by S. H. Jucha
No optical target, Jess thought. The shadow needed a weapon override to enable manual operation.
Jess motioned Simlan and Hessan to his side. He whispered instructions, and the Dischnya stealthily crept out of sight.
Oforum twisted around to eye Jess, who patted the air, palm down, to indicate patience. The explosive percussion of darts snapped the Pim’s attention back to the brush pile.
An adult gray burst from hiding, running from its attackers, who’d crept from behind and flushed it. Observing the adversaries in front, the gray abruptly changed course.
The shadow tracked the insectoid and fired its laser once. Immediately, the gray crumpled to the ground.
Jess and Daktora advanced on the insectoid, and Simlan and Hessan easily vaulted the brush pile to join them.
Jess saw what he wanted to know. There was a neat single hole in the side of the gray’s head. “The gray has a body with a length of over three meters, and the shadow puts the shot through the head, while the insectoid is on the run,” he commented.
“The SADEs,” Simlan said. “Within their tools, they leave little to chance. It’s comforting to work with them.”
Hessan looked up. The traveler was a speck in the sky. “I’d be surprised if the SADEs aren’t already designing version two of the shadow hunter based on what they’re observing.”
Oforum had driven her shadow to join her protectors. She regarded Jess. A dark nail imperially tapped the other two dots.
The Dischnya and Daktora regarded Jess with sympathy.
“Agreed,” Jess replied to Oforum’s unspoken question.
In response, Oforum flipped the joystick to the right, and the shadow leapt forward under her guidance.
The protectors hurried to keep up, but Daktora slowly fell behind. Jess glanced back, and the Crocian waved to him to continue.
Jess was envious of the speed with which the shadow covered the rough terrain. Its multiple legs served it well.
A hundred meters later, Oforum halted her advance. The shadow’s sensor and weapon pointed at a pile of rocks.
Jess was the third protector to arrive by Oforum’s side. He was breathing hard, and the Dischnya looked at him with sympathy.
“I’ll be fine,” Jess said, between labored gasps for air. He couldn’t remember the last time he had to run so far so fast with equipment.
“Not a good time to be without a plasma rifle,” Hessan said, indicating the stone pile.
“This is a test of the shadow and the rider,” Jess reminded Hessan, “We’re not here to be the ones hunting the insectoids.”
Jess stared at the rocks. It wasn’t a huge pile, which made him wonder how deep the adults were able to hide.
“Well, Oforum, what would you like to try?” Jess inquired.
Oforum preened at the opportunity that Jess offered her. She would be the one to decide the method of attack. Suddenly, she realized the conundrum. Freedom to choose didn’t necessarily mean having the experience to choose wisely.
“A suggestion would be appreciated, Captain,” Oforum requested, with some humility.
“Release your harness, Oforum, and step off the shadow,” Jess instructed. “Let’s see how good the SADEs can program.”
Reluctantly, Oforum gave up her seat. Abruptly, she felt exposed. On the shadow, she felt powerful, even invincible. She knew that was a flight of fancy, but Mickey’s invention had offered her personal protection that had been missing since even before the Colony invaded Pimbor.
After a brief hesitation, Oforum tapped the joystick to put the shadow in autopilot. Immediately, she stepped close to Jess, her shoulder brushing his knee.
The shadow’s programs analyzed what the sniffer detected and what the optical sensors relayed. Then, with deliberation, it started forward.
At the face of the rocks, the shadow’s sniffer rotated, testing the air. Then, the spider-like creation crabbed sideways, seeking a stronger scent. It stopped and the sniffer elevated to its limit and then lowered.
There was a slight hesitation on the part of the shadow, as if it was considering the challenge. When the SADEs’ algorithms had reached an optimal decision, the shadow began climbing the rocks. Using its legs, it wedged them in cracks or levered them against opposing faces. It was an eye-opening demonstration of expert rock-climbing skills.
Near the top of the pile, the shadow positioned itself to bridge the tops of three stones. It twisted on its legs, until its laser pointed down between the stones. Then the laser fired. The shadow made a slight position adjustment. Then the laser fired again.
