Spinward Fringe Broadcast 11

by Randolph Lalonde

  He forced himself to recall her remorse, her apology, and how earnest she was about her feelings for him. Ayan was stronger now, listening to her own better angels instead of leaning on visions from the Victory Machine. She would be true.

  He found himself wondering where Stephanie would fit in with the new fleet. She would no longer be able to join his staff, which might drive her a little crazy. There had to be something important for her to do, something that would make her feel like she’s using her expertise thoroughly and properly. The most obvious, the simplest solution came to mind then. He would put her up for a promotion. With a higher rank and her experience, several departments should want Stephanie. She may not be able to captain a ship, but she’d have a placement in the fleet that would suit her almost as much.

  He wondered about Finn, of all people then. The boy who had become a man under his watch, nearly dying once for the cause, couldn’t remain under his wing forever. More so than Agameg, who had stories that he hadn’t seen fit to tell yet, seen things that Jake could barely imagine, Finn was still young. Regardless of his past adventures, there was an explorer’s spirit in the young Chief. Jake saw it most when he discovered he was going on this mission. There was a light in his eyes as he said; “I’ve never been on a planet that cold before.” The upcoming mission would be violent. No matter how well hidden they remained, there would be a point where they were discovered and the base, or the people in it would fight back. He and Liara didn’t have combat training. They had to be protected.

  Any time Jake had to clear his mind, thoughts of his daughter laid atop everything else like a blanket. When he left her behind she was trapped as an eternal adolescent, doomed to have her framework revert her back to a youthful age every time she started to grow out of the last phase of childhood. Alice was now free from that, and in the Haven Fleet’s Apex Program. According to what he read, she was probably serving on a ship as an Officer Cadet. Whatever ship she was on would be better with her there. He hoped she had time to embrace the rest of her life. There was more to living than working, a lesson that he hadn’t learned as well as he liked yet.

  The flames of re-entry burned against the side of the cargo container, and a glimpse at his display told him that most of the heat remained outside. The temperature inside wouldn’t test their cloaking systems or armour much at all, everyone was fine. His thoughts returned to Alice. The idea that she was once the artificial intelligence that lived on Jonas Valent’s wrist seemed like a fiction when he thought of the woman she became. She freed herself once when she became human, became trapped again when she was placed in a framework body, and now she was free once more. Jake silently swore to himself that he’d make sure she had every opportunity to have a full life when he got back. He remembered what it was like to lose his parents, or what it was like for Jonas to suffer that loss as though it were his own and making sure that she knew he was there for her would be his biggest priority. After everything she’d gone through, she deserved it.

  All the people he cared about and his thoughts about them sorted, Jake ran through the plan step by step in his head. It was a meditation, a visualization exercise that he played through in great detail. It always ended with one credo; “And when it all goes to hell, I’ll find a better way to get the job done,” he said aloud. His microphones were turned off, so no one could hear him, but Remmy must have seen him speaking, watching through the display that revealed allies as though they weren’t cloaked, because the young man grinned and nodded at him.

  Jake nodded curtly, already feeling that furrowed brow game face taking over as he smiled back and activated the holographic illusion on his helmet that made it look like a death’s head lived in his armour. Remmy activated his own, revealing a freakish skull with teeth filed to points and bulging, bloodshot eyeballs. It was comical and unnerving at the same time. Remmy made his illusion’s head wobble, sticking it’s tongue out then laughing.

  “I’m going to poach you from the Rangers,” Jake said, laughing, aware that Remmy couldn’t hear him. “Then you’ll really be in the shit.” He laughed a little harder despite himself, or perhaps because Remmy’s death’s head was laughing at his own antics.

  The container touched down, Jake held his fist up and looked to his passive scanner readouts. Anything that emitted a signal, the surfaces that were subject to pressure, vibrations or interference were visible to him. The heavy lifter released its clamps and started flying off. He set his communications to use laser link and sent the command across all the suits worn by his allies. He would also be able to receive all other signals but left his ability to send them off. Any signal other than laser link would be a dead giveaway.

