The Doomed Planet (Mastery of the Stars Book 1)

by M J Dees

  Sevan could hear clicking noises from the delegates which sounded like excited chatter. He was sure that they were very annoyed about being tossed around so much and that some kind of retribution would follow when they arrived at their destination.

  Ay-ttho was now throwing the shuttle into all manner of twists and turns at maximum velocity and Sevan felt a hint of optimism that they might lose the frigates.

  “I think we’re losing them,” he said.

  “Oh, we’ll never lose them,” said Ay-ttho. “We just need to put enough space between us and them to reach the conference ship.”

  “Ship?”

  “Where the conference is taking place. The place where we are taking the delegates.”

  “Oh, right.”

  “The delegates are our passport to President Man. no one will risk injuring the delegation.”

  “But the frigates were shooting at us.”

  “Just warning shots. If they had intended to hit us, they would have done. There it is.”

  A spec in the distance was coming into view. As it began to fill the observation window, Sevan saw that it was an enormous cruiser but of a design alien to Sevan. Everything he had seen so far on the concession, on Tomorrow and on the corporation frigate had been similar in design. Even the space port had borne many similarities, but this huge ship they were approaching was nothing like anything he had seen before.

  “They’ve locked on us,” said Ay-ttho releasing the controls and looking relieved. “Put this on.”

  She tossed Sevan a protective suit.

  “What’s this for?”

  “The atmosphere on the ship might not suit our constitution.”

  “What about them?” Sevan nodded at the delegation which was still clicking excitedly.

  “They’ll be fine. They’re used to it.”

  As they drew closer to the alien ship, Sevan could see inside the hangar entrance and through some observation windows. The interior of the ship appeared dark and Sevan could feel a sense of foreboding rising within himself. He climbed into his suit and ensured he fastened it tight before clicking the helmet into place.

  He could see Ay-ttho gesticulating at him but with the helmet in place he could hear nothing.

  “I can’t hear you,” he said before realising that she wouldn’t be able to hear him either.

  Ay-ttho was pointing to something on her arm and then pointed to Sevan’s arm. He looked at his arm and then realised that there were lots of buttons on the suit. He looked back at Ay-ttho. She was pointing to a button on her arm and then to her helmet. Sevan looked at his own arm where a found a similar button and pressed it.

  “... love of the Giant Cup, why did they have to send me you?”

  “I can hear you now,” said Sevan, very pleased with himself for having worked out how to communicate.

  The shuttle was entering the huge dark hangar and Ay-ttho went over to a cupboard where she took out what looked like a huge gun which she handed to Sevan.

  “What am I supposed to do with this,” he asked.

  “Point it at them,” Ay-ttho gesticulated towards the delegates from where another squeal emanated followed by lots more clicking as Sevan pointed the weapon towards them.

  Ay-ttho took another gun for herself and stood behind the delegates next to Sevan.

  “How does it work?” he asked.

  “You don’t need to know.”

  “What use is there me having a gun if I don’t know how to use it?”

  “A lot more use than if you knew how to use it and started...”

  “Is it this...?”

  “No!”

  Sevan’s weapon discharged, sending an energy bolt ricocheting around the cockpit until it embedded itself in one of the consoles which burst into flames.

  “For the love of...” Ay-ttho exclaimed. “The shuttle is full of oxygen we’re going to...”

  Fire had already engulfed an entire side of the cockpit.

  Ay-ttho turned and shot at the observation window but her shot rebounded off the reinforced surface and embedded itself in another console at the other side of the cockpit which also burst into flames.

  She started pressing buttons on a control panel to open the loading bay doors but all that happened was that lights began to flash and alarms began to sound adding to the squealing of the delegates and the cracking of the burning cockpit.

  Ay-ttho worked to override the safety system. The shuttle jolted as it docked and the loading bay doors opened. The difference in pressure, sucked the delegates out and dumped them onto the hangar floor. Ay-ttho and Sevan slid out with them along with the oxygen and the vacuum extinguished the fires in the burning shuttle.

  “Sorry,” said Sevan.

  “Don’t talk to me,” warned Ay-ttho.

  With a little encouragement from Ay-ttho waving her gun, the delegates got up from the floor and shuffled towards a door which opened as they approached and led them first into an airlock and then out into an empty corridor.

  “We wish an audience with President Man,” Ay-ttho shouted for whoever might be listening.

  All was silent apart from the constant clicking of the delegates.

  “If you do not take us to the president now, I will shoot the delegates.”

  The squealing and clicking of the delegates increased in pitch and frequency.

  “The President,” Ay-ttho shouted. “Now.”

  She waited for an answer but none came. She activated her weapon and aimed it at the delegates.

  “3...2...1...”

  A security door opened.

  CHAPTER 9: THE ALIEN SHIP

  With the help of Ay-ttho’s waived weapon, the delegates shuffled through while Sevan and Ay-ttho followed. They were in another dark corridor. Ay-ttho and Sevan ushered the delegates forward. Often as they reached a security door, it would open but occasionally it wouldn’t. Sevan felt they were being directed through a maze, he just hoped that they were being led to President Man and not to their deaths.

