by Ryk Brown
“Very well.” Nathan looked toward Del and the other Subvert volunteers as they approached. “Marcus tells me I should thank you all for your hard work,” Nathan said to them.
“I didn’t exactly say that,” Marcus grumbled.
“It was our pleasure, Captain,” Del replied.
“How many people do you have here?” Nathan wondered.
“Twelve on this crew,” Del replied. “Another thirteen are working on the nacelle refit, and a third group should be starting work in a few days. We should have your new long-jump nacelles ready within a week.”
“That’s great news,” Nathan exclaimed. “I can’t thank you enough, Mister Shelton.”
“No thanks are necessary,” Del insisted. “It’s been a pleasure working on something where we don’t have to scrounge for parts or wait until we have the funds to continue. Besides, we figure this is the best way we can help defend our world and put an end to the attacks we’ve suffered for decades.”
“I’ll be sure to deal with the worlds that have been harassing SilTek, just as soon as we solidify our foothold in the Pentaurus sector,” Nathan promised. “In fact, as soon as you can get the second XK ready, that will be her mission.”
Del smiled broadly. “We’ll get right on it.”
“Is everything loaded?” Nathan asked Marcus.
“All the parts for the missile launch and recovery systems are packed into the aft bays,” Marcus assured him. “Her tanks are topped, her galley’s full, and all her jump cells are fully charged. Hell, we even got two P-Seventy-Twos loaded up and ready to go.”
“Are you sure you don’t want a couple of Lightning pilots to come along?” Del suggested. “Lan and I are still available.”
“Thanks, but I need you both here,” Nathan explained. “Besides, I seriously doubt we’ll be needing them anytime soon.”
“Well, if you do need them, Dylan can show you how they work. They’re pretty easy to fly at lower speeds. It’s only when you start pushing the edge of the envelope that they get a bit tricky. Their software was designed for racing, not combat. We’re working on revisions, but it takes time.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Nathan said, patting Del on the shoulder as he headed for the forward boarding ramp that hung down under the nose of the ship.
Nathan, Jessica, and Marcus walked alongside the ship. Nathan paused a moment, noticing the name on the side of the ship. ‘KAS Dalen Voss’. He looked at Marcus, a smile on his face. “Very nice.”
“We thought about puttin’ his likeness under the name, but the kid was so damned goofy-looking.”
“That he was,” Nathan agreed, continuing forward.
The three of them reached the bottom of the forward boarding ramp and headed up the incline, ducking slightly to clear the forward edge of the bay above them. Once they reached the top, they stepped through the hatch into the forward corridor. Marcus pressed a button on the wall console, causing the ramp to retract, and then closed the inside hatch.
“All the staterooms are ready to go,” Marcus reported. “We kept all the stacked double-bunks, in case we need the extra room.”
“Good thinking,” Nathan agreed.
“For now, all the upper bunks are full of parts and supplies we didn’t have room for,” Marcus continued as they made their way to the steep stair-ladder at the center of the corridor, “on account of the aft bays being packed full of missile launcher components. Once that’s fully assembled, the upper bunks will be clear.”
Nathan was the first up the ladder, followed by Jessica and then Marcus. When he reached the top, he turned to his left, making a one-eighty and heading forward between the rail and the starboard duty station. “Good morning, gentlemen,” he greeted Josh and Loki, who were already in their seats in the cockpit. “Ready to take the Voss for a short trip?”
“More than ready,” Josh replied. “I can’t wait to get off this rock.”
“You don’t like it here?” Nathan wondered.
“Everything is too damned nice and clean,” Josh complained.
“I rather like it,” Loki insisted.
“You would,” Josh replied. “Besides, the Aurora’s got better food.”
Loki frowned at his friend in surprise. “Are you kidding?”
“The food here is too fancy,” Josh insisted. “I don’t need all that crap.”
“We’ve already got clearance from SilTek Control,” Loki reported. “We can lift off whenever you like.”
“Then let’s get under way,” Nathan instructed.
“Now we’re talking,” Josh exclaimed, initiating the liftoff sequencer.
“I don’t understand,” Dylan admitted. “How can a world be ‘too clean’?”
“If you saw Haven, you’d understand,” Nathan replied.
“SilTek Control, this is the Dalen Voss. We are starting our liftoff sequence,” Loki reported over comms as the XK’s grav-lift systems began to hum.
“Dalen Voss, SilTek Control. You are cleared for departure via the Alberre corridor. Departure jump at three thousand meters.”
“Alberre corridor, jump at three thousand,” Loki confirmed as the hum intensified.
“On behalf of Ariana Batista and all Tekans, we offer congratulations on the launch of the Alliance’s first patrol ship, and we wish you a safe journey,” the controller added.
“Patrol ship?” Jessica wondered.
“It works, I suppose,” Nathan decided.
“Patrol-class it is, then,” Jessica replied, taking a seat at the starboard duty station.
The XK rose slowly as Del and the other Subvert volunteers watched. At a meter above the ground, her four landing struts retracted slowly up into her main hull as she continued to ascend. Once her gear was fully retracted, the ship rotated slowly to starboard about ninety degrees and then began moving forward as she climbed.