  He opened the container hatch a crack and watched as his tactical display populated. The container was put down in the middle of the yard. “We’re one point eight kilometres away from the nearest entry point to the base. Do you see anyplace we could patch into their local network?”

  “The closest I see is at the end of this rail line,” Finn said. He highlighted the sections of the base reaching outwards from the tall, octagonal middle building. They extended like spokes from a wheel to different main buildings. They were at the end of one that picked up empty containers, transported them on rails to the middle, where they were reconditioned, filled then deposited at the end of another spoke, where a yard of filled and sealed containers waited for pickup. “There’s a main network node right at the end of each of these spokes, we should be able to tap in there.”

  “All right, we have a run ahead of us,” Jake said. “Let’s get moving.”

  Twenty-Three

  The Lieutenants

  * * *

  “We need to cut Tran and Luu,” Alice told Yawen quietly in the rearmost compartment. Yawen, Alice’s former academy roommate sat down in one of the broad seats made for larger, or armoured passengers. It was still an awkward ordeal since they had the slimmer version of the backpack systems attached to their armour, so she sat on the edge of her seat. “They’re not ready for this, they might never be.”

  Yawen thought for a moment then nodded. “You’re right. They’re too independent of the group and there are two fraternization violations between them pending review. They were always solid in training, I’m disappointed.”

  “They look to each other to confirm every order, and they want to question everything in the moment,” Alice said. “That’s what stands out for me. I don’t think it’s a situation where they have to go back for training, they just need to be placed where someone has time to put them on the right track. I won’t have time.”

  “Tran’s freak out when he saw the shuttle bash hulls with the Exile was the big sign for me that he might not be ready,” Yawen said.

  “He froze, but I don’t blame him. Armour can’t save us from everything. Anyone could freeze if they think about getting caught between the kind of force that could twist the whole frame of a combat shuttle.”

  “You have a point, no one wants to have their legs pinched off,” Yawen said. “What about Tulsa Beck?”

  “I think I understand what’s going on in her head, and it’s what’s going to keep her from being a member of this team, sure, but she’s going to be great somewhere else. With the kind of empathy she has, there’s a place where she can shine. I’ll make sure she and command both know that, so they help her find it,” Alice said.

  “I appreciate it,” Yawen said. “There will be waterworks when you give her the news. With Luu and Tran, I bet they’ll get angry for a minute then retreat. I’d rather deal with that. Should I start looking for replacements?”

  The shuttle set down and rocked on its landing gear. The frame was so badly twisted that it wouldn’t rest on all of its pylons evenly. “Consult Command, they might have suggestions, but don’t let them force anyone on us. I have final approval. Oh, and we’re definitely looking for a medic, or at least a medical technician.”

  “Yes, Ma’am,” Yawen said with a little smirk. That always mean
t there was some amusing thought getting filed away.

  “What? What’s up?” Alice asked.

  “You were great out there, but scary serious. I mean, that’s good, it was a good kind of serious, the kind of attitude that’s easy to follow. I didn’t see it before, but now I do. I see why they put you where they did.”

  “Thank you, but we haven’t arrived yet. Wait until we have our own ship. The Clever Dream will be ready soon…”

  A brisk triple-bang on the rearmost airlock interrupted her. The inner door opened and a fresh-faced, red-cheeked cadet entered and saluted.

  Alice returned the salute, looking at the cadet’s pristine white uniform. It had a dark red stripe running down the shoulders. “Orders from the Lieutenant Commander; I’m here to show you to a shuttle,” he said, out of breath. “Lieutenant, if you’ll come this way.”

  “See you soon,” Alice said to Yawen, who stood and saluted. She returned the gesture. “Our team will be off active duty once everyone gets there after action reports in, except you and Tulsa. I have to know where she is at all times until I release her from the team and you have to watch her.”