  After what seemed to Sevan like an age, a door opened and led them, not to another corridor, but to a dark hall with nothing but a cloud of fog which floated in the middle. The delegates squealed and clicked with excitement and then, almost as quickly, fell silent.

  “President Man, we thank you for granting us this audience,” said Ay-ttho.

  Sevan looked around to see to whom Ay-ttho was talking but he could not see the president. He wondered whether the president was behind the cloud of gas.

  “Apologies for the rude nature of our entrance,” Ay-ttho continued. “And apologies to the delegation for any discomfort they may have had to endure during our journey here.”

  The delegation began to click and squeal again.

  “You need not worry, the delegation report that they quite enjoyed their recent adventure.”

  Sevan looked around, searching for the source of the voice but the only inhabitants of the room he could see was himself, Ay-ttho and the delegates. Perhaps there was someone obscured by the cloud.

  “President Man, we would not have come if the need were not urgent and of the utmost importance. I bring with me a representative of a corporation concession on The Doomed Planet at the edge of the system. They treat the engineered workers of the Concession no better than slaves and we come here to ask you to intervene on their behalf to ensure that they receive the working and living conditions that all inhabitants of this system deserve.”

  “Who are you talking to?” Sevan whispered.

  “The president,” Ay-ttho whispered back.

  “Where is he?”

  “Over there.”

  “Where?”

  “There.”

  “Behind the cloud?”

  “He is the cloud.”

  “Oh.”

  “Thank you for your bravery in coming here,” the president spoke. “Be assured that this is not the first time I have heard reports of this sort. You can also take comfort in the fact that I am already taking me
asures to investigate these claims.”

  “How can I hear him if he’s a cloud?” Sevan whispered.

  “Shh.”

  “This is not the only complaint I have received about the corporation and one reason for this conference is to discuss potential measures to curb the dangerous power of the corporation.”

  “That is all we needed to hear.”

  Sevan looked around again to see where this new voice had come from. Ay-ttho was doing the same. The delegates seemed to shed their skins.

  “Run!” Ay-ttho shouted.

  “What?” Sevan asked, turning too late to see that the delegation had somehow turned into a platoon of the corporation security force, brandishing weapons at least one of which was pointing at him.

  He turned back to run after Ay-ttho who had dived behind a pillar. As Sevan dived after her, he felt the pain of a blast which tore through his suit and into his arm. The air hissed from the tear as he lay on the floor next to Ay-ttho who was returning the platoon’s fire.

  Within a moment the weapon fire died down.

  “Is it over?” Sevan asked.

  “They’ve gone after the president,” said Ay-ttho.

  “What’s that terrible smell?”

  “The president.”

  “So I can breathe the air in this ship?”

  “Only if you don’t mind the smell.”

  “Well it doesn’t matter now,” Sevan took off his helmet.

  Ay-ttho seemed to be talking to him but he couldn’t hear her. She removed her helmet.

  “Oh, great. Now I have to smell this ship, too,” she complained. “Come on.”

  “What? Where are we going?”

  “We have to help the president.”

  “What? Why?”

  “We brought the corporation here. It’s all our fault. Now we have to get him out of this mess.”

  Sevan was not happy and his arm hurt. They emerged from behind the pillar.

  “How could they fool us with those terrible disguises?” said Ay-ttho looking at the suits lying on the floor.

  “I thought they were very good. How do we find the president?”

  “Follow the smell.”

  Holding their weapons at the ready, Sevan and Ay-ttho moved through the hall, past smouldering blast marks.

  “There’s something wrong about all this,” said Ay-ttho. “Why doesn’t the president of the system have more security? This ship seems empty. What about the conference?”

  “Does a cloud need security? Any blasts would pass straight through.”

  “President Man is not invulnerable.”

  Ay-ttho stopped and gestured for Sevan to be quiet.

  “What is it?” Sevan asked.

  “Shhh,” Ay-ttho gestured again. “This means quiet.”

  “Sorry.”

  They proceeded with caution. Ahead someone had blasted a hole through a security door. Beyond, they could see the charred legs of a member of the corporation security force.

  As she passed through the hole, Ay-ttho kept her weapon pointed at the owner of the legs. She grimaced as she saw the charred body.

  “Please,” the weak voice, the only sign that the casualty was still alive.

  “What happened?” asked Sevan.

  “The president might not be invulnerable but he is not beyond defending himself.”

  “How do you know he is male? I mean... you know...”

  “Not now.”

  “Please,” the quiet voice pleaded. “End the pain.”

  “Not until you give us information.” Ay-ttho pushed the end of her barrel into the casualty’s chest.

  The casualty cried out in pain.

  It shocked Sevan at how ruthless Ay-ttho could be.

  “Why are you here?” she asked.

  “To kill the president.”

  “Why?”

  “He opposes the corporation.”

  “And?”

  “That’s it.”

  Ay-ttho pushed the barrel into his chest again. The casualty screamed.