The team watched the shadow’s head twist and tilt, searching for views of its adversaries. Then the body moved half a meter to a new location, and it oriented in another incredulously awkward position. Finally, the laser discharged again.
The shadow’s program ended its aggressor routine and reset to the search program. Viewing its present position and comparing it to the flat terrain below, the decision was made to descend the rocks. The legs bent and then extended, which sent the shadow flying off the rock pile. The main body struck the ground. As the shadow bounced, the legs, which had absorbed some of the impact, caught the body as it headed for the ground a second time.
Oforum saw the sniffer sweeping for new targets. She dropped to all fours and scampered forward to put the shadow in manual control. Without hesitation, she jumped into the seat and strapped into the harness. A sense of calm and strength returned, as she sat astride her metal champion.
“SADE handiwork, Captain,” Hessan commented. He kept his tongue inside his muzzle, lest the captain think he was the target of his mirth.
“We can suppose that either the shadow eliminated the adults, or the grays are too well hidden,” Simlan added. “The former is the more likely outcome of the shadow’s efforts.”
Jess checked his chronometer. It would soon be time for a break and midday meal. He directed the team to a point about twenty meters away from the rocks and requested absolute silence. He was curious to see if the grays were alive and might venture from hiding.
By the time the traveler arrived, the grays never made an appearance. Jess did have an indication of their statuses. Small scavengers arrived and crawled into the spaces between the rocks. Jess reasoned that they were attracted by the grays’ body fluids, which would be draining onto the rocks and soil.
Phette was delighted to greet his mate. He knew in advance of their meeting that she was safe. Sam had kept him informed.
Mickey eyed the Pims, who happily discussed their successes. “The shadows appear to be hits,” he commented. “Let’s eat, Captain, while we discuss the events of the morning.”
As the traveler returned to base, Jess chose to sit on the edge of the shuttle’s rear ramp as he ate, which was a little disconcerting to Mickey, a devout spacer. Both men noticed that they were bracketed by Miriam and Juliette, who no doubt were there to prevent foolish actions by important humans.
Mickey pulled the list of changes for the shadows from his implant. Between mouthfuls, he said, “The limited rotation of the sniffer and the laser are at the top of our priorities. We predicated much of our shadow’s actions on catching the insectoids in the open. Sorry about that. Your advice would have been invaluable.”
Jess meant to clap Mickey on the back, as a way of accepting his apology, but Miriam’s scowl stopped his hand from touching the engineer. Instead, he said, “Bad starts don’t have to mean bad finishes. We were impressed by the speed and accuracy with which the laser eliminated the adults and juveniles it did catch in the open.”
“Against the juveniles, the shadows will be extremely effective,” Tacnock added. “They’re too small to target with our darts.”
“For the future, the Pims and shadows will need support,” Jess continued. “There are too many adults hiding in hard-to-access places.”
“A plasma rifle with every Pim and shadow would prove opportune,” Bortoth commented.
“I was impressed by the sh
adow’s rock-climbing skills,” Daktora said. As a Crocian, it was a level of agility that he could only dream of possessing.
“We’ll add a temporary air supply for the riders for when they cross water,” Mickey said, examining his list.
“Would that enable us to submerge?” Oforum asked excitedly.
“It would be a full facemask design,” Miriam said. “However, the air supply is for emergency purposes. You shouldn’t cross water any deeper than what Phette encountered.”
For the first time, Oforum noticed Phette’s wet bottom. She touched the soaked fabric and issued a soft squeak of humor.
“The Pims could use a recall method for their rides,” Homsaff recommended. “Without implants, it must be a device.”
“We have that one,” Mickey replied.
“Place it on a chain to go around our necks,” Phette suggested. “That will keep our hands free.”
After further conversation, Mickey finished his list, and asked, “Have we covered everything, Captain?”
“One more thing,” Jess said. “Add a manual override for the laser.”
“For what circumstances, Captain?” Mickey asked, with concern. “We’ve built multiple safety factors into the decision to fire the laser.”
“At some point, the Pims will be here alone with their shadows,” Jess replied. “They’ll need to flush the insectoids with their lasers.”
“We can change the programming when we’re clearing the planet,” Mickey offered.
Jess politely shook his head. “We need to be able to train the Pims now on when to release the shadows to hunt and when to use them as a tool,” Jess replied.