  “Because she’s shown signs of significant emotional distress, I remember the regulation, no problem,” Yawen said.

  “See you later.”

  Alice was led across the hangar floor at a brisk pace, to a ship that was in no way a shuttle - it was a heavy gunship with seven quad turrets. “Any idea what this is about, Trainee?”

  “I don’t have any information for you, I’m sorry Lieutenant,” he replied. They were ten steps away from the embarkation ramp leading into the gunship when the cadet asked; “Were you really walking around on the hull of a Citadel ship ten minutes ago?”

  “I can neither confirm or deny,” Alice said.

  “I understand,” he said. “The Huntress will take you the rest of the way,” he said, snapping to attention and saluting.

  She saluted in return and walked up the ramp, which was already closing by the time she got to the top. The dark, high polish metal of the hull was several centimetres thick and had a quality she’d never seen before. Even with only a moment to see it up close before she was inside, she knew it was something completely new.

  The rear of the gunship was set up for a troop drop, with equipment storage between rows of seats and enough room for at least thirty soldiers to deploy in a hurry. She secured her rifle to her back and walked inward, where she could just barely see a table through an open hatchway deeper inside. Looking at all the brand new fixtures, the more efficient design, she wished it was what they used for their recent run of missions.

  “Like her?” asked the voice of the Delta team leader. He was short, but no stranger to the gym. “It’s the new class of gunship that’s rolling out, Huntress. I’m trying to get one for my team.” He extended his hand. “I’m Lieutenant Vernor, call me Gabe.”

  She shook his hand. “Showed up half out of uniform at your first briefing,” she said teased. “Second Lieutenant Valent, call me Alice.”

  “So that’s how I’ll be remembered until I manage to impress you,” he said with a tilt of his head. “Challenge accepted.”

  He was so sure of himself that Alice was stunned. For a long moment she had no idea what to say, and he just watched her with a cocksure smile on his face. “The hull plating is… different,” she managed finally.

  He looked momentarily confused then looked up. “Oh, on this boat, yeah. Some kind of intelligent plating I’m still learning about. This ship came off the line today, it’s part of the War Forge’s defence wing.”

  “Gabe! Get up here!” called a voice from further inside.

  “That’s Callum, leader of Beta Team. He’s had a really bad day,” Gabe explained.

  “A bad day,” Callum scoffed. “You lose anyone today, Lieutenant?” he asked Alice as she entered the middle compartment. “No, you didn’t.” His thick Irish accent made his words more biting somehow. He ran his hand down his face and sighed. “I’m on our second mission, looking at my tactical screen,” he said in a much calmer tone. “I mean to say, right at it, when I watch one of my guys - Steno, I think his name was - move ahead with two behind him and he breaches the compartment ahead of us on this ghost ship. No worries, right? I say; ‘easy forward, no scanning. Keep your systems on passive,’ because I know there’s a chance the ghost ship could be trapped. The next thing I hear from this Steno fellow is; ‘All right, boss, I’m turning my scanners up,’ and I’m just about to tell him no when I see him go ahead and do it. You hear about the ghost ship that went boom? I was in the aft section with five of my guys. Three dead, especially that Steno guy, and two in the infirmary. What’s worse, I watch the whole thing play back and realize that I could have just deactivated his scanners before he turned them on. I had plenty of time. You tell ‘em what happened next.” Callum said, dropping into one of the plusher seats beside the multi-purpose table in the middle of the compartment.

  “My teams sent in to pick him up from the wreckage, and Callum’s second in command is busy screaming at him when we get there. As soon as our shuttle latches on, one of the ships that arrived with that ghost ship starts getting too close. I notice and warn it to turn back. Callum requests fighter cover, but it’s too late. We’re under fire from a bunch of crazy Order bastards who jump out of their junker of a ship with thruster suits and they’re coming at us. Callum saw the zero gee troopers first, and he’s firing back before anyone knows what to do. I have seven years in Aucharian Special Forces, and I’ve never seen anyone react like that. My Irish friend here saved our asses, gave us a chance to find cover. I would have lost a few people if it weren’t for him.”