“She definitely has a smooth, quiet liftoff,” Loki commented.
“Reminds me of the Contra ships,” Nathan said as he gazed out the forward windows. The landscape slowly fell away, and the ship began to accelerate smoothly. He glanced down at Josh, noting that the pilot’s hands were just hovering over the flight controls and not actually touching them. “Trust her, Josh. She can fly herself.”
“Just promise me that I’ll eventually get to fly her manually,” Josh begged.
“Just as soon as we’re certain everything is working properly,” Nathan assured him.
“Coming up on jump altitude,” Loki reported. “On course for our first jump.”
“Jump when ready,” Nathan confirmed.
“Jumping in five seconds,” Loki replied. “Three……two……one…”
A brighter-than-usual jump flash filled the command deck, causing everyone to instinctively turn away.
“Departure jump complete,” Loki reported. “Long jump one of three, in thirty seconds.”
“A little bright, isn’t it?” Jessica complained.
“Yeah, we’re overpowering the emitters a bit,” Dylan confessed. “Something about the ‘bubble’ shape that Tekan emitters generate. We’re going to need to do some tweaking on them.”
“Maybe we need to change out all our windows to the auto-darkening stuff as well,” Nathan suggested.
“All of them?” Marcus grumbled.
“Might as well,” Nathan confirmed.
“Shade your eyes, people,” Loki warned. “Long jump one in three……two……one…”
Again, an overwhelming flash of blue-white light momentarily filled the compartment.
Nathan blinked several times. “Yes, definitely all of them.”
“Long jump one, complete,” Loki reported. “One hour until long jump two.”
“Do we have any reserve jump juice?” Jessica asked.
“Del’s people installed a reser
ve bank that receives a constant trickle charge, so we always have enough for a quick escape,” Dylan explained.
“How far?” Nathan asked.
“Enough for about a light day.”
“It’s got three range settings,” Loki added. “One light minute, one light hour, and one light day.”
“So we can make fourteen hundred and forty one-minute jumps?” Nathan asked.
“Or twenty-four one-hour jumps,” Marcus told him.
“Or any combination of the two,” Josh added, “as long as they don’t add up to more than a light day.”
“That should do it,” Nathan decided. “Let’s go check out the rest of the ship while we’re waiting for our jump cells to recharge,” he suggested.
“If you don’t mind, I’m going to take a shower,” Marcus declared.
“Good idea,” Nathan agreed.
* * *
Lord Dusahn stood at the center of the small warship’s bridge, carefully examining the displays of the various duty stations while his lead inspector studied the ship’s systems readouts.
“Ship-wide diagnostics are complete,” his inspector reported. “All systems are operating as designed.”
Lord Dusahn turned to his second. “Your assessment, Mister Jexx?”
“Calling this ship a destroyer is a bit of a stretch,” the commander, who was also dressed in civilian attire, began. “More a cross between a heavy gunship and a small frigate. They are somewhat underpowered, and we would be unable to maintain shields and full firepower while jumping.”
“Can we add additional power sources?” Lord Dusahn asked.
“There is space in the cargo holds,” the inspector agreed. “However, we would have to route power conduits to them.”
“They are not terribly maneuverable, either,” Commander Jexx added.
“The quad-cannons more than make up for their lack of maneuverability,” the seller insisted.
“The drain from the quad-cannons is what makes the ship underpowered,” Commander Jexx rebutted.
“These ships were not built as warships,” the inspector opined. “That much is obvious.”
“They were originally built as armed transports,” the seller explained. “Later, the quad-cannons were added, and their cargo capacity was reduced, thus converting them into what the original owners considered to be destroyers.”
“Calling a ship a destroyer does not make it one,” Commander Jexx commented.
“Where did you acquire these vessels?” Lord Dusahn questioned the seller.
“The current owner wishes to remain anonymous,” the seller replied. “Political appearances and all. Surely a man of your status can understand.”
Lord Dusahn glared at the seller.
“All I can say is that they were prizes acquired through an armed conflict between two worlds,” the seller said. “The victor has enough of his own ships and much work to do to recover from the conflict. The revenue from the sale of these ships will help.”
“And the other five ships are in similar condition?” Lord Dusahn asked.
“Indeed they are, Mister Griosan. You are, of course, free to inspect them as well.”
“We shall,” Lord Dusahn confirmed. “If you’ll excuse us a moment.”
“Of course,” the seller agreed, turning and heading off the bridge.
Lord Dusahn waited long enough for the seller to depart the bridge, then turned to his underlings.
“I don’t like them,” the inspector stated plainly.
“Neither do I,” Commander Jexx agreed. “However, they would provide us with additional protection far more quickly than outfitting unarmed ships.”
“The shields are garbage,” the inspector insisted.
“Which is probably why they lost their little war,” Lord Dusahn stated.
“Every piece of technology on this ship, with the exception of its jump drive, is grossly inferior to ours.”
