zeke’s gurney to that wall there. Then you all need to strap yourselves in one of the seats. The ride may be a little rough.” She was going through the startup procedure for the pilot’s station as quickly as possible, bypassing all of the optional steps in the AI startup. Need an emergency start button!
They had all been looking around the ship in curiosity, but they quickly went about their tasks. Tim took the seat immediately behind Julie, his curiosity overwhelming his fear of the unknown. The medic quickly got Zeke situated and strapped himself in close enough to be able to reach Zeke if needed. He immediately began setting up monitoring equipment on Zeke as Julie finished up her startup of the ship.
Quickly finishing her prepping of the ship’s systems, with a quick, “Hang on, I’m launching” warning, Julie sent their ship rapidly out of the dock. She was headed on a near direct course toward Space Tech Station, with slight adjustments indicated by the AI to handle the orbital mechanics. It didn’t argue with the acceleration numbers she gave it, thanks to Zeke’s programming. As soon as she was clear of the station, Julie forgot everything but her goal. She pushed the ship as hard as she had ever done, holding it right at the edge. As a result, she was flying faster than ever before, not even really aware that she was doing it. She was flying completely by instinct, her every thought on getting Zeke to the Space Tech doctors as soon as possible.
At first Tim and the others were somewhat shook up, the ship’s normal ability to counteract the g-forces of flight not fully keeping up with Julie’s extreme flight. As the flight progressed, things settled down somewhat, and once more they were able to look around. Tim was close enough to Julie’s displays to be able to see somewhat, but he was unable to follow a lot of her movements. He figured out quickly they were flying really fast. The one display he could see clearly never dropped below one hundred twenty percent. Sometimes it was considerably higher.
As if everything else wasn’t enough for her, the missing pirate ship reappeared. They tried to interfere with her flight, although they had no chance to match her speed. The ship sent her a message, an ugly man with a gold tooth appearing on the VR. “Surrender or we will destroy you,” he said, his haughty attitude showing.
Julie at first just ignored him, not bothering to answer. What an idiot! If I had time to chit chat, I would put him in his place. Then the fool compounded his idiocy. He launched a spread of missiles at her ship. In her urgency and distress, Julie didn’t even think about it. She launched a full spread of her own offensive weapons, missiles and rail gun rounds. All of them. One second the pirate ship was there and the next it was gone. Julie had literally obliterated it! She never wavered an instant from her path or speed, blowing past the missiles so fast that they had absolutely no chance to even come close to her ship.
Her passengers had at first been frightened, but as they watched her, their fright turned to pure amazement. When the pirate ship exploded, they all cheered. Julie barely heard as the medic called Space Tech medical to have them waiting for them when they came in to the station. She headed straight to the docking ring at full speed. She didn’t even consider the normal slow docking procedures, which called for them to use the ship’s thrusters. She simply used the ship’s drive to bring the ship in to the docking location and brought it much faster than it would have otherwise. Those watching in the control room at first cringed, sure she was about to crash, and then stared in disbelief when she executed a perfect dock.
Zeke was rushed to the medical bay and Julie followed, refusing to allow even the doctors to separate them. They quickly prepped him for emergency surgery to remove the bullet, with Julie holding Zeke’s hand the whole time. “I am communicating with his nanites,” she told them. “They are working to help control the bleeding and to repair the injury.” On hearing this, they stopped trying to get her to leave. They didn’t really b
elieve she would be able to make that much of a difference, but her conviction was so strong they couldn’t think of a valid argument to give her.
The surgery was completed quickly, the surgeon amazed at how well it went. Even with modern medicine, surgery on a bullet wound could be tricky. You never knew until you got in there what damage the bullet had done or if a serious blood vessel had been nicked. He could have sworn that he saw Zeke’s body repairing itself in front of him. Of course, he would never try to tell that to anyone. After all, who would have believed him?
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
The Final Countdown
Surgery completed, Zeke was placed in a room, and Julie refused to leave. She used the room’s VR to communicate with her uncle to coordinate the handling of the prisoners and initial announcements to the media. She had her own plans for specific communications, but that would have to wait as long as she was needed here. She finally relaxed when she felt Zeke was just sleeping normally, so that meant she was sitting beside his bed when Zeke woke up, immediately looking up at her.
“That’s three,” she told Zeke. “Three times you have saved me. In a few weeks, I’m going to go get my father and then I’m going to marry you. Maybe if you’re a married man, you’ll settle down and quit trying to prove yourself to me.”
“I’m all yours, love,” Zeke told her, “As soon as somebody gets this giant safe off the top of me,” pointing to his tightly strapped chest. “I promise I will try to behave from now on.”
Julie believed that just about as much as he believed it. He would do what he had to protect her and she knew it. She would do the same to protect him. Just like she had done flying back to the station. Even though she had not been in any real danger with the pirate ship, she would have done exactly the same thing if there had been great risk.