  “I was just doing what came naturally. God help me, it doesn’t make up for the three I lost, and the two still barely hanging on,” Callum added.

  “Yeah, that wasn’t nature, that was experience and practice, my friend. It didn’t take long to mop those Order crazies up after that, especially with three fighters for support, but that’s the most action we saw today. That’s probably why we’re here.”

  “I’ll be demoted. I can count three procedure violations before I lost three people. It’s like everything I learned in training just left the moment I was sent on a real mission. Oh yeah, I’m the one that stunk up his operation so bad that they have to talk to me in person,” Callum said, standing and gesturing to himself, “Making your praises sound all the better. I hear you were walking around on the Exile? How in the hell did you know what to do once you were there? I mean, there were orders, I’m sure, but…”

  Alice didn’t know the answer. Her memories had been scanned, stored and sorted. Even Haven Intelligence didn’t think she had more than a few sketchy memories from her first life as a human, when she was aboard the Triton. Even so, the hull of the Citadel ship - a ship that was most likely designed and built by the same people who were responsible for the Triton - felt familiar. She knew where the gun emplacements would be, where to hit them so they were disabled quickly. She even knew that most of the gunners would have time to get out of the turrets before the armoured plating was cracked. There was no question in her mind that she was attacking that ship the right way. “My mission there was pretty simple. Drop beacons so their dodgy cloaking tech was completely circumvented.”

  “But you took turrets out, made it look so easy when any second a squad or three of counter insurgence guys in combat suits could come out and make things way too complicated for you to stick around.”

  “There weren’t many airlocks nearby,” Alice said. “My second, Yawen, sealed two while we were out there, so we were pretty sure we weren’t going to be seeing any soldiers anytime soon.”

  “You and Gabe are going to be stars,” Callum said, dropping into his seat again.

  “Not yet,” said Lieutenant Commander Terran as his holographic image appeared above the table. “I’d like to congratulate all three of you for your work today. With only a few exceptions, your performance was exc
ellent. The strategies you used demonstrate an ability to think ahead. I’d hate to square off against you in a game of Archon’s Fall.”

  Callum, Gabe and Alice all stood at attention and saluted. The Lieutenant Commander returned the gesture. “At ease. We are pressed for time, since you’ll be aboard the War Forge in a minute. I’ve finished reviewing all your reports. I expected excellence from you especially, Lieutenant Vernor,” he said to Gabe. “I wasn’t disappointed. The four missions we sent you on were executed flawlessly and I agree that you should replace the five soldiers who underperformed. I’m taking your leash off and recommending that you are promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant. I’m afraid there won’t be any pomp or ceremony attached to the promotion, everyone in the fleet is already scrambling to keep up with what’s going on. We’ll make a very big deal when you have another promotion, I promise.”

  “Thank you, Lieutenant Commander,” Gabe replied. “No need for ceremony.”

  “Second Lieutenant Callum Newell,” Terran addressed, turning towards the tall, blonde Irishman. “I regret to inform you that, after reviewing your report and your neural performance record, Command has decided that it’s too early for you to have a team of your own. Your rank is reduced to Ensign. This is not solely because of the loss of life that occurred while you were in command. It is because of the unsteadiness, as you put it in your report, or inconsistency as I’d put it leading up to today. Unsteadiness is not something to be ashamed of at your age. You are young, experienced, and will accomplish a great deal in your career, especially with the right mentorship in the short term. As I said, despite your misadventure today, I’m pleased with the promise I’ve seen. I believe you will embrace the core strategies we’ll need to win this war in time. As a side note, your request to personally inform the friends and families of those you lost today is approved, but we will make sure you are not alone.”