Mickey regarded Jess, trying to gauge how much to push back on this subject. Then he received images from Miriam. They showed the faces of Jess’s defenders, who were at Mickey’s back. Their expressions displayed subtle irritation at Mickey’s hesitancy to accept their assault commander’s request.
“We’ll do as you say, Captain,” Mickey said. “You’re the expert and the individual in harm’s way.”
21: Taking Pimbor
Every fleet member, including Alex, felt the exit from the final transit to Pimbor’s approach.
Of the one thousand Sylian troops, Pia Sabine and her medical staff set about removing the brainwave interrupter on the temples of nineteen of them. The transit out of the Sylian system had identified the nineteen troopers who were susceptible to a starship twisting space.
Pia’s staff had put the nineteen troopers under for the exit into the Pimborian system. They’d kept them unconscious until the completion of the short transit by the Freedom and Darius and Lucia’s commands to arrive above Pimbor.
Alex linked through the city-ship’s controller to Juliette.
Juliette replied.
Alex surmised that Lucia was talking to Jess, which is why Juliette chose to wake him. Furthermore, it would have been Lucia who would have requested the SADE’s privacy. The details of the call weren’t important to him, but the swiftness of the call and Jess’s anxiousness to speak with Lucia did interest him. He chuckled, and in response to his chest’s vibrations, Renée, who was asleep, snuggled closer.
Next, Alex reached out to contact Mickey. He could count on his chief engineer working late.
Mickey’s immediate thought was that access to the battlefield was restricted by the assault commander, and Jess wasn’t any more likely to allow Alex near a ground encounter than he’d been to grant Mickey the opportunity. You’ll get a view from the back end of a shuttle like me, Alex, Mickey thought.
Mickey sent.
Closing one link and accepting the other, Alex sent, via Juliette, a request to speak to Jess,
“Mixed,” Jess replied, staring directly into Juliette’s eyes. “We’ve two parts to the problem. The adults have adopted a hide-and-procreate strategy. They’ve flooded this planet with young. If left unchecked, the SADEs estimate that in three years the juveniles will be breeding.”
“Menous and most of his Norsitchians have been tasked with guarding the Pims’ landing zone, escorting their land transports, and protecting Mickey’s work zone,” Jess explained. “The Dischnya, the veterans, and a few Norsitchians have been hunting with the Pims and their shadows.”
“Well,” Jess replied. “Many of the adults run, and we’re able to track a portion of them, but the juveniles are ravenous, and they attack us. There are great debates about whose scents are attracting the young.”
Alex chuckled, imagining the banter that would be taking place. He missed being in the forefront of the Omnians’ encounters, but he’d come to accept his place in the scheme of things.
“Juliette?” Jess queried.
Juliette said and simultaneously sent, “Since the employment of the sha
dow teams, two thousand six hundred fifty-four juveniles and one hundred thirteen adults have been eliminated.”
“The sad part, Alex, is that we’re fighting a growing menace and failing to contain it,” Jess said.
Jess sat down on a crate. He’d left his cot, when Juliette woke him for Lucia’s call. He rubbed his face vigorously to help him focus, and he repeated Alex’s question in his mind.
“I need to keep the Sylian troops aboard the Freedom, for now,” Jess said. “They need to be trained before they engage the insectoids independently. A group of them can soon relieve the Norsitchians of guard duty. They’re the veterans who I need in the field. Mickey needs parts to make more shadows, and we need a big work party to clear an area and construct protected shelters for the Sylian troops. In time, my veterans will train and test new troops in field tactics against the insectoids.”
“Those will make a huge difference,” Jess said, exhibiting relief.
Jess’s first thought was that this concerned the next steps in retaking the Pimborian planet and dome, except for one thing. He was talking to Alex Racine.
“You mean about the other lost domes?” Jess inquired.
“Alex, you do realize that I’m a captain without a ship, and I’m out here on a cold Pimborian night talking to a SADE to communicate privately with you.”
Jess was reminded why the Omnians followed the man. His persuasiveness stemmed from the way he focused on the future and reminded individuals how they could contribute to making it better. It was an enticing form of command.