“Yet they are here, ready to press into service.”
“I would not want to take them into battle,” Commander Jexx warned. “Not without upgrading their shields and power generation capabilities at the very least.”
“Then that will be our first priority,” Lord Dusahn decided.
“There are too many points of entry as well,” Commander Jexx pointed out. “They would be difficult to defend against a boarding attempt.”
“That’s one of the things I like about them,” Lord Dusahn admitted.
“Getting them up to our standards will be expensive,” the inspector warned.
“We’d best get them at a good price,” Commander Jexx stated. “Our accounts are not bottomless.”
“I will get the price down to something tolerable,” Lord Dusahn assured him. “Trust me on that.” He turned toward the exit. “Mister Dekkan,” he called out.
A moment later, the seller appeared.
“To save time, you and I should begin the negotiating process while my people inspect the other five vessels,” Lord Dusahn suggested.
A smile came across Mister Dekkan’s face as he contemplated the size of his commission. “Shall we use the captain’s ready room?” he suggested. “I have lunch prepared.”
“An excellent idea,” Lord Dusahn agreed.
* * *
“I thought you were jumping the ship,” Nathan asked as Josh came down the access stairs to the landing alongside the P-Seventy-Two Lightning’s cockpit.
“Marcus can handle it.”
“Marcus?” Dylan said, his eyes widening.
“Relax, the AI’s flying it,” Josh explained. “Marcus is just monitoring it. Whattaya think, Lok?” he asked Loki, who was sitting in the Lightning’s cockpit. “Your big ass fit in that thing?”
“A little tight, but I fit,” Loki replied, ignoring his friend’s jab. “What are these pedals for?” Loki asked Dylan, looking down at the floor between his legs.
“Acceleration and lift,” Dylan explained. “Right pedal makes you go, left pedal keeps you in the air.”
“Sounds easy enough,” Josh commented.
“It’s a little more complex than it first appears,” Dylan warned. “The pedals only work with the grav-drive, so only when you’re in the atmosphere. The further you get from the surface, the less responsive those pedals become.”
“How does it fly in space then?” Nathan wondered.
“That was the hard part,” Dylan stated. “They had to beef up the chassis and wing structures to accommodate the additional propulsion and maneuvering systems required to navigate in a micro-gravity environment.”
“You mean the original version was smaller?” Loki wondered, already cramped enough in the tiny cockpit.
“The cockpit is the same, just the body and wings are slimmer. The fighter versions aren’t actually as fast as the racing versions, at least down low, because they’re heavier and not as aerodynamic.”
“Can’t you just use the main propulsion down low to go faster?” Josh wondered.
“Not a good idea,” Dylan warned. “The altered hull isn’t really strong enough to survive the additional atmospheric friction. That’s why we don’t climb to orbit in them; we jump.”
“So they’re flying tin cans,” Josh decided.
“Tin?”
“A type of metal,” Nathan explained to Dylan.
“Oh, they’re completely composite. Very little metal in them at all,” Dylan assured him.
“Great, they’re plastic,” Josh said.
“Plastic?” Dylan wondered.
“Never mind,” Nathan told him. “Continue.”
“Where was I?” Dylan wondered.
“How do you steer this thing?” Josh asked.
“You have a five-axis flight control stick on the right,” Dylan explained. “Pitch, roll, yaw, and fo
re-aft and port-starboard translations on the base. Upward and downward translation are on the side toggle on the upper left side of the stick.”
“So pretty standard then,” Josh concluded.
“What about these sliders on the left?” Loki wondered. “Are these throttles?”
“The larger one is your main propulsion throttle. The smaller ones are the power levels for your maneuvering thrusters and your grav-drive systems.”
“I thought the pedals were for the grav-drive,” Loki stated.
“They are,” Dylan replied. “The sliders adjust the amount of available power to those systems. For example, with the accelerator pedal down halfway and the forward power slider at halfway, you’ll probably be cruising along at about three hundred KPH. Put the pedal all the way down, and you’ll be at around six hundred. But push the power slider all the way to the max, and your top speed will be about twelve hundred KPH, depending on atmospheric conditions.”
“So this thing will go supersonic?” Nathan wondered. “Without the space drive?”
“Of course,” Dylan replied, shocked that Nathan was so surprised. “The racing versions are at least forty percent faster.”
“And you race them at low altitudes?” Nathan asked.
“Yes.”
“How low?” Josh wondered.
“Professional level races are flown under a thirty-meter ceiling.”
“Supersonic at thirty meters?” Nathan couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“Below thirty meters,” Dylan corrected.
“Do people die in these races?” Jessica wondered.
“Occasionally,” Dylan admitted. “But usually because someone tried to go professional before they were truly ready.”
“I think I may have found myself a new career,” Josh joked.
* * *
“One hundred trillion credits per ship is a very good deal,” Mister Dekkan insisted.
“I am not arguing that it is a fair price,” Lord Dusahn replied. “But paying it will leave me little money for the necessary upgrades.”
“Perhaps you can upgrade them a little at a time, as revenue permits?”