  “They formed an alliance to overthrow the republic. Even if he escapes today, he won’t last long.”

  “For fushy sake,” his words shocked Ay-ttho.

  “Please.”

  Ay-ttho blasted him in the head.

  “What was all that about?” asked Sevan.

  “This is much bigger than slavery on the concession. They are trying to overthrow democracy in the entire system. It could mean slavery for everyone.”

  “I never even knew there was a president. I never voted for him, or anyone.”

  “Well you won’t get the chance to vote for anyone if we don’t stop them, come on.”

  “Why didn’t you ask him which way they went?”

  Ay-ttho looked at what the blast had left of the casualty’s head.

  “Oh well, it’s too late now,” she said, setting off down the corridor. “No wonder Ron’s code worked so well, they wanted us to bring them here.”

  Sevan followed her at a trot. She was walking a bit too fast for him. His right arm hurt and he was struggling to carry the gun with his left.

  Ay-ttho followed the blast marks but could find no sign of either the corporation security forces or the president. Nor were there signs of anyone else on the ship, no conference, no foreign delegations, no republic security.

  They reached a dead end with two security doors. One door opened.

  “It’s just like when we first arrived,” said Ay-ttho.

  They went through the door which closed behind them. From then on, doors opened and closed, leading them through the ship until they reached the bridge.

  “Welcome,” said President Man.

  “Where are you?” asked Ay-ttho.

  “I can’t smell him,” said Sevan.

  “Where I am is not important. Where you are is important.”

  “What about the security force?”

  “Look at the monitor.”

  A screen flickered into life showing the charred remains of the platoon in a burned out corridor.

  “They were not aware that I can control many aspects of this ship’s functions remotely, including the doors and the incinerators.”

  “May I ask a question?”

  “Of course, Ay-ttho.”

  “You know my name?”

  “Of course.”

  “There is a fleet of frigates out there. Why didn’t they just use the frigates to destroy this ship?”

  “There are two reasons. First, they planned to blame my assassination on you. That would have given them another excuse to liquidate your planet, as they plan. Second, this ship is not as easy to destroy as you might think. You are about to find out.”

  Ay-ttho and Sevan both looked confused but after a moment of silence they both assumed that President Man must not be able to see them.

  “We are looking confused,” said Ay-ttho.

  “I know, I can see you.”

  “How can he see us if he doesn’t have any eyes?” Sevan whispered.

  “And I can hear you.”

  “How can you...”

  “Shh, not now,” Ay-ttho snapped.

  “You are about to find out,” the president continued. “Because soon they will realise that the assassination attempt has failed and they will come to destroy the ship.”

  “Great,” said Sevan.

  “So I would advise you to leave as fast as possible. You will find a set of controls that match those you would have found on corporation ships.”

  “If you can operate the doors and incinerators,” asked Sevan. “Why don’t you fly it?”

  “I never learned to fly,” admitted the president.

  “Neither did I,” said Sevan. “You should see the damage I did to a set of hangar doors.”

  “I think, Sevan, it would be best if you operate the...”

  “Weapons system, yes, I know.”

  “You can’t talk to the president like that,” Ay-ttho whispered to Sevan as he went to find
his seat. He found one with a set of terminals similar to those he had used on both the corporation shuttle and the Mastery of the Stars.

  “Why do you not have Republic Security forces on this ship?” asked Ay-ttho as she strapped herself in the pilot seat.

  “There was no need to suffer unnecessary casualties.”

  Sevan did not understand.

  “And where is the conference?”

  “In a safe location.”

  “You knew the corporation would attack?”

  Sevan’s display lit up as more and more ships appeared beside the corporation frigates.

  “Er... I think there’s something you should know. There are a lot more of them now. A lot more of them.”

  “Yes, the corporation has formed an alliance, they intend to destroy the structures of the republic.”

  “What should we do?” asked Sevan, the crosshairs on his display were all red. “Should I fire?”

  “Not yet. Ay-ttho, you need to get the ship moving. You will find the coordinates already set in the system.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “We will lead them into an ambush but we must get to the jump point before they do.”

  The alien ship’s acceleration pushed Sevan back into his seat.

  “It moves for a big ship,” said Ay-ttho.

  “Yes, you will find it manoeuvres like a shuttle.”

  The alliance armada set off in pursuit, symbols flashed up on Sevan’s display telling him they were preparing to fire.

  “They’re preparing to fire.”

  “Wait for the first shot,” said the president. “Then you may return fire. We have diversionary systems.”

  As the first missiles approached, Sevan fired decoy flares which eliminated most of the incoming projectiles. The remaining missiles exploded on the thick surface of the ship. Sevan felt the vibrations.

  “Don’t you have force shields of something?” asked Sevan.

  “They have too much science fiction on the entertainment implants at this concession of yours. Fire at will.”

  Sevan began to fire at the targets and cheered at every successful impact.

  “Could you keep it down over there,” Ay-ttho complained. “I’m trying to fly this thing.”

  The alien ship weaved from side to side at speeds Sevan had never experienced before but still the Alliance armada was closing.